I lay mine hand upon my mouth.
Once have I spoken, and I will not answer;
Yea twice, but I will proceed no further.
THE LORD.
(Out of the whirlwind.)
I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me.
Wilt thou even disannul my judgment?
Wilt thou condemn me, that thou mayest be justified?
Or hast thou an arm like God?
And canst thou thunder with a voice like him?
Deck thyself now with excellency and dignity;
And array thyself with honour and majesty.
Pour forth the overflowings of thine anger:
And look upon everyone that is proud, and abase him.
Look on everyone that is proud, and bring him low;
And tread down the wicked where they stand.
Hide them in the dust together;
Bind their faces in the hidden place.
Then will I also confess of thee
That thine own right hand can save thee.
Behold now behemoth, which I made with thee;
He eateth grass as an ox.
Lo now, his strength is in his loins,
And his force is in the muscles of his belly. {228} He moveth his tail like a cedar:
The sinews of his thighs are knit together.
His bones are as tubes of brass;
His limbs are like bars of iron.
He is the chief of the ways of God:
He only that made him can make his sword to approach unto him.
Surely the mountains bring him forth food;
Where all the beasts of the field do play.
He lieth under the lotus trees,
In the covert of the reed, and the fen.
The lotus trees cover him with their shadow;
The willows of the brook compass him about.
Behold, if a river overflow, he trembleth not:
He is confident, though Jordan swell even to his mouth.
Shall any take him when he is on the watch,
Or pierce through his nose with a snare?
Canst thou draw out leviathan with a fish hook?
Or press down his tongue with a cord?
Canst thou put a rope into his nose?
Or pierce his jaw through with a hook?
Will he make many supplications unto thee?
Or will he speak soft words unto thee?
Will he make covenant with thee,
That thou shouldest take him for a servant for ever?
Wilt thou play with him as with a bird?
Or wilt thou bind him for thy maidens? {229} Shall the bands of fishermen make traffic of him?
Shall they part him among the merchants?
Canst thou fill his skin with barbed irons,
Or his head with fish spears?
Lay thine hand upon him;
Remember the battle, and do so no more.
Behold, the hope of him is in vain:
Shall not one be cast down even at the sight of him?
None is so fierce that he dare stir him up:
Who then is he that can stand before me?
Who hath first given unto me, that I should repay him?
Whatsoever is under the whole heaven in mine.
I will not keep silence concerning his limbs,
Nor his mighty strength, nor his comely proportion.
Who can strip off his outer garment?
Who shall come within his double bridle?
Who can open the doors of his face?
Round about his teeth is terror.
His strong scales are his pride,
Shut up together as with a close seal.
One is so near to another,
That no air can come between them.
They are joined one to another;
They stick together, that they cannot be sundered.
His nostrils flash forth light,
And his eyes are like the eyelids of the morning.
Out of his mouth go burning torches,
And sparks of fire leap forth.
Out of his nostrils a smoke goeth, {230} As of a boiling pot and burning rushes.
His breath kindleth coals,
And a flame goeth forth from his mouth.
In his neck abideth strength,
And terror danceth before him.
The flakes of his flesh are joined together:
They are firm upon him; they cannot be moved.
His heart is as firm as a stone;
Yea, firm as the nether millstone.
When he raiseth himself up, the mighty are afraid;
By reason of consternation they are beside themselves.
If one lay at him with the sword, it cannot avail;
Nor the spear, the dart, nor the pointed shaft.
He counteth iron as straw,
And brass as rotten wood.
The arrow cannot make him flee:
Slingstones are turned with him into stubble.
Clubs are counted as stubble:
He laugheth at the rushing of the javelin.
His underparts are like sharp potsherds:
He spreadeth as it were a threshing wain upon the mire.
He maketh the deep to boil like a pot:
He maketh the sea like ointment.
He maketh a path to shine after him;
One would think the deep to be hoary.
Upon earth there is not his like,
That is made without fear.
He beholdeth every thing that is high:
He is king over all the sons of pride.
JOB.
(He replies to the Lord.)
And that no purpose of thine can be restrained.
Who is this that hideth counsel without knowledge?
Therefore have I uttered that which I understood not,
Things too wonderful for me, which I knew not.
