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You may copy it, give it away or re-use + it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License <a href= + "#pglicense" class="tei tei-ref">included with this eBook</a> or + online at <a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/license" class= + "tei tei-xref">http://www.gutenberg.org/license</a></p> + </div> + <pre class="pre tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 3.00em; margin-top: 3.00em"> +Title: The Expositor's Bible: The Books of Chronicles + +Author: William Henry Bennett + +Release Date: July 21, 2012 [Ebook #40235] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: UTF-8 + + +***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE EXPOSITOR'S BIBLE: THE BOOKS OF CHRONICLES*** +</pre> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"></div> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <p class="tei tei-p" style= + "text-align: center; margin-bottom: 1.44em"><span style= + "font-size: 144%">The Expositor's Bible</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style= + "text-align: center; margin-bottom: 1.73em"><span style= + "font-size: 173%">The Books of Chronicles</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style= + "text-align: center; margin-bottom: 1.20em"><span style= + "font-size: 120%">By</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style= + "text-align: center; margin-bottom: 1.44em"><span style= + "font-size: 144%">William Henry Bennett</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style= + "text-align: center; margin-bottom: 1.00em">Professor of Old + Testament Languages and Literature, Mackney and New Colleges; + Sometime Fellow of St. John's College, Cambridge</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style= + "text-align: center; margin-bottom: 1.00em">Hodder & + Stoughton</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style= + "text-align: center; margin-bottom: 1.00em">New York</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style= + "text-align: center; margin-bottom: 1.00em">George H, Doran + Company</p> + </div> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em; margin-top: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">Contents</span></h1> + + <ul class="tei tei-index tei-index-toc"> + <li><a href="#toc1">Preface</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc3">Book I. Introduction.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc5">Chapter I. Date And + Authorship.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc7">Chapter II. Historical + Setting.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc9">Chapter III. Sources + And Mode Of Composition.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc11">Chapter IV. The + Importance of Chronicles.</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc13">Book II. Genealogies.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc15">Chapter I. Names. 1 + Chron. i-ix.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc17">Chapter II. Heredity. + 1 Chron. i.-ix.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc19">Chapter III. + Statistics.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc21">Chapter IV. Family + Traditions. 1 Chron. i. 10, 19, 46; ii. 3, 7, 34; iv. 9, 10, 18, + 22, 27, 34-43; v. 10, 18-22; vii. 21-23; viii. 13.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc23">Chapter V. The Jewish + Community In The Time Of The Chronicler.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc25">Chapter VI. Teaching + By Anachronism. 1 Chron. ix. (cf. xv., xvi., xxiii.-xxvii., + etc.).</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc27">Book III. Messianic And Other Types.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc29">Chapter I. Teaching + By Types.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc31">Chapter II. David—I. + His Tribe And Dynasty.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc33">Chapter III. + David—II. His Personal History.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc35">Chapter IV. + David—III. His Official Dignity.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc37">Chapter V. + Solomon.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc39">Chapter VI. Solomon + (continued).</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc41">Chapter VII. The + Wicked Kings. 2 Chron. xxviii., etc.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc43">Chapter VIII. The + Priests.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc45">Chapter IX. The + Prophets.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc47">Chapter X. Satan. 1 + Chron. xxi.-xxii. 1.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc49">Chapter XI. + Conclusion.</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc51">Book IV. The Interpretation Of + History.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc53">Chapter I. The Last + Prayer Of David. 1 Chron. xxix. 10-19.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc55">Chapter II. Rehoboam + And Abijah: The Importance Of Ritual. 2 Chron. x.-xiii.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc57">Chapter III. Asa: + Divine Retribution. 2 Chron. xiv.-xvi.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc59">Chapter IV. + Jehoshaphat—The Doctrine Of Non-Resistance. 2 Chron. + xvii.-xx.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc61">Chapter V. Jehoram, + Ahaziah, and Athaliah: The Consequences of a Foreign Marriage. 2 + Chron. xxi.-xxiii.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc63">Chapter VI. Joash and + Amaziah. 2 Chron. xxiv.-xxv.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc65">Chapter VII. Uzziah, + Jotham, and Ahaz. 2 Chron. xxvi.-xxviii.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc67">Chapter VIII. + Hezekiah: The Religious Value Of Music. 2 Chron. + xxix.-xxxii.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc69">Chapter IX. Manasseh: + Repentance And Forgiveness. 2 Chron. xxxiii.</a></li> + + <li style="margin-left: 2em"><a href="#toc71">Chapter X. The Last + Kings Of Judah. 2 Chron. xxxiv.-xxxvi.</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc73">Footnotes</a></li> + </ul> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-body" style= + "margin-bottom: 6.00em; margin-top: 6.00em"> + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="pagev">[pg v]</span><a name="Pgv" id="Pgv" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc1" id="toc1"></a> <a name="pdf2" id="pdf2"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em; margin-top: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">Preface</span></h1> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">To expound + Chronicles in a series which has dealt with Samuel, Kings, Ezra, and + Nehemiah is to glean scattered ears from a field already harvested. + Sections common to Chronicles with the older histories have therefore + been treated as briefly as is consistent with preserving the + continuity of the narrative. Moreover, an exposition of Chronicles + does not demand or warrant an attempt to write the history of Judah. + To recombine with Chronicles matter which its author deliberately + omitted would only obscure the characteristic teaching he intended to + convey. On the one hand, his selection of material has a religious + significance, which must be ascertained by careful comparison with + Samuel and Kings; on the other hand, we can only do justice to the + chronicler as we ourselves adopt, for the time being, his own + attitude towards the history of Hebrew politics, literature, and + religion. In the more strictly expository <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="pagevi">[pg vi]</span><a name="Pgvi" id="Pgvi" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> parts of this volume I have sought to confine + myself to the carrying out of these principles.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Amongst other + obligations to friends, I must specially mention my indebtedness to + the Rev. T. H. Darlow, M.A., for a careful reading of the + proof-sheets and many very valuable suggestions.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">One object I have + had in view has been to attempt to show the fresh force and clearness + with which modern methods of Biblical study have emphasised the + spiritual teaching of Chronicles.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page001">[pg 001]</span><a name= + "Pg001" id="Pg001" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc3" id="toc3"></a> <a name="pdf4" id="pdf4"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em; margin-top: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">Book I. + Introduction.</span></h1><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page003">[pg + 003]</span><a name="Pg003" id="Pg003" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc5" id="toc5"></a> <a name="pdf6" id="pdf6"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter I. Date And + Authorship.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Chronicles is a + curious literary torso. A comparison with Ezra and Nehemiah shows + that the three originally formed a single whole. They are written + in the same peculiar late Hebrew style; they use their sources in + the same mechanical way; they are all saturated with the + ecclesiastical spirit; and their Church order and doctrine rest + upon the complete Pentateuch, and especially upon the Priestly + Code. They take the same keen interest in genealogies, statistics, + building operations, Temple ritual, priests and Levites, and most + of all in the Levitical doorkeepers and singers. Ezra and Nehemiah + form an obvious continuation of Chronicles; the latter work breaks + off in the middle of a paragraph intended to introduce the account + of the return from the Captivity; Ezra repeats the beginning of the + paragraph and gives its conclusion. Similarly the register of the + high-priests is begun in 1 Chron. vi. 4-15 and completed in Neh. + xii. 10, 11.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We may compare + the whole work to the image in Daniel's vision whose head was of + fine gold, his breast and arms of silver, his belly and his thighs + of brass, his legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay. + Ezra and Nehemiah preserve some of the finest historical material + in the Old Testament, and are our only <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page004">[pg 004]</span><a name="Pg004" id="Pg004" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> authority for a most important crisis in the + religion of Israel. The torso that remains when these two books are + removed is of very mixed character, partly borrowed from the older + historical books, partly taken down from late tradition, and partly + constructed according to the current philosophy of history.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The date<a id= + "noteref_1" name="noteref_1" href="#note_1"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">1</span></span></a> of this + work lies somewhere between the conquest of the Persian empire by + Alexander and the revolt of the Maccabees, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span>, + between <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">b.c.</span></span> 332 and <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">b.c.</span></span> 166. The register in + Neh. xii. 10, 11, closes with Jaddua, the well-known high-priest of + Alexander's time; the genealogy of the house of David in 1 Chron. + iii. extends to about the same date, or, according to the ancient + versions, even down to about <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">b.c.</span></span> 200. The + ecclesiastical system of the priestly code, established by Ezra and + Nehemiah <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">b.c.</span></span> 444, was of such old + standing to the author of Chronicles that he introduces it as a + matter of course into his descriptions of the worship of the + monarchy. Another feature which even more clearly indicates a late + date is the use of the term <span class="tei tei-q">“king of + Persia”</span> instead of simply <span class="tei tei-q">“the + King”</span> or <span class="tei tei-q">“the Great King.”</span> + The latter were the customary designations of the Persian kings + while the empire lasted; after its fall, the title needed to be + qualified by the name <span class="tei tei-q">“Persia.”</span> + These facts, together with the style and language, would be best + accounted for by a date somewhere between <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">b.c.</span></span> 300 and <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">b.c.</span></span> 250. On the other + hand, the Maccabæan struggle revolutionised the national and + ecclesiastical system which Chronicles everywhere takes for + granted, and the silence of the author as to this revolution is + conclusive proof that he wrote before it began.</p><span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page005">[pg 005]</span><a name="Pg005" id="Pg005" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There is no + evidence whatever as to the name of the author; but his intense + interest in the Levites and in the musical service of the Temple, + with its orchestra and choir, renders it extremely probable that he + was a Levite and a Temple-singer or musician. We might compare the + Temple, with its extensive buildings and numerous priesthood, to an + English cathedral establishment, and the author of Chronicles to + some vicar-choral, or, perhaps better, to the more dignified + precentor. He would be enthusiastic over his music, a cleric of + studious habits and scholarly tastes, not a man of the world, but + absorbed in the affairs of the Temple, as a monk in the life of his + convent or a minor canon in the politics and society of the minster + close. The times were uncritical, and so our author was + occasionally somewhat easy of belief as to the enormous magnitude + of ancient Hebrew armies and the splendour and wealth of ancient + Hebrew kings; the narrow range of his interests and experience gave + him an appetite for innocent gossip, professional or otherwise. But + his sterling religious character is shown by the earnest piety and + serene faith which pervade his work. If we venture to turn to + English fiction for a rough illustration of the position and + history of our chronicler, the name that at once suggests itself is + that of Mr. Harding, the precentor in <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Barchester + Towers</span></span>. We must however remember that there is very + little to distinguish the chronicler from his later authorities; + and the term <span class="tei tei-q">“chronicler”</span> is often + used for <span class="tei tei-q">“the chronicler or one of his + predecessors.”</span></p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page006">[pg 006]</span><a name= + "Pg006" id="Pg006" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc7" id="toc7"></a> <a name="pdf8" id="pdf8"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter II. Historical + Setting.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In the previous + chapter it has been necessary to deal with the chronicler as the + author of the whole work of which Chronicles is only a part, and to + go over again ground already covered in the volume on Ezra and + Nehemiah; but from this point we can confine our attention to + Chronicles and treat it as a separate book. Such a course is not + merely justified, it is necessitated, by the different relations of + the chronicler to his subject in Ezra and Nehemiah on the one hand + and in Chronicles on the other. In the former case he is writing + the history of the social and ecclesiastical order to which he + himself belonged, but he is separated by a deep and wide gulf from + the period of the kingdom of Judah. About three hundred years + intervened between the chronicler and the death of the last king of + Judah. A similar interval separates us from Queen Elizabeth; but + the course of these three centuries of English life has been an + almost unbroken continuity compared with the changing fortunes of + the Jewish people from the fall of the monarchy to the early years + of the Greek empire. This interval included the Babylonian + captivity and the return, the establishment of the Law, the use of + the Persian empire, and the conquests of Alexander.</p><span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page007">[pg 007]</span><a name="Pg007" id="Pg007" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The first three + of these events were revolutions of supreme importance to the + internal development of Judaism; the last two rank in the history + of the world with the fall of the Roman empire and the French + Revolution. Let us consider them briefly in detail. The Captivity, + the rise of the Persian empire, and the Return are closely + connected, and can only be treated as features of one great social, + political, and religious convulsion, an upheaval which broke the + continuity of all the strata, of Eastern life and opened an + impassable gulf between the old order and the new. For a time, men + who had lived through these revolutions were still able to carry + across this gulf the loosely twisted strands of memory, but when + they died the threads snapped; only here and there a lingering + tradition supplemented the written records. Hebrew slowly ceased to + be the vernacular language, and was supplanted by Aramaic; the + ancient history only reached the people by means of an oral + translation. Under this new dispensation the ideas of ancient + Israel were no longer intelligible; its circumstances could not be + realised by those who lived under entirely different conditions. + Various causes contributed to bring about this change. First, there + was an interval of fifty years, during which Jerusalem lay a heap + of ruins. After the recapture of Rome by Totila the Visigoth in + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">a.d.</span></span> 546 the city was + abandoned during forty days to desolate and dreary solitude. Even + this temporary depopulation of the Eternal City is emphasised by + historians as full of dramatic interest, but the fifty years' + desolation of Jerusalem involved important practical results. Most + of the returning exiles must have either been born in Babylon or + else have spent all their earliest years in exile. Very few can + have been old enough to have <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page008">[pg 008]</span><a name="Pg008" id="Pg008" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> grasped the meaning or drunk in the spirit of + the older national life. When the restored community set to work to + rebuild their city and their temple, few of them had any adequate + knowledge of the old Jerusalem, with its manners, customs, and + traditions. <span class="tei tei-q">“The ancient men, that had seen + the first house, wept with a loud voice”</span><a id="noteref_2" + name="noteref_2" href="#note_2"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">2</span></span></a> when + the foundation of the second Temple was laid before their eyes. In + their critical and disparaging attitude towards the new building, + we may see an early trace of the tendency to glorify and idealise + the monarchical period, which culminated in Chronicles. The breach + with the past was widened by the novel and striking surroundings of + the exiles in Babylon. For the first time since the Exodus, the + Jews as a nation found themselves in close contact and intimate + relations with the culture of an ancient civilisation and the life + of a great city.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Nearly a century + and a half elapsed between the first captivity under Jehoiachin + (<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">b.c.</span></span> 598) and the mission + of Ezra (<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">b.c.</span></span> 458); no doubt in the + succeeding period Jews still continued to return from Babylon to + Judæa, and thus the new community at Jerusalem, amongst whom the + chronicler grew up, counted Babylonian Jews amongst their ancestors + for two or even for many generations. A Zulu tribe exhibited for a + year in London could not return and build their kraal afresh and + take up the old African life at the point where they had left it. + If a community of Russian Jews went to their old home after a few + years' sojourn in Whitechapel, the old life resumed would be very + different from what it was before their migration. Now the + Babylonian Jews were neither uncivilised African savages nor + stupefied Russian helots; they <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page009">[pg 009]</span><a name="Pg009" id="Pg009" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> were not shut up in an exhibition or in a + ghetto; they settled in Babylon, not for a year or two, but for + half a century or even a century; and they did not return to a + population of their own race, living the old life, but to empty + homes and a ruined city. They had tasted the tree of new knowledge, + and they could no more live and think as their fathers had done + than Adam and Eve could find their way back into paradise. A large + and prosperous colony of Jews still remained at Babylon, and + maintained close and constant relations with the settlement in + Judæa. The influence of Babylon, begun during the Exile, continued + permanently in this indirect form. Later still the Jews felt the + influence of a great Greek city, through their colony at + Alexandria.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Besides these + external changes, the Captivity was a period of important and + many-sided development of Jewish literature and religion. Men had + leisure to study the prophecies of Jeremiah and the legislation of + Deuteronomy; their attention was claimed for Ezekiel's suggestions + as to ritual, and for the new theology, variously expounded by + Ezekiel, the later Isaiah, the book of Job, and the psalmists. The + Deuteronomic school systematised and interpreted the records of the + national history. In its wealth of Divine revelation the period + from Josiah to Ezra is only second to the apostolic age.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus the + restored Jewish community was a new creation, baptised into a new + spirit; the restored city was as much a new Jerusalem as that which + St. John beheld descending out of heaven; and, in the words of the + prophet of the Restoration, the Jews returned to a <span class= + "tei tei-q">“new heaven and a new earth.”</span><a id="noteref_3" + name="noteref_3" href="#note_3"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">3</span></span></a> The + rise of the <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page010">[pg + 010]</span><a name="Pg010" id="Pg010" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Persian empire changed the whole international system of Western + Asia and Egypt. The robber monarchies of Nineveh and Babylon, whose + energies had been chiefly devoted to the systematic plunder of + their neighbours, were replaced by a great empire, that stretched + out one hand to Greece and the other to India. The organisation of + this great empire was the most successful attempt at government on + a large scale that the world had yet seen. Both through the + Persians themselves and through their dealings with the Greeks, + Aryan philosophy and religion began to leaven Asiatic thought; old + things were passing away: all things were becoming new.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The + establishment of the Law by Ezra and Nehemiah was the triumph of a + school whose most important and effective work had been done at + Babylon, though not necessarily within the half-century specially + called the Captivity. Their triumph was retrospective: it not only + established a rigid and elaborate system unknown to the monarchy, + but, by identifying this system with the law traditionally ascribed + to Moses, it led men very widely astray as to the ancient history + of Israel. A later generation naturally assumed that the good kings + must have kept this law, and that the sin of the bad kings was + their failure to observe its ordinances.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The events of + the century and a half or thereabouts between Ezra and the + chronicler have only a minor importance for us. The change of + language from Hebrew to Aramaic, the Samaritan schism, the few + political incidents of which any account has survived, are all + trivial compared to the literature and history crowded into the + century after the fall of the monarchy. Even the far-reaching + results of the conquests of Alexander do not materially concern us + here. Josephus <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page011">[pg + 011]</span><a name="Pg011" id="Pg011" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + indeed tells us that the Jews served in large numbers in the + Macedonian army, and gives a very dramatic account of Alexander's + visit to Jerusalem; but the historical value of these stories is + very doubtful, and in any case it is clear that between + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">b.c.</span></span> 333 and <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">b.c.</span></span> 250 Jerusalem was + very little affected by Greek influences, and that, especially for + the Temple community to which the chronicler belonged, the change + from Darius to the Ptolemies was merely a change from one foreign + dominion to another.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Nor need much be + said of the relation of the chronicler to the later Jewish + literature of the Apocalypses and Wisdom. If the spirit of this + literature were already stirring in some Jewish circles, the + chronicler himself was not moved by it. Ecclesiastes, as far as he + could have understood it, would have pained and shocked him. But + his work lay in that direct line of subtle rabbinic teaching which, + beginning with Ezra, reached its climax in the Talmud. Chronicles + is really an anthology gleaned from ancient historic sources and + supplemented by early specimens of Midrash and Hagada.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In order to + understand the book of Chronicles, we have to keep two or three + simple facts constantly and clearly in mind. In the first place, + the chronicler was separated from the monarchy by an aggregate of + changes which involved a complete breach of continuity between the + old and the new order: instead of a nation there was a Church; + instead of a king there were a high-priest and a foreign governor. + Secondly, the effects of these changes had been at work for two or + three hundred years, effacing all trustworthy recollection of the + ancient order and schooling men to regard the Levitical + dispensation as their one original and antique <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page012">[pg 012]</span><a name="Pg012" id="Pg012" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> ecclesiastical system. Lastly, the + chronicler himself belonged to the Temple community, which was the + very incarnation of the spirit of the new order. With such + antecedents and surroundings, he set to work to revise the national + history recorded in Samuel and Kings. A monk in a Norman monastery + would have worked under similar but less serious disadvantages if + he had undertaken to rewrite the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Ecclesiastical + History</span></span> of the Venerable Bede.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page013">[pg 013]</span><a name= + "Pg013" id="Pg013" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc9" id="toc9"></a> <a name="pdf10" id="pdf10"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter III. Sources And Mode Of + Composition.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Our impressions + as to the sources of Chronicles are derived from the general + character of its contents, from a comparison with other books of + the Old Testament, and from the actual statements of Chronicles + itself. To take the last first: there are numerous references to + authorities in Chronicles which at first sight seem to indicate a + dependence on rich and varied sources. To begin with, there are + <span class="tei tei-q">“The Book of the Kings of Judah and + Israel,”</span><a id="noteref_4" name="noteref_4" href= + "#note_4"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">4</span></span></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“The Book of the Kings of Israel and + Judah,”</span><a id="noteref_5" name="noteref_5" href= + "#note_5"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">5</span></span></a> and + <span class="tei tei-q">“The Acts of the Kings of + Israel.”</span><a id="noteref_6" name="noteref_6" href= + "#note_6"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">6</span></span></a> These, + however, are obviously different forms of the title of the same + work.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Other titles + furnish us with an imposing array of prophetic authorities. There + are <span class="tei tei-q">“The <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Words</span></em>”</span> of Samuel the + Seer<a id="noteref_7" name="noteref_7" href="#note_7"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">7</span></span></a>, of + Nathan the Prophet,<a id="noteref_8" name="noteref_8" href= + "#note_8"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">8</span></span></a> of Gad + the Seer,<a id="noteref_9" name="noteref_9" href= + "#note_9"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">9</span></span></a> of + Shemaiah the Prophet and of Iddo the Seer,<a id="noteref_10" name= + "noteref_10" href="#note_10"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">10</span></span></a> + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page014">[pg 014]</span><a name= + "Pg014" id="Pg014" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of Jehu the son of + Hanani,<a id="noteref_11" name="noteref_11" href= + "#note_11"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">11</span></span></a> and of + the Seers<a id="noteref_12" name="noteref_12" href= + "#note_12"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">12</span></span></a>; + <span class="tei tei-q">“The <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Vision</span></em>”</span> of Iddo the + Seer<a id="noteref_13" name="noteref_13" href= + "#note_13"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">13</span></span></a> and of + Isaiah the Prophet<a id="noteref_14" name="noteref_14" href= + "#note_14"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">14</span></span></a>; + <span class="tei tei-q">“The <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Midrash</span></em>”</span> of the Book of + Kings<a id="noteref_15" name="noteref_15" href= + "#note_15"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">15</span></span></a> and of + the Prophet Iddo<a id="noteref_16" name="noteref_16" href= + "#note_16"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">16</span></span></a>; + <span class="tei tei-q">“The <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Acts</span></em> of Uzziah,”</span> written by + Isaiah the Prophet<a id="noteref_17" name="noteref_17" href= + "#note_17"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">17</span></span></a>; and + <span class="tei tei-q">“The <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Prophecy</span></em>”</span> of Ahijah the + Shilonite.<a id="noteref_18" name="noteref_18" href= + "#note_18"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">18</span></span></a> There + are also less formal allusions to other works.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Further + examination, however, soon discloses the fact that these prophetic + titles merely indicate different sections of <span class= + "tei tei-q">“The Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah.”</span> On + turning to our book of Kings, we find that from Rehoboam onwards + each of the references in Chronicles corresponds to a reference by + the book of Kings to the <span class="tei tei-q">“Chronicles<a id= + "noteref_19" name="noteref_19" href="#note_19"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">19</span></span></a> of the + Kings of Judah.”</span> In the case of Ahaziah, Athaliah, and Amon, + the reference to an authority is omitted both in the books of Kings + and Chronicles. This close correspondence suggests that both our + canonical books are referring to the same authority or authorities. + Kings refers to the <span class="tei tei-q">“Chronicles of the + Kings of Judah”</span> for Judah, and to the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Chronicles of the Kings of Israel”</span> for the + northern kingdom; Chronicles, though only dealing with Judah, + combines these two titles in one: <span class="tei tei-q">“The Book + of the Kings of Israel and Judah.”</span></p><span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page015">[pg 015]</span><a name="Pg015" id="Pg015" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In two instances + Chronicles clearly states that its prophetic authorities were found + as sections of the larger work. <span class="tei tei-q">“The Words + of Jehu the son of Hanani”</span> were <span class= + "tei tei-q">“inserted in the Book of the Kings of + Israel,”</span><a id="noteref_20" name="noteref_20" href= + "#note_20"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">20</span></span></a> and + <span class="tei tei-q">“The Vision of Isaiah the Prophet, the son + of Amoz,”</span> is in the Book of the Kings of Judah and + Israel.<a id="noteref_21" name="noteref_21" href= + "#note_21"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">21</span></span></a> It is + a natural inference that the other <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Words”</span> and <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Visions”</span> were also found as sections of this + same <span class="tei tei-q">“Book of Kings.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">These + conclusions may be illustrated and supported by what we know of the + arrangement of the contents of ancient books. Our convenient modern + subdivisions of chapter and verse did not exist, but the Jews were + not without some means of indicating the particular section of a + book to which they wished to refer. Instead of numbers they used + names, derived from the subject of a section or from the most + important person mentioned in it. For the history of the monarchy + the prophets were the most important personages, and each section + of the history is named after its leading prophet or prophets. This + nomenclature naturally encouraged the belief that the history had + been originally written by these prophets. Instances of the use of + such nomenclature are found in the New Testament, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">e.g.</span></span>, + Rom. xi. 2: <span class="tei tei-q">“Wot ye not what the Scripture + saith in Elijah”</span><a id="noteref_22" name="noteref_22" href= + "#note_22"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">22</span></span></a>—<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span>, + in the section about Elijah—and Mark xii. 26: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Have ye not read in the book of Moses in the place + concerning the bush?”</span><a id="noteref_23" name="noteref_23" + href="#note_23"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">23</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">While, however, + most of the references to <span class="tei tei-q">“Words,”</span> + <span class="tei tei-q">“Visions,”</span> etc., are to sections of + the larger work, we need not at once conclude that <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">all</span></em> + references to authorities in Chronicles are to this same book. The + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page016">[pg 016]</span><a name= + "Pg016" id="Pg016" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> genealogical + register in 1 Chron. v. 17 and the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“lamentations”</span> of 2 Chron. xxxv. 25 may very + well be independent works. Having recognised the fact that the + numerous authorities referred to by Chronicles were for the most + part contained in one comprehensive <span class="tei tei-q">“Book + of Kings,”</span> a new problem presents itself: What are the + respective relations of our Kings and Chronicles to the + <span class="tei tei-q">“Chronicles”</span> and <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Kings”</span> cited by them? What are the relations of + these original authorities to each other? What are the relations of + our Kings to our Chronicles? Our present nomenclature is about as + confusing as it well could be; and we are obliged to keep clearly + in mind, first, that the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Chronicles”</span> mentioned in Kings is not our + Chronicles, and then that the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Kings”</span> referred to by Chronicles is not our + Kings. The first fact is obvious; the second is shown by the terms + of the references, which state that information not furnished in + Chronicles may be found in the <span class="tei tei-q">“Book of + Kings,”</span> but the information in question is often not given + in the canonical Kings.<a id="noteref_24" name="noteref_24" href= + "#note_24"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">24</span></span></a> And + yet the connection between Kings and Chronicles is very close and + extensive. A large amount of material occurs either identically or + with very slight variations in both books. It is clear that either + Chronicles uses Kings, or Chronicles uses a work which used Kings, + or both Chronicles and Kings use the same source or sources. Each + of these three views has been held by important authorities, and + they are also capable of various combinations and + modifications.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Reserving for a + moment the view which specially commends itself to us, we may note + two main tendencies of opinion. First, it is maintained that + Chronicles <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page017">[pg + 017]</span><a name="Pg017" id="Pg017" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + either goes back directly to the actual sources of Kings, citing + them, for the sake of brevity, under a combined title, or is based + upon a combination of the main sources of Kings made at a very + early date. In either case Chronicles as compared with Kings would + be an independent and parallel authority on the contents of these + early sources, and to that extent would rank with Kings as + first-class history. This view, however, is shown to be untenable + by the numerous traces of a later age which are almost invariably + present wherever Chronicles supplements or modifies Kings.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The second view + is that either Chronicles used Kings, or that the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah”</span> used by + Chronicles was a post-Exilic work, incorporating statistical matter + and dealing with the history of the two kingdoms in a spirit + congenial to the temper and interests of the restored community. + This <span class="tei tei-q">“post-Exilic”</span> predecessor of + Chronicles is supposed to have been based upon Kings itself, or + upon the sources of Kings, or upon both; but in any case it was not + much earlier than Chronicles and was written under the same + influences and in a similar spirit. Being virtually an earlier + edition of Chronicles, it could claim no higher authority, and + would scarcely deserve either recognition or treatment as a + separate work. Chronicles would still rest substantially on the + authority of Kings.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is possible + to accept a somewhat simpler view, and to dispense with this + shadowy and ineffectual first edition of Chronicles. In the first + place, the chronicler does not appeal to the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Words”</span> and <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Visions”</span> and the rest of his <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Book of Kings”</span> as authorities for his own + statements; he merely refers his reader to them for further + information which he himself does not furnish. This <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Book of Kings”</span> so often mentioned <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page018">[pg 018]</span><a name="Pg018" id="Pg018" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> is therefore neither a source nor an + authority of Chronicles. There is nothing to prove that the + chronicler himself was actually acquainted with the book. Again, + the close correspondence already noted between these references in + Chronicles and the parallel notes in Kings suggests that the former + are simply expanded and modified from the latter, and the + chronicler had never seen the book he referred to. The Books of + Kings had stated where additional information could be found, and + Chronicles simply repeated the reference without verifying it. As + some sections of Kings had come to be known by the names of certain + prophets, the chronicler transferred these names back to the + corresponding sections of the sources used by Kings. In these cases + he felt he could give his readers not merely the somewhat vague + reference to the original work as a whole, but the more definite + and convenient citation of a particular paragraph. His descriptions + of the additional subjects dealt with in the original authority may + possibly, like other of his statements, have been constructed in + accordance with his ideas of what that authority should contain; or + more probably they refer to this authority the floating traditions + of later times and writers. Possibly these references and notes of + Chronicles are copied from the glosses which some scribe had + written in the margin of his copy of Kings. If this be so, we can + understand why we find references to the Midrash of Iddo and the + Midrash of the book of Kings.<a id="noteref_25" name="noteref_25" + href="#note_25"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">25</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In any case, + whether directly or through the medium of a preliminary edition, + called <span class="tei tei-q">“The Book of the Kings <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page019">[pg 019]</span><a name="Pg019" id="Pg019" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of Israel and Judah,”</span> our book + of Kings was used by the chronicler. The supposition that the + original sources of Kings were used by the chronicler or this + immediate predecessor is fairly supported both by evidence and + authority, but on the whole it seems an unnecessary + complication.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus we fail to + find in these various references to the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Book of Kings,”</span> etc., any clear indication of + the origin of matter peculiar to Chronicles; nevertheless it is not + difficult to determine the nature of the sources from which this + material was derived. Doubtless some of it was still current in the + form of oral tradition when the chronicler wrote, and owed to him + its permanent record. Some he borrowed from manuscripts, which + formed part of the scanty and fragmentary literature of the later + period of the Restoration. His genealogies and statistics suggest + the use of public and ecclesiastical archives, as well as of family + records, in which ancient legend and anecdote lay embedded among + lists of forgotten ancestors. Apparently the chronicler harvested + pretty freely from that literary aftermath that sprang up when the + Pentateuch and the earlier historical books had taken final + shape.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But it is to + these earlier books that the chronicler owes most. His work is very + largely a mosaic of paragraphs and phrases taken from the older + books. His chief sources are Samuel and Kings; he also lays the + Pentateuch, Joshua, and Ruth under contribution. Much is taken over + without even verbal alteration, and the greater part is unaltered + in substance; yet, as is the custom in ancient literature, no + acknowledgment is made. The literary conscience was not yet aware + of the sin of plagiarism. Indeed, neither an author nor his friends + took any pains to secure the permanent <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page020">[pg 020]</span><a name="Pg020" id="Pg020" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> association of his name with his work, and no + great guilt can attach to the plagiarism of one anonymous writer + from another. This absence of acknowledgment where the chronicler + is plainly borrowing from elder scribes is another reason why his + references to the <span class="tei tei-q">“Book of the Kings of + Israel and Judah”</span> are clearly not statements of sources to + which he is indebted, but simply what they profess to be: + indications of the possible sources of further information.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Chronicles, + however, illustrates ancient methods of historical composition, not + only by its free appropriation of the actual form and substance of + older works, but also by its curious blending of identical + reproduction with large additions of quite heterogeneous matter, or + with a series of minute but significant alterations. The primitive + ideas and classical style of paragraphs from Samuel and Kings are + broken in upon by the ritualistic fervour and late Hebrew of the + chronicler's additions. The vivid and picturesque narrative of the + bringing of the Ark to Zion is interpolated with uninteresting + statistics of the names, numbers, and musical instruments of the + Levites.<a id="noteref_26" name="noteref_26" href= + "#note_26"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">26</span></span></a> Much + of the chronicler's account of the revolution which overthrew + Athaliah and placed Joash on the throne is taken word for word from + the book of Kings; but it is adapted to the Temple order of the + Pentateuch by a series of alterations which substitute Levites for + foreign mercenaries, and otherwise guard the sanctity of the Temple + from the intrusion, not only of foreigners, but even of the common + people.<a id="noteref_27" name="noteref_27" href= + "#note_27"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">27</span></span></a> A + careful comparison of Chronicles with Samuel and Kings is a + striking object lesson in ancient historical composition. It is + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page021">[pg 021]</span><a name= + "Pg021" id="Pg021" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> an almost + indispensable introduction to the criticism of the Pentateuch and + the older historical books. The <span class= + "tei tei-q">“redactor”</span> of these works becomes no mere + shadowy and hypothetical personage when we have watched his + successor the chronicler piecing together things new and old and + adapting ancient narratives to modern ideas by adding a word in one + place and changing a phrase in another.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page022">[pg 022]</span><a name= + "Pg022" id="Pg022" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc11" id="toc11"></a> <a name="pdf12" id="pdf12"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter IV. The Importance of + Chronicles.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Before + attempting to expound in detail the religious significance of + Chronicles, we may conclude our introduction by a brief general + statement of the leading features which render the book interesting + and valuable to the Christian student.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The material of + Chronicles may be divided into three parts: the matter taken + directly from the older historical books; material derived from + traditions and writings of the chronicler's own age; the various + additions and modifications which are the chronicler's own + work.<a id="noteref_28" name="noteref_28" href= + "#note_28"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">28</span></span></a> Each + of these divisions has its special value, and important lessons may + be learnt from the way in which the author has selected and + combined these materials.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The excerpts + from the older histories are, of course, by far the best material + in the book for the period of the monarchy. If Samuel and Kings had + perished, we should have been under great obligations to the + chronicler for preserving to us large portions of their + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page023">[pg 023]</span><a name= + "Pg023" id="Pg023" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> ancient records. As + it is, the chronicler has rendered invaluable service to the + textual criticism of the Old Testament by providing us with an + additional witness to the text of large portions of Samuel and + Kings. The very fact that the character and history of Chronicles + are so different from those of the older books enhances the value + of its evidence as to their text. The two texts, Samuel and Kings + on the one hand and Chronicles on the other, have been modified + under different influences; they have not always been altered in + the same way, so that where one has been corrupted the other has + often preserved the correct reading. Probably because Chronicles is + less interesting and picturesque, its text has been subject to less + alteration than that of Samuel and Kings. The more interested + scribes or readers become, the more likely they are to make + corrections and add glosses to the narrative. We may note, for + example, that the name <span class="tei tei-q">“Meribbaal”</span> + given by Chronicles for one of Saul's sons is more likely to be + correct than <span class="tei tei-q">“Mephibosheth,”</span> the + form given by Samuel.<a id="noteref_29" name="noteref_29" href= + "#note_29"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">29</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The material + derived from traditions and writings of the chronicler's own age is + of uncertain historical value, and cannot be clearly discriminated + from the author's free composition. Much of it was the natural + product of the thought and feeling of the late Persian and early + Greek period, and shares the importance which attaches to the + chronicler's own work. This material, however, includes a certain + amount of neutral matter: genealogies, family histories and + anecdotes, and notes on ancient life and custom. We have no + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page024">[pg 024]</span><a name= + "Pg024" id="Pg024" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> parallel authorities + to test this material, we cannot prove the antiquity of the sources + from which it is derived, and yet it may contain fragments of very + ancient tradition. Some of the notes and narratives have an archaic + flavour which can scarcely be artificial; their very lack of + importance is an argument for their authenticity, and illustrates + the strange tenacity with which local and domestic tradition + perpetuates the most insignificant episodes.<a id="noteref_30" + name="noteref_30" href="#note_30"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">30</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But naturally + the most characteristic, and therefore the most important, section + of the contents of Chronicles is that made up of the additions and + modifications which are the work of the chronicler or his immediate + predecessors. It is unnecessary to point out that these do not add + much to our knowledge of the history of the monarchy; their + significance consists in the light that they throw upon the period + towards whose close the chronicler lived: the period between the + final establishment of Pentateuchal Judaism and the attempt of + Antiochus Epiphanes to stamp it out of existence; the period + between Ezra and Judas Maccabæus. The chronicler is no exceptional + and epoch-making writer, has little personal importance, and is + therefore all the more important as a typical representative of the + current ideas of his class and generation. He translates the + history of the past into the ideas and circumstances of his own + age, and thus gives us almost as much information about the civil + and religious institutions he lived under as if he had actually + described them. Moreover, in stating its estimate of past history, + each generation pronounces unconscious judgment upon itself. The + chronicler's interpretation and philosophy <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page025">[pg 025]</span><a name="Pg025" id="Pg025" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> of history mark the level of his moral and + spiritual ideas. He betrays these quite as much by his attitude + towards earlier authorities as in the paragraphs which are his own + composition; we have seen how his use of materials illustrates the + ancient, and for that matter the modern, Eastern methods of + historical composition, and we have shown the immense importance of + Chronicles to Old Testament criticism. But the way in which the + chronicler uses his older sources also indicates his relation + towards the ancient morality, ritual, and theology of Israel. His + methods of selection are most instructive as to the ideas and + interests of his time. We see what was thought worthy to be + included in this final and most modern edition of the religious + history of Israel. But in truth the omissions are among the most + significant features of Chronicles; its silence is constantly more + eloquent than its speech, and we measure the spiritual progress of + Judaism by the paragraphs of Kings which Chronicles leaves out. In + subsequent chapters we shall seek to illustrate the various ways in + which Chronicles illuminates the period preceding the Maccabees. + Any gleams of light on the Hebrew monarchy are most welcome, but we + cannot be less grateful for information about those obscure + centuries which fostered the quiet growth of Israel's character and + faith and prepared the way for the splendid heroism and religious + devotion of the Maccabæan struggle.</p> + </div> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page027">[pg 027]</span><a name= + "Pg027" id="Pg027" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc13" id="toc13"></a> <a name="pdf14" id="pdf14"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em; margin-top: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">Book II. + Genealogies.</span></h1><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page029">[pg + 029]</span><a name="Pg029" id="Pg029" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc15" id="toc15"></a> <a name="pdf16" id="pdf16"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter I. Names. 1 Chron. + i-ix.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The first nine + chapters of Chronicles form, with a few slight exceptions, a + continuous list of names. It is the largest extant collection of + Hebrew names. Hence these chapters may be used as a text for the + exposition of any spiritual significance to be derived from Hebrew + names either individually or collectively. Old Testament + genealogies have often exercised the ingenuity of the preacher, and + the student of homiletics will readily recollect the methods of + extracting a moral from what at first sight seems a barren theme. + For instance, those names of which little or nothing is recorded + are held up as awful examples of wasted lives. We are asked to take + warning from Mahalalel and Methuselah, who spent their long + centuries so ineffectually that there was nothing to record except + that they begat sons and daughters and died. Such teaching is not + fairly derived from its text. The sacred writers implied no + reflection upon the Patriarchs of whom they gave so short and + conventional an account. Least of all could such teaching be based + upon the lists in Chronicles, because the men who are there merely + mentioned by name include Adam, Noah, Abraham, and other heroes + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page030">[pg 030]</span><a name= + "Pg030" id="Pg030" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of sacred story. + Moreover, such teaching is unnecessary and not altogether + wholesome. Very few men who are at all capable of obtaining a + permanent place in history need to be spurred on by sermons; and + for most people the suggestion that a man's life is a failure + unless he secures posthumous fame is false and mischievous. The + Lamb's book of life is the only record of the vast majority of + honourable and useful lives; and the tendency to self-advertisement + is sufficiently wide-spread and spontaneous already: it needs no + pulpit stimulus. We do not think any worse of a man because his + tombstone simply states his name and age, or any better because it + catalogues his virtues and mentions that he attained the dignity of + alderman or author.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The significance + of these lists of names is rather to be looked for in an opposite + direction. It is not that a name and one or two commonplace + incidents mean so little, but that they suggest so much. A mere + parish register is not in itself attractive, but if we consider + even such a list, the very names interest us and kindle our + imagination. It is almost impossible to linger in a country + churchyard, reading the half-effaced inscriptions upon the + headstones, without forming some dim picture of the character and + history and even the outward semblance of the men and women who + once bore the names.</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">For + though a name is neither</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">... hand, nor foot,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Nor arm, nor face, nor any other + part</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">Belonging to a man,</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">yet, to use a + somewhat technical phrase, it <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">connotes</span></em> a man. A name implies the + existence of a distinct personality, with a peculiar and unique + history, and <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page031">[pg + 031]</span><a name="Pg031" id="Pg031" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + yet, on the other hand, a being with whom we are linked in close + sympathy by a thousand ties of common human nature and everyday + experience. In its lists of what are now mere names, the Bible + seems to recognise the dignity and sacredness of bare human + life.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But the names in + these nine chapters have also a collective significance: they stand + for more than their individual owners. They are typical and + representative, the names of kings, and priests, and captains; they + sum up the tribes of Israel, both as a Church and a nation, down + all the generations of its history. The inclusion of these names in + the sacred record, as the express introduction to the annals of the + Temple, and the sacred city, and the elect house of David, is the + formal recognition of the sanctity of the nation and of national + life. We are entirely in the spirit of the Bible when we see this + same sanctity in all organised societies: in the parish, the + municipality, and the state; when we attach a Divine significance + to registers of electors and census returns, and claim all such + lists as symbols of religious privilege and responsibility.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But names do not + merely suggest individuals and communities: the meanings of the + names reveal the ideas of the people who used them. It has been + well said that <span class="tei tei-q">“the names of every nation + are an important monument of national spirit and manners, and thus + the Hebrew names bear important testimony to the peculiar vocation + of this nation. No nation of antiquity has such a proportion of + names of religious import.”</span><a id="noteref_31" name= + "noteref_31" href="#note_31"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">31</span></span></a> + Amongst ourselves indeed the religious meaning of names has almost + wholly faded away; <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page032">[pg + 032]</span><a name="Pg032" id="Pg032" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“Christian name”</span> is a mere phrase, + and children are named after relations, or according to prevailing + fashion, or after the characters of popular novels. But the + religious motive can still be traced in some modern names; in + certain districts of Germany the name <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Ursula”</span> or <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Apollonia”</span> is a sure indication that a girl is + a Roman Catholic and has been named after a popular saint.<a id= + "noteref_32" name="noteref_32" href="#note_32"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">32</span></span></a> The + Bible constantly insists upon this religious significance, which + would frequently be in the mind of the devout Israelite in giving + names to his children. The Old Testament contains more than a + hundred etymologies<a id="noteref_33" name="noteref_33" href= + "#note_33"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">33</span></span></a> of + personal names, most of which attach a religious meaning to the + words explained. The etymologies of the patriarchal + names—<span class="tei tei-q">“Abraham,”</span> father of a + multitude of nations; <span class="tei tei-q">“Isaac,”</span> + laughter; <span class="tei tei-q">“Jacob,”</span> supplanter; + <span class="tei tei-q">“Israel,”</span> prince with God—are + specially familiar. The Biblical interest in edifying etymologies + was maintained and developed by early commentators. Their philology + was far from accurate, and very often they were merely playing upon + the forms of words. But the allegorising tendencies of Jewish and + Christian expositors found special opportunities in proper names. + On the narrow foundation of an etymology mostly doubtful and often + impossible, Philo, and Origen, and Jerome loved to erect an + elaborate structure theological or philosophical doctrine. Philo + has only one quotation from our author: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Manasseh had sons, whom his Syrian concubine bare to + him, Machir; and Machir begat Gilead.”</span><a id="noteref_34" + name="noteref_34" href="#note_34"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">34</span></span></a> He + quotes this verse to show that recollection is associated in a + subordinate capacity <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page033">[pg + 033]</span><a name="Pg033" id="Pg033" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + with memory. The connection is not very clearly made out, but rests + in some way on the meaning of Manasseh, the root of which means to + forget. As forgetfulness with recollection restores our knowledge, + so Manasseh with his Syrian concubine begets Machir. Recollection + therefore is a concubine, an inferior and secondary quality.<a id= + "noteref_35" name="noteref_35" href="#note_35"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">35</span></span></a> This + ingenious trifling has a certain charm in spite of its + extravagance, but in less dexterous hands the method becomes clumsy + as well as extravagant. It has, however, the advantage of readily + adapting itself to all tastes and opinions, so that we are not + surprised when an eighteenth-century author discovers in Old + Testament etymology a compendium of Trinitarian theology.<a id= + "noteref_36" name="noteref_36" href="#note_36"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">36</span></span></a> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ahiah</span></span><a id="noteref_37" name= + "noteref_37" href="#note_37"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">37</span></span></a> is + derived from <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">'ehad</span></span>, one, and + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">yah</span></span>, Jehovah, and is thus an + assertion of the Divine unity; <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Reuel</span></span><a id="noteref_38" name= + "noteref_38" href="#note_38"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">38</span></span></a> is + resolved into a plural verb with a singular Divine name for its + subject: this is an indication of trinity in unity; <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ahilud</span></span><a id="noteref_39" name= + "noteref_39" href="#note_39"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">39</span></span></a> is + derived from <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">'ehad</span></span>, one, and + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">galud</span></span>, begotten, and signifies + that the Son is <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">only-begotten</span></em>.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Modern + scholarship is more rational in its methods, but attaches no less + importance to these ancient names, and finds in them weighty + evidence on problems of criticism and theology; and before + proceeding to more serious matters, we may note a few somewhat + exceptional names. As pointed in the present Hebrew text, + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Hazarmaveth</span></span><a id="noteref_40" + name="noteref_40" href="#note_40"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">40</span></span></a> and + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Azmaveth</span></span><a id="noteref_41" name= + "noteref_41" href="#note_41"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">41</span></span></a> have a + certain grim suggestiveness. <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Hazarmaveth</span></span>, court of death, is + given as the name of a descendant of Shem. It is, however, probably + the name of a place transferred to an eponymous ancestor, + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page034">[pg 034]</span><a name= + "Pg034" id="Pg034" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> and has been + identified with <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Hadramawt</span></span>, a + district in the south of Arabia. As, however, <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Hadramawt</span></span>, is a fertile district + of Arabia Felix, the name does not seem very appropriate. On the + other hand <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Azmaveth</span></span>, + <span class="tei tei-q">“strength of death,”</span> would be very + suitable for some strong, death-dealing soldier. <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Azubah</span></span>,<a id="noteref_42" name= + "noteref_42" href="#note_42"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">42</span></span></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“forsaken,”</span> the name of Caleb's + wife, is capable of a variety of romantic explanations. <span lang= + "he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Hazelelponi</span></span><a id="noteref_43" + name="noteref_43" href="#note_43"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">43</span></span></a> is + remarkable in its mere form; and Ewald's interpretation, + <span class="tei tei-q">“Give shade, Thou who turnest to me Thy + countenance,”</span> seems rather a cumbrous signification for the + name of a daughter of the house of Judah. <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jushab-hesed</span></span>,<a id="noteref_44" + name="noteref_44" href="#note_44"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">44</span></span></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“Mercy will be renewed,”</span> as the name + of a son of Zerubbabel, doubtless expresses the gratitude and hope + of the Jews on their return from Babylon.<a id="noteref_45" name= + "noteref_45" href="#note_45"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">45</span></span></a> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jashubi-lehem</span></span>,<a id="noteref_46" + name="noteref_46" href="#note_46"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">46</span></span></a> + however, is curious and perplexing. The name has been interpreted + <span class="tei tei-q">“giving bread”</span> or <span class= + "tei tei-q">“turning back to Bethlehem,”</span> but the text is + certainly corrupt, and the passage is one of many into which either + the carelessness of scribes or the obscurity of the chronicler's + sources has introduced hopeless confusion. But the most remarkable + set of names is found in 1 Chron. xxv. 4, where <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Giddalti</span></span> and <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Romantiezer</span></span>, <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Joshbekashah</span></span>, <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mallothi</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Hothir</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mahazioth</span></span>, are simply a Hebrew + sentence meaning, <span class="tei tei-q">“I have magnified and + exalted help; sitting in distress,<a id="noteref_47" name= + "noteref_47" href="#note_47"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">47</span></span></a> I have + spoken<a id="noteref_48" name="noteref_48" href= + "#note_48"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">48</span></span></a> + visions in abundance.”</span> We may at once set aside the cynical + suggestion that the author lacked names to complete a genealogy + and, to save the trouble of inventing them separately, took the + first sentence that came to hand and cut it up into suitable + lengths, nor is it likely that a father would <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page035">[pg 035]</span><a name="Pg035" id="Pg035" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> spread the same process over several + years and adopt it for his family. This remarkable combination of + names is probably due to some misunderstanding of his sources on + the part of the chronicler. His parchment rolls must often have + been torn and fragmentary, the writing blurred and half illegible; + and his attempts to piece together obscure and ragged manuscripts + naturally resulted at times in mistakes and confusion.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">These examples + of interesting etymologies might easily be multiplied; they serve, + at any rate, to indicate a rich mine of suggestive teaching. It + must, however, be remembered that a name is not necessarily a + personal name because it occurs in a genealogy; cities, districts, + and tribes mingle freely with persons in these lists. In the same + connection we note that the female names are few and far between, + and that of those which do occur the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“sisters”</span> probably stand for allied and related + families, and not for individuals.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As regards Old + Testament theology, we may first notice the light thrown by + personal names on the relation of the religion of Israel to that of + other Semitic peoples. Of the names in these chapters and + elsewhere, a large proportion are compounded of one or other of the + Divine names. <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">El</span></span> is the first + element in <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Elishama</span></span>, + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Eliphelet</span></span>, <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Eliada</span></span>, etc.; it is the second + in <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Othniel</span></span>, + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jehaleleel</span></span>, <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Asareel</span></span>, etc. Similarly + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jehovah</span></span> is represented by the + initial <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Jeho-</span></span> in + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jehoshaphat</span></span>, <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jehoiakim</span></span>, <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jehoram</span></span>, etc., by the final + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">-iah</span></span> in <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Amaziah</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Azariah</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Hezekiah</span></span>, etc. It has been + calculated that there are a hundred and ninety names<a id= + "noteref_49" name="noteref_49" href="#note_49"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">49</span></span></a> + beginning or ending with the equivalent of Jehovah, including most + of the kings of Judah and many of the kings of Israel. Moreover, + some names which have not these prefixes <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page036">[pg 036]</span><a name="Pg036" id="Pg036" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> and affixes in their extant form are + contractions of older forms which began or ended with a Divine + name. Ahaz, for instance, is mentioned in Assyrian inscriptions as + Jahuhazi—<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span>, Jehoahaz—and Nathan is + probably a contracted form of Nethaniah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There are also + numerous compounds of other Divine names. <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Zur</span></span>, rock, is found in + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Pedahzur</span></span>,<a id="noteref_50" + name="noteref_50" href="#note_50"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">50</span></span></a> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Shaddai</span></span>, A.V. Almighty, in + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ammishaddai</span></span><a id="noteref_51" + name="noteref_51" href="#note_51"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">51</span></span></a>; the + two are combined in <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Zurishaddai</span></span>.<a id="noteref_52" + name="noteref_52" href="#note_52"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">52</span></span></a> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Melech</span></span> is a Divine name in + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Malchi-ram</span></span> and <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Malchi-shua</span></span>. <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Baal</span></span> occurs as a Divine name in + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Eshbaal</span></span> and <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Meribbaal</span></span>. <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Abi</span></span>, father, is a Divine name in + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Abiram</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Abinadab</span></span>, etc., and probably + also <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Ahi</span></span> in + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ahiram</span></span> and <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ammi</span></span> in <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Amminadab</span></span>.<a id="noteref_53" + name="noteref_53" href="#note_53"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">53</span></span></a> + Possibly, too, the apparently simple names <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Melech</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Zur</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Baal</span></span>, are contractions of longer + forms in which these Divine names were prefixes or affixes.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This use of + Divine names is capable of very varied illustration. Modern + languages have Christian and Christopher, Emmanuel, Theodosius, + Theodora, etc.; names like Hermogenes and Heliogabalus are found in + the classical languages. But the practice is specially + characteristic of Semitic languages. Mohammedan princes are still + called <span lang="ar" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "ar"><span style="font-style: italic">Abdurrahman</span></span>, + servant of the Merciful, and <span lang="ar" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="ar"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Abdallah</span></span>, servant of God; + ancient Phœnician kings were named <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ethbaal</span></span> and <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Abdalonim</span></span>, where <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">alonim</span></span> is a plural Divine name, + and the <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">bal</span></span> in Hannibal and Hasdrubal = + <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">baal</span></span>. The Assyrian and Chaldæan + kings were named after the gods Sin, Nebo, Assur, Merodach, + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">e.g.</span></span>, <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sin-akki-irib</span></span> (Sennacherib); + <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Nebuchadnezzar</span></span>; <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Assur-bani-pal</span></span>; <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Merodach-baladan</span></span>.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Of these Divine + names El and Baal are common to Israel and other Semitic peoples, + and it has been held <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page037">[pg + 037]</span><a name="Pg037" id="Pg037" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + that the Hebrew personal names preserve traces of polytheism. In + any case, however, the Baal-names are comparatively few, and do not + necessarily indicate that Israelites worshipped a Baal distinct + from Jehovah; they may be relics of a time when Baal (Lord) was a + title or equivalent of Jehovah, like the later Adonai. Other + possible traces of polytheism are few and doubtful. In Baanah and + Resheph we may perhaps find the obscure<a id="noteref_54" name= + "noteref_54" href="#note_54"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">54</span></span></a> + Phœnician deities Anath and Reshaph. On the whole, Hebrew names as + compared, for instance, with Assyrian afford little or no evidence + of the prevalence of polytheism.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Another question + concerns the origin and use of the name Jehovah. Our lists + conclusively prove its free use during the monarchy and its + existence under the judges. On the other hand, its apparent + presence in Jochebed, the name of the mother of Moses, seems to + carry it back beyond Moses. Possibly it was a Divine name peculiar + to his family or clan. Its occurrence in <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Yahubidi</span></span>, a king of Hamath, in + the time of Sargon may be due to direct Israelite influence. Hamath + had frequent relations with Israel and Judah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Turning to + matters of practical religion, how far do these names help us to + understand the spiritual life of ancient Israel? The Israelites + made constant use of El and Jehovah in their names, and we have no + parallel practice. Were they then so much more religious than we + are? Probably in a sense they were. It is true that the etymology + and even the original significance of a name in common use are for + all practical purposes quickly and entirely forgotten. A man may go + through a life-time bearing the name of Christopher and never know + its etymological meaning. At Cambridge and <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page038">[pg 038]</span><a name="Pg038" id="Pg038" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> Oxford sacred names like <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Jesus”</span> and <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Trinity”</span> are used constantly and familiarly + without suggesting anything beyond the colleges so called. The + edifying phrase, <span class="tei tei-q">“God encompasseth + us,”</span> is altogether lost in the grotesque tavern sign + <span class="tei tei-q">“The Goat and Compasses.”</span> Nor can we + suppose that the Israelite or the Assyrian often dwelt on the + religious significance of the <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jeho-</span></span> or <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">-iah</span></span>, the <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Nebo</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sin</span></span>, or <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Merodach</span></span>, of current proper + names. As we have seen, the sense of <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">-iah</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">-el</span></span>, or <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jeho-</span></span> was often so little + present to men's minds that contractions were formed by omitting + them. Possibly because these prefixes and affixes were so common, + they came to be taken for granted; it was scarcely necessary to + write them, because in any case they would be understood. Probably + in historic times <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Abi-</span></span>, + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ahi-</span></span>, and <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ammi-</span></span> were no longer recognised + as Divine names or titles; and yet the names which could still be + recognised as compounded of El and Jehovah must have had their + influence on popular feeling. They were part of the religiousness, + so to speak, of the ancient East; they symbolised the constant + intertwining of religious acts, and words, and thoughts with all + the concerns of life. The quality of this ancient religion was very + inferior to that of a devout and intelligent modern Christian; it + was perhaps inferior to that of Russian peasants belonging to the + Greek Church; but ancient religion pervaded life and society more + consciously than modern Christianity does; it touched all classes + and occasions more directly, if also more mechanically. And, again, + these names were not the fossil relics of obsolete habits of + thought and feeling, like the names of our churches and colleges; + they were the memorials of comparatively recent acts of faith. The + name <span class="tei tei-q">“Elijah”</span> commemorated the + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page039">[pg 039]</span><a name= + "Pg039" id="Pg039" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> solemn occasion on + which a father professed his own faith and consecrated a new-born + child to the true God by naming his boy <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Jehovah is my God.”</span> This name-giving was also a + prayer: the child was placed under the protection of the deity + whose name it bore. The practice might be tainted with + superstition; the name would often be regarded as a kind of amulet; + and yet we may believe that it could also serve to express a + parent's earnest and simple-minded faith. Modern Englishmen have + developed a habit of almost complete reticence and reserve on + religious matters, and this habit is illustrated by our choice of + proper names. Mary, and Thomas, and James are so familiar that + their Scriptural origin is forgotten, and therefore they are + tolerated; but the use of distinctively Scriptural Christian names + is virtually regarded as bad taste. This reticence is not merely + due to increased delicacy of spiritual feeling: it is partly the + result of the growth of science and of literary and historical + criticism. We have become absorbed in the wonderful revelations of + methods and processes; we are fascinated by the ingenious mechanism + of nature and society. We have no leisure to detach our thoughts + from the machinery and carry them further on to its Maker and + Director. Indeed, because there is so much mechanism and because it + is so wonderful, we are sometimes asked to believe that the machine + made itself. But this is a mere phase in the religious growth of + mankind: humanity will tire of some of its new toys, and will + become familiar with the rest; deeper needs and instincts will + reassert themselves; and men will find themselves nearer in + sentiment than they supposed to the ancient people who named their + children after their God. In this and other matters the East to-day + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page040">[pg 040]</span><a name= + "Pg040" id="Pg040" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> is the same as of + old; the permanence of its custom is no inapt symbol of the + permanence of Divine truth, which revolution and conquest are + powerless to change.</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">The + East bowed low before the blast</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 1.80em"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">In patient, deep disdain;</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">She let the legions thunder + past,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 1.80em"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">And plunged in thought + again.</span><span style="font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But the + Christian Church is mistress of a more compelling magic than even + Eastern patience and tenacity: out of the storms that threaten her, + she draws new energies for service, and learns a more expressive + language in which to declare the glory of God.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Let us glance + for a moment at the meanings of the group of Divine names given + above. We have said that, in addition to <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Melech</span></span> in <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Malchi-</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Abi</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ahi</span></span>, and <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ammi</span></span> are to be regarded as + Divine names. One reason for this is that their use as prefixes is + strictly analogous to that of <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">El</span></span> and <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jeho-</span></span>. We have <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Abijah</span></span> and <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ahijah</span></span> as well as <span lang= + "he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Elijah</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Abiel</span></span> and <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ammiel</span></span> as well as <span lang= + "he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Eliel</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Abiram</span></span> and <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ahiram</span></span> as well as <span lang= + "he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jehoram</span></span>; <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ammishaddai</span></span> compares with + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Zurishaddai</span></span>, and <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ammizabad</span></span> with <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jehozabad</span></span>, nor would it be + difficult to add many other examples. If this view be correct, + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ammi</span></span> will have nothing to do + with the Hebrew word for <span class="tei tei-q">“people,”</span> + but will rather be connected with the corresponding Arabic word for + <span class="tei tei-q">“uncle.”</span><a id="noteref_55" name= + "noteref_55" href="#note_55"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">55</span></span></a> As the + use of such terms as <span class="tei tei-q">“brother”</span> and + <span class="tei tei-q">“uncle”</span> for Divine names is not + consonant with Hebrew theology in its historic period, the names + which contain these prefixes must have come down from earlier ages, + and were used in later times without any consciousness of their + original sense. Probably they were explained by new etymologies + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page041">[pg 041]</span><a name= + "Pg041" id="Pg041" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> more in harmony with + the spirit of the times; compare the etymology <span class= + "tei tei-q">“father of a multitude of nations”</span> given to + Abraham. Even <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Abi-</span></span>, father, + in the early times to which its use as a prefix must be referred, + cannot have had the full spiritual meaning which now attaches to it + as a Divine title. It probably only signified the ultimate source + of life. The disappearance of these religious terms from the common + vocabulary and their use in names long after their significance had + been forgotten are ordinary phenomena in the development of + language and religion. How many of the millions who use our English + names for the days of the week ever give a thought to Thor or + Freya? Such phenomena have more than an antiquarian interest. They + remind us that religious terms, and phrases, and formulæ derive + their influence and value from their adaptation to the age which + accepts them; and therefore many of them will become unintelligible + or even misleading to later generations. Language varies + continuously, circumstances change, experience widens, and every + age has a right to demand that Divine truth shall be presented in + the words and metaphors that give it the clearest and most forcible + expression. Many of the simple truths that are most essential to + salvation admit of being stated once for all; but dogmatic theology + fossilises fast, and the bread of one generation may become a stone + to the next.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The history of + these names illustrates yet another phenomenon. In some narrow and + imperfect sense the early Semitic peoples seem to have called God + <span class="tei tei-q">“Father”</span> and <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Brother.”</span> Because the terms were limited to a + narrow sense, the Israelites grew to a level of religious truth at + which they could no longer use them; but as they made yet further + progress they came to know more <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page042">[pg 042]</span><a name="Pg042" id="Pg042" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> of what was meant by fatherhood and + brotherhood, and gained also a deeper knowledge of God. At length + the Church resumed these ancient Semitic terms; and Christians call + God <span class="tei tei-q">“Abba, Father,”</span> and speak of the + Eternal Son as their elder Brother. And thus sometimes, but not + always, an antique phrase may for a time seem unsuitable and + misleading, and then again may prove to be the best expression for + the newest and fullest truth. Our criticism of a religious formula + may simply reveal our failure to grasp the wealth of meaning which + its words and symbols can contain.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Turning from + these obsolete names to those in common use—<span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">El</span></span>; <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jehovah</span></span>; <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Shaddai</span></span>; <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Zur</span></span>; <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Melech</span></span>—probably the prevailing + idea popularly associated with them all was that of strength: + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">El</span></span>, strength in the abstract; + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jehovah</span></span>, strength shown in + permanence and independence; <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Shaddai</span></span>, the strength that + causes terror, the Almighty from whom cometh destruction<a id= + "noteref_56" name="noteref_56" href="#note_56"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">56</span></span></a>; + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Zur</span></span>, rock, the material symbol + of strength, <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Melech</span></span>, king, + the possessor of authority. In early times the first and most + essential attribute of Deity is power, but with this idea of + strength a certain attribute of beneficence is soon associated. The + strong God is the Ally of His people; His permanence is the + guarantee of their national existence; He destroys their enemies. + The rock is a place of refuge; and, again, Jehovah's people may + rejoice in the shadow of a great rock in a weary land. The King + leads them to battle, and gives them their enemies for a + spoil.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page043">[pg + 043]</span><a name="Pg043" id="Pg043" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We must not, + however, suppose that pious Israelites would consciously and + systematically discriminate between these names, any more than + ordinary Christians do between God, Lord, Father, Christ, Saviour, + Jesus. Their usage would be governed by changing currents of + sentiment very difficult to understand and explain after the lapse + of thousands of years. In the year <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">a.d.</span></span> 3000, for instance, + it will be difficult for the historian of dogmatics to explain + accurately why some nineteenth-century Christians preferred to + speak of <span class="tei tei-q">“dear Jesus”</span> and others of + <span class="tei tei-q">“the Christ.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But the simple + Divine names reveal comparatively little; much more may be learnt + from the numerous compounds they help to form. Some of the more + curious have already been noticed, but the real significance of + this nomenclature is to be looked for in the more ordinary and + natural names. Here, as before, we can only select from the long + and varied list. Let us take some of the favourite names and some + of the roots most often used, almost always, be it remembered, in + combination with Divine names. The different varieties of these + sacred names rendered it possible to construct various personal + names embodying the same idea. Also the same Divine name might be + used either as prefix or affix. For instance, the idea that + <span class="tei tei-q">“God knows”</span> is equally well + expressed in the names <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" + xml:lang="he"><span style="font-style: italic">Eliada</span></span> + (El-yada'), <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Jediael</span></span> + (Yada'-el), <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Jehoiada</span></span> + (Jeho-yada'), and <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Jedaiah</span></span> + (Yada'-yah). <span class="tei tei-q">“God remembers”</span> is + expressed alike by <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Zachariah</span></span> and <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jozachar</span></span>; <span class= + "tei tei-q">“God hears”</span> by <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Elishama</span></span> (El-shama'), + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Samuel</span></span> (if for Shama'-el), + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ishmael</span></span> (also from Shama'-el), + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Shemaiah</span></span>, and <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ishmaiah</span></span> (<em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">both + from</span></em> Shama' <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">and</span></em> Yah); <span class= + "tei tei-q">“God gives”</span> by <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Elnathan</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Nethaneel</span></span>, <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jonathan</span></span>, and <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Nethaniah</span></span>; <span class= + "tei tei-q">“God helps”</span> by <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Eliezer</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Azareel</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Joezer</span></span>, and <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Azariah</span></span>; <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page044">[pg 044]</span><a name="Pg044" id="Pg044" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> <span class="tei tei-q">“God is + gracious”</span> by <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Elhanan</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Hananeel</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Johanan</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Hananiah</span></span>, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Baal-hanan</span></span>, and, for a + Carthaginian, <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Hannibal</span></span>, giving us a curious + connection between the Apostle of love, John (Johanan), and the + deadly enemy of Rome.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The way in which + the changes are rung upon these ideas shows how the ancient + Israelites loved to dwell upon them. Nestle reckons that in the Old + Testament sixty-one persons have names formed from the root + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">nathan</span></span>, to give; fifty-seven + from <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">shama</span></span>, to hear; + fifty-six from <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">'azar</span></span>, to help; + forty-five from <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">hanan</span></span>, to be + gracious; forty-four from <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">zakhar</span></span>, to remember. Many + persons, too, bear names from the root <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">yada'</span></span>, to know. The favourite + name is <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Zechariah</span></span>, + which is borne by twenty-five different persons.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Hence, according + to the testimony of names, the Israelites' favourite ideas about + God were that He heard, and knew, and remembered; that He was + gracious, and helped men, and gave them gifts: but they loved best + to think of Him as God the Giver. Their nomenclature recognises + many other attributes, but these take the first place. The value of + this testimony is enhanced by its utter unconsciousness and + naturalness; it brings us nearer to the average man in his + religious moments than any psalm or prophetic utterance. Men's + chief interest in God was as the Giver. The idea has proved very + permanent; St. James amplifies it: God is the Giver of every good + and perfect gift. It lies latent in names: Theodosius, Theodore, + Theodora, and Dorothea. The other favourite ideas are all related + to this. God hears men's prayers, and knows their needs, and + remembers them; He is gracious, and helps them by His gifts. Could + anything be more pathetic than this artless self-revelation? Men's + minds have <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page045">[pg + 045]</span><a name="Pg045" id="Pg045" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + little leisure for sin and salvation; they are kept down by the + constant necessity of preserving and providing for a bare + existence. Their cry to God is like the prayer of Jacob, + <span class="tei tei-q">“If Thou wilt give me bread to eat and + raiment to put on!”</span> The very confidence and gratitude that + the names express imply periods of doubt and fear, when they said, + <span class="tei tei-q">“Can God prepare a table in the + wilderness?”</span> times when it seemed to them impossible that + God could have heard their prayer or that He knew their misery, + else why was there no deliverance? Had God forgotten to be + gracious? Did He indeed remember? The names come to us as answers + of faith to these suggestions of despair.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Possibly these + old-world saints were not more preoccupied with their material + needs than most modern Christians. Perhaps it is necessary to + believe in a God who rules on earth before we can understand the + Father who is in heaven. Does a man really trust in God for eternal + life if he cannot trust Him for daily bread? But in any case these + names provide us with very comprehensive formulæ, which we are at + liberty to apply as freely as we please: the God who knows, and + hears, and remembers, who is gracious, and helps men, and gives + them gifts. To begin with, note how in a great array of Old + Testament names God is the Subject, Actor, and Worker; the supreme + facts of life are God and God's doings, not man and man's doings, + what God is to man, not what man is to God. This is a foreshadowing + of the Christian doctrines of grace and of the Divine sovereignty. + And again we are left to fill in the objects of the sentences for + ourselves: God hears, and remembers, and gives—what? All that we + have to say to Him and all that we are capable of receiving from + Him.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page046">[pg 046]</span><a name= + "Pg046" id="Pg046" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc17" id="toc17"></a> <a name="pdf18" id="pdf18"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter II. Heredity. 1 Chron. + i.-ix.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It has been said + that Religion is the great discoverer of truth, while Science + follows her slowly and after a long interval. Heredity, so much + discussed just now, is sometimes treated as if its principles were + a great discovery of the present century. Popular science is apt to + ignore history and to mistake a fresh nomenclature for an entirely + new system of truth, and yet the immense and far-reaching + importance of heredity has been one of the commonplaces of thought + ever since history began. Science has been anticipated, not merely + by religious feeling, but by a universal instinct. In the old world + political and social systems have been based upon the recognition + of the principle of heredity, and religion has sanctioned such + recognition. Caste in India is a religious even more than a social + institution; and we use the term figuratively in reference to + ancient and modern life, even when the institution has not formally + existed. Without the aid of definite civil or religious law the + force of sentiment and circumstances suffices to establish an + informal system of caste. Thus the feudal aristocracy and guilds of + the Middle Ages were not without their rough counterparts in the + Old Testament. Moreover, the local divisions of the Hebrew kingdoms + corresponded in theory, at any rate, <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page047">[pg 047]</span><a name="Pg047" id="Pg047" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> to blood relationships; and the tribe, the + clan, and the family had even more fixity and importance than now + belong to the parish or the municipality. A man's family history or + genealogy was the ruling factor in determining his home, his + occupation, and his social position. In the chronicler's time this + was especially the case with the official ministers of religion, + the Temple establishment to which he himself belonged. The priests, + the Levites, the singers, and doorkeepers formed castes in the + strict sense of the word. A man's birth definitely assigned him to + one of these classes, to which none but the members of certain + families could belong.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But the + genealogies had a deeper significance. Israel was Jehovah's chosen + people, His son, to whom special privileges were guaranteed by + solemn covenant. A man's claim to share in this covenant depended + on his genuine Israelite descent, and the proof of such descent was + an authentic genealogy. In these chapters the chronicler has taken + infinite pains to collect pedigrees from all available sources and + to construct a complete set of genealogies exhibiting the lines of + descent of the families of Israel. His interest in this research + was not merely antiquarian: he was investigating matters of the + greatest social and religious importance to all the members of the + Jewish community, and especially to his colleagues and friends in + the Temple service. These chapters, which seem to us so dry and + useless, were probably regarded by the chronicler's contemporaries + as the most important part of his work. The preservation or + discovery of a genealogy was almost a matter of life and death. + Witness the episode in Ezra and Nehemiah<a id="noteref_57" name= + "noteref_57" href="#note_57"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">57</span></span></a>: + <span class="tei tei-q">“And of the priests: the <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page048">[pg 048]</span><a name="Pg048" id="Pg048" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> children of Hobaiah, the children of + Hakkoz, the children of Barzillai, which took a wife of the + daughters of Barzillai the Gileadite, and was called after their + name. These sought their register among those that were reckoned by + genealogy, but it was not found; therefore they were deemed + polluted and put from the priesthood. And the governor said unto + them that they should not eat of the most holy things, till there + stood up a priest with Urim and Thummim.”</span> Cases like these + would stimulate our author's enthusiasm. As he turned over dusty + receptacles, and unrolled frayed parchments, and painfully + deciphered crabbed and faded script, he would be excited by the + hope of discovering some mislaid genealogy that would restore + outcasts to their full status and privileges as Israelites and + priests. Doubtless he had already acquired in some measure the + subtle exegesis and minute casuistry that were the glory of later + Rabbinism. Ingenious interpretation of obscure writing or the happy + emendation of half-obliterated words might lend opportune aid in + the recovery of a genealogy. On the other hand, there were vested + interests ready to protest against the too easy acceptance of new + claims. The priestly families of undoubted descent from Aaron would + not thank a chronicler for reviving lapsed rights to a share in the + offices and revenues of the Temple. This part of our author's task + was as delicate as it was important.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We will now + briefly consider the genealogies in these chapters in the order in + which they are given. Chap. i. contains genealogies of the + patriarchal period selected from Genesis. The existing races of the + world are all traced back through Shem, Ham, and Japheth to Noah, + and through him to Adam. The <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page049">[pg 049]</span><a name="Pg049" id="Pg049" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> chronicler thus accepts and repeats the + doctrine of Genesis that God made of one every nation of men for to + dwell on all the face of the earth.<a id="noteref_58" name= + "noteref_58" href="#note_58"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">58</span></span></a> All + mankind, <span class="tei tei-q">“Greek and Jew, circumcision and + uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian, bondman, + freeman,”</span><a id="noteref_59" name="noteref_59" href= + "#note_59"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">59</span></span></a> were + alike descended from Noah, who was saved from the Flood by the + special care of God; from Enoch, who walked with God; from Adam, + who was created by God in His own image and likeness. The + Israelites did not claim, like certain Greek clans, to be the + descendants of a special god of their own, or, like the Athenians, + to have sprung miraculously from sacred soil. Their genealogies + testified that not merely Israelite nature, but human nature, is + moulded on a Divine pattern. These apparently barren lists of names + enshrine the great principles of the universal brotherhood of men + and the universal Fatherhood of God. The chronicler wrote when the + broad universalism of the prophets was being replaced by the hard + exclusiveness of Judaism; and yet, perhaps unconsciously, he + reproduces the genealogies which were to be one weapon of St. Paul + in his struggle with that exclusiveness. The opening chapters of + Genesis and Chronicles are among the foundations of the catholicity + of the Church of Christ.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">For the + antediluvian period only the Sethite genealogy is given. The + chronicler's object was simply to give the origin of existing + races; and the descendants of Cain were omitted, as entirely + destroyed by the Flood. Following the example of Genesis, the + chronicler gives the genealogies of other races at the points at + which they diverged from the ancestral line of Israel, and then + continues the family history of the chosen race. In this way the + descendants of Japheth and <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page050">[pg 050]</span><a name="Pg050" id="Pg050" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> Ham, the non-Abrahamic Semites, the + Ishmaelites, the sons of Keturah, and the Edomites are successively + mentioned.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The relations of + Israel with Edom were always close and mostly hostile. The Edomites + had taken advantage of the overthrow of the southern kingdom to + appropriate the south of Judah, and still continued to occupy it. + The keen interest felt by the chronicler in Edom is shown by the + large space devoted to the Edomites. The close contiguity of the + Jews and Idumæans tended to promote mutual intercourse between + them, and even threatened an eventual fusion of the two peoples. As + a matter of fact, the Idumæan Herods became rulers of Judæa. To + guard against such dangers to the separateness of the Jewish + people, the chronicler emphasises the historical distinction of + race between them and the Edomites.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">From the + beginning of the second chapter onwards the genealogies are wholly + occupied with Israelites. The author's special interest in Judah is + at once manifested. After giving the list of the twelve Patriarchs + he devotes two and a half chapters to the families of Judah. Here + again the materials have been mostly obtained from the earlier + historical books. They are, however, combined with more recent + traditions, so that in this chapter matter from different sources + is pieced together in a very confusing fashion. One source of this + confusion was the principle that the Jewish community could only + consist of families of genuine Israelite descent. Now a large + number of the returned exiles traced their descent to two brothers, + Caleb and Jerahmeel; but in the older narratives Caleb and + Jerahmeel are not Israelites. Caleb is a Kenizzite,<a id= + "noteref_60" name="noteref_60" href="#note_60"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">60</span></span></a> and + his descendants <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page051">[pg + 051]</span><a name="Pg051" id="Pg051" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + and those of Jerahmeel appear in close connection with the + Kenites.<a id="noteref_61" name="noteref_61" href= + "#note_61"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">61</span></span></a> Even + in this chapter certain of the Calebites are called Kenites and + connected in some strange way with the Rechabites.<a id= + "noteref_62" name="noteref_62" href="#note_62"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">62</span></span></a> Though + at the close of the monarchy the Calebites and Jerahmeelites had + become an integral part of the tribe of Judah, their separate + origin had not been forgotten, and Caleb and Jerahmeel had not been + included in the Israelite genealogies. But after the Exile men came + to feel more and more strongly that a common faith implied unity of + race. Moreover, the practical unity of the Jews with these + Kenizzites overbore the dim and fading memory of ancient tribal + distinctions. Jews and Kenizzites had shared the Captivity, the + Exile, and the Return; they worked, and fought, and worshipped side + by side; and they were to all intents and purposes one nation, + alike the people of Jehovah. This obvious and important practical + truth was expressed as such truths were then wont to be expressed. + The children of Caleb and Jerahmeel were finally and formally + adopted into the chosen race. Caleb and Jerahmeel are no longer the + sons of Jephunneh the Kenizzite; they are the sons of Hezron, the + son of Perez, the son of Judah.<a id="noteref_63" name="noteref_63" + href="#note_63"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">63</span></span></a> A new + genealogy was formed as a recognition rather than an explanation of + accomplished facts.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Of the section + containing the genealogies of Judah, the lion's share is naturally + given to the house of David, to which a part of the second chapter + and the whole of the third are devoted.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page052">[pg 052]</span><a name="Pg052" id="Pg052" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Next follow + genealogies of the remaining tribes, those of Levi and Benjamin + being by far the most complete. Chap. vi., which is devoted to + Levi, affords evidence of the use by the chronicler of independent + and sometimes inconsistent sources, and also illustrates his + special interest in the priesthood and the Temple choir. A list of + high-priests from Aaron to Ahimaaz is given twice over (vv. 4-8 and + 49-53), but only one line of high-priests is recognised, the house + of Zadok, whom Josiah's reforms had made the one priestly family in + Israel. Their ancient rivals the high-priests of the house of Eli + are as entirely ignored as the antediluvian Cainites. The existing + high-priestly dynasty had been so long established that these other + priests of Saul and David seemed no longer to have any significance + for the religion of Israel.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The pedigree of + the three Levitical families of Gershom, Kohath, and Merari is also + given twice over: in vv. 16-30 and 31-49. The former pedigree + begins with the sons of Levi, and proceeds to their descendants; + the latter begins with the founders of the guilds of singers, + Heman, Asaph, and Ethan, and traces back their genealogies to + Kohath, Gershom, and Merari respectively. But the pedigrees do not + agree; compare, for instance, the lists of the + Kohathites:—</p><a name="Pg053" id="Pg053" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <table summary="This is a table" cellspacing="0" class= + "tei tei-table" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <colgroup span="2"></colgroup> + + <tbody> + <tr class="tei tei-row"> + <td class="tei tei-cell">22-24.</td> + + <td class="tei tei-cell">36-38.</td> + </tr> + + <tr class="tei tei-row"> + <td class="tei tei-cell">Kohath</td> + + <td class="tei tei-cell">Kohath</td> + </tr> + + <tr class="tei tei-row"> + <td class="tei tei-cell"><em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">Amminadab</span></em></td> + + <td class="tei tei-cell"><em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">Izhar</span></em></td> + </tr> + + <tr class="tei tei-row"> + <td class="tei tei-cell">Korah</td> + + <td class="tei tei-cell">Korah</td> + </tr> + + <tr class="tei tei-row"> + <td class="tei tei-cell"><em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">Assir</span></em></td> + + <td class="tei tei-cell"></td> + </tr> + + <tr class="tei tei-row"> + <td class="tei tei-cell"><em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">Elkanah</span></em></td> + + <td class="tei tei-cell"></td> + </tr> + + <tr class="tei tei-row"> + <td class="tei tei-cell">Ebiasaph</td> + + <td class="tei tei-cell">Ebiasaph</td> + </tr> + + <tr class="tei tei-row"> + <td class="tei tei-cell">Assir</td> + + <td class="tei tei-cell">Assir</td> + </tr> + + <tr class="tei tei-row"> + <td class="tei tei-cell">Tahath</td> + + <td class="tei tei-cell">Tahath</td> + </tr> + + <tr class="tei tei-row"> + <td class="tei tei-cell"><em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">Uriel</span></em></td> + + <td class="tei tei-cell"><em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">Zephaniah</span></em></td> + </tr> + + <tr class="tei tei-row"> + <td class="tei tei-cell"><em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">Uzziah</span></em></td> + + <td class="tei tei-cell"><em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">Azariah</span></em></td> + </tr> + + <tr class="tei tei-row"> + <td class="tei tei-cell"><em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">Shaul</span></em></td> + + <td class="tei tei-cell">etc.</td> + </tr> + </tbody> + </table> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have here one + of many illustrations of the fact that the chronicler used + materials of very different value. To attempt to prove the absolute + consistency of all his genealogies would be mere waste of time. It + is by no means certain that he himself supposed them to be + consistent. The frank juxtaposition of varying lists of ancestors + rather suggests that he was prompted by a scholarly desire to + preserve for his readers all available evidence of every kind.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In reading the + genealogies of the tribe of Benjamin, it is specially interesting + to find that in the Jewish community of the Restoration there were + families tracing their descent through Mephibosheth and Jonathan to + Saul.<a id="noteref_64" name="noteref_64" href= + "#note_64"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">64</span></span></a> + Apparently the chronicler and his contemporaries shared this + special interest in the fortunes of a fallen dynasty, for the + genealogy is given twice over. These circumstances are the more + striking because in the actual history of Chronicles Saul is all + but ignored.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The rest of the + ninth chapter deals with the inhabitants of Jerusalem and the + ministry of the Temple after the return from the Captivity, and is + partly identical with sections of Ezra and Nehemiah. It closes the + family history, as it were, of Israel, and its position indicates + the standpoint and ruling interests of the + chronicler.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page054">[pg + 054]</span><a name="Pg054" id="Pg054" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus the nine + opening chapters of genealogies and kindred matter strike the + key-notes of the whole book. Some are personal and professional; + some are religious. On the one hand, we have the origin of existing + families and institutions; on the other hand, we have the election + of the tribe of Judah and the house of David, of the tribe of Levi + and the house of Aaron.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Let us consider + first the hereditary character of the Jewish religion and + priesthood. Here, as elsewhere, the formal doctrine only recognised + and accepted actual facts. The conditions which received the + sanction of religion were first imposed by the force of + circumstances. In primitive times, if there was to be any religion + at all, it had to be national; if God was to be worshipped at all, + His worship was necessarily national, and He became in some measure + a national God. Sympathies are limited by knowledge and by common + interest. The ordinary Israelite knew very little of any other + people than his own. There was little international comity in + primitive times, and nations were slow to recognise that they had + common interests. It was difficult for an Israelite to believe that + his beloved Jehovah, in whom he had been taught to trust, was also + the God of the Arabs and Syrians, who periodically raided his + crops, and cattle, and slaves, and sometimes carried off his + children, or of the Chaldæans, who made deliberate and complete + arrangements for plundering the whole country, rasing its cities to + the ground, and carrying away the population into distant exile. By + a supreme act of faith, the prophets claimed the enemies and + oppressors of Israel as instruments of the will of Jehovah, and the + chronicler's genealogies show that he shared this faith; but it was + still inevitable that the Jews should look out upon the world at + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page055">[pg 055]</span><a name= + "Pg055" id="Pg055" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> large from the + standpoint of their own national interests and experience. Jehovah + was God of heaven and earth; but Israelites knew Him through the + deliverance He had wrought for Israel, the punishments He had + inflicted on her sins, and the messages He had entrusted to her + prophets. As far as their knowledge and practical experience went, + they knew Him as the God of Israel. The course of events since the + fall of Samaria narrowed still further the local associations of + Hebrew worship.</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">God was + wroth,</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">And greatly abhorred + Israel,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">So that He forsook the + tabernacle of Shiloh,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">The tent which He placed among + men;</span> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">He refused the tent of + Joseph,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">And chose not the tribe of + Ephraim,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">But chose the tribe of + Judah,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">The Mount Zion which He + loved:</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">And He built His sanctuary like + the heights,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">Like the earth, which He hath established + for ever.</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span><a id="noteref_65" name= + "noteref_65" href="#note_65"><span class="tei tei-noteref" + style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">65</span></span></a> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We are doubtless + right in criticising those Jews whose limitations led them to + regard Jehovah as a kind of personal possession, the inheritance of + their own nation, and not of other peoples. But even here we can + only blame their negations. Jehovah <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">was</span></em> + their inheritance and personal possession; but then He was also the + inheritance of other nations. This Jewish heresy is by no means + extinct: white men do not always believe that their God is equally + the God of the negro; Englishmen are inclined to think that God is + the God of England in a more especial way than He is the God of + France. When we discourse concerning God in history, we + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page056">[pg 056]</span><a name= + "Pg056" id="Pg056" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> mostly mean our own + history. We can see the hand of Providence in the wreck of the + Armada and the overthrow of Napoleon; but we are not so ready to + recognise in the same Napoleon the Divine instrument that created a + new Europe by relieving her peoples from cruel and degrading + tyranny. We scarcely realise that God cares as much for the + Continent as He does for our island.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have great + and perhaps sufficient excuses, but we must let the Jews have the + benefit of them. God is as much the God of one nation as of + another; but He fulfils Himself to different nations in different + ways, by a various providential discipline. Each people is bound to + believe that God has specially adapted His dealings to its needs, + nor can we be surprised if men forget or fail to observe that God + has done no less for their neighbours. Each nation rightly regards + its religious ideas, and life, and literature as a precious + inheritance peculiarly its own; and it should not be too severely + blamed for being ignorant that other nations have their inheritance + also. Such considerations largely justify the interest in heredity + shown by the chronicler's genealogies. On the positive, practical + side, religion <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">is</span></em> largely a matter of heredity, + and ought to be. The Christian sacrament of baptism is a continual + profession of this truth: our children are <span class= + "tei tei-q">“clean”</span>; they are within the covenant of grace; + we claim for them the privileges of the Church to which we belong. + That was also part of the meaning of the genealogies.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In the broad + field of social and religious life the problems of heredity are in + some ways less complicated than in the more exact discussions of + physical science. Practical effects can be considered without + attempting an accurate analysis of causes. Family history not + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page057">[pg 057]</span><a name= + "Pg057" id="Pg057" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> only determines + physical constitution, mental gifts, and moral character, but also + fixes for the most part country, home, education, circumstances, + and social position. All these were a man's inheritance more + peculiarly in Israel than with us; and in many cases in Israel a + man was often trained to inherit a family profession. Apart from + the ministry of the Temple, we read of a family of craftsmen, of + other families that were potters, of others who dwelt with the king + for his work, and of the families of the house of them that wrought + fine linen.<a id="noteref_66" name="noteref_66" href= + "#note_66"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">66</span></span></a> + Religion is largely involved in the manifold inheritance which a + man receives from his fathers. His birth determines his religious + education, the examples of religious life set before him, the forms + of worship in which as a child he takes part. Most men live and die + in the religion of their childhood; they worship the God of their + fathers; Romanist remains Romanist: Protestant remains Protestant. + They may fail to grasp any living faith, or may lose all interest + in religion; but such religion as most men have is part of their + inheritance. In the Israel of the chronicler faith and devotion to + God were almost always and entirely inherited. They were part of + the great debt which a man owed to his fathers.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The recognition + of these facts should tend to foster our humility and reverence, to + encourage patriotism and philanthropy. We are the creatures and + debtors of the past, though we are slow to own our obligations. We + have nothing that we have not received; but we are apt to consider + ourselves self-made men, the architects and builders of our own + fortunes, who have the right to be self-satisfied, self-assertive, + and selfish. The heir of all the ages, in the full vigour of youth, + takes his place <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page058">[pg + 058]</span><a name="Pg058" id="Pg058" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + in the foremost ranks of time, and marches on in the happy + consciousness of profound and multifarious wisdom, immense + resources, and magnificent opportunity. He forgets or even despises + the generations of labour and anguish that have built up for him + his great inheritance. The genealogies are a silent protest against + such insolent ingratitude. They remind us that in bygone days a man + derived his gifts and received his opportunities from his + ancestors; they show us men as the links in a chain, tenants for + life, as it were, of our estate, called upon to pay back with + interest to the future the debt which they have incurred to the + past. We see that the chain is a long one, with many links; and the + slight estimate we are inclined to put upon the work of individuals + in each generation recoils upon our own pride. We also are but + individuals of a generation that is only one of the thousands + needed to work out the Divine purpose for mankind. We are taught + the humility that springs from a sense of obligation and + responsibility.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We learn + reverence for the workers and achievements of the past, and most of + all for God. We are reminded of the scale of the Divine + working:—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">A + thousand years in Thy sight</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Are but as yesterday when it is + past</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">And as a watch in the + night.</span><span style="font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">A genealogy is a + brief and pointed reminder that God has been working through all + the countless generations behind us. The bare series of names is an + expressive diagram of His mighty process. Each name in the earlier + lists stands for a generation or even for several generations. The + genealogies go back into dim, prehistoric periods; they suggest a + past too remote for <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page059">[pg + 059]</span><a name="Pg059" id="Pg059" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + our imagining. And yet they take us back to Adam, to the very + beginning of human life. From that beginning, however many + thousands or tens of thousands of years ago, the life of man has + been sacred, the object of the Divine care and love, the instrument + of the Divine purpose.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Later on we see + the pedigree of our race dividing into countless branches, all of + which are represented in this sacred diagram of humanity. The + Divine working not only extends over all time, but also embraces + all the complicated circumstances and relationships of the families + of mankind. These genealogies suggest a lesson probably not + intended by the chronicler. We recognise the unique character of + the history of Israel, but in some measure we discern in this one + full and detailed narrative of the chosen people a type of the + history of every race. Others had not the election of Israel, but + each had its own vocation. God's power, and wisdom, and love are + manifested in the history of one chosen people on a scale + commensurate with our limited faculties, so that we may gain some + faint idea of the marvellous providence in <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">all</span></em> + history of the Father from whom <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">every</span></em> + family in heaven and on earth is named.