{"collection":"scripture-revelation","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_39431/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_39431","id":"gutenberg_39431","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/39431","summary":null,"tags":["Bible -- Paraphrases, English","Bible stories, English -- Juvenile literature","Category: Children & Young Adult Reading","Category: Religion/Spirituality","Christian life -- Juvenile literature"],"text":"Produced by Heather Clark, Emmy and the Online Distributed\nProofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was\nproduced from images generously made available by The\nInternet Archive)\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n[Illustration: CHRIST the good Sheperd\n\n\"HE WILL CARRY THE LAMBS IN HIS BOSOM.\"]\n\n\nYOUNG FOLKS' BIBLE IN WORDS OF EASY READING:\n\nTHE SWEET STORIES OF GOD'S WORD IN THE LANGUAGE OF CHILDHOOD\n\nAND\n\nIn the Beautiful Delineations of Christian Art.\n\nTHE WHOLE DESIGNED TO\n\nIMPRESS THE MIND AND HEART OF THE YOUNGEST READERS, AND KINDLE A GENUINE\nLOVE FOR THE BOOK OF BOOKS.\n\nBy\n\nJOSEPHINE POLLARD, Author of \"History of the Old Testament,\" \"History of\nthe New Testament,\" etc., etc.\n\n\n    WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY\n    REV. W. H. MILBURN, D. D.,\n    TO WHICH IS ADDED\n    THE CHILD AND THE BIBLE,\n\n    By PROF. DAVID SWING,\n\n    AND\n\n    AN ADDRESS TO CHILDREN:\n\n    THE BIBLE THE BOOK FOR THE YOUNG,\n\n    By REV. JOHN H. BARROWS, D. D.\n\n\n\n    NEARLY 200 STRIKING ORIGINAL ENGRAVINGS AND WORLD-FAMOUS\n    MASTER-PIECES OF SACRED ART,\n\n    AND WITH\n\n    MAGNIFICENT COLORED PLATES.\n\n\n\n    CHICAGO AND NEW YORK:\n    R. S. Peale & Company.\n    1890.\n\n\n\n\n    Copyright\n    By JOSEPH L. BLAMIRE.\n    1888.\n\n    Copyright\n    By R. S. PEALE & CO.\n    1889.\n\n\n\n\nPREFACE.\n\n\nThe word Bible is from the Greek, and means THE BOOK. It is made up of\nseveral small books, and when bound in two parts is known as the Old\nTestament and the New Testament. A Testament is a will; and the Bible is\nGod's will made for man's good, and for his guide through life. The Old\nTestament tells of God's love and care for the Jews, and His thought of\nChrist can be traced through all its pages. There is a good deal in the\nBible that a child cannot understand, and the queer names make it very\nhard reading.\n\nIt has been the Author's aim to tell the story simply, and in Bible\nlanguage, so that the little ones can read it themselves, and learn to\nlove and prize it as the best of all books.\n\n                                                            J. P.\n\n[Illustration]\n\n\n\n\nINTRODUCTION.\n\nBY REV. WILLIAM HENRY MILBURN, D. D.\n\n\nNO man of his time filled a larger space in the public eye of this\ncountry than John Randolph of Roanoke. His eccentricities, audacity and\nbrilliancy,--his pride of birth and race, fearlessness and\nself-assertion,--his incisive and trenchant speeches set off with\nsparkling wit, keen satire, fierce invective, clothed in perfect\nEnglish, and uttered with the style of a master, his sharp criticisms of\nthe faults and short-comings of his fellow-Congressmen, which gained for\nhim the title, \"schoolmaster of Congress,\" together with his political\nconsistency and fitfulness of temper, invested all his movements and\nsayings with a peculiar charm for the people. In his earliest years he\nhad been carefully taught by his beautiful mother, the Creed, the Lord's\nPrayer, the Ten Commandments, and many parts of God's Word, until he had\nthem by heart, and yet, in his haughty youth and early manhood he strove\nto set at naught these teachings: furnished himself with a \"whole body\nof infidelity,\" as he styled his collection of the writings of Voltaire\nand other French authors, as well as British, who strove to abolish the\nBible, and for many years it seemed at once his pride and delight to\nwield the weapons drawn from these arsenals against the truths which\nmake men wise unto Eternal Life, and to jeer with flout and scoff at all\nhe had learned from his mother's lips. But later on he confessed, with\nheart-breaking sobs and bitter tears, that with all his arrogance and\ninsolence, his stern resolve to become and continue a Deist, he had\nnever been able to put aside for a single day or night the lessons\ntaught him by his mother, and that the hallowed forms of sound words,\nlearned on her lap or at her knee, had dwelt with him, and were ever\nsounding in his ears, to admonish, counsel and reprove. There have been\nfew more pathetic scenes than that in which Randolph came to die; a\ngaunt old man, old before his time; worn out by misery, shrivelled and\nhaggard, sitting upright in his bed, covered by a blanket, even his head\nenveloped and his hat on top of it; unutterable despair looking out at\nhis eyes, his pinched lips and squeaking voice uttering, \"Let me see it;\nget a dictionary; find me the word Remorse.\" A dictionary could not be\nfound. \"Write it; I must see it,\" he almost shrieked with failing voice.\nThe word was written on his visiting card below his name; he demanded\nthat it should be written above as well. The card was handed to him.\n\"Remorse, John Randolph of Roanoke, Remorse.\" With horror in his face\nand that card in his hand, his eyes staring at the word, he breathed his\nlast. From that mournful death-bed seemed to come floating the solemn\nwords, \"Take fast hold of instruction; keep her; let her not go, for she\nis thy life,\" and \"He that sinneth against wisdom wrongeth his own\nsoul.\"\n\nLong centuries ago, a young man of aristocratic birth, handsome person,\npolished manners, brilliant and highly cultivated intellect, was\nwalking, on a day in the reign of the Emperor Julian, by the bank of the\nriver Orontes, not far from the stately city of Antioch, the Paris of\nthat age,--and saw something floating in the stream. The branch of a\ntree enabled him to drag it ashore; it proved to be a copy of the sacred\nScriptures; Julian, the mad master of the world, had issued an edict,\nannexed to which were heavy penalties, that all copies of that book\nshould be destroyed. The young man who drew the manuscript to shore had\nbeen taught the lessons of that volume from a child, by his pious\nmother, Anthusa; but he had thrown off the yoke of his mother's faith;\nhad become a devotee of heathen philosophy, poetry and rhetoric, and at\nthe same time steeped himself in the licentious pleasures and\ndissipations of the Grove of Daphne, the Hippodrome and Theatre, and\nresolved that \"the man Christ Jesus should not reign over him.\" He\nopened the parchment, some words on the page caught his eye; they were\nfamiliar, yet shone with a new light and were armed with irresistible\npower: he read on; his mother's prayers were answered; he embraced the\ntruth, bowed his neck to the yoke he had foresworn, and the volume he\nrescued from the flood became a treasure-trove for the world,--through\nfifteen centuries alike in the east and west,--that man has been known\nas St. John Chrysostom, the \"Mouth of Gold,\" one of the most saintly and\neloquent preachers, whose life, genius, sufferings and death for\nconscience's sake adorned the history of mankind.\n\nNot far from the same time, a young man bathed in tears lay writhing in\nagony under a fig tree in the garden of his house at Milan. His devout\nmother, Monica, in their Numidian home, had taught him the way of life\nwritten in God's Word; but as he grew to manhood he strove to shake off\nthe influence and authority of her instruction; became a libertine,\nreached forth to grasp the crown of heathen eloquence and learning, and\nfor more than ten years wrought steadily to undo the sacred work his\nmother had performed for him as a child. But the lesson she had taught\nhim lay deeper than his surging passions, imperious intellect, and\nhaughty will, and because of their power over him he could find no rest\nnight or day. He journeyed to Carthage, Rome, Milan, the chief cities of\nthe western world, to study art and eloquence, to drench his soul with\nthe pleasures of sense and lay the ghost of his disquiet; but in vain.\nIn his anguish under the fig tree he heard, or seemed to hear, again and\nagain, \"Take it up and read, Take it up and read.\" Springing to his\nfeet, he ran to a friend near by who was reading the Word. Seizing the\nvolume, his eyes rested on the words, \"Let us walk honestly as in the\nday; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness,\nnot in strife and envying. But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ and make\nnot provisions for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof.\" The\nbirth-pangs of his conversion were ended; he found peace in believing;\nand that incident makes an era in the history of the world, for that man\nwas none other than Saint Augustine, the influence of whose writings has\nswayed with more might than that of an imperial sceptre the destinies of\nwestern Christendom for ages. \"Therefore, whosoever heareth these\nsayings of mine and doeth them,\" saith the Lord, \"I will liken him unto\na wise man which built his house upon a rock; and the rain descended,\nand the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house; and it\nfell not, for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth\nthese sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a\nfoolish man which built his house upon the sand; and the rains\ndescended, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that\nhouse and it fell, and great was the fall of it.\" Woe to Randolph! he\nheard and would not, and his house fell, and great was the fall of it.\nMankind with one voice calls Augustine and Chrysostom blessed; they\nheard, obeyed, and their houses stand forever; they were built upon the\nrock. \"Their Rock is not as our Rock, our enemies themselves being\njudges\" was the boast of Israel at an early day. With how much fuller\nemphasis may Christendom utter it to-day. Compare India with Britain,\nChina with the United States, and after all other forces are measured\nand allowed, it will be found that the significant and self-renewing\ncauses for the superiority of the western nations over the eastern are\nthe presence, authority and influence of the Old and New Testament. \"And\nhe shewed me a pure river of water of life clear as crystal proceeding\nout of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of\nit, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which\nbare twelve manner of fruits and yielded her fruit every month; and the\nleaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.\"\n\nIn this beautiful book, Miss Pollard, with admirable tact and skill, has\nmade a path by which the children may draw near to that river and drink\nof the water of life; and the artists whose genius has been laid under\nsuch effective contribution by the liberality of the publisher, will\nhelp the little ones to gather the leaves and pluck the fruit of that\ntree.\n\nEvery home in the land blessed by the presence of boys and girls will be\nillumined and enriched by this volume; every mother who strives to train\nher children \"in the nurture and admonition of the Lord\" will be\nsignally helped by its ministry.\n\nThe letter-press will quicken the understanding and attune the ear, and\nthe treasures of art contained in these pages will arouse the\nimagination and stimulate the memory of the young to lay hold upon and\nreceive all that is contained in \"the one Book--\" \"Oldest Choral melody\nas of the heart of mankind; soft and great as the summer midnight, as\nthe world with the seas and stars.\"\n\nNo man's education can be complete, no human life can have its full\nstore of flowers and fruits, which is not begun, continued and ended in\nthe ever deepening study and love of the articulate word of God.\n\nI cannot better close this introduction than with this remarkable\npassage, modified to suit my purpose. \"Who will say that the uncommon\nbeauty and marvelous English of the household Bible is not the\nstronghold and safeguard of the literary taste and culture of this\ncountry as well as its character. It lives like a music that can never\nbe forgotten, like the sound of church bells which the reader hardly\nknows how he can forego. Its felicities often seem to be almost things\nrather than mere words. It is part of the national mind, and the anchor\nof national seriousness. The memory of the dead passes into it. The\npotent traditions of childhood are stereotyped into its phrases. The\npower of all the man's griefs and trials are hidden beneath its words.\nIt is the representative of his best moments; and all that there has\nbeen about him of soft and gentle and pure and penitent and good, speaks\nto him forever out of his English Bible. It is his sacred thing, which\ndoubt has never dimmed and controversy never soiled. It has been to him\nall along as the silent, yet oh, how intelligible! voice of his guardian\nangel, and in the length and breadth of the land there is not a\nChristian, with one spark of religiousness about him, whose spiritual\nBiography is not in his Saxon Bible.\"\n\n    WASHINGTON, April, 1889.\n\n\n\n\nThe Child and the Bible.\n\nBY PROF. DAVID SWING.\n\n\nTHAT reading and study are very imperfect which do not bring to all our\nyoung people a knowledge of the general contents of the Bible. The Old\nand New Testaments contain the best moral and religious thought and\nbelief of two important epochs in man's history--the Hebrew and\nChristian periods. It contains the history, the wisdom, the morality,\nthe piety and the hope of that part of the human race that made religion\nthe chief aim of the nation and the individual. The Hebrew people was\nset apart for the special task of carrying forward the idea of God. That\nrace gradually separated the real Creator from the many false divinities\nof the barbarian tribes and slowly built up that conception of Deity\nwhich is seen set forth in the Book of Job and in the twenty-third and\nnineteenth Psalms. The Book of Job and the Psalms of David are the grand\nautumnal fruitage of that vineyard of worship in which Enoch and Abraham\nwere toilers in the early springtime of our world.\n\nNo such advance toward the true God would have taken place had the\nMosaic race moved out of Egypt only to found a State which might build\nelsewhere duplicates of the pyramids of the Nile, or a State which, like\nBabylonia, might live only for luxury, or which, like Greece, might live\nonly for the fine arts, or which, like Rome, might find a reason of\nbeing in wars of conquest. Divinely led, the Hebrew people migrated from\nEgypt that beyond the Red Sea and the Jordan they might found a republic\nor empire for the study and founding of the true religion. Israel stands\nas the wonder of the past, the only nation in all history that elected\nGod for its king and went up into a high mountain so as to deduce its\nlaws from the thunder and storm and from the sunlight and peace of His\npresence. With what success it achieved its task may be learned from\nreading the meditations in Job and the Psalms, and from the lofty\nrhapsodies of Isaiah and Malachi. When to the sacred records of that\nlong day and night of toil and progress are added the coming of the\ndivine Christ and the moral phenomena of the first Christian century, a\nbook is composed at which to scoff is a proof of a weak or a wicked\nmind, and in which to read often and thoughtfully is evidence of a\nwillingness to seek after the living God and to find the best answers to\nthe many problems of life and death.\n\nMuch that is valuable in these two testaments is recorded in events or\nin parables, and for all young minds and for nearly all older\nintellects, the doctrines, the alarms, the benedictions, the promises,\nthe hopes are treasured up in incidents which might be thrown upon\ncanvas or carved out of marble. Faith is seen in the picture of Abraham;\npatriotism, courage, honor, piety in Moses; justice in the story of\nLot's wife; eternal friendship in Ruth; reckless ambition in Absalom;\nresignation in Job; faithfulness in Daniel; while in the New Testament\nthe pictures offered in the Christ, the Marys, the Johns and St. Paul\nhave been too many and too great for art to equal.\n\nThese incidents and persons of the Bible form in the mind of the one who\nknows them a perfect treasure-house filled with the gems of true\nreligion. When that gifted writer who composed the hymn \"Nearer my God\nto Thee\" sat down to her task, what an imperfection would have marked\nher poem had she not known of Jacob's stony pillow and beautiful dream!\n\n    Though like a wanderer,\n      The sun gone down,\n    Darkness be over me,\n      My rest a stone.\n\nAnd the two following stanzas would have been wanting; nor is it\nprobable that the writer, although a woman most gifted, could have found\nin all literature any compensation for her loss and our loss. In the\n\"Battle-Hymn of the Republic,\" the eloquent writer shows in her first\nline her memory of Simeon, and through his eyes she looked and said:\n\"Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord,\" and in the\nlast verse, back comes one of the most beautiful incidents in the New\nTestament: \"In the beauty of the lilies, Christ was born across the\nsea.\"\n\nThus have thousands of years, in all, acted as the great time-space for\nattaching the Hebrew and Christian mind and heart to the persons and\nincidents found in the Holy Scriptures. Not to know all these\nHeaven-sent emblems of virtue, wisdom, piety and salvation is not only\nnot to be a Christian, but it is to stand afar off from the honor of\neven a common education and the most needful culture.\n\nFor the youth of our country Josephine Pollard, a wonderful friend of\nall those who are living their early years, and as good a writer as she\nis a friend, has detached from the Bible this volume of historic\nincidents, and while they make a continuous record of the old and the\nnew dispensations, they are separated from that which is too abstract to\ndetain and impress the youngest readers. To these interesting events she\nhas made the engraver add his art, and the picture of the pencil comes\nto help the picture more hidden in the words. While Christ is speaking\nof the \"lost sheep\" the picture reveals the lonely mountains and the\nlamb missed from the flock. While the great Teacher is speaking of the\nfoolish virgins, the picture appears of the thoughtless ones attempting\nin vain to find oil for their lamps. Thus the pictures of history\ncombine with the suggestive sketches of the artist and engraver, to\nmake, indeed, a Bible for Young People. The authoress came to her task\nwith rare fitness, and while the young folks are reading her volume they\nwill find not only the religious truths they all need, but they will\nalso find the simplicity and power of their own English language.\n\n\n\n\nAN ADDRESS TO CHILDREN.\n\nBY JOHN H. BARROWS, D.D.\n\nTHE BIBLE THE BOOK FOR THE YOUNG.\n\n\nGOD once said: \"And thou shalt teach them diligently to thy children.\"\nThe whole Bible, Old Testament and New, was meant to be taught to the\nboys and girls all over the world. When I was in Egypt, fifteen years\nago, I lay one beautiful moonlight night on the white sand of an island\nin the river Nile. It was an island away up near the equator, and as I\nlay there I saw beautiful trees with their long, leafy branches above\nme; I saw green fields reaching out on either side; I heard the old\nriver Nile rippling over the stones in its bed; and I thought of the\nrich fields of cotton and wheat and sugar-cane and of the thousands of\npalm trees which I had seen along the river, and of all the people who\nhad gotten their bread from the waters of the Nile, which, covering the\nsand of the desert, make it fertile and fruitful, and I blessed God for\nthe Nile. Where does it come from? You have learned that the Nile\nsprings from the snows of very high mountains away up in Abyssinia, and\nfrom two immense lakes in the center of Africa, and it carries the\nwaters from these mountains and lakes down through Egypt, and turns a\ndesert into a garden.\n\nBut there is another river more wonderful than the river of old Egypt.\nIt flows down from God out of heaven, and flows over this world, and\nbrings with it all that is beautiful and healthful and good. The waters\nof this river are carried off in little canals, and are brought into the\nhomes and churches and Sunday-schools; and wherever they go tend to make\nlives good and happy. Little children love this River of God, and dip\ntheir cups into it and drink, and there is a voice speaking in their\nears and saying: \"Whosoever will, let him take of the water of life\nfreely.\" There are some people who have traveled round the world and\nseen many very interesting lands and strange and curious people--white\nmen, red men, black men, copper-colored men, yellow men, but they will\ntell you that they never saw men where the children were happy, where\nthe homes were happy, and where people were trying to do each other\ngood, unless this River of God went there first. This beautiful river\nthat is doing so much for all who live on its banks,--it is the Bible,\nthe Word of God, which tells us about Himself and about ourselves, which\nspeaks to us of a Savior and of the life after death.\n\nSome years ago a black prince in Africa sent a messenger to Queen\nVictoria, a man who was to ask her what was the reason that England was\nso rich and prosperous; and she sent back to this African savage\nsomething that told the whole story. What do you suppose it was? Not a\nrifle, not a sword, not a steam-engine, not a plow, not a\nsewing-machine, but a copy of the Bible. Let me tell you _five_ things\nabout this book, and if you know how to spell the word Bible you will\nfind them easy to remember--B-I-B-L-E.\n\nFirst, then, the Bible is a _beautiful_ book. I do not mean as to its\nshape and color. It may be very lovely or it may be very plain, as it\nlooks to your eye. I have seen Bibles that you could buy for a sixpence,\nand I have a New Testament that I bought for a penny. I have seen Bibles\nwhich were copied with a pen and filled with pictures on which men\nlabored for years, and which you couldn't buy for a thousand dollars.\nWhen I say that the Bible is a beautiful book, I mean that it is full of\nbeautiful thoughts and beautiful pictures and beautiful stories that\nspeak to our minds. God often talks with children through pictures. You\nlove things that speak to you through the eye, like flowers and birds,\nand your dear mother's face. Just think of some of the pictures God has\ngiven us in this Book.\n\nI see, with my mind's eye, a garden, large, fair, with great trees and\nbeautiful walks, pure, clear streams with lovely flowers, with animals\nplaying about, with two trees that were set apart from the rest, one\ncalled the Tree of Life and the other the Tree of the Knowledge of Good\nand Evil. I see a man in this garden, and animals passing before him and\nhear him giving them names. Now I see a city with twelve gates, each\ngate a pearl. The city has walls made of twelve kinds of jewels, and the\nstreets are of pure gold, and there is no temple in the city and no sun,\nbut it is very glorious and wonderful. I see a beautiful River and a\nglorious Sea, and a great multitude of shining ones with harps in their\nhands, and I see a throne and One that sits thereon, more lovely and\nbeautiful and mighty and glorious than any words can say.\n\nThe little three-year-old boy before he can read, loves to take his\npicture book and see things that are to him very wonderful, and when he\ngets a little older he loves to take a box of paints and a brush and\ncolor the pictures in some of his books. The first book I ever colored\nwas full of Bible pictures. There was the picture of a man on the top of\na hill with his son laid on a heap of stones. The father's face was sad,\nand the old man was lifting a knife in his hand; and there was a sheep\ncaught in a bush near by; and there was the figure of an angel in the\nsky. Then there was the picture of a young man lying on the ground, with\nstones under his head for a pillow, and a stairway or ladder reaching up\nto the heavens above, with angels going up and down. There was the\npicture of a boy whose father gave him a coat of many colors, and how I\nliked to daub on the red and yellow and blue paint, and I am afraid I\ntook a pin and punched out the eyes in the pictures of the brothers of\nthis boy--those brothers who, as you remember, cast him into a dry well\nand afterward sold him as a slave. There was a picture of a little boy\nlying in a little boat which was among the tall grasses of a river.\nThere was the picture of a great tent in the desert, with altars on\nwhich fire was burning, and a great pillar of cloud resting down on it\nin the midst of the tent. And then far over in the book was the picture\nof the best Man who ever lived, taking little children in His arms,\nputting His hands on them and blessing them.\n\nThe Bible is a beautiful book for a great many reasons that I can't\nspeak of now. Its beauty is not like that of an apple blossom, which\nsoon fades away. It grows more and more lovely as you grow older. I like\nto see a little child reading with happy face from this book which tells\nof God's love; but it is lovelier still to see the old grandmother, who\nloved the Bible in childhood, putting on her spectacles and reading\nthese words of David: \"Oh, how I love thy law! It is my meditation all\nthe day. How sweet are thy words to my taste, yea, sweeter than honey to\nmy mouth!\" Two of the most beautiful things that we ever see are gold\nand honey--gold, bright shining, and the honey which looks like liquid\ngold, shut up in little boxes of pearl. Now I am going to end what I\nhave to say about the Bible as beautiful, by telling you what David said\nof the words of the Lord that are found in this book: \"More to be\ndesired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold; sweeter also than\nhoney and the honey comb.\"\n\nBut the Bible is not only a beautiful book for children, but it is an\n_interesting_ book. You like to read it and hear it, partly because it\ntells so much about children, boys and girls like you. You read in this\nbook about two brothers, one of whom loved God, and the other did not\nlove his brother, and slew him because his own deeds were evil and his\nbrother's righteous. You read about a little girl who was taken off in a\ncertain war, and became a servant for the wife of a great general. He\nwas a leper, and this little girl, believing in God and in God's\nprophet, Elisha, told her mistress that the prophet in Israel could heal\nher master of his awful disease. You read the story of a little boy\nwhose mother gave him early to the Lord, and who went to live with an\nold man in a great tent, which was God's house, and who heard the voice\nof the Lord calling to him in the night. Did you never hear God's voice\nspeaking to your heart, and do you always answer as did this boy in the\ntabernacle at Shiloh: \"Speak, Lord, for thy servant heareth\"?\n\nAnd in this Book you have read of four boys in the court of the great\nking of Babylon who would not defile themselves with the rich meats and\nthe fiery wines, and who formed a boys' temperance society in the court\nof the king, and who rose to high honor and great fame. Above all, you\nread of the perfect Child who was obedient to his earthly father and\nmother, and who did the will of his Heavenly Father, and who grew into\nthe bravest, noblest, truest, most manly man that ever lived, and who\ndied for us all--that Man whose words are, I think, the first words of\nthe Bible that you learned by heart. I have heard of a little girl who\nlived where the Bible is not permitted to be read by the children. But\nshe had a present of the good Book from her Sunday School teacher. It\nwas discovered that she had this book; it was snatched from her and\nthrown into the fire. She watched it burn, while the tears rolled down\nher cheeks, and turning sadly away, said: \"Thank God, there are fourteen\nchapters of the Gospel of John which they can't burn up, for I have\ncommitted them to memory.\"\n\nThe Bible interests you because it is full of _wonderful_ things. It\ntells of a wonderful God who doeth marvelous things for His people. It\ntells of the flood which swept away the wicked world; of the plagues\nwhich fell on wicked Egypt; of the march of two millions of people\nthrough the Red Sea which God divided; it tells you of the wonderful\nlife of the children of Israel in the desert, with God's hand feeding\nthem with the birds and the bread; it leads you to the foot of a great\nmountain, on which God came down in a chariot of fire, while the\nthunders roared and the trumpet blown by some mighty angel sounded loud\nand long, and the mountain shook and smoked like a great furnace, and\nall the people trembled while God gave the law which begins: \"I am the\nLord that brought thee out of Egypt. Thou shalt have no other gods\nbefore me.\"\n\nThis Bible has more wonderful things than you will find anywhere else.\nIt tells of great battles, of the sun and moon standing still, of cities\nfalling down at the blowing of trumpets; of fire descending from heaven;\nit tells of shipwrecks and storms, and cruel kings, and men willing to\ndie for the name of Jesus. It tells of God's wonderful love, and how the\nSon of God came from heaven to earth and died for us on the Cross and\nrose from the grave. And the best thing, children, about all these Bible\nwonders, is this, that they are true. A wonderful God doeth wonderful\nthings. This is a wonderful world we live in. You children know it and\nfeel it, and some older people have got to become much wiser than they\nnow are to be as wise as you are. Is not the Bible an interesting Book?\nMy children will listen longer to the story of the Bible than anything\nelse. And as you grow older, if you will only keep on studying the\nBible, it will keep its interest till you die.\n\nChildren who live in cities love to ride, in summer, in the parks and\nsee the wonderful figures which the gardeners have made with their\nplants and flowers, the stars and stripes, an elephant, the ball-player,\na giraffe, a sun-dial, a calendar, an obelisk, sphinxes, and so forth.\nNow, this book is a great garden on which God has made figures that will\nlast as long as the world lasts. There is Adam, with his face dark and\nsorrowful because he had sinned; there is Abel, looking up to that\nheaven which he, first of all men, entered; there is Noah, a preacher of\nrighteousness, who preached many years without converting a soul, but\nkept on believing God; there is Abraham with a staff in his hand; there\nis Moses holding the wondrous rod and the book of the law; there is\nDavid with his harp; there is Paul, going forth to preach Christ; there\nis John, looking into heaven. The children who have the Bible taught\nthem will find great interest in these figures. But the greatest\ninterest in the Bible is this, that it is a sign-board pointing us to\nour Father's house in Heaven.\n\nNow, I come to the third letter. The B-I-_B_-L-E--is not only a\nBeautiful book, and an Interesting book, but it is a Blessed book. That\nis, it makes people happy and good, good and happy. A poor man comes\nfrom England to Chicago with his wife and three children, expecting to\nget work and to make him a lovely home. But he fails to get work and he\nhas to sell many things to get bread for his family. At last he is in\ndespair, but a good man comes to his house, learns of his need, gives\nhim bread and gets him work; and that night the Englishman says to his\nwife, \"Wasn't he a blessed man to help us at this time?\" But in a few\ndays the baby of the house is taken sick and soon dies, and the good man\ncomes again and advances money to pay for the funeral of the dear little\nchild; and they say, \"Blessed man!\" again. But that night, when all is\nover, and the baby is laid to sleep in the cemetery, the poor man takes\ndown the Bible and reads to his wife of Christ's love to children, and\nof the beautiful world beyond, where there is no more crying and death,\nand the wife says, \"Oh, isn't that a blessed Book!