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 BEII^d THE E)^P'L/>)vi;iTlOJ\/ 
 OF /ILL F^EFEF(E^CfE^ If^ 
 
 iHOiy SCRIPTURE 
 
 to 
 
 GEOLOGY. BOTANY, ZOOLOGY, 
 
 % PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY, 
 
 BY THE 
 
 |REYIOHNDUNS,nD..ER.S.E 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 ■JOHN LCir.HTOM. F. S.A',» 
 
 WILLIAM MACKENSm; 
 
 . LONDON, GLASGOW,&EDINBURGH>
 
 BIBLICAL 
 
 NATURAL SCIENCE: 
 
 THE EXPLANATION OF ALL KEFERENCES 
 
 HOLY SCRIPTURE 
 
 drolojgn, ^0lHng, ^oobgn, anb ^^gsiral ^-cngrap^n. 
 
 REV. JOHN DUNS, D.D., F.R.S.E. 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 WILLIAM MACKENZIE, 22 PATERNOSTER ROW; 
 
 HOWARD STEEET, GLASGOW; SOUTH BRIDGE, EDINBURGH.
 
 KTIiBKOTVHEl, AND PRIXTED Bt WILUAX HALKISZlt, U AMD tf HUWAKO STBKItT. Gl.iSOOW.
 
 '■fl 
 
 DIRECTIONS TO THE BINDER. 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 PL.VTE OF CED.\RS. 
 PI..VIE X.\I., . 
 
 M.\r, 
 
 XXII., . 
 
 xxiii., . 
 
 XXIV., . 
 
 XXV. . 
 
 XXVI.. . 
 
 XXVII. . 
 
 XXVIII.. . 
 
 XXIX. . 
 
 XXX, . 
 
 XXXI., . 
 
 XXXII , . 
 
 X.XXIII., . 
 
 XXXIV. 
 XXXV., 
 
 XXXVI.. 
 XXXVII., 
 XXXVIII., 
 
 XXXIX.. 
 
 MAP, 
 
 pL.\it:, 
 
 XI- 
 
 MAP, 
 
 XLI.. 
 XLII., 
 
 . TO FACB TITLE. 
 
 FAGK 
 
 Tl> K.MIi 74 
 
 ANAAN, TO ILLUSTR.VTE THE OLD TESTAMENT, 212 
 
 370 
 370 
 372 
 
 37'; 
 
 378 
 382 
 386 
 408 
 428 
 412 
 4fi4 
 4G« 
 474 
 482 
 496 
 oM 
 518 
 520 
 526 
 556 
 574 
 586 
 592 
 59G 
 hW 
 C02 
 
 soy 
 
 01- 
 
 ROPHECY 
 
 THE COUNTRIES 
 SEA OF TIBERI 
 CANAAN, TO ILLUSTRATE TIIE 
 
 AS, 
 
 PLAN OF ANTIQUITIES OF ATHKN.S, 
 
 XLIIL, 
 
 ROMA ANTIQUA, PLAN. 
 MAP, ASIA MINOR, SHOWING THE SEV 
 CHURCHES, 
 
 NEW 
 
 TE.STA5IENT. 
 
 EN APOCALYPTIi; 
 
 oU8 
 
 505247 
 
 I
 
 BIBLICAL NATUEAL SCIENCE. 
 
 EXODUS I.-II. 
 
 'IKE the other Books of the Pentateuch, Exodus may be looked 
 at from three j^oiuts of view. Its contents are either histo- 
 rical, or legislative, or doctrinal. The last feature is much 
 more marked here than in Genesis. It opens by recalling 
 '■ attention in a general way to the topics specially alluded to in 
 Genesis xlvi. The writer repeats the statement, that " all the souls 
 that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy" (ver. 5). The advent 
 of a new dynasty brought trouble to the descendants of Jacob. " There 
 arose a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph" (ver. 8). They 
 were reduced to the condition of slaves. One act of oppression and 
 another followed. " Their lives were bitter w'ith hard bondage " 
 (ver. 14). The crowning act of tyranny, they were commanded to 
 become the murderers of their own children: " Pharaoh charged all the 
 people, saying, Every son that is born ye shall cast into the river" 
 (ver. 22). This despotic order was given when the tyrant failed to 
 influence the midwives to make secretly away with the male infants at 
 whose birth they assisted. The early attention given to various aspects 
 of medical practice by the Egyptians has been noticed already (Gen. 1.) 
 We learn from this incident that the accoucheurs were females. There 
 are not awanting proofs that other features of the healing art were 
 practised by women. " Diodorus writes that in Egypt, and chiefly at 
 Heliopolis, there lived women who boasted of certain potions, which 
 not only made the unfortunates forget all their calamities, but drove 
 away the most violent sallies of grief or anger." Milton notes — 
 
 " That Nepenthes which the wife of Tlione 
 In Egypt gave to Jove-born Helena." — (Comiis.) 
 
 " There went a man of the house of Levi, and took to wife a daughter 
 of Levi. And the woman conceived, and bare a son : and when she saw 
 him that he was a goodly child, she hid him three months. And when 
 
 VOL. 11. A
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 she could no longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes, 
 and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child therein ; 
 and she laid it in the flags by the river's brink" (ver. 1-3). The mate- 
 rials used by Jochebed for making the ark or cradle for lier infant son, 
 were bulrushes and slime, or pitch. The word rendered "bulrush" is 
 gome, or the plant specially distinguished for its power of absorbing 
 water. It occurs in other three passages. Job asks (ch. viii. 11) — 
 
 " Can the rush {gome) grow up without mire? 
 C.in the fl:ig (ac/ni) grow without water ? 
 While it is yet in its greenness, and not cut. 
 It withereth before any other herl)." 
 
 He wishes to show that while the wicked have their usual sources of 
 happiness, and power to enjoy them, all is well. But if these be cut off, 
 it is like withdrawing water from the rush and the flag. They cannot 
 subsist without it. They droop, and wither, and die. The habitat of 
 the bulrush and the flag is thus shown to be marshy lands by the 
 brink of lake or river. In Isaiah xviii. 2, one of the uses to which 
 the bulrush was put is mentioned. Boats were built of it. The 
 Ethiopians are spoken of as " sending ambassadors by the sea, even in 
 vessels of bulrushes." In chapter xxxv. 7, the same prophet, when 
 describing the effects of a great revival, compares them, among other 
 things, to fountains breaking forth in the lair of ravenous beasts, named 
 as a i)lace " of reeds (iMneh) and rushes {gome}.'" 
 
 These references are all we have to enable us to identify the plant 
 named here. It has been too hastily assumed that it must have been 
 the true paper reed, or papyrus, for which Egypt in ancient times was 
 celebrated. It is indeed true, that one of the passages quoted from 
 Isaiah is clear on the point, that it was often used for this purpose, 
 and that the notices of it which occur in profane authors point to the 
 same fact. But this does not determine the matter. We know from 
 Herodotus that sandals were frequently made from it, but this does not 
 warrant the inference that all sandals were made from this material. 
 The only conclusion to which in the circumstances we can come is, 
 that under the term bulrush (Cgpents) any description suitable for 
 this purpose may be referred to, and that under the term flags different 
 sorts of reed-mace {Tgpha) are indicated. 
 
 The bulrush is one of the Sedge family of plants {Cyperacece). 
 Several kinds are noted for the uses to which they are put. The edible 
 cyperus (C. esculentus) is much cultivated in France. Its roots are
 
 EXODUS I.-II. 
 
 Fig. 1. 
 
 sweet and agreeable to the taste. In Holland one species [G. arenari'a) 
 is planted on the dykes, ■s\-hose soil it binds together by its intertwisting 
 roots. But the most celebrated species is the true Paper-reed ( C. papy- 
 rus), the Sacred Byblus {Bijhlus hieraticus) of Strabo. The cellular 
 tissue of this plant ^Yas carefully divided, and when in a moist state, it 
 was pieced together and made into a 
 long roll. This when dried was used 
 for writing on. Hence our word paper. 
 The Hebrew gome points to the ab- 
 sorbing power of the plant, and so 
 does the Greek translation biblos, from 
 which our word Bible is derived. This 
 and allied species yielded matericil 
 also for making boats, ropes, san- 
 dals, baskets, and even articles of 
 clothing. 
 
 Upwards of two thousand species 
 are included in the Cyperacece. The 
 papyrus of the Nile has a triangular 
 stem, grows to the height of above six 
 feet, and is noted for its gracefulness 
 and beauty. It is now very rare in 
 Egypt, if indeed it is to be found at 
 all. Sir G. Wilkinson affirms that it 
 is unknown. It is to be met with in 
 Sicily, on the banks of the Anapus. 
 
 The flags among which Jochebed laid the ark were no doubt the 
 marsh plants generally growing in such a situation. Among these 
 the reed-maces [Typliacece) would prevail. In this verse the Hebrew 
 word {suph) may be translated by reed-mace. The figure given above 
 is that of the great reed-mace [Typha latifolia), with which most 
 British readers must be familiar. It flourishes luxuriantly, during 
 July and August, among other aquatic plants which fringe our quiet 
 lakes and pools. Its stem is erect and often above six feet high. Its 
 leaves are about an inch broad and four feet long. There is another 
 British species which is well known — the lesser reed-mace {T. angus- 
 tifoli'a), abundant in the neighbourhood of London. 
 
 The word used here is generally translated ^'' lied" when associated 
 with sea. In this connection it occurs twenty-four times, and gives 
 its name to the sea thus named — Red Sea or Yam Suph, Sea of Weeds. 
 
 3 {Typha lati/oiia).
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENX'E. 
 
 It is only thrice rendered " flags," twice in this cliapter, and once in 
 Isa. xix. C, where it is associated with reeds (Jcaneli. — " The reeds and 
 flags shall wither" — which see. 
 
 The river into which the children were to be cast was the Nile, 
 which rises in Lake Victoria Nyanza, 3° S. of the equator, and then flows 
 in a northern direction. On reacliing Darfur it is known as the Bahr- 
 el-Ahiad, or White River. At Khartum (15° 38' N.L.) it meets its 
 confluent the Bahr-el-Azrak, or Blue River, from Abyssinia. After 
 receiving the Tacazze it leaves " the stony valleys of Nubia, after 
 having ten times, terrace-like, dashed its floods over the rocks imped- 
 ing its way; it enters Egypt, near Syene (at 23° 33' N.L.), where it 
 forms its last cataract ; continues its sinuous way northward through a 
 valley between five and ten miles wide, and shut in, on both sides, by 
 two chains of irregular mountains of sandstone, till it divides itself, not 
 far from Cairo (at the ancient Ccrcasorum), in two arms, which form 
 the Delta, and discharge their waters into the Mediterranean at Damietta 
 and Rosetta respectively. The eastern or Arabian range of mountains 
 is overtopped by higher granite chains, it is more precipitous, crossed 
 by several valleys in an oblique direction, and often approaches the 
 > river so near, that the latter has scarcely more than room to pass. 
 The valley ceases above Cairo ; from this point the Libyan chain 
 advances in a north-westerly direction towards the coast, while the 
 Arabian range proceeds almost rectangularly eastward to the Red 
 Sea." At its entrance into the valley of Egypt the Nile is about four 
 thousand feet wide ; above Cairo it is nearly three thousand feet wide. 
 
 Divine honours were paid to the river under the impersonated name 
 Nilus, its Latin form. In earliest times of Egyptian story, the devo- 
 tions paid to the water of their river were given to Osiris, the sun-god, 
 wdio was believed to send the waters to the earth. Thus in a hymn 
 to Osiris, to which the date of B.C. 1700 is ascribed, it is said, " From 
 him descend the waters of the heavenly Nile, from him proceeds the 
 wind. The air we breatlie is also in his nostrils for his own contentment 
 and the gladdening of his heart ; he purifies the realms of space, which 
 taste of his felicity, because the stars that move therein obey him 
 in the height of heaven." — (M. Chabas, Rev. Archeol. 1857). In time 
 the Nile came to take the place of the sun-god in the superstitious 
 creed of Egypt — a fact curiously illustrative of a declension, even in 
 the idolatry of that remarkable people. " The Egyptian mind," says 
 Hard wick, " is seen descending more and more entirely from the 
 worship of the heavenly bodies to the contemplation of the marvellous
 
 EXODUS I.-II. 
 
 a^rencies at work in its immediate neidibourliood. In earlier times 
 Osiris was enthroned upon the sun ; but now the Nile itself is sub- 
 stituted for that glorious luminary. Then the spouse of the great 
 sun-god was the mother and the nurse of universal vegetation ; now 
 she is the single land of Egypt fructified and gladdened by the Nile. 
 Then Osiris was a nature-god, a verbal representative of forces active 
 in the varied processes of nature ; now he has been moulded into 
 the great civilizing hero of Mizraim, binding men together in a fixed 
 society, teaching agriculture, and subduing nations, not by force alone, 
 but by the charms of eloquence and music. Then his death was the 
 suspension of all vital power without the least distinction of locality ; 
 now it coincides precisely with that season of the year in Egypt when 
 decay and barrenness are everywhere ascendant through the valley 
 of the Nile. The reason of this gradual localizing of the story — this 
 confusion, one might call it, of the sun with the Egyptian river — is hardly 
 to be sought in the prevailing fancy that the Nile and sun were wont 
 to meet together at the western horizon, and after plunging down 
 into the under-world came forth again together from the caverns of 
 the east. An explanation, simple in itself and serving also to account 
 for other kindred stories, is suggested by the fact that the Egyptian 
 had been gradually tempted to associate every genial, fertilizing power 
 in nature with the annual overflow of his great river. In one meaning 
 of the phrase Herodotus was right, when he declared that Egypt is 
 "the gift of the Nile." "My river is mine own" was the ungodly 
 boast' ascribed to Egypt in the vision of the Hebrew prophet (Ezek. 
 xxix. 3, 9), " My river is mine own, and I have made it for myself." 
 " Turn the course of the Nile," it has been said, " and not one blade of 
 vegetation would ever arise in Egypt." And the more intelligent of 
 modern travellers, no longer open to the potent witcheries which 
 nature once exerted on mankind, but recognizing the almighty hand 
 of God himself throughout this " annual miracle of mercy," are still 
 awe-struck by the grand phenomena presented to them as the river 
 bursts afresh into its ancient channels. " All nature shouts for joy. 
 The men, the children, the bufialocs, gambol in its refreshing waters ; 
 the broad waves sparkle with shoals of fish, and fowl of every wing 
 flutter over them in clouds. Nor is this jubilee of nature confined to 
 the higher orders of creation. The moment the sand becomes 
 moistened by the approach of the fertilizing waters, it is literally 
 alive with insects innumerable." — See also under Genesis xli. 1, 
 and Amos ix. 5.
 
 BIBLICAL NATUK.\.L SCIENCE. 
 
 o 
 
 The cliild thus exposed is seen by Pharaoh's daughter, who had 
 gone down to the river to bathe — " The babe wept, and she had com- 
 passion on him." Rescued, he was named " Moses ; and she said. 
 Because I drew him out of the water" (ver. 10). Early led to feel 
 that he had been raised up as a deliverer, by one act and another he 
 began to sliow it until he brought down on himself the wrath of 
 Pharaoh, and was forced to flee into a foreign land. He betook himself 
 to the wild Arabian Desert, made friends of a priest or prince of 
 Midian, and married one of his daughters, by whom he had two sons. 
 The immediate descendants of Levi may be named thus: — 
 
 Lo-i. 
 
 Gerslioii, KoiiATi!, Slcrari. 
 
 I 
 Am HAM 
 
 lliiium. Aaron, Jlusus 
 
 K<id:>b, Abihu, Ei.EAZAU, Itli:im;ir. Gcrshuii, Eliozcr. 
 
 j\Ioses spent forty years in Arabia, during which time his brethren in 
 Egypt continued to suffer deeply from the hands of their oppressors. 
 The time of their deliverance came, and Moses was sent back to Egypt 
 to make known to them the will of God.
 
 EXODUS III. 
 
 EXODUS III. 
 
 OW Moses kept the flock of Jetliro his father-in-law, tlie 
 priest of ]\Iidian ; and he led the flock to the back-side of the 
 desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb. 
 And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of 
 fire out of the midst of a bush ; and he looked, and, behold, 
 v^^J;' the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed" 
 (ver. 1, 2). The vision of the burning bush was in Horeb. " He 
 came to the mountain of God, to Horeb." Was Horeb the name of a 
 particular mountain ? Two answers have been given to this question- 
 It has been urged by Dr. Robinson and others, that Sinai is used in 
 the Scripture for a particular range of mountains, and Horeb as the 
 name of one of them. Dr. Bonar holds that Horeb is the name of a 
 region in which Sinai stands, and he proposes, " He came to the moun- 
 tain of God, Horeb-ward," as the literal rendering of the last clauses 
 of verse 1. These opinions have been very fully discussed. The 
 question is of considerable interest, because of the references made to 
 both localities in connection with some of the most momentous circum- 
 stances recorded in the Scripture. Dr. Stanley, however, seems to me 
 to have indicated the true import of the special use of Horeb and Sinai 
 in the Old Testament. He says, " It appears to me that this depends 
 rather on a distinction of usage than of place. 1. In Exodus, Leviticus, 
 Numbers, and Judges, Sinai is always used for the scene of the giving 
 of the Law; Horeh being only used twice — for the scene of the Burning 
 Bush and of the Striking of the Rock (Exod. iii. 1, xvii. G, are doubtful; 
 Exod. xxxiii. 6, is ambiguous). 2. In Deuteronomy Horeh is substi- 
 tuted for Sinai, the former being always used, the latter never, for the 
 ]\Iou!itain of the Law. 3. In the Psalms the two are used indifferently 
 for the ^Mountain of the Law. 4. In 1 Kings xix. 8, it is impossible 
 to determine to what part, if to any special part, Horeh is applied." 
 The expression here clearly points to an accessible locality in the 
 Sinaitic range, in the neighbourhood of the spot which afterwards was 
 distinguished by those glorious manifestations of the glory of the Lord 
 which led to the name " Mountain of God." The reference to the 
 same place in verse 12 corroborates this opinion — " When thou hast
 
 BIBLICAL NATUKAL SCIENXE. 
 
 brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon, literally 
 «'«, this mountain." 
 
 A description of the Laud of Promise and mention of the tribes which 
 inhabited it occur in the address to Moses — " I am come down to 
 deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up 
 out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with 
 milk and honey ; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, 
 and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebu- 
 sites" (ver. 8). See under Numb. xiii. 17. One of the products of 
 the good land, "honey," is noticed under 2 Kings xviii. 32 — which see. 
 
 Moses was assured by the Lord himself, that he would influence the 
 minds of the people in Egypt in such a way, as to make them willing to 
 bestow upon them much which would afterwards be helpful to the 
 Israelites. " And I Avill give this people favour in the sight of the 
 Egyptians ; and it shall come to pass, that, when ye go, ye shall not 
 go empty : but every woman shall borrow of her neighbour, and of 
 her that sojourneth in her house, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, 
 and raiment ; and ye shall put them upon your sons, and upon your 
 daughters; and ye shall spoil the Egyptians" (ver. 21, 22). Much 
 has been made of this by that class of biblical critics who appear to 
 study under the impression, that they are successful intepreters only in 
 the measure in which they can point out so-called contradictions, or 
 statements inconsistent with their views of the character of God. The 
 incident narrated here, they hold, teaches principles which violate 
 moral obligations of the strongest kind ! They refuse to be taught. 
 Though the true rendering has again and again been shown to be 
 " ask," not " borrow," they have as often returned to the charge of 
 dishonesty. If the reader will turn to the following passages he will 
 find the word rendered thus: — Gen. xxxii. 17, aslceth thee; Num. xxvii. 
 21, sliall ash; Deut. xviii. 16, tliou desiredst; Josh. ix. 14, aslced; 
 Judges iv. 20, enquire; 1 Sam. xii. 13, desired; xxv. 5, greet; and so 
 in above one hundred and fifty instances in which the word under 
 
 different forms occurs.
 
 EXODUS IV.-VII. 
 
 EXODUS IV.-VII. 
 
 HE incident of the Burning Bush gives a distinct intimation 
 that, in the narrative wliich folh)WS, we may expect to 
 meet with miraculous manifestations of the Lcrd to man. 
 Several of these occur in chapter iv. The miracles were 
 signs of the divine commission of Moses. In the first he 
 (^ was ordered to cast his rod on the ground, and it became a 
 serpent, naJ/asJi. This has been specially noticed under Gen. 
 ^' iii. 2 — which see. In the second he was told to put his hand in 
 his bosom, " and when he took it out his hand was leprous as 
 snow." This disease, when it attacked a man in health, was very slow 
 in its progress. Here it was instantaneous. It generally became 
 permanent, and in the rare cases in which a cure was efi'ected the 
 recovery was gradual and often doubtful. Here, too, the restoration 
 was immediate. Such features, even apart fi'om God's previous deal- 
 ings with Closes, would have commanded his attention at once, as out 
 of the ordinary course of things. The third was threatened. " And it 
 shall come to pass, if they will not believe also these two signs, neither 
 hearken unto thy voice, that thou shalt take of the water of the river, 
 and pour it upon the dry land ; and the water, which thou takest out of 
 tlie river, shall become blood upon the dry land" (ver. 9). — See below. 
 The repeated messages only aggravated the sufferings of the people. 
 Pharaoh's heart was hardened to his own hurt. An opportunity was 
 given him to repent. He would not, and the first of the ten plagues was 
 sent on Egypt — " Get thee unto Pharaoh in the morning : lo, he goeth 
 out unto the water ; and thou shalt stand by the river's brink against 
 he come; and the rod which was turned to a serpent shalt thou take 
 in thine hand. And thou shalt say unto hiui, the Lord God of the 
 Hebrews hath sent me unto thee, saying. Let my people go, that they 
 may serve me in the wilderness ; and, behold, hitherto thou wouldest 
 not hear. Thus saith the Lord, In this thou shalt know that I am the 
 Lord ; behold, I will smite with the rod that is in mine hand upon the 
 waters which are in the river, and they shall be turned to blood. And 
 the fish that is in the river shall die, and the river shall stink ; and the 
 Egyptians shall loathe to drink of the water of the river. And the
 
 10 BIEUCAL NATURAL SCIENC15. 
 
 Lord spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and stretch out 
 tliine hand upon the waters of Egypt, upon their streams, upon their 
 rivers, and upon their ponds, and upon all their pools of water, that 
 they may become blood ; and that there may be blood throughout all 
 the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood, and in vessels of stone. 
 And Moses and Aaron did so, as the Lord commanded : and he lifted 
 up the rod, and smote the waters that were in the river, in the sight of 
 Pharaoh, and in the sight of his servants ; and all the waters that were 
 in the river were turned to blood. And the fish that was in the river 
 died ; and the river stank, and the Egyptians could not drink of the 
 water of the river ; and there was blood throughout all the land of 
 Egypt. And the magicians of Egypt did so with their enchantments ; 
 and Pharaoirs heart was hardened, neither did he hearken unto them ; 
 as the Lord had said. And Pharaoh turned and went into his house, 
 neither did he set his heart to this also. And all the Egyptians digged 
 round about the river for water to drink ; for they could not drink of 
 the water of the river. And seven days were fulfilled, after that the 
 Lord had smitten the river" (vii. 15-25). Li a survey of the plagues, 
 even from the point of view of this work, it must be kept in mind that 
 in every case they bear on the false gods of Egypt. Pharaoh and his 
 people were wedded to their worship, and treated with contempt the 
 discovery which ]\Ioses had made to them of Jehovah, the living and the 
 true God. This implies the presence of a far deeper conviction regard- 
 ing the gods of Egypt, than that they were merely the fruit of the 
 depraved imagination of the people. There are many proofs in the 
 Scriptures that the idols of the heathen were representatives to the 
 people of those " spiritual wickednesses," which enslaved their sinful 
 nature and kept them in bondage to the great head of sin himself. 
 There is much truth in the views of Dr. Kurtz on this subject: — "The 
 whole of the ancient church was most fully convinced of the realitjj of 
 the heathen gods. Idolatry in its esteem was devil-worship in the strict 
 sense of the term. The fethers of the church had no more doubt than 
 the heathen themselves, who still adhered without the least misgiving 
 to the religion they had inherited from their fathers, that the gods and 
 goddesses of mythology were real beings, and had a personal existence, 
 and that the worship with which they were honoured was not only 
 subjectively directed, in the minds of the worshippers, to certain super- 
 natural beings, but actually reached such beings and was accepted by 
 them. The fathers of the church undoubtedly lived in an age, when 
 the original power of heathenism was broken ; but even this shattered
 
 EXODUS IV.-YII. 11 
 
 Ueatlieulsm, the disjecta membra poetce, still produced upon their minds 
 the powerful and indelible impression, that there was something more 
 in this than the empty fancies or foolish speculations of idle brains ; 
 that there were actually supernatural powers at work, who possessed a 
 fearfully serious reality. The impression thus produced upon their 
 minds, by their own observation of the tendency of heathen idolatry, 
 was confirmed by their reading of both the Old and New Testaments ; 
 and the greater the confidence with which they looked upon the salva- 
 tion they had experienced in Christ, as something real and personal, 
 the less doubt did they feel as to the reality of the powers of evil by 
 which it was opposed in heathenism. In a word, the gods and god- 
 desses of heathenism were in their estimation the destructive powers of 
 darkness, the fallen spirits, the principalities and powers that rule in 
 the air, of whom the Scriptures speak. It is not to be denied, that in 
 this they went farther than the Bible authorized them to go. But it 
 must be maintained, on the other hand, that they had laid hold of the 
 substantial truth contained in the Bible ; whilst their error was merely 
 formal, and confined exclusively to their doctrinal exposition of that 
 truth. But modern theology, both believing and sceptical, by denying 
 all objective reality to the heathen deities, and pronouncing them nothing 
 but creations of the imagination, has departed altogether from the 
 truth, and rendered it impossible to understand either heathenism itself, 
 or the conflict which is carried on by the kingdom of God against the 
 powers of heathenism." The question is a very wide one and of great 
 interest. 
 
 Moses and Aaron were warned, that when they should appear before 
 Pharaoh he would demand a sign from them: — You say that Jehovah 
 has sent you. Show me a proof that he whom you name has power to 
 do all that you threaten. " Aaron cast down his rod before Pharaoh, 
 and before his servants, and it became a serpent. Now the magicians 
 of Egypt, they also did in like manner with their enchantments. For 
 they cast down every man his rod, and they became serpents" (vii. 10, 
 12). The word for "serpent" here is tannin, and is evidently inter- 
 changeable with naliasJi (iv. 3) — see also under Gen. i. 21. The fact 
 that the magicians were able to do as Aaron had done, is corroborative 
 of the view now given as to the gods of Egypt. Though Jehovah had 
 manifested his supremacy — for Aaron's rod swallowed up their rods — 
 the king's heart was hardened by the display of supernatural power by 
 his magicians. To adduce, as the explanation of this apparent power, 
 their skill in trickery, in snake-charming, is as little in keeping with
 
 12 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 the context as it is derogatory to the demauds and signs made thi'ougli 
 Moses and Aaron. 
 
 The first phague fell on the Nile. This they worshipped. " Osiris 
 was the fertilizing river, the fruitful land of Egypt was his spouse." 
 The words of the threatening refer to the great river only. The 
 commission to work the miracle (ver. 19) includes all the waters of 
 Egypt — river and rill, pond and pool, and even what the people had 
 taken in for household use, wiiter in vessels of wood and in vessels of 
 stone. The realization of the miracle, like the threatening, deals chiefly 
 with the Nile, but of the exact fullilmcnt of the judgment there can be 
 no doubt. In sending this curse room had been left for the magicians 
 to try their power. As in the case of the serpents so here ; " the 
 magicians of Egypt did so witli their enchantments ; and Pharaoh's 
 heart was harc'ened." The expressions of verse 19, which seem to 
 demand that the judgment should not only be wide spread, but uni- 
 versal, must be looked at in the light of verse 22, from which it is 
 clear, that there were still waters on which it had not fallen. Yet 
 " there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt." 
 
 In order to understand the severity of this plague, and its hateful 
 character to the Egyptians, reference must be made to the mythology 
 of Egypt. Foremost among the legends of the people was that of 
 Osiris and his spouse Isis, both born of Nutpe, who answers to the 
 goddess Rhea of the Greeks and Latins, the daughter of Heaven 
 (Ccelus) and Earth (Terra). To Nutpe were also born Typhon and 
 Nephthys his wife — two who are ever in direct antagonism to the good 
 deities, Osiris and Isis. Typhon was the representative of the evil 
 principle — the source of all cruelty, oppression, violence, murder, and 
 physical misery. Blood was ever associated with him. To touch it 
 was pollution. In this plague they saw the triumph, as they would 
 think, of the hated Typhon ; and the waters which they had regarded 
 as the spouse of their benevolent divinity, herself adored, no longer 
 offered them nourishment, but thrust on their notice wherever they 
 found them the loathed presence of the head of all evil. They turned 
 away with disgust from everything which reminded them of Typhon. 
 "In some parts of Egypt a prejudice existed against the trumpet; and 
 the people of Busiris and Lycopolis would never use it, because the 
 sound resembled the braying of an ass, which, being the emblem of 
 Typhon, gave them very unpleasant sensations, by reminding them of 
 the Evil Being." — {WWdnson) In their efforts to propitiate this 
 abhorred deity, they offered the, so-called, Typhonic victims, which
 
 EXODUS IV.-VII. 13 
 
 were chosen fioiii their resembhiiice to blood, as red oxen, and even 
 red-haired strangers, or typhouic men. Throughout the whole land of 
 Egypt, the people, by means of this plague, were made to feel that 
 contempt had been poured on the idols in which they trusted ; while 
 they were forced to endure great hardship by the seven days' continu- 
 ance of the judgment. They had no water ; the fish on which they 
 counted for a supply of food died and began to corrupt ; the river itself 
 stank. Such results of the miracle show how far from the truth that 
 hypothesis is, which traces the redness to the usual yearly inundation of 
 the Nile, at which season its waters are for a time of this colour. But 
 then it is that they are most highly esteemed by the Egyptians, and 
 yield the most abundant supply of food to the fishes. The miracle 
 demands the belief that the waters were as thoroughly changed into 
 blood, as the water at the marriage feast of Cana was into wine. In 
 both the same almighty power is to be seen working.
 
 u 
 
 BIBLICAL NATUKAL SCIENCE. 
 
 EXODUS VIII. 
 
 FTER seven days, Moses was sent with another demand and 
 threatening — " Thus saith the Lord, Let my people go, that 
 they may serve me. And if thou refuse to let them go, behold, 
 I will smite all thy borders with frogs : and the river shall 
 bring forth frogs abundantly, which shall go up, and come into 
 
 /j.^thiue house, and into thy bed-chamber, and upon thy bed, and 
 into the house of thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thine 
 ovens, and into thy kneading-troughs : and the frogs shall come 
 up both on thee, and upon thy people, and upon all thy servants. 
 And the Lord spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch forth thine 
 hand with thy rod over the streams, over the rivers, and over the 
 ponds, and cause frogs to come up upon the land of Egypt. And 
 Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt ; and the frogs 
 came up, and covered the land of Egypt. And the magicians did so 
 with their enchantments, and brought up frogs upon the land of Egypt. 
 Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron, and said. Entreat the Lord, 
 that he may take away the frogs from me, and from my people ; and 
 I will let the people go, that they may do sacrifice unto the Lord" 
 (ver. 1-8). ]\Ioses entreated for Pharaoh and his people — "And the 
 frogs died out of the houses, out of the villages, and out of the fields, 
 and they gathered them together upon heaps ; and the land stank." 
 
 "Frogs" (Heb. tzephardca) are mentioned only in this chapter and 
 in other three passages of Scripture, two of which refer to this plague : 
 
 " He sent divers sorts of flies among them, wLich devoured them ; 
 And frogs which destroyed them." — (Ps. Ixxviii. 45.) 
 
 " Their land brought forth frogs in abundance, 
 In the chambers of their kings."— (Ps cv. 30.) 
 
 The other passage is Rev. xvi. 13, in which the fi-og is named as an 
 emblem of an unclean spirit — " I saw three unclean spirits like frogs 
 (Gr. hatrachoi) come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the 
 mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet." In 
 the Egyptian mythology the creative attribute of the supreme god was
 
 EXODUS VII r. 
 
 15 
 
 named Pthali, one of whose emblems was the frog. This association 
 is no doubt to be traced to the prolific character of the female, one of 
 which will spawn from one to two thousand so-called eggs in one 
 season. As the people met with it on the banks of the Nile, and 
 noticed its slime-like spawn covering the pools among the reeds and 
 rushes, their thoughts would rise to the creative Pthah. But here the 
 creature linked up with their ideas of increase, and of the care of their 
 god, leaves its accustomed places on the margin of the river, and 
 spreads over the land, entering alike the cottage of the peasant and the 
 palace of the king. That which they had been in the habit of regard- 
 ing with feelinjrs akin to reverence, came now to be abhorred. The 
 very agents to whom they might have looked for protection against 
 them aggravated the plague. The magicians tried their power, and 
 
 Fis. 2. 
 
 Fig. 3. 
 
 Front Foot of Frog. 
 
 Hind Foot of Frog. 
 
 Month of the Frog 
 
 succeeded in bringing frogs where before they were not, but were help- 
 less when asked to remove them. That the king entreated Moses to 
 stay the plague, shows both that his magicians had tried and found 
 themselves helpless to do so. 
 
 The species of frogs most common in Egj-pt would, in all likelihood, 
 be those in connection with which the miracle was worked. These are 
 — the common frog {Eana temporaiia), the edible frog {B. escuknta), 
 aud the dotted frog {R. punctata). We have no material for a nearer 
 determination of species ; so that to fix on the last named as having 
 been that sent on Egypt, is wholly arbitrary. 
 
 The front feet of the frog, fig. 2, are cloven, the four toes being 
 separated by three deep clelts. The hind feet, fig. 3, are palmate, 
 or webbed, and fit the animal for swimming with ease and agility. 
 The mouth, fig. 4, is wide, and in some species, as, for example, the
 
 16 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 hull frog-, fig. 5, an American form, very large. The mouth of the 
 frog, unlike that of the toad, is furnished with teeth. 
 
 The removal of the plague brought the king back to his old state of 
 feeling — " When Pharaoh saw that there was respite, he hardened his 
 heart and hearkened not unto them." The consequence was, that the 
 tliird plague was sent on the land. " The Lord said unto Moses, Say 
 unto Aaron, Stretch out thy rod, and smite the dust of the land, that 
 it may become lice throughout all tlie land of Egypt. And they did 
 so : for Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod, and smote the dust 
 of the earth, and it became lice in man and in beast : all the dust of 
 the land became lice throughout all the land of Egypt. And tlie 
 
 Fig- 6- 
 
 Bull Frog (Uana mugiens). 
 
 magicians did so with their enchantments to bring fortli lice, but they 
 could not : so there were lice upon man and upon beast. Then the 
 magicians said unto Pharaoh, This is the finger of God : and Pharaoh's 
 heart was hardened, and he hearkened not unto tliem ; as the Lord had 
 said" (ver. 10-19). 
 
 Is there good reason for the view, now generally held by interpreters, 
 that the word rendered lice in these passages means gnats ? Two cir- 
 cumstances have chiefly been appealed to in support of this translation. 
 First, the Septuagint version renders it shiiphcft, the Greek term for 
 gnat. Second, gnats, it is said, are still so abundant in Egypt as to be 
 regarded even now as a plague. Much weight may no doubt be claimed 
 for the opinion of men who lived in the country, and were acquainted
 
 EXODUS VIII. 17 
 
 with its insects, but it should be remembered that their translation was 
 made more than one thousand years after the time that ]\Ioses wrote, 
 and when Egypt was almost wliolly under Greek influences. Nothing 
 is more likely than that they should have been misled by the resem- 
 blance of the Hebrew word in sound to the Greek word for gnat. The 
 second consideration is even less worthy of notice, because if gnats at 
 present may be regarded as a plague in Egypt, lice are no less so. A 
 close examination of the text leads me to conclude, that the rendering 
 of the authorised version is to be preferred. This is supported by the 
 authority of Josephus, Luther, Bochart, and others. Indeed, the views 
 of Bochart have never been set aside. He points out that they were 
 to spring from the dust of the earth ; but if gnats had been referred to 
 the waters would have been named as their source. The original word 
 comes from a root signifying to fix or be firm. The Talmudists, he 
 also shows, used a term (Idnnali) for the louse, bearing a close resem- 
 blance to that used by Moses. 
 
 " Louse," Heb. hen {Pediculus humanus of zoologists). This form 
 is ranked under a group to which the name Ano2)lura has been given, 
 because they have no forked tail, or bristles on the abdomen, such as 
 distinguish the group immediately below them in i-it-.a 
 
 the zoological scale. Unlike the members of the 
 groups of insects both below and above them, 
 lice do not undergo metamorphosis. Their nits, 
 or eggs, are attached to the hairs of the skin, 
 never, as used to be thought, below it, and from 
 these they come forth complete. In the course of 
 their growth tliej' shed their skin several times, on 
 each occasion assuming greater symmetry. The 
 Iront ot the head, ng. 6, is long, and tapcrmg on (highly magumcd). 
 to form a snout, b. In this, as in a sheath, lies the instrument, a, 
 with which it pierces the skin and draws blood. The Dutch naturalist, 
 Leeuwenhoek, devoted much attention to the habits of the pediculus, 
 notwithstanding the loathing and disgust which every look at the 
 creature begets. Referring to its mode of feeding, he says — " In my 
 experiments, although I had at one time several on my hand drawing 
 blood, yet I very rarely felt any pain from their punctures ; which is 
 not to be wondered at, when we consider the excessive slenderness of 
 the piercer ; for, upon comparing this with a hair taken from the back 
 of my hand, I judged, from the most accurate computation I could form 
 by the microscope, that the hair was seven hundred times larger than 
 
 VOL. II. c
 
 18 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE, 
 
 this incredible slender piercer, which consequently by its punctures 
 must excite little or no pain, unless it happens to touch a nerve. 
 Hence I have been induced to think that the pain or uneasiness those 
 persons suffer who are infested by these creatures, is not so much 
 produced from the piercer as from a real sting, which the male louse 
 carries in the hinder part of his body, and uses as a weapon of defence." 
 He has shown that their eggs are not hatched till they have lain eight 
 days, that the females are a month old when they begin to lay, and 
 that a single female in eight weeks will increase the vermin to five 
 thousand. In that time he obtained ten thousand eggs from two 
 females. Such particulars form a good background for bringing out 
 the circumstances of this loathsome and disgusting plague. It is known 
 that the Egyptians were careful to keep all infested with them out of 
 their temples. Their priests were clad in linen garments when they 
 ministered in them, and every precaution was adopted to keep them- 
 selves free from such vermin. But in this visitation the plague was in 
 man and in beast. The vermin clung to all — king, and priest, and 
 peasant alike. Their sacred animals were also infested with them. 
 Contempt was poured on all the gods of Egypt. The magicians them- 
 selves felt the prevailing disgust, and acknowledged that this was the 
 finger of God. " The Egyptians affected great external purity ; and 
 were very nice both in their persons and clothing ; bathing and making- 
 ablutions continually. Uncommon care was taken not to harbour any 
 vermin. They were particularly solicitous on this head; thinking it 
 would be a great profanation of the temple which they entered, if any 
 animalcule of this sort were concealed in their garments. The priests, 
 says Herodotus, are shaved, both as to their heads and bodies, every 
 third day, to prevent any louse or any other detestable creature being 
 found upon them when they are performing their duty to the gods. 
 The same is mentioned by another author, who adds, that all woollen 
 was considered as foul, and from a perishable animal ; but flax is the 
 product of the immortal earth, affords a delicate and pure covering, and 
 is not liable to harbour lice. We may hence see what an abhorrence 
 the Egyptians showed towards this sort of vermin, and what care was 
 taken by the priests to guard against them. The judgments, therefore, 
 inflicted by the hands of Moses were adapted to their prejudices. It 
 was, consequently, not only most noisome to the people in general, but 
 was no small odium to the most sacred order in Egypt, that they Avere 
 overrun with these filthy and detestable vermin." — {Bnjant.) 
 
 Even though the magicians were constrained to cry out, " This is
 
 EXODUS VIII. 19 
 
 the finger of God," when they felt the power of the thh-d phigue, the 
 king's heart was still hardened. He bowed not before the majesty of 
 the Lord. ]\Ioses was sent to threaten another plague — " And the 
 Lord said unto ]\Ioses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before 
 Pharaoh (lo, he cometh forth to the water), and say unto him, Thus 
 saith the Lord, Let my people go, that they may serve me. Else, if 
 thou wilt not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies upon 
 thee, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thy houses : 
 and the houses of the Egyptians shall be full of swarms of flies, and 
 also the ground whereon they are. And I will sever in that day the 
 land of Goshen, in which my people dwell, that no swarms of flies shall 
 be there ; to the end thou mayest know that I am the Lord in the 
 midst of the earth. And I will put a division between my people and 
 thy people : to-morrow shall this sign be. And the Lord did so : and 
 there came a grievous swarm of flies into the house of Pharaoh, and 
 into his servants' houses, and into all the land of Egypt : the land was 
 corrupted by reason of the swarm of flics" (vei\ 20-24). 
 
 " Swarm" of flies, Heb. drfw. The original word is derived from a 
 root signifying " to mix." Li rendering drov by " swarms," our trans- 
 lators wished to convey their impression that the instrument of 
 Jehovah's vengeance in this phigue was not any one single species of 
 fly, but various kinds of insects so named. Thus, in Psalm Ixxviii. 45, 
 the same idea is more distinctly expressed by the 
 translation, " divers sorts of flies." So likewise in 
 Psalm cv. 3L Interpretations of this whole passage 
 which proceed on the principle that each of the 
 plagues contained in it something suggestive of 
 judgment on the false gods of Egypt, assign the 
 specific meaning of beetles to this expression, and 
 find in it direct refei'ence to a coleopterous insect, 
 the sacred beetle, used in the Egyptian sculptures 
 as an emblem of the world, and worshipped as 
 sacred to the sun and to the god Pthah the embodi- 
 ment of the creative power. Wilkinson found it s„eredi^,o,i.,(w.^r,«,a^, 
 imaged on sculptures, and embalmed in the tombs vei s. ivji.(wr«».). 
 at Thebes. In their efforts to associate one form with widely different 
 thoughts the people had recourse to extraordinary devices. Emblems 
 of particular gods, and representatives of certain ideas, were thus 
 dealt with ; " the most remarkable of which were scarabivi, with the 
 heads of hawks, rams, cows. Of these, many are found made of
 
 20 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIEXCE. 
 
 pottery, stone, and other materials, and the sculptures represent the 
 beetle with a human head. Such changes did not render them less 
 fit emblems of the gods : the scarabceus of the Sun appears with 
 the head of a ram, as well as a hawk ; and the god Pthah was some- 
 times figured with the body of a scarabaeus, and the head and legs 
 of his usual human form." — [Wilhuison) The general idea attached 
 in our version to druv^ leaves room for the recognition of such a 
 reference to the gods of Egypt. But nothing more specific is to bo 
 sought in this plague than insects generally which were hurtful to man. 
 (For " Fly," see under Isaiah vil. 18.) The severity of the plague 
 broke for a season the proud spirit of the tyrant. " Pharaoh called for 
 Moses and for Aaron, and said. Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the 
 land" (ver. 25). The distinction made between Goshen and Egypt 
 would tend to deepen the impression made by the plague itself The 
 people would be seen to be in some sense peculiar, and yet their God 
 to be the God of the whole earth. 
 
 The answer of Moses (ver. 26) gives us another glimpse into the 
 animal Avorship of Egypt — "And Moses said. It is not meet so to do; 
 for w^e shall sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians to the Lord our 
 God : lo, shall we sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians before 
 their eyes, and will they not stone us? We will go three days' journey 
 into the wilderness, and sacrifice to the Lord our God, as he shall 
 command us." Both the sacrifices and their mode of ofiering them 
 would have been detested by the people. Animals which they held 
 peculiarly sacred were to be offered up ; and as this was to be done as 
 God commanded them, Moses knew that the command would be of a 
 kind fitted to show to the people of Israel, that his worship was wholly 
 different from that offered by the Egyptians to their idols.
 
 EXODUS IX. 
 
 21 
 
 EXODUS IX. 
 
 HE swarms of insects were removed, and " there remained 
 not one." Freed from tins plague, Pliaraoli's lieart again 
 rose in rebellion against God, and Moses was sent to 
 announce the fifth judgment. This was a grievous murrain 
 upon the cattle of Egypt. The pest was to influence the 
 cattle, as deadly epidemic diseases do men. The animals spe- 
 cially noticed are the " horse," Heb. sus — see under 1 Kings 
 X. 28; the "ass," Heb. Tihdmdr, noticed under Ps. civ. 11 ; the 
 •'camel," Heb. gamdl, Gen. xxx. 43; the "ox," Heb. halcdr. Lev. 
 I. 5 ; and " sheep," Heb. tzon, Gen. iv. 2. The horse used in war, 
 the ass employed as the beast of burden, the ox by whose help the 
 land was ploughed, the camel of the merchant, and the sheep prized 
 for its wool, were stricken with the terrible murrain. " All the cattle 
 of Egypt died" — an expression again illustrative of the use of "all" 
 for "a multitude," but not for "every one." Some of these animals, 
 as the ox and the sheep, were sacred. The horse and the camel were 
 not. The ass was regarded as an emblem of Typhon. 
 
 The sixth plague was that of the Boil with " Blains" {avaghitgoth). 
 An extreme and violent form of elephantiasis, known as black leprosy, 
 has been named as the scourge in this plague ; but the expression 
 "man and beast" renders this more than doubtful. It is worthy of 
 notice, that at the present time forms of small-pox, characterized by 
 great ulcerous inflammation have fallen with deadly power on many 
 men and beasts. Whole flocks of sheep have been destroyed by it, 
 and in one or two localities many households have been made desolate. 
 The boil with blains may not have been identical, but the import of 
 these terms is to be sought in some such violent cutaneous disease. 
 As a sign of the coming curse, the servants of God were to " sprinkle 
 the ashes of the furnace up towards heaven in the sight of Pharaoh." 
 This having been done, the malady laid hold on man and on beast, as 
 boils breaking forth with blains. All the curative skill of the physi- 
 cians of Egypt was unavailing. " And the magicians could not stand 
 before Moses because of the boils ; for the boil was upon the magicians, 
 and upon all the Egyptians. And the Lord hardened the heart of
 
 Pharaoh, and he hearkened not unto them; as the Lord had spoken 
 unto Moses" (ver. 11, 12). 
 
 The results of the hardened heart led to another grand manifestation 
 of the sovereign power of Jehovah, in sending the seventh plague. 
 The threatening is given in verses 13-19, the fulfilment in verses 22-26. 
 " And the Lord said unto Moses, Stretch forth tliine hand toward 
 heaven, that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, upon man, and 
 upon beast, and upon every herb of the field, throughout the land of 
 Egypt. And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven ; and the 
 Lord sent thunder and hail, and the fire ran along upon the ground ; 
 and the Lord rained hail upon the land of Egypt. So there was hail, 
 and fire mingled with the hail, very grievous, such as there was none 
 like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. And the hail 
 smote throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both 
 man and beast ; and the hail smote every herb of the field, and brake 
 every tree of the field. Only in the land of Goshen, where the children 
 of Israel were, was there no hail." It fell with tremendous power on 
 Pharaoh and his people. " And Pharaoh sent, and called for IMoses 
 and Aaron, and said unto them, I have sinned this time : the Lord is 
 righteous, and I and my people are wicked. Entreat the Lord (for it 
 is enough) that there be no more mighty thunderings and hail ; and I 
 will let you go, and ye shall stay no longer. And Closes said unto him, 
 As soon as I am gone out of the city, I will spread abroad my hands 
 unto the Lord ; and the thunder shall cease, neither shall there be any 
 more hail ; that thou mayest know how that the earth is the Lord's. 
 But as for thee and thy servants, I know that ye will not yet fear the 
 Lord God." The force of verse 18 is greatly heightened by remember- 
 ing the character of the climate of Egypt. Herodotus notices the 
 unfrequency of rain in the neighbourhood of Memphis. In Upper 
 Egypt showers fall only five or six times in a year, and a continuance 
 of heavy rains there, or even at Cairo, would be regarded with the 
 greatest wonder. The results would also be most destructive. Such 
 an occurrence took place in 1823, and many of the mud-built houses 
 were destroyed. But if such effects would result from rains, how much 
 greater would they be in the case of hail, and especially in a hail 
 storm like that now threatened?- — "I will cause it to rain a very 
 grievous hail." 
 
 The appeal made to the Egyptians themselves is full of interest. 
 The influences of God's dealings with them appear to have begun to 
 touch the hearts of the people. While they came to Pharaoh and many
 
 EXODUS IX. 
 
 23 
 
 others as judgments whicli would only harden, to some they were sent 
 as messengers of grace. " Send therefore now, and gather thy cattle, 
 and all that thou hast in the field; for upon every man and beast which 
 shall be found in the field, and shall not be brought home, the hail shall 
 come down upon them, and they shall die. He that feared the word 
 of the Lord among the servants of Pharaoh made his servants and his 
 cattle flee into the houses ; and he that regarded not the word of the 
 Lord left his servants and his cattle in the field." Tlie accompaniments 
 of the grievous hail are very vividly set before us. Dark clouds loomed 
 over that usually cloudless sky. Thunder broke forth peal on peal. 
 Lightnings darted from the gloom. " Fire ran along the ground." 
 So there was hail, and fire mingled with hail, very grievous, such as 
 there was none like it." Man and beast, herb and tree, all bowed 
 before its influence. 
 
 The allusion to the state of the crops in Egypt at the time of this 
 plague is equally full of interest. " And the flax and the barley was 
 smitten : for the barley was in the ear, and 
 the flax was boiled. But the wheat and the 
 rye were not smitten ; for they were not 
 gi'own up" (ver. 31, 32). From this we may 
 form a pretty definite estimate of the season 
 when this plague occurred. There is no 
 reason to believe that the climate of Egypt 
 has altered since the time of Moses. At 
 present the barley is found in the ear about 
 the middle of l\Iarch ; the flax is boiled, or 
 fully developed in the stalk about the same 
 period. The wheat and rye harvest occurs 
 in April. These cereals had, therefore, not 
 reached a condition of growth which would 
 have made the hail equally fatal to them as 
 it must have been to the barley and flax. 
 The seventh plague must have been sent in 
 the beginning of March. 
 
 The Hebrew word for the flax plant is 
 pisldali. Flax {Linum vsitatissimiivi) belongs 
 to the natural order Linacecc, or Flax family, 
 under which two genera are ranked, namely, flax (Linum), and flax-seed 
 (Badiola). Four British species are ranked under the former, and one 
 under the latter. These are perennial flax {L. perenne), narrow-leaved 
 
 Flax riant (Linum usitntissimum).
 
 flax {L. angiistifolium), common flax [L. nsitatissi'mum), purging flax 
 L. cathartkum), and tliyme-leavcd flax-seed (7?. viillegrana). Like the 
 cotton plant, flax may be traced to India, "wlience, at a very early 
 period, it was carried to Syria and Egypt. It then spread westward, 
 until, about the time of the Roman Conquest, it appears to have been 
 introduced into Britain. The mode of dressing flax is noticed under 
 Josh. ii. G, where another form of the word used in this passage is 
 employed [pishtcli). The name given here by ]\Ioses occurs in only 
 other two places, both of which are in Isaiah — " A bruised reed shall 
 he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench : he shall bring 
 forth judgment unto truth" (xlii. 3). " Smoking," literally " dim"— 
 see under Isaiah. In the other passage it is rendered " tow," where 
 the word is used in the sense of wick — " They are extinct, they are 
 quenched as tow" (xliii. 17). 
 
 "Barley," Heb. shonlh, see under Ruth i. 22; "Wheat," Ileb. 
 Jih'ttlh, Deut. xi. 1-1 ; " Rye," Heb. kusametii, Isa. xxviii. 25.
 
 EXODUS X.-XII. 
 
 25 
 
 EXODUS X-XII, 
 
 'HE message from Jehovah again comes to ]\Ioses and Aaron. 
 " Go in unto Pharaoh." " How long," they asked, " wilt 
 thou refuse to humble thyself before the Lord?" The 
 plague of the locusts was threatened. At the earnest 
 request of his people Pharaoh was inclined to yield. But 
 the evil nature again triumphed ; " and they were driven out 
 from Pharaoh's presence. And the Lord said unto Moses, 
 Stretch out thine hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, 
 that they may come up upon the land of Egypt, and eat every herb 
 of the land, even all that the hail hath left. And IMoses stretched 
 forth his rod over the land of Egypt, and the Lord brought an east 
 wind upon the land all that day, and all that night ; and when it was 
 morning, the east wind brought the locusts. And the locusts went up 
 over all the land of Egypt, and rested in all the coasts of Egypt : very 
 grievous were they ; before them there were no such locusts as they, 
 neither after them shall be such. For they covered the face of the 
 whole earth, so that the land was darkened ; and they did eat every 
 herb of the land, and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had left ; 
 and there remained not any green thing in the trees, or in the herbs of 
 the field, through all the land of Egypt" (ver. 10-15). " Locust," Heb. 
 arheli; see under Deut. xxviii. 38. The agent employed to bring the 
 locust was an east wind (ver. 15). Having covered the face of the whole 
 earth they devoured the vegetation, and " there remained not any 
 green thing in the trees or in the herb of the field" — see under Isa. 
 XV. 6. As the wind blowing from Arabia had brought the locusts, 
 another from Africa is employed to carry them away. " The Lord 
 turned a mighty strong west wind, which took away the locusts and 
 cast them into the Red Sea." 
 
 Before the last terrible appeals were to be made to Pharaoh and his 
 people, IMoses and Aaron were fully informed of that sacramental feast, 
 the Passover, which was to be equally the expression of a covenant 
 people's gratitude and the figure of those " good things to come" which 
 were to be closely linked up with Him who, as our Passover, was sacri- 
 ficed for us. The animal used was to be of the young of sheep or goat— 
 
 VOL. II. D
 
 " Speat ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day 
 of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to 
 the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house. And if the household 
 be too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house 
 take it, according to the number of the souls : every man, according to 
 his eating, shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be 
 without blemish, a male of the first year : ye shall take it out from the 
 sheep, or from the goats" (xii. 3-5). It has been shown, under Gen. 
 xxvii. that the Hebrew term gedi means the young of the goat. Sell, 
 on the contrary, may be rendered either by "kid" or "lamb." The 
 latter word is used here. It is also translated sheep, as in chap. xxii. 1 ; 
 eioe, Lev. xxii. 28; and cattle, Ezek. xxxiv. 17. The word is very 
 general. Its definite meaning is to be determined by the context. 
 
 " They shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened 
 bread; and with bitter herbs shall they eat it" (ver. 8). Attempts have 
 been made to identify the " bitter hei'bs" eaten with the paschal lamb, 
 but the words are far too indefinite for this. They appear to have been 
 left thus general, that the Jews might use such as they found plentiful 
 in the places in which at Passover time they might be dwelling, or that 
 when they should gather together at Jerusalem a choice might be left 
 them. Mint (Mentha viridis) may have been used, Luke xi. 42 ; so 
 may the lettuce [Lactuca sativa) in its wild state, or the wild chicory 
 (Cichorium intyhus), or wild garlic (Allium ascalonicum). English 
 Jews at Passover time were wont to eat with the lamb horse-radisli 
 (Armoracia rusticana) and chervil (Anthriscus). "Leavened bread" 
 (ver. 15), see under Proverbs x. 2G. 
 
 " And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the blood that 
 is in the bason, and strike the lintel and the two side-posts with the 
 blood that is in the bason ; and none of you shall go out at the door of 
 his house until the morning" (ver. 22). " Hyssop," Heb. ezov, is the 
 lascf, lussuff, or azefoi the Bedouins, the caper plant (Caijparis spinosa) 
 of modern botanists. See under 1 Kings iv. 33. 
 
 Bishop Colenso points to the account of the institution of the Pass- 
 over, contained in this chapter, as a notable example of the unhistorical 
 character of the story of the Exodus. Having quoted verses 21-28, he 
 remarks — " That is to say, in one single day the Avhole immense popu- 
 lation of Israel, as large as that of London, was instructed to keep the 
 Passover, and actually did keep it. I have said 'in one single day;' 
 for the first notice of any such feast to be kept is given in this very 
 chapter, where we find it written (ver. 12), ' I will pass through the
 
 KX0DU8 XII. 27 
 
 land of Egypt tins m'gld, and will smite all tlie first-horn in the land of 
 Egypt, both man and beast.' " A candid reader has only to peruse 
 the narrative to see the frivolous nature of this criticism. " The Lord 
 spake unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying (ver. 1), 
 Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying. In the tenth day 
 of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb according to 
 the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house (ver. 3). And ye shall 
 keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month" (ver. 6). From 
 the tenth to the fourteenth was certainly not " one single day." How 
 does Dr. Colenso meet this? "It is true," he says, "that the story, 
 as it now stands, with the directions about ' taking' the lamb on the 
 tenth day and ' keeping' it till the fourteenth, are perplexing and con- 
 tradictory." They may be "perplexing" to such a critic, but they are 
 not " contradictory." Dr. Colenso believes they contradict the state- 
 ments in verses 12 and 14 — " I will pass through the land of Egypt 
 tin's night;" " This day shall be unto you for a memorial." But does 
 not every unbiassed reader at once acknowledge, that " this night" and 
 "this day" are the day and night pointed to in the warning given 
 before the tenth day dawned, when all Israel were to show that they 
 credited the threatening given in chapter xi. 5. The attempt to limit 
 the expression "about midnight" (xi. 4.) to the midnight of the tenth 
 — " the midnight then next at hand" — is hardly worthy of notice. The 
 precise directions contained in this chapter define the meaning attached 
 by the speaker to the words "about midnight." Why has not this 
 author referred to what must, on his principles of interpretation, appear 
 to be another glaring evidence of the unhistorical nature of this narra- 
 tive, in ver. 4, chap, xi., and ver. 29, chap. xii. ? In the former the 
 terms employed are "about midnight;" in the latter, " at midnight." 
 Here, surely, was material for another indignant paragraph ! 
 
 "'Moses,'" continues Dr. Colenso, "'called for all the elders of 
 Israel.' We must suppose, then, that the elders lived somewhat near 
 at hand. But where did the two millions live? And how could the 
 order to keep the Passover have been conveyed, with its minutest 
 particulars, to each individual household in this vast community in one 
 day — rather, in tioelve hours, since Moses received the command on the 
 very same day on which they were to kill the Passover at even, Exod. 
 xii. 6?" The position of the dwellings of the elders can have no 
 weight either way here, because it is not true that Moses received the 
 command on the very same day on which they were to kill it. This is 
 plain from the narrative. If an order had to be given on the tenth, it
 
 28 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 required to reach Moses before that day. The lamb was to be taken 
 from the flock on the tenth (ver. 3), and when the order (ver. 21) was 
 given, it proceeded on the understanding that the command of the 
 tenth had been obeyed. The lamb was ready. The expression " called 
 for all the elders" simply intimates that when the expected morning 
 came the ordinary channels of communication with the whole congre- 
 gation were informed of it. Any attempt to exaggerate the difficulties 
 of communicating with the households of Israel, if honestly made, will 
 take into account the circumstances in which the people now were. 
 They had long been expectiug a deliverer, on whom the hope of the 
 nation was united. The period over which the plagues extended had 
 rallied the people around Moses, whose natural faculty for organizing 
 would be brought fully into play. Every arrangement would be made 
 to give direction and speed to the final move. All that the messengers 
 sent by the elders would have to declare would simply be, " Act as you 
 have been instructed." The command as to the taking of the lamb on 
 the tenth day included all the particulars now referred to by Moses. 
 Those only which stood directly related to the slaying of the first-born 
 are mentioned. Thus no reference is made to the " unleavened bread" 
 in the command after the elders were called. In modern times the 
 power of speedy communication with great bodies of people might of 
 itself have led this author to hesitate before he challenged the historical 
 character of this narrative. The population of the United Kingdom is 
 nearly 30,000,000, yet in one day the head of every household is com- 
 municated with when the census is taken. The organization thereto 
 is no doubt complete, and preparation is made beforehand ; but modifi- 
 cations of both suited to the circumstances, would be equally effective 
 when employed by Moses to communicate with the comparatively few 
 households of Israel. 
 
 We have seen that when God announced to Moses the judgments 
 which he was about to send on Egypt, he said — " And I will give this 
 people favour in the sight of the Egyptians : and it shall come to pass, 
 that, when ye go, ye shall not go empty : But every woman shall 
 borrow of her neighbour, and of her that sojourneth in her house, 
 jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment : and ye shall put them 
 upon your sons, and upon your daughters ; and ye shall spoil the 
 Egyptians" (iii. 21, 22). The reference to this transaction in this 
 chapter is as follows — " And the children of Israel did according to the 
 word of Moses ; and they borrowed of the Egyptians jewels of silver, 
 and jewels of gold, and raiment. And the Lord gave the people favour
 
 EXIJDLS XII. 29 
 
 in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they lent unto them such things 
 as they requ'red : and tliey spoiled the Egyptians" (ver. 35, 36). 
 Dr. Colcnso finds "prodigious difficulties" in this passage. He makes 
 the women " hasten, at a moment's notice," to " borrow" in all direc- 
 tions from the Egyptians. But why "at a moment's notice?" That 
 they were to do so was announced before even the first plague fell on 
 the land. As with the reference to taking the lamb on the tenth day, 
 so here. What is stated before the transaction passes as information 
 among the people, and on this they act. The duties of the fourteenth 
 day are specially referred to on the understanding that those of the 
 tenth had been performed. The whole narrative proceeds just as such 
 a narrative would do still, when brevity of statement is particularly 
 necessary. When we are informed that " the children of Israel did 
 according to the command of Moses, and they borrowed of the Egyp- 
 tians" (ver. 35), it might be asked, Where is the command of Moses? 
 It is not stated here. Yet it had been given. When God at first told 
 his servant (chap, iii.) that this was to be done, Closes had made it 
 known to the people. They had thus plenty of time for the borrowing 
 of jewels, &c. As one plague and another fell on them, the natural 
 conscience of the people would be made increasingly active. They had 
 oppressed and wronged their neighbours. Might they not save them- 
 selves from farther visitations by making restitution ? Verses 35 and 
 36 do not settle anything regarding the time at which this was done; 
 they only record it as an historical fact. 
 
 Another, and, to this one-sided critic, more formidable difficulty 
 presents itself in the number of lambs which would be required for the 
 Passover. Taking the people at 2,000,000, and reckoning ten as the 
 average number of the people for whom one lamb would be required, 
 they would need 200,000 lambs. " Taking twenty, they would require 
 100,000. Let us," he says, " take the mean of these, and suppose that 
 they required 150,000. And these were to be all ' male lambs of the 
 first year,' Exod. xx. 5. We may assume that there were as many 
 female lambs of the first year, making 300,000 lambs of the first year 
 altogether. But these were not all. For if the 150,000 lambs which 
 were killed for the Passover comprised all the males of that year, there 
 would have been no rams or wethers left of that year for the increase 
 of the flock. And as the same thing would happen in each successive 
 year, there would never be any rams or wethers, but ewe-sheep innu- 
 merable." Such statements appear to be gravely made. The last 
 sentence in this quotation supplies a good example of Dr. Colenso's
 
 30 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 mode of looking at matters. One can fancy the Zulus of a coming 
 generation dealing with the question of the authenticity of the bishop's 
 book, and reasoning thus : — Dr. Colcnso was a cultivated man, and 
 an accurate thinker. The author of this work, however, has told us 
 that all the male lambs would be killed for the Passover, rightly 
 concluding, that if such were the case, there would be no rams of that 
 year left for the increase of the flock. Yet in successive years the 
 flocks were to go on increasing until there were ewe-sheep innumerable. 
 This involves the claim of immortality for the rams existing when all 
 the males of the first year were killed. A claim so absurd could never 
 have been made by Dr. Colenso ; therefore he could not have been the 
 author of the work ! 
 
 The question as to the number of lambs required has some light 
 shed on it by a passage in Josephus. In his graphic description of the 
 siege of Jerusalem by Titus, he refers to the vast multitudes who had 
 come up from the country to celebrate the Passover. When they had 
 entered the city, the forces of the conqueror came up against it. He 
 then adds — " They slajL their sacrifices from the ninth hour till the 
 eleventh, but so that a company not less than ten belong to every 
 sacrifice, and many of us are twenty in a company." — (Wars, vi. 9, 3.) 
 At that time it was found that there were 256,500 sacrifices in the 
 city. Why has Dr. Colenso not brought his arithmetic to bear on the 
 statement of Josephus ? He must hold it less worthy of credit even 
 than anything in this chapter. Yet all men agree that the number 
 given by the Jewish historian is near the truth. " Which," continues 
 Josephus, " upon an allowance of no more than ten that feast together 
 amounts to 2,700,000, and 200 persons that were pure and holy." On 
 Dr. Colenso's principles this whole narrative must be regarded as 
 unhistorical for two reasons : — (1) The space known to have been sur- 
 rounded by the walls of Jerusalem could not have contained 2,700,000 
 persons and 256,000 lambs. Especially when it is borne in mind that 
 those who, as ceremonially polluted, were not permitted to eat of the 
 paschal lamb, and foreigners, who were also prohibited, must have been 
 on the lowest calculation no fewer than 50,000. But to the lambs 
 might fairly be added 50,000 more to serve as food, and as many cattle; 
 giving, in round numbers, 400,000 sheep and cattle ! (2) Josephus 
 must have been patching up a narrative long after the siege from 
 several accounts, and in that want of attention to details which has led 
 im into so many blunders, he did not observe that the arithmetic of 
 
 the account of the lambs did not agree with that of the number of the
 
 people. Had lie brought both together, and taken ten as the average 
 for one lamb, he would have found that, multiplying 250,500 by that 
 number gave 2,565,000, and not, as in his account, which is every- 
 where disfigured with blunders (as intelligent Zulus have pointed out) 
 2,700,000, and 200! We would soon get quit of all history were the 
 text to be dealt with as this critic deals with the books of Moses. 
 
 Josephus intimates that, while the usual average was ten to a lamb, 
 circumstances influenced the number. Times of crisis like the coming 
 up out of Egypt, and the siege of Jerusalem, might greatly raise the 
 average. He gives one instance of twenty. Dr. Colenso cannot prove 
 that, in the case of the first Passover, it could not have been higher. 
 He arbitrarily takes the mean between ten and twenty, making the 
 number of lambs required 150,000. But suppose we should plead for 
 forty at such a crisis, would 50,000 lambs not be easily within reach 
 of a pastoral people numbering about 2,000,000? 
 
 Dr. Colenso having in liis characteristic way concluded that there 
 must have been 400,000 male and female lambs of the first year, says 
 — " Now, a sheepmaster, experienced in Australia and Natal, informs 
 me that the total nund)er of sheep, in an average flock of all ages, will 
 be about five times that of the increase in one season of lambing. So 
 that 400,000 lambs of the first year implies a flock of 2,000,000 sheep 
 and lambs of all ages. Taking, then, into account the fact that they 
 had also large herds, ' even very much cattle,' we may fairly reckon 
 that the Hebrews, though so much oppressed, must have possessed at 
 this time, according to the story, more than 2,000,000 of sheep and 
 oxen. What extent of land, then, would all these have required for 
 pasturage?" The estimates of Australian and New Zealaud sheep- 
 masters are stated, and Dr. Colenso ultimately allows '^five sheep to 
 an acre." This would have required 400,000 acres. The people would 
 thus be scattered over twenty-five miles square. How were they all 
 to be informed in such a short time ? It has already been shown that 
 there is no foundation for fixing the number of lambs, as this author 
 has done. To take Australian or New Zealand pastures as standards 
 of comparison with the rich lands of Goshen, is simply absurd. The 
 rich pastures of Leicester or York would have been more to the pur- 
 pose. The difficulty of informing the people of the arrangements for 
 celebrating the Passover, and instructing them to borrow from the 
 Egyptians, are formidable only when this is believed to have been all 
 done in a few hours. This, we have seen, was not the case — a fact 
 which implies a complete answer to his remarks on the " march out of
 
 Egypt" (ver. 37, 38). "Here, then," he says, "we have this vast 
 body of people of all ages, summoned to start, according to the story, 
 at a moment's notice." In stating the difficulties that might be sup- 
 posed to arise from the social condition and domestic circumstances 
 of the people, he forgets, as indeed he does throughout, that all the 
 circumstances of the Exodus were under the special care of God. This 
 is carefully noticed by the Psalmist : — 
 
 " Israel also came into Egypt ; 
 And Jacob sojourned in the land of Ham. 
 And lie increased his people greatly, 
 And made them stronger than their enemies. 
 He brought them forth also with silver and gold : 
 And there was not one feeble among their tribes." 
 
 -(Ps. cv. 23, 24, 37.) 
 
 The plague of darkness had fitllen on the land. For three days 
 "darkness which might be felt" brooded over Egypt. "They saw 
 not one another, neither rose any from his place for three days." But 
 the distinguishing sovereignty of God was again displayed — " All the 
 children of Israel had light in their dwellings." At last the tenth and 
 most terrible plague of all fell with awful power on the people — " And 
 it came to pass that at midnight the Lord smote all the first-born in 
 the land of Egypt, from the first-born of Pharaoh that sat on his 
 throne, unto the tirst-born of the captive that was in the dungeon ; and 
 all the first-born of cattle. And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, and 
 all his servants, and all the Egyptians ; and there was a great cry in 
 Egypt ; for there was not a house where there was not one dead. And 
 he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said. Rise up, and get 
 you forth from among my people, both ye and the children of Isi'ael ; 
 and go, serve the Lord, as ye have said. Also take your flocks and 
 your herds, as ye have said, and be gone ; and bless me also. And 
 the Egyptians were urgent upon the people, that they might send 
 them out of the land in haste; for they said, We be all dead men" 
 (ver. 29-33). 
 
 A general review of the signs and wonders wrought in the land of 
 Egypt, on the threshold of Israel's deliverance from the bondage of 
 Egypt, presses on us the lesson of the absolute sovereignty of God in 
 working above what we are in the habit of calling "Nature." The 
 purely miraculous element in God's dealings with Egypt lies on the 
 front of these plagues. It greatly weakens their force, if we regard 
 them as no more than the excess of some well-known phenomena.
 
 EXODUS XII. 33 
 
 While it is true that natural means were used, everywhere we are 
 forced to acknowledge the presence of an almighty power controlling 
 them and giving them bearings, which they could no more have attained 
 without this, than could the widow of Nain's only son have risen from 
 the bier, had not the life-giving touch and voice of the Lord of life 
 reached him. The rsjjUi of modern Egypt may have the power of 
 serpent-charming, and of making the Naja stand out rigid as a rod in 
 their hands; but to aver that it was by like legerdemain that the 
 magicians of old competed successfully with Moses and Aaron, up to a 
 certain point, can do no more than suggest to unbelievers the impres- 
 sion, that the leaders of Israel in their success showed themselves only 
 more skilful in this art than the magicians were. In this case it was 
 Jehovah against the false gods of Egypt — the spiritual wickednesses 
 who acted through the magicians. 
 
 To find a natural groundwork for the first plague, in the red mud 
 which at the period of its rise the Nile brings down with it, is as much 
 as to insinuate, that the water of the river was not as truly turned into 
 blood as the water at the marriage feast was into wine. Referring to 
 this association of the miracle with the rise of the Nile, Kurtz says, 
 " We feel obliged to reject it as inadmissible : — (1) It is at variance 
 with the time when the plague occurred ; for, unless we are entirely 
 mistaken, the plague happened at the beginning of February, whereas 
 the Nile does not turn red till July. (2) This phenomenon is only 
 conceivable at the period when the Nile overflows ; but there is not 
 the least indication of an overflowing in the whole of the narrative 
 before us ; on the contrary, there arc several things which lead us to 
 an opposite conclusion : for example, Pharaoh icalks to the hrinJc of the 
 river, and the Egyptians dig round about the river for water to drink. 
 (3) The fact that the water became putrid, was an indication of fermen- 
 tation and decomposition, and this again of stagnation. But overflowing 
 and stagnation exclude each other. (4) The effect of what Aaron did 
 was immediate, it extended at once to all the canals, and trenches, and 
 pools, which were connected with the Nile, and even to the water which 
 had previously been taken from the river and was put by in wooden 
 and earthen vessels to settle. (5) The ordinary redness does not render 
 the water unfit for use; on the contrary, it cannot be used until it turns 
 red, and this phenomenon has no injurious influence upon the fish in 
 the river. There is not a single instance on record, in which the water 
 Avas unfit for use when it was in this condition." AVhen interpreters 
 attempt to shed light on the second plague by telling us, that the 
 
 Vol. n. k
 
 34 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 banks of the Nile generally swarm with frogs ; or on the third and 
 fourth by quotations from Herodotus touching the teeming forms of 
 insect life in Egypt ; or on the fifth by informing us, that the cattle of 
 Egypt are peculiarly liable to murrain ; or on the sixth by adducing 
 proofs of the prevalence of cutaneous diseases at all times in the land, 
 and so with the rest, what has been gained ? The grandeur of the acts 
 has been toned down, and the majesty of Him who is mighty in working 
 has been kept in the back ground. The narrative of the plagues every- 
 where proclaims, that, while natural means were taken as a ground- 
 work, these were in such a condition as to make the result evidently 
 the fruit of direct miraculous power.
 
 EXODUS XIII.-XV. 
 
 EXODUS XIII.-XV. 
 
 ILL the date of the Exodus the Hebrew year began with 
 
 the new moon of October. The change to the new moon 
 
 of April was made in obedience to the direct command of 
 
 God (xii. 2). Moses repeats this: — " And Moses said unto 
 
 the people, Remember this day, in which ye came out from 
 
 Egypt, out of the house of bondage ; for by strength of hand 
 
 ^ .M,p the Lord brought you out from this place; there shall no 
 
 (S^7/ H leavened bread be eaten. This day came ye out, in the month 
 
 Abib " (ver. 3, 4). Abib means ' the month of the ears of corn," 
 
 for then the ears were ripe. On the sixteenth day of Abib ripe ears 
 
 were to be offered unto the Lord. The Jewish year came ultimately 
 
 to be divided as follows : — 
 
 1. Abib or Nisan, 
 
 
 
 April. 
 
 2. ZiforYiar, . 
 
 
 
 May. 
 
 3. Sivan, 
 
 
 
 June. 
 
 4. Tammuz, 
 
 
 
 July. 
 
 5. Ab, . . . 
 
 
 
 August. 
 
 6. Elul, . 
 
 
 
 September. 
 
 7. Ethanim or Tisri, . 
 
 
 
 October. 
 
 8. Bui or MarhhesLvan, 
 
 
 
 NoTember. 
 
 9. Chisleu, 
 
 
 
 December. 
 
 10. Tebetb, 
 
 
 
 January. 
 
 11. Sebat, 
 
 
 
 February. 
 
 12. Adar, 
 
 
 
 March. 
 
 13. Veadar, 
 
 
 
 
 Veadar, or the second Adar, was the intercalated month which, 
 usually every third year, was introduced to keep the periods fixed for 
 the great festivals undisturbed. The lunar month varied between 
 twenty-nine and thirty days, and at certain periods it was discovered 
 that the grain would not be ready for the time of the first-fruits, 
 reckoned by the solar year. In such circumstances a thirteenth month 
 was added, and a due adjustment thus made. In verse 5 the outstanding 
 characteristics of the land promised to the fathers is described ; it was 
 a laud flowing with milk and honey. The latter product is noticed 
 under 2 Kings xviii. 32 — which see.
 
 30 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 For good reasons the Israelites were not permitted to take tlie 
 shortest route from Egypt to Palestine. " And it came to pass, when 
 Pharaoh had let the people go, that God led them not through the 
 way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near ; for God 
 said. Lest peradventure the people repent when they sec war, and they 
 return to Egypt. But God led the people about, through the way of 
 the wilderness of the Red Sea. And the children of Israel went up 
 harnessed out of the land of Egypt" (ver. 17, 18). Had they taken 
 the direct road, they would have struck off to the north-east, journeyed 
 at some distance from the eastern shores of the Great Sea, and reached 
 the promised laud in a comparatively short time. Instead of this, they 
 are made to take the widely circuitous route by the Red Sea and the 
 great Arabian Desert. One reason for this detour is named here. The 
 Philistines were a warlike people, and Israel would not have been able 
 to stand before them. Yet they were to be the instruments by whom 
 Philistia was to be depopulated. Other reasons will be found in the 
 moral and spiritual discipline of the people, in the giving of the law at 
 Sinai, and in the terrible overthrow of the hosts of Egypt at the Red 
 Sea. The expression "harnessed" must not be pressed beyond the 
 general meaning which here belongs to it. Dr. Colenso finds, in the 
 statement that 600,000 men went armed out of Egypt, another insu- 
 perable obstacle to his belief in the historical character of the Penta- 
 teuch. " If," he says, " the historical veracity of this part of the 
 Pentateuch is to be maintained, we must believe that 000,000 armed 
 men (though it is inconceivable how they obtained their arms) had, by 
 reason of their long servitude, become so debased and inhuman in their 
 cowardice (and yet they fought bravely enough with Amalek a month 
 after), that they could not strike a single blow for their wives and 
 children, if not for their own lives and liberties, but could weakly Avail, 
 and murmur against Moses, saying, " It had been better for us to serve 
 the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness," Exod, xiv. 12. 
 
 Looking at the matter from this author's point of view, there are 
 many things in the relation of varieties of the human race to each other 
 quite as strange as this. For example. Dr. Colenso informs us in his 
 " Ten Weeks' Tour," that the number of Zulus and other Kafirs in 
 Natal is estimated at 100,000. But the whites are not more than GOOO. 
 Looking at Kafir hatred of whites it is wonderful that the 100,000 do 
 not murder them all in a night. A thousand illustrations might be 
 gathered from history to show how long tribes equally powerful as 
 their oppressors, have continued patient under ill treatment when they
 
 EXODUS XIH.-SV. 
 
 37 
 
 might have, by united effort, made themselves masters of the situation. 
 Only when they found a competent leader were force and purpose given 
 to their feelings. Thus had it been with Israel. Only now had a leader 
 equal to the time been raised up, and every believing reader of the Bible 
 acknowledges that this was according to the will of God. The prophecy 
 touching the time had gone before (Gen. xv, 13), and they must wait 
 till its fulness came. But even at that time they were not in circum- 
 stances to cope with the warrior hosts of Egypt. The visitation of the 
 ten plagues proceeds on this condition of matters. As to the possession 
 of arms, there is nothing in the account of the work which Pharaoh 
 laid on Israel, which demands that they should have been destitute of 
 all weapons of offence. On the contrary, the geographical position of 
 Goshen was such as would make them prize such weapons. That they 
 possessed them is virtually implied in chapter i. 10, and vii. 4. 
 
 The second resting-place of the hosts of Israel after the passage of 
 the Red Sea was Elim. This locality is again mentioned in chap, xvi., 
 Num. xxxiii. 9, 10, with reference to the same circumstances as those 
 named here. The site of Elim is the modern ]Va(hj Ghmmndel, a 
 valley formed by outliers of the chain of mountains known as the 
 Jehel er-Baliah, running in a southerly direction between the desert 
 proper and the sea. The wady stretches from the western slopes of 
 this range in a south-west direction to the sea also. Here were 
 twelve fountains of water and three score and ten palm-trees (xv. 27). 
 " A better place for an encampment could not be found in all this 
 desert plain than Wady Ghurundel, and I can scarcely tliink the 
 weary host would have passed such an inviting spot. This then 
 may safely be identified with Elim. The whole desert is almost 
 absolutely bare and barren, but Wady Ghurundel is fringed with 
 trees and shrubs, forming a charming oasis." — (Porter.) Wady 
 Ghurundel is noted still for its fountains or springs and palm- 
 trees. Acacias and tarfa-trees also abound. " The palms," says Dr. 
 Stanley — " not the graceful trees of Egypt, but the hardly less pic- 
 turesque wild palms of uncultivated regions, with their dwarf trunks 
 and shaggy branches — vindicate by their appearance the title of being 
 emphatically the 'trees' of the desert; and therefore, whether in the 
 cluster of the seventy palm-trees of the second station of the wander- 
 ings, or in the grove which still exists at the head of the Gulf of 
 Akaba, were kno^Yn by the generic name of Elim, Elath, or Elotli, — 
 'the trees.'" 
 
 The palm-tree, Hebrew tdmiir, referred to here is the well known
 
 38 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE, 
 
 date palm, Phoenix dactjjlifera, of botanists. It belongs to the Palmce, 
 or palm order, a greatly prized and celebrated family of monocotyle- 
 donous plants. See under Rev. vii. 9. 
 
 The stem of the date grows, when fully developed, to the height of 
 above sixty feet, and stands prominently out in its native climes, noted 
 above other trees for usefulness and great beauty. The geographical 
 zone of the date-tree has for its north boundary parallel 34° N.L., and 
 for its south boundary parallel 15' N.L. In certain localities, however. 
 
 Fig. ». 
 
 Palm-trees (Phanix daetylifara). 
 
 in which phj'sical features modify temperature, it bears fruit beyond 
 these. The wood of the date-tree, like that of the endogens or inside 
 growers generally, is soft and easily destroyed internally. On the 
 outside it is comparatively hard and compact. The foliage falls off as 
 the stem increases in height, leaving deep scars on the bark. When the 
 tree is full grown the fronds hang in terminal fan-shaped clusters from 
 the top. The Israelites would be well acquainted with the date-tree in 
 Egypt, where it was and still is highly prized. When they stood by 
 these palm-trees on the edge of the wilderness, the remembrance of
 
 EXODUS XV. 
 
 39 
 
 their delivery would quicken their gratitude, and the sight of the much- 
 prized tree would encourage them to go forward — 
 
 " Then, soft as Elim's well 
 The precious tears of new-born freedom fell. 
 And he whose harden'd heart alike had borne 
 The house of bondage and the oppressor's scorn, 
 The stubborn slave, by hope's new beams subdued, 
 In faltering accents sobb'd his gratitude."— //eier. 
 
 The generic name Phjenix, it is alleged, has been given to several of 
 the Pahnce from the fact, that when an aged palm dies, there often 
 spring from its roots three or four young ones. The position of the 
 palms near the twelve wells at Elim indicates a well known feature of 
 their growth. " The palm," says Sir G. Wilkinson, " was another 
 important gift bestowed on them; it flourished spontaneously in the valley 
 of the Nile, and, if it was unable to grow in the sands of the arid desert, 
 yet wherever water sufficed for its nourishment, this useful tree produced 
 an abundance of dates, a wholesome and nutritious fruit, which might 
 be regarded as an universal benefit, being within the reach of all classes 
 of people, and neither requiring expense in the cultivation, nor inter- 
 fering with tlie time demanded for other agricultural occupations." 
 When the eyes of the pilgrim hosts who left Egypt at the bidding of 
 the Lord, beheld the cluster of palm-trees rising before them at Elim, 
 they would at once conclude that there were " springs" there likewise.
 
 40 
 
 HIDLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 EXODUS XVI. 
 
 'AVING left Elim, the children of lyracl came Into the wilder- 
 ness of Sin, Avliich is between Elim and Sinai (ver. 1). An 
 account of their murmuring follows, the miracle of the manna 
 is described, and the command to collect it is given. "Take 
 ye every man for them which are in his tents" (ver. IG). The 
 difficulty held by some (Colenso, »S:c.) to be in this statement 
 is hardly worthy of notice. To read the words in the light of 
 modern ideas of a tent is unfair. A very different shelter goes 
 by the name in eastern lands still. A light pole and a few yards 
 of canvass yield sleeping room for large families. Any objection urged 
 on the score of the unlikelihood of their having such tents Avhen called 
 to leave Egypt, proceeds on the belief that no preparations had been 
 made for that event. But the whole drift of the narrative of the Exodus 
 contradicts this. Moreover, any kind of shelter which, at this period, 
 the situation might afford would be reckoned as a tent. This indeed 
 appears to be hinted at in Lev. xxiii. 43, 45. " Quails," ver. 13 — see 
 under Numb. xi. 31. The appearance of the "angel's food" is 
 described — "The manna was like coriander-seed" (ver. 31). "Cori- 
 ander," Hebrew ^«f?, is mentioned only in this place and in Numb. xi. 7, 
 where the same transaction is described. The plant referred to is garden 
 coriander [Coriandruvi sativum), one of the umbelliferous family. Its 
 seeds have always been extensively used as a condiment in the East. 
 It grows luxuriantly in the south of Europe, and is cultivated for the 
 sake of its seeds in Britain also. The reference to it here sliows that 
 the Israelites were well acquainted with it. The supply lasted till they 
 reached the promised land : " They did eat manna until they came unto the 
 borders of the land of Canaan" (ver. 31). This statement Dr. Colenso, 
 evidently much against his will, allows to pass without severe comment, 
 but, like Joab with Abner, he smiles on it only because he is conscious 
 of a concealed power to deal a deadly blow. Somehow the whole narra- 
 tive of the support of Israel continues to be credited by the universal 
 church, after gainsayers have shown, to their own satisfaction, that the 
 thing was impossible; and even after this author's onslaught, and in the 
 full knowledge of it, men's confidence in the narrative is not shaken.
 
 EXODUS XVI. 
 
 41 
 
 " The people," says the Bishop, " we are told, were supplied with 
 manna. But there was no miraculous provision of food for the herds 
 and flocks. They were left to gather sustenance as they could, in that 
 inhospitable wilderness," p. 05. What information have we as to the 
 sheep and oxen possessed by the Israelites in the desert ? When they 
 
 Fig. :o. 
 
 Coriander {Coriandrum sativum). 
 
 left Egypt they had "flocks, and herds, even very much cattle" 
 (chap. xii. 38). Under this expression it is held that at least 2,000,000 
 sheep and oxen are included. But we have seen, under chap, xii., that 
 this estimate is not made on good grounds. The words " verv much 
 cattle" do not warrant such an exaggerated estimate. Jacob, even 
 when still serving Laban, is said to have had "much cattle;" but we 
 never imagine the expression implies immense herds. It is doubtful if 
 
 VOL. II. p
 
 42 BIBLICAL NATUILVL SCIENCE. 
 
 in his case we are warranted to reckon them by hundreds. If in the 
 case under notice Ave count by thousands, we will be much nearer tlie 
 truth than the bishop is, who pleads for hundreds of tliousands. In 
 Numb. xi. the lusting of the people for flesh is described. " Israel 
 wept again, and said. Who shall give us flesh to eat?" (ver. 4.) Moses 
 asks, "Whence should I have flesh to give unto all this people?" 
 (ver. 13). And again, "The people, among whom I am, are six hundred 
 thousand footmen ; and thou hast said, I will give them flesh, that they 
 may eat a whole month. Shall the flocks and the herds be slain for 
 them, to suffice them? or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered 
 together for them, to suflice them ? And the Lord said unto Moses, Is 
 the Lord's hand waxed short ? thou shalt see now whether my word 
 shall come to pass unto thee or not" (ver. 21, 22). This happened 
 in the second year of the Exodus. Why does Moses refer to the 
 600,000 warriors ? Is it not that he might show, that all the flocks and 
 herds then in the wilderness would have been insufficient to feed them 
 even for a short period, when they lusted for the flcsli ? And does not 
 the answer of the Lord imply the same thing, in addition to the declara- 
 tion, that as his power had been miraculously shown in Egypt, in the 
 Exodus, and the passage at the Red Sea, it would continue to be so in 
 the desert wanderings? But Dr. Colenso is a nmch better judge of 
 what Moses meant than Moses himself was ! It is quite clear from the 
 inspired account of Israel's life in the wilderness, that the chief suste- 
 nance of the people was to be manna. " And thou shalt remember all 
 the way which the Lord thy God led thee these forty years in the 
 wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in 
 thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no. 
 And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with 
 manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know ; that he 
 might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by 
 every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man 
 live" (Deut. viii. 2, 3). The flocks and herds appear chiefly to have 
 been associated with the religious life of the people ; the manna was of 
 a nature to provide for all the requirements of the body, and would be 
 fitted to nourish both blood, and bone, and muscle. 
 
 Looking then at the wilderness provision of food for the flocks and 
 herds, the herbage might be amply sufficient for them without miracu- 
 lous interference. Miracle is not, however, to be banished from this 
 aspect of wilderness life, merely because it is not directly stated, or 
 because the acknowledgment of it would off"end the philosophy of Dr.
 
 EXODUS xvr. 
 
 Colenso. It is quite within the range of possibihty, that the wilderness 
 should have been as waste and howling when Israel wandered in it, as 
 it is now, and, yet, that near the encampments of the people rich pasture 
 grounds may have existed at that time which are not met with now. 
 No traveller in the Arabian Desert scruples to describe it as waste, 
 howling, awful in its solitude, grand in its very desolation, nothing but 
 dreariness and death, and the like, because he finds here and there 
 spots of rich verdure. 
 
 If we read Dr. Stanley's description of the desert in the light of these 
 remarks, we can at once see how, even without a miracle, the flocks and 
 herds of Israel could be sustained. " How far," he asks, " can we be 
 sure that we have the same outlines, and colours, and forms, that were 
 presented to those who wandered through these mountains and valleys 
 three thousand years ago? It might at first sight seem, that in this, 
 as in other respects, the interest of the Desert of Sinai would be unique; 
 that here, more than in any other great stage of historical events, the 
 outward scene must remain precisely as it was ; that the convent of 
 Justinian with its gardens, the ruins of Paran, with the remains of 
 hermits' cells long since desolate, are the only alterations which human 
 hands have introduced into these wild solitudes. Even the Egyptian 
 monuments and sculptures which are carved out of the sandstone are 
 already there, as the Israelites passed by — memorials at once of their 
 servitude and of their deliverance, 
 
 " But a difficulty has often been stated that renders it necessary 
 somewhat to modify this assumption of absolute identity between the 
 ancient and modern desert. The question is asked — ' How could a 
 tribe so numerous and powerful as, on any hypothesis, the Israelites 
 must have been, be maintained in this inhospitable desert?' It is no 
 answer to say that they were sustained by miracles : for except the 
 manna, the quails, and the three interventions in regard to water, none 
 such are mentioned in the Mosaic history ; and if we have no warrant 
 to take away, we have no warrant to add. Nor is it any answer to say 
 that this difficulty is a proof of the impossibility, and therefore of the 
 unhistorical character, of the narrative. For, as Ewald has well shown, 
 the general truth of the wanderings in the wilderness is an essential 
 preliminary to the whole of the subsequent history of Israel. Much 
 may be allowed for the spread of the tribes of Israel far and wide 
 through the whole peninsula, and also for the constant means of 
 support from their own flocks and herds. Something, too, might be 
 elicited from the undoubted fact, that a population nearly, if not quite
 
 44 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 equal, to the whole permanent population of the peninsula does actually 
 pass through the desert, in the caravan of the five thousand African 
 pilgrims on their way to ]\Iecca. But amongst these considerations, 
 it is important to observe what indications there may be of the moun- 
 tains of Sinai having been able to furnish greater resources than at 
 present. These indications are well summed up by Ritter. There is 
 no doubt that the vegetation of tlie wadys has considerably decreased. 
 In part, this would be an inevitable effect of the violence of the winter 
 torrents. The trunks of palm-trees washed up on the shore of the 
 Dead Sea, from which the living tree has now for many centuries 
 disappeared, show what may liave been the devastation produced 
 amongst those mountains, where the floods, especially in earlier times, 
 must have been violent to a degree unknown in Palestine ; whilst the 
 peculiar cause — the impregnation of salt — which has preserved the 
 vestiges of the older vegetation there, has here of course no existence. 
 The traces of such a destruction were pointed out to Burckhardt on the 
 eastern side of Mount Sinai, as having occurred within half a century 
 before his visit; also to Wellsted, as having occurred near Tur, in 1832. 
 In part, the same result has followed from the reckless waste of the 
 Bedouin tribes — reckless in destroying, and careless in replenishing. 
 A fire, a pipe, lit under a grove of desert trees, may clear away the 
 vegetation of a whole valley. 
 
 " The acacia trees have been of late years ruthlessly destroyed by 
 the Bedouins for the sake of charcoal ; especially since they have been 
 compelled by the pasha of Egypt to pay a tribute in charcoal for an 
 assault committed on the Mecca caravan in the year 1823. Charcoal 
 from the acacia is, in fact, the chief, perhaps it might be said the only, 
 traffic of the peninsula. Camels are constantly met, loaded with this 
 wood, on the way between Cairo and Suez. And as this probably has 
 been carried on in great degree by the monks of the convent, it may 
 account for the fact, that whereas in the valleys of the western and the 
 eastern clusters this tree abounds more or less, yet in the central cluster 
 itself, to which modern tradition certainly, and geographical considera- 
 tions probably, point as the mountain of the burning "thorn," and 
 the scene of the building of the ark and all the utensils of the taber- 
 nacle from this very wood, there is now not a single acacia to be seen. 
 If this be so, the greater abundance of vegetation would, as is well 
 known, have furnished a greater abundance of water, and this again 
 would re-act on the vegetation, from which the means of subsistence 
 would be procured. How much may be done by a careful use of such
 
 EXODUS XVI. 
 
 45 
 
 water and such soil as the desert supplies, may be seen by the only two 
 spots to which, now, a diligent and provident attention is paid ; namely, 
 the gardens at the wells of Moses, under the care of the French and 
 English agents from Suez, and the gardens in the valleys of Jebel I\Iusa, 
 under the care of the Greek monks of the convent of St. Catherine. 
 Even as late as the seventeenth century, if we may trust the expression 
 of Monconys, the wady er-Rahah in front of the convent, now entirely 
 bare, was ' a vast green plain ' — ' une grande champagne verte.' And 
 that there was in ancient times a greater population than at present, 
 which would, again, by thus furnishing heads and hands to consider 
 and to cultivate these spots of vegetation, tend to increase and to 
 preserve them — may be inferred from several indications. The Amalek- 
 ites, who contested the passage of the desert with Israel, were — if we 
 may draw any inferences from this very fact, as well as from their 
 wide-spread name and power even to the time of Saul and David, and 
 from the allusion to them in Balaam's prophecy as ' the first of the 
 nations ' — something more than a mere handful of Bedouins. The 
 Egyptian copper-mines, and monuments, and hieroglyphics, in Surabit 
 el-Kahadim and the wady Mughareh, imply a degree of intercourse 
 between Egypt and the peninsula in the earliest days of Egypt, of 
 which all other traces have long ceased. The ruined cities of Edom in 
 the mountains east of the Arabah, and the remains and history of Petra 
 itself, indicate a traffic and a population in these remote regions which 
 now seems to us almost inconceivable."
 
 46 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENX'E. 
 
 EXODUS XIX.-XXIV. 
 
 N the third month, wlien the chikh-en of Israel were gone fortli 
 out of the land of Egypt, the same day came they into the 
 wilderness of Sinai" (ver. 1). The Lord called up Moses 
 into the mountain, and gave him a message to the people. 
 The beautiful figure in verse 4 forms part of this — " Tell the 
 children of Israel ; Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyp- 
 tians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto 
 myself." The same figure is more fully brought out in Deut. xxxii. 11, 
 12 — " As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, 
 sprcadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings • 
 so the Lord alone did lead him, and there was no strange god with 
 him." It has been customary to explain this by saying, that Moses 
 simply makes use of a popular impression without any regard to its 
 scientific truthfulness. This may have been the case, just as it is common 
 among ourselves to speak of certain natural phenomena in ways which 
 strictly speaking they do not warrant, such as the moving of the sun 
 round the earth, the falling down of dew, and the like. The mode, 
 however, in which Moses uses the figure in Deuteronomy, would lead 
 one to look for the illustration of his words in the natural habits of the 
 eagle. His long sojourn in the wild regions around the mount of God, 
 must have made him familiar with the habits of several of the larger 
 birds of prey. A friend, an accurate observer, has informed me, that he 
 once witnessed the eagle, in one of the deep gorges of the Himalayas, 
 thus teaching its young to fly. While with his glass he watched several 
 young ones on a ledge of rock at a great height, the parent birds swept 
 gently past the young, one of which ventured to follow, and seemed as 
 if unequal to the flight. As it gently sunk down with extended wings, 
 one of the parent birds glided underneath it, and bore it aloft again. 
 Other birds have recourse to similar arts to support their young. The 
 swan may often be seen sailing along with her cygnets on her back. 
 So, likewise, with the wild duck. The observer will be amply rewarded 
 for his patience in watching, if he once witnesses the arts brought to 
 bear on the young by the parent bird, to prevail on them to rest on 
 her as she glides from place to place. The other aspects of habit
 
 EXODUS XIX.-XXIV. 4.7 
 
 noticed here have often been observed. " It is not necessary," says a 
 recent traveller, writing in view of a deep chasm in the Lebanon range, 
 " to press every poetical figure into strict prosaic accuracy. The 
 notion, however, appears to have been prevalent among the ancients, 
 that the eagle did actually take up her yet timid young, and carry 
 them forth to teach them how, and embolden them to try their own 
 pinions. To this idea Moses seems to refer in Exodus xix. 4 : 'Ye 
 have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bore you on 
 eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself.' The fact is not 
 impossible : the eagle is strong enough to do it, but I am not aware 
 that such a thing has ever been witnessed. I myself, however, have 
 seen the old eagle fly round and round the nest, and back and forth 
 past it, while the young ones fluttered and shivered on the edge, as if 
 eager but afraid to launch forth from the giddy precipice. And no 
 wonder, for the nest ' is on high,' and a fall from thence would end 
 their flight for ever." Almost all kinds of birds try this " fluttering, 
 and spreading abroad of their wings," to entice their young to leave 
 their nest. Goldsmith has made fine use of the fact in his sketch of 
 the village pastor : — 
 
 " But in his duty, prompt at every c;ill 
 He watcli'd and wept, he pray'd and ft-It, for all : 
 And, as a bird each fond endearment tries 
 To tempt its new-fledged offspring to tlie skies, 
 lie tried each art, reprov'd each dull delay, 
 Allur'd to brighter worlds, and led the way." 
 
 " The eagle," Heb. nesher, is the golden eagle ; see under Leviticus 
 xi. 13. 
 
 " Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness 
 of any thing that is in lieaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or 
 that is in tlie water under the earth : Thou shalt not bow down thyself 
 to them, nor serve them : for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, 
 visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and 
 fourth generation of them that hate me" (xx. 4, 5). The precept strikes 
 at the root of all idolatry. The expression " any thing that is in heaven 
 above," is not to be limited to imaginary images of angels. This is no 
 doubt included in it, but it is susceptible of an application much more 
 purely Egyptian likewise. In early Egyptian astrology each planet 
 had an animal consecrated to it, which was esteemed sacred by the people, 
 and had divine homage paid to it. A blow is also struck at other gross 
 forms of animal worship in the words " earth beneath, and waters under
 
 48 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 the earth." A multitude of beasts, Lirds, and fishes were esteemed 
 sacred by the Egyptians. Some of these were worshipped from dread ; 
 most of them were so because of real or imaginary benefits they were 
 held to bestow on man. But " the Bible denies that this gives man a 
 right to declare them as Divine beings ; to assign whole provinces for 
 their sustenance ; to offer to them voluntary gifts in gold and silver ; 
 to collect alms for them ; to bathe and to anoint them ; to cover them 
 with rich garments, and to place them on luxurious cushions; to erect 
 
 Golden Eiit;le (Aqiiila chr'/metos). 
 
 for them magnificent temples, and to scent the air which they inhale 
 with the most costly perfumes ; to bewail their death more than that 
 of a man ; to punish those who kill them as impious murderers, and to 
 visit even their undesigned destruction ; to embalm their bodies, and to 
 entomb them in beautiful sarcophagi with lavisli expense. The beasts 
 are, according to the ]\Iosaic doctrine, beings that owe the breath of 
 their life to the omnipotence of God ; to Him they are indebted for all
 
 EXODUS XlX.-XXiV. 49 
 
 tlieir instincts ; and, if these serve the use and advantage of man, they 
 fulfil merely their natural destiny ; and the honour belongs to Him 
 alone who has endowed them with those wonderful powers." 
 
 See for notice of chap. xxii. 6, under 2 Kings xix. 2G. Chap, xxiii. 
 is devoted to questions bearing upon the attitude of the people to one 
 another, to the three great feasts, and to the promise of help in driving 
 out the doomed people of Canaan from the promised laud. In verses 
 27-30 it is said — " I will send my fear before thee, and will destroy all 
 the people to whom thou shalt come ; and I will make all thine enemies 
 turn their backs uuto thee. And I will send hornets before thee, which 
 shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before 
 thee. I will not drive them out from before thee in one year ; lest the 
 land become desolate, and the beast of the field multiply against thee. 
 By little aud little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be 
 increased and inherit the land." The words "my fear" are evidently 
 very general. That they are to be regarded as equivalent to " hornet," 
 is not so clear as some have thought. They seem rather to include 
 natural agencies of any sort, which would foil as a scourge on the 
 people to be expelled from the land. One such agent was found in the 
 hornet. There is no reason for taking this word as used metaphorically 
 to express the curse of God which was to fall on the natives of Canaan. 
 Examples are not awanting of the tremendous influence for evil of 
 swarms of hornets. They may be regarded as having been actually 
 sent on the Canaanites. Thus in the closing address of the Lord to 
 the people by Joshua, it is said — " And I sent the hornet before you, 
 which drave them out from before you, even the two kings of the 
 Amorites ; but not with thy sword, nor with thy bow" (Josh. xxiv. 12). 
 
 "Hornet," Heb. tzireah, is the Vespa crahro of entomologists, one of 
 the Vesjndce, or wasp family of insects. It is much larger than the 
 common wasp, is of a dark brown colour, very active and fierce. Its 
 sting is very severe and often deadly. It still abounds in Palestine. 
 " The arms with which they annoy are two darts finer than a hair, 
 furnished on the outer side at the end with several barbs not visible to 
 the naked eye, and each moving in the groove of a strong and often 
 curved sheath, frequently mistaken for the sting, which, when the darts 
 enter the flesh, usually injects a drop of subtile venom, furnished from 
 a peculiar vessel in which it is secreted, into the wound." 
 
 Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, 
 went up into the Mount to meet with God — "And they saw the God 
 of Israel : and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a
 
 50 
 
 BIBLICAL NATUliAL SCIENCE. 
 
 sapphire-stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness" 
 (xxiv. 10). 
 
 "Sapphire," Hob. sappir. This word occurs ten times in the Old 
 and once in the New Testament. Tlie sapphire is a variety of corun- 
 dite, a precious stone composed almost entirely of alumina. Corundites 
 are of different colours, as grey, brown, red, and blue. The well-known 
 emery, used in polishing stones, cutting glass, &c., has the grey colour 
 predominating. When brown prevails, we have the, so-called, ada- 
 mantine spar. Red yields the oriental ruby, and blue the sapphire. 
 Alumina and silex, or rock-crystal, form the basis of nearly all precious 
 stones. The tones of corundites depend on the proportion of oxide 
 of iron and of silex they contain. Thus, while the noble corundite. 
 
 Fig. 12. 
 
 Group of Bock-ci7Stal. 
 
 sapphire, contains alumina 98'5, oxide of iron I'O, lime 0'5, the common 
 corundite, emery, contains alumina 8G"0, silica 3'0, oxide of iron 4"0. 
 The colour of the sapphire is a clear beautiful blue. Its hue varies 
 from the most delicate azure to the bright indigo blue. Very valuable 
 specimens have been obtained which are blue by day and assume a 
 beautiful violet colour under artificial light. The sapphire is chiefly 
 found in India and Ceylon. This accounts for the comparative fami- 
 liarity of the Hebrews with it. They would obtain it, in the earliest 
 period of their history, from the merchants who traded with India 
 by the way of Arabia, and, in later times, it would be brought by the 
 ships of Tarshish which traded between Ezion-geber and the southern 
 shores of Asia.
 
 EXODUS XIX.-XXIV. 
 
 61 
 
 In this passage the delicate blue of the sapphire stands specially out 
 in the description of the wonderful scene on the IMount. Thus the 
 reference to " the body of heaven" — the clear blue sky with whose hue 
 they were well acquainted. This colour had been specially before them 
 as they looked up both in the day-time and at night. In almost every 
 scientific characterization of this precious stone, the hue of the perfect 
 sapphire is set down as soft, rich, velvety. The aspects of " the body 
 of heaven" in the Desert are described in nearly the same words: — 
 " Every few minutes varied the scene — the clouds altered as the sun 
 got low, and put on a darker tinge ; the sky took on a silky softness 
 richer than anytliiiig we had seen at home ; the ridges of the hills came 
 sharply out, with all their dark ravines ; till at length the sun went 
 down behind Atakah, and the reflection of the last rays went and came, 
 with a dull purple brightness, quivering for miles over the still face of 
 the passive blue." Again — " I never saw anything so vividly, yet so 
 mildly brilliant, as moonlight on the yellow sands of Arabia. There 
 were just three great breadths or masses of colour — the sky, the moon- 
 shine, and the sand, without anything of intermediate or contrasting 
 hue to mar the effect of these — no rock, no tree, no patch of dark soil. 
 These three — the blue, the yellow, and the white — had the whole scene 
 to themselves, without a rival above, or beneath, or around. Their 
 unbroken fusion into each other seemed to throw out a sort of inter- 
 mediate brightness, belonging to all, yet distinct from each, and to 
 produce an atmosphere of the softest and most mellow splendour I had 
 ever seen. The blue was softer yet darker than usual, the white was 
 moi"e intense, the yellow purer yet more vivid in its tinge, while, apart 
 from these, there was a restless lustre filling the whole air, as if, in the 
 braiding of these colours into one, their various threads were giving 
 out their peculiar glow, which, as the big clouds hurried across, alter- 
 nately lost and regained its richness." — (Bonar.) Scripture references 
 to the sapphire are considered under Lamentation iv. 7, which see.
 
 62 
 
 UIULICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 EXODUS XXV. 
 
 [FAT material niiglit be supplied for making tlie labcrnaclo, 
 tlie pattern of which was given by Goil himself, Moses, 
 luring the forty Jays and forty nights that he was with 
 Gotl in the Mount, received instructions to appeal to the 
 liberality of the people — " Speak unto the children of Israel, 
 (^ that they may bring me an offering ; of every man that giveth 
 Yf^ it willingly with his heart ye shall take my offering" (ver. 2). 
 The articles named were "gold, and silver, and brass, and blue, 
 and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and goats' liair, and rams' 
 skins dyed red, and l)adgers' skins, and shittim-wood, oil for the light, 
 spices for anointing oil, and for sweet incense, onyx-stones, and stones 
 to be set in the ephod, and in the breast-plate" (ver. 3-7). 
 
 "Scarlet" (Heb. tdlaafh shfnii), litervally "scarlet worms." This 
 colour is first mentioned in Genesis xxxviii. 28, where we have the 
 account of the midwife's device for settling the priority of birth in the 
 twin sons of Tamar. She tied a scarlet thread {shdni) on the hand of 
 the infant Zarah. The passages in which sliuni stands alone will be 
 noticed under Joshua ii. 18, which sec. The form of expression used 
 here occurs in this book more than twenty times; see chapters xxvi. 1, 
 31, 3G ; xxviii. 5, 6, 8, 15, 33 ; xxxv. G, 23, 25, 35 ; xxxvi. 8, 35, 37 ; 
 xxxviii. 18, 23; xxxix. 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 24, 29. In Leviticus xiv. it is 
 chiefly associated with cedar wood and hyssop, the term denoting colour 
 taking precedence {shdni tdlaafh), instead of as above. So likewise in 
 Num. xix. 6. There are several passages in which the word is ren- 
 dered " ivorm." From these we learn that the Hebrews, even from 
 the earliest times of their history, were aware of the source whence 
 this dye was obtained. Thus a caterpillar destructive to the vines is 
 pointed to under this name, Deut. xxviii. 39 — " Thou slialt plant vine- 
 yards, and dress them, but shalt neither drink of the wine, nor gather 
 the grapes, for the worms shall eat them." In Job xxv. G; Ps. xxii. G; 
 Isa. xiv. 11, xli. 11, Ixvi. 24; and Jonah iv. 7 — it is translated worm. 
 
 Scarlet is produced by two of the scale insects {Coccinidcc) — namely, 
 the oak bug {Coccus ilicis) of the scarlet-bearing oak {Ilex coccifera), a 
 shrub indigenous in the south of Europe and in Syria, and the cactus
 
 EXODUS XXV 53 
 
 bug (C. cadi), or well-known cochineal insect, a native of Mexico, but 
 now abundant in other countries. The cochineal was brought to 
 Europe for the first time in 152G. The former insect supplied the 
 scarlet of Scripture ; the latter has now almost wholly superseded it. 
 Not fewer than 70,000 insects are required to make one lb. weight 
 of the scarlet dye, yet the consumption in Britain alone is nearly 
 200,000 lbs. The females, which are wingless, yield the dye. The 
 males are provided with wings. The females fix their beaks on the 
 tender branches and stems of the plant, and become perfectly motion- 
 less. There their eggs arc deposited, and underneath their bodies they 
 secrete a woolly matter, which covers the eggs and often the dead 
 bodies of the females themselves. These secretions assume the shape 
 and appearance of nut-galls. This circumstance, and the form of the 
 female before depositing her eggs, led Reaumur to group these insects 
 under the name Gallinsecta. The females produce several generations 
 annually. These are removed from the stems and branches by means 
 of a knife, killed by being dropped into hot water, from which they are 
 quickly removed, and then dried in the sun, when they are ready for 
 use. The gum known as shell-lac is obtained fi-om an Indian species 
 of scale insect (Coccus lacca). 
 
 The varied uses to which scarlet was applied are noticed in Exod. 
 xxxix. 29, Lev. xiv., and Heb. ix. 19. One of the coverings put over 
 the table of shew-bread is described as " a cloth of scarlet." The 
 singular masculine {tola) is rendered crimson in Isa. i. 18, and shdni 
 is translated by the same word in Jer. iv. 30. The proper term for 
 crimson hl-nrmfil, the use of which is limited to 2 Chron. ii. 7, 14; 
 iii. 14. This word is interchangeable with those rendered scarlet. 
 The Arabic name for the scarlet-producing coccus is kervies, whence 
 harmozijn from which our word crimson is derived. 
 
 " Fine linen," see under Gen. xli. 42 ; " goats' hair," ch. xxxv. 2G ; 
 "badgers' skins," xxxv. 7; " onxy -stones," Gen. ii. 12; "branches" 
 (ver. 31), under Isa. xix. 0. 
 
 The bowls of the golden candlestick were to be shaped after the 
 form of the almond, shlharl or almond-like (ver. 33). The word for 
 the almond tree and its fruit is shalril, which is equivalent to the 
 common almond, Amygdalus communis of botanists. See under Eccles. 
 xii. 5, and Jer. i. 11. The term used here occurs only in Exodus, and 
 is limited to the description of the " candlestick of pure gold" (ver. 34; 
 xxxvii. 19, 20).
 
 54 BIBLICAL NATUKAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Hi 
 
 EXODUS XXVIII. 
 
 N the description of the dress of the iiigh priest, the precious 
 stones borne on the shoulders, and those set in the breastplate, 
 are specially noticed. The former are associated with the 
 ephod, a kind of tunic consisting of two parts. One part 
 covered the back, and the other the breast of the priest. It 
 was originally used only by the high priest, but afterwards 
 came to be worn by all priests. The ephod, however, with the precious 
 stones continued to be worn by the high priest alone. " And they 
 shall make the ephod of gold, of blue, and of purple, of scarlet, and 
 fine twined linen, with cunning work. It shall have the two shoulder- 
 pieces thereof joined at the two edges thereof; and so it shall be 
 joined together. And the curious girdle of the ephod, which is upon 
 it, shall be of the same, according to the work thereof; even of gold, 
 of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen. And thou shalt 
 take two onyx-stones, and grave on them the names of the children of 
 Israel : six of their names on one stone, and the other six names of the 
 rest on the other stone, according to their birth. With the work of an 
 engraver in stone, like the engravings of a signet, shalt thou engrave 
 the two stones with the names of the children of Israel : thou shalt 
 make them to be set in ouches of gold. And thou shalt put the two 
 stones upon the shoulders of the ephod, for stones of memorial unto the 
 children of Israel ; and Aaron shall bear their names before the Lord, 
 upon his two shoulders, for a memorial " (ver. G-12). The two parts 
 of the ephod were clasped at the shoulder by two large onyx-stones, 
 and were brought together at the waist by the " curious girdle." 
 " Onyx-stone," see under Gen. ii. 12. On the ephod was placed the 
 breastplate of judgment — " And thou shalt make the breastplate of 
 judgment with cunning work ; after the work of the ephod thou shalt 
 make it : of gold, of blue, and of purple, and of scarlet, and of fine 
 twined linen, thou shalt make it. Four-square it shall be, being- 
 doubled ; a span shall be the length thereof, and a span shall be the 
 breadth thereof And thou shalt set in it settings of stones, even four 
 rows of stones : the first row shall be a sardius, a topaz, and a car- 
 buncle : this shall be the first row. And the second row shall be an
 
 EXODUS XXVIII. 55 
 
 emerald, a sapphire, and a diamond. And the third row a ligure, an 
 agate, and an amethyst. And the fourth row a beryl, and an onyx, 
 and a jasper : they shall be set in gold in their inclosings. And the 
 stones sliall be with the names of the children of Israel, twelve, accord- 
 ing to their names, like the engravings of a signet ; every one with his 
 name shall they be according to the twelve tribes" (ver. 15-21). 
 
 First row — Sardius {odem), topaz (jntddh), carbuncle (bareketh). 
 
 Second row — Emerald {nophek), sapphire {sappir)^ diamond {ydhaloin). 
 
 Third row — Ligure {leshem), agate (shevit), amethyst (ahhidma). 
 
 Fourth row — Beryl (farshish), onyx {shoharii), jasper {ydshepM). 
 
 The combinations of colours here are full of interest. Such varieties 
 of these stones might be used as would give all the hues of tlie rain- 
 bow. Thus, beginning with the first, there is red (sardius) ; and, taking 
 the second of the next row, blue (sapphire); the third of the next, 
 violet (amethyst) ; and the fourth of the last row, yellow (variety of 
 jasper). Or, beginning with the last on the first row, we have 
 red (carbuncle) ; then, taking the second last on the next row, we have 
 again blue (sapphire) ; the first on the third row gives violet (variety 
 of ligure) ; and the first on the last line, yellow (variety of beryl). 
 Other combinations would bring out the hues of the rainbow more 
 fully. This, however, may be fanciful. It is nevertheless hiteresting to 
 uieet with anything, at this stage of the church's development, sugges- 
 tive of the covenant bow. 
 
 " The sardius," sardine, and sardonyx, are to be regarded simply as 
 varieties of chalcedony ; see under Gen. ii. 12. The blood-red cornelian 
 may be held to be the sardius proper. It is chiefly found in Egypt. 
 The sardonyx, as the name implies, has features common to the true 
 sardius and the onyx. It takes its distinctive hue from a layer of red 
 spots, the presence of oxide of iron, in the finest onyx. "Topaz" is 
 mentioned thrice in the Old and once in the New Testament. It is 
 one of the hardest of the, so-called, crystalline corundites. Among 
 precious stones it stands third from the diamond in this respect ; the 
 sapphire being second, and the ruby third. Berzelius gives its consti- 
 tuent parts as — alumina 47"45, silica 3-i'24, and fluoric acid 7*75. The 
 usual colour is bright yellow or citron ; but it passes from very dark to 
 very pale yellow, and is even sometimes found with red and with blue 
 lints. The dark yellow is most highly valued. Noble topazes, or the 
 ]uost brightly transparent varieties, are found in India, in Asia Minor, 
 in Egypt, in some parts of Europe, and in lirazil. The oriental topaz 
 is the best, and the Brazilian the next in value. Egyptian topaz is
 
 5G BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 softer than tlie oriental variety. In the days of Job an Etliiopian 
 variety appears to have been most highly esteemed : — 
 
 " 15ut wliere shall wisdom be found? 
 And where is the place of understanding ? 
 The topaz of Ethiopia shall not equal it, 
 Neither shall it be valued with pure gold." — (Job xxvii. 12, 10.) 
 
 Oriental topaz is no doubt referred to, Ethiopia being the Asiatic 
 country of that name. The prophet names this gem among the 
 precious stones which went to adorn luxurious Tyrus (Ezek. xxviii. i3). 
 In tlic New Testament allusion to it, topaz is named in connection with 
 " the foundations of the wall of the city — the New Jerusalem — gar- 
 nished with all manner of precious stones" (Rev. xxi. 20). 
 
 " Carbuncle" is named again in chap, xxxix., and, under a slightly 
 different form, in Ezekiel, as above. lu Isaiah liv. the same stone is 
 mentioned in the common version ; but the original words used there 
 mean stones whose lustre is like the burning coal — an expression evi- 
 dently designed to include any precious stones of a brilliant yet soft 
 red hue. Bareheth is rendered in the Septuagint by anthrax — a term 
 at once suggestive of a red glow. The Greeks used this word for the 
 garnet, from its exhibiting when held up in bright suidiglit the appear- 
 ance of burning. The Romans named it carhunculus. Garnet does 
 not occur in our translation, but it is altogether unlikely that such a 
 gem was not used by the Hebrews. Taking carbuncle, then, as oriental 
 garnet, the last stone of the first row of the breastplate was of a glow- 
 ing fire, or flesh colour. Bright red transparent varieties are most 
 precious. Of this kind are the deep red Indian ruhij garnet, and the 
 soft glowing 2'>y'>'ope of Bohemia. 
 
 " Emerald," see under Rev. iv. 3. 
 
 " Sapphire," see under chap. xxiv. 10, and Lara. iv. 7. 
 '"Diamond" is given as the translation of two words, ?/a7iaZo?ra and 
 shdmir. The latter is used in Jer. xvii. 1 — " The sin of Judah is 
 written with a pen of iron, and with the point of a diamond." The 
 reference is to the power of one stone to scratch another. In this case 
 the stone referred to may have been any of the chalcedonies. The 
 former word points to the precious stone which stands at the head of 
 gems, as surpassing all others in hardness, lustre, and refracting powers. 
 It is found in India, and thence would be brought into Egypt and 
 Syria. The diamond was one of the gems used by Tyrus as an orna- 
 ment on dress (Ezek. xxviii. 15). Its origin and true place in mine-
 
 EXODUS XXVIII. 
 
 57 
 
 ralogical geology are not known. It is found in gravels and otlier 
 shifting beds. It consists of pure carbon in a crystallized form. 
 
 " Ligure" is named only here and in chap, xxsix. 12. In Rev. xxi. 
 20, the " eleventh foundation" of the " holy city, New Jerusalem," is 
 described as a jacinth, the translation of the Greek word hyadnthos, a 
 stone ascertained to have been the same as the ligurion, the Septuagint 
 rendering of the leshen, or ligure of this verse. The hyacinth's colour 
 is generally reddish orange. There are, however, violet varieties. 
 When the light yellow has a shade of scarlet in it, and is quite clear, 
 the gem is most esteemed. It is found in several localities in Europe. 
 The finest are obtained from mud beds in Ceylon. 
 
 "Agate" is one of the chalcedonies, or semi-transparent forms of 
 rock crystal (quartz). Some of the forms are very beautiful. Tig.a. 
 
 They are met with in a great variety of colours, as red, 
 brown, violet, blue, milk-white, yellow, &c. Much variety 
 of structure likewise obtains among them. Oriental agate 
 is most valued. Fortification agate, which is found in 
 irregular rounded nodules, sometimes six inches in dia- 
 meter, shows in its structure zigzag lines surrounding a 
 fort-like centre. Panther agate is usually Itrown, with 
 spots or waves in its ground. A more broadly marked variety, and of 
 a coarser grain, is Fig. u. 
 
 known as clouded 
 agate. Two Hebrew 
 words are rendered 
 " agate," shevii and 
 kadkod. The former 
 occurs here, the lat- 
 ter in Isa. liv. 12, 
 and Ezek. xxvii. 16. 
 In both places the 
 name is applied to a 
 stone specially noted 
 for giving out sparks 
 when struck. Such 
 is the meaning of the 
 original word. Trans- 
 lucent flint is most 
 likely referred to. 
 
 Moss Agate. 
 
 ification Agate. 
 
 " Amethyst " is mentioned only in connection with the breastplate 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 H
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 and with the foundations of tlie " lioly city," Rev. xxi. 20. It is a 
 precious stone of most beautiful violet colour, is hard as the ruby and 
 
 Fie. 15. 
 
 ClmidciJ Af,'ati>. 
 
 the sapphire, and suscep- 
 tible of a rich and brilliant 
 polish. 
 
 "Beryl" is six times 
 named in the Old, and once 
 in the New Testament. It 
 is of a transparent yellow- 
 ish green colour ; a variety 
 of emerald. When the 
 colour is yellowish green 
 the stone is a heryl; when 
 it is bluish green it is named 
 nqiiamanne, and when the 
 gieen is deep and rich, 
 emerald. In the Song it 
 occurs in the picture of the 
 king — " His hands are as 
 gold rings 
 
 beryl" (v. 
 
 set 
 
 14). 
 
 with the 
 It enters 
 
 Fig. IC. 
 
 into Ezekiel's imagery (i. 16 ; x. 9 ; xxviii. 13). The body of the 
 majestic One whom Daniel saw in the visions by the river Hiddekel is 
 
 described as being like beryl (x. 6). 
 
 "Onyx" — see under Gen. ii. 12. 
 The last stone of the breastplate was 
 "jasper." This is a compact, non- 
 transparent variety of quartz, with a 
 lustreless fracture, but capable of a 
 fine polish. In colour it varies from 
 dark, dull red to several varieties of 
 yellow. When the lumps in which 
 it is found are marked by bands, it 
 is called riband jasper. Jasper was 
 among the gems worn by Tyrus 
 (Ezek. xxviii. 13). The throned One 
 in Rev. iv. 3, was " to look upon 
 like unto a jasper." It is thrice men- 
 tioned in the description of New Jerusalem in Rev. xxi. 
 Verses 33-35 — see under 1 Sam. xiv. 2. 
 
 Kiband Jasper.
 
 EXODUS XXX.-XXXIV. 
 
 EXODUS XXX.-XXXIV. 
 
 ND the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, When thou takest the 
 sum of the children of Israel, after their number, then shall 
 they give every man a ransom for his soul unto the Lord, 
 when thou uumberest them ; that there be no plague among 
 them, when thou numberest them. This they shall give, every 
 one that passeth among them that are numbered, half a shekel, 
 after the shekel of the sanctuary (a shekel is twenty gerahs) ; an 
 half shekel shall be the offering of the Lord." Dr. Colenso quotes 
 verses 11-13 as affording points of strong interest to him in his 
 opposition to "the story" of the Pentateuch, as he takes pleasure 
 in naming the sacred narrative. Lie says — " We may first notice in 
 passing, that the expression, ' shekel of the sanctuary,' in the above 
 passage, could hardly have been used in this way until there teas a 
 sanctuary in existence, or, rather, until the sanctuary had been some 
 time in existence, and such a phrase had become familiar in the 
 mouths of the people. Whereas here it is put into the mouth of 
 Jehovah, speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai, six or seven months 
 before the tabernacle was made. And in Exodus xxxvii. 24, 25, 26, 
 we have the same phrase used again of the actual contributions of the 
 people toioards the building of the sanctuary. But these words direct 
 that, whenever a numbering of the people shall take place, each one 
 that is numbered shall pay a ' ransom for his soul,' of half a shekel. 
 Now, in Exodus xxxviii. 26, we read of such a tribute being paid, 
 ' a bekah for every man, that is, half a shekel after the shekel of the 
 sanctuary, for every one that went to be numbered, from twenty 
 years old and upward;' meaning that atonetnent-vioney be collected, 
 but nothing is there said of any census being taken. On the other 
 hand, in Numbers i. 1-46, more than six months after the date of the 
 former occasion, we have an account of a very formal numbering of 
 the people, the result being given for each particular tribe, and the 
 total number summed up at the end ; here the census is made, but 
 there is no indication of any atonement-money being paid. The omis- 
 sion in each case might be considered, of course, as accidental, it being 
 supposed that, in^ the first instance, the numbering really took place,
 
 GO BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCJi. 
 
 and in the second, the tribute was paid, though iieitlier circumstance is 
 mentioned. But then it is surprising tliat the number of adult males 
 should have been identically the same (603,550) on the first occasion as 
 it teas half a year afterwards." 
 
 The answer to this is exceedingly simple. The words " shekel of 
 the sanctuary" are equivalent to "shekel of holiness," as indeed the 
 Hebrew text might he rendered. They are used in this way to indi- 
 cate the sacred character of the obligation. The standard as fixed by 
 verse 12, became permanent in things pertaining to the sanctuary. 
 
 As regards the other point, the identity of the figures in the first 
 numbering (Exod. xxxviii. 26) and the second (Numb. i. 46), it must 
 be kept in mind that only a few weeks intervened. " On the first day 
 of the first month shalt thou set up the tabernacle of the tent of the 
 congregation" (Exod. xl. 2). " On the first day of the second month — 
 thirty days after the former date — the Lord spake unto Moses saying, 
 Take ye the sum of all the congregation of the children of Israel" 
 (Numb. i. 1, 2). But after a comparison of passages, we find that a 
 poll tax was taken subsequently to the free-will offering. The fruit of 
 the free-will offering was the preparation of the whole material for the 
 tahernacle, with the exception of the articles named in Exod. xxxviii. 
 27, 28. Give, then, ample time for all arrangements, and, at the 
 utmost, not more than ten or twelve weeks could have elapsed between 
 the numberings mentioned. Is this not sufficient to convince any 
 candid reader, that virtually there had been only one census, which 
 had given 603,550 men fit for war? The numbers taken for the poll 
 tax are accepted when Moses takes the sum of the tribes individually. 
 But even granting that six months had passed, and that the numbers 
 continued stationary, the difficulty will strike very few besides Dr. 
 Colenso. 
 
 Myrrh, cinnamon, calamus, and cassia, are called " principal spices " 
 in verse 23 ! " Myrrh" is noticed under Psalm xlv. 8. " Cinnamon," 
 Hebrew kinndmon, was the bark of a tree of the same name (Cimia- 
 momum zeylanicwii), one of the natural order Laiiraccce, or Laurels, 
 and a native of Ceylon. It is an evergreen. Though mostly found as 
 a large shrub, it frequently assumes a complete tree-like form, and 
 attains to a height of above thirty feet. When the plant is about nine 
 years old, it comes to yield a pretty strong annual supply of twigs and 
 branches, which are peeled during summer. The bark which is thin, 
 when stripped off and laid in the sunshine, curls up into the shape of 
 the cinnamon of commerce. More than 800,000 lbs. of this is yearly
 
 EXODUS XXX.-XXXIV. 
 
 61 
 
 exported from Ceylon. Supplies are also obtaiued from India, China, 
 and Java. The outer bark is coarse. The sweet or spicy cinnamon 
 mentioned here is the very thin inner rind. In the earliest period of 
 Hebrew history this, with the balm and myrrli named in Gen. xxxvii. 
 25, would be obtained from Ceylon through the Arabian traders. 
 Later it would be brought by the ships of Tharshish (1 Kings x. 22). 
 
 Fig. 17. 
 
 Ciuuamou-tree (Cinnamomnm tej/tanicum), 
 
 " The present aspect of ' the cinnamon gardens,' which surround 
 Colombo on the land-side, exhibits the effects of a quarter of a century 
 of neglect, and produces a feeling of disappointment and melancholy. 
 The beautiful shrubs which furnish the renowned spice have been 
 allowed to grow wild, and in some places are scarcely visible, owing to 
 undergrowth of jungle, and the thick envelopment of climbing plants, 
 bignonias, ipomojas, the quadrangular vine, and the marvellous pitcher- 
 plant {Nepenthes distillatoria), whose eccentric organization is still a 
 scientific enigma. One most interesting flower, which encumbers the
 
 62 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 cinnamon-trees, is a night-blowing convolvulus, the luoouflower of 
 Europeans, called by the natives alanga, which never blooms in the 
 day, but opens its exquisite petals when darkness comes on, and attracts 
 the eye through the gloom, by its pure and snowy whiteness. Less 
 than a century has elapsed since these famous gardens were formed by 
 the Dutch, and already they are relapsing into wilderness. Every recent 
 writer on Ceylon has dwelt on their beauty and luxuriance, but hence- 
 forward it will remain to speak only of their decay." — {Sir E. Tennent.) 
 
 Fig. 18. 
 
 Sweet Cane {Aruiropogon aromatieus), 
 
 "Calamus," Hebrew /^-afte/i, is fully noticed under 1 Kings xiv. 15; 
 2 Kings xviii. 21; Job xxxi. 22; and Matt. xi. 7 — which see. A 
 specitic form of calamus or reed is mentioned here, sweet, literally spicy, 
 calamus {Kaneh bosem). The word expressing species is rendered '" spice " 
 in chapter xxxv. 28, and in other five passages of Scripture. The 
 plant referred to is the Andropogon aromatieus or fragrant beardgrass, 
 known also under the name Calamus odoratus or sweet calamus. The 
 roots, stems, and leaves are highly odoriferous. An oil noted for its
 
 fragrance is distilled from theiu. This species is a native of India. It 
 would be obtained by the Hebrews in the same way as cinnamon. 
 This, as well as other sweet-smelling grasses, was made more widely 
 known in Europe when the soldiers of Alexander returned from the 
 Indian campaign. One species of beardgrass (A. muricatum) is well 
 known in India, and its roots are much used in the manufacture of 
 screens for doors and windows. In the heat of the day these are 
 moistened with water, and as the breeze plays freely through them, 
 they give off a delightful perfume. 
 
 This plant is not to be confounded with the Egyptian sugar cane 
 {Saccharum cxjlindricum) ^ which many have held to be the sweet cane 
 mentioned by Isaiah (xliii. 24). It is clear from the description of the 
 prophet, that tlie species now under notice is referred to in that passage 
 — which see. Calamus is named with cinnamon in Song iv. 15, and 
 as among the merchandise which Dan and Javan brought to the 
 markets of Tyre (Ezek. xxvii. 19). 
 
 " Cassia," Hebrew kidduh, was the other principal spice, which was 
 to enter as a chief ingredient into this " ointment compound after the 
 art of the apothecary." The Hebrew name is derived from a word 
 meaning "to split." It is so called from the way in which the bark of 
 the cassia shrub is prepared as a perfume. The plant referred to bears 
 a close resemblance to cinnamon, and belongs to the same natural order. 
 It is the cinnamon cassia of botanists {Cinnamoimim cassia), a native 
 of India and China. It can be distinguished from cinnamon proper by 
 certain characteristics of its leaves, which have three ribs uniting a little 
 above the base. Cassia was also carried to the markets of T3're, as 
 was cinnamon (Ezek. xxvii. 19). Dan and Javan journeyed far to obtain 
 it. They " went to and fro." With these spices they brought " bright 
 iron." In India still, the country of cinnamon and cassia, the bright 
 iron is extensively prepared by the natives, whose mode of smelting is 
 of the most primitive and simple description, and may not have altered 
 since the day when they sent it to the markets of Tyre. 
 
 In Psalm xlv. 8, a different Hebrew word {ketzioth) is translated 
 " cassia." It was one of the perfumes which made the garments of 
 the king fragrant. The word is derived from a root which means to rub 
 down or abrade, and no doubt points to a preparation of bark or wood 
 used as a perfume, and scattered among clothes to repel moths, and at 
 the same time make tlie garments fragrant. Several odoriferous woods 
 are still used in Arabia and India for these purposes. Roylo believes 
 that the Icetzioth is the koost of the Arabs, the sweet Aucklandia {A.
 
 Gl 
 
 niBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 costi(s) of botanists, but the term does not appear to mean more than 
 
 abraded fragrant wood. 
 Instructions are next 
 with sweet spices after 
 said unto Moses, Take 
 galbaniun ; these sweet 
 there be a like weight. 
 tion after the art of the 
 (vcr 34, 35). 
 
 given as to the perfume whicli was to be made 
 the art of the apothecary. " And the Lord 
 
 unto thee sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and 
 
 spices, with pure frankincense ; of each sliall 
 
 And thou shalt make it a perfume, a confec- 
 
 apothecary, tempered together, pure and holy " 
 
 Fig. 19. 
 
 SUcte {Bahamodiiflron hita/). 
 
 " Stacte," Kehrev,' 71(1 filjjJi, is the gum of one of the myrrh-producing 
 family of plants {Ainyridacece). The tree which produces stacte is the 
 amyris, or Balsamodendron kataf of botanists. It was found by 
 Professor Ehrenberg on the liorders of Arabia Felix. 
 
 " Onycha," Hebrew shchhvldli. The theory that this perfume was 
 produced by an Indian mollusc is not tenable, though supported by the 
 authority of several learned names. Like the other ingredients of this 
 fragrant confection, it was, doubtless, a gum. The gum-benjamin tree 
 {Shjrax henzoln) has been proposed as the most likely plant. The gum 
 which exudes from this tree is still burned as incense in Roman 
 Catholic and ]\Iahommedan places of worship.
 
 EXODUS XXX.-XXXIV. 
 
 " Galbanum," Hebrew hhelhenah, was a resinous substance yielded 
 by one of the umbelliferous family of plants. The Buhon galbanum of 
 LinncQus has been by some identified with this plant. Others have 
 held that it is to be ranked under the genus Ferula, along with the 
 well known drug assafoetida (F. assafoetidce), and with gum-ammoniac 
 {F. ammomfera). Recently Dr. Lindley has given the name OjJoidt'a 
 (jalbanifera to a plant forwarded to him by Sir John ]\rNeil, as having 
 been found growing in Persia, and as the vegetable which supplied the 
 
 Fig. 20. 
 
 ^i/' 
 
 Galbanum (Hahon galhanum). 
 
 galbanum of the ancients. There seems to be little doubt that this 
 yielded the Persian galbanum. From whatever source the gum was 
 obtained, it did not yield a peculiarly fragrant perfume, but the con- 
 trary. There is, however, historical proof that both the Greeks and 
 Romans used it for the same jjurpose as the Jews. 
 
 " Frankincense," Heb. Icvdnftli, is now known to have been obtained 
 from a tree indigenous in Arabia and India, the BoswelUa sen-ata, one 
 of the myrrh-bearers. The frankincense named here is the pure gum, 
 that, namely, supplied by the first incisions made in the bark of the 
 tree. It is white, semi-transparent, and when dried, highly brittle. This 
 
 VOL. U. I
 
 66 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 ingredient is more frequently mentioned in the sacred volume than 
 any of the others. It was to be put into the meat-offering which 
 the priest was to burn before the Lord (Levit. ii. 1, 2, 15). The sin- 
 offering of the poorest was to have no oil or frankincense (ver. 11). 
 Frankincense was to be put on "the twelve cakes" placed on "the 
 pure table before the Lord" (xxiv. 7). It was excluded from the 
 offering at the trial of jealousy (Numb. v. 15). The royal Bridegroom 
 was perfumed with it (Song iii. G). And the Bride consoles herself 
 with the resolution, " until the daybreak and the shadows flee away, I 
 will get me to the mountain of myrrh, and to the hill of frankincense" 
 (iv. 6) ; a highly figurative expression for her determination to take 
 delight in the service of God and of the sanctuary, even when darkness 
 is round about her. Throughout Isaiah (chapters xliii. 23, Ix. 6, Ixvi. 3), 
 and Jeremiah (vi. 20; xvii. 26; xli. 5) levondh is rendered incense. This 
 spice is named lihanos by ]\Iatthew (ii. 2) as one of the gifts brought to 
 the infant Saviour by the Eastern magi. The last reference to it is in 
 Revelation viii. 3, 4, where the censer is named " libanoton," from the 
 frankincense burned in it. 
 
 Chapter xxxi. 3-5, is noticed under Gen. iv. 22 ; chapter xxxii. under 
 1 Kings xii. 28, 29 ; chapter xxxiii. 3, under 2 Kings xviii. 32 ; and 
 chapter xxxiv. 13, under Micah v. 14.
 
 EXODUS XXXV.-XXXVI. 
 
 C7 
 
 EXODUS XXXV.-XXXVI. 
 
 ADGERS' skins" are named among the offerings asked for 
 the making of the tabernacle (ver. 7). Badger, Hebrew 
 fahhasli, is mentioned fourteen times in the Old Testament. 
 Some have proposed to render tahhash a colour, blue or purple ; 
 others think the word refers to a species of hyrena, and others 
 believe it means a seal. Bochart pleads strongly and ably for the first 
 meaning. But the reference in Ezekiel xvi. 10, is against this — " I 
 have shod thee with badgers' skins." On the whole, an examination 
 of the following passages is in favour of an animal, most likely the 
 badger; Exod. xxv. 5; x.xxv. 7, 23; xxxvi. 19; xxxix. 34; Numb. iv. 
 6, 8, 10, 11, 12, U, 25; and Ezek. xvi. 10. 
 
 Fig. 21. 
 
 Badger (ifdes taxus). 
 
 The badger belongs to the family Melidce, which is intermediate 
 between the Mustelidcv, or weasels, below, and the Ursidce, or bears, 
 above. It rests the whole sole of its foot on the ground when walking. 
 From this feature it forms one of the natural group of plantigrade 
 animals. It lives on frogs, insects, roots, and different kinds of fruit. 
 The common badger (Meles taxus) is met with all over Europe and in 
 Asia Minor. Its skins would thus be within reach of the Israelites 
 during their sojourn in Egypt, and might be obtained from specimens 
 met with in their wanderings. 
 
 Verses 21-23 — see under Gen. iii. 21. Verse 2G — " All the women 
 whose heart stirred them up in wisdom, spun goats' hair." Cloth was
 
 68 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 frequently made from the long, silky hair of the Syrian goat, xxvi. 7 ; 
 XXXV. G ; Numb. xxxi. 20; 1 Sam. xix. IG. " He made boards for tlic 
 tabernacle of shittira-wood," ch. xxxvi. 20. Shittim-wood is mentioned 
 twenty-six times in the Bible. All the passages occur in the books of 
 Moses. In Isaiah's magnificent description of the mighty acts of 
 Jehovah, in introducing the latter day glory, reference is made to the 
 tree from which the wood is obtained : — " I will plant in the wilderness 
 the cedar, the shittah-tree, and the myrtle," Isa. xli. 19. The shittah 
 is a species of acacia (A. vera), very widely distributed in the East. It 
 is met with on the sandy plains of Upper Egypt, in the Arabian desert, 
 
 Fig. 22. 
 
 Rliittini-wood {Acficia vera). 
 
 and thence to Imlia. This tree, specially fitted for the purposes for 
 which the Israelites were ordered to use it, was plentiful in the region 
 in which they at this time wandered. Its wood is comparatively light, 
 and very durable. Its bark is covered with sharp and formidalile 
 thorns. Another acacia [A. (jummiferci) yields the well-known gum- 
 arabic of commerce. The shittah abounded in the plains of Moab, and 
 gave its name to a place there, Ahel-Shittim, Numb. xxii. ; Micah vi. 5. 
 On account of the lightness of its wood, its durability, power of resisting 
 damp, and susceptibility of polish, it was peculiarly well fitted for 
 making the ark of the covenant (Exod. xxv. 10), and for the boards 
 of the tabernacle.
 
 LEVITICUS T.-ir. 
 
 69 
 
 LEVITICUS I.-II. 
 
 HERE is no book, in the whole compass of that inspired 
 volume which the Holy Ghost has given ns, that contains 
 more of the very words of God than Leviticus. It is God 
 that is the direct speaker in almost every page ; his 
 gracious words are recorded in the form in which they 
 were uttered. This consideration cannot fail to send us to 
 lj\j>> the study of it Avith singular interest and attention. It has 
 ' ' been called ' Leviticus,' because its typical institutions, in all 
 their variety, were committed to the care of the tribe of Levi, or 
 to the priests, who were of that tribe. The Greek translators of the 
 Pentateuch devised that name. The Talmud for similar reasons calls 
 it ' the law of the priests.' But Jewish writers in general are content 
 with a simpler title ; they take the first words of the book as the 
 name, calling it ' Vayikra,' as if they said, the book that begins with 
 the words, ' And the Lord called ' " (A. Bonar). The first chapter 
 opens with the Lord's commands to Moses, touching those offerings 
 and sacrifices which were all typical of the priesthood of the promised 
 Redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ. One or other of two thoughts meet 
 us in all these arrangements. Either the worshipper's sense of sin is 
 pointed to, leading liim to show that remission of sin is through the 
 shedding of blood — true expiation ; or his gratitude as a forgiven man 
 is shown— true thanksgiving. 
 
 This chapter is devoted to the " burnt-offering," which was a free 
 will offering — "he sliall offer it of his own voluntary will at the door of 
 the tabernacle" (ver. 3). The design of the offering was to make 
 atonement — "it shall be accepted for him, to make atonement for him" 
 (ver. 4) It might be a "bullock" (ver. 5), a "sheep," or a "goat" 
 (ver. 10 — see under Gen. iv. 2, and xxvii. 9); a "turtle dove," or a 
 "young pigeon" (ver. 14). " He shall kill the bullock," literally the 
 son of a bull. The offering was to be a male without blemish (ver. 3). 
 It was the type of Christ, the second Adam, the holy one, and therefore 
 it must be unblemished. Two words are chiefly used in Hebrew for 
 bullock. Both occur in this book. The one (baJcar) is used here. It 
 is met with one hundred and sixty-five times in Scripture. The other
 
 70 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENX'E. 
 
 (par) is reudcred " bullock" in Levit. iv. 3, literally a steer, the son of 
 a bull. It occurs one hundred and twenty-two times. In Genesis xxxii, 
 15, it is translated "bull" — "forty kine and ten bulls," and in Hosea 
 xiv, 2, it is employed figuratively — " Take away all iniquity, and 
 receive us graciously, so will we render the calves of our lips." Calves 
 were offered iu sacrifice, and the people who here pray for forgiveness 
 say, that they will render unto God the sacrifices of praise and of 
 thanksgiving — " the calves of their lips." The difference between the 
 two terms seems to be, that the latter (p(7/') is much more definite than 
 the former (bakar)^ which in other portions of Scripture is rendered in 
 a very general sense. It is translated oxen, Gen. xii. 16 ; herds, xiii. 5 ; 
 beeves, Levit. xxii. 21 ; calves, 1 Sam. xiv. 32 ; kine, 2 Sam. xvii. 29 ; 
 and coic, Ezek. iv. 15. The terms were interchangeable, but, when a 
 particular variety was specially meant, par was employed. 
 
 " Turtle dove," Hebrew tor, belongs to the Cohimbidce, or dove- 
 family. Two species appear to be mentioned in Scripture, the true 
 Syrian dove, or collared pigeon {Turtur rlsorius), and the turtle-dove 
 proper (T. auritus) ; the former is a permanent resident in Palestine, 
 the latter is migratory. The reference in Jer. viii. 7, is to this species 
 — which see. The collared pigeon is that generally kept in cages in 
 this country, and known as the turtle-dove. Turtur am-itus visits the 
 south of England in spring, and retires to the north of Africa in Sep- 
 tember. It visits Palestine and nests there at the same season. Turtur 
 risorius is the species named in all passages in which the Hebrew 
 yonali is rendered pigeons or doves, except two, Song ii. 14; Jer. xlviii. 
 28 — which see. This species is also noticed under Gen. viii. 8-12, 
 which see. It is the "pigeon " of this passage No doubt, the migratory 
 habits of the turtle dove are taken into account in the alternative 
 presented to the poor, in regard to this offering. It was either to 
 consist of turtle-doves or young pigeons ; the former to be taken at the 
 season when they visited Palestine, the latter at any time. 
 
 Assumed here as a type of the promised Messiah, the dove is often 
 referred to by the writers of Scripture. The well-known habits of the 
 different species with which the people were acquainted, are used to 
 express and illustrate many points of great interest connected with 
 the person of the Saviour. Though not bearing on the words now 
 under notice, reference may be fitly made to one or two of these here. 
 To some they may suggest fresh aspects of Scripture illustration in 
 bringing the truth of God under the attention of men. They are not 
 fanciful, but fully warranted by the words of the Bible. What may be
 
 LEVITICUS I.-II. 71 
 
 said of passages in which the dove is thus noticed, is equally true of 
 Scri2:)ture references to the habits of many other animals. Moses, 
 upbraiding Israel for their unfaithfulness to the Creator, says, " Of the 
 Rock that begat thee thou art unmiridful, and hast forgotten God that 
 formed thee" (Deut. xxxii. 18). David looking up to him says, "0 
 Lord, my Rock" (Ps. xxxi. 1, 2). He was thus worshipped in olden 
 times as the Eternal Rock — the Almighty, the Ever-living One. In 
 John i. 18, Jesus is spoken of as " the only begotten Son who is in the 
 bosom of the Father." The king in the Song (ii. 14) is represented as 
 saying to the royal bride, " my dove that art in the clefts of the 
 rock." Her "life is hid with Christ in God" (Col. iii. 3). "God, 
 when we were, dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, 
 and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenlics 
 in Christ Jesus" (Eph. ii. 5, G). This kind of remark might be 
 continued, but look now at verses 14-17 : " And if the burnt-sacrifice 
 for his offering to the Lord be of fowls, then he shall bring his offering 
 of turtle-doves, or of young pigeons. And the priest shall bring it unto 
 the altar, and wring off his head, and burn it on the altar ; and the 
 blood thereof shall be wrung out at the side of the altar. And he shall 
 pluck away his crop with his feathers, and cast it beside the altar, on 
 the east part, by the place of the ashes. And he shall cleave it with 
 the wings thereof, but shall not divide it asunder ; and the priest shall 
 burn it upon the altar, upon the wood that is upon the tire ; it is a 
 burnt-sacrifice, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the 
 Lord." Keeping the eye fixed on the great Antitype, all is deeply 
 significant. The head is wrung off — " it pleased the Lord to bruise 
 him." The blood was wrung out — " his blood was shed for many, for 
 the remission of sins." The crop was plucked away and cast beside 
 the altar — even in the type it must stand out that he was holy and 
 undefiled. Thus too the feathers were to be dealt with — he was to be 
 left fully exposed to the whole wrath which had gone forth against sin — 
 "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" It was to be 
 cleaved, but not divided asunder — " a bone of him shall not be broken" 
 — "all my bones are out of joint." In the arrangements for all the 
 other offerings, the resemblance between type and antitype is not less 
 complete. 
 
 " Frankincense," Heb. levondh (ver. 1) — see under Exod. xxx. 34. 
 
 " No meat-offering which ye shall bring unto the Lord shall be 
 made with leaven : for ye shall burn no leaven, nor any honey, in any 
 offering of the Lord made by fire" (ver. 11). This prohibition of leaven
 
 72 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 and honey Las reference to tlie " meat-offering," so called from the cir- 
 cumstance that most of it was used as food. The type is generally 
 held to point to the complete personal dedication of the one offering it. 
 The animal sacrifice pointed to the offerer's belief in remission of sins 
 through the blood of atonement ; the meat-offering was the expression 
 of his willingness to dedicate himself and all that he had to God, as a 
 God of righteousness and grace. From this point of view alone can 
 we fully understand such words as tliose of Paul to the church at 
 Philippi — " But I have all, and abound : I am full, having received of 
 Epaphroditus the things which were sent from you, an odour of a sweet 
 smell, a sacrifice acceptable, well-pleasing to God," Phil. iv. 18. 
 
 Neither leaven nor honey was to be put into that which was thus 
 typical of the saved man's personal surrender of himself and property 
 to God. " Leaven indicates corruption, and is the very opposite of 
 salt, which preserves (ver. 13), and which must never be wanting. 
 Honey includes all that is sweet, like the honey of grapes, figs [dates], 
 and the reed or calamus that grew on the banks of the waters of Merom ; 
 and it is forbidden both because it turns to sourness, and leads to fer- 
 mentation." "Leaven" — see under Prov. x. 26. "Honey" — under 
 Judg. xiv. 8; 2 Kings xviii. 32 ; 2 Cliron. xxxi. 5 ; and Isa. vii. 15. 
 
 " And every oblation of thy meat-offering shalt thou season with 
 salt ; neither shalt thou suffer the salt of the covenant of thy God to be 
 lacking from thy meat-offering : with all thine offerings thou shalt offer 
 salt" (ver. 13). " Salt," Hebrew melach. The notices of the vale of 
 Siddim (Gen. xiv), indicated whence abundance of rock salt might be 
 obtained. Salt was an emblem of permanence bestowed on what had 
 a tendency to corrupt. It said, This corruption is removed, and the 
 offering made fit for an unchanging one. Common salt is the chloride 
 of sodium of the chemist. It is found in certain countries in thick 
 irregular beds, in which state it is known as " rock salt," and in saline 
 springs. It is frequently mentioned in the Scripture, and sometimes 
 associated with peculiarly interesting truths. In Numbers xviii. 19, it 
 is mentioned as an emblem of lasting friendship ; in Judges ix. 45, as 
 a figure of desolation ; and in Colossians iv. 6, it is spoken of as the 
 element of heavenly wisdom in human speech — " Let your speech be 
 always with grace, seasoned with salt." The people of God are 
 described as " the salt of the earth" (Matt. v. 13).
 
 LEVITICUS IV.-XI. 73 
 
 LEVITICUS IV.-XI. 
 
 ND the skin of the bullock, and all his flesh, with his head, and 
 with his legs, and his inwards, and his dung, even the whole 
 bullock shall he carry forth without the camp unto a clean 
 place, where the ashes are poured out, and burn him on the 
 Avood with fire ; where the ashes are poured out shall he be 
 M^burnt" (ver. 11, 12). Dr. Colenso reckons that the camp must 
 liave covered an area of above 8,000,000 square yards, or more 
 than 1G52 acres of ground. He allows thirty-six square feet, or 
 four square yards, to each person, and taking all Israel as number- 
 ing not fewer than 2,000,000 persons, he concludes that such must 
 have been the size of the camp. The refuse of the sacrifices was to be 
 carried by the priest a distance of three quarters of a mile ! He does 
 not believe this possible, and because he does not, he concludes that 
 this is another evidence of the uninspired character of this portion of 
 the word of God ! It does not appear to have entered into his thoughts, 
 that there is sucli a tiling as a man doing a certain work by another. 
 It is not now very likely that this author will be asked to carry the 
 Bible to the Zulus ; yet there was a time when he might have been 
 asked to do so, and yet have not touched one copy, while he, neverthe- 
 less, might have fulfilled his commission. The other details which the 
 bishop associates with this objection, are even less becoming a man of 
 intelligence than those mentioned. The sanitary arrangements of every 
 army in the time of war set aside the unworthy cavils to which so 
 much prominence is given by this critic. 
 " Leaven," vi. 17 — see under Prov. x. 26. 
 
 " And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying. Take Aaron, and his sons 
 with him, and the garments, and the anointing oil, and a bullock for 
 the sin-oifering, and two rams, and a basket of unleavened bread ; and 
 gather thou all the congregation together unto the door of the taber- 
 nacle of the congregation. And Moses did as the Lord commanded 
 him ; and the assembly was gathered together unto the door of the 
 tabernacle of the congregation. And Moses said unto the congregation, 
 Thisis the thing which the Lord commanded to be done " (viii. 1-5). Here 
 is a specimen of recent so-called high and independent criticism on this 
 
 VOL. II. K
 
 74 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 passage : — " Now the whole widtli of the tabernacle was 10 cubits or 
 18 feet, reckoning the cubit at 1824 foot (see Bagster's Bible), and its 
 length was 30 cubits or 54 feet, as may be gathered from Exod. xxvi. 
 (Homo's Introd. iii. p. 232.) Allowing two feet in width for each full 
 grown man, nine men could just have stood in front of it. Supposing, 
 then, that "all the congregation" of adult males in the prime of life 
 had given due heed to the Divine summons, and had hastened to take 
 their stand, side by side, as closely as possible, in front, not merely of 
 the door, but of the whole end of the tabernacle in which the door was, 
 they would have reached, allowing 18 inches between each rank of 
 nine men, for a distance of more than 100,000 feet — in tact, nearly 
 twenty miles ! Further, the court was 100 cubits in length and 50 
 cubits in breadth, Exod. xxvii. 18, that is, it was about 180 feet long 
 and 90 feet broad. And, since the length of the tabernacle, as above, 
 was 64 feet, we have for the space left between the tabernacle and 
 the hangings of the court, before and behind, 126 feet, that is, 63 
 feet in front, and 63 feet behind, or, perhaps, we may say, 84 feet 
 in front and 42 feet behind. Thus, then, 84 feet would represent 
 that portion of the men in the prime of life, who could by any possi- 
 bility have been crowded inside the court in front of the tabernacle, 
 while the whole body would be represented by 100,000 feet ! Or, if 
 we suppose them to fill the v:hoIe tcidth of the court, 90 feet, instead of 
 merely the space directly in front of the tabernacle, 18 feet, still the 
 whole body would extend to a distance of 6706 yards, nearly four 
 miles; whereas that portion of them, who could find any room to stand 
 in front of the tabernacle, filling up the whole width of the court, would 
 be represented by 84 feet or 28 yards ! But how many would the 
 whole court have contained? Its area (60 yards by 30 yards) was 1800 
 square yards, and the area of the tabernacle itself (18 yards by 6 yards) 
 was 108 square yards. In fact the court, when thronged, could only 
 have held five thousand people ; whereas the able-bodied men alone 
 exceeded six hundred thousand. Even the ministering Levites, ' from 
 thirty to fifty years old,' were eight thousand five hundred and 
 eighty in number. Num. iv. 48 ; only five hundred and four of these 
 could have stood within the court in front of the tabernacle, and not 
 two-thirds of them could have entered the court, if they had filled it 
 from one end to the other. It is inconceivable how, under such 
 circumstances, all the assembly, ' the whole congregation,' could have 
 been summoned to attend ' at the door of the tabernacle,' by the 
 express command of Almighty God." — (Colenso.)
 
 m^:?', 
 
 Felis Zeo. Lion . 
 
 JUis rattus Slack Rat . 
 
 Ovis aru^. Sharp- 
 
 Talpa ^Ttropxu .ViiJf 
 
 -t^}h ^,fs> 
 
 Sus icivta Sot]- 
 
 BsiliruaMvsncctus SMf/tm of Oifnilan.t Wluilr . 
 
 ASK NOW THE BEASTS. AXD THEY SHALL TEACH THEE: THE HAND OF THE LOED HATH 
 WROUGHT THIS.— Job iu. /— 9. LEYIT. Xl. 29. 30. 
 
 MILLIkH MACK&llZie. GLASGOW. iOIBBUBCM. lOHOOH *«tr»0««
 
 This is deplorable. Yet any intelligect child could set Dr. Colenso 
 right on this matter : — (1) Even supposing that every man came to the 
 place to which ho was sunmioned, is it in the least likely that the 
 people would arrange themselves in this orderly way, " allowing 18 
 inches between each rank of nine men?" Would they not rather 
 come in a crowd, and take up a great deal less room than if they took 
 up military position and distance according to the bishop's liking? It 
 is attempted to make the narrative declare that the six hundred thousand 
 people at least were pushed into a space which could not hold more 
 than fuur or five thousand. But the statement, when looked at in the 
 light of the different parts of the tabernacle, implies nothing more 
 than that the people were gathered to the open space in front of the 
 tabernacle ; tiiat is, to the door, as is stated in the narrative. The 
 tabernacle was rectangular, about 58 feet long, and about 19 feet wide 
 — thirty cubits in the one case, and ten cubits in the other. The 
 entrance to it, towards the east, was by an opening into the tabernacle 
 proper, closed by a curtain. Then there was the court of the taber- 
 nacle, entrance to which was by another opening, the so-called " door 
 of the tabernacle of the congregation." Before this the multitude 
 stood. 
 
 After the priest was fully set apart to his office, he was commanded 
 to "take a young calf {egel) for a sin-offering" (ix. 2). In Exodus 
 xxix. 1, the same command is given, but a different word is used — 
 " Take one young bullock (pai-)." In this case the terms are inter- 
 changeable ; see above, chap. i. 5. The word employed here is the 
 same as that used throughout Exodus xxxii., where the lapse of Israel 
 into the gross animal worship of Egypt is fully described ; see under 
 I Kings xii. 28. There may thus be some truth in the Jewish notion, 
 that the calf (egel) is referred to here in order to remind the high priest 
 of that sinful transaction. The Egyptians worshipped the sacred calf, 
 Mnevis, at On or Heliopolis. Jehovah in this passage connnands the 
 calf to be sacrificed as a sin-offering. Thus the com})lete separation 
 of Israel from the Egyptian idol was to be brought about. Jeroboam 
 in after times endeavoured to neutralize this divine provision, and to 
 lead the people back again to the degradation of heathenism. The 
 "egel," or calf, was used by the people as food (1 Sam. xxviii. 24; 
 Luke XV. 23), and also in connection with certain forms of covenant. 
 This is described by Jeremiah (xxxiv. 18). See also under Genesis 
 XV. 10-17. 
 
 " Bullock " (ver. 4) ; see under Num. xxii. 4.
 
 70 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 " Aaron dipped his finger in the blood, and put it upon the horns of 
 tlie altar, and poured out the blood at the bottom of the altar " (ver. 9) ; 
 see under Gen. xxxvii. 31. 
 
 " And the Lord spake unto Aaron, saying. Do not drink wine nor 
 strong drink, thou, nor thy sons with thee, when ye go into the taber- 
 nacle of the congregation, lest ye die : it shall he a statute for ever 
 throughout your generations : and that ye may put difference between 
 holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean ; and that ye may teach 
 the children of Israel all the statutes which the Lord hath spoken unto 
 them by the hand of Moses" (x. 8-11) ; under Num. vi. 3. - 
 
 Reference has already been made (Gen. vii. 2) to the general features 
 of the distinction between clean and unclean beasts. Tiie separation 
 was acknowledged as early as the time of Noah ; and the fact of 
 his ready and intelligent obedience to the divine command, implies that 
 he had been long accustomed to distinguish between these great groups 
 of animals. As with other existing arrangements, it was God's plan, 
 in the manifestation of his will to Moses, to give permanence to these 
 in rescuing them from the uncertainty of tradition, by embodying them 
 in a Written Revelation. The moral law of the ten commandments, set 
 down in Exodus xx., was not only the concentration of all those scattered 
 rays of true heavenly light, wliich, as still present with men and par- 
 tially influential, told of the law written originally on man's heart, but it 
 was, moreover, the statement anew of the great principles of that law, 
 in a manner which made it, in a sense, independent of man's attitude to 
 it. Thus embodied it stood out as a witness to the holiness of God, 
 whether those to whom it was given should keep it or no. By the side 
 of the moral law, acknowledged by some from the beginning, and more 
 or less operative in all, though wholly separated in men generally from 
 right views of the lawgiver, another code had grown up, which might 
 be regarded as the application of man's knowledge of the law to circum- 
 stances not directly pointed out by it. Among men there was a differ- 
 ence between the good and the bad ; might there not be analogous 
 distinctions among the creatures put under man ? The Creator recog- 
 nized this tendency to distinguish between one animal and another, and 
 in the arrangements regarding sacrifice he made highest moral uses of 
 it. Clean beasts were originally such as were offered in sacrifice. The 
 rest were unclean. As the race increased, the distinctions were carried 
 farther. Men became acquainted with a greater number of animals. 
 Certain animals also came to be associated with the idolatrous habits of 
 certain tribes. This introduced other considerations. The habits again
 
 LEVITICUS IV.-XI. 77 
 
 of some disgusted the conventional feelings of one tribe, while they 
 were regarded with favour by another. Circumstances of climate also 
 were taken into account in connection with the food best suited to the 
 iiiliabitauts of such countries. All these things influenced men's views 
 of the lower animals, and they are acknowledged in tlie Levitical 
 arrangements. This chapter has been obscured by interpreters refusing 
 to recognize all the circumstances, and by their resolving to look at it 
 only in the light of some one of them. They are, however, all taken 
 into account by Moses, who at the command of God gives them dis- 
 tinct and direct bearings which they had not previously had. In a 
 word, even in their daily meals they were to meet with the thought that 
 they were a covenant people, set apart to a holy life before God. When 
 the Christian asks a blessing on his daily food, he prays that his sin 
 may be put away, so that he sliall not be hindered enjoying the good 
 things of this life as God's gifts to him. The type of this attitude is 
 found in the arrangements of this chapter. The food which went to 
 nourish the body of the Israelite was set apart for him by his heavenly 
 Father as holy. Every time he chose it, this thought was pressed upon 
 him. All this is not the less suggestive, that a time was to come when 
 every creature of God was to be regarded as clean, and to be received 
 with thanksgiving. Yet even under this libertj', which so strongly 
 contrasts with the bondage of the Levitical system, all these show that 
 they are still under the power in some degree of such natural feelings 
 as those named above ; and in their food they still keep up a distinction, 
 though not the Levitical one, between clean and unclean. 
 
 The reader will bear in mind throuofhout the followin!? notes, that the 
 efforts towards the identification of the animals referred to are made 
 with every feeling of the uncertainty of the ground. " And the Loi-d 
 spake unto Moses and to Aaron, saying unto them, Speak unto the 
 children of Israel, saying, These are the beasts wdiich ye shall eat among 
 all the beasts that are on the earth. Whatsoever parteth the hoof, and 
 is cloven-footed, and cheweth the cud, among the beasts, that shall ye 
 eat. Nevertheless, these shall ye not eat of them that chew the cud, or 
 of them that divide the hoof: as the camel, because he cheweth the cud, 
 but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you. And the coney, 
 because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean 
 unto you. And the hare, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not 
 the hoof; he is unclean unto you. And the swine, though he divide 
 the hoof, and be cloven-footed, yet he cheweth not the cud ; he is 
 unclean unto you. Of their flesh shall ye not eat, and their carcase shall
 
 78 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 ye not touch ; they are unclean to you " (ver. 1-8). In Deuteronomy 
 xiv. 4, 5, the cud-cliewers are specified — " These are the beasts which 
 ye shall eat : The ox, the sheep, and the goat, the hart, and the roe- 
 buck, and tlie fallow-deer, and the wild goat, and the pygarg, and the 
 wild ox, and tlie chamois." They were allowed to eat all those mam- 
 malia in wliich the perfectly cloven hoof meets with the structural 
 peculiarities of the stomach of the true ruminant. The stomach of the 
 sheep may be taken as tlie type of that organ in the ruminants. 
 
 The chief features of the order Ruminantia, or cud-chewers, are 
 these : — The feet terminate in two, so-called, fingers, the last joint of 
 which is covered by a horny substance — the hoof The opposed 
 surfaces of the hoofs are flat. The line at which they meet is the cleft 
 ot the foot. They are, with the exception of the camel, destitute ot 
 cutting teeth in the upper jaw, but have six of these teeth in the lower 
 jaw. Typical species have six inolar teeth on each side of either jaw. 
 Their stomach is compound. Its peculiarities are represented in the 
 following cut : — 
 
 Fig. 23. 
 
 Stoinacb of the Sheep. 
 
 Here we have a, cesoidiagus ; h, rumen or paunch ; c, reticulum or 
 water-bag ; J, psalterium or manyplies ; e, abomasum or red. 
 
 Camel, Heb. gamed. — The camel is first named as not fully answering 
 the description of the typical cud-chewers — " he chewcth the cud, but 
 divideth not the hoof." In zoological classification the camel belongs 
 to the order jRutiiinantia, family Camelidce. The dromedary may be 
 regarded as the type of this fomily. Its characterization here is very 
 accurate. It chews the cud, but does not truly divide the hoof. Unlike 
 the typical ruminants, it is destitute of horns, and possesses incisive 
 teeth. The feet are only partially cloven, and the hoofs protect only 
 the upper surface. The toes are conjoined below almost to the point. 
 The upper lip of the camel is cloven. The name " camel " is generally
 
 LEVITICUS IV.-XI. 
 
 79 
 
 given to the strongly-built variety, and "dromedary" to the swift one. 
 But they constitute only one species [Camelus dromedarias). (Plate 
 
 Fig. 24. 
 
 Water Colls in the Panrch of the Camel. 
 
 XXXVI., Fig. 3.) This species 
 has only one hump. The Bac- 
 trian species {C. bactrianus) has 
 two. In the walls of the paunch 
 a series of water-cells occur, pe- 
 culiar to this family, adn)irably 
 adapted to their life in the desert. 
 
 Coney, Hebrew slidpluoi — see 
 under Ps. civ. 18. 
 
 Hare, Heb. arneveth; Lepus of 
 zoologists ; the arnahh of the 
 Arabs. The word used here may 
 be taken as generic. It will thus 
 include the common hare [Lepus 
 timidus), and the rabbit {L. cunt- 
 cidus). Two varieties are met 
 with in Palestine. The hares 
 [Leporidoi) differ from the other 
 lodents by having, along with 
 other points of unlikeness, a small tooth behind each of the two large 
 incisive teeth in the upper jaw. The features of the hare referred to 
 here are, its chewing the cud and not dividing the hoof; see under 
 Ps. civ. In both particulars it is classed with the coney or hyrax. 
 The front feet of the hyrax are fur- ng.25. 
 
 uished with four toes, the hind feet 
 with three. These toes are furnished 
 with small flat hoofs. The inner toes 
 of the hind feet terminate in curved 
 pointed claws. The feet thus differ 
 entirely from those of the typical rumi- 
 nants. In the hare the difference is 
 even greater. The fore feet have five 
 toes, and the hind feet four, terminated with long compressed claws. 
 (Plate XXXYL, Fig. 1.) 
 
 The Swine, Heb. Mdzir, is said here to " divide the hoof, and to be 
 cloven-footed." This is to be taken in a modified sense. The remark 
 is made as to the outstanding appearance of the foot of the swine (Sits 
 scrofa), or common hog, in which the parts pressed on the ground are 
 
 Skull of KabbU.
 
 80 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCK. 
 
 two hoofed toes. This has led to the popuUir opinion that the foot is 
 bisulcate, or cloven. To this Moses here refers. However, there are 
 other two toes placed a little higher on the back of the foot, making it 
 thus four-toed. The flesh of swine was to be held in abomination by 
 every Israelite. See under Is. Ixv. 4. 
 
 The more important beasts of the land, such as they might naturally 
 think of as food, having been mentioned, the inhabitants of the water 
 are next noticed : — " These shall ye eat of all that are in the waters : 
 Whatsoever hath fins and scales in the waters, in the seas, and in the 
 rivers, them shall ye eat. And all that have not fins and scales in the 
 seas, and in the rivers, of all that move in the waters, and of any living 
 
 Fig. 26. 
 
 X ^^ K^*; 
 
 Common Hare {Lepus timidus). 
 
 thing which is in the waters, they shall be an abomination unto you. 
 They shall be even an abomination unto you ; ye shall not eat of their 
 flesh, but ye shall have their carcases in abomination. Whatsoever 
 hath no fins nor scales in the waters, that shall be an abomination unto 
 you" (ver. 9-12). No examples are given, as in the other cases. The 
 distinction is very general. They might eat every aquatic animal 
 which had fins and scales ; but no creature crawling in the waters, and 
 destitute of these, might be eaten. The reference here is not to be 
 limited to the class Fishes (Pisces) ; it includes all the forms of aquatic 
 life which might be esteemed edible. Thus water and amphibious 
 reptiles [Eeptilui), as the tortoise, the crocodile, &c., were forbidden, 
 as were all the members of the great group Molluscs (MoUusca). The 
 crustaceans (Crustacea), as the crab and the lobster; the annelides
 
 LEVITICUS IV.-XI. 81 
 
 {Annelida)^ as the leeches and the lob-worms ; the echinoderms {EcMno- 
 dermata), as the star-fishes and the sea-urchins ; and tlie acalephs 
 {Acalephce), as the sea-nettles, &c., were all to be reckoned iinclean. 
 The number of fishes properly so called, destitute of fins and scales, 
 which could come under this notice, was very small indeed. A half- 
 naked stickleback (Gasteosteus) might be fished up in their ponds, but 
 even its place here would be doubtful, because of its fully-developed 
 fins. The minnow {Lct(Ci'scus), as some interpreters seem to suppose, 
 is not destitute either of fins or scales. The Hebrew angler would 
 thus not have any opportunity to " reject scrupulously the unclean 
 minnows, and to choose the clean." On the shores of the Great Sea 
 one or two of the group [Derniupteres), distinguished by their naked 
 bodies, might occasionally find their way into their nets. One Clarias 
 (Hasselqimii), might be taken from the waters of Palestine, or another 
 {maijMs) from the Nile, arresting their attention by its mailed head 
 and naked body, clad like those knights who wore plate armour on 
 their breast alone, and made no provision for retreat. But the scarcity 
 of such forms, some of which even tall short of the description, is 
 enough to suggest that the distinctions drawn in these verses reach far 
 beyond the class Fishes. The reference to this subject in Dcut. xiv. 9, 
 10, is much more brief than here — " These ye shall eat of all that are 
 in tlie waters : all that have fins and scales shall ye eat : and whatso- 
 ever hath not fins and scales ye may not eat ; it is unclean unto you." 
 
 Passing from the inhabitants of the water, Moses next directs special 
 attention to those of the air. The commands regarding birds begin 
 with those which all naturalists agree in placing at the head of orni- 
 thological classification, the birds of prey: — "And these are they which 
 ye shall have in abomination among the fowls ; they shall not be eaten, 
 they are an abomination : the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray, 
 and the vulture, and the kite after his kind" (ver. 13, 14). The fol- 
 lowing list contains the names of all the birds of prey {Itaptores) men- 
 tioned in Scripture : — 
 
 1. Vulture (dCidh, ver. 14 ; dai/dh, Deut. xiv. 13). 
 
 2. Eagle {nesher, ver. 13, Exod. xix. 4; neshai; Dau. iv. 33). 
 
 3. Osprey {ozanijah, ver. 13, Deut. xiv. 12). 
 
 4. Ossifrage {peres, ib.) 
 
 5. Glede {rddh, Ueut. xiv. 13). 
 
 6. Kite {ai/ah, ver. 14, ib.) 
 
 7. Hawk {netz, ver. 16, Job xxxix. 2G). 
 
 VOL. II. I'
 
 82 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 8. Owl, great (i/ansiqyh, ver. 17, Dcut. xiv. IG ; Icippoz^ Isa. xxxiv. 15). 
 
 9. Owl, little [kos, ib.) 
 
 10. Owl {hath yandh = daughter of the owl, ver. IG, Job xxx. 29, 
 
 Isa. xiii. 21). 
 
 11. Owl, screech (lllith, Isa. xxxiv. 14). 
 
 In addition to these, other two birds have been named as belonging to 
 this group — namely, the gier-eagle (^rahJiam, Lev. xi. 18; rahhdmdh, 
 Deut. xiv. 17) and the night-hawk (taMmds, Lev. xi. 16, Deut. xiv. 15). 
 It is, however, very doubtful if either of these be a bird of prey. 
 
 Vulture. — Two species seem to be mentioned. One, the tawny 
 vulture, in verse 14; another, the true Egyptian species — the so-called 
 " Pharaoh's chicken" — in Deut. xiv. 13, and Isa. xxxiv. 15, which see. 
 (Plate XXXIV., Fig. 2.) The Septuagint renders dddh by gyps, hence 
 
 Fig. 27. 
 
 Fig. 28. 
 
 Head of Tawny Vulture. 
 
 Ifpad of Lgyptiau Vulture {Secphron percnopUrui) 
 
 the generic name of the tawny vulture ; and daijali liy ikt'nos, hence 
 Ictinia of Viell, Gray, &c. The former Greek name evidently refers to 
 the stooping attitude and bended neck of the vultures when they are at 
 rest, the latter to their speed in coming to their prey. The one Hebrew 
 term indicates power of wing, the other that which is dark. See also 
 under Isaiah xxxiv. 15. 
 
 Eagle. — This word occurs twenty-eight times in Scripture, chiefly 
 in the Old Testament. Its Hebrew name points to its habit of tearing 
 the flesh from its prey as it eats. Nesher appears to have been used, 
 as eagle is popularly still, to include both vultures and eagles, properly 
 so called, and even as a general term for birds of prey. In at least four 
 passages this is the case. Eagles kill the animals on which they feed. 
 Vultures prey on the carcasses of the slain. Their structure answers 
 to this difierence of habit. The eagle has the bill more hooked, the
 
 LEVITICUS IV.-XT. 83 
 
 legs stronger, and the claws more rounded than the vultures, which do 
 not carry off their prey, but feed where tliey find the carcass. In the 
 .sublime reference to these birds in Job xxxix. 27-30, tliat named is 
 one of the vultures : — 
 
 " Doth the eagle mount uj) nt thy command, 
 And make her nest on high ? 
 She dwelleth and abidetli on the rock, 
 On the crag of tlie rock and the strong place. 
 From thence she seeketh her prey. 
 And her eyes behold afar off. 
 Her young ones also suck up blood : 
 And wliere the slain are, there is she." 
 
 Of the man that " mocketh his father," it is said that the young eagles 
 shall eat his eyes ; cast out as slain, the vultures would prey upon 
 him (Prov. xxx. 17). In the vision which " Micah saw concerning 
 Samaria and Jerusalem," reference is made to a characteristic mark of 
 one of the vultures {neophron}^ which has its face, cheeks, and throat 
 naked or bald. The genus Gijpactos has been named as that referred 
 to here, but the head of the single species {G. harbatus) which belongs 
 to this geims is feathered (Plate XXXIV., Fig. 3)—" Make thee bald, 
 and poll thee for thy delicate children ; enlarge thy baldness as the 
 eagle; for they are gone into captivity from thee" (Mic. i. IG). The 
 bald eagle of modern systematists belongs to the ospreys. It is known 
 as Haliaetos hucoceplialus, and is indigenous in America. Our Lord 
 employed the word eagle in this popular way likewise — " For where- 
 soever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together" 
 (Matt. xxiv. 28). But the fact that the eagle is both here and in 
 Deut. xiv. 12, 13, distinguished from the vulture and other closely 
 related forms, implies that a distinct species was in the eye of 
 Moses, most likely the golden eagle {Aquila clirysa'etos). See under 
 Obadiah 4. 
 
 OsPKEY. — The name occurs only here and in Deut. xiv. It is the 
 osprey, or fish hawk, still met with in the neighbourhood of the Red 
 Sea. 
 
 OssiFEAGE, literally the "crusher" (peres), or the "bone-breaker" 
 (pssifragd), the great sea eagle {Halia'etits ossifrofjus of Linnaeus), a 
 bird nearly three feet long, and above seven feet from tip to tip of the 
 wings. It frequents the north of Europe and Asia, but is also to be 
 met with on the eastern shores of the Great Sea during severe winters. 
 
 Gi.EDE. — See under Deut. xiv. 13.
 
 Kite. — The word rendered kite here and in Deut. xiv. 13, occurs 
 in only one other passage, Job xxviii. 7, which see. 
 
 IIawk. — The term is to be taken as very general. It no doubt 
 includes the other Falconidas not mentioned here, but with which Israel 
 must have been well acquainted, both during their sojourn in Egypt 
 and in their after wanderings. Four species, at least, of harriers are 
 still to be met with in Egypt, two of which are abundant, the other 
 two occasionally met with — namely, the marsh harrier {Circus rufus), 
 the hen or common harrier (C. qjaneus), Montagu's harrier (C. cincra- 
 ceus), and the pallid harrier {C. pallidus). It is not the least likely 
 that birds of such mark would be overlooked in these arrangements. 
 In Egypt, also, the people would be familiar with other species, more 
 
 Osprey {Pandvm HaluiTtius). 
 
 or less abundant still — as the lanner falcon {Faico lananits), the double- 
 bearded falcon {F. hiarmicus), the peregrine falcon {F. jyercgn'mis), 
 merlin (F. cvsalon), kestrel {F. tinnunculus), and sparrow-hawk {Acci- 
 ptter m'siis). See also under Deut. xiv, 15, and Job xxxix. 26. 
 
 Great Owl. — Two words are thus translated — namely, yansiipli, 
 Deut. xiv. IG, which see, and Iciijpoz, Isa. xxxiv. 15. Bochart proposes 
 serpens jacuJus, or arrow-snake, as the most probable meaning of IvippOz, 
 rendered great owl in our version. Arrow-snahe was a name given by 
 some old naturalists to such so-called serpents as moved quickly, or 
 darted with great suddenness and speed on their prey. But a close 
 examination of the words in the light of the context convinces me, that 
 "great owl" is to be preferred to "arrow-snake," which, in addition to its 
 "vrant of harmony with the other part of the verse, has the strong disad-
 
 LEVITICUS IV.-XI. 
 
 85 
 
 vantage of retaining an indefinite terra not now recognized in science. 
 The words of Isaiali are — " There shall the great owl make her nest, 
 and lay, and hatch, and gather under her shadow : there sliall the 
 vultures also be gathered, every one with her mate." Bochart's objec- 
 tions relate chiefly to the absence of any reference to " wings " in 
 connection with " shadow." A reference to Ps. xci. 1, 4, will show 
 that there is no weight in this. In verse 1 "shadow" is used by itself 
 
 Fig. 30. 
 
 — " He shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty." The idea 
 of wings was, however, present when the word was employed, though 
 tliey are not mentioned. This is seen when his mind recurs to the 
 thought, as in verse 4 — 
 
 " lie shall cover thee -with his feathers. 
 And under his wings shall thou trust." 
 
 So it seems to have been with Isaiah ; for having mentioned the vul- 
 tures, he thinks of them as flying — " Tlicy shall be gathered, every one 
 with her mate." 
 