Hear, I beseech thee, and I will speak;
I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me.
I had heard of thee by the hearing of the ear;
But now mine eye seeth thee,
Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent
In dust and ashes.
(Jehovah speaks from the storm. Job has questioned why he suffered. Can he expect the question to be answered? Let him look to nature about him. Does he understand the daily doings of nature? Does he know how the world was created, or how the rain and the snow come? Can he guide the stars? Does he understand the strange instincts of the animals? Can he control even one of the great works of God? How then will he think to comprehend the dealings of God in his own life?
God does not try to answer the question of why Job suffers. He tries to raise Job to such a position of trust in him that he will not ask the question. The solution of the question lies, not in the knowledge of their answers, but in a trust of God which does not demand an answer, for it sums up all answers in one--that God is wise and good. This is not unreasoning; for God reasons from his works that Job can see to the deep things of life that he cannot see. If Job sees God's wisdom in the one, he may trust his wisdom in the other.
So the problem of why Job suffers is at last solved; only the solution is not one of knowledge, but of trust, and Job finds more than a solution; he finds God. "Now mine eye seeth Thee.")
EPILOGUE.
And it was so, that after the Lord had spoken these words unto Job, the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite, "My wrath is kindled against thee, and against thy two friends: for ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job hath. Now therefore, take unto you seven bullocks and seven rams, and go to my servant Job, and offer up for yourself a burnt offering; and my servant Job shall pray for you; for him will I accept, that I deal not with you after your folly; for ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job hath." So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went, and did according as the Lord commanded them: and the Lord accepted Job. And the Lord turned the captivity of Job, when he prayed for his friends: and the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before. Then came there unto him all his brethren, and all his sisters, and all they that had been of his acquaintance before, and did eat bread with him in his house: and they bemoaned him, and comforted him concerning all the evil that the Lord had brought upon him: every man also gave him a piece of money, and everyone a ring of gold. So the Lord blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning: and he had fourteen thousand sheep, and six thousand camels, and a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand she-asses. He had also seven sons and three daughters. And he called the name of the first, Jemimah; and the name of the second, Keziah; and the name of the third, Keren-happuch. And in all the land were no women found so fair as the daughters of Job: and their father gave them inheritance among their brethren. And after this Job lived an hundred and forty years, and saw his sons, and his sons' sons, even four generations. So Job died, being old and full of days.
SELECTIONS FROM THE SONG OF SONGS
The "Song of Songs," sometimes called "Solomon's Song," and "Canticles," is a collection of Hebrew wedding songs. These songs in form and spirit approach nearer to what we call lyric poetry than anything else in the literature of the Bible. In their exquisite freshness and grace they may well be compared with the lyrical poetry of the Elizabethan period in England.
| HIS BANNER OVER ME WAS LOVE |
As a lily among thorns, So is my love among the daughters. As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, So is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, And his fruit was sweet to my taste. He brought me to the banqueting house, And his banner over me was love. |
| THE WINTER IS PAST, THE RAIN IS OVER AND GONE |
My beloved spake, and said unto me, Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away. For, lo, the winter is past, The rain is over and gone; The flowers appear on the earth; The time of the singing of birds is come, And the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land; The fig tree ripeneth her green figs, And the vines are in blossom, They give forth their fragrance. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away. O my dove, that art in the clefts of the rock, in the covert of the steep place, Let me see thy countenance, let me hear thy voice; For sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is comely. Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vineyards; For our vineyards are in blossom. My beloved is mine, and I am his: He feedeth his flock among the lilies. Until the day be cool, and the shadows flee away, Turn, my beloved, and be thou like a roe or a young hart Upon the mountains of Bether. |
| IN THE GARDEN OF LOVE |
Come with me from Lebanon, my bride, With me from Lebanon: Look from the top of Amana, From the top of Senir and Hermon, From the lions' dens, From the mountains of the leopards. Thou hast ravished my heart, my sister, my bride; Thou hast ravished my heart with a glance of thine eyes, With one chain of thy neck. How fair is thy love, my sister, my bride! How much better is thy love than wine! And the smell of thine ointments than all manner of spices! Thy lips, O my bride, drop as the honeycomb: Honey and milk are under thy tongue; And the smell of thy garments is like the smell of Lebanon. A garden shut up is my sister, my bride; A spring shut up, a fountain sealed. Thy shoots are an orchard of pomegranates, with precious fruits; Henna with spikenard plants, Spikenard and saffron, Calamus and cinnamon, with all trees of frankincense; Myrrh and aloes, with all the chief spices. Thou art a fountain of gardens, A well of living waters, And flowing streams from Lebanon. Awake, O north wind; and come, thou south; Blow upon my garden, that the spices thereof may flow out. Let my beloved come in to his garden, And eat his precious fruits. |
