Chapter LXXVII: Appendix (4)

359 – Stanley’s _S. & P._ 353. “We descended to the Mohrakah, or
‘place of sacrifice.’ It is a glade overlooking the plain,
somewhat in the shape of an amphitheatre, and completely
shut in on the north by the well-wooded cliffs down which
we had come. No place could be conceived more adapted by
nature to be that wondrous battle-field of truth. In front
of the principal actors in the scene, with the king and
his courtiers by their side, the thousands of Israel might
have been gathered on the lower slopes, witnesses of the
whole struggle to its stupendous result.” Tristram’s _Holy
Land_, p. 117.

360 – Obtained from a neighbouring fountain, Josephus _Ant._
VIII. 13, § 5, which even now is found close beneath
_el-Mohrakah_ (“the burning”), the spot pointed out
as the scene of this event. “In the upper part of the
amphitheatre to the left is an ancient fountain, overhung
by a few magnificent trees, among them a noble specimen of
the Turkey oak. The reservoir of the spring is stone-built
and square, about 8 ft. deep, and the old steps which
once descended to it may still be traced. The water is of
some depth, and is perennial. This was corroborated by the
existence of molluscs attached to the stones within the
cistern. _In that three years’ drought, when all the wells
were dry, and the Kishon had first sunk to a string of
pools, and then finally was lost altogether, this deep
and shaded spring fed from the roots of Carmel remained._”
Tristram’s _Holy Land_, pp. 117, 118.

361 – “Immediately below [the ♦Mohrakah], on the banks of the
Kishon, was a small flat-topped green knoll, ‘Tell Cassis,
’ _the Mound of the Priests_, marking in its name the very
spot where Elijah slew the prophets of Baal, when he had
brought them down to the brook Kishon.” Tristram’s _Holy
Land_, pp. 117, 118.

362 – “This conduct of Elijah, when rightly understood, was
full of important instruction. As God’s minister he had
overwhelmed the king with shame and confusion in the
presence of his subjects. The natural tendency of this
would be to lower him in their eyes, and lessen their
respect for his authority. It was not the intention,
however, to weaken the government, nor to encourage
rebellion. The prophet was, therefore, divinely directed
to give a testimony of respect and honour to the king,
as public and striking as from necessity had been the
opposition and rebuke to his idolatry. The mode of doing
honour to Ahab, by running before his chariot, was in
accordance with the customs of the East, even to this day.
I was reminded of this incident more than 20 years ago at
Jaffa, when Mohammed Aly came to that city with a large
army to quell the rebellion of Palestine. The camp was
on the sand hills south of the city, while Mohammed Aly
stopped inside the walls. The officers were constantly
going and coming, preceded by runners, who always kept
just ahead of the horses, no matter how furiously they
were ridden; and, in order to run with the greater ease,
they not only ‘girded their loins’ very tightly, but also
tucked up their loose garments under the girdle, lest they
should be incommoded by them. This, no doubt, did Elijah.”
Thomson’s _Land and the Book_, p. 485. Kitto’s _Daily
Bible Illustr._ IV. 271, 272.

363 – Or rather a species of _broom_ very abundant in the
desert of Sinai, and capable of “affording shade and
protection, both in heat and storm, to travellers.” Smith’s
_Bib. Dict._; Thomson’s _Land and the Book_, p. 611.

364 – See p. 249.

365 – “In the cuneiform annals of an Assyrian king we have a
very curious and valuable confirmation of the power of
Damascus at this time――of its being under the rule of a
monarch named Benhadad, who was at the head of a great
confederacy of princes, and who was able to bring into
the field, year after year, vast armies, with which he
repeatedly engaged the whole force of Assyria. We have
accounts of three campaigns between the Assyrians on
the one side, and the Syrians, Hittites, Hamathites, and
Phœnicians, united under the command of Benhadad, on the
other, in which the contest is maintained with spirit,
the armies being of a large size, and their composition
and character such as we find described in Scripture.”
Rawlinson’s _Bampton Lectures_, p. 130, and notes;
Rawlinson’s _Herod._ I. 464, 465.

366 – “Probably _local governors_ or _magistrates_, who took
refuge in Samaria during the invasion, while the ‘young
men’ were their _attendants_.”――Smith’s _Bib. Dict._

367 – See Keil on 1 K. xx. 16.

368 – See Kitto’s _Daily Bible Illustr._ IV. pp. 286, 287.