\"\n\n_Blessed_ Book. So the mother thinks whose boy has gone off to school or\nto sea. How careful she was to put a copy of the Bible in his hands and\nto get from him the promise to read it every day. She knows perfectly\nwell that no great harm can come to him, if he reads and obeys what is\nwritten in the Word of God. I know a young lady who was very much\ndistressed when in Paris several years ago because her hand-bag, a\nlittle portmanteau, had been lost. And when, after much hunting, it was\nfound, she confessed that what distressed her most of all in the thought\nof losing her hand-bag was this, that it contained the little Bible\nwhich had been given to her when a child and which she had made her\ndaily companion ever since. I hope that each of you owns a Bible which,\nthe gift of a mother or of some dear friend, is growing more and more\nblessed to you as you go forward into your lives. There is much darkness\nin the future. You will have sorrows as well as joys. The clouds will\ngather. The shadows will sometimes descend and you will wonder where you\nare to walk, or what you are to do. But remember what David has said of\nthis blessed Book: \"Thy word is a lamp to my feet and a guide to my\npath.\"\n\nNow, we come to the fourth letter, B-I-B-_L_-E. Beautiful, Interesting,\nBlessed, L, Life-giving. This is something better than anything we have\nyet said to you about the Bible. It gives life to those who are dead.\nYou have seen a patch of ground early in the spring on which nothing was\ngrowing. But the rain falls, and the warm sunshine pours down, and the\nseeds in that soil burst into life and spring up and cover the earth\nwith living plants and flowers. And so God's Word brings its dew and\nsunshine on our cold, dead hearts, and the flowers of love, hope, peace\nand joy spring up. The Bible is like bread, like the manna which came to\nthe children of Israel in the desert. It feeds our souls. It gives us\nlife. How does it give us life? It teaches us about God and his great\nlove in Jesus, and when we come to get from Him the forgiveness of our\nsins, when we come to know God and love God and trust in God, we have\nlife. \"This is life eternal,\" said Jesus, \"that they may know thee, the\nonly true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.\" Some of you are\ngiving money to send this Book to the heathen people. Where this Book\ngoes it gives life like bread sent to people who are starving.\n\nBut why do we need the Bible to know about God? Do not the stars and the\nsun and the earth tell us that there must be a God who made all these\nwonderful things and rules them? Yes, they tell us that God is powerful,\nthat He is very great, but they do not tell us that he loves us poor\nsinners. The Egyptians believed in God; yes, in many gods. They were, as\nwe know, a very wise and learned people. And yet this people Moses found\nbowing down and worshiping cats and crocodiles and beetles. They did not\nknow the one God who led His people, and who said, \"Thou shalt have no\nother gods before me,\" and who is not only holy, but merciful, forgiving\nour sins. Suppose that you were on an ocean steamer way out at sea, and\nshe was sinking into the waves. To what or to whom would you pray? You\nwouldn't pray to the waves. They would not have mercy on you. You\nwouldn't pray to the stars. They wouldn't have mercy on you. You would\npray to the God who is revealed in this Book, the God and Father of our\nLord Jesus Christ, who has said that nothing can take us from His love,\nneither life nor death, land nor ocean, nothing can separate us from His\nlove.\n\nChildren, this Book tells us one thing which all need to learn, and that\nis, how we may gain life eternal, how we may escape from death. This\nBook is the story of God's love. It is the story of Jesus, our Savior.\nHe that has Christ in his heart has life. \"I am the resurrection and the\nlife,\" said Jesus; \"I am the way, the truth and the life.\" If this Book\ndoes not lead you to Christ, you have failed to get from it what God\ngave it for. David said of the Bible: \"The law of the Lord is perfect,\nconverting the soul.\"\n\nWe come now to the fifth letter, B-I-B-L-_E_--Everlasting. The Bible is\nBeautiful, Interesting, Blessed, Life-giving, and Everlasting. It is\nsomething that does not wear out. \"The word of the Lord endureth\nforever.\" Children's clothes wear out, as you well know. Your\nplay-things break; your shoes don't last; your books get torn; these\nbodies die; but the Bible lasts. It was good in David's time. It was\ngood when Christ was a child, and He read it. It was good in Paul's\ntime, and he added to it. It was good when Martin Luther translated it\ninto the German language, and William Tyndale translated it into\nEnglish. It lasts the way an oak tree lasts, that grows bigger and\nbigger and sends out little shoots that grow into other oaks and make a\nmighty forest. This Bible is now speaking to men in nearly three hundred\ndifferent languages. It is going to be the one Book of the world. A\nhundred years ago a famous infidel in France, named Voltaire, foolishly\npublished his opinion that the religion of the Bible would soon die out,\nbut to-day men are using Voltaire's printing-press in Geneva to publish\nthis grand old Book. Here is something, children, that is going to last.\nYou can stand on it safely. God is in it. When the little girl whose\nfather was an infidel and whose mother was a Christian was dying, and\nshe said to her father, \"Shall I hold to your principles, father, or\nshall I turn now to my mother's God?\" the father said: \"Believe in your\nmother's God.\"\n\nJust before beginning a great battle on the sea, you remember that\nAdmiral Nelson hung out a flag with these words for all to see: \"England\nexpects every man to do his duty.\" And so our great General, the Captain\nof our salvation, expects that every boy trained up in a Christian\nchurch will do his duty. He expects that you will take this Beautiful,\nInteresting, Blessed, Life-giving and Eternal book and make it your\nguide, your compass, your rudder, your chart on the great ocean of life.\nHe expects that you will be true men and women, honest, pure, obedient\nto God, loving your country and all the world. He expects that you will\nbe faithful to duty, that you will be clean in body and in lips and\nmouth and eyes and heart. He expects to meet you and welcome you all in\nglory above.\n\nA passenger on one of our ocean steamers found an old friend in the\ncaptain. They talked about one of their old classmates in school. Said\nthe passenger: \"I could never understand why Will did not succeed. He\nleft college well educated, full of life and health, well-to-do. He gave\nup the ministry which he had intended to enter, having fallen in with\nsome free-thinking fellows. He studied law, but gave that up and went to\nfarming. He became a skeptic. He left his wife and farming and became a\ngold-seeker in California. He left this and went to Idaho. He had lost\neverything, and supported himself by odd jobs. I knew him there. He was\nnot a drunkard or a gambler, but he had never succeeded. He tried\nsomething new several times a year. He was now almost mad in his\nopposition to the religion of the Bible. Soon he died, bitterly\nrebelling against God. It is wonderful that such a man should ever have\ncome to such an end.\"\n\nThe captain was silent for a while, but at last said: \"Old sailors have\na superstition that there are phantom ships (that is, ghosts of ships)\nwhich cross the sea. I saw a vessel once that showed me how this idea\nmay have sprung up. It was a full-rigged bark, driving under full sail.\nThere was no one on board. Some disease may have broken out, and all the\nsailors had left. I could not capture her, though I tried. Several\nmonths later I passed her again. Her topmast was gone; her sails were in\nrags; the wind drove her where it would. A year later she came in sight\none stormy winter night. She was a shattered hulk and went down at last\nin the darkness and storm. She was a good ship at first, but,\" added the\ncaptain, \"she had lost her rudder.\" Boys and girls, young men and women,\nI pray you, on this voyage of life, not to lose the rudder by which, in\nthe storm, you may hold the ship true to the harbor.\n\n\n\n\nCONTENTS.\n\n\n  CHAPTER I.                                          PAGE\n  GOD MADE THE WORLD,                                   33\n\n  CHAPTER II.\n  THE GREAT FLOOD; AND A GREAT TOW-ER,                  43\n\n  CHAPTER III.\n  A-BRA-HAM: THE MAN OF FAITH,                          52\n\n  CHAPTER IV.\n  JA-COB AND E-SAU,                                     64\n\n  CHAPTER V.\n  JA-COB AND RA-CHEL,                                   71\n\n  CHAPTER VI.\n  JO-SEPH AND HIS BRETH-REN,                            76\n\n  CHAPTER VII.\n  THROUGH THE RED SEA AND THE WIL-DER-NESS,             91\n\n  CHAPTER VIII.\n  HOW JOSH-U-A AND JEPH-THAH FOUGHT FOR THE LORD,      112\n\n  CHAPTER IX.\n  SAM-SON, THE STRONG MAN,                             118\n\n  CHAPTER X.\n  RUTH,                                                128\n\n  CHAPTER XI.\n  JOB,                                                 132\n\n  CHAPTER XII.\n  SAM-U-EL, THE CHILD OF GOD,                          139\n\n  CHAPTER XIII.\n  SAM-U-EL, THE MAN OF GOD,                            147\n\n  CHAPTER XIV.\n  DA-VID AND SAUL,                                     157\n\n  CHAPTER XV.\n  SOL-O-MON, THE WISE MAN,                             177\n\n  CHAPTER XVI.\n  E-LI-JAH,                                            183\n\n  CHAPTER XVII.\n  E-LI-SHA,                                            192\n\n  CHAPTER XVIII.\n  JO-NAH, THE MAN WHO TRIED TO HIDE FROM GOD,          200\n\n  CHAPTER XIX.\n  DAN-I-EL,                                            204\n\n  CHAPTER XX.\n  THE GOOD QUEEN ES-THER,                              217\n\n\n  NEW TESTAMENT.\n\n  CHAPTER I.\n  THE BIRTH OF CHRIST,                                 235\n\n  CHAPTER II.\n  THE STAR IN THE EAST,                                244\n\n  CHAPTER III.\n  THE BOY-HOOD OF JE-SUS,                              251\n\n  CHAPTER IV.\n  JE-SUS AND JOHN THE BAP-TIST,                        256\n\n  CHAPTER V.\n  THE WO-MAN AT THE WELL.--JE-SUS BY THE SEA,          267\n\n  CHAPTER VI.\n  JE-SUS HEALS THE SICK, AND DOES GOOD WORK ON THE\n      DAY OF REST,                                     276\n\n  CHAPTER VII.\n  THE SER-MON ON THE MOUNT,                            286\n\n  CHAPTER VIII.\n  GOOD WORDS AND GOOD WORKS,                           295\n\n  CHAPTER IX.\n  JE-SUS AT THE SEA-SHORE,                             303\n\n  CHAPTER X.\n  JE-SUS BRINGS THE DEAD TO LIFE.--FEEDS FIVE\n      THOU-SAND,                                       311\n\n  CHAPTER XI.\n  JE-SUS HEALS THE SICK.--HIS FORM CHANGED ON THE\n      MOUNT,                                           320\n\n  CHAPTER XII.\n  THE GOOD SA-MAR-I-TAN.--MAR-THA AND MA-RY.--THE\n      MAN BORN BLIND,                                  327\n\n  CHAPTER XIII.\n  JE-SUS THE GOOD SHEP-HERD.--LAZ-A-RUS BROUGHT TO\n      LIFE.--THE FEAST AND THOSE WHO WERE BID TO IT,   337\n\n  CHAPTER XIV.\n  THE PROD-I-GAL SON.--THE PHAR-I-SEE AND THE\n      PUB-LI-CAN.--BABES BROUGHT TO\n      JE-SUS.--ZAC-CHE-US CLIMBS A TREE,               346\n\n  CHAPTER XV.\n  THE FEAST OF THE PASS-O-VER.--THE SUP-PER AT\n      BETH-A-NY,                                       353\n\n  CHAPTER XVI.\n  PAR-A-BLES OF OUR LORD,                              362\n\n  CHAPTER XVII.\n  THE LORD'S SUP-PER.--JE-SUS IN GETH-SEM-A-NE.--THE\n      JU-DAS KISS.--PE-TER DE-NIES JE-SUS,             375\n\n  CHAPTER XVIII.\n  CHRIST BE-FORE PI-LATE.--CHRIST ON THE CROSS,        382\n\n  CHAPTER XIX.\n  JE-SUS LEAVES THE GRAVE.--AP-PEARS TO\n      MA-RY.--STE-PHEN STONED.--PAUL'S LIFE,\n      SHIP-WRECK AND DEATH,                            395\n\n  CHAPTER XX.\n  WHAT JOHN SAW WHILE ON THE ISLE OF PAT-MOS.--THE\n      GREAT WHITE THRONE.--THE LAND OF LIGHT,          412\n\n\n\n\nHistory of the Old Testament.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER I.\n\nGOD MADE THE WORLD.\n\n\nFAR back in the past, more years than you could think or count, God made\nthe world. It did not look at first as it does now, for there was no\nlive thing on it, no men, beasts, or birds, not a bush, tree or plant,\nbut all was dark and drear.\n\nThen God said, Let there be light! And the light came. And God saw the\nlight, and it pleased him, and he gave it the name of Day. And when the\nday was gone, and the dark came back to stay for a while, he gave the\ndark spell the name of Night. And God did these things on the first day.\n\nThe next day God made the clouds, and the sky in which they were to\nmove; and he gave the sky a name; he called it Heav-en.\n\nThen he drove the wa-ters to one place where they were both deep and\nwide, and he called the wa-ters Seas, and to the dry land he gave the\nname of Earth. And God made the grass to grow up out of the earth, and\nthe trees and shrubs that have fruit on them. And the grass and the\nshrubs and the trees were to bear seeds, so that when these seeds were\nput in-to the ground more grass and trees and shrubs would grow there.\nGod did these things on the third day.\n\nAnd God put two great lights in the sky, the Sun to shine by day, and\nthe Moon to shine by night; and he made the stars, and put each one in\nits place. And these things he did on the fourth day.\n\nAnd he made the great whales, and all the fish that live in the sea, and\nthe birds that swim on it, as well as those that fly through the air,\nand make their nests in the deep woods. And these things God did on the\nfifth day.\n\nGod made the beasts: those that are wild and live in the deep, dark\nwoods, far from the homes of men; and those that are tame and of use to\nmen, and live where men live--such as the horse, the cow, the ox and the\nsheep. And he made the things that creep on the ground, and flies and\nbugs that course through the air.\n\n[Illustration: AD-AM AND EVE DRIV-EN FROM PAR-A-DISE.]\n\nAnd then God made Man, and told him that he should rule the fish of the\nsea, the birds of the air, and all else that lived on the earth. And he\ntold man that the fruit which grew on the trees and shrubs should be his\nfood, while the beasts were to feed on the leaves, and on the grass\nthat was spread out on the earth. These things were done on the sixth\nday.\n\nThe next day God did no work at all, but made it a day of rest.\n\nGod made man out of the dust of the earth, and breathed in him till the\nman breathed and moved, and showed signs of life. Then God made a\ngar-den for man to live in, where all sorts of trees grew that were nice\nto look at, and that bore fruit good to eat. And this place was called\nE-den. And through it flowed a large stream that kept the earth moist.\n\nAnd God took Ad-am, the man he had made, and put him in the gar-den, and\ntold him to take care of it. He told him he might eat of the fruit that\ngrew on all the trees but one. God said he must not eat of that tree,\nfor if he did he would be sure to die. And all the birds and beasts came\nto A-dam, that he might give them their names. And the names he gave\nthem are those by which they are known to this day.\n\nAnd God saw it was not good for man to be a-lone; he should have some\none to be with him and help him. So he had a deep sleep fall on Ad-am,\nand while he slept God took out of his side a bone, and out of this bone\nhe made a wo-man. Then he brought this wo-man he had made to Ad-am, and\nshe was his wife.\n\nNow there was in this gar-den of E-den a great big snake. And this snake\nspoke to the wo-man--as Sa-tan speaks to us--to tempt her to sin.\n\nThe snake said: Has God told you not to eat of all the trees in the\ngar-den?\n\nAnd the wo-man said that they might eat of all but one; if they ate of\nthat or touched it they would be sure to die. The snake told them they\nshould not die, and that God did not wish them to eat of it for fear\nthey would grow wise, and know more than he thought was good for them.\n\nThe wo-man heard what the snake said, and when she saw that the tree was\nnice to look at and the fruit seemed good to eat, she gave no thought to\nwhat God had said, but took some of the fruit and ate of it; she gave\nsome to the man, Ad-am, and he did eat.\n\nIn a short time they heard a voice, and knew that God spoke to them. Yet\nthey did not come near him when they heard his voice, but ran and tried\nto hide from him.\n\nBut God spoke once more, and said to the man, Where art thou?\n\nAnd Ad-am said, I heard thy voice, and my fear was so great that I hid\nfrom thee.\n\nAnd God said, Did'st thou eat of the tree I told thee not to eat of?\n\nAnd the man said, She whom thou dids't give me to be with me brought me\nsome of the fruit, and I did eat.\n\nAnd God said to the man's wife, What is this that thou hast done?\n\nAnd she told God what the snake had said, and how she came to eat of the\nfruit, and God was wroth with them all. He said the snake should crawl\non the ground and eat dust all the days of its life; and he told the\nwife she should know what it was to be sick and sad, and should have\nmuch grief and care.\n\nAnd God drove the man and his wife out of E-den, and would let them live\nno more in that fair place. And he sent an-gels to keep watch, and a\nsword of fire that would turn in all ways, so that the two whom God for\ntheir sins drove out of E-den could not get back to the home they had\nlost.\n\nAnd God told Ad-am that as he had paid heed to what his wife said, and\ndid eat of the tree which the Lord had told him not to eat of, the\nground should bear no more fruit for him by it-self, as it had done up\nto this time, and Ad-am would have to work hard all his life to raise\nfood to eat, and when he died he would go back to the dust out of which\nhe was made.\n\nBut God told Ad-am and his wife that there was a way by which their\nsouls might live on high when their flesh was laid in the ground. He\nsaid he would send One from the sky who would give his life for theirs:\nthat is, he would be put to death for their sins. Then if they would\nturn from their sins, and give their hearts to the One who was to save\nthem, God would not turn his face from them, but when they died they\nwould have a home with him, and have no thought of sin.\n\nSo Ad-am went forth to till the land, and he gave his wife the name of\nEve. And they made coats out of the skins of beasts.\n\n[Illustration: CAIN AND A-BEL OF-FER-ING SAC-RI-FI-CES TO GOD.]\n\nAd-am and his wife had two sons: Cain and A-bel. When they grew up to be\nmen, Cain, who was the first-born, took care of a farm; A-bel kept a\nflock of sheep.\n\nThey both had bad hearts, and at times would be led in-to sin, just as\nAd-am and his wife had been. But when A-bel did wrong he was grieved,\nand sought to make peace with God. One day he brought a lamb from his\nflock, and killed it, and burnt it on a heap of stones. And the smoke\nwent up on high.\n\nThis act of A-bel's pleased God, for it was the sign that a Lamb was to\nbe sent to the world to save men from their sins.\n\nBut Cain kept on in his sins, and paid his vows to God not with a lamb,\nbut with fruit or grain out of the field. This did not please God, and\nthe smoke went not up on high. When Cain saw this he was in a rage, and\nshowed by his looks that he was wroth with God. Yet God spoke to him in\na kind voice, and said, Why art thou wroth? and why art thou so cast\ndown?\n\nIf Cain did right God told him he would be pleased with his gift; but if\nhe did not do right, the fault was his own.\n\nThen Cain was wroth with A-bel, for he saw that God was pleased with\nA-bel's gift and not with his. And one day when both of them were out in\nthe field he rose up and slew A-bel, and the blood ran out of A-bel's\nwounds and sank deep in the ground.\n\nAs soon as this deed was done, God spoke to Cain, and said: Where is\nA-bel?\n\nCain said, I know not. He is not in my care. Then God, who had seen the\ncrime, and knew just how bad his heart was, said to Cain: What hast thou\ndone? The voice of A-bel's blood cries to me from out the ground.\n\nAnd God told Cain that for his great sin he should move from place to\nplace, as one who was in fear of his life, and had no home to stay in.\nAnd if he should plant aught in the field to bear food, it should not\ngrow well. Weeds would come up and choke it, or it would bear leaves and\nno fruit, so that Cain would not have much to eat.\n\n[Illustration: THE DEATH OF A-BEL.]\n\nAnd Cain said if God drove him here and there on the face of the earth,\nand would not take care of him, all those who met him would want to kill\nhim.\n\nBut God said the man who hurt Cain would have a worse fate. God set a\nmark on Cain; what kind of a mark it was we are not told, but those who\nsaw it would know it was Cain, and it would bring to their minds that\nGod had said no man should kill him.\n\nAd-am lived to be an old, old man, and had a large flock of chil-dren,\nwho grew up and were wed, and they went off and made homes, and day by\nday were folks born in-to the world. When Ad-am died he was laid in the\nground and went back to dust, as God had said he should when he went out\nof E-den.\n\nOne of the men who lived in those days was named E-noch. It is said of\nhim that he walked with God. That means that he loved God, and thought\nof him, and kept near him all the time, and did his best to please him.\n\nAnd E-noch did not die, but God took him up to be with him while he\nstill lived, just as if he were to take up one of us.\n\nAnd E-noch had a son whose name was Me-thu-se-lah, who died at a great\nold age. In those times men lived more years than they do now, but in\nall the years since the world was made no man has been known to live to\nbe as old as Me-thu-se-lah.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER II.\n\nTHE GREAT FLOOD; AND A GREAT TOWER.\n\n\nIN the course of time, when there came to be more folks in the world,\nthey grew fond of sin. They did not love God, or try to please him. And\nGod was wroth with them, and said he would send a flood that would drown\nthe world, and there should not be any dry land left for men, beasts, or\nbirds to live on.\n\nBut though most of the folks at that time were as bad as they could be,\nthere was one good man in their midst, and his name was No-ah.\n\n[Illustration: THE ARK.]\n\nAnd God loved No-ah and told him what he meant to do. And God bade No-ah\nbuild an ark. This was a boat. It was to be made large, with rooms in\nit, and a great door on its side. And it was to be quite high, and to\nhave a roof on top.\n\nAnd God told No-ah when the ark was done he and his sons and their wives\nshould go in it.\n\nAnd he told No-ah to take in with him two of each kind of bird and of\nbeast, and of bug, and of things that crept, and to take care of them in\nthe ark so long as the flood should be on the earth; for all that were\nnot in the ark would be sure to be drowned.\n\nSo No-ah set out at once to build the ark; and it took him a great while\nto build it. When not at work on the ark, he would talk of God, and of\nhis plan to send a flood to wash sin out of the world, and would urge\nthe folks to give up their sins, and lead good lives. But they paid no\nheed to his words, and went from bad to worse all the time that No-ah\nwas at work on the ark.\n\nWhen it was done God told No-ah to come in-to the ark, for he saw he was\na good man who had done his best to serve him, and to bring the birds\nand beasts with him. For in a few days he would send the rain on the\nearth, and all that was left on it would be drowned.\n\n[Illustration: THE ARK]\n\nSo No-ah did as God told him. And when he and his wife, and his three\nsons and their wives, and the birds and the beasts, both small and\ngreat, had passed through the great door of the ark, God shut them in.\n\nAt the end of a week the rain set in, and did not stop for more than a\nmonth. The rain seemed to pour out of the sky, and all the springs, the\nlarge and small streams, and the great seas, rose up and swept through\nthe length and breadth of the land. They came to where the ark was, and\nwent round and round it, and rose so high that the ark was borne from\nits place and set a-float on the great wide sea.\n\nThen those who had paid no heed to No-ah, but had kept on in their sins,\nwere in a sad plight. The flood had come, and they knew now that all\nthat he had told them was true. How glad they would have been to go with\nhim in the ark. But it was too late. They ran in wild haste to the tops\nof the hills in hopes to find there a safe place. But still the floods\nrose and rose till there was no place for them to go, and all those not\nin the ark were drowned, and there was not a bit of dry land in the\nwhole wide world.\n\nBut God took care of No-ah, and those who were with him, and kept them\nsafe till the floods went down. At the end of five months the sea had\ngone down so much that the ark stood high and dry on a mount known as\nAr-a-rat. It stood there for at least two months, and at the end of that\ntime the sea had gone down so that tops of high hills could be seen\nhere and there.\n\nAnd No-ah sent forth a ra-ven, and the bird flew this way and that, but\ncame not back to the ark.\n\nThen No-ah sent forth a dove, that he might find out if the ground was\nyet dry. And the dove flew here and there in search of green things, but\nfound not a tree in sight, and naught but cold hard rock, and so she\nflew back to the ark and No-ah put out his hand and took her in.\n\nAt the end of a week No-ah sent out the dove once more, and at the close\nof the day she came back with a leaf in her mouth.\n\n[Illustration: THE RE-TURN OF THE DOVE.]\n\nAs soon as No-ah saw the leaf he knew that the waves had gone down or\nthe dove could not have found it. And he knew that God had sent the\ndove back to him that he might know the ground would soon be dry.\n\nIn a few days he sent the dove out for the third time, but she did not\ncome back; and No-ah was sure then that the ground was dry, and that God\nmeant that for a sign that he should leave the ark in which he had been\nshut up so long.\n\nAnd God spoke to No-ah and told him to come out of the ark, and to bring\nout all that had been in there with him. And No-ah did so, and he built\nup a heap of stones as A-bel had done, on which he laid beasts and\nbirds, and burnt them, which was the way in which man gave thanks to God\nin those days.\n\nAnd No-ah's heart was full of praise to God, who had kept him, and those\nwho were near and dear to him, safe from the flood, while all the rest\nof the world was drowned.\n\nAnd God told No-ah and his sons that they should rule on the earth, and\nmight kill the beasts and use the flesh for food. Up to this time those\nwho dwelt on the earth had lived on the fruits of trees and such things\nas grew out of the ground, and did not know the taste of meat.\n\nAnd God told No-ah that he would send no more floods to drown the world\nas this one had done. And he gave No-ah a sign that he would keep his\nword, so that when No-ah saw it he would have no fear of a flood. And\nthis sign was the rain-bow, which God set up in the sky as a bow of hope\nto No-ah and to all the world.\n\nNo-ah lived for years and years af-ter the flood, and died at a ripe old\nage.\n\nThe tribes of No-ah grew so fast that the world was quite well filled\nonce more.\n\n[Illustration: NO-AH'S SAC-RI-FICE.]\n\nAnd you would think they would have been glad to serve God, and to do\nright in his sight. But their hearts were full of sin, and they went on\nas those had done who were drowned in the flood.\n\n[Illustration: HE-BREWS, AND THEIR MODE OF TRAV-EL-ING.]\n\nAt this time all those who dwelt on the earth spoke but one tongue; that\nis, they used the same kind of speech.\n\nNow these tribes did not stay in one spot all the time, but would pack\nup their tents and move from place to place as they chose.\n\nAnd as they went to the east they came to a plain in the land of\nShi-nar. And they said, Let us make brick and build a high tow-er that\nshall reach up to the sky. And let us make a name, so that when we go\nfrom this place it will be known what great men were here, and what\ngreat deeds they could do.\n\n[Illustration: BUILD-ING THE TOW-ER OF BA-BEL.]\n\nAnd they set to work to build it. God, who read their hearts, knew that\nsin was at work there, and that the tow-er they meant to build was not\nto serve him in, or to add to his praise. So he was not pleased with\ntheir work, and chose a strange way to stop them. He made them all at\nonce speak in strange tongues. This one could not tell what that one\nsaid, and they made such a noise that it grew to be just a ba-bel of\nsound. And that is why it was called the tow-er of Ba-bel.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER III.\n\nABRAHAM: THE MAN OF FAITH.\n\n\nTHERE dwelt in the land of Ur a man whose name was A-bra-ham. And in\nthat land the men did not serve the true God, but had set up false gods\nto whom they paid their vows.\n\nAnd God told A-bra-ham to leave his home and go to a land which he would\nshow him. A-bra-ham did not know where the land was, but he had great\nfaith, and knew that God would take care of him and bring him to the\nland he had told him of.\n\nSo A-bra-ham took Sa-rah, his wife, and his bro-ther's son, whose name\nwas Lot, and they set out for the land which God had said he would show\nhim.\n\nA-bra-ham was a rich man, and so was Lot, and they had a great wealth of\nflocks, and of herds, and of tents. And they each had a large force of\nherds-men. And these herds-men were at strife.\n\nAnd A-bra-ham told Lot it was best that they should part; and he said to\nhim, Choose where thou shalt go. If thou wilt take the left hand I will\ngo to the right, and if thou wilt go to the right hand then I will go to\nthe left.\n\nSo Lot looked round and saw that the plain of Jor-dan was rich in grass,\nand would be a fine place for him and his herds to dwell in; so he made\nhis choice at once, and went to live there.\n\nTwo large towns were on this plain, Sod-om and Go-mor-rah. The men in\nSod-om were full of sin, yet Lot, though a good man, went to live there\nthat he might have a chance to add to his wealth.\n\nAs soon as Lot had gone, the Lord told A-bra-ham that he would give to\nhim and his heirs all that land as far as he could see it. And the tribe\nof A-bra-ham would be so great that no one could count them.\n\nNow Sa-rah A-bra-ham's wife, had a hand-maid--that is, a\nmaid-of-all-work--whose name was Ha-gar; and she came from E-gypt.\nHa-gar did Sa-rah a great wrong, and Sa-rah drove her from the house,\nand she fled to the woods.\n\nAn an-gel of the Lord found Ha-gar there by a spring of wa-ter, and said\nto her, From whence didst thou come? and where wilt thou go? And she\nsaid she had fled from Sa-rah, whose maid she was.\n\nAnd the an-gel said she must go back to Sa-rah and do as she wished her\nto do. And he told Ha-gar she would have a son whose name would be\nIsh-ma-el, and that he would live out of doors and be at strife with all\nmen. So Ha-gar went back to Sa-rah, and in due time God gave her a son,\nwho was called Ish-ma-el.\n\nWhen A-bra-ham was an old man, God told him that he and Sa-rah should\nhave a son, who should be called I-saac.\n\nOne day at the hour of noon, when A-bra-ham sat by the door of his tent,\nhe looked up and saw three men quite near him. Then he ran out to meet\nthem, and bowed his face to the ground. And A-bra-ham bade them sit down\nand rest, and let some wa-ter be brought that they might wash their\nfeet.\n\nNo one in those days wore such shoes as are worn now. Some went\nbare-foot, and some wore just a sole tied to the foot with strings,\nwhich did not keep off the dust and dirt as our shoes do.\n\nSo when one came in from a long walk the first thing he did was to bathe\nhis feet, as that gave rest and ease, and when guests came the bowl was\nbrought for their use.\n\nAnd A-bra-ham brought them food to eat, and stood by to wait on them;\nand when they had had their fill, went with them to show them the way.