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Another + principle closely allied to heredity and also discussed in modern + times is the solidarity of the race. Humanity is supposed to + possess something akin to a common consciousness, personality, or + individuality. Such a quality evidently becomes more intense as we + narrow its scope from the race to the nation, the clan, and the + family; it has its roots in family relationships. Tribal, national, + humanitarian feelings indicate that the larger societies have taken + upon themselves something of the character of the <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page060">[pg 060]</span><a name="Pg060" id="Pg060" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> family. Thus the common feelings and + mutual sympathies of mankind are due ultimately to blood + relationship. The genealogies that set forth family histories are + the symbols of this brotherhood or solidarity of our race. The + chart of converging lines of ancestors in Israel carried men's + minds back from the separate families to their common ancestor; + again, the ancestry of ancestors led back to a still earlier common + origin, and the process continued till all the lines met in Noah. + Each stage of the process enlarged the range of every man's + kinship, and broadened the natural area of mutual help and + affection. It is true that the Jews failed to learn this larger + lesson from their genealogies, but within their own community they + felt intensely the bond of kinship and brotherhood. Modern + patriotism reproduces the strong Jewish national feeling, and our + humanitarianism is beginning to extend it to the whole world. By + this time the facts of heredity have been more carefully studied + and are better understood. If we drew up typical genealogies now, + they would more fully and accurately represent the mutual + relationships of our people. As far as they go, the chronicler's + genealogies form a clear and instructive diagram of the mutual + dependence of man on man and family on family. The value of the + diagram does not require the accuracy of the actual names any more + than the validity of Euclid requires the actual existence of + triangles called A B C, D E F. These genealogies are in any case a + true symbol of the facts of family relations; but they are drawn, + so to speak, in one dimension only, backwards and forwards in time. + Yet the real family life exists in three dimensions. There are + numerous cross-relations, cousinship of all degrees, as well as + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page061">[pg 061]</span><a name= + "Pg061" id="Pg061" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> sonship and + brotherhood. A man has not merely his male ancestors in the + directly ascending line—father, grandfather, great-grandfather, + etc.—but he has female ancestors as well. By going back three or + four generations a man is connected with an immense number of + cousins; and if the complete network of ten or fifteen generations + could be worked out, it would probably show some blood bond + throughout a whole nation. Thus the ancestral roots of a man's life + and character have wide ramifications in the former generations of + his people. The further we go back the larger is the element of + ancestry common to the different individuals of the same community. + The chronicler's genealogies only show us individuals as links in a + set of chains. The more complete genealogical scheme would be + better illustrated by the ganglia of the nervous system, each of + which is connected by numerous nerve fibres with the other ganglia. + The Church has been compared to the body, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“which is one, and hath many members, and all the + members of the body, being many, are one body.”</span> Humanity, by + its natural kinship, is also such a body; the nation is still more + truly <span class="tei tei-q">“one body.”</span> Patriotism and + humanity are instincts as natural and as binding as those of the + family; and the genealogies express or symbolise the wider family + ties, that they may commend the virtues and enforce the duties that + arise out of these ties.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Before closing + this chapter something may be said on one or two special points. + Women are virtually ignored in these genealogies, a fact that + rather indicates a failure to recognise their influence than the + absence of such influence. Here and there a woman is mentioned for + some special reason. For instance, the names of Zeruiah and Abigail + are inserted in order to <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page062">[pg + 062]</span><a name="Pg062" id="Pg062" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + show that Joab, Abishai, and Asahel, together with Amasa, were all + cousins of David. The same keen interest in David leads the + chronicler to record the names of his wives. It is noteworthy that + of the four women who are mentioned in St. Matthew's genealogy of + our Lord only two—Tamar and Bath-shua (<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span>, + Bath-sheba)—are mentioned here. Probably St. Matthew was careful to + complete the list because Rahab and Ruth, like Tamar and possibly + Bath-sheba, were foreigners, and their names in the genealogy + indicated a connection between Christ and the Gentiles, and served + to emphasise His mission to be the Saviour of the world.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Again, much + caution is necessary in applying any principle of heredity. A + genealogy, as we have seen, suggests our dependence in many ways + upon our ancestry. But a man's relations to his kindred are many + and complicated; a quality, for instance, may be latent for one or + more generations and then reappear, so that to all appearance a man + inherits from his grandfather or from a more remote ancestor rather + than from his father or mother. Conversely the presence of certain + traits of character in a child does not show that any corresponding + tendency has necessarily been active in the life of either parent. + Neither must the influence of circumstances be confounded with that + of heredity. Moreover, very large allowance must be made for our + ignorance of the laws that govern the human will, an ignorance that + will often baffle our attempts to find in heredity any simple + explanation of men's characters and actions. Thomas Fuller has a + quaint <span class="tei tei-q">“Scripture observation”</span> that + gives an important practical application of these principles:—</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“Lord, I find the genealogy of my Saviour strangely + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page063">[pg 063]</span><a name= + "Pg063" id="Pg063" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> chequered with four + remarkable changes in four immediate generations:</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“1. <span class="tei tei-q">‘Rehoboam begat + Abiam’</span>; that is, a bad father begat a bad son.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“2. <span class="tei tei-q">‘Abiam begat Asa’</span>; + that is, a bad father a good son.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“3. <span class="tei tei-q">‘Asa begat + Jehosaphat’</span>; that is, a good father a good son.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“4. <span class="tei tei-q">‘Jehosaphat begat + Joram’</span>; that is, a good father a bad son.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“I see, Lord, from hence that my father's piety cannot + be entailed; that is bad news for me. But I see also that actual + impiety is not always hereditary; that is good news for my + son.”</span></p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page064">[pg 064]</span><a name= + "Pg064" id="Pg064" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc19" id="toc19"></a> <a name="pdf20" id="pdf20"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter III. Statistics.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Statistics play + an important part in Chronicles and in the Old Testament generally. + To begin with, there are the genealogies and other lists of names, + such as the lists of David's counsellors and the roll of honour of + his mighty men. The chronicler specially delights in lists of + names, and most of all in lists of Levitical choristers. He gives + us lists of the orchestras and choirs who performed when the Ark + was brought to Zion<a id="noteref_67" name="noteref_67" href= + "#note_67"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">67</span></span></a> and at + Hezekiah's passover,<a id="noteref_68" name="noteref_68" href= + "#note_68"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">68</span></span></a> also a + list of Levites whom Jehoshaphat sent out to teach in Judah.<a id= + "noteref_69" name="noteref_69" href="#note_69"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">69</span></span></a> No + doubt family pride was gratified when the chronicler's + contemporaries and friends read the names of their ancestors in + connection with great events in the history of their religion. + Possibly they supplied him with the information from which these + lists were compiled. An incidental result of the celibacy of the + Romanist clergy has been to render ancient ecclesiastical + genealogies impossible; modern clergymen cannot trace their descent + to the monks who landed with Augustine. Our genealogies might + enable a historian to construct lists of the combatants at + Agincourt and Hastings; but the Crusades are the only wars of the + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page065">[pg 065]</span><a name= + "Pg065" id="Pg065" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Church militant for + which modern pedigrees could furnish a muster-roll.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We find also in + the Old Testament the specifications and subscription-lists for the + Tabernacle and for Solomon's temple.<a id="noteref_70" name= + "noteref_70" href="#note_70"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">70</span></span></a> These + statistics, however, are not furnished for the second Temple, + probably for the same reason that in modern subscription-lists the + donors of shillings and half-crowns are to be indicated by + initials, or described as <span class="tei tei-q">“friends”</span> + and <span class="tei tei-q">“sympathisers,”</span> or massed + together under the heading <span class="tei tei-q">“smaller + sums.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The Old + Testament is also rich in census returns and statements as to the + numbers of armies and of the divisions of which they were composed. + There are the returns of the census taken twice in the wilderness + and accounts of the numbers of the different families who came from + Babylon with Zerubbabel and later on with Ezra; there is a census + of the Levites in David's time according to their several + families<a id="noteref_71" name="noteref_71" href= + "#note_71"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">71</span></span></a>; there + are the numbers of the tribal contingents that came to Hebron to + make David king,<a id="noteref_72" name="noteref_72" href= + "#note_72"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">72</span></span></a> and + much similar information.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Statistics + therefore occupy a conspicuous position in the inspired record of + Divine revelation, and yet we often hesitate to connect such terms + as <span class="tei tei-q">“inspiration”</span> and <span class= + "tei tei-q">“revelation”</span> with numbers, and names, and + details of civil and ecclesiastical organisation. We are afraid + lest any stress laid on purely accidental details should distract + men's attention from the eternal essence of the Gospel, lest any + suggestion that the certainty of Christian truth is dependent on + the accuracy of these statistics should become a stumbling-block + and destroy <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page066">[pg + 066]</span><a name="Pg066" id="Pg066" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + the faith of some. Concerning such matters there have been many + foolish questions of genealogies, profane and vain babblings, which + have increased unto more ungodliness. Quite apart from these, even + in the Old Testament a sanctity attaches to the number seven, but + there is no warrant for any considerable expenditure of time and + thought upon mystical arithmetic. A symbolism runs through the + details of the building, furniture, and ritual alike of the + Tabernacle and the Temple, and this symbolism possesses a + legitimate religious significance; but its exposition is not + specially suggested by the book of Chronicles. The exposition of + such symbolism is not always sufficiently governed by a sense of + proportion. Ingenuity in supplying subtle interpretations of minute + details often conceals the great truths which the symbols are + really intended to enforce. Moreover, the sacred writers did not + give statistics merely to furnish materials for Cabbala and + Gematria or even to serve as theological types and symbols. + Sometimes their purpose was more simple and practical. If we knew + all the history of the Tabernacle and Temple subscription-lists, we + should doubtless find that they had been used to stimulate generous + gifts towards the erection of the second Temple. Preachers for + building funds can find abundance of suitable texts in Exodus, + Kings, and Chronicles.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But Biblical + statistics are also examples in accuracy and thoroughness of + information, and recognitions of the more obscure and prosaic + manifestations of the higher life. Indeed, in these and other ways + the Bible gives an anticipatory sanction to the exact sciences.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The mention of + accuracy in connection with Chronicles may be received by some + readers with a contemptuous smile. But we are indebted to the + chronicler for exact <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page067">[pg + 067]</span><a name="Pg067" id="Pg067" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + and full information about the Jews who returned from Babylon; and + in spite of the extremely severe judgment passed upon Chronicles by + many critics, we may still venture to believe that the chronicler's + statistics are as accurate as his knowledge and critical training + rendered possible. He may sometimes give figures obtained by + calculation from uncertain data, but such a practice is quite + consistent with honesty and a desire to supply the best available + information. Modern scholars are quite ready to present us with + figures as to the membership of the Christian Church under + Antoninus Pius or Constantine; and some of these figures are not + much more probable than the most doubtful in Chronicles. All that + is necessary to make the chronicler's statistics an example to us + is that they should be the monument of a conscientious attempt to + tell the truth, and this they undoubtedly are.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This Biblical + example is the more useful because statistics are often evil spoken + of, and they have no outward attractiveness to shield them from + popular prejudice. We are told that <span class= + "tei tei-q">“nothing is so false as statistics,”</span> and that + <span class="tei tei-q">“figures will prove anything”</span>; and + the polemic is sustained by works like <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Hard + Times</span></span> and the awful example of Mr. Gradgrind. + Properly understood, these proverbs illustrate the very general + impatience of any demand for exact thought and expression. If + <span class="tei tei-q">“figures”</span> will prove anything, so + will texts.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Though this + popular prejudice cannot be altogether ignored, yet it need not be + taken too seriously. The opposite principle, when stated, will at + once be seen to be a truism. For it amounts to this: exact and + comprehensive knowledge is the basis of a right understanding of + history, and is a necessary condition of right action. This + principle is often neglected because <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page068">[pg 068]</span><a name="Pg068" id="Pg068" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> it is obvious. Yet, to illustrate it from our + author, a knowledge of the size and plan of the Temple greatly adds + to the vividness of our pictures of Hebrew religion. We apprehend + later Jewish life much more clearly with the aid of the statistics + as to the numbers, families, and settlements of the returning + exiles; and similarly the account-books of the bailiff of an + English estate in the fourteenth century are worth several hundred + pages of contemporary theology. These considerations may encourage + those who perform the thankless task of compiling the statistics, + subscription-lists, and balance-sheets of missionary and + philanthropic societies. The zealous and intelligent historian of + Christian life and service will need these dry records to enable + him to understand his subject, and the highest literary gifts may + be employed in the eloquent exposition of these apparently + uninteresting facts and figures. Moreover, upon the accuracy of + these records depends the possibility of determining a true course + for the future. Neither societies nor individuals, for instance, + can afford to live beyond their income without knowing it.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Statistics, too, + are the only form in which many acts of service can be recognised + and recorded. Literature can only deal with typical instances, and + naturally it selects the more dramatic. The missionary report can + only tell the story of a few striking conversions; it may give the + history of the exceptional self-denial involved in one or two of + its subscriptions; for the rest we must be content with tables and + subscription-lists. But these dry statistics represent an + infinitude of patience and self-denial, of work and prayer, of + Divine grace and blessing. The city missionary may narrate his + experiences with a few inquirers and penitents, but the great bulk + of his work can only be <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page069">[pg + 069]</span><a name="Pg069" id="Pg069" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + recorded in the statement of visits paid and services conducted. We + are tempted sometimes to disparage these statements, to ask how + many of the visits and services had any result; we are impatient + sometimes because Christian work is estimated by any such numerical + line and measure. No doubt the method has many defects, and must + not be used too mechanically; but we cannot give it up without + ignoring altogether much earnest and successful labour.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Our chronicler's + interest in statistics lays healthy emphasis on the practical + character of religion. There is a danger of identifying spiritual + force with literary and rhetorical gifts; to recognise the + religious value of statistics is the most forcible protest against + such identification. The permanent contribution of any age to + religious thought will naturally take a literary form, and the + higher the literary qualities of religious writing, the more likely + it is to survive. Shakespeare, Milton, and Bunyan have probably + exercised a more powerful direct religious influence on subsequent + generations than all the theologians of the seventeenth century. + But the supreme service of the Church in any age is its influence + on its own generation, by which it moulds the generation + immediately following. That influence can only be estimated by a + careful study of all possible information, and especially of + statistics. We cannot assign mathematical values to spiritual + effects and tabulate them like Board of Trade returns; but real + spiritual movements will before long have practical issues, that + can be heard, and seen, and felt, and even admit of being put into + tables. <span class="tei tei-q">“The wind bloweth where it listeth, + and thou hearest the voice thereof, but knowest not whence it + cometh and whither it goeth”</span><a id="noteref_73" name= + "noteref_73" href="#note_73"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">73</span></span></a>; + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page070">[pg 070]</span><a name= + "Pg070" id="Pg070" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> and yet the boughs + and the corn bend before the wind, and the ships are carried across + the sea to their desired haven. Tables may be drawn up of the + tonnage and the rate of sailing. So is every one that is born of + the Spirit. You cannot tell when and how God breathes upon the + soul; but if the Divine Spirit be indeed at work in any society, + there will be fewer crimes and quarrels, less scandal, and more + deeds of charity. We may justly suspect a revival which has no + effect upon the statistical records of national life. + Subscription-lists are very imperfect tests of enthusiasm, but any + widespread Christian fervour would be worth little if it did not + swell subscription-lists.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Chronicles is + not the most important witness to a sympathetic relationship + between the Bible and exact science. The first chapter of Genesis + is the classic example of the appropriation by an inspired writer + of the scientific spirit and method. Some chapters in Job show a + distinctly scientific interest in natural phenomena. Moreover, the + direct concern of Chronicles is in the religious aspects of social + science. And yet there is a patient accumulation of data with no + obvious dramatic value: names, dates, numbers, specifications, and + ritual which do not improve the literary character of the + narrative. This conscientious recording of dry facts, this noting + down of anything and everything that connects with the subject, is + closely akin to the initial processes of the inductive sciences. + True, the chronicler's interests are in some directions narrowed by + personal and professional feeling; but within these limits he is + anxious to make a complete record, which, as we have seen, + sometimes leads to repetition. Now inductive science is based on + unlimited statistics. The astronomer and biologist share the + chronicler's appetite <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page071">[pg + 071]</span><a name="Pg071" id="Pg071" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + for this kind of mental food. The lists in Chronicles are few and + meagre compared to the records of Greenwich Observatory or the + volumes which contain the data of biology or sociology; but the + chronicler becomes in a certain sense the forerunner of Darwin, + Spencer, and Galton. The differences are indeed immense. The + interval of two thousand odd years between the ancient annalist and + the modern scientists has not been thrown away. In estimating the + value of evidence and interpreting its significance, the chronicler + was a mere child compared with his modern successors. His aims and + interests were entirely different from theirs. But yet he was moved + by a spirit which they may be said to inherit. His careful + collection of facts, even his tendency to read the ideas and + institutions of his own time into ancient history, are indications + of a reverence for the past and of an anxiety to base ideas and + action upon a knowledge of that past. This foreshadows the + reverence of modern science for experience, its anxiety to base its + laws and theories upon observation of what has actually occurred. + The principle that the past determines and interprets the present + and the future lies at the root of the theological attitude of the + most conservative minds and the scientific work of the most + advanced thinkers. The conservative spirit, like the chronicler, is + apt to suffer its inherited prepossessions and personal interests + to hinder a true observation and understanding of the past. But the + chronicler's opportunities and experience were narrow indeed + compared with those of theological students to-day; and we have + every right to lay stress on the progress which he had achieved and + the onward path that it indicated rather than on the yet more + advanced stages which still lay beyond his horizon.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page072">[pg 072]</span><a name= + "Pg072" id="Pg072" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc21" id="toc21"></a> <a name="pdf22" id="pdf22"></a> + <a name="Book_II_Chapter_IV" id="Book_II_Chapter_IV" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter IV. Family Traditions. 1 + Chron. i. 10, 19, 46; ii. 3, 7, 34; iv. 9, 10, 18, 22, 27, 34-43; + v. 10, 18-22; vii. 21-23; viii. 13.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Chronicles is a + miniature Old Testament, and may have been meant as a handbook for + ordinary people, who had no access to the whole library of sacred + writings. It contains nothing corresponding to the books of Wisdom + or the apocalyptic literature; but all the other types of Old + Testament literature are represented. There are genealogies, + statistics, ritual, history, psalms, and prophecies. The interest + shown by Chronicles in family traditions harmonises with the stress + laid by the Hebrew Scriptures upon family life. The other + historical books are largely occupied with the family history of + the Patriarchs, of Moses, of Jephthah, Gideon, Samson, Saul, and + David. The chronicler intersperses his genealogies with short + anecdotes about the different families and tribes. Some of these + are borrowed from the older books; but others are peculiar to our + author, and were doubtless obtained by him from the family records + and traditions of his contemporaries. The statements that + <span class="tei tei-q">“Nimrod began to be mighty upon the + earth”</span><a id="noteref_74" name="noteref_74" href= + "#note_74"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">74</span></span></a>; that + <span class="tei tei-q">“the name of one”</span> of Eber's sons + <span class="tei tei-q">“was Peleg, because in his days the + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page073">[pg 073]</span><a name= + "Pg073" id="Pg073" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> earth was + divided”</span><a id="noteref_75" name="noteref_75" href= + "#note_75"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">75</span></span></a>; and + that Hadad <span class="tei tei-q">“smote Moab in the field of + Midian,”</span><a id="noteref_76" name="noteref_76" href= + "#note_76"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">76</span></span></a> are + borrowed from Genesis. As he omits events much more important and + more closely connected with the history of Israel, and gives no + account of Babel, or of Abraham, or of the conquest of Canaan, + these little notes are probably retained by accident, because at + times the chronicler copied his authorities somewhat mechanically. + It was less trouble to take the genealogies as they stood than to + exercise great care in weeding out everything but the bare + names.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In one + instance,<a id="noteref_77" name="noteref_77" href= + "#note_77"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">77</span></span></a> + however, the chronicler has erased a curious note to a genealogy in + Genesis. A certain Anah is mentioned both in Genesis and Chronicles + among the Horites, who inhabited Mount Seir before it was conquered + by Edom. Most of us, in reading the Authorised Version, have + wondered what historical or religious interest secured a permanent + record for the fact that <span class="tei tei-q">“Anah found the + mules in the wilderness, as he fed the asses of Zibeon his + father.”</span> A possible solution seemed to be that this note was + preserved as the earliest reference to the existence of mules, + which animals played an important part in the social life of + Palestine; but the Revised Version sets aside this explanation by + substituting <span class="tei tei-q">“hot springs”</span> for + <span class="tei tei-q">“mules,”</span> as these hot springs are + only mentioned here, the passage becomes a greater puzzle than + ever. The chronicler could hardly overlook this curious piece of + information, but he naturally felt that this obscure archæological + note about the aboriginal Horites did not fall within the scope of + his work. On the other <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page074">[pg + 074]</span><a name="Pg074" id="Pg074" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + hand, the tragic fates of Er and Achar<a id="noteref_78" name= + "noteref_78" href="#note_78"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">78</span></span></a> had a + direct genealogical significance. They are referred to in order to + explain why the lists contain no descendants of these members of + the tribe of Judah. The notes to these names illustrate the more + depressing aspects of history. The men who lived happy, honourable + lives can be mentioned one after another without any comment; but + even the compiler of pedigrees pauses to note the crimes and + misfortunes that broke the natural order of life. The annals of old + families dwell with melancholy pride on murders, and fatal duels, + and suicides. History, like an ancient mansion, is haunted with + unhappy ghosts. Yet our interest in tragedy is a testimony to the + blessedness of life; comfort and enjoyment are too monotonously + common to be worth recording, but we are attracted and excited by + exceptional instances of suffering and sin.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Let us turn to + the episodes of family life only found in Chronicles. They may + mostly be arranged in little groups of two or three, and some of + the groups present us with an interesting contrast.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We learn from + ii. 34-41 and iv. 18 that two Jewish families traced their descent + from Egyptian ancestors. Sheshan, according to Chronicles, was + eighth in descent from Judah and fifth from Jerahmeel, the brother + of Caleb. Having daughters but no son, he gave one of his daughters + in marriage to an Egyptian slave named Jarha. The descendants of + this union are traced for thirteen generations. Genealogies, + however, are not always complete; and our other data do not suffice + to determine even approximately the date of this marriage. But the + five generations between Jerahmeel and Sheshan indicate a period + long after the <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page075">[pg + 075]</span><a name="Pg075" id="Pg075" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Exodus; and as Egypt plays no recorded part in the history of + Israel between the Exodus and the reign of Solomon, the marriage + may have taken place under the monarchy. The story is a curious + parallel to that of Joseph, with the parts of Israelite and + Egyptian reversed. God is no respecter of persons; it is not only + when the desolate and afflicted in strange lands belong to the + chosen people that Jehovah relieves and delivers them. It is true + of the Egyptian, as well as of the Israelite, that <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the Lord maketh poor and maketh rich.”</span></p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">He + bringeth low, He also lifteth up;</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">He raiseth up the poor out of + the dust:</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">He lifteth up the needy from the + dunghill,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">To make them sit with + princes</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">And inherit the throne of + glory.</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span><a id="noteref_79" name= + "noteref_79" href="#note_79"><span class="tei tei-noteref" + style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">79</span></span></a> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This song might + have been sung at Jarha's wedding as well as at Joseph's.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Both these + marriages throw a sidelight upon the character of Eastern slavery. + They show how sharply and deeply it was divided from the hopeless + degradation of negro slavery in America. Israelites did not + recognise distinctions of race and colour between themselves and + their bondsmen so as to treat them as worse than pariahs and regard + them with physical loathing. An American considers himself + disgraced by a slight taint of negro blood in his ancestry, but a + noble Jewish family was proud to trace its descent from an Egyptian + slave.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The other story + is somewhat different, and rests upon an obscure and corrupt + passage in iv. 18. The confusion makes it impossible to arrive at + any date, <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page076">[pg + 076]</span><a name="Pg076" id="Pg076" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + even by rough approximation. The genealogical relations of the + actors are by no means certain, but some interesting points are + tolerably clear. Some time after the conquest of Canaan, a + descendant of Caleb married two wives, one a Jewess, the other an + Egyptian. The Egyptian was Bithiah, a daughter of Pharaoh, + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span>, of the contemporary king + of Egypt. It appears probable that the inhabitants of Eshtemoa + traced their descent to this Egyptian princess, while those of + Gedor, Soco, and Zanoah claimed Mered as their ancestor by his + Jewish wife.<a id="noteref_80" name="noteref_80" href= + "#note_80"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">80</span></span></a> Here + again we have the bare outline of a romance, which the imagination + is at liberty to fill in. It has been suggested that Bithiah may + have been the victim of some Jewish raid into Egypt, but surely a + king of Egypt would have either ransomed his daughter or recovered + her by force of arms. The story rather suggests that the chiefs of + the clans of Judah were semi-independent and possessed of + considerable wealth and power, so that the royal family of Egypt + could intermarry with them, as with reigning sovereigns. But if so, + the pride of Egypt must have been greatly broken since the time + when the Pharaohs haughtily refused to give their daughters in + marriage to the kings of Babylon.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Both Egyptian + alliances occur among the Kenizzites, the descendants of the + brothers Caleb and Jerahmeel. In one case a Jewess marries an + Egyptian slave; in the other a Jew marries an Egyptian princess. + Doubtless these marriages did not stand alone, and there were + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page077">[pg 077]</span><a name= + "Pg077" id="Pg077" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> others with + foreigners of varying social rank. The stories show that even after + the Captivity the tradition survived that the clans in the south of + Judah had been closely connected with Egypt, and that Solomon was + not the only member of the tribe who had taken an Egyptian wife. + Now intermarriage with foreigners is partly forbidden by the + Pentateuch; and the prohibition was extended and sternly enforced + by Ezra and Nehemiah.<a id="noteref_81" name="noteref_81" href= + "#note_81"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">81</span></span></a> In the + time of the chronicler there was a growing feeling against such + marriages. Hence the traditions we are discussing cannot have + originated after the Return, but must be at any rate earlier than + the publication of Deuteronomy under Josiah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Such marriages + with Egyptians must have had some influence on the religion of the + south of Judah, but probably the foreigners usually followed the + example of Ruth, and adopted the faith of the families into which + they came. When they said, <span class="tei tei-q">“Thy people + shall be my people,”</span> they did not fail to add, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“and thy God shall be my God.”</span> When the Egyptian + princess married the head of a Jewish clan, she became one of + Jehovah's people; and her adoption into the family of the God of + Israel was symbolised by a new name: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Bithiah,”</span> <span class="tei tei-q">“daughter of + Jehovah.”</span> Whether later Judaism owed anything to Egyptian + influences can only be matter of conjecture; at any rate, they did + not pervert the southern clans from their old faith. The Calebites + and Jerahmeelites were the backbone of Judah both before and after + the Captivity.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The remaining + traditions relate to the warfare of the Israelites with their + neighbours. The first is a colourless reminiscence, that might have + been recorded of <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page078">[pg + 078]</span><a name="Pg078" id="Pg078" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + the effectual prayer of any pious Israelite. The genealogies of + chap. iv. are interrupted by a paragraph entirely unconnected with + the context. The subject of this fragment is a certain Jabez never + mentioned elsewhere, and, so far as any record goes, as entirely + <span class="tei tei-q">“without father, without mother, without + genealogy,”</span> as Melchizedek himself. As chap. iv. deals with + the families of Judah, and in ii. 55 there is a town Jabez also + belonging to Judah, we may suppose that the chronicler had reasons + for assigning Jabez to that tribe; but he has neither given these + reasons, nor indicated how Jabez was connected therewith. The + paragraph runs as follows<a id="noteref_82" name="noteref_82" href= + "#note_82"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">82</span></span></a>: + <span class="tei tei-q">“And Jabez was honoured above his brethren, + and his mother called his name Jabez”</span> (<span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ya'bēç</span></span>), <span class= + "tei tei-q">“saying, In pain”</span> (<span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">'ōçeb</span></span>) <span class= + "tei tei-q">“I bore him. And Jabez called upon the God of Israel, + saying,—</span></p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span class= + "tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">‘</span><span style="font-size: 90%">If Thou + wilt indeed bless me</span></span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 1.80em"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">By enlarging my + possessions,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">And Thy hand be with me</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 1.80em"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span class= + "tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">To provide pasture,</span><a id="noteref_83" + name="noteref_83" href="#note_83"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">83</span></span></a> + <span style="font-size: 90%">that I be not in + distress</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">’</span></span></span> <span style= + "font-size: 90%">(</span><span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" xml:lang= + "he"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">'ōçeb</span></span><span style="font-size: 90%">).</span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">And God brought about what he asked.”</span> The + chronicler has evidently inserted here a broken and disconnected + fragment from one of his sources; and we are puzzled to understand + why he gives so much, and no more. Surely not merely to introduce + the etymologies of Jabez; or if Jabez were so important that it was + worth while to interrupt the genealogies to furnish two derivations + of his name, why are we not told more about him? Who was he, when + and where did he live, and at whose expense were his possessions + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page079">[pg 079]</span><a name= + "Pg079" id="Pg079" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> enlarged and pasture + provided for him? Everything that could give colour and interest to + the narrative is withheld, and we are merely told that he prayed + for earthly blessing and obtained it. The spiritual lesson is + obvious, but it is very frequently enforced and illustrated in the + Old Testament. Why should this episode about an utterly unknown man + be thrust by main force into an unsuitable context, if it is only + one example of a most familiar truth? It has been pointed out that + Jacob vowed a similar vow and built an altar to El, the God of + Israel<a id="noteref_84" name="noteref_84" href= + "#note_84"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">84</span></span></a>; but + this is one of many coincidences. The paragraph certainly tells us + something about the chronicler's views on prayer, but nothing that + is not more forcibly stated and exemplified in many other passages; + it is mainly interesting to us because of the light it throws on + his methods of composition. Elsewhere he embodies portions of + well-known works and apparently assumes that his readers are + sufficiently versed in them to be able to understand the point of + his extracts. Probably Jabez was so familiar to the chronicler's + immediate circle that he can take for granted that a few lines will + suffice to recall all the circumstances to a reader.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have next a + series of much more definite statements about Israelite prowess and + success in wars against Moab and other enemies.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In iv. 21, 22, + we read, <span class="tei tei-q">“The sons of Shelah the son of + Judah: Er the father of Lecah, and Laadah the father of Mareshah, + and the families of the house of them that wrought fine linen, of + the house of Ashbea; and Jokim, and the men of Cozeba, and Joash, + and Saraph, who had dominion in Moab and returned to <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page080">[pg 080]</span><a name="Pg080" id="Pg080" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Bethlehem.”</span><a id="noteref_85" + name="noteref_85" href="#note_85"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">85</span></span></a> Here + again the information is too vague to enable us to fix any date, + nor is it quite certain who had dominion in Moab. The verb + <span class="tei tei-q">“had dominion”</span> is plural in Hebrew, + and may refer to all or any of the sons of Shelah. But, in spite of + uncertainties, it is interesting to find chiefs or clans of Judah + ruling in Moab. Possibly this immigration took place when David + conquered and partly depopulated the country. The men of Judah may + have returned to Bethlehem when Moab passed to the northern kingdom + at the disruption, or when Moab regained its independence.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The incident in + iv. 34-43 differs from the preceding in having a definite date + assigned to it. In the time of Hezekiah some Simeonite clans had + largely increased in number and found themselves straitened for + room for their flocks. They accordingly went in search of new + pasturage. One company went to Gedor, another to Mount Seir.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The situation of + Gedor is not clearly known. It cannot be the Gedor of Josh. xv. 58, + which lay in the heart of Judah. The LXX. has Gerar, a town to the + south of Gaza, and this may be the right reading; but whether we + read Gedor or Gerar, the scene of the invasion will be in the + country south of Judah. Here the children of Simeon found what they + wanted, <span class="tei tei-q">“fat pasture, and good,”</span> and + abundant, for <span class="tei tei-q">“the land was wide.”</span> + There was the additional advantage that the inhabitants were + harmless and inoffensive and fell an easy prey to their invaders: + <span class="tei tei-q">“The land was quiet and peaceable, for they + that dwelt there aforetime were of Ham.”</span> As Ham in the + genealogies is the father of Cainan, these peaceable folk would be + Cainanites; and <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page081">[pg + 081]</span><a name="Pg081" id="Pg081" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + among them were a people called Meunim, probably not connected with + any of the Maons mentioned in the Old Testament, but with some + other town or district of the same name. So <span class= + "tei tei-q">“these written by name came in the days of Hezekiah, + king of Judah, and smote their tents, and the Meunim that were + found there, and devoted them to destruction as accursed, so that + none are left unto this day. And the Simeonites dwelt in their + stead.”</span><a id="noteref_86" name="noteref_86" href= + "#note_86"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">86</span></span></a></p> + + <div class="tei tei-tb"> + <hr style="width: 50%" /> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Then follows in + the simplest and most unconscious way the only justification that + is offered for the behaviour of the invaders: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“because there was pasture there for their + flocks.”</span> The narrative takes for granted—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">The + good old rule, the simple plan,</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">That they should take who have + the power,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">And they should keep who + can.</span><span style="font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The expedition + to Mount Seir appears to have been a sequel to the attack on Gedor. + Five hundred of the victors emigrated into Edom, and smote the + remnant of the Amalekites who had survived the massacre under + Saul<a id="noteref_87" name="noteref_87" href= + "#note_87"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">87</span></span></a>; + <span class="tei tei-q">“and they also dwelt there unto this + day.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In substance, + style, and ideas this passage closely resembles the books of Joshua + and Judges, where the phrase <span class="tei tei-q">“unto this + day”</span> frequently occurs. Here, of course, the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“day”</span> in question is the time of the + chronicler's authority. When Chronicles was written the Simeonites + in Gedor and Mount Seir had long ago shared the fate of their + victims.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The conquest of + Gedor reminds us how in the early days of the Israelite occupation + of Palestine <span class="tei tei-q">“Judah <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page082">[pg 082]</span><a name="Pg082" id="Pg082" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> went with Simeon his brother into the + same southern lands,”</span> and they smote the Canaanites that + inhabited Zephath, and devoted them to destruction as + accursed<a id="noteref_88" name="noteref_88" href= + "#note_88"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">88</span></span></a>; and + how the house of Joseph took Bethel by treachery.<a id="noteref_89" + name="noteref_89" href="#note_89"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">89</span></span></a> But + the closest parallel is the Danite conquest of Laish.<a id= + "noteref_90" name="noteref_90" href="#note_90"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">90</span></span></a> The + Danite spies said that the people of Laish <span class= + "tei tei-q">“dwelt in security, after the manner of the Zidonians, + quiet and secure,”</span> harmless and inoffensive, like the + Gedorites. Nor were they likely to receive succour from the + powerful city of Zidon or from other allies, for <span class= + "tei tei-q">“they were far from the Zidonians, and had no dealings + with any man.”</span> Accordingly, having observed the prosperous + but defenceless position of this peaceable people, they returned + and reported to their brethren, <span class="tei tei-q">“Arise, and + let us go up against them, for we have seen the land, and, behold, + it is very good; and are ye still? Be not slothful to go and to + enter in to possess the land. When ye go, ye shall come unto a + people secure, and the land,”</span> like that of Gedor, + <span class="tei tei-q">“is large, for God hath given it into your + hand, a place where there is no want of anything that is in the + earth.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The moral of + these incidents is obvious. When a prosperous people is peaceable + and defenceless, it is a clear sign that God has delivered them + into the hand of any warlike and enterprising nation that knows how + to use its opportunities. The chronicler, however, is not + responsible for this morality, but he does not feel compelled to + make any protest against the ethical views of his source. There is + a refreshing frankness about these ancient narratives. The wolf + devours the lamb without inventing any flimsy pretext about + troubled waters.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page083">[pg + 083]</span><a name="Pg083" id="Pg083" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But in + criticising these Hebrew clans who lived in the dawn of history and + religion we condemn ourselves. If we make adequate allowance for + the influence of Christ, and the New Testament, and centuries of + Christian teaching, Simeon and Dan do not compare unfavourably with + modern nations. As we review the wars of Christendom, we shall + often be puzzled to find any ground for the outbreak of hostilities + other than the defencelessness of the weaker combatant. The Spanish + conquest of America and the English conquest of India afford + examples of the treatment of weaker races which fairly rank with + those of the Old Testament. Even to-day the independence of the + smaller European states is mainly guaranteed by the jealousies of + the Great Powers. Still there has been progress in international + morality; we have got at last to the stage of Æsop's fable. Public + opinion condemns wanton aggression against a weak state; and the + stronger power employs the resources of civilised diplomacy in + showing that not only the absent, but also the helpless, are always + wrong. There has also been a substantial advance in humanity + towards conquered peoples. Christian warfare even since the Middle + Ages has been stained with the horrors of the Thirty Years' War and + many other barbarities; the treatment of the American Indians by + settlers has often been cruel and unjust; but no civilised nation + would now systematically massacre men, women, and children in cold + blood. We are thankful for any progress towards better things, but + we cannot feel that men have yet realised that Christ has a message + for nations as well as for individuals. As His disciples we can + only pray more earnestly that the kingdoms of the earth may in deed + and truth become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His + Christ.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page084">[pg + 084]</span><a name="Pg084" id="Pg084" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The next + incident is more honourable to the Israelites. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“The sons of Reuben, and the Gadites, and the + half-tribe of Manasseh”</span> did not merely surprise and + slaughter quiet and peaceable people: they conquered formidable + enemies in fair fight.<a id="noteref_91" name="noteref_91" href= + "#note_91"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">91</span></span></a> There + are two separate accounts of a war with the Hagrites, one appended + to the genealogy of Reuben and one to that of Gad. The former is + very brief and general, comprising nothing but a bare statement + that there was a successful war and a consequent appropriation of + territory. Probably the two paragraphs are different forms of the + same narrative, derived by the chronicler from independent sources. + We may therefore confine our attention to the more detailed + account.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Here, as + elsewhere, these Transjordanic tribes are spoken of as <span class= + "tei tei-q">“valiant<a id="noteref_92" name="noteref_92" href= + "#note_92"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">92</span></span></a> + men,”</span> <span class="tei tei-q">“men able to bear buckler and + sword and to shoot with the bow, and skilful in war.”</span> Their + numbers were considerable. While five hundred Simeonites were + enough to destroy the Amalekites on Mount Seir, these eastern + tribes mustered <span class="tei tei-q">“forty and four thousand + seven hundred and threescore that were able to go forth to + war.”</span> Their enemies were not <span class="tei tei-q">“quiet + and peaceable people,”</span> but the wild Bedouin of the desert, + <span class="tei tei-q">“the Hagrites, with Jetur and Naphish and + Nodab.”</span> Nodab is mentioned only here; Jetur and Naphish + occur together in the lists of the sons of Ishmael.<a id= + "noteref_93" name="noteref_93" href="#note_93"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">93</span></span></a> Ituræa + probably derived its name from the tribe of Jetur. The Hagrites or + Hagarenes were Arabs closely connected with the Ishmaelites, and + they seem to have taken their name from Hagar. In Psalm + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page085">[pg 085]</span><a name= + "Pg085" id="Pg085" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> lxxxiii. 6-8 we find + a similar confederacy on a larger scale:—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">The + tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites,</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Moab and the Hagarenes</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Gebal and Ammon and + Amalek,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Philistia with the inhabitants + of Tyre,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Assyria also is joined with + them;</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">They have holpen the children of + Lot.</span><span style="font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There could be + no question of unprovoked aggression against these children of + Ishmael, that <span class="tei tei-q">“wild ass of a man, whose + hand was against every man, and every man's hand against + him.”</span><a id="noteref_94" name="noteref_94" href= + "#note_94"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">94</span></span></a> The + narrative implies that the Israelites were the aggressors, but to + attack the robber tribes of the desert would be as much an act of + self-defence as to destroy a hornet's nest. We may be quite sure + that when Reuben and Gad marched eastward they had heavy losses to + retrieve and bitter wrongs to avenge. We might find a parallel in + the campaigns by which robber tribes are punished for their raids + within our Indian frontier, only we must remember that Reuben and + Gad were not very much more law-abiding or unselfish than their + Arab neighbours. They were not engaged in maintaining a <span lang= + "la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">pax Britannica</span></span> for the benefit + of subject nations; they were carrying on a struggle for existence + with persistent and relentless foes. Another partial parallel would + be the border feuds on the Northumbrian marches, when—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">... + over border, dale, and fell</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Full wide and far was terror + spread;</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">For pathless marsh and mountain + cell</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">The peasant left his lowly + shed:</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">The frightened flocks and herds + were pent</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Beneath the peel's rude + battlement,</span> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page086">[pg + 086]</span><a name="Pg086" id="Pg086" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">And maids and matrons dropped + the tear</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">While ready warriors seized the + spear;</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">... the watchman's eye</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">Dun wreaths of distant smoke can + spy.</span><span style="font-size: 90%">”</span></span><a id= + "noteref_95" name="noteref_95" href="#note_95"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">95</span></span></a> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But the + Israelite expedition was on a larger scale than any <span class= + "tei tei-q">“warden raid,”</span> and Eastern passions are fiercer + and shriller than those sung by the Last Minstrel: the maids and + matrons of the desert would shriek and wail instead of <span class= + "tei tei-q">“dropping a tear.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In this great + raid of ancient times <span class="tei tei-q">“the war was of + God,”</span> not, as at Laish, because God found for them helpless + and easy victims, but because He helped them in a desperate + struggle. When the fierce Israelite and Arab borderers joined + battle, the issue was at first doubtful; and then <span class= + "tei tei-q">“they cried to God, and He was entreated of them, + because they put their trust in Him,”</span> <span class= + "tei tei-q">“and they were helped against”</span> their enemies; + <span class="tei tei-q">“and the Hagrites were delivered into their + hand, and all that were with them, and there fell many slain, + because the war was of God”</span>; <span class="tei tei-q">“and + they took away their cattle: of their camels fifty thousand, and of + sheep two hundred and fifty thousand, and of asses two thousand, + and of slaves a hundred thousand.”</span> <span class= + "tei tei-q">“And they dwelt in their stead until the + captivity.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This + <span class="tei tei-q">“captivity”</span> is the subject of + another short note. The chronicler apparently was anxious to + distribute his historical narratives equally among the tribes. The + genealogies of Reuben and Gad each conclude with a notice of a war, + and a similar account follows that of Eastern + Manasseh:—<span class="tei tei-q">“And they trespassed against the + God of their fathers, and went a-whoring after the gods of the + peoples of the land, whom God destroyed before them. And the God of + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page087">[pg 087]</span><a name= + "Pg087" id="Pg087" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Israel stirred up + the spirit of Pul, king of Assyria, and the spirit of + Tilgath-pilneser, king of Assyria, and he carried them away, even + the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, + and brought them unto Halah, and Habor, and Hara, and to the river + of Gozan, unto this day.”</span><a id="noteref_96" name= + "noteref_96" href="#note_96"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">96</span></span></a> And + this war also was <span class="tei tei-q">“of God.”</span> + Doubtless the descendants of the surviving Hagrites and Ishmaelites + were among the allies of the Assyrian king, and saw in the ruin of + Eastern Israel a retribution for the sufferings of their own + people; but the later Jews and probably the exiles in <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Halah, Habor, and Hara,”</span> and by <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the river of Gozan,”</span> far away in North-eastern + Mesopotamia, found the cause of their sufferings in too great an + intimacy with their heathen neighbours: they had gone a-whoring + after their gods.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The last two + incidents which we shall deal with in this chapter serve to + illustrate afresh the rough-and-ready methods by which the + chronicler has knotted together threads of heterogeneous tradition + into one tangled skein. We shall see further how ready ancient + writers were to represent a tribe by the ancestor from whom it + traced its descent. We read in vii. 20, 21, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“The sons of Ephraim: Shuthelah, and Bered his son, and + Tahath his son, and Eleadah his son, and Zabad his son, and + Shuthelah his son, and Ezer and Elead, whom the men of Gath that + were born in the land slew, because they came down to take away + their cattle.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Ezer and Elead + are apparently brothers of the second Shuthelah; at any rate, as + six generations are mentioned between them and Ephraim, they would + seem to have lived long after the Patriarch. Moreover, they + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page088">[pg 088]</span><a name= + "Pg088" id="Pg088" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> came down to Gath, + so that they must have lived in some hill-country not far off, + presumably the hill-country of Ephraim. But in the next two verses + (22 and 23) we read, <span class="tei tei-q">“And Ephraim their + father mourned many days, and his brethren came to comfort him. And + he went in to his wife, and she conceived, and bare a son; and he + called his name Beriah, because it went evil with his + house.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Taking these + words literally, Ezer and Elead were the actual sons of Ephraim; + and as Ephraim and his family were born in Egypt and lived there + all their days, these patriarchal cattle-lifters did not come down + from any neighbouring highlands, but must have come up from Egypt, + all the way from the land of Goshen, across the desert and past + several Philistine and Canaanite towns. This literal sense is + simply impossible. The author from whom the chronicler borrowed + this narrative is clearly using a natural and beautiful figure to + describe the distress in the tribe of Ephraim when two of its clans + were cut off, and the fact that a new clan named <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Beriah</span></span> was formed to take their + place. Possibly we are not without information as to how this new + clan arose. In viii. 13 we read of two Benjamites, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“<span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Beriah</span></span> and + Shema, who were heads of fathers' houses of the inhabitants of + Aijalon, who put to flight the inhabitants of Gath.”</span> Beriah + and Shema probably, coming to the aid of Ephraim, avenged the + defeat of Ezer and Elead; and in return received the possessions of + the clans, who had been cut off, and Beriah was thus reckoned among + the children of Ephraim.<a id="noteref_97" name="noteref_97" href= + "#note_97"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">97</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The language of + ver. 22 is very similar to that of Gen. xxxvii. 34, 35: + <span class="tei tei-q">“And Jacob mourned for his son <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page089">[pg 089]</span><a name="Pg089" id="Pg089" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> many days. And all his sons and all his + daughters rose up to comfort him”</span>; and the personification + of the tribe under the name of its ancestor may be paralleled from + Judges xxi. 6: <span class="tei tei-q">“And the children of Israel + repented them for Benjamin their brother.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Let us now + reconstruct the story and consider its significance. Two Ephraimite + clans, Ezer and Elead, set out to drive the cattle <span class= + "tei tei-q">“of the men of Gath, who were born in the land,”</span> + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span>, of the aboriginal Avvites, + who had been dispossessed by the Philistines, but still retained + some of the pasture-lands. Falling into an ambush or taken by + surprise when encumbered with their plunder, the Ephraimites were + cut off, and nearly all the fighting men of the clans perished. The + Avvites, reinforced by the Philistines of Gath, pressed their + advantage, and invaded the territory of Ephraim, whose border + districts, stripped of their defenders, lay at the mercy of the + conquerors. From this danger they were rescued by the Benjamite + clans Shema and Beriah, then occupying Aijalon<a id="noteref_98" + name="noteref_98" href="#note_98"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">98</span></span></a>; and + the men of Gath in their turn were defeated and driven back. The + grateful Ephraimites invited their allies to occupy the vacant + territory and in all probability to marry the widows and daughters + of their slaughtered kinsmen. From that time onwards Beriah was + reckoned as one of the clans of Ephraim.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The account of + this memorable cattle foray is a necessary note to the genealogies + to explain the origin of an important clan and its double + connection <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page090">[pg + 090]</span><a name="Pg090" id="Pg090" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + with Ephraim and Benjamin. Both the chronicler and his authority + recorded it because of its genealogical significance, not because + they were anxious to perpetuate the memory of the unfortunate raid. + In the ancient days to which the episode belonged, a frontier + cattle foray seemed as natural and meritorious an enterprise as it + did to William of Deloraine. The chronicler does not think it + necessary to signify any disapproval it is by no means certain that + he did disapprove—of such spoiling of the uncircumcised; but the + fact that he gives the record without comment does not show that he + condoned cattle-stealing. Men to-day relate with pride the lawless + deeds of noble ancestors, but they would be dismayed if their own + sons proposed to adopt the moral code of mediæval barons or + Elizabethan buccaneers.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In reviewing the + scanty religious ideas involved in this little group of family + traditions, we have to remember that they belong to a period of + Israelite history much older than that of the chronicler; in + estimating their value, we have to make large allowance for the + conventional ethics of the times. Religion not only serves to raise + the standard of morality, but also to keep the average man up to + the conventional standard; it helps and encourages him to do what + he believes to be right as well as gives him a better understanding + of what right means. Primitive religion is not to be disparaged + because it did not at once convert the rough Israelite clansmen + into Havelocks and Gordons. In those early days, courage, + patriotism, and loyalty to one's tribesmen were the most necessary + and approved virtues. They were fostered and stimulated by the + current belief in a God of battles, who gave victory to His + faithful people. Moreover, the <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page091">[pg 091]</span><a name="Pg091" id="Pg091" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> idea of Deity implied in these traditions, + though inadequate, is by no means unworthy. God is benevolent; He + enriches and succours His people; He answers prayer, giving to + Jabez the land and pasture for which he asked. He is a righteous + God; He responds to and justifies His people's faith: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“He was entreated of the Reubenites and Gadites because + they put their trust in Him.”</span> On the other hand, He is a + jealous God; He punishes Israel when they <span class= + "tei tei-q">“trespass against the God of their fathers and go + a-whoring after the gods of the peoples of the land.”</span> But + the feeling here attributed to Jehovah is not merely one of + personal jealousy. Loyalty to Him meant a great deal more than a + preference for a god called Jehovah over a god called Chemosh. It + involved a special recognition of morality and purity, and gave a + religious sanction to patriotism and the sentiment of national + unity. Worship of Moabite or Syrian gods weakened a man's + enthusiasm for Israel and his sense of fellowship with his + countrymen, just as allegiance to an Italian prince and prelate has + seemed to Protestants to deprive the Romanist of his full + inheritance in English life and feeling. He who went astray after + other gods did not merely indulge his individual taste in doctrine + and ritual: he was a traitor to the social order, to the prosperity + and national union, of Israel. Such disloyalty broke up the nation, + and sent Israel and Judah into captivity piecemeal.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page092">[pg 092]</span><a name= + "Pg092" id="Pg092" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc23" id="toc23"></a> <a name="pdf24" id="pdf24"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter V. The Jewish Community In + The Time Of The Chronicler.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have already + referred to the light thrown by Chronicles on this subject. Besides + the direct information given in Ezra and Nehemiah, and sometimes in + Chronicles itself, the chronicler by describing the past in terms + of the present often unconsciously helps us to reconstruct the + picture of his own day. We shall have to make occasional reference + to the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, but the age of the chronicler is + later than the events which they describe, and we shall be + traversing different ground from that covered by the volume of the + <span class="tei tei-q">“Expositor's Bible”</span> which deals with + them.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Chronicles is + full of evidence that the civil and ecclesiastical system of the + Pentateuch had become fully established long before the chronicler + wrote. Its gradual origin had been forgotten, and it was assumed + that the Law in its final and complete form had been known and + observed from the time of David onwards. At every stage of the + history Levites are introduced, occupying the subordinate position + and discharging the menial duties assigned to them by the latest + documents of the Pentateuch. In other matters small and + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page093">[pg 093]</span><a name= + "Pg093" id="Pg093" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> great, especially + those concerning the Temple and its sanctity, the chronicler shows + himself so familiar with the Law that he could not imagine Israel + without it. Picture the life of Judah as we find it in 2 Kings and + the prophecies of the eighth century, put this picture side by side + with another of the Judaism of the New Testament, and remember that + Chronicles is about a century nearer to the latter than to the + former. It is not difficult to trace the effect of this absorption + in the system of the Pentateuch. The community in and about + Jerusalem had become a Church, and was in possession of a Bible. + But the hardening, despiritualising processes which created later + Judaism were already at work. A building, a system of ritual, and a + set of officials were coming to be regarded as the essential + elements of the Church. The Bible was important partly because it + dealt with these essential elements, partly because it provided a + series of regulations about washings and meats, and thus enabled + the layman to exalt his everyday life into a round of ceremonial + observances. The habit of using the Pentateuch chiefly as a + handbook of external and technical ritual seriously influenced the + current interpretation of the Bible. It naturally led to a hard + literalism and a disingenuous exegesis. This interest in externals + is patent enough in the chronicler, and the tendencies of Biblical + exegesis are illustrated by his use of Samuel and Kings. On the + other hand, we must allow for great development of this process in + the interval between Chronicles and the New Testament. The evils of + later Judaism were yet far from mature, and religious life and + thought in Palestine were still much more elastic than they became + later on.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have also to + remember that at this period the <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page094">[pg 094]</span><a name="Pg094" id="Pg094" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> zealous observers of the Law can only have + formed a portion of the community, corresponding roughly to the + regular attendants at public worship in a Christian country. Beyond + and beneath the pious legalists were <span class="tei tei-q">“the + people of the land,”</span> those who were too careless or too busy + to attend to ceremonial; but for both classes the popular and + prominent ideal of religion was made up of a magnificent building, + a dignified and wealthy clergy, and an elaborate ritual, alike for + great public functions and for the minutiæ of daily life.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Besides all + these the Jewish community had its sacred writings. As one of the + ministers of the Temple, and, moreover, both a student of the + national literature and himself an author, the chronicler + represents the best literary knowledge of contemporary Palestinian + Judaism; and his somewhat mechanical methods of composition make it + easy for us to discern his indebtedness to older writers. We turn + his pages with interest to learn what books were known and read by + the most cultured Jews of his time. First and foremost, and + overshadowing all the rest, there appears the Pentateuch. Then + there is the whole array of earlier Historical Books: Joshua, Ruth, + Samuel, and Kings. The plan of Chronicles excludes a direct use of + Judges, but it must have been well known to our author. His + appreciation of the Psalms is shown by his inserting in his history + of David a cento of passages from Psalms xcvi., cv., and cvi.; on + the other hand, Psalm xviii. and other lyrics given in the books of + Samuel are omitted by the chronicler. The later Exilic Psalms were + more to his taste than ancient hymns, and he unconsciously carries + back into the history of the monarchy the poetry as well as the + ritual of later times. Both omissions and insertions indicate that + in <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page095">[pg 095]</span><a name= + "Pg095" id="Pg095" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> this period the Jews + possessed and prized a large collection of psalms.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There are also + traces of the Prophets. Hanani the seer in his address to Asa<a id= + "noteref_99" name="noteref_99" href="#note_99"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">99</span></span></a> quotes + Zech. iv. 10: <span class="tei tei-q">“The eyes of the Lord, which + run to and fro through the whole earth.”</span> Jehoshaphat's + exhortation to his people, <span class="tei tei-q">“Believe in the + Lord your God; so shall ye be established,”</span><a id= + "noteref_100" name="noteref_100" href="#note_100"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">100</span></span></a> is + based on Isa. vii. 9: <span class="tei tei-q">“If ye will not + believe, surely ye shall not be established.”</span> Hezekiah's + words to the Levites, <span class="tei tei-q">“Our fathers ... have + turned away their faces from the habitation of the Lord, and turned + their backs,”</span><a id="noteref_101" name="noteref_101" href= + "#note_101"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">101</span></span></a> are a + significant variation of Jer. ii. 27: <span class="tei tei-q">“They + have turned their back unto Me, and not their face.”</span> The + Temple is substituted for Jehovah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There are of + course references to Isaiah and Jeremiah and traces of other + prophets; but when account is taken of them all, it is seen that + the chronicler makes scanty use, on the whole, of the Prophetical + Books. It is true that the idea of illustrating and supplementing + information derived from annals by means of contemporary literature + not in narrative form had not yet dawned upon historians; but if + the chronicler had taken a tithe of the interest in the Prophets + that he took in the Pentateuch and the Psalms, his work would show + many more distinct marks of their influence.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">An apocalypse + like Daniel and works like Job, Proverbs, and the other books of + Wisdom lay so far outside the plan and subject of Chronicles that + we can scarcely consider the absence of any clear trace of them a + proof that the chronicler did not either know them or care for + them.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Our brief review + suggests that the literary concern <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page096">[pg 096]</span><a name="Pg096" id="Pg096" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> of the chronicler and his circle was chiefly + in the books most closely connected with the Temple; viz., the + Historical Books, which contained its history, the Pentateuch, + which prescribed its ritual, and the Psalms, which served as its + liturgy. The Prophets occupy a secondary place, and Chronicles + furnishes no clear evidence as to other Old Testament books.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We also find in + Chronicles that the Hebrew language had degenerated from its + ancient classical purity, and that Jewish writers had already come + very much under the influence of Aramaic.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We may next + consider the evidence supplied by the chronicler as to the elements + and distribution of the Jewish community in his time. In Ezra and + Nehemiah we find the returning exiles divided into the men of + Judah, the men of Benjamin, and the priests, Levites, etc. In Ezra + ii. we are told that in all there returned 42,360, with 7,337 + slaves and 200 <span class="tei tei-q">“singing men and singing + women.”</span> The priests numbered 4,289; there were 74 Levites, + 128 singers of the children of Asaph, 139 porters, and 392 Nethinim + and children of Solomon's servants. The singers, porters, Nethinim, + and children of Solomon's servants are not reckoned among the + Levites, and there is only one guild of singers: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the children of Asaph.”</span> The Nethinim are still + distinguished from the Levites in the list of those who returned + with Ezra, and in various lists which occur in Nehemiah. We see + from the Levitical genealogies and the Levites in 1 Chron. vi., + ix., etc, that in the time of the chronicler these arrangements had + been altered. There were now three guilds of singers, tracing their + descent to Heman, Asaph, and Ethan<a id="noteref_102" name= + "noteref_102" href="#note_102"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">102</span></span></a> or + Jeduthun, and reckoned by descent among the Levites. <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page097">[pg 097]</span><a name="Pg097" id="Pg097" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> The guild of Heman seems to have been + also known as <span class="tei tei-q">“the sons of + Korah.”</span><a id="noteref_103" name="noteref_103" href= + "#note_103"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">103</span></span></a> The + porters and probably eventually the Nethinim were also reckoned + among the Levites.<a id="noteref_104" name="noteref_104" href= + "#note_104"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">104</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We see therefore + that in the interval between Nehemiah and the chronicler the + inferior ranks of the Temple ministry had been reorganised, the + musical staff had been enlarged and doubtless otherwise improved, + and the singers, porters, Nethinim, and other Temple servants had + been promoted to the position of Levites. Under the monarchy many + of the Temple servants had been slaves of foreign birth; but now a + sacred character was given to the humblest menial who shared in the + work of the house of God. In after-times Herod the Great had a + number of priests trained as masons, in order that no profane hand + might take part in the building of his temple.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Some details + have been preserved of the organisation of the Levites. We read how + the porters were distributed among the different gates, and of + Levites who were over the chambers and the treasuries, and of other + Levites how—</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“They lodged round about the house of God, because the + charge was upon them, and to them pertained the opening thereof + morning by morning.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“And certain of them had charge of the vessels of + service; for by tale were they brought in, and by tale were they + taken out.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“Some of them also were appointed over the furniture, + and over all the vessels of the sanctuary, and over the fine flour, + and the wine, and the oil, and the frankincense, and the + spices.</span></p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page098">[pg + 098]</span><a name="Pg098" id="Pg098" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“And some of the sons of the priests prepared the + confection of the spices.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“And Mattithiah, one of the Levites who was the + first-born of Shallum the Korahite, had the set office over the + things that were baked in pans.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“And some of their brethren, of the sons of the + Kohathites, were over the shewbread to prepare it every + sabbath.”</span><a id="noteref_105" name="noteref_105" href= + "#note_105"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">105</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This account is + found in a chapter partly identical with Neh. xi., and apparently + refers to the period of Nehemiah; but the picture in the latter + part of the chapter was probably drawn by the chronicler from his + own knowledge of Temple routine. So, too, in his graphic accounts + of the sacrifices by Hezekiah and Josiah,<a id="noteref_106" name= + "noteref_106" href="#note_106"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">106</span></span></a> we + seem to have an eyewitness describing familiar scenes. Doubtless + the chronicler himself had often been one of the Temple choir + <span class="tei tei-q">“when the burnt-offering began, and the + song of Jehovah began also, together with the instruments of David, + king of Israel; and all the congregation worshipped, and the + singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded; and all this continued + till the burnt-offering was finished.”</span><a id="noteref_107" + name="noteref_107" href="#note_107"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">107</span></span></a> Still + the scale of these sacrifices, the hundreds of oxen and thousands + of sheep, may have been fixed to accord with the splendour of the + ancient kings. Such profusion of victims probably represented + rather the dreams than the realities of the chronicler's + Temple.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Our author's + strong feeling for his own Levitical order shows itself in his + narrative of Hezekiah's great sacrifices. The victims were so + numerous that there <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page099">[pg + 099]</span><a name="Pg099" id="Pg099" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + were not priests enough to flay them; to meet the emergency the + Levites were allowed on this one occasion to discharge a priestly + function and to take an unusually conspicuous part in the national + festival. In zeal they were even superior to the priests: + <span class="tei tei-q">“The Levites were more upright in heart to + sanctify themselves than the priests.”</span> Possibly here the + chronicler is describing an incident which he could have paralleled + from his own experience. The priests of his time may often have + yielded to a natural temptation to shirk the laborious and + disagreeable parts of their duty; they would catch at any plausible + pretext to transfer their burdens to the Levites, which the latter + would be eager to accept for the sake of a temporary accession of + dignity. Learned Jews were always experts in the art of evading the + most rigid and minute regulations of the Law. For instance, the + period of service appointed for the Levites in the Pentateuch was + from the age of thirty to that of fifty.<a id="noteref_108" name= + "noteref_108" href="#note_108"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">108</span></span></a> But + we gather from Ezra and Nehemiah that comparatively few Levites + could be induced to throw in their lot with the returning exiles; + there were not enough to perform the necessary duties. To make up + for paucity of numbers, this period of service was increased; and + they were required to serve from twenty years old and upward.<a id= + "noteref_109" name="noteref_109" href="#note_109"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">109</span></span></a> As + the former arrangement had formed part of the law attributed to + Moses, in course of time the later innovation was supposed to have + originated with David.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There were, too, + other reasons for increasing the efficiency of the Levitical order + by lengthening their <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page100">[pg + 100]</span><a name="Pg100" id="Pg100" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + term of service and adding to their numbers. The establishment of + the Pentateuch as the sacred code of Judaism imposed new duties on + priests and Levites alike. The people needed teachers and + interpreters of the numerous minute and complicated rules by which + they were to govern their daily life. Judges were needed to apply + the laws in civil and criminal cases. The Temple ministers were the + natural authorities on the Torah; they had a chief interest in + expounding and enforcing it. But in these matters also the priests + seem to have left the new duties to the Levites. Apparently the + first <span class="tei tei-q">“scribes,”</span> or professional + students of the Law, were mainly Levites. There were priests among + them, notably the great father of the order, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Ezra the priest the scribe,”</span> but the priestly + families took little share in this new work. The origin of the + educational and judicial functions of the Levites had also come to + be ascribed to the great kings of Judah. A Levitical scribe is + mentioned in the time of David.<a id="noteref_110" name= + "noteref_110" href="#note_110"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">110</span></span></a> In + the account of Josiah's reign we are expressly told that + <span class="tei tei-q">“of the Levites there were scribes, and + officers, and porters”</span>; and they are described as + <span class="tei tei-q">“the Levites that taught all + Israel.”</span><a id="noteref_111" name="noteref_111" href= + "#note_111"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">111</span></span></a> In + the same context we have the traditional authority and + justification for this new departure. One of the chief duties + imposed upon the Levites by the Law was the care and carriage of + the Tabernacle and its furniture during the wanderings in the + wilderness. Josiah, however, bids the Levites <span class= + "tei tei-q">“put the holy ark in the house which Solomon the son of + David, king of Israel, did build; there shall no more be a burden + upon your shoulders; now serve the Lord your God and His people + Israel.”</span><a id="noteref_112" name="noteref_112" href= + "#note_112"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">112</span></span></a> In + other words, <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page101">[pg + 101]</span><a name="Pg101" id="Pg101" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“You are relieved of a large part of your + old duties, and therefore have time to undertake new ones.”</span> + The immediate application of this principle seems to be that a + section of the Levites should do all the menial work of the + sacrifices, and so leave the priests, and singers, and porters free + for their own special service; but the same argument would be found + convenient and conclusive whenever the priests desired to impose + any new functions on the Levites.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Still the task + of expounding and enforcing the Law brought with it compensations + in the shape of dignity, influence, and emolument; and the Levites + would soon be reconciled to their work as scribes, and would + discover with regret that they could not retain the exposition of + the Law in their own hands. Traditions were cherished in certain + Levitical families that their ancestors had been <span class= + "tei tei-q">“officers and judges”</span> under David<a id= + "noteref_113" name="noteref_113" href="#note_113"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">113</span></span></a>; and + it was believed that Jehoshaphat had organised a commission largely + composed of Levites to expound and administer the Law in country + districts.<a id="noteref_114" name="noteref_114" href= + "#note_114"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">114</span></span></a> This + commission consisted of five princes, nine Levites, and two + priests; <span class="tei tei-q">“and they taught in Judah, having + the book of the law of the Lord with them; and they went about + throughout all the cities of Judah and taught among the + people.”</span> As the subject of their teaching was the + Pentateuch, their mission must have been rather judicial than + religious. With regard to a later passage, it has been suggested + that <span class="tei tei-q">“probably it is the organisation of + justice as existing in his own day that he”</span> (the chronicler) + <span class="tei tei-q">“here carries back to Jehoshaphat, so that + here most likely we have the oldest testimony to the synedrium of + Jerusalem as a <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page102">[pg + 102]</span><a name="Pg102" id="Pg102" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + court of highest instance over the provincial synedria, as also to + its composition and presidency.”</span><a id="noteref_115" name= + "noteref_115" href="#note_115"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">115</span></span></a> We + can scarcely doubt that the form the chronicler has given to the + tradition is derived from the institutions of his own age, and that + his friends the Levites were prominent among the doctors of the + Law, and not only taught and judged in Jerusalem, but also visited + the country districts.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It will appear + from this brief survey that the Levites were very completely + organised. There were not only the great classes, the scribes, + officers, porters, singers, and the Levites proper, so to speak, + who assisted the priests, but special families had been made + responsible for details of service: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Mattithiah had the set office over the things that + were baked in pans; and some of their brethren, of the sons of the + Kohathites, were over the shewbread, to prepare it every + sabbath.”</span><a id="noteref_116" name="noteref_116" href= + "#note_116"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">116</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The priests were + organised quite differently. The small number of Levites + necessitated careful arrangements for using them to the best + advantage; of priests there were enough and to spare. The four + thousand two hundred and eighty-nine priests who returned with + Zerubbabel were an extravagant and impossible allowance for a + single temple, and we are told that the numbers increased largely + as time went on. The problem was to devise some means by which all + the priests should have some share in the honours and emoluments of + the Temple, and its solution was found in the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“courses.”</span> The priests who returned with + Zerubbabel are registered in four families: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the children of Jedaiah, of the house of Jeshua; ... + the children of Immer; ... the children of Pashhur; ... the + children <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page103">[pg + 103]</span><a name="Pg103" id="Pg103" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + of Harim.”</span><a id="noteref_117" name="noteref_117" href= + "#note_117"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">117</span></span></a> But + the organisation of the chronicler's time is, as usual, to be found + among the arrangements ascribed to David, who is said to have + divided the priests into their twenty-four courses.<a id= + "noteref_118" name="noteref_118" href="#note_118"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">118</span></span></a> + Amongst the heads of the courses we find Jedaiah, Jeshua, Harim, + and Immer, but not Pashhur. Post-Biblical authorities mention + twenty-four courses in connection with the second Temple. + Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist, belonged to the course + of Abijah<a id="noteref_119" name="noteref_119" href= + "#note_119"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">119</span></span></a>; and + Josephus mentions a course <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Eniakim.”</span><a id="noteref_120" name="noteref_120" + href="#note_120"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">120</span></span></a> + Abijah was the head of one of David's courses; and Eniakim is + almost certainly a corruption of Eliakim, of which name Jakim in + Chronicles is a contraction.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">These + twenty-four courses discharged the priestly duties each in its + turn. One was busy at the temple while the other twenty-three were + at home, some perhaps living on the profits of their office, others + at work on their farms. The high-priest, of course, was always at + the Temple; and the continuity of the ritual would necessitate the + appointment of other priests as a permanent staff. The high-priest + and the staff, being always on the spot, would have great + opportunities for improving their own position at the expense of + the other members of the courses, who were only there occasionally + for a short time. Accordingly we are told later on that a few + families had appropriated nearly all the priestly emoluments.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Courses of the + Levites are sometimes mentioned in connection with those of the + priests, as if the Levites had an exactly similar + organisation.<a id="noteref_121" name="noteref_121" href= + "#note_121"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">121</span></span></a> + Indeed, twenty-four courses of the singers are expressly + named.<a id="noteref_122" name="noteref_122" href= + "#note_122"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">122</span></span></a> But + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page104">[pg 104]</span><a name= + "Pg104" id="Pg104" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> on examination we + find that <span class="tei tei-q">“course”</span> for the Levites + in all cases where exact information is given<a id="noteref_123" + name="noteref_123" href="#note_123"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">123</span></span></a> does + not mean one of a number of divisions which took work in turn, but + a division to which a definite piece of work was assigned, + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">e.g.</span></span>, the care of the shewbread + or of one of the gates. The idea that in ancient times there were + twenty-four alternating courses of Levites was not derived from the + arrangements of the chronicler's age, but was an inference from the + existence of priestly courses. According to the current + interpretation of the older history, there must have been under the + monarchy a very great many more Levites than priests, and any + reasons that existed for organising twenty-four priestly courses + would apply with equal force to the Levites. It is true that the + names of twenty-four courses of singers are given, but in this list + occurs the remarkable and impossible group of names already + discussed:—</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“<em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">I-have-magnified</span></em>, <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">I-have-exalted-help</span></em>; <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sitting-in-distress</span></em>, <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">I-have-spoken</span></em> <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">In-abundance + Visions</span></em>”</span><a id="noteref_124" name="noteref_124" + href="#note_124"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">124</span></span></a> which + are in themselves sufficient proof that these twenty-four courses + of singers did not exist in the time of the chronicler.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus the + chronicler provides material for a fairly complete account of the + service and ministers of the Temple; but his interest in other + matters was less close and personal, so that he gives us + comparatively little information about civil persons and affairs. + The restored Jewish community was, of course, made up of + descendants of the members of the old kingdom of <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page105">[pg 105]</span><a name="Pg105" id="Pg105" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Judah. The new Jewish state, like the + old, is often spoken of as <span class="tei tei-q">“Judah”</span>; + but its claim to fully represent the chosen people of Jehovah is + expressed by the frequent use of the name <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Israel.”</span> Yet within this new Judah the old + tribes of Judah and Benjamin are still recognised. It is true that + in the register of the first company of returning exiles the tribes + are ignored, and we are not told which families belonged to Judah + or which to Benjamin; but we are previously told that the chiefs of + Judah and Benjamin rose up to return to Jerusalem. Part of this + register arranges the companies according to the towns in which + their ancestors had lived before the Captivity, and of these some + belong to Judah and some to Benjamin. We also learn that the Jewish + community included certain of the children of Ephraim and + Manasseh.<a id="noteref_125" name="noteref_125" href= + "#note_125"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">125</span></span></a> There + may also have been families from the other tribes; St. Luke, for + instance, describes Anna as of the tribe of Asher.<a id= + "noteref_126" name="noteref_126" href="#note_126"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">126</span></span></a> But + the mass of genealogical matter relating to Judah and Benjamin far + exceeds what is given as to the other tribes,<a id="noteref_127" + name="noteref_127" href="#note_127"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">127</span></span></a> and + proves that Judah and Benjamin were co-ordinate members of the + restored community, and that no other tribe contributed any + appreciable contingent, except a few families from Ephraim and + Manasseh. It has been suggested that the chronicler shows special + interest in the tribes which had occupied Galilee—Asher, Naphtali, + Zebulun, and Issachar—and that this special interest indicates that + the settlement of Jews in Galilee had attained considerable + dimensions at the time when he wrote. But this special interest is + not very manifest; and later on, in the time of the <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page106">[pg 106]</span><a name="Pg106" id="Pg106" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Maccabees, the Jews in Galilee were so + few that Simon took them all away with him, together with their + wives and their children and all that they had, and brought them + into Judæa.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The genealogies + seem to imply that no descendants of the Transjordanic tribes or of + Simeon were found in Judah in the age of the chronicler.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Concerning the + tribe of Judah, we have already noted that it included two families + which traced their descent to Egyptian ancestors, and that the + Kenizzite clans of Caleb and Jerahmeel had been entirely + incorporated in Judah and formed the most important part of the + tribe. A comparison of the parallel genealogies of the house of + Caleb gives us important information as to the territory occupied + by the Jews. In ii. 42-49 we find the Calebites at Hebron and other + towns of the south country, in accordance with the older history; + but in ii. 50-55 they occupy Bethlehem and Kirjath-jearim and other + towns in the neighbourhood of Jerusalem. The two paragraphs are + really giving their territory before and after the Exile; during + the Captivity Southern Judah had been occupied by the Edomites. It + is indeed stated in Neh. xi. 25-30 that the children of Judah dwelt + in a number of towns scattered over the whole territory of the + ancient tribe; but the list concludes with the significant + sentence, <span class="tei tei-q">“So they <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">encamped</span></em> from Beer-sheba unto the + valley of Hinnom.”</span> We are thus given to understand that the + occupation was not permanent.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have already + noted that much of the space allotted to the genealogies of Judah + is devoted to the house of David.<a id="noteref_128" name= + "noteref_128" href="#note_128"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">128</span></span></a> The + form of this pedigree for the <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page107">[pg 107]</span><a name="Pg107" id="Pg107" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> generations after the Captivity indicates + that the head of the house of David was no longer the chief of the + state. During the monarchy only the kings are given as heads of the + family in each generation: <span class="tei tei-q">“Solomon's son + was Rehoboam, Abijah his son, Asa his son,”</span> etc., etc.; but + after the Captivity the first-born no longer occupied so unique a + position. We have all the sons of each successive head of the + family.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The genealogies + of Judah include one or two references which throw a little light + on the social organisation of the times. There were <span class= + "tei tei-q">“families of scribes which dwelt at Jabez”</span><a id= + "noteref_129" name="noteref_129" href="#note_129"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">129</span></span></a> as + well as the Levitical scribes. In the appendix<a id="noteref_130" + name="noteref_130" href="#note_130"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">130</span></span></a> to + the genealogies of chap. iv. we read of a house whose families + wrought fine linen, and of other families who were porters to the + king and lived on the royal estates. The immediate reference of + these statements is clearly to the monarchy, and we are told that + <span class="tei tei-q">“the records are ancient”</span>; but these + ancient records were probably obtained by the chronicler from + contemporary members of the families, who still pursued their + hereditary calling.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As regards the + tribe of Benjamin, we have seen that there was a family claiming + descent from Saul.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The slight and + meagre information given about Judah and Benjamin cannot accurately + represent their importance as compared with the priests and + Levites, but the general impression conveyed by the chronicler is + confirmed by our other authorities. In his time the supreme + interests of the Jews were religious. The one great institution was + the Temple; the highest order was the priesthood. All Jews were in + a measure servants of the Temple; Ephesus indeed was proud to be + called <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page108">[pg + 108]</span><a name="Pg108" id="Pg108" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + the temple-keeper of the great Diana, but Jerusalem was far more + truly the temple-keeper of Jehovah. Devotion to the Temple gave to + the Jews a unity which neither of the older Hebrew states had ever + possessed. The kernel of this later Jewish territory seems to have + been a comparatively small district of which Jerusalem was the + centre. The inhabitants of this district carefully preserved the + records of their family history, and loved to trace their descent + to the ancient clans of Judah and Benjamin; but for practical + purposes they were all Jews, without distinction of tribe. Even the + ministry of the Temple had become more homogeneous; the + non-Levitical descent of some classes of the Temple servants was + first ignored and then forgotten, so that assistants at the + sacrifices, singers, musicians, scribes, and porters, were all + included in the tribe of Levi. The Temple conferred its own + sanctity upon all its ministers.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In a previous + chapter the Temple and its ministry were compared to a mediæval + monastery or the establishment of a modern cathedral. In the same + way Jerusalem might be compared to cities, like Ely or Canterbury, + which exist mainly for the sake of their cathedrals, only both the + sanctuary and city of the Jews came to be on a larger scale. Or, + again, if the Temple be represented by the great abbey of St. + Edmundsbury, Bury St. Edmunds itself might stand for Jerusalem, and + the wide lands of the abbey for the surrounding districts, from + which the Jewish priests derived their free-will offerings, and + first-fruits, and tithes. Still in both these English instances + there was a vigorous and independent secular life far beyond any + that existed in Judæa.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">A closer + parallel to the temple on Zion is to be <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page109">[pg 109]</span><a name="Pg109" id="Pg109" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> found in the immense establishments of the + Egyptian temples. It is true that these were numerous in Egypt, and + the authority and influence of the priesthood were checked and + controlled by the power of the kings; yet on the fall of the + twentieth dynasty the high-priest of the great temple of Amen at + Thebes succeeded in making himself king, and Egypt, like Judah, had + its dynasty of priest-kings.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The following is + an account of the possessions of the Theban temple of Amen, + supposed to be given by an Egyptian living about <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">b.c.</span></span> 1350<a id= + "noteref_131" name="noteref_131" href="#note_131"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">131</span></span></a>:—</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“Since the accession of the eighteenth dynasty, Amen + has profited more than any other god, perhaps even more than + Pharaoh himself, by the Egyptian victories over the peoples of + Syria and Ethiopia. Each success has brought him a considerable + share of the spoil collected upon the battle-fields, indemnities + levied from the enemy, prisoners carried into slavery. He possesses + lands and gardens by the hundred in Thebes and the rest of Egypt, + fields and meadows, woods, hunting-grounds, and fisheries; he has + colonies in Ethiopia or in the oases of the Libyan desert, and at + the extremity of the land of Canaan there are cities under + vassalage to him, for Pharaoh allows him to receive the tribute + from them. The administration of these vast properties requires as + many officials and departments as that of a kingdom. It includes + innumerable bailiffs for the agriculture; overseers for the cattle + and poultry; treasurers of twenty kinds for the gold, silver, and + copper, the vases and valuable stuffs; foremen for the workshops + and manufactures; engineers; architects; boatmen; a fleet and an + army <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page110">[pg 110]</span><a name= + "Pg110" id="Pg110" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> which often fight by + the side of Pharaoh's fleet and army. It is really a state within + the state.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Many of the + details of this picture would not be true for the temple of Zion; + but the Jews were even more devoted to Jehovah than the Thebans to + Amen, and the administration of the Jewish temple was more than + <span class="tei tei-q">“a state within the state”</span>: it was + the state itself.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page111">[pg 111]</span><a name= + "Pg111" id="Pg111" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc25" id="toc25"></a> <a name="pdf26" id="pdf26"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter VI. Teaching By Anachronism. + 1 Chron. ix. (cf. xv., xvi., xxiii.-xxvii., etc.).</span></h2> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <span class="tei tei-q"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">And David the + king said, ... Who then offereth willingly?... And they gave for + the service of the house of God ... ten thousand + darics.</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">—1</span> <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-variant: small-caps">Chron.</span></span> + <span style="font-size: 90%">xxix. 1, 5, 7.</span> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Teaching by + anachronism is a very common and effective form of religious + instruction; and Chronicles, as the best Scriptural example of this + method, affords a good opportunity for its discussion and + illustration.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">All history is + more or less guilty of anachronism; every historian perforce + imports some of the ideas and circumstances of his own time into + his narratives and pictures of the past: but we may distinguish + three degrees of anachronism. Some writers or speakers make little + or no attempt at archæological accuracy; others temper the + generally anachronistic character of their compositions by + occasional reference to the manners and customs of the period they + are describing; and, again, there are a few trained students who + succeed in drawing fairly accurate and consistent pictures of + ancient life and history.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We will briefly + consider the last two classes before returning to the first, in + which we are chiefly interested.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page112">[pg 112]</span><a name="Pg112" id="Pg112" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Accurate + archæology is, of course, part of the ideal of the scientific + historian. By long and careful study of literature and monuments + and by the exercise of a lively and well-trained imagination, the + student obtains a vision of ancient societies. Nineveh and Babylon, + Thebes and Memphis, rise from their ashes and stand before him in + all their former splendour; he walks their streets and mixes with + the crowds in the market-place and the throng of worshippers at the + temple, each <span class="tei tei-q">“in his habit as he + lived.”</span> Rameses and Sennacherib, Ptolemy and Antiochus, all + play their proper parts in this drama of his fancy. He can not only + recall their costumes and features: he can even think their + thoughts and feel their emotions; he actually lives in the past. In + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Marius + the Epicurean</span></span>, in Ebers's <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Uarda</span></span>, + in Maspero's <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sketches of Assyrian and Egyptian + Life</span></span>, and in other more serious works we have some of + the fruits of this enlightened study of antiquity, and are enabled + to see the visions at second hand and in some measure to live at + once in the present and the past, to illustrate and interpret the + one by the other, to measure progress and decay, and to understand + the Divine meaning of all history. Our more recent histories and + works on life and manners and even our historical romances, + especially those of Walter Scott, have rendered a similar service + to students of English history. And yet at its very best such + realisation of the past is imperfect; the gaps in our information + are unconsciously filled in from our experience, and the ideas of + the present always colour our reproduction of ancient thought and + feeling. The most accurate history is only a rough approximation to + exact truth; but, like many other rough approximations, it is exact + enough for many important practical purposes.</p><span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page113">[pg 113]</span><a name="Pg113" id="Pg113" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But scholarly + familiarity with the past has its drawbacks. The scholar may come + to live so much amongst ancient memories that he loses touch with + his own present. He may gain large stores of information about + ancient Israelite life, and yet not know enough of his own + generation to be able to make them sharers of his knowledge. Their + living needs and circumstances lie outside his practical + experience; he cannot explain the past to them because he does not + sympathise with their present; he cannot apply its lessons to + difficulties and dangers which he does not understand.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Nor is the + usefulness of the archæologist merely limited by his own lack of + sympathy and experience. He may have both, and yet find that there + are few of his contemporaries who can follow him in his excursions + into bygone time. These limitations and drawbacks do not seriously + diminish the value of archæology, but they have to be taken into + account in discussing teaching by anachronism, and they have an + important bearing on the practical application of archæological + knowledge. We shall return to these points later on.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The second + degree of anachronism is very common. We are constantly hearing and + reading descriptions of Bible scenes and events in which the + centuries before and after Christ are most oddly blended. Here and + there will be a costume after an ancient monument, a Biblical + description of Jewish customs, a few Scriptural phrases; but these + are embedded in paragraphs which simply reproduce the social and + religious ideas of the nineteenth century. For instance, in a + recent work, amidst much display of archæological knowledge, we + have the very modern ideas that Joseph and Mary went up to + Bethlehem at the census, because Joseph and perhaps Mary also had + property in Bethlehem, and <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page114">[pg 114]</span><a name="Pg114" id="Pg114" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> that when Joseph died <span class= + "tei tei-q">“he left her a small but independent fortune.”</span> + Many modern books might be named in which Patriarchs and Apostles + hold the language and express the sentiments of the most recent + schools of devotional Christianity; and yet an air of historical + accuracy is assumed by occasional touches of archæology. Similarly + in mediæval miracle-plays characters from the Bible appeared in the + dress of the period, and uttered a grotesque mixture of Scriptural + phrases and vernacular jargon. Much of such work as this may for + all practical purposes be classed under the third degree of + anachronism. Sometimes, however, the spiritual significance of a + passage or an incident turns upon a simple explanation of some + ancient custom, so that the archæological detail makes a clear + addition to its interest and instructiveness. But in other cases a + little archæology is a dangerous thing. Scattered fragments of + learned information do not enable the reader in any way to revive + the buried past; they only remove the whole subject further from + his interest and sympathy. He is not reading about his own day, nor + does he understand that the events and personages of the narrative + ever had anything in common with himself and his experience. The + antique garb, the strange custom, the unusual phrase, disguise that + real humanity which the reader shares with these ancient worthies. + They are no longer men of like passions with himself, and he finds + neither warning nor encouragement in their story. He is like a + spectator of a drama played by poor actors with a limited stock of + properties. The scenery and dresses show that the play does not + belong to his own time, but they fail to suggest that it ever + belonged to any period. He has a languid interest in the + performance as a <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page115">[pg + 115]</span><a name="Pg115" id="Pg115" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + spectacle, but his feelings are not touched, and he is never + carried away by the acting.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have laid so + much stress on the drawbacks attaching to a little archæology + because they will emphasise what we have to say about the use of + pure anachronism. Our last illustration, however, reminds us that + these drawbacks detract but little from the influence of earnest + men. If the acting be good, we forget the scenery and costumes; the + genius of a great preacher more than atones for poor archæology, + because, in spite of dress and custom, he makes his hearers feel + that the characters of the Bible were instinct with rich and + passionate life. We thus arrive at our third degree of pure + anachronism.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Most people read + their Bible without any reference to archæology. If they dramatise + the stories, they do so in terms of their own experience. The + characters are dressed like the men and women they know: Nazareth + is like their native village, and Jerusalem is like the county + town; the conversations are carried on in the English of the + Authorised Version. This reading of Scripture is well illustrated + by the description in a recent writer of a modern prophet in + Tennessee<a id="noteref_132" name="noteref_132" href= + "#note_132"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">132</span></span></a>:—</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“There was nought in the scene to suggest to a mind + familiar with the facts an Oriental landscape—nought akin to the + hills of Judæa. It was essentially of the New World, essentially of + the Great Smoky Mountains. Yet ignorance has its licence. It never + occurred to Teck Jepson that his Bible heroes had lived elsewhere. + Their history had to him an intimate personal relation, as of the + story of an ancestor, in the homestead ways and closely familiar. + He brooded <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page116">[pg + 116]</span><a name="Pg116" id="Pg116" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + upon these narratives, instinct with dramatic interest, enriched + with poetic colour, and localised in his robust imagination, till + he could trace Hagar's wild wanderings in the fastnesses, could + show where Jacob slept and piled his altar of stones, could + distinguish the bush, of all others on the <span class= + "tei tei-q">‘bald,’</span> that blazed with fire from heaven when + the angel of the Lord stood within it. Somehow, even in their + grotesque variation, they lost no dignity in their transmission to + the modern conditions of his fancy. Did the facts lack significance + because it was along the gullied red clay roads of Piomingo Cove + that he saw David, the smiling stripling, running and holding high + in his hand the bit of cloth cut from Saul's garments while the + king had slept in a cave at the base of Chilhowie Mountain? And how + was the splendid miracle of translation discredited because Jepson + believed that the chariot of the Lord had rested in scarlet and + purple clouds upon the towering summit of Thunderhead, that Elijah + might thence ascend into heaven?”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Another and more + familiar example of <span class="tei tei-q">“singular alterations + in date and circumstances”</span> is the version in <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Ivanhoe</span></span> + of the war between Benjamin and the other tribes:—</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“How long since in Palestine a deadly feud arose + between the tribe of Benjamin and the rest of the Israelitish + nation; and how they cut to pieces well-nigh all the chivalry of + that tribe; and how they swore by our blessed Lady that they would + not permit those who remained to marry in their lineage; and how + they became grieved for their vow, and sent to consult his Holiness + the Pope how they might be absolved from it; and how, by the advice + of the Holy Father, the youth of the tribe of Benjamin carried off + from a superb tournament all the ladies who were there present, and + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page117">[pg 117]</span><a name= + "Pg117" id="Pg117" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> thus won them wives + without the consent either of their brides or their brides' + families.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is needless + to say that the chronicler was not thus hopelessly at sea about the + circumstances of ancient Hebrew history; but he wrote in the same + simple, straightforward, childlike spirit. Israel had always been + the Israel of his own experience, and it never occurred to him that + its institutions under the kings had been other than those with + which he was familiar. He had no more hesitation in filling up the + gaps in the book of Kings from what he saw round about him than a + painter would have in putting the white clouds and blue waters of + to-day into a picture of skies and seas a thousand years ago. He + attributes to the pious kings of Judah the observance of the ritual + of his own times. Their prophets use phrases taken from post-Exilic + writings. David is regarded as the author of the existing + ecclesiastical system in almost all matters that do not date back + to Moses, and especially as the organiser of the familiar music of + the Temple. David's choristers sing the hymns of the second Temple. + Amongst the contributions of his nobles towards the building of the + Temple, we read of ten thousand darics, the daric being a coin + introduced by the Persian king Darius.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But we must be + careful to recognise that the chronicler writes in perfect good + faith. These views of the monarchy were common to all educated and + thoughtful men of his time; they were embodied in current + tradition, and were probably already to be met with in writing. To + charge him with inventing them is absurd; they already existed, and + did not need to be invented. He cannot have coloured his narrative + in the interests of the Temple and the priesthood. When + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page118">[pg 118]</span><a name= + "Pg118" id="Pg118" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> he lived, these + interests were guaranteed by ancient custom and by the + authoritative sanction of the Pentateuchal Law. The chronicler does + not write with the strong feeling of a man who maintains a doubtful + cause; there is no hint of any alternative view which needs to be + disproved and rejected in favour of his own. He expatiates on his + favourite themes with happy, leisurely serenity, and is evidently + confident that his treatment of them will meet with general and + cordial approval.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And doubtless + the author of Chronicles <span class="tei tei-q">“served his own + generation by the will of God,”</span> and served them in the way + he intended. He made the history of the monarchy more real and + living to them, and enabled them to understand better that the + reforming kings of Judah were loyal servants of Jehovah and had + been used by Him for the furtherance of true religion. The pictures + drawn by Samuel and Kings of David and the best of his successors + would not have enabled the Jews of his time to appreciate these + facts. They had no idea of any piety that was not expressed in the + current observances of the Law, and Samuel and Kings did not + ascribe such observances to the earlier kings of Judah. But the + chronicler and his authorities were able to discern in the ancient + Scriptures the genuine piety of David and Hezekiah and other kings, + and drew what seemed to them the obvious conclusion that these + pious kings observed the Law. They then proceeded to rewrite the + history in order that the true character of the kings and their + relation to Jehovah might be made intelligible to the people. The + only piety which the chronicler could conceive was combined with + observance of the Law; naturally therefore it was only thus that he + could describe piety. His work would be read with eager interest, + and would play a definite and <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page119">[pg 119]</span><a name="Pg119" id="Pg119" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> useful part in the religious education of the + people. It would bring home to them, as the older histories could + not, the abiding presence of Jehovah with Israel and its leaders. + Chronicles interpreted history to its own generation by translating + older records into the circumstances and ideas of its own time.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And in this it + remains our example. Chronicles may fall very far short of the + ideal and yet be superior to more accurate histories which fail to + make themselves intelligible to their own generation. The ideal + history no doubt would tell the story with archæological precision, + and then interpret it by modern parallels; the historian would show + us what we should actually have seen and heard if we had lived in + the period he is describing; he would also help our weak + imagination by pointing us to such modern events or persons as best + illustrate those ancient times. No doubt Chronicles fails to bring + before our eyes an accurate vision of the history of the monarchy; + but, as we have said, all history fails somewhat in this respect. + It is simply impossible to fulfil the demand for history that shall + have the accuracy of an architect's plans of a house or an + astronomer's diagrams of the orbit of a planet. Chronicles, + however, fails more seriously than most history, and on the whole + rather more than most commentaries and sermons.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But this lack of + archæological accuracy is far less serious than a failure to make + it clear that the events of ancient history were as real and as + interesting as those of modern times, and that its personages were + actual men and women, with a full equipment of body, mind, and + soul. There have been many teachers and preachers, innocent of + archæology, who have yet been able to apply Bible narratives with + convincing power <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page120">[pg + 120]</span><a name="Pg120" id="Pg120" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + to the hearts and consciences of their hearers. They may have + missed some points and misunderstood others, but they have brought + out clearly the main, practical teaching of their subject; and we + must not allow amusement at curious anachronisms to blind us to + their great gifts in applying ancient history to modern + circumstances. For instance, the little captive maid in the story + of Naaman has been described by a local preacher as having + illuminated texts hung up in her bedroom, and (perambulators not + being then in use) as having constructed a go-cart for the baby out + of an old tea-chest and four cotton reels. We feel inclined to + smile; but, after all, such a picture would make children feel that + the captive maid was a girl whom they could understand and might + even imitate. A more correct version of the story, told with less + human interest, might leave the impression that she was a mere + animated doll in a quaint costume, who made impossibly pious + remarks.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Enlightened and + well-informed Christian teachers may still learn something from the + example of the chronicler. The uncritical character of his age + affords no excuse to them for shutting their eyes to the fuller + light which God has given to their generation. But we are reminded + that permanently significant stories have their parallels in every + age. There are always prodigal sons, and foolish virgins, + importunate widows, and good Samaritans. The ancient narratives are + interesting as quaint and picturesque stories of former times; but + it is our duty as teachers to discover the modern parallels of + their eternal meaning: their lessons are often best enforced by + telling them afresh as they would have been told if their authors + had lived in our time, in other words by a frank use of + anachronism.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page121">[pg + 121]</span><a name="Pg121" id="Pg121" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It may be + objected that the result in the case of Chronicles is not + encouraging. Chronicles is far less interesting than Kings, and far + less useful in furnishing materials for the historian. These facts, + however, are not inconsistent with the usefulness of the book for + its own age. Teaching by anachronism simply seeks to render a + service to its own generation; its purpose is didactic, and not + historical. How many people read the sermons of eighteenth-century + divines? But each generation has a right to this special service. + The first duty of the religious teacher is for the men and women + that look to him for spiritual help and guidance. He may + incidentally produce literary work of permanent value for + posterity; but a Church whose ministry sacrificed practical + usefulness in the attempt to be learned and literary would be false + to its most sacred functions. The noblest self-denial of Christian + service may often lie in putting aside all such ambition and + devoting the ability which might have made a successful author to + making Divine truth intelligible and interesting to the uncultured + and the unimaginative. Authors themselves are sometimes led to make + a similar sacrifice; they write to help the many to-day when they + might have written to delight men of literary taste in all ages. + Few things are so ephemeral as popular religious literature; it is + as quickly and entirely forgotten as last year's sunsets: but it is + as necessary and as useful as the sunshine and the clouds, which + are being always spent and always renewed. Chronicles is a specimen + of this class of literature, and its presence in the canon + testifies to the duty of providing a special application of the + sacred truths of ancient history for each succeeding + generation.