369 – Now called _Fîk_, a considerable village on the top of
a mountain (Thomson, p. 388), at the head of the _Wady
Fîk_, 6 miles east of the sea of Galilee, “the great road
between Damascus, Nablous, and Jerusalem, still passing
through the village.” Smith’s _Bib. Dict._

370 – “This tremendous destruction was caused, as I suppose,
by an earthquake; and after having seen the effects
of the earthquake in Safed and Tiberias, I can easily
understand this narrative. We are not required to limit
the catastrophe to the falling of a single wall; or,
if this be insisted on, we have only to suppose that it
was the wall of the city, and a little consideration will
convince any one familiar with Oriental fortifications
that it might overwhelm a whole army. Those ramparts were
very lofty and massive. An open space was always left along
their base, and this would be packed, from end to end, by
the remnants of Benhadad’s mighty host, and escape from
the falling towers would be impossible. Burckhardt informs
us that the town is built round the base of a hill, in
the shape of a crescent, and this peculiarity of the site
would render the destruction only the more extensive and
inevitable.” Thomson’s _Land and the Book_, p. 389.

371 – “The place of execution was by the large tank or reservoir,
which still remains on the slope of the hill of Samaria,
immediately outside the walls.” Article _Naboth_, in
Smith’s _Bib. Dict._

372 – “Now _Es-Salt_, situated on a hill, isolated to a great
extent from the loftier mountains round it by deep ravines
on the east and west, which unite on the south. Probably
from its commanding position in the territory of Gad,
as well as its strength, it was chosen by Moses as the
City of Refuge for that tribe (Deut. iv. 43; Josh. xx. 8;
xxi. 38). Afterwards it became the residence of one of
Solomon’s commissariat officers” (1 K. iv. 13). Smith’s
_Bib. Dict._

373 – Comp. Homer, _Il._ I. 106.

374 – See p. 397, note.

375 – See p. 307, note.

376 – See Psalm cxxxvi. 1. Comp. also Ps. xlviii. and xcii.,
Joel iii. 2, 12.

377 – Van de Velde, II. 30; Thomson’s _Land and the Book_,
p. 606. Tekoa was fortified by Rehoboam (2 Chr. xi. 6), was
afterwards the birthplace of the prophet Amos (Am. i. 1),
and gave its name to the adjacent desert on the east
(2 Chr. xx. 20). Robinson, _Bibl. Res._ I. 486, 7. “It
is remarkable that this is the usual route taken in the
present day by such predatory bands from Moab as make
incursions into southern Palestine. They pass round the
southern end of the Dead Sea, then up the road along its
western shore to _Ain-Jidy_, and thence towards Hebron,
Tekoa, and Jerusalem, as the prospects of plunder seem
most inviting.” Smith’s _Bibl. Dict._

378 – “The name of _Bereikût_ still survives, attached to
ruins in a valley of the same name, lying between Tekoa
and the main road from Bethlehem to Hebron, a position
corresponding accurately enough with the locality of the
battle as described 2 Chr. xx.” Smith’s _Bibl. Dict._

379 – “It was when our Lord and His disciples were on
their journey through this very district from Galilee
to Jerusalem, and when smarting from the churlish
inhospitality of some Samaritan villagers, that――led to it
by the distant view of the heights of Carmel, or, perhaps,
by some traditional name on the road――the impetuous zeal
of James and John, the ‘sons of thunder,’ burst forth,
_Lord, wilt Thou that we command fire to come down from
heaven and consume them, even as Elijah did?_ For the
answer of our Lord to this question see Lk. ix. 51–56.”
Smith’s _Bibl. Dict._

380 – See p. 202.

381 – Smith’s _Bibl. Dict._ Art. _Elisha_. Ever since the time
of Josephus a large spring N. W. of the present town, and
called _Ain-en-Sultân_, has been pointed out as the spring
in question.

382 – See Keil on 2 K. iii. 20.

383 – Compare the conduct of the Lacedæmonians in the Megarid,
Thuc. I. 108.

384 – The modern _Kerak_ lies about 6 miles from Rabbath-Moab,
and some 10 miles from the Dead Sea. “Its situation is
truly remarkable. It is built upon the top of a steep
hill, surrounded on all sides by a deep and narrow valley,
which again is completely inclosed by mountains rising
higher than the town, and overlooking it on all sides.
It must have been from these surrounding heights that the
Israelite slingers hurled their volleys of stones after
the capture of the place had proved impossible (2 K.
iii. 25).” Smith’s _Bibl. Dict._, Art. _Kir-Moab_.

