5 036 061 THOUSAND, and Ex Libris C. K. OGDEN ! Palestine and the Bible. Illustrating the Manners, and Customs of the . . People in Bible Lands. THE REV. SAMUEL SCHOR, A Native of Jerusalem. NINTH EDITION. FORTIETH THOUSAND. J. A. THOMPSOX 4 Co., LTD., 1 4 11, SOUTH JOHN STREET. lonfcon: JAMBS NISBBT & Co., LTD., 21, BEKNKKS STKKKT. W. Introduction to the Ninth Edition, This is the Ninth Edition of this little Book. Altogether 40,000 copies have now been printed. God .is using it as a humble handmaid in leading many to a more intelligent study of His Word. A clergyman in recommending his people to get copies said " I have learnt more from this little book than from many a thick half -guinea com- mentary." This book was originally intended to be the Catalogue of the Palestine Exhibitions started by the author, but it is read and studied again and again, as a reference-book and text-book on the Customs of the East. May God continue to bless this book and the Exhibitions with which it is connected. All lovers of God's Word can help by circulating this book far and wide. SAMUEL SCHOE. 2000097 index to Subjects. A. Agriculture Altar of Burnt Offerings PAGE ... 14 ... 103 City Walls ... Club PAGE ... 29 ... 55 Antiquities B. ... 92 Coats of many Colours Coat of Treves ,, without Seam ... Corn, Grinding Couch ... ... 51 ... 48 ... 48 ... 43 ... 36 Babylonian Bricks ... Baker's Boy Baskets Battlement Beans, Locust... Beards .. 94 . 58 .. 3S .. 27 .. 81 .. 60 Cymbals Cruse of Oil D. ... 74 ... 39 Bed ,, Chambers Bible and the Monuments Boots and Shoes . . .35 .. :*<) .. 9,: .. 51 Dancing Dedication, Feast of... Deluge Tablets Doors ... ... 32 ... 87 ... 97 ... 24 Bottles, Skin of Clay Bofctk, Toilet Botany... .. 42 42 .. 60 .. 77 Doorpost Dress, Article of ... 85 ... 45 Bracelet Bread, Unleavened ... Burials... .. 62 .. 90 . 33 E. Eastern Characters ... ... 54 C. Candlesticks Cankerworm, Meaning of Caterpillar Ceremonies, Jewish ... Chanukah Lights Climate of Palestine . Cistern .. 39 .. 78 .. 78 .. 82 .. 87 . 15 26 , House , Fashions , Furniture ... , Life Music Room Toilet Early and latter Rains Encampment, An Eye of Needle Education ... 23 ... 45 ... 35 ... 9 ... 69 ... 23 ... 60 ... 18 ... 100 ... 29 ... 56 INDEX TO SUBJECTS. F. K. Fan, Winnowing ... 21 Kharoob ... 81 Feast of Lights ... 87 Kneading-trough ... ... 44 Food, Meat ... 88 Knives, Slaughtering .- 88 Fringes... 84 Kosher Food ... ... 88 Frontlets ... 83 Furniture, Eastern ... ... 35 |_ Lamps .., 39 G. Lantern ... 40 Latter Rains ... 18 Garments, Rough ... 48 Law, Roll of the ... 90 30 T iffhts Feast of 87 Girdles 48 Limestones Soft ... ot Girding Loins... ... 49 Locusts '.'.'. 77 Goad . ... ... 16 Trfvlcrp in a OarHftn 21 Grinding Corn Guest Chamber ... 43 ... 28 Love Songs 1' 78 M. H. Mandrake ... _ -. 81 Mantles 44? Hair, Plaiting Handmill , 61 ... 43 Market Place Mezuzah ~ 31 ... 85 Harp ,., 70 Milk fiX Harvest Hebrew Bible Hezekiah Hieroglyphs ... 20 ... 91 ... 96 ... 99 Mirrors Moabite Stone Murex Shell ... Music ... ... 61 ... 97 ... 79 69 Holy of Holies ... 102 Muzzle ... 20 Horns .. 73 House ... ... ... . 23 Housetop ... ... ... 26 N. Nabbuteh ... _ ... 55 1. Natural History ... 77 Nazerites ... .... 58 Bhaf 38 Needle's Eye ... ... ... 29 Inkhorn ... _ ... 98 Neginoth ... ... ... 70 Noserings . . ~ 62 J. 0. Jael and Sicera ... 66 Olive Branches ... 79 Jewellery ... 62 ,, Wood Articles... .1 80 Jewish Ceremonies ... 82 Organ ... 71 ,, Passover ... 90 Ornaments, Tinkling... -. 62 INDEX TO SUBJECTS. p. Soap 63 Palestine, Soil of Palmerworm ... Painting Face . ... 15 ... 78 ... 60 Soil of Palestine Soft Raiment Songs of Solomon Staff 15 46 75 5fi Pens, Reed Phoenicians Phylacteries Pillows Piping and Dancing ... Pitchers ... 98 ... 99 ... 82 ... 37 ... 32 ... 42 Street Cries T. Tabernacle Tables 57 100 SS Ploughs Porter's Lodge Prophets ... 16 ... 24 .,. 50 Tablets, Lachish Tabrets Talith 93 74 84 Purple .. ... ... ... 79 R. Rainfall in Palestine... Rehoboam ... 17 ... 97 94 Tents and Tent Life ... Threshing Instruments Tiglath Pileser Timbrel Tombs, Rock Hewn Trays 64 20 94 74 33 38 Rings . . . ... 62 Trumpet 73 Rock-hewn Tomb Rod and Staff Rolling Stone Rolls of the Law Rooms, Upper & ... 33 ... 55 ... 34 ... 90 ... 28 U. Unleavened bread V. Veils 90 53 Sabbath ... 86 ,, sheet Viol 53 19: Sackbufc Sandals Sargon ... ... 73 ... 51 ... 95 W. Scorpion Scribe ... ... 79 ... 56 Washing the hands and Feet 41 Seamless Coat ... 48 Well 57 >fi Sennacherib Shalmanezer ... Shaving Shepherd's Life Sheepskins Shoes ... 96 . . 98 ... 60 ... 54 ... 52 ... 51 Wheat and Tares Winnowing Fan Y. 81 21 Siloam Inscription Singing Girl Sitting and Reclining Skin Bottles Slinsrs ., ... 99 ... 58 ... 37 ... 42 56 Yoke ... Z. Zizith . 16 84 Palestine and the bible. BY REV, SAMUEL SCHOR. CHAPTER I. Eastern Customs and Manners. /70D'S Word is an Eastern Book. It was written ^ in the East, by Easterns and for Easterns. It is therefore only obvious that a study of that Land, its life and habits, furniture and dress, language and expressions in short, everything connected with the Land and the People must throw a flood of light on many passages of Scripture. And God has made it possible for us to examine the subject thoroughly; for He has, in a most marvellous way, allowed the Land and its in- habitants to remain quite unchanged throughout many centuries. Most countries have changed over and over again. They have altered their habits, their dress, their furniture ; they have advanced in io PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. education and culture ; but Palestine has practically remained unchanged. Its life to-day is the life of Bible times. Visit that land, and if you have eyes to see and ears to hear, you will be able to throw yourself back in imagination to the times of Abraham, David, or our Lord. Moreover, there is another important con- sideration. The natives of the land to-day are chiefly Arabs, descendants of Ismael and Esau. They know nothing of the Scriptures. They do not choose their mode of life, their habits, their dress. They simply live this primitive life because their parents and grandparents for a hundred generations have lived the same life. They are therefore unconsciously living the life of Scripture, and are a daily witness to its truth. Undesigned witnesses are always the most valuable ones. This little book is, therefore, no record of a visit to Palestine. We have far too many such books already. Many of them form very pleasant but rather useless reading. They describe ad nauseam the same little episode of the landing at Jaffa, the first attempt to mount the Arab steed, the obstinate donkey, &c., &c. We then have the very beautiful but very stale sentimental talk about Bethlehem and Nazareth, Tabor and Olivet. Are we to suppose that God preserved that land through countless ages, and allowed it to PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. n remain unchanged, in spite of a hundred battles and sieges, in order that the modern tripper may fling his little joke at the expense of an ass or a mule ! The greatest desire of Bible students is to understand the Book. Great scholars and divines have, by their knowledge of ancient languages, given us perfect translations and explanations. But commentaries lack life. It is one thing to read about the Shepherd King ; it is another to follow a shepherd on the hills of Judea, see him wear the same sheepskin jacket, armed with the same kind of rod and staff, watch him sling his stones, call his sheep by name, take the new-born lamb to his bosom, carry the wounded one gently on his shoulders, lead them to their resting place, go before, while they follow him : such a visit makes the Bible a living Book ; you feel as though the shepherd of Bethlehem had lived this year, that you had just paid him a visit, and that he had fully explained to you his whole life. All this is so intensely simple, that it seems beneath the con- sideration of the commentator and theologian. It is not scientific, it is not critical. It is far more scientific to sit in one's study, and to prove that the story of the blessings and curses repeated on Gerizim and Ebal in the days of Joshua, was an utter impossibility, owing to the distance of the two mountains from one another, and the fact that it is 12 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. known how far the human voice can travel. It may be less scientific to visit those two mountains, and to see if any spot can be found from which the voice of man can travel across the intervening valley, and reach the hearers on the opposite hill ; but it has been tried, the very words the blessings and curses were repeated, and every word distinctly heard. [Such an "unscientific and uncritical" method must demonstrate, however, to the study- critic, beyond the powers of contradiction, that there is a screw loose in his philosophy." The commentary of the future will not devote whole pages in telling us why it does not agree with Meyer or Lange ; it will not give us twenty-six reasons all very learned and ingenious to prove that Detitzsch's interpretation of a verse must be wrong, and forty-eight equally learned reasons as to why Alford's explanation of a sentence cannot be tight ; it will devote these pages in letting Eastern Customs and Manners throw all their light upon the Book wherever such a process is possible, and the result will be that many difficulties of Scripture will vanish, and many apparently meaningless passages will receive quite a depth of meaning. ifor years the author, who is a Native of the Holy Land, has been endeavouring to impress these truths upon Bible students, by means of the Palestine Exhibitions, which he started in the year 1891, and PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 13 which, by their very popularity, and by the fact that others have copied them, prove how welcome to countless thousands is the light which the Land and the People sheds upon the Book. It is his earnest prayer, that this little book may be of some assistance in helping many to " search the Scriptures," and "to mad eternal life." CHAPTER II. Agriculture. HJHE Jews were essentially an agricultural people. The ideal of national peace and prosperity was summed up in the well-known saying, " Every man shall sit under his own vine and fig-tree." (Zech. iii. 10). "We are, therefore, not surprised to find frequent allusions to agricultural customs and implements in every part of the Bible. And remember this : the implements used, the nature of the country, the climate, the soil in fact everything connected with the subject of agriculture is so different in Palestine, that you cannot make a more fatal mistake in the world than to compare Bible customs with English customs. It is wise to lay it down as a general rule if you want to understand any Bible or Eastern custom : think of the very reverse of your own, and you will not be very far wrong. Let me, therefore, impress upon every reader the importance of studying the agricultural allusions in Scripture in the light of agricultural customs of PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 15 the Palestine of to-day. Such a study, and such a study only, can make the Bible a real living Book. Palestine is called the Land flowing with milk and honey ; (Josh. v. 6), it was a very fertile country. There are two features which tend to make Palestine a land of almost unbounded resources. (a) ITS CLIMATE. Although only a small country it has every variety of climate, from the colds of Norway arid Sweden to the tropics of Central Africa. We have our coldest climate in the North, on the Lebanon mountains, and the temperature rises as you descend to the Highlands of Ephraim, and Manasseh and Judah ; it rises still more as you descend into the plain of Sharon and along the whole length of the Mediterranean; and it reaches a tropical heat in the hot valley of the Jordan and the Dead Sea. Everything can, therefore, practically grow in some part of Palestine. (&) THE SOIL is intensely fertile. No artificial manure is used. It is not needed. The source of the fertility of the country to a great extent consists of Small Soft Limestones, which are found scattered all over the country, sometimes almost completely hiding tbe soil itself from view. But when the rains descend and the floods come, part of the lime is dissolved ; it mixes freely with the soil, thus enriching the country just as the farmer is about to plough. 16 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. EASTERN PLOUGHS. The most primitive ploughs are used to-day, and were no doubt used in Bible times. They are very light, and can easily be carried by one man. Notice the handle. This a man holds with one hand (Luke ix. 62), and thus guides the plough. Being light and small, it just scratches the earth to the depth of a very few inches. The plough is fastened to the neck of the oxen with a YOKE. You have nothing like it here. Then notice how it is fastened to the neck of the oxen. The oxen pass under it. See Jer. xxvii. 8, 11. The weight of the yoke naturally makes the poor animal stoop. Hence the force of the allusion that when God brought Israel out of Egypt and broke their yoke of bondage, He says, " I made you to go upright. 11 Lev. xxvi. 13. The yoke is often used as a figure of speech to express bondage. See Gen. xxvii. 40 ; 1 Kings xii. 4 ; Is. xlvii. 6, &c. When a very grevous bondage was referred to, no stronger expression could be used than a yoke of iron. Deut. xxviii. 48 ; Jer. xxviii. 14. Yokes of iron are never used : at least, I have never seen or heard of them: It would be used as a figure of speech. Some yokes fit better than others, and could be used with greater comfort by the hard- working animals ; thus the yoke which our Lord imposes on us " is easy." Matthew xi. 30. The GOAD is a long pole which the ploughman holds in his other hand. One end has a metal point, PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 17 with which he pricks and goads the animals in their work, the other end, containing a flat piece of iron, he uses to scrape off the soil from the ploughshare. Like everything else, it is used as a figure of speech in Eccles. xii. 11, and again by our Lord in Acts ix. 6 and xxvi. 14, where it is called "pricks." (See Eev. Version.) Young animals are unaccustomed to the yoke. Jer. xxxi. 18. They fight and kick, but to no purpose, for they only hurt themselves by "kicking against the pricks." Many farmers will often plough together, each having his own plough and yoke of oxen, and one following close behind the other. Farmers club together in this way, partly for protection from the roving Bedouin robbers, and partly on account of the size of some of their fields. Imagine a farmer making a single furrow one mile in length ! Thus Elisha was engaged with eleven others when called by Elilah. 