\n\nIn those days the Lord came down on the earth and spoke with men, and it\nis thought that one of these three was the Lord, and the two with him\nwere an-gels.\n\n[Illustration: THE AN-GELS' VIS-IT.]\n\nAnd the Lord told A-bra-ham that he meant to burn Sod-om and Go-mor-rah\nfor the sins of those who dwelt there. This made A-bra-ham sad, and he\nsaid there might be a few good men there, and he begged the Lord to\nspare the towns for their sakes.\n\nThe Lord said he would do so if ten good men could be found there.\n\nAnd the Lord left A-bra-ham and he went back to his tent. At the close\nof the day, Lot sat in the gate of Sod-om and two an-gels came there.\nAnd as soon as Lot saw them he rose up to meet them and bowed down with\nhis face to the ground.\n\nThen these an-gels told Lot to take out of Sod-om all those who were\ndear to him, and flee in great haste, as the Lord meant to set the place\non fire.\n\nThey were told not to look back, but while on their way Lot's wife\nturned her head, which was a sign that her heart was in Sod-om, and she\ndied where she stood, and turned to salt.\n\nBut Lot and his two girls reached Zo-ar at dawn of the next day. Then\nthe Lord rained fire on Sod-om and Go-mor-rah, and they were burnt up in\nfierce flame, with all that lived there, and all that grew out of the\nground.\n\nIn due time God gave A-bra-ham the son he had said he should have.\n\nAnd the child grew, and as soon as it could eat, A-bra-ham made a great\nfeast. And at this feast Sa-rah saw that Ha-gar's son, Ish-ma-el, made\nfun of her boy, and she begged A-bra-ham to cast him out. A-bra-ham did\nnot wish to do this, but God spoke to him and told him to do as Sa-rah\nhad said, for I-saac was to be the true heir. So the next day A-bra-ham\ngave food and drink to Ha-gar and sent her and her child out of his\nhouse.\n\nAnd Ha-gar took her boy and went to the waste lands of Beer-she-ba.\n\nAnd when there was nought for the child to drink, he grew weak, and was\nlike to die. And Ha-gar laid him 'neath a bush and went off and sat down\nand hid her face, and wept, for she loved her boy ve-ry much and did not\nwant to see him die.\n\n[Illustration: DE-STRUC-TION OF THE CIT-IES OF THE PLAIN.]\n\nAnd a voice spoke to Ha-gar out of the sky, and said, What ails thee,\nHa-gar? Fear not, for God hath heard the voice of the lad where he is.\nRise, lift up the lad and hold him in thine arms.\n\nAnd the voice told her that her son should be the head of a great tribe.\nAnd as she raised her eyes she saw a well of wa-ter, and she ran to it\nand gave her son a drink and he was soon strong and well once more.\n\nAnd God was kind to Ish-ma-el, and he grew, and made his home in the\nwoods, and came to have great skill with the bow.\n\nNow it was God's wish to try the faith of A-bra-ham to him.\n\nAnd he told him to take his son, I-saac, and go to the land of Mo-ri-ah,\nand lay him on the al-tar he was to build on one of the mounts there. It\nwas not a hard task to kill a lamb, and to burn it so that the smoke of\nit should rise up to God, like praise from the hearts of men. But how\ncould A-bra-ham take his own dear son, I-saac, and lay him on the wood,\nand let him be burnt up like a lamb?\n\nYet God told him to do it, and A-bra-ham knew that it was safe for him\nto do as God said.\n\nSo he rose the next day and took two of his young men with him, and\nI-saac his son, and cut the wood the right length, and set out for the\nmount of which God had told him.\n\n[Illustration: HA-GAR AND ISH-MA-EL.]\n\nAnd as they drew near the place he took the wood from the ass and laid\nit on I-saac's back, and took the fire in his hand and a knife, and the\ntwo went up the mount.\n\nNow I-saac did not know what the Lord had told A-bra-ham to do, nor why\nhis fa-ther took him up to the mount. And he said, Here is the fire and\nthe wood, but where is the lamb?\n\nAnd A-bra-ham said, My son, God will give us the lamb we need.\n\nAnd when they came to the place, A-bra-ham piled up the stones and put\nthe wood on them, and bound I-saac and laid him on the wood.\n\nThen he drew forth the knife to kill his son. And just then a voice from\nthe sky cried out, A-bra-ham! A-bra-ham! And A-bra-ham said, Here am I.\n\nAnd the Lord told him to do no harm to I-saac, for now he knew that\nA-bra-ham loved him, since he would not spare his own dear son if it was\nGod's wish that he should give him up.\n\nAnd as A-bra-ham turned his head he saw a ram that was caught in a bush,\nand he took the ram and laid it on the wood, and burnt it in-stead of\nhis son.\n\nAt the end of a few years A-bra-ham went to live at Heb-ron. And Sa-rah\ndied there.\n\nWhen I-saac grew up to be a man, A-bra-ham did not wish him to take a\nwife from the land of Ca-naan where they served strange gods.\n\nSo he sent one of his men to the land where he used to live to bring\nback a wife for I-saac.\n\nAnd as he drew near to a large town in that land he made his cam-els\nkneel down by a well. And it was the time of day when the wo-men of the\nplace went out to draw wa-ter from the well.\n\nAnd the man whom A-bra-ham had sent, asked God to help him, and to let\nhim know which one of them was to be I-saac's wife. And he said he would\nask one of them for a drink, and if she was kind and gave him a drink,\nand let his cam-els quench their thirst, then he should know that she\nwas the one God chose to be the wife of A-bra-ham's son.\n\n[Illustration: RE-BEK-AH AT THE WELL.]\n\nAnd he raised his heart to God and said, O Lord God of A-bra-ham, give\nme good speed this day.\n\nAnd while he yet spoke a fair young maid named Re-bek-ah went down to\nthe well and came up with the jar she had filled. And the man ran to\nmeet her, and said to her, Let me drink, I pray thee.\n\nAnd she said, Drink, my Lord, and held the jar in her hand so that he\ncould drink with ease.\n\nThen she said, I will give thy cam-els a drink; and she went down to the\nwell and drew for all the cam-els. And the man stood still, and was yet\nin doubt if this was the maid whom God chose to be I-saac's wife.\n\nAnd as soon as the cam-els had drunk their fill, the man took a gold\near-ring, and two bands of gold for the wrists, and gave them to\nRe-bek-ah. And he said, Whose child art thou? tell me, I pray thee. And\nis there room in thy sire's house for us to lodge in?\n\nThe maid said that her sire's name was Beth-u-el, and that there was no\nlack of straw and food, and there was room in the house where he and his\nmen might lodge.\n\nThe man was glad when he heard this, for he knew the Lord had led him,\nand had brought him to the house to which he was sent. And he bowed his\nhead and gave thanks.\n\n[Illustration: RE-BEK-AH JOUR-NEY-ING TO I-SAAC.]\n\nThe next day Re-bek-ah and her maids went with A-bra-ham's head man. And\nthey came to the land of Ca-naan.\n\nAt the close of the day I-saac went to walk in the fields, and as he\nraised his eyes he saw the cam-els on their way home, and he went out to\nmeet them.\n\nRe-bek-ah said to the man with whom she rode, What man is this that\ncomes through the field to meet us?\n\nAnd the man told her that it was A-bra-ham's son, I-saac.\n\nThen the maid drew her veil round her so as to hide her face, and came\ndown from the cam-el. And I-saac took her to his house and made her his\nwife. And A-bra-ham gave, all that he had to I-saac; and when he died he\nwas laid by the side of Sa-rah, his wife, in the tomb he had bought at\nMach-pe-lah.\n\n[Illustration: THE MEET-ING OF I-SAAC AND RE-BEK-AH.]\n\nAnd to this day no one has had such faith or trust in God as did\nA-bra-ham.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IV.\n\nJACOB AND ESAU.\n\n\nI-SAAC and Re-bek-ah had two sons. Their names were Ja-cob and E-sau.\nE-sau was the first-born, and in those days the first-born son had\nwhat was called the birth-right. This made him chief of all the rest,\nand heir to the most of his sire's wealth.\n\nWhen the boys grew up to be men, E-sau took to the fields and to\nout-door sports, while Ja-cob was a plain man and dwelt in tents. And\nI-saac was fond of E-sau, who killed the deer, and brought him the meat\nto eat. But Re-bek-ah was more fond of Ja-cob.\n\nOne day Ja-cob had made some food called pot-tage, and E-sau came in\nfrom the field and said, Feed me, I pray thee, with that pot-tage, for I\nam faint.\n\nAnd Ja-cob said, Sell me thy birth-right.\n\nAnd E-sau said, I am at the point of death, so what good will a\nbirth-right do me?\n\nSo he sold his birth-right to Ja-cob--which was a wrong thing for him to\ndo--and took the bread and meat, and ate and drank, and then went on his\nway.\n\nNow there came a time when I-saac was an old man, and his eyes were dim,\nfor he had not long to live. And he called E-sau to his bed-side and\ntold him to go out with his bow and shoot a deer and bring him some of\nthe meat he was so fond of, that he might eat it and bless E-sau ere he\ndied.\n\nAnd Re-bek-ah heard what I-saac had said to E-sau, and she told it to\nJa-cob. And she said to him, Go now to the flock, and fetch me from\nthence two good kids, and I will make such a dish as thy fa-ther loves.\nAnd thou shalt bring it to him that he may eat, and that he may bless\nthee ere his death.\n\nSo Ja-cob did as he was told, and brought the kids to his mo-ther that\nshe might cook them in a way that would please the good man of the\nhouse.\n\nThen Re-bek-ah put some of E-sau's clothes on Ja-cob, and put the skins\nof goats on his hands, for E-sau's hands had on them a thick coat of\nhair. And then Ja-cob took the meat and the bread and went in to his\nfa-ther.\n\nAnd I-saac said, Who art thou, my son?\n\n[Illustration: I-SAAC SPEAK-ING TO E-SAU.]\n\nAnd Ja-cob said, I am E-sau, thy first-born. Rise, I pray thee, and eat\nof the deer's meat I have brought, that thy soul may bless me.\n\nAnd I-saac said to Ja-cob, How is it that thou hast found it so soon, my\nson?\n\nAnd he said, The Lord thy God brought it to me.\n\nAnd I-saac said to Ja-cob, Come near, I pray thee, that I may feel thee,\nmy son, and know if thou be my son E-sau or not. And Ja-cob went near to\nhis fa-ther and he felt him, and said, The voice is Ja-cob's voice, but\nthe hands are the hands of E-sau.\n\nAnd he said, Art thou in truth my son E-sau?\n\nAnd Ja-cob said, I am.\n\nAnd he said, Bring near the food, and I will eat, that my soul may bless\nthee.\n\nAnd Ja-cob brought it near to him, and he did eat, and he brought him\nwine and he drank.\n\nAnd his fa-ther said to him, Come near now, and kiss me, my son.\n\nAnd he came near, and gave him the kiss. Then the old man asked God to\nbless this whom he thought was his first-born, and make him great, and\ngive him all good things.\n\nJa-cob was scarce yet gone out from his fa-ther when E-sau came in from\nthe hunt. And he brought in a nice dish of meat, and said, Let my\nfa-ther rise and eat of the flesh of the deer, that thy soul may bless\nme.\n\nAnd I-saac said, Who art thou?\n\nAnd he said, I am thy son, thy first-born, E-sau.\n\nAnd I-saac shook like a leaf, and said, Who? Where is he that took\ndeer's meat and brought it to me so that I did eat ere this, and bless\nhim? Yea, and he shall be blest.\n\nWhen E-sau heard these words he cried out with great grief, and said to\nhis fa-ther, Bless me too, O my fa-ther!\n\nBut I-saac said that he could not take from Ja-cob what was now\nhis--though he had won it through fraud.\n\nAnd E-sau said in his heart, My fa-ther will soon be dead, and then I\nwill kill Ja-cob.\n\n[Illustration: JA-COB'S DREAM.]\n\nAnd these words were told to Re-bek-ah, and she sent for Ja-cob and said\nto him that E-sau meant to kill him, and he must leave home at once and\ngo and stay with her bro-ther La-ban till E-sau's wrath had cooled.\n\nAnd Ja-cob went out from Beer-she-ba.\n\nAnd as he went on his way he came to a place where he thought he would\nlie down and rest. The sun was set, the day had been a long one, and he\nwas quite worn out. So he put some stones for his head to rest on, and\nwas soon sound a-sleep.\n\nAnd while he slept he had a strange dream. He saw a flight of steps that\nstood on the ground, the top of which was far, far up in the sky. And\nbright an-gels went up and down the steps. And the Lord stood at the\ntop, and said, I am with thee, and will take care of thee, and will\nbring thee back to this land, for I will not leave thee till I have done\nthat which I have told thee of.\n\nAnd Ja-cob woke out of his sleep, and said, 'Tis true the Lord is in\nthis place, and I knew it not.\n\nAnd he was in great fear, and said, This is the house of God, and this\nis the gate of heav-en!\n\nThen he rose up and took the stone on which his head had lain and set it\nup on end, and he poured oil on top of it. And he gave to that place the\nname of Beth-el, and made a vow to love and serve God all the rest of\nhis life.\n\nAnd though he had done wrong, God for-gave him, and he was known as a\ngreat and good man.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER V.\n\nJACOB AND RACHEL.\n\n\nAS Ja-cob went on his way to the East he came to a well that was out in\nthe field, near which lay three great flocks of sheep. And there was a\ngreat stone on top of the well. And the men who took care of the flocks\nwould roll the stone from the mouth of the well, and give drink to the\nsheep. Then they would roll the stone back to the mouth of the well.\n\nJa-cob said to the men, Whence do ye come?\n\nAnd they told him.\n\nAnd he said, Know ye La-ban, the son of Na-hor?\n\n[Illustration: RA-CHEL AND JA-COB AT THE WELL.]\n\nAnd they said, We know him.\n\nAnd he said, Is he well?\n\nAnd they said, He is well. And there is one of his girls now, Ra-chel,\nand she comes this way with her sheep.\n\nWhile Ja-cob yet spake with the men, Ra-chel came up with the sheep that\nshe took care of. And when Ja-cob saw her, he came near, and drew the\nstone from the mouth of the well, and gave drink to the whole of her\nflock.\n\nAnd as soon as he told her that he was Re-bek-ah's son, she ran home\nwith the news.\n\nAnd when La-ban heard that his sis-ter's son was near, he ran out to\nmeet him, and threw his arms round his neck and kissed him, and brought\nhim to his house.\n\nAnd Ja-cob dwelt there for the space of a month.\n\nAnd La-ban said to Ja-cob, Thou art bone of my bone and flesh of my\nflesh, but it is not right for thee to serve me for nought. Tell me how\nmuch I shall pay thee?\n\nNow La-ban had two girls--Le-ah and Ra-chel. And Ja-cob was in love with\nRa-chel; and he said to La-ban, I will serve thee se-ven years if thou\nwilt give me Ra-chel for a wife.\n\nAnd La-ban said it would please him to have Ja-cob for a son-in-law, and\nJa-cob served sev-en years for Ra-chel, and they seemed to him but a few\ndays, so great was his love for her. And at the end of that time Ja-cob\nsaid to La-ban, Give me my wife, for I have served thee my full time.\n\nAnd La-ban made a feast, and brought in Le-ah to be Ja-cob's wife. In\nthose days the bride wore a veil, and the man she wed could not look on\nher face till the next day.\n\nSo Ja-cob did not find out this trick till the next morn, and then he\ncame in great wrath to La-ban and said, What is this thou hast done to\nus? Did I not serve with thee for Ra-chel? and why did'st thou cheat me?\n\nAnd La-ban said, In our land the first-born must wed the first. Serve me\nsev-en years more, and thou shalt have Ra-chel for a wife. And Ja-cob\ndid so, and though he dwelt with both--which was thought to be no sin in\nthose days--he was far more fond of Ra-chel than he was of Le-ah.\n\nLe-ah bore Ja-cob a host of sons, but it was years ere Ra-chel had a\nchild. And this made her sad. But at last she had a son, and she called\nhis name Jo-seph. And as soon as Jo-seph was born Ja-cob told La-ban to\ngive him his wives and all the goods that he owned, and let him go back\nto the land he came from.\n\nBut La-ban begged him to stay. He had found, he said, that the Lord had\nblest him for Ja-cob's sake, and he might have some of the land and the\nflocks if he would still serve him.\n\nSo Ja-cob took care of La-ban's flocks, and had sheep and goats of his\nown, and things went well for a time.\n\nBut one day Ja-cob heard La-ban's sons say some hard things of him, and\nhe saw that La-ban did not give him the kind looks that he used to. And\nhe felt that the time had come for them to part. And the Lord told\nJa-cob to go back to the land he came from, and he would deal well with\nhim. And Ja-cob took his wives, and the flocks and the goods he owned,\nand set out for the land of Ca-naan.\n\nJa-cob sent one of his men to E-sau to say that he was on his way home,\nand was in hopes he would find grace in his sight.\n\nAnd the man brought back word that E-sau was on his way to meet Ja-cob\nwith a large force of men. And Ja-cob thought of the wrongs he had done\nhis broth-er, and was in great fear of him.\n\nHe sought the help of God, and God told him what to do. And Ja-cob sent\ngreat droves of sheep and goats, and ewes and rams, and ca-mels and\ncolts, and cows, and choice ones from all his live stock, as a gift to\nE-sau.\n\nAnd at night, when no one else was near, a man whose face shone with a\nstrange light, came to Ja-cob and wound his arms round him and tried to\nthrow him. And the two strove so hard that Ja-cob's thigh was put out of\njoint.\n\nAnd as it grew light the man said, Let me go, for the day breaks.\n\nJa-cob said, I will not let thee go till thou hast blest me.\n\nAnd the man said, What is thy name? And he said, Ja-cob.\n\nAnd he said, Thy name shall be no more Ja-cob but Is-ra-el, for as a\nprince thou hast pow-er with God and with men.\n\nAnd when he had blest Ja-cob he went his way. And Ja-cob gave the place\nthe name of Pe-ni-el, for, said he, I have seen God face to face and my\nlife has been spared. For Ja-cob knew by this that E-sau would not kill\nhim.\n\n[Illustration: THE MEET-ING OF JA-COB AND E-SAU.]\n\nWhen Ja-cob was an old, old man Ra-chel bore him a son; and they called\nhis name Ben-ja-min. And Ra-chel died. And it was hard for Ja-cob to\nhave her die and leave him, for his love for her was great, and she was\na good wife to him.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VI.\n\nJOSEPH AND HIS BRETHREN.\n\n\nJA-COB had twelve sons, and he was more fond of Jo-seph than of all the\nrest; for he was the child of his old age. And he gave him a fine coat,\nand made a great pet of him. This did not please the rest of the sons,\nand they showed their hate of Jo-seph in all sorts of ways.\n\nOne night Jo-seph had a strange dream, and he told it to Le-vi,\nSim-e-on, and the rest, and it made them hate him all the more.\n\nHe said, As we bound sheaves in the field, lo, my sheaf rose and stood\nup straight. And your sheaves stood round, and bowed to my sheaf.\n\nAnd those who heard him said, Shalt thou in-deed reign o'er us? And his\nwords and his deeds filled them with a fierce hate.\n\nAnd it was not long ere he told them of a fresh dream he had had, in\nwhich he saw the sun and moon and e-lev-en stars bow down to him. And he\ntold it to Ja-cob, and his e-lev-en sons.\n\nAnd Ja-cob took him to task, and said to him, What does this dream mean?\nAre all of us to bow down to the earth to thee? And he made up his mind\nto watch these signs, which might be sent of God.\n\n[Illustration: JO-SEPH'S DREAM.]\n\nNow Ja-cob had large flocks of sheep and goats at Shech-em, and all of\nhis sons but Jo-seph had gone there to feed them. And Ja-cob said to\nJo-seph, Go and see if it be well with thy breth-ren, and with the\nflocks, and bring me back word.\n\nAnd Jo-seph went out from the vale of Heb-ron to the land of Shech-em.\n\nWhen he came there he found that his broth-ers had gone on to Do-than.\nAnd Jo-seph went to Do-than and found them. And as soon as he came in\nsight they thought of a way in which they might get rid of him.\n\n[Illustration: SHECH-EM, THE FIRST CAP-I-TAL OF THE KING-DOM OF\nIS-RAEL.]\n\nCome, let us kill him, they said; and throw him in-to a pit, and say\nthat a wild beast ate him up. Then we shall see what will be-come of his\ndreams.\n\nBut Reu-ben heard it, and saved him out of their hands. And he said, Let\nus not kill the lad. Shed no blood; but cast him in-to this pit, and lay\nno hand on him. For he meant to take him out of the pit, and bear him\nhome to his fath-er.\n\nBut when Jo-seph came near these men who should have been kind to him,\nthey took off his coat and threw him in-to the pit, which was dry, or he\nwould have drowned. These old dry wells were left as traps in which to\ncatch the wild beasts that prowled round in the dead of night, and well\nthese bad men knew what would be Jo-seph's fate.\n\nAs they sat down to eat, they looked up and saw a lot of men and cam-els\non their way to E-gypt, with spices, and balm and myrrh.\n\n[Illustration: JO-SEPH SOLD BY HIS BROTH-ERS.]\n\nAnd Ju-dah--one of Ja-cob's sons--said, Let us not kill the lad, for he\nis of our own flesh, but let us sell him to these men. And the rest\nthought it was a good scheme. So they drew Jo-seph up out of the pit\nand sold him for a small sum, and those who bought the lad took him down\nwith them to E-gypt.\n\nAnd the bad men took Jo-seph's coat and dipped it in the blood of a kid\nthey had slain. And they brought it to Ja-cob, and said, This have we\nfound. Is it thy son's coat?\n\nAnd Ja-cob knew it at once, and said, It is my son's coat. Jo-seph has\nno doubt been the prey of some wild beast. And his grief was great.\n\nThe men who bought Jo-seph brought him down to E-gypt and sold him to\nPot-i-phar for a slave.\n\nAnd the Lord was with Jo-seph, who served Pot-i-phar so well, that the\nrich man put him in charge of his home and lands. But Pot-i-phar's wife\ntold false tales, and Jo-seph, who had done no wrong, was thrust in-to\njail. Pha-ra-oh was then king of E-gypt. And it came to pass that he\nfell out with his but-ler and chief cook, and had them shut up in the\nsame place where Jo-seph was bound.\n\nAnd the man on guard put them in charge of Jo-seph, who went in and out\nof the ward as he chose. And one morn when he came in to them he saw\nthey were sad, and asked them why it was.\n\nAnd they said, We have dreamed dreams, and there is no one to tell us\nwhat they mean.\n\nAnd Jo-seph said, Tell me them, I pray you.\n\nAnd the chief but-ler told his dream to Jo-seph first. And he said, In\nmy dream I saw a vine, that put forth three branch-es and brought forth\nripe grapes.\n\nAnd Jo-seph said to him, In three days shall Pha-ra-oh lift up thine\nhead, and put thee back in thy place, and thou shalt serve him as of\nold. But think of me when it shall be well with thee; speak of me to the\nking, and bring me out of this house.\n\nAnd the but-ler said that he would.\n\n[Illustration: JO-SEPH'S COAT.]\n\nThen the chief cook told his dream; and he said, In my dream I had three\nwhite bas-kets on my head. And in the top one were all sorts of bake\nmeats for the king. And the birds did eat out of the bas-ket that I bore\non my head.\n\nAnd Jo-seph said to him, In three days shall Pha-ra-oh lift up thy head\nand hang thee on a tree; and the birds shall eat the flesh from thy\nbones.\n\nThe third day was the king's birth-day, and he made a great feast. And\nhe put the chief but-ler back in his place, and hung the chief cook;\njust as Jo-seph had said he would do. But the chief but-ler gave not a\nthought to Jo-seph, nor spoke one good word for him to the king, as he\nhad said he would.\n\nTwo years from this time the king had a dream, from which he woke, and\nthen fell a-sleep and dreamt the self-same dream. This was such a\nstrange thing that it made the king feel ill at ease. And he sent for\nall the wise men in the land to tell him what these dreams meant.\n\nThen the chief but-ler spoke to the king, and said that when he and the\ncook were in jail, there was a young man there, a Jew, whom the chief of\nthe guard made much use of. And we told him our dreams, and he told us\nwhat they meant. And it came out just as he said.\n\nThen the king sent at once for Jo-seph, and said to him: In my dream I\nstood on the bank of the Nile. And there came up out of the riv-er\nsev-en fat cows, and they fed in a field near by. Then sev-en lean cows\ncame up that were naught but skin and bone. And the lean cows ate up the\nfat cows. And yet no one would have known it, for they were just as\nlean as when I first saw them. Then I woke, but soon fell a-sleep once\nmore.\n\nThen I dreamt, and in my dream I saw sev-en ears of corn come up on one\nstalk, full and good. And lo, sev-en ears that were thin and dried up\nwith the east wind sprang up af-ter them. And the poor ears ate up the\ngood ones.\n\nJo-seph said, For sev-en years there will be no lack of food in the\nland, and all will go well; and then there will come a time of great\nwant, and rich and poor will be in need of food, and not a few will\nstarve to death. Let the king choose a wise man to see that corn is laid\nup in the land when the good years bring the rich growth, so that there\nwill be no lack of food in the years when the crops are small.\n\n[Illustration: PHA-RA-OH'S DREAM.]\n\nAnd the king said to Jo-seph, Since God hath showed thee all this there\nis none so wise as thou art. So he put him in charge of all the land of\nE-gypt, and he was to rank next to the king. And the king took a ring\nfrom his own hand and put it on Jo-seph's hand, and when he rode out,\nmen bowed the knee, and his word was law in all the land. And Jo-seph\ntook a wife, and he who was brought to E-gypt a slave, was now a rich\nman.\n\nAnd there came years when the grain grew rank in the fields, and the\ncrops were large. And Jo-seph saw that a large part of it was laid up,\nand that there was no waste of the good food. For the end of those rich\nyears came and then there was a time of dearth in all the lands, when\nthe earth would not yield, and men and beasts were in want of food.\n\nBut there was no lack of corn in E-gypt. And Jo-seph sold the corn that\nhe had stored in the barns, and crowds came in to buy it.\n\nWhen Ja-cob heard that corn could be bought in E-gypt, he told his sons\nto go down and buy some, that they might not starve to death.\n\nAnd ten of them went down to buy corn in E-gypt. But Ja-cob kept\nBen-ja-min at home, for fear he would be lost to him as Jo-seph was\nlost.\n\n[Illustration: JO-SEPH AND HIS BROTH-ERS.]\n\nWhen Ja-cob's ten sons came to the place where Jo-seph was, they bowed\ndown to the ground. And Jo-seph knew them at once, but they did not\nknow him, or give a thought to his dreams.\n\nAnd Jo-seph spoke in a rough voice, and said, Whence come ye?\n\nAnd they said, From the land of Ca-naan to buy food.\n\nAnd he said, Ye are spies, and have come to see how poor the land is.\n\nAnd they said to him, Nay, my lord, but to buy food are we come. We are\nall one man's sons; and we are true men, and not spies.\n\nBut Jo-seph would have it that they were spies.\n\nAnd they said, There were twelve of us, sons of one man. Young\nBen-ja-min is at home with his fa-ther, and one is dead.\n\nAnd Jo-seph said, Go prove that ye are not spies; let one of the ten\nthat are here go and fetch the young lad, Ben-ja-min. And he put them in\njail for three days. And he said, Let one of you be bound, and kept in\nthe guard-house, while the rest of you take back the corn that you need.\nAnd they said that they would do this.\n\nThen he took Sim-e-on from their midst, and had him bound, and put in\nthe guard-house.\n\nAnd he sent word to his men to fill their sacks with corn, and to put\nback the price in each sack, and to give them food to eat on the way.\nAnd thus did Jo-seph do good to those who did ill to him.\n\nWhen Ja-cob's nine sons went home they told all that had been said and\ndone to them, and that the lord of the land bade them bring Ben-ja-min\ndown to E-gypt or he would think they were spies, and their lives would\nnot be safe.\n\nJa-cob said, My son shall not go down with you, for his broth-er is\ndead, and he is all I have left. If harm should come to him on the way,\nI should die of grief.\n\n[Illustration: THE MEET-ING OF JO-SEPH AND BEN-JA-MIN.]\n\nWhen the corn they had brought from E-gypt was all gone, Ja-cob told his\nsons to go down and buy more. And Ju-dah spoke up and said, The man\nswore we should not see his face if Ben-ja-min was not with us. If thou\nwilt send him with us we will go; but if thou wilt not send him we will\nnot go down.\n\nThen Ja-cob said, If it must be so, take Ben-ja-min with you, and may\nGod give you grace with this man that he may send my two boys back to\nme.\n\nSo the men took Ben-ja-min and went down to E-gypt, and stood face to\nface with Jo-seph.\n\nAnd they gave Jo-seph the gifts they had brought, and bowed down to the\nearth. And he asked how they all were, and if their fath-er was well;\nand when he saw Ben-ja-min he said, Is this the young broth-er of whom\nyou spoke? And he said to the lad, God be good to thee, my son.\n\nAnd Jo-seph's heart was so full at sight of the boy, and he longed so to\nthrow his arms round him, that he had to make haste and leave the room\nthat his tears might not be seen.\n\nThen he came back and had the feast set out, and all did eat and drink,\nand were glad at heart. And when the time came for his guests to leave,\nJo-seph told his head man to fill their sacks with corn, to put their\ngold back in the mouth of the sacks, and to put in the young lad's sack\nthe cup from which Jo-seph drank at each meal.\n\nThis was done, and when they had gone out of the town Jo-seph bade his\nman go and say to them: My lord's cup is lost, and you must know who\nstole it.\n\nAnd when the man came up with Ja-cob's sons, he said just what Jo-seph\ntold him to say. And they were all in a rage, and said: Why does my lord\nsay such things of us? If the cup is found on one of us, kill him; and\nmake the rest of us slaves.\n\nAnd each one of them cast his sack on the ground, and loosed it at the\ntop. And the cup was found in Ben-ja-min's sack. Then they rent their\nclothes, and in great grief went back to Jo-seph's house and found him\nthere. And they fell down at his feet.\n\n[Illustration: JA-COB BLESS-ES JO-SEPH'S CHIL-DREN.]\n\nAnd Ju-dah said, God has found out our sins. Let us be your slaves; and\ntake him as well in whose sack the cup was found.\n\nJo-seph said, No; but the man in whose sack the cup was found shall stay\nand serve me, and the rest shall go in peace.\n\nThen Ju-dah, who had sworn that he would bring back the boy, said to\nJo-seph: If we go home, and our fath-er sees the lad is not with us, he\nwill die of grief. For his life is bound up in the lad's life.\n\nJo-seph could not keep back his tears, and when he had sent all the men\nof E-gypt out of the room, he said to his broth-ers, Come near, I pray\nyou.\n\nAnd they came near. And he said, I am Jo-seph, whom ye sold in-to\nE-gypt. But grieve not that ye did this thing, for God did send me here\nthat I might save your lives. Go home and tell my fath-er that God hath\nmade me lord of all E-gypt, and bid him come down to me at once. And say\nthat he shall dwell near me, in the land of Go-shen, and I will take\ncare of him.\n\nThen he fell on Ben-ja-min's neck, and they wept; and he kissed his\nbroth-ers and shed tears, but they were tears of joy.\n\nJa-cob took all that he had and went down to E-gypt. And three-score and\nten souls went with him. And they dwelt in the land of Go-shen, and\nJa-cob died there.\n\nJo-seph's breth-ren thought that he would hate them now that their\nfath-er was dead. And they fell down at his feet and wept and prayed\nthat he would do them no harm.\n\nJo-seph bade them fear not, for he would take care of them and be kind\nto them. They had meant to do him an ill turn when he was a lad, but God\nhad made it turn out for good, and it was all right. And Jo-seph lived\nto a good old age, and had two sons, whose names were E-phra-im and\nMa-nas-seh.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VII.\n\nTHROUGH THE RED SEA AND THE WILDERNESS.