the Perizzites into the hands of Judah, "They slew of them in Bezek 1000
men. But Adonibezek fled, and they pursued after him, and caught him,
and cut off his thumbs, and his great toes." lb. ver. 19- "And the Lord
was with Judah, and he drove out the inhabitants of the mountain, but
_could not_ drive out the inhabitants of the valley!" Why? "Because they
had chariots of iron." Chap. iv. recounts the manner in which Deborah
and Barak delivered Israel from Jabin and Si-aera. Ver. 21. Then Jael,
Hebber's wife, (to whose tent Sisera had fled), "took a nail of the tent,
and a hammer in her hand, and went softly unto him, and smote the nail
into his temples, and fastened it into the ground, (_a goodly nail_),
for he was fast asleep and weary, so he died." Chap. 5, contains the
_beautiful_ song of Deborah and Barak, which I particularly request my
reader to peruse, as a finished piece of scripture praise of good words.
Chap. xxi. relates, that the Israelites having sworn not to give their
daughters to the Benjamites, and the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead not
having come up to Minzeh, "the congregation sent 19,000 men of the
valiantest, and commanded them, saying, go and smite the inhabitants
of Jabesh-gilead with the edge of the sword, with the women and the
children: utterly destroy every male, and every woman that hath lain by
man;" but, having found 400 young virgins that had known no man by lying
with any male," they gave them to the sons of Benjamin, "and yet so they
sufficed them not." So as they had sworn not to give them wives of their
own daughters, "therefore, they commanded the children of Benjamin,
saying, go and lie in wait in the vineyards, and see, and behold, if the
daughters of Shiloch come out to dance in dances, then come ye out of
the vineyards, and catch you every man his wife."
First Samuel, chap. vi. The ark of the Lord having been among the
Philistines seven months, they, unwilling to send it back empty, asked
the priests and diviners, what they should send in it as a trespass
offering? "they answered, five golden emerods, and five golden
mice,---and ye shall give glory unto the God of Israel,--and make a new
cart, and take two milch kine, and take the ark of the Lord and lay it
on the cart;" and they did so, "and they of Beth-shemesh lifted up
their eyes, and saw the ark, and rejoiced to see it,--and the men of
Beth-shemesh offered burnt-offerings, and sacrificed sacrifices the same
day unto the Lord,--and he smote the men of Beth-shemesh, because they
had looked into the ark of the Lord, even he smote of the people fifty
thousand and threescore and ten men." Gracious God! Blessed Jews!
Second Samuel, chap. xxiv. ver. 1. "And the anger of the Lord was
kindled against Israel, and he moved David against them to say, go
number Israel and Judah." (In first Chronicles, chap. xxi. ver. 1, it
stated, "and Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number
Israel.") And having thus instigated David to do what is good policy in
a king, God, of his infinite mercy, said unto David by his prophet Grad,
David's seer, (an officer of the household in those days), "I offer thee
three things: shall seven years of famine come unto thee in thy land, or
wilt thou flee three months before thine enemies, or that there be three
days pestilence in thy land?" And David having chosen the latter, "the
Lord sent a pestilence upon Israel, and there died of the people 70,000
men but the Lord is ever merciful, for, "when the angel stretched out
his hand upon Jerusalem to destroy it, the Lord _repented_ him of the
evil, and said to the angel that destroyed the people, it is enough,
stay thou thine hand," _Delirant reges, plectuntur Achivi_.
1 Kings, chap. ii. David being upon his death-bed, having made peace
with God, and purified his heart, called Solomon to him and gave him his
last charge. As to Joab, the son of Zeruiah, he said, "do according
to thy wisdom, and let not his hoar head go down to the grave in
peace,--and behold thou hast with thee Shimei the son of Gera, which
cursed me, but he came down to meet me at Jordan, and I sware to him
by the Lord, saying, I will not put thee to death by the sword; now,
therefore, (_proceeds the man after God's own heart_), hold him not
guiltless; for thou art a wise man, and knowest what thou oughtest to
do unto him, but his hoar head bring thou down to the grave with blood."
Solomon having succeeded his father, the first act of his reign was to
put to death his brother Adonijah.
1 Kings, chap. xi. ver. 4, "Solomon's heart was not perfect with the
Lord his God, as was the heart of David his father, for it came to pass,
that, when he was old, his wives turned his heart after other gods." But
why go through such barbarous details? All along we find imprecations
against those who despise the prophets, and praises lavished upon
murderers, traitors, and assassins. This is the people "selected by the
wisdom of God, that they might witness to the whole world in successive
ages his existence and attributes, that they might be an instrument
of subverting idolatry, of declaring the name of the God of Israel
throughout the whole earth a people, who are to us witnesses of
the existence, and of the moral government of God."--This is the Old
Testament, which you presume to say afforded matter for the laws of
Solon, and a foundation for the philosophy of Plato,--which has been
admired and venerated for its piety, its sublimity, its veracity, by all
who _are able to read and understand it!!!_ This is the God who maketh
the sun to rise on the evil and on the good, who is all perfection,
all wise, and all powerful, and whose mercy is above all his other
attributes."
THE END.