Chapter VI: Converts in the Protestant Churches (5)

"I have now been since 1832 on the coast of Africa. It has been my privilege to proclaim the Gospel of salvation to many thousands of the sons of Abraham during that period. To thousands I have been permitted to present the oracles of God, and tens of thousands of tracts have been put into circulation among the great mass of the Jewish population of this country. The effect produced by these various means of grace may be thus described: The greater part of the Jews know now that Christianity is not a system of idolatry, but a revelation of God built upon the Scriptures; that the precepts of the Gospel are very good and beneficial to mankind. They acknowledge, for the most part, that the only difference which exists between the Christians and the Jews is, that the former maintain the Messiah is come, and Jesus Christ is the Messiah, whilst the latter deny both, which may, however, fairly be decided by the Word of God. They perceive that true Christians are not the enemies of the Jews, but, on the contrary, their well-wishers, who provide them with the Scriptures, and pray for their real welfare. The greater part of them are now acquainted with the written Word of God, and we are able to appeal with more effect to the testimony of Scripture without being constantly told, 'These passages do not occur in our Bibles, but are a fabrication of yours, in order to make us believe that Jesus is the Messiah.'"

For three years more Ewald carried on the work, and then, owing to repeated attacks of ophthalmia, he had to return to England in 1841, after a residence of some eight years in the Barbary States.

He did not, however, long remain idle, for he was within a few months appointed to assist in the Society's Mission in Jerusalem, and he and his wife were members of the party which accompanied Dr. Alexander, the first Anglican Bishop, to the Holy City. They sailed from Portsmouth on December 7th, 1841, and reached Jerusalem on January 21st--being six weeks on the journey, which is now accomplished in nine or ten days.

For ten years Ewald laboured earnestly in the work of the conversion of the Jewish inhabitants of Jerusalem, being also chaplain to Bishop Alexander during that prelate's occupation of the see.

One of the most interesting incidents connected with Ewald's labours in the Holy City was the instruction and baptism of certain rabbis. Three, named respectively, Abraham, Benjamin, and Eliezer, had placed themselves under Christian instruction. A deputation from the Jews of Tiberias arrived to enquire whether the report was true, that fourteen rabbis of Jerusalem had embraced Christianity. The Jews of Jerusalem, very much exasperated on that account, did all in their power to avoid coming in contact with the missionaries, and removed all the books which they had previously received through the mission, in order that they might not be suspected.

Shortly afterwards two of the rabbis, Eliezer and Benjamin, known henceforth as Christian Lazarus Lauria and John Benjamin Goldberg, were baptized with two other enquirers, Isaac Paul Hirsch and Simon Peter Fränkel. The Rev. John Nicolayson, the head of the Society's mission, referring to the event, wrote: "It is not a small thing, that the apparently impenetrable phalanx of rabbinism at Jerusalem has thus actually been broken into; and two Jerusalem rabbis been incorporated into the restored Hebrew Christian Church on Mount Zion. How sore the Jews felt on this occasion you can easily conceive. They were, in fact, after all, taken by surprise, and felt sadly disappointed in having to yield up at last any lingering hope they might have had of their return."

Of the third rabbi, Abraham, Mr. Ewald said: "There was, indeed, something which marred my joy on that occasion, which was the absence of rabbi Abraham. For years had he been the faithful companion of rabbi Eliezer and rabbi Benjamin; he had the same convictions, but he could not leave his wife; the struggles between natural affection and spiritual blessings were too hard for him, and he returned." Ewald witnessed other interesting missionary events at Jerusalem, which had a great bearing upon the subsequent history of the Society; namely, the baptism of John Moses Eppstein, and the ordination of Messrs. Tartakover, A. J. Behrens, Sternchuss, Murray Vicars, and Henry Aaron Stern.

During the early part of his sojourn there, Ewald had the great misfortune to lose his wife, who died on January 16th, 1844. He brought his motherless children to London, but returned to Jerusalem in 1846, just after his second marriage. In the same year he published a "Journal of Missionary Labours in the City of Jerusalem, during the years 1842-4," which are exceedingly interesting reading, even after this lapse of time.

It is striking to note that at that time the Jewish population of Jerusalem was only 6,000, out of a total of 18,000; whereas the Jewish population now [1909] numbers 60,000, out of a total of 80,000.

Ewald was compelled to leave the East, owing to ill-health, in 1851, when he became the Society's senior missionary in London. He at once made his way into the hearts and homes of many Jews, and founded, in November, 1853, an institution for poor enquiring Jews, called "The Wanderers' Home." Such was its success that within five years 303 Jews and Jewesses had availed themselves of its benefits, no less than 150 being baptized; 76 entered the Operative Jewish Converts' Institution, and six went to the Society's College. In 1858, owing to lack of financial support, the Home was closed. It was, however, re-opened in 1860, and has, under Dr. Ewald's and successive management, been the means of influencing large numbers of Jews in a Christian direction.

Ewald's reports of his work are full of encouraging missionary facts. He was in labours "most abundant," both for the Society and the "Wanderers' Home." For nineteen years he was at the head of affairs, and at least forty Jewish families in London were brought through his means to faith in Christ. He was one of the ablest missionaries who ever served the Society.