\n\n\nBY and by there rose up a new King in E-gypt who knew not Jo-seph. He\nwas called Pha-ra-oh, as this was the name by which all the kings of\nE-gypt were known. And he said there were more He-brews, or Jews, in the\nland than there ought to be, and if war should break out, and these Jews\nshould take sides with the foes of Pha-ra-oh and his race, they would be\nsure to win. So he set them hard tasks, and made them bear great loads,\nand did all he could to vex them, and still they grew in strength. God\nhad said they were to be as the stars in the sky, and as the sands of\nthe sea, that no one could count. And the king of E-gypt tried to stop\nthis thing.\n\nAnd he made it a law that if a boy child was born to the He-brews it\nshould be put to death at once; but a girl child might live. And this\nwas the cause of great grief to the poor bond-slaves, who were forced to\ndo the will of the great king.\n\nOne day the prin-cess went down to bathe in the stream that ran near her\nhouse. And her maids went with her. And as she stood on the shore of the\nNile, she caught sight of a small boat built like an ark, that was hid\nin the reeds, and sent her maids to fetch it out.\n\nWhen the prin-cess looked in the ark she saw the child. And the babe\nwept. And the prin-cess tried to soothe it, but the child cried the\nmore, for her voice was a strange one. And she said, This is a He-brew\nchild.\n\nAnd one of her maids spoke up, and said, Shall I get thee a He-brew\nnurse, that she may nurse the child for thee?\n\nAnd the prin-cess said, Yes; go.\n\nAnd the maid brought her own and the babe's moth-er, to whom the\nprin-cess said, Take this child and nurse it for me, and I will pay thee\nfor it.\n\nAnd the wo-man took the child and took care of it.\n\n[Illustration: THE FIND-ING OF MO-SES.]\n\nAnd the child grew, and was brought down to Pha-ra-oh's house, and the\nprin-cess made him her son, and gave him the name of Mo-ses: which means\n\"Drawn out.\"\n\nOne day, when Mo-ses had grown to be a man, he went out to look at those\nof his own race, and to watch them at their tasks. And while he stood\nthere a man from E-gypt struck one of the Jews; and when Mo-ses looked\nto the right and to the left and saw that no one was near, he slew the\none from E-gypt and hid him in the sand.\n\nAnd the next day, when he went out, he saw there was a fight be-tween\ntwo He-brews. And he said to the one who was in the wrong, Why did you\nstrike that man?\n\nAnd he said, Who made thee our judge? Dost thou want to kill me, as thou\ndidst the one from E-gypt?\n\nAnd Mo-ses was scared, for he thought no one knew of this deed.\n\nAs soon as it came to the ears of the king, he sought to slay Mo-ses.\nBut Mo-ses fled from him, and dwelt in the land of Mid-i-an, and found a\nwife there, and took care of the flocks of Jeth-ro, his wife's fath-er.\n\nOne day as he led his flock out in search of food he came to Mount\nHo-reb, and there he saw a flame of fire stream out of a bush, and the\nbush was not burnt in the least.\n\nAs he drew near the bush the Lord spoke to him out of the flame, and\nMo-ses hid his face, for he dared not look on God.\n\nThe Lord said, The cry of the chil-dren of Is-ra-el has come up to me,\nand I have seen how ill they have been used. And I will send thee to\nPha-ra-oh that thou mayst bring them forth out of the land of E-gypt.\n\nBut Mo-ses was loth to go.\n\n[Illustration: MO-SES BROUGHT BE-FORE PHA-RA-OH'S DAUGH-TER.]\n\nAnd the Lord said, What is that in thine hand? And Mo-ses said, A rod,\nAnd the Lord said, Cast it on the ground. And he cast it on the ground,\nand it was changed to a snake, and Mo-ses fled from it. Then the Lord\nsaid to Mo-ses, Put forth thine hand, and take it by the tail. And\nMo-ses did so, and it was a rod in his hand. And the Lord said, Put now\nthy hand in on thy breast. And he put it in, and when he drew it out it\nwas white, and like a dead hand. And he put his hand in once more, and\ndrew it out, and it was like the rest of his flesh.\n\nThen Mo-ses said, O, my Lord, I am not fit to do this work, for I am\nslow of speech, and a man of few words.\n\nAnd the Lord said to him, I will be with thee, and teach thee what thou\nwilt say.\n\nStill Mo-ses was loth to go, and the Lord was wroth with him, and said,\nTake Aa-ron with thee. He can speak well. And thou shalt tell him what\nto say and do, and I will teach you, and with this rod in thy hand thou\nshalt do great things, as if thou wert God.\n\nSo Mo-ses took his wife and his sons and put them on an ass, and went\nback to E-gypt with the rod of God in his hand.\n\nAnd Mo-ses and Aa-ron went in to the king and begged him to let the\nHe-brews go out of the land. And he would not, but laid more work on the\nmen, and bade them make bricks with-out straw, and do all sorts of hard\ntasks.\n\nAnd the Lord sent plagues on the land, and the ponds dried up, and all\nthe large streams were turned to blood, and the fish died, and the\nstench of them made the air scarce fit to breathe. And there was no\nwa-ter they could drink. Then there came a plague of frogs, and they\nwere so thick in the land that Pha-ra-oh said he would let the chil-dren\nof Is-ra-el go if Mo-ses would rid him of the frogs at the same time.\n\nBut the king did not keep his word, for as soon as he found the frogs\ngrew less, he said the He-brews should not go.\n\nThen the Lord smote the land with lice; but still Pha-ra-oh's heart was\nhard.\n\n[Illustration: MOS-ES AT THE BURN-ING BUSH.]\n\nThen the Lord sent flies in such swarms that there was no place that\nwas free from them, and they made the food not fit to eat.\n\nAnd the king told Mo-ses he would let the bond-slaves go to serve their\nGod, but they were not to go far till the land was rid of flies. Then\nMo-ses went forth and prayed to God, and the flies left the land. But\nstill the king's heart was hard, and he would not let them go.\n\nThen the Lord sent worse plagues: the flocks and herds died; there were\nboils on man and beast; the crops did not come up, and rain, hail, and\nballs of fire came down from the sky. And still the heart of the king\nwas as hard as stone. Then the Lord sent lo-custs, that ate up all the\nhail had left, and there was not a green leaf on the trees nor a blade\nof grass to be seen in the whole land.\n\nAnd the king bade Mo-ses to set him free from this plague. And the Lord\nsent a strong west wind, that blew the flies in-to the Red Sea. Yet\nPha-ra-oh would not let the He-brews go.\n\nThen the Lord told Mo-ses to stretch out his hand, and there came up a\nthick cloud that made the land so dark that the folks staid in bed for\nthree days. And Pha-ra-oh said to Mo-ses, Get thee out of my sight. For\nif I see thy face thou shalt die.\n\nAnd Mo-ses said, Thou hast well said: I will see thy face no more.\n\nAnd the Lord sent one more plague on E-gypt: he smote the first-born of\nmen and of beasts, and a great cry was heard through the land. And then\nPha-ra-oh had to let the chil-dren of Is-ra-el go, for he could not keep\nup this strife with God. And Mo-ses led the He-brew chil-dren out of\nE-gypt, and the Lord sent a cloud by day and a fire by night to show\nthem the way.\n\nAnd when they were in camp by the Red Sea, they looked up and saw\nPha-ra-oh and his hosts, and were in great fear lest he should kill\nthem. And they cried out to the Lord, and blamed Mo-ses that he had\nbrought them in-to such straits.\n\n[Illustration: MIR-I-AM, THE SIS-TER OF MO-SES, AND THE WO-MEN OF\nIS-RAEL SING-ING PRAISES.]\n\nAs they came to the Red Sea, Mo-ses raised his rod and the sea rose like\na wall on each side, and the chil-dren of Is-ra-el went on dry land\nthrough the midst of the sea.\n\nThen Pha-ra-oh and his hosts came close in the rear, and passed down\nbe-tween the great sea-wall that rose at the right hand and at the left.\nAnd the waves that had stood still at a sign from God were let loose,\nand the king and his horse-men were swept out of sight.\n\nWhen the chil-dren of Is-ra-el came out of the Red Sea they were three\ndays with naught to drink. And when they came to a stream, called\nMa-rah, they found it bitter. And they said to Mo-ses, What shall we\ndrink?\n\nAnd Mo-ses cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a tree, and\nwhen he had cast a branch of it in the stream it was made sweet at once.\nAnd they came to E-lim, where were ten wells and three-score palm-trees,\nand there they made their camp.\n\nIt was not long ere there was a great cry for bread.\n\nAnd Mo-ses plead with God, and when the sun went down that day quails\nflew in-to the camp, and they had all the meat they cared to eat. At\ndawn of the next day, as soon as the dew was off the ground, there came\na rain of what was at first thought to be hail-stones.\n\n[Illustration: THE CROSS-ING OF THE RED SEA.]\n\nBut Mo-ses said it was food that God had sent them to eat, and they\nwere to take all and no more than they would need for one day. For they\nwere to trust in God that he would feed them each day. On the sixth day\nthey were to take what would last them for two days, for no food fell on\nthe day of rest.\n\nThis new food was called man-na.\n\nAs they went on they came to Reph-i-dim, but found no wa-ter to drink.\nAnd they found fault with Mo-ses. And Mo-ses cried out, Lord, what shall\nI do to these, who have a mind to stone me?\n\nAt this time they were near Mount Ho-reb, where God spoke to Mo-ses out\nof a bush that was on fire, yet not burnt.\n\n[Illustration: MO-SES AND THE TA-BLES OF THE LAW.]\n\nAnd God told Mo-ses to take his rod in his hand and go on till he came\nto a rock. And this rock he was to strike with his rod, and wa-ter would\nflow out of it. And Mo-ses did as the Lord told him, and when he struck\nthe rock the wa-ter ran out.\n\nIn the third month from the time they left E-gypt, the chil-dren of\nIs-ra-el came near Mount Si-na-i, and went in-to camp. And Mo-ses went\nup to the top of the Mount, and the Lord spoke to him there.\n\nOn the third day a thick cloud of smoke rose from Mount Si-na-i, and a\nloud noise that made those that heard it quake with fear. And Mo-ses led\nhis flock out of the camp, and they came and stood at the foot of the\nmount. And they said to Mo-ses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear;\nbut let not God speak with us lest we die. But Mo-ses told them that God\nhad not come to make them die, but to make them fear to do aught that\ndid not please him.\n\nAnd God gave to Mo-ses two blocks of stone on which were the Ten Laws\nthat the chil-dren of Is-ra-el were to keep.\n\n[Illustration: WELL AND PALM-TREES IN THE DES-ERT.]\n\n[Illustration: THE RIV-ER NILE IN E-GYPT.]\n\nNow while Mo-ses was in the mount, face to face with God, those whom he\nhad brought out of E-gypt were in camp at the foot. And Mo-ses staid so\nlong that they made up their minds he would not come back. So they said\nto Aa-ron, Make us a God that we can bow down to. And Aa-ron bade them\nthrow all the gold they had in-to the fire. And they did so, and it took\nthe form of a calf. And when God saw this he was not pleased, but bade\nMo-ses make haste down the mount.\n\nWhen Mo-ses came down from the mount with the two flat stones in his\nhands, and drew near the camp, and saw what had been done, he was in a\ngreat rage. He cast the blocks of stone out of his hands and broke them\nat the foot of the mount.\n\nThen he took the calf which they had made, and burnt it in the fire till\nthere was nought left of it but a fine dust. And Mo-ses begged God to\nblot out the sins of those whom he had led out of E-gypt. And the Lord\ntold Mo-ses to hew out two blocks of stone like to the first, and bring\nthem up with him to the top of Mount Si-na-i.\n\nThis Mo-ses did, and the Lord wrote on them the Ten Laws that all were\nto keep if they would reach the land they sought.\n\nThey were more than two-score years on the road, and in that time they\nmet with plagues, and there was strife in their midst, yet as they went\nthere was the fire by night and the cloud by day to show that the Lord\nwas with them.\n\nWhen they came to Mount Hor and were yet a long way from Ca-naan, Aa-ron\ndied, and there was great grief at his loss. They were sick at heart and\nfoot-sore, and spoke hard words of God and Mo-ses. There is no bread\nhere for us, they said, and no wa-ter, and we loathe this man-na. And\nfor this sin God sent snakes in-to their camp, and they bit the\nchil-dren of Is-ra-el so that a few of them died. Then they plead with\nMo-ses to rid them of the snakes, and make their peace with God.\n\nAnd Mo-ses prayed for them. And God told him to make a snake like to\nthose which bit his flock, and set it up on a pole. And all those who\nwould look at this brass snake should be made well.\n\n[Illustration: MOS-ES ON MOUNT SINAI.]\n\nAnd Mo-ses did so. And this sign was meant to show forth Christ, who\nwas to heal men of their sins, and to be raised up on a cross.\n\n[Illustration: BA-LAAM AND THE ASS.]\n\nAnd Mo-ses led his flock till they came to the plains of Mo-ab. And\nBa-lak, the king of that land, thought they had come to fight with him,\nand he sent a man named Ba-laam out to curse them and drive them back.\nHe told Ba-laam he would make him a rich man if he would do this thing,\nand as Ba-laam was fond of wealth he said he would do the king's will.\nSo he set forth on his ass, and had not gone far when he met an an-gel\nwith a drawn sword in his hand. Ba-laam did not see him, but the ass\ndid and turned out of the road. But the an-gel went on and stood in a\nplace where there was a wall on each side.\n\nWhen the ass came to the place she went close to the wall and tried to\nget by. But she hurt Ba-laam's foot and he struck her and made her go\non. And the an-gel went on and stood in a place where there was no room\nto turn to the right hand or the left.\n\nThen the ass shook with fright and fell down on the ground. And Ba-laam\nstruck her with the staff that he had in his hand.\n\nAnd the Lord made the ass speak like a man, and say, What have I done to\nthee that thou hast struck me these three times?\n\nBa-laam said, To make thee move on: I would there were a sword in my\nhand, for I would kill thee.\n\nThen the ass said, Am I not thine? and have I been wont to do so to\nthee? And Ba-laam said, No. Then the Lord made Ba-laam see the an-gel\nthat stood in the way with a drawn sword in his hand, and Ba-laam bowed\nhis face to the ground.\n\nThen the an-gel said, Why hast thou struck thine ass these three times?\nLo, I came out to stop thee, and to turn thee from the way of sin. And\nthe ass saw me, and turned from the path, and if she had not done so I\nwould have slain thee.\n\nThen he said to Ba-laam, Go with the men the king has sent, but say\non-ly what I shall tell thee.\n\nSo Ba-laam went with the men, and when Ba-lak heard that he was come he\nwent out to meet him. The next day Ba-lak took Ba-laam to a high place,\nfrom whence he could look down on the camp of Is-ra-el, and curse them.\n\nBut the Lord would not let him curse them, but made him speak good\nthings of them. This was done on three high mounts, and at last the king\nwas wroth, and said to Ba-laam, I sent for thee to curse my foes, and\nlo, these three times hast thou blest them.\n\n[Illustration: MO-SES ON MOUNT NE-BO.]\n\nAnd Ba-lak bade him make haste and go back to his own home. And Ba-laam\nwent off as poor as he came, for Ba-lak gave him none of his gold.\n\nThe Lord brought Mo-ses and his flock to the banks of the Jor-dan, which\nthey would have to cross to reach the land of Ca-naan. And while they\nwere there, Mo-ses went up to the top of Mount Ne-bo to talk with God.\nAnd God told him how large the land was that he would give to the\nchil-dren of Is-ra-el. And he said that Mo-ses should look on it, but\nshould not step foot in the land. And Mo-ses died on Mount Ne-bo, and\nthough an old man, was well and strong till the Lord took him. And no\none knows in what part of the earth his grave was made.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VIII.\n\nHOW JOSHUA AND JEPHTHAH FOUGHT FOR THE LORD.\n\n\nWHEN Mo-ses died, Josh-u-a took charge of the chil-dren of Is-ra-el, and\nsought to do God's will, as Mo-ses had done. And Josh-u-a sent word\nthrough the camp that in three days they would cross the Jor-dan. And\nwhen they set foot in the stream the waves stood back as they did in the\nRed Sea, and they went through Jor-dan on dry ground. And as they came\nup out of the stream the waves closed up and there was no path-way\nthrough them.\n\nThe chil-dren of Is-ra-el made their camp at a place called Gil-gal; and\nas there was no lack of food in this good land, the Lord ceased to rain\ndown man-na for them to eat.\n\nThe next day Josh-u-a left the camp and came near to the walls of\nJer-i-cho. There he met a man with a drawn sword in his hand. And\nJosh-u-a said, Art thou for us or for our foes?\n\nAnd the man said, As prince of the Lord's host am I now come. And at\nthese words Josh-u-a fell on his face to the earth; for he knew it was\nthe Lord that spoke to him.\n\n[Illustration: PASS-ING THROUGH THE JOR-DAN.]\n\nThe Lord told Josh-u-a to have no fear of the king of Jer-i-cho, for\nthe chil-dren of Is-ra-el should take the town. All their men of war\nwere to march round the town once each day for six days. Some of the\npriests were to bear the ark, which held the things they made use of\nwhen they went in to talk with God, and some were to blow on rams'\nhorns.\n\nAnd the next day--when the six days were at an end--they were to march\nround the town sev-en times, and the priests were to blow their horns.\nAnd when the men of Is-ra-el heard a long loud blast they were all to\ngive a great shout and the wall would fall flat to the ground, and they\ncould march in and take the town.\n\nJosh-u-a bade his men do all the Lord had said; and told them to make no\nnoise with their voice as they went their rounds till he bade them\nshout. And when the priests blew their horns for the last time, Josh-u-a\ncried, Shout! for the Lord is with us! and there was a great shout and\nthe wall fell, and they took the town; and the fame of Josh-u-a spread\nthrough all the lands.\n\nJosh-u-a fought with more than a score of kings and won their lands from\nthem; but yet there was much land in Ca-naan for which the chil-dren of\nIs-ra-el would have to fight.\n\nBut as the years went on, Josh-u-a grew so old that he could not lead\nhis men to war as he used to do. And he called his flock to him and\ntold them how good the Lord had been to them. And he bade them love the\nLord and serve him, and put from them all strange gods. He said, Choose\nye this day whom ye will serve; but as for me and my house we will serve\nthe Lord.\n\n[Illustration: JOSH-U-A AND THE STONE OF WIT-NESS.]\n\nAnd the men said, The Lord hath done great things for us, and him will\nwe serve, for he is our God.\n\nAnd Josh-u-a took a great stone and set it up 'neath an oak tree that\nstood near where the ark was kept at Shi-loh. And this stone, he said,\nwas to be a sign of the vow they had made there to serve the Lord. And\nwhen the talk was at an end, the men went to their own homes.\n\nAnd ere long Josh-u-a died. And they laid him in the part of the land\nthat God gave him as his own, on the north side of the hill of Ga-ash.\n\nThen the chil-dren of Is-ra-el went to war with the tribes that were in\nthe land of Ca-naan, as Josh-u-a had told them to do. But they did not\ndrive them all out, as they should have done, but made friends with\nthose that were left, and were led in-to sin, and were made to serve as\nbond-slaves. And when they were sick of their sins, and sought the help\nof the Lord, he sent men to rule them, and to lead them out to war and\nset them free from these friends who proved to be the worst kind of\nfoes.\n\nNow there was a man in Is-ra-el whose name was Jeph-thah. He was a brave\nman, and had done great deeds, but the chil-dren of Is-ra-el were not\nkind to him, so he fled from their land, and went to live in the land of\nTob. But when the Jews had need of a man to lead them out to war, they\nthought of Jeph-thah. And they said, Come, and be at the head of us\nwhen we go out to fight the Am-mon-ites.\n\nAnd Jeph-thah said, If I go with you, and win the fight, will you make\nme judge in Is-ra-el?\n\nAnd they said they would.\n\nNow ere the fight took place, Jeph-thah made a vow that if the Lord\nwould let him win he would give to God--that is, would slay and burn as\nif it were a lamb--the first who came out of his doors to meet him when\nhe went back to his home.\n\nJeph-thah should not have made this rash vow, and need not have kept it\nif he had asked God to for-give the sin.\n\nHe went out to fight the Am-mon-ites, and by the help of the Lord the\nchil-dren of Is-ra-el were set free from them.\n\n[Illustration: JEPH-THAH AND HIS DAUGH-TER.]\n\nWhen the fight was at an end Jeph-thah went back to his home, and the\nfirst to come out to meet him was his own child, a fair young maid,\nwhose face was bright with joy. She was all the child that Jeph-thah\nhad, and when he saw her he rent his clothes and told her of the vow he\nhad made.\n\nAnd she said, My fath-er, if thou hast made a vow to the Lord, do with\nme as thou hast said. And he took his child and did to her as he had\nsaid he would, and all the young girls in Is-ra-el wept for her.\n\nJeph-thah was a judge for six years, and then he died.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IX.\n\nSAMSON: THE STRONG MAN.\n\n\nTHE Jews kept on in their sins, and took no pains to please the Lord,\nand so fell in-to the hands of the Phil-is-tines.\n\nAnd there was at that time a man in Is-ra-el whose name was Ma-no-ah.\nBoth he and his wife served the Lord; and they had no child. And God\nsent one of his an-gels to the wife of Ma-no-ah to tell her that she\nshould have a son who was to be brought up to serve the Lord, and to do\nhis work.\n\nEre long Ma-no-ah and his wife had a son, to whom they gave the name of\nSam-son.\n\nAnd the child grew, and the Lord blest him. And when he was grown up he\nwent to Tin-muth, where he met a Phil-is-tine wo-man and fell in love\nwith her.\n\nThen his pa-rents plead with him to find a wife in Is-ra-el, and not to\ntake this one who was no friend to his race. But Sam-son would not give\nher up.\n\nSo they went with him to Tin-muth. And on the way a li-on ran out and\nroared at him. And Sam-son put his arms round the beast and tore him\nwith his hands as if he had been a young kid. But he did not tell his\nfath-er and moth-er what he had done.\n\nThe time soon came when Sam-son was to set the Jews free from the\nPhil-is-tines. And he went down to one of their towns and slew a few of\ntheir men, and then went back to his own home, while his wife stayed in\nTin-muth.\n\nWhen it was time to bring the wheat in from the field, Sam-son went down\nto see his wife, and took with him a young kid. But when he came to the\nhouse her fath-er would not let him go in, and told him that she was his\nwife no more, but had gone to live with some one else. Then Sam-son was\nin a great rage, and he went and caught more than ten score fox-es, and\nset bits of wood on fire, and tied these fire-brands to their tails, and\nlet them loose in the fields and vine-yards of the Phil-is-tines.\n\nAnd they set fire to the grain, and burnt it all up.\n\nAnd the grape-vines and fruit trees were burnt, and much harm was done.\n\nWhen the Phil-is-tines found out that it was Sam-son who had done this\nthey took his wife and her fath-er and burnt them to death. And Sam-son\nfought and slew a host of the Phil-is-tines, and then went on the top of\na high rock called E-tam to stay there.\n\nThen a crowd of men went up with a rush to the top of the rock, and they\nsaid to Sam-son, We have come to bind thee, that we may give thee in-to\nthe hands of the Phil-is-tines.\n\nSam-son made them swear that they would not put him to death, and they\nbound him with strong cords and brought him down from the rock.\n\nAs they drew near the camp of the Phil-is-tines a great shout went up\nfrom the men there. And the Lord gave Sam-son such strength that he\nbroke the cords from his arms as if they had been burnt threads.\n\nAnd Sam-son took up the jaw-bone of an ass, and with it he fought the\nPhil-is-tines and slew a host of them.\n\n[Illustration: SAM-SON SLAY-ING THE PHIL-IS-TINES.]\n\nThen a great thirst came on him, and there was no well near from which\nhe could drink. And he grew so weak that he cried out to the Lord not to\nlet him die of thirst or fall in-to the hands of his foes.\n\nAnd the Lord made a spring at that place and wa-ter ran out, and when\nSam-son had drunk, his strength came back to him.\n\nSam-son came to the town of Ga-za, and went in a house there. Now the\nPhil-is-tines dwelt in Ga-za, and when they heard that Sam-son was there\nthey shut the gates of the town, and kept watch near them all night.\nThey said when the day dawns we will kill him.\n\nBut in the dead of the night Sam-son rose up and came to the gates of\nthe town, and when he found them shut he took them up--posts, bar and\nall--and bore them a long way off to the top of a hill.\n\nSam-son's hair had not been cut, and it had grown thick and long. And\nthere was a wo-man named De-li-lah whom Sam-son used to go and see. And\nwhen the Phil-is-tines heard of it they came to her and told her if she\nwould find out how they might bind Sam-son and bear him off, they would\ngive her a large sum of gold.\n\nSo when Sam-son came to De-li-lah's house she said to him, Tell me, I\npray thee what makes thee so strong, and with what thou couldst be bound\nand not break loose?\n\nSam-son said if they bound him with sev-en green withes--that is, cords\nmade out of soft twigs--he would be so weak that he could not break\nthem.\n\nWhen De-li-lah told this to the Phil-is-tines they brought her sev-en\ngreen withes, and Sam-son let her bind him with them. Now she had men\nhid in her house who were to take Sam-son if he could not break the\ntwigs. And when she had bound him she cried out, The Phil-is-tines seize\nthee, Sam-son! And as soon as she had said these words he broke the\ngreen withes as if they were burnt threads.\n\nThen De-li-lah knew that Sam-son made fun of her and told her lies, and\nshe said once more, Tell me, I pray thee, with what thou canst be bound\nand not break loose.\n\n[Illustration: SAM-SON CAR-RY-ING THE GATES OF GA-ZA.]\n\nSam-son told her if he were bound with new ropes, which had not been\nused, that his strength would leave him, and he would be too weak to\nbreak them.\n\nSo she took new ropes and bound him. But ere the men who were hid in the\nroom could spring out and take him, Sam-son broke the ropes from his\narms as if they had been threads.\n\nThen De-li-lah told Sam-son that he did but mock her and tell her lies,\nand she begged him to let her know how he might be bound.\n\nAnd he said if she would weave his hair with the web in the loom his\nstrength would go from him. And she wove his long hair in with the web,\nand made it fast with a large peg that was part of the loom.\n\nThen she cried out, and Sam-son rose up and went off with the great peg,\nand the whole of the web that was in the loom.\n\nThen she said he did not love her or he would not make sport of her in\nthis way. And she teased him each day, and gave him no peace, so that at\nlast he had to tell her the truth.\n\nHe said his hair had not been cut since he was born, and if it were\nshaved off he would lose all his strength.\n\nIt was wrong for Sam-son to tell her this, for she was bad at heart and\nnot a true friend. But he did not know then how great was his sin.\n\nDe-li-lah knew that this time Sam-son had told her the truth; so she\nsent for the Phil-is-tines to come up to her house.\n\nThen while Sam-son slept, she had a man come in and shave all the hair\nfrom his head. And when this was done she cried out, The Phil-is-tines\nseize thee, Sam-son.\n\n[Illustration: SAM-SON AND DE-LI-LAH.]\n\nAnd he woke from his sleep, and knew not his strength had gone from him.\n\nThen the Phil-is-tines took him and put out his eyes, brought him down\nto Ga-za, and bound him with chains of brass. And they made him fast to\na mill-stone, and he had to work hard to grind their corn.\n\nWhile he was shut up in jail Sam-son had time to think of his sins, and\nhe no doubt cried out to the Lord to keep him. For his hair grew out\nand his strength came back. But the Phil-is-tines did not know this.\n\nThey had made their own god, and its name was Da-gon. And they thought\nthat Da-gon gave Sam-son in-to their hands, and loud was their praise of\nhim. And all the Phil-is-tines met in the large house that had been\nbuilt for Da-gon that they might bow down to their god and give him\nthanks.\n\nThe crowd was great, and their hearts were full of joy. And they said,\nSend for Sam-son that he may make sport for us. And poor blind Sam-son\nwas brought in, and sat down in their midst. And those in the house and\nthose on the roof made sport of him in all sorts of ways.\n\nAnd Sam-son put his arms round two of the great posts that held up the\nhouse. And he bent down, and the house fell, and most of the\nPhil-is-tines were killed. Sam-son died with them, and by his death slew\nmore of the foes of Is-ra-el than he had slain in all his life.\n\n[Illustration: SAM-SON DE-STROYS THE TEM-PLE.]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER X.\n\nRUTH.\n\n\nWHILE Is-ra-el was ruled by a judge whose name has not come down to us,\na dearth came on the land of Ca-naan. And one of the Jews who dwelt in\nBeth-le-hem, took his wife and his two sons and went to stay for a while\nin the land of Mo-ab. His wife's name was Na-o-mi. The man died while\nthey were in Mo-ab, and in a few years each of the sons took him a wife.\nAnd their names were Or-pah and Ruth. At the end of ten years the sons\ndied, and Na-o-mi and their wives dwelt in the land of Mo-ab.\n\nWhen Na-o-mi heard there was no lack of food in Is-ra-el, she made up\nher mind to go back to Beth-le-hem to live.\n\nShe told Or-pah and Ruth of her plan, and said if they choose to stay in\nthe land of Mo-ab, where they were born, they might do so.\n\nAnd they kissed her and wept and said they would go with her. But she\nbade them stay where they were, and at last Or-pah, with tears in her\neyes, kissed Na-o-mi good-bye and went back to her own home. But Ruth\nwould not leave her. She told Na-o-mi not to urge her to go, for nought\nbut death should part them.\n\n[Illustration: RUTH AND NA-O-MI.]\n\nSo they went to the town of Beth-le-hem where Na-o-mi used to live.\n\nIt was the days when the grain was ripe in the fields, and the men had\ngone out to cut it down.\n\nAnd Na-o-mi had a kins-man in Beth-le-hem, whose name was Bo-az, and he\nwas a rich and great man. And Ruth said to Na-o-mi, Let me now go to the\nfields and glean the ears of corn.\n\nTo glean is to pick up. And poor folks, who had no fields of their own,\nwent to pick up that which was left on the ground for them.\n\n[Illustration: RUTH.]\n\nAnd Na-o-mi told Ruth to go. And she went out and came to the field that\nwas owned by the rich man, Bo-az.\n\nWhen Bo-az saw Ruth he asked the men who she was, and where she came\nfrom. And one of them said, She came with Na-o-mi from the land of\nMo-ab. And she said to us, I pray you let me glean where the field has\nbeen reaped. And we told her she might, and she has been there for some\nhours. Then Bo-az went to Ruth.\n\nSo she went out each day to his field, and gleaned there till the grain\nwas all cut and in the barns.\n\nNa-o-mi said to Ruth, Bo-az will win-now the bar-ley to-night. To\nwin-now is to fan, or to drive off by means of a wind. The grain was\nfirst threshed, then thrown from the hands up in the air. The wind would\nblow off the chaff and the good grain would fall to the ground.\n\n[Illustration: BO-AZ AND RUTH.]\n\nNa-o-mi told Ruth to go in and speak to Bo-az the things she told her.\nSo Ruth did as Na-o-mi said, and went down to the fields where Bo-az and\nhis men were.\n\nWhen she came back to Na-o-mi she told her all that she had said and\ndone.\n\nThe next day Bo-az went down to the gate of Beth-le-hem, and told all\nthe chief men whom he met there that he meant to make Ruth his wife. And\nthe men said they would make it known, and prayed the Lord would bless\nRuth and add to the fame and wealth of the rich and great Bo-az.\n\nSo Bo-az took Ruth for his wife. And they had a son O-bed. And Na-o-mi\nwas its nurse.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XI.\n\nJOB.