rest of his days. In the reign of Ahaz, his grandson, Jerusalem was besieged by the kings of Israel and Syria, who carried away from Judah two hundred thousand captives. Ahaz invoked the aid of Tiglath-pileser, king of Assyria, and became his tributary. The Assyrian conquered Damascus, and thus relieved Jerusalem. Ahaz filled the cities of Judah with altars of false gods, and left his kingdom more deeply stained than ever with idolatry.

107. Hezekiah, his son, delivered the land from foreign dominion and from heathen superstitions. He became for a time tributary to Sennacherib, but afterward revolted and made an alliance with Egypt. During a second invasion, the army of Sennacherib was destroyed and his designs abandoned; but the kingdom of Judah continued to be dependent upon the empire.

108. Manasseh, the son of Hezekiah, brought back all the evil which his father had expelled. Even the temple at Jerusalem was profaned by idols and their altars, and the Law disappeared from the sight and memory of the people, while those who tried to remain faithful to the God of their fathers were violently persecuted. In the midst of this impiety, Manasseh fell into disgrace with the Assyrian king, who suspected him of an intention to revolt. He was carried captive to Babylon, where he had leisure to reflect upon his sins and their punishment. On his return to Jerusalem, he confessed and forsook his errors, and wrought a religious reformation in his kingdom.

109. His son Amon restored idolatry; but his life and reign were speedily ended by a conspiracy of his servants, who slew him in his own house.

The assassins were punished with death, and Josiah, the rightful heir, ascended the throne at the age of eight years. He devoted himself with pious zeal and energy to the cleansing of his kingdom from the traces of heathen worship; carved and molten images and altars were ground to powder and strewn over the graves of those who had officiated in the sacrilegious rites. The king journeyed in person not only through the cities of Judah, but through the whole desolate land of Israel, as far as the borders of Naphtali and the upper waters of the Jordan, that he might witness the extermination of idolatry. This part of his work being completed, he returned to Jerusalem to repair the Temple of Solomon, which had fallen into ruins, and restore, in all its original solemnity, the worship of Jehovah.

110. In the progress of repairs an inestimable manuscript was found, being no less than the "Book of the Law of the Lord, given by the hand of Moses." These sacred writings had been so long lost, that even the king and the priests were ignorant of the curses that had been pronounced upon idolatry. The tender conscience of the king was overwhelmed with distress as he read the pure and perfect Law, which presented so stern a contrast with the morals of the people; but he was comforted with the promise that he should

be gathered to his grave in peace before the calamities which the Law foretold, and the sins of Judah had deserved, should come upon the kingdom. In the eighteenth year of Josiah's reign a grand passover was held, to which all the inhabitants of the northern kingdom who remained from the captivity were invited. This great religious festival, which signalized the birth of the nation and its first deliverance, had not been kept with equal solemnity since the days of Samuel the prophet. The entire manuscript lately discovered was read aloud by the king himself in the hearing of all the people, and the whole assembly swore to renew and maintain the covenant made of old with their fathers.

B. C. 634-632.

111. The end of Josiah's reign was marked by two great calamities. A wild horde of Scythians, from the northern steppes, swept over the land, carrying off flocks and herds. They advanced as far as As'calon, on the south-western coast, where they plundered the temple of Astarte, and were then induced to retire by the bribes of the king of Egypt. One trace of their incursion remained a thousand years, in the new name of the old city Bethshan, on the plain of Esdrae'lon. It was named by the Greeks Scythopolis, or the city of the Scythians. This was the first eruption of northern barbarians upon the old and civilized nations of southern Asia and Europe. Later events in the same series will occupy a large portion of our history.