385 – A few years after this event, and before the visit
of Naaman to Samaria (comp. 2 K. viii. 4 with 1,
2, 3), in consequence of a famine predicted by Elisha,
the Shunammite retired to the rich low lands of the
Philistines. At the close of the dearth she returned to
her native place, to find her house and fields in the
possession of a stranger. Thereupon, with her son, she
repaired to Samaria, and as the king was listening to the
story of _all the great things which Elisha had done_, and
especially the crowning miracle at Shunem, she drew near,
was recognised by Gehazi, and confirmed the wondrous
tale in person. The king, struck by the remarkable
circumstances, ordered her land to be restored to her,
with the value of the fruits of it during her sojourn
amongst the Philistines. “It is still common for even
petty sheikhs to confiscate the property of a person
who is exiled for a time, or who moves away temporarily
from his district; especially is this true of widows
and orphans, and the Shunammite was now a widow.” See
Thomson’s _Land and the Book_, p. 458.

386 – These were probably first-fruits and perquisites of
the priests, see p. 134 (a), Numb. xviii. 8, 12; Deut.
xviii. 3, 4.

387 – Not “one,” but “he,” Naaman, went in and told his “lord,”
the king, 2 K. v. 4, as in the Vulgate.

388 – The ABANA, the Χρυσοῤῥόας of the Greeks, and now the
_Barada_, was the chief river of Damascus and flowed
through it, and was the main source of its beauty and
fertility, having even now 14 villages and 150,000 souls
dependent on it; the PHARPAR, now the _Awaj_, is further
from Damascus, “a small lively river.” Robinson, _Bibl.
Res._ III. 448.

389 – “According to Movers (_Phœn._ I. 196, &c.) Rimmon was the
abbreviated form of Hadad-Rimmon (as Peor of Baal-Peor),
Hadad being the sun-god of the Syrians. Combining this
with the pomegranate, which was his symbol, Hadad-Rimmon
would then be the sun-god of the late summer, who ripens
the pomegranate and other fruits, and, after infusing into
them his productive power, dies, and is mourned with _the
mourning of Hadad-rimmon in the valley of Megiddon_,” Zech.
xii. 11. Smith’s _Bibl. Dict._

390 – See p. 58, and note 40.

391 – See Smith’s _Bib. Dict._, Art. _Hazael_.

392 – The cuneiform inscriptions “mention Hazael as king of
Damascus immediately after Ben-hadad; and Jehu is the
first Israelite king mentioned by name on any inscription
hitherto discovered.” Rawlinson’s _Bampton Lectures_,
p. 131; Layard’s _Nineveh_, I. p. 396.

392a – “The cuneiform inscriptions show that towards the close
of his reign Ben-hadad was exposed to the assaults of a
great conqueror, who was bent on extending the dominion
of Assyria over Syria and Palestine. Three several attacks
appear to have been made by this prince upon Ben-hadad,
who, though he had the support of the Phœnicians, the
Hittites, and the Hamathites, was unable to offer any
effectual resistance to the Assyrian arms. His troops
were worsted in several engagements, and in one of them
he lost as many as 20,000 men. It may have been these
circumstances which encouraged Hazael to murder him and
seize the throne, which Elisha declared would certainly
one day be his.” Smith’s _Bib. Dict._; Rawlinson’s _Five
Great Monarchies_, II. pp. 361, 362.

393 – “Jehu and his party could be seen for at least 6 miles,
and there was time enough to send messenger after
messenger to meet him.” Thomson, _Land and the Book_,
p. 460.

394 – In the E. V. translated “the garden-house.” See Stanley,
_S. and P._ p. 349. Robinson places it at _Jenîn_, still
surrounded by the “orchards” and “gardens” which gave its
ancient name. See Van de Velde, I. p. 361.

395 – See p. 380.

396 – Established, probably, “at or near the town of Jabez in
Judah (1 Chr. ii. 55).” Smith’s _Bib. Dict._

397 – On the position of this Altar in reference to the Holy
Place, see above, p. 120.

398 – See p. 273.

399 – Or 52 years, if the Interregnum be included.

400 – See pp. 401 and notes 376‒378.

401 – From both these latter prophets we gain several important
hints respecting the moral condition of the kingdom of
Israel at this time. The calf-worship was celebrated with
all its former splendour at Bethel, which was the site
of the royal sanctuary (Am. vii. 13), while the nation
was distinguished for licentiousness, drunkenness, and
oppression of the poor and needy (Am. ii. 7, 8, iv. 1; Hos.
i. 2, iv. 12–14, xiii. 6). See Dr Pusey’s _Introduction to
Hosea_.

402 – See p. 157.

403 – See p. 362.

404 – In our Version the date of this visit is placed in
B.C. 860. Others would place it in the later part of the
reign of Jeroboam II., or about B.C. 780; Rawlinson even
later, B.C. 760–750, during a temporary depression of
the Assyrian power; see the _Five Great Monarchies_,
pp. 390–392, and notes.