1 Kings xix. 19. Again, Elisha boils the oxen which he slays with the instruments (1 Kings xix. 21), showing they were of wood. Sometimes animals are " unequally yoked to- gether." A camel and a donkey, or a donkey with a cow. This was forbidden by the Law. Deut. xxii. 10. RAINFALL. Ploughing is always done after the " early rains " have thoroughly saturated and softened the ground. See Ps. Ixv. 10. Here again i8 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. you can find no parallel in England. Palestine has practically two seasons only, the wet and the dry. The dry season commences in April and lasts until October, and during this long period not a drop of rain falls. The first rains, or early rains, come about the end of October or beginning of November, and the wet season closes with the LAST or LATTER RAINS in March or the beginning of April. When, there- fore, the winter is passed, " the rain is over and gone." Cant, ii 11. Not a drop of rain falls in summer. Hence " snow in summer or rain in harvest" is as exceptional a thing as "honour to a fool." Prov. xxvi. 1. When Samuel prayed that it might rain in harvest, it would at once be connected with a judgment from God, for it was most excep- tional. 1 Sam. xii. 17, 18. During the winter mouths we have two or three days of very heavy showers of rain, accompanied often with thunder and lightning, hail and snow, and then a few days of bright warm sunshine. THE EARLY AND LATTER RAINS do not imply two distinct seasons of rain, with a dry season between, but to the beginning and end of the con- tinuous rainy seasons. Both are greatly needed. Without the first rains, no ploughing or sowing can be done ; without the latter rains there will be no harvest. A sad distressing picture of the absence of the latter rain is given us in Joel i. 7-20. It PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 19 implies that the early rains had come, that the seed had been sown, and beginning to grow, but the latter rains in February, March and April had been with- held, and the seed wasted, v. 10. (See 2 Kings xix. 26.) As soon as the first rains have saturated and softened the ground, the ploughman begins his work. Until the early rains fall he cannot plough. The earth is as hard as a rock, hence the strong and natural expression in Psalm Ixv. 10, "Thou dissolvest it with showers," not, " Thou makest it soft." Sometimes the " early rains " are very late, or insufficient in quantity to dissolve the hard clods ; in that case the ploughman has to wait (James v. 7) and hope and pray (1 Kings viii. 35). " Waiting for rain " implies a season of great anxiety. Job xxix. 23 ; Jer. xiv. 4. But when once the rains have come in sufficient quantities, he must begin to plough. He may have to plough in the very face of hail and snow, storm and tempest, but plough he must, for if he does not plough and sow with the early rains, he will not reap after the latter rains. See Prov. xx. 4. " The sluggard will not plough by reason of the cold; " and Eccles. xi. 4, " He that observeth the wind shall not sow, and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap." No doubt our Lord is thinking of a man ploughing in a storm of rain and hail when he say?, " He that putteth his hand to the plough andlooketh 2O PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. behind." Luke ix. 62. Before him the poor man faces the storm, behind him he perhaps sees his comfortable home. During the harvest the farmer produces his THRESHING INSTRUMENT. It is a " sharp instru- ment with teeth." Is. xli. 15. The corn is cut with a sickle, bound into sheaves, and conveyed on camels' backs to the threshing floor a field with a hard surface. Here the grain is trodden out by animals. Threshing instruments, where used, are made of two or three thick boards of wood (1 Chron. xxi. 23), fastened together, side by side, and look very much like a sledge. The underneath part has sharp flint stones or pieces of iron fixed to it. These sharp points, "the teeth," not only separate the corn from the ear, but cut up the straw. Look at the sharp stones, and how the instrument is used, and you will understand Gideon's threat, "I will thresh your flesh with thorns." Judges vi. 11. God's punish- ments are often compared with threshing. Is. xxv. 10 ; Hab. iii. 12. Very often no instrument is used. The oxen are made to tread the corn until it has been threshed. During this process the MUZZLE comes into operation. Animals are generally muzzled during threshing of the corn. This was forbidden in Deut. xxv. 4. PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 21 Another important implement is the FORK OR WINNOWING FAN. Wheat and chaff are separated with Qtjork or winnowing fan. Matt. iii. 12. The grain is heaped up, and men dip the fork, and toss it in the air. The wind carries the light chaff away. leaving the heavier grain on the floor (Is. xxx. 24). Hence the frequent connection found in the Bible between the wind or whirlwind and the chaff. Ps. i. 4; xxxv. 5; Is. xvii. 17; xli. 16; Jer. li. 2; Hos. xiii. 3. You will be able to realize John the Baptist's striking reference, Matt. iii. 12, He will thoroughly purge his threshing floor, i.e., Christ will separate the chaff from the wheat. Ears of corn, neatly plaited, are brought to the towns by farmers, and presented to their patrons. Thus were they probably plaited when, as the first- fruit, they are waved as a wave-offering. Ex. xxix. 24 ; Lev. viii. 27. It is during the period of harvest that you will be able to notice the LODGE IN A GARDEN. It is well worthy of a careful study, as illustrating Is. i. 8. During harvest time many of the farmers leave their villages and live in their vineyards or olive yards, in booths made of reeds. These represent the "cottage" of the above verse, the sukkah. The same word is translated "boofch" in Lev. xxiii. 42, where the Israelites are commanded to make booths on the Feast of Tabernacles. In the booth or 22 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. tent the farmer himself and his family live. Should he have any field in which some inferior vegetables or fruit, such as leeks, onions, cucumbers or melons are growing, he makes his servant, or a labourer watch there. The watchman takes four long poles, which he cuts from some trees close by, fixes them in the ground so as to form a square of about six feet. Fastened to these he fixes a platform of wood about four feet from the ground, which he covers with an old straw mat, or a piece of coarse sacking, over which he throws the branches of trees ; it shelters him from the burning rays of an Eastern sun. This is the " lodge." As soon as the harvest is over the people return home, leaving the booth or lodge to its fate. The autumn and winter winds blow away part of the branches or matting, leaving them most realistic pictures of desolation and ruin : a striking illustration of a nation without God. CHAPTER III. Houses and Homes. OASTERN houses are as unlike Western houses as ^ they can possibly be ; hence the importance of studying the subject very carefully, since every part of an Eastern house is mentioned in Scripture. AN EASTERN HOUSE. We examine first the exterior. You see four bare ugly walls. There may be one or two windows, and they will generally be covered with lattice work. You also see a very uninviting low street door. And this is more or less the universal custom all over the East, and. has been so from times immemorial. Judged, therefore, from the exterior, Eastern houses are uninteresting, ugly, and dirty. But it is only the exterior that presents so uninviting an appearance, the interior may be beautiful, comfortable, and clean. There is good reason why the exterior should be so un- attractive. Eulers in the East have absolute power, and are generally unprincipled men. A ruler has but to covet a house or field or vineyard, and he can S3 24 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. soon possess it ; or he can always find his wife, or some unscrupulous time-serving courtier, ready to help him in robbing and plundering the rightful owner. (Remember Ahab and the field of Naboth, 1 Kings xxi.) It is, therefore, customary for the wealthy to hide their wealth. King Solomon re- minded his contemporaries of this fact when he said "He that exalteth his gate seeketh destniction." Prov. xvii. 19. And the noblemen and gentry of the very city where these words were written real- ized the truth of King Solomon's saying when Nebuchadnezzar burnt " every great man's house," 2 Kings xxv. 9. Micah denounces those who rob and plunder houses. Micah ii. 2. See also Amos iii. 15. Now we enter THE DOOR. Doors are generally " two-leaved." Is. xlv. 1. This explains the two leaves in 1 Kings vi. 32-34, and Ezek. xli. 24. You next find yourself supposing you are visiting the house of a wealthy man in the PORTER'S LODGE. It is a small room through which you pass before entering the house. The porter is called " Bawab," literally, a door-keeper. All gates of cities, temples, palaces, &c., had Bawabs. See 2 Sam. xviii. 26 ; 2 Kings vii. 20 ; 1 Chron. ix. 21. When the doors are shut and anyone knocks, seeking admission, the porter does not open at once. He first calls out "Who is there?" Should he not PALESTINE AND THE BIBLB. 25 recognise the voice, he continues questioning until he is satisfied that " all is well." Hence Rhoda first questioned Peter, and recognising his voice, in her joy left him standing without. Acts xii. 13-14. The door would not be opened to any suspicious or unwelcome stranger. The unfriendly neighbour without opening the door, but from within, says " Trouble me not." Luke xi. 7. Our Saviour's gracious promise should be remembered here, " To him that Itnocketh it shall be opened," Matth. vii. 8, i.e., no questions will first be asked as to whether you are worthy of gaining admittance. All who knock are welcome ; or, " the very fact of knocking I consider a friendly act, and gains for you a ready admittance." Now we enter THE COURT. You see it is no covered hall, but a court open to the sky. It is called A KHOSH. All houses have courts. The great palaces have several. Esther v. 1. The Temple had three. Sometimes one court led into another. See Ezekiel's description of such a court in ch. xlvi. 21. They are generally paved with stone, sometimes with beautiful marble slabs, or inlaid with mosaics. Here they keep pots of flowers, or trees with delightful shade or still more delightful fruit, such as oranges, pomegranates, figs, dates. The vine, too, is made to grow over some trellis- work, forming a beautiful bower. It is probably to 26 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. the fruit trees growing in these courts that the prophets refer when they say, " Every man shall sit under his own vine and fig tree." Remembering the refreshing appearance of a court thus covered with trees, Isaiah's language receives fresh force when, in foretelling the doom of the city, he says that the courts shall be covered " with reeds and rushes." Isaiah xxxv. 7. In the Court we generally find THE WELL. It is A CISTERN in which the rain water is collected. During the dry season of the year they are often empty, and form a good hiding-place. 2 Sam. xvii. 18. The word WELL should often be read CISTERN e.g., Gen. xxi. 19 ; Num. xx. 17 ; 2 Sam. xvii. 18 ; 2 Sam. xxiii. 15. But substitute the word SPRING in Gen. xxiv. 13, and in xlix. 22. Now we enter THE ROOMS. They are all built round the courtyard, with all the doors and windows facing it. The rooms are of various sizes, and built entirely of stone walls, floor and ceiling included. As the weight of the ceiling must necessarily be very great, the roofs are always vaulted, hence the small domes which are so general a feature of all Oriental roofs. We now make our way up the stairs. They take us to THE HOUSETOP. You notice that it is almost flat. A wall about two or three feet high PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 27 runs right round it, forming a very necessary pro- tection. This parapet is called " BATTLEMENT " in the Bible, Deut. xxii. 8. The wisdom of this law will be apparent to all who remember how frequently they are used. Samuel spends a night with Saul on the housetop. 1 Sam. ix. 25. Imagine a dark night on a housetop without the "battlement!" Here St. Peter prays, Acts x. 9. Idolaters would naturally choose the housetop vhen they wished to " worship the host of heaven." Zeph. i. 5. The housetop is paved with flat stones. In course of time the cement wears away, the stones become loose, a bird drops a stray seed into the crevice, and in course of time grass and even wild flowers mav be seen growing on the housetop. But " it wither etli afore it groweth up " (Ps. cxxix. 6), having no depth of earth, 2 Kings xix. 26, and Is. xxxvii. 27. It is quite possible for people to go from one house to another by just stepping across the ad- joining roof. But that would be a great breach of etiquette. Only under very exceptional circum- stances would it be permitted, e.g., in case of a hurried flisht. When our Lord says, " Let him who is on the housetop not come down," &c.. Mattn. xxiv. 17, He no doubt refers to a hurried flight from one housetop to another until some safe place is reached by which one could descend to the road and escape. It would thus be easy to pass news from 28 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. house to house by proclaiming it from the housetop. Matth. x. 27, and Luke xii. 3. Most houses contain one storey only, but some possess one or two rooms on the housetop. These are called "UPPER ROOMS." They are generally the best rooms the largest and coolest, and would be used as GUEST-CHAMBERS. Mark xiv. 14; Luke xxii. 11. Hence the guest-chamber in which our Lord celebrated His last Passover was also called an upper room. Mark xiv. 15 ; Luke xxii. 12. Can a ROOF be UNCOVERED? If Eastern root's are of stone and cemented, how could the man sick of the palsy be let down through the roof? (Mark ii. 4.) We have to remember that our Lord was "preaching the word" (verse 2). He would choose a place where most people could hear. Now a room would obviously be the worst place, as only those actually in the room could hear. But on many an Eastern housetop, containing perhaps two upper rooms, the space between the two is covered over with boards, branches of trees, straw matting or tiles, and thus affords grateful shelter from the heat of the sun. Now from that spot our Lord could be heard by most of the people crowded there. And what the four men would have to do was to carry their friend in next door, ascend on to the roof, step across to the roof of the house occupied PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 29 by our Lord, and proceed to remove the boards, branches, &c. Having examined the house, we will now visit the CITY WALL. There is always a great dis- tinction between cities and villages in the East, consisting not so much in point of size, as in the fact that all cities of any importance have walls. This is emphasized in Deut. i. 28 ; Num. xiii. 28. There existed also a difference in the law between the tenure of land in walled cities and in open villages, Lev. xxv. 29-30. The walls are very high, strong and massive. They are so thick that people can comfortably walk on the top. From the top of the wall the besieged would of course seek to repel the invaders. 