</p> + </div> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page123">[pg 123]</span><a name= + "Pg123" id="Pg123" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc27" id="toc27"></a> <a name="pdf28" id="pdf28"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em; margin-top: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">Book III. Messianic And Other + Types.</span></h1><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page125">[pg + 125]</span><a name="Pg125" id="Pg125" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc29" id="toc29"></a> <a name="pdf30" id="pdf30"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter I. Teaching By + Types.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">A more serious + charge has been brought against Chronicles than that dealt with in + the last chapter. Besides anachronisms, additions, and alterations, + the chronicler has made omissions that give an entirely new + complexion to the history. He omits, for instance, almost + everything that detracts from the character and achievements of + David and Solomon; he almost entirely ignores the reigns of Saul + and Ishbosheth, and of all the northern kings. These facts are + obvious to the most casual reader, and a moment's reflection shows + that David as we should know him if we had only Chronicles is + entirely different from the historical David of Samuel and Kings. + The latter David has noble qualities, but displays great weakness + and falls into grievous sin; the David of Chronicles is almost + always an hero and a blameless saint.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">All this is + unquestionably true, and yet the purpose and spirit of Chronicles + are honest and praiseworthy. Our judgment must be governed by the + relation which the chronicler intended his work to sustain towards + the older history. Did he hope that Samuel and Kings would be + altogether superseded by this new version of the history of the + monarchy, and so eventually be <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page126">[pg 126]</span><a name="Pg126" id="Pg126" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> suppressed and forgotten? There were + precedents that might have encouraged such a hope. The Pentateuch + and the books from Joshua to Kings derived their material from + older works; but the older works were superseded by these books, + and entirely disappeared. The circumstances, however, were + different when the chronicler wrote: Samuel and Kings had been + established for centuries. Moreover, the Jewish community in + Babylon still exercised great influence over the Palestinian Jews. + Copies of Samuel and Kings must have been preserved at Babylon, and + their possessors could not be eager to destroy them, and then to + incur the expense of replacing them by copies of a history written + at Jerusalem from the point of view of the priests and Levites. We + may therefore put aside the theory that Chronicles was intended + altogether to supersede Samuel and Kings. Another possible theory + is that the chronicler, after the manner of mediæval historians, + composed an abstract of the history of the world from the Creation + to the Captivity as an introduction to his account in Ezra and + Nehemiah of the more recent post-Exilic period. This theory has + some truth in it, but does not explain the fact that Chronicles is + disproportionately long if it be merely such an introduction. + Probably the chronicler's main object was to compose a text-book, + which could safely and usefully be placed in the hands of the + common people. There were obvious objections to the popular use of + Samuel and Kings. In making a selection from his material, the + chronicler had no intention of falsifying history. Scholars, he + knew, would be acquainted with the older books, and could + supplement his narrative from the sources which he himself had + used. In his own work he was anxious to confine himself to the + portions of the <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page127">[pg + 127]</span><a name="Pg127" id="Pg127" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + history which had an obvious religious significance, and could + readily be used for purposes of edification. He was only applying + more thoroughly a principle that had guided his predecessors. The + Pentateuch itself is the result of a similar selection, only there + and in the other earlier histories a very human interest in + dramatic narrative has sometimes interfered with an exclusive + attention to edification.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Indeed, the + principles of selection adopted by the chronicler are common to + many historians. A school history does not dwell on the domestic + vices of kings or on the private failings of statesmen. It requires + no great stretch of imagination to conceive of a Royalist history + of England, that should entirely ignore the Commonwealth. Indeed, + historians of Christian missions sometimes show about the same + interest in the work of other Churches than their own that + Chronicles takes in the northern kingdom. The work of the + chronicler may also be compared to monographs which confine + themselves to some special aspect of their subject. We have every + reason to be thankful that the Divine providence has preserved for + us the richer and fuller narrative of Samuel and Kings, but we + cannot blame the chronicler because he has observed some of the + ordinary canons for the composition of historical text-books.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler's + selective method, however, is carried so far that the historical + value of his work is seriously impaired; yet in this respect also + he is kept in countenance by very respectable authorities. We are + more concerned, however, to point out the positive results of the + method. Instead of historical portraits, we are presented with a + gallery of ideals, types of character which we are asked either to + admire or to condemn. On <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page128">[pg + 128]</span><a name="Pg128" id="Pg128" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + the one hand, we have David and Solomon, Jehoshaphat and Hezekiah, + and the rest of the reforming kings of Judah; on the other hand, + there are Jeroboam, and Ahab, and Ahaz, the kings of Israel, and + the bad kings of Judah. All these are very sharply defined in + either white or black. The types of Chronicles are ideals, and not + studies of ordinary human character, with its mingled motives and + subtle gradations of light and shade. The chronicler has nothing in + common with the authors of modern realistic novels or anecdotal + memoirs. His subject is not human nature as it is so much as human + nature as it ought to be. There is obviously much to be learnt from + such ideal pictures, and this form of inspired teaching is by no + means the least effective; it may be roughly compared with our + Lord's method of teaching by parables, without, however, at all + putting the two upon the same level.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Before examining + these types in detail, we may devote a little space to some general + considerations upon teaching by types. For the present we will + confine ourselves to a non-theological sense of type, using the + word to mean any individual who is representative or typical of a + class. But the chronicler's individuals do not represent classes of + actual persons, but good men as they seem to their most devoted + admirers and bad men as they seem to their worst enemies. They are + ideal types. Chronicles is not the only literature in which such + ideal types are found. They occur in the funeral sermons and + obituary notices of popular favourites, and in the pictures which + politicians draw in election speeches of their opponents, only in + these there is a note of personal feeling from which the chronicler + is free.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In fact, all + biography tends to idealise; human nature <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page129">[pg 129]</span><a name="Pg129" id="Pg129" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> as it is has generally to be looked for in + the pages of fiction. When we have been blessed with a good and + brave man, we wish to think of him at his best; we are not anxious + to have thrust upon our notice the weaknesses and sins which he + regretted and for the most part controlled. Some one who loved and + honoured him is asked to write the biography, with a tacit + understanding that he is not to give us a picture of the real man + in the <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">déshabille</span></span>, as it were, of his + own inner consciousness. He is to paint us a portrait of the man as + he strove to fashion himself after his own high ideal. The true + man, as God knows him and as his fellows should remember him, was + the man in his higher nature and nobler aspirations. The rest, + surely, was but the vanishing remnant of a repudiated self. The + biographer idealises, because he believes that the ideal best + represents the real man. This is what the chronicler, with a large + faith and liberal charity, has done for David and Solomon.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Such an ideal + picture appeals to us with pathetic emphasis. It seems to say, + <span class="tei tei-q">“In spite of temptation, and sin, and + grievous falls, this is what I ever aimed at and desired to be. Do + not thou content thyself with any lower ideal. My higher nature had + its achievements as well as its aspirations. Remember that in thy + weakness thou mayest also achieve.”</span></p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">What I + aspired to be,</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">And was not, comforts me;</span> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">All I could never be,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">All men ignored in me,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">This I was worth to + God....</span><span style="font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But we may take + these ideals as types, not only in a general sense, but also in a + modification of the <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page130">[pg + 130]</span><a name="Pg130" id="Pg130" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + dogmatic meaning of the word. We are not concerned here with the + type as the mere external symbol of truth yet to be revealed; such + types are chiefly found in the ritual of the Pentateuch. The + circumstances of a man's life may also serve as a type in the + narrower sense, but we venture to apply the theological idea of + type to the significance of the higher nature in a good man. It has + been said in reference to types in the theological sense that + <span class="tei tei-q">“a type is neither a prophecy, nor a + symbol, nor an allegory, yet it has relations with each of these. A + prophecy is a prediction in words, a type a prediction in things. A + symbol is a sensuous representation of a thing; a type is such a + representation having a distinctly predictive aspect: ... a type is + an enacted prophecy, a kind of prophecy by action.”</span><a id= + "noteref_133" name="noteref_133" href="#note_133"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">133</span></span></a> We + cannot, of course, include in our use of the term type <span class= + "tei tei-q">“sensuous representation”</span> and some other ideas + connected with <span class="tei tei-q">“type”</span> in a + theological sense. Our type is a prediction in persons rather than + in things. But the use of the term is justified as including the + most essential point: that <span class="tei tei-q">“a type is an + enacted prophecy, a kind of prophecy by action.”</span> These + personal types are the most real and significant; they have no mere + arbitrary or conventional relation to their antitype. The enacted + prophecy is the beginning of its own fulfilment, the first-fruits + of the greater harvest that is to be. The better moments of the man + who is hungering and thirsting after righteousness are a type, a + promise, and prophecy of his future satisfaction. They have also a + wider and deeper meaning: they show what is possible for humanity, + and give an assurance of the spiritual progress of the world. The + elect remnant <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page131">[pg + 131]</span><a name="Pg131" id="Pg131" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + of Israel were the type of the great Christian Church; the + spiritual aspirations and persistent faith of a few believers were + a prophecy that <span class="tei tei-q">“the earth should be full + of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.”</span> + <span class="tei tei-q">“The kingdom of heaven is like unto a grain + of mustard seed, ... which is less than all seeds; but when it is + grown, it is greater than the herbs, and becometh a tree.”</span> + When therefore the chronicler ignores the evil in David and Solomon + and only records the good, he treats them as types. He takes what + was best in them and sets it forth as a standard and prophecy for + the future, a pattern in the mount to be realised hereafter in the + structure of God's spiritual temple upon earth.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But the Holy + Spirit guided the hopes and intuitions of the sacred writers to a + special fulfilment. We can see that their types have one antitype + in the growth of the Church and the progress of mankind; but the + Old Testament looked for their chief fulfilment in a Divine + Messenger and Deliverer: its ideals are types of the Messiah. The + higher life of a good man was a revelation of God and a promise of + His highest and best manifestation in Christ. We shall endeavour to + show in subsequent chapters how Chronicles served to develop the + idea of the Messiah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But the + chronicler's types are not all prophecies of future progress or + Messianic glory. The brighter portions of his picture are thrown + into relief by a dark background. The good in Jeroboam is as + completely ignored as the evil in David. Apart from any question of + historical accuracy, the type is unfortunately a true one. There is + a leaven of the Pharisees and of Herod, as well as a leaven of the + kingdom. If the base leaven be left to work by itself, it will + leaven the whole mass; <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page132">[pg + 132]</span><a name="Pg132" id="Pg132" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + and in a final estimate of the character of those who do evil + <span class="tei tei-q">“with both hands earnestly,”</span> little + allowance needs to be made for redeeming features. Even if we are + still able to believe that there is a seed of goodness in things + evil, we are forced to admit that the seed has remained dead and + unfertilised, has had no growth and borne no fruit. But probably + most men may sometimes be profitably admonished by considering the + typical sinner—the man in whose nature evil has been able to subdue + all things to itself.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The strange + power of teaching by types has been well expressed by one who was + herself a great mistress of the art: <span class="tei tei-q">“Ideas + are often poor ghosts: our sun-filled eyes cannot discern them; + they pass athwart us in thin vapour, and cannot make themselves + felt; they breathe upon us with warm breath, they touch us with + soft, responsive hands; they look at us with sad, sincere eyes, and + speak to us in appealing tones; they are clothed in a living human + soul; ... their presence is a power.”</span><a id="noteref_134" + name="noteref_134" href="#note_134"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">134</span></span></a></p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page133">[pg 133]</span><a name= + "Pg133" id="Pg133" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc31" id="toc31"></a> <a name="pdf32" id="pdf32"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter II. David—I. His Tribe And + Dynasty.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">King and kingdom + were so bound up in ancient life that an ideal for the one implied + an ideal for the other; all distinction and glory possessed by + either was shared by both. The tribe and kingdom of Judah were + exalted by the fame of David and Solomon; but, on the other hand, a + specially exalted position is accorded to David in the Old + Testament because he is the representative of the people of + Jehovah. David himself had been anointed by Divine command to be + king of Israel, and he thus became the founder of the only + legitimate dynasty of Hebrew kings. Saul and Ishbosheth had no + significance for the later religious history of the nation. + Apparently to the chronicler the history of true religion in Israel + was a blank between Joshua and David; the revival began when the + Ark was brought to Zion, and the first steps were taken to rear the + Temple in succession to the Mosaic tabernacle. He therefore omits + the history of the Judges and Saul. But the battle of Gilboa is + given to introduce the reign of David, and incidental condemnation + is passed on Saul: <span class="tei tei-q">“So Saul died for his + trespass which he committed against the Lord, because of the word + of the Lord, which he kept not, and also for that he asked counsel + of one that had a familiar spirit, to inquire <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page134">[pg 134]</span><a name="Pg134" id="Pg134" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> thereby, and inquired not of the Lord; + therefore He slew him and turned the kingdom unto David the son of + Jesse.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The reign of + Saul had been an unsuccessful experiment; its only real value had + been to prepare the way for David. At the same time the portrait of + Saul is not given at full length, like those of the wicked kings, + partly perhaps because the chronicler had little interest for + anything before the time of David and the Temple, but partly, we + may hope, because the record of David's affection for Saul kept + alive a kindly feeling towards the founder of the monarchy.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Inasmuch as + Jehovah had <span class="tei tei-q">“turned the kingdom unto + David,”</span> the reign of Ishbosheth was evidently the intrusion + of an illegitimate pretender; and the chronicler treats it as such. + If we had only Chronicles, we should know nothing about the reign + of Ishbosheth, and should suppose that, on the death of Saul, David + succeeded at once to an undisputed sovereignty over all Israel. The + interval of conflict is ignored because, according to the + chronicler's views, David was, from the first, king <span lang="la" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">de jure</span></span> over the whole nation. + Complete silence as to Ishbosheth was the most effective way of + expressing this fact.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The same + sentiment of hereditary legitimacy, the same formal and exclusive + recognition of a <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "la"><span style="font-style: italic">de jure</span></span> + sovereign, has been shown in modern times by titles like Louis + XVIII. and Napoleon III. For both schools of Legitimists the + absence of <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "la"><span style="font-style: italic">de facto</span></span> + sovereignty did not prevent Louis XVII. and Napoleon II. from + having been lawful rulers of France. In Israel, moreover, the + Divine right of the one chosen dynasty had religious as well as + political importance. We have already seen that Israel claimed a + hereditary title to <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page135">[pg + 135]</span><a name="Pg135" id="Pg135" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + its special privileges; it was therefore natural that a hereditary + qualification should be thought necessary for the kings. They + represented the nation; they were the Divinely appointed guardians + of its religion; they became in time the types of the Messiah, its + promised Saviour. In all this Saul and Ishbosheth had neither part + nor lot; the promise to Israel had always descended in a direct + line, and the special promise that was given to its kings and + through them to their people began with David. There was no need to + carry the history further back.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have already + noticed that, in spite of this general attitude towards Saul, the + genealogy of some of his descendants is given twice over in the + earlier chapters. No doubt the chronicler made this concession to + gratify friends or to conciliate an influential family. It is + interesting to note how personal feeling may interfere with the + symmetrical development of a theological theory. At the same time + we are enabled to discern a practical reason for rigidly ignoring + the kingship of Saul and Ishbosheth. To have recognised Saul as the + Lord's anointed, like David, would have complicated contemporary + dogmatics, and might possibly have given rise to jealousies between + the descendants of Saul and those of David. Within the narrow + limits of the Jewish community such quarrels might have been + inconvenient and even dangerous.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The reasons for + denying the legitimacy of the northern kings were obvious and + conclusive. Successful rebels who had destroyed the political and + religious unity of Israel could not inherit <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the sure mercies of David”</span> or be included in + the covenant which secured the permanence of his dynasty.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The exclusive + association of Messianic ideas with a <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page136">[pg 136]</span><a name="Pg136" id="Pg136" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> single family emphasises their antiquity, + continuity, and development. The hope of Israel had its roots deep + in the history of the people; it had grown with their growth and + maintained itself through their changing fortunes. As the hope + centred in a single family, men were led to expect an individual + personal Messiah; they were being prepared to see in Christ the + fulfilment of all righteousness.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But the choice + of the house of David involved the choice of the tribe of Judah and + the rejection of the kingdom of Samaria. The ten tribes, as well as + the kings of Israel, had cut themselves off both from the Temple + and the sacred dynasty, and therefore from the covenant into which + Jehovah had entered with <span class="tei tei-q">“the man after his + own heart.”</span> Such a limitation of the chosen people was + suggested by many precedents. Chronicles, following the Pentateuch, + tells how the call came to Abraham, but only some of the + descendants of one of his sons inherited the promise. Why should + not a selection be made from among the sons of Jacob? But the + twelve tribes had been explicitly and solemnly included in the + unity of Israel, largely through David himself. The glory of David + and Solomon consisted in their sovereignty over a united people. + The national recollection of this golden age loved to dwell on the + union of the twelve tribes. The Pentateuch added legal sanction to + ancient sentiment. The twelve tribes were associated together in + national lyrics, like the <span class="tei tei-q">“Blessing of + Jacob”</span> and the <span class="tei tei-q">“Blessing of + Moses.”</span> The song of Deborah told how the northern tribes + <span class="tei tei-q">“came to the help of the Lord against the + mighty.”</span> It was simply impossible for the chronicler to + absolutely repudiate the ten tribes; and so they are formally + included in the genealogies of Israel, and are recognised in the + history of David and <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page137">[pg + 137]</span><a name="Pg137" id="Pg137" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Solomon. Then the recognition stops. From the time of the + disruption the northern kingdom is quietly but persistently + ignored. Its prophets and sanctuaries were as illegitimate as its + kings. The great struggle of Elijah and Elisha for the honour of + Jehovah is omitted, with all the rest of their history. Elijah is + only mentioned as sending a letter to Jehoram, king of Judah; + Elisha is never even named.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">On the other + hand, it is more than once implied that Judah, with the Levites, + and the remnants of Simeon and Benjamin, are the true Israel. When + Rehoboam <span class="tei tei-q">“was strong he forsook the law of + the Lord, and all Israel with him.”</span> After Shishak's + invasion, <span class="tei tei-q">“the princes of Israel and the + king humbled themselves.”</span><a id="noteref_135" name= + "noteref_135" href="#note_135"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">135</span></span></a> The + annals of Manasseh, king of Judah, are said to be <span class= + "tei tei-q">“written among the acts of the kings of + Israel.”</span><a id="noteref_136" name="noteref_136" href= + "#note_136"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">136</span></span></a> The + register of the exiles, who returned with Zerubbabel is headed + <span class="tei tei-q">“The number of the men of the people of + Israel.”</span><a id="noteref_137" name="noteref_137" href= + "#note_137"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">137</span></span></a> The + chronicler tacitly anticipates the position of St. Paul: + <span class="tei tei-q">“They are not all Israel which are of + Israel”</span>; and the Apostle might have appealed to Chronicles + to show that the majority of Israel might fail to recognise and + accept the Divine purpose for Israel, and that the true Israel + would then be found in an elect remnant. The Jews of the second + Temple naturally and inevitably came to ignore the ten tribes and + to regard themselves as constituting this true Israel. As a matter + of history, there had been a period during which the prophets of + Samaria were of far more importance to the religion of Jehovah than + the temple at Jerusalem; but in the chronicler's time the very + existence of the ten tribes was ancient history. Then, at any rate, + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page138">[pg 138]</span><a name= + "Pg138" id="Pg138" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> it was true that + God's Israel was to be found in the Jewish community, at and around + Jerusalem. They inherited the religious spirit of their fathers, + and received from them the sacred writings and traditions, and + carried on the sacred ritual. They preserved the truth and + transmitted it from generation to generation, till at last it was + merged in the mightier stream of Christian revelation.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The attitude of + the chronicler towards the prophets of the northern kingdom does + not in any way represent the actual importance of these prophets to + the religion of Israel; but it is a very striking expression of the + fact that after the Captivity the ten tribes had long ceased to + exercise any influence upon the spiritual life of their nation.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler's + attitude is also open to criticism on another side. He is dominated + by his own surroundings, and in his references to the Judaism of + his own time there is no formal recognition of the Jewish community + in Babylon; and yet even his own casual allusions confirm what we + know from other sources, namely that the wealth and learning of the + Jews in Babylon were an important factor in Judaism until a very + late date. This point perhaps rather concerns Ezra and Nehemiah + than Chronicles, but it is closely connected with our present + subject, and is most naturally treated along with it. The + chronicler might have justified himself by saying that the true + home of Israel must be in Palestine, and that a community in + Babylon could only be considered as subsidiary to the nation in its + own home and worshipping at the Temple. Such a sentiment, at any + rate, would have met with universal approval amongst Palestinian + Jews. The chronicler might also have replied that the Jews in + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page139">[pg 139]</span><a name= + "Pg139" id="Pg139" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Babylon belonged to + Judah and Benjamin and were sufficiently recognised in the general + prominence give to these tribes. In all probability some + Palestinian Jews would have been willing to class their Babylonian + kinsmen with the ten tribes. Voluntary exiles from the Temple, the + Holy City, and the Land of Promise had in great measure cut + themselves off from the full privileges of the people of Jehovah. + If, however, we had a Babylonian book of Chronicles, we should see + both Jerusalem and Babylon in another light.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler + was possessed and inspired by the actual living present round about + him; he was content to let the dead past bury its dead. He was + probably inclined to believe that the absent are mostly wrong, and + that the men who worked with him for the Lord and His temple were + the true Israel and the Church of God. He was enthusiastic in his + own vocation and loyal to his brethren. If his interests were + somewhat narrowed by the urgency of present circumstances, most men + suffer from the same limitations. Few Englishmen realise that the + battle of Agincourt is part of the history of the United States, + and that Canterbury Cathedral is a monument of certain stages in + the growth of the religion of New England. We are not altogether + willing to admit that these voluntary exiles from our Holy Land + belong to the true Anglo-Saxon Israel.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Churches are + still apt to ignore their obligations to teachers who, like the + prophets of Samaria, seem to have been associated with alien or + hostile branches of the family of God. A religious movement which + fails to secure for itself a permanent monument is usually labelled + heresy. If it has neither obtained recognition within the Church + nor yet organised a sect <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page140">[pg + 140]</span><a name="Pg140" id="Pg140" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + for itself, its services are forgotten or denied. Even the + orthodoxy of one generation is sometimes contemptuous of the older + orthodoxy which made it possible; and yet Gnostics, Arians and + Athanasians, Arminians and Calvinists, have all done something to + build up the temple of faith.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The nineteenth + century prides itself on a more liberal spirit. But Romanist + historians are not eager to acknowledge the debt of their Church to + the Reformers; and there are Protestant partisans who deny that we + are the heirs of the Christian life and thought of the mediæval + Church and are anxious to trace the genealogy of pure religion + exclusively through a supposed succession of obscure and + half-mythical sects. Limitations like those of the chronicler still + narrow the sympathies of earnest and devout Christians.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But it is time + to return to the more positive aspects of the teaching of + Chronicles, and to see how far we have already traced its + exposition of the Messianic idea. The plan of the book implies a + spiritual claim on behalf of the Jewish community of the + Restoration. Because they believed in Jehovah, whose providence had + in former times controlled the destinies of Israel, they returned + to their ancestral home that they might serve and worship the God + of their fathers. Their faith survived the ruin of Judah and their + own captivity; they recognised the power, and wisdom, and love of + God alike in the prosperity and in the misfortunes of their race. + <span class="tei tei-q">“They believed God, and it was counted unto + them for righteousness.”</span> The great prophet of the + Restoration had regarded this new Israel as itself a Messianic + people, perhaps even <span class="tei tei-q">“a light to the + Gentiles”</span> and <span class="tei tei-q">“salvation unto the + ends of the earth.”</span><a id="noteref_138" name="noteref_138" + href="#note_138"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">138</span></span></a> The + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page141">[pg 141]</span><a name= + "Pg141" id="Pg141" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> chronicler's hopes + were more modest; the new Jerusalem had been seen by the prophet as + an ideal vision; the historian knew it by experience as an + imperfect human society: but he believed none the less in its high + spiritual vocation and prerogatives. He claimed the future for + those who were able to trace the hand of God in their past.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Under the + monarchy the fortunes of Jerusalem had been bound up with those of + the house of David. The chronicler brings out all that was best in + the history of the ancient kings of Judah, that this ideal picture + of the state and its rulers might encourage and inspire to future + hope and effort. The character and achievements of David and his + successors were of permanent significance. The grace and favour + accorded to them symbolised the Divine promise for the future, and + this promise was to be realised through a Son of David.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page142">[pg 142]</span><a name= + "Pg142" id="Pg142" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc33" id="toc33"></a> <a name="pdf34" id="pdf34"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter III. David—II. His Personal + History.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In order to + understand why the chronicler entirely recasts the graphic and + candid history of David given in the book of Samuel, we have to + consider the place that David had come to fill in Jewish religion. + It seems probable that among the sources used by the author of the + book of Samuel was a history of David, written not long after his + death, by some one familiar with the inner life of the court. + <span class="tei tei-q">“No one,”</span> says the proverb, + <span class="tei tei-q">“is an hero to his valet”</span>; very much + what a valet is to a private gentleman courtiers are to a king: + their knowledge of their master approaches to the familiarity which + breeds contempt. Not that David was ever a subject for contempt or + less than an hero even to his own courtiers; but they knew him as a + very human hero, great in his vices as well as in his virtues, + daring in battle and wise in counsel, sometimes also reckless in + sin, yet capable of unbounded repentance, loving not wisely, but + too well. And as they knew him, so they described him; and their + picture is an immortal possession for all students of sacred life + and literature. But it is not the portrait of a Messiah; when we + think of the <span class="tei tei-q">“Son of David,”</span> we do + not want to be reminded of Bath-sheba.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">During the six + or seven centuries that elapsed between <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page143">[pg 143]</span><a name="Pg143" id="Pg143" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> the death of David and the chronicler, the + name of David had come to have a symbolic meaning, which was + largely independent of the personal character and career of the + actual king. His reign had become idealised by the magic of + antiquity; it was a glory of <span class="tei tei-q">“the good old + times.”</span> His own sins and failures were obscured by the + crimes and disasters of later kings. And yet, in spite of all its + shortcomings, the <span class="tei tei-q">“house of David”</span> + still remained the symbol alike of ancient glory and of future + hopes. We have seen from the genealogies how intimate the + connection was between the family and its founder. Ephraim and + Benjamin may mean either patriarchs or tribes. A Jew was not always + anxious to distinguish between the family and the founder. + <span class="tei tei-q">“David”</span> and <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the house of David”</span> became almost + interchangeable terms.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Even the + prophets of the eighth century connect the future destiny of Israel + with David and his house. The child, of whom Isaiah prophesied, was + to sit <span class="tei tei-q">“upon the throne of David”</span> + and be <span class="tei tei-q">“over his kingdom, to establish it + and to uphold it with judgment and with righteousness from + henceforth even for ever.”</span><a id="noteref_139" name= + "noteref_139" href="#note_139"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">139</span></span></a> And, + again, the king who is to <span class="tei tei-q">“sit ... in + truth, ... judging, and seeking judgment, and swift to do + righteousness,”</span> is to have <span class="tei tei-q">“his + throne ... established in mercy in the tent of David.”</span><a id= + "noteref_140" name="noteref_140" href="#note_140"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">140</span></span></a> When + Sennacherib attacked Jerusalem, the city was defended<a id= + "noteref_141" name="noteref_141" href="#note_141"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">141</span></span></a> for + Jehovah's own sake and for His servant David's sake. In the word of + the Lord that came to Isaiah for Hezekiah, David supersedes, as it + were, the sacred fathers of the Hebrew race; Jehovah is not spoken + of as <span class="tei tei-q">“the God of Abraham, Isaac, and + Jacob,”</span> but <span class="tei tei-q">“the God of + David.”</span><a id="noteref_142" name="noteref_142" href= + "#note_142"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">142</span></span></a> + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page144">[pg 144]</span><a name= + "Pg144" id="Pg144" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> As founder of the + dynasty, he takes rank with the founders of the race and religion + of Israel: he is <span class="tei tei-q">“the patriarch + David.”</span><a id="noteref_143" name="noteref_143" href= + "#note_143"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">143</span></span></a> The + northern prophet Hosea looks forward to the time when <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the children of Israel shall return, and seek the Lord + their God and David their king”</span><a id="noteref_144" name= + "noteref_144" href="#note_144"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">144</span></span></a>; when + Amos wishes to set forth the future prosperity of Israel, he says + that the Lord <span class="tei tei-q">“will raise up the tabernacle + of David”</span><a id="noteref_145" name="noteref_145" href= + "#note_145"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">145</span></span></a>; in + Micah <span class="tei tei-q">“the ruler in Israel”</span> is to + come forth from Bethlehem Ephrathah, the birthplace of David<a id= + "noteref_146" name="noteref_146" href="#note_146"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">146</span></span></a>; in + Jeremiah such references to David are frequent, the most + characteristic being those relating to the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“righteous branch, whom the Lord will raise up unto + David,”</span> who <span class="tei tei-q">“shall reign as king and + deal wisely, and shall execute judgment and justice in the land, in + whose days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell + safely”</span><a id="noteref_147" name="noteref_147" href= + "#note_147"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">147</span></span></a>; in + Ezekiel <span class="tei tei-q">“My servant David”</span> is to be + the shepherd and prince of Jehovah's restored and reunited + people<a id="noteref_148" name="noteref_148" href= + "#note_148"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">148</span></span></a>; + Zechariah, writing at what we may consider the beginning of the + chronicler's own period, follows the language of his predecessors: + he applies Jeremiah's prophecy of <span class="tei tei-q">“the + righteous branch”</span> to Zerubbabel, the prince of the house of + David<a id="noteref_149" name="noteref_149" href= + "#note_149"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">149</span></span></a>: + similarly in Haggai Zerubbabel is the chosen of Jehovah<a id= + "noteref_150" name="noteref_150" href="#note_150"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">150</span></span></a>; in + the appendix to Zechariah it is said that when <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the Lord defends the inhabitants of Jerusalem”</span> + <span class="tei tei-q">“the house of David shall be as God, as the + angel of the Lord before them.”</span><a id="noteref_151" name= + "noteref_151" href="#note_151"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">151</span></span></a> In + the later <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page145">[pg + 145]</span><a name="Pg145" id="Pg145" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + literature, Biblical and apocryphal, the Davidic origin of the + Messiah is not conspicuous till it reappears in the Psalms of + Solomon<a id="noteref_152" name="noteref_152" href= + "#note_152"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">152</span></span></a> and + the New Testament, but the idea had not necessarily been dormant + meanwhile. The chronicler and his school studied and meditated on + the sacred writings, and must have been familiar with this doctrine + of the prophets. The interest in such a subject would not be + confined to scholars. Doubtless the downtrodden people cherished + with ever-growing ardour the glorious picture of the Davidic king. + In the synagogues it was not only Moses, but the Prophets, that + were read; and they could never allow the picture of the Messianic + king to grow faint and pale.<a id="noteref_153" name="noteref_153" + href="#note_153"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">153</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">David's name was + also familiar as the author of many psalms. The inhabitants of + Jerusalem would often hear them sung at the Temple, and they were + probably used for private devotion. In this way especially the name + of David had become associated with the deepest and purest + spiritual experiences.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This brief + survey shows how utterly impossible it was for the chronicler to + transfer the older narrative bodily from the book of Samuel to his + own pages. Large omissions were absolutely necessary. He could not + sit down in cold blood to tell his readers that the man whose name + they associated with the most sacred memories and the noblest hopes + of Israel had been guilty of treacherous murder, and had offered + himself to the Philistines as an ally against the people of + Jehovah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">From this point + of view let us consider the chronicler's omissions somewhat more in + detail. In the first place, <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page146">[pg 146]</span><a name="Pg146" id="Pg146" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> with one or two slight exceptions, he omits + the whole of David's life before his accession to the throne, for + two reasons: partly because he is anxious that his readers should + think of David as king, the anointed of Jehovah, the Messiah; + partly that they may not be reminded of his career as an outlaw and + a freebooter and of his alliance with the Philistines.<a id= + "noteref_154" name="noteref_154" href="#note_154"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">154</span></span></a> It is + probably only an unintentional result of this omission that it + enables the chronicler to ignore the important services rendered to + David by Abiathar, whose family were rivals of the house of Zadok + in the priesthood.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have already + seen that the events of David's reign at Hebron and his struggle + with Ishbosheth are omitted because the chronicler does not + recognise Ishbosheth as a legitimate king. The omission would also + commend itself because this section contains the account of Joab's + murder of Abner and David's inability to do more than protest + against the crime. <span class="tei tei-q">“I am this day weak, + though anointed king; and these men the sons of Zeruiah are too + hard for me,”</span><a id="noteref_155" name="noteref_155" href= + "#note_155"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">155</span></span></a> are + scarcely words that become an ideal king.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The next point + to notice is one of those significant alterations that mark the + chronicler's industry as a redactor. In 2 Sam. v. 21 we read that + after the Philistines had been defeated at Baal-perazim they left + their images there, and David and his men took them away. Why did + they take them away? What did David and his men want with images? + Missionaries bring home images as trophies, and exhibit them + triumphantly, like soldiers who have captured the enemy's + standards. No one, not even an unconverted native, supposes that + they have been brought away to be used <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page147">[pg 147]</span><a name="Pg147" id="Pg147" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> in worship. But the worship of images was no + improbable apostacy on the part of an Israelite king. The + chronicler felt that these ambiguous words were open to + misconstruction; so he tells us what he assumes to have been their + ultimate fate: <span class="tei tei-q">“And they left their gods + there; and David gave commandment, and they were burnt with + fire.”</span><a id="noteref_156" name="noteref_156" href= + "#note_156"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">156</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The next + omission was obviously a necessary one; it is the incident of Uriah + and Bath-sheba. The name Bath-sheba never occurs in Chronicles. + When it is necessary to mention the mother of Solomon, she is + called Bath-shua, possibly in order that the disgraceful incident + might not be suggested even by the use of the name. The New + Testament genealogies differ in this matter in somewhat the same + way as Samuel and Chronicles. St. Matthew expressly mentions + Uriah's wife as an ancestress of our Lord, but St. Luke does not + mention her or any other ancestress.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The next + omission is equally extensive and important. It includes the whole + series of events connected with the revolt of Absalom, from the + incident of Tamar to the suppression of the rebellion of Sheba the + son of Bichri. Various motives may have contributed to this + omission. The narrative contains unedifying incidents, which are + passed over as lightly as possible by modern writers like Stanley. + It was probably a relief to the chronicler to be able to omit them + altogether. There is no heinous sin like the murder of Uriah, but + the story leaves a general impression of great weakness on David's + part. Joab murders Amasa as he had murdered Abner, and this time + there is no record of any protest even on the part of David. But + probably the main <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page148">[pg + 148]</span><a name="Pg148" id="Pg148" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + reason for the omission of this narrative is that it mars the ideal + picture of David's power and dignity and the success and prosperity + of his reign.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The touching + story of Rizpah is omitted; the hanging of her sons does not + exhibit David in a very amiable light. The Gibeonites propose that + <span class="tei tei-q">“they shall hang them up unto the Lord in + Gibeah of Saul, the chosen of the Lord,”</span> and David accepts + the proposal. This punishment of the children for the sin of their + father was expressly against the Law<a id="noteref_157" name= + "noteref_157" href="#note_157"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">157</span></span></a>; and + the whole incident was perilously akin to human sacrifice. How + could they be hung up before Jehovah in Gibeah unless there was a + sanctuary of Jehovah in Gibeah? And why should Saul at such a time + and in such a connection be called emphatically <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the chosen of Jehovah”</span>? On many grounds, it was + a passage which the chronicler would be glad to omit.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In 2 Sam. xxi. + 15-17 we are told that David waxed faint and had to be rescued by + Abishai. This is omitted by Chronicles probably because it detracts + from the character of David as the ideal hero. The next paragraph + in Samuel also tended to depreciate David's prowess. It stated that + Goliath was slain by Elhanan. The chronicler introduces a + correction. It was not Goliath whom Elhanan slew, but Lahmi, the + brother of Goliath. However, the text in Samuel is evidently + corrupt; and possibly this is one of the cases in which Chronicles + has preserved the correct text.<a id="noteref_158" name= + "noteref_158" href="#note_158"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">158</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Then follow two + omissions that are not easily accounted for. 2 Sam. xxii., xxiii., + contain two psalms, Psalm xviii. and <span class="tei tei-q">“the + Last Words of David,”</span> the latter not included in the + Psalter. These psalms are generally <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page149">[pg 149]</span><a name="Pg149" id="Pg149" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> considered a late addition to the book of + Samuel, and it is barely possible that they were not in the copy + used by the chronicler; but the late date of Chronicles makes + against this supposition. The psalms may be omitted for the sake of + brevity, and yet elsewhere a long cento of passages from + post-Exilic psalms is added to the material derived from the book + of Samuel. Possibly something in the omitted section jarred upon + the theological sensibilities of the chronicler, but it is not + clear what. He does not as a rule look below the surface for + obscure suggestions of undesirable views. The grounds of his + alterations and omissions are usually sufficiently obvious; but + these particular omissions are not at present susceptible of any + obvious explanation. Further research into the theology of Judaism + may perhaps provide us with one hereafter.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Finally, the + chronicler omits the attempt of Adonijah to seize the throne, and + David's dying commands to Solomon. The opening chapters of the book + of Kings present a graphic and pathetic picture of the closing + scenes of David's life. The king is exhausted with old age. His + authoritative sanction to the coronation of Solomon is only + obtained when he has been roused and directed by the promptings and + suggestions of the women of his harem. The scene is partly a + parallel and partly a contrast to the last days of Queen Elizabeth; + for when <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">her</span></em> bodily strength failed, the + obstinate Tudor spirit refused to be guided by the suggestions of + her courtiers. The chronicler was depicting a person of almost + Divine dignity, in whom incidents of human weakness would have been + out of keeping; and therefore they are omitted.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">David's charge + to Solomon is equally human. Solomon is to make up for David's + weakness and <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page150">[pg + 150]</span><a name="Pg150" id="Pg150" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + undue generosity by putting Joab and Shimei to death; on the other + hand, he is to pay David's debt of gratitude to the son of + Barzillai. But the chronicler felt that David's mind in those last + days must surely have been occupied with the temple which Solomon + was to build, and the less edifying charge is omitted.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Constantine is + reported to have said that, for the honour of the Church, he would + conceal the sin of a bishop with his own imperial purple. David was + more to the chronicler than the whole Christian episcopate to + Constantine. His life of David is compiled in the spirit and upon + the principles of lives of saints generally, and his omissions are + made in perfect good faith.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Let us now + consider the positive picture of David as it is drawn for us in + Chronicles. Chronicles would be published separately, each copy + written out on a roll of its own. There may have been Jews who had + Chronicles, but not Samuel and Kings, and who knew nothing about + David except what they learned from Chronicles. Possibly the + chronicler and his friends would recommend the work as suitable for + the education of children and the instruction of the common people. + It would save its readers from being perplexed by the religious + difficulties suggested by Samuel and Kings. There were many + obstacles, however, to the success of such a scheme; the + persecutions of Antiochus and the wars of the Maccabees took the + leadership out of the hands of scholars and gave it to soldiers and + statesmen. The latter perhaps felt more drawn to the real David + than to the ideal, and the new priestly dynasty would not be + anxious to emphasise the Messianic hopes of the house of David. But + let us put ourselves for a moment in the position of a student of + Hebrew history who <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page151">[pg + 151]</span><a name="Pg151" id="Pg151" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + reads of David for the first time in Chronicles and has no other + source of information.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Our first + impression as we read the book is that David comes into the history + as abruptly as Elijah or Melchizedek. Jehovah slew Saul + <span class="tei tei-q">“and turned the kingdom unto David the son + of Jesse.”</span><a id="noteref_159" name="noteref_159" href= + "#note_159"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">159</span></span></a> + Apparently the Divine appointment is promptly and enthusiastically + accepted by the nation; all the twelve tribes come at once in their + tens and hundreds of thousands to Hebron to make David king. They + then march straight to Jerusalem and take it by storm, and + forthwith attempt to bring up the Ark to Zion. An unfortunate + accident necessitates a delay of three months, but at the end of + that time the Ark is solemnly installed in a tent at + Jerusalem.<a id="noteref_160" name="noteref_160" href= + "#note_160"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">160</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We are not told + who David the son of Jesse was, or why the Divine choice fell upon + him, or how he had been prepared for his responsible position, or + how he had so commended himself to Israel as to be accepted with + universal acclaim. He must, however, have been of noble family and + high character; and it is hinted that he had had a distinguished + career as a soldier.<a id="noteref_161" name="noteref_161" href= + "#note_161"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">161</span></span></a> We + should expect to find his name in the introductory genealogies; and + if we have read these lists of names with conscientious attention, + we shall remember that there are sundry incidental references to + David, and that he was the seventh son of Jesse,<a id="noteref_162" + name="noteref_162" href="#note_162"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">162</span></span></a> who + was descended from the Patriarch Judah, through Boaz, the husband + of Ruth.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As we read + further we come to other references which throw some light on + David's early career, and at the same time somewhat mar the + symmetry of the <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page152">[pg + 152]</span><a name="Pg152" id="Pg152" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + opening narrative. The wide discrepancy between the chronicler's + idea of David and the account given by his authorities prevents him + from composing his work on an entirely consecutive and consistent + plan. We gather that there was a time when David was in rebellion + against his predecessor, and maintained himself at Ziklag and + elsewhere, keeping <span class="tei tei-q">“himself close, because + of Saul the son of Kish,”</span> and even that he came with the + Philistines against Saul to battle, but was prevented by the + jealousy of the Philistine chiefs from actually fighting against + Saul. There is nothing to indicate the occasion or circumstances of + these events.<a id="noteref_163" name="noteref_163" href= + "#note_163"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">163</span></span></a> But + it appears that even at this period, when David was in arms against + the king of Israel and an ally of the Philistines, he was the + chosen leader of Israel. Men flocked to him from Judah and + Benjamin, Manasseh and Gad, and doubtless from the other tribes as + well: <span class="tei tei-q">“From day to day there came to David + to help him, until it was a great host like the host of + God.”</span><a id="noteref_164" name="noteref_164" href= + "#note_164"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">164</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This chapter + partly explains David's popularity after Saul's death; but it only + carries the mystery a stage further back. How did this outlaw and + apparently unpatriotic rebel get so strong a hold on the affections + of Israel?</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Chap. xii. also + provides material for plausible explanations of another difficulty. + In chap. x. the army of Israel is routed, the inhabitants of the + land take to flight, and the Philistines occupy their cities; in + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page153">[pg 153]</span><a name= + "Pg153" id="Pg153" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> xi. and xii. 23-40 + all Israel come straightway to Hebron in the most peaceful and + unconcerned fashion to make David king. Are we to understand that + his Philistine allies, mindful of that <span class= + "tei tei-q">“great host, like the host of God,”</span> all at once + changed their minds and entirely relinquished the fruits of their + victory?</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Elsewhere, + however, we find a statement that renders other explanations + possible. David reigned seven years in Hebron,<a id="noteref_165" + name="noteref_165" href="#note_165"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">165</span></span></a> so + that our first impression as to the rapid sequence of events at the + beginning of his reign is apparently not correct, and there was + time in these seven years for a more gradual expulsion of the + Philistines. It is doubtful, however, whether the chronicler + intended his original narrative to be thus modified and + interpreted.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The main thread + of the history is interrupted here and later on<a id="noteref_166" + name="noteref_166" href="#note_166"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">166</span></span></a> to + insert incidents which illustrate the personal courage and prowess + of David and his warriors. We are also told how busily occupied + David was during the three months' sojourn of the Ark in the house + of Obed-edom the Gittite. He accepted an alliance with Hiram, king + of Tyre; he added to his harem; he successfully repelled two + inroads of the Philistines, and made him houses in the city of + David.<a id="noteref_167" name="noteref_167" href= + "#note_167"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">167</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The narrative + returns to its main subject: the history of the sanctuary at + Jerusalem. As soon as the Ark was duly installed in its tent, and + David was established in his new palace, he was struck by the + contrast between the tent and the palace: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Lo, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of the + covenant of the Lord dwelleth under curtains.”</span> He proposed + to substitute a temple for the tent, but was forbidden by his + prophet Nathan, <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page154">[pg + 154]</span><a name="Pg154" id="Pg154" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + through whom God promised him that his son should build the Temple, + and that his house should be established for ever.<a id= + "noteref_168" name="noteref_168" href="#note_168"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">168</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Then we read of + the wars, victories, and conquests of David. He is no longer + absorbed in the defence of Israel against the Philistines. He takes + the aggressive and conquers Gath; he conquers Edom, Moab, Ammon, + and Amalek; he and his armies defeat the Syrians in several + battles, the Syrians become tributary, and David occupies Damascus + with a garrison. <span class="tei tei-q">“And the Lord gave victory + to David whithersoever he went.”</span> The conquered were treated + after the manner of those barbarous times. David and his generals + carried off much spoil, especially brass, and silver, and gold; and + when he conquered Rabbah, the capital of Ammon, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“he brought forth the people that were therein, and cut + them with saws, and with harrows of iron, and with axes. And thus + did David unto all the cities of the children of Ammon.”</span> + Meanwhile his home administration was as honourable as his foreign + wars were glorious: <span class="tei tei-q">“He executed judgment + and justice unto all his people”</span>; and the government was + duly organised with commanders of the host and the bodyguard, with + priests and scribes.<a id="noteref_169" name="noteref_169" href= + "#note_169"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">169</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Then follows a + mysterious and painful dispensation of Providence, which the + historian would gladly have omitted, if his respect for the memory + of his hero had not been overruled by his sense of the supreme + importance of the Temple. David, like Job, was given over for a + season to Satan, and while possessed by this evil spirit displeased + God by numbering Israel. His punishment took the form of a great + pestilence, which decimated <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page155">[pg 155]</span><a name="Pg155" id="Pg155" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> his people, until, by Divine command, David + erected an altar in the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite and + offered sacrifices upon it, whereupon the plague was stayed. David + at once perceived the significance of this incident: Jehovah had + indicated the site of the future Temple. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“This is the house of Jehovah Elohim,<a id= + "noteref_170" name="noteref_170" href="#note_170"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">170</span></span></a> and + this is the altar of burnt offering for Israel.”</span><a id= + "noteref_171" name="noteref_171" href="#note_171"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">171</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This revelation + of the Divine will as to the position of the Temple led David to + proceed at once with preparations for its erection by Solomon, + which occupied all his energies for the remainder of his + life.<a id="noteref_172" name="noteref_172" href= + "#note_172"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">172</span></span></a> He + gathered funds and materials, and gave his son full instructions + about the building; he organised the priests and Levites, the + Temple orchestra and choir, the doorkeepers, treasurers, officers, + and judges; he also organised the army, the tribes, and the royal + exchequer on the model of the corresponding arrangements for the + Temple.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Then follows the + closing scene of David's life. The sun of Israel sets amid the + flaming glories of the western sky. No clouds or mists rob him of + accustomed splendour. David calls a great assembly of princes and + warriors; he addresses a solemn exhortation to them and to Solomon; + he delivers to his son instructions for <span class= + "tei tei-q">“all the works”</span> which <span class="tei tei-q">“I + have been made to understand in writing from the hand of + Jehovah.”</span> It is almost as though the plans of the Temple had + shared with the first tables of stone the honour of being written + with the very finger of God Himself, and David were even greater + than Moses. He reminds Solomon of all the preparations he had made, + and <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page156">[pg 156]</span><a name= + "Pg156" id="Pg156" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> appeals to the + princes and the people for further gifts; and they render + willingly—thousands of talents of gold, and silver, and brass, and + iron. David offers prayer and thanksgiving to the Lord: + <span class="tei tei-q">“And David said to all the congregation, + Now bless Jehovah our God. And all the congregation blessed + Jehovah, the God of their fathers, and bowed down their heads, and + worshipped Jehovah <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">and the king</span></em>. And they sacrificed + sacrifices unto Jehovah, and offered burnt offerings unto Jehovah, + on the morrow after that day, even a thousand bullocks, a thousand + rams, and a thousand lambs, with their drink offerings and + sacrifices in abundance for all Israel, and did eat and drink + before Jehovah on that day with great gladness. And they made + Solomon king; ... and David died in a good old age, full of days, + riches, and honour, and Solomon his son reigned in his + stead.”</span><a id="noteref_173" name="noteref_173" href= + "#note_173"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">173</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The Roman + expressed his idea of a becoming death more simply: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“An emperor should die standing.”</span> The chronicler + has given us the same view at greater length; this is how the + chronicler would have wished to die if he had been David, and how, + therefore, he conceives that God honoured the last hours of the man + after His own heart.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is a strange + contrast to the companion picture in the book of Kings. There the + king is bedridden, dying slowly of old age; the life-blood creeps + coldly through his veins. The quiet of the sick-room is invaded by + the shrill outcry of an aggrieved woman, and the dying king is + roused to hear that once more eager hands are clutching at his + crown. If the chronicler has done nothing else, he has helped us + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page157">[pg 157]</span><a name= + "Pg157" id="Pg157" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> to appreciate better + the gloom and bitterness of the tragedy that was enacted in the + last days of David.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">What idea does + Chronicles give us of the man and his character? He is first and + foremost a man of earnest piety and deep spiritual feeling. Like + the great religious leaders of the chronicler's own time, his piety + found its chief expression in ritual. The main business of his life + was to provide for the sanctuary and its services; that is, for the + highest fellowship of God and man, according to the ideas then + current. But David is no mere formalist; the psalm of thanksgiving + for the return of the Ark to Jerusalem is a worthy tribute to the + power and faithfulness of Jehovah.<a id="noteref_174" name= + "noteref_174" href="#note_174"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">174</span></span></a> His + prayer after God had promised to establish his dynasty is instinct + with devout confidence and gratitude.<a id="noteref_175" name= + "noteref_175" href="#note_175"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">175</span></span></a> But + the most gracious and appropriate of these Davidic utterances is + his last prayer and thanksgiving for the liberal gifts of the + people for the Temple.<a id="noteref_176" name="noteref_176" href= + "#note_176"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">176</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Next to David's + enthusiasm for the Temple, his most conspicuous qualities are those + of a general and soldier: he has great personal strength and + courage, and is uniformly successful in wars against numerous and + powerful enemies; his government is both able and upright; his + great powers as an organiser and administrator are exercised both + in secular and ecclesiastical matters; in a word, he is in more + senses than one an ideal king.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Moreover, like + Alexander, Marlborough, Napoleon, and other epoch-making + conquerors, he had a great charm of personal attractiveness; he + inspired his officers and soldiers with enthusiasm and devotion to + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page158">[pg 158]</span><a name= + "Pg158" id="Pg158" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> himself. The + pictures of all Israel flocking to him in the first days of his + reign and even earlier, when he was an outlaw, are forcible + illustrations of this wonderful gift; and the same feature of his + character is at once illustrated and partly explained by the + romantic episode at Adullam. What greater proof of affection could + outlaws give to their captain than to risk their lives to get him a + draught of water from the well of Bethlehem? How better could David + have accepted and ratified their devotion than by pouring out this + water as a most precious libation to God?<a id="noteref_177" name= + "noteref_177" href="#note_177"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">177</span></span></a> But + the chronicler gives most striking expression to the idea of + David's popularity when he finally tells us in the same breath that + the people worshipped Jehovah and the king.<a id="noteref_178" + name="noteref_178" href="#note_178"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">178</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In drawing an + ideal picture, our author has naturally omitted incidents that + might have revealed the defects of his hero. Such omissions deceive + no one, and are not meant to deceive any one. Yet David's failings + are not altogether absent from this history. He has those vices + which were characteristic alike of his own age and of the + chronicler's, and which indeed are not yet wholly extinct. He could + treat his prisoners with barbarous cruelty. His pride led him to + number Israel, but his repentance was prompt and thorough; and the + incident brings out alike both his faith in God and his care for + his people. When the whole episode is before us, it does not lessen + our love and respect for David. The reference to his alliance with + the Philistines is vague and incidental. If this were our only + account of the matter, we should interpret it by the rest of his + life, and conclude that if all the facts were known, they would + justify his conduct.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page159">[pg + 159]</span><a name="Pg159" id="Pg159" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In forming a + general estimate of David according to Chronicles, we may fairly + neglect these less satisfactory episodes. Briefly David is perfect + saint and perfect king, beloved of God and man.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">A portrait + reveals the artist as well as the model and the chronicler in + depicting David gives indications of the morality of his own times. + We may deduce from his omissions a certain progress in moral + sensitiveness. The book of Samuel emphatically condemns David's + treachery towards Uriah, and is conscious of the discreditable + nature of many incidents connected with the revolts of Absalom and + Adonijah; but the silence of Chronicles implies an even severer + condemnation. In other matters, however, the chronicler + <span class="tei tei-q">“judges himself in that which he + approveth.”</span><a id="noteref_179" name="noteref_179" href= + "#note_179"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">179</span></span></a> Of + course the first business of an ancient king was to protect his + people from their enemies and to enrich them at the expense of + their neighbours. The urgency of these duties may excuse, but not + justify, the neglect of the more peaceful departments of the + administration. The modern reader is struck by the little stress + laid by the narrative upon good government at home; it is just + mentioned, and that is about all. As the sentiment of international + morality is even now only in its infancy, we cannot wonder at its + absence from Chronicles; but we are a little surprised to find that + cruelty towards prisoners is included without comment in the + character of the ideal king.<a id="noteref_180" name="noteref_180" + href="#note_180"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">180</span></span></a> It is + curious that the account in the book of Samuel is slightly + ambiguous and might possibly admit of a comparatively mild + interpretation; but Chronicles, according to the ordinary + translation, says definitely, <span class="tei tei-q">“He + <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">cut</span></em> them with saws.”</span> The + mere <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page160">[pg 160]</span><a name= + "Pg160" id="Pg160" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> reproduction of this + passage need not imply full and deliberate approval of its + contents; but it would not have been allowed to remain in the + picture of the ideal king, if the chronicler had felt any strong + conviction as to the duty of humanity towards one's enemies. + Unfortunately we know from the book of Esther and elsewhere that + later Judaism had not attained to any wide enthusiasm of + humanity.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page161">[pg 161]</span><a name= + "Pg161" id="Pg161" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc35" id="toc35"></a> <a name="pdf36" id="pdf36"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter IV. David—III. His Official + Dignity.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In estimating + the personal character of David, we have seen that one element of + it was his ideal kingship. Apart from his personality, his name is + significant for Old Testament theology, as that of the typical + king. From the time when the royal title <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Messiah”</span> began to be a synonym for the hope of + Israel, down to the period when the Anglican Church taught the + Divine right of kings, and Calvinists insisted on the Divine + sovereignty or royal authority of God, the dignity and power of the + King of kings have always been illustrated by, and sometimes + associated with, the state of an earthly monarch—whereof David is + the most striking example.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The times of the + chronicler were favourable to the development of the idea of the + perfect king of Israel, the prince of the house of David. There was + no king in Israel; and, as far as we can gather, the living + representatives of the house of David held no very prominent + position in the community. It is much easier to draw a satisfactory + picture of the ideal monarch when the imagination is not checked + and hampered by the faults and failings of an actual Ahaz or + Hezekiah. In earlier times the prophetic hopes for the house of + David had often been rudely disappointed, but there had been + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page162">[pg 162]</span><a name= + "Pg162" id="Pg162" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> ample space to + forget the past and to revive the old hopes in fresh splendour and + magnificence. Lack of experience helped to commend the idea of the + Davidic king to the chronicler. Enthusiasm for a benevolent despot + is mostly confined to those who have not enjoyed the privilege of + living under such autocratic government.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">On the other + hand, there was no temptation to flatter any living Davidic king, + so that the semi-Divine character of the kingship of David is not + set forth after the gross and almost blasphemous style of Roman + emperors or Turkish sultans. It is indeed said that the people + worshipped Jehovah and the king; but the essential character of + Jewish thought made it impossible that the ideal king should sit + <span class="tei tei-q">“in the temple of God, setting himself + forth as God.”</span> David and Solomon could not share with the + pagan emperors the honours of Divine worship in their life-time and + apotheosis after their death. Nothing addressed to any Hebrew king + parallels the panegyric to the Christian emperor Theodosius, in + which allusion is made to his <span class="tei tei-q">“sacred + mind,”</span> and he is told that <span class="tei tei-q">“as the + Fates are said to assist with their tablets <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">that God who is the + partner in your majesty</span></em>, so does some Divine power + serve your bidding, which writes down and in due time suggests to + your memory the promises which you have made.”</span><a id= + "noteref_181" name="noteref_181" href="#note_181"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">181</span></span></a> Nor + does Chronicles adorn the kings of Judah with extravagant Oriental + titles, such as <span class="tei tei-q">“King of kings of kings of + kings.”</span> Devotion to the house of David never oversteps the + bounds of a due reverence, but the Hebrew idea of monarchy loses + nothing by this salutary reserve.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Indeed, the + title of the royal house of Judah rested upon Divine appointment. + <span class="tei tei-q">“Jehovah ... turned the <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page163">[pg 163]</span><a name="Pg163" id="Pg163" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> kingdom unto David; ... and they + anointed David king over Israel, according to the word of Jehovah + by the hand of Samuel.”</span><a id="noteref_182" name= + "noteref_182" href="#note_182"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">182</span></span></a> But + the Divine choice was confirmed by the cordial consent of the + nation; the sovereigns of Judah, like those of England, ruled by + the grace of God and the will of the people. Even before David's + accession the Israelites had flocked to his standard; and after the + death of Saul a great array of the twelve tribes came to Hebron to + make David king, <span class="tei tei-q">“and all the rest also of + Israel were of one heart to make David king.”</span><a id= + "noteref_183" name="noteref_183" href="#note_183"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">183</span></span></a> + Similarly Solomon is the king <span class="tei tei-q">“whom God + hath chosen,”</span> and all the congregation make him king and + anoint him to be prince.<a id="noteref_184" name="noteref_184" + href="#note_184"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">184</span></span></a> The + double election of David by Jehovah and by the nation is clearly + set forth in the book of Samuel, and in Chronicles the omission of + David's early career emphasises this election. In the book of + Samuel we are shown the natural process that brought about the + change of dynasty; we see how the Divine choice took effect through + the wars between Saul and the Philistines and through David's own + ability and energy. Chronicles is mostly silent as to secondary + causes, and fixes our attention on the Divine choice as the + ultimate ground for David's elevation.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The authority + derived from God and the people continued to rest on the same + basis. David sought Divine direction alike for the building of the + Temple and for his campaigns against the Philistines. At the same + time, when he wished to bring up the Ark to Jerusalem, he + <span class="tei tei-q">“consulted with the captains of thousands + and of hundreds, even with every leader; and David said unto all + the assembly of Israel, If it seem good unto you, <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page164">[pg 164]</span><a name="Pg164" id="Pg164" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> and if it be of Jehovah our God, ... + let us bring again the ark of our God to us; ... and all the + assembly said that they would do so, for the thing was right in the + eyes of all the people.”</span><a id="noteref_185" name= + "noteref_185" href="#note_185"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">185</span></span></a> Of + course the chronicler does not intend to describe a constitutional + monarchy, in which an assembly of the people had any legal status. + Apparently in his own time the Jews exercised their measure of + local self-government through an informal oligarchy, headed by the + high-priest; and these authorities occasionally appealed to an + assembly of the people. The administration under the monarchy was + carried on in a somewhat similar fashion, only the king had greater + authority than the high-priest, and the oligarchy of notables were + not so influential as the colleagues of the latter. But apart from + any formal constitution the chronicler's description of these + incidents involves a recognition of the principle of popular + consent in government as well as the doctrine that civil order + rests upon a Divine sanction.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is + interesting to see how a member of a great ecclesiastical + community, imbued, as we should suppose, with all the spirit of + priestcraft, yet insists upon the royal supremacy both in state and + Church. But to have done otherwise would have been to go in the + teeth of all history; even in the Pentateuch the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“king in Jeshurun”</span> is greater than the priest. + Moreover, the chronicler was not a priest, but a Levite; and there + are indications that the Levites' ancient jealousy of the priests + had by no means died out. In Chronicles, at any rate, there is no + question of priests interfering with the king's secular + administration. They are not even mentioned as obtaining oracles + for David as <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page165">[pg + 165]</span><a name="Pg165" id="Pg165" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Abiathar did before his accession.<a id="noteref_186" name= + "noteref_186" href="#note_186"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">186</span></span></a> This + was doubtless implied in the original account of the Philistine + raids in chap. xiv., but the chronicler may not have understood + that <span class="tei tei-q">“inquiring of God”</span> meant + obtaining an oracle from the priests.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The king is + equally supreme also in ecclesiastical affairs; we might even say + that the civil authorities generally shared this supremacy. + Somewhat after the fashion of Cromwell and his major-generals, + David utilised <span class="tei tei-q">“the captains of the + host”</span> as a kind of ministry of public worship; they joined + with him in organising the orchestra and choir for the services of + the sanctuary<a id="noteref_187" name="noteref_187" href= + "#note_187"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">187</span></span></a>: + probably Napoleon and his marshals would have had no hesitation in + selecting anthems for Notre Dame if the idea had occurred to them. + David also consulted his captains,<a id="noteref_188" name= + "noteref_188" href="#note_188"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">188</span></span></a> and + not the priests, about bringing the Ark to Jerusalem. When he + gathered the great assembly to make his final arrangements for the + building of the Temple, the princes and captains, the rulers and + mighty men, are mentioned, but no priests.<a id="noteref_189" name= + "noteref_189" href="#note_189"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">189</span></span></a> And, + last, all the congregation apparently anoint<a id="noteref_190" + name="noteref_190" href="#note_190"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">190</span></span></a> Zadok + to be priest. The chronicler was evidently a pronounced + Erastian.<a id="noteref_191" name="noteref_191" href= + "#note_191"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">191</span></span></a> David + is no mere nominal head of the Church; he takes the initiative in + all important matters, and receives the Divine commands either + directly or through his prophets Nathan and Gad. Now these prophets + are not ecclesiastical authorities; they have nothing to do with + the priesthood, and do not correspond to the officials of an + organised Church. They are rather the domestic chaplains or + confessors of the king, differing from modern chaplains and + confessors in having no ecclesiastical superiors. They were + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page166">[pg 166]</span><a name= + "Pg166" id="Pg166" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> not responsible to + the bishop of any diocese or the general of any order; they did not + manipulate the royal conscience in the interests of any party in + the Church; they served God and the king, and had no other masters. + They did not beard David before his people, as Ambrose confronted + Theodosius or as Chrysostom rated Eudoxia; they delivered their + message to David in private, and on occasion he communicated it to + the people.<a id="noteref_192" name="noteref_192" href= + "#note_192"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">192</span></span></a> The + king's spiritual dignity is rather enhanced than otherwise by this + reception of prophetic messages specially delivered to himself. + There is another aspect of the royal supremacy in religion. In this + particular instance its object is largely the exaltation of David; + to arrange for public worship is the most honourable function of + the ideal king. At the same time the care of the sanctuary is his + most sacred duty, and is assigned to him that it may be punctually + and worthily discharged. State establishment of the Church is + combined with a very thorough control of the Church by the + state.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We see then that + the monarchy rested on Divine and national election, and was guided + by the will of God and of the people. Indeed, in bringing up the + Ark<a id="noteref_193" name="noteref_193" href= + "#note_193"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">193</span></span></a> the + consent of the people is the only recorded indication of the will + of God. <span class="tei tei-q">“Vox populi vox Dei.”</span> The + king and his government are supreme alike over the state and the + sanctuary, and are entrusted with the charge of providing for + public worship. Let us try to express the modern equivalents of + these principles. Civil government is of Divine origin, and should + obtain the consent of the people; it should be carried on according + to the will of God, freely accepted by the <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page167">[pg 167]</span><a name="Pg167" id="Pg167" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> nation. The civil authority is supreme both + in Church and state, and is responsible for the maintenance of + public worship.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">One at least of + these principles is so widely accepted that it is quite independent + of any Scriptural sanction from Chronicles. The consent of the + people has long been accepted as an essential condition of any + stable government. The sanctity of civil government and the + sacredness of its responsibilities are coming to be recognised, at + present perhaps rather in theory than in practice. We have not yet + fully realised how the truth underlying the doctrine of the Divine + right of kings applies to modern conditions. Formerly the king was + the representative of the state, or even the state itself; that is + to say, the king directly or indirectly maintained social order, + and provided for the security of life and property. The Divine + appointment and authority of the king expressed the sanctity of law + and order as the essential conditions of moral and spiritual + progress. The king is no longer the state. His Divine right, + however, belongs to him, not as a person or as a member of a + family, but as the embodiment of the state, the champion of social + order against anarchy. The <span class="tei tei-q">“Divinity that + doth hedge a king”</span> is now shared by the sovereign with all + the various departments of government. The state—that is to say, + the community organised for the common good and for mutual help—is + now to be recognised as of Divine appointment and as wielding a + Divine authority. <span class="tei tei-q">“The Lord has turned the + kingdom to”</span> the people.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This revolution + is so tremendous that it would not be safe to apply to the modern + state the remaining principles of the chronicler. Before we could + do so <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page168">[pg 168]</span><a name= + "Pg168" id="Pg168" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> we should need to + enter into a discussion which would be out of place here, even if + we had space for it.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In one point the + new democracies agree with the chronicler: they are not inclined to + submit secular affairs to the domination of ecclesiastical + officials.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The questions of + the supremacy of the state over the Church and of the state + establishment of the Church involve larger and more complicated + issues than existed in the mind or experience of the chronicler. + But his picture of the ideal king suggests one idea that is in + harmony with some modern aspirations. In Chronicles the king, as + the representative of the state, is the special agent in providing + for the highest spiritual needs of the people. May we venture to + hope that out of the moral consciousness of a nation united in + mutual sympathy and service there may arise a new enthusiasm to + obey and worship God? Human cruelty is the greatest stumbling-block + to belief and fellowship; when the state has somewhat mitigated the + misery of <span class="tei tei-q">“man's inhumanity to man,”</span> + faith in God will be easier.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page169">[pg 169]</span><a name= + "Pg169" id="Pg169" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc37" id="toc37"></a> <a name="pdf38" id="pdf38"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter V. Solomon.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler's + history of Solomon is constructed on the same principles as that of + David, and for similar reasons. The builder of the first Temple + commanded the grateful reverence of a community whose national and + religious life centred in the second Temple. While the Davidic king + became the symbol of the hope of Israel, the Jews could not forget + that this symbol derived much of its significance from the + widespread dominion and royal magnificence of Solomon. The + chronicler, indeed, attributes great splendour to the court of + David, and ascribes to him a lion's share in the Temple itself. He + provided his successor with treasure and materials and even the + complete plans, so that on the principle, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Qui facit per alium, facit per se,”</span> David might + have been credited with the actual building. Solomon was almost in + the position of a modern engineer who puts together a steamer that + has been built in sections. But, with all these limitations, the + clear and obvious fact remained that Solomon actually built and + dedicated the Temple. Moreover, the memory of his wealth and + grandeur kept a firm hold on the popular imagination; and these + conspicuous blessings were received as certain tokens of the favour + of Jehovah.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page170">[pg + 170]</span><a name="Pg170" id="Pg170" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Solomon's fame, + however, was threefold: he was not only the Divinely appointed + builder of the Temple and, by the same Divine grace, the richest + and most powerful king of Israel: he had also received from Jehovah + the gift of <span class="tei tei-q">“wisdom and knowledge.”</span> + In his royal splendour and his sacred buildings he only differed in + degree from other kings; but in his wisdom he stood alone, not only + without equal, but almost without competitor. Herein he was under + no obligation to his father, and the glory of Solomon could not be + diminished by representing that he had been anticipated by David. + Hence the name of Solomon came to symbolise Hebrew learning and + philosophy.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In religious + significance, however, Solomon cannot rank with David. The dynasty + of Judah could have only one representative, and the founder and + eponym of the royal house was the most important figure for the + subsequent theology. The interest that later generations felt in + Solomon lay apart from the main line of Jewish orthodoxy, and he is + never mentioned by the prophets.<a id="noteref_194" name= + "noteref_194" href="#note_194"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">194</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Moreover, the + darker aspects of Solomon's reign made more impression upon + succeeding generations than even David's sins and misfortunes. + Occasional lapses into vice and cruelty might be forgiven or even + forgotten; but the systematic oppression of Solomon rankled for + long generations in the hearts of the people, and the prophets + always remembered his wanton idolatry. His memory was further + discredited by the disasters which marked the close of his own + reign and the beginning of Rehoboam's. Centuries later these + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page171">[pg 171]</span><a name= + "Pg171" id="Pg171" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> feelings still + prevailed. The prophets who adapted the Mosaic law for the closing + period of the monarchy exhort the king to take warning by Solomon, + and to multiply neither horses, nor wives, nor gold and + silver.<a id="noteref_195" name="noteref_195" href= + "#note_195"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">195</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But as time went + on Judah fell into growing poverty and distress, which came to a + head in the Captivity, and were renewed with the Restoration. The + Jews were willing to forget Solomon's faults in order that they + might indulge in fond recollections of the material prosperity of + his reign. Their experience of the culture of Babylon led them to + feel greater interest and pride in his wisdom, and the figure of + Solomon began to assume a mysterious grandeur, which has since + become the nucleus for Jewish and Mohammedan legends. The chief + monument of his fame in Jewish literature is the book of Proverbs, + but his growing reputation is shown by the numerous Biblical and + apocryphal works ascribed to him. His name was no doubt attached to + Canticles because of a feature in his character which the + chronicler ignores. His supposed authorship of Ecclesiastes and of + the Wisdom of Solomon testifies to the fame of his wisdom, while + the titles of the <span class="tei tei-q">“Psalms of + Solomon”</span> and even of some canonical psalms credit him with + spiritual feeling and poetic power.<a id="noteref_196" name= + "noteref_196" href="#note_196"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">196</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">When the Wisdom + of Jesus the Son of Sirach proposes to <span class= + "tei tei-q">“praise famous men,”</span> it dwells upon Solomon's + temple and his wealth, and especially upon his wisdom; but it does + not forget his failings.<a id="noteref_197" name="noteref_197" + href="#note_197"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">197</span></span></a> + Josephus celebrates his glory at great length. The New Testament + has comparatively few notices of Solomon; but these include + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page172">[pg 172]</span><a name= + "Pg172" id="Pg172" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> references to his + wisdom,<a id="noteref_198" name="noteref_198" href= + "#note_198"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">198</span></span></a> his + splendour,<a id="noteref_199" name="noteref_199" href= + "#note_199"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">199</span></span></a> and + his temple.<a id="noteref_200" name="noteref_200" href= + "#note_200"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">200</span></span></a> The + Koran, however, far surpasses the New Testament in its interest in + Solomon; and his name and his seal play a leading part in Jewish + and Arabian magic. The bulk of this literature is later than the + chronicler, but the renewed interest in the glory of Solomon must + have begun before his time. Perhaps, by connecting the building of + the Temple as far as possible with David, the chronicler marks his + sense of Solomon's unworthiness. On the other hand, there were many + reasons why he should welcome the aid of popular sentiment to + enable him to include Solomon among the ideal Hebrew kings. After + all, Solomon had built and dedicated the Temple; he was the + <span class="tei tei-q">“pious founder,”</span> and the + beneficiaries of the foundation would wish to make the most of his + piety. <span class="tei tei-q">“Jehovah”</span> had <span class= + "tei tei-q">“magnified Solomon exceedingly in the sight of all + Israel, and bestowed upon him such royal majesty as had not been on + any king before him in Israel.”</span><a id="noteref_201" name= + "noteref_201" href="#note_201"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">201</span></span></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“King Solomon exceeded all the kings of the + earth in riches and wisdom; and all the kings of the earth sought + the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in + his heart.”</span><a id="noteref_202" name="noteref_202" href= + "#note_202"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">202</span></span></a> The + chronicler would naturally wish to set forth the better side of + Solomon's character as an ideal of royal wisdom and splendour, + devoted to the service of the sanctuary. Let us briefly compare + Chronicles and Kings to see how he accomplished his purpose.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The structure of + the narrative in Kings rendered the task comparatively easy: it + could be accomplished by removing the opening and closing sections + and making <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page173">[pg + 173]</span><a name="Pg173" id="Pg173" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> a + few minor changes in the intermediate portion. The opening section + is the sequel to the conclusion of David's reign; the chronicler + omitted this conclusion, and therefore also its sequel. But the + contents of this section were objectionable in themselves. + Solomon's admirers willingly forget that his reign was inaugurated + by the execution of Shimei, of his brother Adonijah, and of his + father's faithful minister Joab, and by the deposition of the + high-priest Abiathar. The chronicler narrates with evident approval + the strong measures of Ezra and Nehemiah against foreign marriages, + and he is therefore not anxious to remind his readers that Solomon + married Pharaoh's daughter. He does not, however, carry out his + plan consistently. Elsewhere he wishes to emphasise the sanctity of + the Ark and tells us that <span class="tei tei-q">“Solomon brought + up the daughter of Pharaoh out of the city of David unto the house + that he had built for her, for he said, My wife shall not dwell in + the house of David, king of Israel, because the places are holy + whereunto the ark of the Lord hath come.”</span><a id="noteref_203" + name="noteref_203" href="#note_203"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">203</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In Kings the + history of Solomon closes with a long account of his numerous wives + and concubines, his idolatry and consequent misfortunes. All this + is omitted by the chronicler; but later on, with his usual + inconsistency, he allows Nehemiah to point the moral of a tale he + has left untold: <span class="tei tei-q">“Did not Solomon, king of + Israel, sin by these things?... Even him did strange women cause to + sin.”</span><a id="noteref_204" name="noteref_204" href= + "#note_204"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">204</span></span></a> In + the intervening section he omits the famous judgment of Solomon, + probably on account of the character of the women concerned. He + introduces sundry changes which naturally follow from his belief + that the Levitical law was then <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page174">[pg 174]</span><a name="Pg174" id="Pg174" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> in force.<a id="noteref_205" name= + "noteref_205" href="#note_205"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">205</span></span></a> His + feeling for the dignity of the chosen people and their king comes + out rather curiously in two minor alterations. Both authorities + agree in telling us that Solomon had recourse to forced labour for + his building operations; in fact, after the usual Eastern fashion + from the Pyramids down to the Suez Canal, Solomon's temple and + palaces were built by the <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style="font-style: italic">corvée</span></span>. + According to the oldest narrative, he <span class= + "tei tei-q">“raised a levy out of all Israel.”</span><a id= + "noteref_206" name="noteref_206" href="#note_206"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">206</span></span></a> This + suggests that forced labour was exacted from the Israelites + themselves, and it would help to account for Jeroboam's successful + rebellion. The chronicler omits this statement as open to an + interpretation derogatory to the dignity of the chosen people, and + not only inserts a later explanation which he found in the book of + Kings, but also another express statement that Solomon raised his + levy of the <span class="tei tei-q">“strangers that were in the + land of Israel.”</span><a id="noteref_207" name="noteref_207" href= + "#note_207"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">207</span></span></a> These + statements may have been partly suggested by the existence of a + class of Temple slaves called Solomon's servants.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The other + instance relates to Solomon's alliance with Hiram, king of Tyre. In + the book of Kings we are told that <span class="tei tei-q">“Solomon + gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee.”</span><a id= + "noteref_208" name="noteref_208" href="#note_208"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">208</span></span></a> There + were indeed redeeming features connected with the transaction; the + cities were not a very valuable possession for Hiram: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“they pleased him not”</span>; yet he <span class= + "tei tei-q">“sent to the King six score talents of gold.”</span> + However, it seemed incredible to the chronicler that the most + powerful and wealthy of the kings of <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page175">[pg 175]</span><a name="Pg175" id="Pg175" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> Israel should either cede or sell any portion + of Jehovah's inheritance. He emends the text of his authority so as + to convert it into a casual reference to certain cities which Hiram + had given to Solomon.<a id="noteref_209" name="noteref_209" href= + "#note_209"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">209</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We will now + reproduce the story of Solomon as given by the chronicler. Solomon + was the youngest of four sons born to David at Jerusalem by + Bath-shua, the daughter of Ammiel. Besides these three brothers, he + had at least six other elder brothers. As in the cases of Isaac, + Jacob, Judah, and David himself, the birthright fell to a younger + son. In the prophetic utterance which foretold his birth, he was + designated to succeed to his father's throne and to build the + Temple. At the great assembly which closed his father's reign he + received instructions as to the plans and services of the + Temple,<a id="noteref_210" name="noteref_210" href= + "#note_210"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">210</span></span></a> and + was exhorted to discharge his duties faithfully. He was declared + king according to the Divine choice, freely accepted by David and + ratified by popular acclamation. At David's death no one disputed + his succession to the throne: <span class="tei tei-q">“All Israel + obeyed him; and all the princes and the mighty men and all the sons + likewise of King David submitted themselves unto Solomon the + king.”</span><a id="noteref_211" name="noteref_211" href= + "#note_211"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">211</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">His first act + after his accession was to sacrifice before the brazen altar of the + ancient Tabernacle at Gibeon. That night God appeared unto him + <span class="tei tei-q">“and said unto him, Ask what I shall give + thee.”</span> Solomon chose wisdom and knowledge to qualify him for + the arduous task of government. Having thus <span class= + "tei tei-q">“sought first the kingdom of God and His + righteousness,”</span> all other things—<span class= + "tei tei-q">“riches, wealth, and honour”</span>—were added unto + him.<a id="noteref_212" name="noteref_212" href= + "#note_212"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">212</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">He returned to + Jerusalem, gathered a great array of <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page176">[pg 176]</span><a name="Pg176" id="Pg176" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> chariots and horses by means of traffic with + Egypt, and accumulated great wealth, so that silver, and gold, and + cedars became abundant at Jerusalem.<a id="noteref_213" name= + "noteref_213" href="#note_213"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">213</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">He next + proceeded with the building of the Temple, collected workmen, + obtained timber from Lebanon and an artificer from Tyre. The Temple + was duly erected and dedicated, the king taking the chief and most + conspicuous part in all the proceedings. Special reference, + however, is made to the presence of the priests and Levites at the + dedication. On this occasion the ministry of the sanctuary was not + confined to the course whose turn it was to officiate, but + <span class="tei tei-q">“all the priests that were present had + sanctified themselves and did not keep their courses; also the + Levites, which were the singers, all of them, even Asaph, Heman, + Jeduthun, and their sons and their brethren, arrayed in fine linen, + with cymbals, and psalteries, and harps, stood at the east end of + the altar, and with them a hundred and twenty priests sounding with + trumpets.”</span><a id="noteref_214" name="noteref_214" href= + "#note_214"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">214</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Solomon's + dedication prayer concludes with special petitions for the priests, + the saints, and the king: <span class="tei tei-q">“Now therefore + arise, O Jehovah Elohim, into Thy resting-place, Thou and the ark + of Thy strength; let Thy priests, O Jehovah Elohim, be clothed with + salvation, and let Thy saints rejoice in goodness. O Jehovah + Elohim, turn not away the face of Thine anointed; remember the + mercies of David Thy servant.”</span><a id="noteref_215" name= + "noteref_215" href="#note_215"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">215</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">When David + sacrificed at the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite, the place + had been indicated as the site of the future Temple by the descent + of fire from heaven; and now, in token that the mercy shown to + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page177">[pg 177]</span><a name= + "Pg177" id="Pg177" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> David should be + continued to Solomon, the fire again fell from heaven, and consumed + the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of Jehovah + <span class="tei tei-q">“filled the house of Jehovah,”</span><a id= + "noteref_216" name="noteref_216" href="#note_216"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">216</span></span></a> as it + had done earlier in the day, when the Ark was brought into the + Temple. Solomon concluded the opening ceremonies by a great + festival: for eight days the Feast of Tabernacles was observed + according to the Levitical law, and seven days more were specially + devoted to a dedication feast.<a id="noteref_217" name= + "noteref_217" href="#note_217"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">217</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Afterwards + Jehovah appeared again to Solomon, as He had before at Gibeon, and + told him that this prayer was accepted. Taking up the several + petitions that the king had offered, He promised, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I + send pestilence among My people; if My people, which are called by + My name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and + turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will + forgive their sin, and will heal their land. Now Mine eyes shall be + open, and Mine ears attent, unto the prayer that is made in this + place.”</span> Thus Jehovah, in His gracious condescension, adopts + Solomon's own words<a id="noteref_218" name="noteref_218" href= + "#note_218"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">218</span></span></a> to + express His answer to the prayer. He allows Solomon to dictate the + terms of the agreement, and merely appends His signature and + seal.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Besides the + Temple, Solomon built palaces for himself and his wife, and + fortified many cities, among the rest Hamath-zobah, formerly allied + to David.<a id="noteref_219" name="noteref_219" href= + "#note_219"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">219</span></span></a> He + also organised the people for civil and military + purposes.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page178">[pg + 178]</span><a name="Pg178" id="Pg178" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As far as the + account of his reign is concerned, the Solomon of Chronicles + appears as <span class="tei tei-q">“the husband of one + wife”</span>; and that wife is the daughter of Pharaoh. A second, + however, is mentioned later on as the mother of Rehoboam; she too + was a <span class="tei tei-q">“strange woman,”</span> an + Ammonitess, Naamah by name.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Meanwhile + Solomon was careful to maintain all the sacrifices and festivals + ordained in the Levitical law, and all the musical and other + arrangements for the sanctuary commanded by David, the man of + God.<a id="noteref_220" name="noteref_220" href= + "#note_220"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">220</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We read next of + his commerce by sea and land, his great wealth and wisdom, and the + romantic visit of the queen of Sheba.<a id="noteref_221" name= + "noteref_221" href="#note_221"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">221</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And so the story + of Solomon closes with this picture of royal state,—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 7.20em"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">The + wealth of Ormus and of Ind,</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Or where the gorgeous East with + richest hand</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">Showers on her kings barbaric pearl and + gold.</span><span style="font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Wealth was + combined with imperial power and Divine wisdom. Here, as in the + case of Plato's own pupils Dionysius and Dion of Syracuse, Plato's + dream came true; the prince was a philosopher, and the philosopher + a prince.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">At first sight + it seems as if this marriage of authority and wisdom had happier + issue at Jerusalem than at Syracuse. Solomon's history closes as + brilliantly as David's, and Solomon was subject to no Satanic + possession and brought no pestilence upon Israel. But testimonials + are chiefly significant in what they omit; and when we compare the + conclusions of the histories of David and Solomon, we note + suggestive differences.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page179">[pg 179]</span><a name="Pg179" id="Pg179" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Solomon's life + does not close with any scene in which his people and his heir + assemble to do him honour and to receive his last injunctions. + There are no <span class="tei tei-q">“last words”</span> of the + wise king; and it is not said of him that <span class= + "tei tei-q">“he died in a good old age, full of days, riches, and + honour.”</span> <span class="tei tei-q">“Solomon slept with his + fathers, and he was buried in the city of David his father; and + Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead”</span><a id="noteref_222" + name="noteref_222" href="#note_222"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">222</span></span></a>: that + is all. When the chronicler, the professed panegyrist of the house + of David, brings his narrative of this great reign to so lame and + impotent a conclusion, he really implies as severe a condemnation + upon Solomon as the book of Kings does by its narrative of his + sins.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus the Solomon + of Chronicles shows the same piety and devotion to the Temple and + its ritual which were shown by his father. His prayer at the + dedication of the Temple is parallel to similar utterances of + David. Instead of being a general and a soldier, he is a scholar + and a philosopher. He succeeded to the administrative abilities of + his father; and his prayer displays a deep interest in the welfare + of his subjects. His record—in Chronicles—is even more faultless + than that of David. And yet the careful student with nothing but + Chronicles, even without Ezra and Nehemiah, might somehow get the + impression that the story of Solomon, like that of Cambuscan, had + been <span class="tei tei-q">“left half told.”</span> In addition + to the points suggested by a comparison with the history of David, + there is a certain abruptness about its conclusion. The last fact + noted of Solomon, before the formal statistics about <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the rest of his acts”</span> and the years of his + reign, is that horses were brought for him <span class= + "tei tei-q">“out of Egypt and out of all lands.”</span> Elsewhere + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page180">[pg 180]</span><a name= + "Pg180" id="Pg180" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the chronicler's use + of his materials shows a feeling for dramatic effect. We should not + have expected him to close the history of a great reign by a + reference to the king's trade in horses.<a id="noteref_223" name= + "noteref_223" href="#note_223"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">223</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Perhaps we are + apt to read into Chronicles what we know from the book of Kings; + yet surely this abrupt conclusion would have raised a suspicion + that there were omissions, that facts had been suppressed because + they could not bear the light. Upon the splendid figure of the + great king, with his wealth and wisdom, his piety and devotion, + rests the vague shadow of unnamed sins and unrecorded misfortunes. + A suggestion of unhallowed mystery attaches itself to the name of + the builder of the Temple, and Solomon is already on the way to + become the Master of the Genii and the chief of magicians.<a id= + "noteref_224" name="noteref_224" href="#note_224"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">224</span></span></a></p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page181">[pg 181]</span><a name= + "Pg181" id="Pg181" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc39" id="toc39"></a> <a name="pdf40" id="pdf40"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter VI. Solomon + (continued).</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">When we turn to + consider the spiritual significance of this ideal picture of the + history and character of Solomon, we are confronted by a difficulty + that attends the exposition of any ideal history. An author's ideal + of kingship in the early stages of literature is usually as much + one and indivisible as his ideal of priesthood, of the office of + the prophet, and of the wicked king. His authorities may record + different incidents in connection with each individual; but he + emphasises those which correspond with his ideal, or even + anticipates the higher criticism by constructing incidents which + seem required by the character and circumstances of his heroes. On + the other hand, where the priest, or the prophet, or the king + departs from the ideal, the incidents are minimised or passed over + in silence. There will still be a certain variety because different + individuals may present different elements of the ideal, and the + chronicler does not insist on each of his good kings possessing all + the characteristics of royal perfection. Still the tendency of the + process is to make all the good kings alike. It would be monotonous + to take each of them separately and deduce the lessons taught by + their virtues, because the chronicler's intention is that + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page182">[pg 182]</span><a name= + "Pg182" id="Pg182" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> they shall all teach + the same lessons by the same kind of behaviour described from the + same point of view. David has a unique position, and has to be + taken by himself; but in considering the features that must be + added to the picture of David in order to complete the picture of + the good king, it is convenient to group Solomon with the reforming + kings of Judah. We shall therefore defer for more consecutive + treatment the chronicler's account of their general characters and + careers. Here we shall merely gather up the suggestions of the + different narratives as to the chronicler's ideal Hebrew king.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The leading + points have already been indicated from the chronicler's history of + David. The first and most indispensable feature is devotion to the + temple at Jerusalem and the ritual of the Pentateuch. This has been + abundantly illustrated from the account of Solomon. Taking the + reforming kings in their order:—</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Asa removed the + high places which were rivals of the Temple,<a id="noteref_225" + name="noteref_225" href="#note_225"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">225</span></span></a> + renewed the altar of Jehovah, gathered the people together for a + great sacrifice,<a id="noteref_226" name="noteref_226" href= + "#note_226"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">226</span></span></a> and + made munificent donations to the Temple treasury.<a id= + "noteref_227" name="noteref_227" href="#note_227"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">227</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Similarly + Jehoshaphat took away the high places,<a id="noteref_228" name= + "noteref_228" href="#note_228"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">228</span></span></a> and + sent out a commission to teach the Law.<a id="noteref_229" name= + "noteref_229" href="#note_229"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">229</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Joash repaired + the Temple<a id="noteref_230" name="noteref_230" href= + "#note_230"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">230</span></span></a>; but, + curiously enough, though Jehoram had restored the high places<a id= + "noteref_231" name="noteref_231" href="#note_231"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">231</span></span></a> and + Joash was acting under the direction of the high-priest + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page183">[pg 183]</span><a name= + "Pg183" id="Pg183" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Jehoiada, it is not + stated that the high places were done away with. This is one of the + chronicler's rather numerous oversights. Perhaps, however, he + expected that so obvious a reform would be taken for granted.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Amaziah was + careful to observe <span class="tei tei-q">“the law in the book of + Moses”</span> that <span class="tei tei-q">“the children should not + die for the fathers,”</span><a id="noteref_232" name="noteref_232" + href="#note_232"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">232</span></span></a> but + Amaziah soon turned away from following Jehovah. This is perhaps + the reason why in his case also nothing is said about doing away + with the high places.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Hezekiah had a + special opportunity of showing his devotion to the Temple and the + Law. The Temple had been polluted and closed by Ahaz, and its + services discontinued. Hezekiah purified the Temple, reinstated the + priests and Levites, and renewed the services; he made arrangements + for the payment of the Temple revenues according to the provisions + of the Levitical law, and took away the high places. He also held a + reopening festival and a passover with numerous sacrifices.<a id= + "noteref_233" name="noteref_233" href="#note_233"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">233</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Manasseh's + repentance is indicated by the restoration of the Temple + ritual.<a id="noteref_234" name="noteref_234" href= + "#note_234"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">234</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Josiah took away + the high places, repaired the Temple, made the people enter into a + covenant to observe the rediscovered Law, and, like Hezekiah, held + a great passover.<a id="noteref_235" name="noteref_235" href= + "#note_235"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">235</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The reforming + kings, like David and Solomon, are specially interested in the + music of the Temple and in <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page184">[pg 184]</span><a name="Pg184" id="Pg184" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> all the arrangements that have to do with the + porters and doorkeepers and other classes of Levites. Their + enthusiasm for the exclusive rights of the one Temple symbolises + their loyalty to the one God, Jehovah, and their hatred of + idolatry.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Zeal for Jehovah + and His temple is still combined with uncompromising assertion of + the royal supremacy in matters of religion. The king, and not the + priest, is the highest spiritual authority in the nation. Solomon, + Hezekiah, and Josiah control the arrangements for public worship as + completely as Moses or David. Solomon receives Divine + communications without the intervention of either priest or + prophet; he himself offers the great dedication prayer, and when he + makes an end of praying, fire comes down from heaven. Under + Hezekiah the civil authorities decide when the passover shall be + observed: <span class="tei tei-q">“For the king had taken counsel, + and his princes, and all the congregation in Jerusalem, to keep the + passover in the second month.”</span><a id="noteref_236" name= + "noteref_236" href="#note_236"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">236</span></span></a> The + great reforms of Josiah are throughout initiated and controlled by + the king. He himself goes up to the Temple and reads in the ears of + the people all the words of the book of the covenant that was found + in the house of Jehovah. The chronicler still adheres to the + primitive idea of the theocracy, according to which the chief, or + judge, or king is the representative of Jehovah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The title to the + crown rests throughout on the grace of God and the will of the + people. In Judah, however, the principle of hereditary succession + prevails throughout. Athaliah is not really an exception: she + reigned as the widow of a Davidic king. The double election + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page185">[pg 185]</span><a name= + "Pg185" id="Pg185" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of David by Jehovah + and by Israel carried with it the election of his dynasty. The + permanent rule of the house of David was secured by the Divine + promise to its founder. Yet the title is not allowed to rest on + mere hereditary right. Divine choice and popular recognition are + recorded in the case of Solomon and other kings. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“All Israel came to Shechem to make Rehoboam + king,”</span> and yet revolted from him when he refused to accept + their conditions; but the obstinacy which caused the disruption + <span class="tei tei-q">“was brought about of God, that Jehovah + might establish His word which He spake by the hand of Ahijah the + Shilonite.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Ahaziah, Joash, + Uzziah, Josiah, Jehoahaz, were all set upon the throne by the + inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem.<a id="noteref_237" name= + "noteref_237" href="#note_237"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">237</span></span></a> After + Solomon the Divine appointment of kings is not expressly mentioned; + Jehovah's control over the tenure of the throne is chiefly shown by + the removal of unworthy occupants.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is + interesting to note that the chronicler does not hesitate to record + that of the last three sovereigns of Judah two were appointed by + foreign kings: Jehoiakim was the nominee of Pharaoh Neco, king of + Egypt; and the last king of all, Zedekiah, was appointed by + Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon. In like manner, the Herods, the + last rulers of the restored kingdom of Judah, were the nominees of + the Roman emperors. Such nominations forcibly illustrate the + degradations and ruin of the theocratic monarchy. But yet, + according to the teaching of the prophets, Pharaoh and + Nebuchadnezzar were tools in the hand of Jehovah; and their + nomination was still an indirect Divine appointment. In the + chronicler's time, however, Judah was <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page186">[pg 186]</span><a name="Pg186" id="Pg186" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> thoroughly accustomed to receive her + governors from a Persian or Greek king; and Jewish readers would + not be scandalised by a similar state of affairs in the closing + years of the earlier kingdom.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus the + reforming kings illustrate the ideal kingship set forth in the + history of David and Solomon: the royal authority originates in, + and is controlled by, the will of God and the consent of the + people; the king's highest duty is the maintenance of the worship + of Jehovah; but the king and people are supreme both in Church and + state.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The personal + character of the good kings is also very similar to that of David + and Solomon. Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah, and Josiah are men of spiritual + feeling as well as careful observers of correct ritual. None of the + good kings, with the exception of Joash and Josiah, are + unsuccessful in war; and good reasons are given for the exceptions. + They all display administrative ability by their buildings, the + organisation of the Temple services and the army, and the + arrangements for the collection of the revenue, especially the dues + of the priests and Levites.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There is + nothing, however, to indicate that the personal charm of David's + character was inherited by his descendants; but when biography is + made merely a means of edification, it often loses those touches of + nature which make the whole world kin, and are capable of exciting + either admiration or disgust.