405 – Rawlinson’s _Five Great Monarchies_, Vol. II. p. 391.

406 – “There is a remarkable parallel to this in a Persian
practice mentioned by Herodotus, IX. 24. In the mourning
for Masistius, a little before the battle of Platæa, the
Persian troops not only shaved off their own hair, but
similarly disfigured their horses and their beasts of
burden.” Rawlinson’s _Five Great Monarchies_, II. 276,
note.

407 – See Kiel _in loc._, and Art. _Menahem_ in Smith’s _Bib.
Dict._

408 – Called in the Septuagint Phalôch or Phalôs, and in the
Assyrian records _Phal-lukha_ and _Iva-lush_; the annals
of this monarch are scanty; but “in the most important
record we possess of his reign, there is a notice of his
having taken tribute from _Beth-Khumri_, or Samaria, as
well as from Tyre, Sidon, Damascus, Idumæa, and Philistia.”
Rawlinson’s _Bampton Lectures_, p. 133.

409 – This was the occasion of the important prophecy of Isaiah
vii. 1–16.

410 – This was the first captivity of any considerable portion
of Israel. See Map. The captives were located in Upper
Mesopotamia on the affluents of the _Bilikh_ and the
_Khabour_, from about ♦Haran to Nisibis, the Gozan of
Scripture. Rawlinson’s _Five Great Monarchies_, II. 398.

411 – Rawlinson’s _Five Great Monarchies_, II. 423; _Herodotus_,
Vol. I. p. 473. See Chron. Table in the _Appendix_, p. 488.

412 – “It has been usual to ascribe the capture of Samaria to
Shalmaneser; and this is certainly the impression which
the Scriptural narrative leaves. But the assertion is not
made expressly (comp. 2 K. xvii. 3, and xviii. 10), and if
we may trust the direct statement of Sargon, the successor
of Shalmaneser upon the throne, we must consider that he,
and not Shalmaneser, was the actual captor of the city.
Sargon relates that he took Samaria in his first year,
B.C. 721, and carried into captivity 27,280 families. It
would appear, therefore, that Shalmaneser died, or was
deposed, while Hoshea still held out, and that the final
captivity of Israel fell into the reign of his successor.”
Rawlinson’s _Hdtus._ I. 472. No king employed so generally
or on so large a scale, the practice of wholesale
deportation of his subjects as Sargon. See Rawlinson’s
_Five Great Monarchies_, II. p. 423.

413 – “As Gaza in Greek became Ca_d_ytis, Ach_z_ib Ec_d_ippa so
M’go_z_an became Myg_d_onia.” Smith’s _Bib. Dict._

414 – See Smith’s _Bib. Dict._, Art. _Nehushtan_.

415 – See Calendar, p. 155.

416 – Kenrick’s _Phœnicia_, p. 378; _Five Great Mon._ II. 405.

417 – Or perhaps the 27th, B.C. 700; see Rawlinson’s _Hdtus._
I. 479 _n._

418 – The route of the Assyrians may be traced in the vivid
language of Isai. x. 28–34. The annals of Sennacherib
contain a full account of this campaign; see Rawlinson’s
_Bampton Lectures_, pp. 142, 143; _Five Great Monarchies_,
II. p. 425.

419 – “Properly a _ring_, such as in our country is placed
through the nose of a bull, and similarly used in the
East for leading about lions and other animals, as also
prisoners, as in the case of Manasseh (2 Chr. xxxiii. 11;
A.V. _in the thorns_). See Isai. xxxvii. 29; Ezek. xxix. 4,
xxxviii. 4.” Smith’s _Bib. Dict._

420 – See for the view here taken, Rawlinson’s _Five Great
Monarchies_, Vol. II. p. 442; _Bampton Lectures_, p. 143.

421 – The Egyptians naturally ascribed their deliverance to
the interposition of their own gods. Rawlinson’s _Hdtus._
Vol. II. p. 141.

422 – _Five Great Mon._ Vol. II. p. 445; comp. 2 K. xix. 36.

423 – In the opinion of some, Hezekiah’s illness preceded
the first invasion of Sennacherib by several years, and
Merodach-Baladan’s visit is placed by them about the year
B.C. 713, the 14th of Hezekiah (Comp. 2 K. xx. 6; Is.
xxxviii. 5). Smith’s _Bib. Dict._; Rawlinson’s _Hdtus._
Vol. I. p. 479 _n._

424 – “From the time of Sargon, Merodach-Baladan and his family
were the champions of Babylonian independence, and headed
the popular party in resisting the Assyrian monarchs.”
“The real object of the mission was most likely to effect
a league between Babylon, Judea, and Egypt (Is. xx. 5, 6),
in order to check the growing power of the Assyrians.
Hezekiah’s exhibition of ‘all his precious things’
would thus have been not a mere display, but a mode of
satisfying the Babylonian ambassadors of his ability to
support the expenses of a war.” Smith’s _Bib. Dict._;
Rawlinson’s _Herod._ I. 503.