2 Kings xviii. 26 ; 2 Sam. xi. 21 ; Joel ii. 7-9. Here people would also be seen in time of peace. 2 Kings vi. 26. Many of the stones are of great size. Oue stone on the east wall of the city of Jerusalem measures thirty-seven feet in length, and just below the surface some have been found quite forty feet in length. Houses are sometimes built so close to the wall as to form part of it, con- taining even a window facing the exterior of the city. Such was Eahab's house in Jericho (Josh. ii. 15), aud David's (1 Sam. xix. 12), and St. Paul's in Damascus (2 Cor. xi. 33). Let us next examine A CITY GATE WITH NEEDLE'S EYE. Cities are pierced with several 30 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. large GATES OF IRON, and are always tioo-leaved. Isa. xiv. 1. When we read that Samson took the doors of the gate (Judg. xvi. 3) it means he unhinged both leaves and carried both. Gates are closed at sunset, and not opened until sunrise. This is still the case in all Eastern cities. Neh. vii. 3, and xiii. 19. And when once the gates are shut, they will not be opened except to admit a great official who may be out on an errand of importance. The chief captain sends St. Paul from Caesarea " at the third hour of the night" Acts xxiii. 23, i.e., about 9 p.m. A very wise precaution. No one could possibly pursue them until the gates were opened at about six the following morning. This would give the Apostle a nine hour's start, and make it impossible for any Jews to overtake them on the way. It is interesting to know that for the last few years the gates of Jerusalem have not been shut day cr night ! Is. Ix. 11. When anyone has to be admitted or allowed to leave the city by night, a smaller door fixed into the larger one is opened. This is called THE NEEDLE'S EYE." Matt. xix. 24 ; Mark x. 25 ; Luke xviii. 25. Now, try and picture the scene to which our Lord refers. Camels laden with large sacks of wheat, barley, charcoal or wood, are brought into town daily. They are our beasts of burden, for there are no carts PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 31 in Palestine. The burdens are evenly balanced on either side of the camel's back, and stand out sometimes, some three or four feet, right and left. A camel, therefore, needs a wide gate to admit it and its burden. Every traveller in the East knows from experience what it means to meet a laden camel coming up a street only just wide enough for it to pass through. He could not even stand against the wall, his only plan is to stoop low, and allow the camel to pass by, whilst the burden just grazes his back ! Hence the meaning of our Lord was obvious to his hearers. A camel with its burden could not possibly enter the " needle's eye " ; its only chance of entering was to have its burden removed first. The point our Lord wished to inculcate was not that a rich man could not enter heaven, but a man who trusts in his riches. Mark x. 24. Gates in the East open always into large squares used as MARKET PLACES. HERE people congregate, not only to transact business, but also to discuss the news of the day. At the gate sits the judge to administer justice, Deut. xxi. 19; xxii. 24; xxv. 7; Euth iv. 1-10. The city gate is, indeed, the centre of life and activity in the town. Here labourers sit, waiting to be HIRED, Matt. xx. 3. Women bring their baskets with fruit and vegetables for sale. Proclamations are made in the city gate. The 32 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. wealthy townspeople sit here on low stools sipping their coffee and smoking long pipes, which they order from a small improvised coffee-shop, while they discuss the news of the day ; the city-gate takes the place of a gentlemen's club in England. To be spoken of highly in the city-gate (Prov. xxxi. 23), means that a man is respected by high and low, rich and poor, by the gentry who sit there gossiping, or by the poor peasant women or labourers. Here also may be seen the SAKKAH, or water seller, with his skin bottle slung behind his back, shouting out " Ho ye thirsty ones, come buy and drink ; " (Is. Iv. 1.) Here also sits the baker's boy with his basket of barley loaves he is sure to be found wherever people congregate. John vi. 9. EXPLANATION OF A DIFFICULT YERSE. Close to the small improvised coffee-shop, a hired minstrel sits, playing and singing. Very often, when the song happens to be lively, one of the listeners will rise, and treat the public to a dance. Eastern dancing, it should be remembered, is altogether different from the dancing in European countries. In the East men and women never dance together. Then again, dancing consists merely in certain peculiar movements of the body and limbs, some* times very graceful, sometimes otherwise. When the hired minstrel has succeeded in making someone PALESTINE AND THE BIBLK. 33 rise to his feet and go through the usual dancing performance, he is pleased and flattered. It is a sign that his music is appreciated. Sometimes he will change his note to a sad mournful strain. The tune is plaintive, and the words sad. If his listeners are touched, they will actually shed tears, and the minstrel is again pleased, for he knows his music has affected his audience. Now turn to Matth. xi. 16-17. Our Lord compares the Jews to children sitting in the market place and saying, " we have piped unto you but ye have not danced, we have mourned unto you, and ye have not lamented." He wished to imply that their hearts were so hard, that neither the thunders of the Baptist's preaching, nor yet His own still small voice had any effect upon them. The music was there, but there was no response. Both the Saviour and St. John the Baptist had piped, but no one had responded. Outside the city, and all along the hillsides, may be seen numberless caverns. Many of them are ROCK-HEWN TOMBS. These are found in every part of Palestine. They are either natural or artificial caves, with niches cut into the sides just large enough to contain one body. People prepared tombs for themselves and families. The Cave of Machpelah was the burial-place of the Patriarch (Gen. xxiii). Isaac no doubt added two more niches for himself and Rebecca,- Jacob again, for himself and Leah 34 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. (Gen. i. 5). Asa prepared his own grave (2 Chron. xvi. 14), and Joseph of Arimathea prepared one in his own garden, in which the body of our Lord was laid (Matth. xxvii. 60). The tomb of Lazarus in Bethany was rock-hewn (John xi. 38-39). You enter the cave through a very low opening. People therefore have to stoop to look in (John xx. 5). A round stone, similar to a millstone, only much larger, in an upright position, is rolled against the opening. To open the tomb this great stone has to be rolled back into the side. The ground was always on an incline, lower at the door than at the sides ; hence it was easier to close than to open. This explains the question of the women, " Who shall roll us away the stone? " (Mark xvi. 3). In Palestine the body was always wrapped in Imen, and then placed in the tomb. Spices were used for sanitary purposes only, the art of embalming being unknown. The Israelites differed entirely from the Egyptians in this ; they never attempted to preserve the body from decay. There are how- ever two bodies buried somewhere in Palestine which were embalmed, the bodies of Jacob and Joseph. But they died and where embalmed in Egypt. CHAPTER IV. Eastern Furniture. njHE first thing to strike a European, when visiting an Eastern Home, is an almost total absence of furniture. Eastern rooms look very bare indeed. They contain low couches, called divans, placed round three sides of the room, some rugs, a very small low table, and that is practically all. There are, of course, houses in large towns, where Western ideas are beginning to prevail, and where many European articles of furniture are to be found, but a truly Eastern home is sure to possess very few articles of furniture beyond those named above. In 2 Kings iv. 10, we have a list of the articles of furniture in a Guest Chamber, which consisted of a " bed, a table, a stool, and a candlestick ! " THE BED OR COUCH. How different from an English bed ! and no bedstead ! Instead of the latter, there is a raised platform built against the 36 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLB. wall. These are found in most houses, and take the place of the bedstead. In the houses of the wealthy, they would be of marble and other beautiful stones. In Esther i. 6, we read that the couches were upon "A PAVEMENT of red, white, yellow, and black marble." Now the Hebrew word "MITTAH" is sometimes translated bed and sometimes couch, and sometimes even bier ! 2 Sam. iii. 31. Another word, MISHKAY, from a root meaning to recline, is sometimes translated bed and bedchamber. It depended entirely upon the use made of it. A sleeping place by night was sometimes the place on which guests recline by day, and is then the " couch." Esther was not in bed when she entertained Ahasuerus and Haman at the banquet, as one would imagine from the use of the words, "And he was fallen upon the bed," Esther vii. 8, but on her couch, probably similar to those described in the same book, ch. i. 6. Of course, to the poor man, the couch by day becomes his bed by night. But in wealthier houses, where they had " bedchambers," such as in Pharaoh's palace (Ex. viii. 3), or Ishbosheth's mansion (2 Sam. iv. 7), this would not be the case. Sometimes, however, the word " bedchamber " means a recess in the wall, or a small closet, in which the mattresses and bedding are put out of the way during the day-time. In such a place, no doubt, Joash was hid. 2 Kings xi. 2. PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 37 When you read of the word BED, it therefore is of some importance for the right understanding of the passage to find out whether bed or couch is meant. When David says, " Let the saints sing aloud in their beds," Ps. cxlix. 5, he refers to the couch or DIYAN, on which people sit and sing. Notice, too, how the mattresses are covered with fine tapestry or linen. Also an old custom. See Pro'v. vii. 16. The bedding consists of a mattress. The PILLOW OR BOLSTER is a matter of indifference to the people. Michal makes one of an inflated goat's skin, and that was considered fit for the son-in-law of a king ! 1 Sam. xix. 13. Jacob has a stone, Gen. xxviii. 18, and probably others were accustomed to use the same bead rest. It was, therefore, the height of luxury to use SOFT PILLOWS. Ezekiel, warning the Jews against luxury, referred to them. Ezek. xiii. 18, 20. In Old Testament times seats were used a custom which had been brought by the Israelites from Egypt. After the return from Babylon, the Persian custom was adopted of using no chairs at all, but reclining on couches or DIYANS. This reclining instead of sitting, is referred to in Esther, and frequently in the New Testament. At the feeding of the five thousand, our Lord says, " Make the men recline." Matt. viii. 11 ; and see also Luke 38 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. ix. 14 ; xiv. 8, and xxii. 27. Again, at the celebration of the last Passover, our Lord and His disciples reclined. Mark xiv. 18. (See Revised Version to above passages.) It is curious to know that the natives of Palestine have now gone back to the older custom of sitting at a meal, but they sit on divans instead of chairs. Hence we find the Old Testament custom in the posture of the people, and the New Testament custom in the seat or divan. The poor man's bed consists of a rough cotton- wool quilt, called Ilhaf. When our Lord said to the impotent man, " Take up thy bed and walk," John v. 8, this was no doubt the bed he had to take. We need not suppose that he was asked to carry a " fovjposter." The TABLE is a low stand about 18 inches high, on which is placed A. TRAY of basket work or copper. The BASKET TRAYS (in Hebrew SAL) should be distinguished from the larger BASKETS (called DUDIM in Hebrew.) The " basket of bake- ments " brought to Pharaoh (Gen. xl. 17) was the tray or Sal. On the other hand, the baskets in which the heads of Ahab's sons were placed wero DUDIM. 2 Kings x. 8. FRUIT BASKETS. Fruit is still brought into the market town in DUDIM BASKETS. Jer. xxiv. 1. Gideon used the SAL. Judges vi. 19. PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 39 The FIRE-HEARTH is made of rough clay, used for cooking and warming purposes. Charcoal is burnt. When burning brightly, it is carried into the room, round which the people sit in the evenings warming their hands. Thus St. Peter sat. Wealthy people use copper ones. John xviii. 18, and Jer. xxxvi. 22, 23. Remember, they had no stoves, and no chimneys ! LAMPS are made of clay. They are very small. Olive oil is always used. A piece of cotton-wool or flax forms the wick. When the oil in the 3RAJ or lamp is nearly exhausted, a very unpleasant smoke is the result. But the moment oil is added, it ceases to smoke, and burns up brightly. Is. xliii. 17. This is what " the Servant of the Lord," the Saviour, does to the Soul. The same small lamps were used in Bible times. They hold very little oil, and need replenishing about once every hour ; hence the foolishness of those virgins who forgot to take a proper supply. Matt. xxv. 2, 8. A vessel containing this supply is to be found in every house. It is the CRUSE OF OIL mentioned in the case of the poor widow, in 1 King xvii. 12, and in Matt, xxv. 4. The small lamps are placed in- lampstands, called CANDLESTICKS. Matt. v. 15. They are 40 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. made of wood, though sometimes of gold or some other metal. They have ONE branch, but no doubt in houses of the wealthy they would have more. Remember the SEYEN BRANCHED CANDLESTICK. Ex. xxxvii. 