B. C. 609.

112. The other and greater calamity of Josiah's reign arose from a different quarter. Necho, king of Egypt, had become alarmed by the growth of Babylonian power, and was marching northward with a great army. Though in no way the object of his hostility, Josiah imprudently went forth to meet him, hoping to arrest his progress in the plain of Esdraelon. The battle of Megid'do followed, and Josiah was slain. Never had so great a sorrow befallen the Jewish people. The prophet Jeremiah, a friend and companion of Josiah from his youth, bewailed the nation's loss in his most bitter "Lamentation": "The breath of our nostrils, the anointed of the Lord, was taken in their pits, of whom we said, Under his shadow we shall live among the heathen." For more than a hundred years the anniversary of the fatal day was observed as a time of mourning in every family.

113. In the reign of Jehoiakim, son of Josiah, Nebuchadnezzar, prince of Babylon, gained a great victory over Necho, and extended his father's kingdom to the frontier of Egypt. Jehoiakim submitted to be absorbed into the empire, but afterward revolted and was put to death.

Jehoiachin, his son, was made king; but, three months after his accession, was carried captive to Babylon. Zedeki'ah, reigning at Jerusalem,

See ? 40, p. 23.

The battle of Carchemish. See p. 25.

rebelled and allied himself with Apries, king of Egypt.

Upon this, the ever active Nebuchadnezzar laid siege to the revolted city. In the second year it was taken and destroyed; the king and the whole nation, with the treasures of the temple and palace, were conveyed to Babylon, and the history of the Jews ceased for seventy years.

Athaliah, murders her grandchildren and reigns,
Joash, son of Ahaziah,

The Phrygians, earliest settlers of Asia Minor, were active in tillage and trade, and zealous in their peculiar religion. Lydia afterward became the chief power in the peninsula. At the end of three dynasties, it had reached its greatest glory under Croesus, when it was conquered by Cyrus, and became a province of Persia, B. C. 546.

The first great commercial communities in the world were the Phoenician cities, of which Sidon and Tyre were the chief; their trade extending by sea from Britain to Ceylon, and by land to the interior of three continents. Tyrian dyes, and vessels of gold, silver, bronze, and glass were celebrated. Phoenicia was subject four hundred years to the Assyrian Empire, and became independent at its fall, only to pass under the power of Necho of Egypt, and, in turn, to be subdued by Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. Baal, Astarte, Melcarth, and the marine deities were objects of Phonician worship.

Syria Proper was divided into five states, of which Damascus was the oldest and most important.

The Hebrew nation began its existence under the rule of Moses, who led his people forth from Egypt, and through the Arabian Desert, in a journey of forty

years. Joshua conquered Palestine by the two decisive battles of Beth-horon and the waters of Merom, and divided the land among the twelve tribes. Judges ruled Israel nearly six hundred years.

Saul, being anointed as king, subdued the enemies of the Jews; but, becoming disobedient, he was slain in battle, and David became king, first of Judah, and afterward of all Israel. He made Jerusalem his capital, and extended his dominion over Syria and Moab, and eastward to the Euphrates. His sacred songs are the source of his enduring fame. Solomon inherited the kingdom, which he enriched by commerce and adorned with magnificent public works, both for sacred and secular uses. The Dedication of the Temple is the great era in Hebrew chronology. The wisdom of Solomon was widely famed, but the luxury of his court exhausted his kingdom, and on the accession of Rehoboam ten tribes revolted, only Judah and Benjamin remaining to the house of David.

Jeroboam fixed his capital at Shechem, and the shrines of his false gods at Bethel and Dan. In spite of the faithful warnings of the prophets, the kingdom of Israel became idolatrous. The nineteen kings who ruled B. C. 975-721 belonged to nine different families. Ahab and Jezebel persecuted true believers and established Tyrian idolatry; but their race was exterminated and Jehu became king. The Ten Tribes reached their greatest power and wealth under Jeroboam II. In the reign of Menahem they became subject to Pul, of Chaldæa. A revolt of Hoshea against Assyria led to the capture of Samaria, and the captivity of both king and people.