425 – See Blunt’s _Scriptural Coincidences_, Pt. III. 5.

426 – Smith’s _Bib. Dict._, Art. _Manasseh_; and see p. 436.

427 – Comp. Heb. xi. 37: but see Art. _Isaiah_ in Smith’s _Bib.
Dict._

428 – Either shortly before or after this visit to Jerusalem,
Esarhaddon invaded Egypt, defeated Tirhakah, took his
capital, and became master of the country as far as Thebes
or Diospolis, the No or No-Amon of Scripture. Rawlinson,
_Five Great Monarchies_, II. p. 475.

429 – “One is greatly surprised at first hearing that the
generals of an _Assyrian_ king, on capturing a rebel,
carried him to _Babylon_ instead of Nineveh. ‘What has a
king of Assyria to do with Babylon?’ one naturally asks.
The reply is, that Esarhaddon, and he _only of all the
Assyrian kings_, actually was king of Babylon; that he
built a palace, and occasionally held his court there, and
that consequently a captive was as likely to be brought to
him at that city as at the metropolis of Assyria-Proper.”
Rawlinson’s _Bampton Lectures_, p. 145, and _Hdtus._
Vol. I. p. 482.

430 – After the example of Sargon, Esarhaddon “gathered men
from Babylon, Orchoë, Susa, Elymais, Persia, and other
neighbouring regions, and entrusting them to an officer
of high rank, ‘the great and noble Asnapper,’ had them
conveyed to Palestine and settled over the whole country,
which until this time must have been somewhat thinly
peopled.” Comp. Ezra iv. 2, 9, 10; Rawlinson’s _Five Great
Monarchies_, II. p. 477.

431 – See p. 372.

432 – Partly from dissensions with the _Medes_ (B.C. 634–603),
who were attempting to seize the dominion over the East,
but still more in consequence of the great _Scythian_
invasion, about B.C. 630, described by Herodotus (I.
civ.–cvi.), Assyria had been greatly weakened, her cities
being desolated, and her palaces dismantled or destroyed.
These Scythian hordes penetrated into Palestine as far as
Ashdod, but were repulsed by Psammetichus, and on their
return a portion, probably attracted by the situation
of Beth-shan (See p. 313), settled there, whence its Greek
name Scythopolis, “the city of the Scythians.” Milman’s
_History of the Jews_, I. 391; Rawlinson’s _Herod._ Vol. I.
485, _Five Gt. Mon._ II. 512.

433 – Called by Manetho _Nechao_, by Herodotus Νεκώς, on the
monuments _Neku_, the son and successor of the first
Psammetichus. His defeat of the Syrians in a great battle
is mentioned by Herod. II. 159, and is said to have taken
place at Magdŏlus (= _Migdal-el_, in the tribe of Naphtali,
Josh. xix. 38), which is identified with the _Magdala_
of Matt. xv. 39, probably in consequence of a confusion
between this name and Megiddo. Rawlinson’s _Herod._ II.
246 _n._

434 – Not the classical Circesium, but higher up the Euphrates,
“occupying nearly the site of the later _Mabog_, or
Hierapolis.” Smith’s _Bib. Dict._; _Dict. Geog._ Art.
_Hierapolis_.

435 – “At the upper end of the valley of Lebanon, some 35 miles
beyond Baalbec, and about 10 days’ journey from Jerusalem,”
on the great road between Palestine and Babylonia.
Describing the advantages of its position, Dr Robinson
says that it lies “on the banks of a mountain-stream in
the midst of a vast and fertile plain, yielding the most
abundant supplies of forage. From this point the roads
were open either by Aleppo and the Euphrates to Nineveh,
or by Palmyra to Babylon ... by the end of Lebanon and the
coast to Palestine and Egypt, or through the Bŭkâa and the
Jordan valley to the centre of the Holy Land.” Robinson’s
_Bib. Res._ III. 545.

436 – For the moral and religious degradation of the country
at this period, see Jer. xix.; Ezek. viii.; for the
king’s vindictive persecution of righteous prophets, Jer.
xxvi.; for his impiety in cutting up the roll containing
Jeremiah’s prophecy, Jer. xxxvi.; for his luxury and
tyranny, as also his selfishness in building splendid
palaces while his kingdom was so impoverished, Jer. xxii.
13–17.