| WHITHER IS THY BELOVED GONE? |
Whither is thy beloved gone, O thou fairest among women? Whither hath thy beloved turned him, That we may seek him with thee? My beloved is gone down to his garden, to the beds of spices, To feed in the gardens, and to gather lilies. I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine: He feedeth his flock among the lilies. I am my beloved's, And his desire is toward me. Come, my beloved, let us go forth into the field; Let us lodge in the villages. Let us get up early to the vineyards; Let us see whether the vine hath budded, and its blossom be open, And the pomegranates be in flower: There will I give thee my love. The mandrakes give forth fragrance, And at our doors are all manner of precious fruits, new and old, Which I have laid up for thee, O my beloved. |
| LOVE IS STRONG AS DEATH |
Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm: For love is strong as death; Jealousy is cruel as the grave: The flashes thereof are flashes of fire, A very flame of the Lord. Many waters cannot quench love, Neither can the floods drown it: If a man would give all the substance of his house for love, He would utterly be contemned. |
SELECTIONS FROM ECCLESIASTES
ECCLESIASTES
This is, in some respects, the most curious book in the Bible. It has puzzled many people. Like Proverbs, it is put together without very much order, but that does not make the greatest puzzle of the book. The question has been, "What does the author intend to teach?" The book seems to take a very dark view of life. It almost seems as though the author thought nothing was worth living for. Over and over he says that all is vanity; that is, emptiness, nothingness. He questions whether there is a life after death. It seems to the careless reader that this book is only gloomy, dark, and hopeless. But that is a superficial view. If one reads with more care, one finds another strain in the book. It is good for a man to enjoy his labor. This is the gift of God. Let a man eat and drink and enjoy his labor. This is his portion, or wages, from God. Such thoughts as these occur again and again in the book. One begins to see that all is not darkness. On the contrary, there is, so far as it goes, a very excellent way of living put forward in the book. The author's question is, What are the wages of life? What ought one to think of as making life worth living? His answer is, The work of life itself, with the ordinary pleasures that come with it, are the wages. It is these things that make life worth living. Now this author does not see all the truth. He does not even sum up the whole of life. It is a great lack that in his pictures, in the first few chapters, of the things that may be expected to yield pleasure, he says nothing about the unselfish life. The life he describes is all getting, getting, getting, and never giving. Now the life that simply spends itself in trying to get things and never tries to help others is sure not to be a very happy life. "Vanity of vanities" is its very proper conclusion. This picture of life is too narrow. It needs to be enlarged by the rich and beautiful New Testament ideal of the life of unselfish love.
| TO EVERYTHING THERE IS A SEASON |
To everything there is a season, And a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, And a time to die; A time to plant, And a time to pluck up that which is planted; A time to kill, And a time to heal; A time to break down, And a time to build up; A time to weep, And a time to laugh; A time to mourn, And a time to dance; A time to cast away stones, And a time to gather stones together; A time to embrace, And a time to refrain from embracing; A time to seek, And a time to lose; A time to keep, And a time to cast away; A time to rend, And a time to sew; {244} A time to keep silence, And a time to speak; A time to love, And a time to hate; A time for war, And a time for peace. |
| REMEMBER ALSO THY CREATOR |
Remember also thy Creator in the days of thy youth: Or ever the evil days come, And the years draw nigh, When thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them. Or ever the sun, and the light, And the moon and the stars, Be darkened And the clouds return after the rain. In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, And the strong men shall bow themselves, And the grinders cease because they are few, And those that look out of the windows be darkened, And the doors be shut in the street. When the sound of the grinding is low, And one shall rise up at the voice of a bird, And all the daughters of music shall be brought low: Yea, they shall be afraid of that which is high, And terror shall be in the way; And the almond tree shall blossom, And the grasshopper shall be a burden, And desire shall fail: Because man goeth to his long home. And the mourners go about the streets: {246} Or ever the silver cord be loosed, Or the golden bowl broken, Or the pitcher broken at the fountain Or the wheel broken at the cistern: And the dust return to the earth, as it was; And the spirit return unto God who gave it. |
SELECTIONS FROM THE PROVERBS
PROVERBS
Proverbs is a collection of sayings of wise men, coming from many sources and gathered by many men. It is a little library of smaller books. The poetry is more uniform than any other in the Bible. The subjects, on the contrary, are the most various. All sides of life are represented. But chiefly the proverbs are concerned with showing the wisdom of living a good, honest, industrious life, and the foolishness of being lazy, immoral, greedy for money, and evil in thought and conduct. A great deal is said about the fool. He is the one who is shortsighted and careless of consequences; who talks slander and so hurts his friends; who forgets that the laws of God punish evil doing, and so hurts himself. The idea is that the wicked man acts as though he had not common sense.