17-21. and Eev i. 20. The light given is very poor, but quite enough to serve its purpose ; Easterns never wort alter dark. Candles are used more for comfort than actual need. Hence some- times used as a figure of comfort. Ps. xviii. 28 ; Micah vii. 8. A lamp going out is often used to represent the extinction 01 a family or race. Prov. xiii. 9. " Lamp of the wicked shall be put out," means he shall die childless. See also Prov. xx. 20 ; 1 Kings xv. 4 ; 2 Sam. xxi. 17. (Revised Version.) This probably throws some fresh light on Gen. xv. 17, God's covenant with Abraham and his remarkable vision. "A flaming torch passed between those pieces." Probably to indicate that not only would his lamp not go out, but that it would be a bright flaming torch. The streets of Eastern cities are not lighted after dark. It is only within recent years that Jerusalem was favoured with street lamps. As the streets are bad, and in complete possession of wild street dogs, a man cannot go anywhere after dark without the LANTERN. When carried it throws most of the light on the ground. That is where it is PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 41 of course most needed, hence God's word compared with a lamp for one's feet and a light to the path. Ps. cxix. 67. A very pretty ewer and basin is brought into requisition before a meal. As Easterns use no forks or knives, this is very necessary, both before or after a meal. It is a very ancient custom. A slave pours water on the hands, holding the basin under them. Elisha is thus described as having " poured water on the hands of Elijah." 2 Kings iii. 11. The Jews ma^e a rigorous rule in regard to the washing of hands before a meal, which is still the custom. Mark vii. 3 ; Matt. xv. 2. When coming from a distance, the feet too are washed, i.e., water from the ewer is poured over the foot, under which the basin is held. This, too, is a very ancient custom. The three angels had their feet washed. Gen. xviii. 4 ; Abraham's servant in Mesopotamia, Gen. xxiv. 32 ; and Joseph's brethren in Egypt, Gen. xliii. 24. It will therefore be seen that the washing of the feet is the universal custom in the East. It was the work of slaves or lowest menials. When Abigail of Carmel wished to express her sense of deepest humility, she could use no stronger expression than, " Behold thine handmaid is a slave to wash the feet of the servants of my lord." 1 Sam. xxiv. 41. See also Luke vii. 38, 44 ; 42 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. John xiii. 5, 10 ; and Song v. 3. Hence our Lord's lesson of humility when He washed His disciples' feet. The Pharisees, on the other hand, showed how they despised our Lord by not having His feet washed when invited to a feast. Luke vii. 44. EASTERN BOTTLES. These are made of the skins of animals, cleaned out and made water-tight. They are of various sizes, and used, not only for water, but for wine. 2 Sam. xvi. 1 ; Jer. xiii. 12 ; 1 Sam. i. 24; x. 3; and xvi. 20; and milk, Judges iv. 18. Oil was generally stored in earthen vessels. Oar Lord refers to SKIN BOTTLES when He says ' New wine must be put into new bottles," and for a very good reason. Old bottles are weak, and while the wine was fermenting, would burst. Matt. ix. 17 ; Job xxxii. 19. Before " skin " bottles are fit for use they art smoked. Ps. cxix. 83 refers to this. The large skin bottles are carried by men only ; a smaller size is carried by women. The bottle which Abraham gave to Hagar was of this kind. Gen. xxi. 14. PITCHERS AND JUGS, called sometimes BOTTLES OF CLAY, to distinguish them from skins, Jer. xix. 1, are still carried to the fountain or well to get water, and generally by women. See case of PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 43 Kebekah, Gen. xxiv. 14 ; the woman of Samaria, John iv. 28. So exceptional was it for a man to carry a pitcher of water, that our Lord was able to send His two disciples into the crowded streets Oi Jerusalem, and to point out the one man they were to follow ; they were to follow a man bearing a pitcher of water. They were likely to meet many men carrying skin bottles, and women carrying pitchers, but not many men bearing a pitcher. Mark xiv. 3 ; Luke xxii. 10. HANDMILLS are found in every household. People, especially in the villages and small country towns, grind their own corn, and it is work which has to be done daily, for people only bake enough for one day's consumption. Being so necessary a household requisite, without which the daily food cannot be prepared, we see the forethought of a loving Father who forbad any part of a millstone being taken as a pledge. Deut. xxiv. 6. Women grind, bake, and kriead daily, and the whole process does not occupy more than about half-an-hour. The handmill consists of two millstones, the upper one and the lower. Two women sit facing each other and grind together, on account of the weight of the stone. Matt. xxiv. 41. Grinding is always the work of women and slaves. Ex. xi. 1. The Philistines were, therefore, heaping the greatest indignity on Sampson when they made him grind 44 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. corn in prison. Judges xvi. 21. Jeremiah laments the fact that the Babylonians fi took young men to grind" Lam. v. 13. Isaiah foretells that at the destruction of their city the Babylonian ladies would be engaged in performing the slaves' work of grinding. Is. xlvii. 2. The sound of the grinding, though not by any means musical, is nevertheless pleasant to the ears of Easterns, for it is always associated with home comfort, prosperity and plenty. Hence the days must be very evil " when the sound of the grinding is low." Eccles. xii. 4. THE KNEADING-TROUGH IS also found in every home. It is made of wood, and of various sizes. Women may still be seen daily carrying their kneading-troughs on their heads going to the public bake-ovens. Unleavened cakes are always baked when a meal has to be hastily prepared. Ex. xii. 34, 39. Frogs in the Egyptian kueading-troughs must have been particularly obnoxious. Ex. viii. 3. God promised to bless the kneading-troughs; i.e., the bread, or food of the Israelites if they obeyed Him. Deut. xxviii. 5. CHAPTER V. Eastern Dress, CASTERN FASHIONS are as changeless as the changeless sun. There is every reason to believe that, with some slight modifications, the people we meet with in the Holy Land to-day, are wearing the same kind of garments worn in the days of Abraham, David, or our Lord. Commentators and translators alike have singularly failed to appreciate the importance of the study of Eastern customs and manners with the object of elucidating many passages ; and as a consequence, many a verse which should be easily understood is mystified and the full meaning lost. One general rule should be observed, CLOTHING IN THE EAST ALWAYS MARKS THE SOCIAL RANK OF THE WEARER. It does so to-day, and it did so in Bible times. Hence in studying this subject we shall not only be examining articles of dress, we shall be learning much of the character and social position of the owners of these garments. In 46 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. many cases the difference between one man's costume and another's may be slight, but it always marks social position or rank, or religion, or even home and country. This is often referred to in the Bible. The woman of Samaria at once recognised our Lord to be a Jew, no doubt by his garments. John iv. 9. Referring to St. John the Baptist, our Lord wished to intimate that people were not attracted to him on account of any pretensions to rank or station in life ; He, therefore, contrasts the difference between his rough garments and those of the noblemen and courtiers who wore so/tf raiment. Matt. xi. 8. John the Baptist wore the garments of a poor peasant, consisting of a mantle of camel's hair and a leather girdle. Matt. iii. 4. Elijah is at once recognised by his clothing, 2 Kings i. 8 ; and it appears that his clothing became the token of all prophets (false and true). Zech. xiii. 4. Now, the Baptist's clothing being the same as Elijah's, must at once have attracted the Jews, who were expecting Elijah in person. Mai. iv. 4, 5 ; Matt. xvii. 11 ; Mark ix. 11. The commonest, and probably one of the oldest garments is THE EASTERN MANTLE, called 'ABBAYEH by the Arabs. It is made of camel's hair (Gen. xxv. 25 ; Matt. iii. 4 ; Zech. xiii. 4), very coarse and rather shapeless. Generally, in two colours, white and brown, or white and red. RED PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 47 ONES are worn by women only. (Why will artists persist in making the most absurd mistakes? There is a well-known picture of the Prodigal Son's return, which graces many a Schoolroom or Mission Hall, and the father is seen wearing his wife's mantle ! a thing he would never do. A man would sooner go without his mantle than put on any article of dress belonging to a woman. It is an abomination to Orientals to-day, just as it was to the Israelites. It was forbidden by the Law. Deut. xxii. 5). Among the poor people the mantle by day forms the only covering by night. That it was used for a similar purpose in Bible times is seen in Ex. xxii. 26, 27, and Deut. xxiv. 12, 13. A mantle pledged had to be returned at sunset, for " that is his covering only it is his raiment for his skin ; wherein shall he sleep / " Showing again God's gracious provision for the wants and comforts of the poor. Amos condemns the people of his day for breaking this law. Amos ii. 10. (See Revised Version.) When Sisera went to sleep, Jael covered him with a mantle. Judges iv. 18. A mantle is not only given in pledge for a debt, but also as a token that a certain promise connected with some business transaction will be kept. See Deut. xxiv. 10-13. This is done to this day, and is called 'Arabon, the same as one of the Hebrew words. 48 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. A COAT WITHOUT SEAM is a mantle of the same material, shape and colour, but consists of one piece only. They are still worn by the peasant classes in the North. Remember that Christ came from the North. John xix. 23. The famous GOAT OF TREYES cannot be the identical one worn by our Lord, as its appearance, shape, material, and colour are altogether different from the 'Abayehs the best proof that that famous coat is a fraud. There are mantles of softer material, though of the same shape, worn by the effendis or gentry. These are the " Soft Raiment " of Matt. xi. 8. Girdles are worn by all, rich and poor alike. But there is a great difference in the material. The peasants and Bedouins wear LEATHERN GIRDLES. Elijah and John the Baptist belonged to this class. 2 Kings i. 8 ; Matt. iii. 4 ; Mark i. 6. SOFT LEATHER GIRDLES are worn by the Bethlehem gentlemen. They form an intermediate class, higher than the actual peasant but somewhat lower than the townsfolk. Their girdles therefore are not quite so coarse as those made of leather. The SOFT GIRDLES, made of silk or linen, are worn by the upper classes. Again soft raiment ! Some are even worked in gold. See Dan. x. 5 ; Jer. xiii. 1 ; Ezek. xvi. 10 ; and Rev. i. 13 and xv. 6. PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 49 Girdles are worn by all, men, women, and children. When resting they are taken off; and they "gird their loins" when preparing for work or for a journey. It is strapped as firmly as possible, and serves as a support and stay in working, running or riding. Hence the order, " Gird on thy loins," always meant "prepare for action." Luke xii. 37 andxvii. 8; Acts xii. 8; Ex. xii. 11. Elijah girded his loins when hurrying from Carmel with Ahab. 1 Kings xviii. 46. See also Gehazi running to Shunm. 2 Kings iv. 29 and ix. 1. A girdle could be given as a present. 1 Sam. xviii. 11. Symbolically the act of girding the loins meant, " be prepared for action, now is not your rest." Luke xii. 35; 1 Pet. i. 3; and Eph. vi. 14. It was foretold that the Messiah would be girded with righteousness and faithfulness. Is. xi. 5. Some of the girdles contain small pockets, where money and other valuables are kept. See Eevised Version of Matthew x. 9, where our Lord says, " Get you no gold nor silver nor brass in your girdles." The word purse is a mistranslation. Natives nse no purses. The scribe also carried his inkhorn in his belt. Ezek. ix. 2, 11. For " by his side " read " upon his loins " or in his girdle. THE STOMACHER of Is. iii. 25, was probably a beautiful sash worn as a girdle by ladies. They are still worn, and are often of exquisite workman- ship, worked in silk aod gold. 50 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. Priests were commanded to wear linen clothes. Ex. xxviii. 42 ; Lev. vi. 10 ; 1 Sam. ii. 18, and xxii. 18. They were effendis gentlemen. Prophets wore coarse clothing. Zech. xiii. 4 ; 2 Kings i. 8 ; Matt. iii. 4. They were fellaheen peasants. Much food for thought here ! When those who should have been the shepherds of the sheep proved faith- less to their trust (Jer. xxiii. 1,2), God, in very irony, chose servants from the lower orders. Under the mantle is worn a tunic very much in the shape of a dressing-gown. The poorest wear them rather short, not reaching much below the knee. The sheikh wears one coloured, and much longer, and with long sleeves. The longer the sleeves the more respectable the wearer. Joseph's " coat of many colours " was really a long-sleeved robe, worn only by the chief and his heir. Gen. xxxvii. 3. Tamar's robe is called by the same nanir 2 Sam. xiii. 18. Among the Bedouins the chiet will often be distinguished not so much by the richer material of his robes as by the long sleeves, of almost exactly the same shape as the surplice sleeve ; and his eldest son or heir will also have the privilege of wearing these long sleeves. This would account for the jealousy of the elder brothers. It was not the fact that Joseph's coat was more beautiful tban theirs, but what that coat implied. It meant that Jacob wished his youngest son to be the heir. PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 51 COATS OP MANY COLOURS are nevertheless worn, and are very popular. They are generally called ROBES in the Bible. 1 Sam. ii. 19, xxvii. 14, xv. 27, xviii. 