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The later + narrative affords another illustration of the absence of any + sentiment of humanity towards enemies. As in the case of David, the + chronicler records the cruelty of a good king as if it were quite + consistent with loyalty to Jehovah. Before he turned away from + following Jehovah, Amariah defeated the Edomites and <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page187">[pg 187]</span><a name="Pg187" id="Pg187" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> smote ten thousand of them. Others were + treated like some of the Malagasy martyrs: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“And other ten thousand did the children of Judah carry + away alive, and brought them unto the top of the rock, and cast + them down from the top of the rock, that they all were broken in + pieces.”</span><a id="noteref_238" name="noteref_238" href= + "#note_238"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">238</span></span></a> In + this case, however, the chronicler is not simply reproducing Kings: + he has taken the trouble to supplement his main authority from some + other source, probably local tradition. His insertion of this verse + is another testimony to the undying hatred of Israel for Edom.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But in one + respect the reforming kings are sharply distinguished from David + and Solomon. The record of their lives is by no means blameless, + and their sins are visited by condign chastisement. They all, with + the single exception of Jotham, come to a bad end. Asa consulted + physicians, and was punished by being allowed to die of a painful + disease.<a id="noteref_239" name="noteref_239" href= + "#note_239"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">239</span></span></a> The + last event of Jehoshaphat's life was the ruin of the navy, which he + had built in unholy alliance with Ahaziah, king of Israel, who did + very wickedly.<a id="noteref_240" name="noteref_240" href= + "#note_240"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">240</span></span></a> Joash + murdered the prophet Zechariah, the son of the high-priest + Jehoiada; his great host was routed by a small company of Syrians, + and Joash himself was assassinated by his servants.<a id= + "noteref_241" name="noteref_241" href="#note_241"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">241</span></span></a> + Amaziah turned away from following Jehovah, and <span class= + "tei tei-q">“brought the gods of the children of Seir, and set them + up to be his gods, and bowed down himself before them, and burned + incense unto them.”</span> He was accordingly defeated by Joash, + king of Israel, and assassinated by his own people.<a id= + "noteref_242" name="noteref_242" href="#note_242"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">242</span></span></a> + Uzziah insisted on exercising the priestly function of burning + incense to Jehovah, and so died a leper.<a id="noteref_243" name= + "noteref_243" href="#note_243"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">243</span></span></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“Even Hezekiah rendered <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page188">[pg 188]</span><a name="Pg188" id="Pg188" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> not again according to the benefit done + unto him, for his heart was lifted up in the business of + ambassadors of the princes of Babylon; therefore there was wrath + upon him and upon Judah and Jerusalem. Notwithstanding Hezekiah + humbled himself for the pride of his heart, both he and the + inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the wrath of Jehovah came not + upon them in the days of Hezekiah.”</span> But yet the last days of + Hezekiah were clouded by the thought that he was leaving the + punishment of his sin as a legacy to Judah and the house of + David.<a id="noteref_244" name="noteref_244" href= + "#note_244"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">244</span></span></a> + Josiah refused to heed the warning sent to him by God through the + king of Egypt: <span class="tei tei-q">“He hearkened not unto the + words of Neco from the mouth of God, and came to fight in the + valley of Megiddo”</span>; and so Josiah died like Ahab: he was + wounded by the archers, carried out of the battle in his chariot, + and died at Jerusalem.<a id="noteref_245" name="noteref_245" href= + "#note_245"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">245</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The melancholy + record of the misfortunes of the good kings in their closing years + is also found in the book of Kings. There too Asa in his old age + was diseased in his feet, Jehoshaphat's ships were wrecked, Joash + and Amaziah were assassinated, Uzziah became a leper, Hezekiah was + rebuked for his pride, and Josiah slain at Megiddo. But, except in + the case of Hezekiah, the book of Kings says nothing about the sins + which, according to Chronicles, occasioned these sufferings and + catastrophes. The narrative in the book of Kings carries upon the + face of it the lesson that piety is not usually rewarded with + unbroken prosperity, and that a pious career does not necessarily + ensure a happy deathbed. The significance of the chronicler's + additions will be considered elsewhere; <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page189">[pg 189]</span><a name="Pg189" id="Pg189" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> what concerns us here is his departure from + the principles he observed in dealing with the lives of David and + Solomon. They also sinned and suffered; but the chronicler omits + their sins and sufferings, especially in the case of Solomon. Why + does he pursue an opposite course with other good kings and blacken + their characters by perpetuating the memory of sins not mentioned + in the book of Kings, instead of confining his record to the + happier incidents of their career? Many considerations may have + influenced him. The violent deaths of Joash, Amaziah, and Josiah + could neither be ignored nor explained away. Hezekiah's sin and + repentance are closely parallel to David's in the matter of the + census. Although Asa's disease, Jehoshaphat's alliance with Israel, + and Uzziah's leprosy might easily have been omitted, yet, if some + reformers must be allowed to remain imperfect, there was no + imperative necessity to ignore the infirmities of the rest. The + great advantage of the course pursued by the chronicler consisted + in bringing out a clearly defined contrast between David and + Solomon on the one hand and the reforming kings on the other. The + piety of the latter is conformed to the chronicler's ideal; but the + glory and devotion of the former are enhanced by the crimes and + humiliation of the best of their successors. Hezekiah, doubtless, + is not more culpable than David, but David's pride was the first of + a series of events which terminated in the building of the Temple; + while the uplifting of Hezekiah's heart was a precursor of its + destruction. Besides, Hezekiah ought to have prompted by David's + experience.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">By developing + this contrast, the chronicler renders the position of David and + Solomon even more unique, illustrious, and full of religious + significance.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page190">[pg + 190]</span><a name="Pg190" id="Pg190" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus as + illustrations of ideal kingship the accounts of the good kings of + Judah are altogether subordinate to the history of David and + Solomon. While these kings of Judah remain loyal to Jehovah, they + further illustrate the virtues of their great predecessors by + showing how these virtues might have been exercised under different + circumstances: how David would have dealt with an Ethiopian + invasion and what Solomon would have done if he had found the + Temple desecrated and its services stopped. But no essential + feature is added to the earlier pictures.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The lapses of + kings who began to walk in the law of the Lord and then fell away + serve as foils to the undimmed glory of David and Solomon. Abrupt + transitions within the limits of the individual lives of Asa, + Joash, and Amaziah bring out the contrast between piety and + apostacy with startling, dramatic effect.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We return from + this brief survey to consider the significance of the life of + Solomon according to Chronicles. Its relation to the life of David + is summed up in the name Solomon, the Prince of peace. David is the + ideal king, winning by force of arms for Israel empire and victory, + security at home and tribute from abroad. Utterly subdued by his + prowess, the natural enemies of Israel no longer venture to disturb + her tranquillity. His successor inherits wide dominion, immense + wealth, and assured peace. Solomon, the Prince of peace, is the + ideal king, administering a great inheritance for the glory of + Jehovah and His temple. His history in Chronicles is one of + unbroken calm. He has a great army and many strong fortresses, but + he never has occasion to use them. He implores Jehovah to be + merciful to Israel when they suffer from <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page191">[pg 191]</span><a name="Pg191" id="Pg191" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> the horrors of war; but he is interceding, + not for his own subjects, but for future generations. In his + time—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">No war + or battle's sound</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Was heard the world + around:</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">The idle spear and shield were + high uphung;</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">The hookèd chariot stood</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Unstained with hostile + blood;</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">The trumpet spake not to the armèd + throng.</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span><a id="noteref_246" name= + "noteref_246" href="#note_246"><span class="tei tei-noteref" + style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">246</span></span></a> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Perhaps, to use + a paradox, the greatest proof of Solomon's wisdom was that he asked + for wisdom. He realised at the outset of his career that a wide + dominion is more easily won than governed, that to use great wealth + honourably requires more skill and character than are needed to + amass it. To-day the world can boast half a dozen empires + surpassing not merely Israel, but even Rome, in extent of dominion; + the aggregate wealth of the world is far beyond the wildest dreams + of the chronicler: but still the people perish for lack of + knowledge. The physical and moral foulness of modern cities taints + all the culture and tarnishes all the splendour of our + civilisation; classes and trades, employers and employed, maim and + crush one another in blind struggles to work out a selfish + salvation; newly devised organisations move their unwieldy + masses—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">... + like dragons of the prime</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">That tare each other.</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span><a id="noteref_247" name= + "noteref_247" href="#note_247"><span class="tei tei-noteref" + style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">247</span></span></a> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">They have a + giant's strength, and use it like a giant. Knowledge comes, but + wisdom lingers; and the world waits for the reign of the Prince of + peace who is not only the wise king, but the incarnate wisdom of + God.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus one + striking suggestion of the chronicler's <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page192">[pg 192]</span><a name="Pg192" id="Pg192" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> history of Solomon is the special need of + wisdom and Divine guidance for the administration of a great and + prosperous empire.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Too much stress, + however, must not be laid on the twofold personality of the ideal + king. This feature is adopted from the history, and does not + express any opinion of the chronicler that the characteristic gifts + of David and Solomon could not be combined in a single individual. + Many great generals have also been successful administrators. + Before Julius Cæsar was assassinated he had already shown his + capacity to restore order and tranquillity to the Roman world; + Alexander's plans for the civil government of his conquests were as + far-reaching as his warlike ambition; Diocletian reorganised the + empire which his sword had re-established; Cromwell's schemes of + reform showed an almost prophetic insight into the future needs of + the English people; the glory of Napoleon's victories is a doubtful + legacy to France compared with the solid benefits of his internal + reforms.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But even these + instances, which illustrate the union of military genius and + administrative ability, remind us that the assignment of success in + war to one king and a reign of peace to the next is, after all, + typical. The limits of human life narrow its possibilities. Cæsar's + work had to be completed by Augustus; the great schemes of + Alexander and Cromwell fell to the ground because no one arose to + play Solomon to their David.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler + has specially emphasised the indebtedness of Solomon to David. + According to his narrative, the great achievement of Solomon's + reign, the building of the Temple, has been rendered possible by + David's preparations. Quite apart from plans and <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page193">[pg 193]</span><a name="Pg193" id="Pg193" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> materials, the chronicler's view of the + credit due to David in this matter is only a reasonable recognition + of service rendered to the religion of Israel. Whoever provided the + timber and stone, the silver and gold, for the Temple, David won + for Jehovah the land and the city that were the outer courts of the + sanctuary, and roused the national spirit that gave to Zion its + most solemn consecration. Solomon's temple was alike the symbol of + David's achievements and the coping-stone of his work.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">By compelling + our attention to the dependence of the Prince of Peace upon the man + who <span class="tei tei-q">“had shed much blood,”</span> the + chronicler admonishes us against forgetting the price that has been + paid for liberty and culture. The splendid courtiers whose + <span class="tei tei-q">“apparel”</span> specially pleased the + feminine tastes of the queen of Sheba might feel all the contempt + of the superior person for David's war-worn veterans. The latter + probably were more at home in the <span class="tei tei-q">“store + cities”</span> than at Jerusalem. But without the blood and toil of + these rough soldiers Solomon would have had no opportunity to + exchange riddles with his fair visitor and to dazzle her admiring + eyes with the glories of his temple and palaces.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The blessings of + peace are not likely to be preserved unless men still appreciate + and cherish the stern virtues that flourish in troubled times. If + our own times become troubled, and their serenity be invaded by + fierce conflict, it will be ours to remember that the rugged life + of <span class="tei tei-q">“the hold in the wilderness”</span> and + the struggles with the Philistines may enable a later generation to + build its temple to the Lord and to learn the answers to + <span class="tei tei-q">“hard questions.”</span><a id="noteref_248" + name="noteref_248" href="#note_248"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">248</span></span></a> Moses + and Joshua, David and Solomon, <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page194">[pg 194]</span><a name="Pg194" id="Pg194" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> remind us again how the Divine work is handed + on from generation to generation: Moses leads Israel through the + wilderness, but Joshua brings them into the Land of Promise; David + collects the materials, but Solomon builds the Temple. The + settlement in Palestine and the building of the Temple were only + episodes in the working out of the <span class="tei tei-q">“one + increasing purpose,”</span> but one leader and one life-time did + not suffice for either episode. We grow impatient of the scale upon + which God works: we want it reduced to the limits of our human + faculties and of our earthly lives; yet all history preaches + patience. In our demand for Divine interventions whereby—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 14.40em"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">... + sudden in a minute</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">All is accomplished, and the work is + done,</span><span style="font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">we are very + Esaus, eager to sell the birthright of the future for a mess of + pottage to-day.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And the + continuity of the Divine purpose is only realised through the + continuity of human effort. We must indeed serve our own + generation; but part of that service consists in providing that the + next generation shall be trained to carry on the work, and that + after David shall come Solomon—the Solomon of Chronicles, and not + the Solomon of Kings—and that, if possible, Solomon shall not be + succeeded by Rehoboam. As we attain this larger outlook, we shall + be less tempted to employ doubtful means, which are supposed to be + justified by their end; we shall be less enthusiastic for processes + that bring <span class="tei tei-q">“quick returns,”</span> but give + very <span class="tei tei-q">“small profits”</span> in the long + run. Christian workers are a little too fond of spiritual + jerry-building, as if sites in the kingdom of heaven were let out + on <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page195">[pg 195]</span><a name= + "Pg195" id="Pg195" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> ninety-nine-year + leases; but God builds for eternity, and we are fellow-workers + together with Him.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">To complete the + chronicler's picture of the ideal king, we have to add David's + warlike prowess and Solomon's wisdom and splendour to the piety and + graces common to both. The result is unique among the many pictures + that have been drawn by historians, philosophers, and poets. It has + a value of its own, because the chronicler's gifts in the way of + history, philosophy, and poetry were entirely subordinated to his + interest in theology; and most theologians have only been + interested in the doctrine of the king when they could use it to + gratify the vanity of a royal patron.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The full-length + portrait in Chronicles contrasts curiously with the little vignette + preserved in the book which bears the name of Solomon. There, in + the oracle which King Lemuel's mother taught him, the king is + simply admonished to avoid strange women and strong drink, to + <span class="tei tei-q">“judge righteously, and minister judgment + to the poor and needy.”</span><a id="noteref_249" name= + "noteref_249" href="#note_249"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">249</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">To pass to more + modern theology, the theory of the king that is implied in + Chronicles has much in common with Wyclif's doctrine of dominion: + they both recognise the sanctity of the royal power and its + temporal supremacy, and they both hold that obedience to God is the + condition of the continued exercise of legitimate rule. But the + priest of Lutterworth was less ecclesiastical and more democratic + than our Levite.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">A more orthodox + authority on the Protestant doctrine of the king would be the + Thirty-nine Articles. These, however, deal with the subject + somewhat slightly. As <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page196">[pg + 196]</span><a name="Pg196" id="Pg196" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + far as they go, they are in harmony with the chronicler. They + assert the unqualified supremacy of the king, both ecclesiastical + and civil. Even <span class="tei tei-q">“general councils may not + be gathered together without the commandment and will of + princes.”</span><a id="noteref_250" name="noteref_250" href= + "#note_250"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">250</span></span></a> On + the other hand, princes are not to imitate Uzziah in presuming to + exercise the priestly function of offering incense: they are not to + minister God's word or sacraments.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Outside theology + the ideal of the king has been stated with greater fulness and + freedom, but not many of the pictures drawn have much in common + with the chronicler's David and Solomon. Machiavelli's prince and + Bolingbroke's patriot king belong to a different world; moreover, + their method is philosophical, and not historical: they state a + theory rather than draw a picture. Tennyson's Arthur is, what he + himself calls him, an <span class="tei tei-q">“ideal knight”</span> + rather than an ideal king. Perhaps the best parallels to David are + to be found in the Cyrus of the Greek historians and philosophers + and the Alfred of English story. Alfred indeed combines many of the + features both of David and Solomon: he secured English unity, and + was the founder of English culture and literature; he had a keen + interest in ecclesiastical affairs, great gifts of administration, + and much personal attractiveness. Cyrus, again, specially + illustrates what we may call the posthumous fortunes of David: his + name stood for the ideal of kingship with both Greeks and Persians, + and in the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Cyropædia</span></span> his life and character + are made the basis of a picture of the ideal king.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Many points are + of course common to almost all <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page197">[pg 197]</span><a name="Pg197" id="Pg197" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> such pictures; they portray the king as a + capable and benevolent ruler and a man of high personal character. + The distinctive characteristic of Chronicles is the stress laid on + the piety of the king, his care for the honour of God and the + spiritual welfare of his subjects. If the practical influence of + this teaching has not been altogether beneficent, it is because men + have too invariably connected spiritual profit with organisation, + and ceremonies, and forms of words, sound or otherwise.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But to-day the + doctrine of the state takes the place of the doctrine of the king. + Instead of Cyropædias we have Utopias. We are asked sometimes to + look back, not to an ideal king, but to an ideal commonwealth, to + the age of the Antonines or to some happy century of English + history when we are told that the human race or the English people + were <span class="tei tei-q">“most happy and prosperous”</span>; + oftener we are invited to contemplate an imaginary future. We may + add to those already made one or two further applications of the + chronicler's principles to the modern state. His method suggests + that the perfect society will have the virtues of our actual life + without its vices, and that the possibilities of the future are + best divined from a careful study of the past. The devotion of his + kings to the Temple symbolises the truth that the ideal state is + impossible without recognition of a Divine presence and obedience + to a Divine will.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page198">[pg 198]</span><a name= + "Pg198" id="Pg198" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc41" id="toc41"></a> <a name="pdf42" id="pdf42"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter VII. The Wicked Kings. 2 + Chron. xxviii., etc.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The type of the + wicked king is not worked out with any fulness in Chronicles. There + are wicked kings, but no one is raised to the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“bad eminence”</span> of an evil counterpart to David; + there is no anti-David, so to speak, no prototype of antichrist. + The story of Ahaz, for instance, is not given at the same length + and with the same wealth of detail as that of David. The subject + was not so congenial to the kindly heart of the chronicler. He was + not imbued with the unhappy spirit of modern realism, which loves + to dwell on all that is foul and ghastly in life and character; he + lingered affectionately over his heroes, and contented himself with + brief notices of his villains. In so doing he was largely following + his main authority: the books of Samuel and Kings. There too the + stories of David and Solomon, of Elijah and Elisha, are told much + more fully than those of Jeroboam and Ahab.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But the mention + of these names reminds us that the chronicler's limitation of his + subject to the history of Judah excludes much of the material that + might have been drawn from the earlier history for a picture of the + wicked king. If it had been part of the chronicler's plan to tell + the story of Ahab, he might <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page199">[pg 199]</span><a name="Pg199" id="Pg199" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> have been led to develop his material and + moralise upon the king's career till the narrative assumed + proportions that would have rivalled the history of David. Over + against the great scene that closed David's life might have been + set another summing up in one dramatic moment the guilt and ruin of + Ahab. But these schismatic kings were <span class= + "tei tei-q">“alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and + strangers from the covenants of the promise, having no hope and + without God in the world.”</span><a id="noteref_251" name= + "noteref_251" href="#note_251"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">251</span></span></a> The + disobedient sons of the house of David were still children within + the home, who might be rebuked and punished; but the Samaritan + kings, as the chronicler might style them, were outcasts, left to + the tender mercies of the dogs, and sorcerers, and murderers that + were without the Holy City, Cains without any protecting mark upon + their forehead.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Hence the wicked + kings in Chronicles are of the house of David. Therefore the + chronicler has a certain tenderness for them, partly for the sake + of their great ancestor, partly because they are kings of Judah, + partly because of the sanctity and religious significance of the + Messianic dynasty. These kings are not Esaus, for whom there is no + place of repentance. The chronicler is happy in being able to + discover and record the conversion, as we should term it, of some + kings whose reigns began in rebellion and apostacy. By a curious + compensation, the kings who begin well end badly, and those who + begin badly end well; they all tend to about the same average. We + read of Rehoboam<a id="noteref_252" name="noteref_252" href= + "#note_252"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">252</span></span></a> that + <span class="tei tei-q">“when he humbled himself the wrath of the + Lord turned from him, that he would not destroy him altogether; + and, moreover, in Judah <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page200">[pg + 200]</span><a name="Pg200" id="Pg200" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + there were good things found”</span>; the wickedness of Abijah, + which is plainly set forth in the book of Kings,<a id="noteref_253" + name="noteref_253" href="#note_253"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">253</span></span></a> is + ignored in Chronicles; Manasseh <span class="tei tei-q">“humbled + himself greatly before the God of his fathers,”</span> and turned + altogether from the error of his ways<a id="noteref_254" name= + "noteref_254" href="#note_254"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">254</span></span></a>; the + unfavourable judgment on Jehoahaz recorded in the book of Kings, + <span class="tei tei-q">“And he did that which was evil in the + sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had + done,”</span><a id="noteref_255" name="noteref_255" href= + "#note_255"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">255</span></span></a> is + omitted in Chronicles.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There remain + seven wicked kings of whom nothing but evil is recorded: Jehoram, + Ahaziah, Ahaz, Amon, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah. Of these + we may take Ahaz as the most typical instance. As in the cases of + David and Solomon, we will first see how the chronicler has dealt + with the material derived from the book of Kings; then we will give + his account of the career of Ahaz; and finally, by a brief + comparison of what is told of Ahaz with the history of the other + wicked kings, we will try to construct the chronicler's idea of the + wicked king and to deduce its lessons.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The importance + of the additions made by the chronicler to the history in the book + of Kings will appear later on. In his account of the attack made + upon Ahaz by Rezin, king of Damascus, and Pekah, king of Israel, he + emphasises the incidents most discreditable to Ahaz. The book of + Kings simply states that the two allies <span class= + "tei tei-q">“came up to Jerusalem to war; and they besieged Ahaz, + but could not overcome him”</span><a id="noteref_256" name= + "noteref_256" href="#note_256"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">256</span></span></a>; + Chronicles dwells upon the sufferings and losses inflicted on Judah + by this invasion. The book of Kings might have conveyed the + impression that the wicked king had been allowed to triumph over + his enemies; <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page201">[pg + 201]</span><a name="Pg201" id="Pg201" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Chronicles guards against this dangerous error by detailing the + disasters that Ahaz brought upon his country.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The book of + Kings also contains an interesting account of alterations made by + Ahaz in the Temple and its furniture. By his orders the high-priest + Urijah made a new brazen altar for the Temple after the pattern of + an altar that Ahaz had seen in Damascus. As Chronicles narrates the + closing of the Temple by Ahaz, it naturally omits these previous + alterations. Moreover, Urijah appears in the book of Isaiah as a + friend of the prophet, and is referred to by him as a <span class= + "tei tei-q">“faithful witness.”</span><a id="noteref_257" name= + "noteref_257" href="#note_257"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">257</span></span></a> The + chronicler would not wish to perplex his readers with the problem, + How could the high-priest, whom Isaiah trusted as a faithful + witness, become the agent of a wicked king, and construct an altar + for Jehovah after a heathen pattern?</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler's + story of Ahaz runs thus. This wicked king had been preceded by + three good kings: Amaziah, Uzziah, and Jotham. Amaziah indeed had + turned away from following Jehovah at the end of his reign, but + Uzziah had been zealous for Jehovah throughout, not wisely, but too + well; and Jotham shares with Solomon the honour of a blameless + record. Without counting Amaziah's reign, king and people had been + loyal to Jehovah for sixty or seventy years. The court of the good + kings would be the centre of piety and devotion. Ahaz, no doubt, + had been carefully trained in obedience to the law of Jehovah, and + had grown up in the atmosphere of true religion. Possibly he had + known his grandfather Uzziah in the days of his power and glory; + but at any rate, while Ahaz was <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page202">[pg 202]</span><a name="Pg202" id="Pg202" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> a child, Uzziah was living as a leper in his + <span class="tei tei-q">“several house,”</span> and Ahaz must have + been familiar with this melancholy warning against presumptuous + interference with the Divine ordinances of worship.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Ahaz was twenty + years old when he came to the throne, so that he had time to profit + by a complete education, and should scarcely have found opportunity + to break away from its influence. His mother's name is not + mentioned, so that we cannot say whether, as may have been the case + with Rehoboam, some Ammonite woman led him astray from the God of + his fathers. As far as we can learn from our author, Ahaz sinned + against light and knowledge; with every opportunity and incentive + to keep in the right path, he yet went astray.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This is a common + feature in the careers of the wicked kings. It has often been + remarked that the first great specialist on education failed + utterly in the application of his theories to his own son. + Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah, and Josiah were the most distinguished and + the most virtuous of the reforming kings, yet Jehoshaphat was + succeeded by Jehoram, who was almost as wicked as Ahaz; Hezekiah's + son <span class="tei tei-q">“Manasseh made Judah and the + inhabitants of Jerusalem to err, so that they did evil more than + did the nations whom the Lord destroyed before the children of + Israel”</span>;<a id="noteref_258" name="noteref_258" href= + "#note_258"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">258</span></span></a> + Josiah's son and grandsons <span class="tei tei-q">“did evil in the + sight of the Lord.”</span><a id="noteref_259" name="noteref_259" + href="#note_259"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">259</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Many reasons may + be suggested for this too familiar spectacle: the impious son of a + godly father, the bad successor of a good king. Heirs-apparent have + always been inclined to head an opposition to their fathers' + policy, and sometimes on their accession they have <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page203">[pg 203]</span><a name="Pg203" id="Pg203" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> reversed that policy. When the father + himself has been a zealous reformer, the interests that have been + harassed by reform are eager to encourage his successor in a + retrograde policy; and reforming zeal is often tinged with an + inconsiderate harshness that provokes the opposition of younger and + brighter spirits. But, after all, this atavism in kings is chiefly + an illustration of the slow growth of the higher nature in man. + Practically each generation starts afresh with an unregenerate + nature of its own, and often nature is too strong for + education.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Moreover, a + young king of Judah was subject to the evil influence of his + northern neighbour. Judah was often politically subservient to + Samaria, and politics and religion have always been very intimately + associated. At the accession of Ahaz the throne of Samaria was + filled by Pekah, whose twenty years' tenure of authority indicates + ability and strength of character. It is not difficult to + understand how Ahaz was led <span class="tei tei-q">“to walk in the + ways of the kings of Israel”</span> and <span class="tei tei-q">“to + make molten images for the Baals.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Nothing is told + us of the actual circumstances of these innovations. The new reign + was probably inaugurated by the dismissal of Jotham's ministers and + the appointment of the personal favourites of the new king. The + restoration of old idolatrous cults would be a natural + advertisement of a new departure in the government. So when the + establishment of Christianity was a novelty in the empire, and men + were not assured of its permanence, Julian's accession was + accompanied by an apostacy to paganism; and later aspirants to the + purple promised to follow his example. But the worship of Jehovah + was not at once suppressed. He was not deposed from His throne as + the <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page204">[pg 204]</span><a name= + "Pg204" id="Pg204" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Divine King of + Judah; He was only called upon to share His royal authority with + the Baals of the neighbouring peoples.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But although the + Temple services might still be performed, the king was mainly + interested in introducing and observing a variety of heathen rites. + The priesthood of the Temple saw their exclusive privileges + disregarded and the rival sanctuaries of the high places and the + sacred trees taken under royal patronage. But the king's apostacy + was not confined to the milder forms of idolatry. His weak mind was + irresistibly attracted by the morbid fascination of the cruel rites + of Moloch: <span class="tei tei-q">“He burnt incense in the valley + of the son of Hinnom, and burnt his children in the fire, according + to the abomination of the heathen, whom the Lord cast out before + the children of Israel.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The king's + devotions to his new gods were rudely interrupted. The insulted + majesty of Jehovah was vindicated by two disastrous invasions. + First, Ahaz was defeated by Rezin, king of Syria, who carried away + a great multitude of captives to Damascus; the next enemy was one + of those kings of Israel in whose idolatrous ways Ahaz had chosen + to walk. The delicate flattery implied by Ahaz becoming Pekah's + proselyte failed to conciliate that monarch. He too defeated the + Jews with great slaughter. Amongst his warriors was a certain + Zichri, whose achievements recalled the prowess of David's mighty + men: he slew Maaseiah the king's son and Azrikam, the ruler of the + house, the Lord High Chamberlain, and Elkanah, that was next unto + the king, the Prime Minister. With these notables, there perished + in a single day a hundred and twenty thousand Jews, all of them + valiant men. Their wives and children, to the number of two hundred + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page205">[pg 205]</span><a name= + "Pg205" id="Pg205" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> thousand, were + carried captive to Samaria. All these misfortunes happened to Judah + <span class="tei tei-q">“because they had forsaken Jehovah, the God + of their fathers.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And yet Jehovah + in wrath remembered mercy. The Israelite army approached Samaria + with their endless train of miserable captives, women and children, + ragged and barefoot, some even naked, filthy and footsore with + forced marches, left hungry and thirsty after prisoners' scanty + rations. Multiply a thousandfold the scenes depicted on Egyptian + and Assyrian monuments, and you have the picture of this great + slave caravan. The captives probably had no reason to fear the + barbarities which the Assyrians loved to inflict upon their + prisoners, but yet their prospects were sufficiently gloomy. Before + them lay a life of drudgery and degradation in Samaria. The more + wealthy might hope to be ransomed by their friends; others, again, + might be sold to the Phœnician traders, to be carried by them to + the great slave marts of Nineveh and Babylon or even oversea to + Greece. But in a moment all was changed. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“There was a prophet of Jehovah, whose name was Oded, + and he went out to meet the army and said unto them, Behold, + because Jehovah, the God of your fathers, was wroth with Judah, He + hath delivered them into your hand; and ye have slain them in a + rage which hath reached up unto heaven. And now ye purpose to keep + the children of Judah and of Jerusalem for male and female slaves; + but are there not even with you trespasses of your own against + Jehovah your God? Now hear me therefore, and send back the + captives, for the fierce wrath of Jehovah is upon you.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Meanwhile + <span class="tei tei-q">“the princes and all the congregation of + Samaria”</span> were waiting to welcome their victorious + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page206">[pg 206]</span><a name= + "Pg206" id="Pg206" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> army, possibly in + <span class="tei tei-q">“the void place at the entering in of the + gate of Samaria.”</span> Oded's words, at any rate, had been + uttered in their presence. The army did not at once respond to the + appeal; the two hundred thousand slaves were the most valuable part + of their spoil, and they were not eager to make so great a + sacrifice. But the princes made Oded's message their own. Four + heads of the children of Ephraim are mentioned by name as the + spokesmen of the <span class="tei tei-q">“congregation,”</span> the + king being apparently absent on some other warlike expedition. + These four were Azariah the son of Johanan, Berechiah the son of + Meshillemoth, Jehizkiah the son of Shallum, and Amasa the son of + Hadlai. Possibly among the children of Ephraim who dwelt in + Jerusalem after the Return there were descendants of these men, + from whom the chronicler obtained the particulars of this incident. + The princes <span class="tei tei-q">“stood up against them that + came from the war,”</span> and forbade their bringing the captives + into the city. They repeated and expanded the words of the prophet: + <span class="tei tei-q">“Ye purpose that which will bring upon us a + trespass against Jehovah, to add unto our sins and to our trespass, + for our trespass is great, and there is fierce wrath against + Israel.”</span> The army were either convinced by the eloquence or + overawed by the authority of the prophet and the princes: + <span class="tei tei-q">“They left the captives and the spoil + before all the princes and the congregation.”</span> And the four + princes <span class="tei tei-q">“rose up, and took the captives, + and with the spoil clothed all that were naked among them, and + arrayed them, and shod them, and gave them to eat and to drink, and + anointed them, and carried all the feeble of them upon asses, and + brought them to Jericho, the city of palm trees, unto their + brethren; then they returned to Samaria.”</span></p><span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page207">[pg 207]</span><a name="Pg207" id="Pg207" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Apart from + incidental allusions, this is the last reference in Chronicles to + the northern kingdom. The long history of division and hostility + closes with this humane recognition of the brotherhood of Israel + and Judah. The sun, so to speak, did not go down upon their wrath. + But the king of Israel had no personal share in this gracious act. + At the first it was Jeroboam that made Israel to sin; throughout + the history the responsibility for the continued division would + specially rest upon the kings, and at the last there is no sign of + Pekah's repentance and no prospect of his pardon.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The various + incidents of the invasions of Rezin and Pekah were alike a solemn + warning and an impressive appeal to the apostate king of Judah. He + had multiplied to himself gods of the nations round about, and yet + had been left without an ally, at the mercy of a hostile + confederation, against whom his new gods either could not or would + not defend him. The wrath of Jehovah had brought upon Ahaz one + crushing defeat after another, and yet the only mitigation of the + sufferings of Judah had also been the work of Jehovah. The + returning captives would tell Ahaz and his princes how in + schismatic and idolatrous Samaria a prophet of Jehovah had stood + forth to secure their release and obtain for them permission to + return home. The princes and people of Samaria had hearkened to his + message, and the two hundred thousand captives stood there as the + monument of Jehovah's compassion and of the obedient piety of + Israel. Sin was bound to bring punishment; and yet Jehovah waited + to be gracious. Wherever there was room for mercy, He would show + mercy. His wrath and His compassion had alike been displayed before + Ahaz. Other gods could not protect their worshippers against Him; + He only could deliver and restore His <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page208">[pg 208]</span><a name="Pg208" id="Pg208" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> people. He had not even waited for Ahaz to + repent before He had given him proof of His willingness to + forgive.<a id="noteref_260" name="noteref_260" href= + "#note_260"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">260</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Such Divine + goodness was thrown away upon Ahaz; there was no token of + repentance, no promise of amendment; and so Jehovah sent further + judgments upon the king and his unhappy people. The Edomites came + and smote Judah, and carried away captives; the Philistines also + invaded the cities of the lowland and of the south of Judah, and + took Beth-shemesh, Aijalon, Gederoth, Soco, Timnah, Gimzo, and + their dependent villages, and dwelt in them; and Jehovah brought + Judah low because of Ahaz. And the king hardened his heart yet more + against Jehovah, and cast away all restraint, and trespassed sore + against Jehovah. Instead of submitting himself, he sought the aid + of the kings of Assyria, only to receive another proof of the + vanity of all earthly help so long as he remained unreconciled to + Heaven. Tilgath-pilneser, king of Assyria, welcomed this + opportunity of interfering in the affairs of Western Asia, and saw + attractive prospects of levying blackmail impartially on his ally + and his enemies. He came unto Ahaz, <span class="tei tei-q">“and + distressed him, but strengthened him not.”</span> These new + troubles were the occasion of fresh wickedness on the part of the + king: to pay the price of this worse than useless intervention, he + took away a portion not only from his own treasury and from the + princes, but also from the treasury of the Temple, and gave it to + the king of Assyria.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus betrayed + and plundered by his new ally, he trespassed <span class= + "tei tei-q">“yet more against Jehovah, this same king Ahaz.”</span> + It is almost incredible that one man could be <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page209">[pg 209]</span><a name="Pg209" id="Pg209" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> guilty of so much sin; the chronicler + is anxious that his readers should appreciate the extraordinary + wickedness of this man, this same king Ahaz. In him the chastening + of the Lord yielded no peaceable fruit of righteousness; he would + not see that his misfortunes were sent from the offended God of + Israel. With perverse ingenuity, he found in them an incentive to + yet further wickedness. His pantheon was not large enough. He had + omitted to worship the gods of Damascus. These must be powerful + deities, whom it would be worth while to conciliate, because they + had enabled the kings of Syria to overrun and pillage Judah. + Therefore Ahaz sacrificed to the gods of Syria, that they might + help him. <span class="tei tei-q">“But,”</span> says the + chronicler, <span class="tei tei-q">“they were the ruin of him and + of all Israel.”</span> Still Ahaz went on consistently with his + policy of comprehensive eclecticism. He made Jerusalem a very + Athens for altars, which were set up at every street corner; he + discovered yet other gods whom it might be advisable to adore: + <span class="tei tei-q">“And in every several city of Judah he made + high places to burn incense unto other gods.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Hitherto Jehovah + had still received some share of the worship of this most religious + king, but apparently Ahaz came to regard Him as the least powerful + of his many supernatural allies. He attributed his misfortunes, not + to the anger, but to the helplessness, of Jehovah. Jehovah was + specially the God of Israel; if disaster after disaster fell upon + His people, He was evidently less potent than Baal, or Moloch, or + Rimmon. It was a useless expense to maintain the worship of so + impotent a deity. Perhaps the apostate king was acting in the + blasphemous spirit of the savage who flogs his idol when his + prayers are not answered. Jehovah, he thought, should be punished + for His neglect of the interests <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page210">[pg 210]</span><a name="Pg210" id="Pg210" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> of Judah. <span class="tei tei-q">“Ahaz + gathered together the vessels of the house of God, and cut in + pieces the vessels of the house of God, and shut up the doors of + the house of Jehovah”</span>;<a id="noteref_261" name="noteref_261" + href="#note_261"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">261</span></span></a> he + had filled up the measure of his iniquities.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And thus it came + to pass that in the Holy City, <span class="tei tei-q">“which + Jehovah had chosen to cause His name to dwell there,”</span> almost + the only deity who was not worshipped was Jehovah. Ahaz did homage + to the gods of all the nations before whom he had been humiliated; + the royal sacrifices smoked upon a hundred altars, but no sweet + savour of burnt offering ascended to Jehovah. The fragrance of the + perpetual incense no longer filled the holy place morning and + evening; the seven lamps of the golden candlestick were put out, + and the Temple was given up to darkness and desolation. Ahaz had + contented himself with stripping the sanctuary of its treasures; + but the building itself, though closed, suffered no serious injury. + A stranger visiting the city, and finding it full of idols, could + not fail to notice the great pile of the Temple and to inquire what + image, splendid above all others, occupied that magnificent shrine. + Like Pompey, he would learn with surprise that it was not the + dwelling-place of any image, but the symbol of an almighty and + invisible presence. Even if the stranger were some Moabite + worshipper of Chemosh, he would feel dismay at the wanton profanity + with which Ahaz had abjured the God of his fathers and desecrated + the temple built by his great ancestors. The annals of Egypt and + Babylon told of the misfortunes which had befallen those monarchs + who were unfaithful to their national gods. The pious heathen + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page211">[pg 211]</span><a name= + "Pg211" id="Pg211" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> would anticipate + disaster as the punishment of Ahaz's apostacy.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Meanwhile the + ministers of the Temple shared its ruin and degradation; but they + could feel the assurance that Jehovah would yet recall His people + to their allegiance and manifest Himself once more in the Temple. + The house of Aaron and the tribe of Levi possessed their souls in + patience till the final judgment of Jehovah should fall upon the + apostate. They had not long to wait: after a reign of only sixteen + years, Ahaz died at the early age of thirty-six. We are not told + that he died in battle or by the visitation of God. His health may + have been broken by his many misfortunes, or by vicious practices + that would naturally accompany his manifold idolatries; but in any + case his early death would be regarded as a Divine judgment. The + breath was scarcely out of his body before his religious + innovations were swept away by a violent reaction. The people at + once passed sentence of condemnation on his memory: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“They brought him not into the sepulchres of the kings + of Israel.”</span><a id="noteref_262" name="noteref_262" href= + "#note_262"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">262</span></span></a> His + successor inaugurated his reign by reopening the Temple, and + brought back Judah to the obedience of Jehovah. The monuments of + the impious worship of the wicked king, his multitudinous idols, + and their ritual passed away like an evil dream, like <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the track of a ship in the sea or a bird in the + air.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The leading + features of this career are common to most of the wicked kings and + to the evil days of the good kings <span class="tei tei-q">“Walking + in the ways of the kings of Israel”</span> was the great crime of + Jehoshaphat and his successors Jehoram and Ahaziah. Other kings, + like <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page212">[pg 212]</span><a name= + "Pg212" id="Pg212" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Manasseh, built high + places and followed after the abominations of the heathen whom + Jehovah cast out before the children of Israel. Asa's lapse into + wickedness began by plundering the Temple treasury to purchase an + alliance with a heathen king, the king of Syria, against whose + successor Ahaz in his turn hired the king of Assyria. Amaziah + adopted the gods of Edom, as Ahaz the gods of Syria, but with less + excuse, for Amaziah had conquered Edom. Other crimes are recorded + among the evil doings of the kings: Asa had recourse to physicians, + that is, probably to magic; Jehoram slew his brethren; Joash + murdered the son of his benefactor Jehoiada; but the supreme sin + was disloyalty to Jehovah and the Temple, and of this sin the + chronicler's brief history of Ahaz is the most striking + illustration. Ahaz is the typical apostate: he hardens his heart + alike against the mercy of Jehovah and against His repeated + judgment. He is a very Pharaoh among the kings of Judah. The + discipline that should have led to repentance is continually + perverted to be the occasion of new sin, and at last the apostate + dies in his iniquity. The effect of the picture is heightened by + its insistence on this one sin of apostacy; other sins are + illustrated and condemned elsewhere, but here the chronicler would + have us concentrate our attention on the rise, progress, and ruin + of the apostate. Indeed, this one sin implied and involved all + others; the man who suppressed the worship of Jehovah, and revelled + in the obscene superstitions of heathen cults, was obviously + capable of any enormity. The chronicler is not indifferent to + morality as compared with ritual, and he sees in the neglect of + Divinely appointed ritual an indication of a character rotten + through and through. In his time <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page213">[pg 213]</span><a name="Pg213" id="Pg213" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> neglect of ritual on the part of the average + man or the average king implied neglect of religion, or rather + adherence to an alien and immoral faith.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus the supreme + sin of the wicked kings naturally contrasts with the highest virtue + of the good kings. The standing of both is determined by their + attitude towards Jehovah. The character of the good kings is + developed in greater detail than that of their wicked brethren; but + we should not misrepresent the chronicler's views, if we ascribed + to the wicked kings all the vices antithetic to the virtues of his + royal ideal. Nevertheless the picture actually drawn fixes our + attention upon their impious denial of the God of Israel. Much + Church history has been written on the same principle: Constantine + is a saint because he established Christianity; Julian is an + incarnation of wickedness because he became an apostate; we praise + the orthodox Theodosius, and blame the Arian Valens. Protestant + historians have canonised Henry VIII. and Elizabeth, and have + prefixed an unholy epithet to the name of their kinswoman, while + Romanist writers interchange these verdicts. But underlying even + such opposite judgments there is the same valid principle, the + principle that was in the mind of the chronicler: that the king's + relation to the highest and purest truth accessible to him, + whatever that truth may be, is a just criterion of his whole + character. The historian may err in applying the criterion, but its + general principle is none the less sound.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">For the + character of the wicked nation we are not left to the general + suggestions that may be derived from the wicked king. The prophets + show us that it was by no vicarious condemnation that priests and + people shared the ruin of their sovereign. In their <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page214">[pg 214]</span><a name="Pg214" id="Pg214" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> pages the subject is treated from many + points of view: Israel and Judah, Edom and Tyre, Egypt, Assyria, + and Babylon, serve in their turn as models for the picture of the + wicked nation. In the Apocalypse the ancient picture is adapted to + new circumstances, and the City of the Seven Hills takes the place + of Babylon. Modern prophets have further adapted the treatment of + the subject to their own times, and for the most part to their own + people. With stern and uncompromising patriotism, Carlyle and + Ruskin have sought righteousness for England even at the expense of + its reputation; they have emphasised its sin and selfishness in + order to produce repentance and reform. For other teachers the + history of foreign peoples has furnished the picture of the wicked + nation, and the France of the Revolution or the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“unspeakable”</span> Turk has been held up as an + example of all that is abominable in national life.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Any detailed + treatment of this theme in Scripture would need an exposition, not + merely of Chronicles, but of the whole Bible. We may, however, make + one general application of the chronicler's principle that the + wicked nation is the nation that forgets God. We do not now measure + a people's religion by the number and magnificence of its priests + and churches, or by the amount of money devoted to the maintenance + of public worship. The most fatal symptoms of national depravity + are the absence of a healthy public opinion, indifference to + character in politics, neglect of education as a means of + developing character, and the stifling of the spirit of brotherhood + in a desperate struggle for existence. When God is thus forgotten, + and the gracious influences of His Spirit are no longer recognised + in public and private life, a country may well be degraded into the + ranks of the wicked nations.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page215">[pg 215]</span><a name="Pg215" id="Pg215" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The perfectly + general terms in which the doings and experiences of Ahaz are + described facilitate the application of their warnings to the + ordinary individual. His royal station only appears in the form and + scale of his wickedness, which in its essence is common to him with + the humblest sinner. Every young man enters, like Ahaz, upon a + royal inheritance; character and career are as all-important to a + peasant or a shopgirl as they are to an emperor or a queen. When a + girl of seventeen or a youth of twenty succeeds to some historic + throne, we are moved to think of the heavy burden of responsibility + laid upon inexperienced shoulders and of the grave issues that must + be determined during the swiftly passing years of their early + manhood and womanhood. Alas, this heavy burden and these grave + issues are but the common lot. The young sovereign is happy in the + fierce light that beats upon his throne, for he is not allowed to + forget the dignity and importance of life. History, with its + stories of good and wicked kings, has obviously been written for + his instruction; if the time be out of joint, as it mostly is, he + has been born to set it right. It is all true, yet it is equally + true for every one of his subjects. His lot is only the common lot + set upon a hill, in the full sunlight, to illustrate, interpret, + and influence lower and obscurer lives. People take such eager + interest in the doings of royal families, their christenings, + weddings, and funerals, because therein the common experience is, + as it were, glorified into adequate dignity and importance.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and + he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem”</span>; but most men and + women begin to reign before they are twenty. The history of Judah + for those sixteen years was really determined long before Ahaz was + invested with crown <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page216">[pg + 216]</span><a name="Pg216" id="Pg216" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + and sceptre. Men should all be educated to reign, to respect + themselves and appreciate their opportunities. We do in some + measure adopt this principle with promising lads. Their energies + are stimulated by the prospect of making a fortune or a name, or + the more soaring imagination dreams of a seat on the woolsack or on + one of the Front Benches. Gifted girls are also encouraged, as + becomes their gifts, to achieve a brilliant marriage or a popular + novel. We need to apply the principle more consistently and to + recognise the royal dignity of the average life and of those whom + the superior person is pleased to call commonplace people. It may + then be possible to induce the ordinary young man to take a serious + interest in his own future. The stress laid on the sanctity and + supreme value of the individual soul has always been a vital + element of evangelical teaching; like most other evangelical + truths, it is capable of deeper meaning and wider application than + are commonly recognised in systematic theology.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have kept our + sovereign waiting too long on the threshold of his kingdom; his + courtiers and his people are impatient to know the character and + intentions of their new master. So with every heir who succeeds to + his royal inheritance. The fortunes of millions may depend upon the + will of some young Czar or Kaiser; the happiness of a hundred + tenants or of a thousand workmen may rest on the disposition of the + youthful inheritor of a wide estate or a huge factory; but none the + less in the poorest cottage mother and father and friends wait with + trembling anxiety to see how the boy or girl will <span class= + "tei tei-q">“turn out”</span> when they take their destinies into + their own hands and begin to reign. Already perhaps some tender + maiden watches in hope and fear, in mingled pride and misgiving, + the rapidly unfolding <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page217">[pg + 217]</span><a name="Pg217" id="Pg217" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + character of the youth to whom she has promised to commit all the + happiness of a life-time.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And to each one + in turn there comes the choice of Hercules; according to the + chronicler's phrase, the young king may either <span class= + "tei tei-q">“do right in the eyes of Jehovah, like David his + father,”</span> or he may walk <span class="tei tei-q">“in the ways + of the kings of Israel, and make molten images for the + Baals.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The <span class= + "tei tei-q">“right doings of David his father”</span> may point to + family traditions, which set a high standard of noble conduct for + each succeeding generation. The teaching and influence of the pious + Jotham are represented by the example of godliness set in many a + Christian home, by the wise and loving counsel of parents and + friends. And Ahaz has many modern parallels, sons and daughters + upon whom every good influence seems spent in vain. They are led + astray into the ways of the kings of Israel, and make molten images + for the Baals. There were several dynasties of the kings of Israel, + and the Baals were many and various; there are many tempters who + deliberately or unconsciously lay snares for souls, and they serve + different powers of evil. Israel was for the most part more + powerful, wealthy, and cultured than Judah. When Ahaz came to the + throne as a mere youth, Pekah was apparently in the prime of life + and the zenith of power. He is no inapt symbol of what the modern + tempter at any rate desires to appear: the showy, pretentious man + of the world, who parades his knowledge of life, and impresses the + inexperienced youth with his shrewdness and success, and makes his + victim eager to imitate him, to walk in the ways of the kings of + Israel.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Moreover, the + prospect of making molten images for the Baals is an insidious + temptation. Ahaz perhaps <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page218">[pg + 218]</span><a name="Pg218" id="Pg218" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + found the decorous worship of the one God dull and monotonous. + Baals meant new gods and new rites, with all the excitement of + novelty and variety. Jotham may not have realised that this youth + of twenty was a man: the heir-apparent may have been treated as a + child and left too much to the women of the harem. Responsible + activity might have saved Ahaz. The Church needs to recognise that + healthy, vigorous youth craves interesting occupation and even + excitement. If a father wishes to send his son to the devil, he + cannot do better than make that son's life, both secular and + religious, a routine of monotonous drudgery. Then any pinchbeck + king of Israel will seem a marvel of wit and good fellowship, and + the making of molten images a most pleasing diversion. A molten + image is something solid, permanent, and conspicuous, a standing + advertisement of the enterprise and artistic taste of the maker; he + engraves his name on the pedestal, and is proud of the honourable + distinction. Many of our modern molten images are duly set forth in + popular works, for instance the reputation for impure life, or hard + drinking, or reckless gambling, to achieve which some men have + spent their time, and money, and toil. Other molten images are + dedicated to another class of Baals: Mammon the respectable and + Belial the polite.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The next step in + the history of Ahaz is also typical of many a rake's progress. The + king of Israel, in whose ways he has walked, turns upon him and + plunders him; the experienced man of the world gives his pupil + painful proof of his superiority, and calls in his confederates to + share the spoil. Now surely the victim's eyes will be opened to the + life he is leading and the character of his associates. By no + means. Ahaz has been conquered by Syria, and therefore <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page219">[pg 219]</span><a name="Pg219" id="Pg219" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> he will worship the gods of Syria, and + he will have a confederate of his own in the Assyrian king. The + victim tries to master the arts by which he has been robbed and + ill-treated; he will become as unscrupulous as his masters in + wickedness. He seeks the profit and distinction of being the + accomplice of bold and daring sinners, men as pre-eminent in evil + as Tilgath-pilneser in Western Asia; and they, like the Assyrian + king, take his money and accept his flattery: they use him and then + cast him off more humiliated and desperate than ever. He sinks into + a prey of meaner scoundrels: the Edomites and Philistines of fast + life; and then, in his extremity, he builds new high places and + sacrifices to more new gods; he has recourse to all the shifty + expedients and sordid superstitions of the devotees of luck and + chance.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">All this while + he has still paid some external homage to religion; he has observed + the conventions of honour and good breeding. There have been + services, as it were, in the temple of Jehovah. Now he begins to + feel that this deference has not met with an adequate reward; he + has been no better treated than the flagrantly disreputable: + indeed, these men have often got the better of him. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“It is vain to serve God; what profit is there in + keeping His charge and in walking mournfully before the Lord of + hosts? The proud are called happy; they that work wickedness are + built up: they tempt God, and are delivered.”</span> His moods + vary; and, with reckless inconsistency, he sometimes derides + religion as worthless and unmeaning, and sometimes seeks to make + God responsible for his sins and misfortunes. At one time he says + he knows all about religion and has seen through it; he was brought + up to pious ways, and his mature judgment has shown <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page220">[pg 220]</span><a name="Pg220" id="Pg220" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> him that piety is a delusion; he will + no longer countenance its hypocrisy and cant: at another time he + complains that he has been exposed to special temptations and has + not been provided with special safeguards; the road that leads to + life has been made too steep and narrow, and he has been allowed + without warning and remonstrance to tread <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the primrose path that leads to the everlasting + bonfire”</span>; he will cast off altogether the dull formalities + and irksome restraints of religion; he will work wickedness with a + proud heart and a high hand. His happiness and success have been + hindered by pedantic scruples; now he will be built up and + delivered from his troubles. He gets rid of the few surviving + relics of the old honourable life. The service of prayer and praise + ceases; the lamp of truth is put out; the incense of holy thought + no longer perfumes the soul; and the temple of the Spirit is left + empty, and dark, and desolate.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">At last, in what + should be the prime of manhood, the sinner, broken-hearted, worn + out in mind and body, sinks into a dishonoured grave.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The career and + fate of Ahaz may have other parallels besides this, but it is + sufficiently clear that the chronicler's picture of the wicked king + is no mere antiquarian study of a vanished past. It lends itself + with startling facility to illustrate the fatal downward course of + any man who, entering on the royal inheritance of human life, + allies himself with the powers of darkness and finally becomes + their slave.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page221">[pg 221]</span><a name= + "Pg221" id="Pg221" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc43" id="toc43"></a> <a name="pdf44" id="pdf44"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter VIII. The + Priests.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The Israelite + priesthood must be held to include the Levites. Their functions and + status differed from those of the house of Aaron in degree, and not + in kind. They formed a hereditary caste set apart for the service + of the sanctuary, and as such they shared the revenues of the + Temple with the sons of Aaron. The priestly character of the + Levites is more than once implied in Chronicles. After the + disruption, we are told that <span class="tei tei-q">“the priests + and the Levites that were in all Israel resorted to + Rehoboam,”</span> because <span class="tei tei-q">“Jeroboam and his + sons cast them off, that they should not exercise the priest's + office unto Jehovah.”</span> On an emergency, as at Hezekiah's + great feast at the reopening of the Temple, the Levites might even + discharge priestly functions. Moreover, the chronicler seems to + recognise the priestly character of the whole tribe of Levi by + retaining in a similar connection the old phrase <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the priests the Levites.”</span><a id="noteref_263" + name="noteref_263" href="#note_263"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">263</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The relation of + the Levites to the priests, the sons of Aaron, was not that of + laymen to clergy, but of an inferior clerical order to their + superiors. When <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page222">[pg + 222]</span><a name="Pg222" id="Pg222" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Charlotte Brontë has occasion to devote a chapter to curates, she + heads it <span class="tei tei-q">“Levitical.”</span> The Levites, + again, like deacons in the Church of England, were forbidden to + perform the most sacred ritual of Divine service. Technically their + relation to the sons of Aaron might be compared to that of deacons + to priests or of priests to bishops. From the point of view of + numbers,<a id="noteref_264" name="noteref_264" href= + "#note_264"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">264</span></span></a> + revenues, and social standing, the sons of Aaron might be compared + to the dignitaries of the Church: archbishops, bishops, + archdeacons, deans, and incumbents of livings with large incomes + and little work; while the Levites would correspond to the more + moderately paid and fully occupied clergy. Thus the nature of the + distinction between the priests and the Levites shows that they + were essentially only two grades of the same order; and this + corresponds roughly to what has been generally denoted by the term + <span class="tei tei-q">“priesthood.”</span> Priest-hood, however, + had a more limited meaning in Israel than in later times. In some + branches of the Christian Church, the priests exercise or claim to + exercise functions which in Israel belonged to the prophets or the + king.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Before + considering the central and essential idea of the priest as a + minister of public worship, we will notice some of his minor + duties. We have seen that the sanctity of civil government is + emphasised by the religious supremacy of the king; the same truth + is also illustrated by the fact that the priests and Levites were + sometimes the king's officers for civil affairs. Under David, + certain Levites of Hebron are spoken of as having the oversight of + all Israel, both east and <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page223">[pg + 223]</span><a name="Pg223" id="Pg223" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + west of Jordan, not only <span class="tei tei-q">“for all the + business of Jehovah,”</span> but also <span class="tei tei-q">“for + the service of the king.”</span><a id="noteref_265" name= + "noteref_265" href="#note_265"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">265</span></span></a> The + business of the law-courts was recognised by Jehoshaphat as the + judgment of Jehovah, and accordingly amongst the judges there were + priests and Levites.<a id="noteref_266" name="noteref_266" href= + "#note_266"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">266</span></span></a> + Similarly the mediæval governments often found their most efficient + and trustworthy administrators in the bishops and clergy, and were + glad to reinforce their secular authority by the sanction of the + Church; and even to-day bishops sit in Parliament: incumbents + preside over vestries, and sometimes act as county magistrates. But + the interest of religion in civil government is most manifest in + the moral influence exercised unofficially by earnest and + public-spirited ministers of all denominations.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler + refers more than once to the educational work of the priests, and + especially of the Levites. The English version probably gives his + real meaning when it attributes to him the phrase <span class= + "tei tei-q">“teaching priest.”</span><a id="noteref_267" name= + "noteref_267" href="#note_267"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">267</span></span></a> + Jehoshaphat's educational commission was largely composed of + priests and Levites, and Levites are spoken of as scribes. Jewish + education was largely religious, and naturally fell into the hands + of the priesthood, just as the learning of Egypt and Babylon was + chiefly in the hands of priests and magi. The Christian ministry + maintained the ancient traditions: the monasteries were the homes + of mediæval learning, and till recently England and Scotland mainly + owed their schools to the Churches, and almost all schoolmasters of + any position were in holy orders—priests and Levites. <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page224">[pg 224]</span><a name="Pg224" id="Pg224" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Under our new educational system the + free choice of the people places many ministers of religion on the + school boards.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The next + characteristic of the priesthood is not so much in accordance with + Christian theory and practice. The house of Aaron and the tribe of + Levi were a Church militant in a very literal sense. In the + beginning of their history the tribe of Levi earned the blessing of + Jehovah by the pious zeal with which they flew to arms in His cause + and executed His judgment upon their guilty + fellow-countrymen.<a id="noteref_268" name="noteref_268" href= + "#note_268"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">268</span></span></a> Later + on, when <span class="tei tei-q">“Israel joined himself unto + Baal-peor, and the anger of Jehovah was kindled against + Israel,”</span><a id="noteref_269" name="noteref_269" href= + "#note_269"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">269</span></span></a> then + stood up Phinehas, <span class="tei tei-q">“the ancestor of the + house of Zadok,”</span> and executed judgment.</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">And so + the plague was stayed,</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">And that was counted unto him + for righteousness</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">Unto all generations for + evermore.</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span><a id="noteref_270" name= + "noteref_270" href="#note_270"><span class="tei tei-noteref" + style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">270</span></span></a> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But the militant + character of the priesthood was not confined to its early history. + Amongst those who <span class="tei tei-q">“came armed for war to + David to Hebron to turn the kingdom of Saul to him, according to + the word of Jehovah,”</span> were four thousand six hundred of the + children of Levi and three thousand seven hundred of the house of + Aaron, <span class="tei tei-q">“and Zadok, a young man mighty of + valour, and twenty-two captains of his father's + house.”</span><a id="noteref_271" name="noteref_271" href= + "#note_271"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">271</span></span></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“The third captain of David's army for the + third month was Benaiah the son of Jehoiada the + priest.”</span><a id="noteref_272" name="noteref_272" href= + "#note_272"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">272</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">David's + Hebronite overseers were all <span class="tei tei-q">“mighty men of + valour.”</span> When Judah went out to war, the trumpets + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page225">[pg 225]</span><a name= + "Pg225" id="Pg225" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of the priests gave + the signal for battle<a id="noteref_273" name="noteref_273" href= + "#note_273"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">273</span></span></a>; when + the high-priest Jehoiada recovered the kingdom for Joash, the + Levites compassed the king round about, every man with his weapons + in his hand<a id="noteref_274" name="noteref_274" href= + "#note_274"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">274</span></span></a>; when + Nehemiah rebuilt the wall of Jerusalem, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“every one with one of his hands wrought in the work, + and with the other held his weapon,”</span><a id="noteref_275" + name="noteref_275" href="#note_275"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">275</span></span></a> and + amongst the rest the priests. Later on, when Jehovah delivered + Israel from the hand of Antiochus Epiphanes, the priestly family of + the Maccabees, in the spirit of their ancestor Phinehas, fought and + died for the Law and the Temple. There were priestly soldiers as + well as priestly generals, for we read how <span class= + "tei tei-q">“at that time certain priests, desirous to show their + valour, were slain in battle, for that they went out to fight + inadvisedly.”</span><a id="noteref_276" name="noteref_276" href= + "#note_276"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">276</span></span></a> In + the Jewish war the priest Josephus was Jewish commander in + Galilee.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Christianity has + aroused a new sentiment with regard to war. We believe that the + servant of the Lord must not strive in earthly battles. Arms may be + lawful for the Christian citizen, but it is felt to be unseemly + that the ministers who are the ambassadors of the Prince of Peace + should themselves be men of blood. Even in the Middle Ages fighting + prelates like Odo, Bishop of Bayeux, were felt to be exceptional + anomalies; and the prince-bishops and electoral archbishops were + often ecclesiastics only in name. To-day the Catholic Church in + France resents the conscription of its seminarists as an act of + vindictive persecution.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And yet the + growth of Christian sentiment in favour <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page226">[pg 226]</span><a name="Pg226" id="Pg226" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> of peace has not prevented the occasional + combination of the soldier and the ecclesiastic. If Islam has had + its armies of dervishes, Cyril's monks fought for orthodoxy at + Alexandria and at Constantinople with all the ferocity of wild + beasts. The Crusaders, the Templars, the Knights of St. John, were + in varying degrees partly priests and partly soldiers. Cromwell's + Ironsides, when they were wielding carnal weapons in their own + defence or in any other good cause, were as expert as any Levites + at exhortations and psalms and prayers; and in our own day certain + generals and admirals are fond of playing the amateur ecclesiastic. + In this, as in so much else, while we deny the form of Judaism, we + retain its spirit. Havelock and Gordon were no unworthy successors + of the Maccabees.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The + characteristic function, however, of the Jewish priesthood was + their ministry in public worship, in which they represented the + people before Jehovah. In this connection public worship does not + necessarily imply that the public were present, or that the worship + in question was the united act of a great assembly. Such + worshipping assemblies were not uncommon, especially at the feasts; + but ordinary public worship was worship on behalf of the people, + not by the people. The priests and Levites were part of an + elaborate system of symbolic ritual. Worshippers might gather in + the Temple courts, but the Temple itself was not a place in which + public meetings for worship were held, and the people were not + admitted into it. The Temple was Jehovah's house, and His presence + there was symbolised by the Ark. In this system of ritual the + priests and Levites represented Israel; their sacrifices and + ministrations were the acceptable offerings of the nation to God. + If the sacrifices were duly offered by <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page227">[pg 227]</span><a name="Pg227" id="Pg227" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> the priests <span class= + "tei tei-q">“according to all that was written in the law of + Jehovah, and if the priests with trumpets and the Levites with + psalteries, and harps, and cymbals duly ministered before the ark + of Jehovah to celebrate, and thank, and praise Jehovah, the God of + Israel,”</span> then the Divine service of Israel was fully + performed. The whole people could not be regularly present at a + single sanctuary, nor would they be adequately represented by the + inhabitants of Jerusalem and casual visitors from the rest of the + country. Three times a year the nation was fully and naturally + represented by those who came up to the feasts, but usually the + priests and Levites stood in their place.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">When an assembly + gathered for public worship at a feast or any other time, the + priests and Levites expressed the devotion of the people. They + performed the sacrificial rites, they blew the trumpets and played + upon the psalteries, and harps, and cymbals, and sang the praises + of Jehovah. The people were dismissed by the priestly blessing. + When an individual offered a sacrifice as an act of private + worship, the assistance of the priests and Levites was still + necessary. At the same time the king as well as the priesthood + might lead the people in praise and prayer, and the Temple psalmody + was not confined to the Levitical choir. When the Ark was brought + away from Kirjath-jearim, <span class="tei tei-q">“David and all + Israel played before God with all their might, even with songs, and + with harps, and with psalteries, and with timbrels, and with + cymbals, and with trumpets”</span>; and when at last the Ark had + been safely housed in Jerusalem, and the due sacrifices had all + been offered, David dismissed the people in priestly fashion by + blessing them in the name of Jehovah.<a id="noteref_277" name= + "noteref_277" href="#note_277"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">277</span></span></a> At + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page228">[pg 228]</span><a name= + "Pg228" id="Pg228" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the two solemn + assemblies which celebrated the beginning and the close of the + great enterprise of building the Temple, public prayer was offered, + not by the priests, but by David<a id="noteref_278" name= + "noteref_278" href="#note_278"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">278</span></span></a> and + Solomon.<a id="noteref_279" name="noteref_279" href= + "#note_279"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">279</span></span></a> + Similarly Jehoshaphat led the prayers of the Jews when they + gathered to seek deliverance from the invading Moabites and + Ammonites. Hezekiah at his great passover both exhorted the people + and interceded for them, and Jehovah accepted his intercession; but + on this occasion, when the festival was over, it was not the king, + but <span class="tei tei-q">“the priests the Levites,”</span><a id= + "noteref_280" name="noteref_280" href="#note_280"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">280</span></span></a> who + <span class="tei tei-q">“arose and blessed the people: and their + voice was heard, and their prayer came up to His holy habitation, + even unto heaven.”</span> In the descriptions of Hezekiah's and + Josiah's festivals, the orchestra and choir, of course, are busy + with the music and singing; otherwise the main duty of the priests + and Levites is to sacrifice. In his graphic account of Josiah's + passover, the chronicler no doubt reproduces on a larger scale the + busy scenes in which he himself had often taken part. The king, the + princes, and the chiefs of the Levites had provided between them + thirty-seven thousand six hundred lambs and kids and three thousand + eight hundred oxen for sacrifices; and the resources of the + establishment of the Temple were taxed to the utmost. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“So the service was prepared, and the priests stood in + their place, and the Levites by the courses, according to the + king's commandment. And they killed the passover, and the priests + sprinkled the blood, which they received of their hand, and the + Levites flayed the sacrifices. And they removed the burnt + offerings, that they might give them <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page229">[pg 229]</span><a name="Pg229" id="Pg229" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> according to the divisions of the fathers' + houses of the children of the people, to offer unto Jehovah, as it + is written in the law of Moses; and so they did with the oxen. And + they roasted the passover according to the ordinance; and they + boiled the holy offerings in pots, and caldrons, and pans, and + carried them quickly to all the children of the people. And + afterward they prepared for themselves and for the priests, because + the priests the sons of Aaron were busied in offering the burnt + offerings and the fat until night; therefore the Levites prepared + for themselves and for the priests the sons of Aaron. And the + singers were in their place, and the porters were at their several + gates; they needed not to depart from their service, for their + brethren the Levites prepared for them. So all the service of + Jehovah was prepared the same day, to keep the passover, and to + offer burnt offerings upon the altar of Jehovah.”</span><a id= + "noteref_281" name="noteref_281" href="#note_281"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">281</span></span></a> Thus + even in the accounts of great public gatherings for worship the + main duty of the priests and Levites is to perform the sacrifices. + The music and singing naturally fall into their hands, because the + necessary training is only possible to a professional choir. + Otherwise the now symbolic portions of the service, prayer, + exhortation, and blessing, were not exclusively reserved to + ecclesiastics.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The priesthood, + like the Ark, the Temple, and the ritual, belonged essentially to + the system of religious symbolism. This was their peculiar domain, + into which no outsider might intrude. Only the Levites could touch + the Ark. When the unhappy Uzzah <span class="tei tei-q">“put forth + his hand to the Ark,”</span> <span class="tei tei-q">“the anger of + Jehovah was kindled against him; and he smote Uzzah so that he + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page230">[pg 230]</span><a name= + "Pg230" id="Pg230" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> died there before + God.”</span><a id="noteref_282" name="noteref_282" href= + "#note_282"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">282</span></span></a> The + king might offer up public prayer; but when Uzziah ventured to go + into the Temple to burn incense upon the altar of incense, leprosy + broke forth in his forehead, and the priests thrust him out quickly + from the Temple.<a id="noteref_283" name="noteref_283" href= + "#note_283"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">283</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus the + symbolic and representative character of the priesthood and ritual + gave the sacrifices and other ceremonies a value in themselves, + apart alike from the presence of worshippers and the feelings or + <span class="tei tei-q">“intention”</span> of the officiating + minister. They were the provision made by Israel for the expression + of its prayer, its penitence and thanksgiving. When sin had + estranged Jehovah from His people, the sons of Aaron made atonement + for Israel; they performed the Divinely appointed ritual by which + the nation made submission to its offended King and cast itself + upon His mercy. The Jewish sacrifices had features which have + survived in the sacrifice of the Mass, and the multiplication of + sacrifices arose from motives similar to those that lead to the + offering up of many masses.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">One would + expect, as has happened in the Christian Church, that the + ministrants of the symbolic ritual would annex the other acts of + public worship, not only praise, but also prayer and exhortation. + Considerations of convenience would suggest such an amalgamation of + functions; and among the priests, while the more ambitious would + see in preaching a means of extending their authority, the more + earnest would be anxious to use their unique position to promote + the spiritual life of the people. Chronicles, however, affords few + traces of any such tendency; and the great scene in the book of + Nehemiah in which Ezra and the <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page231">[pg 231]</span><a name="Pg231" id="Pg231" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> Levites expound the Law had no connection + with the Temple and its ritual. The development of the Temple + service was checked by its exclusive privileges; it was simply + impossible that the single sanctuary should continue to provide for + all the religious wants of the Jews, and thus supplementary and + inferior places of worship grew up to appropriate the non-ritual + elements of service. Probably even in the chronicler's time the + division of religious services between the Temple and the synagogue + had already begun, with the result that the representative and + symbolic character of the priesthood is almost exclusively + emphasised.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The + representative character of the priesthood has another aspect. + Strictly the priest represented the nation before Jehovah; but in + doing so it was inevitable that he should also in some measure + represent Jehovah to the nation. He could not be the channel of + worship offered to God without being also the channel of Divine + grace to man. From the priest the worshipper learnt the will of God + as to correct ritual, and received the assurance that the atoning + sacrifice was duly accepted. The high-priest entered within the + veil to make atonement for Israel; he came forth as the bearer of + Divine forgiveness and renewed grace, and as he blessed the people + he spoke in the name of Jehovah. We have been able to discern the + presence of these ideas in Chronicles, but they are not very + conspicuous. The chronicler was not a layman; he was too familiar + with priests to feel any profound reverence for them. On the other + hand, he was not himself a priest, but was specially preoccupied + with the musicians, the Levites, and the doorkeepers; so that + probably he does not give us an adequate idea of the relative + dignity of the priests and the honour in which they were held by + the <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page232">[pg 232]</span><a name= + "Pg232" id="Pg232" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> people. Organists + and choirmasters, it is said, seldom take an exalted view of their + minister's office.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler + deals more fully with a matter in which priests and Levites were + alike interested: the revenues of the Temple. He was doubtless + aware of the bountiful provision made by the Law for his order, and + loved to hold up this liberality of kings, princes, and people in + ancient days for his contemporaries to admire and imitate. He + records again and again the tens of thousands of sheep and oxen + provided for sacrifice, not altogether unmindful of the rich dues + that must have accrued to the priests out of all this abundance; he + tells us how Hezekiah first set the good example of appointing + <span class="tei tei-q">“a portion of his substance for the burnt + offerings,”</span> and then <span class="tei tei-q">“commanded the + people that dwelt at Jerusalem to give the portion of the priests + and the Levites that they might give themselves to the law of the + Lord. And as soon as the commandment came abroad the children of + Israel gave in abundance the first-fruits of corn, wine, and oil, + and honey, and of all the increase of the field; and the tithe of + all things brought they in abundantly.”</span><a id="noteref_284" + name="noteref_284" href="#note_284"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">284</span></span></a> These + were the days of old, the ancient years when the offering of Judah + and Jerusalem was pleasant to Jehovah; when the people neither + dared nor desired to offer on God's altar a scanty tale of blind, + lame, and sick victims; when the tithes were not kept back, and + there was meat in the house of God<a id="noteref_285" name= + "noteref_285" href="#note_285"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">285</span></span></a>; + when, as Hezekiah's high-priest testified, they could eat and have + enough and yet leave plenty.<a id="noteref_286" name="noteref_286" + href="#note_286"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">286</span></span></a> The + manner in which the chronicler tells the tale of ancient abundance + suggests that his days were like the days <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page233">[pg 233]</span><a name="Pg233" id="Pg233" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> of Malachi. He was no pampered ecclesiastic, + revelling in present wealth and luxury, but a man who suffered hard + times, and looked back wistfully to the happier experiences of his + predecessors.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Let us now + restore the complete picture of the chronicler's priest from his + scattered references to the subject. The priest represents the + nation before Jehovah, and in a less degree represents Jehovah to + the nation; he leads their public worship, especially at the great + festal gatherings; he teaches the people the Law. The high + character, culture, and ability of the priests and Levites + occasions their employment as judges and in other responsible civil + offices. If occasion required, they could show themselves mighty + men of valour in their country's wars. Under pious kings, they + enjoyed ample revenues which gave them independence, added to their + importance in the eyes of the people, and left them at leisure to + devote themselves exclusively to their sacred duties.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In considering + the significance of this picture, we can pass over without special + notice the exercise by priests and Levites of the functions of + leadership in public worship, teaching, and civil government. They + are not essential to the priesthood, but are entirely consistent + with the tenure of the priestly office, and naturally become + associated with it. Warlike prowess was certainly no part of the + priesthood; but, whatever may be true of Christian ministers, it is + difficult to charge the priests of the Lord of hosts with + inconsistency because, like Jehovah Himself, they were men of + war<a id="noteref_287" name="noteref_287" href= + "#note_287"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">287</span></span></a> and + went forth to battle in the armies of Israel. When a nation was + continually fighting for its <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page234">[pg 234]</span><a name="Pg234" id="Pg234" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> very existence, it was impossible for one + tribe out of the twelve to be non-combatant.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">With regard to + the representative character of the priests, it would be out of + place here to enter upon the burning questions of sacerdotalism; + but we may briefly point out the permanent truth underlying the + ancient idea of the priesthood. The ideal spiritual life in every + Church is one of direct fellowship between God and the + believer.</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">Speak + to Him, thou, for He hears, and spirit with spirit can + meet;</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">Closer is He than breathing, and nearer than + hands and feet.</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And yet a man + may be truly religious and not realise this ideal, or only realise + it very imperfectly. The gift of an intense and real spiritual life + may belong to the humblest and poorest, to men of little intellect + and less learning; but, none the less, it is not within the + immediate reach of every believer, or indeed of any believer at + every time. The descendants of Mr. Little-faith and Mr. + Ready-to-halt are amongst us still, and there is no immediate + prospect of their race becoming extinct. Times come when we are all + glad to put ourselves under the safe conduct of Mr. Great-heart. + There are many whose prayers seem to themselves too feebly winged + to rise to the throne of grace; they are encouraged and helped when + their petitions are borne upwards on the strong pinions of + another's faith. George Eliot has pictured the Florentines as awed + spectators of Savonarola's audiences with Heaven. To a congregation + sometimes the minister's prayers are a sacred and solemn spectacle; + his spiritual feeling is beyond them; he intercedes for blessings + they neither desire nor understand; they miss the heavenly vision + which stirs his soul. He is not their spokesman, but <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page235">[pg 235]</span><a name="Pg235" id="Pg235" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> their priest; he has entered the holy + place, bearing with him the sins that crave forgiveness, the fears + that beg for deliverance, the hopes that yearn to be fulfilled. + Though the people may remain in the outer court, yet they are fully + assured that he has passed into the very presence of God. They + listen to him as to one who has had actual speech with the King and + received the assurance of His goodwill towards them. When the + vanguard of the Ten Thousand first sighted the Euxine, the cry of + <span class="tei tei-q">“Thalassa! Thalassa!”</span> (<span class= + "tei tei-q">“The sea! the sea!”</span>) rolled backward along the + line of march; the rearguard saw the long-hoped-for sight with the + eyes of the pioneers. Much unnecessary self-reproach would be + avoided if we accepted this as one of God's methods of spiritual + education, and understood that we all have in a measure to + experience this discipline in humility. The priesthood of the + believer is not merely his right to enter for himself into the + immediate presence of God: it becomes his duty and privilege to + represent others. But times will also come when he himself will + need the support of a priestly intercession in the Divine + presence-chamber, when he will seek out some one of quick sympathy + and strong faith and say, <span class="tei tei-q">“Brother, pray + for me.”</span> Apart from any ecclesiastical theory of the + priesthood, we all recognise that there are God-ordained priests, + men and women, who can inspire dull souls with a sense of the + Divine presence and bring to the sinful and the struggling the + assurance of Divine forgiveness and help. If one in ten among the + official priests of the historic Churches had possessed these + supreme gifts, the world would have accepted the most extravagant + sacerdotalism without a murmur. As it is, every minister, every one + who leads the worship of a congregation, assumes for the time being + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page236">[pg 236]</span><a name= + "Pg236" id="Pg236" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> functions and should + possess the corresponding qualifications. In his prayers he speaks + for the people; he represents them before God; on their behalf he + enters into the Divine presence; they only enter with him, if, as + their spokesman and representative, he has grasped their feelings + and raised them to the level of Divine fellowship. He may be an + untutored labourer in his working garments; but if he can do this, + this spiritual gift makes him a priest of God. But this Christian + priesthood is not confined to public service; as the priest offered + sacrifice for the individual Jew, so the man of spiritual + sympathies helps the individual to draw near his Maker. + <span class="tei tei-q">“To pray with people”</span> is a + well-known ministry of Christian service, and it involves this + priestly function of presenting another's prayers to God. This + priesthood for individuals is exercised by many a Christian who has + no gifts of public utterance.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The ancient + priest held a representative position in a symbolic ritual, a + position partly independent of his character and spiritual powers. + Where symbolic ritual is best suited for popular needs, there may + be room for a similar priesthood to-day. Otherwise the Christian + priesthood is required to represent the people not in symbol, but + in reality, to carry not the blood of dead victims into a material + Holy of holies, but living souls into the heavenly temple.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There remains + one feature of the Jewish priestly system upon which the chronicler + lays great stress: the endowments and priestly dues. In the case of + the high-priest and the Levites, whose whole time was devoted to + sacred duties, it was obviously necessary that those who served the + altar should live by the altar. The same principle would apply, but + with much less force, to the twenty-four courses of priests, each + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page237">[pg 237]</span><a name= + "Pg237" id="Pg237" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of which in its turn + officiated at the Temple. But, apart from the needs of the + priesthood, their representative character demanded that they + should be able to maintain a certain state. They were the + ambassadors of Israel to Jehovah. Nations have always been anxious + that the equipment and suite of their representative at a foreign + court should be worthy of their power and wealth; moreover, the + splendour of an embassy should be in proportion to the rank of the + sovereign to whom it is accredited. In former times, when the + social symbols were held of more account, a first-rate power would + have felt itself insulted if asked to receive an envoy of inferior + rank, attended by only a meagre train. Israel, by her lavish + endowment of the priesthood, consulted her own dignity and + expressed her sense of the homage due to Jehovah. The Jews could + not express their devotion in the same way as other nations. They + had to be content with a single sanctuary, and might not build a + multitude of magnificent temples or adorn their cities with + splendid, costly statues in honour of God. There were limits to + their expenditure upon the sacrifices and buildings of the Temple; + but the priesthood offered a large opportunity for pious + generosity. The chronicler felt that loyal enthusiasm to Jehovah + would always use this opportunity, and that the priests might + consent to accept the distinction of wealth and splendour for the + honour alike of Israel and Jehovah. Their dignity was not personal + to themselves, but rather the livery of a self-effacing servitude. + For the honour of the Church, Thomas à Becket kept up a great + establishment, appeared in his robes of office, and entertained a + crowd of guests with luxurious fare; while he himself wore a hair + shirt next his skin and fasted like an ascetic <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page238">[pg 238]</span><a name="Pg238" id="Pg238" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> monk. When the Jews stinted the ritual + or the ministrants of Jehovah, they were doing what they could to + put Him to open shame before the nations. Julian's experience in + the grove of Daphne at Antioch was a striking illustration of the + collapse of paganism: the imperial champion of the ancient gods + must have felt his heart sink within him when he was welcomed to + that once splendid sanctuary by one shabby priest dragging a + solitary and reluctant goose to the deserted altar. Similarly + Malachi saw that Israel's devotion to Jehovah was in danger of + dying out when men chose the refuse of their flocks and herds and + offered them grudgingly at the shrine.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The application + of these principles leads directly to the question of a paid + ministry; but the connection is not so close as it appears at first + sight, nor are we yet in possession of all the data which the + chronicler furnishes for its discussion. Priestly duties form an + essential, but not predominant, part of the work of most Christian + ministers. Still the loyal believer must always be anxious that the + buildings, the services, and the men which, for himself and for the + world, represent his devotion to Christ, should be worthy of their + high calling. But his ideas of the symbolism suitable for spiritual + realities are not altogether those of the chronicler: he is less + concerned with number, size, and weight, with tens of thousands of + sheep and oxen, vast quantities of stone and timber, brass and + iron, and innumerable talents of gold and silver. Moreover, in this + special connection the secondary priestly function of representing + God to man has been expressly transferred by Christ to the least of + His brethren. Those who wish to honour God with their substance in + the person of His earthly representatives are enjoined <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page239">[pg 239]</span><a name="Pg239" id="Pg239" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> to seek for them in hospitals, and + workhouses, and prisons, to find these representatives in the + hungry, the thirsty, the friendless, the naked, the captives. No + doubt Christ is dishonoured when those who dwell in <span class= + "tei tei-q">“houses of cedar”</span> are content to worship Him in + a mean, dirty church, with a half-starved minister; but the most + disgraceful proof of the Church's disloyalty to Christ is to be + seen in the squalor and misery of men, and women, and children + whose bodies were ordained of God to be the temples of His Holy + Spirit.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This is only one + among many illustrations of the truth that in Christ the symbolism + of religion took a new departure. His Church enjoys the spiritual + realities prefigured by the Jewish temple and its ministry. Even + where Christian symbols are parallel to those of Judaism, they are + less conventional and richer in their direct spiritual + suggestiveness.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page240">[pg 240]</span><a name= + "Pg240" id="Pg240" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc45" id="toc45"></a> <a name="pdf46" id="pdf46"></a> + <a name="Book_III_Chapter_IX" id="Book_III_Chapter_IX" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter IX. The Prophets.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">One remarkable + feature of Chronicles as compared with the book of Kings is the + greater interest shown by the former in the prophets of Judah. The + chronicler, by confining his attention to the southern kingdom, was + compelled to omit almost all reference to Elijah and Elisha, and + thus exclude from his work some of the most thrilling chapters in + the history of the prophets of Israel. Nevertheless the prophets as + a whole play almost as important a part in Chronicles as in the + book of Kings. Compensation is made for the omission of the two + great northern prophets by inserting accounts of several prophets + whose messages were addressed to the kings of Judah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler's + interest in the prophets was very different from the interest he + took in the priests and Levites. The latter belonged to the + institutions of his own time, and formed his own immediate circle. + In dealing with their past, he was reconstructing the history of + his own order; he was able to illustrate and supplement from + observation and experience the information afforded by his + sources.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But when the + chronicler wrote, prophets had ceased to be a living institution in + Judah. The light that had shone so brightly in Isaiah and Jeremiah + burned feebly in Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi, and then went out. + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page241">[pg 241]</span><a name= + "Pg241" id="Pg241" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Not long after the + chronicler's time the failure of prophecy is expressly recognised. + The people whose synagogues have been burnt up complain,—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">We see + not our signs;</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">There is no more any + prophet.</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span><a id="noteref_288" name= + "noteref_288" href="#note_288"><span class="tei tei-noteref" + style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">288</span></span></a> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">When Judas + Maccabæus appointed certain priests to cleanse the Temple after its + pollution by the Syrians, they pulled down the altar of burnt + offerings because the heathen had defiled it, and laid up the + stones in the mountain of the Temple in a convenient place, until + there should come a prophet to show what should be done with + them.<a id="noteref_289" name="noteref_289" href= + "#note_289"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">289</span></span></a> This + failure of prophecy was not merely brief and transient. It marked + the disappearance of the ancient order of prophets. A parallel case + shows how the Jews had become aware that the high-priest no longer + possessed the special gifts connected with the Urim and Thummim. + When certain priests could not find their genealogies, they were + forbidden <span class="tei tei-q">“to eat of the most holy things + till there stood up a priest with Urim and with + Thummim.”</span><a id="noteref_290" name="noteref_290" href= + "#note_290"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">290</span></span></a> We + have no record of any subsequent appearance of <span class= + "tei tei-q">“a priest with Urim and with Thummim”</span> or of any + prophet of the old order.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus the + chronicler had never seen a prophet; his conception of the + personality and office of the prophet was entirely based upon + ancient literature, and he took no professional interest in the + order. At the same time he had no prejudice against them; they had + no living successors to compete for influence and endowments + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page242">[pg 242]</span><a name= + "Pg242" id="Pg242" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> with the priests and + Levites. Possibly the Levites, as the chief religious teachers of + the people, claimed some sort of apostolic succession from the + prophets; but there are very slight grounds for any such theory. + The chronicler's information on the whole subject was that of a + scholar with a taste for antiquarian research.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Let us briefly + examine the part played by the prophets in the history of Judah as + given by Chronicles. We have first, as in the book of Kings, the + references to Nathan and Gad: they make known to David the will of + Jehovah as regards the building of the Temple and the punishment of + David's pride in taking the census of Israel. David unhesitatingly + accepts their messages as the word of Jehovah. It is important to + notice that when Nathan is consulted about building the Temple he + first answers, apparently giving a mere private opinion, + <span class="tei tei-q">“Do all that is in thine heart, for God is + with thee”</span>; but when <span class="tei tei-q">“the word of + God comes”</span> to him, he retracts his former judgment and + forbids David to build the Temple. Here again the plan of the + chronicler's work leads to an important omission: his silence as to + the murder of Uriah prevents him from giving the beautiful and + instructive account of the way in which Nathan rebuked the guilty + king. Later narratives exhibit other prophets in the act of + rebuking most of the kings of Judah, but none of these incidents + are equally striking and pathetic. At the end of the histories of + David and of most of the later kings we find notes which apparently + indicate that, in the chronicler's time, the prophets were credited + with having written the annals of the kings with whom they were + contemporary. In connection with Hezekiah's reformation we are + incidentally told that Nathan and Gad were associated with David in + making arrangements <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page243">[pg + 243]</span><a name="Pg243" id="Pg243" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + for the music of the Temple: <span class="tei tei-q">“He set the + Levites in the house of Jehovah, with cymbals, with psalteries, and + with harps, according to the commandment of David and of Gad the + king's seer and Nathan the prophet, for the commandment was of + Jehovah by His prophets.”</span><a id="noteref_291" name= + "noteref_291" href="#note_291"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">291</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In the account + of Solomon's reign, the chronicler omits the interview of Ahijah + the Shilonite with Jeroboam, but refers to it in the history of + Rehoboam. From this point, in accordance with his general plan, he + omits almost all missions of prophets to the northern kings.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In Rehoboam's + reign, we have recorded, as in the book of Kings, a message from + Jehovah by Shemaiah forbidding the king and his two tribes of Judah + and Benjamin to attempt to compel the northern tribes to return to + their allegiance to the house of David. Later on, when Shishak + invaded Judah, Shemaiah was commissioned to deliver to the king and + princes the message, <span class="tei tei-q">“Thus saith Jehovah: + Ye have forsaken Me; therefore have I also left you in the hand of + Shishak.”</span><a id="noteref_292" name="noteref_292" href= + "#note_292"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">292</span></span></a> But + when they repented and humbled themselves before Jehovah, Shemaiah + announced to them the mitigation of their punishment.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Asa's + reformation was due to the inspired exhortations of a prophet + called both Oded and Azariah the son of Oded. Later on Hanani the + seer rebuked the king for his alliance with Benhadad, king of + Syria. <span class="tei tei-q">“Then Asa was wroth with the seer, + and put him in the prison-house; for he was in a rage with him + because of this thing.”</span><a id="noteref_293" name= + "noteref_293" href="#note_293"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">293</span></span></a></p><span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page244">[pg 244]</span><a name="Pg244" id="Pg244" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Jehoshaphat's + alliance with Ahab and his consequent visit to Samaria enabled the + chronicler to introduce from the book of Kings the striking + narrative of Micaiah the son of Imlah; but this alliance with + Israel earned for the king the rebukes of Jehu the son of Hanani + the seer and Eliezar the son of Dodavahu of Mareshah. However, on + the occasion of the Moabite and Ammonite invasion Jehoshaphat and + his people received the promise of Divine deliverance from + <span class="tei tei-q">“Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, the son of + Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah the Levite, of the + sons of Asaph.”</span><a id="noteref_294" name="noteref_294" href= + "#note_294"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">294</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The punishment + of the wicked king Jehoram was announced to him by a <span class= + "tei tei-q">“writing from Elijah the prophet.”</span><a id= + "noteref_295" name="noteref_295" href="#note_295"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">295</span></span></a> His + son Ahaziah apparently perished without any prophetic warning; but + when Joash and his princes forsook the house of Jehovah and served + the Asherim and the idols, <span class="tei tei-q">“He sent + prophets to them to bring them again to Jehovah,”</span> among the + rest Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest. Joash turned a deaf + ear to the message, and put the prophet to death.<a id= + "noteref_296" name="noteref_296" href="#note_296"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">296</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">When Amaziah + bowed down before the gods of Edom and burned incense unto them, + Jehovah sent unto him a prophet whose name is not recorded. His + mission failed, like that of Zechariah the son of Jehoiada; and + Amaziah, like Joash, showed no respect for the person of the + messenger of Jehovah. In this case the prophet escaped with his + life. He began to deliver his message, but the king's patience soon + failed, and he said unto the prophet, <span class="tei tei-q">“Have + we made thee of <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page245">[pg + 245]</span><a name="Pg245" id="Pg245" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + the king's counsel? forbear; why shouldest thou be smitten?”</span> + The prophet, we are told, <span class="tei tei-q">“forbare”</span>; + but his forbearance did not prevent his adding one brief and bitter + sentence: <span class="tei tei-q">“I know that God hath determined + to destroy thee, because thou hast done this and hast not hearkened + unto my counsel.”</span><a id="noteref_297" name="noteref_297" + href="#note_297"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">297</span></span></a> Then + apparently he departed in peace and was not smitten.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have now + reached the period of the prophets whose writings are extant. We + learn from the headings of their works that Isaiah saw his + <span class="tei tei-q">“vision,”</span> and that the word of + Jehovah came unto Hosea, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and + Hezekiah; that the word of Jehovah came to Micah in the days of + Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah; and that Amos <span class= + "tei tei-q">“saw”</span> his <span class="tei tei-q">“words”</span> + in the days of Uzziah. But the chronicler makes no reference to any + of these prophets in connection with either Uzziah, Jotham, or + Ahaz. Their writings would have afforded the best possible + materials for his history, yet he entirely neglected them. In view + of his anxiety to introduce into his narrative all missions of + prophets of which he found any record, we can only suppose that he + was so little interested in the prophetical writings that he + neither referred to them nor recollected their dates.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">To Ahaz in + Chronicles, in spite of all his manifold and persistent idolatry, + no prophet was sent. The absence of Divine warning marks his + extraordinary wickedness. In the book of Samuel the culmination of + Jehovah's displeasure against Saul is shown by His refusal to + answer him either by dreams, by Urim, or by prophets. He sends no + prophet to Ahaz, because the wicked king of Judah is utterly + reprobate. Prophecy, <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page246">[pg + 246]</span><a name="Pg246" id="Pg246" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + the token of the Divine presence and favour, has abandoned a nation + given over to idolatry, and has even taken a temporary refuge in + Samaria. Jerusalem was no longer worthy to receive the Divine + messages, and Oded was sent with his words of warning and humane + exhortation to the children of Ephraim. There he met with a prompt + and full obedience, in striking contrast to the reception accorded + by Joash and Amaziah to the prophets of Jehovah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler's + history of the reign of Hezekiah further illustrates his + indifference to the prophets whose writings are extant. In the book + of Kings great prominence is given to Isaiah. In the account of + Sennacherib's invasion his messages to Hezekiah are given at + considerable length.<a id="noteref_298" name="noteref_298" href= + "#note_298"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">298</span></span></a> He + announces to the king his approaching death and Jehovah's gracious + answers to Hezekiah's prayer for a respite and his request for a + sign. When Hezekiah, in his pride of wealth, displayed his + treasures to the Babylonian ambassadors, Isaiah brought the message + of Divine rebuke and judgment. Chronicles characteristically + devotes three long chapters to ritual and Levites, and dismisses + Isaiah in half a sentence: <span class="tei tei-q">“And Hezekiah + the king and Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, prayed because of + this”</span>—<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span>, the threatening language + of Sennacherib—<span class="tei tei-q">“and cried to + Heaven.”</span><a id="noteref_299" name="noteref_299" href= + "#note_299"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">299</span></span></a> In + the accounts of Hezekiah's sickness and recovery and of the + Babylonian embassy the references to Isaiah are entirely omitted. + These omissions may be due to lack of space, so much of which had + been devoted to the Levites that there was none to spare for the + prophet.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page247">[pg + 247]</span><a name="Pg247" id="Pg247" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Indeed, at the + very point where prophecy began to exercise a controlling influence + over the religion of Judah the chronicler's interest in the subject + altogether flags. He tells us that Jehovah spake to Manasseh and to + his people, and refers to <span class="tei tei-q">“the words of the + seers that spake to him in the name of Jehovah, the God of + Israel”</span>;<a id="noteref_300" name="noteref_300" href= + "#note_300"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">300</span></span></a> but + he names no prophet and does not record the terms of any Divine + message. In the case of Manasseh his sources may have failed him, + but we have seen that in Hezekiah's reign he deliberately passes + over most of the references to Isaiah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chroniclers + narrative of Josiah's reign adheres more closely to the book of + Kings. He reproduces the mission from the king to the prophetess + Huldah and her Divine message of present forbearance and future + judgment. The other prophet of this reign is the heathen king + Pharaoh Necho, through whose mouth the Divine warning is given to + Josiah. Jeremiah is only mentioned as lamenting over the last good + king.<a id="noteref_301" name="noteref_301" href= + "#note_301"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">301</span></span></a> In + the parallel text of this passage in the apocryphal book of Esdras + Pharaoh's remonstrance is given in a somewhat expanded form; but + the editor of Esdras shrank from making the heathen king the + mouthpiece of Jehovah. While Chronicles tells us that Josiah + <span class="tei tei-q">“hearkened not unto the words of Neco from + the mouth of God,”</span> Esdras, glaringly inconsistent both with + the context and the history, tells us that he did not regard + <span class="tei tei-q">“the words of the prophet Jeremiah spoken + by the mouth of the Lord.”</span><a id="noteref_302" name= + "noteref_302" href="#note_302"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">302</span></span></a> This + amended statement is borrowed from the chronicler's account of + Zedekiah, who <span class="tei tei-q">“humbled not himself before + Jeremiah <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page248">[pg + 248]</span><a name="Pg248" id="Pg248" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + the prophet, speaking from the mouth of Jehovah.”</span> But this + king was not alone in his disobedience. As the inevitable ruin of + Jerusalem drew near, the whole nation, priests and people alike, + sank deeper and deeper in sin. In these last days, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“where sin abounded, grace did yet more abound.”</span> + Jehovah exhausted the resources of His mercy: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Jehovah, the God of their fathers, sent to them by His + messengers, rising up early and sending, because He had compassion + on His people and on His dwelling-place.”</span> It was all in + vain: <span class="tei tei-q">“They mocked the messengers of God, + and despised His words and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath + of Jehovah arose against His people, till there was no + remedy.”</span> There are two other references in the concluding + paragraphs of Chronicles to the prophecies of Jeremiah; but the + history of prophecy in Judah closes with this last great unavailing + manifestation of prophetic activity.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Before + considering the general idea of the prophet that may be collected + from the various notices in Chronicles, we may devote a little + space to the chronicler's curious attitude towards our canonical + prophets. For the most part he simply follows the book of Kings in + making no reference to them; but his almost entire silence as to + Isaiah suggests that his imitation of his authority in other cases + is deliberate and intentional, especially as we find him inserting + one or two references to Jeremiah not taken from the book of Kings. + The chronicler had much more opportunity of using the canonical + prophets than the author or authors of the book of Kings. The + latter wrote before Hebrew literature had been collected and + edited; but the chronicler had access to all the literature of the + monarchy, Captivity, and even later times. His numerous extracts + from almost the entire range of the Historical <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page249">[pg 249]</span><a name="Pg249" id="Pg249" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Books, together with the Pentateuch and + Psalms, show that his plan included the use of various sources, and + that he had both the means and ability to work out his plan. He + makes two references to Haggai and Zechariah,<a id="noteref_303" + name="noteref_303" href="#note_303"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">303</span></span></a> so + that if he ignores Amos, Hosea, and Micah, and all but ignores + Isaiah, we can only conclude that he does so of set purpose. Hosea + and Amos might be excluded on account of their connection with the + northern kingdom; possibly the strictures of Isaiah and Micah on + the priesthood and ritual made the chronicler unwilling to give + them special prominence. Such an attitude on the part of a typical + representative of the prevailing school of religious thought has an + important bearing on the textual and other criticism of the early + prophets. If they were neglected by the authorities of the Temple + in the interval between Ezra and the Maccabees, the possibility of + late additions and alterations is considerably increased.