 The Little Owl. — The name occurs thirty-two times, and is always
 
 translated "cup." except in tliree passages — here, Deut. xiv. IG, and 
 Ps. cii. G. In tlie first two it is rendered "little owl," in the last "like 
 an owl." The rounded cup-like form of the head, doubtless, gave rise 
 to the name. The LXX. have given nuld/korax, or night raven, as the 
 equivalent of the Hebrew Jcos, thereby indicating their uncertainty as 
 to the bird. Indeed, it may be remarked generally, tliat the Septua- 
 gint's rendering of the names of animals is little to be relied on. The 
 remark so often made by interpreters, that much weight is to be given 
 to it because the translators belonged to the region in which most of 
 the animals were to be met with, is not to the purpose. Everything 
 depended on their acquaintance with the place of the animals in natural 
 history. Though most learned and intelligent on other points, they 
 might here make as many mistakes as men among ourselves would 
 do, if, while wholly ignorant of zoology, they were set to translate 
 this chapter again into Greek or Latin. In two ways mainly can an 
 approach to accuracy be made in attempting to determine the beasts, 
 birds, and insects named in this chapter. On the one hand, the deriva- 
 tion of the names must be carefully considered ; on the other hand, and 
 chiefly, the scope of the context must always be particularly noticed. 
 The bird which most nearly answers the biblical references to the 
 " little owl," is the Athene nocttia, or little night owl — a species which 
 occurs in Western Asia. Another species {Athene mendionah's) is 
 extremely common in Southern Palestine and in Egypt. 
 
 The Owl — literally, daughter of the owl ; see under Job xxx. 29. 
 
 "Every raven after his kind" (ver. 15). The word "kind" is not 
 always to be taken in its correct scientific import. It may also be 
 regarded from the popular point of view as including varieties merely. 
 Here it has, no doubt, even the wider signification of the Crow family 
 — Corvidce. See under Gen. viii. 7. In Canaan the Israelites would 
 meet with numerous members of this family. Three species still abound 
 — the raven, the hooded crow, and the rook. "When describing a 
 thicket on the borders of the great Hideh marsh. Dr. Thomson says — 
 " But this very impenetrability to man and beast makes it the favourite 
 retreat of crows and rooks ; there they breed, and thither they return 
 at night from their rambles over the country. Upon the mountain 
 above Huniu I have watched them at early dawn rising in clouds from 
 this jungle. On they came, like wild pigeons in the AVest, only their 
 line was not across the horizon, but like the columns of an endless 
 army, stretching from the Hideh up Wady et Teim farther than the 
 eye could follow them ; the column, how-ever, grows less and less dense
 
 LEVITICUS IV.-XI. 87 
 
 by the departure in every direction of small squadrons, according to 
 some social regulations known only to themselves, until the whole is 
 dissipated. These birds are the plague of the farmer. They light by 
 thousands on his fields, and devour so much of the fresh-sown seed that 
 he is obliged to make a large allowance for their depredations. It is 
 utterly useless to attempt to frighten them away. They rise like a 
 cloud at the crack of your gun, wheel round and round for a few 
 minutes, cawing furiously at you, and then settle down again to their 
 work of robbery as if nothing had Fig.si. 
 
 happened. They fly to an im- 
 mense distance in their foraging 
 excursions. I have met them at 
 least fifty miles from this their 
 roosting-place. It is curious to see 
 them in the afternoon preparing 
 to return hither from the wadies 
 around the north end of Ilermon. 
 They assemble in groups, caw and 
 scream, and wheel round and 
 round in ascending circles, until itca-iofthcRook. 
 
 almost lost in the blue dei)ths of the sk}- ; then they sail in a straight 
 line for this marsh, chattering to each other all the way. Assembled 
 in the evening, they report the adventures of the day in noisy conclave, 
 loud as the voice of many waters." 
 
 Night Hawk, Heb. tahhrnds, is named only here and in Deut. xiv. 15. 
 The Greek rendering is glaux, a term suggestive of quickness of sight. 
 This has led many to understand another species of owl, in addition to 
 those mentioned above, because this name was given to the owl. It 
 occurs in an ancient proverb similar to that current among ourselves — 
 " Carry coals to Newcastle." Owls abounded in the neighbourhood of 
 Athens, and when men were taunted with doing needless work, they 
 were said to be like those who " took owls to Athens." It is much 
 more likely, however, that another and widely different bird is indicated 
 here. Our translators appear to have had the now well-known goat- 
 sucker in view, a bird which in this country still goes by the name of 
 night-bird (iioctua), niglit-jar, and night-hawk. Its nocturnal habits; its 
 irregular, swift, yet silent flight ; its harsh wktri; tohih; sounding from 
 ruined wall or from the deep dark thicket — would not fail to impress 
 the superstitious people of the East, and lead them to prejudice even 
 iotelliu'ent travellers. The bird to which the inhabitants attributed
 
 habits which distinguished it I'roin all others could, they thought, be no 
 other than the night-liawk of Scripture. Hasselquist says — " It is of 
 the size of the common owl, and lodges in the large buildings or ruins 
 of Egypt and Syria, and soinetimcs even in the dwelling-houses. The 
 Arabs settled in Egypt call it Massasa, and the Syrians Banu. It is 
 extremely voracious in Syria ; to such a degree, that if care is not taken 
 to shut the windows at the coming on of night, it enters the houses and 
 kills the children ; the women, therefore, are very much afraid of it." 
 This superstitious notion continues to be repeated with the respect due 
 to truth alone. But there is no more ground for this " sucking of the 
 blood of infants" than there is for the popular impression which gave 
 the name of goatsucker to the bird now referred to. The goatsucker 
 feeds on the insects which come abroad in the twilight, and fly during 
 
 Fig. 32. 
 
 l-ig. 33. 
 
 Foot of Goatsucker. 
 
 Head of Goatsucker {Caprimutgus Europaiut). 
 
 the night. The structure of the foot of this bird has attracted much 
 attention. The front toes are conjoined at the base by a thin mem- 
 brane, the outer toe is very short, the middle long and terminated with 
 a serrated or comb-shaped claw. The bill, which is short, slender, and 
 curved, is surrounded by strong bristles which point forward. The 
 gape of the mouth is unusually large, extending to below the eyes. 
 Two species at least are to be met with in Bible lands — namely, the 
 European goatsucker and the Isabella goatsucker (C. Isabellinus). 
 Plate XIV., Fig. 1. 
 
 Cuckoo, Heb. shahJuiph, is used only here and in Deut. xiv. 15. 
 The LXX. render it laws, or gull. This has led to a very general 
 impression that one of the sea-fowl is meant ; some think the common 
 gull, others the tern — see under Deut. xiv. 15. The Hebrew word is 
 derived from the root to waste away, to taper, to grow thin, and the 
 LXX. having named a sea-bird, recent interpreters have inferred that the 
 tern must be the bird alluded to, " because the terns are slender birds,
 
 LEVITICUS IV.-XI. 
 
 89 
 
 Fiy. 31. 
 
 and resemble, with their long wings and forked tail, the comraou 
 
 swallow." But there are other birds which approach as near the 
 
 original moaning of this word as the terns. The cuckoo itself, which 
 
 our translators have set down as 
 
 the true rendering of sliahltai)li., docs 
 
 not come far short of them in slen- 
 
 derness, when seen on the wing. 
 
 (Plate XXXIII. Fig. 4.) It is, 
 
 moreover, frequently met with in 
 
 Palestine. " We soon," says Dr. 
 
 Bonar, describing the road between 
 
 Jerusalem and Jericho, "struck into 
 
 a deep ravine ; but the road lay 
 
 not at the foot, but a considerable way up its southern flank. We 
 
 noticed water at the bottom, and a tolerable amount of verdure. The 
 
 note of the cuckoo came, like a wandering voice, across the glen, though 
 
 there seemed no woods, in which this ' stranger of the grove,' this 
 
 'messenger of spring,' could find a place for rest or song." It loves 
 
 such haunts, and may often be heard in our own land in moorland 
 
 districts where there are only scattered hazel and alder bushes, or a 
 
 few stunted native oaks and birches. The cuckoo seldom utters its 
 
 soft plaintive note when at rest. When heard the bird is generally on 
 
 Head of Common Gull tj,arus caniii). 
 
 Fig. 35. 
 
 the wing. 
 
 It is curious that no one has 
 suggested the flamingo as answer- 
 ing the sliahhaph better than any 
 of the birds mentioned. It must 
 have stood conspicuously out be- 
 fore the Israelites of the time of 
 Moses. The great length and 
 slenderness of its legs and neck, 
 its curiously formed bill, and the 
 beauty of its plumage, were sure 
 to attract the notice of the people. 
 It is still frequently seen in the 
 Levant. Dr. Heuglin recently 
 found flocks numbering about a hundred, on the shores of the Red Sea. 
 It is met with also in the neighbourhood of the Sea of the Plain. 
 
 The Cokjiorant, Heb. shulfik, is mentioned also in Deut. xiv. 17. In 
 Isa. xxxiv. 11, and Zeph. ii. 14, the tiebrew kdath is rendered cormo- 
 
 VOI.. II. M 
 
 Iload of flamingo {Phfrnicopknu ruber).
 
 90 
 
 niBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 rant, but the pelican is the bird referred to — see under Ps. cii. 6. The 
 common cormorant {Phalacrocorax carho) is abundant on the eastern 
 shores of the Mediterranean sea. It measures about three feet in 
 length, is black beneath and dark brown above, with a white patch 
 on each thigh. The naked skin of the face and throat is yellow, 
 bordered with white. It places its nest of coarse grass and sea-weeds 
 on the ledges of lofty cliffs. The bill is rather long, nearly straight, 
 and distinguished by the strongly hooked tip of tlie upper mandible. 
 Mr. Waterton has graphically described some of its habits. He says: — 
 " The cormorant may be justly styled the feathered terror of the finny 
 tribe. His skill in diving is most admirable, and his success beyond 
 belief; you may know him at a distance among a thousand water-fowl, 
 by his upright neck, by his body being apparently half immersed in 
 water, and by his being perpetually in motion when not on land. 
 While the ducks, teal, and widgeon are stationary on the pool, the 
 cormorant is seen swimming to and fro ' as if in quest of something.' 
 First raising his body perpendicularly, down he plunges into the deep • 
 and after staying there a considerable time, he is seen to bring up 
 a fish, which he invariably swallows head foremost. Sometimes half 
 an hour elapses before he can manage to accommodate a large eel quietly 
 in his stomach. You see him straining violently, with repeated efforts 
 to gulp it ; and when you fancy that the slippery mouthful is successfully 
 disposed of, all on a sudden the eel retrogrades upwards from its dismal 
 sepulchre, struggling violently to escape. The cormorant swallows it 
 again, and up again it comes, and shows its tail a foot or more out of 
 its destroyer's mouth. At length, worn out with ineffectual writhings 
 and slidings, the eel is gulped down into the cormorant's stomach for 
 the last time." The flesh of this bird is coarse, fishy, and disagreeable. 
 One species {Ph. sinensis) is trained by the Chinese to fish for them. 
 (Plate IV., Fig. 1.) 
 
 The Swan, Heb. tanshemeth. In verse 30, a similar word is rendered 
 mole. In Deut. xiv. 16, it is translated swan. The root is ndshdm to 
 breathe. It is joined here with the gier eagle and the pelican. The 
 latter is noticed under Ps. cii. 6 — which see. 
 
 Gier Eagle, Heb. rdhhdm (ver. 18) rdlilidmah (Deut. xiv. 17). By 
 some the word rendered swan is held to point out the sultana hen, or 
 purple water-hen {Porphjno IiT/acinthis), a magnificent and beautiful 
 species. By others the gier eagle is identified with this bird (Lauda- 
 tissiina et nohilissima avis, cui rostrum et prcelonga crura ruhent. — Plin. 
 X. 40, 49.) But though celebrated among the ancients, and though it
 
 LEVITICUS IV.-XI. 91 
 
 is often to be met with iu Egypt, its comparative rarity in Palestine, 
 and, generally, the absence of every thing but its beauty to distinguish 
 it from some closely related birds, which must have stood much more 
 out in the eyes of the peoijle, make it not at all likely that it is either 
 the swan or the gier eagle of Scripture. The word rendered gicr eagle 
 is suggestive of attachment to its young. Taking tanshemeth^ as was 
 long ago done by Michaelis, to be' the goose {Anser ferns), and rdlJidm 
 the swan (C>/gni(s ferns and G. olor), we have a rendering much more 
 in harmony with the context. (Plate XXXI., Fig. 2.) The flesh of 
 the goose constituted a chief part of the food of the Egyptians. It 
 was, moreover, the emblem of Seb, one of their divinities, the father 
 of Osiris. The red goose of the Nile is named chenal-opex by Hero- 
 dotus, who notices it as a sacred bird. The habits of tlie goose are 
 equally suggestive here. Its harsh hiss when irritated, and its audible 
 breathing when feeding in the mud at the edge of the river or pond, 
 are such as might have led to the Hebrew name. The devotion of the 
 swan to its young has been often told. When disturbed she rallies 
 them behind her, much in the same Avay as wild cattle do their young. 
 She may be seen fondling them with her bill, and encouraging them to 
 take a place on her back, and thus glide with her along the surface 
 of the quiet water. 
 
 The Stork, Heb. hlutsidah (Ctcom'a alba et C. nigi-a), is noticed 
 under 2 Chron, ix. 21 ; Ps. civ. 17 ; and Jer. viii. 7 — which see. 
 (Plate IV., Fig. 2.) 
 
 The Heron, Heb. anCtphdli, occurs only here and in Dent. xiv. 18. 
 The notice is more general than that of most of the other associated 
 birds. It is " the heron after its kind." Among these may he 
 mentioned the common heron [Ardea cinereci) ; the egrets {A. egretta=^ 
 Egretta alba and Egretta garzetta). The former species has a yellow 
 bill, sometimes tipped with black ; the latter, which is much smaller, 
 has a black bill. Both the common heron and the egrets are abundant 
 in Palestine. Other closely related species may have been included 
 in the expression " heron after its kind," as Tantalus {T. ibis) and the 
 Bittern {Bitaurus steUaris)~SQe Plate VIII., Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4. 
 
 The Lapwing, Heb. dtlhiphath (ver. 19, Deut. xiv. 18). Many 
 claim the hoopoe {Upnpa epops, Plate XXV., Fig. 2) as the bird named 
 here. The chief authority for this is, that the Greek rendering is 
 epops, though this is not always decisive. The author of the " Land 
 and the Book," holds by the English translation. He says: — " I have 
 seen them coming down tlie coast in large flocks on the wings of the
 
 92 
 
 UinUCAL NATURAL SCIENCK. 
 
 wild north wiiul. Tlioy then Jisperse over these mountains, and remain 
 until early spi'ing, when they entirely disappear. They roost on the 
 ground wherever night overtakes them. I liave frequently started 
 them up from under tlie very feet of my frightened horse when riding 
 in the dark, cspeeially along the spurs of old Hermon, and in Wady ct 
 Teim, between the two Lebanons. They utter a loud scream when 
 about to fly, whieh sounds like a prolonged tect, and Jience the name 
 Bu-Tcet — father of tcct. It is the duhcpliatli of Rloses, translated lap- 
 icimj in our version, and I think correctly, notwithstanding what some 
 recent writers advance against it. It was classed by Moses among the 
 unclean birds, and is so regarded now by tlie Arabs, who refuse to cat 
 it. The upper parts of the body and wings are of a dull slate colour, 
 
 Fib-. 8G. 
 
 Cm-lew (Xuvirvius nrq'tata). 
 
 the under parts of both are white. It has a top-hnot on the hinder 
 part of the head, jioinling backward like a horn ; and when running 
 about on the ground, it closely resembles a young hare." 
 
 The hoopoe, however, is even more common, a tamer bird, and one 
 much more likely to be thought of as food. An able ornithologist says 
 of it in his notes on South Palestine birds : — " It is common about the 
 towns and villages, frequents dunghills, and is extremely tame and 
 familiar. The Arabs have a superstitious reverence for the bird, which 
 they believe to possess marvellous medicinal qualities, and call it " the 
 doctor." Its head is also an indispensable ingredient in all charms and 
 in the practice of witchcraft" {Tristram). It is also alnmdant in Egypt. 
 Another recent observer says : — " It is one of tlie connnonest birds of 
 Egypt, especially abounding in the vicinity of the towns and villages.
 
 LEVITICUS IV.-XI. 
 
 93 
 
 lu the month of January I used to notice these birds entering the holes 
 in tlie crude brick wails ; I frequently dug tliera out, but never found 
 any eggs. We found the hoopoe a very good bird to eat." — {Taijlor.) 
 Both the Arabs and the Egyptians give it a name liaving considerable 
 resemblance to the Hebrew. Taking all this into account, it seems 
 most likely that this is the bird referred to here. But there is another 
 bird frequently met with in the marshes of Syria and Egypt, which was 
 scarcely likely to escape the notice of the Jewish leader, and which 
 from its near resemblance to some of those mentioned here, might have 
 been named in this list. The curlew in size and in habits must have 
 stood more prominently out before the people than either the lapwing 
 or the hoopoe. It may, indeed, have been included under the expres- 
 sion "heron after her kind," though distinctly separated in modern 
 classification. 
 
 Fig. 37. 
 
 Leaf Dat {Megndermfr /rons). 
 
 Long-eared Itat {PUcntm auritm). 
 Heads of r>at8. 
 
 Ilorse-shoe Cat {lihinolophus /rTrum-fqninvm). 
 
 "The Bat," Heb. atalqjh (ver. 19; Deut. xiv. 18; Isa. ii. 20). It 
 means the " flier in darkness," an e]iltliet preserved both in the Greek 
 and Latin names for this animal. The bat seems mentioned in such a 
 way as to link the true birds with the true insects. In Deuteronomy 
 this is more evident than here : " The bat, and every creeping thing 
 that flieth is imclean unto you." The organs of flight are specially 
 taken into account in this arrangement. Even at a date so compara- 
 tively recent as 1557, there were naturalists who assigned the bat a 
 place among birds. In the Hisfona NatiirGlis of J. Johnstone all birds 
 are classified as terrestrial, or as aquatic. Land birds are ranged in 
 two groups. Flesh-eaters and Insect-caters, and the bat is set down as 
 belonging to the former. But modern science lias determined their
 
 94 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 true place, and has assigned to them a position in zoological classifica- 
 tion much nearer man than are any of the domestic animals. The 
 Cheiroptera^ or wiiig-handed mammals, meet the flying lemurs. These 
 meet the apes, which stand next to man. The wings of the bat first 
 attract the notice of observers. Derham in his " Survey of Quadru- 
 peds" long ago spoke of " the wings of the bat as a prodigious devia- 
 tion from nature's ordinary way." They are formed by an extension 
 of the skin itself, and consist of an extremely thin and delicate mem- 
 brane " extending in front from the neck and sides of the body to the 
 extremity of the fingers of each upper limb, and behind to the tail and 
 to the heels of the feet. All the parts of the bony skeleton are 
 fruitful of remarkable illustrations of the adaptation between structure 
 
 The Lonfj-eared Bat {Phcotus aurib's). 
 
 and functions — see Plate IX., Fig. 9. The bats come abroad at night, 
 and feed on the moths and beetles that are then on the wing. In all 
 countries the larger forms have been regarded with dread and super- 
 stition. Lying hid during the day in rock crevices, in old walls, and 
 in the holes of decayed trees, no sooner has darkness begun to gather 
 over the landscape than they come forth weird-like for their noc- 
 turnal work. They were "the filthy birds of the sea" of the ancients; 
 the harpies which came forth on bad intent ; the monsters ready to 
 suck the life-blood of the sleeping child. Knowledge has dissipated 
 such imaginings ; yet there are comparatively few who even yet have 
 come to regard these animals with the interest which they deserve. 
 Bats hybernate or sleep during winter. They seldom have more than 
 one young one, and never more than two. These are suckled at two
 
 LEVITICUS IV.-XI. 
 
 95 
 
 teats on the breast. The reference to the bat by Isaiali points to the 
 dark places in which tliey lie during the day. 
 
 From the bat ]\Iosgs passes to insects. These are named " flying 
 creeping things." Assuming that the Spirit of God made use of the 
 attainments of his servant in communicating with his people, verses 
 21 and 22 show us how closely Moses had observed the creatures now 
 referred to : — " Yet these may ye eat, of every flying creeping thing 
 that goeth ujion all four, which have legs above their feet, to leap 
 withal upon the earth. Even these of them ye may eat ; the locust 
 after his kind, and the bald locust after his kind, and the beetle after 
 his kind, and the grasshopper after his kind. But all other flying 
 creeping things, which have four feet, shall be an abomination unto 
 
 Greater Horse-shoe Bat {Rhinolophts ffrrum-rqnmum). 
 
 you." The generic distinctions between the insects noticed are 
 clearly indicated. The different direction of the two front legs from 
 the four hinder ones is pointed out in such a way as to show 
 that he looked upon the former as arms. Again, there is a well 
 defined distinction made between "going" and "leaping." Insects 
 of this group have both motions. The former is slow, awkward, 
 and crawling; the latter is rapid, elegant, and lively. Even Shaw, 
 with his powers of careful observation, failed to appreciate this distinc- 
 tion in the spirit of the text. He says : — " It may be observed again, 
 that insects do not properly walk upon four, but six feet. Neither is 
 there any adequate description peculiar to this tribe conveyed to us, by 
 their being said to have legs upon their feet, to leap withal upon the 
 earth ; because they have this in common only with birds, frogs, and
 
 several other creatures. Tlic original expression therefore may pro- 
 bably bear this construction; viz., which have knees upon, or above 
 their liindcr legs, to leap withal upon the earth. For to apply this 
 description to the locust (the only one we know of the four that are 
 mentioned, Lev. xi. 22), this insect has the two hindermost of its legs 
 or feet much stronger, larger, and longer tlian any one of the foremost. 
 In them the knee, or the articulation of the leg and tliigh, is distin- 
 guished by a remarkable bending or curvature ; whereby it is able, 
 whenever prepared to jump, to spring and raise itself up with great 
 force and activity. As the principal distinction therefore betwixt the 
 clean and unclean insects, seems to have depended upon this particular 
 shape and structure of the hinder feet, the action wliicli is ascribed to 
 the clean insects, of going upon four (viz., the foremost feet), and 
 leaping upon the (two) hindermost, is a characteristic as expressive 
 of the original text, as it is of the animals to whom it appertains." 
 —(Travels ii., 288.) 
 
 This is only part of the trutli. If tlie verses now uniler notice be 
 looked at in the light of even the most recent scientific definition of 
 tliis group of insects, tlie reader will be struck with their precision. 
 " Tlie fourth section, Saltatoria," says Mr. Westwood, " corresponds 
 with the Linnaaan genus Gryllus, and consists of all those species which 
 have the four anterior legs simple and short, and the two hind legs 
 long and formed for leaping. For this purpose the femora are greatly 
 tliickened, so as internally to afford support to the strong muscles by 
 which the leap is effected; the posterior edge of the thigli is channelled, 
 so as to receive tlie tibia when at rest ; the upper or posterior surfiice 
 of the latter being generally strongly spined, and furnished at the tip 
 with robust spurs, which assist greatly in effecting the leap of the 
 insect, by offering resistance against the substance on which the insect 
 is stationed. The body is generally compressed ; the tarsi vary in the 
 number of their joints, as well as the antenna?, which are also greatly 
 variable in length, being in some species several times longer than the 
 body. The males are enabled to make a peculiar chirruping noise, 
 which is produced in different manners in the different groups, being in 
 some (Lociista) caused by the friction of the strong veins inclosing a 
 talc-like spot, or crepitaculum, at the base of the wing-covers." 
 
 Another list of unclean animals is introduced here, which is 
 omitted in Deut. xiv : — " These also shall be unclean unto you among 
 the creeping things that creep upon the earth ; the weasel, and the 
 mouse, and the tortoise after his kind, and the ferret, and the chame-
 
 LEVITICUS IV.-XI. 
 
 97 
 
 leon, and the lizard, and the snail, and the mole. These are unclean 
 to you among all that creep ; whosoever doth touch them, when they 
 be dead, shall be unclean until the even. And upon whatsoever any of 
 them, when they are dead, doth fall, it shall be unclean ; whether it be 
 any vessel of wood, or raiment, or skin, or sack, whatsoever vessel it 
 be wherein any work is done, it must be put into water, and it shall be 
 unclean until the even ; so it shall be cleansed" (ver. 29-32). 
 
 The difficulties in the way of identifying the animals now named are 
 many and great. But these have been increased by overlooking the 
 manifest reference to habits, when we join the expression " creeping 
 things that creep" with some of the animals known to be indicated 
 here. The opinions of leading interpreters vary more widely than the 
 rendering of the different versions of Scripture. 
 
 HEBREW SORIPTUEES. 
 
 Hholcd. Achhar. Tzav. Aniikali. Kualib. LetaSli. 
 
 Hhomet. 
 
 Tanshcinell). 
 
 SEPrnAOIST \-ERSION. 
 
 Weasel. Mniise. Crocotlile. Shrew-Mouse. Chameleon, Lizard (■SVc///o). Lizard (^iMcerlii), Jlole, 
 
 SYRIAC VERSION. 
 
 Weasel. Mouse. Crocodile. Lizard. Mole. Salamander. Lizard (SteUio). Centipede. 
 
 VDLOATE. 
 
 Weasel. Jlouse. Crocodile. Sliiew-mousc. Chameleon. Lizard. 
 
 ENGLISH VERSION. 
 
 Weasel. Mouse. Tortoise. Ferret. Chameleon. Lizard. 
 
 Lizard (^Lacrtu"). Mole. 
 
 Snail. 
 
 Mole. 
 
 Weasel, — The unwillingness of interpreters to admit the weasel, the 
 mouse, and the mole into this list originates in the theory, that the 
 " creeping things " must mean reptiles proper {Beptilia). But if the sly 
 and stealthy way in which the weasel and the mouse move about in the 
 grass or in other haunts, and the motion of the mole when it appears 
 above ground, be taken into account, we cease to wonder at their 
 presence here with the lizards and the snail, "Weasel" may be 
 regarded as the name for the family {MusteJ/'dce). Besides the common 
 weasel {Mustela vuhjaris) which is widely distributed, the polecat 
 {M. putorius) is abundant in the temperate regions of Europe and Asia, 
 The Mouse, — See under 1 Sam. vi, 4; Isa. Ixvi. 17, 
 The Tortoise after his kind. Our translators refused to follow the 
 leading versions here and render tzav, lightly I think, "tortoise," 
 guided by the reference in the word to something covered, rounded, 
 and fat-looking. Illustrations of the "tortoise after his kind" are 
 given on Plate XII, — which see. The name "tortoise" is generally 
 
 VOL, II.
 
 98 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 applied to the land and the fresh-\Yater forms ; " turtle " to those of 
 the sea. Six genera of cheloiiian reptiles (Chehnm) are represented 
 on the plate. Tliey belong to the group Catajjhracta, or reptiles with 
 
 Fig. 42. 
 
 Fig. 43. 
 
 Polecat {Mn^Uln pulorii's) 
 
 shields. The common tortoise {Teshido grceca, Fig. 1), and the Nilotic 
 three-toed tortoise (Trionyx niloticus, Fig. 7) were those with wliich the 
 Israelites would be acquainted. The others are introduced to show the 
 leading forms. But if these commands took into account the scattering 
 of the people into other lands, even before the Old Testament dispensa- 
 tion closed, they might meet with other forms. 
 
 The skeleton of the tortoises 
 (Plate IX., Fig. 11) is external, 
 and acts as a shield to the mus- 
 cular system. It consists mainly 
 of two parts, namely, the cara- 
 pace^ or upper part of the shield, 
 and the plastron, or under part. 
 The former is generally rounded ; 
 the latter is flat. The plastron 
 answers to the breastbone, or 
 sternum, of birds, and the cara- 
 pace to the chest, or thorax, in 
 man and the higher animals. It 
 is, indeed, nothing more than the 
 ribs conjoined by a resembling 
 solid cement. Eight pairs can 
 be easily distinguished. The 
 head is in most small. The anterior feet have generally five claws, 
 
 Stemnm of CheloniA.
 
 LEVITICi::* IV.-XI. 
 
 99 
 
 Fig. «. 
 
 the posterior four. The tyrse {Triomjx niloticus, Fig. 7) is distinguished 
 
 by the absence of horny phites on the flat shickl, and by the swimming 
 
 feet liaving only three toes. The nose assumes 
 
 tlie form of an elongated snout (Fig. 6). A 
 
 rough skin covers its soft depressed carapace. 
 
 'J'he colour of the skin is dark brown, dotted 
 
 with yellowish white spots. 
 
 Ferret [MustcJa furo). The rendering of 
 the English version cannot be retained, chiefly 
 because this anim.al comes in as a weasel, it 
 being only a domesticated variety of polecat, Ko.-oa„dHindLes«fTe.tuJo. 
 
 introduced into Europe originally from Africa. The Hebrew name is 
 derived from a root which signifies to gnaw. The LXX. have rendered 
 it by mygale, the word employed by Aristotle 
 for the shrew-mouse [Sorex araneus). It is 
 much more likely that the reference here is 
 to one of the widely distributed tribe of 
 lizards. One of the Gecko family {Gecko- 
 tide^, the fan-foot, or house gecko {I'laty- 
 dadjjlus gecko), very abundant in Egypt, 
 answers the Hebrew word. It utters a 
 croaking sound, softer than that of a frog, 
 as it runs about in search of the insects, &c., 
 on which it feeds. Taking then the lizards 
 noticed here we have — 
 
 Ferret = Platydactylus gecko, Plate XL, Fig. 1. Carapace of Triouyx. 
 
 Chameleon = Chama;leo vulgaris, Plate IX., Fig. 12; X., Fig. 4. 
 Lizard = Stellio vulgaris, Plate X , Fig. 3. 
 
 Snail = Lacerta ocellata, Plate VIII., Fig. 8 ; X., Fig. 2. 
 
 But many others of the so-called lizard group would come under their 
 notice. The monitor, for example, Plate X., Fig. 1 ; the seine, Plate 
 IX., Fig. 7; XL, Fig. 4; the triton, Plate XI., Fig. 2; and the sala- 
 mander, Plate XL, Fig. 3. 
 
 Snail. — See under Ps. Iviii. 8. 
 
 " The ]\Iole." — It will be seen from the table given above that the 
 LXX., Vulgate, and English versions agree in rendering taushemcth by 
 " mole." The Syriac gives centipede. The only other reference in 
 the English Bible to this animal is in Isa. ii. 20 — " In that day a man 
 shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made
 
 100 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 each one for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats." But 
 there is no certain allusion here to the mole. The literal rendering of 
 the Hebrew is "the dig-holes" — any animals which make for them- 
 selves holes in the earth. Accordingly Gesenius proposes " rats" as a 
 more appropriate translation ; erring in this respect with our trans- 
 lators. The statement is of the most indefinite kind, and, clearly, not 
 intended to indicate any one kind of animal. The idols of gold and 
 silver shall be buried out of siglit in the earth, or they shall be thrust 
 into such dark places of the rocks as those which the bats haunt. 
 
 The common mole {Talpa Europccd) is one of the insect-eating mam- 
 mals (Insectwora), and the type of the mole foinily {Talpidce). The 
 
 Fig. dO. 
 
 anatomist has found in its skeleton some of 
 the most striking illustrations of the adapta- 
 tion of structure to habits which are to be 
 met with among the mammalia (Plate XXL, 
 Fig. 4). Its general shape is admirably fitted 
 for its underground habits. The digging de- 
 manded in order to the supply of its daily 
 wants, implies great muscular power in the 
 anterior limbs and fore part of the whole body. This is found to 
 be strikingly developed, and to be associated with peculiarities in the 
 bony skeleton fitted to co-operate with it to greatest purpose. The 
 hands, or fore feet, are armed with strong claws, grooved beneath and 
 converging at the tips. The feet themselves are formed like a scoop. 
 Tlic mole makes for itself a habitation, whose construction bears 
 
 testimony to instincts as acute 
 
 'rout and Back View of Fore-foot of 
 the Common Mole. 
 
 Fig. 47. 
 
 the 
 
 hut -building 
 
 Uabitntion of the Common JIolG. 
 
 as those of 
 
 beaver itself. " The fortress is 
 domed by a cement, so to speak, 
 of earth, which has been beaten 
 and compressed by the archi- 
 tect into a compact and solid 
 state. Within, a circular gallery is formed at the base, and communi- 
 cates with an upper smaller gallery by five passages, which are nearly 
 at equal distances (fig. 47). Within the lower, and under the upper 
 of these galleries, is the chamber or dormitory, which has access to the 
 upper gallery by three similar passages." There are many other 
 passages all arranged with great order, and fitted to enable it to reach 
 the worms on which it feeds. 
 
 " And every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth shall be an
 
 LEVITICUS IV.-XI. 
 
 101 
 
 abomination ; it shall not be eaten. Whatsoever gocth upon the belly, 
 and whatsoever goeth upon all four, or whatsoever hath more feet 
 among all creeping things that creep upon the earth, them ye shall not 
 eat; for they are an abomination. Ye shall not make yourselves 
 abominable with any creeping thing that creepeth, neither shall ye 
 make yourselves unclean with them, that ye should be defiled thereby. 
 For I am the Lord your God ; ye shall therefore sanctity yourselves, 
 and ye shall be holy ; for I am holy ; neither shall ye defile yourselves 
 with any manner of creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth" (ver. 
 41-44). 
 
 " Whatsoever goeth upon the belly." The common slow-worm 
 may be named as illustrative of this expression. It is to be met 
 
 Fig. 48. 
 
 'f^^lM/A^ 
 
 Slow-Worm {Ahquxh fraijUU). 
 
 with in most countries of Europe, and is abundant in Western Asia. 
 It is viviparous, feeds on insects, earth-worms, &c. Though popularly 
 regarded as poisonous it is not so. 
 
 " Whatsoever goeth upon all four." The toad, the salamander, and 
 the like, may be referred to here. 
 
 " Whatsoever hath more feet among all creeping things." All the 
 forms of life included under the class Myriapoda, or Many-feet. The 
 scolopendra or so-called centipede abounds in Palestine. A recent 
 traveller says : — " I was somewhat startled to find myself this morning 
 in close proximity to a more formidable species of vermin than either 
 gnats or fleas. While seated on a dilapidated sepulchre, an immense 
 centipede crawled out cautiously, and made direct for my head, which 
 I quickly gave, and with it a smart stone, to add emphasis to the
 
 102 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIEN'CK. 
 
 salutation. Are these ugly creatures really dangerous? I am sur- 
 prised to find them stirring so early in the spring, though Tiberias is 
 hot enough for them or i'or anything else. Tlie bite of the centipede is 
 not fatal, but is said to be extremely painful, and very slow to heal. 
 The Arabs say that it strikes its fore claws into the flesh, and there they 
 
 rig. 49. 
 
 Centipede {Scolopendra gigas). 
 
 break otT and remain, thus rendering the wound more troublesome. I 
 never saw a person bitten by them, but their mere appearance makes 
 one's flesh creep. While the locusts were passing through Abeith, 
 they started up a very large centipede near my house, and I was greatly 
 amused with its behaviour. As the living stream rolled over it without 
 cessation for a moment, it became perfectly furious ; bit on tlie right 
 hand and on the left ; writhed, and squirmed, and floundered in impo- 
 tent wratli ; and was finally worried to death. During this extraordinary 
 battle its look was almost satanic." 
 
 The millipedes are also widely distributed, and many of them would 
 come under the notice of the Jews. 
 
 Millipede {Spiroatrijitus ohlusua). 
 
 The series of commands relating to the clean and unclean creatures 
 is summed up with the statement of the high moral ends in all. 
 " These," it is said, " ye shall give attention to, for I am the Lord 
 your God ; ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy ; 
 for I am holy : neither shall ye defile yourselves with any manner of 
 creeping thing that crecpeth upon the earth. For I am the Lord that 
 bringeth you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God : ye shall 
 therefore be holy ; for I am holy. This is the law of the beasts, and 
 of the fowl, and of every living creature that moveth in the waters, and 
 of every creature that creepeth upon the earth" (vcr. 44-47).
 
 LEVlTICrS XIII., XIV 
 
 103 
 
 LEVITICUS XIII., XIV. 
 
 HREE kinds uf leprosy are named in these cliapters. 1. 
 Leprosy on tlic luiman body (verses 1-46). 2. Leprosy in 
 the garments worn by man (verses 47-59). 3. Leprosy in 
 the walls of their dwellings (xiv. 33-48) This terrible 
 malady is still more common in Egypt and Syria than in 
 most other countries where it occurs. The Egyptian priest 
 JLinctho (b.c. 300) alleged that the Hebrews had introduced 
 this disease into Egypt. Tacitus, following his account, says 
 that it is certain " the Jews, when in Egypt, were all afflicted with 
 leprosy, and from them it spread to the Egyptians. When the king, 
 Bochorus, inquired of Jupiter Amnion how his kingdom could be freed 
 from this calamity, he was informed that it could be eftected only by 
 expelling the whole multitude of the Jews, as they were a race detested 
 by the gods." He adds other tables to those of the Egyptian priest, 
 tells how Moses accidentally met the expelled people in the wilder- 
 ness, and brought them under obedience to himself; how the leprosy 
 had been caught from swine, and that thus swine's flesh continued to 
 be held in abomination by the Jews. But both the testimony of 
 Scripture and of antiquity is against this. Moses speaks of the " evil 
 diseases of Egypt," and of " the botch of Egypt" (Deut. vii. 1.5; xxviii. 
 27). The heathen poet Lucretius {De Berum Natura) traces the worst 
 kind of leprosy to the same country. He says that elephantiasis is 
 produced by the waters of the Nile :— 
 
 " Est Elephas morbus, qui propter flumina Nili, 
 Gigidtur ^-Egypto in Media." 
 
 The circumstances attending ]\Iiriam's leprosy showed that it was rare 
 among the Israelites at the period of the Exodus. 
 
 " When a man shall have in the skin of his flesh a rising, a scab, or 
 bright spot, and it shall be in the skin of his flesh like the plague of 
 leprosy ; then he shall be brought unto Aaron the priest." 
 
 In the description of leprosy here, the expression "bright spot," 
 Heb. hachreth, is the general designation for the first appearances of 
 this disease. But as there are bright spots which do not develope into
 
 10-i BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 this deadly malady, a well-defined distinction is drawn, wliicli may be 
 stated tlius : — 
 
 „ f Non-contagious leprosy, lejira alphos of the Greeks. 
 
 J^ Natural freckles. 
 
 _, ( Black leprosy, lepra melas. 
 
 \ M'lute leprosy, lepra leukc. 
 
 The Greek physicians described the non-con tagluus leprosy as a white 
 efflorescence, occurring in bright spots with a pure and healtliy surface 
 intervening. The black species had dark brown spots. The charac- 
 teristic symptoms of the last kind were blanched skin, hair white like 
 wool, the rapid drying up of the juices of the body, and the decay of 
 one member and another. This was the vlttllfjo of Celsus. Moses 
 names the following symptoms as good ground for suspicion : — (1) 
 herpes (ver. 2, 10, 13, 19) ; (2) cirij scall (ver. 30, 31) ; (3) hvmid scall 
 (ver. 39); (4) hn'glit white scall (ver. 19); (5) dnll white scall {ver. 2, 
 6, 7) ; (G) ioil (ver. 29, 42) ; (7) carhiincle (ver. 24j. 
 
 All this still meets the eye of the traveller in Palestine. " We 
 reached," says Dr. Robinson, " the Zion gate just as it was opened 
 at one o'clock. Within the gate, a little towards the right, are some 
 miserable hovels, inhabited by persons called leprous. Whether their 
 disease is or is not the leprosy of Scripture, I am unable to affirm ; the 
 symptoms described to us were similar to those of elephantiasis. At 
 any rate they are pitiable objects, and njiserable outcasts from society. 
 They all live here together, and intermarry only with each other. The 
 children are said to be healthy until the age of puberty or later, when 
 the disease makes its appearance in a finger, on the nose, or in some 
 like part of the body, and gradually increases so long as the victim 
 survives. Tliey were said often to live to the age of forty or fifty 
 years." 
 
 " You could not," says anothei", " be more surprised and startled 
 than I Avas on my first introduction to this awful disease. Sauntering 
 down the Jaffa road, on my approach to the Holy City, in a kind of 
 dreamy maze, wdth, as I remember, scarcely one distinct idea in my 
 head, I was startled out of my reverie by the sudden aijparitiou of a 
 crowd of beggars, ' sans eyes, sans nose, sans hair, sans everything." 
 They held up toward me their haudless arms, unearthly sounds gurgled 
 through throats without palates — in a word, I was horrified. Having 
 never seen a leper, nor had my attention turned to the subject (for a 
 quarter of a century ago Jerusalem and its marvels were not so well 
 understood as they are now), I at first knew not what to make of it. I
 
 LEVITICUS XIII., XIV. 105 
 
 subsequently visited their habitations, as you have done to-day, and 
 have made many inquiries into their history. It appears that these 
 unfortunate beings have been perpetuated about Jerusalem from the 
 remotest antiquity. One of my first thoughts on visiting tlieir dens of 
 corruption and death was, that the government should separate them, 
 and thus, in a few years, extinguish the race and the plague together; 
 and I still think that a wise, steady, and vigilant sanitary system might 
 eventually eradicate this fearful malady. But it will not be so easily 
 or expeditiously accomplished as I then thought. It is not confined to 
 Jerusalem, for I have met with it in different and distant parts of the 
 country. And what is particularly discouraging is, that fresh cases 
 appear from time to time, in which it seems to arise spontaneously, 
 without hereditary or any other possible connection with those previ- 
 ously diseased. This fact, however, has not yet been fully established. 
 It is evident that Moses, in his very stringent regulations respecting 
 this plague and its unhappy victims, had in view its extinction, or at 
 least restriction within the narrowest possible limits. Those who were 
 merely suspected were shut up ; and if the disease declared itself the 
 individual was immediately removed out of the camp, and not only he, 
 l)Ut everything he touched, was declared unclean. For all practical 
 purposes the same laws prevail to this day. The lepers, when not 
 obliged to live outside the city, have got a separate abode assigned to 
 them, and they are shunned as unclean and dangerous. No healthy 
 person will touch them, eat with them, or use any of their clothes or 
 utensils — and with good reason. The leper was required by Moses to 
 stand apart, and give warning by crying, "Unclean! unclean!" Thus 
 the ten men that met our Saviour stood afar off, and lifted up their 
 voice of entreaty. They still do the same substantially, and, even in 
 their begging, never attempt to touch you. Among tent-dwelling 
 
 Arabs the leper is literally put out of the camp But though 
 
 we cannot comprehend the leprosy nor cleanse the leper, there are 
 many things to be learned from this mysterious disease. It has ever 
 been regarded as a direct punishment from God, and absolutely incur- 
 able, except by the same divine power that sent it. God alone could 
 cure the leprosy. It was so understood by Naaman the Syrian, who 
 came from Damascus to Samaria to be cured by Elisha ; and when 
 " his flesh came again as the flesh of a little child," he said, " Behold, 
 now I know that there is no God in all the earth but in Israel." It is 
 a curious fact that this hideous disease still cleaves to Damascus, the 
 city of Naaman, for there is a mild kind there which is sometimes 
 
 VOL. u. o
 
 106 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENXE. 
 
 cured, or apparently cured, even at this day. I have met with cases, 
 however, where the cure is only temporary, and perhaps it is so in 
 every instance." 
 
 How vividly do we meet in all this with the moral condition of man ! 
 Sin has spread its terrible leprosy over our whole spiritual nature. It 
 has withered our love, eaten the very heart out of all true confidence in 
 God as our Father. Having its seat in the affections, it has put the 
 will past the power of ready obedience; it has darkened the understand- 
 ing, broken the wing of hope, so that it uo more naturally enters into 
 that within the vail ; and enfeebled every energy which otherwise would 
 have worked Godward. As is the heart, so is the life of man. His 
 actions are, even when best, not good in the sight of God. His lips 
 speak not the praises of his father. Yea they often blaspheme his 
 name. He is wholly vile. Yet there is a way for the cleansing of 
 the leper ! But only one way — " the blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth 
 us from all sin." 
 
 " Leprosy hi the garment." " The garment also that the plague of 
 leprosy is in, whether it be a woollen garment or a linen garment, 
 whether it be in the warp or woof, of linen or of woollen, whether in a 
 skin, or in any thing made of skin ; and if the plague be greenish or 
 reddish in the garment, or in the skin, either in the warp, or in the 
 woof, or in any thing of skin : it is a plague of leprosy, and shall be 
 shewed unto the priest. And the priest shall look upon the plague, 
 and shut up it that hath the plague seven days. And he shall look on 
 the plague on the seventh day : if the plague be spread in tlie garment, 
 either in the warp, or in the woof, or in a skin, or in any work that is 
 made of skin, the plague is a fretting leprosy; it is unclean." If such 
 marks were observed, there was no remedy. The garment was burnt 
 in the fire. But there was an alternative — " If the priest shall look, 
 and, behold, the plague be not spread in the garment, either in the 
 warp, or in the woof, or in anything of skin ; then the priest shall com- 
 mand that they wash the thing wherein the plague is, and he shall shut 
 it up seven days more. And the priest shall look on the plague, after 
 tliat it is washed : and, behold, if the plague have not changed his 
 colour, and the plague be not spread, it is unclean ; thou shalt burn it 
 in the fire : it is fret inward, whether it be bare within or without." 
 But if, after the washing, a blackish spot only was seen, it might be 
 rent out of the garment, and the rest of it given to its owner again. 
 " And if it appear still in the garment, either in the warp, or in the 
 woof, or in any thing of skin, it is a spreading plague : thou shalt burn
 
 107 
 
 tliat wherein tlie plague is witli fire. And the garment, either warp or 
 woof, or whatsoever thing of skin it be, which thou shalt wash, if the 
 plague be departed from them, then it shall be washed the second time, 
 and shall be clean. This is the law of the plague of leprosy in a gar- 
 ment of woollen or linen, either in the warp or woof, or any thing of 
 skins, to pronounce it clean, or to pronounce it unclean.' 
 
 " Linen garment ;" see under Josh. ii. 6. 
 
 The marks named here might result either from the ravages of certain 
 insects, or from vegetable mould. In both cases the washing would be 
 a decided test. If the " fretting" were complete either in warp or woof, 
 the garment on being washed would fall to shreds. The vegetable or 
 animal dyes which did not yield to the water continued to tell tliat the 
 plague was still in the garment, and rendered it unfit for wear. Clothes 
 when exposed to damp, and shut out from the light and air, get mil- 
 dewed or mouldy. I\]inute fungi {Mucorini) appear in spots on them. 
 These soon spread and infect the intervening parts. They vary in 
 colour from white to yellow, blue, green, red, and black. The references 
 in this passage are not to be limited to white garments. Taking this 
 into account, much of the obscurity hitherto held to attach to this 
 passage is removed, especially when the fungoid influences are linked 
 up with well-known ravages of insects in garments of linen, or of 
 woollen, and in skins. It is in Fig. si. 
 
 the larval state ihat insects fret 
 the garments. They furrow the 'N^. 
 thick parts of woollen garments 
 and furs, and in these furrows 
 pass from the larval into the 
 chrysalis state. One family of 
 coleopterous insects, Bermesh'dce, 
 is so named from the ravages they 
 make in skins. " Perhaps," says Dermesto, (j^»n»,,.) and iarv«. 
 
 Mr. Kirby, " you imagine that these universal destroyers spare at 
 least our garments, in which you may at iirst conceive there can be 
 nothing very tempting to excite even the appetite of an insect. Your 
 housekeeper, however, would probably tell you a different story, and 
 enlarge upon the trouble and pains it costs her to guard those under 
 her care against the ravages of the moths. Upon further inquiry, 
 you would find that nothing made of wool, whether cloth or stuff, 
 comes amiss to them. There are five species described by L'nm6, 
 which are more or less engaged in this work : — Tinea vestianella,
 
 108 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 tapeizeUa, jiellmieUa, Laverna sarci'ieUa, and Galleria viellonclla. Of 
 the first we liave no particular history, except that it destroys 
 garments in tlie summer ; but of the others Reaumur has given a 
 complete one. T. tapetzeUa^ or the tapestry moth, not uncommon 
 in our houses, is most injurious to the lining of carriages, which are 
 more exposed to the air than tlie furniture of our apartments. These 
 do not construct a movable habitation, like the common species, 
 but, eating their way in the thickness of the cloth, weave themselves 
 silken galleries in which they reside, and v/hich they render close and 
 warm by covering them with some of the eroded wool. T. peJUoneUa 
 is a most destructive insect ; and ladies have often to deplore the ravages 
 which it commits in their valuable furs, whether made up into muffs or 
 tippets. It pays no more respect to the regal ermine than to the 
 woollen habiliments of the poor ; its proper food, indeed, being hair, 
 though it devours both wool and fur. This species, if hard pressed by 
 hunger, will even eat horse-hair, and make its habitation, a movable 
 house or case in which it travels from place to place, in search of this 
 untractable material. These little creatures will shave the hair from a 
 skin as neatly and closely as if a razor had been employed. The most 
 natural food of the next species, L. sarci'icUa, is wool ; but in case of 
 necessity it will eat fur and hair. To woollen cloths or stuffs it often 
 does incredible injury, especially if they are not kept clean and well aired. 
 Of the devastation committed by Gnlleria mcllonella in our bee-hives 1 
 have before given you an account : to this I must here add, that if it 
 cannot come at wax, it will content itself with woollen cloth, leather, 
 or even paper. Mr. Curtis found tlie grub of a beetle {Ptinus fur) in 
 an old coat, which it devoured, making holes and channels ; and another 
 insect of the same order [Attatjenus pelUo), Linne tells us, will some- 
 times entirely strip a fur garment of its hair. A small beetle of the 
 Capricorn tribe {Callidnim pigmceuvi, Fabr) I have good reason to 
 believe devours leather, since I have found it abundant in old shoes." 
 
 The sanitary bearings of the regulations in chapters xiii. and xiv. 
 have not been sufficiently appreciated. Garments tainted in the way 
 described would be positively injurious to the wearer, who, besides, was 
 to regard himself as holy by the choice of a covenant-keeping God. 
 Everything like impurity, even on the clothes of those whose bodies 
 were to be presented to God as living sacrifices required to be put 
 away. Dirt then, as now, led to disease. This was true in regard to 
 the next kind of leprosy, as well as to the plague in the garment. 
 
 " The leprosy in the house." " When ye be come into the land of
 
 LEVITICUS XIII., XIV. 109 
 
 Canaan, which I give to you for a possession, and I put the plague of 
 leprosy in a house of the land of your possession ; and he that ownoth 
 the house shall come and tell the priest, saying, It scemeth to me there 
 is as it were a plague in the house : then tlie priest shall command that 
 they empty the house, before the priest go into it to see the plague, 
 that all that is in the house be not made unclean ; and afterward the 
 priest shall go in to see the house. And he shall look on the plague : 
 and, behold, if the plague be in the walls of the house with hollow 
 strakes, greenish or reddish, which in sight are lower than the wall ; 
 then the priest shall go out of the house to the door of the house, and 
 shut up the house seven days." Certain kinds of mould {miicor) fasten 
 on damp walls, and assume just such appearances as those named here. 
 But all the phases mentioned in this place may be seen in the walls of 
 neglected stables, &c., where the conditions occur which lead to them. 
 Whether the priest knew the cause or no, he was made the instrument 
 of interfering with a condition of filth which would ultimately lead to 
 pestilence itself. Let old mortar (liydrate of lime) be exposed to decay- 
 ing animal refuse, exposed to the air, but sheltered from the rain, and 
 an efflorescence appears on the surface, passing through all the appear- 
 ances noted in this passage. This efflorescence is nitrate of potassa, or 
 saltpetre. When it is noticed on walls, it may be concluded that refuse 
 is at work tainting the place, which might lead to fever of some kind. 
 These regulations thus tended at once to highest sanitary purposes. 
 
 " The law of the leper hi the day of his cleansing" is fully stated in 
 chap. xiv. Verse 4 is the only other one that comes under our notice 
 — " Then shall the priest command to take for him that is to be cleansed 
 two birds alive and clean, and cedar wood, and scarlet, and hyssop." 
 " Scarlet," see under Exod. xxv. 4 ; " hyssop," under 1 Kings iv. 33. 
 It is not likely that the "cedar wood" named here was produced by 
 the Lebanon species (Cedriis Libani), which was not known to have 
 grown either in Egypt or in the desert in which this command was 
 given. It is shown under 1 Chron. xiv. 1, that the name cedar, Heb. 
 ezer^y Arab, arz, was frequently given to other species of cone-bearing 
 trees besides the cedar of Lebanon. Indeed, the same mode of using 
 the word exists amongst ourselves. We are in the habit of applying 
 the term cedar to a species of juniper wood much used in commerce. 
 But while this wood could only have been got by bringing it from a 
 great distance, the Israelites could easily have obtained abundaiit 
 supplies of fragrant wood from the junipers which still grow plentifully 
 on the lower ranges of Sinai.
 
 no 
 
 BIBLICAL NATUKAL SCIENCE. 
 
 LEVITICUS XVI. -XXII. 
 
 ■\\'0 goats are specially mentioned in connection with the 
 sin-oiTering — the "scape-goat" (dzdzel) and "the (live) 
 goat" (sdhtr) — "And Aaron shall offer his bullock of the 
 yin-offering which is for himself, and make an atonement 
 • for himself, and for his house. And he shall take the two 
 goats, and present them before the Lord at the door of the 
 tabernacle of the congregation. And Aaron shall cast lots 
 upon the two goats ; one lot for the Lord, and the other lot for 
 the scape-goat. And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the 
 Lord's lot fell, and ofter him for a sin-offering : but the goat, on which 
 the lot fell to be the scape-goat, shall be presented alive before the 
 Lord, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scape- 
 goat into the wilderness" (ver. 0-10). Many fanciful interpretations 
 have gathered round the word translated " scape-goat." It occurs only 
 in this chapter (ver. 8, 10, 26). But the meaning is plain. The sins 
 of the people are confessed over the goat ; they are in a figure laid on 
 it, and borne away never more to be met with. In after ages the 
 glorious view of grace set forth in this was brought out in different 
 words ; but it was the same truth — " Thou wilt cast all their sins into 
 the depths of the sea" (Mic. vii. 19). The Lord laid on Jesus the 
 iniquities of us all. He has borne them away. They will never more 
 be remembered against us. The sin-bearer still lives. Resurrection 
 comes after death. The (live) goat is thus introduced in a way to 
 suggest that all the functions of life were continued in the goat which 
 was spared. He is the sdhtr, or hairy one (ver. 9, 10, 15, 18, 20, 21, 
 22, 26, 27). 
 
 In many ways the sovereignty of God over the life is kept before the 
 whole congregation of Israel. In every matter connected with slaying 
 even the animals set apart for food, a constant recognition of this sove- 
 reignty was demanded — " What man soever there be of the house of 
 Israel that killeth an ox, or lamb, or goat, in the camp, or that killeth 
 it out of the camp, and bringeth it not unto the door of the tabernacle 
 of the congregation, to offer an offering unto the Lord before the taber- 
 nacle of the Lord, blood shall be imputed unto that man ; he hath shed
 
 LEVITICUS XVI.-XXII. Ill 
 
 blood ; and that man sliall be cut off from among his people ; to tlie 
 end that the children of Israel may bring their sacrifices wliich they 
 offer in the open field, even that they may bring them unto the Lord, 
 unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, unto the priest^ 
 and offer them for peace-offerings unto the Lord " (xvii. 3-5). Even 
 the wild huntsman was to be arrested in his haste to gratify his appetite 
 when out in the field — " And whatsoever man there be of the children 
 of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among you, which hunteth 
 and catcheth any beast or fowl that may be eaten ; he shall even pour 
 out the blood thereof, and cover it with dust. For it is the life of all 
 flesh; the blood of it is for the life thereof: therefore I said unto the 
 children of Israel, Ye shall eat the blood of no manner of flesh : for the 
 life of all flesh is the blood thereof; whosoever eateth it shall be cut 
 off" (ver. 13-14). Great cruelties were apt to characterize all who 
 lived the lives of men in situations like those described. No doubt 
 they were common among the heathen from whom Israel was to sepa- 
 rate. Even in recent times practices have been known to prevail in 
 some countries, wliich those verses, along with other ends, may have 
 been designed to rebuke in all time. An apt illustration of these occurs 
 in Bruce's " Travels in Abyssinia :" — " Not long after our losing sight 
 of the ruins of this ancient capital of Abyssinia, we overtook three 
 travellers driving a cow before them. They had black goat-skins upon 
 their shoulders, and lances and shields in their hands ; in other respects 
 they were but thinly clothed ; they appeared to be soldiers. The cow 
 did not seem to be fattened for killing, and it occurred to us all that it 
 had been stolen. This, however, was not our business, nor was such 
 an occurrence at all remarkable in a country so long engaged in war. 
 We saw that our attendants attached themselves in a particular manner 
 to the three soldiers that were driving the cow, and held a short con- 
 versation with them. Soon after, we arrived at the hithermost bank of 
 the river, where I thought we were to pitch our tent : the drivers sud- 
 denly tripped up the cow, and gave the poor animal a very rude fall 
 upon the ground, which was but the beginning of her sufi'erings. One 
 of them sat across her neck, holding down her head by the horns, the 
 other twisted the halter about her fore-feet, while the third, who had a 
 knife in his hand, to my great surprise, in place of taking her by the 
 throat, got astride of her before her hind-legs, and gave her a very deep 
 wound in the upper part of the buttock. From the time I had seen 
 them throw the beast on the ground, I had rejoiced, thinking that when 
 three people were killing a cow, they must have agreed to sell part of
 
 112 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 her to us ; and I was mueli disappointed upon hearing the Abyssinians 
 say that we were to pass the river to the other side, and not encamp 
 wliere I intended. Upon my proposing tliat they should bargain ibr 
 part of tlie cow, my men answered, what they had already learned in 
 conversation, that they were not then to kill her, that she was not 
 wholly theirs, and they could not sell her. This awakened iny curio- 
 sity ; I let my people go forward, and stayed myself till I saw, with the 
 utmost astonishment, two pieces, thicker and longer than our ordinary 
 beef-steaks, cut out of the higher part of the buttock of the beast : how 
 it was done I cannot positively say, because, judging the cow was to be 
 killed, from the moment I saw the knife drawn, I was not anxious to 
 view that catastrophe, which was by no means an object of curiosity. 
 Whatever way it was done, it surely was adroitly, and the two pieces 
 were spread upon the outside of one of their shields. One of them still 
 continued holding the head, while the other two were busy in curing 
 the wound. This, too, was done not in an ordinary manner. The 
 skin which had covered the flesh which was taken away was left entire, 
 aud flapped over the wound, and was fastened to the corresponding 
 part by two or more small pins or skewers." See also under Gen. ix. 4. 
 This view of the prohibition is also countenanced by the opening of 
 chapter xviii. : — " The Lord spake unto Moses, saying. Speak unto the 
 children of Israel, and say unto them, I am the Lord your God. After 
 the doings of the land of Egypt, wherein ye dwelt, shall ye not do ; 
 and after the doings of the land of Canaan, whither I bring you, shall 
 ye not do ; neither shall ye walk in their ordinances." 
 
 Watchful over the life of his creatures, the Lord reveals himself as 
 equally so over the purity of individual species, not of man only, but of 
 beasts also, and even of plants. He shows his wish to maintain that 
 order and harmony of nature which at first he rejoiced over as " very 
 good." See ver. 22-26, and xix. 19. 
 
 " Bullock," xxii. 23, 27— see under Num. xxii. 4.
 
 LEVITICUS xxiii.-xxvir. 
 
 113 
 
 LEVITICUS XXIII. -XXVII. 
 
 HE tenth day of the seventh moiitli, Etltanini or Tisri, 
 answering to our October, was to be entirely devoted to 
 the Lord as " the day of atonement " — a day of bringing 
 sin vividly to remembrance — a day of sorrow for sin, and 
 of deep contrition before God. " It shall be an holy con- 
 vocation unto you ; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an 
 offering made by fire unto the Lord. And ye shall do no 
 work in that same day ; for it is a day of atonement, to make an 
 atonement for you before the Lord your God" (ver. 27, 28). But a 
 season of gladness was soon to follow. The joy of the feast of taber- 
 nacles was to tread closely on the heels of the sorrow of the day of 
 atonement. " Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when ye 
 have gathered in the fruit of the land, ye shall keep a feast unto the 
 Lord seven days : on the first day shall be a sabbath, and on the eighth 
 day shall be a sabbath. And ye shall take you on the first day the 
 boughs of goodly trees, branches of palm-trees, and the boughs of thick 
 trees, and willows of the brook ; and ye shall rejoice before the Lord 
 your God seven days " (ver. 39, 40). Great memories were to be 
 associated with this feast — memories of the grace of a covenant God in 
 putting away the guilt of sin, and of his rich goodness towards their 
 lathers, when he dwelt among the tents raised by them in the wilder- 
 ness. " Ye shall dwell in booths seven days ; all that are Israelites 
 born shall dwell in booths ; that your generations may know that I 
 made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them 
 out of the land of Egypt : I am the Lord your God " (ver. 42, 43). 
 
 Goodly boughs were to be used. The later Jews limit this to the 
 citron {Citrus meJicus), but the branches of any other kind of trees 
 found convenient in the circumstances in which the people might be 
 placed, were to be used. Some of these are mentioned, as the palm- 
 trees (see under Exod. xv. 2) and the willows (see Is. xliv. 4). 
 
 Israel still attempts to revive the gladness of tabernacle time, but in 
 vain. The booths have for ever passed away. They served their day, 
 as pointing to joy in the full manifestation of that " true tabernacle 
 which God pitched" (Heb. viii. 2). Yet few things in the history of 
 
 VOL. II. p
 
 114 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 that people, still beloved for their fathers' sake, are more interesting 
 tlian their clinging to these feasis appointed by the Lord in olden 
 times. Whenever a season of special social blessing has been vouch- 
 safed to them, they have felt as if the presence of the God of Abraham 
 was specially among them, and, with Peter, have been forward to say, 
 " Let us build tabernacles." Our own land has more than once 
 witnessed the fruit of this feeling. One curious illustration occurred in 
 the time of Cromwell. He permitted the Jews to settle in London, to 
 build synagogues, and to practise the rites of their faith. When this 
 became known, Jews from the Continent and from different parts of 
 Britain gathered together in the seventh month, and celebrated the 
 feast of Tabernacles among the willows on the borders of the Thames. 
 This was the last public celebration of the feast in Britain. 
 
 " Every goodly tree furnishes its boughs for the occasion. The 
 -palm — so specially used in after days to be a token of triumph, and a 
 symbol of Judah's laud — the po/wi is first mentioned. Besides, it is 
 the tree that had oftenest shelteied them in the wilderness, e.g., at 
 Elim, being one of those that grow even in the sandy deserts. Then, 
 tlie ' branches of thich trees,' or, of ' hushrj thick-twisted trees,' such as 
 tlie myrtle — thus plucking some boughs from the lower thickets as 
 well as from the lofty palms. In Neh. viii. 15, the myrtle is noticed by 
 name. Next, ' the ta'llow' from the river side, hanging its boughs over 
 the brooks of water, as if to shade them for Israel's sake from the 
 sporching heat. There were also ^tJie olive and the 2nne' (Neh. viii. 15), 
 the former representing the species that served for Israel's domestic 
 uses, and the latter those that supplied public necessities ; the one 
 yielding its olives, the other its massy beams. All these, and any 
 other such (' any of the pine trees then in bloom,' says Rosenniiiller) 
 were used on this joyful occasion. The booths so formed exhibited the 
 scene of a world clad in rich, luxuriant verdure; men dwelling in peace, 
 and sending up songs of praise amid every token of fresh and lively joy. 
 Some have supposed that they see more still, as they gaze on these 
 booths of every bough ; they think they see the love of the God of 
 Jeshurun pictured forth as being noble and lofty in its bearing, like the 
 pine or cedar ; fragrant and sweet as the myrtle ; triumphant over all 
 obstacle^, like the palm; full of richness, like the olive; and like the 
 tcilloic of the brook, it bends over the children of men, and over his 
 own Israel above all, in lowly condescension. But, at all events, this 
 is implied in the scene taken as a whole." — {A. Bonar.) 
 
 The law of retaliation is stated in chap. xxiv. 17-26. The circum-
 
 LEVITICUS XXIII.-XXYII. 115 
 
 stances in which Israel was to be for many generations demanded that 
 tlie relation of man to man should be clearly dellned. The man of 
 violence would be forced to curb bis strong propensities, by remember- 
 ing, that as he should do, it would be done to him again. " And he 
 that killetli any man shall surely be put to death. And he tliat killeth 
 a beast shall make it good; beast for beast. And if a man cause a 
 blemish in his neighbour ; as he hath done, so shall it be done to him ; 
 breach for breach, eye for eye, tooth for tooth ; as he hath caused a 
 blemish in a man, so shall it be done to him again. And he that 
 killeth a beast he shall restore it ; and he that killeth a man, he shall 
 be put to death." It was still a time of bondage to the church. An 
 end was to be put to all this when the eyes of God's people were to 
 be tui'ned to him " who, when he was reviled, reviled not again ; when 
 he suffered, he threatened not." 
 
 Besides the deep spiritual significance of the year of jubilee, com- 
 manded in chap. xxv. 1-7, its bearings on the fruitfuluess of the land 
 would be most important. " Six years thou shalt sow thy field, and six 
 years thou shalt prune thy vineyard, and gather in the fruit tliereof ; 
 But in the seventh year shall be a sabbath of rest unto the land, a 
 sabbath for the Lord ; thou shalt neither sow thy fiekl, nor prune thy 
 vineyard. That which groweth of its own accord of thy harvest thou 
 shalt not reap, neither gather the grapes of thy vine undressed : for it 
 is a year of rest unto the land. And the sabbath of the land shall be 
 meat for you ; for thee, and for thy servant, and for thy maid, and for 
 thy hired servant, and for thy stranger that sojourneth with thee." 
 The return of the ungathered crops of one year would, in a great mea- 
 sure, restore those elements of fruitfulness which during the preceding 
 years had been taken from it, for the food of man. " Image of stone" 
 (xxvi. 1) — see under Prov. xxv. 2. 
 
 " If ye shall walk in my statutes and keep my commandments, and 
 do them, then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall 
 yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. 
 And your thrashing shall reach unto the vintage, and the vintage sliall 
 reach unto the sowing time ; and ye shall eat your bread to the full, 
 and dwell in your land safely. And I will give peace in the land,, and 
 ye shall lie down and none shall make you afraid ; and I will rid evil 
 beasts out of the land, neither shall the sword go through your land", 
 (ver. 6-8). But if not, judgment was to come instead of blessing. 
 The conditions continue in force still, but the nations " forget God." 
 
 "Barley seed," chap, xxvii. 16 — see under Num. v. I,').
 
 IIG 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 NUMBERS IV. -VI. 
 
 ND they shall put thereon the covering of badgers' sidns, and 
 shall spread over it a clotli wholly of blue, and shall put in the 
 staves thereof. And upon the table of shew-bread they shall 
 jiAiSiJ^I spread a cloth of blue, and put thereon the dishes, and the 
 spoons, and the bowls, and covers to cover withal : and the 
 continual bread shall be thereon. And they sliall spread upon 
 tliem a cloth of scarlet, and cover the same with a covering of 
 badgers' skins, and shall put in the staves thereof. And tlicy shall 
 take a cloth of blue, and cover the candlestick of the light, and his 
 lamps, and his tongs, and his snuff-dishes, and all the oil vessels 
 thereof, wherewith they minister unto it " (ver. 6-9). 
 " Cloth of scarlet" — see under Exod xxv. i. 
 
 " Blue," Heb. ttkcleth. The word occurs above tliirty times in 
 Exodus, six times in Numbers, and nine times in other books. The 
 colour named here was duller than the bright purple. " Violet" would 
 be a more correct rendering. It was an animal dye, obtained by the 
 ancients from a well known mollusc, lanthina communis, one of the 
 family Ianthiinda\ or Violet Snails. Joscphus gives a fanciful " cxplt^- 
 nation" of this colour and of others highly esteemed. He says — "The 
 purple signified the sea, because that colour is dyed by the blood of a 
 sea shell-fish ; the blue is fit to signify the air ; and the scarlet will 
 naturally be an indication of fire" (Antiq. b. iii. c. vii. 7). The riband and 
 fringe of the Hebrew memorial dress was to be of this colour. " Speak 
 unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them fringes 
 in the borders of their garments, throughout their generations,, and 
 that they put upon the fringe of the borders a riband of blue ; and it 
 shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember 
 all the commandments of the Lord, and do them ; and that ye seek not 
 after your own heart, and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a 
 whoring : that ye may remember, and do all my commandments, and 
 be holy unto your God " (chap. xv. 38). It is mentioned in Esther i. G 
 as the colour of some of the hangings of " the court of the garden of 
 the king's palace; where were white, green, and blue hangings, fastened 
 with cords of fine linen and purple to silver rings and pillars of
 
 NKMBERS I v.- VI. 117 
 
 marble; the beds Avere of gold and silver, upon a pavement of red, and 
 blue, and white, and black marble." The idols of Babylon — "the 
 stock a doctrine of vanities " — are described in Jer. x. 9 as clothed 
 in blue garments — " Silver spread into plates is brought from Tarshish, 
 and gold from Uphaz, the work of the workman, and of the hands of 
 the founder: blue and purple is their clothing; they are all the work of 
 cunning men. But the Lord is the true Go<l, he is the living God, and 
 an everlasting King : at his wrath the earth shall tremble, and the 
 nations shall not be able to abide his indignation." In Ezek. xxiii. 6, 
 Samaria is charged with " doting on her lovers, on the Assyrians her 
 neighbours, which were clothed with blue, captains and rulers, all of 
 them desirable young men, horsemen riding on horses." And in verse 
 12, such garments are styled " most gorgeous clothing." 
 
 The provision made in chapter v. for tlie maintenance of complete 
 and cordial confidence between parties in the married state, is peculiarly 
 striking. In this as in every other respect, the Lord wished to show 
 the true type of the well ordered and trustful Christian household. The 
 woman might sin, but she might also be perfectly pure and chaste, 
 and yet be suspected of incontinence and infidelity by her husband. 
 Thus the arrangement in " the trial of jealousy." The offering 
 appointed for the man fo make in the name of his wife, in such a case, 
 was "the tenth part of an ephah of barley meal" (ver. 15). A 
 curious illustration of the association of barley with ideas of chastity 
 occurs in Herodotus. In his account of the Hyperboreans, he repre- 
 sents their women as sending gifts to Delos, wrapped in barley straw. 
 Virgins had been employed originally to carry the gifts ; but as some 
 of these died by the way, the inhabitants of the extreme north bound 
 their offerings up in the straw of the plant emblematic of chastity, and 
 had them carried by the intervening nations from the north to Delos. 
 " Brouglit from the Hyperboreans, they came to the Scythians ; and 
 from the Scythians each contiguous nation receiving them in succession, 
 carried them to the extreme west as fiir as the Adriatic ; that beine: 
 forwarded thence towards the south, the Dodon;vans, the first of the 
 Greeks, received them ; that from them they descended to the Maliac 
 Gulf, and passed over into Euboea, and that one city sent them on to 
 another as ftvr as Carystus ; that after this Andros was passed by, for 
 the Carystians conveyed them to Tenos, and the Tenians to Delos ; in 
 this manner they say these sacred things reached Delos." The women 
 of Thrace likewise offered gifts of barley straw to Royal Diana, the 
 goddess of the chaste. Had the Divine arrangement referred to in this
 
 118 lilKMCAl- XATL'liAL SCIENCK 
 
 passage been suggested to the Gentiles by the Jews in their intercourse 
 with neighbouring nations ? Tliis may have l)een so, but it is more 
 likely tliat barley became associated with such thoughts from tlie 
 threatening aspect of its awns {arista). They stand out as guarding 
 the grain, and as saying to all "touch not." Tluis "the chaste conver- 
 sation coupled with fear," and thus the "ornanient of a meek and quiet 
 spirit" (1 Pet. iii. 3, 4), which should characterize the Christian wife 
 and maiden, will ever rebuke the vile and the impure — see under Ruth 
 i. 22, ii. 4 ; Ezek. iv. 12 ; and John vi. 9. 
 
 A distinction is made in chap. vi. ver. 3, between wine and strong 
 drink, and between vinegar of wine and vinegar of strong drink. 
 Abstinence from all of these beverages formed part of the " vow of a 
 Nazarite." " He shall separate himself from wine and strong drink, 
 and shall drink no vinegar of wine, or vinegar of strong drink, neither 
 shall he drink any liquor of grapes, nor eat moist grapes, or dried." 
 Both kinds of vinegar are explained under Prov. x. 26 ; Matt, xxvii. 
 34, 48 ; Mark xv. 23. Strong drink is named sJiechur in the OKI 
 Testament Scriptures from the word sluicliar to be drunken. In the 
 New Testajnent it is only once mentioned, but the name siL'cra clearly 
 shows that the ancient beverage is referred to. An examination of the 
 passages in wldch the word occurs leads to the following conclusions: — 
 1. It was, as is shown in the verse under notice, to be abstained from 
 by those under special religious vows. Tliis is illustrated in the case 
 of the Baptist. He was not to drink wine (paws) nor strong drink 
 (sikera) — "for he shall be great in the sight of the Lord ; and he shall 
 be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother's womb" (Luke i. 
 15). When the promise of a child was given by the angel to Manoah 
 and his wife, it was accompanied by the command, expressed thrice, 
 that, as the child was to be a Nazarite from the womb, Samson's 
 mother was not to touch this liquor (Judg. xiii. 4, 7, 15). 2. Shechdr 
 was permitted to the people as a beverage. It is even implied, that the 
 priests might partake of it when not about to enter upon purely reli- 
 gious duties (Levit. x. 9). The people were allowed to use it, as they 
 were allowed to eat flesh — " And thou shall bestow that money for 
 whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or 
 for strong drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth ; and tliou shalt eat 
 there before the Lord thy God" (Deut. xiv. 20). It is named along with 
 bread as one of the articles in common use, for the want of which God 
 miraculously made up in the wilderness — " Ye have not eaten bread, 
 neither have ye drunk wine or strong drink ; that ye might know that I
 
 am the Lord your God" (Deut. xxix. 6). 3. In the people's departure 
 from the belief, that God's lavish goodness affords to man an opportunity 
 of practising temperance and sobriety in all things, they set their lusts 
 upon what was permissively given to them, and abused God's gifts and 
 their own bodies likewise. One of the prophets gives us a glimpse into 
 the dissolute habits of many in his day. He says — " If a man, walking 
 in the spirit and falsehood, do lie, saying, I will prophesy unto thee of 
 wine and of strong drink ; he shall even be the prophet of this people" 
 (Micah ii. 11). And even at a period so early as that of Eli's priest- 
 hood, the women of Israel appear to have sometimes taken shechar to 
 excess. Thus the suspicion which Eli entertained of Hannah. " Eli 
 thought she had been drunken. And Eli said unto her, How long wilt 
 thou be drunken ? And Hannah answered and said. No, my lord, I am 
 a woman of a sorrowful spirit ; I have drunk neither wine nor strong 
 drink, but have poured out my soul before the Lord" (1 Sara. i. 13-15). 
 In the time of David " the drinkers of strong drink," for such is the 
 literal meaning of the word " drunkard" as used by the psalmist, made 
 a butt and jest of the good — " They that sit in the gate speak against jj 
 me ; and I was the song of the drunkards " (Ps. Ixix. 12). No douljt 
 this part of the prophecy was as completely fulfilled in the experience 
 of our Lord, as were the words of verse 21, of the same psalm — "They ' 
 
 gave me also gall for my meat, and in my thirst they gave me vinegar 
 to drink." The intoxicating character of the shechar used in the time 
 of Solomon is acknowledged in the words — " Wine is a mocker, strong 
 drink is raging, and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise" (Prov. 
 XX. i ; xxxi. 4, 6). The terrible descriptions of Isaiah when he notices 
 strong drink, show that shechar in his time had the same qualities 
 — " Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they 
 may follow strong drink ; that continue until night, till wine inflame 
 tliem!" (Isa. v. 11, 22; xxiv. 9; xxviii. 7; xxix. 9; Ivi. 12.) 4. Among 
 the offerings of the sanctuary, a drink-offering of shechar is mentioned 
 under the name of "strong wine:" — "And the drink-offering thereof shall 
 be the fourth part of an bin for the one lamb ; in the holy place shalt 
 thou cause the strong wine to be poured unto the Lord for a drink- 
 offering" (Num. xxviii. 7). From the context, the passage last quoted 
 appears more general than any of the others referred to. It no doubt 
 includes, under the terms " strong wine," liquor of any sort devoted to 
 this purpose except the juice of the grape. The substances from 
 which " strong wine " was obtained are noticed under Isa. xxviii. 7.
 
 120 niBLlCAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 NUMBERS XI. 
 
 SPIRIT of habitual nuinuuring took possession of tlie people. 
 In the literal sense of verse first, " they were as complainers, 
 and it was evil in the ears of the Lord." The consequence 
 was the manifestation of the fierce anger of Jehovah against 
 them. " The fire of the Lord burnt among them." Moses 
 prayed and the Lord liearkened ; " the fire was quenclied." The 
 transaction was commemorated by the name given by the leader to 
 the place — " He called it Taberah, or burning, because the fire of 
 the Lord burnt among them." But the lesson was soon forgotten. 
 They had those among them whose example was a constant tempta- 
 tion away from God : — " And the mixed multitude that was among 
 them fell a lusting ; and the children of Israel also wept again, and 
 said, AVho shall give us flesh to oat ? We remember the fish which we 
 did cat in Egypt freely ; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, 
 and the onions, and the garlick ; but now our soul is dried away ; there 
 is nothing at all, besides this manna, before our eyes" (ver. 4-6). An 
 incidental allusion of Herodotus to an inscription on the great pyramid 
 of Cheops, supplies a good illustration of this passage. It shows the 
 love of the Egyptians for the vegetables mentioned here. It afibrds 
 also an interesting proof of the very early use of iron among the people 
 — see under Gen. iv. 22. " Twenty years were spent in erecting the 
 pyramid itself: of this, which is square, each face is eight plethrn, and 
 the height is the same ; it is composed of polished stones, and jointed 
 with the greatest exactness ; none of the stones are less than thirty 
 feet. This pyramid was built thus ; in the form of steps, which some 
 call " cross;\j," others " bomides." When they had first built it in this 
 manner, they raised the remaining stones by machines made of short 
 pieces of wood. Having lifted them from the ground to the first range 
 of steps, when the stone arrived there, it was put on another machine 
 that stood ready on the first range ; and from this it was drawn to the 
 second range on another machine, for the machines were equal in 
 number to the ranges of steps ; or they removed the machine, which 
 was only one, and portable, to each range in succession, whenever they 
 wished to raise the stone higher ; for I should relate it in both ways, as
 
 NUJIBI'.KS X[. 
 
 121 
 
 Kig. 52. 
 
 it is related. The highest parts of it, therefore, were first finished, and 
 afterwards they completed the parts next following ; but last of all 
 they finished the parts on the ground, and that were lowest. On the 
 pyramid is shown au inscription, in Egyptian characters, how much 
 was expended in radishes, onions, and garlic, for the workmen ; which 
 the interpreter, as I well remember, reading the inscription, told me 
 amounted to one thousand six hundred talents of silver. And if this be 
 really the case, how much more was probably expended in iron tools, 
 in bread, and in clothes for the labourers, since they occupied in build- 
 ing the works the time which I mentioned, and no short time besides, as 
 I think, in cutting and drawing the stones, and in forming the subter- 
 raneous excavation." — (Herodotus, b. ii. 1247-125.) At the head of 
 the list of vegetables for which the 
 people lusted stands the " cucumber." 
 The word used here differs from that 
 translated cucumbers in Isa. i. 8 — 
 which see. In the latter passage we 
 have the Hebrew mi'kshah, " a garden 
 of cucumbers," in the former kislioim. 
 It was and is still a vegetable much 
 cultivated and highly prized in Egypt. 
 The common cucumber [Gucumis sati- 
 vus), belongs to the natural order 
 Cucurbi'tacea', or Gourd family. Be- 
 sides this species there is another, the 
 Gucumis chate of Linnaus, which is 
 even more highly esteemed for its 
 cool, refreshing, and generally deli- 
 cious qualities. 
 
 " Melons," Heb. avattachlm, whose 
 cool and juicy fruit was one of the 
 luxuries enjoyed by the Israelites in 
 the valley of the Nile, are next mentioned as specially missed by them 
 in the Arabian desert. The common melon {Gucumis melo) may have 
 been much used by the Israelites ; but as several other species, and 
 especially the water melon ((7. citruUus), are still highly esteemed by the 
 people, it is better to attach a generic signification to the Hebrew name 
 and let it include all, than to attempt to limit it to any one species. 
 If a specific meaning is to be put on the word, the water melon has 
 stronger claims to be identified with the fruit named here than any 
 
 Cucumber {Cueumis tativus). 
 
 VOL. II.
 
 122 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE, 
 
 other. In certain districts of Palestine they are as plentiful as in 
 Egypt. " Em Khalid,'' says Dr. Thomson, " is famous for water 
 melons beyond almost any village in Palestine, and vast quantities are 
 taken by boats to Beirut, and other towns along the coast. Are these 
 melons the ahattachim of Egypt, the remembrance of which augmented 
 the murmurs of the Israelites in the wilderness? In all probability the 
 same. The Arabic name butteekh is only a variation of the Hebrew, 
 and nothing could be more regretted in the burning desert than these 
 delicious melons, whose exuberant juice is so refreshing to the thirsty 
 pilgrim. It is among the most extraordinary eccentricities of the 
 vegetable kingdom, that these melons, so large and so full of water, 
 should flourish best on such soil as this around Em KhrUid. Into this 
 dry sand the vine thrusts its short root, and that in the hottest season 
 of the year. Yet a thousand boat-loads of this most juicy melon are 
 gathered from these sand heaps for market every summer. The leaves 
 themselves must have the power of absorbing moisture from the heavy 
 dews of the night," 
 
 " Leeks," Heb. hhatzh: The common leek {Allium porrum) belongs 
 to the natural order Liliaceoe, or Lily family. It is indigenous in Egypt 
 and in other countries on the borders of the Mediterranean. In the 
 valley of the Nile the climate and soil are peculiarly well suited to its 
 growth. It is still a favourite article of diet among the peasantry of 
 
 Egypt. _ 
 
 " Onions," Heb. betzel, belong to the same natural order. The 
 common onion [A. cepa) abounds on the shores of the Great Sea also. 
 It is much esteemed in southern climes, and is introduced into almost 
 all kinds of cooked food. 
 
 " Garlick," Heb. shim, is ranked with the leek and the onion, under 
 the same genus of liliaceous plants, as common or edible garlick [A. 
 Ascalom'cum). The remarks made on these vegetables are equally 
 appropriate here. 
 
 The people loathed the food which was both the type and the pledge 
 of their standing as a covenant people. " There is nothing at all 
 beside this manna before our eyes." They stood in the midst of 
 miracles. The plagues of Egypt, the passage of the Red Sea, the 
 pillar of cloud and of fire, and the " bread from heaven," all bore 
 witness to Jehovah's miraculous interferences in their behalf But in 
 their case, as afterwards in the case of their descendants at the time 
 when the Son of God appeared on the earth, the powerlessness of mere 
 miracles in nature to affect the heart and unite it for ever to the omul-
 
 NUMBERS XI. 123 
 
 potent worker, was strikingly shown. Even witli the "angels' food" 
 before them, tlieir hearts revolted from Him who had sent it. The 
 inward working alone of the Spirit of God on the soul of man can 
 unite it, lovingly and lastingly, to Him as our Father in heaven. If 
 impressions resulting from ol)served miraculous action stand alone, they 
 can only overlie our spiritual nature, and tlieir practical influence will 
 be little, if anything at all. But, in the work of the Holy Ghost, the 
 manifestations of the mind and heart of God in his word are woven, as 
 it were, into our souls, pervade them in a rational way, and become 
 part of our mental constitution. 
 
 If, then, even Israel, when in contact with the miracles, failed to be 
 rightly influenced by them, and soon forgot the evidences of the pre- 
 sence of the Almighty and All-sufficient One, it is not to be wondered 
 that many who look at these miracles from the historical point of view 
 alone, should fall far below Israel's degradation as to this, and boldly 
 question the possibility of miracles altogether. This has often been, 
 and even still is, done. The form in which it meets us is that of 
 attempts to explain the wonder by the operation of common and con- 
 stant natural causes. The manna, say such men, was simply an exuda- 
 tion from a shrub indigenous in the wilderness through which the 
 Hebrew people were led ! 
 
 Two plants have been chiefly named in connection with this ration- 
 alistic theory. One of these, the Alhagi, camel's thorn, or Judsean 
 manna (31. Ilehraica), abounds in the Siuaitic desert, of which it is a 
 native. It is also common in the Egyptian desert. In summer the 
 so-called manna exudes in small drops from its leaves and falls to the 
 ground. A highly imaginative person only, and one wholly unac- 
 quainted both with the shrub and the exudation, could propose this 
 plant as equal to the maintenance of two millions of people for forty 
 years in the wilderness. 
 
 The other manna-yielding tree which, more than the camel's thorn, 
 has been mentioned in explanation of this passage, is the tamarisk or 
 tarfa tree [Tamarix cjaUica, var. mnnnifera), a native of the eastern 
 deserts. Josephus first gave currency to this supposition. In the 
 account of the incident (Antiq. iii. 16), he says — " As Moses was lifting 
 up his hands in prayer, a dew fell down ; and Moses, when he found it 
 stick to his hands, su])posed this was also come for food from God to 
 them : he tasted it ; and perceiving that the people knew not what it 
 was, and thought it snowed, and that it was what usually fell at that 
 time of year, he informed them that this dew did not fill from heaven
 
 124 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 after the manner they imagined, but came for thoir preservation and 
 
 sustenance Even now, in all that place, this manna comes 
 
 down as rain." This feeble foundation has had a great superstructure 
 reared on it, by writers who hold that there are no mysteries in God's 
 ways with man, and no true miracles recorded in the history of those 
 ways. The exudation is caused by the puncture of an insect {Coccus 
 maniparus). The puncture is made iu the tender branches and twigs, 
 and from this the saccharine matter known as manna flows at irregular 
 periods. Sometimes over a wide area no exudation takes jjlace for a 
 
 Fig. 53. 
 
 Camel's Thoni (,Alhagi mnurorum). 
 
 period of four or five years. This is not to be confounded with the 
 manna of commerce, a substance 3-ielded by one of the Oleacece — the 
 ornus, or manna ash, which contains the principle known to chemists 
 as manm'te. The exudation of the tamarisk is sugar ; it does not con- 
 tain mannite. 
 
 The monks of St. Katherin, on Sinai, gather the manna of the 
 tamarisk and sell it at a high price to Europeans as the veritable food 
 on which Israel fed for forty years in the wilderness ! " It is found in 
 shining drops on the twigs and branches. What falls upon the sand is
 
 NUMBERS XI. 125 
 
 said not to be gathered. It has the appearance of gum, is of a sweetish 
 taste, and melts when exposed to the sun or to the fire. The Arabs 
 consider it as a great delicacy, and the pilgrims prize it highly." A 
 recent traveller in the Desert of Sinai gives twelve reasons to show 
 the impossibility of the exudation from the tamarisk answering the 
 requirements of the text of Scripture. The following is a summary 
 of these : — " 1. The tarfa exudes only small quantities of what is 
 called manna. The Arabs could not exist upon it for a week. 
 2. The tarfa only exudes at certain seasons, March and April (Seetzen 
 says June). When we passed through the desert there were no 
 exudations. Every branch was bare and dry. Israel required manna 
 constantly, in all seasons. 3. The tarfa does not yield its exuda- 
 tions regularly, even once a year. Israel was fed for forty years 
 upon the manna. 4. The exudations of the tarfa come out from the 
 branches of the tree, they do not come do7vn from the air or sky. But 
 Israel's manna is several times over said to fall from heaven. 5. The 
 tarfa exudations are in composition and consistency somewhat like 
 honey. They are quite unfit for grinding, or pounding, or baking, or 
 boiling. G. The taste of the ancient manna was ' as the taste of fresh 
 oil' (Num. xi. 8). No one who has tasted the tarfa-manna would 
 compare it to oil. 7. The tarfa-manna does not stink nor breed worms 
 in a single night. 8. The ancient manna evaporated as soon as the 
 sun rose (Exod. xvi. 21). The tarfa produce does not evaporate. 9. 
 The tarfa-manna does not fall in double quantity on Fridays, and cease 
 to fall entirely on Saturday. This, however, was the case with the 
 ancient manna (Exod. xvi. 29). 10. The tarfa-manna is medicine, not 
 food. No Arab would think of feeding on it. It is, moreover, pur- 
 gative. 11. The ancient manna was a thing quite unknown to the 
 Israelites (Deut. viii. 3). The mixed multitude that came out of Egypt 
 with them knew the tarfa well, for it is an Egyptian tree, and must 
 often have tasted its manna. Nay, every Israelite in the camp knew 
 the tarfa as well as he knew a palm, and had tasted tarfa-manna as 
 often as he had done a date. 12. It is an established physiological 
 fact that no one can feed long on one single substance with impunitv. 
 If Israel had lived upon tlie manna of the tarfa-tree, two miracles would 
 have been necessary — one to render the tarfas about ten thousand times 
 more productive than they arc (and this all the year through), and then 
 another to keep the children of Israel in bodily health while living on 
 that one article." — {Bonar.) 
 
 The manna satisfied them for a short season only. God had given
 
 12G BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 tliem bread from heaven fit for the nourishment of every part of their 
 bodies. But this was not enough. They histed for flesh ; they were 
 like rebellious children — " Moses heard the people weep throughout 
 their families, every man in the door of his tent" (ver. 10). This led 
 to a passionate burst of feeling on the part of Moses, and to another 
 signal illustration of the forbearance of God — " Then Moses heard the 
 people weep throughout their families, every man in the door of his 
 tent : and the anger of the Lord was kindled greatly ; Moses also was 
 displeased. And Moses said unto the Lord, Wherefore hast thou 
 afflicted thy servant? and wherefore have I not found favour in thy 
 sight, that thou layest the burden of all this people upon me ? Have I 
 conceived all this people? have I begotten them, that thou shouldest 
 say unto me, Carry them in thy bosom (as a nursing-father beareth the 
 sucking child) unto the land which thou swarest unto their fathers? 
 Whence should I have flesh to give unto all this people ? for they weep 
 unto me, saying, Give us flesh, that we may eat. I am not able to 
 bear all this people alone, because it is too heavy for me. And if thou 
 deal thus with me, kill me, I pray thee, out of hand, if I have found 
 favour in thy sight ; and let me not see my wretchedness" (ver. 10-15). 
 The message from God came — " The Lord will give you flesh" (ver. 18). 
 " And there went forth a wind from the Lord, and brought quails from 
 the sea, and let them fall by the camp, as it were a day's journey on 
 this side, and as it were a day's journey on the other side, round about 
 the camp, and as it were two cubits high upon the face of the earth. 
 And the people stood up all that day, and all that night, and all the 
 next day, and they gathered the quails : he that gathered least gathered 
 ten homers ; and they spread them all abroad for themselves round 
 about the camp" (ver. 31, 32). Not the least interesting fact in this 
 narrative, is the direct revival of true religious feeling in connection with 
 the circumstances set down here. It will be noticed, that this did not 
 come as a fruit of the miraculous power seen in the gift of the manna, 
 but as the effect of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit of God. By this 
 the seventy elders were raised to such views of their duty, and of the 
 glory of God, as Moses himself had. The effects of this soon spread. 
 Two of the men in the camp began to discourse on the ways of God, 
 at a distance from tlie authorized place. A gleam of that liberty which 
 was to shine fully and brightly out only when tabernacle and temple 
 were to be superseded by the coming of Him to whom all pointed, 
 broke on the people while they still lingered at a short distance from 
 the very shadow of Sinai itself.
 
 NUMBERS XI. 
 
 127 
 
 Fig. W. 
 
 " Quail," Heb. seldv, is no doubt the common species of the bird so 
 named (Coturm'x dactylisonans) . This species is abundant on the north, 
 the east, and the south coast of Africa, in Syria, and in the cultivated 
 parts of Arabia. This bird is migratory. It passes from south to north 
 late in spring, and returns south in the 
 begiiuiing of winter. Its migrations 
 seem to be determined more by cir- 
 cumstances connected with food than • 
 with climate. The people were now 
 a station distant from Hazeroth, the 
 modern Wady-el-Hadharah, three or 
 four days' march, in a direction north- 
 east, from Sinai. They were still be- 
 tween the horns of the Red Sea, Bahr 
 Suweis and Bahr-Akabah, the ancient 
 Heroopolitan and Elanitic Gulfs. Tak- 
 ing the season as that of the periodic 
 migration of the quails, the direct 
 agency of God in bringing them is 
 stated in the words, " There went forth 
 
 as«W-:-\>^'^ 
 
 Common Quail ^Coturnix daciylisonans). 
 
 wind from the Lord, 
 and brought quails from the sea." Tlie fxvourite haunts of this bird 
 are always in the neighbourhood of cultivated lands. At the season 
 referred to, it is not at all likely they would abound in the localities 
 through which the Israelites were now passing. They are indeed 
 named by some travellers in the desert of Sinai, but the references are 
 very unsatisfactory. On January 24, Dr. Bonar, describing the Wady 
 Mukatteb, says — " Flocks of pigeon-looking birds, which we are told 
 are quails, occasionally met us." But neither in form nor in flight is 
 there the slightest resemblance between the quail and the pigeon. Like 
 many other birds of passage, they perform their flight by night, or very 
 early in the morning, and rest during the day for feeding. 
 
 The description of the way in which they were brought, when read 
 in the light of their habits, is full of interest. If the sea named here 
 was the Egyptian arm, Bahr Suweis, they were passing from the south- 
 east of Africa northward, and when opposite the place in which Israel 
 was encamped the strong west wind " from the Lord" met them, and 
 left them wearied around the camps, just as they are often found still 
 at the time of their migration on the northern shores of the Mediter- 
 ranean. Or if the sea was the Arabian arm, Bahr-Akabah, they were 
 on their way from the south of Arabia to favoured haunts farther north,
 
 128 UUiLlCAL NATUUAL SCIENCE. 
 
 when another wind, the east, met them and drove them to Kibrotli- 
 liattaavali. 
 
 Hasselquist, Kitto, and some others, believe that tlie bird referred to 
 here was a species of sand grouse {Pterodes), and not a quail — the 
 Pterocles aldiata of modern zoologists, the Tetrao alchata, Linn., and 
 T. Israelitarum, Hasselq. But in addition to other objections which 
 miglit be urged against this, the name which tlic Arabs give to the 
 quail, sekiio, may be held to settle the matter. 
 
 Dr. Stanley on this passage gives currency to the very unsatisfactory 
 explanation of the Rev. C. Foster (" Voice of Sinai") that the measure 
 refers to tlie size of the birds, which he takes to be red-legged cranes. 
 He says — "In connection with this incident of the 'quails,' may be 
 mentioned the fact, that on the evening and the morning of our 
 encampment, immediately before reaching the Wady Huderah, the 
 sky was literally darkened by the flight of innumerable birds, which 
 proved to be the same large red-legged cranes, three feet high, with 
 black and white wings, measuring seven feet from tip to tip, which we 
 had seen in like numbers at the first cataract of the Nile. It is remark- 
 able that a similar flight was seen by Schubert near the very same spot. 
 That any large flights of birds should be seen in those parts, at any rate 
 illustrates the Scripture narrative. But if a recent explanation of the 
 difficult passage in Num. xi. 31 be correct, and the expression " two 
 cubits high upon the face of the earth" be applied, not to the accumu- 
 lation of the mass, but to the size of the individual birds ; the flight of 
 cranes, such as we saw, may be not merely an illustration, but an 
 instance, of the incident recorded in the Pentateuch, and the frequency 
 of the phenomenon in this locality may serve to show that Kibroth- 
 Hattaavah, and Huderah were not far distant." 
 
 " They spread the quails all abroad for themselves round the camp." 
 Having gathered them, they prepared them for food. Stripped and 
 " drawn," they were laid on the hot sands and "the bare rocks to dry, 
 after a fashion still prevalent in warm climates. The quail is reckoned 
 with the grouse {Tetrao), and partridge {Perch'x) under the family Tetra- 
 onidce — see under 1 Sam. xxvi. 20.
 
 NUMBEUS XIII.-XVIII. 
 
 129 
 
 NUMBERS XIII.-XVIII. 
 
 HE tents of Israel having been pitched in the " wiUlerness 
 of Paran" (ver. 3), "the Lord spake unto iloses, saying, 
 Send thou men tliat they may search the land of Canaan, 
 wliicli I give unto the children of Israel : of every tribe 
 • of their fathers shall ye send a man, every one a ruler 
 among you" (ver. 2). " And Moses sent them to spy out the 
 land of Canaan, and said unto them, get you up this way south- 
 ward, and go up into the mountain ; and see the laud, what it is ; 
 and the people that dwelletli therein, whether they be strong or 
 weak, few or many ; and what the land is that they dwell in, whether 
 it be good or bad ; and what cities they be that they dwell in whether 
 in tents, or in strong holds ; and what the land is, whether it be fat or 
 lean, whether there be wood therein, or not ; and be ye of good courage, 
 and bring of the fruit of the land. (Now the time was the time of the 
 first-ripe grapes.) So they went up, and searched the land, from the 
 wilderness of Zin unto Rehob, as men come to Hamath. And they 
 ascended by the south, and came unto Hebron ; where Ahiman, Sheshai, 
 and Talmai, the children of Anak, were. (Now Hebron was built seven 
 years before Zoan in Egypt.) And they came unto the brook of 
 Eshcol, and cut down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes, 
 and they bare it between two upon a staff; and they brought of the 
 pomegranates, and of the figs. The place was called the brook 
 Eshcol, because of the cluster of grapes which the children of Israel 
 cut down from thence. And they returned from searching of the land 
 after forty days. And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, 
 and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilder- 
 ness of Paran, to Kadesh ; and brought back word unto them, and 
 unto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruit of the land" 
 (ver. 18-26). Tiie subjects which claim notice here are — (1) The point 
 from which they were sent to search out the land, " the wilderness of 
 Paran." It appears from verse 2C that Kadesh was in this tract, 
 Kadesh again (xxxiii. 3G) stood in the wilderness of Zin. The region 
 lies on the south of Palestine. In its widest sense it reaches to the 
 
 range of Seir on the east, and to the desert of Shur on the west, 
 VOL. n. R
 
 130 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCR. 
 
 including thus el-Glior, el-Arabah, the desert of Sin, and a wild tract 
 to the west. It is not to be confounded with Feiran or Faran in the 
 peninsula of Sinai. (2) " The land of Canaan." This expression 
 answers to our name " Lowlands." It was given originally to the 
 plains of Palestine. In chap. xxi. 31, that tract of the country is 
 named the "land of the Ainoritcs." In 1 Sam. xiii. it is called the 
 " land of Israel," and ultimately it became known as the " land of 
 Judah" (Isa. xix. 17) or Judpea. Its boundaries and iidiabitants are 
 pointed out under chapter xxxiv. (3) The season at which the spies 
 were sent out. " The time was the time of the first-ripe grapes." 
 The grapes in the neighbourhood of Jerusalem begin to ripen in the 
 end of June. The first ripe clusters are gathered in the beginning of 
 July. Among the natural productions for which Canaan was noted, 
 "vines" are mentioned in Deut. viii. 8. When the spies reached the 
 valley of Eshcol, they found the vines loaded with the blushing clusters, 
 and brought back a magnificent bunch as a specimen. Some of the 
 clusters still met with by travellers weigh from ten to twelve pounds. 
 The grapes of Palestine appear to have been red. Thus the expres- 
 sions in the blessing of Judah — " binding his foal unto the vine, and 
 his ass's colt unto the choice vine ; he washed his garments in wine, 
 and his clothes in the blood of grapes" (Gen. xlix. 2). 
 
 " Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwelt in the valley," 
 xiv. 25^see under 1 Chron. iv. 43. 
 
 We have an illustration in the story of Korah, Dathan, and Abirani, 
 of God's sovereignty over those giant forces, whose manifestations are 
 seen in the earthquake, which periodically cause ruin and wide-spread 
 misery in a land. The "gainsaying of Core " is permitted at a time when 
 volcanic forces, which still occasionally become active in Palestine, were 
 about to disturb the surface of the earth. They rebel, and the earth at 
 the bidding of Jehovah opens and engulfs them. " If the Lord make a 
 new thing, and the earth open her mouth, and swallow thein up, with 
 all that appertain unto them, and they go down quick into the pit ; then 
 ye shall understand that these men have provoked the Lord. And it 
 came to pass, as he had made an end of speaking all these words, that 
 the ground clave asunder that was under them : and the earth opened 
 her mouth, and swallowed them up, and their houses, and all the men 
 that a]ipertained unto Korah, and all their goods" (xvi. 30-35). 
 
 The earthquake had been made God's servant in the judgment 
 against Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. " The ground clave asunder 
 that was under them." " All that appertained to them, went down
 
 NUMBERS XIII.-XVIII. 131 
 
 alive into the pit, and the earth closed upon them." Overawed for a 
 season, the congregation of Israel soon broke out again in rebellion. 
 The spirit of murmuring took possession of them. They said to Moses 
 and Aaron — " Ye have killed the people of the Lord." Thereupon the 
 Lord threatened to destroy them. The work of destruction began. 
 " Wrath went out from the Lord." A terrible plague broke out in the 
 camp, and Moses hastened Aaron to make " an atonement for the 
 people." "Aaron stood between the dead and the living; and the 
 plague was stayed" (chap. xvi. 27, 32, 33, 41, 45, 46, 48). In his 
 long-suffering, God gave another proof of his presence with Moses and 
 Aaron, and of his use of them as his servants. Twelve rods were to be 
 prepared, one for each tribe. The names of the leaders of the tribe 
 were to be written on the rods. Aaron's name was to be written on 
 the rod of the tribe of Levi. " It shall come to pass that the man's 
 rod, whom I shall choose, shall blossom ; and I will make to cease 
 from me the murmurings of the children of Israel, whereby they 
 murmur against you" (xvii. 5). The twelve rods were laid up " before 
 the Lord in the tabernacle of witness." " And it came to pass, that on 
 the morrow Moses went into the tabernacle of witness ; and, behold, 
 the rod of Aaron, for the house of Levi, was budded, and brought forth 
 buds, and bloomed blossoms, and yielded almonds. And Moses 
 brought out all the rods from before tlie Lord unto all the children 
 of Israel; and they looked, and took every man his rod" (ver. 8, 9). 
 " Almond," Heb. shakcid, the fruit of the common almond-tree (Ami/f/- 
 dahis communis) — see under Gen. xliii. 11 ; Eccl. xii. 5; and Jer. i. 11. 
 The miracle recorded here is not lessened by the fact of the well known 
 habits of the almond-tree. " This was miraculous rapidity certainly ; 
 but a rod was selected for the purpose from that tree wliich, in its 
 natural development, is the most expeditious of all ; and not only do 
 tlie blossoms appear on it suddenly, but the fruit sets at once, and 
 appears even when the flowers are yet on the tree, buds, blossoms, and 
 almonds together on the same branch, as on this rod of Moses." In 
 chapter xviii. Aaron is specially addressed. In verses 11, 12, he is 
 told — " And this is thine ; the heave-offering of their gift, with all the 
 wave-offerings of the chililren of Israel : I have given them unto thee, 
 and to thy sons, and to thy daughters with tliee, by a statute for ever ; 
 every one that is clean in thy house shall eat of it. All the best of the 
 oil, and all the best of the wine, and of the wheat, the first-fruits of 
 them, which they shall offer unto the Lord, them have I given thee." — 
 See under Dent. xi. 14.
 
 132 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 NUMBEES XIX.-XXI. 
 
 'N ver. 2 we are introduced to the ordinance of tlie offering of 
 the red heifer — see "cow" under Gen. xli. 2-4, in which the 
 same word as that used in this passage (pdi-dh) is rendered 
 " kine." Another term is transhited heifer, namely, er/Iah, as 
 in Gen. xv. 9 — " Take me an heifer of three years okl ; " and 
 in Deut. xxi. 3, 4, 6, as the sacrifice for the man slain by an 
 unknown hand. It was to be an heifer which had not been wrought with ; 
 the heifer was to be killed in a rough valley which had neither been 
 eared nor sown ; the elders of the city next to which the dead man had 
 been found were to wash their hands over the heifer that was beheaded 
 in the valley ; they were to protest that they were innocent and were 
 to pray — " lay not innocent blood unto thy people of Israel's charge." 
 Ur/lah, heifer, also occurs Judges xiv. 18; 1 Sam. xvi. 2; Isa. vii. 21, 
 where it is rendered cow, " a young cow," literally an heifer of the 
 herd. Isa-. xv. 5 ; Jer. xlvi. 20, in which Egj'pt is compared to " a 
 fair heifer." Jer. xlviii. 34, 1. 11. In Hos. x. 5, it is translated "calves." 
 The same prophet compares Ejiliraira to " an heifer that is taught, and 
 -loveth to tread out the com " (ver. 1 1). 
 
 In the passage now under notice, the usual Hebrew term for " cow" 
 is employed. In glancing over these institutions the reader will have 
 observed, that, in some instances, Moses alone is addressed by God, in 
 others Aaron only is directly spoken to, while in a third class both 
 Moses and Aaron are called to hearken to the words of Jehovah. The 
 commands regarding the red heifer are given both to the civil and the 
 ecclesiastical leaders of the great congregation. All were equally 
 interested in it. " The Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, 
 This is the ordinance of the law which the Lord hath commanded, 
 saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring thee a red 
 heifer without spot, wherein is no blemish, and upon which never came 
 yoke : and ye shall give her unto Eleazar the priest, that he may bring 
 her forth without the camp, and one shall slay her before his face. 
 And Eleazar the priest shall take of her blood with his finger, and 
 sprinkle of her blood directly before the tabernacle of the congregation 
 seven times. And one shall burn the heifer in his sight ; her skin and
 
 NUMBICRS XIX.-XXI. 133 
 
 her flesh, and her blood, with her dung, shall he burn" (ver. 1-5). 
 Great prominence is given to the people's sin by the institution of this 
 sacrifice for their purification. In contrast with both also, God's 
 holiness is made to stand out very boldly. Having set up the ordi- 
 nance, the manner of fulfilling it is stated with such minuteness, as to 
 suggest its importance and the deep spiritual meaning underlying it. 
 To see all this it is sufficient to compare the New Testament parallel 
 passage with this one — " For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the 
 ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctirieth to the purifying of 
 the flesh : how much more shall the blood of Christ, who throusfh the 
 etei'nal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your con- 
 science from dead works, to serve the living God?" (Heb ix. 13, 14.) 
 
 The colour of the heifer is noticed in a very marked way. It was 
 " a red heifer." The explanation of this has generally been sought 
 in the customs of Egyptian idolatrous worship. In what is called the 
 Osiris group of Egyptian deities are Osiris and his spouse Isis, the good 
 representatives of the principles of vitality and fruitfulness; Horus their 
 child, " who has received the royalty of the two worlds ; " Thoth, the 
 ibis-headed god, the hiventor of letters'; and Typhon witli his wife and 
 sister Nephthys, the rei)resentatives of evil, and the constant antagonists 
 of everything good. To Typhon and Nephthys red oxen were offered 
 in sacrifice, and even human beings named typhonic men — red-haired 
 captives — were slain as offerings to the evil deity. From this it has 
 been alleged, that a separation was made between Israel and the 
 Egyptians, by this sovereign act which ordained, that what in Egypt 
 was associated with the religion of fear, should come in the camp of 
 Israel to be linked up with the religion of love. " The truth will 
 probably turn out to be, that the adoption of the red colour in both 
 cases corresponded only because of its inherent fitness to express the 
 thought which it was made to symbolize in each community. It was 
 the colour of blood ; and, while in Egy])t this idea was readily con- 
 nected with the deadly, scathing, sanguinary powers of Typhon, it 
 became in the more ethical system of the Hebrews a remembrancer of 
 moral evil flowing out into its penal consequences, or an image of 
 unpardoned sin." Thus the strong expression of the prophet — " Your 
 hands are full of blood." . . . . " Come now, and let us reason together, 
 saith the Lord : Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as wliite 
 as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool" 
 (Isa. i. 18). 
 
 " And wherefore have ye made us to come up out of Egypt, to
 
 134 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 bring us in unto this evil place? it is no place of seed, or of figs, or of 
 vines, or of pomegranates; neither is there any water to drink" 
 (xx. 17). — See under 1 Sam. xiv. 2. 
 
 The people again forgot their mercies and murmured against Moses. 
 " And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore 
 have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for 
 there is no bread, neither is there any water ; and our soul loatheth 
 this light bread. And the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, 
 and they bit the people ; and nmch people of Israel died. Tiierefore 
 the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned ; for we liave 
 spoken against the Lord, and against thee : pray unto the Lord, that 
 he take away the serpents from us. And IMoses prayed for the people. 
 And the Lord said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it 
 upon a pole : and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten. 
 
 Fig. 55. 
 
 Ileadof R«l. 
 
 when he looketh upon it, shall live. And Moses made a serpent of 
 brass, and put it upon a pole ; and it came to pass, that if a serpent 
 had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived" 
 (ver. 5-9). This passage is also noticed under Gen. iii. 1-7. The 
 word used in Genesis is repeated here, namely, nahasli, which points 
 generally to one of the Pythons (Plates IV. Fig. 1, IX. Fig. 4). 
 
 The after history of the brazen serpent is indicated in 2 Kings xviii. 
 4 — Hezekiali discovered that the people liad come to worship the 
 emblem of healing, while they forgot the gracious Healer himself. 
 " He removed the high places and brake the images, and cut down the 
 groves, and brake in pieces the brasen serpent that Moses had made : 
 for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it ; and 
 he called it Nehushtan," a mere bit of useless brass. Yet the act of 
 IMoses became the type of another and more gracious one ; " as Moses 
 lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be 
 lifted up" (John iii. 14). The rock snake "generally occurs from
 
 NUMBERS XIX.-XXI. 135 
 
 seven to thirteen feet in length, but even Schlegel mentions having 
 himself seen one that measured twenty feet. The colours are brilliant 
 and lively. A pale yellowish coffee-brown colour predominates on the 
 upper parts, losing itself in numerous gray marblings (jn the flanks, 
 which scarcely allows the beautiful yellow colour of the ground to be 
 seen, but which spreads uniformly over the belly. The head is varie- 
 gated with red ; the muzzle is marked with a square brownish-black 
 spot, another is seen above the eye, and a third, broad and club-shaped, 
 is prolonged from behind the eye to the neck. The iris is of a golden 
 yellow colour. The adults are more brilliantly coloured than the 
 young. The head is distinct from the body, is tolerably broad, elongate, 
 depressed on the suriimit, and terminates in a narrow rounded muzzle. 
 The nostrils, large and round, are slightly distant from each other, and 
 ai;e directed backwards. The eye is nearly lateral, and directed slightly 
 forwards. The tail is much smaller in circumference than the trunk, 
 and is rather short and conical. On the continent of India tliis serpent 
 is known to the natives by the name of the hora or pedda jJoda, but 
 by the English is called the rock snake." Other two Hebrew words are 
 rendered serpent, zohhel, in Deut. xxxii. 24, and tannin, in Exod. vii. 
 9, 10, 12. The former refers to any creeping thing under the influence 
 of fear. Thus in Micah vii. 17, it is rightly rendered "worms of the 
 earth." In Deuteronomy it is translated " serpents of the dust^' — any 
 of the snakes which, in the alarm of being trampled on, turn on men 
 and bite them. The latter word is used for the serpents of the Egyp- 
 tian magicians, to indicate their terrific appearance. When Moses 
 threatens judgment on those who had grievously sinned against God, 
 he says — " I will also send the teeth of beasts upon them, with the 
 poison of serpents." The association of the bite with the venom is 
 highly suggestive. It is a well known fact, that, though the poison is 
 deadly when put into the veins, it can be taken into the stomach 
 without harm. This may have been in view here. It may have been 
 known in the days of ]\Ioses. The Romans were femiliar with the fact. 
 Celsus was acquainted with it. Lucan introduces Cato expounding the 
 same thing to his soldiers — 
 
 " And now with fiercer licat the desert glows, 
 And mid-day gloamings aggravate their woes. 
 When, lo ! a spring amid the sandy plain 
 Shows its clear mouth to cheer the fainting train. 
 But round the guarded bank in thick array, 
 Dire aspics roll'd their congregated way, 
 And thirsting in the midst, the Dipsas lay.
 
 Black horror seized tl-.eir veins, and at the view, 
 Back from the fount the troops recoiling flew. 
 When wise above the crowd, by cares unqtiellcd, 
 Their awful leader thus their dread dispell'd ; 
 Let not vain terrors thus your minds enslave, 
 Nor dream the serpent brood can taint the wave: 
 Urged by the fatal fang, their poison kills, 
 But mixes harmless with the bubbling rills. 
 Dauntless he spoke, and bending as he stood, 
 Drank with cool courage the suspected flood."' 
 
 Bat tlie epithet " fiery" (sarapli) leads us away from the general mean- 
 ing of the word here rendered serpent (naJiash), and indicates another 
 form. NaJiash indeed appears to be used here in the same way as hi 
 Isa. xiv. 29, where it is equivalent to the class Reptilia of zoologists. 
 This is pointed out under that passage. Saraph, it is there shown, is 
 mentioned by the propliet as a species of cockatrice, one of the egg- 
 bearing reptiles, to be dittingushed from the vipers which are viviparous. 
 They do not, however, escape from their parent in the way imagined 
 by the old poet. — 
 
 " Thou mak'st the ingrateful viper, at his birth, 
 His dying mother's belly to gnaw forth ! " 
 
 ''Fiery" maybe associated with the eiTects of the serpent's bite, as 
 causing burning thirst, rather than with the colour of the reptile, though 
 it is to be remembered that in the Arabian desert several snakes abound 
 whose colour was sufficient to suggest this epithet : — 
 
 " Adder, Snake, and Dipsas causing deadly thirst." 
 
 Some of the tree-snakes are remarkable for their activity. " There is, 
 at Basna," says Niebuhr, in the 'Description of Arabia,' "a sort of 
 snake called Ileie sursidre, or Het'e thidre. These snakes commonly 
 keep upon the date-trees ; and, as it would be laborious for them to 
 come down from a very high tree, in order to ascend another, they 
 twist themselves by the tail to a branch, and impelled by the motion 
 they give it, they launch themselves to the next tree. Hence it is that 
 the modern Arabs call them flying serpents, Htie thidre." 
 
 " The children of Israel set forward, and pitched in Oboth. They jour- 
 neyed from Oboth, and pitched at Ije-abarim, in the wilderness which 
 is before Moab, toward the sun-rising. From thence they removed, 
 and pitched in the valley of Zared. From thence they removed, and 
 pitched on the other side of Arnou, which is the wilderness that cometh
 
 NUMBERS XIX.-XXI. 137 
 
 out of the coasts of the Amoritcs : for Anion is the border of Moab, 
 between Moab and the Amorites. Wherefore it is said in the book of 
 the wars of the Lord, What he did in the Red Sea, and in the brooks 
 of Arnon, and at the stream of the brooks tliat goeth down to the 
 dwclHng of Ar, and lieth upon the border of Moab. And from thence 
 they went to Beer : that is the well whereof the Lord spake unto 
 Moses, Gather the people together, and I will give them water" (ver. 
 10-16). In their wanderings they reached the eastern borders of Edom, 
 and halted for a season at " Oboth." This station has not been iden- 
 tified by any modern traveller. It appears to have taken its name 
 from the fact, that there travellers filled the skins with water to serve 
 them in their journey into the desert. Their next halting-place was 
 "Ije-abarira" (literally the heaps of Abarim), or "the heights on the 
 other side," the region, namely, on the east of the Jordan, north of the 
 Dead Sea, where the plain of the Jordan is about fourteen miles broad. 
 The highlands on the east of Jordan known as Abarim, are several 
 times mentioned. The statement in verse 11 is repeated in chap, 
 xxxiii. 44. In verses 47 and 48 of the same chapter Abarim is again 
 mentioned. Its position is afterwards clearly indicated in connection 
 with the death of Moses — " Get thee up into this mountain Abarim, 
 unto Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, that is over against 
 Jericho, and behold the land of Canaan, which I give unto the chil- 
 dren of Israel for a possession" (Deut. xxxii. 49). Jeremiah names 
 it along with two other noted ranges — " Go up to Lebanon and cry, 
 and lift up thy voice in Bashan, and cry from the ' passages ' — Aharim 
 — for all thy lovers are destroyed" (xxii. 20). The "heaps" referred 
 to were thus a range of highlands forming the eastern boundary of 
 the plain of Jordan. They were in the land of Moab over against 
 Jericho. The peaks of Abarim were Peor, Pisgah, and Nebo. 
 
 "'Arnon' is the modern Wady Mojeb, the river of Moab. It has 
 cut deeply into tlie limestone strata, and has left on each side precipi- 
 tous banks of naked rock. Here on the very brink of the precipice 
 are the ruins of Ara'ir, in which we at once recognize that Aroer 
 which stood 'by the brink of the river Arnon,' at the southern extremity 
 of the country conquered by the Israelites. Deut. ii. 36, iv. 48 ; Josh, 
 xiii. 9. It was the same Aroer which was rebuilt by the Gadites, 
 mentioned as ' before Rabbah,' and beside which, ' toward Jazer,' Joab 
 first pitched his tent when David ordered him to ' number Israel.' 
 (Num. xxxii. 34 ; 2 Sam. xxiv. 5.) The valley, when viewed from this 
 spot, ' looks like a deep chasm, formed by some tremendous convulsion 
 
 VOL. II. S
 
 138 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 of the earth, into wliich there seems no possibility of descending to the 
 bottom. The distance from tlie edge of one precipice to that of the 
 opposite one is about two miles in a straight line. The bottom of the 
 valley, through which the little stream runs, is a narrow verdant strip 
 of level ground, about forty yards across. In Josh. xiii. 9, we find the 
 somewhat puzzling sentence — ' From Aroer that is upon the bank of 
 the river Anion, and the city that is in the midst of the ricer, and all the 
 plain of IMedeba unto Dibon.' There nuist therefore have been some 
 town or-' fortress' (Air) in the bed of the Arnon, at or near to Aroer. 
 There is no trace of any, nor indeed is there room for one, at this spot ; 
 but Burckhardt states that eastward, at the junction of Wady Lejum 
 with the Arnon there is a level tract of pasture-ground, ' in the midi^t 
 of which stands a hill with some ruins upon it,' and this may probably 
 be the site of ' the city that is in the midst of the river.' 
 
 " The Arnon was the boundary between Moab and the Amorites in 
 the days of Moses. It was upon its northern bank the Israelites first 
 encamped after they had come round the eastern side of Moab ; and it 
 subsequently formed the southern frontier of their territory on this side 
 of the river. What from ' Dan to Beersheba' was on the west in after 
 years, ' from the river Arnon unto Mount Herraon ' was upon the east 
 of the Jordan. (Num. xxi. 13, 2G; Deut. iii. 8, 16; Josh. xii. 1.) As 
 we cross this wild pass and see the dreary desolation of the country 
 around, we may call to mind the solemn and beautiful language of 
 Isaiah : ' For it shall be that, as a wandering bird cast out of the nest, 
 so the daughters of Moab shall be at the fords of Arnon.' The heads 
 of the wady stretch away out into the eastern plain ; but except during 
 the brief winter rains no water flows into it from that arid region. The 
 stream of the Mojeb during summer is very small. It enters the Dead 
 Sea through a chasm in the sandstone rock not more than 100 feet 
 wide, while the almost perpendicular sides range from 100 feet to 
 400 feet in height." — {Porter.) " Ar " means city, though the word is 
 sometimes used for Moab generally. It lay between Kerek and the 
 Wady ]\Iojeb. 
 
 " And Israel took all these cities : and Israel dwelt in all the cities of 
 the Amorites, in Heshbon, and in all the villages thereof. For Heshbon 
 was the city of Sihon the king of the Amorites, who had fought against 
 the former king of Moab, and taken all his land out of his hand, even 
 unto Arnon. Wherefore they that speak in proverbs say. Come into 
 Heshbon, let the city of Sihon be built and prepared ! For there is a 
 fire gone out of Heshbon, a flame fi'om the city of Sihon : it hath
 
 NUMBERS XIX.-XXI. 139 
 
 consumed Ar of Moab, and the lords of the high pLaces of Arnon. Woe 
 to thee, Moab ! thou art undone, people of Chemosh ! he hath given 
 his sons that escaped, and his daughters, into captivity, unto Sihon king 
 of the Amorites. We have shot at them ; Heslibon is perished even 
 unto Dibon, and we have laid them waste even unto Nophah, which 
 reacheth unto Medeba" (ver. 25-30). Heslibon is represented by the 
 place now called Heshihi. " The remains of this city stand on a little 
 hill which rises considerably above the undulating plateau." " There 
 are many cisterns among the heaps of rubbish ; and towards the south, 
 a few minutes from the base of the^ hill, is a large ancient reservoir, 
 which may call to mind the passage in the Song of Solomon — ' Thine 
 eyes are like the fishpools in Heshbon, by the gate of Bcth-rabbim.' 
 (vii. 4.) A commanding view is obtained from the summit of the hill, 
 extending on the south to the mountains that surround Kerek ; on the 
 east across the desert plain of ]\Ioab as far as the eye can see ; on the 
 north to the wooded heights of 'Ajlun ; and on the west to the hill 
 country of Judaea, where Jerusalem, Bethlehem, and the Frank moun- 
 tain may be distinguished. A number of interesting sites, too, are 
 within view. Through a depression on the west we look down into 
 the Jordan valley, and obtain a glimpse of the Dead Sea beyond. 
 Some two miles to the south are the ruins of JMain, the ancient Baal- 
 meon which the Reubenites rebuilt. (Num. xxxii. 38.) Away beyond 
 it, a little to the right rises up the barren peak of Attarus, which is 
 generally (but incorrectly) supposed to be the Nebo from which Moses 
 got his last view of the ' promised land,' and on which he died. Far 
 away on the south-east, some fifteen or twenty miles off, may be seen 
 the tower of Um-Rusas. A little over a mile north by east on the 
 summit of a high tell is el-'Al, the -EleaJeh of Scripture ; and to the 
 left of it, away on the distant horizon, the eye can just distinguish 
 the outline of the commanding castle of es-Salt, the ancient Ramoth- 
 Gilead."
 
 140 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 NUMBERS XXII.-XXXII. 
 
 HE dread of ]\Ioab when Israel encamped in the plain of 
 Jericho is graphically pictured in verse 4 — " Moab said 
 imto the elders of Midian, Now shall this company lick up 
 all that are round about us, as the ox licketh up the grass 
 of the field." When the ox is first turned into the pasture 
 land it may be noticed eating round and round some tree or 
 other object, the circle gradually decreasing as he proceeds, 
 until the herbage is fully cropped and the ground begins to look 
 bare. Literally he licketh the grass of the field. His elongated 
 tongue twists the herbage into a wisp, and thus sets it in a favourable 
 position for his cutting teeth on the front of the lower jaw. These 
 hold it fast on the gristly front of the upper jaw until the jerk of the 
 
 SkiUl of the Ox (E03 taurus). 
 
 head is given which separates the herbage from its roots. Balak 
 wished, in using this expression, to intimate both the completeness and 
 the extent of the injury which Israel would do to Moah and Midian, if 
 they were not hindered. The word translated ox in this verse is shor, 
 which is used about eighty times by Scripture writers, and is for the 
 most part rendered ox. In Leviticus iv. 10; ix. 4, 18, 19 ; xx. 23, and
 
 NUMBERS XXII.-XXXII. 141 
 
 in one or two other passages, it is rendered bullock ; while in Leviti- 
 cus xxii. 28, and Numbers xviii. 19, it is translated cow, and in Job 
 xxi. 10, it is bull. The references to the ox (shOr) in Leviticus show, 
 that it was used in the service of the sanctuary as a burnt-offering for 
 sin and as a peace-offering. It was used by the husbandman in various 
 agricultural operations, and is specially mentioned in the law of sab- 
 bath rest (Deut. v. 14) as one of the animals which man was not to 
 press into labour on the Sabbath-day — " Thou shalt not do any work, 
 thou nor thine ox (shor)." The same divine compassion took it into 
 account in the hardships of field labour to which it might be devoted, 
 and commanded — " Thou shalt not plow with an ox and an ass 
 together" (Deut. xxii. 10). The association would be equally painful 
 to each, from the great disparity in size, shape, gait, and general 
 habits. It would, too, have put Israel on a level with the heathen, 
 who everywhere then as now sought to introduce confusion into God's 
 fair world of order and harmony. A like tender regard for the " beasts 
 that perish" is shown in the precept — " Thou shalt not muzzle the ox 
 when he treadeth out the corn" (Deut. xxv. 4). This, no doubt, 
 implies much more than simply " God's care for oxen." Its higher 
 bearings are pointed out under 1 Cor. x, 7-10. 
 
 " And when the ass saw the angel of the Lord, she fell down under 
 Balaam : and Balaam's anger was kindled, and he smote the ass with a 
 staff. And the Lord opened the mouth of the ass ; and she said unto 
 Balaam, What have I done unto thee, that thou hast smitten me these 
 three times ? And Balaam said unto the ass. Because thou hast mocked 
 me ; I would there were a sword in mine hand, for now would I kill 
 thee. And the ass said unto Balaam, Am not I thine ass, upon which 
 thou hast ridden ever since I was thine unto this day ? was I ever wont 
 to do so unto thee? And he said. Nay. Then the Lord opened the eyes 
 of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the way, and 
 his sword drawn in his hand ; and he bowed down his head, and fell 
 flat on his face" (ver. 27-31). The sovereignty of God over his 
 creatures, implied in this incident, has been fully discussed under 
 Gen. ii. The power put forth was not exercised on the beast alone. 
 A corresponding influence touched the vision of the prophet. " The 
 Lord opened the eyes of Balaam." " Places of Baal" (ver. 14) were 
 the heights consecrated to his worship. " Balak brought him into the 
 field of Zophim, to the top of Fisgah, and built seven altars, and 
 offered a bullock and a ram on every altar" (xxiii. 14). "God 
 brought them out of Egypt ; he hath, as it were, the strength of an
 
 142 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 unicorn" (ver. 22). "Unicorn" — see under Dcut. xxxiii. 17, and 
 Ps. xxii. 21. 
 
 The hosts of Israel were encamped on the eastern side of the Jordan. 
 " The place," says Dr. Stanley, "is so minutely specified, that it may 
 be fixed in spite of the obscurity which still rests on the further bank 
 of the Jordan. It was in the 'desert plain' of Moab, so called, pro- 
 bably, in contradistinction to the cultivated 'fields' on the table-land 
 above. It was in the long belt of acacia groves (sJn'tttm) which, on the 
 eastern as on the western side of the Jordan, mark with a line of 
 verdure the upper terraces of the valley. These groves indicate at 
 once the issue of the springs from the roots of the eastern hills, and the 
 tropical climate to which the Israelites had now descended, and which 
 brought them under these wild and thorny shades — probably for the first 
 time since they left them in the wilderness of Sinai. Their tents were 
 pitched ' from Abel-Shittim ' on the north ' to Beth-Jeshimoth ' on the 
 south ; from the ' meadow ' which marked the limit of those ' groves ' 
 to the ' hamlet' or ' house,' which stood in the 'waste' on the shores of 
 the Dead Sea. They looked straight across the Jordan to the green 
 spot of Jericho on the western bank. High above them rose the 
 mountains to which their descendants gave the name of ' Abariin ' — 
 ' those on the further side,' the eastern wall of the valley, on whose 
 tops they had so long sojourned in their long struggle with the Amorites 
 of Heshbon. 
 
 " From these lofty summits were unfolded two successive views 
 of the valley below, of the camp, of the opposite hills — awakening 
 thoughts most diverse to tlie two seers, but of almost equal interest to 
 future times. From the ' high places ' there dedicated to Baal, from 
 the ' bare hill ' on ' the top of the rocks,' and lastly, from the culti- 
 vated ' field ' of Zophim, on ' the top of Pisgah,' from the top of Peor, 
 that ' looketh on the face of the waste,' ' the Assyrian prophet,' witli 
 the king of Moab by his side, looked over the wide prospect :^ 
 
 ' He watch'd till morning's ray 
 
 On lake and meadow lay, 
 And willow-shaded streams that silent sweep 
 
 Amid their banner'd lines, 
 
 Where, by their several signs, 
 The desert-wearied tribes in sight of Canaan sleep.' 
 
 He saw, in that vast encampment amongst the acacia groves, ' how 
 goodly are thy tents, Jacob, and thy tabernacles, Israel.' Like 
 the water-courses of the mountains, like gardens by the side of his own
 
 NUMBERS XXII.-XXXII. 
 
 143 
 
 great river Euphrates, with their aromatic shrubs, and their wide- 
 spreading cedars — the lines of the camp were spread out before him. 
 Ephraim was tliere with ' the strength of the wild bull ' of the north ; 
 Judah, ' couching, like the lion ' of the south ; a people dwelling alone,' 
 yet a mighty nation — ' who can count the dust of Jacob, and the 
 number of the fourth part of Israel?' He looked round from his high 
 post over the table-lands of Moab, to the line of mountains stretching 
 away to Edom, on the south ; over the high platform of the desert 
 beyond the Dead Sea, where dwelt the tribe of Amalek, then ' first of 
 the nations;' over the Kenite, not yet removed from his clefts in the 
 rocks of En-gedi, full in front of the prophet's view. And for each his 
 dirge of lamentation went up ; till at the thought of liis own distant 
 land of ' Asshur,' of the land beyond the Euphrates, of the dim vision 
 of ships coming from the western sea which lay behind the hills of 
 Palestine, 'to afflict Asshur and to afflict Eber' — he burst into the 
 bitter cry, ' Alas, who shall live when God doeth this !' and he rose up 
 and returned to his place." 
 
 Balaam's parable is one of great beauty. From his elevated position 
 he beheld fertile plains stretching out among the hills, and reposing in 
 quiet beauty in the sunlight. He had wandered through these and 
 observed their fruitfulness. He had seen the husbandman plying his 
 daily tasks, and reaping the reward in plentiful harvests. And now, 
 when hearing the words of God, when seeing the visions of the 
 Almighty, and when cast on the ground by the strong hand of God 
 upon him, and still gazing on Israel, he cries — 
 
 " How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, tliy tabernacles, O Israel ! 
 As valleys are tliey spread forth, as gardens by the river's side, 
 As the trees of lign aloes which the Lord hath planted. 
 As the cedar trees beside the waters." — (xxiv. 5, 6.) 
 
 " Lign aloes,^' Heb. ahCdim. This tree is the Aqidlaria AyallocJium, 
 or aromatic eaglewood of botanists. Its wood is highly scented, and is 
 much used in Romanist and Mahommedan countries for fumia-atins: 
 their jilaces of worship and for incense. Eaglewood also yields, when 
 parts of it decay, an oily substance much esteemed as a perfume. See 
 under John xix. 39. The lign aloe is a native of Southern Asia and of 
 some of the islands of the Eastern Archipelago. This fact has led 
 many to doubt whether the plant mentioned by Balaam could really be 
 the aquilaria of India. The alleged difficulty is believed to be removed 
 either by rendering the Hebrew word {ahdUrii} "tents" instead of
 
 144 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 " trees of lign aloes," or by substituting another tree for the aquilarla. 
 The former interpretation has tliis in Its favour — the word in the 
 singular (^7/ia/) is translated "tent" in Genesis xiii. 18, and another 
 form iphal) is rendered " tent" in verse 5. But the whole scope of the 
 vision of Balaam clearly demands that a tree be understood in tliis 
 place. That the aquilaria was not a native of the region in which the 
 Arabian prophet met Israel, might almost be gathered from the verse 
 itself. The lign aloes were distinguished as trees which " the Lord 
 had planted," while native cedars are simply characterized as " trees 
 beside the rivers of waters." The difficulty which modern horticul- 
 turists have experienced in rearing the lign aloe, in localities fiir 
 removed from those in which it is indigenous, are sufficient to warrant 
 the prophet in ascribing the presence and luxuriant growth of a much 
 coveted tree, in a land in which it was not a native, to the goodness and 
 care of the Lord. As the spice merchants carried to the north and 
 east the wood and the rich atur, or oil-perfume, the desire of the people 
 would be strengthened to have some of the trees among themselves. 
 Balaam, moreover, designed by his words to present the attractiveness 
 and beauty, the power and the fruitfulness, of the chosen people to 
 Balak. The first of these features is suggested by the lign aloes, the 
 second by the cedars, and the third by the agricultural allusions in 
 verse 7. See also under Ps. xlv. 8. It will be seen from the extract 
 given above, that Dr. Stanley explains these references by the hypo- 
 thesis that Balaam drew his imagery from memory. Either this or the 
 explanation now given illustrates the glowing utterances of the prophet. 
 
 " Lion," Heb. art, ver. 9 ; see under 1 Samuel xvii. 34. " And he 
 looked on the Kenites, and took up his parable, and said. Strong is 
 thy dwelling-place, and thou puttest thy nest in a rock : nevertheless 
 the Kenite shall be wasted, until Asslmr shall carry thee away captive. 
 And he took up his parable, and said, Alas ! who shall live when God 
 doeth this? And ships shall come from the coast of Chittim, and shall 
 afflict Asshur, and shall afflict Eber, and he also shall perish for ever " 
 (ver. 21-24). 
 
 "The Kenites" are first mentioned in Gen. xv. 19, as inhabiting 
 Canaan in the time of Abraham. Here they are noticed as dwelling 
 in a mountainous situation bordering on the Amalekites. Jethro, the 
 father-in-law of Moses, was a Kenite, and for his sake the Kenites 
 were spared when the other nations of Canaan were destroyed. They 
 appear afterwards to have associated with the remnant of Amalek, for 
 in the days of Saul they were found dwelling among the Amalekites —
 
 NUMBERS XXII.-XXXU. 145 
 
 " And Saul said unto the Kenites, Go, depart, get you down from 
 among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with tliem : for ye showed 
 kindness to all the children of Israel when they came up out of Egypt. 
 So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites" (1 Sam. xv. G). 
 
 " Asshur," or Assyria, -was to carry the Kenites into captivity. They 
 had been preservea, both because of the relationship into which Moses 
 had entered wilh the tribe, and also because the tribe itself had favoured 
 Israel at the time of the Exodus. These things had ultimately led to 
 their being regarded as if they had become incorporated with Israel. 
 Accordingly, when the Assyrian conquerors came up against Palestine, 
 the Kenites were carried away captive with the Israelites. " Asshur," 
 see under Jonah i. 2. 
 
 The regulations regarding " the offerings and the sacrifices of the 
 Lord" are again particularly mentioned in chap, xxviii. The drink 
 offering was to be " the fourth part of an hiii for one lamb," and it is 
 added, " In the holy place shalt thou cause the strong wine to be poured 
 out unto the Lord" (ver. 7). "Strong wine," see under chap. vi. 3. 
 Minute instructions are given in chap. xxxi. as to the mode in which 
 they were to carry on the war of extermination against the Canaanites. 
 These bear on the persons and the property of the people about to be 
 vanquished. One of the rules in regard to the latter is stated in verses 
 21-24 — " And Eleazar the priest said unto the men of war which went 
 to the battle. This is the ordinance of the law which the Lord com- 
 manded Moses ; only the gold, and the silver, the brass, the iron, the 
 tin, and the lead, every thing that may abide the fire, ye shall make it 
 go through the fire, and it shall be clean ; nevertheless it shall be 
 purified with the water of separation : and all that abideth not the fire, 
 ye shall make go through the water. And ye shall wash your clothes 
 on the seventh day, and ye shall be clean, and afterward ye shall come 
 into the camp." 
 
 "Gold," Heb. zahav, see under Gen. ii. 11; "silver," keseph^ Job 
 xxviji. 1 ; " brass," nehhdsheth, Gen. iv. 22 ; " iron," barzel. Gen. iv. 
 22; "-im" bedll; ''X^did;' aoplicrctlt. 
 
 " Tin," or native tin ore, is the well-known useful metal, the oxide 
 of tin, or casst'teritc, of mineralogy. It occurs in veins in granite, gneiss, 
 porphyry, &c. The supply of tin for Europe is mainly obtained from 
 Cornwall. It appears to have been found in Palestine ; but there is 
 little reason to doubt that, at a very early period, the Phamicians 
 carried this metal from Cornwall to the countries lying along the 
 northern and eastern shores of the Great Sea. In the next reference 
 
 VOL. n. T
 
 1-16 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 till is evidently named as an alloy — " I will turn my hand upon thee, 
 and purely purge away thy dross and take away all thy tin" (Isa. i. 25). 
 It is mentioned also in Ezek. xxii. 18, 20; xxvii. 12; and in Zech. iv. 
 10, the Hebrew name is translated " plummet." 
 
 "Lead" is very widely distributed. It is chiefly found as galena, 
 lead glance, or sulphuret of lead. The Scripture references point chiefly 
 to its weight. Its specific gravity is ITS. The mode of separating 
 the metul from the dross is named in verse 23 — " Ye shall make it go 
 through the fire." Lead melts at a temperature of 000° Fahr. 
 
 To the tribute of unwrought metals, and of sheep and oxen, was 
 added that of the personal ornaments which the people had obtained in 
 the land of Egypt — " ^\^e have therefore brought an oblation for the 
 Lord, what every man hath gotten, of jewels of gold, chains, and 
 bracelets, rings, ear-rings, and tablets, to make an atonement for our 
 souls before the Lord" (vcr. 50). The Art of Egypt is thus laid as an 
 offering on the altar of a covenant God, in circumstances which testify 
 to the greatness and sovereignty of Him who had delivered his people 
 from the iron furnace. 
 
 " Now the children of Reuben, and the children of Gad, had a very 
 great multitude of cattle : and when they saw the land of Jazer, and 
 the land of Gilead, that, behold, the place was a place for cattle ; the 
 children of Gad, and the children of Reuben, came and spake unto 
 Moses, and to Eleazar the priest, and unto the princes of the congre- 
 gation, saying, Ataroth, and Dibon, and Jazer, and Nimrah, and Hesh- 
 bon, and Elealeh, and Sliebam, and Nebo, and Bcon, even the country 
 which the Lord smote before the congregation of Israel, is a land for 
 cattle, and thy servants have cattle : wherefore, said they, if we have 
 found grace in thy sight, let this land be given unto thy servants for a 
 possession, and bring us not over Jordan" (xxxii. 1-5). The land 
 good for cattle coveted by Gad and Reuben lay on the east of the 
 Jordan, chiefly between the Jabbok, on the south, and the Yarmuk, or 
 Hieroinax, on the north. " The mountains rise from the valley of the 
 Jordan to the height, it is believed, of two or three thousand feet, and 
 this gives them, when seen from the western side, the appearance of a 
 much greater actual elevation than they really possess ; as though they 
 rose high above the mountains of Judtea on which the spectator stands. 
 As they are approached from the Ghor, the horizontal outline which 
 they always wear when seen from a distance is broken ; and it is 
 described, that when their summits are attained, a wholly new scene 
 bursts upon the view ; unlike anything which could be expected from
 
 nujibf.es xxii.-xxxii. 147 
 
 below — unlike anything in Western Palestine. A wide table-land 
 apjDears tossed about in wild confusion of undulating downs, clothed 
 with rich grass throughout ; in the southern parts trees are thinly 
 scattered here and there, aged trees covered with lichen, as if the relics 
 of a primeval forest long since cleared away ; the northern parts still 
 abound in magnificent woods of sycamore, beech, terebinth, ilex, and 
 enormous fig-trees. These downs are broken by three deep defiles, 
 through which the three rivers of the Yarnink, the Jabbok, and the 
 Anion, fall into the valley of the Jordan and Dead Sea. On the east, 
 they melt away into the vast red plain which, by a gradual descent, 
 forms the level of the plain of the Hauran, and of the Assyrian desert. 
 This is the general picture given of the trans-Jordanic territory." — 
 [Stanlcij.)
 
 148 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE, 
 
 NUMBERS XXXIII. 
 
 HESE are the journeys of tlie cliildren of Israel, which 
 went forth out of the land of Egypt with their armies, under 
 the liand of IMoses and Aaron. And Moses wrote their 
 goings out according to tlieir journeys, by the coramand- 
 - ■ ment of the Lord : and these are their journeys according 
 to tlieir goings out. And they departed from Rameses in the 
 first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month : on the 
 morrow after the passover the children of Israel went out witli 
 an high hand in the sight of the Egyptians" (ver. 1-3). 
 Biblical geographers must be satisfied with a general outline of the 
 route which Israel took, when they journeyed from Egypt to Canaan. 
 The journeys are oftener to be traced by Scripture references to outstand- 
 ing physical features, than by the identification of all the halting places 
 named in this chapter. There is proof that several of these got their 
 names from the people, because of some incident associated with the 
 locality. There were, besides, but few places at which material struc- 
 tures would be met with, whose ruins might have kept alive their 
 names. 
 
 The first place named is " Rameses." Two meanings have been 
 attached to this name — 1, " Son of the Sun ;" 2, " The Sun approves." 
 It was evidently at first associated with the worship of the sun. It 
 could not, as some have supposed, have taken its name from the 
 renowned Egyptian monarch Remesis. Ilis reign was subsequent to 
 the departure of the Israelites from Egypt. He may have taken his 
 reigning title from the city. From the references to it in Scripture we 
 learn — (1) that the name was in the time of Joseph given to'Goshen — 
 " Joseph placed his fixther and his brethren, and gave them a possession 
 in the land of Egypt, in the best of the land, in the land of Rameses, 
 as Pharaoh had commanded" (Gen xlvii. 11). (2) That one of the 
 cities built by the Israelites during the period of their oppression, bore 
 this name — " Therefore they did set over them taskmasters, to afflict 
 them with their burdens, and they built for Pharaoh treasure-cities, 
 Pithom and Raamses" (Exod. i. 11). Taking the "treasure-cities" as 
 buildings for storing the merchandise of the caravans from Arabia to
 
 NUMBEItS XXXIII. 149 
 
 Egypt, attempts have been made to determine the position wlience 
 Israel departed, by fixing on a place most suitable for a store-city. But 
 tliis leaves out of view the likelihood that there were two cities of this 
 name — one had given its name to the whole land ; the other built by 
 the Israelites for the purpose mentioned. The point of departui'e may 
 have been the former. This agrees much better with the most satis- 
 factory hypothesis as to the position of Goshen, than the theory of 
 Sicard, that the muster-place of Israel was at the modern Basatin. 
 
 From Rameses they passed to Succoth — the place of booths — and 
 thence to "Etham, which is in the edge of the wilderness" (ver. 6). 
 It will be noticed from verse 8, that after the passage of the sea they 
 went three days into the wilderness of Etham. Compare with this 
 the statements in Exod. xv. 22 — " Moses brought Israel from the Red 
 Sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur ; and they went 
 three days in the wilderness." The tract referred to is the continua- 
 tion of the desert, which is the direct route to Palestine, to the south, 
 along the eastern shore of the Red Sea. When at Etham they were 
 in circumstances to journey forward without having to cross the sea. 
 But it was here they were ordered to turn, and to wander a consider- 
 able distance to the south. " And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, 
 speak ruito the children of Israel, that they turn and encamp before 
 Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, over against Baal-zephon : 
 before it shall ye encamp by the sea. For Pharaoh will say of the 
 children of Israel, They are entangled in the land, the wilderness hath 
 shut them in. And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and he shall follow 
 after them ; and I will be honoured upon Pharaoh, and upon all his 
 ]]Ost ; that the Egyptians may know that I am the Lord. And they 
 did so " (Exod. xiv. 1-4). The position into which they came when 
 they encamped before Pi-haliiroth, was that which is inclosed by the 
 bold rocks of the modern Ii'as Atahah on the one hand, and the sea on 
 the other, while Pharaoh's hosts were beliiud. They were literally 
 " shut in," and cast on the onmipotence of Jehovah. The sea before, 
 the sword of the Eg}'ptian warriors beliiud, preci[)itous rocks on the 
 left, and a deep water-filled chasm on the right, there was no help for 
 them but in the God of their fathers. Indeed, they had been brouglit 
 to this point mainly that they might learn this. " In coming up to the 
 sea at all, they were taking a circuit — a circuit which, without any com- 
 pensating advantage, threw them upon their enemies, and made their 
 position most perilous. But in going south along the western margin 
 of the sea for miles, as they did, they were doing more than taking a
 
 circuit. Tliey were deliberately interposing the sea between them and 
 Sinai, and voluntarily imposing upon themselves the necessity for 
 crossing a gulf -which they could easily have avoided, thereby making 
 their extrication almost impossible. Had any general done so with his 
 army, he would have been declared either mad or utterly ignorant of 
 the country. But Moses knew the region well. He had more than 
 once gone to Sinai, and was fully acquainted with the way. He could 
 not but know that he was misleading Israel, unless he was conscious 
 of divine guidance all the way — guidance which superseded and over- 
 ruled his own judgment Only one thing can account for 
 
 this, and acquit him of the greatest folly ever manifested l)y the leader 
 of a people. That one thing is, that it was at the direct command of 
 God that all this was done. God's purpose was to show his power 
 both to Israel and to their enemies. For this end he led them by a 
 way which required the special and supernatural forthputting of that 
 power. "What is the cleaving of the sea, or the levelling of a moun- 
 tain, or the drying up of a river to him ? 3Ian is not entitled to lead 
 others into difficulties in order to show his skill and power in their 
 deliverance ; for he cannot calculate upon being able to effect his object 
 in any circumstances. But it is otherwise with God ; and Israel's 
 march down the western shore of the Red Sea is one of the most strik- 
 ing examples of such a procedure. There was need of a stupendous 
 miracle for many reasons. It was needed to overthrow the last 
 remains of Egypt's pride, as well as to overawe them in all time to 
 come. It was needful in order to strike alarm into the nations around ; 
 and it was needful in order to give Israel one proof more — the crown- 
 ing proof of all — of what Jehovah was ready to do in their belialf. By 
 this was Israel in after ages furnished with matter of thankful song to 
 all generations — 
 
 ' To him who divided the Red Sea into parts ; 
 For his mercy endureth for ever. 
 And made Israel to pass through the midst of it; 
 For his mercy endureth for ever.'" — (Boiiw.) 
 
 Marah, so named from its bitter waters, was reached after three days' 
 march in the wilderness of Etham. " They removed from Marah and 
 pitched in EHm ;" see under Exod. xv. 27. " They removed from 
 Elim, and encamped by the Red Sea. And they removed from the 
 Red Sea, and encamped in the wilderness of Sin." " From their 
 encampment at the mouth of Wady et-Taiyibeh," says Dr. Robinson, 
 " the Israelites would necessarily advance into the great plain which.
 
 NUMBERS XXXIII. 151 
 
 beginning near el-Murkliali, extends with a greater or less breadth, 
 almost to the extremity of the Peninsula. In its broadest part, north- 
 ward of Tfir, it is called el-Ka,'a. This desert-plain I take to be the 
 desert of Sin, the next station mentioned in Scripture. From this 
 plain they would enter the mountains at various points either by the 
 present nearer route through the Wadys Shellal and Mukatteb, or per- 
 haps by the mouth of Wady Feiran itself. Their approach to Sinai 
 was probably along the upper part of this latter valley and Waddy 
 esh-Sheikh ; but the two subsequent stations, Dophkah and Alush, are 
 mentioned so indefinitely, that no hope remains of their ever being 
 identified." — {Researches^ vol. i., p. 73.) 
 
 Their next station was Rephidhn. Here the "chiding" with Moses 
 took place. " And all the congregation of the children of Israel jour- 
 neyed from the wilderness of Sin, after their journeys, according to the 
 commandment of the Lord, and pitched in Rephidim : and there was no 
 water for the people to drink. Wherefore the people did chide with 
 Moses, and said. Give us water that we may drink. And Moses said 
 unto them, Why chide ye with me ? wherefore do ye tempt the Lord ? 
 And the people thirsted there for water; and the people murmured 
 against ]\Ioscs, and said, Wherefore is this that tbou hast brought us 
 up out of Egypt, to kill us, and our children, and our cattle, with 
 thirst ? And Moses cried unto the Lord, saying. What shall I do unto 
 this people ? they be almost ready to stone me. And the Lord said 
 unto Moses, Go on before the people, and take with thee of the elders 
 of Israel ; and thy rod, wherewith thou smotest the river, take in thine 
 hand, and go. Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in 
 Horeb ; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out 
 of it, that the people may drink. And I\Ioses did so in the sight of the 
 elders of Israel. And he called the name of the place Massah, and 
 Meribali, because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and because 
 they tempted the Lord, saying. Is the Lord among us or not?" (Exod. 
 xvii. 1-7.) "There is no proof, indeed," says Dr. Bouar, writing in 
 tlie Wcuhj Feiran, " that this was Rephidim — nay, proof that it was 
 not Rephidim, for there must always have been water here, so that 
 Israel could not have lacked it, as we read that they did at Rephidim. 
 But their next stage from this must have been Rephidim — and to that 
 we are now proceeding. But before doing so, let us read the holy 
 narrative. ' And all the congregation of the children of Israel jour- 
 neyed from the wilderness of Sin (which they entered when they left 
 Elim, Exod. xiv. 1), and pitched in Rephidim, and there was no water
 
 152 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 for the people to drink ' (Esorl. xvii. 1). Up till the time when they 
 reached Rephidim they had no lack of water, so that they must have 
 left Wady Feiran and been a day's march on their way to Sinai before 
 the ' chiding with Moses ' took place (Exod. xvii. 2). The region on 
 which they entered at Rephidim is called Horeb (Exod. xvii. 6), or the 
 wilderness of Sinai (Exod. xix. 1, 2), and appears to have been wholly 
 destitute of water. We started about nine, feeling sure our halting- 
 place would be somewhat near Beplddim, for next day was to bring us 
 to Sinai. The air was chill, but as the wady was rather rough, we 
 did not walk, but kept to our camels. The road winds like a princely 
 avenue, through palms and tarfas — some of the former very tall and 
 stately." 
 
 " And they departed from Rephidim, and pitched in the wilderness 
 of Sinai. And they removed from the desert of Sinai, and pitched at 
 Kibroth-hattaavah. And they departed from Kibroth-hattaavah, and 
 encamped at Hazeroth" (ver. 15-17). "Besides the interest of the 
 physical peculiarities of this route, is the faint probability that this 
 beautiful valley and its neighbourhood may have been the scene of 
 the first long halt after the departure from Sinai. After Taberah 
 and Kibroth-hattaavah, the people ' abode ' ' for seven days ' at 
 least, in Hazeroth. Burckliardt, and most travellers after him, have 
 from the resemblance of the two radical letters in the two words, 
 identified this with Huderah. Such a conjecture must be very 
 uncertain, the more so, as the name of Hazeroth is one the least likely 
 to be attached to any permanent or natural feature of the desert. It 
 means simply the 'inclosures,' such as may still be seen in the Bedouin 
 villages, hardly less transitory than tents. Three points, however, 
 may be mentioned as slightly confirmatory of the hypothesis that the 
 Israelite route lay in these valleys. First, the brook of el-'Ain, as its 
 name implies, is emphatically ''tie water,' ''the spring,' of this region of 
 the desert, and must, therefore, have attracted round it any nomadic 
 settlements, such as are implied in the name of Hazeroth, and such as 
 that of Israel must have been. If they descended at all to the western 
 shores of the gulf of 'Akaba, this is the most natural spot for them to 
 have selected for a long halt. Secondly, in the murmurs previous to 
 their arrival- at Hazeroth, ' the sea ' is twice mentioned in a manner 
 which may indicate its proximity, and which is therefore certainly 
 more appropriate to these valleys touching on the gulf of 'Akaba, 
 than to the more inland route over the Tib. ' Shall the flocks and the 
 herds be slain for them to suffice them ? or shall all the fish of the sea
 
 NUMBERS XXXIII. 153 
 
 be gathered together to sufiice them ? ' ' There went forth a wind from 
 the Lord, and brought quails y/'0)?i the sea.' " — {Stanlejj.) 
 
 " And they departed from Hazeroth, and pitched in Rithmah. And 
 they departed from Rithmah, and pitched at Rimmon-parez. And 
 they departed from Rimmon-parez, and pitched in Libnah. And they 
 removed from Libnah, and pitched at Rissah " (ver. 18-21). The 
 stations mentioned in tliese verses were, no doubt, named from the 
 particular species of plant for which they were noted. Rimmon means 
 pomegranate, Libnah white poplar, and liithmah is derived from rothem^ 
 the word used in 1 Kings xix. 4 for broom — which see. In earliest 
 times it appears to have been customary to name towns or villages 
 from the kind of vegetation which abounded around them. Thus 
 we have Z/?<,2 = almond, Gen. xxxv. G; jTcf/Mrtr^palm, Gen. xiv. 7; 
 !rapj92<ac/i = apple-tree. Josh. xv. 3-4, &c. 
 
 Having removed the encampment from Rissah, they halted at other 
 thirteen stations, and then readied Ezion-gaber, at the head of the 
 eastern horn of the sea. The modern route is among the southern 
 outliers of the range of mountains now named Jebel-et-Tih. The hills 
 are generally of sandstone, much worn by the weather, and cut deeply 
 in different directions by mountain streams. Their approach to the 
 sea, after having passed that great and terrible wilderness, must have 
 again cheered them. " Pleasant is the sight of the waters after the 
 parched desolation of the rocky wilderness ; pleasant too is the gentle 
 murmuring of the waves as they break on the pebbly beach, after the 
 death-like silence of the glens of Sinai ; but pleasanter than all is the 
 fresh breath of the zephyr, which, after playing with the sunlit waves, 
 fans our burning cheeks. By the sea-side one never feels alone, even 
 though the shore be solitary as that of Elath's Gulf. Every heaving 
 of a wave seems like a throb of friendship's heart, and every ' voice 
 of the waters ' like the whisper of affection. Here there is something 
 more than this — the scenery on the one hand is so wild, so bare, 
 and on the other so ethereal, so fairy-like, that one is never tired 
 gazing on it. Now we glance at some new feature of the mountain 
 barrier ; and now turn our eyes over the deep blue waters to the beau- 
 tiful hills of Arabia, whose rich tints are ever changing, as the sun 
 rolls on his course, from tlie ' russet hue ' of early morn to the light 
 azure of noonday, and the deep purple of even ; and then besides, the 
 countless shells that strew the beach, exhibiting endless varieties of 
 graceful forms and delicate colours, fill the mind with admiration and 
 wonder." 
 
 VOL. II. D
 
 154 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Tlie baiting place named between Ebronah and Kadesb is mentioned 
 in verse 35 — " Tbey departed from Ebronab, and encamped at Ezion- 
 gaber," or " the giant's backbone." This station, like some of the 
 other encamping places, afterwards became famous, especially in con- 
 nection with the most glorious epoch in the history of Israel. When 
 Moses at a later date reminded the people of all the way in which the 
 Lord led them, he said — " And when we i)assed by from our brethren 
 the children of Esau, which dwelt in Seir, through the way of the plain 
 from Elath, and from Ezion-gaber, we turned and passed by the way 
 of the wilderness of I\Ioab " (Deut. ii. 8). The place is again referred 
 to as "being beside Elath, on the shore of the Red Sea," and as 
 the port whence the united navies of Israel and Phoenicia sailed to 
 Ophir (1 Kings ix. 26-28). Its site is even more directly pointed to in 
 2 Chronicles — "It was at the sea-side in the land of Edom " (viii. 17). 
 The last time it is mentioned in Scripture, is in connection with the 
 impolitic and disastrous alliance entered into between Jehoshaphat, king 
 of Judah, and Ahaziah, king of Israel. They joined together to send 
 ships to Tarshisb, and " the ships were made in Ezion-geber." But 
 having put to sea, " Eliezer, the son of Dodavah of Mareshah, prophe- 
 sied against Jehoshaphat, saying. Because thou hast joined thyself with 
 Ahaziah, the Lord hath broken thy works. And the ships were 
 broken, that they were not able to go to Tarshish." Josephus speaks 
 of Ezion-geber as " a certain place in the Elanitic bay of the Red Sea, 
 now called Bernice, and not far from the city Elath " (Antiq. vi. 8, § 4). 
 Dr. Robinson says of Ezion-geber and of Elath — " In very ancient 
 times there lay at this extremity of the eastern gulf of the Red Sea, 
 two towns of note in Scripture history, Ezion-geber and Elath. The 
 former is mentioned first as a station of the Israelites, from wdiich they 
 returned to Kadesh probably a second time ; and both towns are again 
 named after that people had left Mount Hor, as the point where they 
 turned eastward from the Red Sea, in order to pass around on the 
 eastern side of the land of Edom. That they were near each other is 
 also said expressly in another place. Ezion-geber became famous as 
 the port where Solomon, and after him Jehoshaphat, built fleets to 
 carry on a commerce with Ophir. Josephus says it lay near ^lana, 
 {xnd was afterwards called Berenice. But it is mentioned no more, and 
 no trace of it seems now to remain, unless it be in the name of a small 
 wady with brackish water, el-Ghudyan, opening into el-Arabah from the 
 western mountain some distance north of 'Akabah. May it not be, 
 perhaps, that the northern shallow portion of the gulf anciently
 
 NUMBERS XXXIU. 155 
 
 extended up to this fountain? In that case Elath was situated on a 
 projecting point south of the northern extremity of the gulf, just where 
 the great road from Petra, on the east of the mountains, descended 
 through Wady el-Ithm to the shore. 
 
 " Elatli, called by the Greeks and Romans Ailah and ^lana, appears 
 to have suppLanted by degrees its less fortunate neighbour, perhaps 
 having been rebuilt by Azariah (Uzziah) about 800 d.c. Some fifty 
 years later it was taken from the Jews by Rezin, king of Syria, and 
 never came again into their possession. The notices of this city found 
 in Greek and Roman writers, are fully collected in the great works of 
 Cellarius and Reland. In the days of Jerome it was still a place of 
 trade to India ; and a Roman legion was stationed here. Theodoret a 
 little later remarks, that it had formerly been a great emporium, and 
 that ships in his time sailed from thence to India. Ailah became early 
 the seat of a Christian church ; and the names of four bishops of Ailah 
 
 are found in various councils from a.d. 320 to a.d. 536 
 
 When in a.d. G30 Muhammed had carried his victorious armies north- 
 ward as far as to Tebuk, it was the signal for the Christian communi- 
 ties of Arabia Petra^a to submit voluntarily to the conqueror, and to 
 obtain peace by the payment of tribute. Among these was John, the 
 Christian ruler of Ailah, who became bound to pay an annual tribute 
 of three hundred gold pieces. 
 
 " From this time onward, Ailah became lost under the shroud of 
 Muhammedan darkness, from which it has fully emerged only during 
 the present century."
 
 I5G BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 NUMBERS XXXIV. 
 
 ND the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Command tlie cliildren 
 of Israel, and say unto them, When ye come into the land of 
 Canaan (this is the land that shall fall unto you for an inherit- 
 ance, even the land of Canaan, with the coasts thereof), then 
 your south quarter shall he from the wilderness of Zin, along 
 by the coast of Edora, and your south border shall be the outmost 
 coast of the salt sea eastward. And your border shall turn from 
 the south to the ascent of Akrabbim, and pass on to Zin : and the 
 going forth thereof shall be from the south to Kadesh-ljarnoa, and 
 shall go on to Hazar-addar, and pass on to Azmon. And the border 
 shall fetch a compass from Azmon unto the river of Egypt, and the 
 goings out of it shall be at the sea. And as for the western border, ye 
 sliall even have the great sea for a border : this shall be your west 
 border. And this shall be your north border : from the great sea ye 
 shall point out for you mount Hor. From mount Hor ye shall point 
 out your border unto the entrance of Hamath ; and the goings forth of 
 the border shall be to Zedad. And the border shall go on to Ziphron, 
 and the goings out of it shall be at Hazar-enan : this shall be your 
 north border. And ye shall point out your east border from Ilazar-enan 
 to Shepham. And the coast shall go down from Shepham to Riblali, 
 on the east side of Ain ; and the border shall descend, and shall reach 
 unto the side of the sea of Chinnereth eastward. And the border shall 
 go down to Jordan, and the goings out of it shall be at the salt sea : 
 this shall be your land, with the coasts thereof round about. And 
 Moses commanded the children of Israel, saying, This is the land which 
 ye shall inherit by lot, which the Lord commanded to give unto the 
 nine tribes, and to the half-tribe. For the tribe of the cliildren of 
 Reuben, according to the house of their fathers, and the tribe of the 
 children of Gad, according to the house of their fathers, have received 
 their inheritance, and half the tribe of Manasseh have received their 
 inheritance : the two tribes and the half-tribe have received their 
 inheritance on this side Jordan near Jericho eastward, toward tlie sun- 
 rising" (ver. 1-15). 
 
 These verses raise the question of the geographical limits of the
 
 NUMBERS XXXIV. 
 
 157 
 
 Holy Land. This question is one of much interest and importance, 
 inasmuch as it raises a subordinate one regarding the ability of the 
 hind to support the popuhition afterwards known to have dwelt in it. 
 ]\Iany precious promises are likewise linked up with it. To reach a 
 satisfactory conclusion on the matter, we need to have all the passages 
 which bear clearly and closely oir it before us. The points in these 
 which claim notice are the following: — The wilderness of Zin is in 
 verse 36 of the preceding chapter, said to be identical with Kadesh. 
 This place was the most important in it, and its name was interchange- 
 able with Zin, which lay on the south of Edom. Thus it is said, " They 
 removed from Kadesh, and pitched in Mount Hor, in *he edge of the 
 land of Edom." The " Salt Sea," we learn from Joshua iii. 16, was 
 another name for the Dead Sea. Thus, when the Jordan was divided, 
 the " waters which came down from above," that is, from the Sea of 
 Galilee, " rose up upon an heap, and those that came down toward the 
 sea of the plain, even the salt sea, failed, and were cut off." The 
 "river of Egypt" was the Nile, and not the el-Arish, to which that 
 name is sometimes given. See under Gen. xv. The " Great Sea," 
 which lay on the western limit, was the Mediterranean. " Hamath," 
 the ancient Epiphania, and the modern Hamah, was long a chief city 
 of Upper Syria. It was situated in the valley of the Orontes, on both 
 sides of the river. It has still a population of above thirty thousand. 
 "The entering in of Hamath" is the expression used by ]\Ioses when 
 defining the north border. " This phrase," says Dr. Robinson, " seems 
 evidently to refer to some point or tract on the extreme northern border 
 of the Promised Land, in its farthest extent, as laid down by Moses in 
 the Book of Numbers. Hamath is here put for ' the land of Hamath,' 
 the territory or kingdom which took its name from that city, and which 
 extended so far as to include Riblah in the south. The Mediterranean 
 being the western border, the northern border was to run from the sea 
 to Mount Hor; thence ' unto the entrance of Hamath ;' and thence to 
 Yedad, now Sudud, some hours south-cast of Hums. Solomon after- 
 wards held a great festival, ' and all Israel with liim, from the entering 
 in of Hamath unto the river of Egypt.' Further, among the portions 
 of the land not subdued by Joshua or the people afterwards, was 'all 
 Lebanon, on the east, from Baal-gad under Mount Hermon (or from 
 Baal-hermon) unto the entering into Hamath ; ' that is, all Lebanon 
 from the region of Dan and Banias to its northern extremity. It is 
 further related that Jeroboam II. ' restored the coast of Israel from the 
 entering in of Hamath unto the sea of the plain,' or Dead Sea ; and we
 
 158 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 infer that the phrase has here its usual meaning, from tiie subsequent 
 mention, that Jeroboam ' recovered Damascus and Hamath for Israel.' 
 AH these notices show clearly that ' the entering in of Hamath' was at 
 the northern extremity of Lebanon ; and that, when the children of 
 Israel took possession of the Promised Land, this became a geographical 
 name for the great interval, or depression, between the northern end of 
 Lebanon and the Niisairiyeh mountains. Mount Hor was obviously 
 between the sea-shore and the Bukei'a. ' The entering in of Hamath' 
 may then refer either generally to the whole of the great depression, 
 affording as it does an easy passage from the coast to the plain of the 
 Orontes, or, specifically, to the pass through the ridge under el-Husn 
 and the low water-shed east of the Bukei'a ; or, more specifically still, 
 only to this low water-shed adjacent to the plain of the Orontes. In 
 cither application the phrase is intelligible and sufiiciently definite." — 
 (Researches, vol. iii., p. 568.) 
 
 The other passages of Scripture bearing on this question may now 
 be grouped together, that the reader may see the grounds for the 
 conclusions stated below. " In that same day the Lord made a cove- 
 nant with Abram, saying. Unto thy seed have I given this land, from 
 the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates : the 
 Kenites, and the Kcnizzites, and the Kadmonites, and the Hittites, and 
 the Perizzites, and the Rephaims, and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, 
 and the Girgashites, and the Jebusites" (Gen. xv. 18-21). "And I 
 w'ill set thy bounds from the Red Sea even unto the sea of the Philis- 
 tines, and from the desert unto the river : for I will deliver the inhabit- 
 ants of the land into your hand ; and thou shalt drive them out before 
 thee" (Exod. xxiii. 31). " The Lord our God spake unto us in Horeb, 
 saying. Ye have dwelt long enough in this mount : turn you, and take 
 your journey, and go to the mount of the Amorites, and unto all the 
 places nigh thereunto, in the plain, in the hills, and in the vale, and in 
 the south, and by the sea-side, to the land of the Canaanites, and unto 
 Lebanon, unto the great river, the river Euphrates. Behold, I have 
 set the land before you : go in and possess the land which the Lord 
 sware unto your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give unto 
 them, and to their seed after them" (Dent. i. 6-8). "Then will the 
 Lord drive out all these nations from before you, and ye shall possess 
 greater nations and mightier than yourselves. Every place whereon 
 the soles of your feet shall tread shall be yours : from the wilderness 
 and Lebanon, from the river, the river Euphrates, even unto the utter- 
 most sea, shall your coast be" (xi. 23, 24). " So Joshua took all that
 
 NUMBERS XXXIV. 159 
 
 land, the bills, and all tlie south country, and all the land of Goshen, 
 and the valley, and the plain, and the mountain of Israel, and the valley 
 of the same ; even from the Mount Halak, that goeth up to Seir, even 
 unto Baal-gad in the valley of Lebanon, under Mount Hermon : and 
 all their kings he took, and smote them, and slew them" (Josh. xi. 16, 
 17). "This is the land that yet remaiueth : all tbe borders of the 
 Philistines, and all Geshuri, from Sihor, which is before Egypt, even 
 unto the borders of Ekron northward, which is counted to the Canaanite: 
 five lords of the Philistines ; the Gazathites, and the Ashdothites, the 
 Eshkalonites, the Gittites, and the Ekronites ; also the Avites : from 
 the south, all the land of the Canaanites, and Mearah tbat is beside the 
 Sidonians, unto Aphek, to the borders of the Amorites : and the land 
 of the Giblites, and all Lebanon, toward the sun-rising, from Baal-gad 
 under Mount Hermon unto the entering into Hamath : all the inhab- 
 itants of tlie hill country from Lebanon imto Misrephoth-maim, and 
 all the Sidonians, them will I drive out from before the children of 
 Israel : only divide thou it by lot unto the Israelites for an inheritance, 
 as I have commanded thee" (xiii. 2-6). See also chapters xviii. and xix. ; 
 Judges i; 2 Sam. viii. 3. "And Solomon reigned over all kingdoms, 
 from the river unto the land of the Philistines, and unto the border of 
 Egypt : they brought presents, and served Solomon all the days of his 
 life. And Solomon's provision for one day was thirty measures of fine 
 flour, and threescore measures of meal, ten fat oxen, and twenty oxen 
 out of the pastures, and an hundred sheep, beside harts, and roebucks, 
 and fallow-deer, and fatted fowl. For he had dominion over all the 
 region on this side the river, from Tiphsah even to Azzah, over all the 
 kings on this side the river : and he had peace on all sides round about 
 liim. And Judah and Israel dwelt safely, every man under his vine 
 and under his fig-tree, from Dan even to Beer-sheba, all the days of 
 Solomon" (1 Kings iv. 21-2G). "And Solomon went to Hamath- 
 zobah, and prevailed against it. And he built Tadmor in the wilder- 
 ness, and all the store-cities which he built in Hamath. Also he built 
 Bcth-horon the upper, and Beth-horon the nether, fenced cities, with 
 walls, gates, and bars ; and Baalath, and all the store-cities that Solo- 
 mon had, and all the chariot-cities, and the cities of the horsemen, and 
 all that Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and 
 throughout all the land of his dominion. As for all the people that 
 were left of the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the 
 Ilivites, and the Jcbusites, which were not of Israel, did Solomon make 
 to pay tribute" (2 Chron. viii. 3-7).
 
 160 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 A careful study and comparison of tliese passages leads to the follow- 
 ing inferences : — The limits on tlie east and on the south are not the 
 same in all the passages. In that under notice, for example, the south- 
 ern boundary is stated as " the wilderness of Ziii, along by the coasts 
 of Edom." But in Exodus xxiii. 31, the southern boundary sweeps 
 round Edom itself, and lies on the Eed Sea. Then as to the eastern 
 limit, iu Numbers the Jordan was to be the line ; but in Gen. xv. 18, 
 in Deut. i. 7, and in several other passages, the Euphrates is named as 
 the boundary line on the east. The explanation of this apparent con- 
 tradiction is, that in Numbers the territory to be divided when the 
 Canaanites should be overcome is described ; in the other passages 
 either the promise of the farthest limits of the land is stated, or a 
 decided intimation is given that Israel was not to push their conquests 
 farther at any period of their history than the Red Sea and the Nile on 
 the south, the Euphrates on the east, the Mediterranean on the west, 
 and the entering in of Hamath on the north. The boundaries of the 
 land were thus much wider than the region actually possessed by the 
 Israelites, except at one or two periods in their national history. Yet 
 all the extent of territory, bounded as above, was pledged to them in 
 the promise of God. That land is still embraced in the promise, and, 
 even though we may see many difficulties in making out from Scripture 
 that the Jews will be restored again as a nation to their own land, 
 there can be little doubt that the promise to Abraham has still bearings 
 on those who in the last days may be called to take possession of that 
 whole region. "All Israel shall be saved.'' 
 
 It is thus clear that any attempts to determine what number of 
 inhabitants the Land of Promise could maintain, must not be regulated 
 by the passage under notice, but by the other passages in which the 
 whole extent of territory is described. But even within the limits laid 
 down in Numbers at least twenty-five millions of acres were contained. 
 Taking the average number in a family as five, and parcelling to each 
 family six acres, four millions of families would be able to live in com- 
 fort. But it is calculated that for one family engaged in agriculture, 
 another related to it is employed in other occupations. Canaan would 
 thus be able to support a population of at least forty millions. But if 
 the southern boundary be regarded as the Red Sea and the Nile, and 
 the eastern boundary the Euphrates, more than double this population 
 could be supported on it. 
 
 " The ' breadth of Immanuel's land,' instead of being contracted to 
 a span, is still more worthy of the name, and it stops not short of a
 
 ;^1 
 
 NUMBERS XXXIV. 161 
 
 navigable frontier everywhere, and on every side. The longitude of 
 the Nile is 30° 2'; that of the Euphrates, as it flows through the 
 Persian Gulf, 48° 26', or a ditference of nearly eighteen degrees and a 
 half, or more than eleven hundred miles. So large is the space com- 
 prehended, along the southern frontier, from the river of Egypt to the 
 river Euphrates, from the east side to the west side, or in the same 
 latitude. On the northern extremity of the land, the range of Araanus, 
 from the river Euphrates, to the uttermost sea, or extremity of the 
 Mediterranean, scarcely exceeds one hundred miles. In round numbers 
 the average breadth of the promised land would thus be 600 miles, 
 which multiplied by its length, 500, gives an area of 300,000 square 
 miles, or more than that of any kingdom or empire of Europe, Russia 
 alone excepted. The jesting Frenchman is brought down from his 
 boasting, when it is seen that a region half the extent of France would 
 need to be added to its size, before the land of ' the great nation' would 
 equal, in superficial extent, that land which the Lord gave to the seed 
 of Israel. It exceeds, in the aggregate amount of square miles, the 
 territories of ten kingdoms of Europe — Prussia, Belgium, the Nether- 
 lands, Bavaria, Saxony, Hanover, Wirtemberg, Denmark, Sardinia, and 
 Greece ; and its relative proportion to Great Britain and Ireland is 300 
 to 118, or more than two and a half to one. Were the average breadth 
 to be reckoned at 500, instead of the medium 600 miles, which, from 
 inequality of the sides, may be nearer the truth, the superficial extent 
 of the promised land alone would still exceed that of the largest king- 
 dom of Europe. But Israel, extensive as are its bounds, is not destined 
 to stand alone. Its mightiest adversaries of old shall be its servants. 
 No prince but of Israel shall rule in Egypt or Assyria. The former 
 country will add to Israel's dominion, or subservient domain, an area 
 of 150,000 square miles. The latter, including Mesopotamia, and 
 ' stretching beyond the Tigris as far as the mountains of Media,' and 
 from the mountains of Armenia to the Persian Gulf, leaves no region 
 that shall not own immediate fealty to the kingdom of Israel, from the 
 eastern shores of the Mediterranean to the borders of Persia, and the 
 vicinity of the Caspian. Such is the power of the word of the livhig 
 God ; such the liberality of his gifts to the people whom He chose, 
 were they his own by another covenant than that which they have 
 broken ; and such, in topographical relations alone, is the provision 
 that is made, as thus revealed, for the completion of the promise, that 
 Israel shall finally be a blessing in the midst of the earth." — [Keith.) 
 " Inhabitants of Canaan;" see under Deut. vii. 1. 
 
 vol.. II.
 
 162 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 DEUTERONOMY I. -VI. 
 
 'HESE be the words which Moses spake unto all Israel on this 
 side Jordan in the wilderness, in the plain over against the 
 Red Sea, between Paran, and Tophel, and Leban, and 
 Hazeroth, and Dizabah" (ver. 1). " And it came to pass 
 IW^'" i^ the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first 
 day of the month, that Moses spake unto the children of Israel, 
 ws ' according unto all that the Lord had given him in command- 
 ' ment unto him" (ver. 3). These words have helped to startle Dr. 
 Colenso out of his ignorant trust in the Pentateuch as a divinely 
 inspired book! He has joined two other passages with them, and 
 devoted a chapter (i. 5) in his superficial but mischievous work, to point 
 out their non-historical character. The other passages are — " And 
 Moses called all Israel, and said unto them, Hear, Israel, the statutes 
 and judgments which I speak in your cars this day, that ye may learn 
 them, and keep and do them" (v. i.), and Josh. viii. 33-35 — " And all 
 Israel, and their elders, and officers, and their judges, stood on this side 
 the ark, and on that side, before the priests the Levites, which bare the 
 ark of the covenant of the Lord, as well the stranger, as he that Avas 
 born among them ; half of them over against Mount Gcrizim, and half 
 of them over against Mount Ebal ; as Moses, the servant of the Lord, 
 had commanded before, that they should bless the people of Israel. 
 And afterward he read all the words of the law, the blessings and 
 cursings, according to all that is written in the book of the law. There 
 was not a word of all that Moses commanded, which Joshua read not 
 before all the congregation of Israel, with the women, and the little 
 ones, and the strangers that were conversant among them." Here is 
 this author's stumbling-block : — " There were upwards of two million 
 of people; was it possible that any human voice could reach such a 
 multitude? How, then, is it conceivable that a man should do what 
 Joshua jf, here said to have done, unless, indeed, the reading every 
 ' word of all that Moses commanded,' with ' the blessings and cursings, 
 according to all that is written in the book of the law,' was a mere dumb 
 show, without the least idea of those most solemn words being heard 
 by those to whom they were addressed? For surely no human voice,
 
 DEUTERONOMY I. -VI. 1G3 
 
 unless strengthened Ijy a miracle, of which the Scripture tells us 
 nothing, could have reached the ears of a crowded mass of people, as 
 large as the whole population of Londoii. The very crying of the 
 ' little ones,' who ai'e expressly stated to have been present, must have 
 sufficed to drown the sounds at a few yards' distance. It may be said, 
 indeed, that only a portion of this great host was really present, 
 though 'all Israel' is spoken of. And this might have been allowed 
 without derogating from the general historical value of the book, 
 though, of course, not without impeaching the literal accuracy of the 
 Scripture narrative, which by some is so strenuously maintained. 
 But the above words quoted from Joshua are so comprehensive, that 
 they will not allow of tliis. We must suppose that, at least, the great 
 body of the Congregation was present, and not only present, but able 
 to hear the words of awful moment which Joshua addressed to them." 
 
 One feels as if it gave importance to such silly trifling to notice it ; 
 and but for the social and ecclesiastical position of its author, it would 
 have soon sunk out of sight. The president of the United States was 
 recently said to have visited the great Federal army, and to have 
 addressed the soldiers, as many in number as the warriors of Israel. 
 Did it enter into the head of any sane man to denounce the statement 
 as wholly untrue, on the ground that it was a physical impossibility for 
 any man to make his voice be heard by such a vast multitude ? But 
 more, every word of the address was declared to have been spoken to 
 the whole American people. There is nothing in the passages quoted 
 which should seem even to Dr. Colenso less worthy of belief than this ! 
 
 Verses 7 and 8 — see under Num. xxxiv. Verse 8, chap. ii. undei- 
 Num. xxxiii. 35. Chap. iii. 8, 9, under Ps. xxix. 
 
