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BY THE SAME AUTHOR 
 
 PRE-GLACIAL MAN 
 
 AND 
 
 THE ARYAN RACE 
 
 A History of Creation, and of the birthplace 
 and wanderings of man in Central Asia, from 
 B.C. 32,500 to B.C. 8,000, with a history of the 
 Aryan Race, commencing B.C. 15,000, their 
 rise and progress, and the promulgation of the 
 first revelation; their spiritual decline, and the 
 destruction of the nation, B.C. 4,705; the inroad 
 of the Turanians, and the scattering of the rem- 
 nant of the race, B.C. 4,304, as deciphered from 
 a very ancient document. Also an exposition 
 of the law governing the formation and duration 
 of the Glacial Period, and a record of its effects 
 on man, and on the configuration of the globe. 
 A chapter on the deluge; its cause, locality, 
 and extent; and an account of the "Cannes 
 Myth." I1.50. 
 
 LEEMDSHEPffiD PUBLISHERS BOSTON 
 
ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS 
 JEHOVAH AND THE CHRIST 
 
 A RECORD OF SPIRITUAL ADVANCE FROM 
 
 THE HOUSEHOLD OR PERSONAL GOD OF THE 
 SEMITE ABRAM, AND FROM JEHOVAH, THE TU- 
 TELARY OR NATIONAL GOD OF THE ISRAELITES, 
 TO THE UNIVERSAL FATHER REVEALED BY JESUS 
 THE CHRIST: WITH THE CONTRACTS MADE BE- 
 TWEEN THE HOUSEHOLD GOD AND ABRAM ; THE 
 TUTELARY GOD, JEHOVAH AND THE ISRAELITES; 
 AND BETWEEN OUR FATHER IN HEAVEN AND 
 
 ALL MANKIND ALSO THE CIRCUMSTANCES, 
 
 INCIDENTS, AND EVENTS ATTENDING THE PREP- 
 ARATION FOR AND THE PROMULGATION OF 
 THE SECOND REVELATION 
 
 By LORENZO BURGE 
 
 OF "PRE-GLACIAL MAN, AND THE ARYAN RACE" 
 
 fjL^^ or THE 
 
 PUBLISHED A.D. 1889 
 
 BY LEE AND SHEPARD, 10 MILK STREET, 
 BOSTON, NEXT "THE OLD SOUTH MEETING- 
 HOUSE," AND CAN BE HAD OF ALL RESPECTABLE 
 BOOK-DEALERS, OR SAID BOOK WILL BE SENT 
 BY MAIL UPON RECEIPT OF THE PRICE, $1.50 
 
Copyright, 1888, 
 By LORENZO BURGE. 
 
 All rights reserved. 
 
 Aryas, Semites and Jews. 
 
 BOSTON 
 S. J. Parkhill & Co. Printers 
 
 37-97 
 3 8- 
 
" God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, 
 and God in him." — 1 John iv. 16. 
 
 " If any man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is 
 a liar." — 1 John iv. 20. 
 
 " And this commandment have we from him. That he who 
 loveth God love his brother also." — 1 John iv. 21. 
 
 " Whoso hath this world's good, and seeth his brother have 
 need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how 
 dwelleth the love of God in him ?"'— 1 John iii. 17. 
 
 " No man cometh unto the Father, but by me." — John xiv. 6. 
 
 "Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God 
 raised from the dead. . . . This is the stone which was set at 
 nought of you builders, which is become the head of the 
 corner. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is 
 none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we 
 must be saved." — Acts iv. 10, 11, 12. 
 
 " Other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which 
 is Jesus Christ." — 1 Coe. iii. 11. 
 
PEEFAOE. 
 
 In our previous volume, "Pre-Glacial Man and 
 the Aryan Eace," speaking of the history revealed in 
 the early chapters of Genesis, we said, "Great as is the 
 value of this history, it has been preserved merely as a 
 vehicle in which to transmit a record of the first reve- 
 lation made by the Deity to man through the Aryan 
 race ; the duty laid upon that race to promulgate it ; 
 their neglect of that duty, and their consequent re- 
 moval by God from the civilized world.*' 
 
 In this volume we propose to resume the thread of 
 history, and show the movements of the Deity in the 
 selection of a people through whom, in the fulness of 
 time, men should be sufficiently enlightened to receive, 
 and from whom that being should proceed, who, as 
 God's messenger, should again give to man, that reve- 
 lation before given to the Aryas and rejected. 
 
 In the volume mentioned, we have the record of the 
 revelation made to the Aryan race, with the injunction 
 to spread the knowledge throughout the world. We 
 have seen that race neglect the opportunities granted 
 them to perform that duty ; the consequent destruc- 
 tion of their nation ; the banishment of the race ; their 
 
 5 
 
6 PREFACE. 
 
 relapse into barbarism ; and the loss to the world of 
 the first revelation. 
 
 After some two thousand or twenty-five hundred 
 years, during which the Turanian, Hamite, and Semitic 
 races kept alive the civilization and knowledge re- 
 ceived by them from the Aryas, the Deity, who was 
 at that time unknown to man, took measures to again 
 reveal himself ; and in the Bible is the record of his 
 work. In this book we find a nearly continuous his- 
 tory of the Hebrew nation, and it also contains a 
 record of their spiritual progress. 
 
 Unwittingly, the writers have given us the means of 
 tracing every movement of the Deity, until He for 
 whose advent the nation itself was created, and to 
 prepare for whose coming all this work had been per- 
 formed, — he, the Christ, appeared ; and through him, 
 the Deity, his law and requirements, were again made 
 known, and again placed in the hands of the Aryas, 
 with a repetition of the former injunction to promul- 
 gate it throughout the world. 
 
 The Christian religion has long been overburdened 
 by the belief that the Bible is one book, all parts equal 
 in importance, and all the product of direct inspiration 
 from the Deity. 
 
 This belief has caused the simple and direct teach- 
 ings of Jesus, the Christ, to be covered and hidden by 
 crude dogmas, drawn by ignorance and superstition 
 from the old, barbarous, and cruel record of the deal- 
 ings of Jehovah, the tutelary god of the Hebrews, 
 with that nation ; until Christianity (so called) has 
 
PREFACE. 7 
 
 become an instrument for clothing our loving and dear 
 Father in heaven with the garb of, and for ascribing 
 to him the characteristics of, the outgrown and dead 
 Jehovah. The Jewish nation is dead ; and the god of 
 that nation died, as Jehovah, with it. 
 
 In the hope that Christian teachers and people may 
 be brought to see the folly and crime of such teaching, 
 I place this book in their hands, trusting it may re- 
 move the scales of superstition and bigotry from their 
 eyes, and that they may see the beauty, the power, the 
 loveliness, the simplicity, of the teachings of the Christ, 
 the anointed and authorized messenger of our Father 
 in heaven. 
 
 In our main work we have quoted freely from the 
 New Testament, to show the identity of the Christ's 
 teachings with the original. Incident thereto, we have 
 exposed the prevalence of false Christianit}- , and have 
 revealed the second coming of the Christ. 
 
OONTEE'TS, 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 I. The Interregnum 11 
 
 II. The Hebrews 21 
 
 Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and their 
 
 Household God 21 
 
 Moses, the Israelites, and Jehovah 
 
 THEIR Tutelary or National God . . 33 
 
 III. The Jews 53 
 
 Cyrus to the Christ 53 
 
 Anno Domini 66 
 
 Jesus the Christ 72 
 
 lY. The Claim of Jesus of Nazareth to be the 
 
 Christ 87 
 
 Messianic Prophecies 90 
 
 Jesus of Nazareth 96 
 
 The Christ 102 
 
 The Son of God 104 
 
 Corroborative Testimony 113 
 
 Son of Man 117 
 
 Other Testimony 122 
 
 The Christ's Miracles 127 
 
 Pre-Existence 133 
 
 V. The First and Second Kevelations com- 
 pared 140 
 
 One God 140 
 
 The Love of God 148 
 
 9 
 
10 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTBB PA0B 
 
 The Kingdom of Heaven 154 
 
 God our Father 160 
 
 Eternal Life the Gift of God .... 167 
 
 God's Plan of Salvation 178 
 
 Eternal Death, or Dissolution. ... 184 
 
 VI. Other Christian Subjects 200 
 
 Angels and Devils, Heaven and Hell . 200 
 
 Miracles 210 
 
 The Crucifixion 216 
 
 The Kesurrection 229 
 
 The Disciples 237 
 
 The Apostles 243 
 
 The Second Coming of the Christ . . 256 
 
 The Christ an Enigma 262 
 
 The Holy Spirit in the Nineteenth 
 
 Century 268 
 
 False Christianity 272 
 
 Loyalty to God 283 
 
 The Second Garden of Eden 288 
 
 The Completion of the Second Reve- 
 lation, AND the End op the Jewish 
 
 Nation 294 
 
 The Essentials of Christianity. ... 297 
 
 APPENDIX: 
 
 Early Civilization in the Euphrates 
 
 Valley 299 
 

 
 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 THE IKTERREGKUM. 
 
 In our former volume, we followed the fortunes 
 of the Aryas to the period of their extinction as a 
 nation, and their final dispersion, which we are 
 informed was in the time of, or at the birth of, 
 Peleg, B.C. 2247 by the Bible chronology, but 
 by the enlarged chronology caused by Assyrian 
 discoveries, which we have adopted in our previ- 
 ous volume, some two thousand years earlier ; viz., 
 B.C. 4304. Bible chronology places the birth of 
 Abram, during the reign of the Semites, at B.C. 
 2056. In the Bible we have no account of the 
 events transpiring during this interregnum of 
 2,248 years, and we can only look to Assyria or 
 Egypt to enlighten the darkness.^ 
 
 1 In the appendix we give quotations from the writings of 
 Professors Smith, Sayce, and other Assyriologists, showing the 
 high state of civilization of the Semitic occupants of the Euphrates 
 Valley at the time of Sargon I., B.C. 3800, and the consequent 
 civilization of the original occupants of the valley thousands p| 
 years before. 
 
 U 
 
12 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 Some four hundred years previous to the dis- 
 persion of the remnant of the Aryas, the Flood had 
 overwhehned and destroyed the Aryan nation, 
 which were then occupying the Euphrates Valley 
 and the borders of the Persian Gulf. The de- 
 struction of this nation cut off from the Aryan 
 rulers of Egypt their source of supply for their 
 army; and they were in no condition to success- 
 fully withstand the uprising of the Egyptians 
 under a native prince or leader, who, some time 
 after the Deluge, vanquished and drove from their 
 country the foreign race that had for so long a 
 time ruled over them. 
 
 B.C. 3800, we find Sargon I., a Semite, ruling 
 over the country. The Turanian language had 
 become obsolete ; and he caused a collection to be 
 made of the numerous religious and scientific 
 books, astronomical and astrological works, histo- 
 ries, and other books written in the Turanian 
 tongue, and appointed learned men to translate 
 them into the vernacular. He also caused dic- 
 tionaries, grammars, and phrase-books to be writ- 
 ten, that the knowledge contained in these old 
 books might not be lost. Through the work of 
 this enlightened sovereign it is that Assyriologists 
 are enabled to gain a knowledge of the Turanian 
 language, and thus transcribe some of the earliest 
 cylinders. 
 
THE INTERREGNUM. 13 
 
 While the early Turanians were undoubtedly 
 aware of the previous rule of the Aryas over Asia, 
 and of their destruction by the Flood, these facts 
 would hardly appear in their national records, as 
 they would form no part of their history. In 
 course of time, having no interest in them, the 
 whole subject would be forgotten, or become 
 matter of tradition. 
 
 The Semites would take but little interest in 
 the Turanian traditions respecting the Aryas, if 
 they were aware of any. With them, the origin 
 of civilization and learning had taken the form of 
 myth, and the original meaning was forgotten. 
 The allegory of the creation, Adam and Eve, and 
 the deluge, was kept intact, and was treasured by 
 them as a literal record of facts. In their popular 
 writings they naturally introduced the names of 
 their own gods as the actors ; as, long after- 
 ward, the Hebrews did the same in part, giving 
 to their god, Jehovah, the credit of the creation of 
 man, and the causing of the deluge. 
 
 The fact that such a people as the Aryas 
 should have existed, and ruled over Southern 
 Central Asia for five thousand years, and yet the 
 record of their existence be so completely lost 
 that only the legend of the "Oannes" remained 
 to indicate their work of civilization, is remarkable 
 and strange. It must have required a long period 
 
14 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 of time, and many changes, to have so entirely 
 obliterated such an existence, and leave in utter 
 oblivion the nation which philology proves to have 
 been the progenitor of the present most civilized 
 races of mankind. 
 
 The slow progress of two or three thousand 
 years, the intervention of these two alien races, 
 their long reigns, and the entire disappearance of 
 the Aryas, caused their history to die out of the 
 memory of man. Excepting the Oannes myth, 
 not even a legend of them remained to attest their 
 former existence, until, in the providence of God, 
 the hidden records in the allegory were brought 
 forth, and God's work and requirements made 
 known.i 
 
 In " Pre-Glacial Man " we have seen the inten- 
 tions of God apparently thwarted. The race to 
 whom he had intrusted a knowledge of himself, 
 
 1 In Professor Sayce's " Fresh Light from the Ancient Monu- 
 ments," we obtain some knowledge of another ancient nation, 
 the Hittites, whose history had been lost to the world, except 
 in the incident of the purchase by Abraham of the cave of Mach- 
 pelah, and in the slight mention of them among the Canaanitish 
 nations occupying Canaan at the time of the Hebrew exodus. 
 The monuments lately discovered show them to have reigned 
 over a territory extending from the Mediterranean to the Eu- 
 phrates, and from Egypt to Northern Syria. For many hundreds 
 of years they ruled this region on terms of equality with Egypt 
 on the south, and Assyria on the east: yet, until these discov- 
 eries, their former existence as a powerful nation was unknown. 
 
THE INTERREGNUM. 15 
 
 his laws and requirements, and of the immortal 
 destiny of man, with the command that they 
 should spread abroad this knowledge, and teach 
 it to all mankind, had been false to its trust, and 
 had neglected to fulfil its obligations. 
 
 The main body of the race had deteriorated, 
 had become debased and vile, and by the hand of 
 God had been swept from the face of the earth ; 
 while the remainder were occupying portions of 
 Western Asia, and Europe, far from the centres 
 of civilization and knowledge. They had become 
 the savage, uncivilized portion of the human race ; 
 and the Semites, one of the before-despised barba- 
 rian races, had become rulers of Central Asia, 
 and the inheritors of the arts, science, culture, and 
 civilization of the world. 
 
 In Egypt, one of the great centres of civiliza- 
 tion, the native Egyptian race were ruled over by 
 the Hyksos, a foreign race of shepherd-kings, who 
 had conquered them one or two hundred years be- 
 fore. These Hyksos were undoubtedly a portion 
 of the Semitic inhabitants of the Euphrates Valley, 
 who had overrun and now ruled over the Egyp- 
 tians. 
 
 The revelation made to the Aryas having thus 
 been lost to the world, after a lapse of two thou- 
 sand years or more God again prepares to make 
 himself known to man. 
 
16 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 Before attempting to trace the movements of 
 the Deity in carrying out his purpose, we will 
 endeavor to ascertain the physical, moral, and 
 spiritual condition of the world, as exhibited in 
 the ruling races of mankind at that period. 
 
 Away back three thousand years or more, a 
 branch of the Aryan race had held sway for eight 
 hundred or a thousand years over these same 
 Egyptians. The evidence of this foreign rule was 
 shown in the advance made in some of the arts 
 and sciences, and in a trace of the religion of the 
 Aryas shown in the doctrine taught to the priests 
 of a spiritual and invisible God who ruled the 
 universe, and in the introduction into their own 
 religion, of a system of future reward for the good 
 and of punishment for the wicked in the world 
 beyond. 
 
 The religion of the Egyptians was otherwise of 
 the very lowest description. They worshipped 
 various gods, whom they supposed had power 
 over the seasons, the crops, the insect and other 
 plagues, and over the various powers of nature, 
 with Osiris as their supreme god, and Isis his wife. 
 They also held many animals as sacred, and sacri- 
 ficed to them. While the priests and a few of 
 the learned men held more enlightened views, the 
 people generally were sunk in the darkest spiritual 
 ignorance. In the arts and sciences of civiliza- 
 
THE INTERREGNUM. 17 
 
 tion, they were far advanced, in fact, leading the 
 world in intellectual knowledge, and in material 
 power and riches ; having vast armies and navies, 
 and holding commerce with Europe and the 
 Indies. 
 
 The Euphrates Valley, the other centre of civil- 
 ization, was inhabited by the Semitic race. In 
 absorbing the arts, science, and civilization of the 
 Turanians, who had preceded them, they had, 
 with the civilization, also adopted their religious 
 beliefs ; and we find here a religion in some re- 
 spects higher than that of Egypt, yet still of a 
 very low order. 
 
 They worshipped gods innumerable. Heaven, 
 earth, and sea, each had its god. Every city had 
 its tutelary god; and every house its teraphim, 
 or household god. The Deity was unknown, and 
 his powers and attributes had been distributed 
 among the thousand and one gods of nature. 
 
 Under these circumstances, how could a knowl- 
 edge of the Deity, his laws and requirements, be 
 revealed to man? The spiritual nature of the 
 Semites had not been unfolded. This earth 
 bounded their views. The idea of one God, the 
 maker and sustainer of the universe, the father 
 and lover of mankind, was too vast, and entirely 
 beyond their comprehension. 
 
 The Aryan race had been naturally of a higher 
 
18 ARTASy SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 type, a more spiritual race ; in their early experi- 
 ence, they had been entirely secluded from all 
 other nations. As the leading and most advanced 
 race, they had received from God a gradual reve- 
 lation; their minds were fallow, and open to 
 receive such spiritual instruction as might be 
 vouchsafed; and they had no pre-conceived ideas 
 of God, or of the powers of nature, to be over- 
 come. They had, consequently, received the first 
 evangel pure and undefiled by man's devices. 
 
 But the Semites were a race whose spiritual 
 nature was as yet unawakened. Enterprising, 
 ambitious, selfish, and cruel ; desiring and work- 
 ing for temporal wealth; their thoughts limited 
 to this world and their creature comforts, — how 
 were they to be enlightened, and, through them, 
 the world receive a knowledge of spiritual things? 
 
 If the Deity had sent a messenger to proclaim 
 his being and power to the Semites, he would not 
 have been received. They had already gods of 
 the heavens and the earth, whose powers were un- 
 questioned. What could the new deity do more 
 than they? If received at all, he would have been 
 only as one among many gods. 
 
 Apparently, the Deity could only introduce 
 himself to mankind by creating a race or nation 
 who knew no god ; who should be secluded and 
 gradually instructed, as were the Aryas of old, 
 
THE INTERREGNUM. 19 
 
 until they should reach a height of intelligence 
 which would enable them to receive the proposed 
 revelation. 
 
 In the Old Testament, we can see what was 
 done by the Deity. In the record made by the 
 Hebrews themselves (a portion of the Semite 
 race), we can trace every step taken by God to- 
 ward the promulgation of the second revelation. 
 
 What God determined to do, is shown by what 
 he did do. In selecting an individual from the 
 Semitic or Semite race as the progenitor or 
 father of the people or nation who should be the 
 instrument in his hands, again to give to man the 
 revelation once given to the Aryas, but now lost 
 and forgotten, the Deity must work with a race of 
 duller spiritual perceptions, and one in every way 
 inferior to the Aryas, whose work they will be 
 called upon in part to perform. They are of the 
 earth earthy in their nature. This earth bounds 
 their views : only through their senses can they 
 be taught. They must have an object to worship 
 which can be recognized by the senses. 
 
 As an inducement to right living, worldly bless- 
 ings must be promised; and sickness, plague, 
 famine, and war be threatened as consequent on 
 evil-doing. 
 
 It took five thousand years for the Aryas to 
 reach the height of their spiritual knowledge ; but 
 
20 ABYASy SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 this people will not, can not reach that point at all. 
 They will not be required to spread the knowledge 
 of God throughout the world: that is the duty- 
 resting on the Aryas. This people will merely be 
 required to prepare the way, and produce the 
 man who shall in God's good time, through spe- 
 cial instruction and inspiration, again give unto 
 the Aryas the revelation which, once their own, 
 was for a time taken from them because of dis- 
 obedience and neglect of its requirements. 
 
 The first step in the long progress of events 
 was the selection of Abram, a Semite inhabitant 
 of the city of Ur, a city in what was afterward 
 known as Southern Babylonia. 
 
THE HEBREWS. 21 
 
 II. 
 
 THE HEBREWS. 
 ABRAHAM, ISAAC , AND JACOB, AND THEIR HOUSEHOLD GOD. 
 
 From the Hebrew Scriptures we learn that 
 Abram was a citizen of Ur, one of the oldest of 
 the Chaldsean cities. From the cylinders we find 
 that at the time of his birth that city was at the 
 height of its prosperity, and was the principal or 
 capital city of the southern district of the country 
 afterward known as Babylonia. 
 
 Its name " Ur " comes from the tutelary god 
 worshipped by its inhabitants, the moon ; and Ur 
 means the moon-city. It was situate about six 
 miles west of the Euphrates, perhaps ten or twenty 
 miles from its mouth. The rivers Tigris and 
 Euphrates bring down each year so much sedi- 
 ment, that the land rapidly encroaches on the 
 Persian Gulf; and the present mouth of the Eu- 
 phrates is many miles beyond the outlet of the 
 river at the time of Abram.^ 
 
 1 The ruins of Ur, now known as Mugheir, show that it was 
 originally surrounded by a wall, and was a place of considerable 
 importance. The first monarch of Ur, whose name has been 
 
22 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 Terah, the father of Abram, the Scriptures in- 
 form us, "was a worshipper of other gods," and 
 Hebrew traditions call him a maker of images or 
 teraphim. 
 
 Teraphim were images of the household gods, 
 made of any size, some small to be easily carried 
 on a journey, and others of life size. Kitto's Cy- 
 clopaedia says, " They were similar to the ' Pena- 
 tes ; ' " and calls them "tutelar household gods, by 
 whom families expected, for worship bestowed, to 
 be rewarded with domestic prosperity, such as 
 plenty of food, health, and the various necessaries 
 of domestic life." 
 
 In Genesis it is stated, that Rachel, the wife of 
 Jacob, secreted her father Laban's images, or ter- 
 aphim ; and Laban, in his interview with Jacob, 
 charges him with having "stolen his gods." 
 When Jacob goes to Bethel, at the command of 
 his god, he orders his household to " put away the 
 strange gods that are among you," evidently re- 
 ferring to images or teraphim. In Judges, Micah, 
 it is stated, "made an ephod, and teraphim," for 
 the purpose of worship. These household gods 
 
 preserved, is Lig-Bagus, wno ruled apparently a little before the 
 time of Abram. He extended his empire by conquest over most 
 of Southern Babylonia. At Ur, he built a temple to the moon- 
 god, a tower, and a palace; remains of the temple still exist 
 He also erected a temple in Larsa; one to the god Anu, in Erech; 
 and one to Bel, at Nipur. 
 
THE HEBREWS. 23 
 
 were well known to the Israelites, both before and 
 after Moses. 
 
 To understand the Bible account of Abram, we 
 must first know what were the influences sur- 
 rounding him during his sixty years' residence in 
 Ur, previous to his removal with his father Terah. 
 This knowledge we obtain from the Babylonian 
 cylinders. 
 
 The Semites in the Euphrates Valley, as we have 
 before said, were worshippers of many gods. The 
 whole universe was divided up among them. 
 Anu was the supreme ruler of the heavens, and 
 had command over the seven baleful spirits of the 
 air, or winds. Bel, or Belus, the Baal of Scrip- 
 ture, was god of the middle region ; he represented 
 the principle of active and creative life, and held 
 sway on earth. Hea governed the regions under 
 the earth, and the sea. The throne-bearers, or 
 seven wicked spirits of the sea, were under his 
 control. Hea was also the representative of wis- 
 dom. Vul, the son of Anu, was the god of the 
 atmosphere and its phenomena. Anatu, the wife 
 of Anu, was goddess of life and death. Istar, 
 daughter of Anu, afterward known as Astarte or 
 Venus, and in Scripture as Ashtoreth, represented 
 the heavenly bodies. She is also portrayed as the 
 mother of mankind, and as the goddess of licen- 
 tious love. Elu, prince of gods, was the principal 
 
24 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 god of war, and is afterward known as Mars. 
 Nagal was also a war-god. Shamus was the sun- 
 god. Merodach was benefactor of mankind ; Mak- 
 lin, god of dreams ; with many others of less note, 
 also tutelary gods of the various cities and villages, 
 down to the tutelar household gods. A change 
 of rulers frequently caused a change in the god 
 worshipped in the city or country. The same was 
 true of the household god. Those old Babylo- 
 nians believed that the gods desired sacrifice ; the 
 burning of fragrant woods and the flavors of 
 burning flesh were grateful to them, and they 
 would flock in crowds to smell the sacrifice. The 
 Bible says of the sacrifice of Noah, "and the 
 Lord smelled a sweet savor;" and the Babylonian 
 legend, speaking of the same thing, says, "The 
 gods collected at its burning ; the gods like flies 
 over the sacrifice gathered." In return for this 
 sacrifice (which was not an act of worship as we 
 understand it, but merely an offering for benefits 
 received or expected), the god to whom the sac- 
 rifice was offered, it was believed, would protect, 
 care for, and aid the worshipper in his undertak- 
 ings, and give him health, food, and success. If 
 the worshipper did not succeed, he became dissat- 
 isfied with his god, and unceremoniously dethroned 
 him as weak and powerless, and put in his place 
 another, and, as he hoped, a more powerful deity. 
 
THE HEBREWS. 26 
 
 They had no fear, love, or reverence for them 
 they were merely convenient helpers. 
 
 The supreme god Ann, with Bel, god of earth, 
 and Hea, god of the sea, they believed to have 
 been created by the forces of nature ; with the ex- 
 ception of these and their immediate descendants, 
 they believed the gods to have been men, who, for 
 services rendered on earth, had been made immor- 
 tal. By thus becoming immortal, they had ob- 
 tained and wielded power beyond that of man, 
 and became gods. 
 
 In the Book of Acts, we read that the inhabit- 
 ants of Lystra desired to offer sacrifice to Barna- 
 bas and Paul, as being Jupiter and Mercury. 
 After the shipwreck at Melita, Paul shook off the 
 viper that had fastened on his hand, without in- 
 jury ; and they said, " He is a god." The Lares 
 and Penates are the same as the household gods 
 of Abram's time ; and a Christian adaptation of 
 the same belief is seen in Europe in the Roman- 
 Catholic worship of saints. 
 
 The duties of the household god, in return for 
 sacrificial offerings, are expressed in the covenant 
 or bargain made by Jacob with his god as 
 recorded in Genesis: — 
 
 "Jacob vowed a vow, saying. If God will be 
 with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, 
 and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put 
 
26 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 on, so that I come again to my father's house in 
 peace, then shall the Lord be my Lord." 
 
 This illustrates the belief and the expectation 
 of the men of those times, and shows the nature 
 of the covenant or bargain made between the par- 
 ties. In payment for this care and these blessings, 
 Jacob promises the usual sacrifice. " Of all thou 
 shalt give me, I will surely give the tenth unto 
 thee : " in other words, will spend that amount in 
 incense and sacrifices.^ 
 
 We smile at the Eastern legends and traditions 
 respecting Abraham : yet Christians have fallen 
 into as great a misconception of his character, by 
 imagining that the god with whom he covenanted 
 and conversed was the Deity as revealed by the 
 Christ two thousand years later. Jehovah, the 
 Hebrew tutelary god revealed by Moses ; and our 
 Father, revealed by the Christ, — were both alike 
 unknown to Abraham. 
 
 Then, who and what was the god revealed to 
 Abram ? and what does the Scripture story mean ? 
 
 Abram for sixty years was a resident of Ur. 
 He was in no way different from the other inhab- 
 itants of the city. Like them he was a believer 
 
 1 Undoul:)tedly, most Christians in their early manhood 
 would gladly make an agreement to give ten per cent of their 
 income to the support of religion or to charity, upon a contract 
 like the above. Yet how few from their incomes pay to the Giver 
 any such proportion! 
 
THE HEBREWS. 27 
 
 in, and a worshipper of, the gods of Babylonia : he 
 knew no others. At sixty years of age he jour- 
 neyed to Haran with his father, who took with 
 him his gods ; and there the family remained until 
 the death of Terah. 
 
 Previous to this time, Abram had received this 
 message, as he believed, from a household god; 
 " I will make of thee a great nation, and I will 
 bless thee, and make thy name great, and thou 
 shalt be a blessing; and I will bless them that 
 bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee ; and 
 in thee shall all the families of the earth be 
 blessed." This was the promise. The consider- 
 ation for all these blessings was, " Get thee out of 
 thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy 
 father's house, unto a land that I will show thee." 
 
 We see that he did not do this until his father's 
 death ; then " Abram departed, . . . and they went 
 forth into the land of Canaan." Abram showed 
 that he had faith in the promise, by fulfilling the 
 condition ; and this was the first step in the con- 
 tract made between Abram, and the Deity in the 
 character of a household god. 
 
 A revelation such as was afterward made 
 through the Christ could not have been under- 
 stood by the Semites at that time, neither were 
 they far enough advanced at the time of Moses. 
 God reveals himself to the extent of the ability 
 
28 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 of man to receive. For eighteen hundred years we 
 have had the Christ's revelation ; yet how few 
 Christians have the ability to receive it to-day ! 
 
 To reach or influence man, the only way open 
 was for the Deity to meet man on his own plane 
 of knowledge and belief, crude as it was, and 
 through that belief carry forward his own objects ; 
 and that is what he did do. 
 
 Abram believed that his worship of a household 
 god made it obligatory on the part of that god to 
 help him. He received the proposition of the god 
 naturally, and showed his faith in the message by 
 removing to the land pointed out. That was the 
 first step, and fulfilled his part of the agreement 
 or covenant. 
 
 Abram's obedience received its reward by a 
 visible or personal appearance, and he was en- 
 couraged by a promise of a gift of the land to 
 his seed. In answer Abram erected an altar on 
 the plain of Moreh and afterward at Bethel, and 
 offered sacrifice to this god ; this was equal to a 
 vow of confidence. From thence he travelled to 
 Egypt, where he was protected by his god ; and he 
 returned to Bethel laden with riches. In return 
 for this protection and increase, he called upon 
 the name of, or sacrificed to, his god. 
 
 At a later period the promise was made more 
 particular in its terms, and stronger; and the 
 
THE HEBBEW8, 29 
 
 promised protection was soon put to the test in 
 his conflict with Chedorlaomer and the allied 
 kings, in which he won the battle, and rescued Lot 
 from bondage. On his return he was met by 
 Melchizedek, who informed him that he had con- 
 quered Chedorlaomer by the aid of " the most 
 high God, possessor of heaven and earth." This 
 was the first knowledge Abram had received as to 
 the personality or position of the god whom he 
 served ; and he immediately gave the credit of his 
 success to the " most high God, possessor of 
 heaven and earth," in his response to the king 
 of Sodom. Every god previously known to Abram 
 had a name, but as yet he did not know the name 
 of the god he served. 
 
 After these things, Abram was still more 
 strengthened by the promise, " Fear not, Abram : 
 I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward," 
 and with the additional promise of a son, and that 
 his seed should be in number as the stars in 
 heaven. Then comes the dream, in which the 
 servitude of the Hebrews was foretold, and the 
 result ; and a covenant, or agreement of possession, 
 was made with Abram. We see that the prom- 
 ises of the god were continually enlarged, and 
 Abram was prospered in all his undertakings. 
 Coming in contact with the king of Egypt, it was 
 Abram's god who was known and acknowledged. 
 
30 ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 Thus the Deity endeavored to enlarge Abram's 
 idea of his power, and to strengthen his confi- 
 dence in him. 
 
 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, his 
 god, as he believed, appeared unto him, and re- 
 vealed himself as the " Almighty God," and talked 
 with him ; changed his name to Abraham, and es- 
 tablished with him the covenant of circumcision ; 
 and " he and all the men of his house were circum- 
 cised the same day." Shortly after, Abraham held 
 an argument with a being who he believed was 
 his god, relative to the destruction of the cities 
 of the plain. 
 
 In all these interviews, in which God is repre- 
 sented as appearing in the form of a man, and 
 holding intercourse, face to face, with Abraham, 
 we must remember what Abraham's belief was. 
 A man who had become immortal was to him a 
 god. He would meet one, so immortalized into 
 a god, on a plane of equality. The exhibition of 
 any extraordinary power by a being in human 
 form would lead Abraham to believe in him as a 
 god, — as did the Grecians long years afterward ; 
 and as did Jacob, when he wrestled all night with 
 a man, who then, with a touch of his finger, put 
 out his thigh-joint ; and Jacob said, " I have seen 
 God face to face, and my life is preserved." At a 
 later time, the Deity said unto Moses, speaking of 
 
THE UEBBEWS. 31 
 
 Aaron, " Thou shalt be to him m stead of God ; " 
 also of Pharaoh, "I have made thee a god to 
 Pharaoh." Thus we see any unusual appearance, 
 or the possession of extraordinary power, led to 
 the belief that the possessor was a god ; and it is 
 this belief which is expressed in the words and 
 acts of Abraham ; and they make true the state- 
 ment of Christ, " No man hath seen God at any 
 time." 
 
 The contract or covenant of circumcision was 
 continued with Isaac, and renewed with Jacob. 
 God had been revealed to them, also, as the 
 Almighty ; but they do not seem to have given 
 any thought to its meaning, and do not give him 
 his title. He is known to their descendants simply 
 as a personal or household god, as " their fathers' 
 god," or " the god of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob." 
 
 The various experiences of the patriarchs, and 
 the power shown in their behalf by this household 
 god, gave him a place in the worship of their de- 
 scendants ; and we find the acknowledgment of it 
 down to the days of servitude to the Egyptians. 
 
 Various events caused the children of Jacob, 
 with their father, to settle in Egypt, a portion of 
 the country being assigned to them as their 
 residence. 
 
 After the death of Jacob, several hundred years 
 passed. In the changes of rulers, the former 
 
32 AEYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 honored guests had become the bondmen of 
 Eg3^pt. The belief in the power and personal 
 care of their fathers' god had, during their long 
 years of servitude, died out. Some still remem- 
 bered there was a god of Abraham, Isaac, and 
 Jacob; but they had lost all faith in his power. 
 If he had at one time been " possessor of heaven 
 and earth," as he claimed, he evidently had lost 
 his power on the earth. Had he not led them into 
 captivity, and then deserted them ? Had they not 
 besought his help, until they had ceased in despair ? 
 The large promises made to their fathers had 
 not been fulfilled, and apparently would not be. 
 The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob was power- 
 less, and his promises of no avail. For hundreds 
 of years they had been bondmen, and no help had 
 come to them ; and they had long ceased to expect 
 it. The mighty gods of Egypt had proved to be 
 too powerful for this household god, and they had 
 no refuge. 
 
 The descendants of Abraham had increased to 
 millions. A nation, in numbers, had been formed, 
 and kept separate from all other nations by the 
 peculiarity of their position. The Deity had dealt 
 with the patriarchs as a household god. He had 
 obtained their full and unwavering faith by ful- 
 filling his promises to them, but their descendants 
 knew him not. 
 
THE HEBREWS. 33 
 
 MOSES, THE ISRAELITES, AND JEHOVAH THEIR TUTELARY 
 OR NATIONAL GOD. 
 
 It is under these circumstances that the Deity- 
 takes another step in the accomplishment of his 
 purpose. Moses is brought forward as a messen- 
 ger from this god who has been so long silent and 
 unobservant of their misery. 
 
 Up to this time, Moses' life had been an excep- 
 tional one. Adopted and brought up by the 
 Egyptian queen, he had received a thorough 
 schooling in the religion of the Egyptians, and 
 had been a worshipper of their gods. He was 
 aware of the sufferings of his race ; at one time, 
 in the heat of his indignation, he had killed an 
 Egyptian in defence of a Hebrew, and had been 
 obliged to flee on account of it. We may suppose 
 that at this time he was conversant with the 
 doings of the god of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob : 
 perhaps he had hoped the Hebrews might some 
 da}^ gain their freedom ; if so, that hope had died 
 out, and he was quietly passing his days in keep- 
 ing the flocks of his father-in-law Jethro, in 
 Midian. 
 
 Moses was approached through a voice in the 
 burning bush, claiming to represent the god of 
 Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. This voice expressed 
 the determination of that god to free his people 
 
34 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 Israel, and desired the co-operation of Moses. 
 Moses had no faith in the power of this god, and 
 no hope of freeing his people. How was it possible 
 for this god, alone, to cope with the enormous 
 power of Egypt? He had no wish to become the 
 leader of a forlorn-hope in any rash scheme for 
 the deliverance of the Israelites. 
 
 We see Moses' want of faith in the power of 
 this god, in the reluctance with which he accepted 
 the position urged upon him, as the proposed 
 leader of his people. 
 
 " Who am I " (he says), "that I should go unto 
 Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the chil- 
 dren of Israel out of Egypt?" Being still further 
 urged, he says, " When I shall come unto the chil- 
 dren of Israel, and shall say unto them, The god 
 of your fathers hath sent me unto you, and they 
 shall say unto me, What is his name, what shall I 
 say unto them?" When answered, he claims that 
 " they will not believe me, nor hearken unto my 
 voice." To meet his objections, he is given the 
 power of miracles. He then makes the slowness 
 and hesitation of his speech an excuse for not 
 accepting; and, notwithstanding this god prom- 
 ises, "I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee 
 what thou shalt say," he still hesitates, and seeks 
 to get free from the proposed task. He beseeches 
 the god to send some one else : " O my Lord, send. 
 
THE HEBREWS. 35 
 
 I pray thee, by the hand of him whom thou wilt 
 send." This unwillingness provokes the anger of 
 the god ; " and the anger of the Lord was kindled 
 against Moses." His objection is met by appoint- 
 ing his brother Aaron as his spokesman, and de- 
 claring that to both his brother and to Pharaoh 
 he (Moses) shall be as a god. 
 
 It was not, as has been said, the meekness of 
 Moses that led him to refuse the office proposed. 
 The objections come from a man fearing for him- 
 self, and doubting the power and ability of the 
 god who desired his services, to carry out what he 
 proposes ; and who is consequently indisposed to 
 take the prominent part insisted upon. He seeks 
 in every way, by every subterfuge, to escape the 
 task sought to be laid upon him; and it is not 
 until he is driven from all his excuses, his faith 
 strengthened by the power of performing miracles 
 which is bestowed upon him, and by the promise 
 of personal protection by reason of the belief that 
 he is a god, which is to be planted in the mind of 
 Pharaoh, that he accepts the position thus persist- 
 ently urged upon him. 
 
 Moses was aware of the vast power of Egypt, 
 and, like all others, supposed that power was ob- 
 tained and retained by means of the good-will of 
 their gods. They received enormous gifts and 
 offerings ; sacrifice and incense arose before them 
 
36 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 day and night ; and in return they blessed Egypt 
 with happiness, prosperity, and power : and Moses 
 felt it to be a dangerous thing to proceed against 
 such a power. He is led on by degrees ; his 
 first effort is against the weakest of the Egyptian 
 gods. His success leads to more confidence in the 
 power of Jehovah, until at last he has measured 
 his power single-handed with them all. This 
 confidence is shared by the Israelites, who at 
 first, watching anxiously his movements, are en- 
 couraged, and finally are filled with joy and con- 
 fidence. 
 
 The Deity further reveals himself to Moses by 
 name as Jehovah: "the existing one." By my 
 name Jehovah (he says) was I not known unto 
 Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 
 
 As in former times the Deity revealed himself 
 to Abraham as a household god, meeting the 
 expectations and belief of those times ; so now he 
 takes a higher position, and proposes to make 
 himself the tutelary or guardian god of a nation 
 that he will form out of these Israelites. He will 
 measure his strength with the gods of Egypt; 
 will bring the Israelites out of bondage, and make 
 them a nation. If he does this, they shall as a 
 nation make choice of him as their guardian, 
 tutelary, or national god; they shall be loyal to 
 him, and serve and worship him alone, It is upon 
 
THE HEBREWS, 37 
 
 this platform that he proceeds against the gods 
 of Egypt. The Israelites believed in the gods of 
 Egypt, in their strength and power; and the Deity 
 meets them in that belief, and uses it for his own 
 purposes. 
 
 The bargain accords with the ideas of the 
 Israelites ; it is in unison with their desires, and 
 with the belief ot the times. It is the proposition 
 of a god without a people, desirous of becoming 
 the protecting or tutelary god of a nation, instead 
 of being the god of individuals or of a family. 
 His proposition is, that he will prove his power ; 
 and if successful, he is to be their god. As the 
 god of a nation, sacrifices would be offered daily ; 
 which, according to the belief of the times, was 
 all that was desired by the gods. If he succeeds 
 in his undertaking, they will gladly choose so 
 powerful a god, as their national god, and will 
 rejoice to be adopted by him. 
 
 This bargain or agreement is expressed by the 
 Deity, as Jehovah, to Moses, as follows : — 
 
 " Now shalt thou see what I will do to Pharaoh, 
 for with a strong hand shall he let them go, and 
 with a strong hand shall he drive them out of 
 his land. . . . Say unto the children of Israel, I 
 am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under 
 the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will rid you 
 out of their bondage ; and I will redeem you with 
 
38 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 a stretched-out arm, and with great judgments; 
 and I will take you to me for a people, and I will 
 be to you a God, and ye shall know that I am 
 your God, which bringeth you out from under the 
 burden of the Egyptians ; and I will bring you in 
 unto the land concerning the which I did swear 
 to give it to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, and 
 I will give it to you for an heritage; I am the 
 Lord." This is the proposition of Jehovah to this 
 people. 
 
 Here were two or three millions of bond men 
 and women, a people robbed of all manliness by 
 long years of servitude ; slaves, ignorant and 
 superstitious, desiring only creature comforts, 
 satisfied with their servitude if only well fed; 
 worshippers, if at all, of the gods of Egypt. These 
 people, so debased, were under subjection to the 
 most enlightened and powerful nation existing; 
 at that time in the height of their power and 
 glory ; their country the seat of learning, arts, and 
 civilization, and their gods the most powerful of 
 any nation ; with immense armies, and all the 
 resources necessary for protection or offence ; a 
 nation whose interest it was to keep these people 
 in bondage. How could Jehovah, alone and 
 unaided, accomplish the work he proposed ? How 
 could he break the chains of the Israelites, and 
 set them free, — one god against a dozen ? 
 
THE HEBREWS. 39 
 
 The effect of the first visit of Moses to Pharaoh 
 was to increase the tasks of the Israelites, and 
 they were angry at his interference. What could 
 give them faith suiBficient to take the first step for 
 their own deliverance ? 
 
 Moses was the mouthpiece, the representative, 
 of Jehovah, — his agent. He must prove to them 
 that Jehovah not only had the will, but also the 
 power, to deliver them. He must bring them out 
 of their bondage boldly, with force and might, 
 and the exhibition of great strength. Not only 
 must this be done without their help, but even in 
 opposition to their fears; he must do it in such a 
 manner as to win their confidence, and give them 
 faith in the ability of Jehovah when exerted in 
 contest with the gods of Egypt. These gods must 
 be put to shame, their power mocked and brought 
 to naught. This could only be done by the direct 
 agency of Jehovah, exerted through Moses, in 
 such stupendous and extraordinary exhibitions 
 as should be seen and acknowledged of all; 
 even the weakest and most timid of the Israel- 
 ites must be able to boast of the triumphs of his 
 god. 
 
 On the other side, how could Moses bring the 
 Israelites out of bondage to the Egyptians, with- 
 out their consent ? and how would it be possible 
 to obtain that consent? 
 
40 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 There was no way to do this except by the use 
 of the miraculous power placed in his hands by 
 Jehovah for that purpose. The confidence and 
 faith of the Egyptians in the power of their gods 
 must be broken down and destroyed ; and they 
 must be made to realize that both their gods and 
 themselves were wholly powerless before Jehovah, 
 the mighty god of the Hebrews ; that their lives 
 were in his hands and at his mercy. 
 
 We see that the use of extraordinary and 
 miraculous powers was necessary, on the one 
 side, to inspire confidence in Jehovah ; on the 
 other, to arouse fear and dread of that being, by 
 proving that he was not only more powerful than 
 all the gods of Egypt, but that all attempts to 
 withstand him would meet with disaster, defeat, 
 and death. 
 
 The series of events, commonly called the 
 plagues of Egypt, were direct and systematic 
 attacks on the various gods worshipped by the 
 Egyptians. As each in turn was shown to be 
 powerless to prevent the plague or curse brought 
 upon them, the faith of the Israelites in the gods 
 of Egypt was weakened, and their confidence in 
 Jehovah strengthened ; until from the bloody 
 water, the lice and frogs, to the fire and hail, the 
 thick darkness, and the death of the first-born, all 
 the Egyptian gods, one after another, had been 
 
THE HEBREWS. 41 
 
 defied, and found powerless to protect either 
 themselves or their worshippers. 
 
 The Deity used this miraculous power for his 
 own purposes. By its means he not only strength- 
 ened the faith of the Israelites, but, in the various 
 occasions in which it was used, the name of 
 Jehovah was spread abroad, his power became 
 known, and a fear of him existed in other nations. 
 
