From the river to the ends of the earth, They that dwell in the desert shall bow before him, And his enemies shall lick the dust. The kings of Tarshish and of all the isles shall bring presents, The kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts. All kings shall fall down before him. All nations shall serve lim A handful of corn, scattered in the earth on the top of the mountains, Shall wave its fruit like the trees of Lebanon. And the peopled cities shall flourish like grass of the earth. His name shall endure forever; His name shall be continued as long as the sun. Men shall be blessed in him ; All nations shall call him blessed! Ps. lxxii. THE CHAPTER VI. HALT A T RHINO CORUR A. THEY arrived in safety, and at an early hour, at Rhinocorura, and encamped where a copious stream from the mountains had produced verdure and fertility upon its banks. Elisama, who, from his advanced age was easily exhausted by an unusual excitement, was compelled to lie down to rest immediately on his arrival, and it was not till after the meal that he was able to resume his narrative. "I have," said he, "a long and melancholy history to relate. The vicissitudes of five hundred years were necessary, in order to impress upon the mind of Israel the conviction, that the retributive Providence of God watched over their observance of the law, and rewarded or punished them according as they kept or broke it. Yesterday we left our nation on the highest and most brilliant pinnacle of national prosperity, possessed of the law, of the land of promise, and of a temple in which all the outward rites of Jehovah's worship might be observed. One thing only was wanting to make Israel that blessed people, by whom all other nations were to be blessed-willing obedience. But something more was necessary to produce this obedience, than the possession of the law and the means of keeping it. It must be regarded as an extraordinary mark of the favor of Jehovah towards Israel, that everything was so combined, as to impress the doctrine of retribution upon them, both by fact and precept. No people exhibits such a quick succession and such a striking alternation of reward and punishment, so that Jehovah may be said to have set it up as a monument to the nations of his retributive justice. Its history, however, was not designed merely for the instruction of others, but primarily to teach Israel itself this great lesson; and for this purpose a succession of prophets was raised up, to enforce by their instruction the moral which the events of history were teaching. "Samuel had founded schools of the prophets, and we read of Nathan, the prophet, in the history of David. But it is to the period which follows the reign of Solomon, that they more appropriately belong. This period begins with the separation of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. Even in the last years of his reign, his splendor may have been a source of oppression to his people, who called upon Rehoboam his successor for alleviation of their burthens. Young, and following the advice of youthful counsellors, he threatened, instead of granting their request. On this Jeroboam, who had come out of Egypt, where he had premeditated his destructive plans against the house of David, was chosen king by ten tribes, while Judah, Benjamin and Levi, adhered to Rehoboam, and formed the kingdom of Judah; Jeroboam, now become the king of Israel, erected his throne at Sichem, and fearing that by going up to the temple at Jerusalem, the people might be tempted to re-unite with the kingdom of Judah, he set up the worship of the golden calves, at Bethel and at Dan. He was the exact opposite of David, and the scripture designates him as 'the man that caused Israel to sin.** This fearful degeneracy could not pass unpunished. Ahia, the prophet, predicted the extermination of his house. His son Nadab, who walked in the way of his father, was killed by Baasha, who succeeded him as king, and took up his abode in Thirza, and who, walking in the way of Jeroboam, received from the prophet Jehu, the son of Hanani, a fearful denunciation of divine vengeance. His son Elah fell, when in a state of intoxication, by the sword of Zimri; and thus the prophetic word was a second time fulfilled. Zimri, besieged in Thirza by Omri, whom the people in the camp had chosen king, set fire to the palace and perished in the flames. Omri built Samaria, and was succeeded by his son Ahab. Ahab was king of Israel, at the same time that Jehoshaphat was king of Judah. Though they were allied by the marriage of their children, they were directly opposite in their characters. Ahab, wicked