 " And I besought the Lord at that time, saying, Lord God, thou 
 hast begun to shew thy servant thy greatness, and thy mighty hand : 
 for what God is there in heaven or in earth that can do accordinu- to 
 thy works, and according to thy might? I pray thee, let me go over 
 and see the good land that is beyond Jordan, that goodly mountain, 
 and Lebanon. But the Lord was wroth with me for your sakes, and 
 would not hear me ; and the Lord said unto me, Let it suffice thee ; 
 speak no more unto me of this matter. Get thee up unto the top of 
 Pisgah, and lift up thine eyes westward, and northward, and southward, 
 and eastward, and behold it with thine eyes : for thou shalt not go 
 over this Jordan" (ver. 23-27). "To these mountains of Abarim, to 
 the top of Pisgah, to a high place dedicated to the heathen Nebo, as 
 Balaam's standing-place had been consecrated to Peor, ' Moses went
 
 1G4 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 up from the desert plain of Moab over against Jericho.' In 
 
 the long line of those eastern mountains which so constantly meet the 
 view of the traveller in all the western parts of Palestine, the ej'e vainly 
 strives to discern any point emerging from this horizontal platform, 
 which may be fixed as the top of Nebo. Nothing but a fuller descrip- 
 tion than has ever yet been given of these regions, can determine the 
 spot where the great lawgiver and leader of his people looked down 
 upon their embattled ranks, and over the ' land which he was to see 
 with his eyes, but was not to go in thither.' But the general account 
 leaves no doubt that the place intended is some elevation immediately 
 over the last stage of the Jordan. Northward, his eye turned to ' all 
 the land of Gilead,' continuing the same eastern barrier as that on 
 which he himself stood, till it ended, far beyond his sight, in Dan. 
 Westward, there were on the northern horizon, the distant hills of ' all 
 Naphtali.' Coming nearer, was ' the land of Ephraim and Manasseh.' 
 Immediately opposite, was ' all the land of Judah ; ' beyond which, 
 though unseen, lay ' the utmost sea' and the desert of ' the south ' — 
 Jerusalem itself, in all probability, distinctly visible through the opening 
 of the descent to Jericho. These were the four great masses of the 
 future inheritance of his people, on which the narrative fixes our atten- 
 tion. Immediately below him was the ' round ' of the plain of Jericho, 
 with its oasis of palm-trees, and far away on his left, though hardly 
 visible, the last inhabited spot before the great desert — ' Zoar.' It was 
 a view, doubtless, which in its full extent was to be imagined, rather 
 than actually seen. In this respect the Pisgah-prospect is a striking 
 illustration of all the prophetic visions of the sacred writings. The 
 foreground of the picture alone was clearly discernible; its dim distances 
 were to be supplied by what was beyond, though suggested by what 
 was within, the range of the actual prospect of the seer. But between 
 him and that ' good land,' the deep valley of the Jordan intervened. 
 ' So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, 
 according to the word of the Lord.' In language less simple, but 
 hardly less touching, the Jewish historian adds — ' As he was bidding 
 farewell to Eleazar and Joshua, whilst he was yet talking with them, a 
 cloud suddenly stood over him, and he vanished in a ravine.'" — (Stanley.)
 
 DEUTERONOMY VII. 
 
 165 
 
 DEUTERONOMY VII. 
 
 HE people were warned by I\Ioses against the idolatry and 
 
 immorality of the nations of Canaan. These were seven 
 
 in number, greater and mightier than Israel, namely, " the 
 
 Hittites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the 
 
 ' Cauaanites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the 
 
 Jebusites." 
 
 " The Hittites," or children of Heth the second son of 
 Canaan (Gen. x. 15). They dwelt at the time of Abraham in 
 Hebron and the mountain tract around it (Gen. xxiii). They appear 
 to have greatly increased, and to have shed their political influence 
 over the other tribes. Thus Joshua mentions Canaan as " all land of 
 the Hittites" (i. 4). Even to a comparatively late period in the history 
 of Israel, the chiefs of the Canaanitish tribes which survived the general 
 slaughter, when the chosen people took possession of the land, were 
 named " the kings of the Hittites" (2 Kings vii. G). 
 
 "The Girgashites" were descended from the fifth son of Canaan 
 (Gen. X. 16). "We have nothing," says Josephus, "in the sacred 
 books but their name, for the Hebrews overthrew their cities." The 
 attempts which have been made to associate them with Gadara and 
 Gerasa are not satisfactory. 
 
 " The Amorites" are first named in Gen. x. 16, as sprung from 
 Canaan. Their name is usually held to mean " highlanders." They 
 are named in the report of the spies as dwelling in the uplands — " The 
 Amalekites dwell in the land of the south ; and the Hittites, and the 
 Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains; and the Canaanites 
 dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan" (Num. xiii. 29). They 
 were a very powerful tribe, and had possessions both on the east and west 
 of the Jordan. A tract stretching from the Arnon on the south to the 
 base of Hermon on the north was occupied by them. They had, more- 
 over, established themselves among the mountains which later fell to 
 the tribe of Judah (Num. xxi. 13, 21, 26; Deut. ii. 26; Josh. ii. 10, 
 
 IX. 
 
 10, xxiv. 12 
 
 Judg. 
 
 XI. 
 
 ?2, 23). 
 
 "The Canaanites," or "lowlanders" occupied chiefly the plains of 
 Philistia, Sharon, Phoenicia, and Esdraelon. The tribe was one of
 
 IGG BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Hamites, which with the others hohl a distinct and independent tribal 
 standing. The name is sometimes used for all the inhabitants of Pales- 
 tine, at the period when Israel left the wilderness to take posscssioJi of 
 their land. 
 
 " The Perizzites." This name seems to have been given to a tribe 
 much behind the others in civilization. It answers to our expression 
 " rude rustics." The Perizzites dwelt in the wildest tracts of the 
 mountains later occupied by Judah and Ephraim (Exod. xxiii. 23; 
 Josh. xi. 3, xvii. 15; 1 Kings xix. 20, 21 ; Ezra ix. 1). 
 
 " The Hivites," though a distinct standing was assigned to them as 
 a tribe, were so intimately associated with the Amorites, as to be named 
 after that tribe. They had possessions in the middle and north of Pales- 
 tine (Gen xxxiv. 2 ; xlviii. 22 ; Josh ix. 7 ; 2 Sam. xxi. 2). 
 
 " Tlie Jebusites," or inhabitants of Jcbus, afterwards Jerusalem, 
 dwelt in the region of which the Holy City was the centre. They were 
 not completely conquered, and the city wrested from them, till the time 
 of David. They were descended from the third son of Canaan (Gen. 
 X. 16), In Numbers xiii. 29, their territory is said to have been among 
 the mountains. After they were subdued by David they appear to 
 have entered into friendly relations with Israel. " Araunah" tlie king, 
 who gave to David the threshing floor as a place of sacrifice, was a 
 Jebusite (2 Sam. xiv. 23 ; 1 Chron. xi. 4, 5 ; xix. 23). 
 
 Blessing in richest abundance was promised to them if they hearkened 
 to the exhortations of God by his servant Closes — " He will love thee, 
 and bless thee, and multiply thee : he will also bless the fruit of thy 
 womb, and the fruit of thy land, thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil, 
 the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep, in the land which 
 he sware unto thy fathers to give thee" (ver. 13) — see under xi. 14. 
 
 Dr. Colenso devotes a cliapter to the statements in verses 20-23 — 
 " The Lord thy God will send the hornet among them, until they 
 that are left, and hide themselves from thee, be destroyed. Thou 
 shalt not be aftVighted at them : for the Lord thy God is among 
 you, a mighty God and terrible. And the Lord thy God will put out 
 those nations before thee by little and little: thou mayest not consume 
 them at once, lest the beasts of the field increase upon thee. But the 
 Lord thy God shall deliver them unto thee, and shall destroy them with 
 a mighty destruction, until they be destroyed." He holds the account 
 of matters here to be wholly unreliable ! The colony of Natal with a 
 population of 150,000, dwelling on 18,000 square miles, has been freed 
 from lions, elephants, rhinoceroses, and hippopotami. Leopards, wild
 
 DEUTERONOMY VII. 167 
 
 boars, hj'senas, and jackals indeed are occasionally killed in the bush. 
 " But the population of the land of Canaan would have been more than 
 twenty times as thick as that of Natal ; " the conclusion being, that 
 this statement as to the probable increase of wild beasts is not worth 
 any attention at all ! But the physical features of the countries differ 
 much. Besides, when Israel entered on the possession of the land, 
 they would naturally first occupy the portions which were already in a 
 state of cultivation. The wild beasts betook themselves to the mountain 
 fortresses. But it was not the purpose of God that his people should 
 have two series of battles to fight ; first with the inhabitants, and then 
 with the beasts of prey. Many belonging to the nations to be extir- 
 pated were driven into the mountains and made to destroy the " evil 
 beasts," that when the people increased and felt fully at home in the 
 land, the whole territory might be occupied with ease.
 
 168 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 DEUTERONOMY VIII.-XII. 
 
 'HE design of God in leading his people into the wilderness 
 is stated in verses 2, 3, and the proofs of his remarkable 
 care are noticed in verse 4 — " And thou shalt remember 
 all the v^'ay which the Lord thy God led thee these forty 
 years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, 
 to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep 
 ' his commandments, or no. And he humbled thee, and suffered 
 thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest 
 not, neither did thy fathers know ; that he might make thee know 
 that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that pro- 
 ceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live. Thy raiment 
 waxed not old upon thee, neither did thy foot swell, these forty years." 
 In all the wondrous manifestations of his power at the time of the 
 Exodus, and in all the evidences of his constant care in the " howling 
 wilderness,"' the Israelites were to look beyond mere second causes. 
 The circumstances amidst which they had been could not be understood 
 otherwise. The unfaded garment and the unswollen foot were not to 
 be mistaken. The blessings were directly from God. 
 
 The outstanding physical features of the land, and some of the 
 natural products for which it was celebrated, are mentioned in verses 
 7-9 — " For the Lord thy God bringeth thee into a good land ; a land 
 of brooks of water, of fountains, and depths that spring out of valleys 
 and hills ; a land of wheat, and Ijarley, and vines, and fig-trees, and 
 pomegranates ; a land of oil-olive and honey ; a land wlierein thou 
 shalt eat bread without scarceness, thou shalt not lack any thing in it ; 
 a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills thou mayest dig 
 brass." Every traveller in Palestine hastens to bear witness to the 
 aptness of verse 7, as a description of the land. " Certainly this is a 
 good land. I have never seen a better ; and none where the fountains 
 and depths that spring out of the valleys and hills are so numerous, so 
 large, and so beautiful. And then remember that this is a climate 
 almost tropical, where water is fertility and life, and the absence of it 
 sterility and death, and the greatness of the blessing is vastly enhanced. 
 The number of these fountains and depths is prodigious. Many of those
 
 DEUTEEOXOMY VIII.-XII. 169 
 
 whose united contributions make up the Jordan, we have looked into 
 during these last few days; but the whole land is full of them: — those 
 of the Dog River; of the River of Beiriit; of the Danuir; the Owely ; the 
 Zahrany ; those of the Litany at Baalbek ; Zahleh, 'Ainjar, and J\Iush- 
 garah; the great Ras el'Ain at Tyre; those of Kabery and the Naamany, 
 on the plain of Acre ; and of the Kislion at Jenin, Lejjun, and Wady 
 Kusaby ; of the Zerka, near Cassarea ; and those of tlie Aujeh at Anti- 
 patris, and the Ras in Sharon. And thus we might go through all 
 Palestine, on both sides of the Jordan, and enumerate hundreds of 
 them — powerful fountains — the permanent sources of every river in 
 the country. I have visited them often, and always with admiration 
 and astonishment. Nor need we wonder that so much is made of them 
 in the Bible : they are the glory and the life of the land, and they 
 abound to an extent almost incredible. Many single villages in the 
 mountains have scores of smaller springs, which run among the valleys, 
 and give drink to every beast of tlie field. Some even boast of 
 hundreds of these little sources of fertility. Many of these fountains 
 have some peculiar characteristic about them. Some are tepid, as 
 those along the shore of Tiberias ; many are slightly brackish, and not 
 a few are remittent or wholly intermittent. Of this latter class is 
 Neb'ah Fuarr, the source of the Sabbatic River ; the IMenbej, east of 
 Beit Jenn, the head of the second river of Damascus. The main source 
 of the Litany at 'Anjur is a remitting fountain of a very extraordinary 
 kind. But we must not make a pleasant subject tedious by too much 
 detail. Enough has been said to justify the declaration of Moses, that 
 this is eminently the land of fountains." 
 
 The cereals specially mentioned as characteristic of the "good land" 
 are wheat and barley, species of corn which were to become the food of 
 the rich and the poor. " Barley," Heb., shorah, will be particularly 
 referred to under Ruth i. 22 — which see. "Wheat" is given in our 
 version as the translation of five different words, namely, hdr, Gen. xlii. 
 3 ; ddgun, Ps. iv. 7 — which see ; rtphotJi, Prov. xxvii. 22 ; hhinfm, Ezra 
 vi. 9 ; and hhitdh in the passage under notice. Bipliuih properly means 
 "flour" of any cereal. In 2 Sara. xvii. 19 it is rendered " ground corn." 
 HMntJn is the Chaldee masculine plural used by Ezra for wheat. Ilhitah 
 is the term for wheat properly so called, whether regarded as the plant, 
 the seed, or as in the state of flour. Bar and darjan are rendered wheat 
 when they refer to the best kind of grain. 
 
 " Wheat," Tr/'ticum, belongs to the natural order Graminete, or 
 grass family of plants. It is the most highly esteemed of the cereal 
 
 VOL. U. Y
 
 170 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 grasses, and has been very widely cultivated from time immemorial. It 
 is first mentioned about two thousand years before the Christian era 
 (Gen. XXX. 14). At that early date even it was in common cultivation. 
 The native country of the cultivated wheat is not known. It has been 
 found wild in Persia in circumstances removed from the influence of 
 man. The high value set upon wheat is to be traced to its superior 
 nourishing power as an article of diet. It contains more substance 
 which speedily becomes blood than any other cereal grass. Thus its 
 importance as food. This fact can be easily ascertained. If wheaten 
 flour be mixed with water, and slowly passed through a very fine sieve 
 until the whole of the starch in the meal has been carried away, there 
 remains a sticky elastic substance known as gluten. Wlien this is 
 boiled with strong spirits of wine, a residuum is obtained which is 
 found to be identical in every respect with the fibrin of the animal 
 frame. The nutritive quality in wheat varies according to the suitable- 
 ness of the soil for its growth. Some soils yield wheat which, while it 
 may be long in the stalk and spikes, may yet be far inferior in its power 
 to nourish to that grown on land well fitted for it. The finest of the 
 Avheat is not only that which is largest in the grain, but that which is 
 most nourishing to man. The variation in the composition of wheat 
 may be given thus : — 
 
 Diy. Freed from Ashes. 
 
 , ■ — ' , , A ^ 
 
 1- ■2. 3. Me.in. 1. 2. 3. Menu. 
 
 Carbon 0-453 0-455 0-458 0-455 0-4G4 0-465 0409 0-4GC 
 
 Hydrogen 0059 0-055 0-056 0-057 0-060 0-056 0058 0-058 
 
 Azote 0-034 034 0034 0034 0-045 0-0345 00345 0-0345 
 
 Oxygen 0-431 0433 0-429 0431 0-4315 04445 0-4385 0-4415 
 
 Ashes 0-023 0023 0-023 0-023 
 
 1000 1000 1000 1000 
 
 10005 10000 10000 10000 
 
 When Palestine was characterized as a " land of wheat," it was implied 
 that large portions of its soil was well fitted for raising wheat of the 
 finest kind — see under Ezek. xxvii. 17. Travellers vie with each other 
 in describing the fruitfulness of the land which now lies desolate. The 
 capacity of the soil to grow richest crops of wheat has in recent times 
 been fully tested ; and though a blight rests on Palestine because of 
 the sins of that people who crucified the King himself, it is still, as in 
 the days when Israel took possession of it, a " good land." Even 
 Volney, who travelled with the avowed design of casting reproach on 
 the Bible account of the land, says — " It is rich and loamy, and indi-
 
 DEUTEKONOMY VIU.-XII. 
 
 171 
 
 cates the greatest t'ruitfulness. Almost everywliere the earth is brown, 
 and as fine as garden mould." 
 
 " Vines" — see under Num. xiii. 20; "Fig-trees," Gen. iii. 7; "Pome- 
 granates," 1 Sam. xiv. 2 ; " Oil-olive and honey," 2 Kings xviii. 32. 
 
 " Iron," Heb. barzel, has been fully noticed and illustrated under 
 Gen. iv. 22 — which see. Among the cuts given under that passage 
 two forms of iron pyrites are introduced, namely, arborescent iron 
 
 Fig. 57 
 
 Fig. 68. 
 
 Iron Pyrites, Rhowiiif; 
 faces <jf the Crystals. 
 
 Needle Iron Ore. 
 
 pyrites, and pyrites in cubes. The accompanying figure (57) indicates 
 the appearance which pyrites assume wlien met with as octahedrons, 
 or crystals characterized by eight triangular faces. Fig. 58 repre- 
 sents needle iron ore. All these with, so called, clay iron ore, are met 
 with in Palestine. 
 
 "Brass," Heb. nchlwshetli, means "copper" in this place — see 
 
 Fig. 60. 
 Fig. 69. 
 
 Crystals of Grey Cop|icr (^Fahl ore). 
 
 Kadi&ted Blue Copper (Asuriut). 
 
 also under Gen. iv. 22. In classifying the different kinds of copper, 
 grey cop})cr is mentioned along with white, black, red, velvet, emerald, 
 olive, and tile ores. Fig. GO shows the structure of another ore of 
 copper, azurite. A peculiarly interesting and beautiful form occurs as 
 copper glance, or vitreous copper, as it is sometimes called, fig. Gl. 
 Its form is prismatic. In colour it varies from black to steel grey,
 
 Fig. 61. 
 
 dusky yellow, and even indigo blue. The specimen represented here 
 occurred in quartz rock. 
 
 Continuing his instructions, Moses bids them beware lest they forget 
 
 the Lord their God— " Who led thefe 
 through that great and terrible wilder- 
 ness, wherein were fiery serpents, and 
 scorpions, and drought, where there was 
 no water ; who brought thee forth water 
 out of the rock of flint" (ver. 15). 
 
 " Scorpion," Heb. akrdv, Gr. sJcorpws, 
 is mentioned four times in the Old and 
 Crystals of Copper- fourtimcs lu the New Testament. It is 
 
 ranked with the spiders, &c., under the class Arctchnida. With another 
 family they form the order Pedipalpi, or true-jointed animals [Articu- 
 lata), whose front pair of feet are used as feelers. They give their 
 name to the family Scorpionidce. The scorpions are all natives of warm 
 
 climates. They are found in the south of 
 Europe, but are most abundant and grow 
 to the greatest size in tropical regions. 
 They are numerous in Palestine. Travel- 
 lers in the desert frequently meet with 
 them in summer and autumn among heaps 
 of loose stones. 
 
 The last joint of the tail-like abdomen 
 is terminated by an incurved claw, which 
 acts as a sting. The poison glands are 
 situated at the base of this organ, and 
 their ducts run to its point. When in 
 motion ihc, so called, tail is turned up 
 over its back, and the sting is carried as 
 if in the act to strike. The eyes are 
 placed on the last joint of tlie body 
 {cephalotliorax). They are six in number, 
 two in the centre and two at either side. 
 The female, like other members of this 
 class, shows great attachment to its young. 
 The sting is very painful and sometimes 
 mortal. Tliis, with the general appear- 
 ance of the animal, has at all times surrounded it with feelings of dislike 
 and fear. De Saulcy informs us that when one of his Arabs was stung 
 
 Scorpion {Scorpio Ceesar).
 
 DEUTERONOMY VIII.-XII. 173 
 
 by a scorpion, he cut open the flesli where tlie wound had been made, 
 poured some liquid ammonia into it, and gave the man a few drops to 
 drink in a ghiss of water. The result was a perfect cure. 
 
 In the reference to this animal by the self-willed son of Solomon, 
 there does not appear to have been more than the declaration that his 
 oppressions would come to be as much dreaded by the people, if they 
 were not submissive, as men dread the sting of the scorpion. There 
 is no necessity for making out, that some kind of scourge bore that 
 name (1 Kings xii. 11, 1-4). The enemies of the servants of God are 
 compared to scorpions (Ezek. ii. 6). 
 
 With the "first rain and the latter rain" in its season promised by 
 God to his people if they hearkened diligently to his commandments, 
 weather was to be given favourable to the gathering in of the fruits of 
 the land — "the corn, the wine, and the oil" (xi. 14). The general 
 term translated "corn" is explained under Ps. iv. 7, which see. Like 
 the word "corn (dagdn)" "wine (tlrusJ/)" is used in a very wide 
 acceptation. It may mean grapes in almost any condition, and also 
 certain preparations from the grape. Thus its meaning here is simply 
 grape clusters. These are referred to, as is frequently the case, under 
 the name of the juice yielded by them, as the olive is under the term 
 "oil." The word occurs in Gen. xxvii. 28, 37 — "God give thee 
 plenty of corn and wine." "With corn and wine have I sustained' 
 him." In both passages "corn" includes every cereal which was in 
 that land used for food, and " wine" all the various preparations from 
 the grape. In like manner Aaron's portion was to consist in part of 
 " the best of the oil, and all the best of the wine and of the wheat 
 (ddgdn)" (Num. xviii. 12). The prophet, in the grand description of 
 a ten'ible and wide-spread desolation, speaks of the new wine (tlrdsh) 
 mourning, and the vine languishing. The picture brings out boldly 
 the season at which this judgment was to overtake the earth. It was 
 when the grapes were ready to yield their blood, and when the vine 
 was in its beauty (Isa. xxiv. 7). The same prophet makes use of a 
 like appearance in order to teach a widely different lesson. He 
 describes the people of God as despised because of their sin, and in 
 danger of being destroyed. But he wishes to convey the tidings that, 
 notwithstaiKling all their iniquities, they still were loved by God. What 
 God has blessed and will bless let not man destroy. " Thus saith the 
 Lord, As the new wine is found in the cluster, and one saith. Destroy 
 it not ; for a blessing is in it : so will I do for my servants' sakes, that 
 I may not destroy them all. And I will bring forth a seed out of
 
 174 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Jacob, and out of Judah an inheritor of my mountains : and mine elect 
 shall inherit it, and my servants shall dwell there" (Ixv. 8, 9). The 
 Hebrew word is translated "sweet wine" in Mic. vi. 15, which see. 
 Besides those mentioned, it occurs in other twenty-nine passages, as 
 " wine" and " new wine." 
 
 " And it shall come to pass, when the Lord thy God hath brought 
 thee in unto the land whither thou goest to possess it, that thou shalt 
 put the blessing upon jNIount Gerizim, and the curse upon Mount Ebal" 
 (ver. 29). See under chap, xxvii. 12, 13. 
 
 The beasts of the land fit for food were freely permitted to them. 
 They were to eat " whatsoever their souls lusted after, even as the 
 roebuck and the hart is eaten" (xii. 15, 22). 
 
 " Roebuck," Heb. tzeci. The same word is rendered " beauty" in 
 
 Fig. 63. 
 
 ^S--^ 
 
 The Spring-boc {Gazelle tucliare). 
 
 2 Sam. i. 19; Ezek. vii. 10; "beautiful," Isa. iv. 2; "glory," Isa. 
 xiii. 19; xxiii. 9; "glorious," xxviii. 1, 4; "goodly," .Jer. iii. 19, &c. 
 It is clear that the animal referred to was noted for its gracefulness. 
 Our translators, attracted, no doubt, by the beauty of the well-known 
 British species, the roe {Capreolus dorcas), set it down as the tztvi o^ 
 Scripture. It is a native of Britain, and is found wild both in the 
 temperate parts of Europe and Asia Minor. It is worthy of notice, 
 that one of the South African tribes gives a name, almost identical with
 
 DEUTERONOMY VIII.-XII. 
 
 175 
 
 Fig. Ci. 
 
 Development of tlie Horns of the Red Deer. 
 
 the Hebrew one, to a beautiful gazelle, the spring-boc, which belongs 
 to a different family, the Antihpidce. The roe is ranked under the 
 deers proper {Cervidcp). See under Prov. vi. 5. (Plate XIII., Fig. 3.) 
 
 " Hart," Heb. wjCd, male; " hind," 
 ai/dld/t, female. The Septuagint 
 rendering is elaphas, the red deer 
 (Cervi/s elaphas), or common stag of 
 zoologists. Like the roe, this spe- 
 cies is to be met with in Britain, and 
 in the temperate parts of Asia Minor. 
 The hart is distinguished, like the 
 males of this family {Cervidoe), by 
 branching horns, which are shed 
 periodically. When the animal is two years old, the horn is a simple 
 stem, a. It afterwards passes through the different forms, a to /, the 
 last being its fully branched and mature condition. Great variety 
 obtains both as to horns and teeth among the 
 members of this family. In the muntjak, for 
 example, another Asiatic species, the bones of the 
 head are extended as strong columns on which the 
 two-pronged horns are supported. This species is 
 also distinguished by two tusk-like canine teeth in 
 the upper jaw. 
 
 The hart is again mentioned in chap. xiv. o ; 
 XV. 22. Its flesh formed part of the supply for 
 Solomon's table (1 Kings iv. 23). The soul longing 
 for God is said by the psalmist to be like the hart 
 driven into barren solitudes, in which it misses the 
 copious supplies of water in its native mountain 
 haunts : — 
 
 " As the hart panteth after the water-brooks, 
 So panteth my soul after thee, O God, 
 My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God." 
 
 — ;Ps. xlii. I.) 
 
 Fig. Co. 
 
 In the Song the " Beloved" is compared to a young """"f '"e Ma-tjat. 
 hart (ii. 9 ; viii. 14). When the Spirit of God was poured out, not only 
 were the " weak hands strengthened, and the feeble knees confirmed," 
 but the " lame leaped as an hart" (Isa. xxxv. 3-G). Jeremiah pictures 
 the princes of the people during the dearth as " like harts that find no 
 pasture" (Lam. i. 16). " Hind;" see under Ps. xviii. 33.
 
 176 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 DEUTEEONOMY XIV. 
 
 'HE general principles illnstrated by the precepts in this 
 cliapter have been noticed under Lev. xi. Some of 
 the animals named here are not mentioned in Leviticus. 
 These arc, " the hart, roebuck, fallow deer, wild goat, 
 pygiirg, wild ox, and chamois" (ver. 5). The first two are 
 noticed above. The name of the second occurs only here and 
 in 1 Kings iv. 23. The other four are not referred to in any 
 other passage but this — a circumstance which throws more or 
 less uncertainty around them. 
 " Fallow deer," Heb. yahhmur. The name is derived from a root 
 signifying "brown." In summer the fur of the fallow deer [Cerviis 
 dama) is light brown spotted with white, and in winter it is blackish 
 brown. This has led to the supposition that this species represents 
 the yahlimur of Moses. It is abundant in Palestine. See under 
 1 Kings iv. 23. 
 
 " Wild goat," Heb. ahho, the ibex {Capra ibex, Plate XIIL, Fig. 1), 
 is found in the Swiss Alps, in the range of the Caucasus, and in the 
 mountains of Syria. It is the connecting link between the sheep 
 {JEgosceridce) and the antelopes {Antilopidce). 
 
 " Pygarg," Heb. dislwn, the common antelope {Antilope cervicapra, 
 Plate XIIL, Fig. 2) of zoologists. 
 
 " Wild ox," Heb. teo, rendered "oryx" by the LXX. The leucoryx 
 {Antilope leucoryx)^ or white oryx, is a native of Eastern Africa, where 
 it is found in large herds. It must have been familiar to Moses. It is 
 represented on Egyptian sculptures, and appears to have been highly 
 esteemed by the people. 
 
 " Chamois," Heb. zetner. As the chamois proper {Antilope ritpicapra) 
 is chiefly confined to the mountains of Western Europe, not being met 
 farther east than Greece, it has been held that there was no likelihood 
 Moses would mention it. The LXX. have rendered the word by 
 camelopardalis. This has led Dr. Kitto and others to propose the 
 giraffe as the animal here referred to. But the geographical range of 
 the giraffe makes it not the least likely, that it would be named among 
 beasts from whose flesh Israel was to abstain. They would never meet
 
 DEUTERONOMY XIV. 
 
 177 
 
 it cither in the desert or in Palestine. The name zemer is derived from 
 a root signifying to leap. It is thus much better to reckon it one of 
 the antelopes abundant in Syria. 
 
 " Glede," Heb. rdah. The parallel passage in Lev. (xi. 14) has dddh. 
 The similarity of the name has led to the supposition, that the first letter 
 of the former word has been inadvertently put in when the first of the 
 latter should have been used, both Hebrew letters being very like each 
 
 Fig C6. 
 
 Honey nnzzard (Per^iis aj^ 
 
 other. It seems better, however, to retain the word as it now stands. 
 In this case it points to quickness of vision, and not, as in some of the 
 other birds of prey named here, to power of wing or to solitary habits. 
 The bird referred to may be the honey buzzard, well known in Europe, 
 and to be met with in Asia likewise. Its habits demand great quick- 
 ness of sight. It feeds on insects, field-mice, &c., but its favourite food 
 at certain seasons is the larvte of bees and wasps. 
 
 " Hawk," Heb. netz. I have pointed out under Levit. xi. 16, the 
 wide and general character of this term. Among the species named 
 there the peregrine falcon is given. This bird is still abundant in 
 
 Egypt and Syria. Its form and habits were sure to attract the atten- 
 voi.. n. z
 
 178 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 tion of the Israelites, and to secure it a place in the Levitical list. See 
 also under Job xxxix. 2G. 
 
 "Great Owl," Heb. yansupli — see under Lcvit. xi. 17. In Isa. 
 xxxiv. 11, this word is rendered by the general term owl — "The 
 cormorant and the bittern shall possess it; the owl also and the raven 
 shall dwell in it." The LXX. have translated it ibis, but it is extremely 
 doubtful, whether, on this account, we should give up the common 
 
 Fig. e7. 
 
 V 
 
 Porcgrine Falcon {F. ptregrinuB). 
 
 rendering — see under Isa. xxxiv. 11. Assuming that our version is 
 right, the barn owl [Strix flamviea) will answer io yansupli, and the great 
 eagle owl [Biiho maxiinus) to lilitit, rendered screech-owl in Isa. xxxiv. 
 14 — which see. 
 
 " The Cuckoo," Heb. sJiaJ/Iiaph. The common gull and the tern 
 have been named as answering better than the cuckoo to the original 
 word used here — see under Levit. xi. IG. " The flight of the terns, and 
 indeed of the whole tribe, is not in the sweeping, shooting manner of 
 the land swallows, notwithstanding their name ; the motions of their 
 long wings are slower, and more in tlie manner of the gull. They have, 
 however, great powers of wing, and strength in the muscles of the neck, 
 which enable them to make such sudden and violent plunges, and that 
 from a considerable height too, headlong on their prey."
 
 DEUTERONOMY XIV. 
 
 179 
 
 "Thou slialt not seethe a kid in his mother's milk" (vcr. 23). 
 Numberless interpretations have been proposed for this passage, which, 
 however, finds its illustration in modern usages of the East. " While on 
 the subject of cooking, take another favourite dish of the Arabs. They 
 
 Fig. 68. 
 
 The Common Tern (^Sterna hi, .;;^. ;. 
 
 select a young kid, fat and tender, dross it carefully, and then stew it 
 ill milk, generally sour, mixed with onions and hot spices such as they 
 relish. They call it Lehn immu — ' kid in his mother's milk.' The 
 Jews, however, will not eat it. They say that Moses specifically forbade 
 it in the precept—' Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother's milk,' 
 which he repeated three several times, and with special emphasis. They 
 further maintain that it is unnatural and barbarous to cook a poor kid 
 in that from which it derives its life. This may have been one reason 
 for the prohibition — many of the Mosaic precepts are evidently designed 
 to cultivate gentle and humane feelings; but 'kid in his mother's milk' 
 is a gross, unwholesome dish, calculated also to kindle up animal and 
 ferocious passions ; and on these accounts Moses may have forbidden 
 it. Besides, it is even yet associated with immoderate feasting ; and 
 originally, I suspect, was connected with idolatrous sacrifices. A great 
 deal of learning has been spent upon this passage by critics, to ascertain 
 what the law-giver referred to ; but after seeing the dish actually 
 prepared, and hearing the very name given to it which Jloses employs, 
 we have the whole mystery explained. I have repeatedly tasted Lehn 
 immu; and, wdien well prepared, it has a rich and agreeable flavour." 
 — [Thomson.)
 
 180 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 J 
 
 DEUTERONOMY XVI.-XXVIII. 
 
 TTOU shall eat no leavened bread with it: seven days shalt 
 thou eat unleavened bread therewith, even the bread of 
 affliction ; (for thou earnest forth out of the land of Egypt 
 in haste ;) that thou niayest remember the day when thou 
 earnest forth out of the land of Egypt all the days of thy 
 
 thou 
 
 from 
 
 put tlie sicKle to the corn" (ver. 9). 
 
 ^^ life" (xvi. 3) — see under Prov. x. 6. " Seven weeks shalt tl; 
 ¥s. ' number unto thee : begin to number the seven weeks fri 
 / ^ such time as thou beginnest to put the sickle to the corn" (ver. 
 The last clause is noticed under 1 Kings xix. 2G. 
 In verse 13 the term "thy corn" {goren) is, by a common figure, 
 used for that on which the corn Avas threshed — "the threshing-floor" 
 {rjoren) (Gen. 1. x.), or "threshing-place" (2 Sam. xxiv. 16), or "barn" 
 (Job xxxix. 12), or simply " floor" (Judg. vi. 37). In 2 Chron. xviii. 9, 
 the word is rendered a " void place." When the kings of Israel and 
 Judah were inquiring whether they should go up against Ramoth- 
 Gilead, they are represented as sitting " either of them on his throne, 
 clothed in their robes, in a void place at the entering in of the gate of 
 Samaria." 
 
 " And the officers shall speak unto the people, saying, Wiiat man 
 is there that hath built a new house, and hath not dedicated it? let 
 him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle, and another 
 man dedicate it" (xx. 5) — see Gen. iv. 17. "And it shall be, that 
 the city which is next unto the slain man, even the elders of that 
 city shall take an heifer, which hath not been wrought with, and which 
 hath not drawn in the yoke" (xxi. 3); Num. xix. 2. "Then thou 
 shalt bring her home to thine house ; and she shall shave her head 
 and pare her nails" (ver. 12); Song i. 14. "Thou shalt not plough 
 with an ox and an ass together" (xxii. 10); Num. xii. 4. Everywhere 
 throughout these precepts the great law of kindness to one another, 
 and to the beasts of the field and the birds of the air put under man, is 
 very strongly enforced. They have, no doubt, been regarded by some 
 as trivial and commonplace — unworthy of the attention of the great and 
 eternal God. But such objections are the fruit of ignorance, even 
 though those who make them be persuaded that there is nothing
 
 DEUTERONOMY XVI.-XXVIII. 181 
 
 which they do not know. Once acknowledge that God deals with man 
 as a father, and that he cares for all his creatures, and all difficulty as 
 to sucli passages vanishes. In verses 6-8 of chap, xxii., this tenderness 
 is associated with an injunction which shows what careful regard the 
 life-giving One has for the 4ives of his professing people. " If a bird's 
 nest chance to be before thee in the way in any tree, or on the ground, 
 whether they be young ones or eggs, and the dam sitting upon the 
 young, or upon the eggs, thou shalt not take the dam with the young : 
 but thou shalt in any wise let the dam go, and take the young to thee; 
 that it may be well with thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days. 
 Wlien thou buildest a new house, then thou shalt make a battlement 
 for thy roof, that thou bring not blood upon thine house, if any man 
 fall from thence." 
 
 " Thou shalt not bring the hire of a whore, or the price of a dog, into 
 the house of the Lord thy God for any vow ; for even both these are 
 abomination unto the Lord thy God" (xxiii. 18). "Dog," Kelev — see 
 under Judg. vii. 5. 
 
 " And Moses charged the people the same day, saying, These shall 
 stand upon Mount Gerizim to bless the people, when ye are come over 
 Jordan ; Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Joseph, and 
 Benjamin. And these shall stand upon Mount Ebal to curse ; Reuben, 
 Gad, and Asher, and Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali" (xxvii. 11-13). In 
 this and in chapter xxviii. we have a full statement by anticipation 
 of the solemn acts whose fulfilment is noted in Joshua viii. The 
 o'rand transaction had been much on the mind of Moses. At a still 
 earlier period he had carefully given them materials for identifying the 
 spot. " And it shall come to pass, when the Lord thy God hath brought 
 thee in unto the land whither thou goest to possess it, that thou shalt 
 put the blessing upon ]\Iount Gerizim, and the curse upon Mount Ebal. 
 Are they not on the other side Jordan, by the way where the sun goeth 
 down, in the land of the Canaanites, which dwell in the champaign over 
 against Gilgal, beside the plains of Moreh?" (Chap. x. 29, 30.) Ebal and 
 Gerizim were in Samaria. The mountain range of Ephraim runs from 
 south to north. At a point nearly equidistant between the Dead Sea 
 and the sea of Galilee a deep broad fissure occurs in the direction east 
 to west. In this lies Nablous or Shechem, with Mount Ebal on the 
 north and Mount Gerizim on the south. The hills are each about six 
 hundred feet in height. At the eastern end of the valley they are not 
 more than sixty rods apart. " There," says Dr. Thomson, " the tribes 
 assembled to hear the blessings and the curses read by the Levitcs.
 
 182 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 We have tlicin in exienso in the 27th and 28th chapters of Deutero- 
 nomy ; and in Joshua we are informed that it was actually done, and 
 how. ' Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Joseph, and 
 Benjamin, stood on Gerizim ; and Heuben, Gad, Aslier, Zebulun, Dan, 
 and Naphtali, on Ebal ;' while ' all Israel and their elders, and officers, 
 and their judges, stood on this side of the ark, and on that side before 
 the priests which bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord :' the whole 
 nation of Israel, with the women and little ones, were there. And 
 Joshua read all the words of the law — the blessings and the cursings ; 
 there was not a word of all that Closes commanded which Joshua read 
 not before all the congregation of Israel' This was, beyond question 
 or comparison, the most august assembly the sun has ever shone upon; 
 and I never stand in the narrow plain, with Ebal and Gerizim rising on 
 either hand to the sky, without involuntarily recalling and reproducing 
 the scene. I have shouted to hear the echo, and then fancied how it 
 must have been when the loud-voiced Levites proclaimed from the 
 naked cliffs of Ebal, ' Cursed be the man that niaketh any graven 
 image, an abomination unto Jehovah.' And then the tremendous 
 Amen ! tenfold louder, from the mighty congregation, rising and swell- 
 ing, and re-echoing from Ebal to Gerizim, and from Gerizim to Ebal. 
 Amen! even so let him be accursed. No, there never was an assembly 
 to compare with this." 
 
 Longing earnestly that the people might be stirred up to " hearken 
 diligently to the voice of the Lord God, and to observe to do all his 
 commandments" (ver. 1), Moses promises all manner of blessing to the 
 nation so long as it should continue faithful to God. Domestic happi- 
 ness, commercial prosperity, and outstanding national influence were 
 to be infallibly theirs, if they hearkened unto the voice of the Lord. 
 But the contrary of all this was to fall on them, and continue with 
 tliem as a terrible curse, should they become unfaithful to the Lord 
 God of their fathers. Some aspects of the threatened curses are 
 specially named. At the head of these stands the pestilence. " The 
 Lord shall make the pestilence cleave unto thee, until he hath con- 
 sumed thee from off the land, whither thou goest to possess it" (ver. 21). 
 
 Much obscurity necessarily clings to our knowledge of the diseases 
 mentioned in the Old Testament. An examination of passages referring 
 to the pestilence leads to the following inferences: — 1. The word used 
 here {dever) may be held to point to the plague, usually so called. It 
 occurs about fifty times, and is always rendered " pestilence," except in 
 Esod. ix. 5, where it is translated "murrain," and in Hosea xiii. 14,
 
 ^lEUTERONOMY XVI.-XXVIII. 183 
 
 where it lias the meaning of " pLagues." 2. In Exod. ix. 14, the 
 Hebrew mdcjgrplialt. is rendered "plagues;" literally it points to any 
 fatal calamity which comes quickly. Thus in Ezekicl xxiv. IG, it is 
 characterized as " a stroke " — " Son of man, behold, I take away from 
 thee the desire of thine eyes with a stroke." In 2 Sam. xvii. 19, the 
 import is " slaughter." So likewise 1 Sam. iv. 17; and 2 Sam. xviii. 7. 
 It is rendered " plague" in other twenty passages, and may mean any 
 sudden visitation. 3. The Hebrew malchdh contains yet another idea ; 
 that namely, of a "wound." It points to injuries received in war, though 
 it is translated "plagues" (Levit. xxvi. 21); "stripes" (Deut. xxv. 3); 
 "slaughter" (Josh. x. 10) ; and " wounds" (Zech. xiii. 6). 4. Any disease 
 which might become endemic was called ncga. This is the word used 
 in Leviticus in connection with leprosy. 5. Of these general terms 
 the first alone {dever) may be properly regarded as pointing to a 
 form of contagious disease, in most respects similar to the modern 
 plague. It is taken here in this sense, and the forms of disease men- 
 tioned in verse 22 are regarded as different phases of the terrible 
 malad}^ — " The Lord shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a 
 fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and 
 with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew ; and they shall 
 pursue thee until thou perish." If to these we add the aspects of curse 
 named in verses 27, 28, we shall have clearly before us the whole 
 threatening from this point of view — " The Lord will smite thee with 
 the botcli of Egypt, and with the emcrods, and with the scab, and with 
 the itch, whereof thou canst not be healed." "The Lord shall smite 
 thee with madness, and blindness, and astonishment of heart." We 
 have thus : — 
 
 1. PESTILENCE. 
 
 1. As consumptum (shahepheth), a disease wliich is not to be con- 
 founded with that known by this name in Britain. The word seems 
 to point to the great quickening of the pulse and consequent rapid 
 debility which are noticed in the first stage of the pestilence. 
 
 2. As fever (kaddahath), which always characterizes the plague — so 
 much so indeed that many physicians have regarded it as a virulent 
 form of typhus. In Levit. xxvi. IG, this word is rendered " burning ague." 
 
 3. As inflammation (dalleketh), a word used only in this place. It 
 points to a constant symptom of plague. 
 
 4. As an extreme hurniiKj (hharlihur). Those who have had favour- 
 able opportunities of watching the pestilence, invariably mention the 
 " burning pains " which accompany it.
 
 184 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 5. As a great thirst (liliorev) rendered "sword" in our version, but 
 a reference to otlier parts of Scripture in which the word is used, 
 and in which it is translated " heat," " dry," and " drought," warrants 
 this view. 
 
 6. As rapid decay (shidapon), in the text " blasting." 
 
 7. As extreme paleness (jarkon), an expression pointing to tlie cliange 
 Avhicli falls on grain when from disease the leaves and stalk become 
 prematurely yellow. Tlius our translators give it as "mildew," but it is 
 clear that symptoms of disease are referred to throughout these verses. 
 The first five marks are connected with the influence of pestilence on 
 vital organs ; the last two with the evidences of this. 
 
 IT. CUTANEOUS DISEASES. 
 
 1. The hotch of Egjjpt, a species of leprosy — elephantiasis (also 
 verse 35). 
 
 2. Emcrods or certain kinds of tumors. 
 
 3. Scab, a condition of the skin answering to what is still so named. 
 
 4. Itch, a cutaneous disease prevalent in the East, where it assumes 
 forms much more loathsome than it does among western nations. It is 
 caused by one of the Acaridoe or mites {Sarcoptes galei) becoming 
 parasitic in the human skin, and is highly infectious. 
 
 III. MENTAL MALADIES. 
 
 1. Madness. 2. Mental Blindness. 3. Horror, here named " aston- 
 ishment of heart." 
 
 The strong expressions of verse 24 point to phenomena often wit- 
 nessed in the East, and also in the African deserts. " The Lord shall 
 make the rain of thy land powder and dust : from heaven shall it come 
 down upon thee, until thou be destroyed." The sand storms which 
 often carry destruction with them in the desert, and which have been 
 known to cover many men and many beasts of burden, are named as 
 instruments in the Lord's hand for punishing those who " hearken not 
 to his voice." 
 
 Their operations in the field and in the vineyard are noticed in 
 verses 38-44, and they are threatened with the locust as another curse 
 if they should fiill into unfaithfulness to God — " Thou shalt carry much 
 seed out into the field, and shalt gather but little in : for the locust 
 shall consume it. Thou shalt plant vineyards, and dress them, but shalt 
 neither drink of the wine, nor gather the grapes : for the worms shall
 
 DEUTERONOMY XVI.-XXVIII. 
 
 185 
 
 eat them. Thou slialt have oHve-trees throughout all thy coasts, but 
 thou shalt not anoint thyself with the oil ; for thine olive shall cast his 
 fruit. Thou shalt beget sons and daughters, but thou slialt not enjoy 
 them ; for they shall go into captivity. All thy trees, and fruit of thy 
 land, shall the locust consume. The stranger that is within thee shall 
 get above thee very high ; and thou shalt come down very low. He 
 shall lend to thee, and thou shalt not lend to him ; he shall be the head 
 and thou shalt be the tail." 
 
 " Locust," Heb. arheh. This is the name usually given to this 
 insect.. It means "a multitude," and may be taken in the wide sense 
 in which some entomologists use the term locustarice. The group of 
 insects thus named includes the crickets (AcJietidce) , the grasshoppers 
 {GrfjUidce), the locusts proper {Locitsti'dce), of which the migratory locust 
 (Locusta migratoria) is best known, and the mantis {Mantidce) of which 
 Mantis religiosa is the type (Plate XXXIX., Fig. 7). The Hebrew 
 
 Fig. 69. 
 
 Locust (Locusta migratoria). 
 
 term "arbeh" may mean either the locust group generally, or the 
 migratory species so named. This fact gives us a key to such pas- 
 sages of Scripture as refer to destructive insects. These may be arranged 
 thus : — 
 
 VOL. IL 2 A
 
 186 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Arbeh = Locusta; 
 
 TzELATZAL = Locusta ; 
 
 ARBEH = LOCUSTARIiE ■{ 
 
 Hhagau = Gryllus; 
 
 Hhargol =AcJia:ta; 
 
 Salam 
 
 ■■ Mantis; 
 
 Exod. X. 4 ; Deut. xxviii. 38 ; 
 
 Ps. Ixxviii. 46 ; Prov. xxx. 
 
 27 ; Joel i. 4 ; &c. 
 Deut. xxviii. 38, so named from 
 
 tlie sounding of its wings. It 
 
 is evidently the same as the 
 
 arbeh of verse 38. 
 Lev.xi.22; Numb, xiii.33; Eccl. 
 
 xii. 5 ; &c. Named from its 
 
 hiding in the grass. 
 Rendered "beetle," Lev. xi. 22. 
 
 A name given to the cricket 
 
 because of its leaping. 
 The " bald locust," Lev. xi. 22. 
 
 Mantis palliata. 
 
 The otiier forms referred to in Scripture point to immature insects. 
 Thus gazam, or the devourer, is the locust in its first stage ; the
 
 DEUTEKONOMY XVI.-XXVIII. 187 
 
 " pulmer-worm " of Joel i. i, li. 25; Ainos iv. 9. Ilhazil or great 
 eater — the young locusts about to pass into the fully developed insect. 
 Ydeh or greedy feeder — a full grown grub (Nahum iii. 15-17); the 
 caterpillar of Ps. cv. 34; Jer. li. 14-27; and the cankor-worra of 
 Joel i. 4, ii. 25. Gov the " crawler" may mean the caterpillar of any 
 of the insects which deposit their eggs in the earth, or at the roots of 
 grass and corn crops, whose grubs are vegetable-feeders — see under 
 Nahum iii. 17. This attempt at identification has been made after a 
 careful study of the Hebrew names, in the light of allusions to the 
 ravages of these insects in Works of Eastern Travel. 
 
 The eggs of most of the Locustidoe are placed in small tubes of earth, 
 and in holes of the ground, coated with a glutinous secretion from the 
 
 Fig 71. 
 
 iM^^- 
 
 Dccticua verrutivorus depOBitlng its eggs in a hole in the ground. 
 
 female. Each tube holds from sixty to one hundred eggs. The change 
 from the egg to the fully formed animal is not, as in many insects, by a 
 grub and a pupa unlike the perfect form, but by a series of moults, in 
 the last of which wings are present. In the first stage — the so-called 
 larva — there is no appearance of wings ; in the last but one rudi- 
 mentary wings inclosed in cases appear. These forms pass into the 
 imago, or perfectly developed locust. Fig. 72 shows the bald locust 
 in the act of devouring its prey. The lower part of the cut represents 
 one of the egg cases of the insect, from which the young are making 
 their escape. 
 
 The devastating power of these insects is illustrated under Joel ii., 
 which see. Southey thus describes the noise of their flight —
 
 188 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 " Onward they came, a dark continuous cloud 
 Of congregated myriads numberless, 
 The rushing of whose wings was as the sound 
 Of a broad river headlong in its course 
 Plunged from a mountain summit, or the roar 
 Of a wild ocean in the autumn storm, 
 Shattering its billows on a shore of rocks." 
 
 "Syria, as well as Egypt, Persia, and almost all tlic south of Asia, 
 is subject to another calamity uo less dreadful than earthquakes. I 
 
 Fig. 72. 
 
 mf^i 
 
 Eald Locust and Young. 
 
 mean those clouds of locusts so often mentioned by travellers. The 
 quantity of these insects is incredible to all who have not themselves 
 witnessed their astonishing numbers : the whole earth is covered with 
 them for the sj^ace of several leagues. The noise they make in 
 browsing on the trees and herbage may be heard to a great distance, 
 and resembles that of an army foraging in secret. The Tartars them- 
 selves are a less destructive enemy than these little animals; one would 
 imagine that fire had followed their progress. Wherever their myriads 
 spread, the verdure of the country disappears as if a covering had been 
 removed ; trees and plants, stripped of their leaves, and reduced to 
 their naked boughs and stems, cause the dreary image of winter to 
 succeed in an instant to the rich scenery of spring. When these 
 clouds of locusts take their flight to surmount any obstacle, or to 
 traverse more rapidly a desert soil, the heavens may be literally said to 
 be obscured by them." — {Volney)
 
 DEUTEEONOMY XXIX.-XXXIV. 
 
 189 
 
 DEUTERONOMY XXIX.-XXXIV. 
 
 HE references in verse 6 are noticed under Numb. vi. 3. "A 
 root that beareth gall and wormwood" (verse 18). "Gall," 
 Jer. viii. 14; "Wormwood," Prov. v. 4. 
 
 Chajiter xxxii. contains the words of the sublime song 
 which Moses spake in the ears of the assembled tribes 
 of Israel. In the previous chapter (verse 28) we are told 
 what object he had in view. He calls heaven and earth to 
 witness. The thoughts which he was about to make known 
 to Israel were to drop as the rain upon the earth, and to distil 
 as the dew. The whole phenomena of the fertilizing power of rain 
 and dew are referred to, that each hearer might apply the utter- 
 ances to himself: — As is the rain to the weary earth, so should these 
 gracious words be to me. As is the dew, which at night is formed on 
 the herbs which were half burned by the scorching rays of the summer 
 sun, to vegetation, so should God's gracious thoughts strengthen me 
 amidst the temptations and trials of earth. And as are the showers 
 to the tender herb, and the grass in sunny plain or on mountain side, 
 so should the repeated evidences of God's grace, goodness, and mercy 
 be to the whole congregation of Israel. " Dew," see under Judg. vi. 30. 
 The tender care of Jehovah for his people is illustrated with touching 
 beauty in verses 9-12 : — " For the Lord's portion is his people ; Jacob 
 is the lot of his inheritance. He found him in a desert land, and in 
 the waste howling wilderness ; he led him about, he instructed him, he 
 kept him as the apple of his eye. As an eagle stirreth up her nest, 
 fliittereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, 
 beareth them on her wings ; so the Lord alone did lead him, and there 
 
 was no strange god with him." 
 
 The figure in verse 11 is noticed 
 
 under Exod. xix. 4. 
 
 To the acknowledgment of the Lord's direction and instruction, 
 Moses adds that of his constant watchfulness under the concluding 
 figure in verse 10 — " He found hira in a desert land, and in the waste 
 howling wilderness ; he led him about, he instructed him, he kept him 
 as the apple of his eye." The general and varied use of the word 
 "apple" are noticed under Prov. xxv. 11.
 
 190 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCK. 
 
 The expression "apple of tlie eye" occurs five times in the OKI 
 Testament. It is the transUition of three different words. That 
 employed here is ishon, which is met with in other two passages — 
 
 " Keep me as tlie apple of thine eye : 
 Hide me under the shadow of tliy wings" (Ps. xvii. 3). 
 
 " Keep my commandments and live ; 
 And my law as the apple of thine eye" (Prov. vii. 2). 
 
 In Prov. vii. the same word is rendered "black" — "in the black and 
 dark night " (verse 9) ; and in chapter xx. 20, a similar meaning is 
 attached to it. It is said of the man that curseth his father or his 
 mother, that " his lamp shall be put out in obscure darkness." The 
 pupil, or dark centre spot of the eye, is thus referred to as the " apple 
 of the eye." When the pupil is injured, vision is impaired or de- 
 stroyed ; thus it is carefully guarded by one divine arrangement and 
 another. Man is ever on the alert to bring these into action, and, 
 knowing this, the Psalmist prays, " Let thy care of me be like my care 
 of the apple of mine eye; keep me as the apple of thine." So the 
 Spirit of God appeals to man — You guard with constant care the 
 apple of your eye, be it so with my commandments likewise. 
 
 The idea of " the apple of the eye " being the chief part is also 
 implied in the word. The pupil is the little man Qiomulns) of the eye 
 — a form of expression suggestive of a second word used for it, namely, 
 bath or daughter. See under Lam. ii. 18. 
 
 The key to the explanation of the lavish goodness of God to this 
 people is to be found in verse 9 — "The Lord's portion is his people; 
 Jacob is the lot of his inheritance." He led them into the enjoyment 
 of the richest of the natural products of the country. Two of these are 
 named in the beginning of verse 14 — " Butter of kine and milk of 
 sheep." " Kine," see above, Gen. xli, 2 ; and " Sheep," Gen. iv. 14. 
 " Butter," Heb. hliemah, a preparation from milk (Jihdldv) of cows. It 
 is specially noticed as the food of the " promised child." See under 
 Isa. vii. 15. The process by which it is prepared in the East is 
 noticed in Prov. xxx. 33, which see. Dr. Shaw refers to a similar 
 method as employed in Barbary. He says — " Their method of making 
 butter is, by putting the milk or cream into a goat's skin turned inside 
 out, which they suspend from one side of the tent to the other, and 
 then, pressing it to and fro in one uniform direction, they quickly 
 occasion the separation of the unctuous and wheyey parts. A great 
 quantity of butter is made in several places of these kingdoms, which,
 
 DEUTERONOMY XXIX.-XXXIV. 191 
 
 after it is boiled with salt, in order to precipitate the hairs and other 
 Hastinesses occasioned in the churning, they put into jars, and pre- 
 serve it for use. Fresh butter soon grows sour and rancid." — {Travels, 
 i., 308.) 
 
 "The pure blood of the grape." The Hebrew word {hhemer) here 
 rendered "pure" is the "red wine" of Isa. xxvii. 2, and of Ps. Ixxv. 8. 
 The liquid referred to is the juice of the black grape {enav), as it 
 is seen gushing from the vat bearing foam on its surface. It is the 
 hhdmar of Ezra vi. 9, vii. 22 ; Dan. v. 1, 2, 4, 23. Like most of the 
 other kinds of wine mentioned in the Bible, the hhemer, or red foamins: 
 variety, was intoxicating. Daniel's references to it imply tliis. 
 
 " I will also send the teeth of beasts upon them, with the poison of 
 serpents of the dust " (verse 24). See under Kumb. xxi. 6. " Their 
 vine is the vine of Sodom, and of the fields of Gomorrah : their grapes 
 are grapes of gall, their clusters are bitter. Their wine is the poison 
 of dragons, and the cruel venom of asps " (verses 32, 33). 
 
 The expression "vine of Sodom" has passed into a proverb, under 
 an altered form — " apples of Sodom." The change may be traced to an 
 inexact rendering of the passage in Josephus in which " the Dead Sea 
 fruits" are referred to. But his strong words on this subject are as little 
 to be taken without qualification, as they are when he tells us that the 
 shadows of the five cities are yet to be seen in the waters of the "Lake 
 Asphaltites" {Wars of the Jens, b. iv., ch. 8, § 4). Hasselquist says, 
 when noticing the Poma Sodomitica, or apples of Sodom, that they are 
 the fruit of one of the nightshades {Solanacece). " It is a curious fact that 
 one of the names of a species of Solanum ( S. incanum), allied to that 
 to which I refer, is, among the Arabs, that of the 'Aneb edh dhib, or 
 ' Grape of the Wolf.' It is sometimes ate by the poorer classes of 
 Fellcihiu in Egypt." — {Wilson.) 
 
 Irby and Mangles point to a widely different plant, as that which 
 yields the "Dead Sea fruits :" — " "We were here surprised to see, for 
 the first time, the oskar plant grown to the stature of a tree, its trunk 
 measuring, in many instances, two feet or more in circumference, and 
 the boughs at least fifteen feet in length, a size which far exceeded any 
 we saw in Nubia ; the fruit also was larger and in greater quantity. 
 There is very little doubt of this being the fruit of the Dead Sea so 
 often noticed by the ancients as appearing juicy and delicious to the 
 eye, while within it is hollow, or filled with something grating and dis- 
 agreeable in the mouth." Dr. Robinson thinks the same plant to be 
 that now alluded to. It has indeed the strongest claims to be reckoned
 
 the one on whicli the grajDes of gall and the bitter clusters grew. The 
 words of verse 32 should not, however, be pressed too far. Moses may 
 not have designed to mark any single species. All he may have wished 
 to express may have been, that, as the joys of Sodom and Gomorrah 
 ended in disappointment and ultimate ruin, so all pleasure enjoyed in 
 sin and in hatred of God will end in bitterness and misery. See also 
 under Jer. viii. 14. 
 
 " One of the first objects which attracted our notice on arriving at 
 'Ain Jidy was a tree with singular fruit, which, without knowing at 
 the moment whether it had been observed by former travellers or not, 
 instantlv susrsrested to our minds the far-famed fruits — 
 
 •oo^ 
 
 ' A\niic]i grew 
 Near that bituminous lake where Sodom stood.' 
 
 This was the oskar of tlic Arabs, the Asclepias gigantea v. procera of 
 botanists, which is found in abundance in Upper Egypt and Nubia, 
 and also in Arabia Felix, but seems to be confined in Palestine to the 
 borders of the Dead Sea. We saw it only at 'Ain Jidy ; Hasselquist 
 found it in the desert between Jericho and the northern shore ; and 
 Irby and Mangles met with it of large size at the south end of the sea, 
 and on the isthmus of the peninsula. 
 
 We saw here several trees of the kind, the trunks of which were six 
 or eight inches in diameter, and the whole height from ten to fifteen 
 feet. It has a greyish cork-like bark, with long oval leaves ; and in 
 its general appearance and character it might be taken for a gigantic 
 perennial species of the milk-weed or silk-weed, found in the northern 
 parts of the American States. Its leaves and flowers are very similar 
 to those of the latter plant ; and, when broken off, it in like manner 
 discharges copiously a milky fluid. The fruit greatly resembles 
 externally a large smooth apple or orange, hanging in clusters of three 
 or four together ; and, when ripe, is of a yellow colour. It was now 
 fair and delicious to the eye, and soft to the touch ; but, on being 
 pressed or struck, it explodes with a pufl', like a bladder or puff-ball, 
 leaving in the hand only the shreds of the thin rind and a few fibres. 
 It is indeed filled chiefly with air, like a bladder, which gives it the 
 round form ; while in the centre a small slender pod runs through it 
 from the stem, and is connected by thin filaments with the rind. The 
 pod contains a small quantity of fine silk with seeds — precisely like the 
 pod of the silk-weed, though very much smaller, being indeed scarcely 
 the tenth part as large. The Arabs collect the silk and twist it into
 
 DEUTERONOMY XXIX.-XXXIV. 193 
 
 matches for their guns — preferring it to the common match, because it 
 requires no sulphur to render it combustible. 
 
 The most definite account we have of the apples of Sodom, so called, 
 is in Josephus, who, as a native of the country, is a better authority 
 than Tacitus or other foreign writers. After speaking of the conflagra- 
 tion of the plain, and the yet remaining tokens of the divine fire, he 
 remarks that — ' There are still to be seen ashes reproduced in the 
 fruits, which indeed resemble edible fruits in colour, but on being 
 plucked with the hands, are dissolved into smoke and ashes.' In this 
 account, after a due allowance for the marvellous in all popular reports, 
 I find nothing which does not apply almost literally to the fruit of the 
 oskar, as we saw it. It must be plucked and handled with great care, 
 in order to preserve it from bursting. We attempted to carry some of 
 the boughs and fruit with us to Jerusalem, but without success. Has- 
 selquist finds the apples of Sodom in the fruit of the Solanum meloncjena 
 (nightshade, madapple), which he saw in great abundance at 'Ain Jidy 
 and in the plain of Jericho. These apples are much smaller than those 
 of the oskar, and when ripe are full of small black grains. There is 
 here, however, nothing like explosion, nothing like 'smoke and ashes,' 
 except occasionally, as the same naturalist remarks, ' when the fruit is 
 punctured by an insect (Tenthredo), which converts the whole of the 
 inside into dust, leaving nothing but the rind entire, without any loss 
 of colour.' We saw the Solanum and the osher growing side by side 
 — the former presenting nothing remarkable in its appearance, and 
 being found in other parts of the country; while the latter immediately 
 arrested our attention by its singular accordance with the ancient story, 
 and is, moreover, peculiar in Palestine to the shores of the Dead Sea. — 
 {Eohinson, Bih. Ees. 1, 522.) 
 
 " And this is the blessing wherewith Moses the man of God blessed 
 the children of Israel before his death. And he said. The Lord came 
 from Sinai, and rose up from Seir unto them ; he shined forth from 
 Mount Paran, and he came with ten thousands of saints : from his right 
 hand went a fiery law for them. Yea, he loved the people ; all his 
 saints are in thy hand : and they sat down at thy feet ; every one shall 
 receive of thy words. ]\Ioses commanded us a law, even the inheri- 
 tance of the congregation of Jacob. And he was king in Jeshurun, 
 when the heads of the people and the tribes of Israel were gathered 
 together" (xxxiii. 1-5). 
 
 In noticing the points which claim attention in this chapter, Genesis 
 slix. comes also under consideration — 
 
 VOL. II. 2 B
 
 19-i BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 REUBEN. 
 
 GENESIS. DEDTEKONOMY. 
 
 " Reuben, thou art my first-born, my "Let Reuben live, and not die ; and let 
 mlglit, and the beginning of my strength, not his men be few." 
 the excellency of dignity, and the excel- 
 lency of power : unstable as water, thou 
 shalt not excel ; because thou wentest up 
 to thy father's bed ; then defiledst thou it : 
 he went up to my couch." 
 
 To bring out fully the blessing of Moses, it requires to be compared 
 with that of Jacob. When the after-history of each tribe is looked at 
 in the light of these last utterances of men whom the Lord had greatly 
 blessed, we have many most striking proofs of the watchfulness and 
 care of God over his professing people. The history of the several 
 tribes answers so exactly to the prophecy which had gone before, that 
 a certain class of critics have laboured to make out a comparatively 
 modern date for both chapters. Refusing to admit the prophetic 
 character of these blessings, nothing, of course, is left to them but to 
 propound the theory, that the description followed the events described. 
 There have ever been men who have made their own imaginings the 
 standard of truth. Such are those now alluded to. 
 
 Taking the tribes in order, it will be seen that while there are many 
 points of comparison, there are many of contrast likewise in the two 
 addresses. Thus with Reuben. Jacob says, " Unstable as water, thou 
 shalt not excel" — an utterance suggestive of great historical inferi- 
 ority, even though as to birth he was his father's " strength, excellency 
 of dignity, and excellency of power." Moses desires that "his men 
 might not be few." The original statement is not set aside, but all 
 the blessing which could be harmonized with it, is longed for by Moses. 
 The position of the tribe of Reuben was such as almost necessarily 
 excluded them from political prominence and leadership. It was far 
 less favourable even than that of Gad or Manasseh. They had only 
 Jordan between them and the other tribes, but Reuben was geographi- 
 cally isolated by the broad waters of the Dead Sea. Their pastoral 
 habits would also lead them eastward, and thus still further separate 
 them from the sphere of influence on the west of the sea and the 
 
 Jordan. 
 
 JUDAII. 
 
 GENESIS. DEUTEKONOMT. 
 
 " Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren " And this is the blessing of Judah : and 
 
 shall praise : thy hand shall be in the neck he saith, Hear, Lord, the voice of Judah, 
 
 of thine enemies ; thy father's children shall and bring him unto his people: let his
 
 DEUTEEONOMT XXIX.-XXXIV. 195 
 
 bow down before thee. Judah is a lion's hands be sufficient for him ; and be thou 
 
 whelp : from the prey, my son, thou art an help to him from his enemies.'' 
 
 gone up : he stooped down, he couched as a 
 
 lion, and as an old lion ; who shall rouse 
 
 him up ? The sceptre shall not depart from 
 
 Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his 
 
 feet, until Shiloh come ; and unto him shall 
 
 the gathering of the people be : binding his 
 
 foal unto the vine, and his ass's colt unto 
 
 the choice vine ; he washed his garments 
 
 in wine, and his clothes in the blood of 
 
 grapes." 
 
 Pre-eminence, irresistible strength, kingly dignity, and the enjoy- 
 ment of plenty, are promised by Jacob to him who was the head of 
 the "lion tribe." Moses had watched the development of the tribe, 
 and had observed that the very enjoyment and possession of the bless- 
 ings seen to be his in the visions of Jacob, would lead the tribe into 
 difBculties, and raise up enemies around it. Thus his earnest cry, 
 "Let his hands be sufficient." The spirit of the original utterance 
 seems to have influenced the tribe long before the blessings were 
 actually enjoyed. Royal honours were promised, but Judah did not 
 grasp at them in haste. He waited his time. Levi long ruled through 
 Moses, Ephraim through Joshua, and Benjamin through Saul. Judah's 
 day of kingly dignity did not come till the time of David, but then it 
 was that every word here stood out with a meaning never to be 
 mistaken. 
 
 SISIEON AND LEVI. 
 
 GENESIS. DELTEEOSOMT. 
 
 " Simeon and Levi are brethren ; instru- " And of Levi he said. Let thy Thummim 
 ments of cruelty are in their habitations, and thy Urim be with thy holy one, whom 
 O my soul, come not thou into their secret ; thou didst prove at Massah, and with whom 
 unto their assembly, mine honour, be not thou didst strive at the waters of Jleribah ; 
 thou united ! for in their anger they slew a Who said imto his father and to his mother 
 man, and in their self-will they digged down I have not seen him ; neither did he acknow- 
 a wall. Cursed be their anger, for it was ledge his brethren, nor knew his own chil- 
 fierce; and their wrath, for it was cruel: I dren : for they have observed thy word, and 
 will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them kept thy covenant. They shall teach Jacob 
 in Israel." thy judgments, and Israel thy law : they 
 
 shall put incense before thee, and whole 
 burnt-sacrifice upon thine altar. Bless, 
 Lord, his substance, and accept tlie work 
 of his hands : smite through the loins of 
 them that rise against him, and of them 
 that hate him, that they rise not again."
 
 196 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Jacob names Simeon and Levi as one. Moses concentrates his 
 
 attention on Levi. The contrast between the words of the patriarch 
 
 and those of the lawgiver is very bold. The point of harmony is, no 
 
 doubt, to be found in the expression, " I will divide them iu Jacob, and 
 
 scatter them in Israel." Looking at their fierce and cruel ways, he 
 
 says, " Cursed be their anger." Then led by the spirit of prophecy, 
 
 he tells of their being scattered. They were so. Simeon even stood 
 
 in such a relation to Judah, as to mere geographical position, that he 
 
 might be regarded as divided. Josh. six. 2, 3 ; 1 Kings xix. 3 ; 1 Sam. 
 
 XXX. 26, &c. But the scattering was specially true of Levi, who had 
 
 no inheritance except among the different tribes, for whose spiritual 
 
 instruction he had been set apart. With this all the blessing named 
 
 by Moses came. 
 
 BENJAMN. 
 
 GENESIS. DEUTERONOSir. 
 
 "Benjamin shall ravin as a wolf: in the "And of Benjamin he said, The beloved 
 morning he shall devour the prey, and at of the Lord shall dwell in safety by him ; 
 night he shall divide the spoil." and the Lord shall cover him all the day 
 
 long, and he shall dwell between his shoul- 
 ders." 
 
 The disposition of Benjamin, as suited to the geographical limits to 
 be assigned to him, is chiefly in Jacob's view. He was fierce, daring, 
 crafty, and intrepid. But for this, he would not have preserved his 
 tribal independence, lying, as his territory did, between Ephraim on 
 the north and Judah on the south. The boundary of Benjamin on the 
 south, swept from the Jordan westward round the southern base of 
 the Mount of Olives, taking in part of the hill on which the temple was 
 built, and meeting Dan beyond Kirjath-jcarim. On the north it passed 
 from the Jordan in a north-easterly direction above Bethel, touched 
 the mountains of Ephraim, and again met Dan near Beth-horon. 
 Tlius, while the territory included some of the most fertile spots of 
 Palestine, it contained also many wild tracts in which the Avolf, to 
 which Benjamin was compared, would find favourite haunts — places 
 where it might " ravin ;" in the morning devouring prey which had 
 been brought within its reach and power at night. When Moses 
 describes Benjamin, he thinks chiefly of his position as one of privilege 
 near to Judah, and lying closely on Jerusalem, to which, with the 
 seer's eye, he looked forward as the place to become the capital of the 
 tribe beloved of the Lord. 
 
 " Wolf," Heb. zcev, Gr. h/Jcos, is mentioned for the first time in Gen. 
 xlix. Jacob's experience, both Avith Laban and when among some of
 
 DEUTERONOMY XXIX.-XXXIV. 
 
 197 
 
 the wildest tracts of Palestine, would make liim familiar with the 
 habits of the wolf, as he guarded his flocks from it by day aud by night. 
 In the disposition of his youngest son, he had seen evidences of that 
 craft and darintr which was afterwards to be transmitted to his children. 
 Thus his words, " Benjamin shall ravin as a wolf" 
 
 The wolf [Cayiis lupus) is one of the most ferocious of the family 
 {Canida) to Avhich it belongs. AVhen full grown, it measures about 
 live feet and a half from the nose to the tip of the tail. It is about the 
 size of a large dog. (Plate XV., Fig. 2.) The scourge of every 
 country where it abounds, a constant and relentless warfare has ever 
 been waged against it by man. Jacob's reference to its habits is 
 peculiarly appropriate. Coming forth from its lair in the evening, it 
 kills its prey whether impelled by hunger or not. Like the fox (Canis 
 viilpes), to which it is nearly related, it drags its prey into the thicket 
 or den, and under the deep shadows of the former, or in the utter dark- 
 ness of the latter, when morning comes " it devours its prey." All the 
 allusions to it by sacred writers point to its cruelty and ferocity. 
 AVhen Isaiah pictures the prevailing power of grace over the wicked, 
 whose work in the world is to hurt and destroy, he sets it boldly before 
 us by the expressions, " The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb," 
 "The wolf and the lamb shall feed together" (xi. 6; Ixv. 25). Jere- 
 miah had noticed its ferocity at night ; aud when he speaks of those 
 who had altogether broken away from God, he says — " A wolf of the 
 evenings shall spoil them " (v. G). In Ezekiel's description of Jeru- 
 salem's sins, the rulers are compared to wolves — " Her princes in the 
 midst thereof are like wolves ravening the prey, to shed blood, and to 
 destroy souls, to get dishonest gain " (xxii. 27). Habakkuk says of 
 the Chaldajan cavalry — " Their horses are more fierce than the evening 
 wolves " (i. 8). Zephaniah (iii. 3) refers to the same habits as Jacob 
 did — " Her judges are evening wolves ; they gnaw not the bones till 
 the morrow." In the New Testament references, the wicked and the 
 heretical are compared to wolves. (Matt. vii. 15; x. IG; Luke x. 3; 
 John X. 12 • Acts XX. 29.) 
 
 JOSEPH. 
 
 GENESIS. DEUTERONOSrr. 
 
 " Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a " And of Joseph he said, Blessed of the 
 
 fruitful bough by a well, whose branches Lord be his land, for the precious things of 
 
 run over the wall. The archers have sorely heaven, for the dew, and for the deep that 
 
 grieved him, and shot at him, and hated coucheth beneath, and for the precious 
 
 him : but his bow abode in strength, and fruits brought forth by the sun, and for the 
 
 the arms of his hands were made strong by precious things put forth by the moon, and
 
 198 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 the hands of the mighty God of Jacob : for the chief things of the ancient moun- 
 
 (from thence is the Sheplicrd, the stone of tains, and for tlie precious things of the 
 
 Israel :) even by the God of thy father, who histing hills, and for the precious things of 
 
 shall help thee ; and by the Almighty, who the earth, and fulness thereof, and for the 
 
 shall bless thee with blessings of heaven good will of him that dwelt in the bush : 
 
 above, blessings of the deep that lieth let the blessing come upon the head of 
 
 under, blessings of the breasts and of the Joseph, and upon the top of the head of 
 
 womb : the blessings of thy father have pre- him that was separated from his brethren, 
 
 vailed above the blessings of my progenitors His glory is like the firstling of his bullock, 
 
 unto the utmost bound of the everlasting and his horns are like the horns of unicorns : 
 
 hills : they shall be on the head of Joseph, with them he shall push the people together 
 
 and on the crown of the head of liim that to the ends of the earth ; and they are the 
 
 was separate from his brethren" (ver. ten thousands of Ephraim, and they are the 
 
 22-26). thousands of Manasseh " (ver. 13-17). 
 
 The parallel is not less striking here than in the passages already 
 noticed. Both blessings point to great fruitfiilncss. Joseph's was to 
 be a posterity so numerous, as to make it necessary to divide his 
 descendants into two tribes. Thus he is likened to the fruitful bough 
 of the tree planted in the most favourable situation — so fruitful, that 
 it hung out its rich clusters beyond the place which it was originally 
 expected to fill. A comparison of Jacob's blessing Avith that of Moses 
 shows that to Joseph also was promised plenty of com and wine. 
 " The precious fruits brought forth by the sun," were the product of 
 fruit-trees generally, and of the vine in particular. "The precious 
 things put forth by the moon," were, no doubt, cereal crops. The 
 expression gives prominence to the popular belief of the influence of 
 the moon in ripening the crops. "The blessings of heaven above" in 
 the one passage, are represented by the dew in the other. Jacob's 
 blessing on Joseph " prevailed to the utmost bound of the everlasting 
 hills;" that of Moses told that his were to be "the chief things of the 
 ancient mountains, and the precious things of the lasting hills." The 
 fruitful slopes of Samaria, and all mineral treasures below the surface, 
 were given to Joseph in promise. " The blessings of the deep that 
 lieth under," answer to " the precious things of the deep, that coucheth 
 beneath." Both point to the Great Sea, along whose shores the 
 western limits of Ephraim and Manasseh lay. 
 
 The words " they shall be on the head of Joseph, and on the crown 
 of him that was separate from his brethren," are enlarged and illus- 
 trated in the words of Moses — " His glory is like the firstling of his 
 bullock, and his horns are like the horns of unicorns." 
 
 " Unicorn," Heb. reem, is singular, and should not, as in our transia-
 
 DEUTERONOMY XXIX-XXXIV. 
 
 199 
 
 tioD, have had a pkiral signification given to it. This has been done in 
 the belief that the unicorn of Scripture is identical with the rhinoceros, 
 the only species of which, at the time when our trasnlation was made, 
 that was well known, was the Indian rhinoceros {EMnoceros Indicus), 
 formerly termed the unicorn rhinoceros {It. unicornis) ; see Plate XXVI. 
 Fig. 2. But while there are only two species which have one horn, 
 there are five bi-horned species. One of the best known is represented 
 in the accompanying cut. If it could be determined that the Hebrew 
 reem is always used in the definite sense of species, we would have to 
 render it by one English equivalent. But this cannot be done. Indeed, 
 
 Fig. 73. 
 
 Bi-horaeil Rhinoceros (i?. slmus), 
 
 the modern Arabs employ a corresponding word to include wild goats, 
 deer, cattle, and the rhinoceros also. It is in the highest degree 
 probable that the word was originally used in this general way by the 
 writers of Scripture likewise. It is suggestive to find that the ancient 
 writers of the West held views as general as those of the East, when 
 referring to certain animals, for which modern authors have claimed 
 the honour of representing the famed unicorn. For example, Pliny 
 mentions " Indian oxen with undivided hoofs and a single horn " (Nat. 
 Hist. viii. 21). Aristotle speaks of "a few solid-hoofed animals with 
 one horn, such as the Indian ass and the oryx " (H. A. ii. 2).
 
 200 niBLIOAL NATURAL SCIENCE, 
 
 Tlie literature which has gathered around the question, " What was 
 tlie unicorn?" would fill several large volumes. I know above twenty 
 monographs on the subject. These may be summed up thus : — 
 
 UNICORN = 
 
 r Fabulous animal, used as an emblem (Ps. xxii. 21). 
 I The Oryx {Oryx Leucoryx, Plate V., Fig. 3). 
 
 The Rhinoceros (Plate XXVI., Fig. 2). 
 
 The Bufl'alo (see under Ps. xxii. 21). 
 
 Bochart pleads for the oryx, Bruce for the rhinoceros, and the 
 majority of modern interpreters for the buffalo. The word is derived 
 from a root which signifies height. It seems to have been applied to 
 an animal specially suggestive of majesty. An examination of the 
 passages in which the reeni is named, seems to me to warrant the 
 inference, that in the Pentateuch and in Job the rhinoceros is pointed 
 to, while in the later writers, David and Isaiah, the buffalo is the 
 animal alluded to. 
 
 In the words under notice the figure is peculiarly suitable. Of the 
 horns of the unicorn it is said, " They are the ten thousands of Ephraim, 
 and they are the thousands of Manasseh." The former is compared to 
 the large horn on the frontal bone, the latter to the smaller one behind. 
 Moses' sojourn in Egypt must have made him acquainted both with the 
 one-horned species, and with the African two-horned species. Bruce 
 (Trav. V.) says: — "The rhinoceros is called in Geez, arw6 han'sh, and 
 in the Amharic, aiiraris, both which names signify the large wild beast 
 with the horn. This would seem as if applied to the species that had 
 but one horn. On the other hand, in the country of the Shangalla, 
 and in Nubia adjoining, he is called girnamgirn, or horn upon horn ; 
 and this would seem to denote that he had two. The Ethiopic text 
 renders the word rviim, arice han'sh ; and this the Septuagint translates, 
 monoceros, or unicorn. If the Abyssinian rhinoceros had invariably 
 two horns, it seems to me improbable that the Septuagint would call 
 him monoceros; especially as they must have seen an animal of this 
 kind exposed at Alexandria in their time, when first mentioned in 
 history, at an exhibition given to Ptolemy Philadelphus at his acces- 
 sion to the crown, before the death of his father." 
 
 There are several allusions in Job's reference to the recm, which do 
 not suit the builalo : — 
 
 " Will the reem submit to serve thee ? 
 Will he, indeed, abide at thy crib ? 
 
 Canst thou make his harness bind the reem to the furrow ? 
 Will be, forsooth, plough up the valleys for thee ?
 
 DEUTERONOMY XXIX.-XXXIV. 
 
 201 
 
 Wilt thou rely on him for his great strength, 
 
 And commit thy liibour unto him ? 
 
 Wilt thou trust him that ho may briug home thy grain, 
 
 And gather in thy harvest ? " 
 
 But in Psalm xxii., the whole imagery points to one of the ox family 
 {Bovidce). So in Isaiah — " Tlie unicorns shall come down with them, 
 and the bullocks with the bulls ; and their land shall be soaked with 
 blood, and their dust made fat with fatness. For it is the day of the 
 Lord's vengeance" (xxxiv. 7). 
 
 The following extracts will show whence we have derived the 
 heraldic figure of the unicorn: — "The Onoi Agrioi are as large as 
 horses, and even larger, with white bodies, red heads, blue eyes, and 
 have each on their foreheads a horn a cubit and a half long, the base 
 of which is white, the upper part red, the middle part black. Drinking- 
 cups are formed of these horns ; and those who drink out of them are 
 said to be subject neither to spasm nor epilepsy, nor to the effects of 
 poison. Other asses have no astragalus ; but these have one, as well 
 as a gall-bladder. The astragalus I have seen myself; it is beautifully 
 formed, in shape like that of an ox, and very heavy and red through- 
 out. The animal is so swift that no horse can overtake it, and so 
 strong and fierce that it is with difficulty destroyed by arrows and 
 javelins. It begins its running slowly, but gradually increases its 
 speed. It shows great attachment to its young, which it defends 
 against its pursuers, fighting with horn, teeth, and heels. The flesh is 
 so bitter that it is not eaten ; but men set a high value on the horns 
 and astragali." — {Ctest'as, B.C. 400.) "The Orssean Indians hunt a 
 very fierce animal, called the monoceros, which has the body of a horse, 
 the head of a stag, the feet of an elephant, and the tail of a wild boar ; 
 it utters a deep lowing noise, and has a single horn, two cubits long, 
 projecting from the middle of its forehead. They say this animal 
 cannot be taken alive." — {Pliny, a.d. 70.) " The monoceros is as big 
 as a full-grown horse, with a mane and yellow woolly hair, of greatest 
 swiftness, with feet like the elephant, and the tail of a wild boar. It 
 has a black horn growing between the eyebrows, which is not smooth, 
 but with natural twistings, and is very sharp at the point. It utters 
 loud harsh sounds. It lives peaceably with other animals, but quarrels 
 with those of its own kind — the males even destroying the females, 
 excepting at breeding-time, at which season the animals are gregarious ; 
 but at other times they live in solitude in wild regions." — {JElian, 
 A.D. 130.) 
 
 VOL. II. 2 c
 
 202 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 ZEBULUN AND ISSACHAR. 
 
 OENESIS. DEUTERONOMY. 
 
 "Zebulun shall dwell at the haven of "And of Zebulun he said, Rejoice, Zebu- 
 
 thesea; and he shall be for an haven of lun, in thy going out; and, Issachar, in 
 
 ships : and his border shall be unto Zidon. thy tents. They shall call the people unto 
 
 Issachar is a strong ass couching down the mountain; there they shall offer sacri- 
 
 between two burdens : and he saw that rest fices of righteousness: for they shall suck 
 
 was good, and the land that it was plea- of the abundance of the seas, and of trca- 
 
 sant ; and bowed his shoulder to boar, and surus hid in the sand." 
 became a servant to tribute." 
 
 Zebulun is named before his elder brother Issachar, and both are 
 closely linked together both in the blessing of Jacob and of Moses. 
 The former became specially noted for maritime enterprise, his western 
 border being the shores of the Mediterranean — the sea of whose "abun- 
 dance he was to suck." The treasures hid in the sand may have 
 been the mollusc {Murex) from which the costly purple dye was 
 obtained. Zebulun's boundary on the east was the sea of Tiberias. 
 Issachar's territory was bounded on the north by Zebulun and Asher, 
 on the south by Manasseh, on the east by the Jordan, and on the west 
 by part of Manasseh. Some of the choicest parts of the rich plain of 
 Esdraelon thus fell to Zebulun and Issachar. " Every traveller," says 
 Dr. Stanley, " has remarked on the richness of its soil and the exuber- 
 ance of its crops. Once more the palm appears, waving its stately 
 tresses over the village inclosures. These inclosures are divided, each 
 from each, by masses of wild artichoke. The very weeds are a sign of 
 what in better hands the vast plain might become. The thoroughfare 
 which it forms for every passage, from east to west, from north to 
 south, made it in peaceful times the most available and eligible posses- 
 sion of Palestine. It was the frontier of Zebulun — ' Rejoice, Zebu- 
 lun, in thy goings out.' But it was the special portion of Issachar ; 
 and in its condition, thus exposed to the good and evil fate of the beaten 
 highway of Palestine, we read the fortunes of the tribe which, for the 
 sake of this possession, consented to sink into the half-nomadic state of 
 the Bedouins who wandered over it — into the condition of tributaries to 
 the Canaanite tribes, whose iron chariots drove victoriously through it. 
 Rejoice, Issachar, in thy tents they shall suck of the abun- 
 dance of the seas [from Acre], and of the [glassy] treasures hid in the 
 
 sands [of the torrent Belus] Issachar is a strong ass, couching 
 
 down between two ' troughs : ' and he saw that rest was good, and the 
 land that it was pleasant ; and bowed his shoulder to bear, and became 
 a servant unto tribute. In the gathering of the northern tribes against
 
 DEUTERONOMY XXIX.-XXXIV. 203 
 
 Siscra and the Midianites, the name of Issachar is omitted ; and 
 although in the former crisis they were not wholly absent, yet it was 
 only ' the chiefs of Issachar ' who ' were with Deborah.' But still they 
 were looked up to — perhaps on account of this very choice of land — as 
 ' men that had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought 
 to do ; ' and they, with the neighbouring tribes, were foremost in sending 
 to David, on his accession, all the good things that their soil produced, 
 ' bread, and meat, and meal, cakes of figs, bunches of raisins, and wine, 
 and oil, on asses, and on camels, and on mules, and on oxen,' .... for 
 there was joy in Israel." 
 
 DAX, NAPHTALI, ASHER, AXD GAD. 
 
 GENESIS. DEUTEROXOMT. 
 
 " Dan shall judge his people, as one of " And of Dan he said, Dan is a lion's 
 the tribes of Israel. Dan shall be a serpent whelp : he shall leap from Bashan. And 
 by the way, an adder in the path, that of Naphtali he said, Naphtali, satisfied 
 biteth the horse heels, so that his rider shall with favour, and full with the blessing of 
 fall backward. I have waited for thy salva- the Lord ; possess thou the west and the 
 tion, O Lord. Gad, a troop shall overcome south. And of Asher he said. Let Asher 
 him: but he shall overcome at the last, be blessed with children; let him be accept- 
 Out of Asher his bread shall be fat, and he able to his brethren, and let him dip his 
 shall yield royal dainties. Naphtali is a foot in oil. Thy shoes shall be iron and 
 hind let loose: he giveth goodly words." brass; and as thy days, so shall thy strength 
 
 be. And of Gad he said, Blessed be he 
 that enlargeth Gad : he dwelleth as a lion, 
 and teareth the arm with the cro^vn of the 
 head. And he provided the first part for 
 himself, because there, in a portion of the 
 lawgiver, was he seated ; and he came with 
 the heads of the people, he executed the 
 justice of the Lord, and his judgments with 
 Israel." 
 
 The subjugation of Laish (Judg. xviii.) and the exploits of Samson 
 (Judg. xiv.-xvi.) may be regarded as the historical illustrations of the 
 words of Jacob and Moses touching the tribe of Dan. Naphtali's 
 portion is illustrated by the goodly words and the heroic deeds of 
 Barak (Judg, iv., v. 1), and by the richness of the territory assigned to 
 him. He was " satisfied with favour, and full with the blessing of the 
 Lord." Asher's lot lay in the north-west of Palestine, bounded on the 
 east by Naphtali, south by Zebulun, west by the Mediterranean, and 
 north by the outliers of Lebanon. " His strength was as his days." 
 The mountain ridges of his northern boundary demanded, that in 
 climbing them, his shoes should be shod with iron and with brass.
 
 204 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Wheat, the vine, and the olive, grew luxuriantly in his vallej's, or on 
 his sunny mountain slopes. He " yielded royal dainties, he dipped his 
 feet in oil." The attitude of the Ammonites to Gad, and the victories 
 of Jcphthah (Judg. x., xi.), shed historical light on the utterances of 
 the patriarch and of the lawgiver concerning this tribe. In Jephthah, 
 especially, the highly figurative expression " tearing the arm with the 
 crown of the head" is vividly illustrated. His skill in planning, and 
 his dauntless bravery in carrying out the expedition against the 
 Ammonites, broke that arm of strength which had been powerful 
 against the Gadites, who dwelt in Gilead. Jericho is distinguished 
 here as " the city of palm-trees" (xxxiv. 3). The date palm {Phoenix 
 dactijlifera) is the species referred to — see under Judg. i. IG ; Exod. 
 XV. 27 ; Rev. vii. 9. Though frequently mentioned in Scripture, there 
 is no proof that the palm was ever abundant in Palestine. " Another 
 tree," says Stanley, " which breaks the uniformity of the Syrian land- 
 scape by the rarity of its occurrence, no less tlian by its beauty, is the 
 palm. It is a curious fact that this stately tree, so intimately connected 
 with our associations of Judaea by the Roman coins, which represent 
 her seated in captivity under its shade, is now almost unknown to her 
 hills and valleys. Two or three in the gardens of Jerusalem, some 
 few perhaps at Nablus, one or two in the plain of Esdraelon, comprise 
 nearly all the instances of the palm in central Palestine. In former 
 times it was doubtless more common. In the valley of the Jordan, one 
 of the most striking features used to be the immense palm-grove, seven 
 miles long, which suiTouuded Jericho ; of which large remains were 
 still visible in the seventh century and the twelfth, some even in the 
 seventeenth. Engedi, too, on the western side of the same lake, was 
 known in early times as Hazazon-Tamar- — ' the felling of palm-trees.' 
 Relics of its grove are still to be seen in the trunks of palms washed 
 up on the shores of the Dead Sea, preserved by the salt with which a 
 long submersion in those strange waters has impregnated them. Now, 
 not one is to be seen in the deep thicket which surrounds its spring, 
 and at Jericho, even the solitary palm, for many years observed by 
 travellers as the only remnant of its former glory, has disappeared. On 
 Olivet, too, where now nothing is to be seen but the olive and the 
 fig tree, there must have been at least some palms in ancient days. In 
 the time of Ezra they went forth ' unto the mount ' to fetch for the 
 feast of tabernacles ' olive-branches, and pine-branches, and myrtle- 
 branches, and palm-branches, and branches of thick trees.' Bethany, 
 ' the house of dates,' in all probability derives its name from the same
 
 DEUTERONOMY XXIX.-XXXIV. 205 
 
 cause, and with this agrees the fact that the crowd which escorted our 
 Lord to Jerusalem from Bethany 'took branches of palm-trees.' Still, 
 it is probable that even then the palm was rarely found on the high 
 land which forms the main portion of historical Palestine. It is 
 emphatically the 'tree' of the desert. It is always spoken of in 
 Rabbinical writers as a tree of the valleys, not of the mountains. It 
 grows naturally, and were it cultivated, might doubtless grow again in 
 the tropical climate of the Valley of the Jordan. It is still found in 
 great abundance in the maritime plains of Philistia and Phoenicia, or 
 the ' land of palms.' But the climate of the hill country must always 
 have been too cold for their frequent growth. Those on Olivet most 
 likely were in gardens; the very fact of the name of the ' City of palm- 
 trees applied as a distinguishing epithet to Jericho ; the allusion to the 
 palm-tree of En-gedi, as though found there and not elsewhere ; the 
 mention of the palm-tree of Deborah at Bethel, as a well known and 
 solitary landmark — probably the same spot as that called Baal-Tamar, 
 ' the sanctuary of the palm' — all indicate on the whole that the palm 
 was then, as now, the exception, and not the rule."
 
 206 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 JOSHUA. 
 
 HE "book of Joshua" consists of tliree parts: — 1st. Tlie 
 conquest of Canaan, cliapters i.-xii. This contains an 
 account of Joshua's exhortations to the people after the 
 death of Moses (i.); the mission of the spies to Jericho (ii.); 
 the passage of tlie Jordan (iii., iv.) ; the general circum- 
 cision (v.) ; the capture of Jericlio (vi.) ; and a detailed narra- 
 tive of tlie victories over the Canaanitish tribes (vii.-xii). 
 2nd. The partition of Canaan, chapters xiii.-xxii. In this part 
 of the book accounts are given of the territories assigned to the 
 different tribes, the appointment of the Cities of Refuge, and the gift 
 of certain cities to the Levites. 3rd. The farewell address of Joshua, 
 his death and burial, chapters xxiii. and xxiv. 
 
 Joshua sent the spies from Shittim (ii. 1). In Numbers xxvi. a 
 place of the same name is mentioned, and in xxxiii. 49 we meet with a 
 station in the plains of Moab called Abel-Shittim, or the Meadow of the 
 Acacia-trees. The locality whence the spies were despatched lay in a 
 wide plain at the base of the mountains of Abarim. Their visit to 
 Jericho leads to special mention of stalks of flax. 
 
 The flax plant {Liiiiim usitatissimum, Heb. pishfah) has been noticed 
 under Exod ix. 31. The word used here {'pishteli) is associated with 
 the boll, or stalk of the plant. In some other passages it indicates the 
 fabric manufactured from the raw material. In Leviticus xiii. it occurs 
 thus four times — " linen garment," " linen warp or woof" So like- 
 wise in Deuteronomy xx. 2 — " linen garment." Jeremiah speaks of " a 
 linen girdle" (xiii. 1), and Ezekiel of "linen bonnets and linen breeches" 
 (xliv. 17, 18). It is also employed to designate the flax prepared as 
 lint and as threads, but still unwoven — " The virtuous woman seeketh 
 wool and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands " (Prov. xxxi. 13). 
 In the " burden of Egypt " the prophet mentions, among other calami- 
 ties that were to come on the land of the Pharaohs, the destruction of 
 her linen manufactories : " Moreover, they that work in fine flax, and 
 they that weave net-works, shall be confounded " (Isa. xix. 9). Israel 
 drew supplies of flax from Egypt, and in the time of apostasy from 
 God longed for the help of those who ministered to the luxurious habits
 
 JOSHUA. 
 
 207 
 
 of the people — " I will go after my lovers, that give me my bread and 
 my water, ray wool aud my flax, mine oil and my drink " (Hos. ii. 5). 
 
 When the spies reached Jericho they went to lodge in the house of 
 Rahab, being as strangers directed thither by those who had met them 
 at the gates. The news of their arrival was carried to the king, who 
 sent a command to Rahab to bring them forth. But the woman had 
 discovered the importance of securing their friendsliip, and hastened to 
 hide them in a place of safety : " She brought them up to the roof of 
 her house, and hid them with the stalks of flax (pi'sMeh), which she had 
 laid in order upon the roof" (ver. 6). The flax on the roof of Rahab's 
 house was thus in its second stage of preparation for being worked into 
 linen fabrics. After having been pulled and separated from the seed, 
 it is steeped until the fibres readily separate from the hard straw bark. 
 It is afterwards broken or scutched, and after being hackled it is fit for 
 being spun into thread. That the Egyptians were well acquainted with 
 all the steps of this process, is seen from ancient representations still 
 pictured iu some of the tombs of Egypt. The paintings on the grotto 
 el-Kab show the various steps with great distinctness. 
 
 Hid beneath the stalks of flax the spies were safe. Their pursuers 
 took their way to the fords of Jordan with the view of intercepting 
 them. After having told the spies of the great terror which had fallen 
 upon the land, and having stated that she believed that the Lord was 
 about to give the whole land to Israel, Rahab bargained with them to 
 remember her and her father's house in the day of Jericho's doom. 
 They give their solemn promise as she desired ; and that they might be 
 reminded of this at the proper time, " the men said unto her. We will 
 be blameless of this thine oath which thou hast made us swear: behold, 
 when we come into the land, thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread 
 in the window which thou didst let us down by : and thou shalt bring 
 thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy father's 
 household, home unto thee " (ver. 17, 18). 
 
 " Scarlet thread," Heb. sJumi, has here, as in some other passages, 
 reference rather to the material which has been dyed than to the dye 
 itself. The colour is usually referred to as scarlet, literally scarlet 
 worms (tolaaih shdni). See under Exod. xxv. 4 for the nature of this 
 colour. The word is used as it is here other seven times. The thread 
 with which the midwife bound the hand of the infant Zarah was a 
 " scarlet thread" {shard j. The symbol of Rahab's faith is, at verse 21 
 of this chapter, called a " scarlet line." In David's pathetic lament 
 over Saul, he says — " Ye daughters of Israel, weep over Saul wiio
 
 208 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 clothed you in scarlet." Tlie household of the prudent woman are 
 " clothed in scarlet " (Prov. xxxi. 21). So also Song iv. 3, and Isa. i. 18, 
 in which passages the colour itself is specially referred to without 
 allusion to its source. In Jeremiah iv. 30, shdni is rendered crimson — 
 " Though thou clothest thyself with crimson." 
 
 After the capture of Jericho (vi.), Joshua led the people up against 
 Ai. Achan's sin had made the hosts of Israel weak, and the three 
 thousand sent by their captain " to smite Ai " were ingloriously put to 
 flight. The shame which followed the defeat, the search for the trans- 
 gressor, his awful doom, and the second attack of Ai, are narrated in 
 chapters vii. and viii. These things had struck the Canaanitish nations 
 with great astonishment and alarm, and they resolved to band them- 
 selves together in order to deal a decided blow on the intruders — " It 
 came to pass, when all the kings which were on this side Jordan, in the 
 hills, and in the valleys, and in all the coasts of the great sea over 
 against Lebanon, the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, the 
 Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, heard thereof, that they gathered 
 themselves together, to fight with Joshua and with Israel, with one 
 accord " (ix. 1, 2). The Gibeonites, part of a Hivite tribe, said that 
 resistance was vain, and laid plans to entrap Joshua into an alliance 
 with them — " They did work wilily, and went and made as if they had 
 been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their asses, and wine-bottles, 
 old, and rent, and bound up ; and old shoes and clouted upon their 
 feet, and old garments upon them ; and all the bread of their provision 
 was dry and mouldy. And they went to Joshua unto the camp at 
 Gilgal, and said unto him, and to the men of Israel, We be come from 
 a far country; now therefore make ye a league with us" (ver. 4-6). 
 Their success irritated Adoni-zedek and the kings confederate with 
 hini. " Come up unto me," said he, " and help me, that we may smite 
 Gibcon " (x. 4). " And the men of Gibeon sent unto Joshua to the 
 camp to Gilgal, saying. Slack not thy hand from thy servants; come up 
 to us quickly, and save us, and help us : for all the kings of the Amor- 
 ites, that dwell in the mountains, are gathered together against us" 
 (ver. 6). This incident led to the grand manifestations of the 
 sovereignty and power of God narrated in this chapter. " Not a 
 moment was to be lost. As in the battle of ilarathon, every thing 
 depended on the suddenness of the blow which should break in pieces 
 the hostile confederation. On the former occasion of Joshua's visit to 
 Gibeon, it had been a three day's journey from Gilgal, as according to 
 the slow pace of eastern armies and caravans it might well be. But
 
 JOSHUA. 209 
 
 now by a forced march ' Joshua came unto them suddenly, and went 
 up from Gilgal all night.' When the sun rose behind him, he was 
 already in the open ground at the foot of the heights of Gibeon, where 
 the kings were encamped. As often before and after, so now, ' not a 
 man could stand before ' the awe and the panic of the sudden sound of 
 that terrible shout, the sudden appearance of that undaunted host, who 
 came with the assurance ' not to fear, nor to be dismayed, but to be 
 strong: and of a orood courage : for the Lord had delivered their enemies 
 into their hands.' The Cauaanites fled down the western pass, and 
 ' the Lord discomfited them before Israel, and slew them with a great 
 slaughter at Gibeon, and chased them along the way that goeth up to 
 Beth-horon.' This was the first stage of the flight— in the long ascent 
 which has been indicated from Gibeon towards Beth-horon the Upper. 
 ' And it came to pass as they fled from before Israel, and were in the 
 going down of Beth-horon that the Lord cast great stones from heaven 
 upon them unto Azekah.' This was the second stage of the flight. 
 The fugitives had outstripped the pursuers ; they had crossed the high 
 ridge of Beth-horon the Upper ; they were in full flight down the 
 descent to Beth-horon the Nether ; when, as afterwards in the fight of 
 Barak against Sisera, one of the fearful tempests which from time to 
 time sweep over the hills of Palestine, burst upon the disordered army, 
 and they were more which died with hailstones than they whom the 
 children of Israel slew with the sword.' 
 
 " It is at this point that the Book of Jasher presents us with that 
 sublime picture, which, however variously it always has been, and 
 perhaps always will be interpreted, we may here take as we find it there 
 expressed. On the summit of the pass where is now the hamlet of the 
 Upper Beth-horon, looking far down the deep descent of all the west- 
 ward valleys, with the broad green vale of Ajalon unfolding in the 
 distance into the open plain, with the yet wider expanse of the Medi- 
 terranean Sea beyond, stood the Israelite chief. Below him was 
 rushing down in wild confusion the Amorite host. Around him were 
 ' all his people of war, and all his mighty men of valour.' Behind him 
 were the hills which hid Gibeon — the now rescued Gibeon — from his 
 sight. But the sun stood high above those hills — ' in the midst of 
 heaven ;' for the day had now far advanced since he bad emerged from 
 his night-march through the passes of Ai ; and in front, over the western 
 vale of Ajalon, was the faint figure of the crescent moon visible above 
 the hailstorm, which was fast driving up from the sea in the valleys 
 below. Was the enemy to escape in safety, or was the speed with 
 
 VOL. II. ' 2d
 
 210 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 which Joshua had ' come quickly and saved and helped ' his defenceless 
 ■ allies, to be still rewarded before the close of that day by a signal and 
 decisive victory? 
 
 "Doubtless with outstretched hand and spear, 'the hand that he drew 
 not back, when he stretched out the spear, until he had utterly destroyed 
 the inhabitants of Ai,' ' then spake Joshua to the Lord in the day when 
 the Lord delivered the Amorites before the children of Israel, and he 
 said in the siirht of Israel — 
 
 'o' 
 
 Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon ; 
 And tLou, Moon, in tbe valley of Ajalon. 
 
 And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the people had 
 avenged themselves upon their enemies.'" — {Stanley.) 
 
 Any attempt to explain the mode in which these miraculous results 
 were brought about, or to penetrate the mysteries distinctly implied in 
 them, would be vain and fruitless. The hailstones might be traced to one 
 of those concurrences of natural phenomena with events in providence, 
 which, as in the destruction of the Spanish Armada (1588) for example, 
 are regarded by the majority of men as happy accidents. But the 
 arrestment of time implied in the apparent stoppage of the sun over 
 Gibeon and the staying of the crescent moon over the western vale of 
 Ajalon, are removed far away from every thing like a satisfactory 
 explanation, on the ground of any mere natural laws with which we are 
 acquainted. The events were purely miraculous, and the biblical 
 student is not called upon to try and explain them, or to strip them of 
 as much of the miraculous element as possible. The whole revelation 
 of God proceeds on the recognition of God's own presence with his 
 people, as one " mighty in working," and Avhose " footsteps are not 
 known." As regards the language used by Joshua, it is just such as 
 still would be employed, even with all the light shed around us by 
 physical science. It is true that it was not the sun that " stayed still," 
 but the earth which revolves around it. Joshua used the popular 
 language of his time, yea, of all time. For even at this day learned 
 and unlearned are in the habit of speaking of the sun's path in the 
 heavens, of his going from east to west, &c. It is thus very absurd for 
 any one to point to these words, as proof of the great ignorance of the 
 intrepid captain of the armies of Israel. 
 
 After this complete discomfiture, the five kings fled and " hid them- 
 selves in a cave at Makkedah " (ver. 16, 17). Most of the hills in the 
 neighbourhood are pierced by caves. In some places the caverns occur
 
 JOSHUA. 
 
 211 
 
 in clusters, in others one is met with isolated from the rest. " These 
 apartments," says Dr. Robinson, " are mostly in clusters, three or four 
 together, communicating with each other. Around one pit towards the 
 south-west we found sixteen such apartments thus connected, forming 
 a sort of labyrinth. Tliey are all hewn very regularly; but many are 
 partly broken down ; and it is not impossible that the pits themselves 
 may have been caused by the falling in of similar domes. Some of the 
 apartments are ornamented, either near the bottom or high up, or both, 
 with rows of small holes or niches, like pigeon-holes, extending quite 
 around the wall. In the largest cluster, in the innermost dome, a 
 rough block of the limestone has been left standing on one side, ten or 
 twelve feet high, as if a rude pulpit or a pedestal for a statue." Do 
 these caves point back to a time when the whole region in which they 
 occur was inhabited by Hon'tes, or cave-dwellers? and was Idumaea the 
 last locality in which they held a place? 
 
 In the reference made (xiii. 3) to the limits of the land which still, 
 when Joshua "was old and stricken in years," remained to be possessed, 
 " Sihor, which is before Egypt," is specially named. "Sihor" is 
 noticed under 1 Chron. xiii. 5. 
 
 The interview between Joshua and Caleb (xiv. 13) resulted in the 
 gift to the latter of one of the most noted cities in the land — " Joshua 
 blessed him, and gave unto Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, Hebron for an 
 inheritance. Hebron therefore became the inheritance of Caleb the 
 son of Jephunneh the Kenezite unto this day, because that he wholly 
 followed the Lord God of Israel." " Hebron" — see under 2 Sam. ii. 1. 
 But this gift is to be looked at in the light of the arrangements touching 
 the Levitical cities : — " And they gave, out of the tribe of the children 
 of Judah, and out of the tribe of the children of Simeon, these cities 
 which are here mentioned by name, which the children of Aaron, being 
 of the families of the Kohathitcs, who were of the children of Levi, 
 had : for theirs was the first lot. And they gave them the city of 
 Arba, the father of Anak (which city is Hebron), in the hill country of 
 Judah, with the suburbs thereof round about it. But the fields of the 
 city, and the villages thereof, gave they to Caleb the son of Jephunneh 
 for his possession" (xxi. 9-12). 
 
 Many of the places mentioned in chapter xv. continue still under 
 slightly altered names. If verses G, 33, 34, 35, 43, 44, and 57, be 
 looked at, the following notes of a recent traveller in Palestine will 
 indicate how many efforts are being made by the students of topography 
 to shed light on the sites of noted places : — " There is a whole nest of
 
 212 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 sacred sites scattered arouud this important centre. On the east we 
 have Beit Nusib — Nezib ; and further over the hills to the north-east 
 Jeb'a — the Gibeah of Judali ; and north, a little east, we find Shochoh 
 in Shuvviekeh ; and beyond it Jarmuth in Yarinuk. 'Ain Shemsh is 
 Beth-shemesh ; and north-west of this, Tibneh is the Timnath of Sam- 
 son's wife. North-east of this is Zorah, the city of his father; and 
 south-east of that is Zanuah. The wady in which Zorah lies is called 
 Wady es Sumpt, and this is probably the battle-field of David and 
 Goliath of Gath. Dr. Robinson thinks that Gath may have been at or 
 near Deir Dubban, where are very remarkable excavations and other 
 indications of an ancient city. It appears to me that Bethogabra — 
 Eleutheropolis — Beit Jibrin, and Gath are all one and the same city. 
 Khurbet Get — ruins of Gath — is the name now applied to one of the 
 heaps of rubbish a short distance westward from the castle of Beit 
 Jibrin. The Hebrew word Bethogabra and the Arabic Beit Jibrin may 
 be rendered lionse of giants — which reminds us of Goliath of Gath and 
 his family. And further, I think that the Mareshah of Joshua xv. 44, 
 which was rebuilt by Rehoboam, and is repeatedly mentioned in con- 
 nection with Gath, was a suburb of this great capital of the Philistines. 
 Benjamin of Tudela makes Mareshah and Beit Jibrin identical, and 
 Jerome places them so near each other that they may be regarded as 
 one and the same place. Micah probably wrote ' Moresheth-gath ' in 
 order to fix the location of the suburb by the name of the main city. 
 All these identifications lend additional interest to this vicinity. Not 
 only did Goliath and his family of giants reside here, but in this beau- 
 tiful valley King Asa achieved that grand victory over Zerah the 
 Ethiopian, with his host of ' a thousand thousand, and three hundred 
 chariots ;' for the battle was at Mareshah, in the valley of Zephathah."
 
 Ml 
 
 i.'_ 
 
 i* 
 
 
 
 II 
 
 
 3
 
 JUIjGES. 
 
 213 
 
 JUDGES. 
 
 'HE period embraced in this book is about three hundred 
 years. It may be divided into two parts — 1st. cliapters 
 i.-xvi.; 2nd. chapters xvii.-xxi. Its design is to illustrate 
 God's hatred of the sins of his professing people, and his 
 *• readiness to deliver them whenever they cried to him. 
 The judges named are fifteen in number, Othniel, Ehud, 
 Shamgar, Barak assisted by Deborah, Gideon, Abimelech, 
 Tola, Jair, Jephthah, Ibzan, Elon, Abdon, Samson, Eli, Samuel. 
 Among the localities which the Lord showed Moses from the top 
 of Pisgah, mention is made of " the plain of the valley of Jericho, the 
 city of palm-trees" (Deut. xxxiv. 3). This is the city to which refer- 
 ence is made in chapter i. IG— "And the children of the Kenite, Moses' 
 father-in-law, went up out of the city of palm-trees with the children 
 of Judah into the wilderness of Judah, which lieth in the south of Arad ; 
 and they went and dwelt among the people." It is also named in 
 chapter iii. 13, as having been captured by Eglon, king of Moab — 
 " And he gathered unto him the children of Amraon and Amalek, and 
 went and smote Israel, and possessed the city of palm-trees." It 
 appears from such notices that palm-trees were abundant in the neigh- 
 bourhood of Jericho. The tree was the date palm [Phcenix dactijlifera), 
 highly prized for its fruit, its leaves, wood, and sap. See under Exod. 
 XV. 27 ; Ps. xcii. 12 ; John xii. 13 ; and Rev. vii. 9. The association 
 of the date palm with Jericho in this marked and special manner, 
 indicates that it was not very plentiful in other parts of Palestine. 
 Josephus speaks of Pompey having " pitched his tent at Jericho where 
 the palm-tree grows," an expression which shows that in his day, as in 
 ancient times, the city was still celebrated for its dates. — (Antiq. xiv. 4. 
 § 1.) Strabo (1. xvi.) describes it as "abounding with date-trees" 
 (pleonazon to jyJioi'niki) ; and Pliny, as planted around with them (1. v.) 
 When Shaw visited Jericho he found the palm still growing there. 
 " There are," he says, " several of them at Jericho where there is the 
 convenience they require of being often watered ; where likewise the 
 climate is warm, and the soil sandy, or such as they thrive and delight 
 in" (vol. ii. 151). In May, 1838, Dr. Robinson writes:— "One single
 
 214 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 solitary palm now timidly rears its head where once stood the renowned 
 'city of palm-trees.'" (B. Res., vol. i., p. 552.) 
 
 " Achzib " (ver. 31) is noticed under Gen. xxxviii. 5 — which see. 
 "Mesopotamia" or the region between the rivers, namely, the Euphrates 
 and the Tigris (iii. 8). It was also known as Aram-Naharaira, or Syria 
 of the two rivers, and part of it as Padan-Aram, or the Plain of Syria. 
 It is the el-Jczirah, or Island, of the modern Arabs. It consists for 
 most part of low, level, treeless plains, affording, however, luxuriant 
 pasturage, in many places, to the flocks and herds of the Arabs. 
 Scattered over it are immense mounds, the graves of its ancient, great, 
 and magnificent cities. Chushan-rishathaim ruled over " Syria of the 
 Two Piivers," when the generation who succeeded Joshua had turned 
 aside to the service of " Baalim and of the groves." This king became 
 the scourge in the divine hand. In their affliction they cried unto the 
 Lord, and he " raised up a deliverer, even Othniel the son of Kenaz, 
 Caleb's younger brother" (ver. 9). 
 
 After the death of Ehud Israel appears to have flillcn into great 
 national sin, and "the Lord sold them into the hand of Jabin king of 
 Canaan, that reigned in Hazor," the chief city of the north of Palestine. 
 Hazor had been assigned to Naphtali (Josh. xix. 36), but the Canaanites 
 still held possession. They were thus at hand, to become instruments 
 in afflicting the chosen people when they turned aside from serving the 
 Lord. Greatly oppressed by the captain of Jabin's host, Sisera, " the 
 children of Israel cried unto the Lord." In answer lie raised up Deborah, 
 " the great dame of Lapidoth," and sent her with his message to Barak 
 the son of Abinoam, summoning him to lead the oppressed northern 
 tribes against their foes. " And Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of 
 Lapidoth, she judged Israel at that time. And she dwelt under the 
 palra-tree of Deborah, between Ramah and Beth-el in Mount Ephraim : 
 and the children of Israel came up to her for judgment. And she sent 
 and called Barak the son of Abinoam out of Kedesh-naphtali, and said 
 unto him, Hath not the Lord God of Israel commanded, saying. Go 
 and draw toward Mount Tabor, and take with thee ten thousand men 
 of the children of Naphtali, and of the children of Zebulun ; and I will 
 draw unto thee, to the river Kislion, Sisera, the captain of Jabin's 
 army, with his chariots, and his multitude ; and I will deliver him into 
 thine hand '■' (iv. 4-7). The tent of the prophetess was pitched under 
 the palm-tree between Ramah and Bethel. From her it took its name 
 Tomer-Dchorali — the Palm-tree of Deborah. 
 
 The date palm may have been at one time a little more abundant in
 
 JUDGES. 
 
 215 
 
 Palestine than it seems to have been at the period when Deborah 
 "judged Israel." Throughout the time of Israel's occupation of 
 the land, there is no proof of its having been much cultivated. Certain 
 spots, however, were noted for them. Engedi was anciently known 
 as Hazazon-taniar — " the felling of palm-trees " Gen. xv. 7 ; 2 Chron. 
 XX. 2), This name was most likely given in time of war, when it 
 was the custom to destroy the palm-trees in the invaded territories, 
 or to render them unfit for bearing fruit for many years. Jericho, as 
 we have seen, was specially noted for its palms (chap. i. 16). The 
 tree under which Deborah sat prophesying victory to Israel, and 
 urging the warriors to " go up to the help of the Lord against the 
 
 rig. 74. 
 
 mighty," was to become in after times the symbol of a conquered 
 people, and of Israel's bondage to a foreign yoke. Vespasian struck 
 several coins commemorative of the triumphs of the Roman armies in 
 Palestine, on which the condition of the people is represented by a 
 disconsolate woman sitting under a palm-tree, while the coins bear the 
 legend Judea Capta. 
 
 " Tabor " (ver. 6) is named for the first time in Josh. xix. 22. It is 
 mentioned here as the rendezvous of Barak and the ten thousand men 
 of the children of Naphlali, and of the children of Zebulun. Later it 
 became noted in Hebrew poetry for its beauty. It is the modern Jebal 
 et Tu)\ lying in the highlands to the south-east of Nazareth. Thus
 
 21G BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Jeremiali's reference to it when speaking of tlie coining invasion of 
 Nebuchadnezzar — " Surely as Tabor is among the mountains, and as 
 Carmel is by the sea, so sliall he come " (xlvi. 18). " On one occasion 
 I went directly up from Deburieh with my aneroid, and found the 
 ascent from Esdraelon to be thirteen hundred and forty-five feet. I 
 had formerly made the base of the mountain about four hundred feet 
 higher than the Bay of Acre, and the entire elevation, therefore, is not 
 far from eisrhteeu hundred feet. The southern face of Tabor is lime- 
 stone rock, nearly naked ; but the northern is clothed to the top with a 
 forest of oak and terebinth, mingled with the beautiful mock-orange 
 (Syringa). The road (if road it may be called) winds up through them, 
 and, notwithstanding the experience of other travellers, I have always 
 found it difficult, and in certain parts actually dangerous. The mount 
 is entirely composed of cretaceous limestone, as are the hills west and 
 north of it ; but all to the east is volcanic. I have never seen a 
 picture of it that was perfectly satisfactory, although every artist who 
 comes in sight of it is sure to take a sketch. Their views differ widely, 
 owing mainly to the points whence they are taken. Seen from the 
 south or north. Tabor describes nearly an arc of a great circle ; from 
 the east it is a broad truncated cone, rounded off at the top ; from the 
 west it is wedge-shaped, rising to a moderate height above the neigh- 
 bouring hills. Its true figure is an elongated oval, the longitudinal 
 diameter running nearly east and west. The most impressive view, 
 perhaps, is from the plain between it and En-dor." — {Thomson) 
 
 After the victory over Sisera, Deborah and Barak sang the trium- 
 phant song in chapter v. The " horse hoofs " and the " mighty ones " 
 (ver. 22) are noticed under Ps. Ixviii. 30 — which see. 
 
 The notices of Jael and of the mother of Sisera in this sublime and 
 beautiful ode are peculiiirly picturesque : — 
 
 " Blessed above women 
 Shall Jael the -wife of Heber the Kenite be, 
 Blessed shall she be above women in the tent. 
 He asked water ; she gave milk ; 
 She brought forth butter in a lordly dish. 
 She put her hand to the nail, 
 And her right hand to the workman's hammer; 
 And with the hammer she smote Sisera, 
 She smote off his head, 
 
 When she had pierced and stricken through his temples. 
 At her feet he bowed, he fell, he lay down : 
 At her feet he bowed, he fell ;
 
 JUDGES. 
 
 217 
 
 Where he bowed, there he fell down dead. 
 
 The mother of Sisera looked out at a window, 
 
 And cried through the lattice, 
 
 Why is his chariot so long in coming ? 
 
 Why tarry the wheels of his chariots ? 
 
 Her wise maids answered her, 
 
 Yea, she returned the words to herself, 
 
 Have they not sped ? 
 
 Ilave they divided the prey ? 
 
 To every man a damsel or two ; 
 
 To Sisera a prey of divers colours, 
 
 A prey of divers colours of needlework, 
 
 Of divers colours of needlework on both sides. 
 
 For the necks of the takers of the spoU " (ver. 24-30). 
 
 Worn and weary, the captain of the Canaauitish host reached the 
 
 tent of Heber the Kenite. He asked for water, but Jael, Heber's wife, 
 
 gave him milk and butter. Not only would he be led to trust himself 
 
 implicitly to the care of the woman who thus showed such ready 
 
 hospitality, but the milk, lilialai\ and the butter, lihemdh, would be 
 
 more conducive to sleep than the water. Thus her opportunity. Dr. 
 
 Thomson, writing amidst scenes suggestive of this heroic incident, 
 
 says — " The ' nail ' which Jael used was a tent-pin, now, as then, called 
 
 loated; and the 'hammer' was the mallet with which it is driven into 
 
 the ground. It is not necessary to suppose that either of them was of 
 
 iron, as nail and hammer would imply. The wated was probably a 
 
 sharp-pointed pin of hard wood, and the hammer was the ordinary 
 
 mallet used by these tent-dwelling Arabs. There is a curious use of 
 
 the word nail in Isaiah xxii. 23, 25, which must also refer to those 
 
 wooden wateds, I suppose, for it is the same Hebrew word : ' I will 
 
 fasten him with a nail {jjutad) in a sure place ;' and again, in the 25th, 
 
 this yiifad, fiasteued in a sure place, shall be removed, and cut down, 
 
 and fall. It is not every place that will hold the tent ' nail ' securely ; 
 
 it must be driven into suitable ground. Doubtless a wooden pin or peg 
 
 is here meant, not an iron nail. It is, however, not a tent-pin, but a 
 
 peg driven into the icall, and used to hang clothes and household 
 
 utensils upon. There is significance in the statement that it should be 
 
 made fast in a sure "place, because, in general, these pins are driven into 
 
 the wall through the plaster, and are everything but steady and secure. 
 
 Not one in a score of them but what bend down, or get loose and fall 
 
 out. There is a reference to the same thing, and the same Hebrew 
 
 word, in Zech. x. 4 : ' Out of him came forth the corner, out of him the 
 
 nail — yutad.' And this, by the way, gives an intelligible idea to this 
 vuL. n. 2 E
 
 218 BIBLICAL NATUKAL SCIENCE. 
 
 expression of Zecliariali. The tent-pin is absolutely essential to the 
 stability and safety of tho Arab's habitation. Again : it is absurd to 
 suppose that Jael brought Sisera butter to drink. Neither the ancient 
 nor the modern Orientals make butter at all, as we understand the 
 word, and what takes the place of it is never used as a beverage. 
 Butter is the exponent of milk in the other member of the parallelism, 
 showing that sour milk, or leben^ was meant ; and this, properly pre- 
 pared, makes a most cooling and refreshing drink. Lastly : the entire 
 soliloquy of Sisera's mother is worked out with admirable skill and 
 truthfulness. When standing on the lofty tell of Harosheth, which 
 commands the view of the pass up the Kishon, and out into Esdraelon 
 toward Megiddo, I could fancy her ladyship sitting at a latticed window, 
 and impatiently looking up the wady. She knew that a battle was to 
 take place, was certain of victory, and longed not so much to see her 
 son as to grasp the spoils. Knowing that these lewd warriors would 
 chiefly value the fair damsels of the Hebrews, she mentions them first, 
 but does not appear to relish this sort of ' prey ' for her house, and 
 therefore does not give any to Sisera — most mothers can understand 
 and sympathize with her. But she feasted her imagination with the 
 goodly garment of divers colours which her son was to lay at her feet. 
 She looks at it again and again — turns it first over on this side, then 
 on that, to see and admire the ' divers colours.' This is eminently 
 Oriental and feminine ; and the childish repetition of ' divers colours ' 
 is all the more striking in an ode distinguished for rapid narrative, 
 abrupt exclamation, and the utmost conciseness of style and diction." 
 
 Shadows again crept over the national joy. Israel sinned against 
 God, " and the Lord delivered them into the hand of Midian seven 
 years." " Midianites, and Amalekites, and the Beni Kedem, or children 
 of the east, came up against them " (vi. 3). " They and their camels 
 were without numlier." 
 
 " Camel," Heb. gdmdl. The other names used in the Old Testament 
 for camel and dromedary are given under Gen. xxx. 43 — which see. 
 Tlie camel {Camelus dromedan'us = arabicus) belongs to the order 
 Buminanita, or cud-chewing animals. It gives its name to the genus 
 Camelus, under which several so called species are ranged, as C. dro- 
 medarius, and C. bactrianus. The former, or Arabian camel, has only 
 one hump on the back ; the latter, or Bactrian variety, has two. Both 
 have the cloven upper lip, long neck, and the toes conjoined underneath. 
 The camel used as a beast of burden, stands in the same relation to the 
 dromedary or swift camel, as our cart horses do to thorough-bred
 
 JUDGES. 219 
 
 riding horses. The former can carry burdens upwards of a thousand 
 pounds in weight. Camels feed on drj-, prickly plants, they seldom 
 drink, and are in every way admirably fitted for living in the desert, 
 where the herbage is scanty and water scarce. The Arabs appro- 
 priately name them " the ships of the desert." The camel is a native 
 of the warmer parts of Asia and Africa. The Arabian camel is chiefly 
 met with in South-western Asia and in the north of Africa. The 
 Bactrian camel is more widely distributed. It is dispersed over parts 
 of China, India, and Persia, and an extensive region to the north-west of 
 that in which the Arabian variety abounds. In localities where it is 
 abundant, it is to the natives what the different varieties of the horse 
 are to the people of the West. Docile, patient, equal to great fatigue, 
 and capable of strong attachment to its owners, it is everywhere highly 
 prized. The Arabs eat the flesh and drink the milk of the camel. The 
 hair which varies in individuals from white and yellow to dark brown, 
 is shed about breeding time, and is woven into cloth which is some- 
 times made into garments. The Baptist's raiment was of camel's hair 
 (Matt. iii. 4). 
 
 The dark shadows were about to be dispelled. The people cried 
 unto God and were heard. He raised up Gideon, the son of Joash the 
 Abi-ezrite, so named from Abiezer, the eldest son of Gilead the 
 grandson of Manasseh, as their deliverer. The angel of the Lord met 
 Gideon " under the oak at Ophra," a place situated among the hills of 
 ]\Ianasseh overlooking the great plain of Esdraelon. " The Lord 
 looked upon him, and said. Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save 
 Israel from the hand of the Midianites : have not I sent thee? (ver. 14.) 
 Not satisfied with the might communicated in the look — " Gideon said 
 unto God, If thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as thou hast said, 
 behold, I will put a fleece of wool in the floor ; and if the dew be on 
 the fleece only, and it be dry upon all the earth beside, then shall I 
 know that thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as thou hast said. And 
 it was so : for he rose up early on the morrow, and tlu'ust the fleece 
 together, and wringed tlie dew out of the fleece, a bowl full of water. 
 And Gideon said unto God, Let not thine anger be hot against me, and 
 I will speak but this once : let me prove, I pray thee, but this once 
 with the fleece ; let it now be dry only upon the fleece, and upon all 
 the ground let there be dew. And God did so that night : for it 
 was dry upon the fleece only, and there was dew on all the ground 
 (ver. 36-40). 
 
 The formation of dew has been noticed under Genesis ii. At night
 
 220 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 the surface of the earth gives off a portion of its heat by radiation, 
 and thus becomes colder tliau tlic immediately surrounding atmosphere. 
 This leads to a deposit of the moisture, in the form of minute globules, 
 on the surfaces of the bodies whose temperature has thus been reduced. 
 Calm, serene weather, with a clear sky, is most favourable to the 
 formation and deposition of dew. The bodies which radiate their heat 
 most freely at night, receive dew most copiously. It is a curious fact, 
 that wool is one of the substances best fitted for the reception of mois- 
 ture in the form of dew. The metals are least so. Gideon was led to 
 choose a substance on which the sign sought for would be most 
 distinctly marked. It is not necessary here to seek to establish that 
 the phenomena described were miraculous. They served as a sign; 
 this was the only purpose for which they were regulated. By a few 
 simple experiments the appearances which met the eye of Gideon can 
 be produced. The point of the narrative is, that by the arrangement 
 of Ilim in whose hands are all the forces of nature, the phenomena 
 for which his servant looked were produced at the time and in the 
 circumstances determined on by him, without any artificial inter- 
 ferences thereto. Gideon had noticed that in nature, when dew was 
 formed, all the articles in the same area became covered with it. Let 
 there then be an exception to this — let the fleece be wet, and all the 
 earth around dry. It was so. Again, let the earth be wet and the 
 fleece dry. " And God did so that night : for it was dry upon the 
 fleece only, and there was dew on all the ground." In the one case, 
 the sky needed to be clouded except at the point which looked 
 down on the fleece ; in the other, it needed to be all clear except above 
 the fleece. Thus though natural means might be used in producing 
 the effect, these were so guided as to shut Gideon up to the direct 
 acknowledgment of God's interference in making the phenomena 
 a sign. 
 
 In yet another way God was to make it clear that he had undertaken 
 for his people. " And the Lord said unto Gideon, The people are yet 
 too many ; bring them down unto the water, and I will try them for 
 thee there : and it shall be, that of whom I say unto thee. This shall 
 go with thee, the same shall go with thee ; and of whomsoever I say 
 unto thee. This shall not go with thee, the same shall not go. So he 
 brought down the people unto the water: and the Lord said unto 
 Gideon, Every one that lappeth of the water with his tongue, as a dog 
 lappeth, him shalt thou set by himself; likewise every one that boweth 
 down upon his knees to drink. And the number of them that lapped,
 
 JUDGES. 
 
 221 
 
 putting tlieir hand to their mouth, were three hundred men : but all 
 the rest of the people bowed down upon their knees to drink water. 
 And the Lord said unto Gideon, By the three hundred men that lapped 
 will I save you, and deliver the Midianites into thine hand : and let all 
 the other people go every man unto his place " (vii. 4-7). The illus- 
 tration brings out the active, willing service to be rendered by the 
 three hundred men with whom Gideon was to go against the enemy. 
 The words " putting their hand to their mouth " explain the whole 
 
 Fig. 76. 
 
 Dogs from Egyptian Sculptures { Wilkinson), 
 
 passage. Instead of leisurely kneeling down, they caught the water 
 up in their hands lest they should be taken off their guard. The dog 
 forms the thin end of his tongue into a ladle-like shape, lifts up the 
 water in this hollow ; and landing it in the canal-like depression in the 
 middle of the tongue, or on the roof of the mouth above the throat, it 
 is then transferred to the stomach. 
 
 " Dog," Heb. Jcelev, is mentioned three times before, Exod. xi. 7, 
 xxii. 31 ; Deut. xxiii. 18. Thus early had it been brought under the
 
 222 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 power of man. On early Egyptian sculptures dogs are represented 
 as employed by man in the chase, as used in keeping cattle, and as 
 domestic pets. The Jews seem to have used them in the same way, 
 Isaiah mentions the dog in words which show that it was employed as 
 a watch — " His watchmen are blind ; they are all ignorant, they are 
 dumb dogs, they cannot bark " (Isa. Ivi. 10). Job notices them in 
 connection with the flocks — " They that are younger than I have me 
 in derision, whose fathers I would have disdained to have set with the 
 dogs of my flock " (Job xxx. 1). As an unclean animal the dog became 
 a term of reproach among the Jews, as indeed it is in the East generally, 
 even still. Its structural resemblance to the wolf, and the fact that its 
 period of gestation is the same, have led many to conclude that the dog 
 {Canis famiUaris) is only a domesticated variety of wolf ( (7. lupus). It is 
 quite likely, however, that there may have been several original stocks 
 from which the varieties of the domestic dog may have descended. In 
 the East the varieties represented on ancient sculptures are still to be 
 met with. Some of them are strong, massive animals, exceedingly bold 
 and daring, as for example the Thibetan mastiff (Plate XV., Fig. 3). 
 " The barley cake " mentioned in the dream of the enemy's sentinel, is 
 noticed under Ezek. xi. 12. 
 
 The word translated thorns (Jcotz) in chapter viii. 7, is the same as 
 that used in Gen. iii. 18, in connection with the curse on the ground. 
 It is a generic term, and includes all plants met with in Bible-lands 
 armed with thorns or prickles. It occurs in this sense, Exod. xxii. 6 ; 
 2 Sam. xxiii. G; Ps. cxviii. 12; Isa. xxxii. 13, xxxiii. 12; Jer. iv. 3; 
 Ezek. xxviii. 24 ; Hos. x. 8. As a general term it is sometimes 
 associated with others which indicate a specific form. Such is the 
 case here. Briers (hnrJcamm) are named with the thorns. This 
 Hebrew word occurs only in this chapter. Its proper rendering is, no 
 doubt, brier (Fosa canina), or dog-rose, a well known British hedge- 
 row plant. The attempts to fix the meaning of " toothed thrashing 
 instrument, or of "the scorpion whip" on this term are far-fetched. 
 The expression is a very strong one, used to indicate the severe 
 punishment which was to fall on the men of Siiccoth for their unfriendly 
 reception of Gideon. There can be no mistake about the instrument. 
 After the discomfiture of Zebah and Zalmunna, the Israel itish chief 
 returned to Succoth ; " and he took the elders of the city, and thorns 
 of the wilderness, and briers, and with them he taught the men of 
 Succoth " (ver. 16). 
 
 The instrument which some have thought to be referred to here is that
 
 JUDGES. 
 
 223 
 
 described by Dr. Robinson (Bib. Res. ii. p. 307): — "Here (near Sebastieli) 
 we first fell in with the sled or sledge used for thrasliing. It consists 
 simply of two planks fastened together side by side, and bent upwards in 
 front. Many holes are bored in the bottom underneath, and into these 
 are fixed sharp fragments of hard stone. The machine is dragged by 
 the oxen, as they are driven round upon the grain ; sometimes a man or 
 boy sits on it." It is difficult to see how this could possibly represent 
 the hurJcamm of this verse. The other view to which reference has 
 been made draws its strength from 1 Kings xii. 11 — " My father 
 chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions;" and 
 from the parallel passage 2 Chron. x. 11. But "scorpion" in this pas- 
 sage has no reference to plants. It was simply the serpent-like scourge, 
 and, like the whip, would most likely be formed of leather. The word 
 (gaJcrdv) is the same as that used in Deut. viii. 15 — " fiery serpents 
 and scorpions." — See under Gen. iii. 18. 
 
 The victory over Zebah and Zalmunna became ultimately a snare — 
 " And Gideon said unto them, I would desire a request of you, that ye 
 would give me every man the ear-rings of his prey : (for they had 
 golden ear-rings, because they were Ishmaclites). And they answered. 
 We will willingly give them. And they spread a garment, and did 
 cast therein every man the ear-rings of his prey. And the weight of 
 the golden ear-rings that he requested was a thousand and seven 
 hundred shekels of gold ; besides ornaments, and collars, and purple 
 raiment that was on the kings of JMidian, and besides the chains that 
 were about their camels' necks. And Gideon made an ephod thereof, 
 and put it in his city, even in Ophrah; and all Israel went thither a 
 whoring after it : which thing became a snare unto Gideon, and to his 
 house" (ver. 24-27). The colour of the raiment worn by the kings of 
 JMidian was " purple" {argamdn), which is mentioned more than twenty 
 times in the Old Testament, and ten times in the New Testanjent 
 under its Greek name {porpJnira). This was the true Tyrian dye, 
 so celebrated among the ancients. It was obtained from a mollusc 
 belonging to the family IluridJcc, or rock-shells, many of which yield 
 a purple dye. The well known purple shells, or dog-periwinkles, 
 common on our coasts, used to be regarded as the source of this costly 
 colour ; but there is now no doubt that it was obtained from a murex. 
 The dye is secreted in a vein behind the neck of the animal, and as 
 each animal yielded only one, or at most three drops, the colour 
 became very expensive. Well-dyed wool used to sell at more than 
 £35 per pound weight. Pliny speaks of it as " that glorious colour so
 
 224 
 
 BIBLICAL NATUUAL SCIENCE. 
 
 full of state and majesty, that the Roman lictors with their rods, lialberds, 
 and axes make way for; this is it that graces and sets out the children 
 of princes and noblemen ; this makes the distinction between a knight 
 and a councillor of state ; tliis is called for and put on, when they offer 
 sacrifice to pacify the gods ; this gives a lustre to all sorts of garments ; 
 to conclude, our great generals in the field, and victorious captains in 
 their triumphs, wear this purple in their mantles, interlaced and 
 Fig.7(3. embroidered among gold." All the 
 
 Scripture references to this dye 
 point to its beauty and costliness. 
 In Britain purple was obtained 
 from the little purple, or dog-peri- 
 winkle [Purpura ccqn'Uus), one of 
 the whelk family {Buccimdce). So 
 ate as 1684 it was used in Ireland 
 for dyeing linen. 
 
 The account of the spoils taken 
 from the Midianites affords evi- 
 dence of great advancement among 
 them in the fine arts. In addition 
 to the purple raiment mention is 
 made of golden ear-rings, and 
 precious jewels, here named collars, with ornaments for their own persons, 
 and golden ornaments for the necks of the royal camels. 
 
 Abimelech's craft secured for him the favour of the men of Shechem, 
 the birth-place of his mother, one of Gideon's concubines ; and by them 
 he was made king, to the exclusion of Jotham, the youngest legitimate 
 son of Gideon. When the concubine's son mercilessly slew his 
 brethren the sons of Jerubbaal upon one stone (ix. 3), Jotham had 
 escaped and hid himself When tidings were brought to him that the 
 Shechemites had raised Abimelech to the throne, Jotham, from the 
 brow of Mount Gerizim, spoke to them the peculiarly graphic parable 
 contained in verses seven to twenty-one. " In some places the preci- 
 pices of Gerizim seem to overhang the town (Sychar), so that Jotham's 
 voice, floating over the valley, might easily be heard by a quiet audience 
 eagerly listening in the plain below."— See under Deut. xxvii. 12, 13. 
 In Jotham's parable " the folly and ingratitude of the Shechemites in 
 making the basest of Gideon's sons their king, and in murdering the 
 rest ; the presumption and arrogance of Abimelech in aspiring to such 
 an honour ; and the consequences of so unreasonable procedure — are 
 
 Murcx {Chicoreus infiatiu).
 
 JUDGES. 
 
 225 
 
 represented with great ingenuity," faithfulness, and beauty. The men 
 of Shechera are compared to the cedars, named " trees " in ver. 8, and 
 cedars of Lebanon in ver. 15. Tiie sons of Gideon are referred to as 
 " oHvc-trees," " fig-trees," and " vines," wliile Abimelech is marked 
 out by tlie " bramble." Gideon's sons had drunk in their father's 
 spirit. Israel had said to him — " Rule thou over us, both thou and thy 
 son, and thy son's son also ; for thou hast delivered us from the hand 
 of Midian. And Gideon said unto them, I will not rule over you, 
 neither shall my son rule over you ; the Lord shall rule over you " 
 (ver. 22, 23). Jotham suggests this to the men of Shechem, as if he 
 had said to them — " Had a king for you been according to the will of 
 God, you might have found a suitable one among my brethren, one 
 who would have enriched you as the olive does the people by its oil, 
 or nourished you as the fig-tree does by supplying you with its fruit, 
 or led you into joy as the vine which yields that juice from its luscious 
 clusters, and " cheereth God and man." But now ye have chosen 
 Abimelech, the son of my father's maid-servant, who will be to you 
 only what the bramble is, a troublesome and unmanageable plant 
 among the trees of the wood, fit for firebrands but for little else. 
 When he had uttered all the words of his parable, " Jotham ran away, 
 and fled, and went to Beer, and dwelt there, for fear of Abimelech his 
 brother" (ver. 21). 
 
 " Bramble," Hebrew dtad, Greek hatos^ the common bramble [liuhiis 
 fruticosus) of botanists — see under Luke vi. 44. A figure of the plant 
 is given to illustrate Genesis iii. 18. In Psalm Iviii. 9, atad is rendered 
 " thorns "— 
 
 '' Before your pots can feel the thorns, 
 He shall take them away as with a whirlwind." 
 
 The word translated "brambles" in Isa. xxxiv. 13, is elsewhere 
 rendered thorns and thistles — lioalJi — 2 Kings xiv. 9 ; 2 Chron. xxxiii. 
 11; Hos. ix. 6, &c.; and in 1 Sam. xiii. 6, " in thickets " is given as its 
 equivalent. 
 
 " Cedars of Lebanon " supply the emblem for the people, and 
 especially the leaders of Shechem. The Hebrew avoixI invariably 
 rendered cedar is erez. It occurs seventy-two times, and is in about 
 twelve instances associated with Lebanon — the locality long famed for 
 its cedar-trees. Of those passages only in which this union of terms 
 occurs, can it be affirmed with certainty that the well known species 
 Cedrus Libani is mentioned. This is to be kept in mind, because 
 other species of this family were often spoken of as cedars. 
 
 VOL. II. 2 F
 
 22G BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 The cedar gives its name to a genus of plants belonging to the cone- 
 bearing natural order {Coniferoi). It attains to the height of above 
 eighty feet, and to more than forty feet in girth. It is a stately and 
 beautiful tree, when seen to advantage with its dark evergreen leaves, 
 wide-spreading branches, and massive trunk. — See under 1 Kings iv. 33. 
 
 In the announcement of Samson's birth, repeated references are made 
 to strong drink (ch. xiii. 4, 7, 14 ; see under Numb. vi. 3). When he 
 was grown up, he is represented as going to Timnath after a daughter 
 of the Philistines (xiv. 1). "Tiumath" is first mentioned in Genesis 
 xxxviii. 12, which see. Among the names of places assigned to the 
 tribe of Judah, it occurs as Timnah and Thimnathah (Josh. xv. 10, 57 ; 
 xix. 43). During the reign of Ahaz, the Philistines made a raid on 
 the territory of Judah, and, among other places taken, "Timnah, with 
 the villages thereof," is named, 2 Chron. xxviii. 18. Here it is 
 specially noted in connection with the exploits of Samson. Its in- 
 habitants were named " Timnites " (xv. G). Timnath is now identi- 
 fied with the modern Tibneh. Dr. Robinson, however, holds that the 
 place mentioned in Gen. xxxviii. 12, and Josh. xv. 57, was situated 
 among the mountains of Judah, and different from the scene of the 
 deeds of Manoah's son (" Res. in Palest." ii. 17). But it is more likely 
 that these places are identical. There is nothing in the topographical 
 lists of Joshua which demands a separation. Timnath was situated on 
 the border of Judah, " not far from Ekron, and was therefore counted 
 to the plain of Judah. But this position at the boundary made its 
 possession uncertain ; we find it, therefore, first in the hands of the tribe 
 of Judah (Josh. xv. 57) ; then it was incorporated in the territory of 
 Dan (Josh. xix. 43) ; in the time of the Judges it was under the dominion 
 of the Philistines (xiv. 1-6) ; but later, reconquered by the Israelites, 
 it gained importance, and acquired sovereignty over smaller towns, 
 but was, in the reign of King Ahaz, again subdued by the Philistines 
 (2 Chron. xxviii. 18). It was fortified in the period of the Maccabees 
 (1 Mac. ix. 50), and was, in the time of Titus, still regarded as the 
 fourth important town among the eleven which then enjoyed the chief 
 influence in Judaea {Joseph.^ Bell. Jud. III., iii. 5). It is by Pliny 
 mentioned among the principal toparchies (v. 15) ; and was, even in 
 the time of Eusebius, known as a considerable village. — Kalisch. 
 
 Samson had cast the carcass of the lion by the way-side. The heat 
 of the climate, and the abundance of the flesh-eating insects {sarco- 
 phaf)a) always to be met with in such lands, would hasten the work 
 of decomposition. In such circumstances the bony skeleton of the Hon
 
 JUDGES. 227 
 
 would still be found bound together by the natural ligaments, which 
 the insects are slow to touch. Bees do not easily take to any mass for 
 a lodging which is putrifying. But this process would soon pass, and 
 the cavity formed by the breast and ribs, or the skull cleared of the 
 brain by the insects, would tempt a swarm, in a locality in which they 
 seem ever to have abounded, to settle down (xiv. 5-9). Even in 
 Britain, the head of a dead sheep, or fox, or dog, left exposed in the field 
 for a couple of months, will often be found stripped of every particle of 
 flesh, and completely freed from the brain. The bees which took 
 possession of the lion's carcass, were honey bees (Ajn's meUifica), of 
 which there are several varieties. Honey, Heb. deuash, is fully noticed 
 under 2 Kings xviii. 32, and 2 Chron. xxxi. 5, which see. 
 
 This incident is referred to by Dr. Thomson. " There were then," 
 he says, " vineyards belonging to Timnah, as there are now in all these 
 hamlets along the base of the hills, and upon the mountain sides. 
 These vineyards are very often far out from the villages, climbing up 
 through wadies and wild cliffs, in one of which Samson encountered the 
 young lion. He threw the dead body aside, and the next time he 
 went down to Timnah, he found a swarm of bees in the carcass. This, 
 it must be confessed, is an extraordinary occurrence. The word for 
 bees is the Arabic for hornets, and these, we know, are very fond of 
 flesh, and devour it with the greatest avidity. I have myself seen a 
 swarm of hornets build their comb in the skull of a dead camel ; and 
 this would incline me to believe that it was really our dehaht'r, hornets, 
 that had settled in the carcass of Samson's lion, if it were known that 
 they manufactured honey enough to meet the demands of the story. 
 However, we find that not long after this bees were so abundant in a 
 wood at no great distance from this spot, that the honey dropped down 
 from the trees on the ground ; and I have explored densely-wooded 
 gorges in Hermon and in southern Lebanon where wild bees are still 
 found, both in trees and in the clefts of the rocks. It keeps up the 
 verisimilitude of the narrative that these are just the places where wild 
 beasts still abound ; and though bees ordinarily avoid dead carcasses, it 
 is possible that they on this occasion selected that of the lion for their 
 hive." But the honey made by the hornets would not " meet the 
 demands of the story." The occurrence, when regarded in the light 
 of the foregoing explanation, is just what in such circumstances might 
 have been looked for. 
 
 The incident in the way to Timnath gave occasion for the riddle 
 recorded in verse 14. The forfeit is named in verses 12 and 13 — "And
 
 228 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Samson said unto tlieni, I will now put forth a riddle unto you : if ye 
 can certainly declare it me witliin the seven days of the feast, and find 
 it out, then I will give you thirty sheets, and thirty change of garments : 
 but if ye cannot declare it me, then shall ye give me thirty sheets, and 
 thirty change of garments. And they said unto him, Put forth thy 
 riddle, that we may hear it." "Thirty sheets" (sheldshim sadinmm), 
 or, as in the margin, "thirty shirts." The reference is clearly to an 
 article of clothing. If " shirt " be the proper rendering, as it seems to 
 be, the passage is worthy of notice, as showing that linen underclothing 
 was in use in Syria very long before it was so among western nations. 
 The emperor Severus (a.d. 193) is said to have been the first Roman 
 who wore a linen shirt. Before that time shirts made of woollen were 
 worn. The date of Samson's rule, as judge, was about B.C. 1156. The 
 word now under notice occurs in two other passages. It is said of the 
 virtuous woman — " She maketh fine linen (sadin) and selleth it " (Prov. 
 xxxi. 24). One of the articles of luxury, of which the " haughty 
 daughters of Sion " were to be deprived in the day of the Lord's judg- 
 ment on them, because of their wantonness and pride, was the sadin, 
 rendered in our version " fine linen " (Isa. iii. 23). 
 
 Samson's father-in-law brought destruction on himself and his house- 
 hold by giving his daughter, who had been married to Manoah's son, 
 to another man. Roused to indignation by this deceitful act, " Samson 
 went and caught three hundred foxes, and took fire-brands, and turned 
 tail to tail, and put a fire-brand in the midst between two tails. And 
 when he had set the brands on fire, he let them go into the standing 
 corn of the Philistines, and burnt up both the shocks, and also the 
 standing corn, with the vineyards and olives. Then the Philistines 
 saith. Who hath done this ? And they answered, Samson, the son-in- 
 law of the Timnite, because he had taken his wife, and given her to 
 his companion. And the Philistines came up, and burnt her and her 
 father with fire" (xv. 4-6). 
 
 " Fox," Heb. shudl, Greek alopex is named eight times in the 
 Scriptures — five times in the Old, and thrice in the New Testament. 
 With the dog, wolf, &c., it belongs to the family Cam'dce, or dog kind. 
 It is the Cams vidpes, or, more correctly, the Vulpes vulgaris of 
 zoologists (Plate XV., Fig. 1). Linnaeus assumed the Greek term as 
 specific, and named it Cam's alopex. The animal used by Samson in 
 setting fire to the crops of the Philistines has very generally been 
 thought to be the jackal (Cam's aureus) a very closely related species, 
 held by Pallas and other old naturalists to have been the original stock
 
 JUDGES. 
 
 229 
 
 of the domestic dog (C. familmns). The Hebrew name appears, like 
 tlie Latin cam's, to have been generic. It has passed into several lan- 
 guages in forms suggestive of close relationship. Thus we have Heb, 
 simal, Sansc. erigala, French ckacal, German schakal, and 'Eng. jacJcal. 
 It is also the Teutonic goucl-tcolf and dog-wolf. Literally the meaning 
 of the name is the " digger," or " burrower," a designation peculiarly 
 suitable both to the fox and the jackal. The latter is found in flocks 
 even still in Palestine, and may have been the animal used in this case. 
 The difficulties which some have found in the statement that he got so 
 many, and tied them tail to tail, are imaginary. To have any weight, 
 they would need to be founded on the certainty, that at the time of 
 Samson jackals were even rarer than they are now. Besides, there is 
 nothing in the narrative which shuts us up to the belief that Samson 
 had no help iu carrying out this act of revenge. He was of great note 
 among the people at the time, and would have many to assist him. 
 Dr. Thomson says : — "It is probable that by foxes jackals are intended, 
 and these are even now extremely numerous. I have had more than 
 one race after them, and over the very theatre of Samson's exploit. 
 When encamped out in the plain with a part of Ibrahim Pasha's army, 
 in 1834, we were serenaded all night long by troops of these hideous 
 howlers. But if we must limit Samson to the ordinary meaning of fox, 
 even these are to be found here. I started up and chased one when I 
 passed over that part of the plain where Timnath is believed to have 
 been situated. It must be admitted, however, that the number seems 
 not only large in view of the difficulty of capturing them, but also far 
 too great for the purpose intended. The object was to set fire to the 
 dry corn which covered the plains of the Philistines. Now a spark 
 would seem sufficient to accomplish this. During the summer months 
 the whole country is one sea of dead-ripe grain, dry as tinder. There 
 is neither break, nor hedge, nor fence, nor any cause of interruption. 
 Once in a blaze, it would create a wind for itself, even if it were calm 
 to begin with. And it would seem that a less number could have 
 answered all the purposes of Samson ; but to this it is obvious to 
 remark that he meditated no limited revenge. He therefore planned 
 to set the fields of a great many towns and villages on fire at the same 
 moment, so that the people would be confounded and bewildered by 
 beholding the conflagration on all sides of them ; and each being intent 
 on saving his own crop, no one could help his neighbour. Besides, 
 the text implies that certain parts were already reaped, and this would 
 produce interruptions in the continuity of the fields ; and, also, we
 
 230 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 know not tlie modes of cultivation at that early period. Part of the 
 land may have been permitted to lie follow, or might have been planted 
 with ' summer fruits,' which, being green, would stop the conflagra- 
 tion, and render necessary a greater number of firebrands. As to the 
 difficulty of capturing so many foxes, we must remember that Samson 
 was judge or governor of Israel at that time. He no more caught 
 tliese creatures himself than Solomon built the temple with his own 
 hands : and if we take two or three other facts into account, it will not 
 appear incredible that the governor of a nation could gather such a 
 number of foxes when he had occasion for them. The first is, that in 
 those days this country was infested with all sorts of wild animals to 
 an extent which seems to us almost incredible. This is evident from 
 almost numberless incidental allusions in the Bible ; but the use of 
 fire-arms for so many centuries has either totally exterminated whole 
 classes, or obliged them to retire into the remote and unfrequented 
 deserts. No doubt, therefore, foxes and jackals were far more numer- 
 ous in the days of Samson than at present. The second fact is, that, 
 not having fire-arms, the ancients were much more skilful than the 
 moderns in the use of snares, nets, and pits for capturing wild animals. 
 A large class of Biblical figures and allusions necessarily presuppose 
 this state of things. Job, and David, and all the poets and prophets, 
 continually refer in their complaints to snares, nets, pits, <S:c. We are 
 justified, therefore, in believing that, at the time in question, the 
 commander of Israel could with no great difficulty collect even three 
 hundred foxes. He was not limited to a day or a week ; and though 
 it may be true that in the whole country there are not now so many 
 killed in an entire year, yet this does not prove that this number could 
 not have been gathered by Samson from the territories of Judah, Dan, 
 and Simeon, over which his authority more particularly extended. We 
 therefore want no correction of the text to render the whole account 
 credible, nor need we call in the aid of miracles. It was merely a 
 cunning device of Israel's champion to inflict a terrible chastisement 
 upon his enemies."
 
 RUTH. 231 
 
 \V'> wa 
 
 RUTH. 
 
 HE time when the chief events narrated in this Book took 
 place is noticed in verse 1 — " It came to pass when the 
 judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land." Most 
 recent interpreters accept Usher's opinion on this point, 
 and hold that the reference here is to the scarcity that 
 as brought about by the oppression of the Midiauites from 
 ^^ ^ which Gideon delivered the people. There is no other 
 ' historical notice of such a famine when the judges ruled. No 
 definite conclusion as to the chronology of this Book, can be drawn 
 from the genealogical tables given by Matthew (i.) and Luke (iii.). 
 The history is one of great beauty and pastoral simplicity. The veil 
 which, for the most part, conceals God's ways in his providences with 
 households is drawn aside, and we get a glimpse of the close bearings 
 of national events on family history. The famine which sent Elimclech 
 and his wife Naomi into the country of Moab (ver. 2), determined the 
 descent both of David and of David's Lord on the mother's side from 
 a Moabitess, and again intimated, that, while God's special favour was 
 continued on Israel as a covenant people, the door of mercy, goodness, 
 and grace was open for the admission of those chosen from among the 
 Gentiles. 
 
 Naomi's husband and her two sons, Mahlon and Chilion, died in the 
 place of their sojourn. Her sons had married daughters of Moab, 
 named Orpah and Ruth. When the famine in the land of Israel ceased, 
 and Naomi heard that " the Lord had visited his people in giving them 
 bread" (ver. 6), she resolved to return to her native country. Orpah 
 stayed with her own people ; Ruth clave unto her mother-in-law and 
 returned with her. Tlie season at which Naomi and her dausrhter-in- 
 law reached home is distinctly stated in verse 22 — " They returned out 
 of the country of Moab : and they came to Bethlehem in the beginning 
 of barley harvest." Barley sown in autumn, in a climate like that of 
 Palestine or of Egypt, is reaped in the middle or towards the latter end 
 of March. — See under Exod. ix. 31. Seed sown in January ripens 
 about the middle of April. 
 
 " Barley," Heb. shordJi, takes its name both in Hebrew and in Latin
 
 232 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 from the threatenin,2^ aspect of its awns (arista). It gives the name to 
 a genus of plants (Ilordeicm) belonging to the natural order Grammece 
 or grasses. In attempting to trace its history we are led, as in the case 
 of the other best known cereals, to the East. The species chiefly culti- 
 vated in Britain, summer barley (Ilordeum di'stichum), has been found 
 in a wild state in Mesopotamia. Sixteen or seventeen species have been 
 named; but a strict examination of these, and an intimate acquaintance 
 with the influence of climate, soil, and the like on them, will greatly 
 reduce their number. Several should have been reckoned as varieties 
 rather than as species. If the power of long cultivation in modifying 
 outstanding and original peculiarities be taken into account, it will 
 appear doubtful whetlier we are entitled to hold that the' six kinds 
 cultivated for food should be regarded as specifically distinct. The 
 likelihood is, that we have not more than four well-marked species. 
 
 None of the cereals can lay claim to such a wide geographical area 
 as barley. It is largely cultivated in temperate climates, it grows well 
 within the tropics, and is found ripening on the very borders of the 
 frigid zone. It was much used by the Israelites, and is more than 
 thirty times named in Scripture. When Moses tried to quicken the 
 expectations of the people regarding the " good land," he spoke of 
 barley as, equally with wheat, vines, fig-trees, and pomegranates, one 
 of its products (Dent. viii. 8). 
 
 The notice of the harvest at Bethlehem introduces a picture of 
 exceeding beauty (chap. ii). Nothing so well illustrates the change in 
 the political condition of Israel, referred to in chapter i. G, as this 
 picture of the harvest-field near Bethlehem. Naomi had resolved to 
 leave the land of Moab when she heard that " the Lord had visited his 
 people in giving them bread." The date of the migration of Elime- 
 Icch's household to the land of Moab, seems to have been at the period 
 which intervened between the death of Barak and the calling of Gideon, 
 Judges vi. 1-14. Then Llidian prevailed over the people; Israel took 
 refuge in the dens, and caves, and strongholds; their enemies destroyed 
 the increase of the earth; they spread over their land as locusts, and 
 " left no sustenance for Israel." But Gideon triumphed, and " the 
 country was in quietness forty years." Naomi returned. Israel again 
 became accustomed to prosperity. The peaceful scene pictured here 
 was realized, and the meeting of Ruth and Boaz formed another great 
 step to the bringing in of Messiah. 
 
 Barley is named generally in verse 2 as "ears of corn," and in verses 
 17, 23, it is again specially referred to. This was the grain which
 
 Rutli gleaned. Barley meal held very much the same place among 
 the Jews as it has done in most countries in which it is used. The 
 bread used by the poor and by the industrious classes was chiefly made 
 from it, as that of the wealthier classes was formed of wheaten flour. 
 Its cultivation was thus general. When David fled from Absalom, his 
 friends Shobi, Machir, and Barzillai, among other articles, brought him 
 " wheat and barley " for himself " and for the people that were with 
 him to eat." David's captain, Joab, cultivated it for his household. 
 " Joab's field," said Absalom, " is near mine, and he hath barley 
 there ; go and set it on fire " (2 Sam. xiv. 30 ; xvii. 28). 
 
 The kindly relationship subsisting between Boaz and his servants is 
 set before us in beautiful and attractive simplicity in verse 4 — "Behold 
 Boaz came from Bethlehem, and said unto the reapers. The Lord be 
 with you. And they answered him. The Lord bless thee." — 
 
 " So is it with true Cliristian hearts ; 
 
 Their mutual share in Jesus' bioocl 
 An everlasting bond imparts 
 
 Of holiest brotherhood : 
 Oh ! might we all our lineage prove, 
 Give and forgive, do good and love, 
 By soft endearments in kind strife 
 Lightening the load of daily life." — {KeJdi.) 
 
 As Ruth gleaned after the reapers, " Boaz said unto her, At meal- 
 time come thou hither, and eat of the bread and dip thy morsel in the 
 vinegar. And she sat beside the reapers : and he reached her parched 
 corn, and she did eat" (ii. 14). "Vinegar" — see under Prov. x. 26. 
 The vinegar and " parched corn " named here may still be seen in use 
 at harvest-time among the reapers, in the very fields around Bethlehem 
 in which the young Moabitess gleaned. " Parched corn is made 
 thus : a quantity of the best ears, not too ripe, are plucked with the 
 stalks attached. These are tied into small parcels, a blazing fire is 
 kindled with dry grass and thorn bushes, and the corn-heads are held 
 in it until the chaff is mostly burned off. The grain is thus sufficiently 
 roasted to be eaten, and it is a favourite article all over the country. 
 When travelling in harvest-time, my muleteers have very often thus 
 prepared parched corn in the evenings after the tent has been pitched. 
 Nor is the gathering of these green ears for parching ever regarded as 
 stealing. After it has been roasted, it is rubbed out in the hand and 
 eaten as there is occasion. This parched corn is often referred to in 
 
 the Bible." 
 
 VOL. n. 2 G 
 
 J
 
 234 niBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 I. SAMUEL. 
 
 HE Jews regard the two books of Samuel as one. Much 
 uncertainty hangs around their authorship. Samuel him- 
 self is generally believed to have written chapters i.-xxiv. 
 of the first book ; Nathan and Gad the rest. 1 Chron. 
 xxix. 29, is often quoted in support of this supposition : — 
 •' Now the acts of David the king, first and last, behold, they 
 are written in the book of Samuel the seer, and in the book of 
 Nathan the prophet, and in the book of Gad the seer." But 
 this passage rather suggests the likelihood, that the Spirit of God 
 employed some other man to reduce the books of contemporary 
 history written by these men into the form of the narrative before us. 
 
 The birth of Samuel, his removal to Shiloh to be under Eli, the 
 apostasy of Eli's sons, his death, the accession of Samuel as judge, the 
 desire of the people for a king, and the appointment of Samuel to tliat 
 office, are narrated in chapters i.-x. Saul's wars with the Philistines, his 
 gross disobedience and departure from God, the choice of David as his 
 successor, Saul's enmity against David, tlie death of Samuel, the defeat 
 and death of Saul, are described in the remaining chapters, xi.-xxxi. 
 
 After Samuel's birth his mother went to Shiloh to give thanks to the 
 Lord, who had hearkened to her cry and given her a son. In this 
 remarkable outpouring of Hannah's soul she remembers her trials 
 and God's gracious dealings. This leads her to the strikingly bold 
 expression of her testimony to the divine sovereignty in providence, in 
 creation, and in grace. In illustrating the second of these, she says 
 " the pillars of the earth are the Lord's, and he hath set the world 
 upon them " (ii. 7). The word pillar {nutzooUj is derived from a verb 
 (tzooJc), "to rest heavily on" — tropically, " to entreat," " to constrain," 
 " to straiten," and "to distress," Judg. xiv. 17; Job xxxii. 18; Jer. 
 xix. 9 ; Isa. xxix. 7. The meaning of Hannah is simply " the founda- 
 tions of the earth are the Lord's," though the word is not the same as 
 that used in other passages in this sense, Deut. xxxii. 22 ; Job xxxviii. 
 4, &c. It is absurd to quote this expression, as has been done, as an 
 illustration of the ignorance of the people at that time regarding the 
 body of the earth. All that was implied in using it was, that God
 
 I. SAMUEL. 
 
 235 
 
 shows his sovereign power in upholding the world, and that this same 
 power is that which in grace " keeps the feet of his saints." 
 
 The hand of the Lord was strong on those who kept the ark, taken 
 from Israel by the Philistines — " And it came to pass, as the ark of 
 God came to Ekron, that the Ekronites cried out, saying. They have 
 brought about the ark of the God of Israel to us, to slay us and our 
 people. So they sent and gathered together all the lords of the 
 Philistines, and said. Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let 
 it go again to its own place, that it slay us not, and our people ; for 
 there was a deadly destruction throughout all the city ; the hand of 
 God was very heavy there. And the men that died not were smitten 
 with the emerods : and the cry of the city went up to heaven " (ch. v. 
 10-12). The scourge on the land was a plague of mice ; that on the 
 
 Fig 77. 
 
 Jerboa {Dipus ^gyptiusj. 
 
 bodies of those wlio had not been stricken down by death was emerods. 
 The ark was to be sent away, and with it golden images of what 
 had been sent as the means of judgment — " Then said they. What 
 shall be the trespass-offering which we shall return to him? They 
 answered, Five golden emerods, and five golden mice, according to the 
 number of the lords of tlie Philistines : i'or one plague was on you all, 
 and on your lords. Wlierefore ye shall make images of your emerods, 
 and images of your mice that mar the land; and ye shall give glory 
 unto the God of Israel : peradventure he will lighten his hand from off 
 you, and from off" your gods, and from off your land " (vi. 4, 5). 
 
 " Emerods," Heb. aphalim, tumours {tumores ani). 
 
 " Mice," Heb. acliharim. The Arabs give a name nearly resembling 
 this to the dipus or Egyptian jerboa, the Egyptian mouse {Mus 
 JEgypthis) of Hasselquist. In Isaiah Ixvi. 17, reference is made to the
 
 236 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 mouse (achbar) as an animal used for food by the idolaters whom 
 backsliding Israel followed. It is known that the Arabs sometimes 
 eat the jerboa, but we have no ini'ormation regarding any nation by 
 whom the mouse, properly so called {Mus muscidus), or any one of the 
 fieldmice {M. messoi-us, If. sylvatictis, Arvicola acjrestis, Plate XXXII.), 
 was eaten. This has strengthened the belief that the jerboa is intended 
 in this and other passages. But it is much more to the purpose to 
 regard the Hebrew name as a general term for a group of animals of 
 corresponding habits with the mice {Muridce), the voles (Ai-vt'coltdce), 
 and the jerboas (Dipodidoe), of modern classification. The golden 
 image made by the Philistines would represent the species which had 
 spread over their fields as a plague. The reference to the mouse in 
 Levit. xi. 29, is from this wide point of view. " Kine" are mentioned 
 in verses 7, 10, 12, 14. — See under Genesis xli. 2-4. 
 
 In Samuel's instructions given to Saul after he had anointed him 
 (x. 1-8), the " hill of God " is mentioned (ver. 5). This was not 
 Mount Zion, but a high place which was at that time devoted to 
 sacred purposes. 
 
 The strong desire expressed bj^ the people for a king to rule over 
 them, was directly ascribed to their unbelief God had been their 
 king from the days of old. Now, however, they wished to see the 
 evidences of kingly pomp among them, as these stood out in the nations 
 around them. Samuel wished to show them, that these views were 
 not cherished by him from any feeling of disappointed ambition or 
 pride. Thus he told them that God regarded them just as he had 
 done : — " Now therefore stand and see this great thing, which the 
 Lord will do before your eyes. Is it not wheat-harvest to-day ? I will 
 call unto the Lord, and he shall send thunder and rain ; that ye may 
 perceive and see that your wickedness is great, which ye have done in 
 the sight of the Lord, in asking you a king. So Samuel called unto 
 the Lord ; and the Lord sent thunder and rain that day : and all the 
 people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel. And all the people said 
 unto Samuel, Pray for thy servants unto the Lord thy God, that we 
 die not : for we have added unto all our sins this evil, to ask us a 
 king" (xii. 17). Rain at the time of wheat-harvest was evidently 
 regarded by the people as miraculous. "When it fell with the accom- 
 paniments noted here, " they greatly feared." The climate in the 
 locality where they were, continues much the same now as at that 
 time. The early rains begin gradually in the end of October or 
 beginning of November. These continue till April. Slight showers
 
 I. SAMUEL. 237 
 
 only fall occasionally at that season. The wheat-harvest occurs about 
 the second week of May in the valley of the Jordan, when even the 
 occasional showers have ceased. 
 
 After the rash act of worship (xiii. G-14), Saul betook himself to 
 " the hill of Benjamin." The Philistines were encamped at Michmash. 
 Thence they sent out their spoilers, one company of whom went to 
 Ophrah, another to Beth-horon, a third " turned to the way of the 
 border that looketh to the valley of Zeboim, toward the wilderness" 
 (ver. 18). " Zeboim " means hjcenas. The ravine had been so named 
 from its having been a noted haunt of these ferocious animals, just as 
 " Ajalon " had got its name from the stag, " Lebaoth " from its lion- 
 esses, and " Shaalbim " from \\s foxes. 
 
 Saul had virtually ceased to be on the Lord's side (xiii. 11-lC). 
 He still fought as if for God against the wicked, but in reality it was 
 for himself. Made weak by his sin, the influence of his condition 
 spread like contagion among his soldiers. They were unwilling to 
 meet the foe, and were consequently unable to do so. Under one of 
 those impulses which frequently return with power to the backsliding, 
 and lift them for a season to the level of past attainments, Saul led his 
 soldiers up against the Philistines. In chapter xiv. they are seen face 
 to face, as if about to try their strength, ilichmash lay in the north 
 of those wide wild pasture lands where Jacob prophesied that Benjamin 
 was to "ravin as a wolf, devouring the prey in the morning, and dividing 
 the spoil at night" (Gen. xlix. 27). While waiting for an advantageous 
 opportunity of attack, " Saul tarried in the uttermost part of Gibcah 
 under a pomegranate-tree which is in Migron " (ver. 2). 
 
 " Pomegranate," Heb. rimmdn. This tree is the Punica granatum 
 of botanists, one of the natural order Myrtacece, or myrtle family. It 
 is a native of Asia, and was common in Palestine. It is found also in 
 Northern Africa, and must have been abundant in Egypt at the time 
 of the Exodus: — " Wherefore," cried the murmuring Israelites, " have 
 ye made us to come up out of Egypt, to bring us in unto this evil place? 
 it is no place of seed, or of figs, or of vines, or of pomegranates ; 
 neither is there any water to drink " (Numb. xx. 5). It is represented 
 on Egyptian sculptures, whose date is as early as the Exodus, as a 
 plant cultivated for its fruit, and as used in their temple worship. A 
 figure of the pomegranate is given on the reverse of the coins of ancient 
 Rhodes. " It is the ancient rkodon, or rose, which was used for its 
 dye, and gave its name to the island of Rhodes." — (Wilkinson). 
 Plinv notices it as " the flower called Balausticum."
 
 238 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Scripture references to the pomegranate represent it — (1) As char- 
 acteristic of Palestine — " a land of wheat, and barley, and vines, and 
 fig-trees, and pomegranates" (Deut. viii. 8). When the spies returned 
 from Eschol "they brought of the pomegranates and of the figs" to 
 Kadesh " (Numb. xiii. 23). In Joel i. 12 it is mentioned with the 
 vine, the fig, the palm, and the apple trees, and in Haggai ii. 19, with 
 tlie vine, fig, and olive. (2) As embroidered on articles of dress. It 
 alternated with the golden bells on the robe of the high priest : — " And 
 beneath upon the hem of it, thou shalt make pomegranates of blue, 
 and of purple, and of scarlet, round about the hem thereof; and bells 
 of gold between them round about : a golden bell and a pomegranate, 
 a golden bell and a pomegranate, upon the hem of the robe round 
 about. And it stall be upon Aaron to minister : and his sound shall 
 be heard when he goeth in unto the holy place before the Lord, and 
 when he cometh out, that he die not'' (Exod. xxviii. 33-35, and 
 xxxix. 24-26). (3) As an ornament in architecture. Among Solo- 
 mon's preparations for the temple, we are told " he made the pillars, 
 and two rows round about upon the one net-work, to cover the chap- 
 iters that were upon the top with pomegranates : and so did he for the 
 other chapiter. And the chapiters that were upon the top ot the 
 pillars were of lily-work in the porch, four cubits. And the chapiters 
 upon the two pillars had pomegranates also above, over against the 
 belly which was by the net-work ; and the pomegranates were two 
 hundred, in rows round about upon the other chapiter. And he set up 
 the pillars in the porch of the temple ; and he set up the right pillar, 
 and called the name thereof Jachin ; and he set up the left pillar, and 
 called the name thereof Boaz " (1 Kings vii. 18-21). These are 
 mentioned in Jeremiah (lii. 20) as the " pillars which King Solomon 
 made in the house of the Lord." They were carried to Babylon by 
 Nebuzar-adan at the time of the captivity in " the nineteenth year of 
 Nebuchadrezzar." (4) As symbolic of spiritual graces. This use of 
 the pomegranate is confined to the Song of Solomon. — See under 
 Song iv. 3. 
 
 The pomegranate is still met with in Palestine — seldom, however, as 
 a tree; mostly as a strong thorny-looking bush. Several varieties 
 occur. " In Jebaah, on Lebanon, there is a variety perfectly black on 
 the outside. The general colour, however, is a dull green, inclining to 
 yellow, and some even have a blush of red spread over a part of their 
 surface. The outside rind is thin but tough, and the bitter juice of 
 it stains every thing it touches with an undefined but indelible blue.
 
 I. SAMUEL. 
 
 239 
 
 The average size is about that of the orange, but some of those from 
 Jaffa are as large as the egg cf an ostrich. Within, the " grains " are 
 arranged in longitudinal compartments as compactly as corn on the 
 cob, and they closely resemble those of pale red corn, except that they 
 are nearly transparent and very beautiful. A dish filled with these 
 " grains " shelled out is a very handsome ornament on any table, and 
 the fruit is as sweet to the taste as it is pleasant to the eye. They are 
 ripe about the middle of October, and remain in good condition all 
 
 Fig. 78. 
 
 romcgranato {Punka granatum). 
 
 winter. Suspended in the pantry, they are kept partially dried through 
 the whole year. The flower of the pomegranate is bell or tulip shaped, 
 and is of a beautiful orange-red, deepening into crimson on some 
 bushes. There is a kind very large and double, but this bears no fruit, 
 and is cultivated merely for its brilliant blossoms, which are put forth 
 profusely during the whole summer." — (Thomson.) 
 
 In that rash impetuosity of spirit which so often led Saul into error, 
 he had vowed for himself and his people that they would not taste
 
 240 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE, 
 
 food till the Philistines were destroyed. The result led to much 
 vexation, and to the widening of that breach between Saul and his 
 people which had already begun to appear. A day of terrible disaster 
 had fallen on the enemies of Israel, but Saul unwisely interfered with 
 the habits of the soldiery, and we are told that " the men of Israel 
 were distressed that day : for Saul had adjured the people, saying. 
 Cursed be the man that eateth any food until evening, that I may be 
 avenged on mine enemies. So none of the people tasted any food. 
 And all they of the land came to a wood ; and there was honey upon 
 the ground. And when the people were come into the wood, behold, 
 the honey dropped ; but no man put his hand to his mouth : for the 
 people feared the oath. But Jonathan heard not when his father 
 charged the people with the oath : wherefore he put forth the end of 
 the rod that was in his hand, and dipped it in an honey-comb, and put 
 his hand to his mouth ; and his eyes were enlightened. Then answered 
 one of the people, and said, Thy father straitly charged the people 
 with an oath, saying. Cursed be the man tliat eateth any food this day, 
 and the people were faint. Then said Jonathan, My father hath 
 troubled the land : see, I pray you, how mine eyes have been enlight- 
 ened, because I tasted a little of this honey ; how much more, if 
 haply the people liad eaten freely to-day of the spoil of their enemies 
 which they found? for had there not been now a much greater 
 slaughter among the Philistines?" (xiv. 24-30.) 
 
 In estimating the effects of the honey on Jonathan, the time at 
 which he partook of it must be taken into account. It was; evidently 
 towards evening. Faint and weary, his strength had begun to fail, and 
 the dimness of eye which comes with long-protracted fasting and 
 exertion had stolen over him. In these circumstances he had eaten of 
 the honey-comb found in the forest. The results were deliverance 
 from great physical exhaustion, the passing away of dimness from the 
 eye, and the recovery of his wonted strength — common physiological 
 effects in such circumstances. 
 
 Some interpreters think that the honey mentioned in verse 25 was 
 not the honey of wild bees, but the exudations from the leaves of certain 
 trees, caused by the punctures of insects (Cocctdce). In this way the 
 manna of commerce is produced from one of the tamarisks, the tarfa tree 
 of the desert of Sinai — Tamanx manifera of botanists. But the whole 
 narrative demands that the honey be regarded as honey of bees, such 
 as that eaten in after days by the Baptist. ( — See under Matt. iii. 4.) 
 The word {devash)^ rendered honey throughout this passage, is that
 
 r. SAMUEL. 241 
 
 commonly used in Scripture for the produce of bees. As, however, 
 this word means in some passages a preparation from grapes or from 
 dates (see under 2 Chron. xxxi. 5), this might not be held conclusive. 
 But the question is settled by the mention of " honey-comb " in verse 
 27, which is a compound of yaar, literally wood, and devash, honey, 
 referring to the tree-like arrangement of the cells. Accordingly the 
 usual word is met with in connection with the compound one in Song 
 v. 1 — " I have gathered my myrrh with my spice ; I have eaten my 
 honey-comb with my honey." 
 
 " Then came the word of the Lord unto Samuel, saying, It rcpcnteth 
 me that I have set up Saul to be king : for he is turned back from 
 following me, and hath not performed my commandments. And it 
 grieved Samuel ; and he cried unto the Lord all night. And when 
 Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning, it was told Samuel, 
 saying, Saul came to Carmel, and, behold, he set him up a place, and 
 is gone about, and passed on, and gone down to Gilgal " (xv. 10-12). 
 " Carmel," " where Saul set him up a place," or raised a memorial of 
 his recent triumphs, is not the noted mountain of that name, but a 
 town in the wild mountain districts of Judah, the residence of Nabal, 
 and the native place of Abigail, thence named " ilie Carmelitess" 
 (chapters xxv., xxvii). 
 
 Philistia seemed as if about to triumph. But at this crisis of their 
 history the Lord again raised up a deliverer. The choice made by 
 God through Samuel was about to be manifested in great historical 
 facts. Three of the sons of Jesse, the Ephrathite of Bethlehem-Judah, 
 had followed Saul to the war against the Philistines ; and their father, 
 careful of their comfort, said to his youngest son, David, " Take now 
 for thy brethren an ephah of this parched corn, and these ten loaves, 
 and run to the camp to thy brethren ; and carry these ten cheeses unto 
 the captain of their thousand, and look how thy brethren fare, and 
 take their pledge " (xvii. 17, 18). The parched corn is still in common 
 use in Bible-lands. " In the season of harvest," says Robinson, " the 
 grains of wheat, not yet fully dry and hard, are roasted in a pan or on an 
 iron plate, and constitute a very palatal )le article of food ; this is eaten 
 along with bread, or instead of it. Indeed the use of it is so common 
 in this season among the labouring classes, that this parched wheat is 
 sold in the markets." The condition of the grains and their jirepara- 
 tion are noticed in Leviticus ii. 14 — " And if thou offer a meat-offering 
 of thy first-fruits unto the Lord, thou shalt offer, for the meat-offering 
 of thy first-fruits, green ears of corn dried by the fire, even corn beaten 
 
 VOL. II. 2 II
 
 242 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 out of full ears." And tliat this corn dried by the fire was to be for 
 food to the people likewise, is to be inferred from the prohibition in 
 Leviticus xxiii. 14 — " And ye shall eat neither bread, nor parched 
 corn, nor green ears, until the self-same day that ye have brought an 
 offering unto your God : it shall be a statute for ever throughout your 
 generations in all your dwellings." It was used in the harvest-field of 
 Boaz as part of the food for the reapers — " At meal-time come thou 
 hither, and eat of the bread, and dip thy morsel in the vinegar. And 
 she sat beside the reapers : and he reached her parched corn, and she 
 did eat, and was sufficed, and left" (Ruth ii. 14). And when David 
 fled from Absalom, among the gifts which Shobi, Machir, and 
 Barzillai brought to him, were "parched corn and parched pulse" 
 (2 Sam. xvii. 28). 
 
 In addition to the parched corn and the loaves, David was to take 
 the produce of his flock likewise ; he was to carry to the captain, under 
 which his brethren served, " ten cheeses." — See under 2 Sam. xvii. 29. 
 
 " And David rose up early in the morning, and left the sheep with 
 a keeper, and took, and went, as Jesse had commanded him : and he 
 came to the trench, as the host was going forth to the fight, and 
 shouted for the battle. For Israel and the Philistines had put the 
 battle in array, army against army. And David left his carriage in 
 the hand of the keeper of the carriage, and ran into the army, and 
 came and saluted his brethren. And as he talked with them, 
 behold, there came up the champion (the Philistine of Gath, Goliath 
 by name) out of the armies of the Philistines, and spake according to the 
 same words : and David heard them. And all the men of Israel, when 
 they saw the man, fled from him, and were sore afraid. And the men 
 of Israel said. Have ye seen this man that is come up ? surely to defy 
 Israel is he come up : and it shall be, that the man who killeth him, 
 the king will enrich him with great riches, and will give him his 
 daughter, and make his father's house free in Israel. And David 
 spake to the men that stood by him, saying, "What shall be done to the 
 man that killeth this Philistine, and taketh away the reproach from 
 Israel? for who is this uucircumcised Philistine, that he should defy 
 the armies of the living God ? And the people answered him after 
 this manner, saying, So shall it be done to the man that killeth him" 
 (ver. 20-27). Faith triumphed in the person of David. But then as 
 now it awakened and called forth the enmity of the unbelieving. 
 Eliab rebuked him :— " With whom hast thou left these few sheep in 
 the wilderness? I know thy pride and the naughtiness of thine heart."
 