 Here was a nation of bondmen. Fear was the 
 only means of teaching, or keeping in subjection, 
 these millions of rude, uneducated human beings, 
 but little above the animals; slaves to their appetites 
 and passions ; a huge, unwieldy mob of ignorant, 
 lawless, headstrong men, women, and children, 
 suddenly relieved from bondage of body and soul, 
 left now at liberty to work their own sweet wills 
 without let or hinderance ; with only one man to 
 say them nay, and he self-elected to the position 
 of leader, with no standing army to enforce his 
 behests, no system of laws or punishments to keep 
 them in subjection, and, if there had been, wiih 
 no civil power to enforce those punishments. How 
 could this one man keep these hosts in subjection ? 
 By his own power alone, it was impossible. It 
 was necessary at the start, and would be necessary 
 throughout, for Jehovah himself so to enforce obe- 
 dience to Moses and his requirements, that they 
 should know and feel that punishment would in- 
 
42 AETAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 evitably follow transgression; and that it would 
 be quick, stern, and unrelenting. 
 
 Notwithstanding the manifold and great mira- 
 cles performed in relieving them from bondage, 
 we see how weak and craven these Israelites were. 
 The first apparent difficulty led them to fear the 
 approach of Pharaoh and his hosts, and to ques- 
 tion and distrust the power that had so far aided 
 them; but the miracle of the passage of the 
 Red Sea, and the destruction of the chariots, 
 horsemen, and army of Pharaoh, again restored 
 confidence in Jehovah. 
 
 Having brought this people out of bondage, 
 supplied them with water at Horeb, overcome the 
 Amalekites, and brought them to a place of peace 
 and safety, the next thing to be done was to estab- 
 lish the authority and government of Jehovah 
 as their god, and of Moses as his servant, and 
 the medium through whom his will should be 
 expressed. 
 
 It is said of the American Indian, that when 
 tlie whites first settled the country they found 
 the native inhabitants believed in the Great 
 Spirit, and in a place of reward for the good 
 Indian hereafter in the happy hunting-grounds. 
 This belief is far in advance of the religious ideas 
 of the Israelites at the time of Moses. They did 
 not believe in Jehovah as a spiritual god, but as 
 
THE HEBBEWS, 43 
 
 a god in form like unto a man, and very much 
 like the gods of other nations, only more power- 
 ful. They had no belief in, or thought of, any 
 other life than the present. Moses, if he had any 
 higher belief (which is doubtful), taught it not. 
 His whole system of government, of reward and 
 punishment, is confined to this world. Indeed, the 
 Israelites were too low, debased, and ignorant to 
 understand any religion, or any system of govern- 
 ment, that did not apply itself to the gratification 
 of their animal nature, to their creature comforts 
 and pleasures, and worldly happiness, on the one 
 hand ; or to their fear of want, sickness, pain, and 
 discomfort, on the other. Deit}^ meets them on 
 the par of their knowledge, on their own plane of 
 thought ; and gradually, in after-years, enlightens 
 them, until the time finally comes when the full 
 revelation of himself in Christ can be understood 
 and appreciated. But now the Israelites must be 
 kept in subjection by fear. 
 
 Moses was required by Jehovah to call the 
 children of Israel together. He rehearses to them 
 the action of Jehovah in bringing them out of 
 bondage, and makes to them this proposition from 
 Jehovah as a contract or covenant : " Now there- 
 fore, if you will obey my voice indeed, and keep 
 my covenant, then you shall be a peculiar treas- 
 ure unto me above all people (for all the earth 
 
44 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 is mine), and ye shall be unto me a kingdom of 
 priests, and an holy nation." 
 
 " Then all the people answered with one voice, 
 and said : All the words which the Lord hath said, 
 will we do." 
 
 As the result of this agreement, a covenant was 
 formed. " And Moses wrote all the words of the 
 Lord. . . . And Moses took the book of the 
 covenant, and read in the audience of the people ; 
 and they said. All that the Lord hath said will 
 we do, and be obedient." 
 
 "And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it 
 on the people, and said. Behold the blood of the 
 covenant which the Lord hath made with you 
 concerning all these words." 
 
 By this contract, thus ratified and sealed, 
 Jehovah agreed that they shpuld be to him a 
 peculiar people, a kingdom of priests, and a holy 
 nation. For the position thus given, and the pro- 
 tection and care promised, the Israelites agreed to 
 obey him, and to faithfully keep the contract or 
 covenant on their part. 
 
 The consent of the Israelites having been given, 
 Moses proceeded to proclaim a system of govern- 
 ment suitable for the people over whom he had 
 been called to rule. Having no earthly power to 
 enforce these precepts, or uphold his authority, 
 his position must be upheld by Jehovah as against 
 
THE HEBREWS. 45 
 
 all others. Moses being his agent, his mouth- 
 piece, all laws emanating from him are the laws 
 of Jehovah, and must be so enforced. 
 
 Jehovah having been chosen by them as their 
 god, no swerving from their allegiance to him was 
 allowed. All other nations gave the credit of 
 their successes to their god or gods : so must the 
 Hebrews. They must offer sacrifices to no other 
 god : such an offering would be disloyalty, and 
 must be punished. He was to be approached with 
 awe and reverence. They must fear him. 
 
 The priesthood were taught caution by the 
 death of Aaron's sons, who offered strange fire 
 before the altar. Murmuring against God was 
 punished by the plague caused by eating quails ; 
 rebellion against Moses, by the leprosy of Miriam, 
 and the destruction of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, 
 and their adherents. In these and other cases 
 the punishment was direct and severe ; and the 
 Israelites were finally brought into obedience 
 to Moses, and to a partial observance of their 
 covenant with Jehovah. 
 
 In accomplishing these objects, extraordinary 
 exhibitions of the power of Jehovah were mani- 
 fested, not only in the exceptional cases of the 
 violent and quick destruction of thousands of 
 the Israelites, but in the daily miracles, which, 
 from their continuance, must have seemed to the 
 
46 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 Israelites as the due course of nature, — the pillar 
 of cloud and of fire, the daily manna, and its 
 miracle of remaining over the sabbath. 
 
 The Israelites had deliberately chosen Jehovah 
 as their god, and accepted the obligations of their 
 contract with him. He in turn had agreed to fulfil 
 the obligations imposed on him as tutelary god of 
 the nation. 
 
 These agreements are matter of record ; and, 
 that there may be no mistake on the part of the 
 people, Moses wrote these obligations in a book, 
 which was kept in the ark, — a vessel of safety 
 or deposit; the ark of the covenant. In it were 
 written the rewards, or blessings, which the nation 
 should receive or obtain by compliance with the 
 requirements of the law; and also the punish- 
 ments, or cursings, which disobedience w^ould entail 
 or bring upon the nation. This " book of the 
 law " we have in all its essential parts, as origi- 
 nally written by Moses. 
 
 This was but the commencement of forty years 
 of teaching and care. During these years, the 
 original covenant was enlarged and accepted by 
 the Israelites with due solemnities. 
 
 Jehovah was represented, in the pillar of cloud 
 and fire, daily before them ; yet we see how dif- 
 ficult it was, to keep them subject to the teachings 
 and laws of Moses. During these forty years, the 
 
THE HEBREWS. 47 
 
 people were born again, free men, knowing no 
 master but Jehovah, and no service but his. With 
 the exception of the leaders, none of them had 
 known slavery, nor had they been worshippers of 
 the gods of Egypt. Yet Moses, ere he departed, 
 foretold their backsliding, their serving of other 
 gods, and the punishments that would follow. 
 
 Later, they are taught by priests and holy men, 
 warned by prophets, rewarded when they served 
 Jehovah, punished when they turned from him 
 and served other gods. And yet, what a history 
 it is ! a history of failures to the end. 
 
 Under the guidance of Joshua, the Hebrews 
 entered the promised land, a people, large in 
 numbers, without civilization, a horde of savages. 
 Without experience in war, poorly armed, and with 
 but slight means of attack, they overcame the 
 nations possessing the soil, and obtained possession 
 of the land promised to their fathers, Abraham, 
 Isaac, and Jacob. 
 
 The Canaanites were advanced in civilization, 
 having a knowledge of many of the arts, living in 
 cities with paved streets, lined with houses of 
 stone, and surrounded with stone walls.^ This 
 people were also advanced in wickedness and sin, 
 as well as in civilization. They worshipped Baal, 
 
 1 Many of these cities still exist ; the houses, in some instances, 
 remain to-day as perfect as when built, hut uninhabited. 
 
48 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 Ashtoreth, Moloch, and other gods. Human sacri- 
 fice was common ; they frequently offered their 
 own children on the altar, for personal favors, or 
 length of life. The worship of Ashtoreth or Venus 
 was accompanied by orgies the most infamous and 
 foul. 
 
 These nations would be a snare to the Israelites. 
 They were too debased, too polluted, to be allowed 
 to live; and Jehovah determined to eradicate 
 them, not by flood or earthquake or fire, but by 
 war. These licentious and debased nations should 
 be blotted out of existence. 
 
 Even in these punishments, Jehovah meets man 
 on the plane of his belief and practice. A religion 
 of mercy could not have been understood by the 
 Hebrews. The punishments or cursings of their 
 own " law of the Lord " threatened the same 
 consequences that they were required to deal out 
 to the Canaanites. Earthly reward was the in- 
 centive to virtue, and earthly punishment was 
 the preventive of vice; and these were the only 
 ones that would have had the slightest effect on 
 them. 
 
 We know how they failed in carrying out these 
 requirements of Jehovah, that were necessary for 
 their own protection, and the result foretold took 
 place. The Israelites were contaminated. They 
 neglected the worship of Jehovah, and served the 
 
THE HEBREWS. 49 
 
 gods of the Canaanites, until at times they appear 
 to have been worse, if possible, than the Canaanites 
 themselves. In punishment for their sins, they 
 became tributary to, and were ruled over by, the 
 Canaanitish nations. Occasionally, when their 
 sufferings had led them to turn to Jehovah for 
 help, a hero would arise, and, in the strength of 
 his faith in the god of his people, would release 
 them from bondage. When they became a nation, 
 the same results followed. When they obeyed and 
 worshipped Jehovah, peace, prosperity, and plenty 
 reigned in the land. If they departed from their 
 faith, and worshipped and served other gods, they 
 were punished by war, famine, disease, or some 
 other curse of the law. 
 
 But God's purposes were fulfilled as well in the 
 disobedience of the Hebrews, as in their obedi- 
 ence. Through their disobedience they were 
 scattered abroad among all nations ; and disaster, 
 bringing them back to their service and faith in 
 Jehovah, led to a knowledge of the God of the 
 Hebrews by other nations ; and thus each of these 
 occurrences was a step in advance in the plans of 
 the Deity, and the Hebrews were used as instru- 
 ments of his will, even in their wilfulness and sin. 
 
 During their existence as a nation, many 
 prophets and wise men appeared among them, 
 exhorting them to obedience and loyalty to 
 
60 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 Jehovah, and threatening them with disaster for 
 non-obedience. These constantly magnified the 
 power of Jehovah, gradually enlarged the spiritual 
 nature of his requirements, and endeavored to 
 lead the Hebrews to a purer and higher faith. 
 They also prophesied against many of the nations 
 with whom the Hebrews came in contact. The 
 fulfilment of these predictions strengthened the 
 faith of the Hebrews in the accomplishment of 
 those particularly affecting themselves ; they were 
 also intended, doubtless, to have the same effect 
 on other nations who should see their completion. 
 The faith of the Jews was intensified, and their 
 religious views enlarged, by these means. Each 
 advance was a step toward the object pursued by 
 the Deity in gradually bringing the minds of the 
 civilized races of the earth to the point at which 
 they would be ready to receive the spiritual teach- 
 ings of his evangel. 
 
 There are three distinct periods of existence for 
 man on this earth, — the animal, the intellectual, 
 and the spiritual. In the five thousand years of 
 the Aryas' occupation of the Garden of Eden, 
 they advanced by slow steps from the animal to 
 the intellectual, and finally at the time of Adam 
 were fully enjoying the spiritual period. 
 
 The Hebrew people, when they became the 
 wards of Jehovah, had just emerged from the ani- 
 
THE HEBREWS. 61 
 
 mal, and were but entering the intellectual period ; 
 the spiritual was unseen and unknown to them. 
 
 This ignorant and superstitious race required 
 entirely different methods of instruction from 
 those adapted to the Aryas. Like some scientific 
 men of the present day, the^ required God to be 
 present to their senses ; they must be able to see, 
 taste, smell, hear, and feel him. The Deity met 
 these requirements by exhibitions of his presence 
 in the pillar of cloud and fire, and in the shechinah, 
 or luminous presence on the ark ; by cleaving the 
 Red Sea ; by the thunders of Horeb and Sinai ; 
 by the daily supply of manna ; by the destruction 
 of the walls of Jericho, and by many other direct 
 deviations from the usually observed action of his 
 natural laws. 
 
 In the history of the Hebrews from their ex ode 
 to their captivity in Babylon, as written by 
 Nehemiah, we can trace the continual and exact 
 fulfilment, on the part of Jehovah, of the contract 
 entered into by him with the Hebrew race. 
 
 It is evident that the Hebrews did not see, in 
 the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, a 
 final ending and annulling of their contract, — that 
 they had been tried, and found wanting. 
 
 There were prophecies made to Abraham and 
 to Moses as yet unfulfilled. The prophets had 
 given them visions of a great and glorious king, 
 
52 ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 who should come in the might and power of 
 Jehovah, and sit upon the throne of David as 
 the ruler of the world ; and they commenced the 
 establishment of a new kingdom, the building of 
 a new city, and the erection of a new temple, in 
 the full belief that they were the old ones revived, 
 and that their contract with Jehovah was still in 
 force. 
 
 During their seventy years' captivity, the Jews 
 were sifted ; great numbers returned to the 
 original faith of their forefather Abraham, pre- 
 vious to his departure from Ur. Of the large 
 number who were carried into captivity, and their 
 descendants, the most earnest of them alone 
 returned to rebuild Jerusalem. From that time 
 there was no more backsliding ; they became true 
 worshippers of Jehovah, and believers in the 
 contract made with him by their fathers. 
 
THE JEWS, 63 
 
 III. 
 
 THE JEWS. 
 CTBUS TO THE CHRIST. 
 
 By permission of Cyrus, B.C. 536, about fifty 
 thousand Chaldsean Jews, descendants of the He- 
 brews that had been carried into captivity, re- 
 turned to rebuild and rehabilitate Jerusalem. 
 
 "By the rivers of Babylon we sat down and 
 wept," appears to have been more a poetical figure 
 of speech than the truth. Jeremiah had told them 
 that their captivity would be long, and advised 
 them, " Build ye houses, and dwell in them ; plant 
 gardens, and eat the fruit of them." They took 
 kindly to this advice, became willing colonists and 
 contented subjects. This is shown in the fact, 
 that of all the millions of Judah and Israel that 
 had been carried into captivity during the previous 
 two hundred years, and their descendants, so small 
 a percentage had sufiicient interest in the country 
 and religion of their fathers to return to Jerusalem, 
 and join in re-inhabiting the land. 
 
 One hundred years before the downfall of Jeru- 
 salem, the residue of Israel had been carried into 
 
64 ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 captivity by the Assyrians. Of the inhabitants of 
 Judah, two hundred thousand were carried away 
 captive by Sennacherib, B. C. 702. Esarhaddon, 
 about B.C. 670, carried away great numbers ; and 
 in the taking of Jerusalem, B.C. 606, and the final 
 demolishing of the walls and burning of the city, 
 B.C. 582, probably a million or more men, women, 
 and children were carried into captivity. 
 
 Their natural growth during seventy years of 
 peace must have largely increased their original 
 numbers. Under these circumstances, the few 
 (only one or two per cent of the whole number) 
 that availed themselves of the opportunity offered 
 to return to the country of their fathers, the land 
 of promise, is evidence of the lightness of their 
 bonds, of the liberty enjoyed by them in Babylo- 
 nia and Persia, and of the fact that the Jewish re- 
 ligion had lost its hold on vast numbers of them. 
 
 In fact, the Hebrews, never tenacious in their 
 religious beliefs, had in their captivity to a great 
 degree adopted the religion of the Babylonians. 
 It was the original religion of their father Abram ; 
 and they easily transferred their allegiance from 
 the defeated god, Jehovah, to the gods of Baby- 
 lonia. Others, who still retained the religion of 
 their fathers, were bound to the country of their 
 captivity by local attachments, or by ties of blood 
 or interest. With the usual thrift of their nation, 
 
THE JEWS. 55 
 
 many had become merchants, and waxed rich in 
 this centre of the world's wealth and commerce ; 
 and, with the greater part, the memories and tra- 
 ditions of their fatherland had died out, and the 
 plenty and luxuriance of their present home out- 
 weighed the promise of the old. The Book of 
 Daniel gives us some knowledge of their political 
 position ; and the Book of Esther shows that later, 
 in the days of the Persian King Artaxerxes, — the 
 biblical Ahasuerus, — the Jews enjoyed exception- 
 al position and power, one of the daughters of the 
 race being the favorite queen of that monarch. 
 
 The new and struggling nationality of the Jews 
 at Jerusalem received but little help from Persia. 
 Intercourse between the Jews at Jerusalem and 
 those in Persia was comparatively infrequent. For 
 a long time Jerusalem, with its out-lying towns, 
 was dependent on itself for life, growth, and sup- 
 port. This growth was at first very slow, and 
 surrounded with difficulties, owing to the repeated 
 interruptions and the enmity of the Samaritans, 
 aided by the Ammonites, Moabites, and others. 
 
 Seventy-nine years after the return to Jerusa- 
 lem, they were still in a chaotic state; and, B.C. 
 457, Artaxerxes sent Ezra with some fifteen hun- 
 dred emigrants to Jerusalem, with directions to 
 aid and encourage the Jews in restoring and re- 
 building the walls, and re-peopling the city. Ezra 
 
66 ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 introduced some reforms, and corrected some irreg- 
 ularities and abuses ; but, being a quiet and stu- 
 dious man, he added but little to the religious 
 welfare of the people. 
 
 Eleven years later, B.C. 445, Nehemiah was sent 
 from Persia with the king's commission as govern- 
 or, taking with him a thousand families. 
 
 Aroused by him to new exertions, the Jews in 
 the short space of two months rebuilt the city 
 wall, working with weapons at hand, ready at a 
 moment's notice to repel an attack from the sur- 
 rounding foes. The reforms begun by Ezra were 
 sustained by the power of Nehemiah. Gifts flowed 
 into the treasury of the temple, and the deserted 
 streets of Jerusalem were repeopled from the sur- 
 rounding country. 
 
 Nehemiah translated the "book of the law" 
 from the Hebrew, and wrote the history of its 
 origin, and the results to the nation, in the 
 Aramaic tongue, the language then used by the 
 Jews, and assisted greatly in placing the new 
 nation on a permanent material and religious 
 basis. With the exception of a few brief visits 
 to Persia, Nehemiah administered the government 
 at Jerusalem for forty years.^ His work and influ- 
 
 1 Authorities vary with regard to the length of Neheraiah's 
 teritn of office. The work done by him, and the stability given 
 to the new nationality, would indicate a much longer time than 
 twelve years. 
 
THE JEWS. 61 
 
 ence gave permanent shape and form to the new 
 nationality. 
 
 For two hundred years Palestine was a province 
 of and dependent on Persia for protection, peace, 
 and prosperity. ^ 
 
 Under Persian influence the Jews imbibed some 
 of the Persian habits of thought and belief. The 
 Zoroastrian doctrine of one god, a spirit and 
 invisible, maker and ruler of the universe, had 
 in the course of centuries been changed. The ori- 
 ginal monotheism had became a dualism ; a god of 
 evil had been added, who was believed to be the 
 especial foe of the Deity. These antagonistic 
 forces of good and evil were supposed to be in 
 continual conflict, and each of these powers had 
 allied to them, and under their control, beings 
 of inferior positions, and of various degrees of 
 station and influence, such as angels, archangels, 
 and powers of light on one side, and demons, 
 devils, and powers of darkness on the other. The 
 Persians also believed in immortality and in a state 
 of future reward and punishment. 
 
 The religion of the Jews, as taught by Moses, 
 became enlarged in some respects by these influ- 
 ences. The national god of the Jews, instead of 
 being simply a local god, warring with other 
 deities on a par of equality, was gradually en- 
 dowed by them with the Persian idea of a spirit- 
 
68 ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 ual god, maker and ruler of heaven and earth, 
 before whom all other gods were but as dust in 
 the balance. Moses, in his religious system, had 
 no god of evil. Now, for the first time, the Jews 
 recognize a power antagonistic to God, and teach 
 hesitatingly a future life of reward and punish- 
 ment for deeds done in the body. 
 
 In the absence of nobility, the priestly class had 
 obtained an ascendancy. The book of the law 
 was regarded with superstitious reverence, as con- 
 taining the record of their contract with Jehovah; 
 and its laws became the laws of the land. The 
 Messianic predictions began to have effect ; and 
 slowly there grew up among the people the idea of 
 a great conqueror before whom all nations should 
 bow the knee, and whose dominion should be 
 everlasting. 
 
 In the overthrow of Persia, B.C. 331, Palestine 
 became tributary to Alexander the Great. B. C. 
 320, Ptolemy, King of Egypt, became their ruler; 
 and they continued under the Grecian yoke for 
 about one hundred and fifty years, until the inde- 
 pendence achieved by the Maccabees about B. C. 
 168. They continued independent until con- 
 quered by Pompey, B. C. 63, and were subject to 
 Rome until the destruction of Jerusalem, A. D. 70. 
 
 In the Hebrew scriptures we see the Deity form 
 a rude, uncultivated horde into a nation. We see 
 
THE JEWS. 69 
 
 him teach that nation by wise men and prophets, 
 by prosperity and adversity, all the incidents of 
 which they have recorded. We see him using this 
 nation through all their sin and wandering, in hap- 
 piness and misery, in plenty and want, in freedom 
 and captivity, to advance his purpose. We see 
 the name and power of Jehovah spread abroad 
 among the nations, and the expected Messiah 
 known to all. 
 
 The evidence of all this is stronger, because 
 unintentional. These records were kept by the 
 Hebrews for the purpose of showing the original 
 compacts, and their literal fulfilment on the part 
 of Jehovah. The prophets foretold the coming of 
 a Messiah who should wield extraordinary power, 
 through whom the original promise made to Abra- 
 ham, that "In thy seed shall all the nations of 
 the earth be blessed," should be fulfilled. To 
 him were given names and titles of power and 
 majesty. His glory was magnified, and his coming 
 reign was extolled in such glowing language, that 
 the Hebrews, whose thoughts centred on this 
 world, finally looked upon the coming Messiah as 
 a king who should rule over the whole earth, and 
 the Jewish nation by his means should become 
 the ruling power in the world. 
 
 Under this belief, the Hebrews guarded with 
 care all the evidences and records of the contract 
 
60 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 made by Jehovah with their nation ; forgetting that 
 these very records condemned them, as having 
 repeatedly broken their contract, and made it null 
 and void. 
 
 Believing, that as he had kept faith with them 
 of old, had many times forgiven their backsliding, 
 and had fulfilled all the obligations of the con- 
 tract so far, he would continue to do so, they kept 
 these records with great care and faithfulness. 
 
 At the time of Christ, the Aryan race, which 
 four or five thousand years before had been forced 
 from civilization, and scattered to the ends of the 
 earth, had again become rulers of Western Asia, 
 Egypt, and Europe, and the leaders in civilization. 
 
 Five hundred years before this period, the first 
 advance had been made by the Persian Aryas, 
 who conquered Western Asia and Egypt. Two 
 hundred years later, the Grecian Aryas ruled the 
 same countries and Southern Europe. And now 
 for sixty years the Roman Aryas had ruled the 
 civilized world. 
 
 When, by permission of Cyrus, a portion of 
 the Jews returned to Jerusalem, by far the greater 
 number remained in Babylonia. At a later period 
 the Jewish colonies in Egypt rivalled in num- 
 bers the Babylonian colonies, each far outnumber- 
 ing the Jews in Palestine. At Alexandria in Egypt 
 two-fifths of the population were Jews. They 
 
THE JEWS. 61 
 
 had a temple at On, or Heliopolis, and a large and 
 beautiful synagogue in Alexandria, and enjoyed 
 the privilege of worshipping Jehovah without 
 hinderance. 
 
 Professor Allen, in his "Hebrew Men and 
 Times," says, "Coming in direct contact with 
 Grecian learning and philosophy, the Jews in 
 Egypt gradually embodied with their own belief 
 many Grecian ideas ; and as we approach the 
 Christian era, we find in their writings evidences 
 of new and enlarged views. Additions were made 
 to the Talmud, mysticisms and speculations were 
 rife ; the imagery of the Greeks had become par- 
 tially incorporated in the Jewish faith and appeared 
 in their writings." 
 
 Philo, an Alexandrian Jew of a priestly family, 
 in the latter part of the first century B.C., was a 
 voluminous writer. He says, "None but a fool 
 would think the world was made in six days, or in 
 any given period of time ; since it is the Divine 
 nature to act always, and creation is eternal." 
 The record of creation, narratives of Adam and 
 Eve, Cain and Abel, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, 
 Abraham's visit to Egypt, and offering up Isaac, 
 he claims are all allegories. 
 
 The Wisdom of Solomon is supposed to have 
 been written by a Grecian Jew at about or after 
 the time of Christ, and shows the advance in 
 
62 ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 Jewish thought at that time. " God," it says, " is 
 the lover of souls. . . . His spirit filleth the world. 
 . . . God created man to be immortal, and made 
 him to be an image of his own eternity." " The 
 souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, 
 and there shall no torment touch them ; for though 
 they be punished in the sight of men, yet is their 
 hope full of immortality." 
 
 These enlarged views were most prevalent 
 among the Egyptian Jews. We have no evidence 
 that they had permeated to any great extent the 
 Jews of Palestine. While the Egyptian Jews, 
 under a government tolerating all religions, had 
 become cosmopolitan, the various troubles in 
 Palestine — the chronic state of rebellion in which 
 the inhabitants indulged, their frequent uprisings, 
 their sullen obedience, and revengeful utterances 
 — caused the Roman government to use the strong 
 arm of military power in repressing the turbulent 
 expressions and acts of the populace. This unset- 
 tled state of affairs, so different from the freedom of 
 Egypt, prevented migration from thence ; and the 
 enlightened views of the Jews of Alexandria had 
 but little effect in the mother country, and were 
 certainly unknown to the common people, whose 
 ideas bore more of the stamp of Persian influence 
 than of Greek culture and habit of thought. 
 
 While, in the five hundred years of exile dur- 
 
THE JEWS. 63 
 
 ing which the Jews had been scattered over the 
 whole civilized world, their views in general had 
 been enlarged, in Palestine they had added but 
 little to the crude and primitive religion of Moses. 
 Larger and grander ideas of Jehovah had been 
 imbibed ; he was their one god ; they believed him 
 to be stronger and more powerful than all the 
 gods of the nations ; they feared and were proud 
 of him : in all else, they remained an ignorant, 
 bigoted, and self-righteous people. 
 
 They generally believed Jehovah to be the 
 creator and sustainer of the universe : yet he still 
 remained, as they thought, the god of their nation, 
 and held them in particular regard ; they were his 
 chosen people ; he had made a compact with their 
 fathers which they believed to be still in force, and 
 they were impatiently awaiting the appearance of 
 that Messiah, who, as his anointed and chosen son 
 and representative, should restore Israel to more 
 than the former glory under David and Solomon. 
 
 These ideas of the future greatness of their race, 
 and the nearness of the time, led them to be arro- 
 gant and haughty. They looked with contempt on 
 all the nations of the earth ; intercourse with them 
 was confined to the necessities of the occasion, and 
 to eat with them was to become unclean. 
 
 Some of the more enlightened of the Jews, 
 notably the Pharisees, believed in a future life, 
 
64 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 and in a future state of reward and punishment. 
 This belief was held with fear and trembling. 
 Moses taught it not. They had no certainty ; and 
 in promulgating the doctrine, they did so with such 
 reservations as to lead the common people after- 
 ward to contrast the hesitancy of their teachings 
 with the directness and certainty of the doctrines of 
 the Christ, and to say of him, that he " spoke like 
 one having authority, and not as the scribes." 
 
 The Jews of Jerusalem nursed their pride and 
 their feelings of revenge, by the hope and belief 
 that the time was at hand when their promised 
 Christ should appear, and establish the new king- 
 dom or rule of heaven. 
 
 The imagery of Isaiah and other prophets had 
 been magnified into a glorious picture of a Messiah 
 who should suddenly appear in the temple in 
 great glory, clothed in the power and majesty of 
 Jehovah, wielding the sceptre of dominion, — a 
 prophet like unto Moses, with more than his 
 power of miracle ; a son of God empowered from 
 on high with the execution of those deeds and 
 acts which should place Judah on a pinnacle of 
 glory, the ruling power of the whole world ; a 
 Messiah as king, who was to put all enemies under 
 his feet, and rule forever ; all people, nations, and 
 languages should serve him ; his kingdom was to 
 be an everlasting kingdom, and his rule without 
 
THE JEWS. 65 
 
 end; he was to be of the line of David, a king 
 by divine right, and anointed by Jehovah, one 
 whose sway was to be indisputable, irresistible, 
 and universal. 
 
 The time for his appearance was already at 
 hand, as they believed ; and each day they 
 awaited with painful expectation his coming. But 
 the days passed, time went on, and no Messiah 
 made his appearance. They had waited until they 
 had become heart-sick, and they hoped against 
 hope, for the fulfilment of their Messianic dreams. 
 
 Jehovah's system of rewards and punishments 
 had been confined to this world ; it was the only 
 system that would have effect on the minds of the 
 Hebrews, or be a sufficient incentive for them to 
 follow the requirements of the law. 
 
 This habit of thought led the Jews of this 
 period to expect in the promised Messiah a tem- 
 poral prince, who by miraculous means should 
 overcome all resistance, and become the ruler of 
 the world. 
 
 While we can see that all the prophecies are 
 fulfilled in Christ's spiritual kingdom and power, 
 and to a greater extent than would have been 
 possible in any worldly sway, yet we can also see 
 how natural to the Jew was the literal understand- 
 ing of the prophetic utterances, and the strong 
 belief that they would be fulfilled in the Christ. 
 
 
66 ARYA8, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 Previous to the destruction of Jerusalem, large 
 numbers of the Hebrews had fled to Egypt. 
 Here they increased in numbers, and became an 
 important part of the population. Also, great 
 numbers of those carried into Babylon remained 
 there, under the Persian sway ; they filled many 
 positions of trust and honor, and became the 
 merchants and traders of the country. 
 
 From these two centres of civilization, trade 
 and commerce carried the Hebrew to all parts of 
 the civilized world, and their faith became known 
 in all countries. 
 
 The character of Jehovah as displayed in their 
 history was infinitely superior to that of any of 
 the heathen deities ; and in the superior power and 
 position that had become associated with his 
 name, the thoughtful of other nations recognized 
 a god whom they could reverence and worship. 
 
 Thus, in the hands of the Deity, the Hebrew 
 nation had become an instrument through whom he 
 was known as the powerful Jehovah, and the way 
 had been prepared for the great revelation through 
 the Christ. 
 
 ANNO DOMINI, 
 
 About this time a child was born in the little 
 town of Bethlehem near Jerusalem, of whom some 
 wonderful stories were told by a few persons who 
 had become cognizant of the events; but the 
 
THE JEWS. 67 
 
 interest excited at the time soon passed away, and, 
 had it not been for other incidents happening at a 
 later period in the life of the child, they would 
 have been forgotten and lost. 
 
 The father of the child was named Joseph, a 
 carpenter by trade ; the mother's name was Mary ; 
 she is supposed to have been Joseph's second wife. 
 Both were of the line of David. They had left 
 Nazareth, their native city, and journeyed to 
 Bethlehem to be enrolled for the purpose of tax- 
 ation by the Roman Government.^ 
 
 While in this place a son was born. The khan 
 or inn being full, they had been obliged to occupy 
 a portion of the building usually given over to 
 cattle ; and for want of better accommodation the 
 child was cradled in a manger, or crib, from which 
 the cattle generally ate their food. 
 
 In the early morning, soon after the birth of the 
 child, some shepherds appeared, and related a 
 strange tale of angels who had appeared to them 
 while they were watching their sheep, one of 
 whom, addressing them, had proclaimed the joyful 
 tidings that the long-expected Messiah had that 
 day been born, and directed them how to find the 
 child ; and then a multitude of the heavenly host 
 united in songs of praise to God, who had remem- 
 
 1 Professor Allen of Harvard University places the date of 
 this event A.D. 7. 
 
68 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 bered his promise, and had sent a Saviour to his 
 people. The shepherds, following the directions 
 given by the angel, found this child, and then 
 paid homage to him who they had been informed 
 was " the Saviour, Christ the Lord." 
 
 The child, having been presented in the temple 
 on the eighth day, was named Jesus. He was 
 recognized by Simeon, a just and devout Jew, as 
 the " Lord's Christ " or Anointed ; and also by 
 Anna, a prophetess, who gave thanks to God, and 
 " spoke of him to all them that looked for redemp- 
 tion in Jerusalem." 
 
 Several months afterward, the inhabitants of 
 Jerusalem were surprised by the visit of wise men 
 from the East (probably Jews from Babylonia and 
 Persia), inquiring for the king of the Jews ; and 
 as their inquiries had especial reference to the 
 Messiah, as the king whose birth they proclaimed, 
 and whom they desired to find, they were directed 
 by the priests to Bethlehem, as the town in which 
 it had been foretold he would be born. 
 
 These wise men — guided by a star which they 
 called his star — were conducted to the residence 
 of Joseph and Mary ; there they paid obeisance to 
 the child as to a king, and presented him with such 
 gifts and offerings as were usually given to a child 
 born heir to a kingdom ; and from thence they 
 departed homeward. Shortly after, the parents 
 
THE JEWS. 69 
 
 and child visited Egypt, apparently staying several 
 years, and then returned to their former home, 
 Nazareth. 
 
 At this time, when he was perhaps five or six 
 years old, it is recorded of the child, that "he 
 grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wis- 
 dom, and the grace of God was upon him." This 
 is the noble and exceptional character given of 
 him as a child. 
 
 When Jesus was twelve years old, he visited 
 Jerusalem with his parents, and showed much 
 interest in and intelligence about Jewish history 
 and religion. His precocity of intellect, and 
 maturity of thought, astonished the wise men and 
 teachers at the temple ; and the record we have of 
 him about this time is, that " he increased in wis- 
 dom and in stature, and in favor with God and 
 man." 
 
 We have no further knowledge of Jesus until 
 he was " about thirty years of age," A.D. 37. 
 
 Several months previous to this time, a man 
 named John had suddenly appeared in the desert 
 places of Judsea, dressed in the garb of a prophet, 
 proclaiming the kingdom of heaven, or the rule or 
 government of heaven, to be at hand. This was 
 the long-looked-for and expected announcement for 
 which the Jews were waiting. The coming of the 
 Christ the Anointed of God, and the establishment 
 
70 ARTA8, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 of his kingdom, they desired and longed for. They 
 were tired of waiting for it, and had almost given 
 up hope ; but here was a messenger giving them 
 new life. The kingdom of heaven was at hand. 
 The government of the whole world was about to 
 be placed in the hands of the Jews. The glorious 
 king through whose power (received directly from 
 Jehovah) they were to conquer their enemies was 
 soon to come ; and with awakened expectation 
 they went out from Jerusalem and the country 
 round about, to see this new prophet, and hear 
 from his own lips the glad tidings he announced. 
 
 They found this man proclaiming the coming 
 of the long- promised Messiah, at the same time, 
 however, calling on them to turn from their sins, 
 to repent, and become better men ; that all injus- 
 tice should be done away with, that they must deal 
 honestly, aid each other, and prepare for the com- 
 ing of the Christ by cleansing themselves from 
 their sins. It was not enough for them to be 
 Abraham's children : he who was coming would 
 search the heart; only those who should bring 
 forth the fruits of righteousness would be received 
 into the new kingdom. As an acknowledgment 
 that they accepted these terms, he required them 
 to be baptized. 
 
 These strange doctrines surprised and puzzled 
 them. The scribes and Pharisees more especially 
 
THE JEWS, 71 
 
 were confounded. They were unable to see why 
 these doctrines should be preached and insisted 
 upon as preparatory to the coming of a conqueror 
 and king, — of a man who should by force of arms 
 conquer the world. The excitement caused by 
 this extraordinary preaching was great, and the 
 fame of the new prophet spread over the whole 
 of Palestine. Large numbers acknowledged their 
 belief in him, and were baptized in public 
 acknowledgment of their faith. 
 
 Among others who came to hear the new 
 prophet was Jesns. He was in the flush of man- 
 hood, perfect in form and feature, and full of 
 intellectual and moral vigor. He was known 
 among his friends and countrymen as a dutiful 
 and industrious son, a loving friend and neighbor, 
 having a forgiving disposition, a compassionate 
 spirit, an unblemished reputation, and as fulfilling 
 all the duties of his position with energy and 
 rectitude. 
 
 Known to John as a man of pure mind and 
 upright life and conversation, the application of 
 Jesus to receive the baptism of repentance at his 
 hands seemed to him inappropriate. His first 
 impulse was to refuse, to disclaim for himself the 
 implication of superior holiness : it would be more 
 in accordance with his feelings, himself to receive 
 baptism from the hands of Jesns. Jesus answered 
 
72 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 that he believed in the doctrines taught by John, 
 and that it was proper that he should show his 
 belief by receiving the same rite given to others. 
 To this reasoning John assented, and baptized 
 him. 
 
 On emerging from the water, an extraordinary 
 scene occurred : an appearance like unto a dove 
 descended from heaven, and alighted on Jesus ; at 
 the same time a voice was heard declaring, " This 
 is my well-beloved Son, in him I am well pleased." 
 
 JESUS THE CHRIST. 
 
 Previous to his birth, Mary, the mother of Jesus, 
 had been informed that her son was to be the 
 Christ. The tidings of the shepherds, the ac- 
 knowledgments of Simeon and Anna, the visit and 
 offerings of the magi, all had confirmed the state- 
 ment, and strengthened the belief in her heart. 
 Yet what did she see ? Her child growing up to 
 youth, to manhood, and on to thirty years of age or 
 more, without one sign that these promises were to 
 be fulfilled. Where were the evidences that these 
 statements were true? Where were the glory and 
 the splendor that were to be his ? Where was the 
 throne of his father David, which Jehovah was 
 to give him? where the power that was to be 
 bestowed upon him? 
 
 Mary was of a devout and affectionate disposi- 
 
THE JEWS. 73 
 
 tion, reticent in all matters concerning herself and 
 her son, " pondering them in her heart." It cannot 
 be supposed, however, that she had never informed 
 her child of the circumstances of his birth, and of 
 the prophecies concerning him, both those in the 
 Hebrew Scriptures, and those personal to herself. 
 We may well believe that even long previous to 
 his visit to Jerusalem at twelve years of age, he 
 had received and pondered over this information, 
 and had studied with enthusiasm the many prophe- 
 cies of the power, grandeur, and universal rule of 
 the coming Messiah whom he believed to be 
 himself. With these feelings overpowering his 
 mind, he takes this first opportunity to question 
 the doctors relative to the prophecies respecting 
 the Christ, which were in many respects appar- 
 ently contradictory in their character; and his 
 searching inquiries and earnest reasoning may 
 well have puzzled these wise men. This also gives 
 a key to his meaning as he inquires, " Know ye not 
 I must be about my Father's business ? " must be 
 preparing for the station I am to hold, the position 
 I am to fill, as the Saviour and King of my country 
 and of the world. 
 
 With the impatience of youth, we may suppose 
 he was already preparing for the part he sup- 
 posed he was to play in the great events of the 
 future as a leader and king. Yet the record says, 
 
74 ABTASy SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 " He was obedient unto " his parents. Even the 
 dreams of future power did not prevent him from 
 dutifully obeying them. 
 
 As time advances, we may see Jesus quietly 
 awaiting the call to action. His youth passes, and 
 manhood is reached, still with nothing to designate 
 him as likely to take any active part in liberating 
 his country from the Roman rule. Would not 
 doubts suggest themselves to him? Was his 
 mother not mistaken ? Did she not dream ? Was 
 she in her right mind when she supposed she saw 
 and heard the things of which she had informed 
 him ? How was he, a poor carpenter, supporting 
 himself and mother by daily manual labor, — how 
 was he to obtain followers ? Who was he, that he 
 should command armies? he, whose tastes were 
 entirely opposed to bloodshed ? How was he to 
 govern a nation, much less the whole world ? 
 
 While we may suppose thoughts kindred to 
 these at times occupied his mind, at other times 
 the conviction of the truth of his mother's state- 
 ments would fill his heart; and, while awaiting 
 any movement which in God's good time might 
 take place, he fulfils the duties of the hour, and 
 prepares himself for whatever revelation may be 
 made. 
 
 We do not see him proud, vain-glorious, boast- 
 ful, proclaiming abroad the position he was to 
 
THE JEWS. 76 
 
 hold. His mother and himself were both reticent, 
 retiring ; no one ever heard either of them speak 
 of their hopes or expectations. 
 
 Do we not see in all this the fact that Jesus was 
 " tempted in all points like as we are, yet without 
 sin " ? In all this watching and waiting, the hardest 
 thing for an earnest man to do, was not the temp- 
 tation strong to take the matter into his own hands, 
 instead of awaiting the slow movement of events ? 
 
 Thus he goes on : thirty years of age is reached, 
 and still he has received no call to action. Finally 
 he hears of the preaching of John : " The kingdom 
 of heaven is at hand." The Messiah is about to 
 appear ! Can it be ? He has received no intima- 
 tion. Is he mistaken, after all? Are all his 
 thoughts, his expectations, dreams? Is he doomed 
 to utter disappointment ? Must he put away his 
 long-cherished hopes, and see the work accom- 
 plished by some one else ? 
 
 With humility of heart, and humbled by his 
 long self-delusion, he approaches and listens to 
 the prophet. 
 
 He is glad that the Messiah is coming, although 
 he is not the chosen one of God. He crucifies all 
 his old and cherished feelings and desires, bows 
 down in humble self-abasement, and in lowliness 
 of spirit asks for the baptism of repentance at the 
 hands of John. 
 
76 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 Up to this time we find no evidence in the rec- 
 ord that Jesus had any knowledge differing from 
 that of other men. Being in the flesh, clothed 
 upon by the animal, he partook of the same spirit- 
 ual disadvantages belonging to us all. Spiritual 
 beings, children of the most high God, we are en- 
 veloped in a garment of flesh which bounds our 
 view ; we know not whence we are, or whither we 
 go. The material existence of the present is alone 
 known to us ; we see through the organ called the 
 eye, as through the window of a prison-cell ; our 
 vision is confined, and we know nothing beyond, 
 unless enlightened by the Spirit of God. He can 
 give us the power to pierce through the earthly 
 matter, and see the spiritual things around us. 
 
 As we observe the operations of God's Spirit in 
 those to whom it was given, as related in the He- 
 brew Scriptures, we find it enlightened them in a 
 certain direction and to a certain extent only. It 
 was a special gift for certain specific purposes, and 
 outside of those special objects the holders of the 
 gift remained as before. Moses had the power of 
 miracle placed in his hands, that he might fulfil 
 the purposes of the Deity. The prophets were 
 enlightened by the Holy Spirit in one direction, 
 and generally in that only. 
 
 Up to this time, Jesus, as a child, boy, man, was 
 a human being, tried and tempted even beyond 
 
THE JEWS. 77 
 
 the common lot of men, with all the loves, hopes, 
 fears, and desires, the ills and sicknesses, of other 
 men. The animal nature was as strong in him as 
 in any other man, and needed the same control. 
 He was living in this animal body, subject to all 
 the imperfections of the flesh, as are all mankind. 
 But now a new scene opens before him. He is 
 startled, as are those about him, by the appearance 
 and the voice accompanying it, in which he is 
 commended as the well-beloved Son of God. 
 This acknowledgment of the Deity answered the 
 belief and expectation of the Jews, that the Christ 
 should be the Son of Jehovah. 
 
 Stunned, amazed, he leaves the scene of his bap- 
 tism ; and driven by conflicting emotions, which 
 crowd into and confuse his mind, he seeks the 
 solitude of the desert, that he may there collect 
 his scattered thoughts, and mature his plans for 
 the future. 
 
 The few short passages which he has left us of 
 the temptations in the wilderness give us the 
 key to long and painful struggles before he had 
 conquered, and deliberately chosen the path he 
 afterward so unflinchingly trod. 
 
 A Jew, brought up and taught as a Jew, with 
 all the Jewish hopes and longings, intensified in 
 his own case because of his belief in himself and 
 his destiny, he finds those hopes suddenly fulfilled. 
 
78 ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 He is the acknowledged and chosen Son of Jeho- 
 vah, the predicted ruler of the world, the expected 
 Messiah, the Saviour of his people. 
 
 All the ideas of his youth, the proud feeling of 
 conscious strength and power, rush upon him. 
 Now the hopes and desires of his countrymen will 
 be realized. They shall indeed be relieved from 
 their hated bonds to the Roman. The Roman rule 
 shall be broken, and they shall be free ; and, be- 
 yond that, his victorious legions, with the power- 
 ful aid which Jehovah has placed in his hands, 
 shall subdue the whole world, and the prophecies 
 be completed and fulfilled in him. All nations 
 should bow down before him, and serve him ; and 
 he would be king and ruler over all. He would 
 govern in righteousness; all wrongs should be 
 righted, and he would give to the world peace. 
 His sway would be universal and undisputed, and 
 prosperity and happiness should abound in all the 
 earth. 
 
 As these ideas shape themselves in his mind, 
 others arise in conflict with them. Half-forgotten 
 prophecies respecting Christ, his afflictions, his 
 rejection, force themselves upon him ; and as the 
 turmoil of his thoughts subsides, and he grows 
 more calm, other thoughts and ideas present them- 
 selves. They take a higher and grander position ; 
 he sees with more clearness the demands upon 
 
THE JEWS. 79 
 
 liim. War is a great and serious evil. Bloodshed, 
 murder, rapine, all the evils attending it, fill his 
 heart with sorrow and aversion ; he cannot be the 
 means of filling the land with such horror. He 
 must not tempt Jehovah to aid him in any such 
 undertakings. Some other way must be found to 
 establish the kingdom of heaven, the rule of 
 Jehovah upon earth. 
 
