to compel tho Jews to become Greeks in might not he.vo previously occurred; tho religio11, punishing with doe.th refusal to literature of ancient Hebrew is exceedingly yield to his demands (l Mo.cc. i. 2-1-28; limited. Between the BeaB in the gloTimta Josephus, • Ant.,' xii. 5. 8). holy mountain. Hiivemick maint11ins that Vor. 45.-And he she.11 plant the tabeT- the glorious e.nd holy mountain here is tho naoles of his pe.le.oe between the sea.a in tha mountain on which the temple of Nannia glorious holy mountain ; yet he shall come wee placed, and the.t the acus in ']Ueation to hie end, e.nd none ahe.11 help him. The were the Caspian and the Persian Gulf. rendering of the LXX. is, "Then she.II he It is difficult to imagine a ,Jew callina set up his tent between the see.a e.nd the the mountain on which e. heo.then tempi~ mountn.ins of the choice of the sanctuary, was placed, "glorious holy," even were we and tho hour of bis end shall come, and be sure tbe.t the temple in q aestion was on a sbe.ll ho.ve no helper." 'l'beodotion's ren- mountain, for which we have no evidence. dering is, "He shall pitch his tent Epha- The Jews probably knew of the sea into de.no between the seas o.t the holy mountain which the Euphrates discharged its waters; of Sabe.ein ; he shall come to his lot, e.nd but it is not prominent in their writings, there will not be e. deliverer to him." It and the Caspian may be looked upon '!I.a un- is to be observed tbe.t the word ilj!lN known. The distance between these two (appadno), "royal tent," a late word· bi see.a is so great the.t no one would loco.tc such e. email thing e.s a. city by so.ying that Hebrew, we.a not present in the text before it we.a between them. The natural inter- the tre.nsle.tor of the Septuagint. Further, pretation is that the see.a in question e.ro Theodotion did not know the meaning of the Mediterranean-the great sea-and the the word, although his recension was pre- Dead See.-the Se.It Sea. But the Hebrew pared under Jewish supervision. The lea.de rather to the idea that the plural Peshitta. renders, "And he shall place his is one of excellence. I'~ (bayn), "between," tent on the plnin space between the sea. and the mountain, o.nd she.11 a.sso.il its is not infrequently construed with 1;, (Z•), s1mctua.ry, a.nd he shall come to his end ; "to," as here; hence the translation would there shall not be to him a. helper." The be between the see.a, i.e. the great see. and Vulga.te renders, "And be shall place his the holy mountain. There can be no tnbernacle, aphadno, between the two see.a doubt that "the glorious e.nrl holy moun- upon the glorious e.nd holy mountain; he tain" is Mount Zion. Yet he shall come shall come even to its (his) highest point, to his end, and none shall help him. The o.nd no one shall help him." He shall plant death of Antiocbus, baffled in his attempt the tabernacle of his palace. The word here to rifle the temple of Nanaia, humiliated used (appadno) does not occur elsewhere, not only by his own disaster, but by the and seems to denote the roye.l tent. The news received from Jerusalem, is full of dis- fa.et the.t it does not a.ppea.r in the Septua- appointment and misery, even when we get gint. or Peshitta. renders its right to be in rid of the rhetoric with which the event.~ the text somewhat doubtful. Theodotion are clothed in Polybius e.nd l and 2 Ma.eca.- and Jerome transliterate it, a.a if it had not bees. Oue-he.lf of his army under Lysias got a. place in Hebrew even in their de.y. had been baffled and defeated by Judas It docs occur in the Targum and the Pe- Ma.ccabmus; he hims~lf bad been repulsed shitta. At the same time, a purely tech- in his attempt to replenish his eoffe?I!; there nical word like this might really be of is therefore for him no helper, so he dies ancient usage, yet the occasion for its use of disappointment at Te.bes.
HOMILETICS. Ver. 21.-Succeseful dissimulation. I. DrsSUdULATION IS OFTEN MOBE SUCCESSFUL THAN VIOLENCE. The successful usurper is known to be a '' vile person; " the people do not willingly bestow upon him the honours of roynlty,-ho grasps them for himself; yet he perpetrates no violence to obtain them. He wins power by dissimulation. 1. Ilnt dissimulation is most common in an age of advanced c-iv-ilizaiion. Violence belongs to simpler times. .As life becomes more complex, evil becomes more subtle. 2. It hns most power at a time of moral corruption. When morality is corrupted, the discerning faculty of conscience is blinded. Deceit succeeds most with those who have lost the clear judgment which results from the direct insight of purity. 3. It is most successful under circumstances of material prosperity. 'l'ben wo are off our guard, l\nd are tempted to a false feeling of security based on the mere enjoyment of present ease. II. TIIE SUCCESS OF DJSSI111ULATION IS l\10RE INJURIOUS TO THE WORLD THAN THI! ltl'COEBB OIi' VIOLENCE. 'l'he greatest enemies to a state are its traitors. 'l'he worsl 826 THE BOOK OF DANIEL. [oH. XI. 1-45,
f0ps to a religion are it.s hypocritic11.l adherents. The most dangcroua enemies a mnn can h1<ve are his flattering friends. In such cases (1) the evil is more slowly recognized; (2) it is less energeticnlly hated; and (3) it is resisted with more difficulty, III. THOUGH DISSIMULATION 'MAY SUOOEED FOB A TIME, TRUTH WILL ULTIMATELY rnIUMPR. There is "an end" at "the time appointed" (ver. 27; eh. xii. 1, 2). 1: Dy its own nature evil ultimatdy declares its true character. If it always remained con- cealed, it would effect little. By diBSimulation power i~ won, which in being used cnsts off the mask. 2. When evil is declared, it is seen to be hateful, and weak. Once fairly known, it loses its attraction and becomes a despicable thing. 3. God will finally inter/era to destroy all false appe1m1.11ces, and judge the world in truth according to real characte1· and conducL. Some forms of deceit may linger till that greatjudgment-day; but nono can outli,·e it. Then all actions will appear in the white light of truth. 4. It is wise and prudent (.ls well !IS right) to seek truth and to live truly, because the true only can live in the great future of eternity (Rev. xxi. 27).