t)'Jlfro1 nntions of the world I The remark, therefore, which was made 11,t the out• set seems t-0 be justified ; that in tragic interest alone the history of the Israelites from JoRlma to Nehemiah is unique. And of com·se for the philosophic student, and still more for the Christian student, the dramatic element in the history of the ,Tews is far from being either the most interesting or the most import11,nt. Whether the religion be regarded as tl.1le or false, this much must be admitted by the philosopher; that to Judaism we owe the spirit of religion, as to Greece th11,t of culture and philosophy, and to Rome that of order and law; and these things com- bined mRkc up nearly the whole of what is rea.lly precious in civilisation. If aga.in, as St. AmbroEe says, Novwm testamentum in vetere latet, vetus testamentum in novn patct; a.nd if, a.s many of us know from the deepest expelience, our own ~piriLnal vicissitudes, both as a Church and as individuals, a.re writ large, for guidance and for warning, in the chequered history of the Chosen People ; then for the Christ.ian this hisiory must ever have an interest, which, for profundity and extent, is absolutely without a rival. A comparison between the two chief figures which stand, the one at the begin- ning, and the other at the close of our period, will be suggestive and instructive. Joshua and Nehemiah seem to be alike in this, that both were born in the land of capti,ity, and both were taught by serving in youth how to command in manhood. Joshua was born in Egypt, "the house of_bondage," and had reached middle life before he quitted it; and we first catch sight of Nehemiah as cupbearer to Artaxerxes Longi.manus, king of Persia, in the winter palace at Shushan. But how different was the condition both of their servitude and of their command I J oshua'e serntude was one of suffering and degradation, Nehemiah's of luxury and honour. Yet, if Joshna was braced by his lot, Nehemiah would seem to have been in no wise enerrated by his. And if the effortless overthrow of the walls of Jericho is in str.iuge contrast with the painful rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem, and the six years' rapid conquest of six strong nations, with the tedious watching against treacherous foes, yet the two great leaders are splendidly alike in the disinterested- ness of their motives and the integrity of their conduct. Joshua, after forty years bondage in Egypt and forty years wandering in the wilderness, might have claimed, at the age of fourscore years and over, to be allowed to hand over to one of a younger generation the toils and responsibilities of an invading general, to be suc- ceeded by the invidious labour of dividing the conquered land. But no such plea e"<"er crosses his lips. Nehemiah gave up a post of influence and emolument at the first court in the world in order to rescue his defenceless fellow-countrymen from the misery of a ceaseless menace. And in the discharge of the difficult offices which they undertook this may be said of both-and it can be said of vety few leaders of whom we know so mnch-that there is not a single blot upon their cha- racter. If Kehemiah is somewhat self-conscious, while Joshua seems to have all the simplicity of a child, yet in both we have the beautiful spectacle of great ability and great authority employed without any taint of selfish aims. It may well add to our pleasure in studying the period which lies before us to find that it begins and ends with so conspicuoUB an example of true patriotism and disinterested statesmanship. THE CONQUEST OF CANAAN.
"Moses My servant is dead." Snch is the Divine greeting to the already aged Joshua with which the book that bears his name opens. It was a message that must have tried evell his fortitude; and it came from Him who alone could send it JOBHUA TO NEHEMIAH. iii