 As he grows calmer, and proceeds to examine 
 closer his relations to God and to his country, we 
 may believe the Spirit of God enlightens him, and 
 ideas before unknown are presented to him. 
 
 We see in one of the pictures in the temptations 
 the desire to introduce himself to his countrymen 
 by some startling miracle, like that of throwing 
 himself from the pinnacle of the temple, thereby 
 showing to all the fact of his miraculous power, 
 and by so doing leading his countrymen to believe 
 in him as the Messiah, the Christ of God. But 
 this again is rejected, and gradually dawns on him 
 the real character of his mission. He is a free 
 agent. The power of miracle is in his hands, to 
 use it as he sees fit. He can use it for his own 
 personal benefit. He can turn the stones into 
 bread, or gold, or any thing else he may desire ; the 
 riches of the world are his. He can carry out 
 the wish of his boyhood, the dream of his youth, 
 and the desire of his young manhood. He can 
 
80 ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 startle his countrymen by stupendous miracles. 
 He can pose as a conqueror. He can fill the rdle 
 of king and ruler of the world ; the power is his, 
 and the prophecies apparently demand it. How 
 shall he use this power ? 
 
 Gradually, as light is given him, the real nature 
 of the rule or kingdom of God dawns upon his 
 mind. It is a kingdom not of this earth, but a 
 spiritual kingdom. It is a new life, a new being, 
 and the revealing of this new life, the require- 
 ments of this new being. How should he pro- 
 claim it? How would it be received? Would 
 his countrymen be ready to give up the long- 
 expected rule of their nation ? would they abandon 
 their desire for revenge, and renounce their dream 
 of the glorious reign of Christ over the whole 
 earth? How hard indeed was it to look these 
 matters in the face, — to see the right course, and 
 then pursue it ! 
 
 Crushing all his own glowing hopes and aspira- 
 tions, his dreams of glory, pomp, and power, and 
 at the same time seeing the aversion, the disap- 
 pointment, the disgust, with which his claim of 
 being the Messiah would be received, unless 
 accompanied with the evidences of earthly power 
 and glory, he resolves upon his course of action. 
 As the subject enlarges, and he sees clearer the 
 course of events, he realizes his situation. A 
 
THE JEWS. 81 
 
 loving and compassionate spirit, yearning for love 
 and companionship, he sees in himself a lonely 
 and desolate man, despised, taunted, and rejected 
 with scorn and anger by his own townsmen; with- 
 out a place to lay his head, weary and heart-sick ; 
 his claim of being the Christ, although supported 
 by miracles, rejected by the nation at large. He 
 sees himself reviled by the learned men and the 
 priests, to whom he had been taught to look up ; 
 the subject of scorn and contumely ; even while 
 using his power of miracle to relieve suffering, 
 this very power credited to Satan, and he himself 
 declared to be in collusion with evil spirits ; fol- 
 lowed by a few ignorant but loving -men, who, 
 while they attach themselves to him as his friends 
 and disciples, still have a confused idea that he 
 will soon proclaim himself as king and commence 
 his reign ; he sees himself in his great day of 
 trial deserted even by his disciples, and left alone 
 to meet a violent, painful, and disgraceful death, 
 surrounded by scoffers, with the enemies of his 
 nation taunting him and glorying in his suffer- 
 ings. 
 
 Such are the scenes that reveal themselves to 
 his awakened perceptions. Must he choose this 
 way ? Is there no other way ? Must he not only 
 give up his dreams of earthly splendor as the ruler 
 of the world ? but must he also take this path of 
 
82 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 humiliation, suffering, and disgraceful and violent 
 death ? 
 
 Can we wonder at the time taken, — the days 
 and nights of prayer and conflict before the war- 
 fare ceased, and the decision was made ? Was 
 ever any man tempted like unto this man ? 
 
 The long agony is over. The struggle between 
 the desires, inclinations, hopes, and wishes of Jesus 
 of Nazareth, the Son of man, born and educated 
 to rule the world as an earthly king and conqueror, 
 and the duties and responsibilities of Jesus the 
 Christ, the anointed Son of God, has ceased ; he 
 has decided, and taken his stand. "Thou shalt 
 worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt 
 thou serve," is his final answer to all these temp- 
 tations. Jesus the Christ has conquered, and 
 thereby has become the well-beloved Son of the 
 most high God. 
 
 Jesus the Christ appears, clothed with more 
 than mortal power, yet meek and lowly in spirit. 
 He has deliberately made his choice, has turned 
 his back on every thing connected with the earthly 
 rule of his nation, and uses his power (which, 
 if he had chosen earthly rule and sway, would 
 have been shown in miracles like unto those of 
 Moses and Joshua) to relieve suffering and dis- 
 tress. He goes about healing the sick and afflicted, 
 and at the same time proclaims the coming of the 
 
THE JEWS. 83 
 
 kingdom of heaven, which, he teaches, is the rule 
 of God in the heart, the love of God and man. 
 We see him worn with toil, heart-sick at the 
 evil around him, and the spiritual blindness of 
 those with whom he comes in contact ; we see 
 him tried, and, though his judge acknowledges his 
 innocence, we see him consigned to an ignomin- 
 ious and disgraceful death. We see also his resur- 
 rection, and his final departure from earth to 
 heaven. 
 
 Jesus of Nazareth, in the struggle in the wilder- 
 ness, realized what was required of him : that 
 all this preparation of two thousand years had 
 been for a purpose, and that purpose was to give 
 unto man the evangel of God ; that, through this 
 evangel, man should obtain a knowledge of the 
 Deity, and of his being and requirements, of 
 eternal life, and the means by which it might be 
 obtained. 
 
 Jesus was a man, a free agent. Like you or 
 me, he had to make a decision. Good and evil 
 were before him. Which should he choose ? 
 
 The one way led to riches, honor, and worldly 
 greatness. By the use of the miraculous power 
 placed unreservedly in his hands, he could bring 
 all nations to his feet, and become, what his ima- 
 gination had sometimes pictured, the monarch of 
 the wprW. He could give his friends untold 
 
84 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 riches, and make them great and prosperous. In 
 so doing, he would fulfil the expectations of his 
 countrymen, and place the Hebrew nation on a 
 pinacle of greatness, according with the apparent 
 and generally believed prophecies respecting the 
 Messiah. 
 
 The other way required the giving-up of all his 
 long-cherished hopes and expectations, his desire 
 for the happiness of his nation and the gratifica- 
 tion of their wishes. It led to a life of self-denial, 
 of self-abnegation, of sorrow, of ignominy; to a 
 struggle against not only his own desires, but 
 also against the hopes and expectations, the fierce 
 wishes, of his nation, and even of those whom he 
 should select as his friends and companions. It 
 led to the utterance of doctrines which would be 
 rejected by his nation, and misunderstood by his 
 friends ; and to a repulsive, painful, and ignomin- 
 ious death by the hands of the public execu- 
 tioner, deserted by his friends, and derided by his 
 enemies. 
 
 Look on the two pictures, and say what temp- 
 tation was ever like that which assailed this man 
 during the forty days of his trial in the wilderness. 
 
 As we have never been tried like this man, and 
 have never overcome like him, we can with all 
 humility approach the Deity in his name, and 
 as his disciples, endeavoring to follow his example, 
 
THE JEWS. 85 
 
 honoring him as the means whereby the evangel 
 of God was again given to man through his 
 teaching and suffering. 
 
 We have reverently traced the footsteps of the 
 Deity in his " plan of salvation," in his endeavor 
 to save man from longer spiritual ignorance, and 
 bring him again to himself. We have seen him 
 as a household god select a member of the Semitic 
 race, separate him from his kindred, gain his faith 
 and trust and that of his immediate descendants, 
 and cause them to settle in Egypt, there keeping 
 them a separate people until they had increased 
 to millions. Then, as Jehovah, we have seen him, 
 by the exercise of his power, bring them out of 
 bondage, and form them into a nation who of their 
 own free will choose him as their national god. 
 
 We have seen the gradual advance of that 
 nation in religious knowledge ; and, in punish- 
 ment of their many revolts against their god, 
 have seen them carried captive into many lands. 
 We have seen them advanced to offices of trust 
 and honor in the great centres of civilization, and 
 have seen the knowledge of Jehovah carried by 
 them into every land. 
 
 All these were various steps necessary to pre- 
 pare the world to receive a greater, fuller, more 
 spiritual religion than any then known. 
 
86 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 When, in the fulness of time, the world was 
 ready to again receive the evangel formerly de- 
 livered to the Aryas, the messenger of the Deity 
 for whose advent all this preparation had been 
 made appeared. 
 
 In the New Testament, or New Contract, we 
 can find this (to the world) new revelation, in all 
 essential respects the first revelation repeated. 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZARETH, 87 
 
 IV. 
 
 THE CLAIM OF JESUS OP NAZAEETH TO BE THE 
 CHRIST. 
 
 In our first volume we have shown that God 
 moves in the affairs of men ; that the Aryas, the 
 most highly organized race created by God, en- 
 closed for thousands of years in the Garden of 
 Eden, free from interruption from other races, 
 there taught of God, and brought to a higher 
 spiritual position than any other race has yet ob- 
 tained, — that this race, when brought into temp- 
 tation by commerce with other nations, by riches, 
 and by almost universal rule, gradually fell from 
 their high estate, neglected the task imposed upon 
 them by the Deity, became sensuous and vile, and 
 as a nation were swept by God from the face of 
 the earth, but as a race were preserved by long- 
 previous migrations. 
 
 In this volume we have traced the progress of 
 the Deity in isolating the Israelites, and from 
 them forming a nation through whose glory and 
 shame, through whose successes and adversities. 
 
88 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 through miracles and prophecy, and through whose 
 religious faithfulness in the end, a knowledge of 
 God as Jehovah was spread abroad, and their belief 
 in and expectation of a Messiah was made known 
 throughout the civilized world. We have in the 
 New Testament a record of the appearance, life, 
 teachings, death, and resurrection of Jesus of 
 Nazareth, who claimed to be the Christ, and for 
 the truth of his claim referred to the prophecies, 
 to the testimony of his parents, of God, of John 
 the Baptist, and of his miracles. 
 
 Inasmuch as the Christ has been robbed of his 
 distinction as the great exemplar and pattern for 
 humanity, dethroned from the position of the 
 greatest, the most virtuous man that ever existed, 
 and deprived of his temptations, that greatest test 
 of character, by theologians who have transformed 
 him into a god, and thus taken from him his pre- 
 eminence as the perfect man; and as others, 
 misled by German criticism and free thought, 
 deny the existence of the Christ, and claim that 
 Jesus of Nazareth usurped a title which did not 
 belong to him, and thereafter lived a life of deceit 
 and fraud, — we propose to bring forward in the 
 following pages the principal proofs on the points 
 above referred to, and also to examine the teach- 
 ings of this Christ, to see in what manner they 
 differ (if at all) from those of the first revelation. 
 
TBE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZABETH, 89 
 
 In making this examination, we must bear in 
 mind the difference in the circumstances and sur- 
 roundings of and in the race to whom these reve- 
 lations were made. That the first revelation was 
 given to a race slowly emerging from the animal 
 nature, through social and intellectual knowledge, 
 to the spiritual. That in their slow growth and 
 isolated position, they had no knowledge of or 
 belief in any other god to unlearn. That one 
 only god was taught them. That having no out- 
 side influences to confuse them, every step in 
 advance was assured and certain ; and, as a result, 
 we have the first and greatest revelation given to 
 man. 
 
 The Christ came to a race naturally earthy, less 
 spiritual ; to a nation believing in many gods, but 
 in his time loyal to their own national god. He 
 came when certain beliefs and non-beliefs were 
 prevalent and deeply seated, and not to be re- 
 moved by the teachings of any individual, though 
 he might have miraculous powers. 
 
 Under these circumstances the Christ was 
 limited in his utterances with regard to the 
 fatherhood of God, the sonship of man, the being 
 of Satan, the existence of hell, the fate of the un- 
 enlightened, and on many other points. As in 
 God's dealings with Abraham, and with Moses 
 and the Israelites, he met them on the plane of 
 
90 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 their beliefs ; so now the Christ met the Jews on 
 the plain of their beliefs, and used them in enfor- 
 cing and illustrating his own teachings. 
 
 MESSIANIC PROPHECIES. 
 
 The Jews, at the time of the appearance of Jesus 
 of Nazareth as the Christ, were expecting the com- 
 ing of a Messiah. This expectation was based 
 upon prophecies recorded in the Hebrew scrip- 
 tures, some of which are as follows : — 
 
 Abraham received this promise : — 
 
 "And in thy seed shall all the nations of the 
 earth be blessed." (Gen. xxii. 18.) 
 
 Moses, in his last address to the Hebrews, 
 says, — 
 
 " The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a 
 prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, 
 like unto me." (Deut. xviii. 15.) 
 
 Isaiah prophesies, " And in that day there shall 
 be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign 
 of the people ; to it shall the Gentiles seek : and 
 his rest shall be glorious." (Isa. xi. 10.) 
 
 Jeremiah, years afterwards, records the follow- 
 ing : " Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that 
 I will raise unto David a righteous branch, and a 
 king shall reign and prosper, and shall execute 
 judgment and justice in the earth." (Jer. xxiii. 
 5.) 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZARETH. 91 
 
 The Jews believed the time of the coming of the 
 Christ was indicated in the prophecy of Daniel : — 
 
 " Know therefore and understand, that from the 
 going forth of the commandment to restore and to 
 build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince 
 shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two 
 weeks." (Dan. ix. 25.) 
 
 These they understood to be weeks of years, 
 each week indicating seven years. Seven weeks 
 and sixty-two weeks are sixty-nine, and seven 
 times sixty-nine are four hundred and eighty-three 
 years. 
 
 The "going forth of the commandment" or 
 order to rebuild Jerusalem, was given by Arta- 
 xerxes first in the twentieth year of his reign, or 
 445 B.C. ; and Nehemiah was sent to carry out the 
 order of the king. Eleven years previously this 
 same king had sent Ezra to rebuild the Temple at 
 Jerusalem. 
 
 The prophecy of Daniel says that the Messiah 
 shall appear in four hundred and eighty-three years 
 from the date of the order given by Artaxerxes to 
 rebuild Jerusalem, which would make the year A.D. 
 38 the time for the anointing of, or for the ap- 
 pearance of, the Christ. Luke, the only one who 
 speaks of the age of Jesus when he was anointed 
 by the Holy Spirit, says, "And the Holy Ghost 
 descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, 
 
92 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 and a voice came from heaven which said, Thou 
 art my beloved Son, in thee I am well pleased. 
 And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years 
 of age." As there is an uncertainty with regard 
 to A.D.,1 as also the statement of age is " about," 
 we may consider that the prophecy of Daniel was 
 fulfilled to the letter, not at the birth of Jesus of 
 Nazareth, but at his anointing; it was that which 
 made him the Christ. The title of " Christ " did 
 not belong to him until he was selected, appointed, 
 commissioned, anointed, by the Holy Spirit. 
 
 The place of the birth of the Christ is also 
 indicated : — 
 
 " But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou 
 be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out 
 of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be 
 ruler in Israel." (Mic. v. 2.) 
 
 The character and mission of the Christ are 
 described as follows : — 
 
 " The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the 
 spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of 
 counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and 
 of the fear of the Lord; and shall make him of 
 
 1 Professor J. H. Allen of Harvard University, in hia Hebrew 
 Men and Times, places the enrolment for taxation, which was 
 the cause for Joseph and Mary's journey to Bethlehem, as occur- 
 ring in A.D. 7. This would coincide with the anointing of Jesus 
 and his appearance as the Christ when he was thirty-one years 
 old. 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZARETH. 93 
 
 quick understanding in the fear of the Lord: and 
 he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither 
 reprove after the hearing of his ears; but with 
 righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove 
 with equity for the meek of the earth: and he 
 shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, 
 and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the 
 wicked ; and righteousness shall be the girdle of 
 his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins." 
 (Isa. xi. 2-5.) 
 
 Jesus, as the Christ, quotes and applies to him- 
 self the following : — 
 
 " The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because 
 the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings 
 unto the meek ; he hath sent me to bind up the 
 broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, 
 and the opening of the prison to them that are 
 bound; to proclaim the acceptable year of the 
 Lord." (Isa. Ixi. 1, 2.) 
 
 It was also prophesied of the Christ, that he 
 should perform miracles. 
 
 "Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, 
 and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped ; then 
 shall the lame man leap as a hart, and the tongue 
 of the dumb sing." (Isa. xxxv. 5, 6.) 
 
 There are also prophecies of a different charac- 
 ter, to which, with the knowledge we have of the 
 mission of the Christ, we give a meaning differing 
 from the Jewish ideas and belief: — 
 
94 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 " Of the increase of his government and peace 
 there shall be no end, upon the throne of David 
 and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish 
 it with judgment and with justice from henceforth 
 even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will 
 perform this." (Isa. ix. 7.) 
 
 "They shall serve the Lord their God, and 
 David their king, whom I will raise up unto 
 them." (Jer. xxx. 9.) 
 
 "And I the Lord will be their God, and my 
 servant David a prince among them ; I the Lord 
 have spoken it." (Ezek. xxxiv. 24.) 
 
 "And David my servant shall be king over 
 them, and they all shall have one shepherd : they 
 shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my 
 statutes, and do them : and they shall dwell in the 
 land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, 
 wherein your fathers have dwelt ; and they shall 
 dwell therein, even they, and their children, and 
 their children's children forever : and my servant 
 David shall be their prince forever." (Ezek. 
 xxxvii. 24, 25.) 
 
 "I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one 
 like the Son of man came with the clouds of 
 heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and 
 they brought him near before him ; and there was 
 given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, 
 that all people, nations, and languages should serve 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZAEETH. 95 
 
 him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, 
 which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that 
 which shall not be destroyed." (Dan. vii. 13, 14.) 
 
 The prophecies teem with visions of the glory, 
 majesty, pomp, power, and universal and eternal 
 rule of the expected Messiah. When we consider 
 the general ignorance of the Jews of any spiritual 
 requirements, their low conception of God, their 
 belief in earthly rewards and punishments, and 
 their expectation that because of their careful 
 and punctilious performance of the requirements 
 of the law of Moses since their deliverance from 
 Babylonian bondage they would be rewarded by 
 worldly success, — we can easily see that these 
 glorious prophecies would be received and be- 
 lieved by them in their letter, and not in their 
 spirit. The kingdom was to be an earthly king- 
 dom ; the ruler was to be another David, who was 
 to inaugurate a new government, much more glo- 
 rious than the original. To him all the nations 
 of the earth should pay homage, and to his king- 
 dom there should be no end. 
 
 We have seen the prophecies of the Messiah. 
 Were they fulfilled in Jesus of Nazareth ? 
 
 The Christ was to be of the seed of Abraham. 
 That is not disputed. 
 
 He was to be a man " from the midst of you, 
 like unto me," says Moses. 
 
96 ART AS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 In support of this we have the records of his 
 birth and of his youth, testified to by unimpeach- 
 able witnesses. 
 
 He was to be of the root of Jesse and of the 
 line of David. This is testified to in both gene- 
 alogies, — the one in Matthew reckoning down 
 from Abraham, and the one in Luke reckoning 
 up to Adam. 
 
 The prophecy of Daniel required the appear- 
 ance of Messiah the Prince, four hundred and 
 eighty-three years from the time the order to 
 build Jerusalem was given to Nehemiah. We 
 know the Jews, at the time of Christ, were im- 
 patiently awaiting his coming ; and the time of 
 his appearance was very near, if not at the exact 
 date, of the prophecy. Jesus was about thirty 
 years of age when he proclaimed himself to be 
 the Messiah, apparently one year before the com- 
 pletion of the prophetic time. 
 
 The Christ was to be born in Bethlehem. We 
 give herewith the testimony upon that point 
 recorded by Matthew and Luke, of the birth of 
 Jesus, with the accompanying incidents. 
 
 J£SUS OF NAIAEETH. 
 
 Mary, the mother of Jesus, testified, as recorded 
 by Luke, that she was a "virgin espoused to a 
 man whose name was Joseph, of the house of 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZABETH. 97 
 
 David ; and the angel came in unto her, and said, 
 Hail, thou that art highly favored, the Lord is 
 with thee ; blessed art thou among women. And 
 when she saw him she was troubled at his saying, 
 and cast in her mind what manner of salutation 
 this should be. And the angel said unto her, 
 Fear not, Mary ; for thou hast found favor with 
 God ; and behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, 
 and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name 
 Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the 
 son of the Highest ; and the Lord God shall give 
 unto him the throne of his father David, and he 
 shall reign over the house of Israel forever, and 
 of his kingdom there shall be no end. Then 
 Mary said unto the angel. How shall this thing be, 
 seeing I know not a man ? and the angel answered 
 unto her. The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, 
 and the power of the Highest shall overshadow 
 thee ; therefore also that holy thing which . shall 
 be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. 
 . . . And Mary said. Behold the handmaid of the 
 Lord ; be it unto me according to thy word. And 
 the angel departed from her." 
 
 The testimony of Joseph, as recorded by 
 Matthew : — 
 
 " When Mary was espoused to Joseph, before 
 they had come together, she was found with child 
 of the Holy Ghost. Then Joseph her husband, 
 
98 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 being a just man, and not willing to make her a 
 public example, was minded to put her away 
 privily. But while he thought on these things, 
 behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him 
 in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, 
 fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife : for that 
 which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. 
 And she shall bring forth a son ; and thou shalt 
 call his name Jesus ; for he shall save his people 
 from their sins. . . . Then Joseph being raised 
 from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord had 
 bidden him, and took unto him his wife : and 
 knew her not till she had brought forth her 
 firstborn son : and he called his name Jesus.'* 
 
 The testimony of Joseph (additional) as re- 
 ported by Luke : — 
 
 " And Joseph went up from Galilee, out of the 
 city of Nazareth, to Judsea, unto the city of David, 
 which is called Bethlehem ; to be taxed, with 
 Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. 
 And while they were there, the days were accom- 
 plished that she should be delivered. And she 
 brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped 
 him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a 
 manger, because there was no room for them in 
 the inn." 
 
 The testimony of the shepherds as recorded by 
 Luke : — 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZARETH, 99 
 
 " And there were in the same country shepherds 
 abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flocks 
 by night. And lo, the angel of the Lord came 
 upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round 
 about them : and they were sore afraid. And the 
 angel said unto them. Fear not, for behold, I bring 
 you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to 
 all people : for unto you is born this day in the 
 city of David, a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. 
 And this shall be a sign unto you : ye shall find 
 the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, and lying 
 in a manger. And suddenly there was with the 
 angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising 
 God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and 
 on earth peace, good-frill toward men. And it 
 came to pass, as the angels were gone away from 
 them into heaven, the shepherds said one to 
 another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and 
 see this thing which is come to pass, which the 
 Lord hath made known to us. And they came 
 with haste, and found Mary and Joseph, and the 
 babe lying in a manger. And when they had seen 
 it, they made known abroad the saying which was 
 told them concerning this child. And all they 
 that heard it wondered at those things which were 
 told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all 
 these things, and pondered them in her heart. 
 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and prais- 
 
100 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 ing God for all the things that they had heard and 
 seen, as it was told unto them." 
 
 Testimony of Luke ; — 
 
 " And when eight days were accomplished for 
 the circumcising of the child, his name was called 
 Jesus, which was so named of the angel before he 
 was conceived in the womb. And when the days 
 of the purification according to the law of Moses 
 were accomplished, they brought him to Jerusalem 
 to present him to the Lord, and to ofiPer a sacrifice 
 according to that which is said in the law of the 
 Lord, A pair of turtle-doves or two young 
 pigeons." 
 
 Testimony of Simeon, as recorded by Luke : — 
 
 " There was a man in Jerusalem whose name 
 was Simeon : and the same man was just and 
 devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: 
 and the Holy Ghost was upon him. And it was 
 revealed to him by the Holy Ghost, that he should 
 not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. 
 And he came by the Spirit into the temple : and 
 when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do 
 for him after the custom of the law, then took he 
 him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said. 
 Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in 
 peace, according to thy word : for mine eyes have 
 seen thy salvation, which thou hast prepared 
 before the face of all people, a light to lighten 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZARETH. 101 
 
 the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people 
 Israel." 
 
 The incidental testimony of the wise men, as 
 recorded by Matthew : — 
 
 "Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of 
 Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there 
 came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, say- 
 ing. Where is he that is born King of the Jews ? 
 for we have seen his star in the east, and have 
 come to worship him. 
 
 " When Herod the king had heard these things, 
 he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him ; and 
 when he had gathered all the chief priests and 
 scribes of the people together, he demanded of 
 them where Christ should be born. And they said 
 unto him. In Bethlehem of Judsea : for thus it is 
 written by the prophet: And thou Bethlehem, 
 in the land of Juda, art not least among the 
 princes of Juda ; for out of thee shall come a 
 Governor, that shall rule my people Israel. Then 
 Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, 
 inquired of them diligently what time the star 
 appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, and 
 said, Go and search diligently for the young child ; 
 and when ye have found him, bring me word again, 
 that I may come and worship him also. 
 
 " When they had heard the king, they departed ; 
 and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went 
 
102 ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 before them, till it came and stood over where the 
 young child was. When they saw the star, they 
 rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they 
 were come into the house, they saw the young 
 child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and 
 worshipped him : and when they had opened their 
 treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, 
 frankincense, and myrrh. And being warned of 
 God in a dream that they should not return to 
 Herod, they departed into their own country 
 another way." 
 
 TBE CHRIST. 
 
 " The Spirit of the Lord " was to rest upon him. 
 He himself claims that " The Spirit of the Lord 
 God is upon me, because the Lord hath anointed 
 me." This claim is supported by the testimony 
 of the voice from heaven, as given by Matthew, 
 Mark, and Luke : — 
 
 "And Jesus, when he was baptized, 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." 
 
 The testimony of John the Baptist, to the same 
 event, as recorded by the Apostle John : — 
 
 "And this is the record of John, when the 
 Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZARETH. 103 
 
 ask him, Who art thou ? And he confessed, and 
 denied not ; but confessed, I am not the Christ." 
 " The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto 
 him, and saith. Behold the Lamb of God, which 
 taketh away the sin of the world. This is he of 
 whom I said. After me cometh a man which is 
 preferred before me : for he was before me. And 
 I knew him not : but that he should be made man- 
 ifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with 
 water. And John bare record, saying, I saw the 
 Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it 
 abode upon him. And I knew him not ; but he 
 that sent me to baptize with water, the same said 
 unto me. Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit 
 descending, and remaining on him, the same is he 
 which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. And I saw, 
 and bare record that this is the Son of God. 
 
 "Again the next day after, John stood, and 
 two of his disciples ; and looking upon Jesus as 
 he walked, he saith. Behold the Lamb of God ! " 
 
 Testimony of the voice from heaven at a later 
 period, as recorded by Matthew, Mark, and 
 Luke : — 
 
 " And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, 
 and John his brother, and bringeth them up into 
 a high mountain apart, and was transfigured 
 before them : and his face did shine as the sun, 
 and his raiment was white as the light. And, 
 
104 ARTA8, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias 
 talking with him. Then answered Peter, and said 
 unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here : if 
 thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles ; one 
 for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias. 
 While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud over- 
 shadowed them; and behold a voice out of the 
 cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in 
 whom I am well pleased ; hear ye him." 
 
 We see that by the testimony of unimpeachable 
 witnesses, the requirements in the prophecies of 
 the Christ, regarding the place of his birth, were 
 fulfilled in the birth and consecration of Jesus of 
 Nazareth. And in addition we have the indorse- 
 ment of the angels and shepherds, of Simeon 
 and Anna, and of the wise men, as to his birth ; 
 of John the Baptist, and the voice from heaven, 
 as to his consecration. 
 
 TRB SON OF GOD. 
 
 Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of God, claimed to 
 be the Christ, the anointed Son of Jehovah, the 
 long-expected Messiah of the Jews. He said that 
 God had selected and chosen him for a specific 
 purpose, to do a specific work ; that he acted wholly 
 as his agent and representative ; that what he said 
 was spoken by his direction, and what he did was 
 done by the power God had placed in his hands. 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZAEETH. 105 
 
 In the temptations in the wilderness, he showed 
 that he was, and felt himself to be, a free agent, 
 as he had always been ; and free to act as he 
 thought best, as are all the sons of God. He 
 accepted the mission of his own free will, and his 
 course of action was decided by himself. He 
 claimed that his teachings fulfilled, or filled out 
 and completed, the laws of Moses ; that what he 
 taught was by revelation from God ; and on that 
 ground he claimed from others faith in himself 
 and belief in the truth and authority of the doc- 
 trines he enunciated. 
 
 For proof that he was the Son of God, the 
 anointed, as expected by the Jews, he referred to 
 the testimony of God, of John the Baptist, and 
 especially to the miracles performed by him, as 
 being of a nature carrying with them God's 
 approval, as they could not be performed without 
 his consent and aid. His knowledge of God, — of 
 his being, relationship, and purposes, — he claimed 
 to have received directly from God himself; and 
 the power of miracle which he possessed and used, 
 he constantly referred to God, that of himself he 
 could do nothing. 
 
 Having by his miracles established the fact that 
 he was a son of God endowed with extraordinary 
 powers, thereby becoming, by way of distinction, 
 the Son of God, he proceeded to reveal the Deity, 
 
106 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 not as the household or personal God of Abraham, 
 Isaac, and Jacob ; nor as Jehovah, the tutelary God 
 of the Hebrew nation ; but as our Father, the one 
 and only God, Maker of the universe, and the 
 Father of the whole human race, who he declared 
 were brothers, sons of the one universal Father. 
 He revealed the love of God for man, and promul- 
 gated the law of love to God and man as the 
 fulfilling of the law. He also taught of the resur- 
 rection of the dead, and of a future life ; and in 
 his death, resurrection, and ascension, gave proof 
 of the truth of his teaching. 
 
 Jesus took up the cry of John the Baptist, and 
 proclaimed the kingdom of heaven to be at hand ; 
 that is, the laws, the rule, or government, of God 
 were at hand, about to be proclaimed and taught. 
 The kingdom of heaven is a government, and 
 those who would obtain eternal life must vow 
 allegiance to that government, and obey its laws. 
 These laws of the kingdom, Jesus, as the Christ, 
 revealed; and the apostles journeyed into all 
 lands, proclaiming this kingdom, promulgating 
 the fact of eternal life, and teaching men how to 
 obtain it. 
 
 We will see what proof we have in the New 
 Testament to support the claim that he was the 
 Christ, the anointed Son of God, and that he was 
 endowed with extraordinary power and knowledge 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZARETH. 107 
 
 by God, for the purposes of his mission. In so 
 doing we will cite both the statements of Jesus 
 himself, and collateral evidence. 
 
 " Jesus saith unto them. But whom say i/e that 
 I am? And Simon Peter answered and said. 
 Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. 
 And Jesus answered and said. Blessed art thou, 
 Simon Bar- Jonah ; for flesh and blood hath not 
 revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in 
 heaven." (Mark viii. 29 ; and Luke ix. 20.) 
 
 " Jesus heard that they had cast him out ; and 
 when he had found him he said unto him, Dost 
 thou believe on the Son of God? He answered 
 and said. Who is he, Lord, that I may believe on 
 him ? And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both 
 seen him, and it is he that talketh with thee." 
 (John ix. 37.) 
 
 " When Jesus heard that, he said. This sickness 
 is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that 
 the Son of God might be glorified thereby." 
 (John xi. 4.) 
 
 " Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon's porch. 
 Then came the Jews round about him, and said 
 unto him. How long dost thou make us to doubt ? 
 If thou be the Christ, tell us plainly. Jesus 
 answered them, I told you, and ye believed not: 
 the works that I do in my Father's name, they 
 bear witness of me." (John x. 23.) 
 
108 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 " If I bear witness of myself, my witness is not 
 true : there is another that beareth witness of me, 
 and I know that the witness which he witnesseth 
 of me is true. Ye sent unto John, and he bare 
 witness unto the truth. ... But I have greater 
 witness than that of John : for the works which the 
 Father hath given me to finish, the same works 
 that I do, bear witness of me, that the Father hath 
 sent me. And the Father himself, which hath sent 
 me, hath borne witness of me." (John v. 31-33, 
 36, 37.) 
 
 " It is also written in your law, that the testi- 
 mony of two men is true. I am one that bear 
 witness of myself, and the Father that sent me 
 beareth witness of me." (John viii. 17, 18.) 
 
 " And John calling unto him two of his disci- 
 ples sent them to Jesus, saying, Art thou he that 
 should come? or look we for another? . . . Then 
 Jesus answering said unto them. Go your way, 
 and tell John what things ye have seen and 
 heard ; how that the blind see, the lame walk, the 
 lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are 
 raised, to the poor the gospel is preached." 
 (Luke vii. 19, 22.) 
 
 " Say ye of him whom the Father hath sancti- 
 fied, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest ; 
 because I said, I am the Son of God? If I do 
 not the works of my Father, believe me not. ^ut 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZARETH. 109 
 
 if I do, though ye believe not ' me, believe the 
 works." (John x. 36-38.) 
 
 " Then said they all, Art thou the Son of God ? 
 And he said unto them. Ye say that I am." 
 (Luke xxii. 70.) 
 
 "And the high priest said unto him, I ad- 
 jure thee by the living God, that thou tell us 
 whether thou be the Christ, the Son of God. 
 Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said." (Matt, 
 xxvi. 64.) 
 
 "As the Father gave me commandment, even 
 so I do." (John xiv. 28.) 
 
 " I have kept my Father's commandments, and 
 abide in his love." (John xv. 10.) 
 
 " I go unto the Father, for my Father is greater 
 than I." (John xiv. 28.) 
 
 " Therefore doth my Father love me, because 
 I lay down my life, that I might take it again. 
 No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of 
 myself: I have power to lay it down, and I have 
 power to take it again. This commandment [or 
 this power] have I received of my Father." 
 (John X. 17.) 
 
 " I came forth from the Father, and am come 
 into the world : again, I leave the world, and go to 
 the Father." (John xvi. 28.) 
 
 "Then said Jesus unto them. When ye have 
 lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that 
 
110 AMY AS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as 
 my Father hath taught me, I speak these thmgs." 
 (John viii. 28.) 
 
 "Verily I say unto you. Whatsoever ye shall 
 ask the Father in my name, he will give it you." 
 (John xvi. 23.) 
 
 "I came forth from the Father, and am come 
 into the world." (John xvi. 28.) 
 
 " All things are delivered unto me of my 
 Father ; and no man knoweth the Son but the 
 Father ; and neither knoweth any man the Father, 
 save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will 
 reveal him." (Luke x. 22.) 
 
 " The words I speak unto you, I speak not of 
 myself; but the Father that dwelleth in me, 
 he doeth the works." (John xiv. 16.) 
 
 "For I have not spoken of myself; but the 
 Father which sent me, he gave me a command- 
 ment, what I should say, and what I should 
 speak." (John xii. 49.) 
 
 " The word which ye hear is not mine, but the 
 Father's which sent me." (John xiv. 24.) 
 
 " For as the Father hath life in himself, so hath 
 he given to the Son to have life in himself; and 
 hath given him authority to execute judgment 
 also, because he is the Son of man." (John v. 
 26, 27.) 
 
 " The Son can do nothing of himself, but what 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZARETH. Ill 
 
 he seeth the Father do ; for what things soever 
 he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise." 
 (John V. 19.) 
 
 " For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and 
 quickeneth them, even so the Son quickeneth 
 whom he will : for the Father judge th no man, but 
 hath committed all judgment unto the Son ; that 
 all men should honor the Son, even as they honor 
 the Father. He that honoreth not the Son honor- 
 eth not the Father which hath sent him." (John 
 V. 21-23.) 
 
 " The Father is in me, and I in him." (John 
 X. 38.) 
 
 "My Father is greater than I." (John xiv. 
 28.) 
 
 " All things that I have heard of my Father, I 
 have made known unto you." (John xv. 15.) 
 
 "I speak that which I have seen with my 
 Father." (John viii. 38.) 
 
 " If I do not the works of my Father, believe 
 me not." (John x. 37.) 
 
 "All things that the Father hath are mine." 
 (John xvi. 15.) 
 
 "Again I say unto you. That if two of you 
 shall agree on earth as touching any thing that 
 they shall ask, it shall be done for them of 
 my Father which is in heaven." (Matt, xviii. 
 19.) 
 
112 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 " And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that 
 will I do ; that the Father may be glorified in the 
 Son." (John xiv. 13.) 
 
 " Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, 
 and the life : no man cometh unto the Father, but 
 by me." (John xiv. 6.) 
 
 " I give unto them eternal life ; and they shall 
 never perish, neither shall any man pluck them 
 out of my hand. My Father which gave them me, 
 is greater than all ; and no man is able to pluck 
 them out of my Father's hand. I and my Father 
 are one." (John x. 28-30.) 
 
 " Not every one that saith unto me. Lord, Lord, 
 shall enter into the kingdom of heaven ; but he 
 that doeth the will of my Father which is in 
 heaven." (Matt. vii. 21.) 
 
 "Whosoever therefore shall confess me before 
 men, him will I confess also before my Father 
 which is in heaven ; but whosoever shall deny me 
 before men, him will I also deny before my Father 
 which is in heaven." (Matt. x. 32, 33.) 
 
 " At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank 
 thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, be- 
 cause thou hast hid these things from the wise and 
 prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes. 
 Even so. Father; for so it seemed good in thy 
 sight." (Matt. xi. 25.) 
 
 " I judge no man ; and yet if I judge, my judg- 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZARETH. 113 
 
 ment is true ; for I am not alone, but I and the 
 Father that sent me." (John viii. 15.) 
 
 "For the Father judgeth no man, but hath 
 committed all judgment unto the Son." (John 
 V. 22.) 
 
 " Verily, verily, I say unto you. He that heareth 
 my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath 
 everlasting life, and shall not come into condem- 
 nation, but is passed from death to life. . . . The 
 hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall 
 hear the voice of the Son of God, and they that 
 hear shall live. For as the Father hath life in him- 
 self, so hath he given to the Son to have life in 
 himself, and hath given him authority to execute 
 judgment also; because he is the Son of man." 
 (John V. 24-27.) 
 
 CORROBORATIVE TESTIMONY. 
 
 The testimony of the Jews as recorded by 
 John : — 
 
 " The Jews answered and said. We have a law, 
 and by our law he ought to die, because he made 
 himself the Son of God." (John xix. 7.) 
 
 Nathaniel's belief, as recorded by John : — 
 
 " Nathaniel answered and said unto him. Rabbi, 
 thou art the Son of God." (John i. 49.) 
 
 Simon Peter says in the name of the twelve 
 disciples, " We believe and are sure that thou art 
 
114 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 that Christ, the Son of the livmg God." (John 
 vi. 69.) 
 
 Simon Peter's belief, as recorded by Matthew 
 and John : — 
 
 ''Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the 
 Christ, the Son of the living God." 
 
 The belief of the disciples, as recorded by 
 John : — 
 
 " We believe that thou camest forth from God." 
 (John xvi. 30.) 
 
 The belief of the people, as recorded by Mat- 
 thew : — 
 
 " Then they that were in the ship came and 
 worshipped him, saying, Of a truth thou art the 
 Son of God." (Matt. xix. 13.) 
 
 Testimony of the chief priests, as recorded by 
 Matthew : — 
 
 "The chief priests, mocking him, said, He 
 trusted in God. Let him deliver him now, if he 
 will have him ; for he said, I am the Son of 
 God." Matt, xxvii. 43.) 
 
 Belief of the ceiiturion, as recorded by Mat- 
 thew, Mark, and Luke : — 
 
 "And when the centurion, which stood over 
 against him, saw that he so cried out, and gave up 
 the ghost, he said. Truly this man was the Son of 
 God." (Mark xv. 39.) 
 
 The belief of Mark, as recorded by himself: — 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZABETH. 115 
 
 " The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, 
 the Son of God." (Mark i. 1.) 
 
 The belief of Peter, in the record of his words 
 in Acts : — 
 
 " The God of our fathers hath glorified his Son 
 Jesus." (Acts iii. 13.) 
 
 " Unto you first, God having raised np his Son 
 Jesus, sent him to bless you." (Acts iii. 26.) 
 
 "Therefore let all the house of Israel know 
 assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, 
 whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ." 
 (Acts ii. 36.) 
 
 Belief of John, as recorded in his writings : — 
 
 "And we have seen, and do testify, that the 
 Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the 
 world." (John iv. 14.) 
 
 " And this is his commandment. That we should 
 believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ." 
 (John iii. 23.) 
 
 " In this was manifested the love of God towards 
 us, because that God sent his only begotten Son 
 into the world, that we might live through him." 
 (1 John iv. 9.) 
 
 "Whoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son 
 of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God." 
 (1 John iv. 15.) 
 
 " For God so loved the world, that he gave his 
 only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in 
 
116 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 him should not perish, but have everlasting life." 
 (John iii. 16.) 
 
 "But these are written that ye might believe 
 that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.'* (John 
 XX. 31.) 
 
 " Who is he that overcometh the world, but he 
 that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?" 
 (1 John V. 5.) 
 
 " Our fellowship is with the Father, and with 
 his Son Jesus Christ." (1 John i. 3.) 
 
 " Grace be with you, mercy and peace from God 
 the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the 
 Son of the Father in truth and love." (2 John 
 i.3.) 
 
 Belief of Paul, as recorded in his writings : — 
 
 " Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an 
 apostle, separated unto the gospel of God, concern- 
 ing Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the 
 seed of David according to the flesh, and declared 
 to be the Son of God with power." (Rom. i. 1-4.) 
 
 " God, who at sundry times and in divers man- 
 ners spake in times past unto the fathers by the 
 prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us 
 by his Son." (Heb. i. 1, 2.) 
 
 "For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was 
 preached among you by us." (2 Cor. i. 19.) 
 
 " God sending his own Son in the likeness of 
 sinful flesh." (Rom. viii. 3.) 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZARETH. 117 
 
 "I live by the faith of the Son of God, who 
 loved me, and gave himself for me." (Gal. ii. 
 20.) 
 
 " He that spared not his own Son, but delivered 
 him up for us all." (Rom. viii. 32.) 
 
 " We give thanks to God and the Father of our 
 Lord Jesus Christ." (Col. i. 3.) 
 
 " But when the fulness of the time came, God 
 sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under 
 the law, that he might redeem them which were 
 under the law, that we might receive the adoption 
 of sons ; and because we are sons, God sent forth 
 the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, 
 Abba, Father; so that thou art no longer a 
 bondservant, but a son, and if a son, then an 
 heir through God." (Gal. iv. 4-7.) 
 
 soy OF MAN. 
 
 Jesus, prevented by the belief of the Jews from 
 proclaiming that all mankind were children of 
 God, endeavored to familiarize the thought by 
 indiscriminately describing himself as Son of God 
 and son of man. We find that in both positions 
 he claims the same power, and declares that his 
 power is by the gift of God. 
 
 We have shown that Jesus of Nazareth was 
 born at Bethlehem ; that he was a babe born of a 
 woman like all other human beings, that as a child 
 
118 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 he was like other children, as a boy he was like 
 other boys ; and that when he came to John to be 
 baptized, he was a man like other men. 
 
 John the Baptist did not know Jesus as the 
 Messiah, until he was revealed to him by the 
 descent of the Holy Spirit. He was a relative ; 
 and from the intimacy of the mothers John had 
 undoubtedly a personal acquaintance with him 
 sufficient to give him a knowledge of the character 
 of Jesus ; and this is shown in his reluctance to 
 baptize a man with the baptism of repentance, 
 whose character he knew to be blameless. "He 
 would have hindered him ; " and he expresses this 
 feeling, saying, "I have need to be baptized of 
 thee, and comest thou to me ? " And it is only at 
 the earnest persuasion of Jesus, that he does bap- 
 tize him. 
 
 We have no record showing that Jesus was 
 different from other men in any way, until after 
 his baptism; and after that event he still claims 
 the position of a son of man, and speaks of himself 
 as follows : — 
 
 " Who do men say that I the Son of man am ? " 
 (Matt. xvi. 13.) 
 
 "The Son of man hath not where to lay his 
 head." (Matt. viii. 20.) 
 
 " The Son of man hath power to forgive sin." 
 (Matt. ix. 6.) 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZARETH. 119 
 
 ''The Son of man came eating and drinking." 
 (Matt. xi. 19.) 
 
 " The Son of man is lord of the sabbath." (Matt, 
 xii. 8.) 
 
 "The Son of man must suffer many things." 
 (Luke ix. 22.) 
 
 " Every one who shall confess me before men, 
 him shall the Son of man confess before the angels 
 of God." (Luke xii. 8.) 
 
 " Ye shall desire to see one of the days of the 
 Son of man." (Luke xvii. 22.) 
 
 " For the Son of man came to seek and to save 
 that which was lost." (Luke xix. 10.) 
 
 " It is written of the Son of man that he should 
 suffer many things." (Mark ix. 12.) 
 
 " The Son of man is delivered up into the hands 
 of men." (Mark ix. 31.) 
 
 "Judas, betrayest thou the Son of man with a 
 kiss?" (Luke xxvii. 48.) 
 
 "Even the Son of man which is in heaven." 
 (John iii. 13.) 
 
 " So must the Son of man be lifted up." (John 
 iii. 14.) 
 
 " Because he is the Son of man." (John v. 27.) 
 
 " Jesus therefore said. When ye have lifted up 
 the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he." 
 (John viii. 28.) 
 