In 1858 Ewald thus wrote of the work: "Certainly, mighty changes have taken place amongst those Jews to whom the missionary has not been debarred an access. If you go into their houses, you find on their table the Bible, the Old and New Testament, just as you see it on the table of Christians, and I have seen the authorized version of the Bible not only in private houses, but in the synagogue. When you converse with intelligent Jews, you soon observe that they have read the New Testament, and other Christian books and that they know what the fundamental doctrines of Christianity are, namely: the fall of man; the redemption of mankind through the Lord Jesus Christ; the atonement; the Deity of Christ; the doctrine of the Trinity, &c.; and they know also that every true Christian believes these doctrines. Then, much of the animosity towards converts has been gradually removed, by the number of Jews who have embraced Christianity. You cannot meet with many Jewish families who do not count among their relatives some converts. I have myself heard Jews defending their friends, not for having embraced Christianity, but from the alleged imputation of having embraced it through impure motives. The more Christianity gains ground in the Jewish community, the more will friendly feelings arise towards those of their number who conscientiously look upon the Lord Jesus as the Christ. Amongst fifty thousand Jews in England we reckon three thousand converts. In London alone there are eleven ministers of the Lord Jesus Christ who are converted Jews, preaching the Word of Life to perishing sinners, whose ministry the Lord owns by granting them many souls for their hire. These thousands of converts are as a salt in the earth, and through their instrumentality a work is carried on silently and quietly in this country. They have all acquaintances and friends, to whom they speak occasionally of the Lord Jesus; and thus true religion is spread among the Jews."

When, in 1870, Dr. Ewald, owing to increasing years, retired from the mission, he could thankfully look back upon a successful career, whether passed in North Africa, Palestine, or London. During his residence in the metropolis hundreds of Jews were baptized, out of some thousands instructed by him.

Dr. Ewald died at Gipsy Hill, London, on August 9th, 1874, at the age of 73 years.

Ewald published in 1856 a German translation of "Abodah Zarah" (Idolatrous Worship), the name of one of the treatises of the Mishnah, of the Tosefta, and of the Babylonian and the Palestinian Talmud, for which his University conferred upon him the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. A distinction which he valued still more highly was the degree of Bachelor of Divinity, which honour was conferred upon him by the Patron of the Society, the Archbishop of Canterbury, in consideration of, as the diploma stated, his proficiency in the study of divinity, of Hebrew and Oriental languages and literature; and also of his missionary labours and eminent services in the promotion of Christianity amongst the Jews.

The then Bishop of Carlisle (Dr. Montagu Villiers) described Dr. Ewald as a "missionary genius," a description fully deserved for his ability and devotion to the work to which he gave his life.

EWALD, Dr. Paulus, a brother of the preceding, also embraced Christianity. He was lecturer at the University of Erlangen, and later became Pastor of Pappenreuth, Bavaria. He published a translation of the Talmud tract, "Pirke Aboth" (The Ethics of the Fathers), in 1825.

EZEKIEL, Hakim David, a physician and famous Talmudist at Bagdad, and son of a rich Jew, was baptized there in 1850, and subsequently laboured as a colporteur in the mission.

FALK, Max, Hungarian statesman and journalist, born at Budapest in 1828, became a Christian as a student at the University. He displayed great talent as a writer and politician. In 1866 he was appointed as instructor of Hungarian to the Empress Elizabeth. The next year he became editor-in-chief to the "Pester Lloyd," raising that paper to a high level of excellence. In 1869 he was elected a member of the Hungarian House of Representatives. The Emperor of Austria has decorated him with the Komthur Cross of the Order of St. Stephen.

FANTA, Kendy, together with Beru and I. Jasu, were indefatigable in proclaiming the Gospel of salvation to their brethren during the captivity of the missionaries in Abyssinia.

FARO, Aharon Gabai Rodriguez, a rich Portuguese Jew living in Holland in the seventeenth century, was converted through reading Ragstatt de Weile's tract, "de Heerlykheyd Jesu Christi," and having heard of an attempt that was made by a Jewish teacher to murder the author, he decided to be baptized by him. Ragstatt himself mentioned the case in the sermon which he preached on the occasion on Ps. ii. 6.

FAUBER, of Gran, a highly respected Jew in Pesth, was baptized in 1847.

FAY, I. L., was won for Christ in 1820 by the L.J.S. missionary L. D. Mark, who laboured at Offenbach. Fay studied theology and became Pastor in the Canton of Zurich, Switzerland.

FELS, Christian Leberecht, born in 1640, became eventually Rabbi in Prague. After embracing Christianity at Cöthen, he returned to Prague and claimed his patrimony, but the Government authorities refused to sanction it unless he became a Roman Catholic. So he had to seek his livelihood by teaching Hebrew and rabbinics in various schools and Universities. To convince his brethren of the truth of Christianity, he wrote in German a treatise under the title "Hodegus Judæorum" (Frankfort and Leipzig, 1703), in which he, besides the Scriptures, adduces proofs from the Targums and the Talmud in favour of Christianity. He published a Latin Hebrew Grammar under the title "Brevis et perspicua via ad linguam sanctam" (Sunderhausen, 1696). Also "Brevis et perspicua via ad accentionem," 1700. No less than 52 Jews were influenced by him to accept the Gospel. He held a Professorship at Wittenberg, but on account of war he had to leave, and went to Verden and Lubeck, where he gave lessons. He died in the faith at Hamburg in 1719.

FERDINAND, Philip: "Hebrew teacher; born in Poland about 1555; died at Leyden, Holland, 1598. After an adventurous career on the Continent, during which he became first a Roman Catholic and afterward a Protestant, he went to Oxford University, and later removed to the University of Cambridge, where he was matriculated Dec. 16th 1596. He claimed a pension from the 'Domus Conversorum,' which was paid Feb. 3rd, 1598, and receipted for by him in Latin, Hebrew, and Greek. The same year he was attracted to Leyden by Joseph Scaliger, who obtained a professorship for him. Scaliger himself acknowledges having learned much from Ferdinand, in the short time he was at Leyden. Ferdinand's only publication was a translation of the six hundred and thirteen commandments as collected by Abraham ben 'Kattani' in the Bomberg Bible (Cambridge 1597.)