\n\n\nTHERE was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job. He was a good man\nand tried to do all that was right in the sight of the Lord. And God\ngave him ten chil-dren: sev-en boys and three girls. He gave Job great\nwealth, too, so that there was no man in all that part of the world as\nrich as he was.\n\nWhen Job's sons were grown up and had homes of their own, they used to\nmake feasts in turn, and send for their three sis-ters to come and eat\nand drink with them. And Job kept them in mind of all they owed to God,\nand urged them to lead good and true lives, and to do no wrong.\n\nWhen Job had lived at his ease and been a rich man for a long term of\nyears, a great change took place. He lost all his wealth, and all his\nchil-dren; for it was God's will to try him and see how he would bear\nthese ills.\n\nOne day one of his men came to him in great haste, and said, While we\nwere in the field with the ploughs, a band of thieves came and drove off\nthe ox-en and ass-es and slew thy men who were with them, and I a-lone\nam left to tell thee.\n\nWhile this man spoke, there came up one who said, A great fire has come\ndown from the sky and burnt up thy sheep, and all those who took care of\nthem, and I a-lone am left to tell thee.\n\nWhile he yet spoke, a third man came and said, Thy foes came and took\nall thy cam-els, and slew the men who had charge of them, and I a-lone\nam left to tell thee.\n\nThen a fourth came, and said, Thy chil-dren were at a feast in the house\nof thy first-born son, when there came a great wind that broke down the\nhouse, and it fell on the young men and they are all dead, and I a-lone\nam left to tell thee.\n\nWhen Job heard these things he tore his clothes, and bowed down to the\nearth, as if at the feet of God. And he said, I had nought when I came\nin-to the world, and I shall have nought when I die and go out of it.\nGod gave me all that I had, and God took it from me. He knows what is\nbest for me, and I thank him for all that he has done. So Job did not\nsin, nor speak ill of God, though his grief was so great and had come\nup-on him in such a strange, swift way.\n\nTo try Job still more, God let him get sick and he was in great pain.\nBoils came on him and from head to foot he was a mass of sores.\n\nThen his wife came to Job and said, Dost thou still trust God? Do so no\nmore, but curse him, though he kill thee for it.\n\nJob said, Thou dost not speak wise words. When we have so much good from\nGod, shall we not be con-tent to take our share of the ills he may send?\nIn all this Job said not a word that was wrong.\n\nNow Job had three friends, who, when they heard of his hard lot, came to\ntalk with him and cheer him. But when they saw him, the change was so\ngreat they did not know him.\n\nThen they rent their clothes and wept, and sat down on the ground near\nhim, but did not speak for some time, for they could see that his grief\nwas great. These friends thought that Job must have done some great sin,\nelse these ills would not have been sent up-on him. When they spoke to\nhim they said, If thou hast done wrong, do so no more, and God will free\nthee from thy pains.\n\n[Illustration: JOB, AND HIS FRIENDS.]\n\nNow Job knew that he had done no wrong, and he said to them, You came\nto soothe me, but what you say does not soothe me at all. Did I send for\nyou, or ask you to help me? If you were in such grief as I am, I might\nsay hard things of you and call you bad men. But I would not do so; but\nwould speak kind words to you, and try to help you bear your ills, and\nto make your grief less.\n\nThen Job spoke of his own griefs, and said: O, that the Lord would put\nme to death that I might suf-fer no more. When I lie down at night I\ncan-not sleep, but toss on my bed in pain and wish the day would dawn.\nOr, if I fall a-sleep for a while, I have the worst kind of dreams, so\nthat I would be glad to die and wake no more in this world. O, that I\nhad some one to speak to God for me, for he does not hear when I pray.\nYet I know that he lives who will save my soul, and that he will come on\nthe earth, and I shall rise up from my grave and see God for my-self.\n\nBut when Job found that he could not die, nor be made well, but must\nstill bear his pains, he grew cross, and was not at all like the Job of\nold. He found fault, and said that his griefs were too great, and that\nGod was not kind to put him in such pain.\n\nHis three friends did not try to calm him, or to cheer him with the hope\nthat his woes would soon be at an end, nor did they bid him trust in God\nand seek help and strength from him. But they told him that he must\nhave done some great wrong, else God would not have sent all these ills\nup-on him.\n\nThis did not please Job, and he spoke to them in great wrath, and they\nspoke back in the same style.\n\nWhen they had talked in this way for some time, and had each of them\nsaid things they ought not to have said, they heard a voice speak to\nthem out of a whirl-wind that swept by the place. It was the voice of\nGod.\n\nAnd the voice spoke to Job and told him of the great works that God had\ndone; that it was he who made the earth, the sea, and the sky. He sends\nthe rain on the field to make the grass grow and the flow-ers to spring\nup. He sends the cold and the heat, the frost and the snow, and the ice\nthat stops the flow of the streams. He sends the clouds, and the roar\nand the flash that come from them when the storms rage. He made the\nhorse that is so swift and strong, and has no fear in time of war, but\nwill rush in-to the fight at the sound of the trump.\n\nAll this and more the voice spoke from the whirl-wind. And when God had\ntold Job of all these great works, he asked him if he could do these\nthings, or if he thought he was so wise that he could teach God what it\nwas best to do.\n\nThen Job saw what a sin it was to find fault with God. And he was full\nof shame, and said: My guilt is great; I spoke of that of which I knew\nnaught, and I bow down in the dust be-fore thee.\n\nGod said to Job's three friends, I am wroth with you, for you did not\nspeak in the right way to Job. Now, lest I pun-ish you, take sev-en\nyoung bulls and sev-en rams and burn them on the al-tar, and ask Job to\npray for you, for him will I hear. So they did as the Lord told them,\nand Job prayed for them, and God for-gave them their sins.\n\nIn a short time Job was well once more. His pains all left him; and then\nhis friends and all his folks came to see him and they had a good feast.\nAnd each man brought him a rich gift, and the Lord blest him more than\nhe had done be-fore, and gave him twice as much wealth. He had great\nherds of sheep, and cam-els, and ox-en and ass-es, and large fields for\nthem to roam in, and a host of men to care for them. So that he was a\ngreat man once more.\n\nAnd God gave him ten chil-dren: sev-en boys and three girls. And when\nthese girls grew up, there were no maids in all the land so fair as they\nin face and form. And Job had great peace of mind, and dwelt at his ease\nfor long, long years; and when he died he was an old, old man.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XII.\n\nSAMUEL, THE CHILD OF GOD.\n\n\nTHERE was a man of Is-ra-el who went up each year from the town of\nRa-mah to a place called Shi-loh to pay his vows to the Lord of hosts.\nAnd his wife, whose name was Han-nah, went with him. The man's name was\nEl-ka-nah.\n\n[Illustration: SAM-U-EL.]\n\nE-li was the high-priest at that time, and as he sat in the Lord's house\nhe saw Han-nah on her knees with her eyes full of tears.\n\nAnd he spoke to her in a kind voice, and said: May God grant thee what\nthou dost ask of him. And Han-nah was glad at the high-priest's words,\nfor she had asked God to give her a son.\n\nAnd the Lord gave Han-nah a son, and she called his name Sam-u-el, which\nmeans \"Asked of the Lord.\"\n\nSam-u-el was quite young when Han-nah took him up to the house of the\nLord at Shi-loh. And when they brought the child to E-li, Han-nah said,\nI am the wo-man that stood by thee here and prayed to the Lord. For this\nchild did I pray, and the Lord heard me and gave me what I asked for. So\nI have brought him to the Lord; so long as he lives shall he be the\nchild of God. For this was the vow she made if God would give her a son.\n\nAnd Sam-u-el was left to stay with E-li in the Lord's house.\n\nNow E-li had two sons, and they were priests in the Lord's house. But\nthey were not fit for the place, for they were bad men, and broke God's\nlaws. And by their sins they kept men from the house of the Lord.\n\nBut Sam-u-el, though a young child, did what was right and pleased the\nLord. And his moth-er made him a coat, and brought it to him each year\nwhen she and her hus-band went up to Shi-loh. And E-li spoke kind words\nto them, and asked the Lord to bless them for the sake of the child whom\nthey gave to him.\n\nNow E-li was an old man, and when he heard of all the things his sons\nhad done, he did not drive them out of the Lord's house as he should\nhave done, but let them go on in their sins. He cared more to please his\nsons than he did to please the Lord.\n\n[Illustration: HAN-NAH PRE-SENTS SAM-U-EL TO E-LI.]\n\nOne night when E-li and Sam-u-el lay down to sleep, the child heard a\nvoice speak his name. And he said, Here am I. And he got up and ran to\nE-li, for he thought it was his voice, and he said, Here am I, for thou\ndid'st call me.\n\nE-li said, I did not call thee, my son. Go back, and lie down. And the\nlad did so.\n\nIn a short time he heard the same voice say, Sam-u-el--Sam-u-el.\n\nAnd he rose at once and went to E-li, and said to him, Here am I, for\nthou did'st call me. But E-li said, I did not call thee, and sent the\nlad back to his bed once more.\n\nThen Sam-u-el heard the voice a third time, and went to E-li and said,\nHere am I, for thou did'st call me.\n\nAnd E-li knew it was the Lord who spoke to Sam-u-el. And he said to the\nlad, Go, lie down, and if he call thee, say, Speak, Lord, for I hear\nthee.\n\nAnd Sam-u-el went and lay down. And the Lord came for the fourth time,\nand called, Sam-u-el--Sam-u-el!\n\nAnd Sam-u-el said, Speak, Lord, for I hear thee.\n\nAnd the Lord told Sam-u-el all that he meant to do to the house of E-li.\nHe had let his sons go on in their sins, and they were to be put to\ndeath in a way that would make men fear God.\n\nSam-u-el lay still till day-light. Then he rose, but did not dare to\ntell E-li what God had told him.\n\nBut E-li called him and said, What did the Lord say to thee? I pray thee\nhide it not from me.\n\nSo Sam-u-el told E-li all that the Lord had said. When E-li heard it, he\nsaid, It is the Lord, let him do what he thinks is best.\n\nAnd Sam-u-el grew, and the Lord was with him and blest him, and it was\nknown to all that he was one of God's saints, who could fore-tell things\nthat were to take place. Such wise men were some-times called seers.\n\nThe words which God spoke to Sam-u-el came true; for the chil-dren of\nIs-ra-el went out to fight the Phil-is-tines, and a host of them were\nslain.\n\nThose who came back said, Let us take the ark out with us to save us\nfrom our foes.\n\n[Illustration: CAP-TURE OF THE ARK.]\n\nNow God had not told them to take the ark, and it was a sin for them to\ntouch it. They should have put their trust in the Lord, and looked to\nhim for help.\n\nBut they sent to Shi-loh for the ark, and E-li's two sons came with it.\nWhen it was brought to the camp the Jews gave such a shout that the\nearth shook with the noise.\n\nAnd when the Phil-is-tines heard it, they said, What does it mean? And\nthey were told that the ark of the Lord had been brought to the camp of\nIs-ra-el.\n\nAnd they were in great fear; for they said, God is come to the camp! Woe\nun-to us, for this is the first time such a thing has been done!\n\nAnd they said, Let us be strong and fight like men, that we may not be\nslaves to these Jews!\n\nSo they fought once more with the Jews, and slew a host of them, and the\nrest fled to their tents. And the ark of the Lord fell in-to the hands\nof the foe, and E-li's two sons were slain.\n\nAnd the same day a man ran down to Shi-loh, with his clothes rent, and\nbits of earth on his head to show his grief.\n\nE-li sat on a seat by the way-side, where he kept watch, for he was in\ngreat fear lest harm should come to the ark of God. And when the man\ncame through the crowd and told that the ark was lost, all cried out\nwith great fear. And when E-li heard the noise, he said, What is it?\nWhat do those sounds mean? For his eyes were dim with age, and he could\nnot see.\n\nAnd the man ran up to E-li and said, I am he that came out of the\nfight, and I fled from there to-day.\n\nAnd E-li said, What word hast thou, my son?\n\n[Illustration: THE RE-TURN OF THE ARK.]\n\nAnd he said that Is-ra-el had been put to flight with great loss, his\ntwo sons were dead, and the ark of God in the hands of the\nPhil-is-tines.\n\nWhen the man spoke of the ark of God, E-li fell off the seat by the\nside of the gate, and broke his neck, and died there. And he had been a\nhigh priest and a judge in Is-ra-el for two-score years.\n\nAnd the ark of God was with the Phil-is-tines for more than half the\nyear, and to each place where it was sent it brought great grief.\n\nSo at last they sent for their wise men, and said to them, What shall we\ndo with the ark of the Lord? To what place shall we send it?\n\nAnd the wise men told them to make a new cart, and tie two cows to it,\nbut to bring the calves home with them. Then they should put the ark on\nthe cart, and let the cows draw it where they would.\n\nIf the cows should leave their calves and go down to the land of\nIs-ra-el, it would be a sign that the Lord was their guide, and that he\nhad sent these ills on the Phil-is-tines for their great sins.\n\nBut if the cows did not take the ark, it would show that the Lord did\nnot want it back, and that all these ills they had to bear had come by\nchance, and were not sent from the Lord.\n\nSo the Phil-is-tines did as their wise men said. They took the two cows\nand tied them to the cart, and shut up their calves at home. And they\nlaid the ark on the cart, and let the cows go where they chose.\n\nAnd the cows took the straight road to the land of Is-ra-el till they\ncame to a place called Beth-she-mesh.\n\nThe Jews who dwelt there were out in the wheat fields. And the cows\nbrought the cart to the fields of a man named Josh-u-a, and stood there\nby a great stone.\n\nThen some of the men of Le-vi came and took the ark and set it on the\nstone. And they broke up the cart, and burnt the cows as a gift of\npraise to the Lord.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIII.\n\nSAMUEL THE MAN OF GOD.\n\n\nWHEN E-li died, Sam-u-el was made a judge in Is-ra-el. And he went from\nplace to place to teach men the law. And as the ark had not been brought\nback to Shi-loh, Sam-u-el built an al-tar in his own house and served\nGod there.\n\nThe chil-dren of Is-ra-el set up strange gods, and the Phil-is-tines\nwent to war with them. And Sam-u-el told them to give up their false\ngods and serve the Lord, and he would save them from their foes. And\nthey did so. And he said, Come up to Miz-peh, and I will pray to the\nLord for you.\n\nAnd they came to Miz-peh, and gave their hearts to the Lord, and were in\ngrief for their sins.\n\nAnd when the Phil-is-tines heard they were at Miz-peh, they went up to\nfight them. And the chil-dren of Is-ra-el were in great fear, and\nSam-u-el plead for them, and when the fight came on the Lord sent a\nfierce storm that put the Phil-is-tines to flight, and they fled from\nthe field with great loss.\n\nAnd Sam-u-el set up a stone at Miz-peh, and gave it the name of\nEb-en-e-zer--\"The Stone of Help.\"\n\nWhen Sam-u-el was an old man he set his two sons to judge Is-ra-el. But\nhis sons were not just men, and did not rule as their fath-er had done.\nIf a man did wrong, they would say it was right if he paid them for it.\nAnd the wise men came to Sam-u-el, and said to him, As thou art old, and\nthy sons walk not in thy ways, make us a king to judge us.\n\nSam-u-el felt hurt when they asked him to choose a king, and asked the\nLord to tell him what to do.\n\nAnd the Lord told Sam-u-el to choose a king for them.\n\nNow there was a man whose name was Kish, and he had a son whose name was\nSaul, a tall young man of fine form and good looks.\n\nAnd the ass-es of Kish were lost. And he said to Saul, his son, Take one\nof the men with you, and go find the ass-es.\n\nAnd they went a long way and could not find them. And Saul said to the\nman with him, Come, let us go back, lest my fath-er think we are lost.\n\n[Illustration: THE STONE OF HELP.]\n\nAnd the man said to Saul, There is a man of God here, and what he says\nis sure to come to pass. It may be that he can tell us what we ought to\ndo Saul said, Thy word is good; come, let us go. And they went to the\ntown where Sam-u-el, the man of God, was. And they met him on their way.\n\nAnd the Lord made it known to Sam-u-el that this was the man he should\nchoose to reign in Is-ra-el.\n\nAnd Saul drew near to Sam-u-el, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, where\nthe seer's house is.\n\nAnd Sam-u-el said, I am the seer; and the ass-es that were lost are\nfound. And he took Saul and his man to his own house, and made them\nspend the night there.\n\nThe next day Sam-u-el took Saul to the roof of his house, and had a talk\nwith him.\n\nThen they went out on the street, and as they drew near the gate of the\ntown, Sam-u-el said to Saul, Bid thy man pass on, but do thou stand\nstill for a while, that I may show thee the word of God.\n\nThen Sam-u-el took a horn of oil and poured it on Saul's head.\n\nThis was done when a man was made a high-priest; and the same thing was\ndone when he was made a king. And God was pleased with Saul, and gave\nhim a new heart; but as yet none but these two knew that Saul was to be\nKing of the Jews.\n\nSam-u-el spoke to the chil-dren of Is-ra-el and told them once more all\nthat the Lord had done for them, how he had brought them out of the land\nof E-gypt, and set them free from their foes, and yet they would not\nserve the Lord, but cried out for a king. So he bade them all go up to\nMiz-peh that the Lord might choose them a king.\n\n[Illustration: SAUL IN HIS HID-ING PLACE.]\n\nAnd the Lord chose Saul. But when the men went to seek for him, they\ncould not find him. And the Lord said, He hath hid in the midst of the\nstuff. And they ran and brought him out, and he was so tall that all the\nrest had to look up to him.\n\nAnd Sam-u-el said, This is he whom the Lord hath sent to rule thee.\nThere is none like him, as thou canst see.\n\nAnd they all cried out, God save the king! Then Sam-u-el told them what\nthey were to do, and how the king was to rule, and wrote it down in a\nbook.\n\nWhen Saul had been king for two years, he set out with his son,\nJon-a-than, to fight the Phil-is-tines. And a great host went with them.\nAnd the Phil-is-tines had more men than they could count. And when the\nJews saw the strength of their foes, they were in great fear, and ran\nand hid in caves and pits, or fled to the high hills where the rocks\nwould screen them. So there were but few left to go out with Saul, and\nthey shook with dread.\n\nAnd Saul came to Gil-gal, where he was to meet Sam-u-el, but he was not\nthere. Sam-u-el had told him to wait for him, and he would tell him what\nhe was to do.\n\nBut at the end of a week Saul had the flesh brought to him and laid on\nthe stone, and he set fire to it, that the flame might rise to God and\nbring peace to the land. And as soon as Saul had done this thing,\nSam-u-el came. And Saul went out to meet him, that he might bless him.\n\nAnd Sam-u-el said, What hast thou done?\n\nAnd Saul told of the strait he was in, and that the Phil-is-tines were\nnear in great force, and said that when Sam-u-el did not come he felt\nthat he must send up a plea to God for aid in this hour.\n\nSam-u-el told him that he had done wrong. When the Lord told him to\nwait, he should wait. And now his reign would be a short one, and God\nwould choose a new king to take his place.\n\nIn those days men fought with bows and ar-rows. And while the Jews were\nheld as slaves by the Phil-is-tines they would not let them have swords\nor spears, lest they should rise up and kill them.\n\nAnd they sent all the smiths out of the land, lest they should make\nthese things for the chil-dren of Is-ra-el.\n\nSo when they went out to fight none of them had a sword or a spear but\nSaul and his son.\n\nIn those days men wore coats of mail, and bore a shield with them so as\nto ward off the darts. These shields were made of a thick piece of wood,\non which the skin of an ox was stretched when dried.\n\nJon-a-than, Saul's son, wore a coat of mail, and had a man to bear his\nspear and his shield when he did not care to use them. And he said to\nhis man, Come, let us go to the camp of the Phil-is-tines. For it may be\nthat the Lord will help us.\n\nAnd the man said he would go.\n\nJon-a-than said this should be their sign: They would go where the foe\ncould see them, and if they said, Wait there till I come to you, they\nwould know the Lord did not mean to help them. But if the Phil-is-tines\nsaid, Come up to us and we will show you some-thing, they would go up,\nfor the Lord would be with them.\n\nSo Jon-a-than and his man stood out where the foe could see them. And\nthe Phil-is-tines made sport of them, and cried out, Come up to us, and\nwe will shew you some-thing.\n\nAnd the two went up the rocks on their hands and feet, and fought with\nthe Phil-is-tines, and slew a score of them. And the Lord shook the\nearth, so that the Phil-is-tines were in great fear.\n\nNow Saul and the men who were with him did not know what his son had\ndone. But his watch-man, who was on the look-out, saw that there was a\nfight in the camp of the Phil-is-tines, and told Saul of it.\n\nAnd Saul and his men went to join in the fight. And all those who had\nhid in caves and holes, or up on the mount, when they heard that the\nPhil-is-tines had fled, went with Saul, and Is-ra-el won the day.\n\nBut Saul did not de-sire to please the Lord in all things. For when the\nLord sent him out to fight King A-gag, he told Saul to wipe him and all\nhe had from the face of the earth. But Saul kept back some of the\nspoils, the best of the sheep and lambs, and did not put the king to\ndeath as he should have done.\n\nAnd the Lord told Sam-u-el that Saul was not a good king, and his reign\nshould be short.\n\nAnd it made Sam-u-el sad to hear this, and he prayed to God all night.\nThen he had a talk with Saul, who did not look at his sins in the right\nlight. And Sam-u-el told him that his reign as king would soon be at an\nend.\n\n[Illustration: DA-VID A-NOINT-ED BY SAM-U-EL.]\n\nGod told Sam-u-el not to mourn for Saul, but to go down to Beth-le-hem,\nto the house of a man named Jes-se, one of whose sons was to be made\nking. And the Lord said he was not to look for one with a fine face or\nform. For the Lord sees not as man sees, and he looks on the heart.\n\nSo he went down to Beth-le-hem, and did as the Lord told him. And Jes-se\nhad his sev-en sons pass one by one be-fore Sam-u-el. And Sam-u-el\nthought that the first-born must be the one whom God chose to be king.\nBut the Lord told him he was not the one. And they all went by, and not\none of them was the one on whom God had set his seal.\n\nAnd Sam-u-el said to Jes-se, Are these all thy sons?\n\nAnd Jes-se said, No there is yet one left; but he is quite a lad, and is\nnow in the field where he cares for the sheep.\n\nAnd Sam-u-el told Jes-se to send for him at once. And Jes-se sent for\nhim, and he was brought in, and his cheeks were red, and his eyes\nbright. And the Lord said to Sam-u-el, Rise--for this is he.\n\nAnd Sam-u-el rose, and took the horn of oil and poured it on the young\nman's head. So the Lord chose Da-vid to be king when Saul should be put\nout of the way.\n\nAnd Da-vid felt a great change in his heart, for the Lord was there to\nmake him strong and wise, and fit for the high place he was to fill.\n\nBut there was no peace in Saul's heart, and his mind was ill at ease.\n\nAnd his men said it might soothe him to have some one play on the harp.\nFor sweet sounds will some-times calm the mind.\n\nSo Saul said, Find a man who can play well on the harp, and bring him to\nme.\n\nAnd one of them said that he knew such a man. He was the son of Jes-se,\nwho dwelt at Beth-le-hem, and his name was Da-vid.\n\nAnd Saul sent men to Jes-se and told him to send Da-vid, his son, who\nkept the sheep.\n\nAnd Da-vid came to Saul, and stayed with him to wait on him. And when\nSaul was sad and ill at ease, Da-vid would take his harp and play for\nhim, and he would soon be well.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIV.\n\nDAVID AND SAUL.\n\n\nWHILE Saul was yet king, the Phil-is-tines came forth once more to fight\nthe chil-dren of Is-ra-el. And Saul and his men went out to meet them.\nThere were two high hills on each side of a deep vale, and from these\ntwo hills the foe-men fought.\n\nThe Phil-is-tines had on their side a man who was more than ten feet\nhigh. He wore a coat of mail, and was bound with brass from head to\nfoot, so that no sword or spear could wound him.\n\nAnd he cried out to Saul's men, Choose a man from your midst and let\nhim come down to me. If he can fight with me and kill me, then we will\nbe your slaves. But if I kill him then you must serve us. I dare you to\nsend a man to fight with me.\n\nWhen Saul and his men heard these words they were in great fear, for\nthere was no one in their ranks who would dare fight with such a gi-ant.\n\nAnd each morn and eve, for more than a month, this great man, whose name\nwas Go-li-ath, drew near Saul and his troops and dared them to send a\nman out to fight him.\n\nNow when the war broke out three of Jes-se's sons went with Saul, but\nDa-vid went back to Beth-le-hem to feed sheep.\n\nAnd Jes-se said to Da-vid, Take this parched corn and these ten loaves\nof bread, and run down to camp and bring me back word how thy broth-ers\nare.\n\nAnd Da-vid rose up the next morn, and found some one to take care of his\nsheep, and went as his fath-er told him.\n\nAnd he came to the camp just as the men were on their way to the fight,\nand the air was filled with their shouts.\n\nAnd he left the goods he had brought in the care of a man, and ran in\nthe midst of the troops, and spoke to his three broth-ers.\n\nAnd while he stood there, Go-li-ath came out from the ranks of the\nPhil-is-tines, and dared some one to fight with him.\n\nAnd Da-vid heard his words. And the men of Is-ra-el fled from his face.\nAnd Da-vid heard them speak of what would be done to the man who should\nkill him; for the king would give him great wealth, and set him in a\nhigh place.\n\nAnd Da-vid spoke to the men near him, and made use of strong words.\n\nAnd his broth-ers told him to go home and take care of his sheep, for it\nwas just a trick of his to come up to camp that he might see the fight.\n\n[Illustration: DA-VID BE-FORE SAUL.]\n\nDa-vid said, I have done no wrong! and the men to whom he spoke went and\ntold Saul what he had said. And Saul sent for him, but did not know\nthat he was the same one who used to play on the harp for him.\n\nAnd Da-vid told Saul he would go out and fight the great man from Gath.\nAnd Saul said, Thou art but a youth, and he has been a man of war all\nhis days.\n\nThen Da-vid told Saul how he had fought with and slain the wild beasts\nthat came out of the woods to eat up the lambs of his flock. And, said\nhe, this man is no more than a wild beast, and the Lord will save me\nfrom him as he did from the paw of the li-on and the bear.\n\nAnd Saul said, Go, and the Lord go with thee. And Saul put on him a coat\nof mail, and clothed him in brass from head to foot, and hung a sword at\nhis side. But Da-vid took them all off, and said, I have not tried them,\nand can-not use them.\n\nAnd he took his staff in his hand, and chose five smooth stones from the\nbrook and put them in a bag that he wore. And his sling was in his hand\nwhen he drew near to Go-li-ath.\n\nGo-li-ath came near to Da-vid, and when he saw what a youth he was, he\ndrew up his head with great scorn.\n\nDa-vid ran to meet him, and put his hand in his bag and drew forth a\nstone, and slung it, and struck Go-li-ath on the fore-head with such\nforce that the stone sank in through the bone and he fell on his face\nto the earth.\n\n[Illustration: DA-VID WITH GO-LI-ATH'S HEAD.]\n\nThen Da-vid ran and stood on Go-li-ath, and drew his sword from its\nsheath, and slew him and cut off his head.\n\nAnd when the Phil-is-tines saw that the man in whom they had put their\ntrust was dead they fled.\n\nAnd Da-vid came back from the fight with the head of Go-li-ath in his\nhand, and was brought to Saul.\n\nAnd Saul would not let Da-vid go back to his own home, but made him stay\nwith him. And Jon-a-than fell in love with him, and to show his love,\ntook off all the rich clothes he had on and put them on Da-vid, and gave\nhim his sword, his bow, and his belt. And Da-vid did as Saul told him,\nand all who saw him were pleased with him, and Saul put him at the head\nof his men of war.\n\nBut when King Saul and his men went through the towns on their way back\nfrom the fight, the folks came out and sang and danced to praise them\nfor what they had done.\n\nBut they said more in praise of Da-vid than of Saul, and when Saul heard\nit he was wroth, and from that day ceased to be Da-vid's friend.\n\nThe next day Da-vid stood near Saul with his harp in his hand to play\nhim some sweet tunes. And Saul held a spear in his hand, and he cast it\nat Da-vid so that it would go through him and pin him to the wall. But\nDa-vid saw it and took a step one side, and it did him no harm.\n\nTwice was this done, and when Saul found that he could not hurt Da-vid,\nhe was in great fear of him, for he knew the Lord was with him. So he\ndrove Da-vid from his house, and sent men to lay in wait to kill him.\n\n[Illustration: JON-A-THAN AND DA-VID.]\n\nBut Da-vid fled from them and ran to the place where Jon-a-than was, and\nsaid to him, What have I done that the king seeks my life?\n\nNow Jon-a-than did not know that the king meant to kill Da-vid, so he\nsaid to him, Thou shalt not die. My fath-er would have told me if he\nmeant to kill thee. But Da-vid said it was true.\n\nThe next day was to be a feast day, and the king would look for Dav-id\nto come and eat with him. But Da-vid was in such fear of Saul that he\ndid not care to go, and begged Jon-a-than to let him hide him-self for\nthree days. If the king asks where I am, said Da-vid, tell him that thou\ndid'st give me leave to go home.\n\nJon-a-than told Da-vid that at the end of the three days he should come\nand hide in the field near a rock that was there. And Jon-a-than said he\nwould shoot three ar-rows as if he took aim at a mark. And he would send\na lad out to pick them up. And if he said to the lad, Go, find them,\nthey are on this side of thee, then Da-vid might know that all was at\npeace and the king would do him no harm. But if he should cry out that\nthe darts were be-yond the lad, then Da-vid would know that he must\nflee, for the king meant to do him harm.\n\nSo Da-vid hid him-self in the field; and when the feast day came Saul\nsat down to eat with his back to the wall. And he saw that Da-vid was\nnot in his place, but said not a word. The next day when he found Da-vid\nwas not in his place, Saul said to his son, Why comes not Da-vid to eat\nthese two days?\n\nJon-a-than said that Da-vid pled so hard for leave to go home to his\nown folks, that he had told him to go, and that was why he was not at\nthe feast.\n\nThen Saul was in a great rage, and said to his son, As long as Da-vid\nlives thou canst not be a king. Send for him, and bring him here that he\nmay be put to death.\n\nAnd Jon-a-than said, Why should he be slain? What hath he done?\n\n[Illustration: JON-A-THAN SHOOT-ING THE AR-ROWS.]\n\nSaul threw his spear at Jon-a-than. And the young man knew by this that\nthe king meant to kill Da-vid. So the next morn the king's son went out\nto the field, and took a lad with him. And he said, Run now, and pick up\nthe ar-rows that I shoot.