 "And Jesus answered them, saying, The hour 
 
120 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 is come that the Son of man should be glorified." 
 (John xii. 23.) 
 
 '' Jesus saith, Now is the Son of man glorified." 
 (John xiii. 31.) 
 
 " When the Son of man should have arisen 
 again from the dead." (Mark ix. 9.) 
 
 " What then, if ye should behold the Son of 
 man ascending where he was before." (John vi. 
 62.) 
 
 "The meat which abide th unto eternal life, 
 which the Son of man shall give unto you." 
 (John vi. 27.) 
 
 "But when the Son of man shall come in his 
 glory." (Matt. xxv. 31.) 
 
 " Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me 
 and my words in this adulterous and sinful gener- 
 ation, of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed 
 when he cometh in the glory of his Father with 
 the holy angels." (Mark viii. 38.) 
 
 "Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of 
 man be risen again from the dead." (Matthew, 
 Mark.) 
 
 " For the Son of man shall come in the glory 
 of his Father, with his angels." (Ma^t. xvi. 
 27.) 
 
 " Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting 
 on the right hand of power, and coming in the 
 clouds of heaven." (Mark xiv. 62.) 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZARETH. 121 
 
 "In such an hour as ye think not, the Son of 
 man cometh." (Matt. xxiv. 44.) 
 
 " Watch therefore ; for ye know neither the day 
 nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh." 
 (Matt. XXV. 13.) 
 
 " But as the days of Noe, so shall also the com- 
 ing of the Son of man be." (Matt. xxiv. 37.) 
 
 " For as the lightning cometh out of the east, 
 and shineth even unto the west, so shall also the 
 coming of the Son of man be." (Matt. xxiv. 
 27.) 
 
 " The Son of man shall send forth his angels." 
 (Matt. xiii. 41.) 
 
 " When the Son of man shall come in his glory, 
 and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit 
 upon the throne of his glory." (Matt. xxv. 31.) 
 
 " Then shall appear the sign of the Son of man 
 in heaven ; and then shall all the tribes of the 
 earth mourn ; and they shall see the Son of man 
 coming in the clouds of heaven, with power and 
 great glory ; and he shall send his angels with a 
 great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather 
 together his elect from the four winds, from one 
 end of heaven to the other." (Mark, Luke.) 
 
 "Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the 
 angels of God ascending and descending upon 
 the Son of man." (John i. 51.) 
 
 Jesus, while claiming power beyond that of 
 
122 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 man, still emphasizes the fact that he is a man, 
 partaking of the nature of all men ; that the 
 extraordinary position given him by God does not 
 alter the fact of his being a man, and tempted in 
 all points as other men. His mother and brethren 
 were known; his neighbors and townsmen say, 
 " Whence hath this man this wisdom ? " (Matt. 
 xiii. 54.) 
 
 OTffFB TESTIMOITT. 
 
 His disciples, and the Jews generally, believe 
 him to be a man. 
 
 "Howbeit we know this man, whence he is." 
 (John vii. 27.) 
 
 " Never man spake like this man." (John vii. 
 46.) 
 
 " The man that is called Jesus made clay, and 
 anointed my eyes." (John ix. 11.) 
 
 " The Jews cried out. If thou release this man." 
 (John xix. 12.) 
 
 The apostles speak of Jesus as a man. Peter, 
 in his first address on the Day of Pentecost, 
 says, — 
 
 "Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God 
 unto you by mighty works." (Acts ii. 22.) 
 
 "Be it known unto you therefore, brethren, 
 that through this man is proclaimed unto you 
 remission of sins." (Acts xiii. 38.) 
 
 " Stephen in his vision says. Behold, I see the 
 
TEE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZARETH. 123 
 
 heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on 
 the right hand of God." (Acts vii. B6.^ 
 
 " It behooved him in all things to be made like 
 unto his brethren; for in that he hath suffered, 
 being tempted, he is able to succor them that are 
 tempted." (Heb. ii. 18.) 
 
 " This man continueth ever." (Heb. vii. 24.) 
 
 Paul writes, " For there is one God, and one 
 mediator between God and man, the man Christ 
 Jesus." 1 Tim. ii. 5.) 
 
 Jesus of Nazareth, being a man like other men, 
 was endowed with the Holy Spirit from God 
 far beyond that of any other man previous or 
 since, and became, by the act of God, his 
 Anointed, his Messiah, his Christ. Moses, Joshua, 
 Elijah, each had this power bestowed upon them. 
 The prophets were enlightened as to future events; 
 each received the Holy Spirit to a limited extent, 
 sufficient for the position in which he was placed 
 and the work he was called upon to do. Their 
 power or enlightenment did not extend beyond 
 the special object of their being; in all other 
 respects they were men, showing the same individ- 
 uality of character as other men. 
 
 The Holy Spirit was poured out upon Jesus 
 without measure. In the great work he was 
 called upon to perform, he was still a free agent : 
 he could adopt any plan of operation he desired. 
 
124 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 He has, in the slight glimpses he has given us of 
 his temptations in the desert, shown some of the 
 paths he might have taken; and in his life and 
 death we see the path which he deliberately chose, 
 and which he quietly and firmly trod to the end, 
 ever pressing onward, seeing the end from the 
 beginning, yet steadily pursuing the course he 
 had at that time chosen. We can see the intensity 
 of his feeling, when, tempted by Peter in the same 
 way in which he had been tempted in the desert, 
 he says to him, "Get thee behind me, Satan." 
 This power to work his own will, he retained even 
 unto the end ; as shown by his remark in the gar- 
 den of Gethsemane, " Thinkest thou that I cannot 
 beseech my Father, and he shall even now send 
 me more than twelve legions of angels ? " So, too, 
 he claims it to be of his own free will, that he 
 goes to his death : " Therefore doth the Father 
 love me, because I lay down my life that I may 
 take it again. No one taketh it away from me, 
 but I lay it down of myself. I have power to 
 lay it down, and I have power to take it again." 
 This power, he says, he received from the Father. 
 Great as it was, it falls far short of the creative 
 and energizing power of God, of his omniscience, 
 omnipotence, and omnipresence, — powers claimed 
 for the Christ by believers in him as God. 
 
 Jesus as a child, a youth, a young man, and a 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZABETH. 125 
 
 man of mature years, had lived a life of peculiar 
 and great temptation, as we have endeavored to 
 show in the previous chapters of this work ; and 
 now as the Christ, the Messiah so long promised 
 and desired, his temptations (providing he was 
 a man, and not God, " for God cannot be tempted 
 with evil ") were still greater. To sustain him 
 under these extraordinary temptations, he held fre- 
 quent communion with God. As his earthly end 
 approached, he was enlightened more and more as 
 to the result of his work, strengthened by a 
 knowledge of its final acknowledgment through- 
 out the world, and by visions of his own position 
 and power in the kingdom of heaven which he 
 had established upon earth. 
 
 The attempts of evangelical Christians to deify 
 Christ, have put him out of the plane of human 
 existence. They have made him a God : and his 
 human life, which was an example for man to 
 follow, because he was a man, has been lost ; and 
 his teachings, which were so plain and simple 
 that the most ignorant might understand, have 
 been hidden, or so changed and obscured by this 
 halo of deification as to take a symbolical form ; 
 and the great purposes of his life are lessened, 
 and made of little value compared with the so- 
 called work of redemption, which they declare 
 was accomplished by the shedding of his blood 
 
126 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 as God upon the cross, — an act, which, if he was 
 God, was a farce and a cheat, because God cannot 
 put himself in the power of his creature man, and 
 cannot die. 
 
 The simple death of a human being has been 
 tortured into the sacrifice of God, and Christ the 
 Son of man has been robbed of his birthright, and 
 cheated out of the lessons of his life as an example 
 for man ; because, if he was God, he could not be 
 tempted of evil, and could not therefore show 
 unto man who is tempted the way to resist temp- 
 tation, and overcome evil. 
 
 This deifying of Christ has been and is a great 
 hinderance and stumbling-block to mankind. It 
 has caused the manufacture by man of an elabo- 
 rate scheme of salvation not found in the Chris- 
 tian Scriptures ; it has caused the promulgation of 
 creeds and doctrines entirely opposed to those of 
 Christ, and has placed him on a pinnacle unap- 
 proachable by men, and made his life and example 
 of no effect. 
 
 Christ's prayer in the garden of Gethsemane, 
 " Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from 
 me ; nevertheless not my will, but thine be done. 
 . . . And being in agony, he prayed more ear- 
 nestly : and his sweat was as it were great drops of 
 blood falling down to the ground " (Luke xxii. 42- 
 44), is the prayer, not of a God, but of a man, not 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZABETH. 127 
 
 fearful of death, but feeling strongly the ignominy, 
 disgrace, and suffering connected therewith, desir- 
 ing to be released from the ordeal, and praying to 
 one who he knows has the power to remove the 
 cup if he will. It is the agony of a man conscious 
 of what he is about to undergo, and nervously 
 shrinking from it, but who will, when the time 
 comes, meet his fate calmly and with resigna- 
 tion. 
 
 " My God ! My God ! Why hast thou forsaken 
 me ? " is the cry of a man overcome by pain, for a 
 moment losing his trust in God; the cry of one 
 who would not use the power given him, to lessen 
 his sufferings in the least, but leaving all in the 
 hands of God. 
 
 " Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit,'* 
 is the prayer of a loving, trusting human being, to 
 his Father and his God ; not the cry of one God 
 to another, or of God to himself. 
 
 TffE CHRIST'S MIRACLES. 
 
 Miracles exhibit a power beyond or overruling 
 the laws of nature : they are exhibitions of the 
 spiritual force, energy, or enlightening powers of 
 God, which have been given to a limited extent 
 by the Deity into the hands of man, that he may 
 work out God's purposes. 
 
 We see this power used by Moses to free the 
 
128 ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 Israelites from bondage, and to keep control over 
 the ignorant hordes of slaves set free ; by Joshua, 
 to conquer a country for the new nation ; by 
 occasional prophets, to keep alive the knowledge 
 and worship of Jehovah. In all these cases, the 
 power given was limited to the special purpose for 
 which it was bestowed. 
 
 The Christ received this power without limit. 
 "All power is given unto me in heaven and in 
 earth," he says. That he could use it for his own 
 personal benefit, or for that of his friends, is 
 shown in the miracle at Cana in Galilee, and in 
 his statement that if he wished he could have 
 " twelve legions of angels " to protect or defend 
 him. The immense power he used only to ad- 
 vance the purpose of his mission. He bestowed 
 the power on his disciples ; sending forth seventy 
 at one time, who, on their return, testified to the 
 efficacy of the power. The same power or influ- 
 ence was given to the apostles, including Barnabas 
 and Paul. 
 
 As the Christ is our exemplar, the perfect man, 
 whom we are to follow in all things, there is 
 reason to believe that this supernatural power of 
 the spirit, which was so freely given to him and 
 his disciples, may be again given to man when he 
 is ready to receive and use it in the spirit of the 
 Christ. 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZABETH. 129 
 
 The Jews believed that the Messiah would per- 
 form miracles; and Jesus frequently referred to 
 his works, as evidence of the truth of his claim 
 to be the Messiah. 
 
 The record of the Christ's miracles permeates 
 the Gospels. Many of them have the testimony 
 of two or more of the writers thereof, and they 
 cannot be eliminated without destroying the 
 whole work. The conversations and incidents 
 connected with them are perfectly natural, and 
 bear the impress of simplicity and truth. 
 
 Besides these records of specific miracles, we 
 have the testimony of the apostles and others, show- 
 ing the profusion of these acts, and that they were 
 generally known and acknowledged by the Jews. 
 
 In answer to John the Baptist's inquiry sent 
 through two of his disciples, "Art thou he that 
 should come, or do we look for another ? " Jesus 
 answered and said unto them, " Go and show John 
 again those things which ye do hear and see : the 
 blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the 
 lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead 
 are raised up, and the poor have the gospel 
 preached unto them." (Matt. xi. 4, 5.) 
 
 "But I have greater witness than that of John ; 
 for the works which the Father hath given me to 
 finish, the same works that I do, bear witness of 
 me, that the Father hath sent me." (John v. 36.) 
 
130 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 " Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye be- 
 lieved not: the works that I do in my Father's 
 name, they bear witness of me." (John x. 25.) 
 
 Jesus applies to himself the Messianic prophecy 
 of Isaiah, " The Spirit of the Lord is upon me ; be- 
 cause he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to 
 the poor; he hath sent me to heal the broken- 
 hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and 
 recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty 
 them that are bruised." (Luke iv. 18.) 
 
 The answer of Jesus to the centurion's request 
 that he would heal his servant is, "I will come 
 and heal him." (Matt. viii. 7.) 
 
 To the nobleman, who besought him to come 
 down and heal his son, he says, " Go thy way : thy 
 son liveth." (John iv. 50.) 
 
 Matthew testifies : — 
 
 "And great multitudes followed him, and he 
 healed them all." (Matt. xii. 15.) 
 
 " John [the Baptist] heard in prison the works 
 of Christ." (Matt. xi. 2.) 
 
 " And his fame went throughout all Syria : and 
 they brought unto him all sick people that were 
 taken with divers diseases and torments, and 
 those which were possessed with devils, and those 
 which were lunatic, and those that had the palsy ; 
 and he healed them." (Matt. iv. 24.) 
 
 " And Jesus went forth, and saw a great 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZABETH. 131 
 
 multitude, and was moved with compassion to- 
 ward them, and he healed their sick." (Matt, 
 xiv. 14.) 
 
 "And great multitudes followed him, and he 
 healed them all." (Matt. xii. 15.) 
 
 Luke testifies : — 
 
 "And it came to pass on a certain day, as he 
 was teaching, that there were Pharisees and 
 doctors of the law sitting by, which were come 
 out of every town of Galilee, and Judsea, and 
 Jerusalem ; and the power of the Lord was pres- 
 ent to heal them." (Luke v. 17.) 
 
 " And in the same hour he cured many of their 
 infirmities and plagues, and of evil spirits : and 
 unto many that were blind he gave sight." (Luke 
 vii. 21.) 
 
 John testifies very fully : — 
 
 " Now when he [Jesus] was in Jerusalem, at the 
 passover, in the. feast day, many believed in his 
 name, when they saw the miracles which he did." 
 (John ii. 23.) 
 
 " And a great multitude followed him, because 
 they saw his miracles which he did on them that 
 were diseased." (John vi. 2.) 
 
 Nicodemus testifies, " Rabbi, we know that thou 
 art a teacher come from God : for no man can do 
 these miracles that thou doest, except Go4 be 
 with him." (John iii. 2.) 
 
132 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 " Many of the people believed on him, and said, 
 When Christ cometh, will he do more miracles 
 than these which this man hath done?" (John 
 vii. 31.) 
 
 " The Pharisees said. This man is not of God, 
 because he keepeth not the sabbath day. Others 
 said, How can a man that is a sinner do such 
 miracles?" (John ix. 16.) 
 
 " Then gathered the chief priests and the Phar- 
 isees a council, and said. What do we? for this 
 man doeth many miracles." (John xi. 47.) 
 
 Peter addresses the Jews as knowing of the 
 miracles : he says, " Ye men of Israel, hear these 
 words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God 
 among you by miracles, wonders, and signs, which 
 God did by him in the midst of you, as ye your- 
 selves know." (Acts ii. 22.) 
 
 Paul, also, in his address to the Hebrews, says, 
 " How shall we escape, if we neglect so great sal- 
 vation ? which at the first began to be spoken by 
 the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them 
 that heard him ; God also bearing them witness 
 both with signs and wonders, and with diverse 
 miracles." (Heb. ii. 34.) 
 
 Luke testifies of the Roman centurion who said, 
 " I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under 
 my roof; but speak the word only, and my ser- 
 vant shall be healed." (Matt. viii. 8; Luke vii. 
 10.) 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZABETH. 133 
 
 John says of the nobleman whose son was sick 
 at Capernaum, "Jesus saith unto him, Go thy way, 
 thy son liveth. ... So the father knew that it 
 was the same hour in the which Jesus said unto 
 him, Thy son liveth ; and himself believed, and 
 his whole house." (John iv. 63.) 
 
 PBE-EXIS TENCE. 
 
 As we obtain larger and larger glimpses of 
 creation, of the innumerable worlds existing, and 
 of others in process of formation, and consider the 
 smallness and insignificance of this earth as com- 
 pared with other worlds of our own solar system, 
 and that with countless other systems beyond, we 
 feel that God has been working for millions upon 
 millions of years, and that this earth is not the 
 first, but among the latest, of his creations. We 
 know that God does not work without an object, 
 and we are certain that for these countless mil- 
 lions of ages before this earth was, the shining orbs 
 above and around us have not been created with- 
 out their use ; and is it not probable that they are 
 the abodes of intelligent beings, — beings who per- 
 haps have been in existence for millions of years 
 before this earth was created ? 
 
 Of these things we know nothing, but our rea- 
 son shows the probability of such a state of being. 
 We know not but we may ourselves have lived in 
 
134 ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 such a previous state of existence. The body shuts 
 our sight to things past, and to things beyond. We 
 may in some future state of existence be able to 
 say with Christ, " I came from God ; for neither 
 have I come of myself, but he sent me." 
 
 We know nothing of any previous state of exist- 
 ence ; neither did Christ, until enlightened by the 
 Holy Spirit, even then not when he first received 
 the blessing. If we can judge any thing by the 
 records, he was gradually instructed, at first, with 
 respect to his mission as the Messiah ; his frequent 
 communions with God not only strengthened him 
 in the path he had chosen, but he was enlightened 
 not only as to the position he would take as God's 
 well-beloved Son in the kingdom of heaven, but, as 
 we see, it also brought to him the knowledge of 
 his pre-existence. 
 
 No one can tell when man, the spiritual being, 
 enters and takes possession of the human body. 
 Neither can we tell whence he comes, except from 
 the one great source, God ; whether this earth is 
 his place of birth, or whether he has existed in 
 other times and in other worlds. But as Christ 
 existed before this world was, we may believe that 
 some or all of us have had a pre-existence ; but, 
 pre-existent or not, we know that we are sons of 
 God, even as Christ is Son of God, and that he is 
 an example of what we may become. 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZARETH, 135 
 
 Christ earnestly and repeatedly states that all 
 his power is given unto him, that " The Son can 
 do nothing of himself." " My teaching is not 
 mine, but his that sent me." " He that sent me 
 is true ; and the things which I heard from him, 
 these speak I unto you." How shall we reconcile 
 these statements with other sayings, such as, " I 
 and my Father are one ; " " He that seeth me, 
 seeth him that sent me ; " " Believe me that I am 
 in the Father, and the Father in me " ? 
 
 The Christ claimed to be the sent of God, his 
 anointed representative and agent. 
 
 The kingdoms and governments of this earth in 
 times of exigency send ambassadors, called minis- 
 ters plenipotentiary, to each other's courts, clothed 
 with the power and authority of their govern- 
 ments. The United States, for instance, sends a 
 minister plenipotentiary to the Court of St. James. 
 He appears in Great Britain clothed in the power, 
 the authority, the sovereignty, of the United States ; 
 he is the United States manifest in the flesh. As 
 an official, his acts are the acts of the United 
 States, his words are the words of the United 
 States, his promises and threats are the promises 
 and threats of the United States. He that hears 
 him hears the United States, and he that sees him 
 sees the United States. 
 
 In the same way the Christ was the ambassador, 
 
136 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 the minister plenipotentiar}^, sent by God, the 
 Sovereign of the universe, to man, the ruler of 
 the earth ; he appears officially as representing the 
 Deity ; he comes clothed in the power, authority, 
 and sovereignty of God ; he is God made manifest 
 in the flesh ; his acts are the acts of God, his words 
 are the words of God ; his promises and his threats 
 are the promises and threats of God ; he that hears 
 him hears God, and he that sees him sees God. If 
 he tells us God is our Father, we know it, we have 
 got bej^ond belief, we are sure it is so ; if he says 
 there is a kingdom of heaven, and an eternal life, 
 we know it is true. If he shows us the way, and 
 points out the path, we know it to be the true 
 way and the right path, because the voice of God 
 has spoken it. 
 
 As we have said, the great mission of the Christ 
 was to bring life and immortality to light, and 
 to reveal the being and purposes of God. Who 
 would believe the teachings of an unenlightened 
 man on these subjects? Who could reveal the 
 thoughts, wishes, desires, purposes, of God, except 
 one who had been with God, or who had received 
 divine illumination ? The revelations of Jehovah 
 to Moses were made amid the thunder, fire, and 
 smoke of Sinai, in the full sight of the people ; but 
 no visible revelation was made to Christ that he 
 should promulgate. We find the Christ claiming 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZARETH. 137 
 
 pre-existence, that he was taught by God, that he 
 came from God, and that he was sent to accom- 
 plish a certain work ; that he came not of himself, 
 but that God sent him. 
 
 " For I am come down from heaven, not to do 
 mine own will, but the will of him that sent me." 
 (John vi. 38.) 
 
 " I came forth and am come from God ; for 
 neither have I come of myself, but he sent me." 
 (John viii. 42.) 
 
 " I came not to call the righteous, but sinners." 
 (Matt. ix. 13.) 
 
 " Think not that I came to send peace on the 
 earth. I came not to send peace, but a sword." 
 (Matt. X. 34.) 
 
 " For the Son of man is come to seek and to 
 save that which was lost." (Luke xix. 10.) 
 
 " He that cometh from heaven is above all. 
 What he hath seen and heard, of that he beareth 
 witness." 
 
 "I know whence I came, and whither I go." 
 (John viii. 14.) 
 
 "I am not alone, but I and the Father that 
 sent me." (John viii. 16.) 
 
 " Ye are of this world. I am not of this world." 
 (John viii. 23.) 
 
 " He that sent me is true ; and the things which 
 I heard from him, these speak I unto you." 
 (John viii. 26.) 
 
138 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 "I do nothing of myself; but as the Father 
 taught me, I speak of these things ; and he that 
 sent me is with me." (John viii. 29.) 
 
 " I speak the things which I have seen with my 
 Father." (John vii. 38.) 
 
 " Verily, verily, I say unto you. Before Abra- 
 ham was, I am." (John viii. 58.) 
 
 " Say ye of him whom the Father sanctified and 
 sent into the world, Thou blasphemest " ? (John 
 X. 36.) 
 
 " And now, O Father, glorify thou me with 
 thine own self, with the glory which I had with 
 thee before the world was." (John xvii. 5-8.) 
 
 " For thou lovedst me before the foundations 
 of the world." (John xvii. 24.) 
 
 " I came forth from the Father, and am come 
 into the world. Again, I leave the world, and 
 go to the Father." (John xvi. 28.) 
 
 " Jesus saith unto them, I proceeded forth and 
 came from God." (John.) 
 
 Apparently Jesus was a frequent visitor to Jeru- 
 salem. At these times he probably remained at 
 the house of his disciple John. Here he came in 
 contact with the priests of the temple and the 
 learned men of Jerusalem, with whom he held 
 the conversations detailed by John. 
 
 In many of these conversations it is evident 
 that he spoke directly to their belief that the 
 
THE CLAIM OF JESUS OF NAZARETH. 139 
 
 Messiah must be the Son of Jehovah, and wield 
 his power. He boldly avowed that he was the 
 Son of God; that he came from him, and had 
 been taught by him ; that whatever he had seen 
 his Father do, that could he do ; that he was en- 
 dowed with the power and authority of Jehovah ; 
 and he referred to his doctrines, his revelations, 
 and his miracles, as evidence of the truth of his 
 claims. 
 
140 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 V. 
 
 THE FIRST AND SECOND REVELATIONS COMPARED. 
 
 We have claimed that the revelations made 
 through the Christ were in all essential features 
 the same as those given to the Aryas. In this 
 chapter we propose to examine and compare the 
 teachings of the Christ with the religious belief of 
 the Aryas as shown in the allegory. 
 
 Olfi; GOD. 
 
 The revelation made to the Aryas commences 
 with the grand declaration, that, "in the begin- 
 ning God created the heaven and the earth." 
 This is followed by the continued and reiterated 
 statement that creation in all its separate parts 
 was the work of his hands ; and after the work is 
 completed, and every thing pronounced finished 
 in accordance with the intent and purpose of the 
 Deity, — the earth filled with the flora, fauna, and 
 man suitable to its various parts, — the writer en- 
 ters into particulars. As if by re-iteration to make 
 certainty doubly sure, he repeats, " The Lord God 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPARED. 141 
 
 made the earth and the heavens," and further says, 
 " He made every plant of the field before it was in 
 the earth, and every herb of the field before it 
 grew;" that "out of the ground the Lord God 
 formed every beast of the field and every fowl of 
 the air," and that " the Lord God formed man 
 of the dust of the ground," also, — thus showing 
 the special and individual formation and creation 
 by God of every living thing. 
 
 These statements formed a part of the Jewish 
 scriptures, and were believed by them : conse- 
 quently the Christ passes over this subject without 
 comment, taking their belief in it for granted, 
 emphasizing its teachings on one point only, in his 
 quotation from the Hebrew Scriptures, " Hear, O 
 Israel : the Lord thy God is one Lord." 
 
 The Hebrews believed in and had worshipped 
 many gods. Their faith in the gods of Egypt in 
 the time of Moses had been so strong, that only 
 the most stupendous miracles — by which the 
 power of these gods had been set at naught, and 
 the superior power of Jehovah shown — had given 
 them confidence to act under the guidance of 
 Moses, and take the necessary steps for their de- 
 liverance. This belief in and worship of other 
 gods is shown throughout their history. They 
 bowed down to the golden calf in Sinai, and to 
 the many gods of the Canaanites. Elijah at one 
 
142 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 time supposed that he was the sole worshipper of 
 Jehovah ; and, when reproved, the claim is made 
 for only " seven thousand in Israel which have not 
 bowed to Baal," out of its many millions of 
 inhabitants. 
 
 Many times and oft they departed from the 
 worship of Jehovah, and offered sacrifice to Baal, 
 Ashtoreth, Molech, Chemosh, and other gods of 
 Moab, Ammon, Syria, Zidon, and Babylonia. 
 They offered their children in sacrifice on the altar 
 to Molech. " Yea, they sacrificed their sons and 
 their daughters unto devils, and shed innocent 
 blood, even the blood of their sons and of their 
 daughters, whom they sacrificed unto the idols of 
 Canaan ; and the land was polluted with blood." 
 . . . "Wherefore my fury and mine anger was 
 poured forth, and was kindled in the cities of 
 Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, and they 
 are wasted and desolate, saith the Lord." "All 
 nations shall say, Wherefore hath the Lord done 
 this unto this land? What meaneth the heat of 
 this great anger ? Then men shall say. Because 
 they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord God 
 of their fathers, which he made with them when 
 he brought them forth out of the land of Egypt. 
 For they went and served other gods, and wor- 
 shipped them, gods whom they knew not, and 
 whom he had not given unto them ; and the auger 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPARED. 143 
 
 of the Lord was kindled against this land, to bring 
 upon it all the curses that are written in this 
 book." 
 
 The Jews at the time of Christ still believed in 
 other gods, in the gods of other nations, as did all 
 mankind ; but they had learned a lesson in adver- 
 sity, and they worshipped Jehovah only. The 
 constant fulfilment of the covenant or contract 
 made by their fathers, the blessings bestowed upon 
 their nation when they worshipped him, and the 
 cursings or punishments received when they de- 
 parted from him, had been so fully shown in their 
 history as prepared (by Nehemiah) for that pur- 
 pose, that, since their return from captivity, they 
 had been kept in full allegiance to Jehovah. As 
 by contact with other nations they had become 
 more enlightened, their service had become more 
 elaborate in its forms and ceremonies, and its out- 
 ward observances were more minute and formal, 
 while the thought they represented had been 
 hidden or lost. 
 
 The Aryas had believed in a spiritual power, or 
 in spiritual laws beyond, above, and controlling 
 the natural laws, or laws of nature, which spirit- 
 ual power was placed in the hands of men when 
 they had arrived at their highest spiritual position. 
 
 This same power over nature, called in the 
 Hebrew Scriptures the "spirit of God," and, when 
 
144 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 God is represented as speaking, " my spirit," and 
 represented as the power, energy, will, and enlight- 
 ening influence of the Deity, was given in a 
 restricted degree to Moses, to Joshua, and the 
 prophets, that they might carry out the purposes 
 of God. 
 
 In the Christian Scriptures it is called the 
 " Holy Ghost," the " Holy Spirit ; " it is poured 
 out, it is given, it comes unannounced, it comes 
 from God. Elisabeth, Zacharias, John, were filled 
 with the Holy Ghost; it descends on Jesus of 
 Nazareth in the form of a dove, on the apostles 
 in tongues of flame ; it is bestowed by the Christ, 
 and by the apostles, by man on man. In all these 
 cases it is a spiritual influence, enlightenment, and 
 power, bestowed on man. 
 
 Neither the Hebrews of old, nor the Jews of 
 the time of the Christ, ever believed in it as a per- 
 son or as a God. Nowhere does the Christ speak 
 of the Holy Spirit, or Holy Ghost, as a being to 
 be worshipped, or as one part or person of a God- 
 head : it is always as an influence or power coming 
 from and bestowed by God. 
 
 The first commandment promulgated through 
 Moses is, "I am the Lord thy God, which have 
 brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the 
 house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods 
 before me." In all the Hebrew Scriptures, wheu 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPARED. 145 
 
 the Deity is represented as speaking of himself, 
 and when he is spoken of, there is no instance 
 where more than one God is mentioned. 
 
 In the Christian Scriptures, the Christ always 
 speaks of God as one. He never mentions the 
 Holy Ghost as God, and never speaks of himself 
 but as the Son of man or Son of God; and the 
 idea of a plurality of gods, or a triple Godhead, 
 cannot be found in any of his words. God alone is 
 the author and sustainer of all. His sayings are still 
 more forcible when referring to the Father, whom 
 he constantly mentions as the author of all power. 
 
 In illustration of our position, we will transcribe 
 a few of the many sayings of Christ, and of the 
 teachings of the apostles : — 
 
 " And this is life eternal, that they should know 
 thee, the only true God." 
 
 "With God all things are possible." (Matt. 
 xix. 26.) 
 
 "God is not the God of the dead, but of the 
 living." (Matt. xxii. 32.) 
 
 "That they might know thee the only true 
 God." (John xvii. 3.) 
 
 "There is none good but one, that is God." 
 (Matt. xix. 17.) 
 
 " Not that any man hath seen the Father, save 
 he which is from God." (John vi. 46.) 
 
 *'If any man willeth to do his will, he shall 
 
146 ABYASy SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 know of the teaching, whether it be of God.'* 
 (John vii. 17.) 
 
 " He that is of God heareth the words of God." 
 (John viii. 47.) 
 
 " And the high priest said unto him, I adjure 
 thee by the living God." (Matt. xxvi. 63.) 
 
 These are sufficient to show Christ's belief, as 
 well as that of the Jews generally. 
 
 The apostles were to preach the doctrines of 
 Christ throughout the world, and examination 
 shows an unanimity of teaching in this respect ; 
 they refer every thing to God, as did Christ, and 
 but one God is known to or taught by them. All 
 the apostles speak of God as the power through 
 whom Christ performed his miracles, and who 
 raised him from the dead. Peter says, — 
 
 "The God of our fathers hath glorified his 
 servant Jesus." (Acts iii. 13.) 
 
 "Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God 
 unto you by mighty works and wonders and signs, 
 which God did by him in the midst of you." 
 (Acts ii. 22.) 
 
 " This Jesus did God raise up." (Acts ii. 32.) 
 
 The writings of Paul are full of expressions of 
 belief in one God : — 
 
 " To us there is one God." (1 Cor. viii. 6.) 
 
 " One God and Father of all." (Eph. iv. 6.) 
 
 " God which raiseth the dead." (2 Cor. i. 9.) 
 
TBE BEVELATIONS COMPARED. 147 
 
 " God, that hath made the world, and all things 
 therein." (Acts xvii. 24.) 
 
 " Whether ye eat or drink, or whatever ye do, 
 do all to the glory of God." (1 Cor. x. 31.) 
 
 " That your faith should not stand in the wis- 
 dom of men, but in the power of God." (1 Cor. 
 ii. 5.) 
 
 " Now he that establisheth us with you in Christ, 
 and anointed us, is God." (2 Cor. i. 21.) 
 
 "But all things are of God." (1 Cor. xi. 
 12.) 
 
 " Ye are come unto the city of the living God." 
 (Heb. xii. 22.) 
 
 " And every tongue shall confess to God." 
 (Rom. xiv. 11.) 
 
 " For our God is a consuming fire." (Heb. xii. 
 29.) 
 
 "He that built all things is God." (Heb. 
 iii. 4.) 
 
 "But God is one." (Gal. iii. 20.) 
 
 " There is none other God but one." (1 Cor. 
 viii. 4.) 
 
 " Then cometh the end, when he shall deliver 
 up the kingdom to God." (1 Cor. xv. 24.) 
 
 " But to us there is but one God, the Father, of 
 whom are all things." (1 Cor. viii 6.) 
 
 These are a few of the expressions of the apostles. 
 They invariably speak of God as one ; there is no 
 
148 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 division or multiplication of being ; all their ■writ- 
 ings show that they believed in the declaration of 
 Moses adopted and indorsed by Christ : " Hear, 
 O Israel : the Lord thy God is one Lord." 
 
 TRJE LOVE OF GOD. 
 
 The great evangel has by the providence of 
 God been safely kept until man has reached that 
 point of spiritual intelligence which enables him 
 to grasp and receive the full revelation as deliv- 
 ered originally to the Aryas, supplemented and 
 made complete in the doctrine of the love of 
 God for his human children, as taught by Jesus 
 the Christ. 
 
 This love is also taught in the original revelation. 
 The principal object in the creation of the world 
 was the comfort, pleasure, and happiness of man. 
 
 As the mother prepares the dainty dresses for 
 her child, or the father provides toys and play- 
 things to give pleasure to his son; as both to- 
 gether labor and strive to prepare him for the 
 situation in life they hope he will fill, so the Deity, 
 with infinite love, filled the earth with blessings 
 for the enjoyment of his children. The beauty 
 of the sky and clouds, of the flowers, fields, and 
 forests ; the majesty of the mountains and seas ; 
 the herds of animals for his use ; the countless 
 fruits to please his taste ; the whole boundless 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPARED. 149 
 
 universe in all its sublimity and loveliness, — all 
 speak of the love of an affectionate Father. 
 
 God is love. He cannot be worshipped in fear ; 
 for worship is love and trust expressed in action, 
 and perfect love casteth out fear. Heaven is love, 
 and love is the key of entrance thereto. Love is 
 its language, and the breath of its being; and 
 none but those who love God and their fellow- 
 man can enter therein. Love is the joy of heaven, 
 the happiness of earth, the atmosphere in which 
 we live and move and have our being. Creation 
 is love embodied in acts. This earth is filled with 
 the evidences of the Creator's love for his chil- 
 dren. Every thing was created for their conven- 
 ience and happiness. Every imagination of the 
 heart of man was to be satisfied. 
 
 This earth is God's great kindergarten ; his 
 infant-school, filled with object-lessons, teaching of 
 his great and constant love for his children, and 
 of his solicitude for their welfare and happiness. 
 
 It has been asked, Why did God cause his chil- 
 dren, the objects of this great love, to be born on 
 the earth? Would it not have been much better 
 for them to have been born in heaven, where their 
 innocence would be unsullied by sin, where there 
 was no temptation to wrong? Why did God 
 place them in the midst of sin and want and 
 crime and misery? 
 
150 ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 Love is again the answer. Where, otherwise, 
 would be the love of parents for their children, 
 of children for their parents, of brother and 
 sister, of youth and maiden, of husband and 
 wife, and of man for man ? God sought to give 
 to man some of the happiness he himself en- 
 joyed. 
 
 Love created temptation, that through the over- 
 coming of temptation man might obtain virtue. 
 Virtue is personified in the Christ ; innocence, in 
 the child in his arms. The one has experienced 
 temptation, trial, suffering, and in the conflict has 
 become a higher, stronger, fuller, more complete 
 man, his spiritual faculties alive, awake, and 
 earnest : the other is placid, calm, without power 
 or force of character, simply existing. 
 
 God has placed us here to try our spiritual 
 strength, with the result that he who overcomes 
 becomes indeed a glorious son of God. 
 
 This world is no place of probation : it is a 
 place of growth; a place in which to learn of 
 God, of his love and care, and of his requirements ; 
 a place in which to study the manners, customs, 
 habits, and language of heaven ; to put in prac- 
 tice that love for God and man which is in its 
 atmosphere, and controls its being. 
 
 God does not create sin. He did create the 
 animal instincts, which he pronounced good for 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPARED. 151 
 
 the animal man : but when man's intellect had 
 advanced so far as to obtain a knowledge of God 
 and of his laws and requirements, the instincts 
 ceased to be a guide to man ; the laws of God 
 overruled and controlled them, and placed them 
 in subjection. These instincts then became tempt- 
 ers, and urged man to submit to their control. 
 If man succumbs to their temptations, he reduces 
 himself to the position of the animal, and partakes 
 of their nature to the extent of his fall. If he 
 resists and overcomes the temptations, he is spir- 
 itually advanced to the extent of the power of 
 the temptation, and the determination and force 
 requisite to overcome it. 
 
 Man is tempted to sin, not by God, but by the 
 instincts of his animal nature. In overcoming 
 these temptations to wrong-doing, his highest 
 spiritual powers are brought into active exertion ; 
 by this means they are strengthened and enlarged. 
 Besides this, all the best impulses of our being 
 are excited by our surroundings. Love for the 
 sinner brings out our self-sacrifice, disinterested- 
 ness, generosity, charity, devotedness, unselfish- 
 ness, manliness ; while the sinner may learn 
 repentance and humility, and the suffering learn 
 patience, fortitude, gratitude, love. All the vir- 
 tues are brought out by contact with temptation, 
 poverty, sickness, sin, and crime, — virtues which 
 
152 ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 do not belong to, and cannot be called into being 
 by, innocence. 
 
 Temptation is a God-sent boon to man ; given 
 him in love, to make him a firmer, stronger, and 
 more powerful spiritual being. 
 
 There is no hell except in the heart of the 
 wicked, and God has created no devil to torment 
 his children. He who in fear of the devil hastens 
 to save his life, will lose it ; because the action is 
 selfish, and the selfish man cannot enter heaven. 
 
 Here man commences his eternal existence, lays 
 the foundation of love to God and love to man, 
 and of knowledge in intellectual and spiritual 
 things, which shall be of advantage to him in the 
 life beyond. Here he weakens or strengthens his 
 character by contact with temptation ; f,nd, as he 
 overcomes, approaches nearer and near3r to him 
 who is our exemplar, the perfect man; to him who 
 received the expressed approbation of God, in the 
 words, " This is my beloved Son, in whom I am 
 well pleased : hear ye him." 
 
 God has placed man on this earth in situations 
 to bring out all his intellectual and spiritual 
 powers ; all the wisdom which he obtains here will 
 help him in the world beyond. 
 
 Man is entitled to his whole life here, his three- 
 score years and ten. It is for his good, his spirit- 
 ual welfare, that he should fill out his term. 
 
THE BEVEL ATIONS COMPARED. 153 
 
 Every one whose life is shortened by sin, disease, 
 or accident, is deprived of just so much of necessary 
 development ; and it is the duty of every one to 
 care for this life as not abusing it, and to seize 
 every opportunity for intellectual and spiritual 
 advance, while he especially cultivates in his heart 
 love to God and love to man, and uses the powers 
 and blessings God has given him for the benefit of 
 his brothers and sisters in God. 
 
 Every child who dies is by that means deprived 
 of that spiritual energy developed by contact 
 with and resistance of temptation, which gives 
 strength of character and determination of pur- 
 pose. He may be comparatively innocent, but 
 that does not compensate for the loss or want of 
 virtue. He loses also his intellectual and spiritual 
 initiation, and, above all, the opportunity to culti- 
 vate his love to God by doing good to his fellow- 
 man. 
 
 In the difference between virtue and innocence, 
 as depicted above, we can see one reason why God 
 placed man on this earth subject to temptation 
 and trial. Man is born an innocent being, subject 
 to the laws of his being as an animal. He 
 becomes an intellectual, and finally a spiritual, 
 being. Each of these steps in advance brings cor- 
 responding duties, and subjects him to the new 
 laws of his advance. As the intellectual posi- 
 
154 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 tion of a Bacon or a Newton, the spirituality of 
 a St. John or a Channing, is more to be desired 
 than the ignorance of the babe, so the virtue of a 
 Christ, obtained by resisting temptation and over- 
 coming evil, is more to be desired than the inno- 
 cence of the same infant. 
 
 TffB KINGDOM OF HEA VEHT. 
 
 In the allegory, the Aryas, previous to partak- 
 ing of the fruit of the tree of knowledge, were 
 governed by the law of man commonly called the 
 moral law, the law of right and wrong, of mine 
 and thine. This is the foundation of all govern- 
 ments, and is found in all religious codes. But the 
 law and requirements of God were unknown. 
 
 The first movement toward a spiritual life is 
 the recognition of the being of God, and a knowl- 
 edge of his requirements. Under the symbol of 
 partaking of the fruit of the tree of the knowl- 
 edge of good and evil, the Aryas, it is recorded, 
 obtained this higher, this spiritual, knowledge. 
 
 The Christ's first cry was, "The kingdom of 
 heaven is at hand." His second was, " Now the 
 kingdom of God is preached unto you." 
 
 The knowledge of good and evil revealed to the 
 Aryas the tree of life ; and through their knowl- 
 edge of the laws and requirements of the Deity, 
 they learned how they might obtain eternal life. 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPARED. 155 
 
 So the Christ revealed to man the being of God, 
 his laws and requirements, and showed unto them 
 eternal life, and the way whereby it may be 
 obtained. 
 
 The Aryas were governed by their laws of right 
 and wrong, and were innocent of evil until they 
 obtained the knowledge of good and evil ; so the 
 Christ says to the Jews, You were governed by 
 and judged by the laws of Moses until John, you 
 knew no higher law ; since which time the king- 
 dom of heaven is preached unto you. The being, 
 law, and government of God are now taught you, 
 and from this time you will be governed and judged 
 by these laws. As was the case in the allegory, 
 the laws of the kingdom of heaven go beyond the 
 knowledge of right and wrong as between man 
 and man, and reach the springs of action in the 
 heart. 
 
 The kingdom of heaven is within you, says the 
 Christ, your rule of life and spring of action ; its 
 laws are laws of righteousness or right doing ; they 
 lead to the carrying-out, the doing, of the will of 
 God, as expressed in the universal law of love 
 and shown in the life of Christ. 
 
 "Seek je first the kingdom of heaven," is the 
 Christ's call. He likens this knowledge to a pearl 
 of great price, whose value is beyond riches ; to 
 a treasure hid in the field, for which a man will 
 
156 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 give all that he hath. Its influence on the man 
 who obeys the laws of the kingdom is like leaven ; 
 it changes and sweetens his whole character, and 
 he becomes a new man. As the grain of mustard- 
 seed in the soil, so he grows in all goodness until 
 the birds of the air rest in its branches ; that is, 
 all who need come to him for aid and comfort. 
 
 All are called, but many seek to come without 
 obeying the laws of the kingdom ; like the tares 
 in the wheat, in the day of trial they fail and are 
 cast out. He who came to the wedding-feast 
 without the proper garment, that is, without 
 proper preparation ; and the foolish virgins who 
 allowed their lamps to go out, that is, did not con- 
 tinue in the right, — are expelled and shut out of 
 the kingdom. All must work in God's vineyard, 
 each according to his talents and opportunities ; 
 those who do not will be thrust out of the king- 
 dom. The earnest worker, whether for one hour 
 or twelve, will receive the " Well done, good and 
 faithful servant; enter thou into the joy of thy 
 Lord." 
 
 Christ proclaimed the kingdom of heaven, and 
 immediately published the laws of that kingdom. 
 These laws were to govern the actions of men 
 upon the earth. Those who do the will of God 
 as therein required are the children of the king- 
 dqip. They ba-ye already becppae iiieinbers of the 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPARED. 157 
 
 kingdom by subjecting themselves to its laws, and 
 obeying the will of its ruler, God. 
 
 Something more than mere intellectual belief 
 in this doctrine is required. Only those who do 
 the will of God as expressed in those laws will be 
 received into the kingdom. Heaven is a state of 
 existence, both here and hereafter. No one enters 
 who does not strongly desire and earnestly strive 
 for it. 
 
 Heaven being a state of existence, commenced 
 on this earth but continuing beyond, the entrance 
 to which is obtained here ; let us study carefully 
 the conditions of entrance as given us by the 
 Christ, the only being authorized by God to teach 
 us. He says, — 
 
 " Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, 
 shall enter into the kingdom of heaven ; but he 
 that doeth the will of my Father which is in 
 heaven." (Matt. vii. 21.) 
 
 It is not necessary that we should know that 
 such a being as the Christ ever existed, to enter 
 into heaven. Doing the will of God gives us the 
 entrance thereto. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob 
 had no knowledge of the Christ: yet they were 
 admitted into heaven, because they lived up to 
 the light which they had received, poor and crude 
 as was their knowledge of God, and reprehensible 
 as were many of their actions, judged in the light 
 
158 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 of Christianity. They were models for their 
 time, and received their reward. 
 
 The Christ enunciates as the sum and sub- 
 stance of the requirements of God : " Thou shalt 
 love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and 
 with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with 
 all thy strength." 
 
 " With all thy heart," that is, with all the affec- 
 tions ; " with all thy soul,'.' is all thy religious and 
 emotional nature; "with all thy mind," that is, 
 with, all the brightness and vigor of thine intel- 
 lect ; and " with all thy strength," is with all the 
 power and force of thy nature. Not a passive 
 love, but an active, energetic, aggressive, and 
 glowing love, showing itself in all your life and 
 actions, and causing you to use all the powers he 
 has given you in his service. To this he adds, 
 " Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." And 
 his comment upon them is, " There is none other 
 commandment greater than these." 
 