"The following is a list of his writings: 'Dictionary of National Biography'; Wood, 'Athenæ Oxnienses,' ed. Bliss, i. 677; Cooper, 'Athenæ Cantabrigienses,' ii. 239; Scaliger, 'Epistolæ,' pp. 208, 594, Leyden, 1627; 'Transactions of the Jewish Historical Society,' Eng. i. 27."--_Jewish Encyclopædia._

FINKELSTEIN, Rev. A. M., had a school for Jewish children in Philadelphia in 1885.

FINKELSTEIN, Rev. Samuel, a convert from Russia, emigrated to Australia and became pastor of a German church at Melbourne, where he also founded a mission to the Jews in 1868.

FLEGEL, Petrus, a convert, was Professor of Hebrew at the University of Strassburg in 1564. More is not known of him.

FLEISCHALKER, Rev. J. C, was educated at St. Chrischona College, near Basle. He laboured for a time as L.J.S. missionary in Jerusalem, where he was ordained by Bishop Gobat. In 1868 he became pastor of St. George's Episcopal Chapel, New York. He was a true servant of God.

FORTUNATUS, Wilhelm, a physician, became a convert to Christianity through the simple reading of the New Testament, and was baptized in Baden in 1639, (Wolff, Bibliotheca Hebraica 1, p. 564).

FOULD, Achille, French Statesman and Minister of Finance under two Napoleons, born in Paris in 1800 died in 1867. In the Jewish Encyclopædia, it is stated that he married into a Protestant family, and his children were educated in that faith, but he never formally abjured Judaism, though he was buried with the rites of the Protestant Church. But de le Roi states that in his ripe age, with full convictions, he joined the Reformed Church, of which he had always been a true member. The two statements are easily reconciled. He was a regular attendant at that Church for many years, but was only baptized in his old age. (See "Jewish Intelligence," 1868, p. 13.)

FRANCO, Rabbi Solomon, baptized in London in 1670. Wolff in Bib. Heb. 1678 records the fact that he took Ps. lxxxv. 11 as his motto, "Truth shall spring out of the earth," and tried to convince the Jews that the earthly promises to Israel have a higher spiritual meaning in their being realized in Christ Jesus.

FRANCO, Abraham and Jacob, Portuguese Jews, who had once the first city houses in London. Their posterity have all become Christians, according to Peixotto.

FRANK, Rev. Arnold, born in Hungary, baptized in 1877 at Hamburg, studied theology at Belfast, was appointed missionary at Altona in 1884, where he [1909] still labours faithfully with tokens of divine blessing. He is the author of a pamphlet entitled "The Jewish Problem and its Solution" (Belfast, 1883).

FRANKEL, Dr. B., has written his own history entitled, "Das Bekenntniss des Proselyten, das Unglück der Juden und ihre Emanzipation in Deutschland" (Elberfeld, 1841).

FRANKEL, Rev. E. B., was first a missionary of the British Society, and then entered the service of the L.J.S., and laboured successfully at Jerusalem until 1869, where he had the privilege of baptizing his own brother. From Jerusalem he was transferred to Damascus, where he laboured for some years both as a missionary and chaplain to the English community, holding evening classes and meeting the Jews at the book depôt; the latter was once set on fire. Then he went to Tunis, and together with his son-in-law, the Rev. E. H. Archer-Shepherd, laboured faithfully till he retired to Bournemouth, where he died in the Lord.

FRANKEL, Dr. Ivan, Medical Councillor in Berlin, became, as a convert, a great friend of the Jewish mission, and attended the Missionary Conference in 1870.

FRANKHEIM, a convert in Breslau, wrote two books: 1, "Doctrine of Cohesion" (Breslau, 1835), 2, "Popular Astronomy" (_ib._, 1827 and 1829).

FRAUENSTADT, Christian Martin Julius, German student of philosophy, born at Boyanawo, Posen, 1813; died at Berlin, 1879. He was educated at the house of his uncle at Neisse, and embraced Christianity in 1833. He wrote, "Studien und Kritiken zur Theologie und Philosophie," Berlin, 1840; "Ueber das Wahre Verhältniss der Vernunft zur Offenbahrung," Darmstadt, 1898; "Aesthetische Fragen," Dessau, 1853; "Die Natur wissenschaft in Ihren Einfluss auf Poesie, Religion, Moral, und Philosophie," _ib._, 1885; "Der Materialismus, seine Wahrheit und sein Irrthum," _ib._, 1856; "Briefe über die Natürliche Religion," _ib._, 1858; "Lichtstrahlen aus Immanuel Kants Werken," _ib._, 1872. He also wrote much about Schopenhauer's philosophy, whose works he edited in six volumes.

FRESHMAN, Rev. Jacob, was the son of a Hungarian Rabbi, who settled in Quebec, Canada, in 1855. His father officiated in the synagogue there for three years, and after becoming convinced of the truth of Christianity together with his wife, four sons and three daughters, were all baptized by the Rev. J. Elliot, then President of the Montreal Methodist Conference. Freshman, senior, was soon appointed as a Pastor among the Germans in the province, and laboured in this office for nine years. On account of his ability and learning, the degree of D.D. was conferred upon him. Several Jews were also brought to a knowledge of the truth through his ministry. He died through an accident in 1875. His son Jacob was an equally able and zealous man, established a mission to the Jews in New York City under the name, "Hebrew Christian Work." By his popular lectures to Christians on Jewish subjects, and by his earnest addresses to Jews, he won the hearts of both, and glorious results followed his ministry. Many of the converts became themselves ministers of the Gospel. Having built a church especially for this work, he retired from the mission to carry on private ministerial work.