\n\nAnd as he ran, Jon-a-than sent a dart o'er his head; and when the lad\ncame to the place where it fell, the king's son cried out, It is be-yond\nthee. Make haste, and stay not.\n\nDa-vid heard these words and knew that he must flee, for if Saul caught\nhim he would kill him.\n\nThe lad brought the darts to Jon-a-than, and did not know why the king's\nson had shot them and called out to him as he did. And Jon-a-than gave\nhim his bow and ar-rows, and sent him back to town with them.\n\nAs soon as the lad was gone, Da-vid came out from the place where he was\nhid, and fell on his face to the ground, and bowed three times. Then he\nrose and threw his arms round Jon-a-than's neck, and the two friends\nwept as if their hearts would break.\n\nThen Da-vid fled from Saul, and hid in the woods and caves.\n\nSaul went out with a large force of men to seek Da-vid on the rocks\nwhere the wild goats fed. And Saul came to a cave, and went in to lie\ndown and rest.\n\nDa-vid and his men were in the cave, but Saul could not see them. And\nthe men wished to kill Saul; but Da-vid would not let them. While he was\nthere Da-vid stole up to Saul and cut off a piece of his robe. And Saul\ndid not know it.\n\n[Illustration: DA-VID AND SAUL.]\n\nWhen Saul went out of the cave, Da-vid went out af-ter him and cried\nout, My lord and my king!\n\nAnd when Saul looked back, Da-vid bowed down to him with his face to the\nearth. And he told Saul to pay no heed to those who said he meant to\nharm the king. For if he had sought to kill Saul he might have done so\nthat day while he was in the cave. And Da-vid showed Saul the piece of\nhis robe he had cut off.\n\nAnd some bade me kill thee, said Da-vid, but I would not, for thou art\nmy lord and my king. Then Da-vid held up the piece of cloth he had cut\nfrom Saul's robe, and said, Since I was so near thee as to cut this off\nand did not kill thee, thou may'st know that I have no wish to harm\nthee. Yet thou dost hunt for me to kill me. Let the Lord judge 'twixt\nthee and me, and save me from thy hand, and save thee as he will, for I\nwill not harm thee.\n\nWhen Saul heard Da-vid speak thus, all hate went out of his heart, and\nhe wept as he said, Thou hast done good to me for the wrongs I did thee,\nand may the Lord bless thee for it. Now I know that thou wilt some day\nbe the king of Is-ra-el.\n\nAnd Saul went home, and Da-vid and his men went back to the cave.\n\nBut Da-vid knew that he could not trust Saul, so he fled to the land of\nthe Phil-is-tines, and he and his men dwelt there in the town of Gath\nfor the space of a year and four months.\n\n[Illustration: DA-VID TAKES GO-LI-ATH'S SWORD.]\n\nWhile he was there, the Phil-is-tines went out to fight with Saul once\nmore, and when he saw what a host of them there was, his heart shook\nwith fear. He asked the Lord what he should do, but the Lord did not\ncome to him in dreams, or speak one word to him.\n\nSam-u-el was dead, and the Lord had said it was a sin to go to a witch,\nor a seer, to find out the things that would take place, and Saul had\nsent all these folks out of the land.\n\nBut now he was in such a strait that he felt he must have help of some\nsort. And one of his men told him there was at En-dor a witch who could\nwork strange charms, and fore-tell what was to take place. So the king\ndrest him-self so that he would not be known, and went at night with two\nof his men to see the witch of En-dor. And he said to her, Bring me up\nhim whom I shall name to thee.\n\nAnd the witch said to him, Dost thou not know that Saul has sent all\nthose that work charms out of the land? And why dost thou set a snare\nfor my life, so that I will be put to death?\n\nAnd Saul said, As the Lord lives there shall no harm come to thee for\nthis thing.\n\nThen the witch said, Whom shall I bring up to thee? And he said, Bring\nme Sam-u-el.\n\nSo the witch made strange signs and spoke strange words, and swept her\nwand round and round. And when she saw the form of Sam-u-el rise up, she\ncried with a loud voice, Why did'st thou not tell me the truth? for thou\nart Saul!\n\nAnd the king said, Have no fear. What did'st thou see?\n\nAnd the witch said, I saw an old man with a cloak round him.\n\nAnd Saul knew it was Sam-u-el, and bowed his face to the ground. And\nSam-u-el said, Why hast thou brought me up? And Saul told him that he\nwas in a great strait, that God had left him, and did not come to him in\ndreams or by the hand of wise men, and he thought that Sam-u-el might\ntell him what to do.\n\nSam-u-el said, Why then dost thou ask of me if the Lord hath left thee?\nHe hath done to thee just as he said he would. Thy reign is at an end,\nand Da-vid shall rule in thy stead. And he told Saul that the next day\nhe and his sons would be dead, and Is-ra-el in the hands of the foes.\n\nWhen Saul heard these words he fell down in a swoon, for he had had no\nfood for a day and a night.\n\nAnd the witch brought bread and bade him eat, that he might have\nstrength to go on his way. And Saul and his men ate of the food, and\nwent their way that night.\n\nNow the lords of the Phil-is-tines brought all their troops to a place\ncalled A-phek. And the king of Gath went there, and took Da-vid and his\nmen with him. But the lords of the Phil-is-tines would not have the Jews\nin their midst lest they should turn on them and give them in-to the\nhands of king Saul.\n\nSo Da-vid and his men had to leave the camp, and the Phil-is-tines went\nout to fight, and the men of Is-ra-el fled from them with great loss.\nThe king's three sons were slain, and an ar-row struck Saul and gave him\na bad wound.\n\nAnd Saul said to the man who bore his shield, Draw thy sword and put me\nto death. But the man did not dare to kill his king. So Saul took his\nown sword and fell on it, and thus died by his own hand. And when the\nman saw that Saul was dead, he fell on his sword and died with him.\n\nAnd when it was known that Saul and his sons were dead, the Jews fled\nfrom that part of the land, and the Phil-is-tines went to live there.\n\nIn the course of a few years Da-vid was made king of Is-ra-el, and then\nwent to live at Je-ru-sa-lem. He went to war, and took spoils of rich\nkings, and the Lord was with him, for he sought to do that which was\nright and just.\n\nDa-vid had two sons: Sol-o-mon and Ab-sa-lom.\n\nAnd in all the land there was no man with such a fine face and form as\nAb-sa-lom, and he won much praise for his good looks. And he had a thick\ngrowth of long hair. But Ab-sa-lom had a bad heart, and his sins made\nDa-vid weep. But he did not scold Ab-sa-lom as he should have done, for\nthe king was fond of his son, and so Ab-sa-lom went on from bad to\nworse.\n\nHe told what he would do when he was king, and made friends with those\nwho thought it a fine thing to be on good terms with the king's son.\n\nWhen he was two-score years of age, Ab-sa-lom said to the king, Let me,\nI pray thee, go up to Heb-ron to pay my vows.\n\nAnd Da-vid told him to go. But it was not to serve the Lord that\nAb-sa-lom went, but to have him-self made king in-stead of Da-vid. And\nhe took ten score men with him, who did not know why or where they went,\nand sent spies all through the land to speak in his praise and urge that\nhe be made king.\n\n[Illustration: DA-VID FOR-GIV-ING AB-SA-LOM.]\n\nAnd when Da-vid heard of it he said to his men, Rise, let us flee from\nthis place, lest Ab-sa-lom come and put us to death.\n\nAnd they all fled from Je-ru-sa-lem, and went to hide in some lone\nplace. And when Ab-sa-lom came to Je-ru-sa-lem he went to one of\nDa-vid's friends and asked him what he should do to be made king.\nA-hith-o-phel, who had once been a friend of Da-vid, and had now gone\nwith the king's son, had said that he would go out with a large force\nand come up with Da-vid when he was weak and faint, so that he would be\nin a great fright. Those who were with Dav-id would flee, and he would\nsoon put the king to death. Then, of course, Ab-sa-lom would be king.\n\nBut Ab-sa-lom would not do this till he had heard what Hu-sha-i said.\nNow Hu-sha-i was a true friend of Da-vid, and he told Ab-sa-lom to take\nmore men than A-hith-o-phel had said, for he thought that would give\nDa-vid a chance to get out of the way. And Hu-sha-i sent two young men\nto tell Da-vid not to stop on the plains that night, but to cross the\nJor-dan, lest he and all who were with him should be put to death.\n\nBut a boy saw the two sons of the high-priest who were on their way to\nDa-vid, and went and told Ab-sa-lom. And the priest's sons ran to a\nhouse near by, and hid in the well. And the wo-man who kept the house\nspread corn on top so that no one could see that a well was there.\n\nAnd when Ab-sa-lom's men came in and asked the wo-man where the priest's\nsons were, she said they had gone on past the brook Ked-ron. And when\nthe two could not be found the men went back.\n\nThen the priest's sons came up out of the well, and made haste to give\nto Da-vid the word that Hu-sha-i had sent. And at dawn Da-vid and all\nhis men crossed Jor-dan.\n\nAs soon as Ab-sa-lom had all the men he thought he would need, he set\nout to fight with Da-vid. And Da-vid drew up his men in line, and put\nJo-ab at their head. And the king said, I will go out with you. But the\nmen said he should not; so Da-vid staid by the gate and saw them go out\nto the fight, and bade them be kind to Ab-sa-lom for his sake.\n\n[Illustration: THE DEATH OF AB-SA-LOM.]\n\nThe fight took place in a wood. Ab-sa-lom rode on a mule, and as the\nmule passed 'neath a great oak, Ab-sa-lom's head caught in a branch, and\nhe hung in mid air, while the mule went off down the road.\n\nAnd a man saw it and told Jo-ab. And Jo-ab said, Why did'st thou not\nkill him? And the man said he would not kill the king's son, for he had\nheard Da-vid ask them to be kind to him.\n\nBut Jo-ab said, I can-not waste time with thee. And he took three darts\nin his hand and thrust them through Ab-sa-lom, so that he died. And he\nwas thrown in-to a pit that was in the wood, and a great heap of stones\nwas piled on him. And all the men who had been with him went back to\ntheir tents.\n\n[Illustration: DA-VID HEAR-ING OF AB-SA-LOM'S DEATH.]\n\nDa-vid sat in the gate, and when men came back with news of the fight,\nhe would ask of each one, Is Ab-sa-lom safe? And at last one of them\nsaid, May all the king's foes be as this young man is. Then Da-vid knew\nthat Ab-sa-lom was dead, and he went to his own room and wept.\n\nAnd he cried out with a loud voice, O, my son, Ab-sa-lom; my son, my son\nAb-sa-lom! I would that God had let me die in thy stead, O, Ab-sa-lom,\nmy son, my son!\n\nDa-vid was king for two-score years, and was an old man when he died and\nhad hosts of friends. And when he felt that his death was near, he bade\nhis men take Sol-o-mon to a place called Gi-hon, and pour oil on his\nhead. Then they were to blow the horn and cry out. God save King\nSo-lo-mon.\n\nAnd this was done; and when Da-vid died, Sol-o-mon sat on his throne and\nruled Is-ra-el.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XV.\n\nSOLOMON, THE WISE MAN.\n\n\nSOL-O-MON gave his heart to God when he was young, and tried to lead a\ngood life, and to do no wrong. And God spoke to him in a dream one night\nand said, Ask what I shall give thee.\n\nAnd So-lo-mon said, Grant me, I pray thee a wise mind that I may know\nright from wrong, and judge well those who look up to me as their king.\n\nThis speech pleased the Lord, and he said, Since thou didst not ask me\nfor great wealth, or for long life, or that thy foes might be put to\ndeath, I will make thee wise, and will give thee both great wealth and a\nlong life if thou wilt serve me and keep my laws.\n\nThere came two wo-men to the king. And one of them said, My lord, I and\nthis wo-man live in one house, and we each of us had a son. And this\nwo-man's child died in the night, and while I slept she came and took my\nchild from me, and laid her own child by my side. And when I woke, and\nwent to feed my child, it was dead. And I knew it was not my son.\n\nIt is your son.\n\nIt is not; the child that lives is mine.\n\nThe dead child is yours.\n\n[Illustration: THE JUDG-MENT OF SOL-O-MON.]\n\nIn this way they spoke, and the king heard them, and said, Bring me a\nsword!\n\nAnd a sword was brought to him.\n\nAnd the king said, Cut the live child in two, and give half to one and\nhalf to the oth-er.\n\nWhen the real moth-er of the child heard these words she cried out, O my\nlord, give her the child, but do not kill it.\n\nBut the oth-er said, Cut it in half, and let it not be hers or mine.\n\nThen the king told his men to give the child to the one who tried to\nsave its life, for he knew that she was the moth-er. And it was to find\nthis out that he sent the men for the sword, and not to take the child's\nlife.\n\n[Illustration: SHIPS OF SOL-O-MON.]\n\nWhen Sol-o-mon had been king for four years, he laid out the plan that\nDa-vid had made for the house of the Lord.\n\nHe had a talk with Hi-ram the king of Tyre, and told him that it was\ntime to build the house. And the King of Tyre was glad, and did all he\ncould to aid him. He sent So-lo-mon great trees from the woods, and sent\nhim men to help in the work; men who had skill with the ax, and with\nfine tools of all sorts.\n\nThe house was built of stone, and each stone was hewn from the rock, cut\nso as to fit in the wall ere it was brought to the place where it was to\nstand, so that no ax nor tools should be used in the house when it was\nput up.\n\nThe walls of the rooms were in-laid with gold, and gems, and the floor\nof the place where the ark was kept was of pure gold, and in front of\nthe shrine were loops and chains of fine gold.\n\nThe doors of the house were made of the wood of the fir tree, and they\nwere carved with great skill, and touched up with gold.\n\nIt took Sol-o-mon sev-en years to build the house of the Lord; and when\nit was done he made a feast, and the priests brought the ark of the Lord\nfrom Mount Zi-on where Da-vid kept it.\n\nAnd all the tribes of Is-ra-el came to Je-ru-sa-lem, that they might be\nthere when the ark was brought.\n\nAnd when the ark was put in its place, and the priests came out, there\nwas such a cloud in the house that all stood still. For the Lord was in\nthe cloud.\n\nThen Sol-o-mon stood up, and with raised hands asked him to come down\nand dwell in the house, and to dwell in men's hearts, that they might\nwalk in the right way, and love God all their days.\n\n[Illustration: QUEEN OF SHE-BA.]\n\nNow the fame of Sol-o-mon came to the ears of a rich queen, who dwelt at\nShe-ba, and she thought she would like to see if this man was as wise\nand rich as he was said to be. She had a long way to come, and a great\ntrain came with her, and these brought loads of rich spice, and gold and\nsil-ver and gems of worth. And the queen had a talk with Sol-o-mon and\nhe told her all she ought to know.\n\nAnd she said to the king, What I had heard of thee in my own lands I did\nnot think could be true. So I came to see for my-self, and I find the\nhalf was not told to me. So she gave rich gifts to Sol-o-mon, and he\ngave rich gifts to her, and the queen went back to her own land.\n\nNow it was thought no sin in those days for a man to have more than one\nwife. And some of Sol-o-mon's wives had been brought up to serve false\ngods. And it was a sin for the king to wed with such. And as he grew old\nthese wives made him serve their Gods, and turn from the true God whom\nhe had been taught to love and fear.\n\nAnd this did not please to Lord, and he said that Sol-o-mon's son should\nnot be king when Sol-o-mon died. For Da-vid's sake he would let him be a\nprince of two tribes all the days of his life. But ten tribes he would\ntake from him.\n\nAnd foes rose up to plague Sol-o-mon, and for his sins he had to give up\nthe peace and rest that had long been his. When he had been king for\ntwo-score years Sol-o-mon died, and his fame has come down to this day,\nfor no man has been born in-to the world so wise and great as King\nSol-o-mon.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVI.\n\nELIJAH.\n\n\nA-HAB was the last of the six kings who ruled the ten tribes. And he\nmade them serve Ba-al, and built a house for this false god.\n\nThese acts did not please God, so he sent E-li-jah, a seer, to tell\nA-hab that for years and years there should be no rain in the land. And\nhe told E-li-jah to hide near a brook from which he should drink, and\nthe birds of the air would bring him food to eat.\n\nE-li-jah did as the Lord told him, and he drank from the brook, and the\nbirds brought him his food from day to day. But as there was no rain,\nthe brook dried up, and there was lack of food in the land.\n\nSo the Lord told E-li-jah to go to the town of Za-re-phath, where a\nwo-man dwelt who would give him food.\n\nAnd when E-li-jah came to the gate of the town, a poor wo-man drew near\nhim to pick up some sticks. And he said to her, Bring me a drink, I pray\nthee.\n\nAnd as she went, he said, Bring me, I pray thee, a bit of bread in thine\nhand.\n\n[Illustration: E-LI-JAH FED BY RA-VENS.]\n\nAnd she said, As the Lord lives, I have no bread in the house, and but a\nhand-ful of meal, and a few drops of oil. And I came out to pick up a\nfew sticks that I might light the fire, and bake a small loaf for me and\nmy son, that we may eat it and die.\n\n[Illustration: E-LI-JAH AND THE WID-OW's CHILD.]\n\nE-li-jah said, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said. But first make me\na small loaf, and then make one for thee and thy son. For thus saith the\nLord, The meal shall not waste, nor the cruse of oil fail till the day\nthe Lord sends rain on the earth.\n\nSo the wo-man went her way and did as E-li-jah told her, and there was\nfrom that time no lack of food in her house. But one day her son was\nill, and he grew worse and worse, and then died.\n\nWhen E-li-jah heard of it, he said, Give me thy son. And he took the\nchild from her arms and bore him to his own room, and laid him on his\nbed.\n\nAnd E-li-jah cried to the Lord, and said, O Lord, I pray thee let this\nchild's soul come back to him.\n\nAnd the Lord sent back the soul of the child, and E-li-jah took the boy\nand brought him to his moth-er.\n\nAnd she said to E-li-jah, Now by this I know that thou art a man of God,\nand that the word of the Lord in thy mouth is truth.\n\nFor three years there had been no rain in the land, and at the end of\nthat time the Lord said to E-li-jah, Go show thy-self to A-hab, and I\nwill send rain on the land.\n\nSo E-li-jah went, and on the way he met with one of A-hab's head men,\nwho loved the Lord. He knew E-li-jah, and bade him turn back, for the\nking would be sure to put him to death. But E-li-jah said that he would\nshow him-self to A-hab that day. So the man told the king that E-li-jah\nwas near, and the king came out to meet him.\n\nAnd he found fault with E-li-jah, for he thought he was to blame for the\nlack of food, and for the long drouth.\n\nE-li-jah told the king to have all those he ruled meet in a mass at one\nplace. And when they came there, E-li-jah cried out to them, How long\nwill ye turn your hearts from God?\n\nAnd he told them to prove which was the true God, Ba-al or E-li-jah's\nGod. And he told them to bring two young bulls, and to take the flesh of\none and lay it on the wood in front of Ba-al, and he would lay the flesh\nof the oth-er young bull on the Lord's al-tar. And he said, Call ye on\nyour gods and I will call on mine, and let the God that sends down fire\nbe the God whom we all shall serve.\n\nAnd they said it was a good plan.\n\nSo they cried out from sun-rise till noon, O Ba-al hear us! But there\nwas no voice or sign that their god heard them.\n\nE-li-jah said, Cry with a loud voice for he is a god. He may be a-sleep,\nor lost in thought.\n\n[Illustration: THE LIT-TLE CLOUD.]\n\nAnd they cried, and made a great noise, and at last fought with their\nknives till they drew blood.\n\nAnd E-li-jah said, Come near me.\n\nAnd they all came near to him.\n\nAnd E-li-jah took twelve stones, and built an al-tar to the Lord. And he\nput the flesh and the wood on it, and the wood was wet through and\nthrough.\n\nThen he cried out, Hear me, O Lord, hear me, and let it be known that\nthou art the true God.\n\nThen fire came down from on high and burnt up the flesh, and the wood\nand the stones, and the dust; and the ground that had been made so wet\nwas as dry as it could be.\n\nAnd when the crowd saw this they all bowed down to the ground, and said,\nThe Lord he is God! The Lord he is God!\n\nAnd they broke up the false gods, and gave their hearts for a while to\nthe Lord.\n\nThen E-li-jah told A-hab that he might eat and drink, for the rain would\nsoon set in. And he went to the top of a high mount to pray for rain.\nNot a cloud was in the sky. The sea was calm. But E-li-jah knew that he\nmust watch, and wait, and pray, and the sign would come.\n\nAt last there rose up out of the sea--that is, where the sea and sky\nseem to meet--a small cloud, the size of a man's hand. And soon the sky\nwas black with clouds, and the wind blew, and there was a great storm of\nrain.\n\nNow A-hab had a bad wife, and when he told her what E-li-jah had done,\nshe made a vow to kill him.\n\nAnd E-li-jah had to flee for his life. He was so worn out that when he\ncame to a lone place he sat down in the shade of a tree and wished that\nhe might die. While he slept, an an-gel drew near, at whose touch\nE-li-jah woke. And the an-gel said, Rise and eat.\n\n[Illustration: E-LI-JAH AND KING A-HAB.]\n\nAnd E-li-jah found food and drink set out for him. And he ate and drank,\nand then lay down and slept. And the an-gel came once more, and bade\nE-li-jah eat, that he might have strength to go on his way. And he sat\nup, and ate the food the Lord had sent, and it gave him such strength\nthat he went with-out food for more than a month. And at the end of that\ntime he came to Mount Ho-reb. And he went to a cave and lay down and\nslept there.\n\nAnd the Lord spoke to him, and said, Why art thou here, E-li-jah? And\nE-li-jah said the chil-dren of Is-ra-el had not kept their word, but had\ngone back to their false gods, and slain all those who sought to turn\nthem from their sins. And I have fled from them, said E-li-jah, for they\nseek my life.\n\n[Illustration: E-LI-JAH IN THE WIL-DER-NESS.]\n\nThe Lord said, Go forth, and stand on the mount. And there came a great\nwind that split the high hills, and broke up the rocks. But the Lord was\nnot in the wind.\n\nThen the earth shook, so that there was no firm ground on which to walk;\nand smoke came up out of the great cracks that were made. But the Lord\nwas not in the earth-quake.\n\nThen there came a still, small voice. When E-li-jah heard it he hid his\nface in his cloak, and went out and stood at the door of the cave.\n\nAnd the voice said, Why art thou here, E-li-jah? And El-li-jah said that\nhe fled from those who sought to kill him. And the Lord told him to\nleave the cave, and go back and pour oil on the head of E-li-sha, who\nwas to take his place.\n\nAnd E-li-jah found E-li-sha at work with the plough in a large field.\nAnd as he went by him he threw his cloak round E-li-sha.\n\nAnd E-li-sha knew that this meant he must leave all and go with\nE-li-jah. And he went home to bid fare-well to his dear ones there, and\nthen came back to be near E-li-jah and to wait on him.\n\n[Illustration: E-LI-JAH GOES TO HEAV-EN.]\n\nNow the time drew near when E-li-jah was to leave the earth. And he and\nE-li-sha stood near the shore of the Jor-dan. And E-li-jah took his\ncloak and struck the waves, and they made a wall on each side, and the\ntwo men went through on dry land. And as they stood on the oth-er side,\nE-li-jah said to E-li-sha, Ask what I shall do for thee, ere I leave\nthee.\n\nAnd E-li-sha said, Let me, I pray thee, be twice as good and wise as\nthou.\n\nE-li-jah said, Thou dost ask a hard thing. But if thou dost see me when\nthe Lord takes me from thee, then it shall be so. But if thou dost not\nsee, then it shall not be so.\n\nSo they went on, and while they yet spoke, there came a great light in\nthe sky, and the clouds took on strange forms. And E-li-jah was caught\nup as if by a whirl-wind, and E-li-sha cried out as he saw him pass\nthrough the sky, but he was soon out of sight, and E-li-sha saw him no\nmore.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVII.\n\nELISHA.\n\n\nAS E-li-jah rose from the earth he let his cloak fall on E-li-sha. And\nE-li-sha went down to the Jor-dan, and took the cloak and struck the\nwaves, and they stood up on each side, so that he went a-cross dry\nshod. And it was made known to all the seers and wise men that E-li-sha\nhad been called to fill E-li-jah's place, and he gave proof that the\nLord was with him.\n\nAs E-li-sha went from Jer-i-cho to Beth-el, some young folks ran out and\nmade fun of him, and cried, Go up, thou bald head! Go up, thou bald\nhead!\n\nE-li-sha turned back, and asked the Lord to take them in hand. So the\nLord sent two great bears out of the wood, and they fell on the\nchil-dren and tore o-ver two-score of them.\n\n[Illustration: THE CHIL-DREN OF BETH-EL.]\n\nOne day E-li-sha came to Shu-nem, where a rich wo-man dwelt. And she\nbade him come in and eat. And as oft as he went that way, he made it a\nrule to stop and take the food and drink she set out for him.\n\nAnd she had a room built for him on the side of her house, and put a bed\nand a chair in it, that he might go in and out as he chose, and have a\nplace to rest in.\n\nAnd one day when he was in this room, he sent for the wo-man to come to\nhim. And he said to her, What can I do to pay thee for all thy kind care\nof us? Shall I speak to the king for thee? She said there was no need,\nthat she sought no pay, and then left the room.\n\nE-li-sha said to his man, What is there that I can do for her?\n\nAnd the man said, She has no child.\n\nAnd E-li-sha said, Call her. And she came back and stood at the door.\nAnd when the man of God told her that she should have a son, she thought\nhe did not speak the truth.\n\nAnd the word of the Lord came true, for in less than a year she had a\nson.\n\nAnd the child grew up, and went out one day to the field to see the men\nreap the corn. And while he was there he felt sick, and cried out to his\nfath-er, My head! my head!\n\nAnd his fath-er said to a lad, Take the boy home to his moth-er. And she\ntook him, and he sat in her lap till noon, and then died. And she took\nthe boy to E-li-sha's room, and laid him on the bed of the man of God,\nand then went out and shut the door.\n\nThen she sent for one of the young men, and had him bring an ass to the\ndoor, and she got on the ass, and bade the man drive as fast as he could\ntill she told him to stop.\n\nShe went till she came near Mount Car-mel. And E-li-sha saw her, and\nsent Ge-ha-zi out to meet her, and to ask her if it was well with her\nand with the child. And she said to him, It is well.\n\nBut when she came to E-li-sha she fell at his feet, and Ge-ha-zi drew\nnear to push her from the man of God.\n\nBut E-li-sha said, Touch her not. She is in great grief, and the Lord\nhas hid it from me and not told me of it.\n\nAnd the wo-man said, Did I ask thee for a son? Then he knew that the boy\nwas dead.\n\nThen E-li-sha said to Ge-ha-zi, Take my staff, and go thy way with all\nspeed. Stop to speak to no one. And lay my staff on the face of the\nchild.\n\nAnd the moth-er of the child said, As the Lord lives, I will not leave\nthee. And E-li-sha rose and went with her, while Ge-ha-zi ran on a-head.\nAnd he laid the staff on the face of the child, but the child did not\nspeak nor hear. And he ran out to meet E-li-sha and to tell him the lad\ndid not wake.\n\nAnd when E-li-sha came to the house he found the child dead, and laid on\nhis bed. So he went in the room and shut the door, and prayed to the\nLord.\n\nThen he got on the bed, and lay on the child till his flesh grew warm.\nThen he left the room for a-while to walk up and down, and when he went\nback he lay on the child till its breath came back, and it gave signs of\nlife.\n\nAnd he sent for the moth-er. And when she came to the room he said, Take\nup thy son. And she fell at the feet of E-li-sha, with thanks too deep\nfor words, and then took her son in her arms and went out.\n\nThere was a man in Sy-ri-a, who took charge of all the troops that went\nto war with the king. This man's name was Na-a-man, and he had done\nbrave deeds, for which he held high rank, and was much thought of. But\nthis man fell ill, and none but those of his own house would go near\nhim. And there was no cure for him. But his wife had a maid to wait on\nher. And this maid said that if Na-a-man would go to E-li-sha she was\nsure that he would cure him.\n\nAnd Na-a-man came down to Sa-ma-ri-a with a note from his own king to\nthe king of Is-ra-el. When the king of Is-ra-el read the note he was\nve-ry wroth, and said, Am I God that I can bring the dead to life? For\nhe thought that it was but a trick to bring on a war.\n\n[Illustration: E-LI-SHA AND THE CHILD.]\n\nWhen E-li-sha heard that the king rent his clothes, he sent word to have\nNa-a-man come to him.\n\nAnd Na-a-man drove up in fine style, and stood at the door of E-li-sha's\nhouse. And E-li-sha sent word to him to bathe at the Jor-dan sev-en\ntimes, and he would be made well.\n\nThis put Na-a-man in a rage, for he thought that E-li-sha would come out\nto him and call on the name of God, and touch him so as to heal him.\n\nAnd he said, Are there not streams in Da-mas-cus in which I can bathe\nand be made well? And he went off in a rage.\n\nBut some of his men drew near, and said, My lord, if he had bid thee do\nsome great thing wouldst thou not have done it? Why not then do as he\nsays, and wash and be clean?\n\nAnd Na-a-man gave heed to their words and went down to the Jor-dan. And\nhe took sev-en baths, and then his flesh grew as soft and pink as the\nflesh of a child, and health and strength came back to him. And Na-a-man\nwent back to E-li-sha's house, he and all his men, and he said, Now I\nknow there is no God in all the earth but the God of Is-ra-el.\n\nNow the time drew near when E-li-sha was to die. And the king, Jo-ash,\ncame to see him as he lay sick in bed.\n\nAnd E-li-sha said, Take the bow and the darts. And the king took them.\nAnd E-li-sha said, Put thy hands on the bow. And the king did so, and\nE-li-sha put his hands on the king's hands. Then E-li-sha said, Throw\nwide the east win-dow. And when this was done he said shoot. And the\nking shot; and E-li-sha told him that he should set Is-ra-el free from\nits foes.\n\nThen he said to the king, Take the darts. And he took them. And\nE-li-sha said, Strike them on the ground. And the king struck them on\nthe ground three times, and no more.\n\n[Illustration: THE AR-ROW OF DE-LIV-ER-ANCE.]\n\nAnd the man of God was wroth with him, and said, Thou shouldst have\nstruck five or six times, for then thou wouldst have laid the Sy-ri-ans\nlow, now thou shalt smite them but three times.\n\nAnd E-li-sha died, and was laid in the ground. And one day as some of\nthe folks went out with a dead man to lay him in the grave that was dug\nfor him, they saw a band of thieves from the land of Mo-ab and did not\ndare to go on. So they put the dead man in the grave where E-li-sha\nlay. And as soon as the corpse touched the bones of E-li-sha the man\ncame to life and stood on his feet.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVIII.\n\nJONAH, THE MAN WHO TRIED TO HIDE FROM GOD.\n\n\nTHERE was a seer in Is-ra-el whose name was Jo-nah. And the Lord told\nJo-nah to go to Nin-e-veh, a large town where there was great need of\ngood men. But Jo-nah did not care to go there, so he ran down to Jop-pa\nand found a ship there that would set sail for Tar-shish in a few days.\nSo he paid his fare, and went on board the ship to go to Tar-shish,\nwhere he seemed to think the Lord would not find him.\n\nBut as soon as the ship was well on its way, the Lord sent forth a great\nwind, and the waves rose high, and the storm beat the ship, and it was\nblown here and there as if it were a toy. And those on board of her were\nin great fear, and cried out to their gods, and threw all the goods that\nwere in the ship in-to the sea, so that she would not sink.