 In these commandments, known to the Jews, 
 but until then unnoticed, the Christ proclaimed in 
 a condensed form the laws governing the kingdom 
 of God. Love, and love alone, is the key which 
 unlocks the gates of heaven. 
 
 "Among them that are born of woman, there 
 hath not arisen a greater than John the Baptist : 
 yet he that is but little in the kingdom of heaven 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPARED. 169 
 
 is greater than he." (Matt. xi. 11.) Although 
 he prophesied that it was at hand, he knew not 
 what it was. 
 
 "The law and the prophets were until John. 
 From that time the gospel of the kingdom of 
 God is preached." (Luke xvi. 16.) 
 
 " The kingdom of God cometh not with obser- 
 vation ; neither shall they say, Lo, here ! or Lo, 
 there ! For, behold, the kingdom of God is within 
 you." (Luke xvii. 20, 21.) 
 
 " Except ye be born anew, ye cannot see the 
 kingdom of God." (John iii. 3.) 
 
 " Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his 
 righteousness." (Matt. vi. 3.) 
 
 " Suffer the little children to come unto me, for 
 of such is the kingdom of God." (Mark x. 16.) 
 
 " Blessed are ye poor, for yours is the kingdom 
 of God." (Mark vi. 20.) 
 
 " There be some of them that stand here, which 
 shall in no wise taste of death, till they see the 
 kingdom of God." (Mark ix. 27.) 
 
 " How hardly shall they that have riches enter 
 into the kingdom of God ! " (Mark x. 21.) 
 
 " Whosoever, therefore, shall break one of these 
 commandments, and shall teach men so, shall be 
 called least in the kingdom of heaven ; but who- 
 soever shall do and teach them, he shall be called 
 great in the kingdom of heaven." (Matt. v. 19.) 
 
160 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 " And Philip preached the good tidings concern- 
 ing the kingdom of God." (Acts viii. 12.) 
 
 "That through many tribulations we must 
 enter into the kingdom of God." (Acts xiv. 27.) 
 
 "Be it known therefore unto you, that this 
 salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles ; they 
 will also hear." (Acts xxviii. 28.) 
 
 "For the kingdom of God is not eating and 
 drinking, but righteousness, and peace, and joy in 
 the Holy Ghost." (Rom. xiv. 17.) 
 
 " For the kingdom of God is not in word, but 
 in power." (1 Cor. iv. 21.) 
 
 GOD OUR FATHER. 
 
 The fatherhood of God and the sonship of man, 
 which was emphatically declared by the Aryas, 
 was also taught by the Christ, though not so fully 
 as in the original revelation. The Christ was pre- 
 vented by the spiritual ignorance of the Jews from 
 proclaiming it broadly; but in connection with 
 himself, and his position as Son of God and Son 
 of man, he continually asserts the same position 
 for all mankind. This teaching was not received 
 by the Jews pleasantly. They called it blas- 
 phemy, and attempted to stone the Christ for its 
 utterance. 
 
 Even to this time it has been received by Chris- 
 tians only in a vague, uncertain sense. Acknowl- 
 
THE BEVEL ATIONS COMPARED. 161 
 
 edged by the intellect, it has not pierced the 
 heart. 
 
 Within a few years only has it been accepted 
 by a few as an actual fact, and man realized that 
 he is a son of God, partaking of his nature, — a 
 brother of the Christ in both his divine and human 
 nature. 
 
 In our former volume we showed that man is 
 an actual son of God, — that God, by a special 
 act of his Spirit, becomes the father of every 
 human being; that he selected the woman as his 
 procreative agent, through whom his spiritual 
 children are brought into being. 
 
 The fatherhood of God and the sonship of man, 
 as declared by Christ, was a doctrine not only en- 
 tirely new to the Jews, but to all mankind. The 
 Jews were proud of their descent from Abraham ; 
 but to claim to be a son of Jehovah was in their 
 eyes sacrilege, and in the case of Christ they 
 resented it by death. 
 
 " Our Father who art in heaven," is the decla- 
 ration of Christ; not his Father alone, but our 
 Father, the Father of all mankind. He repeatedly 
 gives utterance to the same thought : — 
 
 "Be ye therefore perfect, as your heavenly 
 Father is perfect." (Matt. v. 29.) 
 
 "Else ye have no reward with your Father 
 which is in heaven." (Matt. vi. 1.) 
 
162 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 "And thy Father which seeth in secret shall 
 recompense thee." (Matt. vi. 4.) 
 
 " Pray to thy Father which is in secret, and 
 thy Father which seeth in secret shall recompense 
 thee." (Matt. vi. 6.) 
 
 " For your Father knoweth what things ye have 
 need of." (Matt. vi. 8.) 
 
 "For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your 
 heavenly Father will also forgive you." (Matt, 
 vi. 14.) 
 
 " That ye may be sons of your Father which is 
 in heaven." (Matt. v. 45.) 
 
 "Be ye merciful, even as your Father is merci- 
 ful." (Luke xliv. 36.) 
 
 " Even so it is not the will of your Father which 
 is in heaven, that one of these little ones should 
 perish." (Matt, xviii. 14.) 
 
 " I ascend unto my Father and your Father, and 
 my God and your God." (John xx. 17.) 
 
 The apostles teach the same doctrine : — 
 
 " For ye are all sons of God." (Gal. iii. 
 26.) 
 
 "In this the children of God are manifest." 
 (1 John iii. 10.) 
 
 "The Spirit himself beareth witness with our 
 spirits, that we are the children of God; and if 
 children, then heirs ; heirs of God, and joint heirs 
 with Christ." (Rom. viii. 16, 17.) 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPARED. 163 
 
 "Then shall they be called sons of the living 
 God." (Rom. X. 26.) 
 
 " And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth 
 the spirit of his own Son into your hearts." 
 
 Nominally mankind have accepted Christ's teach- 
 ing that they are children of God, — his sons and 
 his daughters, — and in their prayers they address 
 God as " our Father which art in heaven ; " but 
 they seem to accept and believe it in any but a 
 real sense. They do not seem to realize the fact 
 that they are actually the children of the most high 
 God ; that they are each and all known to him, 
 and loved and cared for individually by him; that 
 they are sons of God in the same way, to the same 
 extent, and with the same being, as Jesus the 
 Christ was Son of God. 
 
 Men, in their spiritual ignorance, do not yet 
 understand what it means to be a son of God ; they 
 do not realize that they partake of the nature of 
 the Deity in the same way that as son of man they 
 partake of the human nature. 
 
 When God says, "Let us make man in our 
 image," we should remember that God speaks not 
 at all, but that it is the author placing the words 
 in the mouth of God, as a statement of his own 
 belief or knowledge. This statement is confirmed 
 by the Christ, who tells us that God is our Father, 
 and that we are his children. A child partakes of 
 
164 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 the nature of his father, and man himself proves 
 that he is the son of God by wielding the powers 
 of the Deity. 
 
 Man is a creator, not only of inanimate objects 
 of wood, clay, stone, metals, and animal and vege- 
 table substances, but he also creates new varieties 
 of plants, flowers, fruits, and grains, improved va- 
 rieties of the horse, ox, sheep, swine, dog, and 
 other animals, to suit his taste, convenience, or 
 necessity. He is omnipotent over the brute crea- 
 tion, and causes many of the powers of nature to 
 obey his will. He is largely omniscient and omni- 
 present, causing the lightning to bear his messages 
 across sea and land, and inform him of the daily 
 occurrences in the furthermost parts of the earth. 
 Creator, omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent 
 in his finite sphere, he exhibits his likeness to his 
 infinite Father, God. He is doing this now in 
 his childhood of existence, is gradually obtaining 
 power over the works of his Father's hands, and 
 causing them to obey his will. If he now, in his 
 spiritual infancy, exerts so much power, what may 
 we not expect from him as he rises nearer and 
 nearer to the likeness of the perfect man in Christ 
 Jesus ? May we not believe, as man's life spiritu- 
 ally approaches that of the Christ, that the power 
 over nature which he possessed by reason of his 
 singleness of purpose, and pureness of heart, may 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPABED. 165 
 
 also be placed in the hands of man, to be used for 
 the relief of pain and sickness, for the restoration 
 of sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, and a 
 sound body to the paralyzed, lame, and injured? 
 
 These are some of the powers of the Deity 
 which man, the son of God, is using, or beginning 
 to use, by reason of his birthright. 
 
 Groping in the darkness of spiritual ignorance, 
 he has yet, like a child, grasped some of the powers 
 belonging to his nature, and almost by instinct 
 obtained marvellous results. How much greater 
 and more powerful will they be, when, recognizing 
 his birthright, he seeks the aid of his Father in 
 his endeavor to bless mankind ! 
 
 But, while man employs these material powers 
 of the Deity, he must remember that he is also 
 possessor of his Father's spiritual nature. Love, 
 mercy, justice, truthfulness, faithfulness, — all of 
 these characteristics of God belong to man as son 
 of God ; and he is required to seek for them with 
 all his heart, and use them for the benefit of others. 
 How much greater will be the results when man 
 becomes aware that because he is the son of God 
 he partakes fully of his nature ! 
 
 The Christ has shown what it is possible for 
 man to do in using the powers of God, and what 
 it is possible for him to be, when, guided and in- 
 fluenced by the characteristics of the Deity, he is 
 
 ^UHIVBESITTj 
 
166 ART AS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 in full sympathy with the purposes of his Father 
 in heaven. 
 
 The Christ has given us a rule, by following 
 which we shall attain both material and spiritual 
 good in a degree corresponding with our ability 
 and the earnestness of our prayers. 
 
 The universal rule is this : — 
 
 " Ask, and ye shall receive ; seek, and ye shall 
 find ; knock, and it shall be opened unto you ; " and 
 Christ emphasizes this rule by a double declara- 
 tion of it, " For every one that asketh receiveth, 
 and he that seeketh findeth, and unto him that 
 knocketh the door shall be opened." 
 
 Asking in words is nothing but wind. Desire 
 must develop in action, — in seeking, searching, 
 knocking, working; giving heart, soul, mind, 
 strength, the whole being, to accomplishing the 
 object desired. 
 
 A man wishes to obtain riches : he asks for it in 
 act. He rises early, and retires late; he throws 
 into the accomplishing of his desire the time, 
 strength, earnestness, and perseverance of his 
 whole being, and succeeds. 
 
 Another asks for knowledge: he studies late 
 and early, gives his whole time and strength to 
 the fulfilment of his purpose, and becomes a 
 learned man. 
 
 Others pray for fame, for political position, 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPARED. 167 
 
 military power : each gives his time, talents, ear- 
 nestness, to attain his object ; and his success is in 
 just proportion to his ability, and the earnestness 
 of his work. 
 
 So, in the higher spiritual wants, make your 
 prayer active ; let your desires be accompanied by 
 action, seeking and working until the door is 
 found, and by that knocking which shall open the 
 door of success, and you enter into the realization 
 of your spiritual desires. The whole material and 
 spiritual universe will be opened to the sons of 
 God who shall earnestly desire to enter. 
 
 ETERNAL LIFE THE GIFT OF GOD. 
 
 A future life was revealed to the Aryas, which 
 should be theirs on complying with the conditions. 
 The fruit of the tree of life could not be stolen or 
 obtained surreptitiously. The tree was protected 
 from man by the flaming sword of God's require- 
 ments. Man was created with the ability to 
 desire, receive, and enjoy it; but only by doing 
 the will of God could he obtain the coveted prize. 
 It was in the hands of the Deity alone, for him to 
 give in accordance with his will and promise. 
 
 The Christ taught the same doctrine. Eternal 
 life was in the hands of God. He had promised it 
 as a gift to all who should do his will. The Christ 
 revealed what were the requirements, in what way 
 
168 ART AS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 man could obtain this great boon. No other reli- 
 gious teacher has revealed either the life or the 
 way. 
 
 He lived the life, and showed the way. He was 
 the way, the truth, the life. He was the light of 
 men : without him, they groped in darkness. His 
 teachings were springs of living water, his truths 
 meat and drink to the soul. His death and resur- 
 rection opened the door. He was the resurrection 
 and the life. Thus, in this literal manner, in his 
 life, death, and resurrection, he embodied all his 
 teachings. 
 
 " He that heareth my word, and believeth him 
 that sent me, hath eternal life, and cometh not into 
 judgment, hut hath passed out of death into life.^^ 
 (John V. 24.) He has not to wait until death shall 
 open his eyes, and bring him into judgment ; but 
 he hath already passed through the judgment, 
 already come into the kingdom of heaven, already 
 hath obtained and doth enjoy the gift of God, — 
 eternal life. 
 
 "And this is life eternal, that they should know 
 thee, the only true God, and him whom thou didst 
 send, even Jesus Christ." (John xvii. 3.) 
 
 " He whom God hath sent speaketh the words 
 of God ; for he giveth not the Spirit by measure. 
 The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all 
 things into his hands. He that believeth on the 
 
THE BEVELATIONS COMPABED. 169 
 
 Son hath eternal life ; he that obeyeth not the Son 
 shall not see life." (John iii. 34-36.) 
 
 The Christ likens his teachings to "water, 
 springing up into everlasting life." He says, " I 
 am the bread of life which came down from 
 heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and never 
 die." He tells men to " work for the meat which 
 abideth unto eternal life." 
 
 Although the Christ taught that "he that be- 
 lieveth on the Son hath eternal life," it is evident 
 that more than intellectual belief is required. He 
 continues, " He that oheyeth not the Son shall not 
 see life." 
 
 The Christ requires us to assimilate his teach- 
 ings, as the body assimilates food. His teachings 
 must be like water, like bread, like meat, taken 
 into the system, sustaining the life, giving power 
 and strength. We must live his teachings as he 
 did, if we would obtain eternal life. 
 
 The test of the Christian is the fruit. " Every 
 good tree bringeth forth good fruit ; therefore, by 
 their fruits shall ye know them." The fig-tree 
 that was green and flourishing, but bore no fruit, 
 he condemned. 
 
 The Christ says, " Not every one that saith unto 
 me. Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of 
 heaven ; but he that doeth the will of my Father 
 which is in heaven." There is no shibboleth in 
 
ITO ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 the mere name of Christ to save men. Intellect- 
 ual belief in creeds formed by man will not give 
 entrance into eternal life. The life is the test, 
 and the only test. Good fruit is the requirement 
 of Christ. Only "he that doeth the will of my 
 Father which is in heaven " will be admitted. 
 
 " Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, 
 did we not prophesy in thy name, and by thy 
 name cast out devils, and by thy name do many 
 wonderful works ? And then will I profess unto 
 them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye 
 workers of iniquity." And he likens those who 
 hear his words, and do them^ to wise men who 
 build upon a rock; and those who hear, and do 
 them noty to foolish men who build upon the 
 sand. 
 
 Christ, after his interview with the young man 
 that had great possessions, says, " It is hard for a 
 rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven ; " 
 and again, "I say unto you. It is easier for a 
 camel to go through a needle's eye, than for a rich 
 man to enter into the kingdom of heaven. And 
 when the disciples heard it, they were astonished 
 exceedingly, saying. Who then can be saved? 
 And Jesus, looking upon them, said to them, With 
 man this is impossible: but with God all things 
 are possible." 
 
 In the parable of the talents, Christ reveals 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPARED. 171 
 
 why it is so difficult for a rich man to enter the 
 kingdom of God. 
 
 Every man has one or more talents, that is, 
 means and opportunities of doing good. God has 
 given to some learning, others power, to others 
 riches, and in that way multiplied their opportuni- 
 ties to do good, and in the same way multiplied 
 their obligations. The poorest may give a cheer- 
 ing word, a helping hand, a cup of cold water, 
 may visit and comfort the sick, may give a crust 
 to a starving man, may warm a freezing one, and 
 receive the acknowledgment of Christ, "Inas- 
 much as ye did it unto one of these least, ye 
 have done it unto me." In a thousand ways, the 
 poorest may show their love for others, and thus 
 use the single talent God has intrusted to them. 
 
 Others by reason of position, learning, power, 
 riches, have multiplied opportunities for good ; and 
 with them come multiplied obligations. They are 
 so many talents placed in their hands by God for 
 use, not for their own selfish aggrandizement or 
 pleasure, but to bless others ; and they are called 
 upon by Christ to use them for the purposes re- 
 quired of them. " To whomsoever much is given, 
 of him shall much be required: and to whom 
 they commit much, of him will they ask the more." 
 With so much greater means of usefulness, their 
 obligations are just so much greater : he who has 
 
172 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 the trust, must seek opportunities to fulfil it. 
 He that uses his talents for his own pleasure only, 
 buries his Lord's money. He does no good to his 
 fellow-creatures, and receives the condemnation, 
 "Inasmuch as ye did it not unto one of these 
 least, ye did it not unto me." 
 
 When we see the immense riches placed in the 
 hands of some men, we tremble at the weight of 
 obligation resting upon them. God claims the 
 riches of the earth as belonging to him. Whoever 
 receives them, receives them as the steward of 
 God ; and he is required to use them for God's 
 purposes, and to benefit his fellow-man. God re- 
 quires the interest of his money; and if the 
 possessor neglects to pay it, he receives the con- 
 demnation of the wicked and slothful servant. 
 
 God requires of man his whole heart, its love, 
 its fervor, its intellect and strength. While he is 
 required to work on this earth to support himself, 
 and those dependent on him, he is also required to 
 do all his work in the spirit of his Master, all 
 being made subsidiary to the grand object of this 
 life, namely, eternal life. 
 
 In the endeavor to heap up riches upon this 
 earth, man is apt to give his whole heart to that 
 one object, leaving God's claim entirely out of his 
 thoughts. The law of Christ, " Ask, and ye shall 
 receive ; seek, and ye shall find •, knock, and it shall 
 
THE BEVELATIONS COMPABED, 173 
 
 be opened unto you," is a law of earth as well as of 
 heaven. Whatever we seek with our whole heart, 
 that we shall obtain. Whether it be " the king- 
 dom of God, and his righteousness," or wisdom, 
 glory, riches, whatever it may be, we shall obtain it 
 to a greater or less degree according to our ability. 
 All of these talents bear corresponding obligations ; 
 and woe to him who does not fulfil the obliga- 
 tions resting upon him, and use them for the 
 benefit of his fellow-man! The requirements of 
 God are so great and so strict, that we can 
 readily see why it is so hard, and almost impossi- 
 ble, for a man who puts his trust in riches to enter 
 into heaven. 
 
 And the witness is this, that God gave unto us 
 eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that 
 hath the Son hath the life. (1 John v. 11, 12.) 
 
 Christ shows that those who do the will of 
 God as little children will receive eternal life ; 
 that those who show a loving and forgiving 
 disposition, will themselves receive forgiveness; 
 that if the rich man uses the riches placed in his 
 hands as a sacred trust to be accounted for, then 
 he will receive eternal life. 
 
 God requires all men to work in his vineyard. 
 Those that heed the call will meet their reward. 
 There can be no lazy Christian: every man is 
 called upon to work. Whoever would be first in 
 
174 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 the kingdom must serve, must work, even as Christ 
 came to work, and even to give his life, that men 
 might know how to obtain eternal life. 
 
 In the parable of the householder, he proclaims 
 that the kingdom of God shall be given to those 
 bringing forth the fruits thereof. 
 
 In the parable of the talents, it is those who 
 use the talents which God has given them, that 
 receive the commendation of their Lord, and are 
 rewarded. 
 
 God calls you to work in his vineyard, to use 
 the talents he has given in doing good, and in 
 advancing his kingdom in the hearts of men. As 
 ye do this, ye will receive the blessing, "Well 
 done, good and faithful servant." And ye shall be 
 your own judges. Every one knows whether, and 
 how earnestly, he is working in the vineyard. If 
 ye are feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, 
 visiting the sick, relieving the distressed, and 
 doing this because you love your fellow-man, then 
 to you is addressed the blessing, "Inasmuch as 
 ye have done it unto one of these my brethren, ye 
 have done it unto me. Come, ye blessed of my 
 Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from 
 the foundation of the earth." 
 
 Later, he shows that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob 
 are all members of the kingdom. How? They 
 neither knew of the laws of Moses, nor of Christ. 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPARED. 175 
 
 The Christian Scriptures say of Abraham, that " he 
 wavered not through unbelief, but waxed strong 
 through faith, giving glory to God, and being fully 
 assured that what he had promised he was able 
 also to perform. Wherefore, also, it was reckoned 
 unto Mm for righteousness," or right doing. In 
 other words, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob lived up 
 to the light which they had, — a very dim and 
 unsatisfactory light, but by keeping faith in God 
 as they knew him, and doing his will so far as it 
 was revealed to them, they were accepted as 
 righteous. 
 
 So, too, Moses, Elias, and David are represented 
 as receiving the approval of God; not that they 
 lived perfect lives, but they lived up to the light 
 which they had, or, like David, repented of grievous 
 sins, and were received into life. 
 
 Man, while born with the germ of eternal life, 
 can by his own actions kill that germ. Sin is a 
 disease, a poison, which indulged in will kill it. 
 (Luke XX. 25.) "The wages [or result] of sin 
 is death ; but the free ^ift of. God is eternal life 
 in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Rom. vi. 23.) 
 
 " If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it 
 is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou 
 wouldst have asked of him, and he would have 
 given thee living water. Whosoever drinketh of 
 the water that I shall give him, shall never thirst ; 
 
176 AEYASy SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 but the water that I shall give him shall become 
 in him a well of water, springing up into eternal 
 life." (John iv. 10-14.) 
 
 " Work not for the meat which perisheth, but 
 for the meat which abideth unto eternal life, which 
 the Son of man shall give unto you ; for him the 
 Father, even God, hath sealed." (John vi. 27-29.) 
 
 " / give unto them eternal life, and they shall 
 never perish ; and no one shall snatch them out of 
 my hand. My Father which hath given them 
 unto me is greater than all, and no one is able to 
 snatch them out of the Father's hand." (John x. 
 28, 29.) 
 
 " These things spake Jesus : and lifting up his 
 eyes to heaven he said, Father, the hour is come ; 
 glorify thy Son, that the Son may glorify thee; 
 even as thou gavest him authority over all flesh, 
 that whatsoever thou hast given him, to them he 
 should give eternal life. And this is life eternal, 
 that they should know thee the only true God, 
 and him whom thou didst send, even Jesus Christ." 
 (John xvii. 1-3.) 
 
 We have said that an actual knowledge of the 
 Christ was not necessary to obtain eternal life. 
 We give some illustrations of this position : — 
 
 " And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and 
 tempted him, saying. Master, what shall I do to 
 inherit eternal life ? And he said unto him, What 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPARED. 177 
 
 is written in the law ? How readest thou ? And 
 he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy 
 God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and 
 with all thy strength, and with all thy mind ; and 
 thy neighbor as thyself. And he said unto him, 
 Thou hast answered right. This do, and thou 
 shalt liver (Luke x. 25-28.) 
 
 That there may be no misunderstanding of his 
 teaching on this point, the Christ, in his parable 
 representing that day which shall come to all, 
 when the secrets of all hearts shall be opened, and 
 the laws of the kingdom applied and enforced, says 
 to those who had loved their fellow-men, and had 
 done good to them, though they knew not that 
 they were thus doing in accordance to the Christ's 
 injunctions, " Come, ye blessed of my Father, in- 
 herit the kingdom prepared for you from the 
 foundation of the world ; for I was a hungered, 
 and ye gave me meat ; I was thirsty, and ye gave 
 me drink ; I was a stranger, and ye took me in ; 
 naked, and ye clothed me ; I was sick, and ye 
 visited me ; I was in prison, and ye came unto 
 me." And upon their expressing astonishment, 
 not having known him, he says, " Inasmuch as ye 
 have done it unto one of the least of these my 
 brethren, ye have done it unto me." He says to 
 those who had neglected their duty, who had not 
 loved and aided their fellow-men, "Inasmuch as 
 
178 ABYASy SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it 
 not to me. And these shall go away into everlast- 
 ing punishment ; but the righteous, into life 
 eternal." (Matt. xxv. 81.) 
 
 There is here no question of faith, or belief in 
 Christ, in unity or trinity, in Adam's sin or total 
 depravity ; but, what have you done to benefit 
 your fellow-men? Love to man is the key to 
 heaven and to eternal life. 
 
 Peter teaches the same doctrine : — 
 
 " Of a truth, I perceive that God is no respecter 
 of persons; but in every nation he that feareth 
 him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with 
 him." 
 
 It is true, however, that we can seek eternal life 
 only through the Christ, for through his teachings 
 only do we know how to obtain it. No other 
 teacher before or since has shown man the way to 
 eternal life. Other foundation can no man lay 
 than that is laid, Jesus Christ. 
 
 GOD'S PLAN OF SALVATION. 
 
 In the revelation to the Aryas, we find the 
 record that God gave unto man the animal in- 
 stincts for his rule of life ; these were his laws of 
 action, under the guidance of which all his actions 
 were innocent. When these had been enlarged by 
 his intellect, he was governed and judged by the 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPARED, 179 
 
 moral law of right and wrong. Not until he had 
 obtained a knowledge of God and of his laws, 
 had partaken of the fruit of the tree of the knowl- 
 edge of good and evil, was he subject to the higher 
 law of the kingdom of God. 
 
 The Christ was prevented by the spiritual igno- 
 rance of his time from teaching the same doctrine 
 direct : it would have been misunderstood ; but for 
 the instruction of later times, he has given us in 
 three beautiful parables, — which are one, — a 
 clear statement of God's watchfulness and care 
 of his children. 
 
 The circumstances under which these parables 
 were uttered are given as follows : — 
 
 "Now all the publicans and sinners were draw- 
 ing near unto him for to hear him; and both the 
 Pharisees and the scribes murmured, saying. This 
 man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them." 
 
 In answer to the murmurings of these self- 
 righteous Jews, Christ spoke unto them this para- 
 ble, saying, — 
 
 " What man of you, having a hundred sheep, 
 and having lost 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 rejoi- 
 cing; and when he cometh home he calleth to- 
 gether his friends and his neighbors, saying unto 
 
180 ARYASy SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 them, Rejoice with me, for I have found my 
 sheep which was lost. I say unto you, that even 
 so there shall be joy in heaven over one sinner that 
 repenteth, more than over ninety and nine right- 
 eous persons which need no repentance." 
 
 The civilized nations at the time of the Christ 
 were governed by the moral law of man, the law 
 of right and wrong. They had no knowledge of 
 God or of his laws. They were generally content 
 with merely animal existence. Their lives were 
 spent in animal delights. In the parable, these 
 nations were likened unto sheep ; they having as 
 little knowledge of God, as the sheep of its shep- 
 herd. As the shepherd searches for the stray 
 sheep, and brings him back to the fold, so God is 
 represented as seeking and caring for his children 
 who in ignorance have wandered away from him ; 
 they are his children, he cares for them, and not 
 one is lost. 
 
 Christ then utters another parable, enforcing 
 the same lesson respecting another class of indi- 
 viduals and nations, in these words : — 
 
 " Or what woman having ten pieces of silver, if 
 she lose one piece, doth not light a lamp, and 
 sweep the house, and seek diligently until she find 
 it? and when she hath found it she calleth to- 
 gether her friends and neighbors, saying. Rejoice 
 with i|ie, for I have found the piece which I had 
 
THE BEVEL ATIONS COMPARED, 181 
 
 lost. Even so, I say unto you, there is joy in the 
 presence of the angels of God over one sinner 
 that repenteth." 
 
 In this parable Christ pictures those individuals 
 and nations who have no knowledge of God, and 
 no law but their instincts, the law of nature. As 
 the money knows not its owner, and rolls away 
 without intent or knowledge, so there are nations 
 who as yet have received no moral light whatever ; 
 they have no moral obligations ; they are still ani- 
 mals governed by their animal passions and appe- 
 tites. Yet, as the money belonged to the woman, 
 so these human beings belong to God ; they are 
 his children. As the money was stamped with 
 the image and superscription of Csesar, so these 
 human beings bear God's image and superscrip- 
 tion, and are the objects of his love and care. 
 As the woman searched diligently for the lost 
 money, so God watches over and keeps in his 
 own possession these ignorant and darkened 
 children ; not one of them is lost, but all are 
 safely kept in his bosom. Or if, in the glimmering 
 of light, one strays away, he is diligently sought, 
 and returned to the care of his owner. Neither 
 of these two classes are sinners, nor are any of 
 them lost. 
 
 Having shown to the scribes and Pharisees 
 God's love for the most degraded and ignorant of 
 
182 
 
 Ms children, those whom the Jews held in the 
 utmost scorn and contempt, Christ proceeds to 
 describe still another class of individuals and 
 nations, giving us the well-known parable of the 
 younger son, in which he shows us God's method 
 of proceeding with those who have been brought 
 up in the Father's house, who, like the young 
 man, wilfully turn away from the instruction and 
 protection, and break away from the restraints of 
 home, who knowingly depart to revel in sin, even 
 until they become in their desires and inclinations 
 like unto swine. Even they can come back : they 
 are God's children, and he loves and mourns over 
 them. But they are free agents, unlike those 
 described in the first two parables. These are 
 not ignorant of God's laws. They have sinned 
 against light and knowledge, and if they come 
 back it must be of their own free will ; they 
 must be ready to acknowledge their sin, and of 
 their own accord seek pardon and forgiveness ; 
 they must arise, and go to their Father. Unlike 
 the other cases, God does not personally seek 
 them. They must come to him ; they know the 
 way back to his home and his forgiveness. He 
 is ready to meet them while yet a great way 
 off, and he receives them with joy. No long pen- 
 ance, no terrible punishment for what they have 
 done ; but they are cleansed and clothed anew, 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPARED. 183 
 
 they are met with joy and gladness, and welcomed 
 to the Father's house. 
 
 Among the Jews were those who had obtained 
 a partial knowledge of good and evil through the 
 teachings of the prophets and other religious 
 instructors. The scribes and Pharisees, and the 
 more learned of the Jews, were farther advanced 
 in spiritual knowledge than the men of any other 
 nation. They were partially aware of God's 
 requirements, and the Christ designates them as 
 elder sons. This parable, which at the time was 
 du'ected especially to them, is more particularly 
 applicable to Christians, to whom the Christ has 
 revealed the laws of the kingdom. 
 
 Christians, unlike all others, have partaken of 
 the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and 
 evil. They are aware of God's laws and require- 
 ments. The Christ has placed the laws of the 
 kingdom in their hands ; and they, if they stray 
 into evil, can only come back by their own 
 choice, their own free will. 
 
 In the parable, the Christ administers a rebuke 
 to the scribes and Pharisees for their selfishness 
 and religious intolerance, which it may be well for 
 men in these days of religious bigotry to remem- 
 ber. 
 
 Is it not strange that men calling themselves 
 Christians, and in their acts and lives showing 
 
184 ARYA8, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 many of the Christian graces, should still, in their 
 spiritual pride, become so stultified and void of 
 true Christian discernment as to claim that God 
 condemns the ignorant millions of men who have 
 not as yet obtained the slightest knowledge of 
 God or of his laws, to endless torment because 
 of their ignorance? God in his original revela- 
 tion to the Aryas declares that men ignorant of 
 his laws are innocent, not subject to punishment. 
 The Christ in this parable teaches the same great 
 doctrine. Any other course would make God a 
 terrible and bloodthirsty tyrant, such as no words 
 could describe and no imagination of man con- 
 ceive. The blackest devil that was ever imagined 
 would be an angel of light in comparison. 
 
 " And that servant which knew his lord's will, 
 and made not ready, nor did according to his will, 
 shall be beaten with mant/ stripes; but he that 
 knew not, and did things worthy of stripes, shall be 
 beaten with, few stripes." (Luke xii. 47, 48.) 
 
 ETERNAL DEATH, OR DISSOLUTION. 
 
 Eternal death, while not distinctly taught to 
 the Aryas, was strongly indicated. Eternal life 
 was the gift of God. The tree of life was guarded 
 from all others by the " cherubim and a flaming 
 sword which turned every way, to keep the way 
 of the tree of life." If eternal life was given 
 
► 
 
 THE REVELATIONS COMPARED. 185 
 
 only to those who do his will, then eternal death 
 must be the fate of all others. 
 
 The teachings of Christ show conclusively that 
 there are some who will not obtain eternal life. 
 While he opens the way to immortality, he says 
 that none but those who do the will of God will 
 be admitted. The unforgiving will not be ad- 
 mitted. " If ye forgive not men their trespasses, 
 neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." 
 In the parable of the householder, he proclaims 
 that the kingdom of God " shall be taken away " 
 from those who do not bring forth the fruit 
 thereof. 
 
 " Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, 
 shall enter into the kingdom of heaven." (Matt, 
 vii. 21.) 
 
 " Strive to enter in at the strait gate ; for many, 
 I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall 
 not he able'' (Luke xiii. 24.) 
 
 " It is easier for a camel to go through a 
 needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into the 
 kingdom of heaven." (Luke xviii. 25.) 
 
 " He that obeyeth not the Son shall not see life^ 
 (John iii. 36.) 
 
 "I have no pleasure in the death of him that 
 dieth^ saith the Lord God." (Ezek. xviii. 32.) 
 
 "If a man see his brother sinning a sin not 
 unto death, he shall ask, and God will give him 
 
186 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 life for them that sin not unto death. There is a 
 sin unto death,'^ (1 John v. 16.) 
 
 " He that hath not the Son of God hath not 
 lifer (John V. 12.) 
 
 Christ says, " It is not the will of your Father 
 which is in heaven, that one of these little ones 
 should perish ; " showing that they can perish, that 
 is, cease to exist ; not the body, for all perish, but 
 the spiritual being we call soul. Paul says, " For 
 the wages of sin is death" (Rom. vi. 23.) The 
 result or consequences of sin is the death of the 
 sinner. This idea of destruction is carried out in 
 all the imagery of the Gospels. Not only is that 
 the case, but the similes used show sudden and 
 immediate destruction in most cases. 
 
 Christ says, "Every tree therefore that bring- 
 eth not forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into 
 the fire." It is burned up, destroyed. He says, 
 Christ will " gather his wheat into the garner, but 
 the chaff he will hum with unquenchable fire." 
 Nothing will burn and be destroyed quicker than 
 chaff. It is the fire (Christ's words), that is 
 unquenchable. Christ likens those who hear his 
 words, and do them not., to a " foolish man which 
 built his house upon the sand," and it fell and was 
 destroyed. He tells his disciples, "Be not afraid 
 of them which kill the body, but are not able to 
 kill the soul; but rather fear him which is able 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPARED. 187 
 
 to destroy both soul and body in hell ; " again indi- 
 cating the death of the soul. In the parable of 
 the wheat and tares, the tares are gathered into 
 bundles and burned, — destroyed. 
 
 "Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man 
 would come after me, let him deny himself, and 
 take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever 
 would save his life shall lose it, and whosoever 
 shall lose his life for my sake shall find it. For 
 what shall a man be profited if he shall gain the 
 whole world, and lose his own soulf'' (Matt. xvi. 
 24-26.) 
 
 In the parable of the wicked husbandmen, he 
 says of their lord : " He will come and destroy 
 those wicked men." (Matt. xxi. 41.) 
 
 While Christ describes the fate of some as being 
 destroyed suddenly, like chaff and tares burned up 
 in the fire, or like a tree cut down at the roots, 
 others are not destroyed, but are cast out into 
 outer darkness, where shall be weeping and gnash- 
 ing of teeth, images of sorrow, remorse, despair ; 
 still others are represented as receiving eternal 
 punishment. 
 
 In the parable of the wedding feast, the servants 
 cast out the man without a wedding garment. In 
 the parable of the unfaithful servant, and in the 
 parable of the unprofitable servant, the punish- 
 ment in each case is the same : " Cast him into 
 
188 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 outer darkness ; there shall be weeping and gnash- 
 ing of teeth." 
 
 " Unto them that obey not the truth, but obey 
 unrighteousness, shall be wrath and indignation, 
 tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man 
 that worketh evil." (Rom. ii. 8, 9.) 
 
 "And one said unto him. Lord, are they few 
 that be saved? And he said unto them. Strive to 
 enter in by the narrow door: for many, 1 say 
 unto you, shall seek to enter in, and shall not be 
 able* When once the master of the house is risen 
 up, and hath shut the door, and ye begin to stand 
 without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, 
 open to us ; and he shall answer and say to you, 
 I know ye not whence ye are; then shall ye 
 begin to say. We did eat and drink in thy pres- 
 ence, and thou didst teach in our streets. And 
 he shall say, I tell you, I know not whence ye 
 are : depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity. 
 There shall be the weeping and gnashing of teeth." 
 
 Two questions arise. Do those who, having 
 committed sin, afterward repent and receive the 
 remission or pardon of their sins, and the gift of 
 eternal life, escape the punishment of their sins? 
 And do those who die unrepentant, and come 
 forth to the resurrection of judgment, have no 
 opportunity in the world beyond to repent of their 
 sins, and by doing works of righteousness there 
 obtain pardon and eternal life ? 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPABED. 189 
 
 " The wages," or the result, " of sin is death." 
 Sin produces the death of the spiritual being. 
 As poison or disease in the human frame weakens, 
 paralyzes, and finally destroys the body, so sin, 
 unrepented of, weakens, paralyzes, and finally 
 destroys the soul. The disease may be slight or 
 serious, and be longer or shorter in its action : the 
 result is certain unless arrested in its progress. 
 Christ is the physician who shows us the remedy, 
 and offers us the means of recovery. If we accept 
 his aid, follow his advice, and use the means he 
 offers, we recover, the sickness is overcome, the 
 poison removed, health returns, and eternal life is 
 the result. 
 
 But has this poison, this sickness, left no results? 
 As the human frame is weakened by sickness, 
 scarred by wounds, so the spiritual body must 
 bear the effects of sin. God forgives the sins 
 committed against him, and wipes them from the 
 book of his remembrance, and grants the repent- 
 ant sinner eternal life; but can the man forgive 
 himself? Every sin is committed against some 
 other beside God, and bears results that are, 
 perhaps, never-ending. All sins injure others. 
 
 The spiritual being who enters into life par- 
 doned by God, has passed through the judgment, 
 condemned not by God nor Christ, but by himself. 
 He sees the long train of evils produced by his 
 
190 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 own sins, and is anxious to stop their effect, to 
 wipe them out, or do something whereby he may 
 cover them. If he cannot do this, do not his sins 
 pursue and punish him, notwithstanding his par- 
 don ? and would not the punishment be increasing 
 and eternal? He must, for his own happiness, 
 cover them over by good deeds ; and he must have 
 the opportunity to do this in the world beyond. 
 
 These same questions arise with regard to the 
 unrepentant sinner. One man sins. By the mercy 
 of God he is awakened to a sense of his sin, to a 
 judgment here before the resurrection : he repents, 
 his sins are remitted, and he receives the gift of 
 eternal life. Another sins, no worse than the first, 
 is suddenly cut off by death without repentance, 
 and awakes to the resurrection of judgment. 
 Like the first man, is there no opportunity for 
 him to repent of the sins done in the body? Can 
 he not, in his new state of existence, repent, and 
 do something to wipe out or cover his sins ? One 
 man is killed by another. The murderer repents 
 of his evil deeds, passes through the judgment 
 here, his sins are remitted, and he enters into life. 
 The victim enters the judgment of the resurrec- 
 tion. Shall he have no opportunity of reform, 
 no opportunity by good works to cover his sins? 
 The death of the mortal body makes no change 
 in the man. What he was before he dropped the 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPARED. 191 
 
 earthly clothing, he is afterward, with the same 
 propensities, desires, habits of thought, the love 
 for the same objects. The man whose thoughts 
 rest principally upon " what shall I eat, and what 
 shall I drink, and wherewithal shall I be clothed?" 
 will have the same thoughts beyond, without the 
 power of supplying his desires. He who is im- 
 mersed in his business will be held down to earth, 
 and still interested in its details, without the 
 ability to take part therein. The man who has 
 made gold his god, and has spent his life in accu- 
 mulating riches, will still gloat over the gold he 
 sees others spend with such recklessness. "Where 
 your treasure is, there shall your heart be also," is 
 a law of God ; and men build here their own 
 prisons, block out their own position hereafter, 
 and the god they worshipped here, they will con- 
 tinue to worship there, unless, awakened to judg- 
 ment, they repent, and receive the remission of 
 their sins. Men of vicious habits, intemperate, 
 quarrelling, lascivious, murderous, enter the resur- 
 rection the same men. All are bound down to 
 earth, some in sorrow, some in shame and despair, 
 some in anger. But God is merciful, and the 
 poison of sin will soon carry off those who do 
 not repent. And again comes the question, Can 
 they repent, and be forgiven? 
 
 Christ says, " My Father worketh hitherto, and 
 
192 ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 I worJc.^'' Work is the necessity of man's nature 
 here, and undoubtedly the law holds good in the 
 future state of existence. Look at the universe, 
 and see God's work ; and shall man, who partakes 
 of his nature and being, in the eternal life remain 
 idle? It is impossible. Man has his work to 
 perform in the immortal as in the mortal life. 
 And what should that work be, but the endeavor 
 to benefit the loved whom he has left behind, to 
 wipe out if possible the results of his own sins, or 
 to cover them by good deeds? "He who convert- 
 eth a sinner from the error of his way shall save 
 a soul from deaths and shall cover a multitude of 
 sins." And shall this be the case only in this 
 world? Can we believe that the departed are 
 unable to influence those whom they have left 
 behind ? or have they no ability to benefit others 
 in the other world? 
 
 " The Lord is longsuffering to us-ward, not will- 
 ing that any should perish, but that all should 
 come to repentance." " I have no pleasure in the 
 death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God: 
 wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye." " Even 
 so it is not the will of your Father which is in 
 heaven, that one of these little ones should per- 
 ish." Then is there no way by which the sinner 
 may even then return to God his Father, and 
 receiving his pardon join the throngs of the blessed ? 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPARED. 193 
 
 With our limited vision, if there is no oppor- 
 tunity beyond this little human life, for God's 
 children to come unto him, there seems to be 
 an injustice not in accordance with either his 
 justice, his love, or his desire that all should be 
 saved. 
 
 Let us take the instance of the rich young man, 
 of whom it is said, " And Jesus looking upon him 
 loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou 
 lackest. Go, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to 
 the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven ; 
 and come, follow me. But his countenance fell at 
 the saying, and he went away sorrowing : for he 
 was one that had great possessions." Here was a 
 man who could say of himself, in reference to the 
 commandments, "All these things have I observed 
 from my youth." Who of us can say the same ? 
 And yet he is condemned. Why ? Because, hav- 
 ing the opportunity, by reason of his great wealth, 
 to do so much good, he had neglected his oppor- 
 tunities, allowed his Lord's money to lie idle ; had 
 hid the talents placed in his charge. His posses- 
 sions belonged to God ; he was God's steward, and 
 should have used his Lord's money to aid the dis- 
 tressed. This he had not done : he only thought 
 of himself, used the money for his own pleasure 
 and aggrandizement, and left his brothers in want. 
 And he meets with the condemnation of the 
 
194 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 servant who had neglected his one talent; namely, 
 to outer darkness. 
 
 Is there no opportunity for the man, when he 
 awakes into the resurrection of judgment, to re- 
 form, — to repent ? Christ says there is a possi- 
 bility. His disciples ask in wonder, " Who then 
 can be saved ? " and his answer is, " With God all 
 things are possible." 
 
 In awakening in the outer darkness to a knowl- 
 edge of our sins, are the tears of remorse and 
 repentance to be of no avail in the other world? 
 In the parable of the unforgiving steward, Christ 
 says, " And his lord was wroth, and delivered him 
 to the tormentors till he should pay all that was 
 due^ Here is an indication that after judgment, 
 and the delivery to the tormentors (his own 
 conscience), after the spiritual being awakens to 
 the knowledge of its sins which the resurrection 
 gives, and which is the judgment, even then there 
 is a way left by which payment may be made, by 
 which the sins unrepented of in this life may still 
 be repented of in the other world, and by work 
 and personal exertion the sinner receive pardon 
 and eternal life. 
 
 Christ says, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, 
 The hour cometh, and now is, when the dead shall 
 hear the voice of the Son of God, and they that 
 hear shall live. . . . ¥ov the hour cometh, in which 
 
TEE REVELATIONS COMPARED. 195 
 
 all that are in the tombs shall hear his voice, and 
 shall come forth ; they that have done good, unto 
 the resurrection of life [no creed, or belief in 
 Christ, no profession of faith required, but those 
 that have done good'] ; and they that have done 
 evil, unto the resurrection of judgment." (John 
 V. 19-29.) 
 
 What is the resurrection of judgment, but the 
 awakening of conscience? 
 
 "For this cause was the gospel preached also 
 to them that are dead ; that they might be judged 
 according to men in the flesh, but live according 
 to God in the spirit." (1 Pet. iv. 6.) 
 
 In this life, those who have entered into heaven, 
 and have received the gift of eternal life, have 
 passed through the judgment, before the resurrec- 
 tion, and at the death of the body pass from 
 heaven here to heaven above. Those who have 
 not gone through this experience of judgment in 
 this world, pass through the same judgment at 
 their resurrection. May not the sinner who 
 awakens to a knowledge of his sins at his resur- 
 rection, be able to repent and do works of right- 
 eousness, even as is required of those who repent 
 here, and there receive the forgiveness of God? 
 " If a man see his brother sinning a sin not unto 
 death, he shall ask, and God will give him life for 
 them that sin not unto death." And if prayers for 
 
196 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 those whom we love are answered here, is there 
 no hope that prayers for those who have gone 
 before may be equally as effectual with God ? 
 