FREY, Rev. (Joseph Samuel) Christian Friedrich, born at Stockheim, near Wurzburg, in 1771. His father was an assistant rabbi, in good circumstances, and a distinguished opponent of Christianity, owing to his wife's brother having become a Christian. The children were early prejudiced against Christianity by their home teacher, who read to them the story about Jesus as given in the "Toldoth Yeshu." At the age of eighteen Frey became a teacher and a precentor in small congregations. In the course of his wanderings he met a Christian merchant, who induced him to enquire into Christianity, and this happened repeatedly with others. He then learned the trade of shoemaking, and was finally converted in 1798, at Prenzlan, when his master, a worldly man, dismissed him on account of attending prayer meetings frequently. Encouraged by Christian friends he went to Berlin, and applied to Pastor Janicke for admission into his missionary training school in 1800. From there he went to London. Then, after holding meetings with Jews in Bury Street, Spitalfields, he wrote a most touching appeal to the Committee of the L.J.S. (or rather to those earnest Christian men who formed themselves later into a Committee) in 1801, and thus he gave the first impulse to the establishment of the London Society for Promoting Christianity amongst the Jews in 1809. (See "Our Missions," p. 19).

Of Frey's converts at that time an excellent one was Erasmus H. Simon, who after his baptism studied theology at Edinburgh, and went with Thelwall to Amsterdam, in 1820, to work in that city amongst the Jews, as he knew the Dutch language. In 1816 Frey went to America, where he assisted in the reconstruction of the already existing American Society for Evangelizing the Jews, under the title of "The Society for Ameliorating the Condition of the Jews in New York," under which he laboured for some time.

Frey is the author of a long and learned dialogue, entitled "Joseph and Benjamin;" also of a Hebrew Dictionary.

FRIEDBERG, Emil Albert von, born in Kanitz, 1837, studied law in Berlin and Heidelberg, became eventually Professor of Ecclesiastical Law at Leipzig in 1869, and was ennobled in Wittenberg. His published works on Church law are too numerous to mention here. (See de le Roi, vol. ii. 230, 231).

FRIEDBERG, Heinrich, born in Friedland, 1813, also a great lawyer, became, after holding important offices of state, Minister of Justice in Prussia, and received from the Emperor Frederick the Order of the Black Eagle.

FRIEDBERG, Eduard, also born in Friedland, in 1827, and evidently a relative or a brother of the preceding was baptized by Pastor Ideler.

FRIEDENTHAL, Karl Rudolf, embraced Christianity together with his parents and the whole family. In 1838 the family bought an estate near Neu Silesia, where they did much in the diffusion and strengthening of evangelical life in the midst of a Roman Catholic population. Friedenthal was born in Breslau, 1827, studied law, held offices under the Government, and then retired to the family estate, devoting his time to good works. He published a pamphlet in 1864, entitled "Solus Republicæ Supremæ," in which he strongly advocated the organization of charity to the poor. He was elected a member of the Reichsrath. During the Franco-German war he volunteered for the purpose of nursing the wounded. He died in 1890. A near relative, Major A. D. Friedenthal, likewise became an evangelical Christian.

FRIEDLANDER, Benjamin, born 1773, the son of David Friedländer, the friend of Mendelssohn, embraced Christianity at the age of 61, together with his wife. They, in this respect, followed the example of their children. The whole family were decided Christians, and one of them, Dr. Julius Friedländer, wrote a history of the Reformation, and a history of Numismatics, and other historical works.

FRIEDLANDER, Ludwig, born in Königsberg, 1824. As a Christian he became Professor of classical Philology and Archæology. He wrote "Wörterverzeichniss zu Homer," Leipzig, 1860; "Homerische Kritik von Wolf bis Grote," Berlin, 1853; "Darstellungen aus der Sittengeschichte Roms," 3 vols., 1862-71, in which his Christian principles especially appear.

FRIEDLANDER, Rev. Zebi Herman, a native of the Archduchy of Posen, was baptized by Dr. Ewald, in London, about 1862. By his piety and affectionate gentle disposition he exercised a salutary influence over the enquirers, whom, under Dr. Ewald, he also instructed. In 1870 he was sent by the L.J.S. to Tunis, after having laboured for a short time at Manchester. In 1873 he was transferred to Jerusalem, where he was ordained by Bishop Gobat. The Jerusalem Jews revered him more than any missionary before, because he had manifested to them practical love by being very charitable to the poor refugees from Russia, in 1885. He was chiefly instrumental in founding the Jewish agricultural colony at Artouf. He edited at that time a paper entitled, "Tidings from Zion." He went later on to New York, where he edited "The Peculiar People." He died there whilst engaged in prayer on his knees.

FRIEDMAN, Rev. George, a convert of Pastor Faltin, in Kischineff, became his assistant there about 1885. He then translated the Lutheran Catechism into Hebrew. Having afterwards sojourned for a time in Jerusalem, he went from there to London, and was after a while appointed by the British Society as missionary at Wilna, and he has since been doing faithful work for the Master in various towns in Russia. In 1895, the year of the great and horrible pogroms, he rendered great and immortal service by consoling and supporting the poor suffering Jews.

FRIEDMANN, Paul, born at Berlin about the middle of the nineteenth century. Although the son of a Jewish convert, he may exceptionally be mentioned here, as he is a very suitable illustration of the fact that Christians of Jewish origin cherish in their hearts warm affection to the people from whom they have sprung. Moved by a feeling of compassion towards the Jews, who suffered persecution in Russia between 1880-90, he visited the land of Midian in 1890, with the intention of founding a colony there. He, after due negotiation with the Egyptian Government, actually founded one in 1901, on the east side of the Gulf of Akabah, but the new colony did not last more than two months. Internal dissensions broke out between the leaders, who were Christians, and the Jews. Friedmann, who had sunk 170,000 marks in the project, brought a suit against the Egyptian Government for £25,000. The Russian Consul in Cairo also opened an investigation, and violent denunciatory articles appeared in the Egyptian press, especially in connexion with the death of one of the settlers, who had been forced to leave the encampment because of insubordination. In connexion with the venture Friedmann privately published "Das Land Madian," Berlin, 1891.