THE PRAISES OF WISDOM
| WISDOM CRIETH ALOUD IN THE STREET |
Wisdom crieth aloud in the street; She uttereth her voice in the broad places; She crieth in the chief place of meeting; At the entering in of the gates, In the city, she uttereth her words: "How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? And scorners delight in scorning, And fools hate knowledge? Turn you at my reproof: Behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you. Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded; But ye have set at nought all my counsel, And would none of my reproof: I also will laugh in the day of your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh; When your fear cometh as a storm, And your calamity cometh on as a whirlwind; When distress and anguish come upon you. Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; {250} They shall seek me diligently, but they shall not find me: For that they hated knowledge, And did not choose the fear of the Lord: They would not have my counsel; They despised all my reproof: Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, And be filled with their own devices. For the backsliding of the simple shall slay them, And the prosperity of fools shall destroy them. But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell securely, And shall be quiet without fear of evil." |
| WISDOM IS MORE PRECIOUS THAN RUBIES |
My son, forget not my law; But let thine heart keep my commandments: For length of days, and years of life, And peace, shall they add to thee. Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: Bind them about thy neck; Write them upon the table of thine heart: So shalt thou find favour and good understanding In the sight of God and man. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, And lean not upon thine own understanding: In all thy ways acknowledge him, And he shall direct thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes; Fear the Lord, and depart from evil; It shall be health to thy navel, {251} And marrow to thy bones. Honour the Lord with thy substance, And with the firstfruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty And thy vats shall overflow with new wine. My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord; Neither be weary of his reproof: For whom the Lord loveth he reproveth; Even as a father the son in whom he delighteth. Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, And the man that getteth understanding. For the merchandise of it is better than the merchandise of silver, And the gain thereof than fine gold. She is more precious than rubies: And none of the things thou canst desire are to be compared unto her. Length of days is in her right hand; In her left hand are riches and honour. Her ways are ways of pleasantness, And all her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her: And happy is everyone that retaineth her. The Lord by wisdom founded the earth; By understanding he established the heavens. By his knowledge the depths were broken up, And the skies drop down the dew. |
| THE GLORY OF WISDOM |
Doth not wisdom cry, And understanding put forth her voice? In the top of high places by the way, Where the paths meet, she standeth; Beside the gates, at the entry of the city, At the coming in at the doors, she crieth aloud: Unto you, O men, I call; And my voice is to the sons of men. O ye simple, understand subtilty; And, ye fools, be ye of an understanding heart. Hear, for I will speak excellent things; And the opening of my lips shall be right things. For my mouth shall utter truth; And wickedness is an abomination to my lips. All the words of my mouth are in righteousness; There is nothing crooked or perverse in them. They are all plain to him that understandeth, And right to them that find knowledge. Receive my instruction, and not silver; And knowledge rather than choice gold. For wisdom is better than rubies; And all the things that may be desired are not to be compared unto her. I, Wisdom, have made subtilty my dwelling, And find out knowledge and discretion. The fear of the Lord is to hate evil: Pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, {253} And the froward mouth, do I hate. Counsel is mine, and sound knowledge: I am understanding; I have might. By me kings reign, And princes decree justice. By me princes rule, And nobles, even all the judges of the earth. I love them that love me; And those that seek me diligently shall find me. Riches and honour are with me; Yea, durable riches and righteousness. My fruit is better than gold, yea, than fine gold; And my revenue than choice silver. I walk in the way of righteousness, In the midst of the paths of judgment: That I may cause those that love me to inherit substance, And that I may fill their treasuries. The Lord possessed me in the beginning of his way, Before his works of