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Let us now turn + to the picture of the prophets drawn for us by the chronicler. Both + prophet and priest are religious personages, otherwise they differ + widely in almost every particular; we cannot even speak of them as + both holding religious offices. The term <span class= + "tei tei-q">“office”</span> has to be almost unjustifiably strained + in order to apply it to the prophet, and to use it thus without + explanation would be misleading. The qualifications, status, + duties, and rewards of the priests are all fully prescribed by + rigid and elaborate rules; but the prophets were the children of + the Spirit: <span class="tei tei-q">“The wind bloweth where it + listeth, and thou hearest the voice thereof, but knowest not whence + it cometh and whither it goeth; so is every one that is born of the + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page250">[pg 250]</span><a name= + "Pg250" id="Pg250" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Spirit.”</span> The + priest was bound to be a physically perfect male of the house of + Aaron; the prophet might be of any tribe and of either sex. The + warlike Deborah found a more peaceful successor in Josiah's + counsellor Huldah, and among the degenerate prophets of Nehemiah's + time a prophetess Noadiah<a id="noteref_304" name="noteref_304" + href="#note_304"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">304</span></span></a> is + specially mentioned. The priestly or Levitical office did not + exclude its holder from the prophetic vocation. The Levite Jahaziel + delivered the message of Jehovah to Jehoshaphat; and the prophet + Zechariah, whom Joash put to death, was the son of the high-priest + Jehoiada, and therefore himself a priest. Indeed, upon occasion the + prophetic gift was exercised by those whom we should scarcely call + prophets at all. Pharaoh Necho's warning to Jehoshaphat is exactly + parallel to the prophetic exhortations addressed to other kings. In + the crisis of David's fortunes at Ziklag, when Judah and Benjamin + came out to meet him with apparently doubtful intentions, their + adhesion to the future king was decided by a prophetic word given + to the mighty warrior Amasai: <span class="tei tei-q">“Then the + Spirit came upon Amasai, who was one of the thirty, and he said, + Thine are we, David, and on thy side, thou son of Jesse: peace, + peace, be unto thee, and peace be to thine helpers; for thy God + helpeth thee.”</span><a id="noteref_305" name="noteref_305" href= + "#note_305"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">305</span></span></a> In + view of this wide distribution of the prophetic gift, we are not + surprised to find it frequently exercised by the pious kings. They + receive and communicate to the nation direct intimations of the + Divine will. David gives to Solomon and the people the instructions + which God has given him with regard to the Temple; God's promises + are personally addressed to Solomon, without the intervention of + either <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page251">[pg + 251]</span><a name="Pg251" id="Pg251" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + prophet or priest; Abijah rebukes and exhorts Jeroboam and the + Israelites very much as other prophets address the wicked kings; + the speeches of Hezekiah and Josiah might equally well have been + delivered by one of the prophets. David indeed is expressly called + a prophet by St. Peter<a id="noteref_306" name="noteref_306" href= + "#note_306"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">306</span></span></a>; and + though the immediate reference is to the Psalms, the chronicler's + history both of David and of other kings gives them a valid claim + to rank as prophets.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The authority + and status of the prophets rested on no official or material + conditions, such as hedged in the priestly office on every side. + Accordingly their ancestry, previous history, and social standing + are matters with which the historian has no concern. If the prophet + happens also to be a priest or Levite, the chronicler, of course, + knows and records his genealogy. It was essential that the + genealogy of a priest should be known, but there are no genealogies + of the prophets; their order was like that of Melchizedek, standing + on the page of history <span class="tei tei-q">“without father, + without mother, without genealogy”</span>; they appear abruptly, + with no personal introduction, they deliver their message, and then + disappear with equal abruptness. Sometimes not even their names are + given. They had the one qualification compared with which birth and + sex, rank and reputation, were trivial and meaningless things. The + living word of Jehovah was on their lips; the power of His Spirit + controlled their hearers; messenger and message were alike their + own credentials. The supreme religious authority of the prophet + testified to the subordinate and accidental character of all rites + and symbols. On the other hand, the combination of <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page252">[pg 252]</span><a name="Pg252" id="Pg252" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> priest and prophet in the same system + proved the loftiest spirituality, the most emphatic recognition of + the direct communion of the soul with God, to be consistent with an + elaborate and rigid system of ritual. The services and ministry of + the Temple were like lamps whose flame showed pale and dim when + earth and heaven were lit up by the lightnings of prophetic + inspiration.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The gifts and + functions of the prophets did not lend themselves to any regular + discipline or organisation; but we can roughly distinguish between + two classes of prophets. One class seem to have exercised their + gifts more systematically and continuously than others. Gad and + Nathan, Isaiah and Jeremiah, became practically the domestic + chaplains and spiritual advisers of David, Hezekiah, and the last + kings of Judah. Others are only mentioned as delivering a single + message; their ministry seems to have been occasional, perhaps + confined to a single period of their lives. The Divine Spirit was + free to take the whole life or to take a part only; He was not to + be conditioned even by gifts of His own bestowal.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Human + organisation naturally attempted to classify the possessors of the + prophetic gift, to set them apart as a regular order, perhaps even + to provide them with a suitable training, and, still more + impossible task, to select the proper recipients of the gift and to + produce and foster the prophetic inspiration. We read elsewhere of + <span class="tei tei-q">“schools of the prophets”</span> and + <span class="tei tei-q">“sons of the prophets.”</span> The + chronicler omits all reference to such institutions or societies; + he declines to assign them any place in the prophetic succession in + Israel. The gift of prophecy was absolutely dependent on the Divine + will, and could not be claimed as a necessary appurtenance + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page253">[pg 253]</span><a name= + "Pg253" id="Pg253" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of the royal court + at Jerusalem or a regular order in the kingdom of Judah. The + priests are included in the list of David's ministers, but not the + prophets Gad and Nathan. Abijah mentions among the special + privileges of Judah <span class="tei tei-q">“priests ministering + unto Jehovah, even the sons of Aaron and the Levites in their + work”</span>; it does not occur to him to name prophets among the + regular and permanent ministers of Jehovah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler, + in fact, does not recognise the professional prophet. The fifty + sons of the prophets that watched Elisha divide the waters in the + name of the God of Elijah were no more prophets for him than the + four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred + prophets of the Asherah that ate at Jezebel's table. The true + prophet, like Amos, need not be either a prophet or the son of a + prophet in the professional sense. Long before the chronicler's + time the history and teaching of the great prophets had clearly + established the distinction between the professional prophet, who + was appointed by man or by himself, and the inspired messenger, who + received a direct commission from Jehovah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In describing + the prophet's sole qualification we have also stated his function. + He was the messenger of Jehovah, and declared His will. The priest + in his ministrations represented Israel before God, and in a + measure represented God to Israel. The rites and ceremonies over + which he presided symbolised the permanent and unchanging features + of man's religious experience and me eternal righteousness and + mercy of Him who is the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever. From + generation to generation men received the good gifts of God, and + brought the offerings of their gratitude; they sinned against God + and came to seek <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page254">[pg + 254]</span><a name="Pg254" id="Pg254" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + forgiveness; and the house of Aaron met them generation after + generation in the same priestly robes, with the same rites, in the + one Temple, in token of the unchanging willingness of Jehovah to + accept and forgive His children.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The prophet, + too, represented God to man; his words were the words of God; + through him the Divine presence and the Divine Spirit exerted their + influence over the hearts and consciences of his hearers. But while + the priestly ministrations symbolised the fixity and permanence of + God's eternal majesty, the prophets expressed the infinite variety + of His Divine nature and its continual adaptation to all the + changes of human life. They came to the individual and to the + nation in each crisis of history with the Divine message that + enabled them to suit themselves to altered circumstances, to + grapple with new difficulties, and to solve new problems. The + priest and the prophet together set forth the great paradox that + the unchanging God is the source of all change.</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">Lord + God, by whom all change is wrought,</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">By whom new things to birth are + brought,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 1.80em"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">In whom no change is + known,</span> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">To Thee we rise, in Thee we + rest;</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">We stay at home, we go in + quest,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Still Thou art our abode:</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">The rapture swells, the wonder + grows,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">As full on us new life still + flows</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 1.80em"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">From our unchanging God.</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The prophetic + utterances recorded by the chronicler illustrate the work of the + prophets in delivering the message that met the present needs of + the people. There is nothing in Chronicles to encourage the + unspiritual notion that the main object of prophecy <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page255">[pg 255]</span><a name="Pg255" id="Pg255" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> was to give exact and detailed + information as to the remote future. There is prediction + necessarily: it was impossible to declare the will of God without + stating the punishment of sin and the victory of righteousness; but + prediction is only part of the declaration of God's will. In Gad + and Nathan prophecy appears as a means of communication between the + inquiring soul and God; it does not, indeed, gratify curiosity, but + rather gives guidance in perplexity and distress. The later + prophets constantly intervene to initiate reform or to hinder the + carrying out of an evil policy. Gad and Nathan lent their authority + to David's organisation of the Temple music; Asa's reform + originated in the exhortation of Oded the prophet; Jehoshaphat went + out to meet the Moabite and Ammonite invaders in response to the + inspiriting utterance of Jahaziel the Levite; Josiah consulted the + prophetess Huldah before carrying out his reformation; the chiefs + of Ephraim sent back the Jewish captives in obedience to another + Oded. On the other hand, Shemaiah prevented Rehoboam from fighting + against Israel; Micaiah warned Ahab and Jehoshaphat not to go up + against Ramoth-gilead.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Often, however, + the prophetic message gives the interpretation of history, the + Divine judgment upon conduct, with its sentence of punishment or + reward. Hanani the seer, for instance, comes to Asa to show him the + real value of his apparently satisfactory alliance with Benhadad, + king of Syria: <span class="tei tei-q">“Because thou hast relied on + the king of Syria, and hast not relied on Jehovah thy God, + therefore is the host of the king of Syria escaped out of thine + hand.... Herein thou hast done foolishly; for from henceforth thou + shalt have wars.”</span> Jehoshaphat is told why his ships were + broken: <span class="tei tei-q">“Because thou hast joined thyself + with <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page256">[pg 256]</span><a name= + "Pg256" id="Pg256" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Ahaziah, Jehovah + hath destroyed thy works.”</span> Thus the prophetic declaration of + Divine judgment came to mean almost exclusively rebuke and + condemnation. The witness of a good conscience may be left to speak + for itself; God does not often need to send a prophet to His + obedient servants in order to signify His approval of their + righteous acts. But the censures of conscience need both the + stimulus of external suggestion and the support of external + authority. Upon the prophets was constantly laid the unwelcome task + of rousing and bracing the conscience for its stern duty. They + became the heralds of Divine wrath, the precursors of national + misfortune. Often, too, the warnings that should have saved the + people were neglected or resented, and thus became the occasion of + new sin and severer punishment. We must not, however, lay too much + stress on this aspect of the prophets' work. They were no mere + Cassandras, announcing inevitable ruin at the hands of a blind + destiny; they were not always, or even chiefly, the messengers of + coming doom. If they declared the wrath of God, they also + vindicated His justice; in the day of the Lord which they so often + foretold, mercy and grace tempered and at last overcame judgment. + They taught, even in their sternest utterances, the moral + government of the world and the benevolent purpose of its Ruler. + These are man's only hope, even in his sin and suffering, the only + ground for effort, and the only comfort in misfortune.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There are, + however, one or two elements in the chronicler's notices of the + prophets that scarcely harmonise with this general picture. The + scanty references of the books of Samuel and Kings to the + <span class="tei tei-q">“schools”</span> and sons of the prophets + have suggested the theory that the prophets were the guardians of + national education, <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page257">[pg + 257]</span><a name="Pg257" id="Pg257" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + culture, and literature. The chronicler expressly assigns the + function to the Levites, and does not recognise that the + <span class="tei tei-q">“schools of the prophets”</span> had any + permanent significance for the religion of Israel, possibly because + they chiefly appear in connection with the northern kingdom. At the + same time, we find this idea of the literary character of the + prophets in Chronicles in a new form. The authorities referred to + in the subscriptions to each reign bear the names of the prophets + who flourished during the reign. The primary significance of the + tradition followed by the chronicler is the supreme importance of + the prophet for his period; he, and not the king, gives it a + distinctive character. Therefore the prophet gives his name to his + period, as the consuls at Rome, the Archon Basileus at Athens, and + the Assyrian priests gave their own names to their year of office. + Probably by the time Chronicles was written the view had been + adopted which we know prevailed later on, and it was supposed that + the prophets wrote the Historical Books which bore their names. The + ancient prophets had given the Divine interpretation of the course + of events and pronounced the Divine judgment on history. The + Historical Books were written for religious edification; they + contained a similar interpretation and judgment. The religious + instincts of later Judaism rightly classed them with the prophetic + Scriptures.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The striking + contrast we have been able to trace between the priests and the + prophets in their qualifications and duties extends also to their + rewards. The book of Kings gives us glimpses of the way in which + the reverent gratitude of the people made some provision for the + maintenance of the prophets. We are all familiar with the + hospitality of the Shunammite, and <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page258">[pg 258]</span><a name="Pg258" id="Pg258" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> we read how <span class="tei tei-q">“a man + from Baal-shalishah”</span> brought first-fruits to Elisha.<a id= + "noteref_307" name="noteref_307" href="#note_307"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">307</span></span></a> But + the chronicler omits all such references as being connected with + the northern kingdom, and does not give us any similar information + as to the prophets of Judah. He is not usually indifferent as to + ways and means. He devotes some space to the revenues of the kings + of Judah, and delights to dwell on the sources of priestly income. + But it never seems to occur to him that the prophets have any wants + to be provided for. To use George Macdonald's phrase, he is quite + content to leave them <span class="tei tei-q">“on the lily and + sparrow footing.”</span> The priesthood and the Levites must be + richly endowed; the honour of Israel and of Jehovah is concerned in + their having cities, tithes, first-fruits, and offerings. Prophets + are sent to reproach the people when the priestly dues are + withheld; but for themselves the prophets might have said with St. + Paul, <span class="tei tei-q">“We seek not yours, but you.”</span> + No one supposed that the authority and dignity of the prophets + needed to be supported by ecclesiastical status, splendid robes, + and great incomes. Spiritual force so manifestly resided in them + that they could afford to dispense with the most impressive symbols + of power and authority. On the other hand, they received an honour + that was never accorded to the priesthood: they suffered + persecution for the cause of Jehovah. Zechariah the son of Jehoiada + was put to death, and Micaiah the son of Imlah was imprisoned. We + are never told that the priest as priest suffered persecution. Ahaz + closed the Temple, Manasseh set up an idol in the house of God, but + we do not read of either Ahaz or Manasseh that they slew the + priests of Jehovah. The teaching <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page259">[pg 259]</span><a name="Pg259" id="Pg259" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> of the prophets was direct and personal, and + thus eminently calculated to excite resentment and provoke + persecution; the priestly services, however, did not at all + interfere with concurrent idolatry, and the priests were accustomed + to receive and execute the orders of the kings. There is nothing to + suggest that they sought to obtrude the worship of Jehovah upon + unwilling converts; and it is not improbable that some, at any + rate, of the priests allowed themselves to be made the tools of the + wicked kings. On the eve of the Captivity we read that <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the chiefs of the priests and the people trespassed + very greatly after all the abominations of the heathen, and they + polluted the house of Jehovah.”</span> No such disloyalty is + recorded of the prophets in Chronicles. The most splendid incomes + cannot purchase loyalty. It is still true that <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the hireling fleeth because he is a hireling”</span>; + men's most passionate devotion is for the cause in which they have + suffered.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have seen + that the modern ministry presents certain parallels to the ancient + priesthood. Where are we to look for an analogue to the prophet? If + the minister be, in a sense, a priest when he leads the worship of + the people, is he also a prophet when he preaches to them? + Preaching is intended to be—perhaps we may venture to say that it + mostly is—a declaration of the will of God. Moreover, it is not the + exposition of a fixed and unchangeable ritual or even of a set of + rigid theological formulæ. The preacher, like the prophet, seeks to + meet the demands for new light that are made by constantly changing + circumstances; he seeks to adapt the eternal truth to the varying + needs of individual lives. So far he is a prophet, but the + essential qualifications of the prophet are still to be + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page260">[pg 260]</span><a name= + "Pg260" id="Pg260" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> sought after. Isaiah + and Jeremiah did not declare the word of Jehovah as they had learnt + it from a Bible or any other book, nor yet according to the + traditions of a school or the teaching of great authorities; such + declaration might be made by the scribes and rabbis in later times. + But the prophets of Chronicles received their message from Jehovah + Himself; while they mused upon the needs of the people, the fire of + inspiration burned within them; then they spoke. Moreover, like + their great antitype, they spoke with authority, and not as the + scribes; their words carried with them conviction even when they + did not produce obedience. The reality of men's conviction of their + Divine authority was shown by the persecution to which they were + subjected. Are these tokens of the prophet also the notes of the + Christian ministry of preaching? Prophets were found among the + house of Aaron and from the tribe of Levi, but not every Levite or + priest was a prophet. Every branch of the Christian Church has + numbered among its official ministers men who delivered their + message with an inspired conviction of its truth; in them the power + and presence of the Spirit have compelled a belief in their + authority to speak for God: this belief has received the twofold + attestation of hearts and consciences submitted to the Divine will + on the one hand or of bitter and rancorous hostility on the other. + In every Church we find the record of men who have spoken, + <span class="tei tei-q">“not in words which man's wisdom teacheth, + but which the Spirit teacheth.”</span> Such were Wyclif and + Latimer, Calvin and Luther, George Whitefield and the Wesleys; + such, too, were Moffat and Livingstone. Nor need we suppose that in + the modern Christian Church the gift of prophecy has been confined + to men of brilliant genius who have <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page261">[pg 261]</span><a name="Pg261" id="Pg261" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> been conspicuously successful. In the sacred + canon Haggai and Obadiah stand side by side with Isaiah, Jeremiah, + and Ezekiel. The chronicler recognises the prophetic calling of men + too obscure to be mentioned by name. He whom God hath sent speaketh + the words of God, not necessarily the orator whom men crowd to hear + and whose name is recorded in history; and God giveth not the + Spirit by measure. Many of the least distinguished of His servants + are truly His prophets, speaking, by the conviction He has given + them, a message which comes home with power to some hearts at any + rate, and is a savour of life unto life and of death unto death. + The seals of their ministry are to be found in redeemed and + purified lives, and also only too often in the bitter and + vindictive ill-will of those whom their faithfulness has + offended.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We naturally + expect to find that the official ministry affords the most suitable + sphere for the exercise of the gift of prophecy. Those who are + conscious of a Divine message will often seek the special + opportunities which the ministry affords. But our study of + Chronicles reminds us that the vocation of the prophet cannot be + limited to any external organisation; it was not confined to the + official ministry of Israel; it cannot be conditioned by + recognition by bishops, presbyteries, conferences, or Churches; it + will often find its only external credential in a gracious + influence over individual lives. Nay, the prophet may have his + Divine vocation and be entirely rejected of men. In Chronicles we + find prophets, like Zechariah the son of Jehoiada, whose one Divine + message is received with scorn and defiance.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In practice, if + not in theory, the Churches have long <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page262">[pg 262]</span><a name="Pg262" id="Pg262" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> since recognised that the prophetic gift is + found outside any official ministry, and that they may be taught + the will of God by men and women of all ranks and callings. They + have provided opportunities for the free exercise of such gifts in + lay preaching, missions, Sunday-schools, meetings of all kinds.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have here + stumbled upon another modern controversy: the desirability of women + preaching. Chronicles mentions prophetesses as well as prophets; on + the other hand, there were no Jewish priestesses. The modern + minister combines some priestly duties with the opportunity, at + least, of exercising the gift of prophecy. The mention of only two + or three prophetesses in the Old Testament shows that the + possession of the gift by women was exceptional. These few + instances, however, are sufficient to prove that God did not in old + times limit the gift to men; they suggest at any rate the + possibility of its being possessed by women now, and when women + have a Divine message the Church will not venture to quench the + Spirit. Of course the application of these broad principles would + have to be adapted to the circumstances of individual Churches. + Huldah, for instance, is not described as delivering any public + address to the people; the king sent his ministers to consult her + in her own house. Whatever hesitation may be felt about the public + ministry of women, no one will question their Divine commission to + carry the messages of God to the bedsides of the sick and the homes + of the poor. Most of us have known women to whom men have gone, as + Josiah's ministers went to Huldah, to <span class= + "tei tei-q">“inquire of the Lord.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Another + practical question, the payment of the ministers of religion, has + already been raised by the <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page263">[pg 263]</span><a name="Pg263" id="Pg263" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> chronicler's account of the revenues of the + priests. What more do we learn on the subject from his silence as + to the maintenance of the prophets? The silence is, of course, + eloquent as to the extent to which even a pious Levite may be + preoccupied with his own worldly interests and quite indifferent to + other people's; but it would not have been possible if the idea of + revenues and endowments for the prophets had ever been very + familiar to men's minds. It has been said that to-day the prophet + sells his inspiration, but the gift of God can no more be bought + and sold with money now than in ancient Israel. The purely + spiritual character of true prophecy, its entire dependence on + Divine inspiration, makes it impossible to hire a prophet at a + fixed salary regulated by the quality and extent of his gifts. By + the grace of God, there is an intimate practical connection between + the work of the official ministry and the inspired declaration of + the Divine will; and this connection has its bearing upon the + payment of ministers. Men's gratitude is stirred when they have + received comfort and help through the spiritual gifts of their + minister, but in principle there is no connection between the gift + of prophecy and the payment of the ministry. A Church can purchase + the enjoyment of eloquence, learning, intellect, and industry; a + high character has a pecuniary value for ecclesiastical as well as + for commercial purposes. The prophet may be provided with leisure, + society, and literature so that the Divine message may be delivered + in its most attractive form; he may be installed in a large and + well-appointed building, so that he may have the best possible + opportunity of delivering his message; he will naturally receive a + larger income when he surrenders obscure and limited opportunities + to <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page264">[pg 264]</span><a name= + "Pg264" id="Pg264" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> minister in some + more suitable sphere. But when we have said all, it is still only + the accessories that have to do with payment, not the Divine gift + of prophecy itself. When the prophet's message is not comforting, + when his words grate upon the theological and social prejudices of + his hearers, especially when he is invited to curse and is Divinely + compelled to bless, there is no question of payment for such + ministry. It has been said of Christ, <span class="tei tei-q">“For + the minor details necessary to secure respect, and obedience, and + the enthusiasm of the vulgar, for the tact, the finesse, the + compromising faculty, the judicious ostentation of successful + politicians—for these arts He was not prepared.”</span><a id= + "noteref_308" name="noteref_308" href="#note_308"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">308</span></span></a> Those + who imitate their Master often share His reward.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The slight and + accidental connection of the payment of ministers with their + prophetic gifts is further illustrated by the free exercise of such + gifts by men and women who have no ecclesiastical status and do not + seek any material reward. Here again any exact adoption of ancient + methods is impossible; we may accept from the chronicler the great + principle that loyal believers will make all adequate provision for + the service and work of Jehovah, and that they will be prepared to + honour Him in the persons of those whom they choose to represent + them before Him, and also of those whom they recognise as + delivering to them His messages. On the other hand, the prophet—and + for our present purpose we may extend the term to the humblest and + least gifted Christian who in any way seeks to speak for Christ—the + prophet speaks by the impulse of the Spirit and from no meaner + motive.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">With regard to + the functions of the prophet, the <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page265">[pg 265]</span><a name="Pg265" id="Pg265" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> Spirit is as entirely free to dictate His own + message as He is to choose His own messenger. The chronicler's + prophets were concerned with foreign politics—alliances with Syria + and Assyria, wars with Egypt and Samaria—as well as with the ritual + of the Temple and the worship of Jehovah. They discerned a + religious significance in the purely secular matter of a census. + Jehovah had His purposes for the civil government and international + policy of Israel as well as for its creed and services. If we lay + down the principle that politics, whether local or national, are to + be kept out of the pulpit, we must either exclude from the official + ministry all who possess any measure of the prophetic gift, or else + carefully stipulate that, if they be conscious of any obligation to + declare the Lord's will in matters of public righteousness, they + shall find some more suitable place than the Lord's house and some + more suitable time than the Lord's day. When we suggest that the + prophet should mind his own business by confining himself to + questions of doctrine, worship, and the religious experiences of + the individual, we are in danger of denying God's right to a voice + in social and national affairs.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Turning, + however, to more directly ecclesiastical affairs, we have noted + that Asa's reformation received its first impulse from the + utterances of the prophet Azariah or Oded, and also that one + feature of the prophet's work is to provide for the fresh needs + developed by changing circumstances. A priesthood or any other + official ministry is often wanting in elasticity; it is necessarily + attached to an established organisation and trammelled by custom + and tradition. The Holy Spirit in all ages has commissioned + prophets as the free agents in new movements in the Divine + government of the world. <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page266">[pg + 266]</span><a name="Pg266" id="Pg266" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + They may be ecclesiastics, like many of the Reformers and like the + Wesleys; but they are not dominated by the official spirit. The + initial impulse that moves such men is partly one of recoil from + their environment; and the environment in return casts them out. + Again, prophets may become ecclesiastics, like the tinker to whom + English-speaking Christians owe one of their great religious + classics and the cobbler who stirred up the Churches to missionary + enthusiasm. Or they may remain from beginning to end without + official status in any Church, like the apostle of the anti-slavery + movement. In any case the impulse to a larger, purer, and nobler + standard of life than that consecrated by long usage and ancient + tradition does not come from the ecclesiastical official because of + his official training and experience; the living waters that go out + of Jerusalem in the day of the Lord are too wide, and deep, and + strong to flow in the narrow rock-hewn aqueducts of tradition: they + make new channels for themselves; and these channels are the men + who do not demand that the Spirit shall speak according to familiar + formulæ and stereotyped ideas, but are willing to be the prophets + of strange and even uncongenial truth. Or, to use the great + metaphor of St. John's Gospel, with such men, both for themselves + and for others, the water that the Lord gives them becomes a well + of water springing up unto eternal life.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But the + chronicler's picture of the work of the prophets has its darker + side. Few were privileged to give the signal for an immediate and + happy reformation. Most of the prophets were charged with messages + of rebuke and condemnation, so that they were ready to cry out with + Jeremiah, <span class="tei tei-q">“Woe is me, my mother, that thou + hast borne me, a man of strife and <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page267">[pg 267]</span><a name="Pg267" id="Pg267" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> a man of contention to the whole earth! I + have not lent on usury, neither have men lent to me on usury, yet + every one of them doth curse me.”</span><a id="noteref_309" name= + "noteref_309" href="#note_309"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">309</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Perhaps even + to-day the prophetic spirit often charges its possessors with + equally unwelcome duties. We trust that the Christian conscience is + more sensitive than that of ancient Israel, and that the Church is + more ready to profit by the warnings addressed to it; but the + response to the sterner teaching of the Spirit is not always + accompanied by a kindly feeling towards the teacher, and even where + there is progress, the progress is slow compared to the eager + longing of the prophet for the spiritual growth of his hearers. And + yet the sequel of the chronicler's history suggests some relief to + the gloomier side of the picture. Prophet after prophet utters his + unavailing and seemingly useless rebuke, and delivers his + announcement of coming ruin, and at last the ruin falls upon the + nation. But that is not the end. Before the chronicler wrote there + had arisen a restored Israel, purified from idolatry and delivered + from many of its former troubles. The Restoration was only rendered + possible through the continued testimony of the prophets to the + Lord and His righteousness. However barren of immediate results + such testimony may seem to-day, it is still the word of the Lord + that cannot return unto Him void, but shall accomplish that which + He pleaseth and shall prosper in the thing whereto He sent it.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler's + conception of the prophetic character of the historian, whereby his + narrative sets forth God's win and interprets His purposes, is not + altogether popular at present. The teleological view of history is + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page268">[pg 268]</span><a name= + "Pg268" id="Pg268" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> somewhat at a + discount. Yet the prophetic method, so to speak, of Carlyle and + Ruskin is largely historical; and even in so unlikely a quarter as + the works of George Eliot we can find an example of didactic + history. <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Romola</span></span> is largely taken up with + the story of Savonarola, told so as to bring out its religious + significance. But teleological history is sometimes a failure even + from the standpoint of the Christian student, because it defeats + its own ends. He who is bent on deducing lessons from history may + lay undue stress on part of its significance and obscure the rest. + The historian is perhaps most a prophet when he leaves history to + speak for itself. In this sense, we may venture to attribute a + prophetic character to purely scientific history; accurate and + unbiassed narrative is the best starting-point for the study of the + religious significance of the course of events.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In concluding + our inquiry as to how far modern Church life is illustrated by the + work of the prophets, one is tempted to dwell for a moment on the + methods they did not use and the subjects not dealt with in their + utterances. This theme, however, scarcely belongs to the exposition + of Chronicles; it would be more appropriate to a complete + examination of the history and writings of the prophets. One point, + however, may be noticed. Their utterances in Chronicles lay less + direct stress on moral considerations than the writings of the + canonical prophets, not because of any indifference to morality, + but because, seen in the distance of a remote past, all other sins + seemed to be summed up in faithlessness to Jehovah. Perhaps we may + see in this a suggestion of a final judgment of history, which + should be equally instructive to the religious man who has any + inclination to disparage <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page269">[pg + 269]</span><a name="Pg269" id="Pg269" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + morality and to the moral man who wishes to ignore religion.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Our review and + discussion of the varied references of Chronicles to the prophets + brings home to us with fresh force the keen interest felt in them + by the chronicler and the supreme importance he attached to their + work. The reverent homage of a Levite of the second Temple + centuries after the golden age of prophecy is an eloquent testimony + to the unique position of the prophets in Israel. His treatment of + the subject shows that the lofty ideal of their office and mission + had lost nothing in the course of the development of Judaism; his + selection from the older material emphasises the independence of + the true prophet of any professional status or consideration of + material reward; his sense of the importance of the prophets to the + State and Church in Judah is an encouragement to those <span class= + "tei tei-q">“who look for redemption in Jerusalem,”</span> and who + trust the eternal promise of God that in all times of His people's + need He <span class="tei tei-q">“will raise up a prophet from among + their brethren, ... and I will put My words in his mouth, and he + shall speak unto them all that I shall command them.”</span><a id= + "noteref_310" name="noteref_310" href="#note_310"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">310</span></span></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“The memorial of the prophets was blessed, + ... for they comforted Jacob, and delivered them by assured + hope.”</span><a id="noteref_311" name="noteref_311" href= + "#note_311"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">311</span></span></a> Many + prophets of the Church have also left a blessed memorial of comfort + and deliverance, and God ever renews this more than apostolic + succession.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page270">[pg 270]</span><a name= + "Pg270" id="Pg270" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc47" id="toc47"></a> <a name="pdf48" id="pdf48"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter X. Satan. 1 Chron. xxi.-xxii. + 1.</span></h2> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 0.90em"><span class= + "tei tei-q"><span style="font-size: 90%">“</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">And again the anger of Jehovah was kindled against + Israel, and He moved David against them saying, Go, number Israel + and Judah.</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">—2</span> <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-variant: small-caps">Sam.</span></span> + <span style="font-size: 90%">xxiv. 1.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 0.90em"><span class= + "tei tei-q"><span style="font-size: 90%">“</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">And Satan stood up against Israel, and moved + David to number Israel.</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">—1</span> <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-variant: small-caps">Chron.</span></span> + <span style="font-size: 90%">xxi. 1.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 0.90em"><span class= + "tei tei-q"><span style="font-size: 90%">“</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted + of God; for God cannot be tempted with evil, and He Himself + tempteth no man: but each man is tempted when he is drawn away by + his own lust and enticed.</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">—</span><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-variant: small-caps">James</span></span> + <span style="font-size: 90%">i, 13, 14.</span></p> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The census of + David is found both in the book of Samuel and in Chronicles, in + very much the same form; but the chronicler has made a number of + small but important alterations and additions. Taken together, + these changes involve a new interpretation of the history, and + bring out lessons that cannot so easily be deduced from the + narrative in the book of Samuel. Hence it is necessary to give a + separate exposition of the narrative in Chronicles.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As before, we + will first review the alterations made by the chronicler and then + expound the narrative in the form in which it left his hand, or + rather in the form in which it stands in the Masoretic text. Any + attempt to deal with the peculiarly complicated problem of the + textual criticism of Chronicles would be out of <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page271">[pg 271]</span><a name="Pg271" id="Pg271" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> place here. Probably there are no + corruptions of the text that would appreciably affect the general + exposition of this chapter.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">At the very + outset the chronicler substitutes Satan for Jehovah, and thus + changes the whole significance of the narrative. This point is too + important to be dealt with casually, and must be reserved for + special consideration later on. In ver. 2 there is a slight change + that marks the different points of the views of the Chronicler and + the author of the narrative in the book of Samuel. The latter had + written that Joab numbered the people from Dan to Beersheba, a + merely conventional phrase indicating the extent of the census. It + might possibly, however, have been taken to denote that the census + began in the north and was concluded in the south. To the + chronicler, whose interests all centred in Judah, such an + arrangement seemed absurd; and he carefully guarded against any + mistake by altering <span class="tei tei-q">“Dan to + Beersheba”</span> into <span class="tei tei-q">“Beersheba to + Dan.”</span> In ver. 3 the substance of Joab's words is not + altered, but various slight touches are added to bring out more + clearly and forcibly what is implied in the book of Samuel. Joab + had spoken of the census as being the king's pleasure.<a id= + "noteref_312" name="noteref_312" href="#note_312"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">312</span></span></a> It + was scarcely appropriate to speak of David <span class= + "tei tei-q">“taking pleasure in”</span> a suggestion of Satan. In + Chronicles Joab's words are less forcible, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Why doth my lord require this thing?”</span> Again, in + the book of Samuel Joab protests against the census without + assigning any reason. The context, it is true, readily supplies + one; but in Chronicles all is made clear by the addition, + <span class="tei tei-q">“Why will he”</span> (David) <span class= + "tei tei-q">“be a cause of guilt unto Israel?”</span> Further on + the chronicler's special <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page272">[pg + 272]</span><a name="Pg272" id="Pg272" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + interest in Judah again betrays itself. The book of Samuel + described, with some detail, the progress of the enumerators + through Eastern and Northern Palestine by way of Beersheba to + Jerusalem. Chronicles having already made them start from + Beersheba, omits these details.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In ver. 5 the + numbers in Chronicles differ not only from those of the older + narrative, but also from the chronicler's own statistics in chap. + xxvii. In this last account the men of war are divided into twelve + courses of twenty-four thousand each, making a total of two hundred + and eighty-eight thousand; in the book of Samuel Israel numbers + eight hundred thousand, and Judah five hundred thousand; but in our + passage Israel is increased to eleven hundred thousand, and Judah + is reduced to four hundred and seventy thousand. Possibly the + statistics in chap. xxvii. are not intended to include all the + fighting men, otherwise the figures cannot be harmonised. The + discrepancy between our passage and the book of Samuel is perhaps + partly explained by the following verse, which is an addition of + the chronicler. In the book of Samuel the census is completed, but + our additional verse states that Levi and Benjamin were not + included in the census. The chronicler understood that the five + hundred thousand assigned to Judah in the older narrative were the + joint total of Judah and Benjamin; he accordingly reduced the total + by thirty thousand, because, according to his view, Benjamin was + omitted from the census. The increase in the number of the + Israelites is unexpected. The chronicler does not usually overrate + the northern tribes. Later on Jeroboam, eighteen years after the + disruption, takes the field against Abijah with <span class= + "tei tei-q">“eight hundred thousand <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page273">[pg 273]</span><a name="Pg273" id="Pg273" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> chosen men,”</span> a phrase that implies a + still larger number of fighting men, if all had been mustered. + Obviously the rebel king would not be expected to be able to bring + into the field as large a force as the entire strength of Israel in + the most flourishing days of David. The chronicler's figures in + these two passages are consistent, but the comparison is not an + adequate reason for the alteration in the present chapter. Textual + corruption is always a possibility in case of numbers, but on the + whole this particular change does not admit of a satisfactory + explanation.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In ver. 7 we + have a very striking alteration. According to the book of Samuel, + David's repentance was entirely spontaneous: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“David's heart smote him after that he had numbered the + people”</span><a id="noteref_313" name="noteref_313" href= + "#note_313"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">313</span></span></a>; but + here God smites Israel, and then David's conscience awakes. In ver. + 12 the chronicler makes a slight addition, apparently to gratify + his literary taste. In the original narrative the third alternative + offered to David had been described simply as <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the pestilence,”</span> but in Chronicles the words + <span class="tei tei-q">“the sword of Jehovah”</span> are added in + antithesis to <span class="tei tei-q">“the sword of Thine + enemies”</span> in the previous verse.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Ver. 16, which + describes David's vision of the angel with the drawn sword, is an + expansion of the simple statement of the book of Samuel that David + saw the angel. In ver. 18 we are not merely told that Gad spake to + David, but that he spake by the command of the angel of Jehovah. + Ver. 20, which tells us how Ornan saw the angel, is an addition of + the chronicler's. All these changes lay stress upon the + intervention of the angel, and illustrate the interest <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page274">[pg 274]</span><a name="Pg274" id="Pg274" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> taken by Judaism in the ministry of + angels. Zechariah, the prophet of the Restoration, received his + messages by the dispensation of angels; and the title of the last + canonical prophet, Malachi, probably means <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the Angel.”</span> The change from Araunah to Ornan is + a mere question of spelling. Possibly Ornan is a somewhat Hebraised + form of the older Jebusite name Araunah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In ver. 22 the + reference to <span class="tei tei-q">“a full price”</span> and + other changes in the form of David's words are probably due to the + influence of Gen. xxiii. 9. In ver. 23 the chronicler's familiarity + with the ritual of sacrifice has led him to insert a reference to a + meal offering, to accompany the burnt offering. Later on the + chronicler omits the somewhat ambiguous words which seem to speak + of Araunah as a king. He would naturally avoid anything like a + recognition of the royal status of a Jebusite prince.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In ver. 25 David + pays much more dearly for Ornan's threshing-floor than in the book + of Samuel. In the latter the price is fifty shekels of silver, in + the former six hundred shekels of gold. Most ingenious attempts + have been made to harmonise the two statements. It has been + suggested that fifty shekels of silver means silver to the value of + fifty shekels of gold and paid in gold, and that six hundred + shekels of gold means the value of six hundred shekels of silver + paid in gold. A more lucid but equally impossible explanation is + that David paid fifty shekels for every tribe, six hundred in + all.<a id="noteref_314" name="noteref_314" href= + "#note_314"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">314</span></span></a> The + real reason for the change is that when the Temple became supremely + important to the Jews the small price of fifty shekels for the site + seemed derogatory to the dignity of the sanctuary; six <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page275">[pg 275]</span><a name="Pg275" id="Pg275" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> hundred shekels of gold was a more + appropriate sum. Abraham had paid four hundred shekels for a + burying-place; and a site for the Temple, where Jehovah had chosen + to put His name, must surely have cost more. The chronicler + followed the tradition which had grown up under the influence of + this feeling.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Chaps. xxi. + 27-xxii. 1 are an addition. According to the Levitical law, David + was falling into grievous sin in sacrificing anywhere except before + the Mosaic altar of burnt offering. The chronicler therefore states + the special circumstances that palliated this offence against the + exclusive privileges of the one sanctuary of Jehovah. He also + reminds us that this threshing-floor became the site of the altar + of burnt offering for Solomon's temple. Here he probably follows an + ancient and historical tradition; the prominence given to the + threshing-floor in the book of Samuel indicates the special + sanctity of the site. The Temple is the only sanctuary whose site + could be thus connected with the last days of David. When the book + of Samuel was written, the facts were too familiar to need any + explanation; every one knew that the Temple stood on the site of + Araunah's threshing-floor. The chronicler, writing centuries later, + felt it necessary to make an explicit statement on the subject.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Having thus + attempted to understand how our narrative assumed its present form, + we will now tell the chronicler's story of these incidents. The + long reign of David was drawing to a close. Hitherto he had been + blessed with uninterrupted prosperity and success. His armies had + been victorious over all the enemies of Israel, the borders of the + land of Jehovah had been extended, David himself was lodged with + princely splendour, and the services of the Ark were <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page276">[pg 276]</span><a name="Pg276" id="Pg276" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> conducted with imposing ritual by a + numerous array of priests and Levites. King and people alike were + at the zenith of their glory. In worldly prosperity and careful + attention to religious observances David and his people were not + surpassed by Job himself. Apparently their prosperity provoked the + envious malice of an evil and mysterious being, who appears only + here in Chronicles: Satan, the persecutor of Job. The trial to + which he subjected the loyalty of David was more subtle and + suggestive than his assault upon Job. He harassed Job as the wind + dealt with the traveller in the fable, and Job only wrapped the + cloak of his faith closer about him; Satan allowed David to remain + in the full sunshine of prosperity, and seduced him into sin by + fostering his pride in being the powerful and victorious prince of + a mighty people. He suggested a census. David's pride would be + gratified by obtaining accurate information as to the myriads of + his subjects. Such statistics would be useful for the civil + organisation of Israel; the king would learn where and how to + recruit his army or to find an opportunity to impose additional + taxation. The temptation appealed alike to the king, the soldier, + and the statesman, and did not appeal in vain. David at once + instructed Joab and the princes to proceed with the enumeration; + Joab demurred and protested: the census would be a cause of guilt + unto Israel. But not even the great influence of the + commander-in-chief could turn the king from his purpose. His word + prevailed against Joab, wherefore Joab departed, and went + throughout all Israel, and came to Jerusalem. This brief general + statement indicates a long and laborious task, simplified and + facilitated in some measure by the primitive organisation of + society and <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page277">[pg + 277]</span><a name="Pg277" id="Pg277" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + by rough and ready methods adopted to secure the very moderate + degree of accuracy with which an ancient Eastern sovereign would be + contented. When Xerxes wished to ascertain the number of the vast + army with which he set out to invade Greece, his officers packed + ten thousand men into as small a space as possible and built a wall + round them; then they turned them out, and packed the space again + and again; and so in time they ascertained how many tens of + thousands of men there were in the army. Joab's methods would be + different, but perhaps not much more exact. He would probably learn + from the <span class="tei tei-q">“heads of fathers' houses”</span> + the number of fighting men in each family. Where the hereditary + chiefs of a district were indifferent, he might make some rough + estimate of his own. We may be sure that both Joab and the local + authorities would be careful to err on the safe side. The king was + anxious to learn that he possessed a large number of subjects. + Probably as the officers of Xerxes went on with their counting they + omitted to pack the measured area as closely as they did at first; + they might allow eight or nine thousand to pass for ten thousand. + Similarly David's servants would, to say the least, be anxious not + to underestimate the number of his subjects. The work apparently + went on smoothly; nothing is said that indicates any popular + objection or resistance to the census; the process of enumeration + was not interrupted by any token of Divine displeasure against the + <span class="tei tei-q">“cause of guilt unto Israel.”</span> + Nevertheless Joab's misgivings were not set at rest; he did what he + could to limit the range of the census and to withdraw at least two + of the tribes from the impending outbreak of Divine wrath. The + tribe of Levi would be exempt from <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page278">[pg 278]</span><a name="Pg278" id="Pg278" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> taxation and the obligation of military + service; Joab could omit them without rendering his statistics less + useful for military and financial purposes. In not including the + Levites in the general census of Israel, Joab was following the + precedent set by the numbering in the wilderness.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Benjamin was + probably omitted in order to protect the Holy City, the chronicler + following that form of the ancient tradition which assigned + Jerusalem to Benjamin.<a id="noteref_315" name="noteref_315" href= + "#note_315"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">315</span></span></a> Later + on,<a id="noteref_316" name="noteref_316" href= + "#note_316"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">316</span></span></a> + however, the chronicler seems to imply that these two tribes left + to the last were not numbered because of the growing + dissatisfaction of Joab with his task: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Joab the son of Zeruiah began to number, but finished + not.”</span> But these different reasons for the omission of Levi + and Benjamin do not mutually exclude each other. Another limitation + is also stated in the later reference: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“David took not the number of them twenty years old and + under, because Jehovah had said that He would increase Israel like + to the stars of heaven.”</span> This statement and explanation + seems a little superfluous; the census was specially concerned with + the fighting men, and in the book of Numbers only those over twenty + are numbered. But we have seen elsewhere that the chronicler has no + great confidence in the intelligence of his readers, and feels + bound to state definitely matters that have only been implied and + might be overlooked. Here, therefore, he calls our attention to the + fact that the numbers previously given do not comprise the whole + male population, but only the adults.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page279">[pg 279]</span><a name="Pg279" id="Pg279" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">At last the + census, so far as it was carried out at all, was finished, and the + results were presented to the king. They are meagre and bald + compared to the volumes of tables which form the report of a modern + census. Only two divisions of the country are recognised: + <span class="tei tei-q">“Judah”</span> and <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Israel,”</span> or the ten tribes. The total is given + for each: eleven hundred thousand for Israel, four hundred and + seventy thousand for Judah, in all fifteen hundred and seventy + thousand. Whatever details may have been given to the king, he + would be chiefly interested in the grand total. Its figures would + be the most striking symbol of the extent of his authority and the + glory of his kingdom.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Perhaps during + the months occupied in taking the census David had forgotten the + ineffectual protests of Joab, and was able to receive his report + without any presentiment of coming evil. Even if his mind were not + altogether at ease, all misgivings would for the time be forgotten. + He probably made or had made for him some rough calculation as to + the total of men, women, and children that would correspond to the + vast array of fighting men. His servants would not reckon the + entire population at less than nine or ten millions. His heart + would be uplifted with pride as he contemplated the statement of + the multitudes that were the subjects of his crown and prepared to + fight at his bidding. The numbers are moderate compared with the + vast populations and enormous armies of the great powers of modern + Europe; they were far surpassed by the Roman empire and the teeming + populations of the valleys of the Nile, the Euphrates, and the + Tigris; but during the Middle Ages it was not often possible to + find in Western Europe so large a population under one government + or so numerous an army under one banner. The resources <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page280">[pg 280]</span><a name="Pg280" id="Pg280" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of Cyrus may not have been greater when + he started on his career of conquest; and when Xerxes gathered into + one motley horde the warriors of half the known world, their total + was only about double the number of David's robust and warlike + Israelites. There was no enterprise that was likely to present + itself to his imagination that he might not have undertaken with a + reasonable probability of success. He must have regretted that his + days of warfare were past, and that the unwarlike Solomon, occupied + with more peaceful tasks, would allow this magnificent instrument + of possible conquests to rust unused.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But the king was + not long left in undisturbed enjoyment of his greatness. In the + very moment of his exaltation, some sense of the Divine displeasure + fell upon him.<a id="noteref_317" name="noteref_317" href= + "#note_317"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">317</span></span></a> + Mankind has learnt by a long and sad experience to distrust its own + happiness. The brightest hours have come to possess a suggestion of + possible catastrophe, and classic story loved to tell of the + unavailing efforts of fortunate princes to avoid their inevitable + downfall. Polycrates and Crœsus, however, had not tempted the + Divine anger by ostentatious pride; David's power and glory had + made him neglectful of the reverent homage due to Jehovah, and he + had sinned in spite of the express warnings of his most trusted + minister.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">When the + revulsion of feeling came, it was complete. The king at once + humbled himself under the mighty hand of God, and made full + acknowledgment of his sin and folly: <span class="tei tei-q">“I + have sinned greatly in that I have done this thing: but now put + away, I beseech Thee, the iniquity of Thy servant, for I have done + very foolishly.”</span></p><span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page281">[pg 281]</span><a name="Pg281" id="Pg281" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The narrative + continues as in the book of Samuel. Repentance could not avert + punishment, and the punishment struck directly at David's pride of + power and glory. The great population was to be decimated either by + famine, war, or pestilence. The king chose to suffer from the + pestilence, <span class="tei tei-q">“the sword of Jehovah”</span>: + <span class="tei tei-q">“Let me fall now into the hand of Jehovah, + for very great are His mercies; and let me not fall into the hand + of man. So Jehovah sent a pestilence upon Israel, and there fell of + Israel seventy thousand men.”</span> Not three days since Joab + handed in his report, and already a deduction of seventy thousand + would have to be made from its total; and still the pestilence was + not checked, for <span class="tei tei-q">“God sent an angel unto + Jerusalem to destroy it.”</span> If, as we have supposed, Joab had + withheld Jerusalem from the census, his pious caution was now + rewarded: <span class="tei tei-q">“Jehovah repented Him of the + evil, and said to the destroying angel, It is enough; now stay + thine hand.”</span> At the very last moment the crowning + catastrophe was averted. In the Divine counsels Jerusalem was + already delivered, but to human eyes its fate still trembled in the + balance: <span class="tei tei-q">“And David lifted up his eyes, and + saw the angel of Jehovah stand between the earth and the heaven, + having a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over + Jerusalem.”</span> So another great Israelite soldier lifted up his + eyes beside Jericho and beheld the captain of the host of Jehovah + standing over against him with his sword drawn in his hand.<a id= + "noteref_318" name="noteref_318" href="#note_318"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">318</span></span></a> Then + the sword was drawn to smite the enemies of Israel, but now it was + turned to smite Israel itself. David and his elders fell upon their + faces as Joshua had done before them: <span class="tei tei-q">“And + David said unto <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page282">[pg + 282]</span><a name="Pg282" id="Pg282" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + God, Is it not I that commanded the people to be numbered? even I + it is that have sinned and done very wickedly; but these sheep, + what have they done? Let Thine hand, I pray Thee, O Jehovah my God, + be against me and against my father's house, but not against Thy + people, that they should be plagued.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The awful + presence returned no answer to the guilty king, but addressed + itself to the prophet Gad, and commanded <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">him</span></em> to + bid David go up and build an altar to Jehovah in the + threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite. The command was a message of + mercy. Jehovah permitted David to build Him an altar; He was + prepared to accept an offering at his hands. The king's prayers + were heard, and Jerusalem was saved from the pestilence. But still + the angel stretched out his drawn sword over Jerusalem; he waited + till the reconciliation of Jehovah with His people should have been + duly ratified by solemn sacrifices. At the bidding of the prophet, + David went up to the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite. Sorrow + and reassurance, hope and fear, contended for the mastery. No + sacrifice could call back to life the seventy thousand victims whom + the pestilence had already destroyed, and yet the horror of its + ravages was almost forgotten in relief at the deliverance of + Jerusalem from the calamity that had all but overtaken it. Even now + the uplifted sword might be only back for a time; Satan might yet + bring about some heedless and sinful act, and the respite might end + not in pardon, but in the execution of God's purpose of vengeance. + Saul had been condemned because he sacrificed too soon; now perhaps + delay would be fatal. Uzzah had been smitten because he touched the + Ark; till the sacrifice was actually offered who could tell whether + some thoughtless blunder would not again <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page283">[pg 283]</span><a name="Pg283" id="Pg283" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> provoke the wrath of Jehovah? Under ordinary + circumstances David would not have dared to sacrifice anywhere + except upon the altar of burnt offering before the tabernacle at + Gibeon; he would have used the ministry of priests and Levites. But + ritual is helpless in great emergencies. The angel of Jehovah with + the drawn sword seemed to bar the way to Gibeon, as once before he + had barred Balaam's progress when he came to curse Israel. In his + supreme need David builds his own altar and offers his own + sacrifices; he receives the Divine answer without the intervention + this time of either priest or prophet. By God's most merciful and + mysterious grace, David's guilt and punishment, his repentance and + pardon, broke down all barriers between himself and God.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But, as he went + up to the threshing-floor, he was still troubled and anxious. The + burden was partly lifted from his heart, but he still craved full + assurance of pardon. The menacing attitude of the destroying angel + seemed to hold out little promise of mercy and forgiveness, and yet + the command to sacrifice would be cruel mockery if Jehovah did not + intend to be gracious to His people and His anointed.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">At the + threshing-floor Ornan and his four sons were threshing wheat, + apparently unmoved by the prospect of the threatened pestilence. In + Egypt the Israelites were protected from the plagues with which + their oppressors were punished. Possibly now the situation was + reversed, and the remnant of the Canaanites in Palestine were not + afflicted by the pestilence that fell upon Israel. But Ornan turned + back and saw the angel; he may not have known the grim mission with + which the Lord's messenger had been entrusted, but the aspect of + the destroyer, his threatening attitude, and <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page284">[pg 284]</span><a name="Pg284" id="Pg284" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the lurid radiance of his unsheathed + and outstretched sword must have seemed unmistakable tokens of + coming calamity. Whatever might be threatened for the future, the + actual appearance of this supernatural visitant was enough to + unnerve the stoutest heart; and Ornan's four sons hid + themselves.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Before long, + however, Ornan's terrors were somewhat relieved by the approach of + less formidable visitors. The king and his followers had ventured + to show themselves openly, in spite of the destroying angel; and + they had ventured with impunity. Ornan went forth and bowed himself + to David with his face to the ground. In ancient days the father of + the faithful, oppressed by the burden of his bereavement, went to + the Hittites to purchase a burying-place for his wife. Now the last + of the Patriarchs, mourning for the sufferings of his people, came + by Divine command to the Jebusite to purchase the ground on which + to offer sacrifices, that the plague might be stayed from the + people. The form of bargaining was somewhat similar in both cases. + We are told that bargains are concluded in much the same fashion + to-day. Abraham had paid four hundred shekels of silver for the + field of Ephron in Machpelah, <span class="tei tei-q">“with the + cave which was therein, and all the trees that were in the + field.”</span> The price of Ornan's threshing-floor was in + proportion to the dignity and wealth of the royal purchaser and the + sacred purpose for which it was designed. The fortunate Jebusite + received no less than six hundred shekels of gold.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">David built his + altar, and offered up his sacrifices and prayers to Jehovah. Then, + in answer to David's prayers, as later in answer to Solomon's, fire + fell from heaven upon the altar of burnt offering, and all this + while the sword of Jehovah flamed across the heavens <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page285">[pg 285]</span><a name="Pg285" id="Pg285" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> above Jerusalem, and the destroying + angel remained passive, but to all appearances unappeased. But as + the fire of God fell from heaven, Jehovah gave yet another final + and convincing token that He would no longer execute judgment + against His people. In spite of all that had happened to reassure + them, the spectators must have been thrilled with alarm when they + saw that the angel of Jehovah no longer remained stationary, and + that his flaming sword was moving through the heavens. Their + renewed terror was only for a moment: <span class="tei tei-q">“the + angel put up his sword again into the sheath thereof,”</span> and + the people breathed more freely when they saw the instrument of + Jehovah's wrath vanish out of their sight.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The use of + Machpelah as a patriarchal burying-place led to the establishment + of a sanctuary at Hebron, which continued to be the seat of a + debased and degenerate worship even after the coming of Christ. It + is even now a Mohammedan holy place. But on the threshing-floor of + Ornan the Jebusite there was to arise a more worthy memorial of the + mercy and judgment of Jehovah. Without the aid of priestly oracle + or prophetic utterance, David was led by the Spirit of the Lord to + discern the significance of the command to perform an irregular + sacrifice in a hitherto unconsecrated place. When the sword of the + destroying angel interposed between David and the Mosaic tabernacle + and altar of Gibeon, the way was not merely barred against the king + and his court on one exceptional occasion. The incidents of this + crisis symbolised the cutting off for ever of the worship of Israel + from its ancient shrine and the transference of the Divinely + appointed centre of the worship of Jehovah to the threshing-floor + of Ornan the Jebusite, that is <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page286">[pg 286]</span><a name="Pg286" id="Pg286" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> to say to Jerusalem, the city of David and + the capital of Judah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The lessons of + this incident, so far as the chronicler has simply borrowed from + his authority, belong to the exposition of the book of Samuel. The + main features peculiar to Chronicles are the introduction of the + evil angel Satan, together with the greater prominence given to the + angel of Jehovah, and the express statement that the scene of + David's sacrifice became the site of Solomon's altar of burnt + offering.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The stress laid + upon angelic agency is characteristic of later Jewish literature, + and is especially marked in Zechariah and Daniel. It was no doubt + partly due to the influence of the Persian religion, but it was + also a development from the primitive faith of Israel, and the + development was favoured by the course of Jewish history. The + Captivity and the Restoration, with the events that preceded and + accompanied these revolutions, enlarged the Jewish experience of + nature and man. The captives in Babylon and the fugitives in Egypt + saw that the world was larger than they had imagined. In Josiah's + reign the Scythians from the far North swept over Western Asia, and + the Medes and Persians broke in upon Assyria and Chaldæa from the + remote East. The prophets claimed Scythians, Medes, and Persians as + the instruments of Jehovah. The Jewish appreciation of the majesty + of Jehovah, the Maker and Ruler of the world, increased as they + learnt more of the world He had made and ruled; but the invasion of + a remote and unknown people impressed them with the idea of + infinite dominion and unlimited resources, beyond all knowledge and + experience. The course of Israelite history between David and Ezra + involved as great a widening of man's ideas of the universe as + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page287">[pg 287]</span><a name= + "Pg287" id="Pg287" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the discovery of + America or the establishment of Copernican astronomy. A Scythian + invasion was scarcely less portentous to the Jews than the descent + of an irresistible army from the planet Jupiter would be to the + civilised nations of the nineteenth century. The Jew began to + shrink from intimate and familiar fellowship with so mighty and + mysterious a Deity. He felt the need of a mediator, some less + exalted being, to stand between himself and God. For the ordinary + purposes of everyday life the Temple, with its ritual and + priesthood, provided a mediation; but for unforeseen contingencies + and exceptional crises the Jews welcomed the belief that a ministry + of angels provided a safe means of intercourse between himself and + the Almighty. Many men have come to feel to-day that the + discoveries of science have made the universe so infinite and + marvellous that its Maker and Governor is exalted beyond human + approach. The infinite spaces of the constellations seem to + intervene between the earth and the presence-chamber of God; its + doors are guarded against prayer and faith by inexorable laws; the + awful Being, who dwells within, has become <span class= + "tei tei-q">“unmeasured in height, undistinguished into + form.”</span> Intellect and imagination alike fail to combine the + manifold and terrible attributes of the Author of nature into the + picture of a loving Father. It is no new experience, and the + present century faces the situation very much as did the + chronicler's contemporaries. Some are happy enough to rest in the + mediation of ritual priests; others are content to recognise, as of + old, powers and forces, not now, however, personal messengers of + Jehovah, but the physical agencies of <span class="tei tei-q">“that + which makes for righteousness.”</span> Christ came to supersede the + Mosaic ritual and the ministry of <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page288">[pg 288]</span><a name="Pg288" id="Pg288" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> angels; He will come again to bring those who + are far off into renewed fellowship with His Father and theirs.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">On the other + hand, the recognition of Satan, the evil angel, marks an equally + great change from the theology of the book of Samuel. The primitive + Israelite religion had not yet reached the stage at which the + origin and existence of moral evil became an urgent problem of + religious thought; men had not yet realised the logical + consequences of the doctrine of Divine unity and omnipotence. Not + only was material evil traced to Jehovah as the expression of His + just wrath against sin, but <span class="tei tei-q">“morally + pernicious acts were quite frankly ascribed to the direct agency of + God.”</span><a id="noteref_319" name="noteref_319" href= + "#note_319"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">319</span></span></a> God + hardens the heart of Pharaoh and the Canaanites; Saul is instigated + by an evil spirit from Jehovah to make an attempt upon the life of + David; Jehovah moves David to number Israel; He sends forth a lying + spirit that Ahab's prophets may prophesy falsely and entice him to + his ruin.<a id="noteref_320" name="noteref_320" href= + "#note_320"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">320</span></span></a> The + Divine origin of moral evil implied in these passages is definitely + stated in the book of Proverbs: <span class="tei tei-q">“Jehovah + hath made everything for its own end, yea even the wicked for the + day of evil”</span>; in Lamentations, <span class="tei tei-q">“Out + of the mouth of the Most High cometh there not evil and + good?”</span> and in the book of Isaiah, <span class="tei tei-q">“I + form the light, and create darkness; I make peace, and create evil; + I am Jehovah, that doeth all these things.”</span><a id= + "noteref_321" name="noteref_321" href="#note_321"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">321</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The + ultra-Calvinism, so to speak, of earlier Israelite religion was + only possible so long as its full significance was not understood. + An emphatic assertion of the <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page289">[pg 289]</span><a name="Pg289" id="Pg289" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> absolute sovereignty of the one God was + necessary as a protest against polytheism, and later on against + dualism as well. For practical purposes men's faith needed to be + protected by the assurance that God worked out His purposes in and + through human wickedness. The earlier attitude of the Old Testament + towards moral evil had a distinct practical and theological + value.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But the + conscience of Israel could not always rest in this view of the + origin of evil. As the standard of morality was raised, and its + obligations were more fully insisted on, as men shrank from causing + evil themselves and from the use of deceit and violence, they + hesitated more and more to ascribe to Jehovah what they sought to + avoid themselves. And yet no easy way of escape presented itself. + The facts remained; the temptation to do evil was part of the + punishment of the sinner and of the discipline of the saint. It was + impossible to deny that sin had its place in God's government of + the world; and in view of men's growing reverence and moral + sensitiveness, it was becoming almost equally impossible to admit + without qualification or explanation that God was Himself the + Author of evil. Jewish thought found itself face to face with the + dilemma against which the human intellect vainly beats its wings, + like a bird against the bars of its cage.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">However, even in + the older literature there were suggestions, not indeed of a + solution of the problem, but of a less objectionable way of stating + facts. In Eden the temptation to evil comes from the serpent; and, + as the story is told, the serpent is quite independent of God; and + the question of any Divine authority or permission for its action + is not in any way dealt <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page290">[pg + 290]</span><a name="Pg290" id="Pg290" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + with. It is true that the serpent was one of the beasts of the + field which the Lord God had made, but the narrator probably did + not consider the question of any Divine responsibility for its + wickedness. Again, when Ahab is enticed to his ruin, Jehovah does + not act directly, but through the twofold agency first of the lying + spirit and then of the deluded prophets. This tendency to + dissociate God from any direct agency of evil is further + illustrated in Job and Zechariah. When Job is to be tried and + tempted, the actual agent is the malevolent Satan; and the same + evil spirit stands forth to accuse the high-priest Joshua<a id= + "noteref_322" name="noteref_322" href="#note_322"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">322</span></span></a> as + the representative of Israel. The development of the idea of + angelic agency afforded new resources for the reverent exposition + of the facts connected with the origin and existence of moral evil. + If a sense of Divine majesty led to a recognition of the angel of + Jehovah as the Mediator of revelation, the reverence for Divine + holiness imperatively demanded that the immediate causation of evil + should also be associated with angelic agency. This agent of evil + receives the name of Satan, the adversary of man, the <span lang= + "la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">advocatus diaboli</span></span> who seeks to + discredit man before God, the impeacher of Job's loyalty and of + Joshua's purity. Yet Jehovah does not resign any of His + omnipotence. In Job Satan cannot act without God's permission; he + is strictly limited by Divine control: all that he does only + illustrates Divine wisdom and effects the Divine purpose. In + Zechariah there is no refutation of the charge brought by Satan; + its truth is virtually admitted: nevertheless Satan is rebuked for + his attempt to hinder God's gracious purposes towards His people. + Thus later Jewish thought left the ultimate Divine sovereignty + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page291">[pg 291]</span><a name= + "Pg291" id="Pg291" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> untouched, but + attributed the actual and direct causation of moral evil to malign + spiritual agency.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Trained in this + school, the chronicler must have read with something of a shock + that Jehovah moved David to commit the sin of numbering Israel. He + was familiar with the idea that in such matters Jehovah used or + permitted the activity of Satan. Accordingly he carefully avoids + reproducing any words from the book of Samuel that imply a direct + Divine temptation of David, and ascribes it to the well-known and + crafty animosity of Satan against Israel. In so doing, he has gone + somewhat further than his predecessors: he is not careful to + emphasise any Divine permission given to Satan or Divine control + exercised over him. The subsequent narrative implies an overruling + for good, and the chronicler may have expected his readers to + understand that Satan here stood in the same relation to God as in + Job and Zechariah; but the abrupt and isolated introduction of + Satan to bring about the fall of David invests the arch-enemy with + a new and more independent dignity.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The progress of + the Jews in moral and spiritual life had given them a keener + appreciation both of good and evil, and of the contrast and + opposition between them. Over against the pictures of the good + kings, and of the angel of the Lord, the generation of the + chronicler set the complementary pictures of the wicked kings and + the evil angel. They had a higher ideal to strive after, a clearer + vision of the kingdom of God; they also saw more vividly the depths + of Satan and recoiled with horror from the abyss revealed to + them.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Our text affords + a striking illustration of the tendency to emphasise the + recognition of Satan as <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page292">[pg + 292]</span><a name="Pg292" id="Pg292" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + the instrument of evil and to ignore the question of the relation + of God to the origin of evil. Possibly no more practical attitude + can be assumed towards this difficult question. The absolute + relation of evil to the Divine sovereignty is one of the problems + of the ultimate nature of God and man. Its discussion may throw + many sidelights upon other subjects, and will always serve the + edifying and necessary purpose of teaching men the limitations of + their intellectual powers. Otherwise theologians have found such + controversies barren, and the average Christian has not been able + to derive from them any suitable nourishment for his spiritual + life. Higher intelligences than our own, we have been told,—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 23.40em"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">... + reasoned high</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Of providence, foreknowledge, + will, and fate,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Fixed fate, free-will, + foreknowledge absolute,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">And found no end, in wandering mazes + lost.</span><span style="font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">On the other + hand, it is supremely important that the believer should clearly + understand the reality of temptation as an evil spiritual force + opposed to Divine grace. Sometimes this power of Satan will show + itself as <span class="tei tei-q">“the alien law in his members, + warring against the law of his mind and bringing him into captivity + under the law of sin, which is in his members.”</span> He will be + conscious that <span class="tei tei-q">“he is drawn away by his own + lust and enticed.”</span> But sometimes temptation will rather come + from the outside. A man will find his <span class= + "tei tei-q">“adversary”</span> in circumstances, in evil + companions, in <span class="tei tei-q">“the sight of means to do + ill deeds”</span>; the serpent whispers in his ear, and Satan moves + him to wrong-doing. Let him not imagine for a moment that he is + delivered over to the powers of evil; let him realise clearly that + with every temptation God provides a way of escape. Every + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page293">[pg 293]</span><a name= + "Pg293" id="Pg293" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> man knows in his own + conscience that speculative difficulties can neither destroy the + sanctity of moral obligation nor hinder the operation of the grace + of God.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Indeed, the + chronicler is at one with the books of Job and Zechariah in showing + us the malice of Satan overruled for man's good and God's glory. In + Job the affliction of the Patriarch only serves to bring out his + faith and devotion, and is eventually rewarded by renewed and + increased prosperity; in Zechariah the protest of Satan against + God's gracious purposes for Israel is made the occasion of a + singular display of God's favour towards His people and their + priest. In Chronicles the malicious intervention of Satan leads up + to the building of the Temple.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Long ago Jehovah + had promised to choose a place in Israel wherein to set His name; + but, as the chronicler read in the history of his nation, the + Israelites dwelt for centuries in Palestine, and Jehovah made no + sign: the ark of God still dwelt in curtains. Those who still + looked for the fulfilment of this ancient promise must often have + wondered by what prophetic utterance or vision Jehovah would make + known His choice. Bethel had been consecrated by the vision of + Jacob, when he was a solitary fugitive from Esau, paying the + penalty of his selfish craft; but the lessons of past history are + not often applied practically, and probably no one ever expected + that Jehovah's choice of the site for His one temple would be made + known to His chosen king, the first true Messiah of Israel, in a + moment of even deeper humiliation than Jacob's, or that the Divine + announcement would be the climax of a series of events initiated by + the successful machinations of Satan.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Yet herein lies + one of the main lessons of the incident. Satan's machinations are + not really successful; <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page294">[pg + 294]</span><a name="Pg294" id="Pg294" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + he often attains his immediate object, but is always defeated in + the end. He estranges David from Jehovah for a moment, but + eventually Jehovah and His people are drawn into closer union, and + their reconciliation is sealed by the long-expected choice of a + site for the Temple. Jehovah is like a great general, who will + sometimes allow the enemy to obtain a temporary advantage, in order + to overwhelm him in some crushing defeat. The eternal purpose of + God moves onward, unresting and unhasting; its quiet and + irresistible persistence finds special opportunity in the + hindrances that seem sometimes to check its progress. In David's + case a few months showed the whole process complete: the malice of + the Enemy; the sin and punishment of his unhappy victim; the Divine + relenting and its solemn symbol in the newly consecrated altar. But + with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years + as one day; and this brief episode in the history of a small people + is a symbol alike of the eternal dealings of God in His government + of the universe and of His personal care for the individual soul. + How short-lived has been the victory of sin in many souls! Sin is + triumphant; the tempter seems to have it all his own way, but his + first successes only lead to his final rout; the devil is cast out + by the Divine exorcism of chastisement and forgiveness; and he + learns that his efforts have been made to subserve the training in + the Christian warfare of such warriors as Augustine and John + Bunyan. Or, to take a case more parallel to that of David, Satan + catches the saint unawares, and entraps him into sin; and, behold, + while the evil one is in the first flush of triumph, his victim is + back again at the throne of grace in an agony of contrition, and + before long the repentant sinner is bowed down <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page295">[pg 295]</span><a name="Pg295" id="Pg295" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> into a new humility at the undeserved + graciousness of the Divine pardon: the chains of love are riveted + with a fuller constraint about his soul, and he is tenfold more the + child of God than before.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And in the + larger life of the Church and the world Satan's triumphs are still + the heralds of his utter defeat. He prompted the Jews to slay + Stephen; and the Church were scattered abroad, and went about + preaching the word; and the young man at whose feet the witnesses + laid down their garments became the Apostle of the Gentiles. He + tricked the reluctant Diocletian into ordering the greatest of the + persecutions, and in a few years Christianity was an established + religion in the empire. In more secular matters the apparent + triumph of an evil principle is usually the signal for its + downfall. In America the slave-holders of the Southern States rode + rough-shod over the Northerners for more than a generation, and + then came the Civil War.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">These are not + isolated instances, and they serve to warn us against undue + depression and despondency when for a season God seems to refrain + from any intervention with some of the evils of the world. We are + apt to ask in our impatience,—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">Is + there not wrong too bitter for atoning?</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 1.80em"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">What are these desperate and + hideous years?</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Hast Thou not heard Thy whole + creation groaning,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 1.80em"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">Sighs of the bondsman, and a woman's + tears?</span><span style="font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The works of + Satan are as earthly as they are devilish; they belong to the + world; which passeth away, with the lust thereof: but the gracious + providence of God has all infinity and all eternity to work in. + Where to-day we can see nothing but the destroying angel with his + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page296">[pg 296]</span><a name= + "Pg296" id="Pg296" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> flaming sword, + future generations shall behold the temple of the Lord.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">David's sin, and + penitence, and pardon were no inappropriate preludes to this + consecration of Mount Moriah. The Temple was not built for the use + of blameless saints, but the worship of ordinary men and women. + Israel through countless generations was to bring the burden of its + sins to the altar of Jehovah. The sacred splendour of Solomon's + dedication festival duly represented the national dignity of Israel + and the majesty of the God of Jacob; but the self-abandonment of + David's repentance, the deliverance of Jerusalem from impending + pestilence, the Divine pardon of presumptuous sin, constituted a + still more solemn inauguration of the place where Jehovah had + chosen to set His name. The sinner, seeking the assurance of pardon + in atoning sacrifice, would remember how David had then received + pardon for his sin, and how the acceptance of his offerings had + been the signal for the disappearance of the destroying angel. So + in the Middle Ages penitents founded churches to expiate their + sins. Such sanctuaries would symbolise to sinners in after-times + the possibility of forgiveness; they were monuments of God's mercy + as well as of the founders' penitence. To-day churches, both in + fabric and fellowship, have been made sacred for individual + worshippers because in them the Spirit of God has moved them to + repentance and bestowed upon them the assurance of pardon. + Moreover, this solemn experience consecrates for God His most + acceptable temples in the souls of those that love Him.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">One other lesson + is suggested by the happy issues of Satan's malign interference in + the history of Israel as understood by the chronicler. The + inauguration of the <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page297">[pg + 297]</span><a name="Pg297" id="Pg297" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + new altar was a direct breach of the Levitical law, and involved + the superseding of the altar and tabernacle that had hitherto been + the only legitimate sanctuary for the worship of Jehovah. Thus the + new order had its origin in the violation of existing ordinances + and the neglect of an ancient sanctuary. Its early history + constituted a declaration of the transient character of sanctuaries + and systems of ritual. God would not eternally limit himself to any + building, or His grace to the observance of any forms of external + ritual. Long before the chronicler's time Jeremiah had proclaimed + this lesson in the ears of Judah: <span class="tei tei-q">“Go ye + now unto My place which was in Shiloh, where I caused My name to + dwell at the first, and see what I did to it for the wickedness of + My people Israel.... I will do unto the house which is called by My + name, wherein ye trust, and unto the place which I gave to you and + your fathers, as I have done to Shiloh.... I will make this house + like Shiloh, and will make this city a curse to all the nations of + the earth.”</span><a id="noteref_323" name="noteref_323" href= + "#note_323"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">323</span></span></a> In + the Tabernacle all things were made according to the pattern that + was showed to Moses in the mount; for the Temple David was made to + understand the pattern of all things <span class="tei tei-q">“in + writing from the hand of Jehovah.”</span><a id="noteref_324" name= + "noteref_324" href="#note_324"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">324</span></span></a> If + the Tabernacle could be set aside for the Temple, the Temple might + in its turn give place to the universal Church. If God allowed + David in his great need to ignore the one legitimate altar of the + Tabernacle and to sacrifice without its officials, the faithful + Israelite might be encouraged to believe that in extreme emergency + Jehovah would accept his offering without regard to place or + priest.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The principles + here involved are of very wide application. <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page298">[pg 298]</span><a name="Pg298" id="Pg298" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Every ecclesiastical system was at + first a new departure. Even if its highest claims be admitted, they + simply assert that within historic times God set aside some other + system previously enjoying the sanction of His authority, and + substituted for it a more excellent way. The Temple succeeded the + Tabernacle; the synagogue appropriated in a sense part of the + authority of the Temple; the Church superseded both synagogue and + Temple. God's action in authorising each new departure warrants the + expectation that He may yet sanction new ecclesiastical systems; + the authority which is sufficient to establish is also adequate to + supersede. When the Anglican Church broke away from the unity of + Western Christendom by denying the supremacy of the Pope and + refusing to recognise the orders of other Protestant Churches, she + set an example of dissidence that was naturally followed by the + Presbyterians and Independents. The revolt of the Reformers against + the theology of their day in a measure justifies those who have + repudiated the dogmatic systems of the Reformed Churches. In these + and in other ways to claim freedom from authority, even in order to + set up a new authority of one's own, involves in principle at least + the concession to others of a similar liberty of revolt against + one's self.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page299">[pg 299]</span><a name= + "Pg299" id="Pg299" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc49" id="toc49"></a> <a name="pdf50" id="pdf50"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter XI. Conclusion.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In dealing with + the various subjects of this book, we have reserved for separate + treatment their relation to the Messianic hopes of the Jews and to + the realisation of these hopes in Christ. The Messianic teaching of + Chronicles is only complete when we collect and combine the noblest + traits in its pictures of David and Solomon, of prophets, priests, + and kings. We cannot ascribe to Chronicles any great influence on + the subsequent development of the Jewish idea of the Messiah. In + the first place, the chronicler does not point out the bearing + which his treatment of history has upon the expectation of a future + deliverer. He has no formal intention of describing the character + and office of the Messiah; he merely wishes to write a history so + as to emphasise the facts which most forcibly illustrated the + sacred mission of Israel. And, in the second place, Chronicles + never exercised any great influence over Jewish thought, and never + attained to anything like the popularity of the books of Samuel and + Kings. Many circumstances conspired to prevent the Temple ministry + from obtaining an undivided authority over later Judaism. The + growth of their power was broken in upon by the persecutions of + Antiochus and the wars of the Maccabees. The ministry of the Temple + under <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page300">[pg 300]</span><a name= + "Pg300" id="Pg300" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the Maccabæan + high-priests must have been very different from that to which the + chronicler belonged. Even if the priests and Levites still + exercised any influence upon theology, they were overshadowed by + the growing importance of the rabbinical schools of Babylon and + Palestine. Moreover, the rise of Hellenistic Judaism and the + translation of the Scriptures into Greek introduced another new and + potent factor into the development of the Jewish religion. Of all + the varied forces that were at work few or none tended to assign + any special authority to Chronicles, nor has it left any very + marked traces on later literature. Josephus indeed uses it for his + history, but the New Testament is under very slight obligation to + our author.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But Chronicles + reveals to us the position and tendencies of Jewish thought in the + interval between Ezra and the Maccabees. The Messiah was expected + to renew the ancient glories of the chosen people, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“to restore the kingdom to Israel”</span>; we learn + from Chronicles what sort of a kingdom He was to restore. We see + the features of the ancient monarchy that were dear to the memories + of the Jews, the characters of the prophets, priests, and kings + whom they delighted to honour. As their ideas of the past shaped + and coloured their hopes for the future, their conception of what + was noblest and best in the history of the monarchy was at the same + time the measure of what they expected in the Messiah. However + little influence Chronicles may have exerted as a piece of + literature, the tendencies of which it is a monument continued to + leaven the thought of Israel, and are everywhere manifest in the + New Testament.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have to bear + in mind that Messiah, <span class="tei tei-q">“Anointed,”</span> + was the familiar title of the Israelite kings; its use <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page301">[pg 301]</span><a name="Pg301" id="Pg301" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> for the priests was late and secondary. + The use of a royal title to denote the future Saviour of the nation + shows us that He was primarily conceived of as an ideal king; and + apart from any formal enunciation of this conception, the title + itself would exercise a controlling influence upon the development + of the Messianic idea. Accordingly in the New Testament we find + that the Jews were looking for a king; and Jesus calls His new + society the Kingdom of Heaven.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But for the + chronicler the Messiah, the Anointed of Jehovah, is no mere secular + prince. We have seen how the chronicler tends to include religious + duties and prerogatives among the functions of the king. David and + Solomon and their pious successors are supreme alike in Church and + state as the earthly representatives of Jehovah. The actual titles + of priest and prophet are not bestowed upon the kings, but they are + virtually priests in their care for and control over the buildings + and ritual of the Temple, and they are prophets when, like David + and Solomon, they hold direct fellowship with Jehovah and announce + His will to the people. Moreover, David, as <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the Psalmist of Israel,”</span> had become the + inspired interpreter of the religious experience of the Jews. The + ancient idea of the king as the victorious conqueror was gradually + giving place to a more spiritual conception of his office; the + Messiah was becoming more and more a definitely religious + personage. Thus Chronicles prepared the way for the acceptance of + Christ as a spiritual Deliverer, who was not only King, but also + Priest and Prophet. In fact, we may claim the chronicler's own + implied authority for including in the picture of the coming King + the characteristics he ascribes to the priest and the prophet. Thus + the Messiah of Chronicles is <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page302">[pg 302]</span><a name="Pg302" id="Pg302" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> distinctly more spiritual and less secular + than the Messiah of popular Jewish enthusiasm in our Lord's own + time. Whereas in the chronicler's time the tendency was to + spiritualise the idea of the king, the tenure of the office of + high-priest by the Maccabæan princes tended rather to secularise + the priesthood and to restore older and cruder conceptions of the + Messianic King.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Let us see how + the chronicler's history of the house of David illustrates the + person and work of the Son of David, who came to restore the + ancient monarchy in the spiritual kingdom of which it was the + symbol. The Gospels introduce our Lord very much as the chronicler + introduces David: they give us His genealogy, and pass almost + immediately to His public ministry. Of His training and preparation + for that ministry, of the chain of earthly circumstances that + determined the time and method of His entry upon the career of a + public Teacher, they tell us next to nothing. We are only allowed + one brief glimpse of the life of the holy Child; our attention is + mainly directed to the royal Saviour when He has entered upon His + kingdom; and His Divine nature finds expression in mature manhood, + when none of the limitations of childhood detract from the fulness + of His redeeming service and sacrifice.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The authority of + Christ rests on the same basis as that of the ancient kings: it is + at once human and Divine. In Christ indeed this twofold authority + is in one sense peculiar to Himself; but in the practical + application of His authority to the hearts and consciences of men + He treads in the footsteps of His ancestors. His kingdom rests on + His own Divine commission and on the consent of His subjects. God + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page303">[pg 303]</span><a name= + "Pg303" id="Pg303" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> has given Him the + right to rule, but He will not reign in any heart till He receives + its free submission. And still, as of old, Christ, thus chosen and + well beloved of God and man, is King over the whole life of His + people, and claims to rule over them in their homes, their + business, their recreation, their social and political life, as + well as in their public and private worship. If David and his pious + successors were devoted to Jehovah and His temple, if they + protected their people from foreign foes and wisely administered + the affairs of Israel, Christ sets us the example of perfect + obedience to the Father; He gives us deliverance and victory in our + warfare against principalities and powers, against the world rulers + of this darkness, and against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in + heavenly places; He administers in peace and holiness the inner + kingdom of the believing heart. All that was foreshadowed both by + David and Solomon is realised in Christ. The warlike David is a + symbol of the holy warfare of Christ and the Church militant, of + Him who came not to send peace on earth, but a sword; Solomon is + the symbol of Christ, the Prince of peace in the Church triumphant. + The tranquillity and splendour of the reign of the first son of + David are types of the serene glory of Christ's kingdom as it is + partly realised in the hearts of His children and as it will be + fully realised in heaven; the God-given wisdom of Solomon + prefigures the perfect knowledge and understanding of Him who is + Himself the Word and Wisdom of God.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The shadows that + darken the history of the kings of Judah and even the life of David + himself remind us that the Messiah moved upon a far higher moral + and spiritual level than the monarchs whose royal dignity was a + type of His own. Like David, He <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page304">[pg 304]</span><a name="Pg304" id="Pg304" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> was exposed to the machinations of Satan; + but, unlike David, He successfully resisted the tempter. He was in + <span class="tei tei-q">“all points tempted like as we are, yet + without sin.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The great + priestly work of David and Solomon was the building of the Temple + and the organisation of its ritual and ministry. By this work the + kings made splendid provision for fellowship between Jehovah and + His people, and for the system of sacrifices, whereby a sinful + nation expressed their penitence and received the assurance of + forgiveness. This has been the supreme work of Christ: through Him + we have access to God; we enter into the holy place, into the + Divine presence, by a new and living way, that is to say His flesh; + He has brought us into the perpetual fellowship of the Spirit. And + whereas Solomon could only build one temple, to which the believer + paid occasional visits and obtained the sense of Divine fellowship + through the ministry of the priests, Christ makes every faithful + heart the temple of sacred service, and He has offered for us the + one sacrifice, and provides a universal atonement.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In His + priesthood, as in His sacrifice, He represents us before God, and + this representation is not merely technical and symbolic: in Him we + find ourselves brought near to God, and our desires and aspirations + are presented as petitions at the throne of the heavenly grace. + But, on the other hand, in His love and righteousness He represents + God to us, and brings the assurance of our acceptance.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Other minor + features of the office and rights of the priests and Levites find a + parallel in Christ. He also is our Teacher and our Judge; to Him + and to His service all worldly wealth may be consecrated. Christ + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page305">[pg 305]</span><a name= + "Pg305" id="Pg305" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> is in all things the + spiritual Heir of the house of Aaron as well as of the house of + David; because He is a Priest for ever after the order of + Melchizedek, He, like Melchizedek, is also King of Salem; of His + kingdom and of His priesthood there shall be no end. But while + Christ is to the Kingdom of Heaven what David was to the Israelite + monarchy, while in the different aspects of His work He is at once + Temple, Priest, and Sacrifice, yet in the ministry of His earthly + life He is above all a Prophet, the supreme successor of Elijah and + Isaiah. It was only in a figure that He sat upon David's throne; it + formed no part of His plan to exercise earthly dominion: His + kingdom was not of this world. He did not belong to the priestly + tribe, and performed none of the external acts of priestly ritual; + He did not base His authority upon any genealogy with regard to + priesthood, as the Epistle to the Hebrews says, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“It is evident that our Lord hath sprung out of Judah, + as to which tribe Moses spake nothing concerning + priests.”</span><a id="noteref_325" name="noteref_325" href= + "#note_325"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">325</span></span></a> His + royal birth had its symbolic value, but He never asked men to + believe in Him because of His human descent from David. He relied + as little on the authority of office as on that of birth. + Officially He was neither scribe nor rabbi. Like the prophets, His + only authority was His Divine commission and the witness of the + Spirit in the hearts of His hearers. The people recognised Him as a + prophet; they took Him for Elijah or one of the prophets; He spoke + of Himself as a prophet: <span class="tei tei-q">“Not without + honour, save in his own country.”</span> We have seen that, while + the priests ministered to the regular and recurring needs of the + people, the Divine <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page306">[pg + 306]</span><a name="Pg306" id="Pg306" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + guidance in special emergencies and the Divine authority for new + departures were given by the prophets. By a prophet Jehovah brought + Israel out of Egypt,<a id="noteref_326" name="noteref_326" href= + "#note_326"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">326</span></span></a> and + Christ as a Prophet led His people out of the bondage of the Law + into the liberty of the Gospel. By Him the Divine authority was + given for the greatest religious revolution that the world has ever + seen. And still He is the Prophet of the Church. He does not merely + provide for the religious wants that are common to every race and + to every generation: as the circumstances of His Church altar, and + the believer is confronted with fresh difficulties and called upon + to undertake new tasks, Christ reveals to His people the purpose + and counsel of God. Even the record of His earthly teaching is + constantly found to have anticipated the needs of our own time; His + Spirit enables us to discover fresh applications of the truths He + taught: and through Him special light is sought and granted for the + guidance of individuals and of the Church in their need.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But in + Chronicles special stress is laid on the darker aspects of the work + of the prophets. They constantly appear to administer rebukes and + announce coming punishment. Both Christ and His apostles were + compelled to assume the same attitude towards Israel. Like + Jeremiah, their hearts sank under the burden of so stern a duty. + Christ denounced the Pharisees, and wept over the city that knew + not the things belonging to its peace; He declared the impending + ruin of the Temple and the Holy City. Even so His Spirit still + rebukes sin, and warns the impenitent of inevitable + punishment.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page307">[pg + 307]</span><a name="Pg307" id="Pg307" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have seen + also in Chronicles that no stress was laid on any material rewards + for the prophets, and that their fidelity was sometimes recompensed + with persecution and death. Like Christ Himself, they had nothing + to do with priestly wealth and splendour. The silence of the + chronicler to the income of these prophets makes them fitting types + of Him who had not where to lay His head. A discussion of the + income of Christ would almost savour of blasphemy; we should shrink + from inquiring how far <span class="tei tei-q">“those who derived + spiritual profit from His teaching gave Him substantial proofs of + their appreciation of His ministry.”</span> Christ's recompense at + the hands of the world and of the Jewish Church was that which + former prophets had received. Like Zechariah the son of Jehoiada, + He was persecuted and slain; He delivered a prophet's message, and + died a prophet's death.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But, besides the + chronicler's treatment of the offices of prophet, priest, and king, + there was another feature of his teaching which would prepare the + way for a clear comprehension of the person and work of Christ. We + have noticed how the growing sense of the power and majesty of + Jehovah seemed to set Him at a distance from man, and how the Jews + welcomed the idea of the mediation of an angelic ministry. And yet + the angels were too vague and unfamiliar, too little known, and too + imperfectly understood to satisfy men's longing for some means of + fellowship between themselves and the remote majesty of an almighty + God; while still their ministry served to maintain faith in the + possibility of mediation, and to quicken the yearning after some + better way of access to Jehovah. When Christ came He found this + faith and yearning waiting to be satisfied; they opened a door + through which Christ found <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page308">[pg 308]</span><a name="Pg308" id="Pg308" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> His way into hearts prepared to receive Him. + In Him the familiar human figures of priest and prophet were + exalted into the supernatural dignity of the Angel of Jehovah. Men + had long strained their eyes in vain to a far-off heaven; and, + behold, a human voice recalled their gaze to the earth; and they + turned and found God beside them, kindly and accessible, a Man with + men. They realised the promise that a modern poet puts into David's + mouth:—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 27.00em"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">... O + Saul, it shall be</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">A face like my face that + receives thee; a Man like to me</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Thou shalt love and be loved by + for ever; a Hand like this hand</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">Shall throw open the gates of new life to + thee! See the Christ stand!</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have thus + seen how the figures of the chronicler's history—prophet, priest, + king, and angel—were types and foreshadowings of Christ. We may sum + up this aspect of his teaching by a quotation from a modern + exponent of Old Testament theology:—</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“Moses the prophet is the first type of the Mediator. + By his side stands Aaron the priest, who connects the people with + God, and consecrates it.... But from the time of David both these + figures pale in the imagination of the people before the picture of + the Davidic king. His is the figure which appears the most + indispensable condition of all true happiness for Israel. David is + the third and by far the most perfect type of the + Consummator.”</span><a id="noteref_327" name="noteref_327" href= + "#note_327"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">327</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This recurrence + to the king as the most perfect type of the Redeemer suggests a + last application of the Messianic teaching of the chronicler. In + discussing his <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page309">[pg + 309]</span><a name="Pg309" id="Pg309" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + pictures of the kings, we have ventured to give them a meaning + adapted to modern political life. In Israel the king stood for the + state. When a community combined for common action to erect a + temple or repel an invader, the united force was controlled and + directed by the king; he was the symbol of national union and + co-operation. To-day, when a community acts as a whole, its agent + and instrument is the civil government; the state is the people + organised for the common good, subordinating individual ends to the + welfare of the whole nation. Where the Old Testament has + <span class="tei tei-q">“king,”</span> its modern equivalent may + read the state or the civil government,—nay, even for special + purposes the municipality, the county council, or the school board. + Shall we obtain any helpful or even intelligible result if we apply + this method of translation to the doctrine of the Messiah? + Externally at any rate the translation bears a startling likeness + to what has been regarded as a specially modern development. + <span class="tei tei-q">“Israel looked for salvation from the + king,”</span> would read, <span class="tei tei-q">“Modern society + should seek salvation from the state.”</span> Assuredly there are + many prophets who have taken up this burden without any idea that + their new heresy was only a reproduction of old and forgotten + orthodoxy. But the history of the growth of the Messianic idea + supplies a correction to the primitive baldness of this principle + of salvation by the state. In time the picture of the Messianic + king came to include the attributes of the prophet and the priest. + If we care to complete our modern application, we must affirm that + the state can never be a saviour till it becomes sensitive to + Divine influences and conscious of a Divine presence.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">When we see how + the Messianic hope of Israel was purified and ennobled to receive a + fulfilment glorious <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page310">[pg + 310]</span><a name="Pg310" id="Pg310" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + beyond its wildest dreams, we are encouraged to believe that the + fantastic visions of the Socialist may be divinely guided to some + reasonable ideal and may prepare the way for some further + manifestation of the grace of God. But the Messianic state, like + the Messiah, may be called upon to suffer and die for the salvation + of the world, that it may receive a better resurrection.</p> + </div> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page311">[pg 311]</span><a name= + "Pg311" id="Pg311" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc51" id="toc51"></a> <a name="pdf52" id="pdf52"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em; margin-top: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">Book IV. The Interpretation Of + History.</span></h1><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page313">[pg + 313]</span><a name="Pg313" id="Pg313" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc53" id="toc53"></a> <a name="pdf54" id="pdf54"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter I. The Last Prayer Of David. + 1 Chron. xxix. 10-19.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In order to do + justice to the chronicler's method of presenting us with a number + of very similar illustrations of the same principle, we have in the + previous book grouped much of his material under a few leading + subjects. There remains the general thread of the history, which + is, of course, very much the same in Chronicles as in the book of + Kings, and need not be dwelt on at any length. At the same time + some brief survey is necessary for the sake of completeness and in + order to bring out the different complexion given to the history by + the chronicler's alterations and omissions. Moreover, there are a + number of minor points that are most conveniently dealt with in the + course of a running exposition.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The special + importance attached by the chronicler to David and Solomon has + enabled us to treat their reigns at length in discussing his + picture of the ideal king; and similarly the reign of Ahaz has + served as an illustration of the character and fortunes of the + wicked kings. We therefore take up the history at the accession of + Rehoboam, and shall simply indicate very briefly the connection of + the reign of Ahaz with what <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page314">[pg 314]</span><a name="Pg314" id="Pg314" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> precedes and follows. But before passing on + to Rehoboam we must consider <span class="tei tei-q">“The Last + Prayer of David,”</span> a devotional paragraph peculiar to + Chronicles. The detailed exposition of this passage would have been + out of proportion in a brief sketch of the chronicler's account of + the character and reign of David, and would have had no special + bearing on the subject of the ideal king. On the other hand, the + <span class="tei tei-q">“Prayer”</span> states some of the leading + principles which govern the chronicler in his interpretation of the + history of Israel; and its exposition forms a suitable introduction + to the present division of our subject.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The occasion of + this prayer was the great closing scene of David's life, which we + have already described. The prayer is a thanksgiving for the + assurance David had received that the accomplishment of the great + purpose of his life, the erection of a temple to Jehovah, was + virtually secured. He had been permitted to collect the materials + for the building, he had received the plans of the Temple from + Jehovah, and had placed them in the willing hands of his successor. + The princes and the people had caught his own enthusiasm and + lavishly supplemented the bountiful provision already made for the + future work. Solomon had been accepted as king by popular + acclamation. Every possible preparation had been made that could be + made, and the aged king poured out his heart in praise to God for + His grace and favour.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The prayer falls + naturally into four subdivisions: vv. 10-13 are a kind of doxology + in honour of Jehovah; in vv. 14-16 David acknowledges that Israel + is entirely dependent upon Jehovah for the means of rendering Him + acceptable service; in ver. 17 he claims that he and his people + have offered willingly unto Jehovah; and <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page315">[pg 315]</span><a name="Pg315" id="Pg315" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> in vv. 18 and 19 he prays that Solomon and + the people may build the Temple and abide in the Law.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In the doxology + God is addressed as <span class="tei tei-q">“Jehovah, the God of + Israel, our Father,”</span> and similarly in ver. 18 as + <span class="tei tei-q">“Jehovah, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and + of Israel.”</span> For the chronicler the accession of David is the + starting-point of Israelite history and religion, but here, as in + the genealogies, he links his narrative to that of the Pentateuch, + and reminds his readers that the crowning dispensation of the + worship of Jehovah in the Temple rested on the earlier revelations + to Abraham, Isaac, and Israel.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We are at once + struck by the divergence from the usual formula: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”</span> Moreover, when God + is referred to as the God of the Patriarch personally, the usual + phrase is <span class="tei tei-q">“the God of Jacob.”</span> The + formula, <span class="tei tei-q">“God of Abraham, Isaac, and + Israel,”</span> occurs again in Chronicles in the account of + Hezekiah's reformation; it only occurs elsewhere in the history of + Elijah in the book of Kings.<a id="noteref_328" name="noteref_328" + href="#note_328"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">328</span></span></a> The + chronicler avoids the use of the name <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Jacob,”</span> and for the most part calls the + Patriarch <span class="tei tei-q">“Israel.”