FRIEDMANN, Rev. Ben Zion, a native of Russia educated in the strictest school of the Pharisees, emigrated to Palestine between 1870-80, took up his abode in Safed, where he studied the Talmud with the other disciples of the Hahamim in the Beit-hamedrash. Whilst there he found Jesus Christ as his Saviour. In the same place he has been working as a missionary among his former friends and companions for many years, and is certainly regarded by them as one who has not, by embracing Christianity, forfeited a share in the world to come. Mr. Friedmann has been to a great extent the means of establishing a hospital for the Jews in Safed and a school for their children. He is the author of a tract, "Or Haolam" ("The Light of the World"), and he translated "Gideon and the Angel of the Lord" into Hebrew.

FRIEDRICH, J. C., wrote several works, among which are these--"Die Söhne Jacobs," "Weissagungs parallelen mit Virgil," Breslau, 1841, "De Christologia Samaritanum," Leipzig, 1881.

FROHLING, Carline, a Swedish converted Jewess, laboured as assistant missionary at Stockholm, in 1880-82, by conducting an industrial school in which poor Jewish children were taught useful work, and by visits among the resident families, and spreading the Gospel.

FROMMAN, Dr. Heinrich Christian Immanuel, physician and author, was one of the most distinguished converts in the first half of the eighteenth century in Germany. He had been studying in Dessau, under rabbi David Fränkel, when one day he visited a tailor who, on seeing him, began to weep. Asking for the cause, the tailor said that he was grieved by the thought that such a nice young man should be lost. Fromman thereupon rebuked him sharply--but the tailor did not mind it--and offered him a New Testament, urging him to read it. He went away, but came again another time and asked for the same Book, but when he saw it was written in German, which he could not read, he threw it on the table and left the house. He then went to a bookseller, wishing to buy a Bible, who demanded a thaler for it, which he could not afford to pay. However, the tears of the tailor gave him no rest, and at last he bought the German Old Testament, and spent whole nights in learning to read. Having acquired this knowledge, he was glad to receive the New Testament and to study it diligently. He then went to Gotha and confessed his faith in Christ, and was baptized about 1722 or 1723. During his study of medicine, he translated the Gospel of St. Luke into Judæo-German, in 1730. Later he translated other parts of the New Testament. Having written the tract, "Das Licht am Abend" ("Light at Eventide"), which is still circulated and appreciated among the Jews, he managed to acquire the art of setting up type and of printing when he was an inmate of the Callenberg Institute, and produced the work with his own hands as well as mind. He also wrote and translated other Christian books, and composed the fundamental part of the rabbinic commentary on St. Luke, which Dr. Biesenthal perfected and brought to light.

FUERST, Dr. A., a native of Pommern, Germany, when only fourteen years old, heard the L.J.S. missionary Moritz discussing Christianity with the Jews in his native town, and received from him a Bible. Another time he received a tract from the L.J.S. missionary Hartmann, which made a strong impression upon him. After studying in a seminary for teachers, in Schneidemuhl (Posen), he went to England, and was instructed and baptized by the Rev. Ridley Herschell in 1856. Subsequently he was appointed by the British Society as a missionary in England. From 1867 to 1871 Dr. Fürst laboured among the Jews in Stettin. He then entered the service of the Free Church of Scotland, and was stationed at Prague, Amsterdam, and Strasburg, and latterly he retired to Stuttgart, where he still bore testimony to the Jews of the assured hope of salvation, through his Master whom he so long and faithfully served. Dr. Fürst was a fine scholar, and he wrote a book entitled, "Christen und Juden Licht und Schattenbilder aus Kirche und Synagoge," Strasburg, 1892.

GANS, Eduard, born in Berlin, 1798, studied, and through the influence of the philosopher Hegel, embraced Christianity in 1825, and in 1828 became professor in the Berlin University. He wrote, among other works, "Das Erbrecht in Weltgeschichtlicher Entwickelung" (4 vols.), Stuttgart, 1834, which was translated into French by Leoménie, Paris, 1845; "Ein System des römischen Civil Rechts," Berlin, 1827. He edited Hegel's "Geschichte der Philosophie," and "Jahrbücher für wissenschaftliche Kritik." He died as professor in 1839.

GELBFLAUM, Rev. Isidor, was born in the city of Warsaw, in Russian Poland, in the year 1865, of orthodox Jewish parents. We cull the following from his autobiography:--"My father was a corn merchant in very comfortable circumstances. His desire from the day of my birth was to bring me up in strict adherence with Rabbinical traditions, and I, on my part, followed dutifully and cheerfully the guidance of my dear father. But very early in my career, God graciously intervened, and in 1877 I came into contact with a colporteur of the British and Foreign Bible Society, who sold me a copy of the Hebrew New Testament. Though I was only then in my thirteenth year, I nevertheless read the newly-acquired treasure with intense longing to find out whether Jesus of Nazareth was the Messiah. I used diligently to read the New Testament whenever the opportunity presented itself. One day my father suddenly came into the room where I was reading the Acts of the Apostles. He immediately demanded the production of the book, and I instantly gave it to him. A few weeks later on I had occasion to be in the market-place, and I purchased another copy of the same colporteur, which I read with greater caution. Although I thus read the Book again and again, I could not understand it, much less could I apply its contents. I was like the Ethiopian eunuch, and needed some one to explain to me the meaning of the revelation of God's purpose to mankind. Soon after an event occurred which contributed greatly to determining my spiritual future. My parents, noticing the abatement of my zeal for rabbinical Judaism, decided to send me to a _Yeshiba_, and they determined on Pressburg, in Hungary. I had not been in Pressburg more than a week, when I was brought into contact with a Hebrew Christian missionary from Vienna, who was visiting the place at the time for missionary work. He spent over an hour with me explaining the things of God, and directing my attention to the Messiahship of the Lord Jesus. I remained in Pressburg till the spring of 1881, after which I returned to Warsaw. In 1885 a Protestant Christian lady in Warsaw became interested in me, and by her advice, and with a letter of introduction to the late Rev. Dr. Stern, I came to England in June of that year, only to find that my would-be instructor had been called home to his rest. I waited till the arrival of the Rev. J. M. Eppstein, who instructed me and subsequently baptized me in 1886. I then entered the Operative Jewish Converts' Institution, and passed the following two years there in happy association with other converts to Christ. In 1888 I offered my services to and was accepted by the London City Mission, and worked among my brethren in the East End of London till March, 1893, when I was appointed by the British Society, and ultimately sent to Leeds. Since coming to that city, I have been the humble instrument, in God's hand, of leading many of my brethren to Christ, two of whom have become Christian ministers, one in the west of England and the other in the United States of America. A third convert given to me is an earnest Sunday school teacher, and a fourth a local preacher."