437 – In 2 K. xxiv. 14, 16, the numbers are given as 7,000
soldiers, 1,000 artificers and smiths, and 2,000 others,
whose occupation is not mentioned.

438 – Rawlinson’s _Herod._ Vol. I. 515. For the prophecies of
Jeremiah during the reign of Zedekiah, see chaps. xxi.
xxiv. xxvii. 12–22, xxviii. xxix. xxxii. xxxiii. xxxiv.
xxxvii. xxviii.

439 – Thus were fulfilled the apparently contradictory
prophecies in Jer. xxxii. 4, and Ezek. xii. 13.

440 – Or Mizpah. For notices of this place on previous occasions,
see pp. 272, 280, 375.

441 – Before passing on, a few remarks may here be subjoined
respecting the kingdoms of Judah and Israel, which now
came to an end.

I. _Their respective duration._ The kingdom of Israel
lasted from B.C. 975 to B.C. 721, or 254 years. The
kingdom of Judah lasted from B.C. 975 to B.C. 588, or 387
years, thus outliving her more populous and powerful rival
by 133 years.

II. _Their mutual relations._ These, as we have seen,
were dictated by three different lines of policy:――

(i) _Mutual animosity from_ B.C. 975–918.

The first three kings of Judah, Rehoboam, Abijah,
and Asa, persisted in the hope of regaining their
authority over the Ten Tribes, and for nearly 60
years there was war between the two kingdoms.

(ii) _Close alliance, and united hostility to Syria_,
B.C. 918–884.

With the accession of Jehoshaphat there sprang
up an alliance between the two kingdoms, cemented
by intermarriage, and prompted probably by
the necessity of joint action in resisting the
encroaching power of Syria.

(iii) _Fresh animosity, and the gradual decline of
both kingdoms before the advancing power of the Assyrian
Empire_, B.C. 884–588.

The alliance between the kingdoms was rudely
shattered by the accession of Jehu to the throne of
Israel. He put Ahaziah to death, and the hostility
thus begun reached its highest pitch under Amaziah,
Jehoash, and Pekah.

III. _Their contrasts._

1. _In the kingdom of Judah_, (a) There was always
a fixed capital and a venerated centre of religion;
(b) the army was always subordinate; (c) the succession
was interrupted by no revolution; (d) the priests
remained faithful to the crown.

2. _In the kingdom of Israel_, (a) There was no
fixed capital, and no real religious centre; (b) the
army was often insubordinate; (c) the succession was
constantly interrupted, so that out of 19 kings there
were no less than 9 dynasties, each ushered in by
a revolution; (d) the authorized priests left the
kingdom in a body, and the priesthood established by
Jeroboam had no Divine sanction and no promise; it
was corrupt in its very source. Hence in the kingdom
of Israel the _prophets_ were the regular ministers
of God, and, especially during the second of the
two periods above mentioned, their ministry was
distinguished by far more extraordinary events
than in the kingdom of Judah, whose annals offer no
prophetical deeds like those of Elijah and Elisha. See
Arts. _Kingdom of Judah and Israel_ in Smith’s _Bib.
Dict._; Jahn’s _Hebrew Commonwealth_. For the _Table_
of Kings and Prophets, see the Appendix.

442 – Milman’s _History of the Jews_, I. 407, 408.

443 – See Jahn’s _Hebrew Commonwealth_, pp. 112, 113.

444 – The Psalms which appear to belong to this period are, Psls.
x. xiii.–xv. xxv.–xxvii. xxxvi. xxxvii. xlix. l. liii.
lxvii. lxxvii. lxxx. lxxxviii. lxxxix. xcii. xciii. cxxiii.
cxxx. cxxxvii.

445 – See p. 452.

446 – See p. 449.

447 – An interpretation now generally understood to indicate
(i) the Chaldean, (ii) Medo-Persian, (iii) Macedonian, and
(iv) Roman empires, which last gives way to (v) the kingdom
of Messiah.

448 – Rawlinson’s _Bampton Lectures_, notes, p. 439; _Herod._
Vol. I. pp. 628, 629.

449 – Smith’s _Bib. Dict._, Art. _Nebuchadnezzar_. Dr Pusey,
on the other hand, writes, “Whether the image was formed
in reminiscence of that emblem of human might, which
Nebuchadnezzar had seen in his dream, and of which the
head was declared to represent himself, or whether it was
himself whom he intended to be worshipped in it, it was
plainly some test of allegiance required of all peoples,
nations, and languages, in his whole empire.” _Lectures
on Daniel_, p. 440.

450 – Ibid. p. 442, and the note.