</span> <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Jacob”</span> only occurs in two poetic quotations, + where its omission was almost impossible, because in each case + <span class="tei tei-q">“Israel”</span> is used in the parallel + clause.<a id="noteref_329" name="noteref_329" href= + "#note_329"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">329</span></span></a> This + choice of names is an application of the same principle that led to + the omission of the discreditable incidents in the history of David + and Solomon. Jacob was the supplanter. The name suggested the + unbrotherly craft of the Patriarch. It was not desirable that the + Jews should be encouraged to think of Jehovah as the God of a + grasping and deceitful man. Jehovah was the God of the Patriarch's + nobler nature and <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page316">[pg + 316]</span><a name="Pg316" id="Pg316" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + higher life, the God of Israel, who strove with God and + prevailed.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In the doxology + that follows the resources of language are almost exhausted in the + attempt to set forth adequately <span class="tei tei-q">“the + greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the + majesty, ... the riches and honour, ... the power and + might,”</span> of Jehovah. These verses read like an expansion of + the simple Christian doxology, <span class="tei tei-q">“Thine is + the kingdom, the power, and the glory,”</span> but in all + probability the latter is an abbreviation from our text. In both + there is the same recognition of the ruling omnipotence of God; but + the chronicler, having in mind the glory and power of David and his + magnificent offerings for the building of the Temple, is specially + careful to intimate that Jehovah is the source of all worldly + greatness: <span class="tei tei-q">“Both riches and honour come of + Thee, ... and in Thy hand it is to make great and to give strength + unto all.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The + complementary truth, the entire dependence of Israel on Jehovah, is + dealt with in the next verses. David has learnt humility from the + tragic consequences of his fatal census; his heart is no longer + uplifted with pride at the wealth and glory of his kingdom; he + claims no credit for the spontaneous impulse of generosity that + prompted his munificence. Everything is traced back to Jehovah: + <span class="tei tei-q">“All things come of Thee, and of Thine own + have we given Thee.”</span> Before, when David contemplated the + vast population of Israel and the great array of his warriors, the + sense of God's displeasure fell upon him; now, when the riches and + honour of his kingdom were displayed before him, he may have felt + the chastening influence of his former experience. A touch of + melancholy darkened his spirit for a moment; standing upon the + brink of the dim, mysterious Sheol, <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page317">[pg 317]</span><a name="Pg317" id="Pg317" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> he found small comfort in barbaric abundance + of timber and stone, jewels, talents, and darics; he saw the + emptiness of all earthly splendour. Like Abraham before the + children of Heth, he stood before Jehovah a stranger and a + sojourner.<a id="noteref_330" name="noteref_330" href= + "#note_330"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">330</span></span></a> + Bildad the Shuhite had urged Job to submit himself to the teaching + of a venerable orthodoxy, because <span class="tei tei-q">“we are + of yesterday and know nothing, because our days upon earth are a + shadow.”</span><a id="noteref_331" name="noteref_331" href= + "#note_331"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">331</span></span></a> The + same thought made David feel his insignificance, in spite of his + wealth and royal dominion: <span class="tei tei-q">“Our days on the + earth are as a shadow, and there no abiding.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">He turns from + these sombre thoughts to the consoling reflection that in all his + preparations he has been the instrument of a Divine purpose, and + has served Jehovah willingly. To-day he can approach God with a + clear conscience: <span class="tei tei-q">“I know also, my God, + that Thou triest the heart and hast pleasure in uprightness. As for + me, in the uprightness of my heart I have willingly offered all + these things.”</span> He rejoiced, moreover, that the people had + offered willingly. The chronicler anticipates the teaching of St. + Paul that <span class="tei tei-q">“the Lord loveth a cheerful + giver.”</span> David gives of his abundance in the same spirit in + which the widow gave her mite. The two narratives are mutually + supplementary. It is possible to apply the story of the widow's + mite so as to suggest that God values our offerings in inverse + proportion to their amount. We are reminded by the willing + munificence of David that the rich may give of his abundance as + simply and humbly and as acceptably as the poor man gives of his + poverty.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page318">[pg + 318]</span><a name="Pg318" id="Pg318" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But however + grateful David might be for the pious and generous spirit by which + his people were now possessed, he did not forget that they could + only abide in that spirit by the continued enjoyment of Divine help + and grace. His thanksgiving concludes with prayer. Spiritual + depression is apt to follow very speedily in the train of spiritual + exaltation; days of joy and light are granted to us that we may + make provision for future necessity.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">David does not + merely ask that Israel may be kept in external obedience and + devotion: his prayer goes deeper. He knows that out of the heart + are the issues of life, and he prays that the heart of Solomon and + the thoughts of the heart of the people may be kept right with God. + Unless the fountain of life were pure, it would be useless to + cleanse the stream. David's special desire is that the Temple may + be built, but this desire is only the expression of his loyalty to + the Law. Without the Temple the commandments, and testimonies, and + statutes of the Law could not be rightly observed. But he does not + ask that the people may be constrained to build the Temple and + keeping the Law in order that their hearts may be made perfect; + their hearts are to be made perfect that they may keep the Law.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Henceforward + throughout his history the chronicler's criterion of a perfect + heart, a righteous life, in king and people, is their attitude + towards the Law and the Temple. Because their ordinances and + worship formed the accepted standard of religion and morality, + through which men's goodness would naturally express themselves. + Similarly only under a supreme sense of duty to God and man may the + Christian willingly violate the established canons of religious and + social life.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page319">[pg + 319]</span><a name="Pg319" id="Pg319" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We may conclude + by noticing a curious feature in the wording of David's prayer. In + the nineteenth, as in the first, verse of this chapter the Temple, + according to our English versions, is referred to as <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the palace.”</span> The original word <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">bîrâ</span></span> is probably Persian, though + a parallel form is quoted from the Assyrian. As a Hebrew word it + belongs to the latest and most corrupt stage of the language as + found in the Old Testament; and only occurs in Chronicles, + Nehemiah, Esther, and Daniel. In putting this word into the mouth + of David, the chronicler is guilty of an anachronism, parallel to + his use of the word <span class="tei tei-q">“darics.”</span> The + word <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">bîrâ</span></span> appears to + have first become familiar to the Jews as the name of a Persian + palace or fortress in Susa; it is used in Nehemiah of the castle + attached to the Temple, and in later times the derivative Greek + name <span lang="el" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "el"><span style="font-style: italic">Baris</span></span> had the + same meaning. It is curious to find the chronicler, in his effort + to find a sufficiently dignified title for the temple of Jehovah, + driven to borrow a word which belonged originally to the royal + magnificence of a heathen empire, and which was used later on to + denote the fortress whence a Roman garrison controlled the + fanaticism of Jewish worship.<a id="noteref_332" name="noteref_332" + href="#note_332"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">332</span></span></a> The + chronicler's intention, no doubt, was to intimate that the dignity + of the Temple surpassed that of any royal palace. He could not + suppose that it was greater in extent or constructed of more costly + materials; the living presence of Jehovah was its one supreme and + unique distinction. The King gave honour to His dwelling-place.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page320">[pg 320]</span><a name= + "Pg320" id="Pg320" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc55" id="toc55"></a> <a name="pdf56" id="pdf56"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter II. Rehoboam And Abijah: The + Importance Of Ritual. 2 Chron. x.-xiii.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The transition + from Solomon to Rehoboam brings to light a serious drawback of the + chronicler's principle of selection. In the history of Solomon we + read of nothing but wealth, splendour, unchallenged dominion, and + superhuman wisdom; and yet the breath is hardly out of the body of + the wisest and greatest king of Israel before his empire falls to + pieces. We are told, as in the book of Kings, that the people met + Rehoboam with a demand for release from <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the grievous service of thy father,”</span> and yet we + were expressly told only two chapters before that <span class= + "tei tei-q">“of the children of Israel did Solomon make no servants + for his work; but they were men of war, and chief of his captains, + and rulers of his chariots and of his horsemen.”</span><a id= + "noteref_333" name="noteref_333" href="#note_333"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">333</span></span></a> + Rehoboam apparently had been left by the wisdom of his father to + the companionship of head-strong and featherbrained youths; he + followed their advice rather than that of Solomon's grey-headed + counsellors, with the result that the ten tribes successfully + revolted and chose Jeroboam for their king. Rehoboam assembled an + army to reconquer his <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page321">[pg + 321]</span><a name="Pg321" id="Pg321" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + lost territory, but Jehovah through the prophet Shemaiah forbade + him to make war against Jeroboam.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler + here and elsewhere shows his anxiety not to perplex simple minds + with unnecessary difficulties. They might be harassed and disturbed + by the discovery that the king, who built the Temple and was + specially endowed with Divine wisdom, had fallen into grievous sin + and been visited with condign punishment. Accordingly everything + that discredits Solomon and detracts from his glory is omitted. The + general principle is sound; an earnest teacher, alive to his + responsibility, will not wantonly obtrude difficulties upon his + hearers; when silence does not involve disloyalty to truth, he will + be willing that they should remain in ignorance of some of the more + mysterious dealings of God in nature and history. But silence was + more possible and less dangerous in the chronicler's time than in + the nineteenth century. He could count upon a docile and submissive + spirit in his readers; they would not inquire beyond what they were + told: they would not discover the difficulties for themselves. + Jewish youths were not exposed to the attacks of eager and militant + sceptics, who would force these difficulties upon their notice in + an exaggerated form, and at once demand that they should cease to + believe in anything human or Divine.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And yet, though + the chronicler had great advantages in this matter, his own + narrative illustrates the narrow limits within which the principle + of the suppression of difficulties can be safely applied. His + silence as to Solomon's sins and misfortunes makes the revolt of + the ten tribes utterly inexplicable. After the account of the + perfect wisdom, peace, and prosperity of Solomon's reign, the + revolt comes upon an intelligent <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page322">[pg 322]</span><a name="Pg322" id="Pg322" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> reader with a shock of surprise and almost of + incredulity. If he could not test the chronicler's narrative by + that of the book of Kings—and it was no part of the chronicler's + purpose that his history should be thus tested—the violent + transition from Solomon's unbroken prosperity to the catastrophe of + the disruption would leave the reader quite uncertain as to the + general credibility of Chronicles. In avoiding Scylla, our author + has fallen into Charybdis; he has suppressed one set of + difficulties only to create others. If we wish to help intelligent + inquirers and to aid them to form an independent judgment, our + safest plan will often be to tell them all we know ourselves and to + believe that difficulties, which in no way mar our spiritual life, + will not destroy their faith.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In the next + section<a id="noteref_334" name="noteref_334" href= + "#note_334"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">334</span></span></a> the + chronicler tells how for three years Rehoboam administered his + diminished kingdom with wisdom and success; he and his people + walked in the way of David and Solomon, and his kingdom was + established, and he was strong. He fortified fifteen cities in + Judah and Benjamin, and put captains in them, and store of + victuals, and oil and wine, and shields and spears, and made them + exceeding strong. Rehoboam was further strengthened by deserters + from the northern kingdom. Though the Pentateuch and the book of + Joshua assigned to the priests and Levites cities in the territory + held by Jeroboam, yet their intimate association with the Temple + rendered it impossible for them to remain citizens of a state + hostile to Jerusalem. The chronicler indeed tells us that + <span class="tei tei-q">“Jeroboam and his sons cast them off, that + they should not execute the priest's office unto <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page323">[pg 323]</span><a name="Pg323" id="Pg323" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Jehovah, and appointed others to be + priests for the high places and the he-goats and for the calves + which he had.”</span> It is difficult to understand what the + chronicler means by this statement. On the face of it, we should + suppose that Jeroboam refused to employ the house of Aaron and the + tribe of Levi for the worship of his he-goats and calves, but the + chronicler could not describe such action as casting <span class= + "tei tei-q">“them off that they should not execute the priest's + office unto Jehovah.”</span> The passage has been explained to mean + that Jeroboam sought to hinder them from exercising their functions + at the Temple by preventing them from visiting Judah; but to + confine the priests and Levites to his own kingdom would have been + a strange way of casting them off. However, whether driven out by + Jeroboam or escaping from him, they came to Jerusalem and brought + with them from among the ten tribes other pious Israelites, who + were attached to the worship of the Temple. Judah and Jerusalem + became the home of all true worshippers of Jehovah; and those who + remained in the northern kingdom were given up to idolatry or the + degenerate and corrupt worship of the high places. The chronicler + then gives us some account of Rehoboam's harem and children, and + tells that he dealt wisely, and dispersed his twenty-eight sons + <span class="tei tei-q">“throughout all the lands of Judah and + Benjamin, unto every fenced city.”</span> He gave them the means of + maintaining a luxurious table, and provided them with numerous + wives, and trusted that, being thus happily circumstanced, they + would lack leisure, energy, and ambition to imitate Absalom and + Adonijah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Prosperity and + security turned the head of Rehoboam as they had done that of + David: <span class="tei tei-q">“He forsook the law of Jehovah, and + all Israel with him.”</span> <span class="tei tei-q">“All + Israel”</span> means <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page324">[pg + 324]</span><a name="Pg324" id="Pg324" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + all the subjects of Rehoboam; the chronicler treats the ten tribes + as cut off from Israel. The faithful worshippers of Jehovah in + Judah had been reinforced by the priests, Levites, and all other + pious Israelites from the northern kingdom; and yet in three years + they forsook the cause for which they had left their country and + their fathers house. Punishment was not long delayed, for Shishak, + king of Egypt, invaded Judah with an immense host and took away the + treasures of the house of Jehovah and of the king's house.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler + explains why Rehoboam was not more severely punished.<a id= + "noteref_335" name="noteref_335" href="#note_335"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">335</span></span></a> + Shishak appeared before Jerusalem with his immense host: + Ethiopians, Lubim or Lybians, and Sukiim, a mysterious people only + mentioned here. The LXX. and Vulgate translate Sukiim <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Troglodytes,”</span> apparently identifying them with + the cave-dwellers on the western or Ethiopian coast of the Red Sea. + In order to find safety from these strange and barbarous enemies, + Rehoboam and his princes were gathered together in Jerusalem. + Shemaiah the prophet appeared before them, and declared that the + invasion was Jehovah's punishment for their sin, whereupon they + humbled themselves, and Jehovah accepted their penitent submission. + He would not destroy Jerusalem, but the Jews should serve Shishak, + <span class="tei tei-q">“that they may know My service and the + service of the kingdoms of the countries.”</span> When they threw + off the yoke of Jehovah, they sold themselves into a worse bondage. + There is no freedom to be gained by repudiating the restraints of + morality and religion. If we do not choose to be the servants of + obedience unto righteousness, our only alternative is to become the + slaves <span class="tei tei-q">“of sin <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page325">[pg 325]</span><a name="Pg325" id="Pg325" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> unto death.”</span> The repentant sinner may + return to his true allegiance, and yet he may still be allowed to + taste something of the bitterness and humiliation of the bondage of + sin. His Shishak may be some evil habit or propensity or special + liability to temptation, that is permitted to harass him without + destroying his spiritual life. In time the chastening of the Lord + works out the peaceable fruits of righteousness, and the Christian + is weaned for ever from the unprofitable service of sin.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Unhappily the + repentance inspired by trouble and distress is not always real and + permanent. Many will humble themselves before the Lord in order to + avert imminent ruin, and will forsake Him when the danger has + passed away. Apparently Rehoboam soon fell away again into sin, for + the final judgment upon him is, <span class="tei tei-q">“He did + that which was evil, because he set not his heart to seek + Jehovah.”</span><a id="noteref_336" name="noteref_336" href= + "#note_336"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">336</span></span></a> David + in his last prayer had asked for a <span class="tei tei-q">“perfect + heart”</span> for Solomon, but he had not been able to secure this + blessing for his grandson, and Rehoboam was <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the foolishness of the people, one that had no + understanding, who turned away the people through his + counsel.”</span><a id="noteref_337" name="noteref_337" href= + "#note_337"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">337</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Rehoboam was + succeeded by his son Abijah, concerning whom we are told in the + book of Kings that <span class="tei tei-q">“he walked in all the + sins of his father, which he had done before him; and his heart was + not perfect with Jehovah his God, as the heart of David his + father.”</span> The chronicler omits this unfavourable verdict; he + does not indeed classify Abijah among the good kings by the usual + formal statement that <span class="tei tei-q">“he did that which + was good and right in the eyes of Jehovah,”</span> but Abijah + delivers a hortatory speech and by Divine assistance <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page326">[pg 326]</span><a name="Pg326" id="Pg326" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> obtains a great victory over Jeroboam. + There is not a suggestion of any evil-doing on the part of Abijah; + and yet we gather from the history of Asa that in Abijah's reign + the cities of Judah were given up to idolatry, with all its + paraphernalia of <span class="tei tei-q">“strange altars, high + places, Asherim, and sun-images.”</span> As in the case of Solomon, + so here, the chronicler has sacrificed even the consistency of his + own narrative to his care for the reputation of the house of David. + How the verdict of ancient history upon Abijah came to be set aside + we do not know. The charitable work of whitewashing the bad + characters of history has always had an attraction for enterprising + annalists; and Abijah was a more promising subject than Nero, + Tiberius, or Henry VIII. The chronicler would rejoice to discover + one more good king of Judah; but yet why should the record of + Abijah's sins be expunged, while Ahaziah and Amon were still held + up to the execration of posterity? Probably the chronicler was + anxious that nothing should mar the effect of his narrative of + Abijah's victory. If his later sources had recorded anything + equally creditable of Ahaziah and Amon, he might have ignored the + judgment of the book of Kings in their case also.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The + section<a id="noteref_338" name="noteref_338" href= + "#note_338"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">338</span></span></a> to + which the chronicler attaches so much importance describes a + striking episode in the chronic warfare between Judah and Israel. + Here Israel is used, as in the older history, to mean the northern + kingdom, and does not denote the spiritual Israel—<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span>, + Judah—as in the previous chapter. This perplexing variation in the + use of the term <span class="tei tei-q">“Israel”</span> shows how + far Chronicles has departed from the religious ideas of the book of + Kings, and reminds us that the <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page327">[pg 327]</span><a name="Pg327" id="Pg327" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> chronicler has only partially and imperfectly + assimilated his older material.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Abijah and + Jeroboam had each gathered an immense army, but the army of Israel + was twice as large as that of Judah: Jeroboam had eight hundred + thousand to Abijah's four hundred thousand. Jeroboam advanced, + confident in his overwhelming superiority and happy in the belief + that Providence sides with the strongest battalions. Abijah, + however, was nothing dismayed by the odds against him; his + confidence was in Jehovah. The two armies met in the neighbourhood + of Mount Zemaraim, upon which Abijah fixed his camp. Mount Zemaraim + was in the hill-country of Ephraim, but its position cannot be + determined with certainty; it was probably near the border of the + two kingdoms. Possibly it was the site of the Benjamite city of the + same name mentioned in the book of Joshua in close connection with + Bethel.<a id="noteref_339" name="noteref_339" href= + "#note_339"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">339</span></span></a> If + so, we should look for it in the neighbourhood of Bethel, a + position which would suit the few indications of place given by the + narrative.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Before the + battle, Abijah made an effort to induce his enemies to depart in + peace. From the vantage-ground of his mountain camp he addressed + Jeroboam and his army as Jotham had addressed the men of Shechem + from Mount Gerizim.<a id="noteref_340" name="noteref_340" href= + "#note_340"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">340</span></span></a> + Abijah reminded the rebels—for as such he regarded them—that + Jehovah, the God of Israel, had given the kingdom over Israel to + David for ever, even to him and to his sons, by a covenant of salt, + by a charter as solemn and unalterable as that by which the + heave-offerings had been given to the sons of Aaron.<a id= + "noteref_341" name="noteref_341" href="#note_341"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">341</span></span></a> The + obligation of an Arab host to the guest who had sat at meat with + him <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page328">[pg 328]</span><a name= + "Pg328" id="Pg328" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> and eaten of his + salt was not more binding than the Divine decree which had given + the throne of Israel to the house of David. And yet Jeroboam the + son of Nebat had dared to infringe the sacred rights of the elect + dynasty. He, the slave of Solomon, had risen up and rebelled + against his master.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The indignant + prince of the house of David not unnaturally forgets that the + disruption was Jehovah's own work, and that Jeroboam rose up + against his master, not at the instigation of Satan, but by the + command of the prophet Ahijah.<a id="noteref_342" name= + "noteref_342" href="#note_342"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">342</span></span></a> The + advocates of sacred causes even in inspired moments are apt to be + one-sided in their statements of fact.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">While Abijah is + severe upon Jeroboam and his accomplices and calls them + <span class="tei tei-q">“vain men, sons of Belial,”</span> he shows + a filial tenderness for the memory of Rehoboam. That unfortunate + king had been taken at a disadvantage, when he was young and + tender-hearted and unable to deal sternly with rebels. The + tenderness which could threaten to chastise his people with + scorpions must have been of the kind—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <span class="tei tei-q"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">That dared to + look on torture and could not look on war</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">;</span> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">it only appears + in the history in Rehoboam's headlong flight to Jerusalem. No one, + however, will censure Abijah for taking an unduly favourable view + of his father's character.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But whatever + advantage Jeroboam may have found in his first revolt, Abijah warns + him that now he need not think to withstand the kingdom of Jehovah + in the hands of the sons of David. He is no longer opposed to an + unseasoned youth, but to men who know their overwhelming advantage. + Jeroboam need not think to <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page329">[pg 329]</span><a name="Pg329" id="Pg329" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> supplement and complete his former + achievements by adding Judah and Benjamin to his kingdom. Against + his superiority of four hundred thousand soldiers Abijah can set a + Divine alliance, attested by the presence of priests and Levites + and the regular performance of the pentateuchal ritual, whilst the + alienation of Israel from Jehovah is clearly shown by the irregular + orders of their priests. But let Abijah speak for himself: + <span class="tei tei-q">“Ye be a great multitude, and there are + with you the golden calves which Jeroboam made you for + gods.”</span> Possibly Abijah was able to point to Bethel, where + the royal sanctuary of the golden calf was visible to both armies: + <span class="tei tei-q">“Have ye not driven out the priests of + Jehovah, the sons of Aaron and the Levites, and made for yourselves + priests in heathen fashion? When any one comes to consecrate + himself with a young bullock and seven rams, ye make him a priest + of them that are no gods. But as for us, Jehovah is our God, and we + have not forsaken Him; and we have priests, the sons of Aaron, + ministering unto Jehovah, and the Levites, doing their appointed + work: and they burn unto Jehovah morning and evening burnt + offerings and sweet incense: the shewbread also they set in order + upon the table that is kept free from all uncleanness; and we have + the candlestick of gold, with its lamps, to burn every evening; for + we observe the ordinances of Jehovah our God; but ye have forsaken + Him. And, behold, God is with us at our head, and His priests, with + the trumpets of alarm, to sound an alarm against you. O children of + Israel, fight ye not against Jehovah, the God of your fathers; for + ye shall not prosper.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This speech, we + are told, <span class="tei tei-q">“has been much admired. It was + well suited to its object, and exhibits correct notions of the + theocratical institutions.”</span> But, like much <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page330">[pg 330]</span><a name="Pg330" id="Pg330" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> other admirable eloquence, in the House + of Commons and elsewhere, Abijah's speech had no effect upon those + to whom it was addressed. Jeroboam apparently utilised the interval + to plant an ambush in the rear of the Jewish army.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Abijah's speech + is unique. There have been other instances in which commanders have + tried to make oratory take the place of arms, and, like Abijah, + they have mostly been unsuccessful; but they have usually appealed + to lower motives. Sennacherib's envoys tried ineffectually to + seduce the garrison of Jerusalem from their allegiance to Hezekiah, + but they relied on threats of destruction and promises of + <span class="tei tei-q">“a land of corn and wine, a land of bread + and vineyards, a land of oil olive and honey.”</span> There is, + however, a parallel instance of more successful persuasion. When + Octavian was at war with his fellow-triumvir Lepidus, he made a + daring attempt to win over his enemy's army. He did not address + them from the safe elevation of a neighbouring mountain, but rode + openly into the hostile camp. He appealed to the soldiers by + motives as lofty as those urged by Abijah, and called upon them to + save their country from civil war by deserting Lepidus. At the + moment his appeal failed, and he only escaped with a wound in his + breast; but after a while his enemy's soldiers came over to him in + detachments, and eventually Lepidus was compelled to surrender to + his rival. But the deserters were not altogether influenced by pure + patriotism. Octavian had carefully prepared the way for his + dramatic appearance in the camp of Lepidus, and had used grosser + means of persuasion than arguments addressed to patriotic + feeling.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Another instance + of a successful appeal to a hostile <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page331">[pg 331]</span><a name="Pg331" id="Pg331" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> force is found in the history of the first + Napoleon, when he was marching on Paris after his return from Elba. + Near Grenoble he was met by a body of royal troops. He at once + advanced to the front, and exposing his breast, exclaimed to the + opposing ranks, <span class="tei tei-q">“Here is your emperor; if + any one would kill me, let him fire.”</span> The detachment, which + had been sent to arrest his progress, at once deserted to their old + commander. Abijah's task was less hopeful: the soldiers whom + Octavian and Napoleon won over had known these generals as lawful + commanders of Roman and French armies respectively, but Abijah + could not appeal to any old associations in the minds of Jeroboam's + army; the Israelites were animated by ancient tribal jealousies, + and Jeroboam was made of sterner stuff than Lepidus or Louis XVIII. + Abijah's appeal is a monument of his humanity, faith, and devotion; + and if it failed to influence the enemy, doubtless served to + inspirit his own army.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">At first, + however, things went hardly with Judah. They were outgeneralled as + well as outnumbered; Jeroboam's main body attacked them in front, + and the ambush assailed their rear. Like the men of Ai, + <span class="tei tei-q">“when Judah looked back, behold, the battle + was before and behind them.”</span> But Jehovah, who fought against + Ai, was fighting for Judah, and they cried unto Jehovah; and then, + as at Jericho, <span class="tei tei-q">“the men of Judah gave a + shout, and when they shouted, God smote Jeroboam and all Israel + before Abijah and Judah.”</span> The rout was complete, and was + accompanied by terrible slaughter. No fewer than five hundred + thousand Israelites were slain by the men of Judah. The latter + pressed their advantage, and took the neighbouring city of Bethel + and other Israelite towns. For the time <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page332">[pg 332]</span><a name="Pg332" id="Pg332" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> Israel was <span class="tei tei-q">“brought + under,”</span> and did not recover from its tremendous losses + during the three years of Abijah's reign. As for Jeroboam, Jehovah + smote him, and he died; but <span class="tei tei-q">“Abijah waxed + mighty, and took unto himself fourteen wives, and begat + twenty-and-two sons and sixteen daughters.”</span><a id= + "noteref_343" name="noteref_343" href="#note_343"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">343</span></span></a> His + history closes with the record of these proofs of Divine favour, + and he <span class="tei tei-q">“slept with his fathers, and they + buried him in the city of David, and Asa his son reigned in his + stead.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The lesson which + the chronicler intends to teach by his narrative is obviously the + importance of ritual, not the importance of ritual apart from the + worship of the true God; he emphasises the presence of Jehovah with + Judah, in contrast to the Israelite worship of calves and those + that are no gods. The chronicler dwells upon the maintenance of the + legitimate priesthood and the prescribed ritual as the natural + expression and clear proof of the devotion of the men of Judah to + their God.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It may help us + to realise the significance of Abijah's speech, if we try to + construct an appeal in the same spirit for a Catholic general in + the Thirty Years' War addressing a hostile Protestant army. Imagine + Wallenstein or Tilly, moved by some unwonted spirit of pious + oratory, addressing the soldiers of Gustavus Adolphus:—</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“We have a pope who sits in Peter's chair, bishops and + priests ministering unto the Lord, in the true apostolical + succession. The sacrifice of the Mass is daily offered; matins, + laud, vespers, and compline are all duly celebrated; our churches + are fragrant with incense and glorious with stained glass and + images; we have crucifixes, and lamps, and candles; and + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page333">[pg 333]</span><a name= + "Pg333" id="Pg333" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> our priests are + fitly clothed in ecclesiastical vestments; for we observe the + traditions of the Church, but ye have forsaken the Divine order. + Behold, God is with us at our head; and we have banners blessed by + the Pope. O ye Swedes, ye fight against God; ye shall not + prosper.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As Protestants + we may find it difficult to sympathise with the feelings of a + devout Romanist or even with those of a faithful observer of the + complicated Mosaic ritual. We could not construct so close a + parallel to Abijah's speech in terms of any Protestant order of + service, and yet the objections which any modern denomination feels + to departures from its own forms of worship rest on the same + principles as those of Abijah. In the abstract the speech teaches + two main lessons: the importance of an official and duly accredited + ministry and of a suitable and authoritative ritual. These + principles are perfectly general, and are not confined to what is + usually known as sacerdotalism and ritualism. Every Church has in + practice some official ministry, even those Churches that profess + to owe their separate existence to the necessity for protesting + against an official ministry. Men whose chief occupation is to + denounce priestcraft may themselves be saturated with the + sacerdotal spirit. Every Church, too, has its ritual. The silence + of a Friends' meeting is as much a rite as the most elaborate + genuflexion before a highly ornamented altar. To regard either the + absence or presence of rites as essential is equally ritualistic. + The man who leaves his wonted place of worship because <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Amen”</span> is sung at the end of a hymn is as + bigoted a ritualist as his brother who dare not pass an altar + without crossing himself. Let us then consider the chronicler's two + principles in this <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page334">[pg + 334]</span><a name="Pg334" id="Pg334" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + broad sense. The official ministry of Israel consisted of the + priests and Levites, and the chronicler counted it a proof of the + piety of the Jews that they adhered to this ministry and did not + admit to the priesthood any one who could bring a young bullock and + seven rams. The alternative was not between a hereditary priesthood + and one open to any aspirant with special spiritual qualifications, + but between a duly trained and qualified ministry on the one hand + and a motley crew of the forerunners of Simon Magus on the other. + It is impossible not to sympathise with the chronicler. To begin + with, the property qualification was too low. If livings are to be + purchased at all, they should bear a price commensurate with the + dignity and responsibility of the sacred office. A mere entrance + fee, so to speak, of a young bullock and seven rams must have + flooded Jeroboam's priesthood with a host of adventurers, to whom + the assumption of the office was a matter of social or commercial + speculation. The private adventure system of providing for the + ministry of the word scarcely tends to either the dignity or the + efficiency of the Church. But, in any case, it is not desirable + that mere worldly gifts, money, social position, or even intellect + should be made the sole passports to Christian service; even the + traditions and education of a hereditary priesthood would be more + probable channels of spiritual qualifications.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Another point + that the chronicler objects to in Jeroboam's priests is the want of + any other than a property qualification. Any one who chose could be + a priest. Such a system combined what might seem opposite vices. It + preserved an official ministry; these self-appointed priests formed + a clerical order; and yet it gave no guarantee whatever of either + fitness or <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page335">[pg + 335]</span><a name="Pg335" id="Pg335" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + devotion. The chronicler, on the other hand, by the importance he + attaches to the Levitical priesthood, recognises the necessity of + an official ministry, but is anxious that it should be guarded with + jealous care against the intrusion of unsuitable persons. A + conclusive argument for an official ministry is to be found in its + formal adoption by most Churches and its uninvited appearance in + the rest. We should not now be contented with the safeguards + against unsuitable ministers to be found in hereditary succession; + the system of the Pentateuch would be neither acceptable nor + possible in the nineteenth century: and yet, if it had been + perfectly administered, the Jewish priesthood would have been + worthy of its high office, nor were the times ripe for the + substitution of any better system. Many of the considerations which + justify hereditary succession in a constitutional monarchy might be + adduced in defence of a hereditary priesthood. Even now, without + any pressure of law or custom, there is a certain tendency towards + hereditary succession in the ministerial office. It would be easy + to name distinguished ministers who were inspired for the high + calling by their fathers' devoted service, and who received an + invaluable preparation for their life-work from the Christian + enthusiasm of a clerical household. The clerical ancestry of the + Wesleys is only one among many illustrations of an inherited genius + for the ministry.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But though the + best method of obtaining a suitable ministry varies with changing + circumstances, the chronicler's main principle is of permanent and + universal application. The Church has always felt a just concern + that the official representatives of its faith and order should + commend themselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. + The prophet needs neither testimonials <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page336">[pg 336]</span><a name="Pg336" id="Pg336" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> nor official status: the word of the Lord can + have free course without either; but the appointment or election to + ecclesiastical office entrusts the official with the honour of the + Church and in a measure of its Master.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler's + other principle is the importance of a suitable and authoritative + ritual. We have already noticed that any order of service that is + fixed by the constitution or custom of a Church involves the + principle of ritual. Abijah's speech does not insist that only the + established ritual should be tolerated; such questions had not come + within the chronicler's horizon. The merit of Judah lay in + possessing and practising a legitimate ritual, that is to say in + observing the Pauline injunction to do all things decently and in + order. The present generation is not inclined to enforce any very + stringent obedience to Paul's teaching, and finds it difficult to + sympathise with Abijah's enthusiasm for the symbolism of worship. + But men to-day are not radically different from the chronicler's + contemporaries, and it is as legitimate to appeal to spiritual + sensibility through the eye as through the ear; architecture and + decoration are neither more nor less spiritual than an attractive + voice and impressive elocution. Novelty and variety have, or should + have, their legitimate place in public worship; but the Church has + its obligations to those who have more regular spiritual wants. + Most of us find much of the helpfulness of public worship in the + influence of old and familiar spiritual associations, which can + only be maintained by a measure of permanence and fixity in Divine + service. The symbolism of the Lord's Supper never loses its + freshness, and yet it is restful because familiar and impressive + because ancient. On the other hand, the maintenance of this + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page337">[pg 337]</span><a name= + "Pg337" id="Pg337" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> ritual is a constant + testimony to the continuity of Christian life and faith. Moreover, + in this rite the great bulk of Christendom finds the outward and + visible sign of its unity.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Ritual, too, has + its negative value. By observing the Levitical ordinances the Jews + were protected from the vagaries of any ambitious owner of a young + bullock and seven rams. While we grant liberty to all to use the + form of worship in which they find most spiritual profit, we need + to have Churches whose ritual will be comparatively fixed. + Christians who find themselves most helped by the more quiet and + regular methods of devotion naturally look to a settled order of + service to protect them from undue and distracting excitement.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In spite of the + wide interval that separates the modern Church from Judaism, we can + still discern a unity of principle, and are glad to confirm the + judgment of Christian experience from the lessons of an older and + different dispensation. But we should do injustice to the + chronicler's teaching if we forgot that for his own times his + teaching was capable of much more definite and forcible + application. Christianity and Islam have purified religious worship + throughout Europe, America, and a large portion of Asia. We are no + longer tempted by the cruel and loathsome rites of heathenism. The + Jews knew the wild extravagance, gross immorality, and ruthless + cruelty of Phœnician and Syrian worship. If we had lived in the + chronicler's age and had shared his experience of idolatrous rites, + we should have also shared his enthusiasm for the pure and lofty + ritual of the Pentateuch. We should have regarded it as a Divine + barrier between Israel and the abominations of heathenism, and + should have been jealous for its strict observance.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page338">[pg 338]</span><a name= + "Pg338" id="Pg338" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc57" id="toc57"></a> <a name="pdf58" id="pdf58"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter III. Asa: Divine Retribution. + 2 Chron. xiv.-xvi.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Abijah, dying, + as far as we can gather from Chronicles, in the odour of sanctity, + was succeeded by his son Asa. The chronicler's history of Asa is + much fuller than that which is given in the book of Kings. The + older narrative is used as a framework into which material from + later sources is freely inserted. The beginning of the new reign + was singularly promising. Abijah had been a very David, he had + fought the battles of Jehovah, and had assured the security and + independence of Judah. Asa, like Solomon, entered into the peaceful + enjoyment of his predecessor's exertions in the field. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“In his days the land was quiet ten years,”</span> as + in the days when the judges had delivered Israel, and he was able + to exhort his people to prudent effort by reminding them that + Jehovah had given them rest on every side.<a id="noteref_344" name= + "noteref_344" href="#note_344"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">344</span></span></a> This + interval of quiet was used for both religious reform and military + precautions.<a id="noteref_345" name="noteref_345" href= + "#note_345"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">345</span></span></a> The + high places and heathen idols and symbols which had somehow + survived Abijah's zeal for the Mosaic ritual were swept away, and + Judah was commanded to <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page339">[pg + 339]</span><a name="Pg339" id="Pg339" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + seek Jehovah and observe the Law; and he built fortresses with + towers, and gates, and bars, and raised a great army <span class= + "tei tei-q">“that bare bucklers and spears,”</span>—no mere hasty + levy of half-armed peasants with scythes and axes. The mighty array + surpassed even Abijah's great muster of four hundred thousand from + Judah and Benjamin: there were five hundred and eighty thousand + men, three hundred thousand out of Judah that bare bucklers and + spears and two hundred and eighty thousand out of Benjamin that + bare shields and drew bows. The great muster of Benjamites under + Asa is in striking contrast to the meagre tale of six hundred + warriors that formed the whole strength of Benjamin after its + disastrous defeat in the days of the judges; and the splendid + equipment of this mighty host shows the rapid progress of the + nation from the desperate days of Shamgar and Jael or even of + Saul's early reign, when <span class="tei tei-q">“there was neither + shield nor spear seen among forty thousand in Israel.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">These references + to buildings, especially fortresses, to military stores and the + vast numbers of Jewish and Israelite armies, form a distinct class + amongst the additions made by the chronicler to the material taken + from the book of Kings. They are found in the narratives of the + reigns of David, Rehoboam, Jehoshaphat, Uzziah, Jotham, Manasseh, + in fact in the reigns of nearly all the good kings; Manasseh's + building was done after he had turned from his evil ways.<a id= + "noteref_346" name="noteref_346" href="#note_346"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">346</span></span></a> + Hezekiah and Josiah were too much occupied with sacred festivals on + the one hand and hostile invaders on the other to have much leisure + for building, <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page340">[pg + 340]</span><a name="Pg340" id="Pg340" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + and it would not have been in keeping with Solomon's character as + the prince of peace to have laid stress on his arsenals and armies. + Otherwise the chronicler, living at a time when the warlike + resources of Judah were of the slightest, was naturally interested + in these reminiscences of departed glory; and the Jewish + provincials would take a pride in relating these pieces of + antiquarian information about their native towns, much as the + servants of old manor-houses delight to point out the wing which + was added by some famous Cavalier or by some Jacobite squire.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Asa's warlike + preparations were possibly intended, like those of the Triple + Alliance, to enable him to maintain peace; but if so, their sequel + did not illustrate the maxim, <span class="tei tei-q">“Si vis + pacem, para bellum.”</span> The rumour of his vast armaments + reached a powerful monarch: <span class="tei tei-q">“Zerah the + Ethiopian.”</span><a id="noteref_347" name="noteref_347" href= + "#note_347"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">347</span></span></a> The + vagueness of this description is doubtless due to the remoteness of + the chronicler from the times he is describing. Zerah has sometimes + been identified with Shishak's successor, Osorkon I., the second + king of the twenty-second Egyptian dynasty. Zerah felt that Asa's + great army was a standing menace to the surrounding princes, and + undertook the task of destroying this new military power: + <span class="tei tei-q">“He came out against them.”</span> Numerous + as Asa's forces were, they still left him dependent upon Jehovah, + for the enemy were even more numerous and better equipped. Zerah + led to a battle an army of a million men, supported by three + hundred war chariots. With this enormous host he came to Mareshah, + at the foot of the Judæan highlands, in a direction south-west of + Jerusalem. In spite of the inferiority of his army, Asa came out to + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page341">[pg 341]</span><a name= + "Pg341" id="Pg341" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> meet him; + <span class="tei tei-q">“and they set the battle in array in the + valley of Zephathah at Mareshah.”</span> Like Abijah, Asa felt + that, with his Divine Ally, he need not be afraid of the odds + against him even when they could be counted by hundreds of + thousands. Trusting in Jehovah, he had taken the field against the + enemy; and now at the decisive moment he made a confident appeal + for help: <span class="tei tei-q">“Jehovah, there is none beside + Thee to help between the mighty and him that hath no + strength.”</span> Five hundred and eighty thousand men seemed + nothing compared to the host arrayed against them, and outnumbering + them in the proportion of nearly two to one. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Help us, Jehovah our God; for we rely on Thee, and in + Thy name are we come against this multitude. Jehovah, Thou art our + God; let not man prevail against Thee.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Jehovah + justified the trust reposed in Him. He smote the Ethiopians, and + they fled towards the south-west in the direction of Egypt; and Asa + and his army pursued them as far as Gerar, with fearful slaughter, + so that of Zerah's million followers not one remained alive.<a id= + "noteref_348" name="noteref_348" href="#note_348"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">348</span></span></a> Of + course this statement is hyperbolical. The carnage was enormous, + and no living enemies remained in sight. Apparently Gerar and the + neighbouring cities had aided Zerah in his advance and attempted to + shelter the fugitives from Mareshah. Paralysed with fear of + Jehovah, whose avenging wrath had been so terribly manifested, + these cities fell an easy prey to the victorious Jews. They smote + and spoiled all the cities about Gerar, and reaped a rich harvest, + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page342">[pg 342]</span><a name= + "Pg342" id="Pg342" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> <span class= + "tei tei-q">“for there was much spoil in them.”</span> It seems + that the nomad tribes of the southern wilderness had also in some + way identified themselves with the invaders; Asa attacked them in + their turn. <span class="tei tei-q">“They smote also the tents of + cattle”</span>; and as the wealth of these tribes lay in their + flocks and herds; <span class="tei tei-q">“they carried away sheep + in abundance and camels, and returned to Jerusalem.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This victory is + closely parallel to that of Abijah over Jeroboam. In both the + numbers of the armies are reckoned by hundreds of thousands; and + the hostile host outnumbers the army of Judah in the one case by + exactly two to one, in the other by nearly that proportion: in both + the king of Judah trusts with calm assurance to the assistance of + Jehovah, and Jehovah smites the enemy; the Jews then massacre the + defeated army and spoil or capture the neighbouring cities.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">These victories + over superior numbers may easily be paralleled or surpassed by + numerous striking examples from secular history. The odds were + greater at Agincourt, where at least sixty thousand French were + defeated by not more than twenty thousand Englishmen; at Marathon + the Greeks routed a Persian army ten times as numerous as their + own; in India English generals have defeated innumerable hordes of + native warriors, as when Wellesley—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">Against + the myriads of Assaye</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">Clashed with his fiery few and + won.</span><span style="font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">For the most + part victorious generals have been ready to acknowledge the + succouring arm of the God of battles. Shakespeare's Henry V. after + Agincourt speaks altogether in the spirit of Asa's + prayer:—</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page343">[pg + 343]</span><a name="Pg343" id="Pg343" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">... O + God, Thy arm was here;</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">And not to us, but to Thy arm + alone,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Ascribe we all....</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 18.00em"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">... Take it, God,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">For it is only Thine.</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">When the small + craft that made up Elizabeth's fleet defeated the huge Spanish + galleons and galleasses, and the storms of the northern seas + finished the work of destruction, the grateful piety of Protestant + England felt that its foes had been destroyed by the breath of the + Lord; <span class="tei tei-q">“Afflavit Deus et + dissipantur.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The principle + that underlies such feelings is quite independent of the exact + proportions of opposing armies. The victories of inferior numbers + in a righteous cause are the most striking, but not the most + significant, illustrations of the superiority of moral to material + force. In the wider movements of international politics we may find + even more characteristic instances. It is true of nations as well + as of individuals that—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">The + Lord killeth and maketh alive;</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">He bringeth down to the grave + and bringeth up:</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">The Lord maketh poor and maketh + rich;</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">He bringeth low, He also lifteth + up:</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">He raiseth up the poor out of + the dust,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">He lifteth up the needy from the + dunghill,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">To make them sit with + princes</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">And inherit the throne of + glory.</span><span style="font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Italy in the + eighteenth century seemed as hopelessly divided as Israel under the + judges, and Greece as completely enslaved to the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“unspeakable Turk”</span> as the Jews to + Nebuchadnezzar; and yet, destitute as they were of any material + resources, these nations had at their disposal great moral forces: + the memory of ancient greatness and the sentiment of nationality; + and to-day Italy can count hundreds of thousands like the + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page344">[pg 344]</span><a name= + "Pg344" id="Pg344" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> chronicler's Jewish + kings, and Greece builds her fortresses by land and her ironclads + to command the sea. The Lord has fought for Israel.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But the + principle has a wider application. A little examination of the more + obscure and complicated movements of social life will show moral + forces everywhere overcoming and controlling the apparently + irresistible material forces opposed to them. The English and + American pioneers of the movements for the abolition of slavery had + to face what seemed an impenetrable phalanx of powerful interests + and influences; but probably any impartial student of history would + have foreseen the ultimate triumph of a handful of earnest men over + all the wealth and political power of the slave-owners. The moral + forces at the disposal of the abolitionists were obviously + irresistible. But the soldier in the midst of smoke and tumult may + still be anxious and despondent at the very moment when the + spectator sees clearly that the battle is won; and the most earnest + Christian workers sometimes falter when they realise the vast and + terrible forces that fight against them. At such times we are both + rebuked and encouraged by the simple faith of the chronicler in the + overruling power of God.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It may be + objected that if victory were to be secured by Divine intervention, + there was no need to muster five hundred and eighty thousand men or + indeed any army at all. If in any and every case God disposes, what + need is there for the devotion to His service of our best strength, + and energy, and culture, or of any human effort at all? A wholesome + spiritual instinct leads the chronicler to emphasise the great + preparations of Abijah and Asa. We have no right to look for Divine + co-operation till we have done our best; we are not to <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page345">[pg 345]</span><a name="Pg345" id="Pg345" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> sit with folded hands and expect a + complete salvation to be wrought for us, and then to continue as + idle spectators of God's redemption of mankind: we are to tax our + resources to the utmost to gather our hundreds of thousands of + soldiers; we are to work out our own salvation with fear and + trembling, for it is God that worketh in us both to will and to do + of His good pleasure.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This principle + may be put in another way. Even to the hundreds of thousands the + Divine help is still necessary. The leaders of great hosts are as + dependent upon Divine help as Jonathan and his armour-bearer + fighting single-handed against a Philistine garrison, or David + arming himself with a sling and stone against Goliath of Gath. The + most competent Christian worker in the prime of his spiritual + strength needs grace as much as the untried youth making his first + venture in the Lord's service.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">At this point we + meet with another of the chronicler's obvious self-contradictions. + At the beginning of the narrative of Asa's reign we are told that + the king did away with the high places and the symbols of + idolatrous worship, and that, because Judah had thus sought + Jehovah, He gave them rest. The deliverance from Zerah is another + mark of Divine favour. And yet in the fifteenth chapter Asa, in + obedience to prophetic admonition, takes away the abominations from + his dominions, as if there had been no previous reformation, but we + are told that the high places were not taken out of Israel. The + context would naturally suggest that Israel here means Asa's + kingdom, as the true Israel of God; but as the verse is borrowed + from the book of Kings, and <span class="tei tei-q">“out of + Israel”</span> is an editorial addition made by the chronicler, it + is probably intended to <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page346">[pg + 346]</span><a name="Pg346" id="Pg346" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + harmonise the borrowed verse with the chronicler's previous + statement that Asa did away with the high places. If so, we must + understand that Israel means the northern kingdom, from which the + high places had not been removed, though Judah had been purged from + these abominations. But here, as often elsewhere, Chronicles taken + alone affords no explanation of its inconsistencies.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Again, in Asa's + first reformation he commanded Judah to seek Jehovah and to do the + Law and the commandments; and accordingly Judah sought the Lord. + Moreover, Abijah, about seventeen years<a id="noteref_349" name= + "noteref_349" href="#note_349"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">349</span></span></a> + before Asa's second reformation, made it his special boast that + Judah had not forsaken Jehovah, but had priests ministering unto + Jehovah, <span class="tei tei-q">“the sons of Aaron and the Levites + in their work.”</span> During Rehoboam's reign of seventeen years + Jehovah was duly honoured for the first three years, and again + after Shishak's invasion in the fifth year of Rehoboam. So that for + the previous thirty or forty years the due worship of Jehovah had + only been interrupted by occasional lapses into disobedience. But + now the prophet Oded holds before this faithful people the warning + example of the <span class="tei tei-q">“long seasons”</span> when + Israel was without the true God, and without a teaching priest, and + without law. And yet previously Chronicles supplies an unbroken + list of high-priests from Aaron downwards. In response to Oded's + appeal, the king and people set about the work of reformation as if + they had tolerated some such neglect of God, the priests, and the + Law as the prophet had described.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Another minor + discrepancy is found in the statement <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page347">[pg 347]</span><a name="Pg347" id="Pg347" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> that <span class="tei tei-q">“the heart of + Asa was perfect all his days”</span>; this is reproduced verbatim + from the book of Kings. Immediately afterwards the chronicler + relates the evil doings of Asa in the closing years of his + reign.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Such + contradictions render it impossible to give a complete and + continuous exposition of Chronicles that shall be at the same time + consistent. Nevertheless they are not without their value for the + Christian student. They afford evidence of the good faith of the + chronicler. His contradictions are clearly due to his use of + independent and discrepant sources, and not to any tampering with + the statements of his authorities. They are also an indication that + the chronicler attaches much more importance to spiritual + edification than to historical accuracy. When he seeks to set + before his contemporaries the higher nature and better life of the + great national heroes, and thus to provide them with an ideal of + kingship, he is scrupulously and painfully careful to remove + everything that would weaken the force of the lesson which he is + trying to teach; but he is comparatively indifferent to accuracy of + historical detail. When his authorities contradict each other as to + the number or the date of Asa's reformations, or even the character + of his later years, he does not hesitate to place the two + narratives side by side and practically to draw lessons from both. + The work of the chronicler and its presence with the Pentateuch and + the Synoptic Gospels in the sacred canon imply an emphatic + declaration of the judgment of the Spirit and the Church that + detailed historical accuracy is not a necessary consequence of + inspiration. In expounding this second narrative of a reformation + by Asa, we shall make no attempt at complete harmony with the rest + of Chronicles; any inconsistency between the exposition here and + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page348">[pg 348]</span><a name= + "Pg348" id="Pg348" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> elsewhere will + simply arise from a faithful adherence to our text.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The occasion + then of Asa's second reformation<a id="noteref_350" name= + "noteref_350" href="#note_350"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">350</span></span></a> was + as follows: Asa was returning in triumph from his great defeat of + Zerah, bringing with him substantial fruits of victory in the shape + of abundant spoil. Wealth and power had proved a snare to David and + Rehoboam, and had involved them in grievous sin. Asa might also + have succumbed to the temptations of prosperity; but, by a special + Divine grace not vouchsafed to his predecessors, he was guarded + against danger by a prophetic warning. At the very moment when Asa + might have expected to be greeted by the acclamations of the + inhabitants of Jerusalem, when the king would be elate with the + sense of Divine favour, military success, and popular applause, the + prophet's admonition checked the undue exaltation which might have + hurried Asa into presumptuous sin. Asa and his people were not to + presume upon their privilege; its continuance was altogether + dependent upon their continued obedience: if they fell into sin, + the rewards of their former loyalty would vanish like fairy gold. + <span class="tei tei-q">“Hear ye me, Asa, and all Judah and + Benjamin: Jehovah is with you while ye be with Him; and if ye seek + Him, He will be found of you; but if ye forsake Him, He will + forsake you.”</span> This lesson was enforced from the earlier + history of Israel. The following verses are virtually a summary of + the history of the judges:—</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“Now for long seasons Israel was without the true God, + and without teaching priest, and without + law.”</span></p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page349">[pg + 349]</span><a name="Pg349" id="Pg349" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Judges tells how + again and again Israel fell away from Jehovah. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“But when in their distress they turned unto Jehovah, + the God of Israel, and sought Him, He was found of + them.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Oded's address + is very similar to another and somewhat fuller summary of the + history of the judges, contained in Samuel's farewell to the + people, in which he reminded them how when they forgot Jehovah, + their God, He sold them into the hand of their enemies, and when + they cried unto Jehovah, He sent Zerubbabel, and Barak, and + Jephthah, and Samuel, and delivered them out of the hand of their + enemies on every side, and they dwelt in safety.<a id="noteref_351" + name="noteref_351" href="#note_351"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">351</span></span></a> Oded + proceeds to other characteristics of the period of the judges: + <span class="tei tei-q">“There was no peace to him that went out, + nor to him that came in; but great vexations were upon all the + inhabitants of the lands. And they were broken in pieces, nation + against nation and city against city, for God did vex them with all + adversity.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Deborah's song + records great vexations: the highways were unoccupied, and the + travellers walked through by-ways; the rulers ceased in Israel; + Gideon <span class="tei tei-q">“threshed wheat by the winepress to + hide it from the Midianites.”</span> The breaking of nation against + nation and city against city will refer to the destruction of + Succoth and Penuel by Gideon, the sieges of Shechem and Thebez by + Abimelech, the massacre of the Ephraimites by Jephthah, and the + civil war between Benjamin and the rest of Israel and the + consequent destruction of Jabesh-gilead.<a id="noteref_352" name= + "noteref_352" href="#note_352"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">352</span></span></a></p><span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page350">[pg 350]</span><a name="Pg350" id="Pg350" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“But,”</span> said Oded, <span class="tei tei-q">“be ye + strong, and let not your hands be slack, for your work shall be + rewarded.”</span> Oded implies that abuses were prevalent in Judah + which might spread and corrupt the whole people, so as to draw down + upon them the wrath of God and plunge them into all the miseries of + the times of the judges. These abuses were wide-spread, supported + by powerful interests and numerous adherents. The queen-mother, one + of the most important personages in an Eastern state, was herself + devoted to heathen observances. Their suppression needed courage, + energy, and pertinacity; but if they were resolutely grappled with, + Jehovah would reward the efforts of His servants with success, and + Judah would enjoy prosperity. Accordingly Asa took courage and put + away the abominations out of Judah and Benjamin and the cities he + held in Ephraim. The abominations were the idols and all the cruel + and obscene accompaniments of heathen worship.<a id="noteref_353" + name="noteref_353" href="#note_353"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">353</span></span></a> In + the prophet's exhortation to be strong, and not be slack, and in + the corresponding statement that Asa took courage, we have a hint + for all reformers. Neither Oded nor Asa underrated the serious + nature of the task before them. They counted the cost, and with + open eyes and full knowledge confronted the evil they meant to + eradicate. The full significance of the chronicler's language is + only seen when we remember what preceded the prophet's appeal to + Asa. The captain of half a million soldiers, the conqueror of a + million Ethiopians with three hundred chariots, has to take courage + before he can bring himself to put away the abominations out of his + own dominions. Military machinery is more readily created + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page351">[pg 351]</span><a name= + "Pg351" id="Pg351" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> than national + righteousness; it is easier to slaughter one's neighbours than to + let light into the dark places that are full of the habitations of + cruelty; and vigorous foreign policy is a poor substitute for good + administration. The principle has its application to the + individual. The beam in our own eye seems more difficult to extract + than the mote in our brother's, and a man often needs more moral + courage to reform himself than to denounce other people's sins or + urge them to accept salvation. Most ministers could confirm from + their own experience Portia's saying, <span class="tei tei-q">“I + can easier teach twenty what were good to be done than be one of + the twenty to follow mine own teaching.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Asa's + reformation was constructive as well as destructive; the toleration + of <span class="tei tei-q">“abominations”</span> had diminished the + zeal of the people for Jehovah, and even the altar of Jehovah + before the porch of the Temple had suffered from neglect: it was + now renewed, and Asa assembled the people for a great festival. + Under Rehoboam many pious Israelites had left the northern kingdom + to dwell where they could freely worship at the Temple; under Asa + there was a new migration, <span class="tei tei-q">“for they fell + to him out of Israel in abundance when they saw that Jehovah his + God was with him.”</span> And so it came about that in the great + assembly which Asa gathered together at Jerusalem not only Judah + and Benjamin, but also Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon, were + represented. The chronicler has already told us that after the + return from the Captivity some of the children of Ephraim and + Manasseh dwelt at Jerusalem with the children of Judah and + Benjamin,<a id="noteref_354" name="noteref_354" href= + "#note_354"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">354</span></span></a> and + he is always careful to note any settlement of members of + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page352">[pg 352]</span><a name= + "Pg352" id="Pg352" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the ten tribes in + Judah or any acquisition of northern territory by the kings of + Judah. Such facts illustrated his doctrine that Judah was the true + spiritual Israel, the real δωδεκάφυλον, or twelve-tribed whole, of + the chosen people.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Asa's festival + was held in the third month of his fifteenth year, the month Sivan, + corresponding roughly to our June. The Feast of Weeks, at which + first-fruits were offered, fell in this month; and his festival was + probably a special celebration of this feast. The sacrifice of + seven hundred oxen and seven thousand sheep out of the spoil taken + from the Ethiopians and their allies might be considered a kind of + first-fruits. The people pledged themselves most solemnly to + permanent obedience to Jehovah; this festival and its offerings + were to be first-fruits or earnest of future loyalty. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“They entered into a covenant to seek Jehovah, the God + of their fathers, with all their heart and with all their soul; ... + they sware unto Jehovah with a loud voice, and with shouting, and + with trumpets, and with cornets.”</span> The observance of this + covenant was not to be left to the uncertainties of individual + loyalty; the community were to be on their guard against offenders, + Achans who might trouble Israel. According to the stern law of the + Pentateuch,<a id="noteref_355" name="noteref_355" href= + "#note_355"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">355</span></span></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“whosoever would not seek Jehovah, the God + of Israel, should be put to death, whether small or great, whether + man or woman.”</span> The seeking of Jehovah, so far as it could be + enforced by penalties, must have consisted in external observances; + and the usual proof that a man did not seek Jehovah would be found + in his seeking other gods and taking part in heathen rites. Such + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page353">[pg 353]</span><a name= + "Pg353" id="Pg353" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> apostacy was not + merely an ecclesiastical offence: it involved immorality and a + falling away from patriotism. The pious Jew could no more tolerate + heathenism than we could tolerate in England religions that + sanctioned polygamy or suttee.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Having thus + entered into covenant with Jehovah, <span class="tei tei-q">“all + Judah rejoiced at their oath because they had sworn with all their + heart, and sought Him with their whole desire.”</span> At the + beginning, no doubt, they, like their king, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“took courage”</span>; they addressed themselves with + reluctance and apprehension to an unwelcome and hazardous + enterprise. They now rejoiced over the Divine grace that had + inspired their efforts and been manifested in their courage and + devotion, over the happy issue of their enterprise, and over the + universal enthusiasm for Jehovah; and He set the seal of His + approval upon their gladness, He was found of them, and Jehovah + gave them rest round about, so that there was no more war for + twenty years: unto the thirty-fifth year of Asa's reign. It is an + unsavoury task to put away abominations: many foul nests of unclean + birds are disturbed in the process; men would not choose to have + this particular cross laid upon them, but only those who take up + their cross and follow Christ can hope to enter into the joy of the + Lord.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The narrative of + this second reformation is completed by the addition of details + borrowed from the book of Kings. The chronicler next recounts how + in the thirty-sixth year of Asa's reign Baasha began to fortify + Ramah as an outpost against Judah, but was forced to abandon his + undertaking by the intervention of the Syrian king, Benhadad, whom + Asa hired with his own treasures and those of the Temple; whereupon + Asa carried off Baasha's stones and timber and built Geba + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page354">[pg 354]</span><a name= + "Pg354" id="Pg354" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> and Mizpah as Jewish + outposts against Israel. With the exception of the date and a few + minor changes, the narrative so far is taken verbatim from the book + of Kings. The chronicler, like the author of the priestly document + of the Pentateuch, was anxious to provide his readers with an exact + and complete system of chronology; he was the Ussher or Clinton of + his generation. His date of the war against Baasha is probably + based upon an interpretation of the source used for chap. xv.; the + first reformation secured a rest of ten years, the second and more + thorough reformation a rest exactly twice as long as the first. In + the interest of these chronological references, the chronicler has + sacrificed a statement twice repeated in the book of Kings: that + there was war between Asa and Baasha all their days. As Baasha came + to the throne in Asa's third year, the statement of the book of + Kings would have seemed to contradict the chronicler's assertion + that there was no war from the fifteenth to the thirty-fifth year + of Asa's reign.<a id="noteref_356" name="noteref_356" href= + "#note_356"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">356</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">After his + victory over Zerah, Asa received a Divine message<a id= + "noteref_357" name="noteref_357" href="#note_357"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">357</span></span></a> which + somewhat checked the exuberance of his triumph; a similar message + awaited him after his successful expedition to Ramah. By Oded + Jehovah had warned Asa, but now He commissioned Hanani the seer to + pronounce a sentence of condemnation. The ground of the sentence + was that Asa had not relied on Jehovah, but on the king of + Syria.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Here the + chronicler echoes one of the key-notes of the great prophets. + Isaiah had protested against the alliance which Ahaz concluded with + Assyria in order to obtain assistance against the united onset of + Rezin, <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page355">[pg + 355]</span><a name="Pg355" id="Pg355" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + king of Syria, and Pekah, king of Israel, and had predicted that + Jehovah would bring upon Ahaz, his people, and his dynasty days + that had not come since the disruption, even the king of + Assyria.<a id="noteref_358" name="noteref_358" href= + "#note_358"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">358</span></span></a> When + this prediction was fulfilled, and the thundercloud of Assyrian + invasion darkened all the land of Judah, the Jews, in their lack of + faith, looked to Egypt for deliverance; and again Isaiah denounced + the foreign alliance: <span class="tei tei-q">“Woe to them that go + down to Egypt for help, ... but they look not unto the Holy One of + Israel, neither seek Jehovah; ... the strength of Pharaoh shall be + your shame, and the trust in the shadow of Egypt your + confusion.”</span><a id="noteref_359" name="noteref_359" href= + "#note_359"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">359</span></span></a> So + Jeremiah in his turn protested against a revival of the Egyptian + alliance: <span class="tei tei-q">“Thou shall be ashamed of Egypt + also, as thou wast ashamed of Assyria.”</span><a id="noteref_360" + name="noteref_360" href="#note_360"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">360</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In their + successive calamities the Jews could derive no comfort from a study + of previous history; the pretext upon which each of their + oppressors had intervened in the affairs of Palestine had been an + invitation from Judah. In their trouble they had sought a remedy + worse than the disease; the consequences of this political quackery + had always demanded still more desperate and fatal medicines. + Freedom from the border raids of the Ephraimites was secured at the + price of the ruthless devastations of Hazael; deliverance from + Rezin only led to the wholesale massacres and spoliation of + Sennacherib. Foreign alliance was an opiate that had to be taken in + continually increasing doses, till at last it caused the death of + the patient.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Nevertheless + these are not the lessons which the seer seeks to impress upon Asa. + Hanani takes a <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page356">[pg + 356]</span><a name="Pg356" id="Pg356" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + loftier tone. He does not tell him that his unholy alliance with + Benhadad was the first of a chain of circumstances that would end + in the ruin of Judah. Few generations are greatly disturbed by the + prospect of the ruin of their country in the distant future: + <span class="tei tei-q">“After us the Deluge.”</span> Even the + pious king Hezekiah, when told of the coming captivity of Judah, + found much comfort in the thought that there should be peace and + truth in his days. After the manner of the prophets, Hanani's + message is concerned with his own times. To his large faith the + alliance with Syria presented itself chiefly as the loss of a great + opportunity. Asa had deprived himself of the privilege of fighting + with Syria, whereby Jehovah would have found fresh occasion to + manifest His infinite power and His gracious favour towards Judah. + Had there been no alliance with Judah, the restless and warlike + king of Syria might have joined Baasha to attack Asa; another + million of the heathen and other hundreds of their chariots would + have been destroyed by the resistless might of the Lord of Hosts. + And yet, in spite of the great object-lesson he had received in the + defeat of Zerah, Asa had not thought of Jehovah as his Ally. He had + forgotten the all-observing, all-controlling providence of Jehovah, + and had thought it necessary to supplement the Divine protection by + hiring a heathen king with the treasures of the Temple; and yet + <span class="tei tei-q">“the eyes of Jehovah run to and fro + throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong in behalf of + them whose heart is perfect toward Him.”</span> With this thought, + that the eyes of Jehovah run to and fro throughout the earth, + Zechariah<a id="noteref_361" name="noteref_361" href= + "#note_361"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">361</span></span></a> + comforted the Jews in the dark days <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page357">[pg 357]</span><a name="Pg357" id="Pg357" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> between the Return and the rebuilding of the + Temple. Possibly during Asa's twenty years of tranquillity his + faith had become enfeebled for want of any severe discipline. It is + only with a certain reserve that we can venture to pray that the + Lord will <span class="tei tei-q">“take from our lives the strain + and stress.”</span> The discipline of helplessness and dependence + preserves the consciousness of God's loving providence. The + resources of Divine grace are not altogether intended for our + personal comfort; we are to tax them to the utmost, in the + assurance that God will honour all our drafts upon His treasury. + The great opportunities of twenty years of peace and prosperity + were not given to Asa to lay up funds with which to bribe a heathen + king, and then, with this reinforcement of his accumulated + resources to accomplish the mighty enterprise of stealing Baasha's + stones and timber and building the walls of a couple of frontier + fortresses. With such a history and such opportunities behind him, + Asa should have felt himself competent, with Jehovah's help, to + deal with both Baasha and Benhadad, and should have had courage to + confront them both.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Sin like Asa's + has been the supreme apostacy of the Church in all her branches and + through all her generations: Christ has been denied, not by lack of + devotion, but by want of faith. Champions of the truth, reformers + and guardians of the Temple, like Asa, have been eager to attach to + their holy cause the cruel prejudices of ignorance and folly, the + greed and vindictiveness of selfish men. They have feared lest + these potent forces should be arrayed amongst the enemies of the + Church and her Master. Sects and parties have eagerly contested the + privilege of counselling a profligate prince how he should satisfy + his <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page358">[pg 358]</span><a name= + "Pg358" id="Pg358" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> thirst for blood and + exercise his wanton and brutal insolence; the Church has + countenanced almost every iniquity and striven to quench by + persecution every new revelation of the Spirit, in order to + conciliate vested interests and established authorities. It has + even been suggested that national Churches and great national vices + were so intimately allied that their supporters were content that + they should stand or fall together. On the other hand, the + advocates of reform have not been slow to appeal to popular + jealousy and to aggravate the bitterness of social feuds. To Hanani + the seer had come the vision of a larger and purer faith, that + would rejoice to see the cause of Satan supported by all the evil + passions and selfish interests that are his natural allies. He was + assured that the greater the host of Satan, the more signal and + complete would be Jehovah's triumph. If we had his faith, we should + not be anxious to bribe Satan to cast out Satan, but should come to + understand that the full muster of hell assailing us in front is + less dangerous than a few companies of diabolic mercenaries in our + own array. In the former case the overthrow of the powers of + darkness is more certain and more complete.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The evil + consequences of Asa's policy were not confined to the loss of a + great opportunity, nor were his treasures the only price he was to + pay for fortifying Geba and Mizpah with Baasha's building + materials. Hanani declared to him that from henceforth he should + have wars. This purchased alliance was only the beginning, and not + the end, of troubles. Instead of the complete and decisive victory + which had disposed of the Ethiopians once for all, Asa and his + people were harassed and exhausted by continual warfare. The + Christian life would have more decisive victories, and <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page359">[pg 359]</span><a name="Pg359" id="Pg359" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> would be less of a perpetual and + wearing struggle, if we had faith to refrain from the use of + doubtful means for high ends.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Oded's message + of warning had been accepted and obeyed, but Asa was now no longer + docile to Divine discipline. David and Hezekiah submitted + themselves to the censure of Gad and Isaiah; but Asa was wroth with + Hanani and put him in prison, because the prophet had ventured to + rebuke him. His sin against God corrupted even his civil + administration; and the ally of a heathen king, the persecutor of + God's prophet, also oppressed the people. Three years<a id= + "noteref_362" name="noteref_362" href="#note_362"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">362</span></span></a> after + the repulse of Baasha a new punishment fell upon Asa: his feet + became grievously diseased. Still he did not humble himself, but + was guilty of further sin<a id="noteref_363" name="noteref_363" + href="#note_363"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">363</span></span></a>: he + sought not Jehovah, but the physicians. It is probable that to seek + Jehovah concerning disease was not merely a matter of worship. + Reuss has suggested that the legitimate practice of medicine + belonged to the schools of the prophets; but it seems quite as + likely that in Judah, as in Egypt, any existing knowledge of the + art of healing was to be found among the priests. Conversely + physicians who were neither priests nor prophets of Jehovah were + almost certain to be ministers of idolatrous worship and magicians. + They failed apparently to relieve their patient: Asa lingered in + pain and weakness for two years, and then died. Possibly the + sufferings of his latter days had protected his people from further + oppression, and had at once appealed to their sympathy and removed + any cause for resentment. When he died, they only remembered + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page360">[pg 360]</span><a name= + "Pg360" id="Pg360" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> his virtues and + achievements; and buried him with royal magnificence, with sweet + odours and divers kinds of spices; and made a very great burning + for him, probably of aromatic woods.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In discussing + the chronicler's picture of the good kings, we have noticed that, + while Chronicles and the book of Kings agree in mentioning the + misfortunes which as a rule darkened their closing years, + Chronicles in each case records some lapse into sin as preceding + these misfortunes. From the theological standpoint of the + chronicler's school, these invidious records of the sins of good + kings were necessary in order to account for their misfortunes. The + devout student of the book of Kings read with surprise that of the + pious kings who had been devoted to Jehovah and His temple, whose + acceptance by Him had been shown by the victories vouchsafed to + them, one had died of a painful disease in his feet, another in a + lazar-house, two had been assassinated, and one slain in battle. + Why had faith and devotion been so ill rewarded? Was it not vain to + serve God? What profit was there in keeping His ordinances? The + chronicler felt himself fortunate in discovering amongst his later + authorities additional information which explained these mysteries + and justified the ways of God to man. Even the good kings had not + been without reproach, and their misfortunes had been the righteous + judgment on their sins.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The principle + which guided the chronicler in this selection of material was that + sin was always punished by complete, immediate, and manifest + retribution in this life, and that conversely all misfortune was + the punishment of sin. There is a simplicity and apparent justice + about this theory that has always made it the <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page361">[pg 361]</span><a name="Pg361" id="Pg361" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> leading doctrine of a certain stage of + moral development. It was probably the popular religious teaching + in Israel from early days till the time when our Lord found it + necessary to protest against the idea that the Galilæans whose + blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices were sinners above + all Galilæans because they had suffered these things, or that the + eighteen upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and killed them, were + offenders above all the inhabitants of Jerusalem. This doctrine of + retribution was current among the Greeks. When terrible calamities + fell upon men, their neighbours supposed these to be the punishment + of specially heinous crimes. When the Spartan king Cleomenes + committed suicide, the public mind in Greece at once inquired of + what particular sin he had thus paid the penalty. The horrible + circumstances of his death were attributed to the wrath of some + offended deity, and the cause of the offence was sought for in one + of his many acts of sacrilege. Possibly he was thus punished + because he had bribed the priestess of the Delphic oracle. The + Athenians, however, believed that his sacrilege had consisted in + cutting down trees in their sacred grove at Eleusis; but the + Argives preferred to hold that he came to an untimely end because + he had set fire to a grove sacred to their eponymous hero Argos. + Similarly, when in the course of the Peloponnesian war the + Æginetans were expelled from their island, this calamity was + regarded as a punishment inflicted upon them because fifty years + before they had dragged away and put to death a suppliant who had + caught hold of the handle of the door of the temple of Demeter + Theomophorus. On the other hand, the wonderful way in which on four + or five occasions the ravages of pestilence delivered Dionysius of + Syracuse <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page362">[pg + 362]</span><a name="Pg362" id="Pg362" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + from his Carthaginian enemies was attributed by his admiring + friends to the favour of the gods.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Like many other + simple and logical doctrines, this Jewish theory of retribution + came into collision with obvious facts, and seemed to set the law + of God at variance with the enlightened conscience. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Beneath the simplest forms of truth the subtlest error + lurks.”</span> The prosperity of the wicked and the sufferings of + the righteous were a standing religious difficulty to the devout + Israelite. The popular doctrine held its ground tenaciously, + supported not only by ancient prescription, but also by the most + influential classes in society. All who were young, robust, + wealthy, powerful, or successful were interested in maintaining a + doctrine that made health, riches, rank, and success the outward + and visible signs of righteousness. Accordingly the simplicity of + the original doctrine was hedged about with an ingenious and + elaborate apologetic. The prosperity of the wicked was held to be + only for a season; before he died the judgment of God would + overtake him. It was a mistake to speak of the sufferings of the + righteous: these very sufferings showed that his righteousness was + only apparent, and that in secret he had been guilty of grievous + sin.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Of all the + cruelty inflicted in the name of orthodoxy there is little that can + surpass the refined torture due to this Jewish apologetic. Its + cynical teaching met the sufferer in the anguish of bereavement, in + the pain and depression of disease, when he was crushed by sudden + and ruinous losses or publicly disgraced by the unjust sentence of + a venal law-court. Instead of receiving sympathy and help, he found + himself looked upon as a moral outcast and pariah on account of his + misfortunes; when he most needed Divine grace, he was bidden to + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page363">[pg 363]</span><a name= + "Pg363" id="Pg363" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> regard himself as a + special object of the wrath of Jehovah. If his orthodoxy survived + his calamities, he would review his past life with morbid + retrospection, and persuade himself that he had indeed been guilty + above all other sinners.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The book of Job + is an inspired protest against the current theory of retribution, + and the full discussion of the question belongs to the exposition + of that book. But the narrative of Chronicles, like much Church + history in all ages, is largely controlled by the controversial + interests of the school from which it emanated. In the hands of the + chronicler the story of the kings of Judah is told in such a way + that it becomes a polemic against the book of Job. The tragic and + disgraceful death of good kings presented a crucial difficulty to + the chronicler's theology. A good man's other misfortunes might be + compensated for by prosperity in his latter days; but in a theory + of retribution which required a complete satisfaction of justice in + this life there could be no compensation for a dishonourable death. + Hence the chronicler's anxiety to record any lapses of good kings + in their latter days.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The criticism + and correction of this doctrine belongs, as we have said, to the + exposition of the book of Job. Here we are rather concerned to + discover the permanent truth of which the theory is at once an + imperfect and exaggerated expression. To begin with, there are sins + which bring upon the transgressor a swift, obvious, and dramatic + punishment. Human law deals thus with some sins; the laws of health + visit others with a similar severity; at times the Divine judgment + strikes down men and nations before an awe-stricken world. Amongst + such judgments we might reckon the punishments of royal sins so + frequent in the pages of Chronicles. <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page364">[pg 364]</span><a name="Pg364" id="Pg364" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> God's judgments are not usually so immediate + and manifest, but these striking instances illustrate and enforce + the certain consequences of sin. We are dealing now with cases in + which God was set at nought; and, apart from Divine grace, the + votaries of sin are bound to become its slaves and victims. Ruskin + has said, <span class="tei tei-q">“Medicine often fails of its + effect, but poison never; and while, in summing the observation of + past life not unwatchfully spent, I can truly say that I have a + thousand times seen Patience disappointed of her hope and Wisdom of + her aim, I have never yet seen folly fruitless of mischief, nor + vice conclude but in calamity.”</span><a id="noteref_364" name= + "noteref_364" href="#note_364"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">364</span></span></a> Now + that we have been brought into a fuller light and delivered from + the practical dangers of the ancient Israelite doctrine, we can + afford to forget the less satisfactory aspects of the chronicler's + teaching, and we must feel grateful to him for enforcing the + salutary and necessary lesson that sin brings inevitable + punishment, and that therefore, whatever present appearances may + suggest, <span class="tei tei-q">“the world was certainly not + framed for the lasting convenience of hypocrites, libertines, and + oppressors.”</span><a id="noteref_365" name="noteref_365" href= + "#note_365"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">365</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Indeed, the + consequences of sin are regular and exact; and the judgments upon + the kings of Judah in Chronicles accurately symbolise the + operations of Divine discipline. But pain, and ruin, and disgrace + are only secondary elements in God's judgments; and most often they + are not judgments at all. They have their uses as chastisements; + but if we dwell upon them with too emphatic an insistence, men + suppose that pain is a worse evil than sin, and that sin is only to + be avoided because it causes suffering to the sinner. The really + serious <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page365">[pg + 365]</span><a name="Pg365" id="Pg365" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + consequence of evil acts is the formation and confirmation of evil + character. Herbert Spencer says in his <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">First + Principles</span></span><a id="noteref_366" name="noteref_366" + href="#note_366"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">366</span></span></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“that motion once set up along any line + becomes itself a cause of subsequent motion along that + line.”</span> This is absolutely true in moral and spiritual + dynamics: every wrong thought, feeling, word, or act, every failure + to think, feel, speak, or act rightly, at once alters a man's + character for the worse. Henceforth he will find it easier to sin + and more difficult to do right; he has twisted another strand into + the cord of habit: and though each may be as fine as the threads of + a spider's web, in time there will be cords strong enough to have + bound Samson before Delilah shaved off his seven locks. This is the + true punishment of sin: to lose the fine instincts, the generous + impulses, and the nobler ambitions of manhood, and become every day + more of a beast and a devil.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page366">[pg 366]</span><a name= + "Pg366" id="Pg366" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc59" id="toc59"></a> <a name="pdf60" id="pdf60"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter IV. Jehoshaphat—The Doctrine + Of Non-Resistance. 2 Chron. xvii.-xx.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Asa was + succeeded by his son Jehoshaphat, and his reign began even more + auspiciously<a id="noteref_367" name="noteref_367" href= + "#note_367"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">367</span></span></a> than + that of Asa. The new king had apparently taken warning from the + misfortunes of Asa's closing years; and as he was thirty-five years + old when he came to the throne, he had been trained before Asa fell + under the Divine displeasure. He walked in the first ways of his + father David, before David was led away by Satan to number Israel. + Jehoshaphat's heart was lifted up, not with foolish pride, like + Hezekiah's, but <span class="tei tei-q">“in the ways of + Jehovah.”</span> He sought the God of his father, and walked in + God's commandments, and was not led astray by the evil example and + influence of the kings of Israel, neither did he seek the Baals. + While Asa had been enfeebled by illness and alienated from Jehovah, + the high places and the Asherim had sprung up again like a crop of + evil weeds; but Jehoshaphat once more removed them. According to + the chronicler, this removing of high places was a very labour of + Sisyphus: the stone was no sooner rolled up to the top of the hill + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page367">[pg 367]</span><a name= + "Pg367" id="Pg367" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> than it rolled down + again. Jehoshaphat seems to have had an inkling of this; he felt + that the destruction of idolatrous sanctuaries and symbols was like + mowing down weeds and leaving the roots in the soil. Accordingly he + made an attempt to deal more radically with the evil: he would take + away the inclination as well as the opportunity for corrupt rites. + A commission of princes, priests, and Levites was sent throughout + all the cities of Judah to instruct the people in the law of + Jehovah. Vice will always find opportunities; it is little use to + suppress evil institutions unless the people are educated out of + evil propensities. If, for instance, every public-house in England + were closed to-morrow, and there were still millions of throats + craving for drink, drunkenness would still prevail, and a new + administration would promptly reopen gin-shops.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Because the new + king thus earnestly and consistently sought the God of his fathers, + Jehovah was with him, and established the kingdom in his hand. + Jehoshaphat received all the marks of Divine favour usually + bestowed upon good kings. He waxed great exceedingly; he had many + fortresses, an immense army, and much wealth; he built castles and + cities of store; he had arsenals for the supply of war material in + the cities of Judah. And these cities, together with other + defensible positions and the border cities of Ephraim occupied by + Judah, were held by strong garrisons. While David had contented + himself with two hundred and eighty-eight thousand men from all + Israel, and Abijah had led forth four hundred thousand, and Asa + five hundred and eighty thousand, there waited on Jehoshaphat, in + addition to his numerous garrisons, <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">eleven hundred and + sixty thousand men</span></em>. Of these seven hundred and eighty + thousand were men of Judah in three divisions, and <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page368">[pg 368]</span><a name="Pg368" id="Pg368" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> three hundred and eighty thousand were + Benjamites in two divisions. Probably the steady increase of the + armies of Abijah, Asa, and Jehoshaphat symbolises a proportionate + increase of Divine favour.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler + records the names of the captains of the five divisions. Two of + them are singled out for special commendation: Eliada the Benjamite + is styled <span class="tei tei-q">“a mighty man of valour,”</span> + and of the Jewish captain Amaziah the son of Zichri it is said that + he offered either himself or his possessions willingly to Jehovah, + as David and his princes had offered, for the building of the + Temple. The devout king had devout officers.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">He had also + devoted subjects. All Judah brought him presents, so that he had + great riches and ample means to sustain his royal power and + splendour. Moreover, as in the case of Solomon and Asa, his piety + was rewarded with freedom from war: <span class="tei tei-q">“The + fear of Jehovah fell upon all the kingdoms round about, so that + they made no war against Jehoshaphat.”</span> Some of his weaker + neighbours were overawed by the spectacle of his great power; the + Philistines brought him presents and tribute money, and the + Arabians immense flocks of rams and he-goats, seven thousand seven + hundred of each.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Great prosperity + had the usual fatal effect upon Jehoshaphat's character. In the + beginning of his reign he had strengthened himself against Israel + and had refused to walk in their ways; now power had developed + ambition, and he sought and obtained the honour of marrying his son + Jehoram to Athaliah the daughter of Ahab, the mighty and + magnificent king of Israel, possibly also the daughter of the + Phœnician princess Jezebel, the devotee of Baal. This family + connection of course implied political alliance. After a time + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page369">[pg 369]</span><a name= + "Pg369" id="Pg369" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Jehoshaphat went + down to visit his new ally, and was hospitably received.<a id= + "noteref_368" name="noteref_368" href="#note_368"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">368</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Then follows the + familiar story of Micaiah the son of Imlah, the disastrous + expedition of the two kings, and the death of Ahab, almost exactly + as in the book of Kings. There is one significant alteration: both + narratives tell us how the Syrian captains attacked Jehoshaphat + because they took him for the king of Israel and gave up their + pursuit when he cried out, and they discovered their mistake; but + the chronicler adds the explanation that Jehovah helped him and God + moved them to depart from him. And so the master of more than a + million soldiers was happy in being allowed to escape on account of + his insignificance, and returned in peace to Jerusalem. Oded and + Hanani had met his predecessors on their return from victory; now + Jehu the son of Hanani<a id="noteref_369" name="noteref_369" href= + "#note_369"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">369</span></span></a> met + Jehoshaphat when he came home defeated. Like his father, the + prophet was charged with a message of rebuke. An alliance with the + northern kingdom was scarcely less reprehensible than one with + Syria: <span class="tei tei-q">“Shouldest thou help the wicked, and + love them that hate Jehovah? Jehovah is wroth with thee.”</span> + Asa's previous reforms were not allowed to mitigate the severity of + his condemnation, but Jehovah was more merciful to Jehoshaphat. The + prophet makes mention of his piety and his destruction of + idolatrous symbols, and no further punishment is inflicted upon + him.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler's + addition to the account of the king's escape from the Syrian + captains reminds us that God still watches over and protects His + children even when they are in the very act of sinning against Him. + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page370">[pg 370]</span><a name= + "Pg370" id="Pg370" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Jehovah knew that + Jehoshaphat's sinful alliance with Ahab did not imply complete + revolt and apostacy. Hence doubtless the comparative mildness of + the prophet's reproof.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">When Jehu's + father Hanani rebuked Asa, the king flew into a passion, and cast + the prophet into prison; Jehoshaphat received Jehu's reproof in a + very different spirit<a id="noteref_370" name="noteref_370" href= + "#note_370"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">370</span></span></a>: he + repented himself, and found a new zeal in his penitence. Learning + from his own experience the proneness of the human heart to go + astray, he went out himself amongst his people to bring them back + to Jehovah; and just as Asa in his apostacy oppressed his people, + Jehoshaphat in his renewed loyalty to Jehovah showed himself + anxious for good government. He provided judges in all the walled + towns of Judah, with a court of appeal at Jerusalem; he solemnly + charged them to remember their responsibility to Jehovah, to avoid + bribery, and not to truckle to the rich and powerful. Being + themselves faithful to Jehovah, they were to inculcate a like + obedience and warn the people not to sin against the God of their + fathers. Jehoshaphat's exhortation to his new judges concludes with + a sentence whose martial resonance suggests trial by combat rather + than the peaceful proceedings of a law-court: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Deal courageously, and Jehovah defend the + right!”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The principle + that good government must be a necessary consequence of piety in + the rulers has not been so uniformly observed in later times as in + the pages of Chronicles. The testimony of history on this point is + not altogether consistent. In spite of all the faults of the + orthodox and devout Greek <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page371">[pg + 371]</span><a name="Pg371" id="Pg371" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + emperors Theodosius the Great and Marcian, their administration + rendered important services to the empire. Alfred the Great was a + distinguished statesman and warrior as well as zealous for true + religion. St. Louis of France exercised a wise control over Church + and state. It is true that when a woman reproached him in open + court with being a king of friars, of priests, and of clerks, and + not a true king of France, he replied with saintly meekness, + <span class="tei tei-q">“You say true! It has pleased the Lord to + make me king; it had been well if it had pleased Him to make some + one king who had better ruled the realm.”</span><a id="noteref_371" + name="noteref_371" href="#note_371"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">371</span></span></a> But + something must be allowed for the modesty of the saint; apart from + his unfortunate crusades, it would have been difficult for France + or even Europe to have furnished a more beneficent sovereign. On + the other hand, Charlemagne's successor, the Emperor Louis the + Pious, and our own kings Edward the Confessor and the saintly Henry + VI., were alike feeble and inefficient; the zeal of the Spanish + kings and their kinswoman Mary Tudor is chiefly remembered for its + ghastly cruelty; and in comparatively recent times the + misgovernment of the States of the Church was a byword throughout + Europe. Many causes combined to produce this mingled record. The + one most clearly contrary to the chronicler's teaching was an + immoral opinion that the Christian should cease to be a citizen, + and that the saint has no duties to society. This view is often + considered to be the special vice of monasticism, but it reappears + in one form or another in every generation. The failure of the + administration of Louis the Pious is partly explained when we read + that he was with difficulty prevented <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page372">[pg 372]</span><a name="Pg372" id="Pg372" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> from entering a monastery. In our own day + there are those who think that a newspaper should have no interest + for a really earnest Christian. According to their ideas, + Jehoshaphat should have divided his time between a private oratory + in his palace and the public services of the Temple, and have left + his kingdom to the mercy of unjust judges at home and heathen + enemies abroad, or else have abdicated in favour of some kinsman + whose heart was not so perfect with Jehovah. The chronicler had a + clearer insight into Divine methods, and this doctrine of his is + not one that has been superseded together with the Mosaic + ritual.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Possibly the + martial tone of the sentence that concludes the account of + Jehoshaphat as the Jewish Justinian is due to the influence upon + the chronicler's mind of the incident<a id="noteref_372" name= + "noteref_372" href="#note_372"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">372</span></span></a> which + he now describes.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Jehoshaphat's + next experience was parallel to that of Asa with Zerah. When his + new reforms were completed, he was menaced with a formidable + invasion. His new enemies were almost as distant and strange as the + Ethiopians and Lubim who had followed Zerah. We hear nothing about + any king of Israel or Damascus, the usual leaders of assaults upon + Judah; we hear instead of a triple alliance against Judah. Two of + the allies are Moab and Ammon; but the Jewish kings were not wont + to regard these as irresistible foes, so that the extreme dismay + which takes possession of king and people must be due to the third + ally: the <span class="tei tei-q">“Meunim.”</span><a id= + "noteref_373" name="noteref_373" href="#note_373"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">373</span></span></a> The + Meunim we have already met with in connection with the exploits of + the children of <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page373">[pg + 373]</span><a name="Pg373" id="Pg373" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Simeon in the reign of Hezekiah; they are also mentioned in the + reign of Uzziah,<a id="noteref_374" name="noteref_374" href= + "#note_374"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">374</span></span></a> and + nowhere else, unless indeed they are identical with the Maonites, + who are named with the Amalekites in Judges x. 12. They are thus a + people peculiar to Chronicles, and appear from this narrative to + have inhabited Mount Seir, by which term <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Meunim”</span> is replaced as the story + proceeds.<a id="noteref_375" name="noteref_375" href= + "#note_375"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">375</span></span></a> Since + the chronicler wrote so long after the events he describes, we + cannot attribute to him any very exact knowledge of political + geography. Probably the term <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Meunim”</span> impressed his contemporaries very much + as it does a modern reader, and suggested countless hordes of + Bedouin plunderers; Josephus calls them a great army of Arabians. + This host of invaders came from Edom, and having marched round the + southern end of the Dead Sea, were now at Engedi, on its western + shore. The Moabites and Ammonites might have crossed the Jordan by + the fords near Jericho; but this route would not have been + convenient for their allies the Meunim, and would have brought them + into collision with the forces of the northern kingdom.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">On this occasion + Jehoshaphat does not seek any foreign alliance. He does not appeal + to Syria, like Asa, nor does he ask Ahab's successor to repay in + kind the assistance given to Ahab at Ramoth-gilead, partly perhaps + because there was no time, but chiefly because he had learnt the + truth which Hanani had sought to teach his father, and which + Hanani's son had taught him. He does not even trust in his own + hundreds of <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page374">[pg + 374]</span><a name="Pg374" id="Pg374" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + thousands of soldiers, all of whom cannot have perished at + Ramoth-gilead; his confidence is placed solely and absolutely in + Jehovah. Jehoshaphat and his people made no military preparations; + subsequent events justified their apparent neglect: none were + necessary. Jehoshaphat sought Divine help instead, and proclaimed a + fast throughout Judah; and all Judah gathered themselves to + Jerusalem to ask help of Jehovah. This great national assembly met + <span class="tei tei-q">“before the new court”</span> of the + Temple. The chronicler, who is supremely interested in the Temple + buildings, has told us nothing about any new court, nor is it + mentioned elsewhere; our author is probably giving the title of a + corresponding portion of the second Temple: the place where the + people assembled to meet Jehoshaphat would be the great court built + by Solomon.<a id="noteref_376" name="noteref_376" href= + "#note_376"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">376</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Here Jehoshaphat + stood up as the spokesman of the nation, and prayed to Jehovah on + their behalf and on his own. He recalls the Divine omnipotence; + Jehovah is God of earth and heaven, God of Israel and Ruler of the + heathen, and therefore able to help even in this great + emergency:—</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“O Jehovah, God of our fathers, art Thou not God in + heaven? Dost Thou not rule all the kingdoms of the heathen? And in + Thy hand is power and might, so that none is able to withstand + Thee.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The land of + Israel had been the special gift of Jehovah to His people, in + fulfilment of His ancient promise to Abraham:—</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“Didst not Thou, O our God, dispossess the inhabitants + of this land in favour of Thy people Israel, <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page375">[pg 375]</span><a name="Pg375" id="Pg375" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> and gavest it to the seed of Abraham + Thy friend for ever?”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And now long + possession had given Israel a prescriptive right to the Land of + Promise; and they had, so to speak, claimed their rights in the + most formal and solemn fashion by erecting a temple to the God of + Israel. Moreover, the prayer of Solomon at the dedication of the + Temple had been accepted by Jehovah as the basis of His covenant + with Israel, and Jehoshaphat quotes a clause from that prayer or + covenant which had expressly provided for such emergencies as the + present:—</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“And they”</span> (Israel) <span class= + "tei tei-q">“dwelt in the land, and built Thee therein a sanctuary + for Thy name, saying, If evil come upon us, the sword, judgment, + pestilence, or famine, we will stand before this house and before + Thee (for Thy name is in this house), and cry unto Thee in our + affliction; and Thou wilt hear and save.”</span><a id="noteref_377" + name="noteref_377" href="#note_377"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">377</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Moreover, the + present invasion was not only an attempt to set aside Jehovah's + disposition of Palestine and the long-established rights of Israel: + it was also gross ingratitude, a base return for the ancient + forbearance of Israel towards her present enemies:—</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“And now, behold, the children of Ammon and Moab and + Mount Seir, whom Thou wouldest not let Israel invade when they came + out of the land of Egypt, but they turned aside from them and + destroyed them not—behold how they reward us by coming to + dispossess us of Thy possession which Thou hast caused us to + possess.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">For this + nefarious purpose the enemies of Israel had <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page376">[pg 376]</span><a name="Pg376" id="Pg376" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> come up in overwhelming numbers, but + Judah was confident in the justice of its cause and the favour of + Jehovah:—</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“O our God, wilt Thou not execute judgment against + them? for we have no might against this great company that cometh + against us, neither know we what to do, but our eyes are upon + Thee.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Meanwhile the + great assemblage stood in the attitude of supplication before + Jehovah, not a gathering of mighty men of valour praying for + blessing upon their strength and courage, but a mixed multitude, + men and women, children and infants, seeking sanctuary, as it were, + at the Temple, and casting themselves in their extremity upon the + protecting care of Jehovah. Possibly when the king finished his + prayer the assembly broke out into loud, wailing cries of dismay + and agonised entreaty; but the silence of the narrative rather + suggests that Jehoshaphat's strong, calm faith communicated itself + to the people, and they waited quietly for Jehovah's answer, for + some token or promise of deliverance. Instead of the confused cries + of an excited crowd, there was a hush of expectancy, such as + sometimes falls upon an assembly when a great statesman has risen + to utter words which will be big with the fate of empires.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And the answer + came, not by fire from heaven or any visible sign, not by voice of + thunder accompanied by angelic trumpets, nor by angel or archangel, + but by a familiar voice hitherto unsuspected of any supernatural + gifts, by a prophetic utterance whose only credentials were given + by the influence of the Spirit upon the speaker and his audience. + The chronicler relates with evident satisfaction how, in the midst + of that great congregation, the Spirit of Jehovah came, + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page377">[pg 377]</span><a name= + "Pg377" id="Pg377" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> not upon king, or + priest, or acknowledged prophet, but upon a subordinate minister of + the Temple, a Levite and member of the Temple choir like himself. + He is careful to fix the identity of this newly called prophet and + to gratify the family pride of existing Levitical families by + giving the prophet's genealogy for several generations. He was + Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of + Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, of the sons of Asaph. The very names + were encouraging. What more suitable names could be found for a + messenger of Divine mercy than Jahaziel—<span class= + "tei tei-q">“God gives prophetic vision”</span>—the son of + Zechariah—<span class="tei tei-q">“Jehovah remembers”</span>?</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Jahaziel's + message showed that Jehoshaphat's prayer had been accepted; Jehovah + responded without reserve to the confidence reposed in Him: He + would vindicate His own authority by delivering Judah; Jehoshaphat + should have blessed proof of the immense superiority of simple + trust in Jehovah over an alliance with Ahab or the king of + Damascus. Twice the prophet exhorts the king and people in the very + words that Jehovah had used to encourage Joshua when the death of + Moses had thrown upon him all the heavy responsibilities of + leadership: <span class="tei tei-q">“Fear not, nor be + dismayed.”</span> They need no longer cling like frightened + suppliants to the sanctuary, but are to go forth at once, the very + next day, against the enemy. That they may lose no time in looking + for them, Jehovah announces the exact spot where the enemy are to + be found: <span class="tei tei-q">“Behold, they are coming by the + ascent of Hazziz,<a id="noteref_378" name="noteref_378" href= + "#note_378"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">378</span></span></a> and + ye shall find them at the end of the ravine before the wilderness + of Jeruel.”</span> This topographical description was doubtless + perfectly intelligible to the chronicler's <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page378">[pg 378]</span><a name="Pg378" id="Pg378" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> contemporaries, but it is no longer possible + to fix exactly the locality of Hazziz or Jeruel. The ascent of + Hazziz has been identified with the Wady Husasa, which leads up + from the coast of the Dead Sea north of Engedi, in the direction of + Tekoa; but the identification is by no means certain.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The general + situation, however, is fairly clear: the allied invaders would come + up from the coast into the highlands of Judah by one of the wadies + leading inland; they were to be met by Jehoshaphat and his people + on one of the <span class="tei tei-q">“wildernesses,”</span> or + plateaus of pasture-land, in the neighbourhood of Tekoa.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But the Jews + went forth, not as an army, but in order to be the passive + spectators of a great manifestation of the power of Jehovah. They + had no concern with the numbers and prowess of their enemies; + Jehovah Himself would lay bare His mighty arm, and Judah should see + that no foreign ally, no millions of native warriors, were + necessary for their salvation: <span class="tei tei-q">“Ye shall + not need to fight in this battle; take up your position, stand + still and see the deliverance of Jehovah with you, O Judah and + Jerusalem.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus had Moses + addressed Israel on the eve of the passage of the Red Sea. + Jehoshaphat and his people owned and honoured the Divine message as + if Jahaziel were another Moses; they prostrated themselves on the + ground before Jehovah. The sons of Asaph had already been + privileged to provide Jehovah with His prophet; these Asaphites + represented the Levitical clan of Gershom: but now the Kohathites, + with their guild of singers, the sons of Korah, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“stood up to praise Jehovah, the God of Israel, with an + exceeding loud voice,”</span> as the Levites sang when the + foundations of the second Temple were laid, and when Ezra and + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page379">[pg 379]</span><a name= + "Pg379" id="Pg379" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Nehemiah made the + people enter into a new covenant with their God.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Accordingly on + the morrow the people rose early in the morning and went out to the + wilderness of Tekoa, ten or twelve miles south of Jerusalem. In + ancient times generals were wont to make a set speech to their + armies before they led them into battle, so Jehoshaphat addresses + his subjects as they pass out before him. He does not seek to make + them confident in their own strength and prowess; he does not + inflame their passions against Moab and Ammon, nor exhort them to + be brave and remind them that they fight this day for the ashes of + their fathers and the temple of their God. Such an address would + have been entirely out of place, because the Jews were not going to + fight at all. Jehoshaphat only bids them have faith in Jehovah and + His prophets. It is a curious anticipation of Pauline teaching. + Judah is to be <span class="tei tei-q">“saved by faith”</span> from + Moab and Ammon, as the Christian is delivered by faith from sin and + its penalty. The incident might almost seem to have been recorded + in order to illustrate the truth that St. Paul was to teach. It is + strange that there is no reference to this chapter in the epistles + of St. Paul and St. James, and that the author of the Epistle to + the Hebrews does not remind us how <span class="tei tei-q">“by + faith Jehoshaphat was delivered from Moab and Ammon.