Ehud
| From what section of the land did the Moabites come who warred against the Israelites in the time of the judge Ehud? | 315 H.T. |
| This is the same Moab to which the family of Naomi and Elimelech went to escape famine in their native city of Bethlehem (35 T.J.), which was six miles south of Jerusalem. | |
| {107} | |
| By what physical formation were the people of Bethlehem able to see that there was food in the land of Moab? | 487 T.J. |
Gideon
| Locate the land of the Midianites, the Arab wanderers who oppressed Israel in the time of Gideon. [Map] | 319 H.T. |
| (This is said to be the same country whither Moses fled when he killed the Egyptian, 141 H.T.) |
Samuel
(Map, page 14 T.J.)
| By noting the three great cities of Philistia, Ashdod, Askelon, and Gath, give the general location of the land of the Philistines, the people so long at enmity with the Israelites (342 H.T.,360 H.T., 375 H.T.) from whose hosts came the giant Goliath (386 H.T.) | 493 H.T. |
Saul
| Locate the country of Gilead where at Jabesh Saul's first battle was fought. | 359 H.T. |
| (Note how the people of Jabesh-gilead later remembered Saul's help. 359 H.T., 381 H.T., 494 H.T.) |
David
(Map, page 14 T.J.)
| Where was the town of Gath, the home of the giant Goliath? | 386 H.T., 497 H.T. |
| (Note that later King Uzziah broke down the walls of Gath. 287 T.J., 288 T.J.) | |
| Locate the land belonging to the tribe of Judah on whose hills David lived as a boy and tended sheep. | 382 H.T. |
Solomon
| Describe the location of the city of Jerusalem, the capital of the kingdom of David and Solomon. Give its position with respect to the Dead Sea, the Mediterranean, Dan, and Beer-sheba. | 461 H.T. |
| Did the Queen of Sheba come far to visit Solomon? Trace what was probably her route. Note how far Solomon's fame had spread. | 487 H.T., 498 H.T. |
| {108} | |
| Locate Ezion-geber, the town on the Red Sea from which Solomon sent his ships to trade in Egypt and Arabia. [Map] | 482 H.T., 498 H.T. |
| (Note that the same people who were formerly in bitter bondage in Egypt were trading on equal terms with that nation. 498 H.T.). |
Deborah
(Map, page 14 T.J.)
| What general section of the Israelitish country was concerned in the story of Deborah? | 487 T.J. |
| Locate the principal places: the hill country of Ephraim near the country belonging to the tribe of Naphtali from which Barak came to seek Deborah's help, 52 T.J., 53 T.J.; Bethel where Deborah lived, 52 T.J. |
Elijah and Elisha
(Map, page 112 T.J.)
| Trace out the journeys of Elijah from Samaria, the capital of Ahab's kingdom (113 T.J.) to Zarephath, where the widow served him, 114 T.J., 115 T.J.; Mount Carmel near Jezreel where he met the prophets of Baal, 116-122 T.J.; Beer-sheba, where he left his servant, 123 T.J.; Mount Horeb, where he received new courage, 123 T.J., 124 T.J.; Jezreel, the scene of Naboth's vineyard, 127-130 T.J.; the Jordan, near Jerusalem, where Elijah was taken in a chariot of fire and where Elisha took up his work, 130-134 T.J. leper who came to Elisha to be healed. | 143-147 T.J. |
Jonah
| Locate Joppa, from which place Jonah sailed to Tarshish. Locate Nineveh to which he finally went. [Map] | 165-171 T.J., 493 T.J. |
Samson
(Map, page 14 T.J.)
| Locate the city of Dan which was Samson's home, and in general the scenes of his raids into Philistia. | 172-182 T.J., 493 T.J. |
Daniel
| Locate Babylon, where Daniel lived in the court of Nebuchadnezzar. [Map] | 183 T.J. |
Esther, Nehemiah
| Locate Shushan, prominent in the stories of Esther and Nehemiah. [Map] | 60 T.J., 212 T.J., 488 T.J. |
Life of Jesus
(Use map, page 24 L.J., in addition to map in this volume.)
The scenes of Jesus' life were laid in many places throughout the land of Palestine. These places are here tabulated and divided according to the periods of His life. Three practical tests are proposed:--
(1) How many of the places given below suggest to you familiar stories?
(2) How many of these scenes can you locate on the map?