451 – Along the shores of the Persian Gulf. Rawlinson’s _Herod._
Vol. I. p. 513.

452 – Rawlinson’s _Bampton Lectures_, p. 160 and notes;
_Herod._ Vol. I. pp. 512, 513; Smith’s _Bib. Dict._,
Art. _Nebuchadnezzar_.

453 – “I have examined,” says Sir H. Rawlinson, “the bricks
_in situ_, belonging perhaps to a hundred different towns
and cities in the neighbourhood of Baghdad, and I never
found any other legend than that of Nebuchadnezzar, son of
Nabopolassar, king of Babylon.” Nine-tenths of the bricks
amidst the ruins of Babylon are stamped with his name.
Compare his own words as recorded in Dan. iv. 30: “Is not
this great Babylon, _which I have built_?”

454 – Probably what the Greeks called Lycanthropy λυκανθρωπία),
wherein the sufferer fancies himself a beast, quits
the haunts of men, and leads the life of a beast. For
instances and details, see Dr Pusey’s _Lectures on Daniel_,
pp. 425–435; Rawlinson’s _Bampton Lectures_, p. 165;
_Herod._ Vol. I. p. 516.

455 – A sickness of this monarch is mentioned by Berosus, and
in the “Standard Inscription” of Nebuchadnezzar he himself
appears to allude to this mysterious passage of his life:
_For four years ... the seat of my kingdom ... did not
rejoice my heart, in all my dominions I did not build a
high place of power, the precious treasures of my kingdom
I did not lay up. In Babylon, buildings for myself and for
the honour of my kingdom I did not lay out. In the worship
of Merodach, my lord, the joy of my heart, in Babylon the
city of his sovereignty, and the seat of my empire, I did
not sing his praises, I did not furnish his altars with
victims, nor did I clear out the canals._ Rawlinson’s
_Bampton Lectures_, p. 166, and notes.

456 – Nabonadius or Nabonnedus = _Nabu-nit_ or _Nabu-nahit_,
i.e. _Nebo blesses_ or _makes prosperous_, known amongst
the Greeks as Labynetus.

457 – Recognised by Isaiah as “a shepherd” of the Lord, an
“anointed king” (Is. xliv. 28; xlv. 1).

458 – Pusey’s _Lectures on Daniel_, p. 120; Rawlinson’s _Bampton
Lectures_, p. 170.

459 – On his accession Nabonadius, it is thought, may have
married a daughter of Nebuchadnezzar. See Pusey, _Lectures
on Daniel_, p. 402; Rawlinson’s _Bampton Lectures_, p. 170.

460 – On the delegated authority of this Darius, see Pusey’s
_Lectures on Daniel_, pp. 122, 123; Rawlinson’s _Bampton
Lectures_, p. 171, and notes, p. 445.

461 – See Art. _Darius_, in Smith’s _Bib. Dict._ Some identify
him with Astyages; others with Cyaxares II., a son of
Astyages; others with Neriglissar, or with Nabonadius;
“each of these views,” observes Prof. Rawlinson, “has its
difficulties, and perhaps it is the most probable view
that he was a viceroy set up by Cyrus, of whom there is at
present no trace in profane history,” _Bampton Lectures_,
p. 171.

462 – Dating, according to Prideaux and Davison (_Lectures on
Prophecy_, VI. 1), from B.C. 606.

463 – The Jews who remained and kept up their national
distinctions were called “The Dispersion” (John vii. 35; 1
Pet. i. 1; James i. 1), and “in course of time they served
a great purpose in diffusing a knowledge of the true God,
and in affording a point for the commencement of the
efforts of the Evangelists of the Christian faith.”
Smith’s _Bib. Dict._

464 – The chief effects of the Captivity upon the Jews
were these: (i) The old tendency to idolatry had been
eradicated (Comp. Ezek. xxxvi. 24–28); (ii) There had
sprung up a deep reverence for the letter of the Law,
and for their great Lawgiver Moses; (iii) The love of
agriculture had declined, and had given place to a taste
for commerce and trade; (iv) The vernacular language had
also undergone a change (Neh. viii. 8), the old Hebrew
giving place to the Chaldee.

465 – “The name Ahasuerus is undoubtedly the proper Hebrew
equivalent for the Persian word which the Greeks
represented by Xerxes, ... and we are at once struck
with the strong resemblance which his character bears to
that assigned by the classical writers to the celebrated
son of Darius. Proud, self-willed, amorous, careless of
contravening Persian customs; reckless of human life, yet
not actually bloodthirsty; impetuous, facile, changeable,
the Ahasuerus of Esther corresponds in all respects to the
Greek portraiture of Xerxes, which is not the mere picture
of an Oriental despot, but has various peculiarities
which distinguish it even from the other Persian kings.”
Rawlinson’s _Bampton Lectures_, p. 186.