GELLERT, Alexander, was a missionary of the L.J.S., first in England and then, in 1861, in Roumania, where he had some fruits of his labours, and died in 1870.

GELLING, Michael, was born 1597, and baptized 1616. He translated in Hamburg R. Isaac Troki's "Chizzuk Emunah," 1633, into German. Dr. John Müller made use of this MS. in his "Judaismus detectus," 1694, and it came into possession of M. Chr. Ziegra. Wolff in his "Bibliotheca Hebraica," iv. p. 639, gives detailed information about this MS. and a specimen of Gelling's translation. Bishop Kidder wrote a refutation of the "Chizzuk Emunah" in his "Demonstration of the Messiah," in 1694. Jacob Gusset likewise in his "Controversarium adversus Judaeos ternio," Dortrecht, 1688. The whole was edited by Arnold Borst, and published in 1712, at Amsterdam, under the title, "Jesu Christi Evangeliique Veritas, salutifera, demonstrata in confutatione libri Chizzuk Emunah." The Rev. A. Lukyn Williams is now answering the same in English, and the writer is translating it into Yiddish.

GERMANUS, Johannes Isaac Levita, having been convinced that Isaiah liii. was a Messianic prophecy and fulfilled in Jesus, was baptized with his wife and his son Stephen by Joh. Draconites in 1546. Later he became professor of Hebrew in London and in Cologne. He wrote a controversial work entitled: "Defensio veritatis Hebraicae," Cologne, 1558, also a Hebrew grammar, "Mebo Imre Shofar," which passed through several editions; a treatise on the book of Ruth; and translated some of the works of Maimonides and Juda Ibn Tibon into Latin. His son, Stephen, who was a physician, translated the prophet Malachi into Latin.

GEROLD, Rev. G. L., was a rabbinical student in Breslau, baptized by Dr. Stern in the year of his death, graduated at Cambridge, was ordained in 1898, and is now Rector of Easthope, Much Wenlock, Salop, in the diocese of Hereford.

GERSON, Christian ben Meir Biberbach, born at Reeklichhausen, August 1, 1567, received the usual Talmudical education, and was a teacher in several places. A neighbour, who was a Christian woman, borrowed from him ten pence, giving him as security a Lutheran New Testament. Curious to know the source of the Christian errors, he and his two brothers-in-law read it with much amusement. Yet finding there quotations from the Old Testament, he continued reading it more earnestly, comparing Scripture with Scripture, until his conscience was awakened and felt the need of salvation through Christ. He wrote afterwards--"I found such light, for which I have to thank the Lord God all my life." He was baptized by Pastor Silberschlag at Halberstadt, October 19, 1600. Gerson's son Stephen was baptized years later, but his wife got a divorce from him. He then taught Hebrew at Copenhagen, and eventually, after being persuaded by friends, he became a preacher of the Gospel. Testimony is given him that he heartily loved his people, and defended them against blood accusations. His works are: "Des Jüdischer Talmud fürnehmster Inhalt und Widerlegung," Gislav, 1707, Gera, 1613. A German translation of the eleventh chapter of Tract Sanhedrin. Gerson died on October 22, 1642, only 47 years old, as a preacher of the Gospel, in poverty. He was pastor of two parishes, receiving a stipend of six gulden, and had to work as a farm labourer for his living. In the Jewish Encyclopædia it is stated that Gerson was drowned at Roelheim, September 25, 1627. Here is a specimen of the contradictory statements of historians.

GERSON, Rev. Marks, was born in Kovno, Poland, in 1879. His father died when he was four, and his mother when he was thirteen. Up to that age he received the usual Jewish education and his elder brother kept him at school for another year, but then he had to make a start to earn his own living. He worked with relatives for five years, and then came to London, where the "Hebrew Christian Testimony" was instrumental in leading him to Christ. In 1898 he was admitted into the Operative Jewish Converts' Institution, and in December of the same year was baptized by the Rev. G. H. Händler in Christ Church, Stepney. In June, 1899, he was confirmed by the Bishop of Stepney, and in 1901 he was accepted by the Church Missionary Society for training first at Clapham Common, then at Blackheath, and subsequently at the College in Islington. On the 18th of June, 1905, he was ordained in St. Paul's Cathedral, and since then he has laboured with good success in India: being stationed at present in Calcutta.

GERSTMAN, W. A., was a missionary of the L.J.S. at Jerusalem in 1837, and then on account of illness was transferred to Constantinople in 1840.

