IT

and visions of the night, of a strange and awful kind.

In the seventh chapter of his book, the vision is related at length, and the interpretation given. In the last six chapters of Daniel we have a series of prophecies referring to the advent of Christ; the rise and fall of Antichrist; the future restoration of the Jews; the victory of Christ over all His enemies; and the universal prevalence of true religion.-DAN. vii.

Jo

the prophets, and is supposed to have lived about

840 years before Christ. He was born at Gathhepher, in Galilee. Although no doubt a pious man, his natural temper seems to have been peevish and irascible. 'Now the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me. But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the Lord, and went down to Joppa. But the Lord sent out a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken.' -JONAH i.

HEN the mariners were afraid, and cried every man

TH

unto his god, and cast forth the wares that were

in the ship into the sea, to lighten it of them: but Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship; and he lay, and was fast asleep. So the shipmaster came to him, and said unto him, What meanest thou, O sleeper? arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us, that we perish not. And they said every one to his fellow, Come, and let us cast lots, that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us. So they cast lots, and the lot fell upon Jonah. Then said they unto him, Tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil is upon us: what is thine occupation? and whence comest thou? what is thy country? and of what people art thou? And he said unto them, I am an Hebrew; and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry

JONAH DELIVERED.

183

land. Then said they unto him, What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us? for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous. And he said unto them, Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you: for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you. Nevertheless the men rowed hard to bring it to the land; but they could not. Wherefore they cried unto the Lord, and said, We beseech thee, O Lord, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man's life for Thou, O Lord, hast done as it pleased Thee. So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea.'JONAH i.

T is said that 'the sea ceased from her raging' when

It is said that the sea cease

Jonah was thrown into it. Certainly the prophet

had some sense of justice, and not a little intrepidity, thus to remove the occasion of calamity from his ship

mates. They no doubt thought he had now got merited and certain destruction for some great crime. But ‘the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord, and said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord, and He heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and Thou heardest my voice. For Thou hadst cast me into the deep, in the midst of the seas; and the floods compassed me about: all Thy billows and Thy waves passed over me. Then I said, I am cast out of Thy sight: yet I will look again toward Thy holy temple. The waters compassed me about, even to the soul: the depth closed me round about, the weeds were wrapped about my head. I went down to the bottom of the mountains; the earth with her bars was about me for ever: yet hast Thou brought up my life from corruption, O Lord my God. And the Lord spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.'-JONAH i., ii.