 I. SAMUEL. 243 
 
 David meekly answered, " Is there not a cause ? " The name of that 
 God with whom he had enjoyed sweet fellowship in the w^ilderness was 
 blasphemed. This was cause enough for him to feel ashamed of the 
 cowardice of those who trusted not in him. David's words reached 
 the ears of Saul : — " And David said to Saul, Let no man's heart fail 
 because of him ; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine. 
 And Saul said to David, Thou art not able to go against this Philistine 
 to fight with him : for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war 
 from his youth. And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his 
 father's sheep, and there came a lion and a bear, and took a lamb out 
 of the flock ; and I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered 
 it out of his mouth ; and when he arose against me, I caught him by 
 his beard, and smote him, and slew him" (ver. 32-35). 
 
 " Lion," Heb. ari. Five different words are used in the Old Testa- 
 ment for lion. That which occurs here is the common name. It is 
 employed about ninety times. This implies that it must have at one 
 time been abundant in Palestine, though it is not now to be met with. 
 A classification of these passages shows that Canaan was infested by 
 lions, 2 Kings xvii. 25, 26. Described as — superior in strength, 
 Judg. xiv. 18 ; active, Deut. xxxiii. 22 ; courageous, 2 Sam. xvii. 10 ; 
 fearless even of man, Isa. xxxi. 4; Nah. ii. 11; voracious, Ps. xvii. 
 12 ; greatness of its teeth alluded to, Joel i. 6 ; God's power exhibited 
 in restraining, 1 Kings xiii. 28; Dan. vi. 22, 27; lurketh for its 
 prey, Ps. x. 9 ; roars when seeking prey, Ps. xxxi. 4 ; rends its prey, 
 Ps. vii. 2 ; often carries its prey to its den, Nah. ii. 12. Inhabits — 
 forests, Jer. v. 6 ; thickets, Jer. iv. 7 ; mountains. Song of Solomon iv. 
 8. Attacks the sheep folds — 1 Sam. xvii. 34 ; Amos iii. 12 ; Mic. v. 8. 
 AttacJcs and destroys men — 1 Kings xiii. 24 ; 1 Kings xx. 3G. Univer- 
 sal terror caused — by roaring of, Amos iii. 8. Criminals often thrown to, 
 Dan. vi. 7, 16, 24. Slain by — Samson, Judg. xiv. 5 ; David, 1 Sam. 
 xvii. 35, 36 ; Benaiah, 2 Sam. xxiii. 20. A swarm of bees found in 
 the carcass of, by Samson, Judg. xiv. 8. Disobedient prophet slain hj, 
 
 1 Kings xiii. 24, 26. Illustrative — of Israel, Numb. xxiv. 9 ; of the 
 tribe of Judah, Gen. xlix. 9 ; of the tribe of Gad, Deut. xxxiii. 20 ; of 
 God in protecting his church, Isa. xxxi. 4 ; of God in executing judg- 
 ments, Isa. xxxviii. 13 ; Lam. iii. 10 ; of brave men, 2 Sam. i. 23 ; 
 
 2 Sam. xxiii. 20; of cruel and powerful enemies, Jer. xlix. 14, Ii. 38; 
 of persecutors, Ps. xxii. 13; of imaginary fears of the slothful, Prov. 
 xxii. 13, xxvi. 13; of the natural man subdued by grace, Isa. xi. 7, Ixv. 25. 
 
 Ari is sometimes joined to el (God), and is translated lion-like in
 
 244 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Fig. 79. 
 
 Skull of Tiger. 
 
 2 Sam. xxiii. 20; 1 Chron. xi. 22. It is used as a proper name, Ariel, 
 for Jerusalem in Isa. xxix. 1, 2, 7; and is rendered altar in Ezekicl 
 xliii. 15, 16. Tlie Chaldee form ainjeh occurs in Daniel tlirougliout. 
 
 " The lion " {Felis leo, Plate XVI., Fig. 2) is one of the largest of 
 the carnivorous group of animals [Carnword). It is ranked with the 
 tiger, leopard, &c., under the family Felidcc, or cats. The Carnivora 
 are sometimes grouped according to the mode in which they plant the 
 
 organs of motion on the ground. Thus we 
 have the fin-footed animals {Pmmpedia), as 
 the seals, &c. ; the animals which walk on 
 the whole hand {carpus), and the whole foot 
 kr 14^ (to?'s?vs), or jilantigrade animals (Pfow^^^j'rtf/rt), 
 
 \¥ '' ,;» as the bears; and the animals which walk 
 
 on the digits or fingers {Digitirjrada), as the 
 lion, tiger, &c. As in birds of prey, so here, 
 we find great beauty of adaptation between 
 the form of the head and the feet when we take their habits into account. 
 The Felidai have only one true molar tooth above and below. This 
 naturally goes to the shortening of the jaws, which, to correspond witli 
 their habits, require to be very strong. The premolar teeth are three 
 above and two below. The great strength of the bones of the head 
 corresponds to the rest of the osseous skeleton. — See skeleton of the 
 lion, Plate XXI. Fig. 1. The structure of the limbs is 
 equally suggestive of beautiful adaption between organs 
 and functions. The bones of the fore arm are not only 
 very powerful, but they are put together in a way adapted 
 in the highest degree to give greatest force to them, in 
 those terrible encounters to which they are exposed, 
 when preying on some of the most formidable of the 
 grass-eating quadrupeds. 
 
 The toes of the lion are armed with curved, acute, 
 retractile claws. These are preserved from being broken 
 or blunted by highly elastic bands attached to the claw 
 joint and the joint behind it. When the soft pad of the 
 sole is pressed to the ground, the claws are hid in the 
 8i^rtiiemusdr,&"=- sheaths and wholly concealed by the hair. Such power 
 of jaw and limbs united to great strength of body, generally made 
 it a much more daring feat to grapple with one sword in hand, 
 than it is now to encounter one, armed with the deadly rifle. David 
 traced his deliverance to God— " The Lord that delivered me out 
 
 Fig. so.
 
 I. SAMUEL. 245 
 
 of tlie paw of the lion, he will deliver me out of the hand of this 
 Philistine." 
 
 After having feigned madness with the view of diverting the sus- 
 picions of Achish king of Gath, and his courtiers, David watched an 
 opportunity to escape from the danger which was all around him. He 
 " departed thence and escaped to the cave Adullam : and when his 
 brethren and all his father's house heard it, they went down thither to 
 him. And every one that was in distress, and every one that was in 
 debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto 
 him ; and he became a captain over them : and there were with him 
 about four hundred men " (xxii. 1, 2). The people and the place told 
 emphatically the tale of outlawry to which the son of Jesse was at this 
 time driven. Each adherent had his own grievance, and common 
 misfortune made the band for a time fast friends. The place to which 
 they had come to join David was " the cave of Adullam." There was 
 a city of Adullam (Gen. xxxviii. 1 ; Josh. xv. 35), and also a cave so 
 named. David in his straits betook himself to the cave. The town 
 was situated in the shephelali or plain of Judah. Its site has not been 
 identified, though there can be little doubt as to the district in which it 
 stood. It was evidently a place of great antiquity. Hirah is named 
 as an AduUamite in a way which, even in the days of Jacob, implied 
 that Adullam was a well known city (Gen. xxxviii. 1). In Joshua xv. 
 35 (which see), it is named with Jarvmth and Socoh, and as the site of 
 both of these towns has been identified Adullam may be looked for in 
 the same district. In the list of the Canaauitish kings preserved in 
 Joshua xii., the king of Adullam stands next to the king of Makkedah, 
 and as the list runs in the order in which the territories of the respec- 
 tive kings bordered on each other, Adullam must not have been at a 
 great distance from the modern d-KIedinh, which has been identified 
 as the site of the ancient town. Adullam appears to have stood on 
 the edge of the plain of Judah, and the cave of Adullam to have been 
 situated in the limestone cliffs of the neighbouring hills, in the direction 
 of Bethlehem, which are below the level of Bethlehem itself, whence 
 David's relatives " ivent doini to him" (ver. 1). Both Dr. Robinson 
 and Mr. Porter are disposed to credit a tradition, which can be traced 
 back to the time of the Crusades (a.d. 1096), that the site of the cave 
 of Adullam is to be found near the ruins called Khureitun, in "Wady 
 Urtas, lying among the hills to the south-west of Bethlehem. Mr. 
 Porter in mentioning some of the circumstances " which favour the 
 conclusion that the cave of Adullam was at least somewhere in this
 
 24G DIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 mountcain region," says — " Tlie wilderness of Juclah was David's 
 favourite haunt whenever danger threatened. While keeping his 
 father's sheep, he had become acquainted with its wildest glens and 
 most secure ' holds.' His minute knowledge of the de61es and passes 
 would give him the advantage over every pursuer ; and it would seem 
 from the narrative that the cave was not very far from Bethlehem, for, 
 when his brethren and all his father's house heard that he was there, 
 they went down thither to him. And then ' every one that was in 
 distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was 
 discontented, gathered themselves unto him ; and he became a captain 
 over them ; and there were with him about four hundred men ' 1 Sam. 
 xxii. 1, 2). There has been many a rebel chief, w'ithiu our own day, 
 in Syria, who, so far as the character and habits of his followers are 
 concerned, bore a close resemblance to David. Another incident 
 occurred when David was in Adullam which favours the supposition 
 that it was near Bethlehem. He longed for ' the water of the well of 
 Bethlehem, which is by the gate ; ' just as many an exiled Arab longs 
 now for the water of his native village. But Bethlehem was garrisoned 
 by the Philistines, and the wish of David, to all appearance, it Avas 
 impossible to gratif3\ Three of his ' mighty men,' however, broke 
 through the lines of the enemy, drew water from the w^cll, and brought 
 it in triumph to their chief If David was within an hour or so of 
 Bethlehem, his wish to obtain some of its water was natural, and the 
 expedition of the three men was only remarkable for devotion and 
 courage ; but if he was a long day's journey off, on the borders of the 
 plain of Philistia, the wish would by no means seem to accord with 
 David's usual prudence (2 Sam. xxiii. 13-17; 1 Chron. xi. 15-19). 
 From the cave of Adullam David took his parents across the Jordan, 
 and placed them in safety with his kinsmen the people of Lloab" 
 (1 Sam. xxii. 1-4). 
 
 Dr. Robinson descended from the " Frank Mountain " into the Wady 
 Urtas. "It runs," he says, "about south-east, and soon contracts 
 into a narrow picturesque gorge, with high precipitous walls on each 
 side. High up on the southern side, at some distance below the 
 entrance of the ravine, are the remains of a square tower and village, 
 called Khureitun, which we had seen from the mountain ; and further 
 down among the rocks on the same side, is an immense natural cavern, 
 which my companion had formerly visited, but which we were now 
 prevented from examining by the lateness of the hour. The mouth of 
 the grotto can be approached only on foot along the side of the cliffs.
 
 I. SAMUEL. 
 
 247 
 
 My friend's description accorded well with the account of Irby and 
 Mangles ; according to whom, the cave ' runs in by a long, winding, 
 narrow passage, with small chambers or cavities on either side. We 
 soon came to a large chamber with natural arches of a great height ; 
 from this last there were numerous passages, leading in all directions, 
 occasionally joined by others at right angles, and forming a perfect 
 labyrinth, which our guides assured us had never been thoroughly 
 explored — the people being afraid of losing themselves. The passages 
 were generally four feet high by three feet wide, and were all on a level 
 with each other. There were a few petrifactions where we were ; 
 nevertheless the grotto was perfectly clear, and the air pure and good.' 
 The valley here takes the same name, and is known as Wady Khureitiln. 
 
 "This remarkable cavern is regarded in monastic tradition, reaching 
 back to the time of the Crusades, as the cave of Adullam, in which 
 David took refuge after leaving Gath of the Philistines " (" Bib. Res.," 
 vol. i., 479). 
 
 Mr. Porter gives a very graphic description of this remarkable cave : 
 — " The door," he says, " is in the face of a cliff, and the only approach 
 is along a narrow ledge, across which a fragment of rock has fallen, 
 almost completely barring the passage. Clambering over this at the 
 risk of limb, if not of life, we reach the low door. On entering, we 
 squeeze through a narrow low passage into a kind of antechamber — a 
 small irregular grotto, where it may be as well to leave all unnecessary 
 raiment, for farther in the cave is both hot and dusty. From hence 
 we advance along a winding gallery for some thirty feet to the great 
 chamber, which may be called the salon. It is one hundred and twenty 
 feet long, and varies from thirty to forty-five in breadth, with a high 
 arched roof of natural rock. The dimensions of this noble room can 
 only be seen by lighting some two or three dozen candles (a store of 
 which should be laid in at Jerusalem), and attaching them to the walls 
 on each side. The effect is fine — almost grand. The sharp projections 
 of the sides, and the irregular arches and pendants of the roof, faintly 
 seen in the dim light, remind one of an old Gothic hall. Numbers of 
 narrow passages branch off from it in every direction ; but all of them 
 soon terminate w;th the exception of one. Along this we proceed for 
 thirty or forty yards, lights in hand, and then reach the side of a kind 
 of pit or vault, into which we must drop to a depth of about ten feet. 
 Passing through this, we enter another passage, low, narrow, and dusty, 
 along which we first walk, then creep on all fours, and finally crawl 
 like serpents, where neither walking nor creeping is longer practicable.
 
 248 niBLICAL NATUKAL SCIENCE. 
 
 About seventy yards are passed by these various modes of locomotion, 
 and we then enter another large chamber, which appears to be the end 
 of the cave ; though the Arabs confidently affirm that it reaches to 
 Tekoah, some even say to Hebron." The cave will hold above three 
 hundred men. 
 
 "Keilah" (xxiii. 1), noted for the victory which David, even when 
 Saul was in hot pursuit of him, gained over the Philistines. It lay 
 about twenty-five miles south-west from Jerusalem. " Ziph " (ver. 14) 
 also belonged to Judah. Near it was a wild region of uninhabited 
 land and thicket wood, known as the wilderness of Ziph. "Maon" 
 (ver. 24) means dwelling-place or den, as of wild beasts. It was 
 another favourite resort of David and his men, when Saul sought to cut 
 them off, and to maintain himself in the kingdom. The tract of country 
 in which these places lay, was, from its ravines, its thickets, its moun- 
 tain caves, &c., peculiarly well fitted to give a safe refuge to the 
 criminal or the outlaw. 
 
 The complaint of the persecuted son of Jesse found expression in 
 the words — " The king of Israel is come out to seek a flea, as when 
 one doth hunt a partridge in the mountains" (xxvi. 20). As if he 
 had said, I am wholly undeserving that such value should be set on 
 my life — I am as a flea, small, despised, and unworthy. Yet, notwith- 
 standing this, you seek my blood as they do who seek the blood of the 
 partridge, which they hunt for profit or for pleasure. He first compares 
 himself to the flea (Pulex irntans), an obscure-winged (aphampterous) 
 insect of the family of Pulicidai or fleas. Another species, which is 
 much more to be dreaded than this one, is the "Penetrating flea," a 
 native of the West Indies and North America. This is the well-known 
 chigoe {Pulex penetrans) whose female inserts itself beneath the skin 
 of the feet, or below the nails, and there deposits her eggs, causing 
 intense pain to those thus afflicted. Of course, when David spoke of 
 this insect as he does here, all he intended was to convey to Saul the 
 expression of his self-abasement and humility. Looking at the insect 
 from another point of view, that, namely, of the relation between its 
 structure and its habits, it supplies to the naturalist a theme of great 
 interest. The organs of the mouth alone would furnish many most 
 attractive illustrations of the wisdom of the Creator, in the adaptions 
 between means and ends. The name p)ardsli is not used in any other 
 portion of Scripture except in this and in chapter xxvi. 20. 
 
 Though apparently destitute of wings, the flea has the rudiments of 
 four, arranged as horny plates on the second and third rings of the
 
 I. SAMUEL. 249 
 
 thorax. Those on the third ring (meta-thorax) are the largest. The 
 flea is produced from eggs, deposited by the female in any dust which 
 may be allowed to lodge in the corners of rooms, in the seams of the 
 flooring, or on carpets and the like. The egg is succeeded by the larva, 
 a footless grub, generally longer than the full-grown insect, and unlike 
 the larvas of many other insects, characterized by a distinct homy head. 
 In ten or twelve days the full-grown grub weaves a cocoon and passes 
 into the inactive pupa state, in which it continues about fourteen days, 
 when it becomes the fully-matured insect. The history of its transfor- 
 mations will suggest motives for cleanliness. Well and frequently 
 swept apartments go far to destroy the insect altogether. 
 
 The other figure used by David in his remonstrance with Saul, was 
 taken from the habits of the people in pursuing wild birds : — " The 
 king of Israel is come out to seek a flea, as when one doth hunt a 
 partridge in the mountains." This bird is only once more referred to 
 in the Bible. When Jeremiah was sent to declare the contrast between 
 the man that trusted in man, and the man that maketh God his trust, 
 he is shown the influence of the deceitful heart in persuading those who 
 are living only for the world, that the end sanctifies the means — that if 
 riches be good, it does not much matter how they are gotten. And 
 the reference to the partridge is introduced to show the folly of this — 
 " The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked : who 
 can know it ? I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, even to 
 give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his 
 doings. As the partridge sitteth on eggs, and hatcheth them not ; so 
 he that getteth riches, and not by right, shall leave them in the midst 
 of his days, and at his end shall be a fool" (Jer. xvii. 9-11). The 
 Hebrew is the same in both passages — Jcoreh, from the verb to call. 
 All have heard the characteristic note of the common partridge calling 
 on its mate at the breeding season, or on the quiet evenings of autumn, 
 after having been separated by the accidents of the day. The fact that 
 the same word is used in both texts might have prevented a great deal 
 of speculation as to the expression — " sitteth on eggs and hatcheth them 
 not." The partridges [Perdicince) form a sub-family of the Tefraonidce, 
 the family in which the well-known brown grouse (Tefrao Scoticus) 
 occurs. These again are ranged under the order Gallince, a group to 
 which our domestic fowls, pheasants, &c., belong. Associated with the 
 partridges, and more or less closely related to them in structure and 
 habits, are the francolins {Francolinus) ^ the quails {Coturnix), the 
 American ^oHn-partridge or Virginian quail (Orti/x), &c. The familiar 
 
 & 
 
 VOL. II. '-i I
 
 250 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 British species, the common or grey partridge [Perdix cinerca), may 
 serve as an iUustration of the sub-family now under notice, and its 
 well-known habits will help to shed some light on the passage quoted 
 from Jeremiah. 
 
 "The word," says Scott in his notes on this passage, "rendered a 
 partridge, is supposed to mean a kind of bird which was very difficult 
 to be caught, and of very little use !" This note may be taken as a 
 specimen of the kind of remarks which many are satisfied with. ]\Iost 
 of the birds mentioned in the Bible have formed subjects of much 
 speculation, when attempts have been made to identify them. The 
 partridge forms no exception. The authority of Dr. Shaw has been 
 frequently appealed to in favour of the Barbary partridge, as the repre- 
 sentative of the bird named in I. Samuel and in Jeremiah. Some 
 having made this statement, speak of this bird {Perdix pefrosd), as if it 
 were identical with the Greek partridge or bartavella {Perdix Grceca = 
 P. saxatilis). But these are different birds. Remarks are also quoted 
 by several commentators, as if made by Shaw, which, however, nowhere 
 occur in his works. In addition to those already mentioned, the red- 
 legged or Guernsey partridge is to be met with in the middle and south 
 of Europe. — Perdix {Caccabis) rubra, Plate XIV., fig. 3. This species 
 was introduced into England about thirty years ago, and now abounds 
 in some of the southern counties. 
 
 Any attempt to identify the bird now under notice, must fulfil two 
 conditions. It must be shown (1) that it is the true partridge of Pales- 
 tine ; and (2) that this partridge is hunted, as described in I. Samuel. 
 It has been strongly argued that the partridge of Scripture was one of 
 the sand grouse {Pterocles), and the pin-tailed species {Pt. alchatd) is 
 specially pointed to. This is the Telras al Chata of the Arabs, and 
 the Hebrew grouse {Tefrao Israelitarum) of Hasselquist, by whom the 
 pin-tailed sand grouse was first discovered. Hasselquist was greatly 
 taken with the form and beauty of this bird. " I was so delighted with 
 the discovery," he says, " that I forgot myself, and almost lost my life 
 before I could get possession of one." But Hasselquist does not try to 
 identify this pterocles with the horeh or partridge of Scripture. He 
 remarks — "These birds are undoubtedly the quails of the Israelites." 
 The sand grouse does not, however, fulfil either of the conditions just 
 mentioned. 
 
 The bird referred to in both passages of Scripture is, no doubt, that 
 described in the following note by an acute and accomplished observer: 
 — ''Caccabis saxatilis, the partridge of the country. The francolin.
 
 I. SAMUEL. 251 
 
 which is stated to inhabit Palestine, did not come under my observa- 
 tion. I cavmot help thinking there are two distinct races of C. saxaiilis^ 
 neither of tliem agreeing exactly with the bird I have procured in 
 Greece 4nd in Crete. The specimens I obtained in the cultivated 
 districts are much lighter in colour than the Greek specimens. The 
 black riollar is narrower, and the throat sandy-white instead of rufous. 
 At thie same time they are at least one-third heavier, and at table rival 
 the pheasant in size. They are of a flavour far superior to the French 
 rer^-legged or Barbary birds. In the mountains I procured others very 
 D].uch smaller than my Greek specimens, but of plumage more like 
 ^^Jhem in hue. The eggs of a nest of this variety, which I took while in 
 the mountains, eleven in number, are scarcely as large as those of 
 Perdix pe^roso."— Tristram's " Notes on Birds observed in Southern 
 Palestine" [Ibis), vol. i., p. 35. I would associate the mountain 
 variety with the reference in the passage under notice ; and the variety 
 met with in the plains, with whose habits the people would be more 
 familiar, may be held as that named by Jeremiah. 
 
 If, as some have done, we plead for the idea of search after a rare 
 bird, as embodied in this verse, the observer quoted above would 
 supply another illustrative note : — " Caccabis Heyii (Temm.). Of this 
 rare bird, perhaps one of the most elegant of its group, I was fortunate 
 enough to obtain a fine specimen. Biding on a barren hill near the 
 Dead Sea, we observed a pair of birds scarcely larger than a quail, 
 running on the steep side with the swiftness of a dog. After a long 
 chase, and forcing them with great difficulty to take wing, one of my 
 companions succeeded in shooting the male bird. We afterwards saw 
 another pair near Mar Saba." As this rare partridge hastened from 
 its pursuers, hiding in a bush at one spot, and resting in the shadows 
 of the stones at another, with its eye ever on its enemies, so David, 
 when he fled from the hand of Saul, took refuge at one time in the 
 mountains and forests, and at another time in dens and caves, warily 
 the while watching all the movements of the tyrant who was in pursuit 
 of him. But another idea is suggested here, which to this day has its 
 illustration in the very localities in which the outlawed son of Jesse 
 may have taken refuge. The expedition undertaken by Saul after 
 David, was that he might be gratified by seeing the blood of one whom 
 he believed an enemy, shed by himself or his servant. He hunted him 
 "as one doth hunt a partridge in the mountains" — " the red-legged 
 partridge," says Dr. Thomson, "of which there are countless flocks in 
 those hills and wadies of Naphtali. It is at them that Salim is exercis-
 
 252 BIBLICAL XATUKAL SCIENCE. 
 
 ing his skill. Should he succeed we shall have the better dinner, for 
 they are twice as large as our American quail, to which, in other 
 respects, they bear a close resemblance. Hear how they cackle and 
 call to one another directly above our heads ! They are very wary, 
 however, and often lead the vexed hunter over many a weary mile ol 
 rough mountains before he can get a shot at them. The erae.ers and 
 feudal chiefs of the country hunt them with the hawk, and keop up, 
 with great pride, the ancient sport of falconry. The birds are gene^rally 
 brought from Persia and the cold mountains of Armenia, and do piot 
 thrive well in this climate. They are of two kinds, a large one f'or 
 wood-cock and red-legged partridges, and a smaller for the quail. Tlii e 
 Beg at the castle of Tibnin, which we are now approaching, always 
 keeps several of these large falcons on their perches in his grand recep- 
 tion-hall, where they are tended with the utmost care. I have been 
 out on the mountains to see them hunt, and it is a most exciting scene. 
 The emeers sit on their horses, holding the birds on their wrists, and 
 the woods are filled with their retainers, beating about and shouting, to 
 start up and drive toward them the poor partridges. When near 
 enough, the falcon is launched from the hand, and swoops down upon 
 his victim like an eagle hasting to the prey. After he has struck 
 his quarry, the falcon flies a shoii; distance, and lights on the ground, 
 amid the redoubled shouts of the sportsmen. The keeper darts 
 forward, secures both, cuts the throat of the partridge, and allows his 
 captor to suck its blood. This is his reward. Notwithstanding the 
 exhilaration of the sport, I could never endure the falcon himself 
 There is something almost satanic in his eye, and in the ferocity with 
 which he drinks the warm life-blood of his innocent victim." 
 
 A good deal of skill has been put forth to little purpose, to discover 
 in the well-known habits of some one member of this group of birds, 
 an illustration of the verse quoted from Jeremiah. To delaj' the con- 
 sideration of this verse until the book of Jeremiah comes under notice, 
 would imply the repetition of a good deal of the matter given above : it 
 is thus considered here. 
 
 The reader will observe that the prophet purposely indicates, that we 
 are not to press the implied comparison as far as we might have done 
 had he used such language as he does at ver. 6, 8, where the words 
 " like " and " as " occur — " He shall be like the heath ; he shall be as 
 a tree planted by the waters." By introducing "as" and "so" into 
 this verse, our translators have suggested a much closer comparison 
 than was in the mind of the prophet. His words are — " The partridge
 
 I. SAMUEL. 
 
 253 
 
 sitteth and liatclieth not ; lie that gettetli riclies and not by right," &c. 
 He had seen what every observer of the habits of our own partridge 
 must have noticed, that frequently, after patient sitting, young fail to 
 make their appearance — the bird fails in the highest end of incubation. 
 He had noticed, likewise, men hastening to be rich ; and when they 
 seemed as likely to attain complete satisfaction in wealth, as the bird 
 would in the midst of her young, their expectations are blasted. They 
 must leave their riches, and be accounted fools, because they have 
 failed in the chief end of their existence. They might brood over 
 their wealth as the partridge over her eggs. She is often disappointed ; 
 they are always so. The eggs of the partridge are very liable to be 
 damaged. The female deposits from ten to fifteen, in many cases 
 literally in the earth. I have met them in hollows without a stick or 
 straw beneath them. In such circumstances a week of unfavourable 
 weather will arrest the progress of the chick. And the female may be 
 seen clinging to her nest for several days beyond the usual time of 
 sitting. The position chosen is often as hurtful. Last breeding season 
 (1862), a nest with thirteen eggs was noticed in a slight hollow close 
 on a beaten cattle track, in danger a hundred times in the day to be 
 trodden upon. Two of the eggs were actually trampled on, and the 
 rest were preserved by a rail being put up to keep off the cattle as they 
 passed. In this case the devotion of the female endangered her own 
 life. The cattle were seen to leave the print of their feet so close to 
 the nest when she was sitting on it, that it was difficult to see how they 
 had not trampled on her. Some years ago I saw another nest with 
 fifteen eggs in it, and as the breeding season had passed, they were 
 broken, and found to contain chicks which must have been within a day 
 or two of breaking the shell. Here again the partridge sat and hatched 
 not. And this is all that the prophet had in view, when he laid such 
 facts alongside of the experience of those that get riches and not by 
 right. They lay every plan to get them ; they will even become blind 
 to the interests of justice itself in pursuing them ; and having got them, 
 they brood over their treasure as the partridge does over her eggs. 
 But their experience is often like hers — when highest hopes just linger 
 on the threshold of realization, they fail. The discovery is made that 
 what they thought life turns out to be death, and such a rich man at 
 his end is a fool. 
 
 The difficulty of this passage has been increased by the marginal 
 reading introduced. In the margin our translators have rendered the 
 expression — "As the partridge gathereth young which she hath not
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 brought forth." But instead of gathering young thus, she attacks and 
 kills any young which she has not hatched. Besides, the Hebrew words 
 do not admit of such a construction. The current belief that the habits 
 of the bartavella illustrate this verse, is scarcely worthy of notice. It is 
 alleged that she seeks the eggs of the stranger, sits on them in its 
 absence, but when the lawful owner returns the intruder is driven away, 
 and that the intruder so expelled is like a man in low circumstances, <S:c. 
 
 " The Brook Besor" (xxx. 10) has not been identified. An exami- 
 nation of the narrative shows, that it must have lain south of Ziklag in 
 the extreme boundary of Judah. 
 
 " Cherethites " (ver. 14), more correctly Gheretldm, one of the smaller 
 tribes of southern Philistia, generally believed to have been a colony of 
 Cretans, who had passed at an early period into Palestine. They are 
 not to be confounded with the " Cherethites and Peleth'tes" (execu- 
 tioners and couriers) of David's body-guard (2 Sam. viii. 18 ; xv. 18 ; 
 XX. 7 ; 1 Kino-s ii. 25, 34, 4G ; 1 Chron. xviii. 17). 

 
 II. SAMUEL. 
 
 255 
 
 II. SAMUEL. 
 
 EBRON (ii. 1) has been specially noticed under Gen. xiii. 18. 
 It is here chosen by the Lord himself, as the chief of tlie 
 cities of Judah. Few, if any, of the other cities of the hind 
 could lay claim to such a history as " the city of Arba, the 
 old Canaanite Chief." In its neighbourhood Abraham first 
 pitched his tent, after God had given him the special promise 
 of the whole land. " AValk through the land in the length of it, 
 and in the breadth of it ; for I will give it unto thee. Then 
 Abraham removed his tent, and came and dwelt in the jilain 
 of Mamre, which is in Hebron" (Gen. xiii. 18). Caleb chose it as 
 his portion. "Joshua blessed him, and gave unto Caleb the son of 
 Jephunneh Hebron for an inheritance. Hebron therefore became the 
 inheritance of Caleb" (Josh. xiv. 13, 14). Its historical associations, 
 its elevated site, the fertile valleys in the neighbourhood, its groves of 
 oak and terebinth trees, all gave importance to the ancient city of 
 Ephron the Hittite (Gen. xxiii. 2). " Every traveller from the desert," 
 says Dr. Stanley, " will have been struck with the sight of that pleasant 
 vale, with its orchards and vineyards, and numberless wells, and in 
 earlier times we must add the grove of terebinths and oaks, which then 
 attracted from far the eye of the wandering tribes. This fertility was 
 in part owing to its elevation into the cooler and more watered region 
 above the dry and withered valleys of the rest of Judea. Commanding 
 this fertile valley, rose Hebron on its crested hill. Beneath was the 
 burial-place of the founders of their race. Caleb must have seen the 
 spot, afterwards his own, when with the spies he passed through this 
 very valley. When David returned from the chase of the Amalekite 
 plunderers on the Desert frontier, and doubted " to which of the cities 
 of Judah he should go up" from the wilderness, the natural features of 
 the place, as well as the oracle of God, answered clearly and distinctly, 
 " Unto Hebron " (" Syria and Palestine," p. 165). 
 
 The adherents of Saul still continued to keep together under the 
 leadership of Abner, who had espoused the cause of Ish-boshcth the son 
 of Saul, and had made him king at Mahanaira. David's men under Joab 
 met Abner's at the great water tank outside of Gibeon, the old Hivite
 
 256 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 city: — '■ And Abner the son of Ner, and the servants of Ish-bosheth the 
 son of Saul, went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon, And Joab the son 
 of Zeruiah, and the servants of David, went out, and met together by 
 the pool of Gibeon : and they sat down, the one on the one side of the 
 pool, and the other on the other side of the pool. And Abner said to 
 Joab, Let the young men now arise and play before us. And Joab said, 
 Let them arise. Then there arose, and went over by number, twelve 
 of Benjamin, which pertained to Ish-bosheth the son of Saul, and twelve 
 of the servants of David. And they caught every one his fellow by the 
 head, and thrust his sword in his fellow's side ; so they fell down 
 together : wherefore that place was called Helkath-hazzurim, which is 
 in Gibeon. And there was a very sore battle that day: and Abner 
 was beaten, and the men of Israel, before the servants of David " 
 (ii. 12—17). 
 
 " Gibeon " means the hill-city. The root of the word occurs frequently 
 in the names of places in the same locality. Thus we have " Gibeah of 
 Benjamin," and " Gibeah of Saul " (1 Sam. xiii. 15, xi. 4), a place lying 
 about five miles to the north of Jerusalem, represented by the modern 
 Tuleil el Ful, or Hill of beans ; " Geba" (1 Sam. xiii. 3), the scene of 
 Jonathan's daring exploit, is now Jeba on the wild hills between Gibeah 
 and Miclimash " (Stanle/j) ; "Gibeah in the field" (Judg. xx. 31), 
 distinguished, in the narrative of the war of other tribes against 
 Benjamin, from "Gibeah of Benjamin;" "The Meadows of Gibeah" 
 (Judg. XX. 33) ; "the hill (Geba) of foreskins" (Josh. v. 3); "the hill of 
 Phinehas" (Josh. xxiv. 33) ; "the hill of Moreh " (Judg. vii. 1); "the 
 hill of Hachilah" (1 Sam. xxiii. 19) ; "the hill of Ammah " (2 Sam. 
 ii. 2, 4) ; " the hill of Gareb " (Jer. xxxi. 39). 
 
 "Gibeon" is the modern el-Jib described by Dr. Robinson : — "We 
 reached," he says, "the village of el-Jib situated on the summit of the hill. 
 It is of moderate size ; the houses stand very irregularly and unevenly, 
 sometimes almost one above another. They seem to be chiefly rooms 
 in old massive ruins, which have fallen down in every direction." One 
 large massive building still remains, perhaps a former castle or tower of 
 strength. The lower rooms are vaulted, with round arches of hewn 
 stones fitted together with great exactness. The stones outside are 
 large, and the whole appearance is that of antiquity. Towards the 
 cast the ridge sinks a little ; and here, a few rods from the village, just 
 below the top of the ridge towards the north, is a fine fountain of water. 
 It is in a cave excavated in and under the high rock, so as to form 
 a large subterraneous reservoir. Not far below it, among the olive-
 
 II. SAMUEL. 257 
 
 trees, are the remains of another open reservoir, about the size of that 
 at Hebron ; perhaps one hundred and twenty feet in length by a hundred 
 feet in breadth. It was doubtless anciently intended to receive the 
 superfluous waters of the cavern. At this time no stream was flowing 
 from the latter. It is not difficult to recognize in el-Jib and its rocky 
 eminence the ancient Gibeon of the Scriptures, the Gabaon of Josephus ; 
 although the specifications which have come down to us respecting the 
 position of that place, are somewhat confused. There is, however, 
 enough in connection with the name to mark the identity of the spot. 
 The name Jib in Arabic is merely the abridged form of the Hebrew 
 Gibeon ; and presents perhaps the most remarkable instance that 
 occurred to us, in which the Ain of the Hebrew, that most tenacious of 
 letters, has been dropped in passing over into the Arabic. In respect 
 to the site of Gibeon the Scriptures are silent ; but Josephus relates 
 that Cestus, marching from Antipatris by way of Lydda, ascended the 
 mountains at Beth-horon, and halted at a place called Gabaon, fifty 
 stadia from Jerusalem. Jerome also relates of Paula, that, passing 
 from Nicopolis, she ascended the mountains at Beth-horon, and saw 
 upon her right, as she journeyed, Ajalon and Gabaon, This ascent at 
 Beth-horon is on the present camel road from Jerusalem to Ramleh 
 and Zafa, which now passes along on the north side of el-Jib, as it 
 anciently in like manner passed by Gibeon. These circumstances, taken 
 together, leave little room for doubt as to the identity of the two places. 
 Gibeon is celebrated in the Old Testament, but is not mentioned in the 
 New. It was ' a great city, as one of the royal cities ; ' and to its juris- 
 diction belonged originally the towns of Beeroth, Chephirah, and 
 Kirjath-jearim. The city is first mentioned in connection with the 
 deceit practised by its inhabitants upon Joshua ; by which although 
 Canaanites (Hivites), they induced the Jewish leader not only to make 
 a league with them and spare their lives and cities, but also in their 
 defence to make war upon the five kings by whom they were besieged. 
 It was in this great battle that ' the sun stood still upon Gibeon.' The 
 place afterwards fell to the lot of Benjamin, and became a Levitical city, 
 where the tabernacle was set up for many years under David and 
 Solomon. Here the latter youthful monarch offered a thousand burnt- 
 offerings ; and in a dream by night communed with God, and asked 
 for himself a wise and understanding heart instead of riches and honour. 
 Here too it was, that Abner's challenge to Joab terminated in the 
 defeat and flight of the former, and the death of Asahel ; and here also 
 
 at a later period Amasa was treacherously slain by Joab." 
 
 VOL. a. 2 K
 
 258 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 David's captain eagerly sought an opportunity to be revenged on 
 Abner for the death of Asahel. This soon occurred : — " When Abner 
 was returned to Hebron, Joab took him aside in the gate, to speak 
 with him quietly, and smote him there under the fifth rib, that he died, 
 for the blood of Asahel his brother" (iii. 27). The deed was one of 
 extreme treachery. He smote him in a part of the body which was sure 
 to prove speedily fatal. The twenty-four ribs of the human frame are 
 divided into two classes. The seven uppermost on each side are 
 marked true ribs ; they are united closely with the breastbone in front, 
 and with the vertebral column behind. The five lower on each side are 
 the false ribs. Three of these are remotely attached to the sternum, or 
 breastbone, by bands of cartilage ; two — the floating ribs — are only 
 joined to the backbone. Counting from the first rib below the clavicle, 
 or shoulderblade, the point of a short sword thrust through the easily 
 pierced layer of intercostal muscle, which unites the fifth and sixth 
 ribs, would reach the vital parts at once. 
 
 On the death of Saul, Israel united with Judah and acknowledged 
 David as their king. The neighbouring nations appear to have thought 
 that this union would lead David to seek foreign conquest. It was thus 
 their policy to weaken the Hebrews as much as they could. Accordingly 
 the Philistines made war on them. Having become the aggressors, 
 they set David free from any obligations which their past kindness to 
 him might have begotten. The hostile forces met in the valley of 
 Rephaim, and Israel conquered. David smote the Philistines in Baal- 
 perazim. After a time the same hosts again met in Rephaim. The 
 king enquired of the Lord and he answered — " Thou shalt not go up ; 
 but fetch a compass behind them, and come upon them over against 
 the mulberry trees. And let it be, when thou hearest the sound 
 of a going in the tops of the mulberry-trees, that then thou shalt 
 bestir thyself: for then shall the Lord go out before thee, to smite the 
 host of the Philistines" (v. 23, 24). The success was again complete; 
 "David smote the Philistines from Geba until thou come to Gazer" 
 (v. 25). The first victory had been marked by some divine interferences; 
 hence the name Baal-perazim (Lord of breaches). The almighty arm had 
 made a breach among the enemies of his people. The second triumph 
 was associated with a sign — " the sound of going in the tops of the 
 mulberry-trees." There is no ground here for the supposition, that this 
 sound intimated to Israel the presence of angelic hosts — ^the tramp of 
 specially-appointed supernatural armies. Though the sign was an 
 intimation that the Lord had gone forth to fight for the people, we are
 
 II. SAMUEL. 
 
 259 
 
 distinctly informed that " David smote the Philistines." The likelihood 
 is, that the same sound which was an encouraging sign to Israel would 
 strike terror into their enemies, just as we are told that by the victory 
 itself "the Lord brought the fear of him upon all nations" (1 Chron. 
 xiv. 17). 
 
 " Mulberrytree," Heb. hciM. It has been too hastily assumed by 
 some, that the mulberry is a native of China only, and was not likely to 
 have been introduced into Palestine at a date so early as that of the 
 incident mentioned here. But there is good reason to believe, that it was 
 indigenous in countries much nearer the territories of David. It might 
 thus have found its way to Palestine, long anterior to the period referred 
 
 Fig. SI. 
 
 to here. There is thus little cause for doubt that the mulberry, which 
 at present is so often to be met with in that land, was the tree named in 
 this passage. It occurs again in the corresponding narrative in 1 Chron. 
 xiv., and is noticed in Psalm Ixxxiv. as giving its name to a valley : — 
 
 Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee ; 
 
 In whose heart are the ways of them : 
 
 Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well. 
 
 The scope of the psalm leads to the choice of this reading, in preference 
 to that which makes Baca equal to " weeping." 
 
 The Mulberry {Marus) is ranked botanically under the nettle tribe,
 
 Urticacece, as the type of a sub-order {Morece). Two species are well- 
 known — the black or common mulberry {M. nigra), and the white 
 mulberry [M. alha), noted as supplying food to the silk moth caterpillar. 
 
 The fruit of the mulberry is edible, that of the black species juicy and 
 pleasant to the taste. This tree was introduced into Britain at an early 
 period by pilgrims from the Holy Land, but it has never been much or 
 successfully cultivated. 
 
 David had pushed his conquests to the farthest limits assigned to 
 Israel on the east. Hadadezer a Syrian king who reigned in Zobah, 
 north of Damascus, had retaken the territory bordering on the Euphrates. 
 In chapter viii. an account is given of David's march against him, and 
 the results : — " David smote also Hadadezer, the son of Rehob, king of 
 Zobah, as he went to recover his border at the river Euphrates " (ver. 3). 
 "The valley of Salt (ver. 13), was part of the locality south of the Dead 
 Sea, now named el-Ghor. 
 
 When David was in full flight from the presence of his rebellious 
 son, Hushai the Archite appeared before Absalom, saying, " God save 
 the king, God save the king" (xvi. IG). Hushai had agreed to David 
 to do this in order to frustrate the counsels of Ahithophel, a crafty man 
 who had deserted the service of David and become the chief adviser of 
 Absalom. The king fled, and Ahithophel asked twelve thousand men 
 with whom he might pursue him. But before granting this, Absalom 
 advised Hushai to be consulted. "And Hushai said unto Absalom, The 
 counsel that Ahithophel hath given is not good at this time. For, 
 said Hushai, thou knowest thy father and his men, that they be mighty 
 men, and they be chafed in their minds, as a bear robbed of her whelps 
 in the field : and thy father is a man of war, and will not lodge with 
 the people. Behold, he is hid now in some pit, or in some other place: 
 and it will come to pass, when some of them be overthrown at the 
 first, that whosoever heareth it will say, There is a slaughter among the 
 people who follow Absalom. And he also that is valiant, whose heart 
 is as the heart of a lion, shall utterly melt : for all Israel knoweth that 
 thy father is a mighty man, and they which be with him are vahant 
 men" (xvii. 7-10). 
 
 "Bear," Heb. duv. The brown bear {Ursus arctos) is no doubt 
 the species referred to here. It was, and still is, to be met with from 
 Spain to the extreme east of Asia. It is common in Syria. The 
 brown bear feeds on roots, fruits, honey, and, when pressed by want, 
 on mammalia. The female's attachment to her young has become 
 proverbial. Many most interesting stories illustrative of this occur in
 
 II. SAMUEL. 
 
 261 
 
 almost all popular works on zoology, and in books of travel in countries 
 in which the bear is indigenous. When surprised with her cubs she 
 will hasten with them into the cave or thicket, and return to drive 
 away the intruder. She will hang for weeks over the body of a cub 
 killed by the gun of the hunter, and watch with the greatest affection 
 over one when wounded. When " robbed of her whelps," the first man 
 met is regarded as the wrong-doer, and is set upon with great ferocity. 
 The bear is frequently mentioned in the Bible. It was met and slain 
 by David when keeping his father's flocks (1 Sam. xvii. 34, 3G, 37). 
 Two she-bears " tore forty and two of the children of Bethel in pieces," 
 who mocked Elisha (2 Kings ii. 23, 24). Solomon says, " Let a bear 
 
 Fit'. 32. 
 
 Crown Ecir ( Ursus arcCos). 
 
 robbed of her whelps meet a man, rather than a fool in his folly." He 
 compares an unjust magistrate to the lion and the bear : — "As a roaring 
 lion and a raging bear; so is a wicked ruler over the poor people" 
 (Prov. xvii. 12, xxviii. 15). The time of blessing in the last days is 
 compared by Isaiah to the "cow and the bear feeding together" (xi. 7). 
 The same prophet represents the people under affliction as " roaring all 
 like bears" (lix. 11). As the "man who had seen affliction," Jeremiah 
 says of God's dealings with him, " He was unto me as a bear lying in 
 wait, and as a lion in secret places " (Lament, iii. 10). God met back- 
 sliding Ephraim with the threatening, " I will meet them as a bear that 
 is bereaved of her whelps, and will rend the caul of their heart, and
 
 262 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 there will I devour them like a lion ; the wild beast shall tear them " 
 (Hos. xiii. 8). Amos uses a figure in which it is implied, that the bear 
 was as much to be dreaded as the lion (v. 19). The bear is also 
 mentioned symbolically (Dan. vii. 5 ; Rev. xiii. 2). 
 
 " Cheese of kine " (xvii. 29). Reference has already (1 Sam. xvii. 
 17.) been made to cheese as an article of diet. David's friends hasten to 
 supply his wants, and the wants of " the people that were with him.'' 
 They bring to him "cheese of kine." The Hebrew words used differ 
 in both passages. The only other instance in which cheese is referred 
 to, yet another word is employed. In 1 Sam. xvii, 17 the Hebrew 
 term is glidreetz, something cut; translated harrows in ch. xii. 31, 
 and 1 Chron. viii. 12. Here the word is shdphdh, which points to the 
 rubbing of the curd before it is pressed. In Job x. 10, where the 
 patriarch bows before the mysteries of his own birth and growth, he 
 exclaims, " Hast thou not poured me out as milk, and curdled me like 
 cheese." In this passage the Hebrew is derived from a little-used root 
 meaning to solidify — to coagulate. These terms are quoted to show, 
 that in each of them an idea associated with cheese occurs, and, no 
 doubt, an article of food, in some respects like that used by us, is spoken 
 of. In Shaw's description of the domestic cattle of Barbary he says — 
 " Here the sheep and the goats contribute also to the dairies, par- 
 ticularly in the making of cheese. Instead of rennet, especially in the 
 summer season, they turn the milk with tlie flowers of the great headed 
 thistle, or wild artichoke, and putting the curds afterwards into small 
 baskets made with rushes, or with the dwarf palm, they bind them up 
 close and press them. These cheeses are rarely above two or three 
 pounds in weight, and in shape and size like our penny loaves ; such 
 perhaps as David carried to the camp of Saul." — ("Travels" i. 308). 
 The cheese and the butter made from goats' milk are alluded to in 
 Prov. xxvii. 27, as the rewards of those who " are diligent to know the 
 state of their flocks, and who look well to their herds:" — "And thou 
 shalt have goats' milk for thy food, for the food of thy household, and 
 for the maintenance for thy maidens." 
 
 If the " last words" of every man demand and never fail to secure 
 attention, how full of interest must be those of David the son of Jesse, 
 the sweet psalmist of Israel! "The Spirit of the Lord," he said, " spake 
 by me, and his word was in my tongue " (xxiii. 2). The character in 
 which he saw God when his shadow was lengthening out, and his sun 
 was about to set in calm and peaceful majesty, is suggestive of the 
 source whence flowed the success of his long and eventful life. " The
 
 II. SAMUEL. 
 
 203 
 
 God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spake to me." All the comforts 
 of grace, and all the blessings of truest and unfailing strength, arc 
 indicated by the words, " God of Israel," and " Rock of Israel." As a 
 true king, David had discovered the one great qualification for king- 
 ship, and the duty associated with his position. Under the figures 
 used in ver. 4, he describes the public aspects of the life of one " that 
 ruleth over men." Whatever should be his personal troubles, house- 
 hold anxieties, or individual feelings and prejudices, all must be laid 
 aside when he comes to act as the king among the people. There are 
 elements of social strife ever at work among the people — tendencies to 
 social disorganization ever active ; and individual prejudices are ever 
 apt to assume the form of political discontent. But before the king's 
 presence all these must give way. No clouds must loom heavily on the 
 State's horizon. The king " shall be as the light of the morning, when 
 the sun riseth, even a morning without clouds." In the second part of 
 ver. 4 another figure of great beauty is employed. As in that drawn 
 from the light it is suggested that the king himself had known dark- 
 ness — misfortune, social evil, and political wrong, in a word, the night 
 of sorrow — so here a time of trial is implied as that threshold of disci- 
 pline which must be passed in order to all true and good Avork. As 
 the rain beautifies the green earth, so his trials were to be so blessed 
 that the admiration of the people would be drawn to him. The king 
 " shall be as the tender grass, springing out of the earth by clear shin- 
 ing after rain." 
 
 For the vegetation referred to as " tender grass " {deshe), see vol. i., 
 p. 59. In this passage it includes generally all the plants which go to 
 make up pasture lands. The Hebrew word is rendered simply " green" 
 in Psalm xxiii. 2. It is the " tender l>srb " named in Deut. xxxii. 2, 
 Job xxxviii. 27; the "grass" in Jer. xiv. 5; and the "tender grass" 
 in Prov. xxvii. 25. (See under Jer. xii. 4.)
 
 2G4 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 I. KINGS. 
 
 HE first and second books of Kings continue tlie history 
 begun in I. Samuel. Tiiey embrace mainly the period 
 from the commencement of the reign of Solomon down to 
 the Babylonish captivity. The writer must have had access 
 X--SJ5 - "•• to important political records. He must also have been 
 ^ well acquainted with the prophecies of Isaiah, and must have 
 written the history before tlie exile (1 Kings xiv. 19, xxiii. 39; 
 2 Kings XX. 17). 
 ,f When David was old, infirm, and unfit for public business, his 
 •^ son Adonijah formed a strong political party, and resolved to take 
 possession of the throne. He secured the co-operation of Joab the son 
 of Zeruiah, and of Abiathar the priest. In order to liasten speedy 
 action, he called all the influential people to a feast. " And Adonijah 
 slew sheep, and oxen, and fat cattle, by the stone of Zoheleth, wdiich is 
 by En-rogel, and called all his brethren the king's sons, and all the 
 men of Judah the king's servants. But Nathan the prophet, and 
 Benaiah, and the mighty men, and Solomon his brother, he called not" 
 (i. 9, 10). Nathan and Beniah soon showed that they were more than 
 a match for Adonijah's faction. The place chosen for the feast was in 
 the immediate neighbourhood of Jerusalem, near to a noted stone — the 
 stone of Zoheleth. This again was close by En-rogel, the fountain of 
 Rogel named in Joshua xv. 7, xviii. 16, as the boundary line between 
 Judah and Benjamin. Dr. Bonar has the merit of having identified 
 En-rogel with the spring which supplies the waters of the Pool of 
 Siloam ("Land of Promise," p. 492). 
 
 The imderstanding heart for which Solomon had prayed, and which 
 he had obtained (iii.), soon showed its influence on the affairs of the 
 kingdom. The first proof which he gave that he was under its power, 
 was seen in the decision regarding the two children referred to in the 
 same chapter. In chapter iv., "the wisdom of God in him" crops out 
 in the organization brought into action for the administration of his 
 house and his kingdom. He surrounded himself witli men able to 
 advise him (ver. 1-G), and appointed twelve governors of districts, who 
 were not only to rule over them, but each in his month to provide
 
 I. KINGS. 
 
 265 
 
 victuals for the king and his household. Among these Abinadab, the 
 son of Iddo, had Mahanaim, or "the Double Camp" — a name given to 
 the place by Jacob (Gen. xxxii. 3), when the angel of God met him. 
 It lay in Gilead, north of the Jabbok, in what afterwards became the 
 boundary line between Gad and Manassch. It was one of the Levitical 
 cities — the residence of Ish-bosheth during his short and troubled reign, 
 and the place to which David fled at the time of Absalom's rebellion. 
 " And Solomon's provision for one day was thirty measures of fine 
 
 Ten fat oxen, and twenty 
 
 flour, and threescore measures of meal. 
 
 rig. 83. 
 
 Fallow Deer (Cervus dama), 
 
 oxen out of the pastures, and an hundred sheep, besides harts, and 
 roebucks, and fallow deer, and fatted fowl" (iv. 22, 23). The "fat 
 oxen" are those referred to in Prov. xv. 17, as "stalled oxen." Verse 
 23 is more fully noticed under Deut. xiv. 5, and verse 28 under Ezek. 
 iv, 12, which see. Three of the deer kind ( Cervtdce) are named here 
 — the hart, the roebuck, and the fallow deer. 
 
 Solomon's botanical attainments are indicated in verse 33 — "He 
 spake of trees, from the cedar that is in Lebanon, even unto the hyssop 
 
 VOL. II. 2Xj
 
 206 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE, 
 
 that springs out of the wall." The place of the cedar in modern 
 classification has been pointed out under Judg. ix. 15, which see. The 
 learned and wise son of David " spake of the cedar (Heb. erez) of 
 Lebanon" {Cedrus Lihani) ; that is, he described its place among the 
 other fir-trees, pointed out, no doubt, its uses, and referred to its beauty 
 as one of "the trees of God" (vi. 33). 
 
 The situation in which the cedars in the time of Solomon stood, may 
 Fig. 84. be regarded geographically in 
 
 the centre of a vast region, 
 whose extremities to the east 
 and the west supply other two 
 species, equally noted botani- 
 cally with the cedar of Lebanon. 
 These are the Atlantic cedar 
 (C. Atlantica) of the forests of 
 Algeria on the west, and the 
 deodar (C. Deodara) of the grand 
 Himalayan range on the east. 
 And if, as it should, the Lebanon 
 chain be taken as an offshoot 
 from the Taurus, the cedars of 
 that group may be looked upon 
 as the connecting links between 
 the cedar of Lebanon and the 
 Cedar of Lebanon (c«/r«L,7«m). dcodar ; whllc anothcr species, 
 
 the silver cedar (C. argentea) of Asia Minor, links the trees of Lebanon 
 with those of the Taurus. The Lebanon forest may also be regarded 
 as bringing the forests of the Himalayas and those of Northern 
 Africa into close relation. The cedar forests of Algeria are above 
 one thousand four hundred miles distant from those of Asia Minor. 
 The Kedisha valley of Lebanon, where the true cedars occur, is more 
 than two hundred and fifty miles distant from the nearest point in the 
 Taurus chain — the range of Bulgar-dagh, where cedar forests are found, 
 to the east. Dr. Hooker visited the cedar grove of Lebanon in 1860. 
 He reached with his party the Kedisha valley on the 29th of Septem- 
 ber, and camped at its head in the evening, at an elevation of six 
 thousand one hundred and seventy-two feet. They ascended the 
 Lebanon twice, with the view of studying the relative position of the 
 grove to the surrounding country. The trees were counted and 
 measured. A section was made of the lower limb of one of the oldest
 
 t. KINGS. 267 
 
 trees, which lay dead on the ground. This section gave them "a totally 
 different idea of the hardness of cedar wood from what English-grown 
 specimens do." " So far," adds Dr. Hooker, " as is at present generally 
 known, the cedars are confined on Lebanon to one spot, at the head of 
 the Kedisha valley ; they have, however, been found by Ehrenberg in 
 valleys to the northward of this. The Kedisha valley, at six thousand 
 feet elevation, terminates in broad, shallow, flat-floored basins, and is 
 two to three miles across, and as much long ; it is here in a straight 
 line fifteen miles from the sea, and about three or four from the summit 
 of Lebanon, which is to the northward of it. These open basins have 
 shelving sides, which rise from two to four thousand feet above their 
 bases ; they exactly resemble what are called "corries" in many highland 
 mountains; the floor of that in which the cedars grow presents almost a 
 dead level to the eye, crossed abruptly and transversely by a confused 
 range of ancient moraines, which have been deposited by glaciers that, 
 under very different conditions of climate, once filled the basin above 
 them, and communicated with the perpetual snow with which the whole 
 summit of Lebanon was at that time deeply covered. The moraines 
 are perhaps eighty to one hundred feet high ; their boundaries are 
 perfectly defined, and they divide the floor of the basin into an upper 
 and lower flat area. The rills from the surrounding heights collect on 
 the upper flat, and form one stream, which winds amongst the moraines 
 on its way to the lower flat, whence it is precipitated into the gorge of 
 the Kedisha. The cedars grow on that portion of the moraine which 
 immediately borders this stream, and nowliere else ; they form one 
 group about four hundred yards in diameter, with an outstanding tree 
 or two not far from the rest, and appear as a black speck in the great 
 area of the corry and its moraines, which contain no other arboreous 
 vegetation, nor any shrubs, but a few small berberry and rose bushes that 
 form no feature in the landscape. The number is about four hundred, 
 and they are disposed in nine groups, corresponding with as many 
 hummocks of the range of moraines. They are of various sizes, from about 
 eighteen inches to upwards of forty feet in girth ; but the most remark- 
 able and significant fact connected with their size, and consequently 
 with the age of the grove, is that there is no tree of less than eighteen 
 inches' girth, and that we found no young trees, bushes, nor even 
 seedlings of a second year's growth. AVe had no means of estimating 
 accurately the ages of the youngest or oldest tree ; nor shall we have, 
 till the specimens of the former arrive. It may be remarked, however 
 that the wood of the branch of the old tree, cut at the time, is eight
 
 2G8 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 t) 
 
 inches in diameter (exclusive of bark), presents an extremely firm, com- 
 pact, and close-grained texture, and has no less than one hundred and 
 forty rings, which are so close in some parts that they cannot be 
 counted without a lens. This specimen, further, is both harder and 
 browner than any English-grown cedar or native deodar, and is as 
 odoriferous as the latter. These, however, are the characters of an 
 old lower branch of a very old tree, and are no guide to the general 
 character of the wood on the Lebanon, and still less to that of English- 
 grown specimens, which are always very inferior in colour, odour, 
 grain, and texture. Calculating only from the rings in this branch, 
 the youngest trees in Lebanon would average one hundred years old, 
 the oldest two thousand five hundred, both estimates no doubt widely 
 far from the mark. Calculating from trunks of English rapidly-grown 
 specimens, their ages might be calculated as low respectively as five 
 and two hundred years ; while from the rate of growth of the Chelsea 
 cedars, the youngest trees may be twenty-two, and the oldest six to 
 eight hundred years old." 
 
 The cedar grove of Lebanon has ever had attractions to travellers. 
 The association of the cedar with Solomon's botanical knowledge, the 
 great prominence given to it in the writings of the prophets, and its 
 use as one of the trees most frequently referred to as an emblem, have 
 all thrown much interest around those still standing in the Kedisha, or 
 Holy Valley. The records which travellers have left of their number, 
 indicate how little influence the lapse of centuries has had on the oldest 
 trees. " Probably," says Dr. Robinson, " no two persons would fully 
 agree in respect to the number of the old trees, or of the whole. Yet 
 I should be disposed to concur with the language of Burckhardt, who 
 says : — ' Of the oldest and best looking trees, I counted eleven or 
 twelve ; twenty-five very large ones ; about fifty of middling size ; and 
 more than three hundred smaller and young ones.' Yet there is no 
 room to doubt, but that during the last three centuries the number of 
 earlier trees has diminished by nearly or quite one half; while the 
 young growth has in great part, if not wholly, sprung up during that 
 interval. Biisching enumerates by name no less than twenty-six 
 travellers between a.d. 1550 and 1755, from P. Belon to Stephen 
 Schulz, who had described and counted the trees ; and since that time 
 the number of like descriptions has probably been hardly less than 
 twice as many. In the sixteenth century the number of old trees is 
 variously given as from twenty-eight to twenty-three ; in the seven- 
 teenth, from twenty-four to sixteen ; in the eighteenth, from twenty
 
 I. KINGS. 
 
 269 
 
 to fifteen. After the lapse of another century, the number of the oldest 
 trees, as we have seen, is now reduced to about a dozen. All this 
 marks a gradual process of decay ; and it also marks the difficulty of 
 exact enumeration. This is rightly ascribed by Fiirer, and also by 
 Dandini, to the fact, that many of the trees have two or more stems ; 
 and were thus reckoned differently by different travellers, sometimes as 
 one tree, and sometimes as two or more. All the travellers of the 
 sixteenth century speak only of the old trees ; they nowhere mention 
 any young ones. Ranwolf, himself a botanist, seems to say expressly, 
 that he sought for young trees, without being able to find any. If this 
 be so, it would appear, that with the exception of the few remaining 
 ancient trees, perhaps none of those, which now make up the grove, 
 can be regarded as reaching back in age more than three hundred 
 years." 
 
 The following list gives the numbering of the cedars by different 
 travellers : — 
 
 Authors. 
 
 Belon, . . 
 
 
 
 Years 
 
 . 1550 
 
 No. of 
 
 Ancient Trees. 
 
 ... 23 
 
 Fiirer, . . 
 
 
 
 . 1556 
 
 ... 25 
 
 
 Ranwolf, . 
 Jacobi, 
 
 
 
 . 1575 
 . 1599 
 
 ... 24 
 
 ... 26 
 
 and two stripped of branches, 
 including two dead ones. 
 
 Radzivil, . 
 
 
 
 . 1583 
 
 ... 24 
 
 
 VillatQont, 
 
 
 
 . 1590 
 
 ... 24 
 
 
 Haraut, 
 
 
 
 1598 
 
 .. 24 
 
 
 Dandini, . 
 
 
 
 1600 
 
 .. 23 
 
 
 Lithgow, . 
 Roger, 
 
 
 
 1609 
 1632 
 
 .. 24 
 .. 22 
 
 seventeen others evidently young 
 and two dead. 
 
 D'Arvieux, 
 
 
 
 1660 
 
 .. 23 
 
 
 De La Roquc, 
 
 
 
 1688 
 
 .. 20 
 
 
 ilaundre!. 
 
 
 
 1696 
 
 .. 16 
 
 
 Korte, . . 
 
 
 
 1758 
 
 .. 18 
 
 
 Pococke, . 
 Schulz, . . 
 
 
 
 1739 
 1755 . 
 
 .. 16 
 
 .. 20 
 
 one prostrate. 
 
 Seetzen, , 
 
 
 
 1805 . 
 
 14 
 
 
 Burckhardt, . 
 Richardson, . 
 
 
 
 1810 . 
 1818 
 
 .. 11 
 .. 15 
 
 very old— 25 very large, younger. 
 
 Wilson, . 
 
 
 
 1843 
 
 12 
 
 very old — whole number in the gi 
 
 JThomson, 
 
 
 
 1857 . 
 
 .. 143 
 
 all sorts of one group. 
 
 Hooker, . 
 
 
 
 1860 
 
 .. 400 
 
 all sorts in the nine groups. 
 
 The variety in the estimates is to be found in the point of view of the 
 travellers. Some give the numbers of those only which they believed 
 must have flourished since the days of Solomon ; others reckoned
 
 270 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 none but tlie very large ones; and others the whole number to be found 
 in the neighbourhood of the Kedisha Valley. 
 
 In systematic botany the cedar gives its name to a genus of dicoty- 
 ledonous plants (Cednis) belonging to the natural order Contfcra;, or 
 cone-bearing family, like our pine (Pmus), fir (Abies), larch (Larix), &c. 
 Like most of the trees of this order, it has a tapering trunk, branches 
 thickest and longest nearest the ground, occurring at greater intervals 
 as they approach the top of the trunk. Its wood is formed by the 
 annual addition of a concentric ring, as in all the outside growers 
 (exogens), and is hardest inside. The soft wood lies on the outside. 
 Its leaves are narrow, long, pointed, clustered, and evergreen. Its 
 cones are erect, oblong, broad at the point, with thickly-packed quad- 
 rangular scales and seeds. The cone of Cedrus Lihani is larger than 
 that of the African species. It is about the same size as the cone of 
 the deodar, but it is distinguished from it by the form of its scales and 
 seeds ; those of the deodar differing very little, if at all, from the 
 cone scales of the African cedar. 
 
 Like most of the conifers, the cedar has wide-spreading roots, which 
 pass generally beyond the area shaded by the branches. In situations 
 such as those in which many of our pines and firs stand, where there is 
 little surface earth lying on the rocks beneath, the cedar makes up for 
 the thinness of the soil by a great extension of its root branches, which 
 strike down also into the crevices of the rocks, and thus obtain such a 
 firm standing as to be able to defy the hurricane itself. 
 
 The wood of the cedar is highly resinous, and when burned gives 
 out a strong odour. It is reddish white, much lighter in hue than the 
 so-called cedar wood, with which we are all familiar from its use in 
 pencil-making. This is the wood of a juniper indigenous in the West 
 Indian islands. See also under 2 Kings xiv. 9 ; 1 Chron. xiv. 1 ; 
 Ezra iii. 7 ; Ps. xcii. 12 ; Isa. ii. 13 ; Zeph. ii. 14. 
 
 Solomon's botanical knowledge had made him familiar with the cedar 
 wood — its beauty, durability, and general fitness for certain building 
 purposes — and he set abo-ut providing supplies for the wood-work of the 
 temple. He sent to his father's friend, Hiram king of Tyre, saying to 
 him — "I purpose to build an house unto the name of the Lord my God, 
 as the Lord spake unto David my father, saying. Thy son, whom I will 
 set upon thy throne in thy room, he shall build iin house unto my 
 name. Now therefore command thou that they hew me cedar-trees 
 out of Lebanon ; and my servants shall be with thy servants : and 
 unto thee will I give hire for thy servants, according to all that thou
 
 I. KINGS. 271 
 
 shalt appoint" (v. 5, G). Hiram understood the request of Solomon 
 as including not only cedars, but conifers generally, whicli were useful 
 as building timber. Thus in his answer he says — " I have considered 
 the things which thou sentest to me for : and I will do all thy desire 
 concerning timber of cedar, and concerning timber of fir" (ver. 8). And 
 again at verse 10 we are informed, that " Hiram gave Solomon cedar- 
 trees and fir-trees according to all his desire." 
 
 " Fir," Heb. herosh. Though in this passage we are not warranted 
 to assign more than a very general meaning to the word, there is 
 certainly good ground for holding, that we have in Scripture material 
 for a closer approach to the kind of wood mentioned by this name, than 
 that it was simply timber of other coniferous trees besides the cedar. 
 A clear generic distinction is drawn between " fir" and " pine," tidlidr, 
 in Isaiah Ix. 13 — which see. We may safely take the modern botanical 
 genera Abies (fir), and Pimis (pine), as illustrative of this distinction. In 
 this case, the genus Cupressus or cypress would have no claim to be 
 reckoned with the berosh or fir named here. Indeed, a glance at the 
 magnificent description of the greatness of the Assyrian (Ezek. xxxi. 
 3-9), in which the fir-tree is specially noted for its boughs, might have 
 suggested the impropriety of attempting, as has often been done, to 
 identify the fir with the common cypress (C. sempervirens) . The 
 branches of the cypress are not distinguished by their wide-spreading. 
 They are erect, and close in on the trunk, like those of the Lombardy 
 poplar. The same style of remark may be used as to Ps. civ. 17. 
 
 The " fir " is first noticed as having supplied wood for musical 
 instruments, " David and all the house of Israel played before the Lord, 
 on all manner of instruments made of fir wood " (2 Sam. vi. 5). As 
 serviceable for building purposes, in addition to the passage under 
 notice, it is specially referred to in chapter vi. 15, 34; 2 Kings xix. 23; 
 2 Chron. ii. 8, iii. 5. It is named in Ps. civ. 17, as supplying a resting- 
 place for the stork — which see. The allusions to it by the prophets 
 will be considered under Isa. xiv. 8. 
 
 " Hyssop," Heb. ezov. Hyssop is mentioned nine times in the Old 
 and twice in the New Testament. Much attention has been given to 
 it, chiefly because it is named in connection with the crucifixion of our 
 Lord. John's words are — " There was set a vessel full of vinegar ; 
 and they filled a spunge with vinegar, and put it upon hyssop, and put 
 it to his mouth " (xix. 29). Now ]\Iatthew says nothing about hyssop, 
 but names a reed instead, as if it were the same as the hyssop of John : 
 — :" Straightway one of them ran, and took a spunge, and filled it with
 
 272 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink " (xxvii. 48) ; 
 the force of the statement in both passages being, that the vinegar- 
 filled spunge was put on the end of a rod. This did not require to be 
 of great length, because the popular impression that the cross was 
 highly elevated is not warranted. The feet of the one crucified were 
 only raised a little above the stone which formed the socket for the 
 cross. This should be kept in mind iu attempts to identify the hyssop 
 of Scripture, Other passages in which it is mentioned refer to its 
 
 Fig. 85. 
 
 Caper Plant {Capparis spinoaa), 
 
 use (1) for sprinkling the blood of the paschal lamb on the door-posts 
 at the time of the departure from Egypt (Exod. xii. 22), and (2) to its 
 use in the Levitical ritual (Levit. xiv. 4, 6, 51, 52; Numb. xix. 6, 18). 
 The chief points to be noticed in order to identification are — (1) That 
 the hyssop spoken of as scientifically described by Solomon was 
 relatively small. We are not entitled to assume that the cedar was 
 the largest of trees, and the hyssop the smallest of plants, but only
 
 I. KINGS. 273 
 
 that compared with the cedar the hyssop was very small. (2) That 
 the plant supplied stalks which, when put together, formed a bunch 
 that could be used in sprinkling blood. (3) That some of its stalks 
 grew to the size and strength of short rods. (4) Subordinate to these, 
 that a plant having such characteristics was associated in the minds of 
 the people with matters of cleanliness and public health. Between 
 twenty and thirty different plants have been proposed, but no one of 
 them comes so near the above requirements as the caper plant 
 {Capparis spinosa). It grows "out of the wall;" its stalks supply 
 both bunch and rod admirably fitted for the ends indicated ; and it has 
 ever been esteemed in the East as possessing cleansing properties. 
 Royle has devoted very great pains to the identification of the hyssop. 
 He is strongly in favour of the claims of the caper plant, and rejects 
 those urged in behalf of the common hyssop {Hijssopus officinalis). 
 " The lasaf or asaf," says Dr. Stanley, " the caper plant, the bright 
 green creeper which climbs out of the fissures of the rock in the 
 Sinaitic valleys, has been identified on grounds of great probability 
 with the ' hyssop ' of Scripture, and thus explains whence came the 
 green branches used, even in the desert, for sprinkling the water over 
 the tents of the Israelites." This plant is the lasaf of Lepsius and 
 Stanley, the aszef of Burckhardt and Eichardson, and the lussuff of 
 Bonar, " This," says the last mentioned, " is Wady Taiyiheh or ' the 
 good ' — so called from its tarfas, palms, and water, which latter, how- 
 ever, we did not taste nor see. This valley winds for about a mile ; 
 then the great white mountain-wall gradually lowers itself — notched 
 and cracked all over as by some superhuman axe or hammer — leaving 
 solitary peaks in the valley, and ridges, like camels' backs, abutting 
 against it. A bright green plant or shrub inserts itself into the 
 crevices, and adorns the yellow rock with its fringes or tassels of fair 
 green. Lussuff, my guide called it; and probably it is the hyssop 
 plant, as the likeness of the words seems to indicate ; if so, it illustrated 
 the expression — ' the hyssop that groweth on the wall ' (1 Kings iv. 
 33). In leaf it resembled the Portugal laurel ; but in size it was much 
 smaller. Israel would have access to it as they passed through the 
 desert, and would have sufficient supply for the performing of the 
 ceremonies appointed for the cleansing of leprosy. They were to take 
 ' cedar- wood, and scarlet (wool or cloth), and hyssop ' (Lev. xiv. 4, 6, 
 51, 52), and dip them in the blood of the slain bird. For such a 
 purpose the lussuff would suit well. The shrub, however, which is 
 called hyssop by the monks, is not lussuff at all, but a sweet-scented 
 
 VOL. H. 2 M
 
 274 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 plant of a mucli smaller size which they call Jadheh, which we often 
 plucked among the sands and rocks." 
 
 The zoological attainments of the wise king embraced descriptions 
 of beasts, birds, reptiles, and fishes. The importation of apes and 
 peacocks by means of the ships of Tarshish (2 Chron. ix. 21), shows 
 how diligently Solomon prosecuted his natural history studies. The 
 lakes, rivers, and streams of his territory, all of which, with the 
 exception of the Dead Sea, still abound in fish, would supply ample 
 means for gratifying his mind in studying fishes. His opportunities of 
 free communication with the Red Sea were much more frequent than 
 a few years before his accession they could have been. There such 
 forms as the Flying Fish [Dadijloptera Mediterraned), the common 
 Remora {Echeneis remord), the IMediterranean Forkbeard {Phycis Medi- 
 terraneus), the Oblong Sun-fisli {Orthorjorisciis ohlongiis), the Dory 
 [Zeusfaher), and the Sword-fish {Xiphias gladius), would all afford rich 
 themes to Solomon as he "spoke of fishes." See Plate XXVllL, Figs. 
 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. 
 
 "Hiram was ever a lover of David" (v. 1); see under 1 Chron. 
 xiv. 1. " Solomon sent and fetched Hiram from Tyre. He was a 
 widow's son of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, 
 a worker in brass" (vii. 13, 14); see vol. i., p. 153. "Lily-work" 
 (ver. 22) ; see under Song ii. 1. 
 
 The navy of Hiram "brought gold from Ophir" (x. 11). Gold — see 
 vol. i., p. 95. In Solomon's time it was imported from Ophir, and 
 along with it " plenty of almug trees and precious stones." The use 
 made of the almug trees is described in the next verse : — " And the 
 king made of the almug trees pillars for the house of the Lord, and for the 
 king's house, harps also and psalteries for singers : there came no such 
 almug trees, nor were seen unto this day." The account of the same 
 transactions given in 2 Chron. ix. 10, 11, differs in some features from 
 this, and "a/»i?/r/" is there written "alguiu;" "And the servants also 
 of Huram, and the servants of Solomon, which brought gold from 
 Ophir, brought algum trees and precious stones. And the king made 
 of the algum trees terraces to the house of the Lord, and to the king's 
 palace, and harps and psalteries for singers : and there were none such 
 seen before in the land of Judah." In one or two other passages more 
 information is communicated regarding the mercantile alliance between 
 the Phanician, Hiram king of Tyre, and the Hebrew monarch : — " For 
 the king had at sea a navy of Tharshish with the navy of Hiram : once 
 in three years came the navy of Tharshish, bringing gold, and silver,
 
 I. KINGS. 275 
 
 ivory, and apes, and peacocks" (ver. 22). Thus Solomon's great riches 
 and his lavish means of luxury for his court : " And all the drinking- 
 vessels of king Solomon were of gold, and all the vessels of the house 
 of the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold : none were of silver ; it was 
 not any thing accounted of in the days of Solomon. For the king's ships 
 went to Tarshish with the servants of Huram : every three years once 
 came the ships of Tarshish, bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, 
 and peacocks" (2 Chron. ix. 20, 21). 
 
 The places mentioned in these transactions claim special notice. 
 Most attempts to fix the position of Ophir have been made from a wrong 
 starting point. A gold-bearing region has been selected, and efforts 
 made to bring the Scripture statements into harmony with the locality 
 thus arbitrarily chosen. Wherever Ophir may have been, it must have 
 been so situated that a fleet sailing from a port on the Eed Sea could 
 reach it. In the preceding chapter we are distinctly informed, that 
 " king Solomon made a navy of ships in Ezion-geber, which is 
 beside Eloth, on the shore of the Red Sea, in the land of Edom. And 
 Hiram sent in the navy his servants, shipmen that had knowledge of 
 the sea, with the servants of Solomon. And they came to Ophir, and 
 fetched from thence gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought 
 it to king Solomon " (ix. 26-28). Ezion-geber, or gaber, was situated 
 at the head of the Elanitic Gulf, or eastern horn of the Red Sea. It 
 has been fully noticed under Numbers xxxiii. 35. 
 
 Three regions have been specially named in attempts to fix the 
 geographical position of Ophir — the neighbourhood of Goa in India, 
 the south of Arabia, and the districts of Zanquebar and Mozambique in 
 Africa. The strength of the claim put in for each, is the alleged fact 
 that all the articles of merchandise referred to in connection with the 
 voyages of the Hebrew and Syrian ships from Ezion-geber, are to be 
 met with there. But this is not true of all ; the almug wood is limited 
 to one of the regions. Josephus after noticing the district of Eloth 
 says : — " This country formerly belonged to the Jews, and became 
 useful for shipping, from the donations of Hiram, king of Tyre ; for he 
 sent a sufficient number of men thither for pilots, and such as were 
 skilful in navigation, to which Solomon gave this command, that they 
 should go along with his own stewards to the land that was of old 
 called Ophir, but now the Aurea Chersonesits, which belongs to India, 
 to fetch gold. And when they had gathered four hundred talents 
 together they returned to the king again " (Ant. viii. 6. § 4). The belief 
 in the Indian situation of Ophir has been most generally held by the
 
 best scholars and historical critics. A curious light is shed upon the 
 general character of this belief, during the middle ages, in the spurious 
 work on the history of Phoenicia, forged during that period, and 
 reproduced in Germany in 1837 as Philo's version of the Phoenician 
 historian Sanchoniathon's history, fragments of which are preserved in 
 Eusebius. The chief value of this work is, that, regarding it as a 
 medioeval forgery, it has preserved to us the views held at the time it 
 was written, on many points of ethnographical and purely historical 
 knowledge. It was published at Bremen, and translated into Latin by 
 F. Wagenfeld, purporting to be a MS. which had been recently dis- 
 covered in a Portuguese monastery. A review of the controversy to 
 which this pretended work of an historian believed to have lived before 
 the time of the Trojan war led, leaves little doubt that it is of mediaeval 
 origin, and may be quoted from this point of view. The period 
 embraced in the following extracts is that during which Solomon 
 reigned at Jerusalem, and Hiram at Tyre. The island named 
 Rachius is Ceylon, the Ethiopians mentioned are inhabitants of India, 
 Joramus is Hiram, and Irenius of Judea, Solomon : — " Joramus 
 directed all the eparchs in the cities and islands to make out and send 
 to Tyre descriptions of the inhabitants, their ships, their arms, their 
 horses, their scythe-bearing chariots, and their property of all kinds ; 
 and he ordered them to send to distant countries persons competent to 
 draw up narratives of the same kind, and to record them all in a book. 
 In this manner he obtained accurate geographical descriptions of all 
 the regions to the east and the west, both islands and inland parts. 
 But the iEthiopians represented to the king that to the south there 
 were great and renowned countries, densely populated, and rich in 
 precious things, gold and silver^ pearls, gems, ebony, pepper, elephants, 
 monkei/s, parrots, peacocks, and innumerable other things ; and that 
 there was a peninsula so far to the east that the inhabitants could see 
 
 the sun rising out of the sea." " Subsequently Joramus 
 
 addressed himself to Irenius of Judea, and undertook that if he would 
 let the Tyrians have a harbour on the sea towards -^Ethiopia, he would 
 assist him in the building of a palace, in which he was then engaged, 
 and bind himself to supply him with materials of cedar and fir, and 
 squared stones. Irenius assenting, made over to Joramus the city and 
 harbour of Ilotha." . . . . " They sailed from Ilotha." . . . . " They 
 then sailed eastward along the shore for ten days. There an immense 
 region extends to the south, and the .^Ethiopians dwell in numerous 
 populous and well-circumstanced cities, and navigate the sea. Their
 
 I. KINGS. 277 
 
 ships are not suited for war, and have no sails. And having sailed 
 thirty-six days to the southward, the Tyrians arrived at the island of 
 
 Eachius." " And when it was known that they had arrived 
 
 (for the rumour of their approach had preceded them), the inhabitants 
 rushed from the city in a body to see the Tyrians ; some riding on 
 elephants, some on asses, some in palanquins, but the greater part on 
 foot. And the commander having conducted them into a spacious and 
 splendid palace, caused the gates to be closed, that the crowd might 
 not make their way in ; and led the Tyrians to the king Rachius, who 
 was seated on a beautiful couch. Presents were then interchanged. 
 To the Tyrians who brought horses and purple robes, and seats of 
 cedar, the king gave in return pearls, gold, two thousand elephants' 
 teeth, and much unequalled cinnamon ; and he entertained them as 
 guests for thirty days. Some of the Tyrians perished in the island, 
 
 one indeed by sickness, but the others smitten by the gods." 
 
 " One of those who died was a native of Jerusalem." "They 
 
 find stones containing gold in the rivers, and pearls on the sea-shore. 
 Four kings govern the island, all subordinate to the paramount 
 sovereign, to whom they pay as tribute, cassia, ivory, gems, and pearls; 
 for the king has gold in the greatest abundance. 
 
 " The first of these kings reigns in the south, where there are herds 
 of elephants, of which great numbers are captured of surprising size." 
 
 " The second king governs the western regions, which 
 
 produce cinnamon ; and it was there the Tyrian ships cast anchor." — 
 (See " Ceylon," by Sir Emerson Tennent, vol. i.) 
 
 In Genesis x. 29, we learn that Heber's second son's name was 
 Joktan, and that among his children was one named Ophir. It is 
 concluded from this, that, as Joktan's descendants took possession of 
 Arabia, one of them gave his name, Ophir, to a gold-yielding district 
 in that country. This passage is valuable from another point of view 
 than that from which it is generally quoted. It shows that Ophir, 
 " the far off," was truly a proper name, and not a general designation 
 for a distant country. Arabia might supply some of the articles of 
 commerce mentioned in the account of the voyage from Ezion-gebcr, 
 but others were not to be found in it. The modern el-Ophii\ in the 
 district of Oman, is most likely the only direct trace of the son of 
 Joktan. It may fairly be accepted as such. This suggests the pro- 
 bability that, as we shall see may have been the case with Tharshish, 
 there were several places bearing this name. We must thus seek for 
 the geographical situation in connection both with the name and the
 
 products referred to. lu looking to the alleged African position, tlie 
 same remarks hold good. There is, it has been said, a gold district 
 called Phura in the interior of Mozambique. Is not this the Ophir of 
 Scripture? Again, is it not most likely that the name Africa itself is 
 a corruption of Ophir ? Even could an afSrmative be claimed in 
 behalf of Phura and Africa being derived from the Scripture word, the 
 question of the geographical position of Ophir would still remain. Tlie 
 latest contribution to the literature of the questions now discussed, 
 occurs in Max Miiller's lectures on the Science of Language. The 
 following extract gives a general review of this passage : — " You 
 remember," he says, "the fleet of Tharshish (1 Kings viii. 21) which 
 came once in three years, bringing (jold and silver, ivory, apes, and 
 peacocks. The same navy, which was stationed on the shore of the 
 Red Sea, is said to have fetched gold from Ophir (1 Kings ix. 26), and 
 to have brought, likewise, great plenty of algum-trees and precious 
 stones from Ophir. Well, a great deal has been written to find out 
 where this Ophir was; but there can be no doubt that it was in India. 
 The names for apes, peacocks, ivory, and algum-trees, are foreign words 
 in Hebrew, as much as gutta-percha and tobacco are in English. Now, 
 if we wished to know from what cownivy gutta-p>erclia was first imported 
 into England, we might safely conclude that it came from the country 
 where the name, gutta-percha, formed part of the language spoken. If, 
 therefore, we can find a language in which the names peacock, apes, 
 ivory, algum-trees, are indigenous, we may be certain that the country 
 in which that language was spoken must have been the Ophir of the 
 Bible. That language is no other but Sanskrit. 
 
 ''^Apes are called in Hebrew Koph, a word without an etymology in 
 the Semitic languages, but nearly identical in sound with the Sanskrit 
 name of ape, Kapi. 
 
 '■^ Ivory is called either Karnoth-shen, horns of tooth; or sheyi hahhim. 
 This hahhim is again without a derivation in Hebrew, but it is most 
 likely a corruption of the Sanskrit name for an elephant, ihha, preceded 
 by the Semitic article. 
 
 ''Peacocks are called in Hebrew takhi-im, and this finds its explanation 
 in the name used for peacock on the coast of Malabar, tog'ei, which in 
 turn has been derived from the Sanskrit sikhin, meaning, 'furnished 
 with a crest.' 
 
 "All these are indigenous in India, though of course they might have 
 been found in other countries likewise. Not so the algum-tree; at least 
 if interpreters are right in taking aJgum or almug for sandalwood.
 
 I. KINGS. 279 
 
 Sandalwood is found indigenous on the coast of Malabar only ; and one 
 of its numerous names there, is valguka. This vahju ilea) is clearly the 
 name which Jewish and Phoenician merchants corrupted into alguni, 
 and which in Hebrew was further changed into almitg. 
 
 "Now, the place where the navy of Solomon and Hiram, going down 
 the Red Sea, Avould naturally have landed, was the mouth of the Indus. 
 There gold and precious stones from the north would have been brought 
 down the Indus ; and sandalwood, peacocks, and apes would have been 
 brought from Central and Southern India. In this very locality Ptolemy 
 (vii. 1) gives us the name Ahiria. In the same locality Hindoo 
 geographers place the people called Ahlitra or Ahlitra; and in the same 
 neighbourhood MacMurdo, in his account of the province of Cutch, still 
 knows a race of Alius, the descendants in all probability of the 
 people who sold to Hiram and Solomon their gold and precious stones, 
 their apes, peacocks, and sandalwood." — (" Science of Language," 
 p. 190.) 
 
 This is the nearest approach to certainty yet made, as to the true 
 geographical situation of the region to which the ships of Solomon and 
 Hiram sailed. The remaining references to Ophir will be noticed 
 under 1 Chron. ix. 10, and the articles of commerce will be considered 
 under the same passage. 
 
 If Ophir has perplexed interpreters, Tarshish has even more. It was 
 pointed out in the review of Gen. x., that we may look for a key to the 
 occurrence of the same names of cities or nations in widely different 
 geographical situations, in the likelihood that emigrants from the 
 regions first occupied by the immediate descendants of Noah would 
 give the name of their fathers, or the places whence they went out, to 
 the localities chosen by them. The various places proposed by inter- 
 preters as the Tharshish of Scripture, may thus have all been founded by 
 otf-shoots from the leading ethnic branch among whom the name was 
 originally familiar. The different theories as to geographical situation 
 may thus be harmonized, even though one points to Tarsus in Cilicia 
 the city of Paul, another to Tartessus on the south of Spain, at the 
 mouth of the Guadalquiver, a third to a place near the mouth of the 
 Indus, and a fourth to a region on the east coast of Africa. The student of 
 ethnology is year by year growing more willing to accept this theory of 
 emigration, as helpful to unravel the tangled web which presents itself 
 to him in his investigations into the language and customs of different 
 tribes. "While the leading branches of language, which we trace back 
 to the confusion at Babel, have great areas in which they find their
 
 280 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 cliief development, the influence of one on another can often be seen, 
 in localities in which it had been long believed the isolation must have 
 existed for two thousand years at least. Too much prominence cannot 
 be given to this view. Apart from it no satisfactory explanation 
 could be given of the references to Tarshish. Take, for example, the 
 following verses : — " Jehoshaphat joined himself with Ahaziah to make 
 ships to go to Tarshish ; and they made the ships in Ezion-geber " 
 (2 Chron. xx. 36). "Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the 
 presence of the Lord, and went down to Joppa ; and he found a ship 
 going to Tarshish ; so he paid his fare and went down into it to go with 
 them to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord" (Jon. i. 3; iv. 2). 
 If Tarshish were to be found only between the mouths of the Guadal- 
 quiver, how was it to be reached by ship from Ezion-geber on the Red 
 Sea? To assert, as some have gravely done, that the united navies 
 would sail down the Red Sea, along the south eastern coast of Africa, 
 double the Cape of Good Hope, coast to the north along its whole 
 western shore and pass the Straits of Gibraltar to Tartessus, is wholly 
 incredible. So likewise, if there were only an Indian Tarshish, how 
 could Jonah have hoped to reach it by ship from Joppa? Another 
 reply to these questions has been given. It has been held that the 
 name was used for any foreign region. But this falls far short of 
 meeting the direct and specific language of Scripture. 
 
 When Isaiah describes the glories of the last days — the gathering of 
 the people to the one Shepherd, the rejection of Israel after the flesh 
 and the introduction of an election of grace from among all nations to 
 their privileges — he mentions Tarshish as one of the nations to which 
 chosen men from the literal Israel sliall go : " And I will set a sign 
 among them, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations, 
 to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal and Javan, to 
 the isles afar off, that have not heard my fame, neither have seen my 
 glory; and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles " (Isa. Ixvi. 
 19). This passage is conclusively against the interpretation of Luther 
 and others, who hold that, in all cases, Tarshish only means the sea 
 [den heiden am vieer, Luther). It will also be observed here, that the 
 nations associated with Tarshish are all Japhetan. This may be 
 affirmed decidedly of each with the exception of Pul, which has not 
 been identified. Now this corresponds with other allusions to the name, 
 as for example when it denotes individuals. In this case, witli one 
 exception, they belong to the races sprung from Japheth's immediate 
 descendant. Tarshish named in Gen. x. 4 was Japheth's grandson.
 
 I. KINGS. 281 
 
 He is again mentioned in 1 Chrou. i. 7. A person of the same name was 
 one of the seven princes of Persia and Media " who saw the face of 
 Ahasuerus, and who knew the times, the hiw, and judgment " (Esth. 
 i. 14). The exceptional case, however, is not Hamite, but associated 
 with the descendants of Shem. In the genealogy of the generations, 
 "heads of the houseof their fathers, mighty men of valour," of the tribe of 
 Benjamin, Tharshish is named as the sixth among the seven sons of Bilhan 
 (1 Chron. vii. 10). It has been too hastily assumed, that Tarshish was 
 a purely Hamite colony, founded by Canaanites from Phoenicia. The 
 only passage which appears to favour this view of its origin is Isa. xxiii. 
 
 1, 10—" The burden of Tyre " " Pass through thy land as a 
 
 river {like the river [AY/e]), daughter of Tarshish : there is no more 
 strength in thee." The last clause may be literally rendered, " there 
 is no girdle longer," a translation which is wholly opposed to the 
 common meaning attached to the passage. The verse has been inter- 
 preted in a way applicable to Tyre, but not to a place so far removed 
 from it. The scope of the chapter points to the only legitimate con- 
 clusion — Tyre is threatened. One element and another of bitterness in 
 the coming desolation is named. Among these is the freedom which 
 the daughter — the people — of Tarshish were to assume in the day of 
 Tyre's calamity. As the river passes in unrestrained liberty through 
 the land watered by it, so might it be with the people of Tarshish. 
 There was no girdle any longer — no restraint put on the colony by a 
 dominant power. Tyre's fall was to bring freedom to the daughter of 
 Tarshish. This rendering sheds light on another class of passages in 
 which the word occurs. 
 
 It may be concluded that Tarshish was originally a Japhetan colony, 
 and that, later, it had been acquired by the Phoenicians from Tyre and 
 Sidon. It continued under the power of Tyre till the time pointed to 
 in Isaiah xiii., when its freedom became complete. Its people passed 
 through the land as a river. All foreign restraint was withdrawn. 
 There was no girdle any longer. These remarks are applicable to any 
 Tarshish thus held by the Tyrians, whether reached by the ]\Iediter- 
 ranean or the Red Sea. When the Phoenicians occupied either place, 
 they set apart a class of trading vessels for the specific purpose of 
 visiting them. These were called "ships of Tarshish." The name was 
 given to them, much in the same way as the vessels originally fitted 
 out by the East India Company, to communicate with their stations in 
 Hindostan, were called " East Indiameu." This designation soon came 
 to be applied to all large vessels which traded with Asiatic and South 
 
 VOL. II. 2 N
 
 282 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 African ports, even though they may never have touched the points for 
 which such ships were originally intended. The navy of Solomon and 
 Hiram is thus spoken of in 1 Kings x. 22, and 1 Chron. ix. 21. That 
 of Jehoshaphat and Ahaziah is so named in 1 Kings xxii. 48, and in 
 the latter part of 2 Chron. ix. 21. The vessels are referred to in Psalm 
 xlviii. 7, "Thou brcakest the ships of Tarshish witb an east wind." In 
 " the word that Isaiah saw concerning Judah," " the day of the Lord 
 of hosts" was to be "upon all the ships of Tarshish" (Isa. ii. 16); 
 and when the day of Tyre came, her navy was called upon to lament : 
 " Howl ye ships of Tarshish ; for it is laid waste, so that there is no 
 house, no entering in " (xxiii. 1). The joy of her navy in Tyrus in the 
 day of her prosperity — her beauty, and riches, and glory — is described 
 by Ezekiel : — " The ships of Tarshish did sing of thee in thy market. 
 And thou wast replenished, and made very glorious in the midst of 
 the seas " (xxvii. 25). These ships are to be employed in the gathering 
 of the election of grace to one centre: " Surely the isles shall wait for 
 me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from far, their 
 silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the Lord thy God, 
 and to the Holy One of Israel, because he hath glorified thee" 
 (Isa. Ix. 9). 
 
 That Tarshish was the name of a place, and not a general designa- 
 tion, either of the sea or of distant nations merely, is clear from 
 passages already quoted. In addition to these it is mentioned in the 
 glowing description of the Redeemer's triumphs in Psalm Ixxii. : — 
 
 " He sliall have dominion also from sea to sea, 
 And from the river unto tlie ends of the earth. 
 They that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before him ; 
 And his enemies shall lick the dust. 
 
 The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring presents: 
 The kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts "— ("ver. 8-10). 
 
 In the other passages in which it is spoken of as a place, we get much 
 information as to the products obtained in the markets of Tarshish. 
 Jeremiah describing the idols on which the backsliding heart of Israel 
 was wasting its aflectious, says — " Silver spread into plates is brought 
 from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz, the work of the workman, and 
 of the hands of the founder : blue and purple is their clothing ; they 
 are all the work of cunning men " (x. 9). And Ezekiel joins it with 
 Egypt, Zidou, Persia, Damascus, &c., as a country which traded with 
 doomed Tyrus: "Tarshish was thy merchant by reason of the multitude 
 of all kind of riches ; with silver, iron, tin, and lead, they traded in
 
 I. KINGS. 283 
 
 thy fairs" (xxvii. 12). The same prophet mentions the merchants of 
 Tarshieh along with Sheba and Dedan (xxxviii. 13). 
 
 It has been stated as an objection against the view which associates 
 one Tarshish with Ophir, that two different fleets are referred to in 
 
 1 Kings ix. 27, 28, and 1 Kings x. 11. And it is concluded, that "one 
 went by the Red Sea to Ophir, and the other to Tarshish by the 
 Mediteranneau" ("Rennell's Geography of Herodotus"). But the answer 
 to this is, that a comparison of 1 Kings ix. 27, 28, and x. 11, with 
 
 2 Chron. ix. 21, and xx. 36, 37, -when weighed without prejudice, 
 plainly forbids such a construction. That two places at least are 
 referred to under the name of Tarshish cannot be doubted, unless 
 we do violence to the text of Scripture. One of these was situated, 
 as there is good reason to believe, on the south of Spain, and the 
 other in the same region with Ophir, on the south of India. 
 
 "Throne of ivory" (ver. 18) ; see under Ezek. xxviii. 15. 
 
 The strong expressions in verse 27, show strikingly the influence of 
 the reign of Solomon on the material wealth of the people of the capital : 
 " The king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made 
 he to be as sycamore-trees that are in the vale, for abundance." It is 
 no doubt true that the capital, as is too often the case in the East, w^as 
 enriched at the expense of the provinces. This may be gathered from 
 the attitude of the people to Solomon's successor. Both silver and 
 cedar wood had been comparatively rare in Jerusalem to the time of 
 his reign. But by his enterprise and constant fostering care of a like 
 spirit on the part of his people, all this had been changed. The silver 
 had become plentiful ; the cedar wood abundant as that of the sycamore. 
 
 "Sycamore," Heb. shikmuh, Gr. syhomoria. This plant is named 
 seven times in the Scriptures. It is certainly mentioned once in the 
 New Testament (Luke xix. 4, which see). There is no good founda- 
 tion for the supposition of some interpreters, that the Eastern plane- 
 tree {Platanus orientalis) is the sycamore of the Bible. The sycamore 
 is the Ficus sijcomorus of botanists, one of the ArtocarpacecB or 
 bread-fruit family, and is properly separated from the Ficus can'ca, 
 or common fig, which is ranked under the Urtt'cacece or nettle family. 
 It was, and still is, abundant in Palestine and Egypt. It is highly 
 prized in both countries for its timber, and especially for its fruit 
 — sycamore-figs. "For coffins," says Sir G. Wilkinson, "boxes, 
 tables, doors, and other objects which required large and thick planks ; 
 for idols and wooden statues, the sycamore was principally employed ; 
 and from the quantity discovered in the tombs alone, it is evident that
 
 284 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 tlie tree was cultivated to a great extent. It had the additional recom- 
 mendation of bearing a fruit, to Avhich the Egyptians were very partial ; 
 and a religious prejudice claimed for it the name and rank of a sacred 
 fruit-tree. It is even now looked upon with favour ; and when a 
 foreigner is leaving the country, his Egyptian friends ask him if he has 
 ever eaten any sycamore-figs, and on liis answering in the affirmative, 
 express their delight at the prospect of their return, saying, ' Whoever 
 has eaten sycamore-figs is sure to come back to Egypt.' " The syca- 
 more was as much esteemed by the Jews as by the Egyptians. The 
 great care taken of them is seen in the arrangements which David made 
 
 a» '?t^". 
 
 vv^ ~?..i>J? 
 
 "* 
 
 ;. M. 
 
 Sycamore Tree {Ficus aycomorus). 
 
 for their culture and preservation. They are joined with the vineyards, 
 olive-trees, and even with the herds belonging to the royal household — 
 " And over the olive-trees, and the sycamore-trees that were in the low 
 plains, was Baal-hanan the Gederite : and over the cellars of oil was 
 Joash" (1 Chron. xxviii. 28). The value set on this tree by the 
 Egyptians is implied in the reference to it in Ps. Ixxviii. 47, in which 
 the mighty acts done for Israel in Egypt are recounted. The hand of 
 the Lord was laid on much in which the people took the greatest 
 delight —
 
 I. KINGS. 
 
 285 
 
 " lie destroyed their vines with hail, 
 And their sycamore-trees with frost." 
 
 Wlieu the heathen went up against Israel, they cut clown the trees 
 in which they delighted, and whose fruit supplied them with food. But 
 refusing to be taught by the stroke of God, they took confidence from 
 their sinful self-reliance, and said — " The bricks are fallen down, but 
 we will build with hewn stones ; the sycamores are cut down, but we 
 will change them into cedars" (Isa. ix. 10). The fruit of the sycamore 
 is specially referred to in Amos vii. 14, which see. 
 
 " Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt, and hnen yarn : the 
 king's merchants received the linen yarn at a price. And a chariot 
 came up and went out of Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and 
 an horse for an hundred and fifty : and so for all the kings of the 
 Hittites, and for the kings of Syria, did they bring them out by their 
 means " (ver. 28, 29). 
 
 "Horse," Heb. sus; "horsemen," Heh. pdmsJi ; "horseman," raJcdv. 
 References to the horse are numerous in Scripture, and all bear on its 
 use for warlike purposes, with one exception (Isa. xxviii. 28), wdiere it 
 is named as driven over the corn in order to thrash out the grain. The 
 earliest notice of the horse is connected with Egypt. During the great 
 famine in Egypt, Joseph " gave the people bread in exchange for their 
 horses" (Gen. xlvii. 17). Sir G. Wilkinson has pointed out the likeli- 
 hood that horses were first introduced into Egypt by the Hyksos. " In 
 Solomon's time," he says, "chariots and horsemen were exported from 
 Egypt and supplied Juda3a, as well as ' the kings of the Hittites, and 
 Syria;' but in early times they appear not to have been used in Eg}-]3t, 
 and they are not found on the monuments before the eighteenth dynasty. 
 For though the Egyptian name of the horse was hthor, the mare was 
 called, as in Hebrew, sus (pi. susi'm), which argues its Semitic origin — 
 faras, ' the mare,' being still the generic name of the Arab horse ; and 
 if its introduction was really owing to the Shepherds, they thereby 
 benefited Egypt as much as by causing the union of the whole country 
 under one king." 
 
 The horse did not come to be much used in Canaan till the reiirn of 
 David. When Absalom was about to rebel against his father, he is 
 said to have " prepared him chariots and horsemen " (2 Sam. xv. 1). 
 Solomon soon became distinguished for his cavalry — " He had forty 
 thousand stalls of horses for his chariots, and twelve thousand horse- 
 men" (ch. iv. 2C). This large war establishment was not uuinfluential 
 in securing peace. Thus, in the verse preceding that just quoted, we
 
 28G BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 are told that " Judah and Israel dwelt safely, every man under his vine 
 and under his fig-tree, from Dan even to Beersheha, all the days of 
 Solomon." During the kingly period both of Judah and Israel, frequent 
 notices occur of horses and horsemen. On the return from the cap- 
 tivity, the list of the beasts for v?ar and of burden is thus given by 
 Nehemiah — Horses, 73G ; mules, 245 ; camels, 435 ; asses, 6720 (vii. 
 G8, 09). The glimpses obtained into the history of the nations border- 
 ing on Palestine, from the historical books and from the writings of the 
 prophets, show that the horse was much used in war by them. The 
 Scripture references may be thus classified — The horse is represented 
 as endued with strength by God, Job xxxix. 19. Described as — strong, 
 Ps. xxxiii. 17 ; cxlvii. 10; swift, Isa. xxx. 10; Jer. iv. 13; Hab. i. 8; 
 fearless, Job xxxix. 20, 22 ; fierce and impetuous. Job xxxix. 21, 24; 
 warlike in disposition, Job xxxix. 21 ; Jer. viii. 6 ; sure-footed, Isa. Ixiii. 
 13 ; want of understanding in, alluded to, Ps. xxxii, 9 ; hard hoofs of, 
 alluded to, Isa. v. 28 ; loud snorting of, alluded to, Jer. viii. 16, with 
 Job xxxix. 20. Colours of, mentioned — white, Zech. i. 8 ; vi. 3 ; Rev. 
 vi. 2 ; black, Zech. vi. 2, ; Rev. vi. 5 ;.red, Zech. i. 8 ; vi. 2 ; Rev. vi. 
 4 ; speckled, Zech. i. 8 ; bay, Zech. vi. 3, 7 ; grisled, Zech. vi. 3, 6 ; 
 pale or ash colour. Rev. vi. 8. Fed on grain and herbs, 1 Kings iv. 28 ; 
 xviii. 5. Used for — mounting cavalry, Exod. xiv. 9 ; 1 Sam. xiii. 5 ; 
 drawing chariots, Mic. i. 13 ; Zech. vi. 2 ; bearing burdens, Ezra ii. 66 ; 
 Neh. vii. 68 ; hunting. Job xxxix. 18 ; conveying posts, &c., 2 Kings 
 ix. 17-19; Est. viii. 10. Kings and princes rode on horses. Est. vi. 
 8-11 ; Ezek. xxiii. 23. It is governed by bit and bridle, Ps. xxxii. 9 ; 
 James iii. 3 ; urged on by whips, Prov. xxvi. 3 ; adorned with bells 
 on the peck, Zech. xiv. 20. Numbers of horses were kept for war, 
 Jer. li. 27; Ezek. xxvi. 10; prepared and trained for war, Prov. xxi. 
 31 ; in battle protected by armour, Jer. xlvi. 4. The vanity of trusting 
 to horses, shown in Ps. xxxiii. 17 ; Amos ii. 15. The Jews were for- 
 bidden to multiply horses, Deut. xvii. 16. They were imported, from 
 Egypt, 1 Kings x. 28, 29 ; multiplied, in Solomon's reign, 1 Kings 
 iv. 26. Solomon was condemned for multiplying horses, Isa. ii. 7. 
 Men not to put their trust in, Hosea xiv. 3 ; condemned for trusting to, 
 Isa. xxx. 16 ; xxxi. 3 ; brought back many from Babylon, Ezra ii. 66. 
 Notice of early trafiic in. Gen. xlvii. 17; sold in fairs and markets, 
 Ezek. xxvii. 14 ; Rev. xviii. 13. Often suffered — from blindness, Zech. 
 xii. 4 ; from plague, Zech. xiv. 15 ; from murrain, Exod. ix. 3 ; from 
 bites of serpents. Gen. xlix. 17; in the hoof from prancing, Judg. v. 22; 
 in battle, Jer. li. 21 ; Hag. ii. 22 ; dedicated to the sun by idolaters,
 
 I. KINGS. 287 
 
 2 Kings xxiii. 11. Illustrative of- — beauty of the church, Song of 
 Solomon i. 9 ; Zech. x. 3 ; glorious and triumphant deliverance of the 
 church, Isa, Ixiii. 13 ; a dull headstrong disposition, Ps. xxxii. 9 ; 
 impetuosity of the wicked in sin, Jer. viii. G. 
 
 The horse [Equus cahallus) is the type of the order SoUdungula, or 
 animals whose hoofs are entire, and of the family Equidce. Its feet 
 liave a single perfect toe inclosed in a horny box, or hoof. It has forty 
 teeth — twelve of these are incisors, four are canine, and twenty-four 
 are molars. The upper canine teeth are Fig.sr. 
 
 generally wanting in the female. The 
 arrangement of the teeth is full of interest. 
 A glance at the skull will show a clearly 
 marked space between the incisive teeth 
 and the front grinders. This receives the 
 bit by which the whole head is controlled. 
 Wild horses are found in the steppes of skuuofthenorse. 
 
 Asia, and on the upland plains of South America. These, however, 
 are not indigenous. They are descendants of domestic individuals 
 which have escaped from man. (Plate XIX., Fig. 1.) 
 
 The revolt of Jeroboam, and the secession of the ten tribes, soon 
 came to bear fruits of a peculiarly deadly kind. Antagonistic political 
 interests were strengthened and embittered, by a realized difference in 
 the character and form of religious worship. Jeroboam was quick to 
 see, that if the twelve tribes of Israel were to meet as before year by 
 year at Jerusalem, for the worship of Jehovah, God of their fathers, 
 unity of religious sentiment would soon lead again to unity in political 
 standing. The device on which he fell to prevent this, bears testimony 
 both to his great skill as an accomplished but unprincipled politician, 
 and to his daring and hardihood in matters bearing on the relation of 
 the people to God. " If this people," he said, " go up to do sacrifice in 
 the house of the Lord at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people 
 turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and 
 they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah. Where- 
 upon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto 
 them. It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem : behold thy gods, 
 Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt " (xii. 27, 28). 
 The whole matter was, in the eyes of the son of Nebat, simply one of 
 political management. He had so apprehended the disposition of the 
 people as to know, that, in the crisis of their worldly interests, they 
 would welcome almost any expedient which would secure to them
 
 288 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 immunity from the evils they dreaded at the hands of Rehoboam. 
 Their leader had tried to shake himself free from the influence of the 
 worship of the true God. In the land of his exile he had united him- 
 self to the royal family of Egypt, having married the sister of the 
 reigning queen, and had become intimately acquainted with the animal 
 worship of the people of the land. The fact of Jeroboam's sojourn in 
 Egypt must be kept in mind, in any attempt to settle the meaning of 
 the worship into which he led the ten tribes. It has been strongly 
 pleaded, that the calves were only symbols of Jehovah, and not images 
 truly worshipped by the people, as was the case in Egypt. But this 
 leaves the matter unexplained. No doubt the educated Egyptian would 
 be ready in controversy to fall back on the theory of " a cherubic 
 symbol," and to say — "I do not worship the mere hawk-headed figure, 
 the symbol of Phre, the sun-god, but I adore him whom I regard the 
 Eternal Vivifier ;" and he might pass in the same way through the 
 whole lists of Egyptian mythology. Jeroboam in setting up the calves, 
 did no doubt give prominence to the name which stood out before the 
 worshipper who frequented the temple at Jerusalem ; but he degraded 
 that name by this association, and paved the way for the complete 
 perversion of the people from true worship, and ultimately for the very 
 grossest forms of idolatry, in which the image ceased to be a symbol, 
 and was worshipped blindly by a people sunk in materialism and 
 licentiousness. 
 
 In turning to the sacred text we have very clear illustrations of this. 
 The worship of the calf {ecjel) is first met with among the Hebrews 
 when they were encamped under Mount Sinai, shortly after they had 
 come up out of Egypt. The circumstances are minutely detailed in 
 Exodus xxxii. Moses delayed longer on Sinai than the people had 
 expected. Degraded by the animal worship of Egypt, the Hebrews 
 said to Aaron — " Up, make us gods, which shall go before us " — give 
 us a visible form suitable to our present spiritual condition ; such a god 
 as we have seen worshipped in Egypt. Too ready to gratify the popular 
 demand, he took from them their ornaments of gold, and with the help 
 of these he realized for them such a figure as they had often seen adored 
 by the worshippers of Apis. " These," said Aaron, " be thy gods, 
 Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt." Aaron sought 
 to save his credit by associating the idol with the worship of the true 
 God. He built an altar before the calf, and proclaimed a day of special 
 joy before it — " To-morrow is a feast to the Lord." But that both the 
 Lord himself and Moses regarded this as peculiarly gross idolatry, is
 
 I. KINGS. 289 
 
 clear from the same chapter : — " And the Lord said unto Moses, Go, 
 get thee down ; for thy people, which thou broughtest out of the land 
 of Egypt, have corrupted themselves : they have turned aside quickly 
 out of the way which I commanded them : they have made them a 
 molten calf, and have worshipped it, and have sacrificed thereunto, and 
 said. These be thy gods, Israel, which have brought thee up out of 
 the land of Egypt" (ver. 7, 8). "And it came to pass, as soon as he 
 came nigh unto the camp, that he saw the calf, and the dancing : and 
 Moses' anger waxed hot, and he cast the tables out of his hands, and 
 brake them beneath the mount. And he took the calf which they had 
 made, and burnt it in the fire, and ground it to powder, and strawed it 
 upon the water, and made the children of Israel drink of it" (ver. 19, 
 20). The licentious dancing, the nakedness of the people — " for Aaron 
 had made them naked unto their shame" — and the death of about three 
 thousand of the idolaters, all showed that the sin was much more 
 heinous, and the guilt more deeply aggravated than would have been 
 the case, had the act been nothing more than the setting up of a 
 "cherubic symbol" by a people who still worshipped Jehovah. The 
 reference made to it by Moses towards the close of his ministry among 
 the people, shows how fresh the remembrance of the great sin continued 
 in his memory : — " Ye sinned against the Lord your God, and made 
 you a molten calf I did neither eat nor drink because of your sins 
 which ye sinned, in doing wickedly in the sight of the Lord, to provoke 
 him to anger. I was afraid of the anger and hot displeasure, where- 
 with the Lord was wroth against you to destroy you" (Deut. ix. 12-19). 
 When, in rehearsing the history of Israel, Nehemiah came to this trans- 
 action, he said, they " wrought great provocation" (Neh. ix. 18). The 
 Psalmist characterizes the guilt as aggravated in being run into in the 
 very place where God was manifesting his glorious and gracious 
 presence : — 
 
 "They made a calf in Iloreb, 
 And worshipped the molten image. 
 Thus they changed their glory 
 Into the similitude of an ox that eateth straw " (Ps. cvi. 1 0, 20). 
 
 Jeroboam intended to bring about-ft complete separation between 
 Israel and Judah, He had, however, the sagacity to see, that any 
 attempt to make a violent breach between the people and long-cherished 
 religious convictions, would lead to a reaction as violent. Thus the 
 prominence given by him to the worship of Jehovah. But the historic 
 results of his expedient testify, that he had rightly calculated, when he 
 
 VOL. <i. 2 o
 
 290 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 allowed the association of the name of the Lord with the " similitude 
 of an ox that eateth straw," to work out his design. The idol soon 
 came to be everything — the influence of the higher and better thought 
 was checked. " And now," says the prophet Hosea, " they sin more 
 and more, and have made them molten images of their silver, and idols 
 according to their own understanding, all of it the work of the crafts- 
 men : they say of them, Let the men that sacrifice kiss the calves" 
 (Hos. xiii. 2). So thoroughly had Jeroboam's plans succeeded, that 
 even national affliction, in which they were made to feel forsaken of all 
 divine help, failed once and again to lead them to return to the Lord. 
 Instead of this, they multiplied their idols and their idolatrous rites : 
 " Israel hath forgotten his Maker, and buildeth temples" (Hos. viii. 14). 
 Thus the terrible threatening — " Thy calf, Samaria, hath cast thee 
 off; mine anger is kindled against them : how long will it be ere they 
 attain to innocency ? For fi-om Israel was it also : the workman made 
 it ; therefore it is not God : but the calf of Samaria shall be broken in 
 pieces" (Hos. viii. 5, 6). 
 
 It is impossible to understand this gross animal worship into which 
 Israel so often fell, unless we ascribe it to the influence of Egyptian 
 idolatry. Its manifestation among the chosen people is first seen, after 
 their long contact with the sunken heathenism of the land, in which 
 they were kept for centuries as slaves. Its full inauguration as a 
 system proposed to meet the religious instincts of the people, was 
 brought about by one who had sojourned for years in Egypt, in peculi- 
 arly close fellowship with those whose policy led them to seek the 
 extension of their vile creed. The origin of this form of heathen super- 
 stition is to be found, perhaps, in the long isolation of the first inhabi- 
 tants of the valley of the Nile from the families in which primitive 
 monotheism prevailed. In such circumstances, thoughts of a divine 
 principle diffused in all living things lead to the elevation of nature to 
 a self-existent place, and pantheism becomes virtually the prevalent 
 superstition. Nothing is then wanted but circumstances calculated to 
 elevate beast, or bird, or plant, or even stone, into a place of special 
 prominence, and the tide of natural devotion sets in towards it. A 
 review of the animals worshipped by the Egyptians would both illus- 
 trate and corroborate these remarks. 
 
 On the same principle the Nile had divine honours paid to it. A 
 peculiarity of the Egyptian mind may be noticed here. It did not, as 
 a rule, as was the case with Gi'eek and Roman aspects of thought, 
 ascribe human attributes to the gods. Men were not raised to the rank
 
 I. KINGS. 291 
 
 of gods. It went out iu the opposite direction of ascribing super- 
 human characteristics to the brute creation. The moral degradation 
 imphed in this may be easily imagined. The calf set up by Aaron, and 
 afterwards by Jeroboam, was the imitation of the sacred calf, ^^Ifnevt's" 
 of On or Heliopolis, the birth-place of Asenath, Joseph's wife (Gen. 
 xli. 45). " In Egypt this zoolatry appears in such exaggerated shapes, 
 and with such monstrous adjuncts, tliat to trace at length the stages of 
 its progress and the secret of its perpetuity would fill a most remark- 
 able chapter iu the history of civilization. The contemptuous exclama- 
 tions of the later Greeks and Romans, on witnessing the coexistence of 
 abstruse philosophy and artistic beauty with the worship of brute 
 creatures, are familiar to all persons interested in this study. An 
 admirer and apologist of the Egyptian creed was fully conscious of the 
 reasons which had given birth to such opprobrious criticisms ; for he 
 confesses plainly that the multitude did not stop short at merely relative 
 worship, but adored the animals themselves. I must not, however, 
 leave unquoted the remarkable passage of Clement of Alexandria, with 
 reference to this question ; because it shows as well the sanctity with 
 which the animals were all invested by Egyptians, as the feelings which 
 zoolatry was then exciting in the minds of most spectators, whether 
 Christian or heathen. After dwelling on the costliness and splendour 
 of Egyptian temples, and directing our attention to the veil inwrought 
 with gold, by which the adytum was curtained off from the rest of the 
 building, he continues : — ' But if you pass beyond into the remotest 
 part of the inclosure, hastening to behold something more worthy of 
 your search, and seek for the image which dwells in the temple, a 
 pastophorus (shrine-bearer), or some one else of those who minister in 
 sacred things, with a grave air singing a paean iu the Egyptian tongue, 
 draws aside a small portion of the veil, as if about to show us the god, 
 and makes us burst into a loud laugh. For the god you sought is not 
 there, but a cat, or a crocodile, or a serpent sprung from the soil, or 
 some such brute animal, which is more suited to a cave than a temple. 
 The Egyptian deity appears — a beast rolling himself in a purple cover- 
 let ! ... . Conspicuous at the head of the zoolatry of Egypt stands 
 the worship of the great Meniphitic bull Apis (Hapi), which is carried 
 back, in its more elementary condition, as far as the second dynasty. 
 In the reign of Eamses II., the great bull is made to bear the title, 
 Second life of Ptah — a fact which intimates that he was then regarded 
 as the living shrine, or incarnation, of the chief god of Memphis ; and a 
 similar exaltation is suggested iu the title. Image of the soul of Osiris,
 
 wliicli has elsewhere been awarded to him. Viewed in this light, Apis 
 was to the Egyptian worshipper a present or incarnate deity. The 
 luxuries deemed appropriate to the highest earthly monarch were all 
 lavished on his service. He was fed with a religious scrupulosity. He 
 was anointed with the choicest unguents. Mates of spotless beauty 
 were provided for him. At death he was embalmed and swathed ; his 
 funeral was performed with a magnificence unrivalled in the case of 
 men ; a sumptuous monument, which still attracts the admiration of all 
 artists, was erected in his honour. And since mortals after death were 
 thought to be in some mysterious way united with Osiris, the dead 
 Apis also was entitled for this cause Osiris-Apis, or Serapis; and as 
 such, was worshipped with supreme devotion in the interval which 
 elapsed before the birth or manifestation of a new calf — the vehicle 
 to which the soul of the departed Apis was believed to be immediately 
 transferred.' " 
 
 One calf was set up in Bethel and another in Dan (ver. 29). 
 
 " Bethel," or the House of God, was a sacred city in the territory assigned 
 
 to the tribe of Benjamin. Its original name was Luz, a name which 
 
 it seems to have got from its almond-trees. It is the modern Beitin. 
 
 " Returning," says Robinson, "to the point where we had left our road 
 
 we now proceeded again at G'40, on the same general course towards 
 
 Beitin. We soon crossed a broad shallow wady, running nearly south, 
 
 apparently one of the heads of that passing down on the north side of 
 
 Deir Duwan ; and at 710 reached the eastern branch of the great 
 
 Nabulus road on the higher laud beyond. Hence Taizibeh bore N. 
 
 76° E. and el-Bireh S. 40° W. Descending gradually by this road 
 
 south-west, we came to the site of Beitin at half-past seven o'clock, 
 
 just at the left of the path ; making a distance of two hours from 
 
 Taizibeh. The ruins lie upon the point of a low hill, between the 
 
 heads of two shallow wadys, which unite below and run off S.S.E. half S. 
 
 into the deep and rugged valley es-Suweinit, 'which passes down 
 
 between Jeba and Mukhmas. The spot is shut in by higher land on 
 
 every side ; so that the only places we could see distinctly from the 
 
 ruins were el-Bireh S. 48° W. and Shc'itut S. 10° W. Perceiving, 
 
 however, some ruins across the valley S.E. half E. on the higher 
 
 ground, we immediately proceeded thither, and came in eight minutes 
 
 to what the Arabs called Burj Beitin and also Burj Makhrun, ' castle 
 
 of Beitin or Makhrun.' It is the ruin of a small square fortress of 
 
 hewn stones, including a Greek church. Several columns were lying 
 
 among the ruins, on one of which a cross was carved in relief Pro-
 
 I. KINGS. 
 
 293 
 
 ceeding still in the direction S. by E. lialf E. we came in ten minutes 
 more to tlie ruins of another larger Greek church, situated on the 
 
 higliest spot of ground in the vicinity We now returned to 
 
 the site of Beitin, and took a nearer survey of its ruins. They occupy 
 the whole surface of the hill-point, sloping towards the south-east, and 
 cover a space of three or four acres. They consist of very many 
 foundations and half-standing walls of houses and other buildings. . . . 
 There is little room for question, that botli the name and site of Beitin 
 are identical with those of the ancient Bethel. The latter was a border 
 city between Benjamin and Ephraim ; at first assigned to Benjamin, 
 but conquered and afterwards retained by Ephraim. According to 
 Eusebius and Jerome, it lay twelve Roman miles from Jerusalem, on 
 the right or east of the road leading to Sichem or Neapolis (Nabulus). 
 From Beitin to el-Bireh we found the distance to be forty-five minutes, 
 and fi'om Bireh to Jerusalem three hours, with horses. The correspon- 
 dence therefore in the situation is very exact ; and the name affords 
 decisive confirmation. The Arabic termination hi for the Hebrew el., 
 is not an unusual change ; we found indeed several other instances of 
 it entirely parallel. Yet the name has been preserved solely among 
 the common people. The monks appear for centuries not to have been 
 aware of its existence, and have assigned to Bethel a location much 
 further towards the north. Our friends the Greek priests at Faizibeh 
 had also recognized the identity of Beitin and Bethel, and had 
 endeavoured to brino: into use the Arabic form Beitil as being nearer to 
 the original, but it had found currency only within the circle of their 
 own influence. From them the missionaries in Jerusalem had heard 
 of the place and had learned the name Beitil, though from others they 
 had heard only of Beitin. 
 
 " Bethel is celebrated in the Old Testament. Abraham first pitched 
 his tent in Palestine on the high ground eastward of this spot, still 
 one of the finest tracts for pasture in the whole land. Here Jacob 
 slept on his way to Haran, and saw in his dream the ladder, and 
 the angels of God ascending and descending upon it ; and hither he 
 afterwards returned and built an altar, and called the place Bethel, 
 ' House of God.' Samuel came once a year to Bethel to judge the 
 people. In later times it became notorious as a seat of idolatrous 
 worship, after Jeroboam had erected here one of his golden calves. 
 This was denounced at the time by a prophet of the Lord, who then 
 transgressed, and was destroyed by a lion. Bethel came afterwards 
 into the possession of Judali ; and king Josiah destroyed its altars and
 
 294 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 idols, burning upon them dead men's bones from tbe sepulchres. After 
 the exile, the place was again inhabited by the returning Jews, and 
 was subsequently fortified. In the New Testament Bethel is not 
 mentioned ; but we learn that it still existed, and was captured by 
 Vespasian. The last notice of Bethel, as an inhabited place, is by 
 Eusebius and Jerome in the fourth century, who speak of it as a small 
 village in their day. Yet the present ruins are greater than those of a 
 small village ; and the ruined churches upon the site, and beyond the 
 valley, betoken a town of importance even down to the middle ages — 
 so that it probably revived, and was enlarged." 
 
 " Dan " lay at the extreme north of Palestine. Its name was 
 originally Laish, but having been captured by a company of Danites, 
 they called it Dan, " after the name of their father who was born 
 unto Israel." 
 
 God sent a message to Jeroboam by a prophet belonging to Judah 
 (xiii. 1). When he reached Bethel he found the king, who liad assumed 
 the priest's office as equally his with that of the supreme civil magis- 
 trate, burning incense by an altar. The man of God prophesied against 
 the altar (ver. 2); an act which Jeroboam held to be directed against 
 himself, and he stretched forth his hand to seize him, but it became 
 suddenly stricken by God — " It was dried up so that he could not pull 
 it in again unto him " (ver. 4). After it was restored the man of God 
 turned homeward, followed by an old prophet of Bethel, who prevailed 
 on him to return back with him to Bethel, contrary to the distinct 
 command of God. Having again set out, he was met by a lion and 
 slain. The noble beast, however, neither tore the carcass nor attacked 
 the ass. He was an instrument in the hand of God to punish the 
 disobedient prophet. The incident shows, that, even when the laud 
 was so thickly peopled as it must have been in the time of Jeroboam, 
 the lion still had its lurking-places among the hills near Bethel. — See 
 also XX. 3G. 
 
 Though Jeroboam had departed far from God, and had given him- 
 self up to gross and wicked superstitions, he had not been able to shake 
 wholly off the power of his early religious impressions. The hand of 
 God had touched him in one of his deepest and tenderest affections. 
 " Abijah the son of Jeroboam fell sick." He knew it was vain to seek 
 help either at Dan or Bethel. The so-called religious rites of the 
 animal worship practised there might do well enough in the time of 
 prosperity ; but the true God alone could help him in the dark hour 
 of his own and his household's sorrow. "Get thee," said he to his
 
 I. KINGS. 295 
 
 wife, "to Sliiloli : there is Ahijah the prophet." She set out with 
 loaves, sweet cakes, and a jar of honey (ver. 3), as an offering to tlie 
 aged prophet of the Lord. The meeting between Jeroboam's queen 
 and Ahijah was used by God for sending a message to the king of 
 IsraeL This message has reference first to the family of Jeroboam, 
 and second to the people of Israel. In the latter part of it the prophet 
 says — " The Lord shall smite Israel as a reed is shaken in the water, 
 and he shall root up Israel out of the good land, which he gave to their 
 fathers, and shall scatter them beyond the river, because they have 
 made their groves, provoking the Lord to anger " (ver. 15). 
 
 The word here rendered " reed " (kaneli)^ occurs twenty-seven times 
 in Genesis and Exodus. In the former book, as in chap. xli. 5, it is 
 rendered "stalk," in the latter "branch," as in chap. xxv. 31, and 
 " calamus," in chap. xxx. 23. In the passage under notice, the precise 
 meaning of "common reed" {Arundo donax), one of the grasses abun- 
 dant on the banks of the Jordan, may be given to it. The force of the 
 figure is in the reed being shaken until it is smitten, crushed, and bent, 
 so that the weight of its head, made heavier by the water in which 
 it has fallen, drags it to the bottom, where it is lost sight of. — See 
 also under Exod. xxx. 23; 2 Kings xviii. 21; Job xxxi. 22; and 
 Matt. xi. 7. 
 
 The dogs in the city and the fowls in the fields, have ever been the 
 scavengers in eastern lands. On the watch for food, they fall speedily 
 on the carcasses of men or of beasts exposed to them. Thus the 
 hungry dog, the gluttonous vulture, and the greedy raven, ever meet 
 us in those pictures of ruin, bloodshed, and death, associated with 
 violent changes in the ruling classes of eastern tribes. " Him that 
 dieth of Baasha in the city shall the dogs eat ; and him that dieth of his 
 in the fields shall the fowls of the air eat" (xvi. 4; see also xiv. 11 ; 
 xxi. 19, 23, 24; xxii. 38). 
 
 Ahab refused to listen to the pleadings of Elijah, and a dearth was 
 threatened. It was to be brought about by withdrawing the fertilizing 
 ministry of the dew and of the rain. Meanwhile special care was 
 taken of the prophet, in ways, however, by which his faith was con- 
 stantly called into healthful action. He is first sent to the brook 
 Cherith, and afterwards to Zarephath, a city of Zidon (xvii. 3-9). The 
 word "brook " answers to the modern Arabic " wady." It was one of 
 those fugitive mountain-streams, which, wild and swollen in the rainy 
 season, are either reduced to a tiny streamlet, or are dried up altogether. 
 The Cherith has not been identified. The Wadj/ Kelt, Wady Alias,
 
 and the Am Fasael, to the north of the first, have severally been 
 proposed as representing the brook Cherith, but not on satisfactory 
 grounds. The ravens supplied the prophet with food — " They brought 
 him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the even- 
 ing " (ver. C). The " raven," Heb. oreb, is the bird properly so called — 
 the common raven (Corvus corax) ; see under Gen. viii. 7). No weight is 
 to be attached to the conceit that the orebim were not birds, but men — 
 the Arabians! 
 
 After three years (xviii. 1) Elijah is again seen in the presence of 
 Ahab. " Gather," he says to the king, " all Israel to me unto IMount 
 Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the 
 prophets of the groves four hundred " (ver. 19). Then we have his 
 appeal to the people, the challenge to the false prophets, and the grand 
 results (ver. 21-40). Carmel is the highest peak of a range of hills 
 running north-west from the plain of Esdraelon to the Mediterranean, 
 ending in the promontory which forms the Bay of Acre. Its top is 
 about 1200 feet above the level of the sea. 
 
 " As ' Tabor ' is, through its peculiar form, an elevation ' among the 
 mountains ;' so is ' Carmel,' with its long projecting ridge, ' by the 
 sea!' The name of Tabor is probably derived from its height ; that of 
 Carmel is certainly taken from the garden-like appearance which it 
 shares with Tabor alone, and which, as it has no peculiarity of shape, 
 is its chief distinction. By this its protracted ranee of eighteen miles 
 in length, bounding the whole of the southern corner of the great plain, 
 is marked out from the surrounding scenery. Rocky dells, with deep 
 
 jungles of copse, are found there alone in Palestine Tlie large 
 
 caves, indeed, which exist under the western cliffs . . . may have been 
 the shelter of Elijah and the persecuted prophets. The winding path 
 through the rocks to the sea-shore below, must have been that by which 
 Pythagoras, according to the idea of his biographer — himself a pilgrim 
 to this ' haunted strand ' — descended, to embark in the Egyptian ship 
 which he saw sailing beneath him. Either on this same point of Mount 
 Carmel, or at the modern village of Caipha immediately below it, Avas 
 the village of Ecbatana, in which Cambyses died on his return from 
 Egypt to Persia, thus unexpectedly realizing the prophecy that he 
 
 should perish at Ecbatana But it could never have been here 
 
 that the great sacrifice took place, which formed the crisis in Elijah's 
 life, and which is brought before us with such minuteness of detail, as 
 to invite us to a full contemplation of all its circumstances. Carmel, 
 as we have seen, is not so much a mountain as a ridge — an upland
 
 I. KINGS. 297 
 
 park, extending for many miles into tlie interior of the country. At 
 the eastern extremity, which is also the highest point of the whole 
 ridge, is a spot marked out, alike by tradition and by natural features, 
 as one of the most authentic localities of the Old Testament history. 
 The tradition is unusually trustworthy. It is perhaps the only case in 
 Palestine in which the recollection of an alleged event has been actually 
 retained in the native Arabic nomenclature. Many names of tow-ns 
 have been so preserved, but here is no town, only a shapeless ruin, yet 
 the spot has a name — ' El-Maharrakah,' 'the burning,' or 'the sacri- 
 fice.' The Druses, some of whom inhabit the neio-hbourinsr villages. 
 come here from a distance to perform a yearly sacrifice ; and though it 
 is possible that this practice may have originated the name, yet it is 
 more probable that the practice itself arose from some earlier tradition 
 attached to the spot. . . . But be the tradition good or bad, the 
 localities adapt themselves to the event in almost every particular. The 
 summit thus marked out is the extreme eastern point of the range, 
 commanding the last view of the sea behind, and the first view of the 
 great plain in front, just where the glades of forest, the ' excellency of 
 Carmel,' sink into the usual barrenness of the hills and vales of Pales- 
 tine. ^ There, on the highest ridge of the mountain, may well have 
 stood, on its sacred ' high place,' the altar of the Lord which Jezebel 
 had cast down. Close beneath, on a wide upland sweep, under the 
 shade of ancient olives, and round a well of water, said to be peren- 
 nial, and which may therefore have escaped the general drought and 
 have been able to furnish water for the trenches round the altar, must 
 have been ranged, on one side the king and people, with the eight 
 hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and Astarte, and on the other side 
 the solitary and commanding figure of the prophet of the Lord. Full 
 before them opened the whole plain of Esdraelon, with Tabor and its 
 kindred ranges in the distance ; on the rising ground, at the opening 
 of its valley, the city of Jezreel, with Ahab's palace and Jezebel's 
 temple distinctly visible ; in the nearer foreground, immediately under 
 the base of the mountain, was clearly seen the winding stream of the 
 Kishon, working its way through the narrow pass of the hills into the 
 Bay of Acre." 
 
 The contest over, Elijah intimated that the dearth and the drought 
 were about to end. He said unto Ahab — " Get thee up, cat and drink; 
 for there is a sound of abundance of rain. So Ahab went up to eat and 
 to drink : and Elijah went up to the top of Carmel ; and he cast himself 
 
 down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees, and said to 
 VOL. II. 2 p 
 
 I! 
 
 1 1
 
 his servant, Go up now, look toward the sea. And he went up, and 
 looked, and said, There is notliing. And he said, Go again seven 
 times. And it came to pass, at the seventh time, that he said, Behold, 
 there ariscth a little cloud out of the sea, like a man's hand. And he 
 said, Go up, say unto Ahab, Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down, 
 that the rain stop thee not. And it came to pass, in the mean while, 
 that the heaven was black with clouds and wind, and there was a great 
 rain. And Ahab rode, and went to Jezrecl. And the hand of the 
 Lord was on Elijah; and he girded up his loins, and ran before Ahab 
 to the entrance of Jezreel" (ver. 41-40). "This," says Dr. Thomson, 
 " lias always appeared to me most extraordinary conduct for a man of 
 his age, character, and office. And yet, when rightly understood, it 
 was beautiful, and full of important instruction. Elijah, as God's 
 minister, had overwhelmed the king with shame and confusion in the 
 presence of his subjects. The natural tendency of this would be to 
 lower him in their eyes, and lessen their respect for his authority. It 
 was not the intention, however, to weaken the government or to 
 encourage rebellion. The prophet was therefore divinely directed to 
 give a testimony of respect and honour to the king, as public and strik- 
 ing as from necessity had been the opposition and rebuke to his 
 idolatry. The mode of doing honour to Ahab by running before his 
 chariot was in accordance with the customs of the East, even to this 
 day. I was reminded of this incident more than twenty years ago at 
 Jaffa, when Mohammed Aly came to that city with a large army to quell 
 the rebellion of Palestine. The camp was on the sand hills south of 
 the city, while j\Iohammed Aly stopped inside the walls. The officers 
 were constantly going and coming, preceded by runners, who always 
 kept just ahead of the horses, no matter how furiously they were ridden ; 
 and, in order to run with the greater ease, they not only ' girded their 
 loins ' very tightly, but also tucked up their loose garments under the 
 girdle, lest they should be incommoded by them. Thus, no doubt, did 
 Elijah. The distance from the base of Carrael across the plain to 
 Jezreel is not less than twelve miles ; and the race was probably 
 accomplished in two hours, in the face of a tremendous storm of rain 
 and wind. It was necessary that the ' hand of the Lord should be 
 upon' the prophet, or he would not have been able to achieve it." 
 
 Ahab, deeply impressed by the deeds of Elijah, hastened to Jezreel 
 and informed his queen of all that the prophet had done. Uidike her 
 husband, Jezebel grew more bitter against Elijah, and cherished 
 towards him a deeper hatred, the more he showed by his words and
 
 I. KINGS. 299 
 
 works tliat be was truly sent by God to tbeir wicked court. Wben 
 sbe bad beard of tbe recent events, " Jezebel sent a messenger unto 
 Elijab, saying, So let tbe gods do to me, and more also, if I make not 
 tby life as tbe life of one of tbem by to-morrow about tbis time " (xix. 2). 
 Having escaped from Jezreel, he went with his servant to Beersbeba, 
 and left him there, but " he himself went a day's journey into the wilder- 
 ness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree : and he requested 
 for himself that be might die ; and said, It is enough : now, Lord, 
 take away my life ; for I am not better than my fathers. And as he 
 lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, 
 and said unto him. Arise and eat" (ver. 4, 5). 
 
 " The Juniper tree," Heb. rothem, is also referred to in Job xxx. 4, and 
 
 Fig 83. 
 
 Tlie Common J?room {Snrothnmr.ns scj^i^nriit^). , 
 
 Psalm cxx. 4. This plant is not a juniper, but a broom. The juniper 
 (Juniperus) belongs to the natural order Coniferce, or cone-bearers ; 
 the broom {Genista) to that of the LefjKmunferce, or pod-bearers. The 
 species under which tbe prophet rested in the wilderness of Beersbeba, 
 was the one-seeded broom {Genista vionosperm.a) , still called lidhem or 
 Ritt'm by tbe Arabs. It is to be met with in Palestine, in the desert 
 of Sinai, in Barbary, and in most of the countries on tbe borders of the
 
 300 RIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 northern shores of the Mediterranean Sea. The rothem was well-fitted 
 to shelter the prophet. Describing the WaJtj-csli-Sheihh, or royal 
 valley of Horeb, Dr. Bonar says : — " Wady-esli-Sheikh opens witli a 
 l)retty wide circle, covered witli tarfas and shrubs of the common 
 desert-class. On our right, shooting up over a huge mountain-wall, 
 Scrhal peers down on us in majesty, like a watch-tower, commanding 
 the whole stretch of the wilderness. Tiiree shrubs are specially noticed 
 here — the BJertan, the Bvn'th, and the Bit£m or Bithem — the two 
 former fragrant, the last a species of broom, with a small white flower, 
 streaked with pink. It is translated 'juniper ' in our version, but it has 
 no reseml)lance to that shrub ; whereas the Hebrew w^ord rotliem, as 
 illustrated by the Arabic JRitt'm, shows us wdiat it is. It was under 
 tliis tree that Elijah sat down to take shelter from the heat (1 Kings 
 xix. 5) ; and more than once did we do the same, for some of these 
 shrubs are bushy and tall, perhaps eight or ten feet high. They 
 formed a shadow sometimes from the heat, sometimes from the wind, 
 and sometimes from the rain, both for man and beast." Dr. Stanley 
 met with it in Wady Sej'al. "This wady," he writes, "is a continu- 
 ous descent between high granite rocks, occasionally red, sometimes 
 like the deep red of old bricks. In this we encamped. The next day 
 it widened, and the acacias increased into spreading mazy thorns. A 
 sharp storm of rain, the only one we experienced in our whole journey, 
 swept from the Sinai range, during which we took shelter under a 
 ' Retem,' or broom." " From here," says Dr. Robinson, when referring 
 to Bcersheba, " Elijah wandered out into the southern desert, and sat 
 down under a shrub of Retem, just as our Arabs sat down under it 
 every day and every night. The shrubs which we had met with 
 throTighout the desert still continued. One of the principal of these is 
 the Bdcm already mentioned, a species of the broom plant. Genista 
 rectum of Forskall. This is the largest and most conspicuous shrub of 
 these deserts, growing thickly in the water-courses and valleys. Our 
 Arabs always selected the place of encampment, if possible, in a spot 
 where it grew, in order to be sheltered* by it at night from the wind ; 
 and during the day, when they often went on in advance of the camels, 
 we found them not uufrequently sitting or sleeping under a bush of 
 Retem, to protect them from the sun. It was in this very desert, a 
 day's journey from Beersheba, that the prophet Elijah lay down and 
 slept beneath the same shrub."
 
 II. KINGS. 
 
 301 
 
 II. KINGS. 
 
 'HE sons of the prophets appear to have become much 
 depressed by tlie prevalence of the famine. EHslia's 
 appearance again at Gilgal shed energy and activity into 
 the midst of tliem. Wherever he is introduced the narra- 
 tive becomes more lively, and a business-like air is thrown 
 over the scene. " And Elisha came again to Gilgal : and 
 jv^ there was a dearth in the land ; and the sons of the prophets 
 were sitting before him : and he said unto his servant, Set on the 
 great pot, and seethe pottage for the sons of the prophets. And 
 one went out into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine, 
 and gathered thereof wild gourds his lap-full, and came and shred them 
 into the pot of pottage : for they knew them not. So they poured out 
 for the men to eat : and it came to pass, as they were eating of the 
 pottage, that they cried out, and said, thou man of God, there is 
 death in the pot : and they could not cat thereof. But he said, Then 
 bring meal : and he cast it into the pot ; and he said, Pour out for the 
 people, that they may eat; and there was no harm in the pot" (iv. 
 38-41). The herbs were gathered to make soup. Either those found 
 were not well known in the neighbourhood, or the person who was sent 
 out, had liitherto been little observant of the forms of vegetation around 
 him. He found a wild vine {gephen sadeh), literally " vine of the 
 field," and gathered its fruit, called here " wild gourds " (pakkaoth 
 sJiadc'h). The use here of the word vine implies, that the plant had 
 vine-like tendrils and leaves. One of the gourd femily (Ciicurln'taccfe), 
 the colocynth, or bitter cucumber {Citrulhts coIoajntJns), most closely 
 answers this description. It is common over most of .Palestine. It 
 yields the strongly purgative drug of the same name. Prepared in the 
 manner described here, it would be highly poisonous, and at once pro- 
 ductive of the effects which led to the cry, " thou man of God, there 
 is death in the pot." There is another species for which this might, 
 by an unobserving person, be mistaken, the Citrullus eduh's, which 
 yields a refreshing juice. Dr. Thomson has recently selected another 
 herb as having some claims to being the wild gourd : — " The Hebrew 
 root seems to point to some herb that bursts or splits open, and I have
 
 302 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 thought it might be the Elaterium, which is found all over the country, 
 looks like a young squash, and is extremely poisonous. When green, 
 it might be mistaken for an edible ' gourd ' or cucumber ; but when 
 ripe it cannot be ' gathered ' at all, for it bursts on the slightest pressure 
 with great violence, scattering the seeds in all directions." This is the 
 so-called "squirting cucumber," the Echalium elaterium of botanists. 
 But the colocynth plant suits the narrative much better. 
 
 Even the command, " Go and wash in Jordan seven times " (v. 10), 
 was trying to the Syrian leper's pride, but this was aggravated by the 
 non-appearance of Elisha — " Naaman was wroth, and went away, and 
 
 Fig 89 
 
 Wild Gonrd {C-immia prophetanm). 
 
 said. Behold, I thought. He will surely come out to me, and stand, and 
 call on the name of the Lord his God, and strike his hand over the 
 place, and recover the leper. Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of 
 Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel ? may I not wash in them, 
 and be clean? So he turned, and went away in a rage" (ver. 11, 12). 
 He nearly missed his opportunity, but his servants entreated, and he 
 went and " dipped himself seven times." The cure was complete. 
 
 The "Abana" is now named Barada, and the "Pharpar" A'lcaj. 
 They are still known as the rivers of Damascus. The former is the 
 Chrijsorrlioas of the Greeks. " It rises in the high plain south of
 
 II. KINGS. 303 
 
 Zebeduny, on Anti-Lebanon, and rushes in a south-easterly course 
 down the mountain, till it issues at Mezzeh, from its chasm upon the 
 plain. Here it turns eastward, and flowing along the north wall of the 
 city, takes its way across the plain to the two northern lakes. The 
 AicaJ is ibrmed by the junction of several smaller streams at or near 
 Sa'sa'. One of these comes from the fountain near Beit Jenn, on the 
 way from Sa'sa' to Bunias ; and receives further down a branch arising 
 from the great fountain of Menbej." — (Iiohmson, "Res." iii., 447.) 
 
 " And it came to pass after this, that Beii-hadad king of Syria 
 gathered all his host, and went up, and besieged Samaria. And there 
 was a great famine in Samaria : and, behold, they besieged it, until an 
 ass's head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver, and the fourth part of 
 a cab of dove's dung for five pieces of silver" (vi. 24, 25). " Situated 
 on its steep height, in a plain itself girt in by hills," says Stanley, 
 " Samaria was enabled, not less promptly than Jerusalem, to resist the 
 successive assaults made upon it by the Syrian and Assyrian armies. 
 The first was baffled altogether ; the second took it only after a three 
 years' siege, that is, three times as long as that which reduced Jeru- 
 salem. The local circumstances of the earlier sieges are well brought 
 out by M. Van de Velde : — 'As the mountains around the hill of Shemer 
 are higher than that hill itself, the enemy must have been able to dis- 
 cover clearly the internal condition of the besieged Samaria. . . . The 
 inhabitants, whether they turned their eyes upwards or downwards, to 
 the surrounding hills or into the valley, must have seen all full of 
 
 enemies thirty and tvo kings, and horses and chariots. The 
 
 mountains and the adjacent circle of hills were so densely occupied by 
 the enemy, that not a man could pass through, to bring provisions to 
 the beleagured city. The Syrians on the hills must have been able, 
 from where they stood, plainly to distinguish the famishing inhabitants." 
 It was in such circumstances that the head of an ass was sold for ibur- 
 score pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a cab of doves' dung for 
 hve pieces of silver. There can be no uncertainty touching the first 
 article. It was the head of the hliamor or domestic ass. If we take 
 the price of silver named here as a shekel, which it most likely was, ten 
 pounds would be paid for the almost fleshless head of an unclean animal. 
 There has been much difference of opinion as to the "doves' dung." Is 
 the statement to be understood literally, or is some kind of seed referred 
 to under this name ? Some thiidv that the only satisfactory point of view 
 from which to regard it is that indicated by the author of" The Land and 
 the Book." " What," he asks, "have you to say to the extraordinary
 
 304 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 food called ' doves' dung,' which was sold at a high price during that 
 terrible siege of Benhadad ? I believe that the Hebrew chirhjonim, or 
 khir yonim, was a name for a coarse and cheap sort of food, a kind of 
 bean, as some think, to which this whimsical title was given on account 
 of some fancied resemblance between the two. Nor am I at all sur- 
 prised at it, for the Arabs give the most quaint, obscure, and ridiculous 
 names to their extraordinary edible mixtures. I would, therefore, not 
 translate at all, but let the passage read thus, ' A fourth part of a cab 
 of khir yonim for five pieces of silver ;' and be content with that, until 
 we know what kliir yonim really is." Bochart early gave prominence 
 to the supposition that the article was a kind of pulse. " And indeed," 
 says Shaw (i. 257), " as the cicer is pointed at one end, and acquires 
 an ash colour in parching, the first of which circumstances answers to 
 the figure, the other to the usual colour of pigeons' dung, the supposi- 
 tion is by no means to be disregarded." The cicer referred to by Shaw 
 is evidently the chick-pea {Cicer arietinum), which is much cultivated 
 in the Levant, and has ever been used as a common article of food in 
 the East. Lady Callcott pleads ably for the root of the common star 
 of Bethlelieiu {Ornithorjalum umhellatum) as the representative of the 
 famine diet in Samaria, having evidently been drawn to it by the 
 generic name which signifies birds' milk. "The bulbous root," she 
 says, " of the ornithogalum has in all times been used as an esculent 
 vegetable in Syria and the neighbouring countries. Dioscoridcs says 
 that it was sometimes dried, pulverized, and mixed with bread-flour ; and 
 that it was also eaten, both raw and roasted. He remarks furtlier, that 
 of thirty-six known species, one bearing a yellow flower yielded the 
 
 most agreeable food The plains and valleys about Samaria 
 
 abound in this pretty flower ; and the dearth of its roots, during the 
 siege of the city of the Syrians under Benhadad, was a token of famine 
 beyond endurance." In addition to tliis view it may be added, that the 
 Arabs call the " parched pulse " (Iccdi) of 2 Sam. xvii. 28, " sparrows' 
 dung." 
 
 But notwithstanding these plausible suppositions, it is more likely 
 that the expression should be taken literally, just as we do the reference 
 to the ass's head. It does not harmonize with the general impression 
 conveyed by the context, to be told that, while the almost useless head 
 of the dead ass brought fourscore pieces of silver, a quantity of any 
 kind of vegetable food equal to three English jiints, brought only five 
 pieces of silver. The latter would in every respect have been more 
 highly esteemed, and would have brought a greater price than the
 
 II. KINGg. 305 
 
 former. This objection is fatal to the idea that either pulse or the root 
 of the ornithogalum is to be understood here. In favour of the supposi- 
 tion that the words should be taken literally, is the fact that, in the 
 great British famine of 131G, the excrement of pigeons is known to 
 have been eaten by the poorest of the people. Such allusions as those 
 in 2 Kings xviii. 27, and Isaiah xxxvi. 12, indicate that this may have 
 been very far from unlikely. There is thus much more to be said in 
 favour of the literal meaning of the statement, than of the proposal to 
 understand here any one description of vegetable food. 
 
 There had been peace between the kingdom of Judah and that of 
 Israel for more than a hundred years. The alliance, indeed, had not 
 been conducive to the highest interests of either. It was not, however, 
 to be lightly broken off and set aside. Yet Amaziah, lifted up by his 
 victory over the Edomites, and most likely bent on bringing Israel once 
 more under the power of Judah, sent a foolish challenge to Jehoahaz, 
 son of Jehu, a man in whom much of the shrewdness and daring of his 
 father were. "Come," he said, "let us look one another in the face" 
 (xiv. 8). " Then Amaziah sent messengers to Jehoash the son of 
 Jehoahaz, son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, Come, let us look one 
 another in the face. And Jehoash the king of Israel sent to Amaziah 
 king of Judah, salving. The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the 
 cedar that was in Lebanon, saying, Give thy daughter to my son to 
 wife : and there passed by a wild beast that was in Lebanon, and trod 
 down the thistle. Thou hast indeed smitten Edom, and thine heart 
 hath lifted thee up : glory of this, and tarry at home ; for why shouldest 
 thou meddle to thy hurt, that thou shouldest fall, even thou, and Judah 
 with thee?" (xiv. 8-10.) As if he had said, I so despise you, that if 
 you were to ask my daughter in marriage, I would trample you under 
 foot, as the wild beast does the thistle on the mountain-side. You are 
 not even a foe worthy of my regard. Judah is as the worthless thistle; 
 Israel is as the cedar of Lebanon. 
 
 "Thistle," Heb. hoahh, means here any worthless, prickly plant 
 growing on Lebanon, and which contrasts well with the great and 
 wide-spreading cedar. The word properly rendered thistle is dardar. 
 The term is sometimes used to denote the close brushwood met with in 
 little-disturbed forests. In such a cover the men of Israel were wont 
 to hide themselves from the Philistines — " When they saw they were 
 in a strait, then the people did hide themselves in caves, and in ihkhets, 
 and in rocks, and in high places, and in pits " (1 Sam. xiii. G). It was 
 in such bushy entanglements and thorns that Manasseh was captured 
 
 VOL. II. 2 Q
 
 30G BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 by tlie captains of Assyria. " And the Lord spake to Manasseh, and 
 to Ills people ; but they would not hearken. Wherefore the Lord 
 brought upon them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria, 
 which took ]\Ianasse]i among the thorns, and bound him with fetters, 
 and carried him to Babylon" (2 Chron. xxxiii. 10, 11). Such was 
 Amaziah and the house of Judali. They were as the underwood to the 
 lofty cedar overtopping it. And just as the boar when pursued 
 tramples the brushwood down, breaks tlirough its opposing thorns, and 
 treats it with complete disregard, so would the grandson of Jehu regard 
 with contempt the son of Joash king of Judah. 
 
 "The cedar of Lebanon" {Cedrus Ldhani), Heb. erez. See under 
 1 Kings iv. 33 ; 1 Chron. xiv. 1 ; Ps. xcii. 12 — where the cedar is fully 
 noticed. " The cedars," says Dr. Thomson, when pointing out the site 
 of the present cedar grove, "are situated high up on the western slope 
 of Lebanon, ten hours south-east from Tripoli. Besherrah is directly 
 west, in the romantic gorge of the Kadisha, two thousand feet below 
 them, and Ehden is three hours distant on the road to Tripoli. In no 
 other part of Syria are the mountains so Alpine, the proportions so 
 gigantic, the ravines so profound and awful. You must not leave the 
 country without visiting the cedars. There are several routes to them, 
 and all wild, exciting, delightful. One of the most romantic is to clindi 
 Lebanon from Beirut quite to the base of Jebel Kniseh, then wind north- 
 ward around the heads of the stupendous gorges made by the rivers of 
 Beirut, Anfelias, Dog River, Nahr Ibrahim, Nahr el Jous, and the 
 Kadisha. I have repeatedly followed that wildest of routes, with or 
 without a path, as the case might be, clinging to the shelving declivities 
 midway to heaven, with a billowy wilderness of rocks and ravines 
 sinking away westward down to the sea. The very thought of it at 
 this minute is positively intoxicating. The platform where the cedars 
 stand is more than six thousand feet above the Mediterranean, and 
 around it are gathered the very tallest and greyest heads of Lebanon. 
 The forest is not large — not more than five hundred trees, great and 
 small, grouped irregularly on the sides of shallow ravines, which mark 
 the birth-place of the Kadisha, or Holy River. But, though the space 
 covered by them does not exceed half a dozen acres, yet, when fairly 
 within the grove, and beneath the giant arms of those old patriarchs of 
 a hundred generations, there comes a solemn hush upon the soul as if 
 by enchantment. Precisely the same sort of magic spell settles on the 
 spirits, no matter how often you repeat your visits. But it is most 
 impressive in the night. Let us by all means arrange to sleep there.
 
 II. KINGS. 307 
 
 The universal silence is almost painful. The grey old towers of 
 Lebanon, still as a stone, stand all around, holding up the stars of 
 heaven to look at you ; and the trees gather like phantoms about you, 
 and wink knowingly, or seem to, and whisper among themselves you 
 know not what. You become suspicious, nervous, until, broad awake, 
 you find that it is notliing but the flickering of your drowsy fire, and 
 tlie feeble flutter of bats among the boughs of the trees. A night 
 among the cedars is never forgotten ; the impressions, electrotyped, are 
 hid away in the inner chamber of the soul, among her choicest treasures, 
 to be visited a thousand times with never-failing delight." 
 
 " In the ninth year of Hosliea the king of Assyria (Shalmaneser) took 
 Samaria, and carried Israel away into Assyria, and placed them in 
 Halah and in Habor by the river of Gozan" (xvii. 6). The difficulties 
 connected with the identification of Halah and Habor cease to be very 
 important when the geographical position of Gozan is ascertained. 
 Gozan is the name of a region in Mesopotamia. It is the Gauzamiis 
 of the ancients, and the modern Kushan. Halah lay on the borders of 
 Gozan. Habor was the river which watered that province. It is now 
 named Khahour. 
 
 The Assyrian captain, by the use of the striking figure in verse 21, 
 endeavours to convince Ilezekiah and his people, that all reliance whicli 
 kept them from yielding to Sennacherib would prove vain. The 
 passage is repeated in Isaiah xxxvi. G with little variation. The Assy- 
 rians imagined that the king of Judah held out against them from 
 secret hopes of help from Egypt. " Now, behold, thou trustest upon 
 the staff of this bruised reed, even upon Egypt, on which if a man lean, 
 it will go into his hand, and pierce it : so is Pharaoh king of Egypt 
 unto all that trust on him" (xviii. 21). Eabshakeh tries to show the 
 vanity of hoping for assistance from this source. Egypt, he says, has 
 already sufi'ered so much from Assyria, that it is no better than a 
 bruised reed. It is held feebly together, but lean on it, take it for a 
 staff, and it will pierce your hands. " The charge of relying upon 
 Egypt may be either regarded as a true one, or as a malicious fabrica- 
 tion, or as a mere inference from the analogy of other cases, and the 
 habitual relation of the parties." For " reed" see above, 1 Kings xiv. 
 15. The figure of "the crushed reed" is used for another purjjose in 
 Isa. xlii. 3, and Matt. xii. 19, which see. 
 
 In the description of " the good land " by Moses, mention is made of 
 the richness and variety of its natural products (Deut. viii. 7-9). Among 
 these oil and honey are named — " A land of oil olive {eretz zayith
 
 shemen) and honey (devash)." The captain of the king of Assyria here 
 acknowledges tliis feature of Palestine. The land to which he proposed 
 to carry the people was, he said, like their own, " a land of oil olive 
 {zayith yitzhdr) and of honey" (ver. 32). It will be noticed that the 
 Hebrew word for oil differs in the two passages. In the former it is 
 shemen, in the latter yitzluTr. The term translated "honey" is the 
 same in both. 
 
 "Honey" (devash) is first mentioned in Gen. xliii. 11, as one of the 
 characteristic natural productions of Canaan. The sons of Jacob were 
 ordered by their father to take as a present to the governor of Egypt a 
 " little balm and a little honey," &c. The same word occurs other 
 forty-three times, and is to be understood as being either the honey of 
 bees, or a preparation from fruit, as grapes and dates. In the passages 
 in which it is named as one of the features of a plentiful land, it is to 
 be regarded as the honey of the bee (Aj)is meUijica) — see Exod. iii. 8, 
 17; xiii. 5; Levit. xx. 24; Numb. xiii. 27, xiv. 8, xvi. 13, 14, &c. 
 The same product is referred to in Ps. xix. 10; Ixxxi. IG ; and cxix. 103. 
 Most travellers who have visited Palestine in summer, have had their 
 attention directed to the abundance of honey, which the bees of the land 
 have stored up in the hollows of trees and in crevices of the rock. 
 This was the " wild honey " which formed part of the Baptist's food 
 in the wilderness (Matt. iii. 4). It is often found dropping from the 
 trees, when the wax is melted by the heat of the sun. And in localities 
 where the bare rocks of the desert alone break the sameness of the 
 scene, and all around is suggestive of desolation and death, the travel- 
 ler has God's care of his chosen people vividly brought to mind, as he 
 sees the honey, which the bees had treasured up beyond his reach, 
 trickling in shining drops down the face of the rock : — 
 
 " Oil that my people had hearkened unto nie, 
 And Israel had walked in my ways ! 
 
 He should have fed them also with the finest of the wheat : 
 And with honey out of the rock should 1 have satisfied thee !" 
 
 In 2 Chron. xxxi. 5, " honey " is named along with first-fruits of " corn, 
 wine, and oil," and is to be regarded as an artificial preparation, 
 which see. 
 
 " I will punish," says the Lord to Isaiah, " the fruit of the stout heart 
 of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his high looks" (x. 12). A 
 reference to the context in which this passage stands, sheds light on 
 verse 23 of chapter xix. — " By thy messengers thou hast reproached 
 the Lord, and hast said. With the multitude of my chariots I am come
 
 II. KINGS. 309 
 
 up to the height of the mountains, to the sides of Lebanon, and will 
 cut down tlie tall cedar-trees thereof, and the choice fir-trees thereof: 
 and I will enter into the lodgings of his borders, and into the forest of 
 his Carmel." The prophet refers to the boasting language of Sennach- 
 erib, and virtually adds — As you threatened to do, so shall it be done to 
 you. The Assyrian by these expressions wishes to characterize all in 
 which Judah delighted — Zion, the sides of Lebanon, its cedars (1 Kings 
 iv. 33), and its fir-trees ; and the Lord answers his defiant words by 
 his prophet, who expresses the greatness of the enemy under figures 
 drawn from the vegetable world. 
 
 In other passages the cedar is thus used as an emblem of greatness 
 and might. Job speaks of behemoth as " moving his tail like a cedar " 
 (xl. 17). Jeremiah mentions the house of Judah as being to the Lord 
 like " Gilead and the head of Lebanon" for grandeur and beauty, while 
 the people walked with him. But they sinned, and he said — " I will 
 prepare destroyers against thee, every one with his weapons, and they 
 shall cut down thy choice cedars " (xxii. 7). " The Assyrian," says 
 Ezekiel, " was a cedar of Lebanon of an high stature " (xxxi. 3). And 
 Amos compares the old enemies of Israel to this tree — "Yet destroyed 
 I the Amorite before them, whose height was like the height of the 
 cedar " (xi. 9). 
 
 Reference is made under Psalm xcii. 12, to other and more attractive 
 moral features, which find fit emblems in this tree. In Psalm Ixxx. 10, 
 it is said of the church when compared to a vine, that — 
 
 "The boughs thereof were like the goodly cedars.'' 
 
 The bride in the Song (v. 15), in her praise of the king, speaks of — 
 
 " His countenance 
 As Lebanon, excelling as the cedars." 
 
 The boastful words of the Assyrian monarch are so turned by Isaiah to 
 the comfort of Hezekiah and his people, that "out of the devourer comes 
 forth meat, and out of the strong one comes forth sweetness." It was 
 true, he says, that Sennacherib had done great things. He had been a 
 scourge of many nations ; but in all this he was but an instrument in 
 the hand of God. " I have brought it to jiass, tliat thou shouldest be 
 to lay waste fenced cities into ruinous heaps. Therefore their inhabi- 
 tants were of small power, they were dismayed and confounded ; they 
 were as the grass of the field, and as the green herb, as the grass on 
 the house-tops, and as corn blasted before it be grown up " (xxxvii. 
 26, 27).
 
 310 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 The strikingly suggestive imagery of verse 27 has been somewhat 
 weakened by the rendering of the Last clause. Instead of introducing 
 ihe words " as corn," and dividing the reader's attention, the idea of 
 grass should be kept hold of throughout. The subject does not demand 
 a continued comparison, but a declaration suggestive of scorn and con- 
 tempt. The people against whom you have hitherto proved successful, 
 says God by his prophet, were destitute of that strength which is to be 
 enjoyed by those who put their trust in me, and of that safety which 
 lies in my protection. They were of weak and short hand ; they were 
 terribly alarmed and confounded ; what were they ? " They were the 
 grass of the earth, and the green herb, the grass on the house-tops, 
 and blasted before ever it is stalked." The figure is very like that 
 which occurs in our Lord's parable of the sower — " Some fell upon a 
 rock ; and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away" (Luke viii. 6). 
 
 This paraphrase of part of the address to Sennacherib, is in keeping 
 with the use of the word here rendered in our translation " grown up," 
 by the writers of Scripture. The Hebrew term is kdmah^ literally "that 
 which stands erect." When used in connection with any form of vege- 
 tation, it means the stalk. If the stalk be that of corn, it is indicated 
 by the context. Among the regulations laid down by Moses for guid- 
 ing the people in their social relationships, one relates to the breaking 
 out of fires : — " If fire break out, and catch in thorns, so that the stacks 
 of corn, or the standing corn, or the field, be consumed therewith ; he 
 that kindled the fire shall surely make restitution" (Exod. xxii. 6). 
 Corn in the stack, or shock (gddtsh), is associated with corn in the stalk 
 (Jcdmuh). The same association occurs in Judges xv. o. The begin- 
 ning of the feast of weeks was to be when the harvest began : — " Seven 
 weeks shalt thou number unto thee : begin to number the seven weeks 
 from such time as thou beginnest to put the sickle to the corn (Jcdmdhy 
 (Deut. xvi. 9). In the same book the word is used in a like way in 
 another passage (xxiii. 25). Hosea also applies this term to corn :— 
 " They have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind ; it hath 
 no stalk (kdmdJi) : the bud shall yield no meal : if so be it yield, the 
 strangers shall swallow it" (viii. 7).
 
 I. CHRONICLES. 
 
 311 
 
 I. CHRONICLES. 
 
 N chapter iv. 21, a most interesting notice occurs. Mention is 
 made of "the families of the house of them that wrought fine 
 linen." In a word, we have presented to our minds a manu- 
 facturing community, in which old and young were engaged 
 , in an industrial occupation for which the present age has 
 become specially noted. The term rendered " fine linen " 
 Q)utz) occurs here for the first time in sacred writing. The introduc- 
 
 Fig.go. 
 
 I 
 
 Cotton Plant {Oosaifpium tuuminatum). 
 
 tion of a new name connected with clothing, supplies sufficient ground 
 for expecting a reference to a new fabric. Accordingly, it is alleged 
 with good reason that the ftibric alluded to here was cotton {gossf/pium), 
 which at this period began to be used as a substitute for linen.
 
 312 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 The cotton plant is a native of India, whence it seems to have come 
 to Syria, whose trafliekers traded with Tyre in this article. " Syria," 
 says the Lord to Tyrus, " was tliy merchant in fine linen (bilk)." From 
 Tyre the cotton plant would find its way into Egypt, where it does not 
 appear to have been known in the time of Herodotus. See under Prov. 
 xxxi. 22. In chapter xv. 27, a distinction is made between this cloth 
 and the linen of which parts of the dress of the priests were made : — 
 "David was clothed with a robe of fine linen {biltz), and all the Levites 
 that bare the ark, and the singers, and Chenaniah the master of the 
 song with the singers : David also had upon him an ephod of linen 
 (had)." The latter term (had) is never used except to distinguish some 
 part of the priestly dress. Exod. xxviii. 42 ; Levit. xvi. 4, &c. If the 
 fabric named here was cotton, it had come into use as an expensive 
 garment. Thus it is linked up with crimson stuff, and named to indi- 
 cate showy and costly apparel. Huram sent to Solomon a man 
 " skilful to work in fine linen [biltz) and in crimson " (2 Chron. ii. 14). 
 The vail of the tabernacle also was " of purple, and crimson, and fine 
 linen" (2 Chron. iii. 14). 
 
 In the reign of Hezekiah, several Simeonite chiefs are said to have 
 gone " to the entrance of Gedor, even unto the east side of the valley, 
 to seek pasture for their flocks. And they found fat pasture and good, 
 and the land was wide, and quiet, and peaceable ; for they of Ham had 
 dwelt there of old" (iv. 39, 40). "Gedor," a place evidently lying 
 between the south of Simeon and Edom ; not the place of the same 
 name lying to the north of Hebron (Josh. xv. 58). 
 
 Another expedition of these daring chiefs of the same tribe is noticed 
 in verses 42, 43 : — " And some of them, even of the sons of Simeon, 
 five hundred men, went to Mount Seir, having for their captains Pela- 
 tiah, and Neariah, and Rephaiah, and Uzziel, the sons of Ishi. And 
 they smote the rest of the Amalekites that were escaped, and dwelt 
 there unto this day." "The Amalekites" were not descended from 
 Amalek, the grandson of Esau (Gen. xxxvi. 12). They were a power- 
 ful tribe of wandering sheplierds, who appear at a very early period to 
 have migrated from the south of Asia, to have chiefly taken possession 
 of the i-egion of Sinai, and thence to have spread northward to the 
 borders of Palestine. Later they became closely associated with the 
 Edomites. Their power seems to have been for the first time thoroughly 
 broken by the victory which Israel obtained over them at Rephidini. 
 (Exod. xvii.) 
 
 The resolution of David to bring up the ark of God from Kirjath-
 
 I. CHKOXICLES. 313 
 
 jearim results in showing, among other things, how widely the people 
 were spread even in his time. He had to gather them even " from 
 Shihor of Egypt" (xiii. 5). Shihor or Sihor means literally trotiUed, 
 or mudchj, and is the name several times given in the Scriptures to the 
 Nile. Thus Joshua claimed for Israel, according to the promise to 
 Abraham (Gen. xv. 18), the territory bounded on one side by " Sihor, 
 which is before Egypt" (Josh. xiii. 3). Tyre drew some of her riches 
 from the valley of the Nile : — " By great waters the seed of Sihor, the 
 harvest of the river, is her revenue; and she is a mart of nations" (Isa. 
 xxiii. 3). When Israel forsook the Lord, he once and again went down 
 to Egypt ; and on one such occasion the prophet forcibly asked — 
 " What hast thou to do in the way of Egypt, to drink the waters of 
 Sihor?" (Jer. ii. 18). About the summer solstice the waters of the 
 Nile, having their source in the great lake Victoria Kijanza, begin to 
 give evidence of their approaching rise. They assume a darker and 
 more tui'bid appearance than usual, caused by the addition to them 
 of the debris on the banks, whence the superabundant waters are 
 supplied. This changes to a darkish green, from their having be- 
 come impregnated with plant colouring matter {chlorophjlle) ; and, 
 ultimately, when the waters are at their height, the quantity of earthy 
 matter which they hold, gives them a red, muddy colour. These last 
 were the true waters of Shihor. See above. Gen. xli. 1. 
 
 The attachment which the king of Tyre had to David is very forcibly 
 indicated in 1 Kings v. 1, on the occasion of the accession of Solomon 
 to the throne : — "Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants unto Solomon 
 (for he had heard that they had anointed hira king in the room of his 
 ftither) ; for Hiram was ever a lover of David." On the death of David, 
 Hiram's love was transferred to his son. In the first verse of this 
 chapter, the attachment of the king of Tyre is shown in his anxiety to 
 help David, now that he was confirmed king over Israel, to build a 
 palace in which he might as successfully practise the arts of peace as 
 he had hitherto done those of war. " He sent timber of cedars, with 
 masons and carpenters, to build him an house." 
 
 " Cedar," Heb. erez, has been fully noticed under 1 Kings iv. 33 ; 
 
 which see. Some of its outstanding characteristics will be referred to 
 
 under Psalm xcii. 12. The wood of the cedar is named here as timber 
 
 employed in house carpentry. It has generally been held, that the 
 
 cedar wood of Scripture must have been obtained from the Lebanon 
 
 species {Ccdnis Lihani). But this is extremely doubtful. It is much 
 
 more likely that other species of cone-bearing trees yielded the timber 
 , VOL. n. 2 R
 
 314 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 SO much used in house-building. When the species is associated with 
 Lebanon, there is every reason to hold that the name refers to the so-called 
 true cedars. But the prevalence of other cone-bearers along the coasts 
 and in the inland districts accessible to Hiram, makes it highly probable 
 that they yielded most of the wood sent to Jerusalem for building pur- 
 poses. Such species supply a timber much more suitable than that of 
 the cedar for such ends ; and certain cypresses and pine-trees were 
 anciently characterized in a general and popular way as cedars, after 
 the same manner as cedars, fir-trees, and pines, are popularly known 
 among us as "fir-trees." There is, moreover, good reason to doubt whether 
 the cedars of Lebanon were ever plentiful in that region. Lr the oldest 
 historical notices which we have of them they are described as few. 
 If to those considerations we add the fact, that some of the trees grow- 
 ing in Lebanon yielded timber, named cedar wood, for purposes other 
 than the cedars could serve, the view now taken will seem even 
 stronger. In Ezekiel's address to Tyrus, he says : — " Thy builders have 
 perfected thy beauty. They have made all thy ship-boards of fir-trees 
 of Senir ; they have taken cedars from Lebanon to make masts for 
 thee" (xxvii. 5). But the mode of growth of Cedrus Lihani wholly 
 unfits it for this purpose. It is gnarled, crooked, and irregular in its 
 growth. Even the main stem seldom attains to a great height. The 
 height of the tree, its noble, stately look, and generally imposing 
 appearance, depend upon the development of the branches rather than 
 on the size of the trunk. But there were many other cone-bearers 
 which would easily be reached by the ship-builders of Tyre, and be 
 found, from their clean growth, their height, and arrow-like straight- 
 uess, peculiarly answerable for masts. 
 
 When we meet with the mention of cedars and cedar wood in the 
 sacred narrative, it is better to determine for ourselves whether it be 
 likely that the Lebanon species, or some other cone-bearer, is referred 
 to. In regard, for example, to the passage quoted above from Ezekiel, 
 we may almost with certainty conclude that a species of fir {Abies) or 
 of pine {Pinus) is to be understood. At the present time it is cus- 
 tomary, even for travellers of good scientific attainments, to overlook 
 well-marked specific differences, and to speak of the cedar of Lebanon 
 as occurring in many other parts of tlie range beside the Kadisha 
 valley. Dr. Thomson, referring to this, says : — " Those travellers who 
 speak of finding these cedars in abundance on other parts of Lebanon, 
 are simply mistaken in the tree. There are considerable groves of 
 cedar in various places, generally along the very highest range — for
 
 I. CHKONICLES. 315 
 
 example, north of Tomat Niha, above Baruk, Aphcah, and other similar 
 localities ; but they are quite ditfcrent from the cedar of Lebanon." 
 
 I have referred above to the likelihood that other coniferous species, 
 besides tlie true cedar of Lebanon, were much employed by the Jews 
 for building purposes. Dr. Hooker has carefully examined this ques- 
 tion. " Whether," he says, " the grove has much diminished within 
 the historic period, is a question which can only be decided by a careful 
 collection and scrutiny of the records of old travellers. It would not 
 surprise me, if proofs existed of its not having materially decreased 
 since the days of Solomon ; for it is very doubtful whether the wood 
 was ever largely used in Jerusalem for building purposes. The word 
 cedar, as used in the Bible, applies to other trees, and only certainly to 
 the Ceclrus Libani, when coupled with some distinctive epithet. The 
 foreign timber trade was, in Solomon's time, in the hands of the Phoe- 
 nicians, and the quantity of first-rate oak and pine, on all the coast- 
 ranges from Carmcl northwards, was so great, that it is improbable that 
 the almost inaccessible valleys of the Lebanon should have been 
 ransacked for a wood tliat has no particular quality to recommend it 
 for building purposes. The lower slopes of the Lebanon, also, border- 
 ing on tlie sea, were and are covered with magnificent forests. So that 
 there was little inducement to ascend six thousand feet, through twenty 
 miles of a rocky mountain valley, to obtain a material which could not 
 be transported to the coast without the utmost difficulty and expense. 
 It is further to be remarked, that it is difficult to reconcile the hypo- 
 thesis of the former great extent of the cedar forests, with the fact of 
 almost the only existing habitat being the moraines of one of the most 
 populous valleys on the mountain. Of mountain corrys, with the same 
 elevation as that of the cedars, there are hundreds on the Lebanon, 
 some said to be almost inaccessible, and others quite uninhabited ; had 
 the cedar ever formed continuous forests on tlie mountain, from which 
 it had been removed by man, we should certainly expect to find exten- 
 sive groves in such localities. I desire not to be misunderstood in this 
 matter, for the question is of some scientific importance ; I do not doubt 
 that the Cedni$ Lihani is repeatedly alluded to in the Old Testament, 
 by the prophets especially, who aptly and unmistakably designate that 
 tree ; but if, as I believe is allowed by the best biblical critics and 
 Hebraists, the word cedar applies in Chronicles, &c., to more than one 
 kind of tree, it is, in my opinion, an open question whether the C. 
 Libani is one of those wbich supplied most of the timber employed in 
 building Solomon's Temple. The cypress (also called cedar by the
 
 316 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 ancients), the Finns Halepensis, and the tall fragrant Juniperus of the 
 Lebanon, with its fine red heart-wood, would have been for more prized 
 on every account." 
 
 For the notice of verses 1 l-l 7 of this chapter, see under 2 Samuel 
 V. 23 ; and for xv. 27, see iv. 21. 
 
 In chapter xxvii. 25-31, we get a glimpse of the industrial arts, to 
 the cultivation of which David specially devoted his attention. The 
 chief of these were connected with agriculture and pastoral life. He 
 had barns in which the produce of the fields was stored (ver. 25) ; 
 vineyards for the supply of the royal wine-cellars (ver. 27) ; places for 
 storing fruit and oil (ver. 27) ; herds, Avhich supplied the royal house- 
 hold with flesh (ver. 29) ; beasts of burden for necessary purposes (ver. 
 30) ; and flocks, which yielded wool (ver. 31). 
 
 "Onyx stones," xxix. 2; see vol. i. p. 98. 
 
 
 Cedars of Luljanon.
 
 II. CHRONICLES. 
 
 317 
 
 II. CHKONICLES. 
 
 FTER the account of the queen of Sheba's visit with her 
 presents of spices, gold, and precious stones, the commercial 
 enterprise of Solomon is mentioned. His servants and those 
 of Huram went to Ophir and brought home gold, algum-trees, 
 and precious stones. The nearest approach to certainty regard- 
 ing the geographical situation of Ophir (ver. 10) has been stated 
 al)0ve fl Kings x. 11). Its connection with one region named Tar- 
 shish has also been pointed out. It is mentioned thirteen times in 
 Scripture, twice as the name of a man (Gen. x. 29 ; 1 Chron. i. 23), 
 and in the other passages as a place. Some of these have already 
 been quoted (1 Kings ix. 28, x. 11, xxii. 48 ; 2 Chron. viii. 18). As in 
 these so in all the other passages, it is named as famous for yielding 
 the finest kind of gold — gold in the lump or nugget — see under Gen. 
 ii. 12. Eliphaz the Tcmanite proposes the possession of it to Job as 
 a motive for acquainting himself with God and being at peace with him, 
 and as a token to him of God's favour : — "If thou return to the Amighty 
 thou shalt be built up, thou slialt put away iniquity far from thy taber- 
 nacles. Then shalt thou lay up gold as dust, and the gold of Ophir as 
 the stones of the brooks. Yea, the Almighty shall be thy defence, and 
 thou shalt have plenty of silver. For then shalt thou have thy delight 
 in the Almighty, and shalt lift up thy face unto God" (Job xxii. 
 23-20). And when the sorrow-stricken " man of Uz " got a bright 
 glimpse of the excellency and beauty of that wisdom whose highest 
 fruit is the fear of the Lord, and whose chief influence is to depart 
 from evil, he felt that all the precious things of earth were as nought 
 compared with it, because they cannot secure it to a single soul — 
 " It cannot be gotten for gold, neither shall silver be weighed for the 
 price thereof. It cannot be valued with the gold of Ophir, with the 
 precious onyx, or the sapphire. The gold and the crystal cannot 
 equal it; and the exchange of it shall not be for jewels of fine gold" 
 (Job xxviii. 15-17). Ornaments for the person were most precious 
 when manufactured from the gold of Ophir. Thus the royal 
 epithalamium, or nuptial song, in which the reunion of the Hebrew 
 church — the queen —is celebrated, and the gathering of the nations
 
 318 BIBLICAL NATUEAL SCIENCE. 
 
 to Christ described, presents to us a scene in " the palace of tlie 
 king:"- 
 
 " King's daughters were among thy honourable women ; 
 Upon thy right hand did stand the queen in gohl of Ophir " (Ps. xlv. 0). 
 
 In the prophet's description of the effects of tlie judgment of God upon 
 the world for its wickedness, the Lord says — " I will make a man 
 more precious than fine, gold ; even a man than the golden wedge of 
 Ophir" (Isa. xiii. 12) — I will so cut off the wicked from the earth that 
 a man shall be as rare as is tlie ore of Ophir. In the Arabic version 
 (a.d. 942) the last expression is rendered the stone of India, and the 
 Septuagint (b.c. 282), " the stone which is in Zouphir," the Egyptian 
 name for India. 
 