(3) Make an outline of the life of Jesus from the sequence of events here given by writing out in brief the incident connected with each place.
The Boyhood
| Bethlehem of Judea. | 37 L.J. |
| Jerusalem. | 49 L.J. |
| Egypt. | 45 L.J. |
| Nazareth. | 49 L.J. |
Preparation for the Ministry
| The Jordan River. | 65 L.J. |
| The Wilderness near Jericho. | 70 L.J. |
The Ministry
| Cana. | 78 L.J. |
| Samaria. | 82 L.J. |
| The Mount of Beatitudes. | 105 L.J., 107 L.J., 108 L.J. |
| Capernaum. | 125 L.J. |
| The City of Nain. | 130 L.J. |
| The Lake of Gennesaret. | 136 L.J., 489 L.J. |
| The Banquet Hall of Herod. | 154 L.J. |
| The Pool of Bethesda. | 167 L.J., 489 L.J. |
| Caesarea Philippi. | 178 L.J. |
| Bethany. | 215 L.J. |
| Jericho. | 221 L.J. |
Passion Week
| An Upper Chamber. | 249 L.J. |
| The Mount of Olives. | 264 L.J. |
| Palace of the High Priest. | 269 L.J. |
| Pilate's Palace. | 272 L.J. |
| The Palace of Herod. | 275 L.J. |
| Pilate's Judgment Hall. | 276 L.J. |
| Golgotha (Calvary) | 281 L.J. |
| Joseph's Garden. | 286 L.J. |
The Resurrection
| The Village of Emmaus. | 301 L.J. |
| The Sea of Galilee. | 307 L.J. |
| The Mount of Ascension. | 310 L.J. |
| Trace out on the map on 381 L.J. the first missionary journey of Paul. | 376 L.J. |
| Trace out on the map on 393 L.J. Paul's second missionary journey. | 392 L.J. |
| Trace out on the map on 415 L.J. Paul's third missionary journey. | 417 L.J. |
| Follow the route on 449 L.J. of Paul's journey to Rome. | 462 L.J. |
PART IV
THE BIBLE IN LITERATURE
For Lovers of Literature
"It is surely good that our youth, during the formative period, should have displayed to them, in a literary dress as brilliant as that of Greek literature, in lyrics which Pindar cannot surpass, in rhetoric as forcible as that of Demosthenes, or contemplative prose not inferior to Plato's--a people dominated by an utter passion for righteousness."
--Richard G. Moulton.
THE BIBLE IN LITERATURE
THE BIBLE'S PLACE IN LITERATURE
It may well be said that, like our English speech, our literature has drawn its material and its inspiration from many tongues and peoples. Its sources are world-wide. Its stream flows from innumerable springs and fountains. Some of them have been shallow and some have given up only the waters of bitterness, but many there are which keep the current broad and pure and deep. And of those fountains that ever pour out living water the most abounding is our English Bible.
So abundantly has our literature drawn from the Bible that a study of it is the very beginning of the knowledge of English writings. He alone can be called educated who knows this Book; for its style, its substance and its spirit are thoroughly woven into the thought and language of English-speaking people.
In the age of Elizabeth, when the Bible was translated, our English words were coming fresh coined to our language from the mint of life. New words were being made out of men's experiences. Such words brought the pictures and images of things and actions vividly to the mind as our abstract speech of to-day can never do. It was this living, concrete language which men like Tindale and Coverdale wrought into what became the King James Version; and with such mastery that to this day the Bible has no peer in the vigor, the directness, and the simplicity of its style. Then, too, in those days religious belief was often a matter of life and death. Many of the translators finally gave up their lives rather than to renounce their convictions, and it could only be that such men would give to the Bible a style that breathes always the noble dignity and earnestness of martyrs.
Thus he who would appraise our English writings must weigh whatever they possess of the earnestness, the simplicity, the vigor, the directness of the Bible. He must himself have mastered well that great source of English style.
Then who shall measure the treasures of the Bible substance that our writers have poured into their books? The Bible has contributed their language, their plots, their incidents, their characters, their moral lessons, even their names. Words can no more than faintly suggest how full to overflowing of the Bible is our literature. An allusion from the Scriptures adorns almost every page of such writers as Browning and Ruskin. Five hundred Biblical allusions appear in the Ring and the Book alone. Thousands of them are scattered through Shakespeare and in their use the poet climbs perhaps oftenest to the heights of his genius. It has been said that no other passage in Shakespeare has the sublimity of that one patterned by the lover of Jessica from the Book of Job:--
[Footnote: Lorenzo thus addresses Jessica. (See page 157.)]