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There is no + question of military order, no reference to the five great + divisions into which the armies of Judah and Benjamin are divided + in chap. xvii. Here, as at Jericho, the captain of Israel is + chiefly concerned to provide musicians to lead his army. When David + was arranging for the musical services before the Ark, he took + counsel with his captains. In this unique military expedition there + is no mention of <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page380">[pg + 380]</span><a name="Pg380" id="Pg380" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + captains; they were not necessary, and if they were present, there + was no opportunity for them to show their skill and prowess in + battle. In an even more democratic spirit Jehoshaphat takes counsel + with the people—that is, probably makes some proposition, which is + accepted with universal acclamation.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The Levitical + singers, dressed in the splendid robes<a id="noteref_379" name= + "noteref_379" href="#note_379"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">379</span></span></a> in + which they officiated at the Temple, were appointed to go before + the people, and offer praises unto Jehovah, and sing the anthem, + <span class="tei tei-q">“Give thanks unto Jehovah, for His mercy + endureth for ever.”</span> These words or their equivalent are the + opening words, and the second clause the refrain, of the + post-Exilic Psalms: cvi., cvii., cxviii., and cxxxvi. As the + chronicler has already ascribed Psalm cvi. to David, he possibly + ascribes all four to David, and intends us to understand that one + or all of them were sung by the Levites on this occasion. Later + Judaism was in the habit of denoting a book or section of a book by + its opening words.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And so Judah, a + pilgrim caravan rather than an army, went on to its Divinely + appointed tryst with its enemies, and at its head the Levitical + choir sang the Temple hymns. It was not a campaign, but a sacred + function, on a much larger scale a procession such as may be seen + winding its way, with chants and incense, banners, images, and + crucifixes, through the streets of Catholic cities.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Meanwhile + Jehovah was preparing a spectacle to gladden the eyes of His people + and reward their implicit faith and exact obedience; He was working + for those who were waiting for Him. Though Judah was <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page381">[pg 381]</span><a name="Pg381" id="Pg381" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> still far from its enemies, yet, like + the trumpet at Jericho, the strain of praise and thanksgiving was + the signal for the Divine intervention: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“When they began to sing and praise, Jehovah set liers + in wait against the children of Ammon, Moab, and Mount + Seir.”</span> Who were these liers in wait? They could not be men + of Judah: <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">they</span></em> were not to fight, but to be + passive spectators of their own deliverance. Did the allies set an + ambush for Judah, and was it thus that they were afterwards led to + mistake their own people for enemies? Or does the chronicler intend + us to understand that these <span class="tei tei-q">“liers in + wait”</span> were spirits; that the allied invaders were tricked + and bewildered like the shipwrecked sailors in the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Tempest</span></span>; or that when they came + to the wilderness of Jeruel there fell upon them a spirit of mutual + distrust, jealousy, and hatred, that had, as it were, been waiting + for them there? But, from whatever cause, a quarrel broke out + amongst them; and they were smitten. When Ammonite, Moabite, and + Edomite met, there were many private and public feuds waiting their + opportunity; and such confederates were as ready to quarrel among + themselves as a group of Highland clans engaged in a Lowland foray. + <span class="tei tei-q">“Ammon and Moab stood up against the + inhabitants of Mount Seir utterly to slay and destroy them.”</span> + But even Ammon and Moab soon dissolved their alliance; and at last, + partly maddened by panic, partly intoxicated by a wild thirst for + blood, a very Berserker frenzy, all ties of friendship and kindred + were forgotten, and every man's hand was against his brother. + <span class="tei tei-q">“When they had made an end of the + inhabitants of Seir, every one helped to destroy + another.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">While this + tragedy was enacting, and the air was rent with the cruel yells of + that death struggle, <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page382">[pg + 382]</span><a name="Pg382" id="Pg382" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Jehoshaphat and his people moved on in tranquil pilgrimage to the + cheerful sound of the songs of Zion. At last they reached an + eminence, perhaps the long, low summit of some ridge overlooking + the plateau of Jeruel. When they had gained this watchtower of the + wilderness, the ghastly scene burst upon their gaze. Jehovah had + kept His word: they had found their enemy. They <span class= + "tei tei-q">“looked upon the multitude,”</span> all those hordes of + heathen tribes that had filled them with terror and dismay. They + were harmless enough now: the Jews saw nothing but <span class= + "tei tei-q">“dead bodies fallen to the earth”</span>; and in that + Aceldama lay all the multitude of profane invaders who had dared to + violate the sanctity of the Promised Land: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“There were none that escaped.”</span> So had Israel + looked back after crossing the Red Sea and seen the corpses of the + Egyptians washed up on the shore.<a id="noteref_380" name= + "noteref_380" href="#note_380"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">380</span></span></a> So + when the angel of Jehovah smote Sennacherib,—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">Like + the leaves of the forest when autumn hath + blown,</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">That host on the morrow lay withered and + strown.</span><span style="font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There is no + touch of pity for the wretched victims of their own sins. Greeks of + every city and tribe could feel the pathos of the tragic end of the + Athenian expedition against Syracuse; but the Jews had no ruth for + the kindred tribes that dwelt along their frontier, and the age of + the chronicler had not yet learnt that Jehovah had either + tenderness or compassion for the enemies of Israel.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The spectators + of this carnage—we cannot call them victors—did not neglect to + profit to the utmost by their great opportunity. They spent three + days in <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page383">[pg + 383]</span><a name="Pg383" id="Pg383" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + stripping the dead bodies; and as Orientals delight in jewelled + weapons and costly garments, and their chiefs take the field with + barbaric ostentation of wealth, the spoil was both valuable and + abundant: <span class="tei tei-q">“riches, and raiment,<a id= + "noteref_381" name="noteref_381" href="#note_381"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">381</span></span></a> and + precious jewels, ... more than they could carry away.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In collecting + the spoil, the Jews had become dispersed through all the wide area + over which the fighting between the confederates must have + extended; but on the fourth day they gathered together again in a + neighbouring valley and gave solemn thanks for their deliverance: + <span class="tei tei-q">“There they blessed Jehovah; therefore the + name of that place was called the valley of Berachah unto this + day.”</span> West of Tekoa,<a id="noteref_382" name="noteref_382" + href="#note_382"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">382</span></span></a> not + too far from the scene of carnage, a ruin and a wady still bear the + name <span class="tei tei-q">“Bereikut”</span>; and doubtless in + the chronicler's time the valley was called Berachah, and local + tradition furnished our author with this explanation of the origin + of the name.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">When the spoil + was all collected, they returned to Jerusalem as they came, in + solemn procession, headed, no doubt, by the Levites, with + psalteries, and harps, and trumpets. They came back to the scene of + their anxious supplications: to the house of Jehovah. But + yesterday, as it were, they had assembled before Jehovah, + terror-stricken at the report of an irresistible host of invaders; + and to-day their enemies were utterly destroyed. They had + experienced a deliverance that might rank with the Exodus; and as + at that former deliverance they had spoiled the Egyptians, so now + they had returned <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page384">[pg + 384]</span><a name="Pg384" id="Pg384" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + laden with the plunder of Moab, Ammon, and Edom. And all their + neighbours were smitten with fear when they heard of the awful ruin + which Jehovah had brought upon these enemies of Israel. No one + would dare to invade a country where Jehovah laid a ghostly ambush + of liers in wait for the enemies of His people. The realm of + Jehoshaphat was quiet, not because he was protected by powerful + allies or by the swords of his numerous and valiant soldiers, but + because Judah had become another Eden, and cherubim with flaming + swords guarded the frontier on every hand, and <span class= + "tei tei-q">“his God gave him rest round about.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Then follow the + regular summary and conclusion of the history of the reign taken + from the book of Kings, with the usual alterations in the reference + to further sources of information. We are told here, in direct + contradiction to xvii. 6 and to the whole tenor of the previous + chapters, that the high places were not taken away, another + illustration of the slight importance the chronicler attached to + accuracy in details. He either overlooks the contradiction between + passages borrowed from different sources, or else does not think it + worth while to harmonise his inconsistent materials.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But after the + narrative of the reign is thus formally closed the chronicler + inserts a postscript, perhaps by a kind of after-thought. The book + of Kings narrates<a id="noteref_383" name="noteref_383" href= + "#note_383"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">383</span></span></a> how + Jehoshaphat made ships to go to Ophir for gold, but they were + broken at Ezion-geber; then Ahaziah the son of Ahab proposed to + enter into partnership with Jehoshaphat, and the latter rejected + his proposal. As we have seen, the chronicler's theory of + retribution required some reason why so pious a king experienced + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page385">[pg 385]</span><a name= + "Pg385" id="Pg385" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> misfortune. What sin + had Jehoshaphat committed to deserve to have his ships broken? The + chronicler has a new version of the story, which provides an answer + to this question. Jehoshaphat did not build any ships by himself; + his unfortunate navy was constructed in partnership with Ahaziah; + and accordingly the prophet Eliezer rebuked him for allying himself + a second time with a wicked king of Israel, and announced the + coming wreck of the ships. And so it came about that the ships were + broken, and the shadow of Divine displeasure rested on the last + days of Jehoshaphat.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have next to + notice the chronicler's most important omissions. The book of Kings + narrates another alliance of Jehoshaphat with Jehoram, king of + Israel, like his alliances with Ahab and Ahaziah. The narrative of + this incident closely resembles that of the earlier joint + expedition to Ramoth-gilead. As then Jehoshaphat marched out with + Ahab, so now he accompanies Ahab's son Jehoram, taking with him his + subject ally the king of Edom. Here also a prophet appears upon the + scene; but on this occasion Elisha addresses no rebuke to + Jehoshaphat for his alliance with Israel, but treats him with + marked respect: and the allied army wins a great victory. If this + narrative had been included in Chronicles, the reign of Jehoshaphat + would not have afforded an altogether satisfactory illustration of + the main lesson which the chronicler intended it to teach.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This main lesson + was that the chosen people should not look for protection against + their enemies either to foreign alliances or to their own military + strength, but solely to the grace and omnipotence of Jehovah. One + negative aspect of this principle has been enforced by the + condemnation of Asa's alliance with Syria and <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page386">[pg 386]</span><a name="Pg386" id="Pg386" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Jehoshaphat's with Ahab and Ahaziah. + Later on the uselessness of an army apart from Jehovah is shown in + the defeat of <span class="tei tei-q">“the great host”</span> of + Joash by <span class="tei tei-q">“a small company”</span> of + Syrians.<a id="noteref_384" name="noteref_384" href= + "#note_384"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">384</span></span></a> The + positive aspect has been partially illustrated by the signal + victories of Abijah and Asa against overwhelming odds and without + the help of any foreign allies. But these were partial and + unsatisfactory illustrations: Jehovah vouchsafed to share the glory + of these victories with great armies that were numbered by the + hundred thousand. And after all, the odds were not so very + overwhelming. Scores of parallels may be found in which the odds + were much greater. In the case of vast Oriental hosts a superiority + of two to one might easily be counterbalanced by discipline and + valour in the smaller army.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The peculiar + value to the chronicler of the deliverance from Moab, Ammon, and + the Meunim lay in the fact that no human arm divided the glory with + Jehovah. It was shown conclusively not merely that Judah could + safely be contented with an army smaller than those of its + neighbours, but that Judah would be equally safe with no army at + all. We feel that this lesson is taught with added force when we + remember that Jehoshaphat had a larger army than is ascribed to any + Israelite or Jewish king after David. Yet he places no confidence + in his eleven hundred and sixty thousand warriors, and he is not + allowed to make any use of them. In the case of a king with small + military resources, to trust in Jehovah might be merely making a + virtue of necessity; but if Jehoshaphat, with his immense army, + felt that his only real help was in his God, the example furnished + an <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "la"><span style="font-style: italic">à fortiori</span></span> + argument which would conclusively show <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page387">[pg 387]</span><a name="Pg387" id="Pg387" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> that it was always the duty and privilege of + the Jews to say with the Psalmist, <span class="tei tei-q">“Some + trust in chariots, and some in horses; but we will remember the + name of Jehovah our God.”</span><a id="noteref_385" name= + "noteref_385" href="#note_385"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">385</span></span></a> The + ancient literature of Israel furnished other illustrations of the + principle: at the Red Sea the Israelites had been delivered without + any exercise of their own warlike prowess; at Jericho, as at + Jeruel, the enemy had been completely overthrown by Jehovah before + His people rushed upon the spoil; and the same direct Divine + intervention saved Jerusalem from Sennacherib. But the later + history of the Jews had been a series of illustrations of enforced + dependence upon Jehovah. A little semi-ecclesiastical community + inhabiting a small province that passed from one great power to + another like a counter in the game of international politics had no + choice but to trust in Jehovah, if it were in any way to maintain + its self-respect. For this community of the second Temple to have + had confidence in its sword and bow would have seemed equally + absurd to the Jews and to their Persian and Greek masters.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">When they were + thus helpless, Jehovah wrought for Israel, as He had destroyed the + enemies of Jehoshaphat in the wilderness of Jeruel. The Jews stood + still and saw the working out of their deliverance; great empires + wrestled together like Moab, Ammon, and Edom, in the agony of the + death struggle: and over all the tumult of battle Israel heard the + voice of Jehovah, <span class="tei tei-q">“The battle is not yours, + but God's; ... set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the + deliverance of Jehovah with you, O Judah and Jerusalem.”</span> + Before their eyes there passed the scenes of that great drama which + for a time <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page388">[pg + 388]</span><a name="Pg388" id="Pg388" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + gave Western Asia Aryan instead of Semitic masters. For them the + whole action had but one meaning: without calling Israel into the + field, Jehovah was devoting to destruction the enemies of His + people and opening up a way for His redeemed to return, like + Jehoshaphat's procession, to the Holy City and the Temple. The long + series of wars became a wager of battle, in which Israel, herself a + passive spectator, appeared by her Divine Champion; and the assured + issue was her triumphant vindication and restoration to her ancient + throne in Zion.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">After the + Restoration God's protecting providence asked no armed assistance + from Judah. The mandates of a distant court authorised the + rebuilding of the Temple and the fortifying of the city. The Jews + solaced their national pride and found consolation for their + weakness and subjection in the thought that their ostensible + masters were in reality only the instruments which Jehovah used to + provide for the security and prosperity of His children.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have already + noticed that this philosophy of history is not peculiar to Israel. + Every nation has a similar system, and regards its own interests as + the supreme care of Providence. We have seen, too, that moral + influences have controlled and checkmated material forces; God has + fought against the biggest battalions. Similarly the Jews are not + the only people for whom deliverances have been worked out almost + without any co-operation on their own part. It was not a negro + revolt, for instance, that set free the slaves of our colonies or + of the Southern States. Italy regained her Eternal City as an + incidental effect of a great war in which she herself took no part. + Important political movements and great struggles involve + consequences <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page389">[pg + 389]</span><a name="Pg389" id="Pg389" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + equally unforeseen and unintended by the chief actors in these + dramas, consequences which would seem to them insignificant + compared with more obvious results. Some obscure nation almost + ready to perish is given a respite, a breathing space, in which it + gathers strength; instead of losing its separate existence, it + endures till time and opportunity make it one of the ruling + influences in the world's history: some Geneva or Wittenberg + becomes, just at the right time, a secure refuge and vantage-ground + for one of the Lord's prophets. Our understanding of what God is + doing in our time and our hopes for what He may yet do will indeed + be small, if we think that God can do nothing for our cause unless + our banner flies in the forefront of the battle, and the war-cry is + <span class="tei tei-q">“The sword of Gideon!”</span> as well as + <span class="tei tei-q">“The sword of Jehovah!”</span> There will + be many battles fought in which we shall strike no blow and yet be + privileged to divide the spoil. We sometimes <span class= + "tei tei-q">“stand still and see the salvation of + Jehovah.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler + has found disciples in these latter days of a kindlier spirit and + more catholic sympathies. He and they have reached their common + doctrines by different paths, but the chronicler teaches + non-resistance as clearly as the Society of Friends. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“When you have fully yielded yourself to the Divine + teaching,”</span> he says, <span class="tei tei-q">“you will + neither fight yourself nor ask others to fight for you; you will + simply stand still and watch a Divine providence protecting you and + destroying your enemies.”</span> The Friends could almost echo this + teaching, not perhaps laying quite so much stress on the + destruction of the enemy, though among the visions of the earlier + Friends there were many that revealed the coming judgments of the + Lord; and the modern enthusiast is still apt to consider that his + enemies, are the Lord's enemies and <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page390">[pg 390]</span><a name="Pg390" id="Pg390" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> to call the gratification of his own + revengeful spirit a vindicating of the honour of the Lord and a + satisfaction of outraged justice.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">If the + chronicler had lived to-day, the history of the Society of Friends + might have furnished him with illustrations almost as apt as the + destruction of the allied invaders of Judah. He would have rejoiced + to tell us how a people that repudiated any resort to violence + succeeded in conciliating savage tribes and founding the + flourishing colony of Pennsylvania, and would have seen the hand of + the Lord in the wealth and honour that have been accorded to a once + despised and persecuted sect.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We should be + passing to matters that were still beyond the chronicler's horizon, + if we were to connect his teaching with our Lord's injunction, + <span class="tei tei-q">“Whosoever shall smite thee on thy right + cheek, turn to him the other also.”</span> Such a sentiment + scarcely harmonises with the three days' stripping of dead bodies + in the wilderness of Jeruel. But though the chronicler's motives + for non-resistance were not touched and softened with the Divine + gentleness of Jesus of Nazareth, and his object was not to persuade + his hearers to patient endurance of wrong, yet he had conceived the + possibility of a mighty faith that could put its fortunes + unreservedly into the hands of God and trust Him with the issues. + If we are ever to be worthy citizens of the kingdom of our Lord, it + can only be by the sustaining power and inspiring influence of a + like faith.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">When we come to + ask how far the people for whom he wrote responded to his teaching + and carried it into practical life, we are met with one of the many + instances of the grim irony of history. Probably the <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page391">[pg 391]</span><a name="Pg391" id="Pg391" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> chronicler's glowing vision of peaceful + security, guarded on every hand by legions of angels, was partly + inspired by the comparative prosperity of the time at which he + wrote. Other considerations combine with this to suggest that the + composition of his work beguiled the happy leisure of one of the + brighter intervals between Ezra and the Maccabees.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Circumstances + were soon to test the readiness of the Jews, in times of national + danger, to observe the attitude of passive spectators and wait for + a Divine deliverance. It was not altogether in this spirit that the + priests met the savage persecutions of Antiochus. They made no vain + attempts to exorcise this evil spirit with hymns, and psalteries, + and harps, and trumpets; but the priest Mattathias and his sons + slew the king's commissioner and raised the standard of armed + revolt. We do indeed find indications of something like obedience + to the chronicler's principles. A body of the revolted Jews were + attacked on the Sabbath Day; they made no attempt to defend + themselves: <span class="tei tei-q">“When they gave them battle + with all speed, they answered them not, neither cast they a stone + at them, nor stopped the places where they lay hid, ... and their + enemies rose up against them on the sabbath, and slew them, with + their wives, and their children, and their cattle, to the number of + a thousand people.”</span><a id="noteref_386" name="noteref_386" + href="#note_386"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">386</span></span></a> No + Divine intervention rewarded this devoted faith, nor apparently did + the Jews expect it, for they had said, <span class="tei tei-q">“Let + us die all in our innocency; heaven and earth shall testify for us + that ye put us to death wrongfully.”</span> This is, after all, a + higher note than that of Chronicles: obedience may not bring + invariable reward; nevertheless the faithful will <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page392">[pg 392]</span><a name="Pg392" id="Pg392" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> not swerve from their loyalty. But the + priestly leaders of the people looked with no favourable eye upon + this offering up of human hecatombs in honour of the sanctity of + the Sabbath. They were not prepared to die passively; and, as + representatives of Jehovah and of the nation for the time being, + they decreed that henceforth they would fight against those who + attacked them, even on the Sabbath Day. Warfare on these more + secular principles was crowned with that visible success which the + chronicler regarded as the manifest sign of Divine approval; and a + dynasty of royal priests filled the throne and led the armies of + Israel, and assured and strengthened their authority by intrigues + and alliances with every heathen sovereign within their reach.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page393">[pg 393]</span><a name= + "Pg393" id="Pg393" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc61" id="toc61"></a> <a name="pdf62" id="pdf62"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter V. Jehoram, Ahaziah, and + Athaliah: The Consequences of a Foreign Marriage. 2 Chron. + xxi.-xxiii.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The accession of + Jehoram is one of the instances in which a wicked son succeeded to + a conspicuously pious father, but in this case there is no + difficulty in explaining the phenomenon: the depraved character and + evil deeds of Jehoram, Ahaziah, and Athaliah are at once accounted + for when we remember that they were respectively the son-in-law, + grandson, and daughter of Ahab, and possibly of Jezebel. If, + however, Jezebel were really the mother of Athaliah, it is + difficult to believe that the chronicler understood or at any rate + realised the fact. In the books of Ezra and Nehemiah the chronicler + lays great stress upon the iniquity and inexpediency of marriage + with strange wives, and he has been careful to insert a note into + the history of Jehoshaphat to call attention to the fact that the + king of Judah had joined affinity with Ahab. If he had understood + that this implied joining affinity with a Phœnician devotee of + Baal, this significant fact would not have been passed over in + silence. Moreover, the names Athaliah and Ahaziah are both + compounded with the sacred name Jehovah. A Phœnician + Baal-worshipper may very well have been sufficiently eclectic + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page394">[pg 394]</span><a name= + "Pg394" id="Pg394" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> to make such use of + the name sacred to the family into which she married, but on the + whole those names rather tell against the descent of their owners + from Jezebel and her Zidonian ancestors.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have seen + that, after giving the concluding formula for the reign of + Jehoshaphat, the chronicler adds a postscript narrating an incident + discreditable to the king. Similarly he prefaces the introductory + formula for the reign of Jehoram by inserting a cruel deed of the + new king. Before telling us Jehoram's age at his accession and the + length of his reign, the chronicler relates<a id="noteref_387" + name="noteref_387" href="#note_387"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">387</span></span></a> the + steps taken by Jehoram to secure himself upon his throne. + Jehoshaphat, like Rehoboam, had disposed of his numerous sons in + the fenced cities of Judah, and had sought to make them quiet and + contented by providing largely for their material welfare: + <span class="tei tei-q">“Their father gave them great gifts: + silver, gold, and precious things, with fenced cities in + Judah.”</span> The sanguine judgment of paternal affection might + expect that these gifts would make his younger sons loyal and + devoted subjects of their elder brother; but Jehoram, not without + reason, feared that treasure and cities might supply the means for + a revolt, or that Judah might be split up into a number of small + principalities. Accordingly when he had strengthened himself he + slew all his brethren with the sword, and with them those princes + of Israel whom he suspected of attachment to his other victims. He + was following the precedent set by Solomon when he ordered the + execution of Adonijah; and, indeed, the slaughter by a new + sovereign of all those near relations who might possibly dispute + his claim to the throne has usually <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page395">[pg 395]</span><a name="Pg395" id="Pg395" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> been considered in the East to be a painful + but necessary and perfectly justifiable act, being, in fact, + regarded in much the same light as the drowning of superfluous + kittens in domestic circles. Probably this episode is placed before + the introductory formula for the reign because until these possible + rivals were removed Jehoram's tenure of the throne was altogether + unsafe.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">For the next few + verses<a id="noteref_388" name="noteref_388" href= + "#note_388"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">388</span></span></a> the + narrative follows the book of Kings with scarcely any alteration, + and states the evil character of the new reign, accounting for + Jehoram's depravity by his marriage with a daughter of Ahab. The + successful revolt of Edom from Judah is next given, and the + chronicler adds a note of his own to the effect that Jehoram + experienced these reverses because he had forsaken Jehovah, the God + of his fathers.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Then the + chronicler proceeds<a id="noteref_389" name="noteref_389" href= + "#note_389"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">389</span></span></a> to + describe further sins and misfortunes of Jehoram. He mentions + definitely, what is doubtless implied by the book of Kings, that + Jehoram made high places in the cities of Judah<a id="noteref_390" + name="noteref_390" href="#note_390"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">390</span></span></a> and + seduced the people into taking part in a corrupt worship. The + Divine condemnation of the king's wrong-doing came from an + unexpected quarter and in an unusual fashion. The other prophetic + messages specially recorded by the chronicler were uttered by + prophets of Judah, some apparently receiving their inspiration for + one particular occasion. The prophet who rebuked Jehoram was no + less distinguished a personage than the great Israelite Elijah, + who, according to the book of Kings, had long since been translated + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page396">[pg 396]</span><a name= + "Pg396" id="Pg396" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> to heaven. In the + older narrative Elijah's work is exclusively confined to the + northern kingdom. But the chronicler entirely ignores Elijah, + except when his history becomes connected for a moment with that of + the house of David.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The other + prophets of Judah delivered their messages by word of mouth, but + this communication is made by means of <span class="tei tei-q">“a + writing.”</span> This, however, is not without parallel: Jeremiah + sent a letter to the captives in Babylon, and also sent a written + collection of his prophecies to Jehoiakim.<a id="noteref_391" name= + "noteref_391" href="#note_391"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">391</span></span></a> In + the latter case, however, the prophecies had been originally + promulgated by word of mouth.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Elijah writes in + the name of Jehovah, the God of David, and condemns Jehoram because + he was not walking in the ways of Asa and Jehoshaphat, but in the + ways of the kings of Israel and the house of Ahab. It is pleasant + to find that, in spite of the sins which marked the latter days of + Asa and Jehoshaphat, their <span class="tei tei-q">“ways”</span> + were as a whole such as could be held up as an example by the + prophet of Jehovah. Here and elsewhere God appeals to the better + feelings that spring from pride of birth. <span lang="fr" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="fr"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Noblesse oblige.</span></span> Jehoram held + his throne as representative of the house of David, and was proud + to trace his descent to the founder of the Israelite monarchy and + to inherit the glory of the great reigns of Asa and Jehoshaphat; + but this pride of race implied that to depart from their ways was + dishonourable apostacy. There is no more pitiful spectacle than an + effeminate libertine pluming himself on his noble ancestry.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Elijah further + rebukes Jehoram for the massacre of <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page397">[pg 397]</span><a name="Pg397" id="Pg397" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> his brethren, who were better than himself. + They had all grown up at their father's court, and till the other + brethren were put in possession of their fenced cities had been + under the same influences. It is the husband of Ahab's daughter who + is worse than all the rest; the influence of an unsuitable marriage + has already begun to show itself. Indeed, in view of Athaliah's + subsequent history, we do her no injustice by supposing that, like + Jezebel and Lady Macbeth, she had suggested her husband's crime. + The fact that Jehoram's brethren were better men than himself adds + to his guilt morally, but this undesirable superiority of the other + princes of the blood to the reigning sovereign would seem to + Jehoram and his advisers an additional reason for putting them out + of the way; the massacre was an urgent political necessity.</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">Truly + the tender mercies of the weak,</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">As of the wicked, are but + cruel.</span><span style="font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There is nothing + so cruel as the terror of a selfish man. The Inquisition is the + measure not only of the inhumanity, but also of the weakness, of + the mediæval Church; and the massacre of St. Bartholomew was due to + the feebleness of Charles IX. as well as to the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“revenge or the blind instinct of + self-preservation”</span><a id="noteref_392" name="noteref_392" + href="#note_392"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">392</span></span></a> of + Mary de Medici.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler's + condemnation of Jehoram's massacre marks the superiority of the + standard of later Judaism to the current Oriental morality. For his + sins Jehoram was to be punished by sore disease and by a great + <span class="tei tei-q">“plague”</span> which would fall upon his + people, and his <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page398">[pg + 398]</span><a name="Pg398" id="Pg398" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + wives, and his children, and all his substance. From the following + verses we see that <span class="tei tei-q">“plague,”</span> here as + in the case of some of the plagues of Egypt, has the sense of + calamity generally, and not the narrower meaning of pestilence. + This plague took the form of an invasion of the Philistines and of + the Arabians <span class="tei tei-q">“which are beside the + Ethiopians.”</span> Divine inspiration prompted them to attack + Judah; Jehovah stirred up their spirit against Jehoram. Probably + here, as in the story of Zerah, the term Ethiopians is used loosely + for the Egyptians, in which case the Arabs in question would be + inhabitants of the desert between the south of Palestine and Egypt, + and would thus be neighbours of their Philistine allies.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">These marauding + bands succeeded where the huge hosts of Zerah had failed; they + broke into Judah, and carried off all the king's treasure, together + with his sons and his wives, only leaving him his youngest son: + Jehoahaz or Ahaziah. They afterwards slew the princes they had + taken captive.<a id="noteref_393" name="noteref_393" href= + "#note_393"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">393</span></span></a> The + common people would scarcely suffer less severely than their king. + Jehoram himself was reserved for special personal punishment: + Jehovah smote him with a sore disease; and, like Asa, he lingered + for two years and then died. The people were so impressed by his + wickedness that <span class="tei tei-q">“they made no burning for + him, like the burning of his fathers,”</span> whereas they had made + a very great burning for Asa.<a id="noteref_394" name="noteref_394" + href="#note_394"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">394</span></span></a></p><span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page399">[pg 399]</span><a name="Pg399" id="Pg399" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler's + account of the reign of Ahaziah<a id="noteref_395" name= + "noteref_395" href="#note_395"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">395</span></span></a> does + not differ materially from that given by the book of Kings, though + it is considerably abridged, and there are other minor alterations. + The chronicler sets forth even more emphatically than the earlier + history the evil influence of Athaliah and her Israelite kinsfolk + over Ahaziah's short reign of one year. The story of his visit to + Jehoram, king of Israel, and the murder of the two kings by Jehu, + is very much abridged. The chronicler carefully omits all reference + to Elisha, according to his usual principle of ignoring the + religious life of Northern Israel; but he expressly tells us that, + like Jehoshaphat, Ahaziah suffered for consorting with the house of + Omri: <span class="tei tei-q">“His destruction or treading down was + of God in that he went unto Jehoram.”</span> Our English versions + have carefully reproduced an ambiguity in the original; but it + seems probable that the chronicler does not mean that visiting + Jehoram in his illness was a flagrant offence which God punished + with death, but rather that, to punish Ahaziah for his imitation of + the evil-doings of the house of Omri,<a id="noteref_396" name= + "noteref_396" href="#note_396"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">396</span></span></a> God + allowed him to visit Jehoram in order that he might share the fate + of the Israelite king.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The book of + Kings had stated that Jehu slew forty-two brethren of Ahaziah. It + is, of course, perfectly <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page400">[pg + 400]</span><a name="Pg400" id="Pg400" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + allowable to take <span class="tei tei-q">“brethren”</span> in the + general sense of <span class="tei tei-q">“kinsmen”</span>; but as + the chronicler had recently mentioned the massacre of all Ahaziah's + brethren, he avoids even the appearance of a contradiction by + substituting <span class="tei tei-q">“sons of the brethren of + Ahaziah”</span> for brethren. This alteration introduces new + difficulties, but these difficulties simply illustrate the general + confusion of numbers and ages which characterises the narrative at + this point. In connection with the burial of Ahaziah, it may be + noted that the popular recollection of Jehoshaphat endorsed the + favourable judgment contained in the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“writing of Elijah”</span>: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“They said”</span> of Ahaziah, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“He is the son of Jehoshaphat, who sought Jehovah with + all his heart.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler + next narrates Athaliah's murder of the seed royal of Judah and her + usurpation of the throne of David, in terms almost identical with + those of the narrative in the book of Kings. But his previous + additions and modifications are hard to reconcile with the account + he here borrows from his ancient authority. According to the + chronicler, Jehoram had massacred all the other sons of + Jehoshaphat, and the Arabians had slain all Jehoram's sons except + Ahaziah, and Jehu had slain their sons; so that Ahaziah was the + only living descendant in the male line of his grandfather + Jehoshaphat; he himself apparently died at the age of twenty-three. + It is intelligible enough that he should have a son Joash and + possibly other sons; but still it is difficult to understand where + Athaliah found <span class="tei tei-q">“all the seed royal”</span> + and <span class="tei tei-q">“the king's sons”</span> whom she put + to death. It is at any rate clear that Jehoram's slaughter of his + brethren met with an appropriate punishment: all his own sons and + grandsons were similarly slain, except the child Joash.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler's + narrative of the revolution by which <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page401">[pg 401]</span><a name="Pg401" id="Pg401" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> Athaliah was slain, and the throne recovered + for the house of David in the person of Joash, follows + substantially the earlier history, the chief difference being, as + we have already noticed,<a id="noteref_397" name="noteref_397" + href="#note_397"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">397</span></span></a> that + the chronicler substitutes the Levitical guard of the second Temple + for the bodyguard of foreign mercenaries who were the actual agents + in this revolution.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">A distinguished + authority on European history is fond of pointing to the evil + effects of royal marriages as one of the chief drawbacks to the + monarchical system of government. A crown may at any time devolve + upon a woman, and by her marriage with a powerful reigning prince + her country may virtually be subjected to a foreign yoke. If it + happens that the new sovereign professes a different religion from + that of his wife's subjects, the evils arising from the marriage + are seriously aggravated. Some such fate befell the Netherlands as + the result of the marriage of Mary of Burgundy with the Emperor + Maximilian, and England was only saved from the danger of + transference to Catholic dominion by the caution and patriotism of + Queen Elizabeth.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Athaliah's + usurpation was a bold attempt to reverse the usual process and + transfer the husband's dominions to the authority and faith of the + wife's family. It is probable that Athaliah's permanent success + would have led to the absorption of Judah in the northern kingdom. + This last misfortune was averted by the energy and courage of + Jehoiada, but in the meantime the half-heathen queen had succeeded + in causing untold harm and suffering to her adopted country. Our + own history furnishes numerous illustrations of the evil influences + that come in the train of foreign queens. Edward II. <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page402">[pg 402]</span><a name="Pg402" id="Pg402" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> suffered grievously at the hands of his + French queen; Henry VI.'s wife, Margaret of Anjou, contributed + considerably to the prolonged bitterness of the struggle between + York and Lancaster; and to Henry VIII.'s marriage with Catherine of + Aragon the country owed the miseries and persecutions inflicted by + Mary Tudor. But, on the other hand, many of the foreign princesses + who have shared the English throne have won the lasting gratitude + of the nation. A French queen of Kent, for instance, opened the way + for Augustine's mission to England.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But no foreign + queen of England has had the opportunities for mischief that were + enjoyed and fully utilised by Athaliah. She corrupted her husband + and her son, and she was probably at once the instigator of their + crimes and the instrument of their punishment. By corrupting the + rulers of Judah and by her own misgovernment, she exercised an evil + influence over the nation; and as the people suffered, not for + their sins only, but also for those of their kings, Athaliah + brought misfortunes and calamity upon Judah. Unfortunately such + experiences are not confined to royal families; the peace and + honour, and prosperity of godly families in all ranks of life have + been disturbed and often destroyed by the marriage of one of their + members with a woman of alien spirit and temperament. Here is a + very general and practical application of the chronicler's + objection to intercourse with the house of Omri.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page403">[pg 403]</span><a name= + "Pg403" id="Pg403" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc63" id="toc63"></a> <a name="pdf64" id="pdf64"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter VI. Joash and Amaziah. 2 + Chron. xxiv.-xxv.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">For Chronicles, + as for the book of Kings, the main interest of the reign of Joash + is the repairing of the Temple; but the later narrative introduces + modifications which give a somewhat different complexion to the + story. Both authorities tell us that Joash did that which was right + in the eyes of Jehovah all the days of Jehoiada, but the book of + Kings immediately adds that <span class="tei tei-q">“the high + places were not taken away: the people still sacrificed and burnt + incense in the high places.”</span><a id="noteref_398" name= + "noteref_398" href="#note_398"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">398</span></span></a> + Seeing that Jehoiada exercised the royal authority during the + minority of Joash, this toleration of the high places must have had + the sanction of the high-priest. Now the chronicler and his + contemporaries had been educated in the belief that the Pentateuch + was the ecclesiastical code of the monarchy; they found it + impossible to credit a statement that the high-priest had + sanctioned any other sanctuary besides the temple of Zion; + accordingly they omitted the verse in question.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In the earlier + narrative of the repairing of the Temple <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page404">[pg 404]</span><a name="Pg404" id="Pg404" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> the priests are ordered by Joash to use + certain sacred dues and offerings to repair the breaches of the + house; but after some time had elapsed it was found that the + breaches had not been repaired: and when Joash remonstrated with + the priests, they flatly refused to have anything to do with the + repairs or with receiving funds for the purpose. Their objections + were, however, overruled; and Jehoiada placed beside the altar a + chest with a hole in the lid, into which <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the priests put all the money that was brought into + the house of Jehovah.”</span><a id="noteref_399" name="noteref_399" + href="#note_399"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">399</span></span></a> When + it was sufficiently full, the king's scribe and the high-priest + counted the money, and put it up in bags.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There were + several points in this earlier narrative which would have furnished + very inconvenient precedents, and were so much out of keeping with + the ideas and practices of the second Temple that, by the time the + chronicler wrote, a new and more intelligible version of the story + was current among the ministers of the Temple. To begin with, there + was an omission which would have grated very unpleasantly on the + feelings of the chronicler. In this long narrative, wholly taken up + with the affairs of the Temple, nothing is said about the Levites. + The collecting and receiving of money might well be supposed to + belong to them; and accordingly in Chronicles the Levites are first + associated with the priests in this matter, and then the priests + drop out of the narrative, and the Levites alone carry out the + financial arrangements.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Again, it might + be understood from the book of Kings that sacred dues and + offerings, which formed the revenue of the priests and Levites, + were diverted by <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page405">[pg + 405]</span><a name="Pg405" id="Pg405" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + the king's orders to the repair of the fabric. The chronicler was + naturally anxious that there should be no mistake on this point; + the ambiguous phrases are omitted, and it is plainly indicated that + funds were raised for the repairs by means of a special tax + ordained by Moses. Joash <span class="tei tei-q">“assembled the + priests and the Levites, and said to them, Go out into the cities + of Judah, and gather of all Israel money to repair the house of + your God from year to year, and see that ye hasten the matter. + Howbeit the Levites hastened it not.”</span> The remissness of the + priests in the original narrative is here very faithfully and + candidly transferred to the Levites. Then, as in the book of Kings, + Joash remonstrates with Jehoiada, but the terms of his remonstrance + are altogether different: here he complains because the Levites + have not been required <span class="tei tei-q">“to bring in out of + Judah and out of Jerusalem the tax appointed by Moses the servant + of Jehovah and by the congregation of Israel for the tent of the + testimony,”</span><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span>, the Tabernacle, containing + the Ark and the tables of the Law. The reference apparently is to + the law<a id="noteref_400" name="noteref_400" href= + "#note_400"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">400</span></span></a> that + when a census was taken a poll-tax of a half-shekel a head should + be paid for the service of the Tabernacle. As one of the main uses + of a census was to facilitate the raising of taxes, this law might + not unfairly be interpreted to mean that when occasion arose, or + perhaps even every year, a census should be taken in order that + this poll-tax might be levied. Nehemiah arranged for a yearly + poll-tax of a third of a shekel for the incidental expenses of the + Temple.<a id="noteref_401" name="noteref_401" href= + "#note_401"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">401</span></span></a> Here, + however, the half-shekel prescribed in Exodus is intended; and it + should be observed that this poll-tax <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page406">[pg 406]</span><a name="Pg406" id="Pg406" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> was to be levied, not once only but + <span class="tei tei-q">“from year to year.”</span> The chronicler + then inserts a note to explain why these repairs were necessary: + <span class="tei tei-q">“The sons of Athaliah, that wicked woman, + had broken up the house of God; and also all the dedicated things + of the house of Jehovah they bestowed upon the Baals.”</span> Here + we are confronted with a further difficulty. All Jehoram's sons + except Ahaziah were murdered by the Arabs in their father's + life-time. Who are these <span class="tei tei-q">“sons of + Athaliah”</span> who broke up the Temple? Jehoram was about + thirty-seven when his sons were massacred, so that some of them may + have been old enough to break up the Temple. One would think that + <span class="tei tei-q">“the dedicated things”</span> might have + been recovered for Jehovah when Athaliah was overthrown; but + possibly, when the people retaliated by breaking into the house of + Baal, there were Achans among them, who appropriated the + plunder.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Having + remonstrated with Jehoiada, the king took matters into his own + hands; and he, not Jehoiada, had a chest made and placed, not + beside the altar—such an arrangement savoured of profanity—but + without at the gate of the Temple. This little touch is very + suggestive. The noise and bustle of paying over money, receiving + it, and putting it into the chest, would have mingled distractingly + with the solemn ritual of sacrifice. In modern times the tinkle of + threepenny pieces often tends to mar the effect of an impressive + appeal and to disturb the quiet influences of a communion service. + The Scotch arrangement, by which a plate covered with a fair white + cloth is placed in the porch of a church and guarded by two modern + Levites or elders, is much more in accordance with Chronicles.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Then, instead of + sending out Levites to collect the <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page407">[pg 407]</span><a name="Pg407" id="Pg407" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> tax, proclamation was made that the people + themselves should bring their offerings. Obedience apparently was + made a matter of conscience, not of solicitation. Perhaps it was + because the Levites felt that sacred dues should be given freely + that they were not forward to make yearly tax-collecting + expeditions. At any rate, the new method was signally successful. + Day after day the princes and people gladly brought their + offerings, and money was gathered in abundance. Other passages + suggest that the chronicler was not always inclined to trust to the + spontaneous generosity of the people for the support of the priests + and Levites; but he plainly recognised that free-will offerings are + more excellent than the donations which are painfully extracted by + the yearly visits of official collectors. He would probably have + sympathised with the abolition of pew-rents.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As in the book + of Kings, the chest was emptied at suitable intervals; but instead + of the high-priest being associated with the king's scribe, as if + they were on a level and both of them officials of the royal court, + the chief priest's <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">officer</span></em> assists the king's + <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">scribe</span></em>, so that the chief priest + is placed on a level with the king himself.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The details of + the repairs in the two narratives differ considerably in form, but + for the most part agree in substance; the only striking point is + that they are apparently at variance as to whether vessels of + silver or gold were or were not made for the renovated Temple.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Then follows the + account<a id="noteref_402" name="noteref_402" href= + "#note_402"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">402</span></span></a> of + the ingratitude and apostacy of Joash and his people. As long as + Jehoiada lived, the services of the Temple were regularly + performed, <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page408">[pg + 408]</span><a name="Pg408" id="Pg408" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + and Judah remained faithful to its God; but at last he died, full + of days: a hundred and thirty years old. In his life-time he had + exercised royal authority, and when he died he was buried like a + king: <span class="tei tei-q">“They buried him in the city of David + among the kings, because he had done good in Israel and toward God + and His house.”</span><a id="noteref_403" name="noteref_403" href= + "#note_403"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">403</span></span></a> Like + Nero when he shook off the control of Seneca and Burrhus, Joash + changed his policy as soon as Jehoiada was dead. Apparently he was + a weak character, always following some one's leading. His freedom + from the influence that had made his early reign decent and + honourable was not, as in Nero's case, his own act. The change of + policy was adopted at the suggestion of the princes of Judah. + Kings, princes, and people fell back into the old wickedness; they + forsook the Temple and served idols. Yet Jehovah did not readily + give them up to their own folly, nor hastily inflict punishment; He + sent, not one prophet, but many, to bring them back to Himself, but + they would not hearken. At last Jehovah made one last effort to win + Joash back; this time He chose for His messenger a priest who had + special personal claims on the favourable attention of the king. + The prophet was Zechariah the son of Jehoiada, to whom Joash owed + his life and his throne. The name was a favourite one in Israel, + and was borne by two other prophets besides the son of Jehoiada. + Its very etymology constituted an appeal to the conscience of + Joash: it is compounded of the sacred name and a root meaning + <span class="tei tei-q">“to remember”</span>. The Jews were adepts + at extracting from such a combination all its possible + applications. <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page409">[pg + 409]</span><a name="Pg409" id="Pg409" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + The most obvious was that Jehovah would remember the sin of Judah, + but the recent prophets sent to recall the sinners to their God + showed that Jehovah also remembered their former righteousness and + desired to recall it to them and them to it; they should remember + Jehovah. Moreover, Joash should remember the teaching of Jehoiada + and his obligations to the father of the man now addressing him. + Probably Joash did remember all this when, in the striking Hebrew + idiom, <span class="tei tei-q">“the spirit of God clothed itself + with Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, and he stood above + the people and said unto them, Thus saith God: Why transgress ye + the commandments of Jehovah, to your hurt? Because ye have forsaken + Jehovah, He hath also forsaken you.”</span> This is the burden of + the prophetic utterances in Chronicles<a id="noteref_404" name= + "noteref_404" href="#note_404"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">404</span></span></a>; the + converse is stated by Irenæus when he says that to follow the + Saviour is to partake of salvation. Though the truth of this + teaching had been enforced again and again by the misfortunes that + had befallen Judah under apostate kings, Joash paid no heed to it, + nor did he remember the kindness which Jehoiada had done him; that + is to say, he showed no gratitude towards the house of Jehoiada. + Perhaps an uncomfortable sense of obligation to the father only + embittered him the more against his son. But the son of the + high-priest could not be dealt with as summarily as Asa dealt with + Hanani when he put him in prison. The king might have been + indifferent to the wrath of Jehovah, but the son of the man who had + for years ruled Judah and Jerusalem must have had a strong party at + his back. <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page410">[pg + 410]</span><a name="Pg410" id="Pg410" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Accordingly the king and his adherents conspired against Zechariah, + and they stoned him with stones by the king's command. This Old + Testament martyr died in a very different spirit from that of + Stephen; his prayer was, not, <span class="tei tei-q">“Lord, lay + not this sin to their charge,”</span> but <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Jehovah, look upon it and require it.”</span> His + prayer did not long remain unanswered. Within a year the + Syrians<a id="noteref_405" name="noteref_405" href= + "#note_405"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">405</span></span></a> came + against Joash; he had a very great host, but he was powerless + against a small company of the Divinely commissioned avengers of + Zechariah. The tempters who had seduced the king into apostacy were + a special mark for the wrath of Jehovah: the Syrians destroyed all + the princes, and sent their spoil to the king of Damascus. Like Asa + and Jehoram, Joash suffered personal punishment in the shape of + <span class="tei tei-q">“great diseases,”</span> but his end was + even more tragic than theirs. One conspiracy avenged another: in + his own household there were adherents of the family of Jehoiada: + <span class="tei tei-q">“Two of his own servants conspired against + him for the blood of Zechariah, and slew him on his bed; and they + buried him in the city of David, and not in the sepulchres of the + kings.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler's + biography of Joash might have been specially designed to remind his + readers that the most careful education must sometimes fail of its + purpose. Joash had been trained from his earliest years in the + Temple itself, under the care of Jehoiada and of his aunt + Jehoshabeath, the high-priest's wife. He had no doubt been + carefully instructed in the religion and sacred history of Israel, + and had been continually surrounded by the best religious + influences of his age. For <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page411">[pg 411]</span><a name="Pg411" id="Pg411" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> Judah, in the chronicler's estimation, was + even then the one home of the true faith. These holy influences had + been continued after Joash had attained to manhood, and Jehoiada + was careful to provide that the young king's harem should be + enlisted in the cause of piety and good government. We may be sure + that the two wives whom Jehoiada selected for his pupil were + consistent worshippers of Jehovah and loyal to the Law and the + Temple. No daughter of the house of Ahab, no <span class= + "tei tei-q">“strange wife”</span> from Egypt, Ammon, or Moab, would + be allowed the opportunity of undoing the good effects of early + training. Moreover, we might have expected the character developed + by education to be strengthened by exercise. The early years of his + reign were occupied by zealous activity in the service of the + Temple. The pupil outstripped his master, and the enthusiasm of the + youthful king found occasion to rebuke the tardy zeal of the + venerable high-priest.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And yet all this + fair promise was blighted in a day. The piety carefully fostered + for half a life-time gave way before the first assaults of + temptation, and never even attempted to reassert itself. Possibly + the brief and fragmentary records from which the chronicler had to + make his selection unduly emphasise the contrast between the + earlier and later years of the reign of Joash; but the picture he + draws of the failure of best of tutors and governors is + unfortunately only too typical. Julian the Apostate was educated by + a distinguished Christian prelate, Eusebius of Nicomedia, and was + trained in a strict routine of religious observances; yet he + repudiated Christianity at the earliest safe opportunity. His + apostacy, like that of Joash, was probably characterised by base + ingratitude. At Constantine's death the troops in Constantinople + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page412">[pg 412]</span><a name= + "Pg412" id="Pg412" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> massacred nearly all + the princes of the imperial family, and Julian, then only six years + old, is said to have been saved and concealed in a church by Mark, + Bishop of Arethusa. When Julian became emperor, he repaid this + obligation by subjecting his benefactor to cruel tortures because + he had destroyed a heathen temple and refused to make any + compensation. Imagine Joash requiring Jehoiada to make compensation + for pulling down a high place!</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The parallel of + Julian may suggest a partial explanation of the fall of Joash. The + tutelage of Jehoiada may have been too strict, monotonous, and + prolonged; in choosing wives for the young king, the aged priest + may not have made an altogether happy selection; Jehoiada may have + kept Joash under control until he was incapable of independence and + could only pass from one dominant influence to another. When the + high-priest's death gave the king an opportunity of changing his + masters, a reaction from the too urgent insistence upon his duty to + the Temple may have inclined Joash to listen favourably to the + solicitations of the princes.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But perhaps the + sins of Joash are sufficiently accounted for by his ancestry. His + mother was Zibiah of Beersheba, and therefore probably a Jewess. Of + her we know nothing further good or bad. Otherwise his ancestors + for two generations had been uniformly bad. His father and + grandfather were the wicked kings Jehoram and Ahaziah; his + grandmother was Athaliah; and he was descended from Ahab, and + possibly from Jezebel. When we recollect that his mother Zibiah was + a wife of Ahaziah and had probably been selected by Athaliah, we + cannot suppose that the element she contributed to his character + would do much to counteract the evil he inherited from his + father.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page413">[pg + 413]</span><a name="Pg413" id="Pg413" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler's + account of his successor Amaziah is equally disappointing; he also + began well and ended miserably. In the opening formulæ of the + history of the new reign and in the account of the punishment of + the assassins of Joash, the chronicler closely follows the earlier + narrative, omitting, as usual, the statement that this good king + did not take away the high places. Like his pious predecessors, + Amaziah in his earlier and better years was rewarded with a great + army<a id="noteref_406" name="noteref_406" href= + "#note_406"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">406</span></span></a> and + military success; and yet the muster-roll of his forces shows how + the sins and calamities of the recent wicked reigns had told on the + resources of Judah. Jehoshaphat could command more than eleven + hundred and sixty thousand soldiers; Amaziah has only three hundred + thousand.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">These were not + sufficient for the king's ambition; by the Divine grace, he had + already amassed wealth, in spite of the Syrian ravages at the close + of the preceding reign: and he laid out a hundred talents of silver + in purchasing the services of as many thousand Israelites, thus + falling into the sin for which Jehoshaphat had twice been reproved + and punished. Jehovah, however, arrested Amaziah's employment of + unholy allies at the outset. A man of God came to him and exhorted + him not to let the army of Israel go with him, because <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Jehovah is not with Israel”</span>; if he had courage + and faith to go with only his three hundred thousand Jews, all + would be well, otherwise God would cast him down, as He had done + Ahaziah. The statement that Jehovah was not with Israel might have + been understood in a sense that would seem almost blasphemous to + the <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page414">[pg 414]</span><a name= + "Pg414" id="Pg414" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> chronicler's + contemporaries; he is careful therefore to explain that here + <span class="tei tei-q">“Israel”</span> simply means <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the children of Ephraim.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Amaziah obeyed + the prophet, but was naturally distressed at the thought that he + had spent a hundred talents for nothing: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“What shall we do for the hundred talents which I have + given to the army of Israel?”</span> He did not realise that the + Divine alliance would be worth more to him than many hundred + talents of silver; or perhaps he reflected that Divine grace is + free, and that he might have saved his money. One would like to + believe that he was anxious to recover this silver in order to + devote it to the service of the sanctuary; but he was evidently one + of those sordid souls who like, as the phrase goes, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“to get their religion for nothing.”</span> No wonder + Amaziah went astray! We can scarcely be wrong in detecting a vein + of contempt in the prophet's answer: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Jehovah can give thee much more than this.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This little + episode carries with it a great principle. Every crusade against an + established abuse is met with the cry, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“What shall we do for the hundred talents?”</span>—for + the capital invested in slaves or in gin-shops; for English + revenues from alcohol or Indian revenues from opium? Few have faith + to believe that the Lord can provide for financial deficits, or, if + we may venture to indicate the method in which the Lord provides, + that a nation will ever be able to pay its way by honest finance. + Let us note, however, that Amaziah was asked to sacrifice his own + talents, and not other people's.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Accordingly + Amaziah sent the mercenaries home; and they returned in great + dudgeon, offended by the slight put upon them and disappointed at + the loss of prospective plunder. The king's sin in hiring Israelite + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page415">[pg 415]</span><a name= + "Pg415" id="Pg415" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> mercenaries was to + suffer a severer punishment than the loss of money. While he was + away at war, his rejected allies returned, and attacked the border + cities,<a id="noteref_407" name="noteref_407" href= + "#note_407"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">407</span></span></a> + killed three thousand Jews, and took much plunder.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Meanwhile + Amaziah and his army were reaping direct fruits of their obedience + in Edom, where they gained a great victory, and followed it up by a + massacre of ten thousand captives, whom they killed by throwing + down from the top of a precipice. Yet, after all, Amaziah's victory + over Edom was of small profit to him, for he was thereby seduced + into idolatry. Amongst his other prisoners, he had brought away the + gods of Edom; and instead of throwing them over a precipice, as a + pious king should have done, <span class="tei tei-q">“he set them + up to be his gods, and bowed down himself before them, and burned + incense unto them.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Then Jehovah, in + His anger, sent a prophet to demand, <span class="tei tei-q">“Why + hast thou sought after foreign gods, which have not delivered their + own people out of thine hand?”</span> According to current ideas + outside of Israel, a nation might very reasonably seek after the + gods of their conquerors. Such conquest could only be attributed to + the superior power and grace of the gods of the victors: the gods + of the defeated were vanquished along with their worshippers, and + were obviously incompetent and unworthy of further confidence. But + to act like Amaziah—to go out to battle in the name of Jehovah, + directed and encouraged by His prophet, to conquer by the grace of + the God of Israel, and then to desert Jehovah of hosts, the Giver + of victory, for <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page416">[pg + 416]</span><a name="Pg416" id="Pg416" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + the paltry and discredited idols of the conquered Edomites—this was + sheer madness. And yet as Greece enslaved her Roman conquerors, so + the victor has often been won to the faith of the vanquished. The + Church subdued the barbarians who had overwhelmed the empire, and + the heathen Saxons adopted at last the religion of the conquered + Britons. Henry IV. of France is scarcely a parallel to Amaziah: he + went to mass that he might hold his sceptre with a firmer grasp, + while the king of Judah merely adopted foreign idols in order to + gratify his superstition and love of novelty.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Apparently + Amaziah was at first inclined to discuss the question: he and the + prophet talked together; but the king soon became irritated, and + broke off the interview with abrupt discourtesy: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Have we made thee of the king's counsel? Forbear; why + shouldest thou be smitten?”</span> Prosperity seems to have been + invariably fatal to the Jewish kings who began to reign well; the + success that rewarded, at the same time destroyed their virtue. + Before his victory Amaziah had been courteous and submissive to the + messenger of Jehovah; now he defied Him and treated His prophet + roughly. The latter disappeared, but not before he had declared the + Divine condemnation of the stubborn king.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The rest of the + history of Amaziah—his presumptuous war with Joash, king of Israel, + his defeat and degradation, and his assassination—is taken verbatim + from the book of Kings, with a few modifications and editorial + notes by the chronicler to harmonise these sections with the rest + of his narrative. For instance, in the book of Kings the account of + the war with Joash begins somewhat abruptly: Amaziah sends his + defiance before <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page417">[pg + 417]</span><a name="Pg417" id="Pg417" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + any reason has been given for his action. The chronicler inserts a + phrase which connects his new paragraph very suggestively with the + one that goes before. The former concluded with the king's taunt + that the prophet was not of his counsel, to which the prophet + replied that the king should be destroyed because he had not + hearkened to the Divine counsel proffered to him. Then Amaziah + <span class="tei tei-q">“took advice”</span>; <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span>, + he consulted those who were of his counsel, and the sequel showed + their incompetence. The chronicler also explains that Amaziah's + rash persistence in his challenge to Joash <span class= + "tei tei-q">“was of God, that He might deliver them into the hand + of their enemies, because they had sought after the gods of + Edom.”</span> He also tells us that the name of the custodian of + the sacred vessels of the Temple was Obed-edom. As the chronicler + mentions five Levites of the name of Obed-edom, four of whom occur + nowhere else, the name was probably common in some family still + surviving in his own time. But, in view of the fondness of the Jews + for significant etymology, it is probable that the name is recorded + here because it was exceedingly appropriate. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“The servant of Edom”</span> suits the official who has + to surrender his sacred charge to a conqueror because his own king + had worshipped the gods of Edom. Lastly, an additional note + explains that Amaziah's apostacy had promptly deprived him of the + confidence and loyalty of his subjects; the conspiracy which led to + his assassination was formed from the time that he turned away from + following Jehovah, so that when he sent his proud challenge to + Joash his authority was already undermined, and there were traitors + in the army which he led against Israel. We are shown one of the + means used by Jehovah to bring about his defeat.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page418">[pg 418]</span><a name= + "Pg418" id="Pg418" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc65" id="toc65"></a> <a name="pdf66" id="pdf66"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter VII. Uzziah, Jotham, and + Ahaz.</span><a id="noteref_408" name="noteref_408" href= + "#note_408"><span class="tei tei-noteref" style= + "text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">408</span></span></a> + <span style="font-size: 144%">2 Chron. xxvi.-xxviii.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">After the + assassination of Amaziah, all the people of Judah took his son + Uzziah, a lad of sixteen, called in the book of Kings Azariah, and + made him king. The chronicler borrows from the older narrative the + statement that <span class="tei tei-q">“Uzziah did that which was + right in the eyes of Jehovah, according to all that his father + Amaziah had done.”</span> In the light of the sins attributed both + to Amaziah and Uzziah in Chronicles, this is a somewhat doubtful + compliment. Sarcasm, however, is not one of the chronicler's + failings; he simply allows the older history to speak for itself, + and leaves the reader to combine its judgment with the statement of + later tradition as best he can. But yet we might modify this verse, + and read that Uzziah did good and evil, prospered and fell into + misfortune, according to all that his father Amaziah had done, or + an even closer parallel might be drawn between what Uzziah did and + suffered and the chequered character and fortunes of Joash.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Though much + older than the latter, at his accession Uzziah was young enough to + be very much under <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page419">[pg + 419]</span><a name="Pg419" id="Pg419" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + the control of ministers and advisers; and as Joash was trained in + loyalty to Jehovah by the high-priest Jehoiada, so Uzziah + <span class="tei tei-q">“set himself to seek God during the + life-time”</span> of a certain prophet, who, like the son of + Jehoiada, was named Zechariah, <span class="tei tei-q">“who had + understanding or gave instruction in the fear of + Jehovah,”</span><a id="noteref_409" name="noteref_409" href= + "#note_409"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">409</span></span></a> + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span>, a man versed in sacred + learning, rich in spiritual experience, and able to communicate his + knowledge, such a one as Ezra the scribe in later days.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Under the + guidance of this otherwise unknown prophet, the young king was led + to conform his private life and public administration to the will + of God. In <span class="tei tei-q">“seeking God,”</span> Uzziah + would be careful to maintain and attend the Temple services, to + honour the priests of Jehovah and make due provision for their + wants; and <span class="tei tei-q">“as long as he sought Jehovah + God gave him prosperity.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Uzziah received + all the rewards usually bestowed upon pious kings: he was + victorious in war, and exacted tribute from neighbouring states; he + built fortresses, and had abundance of cattle and slaves, a large + and well-equipped army, and well-supplied arsenals. Like other + powerful kings of Judah, he asserted his supremacy over the tribes + along the southern frontier of his kingdom. God helped him against + the Philistines, the Arabians of Gur-baal, and the Meunim. He + destroyed the fortifications of Gath, Jabne, and Ashdod, and built + forts of his own in the country of the <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page420">[pg 420]</span><a name="Pg420" id="Pg420" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> Philistines. Nothing is known about Gur-baal; + but the Arabian allies of the Philistines would be, like Jehoram's + enemies <span class="tei tei-q">“the Arabians who dwelt near the + Ethiopians,”</span> nomads of the deserts south of Judah. These + Philistines and Arabians had brought tribute to Jehoshaphat without + waiting to be subdued by his armies; so now the Ammonites gave + gifts to Uzziah, and his name spread abroad <span class= + "tei tei-q">“even to the entering in of Egypt,”</span> possibly a + hundred or even a hundred and fifty miles from Jerusalem. It is + evident that the chronicler's ideas of international politics were + of very modest dimensions.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Moreover, Uzziah + added to the fortifications of Jerusalem; and because he loved + husbandry and had cattle, and husbandmen, and vine-dressers in the + open country and outlying districts of Judah, he built towers for + their protection. His army was of about the same strength as that + of Amaziah, three hundred thousand men, so that in this, as in his + character and exploits, he did according to all that his father had + done, except that he was content with his own Jewish warriors and + did not waste his talents in purchasing worse than useless + reinforcements from Israel. Uzziah's army was well disciplined, + carefully organised, and constantly employed; they were men of + mighty power, and went out to war by bands, to collect the king's + tribute and enlarge his dominions and revenue by new conquests. The + war material in his arsenals is described at greater length than + that of any previous king: shields, spears, helmets, coats of mail, + bows and stones for slings. The great advance of military science + in Uzziah's reign was marked by the invention of engines of war for + the defence of Jerusalem; some, like the Roman <span lang="la" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">catapulta</span></span>, were for arrows, and + others, like the <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "la"><span style="font-style: italic">ballista</span></span>, to + hurl <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page421">[pg 421]</span><a name= + "Pg421" id="Pg421" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> huge stones. Though + the Assyrian sculptures show us that battering-rams were freely + employed by them against the walls of Jewish cities,<a id= + "noteref_410" name="noteref_410" href="#note_410"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">410</span></span></a> and + the <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "la"><span style="font-style: italic">ballista</span></span> is + said by Pliny to have been invented in Syria,<a id="noteref_411" + name="noteref_411" href="#note_411"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">411</span></span></a> no + other Hebrew king is credited with the possession of this primitive + artillery. The chronicler or his authority seems profoundly + impressed by the great skill displayed in this invention; in + describing it, he uses the root ḥāshabh, to devise, three times in + three consecutive words. The engines were <span class= + "tei tei-q">“<span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">ḥishshebhōnôth maḥăshebheth + ḥôshēbh</span></span>”</span>—<span class="tei tei-q">“engines + engineered by the ingenious.”</span> Jehovah not only provided + Uzziah with ample military resources of every kind, but also + blessed the means which He Himself had furnished; Uzziah + <span class="tei tei-q">“was marvellously helped, till he was + strong, and his name spread far abroad.”</span> The neighbouring + states heard with admiration of his military resources.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The student of + Chronicles will by this time be prepared for the invariable sequel + to God-given prosperity. Like David, Rehoboam, Asa, and Amaziah, + when Uzziah <span class="tei tei-q">“was strong, his heart was + lifted up to his destruction.”</span> The most powerful of the + kings of Judah died a leper. An attack of leprosy admitted of only + one explanation: it was a plague inflicted by Jehovah Himself as + the punishment of sin; and so the book of Kings tells us that + <span class="tei tei-q">“Jehovah smote the king,”</span> but says + nothing about the sin thus punished. The chronicler was able to + supply the omission: Uzziah had dared to go into the Temple and + with irregular zeal to burn incense on the altar of incense. In so + doing, he was violating the Law, which made the priestly office + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page422">[pg 422]</span><a name= + "Pg422" id="Pg422" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> and all priestly + functions the exclusive prerogative of the house of Aaron and + denounced the penalty of death against any one who usurped priestly + functions.<a id="noteref_412" name="noteref_412" href= + "#note_412"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">412</span></span></a> But + Uzziah was not allowed to carry out his unholy design; the + high-priest Azariah went in after him with eighty stalwart + colleagues, rebuked his presumption, and bade him leave the + sanctuary. Uzziah was no more tractable to the admonitions of the + priest than Asa and Amaziah had been to those of the prophets. The + kings of Judah were accustomed, even in Chronicles, to exercise an + unchallenged control over the Temple and to regard the high-priests + very much in the light of private chaplains. Uzziah was wroth; he + was at the zenith of his power and glory; his heart was lifted up. + Who were these priests, that they should stand between him and + Jehovah and dare to publicly check and rebuke him in his own + temple? Henry II.'s feelings towards Becket must have been mild + compared to those of Uzziah towards Azariah, who, if the king could + have had his way, would doubtless have shared the fate of Zechariah + the son of Jehoiada. But a direct intervention of Jehovah protected + the priests, and preserved Uzziah from further sacrilege. While his + features were convulsed with anger, leprosy brake forth in his + forehead. The contest between king and priest was at once ended; + the priests thrust him out, and he himself hasted to go, + recognising that Jehovah had smitten him. Henceforth he lived + apart, cut off from fellowship alike with man and God, and his son + Jotham governed in his stead. The book of Kings simply makes the + general statement that Uzziah was buried with his fathers in the + city of David; but the <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page423">[pg + 423]</span><a name="Pg423" id="Pg423" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + chronicler is anxious that his readers should not suppose that the + tombs of the sacred house of David were polluted by the presence of + a leprous corpse: he explains that the leper was buried, not in the + royal sepulchre, but in the field attached to it.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The moral of + this incident is obvious. In attempting to understand its + significance, we need not trouble ourselves about the relative + authority of kings and priests; the principle vindicated by the + punishment of Uzziah was the simple duty of obedience to an express + command of Jehovah. However trivial the burning of incense may be + in itself, it formed part of an elaborate and complicated system of + ritual. To interfere with the Divine ordinances in one detail would + mar the significance and impressiveness of the whole Temple + service. One arbitrary innovation would be a precedent for others, + and would constitute a serious danger for a system whose value lay + in continuous uniformity. Moreover, Uzziah was stubborn in + disobedience. His attempt to burn incense might have been + sufficiently punished by the public and humiliating reproof of the + high-priest. His leprosy came upon him because when thwarted in an + unholy purpose he gave way to ungoverned passion.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In its + consequences we see a practical application of the lessons of the + incident. How often is the sinner only provoked to greater + wickedness by the obstacles which Divine grace opposes to his + wrongdoing! How few men will tolerate the suggestion that their + intentions are cruel, selfish, or dishonourable! Remonstrance is an + insult, an offence against their personal dignity; they feel that + their self-respect demands that they should persevere in their + purpose, and that they should resent and punish any one who + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page424">[pg 424]</span><a name= + "Pg424" id="Pg424" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> has tried to thwart + them. Uzziah's wrath was perfectly natural; few men have been so + uniformly patient of reproof as not sometimes to have turned in + anger upon those who warned them against sin. The most dramatic + feature of this episode, the sudden frost of leprosy in the king's + forehead, is not without its spiritual antitype. Men's anger at + well-merited reproof has often blighted their lives once for all + with ineradicable moral leprosy. In the madness of passion they + have broken bonds which have hitherto restrained them and committed + themselves beyond recall to evil pursuits and fatal friendships. + Let us take the most lenient view of Uzziah's conduct, and suppose + that he believed himself entitled to offer incense; he could not + doubt that the priests were equally confident that Jehovah had + enjoined the duty on them, and them alone. Such a question was not + to be decided by violence, in the heat of personal bitterness. + Azariah himself had been unwisely zealous in bringing in his eighty + priests; Jehovah showed him that they were quite unnecessary, + because at the last Uzziah <span class="tei tei-q">“himself hasted + to go out.”</span> When personal passion and jealousy are + eliminated from Christian polemics, the Church will be able to + write the epitaph of the <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" + xml:lang="la"><span style="font-style: italic">odium + theologicum</span></span>.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Uzziah was + succeeded by Jotham, who had already governed for some time as + regent. In recording the favourable judgment of the book of Kings, + <span class="tei tei-q">“He did that which was right in the eyes of + Jehovah, according to all that his father Uzziah had done,”</span> + the chronicler is careful to add, <span class="tei tei-q">“Howbeit + he entered not into the temple of Jehovah”</span>; the exclusive + privilege of the house of Aaron had been established once for all. + The story of Jotham's reign comes like a quiet and pleasant oasis + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page425">[pg 425]</span><a name= + "Pg425" id="Pg425" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> in the chronicler's + dreary narrative of wicked rulers, interspersed with pious kings + whose piety failed them in their latter days. Jotham shares with + Solomon the distinguished honour of being a king of whom no evil is + recorded either in Kings or Chronicles, and who died in prosperity, + at peace with Jehovah. At the same time it is probable that Jotham + owes the blameless character he bears in Chronicles to the fact + that the earlier narrative does not mention any misfortunes of his, + especially any misfortune towards the close of his life. Otherwise + the theological school from whom the chronicler derived his later + traditions would have been anxious to discover or deduce some sin + to account for such misfortune. At the end of the short notice of + his reign, between two parts of the usual closing formula, an + editor of the book of Kings has inserted the statement that + <span class="tei tei-q">“in those days Jehovah began to send + against Judah Rezin the king of Syria and Pekah the son of + Remaliah.”</span> This verse the chronicler has omitted; neither + the date<a id="noteref_413" name="noteref_413" href= + "#note_413"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">413</span></span></a> nor + the nature of this trouble was clear enough to cast any slur upon + the character of Jotham.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Jotham, again, + had the rewards of a pious king: he added a gate to the Temple, and + strengthened the wall of Ophel<a id="noteref_414" name= + "noteref_414" href="#note_414"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">414</span></span></a>, and + built cities and castles in Judah; he made successful war upon + Ammon, and received from them an immense tribute—a hundred talents + of silver, ten thousand measures of wheat, and as much barley—for + three successive years. What happened <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page426">[pg 426]</span><a name="Pg426" id="Pg426" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> afterwards we are not told. It has been + suggested that the amounts mentioned were paid in three yearly + instalments, or that the three years were at the end of the reign, + and the tribute came to an end when Jotham died or when the + troubles with Pekah and Rezin began.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have had + repeated occasion to notice that in his accounts of the good kings + the chronicler almost always omits the qualifying clause to the + effect that they did not take away the high places. He does so + here; but, contrary to his usual practice, he inserts a qualifying + clause of his own: <span class="tei tei-q">“The people did yet + corruptly.”</span> He probably had in view the unmitigated + wickedness of the following reign, and was glad to retain the + evidence that Ahaz found encouragement and support in his idolatry; + he is careful, however, to state the fact so that no shadow of + blame falls upon Jotham.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The life of Ahaz + has been dealt with elsewhere. Here we need merely repeat that for + the sixteen years of his reign Judah was to all appearance utterly + given over to every form of idolatry, and was oppressed and brought + low by Israel, Syria, and Assyria.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page427">[pg 427]</span><a name= + "Pg427" id="Pg427" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc67" id="toc67"></a> <a name="pdf68" id="pdf68"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter VIII. Hezekiah: The Religious + Value Of Music. 2 Chron. xxix.-xxxii.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The bent of the + chroniclers mind is well illustrated by the proportion of space + assigned to ritual by him and by the book of Kings respectively. In + the latter a few lines only are devoted to ritual, and the bulk of + the space is given to the invasion of Sennacherib, the embassy from + Babylon, etc., while in Chronicles ritual occupies about three + times as many verses as personal and public affairs.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Hezekiah, though + not blameless, was all but perfect in his loyalty to Jehovah. The + chronicler reproduces the customary formula for a good king: + <span class="tei tei-q">“He did that which was right in the eyes of + Jehovah, according to all that David his father had done”</span>; + but his cautious judgment rejects the somewhat rhetorical statement + in Kings that <span class="tei tei-q">“after him was none like him + among all the kings of Judah, nor any that were before + him.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Hezekiah's + policy was made clear immediately after his accession. His zeal for + reformation could tolerate no delay; the first month<a id= + "noteref_415" name="noteref_415" href="#note_415"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">415</span></span></a> of + the first year of his reign <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page428">[pg 428]</span><a name="Pg428" id="Pg428" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> saw him actively engaged in the good + work.<a id="noteref_416" name="noteref_416" href= + "#note_416"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">416</span></span></a> It + was no light task that lay before him. Not only were there altars + in every corner of Jerusalem and idolatrous high places in every + city of Judah, but the Temple services had ceased, the lamps were + put out, the sacred vessels cut in pieces, the Temple had been + polluted and then closed, and the priests and Levites were + scattered. Sixteen years of licensed idolatry must have fostered + all that was vile in the country, have put wicked men in authority, + and created numerous vested interests connected by close ties with + idolatry, notably the priests of all the altars and high places. On + the other hand, the reign of Ahaz had been an unbroken series of + disasters; the people had repeatedly endured the horrors of + invasion. His government as time went on must have become more and + more unpopular, for when he died he was not buried in the + sepulchres of the kings. As idolatry was a prominent feature of his + policy, there would be a reaction in favour of the worship of + Jehovah, and there would not be wanting true believers to tell the + people that their sufferings were a consequence of idolatry. To a + large party in Judah Hezekiah's reversal of his father's religious + policy would be as welcome as Elizabeth's declaration against Rome + was to most Englishmen.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Hezekiah began + by opening and repairing the doors of the Temple. Its closed doors + had been a symbol of the national repudiation of Jehovah; to reopen + them <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page429">[pg 429]</span><a name= + "Pg429" id="Pg429" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> was necessarily the + first step in the reconciliation of Judah to its God, but only the + first step. The doors were open as a sign that Jehovah was invited + to return to His people and again to manifest His presence in the + Holy of holies, so that through those open doors Israel might have + access to Him by means of the priests. But the Temple was as yet no + fit place for the presence of Jehovah. With its lamps extinguished, + its sacred vessels destroyed, its floors and walls thick with dust + and full of all filthiness, it was rather a symbol of the apostacy + of Judah. Accordingly Hezekiah sought the help of the Levites. It + is true that he is first said to have collected together priests + and Levites, but from that point onward the priests are almost + entirely ignored.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Hezekiah + reminded the Levites of the misdoings of Ahaz and his adherents and + the wrath which they had brought upon Judah and Jerusalem; he told + them it was his purpose to conciliate Jehovah by making a covenant + with Him; he appealed to them as the chosen ministers of Jehovah + and His temple to co-operate heartily in this good work.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The Levites + responded to his appeal apparently rather in acts than words. No + spokesman replies to the king's speech, but with prompt obedience + they set about their work forthwith; they arose, Kohathites, sons + of Merari, Gershonites, sons of Elizaphan, Asaph, Heman, and + Jeduthun—the chronicler has a Homeric fondness for catalogues of + high-sounding names—the leaders of all these divisions are duly + mentioned. Kohath, Gershon, and Merari are well known as the three + great clans of the house of Levi; and here we find the three guilds + of singers—Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun—placed on a level with the + older clans. Elizaphan <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page430">[pg + 430]</span><a name="Pg430" id="Pg430" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + was apparently a division of the clan Kohath,<a id="noteref_417" + name="noteref_417" href="#note_417"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">417</span></span></a> + which, like the guilds of singers, had obtained an independent + status. The result is to recognise seven divisions of the + tribe.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chiefs of + the Levites gathered their brethren together, and having performed + the necessary rites of ceremonial cleansing for themselves, went in + to cleanse the Temple; that is to say, the priests went into the + holy place and the Holy of holies and brought out <span class= + "tei tei-q">“all the uncleanness”</span> into the court, and the + Levites carried it away to the brook Kidron: but before the + building itself could be reached eight days were spent in cleansing + the courts, and then the priests went into the Temple itself and + spent eight days in cleansing it, in the manner described above. + Then they reported to the king that the cleansing was finished, and + especially that <span class="tei tei-q">“all the vessels which King + Ahaz cast away”</span> had been recovered and reconsecrated with + due ceremony. We were told in the previous chapter that Ahaz had + cut to pieces the vessels of the Temple, but these may have been + other vessels.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Then Hezekiah + celebrated a great dedication feast; seven bullocks, seven rams, + seven lambs, and seven he-goats were offered as a sin-offering for + the dynasty,<a id="noteref_418" name="noteref_418" href= + "#note_418"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">418</span></span></a> for + the Temple, for Judah, and (by special command of the king) for all + Israel, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span> for the northern tribes as + well as for Judah and Benjamin. Apparently this sin-offering was + made in silence, but afterwards the king set the Levites and + priests in their places with their musical instruments, and when + the burnt offering began <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page431">[pg + 431]</span><a name="Pg431" id="Pg431" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“the song of Jehovah began with the + trumpets together with the instruments of David king of Israel. And + all the congregation worshipped, and the singers sang, and the + trumpeters sounded,”</span> and all this continued till the burnt + offering was finished.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">When the people + had been formally reconciled to Jehovah by this representative + national sacrifice, and thus purified from the uncleanness of + idolatry and consecrated afresh to their God, they were permitted + and invited to make individual sacrifices, thank-offerings and + burnt offerings. Each man might enjoy for himself the renewed + privilege of access to Jehovah, and obtain the assurance of pardon + for his sins, and offer thanksgiving for his own special blessings. + And they brought offerings in abundance: seventy bullocks, a + hundred rams, and two hundred lambs for a burnt offering; and six + hundred oxen and three thousand sheep for thank-offerings. Thus + were the Temple services restored and reinaugurated; and Hezekiah + and the people rejoiced because they felt that this unpremeditated + outburst of enthusiasm was due to the gracious influence of the + Spirit of Jehovah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler's + narrative is somewhat marred by a touch of professional jealousy. + According to the ordinary ritual,<a id="noteref_419" name= + "noteref_419" href="#note_419"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">419</span></span></a> the + offerer flayed the burnt offerings; but for some special reason, + perhaps because of the exceptional solemnity of the occasion, this + duty now devolved upon the priests. But the burnt offerings were + abundant beyond all precedent; the priests were too few for the + work, and the Levites were called in to help them, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“for the Levites were more upright in heart to purify + themselves than the priests.”</span> Apparently even in the + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page432">[pg 432]</span><a name= + "Pg432" id="Pg432" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> second Temple + brethren did not always dwell together in unity.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Hezekiah had now + provided for the regular services of the Temple, and had given the + inhabitants of Jerusalem a full opportunity of returning to + Jehovah; but the people of the provinces were chiefly acquainted + with the Temple through the great annual festivals. These, too, had + long been in abeyance; and special steps had to be taken to secure + their future observance. In order to do this, it was necessary to + recall the provincials to their allegiance to Jehovah. Under + ordinary circumstances the great festival of the Passover would + have been observed in the first month, but at the time appointed + for the paschal feast the Temple was still unclean, and the priests + and Levites were occupied in its purification. But Hezekiah could + not endure that the first year of his reign should be marked by the + omission of this great feast. He took counsel with the princes and + public assembly—nothing is said about the priests—and they decided + to hold the Passover in the second month instead of the first. We + gather from casual allusions in vv. 6-8 that the kingdom of Samaria + had already come to an end; the people had been carried into + captivity, and only a remnant were left in the land.<a id= + "noteref_420" name="noteref_420" href="#note_420"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">420</span></span></a> From + this point the kings of Judah act as religious heads of the whole + nation and territory of Israel. Hezekiah sent invitations to all + Israel from Dan to Beersheba. He made special efforts to secure a + favourable response from the northern tribes, sending letters to + Ephraim and Manasseh, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span>, to the ten tribes under + their leadership. He reminded them that their brethren had gone + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page433">[pg 433]</span><a name= + "Pg433" id="Pg433" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> into captivity + because the northern tribes had deserted the Temple; and held out + to them the hope that, if they worshipped at the Temple and served + Jehovah, they should themselves escape further calamity, and their + brethren and children who had gone into captivity should return to + their own land.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“So the posts passed from city to city through the + country of Ephraim and Manasseh, even unto Zebulun.”</span> Either + Zebulun is used in a broad sense for all the Galilean tribes, or + the phrase <span class="tei tei-q">“from Beersheba to Dan”</span> + is merely rhetorical, for to the north, between Zebulun and Dan, + lay the territories of Asher and Naphtali. It is to be noticed that + the tribes beyond Jordan are nowhere referred to; they had already + fallen out of the history of Israel, and were scarcely remembered + in the time of the chronicler.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Hezekiah's + appeal to the surviving communities of the northern kingdom failed: + they laughed his messengers to scorn, and mocked them; but + individuals responded to his invitation in such numbers that they + are spoken of as <span class="tei tei-q">“a multitude of the + people, even many of Ephraim and Manasseh, Issachar and + Zebulun.”</span> There were also men of Asher among the northern + pilgrims.<a id="noteref_421" name="noteref_421" href= + "#note_421"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">421</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The pious + enthusiasm of Judah stood out in vivid contrast to the stubborn + impenitence of the majority of the ten tribes. By the grace of God, + Judah was of one heart to observe the feast appointed by Jehovah + through the king and princes, so that there was gathered in + Jerusalem a very great assembly of worshippers, surpassing even the + great gatherings which the chronicler had witnessed at the annual + feasts.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page434">[pg + 434]</span><a name="Pg434" id="Pg434" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But though the + Temple had been cleansed, the Holy City was not yet free from the + taint of idolatry. The character of the Passover demanded that not + only the Temple, but the whole city, should be pure. The paschal + lamb was eaten at home, and the doorposts of the house were + sprinkled with its blood. But Ahaz had set up altars at every + corner of the city; no devout Israelite could tolerate the symbols + of idolatrous worship close to the house in which he celebrated the + solemn rites of the Passover. Accordingly before the Passover was + killed these altars were removed.<a id="noteref_422" name= + "noteref_422" href="#note_422"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">422</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Then the great + feast began; but after long years of idolatry neither the people + nor the priests and Levites were sufficiently familiar with the + rites of the festival to be able to perform them without some + difficulty and confusion. As a rule each head of a household killed + his own lamb; but many of the worshippers, especially those from + the north, were not ceremonially clean: and this task devolved upon + the Levites. The immense concourse of worshippers and the + additional work thrown upon the Temple ministry must have made + extraordinary demands on their zeal and energy.<a id="noteref_423" + name="noteref_423" href="#note_423"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">423</span></span></a> At + first apparently they hesitated, and were inclined to abstain from + discharging their usual duties. A passover in a month not appointed + by Moses, but decided on by the civil authorities without + consulting the priesthood, might seem a doubtful and dangerous + innovation. Recollecting Azariah's successful assertion of + hierarchical <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page435">[pg + 435]</span><a name="Pg435" id="Pg435" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + prerogative against Uzziah, they might be inclined to attempt a + similar resistance to Hezekiah. But the pious enthusiasm of the + people clearly showed that the Spirit of Jehovah inspired their + somewhat irregular zeal; so that the ecclesiastical officials were + shamed out of their unsympathetic attitude, and came forward to + take their full share and even more than their full share in this + glorious rededication of Israel to Jehovah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But a further + difficulty remained: uncleanness not only disqualified from killing + the paschal lambs, but from taking any part in the Passover; and a + multitude of the people were unclean. Yet it would have been + ungracious and even dangerous to discourage their newborn zeal by + excluding them from the festival; moreover, many of them were + worshippers from among the ten tribes, who had come in response to + a special invitation, which most of their fellow-countrymen had + rejected with scorn and contempt. If they had been sent back + because they had failed to cleanse themselves according to a ritual + of which they were ignorant, and of which Hezekiah might have known + they would be ignorant, both the king and his guests would have + incurred measureless ridicule from the impious northerners. + Accordingly they were allowed to take part in the Passover despite + their uncleanness. But this permission could only be granted with + serious apprehensions as to its consequences. The Law threatened + with death any one who attended the services of the sanctuary in a + state of uncleanness.<a id="noteref_424" name="noteref_424" href= + "#note_424"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">424</span></span></a> + Possibly there were already signs of an outbreak of pestilence; at + any rate, the dread of Divine punishment for sacrilegious + presumption would distress the whole assembly and <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page436">[pg 436]</span><a name="Pg436" id="Pg436" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> mar their enjoyment of Divine + fellowship. Again it is no priest or prophet, but the king, the + Messiah, who comes forward as the mediator between God and man. + Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, <span class="tei tei-q">“Jehovah, + in His grace and mercy,<a id="noteref_425" name="noteref_425" href= + "#note_425"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">425</span></span></a> + pardon every one that setteth his heart to seek Elohim Jehovah, the + God of his fathers, though he be not cleansed according to the + ritual of the Temple. And Jehovah hearkened to Hezekiah, and healed + the people,”</span> <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span>, either healed them from + actual disease or relieved them from the fear of pestilence.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And so the feast + went on happily and prosperously, and was prolonged by acclamation + for an additional seven days. During fourteen days king and + princes, priests and Levites, Jews and Israelites, rejoiced before + Jehovah; thousands of bullocks and sheep smoked upon the altar; and + now the priests were not backward: great numbers purified + themselves to serve the popular devotion. The priests and Levites + sang and made melody to Jehovah, so that the Levites earned the + king's special commendation. The great festival ended with a solemn + benediction: <span class="tei tei-q">“The priests<a id= + "noteref_426" name="noteref_426" href="#note_426"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">426</span></span></a> arose + and blessed the people, and their voice was heard, and their prayer + came to His holy habitation, even unto heaven.”</span> The priests, + and through them the people, received the assurance that their + solemn and prolonged worship had met with gracious acceptance.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have already + more than once had occasion to <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page437">[pg 437]</span><a name="Pg437" id="Pg437" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> consider the chronicler's main theme: the + importance of the Temple, its ritual, and its ministers. + Incidentally and perhaps unconsciously, he here suggests another + lesson, which is specially significant as coming from an ardent + ritualist, namely the necessary limitations of uniformity in + ritual. Hezekiah's celebration of the Passover is full of + irregularities: it is held in the wrong month; it is prolonged to + twice the usual period; there are amongst the worshippers + multitudes of unclean persons, whose presence at these services + ought to have been visited with terrible punishment. All is + condoned on the ground of emergency, and the ritual laws are set + aside without consulting the ecclesiastical officials. Everything + serves to emphasise the lesson we touched on in connection with + David's sacrifices at the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite: + ritual is made for man, and not man for ritual. Complete uniformity + may be insisted on in ordinary times, but can be dispensed with in + any pressing emergency; necessity knows no law, not even the Torah + of the Pentateuch. Moreover, in such emergencies it is not + necessary to wait for the initiative or even the sanction of + ecclesiastical officials; the supreme authority in the Church in + all its great crises resides in the whole body of believers. No one + is entitled to speak with greater authority on the limitations of + ritual than a strong advocate of the sanctity of ritual like the + chronicler; and we may well note, as one of the most conspicuous + marks of his inspiration, the sanctified common sense shown by his + frank and sympathetic record of the irregularities of Hezekiah's + passover. Doubtless emergencies had arisen even in his own + experience of the great feasts of the Temple that had taught him + this lesson; and it says much for the healthy tone of the Temple + community in his day that <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page438">[pg + 438]</span><a name="Pg438" id="Pg438" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + he does not attempt to reconcile the practice of Hezekiah with the + law of Moses by any harmonistic quibbles.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The work of + purification and restoration, however, was still incomplete: the + Temple had been cleansed from the pollutions of idolatry, the + heathen altars had been removed from Jerusalem, but the high places + remained in all the cities of Judah. When the Passover was at last + finished, the assembled multitude, <span class="tei tei-q">“all + Israel that were present,”</span> set out, like the English or + Scotch Puritans, on a great iconoclastic expedition. Throughout the + length and breadth of the Land of Promise, throughout Judah and + Benjamin, Ephraim and Manasseh, they brake in pieces the sacred + pillars, and hewed down the Asherim, and brake down the high places + and altars; then they went home.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Meanwhile + Hezekiah was engaged in reorganising the priests and Levites and + arranging for the payment and distribution of the sacred dues. The + king set an example of liberality by making provision for the + daily, weekly, monthly, and festival offerings. The people were not + slow to imitate him; they brought first-fruits and tithes in such + abundance that four months were spent in piling up heaps of + offerings.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“Thus did Hezekiah throughout all Judah; and he wrought + that which was good, and right, and faithful before Jehovah his + God; and in every work that he began in the service of the Temple, + and in the Law, and in the commandments, to seek his God, he did it + with all his heart, and brought it to a successful + issue.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Then follow an + account of the deliverance from Sennacherib and of Hezekiah's + recovery from sickness, a reference to his undue pride in the + matter of the embassy from Babylon, and a description of the + prosperity of his reign, all for the most part abridged + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page439">[pg 439]</span><a name= + "Pg439" id="Pg439" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> from the book of + Kings. The prophet Isaiah, however, is almost ignored. A few of the + more important modifications deserve some little attention. We are + told that the Assyrian invasion was <span class="tei tei-q">“after + these things and this faithfulness,”</span> in order that we may + not forget that the Divine deliverance was a recompense for + Hezekiah's loyalty to Jehovah. While the book of Kings tells us + that Sennacherib took all the fenced cities of Judah, the + chronicler feels that even this measure of misfortune would not + have been allowed to befall a king who had just reconciled Israel + to Jehovah, and merely says that Sennacherib purposed to break + these cities up.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The + chronicler<a id="noteref_427" name="noteref_427" href= + "#note_427"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">427</span></span></a> has + preserved an account of the measures taken by Hezekiah for the + defence of his capital: how he stopped up the fountains and + watercourses outside the city, so that a besieging army might not + find water, and repaired and strengthened the walls, and encouraged + his people to trust in Jehovah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Probably the + stopping of the water supply outside the walls was connected with + an operation mentioned at the close of the narrative of Hezekiah's + reign: <span class="tei tei-q">“Hezekiah also stopped the upper + spring of the waters of Gihon, and brought them straight down on + the west side of the city of David.”</span><a id="noteref_428" + name="noteref_428" href="#note_428"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">428</span></span></a> + Moreover, the chronicler's statements are based upon 2 Kings xx. + 20, where it is said that <span class="tei tei-q">“Hezekiah made + the pool and the conduit and brought water into the city.”</span> + The chronicler was of course intimately acquainted with the + topography of Jerusalem in his own days, and uses his knowledge to + interpret and expand the statement in the book of Kings. He was + possibly guided in part by Isa. xxii. <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page440">[pg 440]</span><a name="Pg440" id="Pg440" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> 9, 11, where the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“gathering together the waters of the lower + pool”</span> and the <span class="tei tei-q">“making a reservoir + between the two walls for the water of the old pool”</span> are + mentioned as precautions taken in view of a probable Assyrian + siege. The recent investigations of the Palestine Exploration Fund + have led to the discovery of aqueducts, and stoppages, and + diversions of watercourses which are said to correspond to the + operations mentioned by the chronicler. If this be the case, they + show a very accurate knowledge on his part of the topography of + Jerusalem in his own day, and also illustrate his care to utilise + all existing evidence in order to obtain a clear and accurate + interpretation of the statements of his authority.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The reign of + Hezekiah appears a suitable opportunity to introduce a few remarks + on the importance which the chronicler attaches to the music of the + Temple services. Though the music is not more prominent with him + than with some earlier kings, yet in the case of David, Solomon, + and Jehoshaphat other subjects presented themselves for special + treatment; and Hezekiah's reign being the last in which the music + of the sanctuary is specially dwelt upon, we are able here to + review the various references to this subject. For the most part + the chronicler tells his story of the virtuous days of the good + kings to a continual accompaniment of Temple music. We hear of the + playing and singing when the Ark was brought to the house of + Obed-edom; when it was taken into the city of David; at the + dedication of the Temple; at the battle between Abijah and + Jeroboam; at Asa's reformation; in connection with the overthrow of + the Ammonites, Moabites, and Meunim in the reign of Jehoshaphat; at + the coronation of Joash; at Hezekiah's feasts; and <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page441">[pg 441]</span><a name="Pg441" id="Pg441" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> again, though less emphatically, at + Josiah's passover. No doubt the special prominence given to the + subject indicates a professional interest on the part of the + author. If, however, music occupies an undue proportion of his + space, and he has abridged accounts of more important matters to + make room for his favourite theme, yet there is no reason to + suppose that his actual statements overrate the extent to which + music was used in worship or the importance attached to it. The + older narratives refer to the music in the case of David and Joash, + and assign psalms and songs to David and Solomon. Moreover, Judaism + is by no means alone in its fondness for music, but shares this + characteristic with almost all religions.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have spoken + of the chronicler so far chiefly as a professional musician, but it + should be clearly understood that the term must be taken in its + best sense. He was by no means so absorbed in the technique of his + art as to forget its sacred significance; he was not less a + worshipper himself because he was the minister or agent of the + common worship. His accounts of the festivals show a hearty + appreciation of the entire ritual; and his references to the music + do not give us the technical circumstances of its production, but + rather emphasise its general effect. The chronicler's sense of the + religious value of music is largely that of a devout worshipper, + who is led to set forth for the benefit of others a truth which is + the fruit of his own experience. This experience is not confined to + trained musicians; indeed, a scientific knowledge of the art may + sometimes interfere with its devotional influence. Criticism may + take the place of worship; and the hearer, instead of yielding to + the sacred suggestions of hymn or anthem, may be distracted by his + æsthetic judgment as to the <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page442">[pg 442]</span><a name="Pg442" id="Pg442" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> merits of the composition and the skill shown + by its rendering. In the same way critical appreciation of voice, + elocution, literary style, and intellectual power does not always + conduce to edification from a sermon. In the truest culture, + however, sensitiveness to these secondary qualities has become + habitual and automatic, and blends itself imperceptibly with the + religious consciousness of spiritual influence. The latter is thus + helped by excellence and only slightly hindered by minor defects in + the natural means. But the very absence of any great scientific + knowledge of music may leave the spirit open to the spell which + sacred music is intended to exercise, so that all cheerful and + guileless souls may be <span class="tei tei-q">“moved with concord + of sweet sounds,”</span> and sad and weary hearts find comfort in + subdued strains that breathe sympathy of which words are + incapable.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Music, as a mode + of utterance moving within the restraints of a regular order, + naturally attaches itself to ritual. As the earliest literature is + poetry, the earliest liturgy is musical. Melody is the simplest and + most obvious means by which the utterances of a body of worshippers + can be combined into a seemly act of worship. The mere repetition + of the same words by a congregation in ordinary speech is apt to be + wanting in impressiveness or even in decorum; the use of tune + enables a congregation to unite in worship even when many of its + members are strangers to each other.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Again, music may + be regarded as an expansion of language: not new dialect, but a + collection of symbols that can express thought, and more especially + emotion, for which mere speech has no vocabulary. This new form of + language naturally becomes an auxiliary of <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page443">[pg 443]</span><a name="Pg443" id="Pg443" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> religion. Words are clumsy instruments for + the expression of the heart, and are least efficient when they + undertake to set forth moral and spiritual ideas. Music can + transcend mere speech in touching the soul to fine issues, + suggesting visions of things ineffable and unseen.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Browning makes + Abt Vogler say of the most enduring and supreme hopes that God has + granted to men, <span class="tei tei-q">“'Tis we musicians + know”</span>; but the message of music comes home with power to + many who have no skill in its art.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page444">[pg 444]</span><a name= + "Pg444" id="Pg444" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc69" id="toc69"></a> <a name="pdf70" id="pdf70"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter IX. Manasseh: Repentance And + Forgiveness. 2 Chron. xxxiii.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In telling the + melancholy story of the wickedness of Manasseh in the first period + of his reign, the chronicler reproduces the book of Kings, with one + or two omissions and other slight alterations. He omits the name of + Manasseh's mother; she was called Hephzi-bah—<span class= + "tei tei-q">“My pleasure is in her.”</span> In any case, when the + son of a godly father turns out badly, and nothing is known about + the mother, uncharitable people might credit her with his + wickedness. But the chronicler's readers were familiar with the + great influence of the queen-mother in Oriental states. When they + read that the son of Hezekiah came to the throne at the age of + twelve and afterwards gave himself up to every form of idolatry, + they would naturally ascribe his departure from his father's ways + to the suggestions of his mother. The chronicler is not willing + that the pious Hezekiah should lie under the imputation of having + taken delight in an ungodly woman, and so her name is omitted.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The contents of + 2 Kings xxi. 10-16 are also omitted; they consist of a prophetic + utterance and further particulars as to the sins of Manasseh; they + are virtually replaced by the additional information in + Chronicles.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">From the point + of view of the chronicler, the history <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page445">[pg 445]</span><a name="Pg445" id="Pg445" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> of Manasseh in the book of Kings was far from + satisfactory. The earlier writer had not only failed to provide + materials from which a suitable moral could be deduced, but he had + also told the story so that undesirable conclusions might be drawn. + Manasseh sinned more wickedly than any other king of Judah: Ahaz + merely polluted and closed the Temple, but Manasseh <span class= + "tei tei-q">“built altars for all the host of heaven in the two + courts of the Temple,”</span> and set up in it an idol. And yet in + the earlier narrative this most wicked king escaped without any + personal punishment at all. Moreover, length of days was one of the + rewards which Jehovah was wont to bestow upon the righteous; but + while Ahaz was cut off at thirty-six, in the prime of manhood, + Manasseh survived to the mature age of sixty-seven, and reigned + fifty-five years.