 God is love ; and he loves the children he has 
 made, and is not willing that the least of us should 
 perish, but that all should receive eternal life. 
 He rejoices more over one sinner that repenteth, 
 than over ninety and nine just persons who need 
 no repentance. And will he not lend a listening 
 ear to those repentant souls in outer darkness, 
 who are weeping in remorse, or gnashing their 
 teeth in despair? Will he not hear their cry? 
 What is the use of the outer darkness, the awak- 
 ening to a knowledge of their sin, if it be not for 
 the purpose of repentance on one side, and pardon 
 on the other ? 
 
 When we can get away from our old and crude 
 ideas of heaven as a place of existence beyond this 
 world only, and realize that it is a state of exist- 
 ence, a state of happiness commenced here on this 
 earth ; when we realize that eternal life is also 
 commenced here, and that every man who really 
 accepts Christ, and does the will of God, has 
 already entered heaven, and received the gift of 
 eternal life, — we may also be able to understand 
 that eternal death, annihilation, also commences in 
 this world ; that the chaos of hell, as well as the 
 kingdom of heaven, is within us; that that also is 
 
THE BEVEL ATIONS COMPARED. 197 
 
 not a place, but a state of existence, the full mis- 
 ery of which, in the one case, we do not realize 
 here, any more than we experience the full bless- 
 ings and happiness of heaven, or realize the gift of 
 eternal life, in the other. 
 
 Then, what is the resurrection of judgment, and 
 the outer darkness which Christ pictures as the 
 condition of the wicked and unrepentant? Is it 
 not the awakening to a knowledge of our sinful- 
 ness, into a realization of our position ? Is it not, 
 that the disinthralled spirit now takes cognizance 
 of the sins done in the body ? Does it not see the 
 many opportunities lost ? Then it is that out of 
 the blackness and darkness of their sinful state, 
 some repent in tears and wailings their past life, 
 their wasted opportunities, and cry for mercy; 
 while others, overwhelmed with a knowledge of 
 their sins, and feeling the impossibility of forgive- 
 ness, gnash their teeth with fierce anger and 
 despair. Sin may have had such hold on some, as 
 to have weakened their spiritual being to such an 
 extent that there is no recuperation, and a knowl- 
 edge of their sinfulness leads to despondency and 
 despair, and their existence ceases; they die the 
 second death. 
 
 Let us remember, the dead that hear shall 
 live. 
 
 If the kingdom of heaven begins on this earth, 
 
198 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 how are we to know that we have entered therein, 
 and obtained eternal life ? 
 
 God is love : so, too, is heaven. Love is its life, 
 its being, its atmosphere, its language. Love to 
 God is shown by love to man. " If a man say, I 
 love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar; for 
 he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, 
 cannot love God whom he hath not seen ; and this 
 commandment have we from him, that he who 
 loveth God love his brother also." What have 
 you done to help your fellow-man, — physically, in- 
 tellectually, morally, or spiritually? What have 
 you done to increase the happiness of one the least 
 of these my brethren? is the question propounded 
 by Christ ; and as your answer is, so is your sen- 
 tence. And these questions you can answer here 
 and now. Have you given meat to the hungrj^, 
 and drink to the thirsty ? Have you sheltered the 
 stranger, clothed the naked, visited the sick and 
 the prisoner? Have you taught the ignorant, 
 shown God's love to the vile, and instructed the 
 wicked in the ways of truth and holiness? and 
 have you done this, not to save your own life (for 
 he that saveth his life shall lose it), but because of 
 your love for your fellow-men, and from a genuine 
 desire to aid them and do them good ? The judg- 
 ment is passed at once upon you. " My words 
 shall judge you," says Christ. You are your own 
 
THE REVELATIONS COMPABED. 199 
 
 judge ; and as your answer to these questions in the 
 light of the Christ's teachings is yes or no, shall 
 3^ou know whether or not you are in the kingdom 
 of heaven, whether or not you have already re- 
 ceived the gift of eternal life. Christ has given 
 this test, and each of us can answer. 
 
 Let us remember we cannot do righteousness by 
 proxy after our death: to do righteousness is to 
 live a righteous and holy life. Many a millionnaire 
 holds on to his Lord's money until his last breath, 
 and then endeavors to make a virtue of necessity, 
 and thinks he is doing God a service which will 
 be credited to him, by devising the property, which 
 is not his, for charitable objects. He is thus giving 
 God's money into other hands, that their faithful- 
 ness may enure to his benefit. Only while it is in 
 his possession, is it his as trustee for his Lord : when 
 his body dies, his trust ceases. Only while he 
 lives, can he use or abuse the talents God has put 
 into his hands, and for that use or abuse he must 
 answer. 
 
 "Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not 
 inherit the kingdom of God ? " (1 Cor. vi. 9.) 
 
200 ABYASy SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 VI. 
 
 OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 
 ANOELS AND DEVILS y HEAVEN AND HELL. 
 
 In the religion of the Aryas, there was not so 
 much as an intimation or suggestion of a being or 
 power antagonistic to the Deity. No god of evil, 
 Satan, or devil, was known. Nor was there any 
 thing suggestive of hell or of eternal punishment. 
 On the contrary, the image of the cherubim, and the 
 flaming sword turning every way to keep the tree 
 of life, suggests instant destruction, not eternal 
 suffering. Neither did the Christ or his apostles 
 teach the existence of either. 
 
 As the Deity, in his initial contract with Abram, 
 met Mm on the par of to understanding and be- 
 lief; and also in the greater contract made with 
 the Hebrews, again, met them on the plane of their 
 belief, and used it for his own purposes, — so the 
 Christ met the Jews of his time on the plane of 
 their belief, and used that belief in illustration of 
 his teachings. Evil was in the world. How it 
 came, was an unsolved problem ; the only apparent 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 201 
 
 solution was to charge it to a god of evil, and 
 Satan was the result. 
 
 Owing to their belief in Hades, or hell, and in 
 devils and demons, the revelation of the Christ 
 was not so full and free on this point as the origi- 
 nal made to the Aryas. It would have been use- 
 less for him to have denied the existence of either. 
 In those respects he was confined, but he used 
 these beliefs to emphasize the torments of remorse. 
 
 " Hell " is used in the New Testament, both in 
 the sense of the grave, and as the name of an un- 
 derground abode of spirits (called " sheol " in the 
 new translation). Existence in this place was 
 rather misty and undefined, as well as the object 
 of it. 
 
 During their two hundred years of Persian 
 nationality, the religion of the Jews became tinged 
 with the Persian doctrines of the conflicting 
 powers of good and evil. 
 
 The self-existent and spiritual God, called by 
 the Persians Ahura-Mazda, was the good power ; 
 and Akem-mano, or Satan, was the evil or bad 
 power. These powers had systems of angels, 
 archangels, and powers of light, on the one side, 
 and devils, demons, and powers of darkness, on 
 the other ; and these dual gods were supposed to 
 be in constant conflict, through the forces at their 
 command. 
 
202 ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 In the Jewish writings of that time, we have 
 the first indications of belief in evil personalities 
 or devils ; and about the same time are found the 
 first indications of a belief in immortality, and of 
 future reward and punishment. 
 
 The Jews do not appear to have applied the idea 
 of a spiritual god to Jehovah. This spiritual god 
 was the god of the Persians, and they did not 
 associate the two : to them they were distinct and 
 separate gods. 
 
 This belief in angels and other angelic beings, 
 and in devils and other evil powers, appears three 
 hundred and fifty years later, at the time of Christ, 
 in a modified form. 
 
 While the Jews believed in Satan as a power of 
 evil, they did not believe in him as a god, but 
 more as he is represented in the Book of Job 
 (where he is called a son of God), as a being per- 
 mitted by God to wander to and fro in the earth, 
 to test the faith of mankind by tormenting them 
 with pain, and afflicting them with sickness. 
 Insane persons were believed to be possessed or 
 controlled by devils. 
 
 It will be observed that Christ met these diseased 
 persons on the plane of their own and the general 
 belief. He addresses them, and commands the 
 evil spirits to depart from them, with the author- 
 ity of a master confident of his power. There is 
 
I 
 
 OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 203 
 
 no hesitation in the command, nor delay in the 
 result. He shows that, whether it be a sickness, 
 or an actual possession, it is wholly under control ; 
 and he gives no aid or comfort to a belief in Satan 
 or devils, as beings beyond the power of God, or 
 of himself as God's messenger and agent. 
 
 The idea of Satan and devils, coupled with 
 a place of punishment called hell, are entirely 
 ignored in the teachings of Christ and in the 
 preaching of the apostles and early Christians ; but 
 were at a later period introduced as a doctrine 
 of the Christian Church, and in the Dark Ages 
 took shape, intensity, and prominence, in corre- 
 spondence with the savage and barbarous feelings 
 of the time, when men were guided more by pas- 
 sion and superstition than by reason ; when force 
 was the power which ruled the home and the 
 world, and religious zeal enforced a religion of 
 vengeance and hate, miscalled Christian, by war 
 and carnage, by breaking at the wheel, and burn- 
 ing at the stake, and by the wholesale destruction 
 and slaughter of those differing from them on 
 unimportant points of doctrine. This doctrine of 
 the dual gods of good and evil has come down to 
 us. Men even now cling to this belief. Many of 
 them fear the Devil more than they love God ; 
 and to use the name of the Devil irreverently meets 
 the same, perhaps heavier reproof than '^ould t\\e 
 
204 ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 like use of the name of the Deity. They scout 
 Christ's teaching of the love of God as impossible 
 and unworthy of him ; and many teachers of false 
 Christianity believe the fear of the Devil and hell 
 is more efficacious in bringing souls to repentance 
 than is the long-suffering kindness and tender 
 mercy of our God. 
 
 The orthodox hell and Devil is a manufacture 
 of the Dark Ages, intensified by Calvin ; a belief 
 entirely different from that of any other people 
 in any age of the world, and wholly unknown 
 to the Jews in the time of Christ, or to the 
 apostles. 
 
 Knowing that selfishness, sin, and crime create 
 hell, and that the stings of remorse are much 
 more painful and lasting than the torments of 
 devils, Christ used the belief of his time to color 
 and point his imagery of the punishments of the 
 sinful man thereafter. 
 
 Neither Christ nor his apostles taught of a per- 
 sonal Devil. If there is such a personality, he 
 must either be self-existent, — and, if so, then 
 another and antagonistic god, apparently more 
 powerful than God our Father, — or he is a cre- 
 ated being. If created, then he is a son of God, 
 created and sustained by him. Without God he 
 cannot live a moment. He cannot antagonize 
 God, except as a wicjsed man may be said to 
 
} 
 
 OTHER CHBISTIAN SUBJECTS. 205 
 
 oppose him. He is wholly and entirely a child of 
 God, and can do nothing but by his permission. 
 
 So, too, if God created and sustains this uni- 
 verse and all that is therein, then, if there is such 
 a place as hell, it must be in the universe, and 
 wholly under God's control. The devils cannot 
 exist, nor hell he, without God. He holds them 
 and it in his hands and in his keeping. 
 
 Christ was aware that the sufferings of the 
 wicked were much greater than any punishment 
 believed in by the Jews, and that the place where 
 those wicked spirits did congregate was blacker 
 and darker than any " Hades " which the imagina- 
 tion of man had conceived. 
 
 He saw human devils, the spirits of the departed 
 wicked, still bound to earth, and employed in 
 tempting men, and urging those on earth in the 
 flesh, who were wickedly inclined, to their spirit- 
 ual destruction. 
 
 He saw the spirits of the selfish, of the rich who 
 had cruelly neglected their duties on earth ; had 
 acted as if the riches in their possession belonged 
 to them ; and had forgotten that they were only 
 the chosen almoners of God, who had commanded 
 them to aid the distressed, succor the feeble, give 
 to them that are in want, clothe the naked, heal 
 the sick, feed the hungry, in fact, hold the riches in 
 their hands as the servants of the most high God, 
 
206 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 the bestowers of his bounty. He saw these bound 
 to the earth by then' interest in this god of their 
 worship ; one watching the spendthrift son, while 
 squandering his money, sink deeper and deeper 
 into the depths of sin and iniquity, — the result of 
 his own sinful neglect of his duties as a father. 
 Another watching the sorrows of many whom he 
 had known on the earth, while they struggled 
 against sickness and discouragements ; those to 
 whom a gift of a few hundreds or thousands of 
 his former hoarded wealth would have been a 
 blessing which would have encouraged them, and 
 placed them above want ; and thousands of others 
 who might have been helped by him, and whose 
 benedictions would have gladdened his soul. 
 
 He saw the hypocrite, who on earth had been 
 loud in professions, and given to long prayers, but 
 who had secretly cheated the rich and robbed the 
 poor, now unable to even raise his eyes in prayer ; 
 with his soul in all its blackness in full view 
 before him, his secret sins exposed not only to 
 himself but to all others, with his deadened con- 
 science alive and stinging him. 
 
 He saw the favored of fortune, the high-liver, 
 the good fellow, so-called, with his whole selfish, 
 wicked, licentious life before him, bowed down 
 in humiliation and shame ; overwhelmed with re- 
 morse; unable in his despair to utter even the 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 207 
 
 publican's prayer, " God be merciful to me a 
 sinner." 
 
 Such as these, and worse, were the scenes open 
 to the eyes of the Christ ; and is it any wonder 
 that he should use the strongest types of suffering 
 to portray to man the terrible punishment of the 
 impenitent wicked? 
 
 These were the devils, and these the hells, 
 opened to the spiritual sight of the Christ. 
 
 But there were other sights. If hell is within 
 man, so also is heaven. Of children he says, 
 "Their angels do always behold the face of my 
 Father which is in heaven." They were under 
 the tender care of the spirits of the blest. 
 
 If the spirits of the wicked are able to influence 
 the souls of those on earth, who, by dwelling on 
 evil, and harboring impure and wicked thoughts, 
 desires, and purposes, invite their entrance; in 
 the same manner, the spirits of the lovely and 
 pure can influence those who inwardly desire and 
 seek for good. 
 
 The spirits of the loved and lost on earth still 
 hover around us, ready with their aid and help, 
 with their suggestions of good ; and the power of 
 these spirits is great for the benefit of those 
 whom they love and care for. There is no hell so 
 deep, no sinner so foul, no suffering so great, that 
 these angelic workers of God cannot penetrate 
 
208 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 the depth so deep, reach the sinner so foul, and 
 endeavor to turn the sufferer to his Father who 
 ever loveth him, and hath compassion on his suf- 
 fering, and is ready to pardon his sins. 
 
 God is not willing that any should perish, but 
 that all should receive eternal life. 
 
 "All souls are mine," saith the Lord; and 
 " none shall take them out of my Father's hands," 
 saith the Christ. 
 
 Death merely relieves the human being of its 
 covering of flesh. The man is the same the day 
 after that he was the day before his disrobement ; 
 but in the removal of his fleshly covering, man is 
 exposed naked to his own gaze, and to the sight 
 of the spirits around him. 
 
 See the abasement of the self-righteous man, 
 the horror of the murderer, the deep degradation 
 of the licentious, the suffering of the selfish, the 
 despair of those who have wasted their gifts and 
 opportunities. See them as they follow the effect 
 of their sins on others in the ever-widening wave 
 of eternity, and imagine, if you can, their terror 
 and shame ; imagine how they are weighed down 
 by remorse ; imagine what a tremendous effort is 
 necessary for them, in view of their sins, to raise 
 a thought or prayer to Him whose laws they have 
 so outraged and disobeyed. 
 
 See, too, the meek, the humble, the lowly, as he 
 
I 
 
 OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 209 
 
 awakes to a knowledge of himself, and raises a 
 prayer of thankfulness to Him who has preserved 
 him. See him who has used his talents, whether 
 one or ten, for the benefit of others ; who has 
 given of his riches, whether much or little, to those 
 in need ; him whose sympathy has been shown in 
 kind deeds and expressions of love. See those 
 who have worked for the benefit of mankind, 
 whose love of God was shown by love of man. 
 See these as they hear the benediction of the Mas- 
 ter : " Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one the 
 least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto 
 me ; enter thou into the joy of your Lord." See 
 them as they rise with countenances illumined 
 with happiness, enter into the realm of joy and 
 peace, and say, is the contrast too great between 
 the hell and the heaven which man makes for 
 himself? 
 
 Hell is selfishness, heaven is love. 
 
 Every man makes his own hell or his own 
 heaven. He is the judge, and he goes to either as 
 he decides on earth. 
 
 Were it not for the mercy of God, and the love 
 of man, there would be no release from the 
 woes of hell. But the spirits in bliss cannot be 
 supremely happy while those whom they love are 
 suffering in hell. 
 
 These spirits of the just, these angels of heaven, 
 
210 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 are all earnest workers for the happiness of others, 
 and they strive not only with man on earth, but 
 with those in hell ; working with all the earnest- 
 ness of their being, to bring the sinful soul to 
 repentance ; encouraging him in doubt, aiding 
 him in despair, praying for him in his agony and 
 remorse, working on with love and hope, never 
 giving up until the suffering soul has raised its 
 prayer to God for help, and through trouble, pain, 
 and travail of spirit has been forgiven and received 
 into that blest abode, where there is more joy 
 over one sinner that repenteth, than over ninety 
 and nine just (innocent) persons that need no 
 repentance. 
 
 MIRACLES. 
 
 Webster defines a miracle as "an effect or 
 event contrary to the established constitution and 
 course of things, — a deviation from the known 
 laws of nature." 
 
 "Natural laws," he says, "are the agencies 
 which carry on the processes of creation." Any 
 thing supernatural is "beyond or exceeding the 
 powers of nature." 
 
 A deviation changes nothing. It is not a new 
 law, or the overturning of an old law. It is 
 merely a change of direction for a special pur- 
 pose, a swerving from the regular and generally 
 observed course. 
 
I 
 
 OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 211 
 
 A miracle, then, may not be a supernatural act 
 or event; it may only be a deviation from the 
 usual exhibition of the laws of nature, not a 
 change in the law itself ; these deviations being an 
 apparent change to us only, it being in the power 
 of that God who formed the laws of nature, to 
 govern and control each individual creation of his 
 hands. These laws are wholly under his control, 
 subject to his command. He is their Master, not 
 they his. He can use them for his purposes, and 
 to further his designs ; and in the Bible we have 
 the record of such deviations, made, as we believe, 
 for sufficient cause. 
 
 Man makes a machine to do certain work. The 
 action of this machine is governed by certain laws 
 applicable to itself as a machine, but these do not 
 affect the maker. He may alter, improve, or add 
 other powers, without violating any law to which 
 he is responsible. The machine may have certain 
 hidden powers, only brought into action by emer- 
 gencies. It may work on for years in its regular 
 course. Suddenly the emergency arises; and a 
 new action takes place, provided for when it was 
 made, but not used, and perhaps to lookers-on 
 unknown, until this time. Is this new action a 
 miracle? No. It is only a deviation from its 
 usual action, brought out by the exigencies of the 
 occasion. 
 
212 ARYA8, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 God makes the laws of nature the "agencies 
 which carry on the processes of creation." It is 
 evident there was a time when these laws, as 
 applied to this earth, were few as compared with 
 the present. 
 
 The first plant created was an addition to the 
 previously existing creation, and required a new 
 law to sustain and keep it in being ; and this law 
 was an addition to the pre-existing laws of nature. 
 The first fish, bird, animal, man, were each and 
 all new creations, requiring new laws for each to 
 regulate their continuance. Thus were the laws 
 formed. A part of these were the laws of repro- 
 duction, each of its kind. When they took effect, 
 and the young plant sprang from the seed, 
 although a part of the law, it was a new appear- 
 ance. Each beast, bird, man, was formed mature, 
 and the first-born of each was a deviation because 
 none such had previously appeared. Apparently 
 these deviations were miracles, but in reality they 
 were only new exhibitions of laws already 
 established. 
 
 Nature is a machine made by God, and governed 
 by his laws. God is not only the Maker, but the 
 Master, of those laws. New, strange, and unex- 
 pected powers have been hidden for a time, but 
 acted when the necessities of the new creations 
 required it. Man finds in the water, in the air, in 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 213 
 
 the mineral and vegetable kingdoms, new powers 
 and new forms of life, all miracles in the sense of 
 being new and before-undiscovered products, but 
 really only deviations from the old results. The 
 miracles of the Bible may be but " deviations 
 from the known laws of nature," " events contrary 
 to the established course of things." 
 
 In the ignorance and superstition of the times 
 of Moses, God could appeal only to the senses of 
 the Hebrew people or the Egyptian nation. Mir- 
 acle, so-called, was the only power which would 
 work upon the fears of the Egyptians, cause them 
 to release the Hebrews from bondage, and em- 
 bolden them to take their liberty. 
 
 Is it not presumptuous for man to speak of mir- 
 acles as impossible ? They may be beyond what 
 he has known of nature's laws. A hundred years 
 ago, what did man know of the laws of electri- 
 city ? Are all the various exhibitions of its powers 
 and uses now discovered, miracles? They are 
 additions to, or deviations from, the then known 
 laws. 
 
 Are the powers of steam miracles, because only 
 a hundred years ago its only known use was to 
 make the kettle sing ? Is the telephone a miracle 
 because it has developed new laws of acoustics ? 
 
 God's "laws of nature" are expansive, pro- 
 gressive. If we find these laws of nature have 
 
214 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 enlarged, and are still enlarging, is it not natural 
 to suppose, as a man advances, and other powers 
 now unknown become his, that these laws shall 
 continue to enlarge, and new laws be discovered, 
 so that these deviations may become known as 
 laws, and miracles become common facts, as these 
 other deviations from the laws we have mentioned 
 have become facts? 
 
 A miracle was received by the Jew with 
 unquestioned faith. It was the direct action of 
 Jehovah. In former times it had been performed 
 generally in some exigency of their national life ; 
 at times in its early history, in punishment for 
 disobedience of his law ; but generally for their 
 rescue or protection, and to spread the terror of 
 his name among the nations. Their birth as 
 a nation had been accomplished by the most stu- 
 pendous miracles. The rule of Moses had been 
 enforced by other miracles. Their support for 
 forty years in the wilderness had been a daily mir- 
 acle. Their occupation of Canaan had been 
 accompanied by frequent miracles ; and in times of 
 trouble, through all their early history, the hand 
 of Jehovah had been opened to help whenever 
 they sincerely trusted in him. To eliminate the 
 miraculous element from the Hebrew and Chris- 
 tian Scriptures, would be to leave the covers only 
 in the hands of the operator. 
 
OTHER CHBISTIAN SUBJECTS. 215 
 
 That the Hebrews claimed miraculous help in 
 many events which to us appear to have been 
 accomplished by natural laws, or as the result of 
 good generalship, does not affect the fact that the 
 largest number of these occurrences could have 
 been accomplished by no other than supernatural 
 power. The whole history of the nation avows it, 
 and no disbelief or scoff of sceptics can shake the 
 accumulative evidence recorded in the entire 
 history of the nation. 
 
 Man has been given and has wielded an appar- 
 ently supernatural power, a power above and 
 controlling the laws of nature. 
 
 This power emanating from God, — which is 
 called in the Bible the Holy Spirit, — embodying 
 the purpose, force, energy, power, the enlightening 
 wisdom and love of God, this supernatural power, 
 has at times been given into the hands of man. 
 It was used in its energy and force by Moses and 
 by Elijah; in its enlightening power, by Isaiah 
 and other prophets ; and for beneficent purposes, 
 and in the exhibition of the love of God, by Jesus 
 the Christ and his disciples. This spiritual power 
 we believe to be still reserved for the use of man, 
 when in singleness of purpose, and self-devoted- 
 ness, and in communion with God, he shall ask 
 the aid of the Deity in restoring health and 
 strength to suffering humanity. 
 
216 ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 The power of mind over matter has been long 
 known and acknowledged. What is that but the 
 power of the spiritual controlling the natural ? 
 
 The same power is seen in the various well- 
 authenticated cases of the cure of disease by faith, 
 by prayer, by the laying-on of hands, and by the 
 Christian Science apostles. All are but exhibi- 
 tions of the control of the natural by the spiritual, 
 of the natural laws by the spiritual laws known in 
 the Bible as the Holy Spirit. 
 
 TRE CRUCIFIXION. 
 
 Jesus of Nazareth was chosen from among God's 
 children, consecrated and enlightened by the Holy 
 Spirit to reveal the being and character of God, 
 and his purposes or intentions with respect to the 
 being, position, and future life of man. 
 
 Other sons of God had been chosen before the 
 Christ, for certain work. Abraham, with whom 
 the first or personal contract or covenant was made ; 
 Moses, to whom the Deity was revealed as Jeho- 
 vah, and through whom the Hebrew contract was 
 made ; the prophets, through whom God revealed 
 his will and purposes with regard to the future of 
 individuals and nations on this earth, — all were 
 chosen sons of God, each selected and enlightened 
 by the Holy Spirit sufficiently to carry out the 
 will and purposes of the Deity. 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 217 
 
 While the contract made with Abraham was 
 personal to himself, his family and descendants, 
 and that made with the Hebrews was national, 
 confined wholly to that nation, and earthly in 
 its character, the revelation and contract made 
 through Jesus of Nazareth as the Christ, the 
 Messiah, the Son of God, chosen for and conse- 
 crated to that purpose, was wholly spiritual, fill- 
 ing out the former revelations, and surpassing 
 them in all things, as heaven surpasses earth. 
 This contract or covenant is open to all mankind. 
 Jew and Gentile, high and low, rich and poor, all 
 are called upon to accept the revelations of the 
 Christ, and join in the contract which he offers to 
 all, not of earthly power, riches, or grandeur, but 
 of heavenly riches and eternal life. 
 
 It was not until Jesus of Nazareth had received 
 the recognition of God, and the consecration and 
 enlightenment of the Holy Spirit, that he began 
 to teach; and he then taught, not as Jesus of 
 Nazareth, but as the Christ, the Son of God, 
 chosen and anointed for that purpose. He at all 
 times confessed that his knowledge and his power 
 came entirely from God, that of himself he could 
 do nothing. While calling himself the Son of 
 God, he took particular pains to acknowledge 
 himself the Son of man, that all mankind were 
 his brothers and with him sons of God ; and 
 
218 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 spoke of God as " our Father," and in addressing 
 others called him " i/our Father." In no way did 
 Jesus the Christ differ from other men, except in 
 being selected and chosen from' among men to fill 
 the office of the Christ. 
 
 It was as the Christ, and only as the Christ, 
 that he taught. It was the enlightening power of 
 the Holy Spirit which gave him the certainty 
 of knowledge, and caused him to teach with 
 authority. It is that only which causes us to 
 have faith in his teachings, which gives a founda- 
 tion for our belief. Take away this certainty, this 
 authority, and of what value are his teachings? 
 They are merely the guesses, the vain imaginings, 
 of a poor illiterate peasant of Galilee, a place noted 
 for its poverty and the ignorance of its people ; and 
 they have no force or power to enlighten or aid 
 man. Take away this authority, and we are with- 
 out God as well as without Christ in the world. 
 
 All spiritual knowledge comes directly from the 
 Christ : it can be obtained from no other source. 
 Men believe in the voice of nature, in the love 
 and fatherhood of God, in the brotherhood of 
 man, in the kingdom of heaven, and in the future 
 life, because of the certainty of his teachings ; and 
 that certainty comes only from the actual knowl- 
 edge received from God by the Christ, the chosen 
 and anointed Son of God. 
 
OTHEB CHBISTIAN SUBJECTS. 219 
 
 Christ's work was initiatory : he enunciated the 
 doctrines we have mentioned, and left them for 
 his disciples to spread abroad throughout the 
 world, when they should become aware of their 
 power and value. 
 
 Christ's teachings were new ; they were strange. 
 The people did not comprehend them. Even his 
 disciples failed to understand their meaning. 
 Notwithstanding his constant teachings, the king- 
 dom of heaven they still thought was to be an 
 earthly reign of Christ. Even to the last they 
 disputed upon the positions they were to hold in 
 this new kingdom ; and after his resurrection, 
 they ask him, " Lord, wilt thou at this time restore 
 again the kingdom to Israel ? " They disbelieved 
 when he spoke of his death. Christ was to live 
 and reign forever : he could not die. When they 
 actually saw him expire on the cross, their faith 
 failed: they fled to their homes dismayed and 
 disheartened. He could not have been the Christ, 
 or he would not have died. 
 
 The continuance of life after the decease of 
 the body was believed in by the Pharisees. The 
 Sadducees disbelieved it ; the common people gen- 
 erally gave it but little thought. Those who 
 believed in the doctrine, did so with fear and 
 trembling. There was no certainty ; it was the 
 mere guess-work of those who desired and longed 
 
220 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 for it, or the faith was a relic borrowed from 
 Persia. 
 
 Moses knew nothing of a life hereafter, and 
 never taught it. All his laws are connected with 
 this life, and the rewards and punishments are 
 wholly human and earthly. 
 
 This question, however, troubled other minds 
 besides the Jews. Many among the heathen 
 nations were making the inquiry, " If a man die, 
 shall he live again ? " 
 
 There was a belief among the heathen of a 
 shadowy state of existence after death, but no 
 certainty; and who could answer the question? 
 Neither the gods of Greece or Rome, nor did the 
 Jehovah of the Jews answer it. Men were grop- 
 ing blindly for a solution of the question. Many 
 of the thoughtful minds of all nations were seek- 
 ing light. Some had boldly declared their belief 
 in a future state, and others as boldly denied the 
 possibility of it. 
 
 If there was such a life beyond, did it belong 
 to all mankind as their birthright ? or was it, as 
 some believed, reserved for the few who, by reason 
 of great and benevolent work for man, received the 
 blessing of the gods and the gift of immortality? 
 Could it be secured by assenting to certain forms 
 of belief, or by following certain religious obser- 
 vances ? Could it be obtained by mortifying the 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 221 
 
 flesh, and living a life of self-denial ? No one knew ; 
 and no one could answer with any certainty the 
 question, " What shall I do to obtain eternal life ? " 
 
 Christ came : he revealed the certainty of life 
 eternal, and showed how each and all might 
 obtain it. He claimed to teach from personal 
 knowledge, that he uttered the words of God; 
 that he was the messenger of God. His teachings 
 bore the impress of sincerity and the stamp of 
 authority. Yet how could he know ? Were men 
 to believe because of his assertions? Could he 
 have been taught of God? Was such a thing 
 possible ? His miracles gave evidence of a power 
 beyond that of man. Did that power come from 
 God ? or was he a deceiver, and did he obtain his 
 power from the Evil One, as was charged by the 
 Pharisees ? 
 
 Christ's revelation, his teaching, needed con- 
 firmation, and this could only be obtained by 
 ocular demonstration. The dead must arise again 
 from the grave. 
 
 This had been done in a partial manner. The 
 daughter of Jairus had been raised from the dead ; 
 the son of the woman of Nain had been brought 
 to life after he had been prepared for burial ; and, 
 more wonderful than all, Lazarus, after lying four 
 days in the tomb, had been raised, and returned to 
 his sorrowing sisters in life and health. But here 
 
222 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 might be collusion. What proof was there of his 
 death ? Had not Jesus himself said, " He is not 
 dead, but sleepeth " ? 
 
 Christ from the first saw the necessity of this 
 sacrifice, — saw that he must die in order that he 
 might show the resurrection from the dead. He 
 foretold it, but his disciples did not believe him. 
 Yet he constantly pressed towards it : it was to be 
 the crowning act of his life, the seal of his ministry, 
 the great proof of his sincerity and truth, the con- 
 firmation of all his teaching. He claimed to have 
 the power to lay down his life, and to take it again. 
 He was free to act : would he do it ? As the time 
 approached, he naturally shrank from the infamy, 
 disgrace, and pain of the cross; he prayed that 
 the cup might pass from him, that some other way 
 might be opened to accomplish the same result. 
 But in vain: if he would accomplish the work 
 given him to do, he must die for men, that, 
 through his death and resurrection, they might 
 learn that the soul is immortal, that the death of 
 the body has no effect on the spiritual being 
 inhabiting that body. 
 
 It was necessary that his death should be public : 
 all the Jewish world should be cognizant of it. 
 The Roman rulers must be aware of it ; it must 
 be so public and notorious that there could be no 
 dispute respecting it. 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 223 
 
 Christ's miracles had made him the centre of 
 observation. Wherever he came, the sick and 
 infirm were brought unto him, and he healed 
 them. He entered Jerusalem accompanied by 
 thousands. He was greeted as a king; palm- 
 branches were spread before him, and shouts of 
 welcome filled the air. But in a few days he was 
 seized, and, after a mock trial, was condemned, 
 and executed on the cross. 
 
 This execution was public; and owing to the 
 preceding publicity of his life, acts, and teaching, 
 the circumstances of his entry into Jerusalem, and 
 the excitement at his trial, it was known to all 
 Jerusalem, and to the thousands that were present 
 from all parts of the world attending the great 
 festival. 
 
 Apparently Christ's work on earth was ended. 
 He who claimed to be the Son of God had been 
 put to death, and that was the end. His disciples 
 were dispersed, and all their hopes destroyed. 
 
 Had this been the end indeed, what would have 
 become of the teachings of Christ ? What would 
 have been his influence on the earth ? We proba- 
 bly should never have heard of him, or of his teach- 
 ings. His few ignorant disciples, frightened and 
 disheartened, would have gone each to his own 
 home, and resumed his former occupation. Christ's 
 
224 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 teachings would have been forgotten, and himself 
 would have passed into oblivion. His principal 
 work had been done in an obscure portion of Pales- 
 tine, a Roman province or dependency, among a 
 people uncultivated and despised by both Grecian 
 and Roman. The rumors which might have 
 reached the more civilized portion of the world, of 
 wonderful works performed by a man whom some 
 called a prophet and others a deceiver, would have 
 died away. He left no writings ; he had formed no 
 school of philosophy ; his teaching had been oral, 
 misunderstood or disbelieved ; and his death ended 
 both his teaching and his influence. Possibly some 
 tales of his miracles and tragic death might have 
 come down to us, in some myth or fabulous story ; 
 but his life and teaching would have been lost to 
 the world. 
 
 But we, — mankind in general, — what would 
 we be ? Ignorant savages, or possibly worshippers 
 of the thousand gods of Greece and Rome, perhaps 
 farther advanced in civilization, probably sunk in 
 the darkness and crime of the Canaanites, with no 
 knowledge of God, no immortal life, and no desire 
 for either. 
 
 In these days, liberal writers place great stress 
 upon the voice of nature ; that nature leads man 
 to a knowledge of God. But who taught us that 
 there was a God who was the Lord of nature? 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 225 
 
 that he was the maker and sustainer of the uni- 
 verse ? Who but the Christ ? 
 
 Previous to the Christ, there were gods without 
 number, but no God, — no Deity supreme. The 
 national god of the Jews, Jehovah, was, in our 
 view, the greatest and most powerful of them all, 
 but not so acknowledged by the world at that 
 time. He was, in fact, unknown, except to this 
 small and almost uncivilized nation ; while the 
 gods of Rome ruled the world. Nature was ruled 
 by a host of gods ; but the God of the Christ — 
 the fountain of all our religious knowledge — was 
 unknown and unthought of. 
 
 How has this death of the Christ, and his 
 resurrection, been covered and hid under the 
 creeds and theologies of man, as were the laws 
 of Moses under the traditions of the elders ! 
 
 This crowning act of his life, this open way to 
 immortality, has been turned into the sacrifice of 
 a god, who took upon himself the sins of mankind, 
 and expiated their sins by his death upon the cross. 
 If he was God, then his death was impossible, and 
 the whole thing was a farce acted to deceive. If 
 he was a man, then he could not take upon himself 
 the sins of others, and his death did not relieve 
 them from the punishment belonging to sin. 
 Besides, if it could, where was the greatness of 
 the sacrifice? Are there not men now, to-day, 
 
226 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 thousands of them, who, if they could relieve the 
 world from sin by so doing, would gladly undergo 
 the same suffering and death? 
 
 The death and resurrection of Christ was the 
 beginning of the gospel ; all else was preliminary. 
 Without this there would have been no Christ : he 
 would never have been heard of. His disciples 
 would never have preached a dead Christ, and his 
 doctrines would have died with him. 
 
 The cross, the instrument of his death, became 
 the symbol of life, not of death. The living Christ, 
 Christ arisen, was the rallying cry of the apostles, 
 the burden of their teaching, and their joyful song. 
 
 All the writers of the New Testament unite in 
 their testimony to his death , and there is no point 
 so strongly and fully proved as this in the life of 
 Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ of God. 
 
 All the apostles testify to the crucifixion and 
 death of Christ. 
 
 Matthew says, " And when they had crucified 
 him, they parted his garments among them, casting 
 lots" (xxvii. 35). 
 
 " Jesus cried again with a loud voice, and 
 yielded up his spirit" (xxvii. 50). 
 
 Mark's testimony is, "And they crucified him, 
 and parted his garments among them, casting lots 
 upon them what each should take. And it was 
 the third hour, and they crucified him " (xv. 24). 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 227 
 
 " And Jesus uttered a loud voice, and gave up 
 the ghost " (XV. 37). 
 
 Luke testifies, " And when they came unto the 
 place which is called the skull, there they crucified 
 him " (xxiii. 33). 
 
 "And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, 
 he said. Father, into thy hands I commend my 
 spirit; and having said this, he gave up the 
 ghost " (xxiii. 46). 
 
 And the testimony of John is to the same 
 effect : " They took Jesus, therefore, and he went 
 out bearing the cross for himself, into the place 
 called the place of a skull, which is called in 
 Hebrew Golgotha; where they crucified him" 
 (xix. 17, 18). 
 
 " When Jesus, therefore, had received the vine- 
 gar, he said. It is finished: and he bowed his 
 head, and gave up his spirit" (xix. 30). 
 
 Peter charges the Jews, without their dissent : 
 " Him, being delivered up by the determinate 
 counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye by the hand 
 of lawless men did crucify and slay." (Acts ii. 23.) 
 
 "Let all the house of Israel therefore know 
 assuredly, that God hath made him both Lord 
 and Christ, this Jesus whom ye crucified." (Acts 
 ii. 36.) 
 
 And Paul frequently speaks of it. " We preach 
 Christ crucified." (1 Cor. i. 23.) 
 
228 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 " For I determined not to know any thing 
 among you, save Jesus Christ and him crucified." 
 (1 Cor. ii. 2.) 
 
 " Which none of the rulers of this world know- 
 eth ; for, had they known it, they would not have 
 crucified the Lord of glory." (1 Cor. ii. 8.) 
 
 "For he was crucified through weakness, yet 
 he liveth through the power of God." (2 Cor. 
 xiii. 4.) 
 
 " O foolish Galatians, who did bewitch you, 
 before whose eyes Jesus Christ was openly set 
 forth crucified?" (Gal. iii. 1.) 
 
 " For Christ sent me, not to baptize, but to 
 preach the gospel : not in wisdom of words, lest 
 the cross of Christ should be made void. For the 
 word of the cross is to them that are perishing 
 foolishness : but unto us which are being saved it 
 is the power of God. For it is written, — 
 
 " I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, 
 
 " And the prudence of the prudent will I reject. 
 
 "Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? 
 Where is the disputer of this world? Hath not 
 God made foolish the wisdom of the world ? For 
 seeing that in the wisdom of God the world 
 through its wisdom knew not God, it was God's 
 good pleasure through the foolishness of the 
 preaching, to save them that believe. Seeing 
 that Jews ask for signs, and Greeks seek after 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 229 
 
 wisdom : but we preach Christ crucified, unto 
 Jews a stumbling-block, and unto Gentiles fool- 
 ishness ; but unto them that are called, both Jews 
 and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the 
 wisdom of God." (1 Cor. i. 17-25.) 
 
 TffF RESURRECTION. 
 
 But the great and grand event in the life of 
 Christ is his resurrection ; and this again was 
 almost as public as his execution had been. 
 
 His crucifixion had not taken place in a corner, 
 but in the full public gaze. At his death there 
 were rumors abroad, that he had said he would 
 arise again from the tomb. So prominent had 
 they become, that the chief priests and Pharisees, 
 believing there would be an attempt by his disci- 
 ples to obtain his body, applied to the governor 
 for a guard to watch the tomb in which he had 
 been laid. At their request, a small body of 
 Roman soldiers were placed on guard, after the 
 entrance to the tomb had been sealed. They 
 testified to the appearance of the angel, and the 
 opening of the tomb. The women and Peter and 
 John saw the empty grave ; and all the apostles, 
 together with many believers beside, testified to 
 his re-appearance, and to his teaching among them 
 for a period of forty days, and of his final ascen- 
 sion. 
 
230 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 The excitement, indignation, and sorrow caused 
 by his crucifixion had not subsided, before these 
 tales of his return to life were spread abroad ; and 
 soon the men who had been his disciples appeared, 
 and fearlessly proclaimed the doctrine of the 
 resurrection from the dead, and eternal life, based 
 upon this resurrection of Christ from the dead, 
 of which they were witnesses. These statements 
 they made publicly in Jerusalem, in the very city 
 where he had been put to death ; and they charged 
 the Jewish people with being criminally cognizant 
 of, and consenting to, his death. And this charge 
 was not denied. On the contrary, it was acknowl- 
 edged; and the conviction of its truth was so 
 strong, that the multitude cried out to the apos- 
 tles, " Men and brethren, what shall we do ? " 
 
 The testimony to the resurrection of Christ is 
 very full and direct, and cannot be doubted, 
 except we believe every writer to be a falsifier. 
 
 Christ repeatedly foretold his resurrection. This 
 was so well known, that after his crucifixion 
 " the chief priests and the Pharisees were gath- 
 ered together unto Pilate saying, Sir, we remem- 
 ber that that deceiver said, while he was yet alive. 
 After three days I rise again. Command there- 
 fore that the sepulchre be made sure until the 
 third day, lest haply his disciples come and steal 
 him away, and say unto the people, He is risen 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 231 
 
 from the dead ; and the last error will be worse 
 than the first. Pilate said unto them, Ye have a 
 guard : go your way, make it as sure as ye can. 
 So they went, and made the sepulchre sure, 
 sealing the stone, the guard being with them." 
 
 " Now late on the sabbath day, as it began to 
 dawn towards the first day of the week, came 
 Mary Magdalene, and the other Mary, to see the 
 sepulchre. And, behold, there was a great earth- 
 quake ; for an angel of the Lord descended from 
 heaven, and came and rolled away the stone, and 
 sat upon it. His appearance was as lightning, 
 and his raiment white as snow : and for fear of 
 him the watchers did quake, and became as dead 
 men. 
 
 "And the angel answered and said unto the 
 women. Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek 
 Jesus, which hath been crucified. He is not here ; 
 for he is risen, even as he said. Come, see the 
 place where the Lord lay. And go quickly, and 
 tell his disciples. He is risen from the dead ; and 
 lo, he goeth before you into Galilee ; there shall 
 ye see him : lo, I have told you. And they de- 
 parted quickly from the tomb with fear and great 
 joy, and ran to bring his disciples word. And 
 behold, Jesus met them, saying. All hail. And 
 they came and took hold of his feet, and wor- 
 shipped him. Then saith Jesus unto them. Fear 
 
232 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 not: go tell my brethren that they depart into 
 Galilee, and there shall they see me. 
 
 " Now, while they were going, behold, some of 
 the guard came into the city, and told unto the 
 chief priests all the things that were come to pass. 
 And when they were assembled with the elders, 
 and had taken counsel, they gave large money 
 unto the soldiers, saying. Say ye. His disciples 
 came by night, and stole him away while we slept. 
 And if this come to the governor's ears, we will 
 persuade him, and rid you of care. So they took 
 the money, and did as they were taught ; and this 
 saying was spread abroad among the Jews, and 
 continueth until this day." (Matt, xxviii. 1-15.) 
 
 This account of the resurrection, given by Mat- 
 thew, is sustained by Mark, Luke, and John, who 
 agree substantially with the statement here given ; 
 varying somewhat, as would naturally be the case, 
 in the minor details, and adding other incidents 
 which came to their knowledge. They also agree 
 in stating that Clmst met with the disciples 
 after his resurrection, and that he taught them 
 that they might understand the Scriptures. He 
 showed them from the Scriptures, " that the Christ 
 should suffer, and rise again from the dead the 
 third day ; and that repentance and remission of 
 sins should be preached in his name unto all the 
 nations." 
 
OTHEB CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 233 
 
 The apostles testify to the resurrection of Jesus 
 the Christ from the dead, and make it the founda- 
 tion of their teaching, the proof of the truth of 
 their gospel of good tidings. 
 
 The eleven disciples, after the ascension of 
 Christ, met to choose a disciple in the place ot 
 Judas Iscariot. "Of the men therefore which 
 have companied with us all the time that the 
 Lord Jesus went in and went out among us, be- 
 ginning from the baptism of John, unto the day 
 that he was received up from us, of these must one 
 become a witness with us of his resurrection." 
 (Acts i. 22, 23.) Not of his life, or his death, but 
 of his resurrection. 
 
 Peter says, speaking of Jesus the Christ, — 
 
 " Whom God raised up, having loosed the pangs 
 of death : because it was not possible that he 
 should be holden of it." (Acts ii. 24.) 
 
 " The priests and the captain of the temple and 
 the Sadducees came upon them, being sore trou- 
 bled because they taught the people, and pro- 
 claimed in Jesus the resurrection from the dead." 
 (Acts iv. 2.) 
 
 " And with great power gave the apostles their 
 witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus." 
 (Acts iv. 33.) 
 
 " Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord 
 Jesus Christ, who according to his abundant 
 
234 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope 
 by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the 
 dead." (1 Pet. i. 3.) 
 
 Paul gives frequent and powerful testimony to 
 the resurrection of Jesus the Christ from the dead. 
 
 "And certain also of the Epicurean and Stoic 
 philosophers encountered him. And some said, 
 What would this babbler say? Other some, He 
 seemeth to be a setter forth of strange gods: 
 because he preached Jesus and the resurrection." 
 (Acts xvii. 18.) 
 