4 ; 1 Chron. xv. 27; Ezra ix. 3, 5; Bzek xxvi. 16. SANDALS are worn by the very poorest only ; and are fastened to the foot with straps, called LATCHETS. Matt. iii. 11 ; Mark i. 7 ; Luke iii. 16 ; showing that our Lord wore sandals. So also St. Peter. Acts xii. 8. GENTLEMEN'S SHOES are of soft leather, and generally yellow. Shoes of sealskin or porpoise skin are referred to in Ezek. xvi. 10. Ladies wear beauti- fully worked slippers, in gold and silver, and often ornamented with a variety of colours. They are mentioned in Ezek. xvi. 10. Shoes are always removed when entering a room or a sacred place. Ex. iii. 6; Josh. v. 15. Hence the shoe is always connected with everything low and contemptible. To unloose the shoe was the meanest duty of a slave. Matt. iii. 11; John i, 27. Very strong, therefore, was the expression of Amos, that th rulers and oppressors had " sold the poor for a pair of shoes." Amos ii. 6 and viii. 6. " To cast the shoe upon " anyone meant to degrade and humble him. " Over Edom will I cast my shoe," Ps. Ix. 8. meant : I will disgrace and conquer Edom. PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. To walk barefooted was a sign of mourning, 2 Sam. xv. 30, Is. xx. 2, 4 ; or slavery, 2 Chron, xxviii. 15 ; or intense poverty ', Luke xv. 22, and xxii. 35 Some coats won by roving shepherds are the rough SHEEPSKIN JACKETS. They are quite in keeping with the wild, roving life of the shepherd. It is sometimes not even made into a jacket, the piece of sheepskin being simply wrapped round the body, and tied round with some string or rope. Heb. xi. 37, implies that the persecuted ones lived a wild fugitive life. (See Shepherd Life). A very peculiar headdress is the SYRIAN HORN, worn by women in the north, and is fast becoming extinct. The white veil is thrown right over the horn, and hangs gracefully down the shoulders, making the woman appear very tall. It is supposed to be referred to in the passages, " Mine horn is exalted." I Sam. ii. 1. See also 2 Sam. xxii 3 ; Ps. Ixxv. 4. Veils are worn by all women, though it is only the town's women who veil the face. They are of different sizes and different material. The peasants wear very long veils, almost as large as a sheet, thrown back from their head. They do not hide their face. PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 53 The BETHLEHEM VEIL was of this kind. Boaz emptied six measures of barley into it. Ruth iii. 15. In the margin it is called a sheet. It was indeed a sheet veil. Women may still be seen carrying sheaves of corn in their veils. To remove the veil from a woman is an insult. Song v. 7. CHAPTER VI. Some Eastern Characters. H|HE EASTERN SHEPHERD. The rough garments he wears are but a reflex of the wild life he lives. Wandering about the wild mountains, taking his sheep and goats to " green pastures " and " still waters," Ps. xxiii. 2, he is often away from home for many weeks at a time. Jacob refers to this when he says to Laban, " In the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night." Gen. xxxi. 40. Of course there are shepherds who are able to lead their flocks home by night, and take them out again by day ; but these are the exception. Shepherds are either slaves or the youngest sons, or daughters. Taking care of the sheep is considered very low and menial work. It will be remembered that the youngest son of Jesse was the shepherd, while the elder sons were engaged in the far more honourable occupation of warring or hunting. 1 Sam. xvii. 13, 15. It will also be remembered that Eachel *4 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 55 looked after her father's sheep, Gen. xxix. 9, and Jethro's daughters did the same, Ex. ii. 16, 17. One remarkable exception is to be found in the case of Jacob's sons, and this throws on altogether fresh light on the jealousy of Joseph's brethren. Jacob reverses the general rule and custom when he makes the elder sons the shepherds, while the younger ones stop at home. This no doubt was the origin of all their jealousy and hatred against their younger brother. Shepherds are always well armed with a for- midable club called NABBUTEH. With these they defend themselves and their sheep against any attacks from robbers or wild beasts. No doubt David attacked the lion and the bear with a NABBUTEH. When climbing up the mountains he is supported by a long STAFF called ASSAYEH, The staff or stave which David had in his hand when he went against Goliath was the LIGHT ASSAYEH, 1 Sam. xvii. 40, not the heavy club. This evokes the grim wrath of the giant, " Am I a dog that thou comest to me with the Assay eh ? " 1 Sam. xvii. 43. This he uses as a support. Very beautiful is there- fore the allusion to the Nabbuteh and the Assayeh in Ps. xxiii 4, " Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me." David is comparing God's protection to the rod, His support to the staff. 56 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. SLINGS are made by the shepherds themselves, and used when their sheep stray too far away. Thej do not hit the sheep, for that would kill it, but they throw the stone just near enough to frighten it. As the slings are in daily use, the shepherds become very proficient in their use. SMOOTH STONES are taken from the rough torrent bed, and kept in their POUCHES. See 1 Sam. xvii. Slings were used in warfare. We read of the slingers in 2 Kings iii. 25 ; 2 Chron. xxvi. 14, and of those who could "sling stones at a hair's breadth" Judges xx. 16. THE SCRIBE is described to us in Ezek. ix. 2, 3, clothed in linen and having the inkhorn by his side, or rather in his belt or girdle. Customs have not changed since the days of Ezekiel ! Very few people can write. The scribe is therefore a man of considerable importance in a town or village, for he may be the only person in a community who can read or write a letter. Fortunately, through the enterprise of Christian Missions, the scribes are be- ginning to lose much of their importance, for schools have now been established in every part of the country. But the pioneer of education in the land was the London Jews' Society. Few people are aware of the incalculable blessing this Society has been, and still is, to the cause of the Gospel in tho East! PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 57 The inspired psalmist speaks of his tongue being as ready to proclaim the attributes of the coming Messiah as "a ready writer " is to write a letter from dictation. Ps. xlv. 1. THE SAKKAH or Water Carrier. Water has often to be bought, for no water-supply exists in most Eastern cities. It has to be carried in sldn bottles. He walks through the streets shouting, " He ya, 'atchan, tahaloo yishraboo." " Ho, ye thirsty ones, come ye and drink " the same cries heard in the streets of Jerusalem in the days of Isaiah ! Is. Iv. 1. Note the difference and the sharp contrast no doubt intended by the passage refered to. The "living" water is given, net bought ; this should always be emphasizedin passages of a similar character. John vii. 37 ; Rev. xxi 6, and xxii. 17, the word freely should be emphatic. The idea being that the spiritual water is given without money and without price. There are cases where a man wishing to perform an act of charity, will pay for all the water contained in a skin bottle, or all the bread carried by a baker's boy. The water and bread are then freely distributed amongst the poor. The seller will then change his cry and will literally call out, " Ho, ye thirsty ones, come and drink to-day for nothing, for nothing." The word " balash " means freely, without payment. 58 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. THE BAKER'S BOY. These lads are seen with their baskets on their heads, selling small loaves of bread wherever people congregate. No doubt the " lad who had five barley loaves and two small fishes " was the baker's boy, who, seeing crowds going out into the wilderness, knew he would be very welcome there with his bread, and he must have been very successful since only five were left. John vi. 9. SINGING GIRLS are professioal singers and professional mourners. At weddings they are bright and cheerful, at funerals they look sad and dejected. They thus " rejoice with them that rejoice, and weep with them that weep." Rom. xii. 15. Very skilful are they too in the art of improvising. They are born poetesses. They make up the words without any preparation while they sing, and know how to touch some tender chord connected with the life of those present, thus making them mourn. The Bible speaks of singing men as well as of singing women. 2 Sam. xix. 35 ; 2 Chron. xxxv. 25 ; Ezra ii. 65 ; Neh. vii. 67. They are still to be seen and heard, but they have no special dress. THE DERYISH. Very wild and weird he looks with his long hair a sign of special sanctity to-day. (May this not be a remnant of the ancient custom of the Nazarites ? Numb. vi. 2, 13, 18 ; Judges xiii. 5 ; Amos ii. 12.) The modern Dervish is the truest PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 59 representative 01 the prophets of Baal. To this day they delight numberless sightseers in the market places ny cutting themselves with knives, and pierciui,' their cheeks \vith sharp iron skewers. 1 Kings xviii. 28. That the prophets of Baal did the same is evident from the expression, " They cut themselves after their manner." It appears too to have been a custom for people to show their grief by ciiiti'ig themselves, Jer, xvi. 6, xli. 5, and xlvii. 5. This was forbidden in the law. Lev. xix. 28 and Deut. xiv. 1. CHAPTER VII. Eastern Toilet and Ornaments. P. IKE a)i Oriental races, the Jews are very fond of ornaments. We are therefore not surprised to find many references to them in the Scriptures. We must mention first of all the TOILET BOTTLES. Ladies always paint their eyelashes and eyebrows. In these bottles the black powder is kept. The small probe is first moistened, then dipped in the bottle, and next passed lightly over the eyelashes and eyebrows. This is done in order to make the eyes appear large. Easterns are vqry fond of large eyes. This is referred to in Jer. iv. 30. Jezebel painted her eyes not the face, as in the authorized version. 2 Kings ix. 30 (see Revised Version). SHAVING was forbidden by the law. Lev. xxi. 5. The Jews are therefore always depicted as wearing beards. Beineinber the Ambassadors of David who had to stop in Jericho till their beards were grown 2 Sum. x. 4-5. PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 61 Just as shaving was a disgrace in Palestine, so wearing the beard was a disgrace in Egypt. There men always shaved. Joseph was shaved before being taken to Pharaoh. Gen. xli. 14. MIRRORS were in use long before the Israelites brought their mirrors to Moses and Aaron. Ex. xxxviii. 8. They were not glass, but pieces of polished metal, and naturally the reflection could not be as perfect as in a looking-glass, hence the force of St. Paul's saying, "Now we see through a glass darkly." 1 Cor. xiii. 12. Such a mirror is also referred to in 2 Cor. iii. 18, and James i. 23. Isaiah foretells that the Israelite women would have their GLASSES (literally mirrors) taken away from them. Is. iii. 23. Ornaments in shape of a half-moon, called " round tires like the moon " in Is. iii. 18, are worn round the necks of women, and often put by princes and kings round the necks of their horses or camels. Judges viii. 21 (see margin). PLAITED HAIR Women wear their hair in many plaits hanging down. The number of the plaits must always be odd. They sometimes have eleven, thirteen, nineteen always an odd number. St. Peter advises the Christian women to think more of the " beauty of holiness " than the outward adorn- ment of plaited hair. 1 Peter iii. 3. 62 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. JEWELLERY. Ail Orientals are iond of Jewellery, and from their frequent mention in the Bible it would appear that in those early days* they were equally fond of them. The ornaments worn are of various kinds ; some are of glass or seeds strung together, others are of metal, brass, bronze, silver and gold. The poor peasants always wear GLASS RINGS AND BRACELETS. They are manufactured in Hebron and elsewhere, and worn by aU women and girls. Blue is the favourite colour : it is the colour of most charms. TINKLING ORNAMENTS contain small bells or chains. Some are worn as bracelets, others as anklets. See Is. iii. 18-20. Tinkling Ornaments are great favourites in the East to-day. EARRINGS AND NOSESINGS are both still in use, and are mentioned in the Bible. Nose-rings are mentioned in Is. iv. 21. Notice also in particular Ezek. xvi. 12, where instead of " I will put a jewel on thy forehead, 1 " read " I will put a ring upon thy nose." PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. SOAP. It will probably surprise many readers to learn that Palestine has a very large soap industry. It does not look very tempting, yet it is purer than most soaps made in this country because pure olive oil is used in its manufacture. Large quantities are manufactured and shipped to Egypt, N. Syria, and the Levant. Soap is twice mentioned in the Bible, in Jer. ii- 22, and Malachi iii. 2, while nitre mentioned in Jer. ii. 22, was also a compound of soap. CHAPTER VIII. Tents and Tent Life. TT is hardly possible to over-estimate the importance of this chapter if we wish to understand many passages of God's Holy Word. Many objections raised against the truth of the Bible exist only because so many passages are quite misunderstood, and commentators do not always throw sufficient light on these dark passages. Moreover, even many believers have very serious misgivings in regard to certain passages, for they seem so contrary to the high and holy standard of other parts of the Sacred Scriptures. One of these very difficulties finds a most simple and natural solution here. THE TENT is made of thick, coarse material, of goat's or of camel's hair, dyed black. Tents are always black. Hence Solomon may well compare them to black eyes in Song i. 5. The cloth is made by " tent-makers." St Paul, Aquila, and Priscilla, were weavers of the cloth from which tents are PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 65 made. Acts xviii. 3. The tents are raised ON POLES of various sizes and of the roughest kind. The poles are held up by ropes stretched on all sides, and fastened to the ground with long TENT PEGS, called NAILS in the Bible. Judges iv. 21, 22, and v. 26. These tents are generally put up and taken down by women. They do most of the menial work, and from constant practice are well accustomed to the huge WOOD HAMMER or mallet, and hammering the " nails " deep down in the ground. It was with such a nail that Jael killed Sisera. Judges iv. 21. Tents are generally divided into two parts. One completely closed for the WOMEN, the other open, for public use. In the latter part strangers are admitted. Gen. xviii. 