 " The servants which brought gold from Ophir, brought algum-trees 
 and precious stones." " Algnin-trees" {algummlm), the Phoenician 
 trader's rendering of the vaJcja {lea.) of the Malabar coast (see under 
 
 1 Kings X. 11) are by transposition written almug-trees (ahmlgt'm) in 
 the book of Kings. The name which is confined to 1 Kings and 
 
 2 Chronicles, occurs six times, and always in connection with the 
 league between Hiram, king of Tyre, and Solomon. The verse now 
 under notice implies that the algum-trees were brought from Ophir. 
 Indeed this is clearly stated in 1 Kings : — " The navy that brought 
 gold from Ophir, brought in from Ophir great plenty of almug-trees." 
 This fact must modify, if not destroy, the conclusion which lias been 
 drawn by many from 2 Chronicles ii. 8: — " Send me also cedar-trees, 
 fir-trees, and algum-trees, out of Lebanon ; (for I know that thy 
 servants can skill to cut timber in Lebanon;) and behold, my servants 
 sliall be with thy servants." This verse has led to the supposition 
 that the algum-tree was, like the cedar, a native of Lebanon, one of 
 the Coniferaj, and identical with the common cyprus {Cuprcssus sem- 
 pervirens). But had this been so, it is not the least likely that the 
 ships from Ophir would have been burdened with wood, during a long 
 and perilous voyage, which could have been obtained in great abundance 
 so much nearer home. The explanation of this verse which has been 
 proposed by Gesenius is satisfactory. The trees which Lebanon 
 yielded were to be cut down, made ready for removal, and brought 
 down to the coast. There they would be associated with the algum- 
 wood imported to Phoenicia, and all kinds sent by sea to Joppa for 
 transmission to Jerusalem. IMoreover, any attempt to put a con- 
 struction on the verse which would make the algum a native of
 
 II. CHRONICLES. 319 
 
 Lebanon, would lead to a more formidable difficulty in the interpreta- 
 tion of the last clause of verse 11, and of 1 Kings x. 12 — "There 
 were none such seen before in the land of Judah;" "there came no 
 such almug-trees, nor were seen unto this day. " The wood was rare. 
 
 Two uses were made of the algum-wood. It was employed in 
 architecture. — " Tlie king made of the almug-trees pillars for the 
 house of the Lord, and for the king's house" (1 Kings x. 12). " The 
 king made of the algum-trees terraces to the house of the Lord, and to 
 the king's palace." In the margin pillars is rendered " rails," and 
 terraces "stays." The word used in 1 Kings occurs only once, that 
 employed here is of frequent occurrence. An examination of their 
 roots leads to the conclusion, that the passage in Kings should rule the 
 rendering of this one, and that "rail" is a better translation than 
 "pillar." In the former passage the individual balusters, or supports 
 of the rail proper, were in the mind of the writer ; in the latter, the 
 whole railing guarding the stairs was intended. Algum would thus be 
 used as we do cedar, mahogany, &c., in cabinet work. In both 
 passages it is said that algum was likewise used for making " harps 
 and psalteries for singers." It could form only part of these, and there 
 is nothing in the verse which demands that we should find the word 
 equal to the whole construction of these instruments. It may have 
 been only used to ornament them. This view of the use of the wood 
 removes other objections to the supposition, that sandal-wood is the 
 almug referred to in Scripture. The articles named here are still 
 formed from it in India and China. 
 
 Sandal-wood belongs to the natural order of dicotyledonous plants, 
 Santalacece, or sandal-wood family. The species named here is not 
 to be mistaken for the red sandal-wood of commerce (Pterocarpus 
 scmtalinus), which yields the dye santaline. This is much better 
 known than the other, but it belongs to a wholly difterent family. 
 Representatives of the sandal-woods are found in all quarters of the 
 world, either as herbaceous plants, or shrubs, or large trees. They 
 are represented in Britain by the Lint-leaved Bastard Toad-flax 
 {Thesium linophiUinii) ^ a rare parasitical plant, met with in some of the 
 chalk districts of England. The white sandal-wood is a native of 
 Malabar, where it grows to a great size, and from which it is exported 
 as the almug-trees were in the days of Solomon. 
 
 Gold, see vol. i., p. 95; Silver, under Job xxviii. 1 ; and Rwy under 
 Ezek. xxvii. 15. The united navy imported apes likewise. 
 
 Ape, Hebrew TcOpli, Greek pithecos. In the extract given above
 
 320 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 (1 Kings X. 11) from Max Miiller's " Science of Language," it will be 
 seen that koph is a word without an etymology in the Semitic languages. 
 It is, however, identical in sound with the Sanskrit name for the ape, 
 Kapi — a term applied to it because of its great agility. If the initial k 
 of the Sanskrit word be dropped, we have api, equal to the German affe, 
 monkey, and affen, to make a fool of; the Anglo-Saxon apa; and the 
 English ape. Many derivatives from Sanskrit have in their transition 
 
 Fig. 91. 
 
 Sandal-wood (Santalum alhum), 
 
 into other branches of language lost initial guttural letters in the same 
 way. Thus the name which was originally applied to indicate the great 
 agility of the apes, assumed an entirely different shade of meaning 
 when men became better acquainted with their habits. The Teutonic 
 tribes associated the idea of mimicry with the name ; an idea still 
 preserved in the scientific designation of the family Simiidce. 
 
 In the passage under notice, the name is used in a very general way. 
 It is to be looked at in the light of Solomon's known devotion to the 
 study of zoology — " He spake of beasts, and of fowl, and of creeping
 
 II. CHRONICLES. 321 
 
 things, and of fishes." His collection, obtained by tlie voyagers sent 
 to Opiiir and to Tarsliisli, would not be limited to one kind of ape. 
 The Hebrew word may thus be held to include monkeys as well as the 
 apes properly so called. The nearest approach to the knowledge of 
 species brought to Solomon, is got by ascertaining what forms would be 
 within reach of the traders to India by the Red Sea. The fact itself 
 that, so early as the time of Solomon, a zoological collection had been 
 made at Jerusalem is full of interest. It affords corroborative evidence 
 of that advanced condition of civilization among the Jews, of which we 
 have many proofs in the word of God. 
 
 In zoological classification the two highest orders have been named 
 (1) Bimcma, or two-handed animals, (2) Quadriwiana, or animals witli 
 four hands. The former is now generally limited to Man ; the latter 
 includes all those widely-varying forms which, in general and popular 
 language, are named Monkeys. The highest members of the quadru- 
 manous orders are the antlimpoid or man-like apes. Two species are 
 represented on Plate XX. — which see. The gorilla, fig. 2, is a native 
 of Africa. " Gorilla-land is a richly wooded extent of the western 
 part of Africa, traversed by the rivers Danger and Gaboon, and 
 extending from the equator to the 10th or 15th degi'ee of south 
 latitude." This form of ape is referred to here for the sake of com- 
 parison with the orang-outang {Simia satijrus), fig. 3, a native of Borneo 
 and other Indian islands. The report of the existence of this ape — 
 "the wild man of the woods" — may have reached the Hebrew royal 
 naturalist; and it is not unlikely that young orangs were brought to 
 Ezion-geber by the voyagers of Solomon and Hiram. 
 
 Another genus of the Quadrumana, within reach of such traders lo 
 India is named from their grave, venerable look, Semnopithecus. The 
 Bornean proboscis monkey {Nasalis Iarvatus=Semn. larvatus) Plate XX., 
 fig. 1, has attracted much attention from its characteristic arched snout. 
 Anotlier species which abounds in India, and is a great favourite with 
 the natives, is the well known sacred monkey, or hoonuman, of the 
 Hindoos {Scmn. entellus) — a form which, in their doctrine of the trans- 
 migration of souls, they believe represents princes and other great 
 people. It is of a greyish-white colour, rises to the height of five feet 
 when fully developed, has light coloured whiskers and a peaked beard. 
 The points at which the voyagers touched the African coast might 
 bring them in contact with the mandrill {Papio mormon), Plate XVII., 
 fig. 1, the Indri {Indris hrevicaiidatiis), fig. 2, the ring-tailed macaco 
 {Lemur catta), and the galago (Gal. senegalensis). The Bengal lori 
 
 VOL. II. 2 s
 
 322 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 {Lons gracilis), fig. 4, would easily be obtained on the Indian coast. 
 The family of night monkeys, or slow lemurs {Nycticehidce}, is repre- 
 sented by the tarsier (Tarsius spectrum), fig. 5. The Asiatic gibbons, 
 or long-armed apes, the macaques, the African long-tailed monkeys 
 (Cercojnthecus), and the baboons, of the western shores of the Red Sea, 
 the Derrias for example, may all have supplied representatives to 
 the ships which every three years returned from Tarsliish, bringing 
 gold, and silver, ivory, and ai)es, and peacocks to Solomon. 
 
 " Peacocks," Heb. iukhi-fm. The Sanskrit derivation of the name 
 has been noticed above (1 Kings x. 11). The name leads us again to 
 Southern Asia, the native region of this bird. In addition to the 
 mention of the word peacock in the passages associated with the naval 
 expeditions of Solomon and the king of Tyre, it is used in our trans- 
 lation of the Scriptures in Job xxxix. 13 — " Gavest thou the goodly 
 wings unto the peacock, or wings and feathers unto the ostrich." 
 This, however, is a mistranslation. The passage is a difficult one. 
 Its meaning when literally rendered is — " Goodly wings are glad ; the 
 feathers of the stork (Heb. hhdsiddh), and the ostrich (nvtzah) [are so]." 
 The allusion is to the flajjping of the wings by these birds as a sign of 
 gladness, an action which may often be noticed among domestic ducks 
 and geese. 
 
 The peacock belongs to the gallinaceous order of birds (Gallinoi), is 
 ranked along with the family of the true pheasants {PhasianiJce) , and 
 forms a small sub-family (Puvonince), of which the genus Pavo is the 
 type. The peacock is a native of India, where it is found in great 
 abundance frequenting the jungles and forests. It was introduced into 
 Greece by the soldiers of Alexander the Great, and into Judaia nearly 
 seven hundred years before. As with the apes, so likely with the birds 
 now noticed ; it is most likely that other forms of the Phasianidje 
 besides the common peacock (P. cristatus) would be associated under 
 this name by the voyagers. Some of these are exceedingly beautiful, 
 and would be sure to attract the attention of those Avho were com- 
 missioned to collect for Solomon. Traders from regions lying beyond 
 those visited by them might procure for them, as acquainted with the 
 fixed time of their triennial visit, the magnificent golden pheasant of 
 China {Ph. pidus), fig. 92, a fit inmate for a royal aviary. 
 
 The Sub-Himalayan districts would supply another beautiful species, 
 the Impeyan pheasant [Luphopliorus Iinpeyanus), fig. 93. The islands 
 which sent the anthropoid apes might furnish yet another splendid 
 species to the royal collection, the Argus pheasant {Argus giganteus).
 
 ir. CHRONICLES. 
 
 323 
 
 one of the largest and most attractive birds of this family. More closely 
 related than those to the common peafowl are the Thibet peacock 
 {Pohipledwn Tebalanum) and the Javanese peacock {Pavo miiticus), both 
 of which would be within roach of the voyagers. The peacock at a 
 very early date after its introduction to Europe became associated with 
 the idolatrous worship of Greece and Rome, and even shortly after the 
 introduction of Christianity, gained a place among the observances of 
 professing Christians. It was the bird of Juno and "an ancient Pagan 
 symbol, signilying the apotheosis of an empress, as we find from many 
 of the old Roman coins and medals. The early Christians, accustomed 
 to this interpretation, adopted it as a general emblem of the mortal 
 changed for the immortal state ; and with this signification we find the 
 peacock, with outspread train, on the walls and ceilings of catacombs, 
 the tombs of martyrs, and many of the sarcophagi, down to the fourth 
 
 Fig. 92. 
 
 ^/ ^j^^y/ii/v\ 
 
 Golden fheasaut [^Phasianwi putia). 
 
 and fifch centuries. *It is only in modern times that the peacock has 
 become the emblem of worldly pride." So early as the time of Aristotle, 
 however, the peafowl had become noted as an emblem of worldly pride 
 and vanity ; and much has been made of the passage given above from 
 the book of Job in this respect. Interpreters who dealt only with the 
 English Bible have found the expression " goodly wings " a fruitful 
 subject for remark. " Some fowls," says Joseph Caryl (1862), "have 
 plain feathers to fly with and keep them from the cold, but the 
 peacock and some others have gay feathers. And thus God deals with 
 men and women, they have not all gay clothing and changes of raiment. 
 Fine feathers are said to make proud birds, and no wonder if it be so 
 with silly bird.«, for even wise men are not only apt to bo cheated with 
 the gifts bestowed on them, but despise their fellows from whom God
 
 324 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 in sovereignty has withheld them. We are in clanger of being proud 
 even of some things of which we should be ashamed. If a man be 
 proud of his knowledge or any internal endowment, they become vain 
 to him, being hindered i'rom the present prevailing of pride from that 
 which is one of the most proper works, the keeping him humble, 
 
 Impeyan Plicasaut {LophoiiltonLs Impeyanus), 
 
 empty, and notliing in his own eyes. Whatever" a man is proud of, is 
 no better to him than a peacock's feather." 
 
 When Nicodemus obtained the body of Jesus, he took a mixture of 
 myrrh and aloes, and wound the body in linen with the spices. The 
 evangelist adds : — " So the manner of the Jews is to bury" (John xix. 
 39). The description of Asa's burial shows that the custom was a 
 very ancient one : — " And Asa slept with his fathers, and died in the 
 one and fortieth year of his reign. And they buried him in his own 
 sepulchres, which he had made for himself in the city of David, and 
 laid him in the bed which was filled with sweet odours and divers kinds 
 of spices prepared by the apothecaries' art ; a)id they made a very 
 great burning for him " (xvi. 13, 14). In Egypt, as we have seen 
 (Genesis 1. 26), the corpse was cut in a variety of ways ; but as the
 
 II. CHRONICLES. 325 
 
 Jews attained to well-defined views of the resurrection of the dead, and 
 of the sacredness of the body as the temple of the Holy Ghost, every- 
 thing- like interference with the completeness of the dead body was 
 guarded against. A bed of spices was made ; myrrh, aloes, &c., were 
 spread upon linen. In addition to this, however, perfumes were 
 burned. The amount employed on such occasions depended on the 
 rank of the dead. In Asa's case " they made a very great burning 
 for him." Frankincense, myrrh, eaglewood or lign-aloes [Aciuilaria- 
 agaUoclmm), were used for this purpose. See also under Numb. xxiv. 
 G ; Ps. xlv. 8. 
 
 Moab and Aramon came up against Jehoshaphat (xx. 1). The news 
 of the gathering in En-gedi alarmed the king. " He feared, and set 
 himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast." Having assembled 
 the people together, he led their prayers to God in behalf of the nation. 
 An answer was sent by Jahaziel, a Levite of the sons of Asaph." 
 " Thus saith the Lord unto you. Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason 
 of this great multitude ; for the battle is not yours, but God's. To- 
 morrow go ye down against them : behold, they come up by the cliff of 
 Ziz ; and ye shall find them at the end of the brook, before the wilder- 
 ness of J cruel. Ye shall not need to fight in this battle; set yourselves, 
 stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, Judah and 
 Jerusulem : fear not, nor be dismayed; to-morrow go out against them: 
 for the Lord will be with you. And they rose early in the morning, and 
 went forth into the wilderness of Tekoa : and as they went forth, 
 Jehoshaphat stood and said. Hear me, Judah, and ye inhabitants of 
 Jerusalem ; believe in the Lord your God, so shall ye be established ; 
 believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper. And when Judah came 
 toward the watch-tower in the wilderness, they looked unto the multi- 
 tude, and, behold, they were dead bodies fallen to the earth, and none 
 escaped. And when Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away 
 the spoil of them, they found among them in abundance both riches 
 with the dead bodies, and precious jewels (which they stripped off for 
 themselves), more than they could carry away : and they were three 
 days in gathering of the spoil, it was so much. And on the fourth day 
 they assembled themselves in the valley of Berachah : for there they 
 blessed the Lord : therefore the name of the same place was called 
 The valley of Berachah unto this day" (ver. 16, 17, 20, 24-26); 
 "The Cliff Ziz " has not been identified. It was a steep pass in the 
 neighbourhood of Hazazon-tamar or En-(jedi. 
 
 " Wilderness of Jeruel." This wilderness was commanded by a
 
 326 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 watch-tower — a place of look-out on the north. The enemy were 
 swarming from tlie mouth of the Dead Sea, and had now reached a 
 place not more than tliirteen miles to the south-east of Jerusalem. The 
 danger was thus both great and imminent. Jeruel must have been 
 near Tekoa, the modern Teku'a, though the exact spot has not been 
 identified. " Berachah" or "The Valley of Blessing" lies in the road 
 between Hebron and Bethlehem. It is the modern Bereihut. 
 
 Hearkening to the command of Hczekiali, the people hastened to 
 give the ordained portion to the priests and Levites : — "As soon as the 
 commandment came abroad, the children of Israel brought in abundance 
 the first-fruits of corn, wine, and oil, and honey, and of all the increase 
 of the field ; and the tithe of all things brought they in abundantly " 
 (ver. 5). The different articles were offered as prepared for use. It is 
 almost certain that the "honey" {devasli) here mentioned was a prepa- 
 ration from fruit. The same word, however, is used for the honey of 
 the bee {Apis melUjica). See above, 2 Kings xviii. 32. Dr. Shaw 
 ("Travels," vol. ii., 144) pointed out long ago the great similarity 
 between the Hebrew name for honey and that current in his day in 
 Palestine for an article manufactured from fruits, under the name dibs 
 or dipse. At that time three hundred camel loads of tliis were sent to 
 Egypt annually from Hebron and its neiglibourhood alone. When Dr. 
 Robinson visited the same locality in May, 1838, he noticed that the 
 people of Hebron still give much attention to the preparation of dihs 
 from the grape. " The vineyards belonging to the city are very exten- 
 sive," he says, " reaching almost to TeffCdi, and also for some distance 
 towards Dhohoriyeh, and covering the sides of nearly all the hills. The 
 lodges of stone, which serve for the watchmen, and also in part for the 
 families of Hebron during the vintage, have been before mentioned. 
 The vintage is a season of rejoicing and hilarity to all ; the town is then 
 deserted, and the people live among the vineyards, in the lodges, and 
 in the tents. The produce of these vineyards is celebrated throughout 
 Palestine. No wine, however, or arack is made from them, except by 
 the Jews, and this not in great quantity. The wine is good. The 
 finest grapes are dried as raisins ; and the rest being trodden and pressed, 
 the juice is boiled down to a syrup, which, under the name of dibs, is 
 much used by all classes wherever vineyards are found, as a condiment 
 with their food. It resembles thin molasses, but is more pleasant to 
 the taste" (" Bib. Res.," ii. 81). 
 
 A syrup somewhat similar is prepared from the fruit of the date- 
 palm — a circumstance which no doubt led our translators to insert
 
 II. CURONICLES. 
 
 327 
 
 " dates" in the margin opposite honey. Josephus, when describing the 
 neighbourhood of Jericho, says : — " There are in it many sorts of palm- 
 trees that are watered by the fountain, different from each other in taste 
 and name ; the better sort of them, when they are pressed, yield an 
 excellent kind of honey, not much inferior in sweetness to other honey." 
 And he adds, as showing that he definitely distinguished the two : — 
 " This country withal produces honey from bees " (" Wars," iv., c. ix., 
 § 3). The honey of fruit, or dihs, seems to have been the article, the 
 first of which was to be brought, as commanded by Hezekiah, along 
 with the corn and the wine, to the priests. 
 
 Aiub Jitrrciiatitn nnd Caineiis
 
 328 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 ^l 
 
 EZRA, 
 
 TIE Jews had spent seventy years in exile. Tlie literature 
 of that period, and of the return, was brought together by 
 Ezra the scribe and priest, who gained the favour of Artax- 
 erxes Longimanus, and was permitted by him to go from 
 V^j ' Babylon to Jerusalem with about two thousand Jews, who 
 Vj>^|f cl were captives with him in Babylon. Other companies followed, 
 U jl\\ until, under the conduct of Ezra and then of Nelicmiah, the 
 '^^' return was completed. The general contents of Ezra are the 
 
 proclamation of Cyrus as to the return ol the Jews, and his gift to 
 tliem of the holy vessels taken by Nebuchadnezzar (i.) ; a list of the 
 people who returned from the exile (ii.) ; the reorganization of public 
 worship (iii.) ; the opposition of the heathen to the building of the city 
 (iv.) ; the appeal to Darius, and his favourable answer (v., vi.) ; Ezra's 
 special mission from Artaxerxes, and the genealogy of those who 
 returned with him (vii., viii.) ; and the steps taken to purify the congre- 
 gation from the heathen elements which had tainted it (ix., x.). 
 
 It was a time of great activity and not a little pious excitement for 
 the returned captives, when their revived energies were thrown into the 
 work of building again the waste places of Jerusalem, and especially 
 the house of the Lord. The " ancient men who had seen the first 
 house " (ver. 12) were specially engrossed with exhorting the people to 
 "go up to the mountain, and bring wood, and build the house" (Hag. 
 i. 7). As Solomon in former times had done (1 Chron. xiv. 1), they 
 accepted the help of the heathen to prepare wood for the building of 
 the temple: — "They gave money also unto the masons, and to the 
 carpenters ; and meat, and drink, and oil, unto them of Zidon, and to 
 them of Tyre, to bring cedar trees from Lebanon to the sea of Joppa, 
 according to the grant that they had of Cyrus, king of Persia " (iii. 7). 
 Full notices of "cedar trees of Lebanon," occur under 1 Kings 
 iv. 33 ; Ps. xcii. 12 ; Zeph. ii. 14. Dr. Robinson ("Later Res."), when 
 referring to the cedar grove in the Kadisha valley, says : — " The cedars 
 are not less remarkable for their position than for their age and size. 
 The amphitheatre in which they are situated, is of itself a great temple 
 of nature, the most vast and magnificent of all recesses of Lebanon.
 
 EZRA. 329 
 
 The lofty dorsal ridge of the mountain, as it approaches from the south, 
 trends slightly towards the east for a time, and then, after resuming its 
 former direction, throws off a spur of equal altitude towards the west, 
 which sinks down gradually into the ridge terminating at Ehden-. This 
 ridge sweeps round so as to become nearly parallel with the main ridge, 
 thus forming an immense recess or amphitheatre, approaching to the 
 horse-shoe form, surrounded by the loftiest ridges of Lebanon, which 
 rise still two or three thousand feet above it, and are partly covered 
 with snows. In the midst of this amphitheatre stand the cedars, utterly 
 alone, with not a tree besides, nor hardly a green thing in sight. The 
 amphitheatre fronts towards the west ; and, as seen from the cedars, 
 the snows extend round from south to north. The extremities of the 
 arc in front, bear from the cedars south-west and north-west. High up 
 in the recess, the deep precipitous chasm of the Kadisha has its begin- 
 ning, the wildest and grandest of all the gorges of Lebanon. Besides 
 the natural grace and beauty of the cedar of Lebanon, which still 
 appear in the trees of middle ago, though not in the more ancient 
 patriarchs, there is associated with this grove a feeling of veneration, as 
 a representative of those forests of Lebanon so celebrated in the Hebrew 
 Scriptures. To the sacred writers the cedar was the noblest of trees, 
 the monarch of the vegetable kingdom. Solomon " spake of trees, 
 from the cedar-tree that is in Lebanon even unto the hyssop that 
 springeth out of the wall." To the prophets it was the favourite emblem 
 for greatness, splendour, and majesty ; hence kings and nobles, the pillars 
 of society, are everywhere cedars of Lebanon. Especially is this the 
 case in the splendid description, by Ezekiel, of the Assyrian power and 
 glory. Hence, too, in connection with its durability and fragrance, it 
 was regarded as the most precious of all wood, and was employed in 
 costly buildings, for ornament and luxury. In Solomon's temple the 
 beams of the roof, as also the boards and ornamental work, were of the 
 cedar of Lebanon ; and it was likewise used in the later temple of 
 Zerubbabel. David's palace was built with cedar ; and so lavishly was 
 this costly wood employed in one of Solomon's palaces, that it is called 
 ' the house of the forest of Lebanon.' As a matter of luxury, also, the 
 cedar was sometimes used for idols, and for the masts of ships. In like 
 manner, the cedar was highly prized among heathen nations. It was 
 employed in the construction of their temples, as at Tyre and Ephesus ; 
 and also in their palaces, as at Persepolis. It is very possible that the 
 name ccdnr was sometimes loosely applied to trees of another species." 
 When Tatnai and his companions appealed to Darius, they informed 
 
 VOL. II. 2 T
 
 330 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE:. 
 
 him what the Jews said Cyrus had done for them, and asked that a 
 search be made in the records of the kingdom, to see if their account 
 could be corroborated : — " Then Darius the king made a decree, and 
 search was made in the house of the rolls, where the treasures were 
 laid up in Babylon. And there was found at Achmetha, in the palace 
 that is in the province of the Medes, a roll, and therein was a record 
 thus written : In the first year of Cyrus the king, the same Cyrus the 
 king made a decree concerning the house of God at Jerusalem, Let the 
 house be builded, the place where they offered sacrifices, and let the 
 foundations thereof be strongly laid ; the height thereof threescore cubits, 
 and the breadth thereof threescore cubits ; with three rows of great 
 stones, and a row of new timber : and let the expences be given out of 
 the king's house. And also let the golden and silver vessels of the 
 house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took forth out of the temple 
 which is at Jerusalem, and brought unto Babylon, be restored, and 
 brought again unto the temple which is at Jerusalem, every one to his 
 place, and place them in the house ot God " (vi. 1-5). Some have 
 proposed to render the Hebrew for "at Achmetha" by "in a chest or 
 coffin,' but the ordinary interpretation is to be preferred. Achmetha 
 was the name for Ecbatana, the capital of northern Media (lat. 3G' 28', 
 long. 47° 9'), identified by Sir H. Rawlinson with the ruins at Takht-i- 
 Sale'iman. Deioces (b.c. 700), says Herodotus, "built lofty and strong 
 walls, which now go under the name of Ecbatana, one placed in a circle 
 within the other ; and this fortification is so contrived, that each circle 
 was raised above the other by the height of the battlements only. The 
 situation of the ground, rising by an easy ascent, was very favourable 
 to the design. But that which was particularly attended to is, that 
 there being seven circles altogether, the king's palace and the treasury 
 are situated within the innermost of them. The largest of these walls 
 is about equal in circumference to the city of Athens ; the battlements 
 of the first circle are white, of the second black, of the third purple, of 
 the fourth blue, of the fifth bright red. Thus the battlements of all the 
 circles are painted with different colours ; but the two last have their 
 battlements plated, the one with silver, the other with gold." Cyrus 
 had made this his capital, and no doubt it was in the palace there that 
 Darius made search for the records referred to. 
 
 " The river of Ahava " (viii. 21, 31), one of those " rivers of Babylon 
 beside which the captive Israelites sat down, and wept when they 
 remembered Zion " (Ps. cxxxvii. 1). Ahava is believed to be repre- 
 sented by the modern Hit, on the Euphrates.
 
 ESTHER. 
 
 331 
 
 ESTHEE. 
 
 HE aiitliorsliip of this book is very generally ascribed to 
 Mordecai, Esther's cousin. It opens with an account of 
 the circumstances which led to Esther's elevation to be 
 queen of Ahasuerus (i. ii.). Her cousin's influence in 
 saving the king's life is described (ii. 21-23). Hainan's 
 promotion, his jealousy of ]\Iordecai, and the persecuting decree 
 f) \r against the Jews, are next set down (iii.). Esther's device to 
 frustrate Haman ; her admission to the king's presence as a peti- 
 tioner ; Haman's joy on being invited to a royal banquet, with his 
 hatred of Llordecai as the shadow on his patli ; the advice of Zeresh his 
 wife to erect a gallows on which the hated Jew should be hanged ; the 
 king's dream, and Mordecai's honour — are all pictured in a peculiarly 
 fresh and graphic way (iv.-vi.). The banquet scene, Haman's disgrace, 
 his execution on the gallows made for Mordecai, the revocation of the 
 royal edict, Mordecai's elevation, the joy of the Jews, and the institu- 
 tion of Purim, are detailed in the other chapters (vii.-x.). 
 
 " Ahasuerus," or Ahhashverosh, was Xerxes the son and successor of 
 Darius Hystaspes, who obtained the kingdom about 485 B.C. 
 
 The " Ethiopia " most frequently named in Scripture, lay on the 
 south of Egypt, by which it was bounded on the north. Its eastern 
 limit was the Red Sea. It stretched into the Abyssinian mountains on 
 the south, and the great Libyan desert on the west (ver. 1). " Shushan 
 the palace " (ver. 2) was the royal residence in Susa, the capital of 
 Susiana or Elyniais, situated not far from the Ulai (Dan. viii. 2) or 
 Eulceus, the modern Dizful, which falls into the Kai'un, a confluent of 
 the great Shat el Arab. 
 
 " White " (ver. 6), Heb. It/nlr, is used only here, in chap. viii. lo, 
 and in an adjective form in Daniel v. 9 — " white as snow." The word 
 most frequently translated white in the Old Testament is Idvdn, or that 
 which has the appearance of milk. It occurs above twenty times. 
 When intense white is indicated, an adjective form of another word 
 (tzahh) is used — " Her Nazarites were whiter {tzahhalih) than milk" (Lam. 
 iv. 7). " Green" (ver. 6), Heb. Icarpas, occurs only here ; the usual 
 word for green is rahhdndn ; thus Psalm Iii. 8, " I am like a green
 
 olive-tree." "Red" (ver. 6), Heb. hahat, occurs only in this verse, and 
 points ratlier to bright lilac than to red. 
 
 In answer to the king's command, Hadassali or Esther was brought 
 among other fair virgins to Hegai, a cliicf eunuch, that one might be 
 selected from the number to take the place of the deposed Vashti : — 
 " Now, Avhen every maid's turn was come to go in to king Ahasuerus, 
 after that she had been twelve months, according to the maimer of the 
 women (for so were the days of their purifications accomplished, to wit, 
 six months with oil of myrrh, and six months with sweet odours, and 
 witli other things for the purifying of the women) ; then thus came 
 every maiden unto the king ; whatsoever she desired was given her to 
 go with her out of the house of the women unto the king's house" 
 (ii.l2, 13). 
 
 Myrrh, an aromatic gum which exudes irom the bark of the myrrh 
 balsam shrub (Balsamodendron myrrh(t), entered as a chief ingredient 
 into this oil, or unguent, used in the house of Ahasuerus "for the puri- 
 fying of the women " of the royal harem. After it had been employed 
 in anointing the body for six months, the oil of myrrh was to give place 
 to "the sweet odours and other things" used for this purpose. The 
 custom alluded to here, sheds light on Song v. 4-6. The "beloved" 
 is represented as approaching the chamber of his spouse when in the 
 act of perfuming her person, after a fashion still prevalent in eastern 
 lands. He is heard at the door, and her heart yearns towards him as 
 he approaches : " I rose up to open to my beloved ; and my hands 
 dropped with myrrh, and my fingers with sweet-smelling myrrh, upon 
 the handles of the lock." But there had not been "hasting to meet 
 him," and he turns away from her because thus self-engrossed : " I 
 opened to my beloved, but my beloved had withdrawn himself, and 
 had gone." So too verse 13, in which his words were as "the 
 sweet-smelling myrrh."
 
 JOB i.-v, 333 
 
 JOB I.-V. 
 
 p HE book of Job consists of five parts. The first includes 
 chapters i. and ii. down to ver. 10; the second, chapters ii. 
 from ver. 11 to the end of xxxi.; the third, chapters xxxii.- 
 xxxvii.; the fourth, xxxviii.-xli. ; and the fifth, xlii. The 
 /JLj^^ ' first is introductory to the whole. We have a description 
 '^Mi\ "^ of Job's great wealth, his piety, Satan's envy, Job's compli- 
 \y' cated trials, his own integrity, and his wife's failure under the 
 terrible strokes which bad fallen on her husband and her house. 
 In the second the lively, graphic, and highly dramatic controversy 
 between Job and his friends Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar, is minutely 
 recorded. The discussions deal with some of the most important 
 aspects of God's providence, in his ways with households and with 
 individual men. The first great points which the three friends try 
 to make good are, that suftering is always sent in anger ; that all sorrow 
 is associated with sin, which should be sought out and forsaken ; and 
 that all affliction is penal. These theories were applied to Job's case, 
 and he was urged to acknowledge sin as the only way of getting again 
 into prosperity. In answer to this. Job's conscience testifies that his 
 friends judge him harshly. He shows that the wicked often prosper, 
 when the good are bowed down with sorrow; that even robbers prosper, 
 and those that provoke God are secure. The theory which his friends 
 had formed of the divine government was thus in all respects false. 
 He might not understand God's ways, but he would still trust in him. 
 Tims he turns in earnest prayer to God, with whom, he feels, lies the 
 jiower to deliver hira. If no deliverance is to come but with death, he 
 longs for this that he might rest from his sore sorrows. The friends 
 return again to their first position. Job's words had not altered their 
 views. They were more deeply rooted, and now they boldly express 
 what they had before insinuated. Job, they allege, must have been 
 guilty of very great sin, since he had fallen under such heavy sorrow. 
 Again they urge that there is a strict correlation between sin and its 
 punishment. The charges are again rejected. In answering them Job 
 rises to the true view of providence. He sets present experiences in 
 the light of a future life. Here rays of comfort begin to break in on
 
 334: BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENXE. 
 
 liiin. He gets hold of the persuasion that the justice of God's ways in 
 the affliction of the righteous will all be revealed in the future. He 
 not only gives evidence of his hope in a future life, but looks forward 
 to the resurrection itself: — 
 
 " For I know that my Redeemer liveth, 
 Aud lie shall stand at the latter da}' on the earth ; 
 And though after my skin worms destroy this body, 
 Yet ill my flesh shall I see God." 
 
 Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar, take once more up the same views. 
 Every time they answer, their theory is put more strongly. When Job 
 responds, he makes use of their own arguments and illustrations, and 
 shows the one-sided view in which they had put them ; he again makes 
 his appeal to the Almighty, and acknowledges his unsearchable wisdom ; 
 he sets his present sufferings in direct and bold contrast with his former 
 life, and again leaves his case with God. 
 
 Tlie third general division of the book begins with the address of 
 Elilm. The chief points in his speech are charges against the men 
 who had been engaged in the controversy. He does not say that all 
 affliction is penal ; but when God afflicts, he wishes men to learn the 
 great lessons of humility, and of a tender and holy life. He shows 
 that Job had given expression to low and unworthy views of God's 
 ways with man, leads him out into nature, and opens up the manner 
 in which the phenomena of the external world bear witness to the 
 omnipotence of God, and generally prepares the way for the grand 
 and matchlessly beautiful address of the Almighty. 
 
 In this address it is intimated that Job had indulged in low and 
 severe thoughts of the ways of God, had entertained the suspicion that 
 he had been hardly, if not even unrighteously dealt by, and harboured 
 the imagining that he could better have ordered his lot than his Creator 
 had done. A secret leaven of self-righteousness had been casting its 
 influence over his whole spiritual nature. This must be broken. It 
 must be seen, loathed, turned away from. The grand pleading of God 
 with him, the revelation of his majesty aud his glory in his works, and 
 the views of his omniscience overwhelm the patriarch, and as one who 
 had learned the lesson which he needed to be taught, he cried out — 
 " I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes." 
 
 No other book in the canon of Scripture has gathered around it so 
 much controversy as the book of Job. Who was its author? At 
 what time was it written ? What is its plan ? Is it an historical
 
 JOB i.-v. 335 
 
 narrative ? Is it to be looked on as a religious fiction ? Is it true in 
 its spirit, but unreal in the personages introduced? Is the language in 
 which it is written comparatively modern, or suggestive of a date earlier 
 than that of the Pentateuch ? These are only a very few out of a 
 multitude of questions which are discussed in the literature bearing on 
 this book. To the Christian, and to ordinary readers of the Bible, the 
 references made in other portions of Scripture to the book of Job are 
 evidence that it contains the history of a true, historical person, and 
 the narrative of God's ways with him. Such dealings were designed 
 to teach him, and, through him, all who read this book, some of the 
 greatest lessons which any soul can learn — the lessons that affliction 
 comes to God's people as fatherly discipline, that our heavenly Father 
 knows our sorrows, that all nature teems with evidences of God's great- 
 ness, wisdom, power, goodness, and love, that man is ignorant and sinful, 
 that God is righteous, and that man's place is where Job cast himself, 
 even that of lowliness, conscious sin, and undoubting submission to the 
 will of God. See Ezek. xiv. 14; James v. 11. 
 
 Subordinate to the high moral and spiritual ends of the book of 
 Job, is the remarkable use here made of appeals to the external 
 world. This assigns special interest to it in a work on biblical 
 natural science. Not only in the magnificent utterances of chapters 
 xxxviii.-xli., but in all the discussions between the man of Uz and his 
 friends, we meet with proof of the remarkably close attention which they 
 bad paid to the works of God around them. It seems to have been 
 God's design to make this book the constant protest against those, on 
 the one hand, who are ever labouring to exalt nature into the place of 
 the Creator, and those, on the other hand, who in the blindness of 
 bigotry, and in their ignorance of science, are as diligent in depreciat- 
 ing the study of the works of God, as the former class are in isolating 
 them from the constant control of his personal will and working. It 
 is forgotten by the latter, that we can have but a partial view of the 
 glory of the Redeemer, if we do not see Him as the creator and upholder 
 of all things. 
 
 In the present condition of religio-scientific thought, and as intro- 
 ductory to our notes on Job, it may be of use to seek an answer to the 
 question — What is nature? The use made of this word in some recent 
 works in the popular literature of science, makes it needful to ask this 
 question. As commonly used, the word nature means the whole 
 external world. In the literature of theology, it is employed to indicate 
 the fruit of creative acts — that which has been brouerht into beinir.
 
 336 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 realized in time ; and until a very recent period this was held to be 
 its scientific import also. There are, however, many symptoms of a 
 return to such a use .of the word as obtained before the ancient 
 physicists had that import thrust on them which was attached to it by 
 primitive theism. The ancient physicists recognized no distinction 
 between God and nature. Their speculations on the origin of matter 
 and on the phenomena of the external world, never even lingered on 
 the threshold of the recognition of a personal God. When they 
 acknowledged a beginning, they attached self-originating power to 
 nature. In this they have companions in modern thinkers. Not 
 Mr. Emerson only, but names of greater note, might shake hands with 
 Thales. The introduction of a higher view into the study of the 
 external world, is to be traced to the influence of the original revela- 
 tion which God made of himself to man. This, as in the case of Job, 
 kept its place among the shepherds of Iran. Thence it found its way 
 into Egypt, where its power is seen modifying the degraded animal 
 worship — the idolatry of nature — of that country, by associating the 
 animals worshipped with the name of some god. From Egypt it 
 passed into Greece — the country which more than any other has 
 influenced the scientific researches of later times. The association of 
 the theistic idea with the worship of animals and the elements, was, 
 however, the victory of the old superstition over the new thought ; and 
 the hypothesis of the eternity of matter was simply the effort of the 
 Greek intellect to get back to the sensualism of the point of original 
 degradation. This purely theistic view of nature came to be the creed 
 of heathenism, and in its period of highest cultivation it led to those 
 remarkable apprehensions of God associated with the names of Socrates 
 and Plato, Seneca and Cicero. Something like blessing followed it, 
 because of the divine source whence it came. But its presence amidst 
 the speculatists in the shaded walks of the Academia, as they groped 
 after that true knowledge never more within the grasp of man in his 
 own right, was only like carven imagery amidst ruins, not even truly 
 beautiful, and not useful at all as to highest ends, because detached 
 from, not built into, the divinely reared temple of truth. Thus, when 
 the revelation made to the Hebrews, and especially when Christianity 
 took a hold on the Western world, the theistic view of nature was 
 everywhere attacked. The demand was made for the recognition of 
 two revelations of God — the one in his works, and the other in his 
 word, without which nature could not be understood. Theism came 
 thus to mean the acknowledgment of God in nature, and the implied
 
 JOB i.-v, 337 
 
 denial of the trustworthiness of any other revelation. This view con- 
 tinued to influence the church, as to the use of the word nature and 
 naturalist, till a comparatively recent period. You meet with it even 
 in the apologetical writers of the seventeenth century as a correct form 
 of speech. " This," wrote Rogers in his ' Naaman the Syrian,' "is the 
 invention of Satan, that whereas all men will not be profane, nor natu- 
 ralists, nor epicures, but will be religious, lo, he hath a bait for every 
 fish, and can insinuate himself as well into religion itself as into lusts 
 and pleasures." " Heathen naturalists," says Jackson in his treatise 
 on ' Christ's Everlasting Priesthood,' " hold better consort with the 
 primitive church concerning the nature of original sin than the Socini- 
 ans." Whately uses the word in the same way : — " Of those who 
 profess Christianity in a certain non-natural sense, while disbelieving 
 what is commonly understood by that word, there are two principal 
 sects, usually called the Mythic and the Naturalist : both of which arose 
 in Germany (where, however, they are now out of fashion), but which 
 are patronized by some English and American writers. The Mythics 
 represent the whole of the Scripture history as a series of parables, 
 never designed to be believed as literally true, though intended to 
 convey some moral lessons. The Naturalists, on the contrary, maintain 
 the general truth of the historj', but explain the miraculous portions of 
 it as natural evils." (" Annot. on Paley," p. 3). 
 
 We owe the meaning which, until lately, all modern science has 
 attached to the word nature, to the influence of the Scriptures on 
 scientific research. It has been regarded as something brought into 
 being by a creative act — an aggregate of effects, and in no sense a 
 cause — a system in connection with which we meet with the action of 
 a multitude of forces, which act not independently but are all under 
 the power of the controlling Creator. The term thus covers the whole 
 field of organic and inorganic being, and by some has been made to 
 include the science of mind itself, on the ground, that as when we con- 
 sider the lower animals we take into account their instincts, so when 
 we deal with the place which man holds at the top of the zoological 
 scale, and in his structural features possessed of a multitude of points 
 of resemblance to the creatures put under him, we should give a place 
 to the philosophy of mind in any complete scheme of natural science. 
 But this assumes that the intellectual faculties of man differ only in 
 degree from the instincts of the lower animals, and that there may be 
 comparison where there is only strong contrast. 
 
 Job dwelt in the land of " Uz." In Gen. x. 23, the children of 
 VOL. n. ■ 2 V
 
 338 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Shem's son Aram, are named " Uz, Hul, Gether, and Mash." Among 
 the descendants of " Scir the Horite," mention is made of " Uz and 
 Aran" (xxxvi. 28). The list of the sons of Shem given at a compara- 
 tively recent period in the history of Israel, contains the names of 
 "Aram, Uz, Hul, and Gether" (1 Chron. i. 17). In this case, as often 
 occurred, the grandchildren are counted as children. When the " cup 
 of fury" was threatened against the nations, of those who were to drink 
 it Jeremiah mentions "all the kings of the land of Uz" (xxv. 20). 
 The same prophet afterwards says : — " Rejoice and be glad, daughter 
 of Edom, that dwellest in the land of Uz ; the cup shall pass through 
 unto thee" (Lam. iv. 21). These are all the passages bearing on the 
 question of the region in which the land of Uz lay. It has been too 
 hastily assumed that the last passage warrants the inference that it lay 
 in Edom. In Jeremiah xxv., mention is made of the " mingled people" 
 — the offshoots of different tribes which had become located in districts 
 remote from their original scat. In the last-quoted passage, a daughter 
 of Edom had manifestly gone to dwell in the land of Uz, as in after- 
 times the daughter of Zion did in Babylonia. Uz was evidently a 
 territory first occupied by a Shemite tribe. The portion of it in which 
 Job dwelt must not necessarily have been near Edom, as has been so 
 often argued. Eliphaz was an Edomite, Bildad most likely a descen- 
 dant of Abraham in the line of Keturah, and Zophar may have been an 
 Edomite, for Naamah lay on the extreme limit to the south-east of the 
 territory, afterwards assigned to Judah, " towards the coast of Edom" 
 (Josh. XV. 20, 41) ; but these may have only been wanderers from the 
 place of their first habitation. The references here to the Sabajans and 
 Chaldseans show that Uz lay much farther to the south-east, in the 
 plain of Iran. The names of his friends, however, determine the period 
 about which Job must have lived — that, namely, which intervened 
 between the days of Jacob and the time of Moses. The former date is 
 indicated by the name Eliphaz the Temanite, a descendant of Eliphaz 
 a son of Esau ; the latter by the style and language, as well as the 
 aspects of religious thought in the book of Job. 
 
 Job cursed his day : — " Let the day perish wherein I was born" 
 (iii. 3), were the words which burst passionately from his sorrow- 
 stricken heart — 
 
 "Let the stars of the twilight thereof be dark; 
 Let it look for light, but have none; 
 Neither let it see the eyelids of the morning" (ver. 9). 
 
 The allusions here are very beautiful. He thinks of the gradually-
 
 JOB i.-v. 339 
 
 darkening twilight as the sun sinks out of sight, and the vapours 
 floating in the atmosphere receive less and less of his light to reflect 
 down on the eartli. But, just when all seemed about to be shrouded 
 in darkness, the stars of the evening, one after another, break on the 
 view, and tell the tale again of God's faithfulness. As the darkness 
 deepens, the numbers and the brightness of the stars seem to increase. 
 Let not, he says, the day on which I w-as born have any such tokens of 
 God's care about it; has he not forsaken me altogether? Of daybreak 
 he speaks as the lifting up of the eyelids of the morning. The appear- 
 ance of the sun above the eastern horizon, is the full opening of the eye 
 of day. The night was thus to him that which lay in light itself 
 He now wishes for one day in the revolving year of continued darkness 
 — the day on which he was born. Thus he spake unadvisedly. 
 
 Eliphaz points out the connection between sin and sorrow (iv. 8) — 
 iniquity is the soil, wickedness the seed, and sorrow the fruitful crop. 
 Eiiphaz had no words of genial sympathy for the sorely-stricken Job. 
 He puts him in mind of his ways with others, when it was well 
 with himself You helped others, why not help yourself? You com- 
 forted others ; why then, when you so much need it, do you not take 
 comfort to your own soul ? You suffer; there must then be good cause 
 for it : — 
 
 " Even as I have seen, they that plow iniquity 
 And sow wickedness, leap the same" (ver. 8). 
 
 They may, as the king of beasts, have had strong confidence in them- 
 selves that they would never be moved. But this is vain : — 
 
 "The roaring of the lion, and the voice of the fierce lion, 
 And the teeth of tlie young lions, are broken. 
 The old lion perisheth for lack of prey, 
 The stout lion's whelps are scattered abroad" (ver. 10, 11). 
 
 "Lion," Heb. ariyeh; see under 1 Sam. xvii. 34. "Fierce lion," 
 shahhal. "Young \\o\\"hep1iir; see under Psalm xvii. 12. "The 
 old lion," layish. "The stout lion," lama. 
 
 Shahhal means "the roarer." It occurs other six times. As in 
 the passage under notice, it is translated " fierce lion" in chapters x. 
 16, xxviii. 8. In the other passages in which it is met with, it is 
 simply rendered "lion" (Ps. xci. 13 ; Prov. xxvi. 13 ; Hos. v. 14, xiii. 7). 
 
 Layi'sh, or the strong beast, is used in two other passages only 
 (Prov. XXX. 30 ; Isa. xxx. 6). 
 
 Lavia points to the low growling of the beast. In one passage it is
 
 340 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 rendered "like a lion" (Isa. v. 29) ; in another, "a great lion" (Joel i. 
 6); and in another, "tlie old lion" (Nahum ii, 11). The cubs of the 
 lion are named gdr. Thus, " Judah is a lion's tchelp" (Gen. xlix. 9). 
 
 In a vision of the night, a spirit had passed before his face, and he 
 had heard a voice, saying — 
 
 " Shall mortal man be more just than God ? 
 Shall a man be more pure than his Maker?" (vcr. 17.) 
 
 The question is answered — He trusts not his servants, nor even the 
 holy angels themselves ; " how much less them that dwell in houses 
 of clay, whose foundation is in the dust, which are crushed before the 
 moth?" (ver. 19.) Man and his dwelling-place are constantly changing. 
 The race continues. Individuals die. Tlieir houses are clay-built, and 
 the foundations thereof are in the dust. All is fleeting and uncertain. 
 The heaving earthquake may overwhelm the proudest monuments man 
 can raise ; the electric flash may rend them in pieces ; the torrent 
 may sweep them away : and, when such active forces are not at work, 
 time hastens decay. So with the body of man himself " It is crushed 
 before (literally, in the presence of) the moth ;" that is, the insect which 
 all regard as short-lived, may survive when man is cut off. The words 
 have been unnecessarily surrounded with difficulty. "Moth," Heb. 
 ash, is named in other two passages in this book in a similar connec- 
 tion. Speaking of man's body, he says, as with himself so with all the 
 race — "And he, as a rotten thing, consumeth, as a garment that is 
 moth-eaten" (xiii. 28). Man that is born of a woman is of few days. 
 Of the hypocrite he says, " He buildeth his house as a moth ;" wraps 
 himself in his pride of health and of substance, as the moth in its larval 
 state does in its pupa case. But the birds may pick it up ; other 
 insects may pierce it ; the foot of man or of beast may crush it. The 
 grounds on which the hypocrite rely are as uncertain ; and even the fair 
 outside only conceals the wickedness within — the case around the larva 
 conceals the crawling worm. 
 
 Any one of the numerous scale-winged {Lcpidoptera) order of insects 
 answers this description, but especially the genus Tinea.
 
 JOB vi.-xiv, 341 
 
 JOB VI.-XIV. 
 
 I'ONTINUING bis discourse, Eliphaz says, trouble does not 
 come unsent, " yet man is born to it, as tbe sparks fly 
 upward." Is it not tben bis duty to turn to God? "I 
 would seek after God, and unto God would I commit my 
 
 ^y. cause" (v. 7, 8). 
 
 However far mistaken Elipbaz may bave been in bis estimate of Job, 
 his words bere are full of beauty. Tbe filling in of tbe picture, 
 sketcbed so boldly in outline in verse 17, is peculiarly striking: — 
 " Bebold, bappy is tbe man wbom God correctetb ; therefore despise 
 not tbou tbe chastening of tbe Almighty." The language and senti- 
 ments anticipate, by more than a thousand years, tbe apostolic exhor- 
 tation — " My son, despise not thou tbe chastening of the Lord, nor 
 faint when thou art rebuked of him : for whom the Lord loveth be 
 chasteneth, and scourgeth every son wbom be receiveth" (Heb. xii. 5, 6). 
 The blessings vouchsafed to tbe "afflicted man" are named by Eliphaz 
 in brief graphic expressions. He may count on deliverance in many 
 troubles, protection in famine and war, and shelter from " tbe scourge 
 of tbe tongue" (ver. 19-22). All nature would be made helpful to bis 
 happiness ; he would be " in league with tbe stones of the field, and the 
 beasts of tbe field would be at peace with him" (ver. 23). Peace was 
 to be in bis dwelling. Like David in after-days, be was to " walk 
 within bis bouse with a perfect heart" (Ps. ci. 2) ; and bis family 
 was to become great and powerful (ver. 2-1, 25). Tbe finishing touch 
 of this picture of exceeding beauty is given in verse 2G : — 
 
 " Thou sbalt come to thy grave in a full age, 
 Like as a shock of corn cometh in his season." 
 
 " Shock of corn," Heb. gddisli, points to any kind of fully ripe grain 
 after it has been cut, and, with the straw, put up in bundles ready to 
 be threshed. In Exodus xxii. 6, it is rendered "stacks of corn," and 
 in Judges xv. 5, it is named along with "the standing corn" (JMtndh) 
 — "And when be had set the brands on fire, be let them go into the 
 standing corn of the Philistines, and burnt up both tbe shocks, and also 
 tbe standing corn, with the vineyards and olives." 
 
 I 
 I
 
 A singular use is made of tlie same word {gddlsh) by Job himself in 
 his answer to Zophar : — 
 
 "Do ye not know tlicir tokens, 
 Tliat the wicked is reserved to the day of destruction? 
 They shall be brought forth to the day of wrath. 
 \^^lo shall declare his way to his face? 
 And who shall repay him what lie hath done? 
 Yet shall he be brought to the grave, 
 And shall remain in the tomb" (xxi. 29-32). 
 
 "The tomb" (gudlsh) is rendered "heap" in the margin. Tlie force 
 of the figure has been mistaken. Job does not mean to indicate, that 
 in respect of the mere fact of death there is any difference between the 
 rigliteous and the wicked. There is here an implied contrast. He had 
 before been told that the death of the good man came like " the shock 
 of corn in its season:" he was prepared for it, and would die in good 
 hope — would be gathered into the garner of glory and eternal joy. But 
 now, he says, the wicked remain as the shock too, though theirs must 
 be a fearful looking for of judgment. As if he had said, If you wish to 
 comfort me, you must set forth something more than mere natural 
 readiness for dying, because in this respect it comes alike to all. He 
 exposed the one-sidedness of their teaching, and exclaimed — 
 
 " How then comfort ye me in vain ? 
 Seeing in your answers abideth falsehood" (vcr 34). 
 
 Chapter vi. 5 ; see under xxiv. G, and Isa. i. 3. Job follows in the 
 line of the exhortations of Eliphaz, and makes himself, as throughout, 
 master of the situation. It is no merit, he argues, not to complain 
 when there is no cause for it : — 
 
 " Doth the wild ass bray when he hath grass ? 
 Or loweth the ox over his fodder ?" 
 
 I would not, he continues, have had recourse to such modes of comfort- 
 ing others as you have. Tliey were as unsavoury meat to me, 
 tasteless as the white of an egg, but now the things I refused to touch 
 are as my sorrowful meat. My grief has become to your words as the 
 spice to unsavoury food, as the salt to the white of an egg. Set along- 
 side of my grief, they have distinct bearings on me. At other times I 
 would not have cared for them, but now in their very cruelty, and in 
 the evidences they supply that you do not understand my case, they 
 influence me (ver. 6).
 
 JOB vi.-xiv. 343 
 
 " My brethren have dealt deceitfully as a brook, 
 And as the stream of brooks they pass away ; 
 Which are blackish by reason of the ice, 
 And wherein the snow is hid : 
 What time they wax warm, they vanish : 
 When it is hot they are consumed out of their place" (ver. 15-17). 
 
 " This," remarks Dr. Thomson, " is a singular brook which we are 
 fullowing down the wady. Back yonder I thought of watering my 
 horse, but, supposing the stream would become larger, I omitted it, and 
 here it has vanished altogether, like one of Job's deceitful friends — I 
 mean brooks. The phenomena of streams in this country aptly illus- 
 trate the character of his false friends. In winter, when there is no 
 need of them, they are full, and strong, and loud in their bustling pro- 
 fessions and promises ; but in the heat of summer, when they are 
 wanted, they disappoint your hope. You think your fields will be irri- 
 gated, and yourself and your flocks refreshed by them, when, lo ! they 
 deal deceitfully and pass away. Nearly all the streams of this country, 
 ' what time they wax warm,' thus vanish, go to nothing, and perish. 
 Such were Job's friends. There is another illustration equally perti- 
 nent. You meet a clear, sparkling brook, and, so long as you follow it 
 among the cool mountains, it holds cheerful converse with you by its 
 merry gambols over the rocks ; but as soon as you reach the plain, 
 ' where it is hot,' it begins to dwindle, grow sad and discouraged, and 
 finally foils altogether. Those which suggested the comparison of Job 
 probably flowed down from the high lands of Gilead and Bashan, and 
 came to nothing in the neighbouring desert ; for it is added that the 
 ' troops of Teeman looked, the companies of Sheba waited for them, 
 and were confounded because they had hoped.' It was on those high 
 mountains only that Job could become familiar with the winter pheno- 
 mena, where the streams are ' blackish by reason of the ice ;' for not 
 only are Lebanon and Hcrmon covered with snow in winter, and the 
 brooks there frozen, but the same is true also of the higher parts of the 
 Hauran, and of the mountains to the south of it, where Job is supposed 
 to have resided." 
 
 " The servant earnestly desireth (greedily looks for) the shadow" 
 (vii. 2), the evening — the time, namely, when the slanting rays of the 
 setting sun lengthen the shadows of all the objects on the earth, the 
 period of rest and quiet repose to the toil-worn hireling. 
 
 "0 remember that my life is wind" (ver. 7) — fleeting as the breeze 
 (ruach) which this moment is felt, and the next has passed away —
 
 344 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Fig. 94. 
 
 uncertain as atmospheric movements, coining when not looked for, 
 departing as suddenly as they came. 
 
 "Am I a sea {yilni), or a whale (tannin), that thou settest a watch 
 (mi'shmdr) over me?" (ver. 12.) The leading thought in this verse is 
 restraint in order to safety. In God's works this has its illustration in 
 the bounds which he has set to the sea, and in his control over any of 
 its greatest inhabitants. Job sees the former dashing against the rocks 
 
 on its shore, chafing to burst its barriers, 
 but it is still held back by the power 
 of Jehovah. Am I, he asks, so wild — 
 am I animated by passions furious as 
 ocean's waves — that I must thus be 
 kept back from joy? The huge crea- 
 tures which swim the deep may require 
 constant restraint, but why should I, 
 frail, helpless, short-lived, be hemmed 
 in with sorrow on sorrow ? (Plate III.) 
 Bildad the Shuhite takes the place of 
 Eliphaz the Temanite in dealing with 
 Job (viii.), and distinctly charges him 
 with wickedness (ver. 6) and hypocrisy 
 (ver. 13). No more, he argues, would 
 such affliction as you bear come without 
 great sin as its cause, than the rush 
 ^ji_ would grow without water (ver. 11) ; 
 see under Exod. xi. 3, and chap. xl. 21. 
 / / The hypocrite's life shall perish" (ver. 
 
 13)- 
 
 " Whose hope shall be cut off, 
 And whose trust as a spider's web" (ver. 1 4). 
 
 " Spider," Heb. alckavish. The same 
 The word ren- 
 
 r . 
 
 I 
 Epeira diadema — a, female; h, male. 
 
 word occurs in Isaiah lix. 5 in a similar connection 
 dered spiders in Proverbs xxx. 28, is scmdmith. 
 
 The form referred to here, was no doubt one of the garden, or gossa- 
 mer spiders (fig. 94), which w-eave their beautiful nets on trees and 
 bushes. When the sun shines on them after a dewy night has hung 
 them thickly with globules, or one of hoar frost has feathered them 
 with purest white, every observer has acknowledged their extreme 
 beauty. They are "the gossamers in air that sail" —
 
 JOB VI.-XIV. 
 
 345 
 
 " Sailing mid the golden air 
 In skiffs of yielding gossamer." 
 
 They are the " scorched dew" of Spenser, " the fihny tlireads of dew 
 evaporate" of Tliomson. They have attracted the atteutiuu of almost 
 every poet. Shakspeare says : — - 
 
 " A lover may bestride the gossamer, 
 That idles in the wanton summer air, 
 And )'et not fall, so light is vanity." 
 
 Coleridge mentions it in one of the most striking passages of the 
 "Ancient Mariner" (iii. 9) : — 
 
 "Alas! (thought I, and my heart beat loud) 
 How fast she nears and nears! 
 Are those her sails that glance in the sun, 
 Like restless gossameres?" 
 
 Fig. 95. 
 
 The spiders form the order Aranet'dea, of the class Amchm'ila, which 
 includes spiders, scorpions, and 
 mites. The head of the spider 
 forms part of the body (cephalo- 
 thorax). Its eyes vary from two, 
 as in many of the well-known 
 harvestmen (Phalanf/iiini), to 
 eight, as in the, so-called, bird- 
 spider {Jli/gale). The garden 
 spider {Epcirci) has four in the 
 middle of the thorax, arranged 
 in a square, and two placed 
 obliquely at a distance from the 
 middle four. Spiders have no 
 feelers or antennoa. The number 
 of legs varies from six to ten. 
 They are eight-jointed, and fur- 
 nished with claws at the point. "''^''^• 
 The abdomen is soft, oblong or globular, of one piece, and not ringed 
 as in insects generally ; marked at the apex by fleshy teat-like organs, 
 from which the substance for the web is drawn by spinning. The 
 accompanying cut (fig. 95) will help to illustrate this description. 
 
 The hypocrite's trust might thus be beautiful as the spider's web, 
 "quick glancing to the sun," but ib was equally frail 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 2x
 
 " The spider's most attenuated thread 
 Is cord, is cable, to man's tondcrest tie 
 On earthly bliss; it breaks at every breeze." — Yovng. 
 
 BiUlad next likens him to an licrbacoous plant — -" green before the sun, 
 the branch shooting forth in his garden, the root even firmly rooted in 
 the soil" (ver. 16, 17), bnt the drought and heat wither it, the blight 
 falls on it. For the summer it is well enough, but with wintef it passes 
 away. 
 
 In chapters ix., x.. Job answers his over-zealous friend. He acknow- 
 ledges all that has been said as to man's weakness and God's greatness. 
 The thought of God raises his heart to him. "AVho is like to God?" he 
 asks — 
 
 "AVho removeth the mountains and they linow not; 
 Who overturneth them in liis anger ; 
 Who shaketh the earth out of her place, 
 And the pillars thereof tremble ; 
 Who coramandeth the sun and it riseth not; 
 AVho sealoth up the stars ; 
 Who alone sprcadeth out the heavens, 
 And treadeth on the waves of the sea ; 
 Who maketh Ash, Kesil, and Kimali, 
 And the chambers (Jiltadar) of the south {tcman)" ver. 5-9. 
 
 Thus he celebrates the sovereignty of God over all nature — the earth, 
 the ocean, and the starry sky. The earthquake ; the darkness like that 
 of Egypt, or later, like that which happened at the Redeemer's death ; 
 the clear blue sky, and the hosts which thence look peacefully down on 
 man ; and the sea in its seasons of calm, or its periods of storm— all 
 testify to the majesty and might of the glorious One by whom they arc 
 controlled. 
 
 Ash (ver. 9) is rendered Arcturus in our version. The same name 
 is given in xxx. 36, as the translation of Aijish — " Canst thou guide 
 Arcturus with his sons?" 
 
 If the reader will turn to the star map of the Northern hemisphere, 
 the constellation Uisa Ilajor, or the Great Bear, will be seen repre- 
 sented by the outlines of a bear. At the extreme point of the tail a 
 star of the third magnitude, n, is marked, and nearly opposite, one of 
 the fourth magnitude, x, in the left arm of Bootes. Tracing this figure 
 to the left knee, Arcturus, a, in Bootes is set down as a star of the first 
 magnitude. 
 
 Kesil is rendered Orion. Referring to the same map, and tracing 
 the line (circle) marked Coluriis Solstitt'orum, from the Pole-star to the
 
 JOB vi.-xiv. 347 
 
 outer circle, Orion is seen represented by tlie figure of a man, the body 
 being shown in tliis map, the legs in that of the Southern hemisphere. 
 The three belt stars — " the bands of Orion" (xxxviii. 31) — appear in a 
 straight line, the two shoulder stars above, and the two heel stars 
 below. Orion is one of the winter evening constellations, which rise 
 and set in the latitude of England. On a clear night in IMarch it may 
 be noticed about nine o'clock, midway between the zenith and the 
 south. The usual rendering of the Hebrew hesil is " fool," as, for 
 example, in Psalm xlix. 10 — " Wise men die, likewise the fool and the 
 brutish person perish." The prophet Amos uses the word as here — 
 " Seek him that maketh the seven stars and Orion" (v. 8). 
 
 KimdJi, the Pleiades. Turning to the star map of the northern 
 hemisphere, and following the outline of the right arm of Orion, a star 
 of the first magnitude is marked in the eye of the constellation Taiiruf;, 
 or the Bull. This is Aldeharan (ci, Tauri), the Arabic name for the 
 star. In the neck of Taurus, the well known group Pleiades appears, 
 consisting of about sixty stars. Six or seven of these stand brightly 
 out. Thus the name often given to the whole group is the " Seven 
 Stars." Pleiades is derived from the Greek pMn^ to sail. The Greek 
 mariner believed that it was safe to sail in the Great Sea after their 
 return to their place in the firmament, easily observed by him, and that 
 sailing was dangerous after the constellation disappeared. The Romans 
 named this cluster of stars Virgilia?, from virga, a twig, because in Italy 
 they were first seen in May, and thus marked the beginning of summer. 
 The Latins had their constellation which pointed directly to the w'eather, 
 as the Pleiades did to the state of the sea. The seven stars in the head 
 of Taurus were named Pluvice, or the rain-foreboding stars, because 
 wdien they were observed to rise with the sun, it was believed that rain 
 would be sure to follow. Thus also the appeal to Job :— 
 
 " Canst tliou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades, 
 Or loose the bands of Oiion?" (xxxviii. 31.) 
 
 The rapid lapse of time is noticed in vei'se 26. Job says his days 
 "flee away," they are "as the eagle that hasteth to his prey." The 
 speed as of an arrow shot by a strong arm, marks the flight of the birds 
 of prey when they sweep, from the height at which they have been 
 hovering, down on their quarry. 
 
 In chapter xiv. Job continues his answer to Zophar. His theme is 
 still the shortness, the uncertainty, and the afflictions of life. Man comes 
 forth as a flower, fidl of promise and beauty, but only to be cut down ;
 
 r' 
 
 348 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 and as the severance of the root from the stalk results in the death of 
 both, thus man passes away. Yea it is worse with man than even with 
 some of the forms of vegetation. If the tree be cut down (ver. 7), it will 
 not fail to spring again. The root sap will force it to bud and sprout ; 
 and thougli it can never be equal to its former condition when the 
 main shoot rose upwards as a noble tree, yet it lives — 
 
 " But man dictli and w.isteth a\v;iy ; 
 Yea, man givcth up the ghost, and where is he?" (ver. 10.) 
 
 Eliphaz still longs to bring homo his views of the moral government 
 of God to Job. He is still persuaded that there must be a deep sub- 
 stratum of evil about Job, which, by hypocrisy, he managed to conceal 
 from his friends — 
 
 " Let not him that is deceived trust in vanity : 
 For vanity shall bo his recompense. 
 It shall be accomplished before his time, 
 And liis branch shall not be green. 
 He shall shake off his unripe grape as the vine, 
 And shall cast off his flower as the olive " (xv. 31-33). 
 
 The vine forces from the fruit branch the bastard grapes whose 
 growth has been arrested. They once gave fair promise like the others, 
 but the value and beauty of the fully ripe clusters would be man-ed if 
 they still hung on. As the green buds of spring push off tlie withered 
 leaves from the beech branches, so the grapes which have not followed 
 the law of their growth are shaken off. Vanity, he adds also, is nothing 
 more to truth, than the faded flowers of the olive are to the oil-full 
 berry. If the soul is to stand out as true, truth-loving, and truth- 
 working, it must shed these flowers of vanity. The vain man cannot 
 have the communion of a child with God as his father, for God is true, 
 he loves truth, all his works are in truth.
 
 JOB XVI.-XXX. 
 
 349 
 
 JOB XVI.-XXX. 
 
 'HE peculiar bitterness of Job's affliction and misery again 
 comes out, in his acknowledgment of the immediate hand 
 of God in them all. "God," he says, "hath delivered me 
 to the ungodly, and turned me over into the liands of the 
 wirked. I was at ease, but he hath broken me asunder: 
 he hath also taken me by my neck, and shaken me to pieces, 
 and set me for his mark. His archers compass me round 
 about; he cleaveth my reins asunder, and doth not spare; he 
 poureth out my gall upon the ground. He breaketh me with 
 breach upon breach; he runneth upon me like a giant" (xvi. 11-14). 
 After the general expression "he hath broken me," he descrilies the 
 " neck as shaken to pieces," the " reins — the loins, or region of the 
 kidneys — as cleaved asunder," and his "gall as poured on the groimd." 
 The word " gall " will be fully examined under Jeremiah viii. 14. 
 Meanwhile it may be noted here, that, as used in this passage, it is to be 
 held to point to the gall cyst of the human body. The Hebrew word 
 is mererah, from the root which signifies " to be bitter." Tlie same 
 organ is spoken of in chapter xx. 24, 25, under the name merorah — 
 " He shall flee from the iron weapon, and the bow of steel shall strike 
 him through. It is drawn, and cometh out of the body ; yea, the 
 glittering sword cometh out of his gall : terrors are upon him." The 
 gall-bladder is a pear-shaped sac, of a yellowish green colour, lying 
 under the right side of the liver. It communicates with the liver by 
 means of the vessel (biltari/ duct) through which the bile is discharged 
 into the gall-cyst, and it is connected with the intestines by their first 
 fold (the cliiodenum). In Job's pathetic wailing, he complains that the 
 hand of God was not only on his soul, but on his whole body, whose 
 organs could not perform those offices needful to health and happiness — 
 
 " I have said to corruption, Thou my father ; 
 To the worm, My mother and my sister " (xvii. 14). 
 
 " Worm," Heb. rimmiih, is the common earth-worm {Liimhricus 
 terrestn's), the type of an order of the so called ring-formed invertebrates 
 {Annelida). They are named Terricolce from having their usual dwelling-
 
 350 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 place in earth or in miul. The Hebrew word occurs seven times, and 
 always, with one exception, must mean the well known earth-worm. 
 The exceptional passage is Exod. xvi. 24, in which the form of life 
 referred to must liave been a grub of some insect which deposited 
 its eggs in matter corresponding to the manna. The word is used once 
 ^by Isaiah (xiv. 11) — "The worm {rimmdli) is sjjread under thee, and 
 the worms (toledh) cover thee." Babylon's humiliation was complete. 
 Her pomp was brought down to tlie grave, and her bed was with the 
 earth-worm, while her outward beauty was marred with disease as 
 loathsome as that of which Herod died (Acts xii. 23). The latter word 
 always points to a form of life distinct from the former. liiminah is 
 used other four times in this Book — vii. 5 ; xxi. 2G ; xxv. G. In the 
 last passage, as in Isaiah, it is associated with toledh— 
 
 How much loss man, that is a wnrm {rinnitdh) ? 
 And the son of man, which is a worm {tokrJi)? 
 
 lie is mean as the cartli-wurm ; one from whom God might turn away 
 as man does from the crawling grub. 
 
 Two other words are translated "worm" in the Old Testament, 
 namely, sds and sdhhal. The former occurs in Isaiah li. 8 — "The worm 
 shall eat them like wool;" the latter in Micah vii. 17 — "They shall 
 move out of their holes like worms." In the one case the grub of a 
 garment-eating moth is referred to ; in the other the earth-worm, or 
 any creeping thing which when alarmed leaves its hiding-place. 
 
 " Brimstone {fjophreth) shall be scattered upon his habitation " (xviii. 
 15). The original word points to something inflammable, as the gum 
 which exuded from the gopher-tree. When Sodom and Gomorrah 
 were destroyed, the Lord rained upon them "fire and brimstone." 
 These brought desolation, and from that time the term has been used 
 to indicate barrenness wherever it prevails (Ps. xi. G ; Isa. xxxiv. 9). 
 
 Zophar the Naamathite feiled to sympathize with the low, heart- 
 sprung wail of Job. He saw God dealing with him, as he believed 
 only the wicked were dealt with. This circumstance led him to make 
 haste to answer Job (xx. 2). This he does in a graphic picture of the 
 wicked. He says " his triumphing is short, his joy but for a moment " 
 — "he shall fly away as a dream" (ver. 5, G). His children, alarmed 
 by the judgment, will seek in vain to make up for their father's sin 
 — " they shall seek to please the poor, and his hands shall restore their 
 goods " (ver. 10). The very mercies which others enjoy cease to be to 
 him means of food —
 
 JOB xvr.-xxx. 
 
 351 
 
 " His meat in his bowels is turned, 
 It is the gall of asps withiu him. 
 He shall suck the poisou of asps; 
 The viper's tongue shall slay him " (vct. 1-1, IG). 
 
 "Asp," Pleb. jJcthen, the Egyptian cobra (Naj'a haje)^ one of the 
 venomous colahrine snakes [Colubridce). This is one of the so called 
 Hooded Snakes, with which serpent-charmers chiefly deal — see under 
 Psalm Iviii. 4, 5. The Spectacled Suuke proper {Naja fnjjudians) is a 
 closely related species (Plate IV., fig. 5). The well known Cobra di 
 Capello is another. They are all noted for their deadly bite. The 
 hollow fangs communicate with a poison gland, which being pressed in 
 
 Fit'. '-O- 
 
 Ueiid of the Cobra. 
 
 the act of biting, sends a few drops into the puncture. The venom 
 quickly acts on the whole system, and death soon ensues. It is a blood 
 poison, and may be taken into the stomach without any evil effects. 
 
 The pethen is referred to three times in Scripture, besides the pas- 
 sages now under notice. Moses threatens those who "provoked the 
 Lord to jealousy" with "bitter destruction." "Their wine," he says, 
 "is the cruel venom of asps " (Dent, xxxii. 33). The word is rendered 
 "adder" in Psalm xci. 13. The promise given to the man "that 
 dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High" is — ■ 
 
 "Thou shall tread upon the lion and adtler." 
 
 Among the illustrations used in Isaiah xi., to set forth the glories of the 
 time of world-wide blessing, it is said — " The sucking child shall play 
 on the hole of the asp " (ver. 8).
 
 352 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 " Viper," Heb. cpheh, is named in the Old Testament only here and 
 in Isaiah xxx. 6; lix. 5. It is tlie viper {ecJn'dna) of Matt. iii. 7 — "When 
 John saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, 
 he said unto them, generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee 
 from the wrath to come?" So likewise, xii, 34, xxiii. 33; Luke iii. 7; 
 and Acts xxviii. 3. In the last passage the deadly character of its bite 
 is implied. See Plate IV., fig. 3. 
 
 The vipers {Viperidoe) are generally met with in dry sandy districts. 
 This fact gives much force to the reference to the great Arabian desert 
 as the place named in Isaiah xxx., whence they were said to come — "The 
 burden of the beasts of the south : Into the land of trouble and anguish, 
 
 I'ig. tJ7. 
 
 Cut showing the forked tongue of Serpents. 
 
 from whence come the young and old lion, the viper and fiery flying 
 serpent, they will carry their riches upon the shoulders of young asses, 
 and their treasures upon the bunches of camels, to a people that shall 
 not profit them." The expression used by Zophar is, " the viper's 
 tongue shall slay him." The cut given above is introduced to show the 
 slender, tapering, and forked character of the tongue of the serpents. 
 But however fierce and dangerous the form of the outstretched tongue 
 may seem, it is not hurtful. The popular notion has ever been, that 
 the tongue acted as a sting. Reference is made to this here. Shaks- 
 2?eare makes one of his characters exclaim, regarding his lieartless 
 daughter : — 
 
 " She has ........ 
 
 Looked black upon mo ; struck mo with her tongue 
 Most serpent-like."
 
 JOB xvi.-xxx. 353 
 
 Another is introduced saying, in regard to a supposed murder : — 
 
 " And hast thou killed him sleeping ? brave touch ! 
 Could not a worm, an adder, do so much ? 
 An adder did it, for with doubler tongue 
 Than thine, thou serpent, never adder stung." 
 
 One of the vipers is mentioned under anotlier name in Gen. xUx. 17 
 — ■" Dan shall be an adder in the path, that biteth the horse heels so 
 that the rider shall fall backward." " Adder," Heb. shejyMphon, the 
 Cerastes Ilasselquistii of naturalists. It is plentiful in Egypt and Syria. 
 Its head is large and tlattened above. Its colour is light brown, with 
 darker marking, making it not unlike the colour of the soil where it has 
 its abode. Thus it is often trodden on by cattle, on which it inflicts its 
 venomed wound. 
 
 Another species is named in Psahn cxl. 3, as the acksub, or adder. 
 It is said of the evil and of the violent man — 
 
 " They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent ; 
 Adder's poison is under their lips." 
 
 This passage is noteworthy on account of the reference to the place of 
 the poison gland. So, likewise, the strong expression in Romans iii. 13 
 — "Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have 
 used deceit ; the poison of asps is under their lips." 
 
 "Steel" (ver. 24), see under Gen. iv. 22; "Gall" (vcr. 25), see 
 under ch. xvi. 13; "Bull" (xxl. 10), under Numb. xxii. 4; "Cow" 
 (ver. 10), Gen. xli. 2-4 ; " Ophir " (xxii. 24), 2 Chron. ix. 10. 
 
 It had been urged that sin is followed by suffering, and that God's 
 ways with man are retributive. There was truth in both allegations, 
 but not all the truth. The application of these views of providence to 
 the case of Job was unwarranted. Feeling this, he again sets the 
 matter in its true light. If, he argues, such a manifest connection can 
 be always made out between sin and suffering, as to warrant the con- 
 clusion that all who suffer greatly must be greater sinners than those 
 who suffer little, and must contrast remarkably with those who do not 
 suffer at all, how is it that so many whose sins against social relation- 
 ships are great and aggravated do not suffer at all? You see some 
 removing landmarks, and taking by open violence the flocks of their 
 neighbours (xxiv. 2). Others there are who deprive even the widow 
 and the fatherless of their only means of worhlly support — "They drive 
 away the ass of the fatherless, they take the widow's ox for a pledge" 
 
 (ver. 3). Others again without scruple lay their hands on their neigh- 
 voL. n. 2r
 
 351 BIBLIC.Vf. NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 hour's crops — "Tliey reap every one his corn in tlie field" (ver. 6). 
 " Corn," Heb. hel'd^ is to be taken here for the crops which specially 
 supply food for cattle, and may mean either the straw, or the gi-ain 
 when separated from it. In chapter vi. 5, it is thus used : " Doth the 
 wild ass bray when he hath grass? or lowcth the ox over liis fodder 
 (beltl)?" See also under Isaiah i. 3. When the prophet enumerates 
 the special blessings of a time of great revival, and of the close adherence 
 of the people to God, he says — " In that day shall thy cattle feed in 
 large pastures. The oxen likewise, and the young asses that ear the 
 ground, shall eat clean provender (belli), whicli hath been winnowed 
 with the shovel and with the fan " (Isa. xxx. 24). 
 
 " He biiildeth up the waters \a his thick clouds; 
 And the cloud is not rent under them " (xxvi. 8). 
 
 The line of thought in the reference here to the waters, to the binding 
 of them up, to the compassing of them with bounds, to the water in the 
 cloud, and in the thick cloud, point to Job's views ot the sovereignty 
 of God over the clouds of heaven and the waters contained in them. 
 The same views were urged in days long after by Jeremiah during the 
 "dearth" (xiv. 22) — " Are there any among the vanities (idols) of the 
 Gentiles that can cause rain ? or can the heavens give showers ? Art 
 not thou He, O Lord God? therefore we will wait on thee." Dwelling 
 in parched lands, seeing the dark cloud hanging heavily on the horizon, 
 knowing that it was loaded with blessing to man, feeling that naturally 
 the rain should hasten down from these clouds surcharged with watery 
 vapour, while it was still withheld, how appropriate were Job's utter- 
 ances to his views of the sovereignty of God over the treasures of rain ! 
 
 " By his spirit he hath garnished the heavens ; 
 His hand hath formed the crooked serpent" (ver. 13). 
 
 "The crooked serpent." When Job uses this expression, he is 
 contemplating the heavens. He has acknowledged God's power in the 
 phenomena of clouds and rain. Now he turns to the stars. The 
 glorious orbs which shone down on him, declared equally to him as to 
 David the glory of God — " By his spirit he has garnished the heavens." 
 In garnishing the heavens he formed "the crooked serpent," the con- 
 stellation Draco, indicated in the star map of the Northern hemisphere 
 by a serpent, whose tail commences in star \ of Draco, Ij'ing between a 
 of Ursa ^lajor and the Pole. From this point, and occupying portions 
 of circles two, three, and four, it twists to the south of Ursa Minor,
 
 JOB xvi.-xxx. 355 
 
 touches the constellation Cepheus with one of its folds, and, in the 
 fourth circle, its eye is marked by a star, /3, of the second magnitude, in 
 a position under the right foot of Hercules. (See Map of the Stars.) 
 
 The 28th chapter contains a contrast between the highest efforts 
 of the wisdom of man and the fruits of the wisdom of God, "who looketh 
 to the ends of the earth, and seeth under the whole heaven" (ver. 24). 
 The former is equal to many and great achievements, but it cannot 
 unaided lead one human soul into " the fear of the Lord, which is 
 wisdom," or even " to depart from evil, which is understanding" 
 (ver. 28). All thus endowed have been taught of God. He has 
 instructed them " whence cometh wisdom, and where is the place of 
 understanding" (ver. 20). In the light of these general considerations 
 Job endeavours to set forth boldly the proudest attainments of man 
 over creation, that he may contrast them again with the power of him 
 " who made a decree for the rain, and a way for the lightning of 
 thunder" (ver. 26). The whole of the description contained in verses 
 1-11 bears on the forth-putting of man's powers in connection with 
 mining operations in his search for the precious and useful metals. 
 
 " Surely there is a vein for the silver" — man knows that such is the 
 case. He has traced it through the Fig.93. 
 
 rocks. Its beauty has led him captive, 
 and he has followed it into the bowels 
 of the earth — " the stones of darkness, 
 and the shadow of death" (ver. 3). 
 The description is as true as it is beau- 
 
 ijr.-l Native Arborescent Silver. 
 
 " Silver," Heb. Icesej^li, Greek argimon, Latin argentiim. As native 
 silver it occurs among the oldest rocks. It is found also in the same 
 rocks associated with ores of other metals, as gold, antimony, &c. In 
 the secondary strata it is often joined with iron, lead, &c., and in the 
 metamorphic rocks with copper. The earthy minerals with which it 
 is most frequently united are granites, porphyries, and various meta- 
 morphic shales. 
 
 It is so frequently mentioned in Scripture, that it must have been as 
 much in use among the Hebrews as it is in Britain. Whence was it 
 obtained? Both Jeremiah and Ezekiel point to Tarshish. (See above, 
 1 Kings X. 22.) The former notices Tarshish as being for silver, 
 what Uphaz (Ophir?) was for gold. " Silver spread into plates is 
 brought from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz" (x. 9). The latter 
 associates it with iron, tin, and lead — "Tarshish was thy merchant, with
 
 35G 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 silver, iron, tin, and lead" (xxvii. 12). There can be little doubt 
 that Tartcssus on tlie south of Spain -is referred to here. Silver 
 mines were extensively worked in Spain even in the years when the 
 Phoenician traders from Tyre and Sidon frequented her coasts, and 
 continued to be so till a comparatively recent period. Britain would 
 supply the tin and lead. Iron is to be met with in great abundance in 
 Spain. In some of the northern districts its stones arc literally iron. 
 Kidney-shaped ironstone occur in great abundance by the road-sides 
 and on the surface of the soil. Silver in its pure state even, but espe- 
 cially associated with copper and with lead, might have been exported 
 from Britain likewise. In several places veins of silver have been 
 worked, and silver is present in Cornish copper and among the lead 
 ores of Scotland to the extent of from three to twenty per cent. 
 
 That in common use among the Hebrews seems to have been 
 ^'''J^' obtained in an impure state — "Take 
 
 away the dross from the silver, and 
 there shall come forth a vessel for the 
 finer" (Prov. xxv. 4). Thus the 
 acknowledgment "the fining-pot is for 
 the silver" (Prov. xvii. 3) — man may 
 purify the silver, "but the Lord search- 
 eth the heart." The touching words 
 of Zechariah (xiii. 9) assume their full 
 meaning when regarded from this 
 point of view : — " And I will bring 
 the third part through the fire, and 
 will refine them as silver is refined, 
 and will try them as gold is tried : 
 they shall call on my name, and I will 
 hear them : I will say. It is my people ; and they shall say. The Lord 
 is my God." When the silver was thus dealt with it became 
 "refined" (1 Chron. xxix. 4); "choice" (Prov. viii. 9); and "fire-abiding" 
 (Numb. xxxi. 22, 23). 
 
 The uses of silver were many. We have mention made of it as 
 current "money" (Gen. xxiii. 15, 16, xxxvii. 28; 1 Kings xvi. 24; 
 2 Chron. xvii. 11; Neh. v. 15). It was made into "cups" (Gen. xlix. 
 2); "ornaments" (Exod. iii. 22); and "idols" (Ps. cxv. 4; Isa. ii. 20; 
 XXX. 22). It was extensively used in the work of the tabernacle and 
 temple, and manufactured into a great variety of articles besides those 
 mentioned. Some of its peculiarities are also referred to. Thus its 
 
 Native Silver in Cubes.
 
 JOB xvi.-xxx. 357 
 
 bright colour is noticed in Ps. Ixviii. 13 — "The wings of a dove covered 
 with silver" — the slieen, namely, on the wing-coverts. 
 
 In Hebrew poetry it is frequently named in a figurative way. Thus 
 the words of the Lord are " choice silver" — they are " pure words as 
 silver tried in a furnace of earth" (Ps. xii. 6). " The tongue of the 
 just is choice silver" (Prov. x. 20). The "wicked are reprobate 
 silver" (Jer. vi. 30). 
 
 Tliere is not only a vein for the silver, but also a place for " gold" 
 {zdhdv). This word occurs above three hundred times in the Old 
 Testament. It is given to gold because of its yellow colour. Several 
 other words are translated " gold," as hetzar, xxxvi. 19; deliav, the use 
 of which is confined to Ezra and Daniel; hliarutz, Ps. Ixviii. 13; ketliem, 
 Job xxxi., and verses 16, 19 of this chapter. This is " the most fine gold " 
 of Song V. 11 ; segor, also used here (ver. 15). Zdhdv is the common 
 name. Its quality was indicated by the addition of the adjectives 
 "pure," "fine," "refined," &c. Ilharutz and kethem are poetical 
 terms. The ideas underlying all the names are those of something 
 precious, needing to be sought out, mixed and requiring to be separated, 
 concealed and worthy of being searched for. Scripture writers fre- 
 quently use gold as an illustration. Job (xxiii. 10) compares the 
 afilictious of God's people to the metallurgic process of gold-refining : — • 
 
 " But be knowetli the way that I take : 
 When he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold." 
 
 When the Psalmist (xix. 10) thought of those aspects of the character 
 of God revealed under the form of his law, his testimony, his statutes, 
 his commandments, his fear, and his judgments, he exclaimed — 
 
 " Here to be desired are they than gold, yea, much fine gold." 
 
 In Daniel's (xi. 38) interpretation of his vision to Nebuchadnezzar, he 
 said — " Thou art this head of gold." The thoughts, experiences, and 
 works of believers which are the fruit of the Spirit's indwelling, arc 
 said by Paul to be lasting as gold — they are built on the everlasting 
 foundation, the Lord Jesus Christ (1 Cor. iii. 14). The trial of the 
 believer's faith is said in 1 Peter i. 7, to be " more precious than that 
 of gold." The risen Saviour exhorted the church of Laodicea to forsake 
 carnal confidence, and to cast herself on his rich grace, in the words — 
 " Buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich." 
 
 The references in this chapter are to " the place of gold," " the dust 
 of gold," "the gold of Ophir," and to "gold" used as a medium of
 
 358 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 exchange (ver. 1, G, 15, IG). Tlie place of gold — its geological position 
 — has already been noticed (vol. i., p. 9G). Native gold is often found in 
 a crystallized form. Tiiese crystals are generally six-sided {/tcxahednil), 
 fig. 100. Recent extensive acquaintance with native gold has made 
 known eight-sided forms {octahedral), fig. 101, in which the octahedron 
 
 Fig. 100. 
 
 Fig. 101. 
 
 Fig. 102. 
 
 Fig. 103. 
 
 _ O 
 
 Fig. 101. 
 
 Fig. 105. 
 
 Crystals of Gold. 
 
 was found complete. In other cases, fig. 102, only one lialf of the 
 perfectly formed octahedron was found, its base blending with rough, 
 shapeless gold. The planes of these crystals are smooth, but along 
 their edges a projecting border occurs, as marked in the cuts. In some 
 specimens this ridge or border is double, fig. 103. The following 
 sections of a modern gold deposit will help to show the geological 
 
 position in which this precious metal is often 
 found. When Job speaks of its "place where 
 they fine it," he evidently refers to the work 
 of washing or crushing, to separate the ore 
 from its matrix or natural bed. 
 
 Fig. 104 is a section of a deep gullet in 
 which the gold-bearing ore occurs at a depth 
 of tliirty-six feet. Fig. 105 represents a 
 "surface gullet" in which the gold is met 
 with at a depth of about sixteen feet. " The 
 corresponding letters, in both sections, indicate 
 similar strata ; a, black loam and quartz ; i, white loam, 
 claj", and sand; o, brown clay; d, gold layer; e, yellowish- 
 brown rock; yy quartz in a concrete mass; g, stratum of 
 sand ; h, common clay. The auriferous ore earth is 
 generally of a light colour, or largely mixed with quartz 
 pebbles, very tenacious and difficult to wash. It lies 
 upon a yellowish-brown rock, of a rotten texture, known as fixed 
 slate, whilst higher up, above the gold, the strata present igneous 
 features." 
 
 •^^••l.rJ 
 
 
 d 
 
 ■J^
 
 JOB xvi.-xxx. 359 
 
 "Brass" (ver. 2), literally "copper" {neJiusJidh), has been fully 
 noticed under Genesis iv. 22 — which see. The direct references in 
 the sacred writings to this metal are numerous. Besides those quoted 
 under Genesis iv., we have the following : — In the contrast which 
 Elihu (xxxvii.) draws between God's majesty and the littleness of Job, 
 the question is asked (ver. 18) — " Hast thou with him spread out the 
 sky, which is strong, and as a molten looking-glass " — words which 
 indicate that, even in Job's time, brasen mirrors were in as common 
 use as they were at the period of the exodus from Egypt. Thus we 
 are told (Exod. xxxviii. 8) — " He made the laver of brass, of the 
 looking-glasses of the women assembling, which assembled at the door 
 of the tabernacle of the congregation." In the prophetic utterances of 
 Moses (Deut. xxxiii.) Asher is told — " Thy shoes shall be iron and 
 brass ; and as thy days so shall thy strength be" — an intimation which 
 has light shed on it fi-om several points. The locality assigned to the 
 tribe of Asher furnished both the copper and the iron with which tlie 
 sandals were to be shod. It also bordered on the sea strongholds held 
 by the Phoenician traders, whose wares proved such a strong attraction 
 for the members of this tribe that they entered into amity with those 
 whom they were expected to exterminate. From them the iron and 
 brass could be purchased in abundance. But chiefly the first words 
 of the intimation are to be looked at in the light of the last clause — 
 " As thy days, so shall thy strength be." The soft leather-soled 
 sandals which would suit well enough for the plains and the little 
 hills of Palestine, would not answer for the Asherites when they took 
 to the rugged slopes of Carmel and the mountains to the north. The 
 importation of copper to Tyre is expressly mentioned by Ezekiel 
 (xxvii. 13) : " Javan, Tubal, and JMeshech, tliey were thy merchants ; 
 they traded the persons of men and vessels of brass in thy market." 
 The metal was put to a great variety of uses. Chains were forged 
 from it (Judges xvi. 21). " The Philistines took Samson, and put out 
 his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters 
 of brass." The temple furnishings were made of brass (1 Kings vii. 15, 
 IG) : " He cast two pillars of brass, of eighteen cubits high apiece ; 
 and a line of twelve cubits did compass either of them about. And he 
 made two chapiters of molten brass, to set upon the tops of the pillars." 
 Again we are told in 2 Kings (xxv. 13) that " the pillars of brass that 
 were in the house of the Lord, and the bases, and the brasen sea that was 
 in the house of the Lord, did the Chaldees break in pieces, and carried 
 the brass of them to Babylon." Weapons of war were also formed of
 
 360 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 this metal. In the description of the armour of Goliath of Gath it is 
 related, that "he had an helmet of brass upon his head, and he was 
 armed with a coat of mail ; and the weight of the coat was five thousand 
 shekels of brass. And he had greaves of brass upon his legs, and a 
 target of brass between his shoulders" (1 Sam. xvii. 5, 6). And of 
 the Philistine, Ishbi-benob, it is said (2 Sam. xxi. 16), that "the weight 
 of his spear weighed three hundred shekels of brass in weight; he, being 
 girded with a new sword, thought to have slain David." 
 
 The figurative references to this metal are equally interesting. " Is 
 my strength," asks Job (vi. 12), "the strength of stones? or is my 
 flesh of brass?" In the case of the unfoithfulness of Israel tlie Lord 
 threatened — " I will break the pride of your power ; and I will make 
 your heaven as iron, and your earth as brass" (Levit. xxvi. 19); and in 
 Deuteronomy (xxviii. 23) — " Thy heaven that is over thy head shall 
 be brass;" an expression which may have suggested to Coleridge 
 oue of the boldest images in the " Ancient Mariner : " — 
 
 " Down dropt the breeze, the sails dropt down, 
 'Twas sad as sad coidd be ; 
 And we did speak only to break 
 Tlie silence of the sea ! 
 All in a hot and copper s/c>/, 
 The bloody sun, at noon. 
 Right up above the mast did stand 
 No bigger than the moon." 
 
 ]\Ian grapples with the difficulties which beset his endeavours to make 
 his own the riches which lie far out of sight among " the stones of 
 darkness." The pent up waters breaking out in a flood are not 
 allowed to hinder him. " They are dried up." But all the riches of 
 the earth lie not thus far out of reach. The soil, equally with the 
 rocks which underlie it, ministers blessing to man (ver. 5) : — 
 " As for the earth, out of it cometh bread." 
 
 Having noticed this, he returns again to the rocks (ver. 5) ; 
 
 "And under it is turned up as it were fire." 
 
 In it lie hid " the stones of fire" (Ezek. xxviii. 14) — the sapphire, the 
 onyx, the ruby, and the topaz. But with all this knowledge, there are 
 secrets into which man has not penetrated, paths in which it has not 
 been given him to walk (v. 7) : — 
 
 " There is a path which no fowl knoweth, 
 And which the vulture's eye hath not seen."
 
 JOB XVI.-XXX. 
 
 361 
 
 "Vulture," Heb. ayah, a word which occurs in only other two passages 
 (Lev. xi. 14; Deut. xiv. 13), in which it is rendered kite. This 
 meaning is assigned to it here. 
 
 The red kite or glede is one of the most beautiful of the Falconidce. 
 The length of the male is twenty-five inches, that of the female twenty- 
 seven inches. The wings from tip to tip are upwards of five feet, and 
 very powerful. This size of wing gives characteristic beauty to its 
 flight. At one time it may be seen gliding gently along with expanded 
 wing ; at another almost passing out of the spectator's view as it soars 
 
 Fig. 106. 
 
 The Common Kite (UUvui regalia). 
 
 to a very great heiglit. This is the feature referred to here. Let it fly 
 high as it may, let it soar beyond the view of man, there is yet "a path 
 which its eye hath not seen." Several species are to be met with in 
 the region whose scenery is described in the book of Job. Two species 
 are European, namely, the common kite {M. regalis), and the black kite 
 (il/. niger). The fomier used to abound in Britain, but it is now com- 
 paratively rare. 
 
 That I\Ioses should have specially noticed the kite in the Levitical 
 
 2z 
 
 VOL. II.
 
 362 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 arrangements regarding food, was to be expected. It has always been 
 very common in Eygpt. The Arabian kite {M. JEgyptkus) is found 
 even frequenting the towns and villages in the valley of the Nile. It 
 is the most abundant of birds of prey in Eygpt. 
 
 "Ophir," see under 2 Chron. ix. 10; "Onyx" (ver. 16), Gen. ii. 12; 
 "Pearls," Rev. xxi. 21; "Rubies" (ver. 18), Lam. iv. 7; "Topaz" (ver. 
 19j, Exod. xxviii. 17 : — 
 
 " No mention shall be made of coral or of pearls : 
 For the price of wisdom is above rubies" (ver. 18). 
 
 "Coral," Hcb. rdmotli, is mentioned only here and in Ezck. xxvii. 16. 
 In the latter passage it is named as one of the articles with which Syria 
 traded in the markets of Tyre. This must have come to Syria, througli 
 Arabia, from the Indian Ocean. The most valuable species was the 
 well known "red coral" {his nohilis, Plate XXXVII. fig. 6). This 
 was most likely the form referred to by Job. The root of the word 
 points to one of the tree-like species. Red coral was in ancient times 
 much more valuable than it is now, chiefly because the means of 
 obtaining it w^ere not so easy. See under Ezekiel as above. This 
 species is still dredged from the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. In 
 the latter it is abundant. 
 
 Job turns from the grand, general utterances of chapters xxvii. and 
 xxviii, and after a pause he "continues his parable," in terms much 
 more direct and personal than before. "Oh that I were as in months 
 past, as in the days when God preserved me" (xxix. 2). "Months," says 
 Joseph Caryl quaintly, "are measured by the course of the moon, they 
 are called Moons. Job's moon was changed, it was full moon with him 
 once, but now his light is almost gone." In the days of his gladness, 
 God was consciously with him as his guide; "his lamp was upon his 
 head, and by his light he walked through darkness" (ver. 3). Job's 
 dwelling was then a peculiarly blessed place. There friend met friend 
 to commune together concerning the things of God. The secret of God 
 was upon his tabernacle ; view's of God's character and ways which only 
 the friends of God can entertain were held there. In Old Testament 
 times the children of the kingdom were thus abreast of our Lord's first 
 disciples themselves: — "Henceforth I call you not servants; for the 
 servant knoweth not what his lord doeth" — the servant has not his 
 secret: "but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard 
 of my Father I liave made knowm unto you" (John xv. 15). David, 
 too, realized the blessing in this : —
 
 JOB xvi.-xxx. 363 
 
 " The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him ; 
 And he will show them his covenant" (Ps. xxv. 14). 
 
 In those good days of his youth, his children were about him, his flocks 
 yielded him abundance, and the olive-clad hills supplied him with plenty 
 
 of oil : — 
 
 " When I washed my steps with butter, 
 And the rock poured me rivers of oil" (ver. 6). 
 
 "Butter," Heb. hhemah, see under Deut. xxxii. 14, and Isa. vii. 15. 
 
 He compares himself in the days of his prosperity and joy to the tree 
 planted by the waters, and blessed with the good ministry both of the 
 healthful stream, and the rich gifts of the atmosphere ; root and branch 
 alike receiving nourishment. 
 
 " My root was spread out by the waters, 
 And the dew lay aU night upon my branch" (ver. 19). 
 
 If he had but few friends now, and if those who professed that they 
 were friends brought only sorrow, it was different in the days of his 
 sunshine ; his words were to those about him like rain to the cracked 
 and parched ground, or to the scorched herbage. 
 
 " XnA they waited for me as the rain ; 
 And they opened their mouth wide, as for the latter rain" (ver. 23). 
 
 Some of the social changes which had accompanied Job's sore sorrows 
 are noted in ch. xxx. 1-15. Chief among them was the attitude to him 
 of those who had risen in prosperity, while he had sunk into poverty and 
 complicated trials. They were people whose fathers he would have 
 disdained to set with the dogs of his flocks, who in former times had 
 been reduced to such straits that they had to flee into the wilderness in 
 search of food, and "who cut up mallows by the bushes, and juniper roots 
 for their meat." The juniper roots were obtained from the one-seeded 
 broom {Genista monosperma). See under 1 Kings xix. 4. 
 
 "Mallows," Heb. mallualih, is no doubt the Corcliorus oliforius, or Jews' 
 mallow, which is still eaten by the poor in Eygpt, Arabia, and Palestine. 
 "These poor women," writes Dr. Thomson, "who are cutting up mallows 
 by the bushes to mingle with their broth, are only doing that which 
 want and famine, divinely sent, compelled the solitary to do in the days 
 of Job." 
 
 The Jews' mallow belongs to the natural order Tiliacece or lime-tree 
 tribe of plants. It is a native of Asia, Africa, and America, and is much 
 cultivated in Syria and Eygpt as a pot-herb. The British common
 
 364 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 mallow (Malva si/Ivesfn's) is an entirely different plant, ranked under the 
 natural order Malvacece, and of old higlily esteemed by the herbalist. 
 
 " The ined'cinalle mallows here, 
 
 Assuaging sudden tumours ; 
 
 The jagged polypodium there 
 
 To purge out evil humours." — {Drayton.) 
 
 One of this tribe, the edible Hibiscus {H. esculentus) is also used in the 
 south and south-east of Europe as food. It is alluded to by Horace in 
 the poet's prayer — 
 
 '' Let olives, endive, mallows light 
 Be all my fare."— (0. .xxsi. B. i.) 
 
 It was under the "rothem," or juniper, named here as supplying roots 
 
 Fig. 107. 
 
 JewB' Mallow t^Corchorus oUtorius). 
 
 to the poor, that in after times Elijah took shelter. "I remember," says 
 the author quoted above, "attempting to shelter my aching head from 
 the burning sun under a stunted juniper tree. Yes; and in your 
 disappointment said that, if Elijah's juniper afforded no better shade 
 than yours, it was not at all surprising that he requested for himself
 
 JOB xvi.-xxx. 365 
 
 that he might die. And certainly these straggling bushes cast but a 
 doubtful sliade at all times, and lend no effectual protection against such 
 a sun and wind as beat upon us in our 'wilderness.' Still, the prophet 
 slept under one, and the Bedawin do the same, when wandering in the 
 desert, where they often furnish the only shelter that can be found. 
 Job, as translated, has a curious reference to this tree in the 30tli chapter 
 of his remarkable dialogues. He says that those contemptible children 
 'whose fathers he would have disdained to set with the dogs of his 
 flock,' flee into the wilderness, and for want and famine 'cut up mallows 
 by the bushes, and juniper roots for their meat.' These mallows are a 
 coarse kind of greens, which the poor boil as a relish for their dry bread. 
 I have often seen the children of the poor cutting them up under dry 
 hedges and by the bushes in early spring; so that this rendering seems 
 natural and appropriate to us who reside in the country, and therefore I 
 accept the rendering, without noticing the arguments of learned critics 
 against it. "What sort of juniper can be used for food is more than I 
 can discover or comprehend. They are exceedingly bitter, and nothing 
 but the fire will devour them. Burckhardt found the Beda-^-in of Sinai 
 burning theni into coal, and says that they make the best charcoal, and 
 throw out the most intense heat. The same thing seems to be impHed 
 in Psalm cxx. 4, where David threatens the false tongue 'with sharp 
 arrows of the mighty, with coals of juniper.' Perhaps the meaning of 
 Job is, that the poor cut up mallows to eat, and juniper roots with which 
 to cook them. This would give a sense in accordance v^ith the known 
 use of these roots, and still preserve the connection with the food of the 
 poor. The Arabic word is retem, the same as the Hebrew; and 
 Forskall calls it genista rcetam. It is, therefore, a species of broom, 
 and not that kind of juniper which bears the famous berries, and whose 
 oil assists in the composition of certain varnishes." — [Dr. Thomson.) 
 
 Of "the children of fools" Job goes on to say that they were driven 
 forth to dwell in caves of the earth, and he adds — 
 
 " Among the bushes they brayed; 
 Under the nettles they assembled" (ver. 7). 
 
 "Nettles," Hebrew hhdrul, belong to the natural ox Aqx Urticacece^ or 
 nettle tribe. As with us, so in the country in which Job dwelt, both 
 the common nettle {Udica choica) and the Roman nettle {U. piluUfera) 
 are to be met with. The plant is mentioned here as characteristic of 
 the wilderness into which the people referred to by Job were forced to 
 retire. Out of this they had come, having prospered until they despised
 
 366 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 him in the day of his sorrow. Their prosperity seemed to have become 
 permanent; but he could say in the bitterness of his soul, "My welfare 
 passeth away as a cloud" (ver. 15). See also under Zeph. ii. 9. 
 
 His sorrows continue. "My bones are pierced in the night season: 
 and my sinews take no rest;" expressions vividly descriptive of severe 
 rheumatic pains. "Thou art become cruel unto me." " When I looked 
 for good, then evil came unto me" (verses 17, 21, 2G) : 
 
 " I am a brother to dragons, 
 And a companion to o\vls"(vcr. 29). 
 
 "Dragons," Heb. fanmnim, see under Gen. i. 21, and Isa. xxxiv. 13. 
 "Owls," Heb. bath ijiindh, literally daughters of the owl, see under 
 
 Fig. 108. 
 
 Long-i 
 
 kl\:d U»l , <Jit 
 
 Lev. xi. IG. This expression may be regarded as very general, and as 
 used to include owls of different species. It occurs other seven times — 
 Leviticus as above; Deut. xiv. 15; Isa. xiii. 21; xxxiv. 13; xliii. 20; Jer. 
 1. 39; Mic. i. 8. "Daughters of the ostrich" is proposed in the margin 
 as an alternative rendering, but owl is better. "Ostrich" (struthos) is 
 given by the LXX., but the passage in Micah indicates a feature which 
 is not found in the ostrich — "I will make a wailing like the dragons, 
 and mourning as the owls."
 
 JOB XXXI.-XLII. 
 
 367 
 
 JOB XXXI.-XLIL 
 
 'HE leading thought throughout this chapter is, that Job 
 was so thoroughly conscious of uprightness, as to be willing 
 that any of his bodily members which had been the instru- 
 ments of unjust, harsh, or cruel dealing should be destroyed. 
 
 " If I have lifted my hand against the fatherless, 
 When I saw my help in the gate: 
 Let mine arm be broken from the shoulderblade, 
 And mine arm be broken from the bone" — (ver. 21, 22). 
 
 The shoulderblade or scapula is the large, flat, triangular bone on the 
 upper part of the back, which forms the shoulder. It is attached to, 
 or articulates with, the collar bone {clavicle) and the bone of the upper 
 arm (Jiumerus). "Arm" in the last clause is the fore-arm, with its two 
 bones — radius and ulna. These details are required to bring out the 
 force of the word hdneh, translated "bone." Its literal meaning is 
 stalk (Gen. xli. 5), or that which is crowned by a head, like corn straw. 
 It afterwards came to be specially applied to a "reed" {arundo), 1 Kings 
 xiv. 15, which see, and later it is rendered a measuring "reed" (Ezek. 
 xl. 3, 5, 6, 7, 8; xlii. 10, 17). Here it is applied to the idna or ell-bone, 
 used in early times for measuring. This use of it is present to the mind 
 of Job, when he expresses his willingness that it should be broken if he 
 has been oppressing the fatherless. 
 
 "Let thistles grow instead of wheat." If, he said, I have acted the 
 part of a niggard, a covetous person, and oppressor, let my land turn 
 away from its design when under cultivation ; when I sow wheat let it 
 not spring up, but let thistles come in its place. The word rendered 
 thistle here is koahh, which points to prickly underwood of any or of 
 different sorts (2 Kings xiv. 9). That it is employed by Job in this 
 way is evident from chapter xli. 2, where he asks concerning leviathan — 
 
 " Canst thou put a hook in his nose ? 
 Or bore his jaw through with a thorn?" 
 
 Thorn in this passage is the translation of the same word, here 
 translated thistle — "As a thorn (hoaJih) goeth up into the hand of a 
 drunkard," says Solomon, " so is a parable in the mouth of fools"
 
 368 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Fig. 109. 
 
 (Prov. xxvi. 9). In Song ii. 2 it is used to bring out the contrast 
 between the lily and its position — "As the lily among thorns, so is 
 my love among the daughters." It is translated brambles in Isaiah 
 xxxiv. 1 3, and thorns in Hosea ix. 6. The various renderings bring 
 out the whole signification of the word as pointing to underwood, in 
 which different species of prickly plants are formed into a thicket 
 (1 Sam. xvii. 6). 
 
 " Let cockle grow instead of barley." " Barley," see under Exod. 
 ix. 31 ; Num. v. 15 ; Ruth i. 22. 
 
 "Cockle," Heb. boshah. This word occurs only in this place. The 
 
 plural form masculine is rendered 
 wild grapes in Isaiah v. 2, 4, a 
 passage which has been too much 
 overlooked in attempts to identify 
 the plant named by Job. The name 
 is derived from a root signifying to 
 stink, and is not to be pressed into 
 a specific meaning. The import of 
 the expression simply is — let any of 
 those weeds which sometimes infest 
 the barley crop, take complete pos- 
 session of the ground, and wholly 
 hinder the growth of the grain which 
 was sown with care, and of which a 
 plentiful harvest was expected. The 
 corn cockle (Agrostemma coronan'a) 
 could not have been present to the 
 mind of Job as one of the bad weeds, 
 since it does not occur in Arabia. 
 Other equally bad ones were before 
 him. All that the passage requires is something of a useless or hurtful 
 kind, to contrast with the barley essential to the sustenance of his house- 
 hold. See also under Isaiah as above. Royle believes that one of the 
 nightshades (Solanacece), common in cultivated grounds both in Syria 
 and Arabia, is referred to. The Arabs call the berry of the night- 
 shade, " wolfs grape." But it is better to give this wide and indefinite 
 signification to the expression. 
 
 " So these three men ceased to answer Job, because he was righteous 
 in his own eyes. Then was kindled the wrath of Elihu the son of 
 Barachel the Buzite, of the kindred of Ram 
 
 Com Cockle {Affro8temma coronaria). 
 
 against Job was his wrath
 
 JOB xxxi.-XLii. 369 
 
 kindled, because he justified himself rather than God" (xxxii. 1, 2). 
 While Abraham sojourned at Beersheba, tidings were brought to him 
 that Milcah had born eight children to Nahor his brother. Amonsr 
 these "Buz" is mentioned as the second child, and "Kemuel" as the 
 third. Of the latter it is said that he was " the father of Aram" (Gen. 
 xxii. 20, 21). The father of Elihu was a descendant of Buz, and closely- 
 related to the immediate offspring of Aram, here called Ram. This 
 branch of the Shemites appear to have occupied part o^ Arabia Deserta. 
 " Buz" is afterwards named in the same list with "the kings of the land 
 of Uz," and associated closely with "Dedan and Tema" (Jer. xxv. 23). 
 " But none saitli. Where is God my maker, who giveth songs in the 
 night ; who teacheth us more than the beasts of the earth, and maketh 
 us wiser than the fowls of heaven?" (xxxv. 10, 11.) Men, says Elihu, 
 are more alive to men's dealings with them than they are to God's. 
 He works in order to lift up their hearts to him, but in vain. The 
 beasts will groan under oppression, the fowls will beat their wings 
 against the fowler's snare (Plate XL., fig. 3), but this without any true 
 understanding of their position. But God has given man powers equal 
 to seeking after him ; he has in this respect made a wide gulf between 
 him and the beasts or the fowls. Yet none saith, " Where is God my 
 maker?" 
 
 "Behold, God is great, and we know him not, 
 Neither can the number of his years be searched out. 
 For he maketli small the drops of water : 
 They pour down rain according to the vapour thereof. 
 Which the clouds do drop and distil on man abundantly. 
 Also can any understand the spreading of the clouds, 
 Or the noise of his tabernacle? 
 Behold, he spreadeth his light upon it. 
 And covereth the bottom of the sea. 
 For by them he judgeth the people ; 
 He giveth meat in abundance. 
 With clouds he covereth the light ; 
 And controUeth what cometh between. 
 The noise of the cloud is its witness, 
 And the cattle concerning its rising" (x.\xvi. 26-33). 
 
 The phenomena of rain, and of the modifications of light by the 
 influence of the clouds, are indicated here with great beauty. As the 
 cloud darkens, he said, it becomes its own witness ; the rolling thunder 
 speaks (ver. 33) to the power contained in the cloud. The whole 
 subject of the influence of evaporation on the fertility of the soil, is also 
 testified to by the cattle which rejoice in the rich pastures, which result 
 
 VOL. IL 3 a
 
 from those alternations of rain from the sky and vapours from the 
 earth — of bright sunshine, and of ever-changing clouds — 
 
 "Those thin white flakes, those purple clouds, 
 Bathed in rich amber-glowing floods of light." 
 
 In chapter sxxvii., Elihu continues his illustrations of the power and 
 majesty of God, drawn from the phenomena of thunder, of rain and 
 snow, of the changes of day and night, heat and cold, and of "the 
 balancing of the clouds." A review of this chapter from the point of 
 view of recent discoveries in meteorology, shows how carefully and 
 accurately these appearances were noted in the very earliest times. 
 The lightning flash shone from east to west — " the ends of the earth" 
 — and it was followed by the loud thunder-peal — "After it a voice 
 roareth" (ver. 2, 3). The echoes of peal on peal are pointed to in the 
 words, "He will not stay them, when his voice roareth." The expres- 
 sion, " balancings of the clouds," points to such influence over them as 
 man employs in altering the shape of anything, in bringing it to a 
 definite weight. The scientific classification of the clouds gives us — 
 1, The Stratus or couch-shaped mass, with its upper and under sur- 
 faces parallel with the horizon. 2, The Cumulus, with its rounded 
 masses ; sometimes to the eye like that seen by the prophet from the 
 top of Carmel, "a little cloud out of the sea, like a man's hand" 
 (1 Kings xviii. 44) ; at other times they raise to heaven in grandeur 
 their rounded snow-white columns, like mountain piled on mountain. 
 When the slanting beams of the setting sun shoot through them, or 
 linger on their folded margins, the strong expressions of the poets are 
 realized — " the burnished waves," " the lines of purple gold," " the 
 billowy clouds, edged with intolerable radiancy," " the clouds of feathery 
 gold," which — 
 
 " Shaded with deepest purple, gleam 
 Like islands on a dark blue sea." 
 
 3, The Cirrus, with its hair-like structure, spread as a curtain over the 
 height of heaven. These are the mackerel clouds, the mares' tails, the 
 streamers, &c., of the vulgar, popularly yet truly held to indicate a 
 falling temperature, and to forebode speedy atmospheric changes — the 
 coming of wind, or rain, or icy cold. Plates XXII., XXIII. 
 
 Elihu concludes his appeals by again referring to the unsearchable 
 glory and excellency of Jehovah — " We cannot find him out." Job is 
 silent too. "Then the Lord answered him out of the whirlwind," in
 
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 JOB XXXI.-XLII. 
 
 the matchless language of chapters xxxviii.-xl. His sovereign and 
 absolute power ; his glory, as the eternal God and creator of all tilings ; 
 his constant care over all his creatures ; his might and majesty, seen 
 in the greatest of the beasts which he has made ; his complete control 
 of all those laws under which nature is put — are all set before us in 
 words of incomparable grandeur, beauty, and force — 
 
 " Hast thou entered into the springs of the sea? 
 Or bast thou walked in the search of the depth? 
 Have the gates of death been opened unto thee? 
 Or hast thou seen the doors of the shadow of death?" 
 
 Trench, on the miracle of "the walking on the sea," says: — " Euse- 
 bius finds a special fulfilment of these words of Job in this miracle of 
 our Lord, as also he finds in these waves the symbol of a mightier and 
 wilder sea, even that of sin and death, which Christ trod under his feet 
 when he, in a far higher sense than that in which the words were 
 first spoken — 
 
 ' metus omnes et inexorabile fatum 
 Subjecit pedibus, strepitumque Acherontis avari ;' 
 
 and he quotes Psalm Ixxiv. 13, 14 — ' Thou didst divide the sea by thy 
 strength : thou brakest the heads of the dragons in the waters. Thou 
 brakest the heads of leviathan in pieces, and gavest them to be meat 
 to the people inhabiting the wilderness;' and Job xxxviii. 16, 17, where 
 the Almighty says to man — ' Hast thou entered into the springs of the 
 sea ? or hast thou walked in the search of the depth ? Have the gates 
 of death been opened unto thee ? and hast thou seen the doors of the 
 shadow of death?' that is, Hast thou done this as I have done?" 
 
 " Hast thou entered into the treasures of the sno^\ ? 
 Or hast thou seen the treasures of the hail ? 
 Out of whose womb came the ice? 
 And the hoar-frost of heaven, who gendered it?" (ver. 22, 29.) 
 
 The reader is referred to Plates XXIV., XXX., for illustrations of 
 the great variety of forms which crystals of snow and hail, and of the 
 hoar-frost assume. A glance at the figures will show what treasures of 
 symmetry and beauty are hid in every flake of snow, and every stone 
 of the hail. 
 
 "Canst thou bind the sweet influences cf Pleiades, 
 Or loose the bands of Orion ? 
 Canst thou bring forth Mazzaroth in his season ? 
 Or canst thou guide Arcturus with his sons?" (ver. 31, 32.) 
 
 "Pleiades," "Orion," "Arcturus," are noticed under chapter ix.
 
 OiZ BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 "Mazzarotli," literally the Forewarners, denotes the signs of the zodiac 
 or path in the heavens which the sun seems to describe by the eartli's 
 revolution around it. It ia divided into twelve equal parts of thirty 
 degrees. Each part is represented by a sign, as Sagittarius, the 
 Archer ; Scorjn'o, the Scorpion ; Libra, the Balance, &c. The zodiac 
 contains all the stars which lie in the so-called path of the sun. These 
 luminaries are seen to traverse the circle once a year, and thus different 
 parts of it receive them monthly. Thus their place as signs. 
 
 "The wild goats of the rock," or the yehelim (xxsix. 1), the Hebrew 
 name for the ibex [Capra ibex, Plate XXII. fig. 1). When the hinds 
 calve, "their young ones are in good liking, they grow up with corn; 
 they go forth and return not unto them" (ver. 4). " Corn," see under 
 Gen. xlii. 3. 
 
 "Who liatli sent out the wild ass free? 
 Or who hath loosed the bands of the wild ass ? 
 Whose house I liave made the wilderness, 
 And the barren land his dwellings, 
 lie scorneth the multitude of the city, 
 Neither regardeth he the crying of the driver. 
 The range of the mountains is his pasture, 
 And he searcheth after every green thing" (ver. 5-8). 
 
 "The wild ass," 'Roh. pereh, in the first clause of verse 5, and drod, 
 in the second. Two species seem to be referred to here. Have we 
 any distinct traces of them in those regions with which Job must have 
 been more or less acquainted? In the deserts of Syria, Mesopotamia, 
 and Northern Arabia, the so-called " wild horse" of recent travellers is 
 still abundant. It is not, however, a horse, but a true ass {Asinns 
 hemippus; the Equus Asinus onager of some naturalists). In the wild 
 uplands of Thibet, and thence northward into Mongolia and Southern 
 Siberia, another species is abundant. This is the "dshitggetai " or " kijang" 
 {Asimis hemionus; Equus hemioniis of Pallas). The former answers to 
 the drod of Job, the latter to the pereli. Another wild ass is named in 
 some parts of India, the "ghor-khur," or "koulan." This has by many 
 been held a distinct species ; but Mr. E. Blyth has recently shown that 
 is to be regarded as a variety only. Mr. Layard met the hemippus in 
 the desert of Tel Afer, in his way from the Sinjar to Mosul: — "We 
 attempted to follow them. After running a little distance, they stopped 
 to gaze at us, and I got suflSciently near to see them well ; but as soon 
 as they found that we were in pursuit, they hastened their speed, and 
 were soon lost in the distance." He adds in a note ("Nineveh and its
 
 pr.ATF 24 
 
 CRYSTALS OP SNOW AND HAIL.— Job xnria U. 
 
 DIAGRAM OP THE SEASONS.— Qes. vui. 22.
 
 JOB XXXI. -xLii. 373 
 
 Remains," vol. i., 323) : — "The reader will remember that Xenophon 
 mentions these beautiful animals, which he must have seen during his 
 march in these very plains. He faithfully describes the country, and 
 the animals and birds which inhabit it, as they are to this day, except 
 that the ostrich is not now to be found so far north. ' The country,' 
 says he, ' was a plain throughout, as even as the sea, and full of worm- 
 wood ; if any other kinds of shrubs or reeds grew there, they had all an 
 aromatic smell ; but no trees appeared. Of wild creatures, the most 
 numerous were wild asses, and not a few ostriches, besides bustards 
 and roe-deer (gazelles), which our horsemen sometimes chased. The 
 asses, when they were pursued, having gained ground of the horses, 
 stood still (for they exceeded them much in speed) ; and when these 
 came up with them, they did the same thing again ; so that our horse- 
 men could take them by no other means but by dividing themselves 
 into relays, and succeeding one another in the chase. The flesh of 
 those that were taken was like that of the red deer, but more tender ' 
 (' Expedition of Cyrus'). In fleetness they equal the gazelle ; and to 
 match them is a feat which only one or two of the most celebrated 
 mares have been known to accomplish. The Arabs sometimes catch 
 the foals during the spring, and bring them up with milk in their tents. 
 I endeavoured in vain to obtain a pair. They are of a light fawn 
 colour — almost pink. The Arabs still eat their flesh." See also under 
 Psalm civ. 11. 
 
 The true rendering of verse 13 is referred to under 2 Chron. ix. 21 ; 
 which see. The peculiarities of the ostrich, noticed in verses 13-18, 
 are her joy in the flapping of her wings — "goodly wings are glad" — 
 her habits of nesting, and her great speed. Shaw long ago pointed out 
 the truthfulness to nature of this description of the ostrich {Stndhio 
 camelus). The great number of observers since his day have corrobo- 
 rated his notices. As to this flapping of the wings, implied in the 
 original, he says : — " Whilst I was abroad, I had several opportunities 
 of amusing myself with the actions and behaviour of the ostrich. It 
 was very diverting to observe, with what dexterity and equipoise of 
 body it would play and frisk about on all occasions. In the heat of 
 the day particularly, it would strut along the sunny side of the house 
 with great majesty. It would be perpetually fanning and priding itself 
 with its quivering expanded wings ; and seem, at every turn, to admire 
 and be in love with its shadow. Even at other times, whether walking 
 about or resting itself upon the ground, the wings would continue these 
 fanning vibrating motions, as if they were designed to mitigate and
 
 374 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 assuage that extraordinary heat, wherewith their bodies seem to be 
 naturally affected." 
 
 They pair at breeding season, and are not polygamous. The hen 
 lays her eggs in a nest, or rather hole, dug by the feet in the sand. 
 This hole sometimes contains as many as forty eggs. The hens gener- 
 ally watch them closely. They are, however, frequently left to be 
 hatched by the warmth of the sun. Almost the only evidence of care 
 which the hen shows, is seen in depositing a certain number of eggs 
 around the nest. These are not covered by the sand, and are not 
 hatched, but they serve as food for the chicks, when they burst their 
 shells. Shaw adds: — "Yet, notwithstanding the ample provision which 
 is hereby made for a numerous offspring, scarce one quarter of these 
 eggs are ever supposed to be hatched ; and of those that are, no small 
 share of the young ones may perish with hunger, from being left loo 
 early by their dams to shift for themselves. For in these, the most 
 barren and desolate recesses of the Sahara, where the ostrich chooses 
 to make her nest, it would not be enough to lay eggs and hatch them, 
 unless some proper- food was near at band, and already prepared for 
 their nourishment. And accordingly, we are not to consider this large 
 collection of eggs as if they were all intended for a brood ; they are, the 
 greatest part of them, reserved for food, which the dam breaks and 
 disposes of, according to the number and the cravings of her young 
 ones. 
 
 " But yet, for all this, a very little share of that sforge, or natural 
 affection, which so strongly exerts itself in most other creatures, is 
 observable in the ostrich. For upon the least distant noise, or trivial 
 occasion, she forsakes her eggs or her young ones, to which perhaps 
 she never returns ; or, if she does, it may be too late either to restore 
 life to the one, or to preserve the lives of the others. Agreeably to 
 this account, the Arabs meet sometimes with whole nests of these eggs 
 undisturbed ; some of which are sweet and good ; others are addle and 
 corrupted ; others again have their young ones of different growths, 
 according to the time, it may be presumed, they have been forsaken by 
 the dam. They oftener meet a few of the little ones, no bigger than 
 well-grown pullets, half starved ; straggling and moaning about, like 
 so many distressed orphans, for tlieir mother. And in this manner the 
 ostrich may be said (ver. 16) 'to be hardened against her young ones, 
 as though tliey were not hers ; her labour (in hatching and attending 
 them so far) being in vain, without fear,' or the least concern of what 
 becomes of them afterwards. This want of affection is also recorded in
 
 JOB XXXI.-XLII. 375 
 
 Lam. iv. 3 — ' The daughter of my people,' says the prophet, 'is cruel, 
 like the ostriches in the wilderness.'" — i^" Travels," ii. 3-iO.) 
 
 Dr. Livingstone's notices of the ostrich shed light on other aspects 
 of its habits as referred to in this passage. Of its speed, he says : — 
 " When the ostrich is feeding, his pace is from twenty to twenty-two 
 inches ; when walking, but not feeding, it is twenty-six inches ; and 
 when terrified, as in the case noticed, it is from eleven and a half to 
 thirteen and even fourteen feet in length. Only in one case was I at 
 all satisfied of being able to count the rate of speed by a stop watch, 
 and, if I am not mistaken, there were thirty in ten seconds ; generally 
 one's eye can no more follow the legs than it can the spokes of a 
 carriage-wheel in rapid motion. If we take the above number, and 
 twelve feet stride as the average pace, we have a speed of twenty-six 
 
 miles an hour The ostrich begins to lay her eggs 
 
 before she has fixed on a spot for a nest, which is only a hollow a few 
 inches deep in the sand, and about a yard in diameter. Solitary eggs, 
 named by the Bechuanas 'lesetla,' are thus found lying forsaken all 
 over the country, and become a prey to the jackal. She seems averse 
 to risking a spot for a nest, and often lays her eggs in that of another 
 ostrich, so that as many as forty-five have been found in one nest." 
 —("Travels," pp. 153-155.) 
 
 The ostrich appears to have been much more widely distributed in 
 Asia in ancient times than it is now. On the Asiatic continent it is 
 chiefly, if not altogether, confined to Southern Arabia. (Plate XXV., 
 fig. 1.) 
 
 The description of the war-horse (ver. 19-25) is incomparably grand. 
 His strength, his streaming mane, his noble boundings, his snorting — 
 "the glory of his nostrils" — his eagerness for the fight as his highlv 
 sensitive frame catches the spirit of his dauntless rider, his behaviour 
 on the battlefield amidst the clash of arms, the shouts of victors, the 
 groans of the dying, are all set before us in language unmatched for 
 its sublimity and force : — 
 
 " He mocketli at fear, and is not affrighted ; 
 Neither turneth he back from the sword. 
 The quiver rattleth against him, 
 The glittering spear and the sword." 
 
 Every line indicates how thoroughly the spirit of the warrior was sym- 
 pathized with by his horse. Indeed, no other of the domestic animals, 
 with the exception of the dog, comes so easily under the power of man, 
 or is so readily impressed by the nervous characteristics of his owner.
 
 37G 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 A horse which is sure-paced, steady, and willing for any effort with 
 one rider, becomes foltering, unsteady, and shy with another. He 
 returns trust at once, but is always ill at ease when he feels he must 
 take care of his rider. 
 
 The questioning again changes abruptly. The same power which 
 
 Fig. no. 
 
 
 stands so grandly out in the war- 
 horse, is wielded in controlling and 
 directing the birds of prey. The 
 habits of the hawk (ver. 26) are 
 regulated by the wisdom of the Crea- 
 tor ; and if the eagle mount up on 
 high, or dwell in "the strong place," 
 it is all in obedience to his command 
 (ver. 28)— 
 
 " Doth the hawk fly by thy wisdom, 
 And stretch her winss towards the south?" 
 
 " Hawk," Heb. 7ietz. This term 
 is very general, and may include 
 any of the Falcom'clce, which are 
 known to change their abode at 
 particular seasons ; the reference in 
 this question being, no doubt, to the 
 partial migration of the birds named. 
 Several particulars in this chapter 
 are suggestive of a cultivated plain stretching in the direction of the 
 desert (ver. 10 with ver. 14). The habits of the peregrine folcon would 
 thus answer the description. At the breeding season it betakes itself 
 to mountainous districts, where it can breed in security. 
 See under Levit. xi. 13, for the notice of verses 27-30. 
 
 "Behold now Behemoth, which I made with thee; 
 He eateth grass as an ox. 
 Lo, now, his strength is in his loins, 
 And his force in the navel of his belly. 
 He moveth his tail like a cedar : 
 The tendons of his haunches are \\Tapped together. 
 His bones are as strong pieces of brass ; 
 His bones are like bars of iron. 
 He is the chief of the ways of God : 
 He that made him can make his weapon approach. 
 Surely the mountains bring him forth food, 
 
 Pei-ogrine Falcon (Fulco pereffrinus).
 
 QAVEST THOU W1NG3 AND FEATHEB8 UNTO THE OSTBICH?— Job xxili. 13. 
 
 U Himltivus /)i'/tifs/i, i,'',-i f, 
 
 YE ENOW NOT WHEN THE MASTER COMETH, AT COCKCEOWING, OE IN 
 THE MORNING.— Mark lili. 35.
 
 JOB XXXI.-XLII. 
 
 377 
 
 Where all the beasts of the field play. 
 
 lie lieth under the shady trees. 
 
 In the covert of the reeds and fens. 
 
 The shady trees cover him with their shadow ; 
 
 The willows of the brook compass him about. 
 
 Behold, he drinketh up a river, and hasteth not : 
 
 He trusteth that he can draw uji Jordan into his mouth. 
 
 He taketh it with his eyes; 
 
 His nose pierceth through snares" (xl. 15-24). 
 
 The elephant, rhinoceros, hippopotamus, and the extinct mammoth (!) 
 have been severally proposed as the Behemoth of Job. It would be 
 very unprofitable to repeat the arguments which have been used in 
 favour of each by their advocates. The now well known hippopotamus 
 (//. amphibias, Plate XXVI., fig. 3) may be regarded as answering 
 best to the highly poetical description of behemoth in this passage. 
 Those who have appealed to the mention of Jordan (ver. 23) as opposed 
 to the claims of the hippopotamus, cannot have been aware that the 
 designation means any "rapid river." 
 
 Behemoth's place of feeding is said to be the mountains (ver. 20). 
 This finds a striking corroboration in Dr. Livingstone's interesting 
 notice of the hippopotamus observed on the Lceanihje. " The rapids," 
 he says, " in the part of the river between Katimamolelo and Nameta 
 are relieved by several reaches of still deep water, fifteen or twenty 
 miles long. In these, very large herds of hippopotami are seen, and 
 the deep furrows they make, in ascending the banks to graze during 
 the night, are everywhere apparent. They are guided back to the 
 water by the scent ; but a long-continued pouring rain makes it impos- 
 sible for them to perceive, by that means, in which direction the river 
 lies, and they are found standing bewildered on the land. The hunters 
 take advantage of their helplessness on these occasions to kill them. 
 It is impossible to judge of the numbers in a herd, for they are 
 almost hidden beneath the waters ; but as they require to come up 
 every few minutes to breathe, when there is a constant succession of 
 heads thrust up, then the herd is supposed to be large. They love 
 a still reach of the stream, as in the more rapid parts of the channel 
 they are floated down so quickly, that much exertion is necessary to 
 regain the distance lost, by frequently swimming up again — such con- 
 stant exertion disturbs them in their nap. They prefer to remain by 
 day in a drowsy yawning state, and though their eyes are open, they 
 take little notice of things at a distance. The males utter a loud 
 
 succession of snorting grunts, which may be heard a mile off. The 
 VOL. n. 3 B
 
 378 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 caiioe in which I was, in passing over a wounded one, elicited a distinct 
 grunting, though the animal lay entirely under water. The young, 
 wlien very little, take their stand on the neck of the dam, and the 
 small head, rising above the large, comes soonest to the surface. The 
 dam, knowing the more urgent need of her calf, comes more frequently 
 to the surface when it is in her care. But in the rivers of Sunda, 
 where they are much in danger of being shot, even the hippopotamus 
 gains wit by experience ; for while those in the Zambesi put up their 
 heads openly to blow, those referred to keep their noses among water 
 plants and breathe so quietly that one would not dream of their 
 existence in the river, except by footprints on the banks." 
 
 " Canst thou draw out leviathan witli an hook ? 
 Or his tongue with a cord which thou letttst dowu? 
 Canst thou put an hook into his nose ? 
 Or bore his jaw through with a thorn '? 
 Will he make many supplications unto thee ? 
 Will he speak soft words unto thee ? 
 Will he make a covenant with thee? 
 Wilt thou take him for a servant for ever? 
 Wilt thou phiy with him as with a bird? 
 Or wilt thou bind liim for thy maidens ? 
 Shall thy companions make a banquet of liim ? 
 Shall they part him among the merchants? 
 Canst thou fill his skin with barbed irons ? 
 Or liis head with fish spears ? 
 Lay thine hand upon him, 
 Kemember the battle, do no more. 
 Behold, the hope of him is iu vain : 
 Shall not one be cast down even at the sight of him ? 
 None is so fierce that dare stir him up : 
 Who then is able to stand before me? 
 Who hath prevented me, that I should repay him ? 
 Whatsoever is under the whole heaven is mine. 
 I will not conceal his parts, nor his power. 
 Nor his comely proportion. 
 Who can discover the face of his garment ? 
 Or who can come to him with his double briuU^? 
 Who can open the doors of his face ? 
 Ills teeth are terrible round about. 
 His scales are his pride, 
 Shut up together as with a close seal. 
 One is so near to another, 
 That no air can come between them. 
 They are joined one to another, 
 They stick together, that they cannot be sundered.
 
 ri.rn: 26 
 
 JEK. XII. 9. f/ Stnutfi Sill/',;/ lh<ni,i 
 
 KJlllHH i-i'US 
 
 JOli XI,. IS— 21. 
 
 ////'/''•/"•''"'I'l' (iliij'lllhllis J]lf>j>i<l'ol,iliiii.'
 
 JOB xxxi.-xLii. 379 
 
 By his neesings a light doth shine, 
 
 And his eyes are like the eyelids of the morning. 
 
 Out of his mouth go burning lamps, 
 
 And sparks of fire leap out. 
 
 Out of his nostrils goeth smoke, 
 
 As out of a seething-pot or cauldron. 
 
 His breath kindleth coals. 
 
 And a flame goeth out of his mouth. 
 
 In his neck remaineth strength. 
 
 And sorrow is turned into joy before him. 
 
 The Hakes of his flesh are joined together: 
 
 They are firm in themselves ; they cannot be moved. 
 
 His heart is as firm as a stone ; 
 
 Yea, as hard as a piece of the nether millstone. 
 
 When he raiseth up himself, the mighty are afraid : 
 
 By reason of breakings they purify themselves. 
 
 The sword of him that layeth at him cannot hold ; 
 
 The spear, the dart, nor the habergeon. 
 
 He esteemeth iron as straw, 
 
 And brass as rotten wood. 
 
 The arrow cannot make him flee : 
 
 Sling-stones are turned with him into stubble. 
 
 Darts are counted as stubble : 
 
 He laugheth at the shaking of a spear. 
 
 Sharp stones are under him : 
 
 He spreadeth sharp pointed things upon the mire" (xli). 
 
 The question of tlie identity of the animal referred to in tliese 
 sublime utterances, has been as fruitful of controversy as that regardino- 
 behemoth. Little notice requires to be taken of the literature of this 
 subject. We must be guided wholly by the Scripture references as to 
 the use of the word, and the approach of any living animal in its 
 general features to this poetical description. 
 
 " Leviathan," Heb. h'njdflu'm. The word occurs six times in the Old 
 Testament. Its root points to something icrcathal or ticistcd. When 
 Job curses his day, it has been rendered ■mourniwj by our translators — 
 
 " Let them curse it that curse the day. 
 Who are ready to raise up their mourning" (iii. 8). 
 
 The meaning seems to be that of marshalling against tlie liirthday 
 arrival anything that would lead men to regard it with fear and 
 loathing, as men do leviathan. In Psalm Ixxiv. 14, it is evidently inter- 
 changeable with dragons (tanm'n), which certainly means crocodiles; 
 the reference being to the discomfiture of Egypt at the time of the 
 Exodus : —
 
 380 niBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 '• Tliou didst divide the sea by thy strength : 
 Tlioii braki'st the heads of tlie dragons in the waters. 
 Thou brakest the heads of leviathan in pieces." 
 
 When celebrating the wisdom, power, and goodness of God in creation, 
 the Psalmist says : — 
 
 "The earth is full of thy riches. 
 So is this great and wide sea, 
 Wlierein are things creeping innumerable, 
 Both small and great beasts. 
 There go the ships ; 
 There is that leviathan, whom then hast made to jjlay therein " (civ. 24-26). 
 
 Tlie nssociatioii of llio animal in this passage witli the sea, forbids us 
 
 Fi^- in. 
 
 Crocoiiilxu SUolicus, 
 
 to hold that the crocodile is referred io. Thongh the crocodile used 
 to abound in the Delta, its habitat is fresh water — the river, and not 
 the sea. The only alternative is to regard it as pointing to one of tlie 
 order Cetacea, or whales. The dolphins abound in the Mediterranean ; 
 but these do not answer this description. The spermaceti whale {Physetcr 
 macrocej/J/dhifi) or blunt-headed cachalot has been observed in the 
 Mediterranean ; and though its visits may now be as rare as to our own 
 shores, in ancient times, when the waters were comparatively little 
 disturbed, it may have been a frequent visitor. (Plate III., fig. 1.) 
 The only other reference is Isaiah xxvii. 1 — " In that day the Lord, 
 with his sore, and great, and strong sword, shall punish leviathan the 
 piercing serpent, even leviathan that crooked serpent; and he shall 
 slay the dragon that is in the sea." The name here is used sym- 
 bolically, for some great opjjrcssive power, most likely Babylonia. 
 
 None of these passages help much to identify the animal named 
 leviathan. But an examination of the cliajjter under notice, clearly 
 points to one of tlie family Crocodih'ch', or crocodiles. His stupid 
 ferocity, his tremendous strength, his nose, his terrible teeth, the fire in 
 his sharp piercing eyes, the foldings of his flesh, his scales which turn 
 darts aside as harndess, and the tremendous lash of his tail, are all 
 highly characteristic of the huge full-grown crocodile of the Nile 
 {Crocodihis vidgarin — C. m'/of/'c/is, Plate XXVII., figs. 2, 2). Other
 
 JOB XXXI. -XLII. 381 
 
 two species are introduced on Plate XXVII., for the sake of comparison 
 — the gavial or Indian crocodile {Gavial/'s gangetiais, figs. 1, 1); and 
 the jacare or spectacled alligator {Jacare sclerojjs, figs. 3, 3). "The 
 large front teeth of the gavials fit into a notch in the front of the upper 
 jaw, and the canines into a notch also. In the crocodiles the canines 
 fit into a notch, as in the gavials, but the large front teeth fit into a 
 pit or perforation in the front of the upper jaw ; and in the alligators, 
 both the canine and large front teeth fit into pits or perforations in tlie 
 edge of the upper jaw." — {Gray.) See also Plate IX., figs. 1, 2, 
 and 3, for illustrations of skeletons of alligator, crocodile, and gavial. 
 
 Herodotus gives an account of the crocodile which, though graphic 
 and interesting, has in several particulars given rise to erroneous 
 notions in the popular literature of science. He says — " The following 
 is the nature of the crocodile. During the four coldest months it eats 
 nothing, and though it has four feet it is amphibious. It lays its eggs 
 on land, and there hatches them. It spends the greater part of the 
 day on dry ground, but the whole night in the river ; for the water is 
 then warmer than the air and dew. Of all living things with which we 
 are acquainted, this, from the least beginning, grows to be the largest. 
 For it lays eggs little larger than those of a goose, and the young is at 
 first in proportion to the Qgg ; but when grown up it reaches to the 
 length of seventeen cubits, and even more. It has the eyes of a pig, 
 large teeth, and projecting tusks, in proportion to the body ; it is the 
 only animal that has no tongue ; it does not move the lower jaw, but 
 is the only animal that brings down its upper jaw to the under one. 
 It has strong claws, and a skin covered with scales, that cannot be 
 broken on the back. It is blind in the water, but very quick-sighted 
 on land ; and because it lives for the most part in the water, its mouth 
 is filled with leeches. All other birds and beasts avoid him, but he is 
 at peace with the trochilus, because he receives benefit from that bird. 
 For when the crocodile gets out of the water on land, and then opens 
 its jaws, which it does most commonly towards the west, the trochilus 
 enters its mouth and swallows the leeches; the crocodile is so well 
 pleased with this service that it never hurts the trochilus." The pretty 
 story of the trochilus and the leeches is unfortunately more than doubt- 
 ful. Leeches are not found in the Nile, nor have modern observers 
 been able to corroborate the pleasant tale of the father of history. 
 The bird referred to is one of the plovers {Pluvius cpgyptictis), which is 
 attracted to the neighbourhood of the crocodile to pick up the flies, &c., 
 which surround him when he takes to the banks of the Nile for repose.
 
 382 
 
 BIBLICAL NATUEAL SCIENCE. 
 
 The lair of behemoth is under the shady trees which fringe the banks 
 of the river, and in the covert of the reed (kdneh) and fens {hi'tzdJi) 
 ver. 21. In chapter viii. 11, and in Ezek. xlvii. 11, the hitter word is 
 rendered "mire" and "miry places" respectively. It indicates such 
 a position as reed-like vegetation delights in. For the fuller consider- 
 ation of "reed," see under Exod. ii. 3, xxx. 23; 1 Kings xiv. 15; 
 2 Kings xviii. 21 ; Isa. xix. 6, xxx v. 7; and Matt. xi. 7. 
 
 The following species may be named as occurring in the haunts of 
 behemoth: — Of the Sedge family (Ci/peracece), the Nile reed or galan- 
 Fi2.n2. gal {Cyperus m'lotica), and the true bul- 
 
 rush [Scirpus lacustn's), the reed-like 
 .,■ crrasses(6^;'aTO?Ha<?eff'), the common arrow 
 
 jed (Arundo chnax), the common mea- 
 low reed {A.phragmi'tes), Egyptian sugar 
 _ ,, ,^^^B^^H^H^^^, cdne {SaccJiaritm cf/Imdnciim), and the 
 ''' ^^^B j/^^^P-^^^B beard grass {Andropogon arundinacea). 
 "Z^fifp- '^'*^' '^^***^^3 -- ^"'^'^^ As to the true paper reed ( Cyp. papyrus), 
 ^^" ' '"" the prophecy of Isaiah has been literally 
 
 fulfilled — " it is withered, driven awav, 
 Birropou,musar.pj,mus. j^,^^} j^^ morc." Tlus euumcration includes 
 
 only a few of the best known and outstanding species. A great many 
 more flourish luxuriantly in the same localities, which have been 
 described as " dense thickets of reeds." 
 
 Job had beheld the glory of God, and acknowledged himself vile 
 (xl. 4). Light from heaven broke in on his heart and his house (xlii. 
 10, 11). " And the Lord turned the captivity of Job, wlicn he prayed 
 for his friends: also tlie Lord gave Job twice as much as he had 
 before. Then came there unto him all his brethren, and all his sisters, 
 and all they that had been of his acquaintatice Jaefore, and did eat 
 bread with him in his house ; and they bemoaned him, and comforted 
 him over all the evil that the Lord had brought upon him : every man 
 also gave him a piece of money, and every one an ear-ring of gold." 
 " Piece of money," or kesitak (ancient Hebrew). Pieces of money may 
 be reckoned thus : — 
 
 s d. 
 
 Gerah, 1 -20th of a shekel, 1^ 
 
 Agora, 5 gerahs, or l-4th of a shekel, . . . .0 7^ 
 
 Bekah, 10 gerahs, or half a shekel, . . . . . 1 .3 
 
 SUfkel, 20 gerahs, or 2 bekahs, . . . . . .26 
 
 Kesitah, 4 shekels, . . . . . . . .10 
 
 "Kesitah," see also under Genesis xii. IG.
 
 a 
 en 
 
 
 o 
 
 o 
 o 
 
 a 
 3 
 
 3
 
 PSALMS I.-XXII. 
 
 383 
 
 PSALMS I.-XXII. 
 
 HE leatling thoughts in this precious psalm (i.) are the 
 
 blessedness of the righteous and the misery of the wicked. 
 
 The strong and confident expressions touching the character 
 
 of the former, have their origin in the apprehension, on the 
 
 ■ part of the Psalmist, of the grand truth brought fully to 
 
 light in the gospel of Jesus Christ, that "the righteousness of 
 
 the law is fulfilled in those who walk not after the flesh, but 
 
 after the Spirit" (Rom. viii. 4. 8). 
 
 " Happy is the man 
 Who walketh not in tlie counsel of the erring, 
 Nor standeth in the way of the wicked, 
 Nor sittcth in the seat of the scornful : 
 But his delight is in the law of Jehova ; 
 And in his la^y doth he meditate day and night." 
 
 Passing from both negative and positive marks of the blessed one, he 
 defines and illustrates the "blessedness' 
 verse third : — 
 
 under the beautiful figure of 
 
 " And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of waters. 
 That bringeth forth his fruit in his season ; 
 His leaf also shall not wither, 
 And whatsoever he doeth shall prosper." 
 
 What is the species of tree referred to here? It will be shown under 
 Psalm xxxvii. 35 that it is not likely the bay-tree {Laurus nohilis) was 
 ever so well known hi Palestine as to enter into the popular religious 
 songs of the people. It is, indeed, doubtful if this beautiful tree be ever 
 named by Scripture writers. " The cause," says Dr. Royle, " why the 
 laurel is not more frequently mentioned, is probably because it was 
 never very common in Palestine; as otherwise, from its pleasing 
 appearance, grateful shade, and the agreeable odour of its leaves, it 
 could hardly have failed to attract attention." The tree which, both 
 from its beauty, its abundance, and its habits of growth, best answers 
 the similitude of the psalmist is the Oleander or Rose bay {Neriuvi 
 Oleander) one of the natural order of plants the dog-banes (Apoa/naceoe).
 
 384 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 "There is one tree," says Dr. Stanley, "only to be found in the valley 
 of the Jordan, but too beautiful to be entirely passed over — the oleander, 
 with its bright blossoms and dark green leaves, giving the aspect of a 
 garden to any spot where it grows." The oleander flourishes lu.xuriantly 
 on the western shores of the lake of Gennesaret. Thus Keble's lines — 
 
 " What went you out to see 
 
 O'er the rude sandy lea 
 Where stately Jordan flows by many a palm, 
 
 Or where Gennesaret's wave 
 
 Delights the flowers to lave, 
 That o'er her western slope breathe airs of b;ilra ? 
 
 All through the summer night 
 
 Those blossoms red and bright 
 Spread their soli breasts, unheeding, to the breeze, 
 
 Like hermits watching stUl 
 
 Around the sacred hill. 
 Where erst our Saviour watch'd upon his knees." 
 
 Psalm ii. — After Peter and John were released from prison (Acts iv.) 
 they went to their own company and "repeated all that the priests and 
 elders had said unto them" (ver. 23). Then all lifted up their hearts to 
 God, as one " who by the mouth of his servant David had said. Why did 
 the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things?" They then 
 apply verse 2 of this psalm to Jesus. This makes it certain how the 
 Jews looked on the psalm, when under the direct teaching of the Holy 
 Ghost. Among the promises of the Father to the eternal Son there is 
 named here "the uttermost parts of the earth for a possession"— a 
 promise equal to the spread of Christ's kingdom over the whole world. 
 
 Psalm iv. — The experience of David set forth in this psalm may 
 legitimately be regarded as the type of certain aspects of the experience 
 of Christ and of his church in him. It is not of prime importance to 
 determine the exact historical incident which called forth tliis utterance 
 of the "man after God's heart." It may have been the revolt of 
 Absalom. Strong confidence in God is throughout the leading thought. 
 One forcible illustration of tiiis is given in verse 7 — 
 
 '' Thou hast put gladness in my heart, 
 More than in the time that their corn and wiue increased." 
 
 Many had begun to despair. They saw the enemy prospering, while 
 they were sore pressed and in straits. Verse 7 indicates that the 
 psalmist had triumphed over all. He had felt warmth and strength
 
 PSALMS I.-XXU. 385 
 
 in the light of the Lord's countenance (ver. G) ; and as one made glad 
 with a joy which the abundance of earth could not give, nor the poverty 
 of earth take away, he could add (ver. 8) — 
 
 " I \vill both lay me clown in peace, and sleep : 
 For thou, Lord, only makest me dwell in safety." 
 
 The word rendered "corn" is one of several used in scripture to 
 distinguish grain in general. Two of these have been noticed under 
 Genesis xlii. 2, 3. A third {dagdri) occurs here. Though indefinite, 
 several shades of meaning are attached to it. Of the country which 
 became the portion of the chosen people it is said — "The fountain of 
 Jacob shall be upon a land of corn and wine" (Dent, xxxiii. 28). It 
 is joined with wine both here and in Gen. xxviii. 28, 37; Numb, xviii. 
 12, 37; Dent. vii. 13, xi. 14, xii. 17, xiv. 23; 2 Kings xviii. 32; 
 Isa. xxxvi. 17; Jer. xxxi. 12; Lam. ii. 12; Hos. ii. 8; and Zech. ix. 17. 
 All the cereals whose first fruits were to be offered unto the Lord are 
 included under this term; Deut. xviii. 4. The Psalmist in another 
 song dwells on it with much satisfaction as God's special gift to man : — 
 
 " Thou visitest the earth and waterest it ; 
 Thou greatly enrichest it with the river of God which is full of water : 
 Thou preparest them corn when thou hast so provided it " (Ixv. 9). 
 
 In Psalm Ixxviii. 24, the term is associated with the manna given in the 
 wilderness : — 
 
 " And had rained down manna upon them to eat, 
 And had given them of the corn of heaven." 
 
 The frequency with which this word (ddgdn) is associated with wine 
 suggests the question — Is the term translated wine in this psalm as 
 general in its scope ? A cursory glance even at the passages in which 
 this word (tlrdsh) is employed shows, that it corresponds with the some- 
 what vague meaning given to corn. As ddgdn includes all cereals, so 
 tlrdsh is used for the grape in all its stages, and for any one preparation 
 from it likewise (Deut. xi. 14). 
 
 Psalm viii. — Several points in this psalm claim attention. The out- 
 standing thoughts in it are — the soul's apprehension of the glory and 
 excellency of God in creation, man's acknowledgment of his own 
 insignificance, and his testimony to the grace of God in having originally 
 assigned to man the place of head over all his creatures. And, no doubt, 
 this was the point of view from wliich it was regarded by the church 
 before the manifestation of Christ in the flesh. After that event the Holy 
 Spirit of God taught man to look at it in another light altogether. In 
 
 VOL. II. 3 c
 
 386 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Heb. ii. 6-8, it is applied to Jesus as the "Son of Man," and the "Son 
 of God :" — " But one in a certain place testified, saying, What is man, 
 that thou art mindful of him? or the son of man, that thou visitest liim? 
 Thou madest him a little lower than the angels ; thou crownedst him 
 with glory and honour, and didst set him over the works of thy hands : 
 thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet." As Jesus walked 
 about among men he ever realized his standing as in this psalm. 
 Thus when the children of Jerusalem shouted " Hosanna" before him, 
 he accepted their praise as the fulfilment of ver. 2 (Rlatt. xxi. IG). He 
 is Lord of nature ; " the heavens are the work of his fingers, he has 
 ordained the moon and the stars;" but the Father is seen by the 
 Psalmist in this character, and the Son is spoken of as man, and the 
 son of man : — 
 
 " What is man that thou art mindful of him ? 
 And the son of man that thou visitest him ?" (ver. 4.) 
 
 " Man " in the first clause is enosli, that is, man bearing evil, and frail 
 because of this. In the second clause "man" is adam — the earth- 
 made one. And to this answers the twofold standing of Christ : — He 
 bare our sins in his own body — became enosh — and as such " he hath 
 borne our griefs and carried our sorrows." He took a " true body 
 and a reasonable soul" — true manhood, a child of Adam, the "son 
 of man." In this twofold aspect of his nature as " for man," the 
 Father greatly honours him, calls him "his beloved son," and leads the 
 Psalmist in the spirit of prophecy to celebrate his glory as over all 
 nature : — 
 
 " Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands : 
 Thou liast put all things under his feet : 
 All sheep and oxen, 
 Yea, and the beasts of the field ; 
 Tlie fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, 
 And whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas." 
 
 Psalm xi. — In times of trial from the wicked, it is the privilege of the 
 servant of God to continue devoted to the cause of his Lord. Many 
 will urge him to forsake his post and consult his safety, but he must be 
 steadfast to his testimony. This is the condition of matters described 
 in this psalm. The opening words contain David's remonstrance to 
 those who were eagerly urging him to escape the bent bow and set 
 arrow of the wicked : — 
 
 " In the Lord put I my trust : 
 How say ye to my soul, 
 Flee as a bird to your mountain ? "
 
 Tilt- Suvni/is-h. 
 FISHES OF TUE "GEEAT SEA."— Ps. vui. &
 
 PSALMS I.-XXII. 387 
 
 When the hunter lias brought his bow to his eye, and the arrow is 
 already on the string, flight is the bird's only hope. The carnal eye 
 could not see that the analogy would not hold true. David was already 
 his " mountain." His trust was in Jehova, and he was in good in 
 keeping : — 
 
 " His eyes behold, 
 His eyelids try, the children of men. 
 His countenance doth behold the upright " (ver. 4, 7). 
 
 Psalm xvii. — Hengsterberg says — "This psalm has many coincidences 
 with Psalm xvi., which are so important that they favour the idea of 
 both psalms having been united by the author into one pair." This 
 consideration has justly strengthened the belief that Christ speaks here as 
 the suffering Saviour. In the opening verse he appeals to his Father: — 
 
 " Hear the right, O Lord, attend unto my cry." 
 
 He felt that he stood on slippery ground as one bearing the sins of 
 many, and was constantly watched by the Adversary : — 
 
 " Hold up my goings in thy paths, 
 That my footsteps slip not " (ver. 5). 
 
 But even as man, and the servant of Jehova standing as head and 
 representative of his people, he had taken refuge in the Father : — 
 
 " Keep me as the apple of the eye; 
 Hide me under the shadow of thy ^\-ings " (ver. 8). 
 
 " Apple of the eye," see Ueut. xxxii. 10. The " shadow of the wing" 
 points to such safety, warmth, and comfort, as the bird enjoys under 
 the shelter of the wing, and among the soft feathers of the parent bird. 
 The wicked were strong upon him. They taunted him with proud 
 words, they compassed his steps to hurt him, and were ready to pounce 
 on him like " evil beasts" on their prey :■ — 
 
 " Like as a lion that is greedy for its prey, 
 And as it were a young lion lurking in secret places " (ver. 12). 
 
 "Lion," Heb. ariyeli; "young lion," hepliir. The former word is 
 fully noticed under 1 Sam. xvii. 34. The latter points to the shaggy 
 appearance of young lions. It occurs above thirty times, and is for the 
 most part rendered as in this place. It is translated " lion" in Prov. 
 xix. 12, XX. 2, xxviii. 1. 
 
 Psalm xviii. is given in 2 Samuel xxii. — "David spake unto the Lord
 
 388 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 the words of this song, in the day that the Lord delivered him from the 
 hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul." The imagery 
 used throughout is highly figurative. In describing some forms of 
 God's self-manifestation, the Psalmist says : — 
 
 " And he rode upon a cherub, and did fly : 
 Yea, he did fly upon the wings of the mnd" (ver. 10). 
 
 " Cherub" is used here as meaning an agent employed by God in 
 Fig.,,3 his great scheme of providence. The 
 
 riding points to the place in the chariot. 
 The phrase is thus virtually, that God 
 uses such agents as man would his 
 chariot, in setting out to some great 
 undertaking. The win":s of the wind 
 are the clouds. 
 
 " The Lord thundered iu the heavens, 
 And the Highest gave his voice ; 
 Hailstones and coals of fire" (ver. 13). 
 
 See under Psalm xxix. The " coals of 
 fire" were the lightning flashes which 
 jpauiM. accompanied the peals of thunder. 
 
 " He maketh my feet like hind's feet, 
 And setteth me on my high places" (ver. 33). 
 
 " Hind," Ileb. aydlCih, the female of the hart. See under Deut. xii. 
 22. Allusions to the swiftness of this deer (Cervus elaphas) occur also 
 in Gen. xlix. 21 ; 2 Sam. xxii. 34; Hab. iii. 19. Bochart proposed to 
 render ajjfilCtli in the first passage by "goodly tree." But the use of 
 the word in other passages is against this. The terror of the hind in a 
 thunder-storm is noticed in Psalm xxix. 9. The word occurs in other 
 three passages, namely. Job xxxix. 1 ; Song ii. 7, iii. 5. 
 
 Psalm xix. — The ministry of blessing yielded by the heavens to 
 the earth, is stated and illustrated in verses 1-6. Unceasingly and 
 universally the orbs of heaven declare God's glory. Chief among these 
 is the sun, from whose heat nothing is hid. Leaving the Works of 
 God, he bends his mind to the Word of God. The glory of Jehovah 
 in the heavens becomes naturally suggestive of his glory in the reve- 
 lation which he has made of himself to man in the law. The Psalmist 
 has the whole written word in A-iew; and in verses 7-11 he dwells on 
 the purity, preciousness, pleasantness, and profitable character of the 
 law of the Lord : —
 
 PSALMS I.-XXII. 389 
 
 " The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul : 
 The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple : 
 The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart : 
 The commandment of the Lord is pure, enliglitening tlic eyes : 
 The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring for ever : 
 The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. 
 More to be desired are they than gold, yea, much fine gold ; 
 Sweeter also than honey, and the honeycomb. 
 Moreover by them is thy servant warned : 
 And in keeping of them there b great reward." 
 
 Gold is tlie most precious of metals, he says; but though it might 
 "answer all things," the revelation of God to man is better, more 
 precious, more to be desired even than the fine gold itself Honey, he 
 adds, is the sweetest of all known substances, but still the word which 
 tells man of a heart of gi-ace and fatherliness in God, is more pleasant 
 to the taste even than the purest of honey — that which drops from the 
 comb itself. 
 
 "Honey," Heb. devdsJ/, see under Judg. xiv. 8; 2 Kings xviii. 32; 
 and 2 Chron. xxxi. 5. The word used here for honeycomb is nopheth, 
 literally the droppings. Thus the rendering in the margin. The term 
 comes to be used for that from which the honey drops — the honeycomb. 
 The lips of " the strange woman" are said to " drop as an honeycomb" 
 (Prov. v. 3). The youth is exhorted to eat it — "My son, eat thou 
 honey {deuash), because it is sweet ; and the honeycomb {nopheth), 
 which is sweet to thy taste : so shall the knowledge of wisdom be unto 
 thy soul" (xxiv. 13, 14). It is turned away from by those fully satisfied 
 — " The full soul loatheth an honeycomb, but to the hungry soul every 
 bitter thing is sweet" (xxvii. 7). "The king" in the Song (iv. 10, 11) 
 addresses the "bride" in glowing terms: — 
 
 " How beautiful thy love, my sister-spouse ! 
 Sweeter thy love than is the juice of grapes! 
 The perfume of thy unguents, than all spices ! 
 Thy lips, O spouse, drop as honeycomb : 
 Honey and milk are upon thy tongue." 
 
 The apostle Peter, referring to the prophets " who inquired and 
 searched diligently, and prophesied of the grace that should come," 
 represents them as "searching what, or what manner of time, the 
 Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified before- 
 hand of the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow" 
 (1 Peter i. 10, 11). We have both aspects of Christ's experience in 
 this Psalm (xxii.). Interpreters generally have held, that we have
 
 390 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 here the prophecy of the sufferings and the glory which followed. The 
 title of the psalm, moreover, makes it almost certain, tliat it was 
 regarded in the same light by the spiritually minded among the Jews, 
 long before the advent of our Lord. Aijeletli shahar (the hind of the 
 morning) — an expression used to indicate that the appearance of the 
 persecuted One, heralded the immediate bursting forth of the full bright 
 day of grace and of gospel liberty. 
 
 Several of the deer family [Cervidoi) are noticed as emblems of 
 gentleness, innocence, and beauty : — " Naphtali is a hind let loose : he 
 giveth goodly words" (Gen. xlix. 21) ; "Let her be as the loving hind 
 and the pleasant roe" (Prov. v. 19) ; " Make haste my beloved, and be 
 thou like to a roe or a young hart upon the mountains of spices" (Song 
 viii. 14). In another passage the idea of the dawn is expressly, as in 
 this psalm, associated with this animal — " Until the day break, and the 
 shadows flee away, turn, my beloved, and be thou like a roe or a 
 young hart upon the mountains of Bether" (Song ii. 17). 
 
 The "Hind of the morning" is represented here as surrounded by 
 enemies. Carrying out the emblematical form of the title, the hind is 
 pictured in the midst of wild " evil beasts" — 
 
 "Many bulls have compassed me: 
 Strong bulls of Bashan have beset me round. 
 They gaped upon me with their mouths, 
 As a ravening and a roaring lion. 
 
 And thou hast brought me to the dust of death. 
 
 For dogs have compassed me ; 
 
 The assembly of the wicked have inclosed me : 
 
 They pierced my hands and my feet" (ver. 12, 13, 15, IG). 
 
 Thus pressed and persecuted by the wicked, he leaves his people an 
 example in such circumstances, by committing himself to the Father. 
 Thus he prays — 
 
 " Be not thou far from me, O Lord : 
 O my strength, haste thee to help me. 
 Deliver my soul from the sword ; 
 My darling from the power of the dog. 
 Save me from the lion's mouth : 
 For thou hast heard me from the horns of the unicorn" (ver. 19-21). 
 
 It has recently become the custom, especially with those who write 
 practical notes on Holy Scripture, to set down the unicorn as the wild 
 buffalo of Syria, but the question of identification is not so clear as they 
 seem to think. It is much more likely that the Hebrew term, reem,
 
 PSALMS I.-XXII. 
 
 391 
 
 was employed in the same way as the modern Arabs use a correspond- 
 ing word to include wild goats, deer, and even wild oxen. The 
 question is fully discussed under Deuteronomy xxxiii. 17, which see. 
 The reference in this passage is no doubt to one of the oxen {Bovidcp), 
 most likely to the wild buffalo, which has ever been celebrated for its 
 
 Fig.lU. 
 
 Bufialo {SoshiiUxlus). 
 
 ferocity. "I do not think," says one who had much opportunity of 
 observing them in their native haunts, " there can be a more menacins: 
 object than a single wild buffiilo." The suffering Saviour is represented 
 as surrounded by a multitude of wicked men — fierce, savage, implacable 
 as the enraged buffalo or bull.
 
 392 
 
 BIULICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 PSALM XXIX.-LVII. 
 
 WELL-DEFINED and intelligent understanding of the refer- 
 
 i^-i^M ences to the external world by the Psalmist, is necessary to 
 
 the right interpretation of Psalm xxix. A review of these 
 
 will show us that they are used to manifest the sovereign 
 
 majesty and glory of Jehovah on the one hand, and to comfort 
 
 liis jDcople on the other. His church is taught the blessed truth 
 
 ^that the Lord has might, in order that she may go to him in her 
 
 I weakness and trial, and get might from the Lord. Thus, as 
 
 Hengstenberg has put it, "the key to the interpretation of this 
 
 psalm is to be found in its conclusion" — 
 
 "The Lord will givu might unto his people; 
 The Lord will bless his people with peace" (ver 13). 
 
 The princes and leaders among the people, and through them all the 
 nations, are addressed in verse 1 (see vol. i., p. 175-182). They are 
 pointed to the true place of worship, even "his glorious sanctuary" — 
 the temple — as the expression, "beauty of his holiness," should be 
 rendered. Then we have " the voice of Jehovah," named in verse 3, 
 as being "upon the waters," and as "upon many waters." It was 
 heard rolling from the far west, across the waters of the great sea. 
 Then filling the land, it sounded along the valley of the Jordan, from 
 the Dead Sea on the south, up by the Sea of Galilee to the waters of 
 Merom on the north, while the awe-stricken multitude crowded the 
 courts of the "glorious sanctuary" at Jerusalem. The voice of the 
 Lord is explained in verse 3 — 
 
 " The God of glory thundereth." 
 
 In all times this has been held by men to be the voice of God. In one 
 of the plagues, " the Lord sent thunder" (Exod. ix. 23) ; and when 
 Pharaoh humbled himself, he cried, " Entreat the Lord that there be no 
 more voices of God " (ver. 28). " God," says Job, " thundereth marvel- 
 lously with his voice" (xxxvii. 4). Isaiah tells us that God's use of all 
 the wildest forces of nature was his voice to Assyria — "And the Lord 
 shall cause his glorious voice to be heard, and shall show the lighting
 
 PSALMS XXIX.-LVII. 393 
 
 down of his arm, with the indignation of his anger, and with the flame 
 of a devouring fire, with scattering, and tempest, and hailstones. For 
 through the voice of the Lord sliall the Assyrian be beaten down, which 
 smote with a rod" (xxx. 30, 31). So too, when David in another place 
 refers to one of the glorious manifestations of God before his people, he 
 says : — 
 
 "The Lord also thundered in the heavens, 
 And the Highest gave his voice" (xviii. 13). 
 
 The majesty of this voice is specially shown in God's dealings with " the 
 glory of Lebanon" — 
 
 '■ The voice of the Lord breaketh the cedars ; 
 Yea, the Lord breaketh the cedars of Lebanon" (ver. 3). 
 
 Rolling in peal on peal from the shores of the Mediterranean, it is 
 represented as reaching the white cliffs of goodly Lebanon, and there 
 the tempest breaks the trees. The thunder-bolts crash those giant cedars 
 of Lebanon themselves, which had held their ground for centuries. It 
 has been pointed out already (1 Kings iv. 23 ; 1 Chron. xiv. 1), that 
 " cedar" is sometimes applied to the cone-bearing trees generally, and 
 to the Lebanon species iu particular. The first clause of verse 5 may 
 be regarded as descriptive of the power of the tempest on all great trees, 
 and the last as specially on the cedar of Lebanon (C'edrus Lihani). The 
 power of the hurricane reaches the very mountains themselves. Shaken 
 by the full thunder of Jehovah's might, they are represented as being 
 made "to skip like a calf." With us this word is generally used in a 
 joyous sense, but its Hebrew equivalent may mean to leap or bound 
 either in joy or in sorrow and terror. Here, and in Psalm cxiv., it has 
 the latter signification, and indicates the excitement and haste with 
 which the young of the terror-stricken herds hasten to a place of 
 shelter when the thunder-storm breaks over them. The mountains 
 named are Lebanon and Sirion. The latter is Hermon, called in 
 Deuteronomy by the same name — " And we took at that time, out 
 of the hand of the two kings of the Amorites, the land that was on 
 this side Jordan, from the river of Arnon unto ]\Iount Hermon ; 
 which Hermon the Sidonians call Sirion, and the Amorites call it 
 Shenir" (iii. 8, 9). The wilderness generally is then mentigned, and 
 that of Kadesh is specified, to indicate that the voice was heard over all 
 the land, from Kadesh on the southern border to the range of Anti- 
 Libanus and the snow-clad peaks of Hermon on the north. 
 
 The prevailing terror reaches the deer straying on the forest- 
 
 VOL. II. 3 D
 
 394 BIBLICAL XATUliAL SCIENCE. 
 
 skirted plains, or in the open glades of their water-courses. The voice 
 "discovereth or makes bare the forest;" and the hind— the ciydlah, the 
 female of the aijdl or hart — drops lier calf prematurely. The effects of 
 all this on the minds of those who stand in his holy habitation is fully 
 but briefly told in ver. 9 — 
 
 "In his temple doth every one speak of his glory." 
 
 But what to man might seem only the wild war of confused forces — 
 the raging of the elements in uncontrolled power — was guided by 
 Jehovah's sovereign hand. In the midst of all — 
 
 'O^ 
 
 " The Lord sits upon the flood ; 
 Yea the Lord will sit king for ever." 
 
 Psalm xxxii. — Justification is of faith, and not of works. In arguing this 
 question (Rom. iv.) Paul appeals to the words of David — " Now to him 
 that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to 
 him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, 
 his faith is counted for righteousness. Even as David also describeth 
 the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness 
 without works, saying. Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, 
 and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord 
 will not impute sin" (ver. 4-8). This shows us the general scope of 
 the psalm. In God's dealings with him David could say, " I kept 
 silence — 
 
 For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me ; 
 My moisture is turned into the drought of summer." 
 
 When months have passed and no rain has fallen, when even the dew's 
 ministry of blessing has ceased, as the burning sun beams down on 
 fields already cracked and parched by the long-continued drought, 
 the vital sap in the herbage ceases to be equal to its support — " its 
 moisture is turned into the drought of summer." Thus was it with the 
 Psalmist. Those blessed gifts from heaven which had been vouchsafed 
 to him in his joy, those springs of richest consolation which had been 
 his when hope's eye was bright, and faith's arms strong, and affection's 
 heart direct in its love to God, were all taken from him. God's hand 
 lay heavily on him. He had not the heart to look up. His moisture 
 too was turned into " the drought of summer." But God had in the 
 lavish riches of his grace again visited him. He had looked to his 
 heavenly Father as a " hiding-place," and had heard his voice : —
 
 "1 
 
 rsALMS xxix.-Lvii. 395 
 
 " I will instruct thee, and teach thee in the way which thou shall go: 
 I will guide thee with mine eye. 
 Be ye not ;is the horse, 
 
 Or as the mule, which have no understanding : 
 Whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, 
 Lest they come near to thee" (ver. 8, 9). 
 
 Man's position is that of a cliilJ. As the turn of the father's eye is 
 euougli to influence the son whose heart is loving, whose will is in 
 harmony with that of his parent, so when we are right with God, we 
 will be watchful of his providences. We will take them as to us the 
 expression of the Father's heart, and we will be influenced by them. 
 The brutes, as the horse and the mule, demand physical constraint, but 
 God's people are a willing people. 
 
 Psalm xxxiii. — The key to this psalm is given in verse 5. It is said 
 of God— 
 
 " lie loveth righteousness and judgment: 
 The earth is full of the eoodness of the Lord." 
 
 I 
 
 As illustrations of his power he appeals to the creation of the heavens, i 
 and to the glory of all the hosts of them. As evidences of his uncon- 
 trolled sovereignty, he points to the seas and God's dealings with 
 them : — ■ 
 
 " He gathereth the waters of the sea together as an heap : 
 lie layeth up the depth in store-houses" (ver. 7). 
 
 The popular idea of the height of the waters of the ocean was present 
 with him. To one standing on the shore and looking seaward, the 
 waters seem to rise high above the land. Their natural tendency is to 
 seek a level. Thus the common thought, that they are kept by an 
 unseen hand as in an heap. 
 
 Psalm xxxvii. 35. — The Psalmist here compares the wicked to "a green 
 tree growing in its own soil," as the words "green bay-tree" are given 
 in the margin of our Bibles : — 
 
 '• I have seen the wicked great in power. 
 And spreading himself like the green bay-tree." 
 
 It has been questioned if the bay-tree {Lauriis nohilis) is mentioned in 
 the Scripture. The word used here is csrdcJi, which points to any 
 great tree native to the soil. This fiict has led many to translate it, 
 with the Septuagint, " cedar." But this is not admissible. It would 
 demand the transposition of the second letter of the Hebrew, in order 
 to make the feminine form of erez, cedar. Such a liberty should never
 
 39G BIBUC'AL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 be taken with any word, unless in cases on wlilcli all biblical critics are 
 agreed. The marginal rendering — " a tree that growetli in his own 
 soil " — is no doubt, the true one. 
 
 The idea 'generally formed of this passage by tlie reader of tlie 
 English Bible, is that the tree referred to was the bay laurel {Primus 
 laiirocerasus) or cherry laurel of our gardens. But this plant belongs 
 to an entirely different family. The bay and the Portugal laurels, 
 whose forms of growth and evergreen leaves make them highly orna- 
 mental in shrubberies, belong to a sub-family {Drupacece, Lind.) of the 
 rose tribe [liosaceoe), but the bay-tree proper, which flourishes luxuri- 
 antly in Southern Europe, is the type of the laurel family {Lauracece). 
 Several circumstances make it unlikely that the true bay-tree represents 
 the Hebrew esrdch. There is no evidence that it was ever so plentiful 
 in Palestine as to be chosen by the Psalmist as an illustration in a poem 
 for popular use. It is indeed to be met with, but that chiefly in locali- 
 ties on the borders of the eastern shore of the Great Sea. The chief 
 objection to the supposition that the bay-tree was referred to by the 
 royal poet, is to be found in the psalm itself. Having mentioned it in 
 the lines quoted above, he adds : — 
 
 " Yet lie passed away, and, lo, he was not ; 
 Yea, I sought him, but he could not be found." 
 
 The idea here is not one which could be represented and illustrated by 
 an evergreen plant, slow of growth, and yet reaching in maturity a 
 height of above thirty feet. The words demand a quick-growing tree, 
 in a soil more than usually favourable to its growth. Thus planted, 
 and shooting up in calm and sunshine, it would attract every eye ; but 
 when the storm broke over it, when the strong wind swept impetuously 
 through its branches, it would not stand. Torn up by the root, and its 
 timber comparatively useless, like Abraham's dead, it would be buried 
 out of sight. And thus with the wicked. He was sought but could 
 not be found. 
 
 Psalm xxxix. — Man's frailty when under the stroke of God, when he 
 is shown his sins, and made to feel that sorrow is their fruit, is set 
 before us by a striking figure in verse 2 : — 
 
 '• When thou whh rebukes dost correct man for iniquity, 
 Thou mukest his beauty to consume away like a motli : 
 Surely each man is vanity." 
 
 The reference here is to the larvge of certain moths which waste the 
 beautv of clothes, furs, tapestry, «S:c. Tliey work in the dark, and
 
 often when the garment is put on to display its grandeur, it is found 
 useless. Or "the worm i' the bud" may have been in the mind of the 
 Psalmist. Just when the bud is about to burst, when its half-opened 
 calyx leaves give promise of the rich beauty of the expanded flower, it 
 is found — 
 
 " Bit with an envious worm 
 Ere it can spread its white leaves to the air, 
 Or dedicate its beauty to the sun." 
 
 Psalm xlii.— "The hart," verse 1— see under Deut. xii. 22. " The land 
 of Jordan," here the region on the east of the Jordan. " The Hermon- 
 ites," correctly the Hermons or peaks of Mount Hermon ; a subordinate 
 height in the neighbourhood being the hill Mizar" (ver. 6). 
 
 " Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of thy water-spouts; 
 All thy waves and thy billows are gone over me." 
 
 " Water-spout," Heb. tzindr, used only here and in 2 Sam. v. 8, 
 where it is rendered " gutter" in the sense of water-course. Literally^ 
 it points to a rushing sound. The roar of the billows, as in a storm 
 they rush landward, is implied in this figure. "Waves," literally 
 breakers. Sorrow on sorrow had rushed over his soul, until he was 
 made to "go mourning;" but he found a refuge in God. Thus his 
 earnest expostulation with himself — 
 
 •' Why art thou cast down, my soul ? 
 And why art thou disquieted within me ? 
 Hope thou in God ; for I shall yet praise him, 
 Who is the health of my countenance and my God" (ver. 1 1). 
 
 Psalm xlv. — In the version of the Scriptures known as "Queen Eliza- 
 beth's Bible," the heading of this psalm is — " The majestic of Solomon, 
 his honour, strength, beauty, riches, and power, are praised ; and also his 
 marriage with the Egyptian, being an heathen woman, is blessed." This 
 used to be, and too frequently still is, a favourite mode of characterizing 
 the psalm. But a greater than Solomon is here. Indeed, it is almost 
 certain that it can have no reference to Solomon's espousal to Pharaoh's 
 daughter. The quotation from it in Heb. i. 7-9, settles this point. 
 Jesus, as Lord of creation, and King and Head of the church which 
 lie has espoused to himself, is the theme throughout. 
 
 "Inditing" (ver. 1\ rather "bubbling up," as the spring does which 
 draws its waters from hidden depths. 
 
 Tlie attire of the royal bridegroom is referred to in verse 8- — " Gar- 
 ments smelling with myrrh, and aloes, and cassia." His robes were
 
 398 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 perfumed with mynli — an aromatic gum-resin, obtained from one of 
 the Amjiridaceoe, or myrrh family of pLiiits, the Bahamodendron 
 myrrha, and also from a distinctly marked variety known as B. katnf. 
 The latter used to be considered the only shrub which yielded the 
 myrrh of commerce ; but when Ehrenberg visited one of the localities 
 in which the former abounds, he found the best kind of myrrh exuding 
 from its bark. It has been pointed out under Genesis xxxvii. 25, that 
 the word lot, rendered rayrrh in our version, should have been translated 
 ledanum, a I'ragrant resin derived from one of the rock roses (Ctstus 
 creticus = C. lendanifera). The word used here is mdh\ literally, that 
 which flows or distils (in bitterness). It occurs twelve times in the 
 Fig. 115. Old Testament, and its Greek 
 
 equivalent [myrrha) occurs three 
 times in the New Testament. The 
 myrrh-balsam is a native of Abys- 
 sinia and of Arabia Felix. It is 
 a low-growing, stunted-looking, 
 shrubby plant. The leaves, set on 
 short stems, are divided into three 
 unequal leaflets. The bark is 
 smooth and ashen grey, the wood 
 yellowish white, and both bark and 
 wood have a strong odour when 
 broken. 
 
 Myrrh is of two kinds. The best 
 is Known as " tear myrrh" [Myrrha 
 electa), and the inferior kind as 
 "myrrh in sorts." The latter is 
 generally much adulterated, by 
 being mixed with gum-arabic, and 
 other common resins. Myrrh was 
 put to four uses during the period 
 (1.) It constituted an ingredient in 
 the oil of holy ointment, " the ointment compound after the art of the 
 apothecary," which the Lord commanded Moses to make for anointing 
 "the tabernacle of the congregation," and its furniture (Exod. xxx. 22-33). 
 The kind to be employed by Moses was the " myrrh in tears" — " Take 
 thou also unto thee principal spices of pure myrrh, five hundred 
 shekels," &c. (ver. 23). (2.) It was used as an ointment for the body. 
 See under Esther ii. 12. (3.) It was a favourite perfume. Thus its 
 
 c^,^ 
 
 Myrrh {Bahamodendron myrrha). 
 
 embraced in the Bible narrative
 
 PSALMS XXIX.-LVII. 399 
 
 use here — the garments smelled witli it. The twigs of the rayrrh-tree 
 appear to have been used in a bunch as perfume : "A bundle of myrrh 
 is my well-beloved unto me ; he shall lie all night betwixt my breasts" 
 (Song i. 13). As he came up from the wilderness, the place in which 
 the myrrh-trees grew, his garments, like Esau's, were fragrant with the 
 Held : " Who is this that cometh out of the wilderness like pillars of 
 smoke, perfumed with myrrh and frankincense?" (iii. G.) In the Song, 
 likewise, we have the "mountain of myrrh" (iv. 6), and "the garden 
 enclosed" with its trees of "myrrh and aloes" (iv. 14). lu Proverbs 
 vii. 17, "the strange woman," whose house is the way to hell, "going- 
 down to the chambers of death," is represented as saying to " the young 
 man void of understanding" — " I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, 
 aloes, and cinnamon." (A.) Myrrh was sometimes mingled with wine, 
 and used as a draught to deaden pain. See under Mark xv. 23. 
 