 " Now, when they heard of the resurrection of 
 the dead, some mocked ; but others said. We will 
 hear thee concerning this yet again." (Acts xvii. 
 32.) 
 
 " Who was declared to be the Son of God with 
 power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the 
 resurrection of the dead ; even Jesus Christ our 
 Lord." (Rom. i. 4.) 
 
 " For if we have become united with him by 
 the likeness of his death, we shall be also by the 
 likeness of his resurrection." (Rom. vi. 5.) 
 
 The foundation of all the preaching of the 
 apostles is well given in Paul's argument to the 
 Corinthians, upon the resurrection of the dead ; — 
 
 " Now, if Christ is preached that he hath been 
 raised from the dead, how say some among you 
 that there is no resurrection of the dead ? But if 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 235 
 
 there is no resurrection of the dead, neither hath 
 Christ been raised ; and if Christ hath not been 
 raised, then is our preaching vain, your faith also 
 is vain. Yea, and we are found false witnesses of 
 God : because we witnessed of God that he raised 
 up Christ; whom he raised not up, if so be that 
 the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not 
 raised, neither hath Christ been raised; and if 
 Christ hath not been raised, your faith is vain ; ye 
 are yet in your sins." (1 Cor. xv. 12-17.) 
 
 In his address to the Athenians, Paul says, 
 "The times of ignorance therefore God over- 
 looked ; but now he commandeth men that they 
 should all everywhere repent, inasmuch as he hath 
 appointed a day in the which he will judge the 
 world in righteousness by the man whom he hath 
 ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto 
 all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead." 
 (Acts xvii. 31.) 
 
 "But this I confess unto thee, that after the way 
 which they call a sect, so serve I the God of our 
 fathers, believing all things which are according 
 to the law, and which are written in the prophets : 
 having hope toward God, which these also them- 
 selves look for, that there shall be a resurrection 
 both of the just and unjust." (Acts xxiv. 14, 15.) 
 
 When before Felix, Paul declares his innocence 
 of all wrong-doing, "except it be for this one 
 
236 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 voice, . . . Touching the resurrection of the dead I 
 am called in question before you this day." Festus 
 reports the matter to King Agrippa : " When the 
 accusers stood up, they brought no charge of such 
 evil things as I supposed ; but had certain ques- 
 tions against him of their own religion, and of one 
 Jesus, who was dead, whom Paul affirmed to be 
 alive." And before King Agrippa he says, "Where- 
 fore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto 
 the heavenly vision : but declared both to them of 
 Damascus first, and at Jerusalem, and throughout 
 all the country of Judaea, and also to the Gentiles, 
 that they should repent and turn to God, doing 
 works worthy of repentance. . . . Having, there- 
 fore, obtained the help that is from God, I stand 
 unto this day testifying both to small and great, 
 saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses 
 did say should come, how that the Christ must 
 suffer, and how that he first by the resurrection of 
 the dead should proclaim light both to the people 
 and to the Gentiles." (Acts xxvi. 19-23.) 
 
 " Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be 
 an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God, 
 which he promised afore by his prophets in the 
 holy scriptures, concerning his Son, who was 
 born of the seed of David according to the flesh, 
 who was declared to be the Son of God with 
 power according to the spirit of hoKness, by the 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 237 
 
 resurrection of the dead, even Jesus Christ our 
 Lord." (Rom. i. 1-4.) 
 
 "Wherefore let us cease to speak of the first 
 principles of Christ, and press on unto perfection, 
 not laying again a foundation of repentance from 
 dead works, and faith toward God, even the teach- 
 ing of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of 
 resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment ; 
 and this will we do if God permit." (Heb. vi. 
 1-3.) 
 
 Tiri: DISCIPLES. 
 
 We have endeavored to make plain the beliefs 
 and expectations of the Jews respecting their 
 Christ ; that, as the son of their god Jehovah, he 
 should rule over Israel, and through them over 
 the whole earth, in the same manner that Rome at 
 that time governed the civilized world ; and this 
 rule or government they called the rule, govern- 
 ment, or kingdom of heaven. 
 
 They believed that this Christ would wield the 
 whole power of Jehovah his father; and as, in 
 former contests of Jehovah with the gods of 
 Egypt, their national god had conquered, so now 
 they had full confidence in his ability to over- 
 power the gods of Rome, and thus obtain supreme 
 rule. 
 
 As a nation, their hopes, fears, expectations, 
 were all confined to this earth. With the excep- 
 
238 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 tion of the small sect of Pharisees, they had no 
 knowledge of or belief in a future state of 
 being. 
 
 They had never shown any spirituality. While 
 there had been prophets and teachers of a high 
 moral tone, they as a nation had never responded 
 to their teachings. Before their captivity they 
 had worshipped the gods of the nations around 
 them, to the neglect of Jehovah ; since their cap- 
 tivity, taught by the lessons of the past as exhib- 
 ited to them by Ezra, Nehemiah, and others, they 
 had not departed from the outward worship of 
 Jehovah, but theirs were blind offerings, made 
 according to their rituals, with the expectation 
 that the blood of lambs and other animals would 
 wash away sin. 
 
 This was the people from among whom Jesus 
 selected his disciples ; they were from the common 
 people, of about the same grade of life as was 
 Jesus himself. They had the ideas, wishes, expec- 
 tations, and prejudices of their nation. Perhaps 
 Jesus could not, if he had tried, have obtained 
 disciples from the higher or more learned classes. 
 He did not come with the regal power, pomp, and 
 magnificence which the^ expected from the Christ. 
 They looked upon him with scorn and contempt, 
 and upon his followers as a few poor, deluded, 
 ignorant peasants and fishermen ; just the sort of 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 239 
 
 men who would be likely to be attracted by an 
 impostor. 
 
 And these disciples, — were they more enlight- 
 ened than their countrymen ? Did they look upon 
 the Christ in a light differing from the rest of their 
 Jewish race ? 
 
 As we carefully read the Gospels, we must ac- 
 knowledge that we find no evidence of a clearer 
 estimate of the Christ or of his work. 
 
 Christ spoke of God as our Father, the Father 
 of the whole human race. His disciples believed 
 that Jehovah was the father of the Christ; but 
 when he spoke of him as " our Father," and " your 
 Father," they did not understand him. The^ were 
 not the children of Jehovah ; they had never 
 thought of such a thing, and they could not 
 believe it ; it was, in fact, blasphemy to entertain 
 such a thought. 
 
 Neither did they believe that the heathen 
 nations were children of Jehovah : in fact, they 
 believed that all of them were his enemies, wor- 
 shippers of other gods, whom he would willingly 
 destroy ; he hated Romans more especially ; would 
 that the time had come to sweep them from the 
 face of the earth, or at any rate make them trib- 
 utary to Israel. 
 
 The sayings of the Christ were incomprehensi- 
 ble. He taught that the kingdom of heaven wa& 
 
240 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 at hand. Yes, they believed that. Was not he 
 the Christ, the Anointed, he who was to estab- 
 lish this kingdom ? Were they not awaiting with 
 impatience his movements? Why did he not 
 proclaim himself king, put on his royal robes, 
 gather the nation together, seize and destroy the 
 Romans, and, by the aid of Jehovah, overpower 
 all opposition, and govern the world ? 
 
 The Christ revealed an immortal life. This 
 they believed. The Christ was immortal. He par- 
 took of the nature of his Father Jehovah. He 
 would live forever, and his reign would be without 
 end. This immortality, however, was to be on 
 this earth. As, in later days. Ponce de Leon 
 sought the waters of youth that he might bathe 
 therein and obtain immortal youth, so the disci- 
 ples believed that the Christ had received from 
 his Father that water and that bread which would 
 give to those who partook thereof immortal life. 
 He was to live forever on this earth, and they 
 desired to live with him ; and they awaited with 
 eagerness the time when he should show unto them 
 the wa}^ of eternal life, and give to them of that 
 well-spring of immortality. 
 
 We do not find that the disciples were spirit- 
 ually enlightened by the teachings of the Christ. 
 The Sermon on the Mount fell on dull ears ; even 
 the simplest of his parables required explanation. 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 241 
 
 Pre-occupied as were their minds by the prophe- 
 cies, traditions, and expectations of their nation, 
 which had been instilled into their minds all their 
 lives, they could not and did not understand his 
 teachings. Why should they ? They were Jews, 
 not above the average of their race. All that 
 they heard was colored by the medium of their 
 habit of thought ; and every saying of Jesus was 
 qualified by their belief in his earthly kingdom 
 and reign. 
 
 Only a few days previous to his crucifixion, 
 they disputed with each other as to the position 
 or rank they should hold in his kingdom, the 
 establishment of which, they now felt, must be 
 near at hand. 
 
 Apparently, nothing but the death of the Christ 
 could awaken them from this dream of royalty. 
 In their belief, the Christ could not die. If Jesus 
 of Nazareth should die, that would be proof to 
 them, and to the whole Jewish world, that he was 
 not the Christ. No matter what his power over 
 sickness and death had been , if he died, his cause 
 was crushed, annihilated. He could not be the 
 real Christ, but an impostor. 
 
 To the surprise and consternation of the disci- 
 ples, the Christ died on the cross. His death was 
 made doubly sure by the thrust of the spear in his 
 heart. 
 
242 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 In dismay, his disciples fled ; the laughing- 
 stock, as they thought, of the whole nation. The 
 man whom they had followed, and believed in as 
 the Christ, was proved to be an impostor. Their 
 position as chosen followers of Jesus made them 
 now unpleasantly conspicuous ; in silence and 
 despair they slunk away, to hide their sorrow and 
 shame from all mankind. 
 
 Thus ended, as they thought, the life of one 
 whom they had loved and revered because of his 
 loving and humane disposition, his kindness, 
 gentleness, and forgiving spirit. Added to their 
 sorrow for his loss, was their disappointment. 
 Jesus, it was proved, was not the Christ, and they 
 and their nation must look for another. The 
 glorious reign of their great king was still in the 
 future, and their hopes were blasted and gone. 
 Nothing remained but to hide their friend in the 
 tomb, and then return to their old trades and 
 occupations. 
 
 At this time, had these disciples any thing to 
 teach ? Nothing. Not a single truth uttered by 
 the Christ had been spiritually discerned. His 
 personal traits, and the expectation of future 
 greatness, had kept them together, and had been 
 their bond of union : but his death severed the 
 tie ; he and his teachings were dead together. 
 
 The preachings of both John and Jesus were 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 243 
 
 illusive ; they had either fraudulently or mistakenly 
 proclaimed an untruth. The kingdom of heaven 
 had not come, neither was it at hand. Eternal 
 life was a myth ; its apostle had been slain ; the 
 water and the bread of life had been powerless. 
 Their friend and teacher, and, as they had believed, 
 their Messiah, had perished on the cross ; and the 
 visions of glory, of power, of eternal life, had 
 faded and gone ; and this was the end. 
 
 Who among his followers would now attempt 
 to preach a dead Christ, and he a malefactor ? 
 What had they to teach? Jesus of Nazareth 
 could not be the Messiah: the Christ could not 
 die ; yet this man was dead. Of what conse- 
 quence were his teachings, his revelations ? They 
 were the mere vagaries of a disordered mind, of a 
 religious enthusiast. He was dead, and his teach- 
 ings and so-called revelations would die with 
 him. No man would trouble himself to repeat or 
 publish them to the world ; they would sink into 
 oblivion ; and the disgrace of his death would 
 attach to his life, and be visited on his disciples. 
 
 TffJS APOSTLES. 
 
 Apparently, the teachings of Jesus had come to 
 an end with his life. The Jews had proved that 
 he was an impostor, by depriving him of life. 
 
 The Christ had foretold his resurrection. His 
 
244 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 disciples had given no heed to this statement, 
 because they did not believe in his death. His 
 enemies, however, remembered his saying ; and, 
 thinking his disciples might attempt to take away 
 the body at night, they caused a watch of Roman 
 soldiery to be set about the tomb in which his 
 body had been placed. 
 
 In the early morning, these soldiers appeared in 
 the city, thoroughly frightened, and told a con- 
 fused story of an earthquake that had removed 
 the stone from the mouth of the tomb, and of 
 angels whose presence had caused them to flee in 
 terror. 
 
 Some of the women, who had gone to prepare 
 the body for burial, sought Peter and John with 
 the news that the body of Jesus had disappeared ; 
 that in the tomb they had seen angels, who in- 
 formed them that the Christ had arisen, and that 
 he would meet them in Galilee. 
 
 This news again brought the disciples together, 
 filled with wonder and hope. Would he now take 
 possession of his kingdom ? Would he now restore 
 Israel ? These were the questions which came to 
 their lips. 
 
 We have no record of the teachings of the forty 
 days, during which he explained to his disciples 
 the spiritual bearing of his teachings. He spoke 
 to them of the Father ; of the spiritual kingdom 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 245 
 
 of heaven, or the rule of God in the heart ; of the 
 eternal life of the spirit, freed from the prison of 
 the mortal body ; and of the way to obtain immor- 
 tality. 
 
 The resurrection of the Christ was the birth of 
 Christianity ; without it, there would have been 
 no record of the Christ or of his teachings. No 
 contemporary writer or historian mentions him ; 
 not until the preaching of the apostles had made 
 his name and doctrines known, does he become a 
 historical character. 
 
 The disciples or learners, now changed to apos- 
 tles or teachers, had the greatest message to pro- 
 claim ever given to mankind : " the glad tidings 
 of great joy, which should be to all people." 
 
 With the resurrection of the Christ from the 
 dead, as a proof of the spiritual existence of man 
 after the death of the body, the foundation on 
 which all their teaching rested, they proclaimed 
 God, not as Jehovah the Jewish god, but as " our 
 Father," the father and lover of all mankind. 
 They proclaimed a kingdom, or rule, of heaven, 
 here and now, in the heart of every one who loves 
 righteousness. 
 
 They proclaimed immortality to be the gift of 
 God to every man who believed in and followed 
 the teachings of the Christ, doing the will of the 
 Father. 
 
246 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 The question of the ages, " If a man die, shall 
 he live again ? " was for the first time answered by 
 the resurrection of the Christ. With this gospel 
 of the love of God and good-will to man, these 
 apostles of freedom went forth in the glad con- 
 sciousness of the importance of their mission, into 
 all the world, baptizing in the name of a God of 
 love, a risen Christ, and a helping and enlightening 
 Spirit. 
 
 Let us remember that these apostles were human 
 beings, each having and keeping his own individ- 
 uality. Spiritually they were transformed, as the 
 Christian religion changes every one who embraces 
 it. That transformation is not a change of person- 
 ality, but a change of character, a change in the 
 object of their lives. They realize that this life is 
 secondary; that the life beyond is the one for 
 which they should strive. And in the case of the 
 apostles, it was not only their work, their duty, an 
 obligation laid upon them by Christ ; but it was 
 their joy. They longed to proclaim to the world 
 the good tidings of which they were the chosen 
 messengers ; " the good tidings of great joy, which 
 should be to all people ; " the tidings of a Saviour, 
 who should save the world from sin (not from the 
 punishment of sin, because sin carries its own 
 punishment, but from sin itself), and from " the 
 wages of sin, which is death." 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAJSr SUBJECTS. 247 
 
 With the exception of Paul, these apostles had 
 been companions of Christ ; had heard his teach- 
 ings, seen his miracles, caught some of his ten- 
 derness, and imbibed of his spirit. They were 
 enlightened by the Holy Ghost, to the extent 
 necessary for them to accomplish the work they 
 had undertaken ; and the gift of tongues, a neces- 
 sary gift at the time, indicated to each one the 
 country in which he was to teach. Their general 
 knowledge outside of their particular work was 
 not enlarged, nor their beliefs on other matters 
 enlightened. 
 
 Peter, in his first address to the Jews, on the 
 day of Pentecost, gives, in a few words, the true 
 apostles' creed. He says, — 
 
 " Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God 
 unto you by mighty works and wonders and signs, 
 which God did in the midst of you, even as you 
 yourselves know ; him, being delivered up by the 
 determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, 
 ye, by the hands of lawless men, did crucify and 
 slay : whom God raised up, having loosed the 
 pangs of death, because it was not possible that 
 he should be holden by it. . . . This Jesus did 
 God raise up, whereof we are all witnesses. 
 Being, therefore, by the right hand of God 
 exalted, and having received of the Father the 
 promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath poured forth 
 
248 ABTA8, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 this which ye see and hear. Let all the house of 
 Israel therefore know assuredly, that God hath 
 made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom 
 ye crucified." 
 
 This confession of faith, or statement of belief, 
 is made by Peter as the representative of all the 
 apostles, and without dissent from any one. 
 
 It is noticeable that Peter gives the credit of 
 all Christ's miracles, of his resurrection, of the 
 gift of the Holy Ghost, and of his position, to 
 God. Christ was the instrument, but God the 
 ruling power. 
 
 The confession of faith contains a charge 
 against the Jews, of having crucified and slain 
 Jesus of Nazareth, their Messiah. 
 
 " Now, when they heard this, they were pricked 
 in their hearts, and said unto Peter and the rest 
 of the apostles, Brethren, what shall we do ? And 
 Peter said unto them. Repent ye, and be baptized 
 every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, 
 unto the remission of your sins, and ye shall re- 
 ceive the Holy Ghost," or spiritual enlightenment. 
 
 Let us carefully examine these requirements. 
 First, a belief in the life, miracles, teachings, 
 death, and resurrection of the man Jesus of 
 Nazareth. Second, repentance. From what? 
 From the sin they had been convicted of, namely, 
 being accessory to the murder of Jesus Christ, 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 249 
 
 who they were now convinced was their Messiah, 
 promised of old. And they were now called upon 
 to repent of that sin, and acknowledge their new 
 belief in Jesus as the Christ. Third, the public 
 act of baptism, a rite familiar to them, and signi- 
 fying the washing-away of old beliefs, previous to 
 the adoption of new; and this repentance and 
 acknowledgment must be public ; upon doing this 
 their sins should be remitted, or forgiven, and they 
 should receive the enlightenment of the Holy 
 Spirit. And the record states, "and there were 
 added unto them in that day about three thousand 
 souls ; and they continued steadfastly in the apos- 
 tles' teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of 
 bread, and prayers." 
 
 In this first work of the apostles, the Jews ac- 
 knowledged the truth of the statement respecting 
 Jesus, and the call of Jesus is repeated: Repent. 
 We find that they were called to repent of the sins 
 of which they were aware. No claim is made of 
 the universal sinfulness of man through the fall 
 of Adam ; total depravity was unknown ; nor was 
 Christ's death mentioned as an atonement for the 
 sins of mankind. Christ is spoken of as a man, 
 and even the doctrines of Christ were unmen- 
 tioned. The only creed subscribed to by these 
 converts was the assent given to the apostles' 
 creed mentioned, by their acceptance of the rite 
 of baptism. 
 
 I 
 
250 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 All, then, that these first Christians found re- 
 quired of them, was to acknowledge Jesus as the 
 Christ, that he died and rose again, repent of their 
 sins, and give public notice of their new belief hy 
 the outward act of baptism. 
 
 When Philip joined the eunuch of Queen 
 Candace, and the eunuch inquired of Philip re- 
 specting the prophecies, " Philip opened his mouth, 
 and beginning from this scripture preached unto 
 him Jesus. And as they went on their way, they 
 came unto a certain water, and the eunuch said. 
 Behold, here is water ; what doth hinder me to be 
 baptized ? And he baptized him ; and the eunuch 
 went on his way rejoicing." 
 
 He preached unto him Jesus, nothing else ; no 
 tales of Adam and Eve, and the Devil, and the 
 fall of man ; no total depravity, no five points of 
 Calvinism, — simply Jesus. 
 
 Paul and Silas at Macedonia, in answer to the 
 jailer's question, "What must I do to be saved?" 
 answer, " Believe on the Lord Jesus, and thou 
 shalt be saved, thou and thy house. And they 
 spake the word of the Lord unto him, with all 
 that were in his house. And he took them the 
 same hour of the night, and washed their 
 stripes ; and was baptized, he and all his, imme- 
 diately." 
 
 To believe in the Lord Jesus, we find, was to 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 251 
 
 believe in something more than a name or an 
 existence : they spake the word of the Lord unto 
 them ; and their baptism was an acknowledgment 
 of belief, and an agreement to live in accordance 
 with the teachings of Christ. 
 
 At Thessalonica, " Paul, as his custom was, 
 went in unto them, and for three sabbath days 
 reasoned with them from the Scriptures, opening 
 and alleging that it behoved the Christ to suffer, 
 and to rise again from the dead; and that this 
 Jesus, whom, said he, I proclaim unto you, is the 
 Christ." 
 
 Christ's work, we have stated, was initiatory. 
 It was now the duty of his disciples to spread 
 abroad the "good tidings of great joy which 
 should be to all people ; " and the cross, the 
 emblem of his death and resurrection, was the 
 foundation of their teaching. Christ and him 
 crucified was their subject. 
 
 " Greater things than these shall ye do," said 
 Christ to his disciples. To them was given the 
 work which he had inaugurated. His claim of 
 being instructed by God, that he delivered only 
 what he had received of him, that he had been so 
 enlightened by the Holy Spirit, that what he taught 
 was with the certainty, the authority, of knowl- 
 edge, was now proved by his resurrection from 
 the dead. The great object of his death, which 
 
252 ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 was to prove the existence of the spirit, the soul, 
 the man himself, after the death of the body, was 
 complete and unquestioned. And upon the fact of 
 the resurrection of Christ from the dead, the apos- 
 tles founded all their teaching ; they refer to it 
 continually, as the foundation of their faith, the 
 rock on which the whole superstructure rests. 
 
 The event of greatest significance in the life of 
 Christ, and of the greatest importance to mankind, 
 was not his baptism, not his crucifixion and death, 
 but his resurrection from the dead. While his 
 crucifixion and death was the seal of his min- 
 istry, the completion of his work, his resurrection 
 was the commencement of his gospel of good 
 tidings. 
 
 Christ's life and teachings, his revelations of 
 God, of man, of their relationship, of the kingdom 
 of heaven, and of the future life, were all seeds 
 sown which should bear fruit in the teachings of 
 his disciples. 
 
 What could give life to his teachings ? What 
 could induce his disciples to go forth and promul- 
 gate this doctrine of the kingdom of heaven, and 
 of eternal life, which had been the prominent 
 points in his teaching ? Nothing, apparently, but 
 what did take place. Christ's resurrection from 
 the dead was the only thing which could give life 
 and vitality to his doctrines. 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 253 
 
 We have no account of what he taught after his 
 resurrection. It is evident that the event itself, 
 and what his disciples learned from him, led to an 
 entire change in their views and purposes. His 
 former sayings received new significance ; and the 
 enlightenment of the Holy Spirit aided them in 
 understanding his teachings, and in giving to these 
 ignorant and timid disciples courage to go into all 
 the world, preaching the good tidings of the resur- 
 rection and eternal life. 
 
 German critical writers claim that Jesus of 
 Nazareth taught nothing new ; that he merely 
 concentrated and put into a new form old truths, 
 thus giving them new life ; that he usurped the 
 title of the Christ, which he knew did not belong to 
 him, and thereafter lived a life of deceit ; in short, 
 that this teacher of righteousness, whose precepts 
 reach the springs of action in the heart, was him- 
 self a daily violater of the truth ; that his disciples 
 followed his example, and falsified the records of 
 his life ; and that the apostles, including Paul, did 
 the same in their writings. 
 
 When we put into a short sentence the result 
 of their criticisms, their utter inconsistency con- 
 tradicts their foul assertions. 
 
 Except in a few scattered sentences in the 
 Hebrew Scriptures, where, before the Christ, can 
 we find taught the Fatherhood of God, and the 
 
254 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 brotherhood of man ? Who taught any thing of 
 the kind ? Who ever taught the spiritual kingdom 
 of heaven ? Who taught of the life eternal, and 
 of the way for man to obtain that great gift of 
 God? Who but the Christ? Are these old 
 truths put into a new form ? If so, where can 
 these old truths be found ? 
 
 Did Jesus of Nazareth usurp a title which did 
 not belong to him ? 
 
 In the Four Gospels, we have the picture of an 
 exceptional and perfect man ; in all points the 
 portrait is complete. Painted by four different 
 artists, each, in all material points, has given us 
 the same picture. Each, however, gives touches 
 here and there, according to his own individuality, 
 which, being brought together, make one complete 
 whole. What can be added to the portrait to 
 make it more complete? or what can we take 
 from it that will improve it ? 
 
 How beautiful ! how grand ! how majestic ! how 
 sweet! how meek! how humble! What power! 
 what determination ! what courage ! what purity ! 
 what truth ! what love ! what compassion ! what 
 fortitude ! what sorrow ! 
 
 In all history, where is another character that 
 stands out so clear, so full, so well proportioned, 
 so distinct, so complete ? And what a life, from 
 beginning to end ! each step depending on the 
 
OTHER CHBISTIAN SUBJECTS. 255 
 
 preceding ; the advance regular, steady, majestic, 
 to its culmination. 
 
 Who in those days could have imagined such a 
 person, could have delineated such a life, or enun- 
 ciated such doctrines? And how impossible for 
 four men each to have falsely drawn the same 
 character ! The fact that we have such a record, 
 is proof positive that such a life was lived, and 
 such doctrines were taught. To have imagined 
 such a, being, such a life, and such doctrines, was 
 sim^y impossible ; they were out of the power of 
 man to conceive. 
 
 There is no accounting for the doctrines, ex- 
 cept that they came from God, and were delivered 
 to the human race by a man authorized and com- 
 missioned by God so to do. No man, unless he 
 speaks as God's messenger, and by his authority, 
 can open unto us the kingdom of heaven, or show 
 us the way to life eternal. Must not such a man 
 have been the Christ ? 
 
 Can the man who uttered the Sermon on the 
 Mount, who claimed to be the way, the truth, and 
 the life, be a deceiver, a falsifier ? By their fruits 
 ye shall know them. The fruits of the teachings 
 of the Christ are a knowledge of spiritual things, 
 which no man had before ; namely, the love and 
 Fatherhood of God; the brotherhood of man; 
 the kingdom of heaven begun on earth; the 
 
 CO-^ OF THHK 
 
 'TJiriVBESITTi 
 
256 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 eternal life, and the way to obtain the same. 
 These are the fruits. Judge ye of the tree. Is it 
 good, or bad ? Can a corrupt tree bring forth good 
 fruit? 
 
 TRU SECOND COMING OF THE CHRIST. 
 
 " When they therefore were come together, they 
 asked of him, saying ; Lord, wilt thou at this time 
 restore again the kingdom to Israel? And he 
 said unto them. It is not for you to know the 
 times or the seasons, which the Father hath put 
 in his own power; but ye shall receive power after 
 that the Holy Ghost is come upon you ; and ye 
 shall be witnesses unto me, both in Jerusalem, and 
 in all Judsea, and in Samaria, and unto the utter- 
 most parts of the earth. And when he had spoken 
 these things, while they beheld, he was taken up ; 
 and a cloud received him out of their sight. And 
 while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as he 
 went up, behold two men stood by them in white 
 apparel, which also said. Ye men of Galilee, why 
 stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus 
 which is taken up from you into heaven shall so 
 come in like manner as ye have seen him go into 
 heaven." (Acts i. 6-11.) 
 
 It is evident that the apostles believed and 
 taught the second coming of Christ. Some among 
 them believed that at his second coming he would 
 " establish again the kingdom of Israel.'* The 
 
OTHER CHBISTIAN SUBJECTS. 257 
 
 Christ, as they believed, was to reign on earth ; and 
 why should he come again, unless to establish his 
 kingdom and commence his reign ? They expected 
 this second coming would be early ; it was immi- 
 nent ; and they called on the disciples to " abide in 
 him, that, when he shall appear, we may have con- 
 fidence, and not be ashamed before him at his 
 coming." (1 John ii. 28.) 
 
 Paul speaks of the Christians at Corinth, as 
 "waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus 
 Christ." In his first Epistle to the Thessalonians, 
 he says : " I pray God, your whole spirit and soul 
 and body be preserved blameless unto the coming 
 of our Lord Jesus Christ." In his second Epistle, 
 he beseeches them " by the coming of our Lord 
 Jesus Christ." 
 
 James exhorts the Christians to "be patient, 
 therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. 
 . . . Stablish your hearts, for the coming of the 
 Lord draweth nigh." 
 
 Paul's belief in the second coming was different 
 in its nature from that of the other apostles. In 
 his first Epistle to the Thessalonians, he states it 
 in these words : " But I would not have you to 
 be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are 
 asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which 
 have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died 
 and rose again, even so them also which sleep in 
 
258 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say 
 unto you by the word of the Lord : that we, which 
 are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord, 
 shall not prevent them which are asleep ; for the 
 Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a 
 shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with 
 the trumpet of God ; and the dead in Christ shall 
 rise first; then we which are alive and remain 
 shall be caught up together with them in the 
 clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall 
 we ever be with the Lord." 
 
 This belief in the second appearance of Christ 
 is apparent in their preaching ; they expected it to 
 take place in that generation, and this belief was 
 built apparently on the words of Christ. He 
 frequently spoke of his coming again. " The Son 
 of man shall come in the glory of his Father." 
 He " Cometh at such an hour as ye think not." 
 
 In speaking of John, he says, "If I will that 
 he tarry till I come, what is that to you ? " He 
 says, " In an hour that ye think not, the Son of 
 man cometh." " Watch therefore, for ye know 
 not on what day your Lord cometh." "Watch 
 therefore, for ye know not the day, nor the hour." 
 " Verily, I say unto you, There be some standing 
 here, which shall not taste of death, till they see 
 the Son of man coming in his kingdom." 
 
 Paul writes to the Thessalonians, "For your- 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 259 
 
 selves know perfectly, that the day of the Lord so 
 Cometh as a thief in the night." 
 
 The whole import of these words is, that he will 
 come again, and that soon; yet the apostles and 
 Christians of that day, and even down to the pres- 
 ent time, have waited in vain for his coming in 
 person. Then, what is meant by the words of the 
 Christ ? Were his words untrue ? Did he prom- 
 ise what he was unable to perform ? Are we still 
 to await his coming, or has he come ? 
 
 It is the belief of many Christians, that he is yet 
 to come, and that the time draws nigh. But how, 
 and with what body, shall he come ? Shall he 
 appear in Jerusalem ? In Rome ? In England ? In 
 America ? Who in these sceptical days will vouch 
 for him, and who will believe ? Shall he be a Jew ? 
 What Christian would acknowledge him ? Shall 
 he come a German, a Frenchman, an English- 
 man, an American ? Shall he be a carpenter, a 
 merchant, a mechanic, a scholar? Shall he be 
 born again in the flesh, and grow up from a child 
 to manhood among you without recognition until 
 touched by the enlightening power of the Spirit ? 
 Even then who will receive him? Or shall he, as 
 Paul believed, " descend from heaven with a shout, 
 with the voice of the archangel, and with the 
 trump of God " ? And if he should thus appear, 
 unless the occasion should be the final day of 
 
260 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 earth, except those who saw it, who would believe 
 the tale ? 
 
 The repeated statements of the Christ are that 
 he should come in that generation ; and the angels 
 at his ascension say that he should come in the 
 same quiet way in which he ascended, — he " shall 
 so come in like manner as ye have seen him go 
 into heaven." As a spiritual body, spiritually. 
 
 All these promises were fulfilled, both in the 
 time and in the circumstances under which they 
 were promised ; and they are still in process, and 
 will so continue until the end of the world. 
 
 Christ's second coming was to be with power, 
 but quietly, even as he ascended into heaven, 
 without noise or violence. It was to come as a 
 thief in the night, without observation, at such an 
 hour as ye think not of; and in that generation, 
 some of those standing around him should see 
 that day. 
 
 They did see that day. All the conditions were 
 fulfilled in the result of Peter's preaching on the 
 Day of Pentecost, when " about three thousand " 
 acknowledged their belief in Jesus as the Christ ; 
 a larger number of disciples, probably, than Christ 
 had in the whole course of his first coming. The 
 day came with power; it came quietly, without 
 noise or violence ; and in that generation. Even 
 the apostles did not recognize it ; it came without 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 261 
 
 observation ; it was the dawn of a glorious day, 
 continued and enlarged in the increasing number 
 of believers ; a day that under all circumstances, 
 and against all impediments, has continued to 
 grow brighter and brighter, and more and more 
 glorious, and will so continue until " the kingdoms 
 of this world are become the kingdoms of our 
 Lord and of his Christ." 
 
 So, too, his promises, that where two or three 
 are met together in his name, there he is in the 
 midst of them, and the promise to be with them 
 alway, even unto the end of the world, are daily 
 and hourly fulfilled. In all Christian countries, 
 and in all meetings of Christians, everywhere, 
 Christ is with them in their thought and conver- 
 sation. The books, the newspapers, the literature 
 of Christian countries, directly and indirectly, 
 speak of him ; his influence surrounds us as an 
 atmosphere; he permeates our thoughts and 
 actions, consciously or unconsciously. Two or 
 three cannot meet together in his name, but he 
 is in the midst of them, in the influence of his 
 life, his teachings and death, and, above all, in his 
 resurrection. Not only in God do we live and 
 move and have our being, but in the Christ we 
 live and move and have our being as Christians. 
 He is our life. His personal re-appearance we can 
 see is impossible, or, if possible, would be without 
 
262 ABTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 effect ; he would again be despised and rejected 
 of men. Spiritually he comes again in the holy 
 lives and conversations of his true disciples, and 
 wherever and whenever his gospel is made known. 
 His real material second coming is in the re-pro- 
 mulgation of his revelation, stripped of the incrus- 
 tation of hatred, superstition, bigotry, and dogma, 
 which fifteen hundred years of spiritual ignorance 
 have cumulated upon it. 
 
 TBI! CHRIST AN ENIGMA. 
 
 Throughout the New Testament, we see the 
 constant non-conceptions or the misconceptions 
 of the Christ's teachings, not only by the Jews 
 generally, but also by his disciples. Jesus spake 
 to them in the language of the Spirit, which to 
 them, until their spiritual enlightenment, was 
 unintelligible. Their idea of the "kingdom of 
 God," or the "kingdom of heaven," was earthly; 
 his was spiritual. Their idea of God was as 
 Jehovah, their national deity ; his was as the 
 Father of the whole human race. They believed 
 in their God as a person, like unto a man, but 
 more powerful. The Christ proclaimed him to be 
 a spirit. They worshipped their God in burnt 
 offerings of animals, and fragrant woods and 
 spices. The Christ taught *that God should be 
 worshipped in spirit and truth. 
 
OTHER CHBI8TIAN SUBJECTS. 263 
 
 The Jews believed that Abraham had talked 
 familiarly with God, and had even argued with 
 him to save the doomed cities; and that Jacob 
 had wrestled all day with God. This belief had 
 led them to look upon Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob 
 as men above the common type, and, for that 
 reason, the favored of God. Moses was not so 
 highly favored : he was permitted to see only his 
 " hinder part " as he passed by. 
 
 This personality of Jehovah was so strongly 
 implanted, that the statement of the Christ — that 
 God is a spirit — passed unheeded. 
 
 When the Christ spoke of God as our Father, 
 the idea was incomprehensible even to the disci- 
 ples. We see the dazed way in which they say 
 to him, " Show us the Father, and it sufficeth us." 
 Who or what the Father was, they did not yet 
 comprehend ; and Jesus' answer to this request 
 must have still more puzzled them. 
 
 It was the same in his frequent conversations 
 with the Jews. They believed in Jehovah, and 
 that his son, the conquering Messiah, would come 
 to earth ; but they never thought of calling them- 
 selves sons of Jehovah. The thought even was 
 sacrilege. They had Abraham for their father; 
 that was distinction enough. The terms "my 
 Father," "your Father," were so distasteful to 
 the Jews, that the Christ often changed them 
 
264 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 to " the Father," as less offensive, more especially 
 in his frequent conversations with the priests and 
 scribes at Jerusalem; but without effect. The 
 Jewish mind could not get beyond Jehovah ; he 
 was their God, and the Christ would be his son ; 
 and he would come with such evidences of power 
 and might, and such credentials, as could not be 
 mistaken. As for this Jesus of Nazareth, who 
 pretended to be the Messiah, all knew of his par- 
 entage, and whence he came. What were his 
 miracles, compared with those which would accom- 
 pany the appearance of the real Christ, the son of 
 the almighty Jehovah? The claim of Jesus was 
 preposterous and blasphemous. 
 
 With these opposite ideas and habits of thought, 
 the Christ's claims and teachings were enigmas 
 to both his disciples and the Jews. He was 
 speaking for the future instruction of his disciples 
 in all ages; until they obtain the spiritual key, 
 none can understand him. 
 
 See his conversation with Nicodemus upon 
 being born again. His claim, "No man hath 
 ascended up into heaven, but he that came down 
 from heaven, even the Son of man which is in 
 heaven," to them was a paradox. The "living 
 water " that he could give the woman of Samaria, 
 which should be " a well of water springing up 
 into everlasting life," to her was still a myth. 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 265 
 
 The daring claim made, that he was the Son of 
 Jehovah ; the statement that " my Father worketh 
 hitherto, and I work ; " and the long argument 
 he presents to substantiate his claim as he spake 
 now of Jehovah, and now of the Father, — must 
 have greatly puzzled them. 
 
 So, too, in Capernaum he says, " I am the living 
 bread which came down from heaven. If any 
 man eat of this bread, he shall live forever ; and 
 the bread I will give is my flesh, which I will give 
 for the life of the world." Is it any wonder that 
 "the Jews therefore strove among themselves, 
 saying. How can this man give us his flesh to eat? 
 And many of his disciples said, This is an hard 
 saying ; who can hear it?" And the record states, 
 " From that time many of his disciples went back, 
 and walked no more with him." 
 
 At another time, he says, " My doctrine is not 
 mine, but his that sent me. If any man shall do 
 his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether 
 it be of God, or whether I speak of myself." His 
 sayings so puzzled the people, that they said, 
 " Thou hast a devil." Again he cries unto them, 
 " He that believeth on me, . . . out of his belly 
 shall flow rivers of living water." He calls him- 
 self " the light of the world ; he that foUoweth me 
 shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the 
 light of life." He says, " The Father that sent 
 
266 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 me beareth witness of me. Then said they unto 
 him, Where is thy Father?" To this query he 
 vouchsafes no answer but the assertion, "Ye 
 neither know me, nor my Father." 
 
 He holds a long argument with the Jews, almost 
 acrimonious in its character, every statement of 
 which would to them be a riddle. " I go my way ; 
 and ye shall seek me, and shall die in your sins. 
 Whither I go, ye cannot come." Then said the 
 Jews, Will he kill himself? He goes on: "Ye 
 are from beneath ; I am from above. Ye are of 
 this world ; I am not of this world. ... If ye 
 believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins. 
 They say unto him. Who art thou ? Jesus saith 
 unto them. Even the same that I said unto you 
 from the beginning." He further says, " I speak 
 that which I have seen with my Father, and ye 
 do that which ye have seen with your father. . . . 
 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of 
 your father ye will do. . . . He that is of God 
 heareth God's words ; ye therefore hear them not, 
 because ye are not of God. Then answered the 
 Jews, and said unto him. Say we not well, that 
 thou art a Samaritan, and hast a devil?" He 
 then proceeds, changing the subject : " If a man 
 keep my saying, he shall never see death." The 
 Jews answer, "Now we know that thou hast a 
 devil. Abraham is dead, and the prophets. . . . 
 
OTREB CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 267 
 
 Art thou greater than our father Abraham, which 
 is dead? and the prophets are dead. Whom 
 makest thou thyself? Jesus answered, It is my 
 Father that honoreth me ; of whom ye say that he 
 is your God ; yet ye have not known him ; but I 
 know him, and if I should say I know him not, 
 I shall be a liar like unto you. . . . Your father 
 Abraham rejoiced to see my day, and he saw it, and 
 was glad. Then said the Jews unto him. Thou 
 art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen 
 Abraham ? Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, 
 I say unto you. Before Abraham was, I am ; " a 
 statement in their view perfectly astounding. 
 
 The Christ at another time utters this paradox : 
 " For judgment I am come into this world ; that 
 they which see not, might see; and that they 
 which see might be made blind. And some of 
 the Pharisees which were with him heard these 
 words, and said unto him. Are we blind also? 
 Jesus said unto them. If ye were blind, ye should 
 have no sin ; but now ye say. We see ; therefore 
 your sin remaineth." He then likens himself to 
 the Good Shepherd, and claims to have the power 
 " of laying down his life, and of taking it again." 
 And " many of them said. He hath a devil, and is 
 mad." Again, he claims the power of giving 
 eternal life to those who believe on him ; and that 
 he and his Father were one. "Then the Jews 
 
268 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 took up stones to stone him." Again, speaking 
 of his death, Jesus says, " And I, if I be lifted 
 up from the earth, will draw all men unto me. 
 The people answered him, We have heard, out 
 of the law, that Christ abideth forever ; and how 
 sayest thou, The Son of man must be lifted up ? 
 Who is this Son of man ? " We see their utter 
 want of conception of his teachings. This ques- 
 tion, like many others, he does not answer ; but 
 advises them to walk in the light. 
 
 We see all through, that his disciples under- 
 stood him as little as did the Jews. In his last 
 talk with them, he says, " A little while, and ye 
 shall not see me ; and again a little while, and 
 ye shall see me ; because I go to my Father ; " 
 and his disciples say, " What is this that he saith, 
 a little while ? we cannot tell what he saith." He 
 finally tells them, however, " These things have I 
 spoken to you in proverbs , but the time cometh 
 when I shall no more speak to you in proverbs, 
 but I shall show you plainly of the Father." 
 
 THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 
 
 This enlightening and spiritual power and 
 influence, known to us as the Holy Spirit, has 
 been exhibited in various ways, at different 
 periods of the world's history, in accordance with 
 the necessities of the times and occasions, — by 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 269 
 
 Moses, in exhibitions of its power over nature's 
 laws in certain directions; by Joshua, and occa- 
 sionally by others of the Hebrew heroes and 
 soldiers, and by Elijah and Elisha, in other direc- 
 tions ; by the prophets, in the revelation of future 
 events, and in their higher and purer revelations 
 of God ; and by the Christ, in his full revelation of 
 the Deity, the good tidings of great joy. 
 
 This Holy Spirit was also given in a modified 
 form to the apostles. Dull and unspiritual as they 
 were as disciples, — learners, — after the Christ's 
 resurrection, he no longer addressed them "in 
 proverJbs," but, as he had promised, spake to 
 them "plainl}^ of the Father." After his ascen- 
 sion, they received the gift of the Holy Spirit. 
 Their minds having been enlightened by the 
 Christ respecting the object and character of his 
 mission, they could go back in thought to his teach- 
 ings ; and, under the new light breaking in upon 
 them, the meaning and intent of his words dawned 
 upon them. What was before dark and obscure 
 became bright with the light of the Spirit. Their 
 minds were enlarged by this spiritual birth ; and, 
 as the extent and grandeur of their mission grew 
 upon them, they became new men, filled with the 
 Holy Ghost and with power. 
 
 Men have looked upon this power, as its results 
 have been recorded in the Bible, as if it were a 
 
270 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 strange and exceptional power; something used 
 in Bible times, for particular purposes, but lost 
 and unknown to man at the present time. This 
 is a mistake. At no time since the world began 
 (unless in early Aryan days) has this spiritual 
 power been so fully developed and so freely be- 
 stowed as in this nineteenth century, especially 
 during the past fifty years. In that time, man, by 
 the aid of this spiritual power, has boldly grasped 
 many natural laws, and forced them to obey his 
 will. What were the so-called miracles of Moses, 
 to the miracles created by the before-hidden powers 
 of steam and electricity? What the power wielded 
 by Joshua, Elijah, and Elisha, to those exhibited 
 on every railroad, steamship, and factory? The 
 power exerted by mind over matter is every- 
 where seen and acknowledged. Let us give the 
 proper name to it, and say, the power of the spir- 
 itual over the natural. This power was known 
 to, and was acknowledged by, the early Aryas. 
 Let us do the same. 
 
 The idea that the apostles, because of their 
 companionship with Jesus, were specially enlight- 
 ened and pre-eminently fitted to teach the gospel 
 of good tidings, is false. For their day and gen- 
 eration, they were well fitted, because they were 
 the only ones that had, and could impart, the good 
 news ; but to-day not a minister of the gospel but 
 
OTHEE CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 271 
 
 has better means and opportunities of judging of 
 the teachings of the Christ, than had any one 
 of the apostles. 
 
 The Spirit enlarges not only the soul, that is, 
 the religious part of our nature, but it also 
 expands the intellect. We have four different 
 sources of knowledge respecting the teachings of 
 the Christ. They together give us a more com- 
 plete record than had either of the apostles of his 
 own personal knowledge. Our whole religious 
 natures have been enlarged, and our spiritual 
 training enables us to recognize more fully than 
 did the apostles the spiritual character and pur- 
 pose of his mission. 
 
 In the dark days of spiritual death, men, in 
 their ignorance and superstition passing by and 
 ignoring the teachings of the author and finisher 
 of our faith, formulated creeds and theologies 
 based upon misconceptions and wilful miscon- 
 structions of portions of the Hebrew scriptures, 
 modified or enlarged by utterances of one or other 
 of the apostles ; thus making the kingdom of God of 
 none effect by their traditions. 
 
 To-day the missionary who will go forth in the 
 name and as the disciple of his Master, to preach 
 the simple faith of the Christ, will go better pre- 
 pared and equipped, mentally and spiritually, to 
 spread the gospel of good tidings, than were the 
 
272 ARYA8, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 apostles of old for the work before them ; and 
 the J will promulgate a doctrine nearly as little 
 known in Christian countries, so called, as it is 
 in heathen lands. 
 