\n\nJo-nah was down in the hold, where he lay and slept, though the storm\nwas so fierce.\n\nAnd the one who had charge of the ship came to him and said, What does\nthis mean? Rise, and call on thy God to save us from ship-wreck.\n\nAnd the rest of the men said, Come, and let us cast lots that we may\nknow who is to blame for this.\n\n[Illustration: JO-NAH IN THE STORM.]\n\nSo they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jo-nah. And they said to him,\nTell us, we pray thee, who has brought on us these ills. What is thy\ntrade? where dost thou come from? where dost thou live? and of what\ntribe art thou?\n\nAnd he said I am a Jew, and have fled from the Lord who made the sea and\nsky.\n\nAnd the men were in great fear and said, Why hast thou done this thing?\nAnd what shall we do to thee that the sea may be still for us? For the\nwaves were rough, and the winds blew a gale.\n\nAnd Jo-nah said to the men, Take me up and cast me in-to the sea; then\nshall the sea be calm for you, for I know it is for my sake that this\ngreat storm has come up-on you.\n\nThe men did not want to drown Jo-nah, so they tried their best to bring\nthe ship to land, but could not.\n\nThen they cried to the Lord, O Lord, we pray thee, count it no sin to us\nthat we take this man's life, for thou, O Lord, hast sent this storm on\nus for some of his sins.\n\nSo they took up Jo-nah, and cast him in-to the sea, and the sea grew\nstill and calm.\n\nAnd when the men saw this they were in great fear, and brought gifts to\nthe Lord, and made vows that they would serve him.\n\nNow the Lord had sent a great fish to the side of the ship to take\nJo-nah in-to its mouth as soon as he was thrown in-to the sea.\n\nAnd Jo-nah was in-side the fish for three days and three nights. And he\nprayed to the Lord while he was in the fish; and cried to God to help\nhim, and to blot out his sins. And God heard him, and bade the fish\nthrow him up on the dry land.\n\nThen the Lord spoke to Jo-nah once more, and said, Rise, and go to\nNin-e-veh, and preach to it as I bid thee.\n\nAnd Jo-nah rose and went.\n\nAnd when God saw them turn from their sins and pray to him, he did not\ndo to Nin-e-veh as he said he would.\n\nBut this did not please Jo-nah. He thought that Nin-e-veh should be\nbrought low, for those who dwelt there were not good friends to the\nJews. Then, too, Jo-nah's pride was hurt, for he knew that men would\nlaugh at him, and have no faith in what he said, so he went out of the\ntown and sat down by the road-side.\n\nAnd God made a vine to grow up there in one night, that Jo-nah might sit\nin its shade and find rest from his grief. And Jo-nah was glad when he\nsaw the gourd. The next morn God sent a worm to gnaw the root of the\nvine, and it soon dried up.\n\nWhen the sun rose God sent a hot wind, and the sun beat on Jo-nah's head\nso that he grew sick and fell in a faint. And he was wroth, and had no\nwish to live.\n\nAnd God said to Jo-nah, Is it well for thee to be in such grief for the\nloss of a gourd?\n\nAnd Jo-nah said, Yes. There was good cause why he should feel as he did\nand long to die.\n\nThen the Lord said to him, Thou wouldst have had me spare this vine\nwhich cost thee nought, and which grew up in a night and died in a\nnight. And why should I not spare Nin-e-veh--that great town--in which\nare hosts and hosts of young folks who do not know their right hand from\ntheir left?\n\nSo God put Jo-nah to shame, and made him see what a sin it was to wish\nto crush Nin-e-veh just to please his own self and for fear men would\nlaugh at him.\n\nAnd Jo-nah found out, what we all need to learn, that it is of no use to\ntry to hide from God.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIX.\n\nDANIEL.\n\n\nTHERE was a king of Bab-y-lon whose name was Neb-u-chad-nez-zar. And he\nsent one of his chief men to choose some of the young Jews who had been\nwell brought up, that they might wait on him.\n\nThe chief chose four youths whose name were Dan-i-el, Sha-drach,\nMe-shach and A-bed-ne-go. And these were brought to Bab-y-lon, that they\nmight be taught as the king wished.\n\nAnd the Lord was with these four young men, and made them wise, and\nstrong in mind, and fair of face.\n\n[Illustration: KING NEB-U-CHAD-NEZ-ZAR.]\n\nWhen they had been taught for three years they were brought to the\nking's house. And the king kept them near him, and made use of them, for\nhe found that they knew ten times more than all the wise men in the\nwhole realm.\n\nOne night the king had a dream that woke him out of his sleep. And he\nsent for all the wise men--those who could read stars, and those who\ncould work charms--to tell what the dream meant.\n\nAnd they all came, but none of them could tell the dream that had gone\nout of the king's own head. And no king, they said, would ask such a\nthing of wise men.\n\nThe king was wroth at this and gave word that all the wise men should be\nput to death. And they sought Dan-i-el and his friends, that they might\nkill them.\n\nDan-i-el said, Why is there such haste? And when he was told he went in\nto the king and said if he would give him time he would make his dream\nclear to him.\n\nIn the night God showed the king's dream to Dan-i-el, and all that it\nmeant was made clear to him. And Dan-i-el gave praise and thanks to God\nwho had been so good to him.\n\nThen he went to the chief, and told him not to slay the wise men, but to\nbring him in to the king.\n\nThen Dan-i-el told the king his dream, and all that would come to pass,\nand when the king heard it he fell on his face be-fore Dan-i-el and said\nto him, It is true that your God is a God of gods, and a Lord of kings,\nand that nought is hid from him, since thou hast told me this dream.\n\nAnd the king made Dan-i-el a great man, and gave him rich gifts, and put\nhim at the head of all the wise men in the land.\n\nNow king Neb-u-chad-nez-zar made a great god out of gold, and set it on\none of the plains of Bab-y-lon.\n\n[Illustration: NEB-U-CHAD-NEZ-ZAR'S DREAM.]\n\nAnd one of the king's men cried out with a loud voice, and said it was\nthe king's law that all should bow down to the god of gold that he had\nset up. And those who did not bow down were to be thrown in-to a great\nhot fire and burnt up.\n\nAnd some men brought word to the king that the three Jews would not\nserve his gods, or bow down to this one of gold which he had set up.\n\nThese three men were brought to the king, and he said to them, Is it\ntrue, O Sha-drach, Me-shach, and A-bed-ne-go that ye will not serve my\ngods or bow down to the one of gold which I have set up? And he said he\nwould give them one more chance, and if they did not bow down when they\nheard the call, they should be cast in the same hour in-to the flames.\nThe three Jews said to the king, Be it known to thee now that we will\nnot serve thy gods, nor bow down to the new one thou hast set up. And if\nwe are cast in the fire, the God whom we serve will save us from death\nand bring us out of thy hands, O king.\n\nThen was the king in a great rage, and he sent word that a fierce fire\nshould be made. And the three Jews were bound and thrown in-to the\nflames with all their clothes on. And the fire was so hot and they went\nso near that sparks flew out and killed the men who took up Sha-drach,\nMe-shach and A-bed-ne-go.\n\nThese three Jews fell down in the midst of the flames, but soon rose to\ntheir feet, and the Lord would not let the flames burn them.\n\nWhen the king saw this he rose in great haste and said to his chiefs,\nDid we not cast three men bound in the midst of the fire?\n\nAnd they said, True, O king.\n\nAnd the king said, Lo, I see four men loose, and they walk through the\nflames and are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like to the son\nof God.\n\nThen the king came to the door of the cage of fire and said to\nSha-drach, Me-shach and A-bed-ne-go, Ye who serve the most high God,\ncome forth, and come here.\n\n[Illustration: DWELL-ING WITH THE BEASTS.]\n\nAnd the three young Jews came forth out of the midst of the fire, and\nnot a hair of their head was singed, nor were their clothes harmed, nor\nwas the smell of fire on them.\n\nAnd the king praised the God who had shown that he would save from death\nthose who put their trust in him. And the king made it a law that those\nwho spoke ill of the God of Sha-drach, Me-shach, and A-bed-ne-go should\nbe put to death, and their homes torn down, for there was no God who\ncould save as he could.\n\nFor a while the king served God and gave him praise for all he had done\nfor him. But men who thought to please the king, spoke of his great\nwealth and praised all that he did, so that he grew vain and proud, and\nthought more of him-self than he did of God.\n\nAnd the king had a dream that made him shake with fear, and he sent for\nDan-i-el. And Dan-i-el feared to tell the king the truth. But the king\ntold him to speak out. Then Dan-i-el told him what would take place.\n\nAnd it all came on king Neb-u-chad-nez-zar. In the same hour his mind\nleft him and he was not fit to reign. So he was thrust out of doors, and\ndid eat grass with the beasts of the fields. And he lay on the ground,\nand was wet with the dews, and his hair grew so long that his flesh\ncould not be seen, and his nails were like bird's claws.\n\nAnd at the end of the sev-en years Neb-u-chad-nez-zar raised his eyes to\nGod, and his mind came back to him, and he spoke in praise of the most\nHigh.\n\nAnd Neb-u-chad-nez-zar was made king once more, and grew strong and\ngreat, and gave the praise to God; the King of kings, who could raise up\nthose who were down, and bring down those who were full of pride.\n\nWhen Neb-u-chad-nez-zar died, a new king was on the throne of\nBab-y-lon whose name was Bel-shaz-zar. And Bel-shaz-zar made a great\nfeast, and much wine was drunk. And the king sent for the rich cups\nwhich his fath-er had brought from the Lord's house in Je-ru-sa-lem. And\nhe and all at the feast drank from these cups, which was a great sin.\n\nIn the midst of the feast there came forth a man's hand, that wrote on\nthe wall of the king's house.\n\nAnd the king saw the hand, and was in great fear, and sent at once for\nall his wise men.\n\n[Illustration: THE WRIT-ING ON THE WALL.]\n\nBut none of them could read what was on the wall, and the king knew not\nwhat to do. Then Dan-i-el was sent for, and the king said he should have\ngreat wealth and high rank if he could read the words on the wall.\n\nDan-i-el said, Keep thy gifts, O king, and give thy fees to some one\nelse. Yet will I read the words on the wall and tell you what they mean.\nFor the God who gives thee life and takes care of thee, thou hast no\nword of praise. And so God sent this hand to write on the wall.\n\n    ME-NE, ME-NE, TE-KEL, U-PHAR-SIN,\n\nwhich means that thy reign as king is at an end.\n\nWhen Dan-i-el had told what the hand wrote on the wall, and what the\nwords meant, Bel-shaz-zar bade his men clothe him in red, and put a gold\nchain on his neck, and make it known that he was to be third in rank\nfrom the king.\n\n[Illustration: DAN-I-EL IN THE LIONS' DEN.]\n\nThat same night Bel-shaz-zar was slain, and Da-ri-us took his place on\nthe throne.\n\nNow Da-ri-us was pleased with Dan-i-el, and thought him such a wise and\ngood man that he made him chief of a large force of men who held high\nrank. And this made these men hate Dan-i-el, and they tried to find out\nsome ill that he had done that they might tell it to the king. But they\ncould find no fault in him. Then they thought of a way in which they\ncould harm him.\n\nThey came to the king and asked him to make a law that if one should ask\nhelp of God or man for one month, he should be cast in-to a den of\nli-ons.\n\nThey might ask help of the king, but of no one else.\n\nAnd the king told them to write down this law, and he put his name to\nit.\n\nWhen Dan-i-el heard of the law which the king had sent out he went to\nhis home and knelt down three times a day with his face to Je-ru-sa-lem,\nand gave thanks to God first as he had done all his life.\n\nAnd the men who were on the watch to catch him in some crime, drew near\nhis house and heard him pray to his God. So they went and told the\nking, and the king was wroth to think he had made such a law. And he\ntried his best to save Dan-i-el. But the men held him to his word, and\nsaid it would not do for him to change a law that had been made.\n\nThen the king bade them bring Dan-i-el and cast him in the den of wild\nbeasts. And he said to Dan-i-el, Thy God, whom thou dost serve so well,\nwill be sure to save thee.\n\nAnd a stone was brought and laid on the mouth of the den.\n\n[Illustration: ROCK GRAVE OF DA-RI-US.]\n\nThen the king went to his own house, but would take no food, nor did he\nsleep all that night. And at dawn he rose and went in haste to the den\nof wild beasts. And as he drew near he cried out with a sad voice, O\nDan-i-el, canst thy God save thee from the li-ons?\n\nAnd Dan-i-el said, O king, my God hath shut the li-ons' mouths so that\nthey have not hurt me, since I had done no wrong in his sight nor in\nthine, O king.\n\nThen the king was glad, and bade his men take Dan-i-el out of the den.\nAnd when he was brought out, there was not a scratch found on him, for\nhis trust was in God, and God took care of him.\n\nThen the king had those men who found fault with Dan-i-el, thrown in-to\nthe den--they and their wives, and their chil-dren--and the wild beasts\nwere quick to eat them up.\n\n[Illustration: CY-RUS, KING OF PER-SI-A.]\n\nThen Da-ri-us made a law that all men should serve the God of Dan-i-el,\nwho was the one true God.\n\nWhen Da-ri-us died, Cy-rus was made king.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XX.\n\nTHE GOOD QUEEN ESTHER.\n\n\nFAR back in the past, wise men had fore-told that the Jews would be kept\nout of Je-ru-sa-lem for three-score and ten years, and at the end of\nthat time a king, Cy-rus, would let them go back to the land they came\nfrom. And he did so.\n\nNot all the Jews went back to their own land, but some of them made\ntheir homes in Per-si-a and else-where. And King A-has-u-e-rus was on\nthe throne.\n\nIn the third year of his reign he made a great feast.\n\nAnd he sent for Vash-ti, the queen, to throw off her veil and let his\nguests see how fair she was.\n\nBut Vash-ti would not do it.\n\nThen the king was in a rage, and said to his wise men, What shall we do\nto Queen Vash-ti to make her know that the king's will is her law?\n\nAnd the wise men said, Vash-ti hath done wrong to the king and to all\nthe lords of the land.\n\nFor when this is told, wives will not do as their liege lords wish. They\nwill say, The king sent word for Vash-ti, the queen, to be brought to\nhim, but she came not. Let the king make a law and put Vash-ti from him\nand choose a new queen, that all wives, great and small, may take heed\nand do as they are told.\n\nThe king and all the lords thought these were wise words. And the king\nmade it a law that a man should rule in his own house.\n\nThen some of the king's men, whose place it was to wait on him, came to\nhim and said it would be a good plan for him to have all the fair maids\nin the land brought to his house, that he might choose one of them to be\nqueen, in the place of Vash-ti.\n\nAnd the king did as they said.\n\nNow there was a Jew in the king's house, whose name was Mor-de-ca-i. He\nwas a poor man, and was there to wait on the king.\n\nAnd there was a maid named Es-ther, who was one of his kins-folk. And\nshe was \"fair of face, and full of grace.\"\n\nAnd when the word went forth from the king, scores and scores of fair\nyoung maids came to the king's house, and Es-ther came with them. And\none of the king's men had them all in his charge.\n\nThis man was so pleased with Es-ther that he was more kind to her than\nhe was to the rest, and sent maids to wait on her, and put her and her\nmaids in the best part of the house where the wo-men were. But Es-ther\nhad not let it be known that her folks were Jews, for Mor-de-ca-i had\ntold her not to tell it.\n\n[Illustration: ES-THER AND THE KING.]\n\nAs soon as the king saw Es-ther he fell in love with her, and set the\ncrown on her head, and made her queen in the place of Vash-ti.\n\nThen the king made a great feast, and gave gifts to the poor for the new\nqueen's sake. And she had not yet made it known that her folks were\nJews.\n\nNow two of the king's men, who stood on guard at the doors of his house,\nwere wroth with the king and sought to kill him.\n\nAnd their plot was known to Mor-de-ca-i, who was a watch-man at the\nking's gate. And he told it to Es-ther, and she told it to the king, and\nboth of the men were hung. And what Mor-de-ca-i had done to save the\nking's life was put down in a book.\n\nAnd in this same book was set down all that took place in the king's\nreign.\n\nNow there was in the king's house a man whose name was Ha-man. And the\nking gave him a high place, and bade those of low rank bow down to\nHa-man.\n\nBut the Jew at the gate would not bow when Ha-man went in and out. And\nthe rest of the men who stood by told Ha-man of it.\n\nNow Ha-man was a vain man, and when he saw that Mor-de-ca-i did not bow\nto him as the rest did he was full of wrath. It had been made known to\nhim that Mor-de-ca-i was a Jew.\n\nAnd so he told the king if he would make a law that all the Jews should\nbe put to death, he would give him a large sum of gold and sil-ver.\n\nThe king heard what Ha-man said, and then took his ring from his hand\nand gave it to Ha-man, and told him to do with the Jews as he thought\nbest. The king gave him his ring that he might use it as a seal. And\nHa-man set the scribes to work, and they wrote just what he told them,\nin the king's name. And when the wax was put at the end with the king's\nseal on it, it was the same as if the whole had been writ by the king's\nown hand.\n\nMen were sent out in haste to make the law known through-out the land,\nthat all the Jews in Per-si-a were to be slain. And when this was done\nHa-man and the king sat down to drink wine.\n\nWhen Mor-de-ca-i heard of the law that Ha-man had made, he rent his\nclothes and put on sack-cloth, and went out and cried with a loud cry.\nAnd he came and stood in front of the king's gate, though he could not\npass through, for it was the law that none should pass who wore\nsack-cloth. And all through the land the Jews were in deep grief, so\nfull of tears that they could eat no food; and not a few of them put on\nsack-cloth to show the depth of their woe.\n\nQueen Es-ther had not heard of the law, but her maids came and told her\nof the state Mor-de-ca-i was in. And her grief was great, and she sent\nfood and clothes to him, and bade the men take the sack-cloth from him.\nBut Mor-de-ca-i would take nought from their hands, nor change his\nclothes.\n\nThen the queen sent one of her head men, Ha-tach, to ask Mor-de-ca-i\nwhat was the cause of his grief, and why he had put on sack-cloth.\n\nAnd Mor-de-ca-i told Ha-tach of the law that had been made, and what a\nlarge sum Ha-man had said he would give to the king if he would kill off\nall the Jews in the land.\n\nAnd he told Ha-tach to tell the queen, and to show her what the scribes\nwrote, and bid her see the king and ask him to save the Jews.\n\nAnd Ha-tach took the word to the queen.\n\nEs-ther bade him tell her kins-man that it was well known that those who\nwent in to the king when they had not been sent for, would be put to\ndeath. But if the king held out his gold wand it was a sign that he\nwould spare their lives. The king has not sent for me for a month, said\nshe. How then can I go to him?\n\nMor-de-ca-i sent back word to the queen to think not that the king\nwould spare her life if the Jews were put to death. And it might be that\nGod had put her in the place she held that she might keep the Jews at\nthis time.\n\nThen Es-ther sent word to him that he and all the Jews in the king's\ncourt should fast and pray for her, and not eat or drink for three days\nand three nights.\n\nI and my maids will do the same, said the queen, and I will go in to the\nking in spite of the law; and if I die, I die in a good cause.\n\nSo on the third day af-ter the queen put on her rich robes, and went in\nand stood ve-ry near to the throne on which the king sat.\n\n[Illustration: ES-THER AT SHUS-HAN.]\n\nAnd when the king saw her, God put it in-to his heart to be kind, and he\nheld out to her the gold wand that was in his hand. And the queen drew\nnear, and touched the tip of the wand.\n\nThen the king said, What wilt thou, Queen Es-ther? and what wouldst thou\nask of me? Were it half of my realm I would give it to thee.\n\nThe queen said, If it please the king, I would like him and Ha-man to\ncome this day to a feast I have made for them.\n\nAnd the king bade Ha-man make haste, and they both went to the feast.\nAnd while they drank the wine the king told the queen to make known her\nwish.\n\nBut she put him off and said she would tell him the next day, if he and\nHa-man would come to the feast that she would spread for them.\n\nAnd Ha-man's heart was full of pride, since the queen chose him and no\none else to feast with her and the king. And when he went out he felt\nthat all men ought to bow down to him. But Mor-de-ca-i would not. And\nHa-man told all his friends how kind the king and queen were to him, and\nwhat high rank he held, and said that his life would be full of joy if\nit were not for the Jew at the king's gate.\n\nHa-man's wife told him to fix a rope to a tall tree, and speak to the\nking the next day and have him hang the Jew. And Ha-man made a\nslip-noose at the end of a rope, and had the rope made fast to a tall\ntree.\n\nNow that night the king could not sleep. And he sent for the book in\nwhich was put down all that took place in the realm, and had it read to\nhim. And when he who read came to the part which told what Mor-de-ca-i\nhad done to save the king's life, the king said, How has Mor-de-ca-i\nbeen paid for this deed?\n\nAnd the man said he had had nought, and still kept watch at the king's\ngate.\n\nThen the king heard a step and sent one of his men to see who it was.\n\nNow Ha-man had come to the king's house to ask him to hang Mor-de-ca-i.\nAnd the man came back and said that Ha-man stood in the court. And the\nking said, Let him come in.\n\nSo Ha-man came in. And the king said to him, What shall be done to the\nman who has won the praise of the king?\n\nAnd Ha-man thought, That means me, of course, and no one else.\n\nAnd he said to the king, Let the robes be brought that the king wears,\nand the horse he rides, and the crown which is set on his head. And let\nthe robes and the crown be put on the man whom the king has in mind, and\nbring him on horse-back through the street of the town, and have men\ncry out, Thus shall it be done to the man who has won the praise of the\nking.\n\nAnd the king said to Ha-man, Make haste and take the robes and the horse\nas thou hast said, and do thus and no less to the Jew at the king's\ngate.\n\nBut Ha-man went home, and was full of shame. And he told his wife and\nhis friends of his hard fate. And while they yet spake the king's men\ncame for him to go to the queen's feast. And while they ate and drank,\nthe king bade the queen make known her wish. Ask what thou wilt; were it\nhalf my realm, I would give it to thee.\n\nThen the queen said, If it please thee, O king, take my life and spare\nthe lives of all the Jews. For we have been sold and the truth has not\nbeen told of us, and we are to be put to death. The king said, Who is\nhe, and where is he who has dared to do this thing?\n\nAnd the queen told him it was Ha-man. And Ha-man was in great fear as he\nstood face to face with the king and queen.\n\nThe king rose in great wrath and went out of doors, and when he came in\nhe saw Ha-man at the feet of the queen, where he went to beg her to save\nhis life.\n\nAnd when the king was shown the rope and the tree on which Ha-man meant\nto hang Mor-de-ca-i he said, Hang _him_ on it. And they hung Ha-man, and\nthe king's wrath left him.\n\nAnd on the same day the king gave Ha-man's house to Es-ther, and\nMor-de-ca-i was brought in to the king, who had been told that he was a\nkins-man of the queen. And the king gave him the ring which Ha-man had\nworn, and the queen put him at the head of the house in which Ha-man had\ndwelt.\n\nBut Es-ther was still sad at heart be-cause of the law that had been\nmade, that all the Jews in the land should be put to death. And she went\nin once more to the king--though he had not sent for her--and fell down\nat his feet in tears. Then the king held out the wand of gold, and the\nqueen rose, and stood be-fore the king and asked him to change the law\nand save the lives of the Jews.\n\nThe king could not change the law, but he told Es-ther and Mor-de-ca-i\nto make a law that would please them and sign it with the king's seal.\nSo they made a law that the Jews should kill all those who came to do\nthem harm. And when Mor-de-ca-i came out from his talk with the king he\nhad on a robe of blue and white, such as the king wore, and a gold crown\non his head.\n\nAnd all the Jews were glad; and when the day came that Ha-man had set\nfor the Jews to be slain, the Jews went out and fought for their lives\nand put their foes to rout. And grief gave place to joy, and a feast was\nheld for two days. This feast was called the Feast of Pu-rim, which the\nJews keep to this day.\n\nThe Jews who had gone to Je-ru-sa-lem to build up its walls were still\nat work there. But there were foes to watch, and the poor Jews found\nfault with the rich ones, and there was strife in their midst from year\nto year. But when Ne-he-mi-ah went to their aid the Lord gave him\nstrength to set things straight, and in a year the new wall was built\nand the gate put up. Then there was a great feast, and all the Jews gave\npraise and thanks to God.\n\nBut they went back to their sins, and did not serve God as they ought.\nAnd kings fought for Je-ru-sa-lem and took it from their hands and made\nthe Jews their slaves.\n\nAnd at last the Ro-mans came and took Je-ru-sa-lem and broke down its\nwalls, and made the Jews serve them. And He-rod, who had led the Ro-mans\nto war, was made their king. He was a fierce, bad man, who would let no\none rule but him-self. He put his own wife and two of his sons to death,\nand did all that he could to make folks hate and fear him.\n\nHe tried to make the Jews think that he was one of their race, but he\nwas not. He thought it would please them if he built up their House of\nGod, so he set men to work to tear down the old and to put up the new,\nand they made use of much gold and sil-ver and fine white stones.\n\nThere was no ark to put in it, for that had been lost, but a large stone\nwas put in the place where the ark should have been.\n\nAnd it took He-rod more than nine years to build this House of God on\nthe top of Mount Mo-ri-ah. And the way up to it was by a long flight of\nsteps.\n\nThis ends the Old Tes-ta-ment, which was made up of all the books that\nwere kept by all the scribes from the time the world was made.\n\n[Illustration]\n\n\n\n\nThe New Testament\n\n[Illustration: CHRIST IN THE TEM-PLE.]\n\n[Illustration: THE BABE OF BETH-LE-HEM.]\n\n\n\n\nHistory of the New Testament.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER I.\n\nTHE BIRTH OF CHRIST.\n\n\nTHE time was near for Je-sus to come on the earth. God had told Ad-am\nand Eve of one who would save them from their sins. Mo-ses, and all the\nseers and wise men, spoke of him who was to give men new hearts, and\nhelp them to lead new lives.\n\nIn the days of He-rod, king of Ju-dah, there was a priest named\nZach-a-ri-as. His wife's name was E-liz-a-beth. They were both old, and\nhad led pure lives, and sought to keep God's laws. But they had no\nchild.\n\nOne day when the priest was in the house of God by one of the al-tars,\nan an-gel came and stood near him. And when the priest saw him he shook\nwith fear.\n\nBut the an-gel said: Fear not, Zach-a-ri-as, for God will give thee and\nthy wife a son, and thou shalt call his name John.\n\nHe shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall not drink wine nor\nstrong drink, and shall turn the hearts of men to the Lord their God.\n\nThen Zach-a-ri-as said to the an-gel, But how shall I know that these\nthings will be?\n\nAnd the an-gel said to him, I am the an-gel Ga-bri-el, who stands near\nto God, and he has sent me to tell thee this good news. And for thy lack\nof faith thou shalt be dumb, and speak not a word till the day that\nthese things come to pass.\n\nNow those who were in the courts of God's house thought it strange that\nZach-a-ri-as should stay so long at the al-tar where he burnt the\nin-cense.\n\nAnd when he came out he could not speak to them, but made them know by\nsigns that he had seen a strange sight.\n\nSix months from this time God sent the an-gel Ga-bri-el to the town of\nNaz-a-reth, to a young wo-man there whose name was Ma-ry. She was one of\nthe heirs of King Da-vid.\n\nWhen Ma-ry saw the an-gel she was in great fear, for she knew not why he\nhad come. And the an-gel said: Fear not, Ma-ry, for God has blessed\nthee. Thou shalt have a son, and shalt call his name JE-SUS. He shall be\ngreat, and shall be called the Son of God. And God will make him a king,\nand to his reign there shall be no end.\n\nMa-ry said: How can this be?\n\n[Illustration: THE AN-NUN-CIA-TION.]\n\nThe an-gel told her that what might seem hard for her was not hard for\nGod, who could do all things. He had told E-liz-a-beth that she should\nhave a son, and he had now sent word to Ma-ry that she should have a\nson; and what he had said he would do.\n\nThen Ma-ry said, Let the Lord's will be done. And the an-gel left her.\n\nMa-ry made haste and went to the land of Ju-dah, and to the house of\nE-liz-a-beth and Zach-a-ri-as, where she spent three months. Then she\ncame back to her own home. Jo-seph was the name of Ma-ry's hus-band; and\nhe was a Jew, of King Da-vid's line. They were both poor, and Jo-seph\nhad to work hard at his trade. He was a car-pen-ter.\n\nGod gave Zach-a-ri-as and E-liz-a-beth the son that he said they should\nhave. And when the child was eight days old, the friends and kins-folk\ncame to see it and to give it a name. Most of them said, Call him\nZach-a-ri-as.\n\nBut the child's mo-ther said, Not so. He shall be called John.\n\nAnd they said, There is none of thy kin-dred that is called by this\nname.\n\nAnd they made signs to the fa-ther that he should let them know by what\nname the child should be called.\n\nAnd the fa-ther sat down and wrote: His name is John. And they all\nthought this strange, as he had not told them of the an-gel who spoke\nto him in the house of God.\n\nAs soon as Zach-a-ri-as wrote these words his speech came back to him,\nand he gave praise and thanks to God. And all the folks in that part of\nthe land heard of these things, and they said, What sort of a child\nshall this be? And the boy grew tall and strong, and the Lord blest him,\nand he went out and dwelt in the woods and waste lands till he was a\nman, and it was time for him to preach to the Jews and to tell them of\nJe-sus.\n\nNow the king of Rome was called a Ce-sar, in the speech of that land,\nand the Jews had to do just as he said, for they were his slaves. And he\nmade a law that the names of all the Jews should be put down in a book,\nthat it might be known what tribe they came from, and what they were\nworth. Then, too, it would not be a hard task to count them when the\nCe-sar wished to know how large a force of them was in this land he had\nfought for and won.\n\nAnd each Jew was to go to that part of the land where his fore-fa-thers\ndwelt, and have his name put down in the book at that place.\n\nSo, as Jo-seph and his wife were of the house of Da-vid, they both set\nout for the town of Beth-le-hem, where Da-vid used to feed his sheep.\nThe way was long, and when they came to the town they found a great\ncrowd of folks there. There was no room for Jo-seph and Ma-ry at the\ninn, and they knew no one at whose house they could stay.\n\nAs they went from place to place in search of a room, they came to a\nshed in which was a great trough or man-ger full of hay, where the poor\nfolks who came to town fed the beasts on which they rode.