 Myrrh was formerly much more in vogue than it is now. It is 
 still, however, much used as a tincture for wounds, as a chief ingredient 
 iti many tooth-powders, for the cure of certain diseases of the mucous 
 membrane of the stomach and bowels, and as a remedy in some kinds 
 of disease of the lungs. The plant known as myrrh in Britain is widely 
 different from that now described. It is one of the Umbelliferce — the 
 sweet chervil or sweet cicely [Myrrlms odorata), frequent in pasture 
 lands in the north of England, and in the Lowlands of Scotland. 
 Branches of sweet cicely foliage were in olden times carried about the 
 person as a remedy against the plague. 
 
 "Aloes," Heb. dhdloth, were also used to perfume the garments of the 
 king. Another form of the plural (dhcilim) is translated " trees of lign 
 aloes" in Numbers xxiv. Ci, which see. The tree from which the 
 "aloes" were obtained, is the eaglewood tree, Aqiiilana agaUocJmm, 
 one of the natural order, Aquilariacece, or aloe family. It is a native 
 of Southern Asia, and when full grown, reaches the height of above 
 one hundred and twenty feet, with a girth of twelve to fourteen feet. 
 " The bark of the trunk is smooth and ash-coloured ; that of the 
 branches, grey, lightly striped with brown. The branches themselves 
 are each divided into two at the extremities, and the young shoots are 
 covered with white silky hairs. The wood is w^hite, and very light and 
 soft." When the wood is burned, it emits a sweet odour. The leaves 
 are deep green, lance-shaped, and from three to six inches long. The 
 tree bears small yellowish flowers, whicli hang in tassels fi-om the 
 branches. The seed is a pale green berry Aloes' perfume is secreted 
 in the form of an oily substance in decayed portions of the wood. See
 
 400 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 under John xix. 39. " Cassia," see under Exod. xxx. 23. " Ivory 
 palaces," Ezek. xxvii. 15. "Ophir," 2 Chron. ix. 10. 
 
 "He-goats," Heb. atood, Psalm 1. 9. In verse 13 of the same 
 psalm it is rendered "goats." He-goat, or leader of the flock, is its 
 
 Fig. 116. 
 
 Lign .Vloe {Aquilttri'i <ij allodium). , 
 
 true meaning. Thus its metaphorical use, Isaiah xiv., where it is 
 translated "chief ones." 
 
 Psalm Iv. — This psalm is the utterance of one under deep affliction, 
 and suffering persecution. He says — 
 
 "I mourn in my plaint, and make a noise; 
 Because of tlie voice of the enemy, because of the oppression of the wicked." 
 
 With a "heart pained," with death's terrors fallen on him, with fear- 
 fulness and trembling come upon him, he exclaims — 
 
 " Oh that I had wings like a dove ! 
 For then would I fly away, and be at rest. 
 Lo, then would I wander far off, 
 And remain in the wilderness" (ver. 5, 6).
 
 PSALMS XXIX.-LYII. 401 
 
 "Dove," Hub. yonah, see under Lev. i. 14; Song ii. 11; Isa. Ix. 8; 
 Nah. ii. 7. Shut up in the darkness of sorrow, surrounded on every 
 side with trials, " fightings without, fears within," he for the time saw 
 no way of escape. The dove was more privileged than he — Oh that I 
 had her wings, then would I fly away : — 
 
 "In her nest witliin some cavern liung, 
 The dove sits trembling o'er her callow young. 
 Till roused at last by some impetuous shock, 
 She starts surprised, and beats around the rock ; 
 Tlien to the open fields for refuge flies. 
 And the free bird expatiates in the skies ; 
 Her pinions poised, tlirough liquid air she springs, 
 And smoothly glides, nor moves her levell'd wings." — (Virgil.') 
 
 The title of the next psalm is suggestive of one still under the same 
 experiences. It is Yonatli-elem-rechohim, the "mute dove among 
 strangers." In Psalm Ixviii. 13, the dove is introduced to illustrate 
 a widely different state of feeling. The people had been afflicted — they 
 had "lien among the pots ;" but glory awaited them : — 
 
 " Ye shall be as the wings of a dove covered with silver, 
 And her feathers with shining gold." 
 
 A variety of dove bred in the neighbourhood of Damascus, and much 
 esteemed as a domestic pet, answers faithfully the description of the 
 Psalmist. 
 
 The "wandering far off," referred to above, is noticed by Ezekiel 
 (vii. 16). The people escaped, "all of them mourning for their iniquity." 
 Dissatisfied with God, they sought help from other sources. Thus Hosea 
 represents Ephraim as "a silly dove without heart" (vii. 11, 12). For 
 this God threatened to " bring them down as the fowls of heaven." Then 
 they were to return, and the time of their captivity was to pass away— 
 " Thej' shall tremble as a bird out of Egypt, and as a dove out of the land 
 of Assyria : and I will place them in their houses, saitli the Lord " (xi. 11). 
 
 Figures of several of the most beautiful species are introduced on 
 Plate XXIX. Fig. 1 is the Waalia pigeon {Treron Abyssinica) ; fig. 2, 
 white-booted pigeon {T. Sieholdii); fig. 3, crowned pigeon [Goura 
 coronafa). These might have been obtained by Solomon along with 
 the apes and peacocks brought in the ships of Tarshish. 
 
 "The shadow of thy wings," Psalm Ivii. 1. A favourite figure 
 (Psalms xvii. 8, xxxvi. 7) for the soul's confidence in the faithfulness of 
 God. The image is suggestive of the young bird nestling among the 
 feathers of its parent. 
 
 VOL. II. 3 E
 
 402 
 
 BIBLICAL XATUJiAL SCIENXE. 
 
 rSALMS LVIII.-CII. 
 
 HE foundations were out of course. Those wlio should 
 have administered justice witli impartial hand, perverted 
 judgment. Thus the strong remonstrance and address in 
 verses 1 and 2 — 
 
 '• Do ye indeed speak righteousness, O congregation ? 
 Do ye judge uprightly, O ye sons of men ? 
 Yea, in heart yc work wickedness ; 
 Ye weigh the violence of your hands in the earth." 
 
 Their words are next specially noticed. " The tongue can no man 
 tamo ; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison," says James (iii. 8). 
 The same tliouglit is set before us here — 
 
 " Tlieir poison is hke the poison of a serpent : 
 They are like the deaf adder that stoppeth her ear ; 
 Which will not hearken to the voice of charmers, 
 Charming never so wisely" (ver. 4, [>). 
 
 This leads to the cry, as from the depths of a wounded heart, and to 
 the direct appeal to God " that judgeth in the earth" — 
 
 "Break their teeth, God, in their mouth ; 
 Break out the great teeth of the young lions, Lord. 
 Let them melt away. 
 
 As a snail which melteth, let every one of them pass av.-ay" (vcr. G-8). 
 
 " Serpent," Heb. nahash, see vol. i. 103-108. Poison being associ- 
 ated with the serpent named here, shows that the original word is not 
 used for the pythons only, but in a general way for the order OpMdia, 
 or true serpents, which contains the two families, the vipers ( Viperidce) 
 and snakes (ColuhnJce), most of which are venomous. One of these is 
 mentioned here as the "adder," Heb. pethen, the Egyptian cobra 
 {Naja haje). This is the well-known asp or aspic of Egypt, noted in 
 poetry and in history in connection with the story of Cleopatra's 
 death : — 
 
 " Hast thou the pretty worm of Nilus there, 
 That kills and pains not V" 
 
 This species is more fully noticed under Job xx. 14, 16, which sec.
 
 PSALMS LVIII.-CII. 
 
 403 
 
 Fig. 117. 
 
 From its power to disteud greatly the ribs and the skin of the neck, it 
 has, with other closely-related species, obtained the name of Hooded 
 Snake. Its graceful motions in this 
 respect, and its susceptibility of being 
 influenced by musical sounds, have made 
 it a favourite with serpent-charmers. 
 Allusion is made to serpent-charming in 
 verse 5. This shows that the same arts 
 which are still practised with these snakes 
 in the East, were well known at the time 
 when David lived. It seems to be a well- 
 established fact, that the power referred 
 to here can be exercised over certain 
 species of snakes. It is, however, equally 
 true, that much deceit and jugglery are 
 practised on the people by the serpent- 
 charmers. In many cases the poison fangs Kajahajc. 
 have previously been extracted, and tlie creatures thus rendered harm- 
 less to those handling. It is also well known that they can be tamed 
 and made to follow a familiar voice, or to keep time with a musical 
 
 Fig. 118. 
 
 instrument by the motion of their heads. 
 Yet making all allowance for such decep- 
 tion, intelligent travellers have satisfied 
 themselves that such an influence as is 
 noticed here, can actually be obtained over 
 these snakes. Even the type of another 
 family, the rattlesnake [Crotalus horridus^ 
 Plate IX., fig. 6), is not beyond the power 
 of the charmer. Chateaubriand gives an 
 account of one which entered the encamp- , ,„ 
 ment of his party in Canada, and was met ^^s 
 by a man who could play on the flute. 
 "On the approach of its enemy, the haughty 
 reptile curled itself into a spiral line, flat- 
 tened its head, inflated its cheeks, contract- 
 ed its lips, displayed its envenomed-fangs 
 
 and its bloody throat; its double-tongue themusdeB. ha. eUvato. .a depress .he hood. 
 
 glowed like two flames of fire ; its eyes were burning coals ; its body, 
 swollen with rage, rose and fell like the bellows of a forge ; its dilated 
 skin assumed a dull and scaly appearance ; and its rattle, which sounded 
 
 Section of the Neck of a Cobra, to show
 
 404 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 tlie denunciation of deatli, vibrated with extreme velocity. The 
 Canadian now began to play upon his flute : the serpent started with 
 surprise, and drew back its head. In proportion as it was struck with 
 the magic effect, its eyes lost their fierceness, the vibrations of its tail 
 became slower, and the sound which it emitted gradually became 
 weaker and ceased. The folds of the fascinated serpent became less 
 perpendicular upon their spiral line, expanded by degrees, and sunk 
 one after another upon the ground, forming concentric circles. The 
 colours recovered their brilliancy on its quivering skin ; and slightly 
 turning its head, it remained motionless in the attitude of attention and 
 pleasure. At this moment the Canadian advanced a few steps, produc- 
 ing with his flute sweet and simple notes. The reptile inclining its 
 variegated neck, opened a passage with its head through the high grass, 
 and began to creep after the musician, stopping when he stopped, and 
 following him again as soon as he moved forward." " I have seen 
 many serpent-charmers," says a traveller in Palestine, " who do really 
 exercise some extraordinary power over these reptiles. They carry 
 enormous snakes, generally black, about them, allow them to crawl 
 all over their persons and into their bosoms, always, however, with 
 certain precautions, either necessary or pretended to be so. They 
 repeatedly breathe strongly into the face of the serpent, and occasionally 
 blow spittle, or some medicated composition upon them. It is needless 
 to describe the mountebank tricks which they perform. That which I 
 am least able to account for, is the power of detecting the presence of 
 serpents in a house, and of enticing or 'charming' them out of it. The 
 thing is far too common to be made a matter of scepticism. The 
 following account by Mr. Lane, is a fair statement of this matter : — 
 ' The charmer professes to discover, without ocular perception (but 
 perhaps he does so by a peculiar smell), whether there be any serpents 
 in the house ; and if there be, to attract them to him, as the fowler, by 
 the fascination of his voice, allures the bird into his net. As the 
 serpent seeks the darkest place in which to hide himself, the charmer 
 has, in most cases, to exercise his skill in an obscure chamber, where 
 he might easily take a serpent from his bosom, bring it to the people 
 without the door, and afSrm that he had found it in the apartment ; for 
 no one would venture to enter with him, after having been assured of 
 the presence of one of these reptiles within. But he is often required 
 to perform in the full light of day, surrounded by spectators ; and 
 incredulous persons have searched him beforehand, and even stripped 
 him naked ; yet his success has been complete. He assumes an air of
 
 PSALMS LTIII.-CII. 405 
 
 mystery, strikes the walls with a short palm stick, whistles, makes a 
 clucking noise with his tongue, and spits ujion the ground, and gene- 
 rally says— I adjure you by God, if ye be above, or if ye be below, that 
 ye come forth. I adjure you by the most great Name : if ye be 
 obedient, come forth ; and if ye be disobedient, die ! die ! die ! The 
 serpent is generally dislodged by his stick from a fissure in the wall or 
 from the ceiling of the room. I have rig. us. 
 
 heard it asserted that a serpent-charmer, 
 before he enters a house in which he is 
 to try his skill, always employs a servant 
 of that house to introduce one or more 
 serpents ; but I have known instances 
 in which this could not be the case, 
 and am inclined to believe that the 
 dervishes above mentioned are generally 
 acquainted with some physical means 
 of discovering the presence of serpents 
 without seeing them, and of attracting 
 them from their lurking-places. What ^"''' '">"««™'- 
 
 these physical means may be is yet a secret, as also the means 
 by which persons can handle live scorpions, and can put them into 
 their bosom without fear or injury. I have seen this done again 
 and again, even by small boys. This has always excited my curi- 
 osity and astonishment, for scorpions are the most malignant and 
 irascible of all reptiles. The Hindoos, and after them the Egyptians, 
 are the most famous snake-charmers, scorpion-eaters, &c., &c., although 
 gipsies, Arabs, and others are occasionally found who gain a vagabond 
 livelihood by strolling round the country and confounding the ignorant 
 with these feats.'" But it is also true that "the serpent will bite 
 without enchantment," or in spite of all the efforts which may be made 
 to charm it (Eccles. x. 11). " Roberts mentions the case of a serpent- 
 charmer in India, who came to a gentleman's house to exhibit tame 
 snakes. He was told that a cobra was in a cage in the house, and was 
 asked if he could charm it. He replied in the affirmative. The 
 serpent was released from the cage, and, doubtless, in a state of great 
 irritation ; the man began his incantations, and repeated his charms : 
 they, however, produced no effect on the snake ; it refused to hear the 
 voice of the charmer ; it darted at him, and fastened upon his arm ; \\^ 
 was dead before night." 
 
 " Snail," Heb. shavlul. In Leviticus x. 30, the word hhomet is
 
 406 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 rendered snail, but is properly a species of lizard. In the word used 
 liere, reference is made to the trail of the animal. The shining, gluti- 
 nous slime, which marks the track over which it has gone, was regarded 
 as the wasting away of the snail. Thus the expression — " Let them 
 melt away as a snail melteth." The description answers any of the 
 slugs {Lt'mactdce), as Liinax, Helix, Anon, Zonites, Testacella, &c. See 
 Plate XVIIL, figs. 1, 2, 1, 1, 2. The two best known are the slug 
 proper, and the common garden snail. Several species of the former 
 are widely distributed, as the black slug {Limax ater), the milk slug 
 {L. agrestis), the black-striped slug {L. maximus). Of the former 
 we have the true garden snail [Helix aspera), and the wood snail 
 {H. nemoralis). The slugs have four highly sensitive feelers, which 
 are concealed when in repose. One pair is longer than the other. 
 At the end of the longer pair the eyes are placed. Their eggs 
 are like little bags, of semi-transparent, whitish, or yellowisli jelly. 
 The snails are also produced from eggs laid in heaps in the earth, 
 amounting in number from twenty to eighty, globular and whitish. 
 They carry their shells with them, and have the power of enlarging 
 them from their own secretions. The waste noticed by the Psalmist, 
 is only apparent. The popular impression is used to illustrate a great 
 truth — the wicked may prosper for a time, but the day will come when 
 they will melt away, when there shall not be, as in the case of the 
 snail, a provision made for them renewing opportunities. They shall 
 melt awa)', every one of them shall pass away. 
 
 Psalm Ixv. — "The blessedness of the man whom God chooses," is 
 celebrated in this psalm. He tastes the goodness of God in his courts, 
 and is led forth to witness his ways in providence, and his sovereignty 
 over the soil. The picture opened up to us from the middle of verse 8 
 to the end of the psalm, is one of exceeding beauty. The " rejoicing 
 of the morning and the evening," suggests the chorus of birds meeting 
 the dawn, and welcoming the season of rest by prolonging their notes 
 into the twilight. " The river of God," is the rain given by him to 
 fertilize the soil, and make the fields glad. 
 
 Psalm Ixviii. — The tribes of Israel are marshalled on an occasion of 
 national joy, and amidst all the evidences of the favour and friendship 
 of their covenant God. They are reminded of what they had been 
 (ver. 13) — see under Psalm Iv. 6. The exultant shout is now — 
 
 " Bless ye God in tlie congregations, 
 Even the Lord from tlie fountain of Israel" (ver. 26). 
 
 The chosen people were regarded as under special blessing, because
 
 PSALMS LVIII.-CII. 407 
 
 they were of him who is the fountain of Israel. They were monuments 
 of his grace, and they found their strength in him. And thus they 
 were ranked before him : — - 
 
 " There is little BeDJamin with their ruler, 
 The princes of Judah and their council; 
 The piinces of Zebulun, and the princes of Naphtali " (ver. 27). 
 
 When they are all before the Lord, and when all equally feel blessed, 
 they put God in remembrance of his promises — they ask him to fultil 
 his word concerning the nations. These nations would not turn to 
 him until every other help had been found vain, when they were under 
 sorrow. 
 
 " Rebuke the company of spearmen, 
 The multitude of bulls, with the calves of the people, 
 Till every one submit himself with silver : 
 Scatter them that deliglit in war. 
 Princes shall come out of Egypt ; 
 Ethiopia shall soon stretch out her hands unto God" (ver. 30, 31). 
 
 The expression, "company of spearmen," is more correctly and literally 
 rendered in the margin, " beast of the reeds." " The king of Egypt is," 
 says Horsley, " described under the image of the hippopotamus, the 
 wild beast that lodges in the rushes on the banks of the Nile." It is 
 much more likely that the crocodile {Croc, vulgaris, Plate IX., fig. 2), 
 was the animal in the thoughts of the Psalmist, when he referred to 
 Pharaoh. So Ezekiel — " I am against thee, Pharaoh king of Egypt, 
 the great dragon that lieth in the midst of his rivers" (xxix. 3). 
 
 In the same verse the great ones of the earth are spoken of as 
 "bulls," and the princes are characterized as "calves of the peojDle." 
 For "calf," see above, 1 Kings xii. 28. The Hebrew word for bull 
 {ahh'ir) literally means strong, mighty, valiant : " He draweth also the 
 iniglitij with his power" (Job xxiv. 22). " Why are the valiant men 
 swept away? they stood not because the Lord did drive them" (Jer. 
 xlvi. 15). The original meaning of the word has been applied to an 
 animal of great strength — tlie bull ; as here, " the multitude of bulls." 
 But the association is not limited to bulls. It is sometimes connected 
 with the horse : " Then were the horse hoofs broken by means of the 
 pranciiigs, the prancings of the mighty ones {ahhlri)'" (Judg. v. 22). 
 "At the noise of the stamping of the hoofs of his strong horses, at the 
 rushing of his chariots, and at the rumbling of his wheels, the fathers 
 shall not look back to their children for feebleness of hands" (Jer. 
 xlvii. 3), The abhln were not only the " bulls," but the head shep-
 
 408 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 herds who waited on them. When David went to see Ahimelech, the 
 priest at Nob, he found tliere " a certain man of the servants of Saul ; 
 his name was Doeg the Edoraite, the chiefest (ahhlr) of the herdsmen 
 that belonged to Saul" (1 Sam. xxi. 7). In the Book of Psalms itself, 
 it is used in different connections : — 
 
 "The stout- (nhbtri) hearted are spoiled, they have slept their sleep; 
 And none of the men of might have found their hands" (Ixxvi. 5). 
 
 In recounting the great doings of God for his people, the Psalmist 
 says — 
 
 " Slan did eat angels' (ahbirim) food : 
 He sent ihem meat to the full" (l.xxviii. 25). 
 
 Literally, "every one did eat of the bread of the mighty." The com- 
 pany of the mighty, " Herod and his men of war," who surroimded the 
 Saviour when he hung on the cross, are compared to bulls, and strong 
 ones of Bashan : — 
 
 " Many bulls (parim) have compassed me : 
 Strong {abhiri) bulls of Bashan have beset me" (xxii. 12). 
 
 In the verse now under notice, the other images used show the suit- 
 ableness of the rendering, "multitude of bulls." The reference to 
 Bashan points out the locality, whose deep forests and rich pasture- 
 lands made it to be celebrated for its flocks and herds. " It was," 
 says Dr. Stanley, " the forest-land, the pasture-land of Palestine. The 
 . smooth downs received a special name, expressive of their contrast 
 with the rough and rocky soil of the west. The ' oaks' of BasJian, 
 which still lill the traveller with admiration, were to the prophets and 
 psalmists of Israel the chief glory of the vegetation of their common 
 country. The vast herds of wild cattle which then wandered through 
 the woods, as thos&)K)f Scotland through its ancient forests, were, in 
 like manner, at once the terror and pride of the Israelite — ' the fat bulls 
 of Bashan.' The king of Moab was but a great ' sheepmaster,' and 
 ' rendered ' for tribute ' an hundred thousand lambs, and an hundred 
 thousand rams with the wool.' And still the countless herds and flocks 
 may be seen, droves of cattle moving on like troops of soldiers, descend- 
 ing at sunset to drink of the springs — literally, in the language of the 
 prophet, ' rams, and lambs, and goats, and bullocks, all of them fatlings 
 of Bashan.' It is striking to remember, that with this land in their 
 possession— a land of which travellers say, that in beauty and fertility, 
 it as far surpasses western Palestine as Devonshire surpasses Cornwall 
 — the Israelites nevertheless pressed forwards through the Jordan-
 
 Tf«on 
 
 
 G L oionata ._ uotmed Jiaeon 
 
 • WJii/e -booted H/jeon. 
 
 I'liUiiiili 
 
 
 C CErLas._iii*^ , , 
 
 .. lA- iliH'e . 
 
 w^ 
 
 C Pniiicea, _ \%if Whitfheaded TijQi'on 
 
 THB WINGS OF A DOTE COVERED WITH SILVER, AND HER FEATHERS WITH YELLOW 
 
 GOLD.— Ps. Uviii. IS. 
 
 ILLIftH UACXE hZH. CLA5C0H, E Dl N BURbH. lON OOH tMEWVORK
 
 PSALMS LVIII.-CIt. 409 
 
 valley, up the precipitous ravines of Jericho and Ai, and settled in the 
 rugged mountains of Judah and Ephraim, never to return to those 
 beautiful regions which had been their first home in the promised land. 
 The Lord had made them ritle on the high places of the earth, that 
 they might eat the increase of the fields ; and he made them to suck 
 honey out of the ' cliff, and oil out of the flinty rock ; butter of kine, 
 and milk of sheep ; with fat of lambs, and rams of the breed of Bashan, 
 and goats ; with the fat of kidneys of wheat, and . . . the pure blood 
 of the grape.' "— (" Syria and Palestine," p. 324.) 
 
 Psalm Ixix. 12^see under Numb. vi. 12; ver. 21, under Mark xv. 1^: 
 Ixxi. 4, under Prov. x. 26. 
 
 Psalm Ixxii. — To his people fearing him the Saviour will come, 
 bestowing blessings like those brought to the grass of the earth by the 
 rain when by close cutting its vital parts are exposed, and when a con- 
 tinuance of heat and absence of moisture would soon wither it up : — 
 
 " He shall come down like rain upon the mown grass ; 
 As showers that water the earth " (ver. G). 
 
 The Hebrew word (gez), which means here the grass still in the soil 
 after it has been cut, points in Amos vii. 1 — which see — to the hay 
 itself In Deut. xviii. 4, and in Job xxx. 20, it is translated fleece : — 
 
 " There shall be an handful of corn on the tops of the mountains ; 
 The fruit thereof shall shake like Lebanon : 
 And they of the city shall flourish like grass of the earth"' (ver. IG). 
 
 Solomon is the type, throughout the psalm, of Messiah the King, 
 and his reign of Messiah's kingdom. The dominions of the son of 
 David were during his own and his fether's reign, stretched to the 
 farthest limits assigned to Israel in the promise. This was, however, 
 only typical of the coming world-wide extension of the kingdom of 
 Christ. There may be only a very few now truly attached to him; but, 
 just as an handful of seed shows from four to an hundredfold of increase 
 when it springs uji, so shall it be here. This seed of life, even though 
 cast into most unpromising soil, shall yet yield a fruitage which shall 
 wave in beauty and in strength before the nations, like the cedars of 
 Lebanon themselves. 
 
 Psalm Ixxx. — The Jewish nation, as both the type and representative 
 of the church, is in this psalm spoken of under the figure of a " vine" 
 which God brought up out of Egypt. A beautiful picture of its fruit- 
 fulness is drawn in ver. 10, 11 : — 
 
 VOL. 11. 3 F
 
 410 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 " She sent out her boughs unto tlie sea, 
 And her branches unto the river." 
 
 The picture is suddenly clianged. All this fertility and beauty is 
 marred, ver. 12, 13: — 
 
 " Why hast thou then broken clown her hedges, 
 So that all they which pass by tlie way do pluck her? 
 The boar out of the wood doth w;iste it, 
 And the wild beast of the field doth devour it." 
 
 " Boar," Heb. liliazir. This word is rendered " swine'' in the other 
 six passages in which it occurs. See under Isa. Ixv. 4. Tlie natural 
 
 Wild Biiar {f^as scrofa). 
 
 food of the sow in its wild state is the tender roots of trees, of strong 
 grass, rushes, &c., and fruits, such as beech-mast, and acorns. When 
 its haunts lie in the neighbourhood of gardens, " the boar out of the 
 wood often wastes them." It is still found wild in several countries of 
 Europe. Ehrenberg says it is often to be met with among the marshes 
 in the valley of the Nile, and among the woods on Lebanon. Burck- 
 hardt often saw it in Syria. " Intending," say Irby and Mangles, " lo 
 proceed to the valley of the Jordan by a place ctdled Rajib, where we 
 expected to find the ruins of Ragaba, we quitted Djcrash iu the after- 
 noon, and passed through Katty. About half an hour after, we 
 traversed another village, in the mosque of which there are some 
 Roman remains. We entered a very picturesque country, most beauti-
 
 PSALMS LVIII.-CII. 411 
 
 fully varied with hanging woods, mostly of the Vallonia oak, laurestinus, 
 cedar, common arbutus, arbutus Andrachne, &c. At times the country 
 had all the appearance of a noble park ; indeed, nothing could exceed 
 the beauty of this day's ride ; there were some few spots cultivated 
 with corn. As we advanced, the wood became more dense ; and at 
 dark we stopped at a small open space covered with high grass and 
 weeds. We went with our guide a short distance to endeavour to 
 shoot some wild boars ; we hid ourselves close to the water, where all 
 the trees were marked with mud, left by the hogs in rubbing them- 
 selves. We plainly heard some of these animals advancing towards us ; 
 but one of the horses unluckily making a noise, they all ran off." 
 
 The blessings forfeited by Israel's disobedience are named in Psalm 
 Ixxxi. 14^16 — victory over their enemies, the power to meet their 
 adversaries in the strength of Jehovah; the acknowledgment on the 
 part of the haters even of the Lord that he as in the oldeu times was 
 with his people, and both strength and pleasure in the gifts of his 
 providence : — 
 
 " lie should have fed them .also with thu finest of the wheat : 
 And with honey of the rock should I have satisfied thee." 
 
 By finest of wheat we are not to understand wheat in its best form, 
 but the best variety, even as the honey from the rock is held to be 
 peculiarly sweet, both in itself and as partaken of in circumstances 
 fitted to give a special relish for it. In Old Testament times there 
 appear to have been recognized varieties of this cereal, even as among 
 ourselves. This shows that it had been long cultivated by the Jews, 
 because thus are varieties multiplied. Moses speaks of " the fiit of 
 kidneys of wheat" (Deut. xxxii. 14). Isaiah notices "the principal 
 wheat," and Ezekiel refers to " the wheat of Minuith" as distinguished 
 for its quality (Isa. xxviii. 25; Ezek. xxvii. 17). The quality of wheat 
 varies. This has been shown under Deut. viii. 8 — which see. Its 
 superiority to other cereals results from the great quantity of gluten 
 which it contains. Thus while, in 100 parts, barley yields 6 "00 of 
 gluten, rice only 3"60, wheat gives 23'00. When we have the 
 statement that the Lord would have fed them with the finest of the 
 wheat, we are to conclude that, even as wheat which yields most 
 gluten is best for the body, so God's gifts which bring us in privilege 
 nearest to him are best for the soul — sweetest, most nourishing. All 
 these indeed are enjoyed by " the people near to him : " — 
 
 " He maketh peace in thy borders. 
 And fiUeth thee with the finest of the wheat" (Ps cxlv. 11, 14).
 
 412 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Psalm Ixxxiii. contains the cry of tlie Churcli against the oppositior 
 of the World. This is set before us in connection with a confederacy 
 of the tribes mentioned in verses 6-8 against Israel : — 
 
 " The tabernacles of Edom, and the Islimaelites ; 
 Of Moab, and the Hagarenes ; 
 Gebal, and Animon, Amalek, 
 The Pliilistines, with the inhabitants of Tyre ; 
 Assur also is joined with thera : 
 They have holpen the children of Lot." 
 
 All the tribes appear to have lain on the borders of the land of Israel, 
 taking that territory in its widest limits. " Ishmaelites," strictly 
 descendants of Abraham's son. "Hagarenes" and "Hagarites" are 
 generally regarded as descendants of Hagar. But the marked way in 
 which they are distinguished from the offspring of Ishmael, makes it 
 much more likely that they were a tribe of the Beni Kedem, already 
 noticed, who took tlieir name from the place in which they dwelt. 
 " Gebal is named by Ezekiel (xxvii. 9) in such a way as to warrant the 
 conclusion, that it was a Phoenician city. Its inhabitants are believed 
 to have been the " Giblites" (Josh. xiii. 5), and the city itself to have 
 been the " Byblus " of the ancients, a frontier city of Phoenicia. " Moab 
 and Ammon" were the "children of Lot," to whose assistance the 
 other tribes had come. Their territory lay along the east of the Dead 
 Sea and of the lower parts of the Jordan. They were noted for their 
 cruelty, their marauding habits, and constant hatred of Israel. 
 
 Psalm Ixxxiv. — When David w'as driven from Jerusalem by his 
 rebellious son Absalom, he had the memory of the precious seasons he 
 had enjoyed in the " courts of the Lord " brought very freshly before 
 him. This is the burden of this psalm : — 
 
 " Yea, the sparrow hath found an house, 
 And the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, 
 Even thine altars, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God " (ver. 2, 3). 
 
 " Sparrow," Heb. tzippor, Gr. struthion. The word is I'endered 
 sparrow only twice in the Old Testament — here and in Psalm cii.; fowl 
 is given as its translation six times, and bird above thirty times. The 
 name appears to have been used in a very general way for any little 
 bird with which the people were very familiar. Three species of 
 sparrow are abundant in Palestine. The species which frequents 
 towns and villages is the Cisalpine sparrow {Passer cisaJpinus), and is 
 most likely the bird referred to here. The swallow of Palestine is the 
 Hirundo rufula — Teinm. The figures of two well known species are
 
 PSALMS LVIII.-CII. 
 
 given on Plate XXXIIL, figs. 1, 2. A closely related bird, the swift 
 (Ci/psehis), is represented by at least two species (C. opus; C. melbd) 
 in Palestine. The generic name of the swallow Fig.121. 
 
 {Hinindo) is often given to this form, but, generically, 
 a broad difference obtains between them. The foot, 
 for example, is wholly unlike that of the swallow. 
 The hind toe (liallux) is turned forwards, as shown 
 in the cut; whereas the swallow shows only three 
 toes in front. 
 
 The thought which filled the mind of the Psalmist, rootofthes<rtft 
 as memory recalled the scenes from which he had (Cyp>ti>u apm). 
 been driven, is one of great beauty and touching tenderness. Many 
 since his day have been able to sjTnpathize with him very fully. Samuel 
 Rutherford when in banishment from a beloved people wrote to Lady 
 Kenmure — " I am for the present thinking the sparrows and swallows 
 that build their nests in Anwoth blessed birds." 
 
 Psalm xci. — The blessedness of an abiding interest in God as a 
 
 covenant God is celebrated here. One fruit of which is stated in 
 
 ver. 4 : — 
 
 " Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler." 
 
 See Plate XL., fig. 3. 
 
 Psalm xciv. — As a " Song for the Sabbath-day," this psalm 
 makes known to us the topics which filled the mind of the wor- 
 shipper in olden times, when the "day of rest" returned, after the 
 toil and weariness of worldly occupations. The whole day to him 
 lay between the soul's acknowledgment of the lovmg-kindness of God, 
 when the sweet light of morning broke in upon the world, and the 
 soul's expression of thankfulness for God's faithful care and keeping, 
 when the shades of night fell upon the earth : — 
 
 " It is good — 
 To show forth thy loving-kindness in the morning, 
 And thy faithfulness every night " (ver. 2). 
 
 The Psalmist's heart was not originally glad. It had no natural 
 cause of rejoicing, but in grace God had led it into joy. It is good, 
 he says, to praise thee : — 
 
 " For thou, Lord, hast made me glad through thy work." 
 
 Creation and Providence are spread out before him. The works of 
 Jehovah are wonderful, but more wonderful still are his ways. His 
 mind is revealed in his works; his heart is shown in his ways. In both,
 
 414 BIBLICAL NATUliAL SCIENCE. 
 
 liuwever, he so acts as to keep the Sabbath-worshipper feeling, that he 
 knows very little of either — 
 
 " O Lord, how great arc thy works ! 
 And thy thoughts are very deep " (ver. 5). 
 
 He knows something of tliese, which is good. But better than this is 
 to trust in the Worker, even when the end of his doings is not seen, 
 and to have confidence in his tlioughts, when they seem only severe. 
 Many know not tliis. The ignorant know it not. It is hid from " the 
 brutish man and the fool." These are the wicked on whose cud he 
 now meditates : — 
 
 " When the wicked spring as the grass, 
 And when all the workers of iaii|uity do flourish : 
 It is that they shall be destroyed for ever " (ver. 7). 
 
 From these he turns away to his own case. His trust was in God, and 
 he had the strong confidence of a child that his heavenly Father would 
 abundantly bless him : — 
 
 " But my horn shalt thou exalt like an unicorn : 
 I shall be anointed with fresh oil" (ver. 10). 
 
 As with himself so shall it be with all who love the Lord. His affec- 
 tions are quickened as he meditates, and from himself as blessed of 
 God, he turns to those who like him are righteous: — 
 
 " The righteous shall flourish like the palm-tree ; 
 He shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. 
 Those that he planted in the house of the Lord 
 Shall flourish in the courts of our God. 
 They shall bring forth fruit in old age ; 
 They shall be fat and flourishing" (ver. 12-14). 
 
 We see here the full force of the contrast. The wicked spring as 
 the grass; the righteous flourish like the palm, and grow like the cedar. 
 
 "Grass" (ver. 7), Hebrew esher, is a general term answering to 
 herbaceous plants — see under Jeremiah xii. 14. 
 
 " Unicorn" (ver. 10), Hebrew rean — see under Numbers xxiii. 26. 
 
 "Oil" (ver. 10), Hebrew i^hemen — see under 2 Kings xviii. 36. 
 
 "Palm-tree" (ver. 12), Hebrew tamdr. The species of palm 
 referred to here is the date-palm [Plicenix dadijlifera). It is fully 
 noticed under Exodus xv. 27 — which see. It is named here as an 
 emblem of the life of the righteous — " They shall flourish as the palm- 
 tree." The wicked are likened to the grass, or herbaceous plants,
 
 PSALMS LVIII.-CII. 415 
 
 which never rise high above the ground, which are weak, proverbially 
 short-lived and fading, and which are generally cut down even before 
 their full maturity. The palm-tree, on the contrary, shoots up towards 
 the sky — a stately tree. In favoured situations it grows for years in 
 beauty and in strength. AVhercver it is found, the people guard it 
 carefully as one of the plants of which they are ever ready to say, 
 " Destroy it not, for a blessing is in it." With the Jew the palm-tree 
 and the cedar were reckoned emblems of immortality. The righteous 
 are represented here as " planted in the house of the Lord, and as 
 flourishing in the courts of our God." They are the Lord's peculiar 
 people and special care. They dwell with him — have a place in his 
 house among his chosen on the earth, and will for eternity dwell amidst 
 such beauty as eye hath not seen. The connection between their lot 
 and the emblems used here is to be found in the figures of the 
 palm-trees in the teraple-adornings, and in the use of the cedar in its 
 building. The palm-tree likewise often graced the com'ts devoted to 
 religious worship. " The royal poet has derived more than one figure 
 from the customs of men, and the habits of this noble tree, with which 
 to adorn his sacred ode. The palm grows slowly but steadily, from 
 century to century, uninfluenced by those alternations of the seasons 
 which afil'ct other trees. It docs not rejoice overmuch in winter's 
 copious rain, nor docs it droop under the drought and the burning sun 
 of summer. Neither heavy weights which men place upon its head, 
 nor the importunate urgency of the wind, can sway it aside from perfect 
 uprightness. There it stands, looking calmly down upon the world 
 below, and patiently yielding its large clusters of golden fruit from 
 generation to generation. They bring forth fruit in old age. The 
 allusion to being planted in the house of the Lord is probably drawn 
 from the custom of planting beautiful and long-lived trees in the courts 
 of temples and palaces, and in all "high places" used for worship. 
 This is still common ; nearly every palace, and mosque, and convent 
 in the country has such trees in the courts, and, being well protected 
 there, they flourish exceedingly. Solomon covered all the walls of the 
 "Holy of Holies" round about with palm-trees. They were thus 
 planted, as it were, within the very house of the Lord ; and their 
 presence there was not only ornamental, but appropriate and highly 
 suggestive ; the very best emblem, not only of patience in well-doing 
 but of the rewards of the righteous — a fat and flourishing old age — a 
 peaceful end — a glorious immortality." 
 
 " The righteous shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon." The emblem
 
 416 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 is highly suggestive. The grass springs up in a summer morning. 
 Its duration is short. The burning rays of tlie sun wither it, the beasts 
 of the field lick it up, or the scythe of the husbandman mows it level 
 with the ground. Such is the lot of the wicked. But the growth of 
 the cedar is slow. Silently it shoots upwards, and casts its wide- 
 spreading branches with their clustered evergreen leaflets over the 
 soil. When centuries have passed away, it stands in the vigour and 
 freshness of youth. Its roots spread widely out around, and even in 
 positions seemingly least favoured it finds nourishment. The sunshine 
 of centuries falls on it. The stars look down on it, and the rain and 
 the dew water it, while generation after generation of men are gathered 
 to their fathers. Even as a seedling it gives promise of its after 
 characteristics. The embryo stalk shoots quickly into the sunlight, 
 and a cluster of needle-shaped, light green leaflets give at once their 
 shadow to tiny plant or blade below. Thus the righteous grow. 
 Upward and onward ever are their paths. Rooted and grounded in 
 love, they are not excited and agitated by the things which destroy the 
 peace of others. They truly live ; their life is hid with Christ in God ; 
 and spiritual life, like natural life, is calm and noiseless in its manifesta- 
 tions. These become seen of all, but only in the way in which the 
 growth of the palm-tree and the wide-spreading branches of the cedar 
 are. " By their fruits ye shall know them." The cedar yields to man 
 the pleasure of beholding its strength, and its steady, stately growth. 
 It ministers to his comfort, and guides his thoughts upward as one of 
 " the trees of God." The psalm teaches the great lesson of unselfish- 
 ness. It bears fruit for others : — 
 
 " Freely thou givest, and Thy word 
 Is, ' Freely give.' 
 He only, who forgets to hoard, 
 Has learned to live."— (A'ei/e.) 
 
 Psalm cii. — The whole scope of this psalm verifies the title — "A 
 prayer of the afflicted when he is overwhelmed, and poureth out his 
 complaint before the Lord." Crying as from the depths of intense 
 suffering and spiritual darkness, he prays—" Hide not thy face from 
 me, incline thine ear unto me, answer me speedily." His days passed 
 away like the smoke rising from the fire, his " bones were burned as an 
 hearth, his heart was smitten, and withered like the grass," when it has 
 yielded to the scythe of the mower, and been exposed to the heat of tlie 
 sun. His agony was such that the juices of nature were dried up— his
 
 PSALMS LVIII.-CII. 417 
 
 " boues cleaved to his skiu." Separated from the sympathies of his 
 fellows, he says : — 
 
 " I am like a pelican of the wilderness : 
 I am like an owl of the desert" (ver. 6). 
 
 "Pelican," Heb. haath. In two of the five passages in which the 
 word occurs, it is translated "cormorant" (Isa. xxxiv. 11 ; Zeph. ii. 14). 
 But it is better to follow the other three passages, and to render it by 
 "pelican" in these also, giving the word used for cormorant {shCddJS) in 
 Levit. xi. 17; Deut. xiv. 17, as the right one for that bird. Isaiah and 
 Zephaniah allude to the pelican, as a bird whose favoured haunts were 
 found in those desolate and wild regions, which, because of the sins of 
 those who had dwelt in them, had fallen under a curse. The desert- 
 loving nature of the pelican is alluded to in this psalm. It is still 
 usually met only in such places : — Fig.m. 
 
 " This Hideh — plain, marsh, lake, 
 and surrounding mountains — is the 
 finest hunting-ground in Syria, and 
 mainly so because it is very rarely 
 visited. Panthers and leopards, bears 
 and wolves, jackals, hyenas, and 
 foxes, and many other animals, are 
 found, great and small, while it is 
 the very paradise of the wild boar 
 and the fleet gazelle. As to water- — tr^rswe^ 
 .fowl, it is scarcely an exaggeration to 
 affirm that the lower end of the lake common Peu«n. 
 
 is absolutely covered with them in the winter and spring. Here only 
 have I seen the pelican of the wilderness, as David calls it. I once 
 had one of them shot just below this place, and, as it was merely 
 wounded in the wing, I had a good opportunity to study its character. 
 It was certainly the most sombre, austere bird I ever saw. David 
 could find no more expressive type of solitude and melancholy by which 
 to illustrate his own sad state. It seemed as large as a half-grown 
 donkey, and when fairly settled on its stout legs, it looked like one. 
 The pelican is never seen but in these unfrequented solitudes, and to 
 this agree all the references to it in the Bible." — {Thomson.) 
 
 This bird belongs to the group Natatores, or swimmers, and is the 
 type of a family to which it gives its name — the Pelecam'dce. It is the 
 Pelecanus onocratulus of zoologists. The colour of the common pelican 
 
 VOL, II. 3 G
 
 418 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Flg.ia. 
 
 I'ellcan's Foot 
 
 is white, slightly tinged with a delicate rose hue. Its bill is loug. 
 The upper mandible is tipped by a bright red nail. The lower mandi- 
 ble has the characteristic leathery yellow pouch attached to it, in which 
 it puts the fish which it carries to feed its young, or takes with it into 
 localities far from the waters iu which the fish abound. Its habit of 
 
 pressing this pouch on its 
 breast when feeding its young, 
 to raise the fish up to the bill, 
 gave rise to the fable that it 
 supplied nourishment to the 
 young by drawing blood from 
 its own breast. The Pele- 
 canidce differ from swimmers 
 in the structure of their feet. 
 The hinder toe is turned in- 
 wards, and joined to the inner 
 fore toe by a narrow triangular web. The legs are short, the wings 
 very large and powerful, often measuring thirteen feet from tip to tip. 
 Plate XXXI., fig. 1. 
 
 '•I watch, and am as a sparrow alone upon the house-top" (vtr. 7). 
 
 " Sparrow," Heb. tzvppdr. Perhaps nothing more is indicated here 
 than simply — "I am as a little bird sitting alone." The use of the 
 w^ord has been pointed out under Psalm Ixxxiv. 3. Mr. Waterton 
 believes that the solitary sparrow {Passer soJiiariiis) is the bird referred 
 to here. "It is," he says, "a thrush in size, in shape, in habits, and 
 song ; with this difference, that it is remarkable throughout all the 
 East, for sitting solitary on the habitations of man." And he adds — 
 " It is, indeed, a solitary bird, for it never associates with any other, 
 and only with its own mate at breeding time ; and even then it is often 
 seen quite alone upon the house-top, where it warbles in sweet and 
 plaintive strains, and continues its song as it moves in easy flight from 
 roof to roof. It lays five eggs, of a very pale blue. The bird itself is 
 blue, with black wings and tail ; the blue of the body becoming lighter 
 when placed in different attitudes."
 
 PSALMS OIII.-CL. 
 
 419 
 
 PSALMS CIII.-CL. 
 
 HIS psalm (ciii.) has been termed " a still, clear, running 
 brook of the praise of God." The remark is happily made. 
 It is a song of unmingled thanksgiving. Even the view of 
 the shortness and uncertainty of life in verses 15, 16, is 
 
 •'• not permitted to interrupt the flow of the joyous stream of 
 his thoughts, for he hastens to say — 
 
 'But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting 
 To everlasting upon them that fear him, 
 And his righteousness unto children's children." 
 
 ^He tells of "iniquities forgiven," "diseases healed," "a life redeemed 
 from destruction," and the whole man "crowned with loving-kindness 
 and tender mercies." Still looking God- rig. 124. 
 
 ward, he says : — 
 
 '' Wlio satisfieth thy mouth with good things ; 
 So that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's." 
 
 "Eagle, 
 
 Heb. nesher — see under 
 Levit. xi. 13, and Jer. xlviii. 40. Much 
 ingenuity has been exercised to find 
 something in the habits of the eagle, 
 answering to the view which is generally 
 taken of this verse. The fruits have not 
 been satisfactory. If the reference were 
 only to the periodic moulting of that 
 bird, why have chosen it in preference 
 to any other, for in this respect it in 
 no way differs from other birds? To 
 suppose that the great age to which the eagle lives is the point referred 
 to, is not more to the purpose. It attains to maturity by increasing in 
 age, and not by renewing its youth. There is nothing in the construction 
 of the original words opposed to a different rendering. The Psalmist 
 has spoken of the " mouth being satisfied with good things" — strength- 
 ening food. Thus, h§ says, thy youth is renewed — the strength of 
 youth is carried into ripening years. Tlie comparison is not between
 
 youth and youth, but between strength and strength — thy strength is 
 like the strength of the eagle. Thy youth is renewed, you become 
 strong — strong even as the eagle, ever able and ready for upward 
 flight. 
 
 Psalm civ. — In the Septuagint this psalm is inscribed as a psalm of 
 David, " On the ordering of the world." The author celebrates the 
 power, wisdom, goodness, and care of God in his works of creation and 
 providence. By one instance and another, he illustrates the glory of 
 God in these. Like thoughtful men generally, he saw underlying " the 
 things that are seen" great spiritual realities, of which that which is 
 visible was only a type. He calls upon his soul to " bless the Lord," as 
 one who is very great, and clothed with honour and majesty" (ver. 1). 
 "Dwelling in the light inaccessible" God is rei:)resented as covering 
 himself with light as with a garment, and as stretching out the heaven 
 like a curtain, that is, as the awnings of the tabernacle. " The cham- 
 bers" (ver. 3) point to the region of the clouds, and the clouds are "the 
 
 FiE 125. 
 
 The Dshiggetai or Kyang (Amxu hemimut). 
 
 wings of the wind." His sovereignty over the elements is noticed in 
 verse 4 ; over the earth and sea in verses 5-9. 
 
 " He sendeth springs to the valleys, 
 Which run among the hills. 
 They give drink to every beast of the field : 
 The -wild asses quench their thirst" (ver. 10, 11). 
 
 "Wild ass," Heb. pereli; in Job xxix. 5, arod, wliich see. The 
 animal referred to here is not the wild ass properly so called, as the
 
 PSALMS CIII.-CL. 
 
 421 
 
 original of the domestic breed, but one wlilcli is to be regarded as a 
 different species — the "dshlggetal kyang," or "ghor-kliur" {Asinus 
 hemionus). This is the species alluded to in Job vl. 5, xl. 12, 
 xxlv. 5, xxxix. 5 (first clause) ; Isa. xxxii. 14 ; Jor. ii. 24, xiv. G ; Hos. 
 vlii. 9. The genuine wild ass is the untamed individual of the common 
 ass species {Asinus vulgaris, Plate XIX., fig. 2) — the true Onager of 
 old naturalists, which is still found wild in the north-east of Africa, and 
 sometimes in South Arabia. It is named IJidindr in Scripture, and is 
 very frequently referred to as a beast of burden. The following species 
 may be named, of which the aboriginally wild ass is the type — the 
 quagga and zebra (Plate XIX., fig. 3), both natives of South Africa. 
 The hemippus and dshiggettii, met with in Asia. 
 
 The prophet Ezekiel (xxxi. 3-9) names the cedar, fir, and chestnut, or 
 rather plane, as " trees of Eden, that were in the garden of God." The 
 cedar and the fir are mentioned here as " the trees of the Lord full of 
 sap" — great trees with noble trunks and wide-spreading branches. 
 The figure is not uncommon. Thus in Psalm xxxvi. 7, we have the 
 expression — 
 
 " Thy righteousness is like the great mountains," 
 
 literally, " like the mountains of God." Abraham was called by the 
 
 children of Heth "a mighty prince" — a prince 
 
 of God. The power and glory of the Creator 
 
 are held to be most fully made known by the 
 
 noblest and greatest of the objects named — 
 
 as the highest mountain, the largest trees, and 
 
 the most powerful man. 
 
 " Cedar," Heb. erez, one of the trees of God, 
 is the Lebanon species {Cedrus Lihani). See 
 under 1 Kings iv. 33, v. 8, 10. " Fir," Heb. 
 berdsJt, is fully noticed under the latter passage. 
 The reference to the fir, as pre-eminently one 
 of the trees which declare the greatness of 
 God, is another proof that the true rendering of 
 herosli is not Cupressus sempervirens. The stork 
 is here said to make her nest in the fir-tree. 
 The fir or the cedar, from the mode in which their branches grow, 
 would be much more suitable for receiving the dry twigs of which the 
 nest is built, than would the cypress with its upright branches gathered 
 close to the central stem. " The storks," says Shaw (ii. 272), " breed 
 })leutifully in Barbary every summer. They make their nests with dry 
 
 White Stork.
 
 twigs of trees, which they place upon the highest parts of old ruins or 
 houses, in the canals of ancient aqueducts, and frequently, so familiar 
 are they by being never molested, upon the very tops of their mosques 
 and dwelling-houses. The fir, and other trees likewise, when these are 
 wanting, are a dwelling for the stork." The allusion by Milton to the 
 nesting places of the eagle and the stork is perfectly true to nature : — 
 
 ' The eagle and the stork 
 On cliffs and cedar tops their eyries build." 
 
 " Stork," Heb. Ji/wsuM. (Plate XIV.). The stork {Ciconia) is ranked 
 under the Heron family [Anhidce) and the order Grallatores. Two 
 species were common in Bible lands, the white stork (C. alia, Plate 
 Fig. 127. XV., fig. 2), and the black stork (C. 
 
 nujra). The stork is named in Levit. x. 
 19, and Deut. xiv. 18, as one of the birds 
 not permitted to be eaten. It was a 
 migratory bird, Jer. viii. 7, visiting Pales- 
 tine and breeding there : — 
 
 " The high hills are a refuge for the wild goats ; 
 And the rocks for the conies " (vcr. 1 8). 
 
 " Wild goats," Heb. yehelim — see under 
 Job xxxix. 1. 
 'Wy /^^i "Coney," Heb. shapJuln. This word 
 
 Wild Goat (Cr.pr<"««)- occurs four times. In Levit. xi. 5, and 
 
 Deut. xiv. 7, the coney is mentioned along with the camel and the 
 hare, as a beast which was not to be eaten. The reason assigned 
 for the prohibition was, " because he cheweth the cud, but divideth 
 not the hoof." The characterization of the camel in the same chap- 
 ters is so accurate, that we should expect the same precision in the 
 description of the coney and the hare. Both are said by Moses to 
 chew the cud ; but neither of them does so, if we hold that the same 
 ideas were implied in the expression used in Scripture as we attach to 
 the word " ruminating." Both the coney and the hare belong to 
 zooloo-ical groups which differ much in structure and habits from the 
 Einninantia. The distinctions drawn by Moses in Levit. xi. 1-8, were 
 such as would attract the notice of those who were familiar with the 
 animals. The ox, the sheep, and the goat, chewed their food twice. 
 Was there any thing in the habits of the coney and the hare analogous 
 to this? There are animals which, while they differ structurally from 
 the true ruminants, as, for example, the kangaroo, bring their food into
 
 PSALMS CIII.-CL. 
 
 423 
 
 the mouth a second time and rechew it. This power of regurgitating 
 the food is clearly all that is implied in the words of Moses. I have 
 noticed it in tame rabbits. The poet Cowper mistook this for true 
 cud-chewing in the case of his pet hares, one of which, he says, " hid 
 himself generally under the leaves of a cucumber vine, sleeping or 
 chewing the cud till evening." The Jewish lawgiver was not describ- 
 ing peculiarities of internal structure, but characteristics which a close 
 observer would notice in the animals referred to. Some of these 
 re-chewed their food, as a habit associated with marks of structure which 
 modern science recognizes, and assigns to them a well-marked place in 
 classification. Others gave evidence of corresponding habits, and are 
 popularly linked up with these. 
 
 The coney is now well known. It is the hyrax [Hijrax Si/n'acus), 
 an animal whose zoological place is among the pachyderms, or thick- 
 skinned mammals, between the rhinoceros and the tapir. It was first 
 scientifically described by Pallas, as Cavia capensis, from a specimen 
 
 Vis. 1-28. 
 
 Hyrax (//. Capensis). 
 
 j^!f^-<*.^(%^ ■ 
 
 brought from the Cape in 1700. Bruce sent a drawing and description 
 of another species to Buffon from Abyssinia in 1782. In the beginning 
 of the present century Shaw found it abundant in Syria. He refers to 
 it as the Daman. The daman Israel, he says, " is an animal likewise 
 of Mount Libanus, though common in other places of this country. It 
 is a harmless creature, of the same size and quality with the rabbit, 
 and with the like incurvating posture and disposition of the fore-teeth. 
 But it is of a browner colour, with smaller eyes, and a head more
 
 424 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 pointed, like the marmots. The fore-rfeet likewise are short, and the 
 hinder are nearly as long in proportion as those of the jerboa. Though 
 tliis animal is known to burrow sometimes in the ground ; yet, as its 
 usual residence and refuge is in the holes and clefts of the focks, we 
 have so far a more presumptive proof that this creature may be the 
 saphan of the Scriptures than the jerboa. I could not learn why it 
 was called daman Israel, i.e. Israel's lamb, as those words are inter- 
 preted." Dr. Wilson found the hyrax at M;ir Sabtl, " gamboling on the 
 heights." " We watched them narrowly," he says, " and were much 
 amused with the liveliness of their motions, and the quickness of their 
 retreat within the clefts of the rock when they apprehended danger." 
 Having climbed up to see their nest, they found it a hole in the rock, 
 comfortably lined with moss and feathers. It has considerable 
 resemblance to a rabbit, and thus our word " coney" from the specific 
 name for the rabbit [Lepus cuniculus). Its hair is o'i a duskier brown 
 than that of the rabbit. Bristles occur around the nostrils and above 
 the eyes, and long bristle-like hairs are scattered among the short hair 
 of the body. The hyrax is tailless. The Arabs call it " Ghanmein 
 beni Israel," the sheep of the Jews. 
 
 Reference is made to the hyrax in " the words of Agur the son of 
 Jakeh " (Prov. xxx. 26) — " The conies are but a feeble folk, yet make 
 they their houses in the rocks." They are little but " exceeding wise." 
 Wycliffe prettily renders this passage, " A litil hare, a folc unmyzti, 
 that in a ston his bed settith." Noticing the great castle of Kurein, 
 Dr Thomson says : — " When I first climbed into the castle, I was 
 delighted to see, quietly sitting among the ruins, a beautiful little coney. 
 It had shown that wisdom in selecting the rocks for its refuge which 
 Solomon commends in Proverbs xxx. 20 — ' The conies are a feeble 
 folk, yet make they their houses in the rocks.' I have seen them on 
 the wild clitTs of the Litany, Below Blut, and also above the rocky pass 
 of el Buiyad, on the Ladder of Tyre. In shape they resemble the rabbit, 
 but are smaller, and of a dull russet colour. Our friends of Alma call 
 them tiibsun, and are well acquainted with them and their habits, as 
 they are with the jerboa and many other animals rarely met with 
 except in such rocky regions as this." 
 
 " He caiisetb the grass to grow for the cattle, 
 And herb for the service of man ; 
 That he may bring forth food out of the eartli ; 
 And wine that maketh glad the heart of man, 
 And oil to make his face to shine, 
 And bread which strengtheneth man's heart" (ver. 14, 15).
 
 PSALMS CIIl.-CL. 425 
 
 Pastures for the flocks and herds, fields of corn for the use of man, and 
 the preparation of the fruits of the earth in forms in which they are 
 readily useful, as wine, oil, and bread, are named here. The wine 
 mentioned had the quality of fermented liquors; it gladdened the heart. 
 Thus, if taken to excess, it would have led to intoxication. The Hebrew 
 terra is yayin, answering to the Greek oinos, and including every form 
 which the juice of the grape might be made to assume as a beverage. 
 It was this of which Noah partook when he became drunken (Gen. ix. 
 21, 24). Melcbizedek brought it forth to Abraham (Gen. xiv. 18). 
 Lot's daughters gave it to their father and made him drunk (Gen. xix. 
 35). From this the Nazarite was to separate himself (Num. vi. 3-20). 
 Tliis is the highly intoxicating drink so often mentioned by Isaiah 
 v. 11-22, xxii. 13, xxviii. 1-7), etc.; but just because of this, it might 
 become to man one of those mercies in connection with the use of 
 which he was to exercise constant self-control. Taken to excess it 
 was a curse ; enjoyed as from God, it was something for which man 
 was called to be thankful. 
 
 Psalm ex. — The frequency with which this psalm is referred to in the 
 New Testament, and the use made of its opening verse, leaves no 
 doubt as to its scope. Christ was David's Lord : — 
 
 " Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness, 
 From the womb of the morning thou hast the clew of thy youth" (ver. 3). 
 
 Some interpreters have proposed to render the word used here for 
 "dew" by "male child." Others believe it should be "lamb." These 
 alternative renderings have resulted from a want of true appreciation 
 of the bearing of the figure. "The day of God's power" is to the 
 soul the time of the new birth crisis, and the new man stands forth in 
 the beauties of holiness. The garments of righteousness are lovely as 
 the " dew-bespangled herb and tree." The vegetation receives its 
 fresh adorniugs from the womb of the morning, and the willing people 
 theirs from the influences in that Jerusalem which is above and is the 
 mother of us all (Gal. iv. 26). Thus decked they are given to Christ, 
 in his Mclcliizedek or eternal priesthood. 
 
 This and the fourteen following psalms are called " Songs of 
 Degrees" — songs to be sung by the Israelites in their periodic journeys 
 up to Jerusalem at the seasons of their great feasts. In this psalra 
 the pilgrim recalls some of the bitterest experiences of the past, and 
 realizes the circumstances of his present lot. Hating insincerity he 
 cries — 
 
 VOL. IL 3 H
 
 420 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 " Deliver my soul, O Lord, from lying lips and from a deceitful tongue. 
 
 What shall be given unto thee? or what shall lie done unto thee, tliou false tongue? 
 Sharp arrows of the mighty, with coals of juniper" (ver. 1-4). 
 
 The word (rothem) translated "juniper," has been identified under 
 1 Kings xix. 4 — wliicli see. The wood of the retem (Genista) is still 
 used as fuel in Egypt and Syria. It retains heat for a longer time 
 than many other kinds of wood. Thus the expression points to severe 
 and long-continued punishment. " Coals of juniper," or charred 
 rotliem-wood. 
 
 Psalm cxxi. is a true pilgrim song. Setting out on a visit to the Holy 
 City the Wanderer or Exile says — " I will lift up mine eyes to the 
 hills." " From a mountain sanctuary, as it were, Israel looked over 
 the world. ' The mountain of the Lord's house ' — ' established on the 
 tops of the mountains' — 'exalted above the hills' — to which 'all nations 
 should go up' — was the image in which the prophets delighted to 
 represent the future glory of their country. When ' the Lord had a 
 controversy with his people,' it was to be ' before the mountains and 
 the hills,' and ' the strong foundations of the earth.' When the 
 messengers of glad tidings returned from the captivity, their feet were 
 'beautiful upon the mountains.' It was to the 'mountains' of Israel 
 that the exile lifted up his eyes, as the place ' from whence his help 
 came.' To the oppressed it was 'the mountains' that brought 'judg- 
 ment, and the hills righteousness.' ' My mountain' — ' my holy moun- 
 tain' — are expressions for the whole country." — (Stanley.) 
 
 " The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night." He 
 who created those orbs promised to the returning exile that their 
 influences would be restrained for his sake. He would not be afflicted 
 with that terrible calamity sunstroke ; and when sleeping in the open 
 air with the cold moonbeams falling on him, and all the atmospheric 
 influences which accompany it in full operation, God would yet be his 
 protector ; nothing should hurt him. 
 
 Psalm cxxviii. — Earthly prosperity was to be to Israel an evidence 
 of the favour of God. This helps to explain some of the allusions here ; 
 the expression for example — 
 
 " Thy children, like olive-plants, round about thy table." "Follow 
 me," says a recent traveller in Palestine, " into the grove, and I will 
 show you what may have suggested the comparison. Here we have 
 hit upon a beautiful illustration. This aged and cLecayed tree is sur- 
 rounded, as you see, by several young and thrifty shoots, which spring 
 from the root of the venerable parent. They seem to uphold, protect.
 
 PSALilS CIII.-CI.. 
 
 and embrace it. We may even fancy that they now bear that load of 
 fruit wliicli would otherwise be demanded of the feeble parent. Thus 
 do good and affectionate children gather round the table of the right- 
 eous. Each contributes something to the common wealth and welfare 
 of the whole — a beautiful sight, with which may God refresh the eyes 
 of every friend of mine." 
 
 Egypt, Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome, each in its turn, hated 
 Zion and persecuted her. The church speaks, in Psalm cxxix., of her 
 many afflictions, and appeals to God to undertake for her. 
 
 " Let them all be confounded and turned back that hate Zion : Let 
 them be as the grass upon the house-tops, which withereth afore it 
 groweth up." " Groweth up" — more correctly, "is plucked up." To 
 the flat roofs of eastern dwellings, when the dust is permitted to collect, 
 the breezes carry the seeds of grass. These spring up under the clouded 
 sky and amidst the abounding moisture of the rainy season. But so 
 frail and insecure are their roots, that a few davs of a briirht sunshine 
 destroys them. " They are withered before they are plucked up." 
 
 Psalm cxxxiii. — The goodness and beauty of brotherly love and for- 
 bearance form the theme of this psalm. "Dwelling together in unity" 
 is said to be — 
 
 " As the dew of Hermon, that descended on the mountains of Zion." 
 
 Our translators have inserted ^'mid as the den;'' with the view of dis- 
 sociating Hermon and Zion. But this spoils much of the beauty of the 
 figure. " Hermon" — the modem Jebel-esh- Sheikh — is the name given 
 to the high southern outliers of Anti-Libanus. Its highest point is 
 Hermon proper, or "The lofty peak." "From the moment that the 
 traveller reaches the plain of Shechem in the interior, nay, even from 
 the depths of the Jordan-valley of the Dead Sea, the snowy heights of 
 Hermon are visible. , . . The 'dews' of the mists that rose 
 from its watery ravines, or of the clouds that rested on its summit 
 were perpetual witnesses of freshness and coolness, the sources, as it 
 seemed, of all the moisture which was to the land of Palestine what the 
 fragrant oil was to the garments of the High Priest ; what the refresh- 
 ing influence of brotherly love was to the whole community." — {Stanley.) 
 Psalm cxxxvii. — I\Iemories of the captivity at Babylon, and of the 
 treatment of the people in their bondage, crowd in upon one of the 
 captives, and he strikes his harp to this plaintive strain : — 
 
 "By the rivers of Babylon there we sat down; 
 Yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. 
 We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof."
 
 428 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 "The beautiful house where their fathers had worshipped" was laid 
 waste. Their position in Babylon told them that they had been 
 unfaithful to God. Present sorrow was the fruit of sin — they wept and 
 hanged their harps on the willows. 
 
 " Willow," Heb. crev^ is no doubt the weeping willow [Selix Bahj- 
 lonicd) still abundant in the region pointed to, the banks of Euphrates 
 and Tigris, drooping over pools which tell of the famous canals of 
 Babylon (Isa. xliv. 4). The plant has ever been a favourite in song, 
 lending beauty to places — 
 
 " Where the willow keeps 
 A patient watch over the stream that creeps 
 Wanderingly." 
 
 What were the rivers of Babylon, by which the captives sat down? 
 The answer has generally been, "The canals between the Euphrates and 
 the Tigris." But they were more likely these great rivers themselves. 
 The word rendered "rivers" is that associated with the waters of Eden 
 (Gen. ii). It denotes a much larger flow of water than a canal. It is 
 used one hundred and fourteen times in the Old Testament, and always 
 in the modern sense of a river, as distinguished from a stream, or the 
 artificial gathering of water. Both kinds are pointed out by Mr. Lay- 
 ard as characteristic of Babylon : — " Long before Babylon had overcome 
 her rival, Nineveh, she was famous for the extent and importance ot 
 her commerce. No position could have then been more favourable than 
 hers for carrying on a trade with all the regions of the known world. 
 She stood upon a navigable stream that brought to her quays the pro- 
 duce of the temperate highlands of Armenia, approaclied in one part of 
 its course within almost one hundred miles of the Mediterranean Sea, 
 and emptied its waters into a gulf of the Indian Ocean. Parallel with 
 this great river was one scarcely inferior in size and importance. The 
 Tigris, too, came from the Armenian hills, flowed through the fertile 
 districts of Assyria, and carried their varied produce to the Babylonian 
 cities. INIoderate skill and enterprise could scarcely fail to make Baby- 
 lon, not only the emporium of the Eastern w^orld, but the main link of 
 commercial intercourse l)etween the East and the AVest. Tlie inhabit- 
 ants did not neglect the advantages bestowed upon them by nature. 
 A system of navigable canals that may excite the admiration of even 
 the modern engineer, connected together the Euphrates and Tigris, 
 those great arteries of commerce. With a skill showing no common 
 knowledge of the art of surveying, and ot the principles of hydraulics, 
 the Babylonians took advantage of the different levels in the plains,
 
 PI^TF. Ml 
 
 ■f 
 
 .». 
 
 ss^^ 
 
 Z}^ 
 
 
 12 
 
 
 
 ^iv^X-^Vv?^^ 
 
 -■\^T^-^ 
 
 ^^Si:^ 
 
 ^> i. 
 
 'e^Si^c^ 
 
 HE SCATTERETH THE HOARFROST.— Ps. cxlvil. 16. 
 
 i..tL>*V lifcCiOJit &L»SCOW tCIWflUMw iWOOi i •ftw^CP-
 
 PSALMS CIII.-CL. 429 
 
 and of the periodical rises in the two rivers, to complete the water 
 communication between all parts of" the province, and to fertilize by 
 artificial irrigation an otherwise barren and unproductive soil. Alex- 
 ander, after he had transferred the seat of his empire to the East, so 
 fully understood the importance of these great works, tliat he ordered 
 them to be cleansed and repaired, and superintended the work in per- 
 son, steering his boat with his own hand through tlie channels." — 
 ("Nineveh and Babylon," p. 534.) 
 
 Psalm cxxxv. — " God has chosen Israel for his peculiar treasure." 
 This gracious and blessed fact was to become a motive for the halle- 
 lujahs of priests and people. He by whom Israel is chosen is the Great 
 God. One evidence of his greatness is statfed in verse 7: — ■ 
 
 o' 
 
 "lie causeth the vapours to ascend from the ends of the earth ; 
 He maketh lightnings for the rain ; 
 He bringeth the wind out of his treasures." 
 
 The illustration is taken from the almost constantly accompanying phe- 
 nomena of a thunderstorm. There is first the depressing lull, tlien tlie 
 lightning flash, followed by the peal of thunder, and to this succeeds 
 the storm of wind and rain. All these are under God's sovereign 
 control : — 
 
 " Fire and liail ; snow, and vapours ; 
 Stormy wind fulfilling his word " (cxlvili. 8). 
 
 God's ministry in the kingdoms of Grace and of Nature is celebrated 
 in Psalm cxlvii. The varied phenomena of nature referred to here have 
 already been noticed in other parts of this work.
 
 430 
 
 lilBLICAL NATUUAL SCIENCK. 
 
 PROVERBS I.-IX. 
 
 HE liebrew name of this Book is Mnshah'm — Parables, 
 
 Sententious Sayings. The Book consists chiefly of the 
 
 i^roverbs of Solomon. Chapters xxv.-xxix. contain a col- 
 
 ection made by learned men in tlie reign of Hezekiah ; 
 
 XXX. is ascribed to Agur ; xxxi. was taught King Lemuel 
 
 by his mother. 
 
 " Surely in vain is the net, spread in the sight of any bird" 
 (i. 17). If the bird see the net it will become alarmed and 
 liasten away. Be wise, says Solomon to the young man, as the 
 bird. The character of the Avicked and the tendencies of all evil are 
 pointed out. Flee from them. " If sinners entice thee, consent thou 
 not" (ver. 10). Much use is made throughout the Bible of the wiles of 
 the fowler to illustrate the guileful character of those who hate God : 
 Job xviii. 8; Ps. ix. 15, xxxv. 7; Prov. xxix. 5; Eccles. ix. 12; Mic. 
 vii. 2 ; Ps. xci. 3, cxix. 10, cxl. 5; 1 Tim. iii. 7, &c. (Plate XL., fig. 10.) 
 One reason for the earnest exhortations to the young man to attend 
 unto wisdom, bow the ear to understanding, and regard wisdom is, that 
 he may be enabled to avoid the "strange woman." Her power of 
 sensuous fascination is described in verse 3 : — " The lips of a strange 
 woman drop as an honey-comb, and her mouth is smoother than oil." 
 The contrast to the false joy of her first wiles is brought out in verse 
 4 : — " Her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword. 
 Her feet go down to death." They that are led away by her shall be 
 like her in the end. 
 
 " Honey-comb" has been noticed under Psalm xix. 10 — which see. 
 " Wormwood," Heb., laandh, Greek, apsinthos. The name occurs 
 ten times in the Scriptures. In Amos vi. 12, our translators have 
 rendered it "hemlock." See under Hos. x. 4. 
 
 The wormwood plant itself (Artemisia) is not mentioned. In each 
 passage the iuice of the plant only, or the drug prepared from it, is 
 referred to. The plant is one of the natural order Comjjositce, or com- 
 pound flower -bearers. With the well-known crysanthemum, aster, 
 dahlia, &c., it is ranked in a sub-order named Corymhifera. One 
 species is very common, the southernwood {A. ahrvtanuvi) of the
 
 PKOVERBS I.-IX. 
 
 431 
 
 cottage garden. Common wormwood {A. ahsinthium) is abundant in 
 Britain, and used to be more in request than it is now. Its seeds were 
 preserved till spring, when they were decocted and given to the young. 
 Thus the advice of the old poet: — 
 
 "While wormwood hath seede get a handful or twainc, 
 To save against March." 
 
 Distillutions of this species are used, chiefly on the Continent, as 
 
 Fig. 1J9. 
 
 condiments, or because of their 
 tonic powers, under the names 
 Eaii d' Absinthe, Crcme cV Ab- 
 sinthe, &c. 
 
 None of our British species 
 are found in Palestine. The 
 species most frequently to be 
 met with there are Judaean 
 wormwood {A. t72<fZ«'?ca), Roman 
 wormwood [A. Romano), and 
 southernwood {A. Abrotana), 
 which grows very luxuriantly 
 in the Holy Land. 
 
 When Moses warns the 
 people against idolatry, he 
 compares the natural tendency 
 of the people to depart from 
 God, to a root of bitterness. 
 The Lord, he says, will not 
 spare such. Take heed then, 
 and beware, " lest there should 
 be among you man, or woman, 
 or family, or tribe, whose heart turneth away this day from the Lord our 
 God, to go and serve the gods of these nations ; lest there should be among 
 you a root that beareth gall and wormwood" (Deut. xxix. 18). When 
 the Jews of an after age fell hopelessly into the worship of Baalim, the 
 prophet was sent to them with the threatening — " Behold, I will feed 
 them, even this people, with wormwood, and give them water of gall 
 to drink" (Jcr. ix. 15). And when the prophets fell into the same sin, 
 when they "prophesied in Baal, and caused God's people Israel to sin," 
 Jeremiah was sent with the word — " Behold, I will feed them with 
 wormwood" (xxiii. 15). When "the arrows of Jehovah's quiver 
 
 Wormwood {ArUmisia Judal-.a).
 
 432 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 eutered into the reins" of his sorrow-stricken servant, he cried out in 
 the agony of a broken heart — " He hath filled me with bitterness, he 
 hath made me drunken with wormwood" (Lam. iii. 15, 19). Amos 
 addresses those who were departing from God as men " who turn judg- 
 ment to wormwood," who make truth and equity to be hated as is the 
 juice from the root of bitterness. In Rev. viii. 11, the Apsinthos is 
 associated with the other symbols, which point to the direful plagues 
 with which the enemies of Christ are visited at the time indicated by 
 the sounding of the third trumpet: — "And the name of the star is called 
 Wormwood : and the third part of the waters became wormwood ; and 
 many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter." These 
 passages show that, while the plant may have been in the view of the 
 writers, their expressions, for the most part, point only to something 
 peculiarly bitter. In such cases the term " wormwood " is exceedingly 
 general, and is not to be confined to the plant properly so called. 
 
 The hazard of being surety, either for friend or stranger, is pointed 
 out in chapter vi. 1, 2. It may have been hastily and unadvisedly 
 done. If so, take the earnest advice of one wise in the ways of men — 
 " Do this now, my son, and deliver thyself, when thou art come into 
 the hand of thy friend; go, humble thyself, and make sure thy friend" 
 (ver. 3). Get him to free you from obligations which you cannot meet. 
 It was wrong to incur them ; you will be in the way of honesty, justice, 
 and prudence, if you lawfully withdraw from them. The position is 
 one of danger — "Give not sleep to thine eyes, nor slumber to thine 
 eyelids. Deliver thyself as a roe from the hand of the hunter, and as a 
 bird from the hand of the fowler." 
 
 "Roe," Heb. tzevi, female; roebuck, male. The roe is the Capreo- 
 lus dorcas of zoologists ; see under Deut. xii. 15, 22. 
 
 The roe is nicntioned in Deut. xiv. 5, as one of the clean beasts 
 which might be eaten. It has ever been noted for its swiftness of foot 
 — "Asahel was as light of foot as a wild roe" (2 Sam. ii. 18). Its 
 favourite haunts are incidentally noticed in the list of those who 
 gathered to David at Ziklag — "And of the Gadites there separated 
 themselves unto David, into the hold to the wilderness, men of might, 
 and men of war fit for the battle, that could handle shield and buckler, 
 whose faces were like the faces of lions, and were as swift as the roes 
 upon the mountains" (1 Chron. xii. 8). Solomon loved to refer to it. 
 Thus he takes it as the figure of cheerfulness and nuptial joy — " Rejoice 
 with the wife of thy youth. Let her be as the loving hind and pleasant 
 roe" (ver. 18, 19). In the Song he mentions it as an emblem of Christ
 
 PROVERBS I.-IX. 
 
 433 
 
 — " My beloved is like a roe or a young hart. Be thou like a roe or a 
 young hart" (ii. 9, 17). The instruments of consolation provided for 
 man in the church are named — " Two breasts like two young roes that 
 are twins" (iv. 5, vii. 3). 
 
 " Go to the ant, thou sluggard ; consider her vfajs, and be wise : 
 which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, provideth her meat in the 
 summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest" (ver. 6-8). It does 
 not admit of aay doubt that none of the ants in this country store up 
 food in the way described here. This fact has led many to the some- 
 what hasty conclusion, that no ants do so. One Indian species at least 
 {Pheidole providens) is known to store. But it is enough to appeal to 
 Solomon's use of a wide-spread popular impression, in order to teach a 
 lesson to the sluggard. He may, however, have been acquainted with 
 a species, in whose hills he had seen food laid up for the winter. An 
 old writer makes a good use of the popular belief when expounding 
 this chapter. He says quaintly: — "Man that was once the captain of 
 God's schoole, is now (for his truantlinesse) turned down into the lowest 
 forme, as it were, to learn his ABC again, yea to be taught by these 
 meanest creatures. So Christ sends us to schoole to the birds of the 
 air, and lilies of the field, to learn dependence upon divine providence 
 (Matt, vi.) ; and to the stork, crane, and swallow, to be taught to take 
 the seasons of grace, and not to let slip the opportunities that God 
 putteth into our hands (Jer. viii. 7). This poore despicable creature, 
 the ant, is here set in the chaire to read us a lecture of sedulity and 
 good husbandry. What a dcale of graine gets she together in summer! 
 What pains doth she take for it, labouring not by daylight only, but by 
 moonshine also ! W^hat huge heaps hath she ! What care to bring forth 
 her store, and lay it a-drying on a sunshine day, lest with moisture it 
 should putrifie ! &c. Not only Aristotle, yElian, and Pliny, but also 
 Basil, Ambrose, and Hierom, have observed and written much of the 
 nature and industry of this poore creature, telling us withall that in the 
 ant, bee, stork, &c., God hath set before us as in a picture the lively 
 resemblance of many excellent virtues, which we ought to pursue and 
 practice. These, saith one, are the veri Icdcorum Uhri\ the true laymen's 
 books, the images that may teach me the right knowledge of God, and 
 of his will, of themselves and their duties." — (Trapp.) 
 
 "Ant," Heb. nemdidh, is referred to only here and in xxx. 25, where 
 
 their allej-ed storing habits are again noticed. The ants best known in 
 
 Britain are the wood ant [Formica nifa), the dark brown ant [F.fitsca), 
 
 the garden ant {F. nigra), and the yellow ant [F.flava). Any popular 
 VOL. II. 3 I
 
 434 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 account of their habits opens up very many points suggestive of lessons, 
 for which we may all go very profitably to the ant, to consider her 
 ways in order to be wise, as among other things we note — 
 
 "The intelligence that makes 
 The tiny creatures strong by social league 
 Supports the generations, multiplies 
 Their tribes, till we behold a spacious plain 
 Or grassy bottom, all with little hills. 
 Their labour, cover'd as a lake with waves; 
 Thousands of cities in the desert place, 
 Built up of life, and food, and means of life." — {Worclsivorth.) 
 
 Chapter vll. — The bed was decked by the harlot " with coverings of 
 tapestry, with carved works, with fine linen of Egypt." The word 
 here rendered "fine linen" (ver. 16) is etilm. Several other words are 
 of frequent use in scripture, as pisldali^ the flax-plant — see under Exod. 
 ix. 31; pishteh, the boll, or stalk of the common flax. Josh. ii. 6; 
 hutz, cotton, 1 Cliron. iv. 21; shesh, linen. Gen, xli. 42; had, linen, 
 1 Chron. iv. 21 ; and sdd'in, linen sheets or shirts, Judg. xiv. 12. The 
 term used by Solomon points to curtains of finest linen — muslin-like — 
 curiously adoi'ned, into which gold and silver threads were woven. 
 Such hangings are known to have been in use in Egypt, in the houses 
 of the rich and luxurious, at a very remote period. Syria drew its 
 supply of this article from Egypt. 
 
 rig 130. 
 
 .- c---. 
 
 Fibres of Cotton and Flax contrasted— magnified 40O diameters. 
 A Cotton. B Kaw I'lax. c Maoufacturcd.
 
 PROVERBS X.-XXXI. 
 
 43 
 
 oo 
 
 PROVEKBS X.-XXXI. 
 
 OSITIVE inconvenience results from tlie employment of the 
 sluggard in any matter of business. "As vinegar to the 
 teeth, so is the sluggard to them that send him" (x. 2G). 
 The acid acts especially on the worn parts of the enamel, 
 and produces the sensation popularly named " setting the 
 teeth on edge." If the slothful be sent on a message, his 
 carelessness and delay will react on the sender. The result will be to 
 him " as vinegar to the teeth" — something inconvenient rather than 
 seriously hurtful. The same truth is declared in the second clause of 
 this verse — " As smoke to the eyes, so is the sluggard to them that 
 send him." 
 
 " Vinegar," Heb. IJiometz, Greek oxos, is either simply sour wine, or 
 a dilute acetic acid prepared from inferior wine, or a liquid obtained 
 from malt or from wood by a more complicated process of distillation. 
 The first three kinds of vinegar are mentioned in Scripture. 
 
 The mode in which different forms of the Hebrew root are employed 
 by the sacred writers is interesting. In Psalm Ixxi. 4, one form is 
 translated " cruel :" — 
 
 " Deliver me, O God, out of the hand of the wicked, 
 Out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man." 
 
 Another is rendered "to be leavened"^ — "They are all adulterers, as an 
 oven heated by the baker, who ceaseth from raising after he hath 
 kneaded the dough, until it be leavened" (Hos. vii. 4; Exod. xii. 19, 
 20, 34, 39). In a third form it is translated " leaven" and " leavened 
 bread:" — "No meat-offering, which ye shall bring unto the Lord, shall 
 be made with leaven : for ye shall burn no leaven, nor any honey, in 
 any offering of the Lord made by fire'' (Levit. ii. 11, also vi. 17, xxiii. 
 17, Amos iv. 5); "Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even 
 the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses : for whoso- 
 ever eateth leavened bread, from the first day until the seventh day, 
 that soul shall be cut off from Israel" (Exod. xii. 15, also xiii. 3, 7, 
 xxiii. 18; Levit. vii. 13; Deut. xvi. 3). In Isaiah the participle of the 
 verb "to leaven" is rendered " dyed" — " Who is this that cometh from
 
 Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrali ? this that is glorious in his 
 apparel, travelling in the greatness of his strength? I that speak in 
 righteousness, mighty to save" (Ixiii. 2). And in Psalm Ixxiii. 21, it 
 is met with in the sense of " to be jrrieved : " — 
 
 &' 
 
 " Thus my heart was grieved, 
 And I was pricked in my reins." 
 
 The closing scene on the cross contains a reference to vinegar as sour 
 wine — " And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, 
 saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani ? that is to say. My God, my God, 
 why hast thou forsaken me? Some of them that stood there, when 
 they heard that, said, This man calleth for Elias. And straightway 
 one of them ran, and took a spunge, and filled it with vinegar, and put 
 it on a reed, and gave him to drink. The rest said, Let be, let us see 
 Avhether Elias will come to save him" (IMatt. xxvii. 46, 49 — which see). 
 This, as we learn from Ruth ii. 14, was used at the meals of the people. 
 It was given to the reapers in the time of harvest, as licer is generally 
 given in Britain to the field-workers at that season : — " And Boaz said 
 unto her, At meal-time come thou hither, and eat of the bread, and 
 dip thy morsel in the vinegar. And she sat beside the reapers ; and 
 he reached her parched corn, and she did eat, and was sufficed, and 
 left." Sour wine of this description formed part of the daily rations of 
 the Roman soldiers. It is still used in wine-growing countries. 
 
 Among the precepts given by the Lord to Moses concerning the 
 Nazarites, mention is made of two kinds of vinegar — that already 
 referred to, and another which corresponded with the vinegar manufac- 
 tured from malt : — " He shall separate himself from wine and strong 
 drink, and shall drink no vinegar of wine, or vinegar of strong drink, 
 neither shall he drink any liquor of grapes, nor eat moist grapes, or 
 dried" (Num. vi. 2). " The vinegar of strong drink" was that made 
 from an inferior kind of intoxicating drink, or, by a different process, 
 from the material used in distilling strong drink. See under Numb, vi. 
 4. The reference to vinegar in Psalm Ixix. 21, points to Mark xv. 23 
 (see), and is also to be reckoned " sour wine:" — "They gave me also 
 gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink." 
 Its influence on a substance mentioned in Prov. x, 26, and Jer, ii. 22, 
 erroneously believed to be the same as our saltpetre {nitre, or nitrate of 
 jMtassa), is thus stated — " As he that taketh away a garment in cold 
 weather, and as vinegar upon nitre, so is he that singeth songs to an 
 heavy heart." Professor Hitchcock gives the only satisfactory explana-
 
 PROVERBS X.-XXXI. 437 
 
 tion of this passage. He says ("Geology and Religion," p. 20) — "We 
 should expect from this statement that when we put vinegar upon what 
 we call nitre, it would produce some commotion analogous to the excite- 
 ment of song-singing. But we should try the experiment in vain ; for no 
 effect whatever would be produced. Again, it is said by the prophet 
 Jeremiah (chap. ii. ver. 22), 'Though thou wash thee with nitre, and take I 
 thee much soap, yet thine iniquity is marked before me, saith the Lord.' 
 Here, too, we should expect that the use of the nitre would increase 
 the purifying power of the soap; but the experiment would prove 
 rather the reverse. The chemist, however, informs us that there is a 
 substance, namely, the carbonate of soda, which, if substituted for the 
 nitre, would effervesce with vinegar, and aid the purifying power of 
 soap, and thus strikingly illustrate the thought both of Solomon and 
 Jeremiah. And on recurring to the original, we find that nether 
 {nitrum, natrum) does not necessarily mean the salt which we call nitre, 
 but rather a fossil alkali, the natron of the ancients, and the carbonate 
 of soda of the moderns." 
 
 " In the light of the king's countenance is life ; and his favour 
 is as a cloud of the latter rain" (xvi. 15). The early rain was the 
 first showers of autumn, which partially revived the scorched vege- 
 tation, and especially fitted the hardened ground for the plough. 
 The latter rain was the occasional showers which fell after the close 
 of the rainy season — showers which helped on the growth of the 
 cereal crops, helping them to shadow all the ground. 
 
 Drunkenness and gluttony must be guarded against, and riches, which 
 are apt to encourage natural tendencies thereto, are not to take captive 
 the affections of the young. The wise heart is the only true safeguard. 
 " My son, if thine heart be wise, my heart shall rejoice, even mine." 
 Be wise then, " and guide thine heart in the way." Keep far off from 
 the drunkard and the glutton. " Be not among wine-bibbers, among 
 riotous eaters of flesh," for they shall come to poverty. There is no 
 sure ground of safety but in the love and fear of God : " My son, give 
 me thine heart, and let thine eyes observe my ways" (ver. 15, 19, 20, 
 26). Drunkenness brings with it a crowd of evils. " Who hath woe? 
 who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who 
 hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes? They that 
 tarry long at the wine ; they that go to seek mixed wine. Look not 
 thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, 
 when it moveth itself aright: at the last it biteth like a serpent, an^l 
 stingcth like an adder. Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and
 
 438 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 thine heart shall utter perverse things : yea, thou shalt be as he that 
 lieth down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lieth upon the top of 
 a mast. They have stricken me, shalt thou say, and I was not sick : 
 they have beaten me, and I felt it not : when shall I awake ? I will seek 
 it yet again" (ver. 29-35). 
 
 " Serpent," Heb. nahash—see vol. i., p. 103-109. "Adder," Heb. 
 tzepha, " like an adder," tziphoni. The word occurs other four times, 
 and is, except here, rendered "cockatrice" — "The sucking child shall 
 play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on 
 the cockatrice' den" (Isa. xi. 8). " Rejoice not thou, whole Palestina, 
 because the rod of him that smote thee is broken : for out of the 
 serpent's {nahash) root shall come forth a cockatrice, and his fruit shall 
 be a fiery flying serpent {saraijh) " (Isa. xiv. 29). "They hatch cocka- 
 trice' eggs, and weave the spider's web : he that eateth their eggs 
 dieth, and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper (epJieh)" 
 (Isa. lix. 5). " For, behold, I will send serpents (nahash), cockatrices, 
 among you, which will not be charmed, and they shall bite you, saith 
 the Lord" (Jer. viii. 17). 
 
 It will be seen from these passages (1) that the word serpent is used 
 in a very wide sense, and includes ophidians generally. Thus in the 
 text quoted it is used as a heading, "I will send serpents;" and the 
 species which shall be sent is the cockatrice. (2) That the cockatrice 
 was one of the egg-bearing reptiles. This is clear from Isa. lix. 5. It 
 was not then one of the vipers, as has so often been alleged, because 
 they are viviparous. The statement that the egg when crushed breaks 
 out into a viper, means no more than that the young of the cockatrice 
 were regarded as hurtful, like those of the epheh (Job xx. 14 ; Isa. xxx. 
 6, lix. 5). (3) That the fully developed form was known as the saraph, 
 or " fiery flying serpent." Isa. xiv. 29 is suggestive. AVe have, first, 
 the serpent's root, or one of the leading forms of the Reptilia; second, the 
 generic form springing therefrom ; and third, the species, namely, nahash, 
 tzepha, and saraph. For the last see under Numb. xxi. 6. The power 
 of flying ascribed to the fiery serpent, refers, no doubt, only to the 
 rapid, darting motions of the snakes referred to. 
 
 Volumes of fable have gathered round the name " cockatrice." Sir 
 Thomas Browne supplies some curious information on the subject in his 
 "Vulvar Errors." It was held to have obtained its name from a cock's 
 egg! These unnatural productions, they imagined, having once or twice 
 been realized, frogs were believed to have hatched them, and thus the 
 cockatrice was obtained which had power to propagate its species ! Others
 
 rnovERBs x.-xxxi. 439 
 
 traced its origin to the ibis. That bird " feeding on serpents, that 
 venomous food so inquinates their ovall conceptions, that they some 
 times come forth in serpentine shapes, and therefore they ahvaies break 
 their eggs, nor would they endure the bird to sit upon them ! " The fabu- 
 lous representation of the cockatrice was generally either an image with 
 a crowned cock's head, the body of a lizard, the tail of a serpent, and 
 eight webbed feet, or a huge serpent, with tapering, prehensile tail, 
 tongue out-darted, and head with a crown set on it. This last feature 
 came to associate the cockatrice with the equally fabulous basilisk, or 
 regulus of the ancients. " Many opinions," says Sir T. Browne, " are 
 passant concerning the basilisk, or little king of serpents, commonly 
 called the cockatrice ; some affirming, others denying, most doubting 
 the relations made hereof" The power attributed to the eye of the 
 basilisk is well known. It was believed to strike dead every one on 
 whom it looked. Even in the midst of the fables which ignorance has 
 heaped around the animals mentioned in Holy Writ, we get glimpses 
 of higher and grander truths. Thus here : — A serpent like to the fiery 
 serpent was lifted up on a pole, that the poisoned Israelite might look 
 to it and be cured. Christ looks on those who trust in him, and that 
 look kills sin. The health and healing in the thought were lost sight 
 of The sign of spiritual blessing became confounded with influences 
 on the body, and the serpent passed into the basilisk and the cockatrice 
 of fable and superstition : — 
 
 " But fiercely hissing througli the poisoned air, 
 The basilisk exerts his deathful glare ; 
 At distance bids each vulgar pest remain, 
 And reigns sole monarch of his desert plain." — (Lucan.) 
 
 " What shield of Ajax could avoid their death 
 By th' basilisk, whose pestilentiall breath 
 Doth pierce firm marble, and whose baneful ey 
 Wounds with a glance, so that the soundest dy." — {Du Bartas.) 
 
 " Would they were basilisk's, to strike thee dead."^SfiaI,-s])eare.) 
 
 Verse 11 has given rise to many interpretations. There is, how- 
 ever, not much difficulty in it, when it is considered in the light of the 
 context, and of the Scripture use of it. Verses 8-12 should be taken 
 together: — " Go not forth hastily to strive, lest thou know not what to 
 do in the end thereof, when thy neighbour hath put thee to shame. 
 Debate thy cause with thy neighbour himself, and discover not a secret 
 to another; lest he that heareth it put thee to shame, and thine infamy
 
 440 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 turn not away. A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of 
 silver. As an ear-ring of gold, and an ornament of fine gold, so is a 
 wise reprover upon an obedient ear." Reference is made to disputes 
 with a neighbour. The wise man counsels forbearance. If a disagree- 
 ment happen, and a cause must be discussed, let it be between two. 
 A third party will take the side of one or the other, and two shall be 
 against one. When you do speak, let the right word be spoken at the 
 Fig.i3i. right time — "on the wheel" as it 
 
 were; for "a word fitly spoken is 
 like apples of gold in pictures of 
 silver. " The fruit of the right word 
 is found in the obedient ear. Its 
 effect is seen at once. Even the 
 reprover comes to be regarded 
 with love. He is as an ear-ring 
 of gold, and as an ornament of fine 
 gold, to the one reproved by him. 
 Criticisms on verse eleventh 
 have almost, without exception, 
 proceeded on the assumption that 
 something to be seen in nature is 
 referred to in it. The use of the 
 word " apple" has also been over- 
 looked. This has resulted in the 
 proposal to render the words 
 " golden-coloured citrons in silver 
 baskets." The fruit pointed to is 
 held to be that of the citron ( Citrus 
 medico). Such a view of the pas- 
 sage is arbitrary, and does violence 
 to the words of the Spirit of God. 
 There can be no doubt that the "gold and silver" mentioned are 
 the precious metals so called. Nor is there much difficulty with regard 
 to the term " pictures." It is not to be held as equivalent to 
 " paintings." The use of the word in other passages is conclusive 
 on this point. Two terms are translated " pictures" in the Old Testa- 
 ment. One of these, which is only once named, occurs in Isa. ii. 16, 
 and most likely points to painting as distinguished from sculpture. 
 Because of the sins of the people, destruction was to come on all 
 " pleasant pictures (sekli/dh)." The other term (masJdth) occurs six 
 
 Citron (Ciinu mtdica).
 
 PIIOVERBS X.-XXXI. 441 
 
 times, including the test before us. In the others it is used thrice 
 to indicate sculptured figures, and twice to express the peculiar idea 
 which may be held characteristic of the artist before he has given 
 outward form to it. In the former class of passages we have — "Neither 
 shall ye set up any image of stone" or any figured stone like the has- 
 reliefs of the Nineveh religious sculptures (Levit. xxvi. 1) ; " Ye shall 
 destroy all their pictures" (Numb, xxxiii. 25), an expression used in 
 connection with the breaking down of the idol temples, " the high 
 places," and clearly meaning sculptures again ; " Son of man, hast thou 
 seen what the ancients of the house of Israel do in the dark, every 
 man in the chambers of his imagery" (Ezek. viii. 12)? a passage 
 which again points to carved work in stone. In the latter we have the 
 mental conditions — desire and self-confidence; the former borrowed 
 from the artist's state of mind when he is anxious to realize the 
 mental image ; the latter from the same when he has given form to his 
 imaginings, and is satisfied with the results. " The wicked," says 
 the Psalmist, " have more than their heart could icish " — they pass the 
 thoughts of their hearts (Ps. Ixxiii. 7). " The rich man's wealth," 
 says Solomon, " is as an high wall in his own conceit. If the meaning 
 of the word " pictures" in the passage under notice, is to be determined 
 by its use in other portions of Scripture, there is little doubt that some- 
 thing carved or chased is referred to. 
 
 " Tajjpriach" is the Hebrew for the apple-tree and for its fruit. 
 But, assuming that the use of the term here points to carved work in 
 gold and silver, it is in the highest degree likely that the Jews used 
 it, as almost all nations have done, in a very wide and general sense. 
 The Latin ^;om?/7??, apple, included under it many kinds of fruit, besides 
 that of the true apple-tree. Thus, when the peach {Amggdahis Persicus) 
 found its way to Italy and the West, it was received as the Persian apple 
 {Pomum Per). In like manner the quince [Cijdonia vulgaris), when 
 introduced from Asia Minor into Europe, was known as the apple of 
 Sidon. The pine-apple {Ananassa sativa), a native of the warmest 
 regions of South America, the fruit of a monocotyledonous family of 
 plants (Bromeliacece) is in no sense an apple ; yet as an edible fruit it is 
 now chiefly known as such. The potato (Solanxm tuberosum) has 
 been regarded from the same point of view by the French, who have 
 named it Earth-apple [Pomme de terre). Many other examples might 
 be given. The text may thus be held to point to any kind of much 
 esteemed fruit, imitated by the workers in precious metals — apple-like 
 ornaments of gold in silver settings. The intercourse between the 
 
 VOL. II. S ic
 
 442 BinLlCAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Jews, in the days of Solomon, and the Phoenicians indicates the source 
 whence the " apples of gold in the pictures of silver," may have been 
 obtained. We know that he was indebted to Phoenicia for the artist 
 who prepared the ornamental metal- work for the temple (1 Kings vii. 
 13, 14). The attractive beauty in such work is implied; and on this 
 the wise man makes his appeal — speak the right word in the right 
 spirit and at the right time. For "apple of the eye" see above, 
 Deut. xxxii. 10; and for " apple-tree" see below, Song ii. 3. 
 
 " As the bird by wandering, as the swallow by flying, so the curse 
 causeless shall not come" (xxvi. 2). Effort must be put forth even by 
 the birds in order to follow their instincts. Where the curse falls, there 
 is a reason for it. It not only never comes without being sent, but 
 when it is sent there is a divine end in it. Either we are to look for 
 a retributive element in it, or, as in Job's case, one of discipline. The 
 wicked are chiefly in the mind of Solomon here. Judgment had fallen 
 on them ; and there was a cause. " Swallow," Heb. deror — the bird 
 with great freedom in its flight, the swallow of Palestine {Hirundo 
 rufula). 
 
 " The horse-leech hath two daughters, crying. Give, give" (xxx. 15). 
 "Horse-leech," Heb. aluhdh. There seems no good reason to doubt, that 
 one of the well-known family Hirudinidce or leeches is the animal 
 named here. The British horse-leech {Hcemopsis sangm'suga) is noted 
 for its greedy bite. It is, however, surpassed in this respect by the 
 medicinal species (Sangm'suga medicinalis). Both of these abound in 
 some parts of Syria, and might be well-known by Agur. The likeli- 
 hood is, that the medicinal species is that referred to here. The 
 marshes of the mountain lake, Phiala, situated to the south-east of 
 Banias (Paneas-Ccesarea), abound with them. Dr. Robinson says of 
 Phiala : — " The water of the lake is stagnant and impure, with a slimy 
 look. Just at the margin it was muddy for a few feet, and did not 
 seem to be clear and pure in any part. At a short distance from 
 the shore was a broad belt of water plants, now turned brown, and 
 in some places resembling islands. The middle of the lake was free. 
 Wild ducks were swimming in different parts. A large hawk was 
 sailing above them, and occasionally swooping down to the surface of 
 the water, as if to seize a duck or a frog. Our Druzes fired at him, 
 and broke his wing ; he fell among the water plants, and could not 
 there be reached. Myriads and myriads of frogs lined the shores ; and 
 it was amusing to see them perched thickly along the stones, as if 
 drawn up in battle-array to keep off intruders. It is the very paradise
 
 PI^TK M 
 
 Fel. Onocrotalus (hnutum Ihliian . 
 
 I AM LIKE A PELICAN OF THE WILDEENESS^Ps. cil 18. 
 
 Cyguus. 
 
 C. Ferns WUcL Swa/t. 
 
 THEY SHALL NOT BE EATEN; THE SWAN AND THE PELICAN.— Lit. xL 18. 
 
 WILLIAI* MACHENZlt. CLASCOM. EOHSURGH. LOMOOH IMEW^tORM
 
 PROVERBS X.-XXXI. 443 
 
 of frogs. The lake supplies the whole country with leeches ; which are 
 gathered by men wading in, and letting the leeches fasten themselves 
 upon their legs. The ground along the margin is mostly without 
 reeds or rushes, and is covered with small black volcanic stones. The 
 shores and sides of the water exhibit everywhere small, glistening, 
 black crystals, resembling hoi'nblende." 
 
 "Young eagles" (ver. 17); see under Levit. xi. 13. "Conies" 
 (ver. 20); under Psalm civ. 18. "The spider taketh hold with her 
 hands, and is in kings' palaces" (ver. 28). The species alluded to is 
 the house spider {Aranea domesh'ca), which weaves a close and almost 
 horizontal web in the corners of chambers. At the point furthest from 
 the margin which does not touch the wall, a hollow tube of net is 
 woven. In this the spider lurks as it watches for its prey. This is 
 the "meshy fortress" in which the spider — 
 
 " Spends his life, 
 Unless you pull it dowu, and scare him from it." 
 
 " Greyhound," Heb. zarztr moihnayim. The name points to an 
 animal noted for the narrowness of its loins. The greyhound answers 
 better to this description than any other animal. It is moreover, as 
 here, noted for its speed. The greyhound is represented on the 
 sculptures of Egypt. " He-goat," tayish. The name is derived from a 
 root signifying " to strike." It occurs also Gen. xxx. 35, xxxii. 14; 
 2 Chron. xvii. 11. 
 
 The comparison of the wringing of the nose to the churning of 
 butter (ver. 33), is much more expressive when regarded in the light of 
 the habits of the East. "What," asks one as he looked on the process 
 of butter-making, "are these women kneading and shaking so zealously 
 in that large black bag, suspended from this three-legged crotch? 
 That is a bottle, not a bag, made by stripping off entire the skin of a 
 young buffalo. It is full of milk, and that is their way of churning. 
 When the butter ' has come,' they take it out, boil or melt it, and 
 then put it in bottles made of goats' skins. In winter it resembles 
 candied honey; in summer it is mere oil. This is the only kind of 
 butter we have. Do you mean to say that our cooking is done with 
 this filthy preparation ? Certainly; and this Huleh butter is the best 
 in the country. Some of the farmers have learned to make our kind 
 of butter, but it soon becomes rancid, and indeed it is never good. I 
 believe it is always so ; and thus, too, I suppose, they made butter in 
 olden times. Solomon says, ' Surely the churning of milk bringeth
 
 444 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENX'E. 
 
 forth butter, and the wringing of the nose bringeth forth blood.' But 
 the word for ' churning ' and 'wringing' is the same in the Hebrew. It 
 is the wringing of milk that bringeth forth butter, just as these women 
 are squeezing and wringing this milk in the ' bottle.' There is no 
 analogy between our mode of churning and pulling a man's nose until 
 the blood comes, but in this Arab operation the comparison is quite 
 natural and emphatic. The Arab translation of this proverb is curious, 
 and very far from the original : ' He that wrings the dug violently that 
 he may bring out milk, brings forth butter ; and he who milks harder 
 still will bring out blood.' " 
 
 " Strong drink" (xxxi. 4, G); see under Numb. vi. 3; Mark xv. 23. 
 
 " Clothed with scarlet" (ver. 21); under Josh. ii. 18. The virtuous 
 woman's clothing is not only comfortable, but in material and colour 
 it distinguishes her above others ; " her clothing is of silk and purple." 
 " Silk," Heb. shesh, has already been referred to, when noticing the royal 
 vestures of Joseph (Gen. xli. 42). Three meanings have been attached 
 to the scriptural use of this word : fine linen (Exod. xxvi. 1) ; marble 
 (Esth. i. 6) ; and silk\ as here. Another rendering has been proposed. 
 It is alleged that most likely cotton is referred to under this name. 
 
 Special notice has been taken of the varied use of the word under 
 Gen. xli. 42, which see. The cotton plant [GossypiuTn) belongs to 
 the natural order Malvacece, or mallow family. It has been shown 
 (1 Chron. iv. 21) that cotton is indigenous in India, and now very 
 widely distributed. Herodotus names it among the rare and character- 
 istic productions of India. "Certain wild trees there," he says, "bear 
 wool instead of fruit, that in beauty and quality excels that of sheep ; 
 and the Indians make their clothing from these " (iii. 106). The value 
 of this remark is evident. Egypt was at one period noted for its 
 growth of cotton ; but had this plant flourished in Egypt at the time of 
 the Greek historian, he would not have failed to notice it, especially as 
 he has particularly referred to linen. Assuming the date of the visit 
 of Herodotus as about 440 B.C., it is not likely that a people so tenacious 
 of old customs and so watchful over art as were the ancient Egyptians, 
 would have lost sight of the cotton plant, and the art of manufacturing 
 the cotton wool — the hairs which surround the seeds — if these had 
 been known when Joseph was grand vizier of Egypt, 1715 b.c. These 
 considerations make it not the least probable that shesh, here rendered 
 "silk," and in Gen. xh. 42, "fine linen," meant cotton. 
 
 The old Greek historian makes another statement which helps us to 
 limit the meaning of this word (shesh) still further. Referring to the
 
 PKOVEUBS X.-XXXI. 445 
 
 Egyptians, lie says : — " They are of all men the most excessively 
 attentive to the worsliip of the gods, and observe the following cere- 
 monies. They drink from cups of brass, which they scour every day ; 
 nor is this custom practised by some and neglected by others, but all 
 do it. They wear linen garments, constantly fresh washed, and they 
 pay particular attention to this. They are circumcised for the sake of 
 cleanliness, thinking it better to be clean than handsome. The priests 
 shave their whole body every third day, that neither lice nor any other 
 impurity may be found upon them when engaged in the service of the 
 gods. The priests wear linen only, and shoes of byblus, and are not 
 permitted to wear any other garments, or other shoes. They wash 
 themselves in cold water twice every day, and twice every night ; and, 
 in a word, they use a number of ceremonies " (ii. 37). Jewish and 
 Hindoo priests were likewise ordered to wear linen garments. It is, 
 however, to be kept in mind, that the passage now under notice plainly 
 points to expensive garments. These may have been of tine linen 
 (most likely they were), and yet so high-priced as to distinguish the 
 prudence and industry of the woman who possessed them. The linen 
 of ancient Egypt, with which we have become acquainted chiefly 
 through the wrappings of mummies, is generally coarse and thick. It 
 would not answer either the description of Joseph's vestures or of the 
 silk of the virtuous woman. But some of it was exceedingly fine, and 
 would suit both purposes. Sir G. Wilkinson has in his possession a 
 piece which gives five hundred and forty threads to the inch — two 
 hundred and seventy double threads in the warp, and one hundred and 
 ten in the woof It was sometimes made so fine as to be almost 
 transparent. Such as this, no doubt, constituted the fine linen of which 
 Joseph's vestures and the clothing of the virtuous woman were made. 
 
 It is, notwithstanding, highly probable that the Hebrews, in the later 
 period of Old Testament history, were acquainted with cotton (1 Chron. 
 iv. 21). But it does not appear to have been introduced from Egypt. 
 It is more likely that Egypt obtained both the plant and the knowledge 
 of the art of manufacturing it through Palestine. It would reach Syria 
 from India. From India it would pass into Egypt, carried thither by 
 the merchants of Tvre. See also under 1 Chron. iv. 21.
 
 446 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIKNCE. 
 
 ECCLESIASTES. 
 
 ' *'™" -^|HE Hebrew title is Koliekth, or "The Preacher." The 
 book contains pictures of two great phases of Solomon's 
 spiritual life, and a full statement of his views on men and 
 things. In chapter i., verses 5-7, he likens the prevailing 
 unrest among men to the constant changing of the wind. 
 The present generation is but for a day, as the light of the sun 
 is. Men die, and others take their places. After night comes 
 the morning and the returning sun. The well known laws of 
 evaporation supply another figure. The clouds receive their supply 
 of moisture from sea, and lake, and river. But the moisture is not 
 retained. It hastens down again to water the earth, to supply the 
 rivers, to find its way to the ocean, "All things are full of labour," is 
 the cry : " man cannot utter it." 
 
 " Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a 
 stinking savour " (x. 1). The verb here is singular ; its nominative is 
 plural. This is designed to show that any one of the flies is sufficient 
 to corrupt the precious ointment. Even a little folly may destroy a 
 great name for "wisdom and honour." 
 
 " Cast thy bread upon the waters, for thou shalt find it after many 
 days" (xi. 1). "Only believe." Keep not even back thy daily food, 
 if God ask it for himself in his people or his cause. The widow of 
 Zarephath trusted, and her barrel of meal and cruise of oil wasted not. 
 Keep not back thine energies. The use of them often may seem like 
 the act of the Egyptian husbandman in the eye of a stranger, when he 
 casts precious seed into the slimy mud of the Nile valley. But does 
 not he reap abundant harvests? The "bread" here, is the "bread 
 corn " of Isaiah xxviii, 28 — which see. 
 
 Another striking feature in this portrait is brought out by the expres- 
 sion — " The almond-tree shall flourish." The tree here mentioned is 
 the common almond-tree (Heb. shdJced), the Amygdalus communis of 
 botanists, to which reference has already been made under Genesis 
 xliii. 11, where its fruit is named as part of the present sent by Jacob 
 to the governor of Egypt, when his sons went down a second time to 
 buy corn. This tree is ranked under the natural order Rosacece, or
 
 ECCLESIASTES. 
 
 447 
 
 rose family, and gives its name to an important sub-section, the Amyy- 
 dalece, noted for their drupaceous or flesh-covered fruit, and for several 
 highly poisonous substances extracted from them. The leaves, flowers, 
 and fruit of most yield prussic acid. The plum {Primus) and the 
 cherry (Cerasus) are classed with the almond [Amyydalus) in this sub- 
 section. The almond-tree is a native of Northern Africa, and abounds 
 also in Asia. It is of frequent Fig. 132. 
 
 occurrence in Palestine, where 
 at the present day it is cultivated 
 for the sake of its fruit, which is 
 sent to Europe under the name 
 "Jordan almonds." 
 
 The almond is mentioned four 
 times in Scripture as shdkeJ, and 
 six times as sZ!a^'aJ= almond- 
 like. The former term occurs 
 here ; the latter has been noticed 
 under Exod. xxv. 33 — -which see. 
 
 This figure — " The almond- 
 tree shall flourish " — has been 
 almost universally held to point 
 to the hoary head of age. Some, 
 however, have thought that a 
 different turn should be given 
 to the expression. The blos- 
 soms of the almond-tree, it is 
 alleged, are not white, but 
 pinkish, or even rose-coloured. It is concluded from this, that the 
 expression is not to be regarded as containing another feature of old 
 age, but as indicating that all the features named will as surely hasten 
 to characterize the evil days, as the almond blossoms do to meet the 
 opening spring and to anticipate the coming summer. The literal 
 meaning oi shdked is "the watcher." Thus — "Like as I have watched 
 (shaJcad) over them," &c. (Jer. xxxi. 28.) But if the original meaning 
 of the word is to be attached to it in this picture of old age, the dis- 
 tinctive character of the figure ceases. Any other tree might, with equal 
 appropriateness, have been used. Whatever the import of the figure 
 may be, we are to seek its fitness in some outstanding resemblance to 
 one of the marks of old age. The idea of wakeful watching is associated 
 with the almond-tree in Jer. i. 11 — which see. Like other emblems 
 
 Almoml Draiicbc3 — Flowers and Fruit.
 
 448 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 used by the writers of Scripture, this one has often suffered from 
 interpreters stretching it too far. Its import here is plain and simple 
 enouirh, when the hal>its of the almond-tree are taken into account. 
 It blossoms earlier than any other fruit-bearing tree, in lands in which 
 it is indigenous. A recent traveller in the East, when describing the 
 garden of the convent of Mount Sinai, says : — "As this was the month 
 of January, there was not much to be seen. The fruit trees were not 
 in leaf; but the almond was covered with its bright pink and white 
 blossoms." — {Bonar.) The appearance here alluded to is really all that 
 is needed, to show the appropriate character of the figure. When the 
 branches are bare and withered-looking, and when there is no green 
 leafage to attract the eye, the flowers appear like a crown on the 
 almond-tree when looked at from a short distance, and the pinkish 
 colour comes to stand out like white, from the contrast between them 
 and the branches on which they stand. So is it with age. The limbs 
 become shrivelled and dry-looking, but the hoar head takes the atten- 
 tion of all. It stands fully out before the eye. " The almond-tree 
 flourishes." This white appearance of the blooming almond-tree 
 attracts the attention of travellers in Palestine. " What tree is this on 
 our right," asks one in the great plain of Acre, "dressed out in white 
 
 blossoms so early in the season?" This is the almond In 
 
 that affecting picture of the rapid and inevitable approach of old age 
 drawn by the royal preacher, it is said that " the almond-tree shall 
 flourish" or blossom. The point of the figure is doubtless the fact that 
 the white blossoms completely cover the whole tree, without any 
 mixture of green leaves, for these do not appear until some time after. 
 It is the expressive type of old age, whose hair is white as wool, 
 unrelieved with any other colour. 
 
 The points of difference between the figure and the reality will at 
 once strike the reader. The blossoms of the almond-tree appear in 
 early spring ; the hoary head generally in old age — the winter-time of 
 life. In the tree, the fruit follows the flowers ; in the man, deeds — 
 earnest thought and energetic action— precede grey hairs, the flourish- 
 ing of the almond-tree.
 
 SONG OF SOLOMON. 44.9 
 
 TUE SONG OF SOLOMON. 
 
 N chapter i. 12-15, the king and his royal bride are seen 
 among the joys of social intercourse. They eat together, and 
 the bride sings of the interchanges of affection. Her graces 
 are as spikenard, and he is to her as a bundle of myrrh and a 
 cluster of caniphire. Many have loved to find in this scene 
 tlie foreshadowing of the last supper in the upper room at 
 Jerusalem, on the night on which Jesus was betrayed. It comes thus 
 to be associated with the sacrament of the Lord's supper, when the 
 Saviour blessed his people with special views of the great love wlicre- 
 with he has loved us, and when — 
 
 '• Faith may feed her eager viuv.', 
 With wondtrs Sinai never knew." 
 
 These figures are used to bring out the interchange of spiritual delights 
 — sweet-smelling spikenard, a bundle of myrrh, and a cluster of 
 camphire. 
 
 " Spikenard," Heb. nerd^ Gr. nardos. The word occurs five times — 
 twice in the New, and thrice in the Old Testament. In the latter its 
 use is confined to this book, here and in chapter iv. 13, 1-1. The 
 New Testament references are Mark xiv. 3, and John xii. 3, in which 
 the incident of the breaking of the " alabaster-box of ointment of 
 spikenard, very precious," is narrated. Jesus was in Bethany, in the 
 house of Simon the leper, when the woman came to him, and thus, as 
 Jesus himself said, anointed him "against the day of his burying." 
 
 A species of beardgrass {Andropogon nardus) yields one kind of 
 spikenard, long highly esteemed in the East. The true spikenard, 
 however, is the produce of one of the Valerian family of plants, the 
 Nardostachjs jatamansi\ a native of the lower slopes of the Himalayan 
 mountains. We are indebted mainly to Sir William Jones for the 
 identification of the spikenard of Scripture with the Indian jatamansi. 
 The ointment and perfume were prepared from its leaves and flowers. 
 These were in hi"-h esteem both among the Hebrews and the ancient 
 Gentile nations. 
 
 " Myrrh," see under Psalm xlv. S. 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 3l
 
 450 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 " Campliire," Heb. hopher. This word is rendered " pitch " in Gen. 
 vi. 14; "ca ransom," Exod. xxx. 12; "satisfaction," Numb. xxxv. 31, 
 32 ; and "a bribe," Amos v. 12. In each case the leading idea is to 
 hide, or cover. In the first passage the pitch is said to have been put 
 over the gopher-vpood of the ark ; in the second and third, a sinful state 
 is kept out of view, by a kind of atonement being made ; and in the 
 fourth, the magistrate turning away from the mind of God, accepts a 
 bribe, that he may conceal the truth, and thus lead to a false judgment. 
 
 Camphor ((^amphora e^jUkinarum). 
 
 Here, and in chapter iv. 14, the same idea lurks in the word. The 
 plant thus named, yielded a substance which was used to cover certain 
 parts of the body. 
 
 Camphire has been supposed by many to be identical with the 
 camphor of commerce, which is obtained cliiefly from one of the laurels 
 (Ca7nj)Jiora officinarum). A finer and much more rare kind is secreted 
 in the wood of the Brijohalanops aromatica., indigenous in the Malayan 
 peninsula, and in Sumatra and Borneo. Tiiis is known as Malayan
 
 SONG OF SOLOMON. 
 
 451 
 
 camphor, which is little, if at all, used in Europe. But neither of these 
 was the campliire of Scripture. It is generally agreed that the refer- 
 ences in the Song are to a product of the Laicsonia inermis, the noted 
 henna, which the females of the East use still as a dye for the palms of 
 their hands, their finger nails, and their lips and teeth. The dye is 
 procured from the leaves. 
 
 The custom of staining parts of the body with henna is very ancient. 
 Mummies have been found, Fis.m. 
 
 in some of the oldest tombs, 
 with their nails thus dyed. 
 Solomon seems to have ob- 
 tained plants of camphire, 
 and to have raised them in 
 Engedi. In later times Pliny 
 informs us that the best 
 cupros, or henna, was in 
 his day obtained from Pales- 
 tine. 
 
 The practice is still common 
 both in Egypt and the East. 
 Shaw, in his Travels in Bar- 
 bary, says : — "At Gabs there 
 are several large plantations 
 of palm-trees, though the 
 dates are much inferior, both 
 in size and taste, to those of 
 the Jireed. But the chief 
 branch of trade, for which 
 this emporium, as Strabo calls 
 it, is famous at present, arises 
 from the al-hennah, which is 
 plentifully cultivated in all 
 their gardens. This beautiful 
 odoriferous plant, if it is not 
 annually cut, and kept low, 
 as it is usually in other places, grows ten or twelve feet high, putting 
 out its little flowers in clusters, which yield a most grateful smell like 
 camphor, and may therefore be alluded to. Cant. i. 14, where it is said 
 — ' BIy beloved is to me as a cluster of cypress (or al-hennah) in the 
 vineyards (or gardens) of Engedi.' The leaves of this plant, after 
 
 T^waonia inermis.
 
 452 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 tliey are dried and powdered, are disposed of to good advantage in all 
 the markets of this kingdom. For with this, all the African ladies that 
 can purchase it, tinge their lips, hair, hands, and feet, rendering tliem 
 thereby of a tawny saffron colour, whicli, witli them, is reckoned a 
 great beauty. The al-lienuah, no less than the palm, requires to be 
 frequently watered ; for which purpose the river that runs through 
 these plantations is cantoned out, as it seems to have been in the time 
 of Pliny, into a number of plantations." 
 
 Branches or clusters of the fragrant flowers of the Laiosonia are still 
 much used by eastern ladies, as ornaments for the breast and the hair. 
 The expression, "pair her nails," given by our translators in Deutero- 
 nomy xxi. 12, is rather " adorn her nails," and most likely refers to the 
 eastern use of the henna. 
 
 Three different plants are named in that part of the dialogue con- 
 tained in verses 1-3. The division of the context into chapters should 
 have taken place at verse 16, chap. i. — 
 
 Bride. — " Behold, my beloved, thou art fair, 
 
 Yea gracious ; and our bed is freshly green. 
 RoofJ-o'er with cedars, cypress intertwined. 
 I'm Sharon's rose, and lily of the vale. 
 King.— As lily 'mong the thorns, my love, thou art; 
 BuiDE. — The apple among trees is my beloved. 
 
 With deep delight I sat beneath his shade, 
 His fruit was very pleasant to my taste." 
 
 " Rose," Heb. hhdvtzeletJi, is properly a flower growing in rich land. 
 Is the translation botanically correct ? The question has been variously 
 answered. A few interpreters plead for its correctness. Many will 
 have it, that the cistus (see vol. i., p. 471) is the plant referred 
 to. Some would translate the word by " narcissus," others by " aspho- 
 del," '"iiid one or two by "crocus." But no satisfactory reason has 
 been assigned for setting aside the common rose. The word is only 
 used here and in Isaiah xxxv. 1. The scope of the latter passage goes 
 far to warrant the favourite translation. 
 
 The prophet uses the word in his description of the great and glorious 
 change which was to come on the church. It was to be like the desert 
 becoming clothed with luxuriant vegetation. Its beauty was to be of 
 the highest kind — a beauty which might be compared wath that of the 
 flower most prized — the rose — both for its loveliness and its perfume — 
 
 "The rose looks fair, but fairer we it deem, 
 For that sweet odour which doth in it live."
 
 SOXG OP SOLOMON. 453 
 
 Roses abound in Palestine. Hasselquist names the four leading 
 varieties — the damask, the double white, the common red, and the 
 cinnamon roses. One variety in the time of Solomon had grown 
 luxuriantly and in great perfection on the rich plain of Sharon, and to 
 this he makes the bride compare herself — " I am the rose of Sharon." 
 In Persia the rose grows to the height of fourteen or fifteen feet, and 
 when in full flower, its beauty baffles description, and the perfume 
 which it gives out is felt around. The rose gives the name to 
 the natural order, JRosacece, or rose-family of plants, and to the sub- 
 order, Rosece. It is to be found in most parts of the world. It is not, 
 however, indigenous in South America or Australia. In Syria and the 
 East it attains to its fullest growth and beauty. 
 
 The bride in that familiarity of love which thinketh no evil, and 
 conscious that her words will at once he accepted, says of herself — " I 
 am the lily of the valleys." The king hastens to acknowledge her 
 beauty, but throws in another idea. True thou art the lily, but dangers 
 are all around you — "As the lily among thorns art thou." In the Old 
 Testament, one word under three different forms is used for " lily "- - 
 slwsMn, sMshan, and shoshanndh. The Greek name is hrinon. The 
 root of the Hebrew word leads us in trying to identify the plant, to 
 seek for one with a light-coloured flower — L'ither w^hite or light yellow. 
 Such varieties abound in Palestine. " This little brook we are cross- 
 ing," says a recent traveller, " comes from Ijon, by Abel. It is asso- 
 ciated in my experience with the beautiful Hfdeh lily, the flower, as I 
 believe, mentioned by our Lord in that delightful exhortation to trust 
 in the kind care of our Heavenly Father — ' Consider the lilies how 
 they grow : they toil not, they spin not, and yet I say unto you that 
 Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.' This 
 Iluleh lily is very large, and the three inner petals meet above, and 
 form a gorgeous canopy, such as art never approached, and king never 
 sat under, even in his utmost glory. And when I meet this incom- 
 parable flower, in all its loveliness, among the oak woods around the 
 northern base of Tabor and on the hills of Nazareth, where our Lord 
 spent his youth, I felt assured that it was to this he referred. We call 
 it Hideh lily because it was liere that it was first discovered. Its botanical 
 name, if it has one, I am unacquainted with, and am not anxious to 
 have any other than that which connects it with this neighbourhood. 
 I suppose, also, that it is this identical flower to which Solomon refers 
 in the Song of Songs — ' I am the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the 
 valleys. As the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters.'
 
 454 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 The bride, comparing her beloved to a roe or a young hart, sees him 
 feeding among the HHes. Our flower dehghts most in the valleys, but 
 is also found on the mountains. It grows among thorns, and I have 
 sadly lacerated my hands in extricating it from them. Nothing can be 
 in higher contrast than the lu.xuriant, velvety softness of this lily, and 
 the crabbed, tangled hedge of thorns about it. Gazelles still delight to 
 feed among them ; and you can scarcely ride through the woods north 
 of Tabor, where these lilies abound, witliout frightening them from their 
 flowery pasture." 
 
 The first word occurs only once in the singular. When the pillars 
 Jachin and Boaz, with their mystic meaning, were set up in the temple, 
 we are told that their capitals were adorned with " lily work " (1 Kings 
 vii. 22). The plural form, slioshannim, occurs in the titles of Psalms 
 xlv., Ixix., and Ixxx. In this book it is used six times : — 
 
 " Mine, mine is my beloved, and I his. 
 Among the lilies feeding" (ii. IG). 
 
 "Twin roes thy breasts that feed among the lilies" (iv. 5). 
 
 "His cheeks a bed of spices, heaps of perfume; 
 His lips are lilies dropping flowing myrrh" (v. 13). 
 
 " Gone to his garden my beloved is, 
 To feed midst spices, and to gather lilies. 
 I am my beloved's, my beloved mine. 
 Feeding among the lilies in the garden" (vi. 2, 3). 
 
 " As wheaten sheaves with lilies comp.issed round, 
 Thy belly" (vii. 2). 
 
 Shushan is twice used. Like the former word, it is translated " lily" 
 in 1 Kings vii. 19^" The chapiters that were on the top of the pillars 
 were of lily work." It also occurs in the title of Psalm Ix. 
 
 Shushannuh is the term employed in the passage under notice, and is 
 met with in 2 Chronicles iv. 5, and Hosea xiv. 5 also. In the former 
 l)lace, " the brim of the molten sea" is said to be " like the work of the 
 brim of a cup, with flowers of lilies ;" in the latter, revived Israel is " to 
 grow as the lily." 
 
 Dr. Royle and others have alleged that the lily thus frequently men- 
 tioned in the Old Testament, is the well-known Lotus lily {Nym'phcea 
 Lotus) of the East. But how should the roes feed among such water- 
 plants, and where shall we find the propriety of the figure of " the lily 
 among thorns," were this the case? See also under Luke xii. 27. 
 The species most likely referred to here is the white lily {Lilium
 
 SONG OF SOLOMON. 455 
 
 candiclum)^ which is abundant in Palestine, but botanical correctness is 
 not to be looked for in the circumstances. Yellow varieties answer 
 equally well for the aspects of truth embodied in the context. 
 
 The other plant named in this part of the dialogue, is the " apple- 
 tree," Hob. tappuach. Interpreters have been much at sea as to the 
 true meaning of this word. In their attempts to identify the tree 
 referred to, they have been led astray by attaching a meaning to 
 Proverbs XXV. 11, which that verse was not designed to bear; which 
 see. The remarks made on the general use of the word "apple," and 
 the examination of that passage, have prepared us to consider the tree 
 mentioned here. Tappuach occurs six times — once in Proverbs, four 
 times in the Song, and once in Joel. The allusions to it in the Song, 
 in addition to the text under notice, are — 
 
 " Stay me with perfumes, and the apple's fruit 
 Strew round me, for my soul is faint with love" (ii. 5). 
 
 '' Thy breasts shall be 
 As clusters of the vine, thy breath like apples" (vii. 8). 
 
 " Under the apple-trees I raised thee, 
 And there thy mother first enfolded thee" (viii. 5). 
 
 The apple-tree is named by Joel with the fig, pomegranate, and palm, 
 as influenced by the prevailing judgments on the people because of 
 their sins : — " The vine is dried up, and the fig-tree languisheth ; the 
 pomegranate-tree, the palm-tree also, and the apple-tree, even all the 
 trees of the field, are withered : because joy is withered away from the 
 sons of men" (i. 2). Attempts to identify, the tree now named have 
 very generally ended in the choice of the citron {Citrus medico) as the 
 tree noticed by Solomon and Joel. This choice, however, is the result 
 of an erroneous interpretation of Prov. xxv. 11. Indeed there is no 
 good reason for any other rendering than that which our translators 
 have given. The tree is the apple-tree. The citron falls far short of 
 the requirements of the word. This is well brought out by the author 
 of " The Land and the Book." In his notice of Askelon, he says — 
 " It is especially celebrated for its apples, which are the largest and 
 best I have ever seen in this country. When I was here in June quite 
 a caravan started for Jerusalem loaded with them, and they would not 
 have disgraced even an American orchard. Dr. Kitto has laboured in 
 several of his works to prove that the Hebrew word taffuah, translated 
 ' apples,' means citron ; but I think this is one of his least happy 
 criticisms. The Arabic word for apple is almost the same as the
 
 456 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENX'K, 
 
 Hebrew, and it is as perfectly definite, to say the least, as our English 
 word — as much as the word for grape, and just as well understood — 
 and so is that for citron ; but this is a comparatively rare fruit. Citrons 
 arc also very large, weighing several pounds each, and are so hard and 
 indigestible that they cannot be used except when made into preserves. 
 The tree is small, slender, and must be propped up, or the fruit will 
 bend it down to the ground. Nobody ever thinks of sitting under its 
 shadow, for it is too small and straggling to make a shade. I cannot 
 believe, therefore, that it is spoken of in the Canticles. It can scarcely 
 be called a tree at all, much less would it be singled out as among the 
 choice trees of the wood. As to the smell and colour, all the demands 
 of the Biblical allusions are fully met by these apples of Askelon ; and 
 no doubt, in ancient times and in royal gardens, their cultivation was 
 far superior to what it is now, and the fruit larger and more fragrant. 
 Let tafftiah, therefore, stand for apple, as our noble translation has it " 
 (vol. ii. p. 328). The apple-tree belongs to the natural order Pomacece, 
 or apple-family. It is the Pijnis mains, or Mains communis of botanists, 
 and is well known. It is associated with the pear {Pijrus communis), 
 with the common mountain ash (P. aucupand) or rowan-tree, and with 
 
 Fig. 133 
 
 The Nightingale (^rhlhme'a lusuhna). 
 
 the service-tree (P. domestica). Another species known to most is the 
 common wild apple of British hedgerows {Mains acerha). The beverage 
 named cider is manufactured from the apple, and perry from the fruit 
 of the pear-tree.
 
 SOXG OF SOLOMOX. 457 
 
 The return of early summer supplies the beautiful allusions in verses 
 11-13. Many of the birds which make our woods and fields glad with 
 their songs in spring and early summer, are to be met with in Palestine. 
 Warblers, stoncchats, thrushes, tits, starlings, larks, &c., are all met 
 with. The cuckoo is heard on the bushy hill sides, and the turtle- 
 doves in the groves. — (Plate XXXIII.) The nightingale abounds in 
 different districts, and must often have been heard by Solomon in the 
 royal gardens ; to him, as to us, as he listened to it among the pome- 
 granate groves, or as the "chantress from the accustomed oak," higlily 
 suggestive ; — 
 
 " At that calm hour, so still, so pale, 
 Awakes the joyous nightingale ; 
 And from a hermitage of shade 
 Fills with her voice the forest glade. 
 
 And sweeter far that melting voice 
 Than all which through the day rejoice; 
 And still shall bard and wand'rer love 
 The twilight music of the grove. 
 
 Father in heaven ! oh ! thus when day 
 With all its caics hath pass'd away, 
 And silent hours waft peace on earth, 
 And hush the louder strains of mirth. 
 
 Thus may sweet songs of praise and prayer 
 To Thee my spirit's offering bear ; 
 Yon star, my signal, set on high, 
 For vesper hymns of piety. 
 
 So may Thy mercy and Thy power 
 Protect me through the midnight hour ; 
 And balmy sleep and visions blest 
 Smile on thy servant's bed of rest." 
 
 Verse 14 has already been referred to under Levit. i. 14— which see. 
 The king addresses the royal bride : — 
 
 " O my dove, in the clefts of the rock, 
 In the secret places of the stairs, 
 Let me see thy face, let me hear thy voice. 
 For sweet thy voice, and thy face comely." 
 
 The dove referred to here and in Jeremiah xlviii. 28, was tlic rock- 
 dove. Several species of doves (Columhula;) are named in Scripture — 
 the Syrian dove {Turtur n'son'us) as wild (Gen. viii. 8-12; Levit. i. 14); 
 and as tame (Isa. Ix. 8) ; the turtledove proper (Turtur mmtus), (Levit. 
 
 VOL. H. 3 M
 
 i. 14; Jer. viii. 7); and the rock-dove or true wild pigeon {Coluviha 
 livia). In addition to the passage under notice, there are other five in 
 the Song in which mention is made of the dove {jjunali). " Behokl 
 thou art most fair; behold thou art most fair; thou hast dove's eyes" 
 (i. 15). The same thought is again intimated — " Thou hast dove's 
 eyes within thy locks ; thy hair is as a flock of goats, that appear from 
 Mount Gilead " (iv. 1). In the former passage the voluptuous, dreamy 
 softness which the imagination of eastern poets attribute to the eye of 
 the dove, is referred to ; in the latter, the contrast between the soft, 
 light-coloured eye of the pigeon, and the locks glossy black as the hair of 
 the goats which feed on Gilead, is suggested. Again, when describing 
 lier beloved, the bride sings — -"His eyes are as the eyes of doves by the 
 rivers of water, washed with milk, and fitly set." " The bride repeats 
 the compliment to her beloved, and even exaggerates it — ' His eyes are 
 as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters, washed with milk, and fitly 
 set.' There is a luxurious, delicious haze and indistinctness about 
 such poetic extravagances which captivate the oriental imagination. 
 Nor is the comparison wholly extravagant. Doves delight in clear 
 water-brooks, and often bathe in them ; and then their liquid, loving 
 eyes, ' fitly set ' within a border of softest skyey blue, do look as though 
 just washed in transparent milk." 
 
 The king uses the term as one of endearment (v. 2) : — 
 
 " I sleep, but my heart waketh ; 'tis the voice 
 Of my beloved, and he knocketh, saying, 
 Open, my sister, unto me ; my love, 
 My dove, my iindefiled, my head with dew 
 Is filled, my locks with drops of night." 
 
 So in vi. 9, likewise — "My dove, my undefiled is one." In the time of 
 her "sleep" he had been waiting long — his head had become wet with 
 dew. Eeviving, she heard his voice still in tenderness, and deep affec- 
 tion, saying " My dove, my undefiled." 
 
 The appearance of the ripe pomegranate (iv. 3) {Punica granatum) 
 supplies another figure to the king in the praise of his "fair love." 
 Nature and art are alike drawn on to furnish imagery to denote her 
 spiritual beauty. Raven locks are parted on a pale brow. Snow-white 
 teeth are seen between "lips like a scarlet line." The affection which 
 fiushes her temples as she gazes on the king and hearkens to his words, 
 leads him to say — 
 
 "Pomegranate-like thy temples 'neath thy locks" (ver. 3).
 
 SONG OF SOLOMON. 
 
 459 
 
 The same plant is used to indicate other aspects of grace in the church — 
 
 "Thy plants an orcliard are of pomegranates" (ver. 13). 
 
 The sentiment in verse 3 is repeated at chapter vi. 7, where, too, the 
 bride is represented going down to her garden of nuts to see whether 
 the pomegranate " budded." In chapter vii. 12, she is introduced 
 asking the king to accompany her to see again if " the pomegranates 
 
 rig. 13G. 
 
 Saffron Crocus (C. Sativus). 
 
 bud forth." " Spiced wine of the juice of the pomegranate " is referred 
 to in chapter viii. 2. This plant has been fully noticed under 1 Sam. 
 xiv. 2 — which see. 
 
 In his praises of his spouse, the king names the treasures of her 
 garden or paradise. Among these he mentions "spikenard and saffron,
 
 460 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 calamus and cinnamon." "SaSi-on," Heb. Icarlcdm, is the only "sweet" 
 in the garden which foils to be noticed here. Saffron is produced by- 
 one of the Iris fomily of plants (Indacece), the so-called saffron crocus 
 {Crocus sativus). It is used as a dye and a drug. The sweet-scented 
 Syrian variety yielded a costly perfume. 
 
 The stigmata of this crocus are of a deep orange colour, and highly 
 aromatic. These are gathered, and form the saffron of commerce. It 
 is imported into England from the Levant, Sicily, France, and Spain. 
 That of English growth is most higlily esteemed for its deep shade. 
 It is still cultivated in Cambridgesliire, and has given its name to a 
 town in Essex, Saffron Walden. It was much more used in medicine 
 in olden times than it is now. An old herbalist refers to it as "an 
 herb of the sun, under the Lion, and therefore, he says, you need not 
 demand the reason why it strengthens the heart so exceedingly. Let 
 not above ten grains be given at a time ; for the sun, which is the 
 fountain of light, may dazzle the eyes and make them blind ; a cordial 
 being taken in an inordinate quantity, hurts the heart instead of healing 
 it." It was also much used in cookery. In chemistry the colouring 
 matter of true safft'on is known as crocine. 
 
 AVhen Jacob told his sons to go a second time down to Egypt, he 
 ordered them to take, among the other fruits of the land, some " nuts" 
 as a present for the ruler. The word used in Genesis {hotnlm) differs 
 from that employed in vi. 11. Following the exclamation of the 
 " virgins" (ver. 10), the " bride" says — 
 
 " I went down to the garden of the nuts 
 To see the valley's fruits." 
 
 " Nuts," Heb. egoz. The resemblance of the current Arabic name for 
 walnuts to the Hebrew term used here, warrants the belief that this 
 kind of fruit is referred to by the bride. See under Gen. xliii. 11. 
 
 The walnut-tree {Juglans regia) belongs to the natural order of 
 dicotyledonous plants Juglandaceoe, or walnut family. It is a native of 
 the East, but is now common in temperate and southern Europe. It 
 is cultivated chiefly as an ornamental tree in Britain, though in some 
 of the midland counties and in the south of England its fruit fully 
 ripens. It is found in most countries of temperate and southern 
 Asia. The generic name "Juglans," is a contracted form of Jovis glans, 
 the nut of Jupiter. " Walnut" is equivalent to walled-nut; so called 
 from the membrane which, from a central stalk in the heart of the 
 kernel, divides the grain of the nut into four lobes.
 
 SONG OF SOLOMON. 
 
 4G1 
 
 There are severcal well-known species of walnut-trees, all of which 
 when full-grown are of a large size. In a congenial soil it will add 
 two feet to its height annually until it reach to twenty or twenty- 
 five feet, when its upward growth becomes either very slow or is 
 arrested altogether. The trunk Fis.137. 
 
 «»iitj^i 
 
 of the common walnut-tree 
 {Juglans regia) is covered witli 
 a brown, deeply furrowed 
 bark. The branches are wide- 
 spreading, grey- coloured, and 
 smooth. The leaves are elon- 
 gated, oval, smooth, slightly 
 serrated, and of a beautiful 
 dark-green colour. The flow- 
 ers, which appear in April, 
 are male and female. The 
 two sexes grow on the same 
 tree, and are easily distin- 
 guished. The male or stami- 
 niferous flowers are arranged 
 in single drooping catkins, and 
 are borne by shoots producf;d 
 a year before the catkin. 
 The female or pistiliferous 
 flowers are placed on the end 
 of shoots developed in the 
 same year as the flower. The nut is inclosed in a drupe, or fleshy 
 covering, like the plum, &c. The wood of the walnut-tree is much used 
 in carpentry. It is variously veined and shaded with black streaks 
 on a brown ground, and is susceptible of a high polish. The fruit 
 yields an oil of various qualities ; the best of which is used by painters 
 in preparing their colours. 
 
 The king, addressing the royal bride, speaks of her beauty, of her 
 statcliness, and of the joy which her presence would yield to him : — 
 
 " How fair art thou, beloved, and bow pleasant 1 
 Thy stature's like a palm, thy breasts as clusters. 
 Now will I to the palm-tree go, I said, 
 And of its boughs take hold ; thy breasts shall be 
 As clusters of the vine." 
 
 The palm-tree's usual form of growth is erect. The stem, bursting 
 
 TTftTnut-treo {Juglnm rtgia).
 
 402 niBLlCAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 from the root, generally shoots straight upwards, and arrests the eye 
 by its stately beauty. The " clusters" named in ver. 7, have, without 
 good reason, been associated in our translation with the vine. Grape 
 clusters are specially named in ver. 8. In the first reference we have 
 the palm {Phoenix dactylifera) and its clusters of dates; in the second, 
 the vine and its branches of ripe grapes. The dates are linked up 
 with the stature of the bride ; the grapes with her person, yielding joy 
 to her royal spouse. In the one case we have the outstanding beauty 
 of the churcli, as she hangs forth her supplies of food to the hungry; in 
 the other, her spiritual loveliness revealed to Him who rests in his love 
 over her. Jeremiah makes another use of the erect appearance of the 
 palm-tree. When characterizing the vanity of the idols cut from the 
 trees of the forest, decked with silver and gold, and fastened to their 
 places with hammers, he says : — " The customs of the people are vain: 
 for one cutteth a tree out of the forest (the work of the hands of the 
 workmen) with the axe : they deck it with silver and with gold ; they 
 fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not. They are 
 upright as the palm-tree, but speak not ; they must needs be borne 
 because they cannot go" (x. 3-5).
 
 ISAIAH i.-xiv. 4G3 
 
 ISAIAH I.-XIV. 
 
 j,^^^ HE prophet's design in the first chapter is to show the close 
 Erti'-J' 1 connection between the sins and the sufferings of the 
 .._/i : iieople of God. He characterizes the moral state of Judah 
 - " as peculiarly bad, and calls on the heavens and the earth 
 , to hearken to the complaint of God as a Father — " I have 
 
 1^1/ c^ nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled 
 > ^ against me" (i. 2). Yea they were not only stubborn, rebel- 
 lious, and greedily set on sin, but stupidly ungrateful likewise. 
 They were dependent on him for every mercy, in providence and in 
 grace ; but they did not see this. He was their owner, but their 
 attitude to him was worse than that of the dull ox and not very saga- 
 cious ass: — " The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib: 
 but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider" (ver. 3). Job 
 names the ox (shdr) to illustrate a widely different state of feeling — 
 not that of unthankfulness, but quiet satisfaction, and wishes his friends 
 to feel that if he complained, it was because he had good reason for 
 doing so. " Loweth," he asks, " the ox over his fodder?" " He does 
 not, and I would not have opened my mouth and cursed my day (iii. 1) 
 had not the arrows of the Almighty been within me, drinking up my 
 spirit with their poison (vi. 4). Had I complained without due cause, 
 the ox itself would have rebuked me." 
 
 The ox is again associated with the ass when Isaiah describes some 
 of the effects of the full revelation to the world of the " man who shall 
 be an hiding-place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest." 
 To those wlio look to him there will be blessing ; to those who refuse 
 homage to him evil shall come. It will especially be well with all who 
 in every circumstance realize their duty aaid do it : — " Blessed are ye 
 that sow beside all waters, that send forth thither the feet of the ox 
 and the ass" (xxxii. 20). See also under Gen. xii. IG, xli. 2 ; Numb, 
 xxii. 4 ; and Dent. xxv. 4. 
 
 The land was to be made desolate because of its sins. In ver. 8, 
 the extent of the desolation is indicated by striking figures : — " The 
 daughter of Zion is left as a cottage in a vineyard, as a lodge in a 
 garden of cucumbers, as a besieged city." In the first two figures the 
 
 o
 
 464 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 idea of being forsaken, and of the complete cessation of joy is embodied. 
 In the third that of present trouble is indicated. When men went out 
 into the vineyards at joyous vintage -time, they erected booths for 
 temporary shelter from tlie extreme heat of noon, and from the cold 
 dews of night. But when the grapes were gathered, and their blood 
 squeezed out, the cottage was deserted. So, likewise, when the cucum- 
 bers were becoming ripe the lodge or shed for the watchman was 
 erected. When the season passed it was deserted. To loneliness is 
 added tribulation — the daughter of Ziou becomes also like a besieged 
 city. 
 
 " Cucumbers ' — see under Numb. xi. 4-6. The lodge or shed was 
 a very frail erection. " Passing," say Messrs. M'Cheyne and Bonar, 
 " a garden of melons and cucumbers, we observed ' the lodge' in the 
 midst of it, a small erection of four upright poles, roofed over with 
 branches and leaves, under the shadow of which a solitary person may 
 sit and watch his garden." " I can confirm," says a recent traveller, 
 " the statement of Burckhardt, that the Arabs of Butaiha have the 
 earliest cucumbers and melons in all this region. I once visited it in 
 early spring with a guide from Safed, who came, according to custom, 
 to load his mules with these vegetables for the market in that town. 
 The vines are already up and spreading rapidly ; and there comes the 
 gardener with a basket of cucumbers to sell — which, of course, we will 
 purchase for our salad in the evening. And that is the lodge, I sup- 
 pose, which Isaiah speaks of; just as the frail, temporary thing suggested 
 that sad complaint of the prophet — ' The daughter of Zion is left as 
 a cottage in a vineyard, as a lodge in a garden of cucumbers.' No 
 doubt, but the true point of the comparison will not appear until the 
 crop is over, and the lodge forsaken by the keeper. Then the poles 
 fall down, or lean every way, and those green boughs with which it 
 is shaded will have been scattered by the wind, leaving only a ragged, 
 sprawling wreck — a most affecting type of utter desolation — 'as 
 Sodom, and like unto Gomorrah.'" 
 
 " Scarlet" (ver. 18)— under Numb. xix. 2. " Crimson "—Josh. ii. 18. 
 
 Chapter ii. 13. — " Cedars of Lebanon " — see under 1 Kings iv. 33 ; 
 1 Chron. xiv. 1 ; and Psalm xcii. 12. The hand of man became the 
 means of "bringing the day of the Lord upon all the cedars of Lebanon." 
 " The frequent mention," says Dr. Robinson, "in Scripture of the cedars 
 of Lebanon, and the uses to which it was applied, made it apparent, that 
 in ancient times large tracts of the mountain were covered with forests 
 of this tree. Diodorus Siculus also relates that Lebanon was full of
 
 /■/..rn; 
 
 T.I p. 
 
 T. Eiij^tpa-n. f'ommi^n l/o/. 
 
 .> .^htj/i^is _ 0>//uiii>/i .»■/>/>■//. 
 
 .Uy' . /y/-//.i/f.ir/ii ,~ ' >''rfni'i!.' 
 
 THE MOUSE AFTEK ITS KIND.— Lev. xi. 29. 
 
 /' S/ie,hiitn V.itiifimr- /t.U 
 
 CAST HIS IDOLS TO THE MOLES AND TO THE BATS.— ISA. U. S& 
 
 ' ow. EotMBURC"
 
 ISAIAH I.-XIV. 465 
 
 cedars and firs and cypresses of wonderful size and beauty. But the 
 destruction of them for architectural uses was far more rapid than their 
 growth ; so that when Justinian in the sixth century erected the church 
 of the Virgin (now el-Aksa) at Jerusalem, there was great difficulty in 
 obtaining timber for the roof; though after much search a spot was 
 found full of cedar-trees of great height. The destruction still went 
 on ; and it would appear, that as late as the middle ages, private houses 
 in Sidon, and probably also in Tyre and other Phoenician cities, were 
 ceiled and ornamented with the cedars of Lebanon." — ("Later Res.") 
 In this way, and in such manifestations of his glorious power as have 
 been noticed under Psalm xxix., the strong hand of judgment was laid 
 literally on the cedars of Lebanon. The cypress here, however, is 
 figurative. The cedars of Lebanon and the oaks of Bashan point to 
 the proud and self-exalted among the princes of Judah. Judgment 
 was to fall on them for their sins. They had led the people into 
 foreign alliances ; and, as a consequence, superstition, reliance on wealth 
 and power, and the practice of gross idolatry, filled the land. But the 
 threatening was to take effect — -for "the loftiness of man shall be 
 brought down, and the haughtiness ot men shall be made low, and the 
 Lord alone shall be exalted in that day" (ver. 17). 
 
 "Fine linen" (iii. 23) — see under Judges xiv. 12. 
 
 Chapter v. — The prophet's theme is the iniquities and backsliding of 
 Judah, and the judgments which were to come on the people because of 
 these. His words assume the form of a parable, with his own commentary 
 on it. They are not to be limited to any one period in the history of that 
 people, but were descriptive of all the occasions on which they departed 
 from God and were rebuked because of their sin. The parable is 
 characterized by great beauty. It is the utterances of a beloved friend 
 touching his vineyard. The owner of the vineyard was God ; the 
 vineyard itself was "the house of Israel, and the men of Judah were 
 the pleasant plant" (ver. 7). The word rendered "choicest vine" is 
 soreh, which is used in the same way by Jeremiah (ii. 21 — "I had 
 planted thee a noble vine (soreJc)." This variety gave its name to the 
 valley in which Delilah dwelt (Judg. xvi. 4). We thus see the point 
 of contrast. The vine was the best of its kind, and should have 
 yielded choice grapes. But instead of this it produced only wild 
 grapes (heushim). The singular form feminine of this word is translated 
 "cockle" in Job xxxi. 40: — "Let cockle grow instead of barley" — let 
 any kind of noxious weed spring up which shall take the place of the 
 useful barley. This mode of interpretation is to be followed in the 
 
 VOL. II. 3 N
 
 4G6 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 passage under notice. The fruit of this vine instead of being the large 
 luscious clusters which the sorek bears, was only the acrid and unwhole- 
 some bunches which may be gathered from the wild neglected vine. 
 
 "Briers" (ver. G' — Judges viii. 7. "Strong drink" (ver. 11) — Numb. 
 vi. 3. " Flint," Heb. tzor, used also in Exod. iv. 25 (where it is trans- 
 lated " sharp stone," literally, knife of flint), and in Ezek. iii. 9. Another 
 word, lihaldmuth, is rendered "flint" and "flinty" (Deut. viii. 15, xxxii. 
 13), "rock" (Job xxviii. 9), and "flint" (Psalm cxiv. 8; Isa. 1. 7). 
 The word appears to have been used in the same way as among us. 
 
 Chapter vi. 1-4. — The glorious vision struck terror into the mind of 
 the prophet. "Woe is me," he cried, "for I am undone." Re-assured by 
 the symbolic act (ver. 6, 7) and the putting away of his sins, he becomes 
 fit to hearken to the "voice of the Lord " — "Whom shall I send, and 
 who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me" (ver. 8). 
 His offer of service is accepted, but with the distinct and humbling 
 assurance, that his labours will only deepen the guilt of the people, and 
 hasten the threatened judgment. " And he said, Go, and tell this 
 people. Hear ye indeed, but understand not ; and see ye indeed, but 
 perceive not. Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears 
 heavy, and shut their eyes ; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with 
 their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed. 
 Then said I, Lord, how long? And he answered, Until the cities be 
 wasted without inhabitant, and the houses without man, and the land 
 be utterly desolate. And the Lord have removed men far away, and 
 there be a great forsaking in the midst of the land " (vers. 9-12). But 
 here the divine grace is again revealed to strengthen the afflicted 
 prophet, whose heart still yearned over his kinsfolk according to the 
 flesh, and whose warm patriotism led him still to long for the good of 
 Israel. "But yet in it shall be a tenth, and it shall return, and shall be 
 eaten : as a teil-tree, and as an oak, whose substance is in them, when 
 they cast their leaves, so the holy seed shall be the substance thereof " 
 (ver. 13). The force of the promise is the salvation of a remnant from 
 the desolation threatened in verse 11. Even after this, he says, there 
 shall be in the land a tenth, or small proportion of the whole, who shall 
 be left from those carried away captive. But this only that a portion 
 of the remnant shall again be afflicted, or as here, " eaten," used in the 
 sense of to consume. These, he continues, shall be like the teil-tree 
 and the oak-trees, with which they were held to be well acquainted — 
 which even when they are to all appearance dead still retain their 
 vitality. And thus the holy seed shall be the substance of the tenth
 
 ISAIAH I.-XIV. 
 
 467 
 
 preserved, wliicli some might deem completely destroyed. The tnith 
 taught here is similar to that referred to in Romans xi., in which Paul 
 declares that there was still among unbelieving Israel a remnant accord- 
 ing to the election of grace. 
 
 A distinction is made here between the teil-tree {elali) and the oak 
 (allon). The oak has already iis.isa 
 
 been fully noticed (vol. i. p. 302). 
 Are we in the other passages in 
 which elah occurs, to render it 
 by "terebinth" {Pistacia tere- 
 hinilms) ? Or, may there not be 
 good reason for the proposal 
 made by some, to render elah in 
 this verse by " lime " or "linden 
 tree?"— (Fig. 138.) The lime, 
 which is a tree of great beauty, 
 grows luxuriantly in Lebanon 
 and Bashan, where such a scene 
 as that described by the German 
 poet has often impressed tra- 
 vellers — 
 
 " Linden blossoms drunk with moonlight 
 Fly about in fragrant showers ; 
 And the nightingale's sweet music 
 Fills the air and leafy bowers." 
 
 Lady Calcott and others plead 
 
 for "lime-tree," as the best 
 
 translation of elah in this place ; 
 
 but it is more in keeping with its use in other passages to retain " teil" 
 
 or "terebinth." 
 
 Chapter vii. forms the first of severiil (vii.-xii.), which contain a 
 series of prophecies, uttered during the reign of Ahaz. In the opening 
 words, the king is warned of the approaching invasion of the land by 
 Rezin and Pekah. He is, however, informed that their counsel shall 
 not stand. Ahaz continued incredulous. Thus the proposal of the 
 prophet in regard to the sign (ver. 11). The king refused, and the 
 prophet said — " Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign ; 
 behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and thou shalt call his 
 name Immanuel. Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to 
 refuse the evil, and choose the good" (ver. 14, 15). The general scope 
 
 Lime-tree [TUia Earapaa).
 
 468 BIBLICAL NATUKAL SCIENCE. 
 
 of this passage is admitted by most to be a clear statement of the 
 miraculous conception and birth of our Lord Jesus Christ— the true 
 Immanuel, "God with us." No doubt great difficulty meets the inter- 
 preter, when he tries to lay his hand on the precise historical incidents 
 referred to by the prophet for the encouragement of the people. It is 
 evident that the people, to whom his words were addressed, would 
 ascribe a meaning to them bearing intimately on their present experi- 
 ence. But whatever that may have been, it was in complete harmony 
 with the grander and more glorious bearing of the words on the incar- 
 nation of the Messiah. Yet here, as in innumerable portions of the 
 word of God, it is necessary that we have a well-defined view of the 
 context, before such expressions as specially demand our attention in 
 this work can be explained. Regarding the 15th verse from the point 
 of view of the whole prophecy, two interpretations may be attached to 
 it. First, It may be held to imply, that two children are spoken of by 
 the prophet. The circumstances connected with one of these, born in 
 the reign of Ahaz, may have been the fulfilment of the prophecy, and 
 the type of Him who was to be born "God with us." Second, It may 
 he held that the words distinctly foretell the birth of Christ, and 
 intimate that the circumstances connected with it would resemble the 
 great deliverance promised to Ahaz and his people. But this question 
 of the first bearing of the prophecy is a subordinate one. "While some 
 diversity of judgment ought to be expected and allowed, in relation to 
 this secondary question, there is no ground, grammatical, historical, or 
 logical, for doubt as to the main point, that the church in all ages has 
 been right in regarding this passage as a signal and explicit prediction 
 of the miraculous conception and nativity of Jesus Christ." 
 
 It has been the custom to explain the reference to the food of the 
 promised child, in a way to make it imply plenty, and the best of its 
 kind. But the opposite is the case. In this chapter another allusion 
 to food occurs : — " It shall come to jiass in that day, that a man shall 
 nourish a young cow and two sheep ; and it shall come to pass, for 
 the abundance of milk that they shall give, that he shall eat butter: for 
 butter and honey shall every one eat that is left in the land " (ver. 21, 
 22). The land was to be depopulated. Its agricultural operations 
 were to cease. The inhabitants were to be cast back on the natural 
 products of the country. But God would bless even their scanty 
 supply. One cow and two sheep would yield abundance. The point 
 of the expression "butter and honey" in verse 15, lies in this. It does 
 not mean " food of the rich," nor " best of food,"' nor " luxurious food,"
 
 P/^Te ■■■: 
 
 Ilimiulo 
 
 //, ltii.'ilc(t . f'hun/irii S'li iill(<n 
 
 ('v]jselij_s. 
 
 \ 
 
 ILIrhiixi . Ilciisi' Miiiiin . 
 
 
 Mvisfjrapa 
 
 *^.>>^ 
 
 CuchIhs 
 
 iV \l Ciiispola. S'ii,iit,'ii FlrttTtihfr . 
 
 Z') 
 
 (\\V\\\\\S CiLUOl-llS CurU 
 
 I'Viii'^ill.i 
 
 ■ 'htu'linch . 
 SWALLOW OATH FOLXD A NEST FOR HERSELF.— Ps. Uixir. 8. 
 
 TUE TIME OF SINGING BIKD3.— Cast. U. 1».
 
 ISAIAH I.-XIV. 469 
 
 nor " most generous diet," but simply food which could be given to the 
 child at a period or in circumstances when the land was unquiet, and 
 when the labours of the husbandman had ceased, or when the circum- 
 stances of those referred to were such that they were prevented enjoying 
 the fruits of industry and agricultural enterprise. The last was actually 
 the experience of Joseph, ]Mary, and the infant Jesus, when they were 
 forced to flee into Egypt, " Most recent writers are agreed in giving 
 to the twenty-second verse its true sense as a prophecy of desolation. 
 This of course determines that of the fourteenth, as if Isaiah had said — 
 ' This is what I meant by saying that the child should eat butter and 
 honey, for butter and honey shall every one eat that is left in the land.' " 
 
 " Butter," Heb. hhcmdli, may sometimes mean " milk" or " cream," 
 as well as the article usually so called. As used in Job xxix. G, the 
 word has two long vowels, hlianali — which see ; also Deut. xxxii. 14. 
 "Honey," Heb. devash, is to be understood as " honey of bees" (Levit. 
 ii. 11 ; Judg. xiv. 8 ; 2 Kings xviii. 32 ; and Matt. iii. 4). 
 
 Verses 17-20 demand such a view of the context as that given 
 above : — " The Lord shall bring upon thee, and upon thy people, and 
 upon thy father's house, days that have not come, from the day that 
 Ephraim departed from Judah ; even the king of Assyria. And it shall 
 come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall hiss for the fly that is 
 in the uttermost part of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that is in 
 the land of Assyria : and they shall come, and shall rest all of them in 
 the desolate valleys, and in the holes of the rocks, and upon all thorns, 
 and upon all bushes. In the same day shall the Lord shave with a 
 razor that is hired, namely, by them beyond the river, by the king of 
 Assyria, tlie head, and the hair of the feet ; and it shall also consume 
 the beard." 
 
 I have pointed out under Exod. viii. 20-24, that the term {drov) 
 rendered " swarms of flies" points to divers kinds of insects which, in 
 piopular language, are named flies. The word used here {zevuv or zehuh) 
 is still of a very general kind, but it has a limited meaning assigned to 
 it, by being associated with " tlie rivers of Egypt." It is thus also 
 with the word translated " bee" (devorah), which may be regarded as 
 including not only the honey bee (Apis mellifica), but also the wasp 
 (Vesjpa vulgaris), and the hornet (F. crabro). Of these the one which 
 can be most naturally joined with Assyria is to be taken. The present 
 Arabic name for the hornet is debahir, manifestly no more than a modi- 
 fied form of the Hebrew word for bee. We may thus very safely hold 
 that zebub means flies of several kinds, but when joined to Egypt it is
 
 470 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Jris.139, 
 
 to be rendered gnat {Culex pipiens). In like manner devorah, when 
 joined with Assyria, and when the habits of the insects are alluded to, 
 as here, may be held to mean the common Arabian hornet, or dehahir. 
 See under Exod. xxiii. 28. 
 
 The gnat (Culex) gives its name to a family of insects, the Culicidie, 
 
 rig.iio. whose structure and habits 
 
 l)roadly distinguish them 
 from other members of the 
 great natural group to 
 which they belong. The 
 mouth organs {prgana ciba- 
 ria) are produced into a 
 long slender cylinder h, b, 
 nearly half the length of the 
 insect. This proboscis con- 
 sists of several distinct 
 pieces, d, c, which form the 
 blood-sucking instrument. 
 
 The head is hemispheri- 
 cal, covered almost wholly 
 by two compound eyes. 
 At the point nearest the 
 mouth, where the eyes come 
 very near each other, two 
 bulbs are placed side by 
 side. From the centre of 
 these the two antennte spring, consisting of twelve joints beset with 
 hairs. The lower lip of the insect assumes the form of a long 
 cylinder, and stretches out between the antennae. This is slightly 
 thickened at the tip, where it opens and displays sets of lancets. One 
 set answers to the lower jaws, the other to upper, and between them is 
 the slender tubular tongue. The whole mechanism is highly suggestive 
 of illustrations of the wisdom of the Creator, lying far out of view of 
 the natural power of the human eye. 
 
 " The extreme irritation produced by the bite of the gnat, is too well 
 known even in our own country. The manner, however, in which the 
 operation is effected is interesting ; thirsting for its evening meal, the 
 little animal enters our apartments, and instead of whirling, like the 
 moths, round the light, it betakes itself to its employment ; sounding 
 an approach, however, by a tolerably loud humming, which, in our 
 
 Head of Mosquito Guat.
 
 ISAIAH I.-XIV. 471 
 
 chambers at least, is often sufficient to banish sleep. Taking its station 
 upon an uncovered part of the skin, with so light a motion as not to be 
 perceptible when it alights (although it will not hesitate to make its 
 attacks occasionally through our thick clothing), it lowers its rostrum 
 and pierces the skin by means of its exceedingly slender needle-like 
 lancets, which are barbed at the tips ; and as by degrees it pushes 
 these deeper into the skin, the lower lip or sheath, in which they were 
 inclosed when at rest, becomes more and more elbowed towards the 
 breast, until the whole length of the lancets are introduced into the 
 skin. It is supposed that, at the same time, it instils into the wound a 
 venomous liquid, which, while it enables the blood to flow faster, is the 
 chief cause of the subsequent irritation." — (Westicood.) 
 
 " But of all the insect-tormentors of man, none are so loudly and uni- 
 versally complained of as the species of the genus Culex — Linn., whether 
 known by the name of gnats or mosquitos. Pliny, after Aristotle, 
 distinguishes well between Hijmenoptera and Diptera, when he says 
 the former have their sting in the tail, and the latter in the mouth; and 
 that to the one this weapon is given as the instrument of vengeance, 
 and to the other of avidity. But the instrument of avidity in the genus 
 of which I am speaking, is even more terrible than that of vengeance 
 in most insects that are armed with it ; like the latter also, as appears 
 from the consequent inflammation and tumour, it instils into its wound 
 a poison ; the principal use of which, however, is to render the blood 
 more fluid, and fitter for suction. This weapon, which is more complex 
 than the sting of hymenopterous insects, consisting of five pieces 
 besides the exterior sheath, some of which seem simply lancets, while 
 others are barbed like the spicula of a bee's sting, is at once calculated 
 for piercing the flesh and forming a siphon adapted to imbibe the 
 blood. There are several species of this genus whose bite is severe, 
 but none is to be compared to the common gnat — ( Cidexpipiens — Linn.) 
 
 " Although with us they are usually rather teasing than injurious, 
 yet upon some occasions they have approached nearer to the character 
 of a plague, and emulated with success the mosquitos of other climates. 
 
 " In the year 17GG, in the month of August, they appeared in such 
 incredible numbers at Oxford as to resemble a black cloud, darkening 
 the air, and almost totally intercepting the beams of the sun. One 
 day, a little before sunset, six columns of them were observed to ascend 
 from the boughs of an apple-tree, some in a perpendicular and others 
 in an oblique direction, to tlie height of fifty or sixty feet. Their bite was 
 so envenomed, that it was attended by violent and alarming inflammation;
 
 472 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 and one when killed usually contained as much blood as would cover 
 three or four square inches of wall. Spenser seems to have witnessed 
 a similar appearance of them : — 
 
 ' As when a swarme of gnats at eventide 
 Out of the fennes of Allan doe arise, 
 Their murmuring small trumpets sownden wide, 
 Whiles, in the air their clust'ring army flies, 
 That as a cloud doth seem to dim the skies ; 
 No man nor beast may rest or take repast 
 For their sharp wounds and noyous injuries : 
 Till the fierce northern wind with blust'ring blast, 
 Doth blow them quite away, and in the ocean cast.'" 
 
 The female gnat alone is the bloodsucker. In cases then in which 
 their jjresence has become a plague and a judgment, there must have 
 been an excess of females. This prominence is given to an account of 
 the structure and habits of this insect, with the view of showing how 
 terrible the visitation must have been when the Lord sent swarms on 
 Egypt. Here he suggests this to the people when he threatens once 
 more to bring such a plague on those who despised his warnings, both 
 by his jirophets and by his providences. " The Lord shall hiss," 
 literally "whistle," "for the fly that is in the uttermost part of the 
 rivers of Egypt." The association of the fly with the rivers, and the 
 bee with the land, is peculiarly true to nature. The gnats deposit their 
 eggs on the decaying leaf, or blade of grass, or fragment of bark found 
 floating on the surface of the water. The eggs in a couple of days pass 
 into the larval condition. The larvaj are fitted to hang on the surface 
 of the water, with head downwards. They breathe by a tube near the 
 star-like tail. Having once or twice changed their skin, they pass 
 into the pupa state, in which they move with the head upwards, but 
 do not eat. At the end of about three weeks the skin of the pupa 
 splits, and the full-formed, winged insect emerges, using the cast-off 
 skin as a little boat on which it may float till the wing membrane is 
 hardened. It then takes wing. The uttermost part of the rivers — all 
 the canals formed for irrigating the land by the waters of the Nile — 
 would be specially favourable to the increase of the " fly of Egypt." 
 
 Chapter xiii. 1. — "Babylon" has already been refeiTed to (vol. i., 
 pp. 272; 273). Babylon was the capital of Babylonia. It lay on the 
 Euphrates about three hundred miles above the point at which the 
 united Tigris and Euphrates flow into the Persian Gulf. The latter 
 river flowed through the city, dividing into two parts. The area 
 occupied by the city was above two hundred square miles. It was
 
 ISAIAH I.-XIV. 473 
 
 noted in ancient times for its massive walls. These were of bricks 
 cemented by bitumen. They are said to have been eighty-seven feet 
 thick, and more than eight hundred feet high. Water was led from 
 the Euphrates into the country around the city for purposes of irriga- 
 tion. These were " the rivers of Babylon." Babylon reached the 
 height of its power and splendour during the reign of Nebuchadnezzar. 
 The city was besieged and taken by Cyrus, B.C. 538, when it ceased 
 to be tlie capital of an independent state. In the course of centuries 
 it gradually fell into ruins, and all the terrible prophecies uttered 
 against it were literally fulfilled. 
 
 I have shown under 1 Kings v. 8, 10, and Psalm civ. 17, that there 
 is no warrant to render herosh "cypress," instead of, as uniformly in our 
 translation, "fir." The uses of the fir-tree are specially noticed under 
 the former passage. The mode in which it is alluded to by the 
 prophets falls to be considered here. Isaiah names the herosh, or fir- 
 tree, five times. In chapter xiv. the prophet's theme is again the 
 overthrow and complete destruction of Babylon. He tells the "house of 
 Jacob" of his favour to them, and gives them the distinct assurance 
 that they shall change conditions with their oppressors. They were to 
 be exalted, but their enemies were to be so dealt with, that this taunt 
 would come to be used concerning them — " How hath the oppressor 
 ceased! the golden city ceased !" As the judgment is being executed, 
 the whole earth is represented as at rest (ver. 7). The work having 
 been accomplished, the prophet, by the bold figure in verse 8, repre- 
 sents the external world breaking into a song of triumph — "The fir- 
 trees rejoice at thee, and the cedars of Lebanon." Personified inanimate 
 nature speaks and tells of the ruin of the proud tyrant. Thus, too, 
 Virgil (Eel. V. 63) speaks of the wild, wooded, mountains lifting up their 
 joyous voices to the stars, the rocks rejoicing, and the groves them- 
 selves breakinof into songs — 
 
 " Ipsi ]a?titia voces ad sidera jactant 
 Intonsi monies : ipste jam carmina mpcs, 
 Ipsa sonant aibusta." 
 
 See also under xxxvii. 24. 
 
 vol.. 11. 
 
 3o
 
 47-i 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIEXCE. 
 
 ISAIAH XV.-XXXIV. 
 
 the destruction of the cities is added the desoLation of the 
 
 land — " In the way of Horonaim they shall raise up a cry 
 
 uf destruction" (xv. 5). By the failure of the vegetation, 
 
 the waters of Nimrim (Beth-nimrah, Numb, xxxii. 3, 36) 
 
 are made desolate, for the hay (Jilidtzir) — the grass fully 
 
 v^/lV <" grown and ready for cutting — is withered away ; the grass 
 
 /i\S ' {desJie) — common pasture plants — faileth, there is no green 
 
 « thing (yerek) — a term including the other two. It occurs in Gen. 
 
 i. 30, ix. 3, as the "green herb" which was given for meat. In 
 
 Exod. X. 15, it indicates the leaves of the trees. The destruction caused 
 
 by the locusts was such, that "there remained not any green thing in 
 
 the trees." The yerek was "the grass" of the field, which the ox licked 
 
 up (Numb. xxii. 4). In Psalm xxxvii. 2, it is said of evil doers and 
 
 workers of iniquity, that " they shall soon be cut down like the grass 
 
 (yerek), and wither as the green herb (deshe)." See under Jer. xii. 4 ; 
 
 2 Sam. xxiii. 4. 
 
 The difficulty of giving a clear translation of verse 7, is felt by all 
 interpreters. Its obscurity has been increased by the variety of ren- 
 derings proposed for the last clause — "That which they have laid up, 
 shall they carry away to the brook of the willows." In the margin of 
 the English bible, " valley of the Arabians" is given as the equivalent 
 of "brook of the willows," from the resemblance between the Hebrew 
 term translated " willow" and the name Arabia. A like circumstance has 
 led to another rendering, namely, "the stream of the ravens" {Nahal 
 Orehirri) or " Ravensbrook." Bochart believes that Babylon is referred 
 to, whose plains abound in willows. But everything favours the 
 common translation — "brook of the willows." The meaning of the 
 passage is, that the Moabites, thus broken down and spoiled, would 
 hasten to carry all they could save of their substance, out of their own 
 country, to the region farther south. They would take it into Edom. 
 The brook of the willows (Nahal Haarahim) has been identified by 
 Robinson. It communicates with the Dead Sea at its south-east 
 corner, where it is named Wady el Kurahy. Farther from the sea it 
 is known as Wady el Ashy, the Wady el Ahsa of Burckhardt, Irby, and
 
 PLATS, .if 
 
 //////// Mnnachus ^aMan ViJture. 
 
 •o/ihro7i PerriwpterilS . JuDpUim I /////// 
 
 tTvpa^tos Marhatus Bearded Vulture. 
 
 THERi: SHALL Tllli VULTURES ALSO BE GATHEKF.D.— Isa. xxxir. 15. 
 
 J.WiLouri' Jcuift} 
 
 HILLlay UACHtllitC. •iKSCOn. EBlNtURCH. LOMDON «MEW-V0flN
 
 ISAIAH XV.-XXXIV. 
 
 475 
 
 Mangles, &c., but not to be confounded with the Wady el Asal, which 
 enters the same sea much farther to the north. 
 
 " Willow," Heb. erev, see under xliv. 4. 
 
 Chapter xix. — "The burden of Egypt." The prophet announces to 
 the Jews the coming destruction of that great political power in which 
 they were too ready to trust, under images borrowed from well-known 
 features of Egyptian social life and scenery. As usual, the description 
 is highly figurative. There may, however, have been a specific and 
 literal fulfilment of some of the threatenings. The waters of the Nile 
 may have failed, the rich meadows of its banks may have withered, and 
 its fishermen may have cast their nets in vain into its streams. But 
 nothing more is demanded here than Figui. 
 
 the recognition of the truth, that 
 judgment was to come on Egypt, 
 which might be compared to all these 
 results, had they actually taken place. 
 The Nile might at the season over- 
 flow its banks, its borders might 
 flourish in green beauty, and abun- 
 dance of fish be found in its waters, 
 and yet Egypt might be smitten, 
 " given over into the hand of a cruel 
 lord," and "like unto women, afraid 
 because of the shaking of the hand of 
 the Lord of hosts." 
 
 In verse 1, the manifestation of the 
 power of the true God is set boldly 
 before us, by its influence on the 
 idols of the land. God was to 
 a}:fpear, and the idols were to be 
 moved at his presence, and the heart 
 of Egypt was to melt in the midst 
 of it. The figure of a " swift cloud" raperRcea(cvpm„p«pyn„). 
 
 is used to indicate the source and the mode in which the judgment shall 
 come. Like the cloud, it was to be directly from heaven ; and it was 
 to' be speedy, like the cloud flying swiftly before the wind. The judg- 
 ments assume spiritual bearings, and fall first on all the superstitious 
 agencies which kept the people from the acknowledgment of the true 
 God (ver. 3). Then we have the physical features of the land used to 
 give point and prominence to its political and social condition. This
 
 47G BIBLICAL NATUKAL SCIENCE. 
 
 was to be as if the waters of the sea were no more to lave its shores — 
 as if its river was to be wasted, and its brooks dried up — as if its 
 vegetation was to be withered, and its fishermen made to mourn, 
 because the waters yielded them no more fish. See for " brooks" under 
 Genesis xli. 1. In verses 6, 7, three forms of vegetation are specially 
 named — reeds, flags, and paper reeds. 
 
 " Reeds," Heb. kdnelt^ answering to our word cane {Arundo donax), 
 one of the grasses {Cframinaceoe), The earliest use of this word by 
 Scripture writers, was to express "the stalk" on which the ears of 
 corn grow (Gen. xli. 5, 22). Throughout Exodus it is translated 
 "branches," and is specially used in the description of the "candlestick 
 of pure gold, of beaten work." In 1 Kings xiv. 15, it is first rendered 
 "reed" — which see. The term "flags" (sfiph) has been explained 
 under Exod. xi. 3. See also under Jonah ii. 5. 
 
 " The paper reeds," Heb. haroth, are no doubt species of the 
 plants named " bulrushes" in Exodus ii., though referred to under a 
 different word. The gome, we have seen, may be held to mean gener- 
 ically cyperus; the word used here is specific — the paper plant or 
 papyrus {Cyperus papyrus) — and the prophecy is literally fulfilled con- 
 cerning it. The papyrus has perished from the brooks of the Nile. It 
 is very rarely, if ever, found there. It is " withered, driven away, and 
 no more." The term employed by the prophet is borrowed from the 
 naked-looking appearance of the fuU-growTi papyrus, which, though 
 sometimes rising to the height of twelve or fourteen feet, is nearly 
 destitute of lower leaves. 
 
 Chapter xxviii. — Wine-smitten Ephraim, and Samaria her crown of 
 pride, had sunk into one of the lowest forms of vice. How wide-spread 
 the sin had become, is evident from verse 7 : — " They have erred through 
 wine, and through strong drink are out of the way ; the priest and the 
 prophet have erred through strong drink, they are swallowed up of wine, 
 they are out of the way through strong drink ; they err in vision, they 
 stumble in judgment." The loathsome effects, as described here, give 
 greater relief to the picture of social degradation : " For all tables are 
 full of vomit and filthiness, so that there is no place clean " (ver. 8). 
 It cannot be doubted that actual drunkenness is referred to by the 
 prophet. Of course moral and intellectual consequences are implied. 
 But to understand the words only in a spiritual sense, is to miss their 
 meaning. I have brought together all the scriptual references to the 
 shechdi; or strong drink, mentioned in verse 7, under Numbers vi. 3. 
 What were the substances which yielded this beverage ? This question
 
 ISAIAH XV.-XXXIV. 477 
 
 can be answered only after having ascertained the nature of the 
 products, which yield a liquor similar to the Hebrew shechdr to those 
 nations which use it. Under Numbers vi. 3 the words of xxviii. 7 
 are quoted to show that the ancient beverage, '" strong wine," included 
 liquors obtained from very different substances. Does the glowing 
 promise of Zechariah regarding the fruits of the renewed favour of 
 God, and the return to him of a backsliding people, point to corn 
 {ddgdn) as one substance from which the shechdr was obtained? " The 
 Lord of hosts shall defend them ; and they shall devour, and subdue 
 with sling-stones ; and they shall drink, and make a noise as through 
 wine ; and they shall be filled like bowls, and as the corners of the 
 altar. And the Lord their God shall save them in that day as the 
 flock of his people ; for they shall be as the stones of a crown, lifted up 
 as an ensign upon his land. For how great is his goodness, and how 
 great is his beauty! Corn shall make the young men cheerful, and 
 new wine the maids" (Zech. ix. 15-17). The imagery employed by 
 the prophet is suggestive of a preparation from the "corn." The 
 people were "to drink," "to make a noise as through wine," and the 
 young men were to be made "cheerful" with the corn, as the maids 
 were to be with the new wine. " Cheerful " (noav) indicates a disposition 
 to happy talk. 
 
 There is the strongest likelihood that the ancient "stronsr drink" 
 — shechdr and sikera — was similar to the modern arrack or raki, the 
 form of strong drink chiefly in use in eastern lands. Indeed one kind 
 of arrdck is still known as sakar — a word which plainly points to a 
 similarity between the ancient and modern liquors. The use of this 
 beverage can be traced from Russia in Europe over the whole of the 
 Asiatic continent, and in all the islands on the south-east and south of 
 Asia. In Africa it is a favourite beverage : it is largely used in South 
 America, and was found among the natives of the South Sea islands 
 when first discovered by modern voyagers. Two principal sources from 
 which it is obtained are different species of palm-trees and rice. The 
 cocoa nut, the apple, &c., readily yield it likewise. The palm-honey 
 described by Shaw is a form of shechdr. He says, " It is usual with 
 persons of better fashion, upon a marriage, at the birth or circumcision 
 of a child, or upon any other feast or good day, to entertain their guests 
 with the honey, or dipse as they call it, of the palm-tree. This they 
 procure by cutting off the head or crown (the epikope of Theophrastus, 
 to which the Hazazon Taniar is supposed to relate) of one of the more 
 vigorous plants, and scooping the top of the trunk into the shape of a
 
 t) 
 
 478 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 basin, where the sap in ascending lodges itself, at the rate of three 
 or four quarts a day during the first week or fortnight ; after which 
 the quantity daily diminishes, and at the end of six weeks, or two 
 months, the juices are entirely consumed, the tree becomes dry, and 
 serves only for timber or firewood. This liquor, which has a more 
 luscious sweetness than honey, is of tlie consistence of a thin syrup, but 
 quickly grows tart and ropy, acquiring an intoxicating quality, and 
 giving by distillation an agreeable spirit or anVaj, according to the 
 general name of these people for all hot liquors extracted by the 
 fl^e??ii2e/i'."— ("Travels," vol. i., 262.) All the sorts are, either when 
 first made or in a very short time, highly intoxicating. One palm 
 will yield from four to a hundred pints in twenty-four hours. 
 