466 – See Calendar, p. 155.

467 – Identified by the latest researches with the modern _Hit_,
on the Euphrates, due East of Damascus, afterwards known
as the Ihi, or Ihi da-kira, “the spring of bitumen.”
Smith’s _Bib. Dict._

468 – “The power of Persia had received by the Athenians a fatal
blow in the victory obtained at Salamis in Cyprus, B.C.
449. The Great King was obliged to submit to a humiliating
peace, among the articles of which were the abandonment
of the maritime towns, and a stipulation that the Persian
army should not approach within three days’ journey of the
sea. Jerusalem being about this distance from the coast,
and standing so near the line of communication with Egypt,
became a port of the utmost value.” Milman’s _History of
the Jews_, I. p. 435. Jahn’s _Heb. Comm._ p. 142.

469 – Either of Horonaim a town of Moab, or of Horon, _i.e._
Beth-horon; he appears to have held some office at Samaria
under Artaxerxes. Smith’s _Bib. Dict._

470 – See Calendar, p. 155.

471 – Westcott’s _The Bible in the Church_, pp. 298, 299.

472 – See pp. 8, 9.

473 – See p. 18.

474 – See pp. 26, 28.

475 – See p. 71.

476 – See pp. 109, 110.

477 – Psalm cx; ii; xlv.

478 – Dan. vii. 13. Westcott’s _Introduction to the N. T._ p. 87.
Davidson _On Prophecy_, p. 205.

479 – Mic. v. 2; Isai. vii. 14.

480 – Zech. vi. 13; Isai. lxi. 1.

481 – Isai. liii. Comp. also ix. 6; xl. 1, 12; xlii. 1, 4;
xlix. 5–7; lii, liv.

482 – Dan. ix. 26, see Pusey _in loc_.

483 – Gal. iv. 4.

484 – See Butler’s _Analogy_, Part II. ch. v.

485 – Gal. iii. 28.

Transcriber’s Notes.

The following corrections have been made in the text:

Page 178:
Sentence starting: It is probable that Kadesh....
– ‘whereever’ replaced with ‘wherever’
(wherever Moses and the Tabernacle)

Page 186:
Sentence starting: A trophy of this victory,...
– ‘Rabbath’ replaced with ‘Rabbah’
(in the city of Rabbah,)

Page 332:
Sentence starting: Meanwhile the Syrians beyond....
– ‘Hadarezer’ replaced with ‘Hadadezer’
(a general of Hadadezer,)

Page 365:
Sentence starting: REZIN, the Syrian,...
– ‘Rezon’ replaced with ‘Rezin’
(REZIN, the Syrian,)

Page 377:
Sentence starting: As he was besieging Gibbethon....
– ‘Isaachar’ replaced with ‘Issachar’
(of the house of Issachar)
– ‘againt’ replaced with ‘against’
(conspired against him)

Page 476:
Sentence starting: After a fast of three days....
– ‘Esth.’ replaced with ‘Ezra’
(Ezra viii. 32))

Page 482:
Sentence starting: No high places were to be seen....
– ‘Astaroth’ replaced with ‘Ashtaroth’
(the impure orgies of Ashtaroth)

Page 489:
Sentence starting: Manasseh brought to Babylon....
– ‘438’ replaced with ‘445’
(See p. 445 n.)

Page 492:
Table starting: 4. Scripture Measures....
– ‘70’ replaced with ‘720’
│960 │♦720│180│60│30│10│

Index Asenath:
– ‘Asenah’ replaced with ‘Asenath’
(Asenath, Joseph’s wife)

Index Rezin:
– ‘Rezon’ replaced with ‘Rezin’
‘366’ replaced with ‘365’
(Rezin, revolts against Solomon, 365)

Index Temple, the:
– ‘Jehohash’ replaced with ‘Jehoash’
(rifled by Jehoash, 425;)

Index Tarshish:
– ‘Tharshish’ replaced with ‘Tarshish’
(Tarshish, silver mines of, 362)

Footnote 20:
– ‘Araba’ replaced with ‘Arabah’ for consistency
(the Arabah led to the Gulf)

Footnote 361:
Sentence starting: Immediately below [the Mohrakah]....
– ‘Mokrakah’ replaced with ‘Mohrakah’
(Immediately below [the Mohrakah])

Footnote 410:
Sentence starting: The captives were located....
– ‘Harran’ replaced with ‘Haran’
(from about Haran to Nisibis)