old. I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, Or ever the earth was. When there were no depths, I was brought forth; When there were no fountains abounding with water. Before the mountains were settled, Before the hills was I brought forth: While as yet he had not made the earth, nor the fields, Nor the highest part of the dust of the world. When he established the heavens, I was there: When he set a circle upon the face of the deep: {254} When he made firm the skies above: When the fountains of the deep became strong: When he gave to the sea its bound, That the waters should not transgress his commandment: When he marked out the foundations of the earth; Then I was by him, as a master workman: And I was daily his delight, Rejoicing always before him; Rejoicing in his habitable earth; And my delight was with the sons of men. Now therefore, my sons, hearken unto me: For blessed are they that keep my ways. Hear instruction, and be wise, And refuse it not. Blessed is the man that heareth me, Watching daily at my gates, Waiting at the posts of my doors. For whoso findeth me findeth life, And shall obtain favour of the Lord. But he that sinneth against me wrongeth his own soul: All they that hate me love death. |
| ENTER NOT INTO THE PATH OF THE WICKED |
Enter not into the path of the wicked, And walk not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it; Turn from it, and pass on. Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: Keep her; for she is thy life. The way of the wicked is as darkness: They know not at what they stumble. But the path of the righteous is as the light of dawn, That shineth more and more unto the perfect day. Go to the ant, thou sluggard, Consider her ways, and be wise: Which having no chief, overseer, or ruler, Provideth her meat in the summer, And gathereth her food in the harvest. |
| PRAISE OF THE WISE AND VIRTUOUS WOMAN |
A virtuous woman who can find? For her price is far above rubies. The heart of her husband trusteth in her, And he shall have no lack of gain. She doeth him good and not evil All the days of her life. She seeketh wool and flax, And worketh willingly with her hands. She is like the merchant-ships; She bringeth her food from afar. She riseth also while it is yet night, And giveth meat to her household, And their task to her maidens. She considereth a field, and buyeth it: With the fruit of her hands she planteth a vineyard. She perceiveth that her merchandise is profitable: Her lamp goeth not out by night. She layeth her hands to the distaff, And her hands hold the spindle. She spreadeth out her hand to the poor; Yea, she reacheth forth her hands to the needy. She is not afraid of the snow for her household; For all her household are clothed with scarlet. {257} She maketh for herself carpets of tapestry; Her clothing is fine linen and purple. Her husband is known in the gates, When he sitteth among the elders of the land. She maketh linen garments and selleth them; And delivereth girdles unto the merchant. Strength and dignity are her clothing; And she laugheth at the time to come. She openeth her mouth with wisdom; And the law of kindness is on her tongue. She looketh well to the ways of her household, And eateth not the bread of idleness. Her children rise up, and call her blessed; Her husband also, and he praiseth her, saying: "Many daughters have done virtuously, But thou excellest them all." Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: But a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands; And let her works praise her in the gates. |
SELECTIONS FROM THE PROPHETS
| The Roll of the Prophets |
Isaiah. Jeremiah. Daniel. Ezekiel. Amos. Hosea. Micah. Obadiah. Joel. Jonah. Zephaniah. Nahum. Habakkuk. Haggai. Zechariah. Malachi. |
"THE PROPHETS"
From the frieze of "The Prophets," by Sargent, in the Public Library
at Boston.
The prophets here represented are Jeremiah, Jonah, Isaiah, Habakkuk.
THE PROPHETS
There are two groups of prophetic books in the Old Testament: the longer books of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, and Ezekiel, in one group, and what are known as the books of the "Twelve Minor Prophets," in another group. These books, especially those of the "Minor Prophets." are often neglected by readers of the Bible. "Minor Prophets" is a very unfortunate name for that group of great souls whose messages have come down to us from the ages. The word came into use because these books; smaller in size than some others, were grouped together in the Bible. The writers themselves were not minor or inferior in any sense of the word. The word "prophet" is also, in itself, somewhat misleading. The men who are called prophets did not simply predict future events. They were really what we would call reformers. They cried out against the evils of the times in which they lived, and tried to turn the nation back to God when it had sinned.