5. No strange man is allowed to enter the female part of the tent. When men therefore are entertained, women pass within, and can not be seen. Yet they can hear and even join in the conversation. Gen. xviii. 9, 15. The various pieces of coarse cloth are often not sewn together, but pinned with small wood pins, called "TACHES" in Ex. xxxvi. 18. The Eevised Version calls them clasps. In the Tabernacle they were made of brass, not of wood. In a large encampment the chief's tent is always placed in the very centre, while all the other tents 66 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. are pitched around it. This was done all through the wanderings of the Israelites in the wilderness. The TENT OF THEIR CHIEF God's tent, the Tabernacle always occupied the centre of the en- campment. Num. ii. The chief's tent is further distinguished by a long spear about fifteen or eighteen feet in length, fixed in the ground in an upright position. This was done when King Saul sought to kill David. 1 Sam. xxvi. 7. David took Saul's spear, and the Israelites must have known that he must have been quite close to Saul, and near enough to kill him. WHY DID JAEL KILL SISERA? Have you ever seen a satisfactory answer ? It is a very great difficulty to Europeans, and yet, the solution could have been settled ages ago if people had done the simplest thing in the world gone to an encampment of Bedouins and seen something of their strange life. To a Bedouin nothing would be more natural than Jael's action. To understand the reason, two facts must be borne in mind. First, the duty of entertaining strangers in the East is an unwritten law, yet not even the most unprincipled would dare to violate it. Bedouins are most hospitable to strangers. Never in my wanderings have I passed an encampment of PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 67 Bedouins without being at once invited to corns in and rest. The words they u e are exactly ths same asused by Jaei : " Come in, ii*y Lord come in and rest." Judges iv. 18. Secondly, no strange man is permitted to enter the FEMALE PART of the tent. Another unwritten law declares such an one to be guilty of death, and any relation is bound to carry this law into execution. If a woman allows a stranger to enter her part of the tent she is guilty of death. Now, bearing this in mind, turn to Judges iv. Sisera was escaping, when he passed Jael's tent. She at once, with true Eastern hospitality, invited him to enter and rest. This she would do with double cordiality, for in this war her people sided with Sisera and against the Israelites See Judges iv. 17. She of course wished him to enter the public part only. But he wanted a good hiding place, and no place could be safer than the female part of the tent, for no Israelite would intrude. So he pushed his way and entered of course contrary to the wishes of Jael. But she had now been insulted ; what was she to do ? If she protested, her own instinct told her, the intruder was in despair, and would kill her. If she allowed him to stay there, her husband would believe her to be faithless, and kill her h'.mself. She therefore took the law into her own hands, and while he had fallen asleep, she pinned him to the ground. 68 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. We are told too in v. 19 that she gave him milk to drink when he asked for water. The same milk is called butter in Judges v. 25. It was no doubt the fritter-milk much used all over the East. This is considered by some as an aggravation of treachery, but it is more likely that she gave him milk because she had no water. Every traveller in the East knows it is sometimes easier to procure milk than water. Shepherds are found everywhere on the mountains, and they are always ready to milk the goats and quench the thirst of the weary traveller. She is therefore called blessed in ch. v. 24, not because she committed a treacherous murder, but because, while trying to defend her character and honour, she was unknowingly ridding the Israelites of a great and cruel tyrant. CHAPTER IX. Eastern Music. 'OEBHAPS on no subject will this little book be & more complete revelation than on that of music. It is the general impression that the musical instru- ments of the Bible were capable of producing musical effects similar to those of a complete modern orchestra. Orientals have no idea of harmony. They sing in unison. And instruments are only used as an accompaniment. Instrumental music, strictly speaking, does not exist. Nor did it in Bible times. When we read " Praise the Lord with lute and harp," &c. (Ps. xxxiii. 2 ; cl. 3), it means sing to the Lord, and accompany the singing with lute and harp. People sang and played in unison, and the music was, as it is to-day, of the most primitive character. This is very plainly shown by the very names given 70 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. to musical instruments. In Amos vi. 5, we read of K'elai Shir, invented by King David, i.e.. instrument of song, The principal instruments of music are THE HARP. It is the first one mentioned in the Bible (Gen. iv. 21), and consisted of an instru- ment with many strings, called in Hebrew KINNOR, in Arabic Kannun. From the frequency with which it is mentioo 3d in the Bible, it would appear to have been the national instrument of the Jews. It seems always to have been associated with joy and gladness. Hence in captivity " they hung their harps upon the willows." Ps. clvii. 2. From David's time it seems to have been generally associated with the worship of Jehovah. Hence the word KINNOR is more often mentioned in the Psalms than any other instrument. David, as a lad played on the KINNOR, 1 Sam. xvi. 16-23, and to its accompaniment sang some of his sweet Psalms. NEGINOTH comes from Hebrew NAGAN " to play," and is always connected with the harp. (Literally " to harp upon the harp." When Elisha sent for a minstrel, 2 Kings iii. 15, the word is NAGAN, again from same root, hence a proper translation would be HARPER. It is interesting to compare some of David's Psalms which have the title NEGINOTH. Some of these, if sung by David before Saul, would PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 71 have inspired the morose king to something like confidence in God. See Ps. iv. 8; "I will lay me down in peace and sleep." And again, Ps. vi., " A prayer for recovery from bodily or mental affliction." Again in Ps. Iv., after complaining of sad distress, he adds the comfortable words (v. 22), " Cast thy burden upon the Lord." Ps. Ixi. is a prayer to God to preserve and prolong the king's life." (V. 6) " Thou shalt prolong the king's life." Very touching, too is the petition in v. 7 : "0 prepare mercy and truth, which may preserve him." It must have been very unusual for a poor shepherd to be able to play the KINNOR. Shepherds only play the flute or pipe. David, the shepherd lad, must, therefore, have been noted far and wide as the talented shepherd who could play the harp. No wonder that even Saul's courtiers had heard of him. 1 Sam. xvi. 8. The ORGAN, like the Harp, was the earliest invented instrument. Called UGAY in Hebrew ; Gen. iv. 21. It consists of reeds of different lengths, the player passing his mouth from one to the other. It is the well-known Pan's pipe, the primitive organ. Besides the passage in Genesis it is mentioned with KINNOR only in Job xxi. 12 and xxx. 31. Is it not curious that these two earliest instruments, invented by Jubal, should be mentioned by Job only, with 72 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. just one exception ? May not this be an internal evidence of the antiquity of the book ? It is also mentioned once with a long list of other instruments in Ps. cl. 4. The PIPE was a plain reed either single or double, and played like the modern flute or oboe. They are the favourite instruments of shepherds, as they are easily made, and easily played. Galled in Hebrew EHALIL. Notice plural form in the title of Ps. v. NEHILOTH. They are connected with travelling in Is. xxx. 29. Mentioned in 1 Sam. x. 5 and 1 Kings i. 40. From these three passages it would appear that they were in ancient times connected with religious worship, hence the sad degeneracy of the people when they used " the harp, viol, tabret, pipe," in their drunken feasts. Is- v. 12. The YIOL was a one-stringed instrument, and the prototype of the modern violin ; though there appear to have been Viols with more than one string. In Ps. xcii. 3 we read of a ten-stringed NEYEL also in Ps. clxiv. 9. Dr. Stainer thinks it was the harp. It seems to have been a very popular instrument from the frequency with which it is mentioned. It is sometimes translated Y7QL in Is. v. 12, xiv. 11 ; Amos. v. 23 and vi. 5 ; and sometimes PSALTERY in 1 Sam. x. 5 ; 2 Sam. vi. 5 ; 1 Kings x. 1_! ; 1 Chron. xvi. 4. To still further bewilder the Bible PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 73 reader the word NEYEL is translated in the Prayer- book Psalter LUTE. It should therefore be remem- bered, that YIOL, PSALTERY and LUTE are one and the same instrument. The next instrument is the HORN, or TRUMPET. The Hebrew word is SHOFAR, the ram's horn, and KHATZOZERAH, a metal trumpet, sometimes trans- lated CORNET. Trumpets were used as war-signals. See Josh. vi. 4, &c. ; Judges iii. 27 ; 1 Sam. xiii. 3 ; 2 Sam. xviii. 6, The blessing of Asher (Deut. xxxiii. 24), " Let him dip his foot in oil " was an expression which every Oriental could appreciate, and wish he could claim as his own. See also Is. Ixi. 3. In Palestine every olive tree is now taxed, and very often when a farmer is too poor to pay the tax he will cut down the tree and sell the wood. This accounts for the fact that so few trees are found in many parts of the country. WHEAT AND TARES GROWING TOGETHER. The tares called Zewan are the farmer's great plague in the East. When first growing they look just like the wheat ; indeed you cannot distinguish between PALKSTIN'E AND THE BIBLE 81 them until the full-grown ear appears, then the tares are seen to be long and the grains almost black. It must not be confounded with the English tares, for it is a species of Darnel, called by naturalists Lolium temulentum. Each grain of zewan has therefore to bs removed before the corn can be ground into flour, and baked into bread, otherwise the bread would be spoilt, the zewan being bitter an poisonous. Matth. xiii. 24-30. In any exposition of the well-known parable these points should always be remembered the zewan looks like the wheat until the fruit appears, then the difference is seen ; it is black, the wheat gold; it is bitter and poisonous. LOCUST BEANS grow on a large beautiful tree called KJiaroob tree. It is supposed to have been the food of St. John the Baptist (Matth. iii.) But, as we have already seen, he ate the real locusts. These beans are eaten by the poorest classes, but more generally form the food of cattle. They are THE HUSKS which the swine did eat. (Luke xv. 6.) MANDRAKE ROOT. The root of the Man- dragora, called in Hebrew " dudaiw," mentioned in Gen. xxx. 14, 16. It is supposed to possess the powers of assisting or producing conception. And no wonder that ignorant or superstitious people believed this. Examine the root ; it is a most remarkable representation of the human form. CHAPTER XI. Jewish Religious Ceremonies. /TVODEBN Judaism is to a great extent not the ' religion of Moses and the Prophets. It con- tains the shell but not the kernel. Many laws found in the books of Moses cannot be held, and many laws not emanating from Moses, or any inspired teacher, have superseded them, and are held with a tenacity and zeal worthy of a better cause. One of the greatest features of Modern Judaism is a most curious admixture of superstition on the one hand, and a loose teaching on the other hand on many subjects of vital importance, such as the Inspiration of God's Holy Word, the Doctrine of the Atonement, Sacrifices, and the Messiah. Many of these superstitions are very ancient, and were already in existence in our Lord's day. No Jew will say his daily prayers without wearing the PHYLACTERIES. They are small PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 83 square boxes covered over with leather, in which are contained the four passages which command the Jews to bind the law " as frontlets between their eyes, and upon their arms." Ex. xiii. 2-10, xiii. 11-16 ; Deut. vi. 4-9, ix. 13-21. One is worn on the forehead and the other on the arm. The Jews took those passages in their strictly literal sense, whereas God meant them to be taken figuratively ; a mistake which others besides Jews have made, not only in the interpretation of the Old but of the New Testament. By "binding them upon the forehead" God wanted them to have the whole law in their heads they were to know it, and by "binding it upon the arm " God wanted them to do it, i.e., to obey the law. They have to be prepared most carefully, other- wise they are useless. The Talmud says that even God wears Phylacteries, though with what object we are not told. They are of various sizes, the largest being worn by the strict Jews, the modern Pharisees. " They make broad their Phylacteries " (Matt, xxiii. 5) meant they wore the largest they could get so as to appear very pious before men. The preparing of the Phylacteries is most minutely described in the Talmud, and the slightest infringement of these rules would render them unfit for use. Special reed pens have to be used, special 84 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. leather only may be employed, even the writing has to be on a certain number of lines ; while the verses written by a great Eabbi would enhance their value. Thus have Jews made the word of God of none effect through their traditions. Mark vii. 18. Jewish boys begin to wear the Phylacteries at the age of twelve or thirteen, when they go through the ceremony of Bar-mitzvah, similar to our Con- firmation Service. On that day he has to stand up in the synagogue and read the portion of the Law. It is very possible that our Lord was taken up from Nazareth to Jerusalem at the age of twelve with the object of being confirmed. Luke ii. The next thing a Jew has to put on is the TALITH. This is the praying robe worn over the head. It contains the ZIZITH or fringes, which they reverently touch and kiss. This wa commanded : " Thou shalt wear thee fringes to the borders of thy garments." Numb. xv. 38, 39, and Deut. xxii. 12. This fringe was intended as a mark of distinction between God's people and the surrounding nations, on the principle of " be ye separate," 2 Cor. vi. 17, a law which many Christians break to-day by con- forming to wordly practices. God's people of old were not even to dress like the heathen nations around them. There is very reason to believe that this law was kept for many centuries. But during PALESTINE AND THB BIBLE. 