 The people against whom the preceding threatenings had been uttered, 
 sought to comfort themselves by two considerations. On the one hand, 
 they believed that delay in their fulfilment warranted the hope that 
 they would not come at all ; and, on the other hand, they thought 
 themselves justified in their low thoughts of God by being able to point 
 to what they held to be arbitrary proceedings on his part, in his dealings 
 with men. The prophet is sent to set God's dealings with them in their 
 true light : — " Give ye ear, and hear my voice ; hearken, and hear my 
 speech. Doth the plowman plow all day to sow ? doth he open and 
 break the clods of his ground? When he hath made plain tlie face 
 thereof, doth be not cast abroad the fitches, and scatter the cummin, 
 and cast in the principal wheat, and the appointed barley, and the rye, 
 in their place? For his God doth instruct him to discretion, and doth 
 teach him. For the fitches are not thrashed with a thrashing-instrument, 
 neither is a cart-wheel turned about upon the cummin ; but the fitches 
 are beaten out with a staff, and the cummin with a rod. Bread-corn is 
 bruised ; because he will not ever be thrashing it, nor break it with 
 the wheel of his cart, nor bruise it with his horsemen. This also 
 comcth forth from the Lord of hosts, which is wonderful in counsel, and 
 excellent in working " (ver. 23-29). As if he had said. The delay 
 of judgment no more proves that it will never come, than the patience 
 of the husbandman, and his preparatory labours, prove that he expects 
 no harvest ; and the difference of God's dealings with different men is 
 no more inconsistent with his general purposes of wrath or mercy, than 
 the husbandman's treatment of the different grains is inconsistent with 
 his general purpose of securing and enjoying them. The husbandman 
 plows with the intention of sowing different grains in their proper 
 season. But he sows also that he might reap, and he treats the ripened
 
 ISAIAH XV.-XXXIV. 
 
 479 
 
 ears in the way best suited to get the corn out of them. The knowledge 
 which leads to this distinguishing of different plants, and to variety in 
 their mode of treatment, is God's gift to men, whether it be acknowledged 
 or no. " God doth instruct him to discretion and doth teach him." 
 
 Much difference of opinion has existed as to the plant which om* 
 translators have named "fitches." Two Hebrew words are thus 
 translated, namely, Jcefsach, as in this passage, and hlsemeth, used in 
 Ezekiel iv. 9. By comparing the expressions of the two prophets, in 
 the light of the context, it appears that kefsach is used to denote a seed 
 employed for purposes corresponding to those for which the cummin 
 associated with it is, and that Msemetk formed an ingredient of the 
 mixed bread which Ezekiel was commanded to eat: — "Take thou also 
 unto thee wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentiles, and millet, and 
 fitches, and put them in one vessel, and make thee bread thereof, according 
 to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon thy side ; three hundred 
 and ninety days shalt thou eat thereof And thy meat which thou shalt 
 eat shall be by weight, twenty shekels a day : from time to time shalt 
 thou eat it." Equally with the flour of the wheat and barley, that of 
 the "fitches" was baked into this bread. This fact determines that 
 the fitches of Ezekiel were not seeds used as a condiment, as those of the 
 cummin were. Our translators have suggested "spelt," in the margin, 
 as an alternative rendering. This has been generally accepted by 
 recent interpreters ; but not on good grounds. 
 
 "Spelt" {Tnticinn speJta of Linnceus) is a species of wheat — spelter 
 wheat — and was not at all likely to be used along with the common 
 wheat {T. vuJgai-e) in making bread. The grain translated " fitches," 
 would differ as much from the other kinds mentioned, as barley would 
 do from wheat, or lentiles from millet. We may be almost certain that 
 the true fitch, or vetch {Vida sattva), is the grain referred to by Ezekiel. 
 It may, no doubt, be objected to this inference, that the " bean" which 
 is closely related to the " vetch," is also named by the prophet. But 
 the relation is far more distant than that which obtains between the 
 spelter wheat and the common wheat. In the former case the differ- 
 ence is generic. The bean is ranged among the natural order Legu- 
 minacecp, or pod-bearers, under the genus Faba ; the vetch under that of 
 Vida. 
 
 In Exodus ix. 32, and also in the passage before us (ver. 25), huse- 
 metk is rendered " rye" (Secale cereale); but, as in Ezekiel, " vetch" is 
 the appropriate term. Vetches are cultivated for the sake of their 
 grain in several countries. A large white variety is ground into meal
 
 480 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 in some parts of Germany. They are plentiful in Egypt, where they 
 have been used for bread, and are abundant in Palestine. Pigeons are 
 exceedingly fond of them, and a suggestion, not to be overlooked, has 
 been made, that among other reasons for their cultivation among the 
 Jews one may have been, that they might supply food for the turtle- 
 doves which the poor of the people offered to the Lord. In the famine 
 of 1555, multitudes of the people in Britain went out into the wood- 
 lands in search of wild vetches, and supported themselves on their 
 fruit. 
 
 Twelve species occur in Britain, and eight species of a closely related 
 form — the vetchling {Lathyrus) — are to be met with. Most wanderers 
 in the woods and fields must have admired, and loved to linger in 
 
 the spots — 
 
 " Where profuse the wood-vetch cHngs 
 Round ash and elm, in pencill'd rings, 
 Its pale and azure pencill'd flower." 
 
 In the Septuagint version hetsacli is rendered melantMon, or black grain, 
 the Nigella sativa, or black poppy, of botanists — one of the natural 
 order EanuncuJaccce, or crow-foot family of plants, ranged with a few 
 others with the hellebores under the sub-order Hellehorece. This is a 
 native of the north of Africa and of the East. It is sometimes used as a, 
 condiment for food, and for the adulteration of pepper. The only reason 
 for identifying this with the " fitches" of the text, is the rendering of 
 the LXX. But its association with cummin, and the description of the 
 mode in which it is threshed, leads us to identify it with the common 
 dill [Andhum graveolcns). See under Matt, xxiii. 23. 
 
 "Cummin," Hob. kamon, is the only representative of the genus 
 Cuininum (C. cyminum) of botanists. It belongs to the natural order 
 UmheUiferce. Like the dill, caraway, &c., it is used as a spice, and in 
 medicine for its stomachic and carminative qualities. It is still cultivated 
 in Egypt and Palestine, but chiefly in Malta, as an article of commerce. 
 When threshed, it is beaten out as described here — not with the heavy 
 waggon-wheel, but with the rod or the slight switch. This plant is only 
 twice mentioned, here and in Matt, xxiii. 23. 
 
 The mode of preparing " bread-corn" is diiferent. The paraphrase 
 of the passage will run thus: — Dill and cummin must be threshed 
 out with the flail ; wheat and barley may be more severely dealt with ; 
 they will bear the wheel, but not the hoofs of horses. The " bread- 
 corn" is chiefly obtained from the wheat (Tritieum vulgare), and the 
 barley {Hordeum vulgare). The variety in the ways of treating all
 
 ISAIAH XV.-XXXIV. 481 
 
 tliese is again traced to God's teaching — " This also cometh forth 
 from Jehovah of Hosts; he is wonderful in counsel, and great in 
 wisdom." 
 
 Chapter xxxiv. — The threatenings of this chapter are directed (1) 
 against the nations in general by whom Israel had been oppressed ; and 
 (2) specially against Edom. The divine foreknowledge of coming 
 events is indicated by the highly poetical expressions of verse 5 — " i\Iy 
 sword shall be bathed in heaven : behold it shall come down on Idumea, 
 and upon the people of my curse, to judgment." The judgments are 
 then likened to a general slaughter : — " The sword of the Lord is filled 
 with blood ; it is made fat with fatness, and with the blood of lambs and 
 goats, with the fat of the kidneys of rams : for the Lord hath a sacrifice 
 in Bozrah, and a great slaughter in the land of Idumea. And the 
 unicorns shall come down with them, and the bullocks with the bulls ; 
 and their land shall be soaked with blood, and their dust made fat with 
 fatness. For it is the day of the Lord's vengeance, and the year of 
 recompences for the controversy of Zion " (ver. 6-8). The complete 
 desolation of the land is then described : — "And the streams thereof 
 shall be turned into pitch, and the dust thereof into brimstone, and the 
 land thereof shall become burning pitch. It shall not be quenched night 
 nor day ; the smoke thereof shall go up for ever : from generation to 
 generation it shall lie waste ; none shall pass through it for ever and 
 ever" (ver. 9-10). Thus swept by the terrible curse of Jehovah, the 
 whole land was to become the habitation of beasts and birds which loved 
 the solitude of desert places: — "The cormorant and the bittern shall 
 possess it ; the owl also and the raven shall dwell in it : and he shall 
 stretch out upon it the line of confusion, and the stones of emptiness. 
 They shall call the nobles thereof to the kingdom, but none shall be 
 there, and all her princes shall be nothing. And thorns shall come up 
 in her palaces, nettles and brambles in the fortresses thereof; and it 
 shall be an habitation of dragons, and a court for owls. The wild beasts 
 of the desert shall also meet with the wild beasts of the island, and the 
 satyr shall cry to his fellow ; the screech-owl also shall rest there, and 
 find for herself a place of rest" (ver. 11-14). 
 
 "Cormorant," Heb. hlaih. This word occurs in other four passages, 
 in which it is translated " pelican," the meaning to be assigned to it 
 here. See under Ps. cii. 6. 
 
 " Bittern," Heb. kippud. See under Zcph. ii. 14. 
 
 "Owl," Heb. ijansiiph, a term rendered "great owl" in Lev. ii. 17- 
 Deut. xiv. 16 — which see. It has been proposed to translate Ymisuph 
 
 VOL. II. 3 P
 
 482 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 by "ibis," as has been done by the LXX. But "owl " better answers the 
 context. This is pointed out below. 
 
 The vegetable marks of the desolation were nettles (see under Zeph. 
 ii. 9) and brambles (under Judges ix. 14). The tangled thicket was to 
 have its inhabitants — dragons {tanm'm'm), see under Gen. i. 21; and 
 owls {bath ydndh, lit., daughters of the owl), see under Job xxx. 29. 
 These are again noticed in vcr. 14. Tanmnim may include "wild 
 
 Fig 142. 
 
 Sacred Ibis (.Gcronticua JEI)iiBpteus). 
 
 beasts of the desert, wild beasts of the island, and satyrs;" while hath 
 yam'ih, owls in general, takes in the "screech-owl." Before looking 
 more closely at these we notice, ver. 15 : — 
 
 "Great Owl," Heb. hippdz. See under Lev. xi. 17. 
 
 "Vulture," Heb. dayah. Two species have been already specially 
 referred to under Lev. xi. 14, which see. Several species seem to be 
 mentioned here. The words, "every one with her mate," are not to be 
 understood as pointing to males and females, for both " vulture" and 
 " her mate" are feminine. The popular belief was, that as the females 
 of the birds of prey are generally larger than the males, so for the 
 most part they are more rapacious, and the prophet names the female vul- 
 tures, to give intensity to his threatening. As if he had said. Such birds 
 of different species will be gathered, each one agreeing with the other, 
 in the wild region to be left desolate. Three species may be specially 
 named. The Arabian vulture {Vultur vionaclms; Plate XXXIV., 
 fig. 1), the Eg3'ptian vulture {Neophron Percnopterus, ibid., fig. 2), and 
 the Bearded vulture [Chjpa'etos barbafiis, ibid., fig. 3). Another species,
 
 PLAITS 
 
 PL.,.-, 
 
 -^d?*> 
 
 
 A' I'lhl/iiui I r^ti, 111,11 yrii/ 
 
 Delphuius . 
 
 D Del/i/iis _ Dolfi/m 
 
 THE 8EA-M0NSTEBS DRAW OUT THE BREAST.— Lui. iv. a 
 
 ViLLIAU UACH&II2II. CL*$COW. CDlHBuRCH. lONDOK INEWVOOh
 
 ISAIAH XV.-XXXIV. 
 
 483 
 
 l-'ig. U3. 
 
 which may chiefly be regarded as a European bird, is also to be met 
 witli in the north of Africa, in some parts of Asia Minor, and in Persia. 
 This is the griffon or tawny vulture, which has already been noticed 
 under Lev. xi. 14 — which sue. 
 We have now before us the 
 outstanding points in this 
 chapter, and may return to 
 ver. 11. Taking kdat//, cor- 
 morant, as pelican, the first 
 clauses name birds uoted as 
 loving such desert regions as 
 that described in the last 
 clause. The pelican and the 
 bittern haunt the pool and the 
 marsh land ; the owl and the 
 raven frequent the lonely 
 forest or the wild mountain 
 cliffs. Their presence is at once I 
 suggestive of the absence of 
 man : " They shall call the 
 nobles thereof to the kingdom, '''•'""'• ^''"'"' ^o,p,/uivu,). 
 
 but none shall be there, and all her princes shall be nothing" (ver. 12). 
 
 The explanation of ver. 13 given above, is much truer to nature than 
 the proposal to render tanniiiini "wolves," and bath yandh "daughters of 
 the ostrich." If the words of verse 14 be regarded as referring to par- 
 ticular forms of life embraced in the general statement at the close of 
 the preceding verse, the whole may be rendered thus : — " Desert creatures 
 shall meet with howling creatures, and the shac!;gy monster (satyr) shall 
 call to his mate; only there shall the great bird of night (the screech- 
 owl) repose, and find for herself a resting-place. The desert creatures 
 referred to were most likely wolves, and the howling creatures jackals." 
 The shaggy monster may have been the hyaana, which is still to be met 
 with in the same region, and the screech-owl the bird so called. 
 
 " Screech-owl," Heb. lilitit, is not met with elsewhere. The original 
 word indicates the bird's nocturnal habits. The screech-owl of Britain 
 is the howlet or tawny owl [Strix stridula = S. alaco). It is, however, 
 more likely that the great eagle owl {Biiho ma.rimi/f:) is the species 
 referred to in this passage. It sometimes ventures abroad in the day- 
 time, but is always most active at night, when its weird cry may be 
 heard in the wild districts which it loves.
 
 484 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 ISAIAH XXXV.-LVIII. 
 
 HE general scope of xxxv. 7 has already been referred to 
 under Exodus ii. 3. The word dragons {tanninlm) means 
 ravenous beast, whether of the land or sea. The Syrian 
 wolf or the jackal may be specially intended, but more 
 • likely the term was designed to leave the species undeter- 
 mined. The pouring out of the Spirit, and therewith the 
 revival of the church, are set forth under the figures of pools in 
 the parched ground, and springs in thirsty lands. The character- 
 istic vegetation which fringes the water is then alluded to. In the 
 lair of the beast of prey " shall be grass with reeds and rushes." 
 "Reed," Heb. huneh — see under 1 Kings xiv. 15. "Rush," Heb. 
 gome — see under Exod. ii. 3. 
 
 Chapter xxxvii. — Rabshakeh's blasphemous boasting was taken to 
 heart by the king, who deeply humbled himself before God, and com- 
 mitted his cause to him. On this the prophet was sent with the 
 re-assuring message — "Be not afraid of the words that thou hast heard." 
 He then recounts the topics in Sennacherib's message, in order to bring 
 out in bold contrast the purposes of God concerning the Assyrian. 
 Among other things the messengers of the heathen king had said in his 
 name — " By the multitude of my chariots am I come up to the height 
 of the mountains, to the sides of Lebanon ; and I will cut down the tall 
 cedars thereof, and the choice fir-trees thereof: and I will enter into 
 the height of his border, and the forest of his Carmel" (ver. 24). The 
 last clause would be better rendered — " I will reach its extreme height, 
 the garden (Carmel) of its forest." The foreigner's power to do mischief 
 is then represented by cutting down the cedars, erez {Cedrus Ltbam"), 
 and the fir-trees, herush {Abies). See under 1 Kings v. 8, 10. The 
 fir is again mentioned by Isaiah as one of the trees which were to be 
 planted in the desert (ch. xli. 19), as that which was to take the place 
 of the thorn (ch. Iv. 13), and which was to be associated with the cedar, 
 the pine, and the box, in beautifying the place of God's sanctuary 
 (ch. Ix. 13); the references being all figurative of times of spiritual 
 revival and large spiritual blessing. 
 
 Other prophets allude to the berosh, or fir, in a figurative way also.
 
 ISAIAH XXXV.-LVIII. 485 
 
 See under Ezek. xxxi. 3-9. Hosea describes revived Ephraim as saying 
 ■ — "I am like a green fir-tree" (xiv. 8). Nahum, when predicting evil 
 on the "excellency of Jacob," represents the mighty men as alarmed 
 — "The fir-trees shall be terribly shaken" (ii. 3). And Zechariah 
 pictures all the great ones of the land as cedars of Lebanon, as 
 fir-trees, and as the oaks of Bashan. As some of their number were 
 stricken, the rest were to become alarmed : — " Open thy door, 
 Lebanon, that the fire may devour thy cedars. Howl, fir-tree ; for the 
 cedar is fallen ; because the mighty are spoiled : howl, ye oaks of 
 Bashan ; for the forest of the vintage is come down" (xi. 1, 2). 
 
 Chapter xlii. — Christ and his people, represented as a complex person, 
 are here introduced as the "Servant of Jehovah" — "Behold my servant 
 whom I uphold : mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth." Among the 
 figures used to point out the peacefulness of his kingdom and the tender- 
 ness of himself and people, are those contained in verse 3 — " A bruised 
 reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench : he 
 shall bring forth judgment unto truth." See also under Exod. ix. 31, 
 and Josh. ii. G. " The application of these figures to the sparing of 
 enemies, or the indulging of weak friends, or the sustentation of sincere 
 but feeble faith, is too specific and conclusive. The verse continues 
 the description of the mode in which the Messiah and his people were 
 to bring forth judgment to the nations, or in other words, to spread the 
 true religion. It was not to be by clamour or by violence. The first 
 of these ideas is expressed in the preceding verse ; the last in this. 
 That such is the true import of the words is clear from the addition of 
 the last clause, which would be unmeaning if the verse related merely 
 to a compassionate and sympathetic temper. That this verse is included 
 in Matthew's quotation (xii. 19), shows that he did not quote the one 
 before it as descriptive of a modest and retiring disposition. The only 
 way in which the whole quotation can be made appropriate to the case 
 in hand, is by supposing that it was meant to be descriptive, not of our 
 Saviour's human virtues, but of the nature of his kingdom and of the 
 means by which it was to be established." It was not to be by the 
 exercise of mere force, as one would rend asunder the crushed reed, 
 which might yet live if healed ; nor was it by rudely putting out the 
 flame of the dimly-burning wick of flax, which might yet burn brightly 
 if strengthened. The Saviour was the strong one and the strength- 
 giver ; he was both health and the healer, and the people in him are 
 called to be like him. They are to promote his glory, not by violence, 
 but by peaceful endeavours. "They arc not by brutal force to break the
 
 486 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENXE. 
 
 crushed reed or quench the dim wick, but to conquer by healing and 
 imparting strength." 
 
 Chapter xliii. 24. — As the people formed for himself, it should have 
 been Israel's highest duty and privilege to show forth Jehovah's praise. 
 The leading thought is, that just as in admiring a work of art we 
 praise the artist, and give to him the merit of every touch of beauty ; 
 so, in being attracted to the loveliness of holy service rendered to 
 God by his professing people, our admiration is really the ascription 
 of glory to God himself, whose indwelling life makes his people 
 equal to the living service. It was Israel's work to attract the eyes 
 of the Gentiles to their God. This they would best do by giving 
 proofs of their devotion to him in maintaining the completeness of the 
 sanctuary services. This they had not done. They had been weary 
 of God (ver. 22), and had shown that they were so by neglect of temple 
 services : — " Thou hast not brought me the small cattle of thy burnt- 
 oiferings, neither hast thou honoured me with thy sacrifices: I have not 
 caused thee to serve with an offering, nor wearied thee with incense. 
 Thou hast bought me no sweet cane with money, neither hast thou 
 filled me with the fat of thy sacrifices ; but thou hast made me to serve 
 with thy sins, thou hast wearied me with thine iniquities (ver. 23, 24). 
 
 The "sweet cane" was the Indian fragrant beard-grass {Andropocjon 
 aroniaticus, Calamus odoratns of some authors). That it was brought 
 from a far country excludes all likelihood of its being the Egyptian 
 sugar cane {Saccharum cylmdncurri). The same plant is noticed by 
 Jeremiah in connection with a different state of religious feeling. Here 
 the people did not pretend to continue faithful to God. In Jere- 
 miah's day they added hypocrisy to prevailing sin : — " To what purpose 
 Cometh there to me incense from Sheba, and the sweet cane from a far 
 country ? your burnt-offerings are not acceptable, nor your sacrifices 
 sweet unto me" (vi. 20). Tlie use of the sweet cane in the service of 
 the sanctuary is referred to under Exod. xxx. 23 — which see. 
 
 Chapter xliv. 1. — Glorious promises are held out to " Jacob the 
 servant of the Lord," and to " Israel his chosen one." That there 
 might be no distrust on the part of the people, the wisdom, goodness, 
 and power of Jehovah are pledged to the fulfilment of all his gracious 
 words. To the church times of great revival are spoken of, and, as a 
 chief result, the turning of many to God who were still alienated from 
 him. Many among his peoi)lc had become spiritually like wuary ones 
 parched with thirst, or as the soil cracked by long-continued heat. To 
 them his Spirit was to be like " water upon him that is thirsty, and
 
 ISAIAH XXXV.-LVITT. 
 
 487 
 
 floods upon the dry ground." Rapid spiritual growth, accompanied 
 l)y a cordial testimony to the glory of God's grace, was to be the 
 fruits of this season of mercifid visitation. " And they shall spring up 
 as among the grass, as willows by the water-courses. One shall say, 
 I am the Lord's ; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; 
 and another shall subscribe with his hand unto the Lord, and surname 
 himself by the name of Israel (ver. 3, 5). 
 
 " Willow," Heb. erei\ occurs other four times. It is used by Isaiah 
 
 Fig. 144. 
 
 Wooping Willow I^Salix Saiylmka). 
 
 as the name of a brook— "the brook of the willows"— Wady Kunlhy at 
 tlie south-east corner of the Dead Sea (chap. xv. 7 — which see). It is 
 named among the "boughs of goodly trees" which the rejoicing Israelite 
 was to take on the first day of the feast of tabernacles. Israel still, 
 though separated from the true joy of this feast-time, hangs the willow 
 branch in tlie synagogue, or uses it for making the tent in bis courtyard 
 or his garden— a melancholy imitation of the days of gladness gone by,
 
 488 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 jinJ never to return until all Israel shall acknowledge Jesus as the 
 Messiah promised to their fathers. See under Lev. xxiii. 40. 
 
 Job describing the haunts of Behemoth, " chief of the ways of God," 
 says : — 
 
 " He lieth under the shady trees, 
 In the covert of reeds, and fens. 
 Thick trees cover him with their shadow ; 
 Willows of the brook compass him about" (xl. 22). 
 
 It was the willow of the brook on which the sorrow-stricken Jewish 
 captive hung his harp when his spoilers called for mirth. See under 
 Psalm cxxxvi. 2. In the texts referred to we have most likely three 
 species noticed — the white willow (Srdix alha), the osier (S. vinnnah's), 
 and the weeping willow (S. Bahylonicci). The first is emphatically 
 " the willow of the brooks," or, as liere, " the willow of the water- 
 courses." The second would shelter behemoth, as he wandered on the 
 marshy edges of his favourite rivers. The third was the weeping 
 willow, in whose drooping branches, and dark shadow reflected in the 
 waters beside which they sat down, the captives of Israel would 
 recognize something like evidences of sympathy with them in their 
 grief. The willow belongs to the natural order Amcntacece, or catkin- 
 bearers. It gives its name to the sub-order Salicinece.. There are one 
 hundred and fourteen now generally reckoned as indigenous British 
 plants. In all ages the willow has been noted in connection with 
 religious rites, in poetry, and for the gi-eat variety of uses to which it 
 has been applied. In religion we meet with it among the goodly 
 bouglis of the feast of tabernacles. " A sad tree," says Thomas 
 Fuller, " whereof such as have lost their love make their mourning 
 garlands ; and we know that exiles hung their harps on such doleful 
 
 supporters:" — 
 
 " Wlien once the lover's rose is dead, 
 Or laid aside forlorn, 
 Then willow garlands round the head 
 Bedew'd with tears are worn." 
 
 Graham notices in characteristic lines, its social uses : — 
 
 " The basket's various forms 
 For various purposes of household thrift, 
 The wicker chair, of size and shape antique, 
 The rocking couch of sleeping infancy — 
 These, with unnumbered other forms and kinds. 
 Give bread to hands unfit for other work." 
 
 When the waters are poured on the thirsty and the floods upon the
 
 ISAIAH XXXV.-LVIII. 489 
 
 dry ground — when the heritage of God are revived — then liis people 
 will grow as the willows, whose roots perennially come in contact with 
 the fresh streams on the edges of which they stand. They shall grow 
 as the willows do among the grass in moist places. " Willow-tree," 
 Heb. tzaplizdpltali — see under Ezek. xxxvii. 5. 
 
 In verse 8 the question is asked by Jehovah — " Is there a God 
 besides me? yea there is no God ; I know not any." This allusion to 
 idols leads to a detailed contrast between God and the work of the 
 image-carver (ver. 9-17). In this contrast reference is made to the 
 trees chiefly used for making the vanities of the heathen — " He 
 heweth him down cedars, and taketh the cypress and the oak, which 
 he strengtheneth for himself among the trees of the forest ; he planteth 
 an ash, and the rain doth nourish it" (ver. 14). 
 
 "Cedars" {Cedrus Libaui) — see under Judges ix. 15; "Cypress" 
 {Gnpressiis semp>ervirens} — see under Gen. vi. 14; "Oak" {Quercus 
 rohur) — see under Gen. xii. 6. The fourth tree from whose wood the 
 idol was sometimes made, is here named " the ash,' Hebrew oren. It 
 occurs only in tliis place. Much difference of opinion obtains as to the 
 kind of tree referred to. In the Septuagint the word is rendered by 
 ■pitus, or pine-tree, and in tlie Vulgate translation hy pinus, which also 
 signifies pine-tree. This circumstance has led interpreters generally to 
 regard oren as one of the fir-trees. But this is not a satisfactory reason 
 for giving up the rendering of our version. The root of the word may 
 help to identify the tree. The root signifies graceful, and as the 
 most beautiful Syrian forms of the fir-tree — cedar and cypress — have 
 been named, it is most likely another species of a different family would 
 be associated with them. The similarity of sound between the Latin 
 " ornus" and the Hebrew " oren" has suggested the flowering, or 
 manna ash (0. JEuropcea) as the tree named by Ezekiel. Certainly so 
 far as beauty goes, the conclusion is warranted. In summer its half- 
 drooping branches, bright green leaves, and numerous pretty white 
 flowers give it a truly beautiful appearance. It is, however, more 
 likely that, as with the cedar and cypress, the people chose the tree 
 for image-making, which was associated with feelings having a strong 
 resemblance to those which led to idol worship. The common ash 
 {Fraxmus excelsior) one of the Oleacece and tlie type of the sub-order 
 Fraxincce, or ash-trees, answers most closely to all the requirements 
 of the text. It has in all lands and in all times been noted for its 
 beauty. Virgil refers to it as the tree "fairest in the groves (Fraxinus 
 in sylvis pidclierrima,'' Eel. vii. G5). Tli,e elegance of its whole form — 
 
 VOL. II. 3 Q
 
 490 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 trunk, branches, drooping twigs, pendant light-green leaves — has 
 gained for it the title Sylvan Venus : — 
 
 " Its buds, on eitlier side opposed 
 In couples, each to each, enclosed 
 In caskets black and hard as jet, 
 The ash-tree's graceful branch beset : 
 The branch, which, clothed in modest grey, 
 Sweeps gracefully with easy sway, 
 And still in after life preserves 
 ^ The bending of its infant curves." 
 
 The very uses ascribed to it by the prophet has led to the ash being 
 named " the husbandman's tree." The mode in which its growth is 
 hastened, adds another element to the probability, that the prophet 
 names it in this place. He says, "The rain doth nourish it" — an 
 expression not applied to cedar and Cyprus. The influence of moisture 
 on the growth of the ash-tree is most marked. If one be planted by 
 the edge of a stream, it will very soon overtop the highest growers 
 around it. If placed even at a distance of twenty yards from it, the 
 rootlets will shoot out in the direction of the water, and serve as channels 
 through which the whole tree is nourished. 
 
 Around few other trees does the class of feelings which found full 
 development in idol worship, cling so much as around the ash. It has 
 a place in the superstitions of the people of every country in which it 
 grows. In the days of Homer its wood was held both the best and 
 luckiest to be used as spears. Pliny ascribes a power to its leaves 
 which would hinder the adder from biting if surrounded by them. It 
 is the Askr of the Norse, which the gods changed into man, giving to it 
 a human soul. Vala in her visions sings — 
 
 " I knew an ash, it is called Iggdrasill 
 A feathery tree, wet by a brilliant cloud, 
 From whence proceeds the dew which falls in the valleys, 
 It raises itself always green." 
 
 Of the mythic ^sir she says — 
 
 " Under the tree of the world, they sit as powerful judges." 
 
 This superstition links Scandinavia with Persia, by that wonderful plant 
 which the Persians believed had yielded as its fruit the progenitors of 
 the human family. Egypt shows another link, central Africa another. 
 The superstitions associated with the ash in Britain are known to most. 
 Its keys, or w^inged seeds, were worn as a charm. Most districts of 
 England could boast of its '^ shrew ash," which supplied twigs and
 
 ISAIAIl XXXV.-LVIII. 491 
 
 branches for the cure of cattle. Gilbert White has left a graphic 
 description of the shrew ash of Sclborne. 
 
 The chief objection to retaining "ash" in this passage, is its rare 
 occurrence in Palestine. Of its former existence in that land there can 
 be little doubt. It is indigenous in all the countries of the Levant ; 
 and its comparative absence now from Palestine proper, is to be traced 
 to the same cause as that wliich has made other great trees scarce. 
 " Trees of any kind," says Messrs. M'Cheyne and Bonar, " are few in 
 the Holy Land." " All the trees of the field are withered, because joy 
 is withered away from the sons of men" (Joel i. 12). 
 
 Displeased with Israel because of their unfaithfulness to him and 
 their wickedness, God threatened to reject them altogether. They had 
 added hypocrisy to wickedness. Thus the rapid and searching inquiries 
 of Iviii. 5 — " Is it such a fast that I have chosen? a day for a man to 
 afflict his soul? is it to bow down the head as a bulrush?" 
 
 " Bulrush," Heb. agmon, is not, as many have alleged, the true 
 papyrus {Cyj^erus iMpyrus) of the Nile. The plant named here 
 belonged to the reed-like vegetation which fringed the waters of the 
 Jordan. The Hebrew for paper reeds is haroth (Isa. xix. 7), and for 
 the genus which supplied the plant from which the papyrus rolls were 
 obtained, gome, Exod. ii. 3 — which see. Agmdn, both in this and in 
 other passages in which it occurs, is to be taken as the true club-rush or 
 bulrush [Scirpus lacustn's), well known in Britain, as used for making 
 mats, chair-bottoms, &c., and by coopers for filling up spaces between 
 the seams of casks. This species grows to the height of six feet, and 
 is characterized by the graceful bend of its stalk and of every one of its 
 leaves, which all droop as if growing down into the water. This is the 
 appearance noticed by the prophet. The word which has given rise to 
 much useless speculation, is only five times named in Scripture. It 
 first occurs in Job xli. 2 — " Canst thou draw out leviathan with an 
 hook (agvion)?" that is, with the line or rope made of the scirpus, to 
 which the hook was attached, a mode of expression still common 
 among anglers. In the same chapter it is translated "caldron" — " Out 
 of his nostrils gocth smoke, as out of a seething pot or caldron" (ver. 
 20). As in the text last noticed, the word is used here for that with 
 which it is associated, the reference being to the smoke given out by 
 the newly-gathered rushes when put under a vessel and lighted. "For 
 the people," says Isaiah, " turneth not unto him that smiteth them. 
 Therefore the Lord will cut off from Israel head and tail, branch {hipdh) 
 and rush (agmdn)" (ix. 14, xix. 15\
 
 492 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 ISAIAH LX.-LXVI. 
 
 N chap. Ix. 9, the question asked in the preceding verse is 
 answered: "Who are these that fly as a cloud?" — They 
 are the ships of Tarshish hastening with Zion's " sons from 
 far, their silver and their gold with them.'" " Who are 
 these that fly as doves to their windows?" They are 
 Zion's sons taking refuge " in the name of the Lord their 
 God;" "the name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous 
 runneth into it and is safe" (Prov. xviii. 10). The questions of verse 8 
 have been much obscured by interpreters having associated " clouds" 
 with the flight of the doves, whereas they are to be regarded as 
 distinct. When the query as to the clouds was asked, the prophet 
 saw the ships of Tarshish on the distant horizon, yet hastening, like 
 tlie clouds, to their destined haven. The doves' windows were in the 
 towers built for these birds,- which in olden times, as now, were in the 
 East mucli cared for on account of their dung, used by the Orientals in 
 raising their favourite fruit-melons : — " When travelling in the north of 
 Syria some years ago, T noticed in certain villages tall square buildings 
 without roofs, whose walls were pierced inside by numberless pigeon- 
 holes. Li these nestled and bred thousands of these birds. They are 
 very strong, swift of wing, and extremely wild. Their foraging 
 excursions extend many miles in every direction, and it is curious to 
 notice them returning to their ' windows' like bees to their hives, or 
 like clouds pouring over a sharp ridge into the deep wady below." 
 (T/iomson.) " In the environs of the city (Ispahan) to the westward, 
 near Zainderood, are many pigeon-houses, erected at a distance from 
 habitations, for the purpose of collecting pigeons' dung for manure. 
 They are large round towers, rather broader at the bottom than the 
 top, and crowned by conical spiracles, through which the pigeons 
 descend. Their interior resembles a honey-comb, pierced with a 
 thousand holes, each of which forms a snug retreat for a nest. The 
 extraordinary flights of pigeons which I have seen upon one of these 
 dwellings afford, perhaps, a good illustration of the passage in Isaiah 
 \x."—{Moner.) 
 
 It has been pointed out under 1 Kings v. 8, 10, that there are
 
 ISAIAH LX.-LXVI. 493 
 
 good grounds for holding that the words of verse 13, "the fir-tree 
 {heruah), the pine-tree (tt'dhar)," are used generically. Berosh is 
 equivalent to ahies^ or fir-tree kind, and tidhar to pinus, or pine-tree 
 kind, of modern botany. Many species may be included under both. 
 For the former, see also under Psalm civ. 17 ; Isaiah xiv. 8, xxxvii. 24 ; 
 and Ezekiel xxxi. 3-9. Thougli the fir is frequently mentioned, the 
 pine occurs only here and in chapter xli. 19, where it is again named 
 along with the fir-tree. The word is given in our translation as the 
 sense of the Hebrew for " oil {sliUmpji) " — " Go forth unto the mount, 
 and fetch olive branches, and pine branches," literally, "branches of trees 
 of oil." The expression includes any of the cone-bearing trees, noted 
 for the natural resin obtained from them. But the firs and the pines 
 are widely distributed over the world, and are all more or less useful for 
 industrial purposes. In Asia Minor, some of them grow to a great size. 
 Mr. W. F. Ainsworth, describing a locality above twenty miles south 
 of the Black Sea, says : — "As we gained the tops of the hills, we 
 entered upon extensive pine forests. The chief species, and the one 
 most remarkable for its growth, was the Pinus pinea. Some trees 
 which we measured were upwards of one hundred feet high, and three 
 feet four inches in diameter, cutting into timber one foot nine inches 
 square. The mean elevation of this upland forest was four thousand 
 feet above the level of the sea." 
 
 Among the trees noticed in verse 13 as employed in beautifying the 
 temple, when God graciously revived his people, is the " box-tree." 
 It is also named in chapter xli. 19, as a tree which, with the cedar, the 
 shittah, the myrtle, &c., was to be planted in the desert, when the 
 wilderness should become pools of water, and the dry land springs of 
 water — when, in a word, the renewing grace of Jehovah should beautify 
 his spiritual heritage, the church, and when his people should be as the 
 "trees of righteousness" of the Lord's own planting. 
 
 " Box," and " box-tree," Heb. teassliur. It has been asserted that a 
 species of cedar represents the box-tree of our translation, but not on 
 good grounds. The cedar for which this claim is made, is said to be 
 named scherbln by the Arabs. But when we attempt to identify the 
 schei-bm, authorities are found divided in opinion as to the tree meant 
 by the Arabs. I prefer the common rendering, "box-tree {Buxus 
 sempervirens)" one of the spui'ge family of plants [Eiiphorhiacece), known 
 to have abounded on Lebanon, of which it was one of the trees of " its 
 glory." "The box-tree," says Royle, "being a native of mountainous 
 regions, was peculiarly adapted to the calcareous formations of Mount
 
 494 niBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCK. 
 
 Lebanon, and therefore likely to be brought from thence with the 
 coniferous woods for the building of the temple, and it was well suited 
 to change the face of the desert." Attempts have been made, but 
 unsuccessfully, to show, that in Ezekiel xxvii. 6, instead of "Ashur- 
 ites," we should read " ashur-wood," or box. See under the passage 
 referred to. Both as an ornamental and as a valuable tree, the box 
 answers well to the tree named by the prophet. It is noticed as a tree 
 of beauty in the scene described in chapter xli., and here as one of use- 
 fulness — " The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir-tree, the 
 pine-tree, and the box together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary." 
 
 The chosen people of God continued obstinately rebellious. God 
 could say of them — " I have spread out my hands all the day to a 
 rebellious people, which walketh in a way that was not good, after their 
 own thoughts" (ver. 2). They had become gross idolaters on the one 
 hand (ver. 3), and bigots on the other (ver. 5). They sacrificed to their 
 idols in gardens, and burned incense on altars of brick. They ate 
 swine's flesh, and broth of filthy things, yet in their sinful self-compla- 
 cency, they said to the Gentiles around them — " Stand by thyself, come 
 not near to me ; for I am holier than thou." The result of all this was 
 to be their rejection, and the calling of the Gentiles to the enjoyment 
 of their privileges — " I said. Behold me, behold me, unto a nation that 
 was not called by my name" (ver. 1). 
 
 Chapter Ixv. — " Swine," Heb. lihazir, was the common hog {Sus 
 scrofa), one of the even-toed promiscuous feeders (Ommvora). The Israel- 
 ites were forbidden to eat the flesh of swine. See under Levit. xi. 7, 8. 
 This command is broken here in connection with several aggravating 
 circumstances. The people had fallen into the most gross and abomin- 
 able idolatry. The meat offered to idols, associated with every wicked 
 and licentious thought, was partaken of by them. Such an act meant 
 that they wished to be conformed to the moral features attributed to 
 the idols. The sow was offered to the bloody and revengeful Typhon 
 by the Egyptians. " Those," says Plutarch, " who sacrificed a sow to 
 Typhon once a year, at the full moon, afterwards ate the flesh." 
 "According to Herodotus," says Wilkinson, "the only two festivals in 
 which it was lawful to sacrifice pigs, were those of the Moon and 
 Bacchus : the reason of which restriction he attributes to a sacred 
 reason, which he does not think it right to mention. ' In sacrificing a 
 pig to the moon, they killed it ; and when they had put together the 
 end of the tail, the spleen, and the caul, and covered them with all the 
 fat from the inside of the animal, they burnt them ; the rest of the
 
 ISAIAH Lx.-Lxvi. 495 
 
 victim being eaten on the day of the full moon, which was the same on 
 which the sacrifice was offered, for on no other day were they allowed 
 to eat the flesh of pig. Poor people who had barely the means of 
 subsistence, made a paste figure of a pig, which being baked, they 
 offered as a sacrifice.' The same kind of substitute was, doubtless, 
 made for other victims, by those who could not afford to purchase them • 
 and some of the small glass and clay figures of animals found in the 
 tombs, have probably served for tliis purpose. ' On the fete of Bacchus, 
 every one immolated a pig before the door of his house, at the hour of 
 dinner ; he then gave it back to the person of whom it had been bought. 
 The Egyptians,' adds the historian, 'celebrate the rest of this fete nearly 
 
 rig 115. 
 
 The Tame Boar (Sus tcrx/n). 
 
 in the same manner as the Greeks, with the exception of the sacrifice 
 of pigs.'" 
 
 But even if the flesh was not that offered to idols, the people sinned 
 greatly in treating with open contempt the positive command of God 
 touching this matter — "The swine though he divide the hoof, and be 
 cloven-footed, yet he cheweth not the cud ; he is unclean unto you. 
 Of their flesh ye shall not eat, and their carcase ye shall not touch ; 
 they are unclean unto you." Reasons bearing closely on the public 
 health in a climate like Palestine might be found for this prohibition. 
 The fi-equent use of pork in warm, and even in temperate climates, 
 renders men liable to several diseases of the skin. The light, 
 moreover, which modern science has shed on the habits of internal 
 parasites (Enfozoa) is highly suggestive when taken along with the 
 Lcvitieal command. The immature forms, known as Cysticerci, of so-
 
 496 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 called riband entozoa, are known to abound in such rodents as the hare, 
 and such pachyderms as the coney (lli/rax) and the sow. Swine's flesh 
 known as " measly" is to be traced to the presence of these producing 
 disease. As such qjsticerci are known to reach their mature forms in 
 the human body, abstinence from this kind of animal food in a climate 
 where it might be hastily and imperfectly prepared, could not but be 
 conducive to the public health. It is not, indeed, asserted that this 
 aspect of the matter was in the mind of the Jewish lawgiver when 
 these arrangements were made ; but He who spake by Moses knew what 
 was best for the social comfort of the people whom he had specially 
 chosen as his own. 
 
 Swine's blood and flesh are again mentioned by Isaiah in the next 
 chapter (ver. 3, 17), in which even greater distinctness is given to the 
 promises of the change of dispensation and the bringing in of the Gentiles. 
 The great and eternal God will then not look for a gorgeous ritual, similar 
 to the tabernacle and temple service, as the mark of his presence with 
 them. He will regard only the state of the heart. Thus the people are 
 told that even the ancient sacrifices instituted at the command of God, 
 would become to him like the worship offered to idols. " Thus saith the 
 Lord, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my foot-stool : where 
 is the house that ye build unto me? and where is the place of my rest? 
 For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have 
 been, saith the Lord : but to this man will I look, even to him that is 
 poor, and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word. He that killeth 
 an ox, is as if he slew a man ; he that sacrificeth a lamb, as if he cut off 
 a dog's neck ; he that offereth an oblation, as if he offered swine's blood ; 
 he that burneth incense, as if he blessed an idol : yea they have chosen 
 their own ways, and their soul delighteth in their abominations" (ver. 1-3). 
 Apostate and unfaithful Israel chose the companionship and followed the 
 practices of idolaters. Among other things they "ate swine's flesh" 
 (ver. 17), and as a punishment they w^ere to be visited with the judgments 
 which fall on the worshippers of idols. 
 
 The same ideas of grossness and impurity are connected with the 
 mention of this animal in other passages of Scripture. When Solomon 
 characterizes the personal beauty, which is often found connected with 
 low, or even depraved moral tastes, he says, " As a jewel of gold in a 
 swine's snout, so is a fair woman which is without discretion " (Prov. 
 xi. 22). In the New Testament the case of those who, under the 
 influence of the reflex power of gospel truth, had for a season taken to 
 holy habits but had relapsed, is thus described — " It is happened unto
 
 fLdrt: m: 
 
 I.ep Tiiniilns CuniiiKin Barv . 
 
 DEGT. XV. 7. 
 
 X> .f'.av/itius. Eiiyiitiiiii .Icrlmii 
 
 ISA. LXVI. 17. 
 
 I' Divnitiliiriiis iJri'iiii-iltiry 
 GEN. XXX. 43. 
 
 wmikll HACHIHI'C. CLASCOM. EDIN8VR':n. LOIiOO« JNEW-VOnM
 
 ISAIAH l.X.-LXVI. 497 
 
 tliem aeconling to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own 
 vomit again ; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the 
 mire " (2 Peter ii. 22). Thus too in our Lord's discourse — " Give not 
 that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast your pearls before swine, 
 lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you " 
 (Matt. vii. G). The references in Matt. viii. 30; Mark v. 14; Luke 
 XV. 15, 16, are equally suggestive. 
 
 " They shall not build, and another inhabit ; they shall not plant, and 
 another eat : for as the days of a tree are the days of my people, and 
 mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands " (Ixv. 22). The 
 promise is, in substance, that they shall long enjoy the work of their 
 hands. The list given by De Candolle of the ages of certain trees may 
 be taken as an illustration of this verse, though the computation in some 
 of the instances given is necessarily very doubtful. 
 
 Years. 
 Elm ( Ulmus campestris), about ....... 335 
 
 Cypress {Cupressus semperviremi), ....... 350 
 
 Cheirostemon platanoides, ........ 400 
 
 Ivy {Hedera Helix), ......... 450 
 
 Larch (Lariv europwa), ........ 576 
 
 Chestnut (Castanea vesca), .... .... 600 
 
 Orange {Citrus Avrantiinn), ........ 630 
 
 Some Palms {Ceroxijlon and Cocos), 600-700 
 
 Olive {Oka ewopcea), 700 
 
 Oriental Plane {Platamis orientalif), ...... 720 
 
 Cedar {Cedrus Lihani) 800 
 
 lAm^ {Tilia europaea), 1076, 1147 
 
 Oak {Quereits robur), 810, 1080, 1500 
 
 Yevi {Taxushaccata), 1214,1458,2588,2880 
 
 Taxodium distichum, 3000 or 4000 
 
 ViAohah {Adansonia diyitata), ahoni ...... 5000 
 
 Israel in his blindness refused to regard the warning words of 
 Jehovah : " They have chosen their own ways, and their soul delighteth 
 in their abominations" (Ixvi. 5). They were to eling to the divinely 
 appointed forms of outward worship, after those had served their day. 
 Ceasing to be means of spiritual strength, these forms led them easily, 
 in their desire for rest, into the practices of the heathen : " They did 
 evil before mine eyes, and chose that in which I delighted not " (ver. 4). 
 But their fall was to be the rise of the Gentiles. Zion was to rejoice in 
 other children than the seed of Abraham according to the flesh : " Who 
 hath heard such a thing? who hath seen such things? Shall the earth 
 be made to bring forth in one day? or shall a nation be born at once? 
 
 VOL. II. 3 R
 
 498 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children. Shall I 
 bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth? saith the Lord : shall 
 I cause to bring forth, and shut the womb? saith thy God. Rejoice 
 ye with Jerusalem, and be glad with her, all ye that love her : 
 rejoice for joy with her, all ye that mourn for her" (ver. 8-10). 
 Then follows the picture of peace and quiet joy in verses 12-14 : 
 — " Thus saith the Lord, Behold I will extend peace to her like 
 a river, and the glory of the Gentiles like a flowing stream : Then 
 shall ye suck, ye shall be borne upon her sides, and be dandled 
 upon her knees. As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I 
 comfort you ; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem. And when ye 
 see this, your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like an 
 herb ; and the hand of the Lord shall be known toward his servants, 
 and his indignation toward his enemies." But his dealings with the 
 obstinate idolaters shall be in bold contrast to all this : — " For behold the 
 Lord will come with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to 
 render his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire. For by 
 fire, and by his sword, will the Lord plead with all flesh : and the slain 
 of the Lord shall be many. They that sanctify themselves, and purify 
 themselves in the gardens behind one tree in the midst, eating swine's 
 flesh, and the abomination, and tlie mouse, shall be consumed together, 
 saith the Lord" (ver. 15-17). "The abomination" of ver. 17, is 
 equal to the " broth of abominable things " of Ixv. 4. It includes every 
 kind of vermin used by the heathen as food, but which Israel was 
 accustomed to regard as unclean. " The mouse (achbar) " may have been 
 the Egyptian jerboa — see under 1 Sam. vi. 4. 
 
 " Your bones shall flourish like an herb." The words are a beautiful 
 allusion to the swelling of the bud in spring on the dry, withered- 
 looking twig or branch, or to the late scorched herbage becoming green 
 ao-ain. Blessing shall come in the belief of the promise.
 
 JEKEMIAII. 
 
 499 
 
 JEREMIAH. 
 
 HE prophet was overwlielincd by the views given him of 
 tlie sovereignty of God, in his calling to be a messenger 
 to the nations, and by the greatness and difficulty of the 
 work to which he was called. " Ah, Lord God," he said, 
 " I cannot speak ; for I am a child" (i. 6). But He who 
 had raised him up could fit him for the work : — " Say not thou 
 art a child, for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and 
 whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak" (ver. 7). He had 
 been chosen for the work, the purpose of God had been brought 
 out in his being raised up, and he had been appointed to it by God 
 himself. He was ready, and God promised to realize the providences 
 which were to bring the prophet specially out before the people. He 
 had become fully persuaded of all this. " The word of the Lord came 
 unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou ? And I said, I see a rod 
 of an almond-tree. Then said the Lord unto me, thou hast well seen : 
 for I will hasten my word to perform it" (ver. 11, 12). The almond- 
 tree [Amygdalis conwium's), is specially referred to under Eccles. xii. 5 
 — which see. The word used here is also employed to designate the 
 fruit of this tree. See under Gen xliii. 11, and Numb. xvii. 8. 
 
 The people had been upbraided for their unteachableness and back- 
 sliding, but in vain. The hopelessness of their case was manifested by 
 their inability to see that they had done anything amiss. " No man 
 repented him of his wickedness, saying, what have I done ? every one 
 turned to his course" (viii. G), under the blind force of simple impulse. 
 Times of temptation came, opportunities of sin presented themselves, 
 and sinful instincts became excited by the presence of objects alluring 
 to sin. " As the horse rusheth into the battle," so they hastened to 
 make themselves vile before God. Yea their case was worse even 
 than the irrational creatures. They were daily dealt with by priest 
 and prophet — daily by the privileges of the sanctuary reminded of their 
 duty to their heavenly Father — but in vain. The birds of the air 
 regularly obeyed the laws under which they had been put by the 
 Creator, but not so the people whom God had chosen in grace, and on 
 whom he had Lavished the proofs of his kindness and love : — " Yea, the
 
 500 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIIiNCli. 
 
 stork iu the heaveu kiiowetli her appointed times ; and the turtle, and 
 the crane, and the swallow, observe the time of their coming ; but my 
 people know not the judgment of the Lord. How do ye say, We are 
 wise, and the law of the Lord is with us? Lo, certainly in vain made 
 he it ; the pen of the scribes is in vain. The wise men are ashamed, 
 they are dismayed and taken : lo, they have rejected the word of the 
 Lord ; and what wisdom is in them?" (ver. 7-9.) 
 
 " Stork," Heb. hhdsiddh, is noticed under 2 Chron. ix. 21 ; Ps. civ. 
 17 — which sec. It is named here as a bird of passage. Two species 
 are still common in their season in Palestine — the white stork [Oiconia 
 alba, Plate IV., fig. 2), and the black stork (C. nigra). 
 
 " The turtle," Heb. td>\ was the migratory species {Tartar auritus) 
 as distinguished from the permanent resident {T. risortus), the Syrian 
 dove proper (Lev. i. 14). The original word is sometimes translated 
 simply " turtle," as in Song ii. 12 — " The flowers appear on the earth ; 
 the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is 
 heard in our land." The church is spoken of by the Psalmist as God's 
 " turtle-dove :" — 
 
 " O deliver not the soul of thy turtle-dove unto tlie multitude. 
 Forget not the congregation of thy poor for ever" (Ixxiv. 16). 
 
 The thoughts suggested by this allusion have been set in other lights 
 in modern poetry. When God was angry with Aaron and might have 
 destroyed him, Moses " prayed for Aaron" (Deut. iv. 20): — 
 
 " So let thy turtle-dove's sad call arise 
 In doubt and fear 
 Through darkening skies, 
 And pierce, O Lord, thy justly sealed ear, 
 Where on the house-top, all night long 
 She trills her widow'd faltering song." 
 
 "The crane," Heb. si's. Bochart has laboured to make out that 
 this word should be rendered " swallow," and the next " crane." In 
 either case it is believed we have undoubted reference to the crane 
 (Grus), one of the Gruidce or crane family. The common crane 
 is an inhabitant of Europe, Asia, and Africa. It spends its summer iu 
 the temperate regions, and migrates southward in autumn. 
 
 " Gilead " (ver. 22)— see vol. !., p. 443. 
 
 The people " who had slidden back by a perpetual backsliding, who 
 held fast deceit, and refused to return" unto the Lord (ver. 5), are 
 brought to acknowledge the hand of God : — " The Lord our God hath
 
 JiiKEMIAU. 
 
 501 
 
 I'ig. MG. 
 
 put US to silence, and yiveu us water of gall to drink, because we have 
 sinned against the Lord " (ver. 14). In the view of referring again to 
 "gall," under Mark xv. 23, the allusions to it in other passages may 
 be considered here. Two Hebrew words, untier different forms, are 
 translated gall, naniel}', rosh and iiicrOrali^ the latter from vidrar, to be 
 bitter, hence Marah. The former is the word employed by Jeremiah. 
 It is first met with in Deut. xxix. 18, where it is spoken of as the 
 produce of a root, and as a bitter sap it is associated with woinnvood — 
 " Lest there should be 
 among you a root that 
 beareth gall." This pas- 
 sage may be associated 
 with the New Testa- 
 ment strong expression — 
 " Looking diligently lest 
 any man fail of the grace 
 of God ; lest any root of 
 bitterness springing up 
 trouble you, and thereby 
 many be dctiled " (lieb. 
 xii. 15). In Deut. xxxii. 
 33, the same word is 
 rendered " venom " — 
 " Their wine is the poison 
 of dragons, and the cruel 
 venom of asps." And in 
 verse 32, written in an- 
 other form, it is again 
 translated gall — "Their 
 vine is of the vine of 
 Sodom, and of the fields 
 of Gomorrah : their oau„uu„c.an.(6'™.,-„.™). 
 
 grapes are grapes of gall, their clusters are bitter." When Zophar 
 the Naamathite chai\icterizes the triumph of the wicked and the joy 
 of the hypocrite, he says of each : — " He shall suck the poison {rush) 
 of asps, the viper's tongue shall slay him " (Job xx. IG). In Psalm 
 xxii. 21, gall is described as the meat offered to the Saviour on the 
 cross — a prophecy literally fulfilled, ]\Iatt. xxvii. 34 — "They gave 
 him vinegar to drink mingled with gall." Jeremiah uses the same 
 word in other four passages, besides the one under notice. Address-
 
 502 HIBLIC.VL NATURAL SCIliNCK. 
 
 ing those who were " walking after the imagination of their own heart, 
 and after Baalim," the prophet adds : — "Behold, I will feed them, even 
 this people, with wormwood, and give them water of gall to drink" (ix. 
 15j. And when "the horrible thing" was laid to the charge even of 
 the prophets of Jerusalem, the same form of judgment was threatened 
 (xxiii. 15); so likewise Lam. iii. 5, 18, 19. In the grievous departure of 
 Israel from God, Amos complains that one fruit of this was the "turning 
 of judgment into gall" — the complete perversion of truth and righteous- 
 ness (Amos vi. 12). Hosca uses the same word in a passage in which 
 our translators have rendered it " hemlock " (Hos. x. 4). 
 
 The other word also rendered gall is so translated in Job xvi. 13 — 
 " His archers compass me round about ; he cleaveth my reins asunder, 
 and doth not spare ; he poureth out my gall upon the ground." The 
 term used here {nicrcrah), as 1 have shown under this passage, refers 
 to the gall cyst or bladder of the human body. In Job xx. 14, the 
 word (merorah) indicates what is bitter and poisonous — " His meat in 
 his bowels is turned ; it is the gall of asps within him." But that the 
 same expression may be applied to the gall-bladder, is clear from verse 
 25 of the same chapter — "The glittering sword cometh out of his gall." 
 
 The conclusions to be drawn from the interpretation of the passages 
 quoted are: — (1) The word is used for bitter things in general; (2) 
 When a specific meaning is attached to it, the context demands it, as 
 in Hosea x. 4, and Job xvi. 13, xx. 25 — " I was like a lamb or an ox 
 that is brought to the slaughter ; and I knew not that they had devised 
 devices against me" (xi. 1(^. The Hebrew aUrn:)h is nowhere else, 
 except in Psalm cxliv. 14, rendered " ox." The general sense is — I 
 was as the tenderest or as the strongest of the animals which men 
 slaughter for food. The term is translated "duke" throughout Genesis 
 xxxvi.— "duke Teman, duke Omar," &c. ; "guide" in Psalm Iv. 13; 
 "friend" in Prov. xvi. 28; "captain" in Jer. xiii. 21; and "governor" 
 in Zech. ix. 7 ; the prevalent idea being that of full maturity and 
 strength. 
 
 The sin and hypocrisy which the prophet saw all around him, are 
 represented as influencing all nature, and in his deep mental depression 
 Jeremiah asks — "How long shall the land mourn, and the herbs of every 
 field wither, for the wickedness of them that dwell therein? the beasts 
 are consumed, and the birds ; because they said, He shall not see our 
 last end " (ver. 4). "The herb," Heb. cslicr, points to herbaceous plants 
 generally, which supply food for man or for the beasts. The original 
 word is sometimes rendered "grass" (Deut. xi. 15; 2 Kings xix. 26;
 
 JEREMIAH. 503 
 
 Job V. 25 ; Ps. Ixxii. IG, xcii. 7 ; Prov. xix. 12, &c.) In the first 
 of these passages, "the grass" is joined with tlie promised blessings of 
 corn, wine, and oil, which were to be given to Israel, if they hearkened 
 diligently to the commandments of God : " I will send grass in thy 
 fields for thy cattle, that thou mayest eat and be full " — I will give 
 plenty for man and for beast. The secoud passage has been referred 
 to in its place. In the third, Eliphaz the Temanite tells Job, if he 
 will but look at affliction from his point of view, amonsr other blessings 
 which shall be his, " his seed shall be great, and his offspring as the 
 grass of the earth "^as herbaceous plants innumerable. When the 
 Psalmist pictures the prosperity of Messiah's everlasting kingdom, he 
 says — 
 
 "They of the city shall flourisli hke grass of the eartli." 
 
 And when he would give us a lively impression of the rapid, but short- 
 lived prosperity of the wicked, he speaks of them as "springing as the j 
 grass," or green herb. In the last passage, the term is connected with ' 
 a thought of great beauty — " The king's favour is as dew upon the 
 grass." When the dew is withheld in a land like Palestine, every 
 herbaceous plant droops ; when it falls in plenty, every leaf is enabled j 
 to live through the heat of the scorching sun. Under an absolute i 
 monarch like Solomon, his favour was, to those on whom it rested, as 
 the dew to the green herb. The same term occurs twenty-seven times 
 in addition to those now referred to. See also under Araos vii. 1, 2. 
 
 " Mine heritage is unto me as a speckled bird ; the birds round i 
 about are against her : come ye, assemble all the beasts of the j 
 field, come to devour" (ver. 9). The LXX. render the original \ 
 of the words " speckled bird " by " ravenous hyaena," and are fol- i 
 lowed by Bochart, who has elaborately and strongly advocated this 
 rendering. The word means streaked ; its association with cuj/'t (bird), 
 which is elsewhere translated "fowl," has always been found a difficulty 
 in the way of accepting this rendering. But the fact that o>jit means 
 ravenous — something given to take the spoil — in a great measure 
 does away with the difficulty. Hyenas appear to have once been 
 numerous both in Egypt and Palestine. They are still to be met with 
 in the Holy Land. Dr. Stanley saw one on the southern Carmel. 
 " Zeboim " (1 Sam. xvii. 8) means " the ravine or valley of the hyaenas." 
 —(Plate XXVI., fig 1.) 
 
 " Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots ? then 
 may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil" (xiii. 23). 
 " Leopard," Heb. nami-r. In the Song (iv. 8) reference is made to the
 
 504 
 
 BIBLICAL XATUKAL SCIENCE. 
 
 " mountains of tlic leopards." As a figure of the time of uuivers.il 
 peace, it is promised that — " The lenpanl sliall lie dowu with the kid " 
 (Isa. xi. G). In addition to Jciviniah's notice of it hero, it. is named 
 
 Fi:;. 1:7. 
 
 Syrinn I.pnpanl (F-lis tcptrdtts). 
 
 in V. G also. The other references are — Dan. vii. G ; Hos. xiii. 7 ; 
 Hab. i. 8. The species is more fully noticed under the last passage — 
 which sec. 
 
 The man " whose heart deparleth from the Lord," was to become 
 like the "heath in the desert" (xvii. G). The full force of the figure is 
 to be learned from verse 8, in which the man "whose hope is in the 
 Lord" is compared to a tree planted b}' the rivers of water. In the 
 one case most f;ivourable circumstances have no influence on him ; in 
 the other every circumstance becomes the means of good. The heath 
 inhabits parched lands ; the tree planted by the waters stands in a 
 fertile soil. The one plant has enough to do to maintain its position ; 
 the other flourishes even in the drought itself, which is fatal to so many 
 plants. Thus is it with the classes contrasted here. 
 
 "Heath," Heb. an'ir, is one of ihc Eri'cacece, or heather family of plants. 
 The species which best answers this reference by the prophet, is the 
 common ling {Caluna vuhjari'ti). The tamarisk (Taman'.c galh'ca} 
 has been proposed as the rendering here, but not on good grounds. 
 In chapter xlviii. 6, the Hebrew arovi- is translated heath — " Flee, save 
 yourselves, and be like the heath in the w'ilderness." The action 
 described in the beginning of the verse, has led some to seek a diiferent 
 rendering. They so read the word here as to make it equivalent to
 
 JEKEMIAH. 
 
 505 
 
 sec under Lev. xi, 13. 
 
 Fib', lis. 
 
 Its mode of flight is 
 
 "wild asses," but unsuccessfully. "Heath" lits much better into the 
 context in both passages. 
 
 The ChakUean power, of which at the time when the events recorded 
 in this chapter occurred Nebuchadnezzar was the head, is here (xlviii. 
 40) symbolized by an eagle. The god Nisroch worshipped by the 
 Assyrians, is represented on the sculptures with the head of uu eagle. 
 The bird was borne on the standards of their wamors as the symbol of 
 courage. Later, the same standard was appropriated by the Romans, 
 I'rora whom it has passed into several modern nations. 
 
 "Eagle," Ileb. nesher, 
 alluded to here. The 
 figure is strikingly true to 
 nature : — "Thus saith the 
 Lord, Behold, he shall fly 
 as an eagle, and shall 
 spread his wings over 
 Moab " (ver. 40). When 
 the eagle hunts for his 
 jirey he flies low, seldom 
 sailing, but advancing by 
 oft-repeated beats of his 
 strong wings. Having 
 discovei'ed his prey, he 
 darts on it with arrow- 
 like swiftness, catches 
 it U23 in his powerful 
 talons, and spreading his 
 wings over it, soars aloft, 
 and bears it to some 
 favourite secluded spot 
 to be devoured. It is to 
 this spreading of the wings when her })rey is secured, that reference is 
 made here. The certainty of Moab's destruction is thus forcibly intimated. 
 
 Another aspect of this appears to have been in the mind of Solomon 
 when describing the uncertainty of riches — " Wilt thou set thine eyes 
 upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings ; they 
 fly away as an eagle towards heaven" (Prov. xxiii. 5). See also 2 Sam. 
 i. 2, 3; Job ix. 20; Isa. xl. 31; Lam. iv. 19; Ilab. i. 8; where nesher is 
 used to indicate the true eagle as distinguished irom the vulture, dCidh. 
 
 "Damascus" (xlix. 24), see vol. i., p. 337. 
 
 Iniiicriiil Kjiglc (--I^uiVa mprrluUs). 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 3s
 
 50G IJIULICAL NATUltAL SCIKNCK. 
 
 LAMENTATIONS. 
 
 N I lie depth of their calamities, the people cried unto the Lord 
 IJIJ; out of the anguish and distress of their hearts; and called on 
 others to lament over the wall of the daughter of Zion, which 
 was about to be levelled with the ground, to complete their 
 desolations." Tlie wall is said to lament because its ruins are 
 objects of sorrow (Lam. ii. 8), and here it is addressed as a 
 person, while the afflicted ones look up to God — " Their heart cried 
 unto the Lord, wall of the daughter of Zion, let tears run down 
 like a river day and night : give thyself no rest ; let not the apple ol 
 thine eye cease." The expression "ajjple of the eye," has been noticed 
 already under Deut. xxxii. 10 — which see. It is, however, the trans- 
 lation of a diiferent word in this passage {bath), and is literally " the 
 daughter of the eye," even as tshon is the little man (Jiomulus) of the 
 eye. Both words are met with in Ps. xvii. 8, where the terms may be 
 rendered — "Keep me as the dark spot of the daughter of the eye." 
 Here apple of the eye is used for the whole eye, the channel through 
 which the tears of the afflicted flow. See under Zech. ii. 8. 
 
 "Even the sea-monsters draw out the breast, they give suck to their 
 young ones : the daughter of my people is become cruel, like the 
 ostriches in the wilderness" (iv. 3). Seals and dolphins are abundant 
 in the Slediterranean. Any of these may be regarded as referred to 
 here. See Plate XXXIV. figs. 1,2. A flgure of the walrus is intro- 
 duced on the same plate ((ig. 3) for the sake of illustration. These, 
 with the whales (Plates XXI. fig. 6, and XXIII. flgs. 1, 2, 3), are the 
 sea-monsters which "draw out the breast." See also figs. 149-151. 
 
 Even those who had devoted themselves to a life of self-denial and 
 constant waiting on God, shared in the terrible calamities which liad 
 overtaken Ihe people. Their present condition is set in strong contrast 
 with their former state in ver. 7, 8 — " Her Nazarites were purer than 
 snow, they were whiter than milk, they were more ruddy in body than 
 rubies, their polishing was of sapphire : their visage is blacker than a 
 coal ; they are not known in the streets : their skin cleaveth to their 
 bones; it is withered, it is become like a stick." 
 
 " Rubies," Heb. pminwi, are named seven times in the Old Testa-
 
 .'i 
 
 ,ii?^/^''v.. 
 
 Fig. 140.— Tlie UrcBted Seal (^Stemmalopus crislalus). 
 
 Fig 150. — The Sefl-Iilopliaiit < Mortivtin prohoscidfti). 
 
 Tig. 151.— The Sea-Lion (Ofnria mhaUi). 
 
 r.VEX THE SEA-JtONSTERS ni?.\TV OFT THE REEAST, TIIF.V fllVE SfCK TO THEII? 
 YOLNfi ONES.— L.\MnsTAlinxs iv.3.
 
 ment. They are not referred to in tlic New Testament. The ruby 
 is one of tlie most precious gems. It ranks witli the diamond, tlie 
 sapphire, and the emerald, and is higldy valued. It is red, and as 
 its brilliance loses nothing when seen in artificial light, it has ever been 
 highly esteemed. The finest are those which are either of a pure 
 carmine or of a blood-red colour. There are many varieties ; some- 
 times it is bright rose-red, and passes from that colour to the soft, 
 delicate hue of the peach blossom. The most valuable specimens are 
 obtained from soulliern India and Ceylon. Oriental garnets are some- 
 times mistaken for rubies, but they differ both in natural form, in 
 lustre, and in their constituent parts. The colouring matter of the 
 garnet is oxide of iron ; that of the ruby is chromic acid. 
 
 Job acknowledges its preciousness when he says, " The price of 
 wisdom is above rubies." Solomon also sets the value of wisdom in 
 contrast with this gem — " She is more precious than rubies" (Prov. 
 iii. 15), and "better than rubies" (viii. 11, 15). 
 
 " vSapphire," Ileb. sap2^ii\ has been fully noticed under Exod. xxiv. 
 10 — which see. This precious stone is frequently referred to. It 
 stood in the second row of the breastplate of the high priest, between 
 the nopheh or emerald, and the -ijalinlom^ or diamond (Exod. xxviii. 
 18). In Job's sublime words in regard to the earth it is said — 
 
 " The stones of it are the place of sapphires : 
 And it hath dust of gold " (xxviii. G). 
 
 The finest varieties, however, are found in the alluvial soil of Ceylon, <S:c. 
 He again mentions it along with the gold of Ophir, and the precious 
 onyx (ver. IG). It is introduced into the description of the glorious 
 person of the royal bridegroom (Song v. 14). Part of the promise of 
 rich blessing to Zion was, " I will lay thy foundations with sapphires" 
 (Isa. liv. 11). Ezekiel names it thrice (i. 26, x. 1, xxviii. 13). Job's 
 reference to sapphires in connection with their place in the rocks, has 
 led some to suggest other minerals as much more likely to answer the 
 mppir of the Hebrews than the modern gem of that name. Azurite 
 has been named ; but, however beautiful the colour and structure, it 
 could not have been applied to such uses as sapphire was. Lapis 
 lazuli, the "sapphire blue" of the Romans, has also been named. It 
 is true that this stone is met with in its brightest forms in central 
 Asia, and may have come under the notice of Job ; but it could not 
 with propriety be associated, as to beauty and value, with the gold of 
 Ophir, the onyx, the ruby, and the topaz — all named as very precious 
 l)y the patriarch, but yet not of such value as wisdom.
 
 EZEKIEL. 
 
 509 
 
 EZEKIEL. 
 
 OME most valuable light has recently been shed 
 on this highly symbolical book by the discoveries 
 of Mr. Layard and others. Many of the symbols 
 made use of by the prophet liave been dis- 
 covered by ]\Ir. Layard on ancient sculptures. It 
 would be foreign to our present task to examine 
 the symbolical imagery, so copiously drawn from 
 art by Ezekiel. The reader is referred to "Layard's Nineveh," 
 vol. ii., pp. 307-309, 404, &c. 
 Chapter iv. 9. — The meat prepared by the prophet was to be eaten 
 as " barley cakes." Bread made from barley (Heb. shordh, Lat. hor- 
 deum) was reckoned homeliest fare. Contrasted with wheat, it was 
 characterized as fit only for the poorest and meanest among the people; 
 it was the r/7e honhiim of classic authors. Thus there was a double 
 degradation ; the food was loathsome because of the mode in which it 
 was prepared, and the thought of the condition of those whose meat 
 consisted chiefly of barley cakes would be ever present with the prophet. 
 He had been made as one of them. This estimate of the barley cake 
 sheds light on Judg. vii. 13:— "When Gideon was come, behold, there 
 was a man that told a dream unto his fellow, and said, Behold I dreamed 
 a dream, and, lo, a cuke of barley bread tumbled into the host of 
 Midian, and came unto a tent, and smote it that it fell." Gideon the 
 son of Joash, of a family "poor in IManasseh, and the least in liis 
 father's house," little known, and of no estimation among the people 
 like a cake of barley bread, was to fall on Midian and Amalek, and 
 smite them with the sword. 
 
 In 2 Kings iv. 28 barley is spoken of as food for horses and drome- 
 daries. Thus in the Talmud, one says, " There is a fine crop of 
 barley," and another answers, " Tell this to the horses and asses." 
 One of the indignities put on the Ronum soldier who quitted his 
 ranks before the enemy, was being fed on barley instead of wheaten 
 bread (Liv. i. 27, c. 13). Up to a comparatively recent date the 
 great majority of the people in the rural districts of Scotland 
 used only bread made from the floiu- of oats or of barley. Wheaten
 
 ilO 
 
 BIULICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 bread was a luxury seldom enjoyed. See under Ruth i. 22, ii. 4 ; 
 John vi. 9. 
 
 The corn ingredients in iho meat which Ezekicl was to eat as bar- 
 ley cakes have been noticed already, with tlie exception of " millet," 
 
 Ileb. doltlian. This is the only pas- 
 sage in whicli this word occurs. 
 Millet {Panicym miliaccum) is one 
 of the grasses much cultivated in 
 the East. 
 
 In this wonderful dealing in grace 
 '-'^;^?^v^^^\w'^ with the once polluted and outcast 
 S^>^^^NJ> « h' l^ ^^"1) the washing and tlie anointing 
 with oil are follow-ed by the clothing: 
 — " I girded tliee about with fine 
 linen, and I covered thee with silk" 
 (xvi. 10). The broidered tunic, the 
 sandals of badgers' skins, the linen 
 girdle, and the robe of silk, tell here 
 the same tale as the parable of the 
 prodigal son does — " The fatlier said 
 to his servants, Bring forth the best 
 robe, and put it on him ; and put a 
 ring on his hand, and shoes on his 
 feet" (Luke xv. 22). 
 
 The word used by Ezekiel for 
 fine linen is sitesh and for silk mesM. 
 The former has been rendered 
 "silk" (Prov. xxxi. 22); but that 
 finest linen was meant is pointed out under that passage, and under 
 Gen. xli. 42. The latter term is the only one which may consistently be 
 held to indicate silk. The garment made from it was the " best robe." 
 It is mentioned as an article with wdiich the people were well acquainted. 
 The description of the gracious dealings of God with the nation was 
 designed for popular use. It is thus almost certain that silk was known 
 in Palestine at a date long anterior to tlie time of Ezekiel. 
 
 Every attempt to trace the history of the use of silk as an article of 
 clotliing, leads us to the north of China. The inhabitants of that region 
 were acquainted with it from time immemorial. It would reach Syria 
 and Egypt by way of India, both in its raw state, and as woven into 
 garments. In its progress from China to Western Asia, it has been 
 
 Common Millet.
 
 EZEKIEL. 
 
 ill 
 
 traced through India, Assyria, and Persia in its manufactured state, 
 until it reached the kind of the Pharaohs. Thence it found its way to 
 Greece, and ultimately to the nations of Western Europe bordering on 
 the Great Sea. It is clear that the fabric was known long before the 
 nations of the West were acquainted with the source whence the thread 
 was obtained. Some imagined that it was the entrails of a spider. 
 Virgil speaks of " Ethiopic groves white with soft wool" (cotton?), 
 and of the Seres " wlio draw the tender threads iix)m leaves" ("Georg." 
 ii. 120). " The mode of producing and manufacturing this precious 
 material was not known to Europe until long after the Christian era, 
 being first learned, about the year 550, by two monks, who procured in 
 
 =^-" '■ Fig. 153. 
 
 Silk-worm Muth. 
 
 India the eggs of the silk-worm moth, with which, concealing them in 
 lioUow canes, they hastened to Constantinople, where the moths speedily 
 multiplied and were subsequently introduced into Italy, of which 
 country silk was long a peculiar and staple commodity. 
 
 In the natural order of insects to which all our butterllies and moths 
 belong — Lcpidoptcra, or scaly-winged — a group is named night moths 
 {Nocturna) from their habits. Among them is the silk-producing 
 family of moths {Bomhjcidce) ^ and under this the silk-woi'm moth 
 {Bovihijx mori) occurs. The specitic name (J/or«.s, or Mulberry) is 
 given to it because of its fondness, in its caterpillar state, for the 
 mulberry-tree. When the caterpillar (see initial letter above) arrives 
 at maturity, it spins for itself a thick cocoon in one continuous thread, 
 and prepares to pass into the next stage of development. — the pupa. 
 This thread has been known to exceed one thousand feet in Icmrth. It 
 is twisted with such regularity that it can be wound off, often without
 
 512 BILLIUAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 a break. The bold contrast between the producing worm and the 
 precious product, especially when the silk has been woven and made 
 into garments, has been a favourite theme of moralist and poet. Milton 
 asks — 
 
 " Wherefore did nature pour her bounties forth 
 With such u full .Tud unwithdrawing hand, 
 Covering the earth with odoiu's, fruits, and flock?, 
 Thronging the seas with spawn innumerabk-, 
 But all to please and sate the curious taste, 
 And set to work millions of spiuuing-wornis. 
 That in their green shops weave the smooth-haired silk, 
 To deck her soos'i "^Cotnus.) 
 
 Chapter xviii. 1-10. — The chief natural objects employed by the 
 prophet in the construction of this " riddle," or parable, are the cedar 
 {Cedrus Ltbani), the willow (Salix safsaf), and the vine (Viti's vi/ii/era), 
 among plants ; two kinds of eagles among birds ; the first being most 
 likely the golden eagle (Ar/uila cJinjsaetos), and the second the 
 Egyptian vulture {Neophron percnopterus). Two countries and their 
 great rivers are also rei'erred to. With these objects he forms his 
 riddle and brings before the people certain great truths in which they 
 were all most deeply interested. The parable is one of great beauty. 
 Any exposition of it must take chiefly into account the leading features 
 — the outline — indicated in the general mention of the figures used. 
 There are many minute expressions which have been introduced to 
 lend the charm of natural truthfulness to the riddle, as a whole, 
 which are not in themselves designed to convey special aspects of 
 truth. We are not, for example, called upon to show any peculiar 
 fitness between the eagle and the act ascribed to it, when it is repre- 
 sented as cutting off with its bill the cedar-top and carrying the seed 
 of the land away to another region. No sucli fitness could be made 
 out. The truth to be declared was simply, that a warlike prince, tlie 
 great eagle, would carry away the people to whom the prophet spoke — 
 represented by the cedar, and the seed of the land. 
 
 Looked at from this general point of view, the riddle and parable fit 
 into the context. The king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar, is the 
 " great eagle, with great wings, long-winged, full of feathers, which 
 had divers colours " (ver. 2). The king of Egypt, Pharaoh-hophra — 
 Apries of profane history — is the other " great eagle, with great wings 
 and many feathers;" a description designed to convey the idea of one 
 of less power and note than Nebuchadnezzar. The highest branch of 
 the cedar of Lebanon was the royal house of Judah, and " the top of
 
 EZEKIEL. 
 
 tlig young twig " cropped off by the eagle was Jelioiacliin, the son and 
 successor of Jehoiakiui, the Jeconiah of Jeremiah xxiv. 1, tlic Couiah 
 of Jeremiah xxxvii. 1, and the Jechouias of Matthew i. 12. The "seed 
 of Ihe kind " represented the people of Judah, who also with their 
 king are spoken of as "the vine, its roots, and its branches." The 
 land of traffic (vcr. 4) was Babylonia, and "the good soil by great 
 waters" (ver. 8) leads us at once to the rich alluvial plains in the 
 valley of the Nile. Babylonia and its rivers, Euphrates and Tigris, 
 are named as the fruitful field and great waters, in verse 5. With 
 this general outline we can have little difficulty in filling the subordinate 
 particulars, and in understanding the whole in the light of the context. 
 There are only two other points which must be noticed :— 
 
 The cedar placed by great waters is said to have been " set as 
 a willow-tree" — Hebrew tzaplulplidh^ the safsaf {Sulix safsaf) of 
 Hasselquist. This plant is abundant in Syria and in Babylonia, where 
 like our sallow, or goat willow {Salix caprea), it grows luxuriantly in 
 moist places, but is met also in dry and sandy places. It gives its 
 name to one of the peaks of the range of Sinai, lias cs Sufsufth, so 
 called from the willows which grew in the Wady Sufsufeh. This 
 passage is the only one in which this species is referred to. See 
 for " willow " under Isa. xliv. 3. 
 
 The people who trusted in Pharauh-hophra were to begin to be 
 satisfied with their condition. At the close of the parable they are 
 warned by the prophet not to do so : " Thus saith the Lord God, Shall 
 it prosper? shall he not pull up the roots thereof, and cut off" the fruit 
 thereof, that it wither ? it shall wither in all the leaves of her spring, 
 even without great power, or many people to pluck it up by the roots 
 thereof Yea, behold, being planted, shall it prLi8pLr ? shall it not 
 utterly wither when the east wind toucheth it ? it shall wither in the 
 furrows where it grew " (ver. 9, 10). This allusion to the east wind 
 has led some to seek for an extra-Egyptian influence for the evil which 
 was to overtake the people who rested under the shadow of Pharaoh's 
 protection. But the point and force of the passage is, that the hurt 
 to the Jews was to come from the very power in which they trusted. 
 The evil influence of this power is described by the cast wind, a 
 reference which would at once be understood by all who had had deal- 
 ings with Egypt. At different times, in the months of April and May, 
 Egypt is subject to a wind similar to the sirocco, the Shu-Kizch of the 
 Arabian deserts. In Egypt it is known as the Kliamsi'n. During its 
 prevalence dark clouds loom in the firmament, the atmosphere " is 
 
 VOL. II. 3 T
 
 514 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 heated to a high degree, and the wind is strong. It frequently brings 
 a bliglit on vegetation. When the protector shall become the persecutor, 
 shall it not be with the people as with tlie plants stricken by the 
 Khamsin? " Shall it not wither when the east wind toucheth it?" 
 
 Chapter xxvii. 15. — Among the riches brought to Tyrus were 
 elephants' tusks, called here "horns of ivory." The elephant itself is only 
 indirectly mentioned in Scripture — see above, 1 Kings x. 11. However, 
 the mode in which it is alluded to, and the circumstances associated 
 with the passages in which the references occur, have attached much 
 interest to it. The Hebrew word for tooth is shen — " tooth for a 
 tooth " (Levit. xxiv. 20). This is translated ivoiv/ eight times in its 
 simple form, and twice in which it may be regarded as part of a 
 compound word, in this passage, and again in 1 Kings and 2 Chronicles. 
 
 If Psalm xlv. be a psalm of David, which there is every reason to 
 believe, ivory is first mentioned (ver. 8) in his day (b.c. 1055) : — 
 
 " All thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia, 
 Out of thu ivory palaces, whereby they have made thee glad." 
 
 It has been proposed to render "palaces " by casque ts, or boxes — perfume 
 boxes of ivory ; but this falls altogether short of the requirements of 
 this royal song. The scene of the king's palace, and the filling in of 
 the picture, must consist with this. Horsley and others are disposed to 
 take " whereby " as a proper name, Minni (Jer. li. 27), and to render 
 the line — "From the ivory palaces of Armenia they make thee glad." 
 There is much to be said in favour of this version. It gives strength 
 to the description of the bringing in of the Gentiles, and preserves 
 the true meaning of the " ivory palaces." Amos when threatening 
 judgment on "the backsliding house ot Jacob," whose luxurious habits 
 fostered its departure from God, says — " I will smite the winter house 
 with the summer house ; and the houses of ivory shall perish, and the 
 great houses shall have an end " (iii. 15). The dwellings of ivory thus 
 alluded to are again mentioned in connection with the "acts of Ahab " 
 — "the ivory house which he had made" (1 Kings xxii. 39). They 
 appear to have been houses whose internal decorations consisted chiefly 
 of ivory — panels of ivory on their walls — couches of ivory on which 
 their inmates reclined — and, if palaces, a throne of ivory for the king. 
 " Woe to them that are at ease in Zion, that put far away the evil day, 
 and cause the seat of violence to come near ; that lie upon beds of ivory, 
 and stretch themselves upon their couches, and eat the lambs out of the 
 flock, and the calves out of the midst of the stall " (Amos vi. 3, 4).
 
 PUT/: 
 
 "\fgan3rin;>, ceredn/hrmis 
 
 T 
 
 2 -f. Tubipora miLsira^ 
 
 
 Aslrra ,^^ttnns. 
 
 I'^lS //,>/>///■ 
 
 Caryoplwllia soU-taria,. 
 
 Ociii 111:1. vancosa 
 
 Ocuhua. i-artcos'i- 
 
 '/Ml IV 
 
 ^^?^;WS^ 
 
 Gorgojjii* paiiJu 
 
 2P H Mmndruw £trru*sa . 
 
 SYRIA WAS THY MERCHANT ; THEY OCCUPIED IN THY FAIRS WITH COBALS.— Ezbk. xxtU. 1«. 
 
 William HkCNCNZIt. ClASCON CO'lluttCH kONOON t XtM-tCA*-
 
 EZEKIEL. OiO 
 
 When Solomon, leaving the royal simplicity of his father, took to imitating 
 tlie luxurious arrangements of neighbouring courts, " he made a great 
 throne of ivory, and overlaid it with the best gold" (1 Kings x. 18). 
 And in ver. G of this chapter, among other evidences of the luxury of 
 Tyrus in Iniilding her ships, it is said that " the company of Ashurites 
 made the (rowing) benches of ivory, brought out of the land of Chittim," 
 or Kt'ttfm, Cyprus, which appears to have been a depot of merchandise 
 brought by the PiuToiiicians from Africa and Southern Asia. ]\Iany 
 illustrations of these remarks occur in classic literature. Ivory is 
 described by Homer as used in tlie decoration of the palace of 
 Menelaus : — 
 
 "Above, beneath, around the palace shines 
 The sumless treasure of exhausted mines : 
 Tlie spoils of elephants the roofs inlay, 
 And studded amber darts a golden ray." — {Odys. iv.) 
 
 The bed in Penelope's nuptial bower was overlaid with ivory : — 
 
 "Athwart the frame, at equal distance lie 
 Thongs of tougli hides, that boast a purple dye ; 
 Then polishing the whole, the finish'd mould 
 AVitli silver shone, with elephant and gold."— (Of/ys. xxiii.) 
 
 Penelope's key also was ornamented with ivory : — 
 
 " The prudent queen the loflj stair ascends, 
 At distance due a virgin-train attends ; 
 A brazen key she lield, the handle turn'd, 
 Willi steel and polish 'd elephant adorn'd : 
 Swift to the inmost room she bent her way, 
 Wliero, safe repos'd, the roj-al treasures lay." — {Odys. xxi.) 
 
 The ivory was supplied to Tyrus by the Ashurites or Assyrians, whose 
 geographical situation near the great river routes between central and 
 southern Asia, would put them in possession of tlie merchandise of 
 regions in which ivory abounded. Mr. Layard met with many traces of 
 the skill of the Assyrians in working in ivory, when examining the 
 ruins of Nineveh aiid Baliyhm. 
 
 The Hebrew term used by Ezekiel {Ivmimtli-xhen) lets light on the 
 popular idea of the nature of ivory. The prevailing opinion in his day 
 seems to have been, tliat the ivory formed the horns of the animal 
 from which it was obtained. This goes also to show that the Hebrews 
 were not, up to that period, familiar with the elephant. This may 
 account for its being named only as a foreign animal by the voyagers 
 of Solomon and Hiram. They brought from the distant region visited
 
 51G BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 ivory ^elephants' teeth [ahcn-lialhim). The literal meaning of the 
 appellation is given under 1 Kings x. 22. 
 
 In the Song, ivory is referred to as illustrative of the beauty and 
 strength of the "ro3'al beloved" — "Bright ivory overlaid with 
 sapphires " (v. 14) ; and of the corainanding attractiveness of the 
 " prince's daughter " — " Thy neck is as a tower of ivory " (vii. 4). 
 
 Ivory is obtained from the tusks, which answer to the incisive teeth, 
 of the elephant {Elq)Jias^. It was long believed that the elephant peri- 
 odically slieds his tusks. This supposition is stated in a comparatively 
 recent work on science. (" Nat. Lib.," vol. ix.) But the impression is 
 erroneous. The beast must be destroyed in order to get possession of 
 his tusks. The permanent tusks are like the otlier teeth, preceded by 
 " milk tusks." After these are shed, the permanent tusks cut the gum 
 a month or six weeks later. They are dark-coloured and ragged at the 
 ends when they first appear, following thus the characteristics of the 
 other teeth, but are worn smooth by use, and soon lose all traces of 
 roughness. Chemical analysis of the tusk yields the following result, 
 as the constitution of ivory : — - 
 
 Phosphate of Ume, with trace of fluate of lime, .... 38'48 
 
 Carbonate of lime, ......... 5'G3 
 
 Phosphate of magnesia, . ....... 12*01 
 
 Salts, 0-70 
 
 Chondrine (principle of cartilage), ...... 4294 
 
 F.it, 013 
 
 10000 
 The ivory obtained from the African elephant is more esteemed in 
 commerce than that got from the Asiatic species. " The annual 
 importation of ivory into Great Britain alone, for the last few years, 
 has been about one million pounds ; which, taking the average weight 
 of a tusk at sixty pounds, would require the slaughter of eight thousand 
 three hundred and thirty -three male elephants." — (»??> E. Temient) 
 
 The accompanying section (fig. 154) of the elephant's skull, will 
 show how the tusks are planted in the upper jaw-bones (premax- 
 illarks). It will be noticed that the brain cavity is very small, com- 
 pared with the size of the animal, and that it does not bear out any 
 theory which associates sagacity in the lower animals with their 
 proportion of brain. The sagacity of the elephant has in all ages been 
 a favourite theme with writers on its habits and instincts. Numerous 
 illustrations will occur to every reader. In most cases tliese have been 
 drawn from the habits of the tame animal, and show his great capacity
 
 EZEKIEL. 
 
 of being trained. But tliis sagacity appears to distinguish him in liis 
 wild state likewise. Dr. Livingstone, describing the pitfalls on tlie 
 banks of the Zonga for entrapping wild animals, says — " Old elephants 
 have been known to precede the herd and whisk off the coverings of 
 the pitfalls all the way down to the water. We have known instances 
 in which the old among these sagacious animals, have actually lifted 
 the young out of the trap."— (" Travels," p. 70.) 
 
 The trunk or proboscis of the elephant is a marvel of mechanism. 
 Other parts of its body present all those rich adaptations between 
 means and ends, structure and habits, which may be equally met with 
 in other lower animals. But the trunk of the elephant is characterized 
 by a sensibility equal to that of the tendercst parts of the human body. 
 
 Fig. 154 
 
 Elephant's SkuU. 
 
 It resembles the organs of taste in man, the prehensile anterior limbs 
 in monkeys, and approaches in variety of use to the human hand itself. 
 It can pick up the smallest coin, or tear up the great tree with equal 
 readiness. This organ contains from thirty to forty thousand muscles. 
 The poet's lines are scarcely an exaggeration : — 
 
 '' Nature's great masterpiece — an elephant ; 
 The-only harmless great thing." — (Donne.) 
 
 The same thought is pressed on us, when the great size of the elephant 
 is regarded in the light of its habits, and the use to which it is put by 
 man. Every bone comes to tell the tale of divine wisdom, and to con- 
 tradict the absurd imju'essions to which ignorance of its structure gave 
 rise; as, for example, that its legs had no joints, or such only that 
 were useless —
 
 518 
 
 BIBLICAL NATUnAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Fig. 155. 
 
 "The elephant hath joints; but none for courtesy: 
 His legs are for necessity, not flexure " {S/ialcspeare) ; 
 
 tliat it always sleeps while leaning against something, anrl that it 
 cannot rise \vhen it chances to fall. 
 
 In the geological sketch, given at the beginning of this work, refer- 
 ence has been made to the mastodon and the mammoth, fossil forms of 
 ElephanHJce (Plate XXXVIII.). 
 
 The men of Dedan were also importers of ivory into Tjtc (ver. 15). 
 Dedan is again mentioned (ver. 20) as trading with Tyre in " precious 
 clothes for chariots." In Gen. x. 7, Dedan is named with Sheba as a 
 son of Ramah, the son of Gush, and in Gen. xxv. 3, with another 
 Sheba the son of Joksham, a son of Abraham's second wife, Ketiirah. 
 These two families intermarried, and one branch, the Cushite Dedan, 
 settled on the shores of the Persian Gulf, while the other, the Ketu- 
 rahite Dedan, took possession of the borders of Idumcea. This accounts 
 for the mode in which they are referred to here. 
 
 In addition to ivor}', the merchants of the Cushite Dedan traded with 
 
 Tyre in "ebony," Hob. hahcnirn. The 
 plural form points to ebony wood in 
 planks or logs. The tree which yield 
 the ebony wood of commerce is the 
 Diospyros {D. ebenas), one of the natural 
 order Ehcnaccce. It is a large tree, a 
 native of Ce3'lon, ^ladagascar, &c., and 
 is noted for its valuable wood. Nearest 
 the bark the wood is white and soft, 
 but deeper very hard and black. It 
 lias ever been highly esteemed for mak- 
 ing valuable articles of household furni- 
 ture. It is very durable, and takes a 
 high polish. One of the species sup- 
 plies the so called " date plum" of China, which is much relished by 
 the Chinese, and is sometimes imported into Britain as a preserve. 
 
 " Syria was thy merchant by reason of the multitude of the wares of 
 thy making : they occupied in thy fairs with emeralds, purple, and 
 broidered work, fine linen, and coral, and agate" (ver. IG). "Emeralds," 
 see imder Rev. iv. 3 ; " Purple," Judges vili. 2G ; " Fine Linen," 
 1 Chron. iv. 21 ; "Agate," Exod. xxviii. 18. 
 
 " Coral," Heb. ramoth, occurs also in Job xxviii. 18, as a substance 
 of great value. The general division liadiata is the lowest but one in 
 
 DraTicli of Ehony-Tree {Diospyros e7>mas).
 
 Mastodon. 
 
 ^>>"> 
 
 M.(jl(/<l'if''ll/ii ■ /,/i'il/ll/r Xfii.'/iu/i'/i , 
 
 Elephas 
 
 
 ?? 
 
 *'.; 
 
 ->.- 
 
 /L./ni//auf. Iru^tii/i AV(f'/ianl . 
 
 1 KINGS X. IS: PSAL. XLV. S- EZEK. XXVII. 6. 
 
 . iZ'fc. ClA&COn c&tMBURCH
 
 EZEKIEL. 
 
 510 
 
 the scientific classification of tlie animal kingdom. The first class in 
 this division is that of Polijpi, under which several families are 
 ranked. One of them is the Cortkidce, or bark-covered corals, which 
 includes the genera, CoralUum, Isn's, and Gorgonia (Plate XXXVII., 
 figs. 6, 9). Several other well-known forms are ranked under this 
 class, as Meandrina, fig. 1 ; Tuhipora, figs. 2, 3, 4 ; Asfrcea, fig. 5 ; 
 Caryophjlla, fig. 7 ; Oculina, fig. 8. All these would be within reach 
 of Syria, either from the Great Sea, or through Arabia, from the Indian 
 ocean. But the red coral {Isis nohilis) was the species most highly 
 prized. It is found in the Mediterranean, the Red Sea, and in different 
 parts of the south coasts of Asia. The labours of the so called coral- 
 worms in rearing pile on pile of calcareous matter until it rises above 
 the surface of the water, and in time forms great islands, have ever 
 attracted to them the interest of the naturalist, and the glowing admir- 
 ation of the poet : — 
 
 " Compared with this am.izing edifice, 
 Raised by the weaknst creatures in existence, 
 What are the works of intellectual man, — 
 Towers, temples, palaces, and sepulchres ; 
 Ideal images in sculptured forms ; 
 Thoughts hewn in columns, or in domes expanded, 
 Fancies through every maze of beauty shown, 
 Pride, gratitude, affection, turned to marble. 
 In honour of the living or the dead ? 
 What are they? miniatures of art!" 
 
 The contributions from the land of Israel proper to the merchandise 
 of Tyre are named in ver. 17 — "Judah, and the land of Israel, they were 
 thy merchants : they traded in thy markets wheat of Minnith and Pan- 
 nag, and honey, and oil, and balm. The site of Minnith has not been 
 identified. We learn from Judges xi. 33, that it belonged to the 
 Ammonites. The soil in the neighbourhood of Minnith must have been 
 peculiarly favourable for the cultivation of wheat. Hence the Hebrews, 
 when they took final possession of Ammon, carried their wheat to the 
 market of Tyre. 
 
 One of the outstanding features of Palestine was its peculiar suitable- 
 ness for the cultivation of wheat. See under Deut. viii. 8. Early mention 
 is made of ditfereut varieties of this most highly esteemed cereal. Thus 
 we have "wheat," Judges vi. 11, "finest of the wheat," Ps. cxlvii. 14, 
 "principal wheat," Isa. xxviii. 25, and here "wheat of INIinnith." See 
 under Ps. Ixxxi. IG. 
 
 "Pannag" is named only in this passage. The uncertainty of its
 
 520 
 
 BIBLICAL NATUUAL SCIENCE. 
 
 derivation, taken in connection with its being mentioned only once, has 
 led to much profitless speculation as to the object indicated by it. 
 Some have believed that Pannag, like Minnith, is the name of a place. 
 The translation required to sustain this would be " wheat of IMiunith 
 and of Pannag," but the original will not bear this. Others have 
 asserted that both words, rendered as proper names in our version, 
 should not have been'so. The true rendering they assert is "olive and 
 fig." To support this, they allege a corruption of the text in regard 
 
 Fig. 150. 
 
 Pannag (A qwiquf/olium). 
 
 to both words, in a way which would land us in complete uncertainty 
 as to a hundred other words of whose meaning there can be no doubt. 
 In the Septuagint, Pannag is translated cassia; in the Syriac version, 
 millet; in the Targum, siveet-pasfnj. This last has led some to render 
 the word by siceet-cake, defined to have been made up of figs, raisins 
 &c. Luther believed that balsam was referred to under this name. 
 Hiller in his " Sacred Botany" has suggested a preparation from one of 
 the ivy family {Araliacece), the Panax (P. qmnquefoh'um), from which
 
 V
 
 EZEKIEL. 
 
 521 
 
 a medicine useful in so many diseases was made, as to originate the 
 common word panacea. This is the (jtnsany of the Chinese. But 
 whatever Paunag was, it must have been as thoroughly associated with 
 Palestine as tLj wheat of Jlinnith. This is not the case with the 
 Panax to which one or two interpreters have been led, hj the phonetic 
 resemblance of the Hebrew and Latin terms. We must as yet remain 
 satisfied with the information, that it was an article in which the 
 Hebrews traded with the pe(j[de of Tyre. The most likely supposition 
 is that it was a kind of spice for which the land of Judah was noted. 
 
 " Behold the Assyrian was a cedar in Lebanon with fair branches, 
 and with a shadowing shroud, and of an high stature ; and his top was 
 among the thick boughs," &c. (xxxi. 3-9.) This passage is one of great 
 beauty. The imagery is of the richest kind. His theme is " the glory 
 of Assyria," and the Lord's ways with " him who had lifted himself up in 
 height." He was like the giant cedar of Lebanon, whose "fair branches" 
 cast a welcome shadow for the wayfarer, when the sun burned fiercely 
 on his path. He was like the tree planted by the rivers of water. The 
 deep set him up on high with her rivers running round about his plants. 
 That from which he drew strength yielded strength for his children also, 
 '' His height was above all the trees : " he stood out as a political power 
 above all other nations. " The fowls of heaven made their nests in 
 his boughs:" surrounding tribes sought his protection, and believed 
 themselves safe under his care. But tall as might be the cedars in the 
 garden of God — in the place specially suited for them — they could not 
 hide this one who towered above them all. The fir-tree might stretch 
 out its arm-like and goodly branches, l)ut these were not to be compared 
 with Assyria's commanding influence and protecting power. Yea the 
 plane-tree, noted in these lands for its beauty of form, wide-spreading 
 shade, magnificent trunk, and rich palmate foliage, could serve only as 
 a faint and imperfect emblem of the grandeur, majer.ty, and attractive 
 lustre of the Assyrian power. " There was no tree in the garden of 
 God like unto him in his beauty." God had " made him fair by the 
 multitude of his branches." 
 
 "Cedar," Heb. ercz. The species named here is the cedar of 
 Lebanon {Cedrus Libanij. See under I Kings iv. 33. 
 
 "Fir," Heb. hervsh. This tree is again mentioned by Ezekiel 
 (xxvii. 5). See under 1 Kings v. 10. 
 
 '■ Chestnut," Heb. armdii. That the plane-tree [I'latanus on'entalis), 
 should be understood here, has already been pointed out. — (Vol. i. 440.) 
 
 VOL. II. 3 u
 
 522 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 HOSE A. 
 
 liEFEKENCE was made to the poplar (iv. 13) under Gen. 
 x.\x. 37, where two derivatives from the same Hebrew root 
 occur. The tree whose rods Jacob pilled was the poplar 
 (Ih-neh), and the result of taking off the green bark was to 
 make the rods white {Idvdhn). This should be kept in mind 
 in every attempt to identify the tree mentioned here. The 
 general natural appearance of the plant was like the branch when 
 tlie bark was taken off. I refer to this because several interpreters 
 hold that the tree mentioned in Gen. xxx. and in this verse is 
 the storax {Styrax officinale). I have noticed the storax under Gen. 
 xxxvii. 25, where a woodcut is likewise introduced, with the view 
 of indicating that it was little likely, from any outstanding features, to 
 be named with the oak and the elm. The chief ground for holding 
 "storax" the right rendering here is, that in Arabia it is named lobnah, 
 a word from the same root as livneh. But if a little attention be given 
 to the Scripture references, when the Arabic name held to shed light on 
 them is noticed, little force would be attached to this. Jacob had clearly 
 in view a tree not unlike the pilled rods. He had respect to the wood 
 and the general appearance of the plant. The branching white, or 
 cream-coloured flower-stalk of the storax was as likely to lead the 
 Arab to name it lobnah, as the blossoms of the hawthorn have led to 
 its being often spoken of as white-thorn. Again, the distinctive 
 feature noticed by Hosea is the shade of the tree : — "They burn incense 
 under oaks, and poplars, and elms, because the shadow thereof is good." 
 The oak {Quercus rolur) and the terebinth-tree [Pistacia terebinthus), 
 here rendered elm, but which is the same word as that used by Isaiah 
 (vi. 13), both answer the prophet's description ; but the common storax 
 does not. The livneh may thus be regarded as the white poplar, which 
 is a common tree in Palestine. It is to be found by the way-sides near 
 villages. In the outskirts of towns it is sometimes met with bordering 
 the roads, and a sight not uncommon is the — 
 
 " Spring and vale 
 Edged with poplar pale." 
 
 In everv case it is noted for the cool shade it affords in the heat of the
 
 HOSE A. 
 
 523 
 
 day. The poplar is one of the catkin-bearing group of trees {Amen- 
 tacece), and belongs to a sub- family of the group — the willows 
 (Salicinece). The species best known in Britain are the black, the 
 white, the aspen (P. tremula), and the Lonibardy poplar {P. fasti<jiata). 
 
 Fig. 157. 
 
 ^':lv 
 
 The last named throws little shade. 
 It gathers its branches close around 
 the main stem, and shoots up per- 
 pendicularly towards the sky. The 
 aspen has touched the eye and 
 heart of almost every poet. Chau- 
 cer writes : — 
 
 "And quake as doth the leaf of aspen green.'' 
 
 And Spenser speaks of one — 
 
 " Whose hand did quake 
 And tremble like the leaf of aspen greene." 
 
 The white species is — 
 
 "The poplar, that with silver lines his leaf" 
 
 This tree is united by yet another 
 feature with the thoughts of the 
 prophet. He sees it used for pur- 
 poses of idolatrous worship. So 
 was it among the Gentiles. Hercules is often represented with a 
 garland of white poplar on his head. It was, likewise, the only wood 
 permitted to be burned on the altar of Jupiter at Elis. 
 
 It is said of Ephraim — " The wind hath bound her up in her wings, 
 and they shall be ashamed because of their sacrifices" (ver. 19). 
 Ephraim was joined to idols, and the Lord left the people to the fruit 
 of their grievous apostasy from him. Tliat fruit was vanity and 
 prevailing unrest — constant changes, as if they were bound up in the 
 cloud driven across the sky by every changing breeze. 
 
 Another figure is used (vi. 4) for the inconstancy of Israel and 
 Judah — " Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee ? Judah, what shall 
 I do unto thee ? for your goodness is as a morning cloud, and as the 
 early dew it goeth away." Even while it lasts, it is no more to be 
 reckoned on than the cloud wdiich hangs on the sky at early dawn. 
 To this uncertainty is added the fact of its short-lived nature. " It 
 goeth away as the early dew." Slight trials as surely bring it to an 
 end as the first acts of radiation after sunshine clear the dew from the 
 
 White \'t3^\i^r {^Fupulus alba).
 
 524 BIBLICAL NATUKAL SCIENCE. 
 
 herbage. "Leavened" (vii. 4), sec under Prov. x. 2G ; verses 11, 13, 
 see Ps. Iv. 6 ; viii. 7, see 2 Kings xix. 26. 
 
 Chapter ix. 1. — Backsliihng Israel was taking a joy to wliicli they 
 were not entitled. "' Rejoice not," said the prophet, " for joy as other 
 people." Egypt and Assyria were again to spoil them, and the con- 
 sequent desolation is described in verse G — " Lo, they are gone because 
 of destruction : Egypt shall gather them up, Memphis shall bury them; 
 the pleasant places for their silver, nettles shall possess them : thorns 
 shall be in their tabernacles.'' " Nettles," Heb. klmush — see under 
 Zeph. ii. 9. 
 
 "Israel is an em[)ty vine, he bringcth forth fruit unto himself: 
 according to the multitude of his fruit he hath increased the altars ; 
 according to the goodness of his land they have made goodly images" 
 i^x. 1). The change was not one of unfruitfulness, but of intense 
 selfishness. The fruits which should have been " unto Goil " were 
 "consumed on their own lusts" (James iv. 3). Israel was greatly 
 blessed, but it was with them like heaping favours on a naughty child. 
 The evil increased. Self-absorbed, mercies were esteemed only as 
 they gratified the longings of sinful nature. 
 
 The influence of the divided heart (ver. 2) told directly lor evil, both 
 on the religious profession and on the social life of Israel. Mad upon 
 their idols, they multiplied altars ; and, regardless of the claims of 
 truth on man's dealings with man, they were not careful of it in their 
 transactions Avith one another — "They have spoken words, swearing 
 falsely in making a covenant ; thus judgment springeth up as hemlock 
 in the furrows of the field" (ver. 4). The word i-ush, here rendered 
 " hemlock," has been fully considered under her. viii. 14. Its usual 
 meaning is gall, and it may refer to bitter things in general. The 
 meaning in this passage is limited, and requires a specific translation. 
 This has been felt by our translators, who have attached to it the signi- 
 fication given above. The word hemlock occurs only once more in 
 the English Bible — " Shall horses run upon the rock ? will one plow 
 there with oxen? for ye have turned judgment into gall, and the fruit 
 of righteousness into hemlock" (Amos vi. 12). See under Jer. viii. 
 14. The Hebrew in this passage is laandh, a word which elsewhere is 
 more correctly rendered " wormwood." If hemlock is mentioned in 
 Scripture, it is in the verse under notice. 
 
 Some of the oldest and most judicious Jewish rabbins are agreed, that 
 the hemlock is the plant named rosh by Hosea. This verse itself leaves 
 little doubt on the subject. The context requires a noxious plant
 
 HOSEA. 
 
 525 
 
 rig 15a 
 
 which niiicht yrow in the furrows with wholesome ones, but so like 
 them that it might not be distinguished. All falsehood is like truth — 
 so like it indeed as to draw its power to deceive from tlie rescmldance. 
 The people " who swore falsely in inaking a covenant," persuaded the 
 other covenanting parties that the oatli was true. Now both anise 
 {PimpiiicUa anisiim) and dill {Anethum gra- 
 veoleiis) have ever been much cultivated in 
 Bible lands ; and were the liemlock to find 
 its wiiy into the furrows, it might be gathered 
 with either and not be observed. Moreover,' 
 as a poisonous element would thus be 
 introduced, so tlie false oath drops moral 
 poison in the soul of him who makes it, and 
 in the lot of him to whom it is given. "Hem- 
 lock springeth up in the furrows of the 
 field." This plant belongs to the natural 
 order Umhellifem, and is associated with 
 several others of the same family whose seeds 
 are not hurtful. It is now generally believed 
 that the coneion drunk by Socrates was a 
 poison obtained from the coniuui or hemlock. 
 It grows abundantly near Athens ; the other 
 plants are not found in that part of Greece. 
 
 " Calves" (ver. 5), see under Numb. xix. 2 
 king is cut off as the foam upon the face of the water" (ver. 7). Many 
 readers will have their attention called to one of the truest and most 
 beautiful figures in modern poetry, when they peruse this verse : — 
 
 '• But pleasures are like poppies spread, 
 You seize the flnwer, its bloom is shed ; 
 Or like the snow-falls in the river, 
 A moment white — then melts for ever." 
 
 Chapter xi. 1 1 — see Ps. Iv. G. " Calves of our lips" (xiv. 2) — Levit. i. 
 5. "Grow as the lily" (ver. 5) — Song ii. 1. " Revive as the corn." 
 In spring a grub frequently eats the main shoot just above the root. 
 Fields lately green become withered and yellow-looking. Showers 
 fell ; the root survives the injury done, and, technically, tillers, or sends 
 up several other stalks, and the fields become green again. Or after 
 a scorching sun has for a day shone on the corn till every blade bends 
 its head, copious dew falls at night and it is again revived. Thus is it 
 in God's ways with his people. 
 
 TTenilock {Conium mnculatum). 
 
 " As for Samaria, her
 
 526 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIEXCE. 
 
 JOEL. 
 
 HE havoc begun by cankerworm and caterpillar is com- 
 pleted by a terrible drought. The strong expressions in 
 cliap. i. 8-13, give great prominence to this. Wiiat grief 
 so bitter as that awakened in the hopeful young heart when 
 the stroke of death falls suddenly on the newly wedded 
 youthful husband ? Such grief, says the prophet to the people, 
 shall be yours — " Lament like a virgin girded with sackcloth 
 for the husband of her youth" (ver. 8). So great was the 
 scarcity to become, that the people were to be unable to yield 
 obedience to ordinances sacred both by the command oi God and their 
 own religious sentiments. " The meat-offering and the drink-offering 
 is cut off from the house of the Lord : the priests, the Lord's ministers, 
 mourn" (ver. 9). Thus all classes were to be brought to feel the 
 pressing calamity. " Gird yourselves, and lament, ye priests ; howl, 
 ye ministers of the altar ; come, lie all night in sackcloth, ye ministers 
 of my God : for the meat-offering and the driuk-offering is withholden 
 from the house of your God" (ver. 13). The picture becomes very 
 vivid in verses 10-12 — " The field is wasted, the land mourneth ; for 
 the corn is wasted : the new wine is dried up, the oil languisheth. Be 
 ye ashamed, ye husbandmen : howl, ye vine-dressers, for the wheat 
 and for the barley; because the harvest of the field is perished. The 
 vine is dried up, and the fig-tree languisheth : the pomegranate-tree, 
 the palm-tree also, and the apple-tree, even all the trees of the field are 
 withered away from the sons of men." The vine {Vitis vinifera), see 
 under Gen. ix. 20, 21. The fig {Fiais carica), Gen. iii. 7. The pome- 
 granate (Pum'ca fjranabim), 1 Sam. xiv. 2. The apple-tree {Pyrus 
 malus), Song iii. 3. Like the trees of Eden, these were all both pleasant 
 to the eye and good for food. "When the palm-tree is added to the 
 number which were dried up and which were languished because of the 
 drought, the wide-spread misery of the visitation becomes apparent. 
 The palm-tree (Phoenix dactijUfera), or date-palm, has been noticed 
 under Exod. xv. 27 ; Dent, xxxiv. 3 ; Judg. i. 10 ; and Ps. xcii. 12 — 
 which see. 
 
 Linked up here with the vine, fig, pomegranate, and the apple, the
 
 I 
 
 Ka-i'is rioi^na 
 
 0*am bii s nuity/aiitt'/his 
 
 Cei'osioiua jr\' l^steUji- 
 
 Fidouia atorn^ir la 
 
 ilantis rdi^iosa . 
 Prtjyina 3fantiji- 
 
 Erasmia pTilchella. 
 
 Cvclosia saiiguii"lxia_ 
 
 Apliis y^^'s:*- Phnit he^ otth^Rosr. 
 
 
 Luraiitis (>nus LEVIT. XI. 22: JOEL I. 2—4. 
 
 .S'toy hectic 
 
 >kM UKCHtNZlC. ClASCOW. IDIHBllKCH. lOHOOK « NLW TORK
 
 JOEL. 
 
 527 
 
 usefulness of the pahu is specially suggested. The ancients boasted 
 that three hundred and sixty uses could be made of the products of the 
 palm-tree. See under Rev. vii. 9. The natural order (Palmce) to 
 which the date-tree belongs, is celebrated for the usefulness of the 
 genera ranked under it. Their wide-spread distribution in tropical 
 climes; their number, about one thousand species; their graceful forms; 
 and the great size to which many of them grow — have thrown an 
 interest around them denied to most other plants. Their geographical 
 range supplies a fine illustration of the goodness of God. They furnish 
 
 Fig. i;9 
 
 Fig ll». 
 
 Social lar\-iB of Hyponomputa feeding on 
 the Apple-tree. 
 
 Social larva? of Procosslonary Motli {Eriogaatcr Uiwstris) 
 feeding on Lime-tree. 
 
 the people of the regions in which they are indigenous with more 
 varied means of enjoyment than any other member of the vegetable 
 kingdom. To Israel in the desert, or when at rest in the plains of 
 Palestine, the date-tree was of the highest interest. It became woven 
 into their poetry, and associated with some of the most significant of 
 their religious symbols. Its leaves were waved by the hands of 
 rejoicing thousands, at a season when the religious heart of the nation 
 was stirred to its depths by conscious joy. The highest expression for a
 
 528 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 soul growing up into the image of a covenant God, was in the words of 
 tlie king to the royal bride : — 
 
 " How fair art thou, BulovL'd, and how pleasant ! 
 Thy stature is like a palm" (Song vii. 7). 
 
 The coming calamity announced by Joel was to extinguish all these 
 pleasant thoughts ; for the palm and all the trees of the field were to be 
 blasted, and joy itself was to " wither away from the sons of men." 
 
 To the drought was added the terrible visitation of the devouring 
 locusts. This chapter (ii.) is chiefly devoted to the description of the 
 appalling ravages of this "great people and strong:' — "A fire devoureth 
 before them, and behind them a flame burneth : the land is as the 
 garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; 
 yea, and nothing shall escape them. The appearance of them is as the 
 appearance of horses ; and as horsemen, so shall they run. Like the 
 noise of chariots on the tops of mountains shall they leap, like the noise 
 of a flame of fire that devoureth the stubble, as a strong people set in 
 battle array. Before their face the people shall be much pained ; all 
 faces shall gather blackness. They shall run like mighty men ; they 
 shall climb the wall like men of war ; and they shall march every one 
 on his ways, and they shall not break their ranks : neither shall one 
 thrust another ; they shall walk every one in his path : and when they 
 fall upon the sword, they shall not be wounded. "Tliey shall run to 
 and fro in the city ; they shall run upon the wall ; they shall climb up 
 upon the houses ; they shall enter in at the windows like a thief. The 
 earth shall quake before them ; the heavens shall tremble : the sun and 
 the moon shall be dark, and the stars sliall withdraw their shining : 
 and the Lord shall utter his voice before his army ; for his camp is 
 very great : for he is strong that executeth his word : for the day of 
 the Lord is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?" (ver. 3-11.) 
 It is worthy of notice that the name anciently given to these insects 
 illustrates the strong expression in verse 3 — locust = locus, " a place," 
 and ustus, " burned and scorched." The entomological place of the 
 locust has been pointed out under Deut. xxviii. 38 — which see. 
 
 Nearly all travellers in Asia and Africa refer to the havoc committed 
 by this " army of God." The Arabians make a locust address Mahomet 
 — " We are the army of the great God ; we produce ninety-nine eggs ; 
 If the hundred were completed, we should consume the whole earth and 
 all that is in it." "Here," says Dr. Thomson, "on the side of this 
 mountain above Fiiliyeh, I had my first introduction, some twenty years
 
 JUKL. 529 
 
 ago, to the far-famed locusts of the East. . . . Never shall I lose the 
 impression produced by the first view of them. I had often passed 
 through clouds of flying locusts, and they always struck my imagination 
 with a sort of vague terror ; but these we now confronted were without 
 wings, and about the size of full-grown grasshoppers, which they closely 
 resembled in appearance and behaviour. But their number was astound- 
 ing ; the wliole face of the mountain was black with them. On they 
 came like a living deluge. We dug trenches, and kindled fires, and beat, 
 and burned to death ' heaps upon heaps ;' but the effort was utterly use- 
 less. Wave after wave rolled up the mountain side, and poured over 
 rocks, walls, ditches, and hedges — those behind covering up and bridging 
 over the masses already killed. After a long and fatiguing conquest, I 
 descended the mountain to examine the depth of the column ; but I 
 could not see to the end of it. Wearied with my hard walk over this 
 living deluge, I returned, and gave over the vain effort to stop its 'pro- 
 gress. By the next morning the head of the column had reached 
 my garden, and, hiring eight or ten people, I resolved to rescue at 
 least my vegetables and flowers. 
 During the day we succeeded, 
 by fire and by beating them oft' 
 the walls with brushes and 
 branches, in keeping our little wiru-\vonaCGn.b„f..i,«,«»c„(«,„,, 
 
 garden tolerably clear of thein ; Ijut it was perfectly appalling to watch 
 this animated river as it flowed up the road, and ascended the hill 
 above my house. At length, worn out with incessant skirmishing, I 
 gave up the battle. Carrying the pots into the parlour, and covering 
 up what else I could, I surrendered the remainder to the conquerors. 
 For four days they continued to pass on toward the east, and finally 
 only a few stragglers of the mighty host were left behind. In every 
 stage of their existence these locusts give a most impressive view of the 
 power of God to punish a wicked world. Look at the pioneers of the 
 host— those flying squadrons that appear in early spring. Watch the 
 furious impulse for the propagation of their devourhig progeny. No 
 power of man can interrupt it. Millions upon millions, with most 
 fatal industry, deposit their innumerable eggs in the field, the plain, and 
 the desert. This done, they vanish like morning mist. But in six or 
 eight weeks the very dust seems to waken into life, and moulded into 
 maggots, begins to creep. Soon this animated earth becomes minute 
 grasshoppers ; and, creeping and jumping all in the same general direc- 
 tion, they begin their destructive march. After a few days their 
 
 VOL. II. . 3 X
 
 530 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 Fig. 162. 
 
 voracious appetite palls ; they become sluggish, and fast, like the silk- 
 Avorins, for a short time. Like the silk-worms, too, they -epeat this 
 
 fasting four times before they 
 have completed their trans- 
 mutations and are accommo- 
 dated with wings. I do not 
 remember to have seen this 
 fact in their history noticed 
 by any naturalist. In their 
 march they devour every 
 green thing, and with won- 
 derful expedition. A large 
 '\ vineyard and garden adjoin- 
 ing mine was green as a 
 meadow in the morning, but 
 long before night it was naked 
 and bare as a newly-ploughed 
 field or dusty road. The 
 noise made in marching and 
 foraging was like that of a 
 heavy shower on a distant 
 forest." 
 
 The two chapters now 
 noticed supply many most 
 striking illustrations of the 
 
 o, Ceddomjia tritici. i The same, natuial size, r, Cocoon. treineudoUS agCncieS for ludg- 
 
 rf, Antenna of the male. «, An ear of wlicat attacked. ~ Jo 
 
 /, A grain attacked. ,, The Chinch Bug. ^^^.^^ ^ ^^-I^J^.^-^ ^^.^ g^Cr lU thc 
 
 hand of Jehovah, in forms which man least regards — 
 
 " Unconscious, not unworthy, instruments. 
 Omnipotence works in tbcni, by them, with them." 
 
 The theme, as a whole, is deeply interesting and suggestive. Joel 
 seems to have given more attention to it than any other writer of Holy 
 Scripture. A brief notice of the general subject may be useful here, 
 both to set us in direct sympathy with the views of this prophet, and, 
 also, to show us that the same God works in similar ways still. The 
 destructive power of insects may be looked at — 1st, in connection with 
 vegetation ; and 2nd, with animal life. Every tree has not only some 
 characteristic insect form which preys on its wood, leaves, or fruit, but 
 most have many, either limited, or common to them with others. The
 
 JOEL. 
 
 531 
 
 larvae of the procession motljs feed on the leaves of the lime-tree. 
 In a few nights a colony will strip a noble tree bare. These moths 
 inhabit a common nest during the day, which they leave at night, 
 in order to feed, leturning again to it as morning draws near. In 
 
 Fig. ICS. Fig. IC 1. 
 
 Thrips, greatly magnified. 
 
 a, Larra. &, Pupa, c Perfect insect, d. Section of 
 apple, showing the lan'a track. 
 
 social habits, another larva of one of the small moths {Hyponomeuta 
 padeUa) is very hurtful to the foliage of the apple-tree, while that of 
 the apple moth {Curpocapsa pomonella, fig. 1G4) preys upon the apple 
 itself. An allied species {Earis chlorana) is figured on Plate XXXIX., 
 
 Fig. 163. Fig. 166. 
 
 Sarrothripus cribralis. 
 
 a. MeloIontliR Tiilgaris. b, Larva, e. Pupa. 
 d. Antenna of male. e. Profile of the abdumCD. 
 
 fig 
 
 1. The influence of various forms of plant-lice. Aphides, on vege- 
 tation is well known. These increase at an almost incredible rate in a 
 season. I have more than once witnessed an extended avenue of noble
 
 532 
 
 ItlBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCK. 
 
 trees despoiled of their beauty by the ravages of these tiny creatures. 
 They sometimes become a perfect plague over wide areas. The Aphis 
 htm'gcra produces each year ten viviparous broods, and one wliich is 
 oviparous, and each generation averages one liunch'ed individuals. 
 
 1st Generation, 1 apliis produces 
 
 2nd 
 
 (1 
 
 100. 
 
 3rd 
 
 (( 
 
 10,000. 
 
 4th 
 
 (I 
 
 1,000,000. 
 
 5th 
 
 ll 
 
 100,000,000. 
 
 Gth 
 
 (( 
 
 10,000,000,000. 
 
 7th 
 
 
 1,000,000,000,000. 
 
 8th 
 
 
 100,000,000,000,000. 
 
 9 th 
 
 
 10,000,000,000,000,000. 
 
 10th 
 
 U 
 
 1,000,000,000,000,000,000 
 
 Corn crops are specially liable to the attacks of insecls. Some of 
 their enemies work under ground, as the Avire-worms, or skip-jacks, 
 as they are popularly named. These are the grubs of beetles. Ten 
 or twelve of the most destructive species belong to the elaters 
 {Elateridce). Many of these inhabit the soil for three to five years 
 before they come to maturity, and all the while they prey on the roots 
 of cereals. But the most destructive of all is the well-known wheat- 
 midge {Ceeidomyia trifm), before whose ravages whole fields of wheat 
 have been destroyed. Its egg is deposited when the wheat begins to 
 
 flower, at the root of the flower 
 
 Fig. 167. 
 
 leaf. A species of thrips (Limo- 
 tJirips cerealtum) is also much 
 dreaded by the husbandmen. It 
 prej's chiefly on the grain, from 
 which it extracts its natural 
 moisture. The grain then 
 shrivels up, and becomes, in 
 rustic speech, "pungled." Pas- 
 ture-lands suffer in their turn 
 from the larva? of the crane- 
 flies (Tipiilidce), and those of several beetles. The common cock- 
 chafer's grub {Melolonthd) devours the roots of the grass — and in 
 years favourable to their increase, or in localities in which man, blind 
 to his own best interests in the matter of worldly profit, has waged an 
 exterminating war against the birds which feed on them — they commit 
 great havoc on pasture-lands. All countries have their character- 
 
 Tse-tse (Gtoas'na morsitam'}.
 
 JOKL. 
 
 533 
 
 istic forms, according to the crops most cultivated. In the West 
 India islands, for example, whole acres of sugar-cane are often destroyed 
 by the larv?e of a species belonging to the family Pyralidce. 
 
 If from the world of vegetation we turn to that of animal life, the 
 destructive power of insects might be fully illustrated also. Dr. Living- 
 stone has made us acquainted Fig.iG8. 
 with the dreaded tse-tse of 
 southern Africa, whose poison- 
 ous bite is certain death to ox, 
 
 horse, and dog. 
 
 " The ravages 
 
 Tahanus hovinus. 
 
 Fig. 169. 
 
 it commits are sometimes 
 
 enormous. Seljituane once 
 
 lost nearly the entire cattle of 
 
 his tribe, amounting to many 
 
 thousands, by unwittingly intruding on the haunts of this murderous 
 
 insect." In our own country the annoying power of the breeze-flies 
 
 is well known. One of these attacks cattle. Other quadrupeds 
 
 are attacked by bot flies {(Estridce). 
 
 The CEstms Trompe preys upon 
 
 deer. Its eggs are deposited in their 
 
 nostrils, and the larva penetrates and 
 
 feeds in the frontal sinus of the head. 
 
 The reindeer has its dreaded enemy 
 
 in (Estrits tarandi. If six or eight 
 
 of these attack any individual, death '. cEs.n,s Trompe. 2, La.... 3,pupa. 
 
 is almost certain. Q^. cqui attacks the horse, and CE. ovis the sheep. 
 These simple facts are referred to in illustration of the Word of God, 
 as to other forms and other facts of a similar nature^—" My Great 
 Army which I sent among you" (ii. 25). A thousand more might be
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 AMOS. 
 
 HE figures used in verses 1 and 2 were such as Araos, the 
 herdman of Tekoa, would have often under liis eye : — " Thus 
 hath tlie Lord God showed unto me ; and, behokl, lie formed 
 grasshoppers in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter 
 growth after the king's mowings. And it came to pass, 
 that when they had made an end of eating the grass of the 
 , J land, then I said, Lord God, forgive, I beseech thee : by 
 ^' whom shall Jacob arise? for he is small " (vii. 1, 2). It is clear 
 from this passage, that, contrary to general usage (Jer. xii. 4), 
 the Hebrew eshev, here translated grass, does not refer to herbaceous 
 plants of different kinds, but to grass properly so called, which is made 
 by man into hay. The reference to " the latter growth " implies that 
 at that time, as now, there were first and second crops. The first crop 
 is named the " king's mowing " — the tribute of the land for the support 
 of the public burdens, whether they were paid in kind, or the hay 
 sold and the price given to the king. The latter growth thus became 
 of special interest to the people. Should it fail, what would become of 
 them ? Their cattle — the chief elements of their wealth — would die, and 
 famine would fall on all the land. " By whom" then "should Jacob 
 arise?" This was the tender appeal of Amos. As if he had said. If 
 you destroy that on which all the people depend for subsistence, will 
 there not be a complete end of them ? The prayer of the righteous 
 man prevailed. The Lord said, " It shall not be." The grasshopper, 
 (jov, which was the instrument at work in destroying the latter growth, 
 is translated " green worm " in the margin. It was doubtless the 
 larva of some insect which deposits its eggs at tlie roots of young grass. 
 The larva of any of the well-known crane-flies {Tipulidce) would, in a 
 very short time, work all the damage dreaded by the prophet. Those 
 of the lady birds {Goccinellidce), the small spotted beetles with which 
 children in country districts are so familiar, are often also very 
 destructive. The grub of the long-legged gnat {Tipula oJeraced) is 
 specially injurious to pasture lands in which clover abounds. Hundreds 
 of acres of hay have been known to be destroyed by them in a few 
 weeks in spring. In one case, when a square foot of turf was examined,
 
 AMOS. 
 
 535 
 
 no fewer than one hundred and twenty grubs were counted in it. See 
 under Nah. iii. 17 and Ps. Ixxii. 6. 
 
 Set upon departing from God, the people are met by him with the 
 words of threatening^" The liigli pUices of Isaac shall be desolate, 
 and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste ; and I will rise aijainst 
 the house of Jeroboam with the sword" (ver. 9). Tidings of these 
 threatened calamities were carried to the king. The prophet is made 
 aware of this, and is exhorted to flee into the land of Jiulah. " Prophesy 
 not again at Bethel," said Amaziah to him, "for it is the king's chapel, 
 and the king's court" (ver. 13). "Then answered Amos, and said to 
 Amaziah, I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet's son ; but I was 
 an herdman, and a gatherer of syca- fij, i-o_ 
 
 more-fruit : and the Lord took me 
 as I followed the flock, and the Lord 
 said unto me, Go, prophesy unto my 
 people Israel " (ver. 14, 15). The 
 fruit which the herdman named was 
 much esteemed both in Syria and 
 Egypt as food. The "sycamore," 
 Heb. sJn'kmdh, is the Ficus sycomortis, 
 or Egyptian fig of botanists. Pliny 
 early pointed out a characteristic of 
 this tree, when he distinguished it 
 by "fruit growing on the stem itself." 
 The sycamore figs grow on the 
 stem and leading branches. In Egypt, says Sir G. AVilkinson, " figs 
 of the sycamore must have been highly esteemed, since they were 
 selected as the heavenly fruit, given by the goddess Netpe to those who 
 were judged worthy of admission to the regions of eternal happiness." 
 Amos represented himself as a gatherer, or preparer of this fruit, in 
 allusion to the habit of cutting off part of the end of it to hasten the 
 ripening process, and to withdraw some of the sap ; thereby making it 
 more palatable. The figure used in chap. viii. 8, is again employed 
 here (ix. 5). Some aspects have already been noticed. See under 
 Gen. xli. 1. The reference is to the periodic rise and overflow of the 
 waters of the Nile. The wicked shall be " drowned as by the flood of 
 Egypt" (ver. 5). The prophet must have been acquainted with the 
 phenomena which occasionally accompany the overflowing of the Nile. 
 The bounds which the waters reach as a rule are well known, and are 
 marked off. But when these bounds, as is sometimes the case, are 
 
 Rranch of Sycarnort: Figs.
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCli. 
 
 passed, great destruction of life is the result. The mud houses of the 
 villages are swept away, the flocks and herds are destroyed, and many 
 of tlie people even perish. Thus were the judgments of God to come 
 upon the land because of the sins of the people. 
 
 The overflow of the Nile has in all ages exercised the curiosity of 
 men. The graphic account of Herodotus is well known {Ijooh ii.) 
 llicli stores of information have been associated Avith the description of 
 the father of history, by the fruitful labours of Sir G. AVilkinson and 
 others. For a long time it was believed to be the result of the melting 
 of great masses of snow in the mountain range wliere the river was held 
 to take its rise. But the prevalence of the rainy season in the neigh- 
 bourhood of its sources, is now generally reckoned sufficient to explain 
 tlie phenomena. Approaching tlie region of the probable source of the 
 Nile from the valley of the river itself, it is known that the rainy 
 season, in the highlands of Abyssinia, commences about the middle of 
 June, and continues to the middle of September. In the latitude 
 of Memphis the Nile begins to rise about the end of June. About the 
 10th of August it attains the height at which canals are made for taking 
 it into the interior. It is at its highest about the end of Sei)tember. 
 " Beginning at the summer solstice," says Herodotus, it " fills and 
 overflows for a hundred days." The time is from ninety-two to a 
 hundred days. 
 
 The cut given below will illustrate some of the physical phenomena to 
 be seen at the point where the Nile reaches the Mediterranean. " The 
 Nile, which has been estimated to deliver a body of water annually into 
 the Llediterranean about three hundred and fifty times that which flows 
 out of the Thames, must thrust forward, from its periodical rise and fall, 
 fine sedimentary matter with great regularity, tending thus to produce 
 consecutive layers or beds of mud and clay of considerable uniform 
 thickness and character, in those situations where modifying conditions 
 do not interfere. Part of the fine matter brought down from the 
 interior in mechanical suspension is deposited on the lower grounds 
 traversed by the Nile ; and it has been calculated that the surface of 
 Upper Egypt has, in this manner, been raised more than six feet since 
 the commencement of the Christian era. The fine matter not so 
 deposited, passing with the river waters seaward, is necessarily borne 
 furthest outwards when the greatest force of the river water prevails — 
 namely, in August of each year. The water thus borne seaward may 
 be kept a greater or less time mechanically suspended, according to the 
 agitation of the surface by winds, but, as a whole, there nmst be an
 
 AMOS. 
 
 537 
 
 average area over \vliicli it is thrown down ; the greatest distance of 
 the deposits from tlie mouths of the Nile being attained in August, 
 though the greatest thickness of a year's deposit will be nearer the land. 
 " Where the surface of the sea cuts the slightly-inclined plane of 
 sedimentary matter, partly in the sea, and partly on the land, the 
 breakers separate the finer from the coarser substances, keeping the 
 
 
 Fig 171. 
 
 
 ^^hV^S 
 
 P 
 
 ^WU 
 
 ^^^^^P^^V ^^"^ 
 
 
 ^ / tHB^H 
 
 ^/^^Pw > 
 
 J^C 
 
 1/ 
 
 ^v^t 
 
 
 
 \^ 
 
 )i ■ 
 
 
 \ ^ 
 
 I)/ 
 
 
 \ 
 
 P 
 
 Diagram of Mouths of the Nile. 
 
 former easily in mechanical suspension, and removing them from the 
 shore outwards. The result is, an arenaceous boundary, with banks so 
 formed as to include lagoons." 
 
 The mouths, strictly speaking, are only live, though seven are 
 counted at the Delta. The Damietta mouth is represented by the dark 
 line on the right of the cut; the Rosetta mouth by that on the left. Sir 
 G. Wilkinson has shoAvn that the river still enters the sea at the same 
 distance from Lake Moeris as it did in earliest times. The chief eftects 
 of the annual inundation are mainly seen in the elevation of the land 
 vv^hich the Greek historian had noticed: — "If," he asks, "the land below 
 Memphis should continue to increase in height in the same proportion 
 as it has in time past, what else will happen but that the Egyptians 
 who inhabit this part will starve, if their land shall neither be watered 
 by rain, nor the river be able to overflow their fields ?" The level of the 
 bed of the river rises with the elevation of the banks. The rate at which 
 the waters flow is favourable to this. The average fall of the river be- 
 tween Asouan and Cairo is little more than half a foot in a mile, and from 
 Cairo to the Damietta branch it is only three and three quarters inches. 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 3 V
 
 538 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIEN'CE. 
 
 JONAH. 
 
 "ON AH Avas sent to Nineveh on the great errand narrated iu 
 this Book. The name of the city means the dwelHng of Nm, 
 or Ninus (voL i. 271-274). It continued to be the capital of 
 the great Assyrian empire till about B.C. GOG, when it was 
 besieged and taken by Cyaxares the Median, aided by a great 
 army of Persians and Babylonians. 
 Nineveh is described here as "an exceeding great city of tlirec days' 
 journey" (iii. 3). The application of historical criticism to the disco- 
 veries of Mr. Layard, has shed much light on the history of the once 
 magnificent capital of one of the most powerful states of antiquity. 
 Remarkable corroborations of the Scripture references to Nineveh have 
 also been obtained from the same quarter. These are so well-known as not 
 to require more than this reference here. The city appears to have been 
 divided into different quarters, each of which may have been surrounded 
 with gardens, all lying in a peculiarly fertile plain. The remains of 
 these are found in the several great mounds from which Assyrian 
 sculptures, bronzes, pottery, &c., have been obtained. The most 
 noted of these are the great mounds of Khorsabad, Nimrud, and Kou- 
 yunjik. 
 
 ''Tarshish" ^i. 3)— see under 1 Kings x. 22. 
 
 Jonah was as one dead. Thus he speaks of the belly of the fish as 
 the grave — "Out of the belly of the grave I cried" (ii. 2). Cast into 
 the deep, the wild waves rolled over him. " The waters compassed me 
 about to the soul : the depths closed me round about, the weeds wrapped 
 about my head." "Weeds" (sfqyli) are rendered "flags" in Isa. xix. 6. 
 The same plant is named as growing on tlie banks of the Nile when the 
 mother of Moses laid her child among them in the ark of bulrushes. 
 See under Exod. ii. 3. This fact is fatal to the supposition, that the 
 flags of Scripture always mean sea-weed, and especially the well-known 
 sea-wrack {Zostera marina). That Jonah should mention the siiph as 
 having been wrapped round his head, is not opposed to the attempt to 
 identify it with one of the reed-maces {Tijphace(^) in the passage last 
 referred to. He would be well acquainted with the long leaves of the 
 flags which fringed the banks of the Jordan ; and when the ribbon-like
 
 JONAH. 539 
 
 zostera clung to his head, as he descended to meet the fish miraculously 
 prepared, he would naturally use the word afterwards in describing the 
 scene as it had appeared to him. It is true that the same word is employed 
 as the name of the Red Sea, yam suph, in which case it refers to the 
 abundance of weeds on the margin and in the waters of the sea ; but 
 the resemblance of the long ribbons of the zostera to the fronds of the 
 true flags, and the existence of the flags tlicmselves in the same locality, 
 were sufficient to warrant this name. 
 
 The cry, "Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown," startled 
 the people. They " believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on 
 sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them." "God 
 saw their works, that they turned from their evil w^ay; and God repented 
 of the evil that he had said that he would do unto them ; and he did 
 it not" (iii. 4, 5, 10). "But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he 
 was very angry." His self-love was wounded. He had pledged his 
 word to the destruction of Nineveh ; but now that he saw it was not to 
 be overthrown, he felt as if his own veracity and his standing as a 
 prophet were imperilled. This became the occasion for a vindication 
 of his past conduct : — It has all happened as I said. After I have given 
 the distinct and positive statement that Nineveh should be overthrown, 
 such is not to be. "I knew that thou art a gi'acious God, and merciful, 
 slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil." 
 The incidents recorded in iv. 5-8, were arranged to teach the prophet 
 the sinfulness of his feelings. "Jonah went out of the city, and sat on 
 the east side of the city, and there made him a booth, and sat under it 
 in the shadow, till he might see what would become of the city. And 
 the Lord God prepared a gourd, and made it to come up over Jonah, 
 that it might be a shadow over his head, to deliver him from his grief. 
 So Jonah was exceeding glad of the gourd. But God prepared a 
 worm, when the morning rose the next day, and it smote the gour<l 
 that it withered. And it came to pass, Avhen the sun did arise, that 
 God prepared a vehement east wind ; and the sun beat upon the head 
 of Jonah, that he fainted, and wished in himself to die, and said. It is 
 better for me to die than to live." 
 
 Just as it would be impossible to explain the narrative of the 
 swallowing of Jonah by the fish, without the broad recognition of 
 miraculous agency, so here. The repeated words " God prepared" are 
 in themselves suggestive of this. But this recognition should not hinder 
 us from trying to identify the plant which was made the means through 
 which the supernatural power acted. The plant was clearly one with
 
 Fig. 172. 
 
 Gourd ArboHi-. 
 
 which the propliet was familiar. He had made for himself an imperfect 
 shelter in the booth which he had erected. Nor is there any weakening 
 of the miraculous agency and results, in imagining that the bootli was 
 in the midst of the plants named in this passage. The presence of 
 divine interference is to be sought in the fact, that the plant was made 
 to develope as it did. In a niglit it overshadowed the prophet's booth. 
 He had resolved to wait more than a month, " till he might see what 
 would become of the city." A shadow for his head from the sun at 
 
 noon, and from the cold 
 and heavy dews at night, 
 could not but be grateful- 
 '•' So Jonali was exceeding 
 glad of the gourd." 
 
 This joy was soon broken. 
 " God prepared a worm," 
 which, liaving gnawed 
 around the stalk, destroyed 
 the connection between the 
 absorbing roots and the sap 
 vessels spreading over the plant, and the plant withered. Nor shall 
 the withered leaves mat together and make a pleasant shade, for an 
 east wind was prepared which left the petulant prophet's head shelter- 
 less, and he " wished in himself to die." 
 
 " Gourd," Heb. hlhaydii. Few of the plants of Scripture have given 
 rise to so much speculation as Jonah's gourd. Not content with 
 agreeing to differ on a matter which must continue surrounded with 
 doubt, interpreters have become angry with one another, and, as in the 
 case of Jerome and Augustine, liave impugned each other as heretics. 
 Jerome ventured to suggest the comparatively slow-growing ivy [Uedera 
 helix) as the most likely plant ; but Augustine held that it could be no 
 other than the gourd with which he was familiar [Cucurhita maxima), 
 distinguished for its rapid nm, when it has once fairly taken to the soil. 
 Luther followed Augustine, and rendered the Hebrew by the German 
 Kiirhifi, or gourd. Our translators acknowledge the difficulty, and 
 gave in the margin " palmcrist, Heb. kikayon." The pahnciist is the 
 castor-oil plant {Palma Christi) of botanists, a native of Palestine, and 
 still abundant both there and in the locality to which Jonah was sent. 
 The opinion of the majority of interpreters is in favour of the castor-oil 
 plant. This has drawn its chief strength from the resemblance of the 
 Hebrew name to the hild of the Egyptians, the name for the castor-
 
 JONAH. 541 
 
 bean — tlie c/r/ of Pliny. This yields the " oil of kik" still burned by 
 Jews in their sabbath lamps. Niebuhr, in the "Description of Arabia" 
 referring to it says : — " I saw for the first time at Basra, the plant 
 d-l^croa. Tt has the form of a tree. The trunk appeared to me ratlier 
 to resemble leaves than wood ; nevertheless it is harder than that which 
 bears the Adam's fig. Each branch of the keroa has Ijut one large 
 leaf, with six or seven foldings in it. This plant was near to a rivulet, 
 which watered it plentifully. At the end of October, 17C5, it had 
 risen in five months about eight feet, and bore at once flowers and 
 fruit, ripe and unripe. The flowers and leaves of it which I gathered, 
 withered in a few minutes, as do all plants of rapid growth. . . . 
 The Christians and Jews at Mosul say, it was not the keroa whose 
 shadow refreshed Jonah, but a sort of gourd, el-kerra, which has very 
 large leaves, very large fruit, and lasts about four months." 
 
 But, notwithstanding all this, there has not been given any valid 
 reason for rejecting the usual reading "gourd," especially as species 
 of Cucurhita are still not unfrequeutly used just as the Icikayon of the 
 prophet was. " It would be impertinent," writes Dr. Thomson, " to 
 say or imply that there is no reason for supposing that the castor-plant 
 was that used, or for any other opinion adopted by learned and 
 impartial men, after careful investigation ; but their arguments do not 
 for a moment disturb my settled conviction that it was a gourd. The 
 cause of the mistake may probably be found in the fact that, in these 
 modern Shemitic dialects, the word kur'ah — gourd — closely resembles, 
 both in form and sound, khurwah — castor-bean ; just as the h'Icion — 
 gourd — of Jonah resembles the Egypto-Greek ki'ki — castor-bean — 
 according to Dioscorides. These accidental resemblances may have 
 led Jerome and others into the opinion that they were the same plant. 
 But Orientals never dream of training a castor-oil plant over a booth, 
 or planting it for a shade, and they would have but small respect for 
 any one who did. It is in no way adapted for that purpose, while 
 thousands of arbours are covered with various creepers of the general 
 gourd family." 
 
 One reason given by God for sparing Nineveh, besides the i)resence 
 in it of more than one hundred and twenty thousand children, 
 was that there "was also much cattle" (ver. 11). This aspect of 
 the government of God has more than once been alluded to 
 already (vol. i. p. 18-i). The subject is one fruitful above many 
 to the thoughtful. It is, moreover, capable of being set in lights 
 most interesting to those who look upon all animal life as sacred
 
 542 BIBLICAL NATUliAL SCIENCE. 
 
 ill tlie e3'c of God. There arc three points especially, in the 
 history of God's proceedings with man, at which the tie between man 
 the head of earthly life and the interpreter of nature, and the beasts 
 that perish, is vividly brought out. The first of these was in Eden, 
 when God constituted man lord over the beasts of the field and the 
 fowls of the air. The second was at the Deluge, when the representa- 
 tives of the animals indigenous in the area to be covered by the flood were 
 sent with man into the ark. The third was when Christ as the second 
 Adam, the great head of the covenant people, was left alone with the 
 wild beasts, that they might be held as having witnessed his triumph 
 over Satan, as before the beasts had been present at man's fall. See 
 Gen. i. 2G, ii. vii.; Mark i. 13. 
 
 In the passage now under notice, God is revealed recognizing the 
 importance of the lower animals in his dealings with men. Many other 
 passages will readily occur to the reader, illustrative of his care over 
 them, of the use which he makes of them in carrying out his own 
 purposes, and of the tender regard which he lavishes on them. One 
 arrangement and another in the Levitical code, was made specially for 
 them. He sent the ravens with food to Elijah ; he led the lions to bow 
 before his image in Daniel ; and the sparrows fall not to the ground 
 without his knowledge.
 
 MICAH-ZEPHANIAII. 543 
 
 MICAH— ZEPHANIAH. 
 
 "st- 
 
 WILL make ca wailing like the dragons, and mourning as the 
 || owls " (Mic. i. 8)— see under Job xxx. 29.—" Swift beast " in 
 ••|Hj verse 13 was the horse, which was yoked to the war chariot, 
 I gl as oxen were to conveyances used in the work of the husband- 
 man. — " Therefore shalt thou give presents to Moresheth-gath : 
 the houses of Achzib shall be a lie to the kings of Israel " 
 (ver. 14) — Josh. xv. 57 ; Gen. xxxviii. 5. — " Enlarge thy baldness as 
 the eagle" (ver. 16) — Levit. xi. 13. — "Therefore shall Zion for your 
 sake be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the 
 mountain of the house as the high places of the forest" (iii. 12). 
 — " Field," Heb. sadeh, is the word generally used in the Old Testament 
 for cultivated ground. It is of frequent occurrence. Gen. xli. 48, xlvii. 
 20, 24; Levit. xix. 9, 19; Numb. xvi. 14, xx. 17; Ruth ii. 2, 3; 
 2 Sam. xxiii. 11 ; 1 Chron. xi. 13 ; Job xxiv. G, &c. Writing of the 
 field of Shechem, Dr. Stanley says, "The wide field," — 'the 
 cultivated field,' as it is thus distinctively called — indicates by the 
 mere fact of its selection, the transition of the patriarch from the 
 Bedouin shepherd into the civilized and agricultural settler." In Gen. 
 xiv. 7, xxxii. 3, sadeh is rendered " country." 
 
 The chosen people were to be scattered among the gentiles, but not 
 in vain : — "And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many 
 people as a dew from the Lord, as the showers upon the grass, that 
 tarrieth not for man, nor w^aiteth for the sons of men" (v. 7). The 
 blessing which was to come to the gentiles through the remnant of 
 Jacob, was to have as clear evidences of the sovereignty of God about 
 it, as are found in the refreshing dew and the fertilizing showers. 
 
 " And I will pluck up thy groves out of the midst of thee : so will I 
 destroy thy cities " (v. 14). " Grove," Heb. ashcrah, a name generally 
 used both for the image of the Phoenician idol AshtoretJt, and the 
 shady place in which it was worshipped. 
 
 The nearness and aggravated bitterness of the desolation threatened 
 because of sin, are brought very boldly out in vi. 14, 15 — "Thou shalt 
 eat, but not be satisfied ; and thy casting down shall be in the midst of 
 thee ; and thou shalt take hold, but shalt not deliver ; and that which thou
 
 544 lUBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 deliverest will I give up to the sword. Thou shalt sow, but thou slialt 
 uot reap ; thou shalt tread the olives, but thou shalt not anoiut thee 
 with oil ; and sweet wine, but shalt not drink wine." The seed was to be 
 cast in, but between seed-time and harvest the judgment was to 
 overtake them ; the hope of the husbandman took not hold of God, and 
 b}' the disappointing of it God was to turn the minds of men to 
 himself again. The time when the oil-ladeu olive berries were to be 
 crushed by the feet of the gatherers was to come, but the riches of the 
 olive were to be given to others. The vine was to hang forth its 
 blushing clusters at the vintage-time, and the juice was to be pressed 
 from tliem, but the backsliding people were not to driidv of the " sweet 
 wine." The import of the word has been fully considered under 
 Deut. xi. 14, which see. The term (tlrosh) is one of wide acceptation, 
 and its precise meaning in each of the thirty-eight passages in which it 
 occurs, is to be determined by the context. It is properly rendered 
 "sweet wine" in that now under notice. The other clauses of the 
 verse indicate such a period as is between seed-time and harvest. 
 The unstored juice of the grape was called "sweet wine." The term 
 then is equivalent to wine of the first year. 
 
 "Worms of the earth," Heb. zdlJioI, any reptile or worm which, 
 when disturbed, leaves its hole for safety (Numb. xxi. C). Here it best 
 answers the context to understand earthworms {lumhricus terrestris). 
 When the mole is heard by the earthworm, it hastens to the surface to 
 escape from its enemy. Thrushes may be seen making similar sounds 
 by tapping the turf with their bills. They then watch eagerly, and 
 seldom fail in bringing a worm within reach. 
 
 The conqueror from Babylon had come up against Nineveh " as the 
 dasher in pieces," and the stirring war-cry rings throughout the great 
 city, "Keep the munition, watch the way, make thy loins strong, fortify 
 thy power mightily." The hour of crisis had arrived. Tlie mighty 
 men were harnessed for the battle, the war chariots were prepared, 
 and Nineveh's day was about to close. " To what does Nahum allude 
 when he says, ' And Huzzab shall be led away captive ; she shall be 
 brought up, and her maids shall lead her as with the voice of doves, 
 tabering on their breasts?' (Nah. ii. 7.) Huzzab is another name for 
 Nineveh, who was to go into captivity, led by her maidens tabering on 
 their breasts as doves do — for it was the mourners, and not the doves, 
 who tabered. There is foundation, however, in the manners of our bird 
 ibr the comparison. When about to utter their plaintive moan, they 
 inflate the throat, and throw it forward until the neck rests upon the
 
 MICzVII-ZEPHANIAH. 515 
 
 bosom. Thus they 'taber' on their breasts." The coo of the dove has 
 ever been regarded as suggestive of grief The simple notes have a 
 melancholy sound, even when heard in circumstances otherwise su"-fes- 
 tive of joy. They have thus always formed ready illustrations of human 
 grief. In " the writing of Hezekiah king of Judah, when he had been 
 sick, and was recovered from his sickness," the expression occurs, "I 
 did mourn as a dove" (Isa. xxxviii. 9, 14). The same prophet represents 
 a people realizing the burden and the evil of sin, as saying, " We mourn 
 sore like doves" (Isa. lix. 11). 
 
 Nineveh's discovery of her pressing and imminent danger led to 
 earnest efforts to ward it off, but in vain. Her very means of defence 
 were to become instruments of hurt. The fire was to devour, and the 
 sword to destroy. This is the cliief thought in chap. iii. 15-17. The 
 fire which they kindled for making strong the brick-kiln was to be 
 turned against them. The weapons of defence in which they trusted 
 were to be wielded by arms stronger than theirs, for the people had 
 become as women in their weakness (ver. 13). The destruction was 
 not only to be great, it was to be complete also. As the canker-worm 
 devours the vegetable, root and branch, so were they to be eaten up. 
 Tliis reference to the caterpillar becomes suggestive of other thoughts. 
 They were many, and so were the locusts. The enemies of Nineveh 
 were as these insects in multitude. 
 
 " Canker-worm," Heb. yelek. The word occurs nine times, and is 
 thus translated both in the passage before us and in Joel i. 4, ii. 25. 
 It is rendered "caterpillar" in Ps. cv. 34; Jer. li. 14, 27. The insect 
 referred to is one of the vegetable-eating grubs. The expression 
 "fleeth away" (ver. 16), is not to be taken as implying that the canker- 
 worm had wings. The reference is to the transformation of the insect, 
 when it passes from the wingless larval state to that of the imago or 
 fully-developed and winged insect. As the canker-worm it spreads 
 itself abroad wherever food is to be found. It then passes into another 
 condition and " fleeth away." As if he had said to the Ninevites, The 
 merchants you have multiplied continue with you so long as any profit 
 is to be made ; but when times of scarcity or of peril come they desert 
 you. Yea, the very princes in whom you trusted and highly prized 
 treat you thus also — " Thy crowned are as the locusts, and thy captains 
 as the great grasshoppers, wliich camp in the hedges in the cold day ; 
 but when the sun ariseth they flee away, and their place is not known 
 where they are" (ver. 17). The locusts were highly prized by tlie 
 Assyrians as an article of diet, and when they saw the great grass- 
 
 VOL. II. 3 z
 
 5-iG BIBLICAL NATUliAL SCIENCE. 
 
 hoppers {gov), they would regard them as the leaders of the locust, 
 and trust that supplies of the food in which they delighted would soon 
 be abundant. It is only from this point of view that we can see the 
 full meaning of such figures as are used here. Mr. Layard gives us a 
 good illustration. Describing the sculptured slabs, which were dis- 
 covered panelling the walls at Konyunjik, he says of one of these which 
 represented a procession of servants carrying supplies for a banquet : — 
 " The attendants who followed carried clusters of ripe dates, and flat 
 baskets of osier-work tilled with pomegranates, apples, and bunches of 
 grapes. They raised in one hand small green boughs, to drive away 
 the flies. Then came men bearing hares, partridges, and dried locusts 
 fastened on rods. The locust has ever been an article of food in the 
 East, and is still sold in the markets of many towns in Arabia. Being 
 introduced in this bas-relief amongst the choice delicacies of a banquet, 
 it was probably highly prized by the Assyrians. "— (" Nineveh and 
 Babylon," p. 338.) 
 
 Thus the main idea is not, that their rulers would be slain and left 
 on the ground as worthless, but that, though greatly esteemed by the 
 people, tliey would prove useless in the time of their national troubles. 
 They would desert them in the hour of danger, and for their own 
 preservation, would prove false to the trust committed to them. This 
 is again referred to under the figure of insect transformation. The 
 larvae are represented as " camping in the hedges," passing from the 
 pupa state into the fully-formed insect, waiting till the heat of the sun 
 hardens their wings, and then taking flight, " and their place is not 
 known where they are." Shaw, speaking from observation ("Travels," 
 i., p. 342), says of the locust grubs, that after having lived a month in 
 that condition devouring every thing that came in their way, " they 
 arrived at their full growth, and threw off their nynipha-state, by 
 casting their outward skin. To prepare themselves for this change, 
 they clung by their hinder feet to some bush, twig, or corner of a stone- 
 and immediately, by using an undulating motion, their heads would first 
 break out, and then the rest of their bodies. The whole transformation 
 was performed in seven or eight minutes, after which they lay for a 
 small time in a torpid and seemingly in a languishing condition ; but as 
 soon as the sun and the air had hardened their wings by drying up the 
 moisture that remained upon them after casting their sloughs, they 
 resumed their former voracity, with an addition both of strength 
 and agility. 
 
 " Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce
 
 MICAH-ZEPHANIAH. 
 
 547 
 
 than the evening wolves : and their horsemen shall spread themselves, 
 and their horsemen shall come from far ; they shall fly as the eagle 
 that hasteth to eat" (Hab. i. 8). 
 
 " Leopard," Heb. ndmci: This species is one of the most beautiful 
 of the Feh'dce. The whole family are noted for their swiftness, their 
 easy and graceful movements, and their fierceness when at bay. They 
 are widely distributed. The lion {Feh's leo), the tiger (F. figris), the 
 
 Fig. 173. 
 
 .-'A. 
 
 Lt^opard (/•'etia teopard'iB). 
 
 leopard, the cheetah, and the caracal (F. caracal) are indigenous in 
 Africa and Asia. The puma (F. concolor), and the oimce (F. onca) 
 occur in America. The Egyptian cat {F. manicuhta), the parent of 
 the domestic species, is met with in the north of Africa, while the wild 
 cat {F. cattus) inhabits the northern parts of Central Europe, and is 
 still found in the north of Scotland. The Europa2an lynx {F. Lynx) 
 is well known. 
 
 A distinction is drawn in popular literature between the leopard and 
 the panther, or pard {F. pardus), of Northern Africa, Imt the pard is 
 no more than a variety of leopard. Most likely the species referred to 
 by Habakkuk, was the hunting leopard, noted for its swiftness of spring. 
 It is still trained in the East for the chase. " Tlicy are terrible and 
 dreadful" like the enemies described by the prophet, and come from 
 the region where this anhnal abounded and was much used.
 
 548 
 
 BIBLICAL NATUKAL SCIENCE. 
 
 The complete desolation of Moab and Amraon is pictured vividly in 
 Zeph. ii. 9 — " Therefore, as I live, saith the Lord of hosts, the God of 
 Israel, Surely Moab shall be as Sodom, and the children of Ainmon as 
 Gomorrah, even the breeding of nettles, and salt-pits, and a perpetual 
 desolation : the residue of my people shall spoil them, and the remnant 
 
 Fig. 174. 
 
 Cheetah or Hunting Leopard t^F.juhata). 
 
 of my people shall possess them." The presence of the nettles was to 
 tell not only the tale of a desolate place, but also of ])laccs once inhabited ; 
 and the reference to salt-pits pointed at once to the plain in which the 
 destroyed cities stood. 
 
 "Nettles," Heb. M/drul, a word believed by some to be the root of 
 cJnirl, an ill-natured and self-willed person. The species of nettles 
 common in Britain are to be met with in Palestine likewise, growing in 
 situations similar to those in this country, in which they specially thrive. 
 The common nettle [Urtica dioicci) is best known. In the East other 
 species are to be met with far more formidable than any with which we 
 are acquainted — plants whose sting has been known to produce violent 
 fevers. 
 
 The same word is rendered nettles in Prov. xxiv. 31 : — " I went by 
 the field of the slothful ; and by the vineyard of the man void of under- 
 standing ; and, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had 
 covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down"
 
 MICAH-ZEPHANIAH. 
 
 549 
 
 — marks as faithfully characteristic of the field of the slothful now as in 
 the days of Solomon. A different word is used by Isaiah (xxxiv. 13) — 
 "Thorns shall come up in her palaces, nettles (kiimuosh) and brambles 
 in the fortresses thereof" See also under Hos. ix. H. 
 
 The effects of the judgments of God on Nineveh are seen in the con- 
 dition of the houses when the day of visitation had come : — " Desolation 
 shall be in the threshholds : for he shall uncover the cedar-work" 
 (ver. 14). "Cedar-tree" (1 King iv. 33; 1 Chron. xiv. 1; and Ps. xcii. 
 
 Fig. 175. 
 
 , yfy' 
 
 Nettle (i7r( ica Dhica). 
 
 12). The word used here is arzaJi, and points to cedar-work or beams 
 of cedar. Ezekiel uses another term for this wood. He says, " that 
 the chests in which the clothes, embroidered work and rich apparel 
 were placed, were made of cedar, ai-fizun. INIr. Layard, when compar- 
 ing the palace of Sennacherib at Konyunjik with the temple of Solomon, 
 says — " The ceiling, roof, and beams of the temple were of cedar- wood." 
 The discoveries in the ruins at Nimroud show that the same precious 
 Avood was used in the Assyrian edifices ; and the king of Nineveh, as
 
 550 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 we learn from the inscriptions, employed men, precisely as Solomon had 
 done, to cut it in Mount Lebanon. 'Fir also was employed in the Jewish 
 buildings, and probably in those of Assyria. Even at this day the 
 passage has much light shed on it. The cedar-work is still being 
 uncovered. " Standing," says Mr. Layard, "one day on a distant part 
 of the mound, I smelt the sweet smell of burning cedar. The Arab 
 workmen, excavating in the small temple, had dug out a beam, and, the 
 weather being cold, had at once made a fire to warm themselves. The 
 wood was cedar ; probably one of the very beams mentioned in the 
 inscription as brought from the forests of Lebanon bj' the king who 
 built the edifice. After a lapse of nearly three thousand years, it had 
 retained its original fragrance. Many other such beams were disco- 
 vered, and the greater part of the rubbish in which the ruin was buried, 
 consisted of charcoal of the same wood. It is likely that tlie whole 
 superstructure, as well as the roof and the floor of the building, like 
 those of tlie temple and palace of Solomon, were of this precious 
 material." 
 
 "Cormorant," Heb. hdath; rather "pelican" (Ps. cii. 6). 
 
 "Bittern," Heb. htppod. The word occurs three times, Isa. xiv. 23, 
 xxxiv. 11 — which sec — and in this passage. It has been rendered 
 ottei\ tortoise, and owl. Even men like Bochart, Shaw, and Lowth, 
 believe that porcupine is the true translation, and Scheuchzer pleads 
 for the heaver {Castor filer) as the animal referred to ! Isaiah, speaking 
 of the desolation about to come on Babylon, says — "I will also make it 
 a possession for the bittern, and pools of water;" and of tlie desolation 
 of Eden, he says, " The cormorant and the bittern shall possess it." 
 Adding this passage to these, it is conclusively evident that no one of 
 the renderings proposed is satisfactory. "Their voice," says Zephaniah, 
 "shall sing in the windows." " Bittern" is freer from objections than any 
 other bird which might be proposed. The common bittern (Botaurus 
 steJIaris) belongs to the group Grallatorcs, or Waders. It is a solitary 
 bird, and loves such haunts as would be supplied by the marslies which 
 were found in districts of Edom, and Babylon, and Nineveh, as the 
 fruit of the desolation sent on them. It feeds at night, and hides 
 during the day among the long grass and rushes of its favourite 
 habitats. See Blate VIII., fig. 3.
 
 ZECHAUIAH-IIALACHI. 
 
 551 
 
 r 
 
 ZECHAEIAH— MALACIII. 
 
 HE prophet Zechariali most likely wa.s the Zacharias men- 
 tioned by our Lord, Matt, xxiii. 35 ; Luke xi. 5L He 
 began to prophesy two months after Haggai (Hag. i. 1), at 
 a time when there was no king in Israel from whose reign to 
 date his prophecy. Thus he sets it down as " in the second 
 
 year of Darius" — the son of Hystaspcs — who, like Cyrus, favoured 
 
 the Jews. The prophecy opens with a call to repentance, and an 
 
 earnest exhortation to the people not to be as their fathers. The 
 
 account of the visions proper begins at ch. i. 8 : — " I saw by night, and 
 
 behold a man riding upon Pig. ug. 
 
 a red horse, and he stood 
 
 among the myrtle-trees 
 
 that were in the bottom ; 
 
 and behind him were red 
 
 horses, speckled, and 
 
 white." 
 
 "Myrtle-trees," Heb. 
 
 kadds, are again named 
 
 in verses 10 and 11. A 
 
 slightly different term 
 
 (Jiddas) is used by Isaiah 
 
 (xli. 19, Iv. 13), for the 
 
 same plant. In Nehemiah 
 
 (viii. 15), the name for 
 
 the myrtle which was to 
 
 supply branches for cover- 
 ing the booths at the 
 
 feast of tabernacles, is the 
 
 same as that in the pas- 
 sage before us. There is 
 
 no doubt regarding the Myrtie(ifyr<«, ««•.„„»;.). 
 
 plant referred to. It is the common myrtle {mijrtus commnms), whose 
 berries are to this day sold in the bazaars of India under the name of 
 hadas. — {Boyle.) With the flowers they are used as spice. The bark
 
 552 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 and roots of the myrtle are used for tanning Russian leather, to which 
 they communicate the characteristic perfume. 
 
 The myrtle-trees are described as being "in the bottom." The 
 reference in Nehemiah helps to identify the locality. Ezra found writ- 
 ten in the law — "That they should publish and proclaim in all their 
 cities, and in Jerusalem, saying. Go forth unto the mount, and fetch 
 olive-branches, and pine-branches, and myrtle-branches, and palm- 
 branches, and branches of thick trees, to make booths, as it is written." 
 The mount was Olivet. " The bottom" would thus be one of the 
 valleys at its foot. Emblems of beauty, myrtles have been celebrated 
 by ancient and modern poets. Virgil sings of "shores rejoicing most 
 in myrtle-groves." Milton introduces it into the picture of the blissful 
 bower of Paradise : — 
 
 "A place 
 Chosen by the Sov'ran planter, when he framed 
 All things to man's delightful use ; the roof 
 Of thickest covert was inwoven shade, 
 Laurel and myrtle." 
 
 Esther's name (ii. 7) HadassaJi, means myrtle. The plant still 
 flourishes luxuriantly in Palestine ; and with its dark -green leaves, 
 graceful branches, and pale white flowers, forms one of the most 
 beautiful trees of the country. 
 
 Few figures could have supplied such a vivid illustration of God's 
 sympathy with, watchfulness over, and constant care, as that used 
 in ii. 8 does — " For thus saith the Lord of hosts. After the glory 
 hath he sent me unto the nations which spoiled you ; for he that 
 toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye." Two other words are 
 used in the Old Testament for " apple of the eye." See under Deut. 
 xxxii. 10, and Lament, ii. 18. The Hebrew in this passage is hdvdh^ 
 or the hollow — an expression which indicates that the prophet had in 
 view what might popularly be held to be the shape of the reverse of 
 the convex form of the eye, of which the pupil is the centre. As if the 
 Lord had said, INIy people are cared for by me as men do the apple 
 of the eye. I take them as such to myself, and if any man afflict or 
 persecute them, I hold all as done against myself. He identifies 
 himself with his people. The thought which thus meets us amid 
 the shadows of the olden dispensation is precisely the same as that 
 which breaks forth in the light from heaven when Jesus himself spoke 
 to one who was to be " a chosen vessel unto him" — " Saul, Saul, why 
 persecutest thou me?" (Acts ix. 14.)
 
 ZECIIARIAn-JIALACHI. 553 
 
 Malaclii chap. iii. opens with a prophecy of the coming of John tlie 
 Baptist, the messenger of the Messiah. The way having been prepared 
 for the advent of Jesus, he was to come suddenly to his temple, as the 
 messenger of that covenant of grace which he was to reveal fully to 
 man. The effects of his appearing are indicated in ver. 2, 3 : — " But 
 who may abide the day of his coming ? and who shall stand when he 
 appeareth ? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fuller's soap : and he 
 shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver : and he shall purify the sons 
 of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto 
 the Lord an offering in righteousness." Two aspects of trial are 
 implied — one connected with the circumstances which were to accom- 
 pany his coming; another with the influence of his truth on the spiritual 
 nature of men. The dangers, difficulties, reproach, and persecutions 
 which fell on those who acknowledged Jesus as the eternal son of God, 
 were like the refiner's fire. They alone stood firm in whose hearts 
 true love to him had a place, as the precious metal in the matrix in which 
 it was hid. The holiness of his doctrine, the searching spirituality of 
 his teacliing, the flashes of light, from truth spoken by divine living 
 lips, into the most secret recesses of the soul, were what no hypocrite 
 could stand. They were like the fuller's soap, removing defilement 
 and briniring out the beauty of truth. 
 
 This reference to the refining of gold and silver implies, that much 
 attention continued to be given by the Hebrews to difl'erent branches 
 of metallurgy. There is proof that they had carried with them from 
 Egypt the knowledge of the methods employed in that country for 
 making metals into articles of luxury and of use. The expression, " he 
 shall sit as a refiner," is exceedingly precious. As the ancient metal- 
 lurgist sat and watched the refining process, keeping the molten mass 
 in motion till every particle of dross was destroyed, so does Christ 
 watch with a yearning heart and with active hand over his people in 
 their seasons of sorrow from the devil, the world, and the flesh, until 
 his work in them is completed and they are fitted for unimpeded ftdlow- 
 ship with him. The sons of Levi, typical of the New Testament 
 ministry, are specially named in this refining work. Oidy after such 
 dealing would they be able to " offer unto the Lord an offering in 
 righteousness." Levi no longer stands ministering before God. His 
 place has been taken by those who, as " separated unto the gospel of 
 God," like Paul style themselves "servants of Jesus Christ" (Rom. i. 
 1). But the experience of Levi is still continued in them. As one 
 with Him who was made perfect through suffering, they hear Him 
 
 VOL. II. 4 A
 
 554 DIBLU'AL NATUUAL SCIENCE. 
 
 saying; — "In the world ye shall have tribulation." It is thus with 
 them that they may be fitted to enter into the thoughts of their living 
 Head, and enabled to follow his example : — 
 
 " The Christian pastor, Irow'J to earth 
 
 With thankless toil, and vile esteem'd. 
 
 Still travailing in second birth 
 
 Of souls that will not he redeeni'd ; 
 
 Yet steadfast sot to do his part, 
 
 And fearing most his own vain heart." 
 
 The work of tlie fuller is several times referred to in Scripture. In 
 2 Kings xviii. 17, " the conduit of the upper pool, which is in the high 
 way of the fuller's field" is mentioned. So Isaiah vii. 3; xxxvi. 2. 
 In Mark's description of the transfiguration we are told that Christ's 
 " raiment became shining, exceeding white as snow ; so as no fuller on 
 earth can white them" (ix. 3). The art of the fuller Avas practised at 
 a very early time in Egypt. " Many persons, both men and women, 
 were engaged in cleansing cloths and stuffs of various kinds ; and the 
 occupation of the fuller form one of the numerous subjects of the sculp- 
 tures. It is probable they were only a subdivision of the dyers. In 
 early times before, and even after the invention of soap, potash, nitre, 
 and several earths were employed for cleansing cloths, as well as 
 various herbs, many of which are still in use among the Arabs, one of 
 which was doubtless the alkaline plant horeeth, mentioned by Jere- 
 miah (ii. 22) and Malachi (iii. 2). Many of the Sucedas (sea-blites) 
 and Salsolas (salt-worts), and other alkaline plants, are found in the 
 Egyptian deserts, as well as the (jilloo, also called 'the soap plant;' 
 and the people of Cairo and the Barbary coasts use certain woods for 
 cleansing manufactured stuffs." "Soap," continues Wilkinson, "was 
 not unknown to the ancients, and a small quantity has been found at 
 Pompeii. Pliny, who mentions it as an invention of the Gauls, says it 
 was made of fat and ashes ; and Aretseus, the physician of Cappadocia, 
 tells us, that the Greeks borrowed their knowledge of its medicinal 
 properties from the Romans." 
 
 The soap used by the Israelites was, no doubt, a compound of some 
 fatty substance with alkaline matter obtained from plants. The Arabs 
 of the present day obtain a material named horalc from the Salsolas of 
 the desert. From one of these, the soda saltwort (Salsola soda), until 
 a comparatively recent date, the carbonate of soda was manufactured. 
 The article known as barilla, still employed in the manufacture of soap, 
 is procured from this plant. ]\Iany other vegetables supply saponine—
 
 ZECHAEIAH-MALACHI. 555 
 
 a soapy principle — and are used in different countries for the same 
 purposes as tlie soap of commerce. These Bible references to soap are 
 thus suggestive of the application of chemistry, on the part of the 
 Hebrews, to the preparation of a substance of great usefulness in the 
 industrial arts. The fuller had his soap prepared for liira by a compli- 
 cated process, implying, on the part of many, considerable attainments 
 in chemical knowledge. The substance known as fuller's earth is an oily 
 clay, obtained from oolitic and chalk strata. It was wont to be much 
 used in " fulling '' woollen fabrics, but is now greatly superseded by soap. 
 A bright vision of Messiah's near approach flashed on the mind of 
 the prophet (iv. 2). The world was sunk in darkness, but its Light 
 was near. The rays of the morning w'ere already shooting above the 
 horizon. The church was as the tree cut over by the earth, but it was 
 soon to bud. " Behold the man whose name is the Branch ; and he 
 shall grow up out of his place" (Zech. v. 12). Sin-burdened ones 
 were weary ; Israel, beginning to doubt the promise of his kingdom, 
 was cheered by new assurances : — 
 
 " He shall redeem them one by one 
 Where'er the world-encircling sun 
 
 Shall see them meekly kneel: 
 All that he asks on Israel's part 
 Is only, that the captive heart 
 
 Its woe and burthen feel." 
 
 To the waiting and anxious company alive to their deep spii'itual 
 maladies, healing and health were once more promised before the 
 Saviour, the great Physician himself, should come in the flesh : " Unto 
 you that fear my name shall the Sun of Righteousness arise with 
 healing in his wings."
 
 556 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 ST. MATTHEW. 
 
 i)OW when Jesus was born at Bethlehem of Judea, in tlie clays 
 of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the 
 east to Jerusalem, saying. Where is he that is born King of 
 the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are 
 come to worship him" (ii. 1, 2). "Wise men from the east" 
 (inafjoi apo anatolou). The name innf)i seems to have been 
 given to them from their being guided by the star. The class thus 
 "'named pretended to a knowledge of the future, and were generally 
 known as " astrologers," " stargazers," " prognosticators," " diviners," 
 "soothsayers," &c. Isa. xliv., xlvii; Dan. i., ii., iv., v. That Daniel was 
 classed among them (v. 11) is a proof that all thus named Avere not 
 pretenders. As in the cases of I\Ielclusedek and Job, we once more 
 meet here with men to whom the Lord made known his mind, who 
 could not be said to belong to the " chosen people." Kepler's pious 
 attempt to identify this star with a periodically occurring astronomical 
 fact (the conjunction of two planets) is not satisfactory. A revelation 
 had been made to the " wise men," as truly as to the shepherds in 
 the fields around Bethlehem. Thus they followed the divinely guided 
 luminary. Miracle properly. so called meets us at the opening of the 
 New Testament, equally as it does in the first w^ords of the Old Testa- 
 men.t. He who is above nature uses it for the manifestation of his own 
 highest purposes concerning the church. 
 
 Chapter iii. 4. — The " wild honey," Gr. meli agrion, answers to the 
 "honey of bees," Heb. devdsh, of Judges xiv. 8; the honey characteristic 
 of Canaan as a plentiful land, Exod. iii. 8, and the honey out of the 
 rock, of Ps. Ixxxi. 15. Attempts have been made to identify it with 
 the manna of commerce, an exudation produced by insects (Cocci'dce) 
 from the leaves of the tarfa-tree [Tamarix manniferd). But this is far 
 fetched. See under 1 Sam. xiv. 24-30. The honey which formed a 
 part of the Baptist's food was the honey of wild bees. This still 
 abounds in Palestine, and amongst the rocks in the desert of Sinai. It 
 is noticed by travellers as one of many present characteristics of those 
 lands, which corroborate and shed light on the sacred Scriptures. Honey 
 has always constituted an article of diet in lands where wild bees abound.
 
 ST. MATTHEAV. 557 
 
 It is specially so in Arabia at the present time. It was eaten either by 
 itself or with some other article of diet, like it the natural produce of 
 the land. Jonathan is described by Samuel as finding honey dropping 
 from the trees in the forest near Bethaven, and eating it. When David 
 fled from Absalom, Shobi, Machir, and Barzillai brought "honey, 
 butter,, sheep, and cheese of 'kine, for David, and for the people that 
 were with him, to eat" (2 Sam. xvii. 29). Milk and honey are very 
 frequently spoken of as eaten together. It was also used with articles 
 prepared with olive oil. In Luke xxiv. 41, 42, when Jesus met with 
 his disciples after his resurrection, he partook of honey and fish : — 
 " While they believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, 
 Have ye here any meat? And they gave him a piece of broiled fish, 
 and of an honey-comb. And he took it, and did eat before them." 
 Here honey is associated with locusts. The desert region on the west 
 of Jordan and the Dead Sea in which John spent his time, preparatory 
 to his public ministry in a more populous neighbourhood, was just such 
 a place as would supply him with " locusts and wild honey." 
 
 "Locusts," Gr. acrides, Heb. arheli; see under Deut. xxviii. 38. 
 The conceit that the locusts eaten by John were the fruit of the Khdriib 
 tree need only be referred to ; see under Luke xv. 16. It has given 
 the name, "St. John's bread," " Johannisbrod " of the Germans, to the 
 fruit of the Ceratonia sih'qua, the tree whose husks are named in the 
 parable of the prodigal son. The locusts which formed part of the food 
 of the second Elijah were the insects properly so named — the acrides of 
 the Greek naturalists. Even at the present time they are eaten by the 
 dwellers in the Arabian Desert. At an earlier period in the history of 
 eastern nations they appear to have been much more common, as an 
 article of diet, than they now are — see under Nah. iii. 15-17. They 
 were named in the Mosaic arrangements regarding food as " flying 
 creeping things" which might be eaten (Levit. xi. 21, 22). 
 
 Classical students are familiar with the stories told by ancient writers 
 of the Acridophagi or locust-eaters, an Ethiopian tribe said to have 
 lived almost entirely on this insect ; thereby, it was alleged, shortening 
 their lives, and all becoming afflicted with that most loathsome of all 
 diseases, pldldriasis — the malady which cut off the two Herods. Burck- 
 hardt says : — " All the Bedawin of Arabia, and the inhabitants of 
 towns in Nejd and Hedjaz, are accustomed to eat locusts." " I have seen," 
 says another, " at Medina and Tayf locust shops, where these animals 
 were sold by measure." " When sprinkled with salt," says Shaw, 
 " and fried, they are not unlike in taste to our fresh water cray-fish."
 
 558 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 The influence of the religious revival wliich came Avilh the ministry 
 of John, spread to classes which might have been held little likely to 
 come under it. Leading Pharisees and Sadducees even " came to his 
 baptism." These he addressed in such forcible and uncompromising 
 words as — " generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from 
 the wrath to come?" Their influence oil others was like the poison of 
 the viper {eclddna) on those bitten by it. In the latter case, the poison 
 speedily corrupted the blood and hastened on death ; in the former case, 
 the hypocrisy and formalism of the Pharisee, and the open atheism of 
 the Sadducec, shed their baneful influences into the moral nature of 
 others, and led them away from the knowledge of the living and the 
 true God. John met both in a spirit which showed he had not much 
 reliance on tin ir show of zeal. They were at once put to the test : — 
 " Bring forth fruits meet for repentance." Nothing short of this would 
 do, and they had little time. They were as the tree which had stood 
 for ages, planted in the old soil of gracious promises which they had 
 not appropriated, and watered by privileges which had long ceased to 
 be channels of spiritual life and blessing. But the day was at hand 
 when all this would be violently brought to an end : — " And now also 
 the axe is laid unto the root of the trees.: therefore every tree which 
 bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire" 
 (ver. 10). They are then pointed to Jesus, who had come regarding 
 Israel as the harvest gathered from among the nations. The wheat 
 and the chaff were still mixed up, but he was to separate them : — 
 " Whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor, 
 and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff 
 with unquenchable fire" (ver. 12). While the Baptist's voice thus 
 rung in the ears of men, as he ministered at Bethabara on the east of 
 the Jordan (John i. 28), Jesus was on his way from Galilee to meet 
 him : — " Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto Jo'hn, to be 
 baptized of him. But John forbade him, saying, I have need to be 
 baptized of thee, and comest thou to me ? And Jesus answering said 
 unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all 
 righteousness. Then he suffered him. And Jesus, when he was bap- 
 tized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were 
 opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, 
 and lighting upon him : And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is 
 my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" (ver. 13-17). 
 