Is thick inlaid with patines of bright gold;
There's not the smallest orb which thou behold'st
But in his motion like an angel sings."
Our masters of poetry and prose have thus become the Bible's messengers; but such also are the lesser writers and speakers of every day. The Bible words find a response that is universal; for Truth knows no chosen vessel but rather has chosen all. Story and lyric, epic and drama, alike carry onward the Bible's messages and continue to spread their truth among all people of the English tongue.
But perhaps most precious of all the Bible's contributions to our literature is the gift of its spirit. The creators of the best in English have shared that spirit in that their works have shared the Bible's lofty purposes. Who so earnestly preaches the living of a life as John Bunyan in Pilgrim's Progress? Who more resembles the Hebrew seer warning his people of their danger, than Lincoln, when with solemn prophecy he declares: "'A house divided against itself cannot stand.' I believe this government cannot endure permanently half slave and half free"? Carlyle calling the world to repentance, Dickens and Thackeray calling it to reform, Emerson pointing new heights for reason and faith and love, Browning proclaiming "The best is yet to be"--each in his own way seeks to bring in the Kingdom. And what is the spirit of the Bible, unless it be the spirit of a people seeking after God if haply they might find Him?
If we should study what has called out the best in men or letters in order that we may understand that best, how much more ought we to know the Bible for itself. The deep experiences of the soul are the {115} stuff of which literature is made; and in language whose appeal is alike to the wise and the simple this Book dramatizes the life of the soul. Though struggling much between right and wrong and falling often, the Old Testament heroes groped their way upward to better things, and established their belief in one God upon a firm foundation. Their story is the epic of the soul's struggle and victory; but it is also the revelation of humanity's past, the mirror of its present of progress and defeat, the prophecy of its triumphant future. The Psalms, in the words of Heine, collect within themselves "sunrise and sunset, birth and death, promise and fulfillment--the whole drama of humanity." Excepting only those of the New Testament literature, no authors of any land or time have seized upon truths so unchanging and so everlasting as the writers of Job and the books of the Prophets. Ignoring life's vanities, soaring far above the things that are temporal, these writings ever summon the minds of men to dwell upon things eternal.
Finally in the literature of the New Testament the victories of faith replace the victories of war; the groping instinct of survival is justified in the Demonstration of Immortality; the Cult of the Chosen People gives way to the Gospel of Universal Brotherhood; the Omnipotent Creator is revealed also the God of Love; the Deity of Retribution and Justice becomes a Father; Man, the Child.
QUESTIONS BRINGING OUT THE BIBLE'S LITERARY VALUE
1. The Poetry of the Bible
| What is the difference between the rhythm of Hebrew poetry and that of English poetry? | 11 S.A. |
| What three forms does this rhythm take? | 12 S.A. |
| In the words quoted from Jesus are any of these forms used? | 13 S.A. |
| What is the richest part of Biblical poetry? | 13 S.A. |
Rhythm and Feeling
What form of rhythm illustrated on page 12 S.A. is used in the psalms:
| The Righteous Man. | 19 S.A. |
| A Morning Prayer. | 20 S.A. |
| A Song of Deliverance. | 26 S.A. |
| A Song in Time of Trouble. | 61 S.A. |
| The Cry of the Needy. | 98 S.A. |
| Idols of Silver and Gold. | 136 S.A. |
| Our Father. | 118 S.A. |
| A Pilgrim Song. | 156 S.A. |
| What two qualities, necessary to Hebrew poetry, are found in Deborah's Song of Triumph? | 54-59 T.J., 11 S.A. |
| What deep feeling prompted the Song of Judith? | 105-107 T.J. |
| How can the "Song of Songs" be compared with the lyrical poetry of the Elizabethan period in England? | 234-239 S.A. |
The Psalms a Collection of Lyric Poetry
| For what purpose was the Book of Psalms written? | 17 S.A. |
| What is the leading theme of the Psalms? | 17 S.A. |
| Mention some of the other themes. | 17 S.A. |
| Name the Psalm in which every verse, it is said, contains a reference to the law of God. | 505 S.A. |