85 the Maccabaean persecution, the fact that Jews could so easily be distinguished by their dress, exposed them to great persecution, and the Jewish leaders, as a matter of expediency, allowed Jews to wear tJu fringe in an inner robe, and only use the fringe on an outer robe during the hour of prayer. This they have continued to do to this day. But it is likely that the more strict Jews continued to wear the fringe on an outer garment. Our Lord's " hem of His garment," was the Ziziih, Luke viii. 44; Matt. ix. 34. And just as the Pharisees " made broad their Phylacteries," so they " enlarged the borders of their garments." Matt, xxiii. 5. The talith is generally a bride's present to the bridegroom, and the text is her own work. Women never wear the Talith or Phylacteries, they need not necessarily pray. Fixed to the right-hand doorpost of every Jewish house is the MEZUZAH, or door-post. The idea is taken from Deut. vi. 9. A piece of parchment upon which are written in Hebrew the following verses ; Deut. vi. 4-9 and xi. 13-21, is rolled up and put in a case made of wood, tin, or glass. The case contains a small opening showing the Hebrew word " Shaddai," which means Almighty. The case is nailed in the right-hand door-post of every Jewish home, and every pious Jew passing by, reverently touches and 86 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. kisses it. The Jews consider the Mezuzah a charm, keeping away the evil spirits. They flee away when- ever they see the Great Name. Hence the Jews apply Ps. cxxi. 5, "the Lord is thy Keeper," to the Mezuzah. THE SABBATH is still most rigidly kept by Jews, particularly in Eastern countries. A Jew will not even open a letter on the Sabbath Day. Many Christians may " take hold of the skirts of him that is a Jew " and learn from the Jew how " to keep the Sabbath Day holy" It is a day he is bound to honour in every way. He must always have a good meal and put on his best clothes all in honour of the Sabbath. It is a, comely Bride welcomed to the house each week with a beautiful Hebrew Psalm beginning with the words " Enter in my beloved one : " reminding one of the Canticles. Those who ignorantly think King Solomon held no lofty ideas when writing his Spiritual Love Song should go any Friday evening and hear the Jews welcoming their Bride, their love, the Sabbath ! And if such endearing terms could be used of the approaching day of rest, what words would sufficiently express ones love and devotion for the approaching Saviour \ Every Friday evening the wife lights the Sabbath light called MANORA. This is her very special privilege for which she thanks God in the words " I thank Thee, O God, that thou hast commanded me PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 87 to light the Sabbath light." This is not commanded anywhere in Scripture, it is enjoined by the Talmud, which the Jews consider to be equal in importance to the Law of Moses. HAYDALLAH TAPERS are wax tapers used at the close of each Sabbath. It is lighted, and the youngest person in the house holds it, while the head of the house takes a glass of wine and a box of spices called HADDAS. He then pronounces a blessing while looking at the light, tastes the wine, and smells the spices. With this ceremony the Sabbath ends. CHANUKAH LIGHTS are used during the Feast of the Dedication (John x. 22), in commemoration of the cleansing of the Temple by Judas Maccabeus. A tradition says a miracle took place while the Priests were lighting the lamp, for although there was not enough sacred oil to last longer than one day, it actually continued to burn eight days, giving them time to obtain a fresh supply. Hence the feast is kept eight days. On the first night one lamp is lighted, on the second two, and so on, until on the eighth day all eight are burning. Each candlestick has a ninth light, from this one the others are lighted. The feast is also called the " Fe.cat of Lights." The feast generally falls in December, hence the expression in John x. 22, " It was winter." 86 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. JEWISH SLAUGHTERING KNIVES are used by Jewish butchers in slaughtering the animals used for meat food. Jews are not allowed to buy their meat from Gentile butchers. Not only must they buy it from a Jewish butcher, but from one wlw holds a license from the Rabbi. The Jewish slaughterer is called a Shochet. He uses knives called Chalufim, which must be as sharp as a razor. The throat is cut and the animal held in such a position that every drop of blood escapes while yet warm. The Jews have the greatest horror of blood. He then carefully examines the carcase, and the slightest flaw renders it unclean or Traifeh. If perfectly sound it is stamped with a RABBI'S SEAL and called Kosher, which means clean. A shochet is always a learned man. The care with which the best meat food is secured for their people accounts, to a great extent, for the health and longevity of the Jewish race as compared with their Gentile neighbours. The British Medical Journal, in an article on the subject of Jewish meat compared with other meat, said : " According to a return of the Board of Agriculture, the meat supply from all sources in 1892 was no less than 2,122,000 tons. In an indirect manner we can form some idea as to how much of this meat was y the Bedouins especially when on a march, or when food has to be hurriedly prepared for a feast. See not only Ex. xii. 39, but also Josh. v. 1, and Judges vi. 19. The bread which Sarah pre- pared for the three angels was also unleavened. Gen. xviii. 6. BOLLS OF THE LAW, written on parchment or on the skins of animals. No printed books are used in the reading of the Law in synagogues to-day. These are " the books " so frequently mentioned in the Bible. Such a roll our Lord unrolled in the synagogue in Nazareth. Luke iv. 17. Skins or pieces of parchment, are cut into square pieces, and stitched together, and when completely unrolled are very long indeed. The rolling up of a scroll is referred to in Is. xxxiv. 4, and Kev. vi. 14. Jeremiah writes his denunciations in A ROLL. Jer. xxxvi. 2. They are written, in parallel columns, for the word "leaves" in Jer. xxxvi. 23, which King Jehoiakim cuts with a knife and throws into the fire, were not leaves or pages, but columns. See margin in Revised Version. They are written on one side only, the back of the scroll being left blank. Hence when written on both sides the fact would deserve to be mentioned. SceEzek. PALESTINE AND THE BIUI.E. 91 ii. 10 and Zech. v. 3. Written within and without with threatenings meant that God's judgments were very Jull and would be very severe. On the FEAST OF PORIM the whole book of Esther is read in the synagogue. Whenever the word " Haman " occurs, the Jews shout, repeating the words, " May his name be blotted out." Boys use rattles, and produce a deafening noise. JEWISH TRANSLATION OF THE HEBREW BIBLE was prepared especially for home use. As one would suppose, the meaning of every Messianic passage is altered to suit the Jewish idea of interpretation. Isaiah liii., according to modern Jewish notions, does not refer to a suffering Messiah, but to the suffering people of Israel ? But as certain verses speak very forcibly of the great vicarious suffering, the text is somewhat altered. In verse 10. the sentence, " When thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin," is translated " When (now) his soul hath brought the trespass offering ! " Thus has God's Word been perverted. THE MISRACH, which means East, is a picture hung in such a position that when praying the Jew has his face turned towards Jerusalem. Daniel vi. 10). Jews love Jerusalem. They greet one another on their great feast days with the touching words, " This year in captivity, next yeur in Jerusalem." CHAPTER XII. Antiquities. TTEW relics have as yet been found in the Holy Land. This is, however, accounted for by the fact that the country formed the battlefield of numberless armies from different parts of the world and at different periods of the world's history, Egyptian, Syrian, Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian, Greek, Koman, Saracen, Frank and Turk. Every invasion was accompanied by much destruction, and thus most of the ancient temples, palaces, cities and villages have been so completely destroyed that few ti aces remain on the surface. Then, for another reason, the Turks guard certain spots with the most jealous care, and will not allow any work of exploration to go on. We hope a time may soon come when these localities will be thoroughly examined. Wherever the Pales- PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 93 tine Exploration Fund have been allowed to work, many most valuable discoveries have been made confirming and explaining God's Word. Egypt and Assyria have, however, received a more satisfactory treatment at the hand of the explorer, with the result, that the history of the past, the customs and manners, live again in our own day by means of many remarkable discoveries, which not only throw a flood of light on God's Holy Word, but confirm the truth of its sacred pages, and even explain many a difficulty which puzzled Bible students in days gone by. TEAR BOTTLES were made of glass or clay, in which tears of mourners were collected at funerals, as a token of their grief. The bottles were then buried with the dead. They are, therefore, found in all ancient tombs. This custom is referred to in Ps. Ivi. 8, " Thou hast put my tears into thy bottle." TABLETS FROM LACKISH were discovered a short time ago, and contain inscriptions in cuneiform characters of the highest interest. They describe the condition of things in Southern Palestine at the time the Israelites were under Joshua. The stones and bricks are now crying out, " The Bible is true." Clay tablets were used chiefly in Assyria and Babylonia, as they had no other material. But they 94 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. have also been found in Palestine. With a rod of iron (mentioned in Job xix. 24) the characters were inscribed upon pieces of soft clay. They were then either baked in an oven or simply dried and hardened in the sun. They are supposed to be referred to in Jer. xxxii. 11-13, but that seems somewhat doubtful. Large numbers of these clay tablets have been found in the ruins of Nineveh, some of them being exceed- ingly valuable, as throwing light upon contemporary Sacred History. BABYLONIAN BRICKS are found in the ruins of Babylon, containing in cuneiform characters the name of Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon. Daniel, it will be remembered, describes that king as a very proud and haughty monarch (Dan. vi. 30). This is confirmed by these bricks, hundreds of which are found among the ruins of Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar was so vain and proud that he had his name stamped on every brick used in the buildings of Babylon. MANY TABLETS and Cylinders, discovered in Nineveh, are of the most priceless value. One was found recording the wars and sieges of TIGLATHPILESER II. It will thus be seen that these tablets are official records, and are therefore of the very greatest historical interest- He records how he besieged Pekah, king of Israel, and Rezin, king of Damascus. He also tells us how he took PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. Damascus and killed Rezin. He says that King Ahaz, who, it appears, was his friend, comes to meet him in Damascus. Read 2 Kings xvi. and you see how this tablet confirms Scripture. Another tablet records the deeds of SARGON, and tells us that he besieged and took Ashdod. These cylinders, therefore, not only explain God's Holy Word, but where difficulties really exist, they help to remove them. A most difficult passage was undoubtedly Isaiah xx. 1. "In the year that Tartan came to Ashdod, when Sargon, King of Assyria, sent him," &c. Who was this Sargon f His name is mentioned nowhere else. Did such a king really exist ? Or was it, perhaps, another name for one of the more familiar kings, Shalmanezer or Sen- nacherib ? These tablets explain all. Sargon was no myth, but a real king, and a great king, too. He was the son of Shalmanezer IV., and the father of Sennacherib. A remarkable cylinder was also found, containing an account of the conquest of Samaria by Sargon. This deserves a somewhat close inspection, for does not this contradict the Bible ? See 2 Kings xviii. 