GINSBURG, Rev. Dr. Christian David, born at Warsaw, December 25, 1821, embraced Christianity there in 1846, was missionary of the British Society in Liverpool till 1863, when he retired in order to devote himself entirely to literary work. Dr. Ginsburg contributed a considerable number of valuable articles on Jewish topics to Kitto's Encyclopædia, published a book on the Karaites and Essenes, and a full account in English of the Kabbalah, its doctrines, development, and literature. But he will be especially remembered for his massoretic studies, and translation of Elias Levita's "Massoreth-ha-Massorah" in 1867, and of Jacob ben Hayim's "Introduction to the Rabbinic Bible," published in the same year. He was on the Revision Committee of the Old Testament. He edited the Massoretic Critical Text of the Hebrew Bible for the Trinitarian Bible Society, 1894, and also Salkinson's translation of the New Testament into Hebrew, 1886.

GINSBURG, Rev. J. B. Crighton, was instructed and baptized by the L.J.S. missionary Hausmeister, at Strasburg. After doing good work in England, and not without results, he laboured for many years in Algeria. Among his converts there were Moses Ben Oliel and T. E. Zerbib. He then laboured faithfully in Mogador, amidst many difficulties and trials, and lastly he had the charge of the mission at Constantinople from 1886, till the time of his death there, when he entered into the higher service of Heaven.

GOLDBERG, Dr. John Benjamin, was one of a number of rabbis and learned men, who were converted to Christianity in Jerusalem in the first half of the nineteenth century. He was baptized in Christ Church, Jerusalem by Nicolayson, in 1843. He had consequently to undergo much persecution and loss of property. In 1847 we find him as a preacher of the Gospel to his brethren in Cairo, and then, on account of illness; he was transferred to Salonica. In 1851 he was appointed as missionary at Constantinople, and from there he went, in 1860, to Smyrna. Goldberg was a most spiritually-minded and lovable man. His latter years he spent in England, and contributed to the "Hebrew Christian Witness," in 1874, two learned and very valuable and extensive articles on "The Language of Christ," and on "The Future Division of the Land of Israel."

GOLDBERG, Johann Peter, missionary to the Jews. We give the following extracts from his life and work, edited by his son-in-law, the Rev. J. A. Hausmeister:--

"It might appear strange that Goldberg should so soon give up his acquired profession and become a teacher; but the fact is, that, from his earliest years, he showed a disposition more for intellectual employment than for business, for the latter he never displayed any great talent. At the same time, he did not conceal his religious, or, rather, anti-Jewish tendencies, as he was always open and straightforward. These were in his case tolerated, because he was respected on account of his learning, and in a few years he was duly appointed as teacher of the whole Jewish community.

"Concerning his conversion, he, in his reminiscences, tells the story thus: 'On New Year's eve, 1803, I and several Jews went, out of curiosity, to the Hall, where the congregation of the Moravian brethren worshipped. Here, I heard, for the first time, of the birth, the destiny, the suffering, death, and the resurrection of our Saviour, and seized by a kind of foreboding feeling, my heart was filled with joy and happiness. Deeply touched, I left that sacred house with the resolve to visit it often, and the impressions of the love of God to men were so forcibly within me, that they also accompanied and refreshed me in my sleep. Yet, alas! this beneficial impression vanished soon, by reason of the implanted prejudices against Christianity, and of the unbelief which had already taken root in me, even in the Scriptures of the Old Testament. But since that night I felt, more and more, a disconsolate emptiness in my heart, though I continued, at a distance, from the way of life.' We hear here the knockings of God on the door of an erring heart, which refused to open itself. How often must the gracious God visit a man, now with love and then with affliction, before He can gain admittance into his soul. But a Jew has still more difficulties to contend against; for the prejudices against Christianity, which he imbibes from his youth, arise from the natural heart as soon as it has come under the influence of the truth. He has to contend not only against the enemy of unbelief, but also against the enemy of superstition, which bars his way in every direction. Though Goldberg was surrounded by various Christians at Neuwied, and came, sometimes, in contact with the Moravian brethren, yet many years passed before he submitted to the Word of God, and found the peace which the world can neither give nor take away. It is very telling for the character of Goldberg that he chose Neuwied for his home. With his former principal at Hamburg, he continued a friendly correspondence, and received from him repeated invitations to return to the situation, where every prospect for his advancement and happiness awaited him. But he was firm, and felt no matrimonial inclinations for the rich merchant's daughter, but rather chose for his partner the daughter of Solomon Rubens, the Jewish butcher at Neuwied. They were married in 1806, and she brought him something better than money--a true and loving heart; which helped him to carry his burden, and was ready with him to cast that burden upon the mighty shoulders of the Saviour, and to participate in his joy and peace. Nevertheless, many a rivulet flows into the Rhine, and the couple had to drink much of the bitter waters of Marah, before they tasted of the cup of salvation. I will only mention a few instances:--

"When Goldberg established his own home, he resumed his connexion with his family, not only by correspondence but by paying them a visit, which he had long yearned to do. In the very fruitful year of 1811 he started upon his journey, in spite of the dissuasion of the Austrian ambassador at Frankfort, who had told him that he was liable to punishment in his country, because he had failed to present himself for military service. Safely arrived at Regensburg, the superintendent of the police refused at first to give a _visé_ to his passport for Austria, as it had not the signature of the ambassador, but he and his wife at last prevailed over the officer. In Vienna, again, the police told him that he would have to be transported home as a transgressor of the law, but through the influence of a banker, a cousin of Goldberg, and by means of a bribe, he was permitted to remain some time in Vienna unmolested. On his return journey to the Rhine he experienced immediate Divine protection, even in a more striking manner. He had made this journey on foot, and came one day very tired to a village and rested a little in an hotel. Black clouds covered the sky and announced the approach of a storm, when Goldberg resumed his march, though against the warning of the hostess, as he was very anxious to see his wife and children as soon as possible. As soon as he entered a thick forest, the rain came down in torrents, accompanied by thunder and lightning, and the wanderer had to stop. There was an open space in the forest with only a few stumps of trees in it, and he was meditating upon which of the stumps he should sit down. He decided for the one which stood on the right. Scarcely had he sat down, when the stump on the left was struck by lightning and shivered to pieces. He was thus much impressed with the wonderful protecting care of the providence of God.