 " Dove," Heb. yonah, Gr. peristera — see under Levit. i. 14 ; Ps. Iv. 
 G ; Song ii. 14 ; Nah. ii. 7. The dove is introduced here as an emblem
 
 ST. MATTHEW. 559 
 
 of tlie Holy Ghost. The same transaction is referred to by the otiier 
 tln-ee evangelists. The dove was early taken as a symbol. In Levi- 
 ticus it is represented as a type of the Messiah, in some of the most 
 precious aspects of his work as our substitute. It has become more or 
 less linked up with all Christian poetry and art, as the emblem of the 
 Spirit, of meekness, of gentleness, and of quiet submission. On some 
 of the old Gothic baptismal fonts it is inti oduccd with the salamander, 
 as the signs of the truth brought out in verse 12 — " He shall baptize 
 you with the Holy Ghost and with fire." 
 
 Chapter iv. 18. — "Sea of Galilee," named also "Lake of Gennesaret," 
 and " Sea of Tiberias." " The first full view of it," says Dr. Stanley, 
 " as it is approached by the regular road, is on the descent through 
 the hills whose summits from the boundary of the plain of Hattin, and 
 which on the other side slope abruptly down to the lake itself, as it lies 
 a thousand feet below the level of the country. It is a monument, if 
 any, when recollections of the past disarm any attempts to criticise the 
 details of the actual scene. Yet whether it be tame and poor, as some 
 travellers say, or eminently beautiful, as others, there is no doubt that 
 it has a character of its own which shall here be, if possible, described. 
 It is about thirteen miles long, and in its broadest parts six miles wide, 
 that is, about the same length as our own Windermere, but of a con- 
 siderably greater breadth. In the clearness of the eastern atmosphere, 
 it looks much smaller than it is. From no point on the western side 
 can it be seen completely from end to end ; the promontorj^ under 
 which Tiberias stands cutting off the southern, as the promontory over 
 the plain of Gennesaret the northern extremity ; so that the form 
 which it presents is generally that of an oval. But that which makes 
 it unlike any of our English lakes is the deep depression, which gives 
 it something of the strange, unnatural character that belongs in a still 
 greater degree to the Dead Sea, and in some degree to all lakes of 
 volcanic origin, such as those of Alba, Nemi, and Avernus. The hills 
 on the eastern side partake of the horizontal outline which belongs to 
 the whole eastern barrier of the Jordan valley. But the western 
 mountains, especially those at the northern end, are varied in form, the 
 long curve of Tabor, with the horned platform of Plattin, and with the 
 jagged summits of Safed, standing out from the otVshoots of Lebanon. 
 Their appearance, even in the view from the west, where alone they 
 are usually seen, presents a complication of striking features such as is 
 hardly elsewhere visible in Palestine ; and this must be still more the 
 case, in the aspect which they present to a spectator on the opposite
 
 5G0 niRUCAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 eastern sliore, now for the most part entirely unfrequented. This plain 
 is ' the land of Gennesarct,' identified by its agreement with the 
 graphic though somewhat exaggerated description which Josephus 
 gives of ' the country of Gennesar.' No less than four springs pour 
 forth their almost full-grown rivers through the plain ; the richness of 
 the soil displays itself in magnificent corn fields ; whilst along the shore 
 rises a thick jungle of thorn and oleander, abounding in birds of brilliant 
 colours and various forms. The whole impression even now recalls the 
 image of the valley of the Nile ; and thus the Jews of old were not 
 unnaturally led, in those days of fanciful similitudes, to look on one of 
 these fertilizing streams as a vein of the Nile, abounding even in the 
 same fish, and producing the same effects on its banks. This ' paradise' 
 or ' garden' of Northern Palestine (so we may best interpret the mean- 
 ing of its name) is doubtless a close likeness of what the ' vale of Siddim' 
 was, where stood the five cities when Lot saw that it was 'well watered 
 everywhere before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as 
 the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt.' 
 
 " This contrast with the present aspect of its sister lake on the south, 
 gives to the natural features of the sea of Galilee a peculiar interest. 
 If the southern lake is the Sea of Death, the northern is emphatically 
 the Sea of Life. And it is still by nature what it was at the time ot 
 the Christian era by art also. With that turn for magnificent buildings 
 which so distinguished his fiamily, and which perhaps had been 
 encouraged in himself by the sight of the splendid Roman villas along 
 the shores of the Lucrine lake, where most of his own early life had 
 been spent, the younger Herod and his brother Philip built two stately 
 cities, called after the names of the Emperor Tiberius and the Princess 
 Julia, daughter of Augustus. The first, ' Tiberias,' was near the warm 
 spring at the southern extremity; the second, 'Julias,' by the entrance 
 of the Jordan at the northern extremity ; and these, with the surround- 
 ing edifices, must have given to the lake the beauty which we are 
 accustomed to consider as peculiar to the shores of Como and England. 
 But the chief centre of activity was to be found in the little plain just 
 described, crowded with towns and villages. Nor was the life confined 
 to the land. The lake, probably from the numerous streams, including 
 the Jordan itself, which discharge their produce into its waters, 
 abounds in fish of all kinds, which there increase and multiply', as 
 certainly as in the Salt Sea they are ca^t up dead upon the shore." 
 
 " Ye are the salt of the earth : but if the salt have lost his savour, 
 wherewith shall it be salted ? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to
 
 ST. MATTHEW. 5G1 
 
 be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. Ye are the light of 
 the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do 
 men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick ; 
 and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so 
 shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your 
 Father which is in heaven" (v. 13-16). When "his disciples came 
 unto him he taught them." The listeners to whom were specially 
 spoken the words of this discourse (v.-vii.) were those whom he had 
 chosen as his personal friends and scholars. " In him was life ; and 
 the life was the light of men" (John i. 4). This is illustrated here by 
 the figures " salt of the earth," and " light of the world." The " life " 
 was, as received from him, to be like the penetrating and conservative 
 power of common salt {clduride of sodium), as economically used for 
 preserving animal matter. His spirit in them was to leaven Avith a 
 living 2)ower their whole moral nature, in order to their usefulness in 
 influencing others. Withdraw from salt its distinctive chemical 
 element, and it becomes worthless — " it is cast out and trodden under 
 foot of men." Let the disciple cease to remember that life in Christ is 
 given to him, that he might become a centre of living and inoculative 
 power to otliers, and he ceases to be useful — he falls short of the high 
 end of his being, the glory of God. 
 
 The sun is the light of the material world, and the church is to be 
 the light of the moral world. Christ as the Sun of righteousness, 
 promised to the fathers, is her light. She is to show the righteousness 
 and grace of the Father, but this can only be done by witness-bearing. 
 Thus the call to works of faith and labours of love. God has committed 
 the manifestation of his name to his people. He has chosen that by 
 them only is the world to be warned, and seeking souls attracted to 
 the lavish riches of grace in him. " Let then your light shine before 
 men." Thus only will you come to glorify your Father who is in 
 heaven. See under Luke xi. xii. 
 
 The Baptist's faithful rebuke of sin had brought him into difficulties. 
 The fame of his preaching had reached the ears of royalty. Even 
 Herod Autipas had listened to him gladly. And so long as the stem 
 ministry of the preacher of righteousness did not cross the path of the 
 king's lusts, he had been willing to live for a season as if truly influenced 
 for good by the Baptist's exhortations. In lawless disregard of the 
 law of God and the claims of social morality, Herod Autipas had taken 
 to himself the wife of his brother Philip, and John had denounced this 
 conduct as sinful. In consequence he was cast into prison. The place 
 
 VOL, II. 4 B
 
 562 mULICAL XATUKAL SCIENCE. 
 
 of liis imprisonment was the lonely custle of Machairas, situated in a 
 wild region on the eastern shores of the Dead Sea. Thence he sent 
 two of his disciples to Christ saying, " Art thou he that should come, 
 or do we look for another?" (xi. 3.) In answer Jesus sends them 
 back with the words in verses 5 and G. 
 
 The arrival and departure of the messengers from John, gave the 
 Saviour the opportunity of opening up to the multitudes the character 
 and work of the Baptist. He began to say unto them concerning 
 John, " What went ye out into the wildei-ness to see? a reed shaken 
 with the wind?" When John entered on his public ministry he had 
 come up from the desert region on the west of the Dead Sea, and had 
 chosen a place more suitable for his work, as nearer Jenisalcm, tlie 
 great centre of population and of interest. In the wilderness, or thinly 
 peopled pastoral district in the plain of the Jordan, he entered on his 
 great work of summoning the people to prepare for the coming IMessiah. 
 He was in the very locality where the people woidd see reeds growing 
 luxuriantly, even as they still grow there, and shaken to and fro by the 
 wind. Thus, the opening words of our Lord would recall to many the 
 scenes amidst which they had first listened to the grand and stirring 
 appeals and exhortations of him who was more than a prophet. 
 
 The force of the figure " a reed shaken with the wind," is thus to 
 be learned from the context. It does not point only to a weather- 
 beaten man inured to hardships. This may indeed be included in it, 
 if set in contrast with the next query, " What went ye out for to 
 see? A man clothed in soft raiment?" But the meaning is to be 
 gathered from the first impressions which the question of John's dis- 
 ciples must have had on the people, and even on the immediate disciples 
 of Christ themselves. Had John, they might ask, begun to waver in 
 his confidence in the Messiahship of Jesus ? The Lord answers these 
 thoughts. He says — When ye went out to the wilderness of Jordan to 
 see John, you did not go to behold a man who was not sure of his own 
 relation to me, and of my relation to the kingdom of God. You did 
 not listen to one whose convictions as to my eternal Sonship were 
 wavering and fickle, like the reeds which grow on the water's edge and 
 are shaken by every breeze which blows. Do not conclude that John's 
 message to me implies the least doubt or uncertainty, on his part, as 
 to who I am and what are my claims. His testimony would now, were 
 he to speak to you from the gloomy walls of Machajrus, be the same 
 as when he cried, "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the 
 sin of the world."
 
 " Reed," Heb. Icaneli^ Gr. halamos, is the common reed (Arundo 
 donax) of botanists, one of the grasses (Grcnm'nacece), which still 
 flourislies on the banks of the Jordan. See under Exod. ii. 3; 1 Kings 
 xiv. 15 ; 2 Kings xviii. 21 ; Job xxxi. 21 ; Isa. xix. G, 7. 
 
 "As long," says Calvin, "as the church continues on the earth, there 
 shall be in it bad men and hypocrites mixed with the good and sincere, 
 tliat the people of God may arm themselves with patience, and still 
 retain, amidst tlie troubles to which they are subjected, a firm f;iith in 
 God." This is substantially the train of thought in this parable (xiii. 
 24-34). The church is represented as set up in the world as a visible 
 institution, containing within it a mixture of good and bad. Tlic former 
 alone constitute the church in the eye of God, but man, who cannot 
 judge the heart, must make profession and not true spiritual life his 
 standard of membership, in all cases in which profession is not contra- 
 dicted by immoral conduct. These two classes are to continue together 
 to the end of time, when a complete and eternal separation will be 
 made by the Head of the church himself But the association of the 
 insincere Avith the truly good does not change their nature. The 
 difference between them continues as distinctly marked as in the 
 difference between wheat and tares. Any attempt to identify the plant 
 translated " tares" must keep this fact in view. 
 
 Good seed was sown (ver. 24). Those to whom the care of the 
 field was intrusted fell into a state of lukewarmness and carelessness 
 as to its interests, and thus while they slept, the enemy of the chief 
 sower " came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way " 
 (ver. 25). But there is a persistent energy in all error, because it is 
 associated as really with the living head of sin, as truth is with the 
 person of the True One. The germinating power in the tare is as 
 strong as that in the wheat. This force, in a short time, was awakened 
 in both. " AMien the blade (of the wheat) was sprung up, and brought 
 forth fruit, then appeared the tares also" (ver. 2G). Struck and 
 alarmed by the presence in the field of what they never had counted 
 on, the servants hasten to the householder, siiying, " Sir, didst not thou 
 sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?" (ver. 27.) 
 The grace of the chief sower is to be noted here. The servants were 
 to blame for their sleepiness and sloth, but he does not upbraid them 
 Avith the sins of the past. They were alive now, and zealous for his 
 honour and for the purity of his house. This satisfied him. " I will 
 no more remember thy sins." In their zeal they wish to make speedy 
 ^vork— "Wilt thou that we go and pull them up?" (ver. 28.) He
 
 5G4 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 holds them back from the dangerous position: — "Nay; lest while ye 
 gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them " (ver. 29). 
 This answer does not touch the question of discipline in the church of 
 Christ. Full provision and clearly defined rules are laid down for this 
 Fig. 177. in other portions of Scripture. But it does touch 
 
 the hazardous attempts which men sometimes 
 make to separate between the precious and the 
 vile, taking for their rule their own estimate of 
 what must characterize a true Christian. When 
 the Lord lays an arrest on such forms of judging, 
 he gives prominence to that charity which 
 " bcareth all things, believetli all things, hopcth 
 all things, endureth all things." 
 
 " Tares," Greek, zizania. The points in the 
 narrative, specially helpful to the identification 
 of the tare, are its growth contemporaneously 
 with the wheat — ripening as it ripened — its close 
 resemblance to the wheat up to the time when 
 the ear was developed, its noxious character, and 
 our knowledge of a corresponding condition in 
 the crops of Syria at the present day. The 
 corn-cockle {Agrostemma cjitliago) has been pro- 
 posed as the plant named here, but if all regard 
 to the geographical distribution of plants, and to 
 tlie manifest requirements of the parable are to 
 , ^ ^ be disregarded, it were fiir better to take poppies 
 
 licirrtcd narncl (.Mium IrmHlf^lam) {PapttVeV rllOiUs) 
 
 " That flash and ghmce with their scarlet sheeu, 
 The bending ears of the wheat between." 
 
 The beautiful corn-cockle with its "flow'rets in the sunlight shining," 
 is not, unhappily for this guess, a native of Palestine. Couch-grass 
 [Tritkum rcpens) has also been named as a plant which may have 
 been in the mind of our Lord in this parable. This is indeed a pest to 
 the farmer; but it would have been easily known by the servants, long 
 before the stem was fully developed. Besides, its grains arc not hurtful 
 like those of the tare named here. Neither could the true tare, or 
 vetch [vicia sativa), have been the plant sown by the enemy. The 
 bearded darnel (fig. 177) is the oulj' grass which answers all the 
 requirements of the text. It bears much resemblance to Avheat. The
 
 ST. MATTHEW. 505 
 
 time required for its full development is also the same. Its seeds 
 tare liiglily injurious when eaten ; and it occurs in Palestine in circum- 
 stances precisely similar to those described in the parable. The writer 
 had presented to him lately darnel grains picked from Syrian wheat 
 imported into Liverpool. Some of them were eaten to try their effects, 
 and they produced great dizziness. This species is the only one of the 
 family which is poisonous. Verses 31, 32 — see under Luke xiii. 19. 
 
 Tlie all-renewing power of the truth is set forth (ver. 33) under the 
 figure of leaven hid in meal. Little in its beginnings, truth received 
 gradually influences the whole spiritual nature of man. It assimilates 
 to itself every desire and affection, as the leaven does the dough in 
 which it is hid. 
 
 Even as the all-renewing influence of truth lies out of view of man, 
 so the glory of the kingdom of Christ is internal and hidden. It is as 
 a treasure hid in a field (ver. 41). There is no question as to the 
 reality of the treasure. It has been in the world since man needed it, 
 but comparatively few have thought of seeking for it. It has been like 
 treasure-trove under ruins ; like gold hid in a most unpromising an 
 
 unattractive-looking matrix. The thought of its reality, and the 
 impression that it is worth obtaining, have led some to seek for it. 
 When sought, it is always sure to be found, and when found it brings 
 great gladness to the soul. This is all brought out here in a very 
 touching wa3^ The finder hides it. Its preciousness seems such to 
 him, that at first he cannot think of making any man partaker of his 
 joy. True, he lives to find that his own joy becomes intensified by 
 others being brought to share in it ; but this is not his first experience. 
 He is willing to give up everything, that he might have the assurance 
 of having found Christ, and being found in him. The very field in 
 which the treasure was discovered becomes precious in his sight. He 
 becomes devoted to the cause of Christ in the world, in connection 
 with the purity and usefulness of the church. Verses 45, 46 — see 
 under Rev. xxi. 21. 
 
 " They make broad their phylacteries " (xxiii. 5). This expression 
 may be noticed because of the material of which some of the phylac- 
 teries were made. The frontlets (Exod. xiii. 16; Deut. vi. 8) consisted 
 of strips of parchment prepared from cows' hide, on which were written 
 four passages of Scripture (Exod. xiii. 2-10, 11-17; Deut. vi. 4-9, 
 13-22). These were then put in a thin case of calf-skin, which was 
 joined to soft leather of another kind, to which a riband was attached, 
 for binding the frontlet round the head. Other forms were suited for
 
 5GG BIBLICAL NATUKAL SCIENCE. 
 
 the left arm, others again for the door posts (Plate XL., fig. 2). The 
 Jewish name for these is Tcphilliii. 
 
 When our Lord appeared on the earth lie found two standards of 
 moral conduct, and two systems for the regulation of the religious life 
 of the people, acknowledged among the Jews. The law of God 
 specially regarded as contained in tlie five books of Moses contained one 
 standard, and one system — the traditions of the Elders ; the rules of 
 their noted Eabbins formed another. Here and elsewhere the Saviour 
 often contrasts the two. AVhile the Scribes and Pharisees would have 
 shrunk from the open expression of a preference for that system of 
 ceremonies and code of moral conduct which had been engrafted on the 
 law, as above the precepts of Moses, they had virtually come into this 
 position. The highly artificial, arbitrary, and in many cases, super- 
 stitious observances imposed on them by man, had almost universally 
 usurped the place of the commandments of God. The inevitable fruit 
 had soon appeared. The heart was eaten out of the religious life of 
 the people, and their religious observances were little else than the 
 covering by which hypocrisy sought to hide the ruling lust and unsub- 
 dued sin which filled the soul. The eye of Jesus looked through all 
 this. Thus the terrible words which, as in this passage, fell from his lips, 
 whenever he came openly in contact with these leaders of the people. 
 
 The form which this spirit had assumed in regard to paying tithes is 
 specially referred to in verse 23. " The weightier matters of the law" 
 are contrasted with aspects of giving of substance for religious purposes, 
 which might have an important meaning, if they were the fruits of a 
 pious man's sense that he owed all he had unto God. But they were 
 worse than mockery of God when put in the place of "judgment, 
 mercy, and faith." To this, however, their rabbinical rules tended; 
 and a multitude of religious duties, a scrupulous attention to little acts 
 of a religious kind, but which did not touch their consciences at all, 
 were held to compensate for a habitual neglect of the personal piety 
 and spiritual obedience which should have characterized them. There 
 is nothing in the law of Moses which implies that it was a duty to pay 
 tithes of such articles as are here mentioned. But as our Lord would 
 not interfere with anything through which a religious man might show 
 his gratitude to God, he does not condemn, but rather favours, the act 
 — "These ought ye to have done, and not to leave the others undone." 
 
 " Mint," Gr. hedihsmon. See under Luke xi. 42. "Anise," amtlion, 
 is not to be confounded with the " star aniseed" of commerce. Star- 
 anise is the seed of a Chinese plant, the Illidum {I. anisatum) which
 
 Fig. 17B. 
 
 is imported into Europe from China, and is used in medicine as a 
 stimulant. In the south of Europe it is employed as a condiment, and 
 an oil distilled from it is used in the manufacture of the liqueur Anisette 
 de Bordeaux. The anise 
 tithed by the Jews is the 
 lierb "dill" (Anethum 
 graveolens or common 
 dill), one of the umbel- 
 liferous fiiraily of plants 
 {Umhelliferce) which is 
 both cultivated and found 
 growing wdld in Pales- 
 tine, Egypt, &c. Pliny 
 mentions it as " serving 
 as well for seasoning all 
 kinds of food as for mak- 
 ing sauces." It is used 
 in medicine also. 
 
 The British plant which 
 is likest the anise of 
 Matthew is the well 
 known species Anethum 
 foemcidum, or common 
 fennel, frequent by the 
 sea-side, associated with Am.c (,(»«»,™ j™v,!e,„). 
 
 the sea-lavender, thrift, and sandworts. In olden times it was much 
 cultivated in England, and boiled witli fish. It is mentioned by 
 Parkinson (1G29) among the "divers physical herbes, fit to be planted 
 in gardens to serve for the especial use of a familie." Many supersti- 
 tious notions have gathered round this British anethum. Some of 
 these are referred to by the poet: — 
 
 '' Above the lowly plant it towers, 
 The Fennel with its yellow flowers ; 
 And in an earlier age than ours 
 W'as gifted with the wondrous powers 
 
 Lost vision to restore. 
 It gave new strength and fearless mouj, 
 And gladiators fierce and rude 
 Mingled it with their daily food ; 
 And he who battled and subdued, 
 
 The wreath of Fennel wore."
 
 5G8 DiULICAL NATUUAL SCIENCE. 
 
 " Cummin," Heb. kaman, Gr. Jalmmon, is also named by our Lord 
 as tithed by the later Jews. " Tithing of corn is of tlic law," some 
 were wont to say, " and tithing of garden herbs was of the rabbins." 
 Cummin has already been noticed under Isaiah xxviii. 25 — which see. 
 
 " Gnat," Gr. hvnOps — see under Isa. vii. 18. It has been proposed 
 to render the expression here " strain out." But the alleged difficulty 
 is not thus got quit of. All intended by the figure is, You exaggerate 
 small and inditferent matters as if great princij^lcs w^ere involved, while 
 you habitually neglect those broad precepts about which there cannot 
 be a mistake. In your conduct you are scrupulous in things which 
 lead to no true self-denial, but which in their performance are self- 
 pleasing, while the mighty truths of God are neglected or dishonoured. 
 " Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and 
 scribes ; and some of them ye shall kill and crucify ; and some of them 
 shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to 
 city : that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the 
 earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, 
 son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. 
 Verily I say unto you. All these things shall come upon this genera- 
 tion. Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and 
 stoncst them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered 
 thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her 
 wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. 
 For I say unto you. Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say. 
 Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord" (ver. 34-39). What 
 comment on these words could match that of Bunyan? He leads 
 Christiana into the Interpreter's house, that she may have unfolded to 
 her under one figure and another that "God has made nothing in vain. 
 Then they seemed all to be glad ; but the water stood in their eyes : yet 
 they looked upon one another, and also bowed before the Interpreter, 
 
 "He had them then into another room, where was a hen and chickens, 
 and bid them observe a while. So one of the chickens went to the 
 trough to drink, and every time she drank she lifted up licr head and 
 her eyes towards heaven. See, said he, what this little chick doeth, 
 and learn of her to acknowledge whence your mercies come, by receiving 
 them with looking up. Yet again, said he, observe and look ; so they 
 gave heed, and perceived that the hen did walk in a four-fold method 
 towards her chickens. L She had a common call, and that she had all 
 the day long. 2. She had a special call, and that she had but some-, 
 times. 3. She had a brooding note. And 4. She had an outcrjj.
 
 •ST. MATTHEW. 5G9 
 
 " Now, said he, compare this here to your king, and those cliickens to 
 Ids obedient ones. For, answerable to her, himself has his methods, 
 which he walketh in towards his people : by his common call he gives 
 nothing ; by his special call he always has something to give : he has 
 also a Irooding voice for them that are under his wing ; and he has an 
 outcry, to give the alarm when he seeth the enemy come. I choose, my 
 darlings, to lead you into the room where such things are, because 
 you are women, and they are easy for you." 
 
 " And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, 
 Eli! Eli! lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God! my God! why 
 hast thou forsaken me ? Some of them that stood there, when they 
 heard that, said. This man calleth for Elias. And straightway one of 
 them ran, and took a sponge, and tilled it with vinegar, and put it on a 
 reed, and gave him to drink. The rest said. Let be, let us see whether 
 Elias will come to save him" (xxvii. 46-49). Our Lord had already 
 refused the myrrhed wine (ver. 34 ; see under Mark xv. 23) ; but the 
 vinegar which was oftcred him on the sponge seems to have been 
 received. Indeed, John distinctly says : — " When Jesus therefore had 
 received the vinegar, he said, It is finished : and he bowed his head, and 
 gave up the ghost." With reference to the spiced or medicated wine, 
 whicli is fully examined under Mark xv. 23, the evangelist ]\Iatthew 
 mentions a circumstance unnoticed by the other evangelists. He 
 says : — " They gave him vinegar to drink mingled with gall : and lohen 
 he had tasted thereof, he loould not drmk." He was not willing that 
 the least thing should be done by him to hasten his own death. The 
 whole guilt of that deed must rest on man, and, accordingly, when the 
 sour wine, which constituted a daily beverage of the people, was offered 
 to him, it was at once received. It was wine of this kind which was 
 used in the harvest-field of Bethlehem by the reapers of Boaz (Ruth 
 ii. 14), and which constituted part of the rations of the Roman soldiers. 
 See under Prov. x. 2G, for references to the nature and kind of vinegar 
 used in Old Testament times. 
 
 VOL. II. 4
 
 570 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 ST. MARK. 
 
 HE voice of -one crying in the wilderness" (i. 3). I\Iattlicw 
 
 names the scene of John's first ministry, " the wilderness 
 
 of Judea" (iii. 1). The locality referred to embraced the 
 
 whole desert region lying on the immediate west of the 
 
 Dead Sea, and reaching to the north the valley of the 
 
 John fulfilled his ministry chiefly in the upper part 
 
 of this wide wild tract. 
 
 - " Verse 13 " — see under Jonah iv. 11. 
 
 / " Capernaum " (ver. 21) lay on the north-western shore of the 
 Sea of Galilee. Dr. Robinson believes it to be represented by the 
 mound now known by the name Khau-Minyeli. Jesus and his disciples 
 appear to have entered it after they were forced to retire from Nazareth. 
 It was frequently Christ's residence afterwards, and came to be called 
 "his own city" (Matt. ix. 1). 
 
 " No man also seweth a piece of new cloth on an old garment ; 
 else the new piece that filled it up taketh away from the old, and 
 the rent is made worse. And no man putteth new wine into old 
 bottles ; else the new wine doth burst the bottles, and the wine is 
 spilled, and the bottles will be marred : but new wine must be put into 
 new bottles " (ii. 21, 22). Christ's mission was not to mend what had 
 served its day and become useless. This would have been like putting 
 unfulled or undressed cloth into an old garment. Such material would 
 expand under the influence of heat, or it would contract under that of 
 moisture, and the rent would be made worse. Or like new wine put 
 into the old leathern goat-skin bottles, which had been distended to the 
 utmost, when the process of fermentation began in the new wine, the 
 increase of bulk would burst the bottles. Christ came to renew the 
 whole system of religious worship. Jewish types and ceremonies could 
 not contain the grand thoughts which he brought out among men. He 
 made all things new. 
 
 The kingdom of God in the world and in the heart of man is likened 
 to the growth of the wheat seed (iv. 26-29). The germinating power 
 begins unobserved. No man knows " the new name saving he that 
 receiveth it" (Rev. ii. 17). But grace is given in order to its mani-
 
 ST. MARK. 571 
 
 festatioH. Tlie seed germinates. One form of growth strikes down- 
 wards, another rises into the light of day. There is first the blade, 
 then the ear, after tliat tlie full corn in the ear. 
 
 Jesus had left the neighbourhood of the Sea of Galilee, and had 
 gone to the borders of Tyre and Sidon — Phoenician territory. Here 
 the circumstance noticed in chap. vii. 24-30 occurred. The reference 
 to the dogs (ver. 28) gives us a glimpse into the household life of these 
 Gentiles. The dogs among them were associated with the people as 
 domesticated animals. Our Lord took advantage of this in .order to 
 bring out the faith of the Syro-Phoenician woman. " It is not meet to 
 take the children's bread, and to cast it unto the do2:s." "Dojxs," 
 literally "little dogs." The word hpiarion^ "little dog," is used as a 
 familiar diminutive, just as tliygater, "daughter," becomes ihygatrion, 
 "dear little daughter." Such incidents shed much light on the perfect 
 humanity of Christ. 
 
 " And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out : it is better for thee to 
 enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to 
 be cast into hell-fire ; where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not 
 quenched. For every one shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice 
 shall be salted with salt. Salt is good : but if the salt have lost his 
 saltness, wherewith will ye season it ? Have salt in yourselves, and 
 have peace one with another" (ix. 47-50). His hearers had been 
 warned against offending any who believe in him. He now asks them 
 to regard themselves as individuals in danger of allowing sinful 
 tendencies to mar their usefulness, and blight their hopes as children of 
 God. Should these tendencies seem dear to them, as hand, or foot, or 
 eye, they must be destroyed. The exhortation is backed by the terrific 
 threatening — "Hell, the fire that never shall be quenched; where 
 their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched." "Hell," Gehenna, 
 or the valley of Hinnom, lying on the south of Jerusalem, noted as a 
 place of idolatrous worship, where human sacrifices were offered to 
 Moloch. This supplied the imagery here, under which the threatening 
 of everlasting punishment is brought out. The awful idea is that of 
 eternal dissolution — ever dying, never dead. The reference to the 
 "salting with fire " comes here to assume terrible force. As salt pre- 
 serves that on which it is rubbed, the fire shall not only consume, but 
 shall act as salt in still keeping endlessly the victim under the great 
 anguish — the deathless worm. The warning is followed up Avith 
 another exhortation — " Have salt in yourselves." " Salt is good." 
 It is the figure in this expression for true moral worth. " Have this"
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 — let it be yours, as penetrating your whole being and preserving you 
 blameless till the day of Christ. Show that you have it by being at 
 "peace one with another." 
 
 " And on the morrow, when they were come from Bethany, he 
 was hungry : and seeing a fig-tree afar off having leaves, he came, if 
 haply he might find anything thereon : and when he came to it, he 
 found nothing but leaves ; for the time of figs was not yet. And Jesus 
 answered and said unto it. No man eat fruit of thee hereafter for ever. 
 And his disciples heard it. And in the morning as they passed by, 
 they saw the fig-tree dried up from the roots. And Peter, calling to 
 remembrance, saith unto him, Master, behold, the fig-tree which thou 
 cursedst is withered away. And Jesus answering, saith unto them, 
 Have faith in God " (xi. 12-1-4, 20-22). Cumbered as this passage 
 has been w^ith conflicting attempts to explain it, the difficulty ceases to 
 be formidable if we bear in mind, first, that the tree was taken by 
 cur Lord in order to bring out, under a symbol, certain great aspects 
 of truth ; second, that, carrying out the symbolic idea, he dealt with 
 the tree as if it were a moral agent ; and third, that the narrative 
 itself contains an intimation of the figurative use made of the tree — 
 " the time of figs was not yet." This indeed is the key to tlie passage. 
 The time of figs is in July. The earliest are not found sooner than about 
 the middle of June, in any abundance. Prior to that date, however, some 
 "first ripe figs" may be gathered. When the foliage is fully developed, 
 as in this case, edible figs may be expected. The tree thus put forth a 
 show of fruitfulness. It was dealt with as a pretender, in order that 
 the disciples might infer, that God would deal with those who profess to 
 have spiritual experience, of which they are destitute, in the same way. 
 Profession is not enough : " Have faith in God." 
 
 " Alabaster " (xiv. 3) is a well known marble-like mineral, used in 
 inferior statuary, but mainly for vases, boxes, and similar articles. It 
 abounds chiefly in tertiary strata. There are two kinds — one whose 
 chief constituent is sulphate of lime, and another in which carbonate of 
 lime prevails. 
 
 In noticing the various uses of myrrh, under Psalm xlv. 8, the twenty- 
 third verse of this chapter was referred to as illustrative of the employ- 
 ment of myrrh, administered in the form of a tincture, to deaden pain. 
 Here as in other passages, with the exception of Gen. sxxvii. 25, xliii. 
 11, the myrrh spoken of was the produce, by exudation, of the Balsa- 
 madendron myrrJia, or its variety the B. Jcataf, a shrub belonging to 
 the natural order Amyridacece or myrrh family. The words " wine
 
 ST. MAKK. 573 
 
 mingled -with myrrh" (xv. 23), sliould have been " myrrhed wine" 
 {esmyrnismenon oinori). This brings out the strength of the original 
 expression by suggesting, that the bitter flavour of the spice predomi- 
 nated in the draught, ^^'ine thus medicated was given to criminals 
 before their execution, with the merciful motive, no doubt, of rendering 
 them less sensible of pain. It was supposed to act in a similar way to 
 a strong dose of laudanum. A little myrrh would have had a contrary 
 effect. It would have acted as a stinudaut and tonic, giving energy to 
 all the vital organs, and thus making the subject more acutely alive to 
 bodily pain. Accordingly the wine was "myrrlied" — myrrh was the 
 strongest element in the draught. This act of mercy could not be 
 regarded as any relenting, or even as the springing up of compassion in 
 the heart of the murderers of the Prince of Life, because it was a mere 
 thing of custom, and showed that to the very last the Jews nationally 
 looked on him as a common criminal. Thus the offer of the myrrhed 
 wine came to be the literal fulfilment of the prophecy in Ps. Ixix. 20, 21. 
 The practice was one of long standing. It is referred to in "the pro- 
 phecy which King Lemuel's mother taught hini" (Prov. xxvi. 6). 
 
 I have shown, by a comparison of passages under Jeremiah viii. 14, 
 that the writers of Scripture use the different words translated "gall" for 
 " bitter things" in general, except in such cases as those in which the 
 scope of the context clearly demands a specific application. Matthew's 
 account of the transactions on the cross bears, that they gave Jesus 
 "vinegar to drink mingled with gall" (xxvii. 34). This has been 
 explained under Matt, xxvii. 48. Mark, like the other evangelists, 
 uses the term "vinegar" in the second offer of drink made to him 
 (ver. 36). The Greek oxos was most frequently used in the sense of 
 the Latin posca, the sour wine used by the Roman soldiers, much in the 
 same way as the lowest class of French common red wine ( Vin ordin- 
 aire) is used by the peasants in wine-growing countries. The Hebrew 
 equivalent of both was the hlioinetz^ or vinegar, mentioned in Numb. vi. 
 2, under which the various kinds of vinegar in use in Bible times are 
 referred to and illustrated. 
 
 There is thus no difference between the accounts of Mark and 
 Matthew, when the former says, that " they gave him to drink wine 
 mingled with myrrh," and the latter, that " they gave him vinegar to 
 drink mingled with gall." The gall included in it the myrrh, and 
 the wine was used as expressing the juice of the grape in general, one 
 form of which was the oxos or sour wine named by iMatthew aud by 
 John (xix. 29).
 
 574 
 
 ninLlCAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 ST. LUKE. 
 
 HE pcoi)le witli whom onr Lord and Iiis disciples were 
 called to associate, liail, very generally, come to put outward 
 observances in the place of inward lite. They had degraded 
 religion from its spirituality, and practised its requirements 
 as so many external rites, which had no influence either on 
 the state of their hearts or on their hearing towards their 
 neighbours. "Want of charity in judging others was the fruit 
 of an exaggerated opinion of themselves. They were outwardly 
 religious, but had wholly forgotten that the test of religious acts is 
 to be found in the motives from which they spring. The mistake 
 Avas fatal. It led them to neglect the state of the heart, and thus 
 while they did much which seemed for God, they retained sin itself 
 unchecked and unsubdued. These considerations show the point of 
 our Lord's words. He says to them, Ye are not in circumstances to 
 pass a judgment on your neighbour's conduct, if you have not previously 
 formed a right estimate of your own. You are not equal to good acts 
 if your hearts are still evil — your motives still only those of sin. As 
 well might the blind talk of seeing, as you may of being able to judge 
 one another ; and as well might men look for the nutritious fig on the 
 thorn bush, or the luscious grape on the bramble, as I may for pious, 
 holy, upright lives from you, when God's love aud grace do "not 
 influence your hearts. Every thing depends on the state of the heart. 
 " For every tree is known by his own fruit. For of thorns men do 
 not gather figs, nor of a bramble bush gather they grapes. A good 
 man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is 
 good ; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth 
 forth that which is evil : for of the abundance of the heart his mouth 
 speaketh" (vi. 44, 45). 
 
 The " bramble," Gr. latos, is the — 
 
 " Wild bramble of the brake," 
 
 the common bramble, Buhus fruiicosics of botanists, the plant which 
 yields the well known " blackben'ies " of British hedgerows. It gives 
 its name, Ruhus, to a genus of plants belonging to the natural order
 
 TITLE OF THE CROSS.— Johh xta. 19, 20. 
 
 ni-Zee-Z<rfn' /-rrl^ ,eC/ftr>.' A/:>/.i. 
 
 /'^<'/l//r''f^. 
 
 JEWISH PHYLACTERIES.— Matt. nlii. 6. 
 
 THE SNARE OF THE FOWLER.-PS. ici. 3. 
 
 ./ n' ioirn- . jntfyr. 
 
 aiLLlAU y*CKENllt L»SCO*- tOl N BU«CW tOWDOU 1 •«£• > ''I-
 
 ST. LUKE 575 
 
 Rosacea:, or rose family. With the raspberry {It. idceus) it is met with 
 in most parts of Britain. It is common in Palestine also. 
 
 "And why call ye me Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? 
 Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I 
 will shew you to whom he is like : he is like a man which built an house, 
 and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock ; and when the 
 flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not 
 shake it ; for it was founded upon a rock. But he that heareth, and 
 doeth not, is like a man that, without a foundation, built an house upon 
 the earth ; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and imme- 
 diately it fell; and the ruin of that house w'as great" (ver. 46-49). 
 " The image with which, both in St. Matthew and St. Luke, the 
 discourse concludes, is one familiar to all eastern and southern climates 
 — a torrent, suddenly formed by the mountain rains, and sweeping 
 away all before it in its descent through what a few minutes before had 
 been a dry channel. Yet it may be observed that it is an image far 
 more natural in Galilee than Jordan ; whether we take the perennial 
 streams wliich run through the plains of Genncsareth, or the torrent 
 streams of the Kishou and the Belus, which on the west run through 
 the plain of Esdraelon to the Mediterranean. As applied to them, this 
 likeness has far more aptitude than if derived from the scanty and rare 
 flooding of the Kcdron and the wadys of the south. The sudden 
 inundation of the Kishon is a phenomenon already historical from the 
 Old Testament; and if we are to press the allusion to the "sand," 
 on which was built "the house that fell," then there is no other locality 
 in Palestine to which we can look, except the long sandy strip of land 
 which bounds the eastern plain of Acre, and through which the Kishon 
 flows into the sea." — {Stanleu) 
 
 " And when much people were gathered together, and were come to 
 him out of every city, he spake by a parable : A sower went out to 
 sow his seed : and as he sowed, some fell by the way-side ; and it was 
 trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it. And some fell 
 upon a rock ; and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away, 
 because it lacked moisture. And some fell among thorns ; and the 
 thorns sprang up with it, and choked it. And other fell on good 
 ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit an hundred-fold. And when he 
 had said these things, he cried. He that hath ears to hear, let him 
 hear" (viii. 4-8). The imagery of the parables was borrowed from the 
 scenes amidst which they were spoken. The details of this one must 
 have often come under the notice of his hearers. So vivid are they,
 
 576 BIBLICAL NATUUAL SCIESCE. 
 
 that the reader feels at once they must have been before the speaker. 
 The scope of the parable is the dependence of the efficacy of the word 
 on the spiritual condition of the hearers. It is the same word which 
 meets the different classes of hearers. On some of these it has no 
 effect. Sown on the highway, the seed was trampled down by the 
 hoofs of beasts, and the tread of human feet, while the birds devoured 
 every vestige of it. Men sunk in sin, hardened in careless sensualism, 
 listen unmoved to the most earaest appeals through the word of God. 
 On others the word seems at once to fall with power. Seed dropped 
 in a thin layer of soil spread over an underlying rock quickly germin- 
 ates in early spring. Occasional showers still fall on it, dews by 
 night are formed on the new-sprung blades, and the rapid radiation 
 communicates a strong impulse. But the rain ceases, and the scorch- 
 ing summer sun beams down on it. The underlying rock itself 
 gets heated. The roots become sapless, the blades fall prostrate. 
 The whole is withered up. Tlius the influence of the word on im- 
 passioned, emotional, and sentimental dispositions. Love -appeals 
 soften, pictures of a sorrow-stricken Saviour stir emotion to its very 
 heart, and soon the life for a season assumes all the evidences of 
 a thorough change. But the hard heart of worldliness has not been 
 broken, self has not been crucified, and as impressions lose their fresh- 
 ness these hearers return again to the service of the devil, the world, 
 and the flesh. Some of the seed fell among thorns, which sprang up 
 with it and choked it. The effect was similar to what might be seen 
 any spring-time. Cast wheat seed on ground where our common 
 furze is deeply rooted, and where its young shoots are in full vigorous 
 growth, and it would be choked. Respect for the word on the part of 
 those who are still devoted to the world — its cares, its pleasures, its 
 riches — saves them not from eternal shame at last. They cannot serve 
 two masters. The fruits of the Spirit and the fruits of sin cannot 
 grow equally together in any heart. The latter, when cherished, always 
 overmaster the former. That which fell on good ground sprang up, 
 and bare fruit an hundred-fold. This our Lord explains of those who 
 "have honest and good hearts" (ver. 15). It was no part of his 
 design to explain at the time the source of the goodness and honesty. 
 We are less teachable than his hearers on this occasion, if we raise 
 here the question of man's natural ability, or of his inability, to make 
 his own the spiritual gifts oSl-red to him. The question is wholly 
 foreign to the parable. 
 
 Jesus had just taught them what to pray for, and how to pray. He
 
 ST. LLKli. 577 
 
 then goes on to assure tbem that they will be heard. "And I say unto 
 you, Ask, and it shall be given you ; seek, and ye shall find ; knock, 
 and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh, receiveth; 
 and he that seeketh, findeth ; and to him that knocketh, it shall be 
 opened. If a son sliall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he 
 give him a stone ? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a 
 serpent ? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion ? If 
 ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children; 
 how much more sliall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to 
 them that ask him?" (xi. 10-13.) To demand a great similarity 
 between the things set in such strong contrast here, is to miss the main 
 point in our Lord's teaching. There is no likeness between bread and 
 a stone. If he ask bread, will you present to him something that he 
 cannot eat? If he ask a fish, will you present to him a creature from 
 which he will turn away with fear ? If he ask an egg, will you instead 
 offer to put into his hand the deadly scorpion ? All theorizing about 
 white scorpions, and about the oval form of the scorpion's body, is 
 vain. There is not the most distant resemblance between an egg and 
 the black scorpions, of Palestine. Had the Saviour wished to associate 
 with this idea regarding the father's willingness to give what is good, 
 the thought of an attempt to deceive on the part of the earthly parent, 
 he could have named tlie egg of any of the oviparous reptiles, and not 
 the scorpion. The stone, he says, is useless, the serpent dangerous, 
 the scorpion deadly. Earthly parents know this, and knowing the 
 wants of their children whom they love, they will not mock them when 
 they ask for something to nourish their bodies. So with our Father in 
 heaven. He knows that his children have need of the Holy Spirit. 
 Let us pray to bim, for w^e are assured that he " will give the Holy 
 Spirit to them that ask him." 
 
 " Scorpion," Heb. akrdv, Gr. scorpios — see under Deut. viii. 15. 
 
 The place which the tithing of herbs (ver. 42) holds in the context 
 has been fully indicated above — see Matt, xxiii. 23. Two herbs are 
 mentioned by Luke, one of which is not named by Matthew, namely, 
 " rue." 
 
 " Mint," heduosmon, the generic term for several of the natural order 
 
 of plants Labiatoe, may, as used here, include both the spear-mint 
 
 {Mentha vindis) and the pepper-mint {M. piperita). Both species are 
 
 very wide-spread, being found in most parts of the Avorld. Their uses 
 
 are known to all. The scrupulousness and hypocrisy of the Scribes 
 
 and Pharisees are specially shown by their making a show of paying 
 VOL. II. 4 D
 
 ♦ 678 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 tithe in this herb. The wheat and the barley when offered to the Lord 
 implied self-denial on the part of the offerers. But by tithing their 
 mint they laid claim to having performed the religious obligation, when 
 they were serving the Lord with that which cost them nothing. 
 
 " Rue," pegdnon, gives its name to tlie natural order Ilutacea} or 
 rue family. The species referred to by Luke is the common rue {Riita 
 graveohns), once much more frequently cultivated on account of its 
 medicinal properties in cottage gardens than it is how. It is to 
 be met with growing wild in most of the countries on both sides of the 
 Mediterranean. It has been found in considerable abundance in Pales- 
 tine, especially about Carmel and Tabor. Growing readily and without 
 much care, it would form an easy substitute for the weightier matters 
 of the law, which the Pharisees neglected. Rue is an herbaceous plant. 
 Its stems, however, attain to a considerable length, and are often of a 
 half-woody appearance. If we may credit Josephus, it sometimes 
 attains to the rank of a true tree. In his notes on " the city called 
 Machserus," he says, "Now within this place there grew a sort of rue, 
 that claims our admiration on account of its largeness, for it was in no 
 way inferior to any fig-tree whatsoever, either in height or in thickness ; 
 and the report is, that it had lasted ever since the time of Herod, 
 and would probably have lasted much longer, had it not been cut 
 down by those Jews who took possession of the place afterwards." 
 —("Wars," vii. 6, § 3.) 
 
 " Lilies" (xii. 27), Heb. shdsMnmm, Gr. kri'na, have been noticed 
 under Song ii. 1 — which see. The lily [Liliinn) belongs to a family of 
 plants {LiliacecB) which contains above one hundred and thirty genera, 
 many of them differing very widely from each other, in size, colour, 
 &c. Several species are abundant in the localities in which our 
 Saviour wandered. Dr. Bouar, referring to the heights above 
 Beersheba, says:— "On these heights the lilies abounded, with grass 
 and low shrubs between. I noticed that the camels did not touch 
 the lilies at all ; but cropped what lay between. It reminded me 
 of the words — 'He feedetli among the lilies' (Cant. ii. IG). We did 
 not here see any flocks feeding, or any 'young harts' leaping; but in 
 other places we had frequent occasion to notice the sheep and lambs 
 browsing on the like pastures — among but not on the lilies ; for while 
 the lily furnishes no acceptable food for flocks and herds, it seems by 
 the shade of its high broad leaves, to retain the moisture, and so to 
 nourish herbage wherever it grows. The place of lilies would thus be 
 the place of the richest pasture, as Solomon evidently indicates when,
 
 Fig. 179. 
 
 again using the figure, he speaks of the ' young roes wliich feed among 
 the lilies' (Cant. iv. 5, and again vi. 3). They grew in almost incredible 
 numbers and luxuriance, often where nothing else flourished, corro- 
 borating the prophet's allusion — 'he shall grow as the lihj' (Hosea xiv. 
 5). Their tapering leaf is richly green, and hence the 'heap of wheat 
 set about with lilies' (Cant. vii. 2), would form, by the contrast, an 
 object of no common beauty, the pale yellow and the vivid green 
 setting off each other, as the leaf of the primrose does its own yellow 
 blossom. Close by these lilies there grew several of the thorn-shrubs 
 of the desert ; but above them rose the lily, spreading out its fresh leaf 
 of green as a contrast to the dingy verdure of these prickly shrubs. 
 ' As the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters' (Cant. 
 ii. 2). Whether this be the lily of the valley, I do not know. It grows 
 on hill and valley, all over the region. Nor is it of one species only, 
 but of several, as we could easily see, though only one species was in 
 flower. That which was in flower the Arab's called zisiceit/i. It was 
 larger than the others, and shot up its lilac, 
 hyacinth-looking flowers from a tapering 
 stalk, sometimes two feet long." 
 
 Were we to look for botanical exactness in 
 the words of our Lord, his expression, '' lilies 
 of the field," might be limited to one species 
 — the scarlet martagon lily [Liliiim chalce- 
 cZo?izc?<m), which grows abundantly in Palestine. 
 But there is little doubt that his words included 
 all the species which came under his eye, when 
 he pointed his hearers to the plants of the field, 
 as illustrative of the divine care, wisdom, and 
 glory. The quiet beauty of the white and 
 the yellow varieties, and the gorgeous hues 
 of the scarlet, would contrast favourably with 
 all the magnificence which man's art could 
 throw into royal robes. 
 
 " He spake also this parable : A certain man had a fig-tree planted 
 in his vineyard : and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none. 
 Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard. Behold, these three 
 years I come seeking fruit on this fig-tree, and find none : cut it down ; 
 why curabereth it the ground? And he, answering, said unto him, 
 Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it : 
 and if it bear fruit, well ; and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it 
 
 &vrmn I.ilr.
 
 580 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 down" (xiii. 6-9). "Fig-tree," vol. i., p. 134. "The peculiarity of 
 the image — that of a fig-tree in a vineyard — however unlike to the 
 European notion of a mass of unbroken vine-clad hills, is natural in 
 Palestine, where fig-trees, thorn-trees, apple-trees, whether in corn- 
 fields or vineyards, are allowed to grow freely wherever they can get 
 soil to support them." — {Stanlejj) 
 
 In this parable the object of the Saviour is to communicate a true 
 impression of the progressive development of his kingdom. The points 
 to be specially illustrated, are the smallness of its beginning, the 
 gradual character of its progress, and its great and glorious results. 
 
 "Then said he, Unto what is the kingdom of God like? and wherc- 
 unto shall I resemble it? It is like a grain of mustard-seed, which a 
 man took, and cast into his garden ; and it grew, and waxed a great 
 tree ; and the fowls of the air lodged in the branches of it" (ver. 18, 19). 
 Matthew gives the parable more fully : — "Another parable put he forth 
 unto them, saying. The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard- 
 seed, whicli a man took and sowed in his field : which indeed is the 
 least of all seeds ; but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, 
 and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the 
 branches thereof" (xiii. 31, 32). In Mark's account, special attention 
 is called to the development of the branches : — "And he said, Where- 
 unto shall we liken the kingdom of God? or with what comparison 
 shall we compare it ? It is like a grain of mustard-seed, which, when 
 it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth : 
 but when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all 
 herbs, and shooteth out great branches ; so that the fowls of the air may 
 lodge under the shadow of it" (iv. 30-32). The points of comparison 
 appear on the surface of the parable. If the progress of the gospel 
 among men be taken as the ground of comparison, it is seen, in the 
 babe born at Bethlehem, as the grain of mustard-seed. Its growth is 
 illustrated in the adhesion of the Galilsean fishermen to the testimony 
 of Jesus, in the gradual extension of the kingdom of God in apostolic 
 times, and in its triumph over nations as the generations passed. It 
 grows still, and will continue to grow, until the knowledge of the Lord 
 shall cover the earth. If the progress be regarded from the point of 
 view of influence on the spiritual nature of each man brought to Christ, 
 it finds its illustration in the gradual subjection of the whole man to the 
 will of God, and in the usefulness which comes to mark every one who 
 has become conformed to the image of Jesus Christ. "At the first 
 there were thoughts of Jesus, which many times flashed upon us, clear
 
 ST. LUKE. 581 
 
 thoughts, though still overshadowed with doubts. By degrees, how- 
 ever, tlie doubts became more rare and feeble ; convictions on the other 
 hand, built upon the foundation which has already been laid, find their 
 way into our heart. At first there were inclinations to Jesus, which 
 often stirred the heart — pious inclinations, but still intermingled with 
 the love of sin. By degrees, however, we come to crucify the ungodly 
 nature and the lusts of the flesh; attachment, strong and pure, such as 
 he demands, found its way into the heart. At first there were feelings 
 for Jesus, holy feelings, but still alternating with impatience, lust, 
 passion, and a thousand interruptions. By degrees, however, the storm 
 was allayed, a calmness, serene as the clear heaven, the offspring of a 
 peace which is higher than all reason, found its way into our heart." 
 But this peace is not unbroken. The leaf withers on the tree before its 
 season, the branch is liable to disease, the roots are not always equal 
 to a healthy absorbing power. Thus with man in contact with Jesus, 
 and having His life in the soul. There are shadows as well as sunshine 
 in Christian experience. To push the comparison farther would be to 
 pervert the words of the Lord. 
 
 "The mustard-tree," Gr. sinapt, supplies in this case the figure 
 around which these views of the kingdom are brought out. In attempt- 
 ing to identify this plant, it was very early found that the annual 
 herbaceous species, common mustard [Sinapis nigra), which supplies 
 the well-known spice, would not answer the description of our Lord. 
 Irby and j\Langles were the first to direct attention to a plant in all 
 respects like that described here. Between the south end of the Dead 
 Sea and Kerak, they found a tree to which they thus refer : — " There 
 was one curious tree which we observed in great numbers, and which 
 bore a fruit in bunches, resembling in appearance the currant, with the 
 colour of the plum. It has a pleasant though strong aromatic taste, 
 resembling mustard, and if taken in any quantity, produces a similar 
 irritability in the nose and eyes. The leaves of this tree have the same 
 pungent flavour as the fruit, though not so strong. We think it 
 probable that this is the tree our Saviour alluded to in the parable of 
 the mustard-seed, and not the mustard-plant, which is to be found in 
 the north ; for although in our journey from Bysau to Adjeloun we met 
 with the mustard-plant growing wild, as high as our horses' heads, 
 still, being an annual, it did not deserve the appellation of a tree ; 
 whereas the other is really such, and birds might easily, and actually 
 do, take shelter under its shadow" (chap. vii). The travellers do not 
 name this plant, but fuller inquiry has identified it with one of the
 
 582 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 salvidoras (S. persica), a tree which attains the height of twenty-five 
 feet. The seeds are very small, and are used as mustard. The Sahi- 
 dora persica grows abundantly in the neighbourhood of the Sea of 
 Galilee. 
 
 The Hebrew name for mustard is chardel. In the Syriac version oi 
 the New Testament, the word used by the Evangelist — sinapi — is 
 rendered k-Jiardel, the name given in the nortli of India to the Salvidora 
 persica. Dr. Royle, after arguing ably in favour of this identiflcatinn, 
 
 FlK. ISO. 
 
 Salvidora persica. 
 
 says : — " We have in it a small seed, which, sown in cultivated ground, 
 abounds in foliage. This being pungent, may, like the seed, have been 
 used as a condiment, as mustard and cress is with us. The nature of 
 the plant, however, is to become arboreous ; and thus it will form a 
 large shrub, or a tree, twenty-five feet high, under which a horseman 
 may stand, where the soil and climate are favourable. It produces 
 numerous branches and leaves, among which birds may and do take 
 shelter, as well as build their nests." 
 
 " What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of 
 them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go 
 after that which is lost, until he find it ? And when he hath found it, 
 he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he cometh home, 
 he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them,
 
 ST. LUKK. 
 
 583 
 
 Rejoice with me ; for I have found my sheep which was lost, I say 
 unto you, That hkewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that 
 repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, Avhich need no 
 repentance" (xv. 4-7). The charge was brought against Jesus by the 
 Pharisees, that he "received sinners." In their hearing he proceeds 
 to set fortli the value 
 put by God on the soul 
 of the sinner, under the 
 parables of the lost sheep, 
 the lost silver, and the 
 lost son. They are all 
 of great beauty. The 
 scope of the second is, 
 that because Christ re- 
 gards the sinner as his, 
 he has devised a plan for 
 his salvation, 
 out this 
 
 In bring- 
 
 m<x 
 
 he came 
 
 Syrian Sheep ( Ovis aries), 
 
 into tlie world — went into the wilderness after the lost ones, fouud 
 them, and brought them back to the joy in the presence of God. 
 
 One aspect of the sinner's case, as brought out in this parable, is 
 indicated in verse IG. Sunk to the deepest and most hopeless degra- 
 dation, he is willing to seek solace and strength in that which is the 
 plainest evidence of his misery. " He would fain have filled his belly 
 with the husks that the swine did eat; and no man gave unto him." 
 The " husks," keratia, were the pods of the kharub tree or ceratonia 
 (C. sih'qua) one of the pod-bearing {Lcgummiferce) family of plants. 
 The tree is a native of Palestine, and is abundant both there and on 
 the northern shores and islands of the Mediterranean. It is evergreen 
 and yields pods which, from their resemblance to a horn {keras), give 
 their name to the tree. 
 
 The husks which are still used to feed swine, were formerly much 
 more in request for that purpose than they are now, though in JIalta, 
 in Spain, and Italy, they continue to be given to swine and cattle. In 
 times of scai'city they are eaten even by men. The full-grown pod some- 
 times reaches ten inches in length, and nearly two inches in breadth. 
 In Turkey they are given to camels, under the name Camels' bread. 
 They are also known as Locust-beans, and as St. John's bread. 
 
 The lesson of forgiveness here (xvii.) pressed on the disciples, awoke 
 in them a deep feeling of helplessness even as to this homely duty. To
 
 584 131DL1CAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 forgive a penitent brother as often as lie came confessing that in injur- 
 ing them he had done wrong, demanded attainments in spiritual life 
 far ahead of anything they could lay claim to. Thus the cry — " Lord, 
 increase our faith." " And the Lord said, If ve had faith as a ffrain of 
 mustard-seed, ye might say unto this sycamine-tree, Be thou plucked 
 
 Fig. 182. 
 
 l*oils of Klianib Tree. 
 
 up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea ; and it should obey 
 you" (xvii. 6). 
 
 " Sycamine-tree," Gr. sycaminos, one of the mulberry-trees. Some 
 plead for the sycamore (Ficus sycomorus) as the tree referred to in this 
 passage. Had the sycamine been identical with the sycamore, it is not 
 the least likely that Luke would have named the former sycaminos in 
 this verse, and yet have given another distinctive name to the latter, 
 sycomoiia, in chap. xix. 4. That he did so, indicates very clearly that 
 he regarded them as specifically distinct. Besides, the black mulberry 
 {Moms nigra) is to this day known in the Levant as the sycamenia. 
 The mulberry-tree is noticed under 2 Sam. v. 23 — which see. 
 
 It was customary to plant rows of sycamore trees by the road-side. 
 Zaccheus was eagerly anxious to see Jesus in his passage from Jericho 
 to Jerusalem. " And he ran before, and climbed up into a sycamore- 
 tree to see him : for he was to pass that way. And when Jesus came 
 to the place, he looked up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zaccheus, 
 make haste, and come down ; for to-day I must abide at thy liouse. 
 And he made haste, and came down, and received him joyfully" 
 (xix. 4-6). The tree named here was not, as some have alleged, the 
 eastern plane-tree, but the so-called Pharaoh's fig (Ficus sycomoi-ns), 
 thus named from its abundance in Egypt. Its botanical place and its 
 uses have been pointed out under 1 Kings x. 27, and Amos vii. 14. 
 "This tree was a tree of the plain — chiefly of the plain of the sea- 
 coast — also, as we know by one celebrated instance, in the plain of
 
 ST. LUKE. 
 
 585 
 
 Jericho. As Jericho derived its name from the palms, so did Syca- 
 niinopolis — the modern Caipha — from the groves of sycamores, some of 
 which still remain in its neiglibourhood." — [Stanleij) " That noble 
 tree before us, with giant arms low down and wide open, must be the 
 
 Syrian sycamore Nothing is easier than to climb into these 
 
 sycamores ; and, in fact, here is a score of boys and girls in this one ; 
 and as its giant arms stretch quite across the road, those in them can 
 look directly down on any crowd passing beneath. It is admirably 
 adapted for the purpose for which Zaccheus selected it." — (Tliomson.) 
 
 "And he said, I tell thee, Peter, the cock shall not crow this day, 
 before that thou shalt thrice deny that thou knowest me" (xxii. 34i. 
 In ]\Iark's gospel the words are : — " Verily I say unto thee, that this 
 day, even in this night, before the cock crow twice, thou shalt deny me 
 thrice" (xiv. 30). The times of cock-crowing were, first, near midnight ; 
 and second, a few hours later. " This day" includes the whole twenty- 
 four hours; and Mark's statement, "in this night," has reference to 
 that portion of the twenty-four hours associated with darkness. 
 " Domestic cock" {Galbis Banlcivus) — see Plate XXVI., fig. 2, 
 
 Fig. 1R.3. 
 
 Tbe Jordan. 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 4 B
 
 58G 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 ST. JOHN. 
 
 HE Baptist had pointed out Jesus to his disciples as the 
 antitype to whom the paschal feast had been j^ointing ever 
 since "the night to be remembered," on which Israel 
 came up out of Egypt — •" Behold the Lamb of God, 
 '•frT"' '•'■ wliich taketh away the sin of the world" (i. 29). Inocu- 
 y c^ lative power accompanied the words. Some of them followed 
 Jesus. One of these was Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter. 
 So soon as his own heart was touched, he brouglit Peter to the 
 Lord. Jesus himself the next day met Philip, and spake to him 
 *^ the influential words of life, " Follow me." " Philip was of Bethsaida, 
 the city of Andrew and Peter" (ver. 44). " Bethsaida," or House of 
 fish, lay on the western shore of the sea of Galilee, not far from Caper- 
 naum. There was another town of the same name in Gaulonitis on 
 the eastern shore, distinguished as " Bethsaida Julias;" compare Mark 
 vi. 31-53 with Luke ix. 10-17). 
 
 " Marvel not that I said unto thee. Ye must be born again. The wind 
 (fbpneumd) bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, 
 but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth : so is every 
 one that is born of the Spirit" (iii. 7, 8). Though modern meteorological 
 science has explained many atmospheric phenomena hitherto mysterious, 
 it has not Interfered with the deep significance of the figure used here. 
 On the contrary, it has set this verse before us in even more interest- 
 ins: lidits. Tlie laws which storms follow have been determined with 
 considerable exactness ; but the meteorologist still meets innumerable 
 instances in which premonitory symptoms are not followed by the 
 action of these laws. But even if this science, as yet only in infiincy, 
 were to reach a point at which symptoms of changes were unfailingly 
 followed by changes, and distinct warnings could be given of every 
 approaching storm, these words spoken nearly two thousand years ago, 
 would still testify to the same truth. There will still be hidden, in 
 depths into which man cannot penetrate, the power by which the causes 
 are controlled which lead to the Avind's "coming," and which deter- 
 mine its "going." The chief point, indeed, in the figure is just this — 
 the " new birth," the regeneration of the soul in the image of God,
 
 c 
 
 Cl 
 
 r
 
 ST. JOHN. 587 
 
 is not hidden as to its effects, its fruits. But as the work throughout 
 of a supernatural One — the Holy Spirit of God — there are many things 
 about it which flesh and blood can never understand. I prefer the 
 common rendering of verse 8 to that which gives the clause thus — 
 "The Spirit bloweth where he willeth." The power of the comparison 
 is lost in this translation. 
 
 John was baptizing in /Enon near to Salim, because there was much 
 water there. " Much water," literall}-, " many streams." 
 
 The common people had heard him gladly. He was now in an 
 unfrequented and secluded place on the eastern side of the sea of 
 Galilee. Luke informs us that " he went privately into a desert place 
 belonging to a city called Bethsaida" (ix. 10). ]\Iark, referring to the 
 same time and circumstances, says that when they were on the western 
 side of the sea, Jesus addressed them, saying — " Come ye yourselves 
 apart into a desert place, and rest awhile." And he adds — "They 
 departed into a desert place by ship privately" (vi. 31, 32). Thus we 
 can trace them to the wilderness on the north-east of the hike of 
 Tiberias, and south of Bethsaida Julias. Luke also tells us that " the 
 people followed him, that he received them, and spake unto them of 
 the kingdom of God." The multitudes appear to have chiefly been of 
 the common people, one of whom had taken with him barley bread 
 (vi. 9) as a supply for himself and some friend. The barley loaf was 
 used chiefly by the poorer and industrious classes. The bread of the 
 rich was made from wheaten flour. See under Ruth i. 22, ii. 4 ; and 
 Ezekiel iv. 12. 
 
 The Lord in his sovereignty chose the five barley loaves as the basis, 
 as it were, of the miracle. The result is before us. The people were 
 completely satisfied, and twelve baskets were filled with the fragments, 
 "which remained over and above unto them that had eaten." Like 
 the lad's loaves the fiire provided by the miracle was of the homeliest 
 kind, but it was that which constituted the chief article of bread diet 
 of the people whose w-ants he had thus satisfied. In 2 Kings iv. 42-44, 
 we meet with the Spirit of Jesus enabling Elisha, in circumstances 
 suggestive of those described here, by a miracle to feed a hundred 
 men — " And there came a man from Baal-shalisha, and brought the 
 man of God bread of the first-fruits, twenty loaves of barley, and full 
 ears of corn in the husk thereof: and he said, Give unto the people, 
 that they may cat. And his servitor said, "What ! should I set this 
 before an hundred men ? He said again, Give the people, that they' 
 may eat : for thus saith the Lord, Tliey shall eat, and shall leave
 
 588 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 thereof. So he set it before them, and they did eat, and left thereof, 
 according to the word of the Lord." In this case, equally as iu the 
 mii-acle of our Lord, the manner of the miracle is hidden. We see the 
 loaves, we listen to the commanding word of the prophet, " Thus saith 
 the Lord," or we realize what is implied in the expression regarding 
 Jesus, that " when he had given thanks" he distributed the loaves to 
 the people; but we are left in complete ignorance of the mode in which 
 the five loaves were so increased as to be able to supply five thousand, 
 or how Elisha's loaves and ears of corn so multiplied as to be able to 
 satisfy a hundred men. 
 
 " An analogy has been found in this miracle, and as it were an help 
 to the understanding of it, in that which year by year is accomplished 
 in the corn-field, when a single grain of corn cast into the earth multi- 
 plies itself, and in the end unfolds in numerous ears; and with allusion 
 to this analogy many beautiful remarks have been made — as this, that 
 while God's every-day miracles had grown cheap in men's sight by 
 continual repetition, he had therefore reserved something, not more 
 wonderful, but less frequent, to arouse men's minds to a new admiration. 
 Others have urged that here, as in the case of the water made wine, he 
 did but compress into a single moment all those processes which in 
 ordinary circumstances he, the same Lord of nature, causes more 
 slowly to follow one another. But, true as in its measure is this last 
 observation, it must not be forgotten that the analogy does not reach 
 through and through. For that other work in the field is the unfolding 
 of the seed according to the law of its own being. Thus, had the Lord 
 taken a few grains of corn and cast them into the ground, and, if a 
 moment after, a large harvest had sprung up, to this the name of such 
 a ' divinely-hastened process' might have been fitly applied. But with 
 bread it is otherwise, since before that is made, there must be new 
 interpositions of man's art, and those of such a nature as that by them 
 the very life, which hitherto unfolded itself, must be crushed and 
 destroyed. A grain of wheat could never by itself, and according to 
 the laws of its natural development, issue in a loaf of bread. And, 
 moreover, the Lord does not start from the simple germ, from the 
 lifeful rudiments, in which all the seeds of a future life might be sup- 
 posed to be wrapt up, and by him rapidly developed, but with the 
 latest artificial result. One can conceive how the oak is enfolded in the 
 acorn, but not how it could be said to be wrapped up in the piece of 
 timber hewn and shaped from itself This analogy then, even as such, 
 is not satisfying; and renouncing all helps of this kind, we must
 
 ST. JOHN. 589 
 
 simply behold in this nmltiplyiug of the bread an act of divine onnii- 
 potence on his part who was the \yord of God — not indeed now, as at 
 the first, of absolute creation out of nothing, since there was a sub- 
 stratum to work on in the original loaves and fishes, but an act of 
 creative accretion; the bread growing under his hands, so that from that 
 little stock all the multitude were abundantly supplied : ' they did all 
 eat and were filled.'" — {Trench) 
 
 Chapter x. 1-18. — The Lord's standing as the only Redeemer 
 and shepherd of " the flock of God," the ready response to him of 
 all who are divinely set to care for the sheep, the violence of 
 intruders, the danger of the flock, the heartlessness of those who, 
 like Eli's sons, have assumed the pastoral oSice for a bit of bread, 
 Christ's position as the true door into the fold, his devotion to the 
 flock in laying down his life, the ready obedience of the sheep to 
 him, and their eternal safety as in his hands, are all set touchingly 
 before us in this chapter. Every traveller bears testimony to the 
 truthfulness of the picture to scenes which may yet be witnessed in 
 parts of Syria where the wolf {Canis lupus) abounds. " Owing to 
 the wild wadies covered with dense forests of oak and underwood, the 
 country above us has ever been a favourite range for sheep and goats. 
 Those low, flat buildings out on the sheltered side of the valley are 
 sheepfolds. They are called marah, and, when the nights are cold, the 
 flocks are shut up in them, but in ordinary weather they are merely 
 kept within the yard. This, yon observe, is defended by a wide stone 
 wall, crowned all around with sharp thorns, which the prowling wolf 
 will rarely attempt to scale. The nimer, however, and fahed — the 
 leopard and panther of this country — when pressed with hunger, will 
 overleap this thorny hedge, and with one tremendous bound land among 
 the frightened fold. Then is the time to try the nerve and heart of the 
 faithful shepherd. These humble types of him who leadeth Joseph 
 like a flock never leave their helpless charge alone, but accompany 
 them by day, and abide with them at night. As spring advances, they 
 will move higher up to other maridis and greener ranges ; and in the 
 hot months of summer they sleep with their flocks on the cool heights 
 of the mountains, with no other protection than a stout palisade of 
 tangled thorn-bushes. Nothing can be more romantic. Oriental, and 
 even Biblical, than this shepherd life far away among the sublime 
 solitudes of goodly Lebanon. Indeed, I never ride over these hills, 
 clothed with flocks, without meditating upon this delightful theme. 
 Our Saviour says that the good shepherd, when he putteth forth his 
 
 J
 
 590 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 own sheep, goeth before them, and they follow. This is true to the 
 letter. They are so tame and so trained tliat they foUoio their keeper 
 with the utmost docility. He l^ds them forth from the fold, or from 
 their houses in the villages, just where he pleases. As there are many 
 flocks in such a place as this, each one takes a different path, and it is 
 his business to find pasture for them. It is necessary, therefore, that 
 they should be taught to follow, and not to stray away into the unfenced 
 fields of corn which lie so temptingly on either side. Any one that 
 thus wanders is sure to get into trouble. The shejjherd calls sharply 
 i'rom time to time to remind them of his presence. They know his 
 A'oice, and follow on ; but, if a stranger call, thej^ stop short, lift up 
 their heads in alarm, and, if it is repeated, they turn and flee, because 
 they know not the voice of a stranger. This is not the fiiuciful costume 
 of a parable; it is simple fact. I have made the experiment repeatedly. 
 The shepherd goes before, not merely to point out the way, but to see 
 that it is practicalile and safe. Some sheep always keep near the 
 shepherd, and are his special favourites. Each of them has a name, to 
 which it answers joyfully ; and the kind shepherd is ever distributing 
 to such choice portions which he gathers for that purpose." — {Thomson) 
 
 " Behold, thy king cometh," cried Zechariah (ix. 9) as he pointed 
 the men of his day to the purpose of God in the manifestation of the 
 Messiah. Here the same Spirit who spoke by the prophet, fitted the 
 people "that were come to the feast" for welcoming Jesus as the royal 
 one. " They took branches of palm-trees, and went forth to meet him, 
 and cried, Hosanna : Blessed is the king of Israel that cometh in the 
 name of the Lord" (xii. 13). The "branches" named were the long 
 feathery leaves of the date palm {Phoenix dactijlifera), which has been 
 specially noticed under Exod. xv. 27. 
 
 This incident might at first seem to imply, that the date palm 
 was much more plentiful in the neighbourhood of Jerusalem at that 
 time than it is now. But both the climate, its position among the 
 hills, and the character of its soil, make it little likely that the date 
 palm was ever very abundant there. Attempts to make out that this 
 tree must have once abounded near the Holy City, leave out of view 
 the fact, that multitudes who came up to the feast may have carried 
 with them the palm-branches from localities in which they flourished 
 luxuriantly. It was thus that in olden times the British pilgrim to 
 Palestine obtained the name of Fahncr from the palm-leaves which he 
 brought back with him from Judea, as proofs that he had visited that 
 renowned land. Shaw says — " At Jerusalem, Sichem, and other places
 
 to tlie northward, I rarely saw above two or three palms together : and 
 even these, as their fruit rarely or ever comes to maturity, arc of no 
 further service than (like the palm-tree of Deborah) to shade the 
 retreats or sanctuaries .of their slieikhs, as they might formerly have 
 been sufficient to supply the solemn processions with branches. From 
 the present condition and quality therefore of the palm-trees, it is very 
 probable that they could never be either numerous or fruitful" (vol. ii. 
 152). The scarcity of these trees, in a land in whose history so many 
 references to them occur, strikes travellers still. Many passages m.ight 
 be quoted from recent works regarding the solitary palm-tree which 
 is occasionally met with in the land. The Jews who visited Jerusalem 
 at this feast-time were gathered from great distances, and knowing the 
 scarcity of this symbol of joy and victory in the neighbourhood of 
 Jerusalem, they would be sure to carry the branches with them to the 
 city of the great King. The list preserved in Acts ii. 9-11, indi- 
 cates that they came from localities in which the date-tree flourished 
 luxuriantly and abundantly. They were " Parthians, and Medes, and 
 Elamites, and the dwellers in jMesopotamia, and in Judea, and Cappa- 
 docia, in Pontus, and Asia, Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in 
 the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and 
 proselytes, Cretes, and Arabians." 
 
 " Now there was leaning on Jesus' bosom one of his disciples 
 whom Jesus loved" (xiii. 23). " Leaning:" this is the same verb as is 
 rendered "sat at meat" (IMark ii. 15), "as they sat" (]\Iark xiv. 18), 
 and " lay" (Mark i. 38). It strictly means " reclining," in allusion to 
 the eastern posture at meals. See Plate XL I. 
 
 The necessity of vital union with Christ in order to a life for him in 
 the midst of the world's sorrows, temptations, and persecutions, and to 
 cherishing the good hope of heaven, is set down in the parable of the 
 vine and its branches (xv. 1-10). A distinction is drawn between two 
 kinds of branches — those really in the vine, and those only apparently 
 so. The former represent all whose profession is the fruit of indwell- 
 ing spiritual life enjoyed in Christ ; the latter, all whose profession 
 results from the imitation of Christians, and not from the life of Christ. 
 The theme is set in yet more significant aspects in the next two chapters. 
 
 Jesus " bearing his cross went forth into a place called the place of 
 a skull, which is called in the Hebrew, Golgotha; where they crucified 
 him, and two other with him, on either side one, and Jesus in the 
 midst. And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross. And the 
 writing was, Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews. This title
 
 592 BEBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 then read many of the Jews; for the place where Jesus was crucified was 
 nigh to the city ; and it was written in Hebrew, and Greek, and Latin" 
 (xix. 17-20). Death by tlic "cross" was a Roman mode of capital punish- 
 ment. It was formally abolished by Constantine. The cross was 
 originally a broad stake, to which the murderer or the thief was bound. 
 It came, however, to assume different forms, as, for example, that in 
 which two beams of equal length crossed each other in the middle, each 
 having its lower end fixed in the ground. This was the crux decussaia 
 of ancient authors. The crux commissa, again, consisted of an upright 
 stake with a cross beam or transom fastened on the top. The crux 
 immissa was the form on which our blessed Lord was crucified. It 
 consisted, like the last named, of a strong upright stake, with the 
 transom so fastened tliat a considerable part of the stake rose above it. 
 This is the typical Latin cross. On the projecting part of the upright 
 beam the "title" or "accusation" was written, containing the name, 
 address, and crime of tlie culprit. This fact, taken into account with 
 the very earliest figures of the cross on coins and over the dead, has 
 led to the conclusion that the cross raised on Calvary was of this shape. 
 See Plate XL., fig. 1. 
 
 Reference has already been made to myrrh and aloes (xix. 39). 
 The former spice has been identified under Psalm xlv. 8; and the aloes 
 noticed in the Old Testament scriptures has been considered under the 
 same passage, and also under Numbers xxiv. G. The purpose for 
 which the produce of the aloe-tree is used here, is suggestive of another 
 plant than that referred to in these passages, as the " eaglewood-tree," 
 Aquilaria agallnchum of botanists, a native of Southern Asia. But 
 while this is so, it is most likely both kinds were present here. Indeed, 
 such is known to have been the case in "the Jews' manner of burial." 
 Both may be more fully noticed in illustration of this verse. 
 
 The Egyptians used aloes in the process of embalming. This was an 
 exudation from the Socotrine aloe {Aloe Socotrina), so named from Soco- 
 tra, an island in the Red Sea. It belongs to the natural order Liliacea:. 
 It gruws five or six feet higli, with leaves of a bright green colour, and 
 flowers of scarlet, white, and green. The bitter aloes of commerce is 
 the produce of several species obtained in different parts of the world. 
 The Jewish manner of burial was to lay the dead body in spices, with- 
 out, however, cutting it in any way, as was done by the Egyptians in 
 embalming. Thus Asa (2 Chron. xvi. l-i) was laid in a "bed of spices" 
 when he was buried "in the sepulchre which he had made for himself 
 in tlie city of David." So here with our Lord's body — "it was wound
 
 VLATK 7/ 
 
 DrAvn and otched by Tliuinns Laiidsecr. fnun the Sacrament of Poussia. 
 
 .0«. CDilluKCN. tONDON » llfW-fOIIK
 
 ST. JOHN. 
 
 593 
 
 iu linen clothes." As tlie spices gave their flavour to the body, the 
 pungent myrrh and the bitter aloe kept the crawling worm from the 
 
 Fig. 184. 
 
 corpse. Decay was not hastened by the 
 worm. Dissolution was gradual, and dissoci- 
 ated from much which in all ages has linked an 
 unpleasant idea with the process by which the 
 body returns to its kindred dust. 
 
 To the aloe, usually so called, was often 
 added the produce of the sweet-scented Aqui- 
 laria — the lign-aloes of Numbers xxiv. 6. This 
 was used as a precious perfume — " I have per- 
 fumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinna- 
 mon," said the strange woman. This is the 
 attar of aloes, an oily perfume obtained from 
 decayed parts of the trunk and branches of the 
 Aqm'laria, which sells for its weight in gold. 
 It secretes in veins of the wood, which become 
 dark-coloured. These are cut out, bruised, 
 steeped in water for a time, and distilled. The product is aloe perfume. 
 
 ^•- 
 
 Socotrine Aloe. 
 
 Fig. 185. 
 
 Otilhbciuaue, 
 
 VOL. U. 
 
 4f
 
 594 BIRLICAL NATUUAL SCIENCE. 
 
 ACTS. 
 
 N the account of the remarkable outpouring of the Holy Spirit 
 on the day of Pentecost, Rome (ii.' 10) is named as one of the 
 localities whence strangers had come to Jerusalem — see Plate 
 XLIIL, for View of Ancient Eome. 
 J The disciples were called Christians first in Antioch" (xi. 27). 
 The city thus distinguished w'as the Syrian city of that name, 
 situated mainly on the left bank of the Oroutes, in the region where 
 the chains of Taurus and Lebanon meet. It was founded about B.C. 
 300, by Seleucus, one of the captains of Alexander, who named the 
 city after his father Antioclius. Antioch became the capital of Syria 
 during the rule of the Selcucidte, which continued more than two 
 hundred years. It was a magnificent city, had at one time more than 
 five hundred thousand inhabitants, and exerted a powerful influence on 
 surrounding states. The situation was peculiarly favourable as a centre 
 for Christian action. On this account it was much cared for by the 
 apostles, and Christianity very soon began to assume the importance of 
 a powerful and highly influential creed in the eyes of its inhabitants. 
 The light has left it. Its inhabitants sit in moral darkness, and amidst 
 ruins. The city itself is little better than a collection of miserable 
 hovels. 
 
 "Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was stirred 
 in him, when he saw the city wholly given to idolatry. Therefore 
 disputed he in the synagogue with the Jews, and with the devout per- 
 sons, and in the market daily with them that met with him. Then certain 
 philosophers of the Epicureans and of the Stoics encountered him. 
 And some said. What will this babbler say ? other some. He seemeth 
 to be a setter forth of strange gods : because he preached unto them 
 Jesus, and the resurrection. And they took him, and brought him 
 unto Areopagus, saying, May we know what this new doctrine, whereof 
 thou speakest, is? For thou bringest certain strange things to our 
 ears : we would know therefore Avhat these things mean. (For all the 
 Athenians, and strangers which were there, spent their time in nothing 
 else, but either to tell, or to hear some new thing.) Then Paul stood 
 in the midst of Mars-hill, and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that
 
 ACTS. 
 
 595 
 
 in all things ye are too superstitious. For as I passed by, and beheld 
 your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, To the Unknown 
 God. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you. 
 God, that made the world, and all things therein, seeing that he is 
 Lord of heaven and earth, dwellcth not in temples made with hands ; 
 neither is worshipped with men's liands, as though he needed any thing, 
 seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things ; and hath made 
 of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, 
 and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of 
 
 Fig. 186. 
 
 Fig. 187. 
 
 Circassian. 
 
 riiinosp. 
 
 their habitation ; that tliey should seek the Lord, if haply they might 
 feel after him, and find him, though he be not for from every one of us" 
 (xvii. lG-27). The discourse touches on questions of greatest interest. 
 The one-blood relationship of all the tribes " on all the face of the 
 earth," chiefly claims our attention. Paul reached Athens about 
 A.D. 52. While he waited for Silas and Timothy, his spirit was deeply 
 moved as he witnessed the gross idolatry of the people. Li Athens 
 especially he would meet with all those forms of sin which he after- 
 wards set forth in the terrible picture of Romans i. 21-23. The aspects 
 of Athenian morality with which, in his preaching in Athens, he sought
 
 596 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL fiCIENCK. 
 
 to deal, were idolatry, licentiousness, materialism, and highly-developed 
 religious feeling of a sort. 
 
 As he passed from the Piraeus to the Agora, or market-place, the 
 heart of the city, lying in the valley formed by the three noted hills, the 
 Areopagus, Pnyx, Acropolis, and Musajum, ho would soon see that the 
 Athenians were, indeed, utterly given to idolatry. Images of the gods 
 stood out in niches in the walls, at the corners of the streets, in all 
 public places. Genius, no doubt, working by the cunning hand of art, 
 had in these given material expression and permanence to ideal strength, 
 or wisdom, or beauty, but they nevertheless told to him the sad tale 
 
 Materialism and sensual- 
 
 of the ignorance of the living and true God 
 
 Fig. 188. 
 
 Fig 189. 
 
 American Indian. 
 
 Malay. 
 
 ism were wedded to Athenian pride ; and evidences of impurity and 
 practical atheism would not unfrequently be seen in forms that could 
 not be named. Slavery, too, assumed aspects of the most debasing 
 and brutalizing kind. That there were many labouring after something 
 higher, could not be doubted. Their very progress in art, their great 
 intellectual culture, quickened all those sentiments which lie on the 
 threshold of conscience, thereby throwing their influence over it. In 
 order to get rest, the people multiplied the numbers of their idols, of 
 their feast days, and temple services. But in vain ! Conscience still 
 craved, the heart still hungered, the wliole spiritual nature was still
 
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 ACTS. 
 
 >97 
 
 weary, and in their efforts to get peace, to break for ever this terrible 
 unrest, tliey raised an altar to the Unknown God. To meet all this, 
 Paul preached unto them Jesus and the resurrection. He spoke of 
 Jesus as the Creator, the Redeemer, the Judge, and of the resurrection 
 from the dead as a certainty. The leading and influential thoughts are 
 — man the child of God, all men brethren, all men sinners and needing a 
 Saviour, Jesus that Saviour, responsibility for belief, a final judgment, 
 and the resurrection of the body in order to this. 
 
 All men are brethren, because all are of one blood — the same nature 
 (ver. 20). The unity of origin of all the varieties of mankind is thus 
 clearly taught in this expression, if we associate it with Genesis ii. 21, 
 
 Fig. 191. 
 
 Negro. 
 
 Caffro. 
 
 25, and Matthew xix. 4-9. This subject continues to be nuich dis- 
 cussed. Its antagonism to the scheme of grace has been already 
 pointed out in the review of the theory of pre-Adamite men. It may 
 be safely affirmed, that while many matters connected with it still wait 
 for scientific explanation, the very highest researches in anatomy, 
 ethnology, and language, go directly to corroborate what is generally 
 believed to be the biblical view of this important question. The argu- 
 ment from language is noticed under Genesis xi. The cuts given above 
 indicate the typical features of each of the five sections proposed by 
 Blumerbach ("De Generis Humani Varietate nativa," 1795). These 
 comprise three principal varieties, namely, the Caucasian, the Ethiopian,
 
 598 
 
 BIBLICAL NATUUAL SCIENCE. 
 
 ami the Mongul. Subordinate to these are two intermediate varieties, 
 through wliich the extreme types are linked with the Caucasian or 
 Iranian. Thus the Malay comes between the Caucasian and the Negro ; 
 the American indian links tlie former with the other extreme, the 
 Mongul. The Caffrc is represented along with the Negro, to indicate 
 widely-different varieties of the Ethiopian tribe. Blumenbach's classifi- 
 cation is based — 1st, on the form of the skull ; and 2nd, on the colour 
 of the skin, hair, and eyes. It is not asserted that this scheme is free 
 from very many objections. This notice of it as illustrative of verse 
 26, is introduced with the view of suggesting to the reader some of the 
 links through which those family varieties run. 
 
 Paul preached to the Athenians the resurrection. In another place 
 (1 Cor. XV.) he argues this question very fully, and grounds his hope 
 on the resurrection of Christ — a fact as fully corroborated as any other 
 stated in history. There is nothing in nature from which we can learn 
 this grand doctrine and glorious hope. It must be revealed. It lias 
 been so, to the unspeakable comfort of all who have hope in Christ. 
 Appeals have been made to facts in organic chemistry, with the view 
 of estaljlishing an argument from analogy for the resurrection, but these 
 are only partially illustrative, and fall far below even the natural 
 phenomena referred to by Paul in his epistles. 
 
 Fig. 102. 
 
 Athens. 
 
 " Syracuse" (xxviii. 12), the capital of ancient Sicily — see Plate 
 XLIL, figs. 3, 4.
 
 
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 PAULINE EPISTLES. 590 
 
 PAULINE EPISTLES. 
 
 SRAEL had been rejected because of their unbelief, und Israel's 
 blessings were given to the Gentiles. But the casting off was 
 not universal. Paul himself, of the seed of Abraham, of the 
 tribe of Benjamin, was a notable proof of this (Rom. xi. 1). 
 The Jews had stumbled and fallen. They believed that per- 
 fection was in the Mosaic system, and refused to hearken to 
 the voice of him who was the fulfilling of all that had gone before. 
 The Gentiles had heard and had obeyed. They were consequently 
 admitted to the full enjoyment of those privileges which the Jews had 
 forfeited. Lest they should be uplifted above measure and pass into 
 that high-mindedness and spiritual pride into which Israel had fallen, 
 the apostle sets before them their true relation to the Jews in 
 verses 11-15, and urges on them strong cautions against self- 
 righteousness. "If," he says, "the casting away of Israel was the 
 reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but life 
 from the dead." They are now rejected, but glorious promises still 
 cluster around them. They are again to be restored. He then con- 
 tinues (ver. 16-24) — " For if the first-fruit be holy, the lump is also 
 holy ; and if the root be holy, so are the branches. And if some of the 
 branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive-tree, wert graffed 
 in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the 
 olive-tree ; boast not against the branches : but if thou boast, thou 
 bearest not the root, but the root thee. Thou wilt say then, Tlie 
 branches were broken off, that I might be graffed in. Well ; because 
 of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by foith. Be not 
 high-minded, but fear : for if God spared not the natural branches, 
 take heed lest he also spare not thee. Behold therefore tlie goodness 
 and severity of God : on them which fell, severity ; but toward thee, 
 goodness, if thou continue in his goodness ; otherwise thou also shalt 
 be cut off. And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be 
 graffed in : for God is able to graff them in again. For if thou wert 
 cut out of the olive-tree, which is wild by nature, and wert graffed 
 contrary to nature into a good olive-tree ; how much more shall these 
 which be the natural branches, be graffed into their own olive-tree?"
 
 coo 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 A glauce at almost any even of the most trustworthy and judicious 
 commentaries on tliis passage, is sufficient to show how distrustful their 
 authors are of their ground in looking at the main points of the chief 
 figure here, the grafting of the wild branch on the cultivated stock. 
 " It has sometimes been remarked," says Haldane, " that there is no 
 grafting in the olive-tree. But this makes no difference. The illus- 
 Fig. 103. tration from the process of 
 
 grafting is the same, whether 
 the operation be performed in 
 the particular tree mentioned 
 or not." "The Jewish church," 
 says Hodge, "is compared to 
 the olive-tree, one of the most 
 durable, productive, and valu- 
 able of the productions of 
 the earth, because it was 
 highly fovoured, and therefore 
 valued in the sight of God. 
 The Gentiles are compared to 
 the wild olive, one of the 
 most worthless of trees, to 
 express the degradation of 
 their state, considered as 
 estranged from God. As it 
 is customary to ingraft good 
 scions on inferior stocks, the 
 nature of the product being 
 determined by the graft and 
 not the root, it has been 
 thought that the illustration 
 of the apostle is not very 
 apposite. But the difficulty 
 may result i'rom pressing the comparison too far. The idea may be 
 simply this, 'As the scion of one tree is ingrafted into another, and 
 has no independent life, but derives all its vigour from the root, so 
 the Gentiles are introduced among the people of God, not to confer 
 but to receive good,' It is however said, on the authority of ancient 
 writers and of modern travellers, to have been not unusual to graft 
 the wild on the cultivated olive." Others might be quoted. Now it is 
 not the least likely that Paul, who must have been intimately acquainted 
 
 ■\ViW nilre.
 
 PAULINE EPISTLKS. 601 
 
 with the whole method of treatment of the olive-tree, would have taken 
 the olive as a figure, if any other tree would have answered equally 
 well. Nor would he have used any illustration ^Thich was not apposite. 
 The key to the figure is to be found in verse 24, in the expression 
 "wert graffed contrary to nature." The drift of the argument is to 
 show how completely the Gentiles owed their newly acquired privileges 
 to the sovereign grace of God. Tlius, he says, it is natural to graft the 
 cultivated branch on the wild stock, the inserted branch in this case 
 gives its nature to the wild. It is neither natural nor useful to graft 
 the wild branch on the cultivated stock; yet God's dealings with the 
 Gentiles have been like this — contrary to nature, yet in grace over- 
 ruled for highest ends even to the Jew — "that they might be provoked 
 to emulation." 
 
 Light is shed on the figure of the root by a recent traveller. Resting 
 in one of the olive-groves on the road from Beirut to Damascus, he 
 asks — " Have all the trees in this vast grove been reclaimed from a 
 wild state by grafting? Certainly not. The apostle himself speaks of 
 the root of the good olive — implying that, by some means or other, it 
 had been changed. The jarocess by which this result is reached is 
 quite simple. You observe certain knobs, or large warts, so to speak, 
 on the body of this tree. Cut oiT one of these which has a branch 
 growing out of it, ahove the place where it has been grafted ; plant it 
 in good soil, water it carefully, and it will strike out roots and grow. 
 It is now a good tree from the root, and all scions taken from it are 
 also ' good by nature.' But if the knob, or branch, be taken below the 
 grafting, your tree comes wild again. The greater part of this grove 
 is now ' good ' from the root. I am told, however, by olive-growers, 
 that there is a tendency to degenerate, and that it is often a great 
 improvement to graft even a good tree with one that is still better." 
 
 When expounding the law of Christian liberty, and illustrating its 
 limits (L Cor. ix. 1), Paul puts forth his claim to the consideration of 
 the Corinthians on grounds which spring naturally out of the great 
 doctrine which he set before them in so many lights in the previous 
 chapter. That he had for Christ's sake become their servant, did not, 
 he protests, imply that he had relinquished personal liberty, or that 
 in any way he had shut himself out from the power of admonishing 
 them as to all duty. If he had not made these demands on their 
 worldly substance for the cause of Christ, and for his own support as 
 a minister of Christ, it was not, he says, from any want of a feeling of 
 complete right to do so. On the contrary he states the claim, and does 
 
 VOL. II. 4 G
 
 002 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 not at all feel laid under obligation, even should he hold by it until the 
 Corinthians acknowledged it — " If we have sown unto you spiritual 
 things, is it a great thing if we shall reap your carnal things?" (ver. 11.) 
 It is not: for " who goeth a warfare at any time on his own charges? 
 who plaiiteth a vineyard, and catcth not of the fruit thereof? or who 
 feedeth a flock, and eateth not of the milk of the flock? Say I these 
 things as a man? or saith not the law the same also? For it is written 
 in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that 
 treadeth out the corn. Doth God take care for oxen ? Or saith he it 
 altogether for our sakes? For our sakes no doubt" (ver. 7-10). The 
 quotation from the law of Moses is made from Deut. xxx. 4, where the 
 usual Hebrew word for ox (shor) is used. The Greek equivalent {bous) 
 occurs here. The text is one of many which indicate that deep spiritual 
 meaning lies in Old Testament words which, as first employed, seemed 
 to have relations only to very common earthly matters. In the Epistle 
 to Timothy the right which Paul claimed for himself and Barnabas is, 
 by special direction, made over to otliers. " Let the elders that rule 
 well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour 
 in the word and doctrine. For the Scripture saith, Thou shalt not 
 muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn. And, the labourer is worthy 
 of his hire" (1 Tim. v. 17, 18). With the Gentiles it seems to have 
 been otherwise in their dealings with the labouring yoke. But God 
 wished his people to differ, even as regards tlieir care of the oxen, and 
 under this simple illustration he brought them in contact with great 
 and vital truths. Where the Gentiles did not muzzle the patient oxen, 
 they appear to have permitted them to take the straw only. An 
 interesting proof of this was brought to light by the younger Cham- 
 poUion, in 1828. He found on an Egyptian monument, of very 
 ancient date, a picture of peasants engaged on the threshing-floor, 
 and, in hieroglyphics, the following song written over their heads : — 
 
 " Tread ye out for yourselves, 
 Tread ye out for yourselves, 
 
 O oxen ! 
 Tread ye out for yourselves, 
 Tread ye out for yourselves. 
 
 The straw ; 
 For men, who are your masters, 
 
 The grain. 
 
 " The Fellahs of the present day," says Gliddon, " sing in all their 
 agricultural occupations ; and the words of their simple melodies are
 
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 PAULINE EPISTLES. CO 
 
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 often identical in nature to the above ; while I have no doubt that the 
 air of the ancient chant of ' Maneros' is still preserved in the plaintive 
 notes of modern Egyptians." It is, however, more to our purpose to 
 find in this threshing-song, which may have been heard by Moses 
 himself, one reason for the command, " Thou shalt not muzzle the ox 
 that treadeth out the corn." 
 
 " For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have 
 tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy 
 Ghost, and have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the 
 world to come, if they shall fall away, to renew them again unto 
 repentance ; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, 
 and put him to an open shame. For the earth, which drinketh in the 
 rain that comcth oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them 
 by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God : but that which 
 beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing ; whose 
 end is to be burned. But, beloved, we are persuaded better things 
 of you, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak " 
 (Heb. vi. 4-9). By means of this striking figure, the apostle presents 
 very boldly before us the danger of neglecting privileges. Those who 
 receive line upon line of doctrine, and who stand in the midst of bless- 
 ings — hearkening to the former, enjoying the latter — are compared to 
 the earth, whose fruitfulness is the answer to the fertilizing rays of the 
 sun, the distilling of the dew, and the dropping of the clouds. It 
 answers the Creator's purpose, and thus receives blessing from God. 
 But those who as partakers of the same revelation, admitted to tlie 
 same privileges, and summoned to the enjoyment of the same hope, do 
 nevertheless meet all this with ingratitude or open sin, and bring forth 
 fruits to themselves, are likened to the well-watered earth whose only 
 return is briers and thorns. Its end is to be burned. This last thou2:ht 
 leads to the very earnest and heart-sprung cry — " Beloved, we are 
 persuaded better things of you."
 
 G04 
 
 B113LICAL NATUn.VL SClliNXC 
 
 THE REVELATION. 
 
 X tlic visions of God given to John in Patraos lie saw "a 
 tlirone set in lieaven." He that sat on it " was to look npon 
 like a jasjjcr and a sardine stone." "Jasper" (tasjm) — see 
 nnder Exod. xxviii. 17. "Sardine" {sa7xlmos) — see the same. 
 " There was a rainbow round about the tlirone, in sight like 
 unto an emerald (iv. 3). 
 " Emerald," lieb. ndpheli, Gr. smaragdlaos. This gem gave its 
 
 rich, soft green hue to the other colours of tlie rainbow, without 
 destroying their individuality. In nature this is sometimes seen. The 
 yellowish lustre of the jasper, and the blood-red tints of the sardine, 
 imply the presence here of other distinctive hues. 
 
 The finest emeralds are brought from Peru and Brazil. They are, 
 however, also to be met with in Egypt, where, it has been ascertained, 
 a regular trade was carried on in manufacturing them. "The immense
 
 emeralds," says Sir G. Wilkinson, " mentioned by ancient authors were 
 doubtless glass imitations of those precious stones. Such were the 
 colossal statue of Serapis in tlie Egyptian labyrinth, nine cubits, or 
 thirteen feet and a half, in height; an emerald presented by the king of 
 Babylon to an Egyjitian Pharaoh, which was four cubits, or six feet 
 long, and three cubits broad ; and an obelisk in the temple of Jupiter, 
 which was forty cubits, or sixty feet in height, and four cubits broad, 
 composed of four emeralds; and to have formed statues of glass of such 
 dimensions, even allowing them to have been of different pieces, was a 
 greater triumph of skill than imitating the stones. 
 
 " That the Egyptians, more than three thousand years ago, were 
 well acquainted not only with the manufacture of common glass for 
 beads and bottles of ordinary quality, but with the art of staining it of 
 divers colours, is sufficiently proved by the fragments found in the 
 tombs of Thebes ; and so skilful were they in this comi^licated process, 
 that they imitated the most fanciful devices, and succeeded in counter- 
 feiting the rich hues and brilliancy of precious stones. The green 
 emerald, the purple amethyst, and other expensive gems, were success- 
 fully imitated ; a necklace of false stones could be purchased at an 
 Egyptian jeweller's, to please the wearer, or deceive a stranger by the 
 appearance of reality ; and some mock pearls (found by me at Thebes) 
 have been so well counterfeited, that even now it is difficult to detect 
 the imposition. 
 
 "Pliny says the emerald was more easily counterfeited than any other 
 gem, and considers the art of imitating precious stones a far more 
 lucrative piece of deceit than any devised by the ingenuity of man. 
 Egypt was, as usual, the country most noted for this manufacture ; and 
 we can readily believe that in Pliny's time they succeeded so completely 
 in the imitation, as to render it 'difficult to distinguish the false from 
 real stones.' " 
 
 The emerald was the first precious stone in the second row of the 
 higli-prlest's breastplate (Exod. xxviii. 18, xxxix. 11). It was one 
 of tlie gems worn by the Tyrians in their clothing, and obtained by 
 them through Syria (Ezek. xxvii. 16, xxviii. 13). 
 
 Judgment was arrested until " the servants of God were sealed in 
 their foreheads " (vii. 3). As the seer gazed on the visions passing 
 before him, he sees " the multitude which no man could munber." 
 Their character as righteous through the righteousness of Christ, the 
 Lamb, is brought out by a simple figure — " They were clothed with 
 white robes." Their condition is as simply and as briefly indicated —
 
 " Tliey had palms in tlicir hands." The leaves of the date palm 
 {Phoenix dactylifera) were used as symbols of gladness after victory. 
 "With these Israel was commanded to cover their booths in that 
 most joyful of all their feasts, the feast of tabernacles, when they were 
 to 'rejoice before the Lord seven days' (Lev. xxiii. 40). With the 
 figures of these the gold of 'the holiest' was carved (1 Kings vi. 29), 
 and the ' wall of the house round about ' (2 Kings vi. 29), and 'the two 
 doors' of the temple (2 Kings vi. 32), and 'the ledges and borders of 
 the bases' (2 Kings vii. 3G), and the golden 'ceiling of the greater 
 house' (2 Chron. iii. 5). On all parts of Ezekiel's temple, which is in 
 reserve for the day of Israel's glory, the palm-tree is seen — on the 
 'posts' (xl. 16), on the southern gate (xl. 2G), on the eastern gate 
 (xl. 34), on the northern gate (xl. 37), on the doors and windows every- 
 where (xli. 18, 19, 20, 25, 26). For great and marvellous Avill be the 
 triumph of that day. It was ' branches of palms ' that the people took, 
 when bidding welcome to the King of Zion (John xii. 13). And witli 
 this same emblem the triumphant multitude appears — ' I beheld, and 
 lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and 
 kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the tlirone and before 
 the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands.'" 
 See under Exod. xv. 27, and John xii. 13. 
 
 The visions of the resurrection and the great day of judgment pass 
 away from the rapt gaze of the seer. The new heavens and the new 
 earth are fully realized. John hears a great voice out of heaven pro- 
 claiming — -" Behold the tabernacle of God is with men." He is then 
 taken to get a full view of " tlie bride, the Lamb's wife :" — "And he 
 carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and 
 showed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of 
 heaven from God, having the glory of God : and her light was like 
 unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper-stone, clear as crystal " 
 (xxi. 10, 11). The glory of the foundations, walls, and gates of the 
 holy city, are then described: — "And the building of the wall of it was 
 of jasper : and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass. And the 
 foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner 
 of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper ; the second, 
 sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald; the fifth, 
 sardonyx ; the sixth, sardius ; the seventh, chrysolite ; the eighth, 
 beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus ; the eleventh, 
 a jacinth ; the twelfth, an amethyst. And the twelve gates were 
 twelve pearls ; every several gate was of one pearl : and the street
 
 Tllli REVELATION. 
 
 607 
 
 of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass" (ver. 18-21). 
 Most of the precious stones mentioned in Scripture have been noticed 
 under Gen. ii. 12; Exod. xxiv. 10; xxviii. 17, 18; Lam. iv. 7; and 
 Rev. iv. 3 — whicli see. The " crystal named in verse 11 was no doubt 
 pure rock crystal, or perfectly transparent quartz, with hues like the 
 finest jasper. The original meaning of the Greek hnjstallos was ice, 
 and the popular Ijelief regarded rock crystal as water Fig.195. 
 
 permanently frozen. In verse 19 the third foundation 
 is stated to have been " a chalcedony " (Gen. ii. 12). 
 The absence of agate from this list might lead us to » / «v 
 
 expect some reference to it under another name. 
 Chalcedony proper is a translucent, highly crystalline 
 variety of quartz, generally of a yellowish grey colour. 
 Some of the finest have different shades of yellow, laid 
 down in bands, as shown in fig. 193. Many-coloured 
 chalcedonies are known as agates. The oriental ''i<=>''"u«i cbakedony. 
 agate is in colour milk-white, tinged with yellow, and generally in 
 structure like the accompanying cut. When the second colouring 
 matter is orange, the stone is named sardonyx, when green it becomes 
 a chrysoprasus, when a dash of red is laid on the ground hue it is 
 called sardiiis. The "chrysolite" may be best understood if it be 
 likened to the highly crystallized variety of quartz knowTi generally in 
 Britain as " cairngorum." 
 
 The twelve gates were twelve pearls. " The pearl," Heb. ydvish, 
 Gr. viaryantes, is only once directly named in the Old Testament. 
 Job says — 
 
 "No mention shall be made of coral or ot' pearls: 
 For the price of wisdom is above rubies" (xxviii. 18). 
 
 Bochart and others will have "rubies" {peniniin) in this passage to 
 mean " pearls" but the scope of the verse, were there nothing else, is 
 against this. Rubies can buy pearls ; but wisdom is better than rubies, 
 therefore let no mention be made in this contrast between wisdom and 
 the choicest gems of earth. The Hebrew word {garish), moreover, 
 points to something like small hail. This has led our translators rightly 
 to render it pearls. This jewel has been referred to also under Gen. 
 xi. 12 — which see. 
 
 The pearl of commerce is obtained from the shell of one of the 
 Avicultda?, or wing-shelled family of molluscs, the pearl-oyster (Am'cida 
 margaritifera) represented on Plate XVIII., fig. 1, as Margarita mar-
 
 & 
 
 garitifera. This shell yields the well-known " mother of pearl" which 
 is much used for ornamenting furniture, articles of luxury, &c. The 
 play of the suidight on this was sufficient to suggest it to John in the 
 description of the gates of the Holy Jerusalem. The vision is gloriously 
 bright. The foundations are exposed, and seem to him like all "manner 
 of precious stones" — congregated gems of a lustre and size which the 
 wealth of the world could not purchase. Tlie wall is of jasper, the 
 appearance of the whole like pure gold, gleaming before the eye like 
 glass. The twelve gates were twelve pearls. They seemed like the 
 nacre of the pearly shells Avlien bright light strikes on it. There is no 
 good ground for the popular opinion, that the pearl jewel is the result 
 of disease. Injury done to the nacreous mass of these shells, docs 
 undoubtedly lead to concretions which go to form pearls proper, but they 
 are generally found in circumstances in which nothing like injury to 
 the general layer can be afhrmed. When a section is made in a pearl, 
 a nuDiber of laminte, or thin plates, arc arranged over each other like the 
 layers of the onion. The layers are always of the same kind with those 
 which constitute the mother of pearl itself. As far as is yet known, 
 then, pearls are simply the result of a superabundance of the nacreous 
 matter which goes to form the shell. " Perhaps the only species 
 operated on by man is the famous Chinese pearl mussel [Barhala pli- 
 cata). The people of the Celestial Emj^ire produce artificial pearls in 
 this shell, by introducing wire and other foreign bodies under the 
 mantle of the animal. In the British IMuseum specimens may be seen 
 where pearls of a fine lustre have been thus produced, as well as a 
 series of little 'josses,' made of metal, and which, having been intro- 
 duced under the mantle while the animal was alive, have gradually 
 become quite coated with pearly matter." 
 
 The genus BarhaJa belongs to the family UnioniJce^ or river mussels. 
 
 In addition to those already noticed, other five passages contain 
 references to the pearl. When instructing his disciples in the sermon 
 on the mount, our Lord urged to prudence and discrimination in the 
 exercise of their spiritual gifts. It was not enough that they detected 
 sin and had hearts to rebuke offenders, they needed also to judge both 
 of the persons and circumstances met by them in fulfilling their ministry. 
 They might meet men on whom reproof would be thrown away, and 
 the word of God itself brought into contempt ; such, for example, as 
 would be seen were a sober man to lecture a drunkard on the evils 
 of drunkenness when in a state of intoxication. " Cast not your pearls 
 before swine."
 
 n>
 
 THE REVELATION'. 
 
 609 
 
 In Matt. xiii. 45, 4G, our Lord says — " Again, the kingdom of 
 heaven is like unto a merchantman seeking goodly pearls : who, when 
 he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, 
 and bought it." Thus he sets before us the incomparable excellence 
 and value of his kingdom. Tlie passage has often been perverted from 
 its true meaning, by men dwelling on the nature and properties of the 
 pearl, and finding at each point some outstanding feature in Christ. 
 His person is not referred to here, but his gospel, and peace through 
 him to every seeker. The points of special moment brought out in the 
 figure are dissatisfaction with present possessions, leading to search 
 after something better, and the fact that, while thus seeking, he finds 
 what is best of all. He had wants which nothing in nature could 
 satisfy — he sets out to seek goodly pearls. God has provided in the 
 gospel of Christ for the highest satisfaction of the seeking soul — he 
 finds a pearl of great price. His estimate of the kingdom of God, of 
 the gospel, and of all to be got in it, influences him to complete self- 
 surrender, and perfect peace results. 
 
 This reference to the great price of the pearl shows that in our 
 Lord's day, as well as in modern times, there were jewels of this sort 
 of great value. Mention is made of one an inch broad and one inch 
 and a half long from the fishery of Catifa, which sold for £50,000. 
 CcBsar presented to Servilia the mother of Brutus, a pearl valued at 
 upwards of £48,000. If the often-repeated story of Cleopatra's folly 
 may be credited, she dissolved in vinegar a pearl worth £80,729. 
 Pearls of great price have ever been eagerly coveted. To this our 
 Lord refers here, and leaves us in contact with the lesson — Be willing 
 to give up every thing you most prize, rather than lose a place in the 
 kingdom of God. 
 
 In apostolic times as now, pearls were coveted by the rich and 
 luxurious as ornaments. Even professing Christian women were apt 
 to be led away by the example around them. The heathen maiden had 
 little else to occupy her attention than personal adorning. It was not 
 thus with those who had found life and peace in Jesus Christ. Thus 
 the force of Paul's words to Timothy — " I will, in like manner also, 
 that women adorn themselves in modest aj)parel, with shamefacedness 
 and sobriety ; not with broidered hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly 
 array; but (which becometh women professing godliness) with good 
 works" (1 Tim. ii. 9, 10). The woman " who sat on the scarlet- 
 coloured beast," is described by John as " decked with gold, and 
 precious stones, and pearls" (chap. xvii. 4). "When her judgment comes 
 
 VOL. II. 4 11
 
 610 
 
 BIBLICAL NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 and her plagues overtake her, it is said, " that no man buyeth any 
 more her merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and 
 pearls" (xiii. 12j. 
 
 "The pearly gates" and the lustrous precious stones of fire open to 
 faith a vision of exceeding beauty. " And I saw no temple therein : 
 for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. And 
 the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it ; 
 for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof 
 And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: 
 and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it." 
 " He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly : Amen. 
 Even so, come, Lord Jesus. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be 
 with you all. Anion." 
 
 THE END. 
 
 -'^s^
 
 INDEX OF NAMES AND SUBJECTS. 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 Pase 
 
 Alabaster, 572 
 
 Alguin-trees, ...... 274, 318 
 
 Alrnond-trec, . . . . . . 44 1 
 
 Aloes 399, 592 
 
 Anise, 4x0, 566 
 
 Autelopes, 174, 176 
 
 Apes, . 278 
 
 Apes, anthropoid, . . . . . .321 
 
 Aphis, 532 
 
 Apple moth, 531 
 
 Apples, ....... 455 
 
 Apples of gold, ...... 440 
 
 Apple-tree, . . . . . . .441 
 
 Arctorus, . 346 
 
 Anack, ....... 477 
 
 A^p 351 
 
 Ass, wild, 372, 420 
 
 Badger, 67 
 
 Balaam, 141, 144 
 
 Bald locust, 188 
 
 Barley, 169, 231 
 
 Bats, 93. 95 
 
 Bay-tree, 395, 383 
 
 Beard-grass, ....... 449 
 
 Bees, 227 
 
 Behemoth, 377 
 
 Bittern, 481, 550 
 
 Blue, 116 
 
 Boar, 410 
 
 Bochart, ....... 67 
 
 Bootes 346 
 
 Botflies, 533 
 
 Box-tree 493 
 
 Bramble, 225, 574 
 
 Brass, 359 
 
 Briers, 466 
 
 Brimstone, 350 
 
 Broom, 299 
 
 Butialo, 391 
 
 Bug 630 
 
 BuUock, 09 
 
 Bulls, 408 
 
 Bulrush, 2, 491 
 
 " uses of, 2 
 
 Burning bush, 9 
 
 Butter, 218, 363 
 
 Calamus, .... . . 60 
 
 Calf, 75 
 
 Calves, golden, 292 
 
 Camel, . . ...... 78 
 
 Camels 218 
 
 Camel's thorn, 124 
 
 Page 
 
 Camphire, 450 
 
 Camphor, . 450 
 
 Cana.-m, nations of, 165 
 
 " features of, .... . 168 
 
 Cane, sweet, . 486 
 
 Canker-worm, ...... 545 
 
 Cassia, ........ 60 
 
 Cedar, 306 
 
 Cedars 266, 270, 315 
 
 Centipede 102 
 
 Chalcedony, 607 
 
 Charcoal, ....... 44 
 
 Chrysolite, 607 
 
 Chrysoprasus, ...... 607 
 
 Cinnamon, ....... 60 
 
 Citron, 440 
 
 Clouds, 369 
 
 Cobra, 351 
 
 Cockatrice, 438 
 
 Cockchafer 532 
 
 Cockle, 368 
 
 Colenso, Bishop, . . . .20, 32, 36, 162 
 Colours, various, . . . . . .315 
 
 Coney 422, 443 
 
 Constellations, ...... 371 
 
 Copper, different kinds, . . . . .171 
 
 Corals, 362, 619 
 
 Coriander, ....... 41 
 
 Cormorant, 89 
 
 Com, 180, 310 
 
 Cotton, 311, 444 
 
 Cr.ine flies, 634 
 
 Creeping things, 101 
 
 Crocodiles 382 
 
 Cross, form of, ..... . 590 
 
 Crons, ........ 86 
 
 Cuckoo, 88, 178 
 
 Cucumbei-s, 121, 404 
 
 Cummin, 480, 566 
 
 Darnel, 564 
 
 Desert, Arabian, ...... 43 
 
 Dew, fonnation of, 219 
 
 '* of Hermon, ...... 427 
 
 Dill, . 525 
 
 Dogs, 221 
 
 Dolphins, 380 
 
 Doves, 401, 457 
 
 Doves' dung, 304 
 
 Dragons, ....... 366 
 
 Drink, 477 
 
 Eagle, 82 
 
 " golden 48, 419
 
 C12 
 
 INDEX OF NAMES AND SUBJECTS. 
 
 Eagle, imperial, 
 Eagles, 
 Ebony-tree, . 
 Egypt, diseases of, 
 Egyptians, plaf^ues of, 
 
 " medical knowledge 
 Elain, . 
 Elephant, fossil. 
 Emerald, 
 Emeralds, 
 Exodus, contents ol 
 Eye, apple of, 
 
 Falcon, 
 
 Fallow deer, . 
 
 Ferrets, 
 
 Fir, . 
 
 Firs, 
 
 Fishes, different kinds of, 
 
 Fitches, 
 
 Flamingo, 
 
 Flax, . 
 
 Frankincense, 
 
 Frontlets, 
 
 Galbanum, . 
 Gall, . 
 Garlic, . 
 Gier eagle, 
 Gledc, . 
 Gnats, . 
 Goat, wild, . 
 Goatsucker, . 
 Gold, . 
 Gourds, 
 Gourds, arbour of, 
 
 Hare, . 
 
 Harrower, 
 
 Hawk, . 
 
 Heath, . 
 
 Heifer, red, . 
 
 Hemlock, 
 
 Heima, 
 
 Heron, . 
 
 High priest, dress ol 
 
 Hind, . 
 
 Hippopotamus, 
 
 Honey, 
 
 " wild, . 
 Hoopoe, 
 Hornet, 
 Horse-leech, . 
 Horses, . 
 Husks, . 
 Hyssop, 
 
 Ibis, . 
 Images, graven. 
 Ivory, . 
 
 Jackals, 
 Jacob, sons of. 
 Jerboa, . . 
 Jeruel, wilderness of. 
 Juniper, 
 
 Kenites, 
 Kesitah, 
 Kite, . 
 
 of, 
 
 Page 
 
 . 605 
 
 46 
 
 . 518 
 
 103, 183 
 
 10, 21 
 
 1 
 
 . 37 
 
 . 518 
 
 . 508 
 
 . 604 
 
 1 
 
 . 190 
 
 . 376 
 . 265 
 . 99 
 . 271 
 
 314, 484 
 . 274 
 . 479 
 . 89 
 
 206, 434 
 . 65 
 . 565 
 
 . 65 
 
 349 
 
 122 
 
 90 
 
 177 
 
 0, 568 
 
 372 
 
 88 
 
 318, 358 
 
 301 
 
 540 
 
 79 
 
 85 
 
 84, 177 
 
 504 
 
 132 
 
 524 
 
 451 
 
 91 
 
 54 
 
 390 
 
 377 
 
 240, 308, 389 
 
 556 
 
 92 
 
 49 
 
 442 
 
 284 
 
 583 
 
 271 
 
 482 
 
 47 
 
 278, 517 
 
 . 229 
 194, 205 
 . 235 
 . 326 
 . 299 
 
 . 144 
 . 382 
 84, 361 
 
 Kurtz, Dr. 
 
 Lapwing, 
 
 Leeks, . 
 
 Leopard, 
 
 Leprosy, diUVrent kinds of 
 
 Leviathan, 
 
 Lign aloes. 
 
 Lilies, , 
 
 Linen, . 
 
 " fine, . 
 Lion, . 
 Locust-eaters, 
 
 Mallows, 
 
 Manna, 
 
 Mantis, 
 
 Melons, 
 
 Men, varieties of, 
 
 Metals, 
 
 Millet, . 
 
 Millipede, 
 
 Mint, . 
 
 Mole, . 
 
 Months, Jewish, 
 
 Moses, . 
 
 Mouse, , 
 
 Mustard-tree, 
 
 Myrtle-trees, . 
 
 Nail, . 
 
 Nature, meaning ol 
 Nettles, 
 Night-hawk, . 
 Nightingale, . 
 
 Nile, . 
 Nitre, , 
 Nuts, . 
 
 Oak, . 
 Oil, . 
 Oleander, 
 Olive, wild, • 
 Olive-trees, . 
 Onions, 
 Onycha, 
 Orion, . 
 Ostrich, 
 Owls, . 
 Ox, . 
 
 Palm crist, . 
 Palm-trees, . 
 
 " branches of. 
 Papyrus, 
 Partridge, 
 Peacocks, 
 Pearls, . 
 Pelican, 
 Pheasants, 
 Phthiriasis, . 
 Phylacteries, . 
 Pines, . 
 Plant lice, 
 Pleiades, 
 Polecat, 
 Pomegranate, 
 Poplar, 
 Poppies, 
 Processionary moths, 
 
 Page 
 . 33 
 
 . 91 
 . 122 
 504, 647 
 104, 109 
 . 379 
 . 143 
 453, 578 
 . 445 
 . 510 
 144, 213, 339, 387 
 . 557 
 
 . 363 
 
 . 40 
 
 . 186 
 
 . 121 
 
 . 695 
 
 . 145 
 
 . 510 
 
 . 102 
 566, 577 
 
 . 100 
 
 . 35 
 . 1—8 
 
 . 97 
 
 . 581 
 
 . 551 
 
 . 217 
 
 . 3.')6 
 
 365, 549 
 . 87 
 . 456 
 3, 536 
 . 436 
 . 460 
 
 467, 522 
 414 
 384 
 600 
 225 
 122 
 64 
 346 
 
 366, 375 
 85, 178 
 
 . 140 
 
 - . 540 
 
 38, 414 
 
 . 590 
 
 3, 475 
 
 249—253 
 
 279, 322 
 
 607—610 
 
 . 417 
 
 . 323 
 
 557 
 
 . 565 
 
 . 314 
 
 . 532 
 
 . 347 
 
 98 
 
 . 237 
 
 . 522 
 
 . 564 
 
 . 522
 
 INDEX OF NAMES AND SUBJECTS. 
 
 613 
 
 
 Page 
 
 
 Page 
 
 Processionary moths, larvae o 
 
 f, . . . 527 
 
 Sun, standing still of the, 
 
 . 210 
 
 Psylli, .... 
 
 . 33 
 
 Swallows, 
 
 . 413, 442 
 
 Purple,. 
 
 . 223 
 
 Swan, .... 
 
 . 90 
 
 
 
 Swine, .... 
 
 . 79, 494 
 
 Quails, .... 
 
 . 40, 127 
 
 Sycamine-tree, 
 
 . 584 
 
 
 
 Sycamore, 
 
 . 283 
 
 Rabbit, 
 
 . 79 
 
 
 
 Reeds, .... 
 
 . 295, 470 
 
 Tabernacles, . 
 
 . 114 
 
 Reptiles, 
 
 97 
 
 Tabor, Jlount, 
 
 . 215 
 
 Rock snake, . 
 
 . 134 
 
 Tamarisk, 
 
 . 123 
 
 Roe, .... 
 
 . 432 
 
 Tares, .... 
 
 . 564 
 
 Rose 
 
 . 452 
 
 Taurus, 
 
 . 347 
 
 Raby, oriental, 
 
 . 50 
 
 Teil-tree, 
 
 . 467 
 
 Rue, .... 
 
 . 578 
 
 Terns, .... 
 
 . 179 
 
 
 
 Thistle, 
 
 . 305 
 
 Saffron crocus, 
 
 . 459 
 
 Thunder, 
 
 . 392 
 
 Salt, .... 
 
 . 72 
 
 Tortoise, 
 
 . 97 
 
 Salt Sea, 
 
 . 157 
 
 Trees, age of. 
 
 . 497 
 
 Sandal-wood, 
 
 . 319 
 
 Tse-tse, 
 
 . 532 
 
 Sapphire, 
 
 50, 508 
 
 Turtle-dove, . 
 
 . 70 
 
 Sardine stone. 
 
 . 604 
 
 
 
 Sardonyx, 
 
 . 607 
 
 Unicom, 
 
 . 198, 414 
 
 Sea-monsters, 
 
 . 507 
 
 Ursa Major, . 
 
 . 346 
 
 Sea-wrack, . 
 
 . 538 
 
 
 
 Se«, Red, . . . 
 
 3 
 
 Vinegar, 
 
 . 118,435 
 
 Sedges, 
 
 . 382 
 
 Vines, .... 
 
 . 171 
 
 Serpents, 
 
 . 402 
 
 Viper, .... 
 
 . 352 
 
 Srape-goat, . 
 
 . 110 
 
 Vultures, 
 
 82, 482 
 
 Scarlet, 
 
 . 52 
 
 
 
 Scorpion, 
 
 . 172, 577 
 
 Walnut-tree, . 
 
 . 461 
 
 Sheep, Syrian, 
 
 . 583 
 
 Waterspout, . 
 
 . 397 
 
 Shittim-wood, 
 
 . , . 68 
 
 Whe.at,. 
 
 . 170 
 
 Silk, .... 
 
 . 510 
 
 Wheat-flies, . 
 
 . 530 
 
 Silk-worm moth, . 
 
 . 511 
 
 Wilkinson, Sir G. . 
 
 . 39 
 
 Silver, .... 
 
 . 355 
 
 Willows, brook of, . 
 
 . 474 
 
 Slow-worm, . 
 
 . 101 
 
 Wind 
 
 . 343 
 
 Snail 
 
 . 99 
 
 Wine, 
 
 . 118 
 
 Soap, .... 
 
 . 554 
 
 Wire-worms, 
 
 . 529 
 
 Sodom, wine of. 
 
 . 191 
 
 Wolf, 
 
 . 197 
 
 Sparrows, 
 
 . 412 
 
 AVorms, i 
 
 . 544 
 
 Spice, .... 
 
 60, 324 
 
 Wormwood, . 
 
 . 430 
 
 Spiders, 
 
 . 344 
 
 
 
 Spikenard, 
 
 . 449 
 
 Xenophon, quoted, . 
 
 . 373 
 
 Stacte, .... 
 
 . 64 
 
 
 
 Stanley, Dr. . 
 
 43, 142 
 
 Year, Jewish, 
 
 . 35 
 
 Stones, precious, . 
 
 55, 58 
 
 Yerek, 
 
 . 474 
 
 Stork, .... 
 
 . 422, 500 
 
 
 
 Strong drink, 
 
 . 118 
 
 Zizania, . . . . 
 
 . 564
 
 , 1 
 
 1 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 ! 
 
 SCIENTIFIC INDICES. 
 
 I- 
 
 MAJIMALIA. 
 
 flencra. 
 
 Gener.i. 
 
 
 Capriniulgus, .... Vol. ii. page 88 
 
 Antilope, . 
 
 . Vol. i. page 475; ii. 176 
 
 Ciconia, 
 
 
 
 
 ii 91, 422 
 
 Arvicola, . 
 
 . ii. 230 
 
 Cinclus, . 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 565 
 
 f Asinus, 
 
 ii. 21,201, 42U 
 
 Circus, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 85 
 
 i Bos, .... 
 
 i. 307; ii. 21, 140, 201, 391 
 
 Columba, . 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 223 
 
 j Camelus, . 
 
 . i. 306, 441; ii. 78, 218 
 
 CorTOS, 
 
 i 
 
 219, 
 
 476, 
 
 559 ; ii. 82, 80, 296 
 
 1 Canis, 
 
 i. 511; ii. 181, 196, 221, 589 
 
 Coturui-t, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 127, 24!) 
 
 i Capra, 
 
 i. 413 — 415; ii. 170, 422 
 
 Cuculu.s, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 178 
 
 Caprcoluy, . 
 
 i. 471;ii. 432 
 
 Cygnus, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 91 
 
 1 Castor, 
 
 . ii. 550 
 
 Cypselus, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 413 
 
 ' Cervus, 
 
 . ii. 175, 265, 388 
 
 Egrctta, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 90 
 
 I Dipus, 
 
 . ii. 235 
 
 Falco, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 376 
 
 Eqaus, 
 
 i. 306, 530 ; ii. 21, 287, 372 
 
 Francolinns, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 249 
 
 i lu-lis, i. 518; ii. 230 
 
 , 243, 339, 388, 504, 518, 547 
 
 Gallus, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 685 
 
 ' Galago, . 
 
 . ii. 321 
 
 Geronticns, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 482 
 
 Gazelle, . 
 
 
 . " 174 
 
 Goura, 
 
 
 
 
 . ■' 401 
 
 ; Gorilla, 
 
 
 . i. 640 
 
 Grus, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 601 
 
 j Hippopotamus, . 
 
 
 i, 672 ; ii. 377 
 
 Gypaetos, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 482 
 
 Hvrax, . 
 
 
 . ii. 423 
 
 Gyps, 
 
 
 
 
 i. 476 ; ii. 82 
 
 Ibex, 
 
 
 . i. 471 
 
 llaliaetus, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 82 
 
 Indris. 
 
 
 . ii. 321 
 
 Hirundo, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 418 
 
 Lemur, 
 
 
 . " 321 
 
 Ictinia, 
 
 
 
 
 .■ " 82 
 
 Lepus, 
 
 
 ii. 79, 424 
 
 Laras, 
 
 
 
 
 L 565 ; ii. 89 
 
 Megaderma, 
 
 
 . ii. 93 
 
 Lophophorus, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 322 
 
 Melcs, 
 
 
 . " 67 
 
 Milras, 
 
 
 
 
 ii 82,361,362 
 
 Morunga, 
 
 
 . " 507 
 
 Neophron, . 
 
 
 
 
 L476;u. 82, 482 
 
 Mus, 
 
 
 . " 236 
 
 Numenius, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 91 
 
 Mustela, . 
 
 
 . " 97 
 
 OtHS, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 366 
 
 Nasalis, . 
 
 
 i. 510; ii. 321 
 
 Pandion, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 82 
 
 Otaria, 
 
 
 . ii. 507 
 
 Passer, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 412, 418 
 
 Ovis, 
 
 i. 143, 3 
 
 06;ii. 21, 140, 583 
 
 Pavo, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 322, 323 
 
 Papio, 
 
 
 . ii. 321 
 
 Pelccanns, . 
 
 
 
 
 1.501; ii. 417 
 
 I'hysetcr, . 
 
 
 . " 380 
 
 Perdix, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 250 
 
 I'lecotus, . 
 
 
 . " 93 
 
 Pliasianus, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 322 
 
 liliinoceros, 
 
 
 . " 199 
 
 Pbilomela, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 456 
 
 Rlilnolophus, 
 
 
 . " 93 
 
 Pliocnicopterus, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 89 
 
 yemnopithecus, . 
 
 
 . " 321 
 
 Polyplectron, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 323 
 
 Simia, 
 
 
 . " 321 
 
 Porphyrio, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 90 
 
 Stemmatoptis, . 
 
 
 " 507 
 
 Pterocles, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 128; 250 
 
 Sus, 
 
 
 ii. 79, 409, 494 
 
 Stri-x, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 178; 482 
 
 Talpa, 
 
 
 . ii. 1(10 
 
 Struthio, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 373 
 
 Tarsus, 
 
 
 . " 322 
 
 Treron, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 401 
 
 Ursus, 
 
 
 . " 200 
 
 Turtur, . 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 222; ii. 70, 457 
 
 Vulpcs, 
 
 
 . i. 511 
 
 Vulture, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 482 
 
 I 
 
 I.— AVES. 
 
 III.— REPTILIA. 
 
 Anscr, 
 
 . ii. 91 
 
 Anguis, ii. 101 
 
 Aquila, 
 
 
 ii. 48, 83, 505 
 
 Boa, i. 117 
 
 Ardea, 
 
 
 . ii. 91 
 
 Cerastes, ii. 353 
 
 Argus, 
 
 
 . " 322 
 
 Chamajleo i. 401 
 
 Atliene, 
 
 
 . " 86 
 
 Chelonia, i. 441 ; ii. 98 
 
 Botaurus, . 
 
 
 . " 550 
 
 Chelys i. 441 
 
 Ei.bo, 
 
 
 . ii. 178, 483 
 
 Cistuda, i. 411 
 
 1
 
 SCIENTIFIC INDICES. 
 
 615 
 
 flenera. 
 
 
 GcneTa. 
 
 
 
 Cobr;^ 
 
 Vol. ii. page 351 
 
 Melelontha, 
 
 . Vol. ii. page 531 
 
 Coluber, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 172 
 
 (Esti-us, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 533 
 
 Crocodilus, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 380, 407 
 
 Pedicuius, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 . '■ 17 
 
 Crotnlus, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii 403 
 
 Ptinus, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 108 
 
 Einjrs, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 441 
 
 Pulcx, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 248 
 
 Gavialis, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 381 
 
 San"othripus, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 531 
 
 .lacare. 
 
 
 
 
 . " 381 
 
 .Scarabit'us, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 18 
 
 Lacerfa, . 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 401 
 
 Tabalius, , 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 532 
 
 Monitor, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 401 
 
 Tlirips, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 530 
 
 Naja, 
 
 
 
 
 ii. 351, 402, 405 
 
 Tinea, 
 
 
 
 
 
 ii. 108, 340 
 
 Platydactylus, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 421 
 
 Tipula, 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 532, 634 
 
 Python, 
 
 
 
 
 .i. 117; ii. 135 
 
 Vespa, 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 49, 419 
 
 Rana, 
 
 
 
 
 ii. 15 
 
 
 
 
 Salamandra, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 421 
 
 
 
 
 Sciiicus, . 
 Stcllio, 
 
 
 
 
 . "421 
 . " 401 
 
 
 VIII.— MOLLCSCA. 
 
 
 Tcstudo, . 
 Tryonix, . 
 
 
 
 
 i. 441;ii. 98 
 
 Arion, 
 
 
 . ii. 40G 
 
 . 11. ^0 
 
 Avicula, 
 
 
 . " 607 
 
 
 
 Barbala, . 
 
 
 . " 608 
 
 
 
 lleli.'c. 
 
 
 . " 406 
 
 
 IV.— PISCES. 
 
 Lima.\, 
 Murex, 
 
 
 . " 406 
 . " 224 
 
 Dactyloptera, 
 
 ii. 274 
 
 Testacella, 
 
 
 . " 406 
 
 EchcnSis, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 274 
 
 Zonites, 
 
 
 . " 406 
 
 Ortlingoriscus, 
 
 
 
 
 . ■' 274 
 
 
 
 
 Phycis, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 274 
 
 
 
 
 Xiphias, . 
 Zeus, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 274 
 . " 274 
 
 
 IX.— ANNELIDA. 
 
 
 
 
 Hcemopsis, 
 
 
 . ii. 442 
 
 
 
 Hirndo, 
 
 
 . " 442 
 
 
 V.-ARACHNIDA. 
 
 Lunibricus, 
 Sanguisuga, 
 
 
 ii. 349, 644 
 . ii. 442 
 
 Aranea, . 
 
 . ii. 34.5, 443 
 
 
 
 
 Epeira, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. .'i44 
 
 
 
 
 Myf;ale, 
 Plialanglum, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 345 
 . •' 345 
 
 
 X.-ANTHOZOA. 
 
 
 Scorpio, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 172 
 
 Astrxa, 
 
 
 . ii. 519 
 
 
 
 Caryophylla, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . '• 519 
 
 
 
 Corallium, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 519 
 
 
 VI.— MYRIAPODA. 
 
 Gorgonia, . 
 Isis, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 519 
 . " 519 
 
 Scolopendra, 
 
 ii. 102 
 
 Mcandi'ina, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 519 
 
 Spirostreptus, 
 
 " 102 
 
 Oculina, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 519 
 
 
 
 Tubipora, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 519 
 
 
 VII.— INSECTA. 
 
 XI 
 
 .— PAL^ONTOLOGl 
 
 r 
 
 Aiheta, 
 
 ii. 189 
 
 
 
 
 Alaus, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 529 
 
 Ammonites, 
 
 
 . i. 19 
 
 A]jhis, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 531 
 
 Apiocrinites, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 23 
 
 Apis, 
 
 
 
 
 ii. 227, 308, 32« 
 
 Arenicola, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 11 
 
 Attagcnus, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 108 
 
 Astoria, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 14 
 
 lionibys, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 511 
 
 Asteropbyllitcs, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 21 
 
 Callidium, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 108 
 
 Atrypa, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 13 
 
 Cccidomyia, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 529 
 
 Avicula, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 14 
 
 Coccinella, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 534 
 
 Bclemnitcs, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 26 
 
 Coccus, 
 
 
 
 
 ii. 51, 63, 124, 55fi 
 
 Bellerophon, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " J8 
 
 Decticus, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 187 
 
 Calymeue, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 . '■ 13 
 
 Dcrmestcs, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 107 
 
 Cariuaria, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 18 
 
 Eriogastcr, 
 
 
 
 
 . '• .527 
 
 Ccphalaspis, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 16 
 
 Formica, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 433 
 
 Coccosteus, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 16 
 
 fialleria, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 108 
 
 Cyathopbyllum, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 13 
 
 Glossina, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 532 
 
 Cycadooidea, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 26 
 
 Grj-llus, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 185 
 
 Cyclopteris, 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 19 
 
 Hyponomeuta, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 527 
 
 Cypria, 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 27 
 
 Lavenia, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 108 
 
 Dentalimn, 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 27 
 
 Locusta, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 185 
 
 Didymograpsus, 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 13 
 
 Mantis, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 185 
 
 Dinotheriuin, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . •' 28
 
 
 GIG SCIENTIFIC INDICES. 
 
 Gencrft. 
 
 Genera. 
 
 Diplograpsus, .... Vol. i 
 
 . page 13 
 
 Artemisia, . . . Vol. ii. page 430, 431 
 
 Elephas, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 31 
 
 Arundo, . 
 
 
 . ii. 295, 476 | | 
 
 Euomphalus, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 13 
 
 Asclepias, . 
 
 
 
 . ii. 192 
 
 Favosites, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 18 
 
 Astragalus, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 465 
 
 Uraptolites, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 13 
 
 Atropa, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 435 
 
 Gnphaja, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 25 
 
 Balsamodendron, 
 
 
 
 i. 4 
 
 69; ii. 64, 331, 398 
 
 Halysites, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 13 
 
 Boswcllia, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii 65 
 
 Holoptychius, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 17 
 
 Btixus, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 493 
 
 Hyperodapedon, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 21 
 
 Byblus, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 3 
 
 Ichthyosanrus, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 27 
 
 Calamus, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 486 
 
 Laophis, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 114 
 
 C.dtha, . 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 61 
 
 1 Lepidndendron, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 i. 12, 20 
 
 Caluna, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 504 
 
 j Lcptnlepis, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 i. 26 
 
 Campliora, 
 
 
 
 
 ,. " 450 
 
 Libellula, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 24 
 
 Capparis, . 
 
 
 
 
 ii. 26, 272 
 
 Lithostrotion, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 19 
 
 Carduus, . 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 121 
 
 Lituitcs, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 14 
 
 Ccdrus, 
 
 
 
 206, 
 
 306, 313, 393, 489 
 
 Maclnrca, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 14 
 
 Ccratonia, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 557, 583 
 
 Megatbcriain, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 29 
 
 Chionanthus, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 220 
 
 M icvolcstcs, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 24 
 
 Cicer, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 304 
 
 Modiolopsis, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 14 
 
 Ciiinauioinuin, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 63 
 
 Ncuropteris, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 19 
 
 Cistus, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 398 
 
 Oi^'gia, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 13 
 
 Citrullus, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 301 
 
 Oldhamia, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 11 
 
 Citrus, 
 
 
 
 
 ii. 113, 440, 454 
 
 Orthis, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 14 
 
 Conium, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 525 
 
 Palaeophis, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 114 
 
 Corcliorus, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 364 
 
 1 Palseopyge, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 11 
 
 Coriandruni, 
 
 
 
 
 . •' 40 
 
 P:da>otheriuni, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 27 
 
 Crataegus, . 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 122 
 
 Paleryx, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 114 
 
 Crocus, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 459 
 
 Pecopteris, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 19 
 
 Cucumis, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 121, 302 
 
 Pentamcrus, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 13 
 
 Cucurbita, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 639 
 
 Phacops, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . 14, 145 
 
 Cuminum, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 480 
 
 Pholadomya, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 26 
 
 Cuprcssus, 
 
 
 
 i. U 
 
 i5;ii. 271,314,318 
 
 Platysomus, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 23 
 
 Cydonia, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 411 
 
 Plesiosaurus, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 126 
 
 Cyperus, . 
 
 
 
 
 ii. 2, 382, 475, 491 
 
 Pleuroriiyncus, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 19 
 
 Diuspyros, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 618 
 
 I'leurotoinaria, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 18 
 
 Dryobalanops, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 450 
 
 Pliosaurus, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 26 
 
 Ecbalium, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 302 
 
 Productus, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 i. IB, 19 
 
 Faba, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 479 
 
 Protaster, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 i. 14 
 
 Ficus, 
 
 
 i. 1 
 
 34,1 
 
 36,535,584; ii. 283 
 
 Ptericltliys, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 16 
 
 Ferula, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 65 
 
 PtcTodactylus, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 127 
 
 Fr.agaria, . 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 136 
 
 Pycnodus, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 25 
 
 Fra.xiiuis, . 
 
 
 
 
 i. 226, 488 
 
 Kiistrites, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 13 
 
 Galbanuui, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 65 
 
 Sigillaria, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 20 
 
 Genista, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 299, 363 
 
 Splienopteris, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 19 
 
 Gossypium, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 311, 444 
 
 Spinifer, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 18 
 
 Iledera, 
 
 
 
 
 • ii. 539 
 
 Stigmaria, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 19 
 
 Hordeum, , 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 520; ii. 232, 480 
 
 Syringopora, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 18 
 
 Ilyssopus, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 273 
 
 Telerpeton, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 21 
 
 Juglaus, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 460 
 
 Trigonia, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 25 
 
 Juniperus, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 299 
 
 Turbo, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 27 
 
 Latliyrus, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 480 
 
 Voluta, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 27 
 
 Ligustrum, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 226 
 
 
 Lilium, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 454, 577 
 
 
 Linuni, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 23, 24, 26, 206 
 
 
 Lolium, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 564 
 
 Xtl.— BOTAMY. 
 
 Lycium, 
 Malus, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 120 
 . ii. 456 
 
 Abies ii. 271, 314 
 
 Mundragora, 
 
 
 
 
 . !. 431—434 
 
 Acacia, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . '• 67, G8 
 
 Mentha, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 26, 577 
 
 Agrosteinina, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 368, 564 
 
 Morus, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 259, 584 
 
 Alh.igi, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 124 
 
 Myrtus, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 237, 650 
 
 Allium, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 122, 26 
 
 Nardostachys, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 449 
 
 Aniygdalus, 
 
 
 
 . i. ' 
 
 185; 
 
 i. 63,441,446 
 
 Nymphiea, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 454 
 
 Aniyris, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 64 
 
 Olea, 
 
 
 
 
 i. 226;ii. 124 
 
 j Ananassa, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 . " 441 
 
 Ononis, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 120 
 
 Andropogon, 
 
 
 
 
 . 
 
 i, 62, 449, 486 
 
 Ornus, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 489 
 
 Anethum, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 525, 567 
 
 Oryza, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 123 
 
 Antbriscus, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 26 
 
 Panax, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 620 
 
 Aquilana, . 
 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 143, 399 
 
 Panicum, . 
 
 
 
 
 . "510 
 
 Anuoracia, 
 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 26 
 
 Papaver, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 564 

 
 1 
 
 SCIENTIFIC 
 
 INDICES. 617 
 
 1 
 
 Genera. 
 
 
 Plianix, Vol. ii. page 38 
 
 XIV.— GEOGRAPHY. 
 
 Piinpinella, 
 
 
 
 
 . iL 527 
 
 
 Piiius, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 271 
 
 Abana V 
 
 ol. ii. page 302 
 
 Pistacia, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 522 
 
 Abarim, 
 
 
 
 . " 138 1 
 
 PlaUnus, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 283 
 
 Abhira, 
 
 
 
 . " 297 
 
 Populus, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 523 
 
 Accad, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 271 
 
 Pruiius, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 120 
 
 Ahava, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 330 
 
 Punica, 
 
 
 
 
 ii. 237, 239, 458 
 
 Ain Fasael, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 295 
 
 Quercus, . 
 
 
 
 
 i. 18C;ii. 522 
 
 Ajalon, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 210 
 
 niiamnus, . 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 120 
 
 Arabia Fehx, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 192 
 
 Ko»a, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 121 
 
 Ararat, 
 
 
 
 
 i. 203—208 
 
 KubaSf 
 
 
 
 
 L 122 i ii. 574 
 
 Araxes, 
 
 
 
 
 i 90, 211 
 
 Ruscus, 
 
 
 
 
 . i 121 
 
 Archipelago, Grecian, . 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 261 
 
 Kuta, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 578 
 
 Armon, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 138 
 
 Saccharum, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 486 
 
 Aroer, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 138 
 
 Salix, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 487, 488 
 
 Asshnr, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 95 
 
 Salsola, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 533 
 
 Assyria, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii 538 
 
 Salvidora, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 582 
 
 Babel, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 275 
 
 Sarotbamuus, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 299 
 
 Babylon, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 472 
 
 ScirpiLS, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 491 
 
 Banias, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 428 
 
 Secale, 
 
 
 
 
 . •' 479 
 
 Betbab.ara, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 558 
 
 Styrax, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 64, 522 
 
 Bethel, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 292 
 
 Syringa, . 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 226 
 
 Bethlehem, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 246 
 
 Tamarix, . 
 
 
 
 
 ii. 123, 504, 556 
 
 Beracbab, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 326 
 
 Tilia, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 497 
 
 Bir Suweis, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 377 1 
 
 Ulex, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 123 
 
 Calah, 
 
 
 
 
 i. 95, 271 
 
 Urtica, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 584 
 
 Callirhoe, . 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 370 
 
 Vicia, 
 
 
 
 
 :. 402 i ii. 429 
 
 Canaan, 
 
 
 ii 
 
 130, 
 
 156, 165, 168 
 
 Zea, . 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 123 
 
 Carmel, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 299 
 
 
 Caspian Se.i, 
 
 
 
 
 . "211 
 
 
 Caucasus, . 
 
 
 
 
 . "210 
 
 
 Ceylon, 
 
 
 
 
 . u. 276 
 
 XIII.— MINERAI-OGY. 
 
 Cush, 
 Damietta, . 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 90 
 . ii. 4 
 
 Adamantine spar Ii. 50 
 
 Dan, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 294 
 
 Agate, 
 
 
 
 . i. 99 i ii. 57 
 
 Darfur, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 4 
 
 Amctliyst, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 55 
 
 Dead Sea, . 
 
 
 
 i. 
 
 317, 366, 373 
 
 lienl, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 99 ; ii. 55 
 
 Ebal. 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 299 
 
 Bitumen, . 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 187 
 
 Eden, 
 
 
 
 
 i. 90—99, 200 
 
 Brass, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 145, 359 
 
 Egypt, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 349 
 
 Carbuncle, . 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 99; ii. 50 
 
 El-Maharrakah, , 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 297 
 
 Chalcedony, 
 
 
 
 
 i. 99 ; ii. 55, 607 
 
 Enrogel, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 204 
 
 Clirysolite, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 607 
 
 Ercch, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 271 
 
 Chrysoprasua, 
 
 
 
 
 . " C07 
 
 Erythr^an Sea, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 209 
 
 Copper, 
 
 i. 
 
 94, 1 
 
 53, 1, 
 
 )6, IGO; ii. 171, 356 
 
 Ethiopia, . 
 
 
 
 
 ii. 276, 331 
 
 Corunditcs, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 50 
 
 Euphrates, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 428 
 
 Diamond, . 
 
 
 
 
 i. 94, 98;ii. 56 
 
 Ezion Gaber, 
 
 
 
 
 ii. 154, 274 
 
 Emerald, . 
 
 
 
 
 " 99 ; ii. 55, 604 
 
 Gerizim, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 299 
 
 Flint, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 466 
 
 Gibeon, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 250 
 
 Galena, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 146 
 
 Gilead, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 139 
 
 Gold, . i. 94 
 
 ,98; 
 
 ii. 54 
 
 , 145 
 
 278, 317. 365, 609 
 
 Ghor, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 317 
 
 Iron, . 
 
 
 
 . i. 1 
 
 )7, 160 ; ii. 145, 356 
 
 Goshen, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 486 
 
 Jade, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 521 
 
 Haran, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 294 
 
 Jasper, 
 
 
 
 
 i. 99 ; ii. 58, 604 
 
 Havilah, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 90 
 
 Lead, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 145, 350 
 
 Hebron, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 255 
 
 Ligure, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 57 
 
 Heliopolis, . 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 481 
 
 Nephrite, . 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 521 
 
 Horcb, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 4 
 
 Ony.'!, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 94, 97 ; ii. 54 
 
 Ijon, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 453 
 
 Pyrites, copper, 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 150 
 
 Jeruel, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 352 
 
 Quartz, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 99 
 
 Kadisha, . 
 
 
 
 
 ii 300, 328 
 
 Rock crj'stul, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 50 
 
 Keilah, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 248 
 
 Ruby, 
 
 
 
 
 ii. 50, 007 
 
 Khartum, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 4 
 
 Sapphire, . 
 
 
 
 
 . i. 99 ; ii. 50 
 
 Kishon, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 297 
 
 Sardine, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 004 
 
 Lake of Genncsaret, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 559 
 
 Sardius, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 55 
 
 Mar Saba, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 424 
 
 Sardony.\, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 607 
 
 Mediterranean Sea, 
 
 
 
 
 i. 200 
 
 Silver, 
 
 
 
 . i. 
 
 W; ii. 145, 278,355 
 
 Mesha, 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 274 
 
 Sulphur, . 
 
 
 
 
 . ii. 350 
 
 Mosul, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 372 
 
 Tin, . 
 
 
 
 
 . " 356 
 
 Nablu^s . 
 
 
 
 '. . i 299 1 
 
 Topaz, 
 
 
 
 
 . " 55 
 
 NUe, . 
 
 
 
 ii. 4, 536 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 4 I 
 
 ■ !
 
 618 
 
 SCIENTIFIC INDICES. 
 
 Kimrond, . 
 
 Nineveh, . 
 
 Nod, . 
 
 Ophir, 
 
 Paran, 
 
 Pbarpar, . 
 
 Phcenicia, . 
 
 Rameses, . 
 
 Ras Atakab, 
 
 Eehobotb, . 
 
 Rosetta, 
 
 Samaria, . 
 
 Sea of Galilee, 
 
 Sea of Tiberias, 
 
 Shinar, 
 
 Sinai, 
 
 Somme, valley of, 
 
 ge 278 
 
 11 
 
 544 
 
 i 
 
 95 
 
 11 
 
 274 
 
 1 
 
 481 
 
 11 
 
 302 
 
 i 
 
 269 
 
 11 
 
 148 
 
 i* 
 
 149 
 
 1 
 
 95 
 
 11 
 
 4 
 
 " 
 
 303 
 
 u 
 
 559 
 
 ■' 
 
 559 
 
 i. 
 
 280 
 
 11 
 
 4 1 
 
 '• 
 
 525 
 
 Tabor, 
 
 Tacazze, 
 
 Tarsus, 
 
 Tartessns, 
 
 Taurus, 
 
 Tharsbisb, 
 
 Tigris, 
 
 Tyre, 
 
 Ulal, river of, 
 
 Ummiyeb, . 
 
 Wady Alias, 
 
 Wady-esb Shcikb, 
 
 Wady-et Taiyibeb 
 
 Wady Kelt, 
 
 Wady Mukatteb, 
 
 Wady Sbellal, . 
 
 Ziph, 
 
 Vol. ii. 
 
 page 215 
 ii. 4 
 " 279 
 '• 279 
 i. 210 
 ii 274 
 " 427 
 " 281 
 i. 444 
 "219 
 ii. 295 
 
 155. 300 
 ii. 150 
 " 295 
 " 151 
 ■' 151 
 " 248
 
 INDEX OF SCRIPTURE TEXTS ILLUSTRATED. 
 
 
 GENESIS. 
 
 
 Chap. 
 
 ■\ 
 
 'erso 
 
 Page 
 
 L 
 
 
 21... 
 
 .. 1—11 
 
 ({ 
 
 
 26... 
 
 324 
 
 11. 
 
 
 12.... 
 
 ..54, 362 
 
 " 
 
 
 11... 
 
 145 
 
 111. 
 
 
 2... 
 
 9 
 
 t( 
 
 
 21... 
 
 67 
 
 (( 
 
 1 
 
 -7... 
 
 134, 171 
 
 u 
 
 
 18... 
 
 223 
 
 IV, 
 
 
 2... 
 
 .. 21, 69 
 
 11 
 
 17, 
 
 22..66 
 
 120,180 
 
 Vll. 
 
 
 2... 
 
 76 
 
 ii 
 
 
 7... 
 
 86 
 
 Vlll. 
 
 8,12 
 
 28... 
 
 70 
 
 X. 
 
 15, 
 
 IG... 
 
 165 
 
 it 
 
 
 17... 
 
 75 
 
 t( 
 
 
 29... 
 
 277 
 
 xu. 
 
 
 16... 
 
 ..70,463 
 
 Xlll. 
 
 
 6... 
 
 70 
 
 it 
 
 
 18... 
 
 144, 255 
 
 XIV, 
 
 
 7... 
 
 ..72,153 
 
 XT, 
 
 
 13... 
 
 37 
 
 '* 
 
 
 9... 
 
 132 
 
 (t 
 
 
 19... 
 
 144 
 
 " 
 
 18- 
 
 -21... 
 
 158 
 
 n 
 
 
 7... 
 
 215 
 
 4t 
 
 
 18... 
 
 413 
 
 sxm. 
 
 
 2... 
 
 255 
 
 xxvu. 
 
 
 9... 
 
 69 
 
 
 28- 
 
 -37 .. 
 
 173 
 
 XXVUl. 
 
 
 12... 
 
 226 
 
 XXIX. 
 
 15 
 
 16... 
 
 356 
 
 XXX. 
 
 
 W... 
 
 170 
 
 (L 
 
 
 43... 
 
 21 
 
 xxxu. 
 
 
 3... 
 
 205 
 
 »* 
 
 
 17... 
 
 8 
 
 XXXV. 
 
 1 
 
 ,26... 
 
 53 
 
 XX XVI. 
 
 
 12... 
 
 312 
 
 XXXVIK 
 
 
 25... 
 
 61 
 
 It 
 
 
 31... 
 
 76 
 
 -XXVIU. 
 
 
 28... 
 
 52 
 
 (t 
 
 
 5... 
 
 214 
 
 " 
 
 
 12... 
 
 220 
 
 " 
 
 
 1... 
 
 245 
 
 xli. 
 
 2 
 
 —4... 
 
 132, 236 
 
 It 
 
 
 1... 
 
 ... 5,313 
 
 tt 
 
 
 42... 
 
 53 
 
 xlU. 
 
 
 3... 
 
 169 
 
 xliii. 
 
 
 11... 
 
 131 
 
 xlvi. 
 
 5, 8, 14 
 
 22... 
 
 1 
 
 xlvii. 
 
 
 11... 
 
 148 
 
 xlviii. 
 
 
 22... 
 
 166 
 
 xlix. 
 
 
 2... 
 
 130 
 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 
 
 
 Chap. 
 
 Verso 
 
 
 Page 
 
 Chap. 
 
 xli.t. 
 
 9... 
 
 
 243 
 
 XXXVIl. 
 
 " 
 
 27 .. 
 
 ... .. 
 
 237 
 
 XX.XV1I1. 
 
 it 
 
 17... 
 
 
 353 
 
 (t 
 
 I 
 
 10... 
 
 
 180 
 
 SXXIX. 
 
 
 EXODUS. 
 
 
 
 xl. 
 
 1. 
 
 11... 
 
 
 148 
 
 
 11. 
 
 3... 
 
 
 
 382 
 
 
 111. 
 
 1... 
 
 
 7 
 
 
 Vll. 
 
 9, 10, 12... 
 
 
 
 135 
 
 i. 
 
 IX. 
 
 14... 
 31... 
 
 
 
 183 
 231 
 
 ii. 
 
 " 
 
 23... 
 
 
 392 
 
 IV. 
 
 X. 
 
 4... 
 
 
 186 
 
 " 
 
 XI. 
 
 7... 
 31... 
 
 
 221 
 306 
 
 XI. 
 
 Xtl. 
 
 6... 
 
 
 27 
 
 
 (t 
 
 22... 
 
 
 272 
 
 xiv. 
 
 XIV. 
 
 1—4... 
 
 
 149 
 
 xvi. 
 
 11 
 
 12... 
 
 
 36 
 
 xxu. 
 
 XV. 
 
 2... 
 
 
 113 
 
 •' 
 
 " 
 
 22, 27... 
 
 149 
 
 150 
 
 XXIU. 
 
 " 
 
 27... 
 
 204 
 
 213 
 
 " 
 
 xvt. 
 
 21—29... 
 
 
 125 
 
 XXVI. 
 
 XVll. 
 
 6... 
 1—7... 
 
 
 7 
 151 
 
 tl 
 
 XIX. 
 
 1,2... 
 4.. 
 
 
 152 
 186 
 
 
 xxn. 
 
 6... 
 
 222 
 
 341 
 
 i. 
 
 XXUl. 
 
 23... 
 31... 
 
 
 166 
 158 
 
 iv. 
 
 XXV. 
 
 4... 
 
 109 
 
 207 
 
 V. 
 
 " 
 
 10.. 
 
 
 68 
 
 vi. 
 
 " 
 
 33.. 
 
 
 447 
 
 ix. 
 
 XXVi. 
 
 1, 31,36.. 
 
 
 52 
 
 74 
 
 xi. 
 
 xxvii. 
 
 18.. 
 
 
 74 
 
 xii. 
 
 XXVUl. 
 
 5, 6, 8.. 
 
 15, 33.. 
 
 17.. 
 
 
 52 
 
 62 
 
 362 . 
 
 xiii. 
 <( 
 
 u 
 
 18.. 
 
 
 518 
 
 " 
 
 u 
 
 33, 35.. 
 
 
 238 
 
 xviii. 
 
 (( 
 
 42.. 
 
 
 312 
 
 u 
 
 SXIX. 
 
 1.. 
 
 
 75 
 
 •• 
 
 XXX. 
 
 23.. 
 34.. 
 
 
 400 
 71 
 
 xix. 
 
 XXXIII. 
 
 6.. 
 
 
 7 
 
 x.x. 
 
 XXXV. 
 
 6, 23.. 
 
 7, 23.. 
 
 
 62 
 67 
 
 xxi. 
 
 *' 
 
 25, 35.. 
 
 
 62 
 
 xxii. 
 
 XXXVI. 
 
 19.. 
 
 
 67 
 
 " 
 
 " 
 
 8, 35, 37.. 
 
 
 52 
 
 xxiii. 
 
 XXXV 11. 
 
 19, 20.. 
 
 
 53 
 
 xxiv. 
 
 Verso Pago 
 
 24,25,26 59 
 
 18,23 62 
 
 27, 28 60 
 
 1,2,3,5 52 
 
 34 67 
 
 24, 26 23.i 
 
 2 60 
 
 LEVITICUS. 
 
 5 21 
 
 11 435 
 
 12—15... 66, 241 
 
 3 70 
 
 10 140 
 
 13 47 
 
 14—22... 177, 186 
 
 29 236 
 
 4, 6, 51, 52 272 
 
 4 312 
 
 28... 26, 141 
 
 21 70 
 
 43—15 40 
 
 14 212 
 
 21 183 
 
 19 360 
 
 NUMBERS. 
 
 1, 2 46, 60 
 
 0—25 67 
 
 48 74 
 
 15 66, 115 
 
 3 76, 189 
 
 4—6 464 
 
 7,31 40 
 
 8 125 
 
 4 180 
 
 17 8 
 
 20 171 
 
 29 166 
 
 33 186 
 
 12 173 
 
 12, 37 385 
 
 19... 72, 141 
 
 2 180 
 
 6, 18... 42, 272 
 
 6 237 
 
 6 191 
 
 13, 26... 138, 165 
 
 — 68 
 
 4. .76, 112,463 
 26 414 
 
 6 325
 
 620 
 
 INDEX OF SCRIPTURE TEXTS ILLUSTRATED. 
 
 Chap, 
 sxiv. 
 
 xxvii, 
 xxviii, 
 
 xxxi. 
 
 xxxii, 
 xxxiii. 
 
 TU, 
 
 viii. 
 
 XI. 
 
 xiv. 
 
 XIX. 
 XX. 
 
 xxii. 
 xxiii. 
 
 XX7. 
 
 xxvii. 
 xxviii 
 
 (I 
 
 xxix. 
 xxxii. 
 
 xxxui. 
 xx.xiv. 
 
 Verso Pape 
 
 9 243 
 
 21 8 
 
 7 119 
 
 20 C8 
 
 38 139 
 
 35 163 
 
 49 20G 
 
 DEUTERONOMY. 
 
 C— 8 158 
 
 8, 36... 137, 154 
 
 8, 16 138 
 
 48 137 
 
 14 141 
 
 1, 15... 103, 161 
 
 2, 3... 42, 125 
 
 8... 130, 232 
 
 15... 223, 466 
 
 14 24 
 
 4, 5... 78, 265 
 
 9—16 81, 84 
 
 26 118 
 
 4 385 
 
 38 25 
 
 5 432 
 
 2 206 
 
 10 141 
 
 2 2G3 
 
 18 221 
 
 4... 141, 463 
 
 12, 13 224 
 
 23, 27... 103, 360 
 38, 39... 52, 186 
 
 6 119 
 
 18 70 
 
 11,12 46 
 
 24 135 
 
 17... 142, 391 
 
 22—28 385 
 
 3 213 
 
 
 JOSHUA 
 
 
 ii. 
 
 C. 
 
 107,434 
 
 u 
 
 10.. 
 
 165 
 
 u 
 
 18.. 
 
 444 
 
 Till. 
 
 33—35.. 
 
 162 
 
 IX. 
 
 7.. 
 
 166 
 
 X. 
 
 10.. 
 
 183 
 
 XI. 
 
 3.. 
 
 166 
 
 " 
 
 16, 17.. 
 
 159 
 
 XII. 
 
 1.. 
 
 138 
 
 XI u. 
 
 5.. 
 
 313 
 
 " 
 
 9.. 
 
 137 
 
 XIT. 
 
 13, 14.. 
 
 255 
 
 XV. 
 
 7.. 
 
 264 
 
 11 
 
 10, 57.. 
 
 226 
 
 tt 
 
 34.. 
 
 153 
 
 4( 
 
 44.. 
 
 212 
 
 XVII. 
 
 15.. 
 
 166 
 
 XVIU. 
 
 16.. 
 
 264 
 
 XIX. 
 
 22.. 
 
 215 
 
 tl 
 
 36.. 
 
 214 
 
 " 
 
 43.. 
 
 226 
 
 XXIV. 
 
 12.. 
 JUDGES. 
 
 49, 165 
 
 i. 
 
 16.. 
 
 204 
 
 Chnp. 
 
 X1I1. 
 
 xiv. 
 
 XV. 
 
 xvi. 
 
 XX. 
 
 x.\ii. 
 
 Xlll. 
 
 xiv. 
 
 XVI. 
 
 xvii. 
 
 xix. 
 xxii. 
 xxiii. 
 
 XXV. 
 
 xxvi. 
 
 xxviii. 
 
 XXX. 
 
 Vlll. 
 
 xiv. 
 
 XVlll. 
 
 xxi. 
 
 Verfic Page 
 
 20 8 
 
 22 407 
 
 1—14 232 
 
 36 189 
 
 1 266 
 
 5 181 
 
 7 406 
 
 26 518 
 
 15... 266,418 
 
 45 72 
 
 II 203 
 
 22, 23 165 
 
 4—15 118 
 
 8... 72, 556 
 
 12 465 
 
 16 203 
 
 18... 132, 243 
 
 5 341 
 
 21 359 
 
 33 256 
 
 31 256 
 
 RUTH. 
 
 22... 24, 366 
 
 4 118 
 
 14... 242, 436 
 
 1 SAMUEL. 
 
 13, 14 119 
 
 17 183 
 
 4... 97, 498 
 
 4 256 
 
 13 8 
 
 3—15 2.i6 
 
 2... 171, 469 
 
 32 70 
 
 6 145 
 
 2 132 
 
 5, 6 360 
 
 34... 243, 387 
 
 16 68 
 
 1, 2, 4 246 
 
 19 256 
 
 • 5 8 
 
 20 128 
 
 24 75 
 
 26 196 
 
 2 SAMUEL. 
 
 19 174 
 
 23 213 
 
 2, 4 256 
 
 23 316 
 
 3, 18... 159, 254 
 
 23 166 
 
 30 233 
 
 1 285 
 
 10 243 
 
 19... 169, 183 
 
 ■ 28 233 
 
 7 183 
 
 7 408 
 
 16 360 
 
 6 222 
 
 11 543 
 
 20 244 
 
 5 137 
 
 16 180 
 
 xm. 
 xiv. 
 
 XVI. 
 
 xix. 
 
 1 KINGS. 
 
 Chap. Verse Page 
 
 iv. 33... 309, 328 
 
 V. 1—10 313 
 
 ix. 26, 28... 278, 317 
 
 X. 11... 283,317 
 
 22... 61,356 
 
 " 28, 29... 21, 286 
 
 xii. 11—14 173 
 
 28, 29... 66, 75 
 
 24—29 243 
 
 15... 366, 563 
 
 19 264 
 
 24 356 
 
 8 7 
 
 20, 21 159 
 
 26 180 
 
 17 264 
 
 36 243 
 
 39 264 
 
 2 KINGS. 
 
 23, 24 261 
 
 29 606 
 
 21 278 
 
 9... 225, 366 
 
 25, 26 243 
 
 21 02 
 
 32 8, 171 
 
 36 414 
 
 23 271 
 
 26 414 
 
 1 CIIRONICLE,S. 
 
 23 317 
 
 21 518 
 
 43 130 
 
 10 281 
 
 12 262 
 
 4, 5 106 
 
 22 244 
 
 1 109 
 
 17 264 
 
 23 166 
 
 28 284 
 
 29 234 
 
 2 CHRONICLES. 
 
 ii. 8 271 
 
 14 312 
 
 iii. 5 271 
 
 " 14... 53, 312 
 
 viii. 3—7 159 
 
 18 317 
 
 ix. 10, 11... 274, 302 
 
 " 21... 91, 282 
 
 X. 11 223 
 
 xi. 7—14 53 
 
 .xvii, 11 356 
 
 xviii. 9 180 
 
 XX. 2, 36... 215, 280 
 
 36,37 283 
 
 xxviii. 18 226 
 
 xxxi. 5... 72, 227 
 xxxiii. 10, 11 306 
 
 EZRA, 
 iii. 7 270 
 
 VI. 
 
 viii. 
 xiv. 
 
 xvii. 
 xviii. 
 
 XIX. 
 
 xxiii. 
 
 vu. 
 
 viii. 
 
 xi. 
 
 xiv. 
 
 xviii. 
 
 xix 
 
 xxviii. 
 
 xxix.
 
 INDEX OF SCKIPTURE TEXTS ILLUSTKATED. 
 
 621 
 
 Chap. 
 vi. 
 vii. 
 ix. 
 
 111. 
 
 viii. 
 
 ix. 
 
 X, 
 
 sviii. 
 
 XX. 
 
 sxi. 
 xxiv. 
 
 XXV. 
 
 XX vii. 
 sxviii. 
 
 sxxi. 
 
 xxxii. 
 
 xxxvii. 
 
 xxxTiii. 
 
 IV. 
 
 ix. 
 
 X. 
 
 xi. 
 xvii. 
 
 xviii. 
 xxii. 
 
 XXIIl. 
 
 xxxi. 
 
 xxxii. 
 
 xxxiii. 
 
 xlv. 
 
 Iviii. 
 
 Ixx-iii. 
 
 Ixix. 
 
 Ixxviii. 
 
 Ixsx. 
 
 Ixxxi. 
 
 Ixxxir. 
 
 xct 
 
 xcii. 
 
 cii. 
 
 VerBC Page 
 
 9... 1C9, 191 
 
 22 191 
 
 1 1G6 
 
 NEHEMIAII. 
 
 15 35G 
 
 15 114 
 
 ESTHER. 
 
 6 IIG 
 
 14 281 
 
 12 398 
 
 JOB. 
 
 3 338 
 
 11 2 
 
 26 505 
 
 10 262 
 
 8 430 
 
 2 350 
 
 14, IG 402 
 
 10 141 
 
 22 407 
 
 C 52 
 
 12, 19 5G 
 
 7 84 
 
 15-17 317 
 
 1 222 
 
 29... 84, 86 
 
 32 295 
 
 18 234 
 
 4 392 
 
 4 234 
 
 27 263 
 
 1 388 
 
 13 322 
 
 19—30... 88, 286 
 
 4 382 
 
 PSALMS. 
 
 7 173 
 
 15 430 
 
 9 243 
 
 6 350 
 
 3 190 
 
 12 243 
 
 33 175 
 
 G 52 
 
 13 243 
 
 21 142 
 
 2 2G3 
 
 1, 2 70 
 
 4 243 
 
 9 287 
 
 17 286 
 
 8... CO, 325 
 
 8 99 
 
 80 216 
 
 21 430 
 
 46... 14, 19 
 
 47 284 
 
 10 309 
 
 15 556 
 
 3 417 
 
 13 339 
 
 12... 270, 328 
 G 86 
 
 Chnp. 
 civ. 
 cv. 
 
 cviil. 
 
 CSX. 
 
 cxxxvii. 
 cxl. 
 
 V. 
 
 vi. 
 vii. 
 viii. 
 
 z. 
 
 t( 
 
 (( 
 
 XV. 
 
 xvii. 
 
 xviii. 
 
 xix. 
 
 XX. 
 
 xxii. 
 
 XXV. 
 
 ti 
 xxvi. 
 XX vii. 
 
 i( 
 
 xxviii. 
 xxix. 
 
 XXX. 
 
 It 
 
 Verso Pago 
 
 11, 17... 21, 91 
 
 30 14 
 
 23—37 32 
 
 12 222 
 
 4... 299, 365 
 
 1 330 
 
 3 353 
 
 PKOVERBS. 
 
 15 508 
 
 19 390 
 
 5 175 
 
 2 190 
 
 9 366 
 
 6 180 
 
 20 357 
 
 26... 20, 233 
 
 17 265 
 
 12 261 
 
 10 492 
 
 20 387 
 
 1 119 
 
 13 243 
 
 2 115 
 
 11 189 
 
 13 243 
 
 22 169 
 
 25 263 
 
 16 261 
 
 5 4:!0 
 
 17 83 
 
 33 190 
 
 13 206 
 
 22 312 
 
 SONG OF SOLOMON. 
 
 i. 14... 58, 180 
 
 ii. 7 388 
 
 9 175 
 
 " 14... 70, 401 
 
 iii. 5 388 
 
 6 66 
 
 iv. 3 238 
 
 8 243 
 
 " 10, 11 389 
 
 15 63 
 
 V. 4—6 332 
 
 " 15 309 
 
 viii. 14 175 
 
 ECCLESL\STES. 
 
 xii. 5... 53, 131 
 5 186 
 
 ISAIAH. 
 
 ii. 20 99 
 
 V. 11, 22 119 
 
 " 29 340 
 
 vii. 15... 72, 363 
 
 18 20 
 
 21 132 
 
 xiii. 12 318 
 
 xiv. 11 52 
 
 " 23 550 
 
 " 29 438 
 
 XV. 5 132 
 
 " 6 25 
 
 Chnp. Verse Pape 
 
 xviii. 2 2 
 
 xix. 6, 17... 53, 13U 
 
 xxiv. 9 119 
 
 xxviii. 7 119 
 
 25 24 
 
 xxix. 9 119 
 
 XXX. 6... 339, 352 
 
 xxxiv. 2 417 
 
 11 89 
 
 " 13... 366, 549 
 
 XXXV. 7....:.... 2 
 
 xxxvi. 17 385 
 
 xl. 31 605 
 
 xli. 14 52 
 
 xliii. 23 66 
 
 xliv. 4 113 
 
 IvL 12 119 
 
 Ixv. 4 80 
 
 IxvL 17 98 
 
 JEREMIAH. 
 
 i. 11 53 
 
 iii. 19 174 
 
 iv. 7 243 
 
 " 13 286 
 
 30... 53, 208 
 
 V. 6 243 
 
 vi. 20 66 
 
 viiL 7... 91, 458 
 
 " 14 189 
 
 X. 9 117 
 
 xiii. 1 206 
 
 xiv. 5 263 
 
 xvii. 1 56 
 
 " 26 66 
 
 xix. 9 234 
 
 xxxi. 12 385 
 
 39 256 
 
 xli. 6 66 
 
 xlvi. 20 132 
 
 xlvii. 3 407 
 
 xlviiu 38 132 
 
 xlix. 14 243 
 
 Ii. 14,27 545 
 
 Iii. 20 238 
 
 LAMENTATIONS. 
 
 i. 16 175 
 
 ii. C 385 
 
 " 18 190 
 
 iii. 10 243 
 
 " 15, 19 432 
 
 iv. 7... 51, 362 
 
 21 338 
 
 EZEKIEL. 
 
 i. 16 58 
 
 ii. 6 173 
 
 iv. 12 118 
 
 15 70 
 
 vii. 10 174 
 
 X. 9 58 
 
 xi. 12 222 
 
 xiv. 14 335 
 
 xvi. 10 67 
 
 xxiv. 16 183 
 
 xxvii. 16 57
 
 G2-2 
 
 INDEX OF SCIJIPTORE TEXTS ILLUSTKATEU. 
 
 VI. 
 
 vii 
 xi. 
 
 vm. 
 ix. 
 X. 
 
 Chap. Verse Page 
 
 xxviii. 12 14G 
 
 " 13, 15, 24... 5C, 222 
 
 xxix. 3 — 9 5 
 
 xxxi. 3—9 271 
 
 xxxiv. 17 26 
 
 xl. 3 — 8 3GG 
 
 xliii. 15, IG 241 
 
 xliv. 17, 18 206 
 
 xlvli. 11 382 
 
 DANIEL. 
 
 i. — 55G 
 
 ii. — 556 
 
 iv. 33 81 
 
 V. 1—23 191 
 
 7—27... 191, 2t3 
 
 7—21 2G2 
 
 38 357 
 
 HOSEA. 
 
 8 385 
 
 14 339 
 
 5—14 290 
 
 G 225 
 
 4, 5... 132, 430 
 
 " 8 222 
 
 xiii. 7 339 
 
 " 8 202 
 
 14 182 
 
 JOEL. 
 
 i. 4 187 
 
 " 6 243 
 
 " 12 491 
 
 " 42 238 
 
 ii. 25 187 
 
 AMOS. 
 
 ii. 15 286 
 
 iii. 12 243 
 
 iv. 9 187 
 
 vL 12 430 
 
 vii. 1 409 
 
 14 689 
 
 ix. 5 5 
 
 JONAH. 
 
 i. 2 145 
 
 ii. 5 476 
 
 iv. 7 52 
 
 MICAH. 
 
 i. 8 366 
 
 IG 83 
 
 ii. 11 119 
 
 v. 8 3CG 
 
 " 14 GG 
 
 vi. 5 68 
 
 " 15 174 
 
 vii. 17... 135, 350 
 
 " 19 110 
 
 NAHUM. 
 
 ii. 11, 12 243 
 
 iiL 15, 17 187 
 
 
 IIABAKKUIC. 
 
 
 Chai). 
 
 Verse 
 
 PaRo 
 
 ], 
 
 8... 
 
 5115 
 
 111. 
 
 19... 
 ZEPHANIAU. 
 
 388 
 
 ii. 
 
 9... 
 
 3C6, 524 
 
 u 
 
 14... 
 
 89,417 
 
 it 
 
 14... 
 
 270 
 
 (t 
 
 14... 
 
 328 
 
 111. 
 
 3 . 
 ZICOHARIAH. 
 
 197 
 
 ii. 
 
 8... 
 
 5116 
 
 IV. 
 
 10... 
 
 146 
 
 V. 
 
 12... 
 
 655 
 
 VI. 
 
 1—8... 
 
 286 
 
 IX. 
 
 7,15... 
 
 477, 602 
 
 X. 
 
 4... 
 
 217 
 
 XII. 
 
 4... 
 
 .... 28G 
 
 XIll. 
 
 6... 
 
 183 
 
 XIV. 
 
 15, 20... 
 MALACIIL 
 
 286 
 
 ii. 
 
 22... 
 
 554 
 
 111. 
 
 — ... 
 
 553 
 
 " 
 
 2... 
 
 654 
 
 
 S. MATTHEW 
 
 
 ii. 
 
 2... 
 
 GG 
 
 m. 
 
 4... 
 
 219 
 
 It 
 
 7... 
 
 352 
 
 V. 
 
 13... 
 
 72 
 
 vn. 
 
 15... 
 
 197 
 
 vm. 
 
 30... 
 
 497 
 
 X. 
 
 16... 
 
 197 
 
 XI. 
 
 7... 
 
 295, 382 
 
 XXI. 
 
 16... 
 
 386 
 
 XXIU. 
 
 23... 
 
 480 
 
 XXIV. 
 
 28... 
 
 83 
 
 xxvii. 
 
 34, 48... 
 
 118 
 
 tt 
 
 46, 49... 
 
 436 
 
 ZXVIU. 
 
 34... 
 
 501 
 
 
 S. MAEK. 
 
 
 i. 
 
 13... 
 
 542 
 
 ii. 
 
 15... 
 
 691 
 
 v. 
 
 14... 
 
 497 
 
 XIV. 
 
 18... 
 
 691 
 
 XV. 
 
 13... 
 
 409 
 
 It 
 
 23.. 
 
 118, 399 
 
 
 S. LUKE. 
 
 
 i. 
 
 15.. 
 
 118 
 
 III. 
 
 7.. 
 
 351 
 
 VI. 
 
 44.. 
 
 226 
 
 ix. 
 
 10—17.. 
 
 586 
 
 X. 
 
 3.. 
 
 197 
 
 xi. 
 
 51.. 
 
 551 
 
 XII. 
 
 27.. 
 
 454 
 
 ZIII. 
 
 19.. 
 
 565 
 
 XV. 
 
 1.5, 16.. 
 
 497 
 
 XIX 
 
 4.. 
 
 283 
 
 XXIV. 
 
 41, 42.. 
 S. JOHN. 
 
 557 
 
 i. 
 
 4.. 
 
 5G1 
 
 Chap. 
 
 Verso 
 
 Pago 
 
 1. 
 
 18 
 
 ... 71 
 
 111. 
 
 14 
 
 ... 134 
 
 V. 
 
 15 
 
 ... 3G2 
 
 VI. 
 
 9.. .. 
 
 ... 118 
 
 X. 
 
 12 
 
 ... 196 
 
 XII. 
 
 13 
 
 ... 213 
 
 XI .\. 
 
 20, 39... 400, 573 
 
 
 ACTS. 
 
 
 ii. 
 
 9-H 
 
 ... 691 
 
 IX. 
 
 14 
 
 ... 652 
 
 sx. 
 
 29 
 
 ... 197 
 
 XXVUI. 
 
 3 
 
 ROMANS. 
 
 ... 352 
 
 i. 
 
 1 
 
 .... 553 
 
 IV. 
 
 — 
 
 ... 394 
 
 VIII. 
 
 4-8 
 
 .... 383 
 
 1 CORINTHIANS 
 
 
 iii. 
 
 14 
 
 .... 357 
 
 ix. 
 
 ) 
 
 .... 601 
 
 X. 
 
 7 — 10 
 
 EPHESIANS. 
 
 .... 141 
 
 ii. 
 
 6, 6 
 
 PHILIPPIANS. 
 
 .... 71 
 
 iv. 
 
 18 
 
 COLOSSIANS. 
 
 .... 72 
 
 iv. 
 
 6 
 
 1 TLMOTIIY. 
 
 '2 
 
 ii. 
 
 9,10 
 
 .... 609 
 
 111. 
 
 7 
 
 HEBREWS. 
 
 .... 430 
 
 i. 
 
 7—9 
 
 .... 397 
 
 vm. 
 
 2 
 
 . .. 113 
 
 ix. 
 
 13, 14.... 
 
 .... 133 
 
 tt 
 
 19 
 
 .... 63 
 
 
 JAMES. 
 
 
 iv. 
 
 3.... 
 
 .... 524 
 
 v. 
 
 11.... 
 
 1 PETER. 
 
 .... 335 
 
 i. 
 
 7.... 
 
 .... 357 
 
 tt 
 
 10, U.... 
 
 .... 389 
 
 iii. 
 
 3, 4.... 
 2 PETER. 
 
 .... 118 
 
 ii. 
 
 22.... 
 REVELATION. 
 
 .... 497 
 
 iv. 
 
 3... 
 
 66, 518 
 
 VII. 
 
 9... 
 
 38, 213 
 
 vm. 
 
 4,11... 
 
 66, 432 
 
 XIU. 
 
 2... 
 
 .... 262 
 
 XVI 
 
 13.... 
 
 .... 14 
 
 XVIII. 
 
 13.... 
 
 .... 286 
 
 XXI. 
 
 20.... 
 
 .... 57 
 
 " 
 
 21.. . 
 
 .... 3G2 
 
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