It must be admitted that it is not very easy, especially for young people, to read these books, and yet they are intensely interesting if one can only realize that these words were spoken by living men, each blazing with indignation against wrong, men of heroic character, who were ready, if necessary, to look in the face of death, in their speaking of the truth.
Little or nothing can be told of the personal history of many of these men. Striking passages have been chosen from each of the prophets to show the character of the message which they spoke.
ISAIAH
THE GREATEST PROPHET OF THE OLD TESTAMENT
(David and Solomon had long been dead. The kingdom of Judah was not so strong as the old kingdom over which they had ruled. It was constantly quarreling with the kingdom at the North, which had been separated by rebellion. It was often in danger of being overcome by the greater kingdoms about it. The kings were not always wise rulers. Many of the people did not care to serve Jehovah alone. They wanted to serve other gods as well. The rich were often cruel to the poor. Good men saw these things with sorrow. They knew that God must punish such a nation. One of these good men was Isaiah the Prophet, a citizen of Jerusalem, and a friend of the kings of Judah. When he was a young man he had a vision of the holiness of God and the sin of the people. This vision made him a prophet, for it called him to the task of showing to the people the holiness of God, which he himself had seen, and to the necessity of turning away from sin.
This is how he tells of the vision which he saw:)--
I
THE CALL OF ISAIAH
In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled {265} the temple. Above him stood the seraphim: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly. And one cried unto another, and said,--
"Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of Hosts:
the whole earth is full of his Glory."
And the foundations of the thresholds were moved at the voice of him who cried, and the house was filled with smoke. Then said I, "Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts."
Then flew one of the seraphim unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar: and he touched my mouth with it, and said, "Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin forgiven."
And I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" Then I said, "Here am I; send me."
And he said, "Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not. Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and turn again, and be healed."
Then said I, "Lord, how long?"
And he answered, "Until cities be waste without inhabitant, and houses without man, and the land become utterly waste, and the Lord have removed men far away, and the forsaken places be many in the midst of the land."
II
ISAIAH'S FIRST PUBLIC SERVICE
(Soon after, two kings from the North threatened to make war against Judah. The king of Judah was frightened. Isaiah tried to encourage him, and persuade him to trust God, but in vain. The king was a coward, and dared neither fight nor trust God, but instead he sent to the far-away land of Assyria for help.
This is the way in which Isaiah tried to encourage the timid king:)--
And it came to pass in the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, that Rezin the king of Syria, and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, went up to Jerusalem to war against it; but could not prevail against it. And it was told the house of David, saying, "Syria is confederate with Ephraim."
And his heart was moved, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the forest are moved with the wind.
Then said the Lord unto Isaiah, "Go forth now to meet Ahaz, thou, and Shear-jashub thy son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool, in the high way of the fuller's field; and say unto him, Take heed, and be quiet; fear not, neither let thine heart be faint, because of these two tails of smoking firebrands, for the fierce anger of Rezin and Syria, and of the son of Remaliah. Because Syria hath {267} counselled evil against thee, Ephraim also, and the son of Remaliah, saying, Let us go up against Judah, and vex it, and let us make a breach therein for us, and set up a king in the midst of it, even the son of Tabeel: thus saith the Lord God, It shall not stand, neither shall it come to pass. For the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin: and the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is Remaliah's son. If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established."
(But the effort of the prophet was wholly without effect.)
So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, saying, "I am thy servant and thy son: come up, and save me out of the hand of the king of Syria and out of the hand of the king of Israel, which rise up against me."
And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the Lord, and in the treasures of the king's house, and sent it for a present to the king of Assyria. And the king of Assyria hearkened unto him: and the king of Assyria went up against Damascus, and took it, and carried the people of it captive to Kir, and slew Rezin.