"The Jews have many nice customs and rites as well as beautiful prayers. When the Spirit of God will some day revive this people, then will many a Jewish form and custom, which is now performed like an empty ceremony, be exercised in spirit and leave a blessing. One of these customs is, that after the service on the Sabbath and on feast days, the children approach the parents, who lay their hands on them and bless them.[13] Also, when a Jew goes on a journey, the members of his family follow him and pronounce a blessing. It was so before Goldberg started on his journey that his mother-in-law laid her hands on his head, blessed him, and then added: 'Farewell, we shall never see one another again.' Yet Goldberg could not believe that these parting words would be fulfilled. When on his journey back he spent a night at Regensburg, and awoke early in the morning, there suddenly appeared to him near his bed, the form of a friendly woman, dressed in white, who looked at him complacently. He recognized her as his mother-in-law, looked at his watch, it was four o'clock, and was greatly astonished. He rose up and resumed his journey, and when he arrived at Frankfort, he met a Jew from Neuwied, of whom he enquired after his family, and was told by him that they were all well, and at last that his mother-in-law had died. Now he understood the meaning of the apparition. He used often to refer to this event and say: 'You know that I am no believer in ghost stories, yet I have, myself, experienced, and am convinced, that spirits can be in communication with one another.' Deeply moved, he returned to his family, and his arrival was to them a great comfort.

[13] This custom is very seldom seen nowadays.

"We should have thought that all these experiences would have caused Goldberg to think right earnestly of making his peace with God, but this was not yet the case. When a man does not read the Word of God with prayer, and does not seek the influence of the Holy Spirit, no conversion can take place in his heart. Goldberg, at this period, had lost all faith in the Bible. He belonged to a society of so-called enlightened Jews at Neuwied, who contributed to a periodical entitled 'Measaph.' He, himself, wrote many nice Hebrew articles, with the object of enlightening his co-religionists, though his own mind was yet surrounded by darkness. His Jewish friends and some Christians used to read novels together, and lived according to the pernicious principles which the frivolous books inculcated. But though he was a member of this circle, yet the good hand of the invisible God kept him from falling into gross sins, so that all his experiences of Divine help and protection contributed, at least, to maintain in him the fear of God. He used often to speak of this with great thankfulness.

"The Lord had also continually given him a cross to bear, in order to bend his stiff neck. In those times of dreadful wars, Goldberg, on account of his knowledge of the Polish and Russian languages, was often obliged to act as interpreter among the troops of these nations who had their quarters there.

"In 1814, he was called one evening, very late, to quiet an uproar that had arisen among the Russian soldiers. This accomplished, he returned home late in the night, and in the darkness he did not observe a waggon that stood in the way, and fell over the shaft and broke his leg; and, consequently, was laid up for several weeks.

"In November, 1815, a daughter was born to him; another, four years of age, suddenly died on the same day. His wife, likewise, fell into a dangerous illness, which lasted twenty-four weeks, and from continued watching by her bedside, he became exhausted and extremely dejected. He described his experience of that time thus:--'Placed in a condition of tedious misery and all kinds of sorrow, and not having a single sympathetic soul to comfort me, I became utterly dejected. I could not think of God with a feeling heart, and, therefore, suffered indescribable pangs in body and soul. When once I lay down at midnight, and placed my miserable condition vividly before me, a feeling of despair seized me, and I cried out: "Lord, how long?" But immediately God set me up by instilling a beam of hope within my soul, that He would soon deliver me out of my trouble. This new hope revived me, and I felt peace; my wife, also, became better that very night and felt a refreshing influence. Then I went in a corner, wept and prayed for the help of God in the sense of Ps. xxxii. and xxxviii., and vowed to the Lord to read again His Word with reverence, and to place myself entirely under His guidance, and to be no longer so distrustful. From this moment another Spirit had the rule over me. Injurious books which had led me to unbelief were laid aside, and the Bible had a new attraction for me. Now also a longing after the promised Redeemer revived in me. In this manner, He who searches the hearts, and is near to them who seek Him in sincerity, prepared me gradually for the time when He, as the good Shepherd, would completely open the door to His fold for me, and translate me out of the darkness into His marvellous light.' So Goldberg could speak after he had already come to the knowledge of Jesus; but the way in which this was brought about was, in its beginning, obscure. He, himself, tells of the first occasion thereto:

"'In August, 1817, a learned Jew, who had recently come from London, where he was teacher for a long time, sent for me, and told me, in a cautioning tone, that a certain gentleman had visited him on that day and put the astonishing question to him whether there were not some Jews there who would be inclined to read the New Testament in the Hebrew language; in which case he could supply them with it gratis. Then, he added, that there is in London a Society for Promoting Christianity amongst the Jews, having agents abroad of whom this gentleman must be one, and, therefore, I should beware of coming in contact with him. But this communication effected a different impression upon me to that which was intended. The gentleman against whom I was warned was neither a preacher nor a missionary, but a universally respected merchant, by the name of Keetman. I had a great desire of becoming acquainted with this dangerous man, who took so much trouble to visit the Jews and to talk to them on religious matters, and as I was not in the habit of visiting people without any occasion, this desire increased the more. At last I ventured, one Saturday, to go to Mr. Keetman, and say to him that I had heard that he had Hebrew books, and if he wished me to copy them I should be ready to do so.' In this manner Goldberg became acquainted with an earnest and warm friend of Israel, and this acquaintanceship formed a new chapter in his life, which I cannot better designate than his awakening."