 Ye so-called Christians, awake from your leth- 
 argy and sin. Dig up the discarded teachings of 
 your Christ. Cleanse them from the pollutions 
 and stains of fifteen hundred years of ignorance, 
 bigotry, superstition, and crime ; and come forth 
 as believers in the Christ in whose name you 
 claim to live, and spread abroad in the names of 
 a loving Father, of an anointed and living Christ, 
 and an ever-present and enlightening Holy Spirit, 
 the good tidings of the kingdom of heaven, im- 
 mortal life, and the way. Thus shall the Christ 
 again appear ; and his second coming shall be with 
 greater power, and more glorious, than the first. 
 
 FALSE CHRISTIANITY, 
 
 In the course of a few hundred years after his 
 death, a great change had taken place in the 
 simple religion of the Christ. Adopted as the 
 national religion of Rome, it took on forms and 
 ceremonies incompatible with the teachings of its 
 founder. It grew into a religious tyranny, claim- 
 ing authority over the conscience of man in this 
 world, and power over his future well-being in 
 the world to come. 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 273 
 
 The monotheism taught by the Christ gradually 
 changed ; the Christ himself was robbed of his 
 humanity, and was clothed by the priestly hier- 
 archy with the powers of the Deity. The holy 
 spirit of God was personified; and the two, as 
 gods, were added to the being of the Deity, the 
 three being made one godhead ; the Deity being 
 thus transformed into a three-one, a triune God, 
 a contradiction of terms which the mind of man 
 cannot comprehend, whose incomprehensibility is 
 hidden under the mask of a " holy mystery." 
 
 This change in the constitution and being of 
 the Infinite was accompanied by a corresponding 
 change in man's idea of God ; and the " Father " was 
 hidden from view, by the greater prominence given 
 to the Son as the lover and Saviour of mankind. 
 
 In the breaking-up of the great Roman Empire, 
 and the continuous wars which for hundreds of 
 3^ears convulsed Europe and Western Asia, the 
 Christian religion rapidly declined, and ignorance 
 and superstition took its place. These wars, with 
 the frequent irruptions of the Goths, Vandals, 
 and other Northern hordes, and the inroads of the 
 Huns, with the later uprising and spread of the 
 Saracenic and Arabian power, in the course of a 
 thousand years almost entirely destroyed the 
 Christian religion; and the Aryan race, for the 
 third time, slept the sleep of ignorance. 
 
274 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 During this time the Church, as it was called, 
 concentrated its power, and enlarged its scope. 
 Working upon the superstitions of men, in the 
 general ignorance which prevailed, it wielded a 
 power over their lives and consciences before 
 unknown. Outside of the monasteries and the 
 dignitaries of the Christian Church, there were 
 few, even of the nobles, who could read or write ; 
 many of the priests were equally ignorant with 
 the people. The simple teachings of the Christ 
 had, even in its earlier days, been contaminated 
 by the additions of heathen rites and ceremonies, 
 and hidden by numerous theological tests and 
 requirements ; to these had now been added the 
 debasing use of power obtained over the fears and 
 superstitions of men, by bold claims of spiritual 
 control over their souls, by reason of apostolic 
 descent from the Apostle Peter, to whom, it was 
 claimed, the keys of heaven were intrusted by the 
 Christ, and through which descent, the Pope, or 
 highest officer of the Church, had obtained the 
 authority of deciding the future destiny of the 
 soul, in accordance with his individual will. 
 
 This power was not only wielded by the Pope, 
 but the most ignorant priest of the time claimed 
 by reason of his office, and the power bestowed 
 upon him by the Pope, the same control over the 
 future of the nominal Christians about him. 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 275 
 
 In this long period of intellectual and spiritual 
 decline in Europe, many of the arts and sciences 
 of Aryan civilization were lost. The nations de- 
 clined into barbarism, but little above that of 
 savages ; violence and crime took the place of law 
 and order ; every man's hand was against his 
 neighbors, and might made right. 
 
 In the mean time Asia advanced rapidly in civ- 
 ilization and wealth. Arabia became the deposi- 
 tory of the learning and knowledge of the world ; 
 and for the second time the Semite received the 
 Aryan civilization, which it retained for five or 
 six hundred years, when it was again placed in 
 the hands of the Aryas. 
 
 It was during this, a period well called the 
 "dark ages," that there arose in Europe a false 
 Christianity : a theology that cannot be equalled 
 in any heathen country in the superstitious 
 ferocity of its teachings, in the inhumanity of the 
 God of its worship, and in the savage cruelty of 
 the God it fears, but pretends not to worship. 
 
 Believing the Bible to be one book written by 
 authority of God, and all parts of equal weight 
 and value, they took from the initial book of the 
 worn-out and cast-away Hebrew Scriptures an 
 Eastern symbolical story of the spiritual advance 
 of Adam and Eve. The Deity had planted a 
 garden in Eden, in which he placed every thing 
 
276 ABYA8, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 for the use and pleasure of man, at the same time 
 placing in one corner thereof two remarkable 
 trees. The fruit of one would give unto the eater 
 spiritual glory; the fruit of the other would 
 confer eternal youth. 
 
 In this garden God placed Adam and Eve to 
 take care of, and eat, the fruit thereof. 
 
 For a time these trees were unseen ; but when 
 noticed, Adam and Eve were afraid to partake of 
 the fruit, for fear they were poisonous. At this 
 point of the story. Wisdom appears in the form of 
 a serpent, and advises Eve to eat of the fruit 
 of the tree of knowledge, saying to her that she 
 need not be afraid ; that the fruit was not poison- 
 ous, and would not injure her : on the contrary, 
 it would be exhilarating, healthy, invigorating, 
 and strengthening to the body, would enlighten 
 the understanding, and give clear mental vision. 
 
 Thus advised, tempted by the beauty of the 
 fruit and by her desire to obtain greater knowl- 
 edge, she, with her husband, partook of the fruit, 
 with the result foretold by Wisdom. Their spir- 
 itual eyes were opened. They saw that many of 
 their former practices, under the new light they 
 had received, were evil^ and conscience called 
 upon them to reform and do better. The con- 
 tinual eating of the fruit gave them a knowledge 
 of better ways; and now, too, they see the 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS, 277 
 
 tree of eternal youth, and long to partake thereof, 
 but are prevented from so doing except under 
 certain conditions imposed by the Deity. For 
 what they have already done in partaking of the 
 fruit of the tree of knowledge, God speaks in 
 approbation, and likens them to himself in their 
 ability to choose between good and evil. He will 
 not permit them to partake of the fruit of the tree 
 of life, except as the reward for services rendered. 
 
 This beautiful little Eastern apologue fell into 
 the hands of men without imagination, and igno- 
 rant of Oriental symbolism ; and, instead of look- 
 ing for its hidden meaning, they seized upon it as 
 a matter of fact ; perverted it from its plain teach- 
 ing by changing the serpent from a symbol of 
 wisdom into Satan, a god of evil ; made the fruit 
 of the tree of knowledge poisonous; ignored the 
 fact that it was recorded as giving the knowledge 
 of ffood as well as evil, and made the results of 
 eating of it as wholly evil, — a source of degrada- 
 tion and sin ; turned the curse of the earth for 
 Adam's sake^ his benefit, into a curse upon Adam 
 himself; ignored the praise of God, and shut out 
 the tree of eternal youth to all mankind. 
 
 In addition, they claimed that Adam, in eating 
 of the fruit of the tree of knowledge, had trans- 
 gressed a law of God ; and that, in so doing, he 
 had fallen from a state of innocence into sin ; and 
 
278 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 that this sin of Adam was entailed as a disease on 
 all his race. 
 
 This transformation of the symbolical tale of 
 spiritual advance, into a story of degradation, sin, 
 and shame, shutting out man forever from par- 
 taking of the fruit of the tree of eternal youth, 
 led to views of the Creator necessarily degrading. 
 Either the Deity, after all his long and careful 
 work in preparing this earth for the use and 
 enjoyment of his children, had unexpectedly come 
 in contact with another god, of whose existence 
 he was not previously aware, who proved to be 
 his superior in power, and who took forcible pos- 
 session of his children ; or, knowing of the exist- 
 ence of this powerful god, he carelessly left Adam 
 and Eve, the children of his love, without warning 
 them of their danger, or teaching them how to 
 escape the peril which threatened them. 
 
 Both of these conceptions of God were too 
 belittling, and they advanced a bolder but more 
 cruel hypothesis ; namely, that God created Satan 
 as his servant, and the minister of his wrath, at 
 the same time creating hell, filled with eternal fire 
 and innumerable instruments of torture, with devils 
 without number to aid in tormenting his children 
 who had disobeyed, or who should disobey, his will. 
 
 This hypothesis they made the basis of a the- 
 ology the most cruel, the most horrible, ever in- 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 279 
 
 vented by the imagination of man or devil. In it 
 the Deity is represented as placing Adam and 
 Eve, and all their innocent descendants, forever 
 in the hands of Satan and his imps, to remain for- 
 ever in torment, because of Adam's sin. What 
 a tremendous punishment for a trivial offence I 
 And this, not as a just punishment for wrong- 
 doing, but to gratify the vengeance and hate of 
 God. What blasphemy ! 
 
 For four thousand years or more, they claimed 
 this was done; and the Deity continually gave 
 life to children, only that they might be turned 
 over to the tormentors. At the end of that 
 period, the Christ, the Son of God, took compas- 
 sion on the sufferings of mankind, and earnestly 
 desired to save them from the certain and endless 
 doom that awaited them; and, at his earnest 
 request, the Father consented that he might take 
 upon himself the form and nature of man, and 
 undergo in his person the full punishment for the 
 sins of the world, thereby relieving man from the 
 doom before placed upon him by God. This was 
 done, and the Christ suffered on the cross for the 
 sins of all mankind. 
 
 Instead, however, of the sacrifice of the Christ 
 freeing mankind from their sufferings, the only 
 effect was to relieve the few who, born in a coun- 
 try where the sacrifice of the Christ was known, 
 
280 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS, 
 
 should accept that sacrifice as an atonement for 
 their sins, and thus be saved from the hands of 
 Satan. Thus was the Christ cheated out of the 
 fruits of his sacrifice ; and where one is saved by 
 his act, a thousand are plunged into hell through 
 ignorance of the work done by the Christ. 
 
 According to this theology, the Deity, instead 
 of being our Father, is made a vengeful and hate- 
 ful being, too horrible to look at, and withal de- 
 ceitful in withholding from the Christ the reward 
 for his suffering and pain. 
 
 This foul satire on the religion of the Christ, 
 originating in the foul imaginations of men, de- 
 graded by ignorance and superstition, received 
 from the Romish Church, and indorsed by the 
 Protestant Church, was formed into a mathemati- 
 cal system by Calvin. In this form it was forced 
 upon man by burning, torture, and death, and 
 became so firmly fixed, that to-day almost the 
 entire Christian body intellectually or supersti- 
 tiously assent to the theology; while in their 
 hearts thousands disbelieve, and show in their 
 happy lives and conversation their entire disbelief, 
 in this fiendish theology. 
 
 The great achievement of false Christianity was 
 the placing of reason under a ban. The triune 
 God was a great mystery, incomprehensible to 
 finite minds, and beyond the power of reason 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 281 
 
 to explain. Christians were, consequently, re- 
 quired to believe it as belonging to the infinite. 
 
 It is no wonder that in the dark ages, those 
 days of carnage and murder, of might against 
 right, those days of all manner of iniquity, — that 
 their religion should be of the same nature: it 
 could not be otherwise. It was impossible for the 
 religion of the Christ to live in such blackness of 
 ignorance, superstition, and despair. But, provi- 
 dentially, the record of the Christ's teaching was 
 not lost : in monasteries, the work of pious men 
 saved the records ; these we now have, and by 
 them we can judge this detestable religion which 
 for so long a time has falsely born the name of 
 Christian. 
 
 As it has always been, the God worshipped by 
 man is a reflex image of himself. In old times, 
 men tried to give shape to the god of their ima- 
 ginations, in images of wood, stone, or metal ; in 
 later times, they have embodied it in dogma and 
 creed. 
 
 To-day, every minister holds up to his audience 
 the God of his sect or denomination to be wor- 
 shipped ; and we have the Calvinistic, the Metho- 
 dist, the Orthodox, the Catholic, the Baptist, and 
 other Gods, each being the same false God of a 
 false Christianity, clad in a different dress, and 
 each claiming the exclusive indorsement of the 
 
282 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 Christ ; and the individual man, led by men 
 equally as spiritually blind as himself, accepts 
 one of these images as the truthful image of our 
 God and Father revealed by the Christ. These 
 images, which bear the likeness of nothing in 
 heaven above, or in the earth beneath, or in the 
 v^aters under the earth, are accepted by these 
 deluded men ; and thousands to-day worship these 
 medisBval gods in ignorance of their true character. 
 
 The general distribution of the Bible in the 
 last two hundred years has greatly enlightened 
 and ameliorated these so-called Christian dogmas. 
 The teachings of the Christ have been received 
 into the hearts of many whose love for humanity 
 was greater than was the love of their theological 
 god ; their hearts have swelled with the desire to 
 alleviate suffering; and they have exerted them- 
 selves for the salvation of men from the eternal 
 torture they believed awaited them. Cruel and 
 revengeful laws have been annulled ; the slave 
 has been made free ; prisons have been governed 
 with more humanity ; hospitals, homes for the 
 poor, and institutions of charity, have arisen under 
 this influence. 
 
 Gradually the belief in the fatherhood and love 
 of God, and the brotherhood of man, is entering 
 into the heart, and is becoming embodied in the 
 lives of men; and the glorious evangel of the 
 
OTHER CnBISTIAN SUBJECTS. 283 
 
 Christ, in all its beauty and loveliness, is begin- 
 ning to dawn ; and mankind are making ready to 
 break the chains of bigotry and superstition which 
 have so long bound them, and are ready to leap 
 forward into the glad life and freedom of the king- 
 dom of God. 
 
 LOYALTY TO GOB. 
 
 The Christ, in announcing the law of love to 
 God, claims as his due the whole power, energy, 
 and being of man. Love and loyalty are almost 
 synonymous terms. A man shows his love for his 
 country by his willingness to suffer, and, if needs 
 be, die for it, as has been shown by hundreds of 
 thousands, in all ages and countries. So Chris- 
 tianity has its roll of hundreds of thousands who 
 have shown their love and loyalty by suffering and 
 death. While the emblem of loyalty, in the one 
 case, was the flag of their country, the emblem in 
 the other case, for both Catholic and Protestant, 
 was the same cross of the Christ. That is tlie 
 symbol which unites all Christian sects and de- 
 nominations. In both of these cases, they gave 
 the whole heart, soul, mind, and strength, to the 
 accomplishment of their object, in loyalty to their 
 country or their God. 
 
 This loyalty God requires at all times. " Thou 
 shalt have no other gods before me," he says. 
 You may have other gods, but they shall be 
 
284 ARYA8, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 secondary, subsidiary. To the Deity belongs the 
 first place ; none shall be superior to or preferred 
 before him. If any other god is given the prefer- 
 ence, He leaves entirely, and cannot be approached 
 until the offending god has been removed. He 
 will not listen to the prayers, or answer the re- 
 quests, of those who dethrone him from his supreme 
 place in their heart and lives. To those who are 
 loyal to him, he is ever present, upholding and 
 supporting them in all circumstances, and com- 
 forting them under all trials and afflictions. For 
 instance : — 
 
 One makes Ambition his god ; working for 
 political power and fame, using every means to 
 advance his personal popularity, giving his life 
 and strength to that one object, without one 
 thought of the God who made him, whose child 
 he is, who gave him his exceptional powers to be 
 used for the benefit of his fellow-men, instead of 
 using them for his own base and selfish ends. 
 These powers used in subjection to, and under the 
 guidance of, the Deity, for the well-being of man, 
 would have made the possessor a benefactor of 
 his race ; but, used for selfish ends, they become 
 a burden and a snare to their possessor. 
 
 Others make Wealth their god, unmindful of 
 their obligations to the God who gave them 
 being. They work day and nighty use every 
 
OTHER CHBI8TIAN SUBJECTS. 285 
 
 means, fair or foul, to accomplish their selfish 
 ends, without thought of or care for the rights 
 of others. They grasp every thing within their 
 reach, until finally they have attained their ends ; 
 they have wealth in abundance, but they are un- 
 able to enjoy it. They have become the slaves of 
 the god of their worship ; and he requires of them 
 unceasing labor, that they may retain the wealth 
 so basely accumulated, and they find no rest. In 
 thus spending their lives, they have lost their own 
 souls ; when they think they can begin to enjoy 
 their ill-gotten gains, they are called upon to give 
 them up, and they pass to their place without a 
 single coin of the realm to carry with them. 
 Poor, poor indeed, is such a man, without God or 
 heaven. Such is the terrible state of the man who 
 makes wealth his god. 
 
 When he can no longer use it himself, he some- 
 times attempts to make terms with the Deity by 
 dedicating a portion to charitable purposes ; forget- 
 ting that the wealth is not his own, but held by 
 him simply as trustee or almoner of the Deity. 
 " The silver and the gold are mine, saith the Lord." 
 If he wishes to do good with it, let him dispose of 
 it while living, and thereby, perhaps, gain the true 
 coin of the realm, namely, love to God and man, 
 the only coin man can take with him to the world 
 beyond. 
 
286 ARTAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 A common source of trouble, and perhaps the 
 most pardonable, is the deification of Childeen. 
 Parents receiving a child from God forget the 
 hand that gave it, and place their affections 
 entirely on the child. They watch over it with 
 jealous care ; nothing is too good for it, and noth- 
 ing must be denied it. The father works for it, 
 the mother spends for it. As it grows, it becomes 
 a tyrant ruling over both, and they become its 
 willing slaves. Should it be taken away, then is 
 their desolation complete. They have put the 
 child in the place of God, and now in their trou- 
 bles they cannot find him ; he has left them to 
 their god, and he is dead, and they are comfort- 
 less. 
 
 Others, again, make the Senses their god. 
 They are in the enjoyment of exuberant health. 
 They enjoy the beauties of nature, the sea, moun- 
 tain, and forest; to ride, to walk, is happiness. 
 They enjoy the beauty and fragrance of the flow- 
 ers ; the fruits in their season delight their taste ; 
 the birds make melody in their ears, and they 
 revel in creature enjoyments. In their young 
 manhood, every thing is delightful. God has 
 filled the earth with loveliness, for the use and 
 pleasure of his children. Forgetting the Author 
 and Giver of these good things, they make these 
 and other sensual pleasures the object of their 
 
OTHER CimiSTlAN SUBJECTS. 287 
 
 lives, and thus become the slaves of their senses. 
 Animal pleasures soon pall ; without God there is 
 no such thing as happiness ; and man seeks in new 
 and forbidden paths some new source of delight ; 
 and thus palled, satiated, and dead to all high 
 aims, he finally grovels in the dead waste of drunk- 
 enness and despair, a victim to the god of the 
 senses. 
 
 One of the saddest, and, owing to the generally 
 high social standing of the votaries, perhaps the 
 most dangerous in its influence on others, is the 
 god of the Intellect. We find scientists, pro- 
 fessors in our colleges and institutions of learning, 
 physicians, and even those claiming to be minis- 
 ters of the gospel, who have exalted the intellect 
 to the position of supreme god ; who, in bowing 
 down and worshipping this god of the intellect, 
 have dwarfed their whole being. Unable to find 
 God by their scientific tests, or measure him with 
 their yard-sticks, they almost doubt his existence ; 
 they cannot hear, see, touch, taste, or smell him ; 
 and, bewildered, they doubt. Their reason tells 
 them there must be a first cause for what they see 
 around them, but it does not give them light. 
 The things of the spirit are spiritually discerned ; 
 the intellect cannot reach so high. These votaries 
 of the intellect grope in darkness and blindness 
 for a first cause, and we see them carried away by 
 
288 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 every fresh intellectual craze, and seeking in vain 
 for rest. 
 
 In these instances, we see the danger of placing 
 any other god in the place of the Supreme Being, 
 whose children we are, and who demands the first 
 place in our affections. His coramand is essential 
 for our welfare, and we cannot disobey without 
 great injury to ourselves. 
 
 All these gods, as subsidiary to the Supreme 
 God, are deities of beneficence, and, under the 
 guidance of Omnipotence, shower down blessings 
 on the heads of their votaries ; but, elected to the 
 supreme place, they become veritable demons; 
 their blessings are turned into curses, and their 
 votaries become their degraded and miserable 
 slaves. 
 
 TffE SECOND GARDEN OF EDEN. 
 
 For four thousand years after the deluge, the 
 Aryas again slept the sleep of animal existence, 
 having fallen from the former position so far, that 
 they were but little in advance of their earlier 
 brothers when they threw off their nomadic hab- 
 its and life. Again they entered the Garden of 
 Eden, which was not now the peninsula of Hin- 
 dostan, but the world; and again were they re- 
 quired " to dress it and to keep it." 
 
 In the persons of the Persians, the Greeks, and 
 the Romans, they again adopted civilization, and 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 289 
 
 gradually took up the arts and sciences which 
 they had so long before laid down. 
 
 Jesus, the Christ, revealed to them for the sec- 
 ond time the tree of knowledge, and showed 
 unto them the tree of life. Again did they par- 
 take of the fruit of the tree of knowledge. God 
 and his laws were again made known to them, 
 and they were enabled to judge between good and 
 evil; and again they recognized the tree of life, 
 and saw clearly the way. 
 
 Again the Aryan learned that the serpent of 
 temptation must be placed under his feet, that his 
 animal instincts must be placed in subjection, and 
 used for the happiness of man and the glory of 
 God the Father. 
 
 Again God rescued the woman from the degra- 
 dation of the animal, and placed her in the arms 
 of man as a helpmeet for him, and waits to hear 
 for the second time the acknowledgment of Adam, 
 that woman, whom he has honored by choosing 
 her as the transmitter of his life, the mother and 
 teacher of all his children, is " the mother of all 
 living." 
 
 Through the Christ they have again obtained a 
 knowledge of a life beyond, of an immortality for 
 which they long, and which makes the loveliness 
 and grandeur of this present world grow dim 
 before the glories of the eternal world in view. 
 
290 ABYASy SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 This tree of life is still guarded from seizure by 
 the flaming sword of God's requirements ; it is 
 still in his hands, and both God and Christ unite 
 in showing unto man that the only way to obtain 
 its fruit is to do his will. 
 
 Again has God taught the Aryas that all men 
 are his children, the objects of his care and love ; 
 that, while man is the father of the fleshly body 
 which perishes, he is the Father of the spiritual 
 body which has the power to live forever. 
 
 God has for the second time placed in the 
 hands of the Aryan race the destinies of mankind. 
 Again they have passed, or are passing, through 
 the early experiences depicted in the allegory. 
 By observing these they can trace the progress of 
 this their second trial, mark the steps already 
 taken, and those yet in the future. May they 
 take warning, and not follow in the decline and 
 fall of their fathers ! 
 
 Eighteen hundred years have passed since Jesus 
 the Christ revealed to the Aryan race for the 
 second time the tree of knowledge and the tree 
 of life ; yet how few of those calling themselves 
 Christians have partaken freely of the fruit of 
 the tree of knowledge, or seen in all its beauty 
 the tree of life ! 
 
 God required the Aryas to dress and keep the 
 garden: yet they have allowed it to be overrun 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 291 
 
 with foul and pestiferous weeds, and its paths to 
 be obstructed by filth and debris. The foul and 
 baleful tree of false Christianity has grown tri- 
 umphantly, and almost hid from sight both the tree 
 of the knowledge of good and evil, and the tree 
 of life ; its interlacing branches have presented 
 an almost impenetrable barrier; year after year 
 it has ripened, and sent broadcast its poisonous 
 fruits of religious fanaticism, self-righteousness, 
 uncharitableness, intolerance, persecution, and 
 death. The rank weeds of religious hate and 
 animosity have grown up around it, the tangled 
 vines of bigotry and superstition obstruct the 
 way, and the thorny hedges of sect and dogma 
 prevent advance. 
 
 Yet every year there have been a few who 
 have pierced through all these obstructions, and 
 obtained the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of 
 good and evil, and have seen in all its beauty and 
 freshness the tree of life ; and through them we 
 know the trees are still there, and can be reached 
 by those who are earnest and persevering. 
 
 It is the first duty of the Aryas to remove the 
 hedges of sect and dogma, to clear up the tangled 
 vines of bigotry and superstition, eradicate the 
 weeds of religious hate and animosity, and to dig 
 up and destroy utterly the tree of false Christian- 
 ity, that it may no more bring forth its baleful 
 
292 ARTA8, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 fruit for the poisoning of the nations. They 
 should also remove and cast out the pestiferous 
 weeds of ignorance, and the filth and debris cast 
 from the dry branches of old and dead faiths 
 which obstruct the paths of the garden, that the 
 tree of knowledge may be easily reached, and its 
 fruit freely partaken of, and that the tree of life, 
 and the way thereof, may be seen and recognized 
 of all. Then shall the Aryas be able to go into 
 all the world, proclaiming to all nations the glad 
 evangel of the love and fatherhood of God, the 
 brotherhood of man, the kingdom, law, or govern- 
 ment of heaven, the immortal life, and the way to 
 obtain it. 
 
 For five hundred years the Aryan race had 
 ruled the civilized world. The Hamite race of 
 Egypt had sunk into its original insignificance. 
 The Semites of the Euphrates Valley had become 
 merged in their conquerors. The Jews alone, of 
 all the inferior white races, still had a national 
 existence. They had accomplished the work for 
 which they had been created as a nation. They 
 had been the instrument in the hands of the Deity 
 to again bring forth his evangel ; but they were 
 not to promulgate it. They did not accept, but 
 rejected it, and crucified the man through whom 
 it was revealed. The obligation was not on the 
 Semites, but upon the Aryas, to " till the ground 
 from whence they were taken." 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 293 
 
 To give to all mankind this evangel now again 
 placed in their hands, is the duty still devolving 
 on the Aryas of to-day. Moved by the doctrine 
 of hate promulgated by Calvin, they have en- 
 deavored to save mankind from the eternal dam- 
 nation of hell. Are they ready to believe that 
 " God is love " ? that the love of man for his 
 fellow-man is but the faint reflection of the love 
 that God feels, and has shown in his creation for 
 his children, the offspring of his Spirit, and the 
 objects of his daily care ? 
 
 Can man believe that his desires to save his 
 brothers and sisters from the tortures of the 
 damned, are immeasurably surpassed by the desire 
 of the Deity to save them from the shame, anguish, 
 and torture of remorse, which will cause the guilty 
 soul to cry out for the rocks to cover him and 
 hide him from his own degradation and sin ? 
 Will the Aryan races of to-day promulgate his 
 evangel of love, that all mankind may know and 
 serve and love him ; that his will may indeed be 
 done on earth, even as it is in heaven ? 
 
 Aryas, the full revelation from God our Father 
 is in your hands. What say ye ? 
 
294 ARYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 THE COMPLETION OF THE SECOND REVELATION, AND THE 
 END OF THE JEWISH NATION. 
 
 It is difficult for us, surrounded as we are by 
 Christian influences and habits of thought, to 
 realize the ignorance, barbarism, religious fanati- 
 cism and bigotry, the hatreds and passions, of the 
 Jews at the Christian era. 
 
 At that time, by their continual intermarriages, 
 they had established a physiognomy and character 
 known and acknowledged by all ; which, by the 
 same process, they have continued to the present 
 time ; a face and character as distinct in type as 
 are the Chinese. 
 
 Let us take the Jews as they are to-day in 
 Europe and Asia; carry them back to their 
 isolated position as a nation in their own land, 
 instead of wanderers in strange lands; add to their 
 present characteristics, the gross ignorance and 
 fanaticism of the time mentioned, and this fanati- 
 cism increased by their hatred of heathen nations, 
 and by their belief in the brightness of their own 
 destiny. Even then, we can hardly conceive of 
 the rancor and bitter hate which they felt and 
 showed to their conquerors, and the pride with 
 which they looked down on all other nations. 
 
 More especially was this the case with the 
 higher classes ; the priests, the scribes, the Phari- 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 295 
 
 sees, the rich, the influential and learned. They 
 were proud and arrogant ; looking down upon the 
 poorer classes with haughty contempt, and upon 
 all other nations as heathen, worshippers of idols, 
 as people detested by Jehovah, and as doomed 
 sooner or later to become the bondmen and 
 servants of his chosen nation. 
 
 This hate was intensified by the expected advent 
 of the Christ, whose special mission was to free 
 them from the detested bonds of the Romans ; 
 establish the kingdom of heaven, or rule of 
 Jehovah, upon earth ; and place them, as the ruling 
 people, upon a pinnacle of power and glory. 
 
 For many years the hope and expectation of a 
 Messiah had reigned in their hearts, and now the 
 time had arrived for the fulfilment of the proph- 
 ecies. These prophecies they fully believed in 
 their earthly sense, and daily awaited the coming 
 of the promised Messiah with ever-increasing 
 impatience. The Roman yoke galled them the 
 more from their belief in its now short duration ; 
 and it led them to frequent outbursts of fnry, 
 accompanied by expressions of disdain and con- 
 tempt. These ebullitions of feeling, both private 
 and public, called forth the stern and retributive 
 action of the Romans. 
 
 With feelings and expectations so excited, we 
 can readily see with what contempt they would 
 
296 ARTASy SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 look upon the miracles of the Christ, with what 
 impatience and scorn they would hear of his claim 
 to be their Messiah. 
 
 What! this poor carpenter's son, a Nazarene, 
 followed by a rabble of the lowest class, fishermen 
 of Galilee, — their Messiah? their king? the 
 conqueror of the Romans ? Impossible ! Where 
 was his army ? - Where his mighty acts ? Where 
 were the signs of his power ? He might have the 
 power of miracle to a small extent ; he might be 
 a prophet ; he might be a forerunner of the Mighty 
 One : but he their Christ ? God forbid ! They 
 could not listen with patience to his pretensions. 
 
 It was impossible for the Jews, with their high- 
 wrought expectations of military power and glory, 
 of dominion and rule over the whole world, to 
 give up all their long-brooded schemes of revenge, 
 all their dreams of glory, all their ambitious 
 hopes, and listen to this minister of peace and 
 good-will, this preacher of righteousness, this 
 man who taught the forgiveness of enemies, the 
 returning of good for evil, the submission to and 
 patient endurance of wrong. Jesus, the Nazarene, 
 could not and should not be their Christ. The 
 Christ was to live and rule forever ; he could not 
 die. They would prove that he was not the 
 Christ, by putting him to death. 
 
 In the coming of the Christ, the destiny and 
 
OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS. 297 
 
 work of the Hebrew nation was completed. It had 
 been created for that purpose alone ; that purpose 
 accomplished, the Deity had no further use for 
 it, and the end came. The nation that crucified 
 the Christ could not live. 
 
 "He came unto his own, and his own received 
 him not ; but as many as received him, to them 
 gave he power to become the sons of God." 
 
 THE ESSENTIALS OF CHRISTIANITY. 
 
 It is very possible, that in the interval of time 
 between the utterance by the Christ of his teach- 
 ings, and the recording of them by the apostles, 
 while the most striking and important of them 
 would be firmly impressed on the memory, and be 
 recorded verbatim, other sayings would be varied 
 in their verbal construction, retaining the original 
 meaning only. In the process of translating, the 
 belief of the translator would color his translation, 
 and the careless or intentional changes of the copier 
 make other changes in the record. But, in all 
 essential points, the records coincide. 
 
 Leaving out the birth and childhood of Jesus 
 of Nazareth, and taking the record of his manhood 
 as Jesus the Christ, they agree on these points: 
 namely, that the Christ had extraordinary en- 
 lightenment and power; that he claimed to be the 
 Christ, and in proof referred unhesitatingly to the 
 
298 ABYAS, SEMITES AND JEWS. 
 
 miracles he performed as sustaining that claim, 
 and miracles in abundance are testified to by the 
 Evangelists ; that as the Christ he had been taught 
 of God, respecting what he should teach to man ; 
 that, being so taught, he proclaimed as the words 
 of God, the great and until then unsuspected 
 fact, that God was our Father, and we the children 
 of his love and care ; that there was a kingdom of 
 heaven and an eternal life which we might obtain 
 by doing his will. 
 
 They also concur in the statements, that this 
 Christ was publicly crucified on the cross ; that 
 on the third day he arose from the tomb, and was 
 seen of his disciples and others. This was also 
 testified to by his disciples unanimously. 
 
 The essential points of the Christ's teachings 
 are those mentioned above ; and the essential 
 points of his life are his crucifixion, and resurrec- 
 tion from the dead. 
 
 These things are not only recorded and testified 
 to by the Evangelists, but are also indorsed by all 
 the apostles in their public utterances. They are 
 the substance of the teachings of the apostles, 
 including Paul. These teachings dominate the 
 writings of the New Testament ; they are the woof 
 and warp thereof, and cannot be eliminated with- 
 out the destruction of the whole fabric. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 EAKLT CIVILIZATION IN THE EUPHRATES VALLEY. 
 
 Our previous volume ended with the dispersion of 
 the Aryas occupying the Euphrates Valley, as the 
 result of war with the Turanians. As yet we have 
 no historical records covering the time intervening 
 between that event and the call of Abram. Egyp- 
 tian history points to two events of moment which we 
 have related. We believe that future researches will 
 bring to light records confirming the truth of the 
 history revealed in the allegory. 
 
 In this Appendix we have given extracts from 
 various Assyriologists establishing the fact of an 
 advanced civilization, which must have existed thou- 
 sands of years previous to the reign of Sargon I., 
 B.C. 3800. 
 
 Professor Sayce says, "The Semitic conquest must 
 have been a gradual one. The evidence of language 
 shows, that, when the Semites first came into contact 
 with the civilization of Accad, they were mere desert 
 nomads, dwelling in tents, and wanting even the first 
 
300 APPENDIX. 
 
 elements of culture. These, however, they soon ac- 
 quired from their neighbors ; and, with the trading 
 instinct of their race, quickly made themselves indis- 
 pensable to the agricultural Accadians. Ur and the 
 other towns on the western bank of the Euphrates 
 were the earliest places in which they settled, but 
 they soon overflowed into the whole plain of Sumir 
 (Shinar)." 
 
 The date of the Semitic irruption is unknown ; but 
 as a Semitic king, Sargon I., was reigning B.C. 3800, 
 and at that time the Turanian language had become 
 nearly obsolete, it is apparent that the Semites must 
 have made their appearance within two or three hun- 
 dred years of the departure of the Aryas. Throwing 
 off their wandering habits, they adopted the manners 
 and customs of the Turanians, learning from them the 
 arts and sciences of civilization. Constant increase 
 from others of their race who also adopted a civilized 
 life gradually enlarged their numbers ; apparently they 
 intermarried with the Turanians ; and eventually, being 
 a superior, they became the ruling, race. The Tura- 
 nian language gradually died out, and was replaced by 
 the Semitic. 
 
 In absorbing the Turanian civilization, knowledge, 
 government, and religion, they also adopted many 
 Turanian civilized, technical, and scientific words and 
 names, — the same thing having been previously done 
 by the Turanians, when they learned of the Aryas 
 their arts and civilization. The Turanians gave to 
 
APPENDIX. 301 
 
 their rulers the title of "shepherds" or "shepherd 
 kings/' which title we find was adopted by the 
 Semites. 
 
 Professor Sayce, writing of what he calls the " primi- 
 tive population of Babylonia and Assyria," says, " they 
 belonged to a race which may have been allied to the 
 Turanian or Finno-Tartar. At all events, it spoke an 
 agglutinative language, which has many affinities with 
 those of the Ural-Altaic family. This primitive popu- 
 lation was supplanted by the Semites, — the Casdim, 
 or conquerors, of the Bible, — at some unknown period 
 before the second millennium B.C. 
 
 "Before the Semitic period, and before the earliest 
 period of which we have contemporaneous history^ the 
 Accadian character had been classified and arranged. 
 . . . From the earliest period, the literature of Chaldsea 
 was stored in public libraries. According to Brasus, 
 Pantibibla, or ' book town,' was one of the antedilu- 
 vian cities of Babylonia ; and Zisuthros (the Chaldaean 
 Noah) had buried his books at Sippara before the 
 flood."! 
 
 Not being aware of the existence of the Aryan race 
 in the Euphrates valley previous to the Turanian occu- 
 pancy, these writers have accredited to this nomad 
 
 1 Besides the Assyrian books specifically mentioned in this 
 Appendix, we have been indebted to Smith's " History of Baby- 
 lonia" and " Assyria from the Earliest Times," Budge's "Baby- 
 lonian Life and History," and Professor Sayce's " Fresh Light 
 from the Ancient Monuments." 
 
302 APPENDIX. 
 
 race the learning and civilization which they received 
 from the Aryas. This should be borne in mind in 
 reading the extracts relative to the early civilization 
 of this locality, as obtained from Assyrian sources. 
 *' Accadian " is a provisional name given by Assyriolo- 
 gists to the nation or nations preceding the Semites, 
 and should be held to designate the Aryan, as well as 
 the Turanian, race. 
 
 During the reign of Sargon I., B.C. 3800 (the 
 earliest monarch of the Semitic race yet known), 
 the Turanian language had died out, or become nearly 
 obsolete. 
 
 As all the learned works on astrology, astronomy, 
 magic, the hymns and prayers, in fact, most of the 
 literature of the people, were written in the Turanian 
 tongue, the king ordered the priests to gather together 
 from all the country the Turanian tablets and records, 
 caused many of them to be copied, and others to be 
 translated into the Semitic language, and gave direc- 
 tions for the completion of dictionaries, grammars, and 
 vocabularies, to aid in the study and understanding of 
 the language. 
 
 Professor Sayce, in ''Assyria, its Princes, Priests, 
 and People," says, " The Accadian standard work on 
 astronomy, the 'Observations of Bell,' was compiled 
 originally for the library of Sargon I. at Accad. It 
 treated of various matters, — eclipses of the sun and 
 moon, the conjunction of the sun and moon, the 
 phases of Venus and Mars, the position of the pole- 
 
APPENDIX. 303 
 
 star, the changes of the weather, the appearance of 
 comets, and the like. . . . The immense collection 
 of records of eclipses indicates the length of time 
 during which observations of the heavens had been 
 carried on. As it is generally stated whether a solar 
 eclipse had happened ' according to calculation ' or 
 ' contrary to calculation,' it is clear that the Baby- 
 lonians were acquainted at an early date with the 
 periodicity of eclipses of the sun." 
 
 Speaking of the cuneiform writing, he says, — 
 " The Accadians had been the inventors of the hiero- 
 glyphic, or pictorial, characters out of which the cunei- 
 form characters had afterward grown. Writing begins 
 with pictures, and the writing of the Babylonians 
 formed no exception to the rule. The pictures were 
 at first painted on the papyrus-leaves which grew in 
 the marshes of the Euphrates ; but as time went on, 
 a new and more plentiful material came to be employed 
 in the shape of clay. All that was needed was to 
 impress it, while still wet, with the hieroglyphic pic- 
 tures, and then dry it in the air. . . . When once the 
 discovery was made, that claj' could be employed as 
 a writing material, it was quickly turned to good 
 account. All Babylonia began to write on tablets of 
 clay; and though papyrus continued to be used, it 
 was reserved for what we should now term editions de 
 luxe.'' 
 
 Professor George Smith, in his " History of Baby- 
 lonia," says, '' Accadian literature was very extensive, 
 
304 APPENDIX. 
 
 and the libraries with which the whole country was 
 stocked were full of treatises on all the branches of 
 knowledge" pursued by these ancient people. He 
 credits them with " inventing the wonderful system 
 of writing, called from the shape of the characters 
 ' cuneiform,' or wedge-shaped." 
 
 The Babylonians, the immediate successors of the 
 Accadians, he says, "originated our astronomical 
 system. . . . Mathematics, measures of time and ca- 
 pacity, weights and scales, laws and government, and 
 every thing known to ancient times, received study 
 and attention ; while the arts of building, sculpture, 
 painting, gem-engraving, metal-work, weaving, and 
 many others, made proportionate progress." . . . 
 But ' ' they had a religion of the lowest and most 
 degrading kind, . . . which had a multitude of gods, 
 who were supposed to bring about in an irregular and 
 capricious manner all the changes in nature, and all 
 the misfortunes which happened to the people." 
 
 Samuel Johnson, in his last work on '* Oriental 
 Religions," volume on Persia, in the chapter on Cunei- 
 form Monuments of the Accadian and the Assyrian, 
 says, — 
 
 "The primitive civilization of the Mesopotamian 
 basin was not Semitic, but Turanian or Ugro-Finnic. 
 This is now recognized by the best scholars, by Oppert, 
 Sayce, Lenormant, Schrader. A race whose language 
 is agglutinative, allied to the Finnic, Tartar, Etruscan, 
 it may be, — at all events, to the Mongolian family, — 
 
APPENDIX. 805 
 
 brought the earliest cuneiform writing to this region, 
 composed its earliest annals, developed a S3'stem of 
 magic out of which came the ascendency of the 
 Chaldees, and laid the foundation of its mythology. 
 
 " The records of this primeval civilization, which 
 was flourishing in Chaldaea at least forty centuries ago, 
 and perhaps a thousand years earlier than that, have 
 been carefully preserved. If the Semitic Assyrians 
 who supplanted the ' Accad and Sumir ' had done 
 nothing else but translate their contents from the older 
 language and cuneiform type to which they were com- 
 mitted into their own current writing and tongue, not 
 only preserving the originals, but providing for their 
 study the appliances of lexicon and grammar, and all 
 with a scrupulous historic affection amounting to a 
 filial piety, like that of the Chinese in these matters, — 
 they would have entitled themselves to the lasting 
 gratitude of mankind, and can never be charged with 
 having lived to little purpose ; and this they have 
 thoroughly done. 
 
 '' The records of the old Accadian kings, from Lig- 
 Bagus of Ur down, are jejune, — mere items of temple 
 and tower building, their names now given in Semitic, 
 now in Turanian. But their literature was preserved 
 in hbraries located in the numerous cities of Baby- 
 lonia ; and from these the Semitic Assyrians not only 
 brought the great works of poetry, mythology, science, 
 and magic, which they translated and studied so care- 
 fully, but also probably derived their own system of free 
 
306 APPENDIX. 
 
 public libraries, like those of Sargon and Asshur-bani- 
 pal, into the inner working of which we can look to-day 
 with astonishment that there is nothing new under the 
 sun. The literary capacity of these old Turanians is 
 perhaps the most remarkable fact in history. The oldest 
 of epics, to which the name of Izdubar has been pro- 
 visionally given, is an elaborated product of Accadian 
 genius, forty centuries old, and shows how early the 
 poetic faculty of man found inspiration in the great 
 lights of heaven. This marvellous epic, with its twelve 
 great legends based on the twelve zodiacal signs, 
 turning their Accadian names into dramatic personifi- 
 cations, and the process of the sun through their suc- 
 cessive mansions into labors of a mythic hero, which 
 are curiously paralleled or repeated in the Semitic and 
 Aryan forms of the Hercules myth ; interweaving also 
 the lunar phases in a form which is the prototype of 
 that wide-spread cycle of myths wherein a dying god 
 is mourned by the spirit of love in Nature, and sought 
 by her in the under-world, — the marvellous epic is 
 worthy to be called the cradle of mythologies, even 
 
 from what we already know of its contents 
 
 " The most characteristic thing about Accadian 
 civilization is the passion for literature. In its old 
 deluge myth, as reported by the Greeks from Berosus, 
 the Chaldsean Noah (Xisuthrus) is bidden to bury the 
 sacred writings at Sippara, his native city, before 
 the flood comes ; and there, after he has been taken 
 up to heaven, his followers return to recover them. 
 
APPENDIX, 307 
 
 Cannes, the fish-god from the seacoast to whom these 
 primitive Chaldseans ascribe their culture, is expressly 
 said to have brought them letters. ... 
 
 "The Assyrians who transmitted this Turanian 
 wisdom illustrate the same laws. Their respectful 
 heed to it and their patient care for its preservation by 
 grammatical researches, syllabaries, lists of correspond- 
 ing words, was a recognition of universal relations, an 
 escape from race-prejudice, surprising at so early a 
 period. It seems to lay the corner-stone of a cosmo- 
 politanism which has since conditioned the progress of 
 civilization. . . . 
 
 "It is difficult as yet to determine how large a 
 portion of Assyrian culture was derived from Acca- 
 dian sources. The development was certainly con- 
 tinuous, and even without the light thrown on it by 
 cuneiform studies is clearly traceable to the seacoast 
 at the mouth of the Euphrates. It is here that all 
 ancient tradition places the earliest social, industrial, 
 intellectual life of Western Asia. Hither, as Berosus 
 reports from Babylonian records, came the mythic 
 civilizers, Cannes and his Annedoti, — half fish, half 
 man, — at repeated intervals, to teach rude men the 
 arts of life." 
 
 Assurbanipal (B.C. 648 to 626), one of the greatest 
 of Assyrian kings, caused the ancient tablets yet 
 remaining to be collected together from all parts of 
 the country, and deposited in his library at Nineveh. 
 He ordered numerous copies to be made of all the 
 
308 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 valuable documents, and every care taken to preserve 
 to future generations the knowledge therein contained. 
 
 In the destruction of Nineveh, these literary treas- 
 ures, being in brick rooms or vaults, were covered 
 by the debris of the fallen walls of the building ; and 
 there they remained until the excavations of Layard 
 and others revealed them to our eyes. 
 
 The dictionaries, grammars, and vocabularies pre- 
 pared by Sargon I. fifty-six hundred years ago have 
 enabled the Assyrian scholars of the present day to 
 obtain a knowledge of the Turanian tongue, which 
 would otherwise have been impossible. 
 
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