(Many years passed away. The prophet tried to make his people better, but often without success. He tried to get the rulers to trust in Jehovah rather than in armies and the aid of foreign kings. Sometimes he succeeded, but more often he failed. The land was still subject to Assyria, and had paid heavy tribute ever since Ahaz had hired the king of Assyria to help him against the Northern kings. Other lands were also under the yoke of Assyria, and all of them wanted to win their freedom. At last the king of Babylon sent messengers to these other countries to see if he could not get {268} their kings to join in revolt against Assyria. But Isaiah did not favor this alliance, for this also was trusting, not to Jehovah, but to armies and foreign kings.)
At that time Merodach-baladan the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Hezekiah: for he heard that he had been sick, and was recovered. And Hezekiah was glad of them, and shewed them the house of his precious things, the silver, and the gold, and the spices, and the precious oil, and all the house of his armour, and all that was found in his treasures: there was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion, that Hezekiah shewed them not. Then came Isaiah the prophet unto King Hezekiah, and said unto him, "What said these men? and from whence came they unto thee?"
And Hezekiah said, "They are come from a far country unto me, even from Babylon."
Then said he, "What have they seen in thine house?"
And Hezekiah answered, "All that is in mine house have they seen: there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shewed them."
Then said Isaiah to Hezekiah, "Hear the word of the Lord of hosts. Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day, shall be carried to Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the Lord. And thy sons shall they take away; they shall be servants in the palace of the king of Babylon."
Then said Hezekiah unto Isaiah, "Good is the word of the Lord which thou hast spoken."
ON THE ROAD FROM JERUSALEM TO JERICHO.
From a photograph in the possession of Rev. Louis F. Giroux of the
American International College, Springfield, Mass., and used by his
kind permission.
He said moreover, "For there shall be peace and truth in my days."
(This king of Babylon was soon after defeated by the king of Assyria and driven out of Babylon. For some time he hid himself among the swamps in the southern part of his kingdom, but later was captured and killed.)
III
DELIVERANCE FROM THE ASSYRIANS
(About ten years after the king of Babylon had sent his messengers to Hezekiah there was a revolt against Assyria in Palestine. Hezekiah, in spite of the opposition of Isaiah, was deep in the plot. When Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, heard of the revolt, he sent his armies to Palestine to punish the kings who had dared to defy him. Judah and the other small kingdoms were not able to meet the Assyrian armies. The whole land was in terror, and Hezekiah, the king, who had been so eager for war, was glad enough, now that it had actually come, to seek the wise counsel of the prophet.)
Now it came to pass in the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, that Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them. And the king of Assyria sent Rabshakeh from Lachish to Jerusalem to King Hezekiah with a great army. And he stood by the conduit of the upper pool in the high way of the fuller's field. Then came forth to him Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder. And Rabshakeh said unto them, "Say ye now to Hezekiah, 'Thus saith the great king, the king of Assyria, What confidence is this wherein thou trustest? I say, thy counsel and {272} strength for the war are but vain words: now on whom dost thou trust, that thou hast rebelled against me? Behold, thou trustest upon the staff of this bruised reed, even upon Egypt; whereon if a man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce it: so is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all that trust on him. But if thou say to me, We trust in the Lord our God: is not that he, whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah hath taken away, and hath said to Judah and to Jerusalem, Ye shall worship before this altar? Now therefore, I pray thee, give pledges to my master the king of Assyria, and I will give thee two thousand horses, if thou be able on thy part to set riders upon them. How then canst thou turn away the face of one captain of the least of my master's servants, and put thy trust on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen? And am I now come up without the Lord against this land to destroy it? The Lord said unto me, Go up against this land, and destroy it.'"
Then said Eliakim and Shebna and Joah unto Rabshakeh, "Speak, I pray thee, unto thy servants in the Syrian language; for we understand it: and speak not to us in the Jews' language in the ears of the people that are on the wall."
But Rabshakeh said, "Hath my master sent me to thy master, and to thee, to speak these words? hath he not sent me to the men that sit upon the wall?"
Then Rabshakeh stood, and cried with a loud voice in the Jews' language, and said, "Hear ye the words of the great king, the king of Assyria. Thus saith the king, 'Let {273} not Hezekiah deceive you; for he shall not be able to deliver you: neither let Hezekiah make you trust in the Lord, saying, The Lord will surely deliver us; this city shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.' Hearken not to Hezekiah: for thus saith the king of Assyria, 'Make your peace with me, and come out to me; and eat ye every one of his vine, and everyone of his fig tree, and drink ye everyone the waters of his own cistern: until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of corn and wine, a land of bread and vineyards. Beware lest Hezekiah persuade you, saying, The Lord will deliver us. Hath any of the gods of the nations delivered his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria? Who are they among all the gods of these countries, that have delivered their country out of my hand, that the Lord should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?'"