and devoted to idolatry, added the worship of Baal to sins which were already practised in Israel, and thus brought upon himself the most awful threatenings of Jehovah. Jehoshaphat, weak, but faithful to the law, sent Levites through the country to teach and judge, and obtained the mercy of Jehovah. "In the days of these two kings, Elijah made his appearance; he may be called by eminence the prophet. His native place was Thisbah, but he traversed the whole country from side to side, clad in a skin, with a leathern girdle about his loins, denouncing, in the boldest and most glowing terms, the worship of Baal a fearful and sublime phenomenon. Now he appears boldly before the throne-now he wanders a fugitive in the wilderness: at one time he denounces the wrath of Jehovah on backsliding Israel; at another he slaughters, on Carmel, the idolatrous priests of Baal; today he is the messenger of Jehovah to bring comfort to the widow of Zarephath; tomorrow he appears before Ahab and his queen, and predicts their dreadful fate. His name carries terror with it to the hearts of the guilty, and inspires the righteous with courage. * 1 Kings xiv. 16. +1 Kings xvi. 1—6. +2 Chron. xvii. 7. "His disciple, Elisha, anointed Jehu, and predicted that the kingdom should continue in his family to the fifth generation. These kings, though not acceptable to God as David was, yet opposed the progress of idolatry. Jehu put to death the worshippers of Baal, and made a pool of his temple. In consequence this dynasty continued on the throne and flourished till the fifth generation; and under the fourth, Jeroboam the son of Joash, the ancient limits were regained, and Israel extended from Hamath to the sea of the plain, as Jonah, the son of Amittai, had foretold to him.* Still, however, the calves remained in Dan and Bethel, the relics of that idolatry which the people had learned in Egypt. As a punishment for this, a terrible interregnum ensued, at the close of which, Zechariah, the fifth from Jebu, came to the throne, but was murdered by Shallum. This is the third fulfilment of the prophecy of Jehovah respecting the royal houses of Israel. "This is the time in which Jonah, Amos, Hosea, and the great Isaiah, prophesied. Jonah was sent to Nineveh, the largest city then existing, to preach the judgments of Jehovah. Amos, one of the shepherds of Tekoah, prophesied to all the surrounding nations, and last of all to Judah and Israel, the punishment of their sins, beginning with these terrific words; The Lord will thunder from Zion, And utter his voice from Jerusalem. The habitations of the shepherds shall mourn, "And as he successively denounces to Damascus, to Gaza, to Tyre, and the other neighboring states, the punishments that awaited them, he begins each prophecy with the alarming words, Thus saith Jehovah ; Three sins I have passed by, The fourth I cannot overlook. "He beholds first the approach of a desolating flight of *2 Kings xiv. 25. locusts, then a terrible fire, and having interceded against both, he sees the Lord, standing with a plummet in his hand beside the wall, and hears the words: Behold I will set a plumb-line in the midst of my people Israel; I will not again pass by them any more. The high places of Isaac shall be desolate, And the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste, And I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword. Amos vii. 7. infidelity of the "Hosea, the son of Beeri, is first of all commanded to contract a symbolical marriage, to indicate the congregation of Israel against Jehovah. Then he breaks forth in the highest and boldest strain of indignation: Blow ye the cornet in Gibeah, The trumpet in Ramah! Cry aloud at Bethaven, 'They are after thee, O Benjamin !' Ephraim shall be desolate in the day of rebuke, And upon the tribes of Israel I make known what shall surely be. The princes of Judah were like them that remove the land-mark; "The prophetic words were soon accomplished, in the rapid downfall of the kingdom of Israel. Assyria, which Jehovah calls the rod of his indignation,† made Menahem, the next king after Zechariah, tributary; and Tiglath-pilesar carried away many of the inhabitants of Israel. Galilee, and the district beyond Jordan were lost. Hoseah, the last king of Israel, contrary to the advice of Isaiah, made a league with So, the king of Egypt, and was defeated by SalmanasSamaria was destroyed, the inhabitants carried beyond the Tigris, to the neighborhood of the river Chebar, and the Lord put away Israel from before him, as he threatened by his servants the prophets. sar. "Where once the tribes of Israel, the sons of Joseph, |