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AN ILLUSTRATED

HISTORY OF THE HOLY BIBLE.

HISTORIC AND LITERARY INTRODUCTION.

HE BIBLE of the Christians is, with- tory genealogically, through a series of strikout exception, the most remarkable ing vicissitudes and changes of situation. work now in existence. In the libraries of But when we examine the narrative minutethe learned, there are frequently seen books ly, it is found that there is another meanof an extraordinary antiquity, and curious ing than that of mere historical elucidation. and interesting from the nature of their con- It is perceived that the whole train of events tents; but none approach the Bible, taken recorded, the whole of those lofty, impasin its complete sense, in point of age, while sioned strains of poetry which distinguish certainly no production whatever has any pretension to rival it in the dignity of composition, or the important nature of the subjects treated of in its pages. The word Bible is of Greek origin, and, in signifying simply The Book, is expressive of its superiority over all other literary productions. The origin and nature of this every way singular work, how it was preserved during the most remote ages, and how it became known to the modern world in its present shape, form a highly interesting chapter of literary history.

the volume, are precursory and prophetic of a great change, which, at a future period, was to be wrought on the moral properties and fate of mankind, by the coming to the earth of a Messiah.

The authorship of the Old Testament has been universally ascribed, by both Jews and Christians, to God himself, though not by direct composition, but by spiritually influencing the minds of certain sages to accomplish the work, or, in ordinary phraseology, by inspiring or endowing them with a perfect knowledge of the transactions to The Bible comprehends the entire founda- be recorded and predicted, in a way suitable tion of the religious belief of the Jews and to the great end in view. The Bible is Christians, and is divided into two distinct hence usually termed the Sacred Scriptures. portions, entitled the Old and New Testa- The periods when the act of writing all or ments, the former being that which is es- most part of the Scriptures took place, as teemed by the Jewish nation, but both being well as most of the names of those who were essential in forming the faith of the Chris- instrumental in forming the work, have been tian. The Old Testament is the largest de- ascertained with surprising accuracy, both partment of the work, and appears a collec- from written evidence in the narratives themtion of detached histories, moral essays, and selves, and from the well-preserved traditions pious poetical effusions, all placed together of the Jews. At whatever time the differin the order of time, or, as they may serve, ent books were written, they were not colfor the purpose of mutual illustration. On lected and put into a connected form till taking a glance at the contents, the principal long after their immediate authors were subject of narration seems the history of the deceased; and their present arrangement, as Jews, commencing with an account of the we shall afterward fully explain, is of comcreation of the world, and tracing their his-paratively modern date.

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According to the order in which the books of the Old Testament now stand, those of an historical nature are appropriately placed at the beginning. The first five books, having a chain of connection throughout, are Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. These are styled the Pentateuch, such being the Greek compound for five books. They are likewise entitled the Books of Moses, from the belief that that enlightened Jewish leader composed them.

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to the service of the Divinity. This book comprises the history of 145 years, from the death of Joseph till the building of the tabernacle. The Hebrews call it Velle Shemoth, that is, in English, "These are the names, which are the words with which it begins.

The third book of Moses is called Leviticus, because it contains the laws which God commanded should be observed by those of the tribe of Levi who ministered at the altar. It treats at large of all the functions of the The Jews, or Hebrews, take the name of Levites; of the ceremonial of religion; of the sacred books from the first word with the different sorts of sacrifices; of the diswhich each begins; but the Greeks, whom tinction of clean and unclean beasts; of the our translators generally follow, take the different festivals; and of the year of jubilee, names from the subject-matter of them. or continued holyday. It likewise presents Thus, the first book is called by the He- us with an account of what happened to the brews, Bereshith, which signifies "In the Jews during the space of one month and a beginning," these being the first words: but half; that is, from the time the tabernacle the Greeks call it Genesis, which signifies was erected, which was the first day of the production," because the creation of the first month of the second year after the world is the first thing of which it gives an Israelites came out of Egypt, till the second account. It likewise contains an account of month of the same year, when God comthe increase of mankind; of their corruption manded the people to be numbered. The of manners, and its cause; of their punish- Hebrews called this book Vayicre, that is, ment by the deluge (an event which, by" And he called," these being the first scientific investigation and historical research, words; they call it also The Law of the is placed beyond a doubt); of the origin of Priests. the Jewish people from Abraham; of the manner in which God was pleased to have them governed; and, particularly, of the nature of the special superintendence vouchsafed to the Jewish nation by the Creator. This comprehensive narrative reaches from the creation of the world till the death of Joseph, or a period of 2,369 years. In another part of the Scriptures, reference is made to the Book of Jasher, and it is believed that Genesis is there meant; for Jasher signifies "the Just," and, according to St. Jerome, a learned Christian writer, the name of the Book of the Just, or the Authentic Book, was applied to it from its containing the history of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