But they held their peace, and answered him not a word: for the king's commandment was, "Answer him not."
Then came Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, that was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder, to Hezekiah with their clothes rent, and told him the words of Rabshakeh.
And it came to pass, when King Hezekiah heard it, that he rent his clothes, and covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the Lord. And he sent Eliakim, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, unto Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz. And they said unto him, "Thus saith Hezekiah, 'This day is a day of trouble, {274} and of rebuke, and of confusion. It may be the Lord thy God will hear the words of Rabshakeh, whom the king of Assyria his master hath sent to defy the living God, and will rebuke the words which the Lord thy God hath heard: wherefore lift up thy prayer for the remnant that is left.'"
So the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah. And Isaiah said unto them, "Thus shall ye say to your master, 'Thus saith the Lord, Be not afraid of the words that thou hast heard, wherewith the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me. Behold, I will put a spirit in him, and he shall hear a rumour, and shall return unto his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.'"
So Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah: for he had heard that he was departed from Lachish. And he heard concerning Tirhakah king of Ethiopia, "He is come out to fight against thee." And when he heard it, he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying, "Thus shall ye speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying, 'Let not thy God in whom thou trustest deceive thee, saying, Jerusalem shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria. Behold, thou hast heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands by destroying them utterly: and shalt thou be delivered?'"
And Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it: and Hezekiah went up unto the house of the Lord, and spread it before the Lord. And Hezekiah prayed unto the Lord, saying, "O Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, that sittest upon the cherubim, thou art {275} the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; thou hast made heaven and earth. Incline thine ear, O Lord, and hear; open thine eyes, O Lord, and see: and hear all the words of Sennacherib, which hath sent to defy the living God. Of a truth, Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste all the countries and their land, and have cast their gods into the fire: for they were no gods, but the work of men's hands, wood and stone; therefore they have destroyed them. Now therefore, O Lord our God, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art the Lord, even thou only."
Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent unto Hezekiah, saying, "Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel, 'Whereas thou hast prayed to me against Sennacherib king of Assyria, this is the word which the Lord hath spoken concerning him: The daughter of Zion hath despised thee and laughed thee to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee. Whom hast thou defied and blasphemed? and against whom hast thou exalted thy voice and lifted up thine eyes on high? even against the Holy One of Israel. By thy servants hast thou defied the Lord, and hast said, With the multitude of my chariots am I come up to the height of the mountains, to the innermost parts of Lebanon; and I will cut down the tall cedars thereof, and the choice fir trees thereof: and I will enter into his farthest height, the forest of his fruitful field. Hast thou not heard how I have done it long ago, and formed it of ancient times? now have I brought it to pass, that thou shouldest lay waste fortified cities into ruinous heaps. Therefore their {276} inhabitants were of small power, they were dismayed and confounded; they were as the grass of the field, and as the green herb, and as a field of corn before it be grown up. But I know thy sitting down, and thy going out, and thy coming in, and thy raging against me. Because of thy raging against me, and because thine arrogancy is come up into mine ears, therefore will I put my hook in thy nose, and my bridle in thy lips, and I will turn thee back by the way by which thou camest.'"
"Therefore thus saith the Lord concerning the king of Assyria, 'He shall not come unto this city, nor shoot an arrow there, neither shall he come before it with shield, nor cast up siege works against it. By the way that he came, by the same shall he return, and he shall not come unto this city, saith the Lord. For I will defend this city to save it, for mine own sake, and for my servant David's sake.'"
And the angel of the Lord went forth, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred and fourscore and five thousand: and when men arose early in the morning, behold, these were all dead. So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went back and dwelt at Nineveh. And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, two of his sons smote him with the sword: and they escaped into the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon his son reigned in his stead.
[Footnote: Other stories of the reigns of Hezekiah and the kings of Judah and Israel may be found in Volume III.]