| {117} | |
| In what way is Psalm 119 (143 S.A.) an alphabetic Psalm? | 505 S.A. |
Ruskin says that, among others, Psalms 1, 8, 15, 19, 23, 24, well studied and believed, are sufficient for all personal guidance. What principles of conduct are enjoined in:--
| The Righteous Man. | 19 S.A. |
| Little Lower than God. | 22 S.A. |
| The Upright Man. | 23 S.A. |
| Song of the Earth and Sky. | 30 S.A. |
| The Good Shepherd. | 35 S.A. |
| The Earth is the Lord's. | 36 S.A. |
| Ruskin says that Psalm 72 contains many principles of just government. State in modern terms some of the principles of government enjoined in "The Righteous King". | 88 S.A. |
| Ruskin says that Psalm 104 anticipates the triumphs of natural sciences. From the reading of the Psalm can you suggest those anticipated? Read note 503 S.A. | 120 S.A. |
| Compare Manasseh's prayer, 320 T.J., with the Prayer of Repentance. | 75 S.A. |
| Can you suggest an act of David to which this Psalm is probably related? | 75 S.A. |
Job a Dramatic Poem
| What characteristic makes Job a dramatic poem? | 180 S.A. |
| What is the distinction between Hebrew drama, as illustrated in Job, and the Greek and English drama? | 180 S.A. |
| What is the central theme of the book of Job? | 179 S.A. |
| What are the characters of the book of Job? | 178 S.A. |
| Trace the dramatic climax in the messages brought to Job. | 182 S.A. |
| Locate Job's two sublime statements of faith, often quoted. | 194 S.A., 200 S.A. |
| What description of man, noted in literature, does Job give? | 195 S.A. |
| What great question asked by Job is the theme of many poems, such as Tennyson's "In Memoriam"? | 195 S.A. |
| Give the summary of the thought contained in the first cycle of speeches. | 195 S.A. |
| Give the summary of the thought contained in the second cycle. | 204 S.A. |
| Give the summary of the thought contained in the third cycle. | 213 S.A. |
| {118} | |
| What does Elihu add to the thought of the poem? | 221 S.A. |
| What reply does the book of Job give to the question, "Why do good people suffer?" | 231 S.A. |
The Apocalypse a Rhapsody
| Dr. Richard G. Moulton calls the Apocalypse a rhapsody, or a fusion of all other styles of Hebrew writing. Can you discover evidences of the dramatic lyric and narrative styles used? | 456-478 S.A. |
| The proper preparation for appreciating the Apocalypse, it is said, is the study of other Hebrew rhapsodies, in particular Isaiah and Zechariah. What similarity can you find in "Visions of the Heavenly City" and Isaiah's "Awake, O Zion"? | 286 S.A. |
| What similarity can you find both of style and content in the Apocalypse, 456-478 S.A., and Zechariah's "Vision Rhapsody"? | 401-407 S.A. |
Hero Poems
| What is the book of Jashar? | 306 H.T., 426 H.T., 493 H.T. |
2. The Oratory in the Bible
| Compare the opening sentences of the speech on Mars Hill with those of Paul's sermon at Antioch; how, or in what characteristic, does the contrast show that Paul was a great speaker? | 380 L.J., 407 L.J. |
| Senator Albert J. Beveridge says Paul's speech on Mars Hill has never been excelled in brevity of statement and in force of thought, and that in these regards it compares favorably with Lincoln's speech at Gettysburg. How does Paul gain his audience's attention? How does he compliment the Greeks in the course of his speech? What is the substance of his argument against paganism? What thoughts form the principal message of this speech? | 407 L.J., 408 L.J. |
| It is said that Moses' speeches to the children of Israel during their wanderings in the wilderness are examples of fine oratory, sometimes producing upon the people all the effect of drama. In his speech on pages 271 H.T., 272 H.T., what do you think of his methods of swaying his audience as compared to the modern orator's? | |
| {119} | |
| Daniel Webster's customary preparation for the delivery of an oration was to read Isaiah's magnificent address, "Comfort Ye My People." What oratorical beauties can you discover from a reading of this address? | 284 S.A., 285 S.A. |
3. Other Literary Forms Found in the Bible
| What is the nature of the book of Ecclesiastes and the author's view of life? | 242-246 S.A. |
| What is the nature of the book of Proverbs? | 248 S.A. |
| Give the gist of the teachings of the Proverbs. | 248 S.A. |
| Give in modern terms three principles of conduct taught in "Enter not into the Path of the Wicked" | 255 S.A. |