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">However, the + history reached the chronicler in a more satisfactory form. + Manasseh was duly punished, and his long reign fully accounted + for.<a id="noteref_429" name="noteref_429" href= + "#note_429"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">429</span></span></a> When, + in spite of Divine warning, Manasseh and his people persisted in + their sin, Jehovah sent against them <span class="tei tei-q">“the + captains of the host of the king of Assyria, which took Manasseh in + chains, and bound him with fetters,<a id="noteref_430" name= + "noteref_430" href="#note_430"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">430</span></span></a> and + carried him to Babylon.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The Assyrian + invasion referred to here is partially confirmed by the fact that + the name of Manasseh occurs amongst the tributaries of Esarhaddon + and his successor, Assur-bani-pal. The mention of Babylon as his + place of captivity rather than Nineveh may be accounted for by + supposing that Manasseh was taken <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page446">[pg 446]</span><a name="Pg446" id="Pg446" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> prisoner in the reign of Esarhaddon. This + king of Assyria rebuilt Babylon, and spent much of his time there. + He is said to have been of a kindly disposition and to have + exercised towards other royal captives the same clemency which he + extended to Manasseh. For the Jewish king's misfortunes led him to + repentance: <span class="tei tei-q">“When he was in trouble, he + besought Jehovah his God, and humbled himself greatly before the + God of his fathers, and prayed unto him.”</span> Amongst the Greek + Apocrypha is found a <span class="tei tei-q">“Prayer of + Manasses,”</span> doubtless intended by its author to represent the + prayer referred to in Chronicles. In it Manasseh celebrates the + Divine glory, confesses his great wickedness, and asks that his + penitence may be accepted and that he may obtain deliverance.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">If these were + the terms of Manasseh's prayers, they were heard and answered; and + the captive king returned to Jerusalem a devout worshipper and + faithful servant of Jehovah. He at once set to work to undo the + evil he had wrought in the former period of his reign. He took away + the idol and the heathen altars from the Temple, restored the altar + of Jehovah, and re-established the Temple services. In earlier days + he had led the people into idolatry; now he commanded them to serve + Jehovah, and the people obediently followed the king's example. + Apparently he found it impracticable to interfere with the high + places; but they were so far purified from corruption that, though + the people still sacrificed at these illegal sanctuaries, they + worshipped exclusively Jehovah, the God of Israel.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Like most of the + pious kings, his prosperity was partly shown by his extensive + building operations. Following in the footsteps of Jotham, he + strengthened <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page447">[pg + 447]</span><a name="Pg447" id="Pg447" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + or repaired the fortifications of Jerusalem, especially about + Ophel. He further provided for the safety of his dominions by + placing captains, and doubtless also garrisons, in the fenced + cities of Judah. The interest taken by the Jews of the second + Temple in the history of Manasseh is shown by the fact that the + chronicler is able to mention, not only the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Acts of the Kings of Israel,”</span> but a second + authority: <span class="tei tei-q">“The History of the + Seers.”</span> The imagination of the Targumists and other later + writers embellished the history of Manasseh's captivity and release + with many striking and romantic circumstances.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The life of + Manasseh practically completes the chronicler's series of + object-lessons in the doctrine of retribution; the history of the + later kings only provides illustrations similar to those already + given. These object-lessons are closely connected with the teaching + of Ezekiel. In dealing with the question of heredity in guilt, the + prophet is led to set forth the character and fortunes of four + different classes of men. First<a id="noteref_431" name= + "noteref_431" href="#note_431"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">431</span></span></a> we + have two simple cases: the righteousness of the righteous shall be + upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him. These + have been respectively illustrated by the prosperity of Solomon and + Jotham and the misfortunes of Jehoram, Ahaziah, Athaliah, and Ahaz. + Again, departing somewhat from the order of Ezekiel—<span class= + "tei tei-q">“When the righteous turneth away from his + righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all + the abominations of the wicked man, shall he live? None of his + righteous deeds that he hath done shall be remembered; in his + trespass that he hath trespassed and in his sin that he hath + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page448">[pg 448]</span><a name= + "Pg448" id="Pg448" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> sinned he shall + die”</span>—here we have the principle that in Chronicles governs + the Divine dealings with the kings who began to reign well and then + fell away into sin: Asa, Joash, Amaziah, and Uzziah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We reached this + point in our discussion of the doctrine of retribution in + connection with Asa. So far the lessons taught were salutary: they + might deter from sin; but they were gloomy and depressing: they + gave little encouragement to hope for success in the struggle after + righteousness, and suggested that few would escape terrible + penalties of failure. David and Solomon formed a class by + themselves; an ordinary man could not aspire to their almost + supernatural virtue. In his later history the chronicler is chiefly + bent on illustrating the frailty of man and the wrath of God. The + New Testament teaches a similar lesson when it asks, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“If the righteous is scarcely saved, where shall the + ungodly and sinner appear?”</span><a id="noteref_432" name= + "noteref_432" href="#note_432"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">432</span></span></a> But + in Chronicles not even the righteous is saved. Again and again we + are told at a king's accession that he <span class="tei tei-q">“did + that which was good and right in the eyes of Jehovah”</span>; and + yet before the reign closes he forfeits the Divine favour, and at + last dies ruined and disgraced.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But this sombre + picture is relieved by occasional gleams of light. Ezekiel + furnishes a fourth type of religious experience: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“If the wicked turn from all his sins that he hath + committed, and keep all My statutes, and do that which is lawful + and right, he shall live; he shall not die. None of his + transgressions that he hath committed shall be remembered against + him; in his righteousness that he hath done he shall live. Have I + any pleasure in the death of the wicked, saith the <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page449">[pg 449]</span><a name="Pg449" id="Pg449" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Lord Jehovah, and not rather that he + should return from his way and live?”</span><a id="noteref_433" + name="noteref_433" href="#note_433"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">433</span></span></a> The + one striking and complete example of this principle is the history + of Manasseh. It is true that Rehoboam also repented, but the + chronicler does not make it clear that his repentance was + permanent. Manasseh is unique alike in extreme wickedness, sincere + penitence, and thorough reformation. The reformation of Julius + Cæsar or of our Henry V., or, to take a different class of + instance, the conversion of St. Paul, was nothing compared to the + conversion of Manasseh. It was as though Herod the Great or Cæsar + Borgia had been checked midway in a career of cruelty and vice, and + had thenceforward lived pure and holy lives, glorifying God by + ministering to their fellow-men. Such a repentance gives us hope + for the most abandoned. In the forgiveness of Manasseh the penitent + sinner receives assurance that God will forgive even the most + guilty. The account of his closing years shows that even a career + of desperate wickedness in the past need not hinder the penitent + from rendering acceptable service to God and ending his life in the + enjoyment of Divine favour and blessing. Manasseh becomes in the + Old Testament what the Prodigal Son is in the New: the one great + symbol of the possibilities of human nature and the infinite mercy + of God.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler's + theology is as simple and straightforward as that of Ezekiel. + Manasseh repents, submits himself, and is forgiven. His captivity + apparently had expiated his guilt, as far as expiation was + necessary. Neither prophet nor chronicler was conscious of the + moral difficulties that have been found in so simple a <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page450">[pg 450]</span><a name="Pg450" id="Pg450" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> plan of salvation. The problems of an + objective atonement had not yet risen above their horizon.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">These incidents + afford another illustration of the necessary limitations of ritual. + In the great crisis of Manasseh's spiritual life, the Levitical + ordinances played no part; they moved on a lower level, and + ministered to less urgent needs. Probably the worship of Jehovah + was still suspended during Manasseh's captivity; none the less + Manasseh was able to make his peace with God. Even if they were + punctually observed, of what use were services at the Temple in + Jerusalem to a penitent sinner at Babylon? When Manasseh returned + to Jerusalem, he restored the Temple worship, and offered + sacrifices of peace-offerings and of thanksgiving; nothing is said + about sin-offerings. His sacrifices were not the condition of his + pardon, but the seal and token of a reconciliation already + effected. The experience of Manasseh anticipated that of the Jews + of the Captivity: he discovered the possibility of fellowship with + Jehovah, far away from the Holy Land, without temple, priest, or + sacrifice. The chronicler, perhaps unconsciously already + foreshadows the coming of the hour when men should worship the + Father neither in the holy mountain of Samaria nor yet in + Jerusalem.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Before relating + the outward acts which testified the sincerity of Manasseh's + repentance, the chronicler devotes a single sentence to the happy + influence of forgiveness and deliverance upon Manasseh himself. + When his prayer had been heard, and his exile was at an end, then + Manasseh knew and acknowledged that Jehovah was God. Men first + begin to know God when they have been forgiven. The alienated and + disobedient, if they think of Him at all, merely have glimpses of + His vengeance and try to persuade themselves <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page451">[pg 451]</span><a name="Pg451" id="Pg451" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> that He is a stern Tyrant. By the + penitent not yet assured of the possibility of reconciliation God + is chiefly thought of as a righteous Judge. What did the Prodigal + Son know about his father when he asked for the portion of goods + that fell to him or while he was wasting his substance in riotous + living? Even when he came to himself, he thought of the father's + house as a place where there was bread enough and to spare; and he + supposed that his father might endure to see him living at home in + permanent disgrace, on the footing of a hired servant. When he + reached home, after he had been met a great way on with compassion + and been welcomed with an embrace, he began for the first time to + understand his father's character. So the knowledge of God's love + dawns upon the soul in the blessed experience of forgiveness; and + because love and forgiveness are more strange and unearthly than + rebuke and chastisement, the sinner is humbled by pardon far more + than by punishment; and his trembling submission to the righteous + Judge deepens into profounder reverence and awe for the God who can + forgive, who is superior to all vindictiveness, whose infinite + resources enable Him to blot out the guilt, to cancel the penalty, + and annul the consequences of sin.</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">There + is forgiveness with Thee,</span></span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">That Thou mayest be + feared.</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span><a id="noteref_434" name= + "noteref_434" href="#note_434"><span class="tei tei-noteref" + style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">434</span></span></a> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The words that + stand in the forefront of the Lord's Prayer, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Hallowed be Thy name,”</span> are virtually a petition + that sinners may repent, and be converted, and obtain + forgiveness.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page452">[pg + 452]</span><a name="Pg452" id="Pg452" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In seeking for a + Christian parallel to the doctrine expounded by Ezekiel and + illustrated by Chronicles, we have to remember that the permanent + elements in primitive doctrine are often to be found by removing + the limitations which imperfect faith has imposed on the + possibilities of human nature and Divine mercy. We have already + suggested that the chronicler's somewhat rigid doctrine of temporal + rewards and punishments symbolises the inevitable influence of + conduct on the development of character. The doctrine of God's + attitude towards backsliding and repentance seems somewhat + arbitrary as set forth by Ezekiel and Chronicles. A man apparently + is not to be judged by his whole life, but only by the moral period + that is closed by his death. If his last years be pious, his former + transgressions are forgotten; if his last years be evil, his + righteous deeds are equally forgotten. While we gratefully accept + the forgiveness of sinners, such teaching as to backsliders seems a + little cynical; and though, by God's grace and discipline, a man + may be led through and out of sin into righteousness, we are + naturally suspicious of a life of <span class= + "tei tei-q">“righteous deeds”</span> which towards its close lapses + into gross and open sin. <span class="tei tei-q">“Nemo repente + turpissimus fit.”</span> We are inclined to believe that the final + lapse reveals the true bias of the whole character. But the + chronicler suggests more than this: by his history of the almost + uniform failure of the pious kings to persevere to the end, he + seems to teach that the piety of early and mature life is either + unreal or else is unable to survive as body and mind wear out. This + doctrine has sometimes, inconsiderately no doubt, been taught from + Christian pulpits; and yet the truth of which the doctrine is a + misrepresentation supplies a correction of the former principle + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page453">[pg 453]</span><a name= + "Pg453" id="Pg453" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> that a life is to be + judged by its close. Putting aside any question of positive sin, a + man's closing years sometimes seem cold, narrow, and selfish when + once he was full of tender and considerate sympathy; and yet the + man is no Asa or Amaziah who has deserted the living God for idols + of wood and stone. The man has not changed, only our impression of + him. Unconsciously we are influenced by the contrast between his + present state and the splendid energy and devotion of + self-sacrifice that marked his prime; we forget that inaction is + his misfortune, and not his fault; we overrate his ardour in the + days when vigorous action was a delight for its own sake; and we + overlook the quiet heroism with which remnants of strength are + still utilised in the Lord's service, and do not consider that + moments of fretfulness are due to decay and disease that at once + increase the need of patience and diminish the powers of endurance. + Muscles and nerves slowly become less and less efficient; they fail + to carry to the soul full and clear reports of the outside world; + they are no longer satisfactory instruments by which the soul can + express its feelings or execute its will. We are less able than + ever to estimate the inner life of such by that which we see and + hear. While we are thankful for the sweet serenity and loving + sympathy which often make the hoary head a crown of glory, we are + also entitled to judge some of God's more militant children by + their years of arduous service, and not by their impatience of + enforced inactivity.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">If our author's + statement of these truths seem unsatisfactory, we must remember + that his lack of a doctrine of the future life placed him at a + serious disadvantage. He wished to exhibit a complete picture of + God's dealings with the characters of his history, so that + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page454">[pg 454]</span><a name= + "Pg454" id="Pg454" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> their lives should + furnish exact illustrations of the working of sin and + righteousness. He was controlled and hampered by the idea that + underlies many discussions in the Old Testament: that God's + righteous judgment upon a man's actions is completely manifested + during his earthly life. It may be possible to assert an <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">eternal</span></em> + providence; but conscience and heart have long since revolted + against the doctrine that God's justice, to say nothing of His + love, is declared by the misery of lives that might have been + innocent, if they had ever had the opportunity of knowing what + innocence meant. The chronicler worked on too small a scale for his + subject. The entire Divine economy of Him with whom a thousand + years are as one day cannot be even outlined for a single soul in + the history of its earthly existence. These narratives of Jewish + kings are only imperfect symbols of the infinite possibilities of + the eternal providence. The moral of Chronicles is very much that + of the Greek sage, <span class="tei tei-q">“Call no man happy till + he is dead”</span>; but since Christ has brought life and + immortality to light through the Gospel, we no longer pass final + judgment upon either the man or his happiness by what we know of + his life here. The decisive revelation of character, the final + judgment upon conduct, the due adjustment of the gifts and + discipline of God, are deferred to a future life. When these are + completed, and the soul has attained to good or evil beyond all + reversal, then we shall feel, with Ezekiel and the chronicler, that + there is no further need to remember either the righteous deeds or + the transgressions of earlier stages of its history.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page455">[pg 455]</span><a name= + "Pg455" id="Pg455" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <a name="toc71" id="toc71"></a> <a name="pdf72" id="pdf72"></a> + + <h2 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 2.88em; margin-top: 2.88em"> + <span style="font-size: 144%">Chapter X. The Last Kings Of Judah. 2 + Chron. xxxiv.-xxxvi.</span></h2> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Whatever + influence Manasseh's reformation exercised over his people + generally, the taint of idolatry was not removed from his own + family. His son Amon succeeded him at the age of two-and-twenty. + Into his reign of two years he compressed all the varieties of + wickedness once practised by his father, and undid the good work of + Manasseh's later years. He recovered the graven images which + Manasseh had discarded, replaced them in their shrines, and + worshipped them instead of Jehovah. But in his case there was no + repentance, and he was cut off in his youth.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In the absence + of any conclusive evidence as to the date of Manasseh's + reformation, we cannot determine with certainty whether Amon + received his early training before or after his father returned to + the worship of Jehovah. In either case Manasseh's earlier history + would make it difficult for him to counteract any evil influence + that drew Amon towards idolatry. Amon could set the example and + perhaps the teaching of his father's former days against any later + exhortations to righteousness. When a father has helped to lead his + children astray, he cannot be sure that he will carry them with him + in his repentance.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page456">[pg + 456]</span><a name="Pg456" id="Pg456" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">After Amon's + assassination the people placed his son Josiah on the throne. Like + Joash and Manasseh, Josiah was a child, only eight years old. The + chronicler follows the general line of the history in the book of + Kings, modifying, abridging, and expanding, but introducing no new + incidents; the reformation, the repairing of the Temple, the + discovery of the book of the Law, the Passover, Josiah's defeat and + death at Megiddo, are narrated by both historians. We have only to + notice differences in a somewhat similar treatment of the same + subject.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Beyond the + general statement that Josiah <span class="tei tei-q">“did that + which was right in the eyes of Jehovah”</span> we hear nothing + about him in the book of Kings till the eighteenth year of his + reign, and his reformation and putting away of idolatry is placed + in that year. The chronicler's authorities corrected the statement + that the pious king tolerated idolatry for eighteen years. They + record how in the eighth year of his reign, when he was sixteen, he + began to seek after the God of David; and in his twelfth year he + set about the work of utterly destroying idols throughout the whole + territory of Israel, in the cities and ruins of Manasseh, Ephraim, + and Simeon, even unto Naphtali, as well as in Judah and Benjamin. + Seeing that the cities assigned to Simeon were in the south of + Judah, it is a little difficult to understand why they appear with + the northern tribes, unless they are reckoned with them technically + to make up the ancient number.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The consequence + of this change of date is that in Chronicles the reformation + precedes the discovery of the book of the Law, whereas in the older + history this discovery is the cause of the reformation. The + chronicler's account of the idols and other apparatus of + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page457">[pg 457]</span><a name= + "Pg457" id="Pg457" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> false worship + destroyed by Josiah is much less detailed than that of the book of + Kings. To have reproduced the earlier narrative in full would have + raised serious difficulties. According to the chronicler, Manasseh + had purged Jerusalem of idols and idol altars; and Amon alone was + responsible for any that existed there at the accession of Josiah: + but in the book of Kings Josiah found in Jerusalem the altars + erected by the kings of Judah and the horses they had given to the + sun. Manasseh's altars still stood in the courts of the Temple; and + over against Jerusalem there still remained the high places that + Solomon had built for Ashtoreth, Chemosh, and Milcom. As the + chronicler in describing Solomon's reign carefully omitted all + mention of his sins, so he omits this reference to his idolatry. + Moreover, if he had inserted it, he would have had to explain how + these high places escaped the zeal of the many pious kings who did + away with the high places. Similarly, having omitted the account of + the man of God who prophesied the ruin of Jeroboam's sanctuary at + Bethel, he here omits the fulfilment of that prophecy.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The account of + the repairing of the Temple is enlarged by the insertion of various + details as to the names, functions, and zeal of the Levites, + amongst whom those who had skill in instruments of music seem to + have had the oversight of the workmen. We are reminded of the walls + of Thebes, which rose out of the ground while Orpheus played upon + his flute. Similarly in the account of the assembly called to hear + the contents of the book of the Law the Levites are substituted for + the prophets. This book of the Law is said in Chronicles to have + been given by Moses, but his name is not connected with the book in + the parallel narrative in the book of Kings.</p><span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page458">[pg 458]</span><a name="Pg458" id="Pg458" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The earlier + authority simply states that Josiah held a great passover; + Chronicles, as usual, describes the festival in detail. First of + all, the king commanded the priests and Levites to purify + themselves and take their places in due order, so that they might + be ready to perform their sacred duties. The narrative is very + obscure, but it seems that either during the apostacy of Amon or on + account of the recent Temple repairs the Ark had been removed from + the Holy of holies. The Law had specially assigned to the Levites + the duty of carrying the Tabernacle and its furniture, and they + seem to have thought that they were only bound to exercise the + function of carrying the Ark; they perhaps proposed to bear it in + solemn procession round the city as part of the celebration of the + Passover, forgetting the words of David<a id="noteref_435" name= + "noteref_435" href="#note_435"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">435</span></span></a> that + the Levites should no more carry the Tabernacle and its vessels. + They would have been glad to substitute this conspicuous and + honourable service for the laborious and menial work of flaying the + victims. Josiah, however, commanded them to put the Ark into the + Temple and attend to their other duties.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Next, the king + and his nobles provided beasts of various kinds for the sacrifices + and the Passover meal. Josiah's gifts were even more munificent + than those of Hezekiah. The latter had given a thousand bullocks + and ten thousand sheep; Josiah gave just three times as many. + Moreover, at Hezekiah's passover no offerings of the princes are + mentioned, but now they added their gifts to those of the king. The + heads of the priesthood provided three hundred oxen and two + thousand six hundred small cattle for the priests, and the chiefs + of the Levites five hundred oxen and five thousand small + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page459">[pg 459]</span><a name= + "Pg459" id="Pg459" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> cattle for the + Levites. But numerous as were the victims at Josiah's passover, + they still fell far short of the great sacrifice<a id="noteref_436" + name="noteref_436" href="#note_436"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">436</span></span></a> of + twenty-two thousand oxen and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep + which Solomon offered at the dedication of the Temple.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Then began the + actual work of the sacrifices: the victims were killed and flayed, + and their blood was sprinkled on the altar; the burnt offerings + were distributed among the people; the Passover lambs were roasted, + and the other offerings boiled, and the Levites <span class= + "tei tei-q">“carried them quickly to all the children of the + people.”</span> Apparently private individuals could not find the + means of cooking the bountiful provision made for them; and, to + meet the necessity of the case, the Temple courts were made kitchen + as well as slaughterhouse for the assembled worshippers. The other + offerings would not be eaten with the Passover lamb, but would + serve for the remaining days of the feast.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The Levites not + only provided for the people, for themselves, and the priests, but + the Levites who ministered in the matter of the sacrifices also + prepared for their brethren who were singers and porters, so that + the latter were enabled to attend undisturbed to their own special + duties; all the members of the guild of porters were at the gates + maintaining order among the crowd of worshippers; and the full + strength of the orchestra and choir contributed to the beauty and + solemnity of the services. It was the greatest Passover held by any + Israelite king.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Josiah's + passover, like that of Hezekiah, was followed by a formidable + foreign invasion; but whereas <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page460">[pg 460]</span><a name="Pg460" id="Pg460" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> Hezekiah was rewarded for renewed loyalty by + a triumphant deliverance, Josiah was defeated and slain. These + facts subject the chronicler's theory of retribution to a severe + strain. His perplexity finds pathetic expression in the opening + words of the new section, <span class="tei tei-q">“After all + this,”</span> after all the idols had been put away, after the + celebration of the most magnificent Passover the monarchy had ever + seen. After all this, when we looked for the promised rewards of + piety—for fertile seasons, peace and prosperity at home, victory + and dominion abroad, tribute from subject peoples, and wealth from + successful commerce—after all this, the rout of the armies of + Jehovah at Megiddo, the flight and death of the wounded king, the + lamentation over Josiah, the exaltation of a nominee of Pharaoh to + the throne, and the payment of tribute to the Egyptian king. The + chronicler has no complete explanation of this painful mystery, but + he does what he can to meet the difficulties of the case. Like the + great prophets in similar instances, he regards the heathen king as + charged with a Divine commission. Pharaoh's appeal to Josiah to + remain neutral should have been received by the Jewish king as an + authoritative message from Jehovah. It was the failure to discern + in a heathen king the mouthpiece and prophet of Jehovah that cost + Josiah his life and Judah its liberty.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The chronicler + had no motive for lingering over the last sad days of the monarchy; + the rest of his narrative is almost entirely abridged from the book + of Kings. Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah pass over + the scene in rapid and melancholy succession. In the case of + Jehoahaz, who only reigned three months, the chronicler omits the + unfavourable judgment recorded in the book of Kings; but he repeats + it for the other three, <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page461">[pg + 461]</span><a name="Pg461" id="Pg461" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + even for the poor lad of eight<a id="noteref_437" name= + "noteref_437" href="#note_437"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">437</span></span></a> who + was carried away captive after a reign of three months and ten + days. The chronicler had not learnt that kings can do no wrong; on + the other hand, the ungodly policy of Jehoiachin's ministers is + labelled with the name of the boy-sovereign.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Each of these + kings in turn was deposed and carried away into captivity, unless + indeed Jehoiakim is an exception. In the book of Kings we are told + that he slept with his fathers, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span>, + that he died and was buried in the royal tombs at Jerusalem, a + statement which the LXX. inserts here also, specifying, however, + that he was buried in the garden of Uzza. If the pious Josiah were + punished for a single error by defeat and death, why was the wicked + Jehoiakim allowed to reign till the end of his life and then die in + his bed? The chronicler's information differed from that of the + earlier narrative in a way that removed, or at any rate suppressed + the difficulty. He omits the statement that Jehoiakim slept with + his fathers, and tells us<a id="noteref_438" name="noteref_438" + href="#note_438"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">438</span></span></a> that + Nebuchadnezzar bound him in fetters to carry him to Babylon. Casual + readers would naturally suppose that this purpose was carried out, + and that the Divine justice was satisfied by Jehoiakim's death in + captivity; and yet if they compared this passage with that in the + book of Kings, it might occur to them that after the king had been + put in chains something might have led Nebuchadnezzar to change his + mind, or, like Manasseh, Jehoiakim might have repented and been + allowed to return. But it is very doubtful whether the chronicler's + authorities contemplated the possibility of such an interpretation; + it is scarcely fair to credit <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page462">[pg 462]</span><a name="Pg462" id="Pg462" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> them with all the subtle devices of modern + commentators.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The real + conclusion of the chronicler's history of the kings of the house of + David is a summary of the sins of the last days of the monarchy and + of the history of its final ruin in xxxvi. 14-20.<a id= + "noteref_439" name="noteref_439" href="#note_439"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">439</span></span></a> All + the chief of the priests and of the people were given over to the + abominations of idolatry; and in spite of constant and urgent + admonitions from the prophets of Jehovah, they hardened their + hearts, and mocked the messengers of God, and despised His words, + and misused His prophets, until the wrath of Jehovah arose against + His people, and there was no healing.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">However, to this + peroration a note is added that the length of the Captivity was + fixed at seventy years, in order that the land might <span class= + "tei tei-q">“enjoy her sabbaths.”</span> This note rests upon Lev. + xxv. 1-7, according to which the land was to be left fallow every + seventh year. The seventy years captivity would compensate for + seventy periods of six years each during which no sabbatical years + had been observed. Thus the Captivity, with the four hundred and + twenty previous years of neglect, would be equivalent to seventy + sabbatical periods. There is no economy in keeping back what is due + to God.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Moreover, the + editor who separated Chronicles from the book of Ezra and Nehemiah + was loath to allow the first part of the history to end in a gloomy + record of sin and ruin. Modern Jews, in reading the last chapter of + Isaiah, rather than conclude with the ill-omened words of the last + two verses, repeat a previous portion of the chapter. So here to + the history of the ruin of <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page463">[pg 463]</span><a name="Pg463" id="Pg463" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> Jerusalem the editor has appended two verses + from the opening of the book of Ezra, which contain the decree of + Cyrus authorising the return from the Captivity. And thus + Chronicles concludes in the middle of a sentence which is completed + in the book of Ezra: <span class="tei tei-q">“Who is there among + you of all his people? Jehovah his God be with him, and let him go + up....”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Such a + conclusion suggests two considerations which will form a fitting + close to our exposition. Chronicles is not a finished work; it has + no formal end; it rather breaks off abruptly like an interrupted + diary. In like manner the book of Kings concludes with a note as to + the treatment of the captive Jehoiachin at Babylon: the last verse + runs, <span class="tei tei-q">“And for his allowance there was a + continual allowance given him of the king, every day a portion, all + the days of his life.”</span> The book of Nehemiah has a short + final prayer: <span class="tei tei-q">“Remember me, O my God, for + good”</span>; but the preceding paragraph is simply occupied with + the arrangements for the wood offering and the first-fruits. So in + the New Testament the history of the Church breaks off with the + statement that St. Paul abode two whole years in his own hired + house, preaching the kingdom of God. The sacred writers recognise + the continuity of God's dealings with His people; they do not + suggest that one period can be marked off by a clear dividing line + or interval from another. Each historian leaves, as it were, the + loose ends of his work ready to be taken up and continued by his + successors. The Holy Spirit seeks to stimulate the Church to a + forward outlook, that it may expect and work for a future wherein + the power and grace of God will be no less manifest than in the + past. Moreover, the final editor of Chronicles has shown himself + unwilling that the book should conclude with a gloomy <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page464">[pg 464]</span><a name="Pg464" id="Pg464" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> record of sin and ruin, and has + appended a few lines to remind his readers of the new life of faith + and hope that lay beyond the Captivity. In so doing, he has echoed + the key-note of prophecy: ever beyond man's transgression and + punishment the prophets saw the vision of his forgiveness and + restoration to God.</p> + </div> + </div> + </div> + <hr class="doublepage" /> + + <div class="tei tei-back" style= + "margin-bottom: 2.00em; margin-top: 6.00em"> + <div id="footnotes" class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc73" id="toc73"></a> <a name="pdf74" id="pdf74"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em; margin-top: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">Footnotes</span></h1> + + <dl class="tei tei-list-footnotes"> + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_1" name="note_1" href= + "#noteref_1">1.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf. <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Ezra</span></span>; + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Nehemiah</span></span>; <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Esther</span></span>, + by Professor Adeney, in <span class="tei tei-q">“Expositor's + Bible.”</span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_2" name="note_2" href= + "#noteref_2">2.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Ezra iii. 12.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_3" name="note_3" href= + "#noteref_3">3.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Isa. lxvi. 22.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_4" name="note_4" href= + "#noteref_4">4.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Quoted for <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Asa</span></span> (2 + Chron. xvi. 11); <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Amaziah</span></span> (2 Chron. xxv. 26); + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ahaz</span></span> (2 Chron. xxviii. 26).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_5" name="note_5" href= + "#noteref_5">5.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Quoted for <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Jotham</span></span> + (2 Chron. xxvii. 7); <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Josiah</span></span> (2 Chron. xxxv. 26, + 27).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_6" name="note_6" href= + "#noteref_6">6.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Quoted for <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Manasseh</span></span> (2 Chron. xxxiii, + 18).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_7" name="note_7" href= + "#noteref_7">7.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Quoted for <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">David</span></span> + (1 Chron. xxix. 29).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_8" name="note_8" href= + "#noteref_8">8.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Quoted for <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">David</span></span> + (1 Chron. xxix. 29) and <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Solomon</span></span> (2 Chron. ix. 29).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_9" name="note_9" href= + "#noteref_9">9.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Quoted for <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">David</span></span> + (1 Chron. xxix. 29).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_10" name="note_10" href= + "#noteref_10">10.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Quoted for <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Rehoboam</span></span> (2 Chron. xii. + 15).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_11" name="note_11" href= + "#noteref_11">11.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Quoted for <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jehoshaphat</span></span> (2 Chron. xx. + 34).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_12" name="note_12" href= + "#noteref_12">12.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Quoted for <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Manasseh</span></span> (2 Chron. xxxiii. 19). + <span class="tei tei-q">“Seers,”</span> A.V., R.V. Marg., with + LXX.; R.V., with Hebrew text, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Hozai.”</span> The passage is probably corrupt.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_13" name="note_13" href= + "#noteref_13">13.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Quoted for <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Solomon</span></span> + (2 Chron. ix. 29).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_14" name="note_14" href= + "#noteref_14">14.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Quoted for <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Hezekiah</span></span> (2 Chron. xxxii. + 32).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_15" name="note_15" href= + "#noteref_15">15.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Quoted for <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Joash</span></span> + (2 Chron. xxiv. 27).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_16" name="note_16" href= + "#noteref_16">16.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Quoted for <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Abijah</span></span> + (2 Chron. xiii, 22).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_17" name="note_17" href= + "#noteref_17">17.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Quoted for <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Uzziah</span></span> + (2 Chron. xxvi. 22).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_18" name="note_18" href= + "#noteref_18">18.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Quoted for <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Solomon</span></span> + (2 Chron. ix. 29).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_19" name="note_19" href= + "#noteref_19">19.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf. pp. 17, 18.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_20" name="note_20" href= + "#noteref_20">20.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xx. 34.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_21" name="note_21" href= + "#noteref_21">21.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Chron. xxxii. 32.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_22" name="note_22" href= + "#noteref_22">22.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">R.V. marg.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_23" name="note_23" href= + "#noteref_23">23.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">R.V.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_24" name="note_24" href= + "#noteref_24">24.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">E.g.</span></span>, the wars of Jotham (2 + Chron. xxvii. 7).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_25" name="note_25" href= + "#noteref_25">25.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xiii. 22; xxiv. 27. The LXX., + however, does not read <span class="tei tei-q">“Midrash”</span> in + either case; and it is quite possible that glosses have attached + themselves to the text of Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_26" name="note_26" href= + "#noteref_26">26.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf. 2 Sam. vi. 12-20 with 1 Chron. + xv., xvi.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_27" name="note_27" href= + "#noteref_27">27.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf. 2 Kings xi.; 2 Chron. xxiii.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_28" name="note_28" href= + "#noteref_28">28.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The last two classes are not easily + distinguished; but the additions which introduce the Levitical + system into earlier history are clearly the work of the chronicler + or his immediate predecessor, if such a predecessor be assumed, or + were found in somewhat late sources. This is also probably true of + other explanatory matter.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_29" name="note_29" href= + "#noteref_29">29.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf. 2 Sam. iv. with 1 Chron. viii. 34, + also 2 Sam. vii. 7 with 1 Chron. xvii. 6, and 2 Sam. xvii. 25 with + 1 Chron. ii. 17. In both these instances Chronicles preserves the + correct text.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_30" name="note_30" href= + "#noteref_30">30.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf. <a href="#Book_II_Chapter_IV" + class="tei tei-ref">Book II., Chap. IV.</a></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_31" name="note_31" href= + "#noteref_31">31.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Oehler, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Old Testament + Theology</span></span>, i. 283 (Eng. trans.).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_32" name="note_32" href= + "#noteref_32">32.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Nestle, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Die Israelitischen + Eigennamen</span></span>, p. 27. The present chapter is largely + indebted to this standard monograph.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_33" name="note_33" href= + "#noteref_33">33.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Nestle.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_34" name="note_34" href= + "#noteref_34">34.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. vii. 14.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_35" name="note_35" href= + "#noteref_35">35.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Philo, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">De Cong. Quær. Erud. + Grat.</span></span>, 8.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_36" name="note_36" href= + "#noteref_36">36.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Hiller's <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Onomasticon + ap.</span></span>, Nestle 11.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_37" name="note_37" href= + "#noteref_37">37.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">vii. 8.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_38" name="note_38" href= + "#noteref_38">38.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">i. 35.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_39" name="note_39" href= + "#noteref_39">39.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xviii. 15.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_40" name="note_40" href= + "#noteref_40">40.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">i. 20.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_41" name="note_41" href= + "#noteref_41">41.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">viii. 36.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_42" name="note_42" href= + "#noteref_42">42.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ii. 18.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_43" name="note_43" href= + "#noteref_43">43.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">iii. 20.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_44" name="note_44" href= + "#noteref_44">44.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">iv. 3.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_45" name="note_45" href= + "#noteref_45">45.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Bertheau, i. 1.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_46" name="note_46" href= + "#noteref_46">46.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">iv. 22.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_47" name="note_47" href= + "#noteref_47">47.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">iv. 22.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_48" name="note_48" href= + "#noteref_48">48.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The translation of these words is not + quite certain.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_49" name="note_49" href= + "#noteref_49">49.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Nestle, p. 68.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_50" name="note_50" href= + "#noteref_50">50.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Num. i. 10.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_51" name="note_51" href= + "#noteref_51">51.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Num. i. 12.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_52" name="note_52" href= + "#noteref_52">52.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Num. i. 6.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_53" name="note_53" href= + "#noteref_53">53.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf. p. 40.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_54" name="note_54" href= + "#noteref_54">54.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xi. 30; vii. 25 (Nestle).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_55" name="note_55" href= + "#noteref_55">55.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Nestle.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_56" name="note_56" href= + "#noteref_56">56.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Joel i. 15; Isa. xiii. 6. It is not + necessary here to discuss either the etymological or the + theological history of these words in their earliest usage, nor + need we do more than recall the fact that Jehovah was the term in + common use as the personal name of the God of Israel, while El was + rare and sometimes generic.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_57" name="note_57" href= + "#noteref_57">57.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Ezra ii. 61-63; Neh. vii, 63-65.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_58" name="note_58" href= + "#noteref_58">58.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Acts xvii. 26.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_59" name="note_59" href= + "#noteref_59">59.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Col. iii. 11.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_60" name="note_60" href= + "#noteref_60">60.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Josh. xiv. 6.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_61" name="note_61" href= + "#noteref_61">61.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Sam. xxvii 10.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_62" name="note_62" href= + "#noteref_62">62.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Ver. 55.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_63" name="note_63" href= + "#noteref_63">63.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The occurrence of Caleb the son of + Jephunneh in iv, 15, vi. 56, in no way militates against this view: + the chronicler, like other redactors, is simply inserting borrowed + material without correcting it. <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Chelubai</span></span> in ii. 9 stands for + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Caleb</span></span>; cf. ii. 18.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_64" name="note_64" href= + "#noteref_64">64.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">viii. 33-40; ix. 35-44. We have used + Mephibosheth as more familiar, but Chronicles reads Meribbaal, + which is more correct.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_65" name="note_65" href= + "#noteref_65">65.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Psalm lxxviii. 59, 60, 67-69.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_66" name="note_66" href= + "#noteref_66">66.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">iv. 14, 21-23.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_67" name="note_67" href= + "#noteref_67">67.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xv.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_68" name="note_68" href= + "#noteref_68">68.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf. 2 Chron. xxix. 12 and xxx. + 22.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_69" name="note_69" href= + "#noteref_69">69.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xvii. 8.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_70" name="note_70" href= + "#noteref_70">70.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Exod. xxv-xxxix.; 1 Kings vi.; 1 + Chron. xxix.; 2 Chron. iii., v.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_71" name="note_71" href= + "#noteref_71">71.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xv. 4-10.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_72" name="note_72" href= + "#noteref_72">72.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xii. 23-37.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_73" name="note_73" href= + "#noteref_73">73.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">John iii. 8.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_74" name="note_74" href= + "#noteref_74">74.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">i. 10.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_75" name="note_75" href= + "#noteref_75">75.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">i. 19.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_76" name="note_76" href= + "#noteref_76">76.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">i. 46.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_77" name="note_77" href= + "#noteref_77">77.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf. Gen. xxxvi. 24 and 1 Chron. i. + 40.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_78" name="note_78" href= + "#noteref_78">78.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">I.e.</span></span>, Achan (ii. 3, 7).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_79" name="note_79" href= + "#noteref_79">79.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Sam. ii. 7, 8.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_80" name="note_80" href= + "#noteref_80">80.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Vv. 17, 18, as they stand, do not make + sense. The second sentence of ver. 18 should be read before + <span class="tei tei-q">“and she bare Miriam”</span> in ver. 17. + Mered and Bithiah formed a tempting subject for the rabbis, and + gave occasion for some of their usual grotesque fancies. Mered has + been identified by them both with Caleb and Moses.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_81" name="note_81" href= + "#noteref_81">81.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Deut. vii. 3; Josh. xxiii. 12; Ezra + ix. 1, x.; Neh. xiii. 23.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_82" name="note_82" href= + "#noteref_82">82.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">iv. 9, 10.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_83" name="note_83" href= + "#noteref_83">83.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The reading on which this translation + is based is obtained by an alteration of the vowels of the + Masoretic text; cf. Bertheau, i. 1.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_84" name="note_84" href= + "#noteref_84">84.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Gen. xxviii. 20; xxxiii. 20.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_85" name="note_85" href= + "#noteref_85">85.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">This translation is obtained by + slightly altering the Masoretic text.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_86" name="note_86" href= + "#noteref_86">86.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">iv. 41; cf. R.V.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_87" name="note_87" href= + "#noteref_87">87.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Sam. xv.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_88" name="note_88" href= + "#noteref_88">88.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Judges i. 17.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_89" name="note_89" href= + "#noteref_89">89.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Judges i. 22-26.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_90" name="note_90" href= + "#noteref_90">90.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Judges xviii.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_91" name="note_91" href= + "#noteref_91">91.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Vv. 7-10, 18-22.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_92" name="note_92" href= + "#noteref_92">92.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Deut. xxxiii. 20; 1 Chron. xii. 8, + 21.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_93" name="note_93" href= + "#noteref_93">93.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Gen. xxv. 15.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_94" name="note_94" href= + "#noteref_94">94.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Gen. xvi. 12.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_95" name="note_95" href= + "#noteref_95">95.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Lay of the Last Minstrel</span></span>, iv. + 3.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_96" name="note_96" href= + "#noteref_96">96.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Vv. 25, 26. Note the curious spelling + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Tilgath-pilneser</span></span> for the more + usual <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Tiglath-pileser</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_97" name="note_97" href= + "#noteref_97">97.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf. Bertheau, i. 1.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_98" name="note_98" href= + "#noteref_98">98.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">In Josh. xix. 42, xxi. 24, Aijalon is + given to Dan; in Judges i. 34 it is given to Dan, but we are told + that Amorites retained possession of it, but became tributary to + the house of Joseph; in 2 Chron. xi. 10 it is given to <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Judah and Benjamin.”</span> As a frontier town, it + frequently changed hands.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_99" name="note_99" href= + "#noteref_99">99.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xvi. 9.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_100" name="note_100" + href="#noteref_100">100.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xx. 20.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_101" name="note_101" + href="#noteref_101">101.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxix. 6.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_102" name="note_102" + href="#noteref_102">102.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. vi. 31-48, xv. 16-20; cf. + psalm titles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_103" name="note_103" + href="#noteref_103">103.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. vi. 33, 37; cf. Psalm + lxxxviii. (title).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_104" name="note_104" + href="#noteref_104">104.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xvi. 38, 42.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_105" name="note_105" + href="#noteref_105">105.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. ix. 26-32; cf. 1 Chron. + xxiii. 24-32.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_106" name="note_106" + href="#noteref_106">106.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxix.-xxxi.; xxxiv.; + xxxv.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_107" name="note_107" + href="#noteref_107">107.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxix. 27, 28.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_108" name="note_108" + href="#noteref_108">108.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Num. iv. 3, 23, 35.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_109" name="note_109" + href="#noteref_109">109.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xxiii. 24, 27. Probably + <span class="tei tei-q">“twenty”</span> should be read for + <span class="tei tei-q">“thirty”</span> in ver. 3.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_110" name="note_110" + href="#noteref_110">110.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xxiv. 6.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_111" name="note_111" + href="#noteref_111">111.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxxiv. 13; xxxv. 3.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_112" name="note_112" + href="#noteref_112">112.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxxv. 3; cf. 1 Chron. xxiii + 26.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_113" name="note_113" + href="#noteref_113">113.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xxvi. 29.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_114" name="note_114" + href="#noteref_114">114.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xvii. 7, 9.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_115" name="note_115" + href="#noteref_115">115.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Wellhausen, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">History of + Israel</span></span>, p. 191; cf. 2 Chron. xix. 4-11.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_116" name="note_116" + href="#noteref_116">116.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. ix. 31, 32.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_117" name="note_117" + href="#noteref_117">117.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Ezra ii. 36-39.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_118" name="note_118" + href="#noteref_118">118.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xxiv. 1-19.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_119" name="note_119" + href="#noteref_119">119.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Luke i. 5.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_120" name="note_120" + href="#noteref_120">120.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Bell. Jud.</span></span>, IV. iii. 8.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_121" name="note_121" + href="#noteref_121">121.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xxiv. 20-31; 2 Chron. xxxi. + 2.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_122" name="note_122" + href="#noteref_122">122.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xxv.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_123" name="note_123" + href="#noteref_123">123.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xxvi.; Ezra vi. 18; Neh. xi. + 36.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_124" name="note_124" + href="#noteref_124">124.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Recently a complaint was received at + the General Post-office that some newspapers sent from France had + failed to arrive. It was stated that the names of the papers + were—<em class="tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">Il + me manque</span></em>; <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Plusieurs; Journaux</span></em>; <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span>, I + am short of <span class="tei tei-q">“Several”</span> <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Papers.”</span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_125" name="note_125" + href="#noteref_125">125.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. ix. 3.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_126" name="note_126" + href="#noteref_126">126.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Luke ii. 36.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_127" name="note_127" + href="#noteref_127">127.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Levi of course excepted.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_128" name="note_128" + href="#noteref_128">128.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. iii.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_129" name="note_129" + href="#noteref_129">129.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ii. 55.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_130" name="note_130" + href="#noteref_130">130.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">iv. 21-23.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_131" name="note_131" + href="#noteref_131">131.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Maspero, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Ancient Egypt and + Assyria</span></span>, p. 60.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_132" name="note_132" + href="#noteref_132">132.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Craddock, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Despot of Bromsgrove + Edge</span></span>. Teck Jepson is, of course, an imaginary + character, but none the less representative.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_133" name="note_133" + href="#noteref_133">133.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cave, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Scripture Doctrine of + Sacrifice</span></span>, p. 163.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_134" name="note_134" + href="#noteref_134">134.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">George Eliot, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Janet's + Repentance</span></span>, chap. xix.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_135" name="note_135" + href="#noteref_135">135.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xii. 1, 6.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_136" name="note_136" + href="#noteref_136">136.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxxiii. 18.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_137" name="note_137" + href="#noteref_137">137.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Ezra ii. 2.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_138" name="note_138" + href="#noteref_138">138.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Isa. xlix. 6.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_139" name="note_139" + href="#noteref_139">139.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Isa. ix. 7.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_140" name="note_140" + href="#noteref_140">140.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Isa. xvi. 5.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_141" name="note_141" + href="#noteref_141">141.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Isa. xxxvii. 35.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_142" name="note_142" + href="#noteref_142">142.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Isa. xxxviii. 5.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_143" name="note_143" + href="#noteref_143">143.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Acts ii 29.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_144" name="note_144" + href="#noteref_144">144.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Hos. iii. 5.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_145" name="note_145" + href="#noteref_145">145.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Amos ix. 11.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_146" name="note_146" + href="#noteref_146">146.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Micah v. 2.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_147" name="note_147" + href="#noteref_147">147.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Jer. xxiii. 5, 6; cf. xxxiii. 15 and + Isa. iv. 2, xi. 1. The Hebrew word used in the last passage is + different from that in the preceding.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_148" name="note_148" + href="#noteref_148">148.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Ezek. xxxiv. 23, 24; xxxvii. 24, + 25.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_149" name="note_149" + href="#noteref_149">149.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Zech. iii. 8; the text in vi. 12 is + probably corrupt.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_150" name="note_150" + href="#noteref_150">150.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Hag. ii. 23.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_151" name="note_151" + href="#noteref_151">151.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Zech. xii. 8.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_152" name="note_152" + href="#noteref_152">152.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Written after the death of + Pompey.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_153" name="note_153" + href="#noteref_153">153.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Schultz, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Old Testament + Theology</span></span>, ii. 444.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_154" name="note_154" + href="#noteref_154">154.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">An incidental reference is made to + these facts in 1 Chron. xii. 19.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_155" name="note_155" + href="#noteref_155">155.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Sam. iii. 39.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_156" name="note_156" + href="#noteref_156">156.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Sam. v. 21; 1 Chron. xiv. 12.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_157" name="note_157" + href="#noteref_157">157.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Deut. xxiv. 16, quoted in 2 Chron. + xxv. 4.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_158" name="note_158" + href="#noteref_158">158.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Sam. xxi. 19; 1 Chron. xx. 5.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_159" name="note_159" + href="#noteref_159">159.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. x. 14.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_160" name="note_160" + href="#noteref_160">160.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf. xi. 1-9; xii. 23-xiii. 14; + xv.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_161" name="note_161" + href="#noteref_161">161.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xi. 2.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_162" name="note_162" + href="#noteref_162">162.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. ii. 15.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_163" name="note_163" + href="#noteref_163">163.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xii. 1, 19. There is no + certain indication of the date of the events in xi. 10-25. The fact + that a <span class="tei tei-q">“hold”</span> is mentioned in xi. + 16, as in xii. 8, 16, is not conclusive proof that they refer to + the same period.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_164" name="note_164" + href="#noteref_164">164.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xii. 20.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_165" name="note_165" + href="#noteref_165">165.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xxix. 27.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_166" name="note_166" + href="#noteref_166">166.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xi. 10-47; xx. 4-8.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_167" name="note_167" + href="#noteref_167">167.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xiii. 14-xvi.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_168" name="note_168" + href="#noteref_168">168.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xvii.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_169" name="note_169" + href="#noteref_169">169.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xviii.; xx. 3.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_170" name="note_170" + href="#noteref_170">170.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">I.e.</span></span>, virtually Jehovah our God + and the only true God.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_171" name="note_171" + href="#noteref_171">171.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">For a more detailed treatment of this + incident see chap. ix.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_172" name="note_172" + href="#noteref_172">172.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxi.-xxix.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_173" name="note_173" + href="#noteref_173">173.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxix. 20-22, 28.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_174" name="note_174" + href="#noteref_174">174.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xvi. 8-36.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_175" name="note_175" + href="#noteref_175">175.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xvii. 16-27.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_176" name="note_176" + href="#noteref_176">176.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">For a short exposition of this passage + see Book. IV., Chap. i.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_177" name="note_177" + href="#noteref_177">177.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xi. 15-19.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_178" name="note_178" + href="#noteref_178">178.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxix. 20.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_179" name="note_179" + href="#noteref_179">179.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Rom. xiv. 22.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_180" name="note_180" + href="#noteref_180">180.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Sam. xii. 31; 1 Chron. xx. 3.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_181" name="note_181" + href="#noteref_181">181.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Hodgkin, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Italy and her + Invaders</span></span>, i. 205.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_182" name="note_182" + href="#noteref_182">182.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">x. 14; xi. 3.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_183" name="note_183" + href="#noteref_183">183.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xii. 38.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_184" name="note_184" + href="#noteref_184">184.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxix. 1, 22.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_185" name="note_185" + href="#noteref_185">185.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xiii. 2-4.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_186" name="note_186" + href="#noteref_186">186.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Sam. xxiii. 9-13; xxx. 7, 8.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_187" name="note_187" + href="#noteref_187">187.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxv. 1, 2.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_188" name="note_188" + href="#noteref_188">188.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xiii. 1.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_189" name="note_189" + href="#noteref_189">189.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxviii. 1.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_190" name="note_190" + href="#noteref_190">190.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxix. 22.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_191" name="note_191" + href="#noteref_191">191.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">But cf. 2 Chr. xxvi.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_192" name="note_192" + href="#noteref_192">192.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf. xvii. 4-15 and xxviii. 2-10.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_193" name="note_193" + href="#noteref_193">193.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xiii. 1-14.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_194" name="note_194" + href="#noteref_194">194.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The casual reference in Jer. lii. 20 + is only an apparent exception. The passage is really historical, + and not prophetic.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_195" name="note_195" + href="#noteref_195">195.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Deut. xvii. 16, 17; cf. 2 Chron. i. + 14-17 and 1 Kings xi. 3-8.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_196" name="note_196" + href="#noteref_196">196.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Psalms lxxii. and cxxvii. are + attributed to him, the latter, however, only in the Hebrew + Bible.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_197" name="note_197" + href="#noteref_197">197.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Ecclus. xlvii. 12-21.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_198" name="note_198" + href="#noteref_198">198.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Matt. xii. 42.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_199" name="note_199" + href="#noteref_199">199.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Matt. vi. 29.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_200" name="note_200" + href="#noteref_200">200.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Acts vii. 47.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_201" name="note_201" + href="#noteref_201">201.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xxix. 25.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_202" name="note_202" + href="#noteref_202">202.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. ix. 22, 23.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_203" name="note_203" + href="#noteref_203">203.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. viii. 11.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_204" name="note_204" + href="#noteref_204">204.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Neh. xiii. 26.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_205" name="note_205" + href="#noteref_205">205.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Such changes occur throughout, and + need not be further noticed unless some special interest attaches + to them.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_206" name="note_206" + href="#noteref_206">206.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Kings v. 13; ix. 22, which seems to + contradict this, is an editorial note.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_207" name="note_207" + href="#noteref_207">207.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. ii. 2, 17, 18; viii. + 7-10.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_208" name="note_208" + href="#noteref_208">208.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Kings ix. 11, 12.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_209" name="note_209" + href="#noteref_209">209.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. viii. 1, 2, R.V.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_210" name="note_210" + href="#noteref_210">210.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xxii. 9.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_211" name="note_211" + href="#noteref_211">211.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xxix. 23, 24.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_212" name="note_212" + href="#noteref_212">212.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. i. 7-13.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_213" name="note_213" + href="#noteref_213">213.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. i. 14-17.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_214" name="note_214" + href="#noteref_214">214.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">v. 11, 12, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_215" name="note_215" + href="#noteref_215">215.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">vi. 41, 42, peculiar to Chronicles, + apparently based on Psalm cxxxii. 8-10.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_216" name="note_216" + href="#noteref_216">216.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xxi. 26; 2 Chron. vii. 1-3, + both peculiar to Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_217" name="note_217" + href="#noteref_217">217.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">vii. 8-10, mostly peculiar to + Chronicles. The text in 1 Kings viii. 65 has been interpolated from + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_218" name="note_218" + href="#noteref_218">218.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">vii. 13-15, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_219" name="note_219" + href="#noteref_219">219.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">viii. 3, 4, peculiar to Chronicles. + Hamath is apparently referred to as a possession of Judah in 2 + Kings xiv. 28.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_220" name="note_220" + href="#noteref_220">220.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">viii. 12-16, peculiar in this form to + Chronicles, but based upon 1 Kings ix. 25.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_221" name="note_221" + href="#noteref_221">221.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ix., as in 1 Kings x. 1-13.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_222" name="note_222" + href="#noteref_222">222.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ix. 31.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_223" name="note_223" + href="#noteref_223">223.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ix. 28.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_224" name="note_224" + href="#noteref_224">224.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">It is not suggested that the + chronicler intended to convey this impression, or that it would be + felt by most of his readers.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_225" name="note_225" + href="#noteref_225">225.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xiv. 3, 5, contradicting 1 Kings xv. + 14 and apparently 2 Chron. xv. 17.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_226" name="note_226" + href="#noteref_226">226.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xv. 8-14, peculiar to Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_227" name="note_227" + href="#noteref_227">227.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xv. 18, 19.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_228" name="note_228" + href="#noteref_228">228.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xvii. 6 contradicts 1 Kings xxii. 43 + and 2 Chron. xx. 33.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_229" name="note_229" + href="#noteref_229">229.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xvii. 7-9, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_230" name="note_230" + href="#noteref_230">230.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxiv. 1-14.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_231" name="note_231" + href="#noteref_231">231.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxi. 11, peculiar to Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_232" name="note_232" + href="#noteref_232">232.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxv. 4.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_233" name="note_233" + href="#noteref_233">233.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxviii. 24-xxxi., mostly + peculiar to Chronicles; but compare Kings xviii. 4-7, which + mentions the taking away of the high places.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_234" name="note_234" + href="#noteref_234">234.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxxiii. 16.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_235" name="note_235" + href="#noteref_235">235.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxxiv.; xxxv.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_236" name="note_236" + href="#noteref_236">236.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxx. 2.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_237" name="note_237" + href="#noteref_237">237.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxii. 1; xxiii. 1-15; xxvi. 1; xxxiii. + 25; xxxvi. 1.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_238" name="note_238" + href="#noteref_238">238.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxv. 12.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_239" name="note_239" + href="#noteref_239">239.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xvi. 12.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_240" name="note_240" + href="#noteref_240">240.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xx. 37.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_241" name="note_241" + href="#noteref_241">241.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxiv. 20-27.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_242" name="note_242" + href="#noteref_242">242.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxv. 14-27.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_243" name="note_243" + href="#noteref_243">243.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxvi. 16-23.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_244" name="note_244" + href="#noteref_244">244.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxxii. 25-33.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_245" name="note_245" + href="#noteref_245">245.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxxv. 20-27.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_246" name="note_246" + href="#noteref_246">246.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Milton, Hymn to the Nativity.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_247" name="note_247" + href="#noteref_247">247.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Tennyson, In Memoriam.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_248" name="note_248" + href="#noteref_248">248.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. ix. 1.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_249" name="note_249" + href="#noteref_249">249.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Prov. xxxi. 1-9.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_250" name="note_250" + href="#noteref_250">250.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Articles XXI. and XXXVII.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_251" name="note_251" + href="#noteref_251">251.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Eph. ii. 12.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_252" name="note_252" + href="#noteref_252">252.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xii. 12, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_253" name="note_253" + href="#noteref_253">253.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Kings xv. 3.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_254" name="note_254" + href="#noteref_254">254.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxxiii. 11-20, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_255" name="note_255" + href="#noteref_255">255.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Kings xxiii. 32.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_256" name="note_256" + href="#noteref_256">256.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Kings xvi. 5.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_257" name="note_257" + href="#noteref_257">257.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Isa. viii. 2.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_258" name="note_258" + href="#noteref_258">258.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxxiii. 9.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_259" name="note_259" + href="#noteref_259">259.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxxvi. 5, 8, 11.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_260" name="note_260" + href="#noteref_260">260.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxviii. 5-15, peculiar to + Chronicles; cf. 2 Kings xvi. 5, 6.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_261" name="note_261" + href="#noteref_261">261.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxviii. 16-25, peculiar to + Chronicles; cf. 2 Kings xvi. 7-18.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_262" name="note_262" + href="#noteref_262">262.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxviii. 27, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_263" name="note_263" + href="#noteref_263">263.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xi. 13, 14, xxix. 34, xxx. + 27, all peculiar to Chronicles. In xxx. 27 the text is doubtful; + many authorities have <span class="tei tei-q">“the priests and the + Levites.”</span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_264" name="note_264" + href="#noteref_264">264.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">I.e.</span></span>, in the view given us by + the chronicler of the period of the monarchy, after the Return the + priests were far more numerous than the Levites.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_265" name="note_265" + href="#noteref_265">265.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xxvi. 30-32.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_266" name="note_266" + href="#noteref_266">266.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xix. 4-11.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_267" name="note_267" + href="#noteref_267">267.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xv. 3. In the older + literature the phrase would bear a more special and technical + meaning.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_268" name="note_268" + href="#noteref_268">268.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Exod. xxxii. 26-35.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_269" name="note_269" + href="#noteref_269">269.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Num. xxv. 3.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_270" name="note_270" + href="#noteref_270">270.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Psalm cvi. 30, 31.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_271" name="note_271" + href="#noteref_271">271.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xii. 23-28.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_272" name="note_272" + href="#noteref_272">272.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xxvii. 5; cf. however, R.V. + marg.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_273" name="note_273" + href="#noteref_273">273.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xiii. 12.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_274" name="note_274" + href="#noteref_274">274.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxiii. 7. All the passages + referred to in this paragraph are peculiar to Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_275" name="note_275" + href="#noteref_275">275.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Neh. iv. 17.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_276" name="note_276" + href="#noteref_276">276.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Macc. v. 67.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_277" name="note_277" + href="#noteref_277">277.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xiii. 8; xvi. 2.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_278" name="note_278" + href="#noteref_278">278.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xxix. 10-19.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_279" name="note_279" + href="#noteref_279">279.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. vi.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_280" name="note_280" + href="#noteref_280">280.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xx. 4-13; xxx. 6-9, 18-21, + 27.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_281" name="note_281" + href="#noteref_281">281.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxxv.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_282" name="note_282" + href="#noteref_282">282.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xiii. 10.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_283" name="note_283" + href="#noteref_283">283.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxvi. 16-23.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_284" name="note_284" + href="#noteref_284">284.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxxi. 3-5.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_285" name="note_285" + href="#noteref_285">285.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Mal. i. 8; iii. 4, 10.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_286" name="note_286" + href="#noteref_286">286.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxxi. 10.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_287" name="note_287" + href="#noteref_287">287.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Exod. xv. 3.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_288" name="note_288" + href="#noteref_288">288.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Psalm lxxiv. 8, 9. This psalm is + commonly regarded as Maccabæan, but may be as early as the + chronicler or even earlier.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_289" name="note_289" + href="#noteref_289">289.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Macc. iv. 46.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_290" name="note_290" + href="#noteref_290">290.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Ezra ii. 63.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_291" name="note_291" + href="#noteref_291">291.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxix. 25, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_292" name="note_292" + href="#noteref_292">292.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xii. 5-8, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_293" name="note_293" + href="#noteref_293">293.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xv.-xvi. 10, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_294" name="note_294" + href="#noteref_294">294.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xix. 2, 3, xx. 14-18, 37, all + peculiar to Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_295" name="note_295" + href="#noteref_295">295.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxi. 12-15, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_296" name="note_296" + href="#noteref_296">296.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxiv. 18-22, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_297" name="note_297" + href="#noteref_297">297.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xiv. 15, 16, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_298" name="note_298" + href="#noteref_298">298.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Kings xix. 5-7, 20-34.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_299" name="note_299" + href="#noteref_299">299.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxxii. 20.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_300" name="note_300" + href="#noteref_300">300.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxxiii. 10, 18.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_301" name="note_301" + href="#noteref_301">301.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxxv. 21, 22, 25, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_302" name="note_302" + href="#noteref_302">302.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Esdras i. 28.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_303" name="note_303" + href="#noteref_303">303.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Ezra v. 1; vi. 14.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_304" name="note_304" + href="#noteref_304">304.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Neh. vi. 14.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_305" name="note_305" + href="#noteref_305">305.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xii. 18, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_306" name="note_306" + href="#noteref_306">306.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Acts ii. 30.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_307" name="note_307" + href="#noteref_307">307.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Kings iv. 42.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_308" name="note_308" + href="#noteref_308">308.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Abbott, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Through Nature to + Christ</span></span>, p. 295.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_309" name="note_309" + href="#noteref_309">309.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Jer. xv. 10.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_310" name="note_310" + href="#noteref_310">310.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Deut. xviii. 18.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_311" name="note_311" + href="#noteref_311">311.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Ecclus. xlix. 10.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_312" name="note_312" + href="#noteref_312">312.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">R.V. <span class="tei tei-q">“delight + in”</span> is somewhat too strong.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_313" name="note_313" + href="#noteref_313">313.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">It is, however, possible that the text + in Samuel is a corruption of text more closely parallel to that of + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_314" name="note_314" + href="#noteref_314">314.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Noldius and R. Salom. <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">apud</span></span> + Bertheau i. 1.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_315" name="note_315" + href="#noteref_315">315.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Josh. xviii. 28; Judges i. 21, as + against Josh. xv. 63; Judges i. 8, which assign the city to + Judah.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_316" name="note_316" + href="#noteref_316">316.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xxvii. 23, 24.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_317" name="note_317" + href="#noteref_317">317.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Ver. 7 is apparently a general + anticipation of the narrative in vv. 9-15.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_318" name="note_318" + href="#noteref_318">318.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Josh. v. 13.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_319" name="note_319" + href="#noteref_319">319.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Schultz, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Old Testament + Theology</span></span>, ii. 270.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_320" name="note_320" + href="#noteref_320">320.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Exod. iv. 21; Josh. xi. 20; 1 Sam. + xix. 9, 10; 2 Sam. xxiv. 1; 1 Kings xxii. 20-23.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_321" name="note_321" + href="#noteref_321">321.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Prov. xvi. 4; Lam. iii. 38; Isa. xlv. + 7.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_322" name="note_322" + href="#noteref_322">322.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Zech. iii. 1.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_323" name="note_323" + href="#noteref_323">323.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Jer. vii. 12-14; xxvi. 6.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_324" name="note_324" + href="#noteref_324">324.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xxviii. 19.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_325" name="note_325" + href="#noteref_325">325.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Heb. vii. 14.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_326" name="note_326" + href="#noteref_326">326.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Hos. xii. 13.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_327" name="note_327" + href="#noteref_327">327.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Schultz, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Old Testament + Theology</span></span>, ii. 353.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_328" name="note_328" + href="#noteref_328">328.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxx. 6; 1 Kings xviii. + 36.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_329" name="note_329" + href="#noteref_329">329.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xvi. 13, 17; Gen. xxxii. + 28.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_330" name="note_330" + href="#noteref_330">330.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Gen. xxiii. 4; cf. Psalms xxxix. 13, + cxix. 19.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_331" name="note_331" + href="#noteref_331">331.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Job viii. 9.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_332" name="note_332" + href="#noteref_332">332.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Called, however, at that time + Antonia.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_333" name="note_333" + href="#noteref_333">333.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">viii. 9.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_334" name="note_334" + href="#noteref_334">334.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xi. 5-xii. 1, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_335" name="note_335" + href="#noteref_335">335.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xii. 2-8, 12, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_336" name="note_336" + href="#noteref_336">336.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xii. 14, peculiar to Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_337" name="note_337" + href="#noteref_337">337.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Ecclus. xlvii. 23.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_338" name="note_338" + href="#noteref_338">338.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xiii. 3-22, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_339" name="note_339" + href="#noteref_339">339.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Josh. xviii. 22.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_340" name="note_340" + href="#noteref_340">340.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Judges ix. 8.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_341" name="note_341" + href="#noteref_341">341.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Num. xviii. 19.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_342" name="note_342" + href="#noteref_342">342.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. x. 15.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_343" name="note_343" + href="#noteref_343">343.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">This verse must of course be + understood to give his whole family history, and not merely that of + his three years' reign.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_344" name="note_344" + href="#noteref_344">344.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xiv. 1, 7, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_345" name="note_345" + href="#noteref_345">345.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xiv. 3-9, peculiar to Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_346" name="note_346" + href="#noteref_346">346.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xii., etc.; 2 Chron. xi. 5 + ff., xvii. 12 ff., xxvi. 9 ff. xxvii. 4 ff., xxxiii. 14.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_347" name="note_347" + href="#noteref_347">347.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xiv. 9-15.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_348" name="note_348" + href="#noteref_348">348.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">So R.V. marg.; R.V. text (with which + A.V. is in substantial agreement): <span class="tei tei-q">“There + fell of the Ethiopians so many that they could not recover + themselves”</span>; <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span>, the routed army were never + able to rally.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_349" name="note_349" + href="#noteref_349">349.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The second reformation is dated early + in Asa's fifteenth year, and Abijah only reigned three years.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_350" name="note_350" + href="#noteref_350">350.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xv., based upon 1 Kings xv. 13-15, but + the great bulk of the chapter is peculiar to Chronicles; the + original passage from Kings is reproduced, with slight changes in + vv. 16-18.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_351" name="note_351" + href="#noteref_351">351.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Sam. xii. 9-11. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Barak”</span> with LXX. and Peshite; Masoretic text + has <span class="tei tei-q">“Bedan.”</span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_352" name="note_352" + href="#noteref_352">352.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Judges v. 6, 7; vi. 11; viii. 15-17; + ix.; xii. 1-7; xx.; xxi.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_353" name="note_353" + href="#noteref_353">353.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf. 1 Kings xv. 12.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_354" name="note_354" + href="#noteref_354">354.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. ix. 3.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_355" name="note_355" + href="#noteref_355">355.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Exod. xxii. 20; Deut. xiii. 5, 9, + 15.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_356" name="note_356" + href="#noteref_356">356.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Kings xv. 16, 32, 33.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_357" name="note_357" + href="#noteref_357">357.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xvi. 7-10, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_358" name="note_358" + href="#noteref_358">358.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Isa. vii. 17.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_359" name="note_359" + href="#noteref_359">359.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Isa. xxxi. 1; xxx. 3.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_360" name="note_360" + href="#noteref_360">360.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Jer. ii. 36.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_361" name="note_361" + href="#noteref_361">361.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Zech. iv. 10.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_362" name="note_362" + href="#noteref_362">362.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The date, as before, is peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_363" name="note_363" + href="#noteref_363">363.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xvi. 12<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>, + peculiar to Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_364" name="note_364" + href="#noteref_364">364.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Time and Tide</span></span>, xii. 67.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_365" name="note_365" + href="#noteref_365">365.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">George Eliot, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Romola</span></span>, + xxi.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_366" name="note_366" + href="#noteref_366">366.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Part II., Chap. IX.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_367" name="note_367" + href="#noteref_367">367.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xvii., peculiar to Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_368" name="note_368" + href="#noteref_368">368.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xviii. 1-3.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_369" name="note_369" + href="#noteref_369">369.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xix. 1-3, peculiar to Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_370" name="note_370" + href="#noteref_370">370.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xix. 4-11, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_371" name="note_371" + href="#noteref_371">371.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Milman, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Latin + Christianity</span></span>, Book XI., Chap. I.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_372" name="note_372" + href="#noteref_372">372.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xx. 1-30, peculiar to Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_373" name="note_373" + href="#noteref_373">373.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">So R.V. marg., with the LXX. The + Targum has <span class="tei tei-q">“Edomites,”</span> the A.V. is + not justified by the Hebrew, and the R.V. does not make sense.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_374" name="note_374" + href="#noteref_374">374.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf. 1 Chron. iv. 41, R.V.; and 2 + Chron. xxvi. 7.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_375" name="note_375" + href="#noteref_375">375.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">One Hebrew manuscript is quoted as + having this reading. A.R.V., with the ordinary Masoretic text, have + <span class="tei tei-q">“Syria”</span>; but it is simply absurd to + suppose that a multitude from beyond the sea from Syria would first + make their appearance on the western shore of the Dead Sea.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_376" name="note_376" + href="#noteref_376">376.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. iv. 9.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_377" name="note_377" + href="#noteref_377">377.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Ver. 9; cf. 2 Chron. vi. 28, and the + whole paragraph (vv. 22-30) of which our verse is a brief + abstract.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_378" name="note_378" + href="#noteref_378">378.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Not Ziz, as A.R.V.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_379" name="note_379" + href="#noteref_379">379.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">הדרת קדש, literally, as A.R.V., + <span class="tei tei-q">“beauty of holiness”</span>; <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span>, + sacred robes. Translate with R.V. marg. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“praise in the beauty of holiness,”</span> not, as + A.R.V., <span class="tei tei-q">“praise the beauty of + holiness.”</span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_380" name="note_380" + href="#noteref_380">380.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Exod. xiv. 30.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_381" name="note_381" + href="#noteref_381">381.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">With R.V. marg.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_382" name="note_382" + href="#noteref_382">382.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The identification of the valley of + Berachah with the valley of Jehoshaphat, close to Jerusalem and + mentioned by Josephus, is a mere theory, quite at variance with the + topographical evidence.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_383" name="note_383" + href="#noteref_383">383.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Kings xxii. 48, 49.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_384" name="note_384" + href="#noteref_384">384.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. xxiv. 24, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_385" name="note_385" + href="#noteref_385">385.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Psalm xx. 7.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_386" name="note_386" + href="#noteref_386">386.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Macc. ii. 35-38.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_387" name="note_387" + href="#noteref_387">387.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxi. 2-4, peculiar to Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_388" name="note_388" + href="#noteref_388">388.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Vv. 5-10; cf. 2 Kings viii. + 17-22.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_389" name="note_389" + href="#noteref_389">389.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxi. 11-19, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_390" name="note_390" + href="#noteref_390">390.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">So R.V. marg., with LXX. and Vulgate + A.R.V. have <span class="tei tei-q">“mountains,”</span> with + Masoretic text.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_391" name="note_391" + href="#noteref_391">391.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Jer. xxix.; xxxvi.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_392" name="note_392" + href="#noteref_392">392.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Green's <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Shorter + History</span></span>, p. 404.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_393" name="note_393" + href="#noteref_393">393.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxii. 1<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>, + peculiar to Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_394" name="note_394" + href="#noteref_394">394.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The Hebrew original of the A.R.V., + <span class="tei tei-q">“departed without being desired,”</span> is + as obscure as the English of our versions. The most probable + translation is, <span class="tei tei-q">“He behaved so as to please + no one.”</span> The A.R.V. apparently mean that no one regretted + his death.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_395" name="note_395" + href="#noteref_395">395.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">We need not discuss in detail the + question of Ahaziah's age at his accession. The age of forty-two, + given in 2 Chron. xxii. 2, is simply impossible, seeing that his + father was only forty years old when he died. The Peshito and + Arabic versions have followed 2 Kings viii. 26, and altered + forty-two to twenty-two; and the LXX. reads twenty years. But + twenty-two years still presents difficulties. According to this + reading, Ahaziah, Jehoram's youngest son, was born when his father + was only eighteen, and Jehoram having had several sons before the + age of eighteen, had none afterwards.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_396" name="note_396" + href="#noteref_396">396.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xiii. 7<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>, + peculiar to Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_397" name="note_397" + href="#noteref_397">397.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf. p. 20.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_398" name="note_398" + href="#noteref_398">398.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf. xxv. 2 with 2 Kings xiv. 4, xxvi. + 4 with 2 Kings xv. 4, xxvii. 2 with 2 Kings xv. 34, where similar + statements are omitted by the chronicler.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_399" name="note_399" + href="#noteref_399">399.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Kings xii. 9.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_400" name="note_400" + href="#noteref_400">400.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Exod. xxx. 11-16.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_401" name="note_401" + href="#noteref_401">401.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Neh. x. 32.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_402" name="note_402" + href="#noteref_402">402.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxiv. 14-22, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_403" name="note_403" + href="#noteref_403">403.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Curiously enough, Jehoiada's name does + not occur in the list of high-priests in 1 Chron. vi. 1-12.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_404" name="note_404" + href="#noteref_404">404.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xxviii. 9; 2 Chron. vii. 19, + xii. 5, xiii. 10, xv. 2, xxi. 10, xxviii. 6, xxix. 6, xxxiv. + 25.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_405" name="note_405" + href="#noteref_405">405.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf. 2 Kings xii. 17, 18, of which this + narrative is probably an adaptation.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_406" name="note_406" + href="#noteref_406">406.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxv. 5-13, peculiar to Chronicles, + except that the account of the war with Edom is expanded from the + brief note in Kings. Cf. ver. 11<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span> with + 2 Kings xiv. 7.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_407" name="note_407" + href="#noteref_407">407.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">In the phrase <span class= + "tei tei-q">“from Samaria to Beth-horon,”</span> <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Samaria”</span> apparently means the northern kingdom, + and not the city, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span>, from the borders of + Samaria; the chronicler has fallen into the nomenclature of his own + age.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_408" name="note_408" + href="#noteref_408">408.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">For the discussion of the chronicler's + account of Ahaz see Book III., Chap. VII.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_409" name="note_409" + href="#noteref_409">409.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">So R.V. marg., with LXX., Targum, + Syriac and Arabic versions, Talmud, Rashi, Kimchi, and some Hebrew + manuscripts (Bertheau, i. 1). A.R.V., <span class="tei tei-q">“had + understanding in the visions”</span> (R.V. vision) <span class= + "tei tei-q">“of God.”</span> The difference between the two Hebrew + readings is very slight. Vv. 5-20, with the exception of the bare + fact of the leprosy are peculiar to Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_410" name="note_410" + href="#noteref_410">410.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf. Ezek. xxvi. 9.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_411" name="note_411" + href="#noteref_411">411.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Pliny, vii. 56 <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">apud</span></span> + Smith's <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Bible Dictionary</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_412" name="note_412" + href="#noteref_412">412.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Num. xviii. 7; Exod. xxx. 7.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_413" name="note_413" + href="#noteref_413">413.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Kimchi interprets <span class= + "tei tei-q">“those days”</span> as meaning <span class= + "tei tei-q">“after the death of Jotham.”</span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_414" name="note_414" + href="#noteref_414">414.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The reference to the wall of Ophel is + peculiar to Chronicles: indeed, Ophel is only mentioned in + Chronicles and Nehemiah; it was the southern spur of Mount Moriah + (Neh. iii. 26, 27). Vv. 3<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">b</span></span>-7 are also peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_415" name="note_415" + href="#noteref_415">415.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">This is usually understood as Nisan, + the first month of the ecclesiastical year.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_416" name="note_416" + href="#noteref_416">416.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxix. 3-xxxi. 21 (the cleansing of the + Temple and accompanying feast, Passover, organisation of the + priests and Levites) are substantially peculiar to Chronicles, + though in a sense they expand 2 Kings xviii. 4-7, because they + fulfil the commandments which Jehovah commanded Moses.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_417" name="note_417" + href="#noteref_417">417.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Exod. vi. 18, 22; Num. iii. 30, + mention Elizaphan as a descendant of Kohath.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_418" name="note_418" + href="#noteref_418">418.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">So Strack-Zockler, i. 1.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_419" name="note_419" + href="#noteref_419">419.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Lev. i. 6.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_420" name="note_420" + href="#noteref_420">420.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">According to 2 Kings xviii. 10, + Samaria was not taken till the sixth year of Hezekiah's reign. It + is not necessary for an expositor of Chronicles to attempt to + harmonise the two accounts.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_421" name="note_421" + href="#noteref_421">421.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf xxx. 11, 18.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_422" name="note_422" + href="#noteref_422">422.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxx. 14; cf. 2 Kings xviii. 4. The + chronicler omits the statement that Hezekiah destroyed Moses's + brazen serpent, which the people had hitherto worshipped. His + readers would not have understood how this corrupt worship survived + the reforms of pious kings and priests who observed the law of + Moses.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_423" name="note_423" + href="#noteref_423">423.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Cf. xxix. 34, xxx. 3.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_424" name="note_424" + href="#noteref_424">424.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Lev. xv. 31.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_425" name="note_425" + href="#noteref_425">425.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">So Bertheau, i. 1, slightly + paraphrasing.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_426" name="note_426" + href="#noteref_426">426.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">A.R.V., with Masoretic text, + <span class="tei tei-q">“the priests the Levites”</span>; LXX., + Vulg. Syr., <span class="tei tei-q">“the priests and the + Levites.”</span> The former is more likely to be correct. The verse + is partly an echo of Deut. xxvi. 15, so that the chronicler + naturally uses the Deuteronomic phrase <span class="tei tei-q">“the + priests the Levites”</span>; but he probably does so unconsciously, + without intending to make any special claim for the Levites: hence + I have omitted the word in the text.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_427" name="note_427" + href="#noteref_427">427.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxxii. 2-8, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_428" name="note_428" + href="#noteref_428">428.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxxii. 30.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_429" name="note_429" + href="#noteref_429">429.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">xxxiii. 11-19, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_430" name="note_430" + href="#noteref_430">430.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">So R.V.: A.V., <span class= + "tei tei-q">“among the thorns”</span>; R.V. marg., <span class= + "tei tei-q">“with hooks”</span>, if so in a figurative sense. + Others take the word as a proper name: Hohim.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_431" name="note_431" + href="#noteref_431">431.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Ezek. xviii. 20.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_432" name="note_432" + href="#noteref_432">432.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Peter iv. 18.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_433" name="note_433" + href="#noteref_433">433.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Ezek. xviii. 21-23.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_434" name="note_434" + href="#noteref_434">434.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Psalm cxxx. 4, probably belonging to + about the same period as Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_435" name="note_435" + href="#noteref_435">435.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">1 Chron. xxiii. 26, peculiar to + Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_436" name="note_436" + href="#noteref_436">436.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 Chron. vii. 5. The figures are + peculiar to Chronicles; 1 Kings viii. 5 says that the victims could + not be counted.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_437" name="note_437" + href="#noteref_437">437.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Jehoiachin. The ordinary reading in 2 + Kings xxiv. makes him eighteen.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_438" name="note_438" + href="#noteref_438">438.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">2 xxxvi. 6<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>, + peculiar to Chronicles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_439" name="note_439" + href="#noteref_439">439.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Mostly peculiar to Chronicles.</dd> + </dl> + </div> + <hr class="doublepage" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <div id="pgfooter" class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <pre class="pre tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 3.00em; margin-top: 3.00em"> +***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE EXPOSITOR'S BIBLE: THE BOOKS OF CHRONICLES*** +</pre> + <hr class="doublepage" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 3.00em; margin-top: 3.00em"> + <a name="rightpageheader75" id="rightpageheader75"></a><a name= + "pgtoc76" id="pgtoc76"></a><a name="pdf77" id="pdf77"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em; margin-top: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">Credits</span></h1> + + <table summary="This is a list." class="tei tei-list" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <tbody> + <tr> + <th class="tei tei-label tei-label-gloss">July 21, + 2012 </th> + </tr> + + <tr> + <td class="tei tei-item tei-item-gloss"> + <table summary="This is a list." class="tei tei-list" + style="margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <tbody> + <tr class="tei tei-labelitem"> + <th class="tei tei-label"></th> + + <td class="tei tei-item">Project Gutenberg TEI + edition 1</td> + </tr> + + <tr class="tei tei-labelitem"> + <th class="tei tei-label"></th> + + <td class="tei tei-item"><span class= + "tei tei-respStmt"><span class= + "tei tei-name">Produced by Marcia Books, Colin + Bell, David King, and the Online Distributed + Proofreading Team at <http://www.pgdp.net/>. + (This file was produced from images generously made + available by The Internet Archive/Canadian + Libraries.)</span></span></td> + </tr> + </tbody> + </table> + </td> + </tr> + </tbody> + </table> + </div> + <hr class="doublepage" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 3.00em; margin-top: 3.00em"> + <a name="rightpageheader78" id="rightpageheader78"></a><a name= + "pgtoc79" id="pgtoc79"></a><a name="pdf80" id="pdf80"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em; margin-top: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">A Word from Project + Gutenberg</span></h1> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This file + should be named 40235-h.html or 40235-h.zip.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This and all + associated files of various formats will be found in: <a href= + "http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/4/0/2/3/40235/" class= + "block tei tei-xref" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <span style= + "font-size: 90%">http://www.gutenberg.org</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">/dirs/4/0/2/3/40235/</span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Updated + editions will replace the previous one — the old editions will be + renamed.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Creating the + works from public domain print editions means that no one owns a + United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation (and + you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without + permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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