Exodus, the title of the second book of Moses, signifies in the Greek, "The going out, and was applied from the account which it gives of the Israelites going out of Egypt. In it are related the cruel Egyptian slavery under which the Jews groaned; their delivery by flight and passage through the Red sea; the history of the establishment of their very peculiar law, and many remarkable transactions; concluding with the building of the tabernacle, or place appropriated

In the fourth book, which we call Numbers, Moses numbers the Israelites, and that, too, in the beginning of the book, which shows whence it had its name. The Hebrews call it Vayedavber, that is, And he spake." This book contains the history of all that passed from the second month of the second year after the Israelites came out of Egypt, till the beginning of the eleventh month of the fortieth year; that is, it contains the history of thirty-nine years, or thereabouts. In it we have also the history of the prophet Balaam, whom the king of the Midianites brought to curse the people of God, and who, on the contrary, heaped blessings upon the Israelites, and foretold the coming of the Messiah. It particularly mentions, also, the two-and-forty encamp ments of the Israelites in the wilderness.

The fifth book is called Deuteronomy, a Greek term which signifies, "The second law," or, rather, "The repetition of the law," because it does not contain a law dif ferent from that which was given on Mount Sinai; but it repeats the same law, for the sake of the children of those who had received it there, and were since dead in the wilderness. The Hebrews call it Elle-had

debarim, that is, "These are the words." by him. The common opinion as to the Deuteronomy begins with a short account of length of time it contains is, that Joshua what passed in the wilderness, and then discharged his office only for seventeen years, Moses repeats what he had before command- and that, therefore, this book contains no ed in Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers, and more than the history of that number of admonishes the people to be faithful in keep-years. ing the commandments of God. After this, After the death of Joshua, the Israelites he relates what had happened from the were governed by magistrates, who ruled beginning of the eleventh month, to the under the general designation of Judges; seventh day of the twelfth month of the same and the book which contains the history of year, which was the fortieth after their leav- these rulers is called, The Book of Judges. ing Egypt. The discourse which is at the be- This history begins with the death of Joshua, We here see ginning of this book was made to the people and reaches to that of Samson. by Moses, on the first day of the eleventh the people of God often enslaved in punishmonth. According to Josephus, he died on ment of their crimes, and often wonderfully the first day of the twelfth; and the Israel-delivered from slavery. Toward the end of ites, as the Scriptures say, mourned for him it, we have some instances of this people's in the plains of Moab thirty days, and, con- inclination to idolatry, and of the corruption sequently, during the whole of the twelfth of their manners, even before they had been month.

brought into slavery. Such are the histories of Micah, and of the Benjamites who abused the Levite's wife. This book contains the history of three hundred and seventy years.

The Jews called the Pentateuch The Law," without doubt because the law of God which Moses received on Mount Sinai is the principal part of it; and it is as little to be doubted whether that great man was During the time of the government of the the writer of the Pentateuch. This is ex- Judges, there was a great famine in the land pressly declared both in Exodus and Deuter- of Israel, which forced Elimelech, a native of onomy. But as an account of the death of Bethlehem, to retire into the land of Moab, Moses is given in the last eight verses of with his wife Naomi, and two children. this book, it is therefore thought that these Elimelech died there, as also his two sons, verses were added either by Joshua or Ezra. who had married two Moabitish women, one The opinion of Josephus concerning them is of whom was named Ruth. Naomi, after very singular; he pretends that Moses, find- the death of her husband and her children, ing his death approaching, and being willing returned to Bethlehem, accompanied by Ruth, to prevent an error into which the veneration her daughter-in-law, who was there married the people had for him might cause the Jews to Boaz, Elimelech's near relation, and the to fall, wrote this account himself, without heir to his estate. The book which contains which the Jews would probably have sup- this history, is called, The Book of Ruth. posed that God had taken him away, like The beginning of it shows that it happened Enoch. in the time of the Judges, but under which of them is not certainly known; some place it in the time of Shamgar, or of Deborah. As to the writer of this book, some think that the books of Judges and Ruth were both written by Samuel; others attribute them to Hezekiah, and others to Ezra. The Jews place the book of Ruth among the five books which they usually read on all the festivals in the year. the Song of Songs, Ruth, the Lamentations of Jeremiah, Ecclesiastes, and the book of Esther. In the Hebrew bibles they are printed or written apart by themselves, and are bound up together.