The kingdom of Judah, with a smaller territory, had a people more united in faith and loyalty, and was ruled four hundred years by descendants of David. Jehoshaphat made a close alliance with Ahab, which brought many calamities upon Judah. In the reign of Jehoram, Jerusalem was taken by Arabs and Philistines; and after the death of Ahaziah, Athaliah, daughter of Jezebel, usurped the throne. Joash, her grandson, was protected and crowned by Jehoiada, the high priest. The prosperity of Judah was restored by the conquests and efficient policy of Azariah. Ahaz became tributary to Tiglath-pileser, of Assyria, and degraded his kingdom with idolatry. Hezekiah resisted both the religion and the supremacy of the heathen. Manasseh was carried captive to Babylon, and on his return reformed his administration. Josiah cleansed the land from marks of idolatry, rebuilt the Temple, discovered the Book of the Law, and renewed the celebration of the Passover. The Scythians invaded Palestine. Josiah was slain in the battle of Megiddo, and his sons became vassals of Egypt. Nebuchadnezzar subdued both Egypt and Palestine, captured Jerusalem, and transported two successive kings and the mass of the people to Babylon.

QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW.

BOOK I.- PART I.

1. What are the sources of historical information?

2. Describe the character and movements of the three families of the sons of Noah..

3. Into what periods may history be divided?

4. Name six primeval monarchies in Western Asia.

5. What were the distinguishing features of the Chaldæan Monarchy? 6. Name the principal Assyrian kings of the Second Period.

7. Who was Semiramis?.

8. Describe the founder of the Lower Assyrian Empire.

9. What memorials exist of Sargon?

10. Describe the career of Sennacherib.

@@ 1-4.

5, 6. 7, 8.

26.

29-31.

30.

11. What was the condition of Assyria under Asshur-bani-pal? 12. What under his son?

234.

35.

37, 38.

13. What was the early history of Media?

14. What of Phraortes?

39.

19.

The conquests and reverses of the greatest Babylonian mon-
arch.

47-52.

20

The decline and fall of Babylon.

53, 54.

27.

28.

29.

30.

31.

21. Relate the whole history of Lydia.

22. Describe the Phoenician cities and their commerce.

23. To what four kingdoms were they successively subject?

24. Describe the religion of the Phoenicians.

25. What were the divisions of Syria Proper?

26. Describe the rise of the Jewish nation.

Their conquest of Palestine.

Their government during the First Period.
The reign of Saul..

The conquests and character of David.

The acts and wisdom of Solomon.

32. What changes occurred at his death?

33. Compare the two kingdoms.

34. What was the policy of Jeroboam?

35. Describe the reign of Ahab.

36. What kings of Israel had dealing with Assyria?

37. Mention three kings of Judah who had wars with Israel.

39 Describe the reign of Azariah; of Ahaz, Hezekiah, Manasseh. The events of Josiah's reign.

40.

58, 59.

61-64.

66-68.

69, 70.

71, 72.

73, 74.

76, 77.

80.

81-83.

84-89.

90-94.

95.

96-100, 105, 106.

97, 98.

101.

100, 101.

41.

The relations of three kings with Babylon,

104.

105. 106-108.

109-112.

113.

NOTE. A discrepancy will be found between the Egyptian and the Hebrew chronology. The latter, before the accession of Saul, is mainly conjectural; as it is possible that two or more judges were reigning at the same time in different parts of the land. The periods of the several judges and of foreign servitude on p. 36, are copied literally from the Bible; the times of inter-regnum are conjectured, but probably fall below rather than exceed the truth. If continuous, these periods added together make 335 years,-a longer interval than can be found between the reign of Menephthah and that of Saul (279 and 154.) It may here be said that many historians believe the "Pharaoh's daughter" who rescued Moses to have been Mesphra or Amenset 146.) In this case, Thothmes IV was the Pharaoh of the Exodus, and we gain nearly 200 years for the transitional period of the Hebrews.

It may be hoped that Egyptian MSS. now in the hands of diligent and accomplished scholars will soon throw light on this interesting question.