9, 10. Here it appears that Shalmanezer came and besieged Samaria, not Sargon. So it would seem ; but the answer is very simple. Shalmanezer indeed commences the siege, but he does not live to take 96 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. the city : this his son Sargon accomplishes. There is a very long rest between verse 9 and 10, and it is also shown in 2 Kings xvii. 5 and 6. " The King of Assyria," in verse 5, need not necessarily be " the King of Assyria " in verse 6. Colonel Taylor's cylinder contains a complete account of the wars of SENNACHERIB, and the invasion of Judah and the siege of Jerusalem in the days of Hezekiah, who is mentioned by name. The whole story is a wonderful confirmation of 2 Kings xviii. And one cannot help thinking that the omission is even more remarkable than what it con- tains. For Senacherib describes every part of the war, he brags of every victory gained, however paltry, every town or village taken, however small, he says he besieged Jerusalem, "and I shut up Hezekiah like a bird in a cage " ; but there is one remarkable omission. He does not say that he took Jerusalem ! Had he done so the record of the capture of the great city would have occupied a very prominent place on this cylinder. But he does not say that he took it ; indeed the whole record seems to end most abruptly, and one would hardly know how to account for it, but by the sequel of that remarkable siege as found in the Bible. We read in 2 Kings xix. that in one night the greater part of the besieging host were slain by an angel of God, and PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 97 the rest escaped never again to molest Judah or Jerusalem. This part Sennacherib naturally leaves out, but his silence is wonderfully eloquent I A picture of REHOBOAM, KING OF JUDAH, may be seen in the great Temple of Thebes, where the siege of Palestine in the days of Shishak is recorded. Another wonderful confirmation of Scripture. See 1 Kings xiv. 25-28, and 2 Chron. xii. 9. THE MOABITE STONE. This ancient monument was discovered in 1869 in the land of Moab, and was set up by a king called Mesha, who records his victories over his enemies. He speaks of Omri, king of Israel, of " men of Gad," of Edom as combining with Israel. One has but to read 2 Kings iii. 5, 9, to see how remarkably this Moabite Stone confirms the truth of God's JWord. Nor should it be forgotten that we have here a confirmation from an enemy of Israel. His testimony is, therefore, of exceptional value. DELUGE TABLETS. For many years infidels were accustomed to speak of the flood as though, beyond question, it were a myth and fable, hardly even needing a word of proof. Recent discoveries have, however, brought to light the fact that nearly all ancient nations had traditions of a flood in which all had perished except one family, who were saved in a ship of some kind. 98 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. These tablets give us the Chaldean version of that event, and date about seven centuries B.C. They speak of the anger of the gods, who determined to send a flood. They describe the storm, how some are saved in a ship, the stranding upon a mountain, a dove and a swallow sent out, a raven, and then how they went out and sacrificed. On the BLACK OBELISK OF SHALMANEZER II. Jehu, king of Israel, is mentioned as having paid tribute to the king. Benhaded is also mentioned and Hazael. These were contemporaries of Jehu. Jehu is shown, bowing to the ground and presenting his offerings of gold and silver and other precious things. WOOD TABLETS are the schoolboys' slates, and are called " writing tables " in Luke i. 63. Probably the very kind used all over the East to-day. REED PENS. These are the only pens used in the East. They are cut with a knife. These were also the pens used in Bible times. INKHORNS are mentioned in Ezek. ix. 2, 3, 11. The case contains the pens, and the small inkpot the ink. They are still worn in the girdles of scribes, just as they were in Ezekiel's day. PALESTINE AXD THE BIBLE. 99 The Ancient Hebrew Alphabet was not liKe the modern square characters. Those in use before the Babylonian captivity were the Phrenician. We can tell what they were from the very important "SILOAM INSCRIPTION" giving us the very characters in which Isaiah wrote his glorious prophecies. That inscription was made by Heze- kiah's workmen. SOME PHOENICIAN MASONS' MARKS were found 80 feet below the surface of the present city of Jerusalem, upon the foundation stones of the Temple wall, giving us a very remarkable confirmation of Scripture ; for we read in 1 Kings v. 18, that Hiram's builders helped in preparing these stones. HIEROGLYPHS. The ancient language of Egypt. This latter was only the language of the priests, not the common language. Is it not curious that at all times down to the present there should always have been in Eastern coutries an educated language and a common language ? This is probably referred to in Is. viii. 1, for " the pen of a man " read " the pen of common characters." (See margin of Kevised Version.) CHAPTER XIII. The Tabernacle. T70K forty years the Israelites lived in tents in the wilderness. Many were born, lived, and died in tents just like the Bedouins of to-day. This wild roving life accounts for the want, not only of change, but of improvement among these dwellers of tents. Arts and industries can never flourish while the people have no settled life in cities and villages. Now, there roust have been something altogether exceptional, nay unique, in the case of the Israelites in the wilderness, for it was during the forty years wanderings that those wonderful laws were produced which are the wonder and the model of all laws amongst civilised nations. Picture to yourself THE ENCAMPMENT OF THE ISRAELITES. It is the best commentary to Numb ii. The Israelites lived with perfect order PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 101 during their forty years march through the wilder- ness. There was a division between the tents of each tribe. They clustered round their own ensigns or banners. At the head of each tribe was a captain. Then came the tents of the Levites ; again, nearer the centre, were the tents of the great men, like Moses and Aaron. In the centre stood the taber- nacle of the congregation. A description of the perfect order of march is given us in Numb. x. 14-29. This encampment affords a great proof of the divine origin of the Pentateuch. The Israelites left Egypt a nation of slaves, who would not be in possession of any degree of culture or education. Within a year of their leaving Egypt, we find them in a wilderness, and yet with perfect order, a perfect government, a code of laws as perfect as any the world has produced, and with a perfect religion. How can we account for this sudden change from barbarism to civilization ? Jt has taken England centuries to emerge from a state of barbarism to its present state of civilization, but in the case of Israel " a nation was born in a day." Surely, those laws could not have been of human origin. Just as the centre of every encampment was set apart for the chief's tent, so the centre of the samp of Israel was set apart for Israel's Chief God 102 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. Himself. A large oblong space was separated from the rest of the encampment by screens 150 feet long, 75 feet wide. Within this enclosure stood God's dwelling-place, in the midst of his people- The tabernacle consisted of a framework composed of Shittim wood, probably the timber of the wild acacia, which grows in the wilderness. The boards, overlaid with gold, were placed in an upright position, the lower part fixed in sockets of silver. Long bars of Shittim wood, also overlaid with gold, passed through the rings. These kept the boards together. Over this framework of wood were placed four curtains ; the first, or inmost one, of fine embroidered linen, containing figures of Cherubim in purple, scarlet, and blue ; the second was a woollen one of goat's hair ; the third of ram's skins dyed red ; the fourth of badgers' skins. The tabernacle was divided into two parts. The first was called the holy place. It was 30 feet in length, 15 feet broad, and 15 feet high. Beautiful curtains closed the front. It contained three things the golden altar of incense, the table of shew- bread, and the seven-branched candlestick. Here a priest entered daily to burn incense. It was in the Holy Place in the temple Zacharias had a vision of the angel (Luke i. 9). Still more magnificent curtains divided the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies, which was only fifteen feet long. The High PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 103 Priest only was allowed to enter here, and only on the Day of Atonement. It contained the Ark of the Covenant. The outer court contained the altar of burnt offerings, and the laver made of the metal mirrors, given by the women of Israel. The Tabernacle is minutely described in Exodus xxv., xxvii., and xxxvii. The Tabernacle, 'its furniture and services, should be studied by all who wish to grasp by means of helpful illustrations, the teaching of the Gospel. This is too wide a subject for discussion in a small handbook, but many good books exist which should be well studied. CHAPTBB THE LAST. Jewish Missions. U JTjHE Jew has had his day, and is played out; nothing more to expect from him." "Jewish Missions are a failure." In these two sentences may be summed up all the adverse criticism levelled against Jewish Missions ; and both are not only wrong, but absurd. If the Jew " has had his day, and is played out," then why has he been allowed to remain in a most miraculous manner a separate people, scattered everywhere, yet not absorbed among other nations? When nations are played out they become extinct. When a watch is played out, it stops. The Jews show a most remarkable vitality in every sphere of life and thought. They are distinguished in every profession, they take a prominent part in politics, finance, literature and music. Is it not then absurd, in the face of the very conviction of our eyes, to say the Jews are " played out? " PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 105 But some apply this phrase to religion only, and wish to imply that God gave the offer of salvation, first to the Jews, which they, having rejected, have now lost all chance. But is there any passage of Scripture to prove this ? How many statements about the Jews are made with the greatest assurance, but which are absolutely wrong. The Jews were condemned without a hearing by a spurious Christ- ianity in the dark ages of the Church ; and although we have reformed many of our doctrines and Church practices, and have brought them into line with primitive and Apostolic Christianity, yet we have retained to a very great extent the bitter Jew-hatred of the Middle Ages. To take one illustration only. Note the mis- leading titles which are placed at the head of each. chapter of the Bible, more particularly in the Prophets. In one chapter the Jews are denounced for their sins, and threatened with severe punish- ments. The titles rightly attribute this to the Jews. In another chapter God is promising great blessings to the same people, to the same place. The expressions, Judah and Israel, Zion and Jerusalem, occur in both cases. But our titles refer these blessings, not to the Jew, but to " the Church." Now, can an interpretation be right which applies "Judah and Jerusalem" to the Jews in one place, and to " the Church " in another. If " Judah and 106 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. Jerusalem " apply to the Church when blessings are mentioned, then surely they should apply to the Church when curses are named. But this would reduce the exposition of Scripture to an absurdity. Now if the curses and denunciations cannot be interpreted of " the Church," but can only refer to the Jews, then surely the promises of blessing and prosperity can also only be referred to the Jews. I f Judah and Israel, Zion and Jerusalem, apply to th* Jews where the curses are pronounced, then surely they must apply to the Jews where blessings and mercies are promised. When we are clear on this point, and turn ta the Sacred Scriptures, we find that God says in Jer., " Though I make a full end of all the nations of the earth, yet will I not make a lull end of thee." St. Paul predicted a time when " all Israel should be saved," and Zechariah says, " they shall look on Him whom they have pierced and mourn." " Hath God cast away His people ? God forbid," says St. Paul. And we have the distinct command of our Lord to " begin at Jerusalem " (Luke xxiv. 47). Like other passages, it has been wrested from its true meaning. If we are at all in doubt as to its true meaning, we have but to turn to the men who were likely to be the best judges, namely, the Apostles. In the Acts of the Apostles we find that they always went to the Jew first in every city they came PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 107 to, showing by this very act that they understood our Lord to mean they were always to go to the Jew first wherever they came to. Our Lord would surely not have given so direct a command, nor would the Apostles have obeyed it so faithfully, if they had believed that the Jews were "played out." The annals also of Jewish Missions confirm this. Jewish Missions are not very popular, and do not appeal to a very large body of Christians ; the support received is therefore small. Yet God has blessed the work beyond all expectation ; and in any comparison between Jewish missionary enterprise and work in heathen lands, Jewish missions certainly take the first place so far as results go. Many may be prepared to question this. The following facts I would venture to commend to our readers : 1. There are to-day about 300 clergymen of the Church of England who are descendants of Abraham. 2. The Jews have given to the Church three of her Bishops. 3. Christian Jews are providing some hundreds of preachers on Nonconformist pulpits at home and abroad. io8 PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 4. Some chairs of the great Universities in England and abroad are occupied by Christian Jews, who are thus helping to train our future theologians and clergymen. 5. They have produced many distinguished authors like Edersheim and Saphir, Neander and Dr. Christlieb, musicians like Felix Mendelssohn, financiers like Sir Moses Salvador, lawyers like Lord Herschell. 6. They have supplied the ranks of nearly every Missionary Society with some of their most faithful and devoted workers. 7. They gave the Chinese a translation of the Old Testament in the Mandarin dialect, and for the Mongolians one who was able to translate and revise parts of God's Word. They gave to the Afghans t^eir translation of the Bible. 8. And the rank and file of Jewish converts, on the authority of Professor de la Koi, number about 200,000. Can any mission to the heathen, nay, can all the missions of the world put together, give such a record ! These facts must not be misunderstood. "We are not attempting to run down other missions and other societies. These facts must be plainly stated because Jewish missions have been run down ; PALESTINE AND THE BIBLE. 109 it is therefore necessary to draw a comparative state- ment, and show how unfounded are the attacks made against Jewish missions. The author hopes every reader of this little book will become a warm friend and supporter of Jewish missions. The London Society for Promoting Christianity among the Jews, the Society with which he has the honour to be connected, is the oldest and largest, with a staff of 200 workers, stationed in about 54 missionary centres, and doing a glorious work for the ingathering of Israel. The author gratefully acknowledges his great indebtedness to this good Society's missionaries, who were the means of leading into the fold of Christ his own father and mother; the former in Egypt, the latter in Jerusalem. Jesus Christ took not on Him the nature of angels, but the seed of Abraham. Christ was a Jew. Do you believe this ? Then we claim your love and sympathy on behalf of our Lord's own brethren. "Go, tell my brethren" J. A. THOMPSON & CO. Ltd ., ., Publishers and Printers, Liverpool. OFFICE CHURCH HOUSE, ( s g) 1, South Johq Street. DEPOTS- CENTRAL qALL BUILDINGS, Reqshaw Street, , 43, Great Charlotte Street. PRINTING WORKS- CLARENDON BUILDINGS, 11, South John Street. 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