After the death of Moses, Joshua, by the order of the Divine Being, took upon himself the conducting of the Hebrew people, and succeeded Moses, to whom he had been a faithful servant, and by whom he had been instructed in what he ought to do. It is uncertain whether the book which contains the history of this successor of Moses be called Joshua, from the subject of it, or from his having been the writer of it. But it is certain that it contains an account of what passed from the death of Moses to that of Joshua. Nevertheless, there are several things in it which did not come to pass till after the death of this great man, and which, The four books following Ruth are called consequently, could not have been written by the Greeks, and also in some Latin

These five books are,

bibles, The History of the Reigns. Others varied collection of several particular his call them all, The Books of Kings, because tories. they give an account of the establishment of the monarchy, and of the succession of the kings, who reigned over the whole kingdom at first, and over the kingdoms of Judah and Israel after its division. At the beginning of these books is given the history of the prophet Samuel, which gives light to that of The Kings. The Jews call the first two of these books, The Books of Samuel: perhaps because they contain the history of the two kings, who were both anointed by Samuel; and because what is said of Saul in the first, and of David in the second, proves the truth of Samuel's prophecies. They give the name of The Books of Kings only to the other two, which, in the Latin and French bibles, are called the Third and Fourth Books of Kings.

The First Book of Kings, or the First of Samuel, contains the history of the high-priest Eli, of Samuel, and of Saul. As the first year of Eli's high-priesthood falls on the year of the world 2848, and the death of Saul in 2949, the history of this book must comprehend the space of one hundred and one years.

The Second contains the reign of David, which is the history of about forty years. It is commonly believed that Samuel, Nathan, and Gad, were the writers of these two books, and, indeed, they are called, in the end of the first book of Chronicles, David's historians.

The Third, or, according to the Hebrews, the First Book of Kings, begins with a relation of the manner in which Solomon came to the throne, and contains the whole of his reign. After that, an account follows of the division of the kingdom, and the history of four kings of Judah and eight kings of Israel. All these reigns, including that | of Solomon, which occupies the first forty years, comprise the space of one hundred and twenty-six years.

The Fourth of these books contains the history of sixteen kings of Judah, and twelve kings of Israel. It likewise gives an account of the prophets who lived during this time. It is quite uncertain who were the writers of the last two mentioned books They are by some attributed to Jeremiah or Ezra, but no very convincing proofs have been adduced in support of this opinion. It is evident, indeed, that these books form a

The name of Paralipomena, which in Greek signifies the "history of things omitted," is given to the two books which follow those of the Kings. These form, in fact, a supplement, containing what had been omitted in the Pentateuch, and the books of Joshua, Judges, and Kings, or rather they contain a fuller description of some things which had been therein only briefly related. Some give them the name of Chronicles, because they are very exact in mentioning the time when every transaction. happened. We divide them into two books, as do also the Jews, who call them Dibere Hayanim, that is, an "historical journal, the matters of which they treat having been taken from the journals of the kings. In the original language, however, the word days often signifies the year; and, in this sense, we may understand the term to signify properly "annals.' The generally-received opinion is, that Ezra was the writer of these. In the first book, he begins with a succinct historical abridgment, from the creation of Adam to the return of the Jews from their captivity; and then he resumes the history of David, and carries it on to the consecration of Solomon, that is, down to the year before Christ 1015. The history contained in the second book reaches down to the year before Christ 536, when, upon the expiration of the seventy years of captivity, Cyrus gave the Jews leave to return to their own country.

Ezra wrote the history of the return of the Jews from the captivity of Babylon into Judæa. It is the history of about eighty-two years, from the year of the world 3468, when Cyrus became master of the eastern empire, by the death of his father, Cambyses, in Persia, and his father-in-law, Cyaxares, in Media, to the year 3550, which was the twentieth year of the reign of Artaxerxes, surnamed Longimanus. This book bears the name of Ezra, who was the writer of it.

The next book is a continuation of that of Ezra, and therefore it is by some called the Second Book of Ezra. It was Nehemiah, however, whose name it also bears, who wrote it, as is said, by the advice of Ezra. It contains the account of the re-establishment of Jerusalem, and the temple, and the worship of God. It is the history of about thirty-one years; that is to say, from the