\n\nSo Jo-seph and Ma-ry made their home in this shed while they had to wait\nto have their names put down. And while they were there God gave to\nMa-ry the son that he said she should have.\n\nAnd as she had no fine soft clothes to wrap the babe in, she took bands\nof cloth and put round him, and laid him on the straw in the man-ger.\n\nIn those days rich men kept large flocks of sheep and goats, and had men\nwatch them at night for fear that wild beasts would seize and kill them.\nThe men who fed and took care of the sheep were called shep-herds.\n\nOne night, as some shep-herds were on the hills where they kept watch of\ntheir flocks, the an-gel of the Lord came down to them. And a bright\nlight shone round them so that they were in great fear.\n\n[Illustration: THE NA-TIV-I-TY.]\n\nAnd the an-gel said to them, Fear not, for I bring you good news which\nshall give joy to all the land. For Christ, the Lord, is born for you\nthis day, in the town of Beth-le-hem, and he will save you from your\nsins. And this is the way ye shall know him: Ye shall find the babe\nwrapped in bands of cloth and laid in a man-ger.\n\nWhen the an-gel had said this, there came, like a flash of light, a\ngreat host of an-gels who gave praise to God, and sang, Glo-ry be to God\non high, and on earth, peace and good-will to men.\n\nWhen the an-gels had left them the shep-herds said, Let us go at once to\nBeth-le-hem and see these things of which the an-gel has told us.\n\nAnd they came with haste, and found Ma-ry and Jo-seph, and the babe that\nlay in the man-ger where the ox and ass used to feed. And when they had\nseen the child, they went out and told what the an-gel had said to them.\nAnd those who heard were filled with awe, for it was the first time that\nsuch a thing had been done in the world. And the strange news spread\nfast.\n\nMa-ry told no one of the talk she had had with the an-gel, but thought\nmuch of these things, and took the best of care of the new-born babe. It\ndid not seem as if it could be her own child.\n\nWhen the babe was eight days old, its fa-ther and mo-ther gave it the\nname of JE-SUS, as the an-gel had bid them. And they gave him to the\nLord; that is, they vowed to the priest that they would bring up the\nchild to serve God and to lead a good life. For though he was the son\nof God he was sent on earth to teach men what they ought to do.\n\nNow there was a man in Je-ru-sa-lem whose name was Sim-e-on. He was a\ngood man, and did what was right, and for years he had been on the watch\nfor one of whom the seers had told, and who was to save men from their\nsins.\n\nAnd it was made known to Sim-e-on in a dream that he should not die till\nhe had seen this King of kings and Lord of lords.\n\n[Illustration: SIM-E-ON IN THE TEM-PLE.]\n\nSim-e-on was a priest in the house of God, and when Jo-seph and Ma-ry\nbrought in the child Je-sus, he took it up in his arms and blest God,\nand said: Now, Lord, thy words have come true, and I can die in peace,\nfor I have seen him who is to be the light of the world, and to save men\nfrom their sins!\n\nJo-seph and Ma-ry knew not what to make of this strange speech. And the\npriest blest them, and gave the child back to his mo-ther, and told her\nof some of the great things he would do when he grew up to be a man.\n\nAnd there was one An-na, who kept all the fasts, and served God night\nand day. She was four-score and four years old, and could fore-tell what\nwas to take place, and her fame was great. And she came in-to the house\nof God while Sim-e-on yet spoke, and gave thanks to the Lord, and told\nof him who was to come to save the Jews, and to give them back their\nrights.\n\nThen Ma-ry and Jo-seph went back to their own home in Naz-a-reth. And\nthe child grew, and was strong, and wise, and God blest him from day to\nday.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER II.\n\nTHE STAR IN THE EAST.\n\n\nIN these days God spoke to men by strange signs, and wise ones were all\nthe time on the watch for them. They had read in their old books of a\nstar that was to shine with a bright light, and each night they would\nraise their eyes to the sky, in hopes that they might see this sign that\nwould bring hope and joy to the whole race of Jews. But years and years\nhad gone by, and the Jews had no land of their own, and were as slaves\nto the Ce-sar of Rome. And He-rod, their king, was most harsh to them,\nfor he had skill in the use of a sword, but not in the use of kind\nwords, or good deeds.\n\n[Illustration: THE GUID-ING STAR.]\n\nOne night as a wise man lay on the roof of his house, with his gaze\nfixed on the great broad sky, he gave a start and cry of joy, for there\nshone a new star of such size that all the rest of the stars grew dim\nand small. And it was as if the sun had burst through a dark cloud, and\nbrought the dawn some hours too soon, for the whole East was full of\nlight from the long rays of this new star.\n\nAnd the star seemed to move, and its rays to point all one way. And the\nwise men who saw it knew that the light had come for which they had\nlooked and prayed so long, and they set out at once with the star to\nguide them, and they took rich gifts with them. Each night it shone in\nthe sky, and led them on and on till they came to Je-ru-sa-lem. And they\nsaid to those they met there, Where is he that is born to be King of the\nJews? for we have seen his star in the east, and have come to kneel down\nat his feet.\n\nWhen He-rod heard of these things, and that they spoke of Je-sus as\nKing, he was in great fear lest he should lose his throne. So he sent\nfor his chief priests and scribes that they might tell him where Christ\nshould be born. And they read from their old books that it had been\nfore-told that he should be born in Beth-le-hem.\n\nThen He-rod sent for the wise men, and told them to go to Beth-le-hem,\nand search for the young child. And when ye find him, said he, bring me\nback word that I too may fall down at his feet and give him praise.\n\nBut this he did not mean to do, for his plan was to put the child to\ndeath just as soon as he could find out where it was.\n\n[Illustration: THE SHEP-HERDS OF BETH-LE-HEM.]\n\nWhen the king had ceased to speak, the wise men from the east left\nJe-ru-sa-lem, and went on their way to Beth-le-hem. And the star led\nthem on and on, and was like the face of a friend. And a small, still\nvoice seemed to say to them:--Come!--Come!--Come! And it drew them so\nthat they would have gone to the ends of the earth. When troops are on\nthe march, and through their ranks goes the cry of Halt! then each foot\nmust stand still, and not a man moves from his place.\n\nAnd when the wise men came to Beth-le-hem, lo, the star that had led\nthem stood still in the sky, right o'er the place where the young child\nwas. And when they went in-to the house they saw the young child, with\nMa-ry, his mo-ther, and they fell on their knees and bowed down to him\nas if he had been a king. And they brought him gifts of great worth, and\ngold and myrrh and rich gums and spice that can be found on-ly in those\nlands in the far East.\n\nAnd God spoke to them in a dream, and told them not to go back to\nHe-rod, so they went home not by the same road they had come.\n\nWhen He-rod found that the wise men had not done as he bade them, he was\nin a great rage, and sent men to Beth-le-hem, and slew all the chil-dren\nthere who were two years old or less, for then he was sure that Je-sus\nwould be slain.\n\n[Illustration: THE WISE MEN BRING-ING PRES-ENTS TO JE-SUS.]\n\nBut ere He-rod's men came, God spoke to Jo-seph in a dream, and said,\nRise, and take thy wife and thy son, and flee in-to E-gypt, and stay\nthere till I bring thee word; for He-rod will seek the young child to\nkill him.\n\nSo Jo-seph did as the Lord told him, and took his wife and child out of\nBeth-le-hem by night, and went to dwell in the Land of E-gypt.\n\n[Illustration: THE FLIGHT IN-TO E-GYPT.]\n\nBut when He-rod was dead, God spoke to Jo-seph in a dream, and told him\nto take his wife and son and go back to the land of Is-ra-el, for the\nman was dead who sought to kill the young child. And Jo-seph did as the\nan-gel told him, and he and his wife and child came and dwelt in\nNaz-a-reth.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER III.\n\nTHE BOYHOOD OF JESUS.\n\n\nIT was in the first month of the year that God brought the Jews out of\nE-gypt and led them through the Red Sea.\n\nAnd he made it a law that in the first month of each year they should\nall meet at one place, and bring the young lambs and calves and the\nfirst fruits of the field and give thanks to God in the way they had\nbeen taught. And this they were to do all the days of their life. And\nthis feast, which was to last not quite two months, was known as the\nFeast of the Weeks. There were days they were to fast, and days they\nwere to feast, and they were to call to mind that they were once slaves,\nand that God had set them free, and with glad hearts praise and bless\nhis great name.\n\nThe place where the Jews now met was at Je-ru-sa-lem, and Je-sus was\ntwelve years old when he went up for the first time, with Jo-seph and\nMa-ry, to keep the Feast of the Weeks.\n\nThere was a great crowd there, and friends to meet and talk with, and it\nmust have been a hard task to keep track of the young folks, who found\nso much to see and to hear that was new and strange.\n\nWhen the days of the feast were at an end, Jo-seph and Ma-ry set out for\ntheir home in Naz-a-reth.\n\nThey had gone out with a band of friends and folks from the same town,\nand were to come back in the same way. It was not safe for them to go by\nthem-selves, for there were waste lands to cross where bands of thieves\nlay in wait for a chance to rob and to kill those who came their way.\n\n[Illustration: NAZ-A-RETH.]\n\nSome rode on mules, some on horse-back, and some had to walk all the\nway. Je-sus was not with Jo-seph and Ma-ry, but they thought he must be\nwith some of the friends or kins-folk. But when at the end of a day's\nride he came not near them, they sought for him in the groups of friends\nand kins-folk, where there were lads of his own age.\n\n[Illustration: JE-SUS WITH THE DOC-TORS IN THE TEM-PLE.]\n\nAnd when they found him not, they went back to Je-ru-sa-lem, and sought\nfor him with hearts full of grief, for they knew not what harm might\nhave come to him.\n\nFor three days they went from house to house, and through the lanes and\nstreets, but could see no signs of the boy they had lost.\n\nAt the end of that time they went in-to the house of God, it may have\nbeen to pray that their child might be found, and there a strange sight\nmet their gaze.\n\nJe-sus sat in the midst of the wise men, whose place it was to teach and\nto preach to those who came up to the feasts, and the old men bent their\nheads to hear what the young lad had to say. For it was the first time\nthey had met with one so young in years who was so wise in speech, and\nthey felt in their hearts that he must have been taught of God.\n\nWhen Jo-seph and Ma-ry saw Je-sus they were struck dumb, and could do\nnaught but stare, as if it was a scene in a dream. Then Ma-ry said, My\nson, why didst thou vex us thus? we have sought for thee with sad\nhearts.\n\nJe-sus said, Why did ye look for me? Do ye not know that I must do the\nwork that my fa-ther has set me to do?\n\nJo-seph and Ma-ry did not know what he meant by these words, or that God\nhad sent Je-sus on earth to teach men how to read the word of God\na-right, and how to save their souls from death.\n\nJe-sus went back to Naz-a-reth with Jo-seph and Ma-ry, and was a good\nson to them. And he grew wise and tall, and was blest of God, and won\nthe hearts of all who were near him, for they saw in him much to love.\n\nIt was not known that he was the Son of God, and he made friends by his\nown sweet ways, for he was a poor boy.\n\nNaught was heard or known of Je-sus for some years, and we are led to\nthink that he was taught how to use the axe, and saw, and plane, and to\nwork at the same trade his fa-ther did. This gave him a chance to see\nhow folks lived, and to use his eyes and ears as he went from house to\nhouse, so that when he went forth to teach he could tell them of their\nsins, and show them how vile they were.\n\nAnd this part of the life of Je-sus--of which not a word is told in the\nNew Test-a-ment--is to teach us to stay in the place where God has put\nus, and to do our work there in the best way we know how.\n\nJe-sus was at school then, just as boys and girls in these days go to\nschool, and strive to grow wise and to fit them-selves for the work they\nare to do in the world. And though he was to be a king he did not put on\nairs, or sit and fold his hands and bid those that were near wait on him\nand be at his beck and call. No! he was born and brought up with poor\nfolks, to teach us that Je-sus is more at home with the poor than he is\nwith the rich; and to be Christ-like we must seek to please God, to do\nhis will, to put down pride, and keep sin out of our hearts.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IV.\n\nJESUS AND JOHN THE BAPTIST.\n\n\nYOU have been told that John went out in-to the woods and waste lands\nwhen quite a young man. He fed on lo-custs and wild hon-ey, and his\nclothes were made of the skin of the cam-el, with the long rough hair on\nthe out-side.\n\nThe time had now come for him to go out in the world to tell of Je-sus,\nand to bid men give up their sins and walk in the right path.\n\nAnd he went to a place near the Jor-dan and crowds came there to hear\nhim. And he told them that he had been sent to warn them to flee from\nthe wrath to come. He said they must not think they would be saved\nbe-cause they were sons or heirs of good men who had served God and died\nin the faith. He told them that each one was to be like a tree, and to\nstand in his place and bring forth fruit, and serve God in the best way\nthat he could. And each tree, said John, which brings not forth good\nfruit is cut down and cast in-to the fire. He told them they must be\ngood and kind to each oth-er, and must give food and clothes to those\nwho were in need of such things. They must not tell lies, nor steal, nor\nbe vain and proud, but they must show by the way they lived that they\nloved God and were glad to do his will.\n\n[Illustration: JOHN THE BAP-TIST.]\n\nAnd when those who heard him felt a great hate for sin, and a strong\nwish to lead good lives, and to be saved from the wrath of God, they\nspoke to John and he led them down to the Jor-dan and they were\nbap-tiz-ed in the stream.\n\nNow wa-ter will wash the stains from our clothes, and cleanse our skin,\nbut it will not wash our sins away. To do this we must have Christ in\nour hearts. Some of those who heard John talk thought that he might be\nthe Christ who was to come, and of whom the proph-ets had fore-told\nsince the days of Mos-es. Some were quite sure of it; but oth-ers shook\ntheir heads, for they had made up their minds that he who was to come\nand rule o-ver them would be dressed like a king, and not in such plain\nclothes as John wore.\n\nJohn heard their words, or guessed their thoughts, and he said to these\nJews, I in-deed bap-tize you with wa-ter, but he who is to come af-fer\nme, and who is great-er than I, will bap-tize you with fire.\n\nThat meant that Je-sus would be in their hearts like a fire, to burn up\nall that was bad, as they burnt the chaff that was blown loose from the\nwheat.\n\nThen Je-sus came from his home in Naz-a-reth to have John bap-tize him\nin Jor-dan's stream. But John would not. He said there was more need\nthat Je-sus should bap-tize him. He felt that there was need to have his\nown sins washed a-way, but Je-sus had no sins. So why dost thou come to\nme? said John.\n\nJe-sus had come on the earth as a man to do God's will, and to teach\nman-kind how to walk in the right path and keep their hearts free from\nsin. And he told John, that all these things would be made plain to him\nsome day, and it was right that he should bap-tize him.\n\nSo John went with Je-sus in-to the wa-ter, and he bap-tized Je-sus in\nthe wa-ter. And Je-sus was pray-ing to his Fa-ther in heav-en.\n\nAnd as Je-sus went up out of the wa-ter, lo, there came a great light in\nthe sky, that took the form of a dove, and it came down and seemed to\nrest on him. And God's voice spoke out of the sky, and said: This is my\ndear Son, with whom I am well pleased.\n\nThen Je-sus went out in-to the waste lands, and was there with no one\nnear him for more than a month. In all that time he ate no food, but\nspent the hours in talks with God. At last he felt weak and faint, and\nleft the waste lands to go in search of some-thing to eat.\n\nNow there is a fiend in this world, as we all know, who has a black\nheart, and can take on all sorts of shapes. He came to Eve in the form\nof a snake, and to Sam-son with a fair face. He tempts those to do wrong\nwho have set out to do right, and we have to be on our guard all the\ntime, and to watch and pray that we may be kept safe from him.\n\nWhen this fiend saw Je-sus on his way to give new hearts to men, and to\nmake them good and pure, he thought he would try and put a stop to such\nwork. So he went out to tempt Je-sus, with the same smooth voice in\nwhich he spoke to Eve.\n\nAnd he came to him and said, If thou be the Son of God change those\nstones in-to bread, so that thou canst eat now that thou hast need of\nfood.\n\nJe-sus knew why Sa-tan had come, and he told him that men should take\nmore pains to do God's will than to get bread to eat. Next Sa-tan took\nJe-sus to Je-ru-sa-lem, and up to a high place where the house of God\nwas built. And he said to him, If thou be the Son of God, throw thy-self\ndown; for it is said, he shall give his an-gels charge to keep thee in\nall thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands lest thou dash\na-gainst a stone.\n\n[Illustration: THE TEMPT-A-TION.]\n\nJe-sus told him that it was not right to go where it was not safe, just\nto try if God would keep us from harm.\n\nThen Sa-tan took Je-sus up on a high mount, from whence could be seen\nall the large towns in the land, and all their great wealth. And he said\nto him, All these will I give thee for thine own if thou wilt kneel down\nand wor-ship me.\n\nJe-sus said to him, Go from me, Sa-tan, for it is set down in God's\nbook, Thou shalt wor-ship the Lord thy God, and him a-lone shalt thou\nserve.\n\nWhen Sa-tan found that Je-sus paid no heed to his words, he left him,\nand an-gels came to wait on the Son of God.\n\nIn a short time Je-sus went back to the Jor-dan where John was, and when\nJohn saw him, he said, Be-hold the Lamb of God!\n\nHe spoke of Je-sus as the Lamb of God, for he was to be laid on the\ncross for the sins of men, as the lamb was in those days laid on the\nal-tar.\n\nThen Je-sus set out to preach and to turn men from their sins. And he\nwent to Gal-i-lee. And one day as he walked by the sea-shore he saw two\nmen cast their net in-to the sea. Their names were An-drew and Pe-ter.\nJe-sus said to them, Come with me. And they left their nets at once,\nthat they might be near him and learn of him.\n\nThe next day he saw two men whose names were James and John in a boat\nwith their fa-ther. Their nets had broke, and they were in haste to mend\nthem so that they could take in a large haul of fish. But Je-sus spoke\nto James and John, and they left the boat at once, and went with him\nthat he might teach them.\n\nThe next day Je-sus spoke to Phil-ip and Na-than-i-el, and they left\ntheir homes and went with him.\n\n[Illustration: THE MAR-RIAGE IN CA-NA.]\n\nWhen Je-sus came to the town of Ca-na he found quite a crowd there, for\na wed-ding was to take place, and he and his mo-ther had been bid to the\nfeast. There was food to eat and wine to drink, but ere the feast was\nat an end the wine was all gone. And when Ma-ry knew of it she said to\nJe-sus, They have no wine. And she bade those who were there to serve\nthe guests to do just as Je-sus told them.\n\nNow there were in the house six large stone jars such as the Jews kept\nto hold wa-ter. Je-sus said to the men, Fill the jars with wa-ter. And\nthey filled them to the brim. And he said to them, Take some out now and\nbear it to the chief guest of the feast. And they did so; and the wa-ter\nwas changed in-to wine.\n\nThe chief guest did not know what Je-sus had done; but when he had drunk\nsome of the wine he sent for the bride-groom and said to him, As a rule,\nthose who give a feast set out the good wine first, and when the guests\nhave had all they care for they bring out that which is worse. But thou\nhast kept the good wine till now.\n\nThis was the first great sign Je-sus gave of the pow-er he had from on\nhigh. And it was proof to those whose hearts were with him that he was\nthe true Son of God.\n\nThe time of the Feast of Weeks was at hand, and Je-sus went up to\nJe-ru-sa-lem to keep it. And in one of the courts were men who had\nbrought their wares to the house of God to sell them to the Jews when\nthey came up to the feast. When Je-sus came to the place where these men\nwere, the sight did not please him. And Je-sus made a scourge, or whip\nof small cords, and drove them all out, with their flocks and their\nherds. And he poured their gold and sil-ver on the ground, and said to\nthose who sold doves, Take them a-way; make not the house of God a place\nto buy and sell in.\n\n[Illustration: DRIV-ING THE SELL-ERS FROM THE TEM-PLE.]\n\nAnd while he was at the feast crowds were drawn to him, and had faith in\nhim when they saw what won-ders he could do. Nic-o-de-mus, one of the\nchief men of the Jews, came to Je-sus in the night, and said to him, We\nknow that God has sent thee to teach us what is right, for no man could\ndo these won-ders if God were not with him.\n\nJe-sus told him that he must have a new heart or he could not be a child\nof God.\n\nHe-rod, who slew the babes of Beth-le-hem, was dead, but his son He-rod\nruled in that part of Gal-i-lee, and he was a bad man. He took his\nbroth-er's wife from him and made her his own wife. Her name was\nHe-ro-di-as. When John the Bap-tist told He-rod this was not right, he\nwould have put him to death if he had dared. But he had heard him\npreach, and knew that he was a good man. Yet to please He-ro-di-as\nHe-rod had seized John, and bound him, and shut him up in jail.\n\nWhile John was in jail, He-rod, on his birth-day, made a great feast for\nthe lords and chief men of Gal-i-lee. And a young girl, whose name was\nSa-lo-me, came and danced in their midst. He-rod was so much pleased\nwith her that he said, Ask of me what thou wilt, and thou shalt have it,\nthough it were half of my realm.\n\nAnd Sa-lo-me went to He-ro-di-as--who was her mo-ther--and said, What\nshall I ask?\n\nAnd He-ro-di-as said to her, Ask the king to cut off the head of John\nthe Bap-tist, and bring it to thee here in a large dish.\n\nSa-lo-me came back in haste to the king, and said, Give me, in a large\ndish, the head of John the Bap-tist.\n\nHe-rod was grieved, but as he had sworn to give her what she asked for,\nand those who sat near had heard him, he felt bound to keep his word. So\nhe sent one of his train-band, who cut off John's head in the jail, and\nbrought it in a large dish to Sa-lo-me, and she gave it to her mo-ther.\n\nWhen the friends of John heard of it they came up and took his dead form\nand laid it in a tomb, and went and told Je-sus.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER V.\n\nTHE WOMAN AT THE WELL--JESUS BY THE SEA.\n\n\nONE day Je-sus and his friends came to the town of Sy-char, near which\nwas a well to which all the folks came to draw wa-ter. It was known as\nJa-cob's Well. The sun was hot, and Je-sus, tired with his long walk,\nsat down by this well to rest, while his friends went to the town to buy\nfood.\n\nA wo-man came from the town to draw wa-ter. She led a life of sin, and\nhad no love for God in her heart. And Je-sus knew this, for he sees all\nour hearts, and knows all our thoughts, and all that we have done.\n\nAnd he spoke to the wo-man, and told her of the things she had done that\ndid not please God. And she thought he was a seer, to whom God told\nthings that were not known to most folks. And she said to Je-sus, I know\nthat Christ is to come in-to the world, and when he comes he will tell\nus all things. Je-sus said to her, I that speak to thee am he.\n\n[Illustration: THE WO-MAN AT THE WELL.]\n\nThen the wo-man left her jar, and made haste back to the town, and said\nto her friends there, Come and see a man who told me all the things that\never I did. Is not this the Christ?\n\nAnd they went out and saw Je-sus, and bade him come in-to the town. And\nhe went with them, and was there for three days. And they gave ear to\nthe things he taught them. And they said to the wo-man, Now we have\nfaith in him, not be-cause of the things thou didst tell us, but\nbe-cause we have heard him our-selves, and know that he is the Christ\nwhom God has sent down to us.\n\nFrom there he went once more to the town of Ca-na. And a rich man came\nfrom the town where he dwelt to ask Je-sus to come and heal his son, who\nwas sick. And the rich man said to him, Come as quick as you can, lest\nmy child should die.\n\nJe-sus said to him, Go thy way, thy son is made well.\n\nThe rich man knew that Je-sus would not say what was not true, and with\na glad heart went back to his home. And as he drew near the house his\nslaves ran out to meet him, and said to him, Thy son is well.\n\nThe rich man bade them tell him what time the change took place, and\nthey told the hour that the fe-ver left the lad. And it was the same\nhour that Je-sus had said to the rich man, Thy son is well. And he and\nall those in his house felt in their hearts that Je-sus was the son of\nGod.\n\nThe Jews did not yet know how to print, and they had no books such as\nwe have. They wrote with pen and ink on rolls of parch-ment, made from\nthe skin of sheep and goats.\n\nThese rolls were kept in the house of God, in a box or chest called an\nark, and were brought out and read to those who came to the church on\nthe Lord's day. The chief rolls, all the books of the Old Tes-ta-ment,\nwere kept at Je-ru-sa-lem, but as all the Jews could not get there more\nthan once a year, they had made rolls for their own use in each house of\nGod.\n\n[Illustration: CYL-IN-DER HOLD-ING THE PENT-A-TEUCH.]\n\nJe-sus came to Naz-a-reth where he had been brought up, and went in-to\nthe church on the Lord's day and stood up to read. And he read from one\nof the old books where it was fore-told that one should come to bring\ngood news to the poor, to cheer the sad, to give sight to the blind, and\nto heal the sick. Then he closed the roll and sat down. And the eyes of\nall in the church were on him. He said to them that all these words had\ncome true, and that he was the Son of God, of whom the proph-et wrote.\nAnd they said, Is not this Jo-seph's son? How then can he claim to be\nthe Son of God? And they were wroth with him, and led him out to a steep\nhill on which their town was built, that they might cast him down and\nkill him. But Je-sus got a-way from them, and they could do him no harm.\n\n[Illustration: TWO PA-GES of THE SAM-AR-I-TAN PENT-A-TEUCH.]\n\n\nHe went on to Ca-per-na-um, and great crowds came there to hear him,\nand pushed so that there was scarce room for him to stand on the\nsea-shore. And he saw two boats close at hand, out of which the men had\ngone to mend their nets. And he went in one of the boats, which was\nPe-ter's and told him to push it out from the land. And he sat down, and\ntaught the crowd out of the boat.\n\nWhen he left off, he said to Pe-ter and An-drew, Sail out where the sea\nis deep, and let down your nets to catch fish.\n\nPe-ter said, Mas-ter, we have been hard at work all the night, and not a\nfish have we caught; but, since thou dost bid me, I will let down the\nnet.\n\nWhen they had done this, they caught such a large haul of fish that the\nnet broke. Then they called to their friends in the boat by the shore,\nand bade them come to their aid. And they came, and there was more fish\nthan the two boats could hold.\n\nWhen Pe-ter saw this he fell down at the feet of Je-sus, and said, I\nfear thee, for I am full of sin, O Lord. And those with him were\nspell-bound at sight of the fish they had caught.\n\nJe-sus did this great won-der so that these men might see it and know\nthat he was the Son of God; for they were to aid him in his work, and to\ngo with him from place to place.\n\nJe-sus said to Pe-ter, Fear not; from this time forth thou shalt catch\nmen and not fish. He meant by this that Pe-ter was to preach, and to\nsave men from sin, and from the nets that Sa-tan spreads. And he said to\nthem all, Come with me. And they left their boats and their nets, and\nall that they had, and were with Je-sus till the end of his life on\nearth.\n\n[Illustration: THE WON-DER-FUL DRAUGHT OF FISH-ES.]\n\nOn the Day of Rest, Je-sus went in-to the church and taught the folks\nthere. And in their midst was a man who was not in his right mind, and\nit was as if he were torn by fiends, and he cried out to Je-sus, Let us\na-lone. What have we to do with thee, thou Je-sus of Naz-a-reth? Art\nthou come to kill us? I know thee, that thou art the Son of God. Je-sus\nsaid to the fiends that were in the man, Be still, and come out of him.\nThen the fiends threw the man down, and cried with a loud voice, and\ncame out of him. And all those in the church were struck with awe, and\nthey said a-mong them-selves, What does this mean? for he speaks to the\nfiends so that they are forced to do his will!\n\nWhen they came out of the church Je-sus went to the house where Pe-ter\nand An-drew dwelt. And James and John were there. And Pe-ter's wife's\nmo-ther was sick of a fe-ver, and they told Je-sus of it and begged that\nhe would heal her.\n\nJe-sus took her by the hand, and bade the fe-ver come out of her. And\nshe was made well at once, and rose from her bed, and took charge of her\nhouse.\n\nAt the close of the day, when the sun had set, great crowds came to the\nhouse where Je-sus was, and brought those who were sick, and those who\nwere not in their right minds, that he might cure them. And he made the\nsick well, and drove out the fiends, and would not let them speak.\n\nThe next day Je-sus rose ere it was light and went out to a lone place\nto pray to God.\n\n[Illustration: PE-TER'S WIFE'S MO-THER.]\n\nFor though he was the Son of God, he had come to the earth in the form\nof a man, and had all the wants that man has. He had need of food and\ndrink, and felt pain and grief just as we do. He had need of man's help\nin his work; and had need of God's help all the time. And he knelt to\nGod, just as he wants us to do, and asked God to be near him and to give\nhim more strength, and to help him to do his will.\n\nWhen Je-sus had gone, crowds came up to the house to seek him. And\nPe-ter, and the three that were with him, went out to look for Je-sus.\nAnd when they found him they told him of the great crowd that sought\nhim.\n\nJe-sus said, Let us go to the next towns, that I may tell the good news\nthere; for I was not sent to stay in one place.\n\nAnd he taught all through Gal-i-lee, and his fame spread, and great\ncrowds went to hear him.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VI.\n\nJESUS HEALS THE SICK, AND DOES GOOD WORKS ON THE DAY OF REST.\n\n\nA man came to Je-sus and knelt down at his feet and said, Lord, if thou\nwilt thou canst make me clean. This man was a lep-er. He had white sores\non his skin, and had to live by him-self or with those as bad off as\nhim-self, and there was no cure for him but death. It was not safe to\nbreathe the air near a lep-er, and so he was sent at once out of the\ntown, as soon as his case was known.\n\nThis lep-er must have heard of Je-sus and the great works he had done,\nand the hope that had died out must have sprung up in his heart once\nmore. If he could heal the sick, and make the lame walk, why could he\nnot cure him, so that he would be fit to live with those he loved? At\nleast he could ask; and oh! how great must have been his faith when he\nfell down at the feet of Je-sus and cried out, Lord, if _thou_ wilt\n_thou_ canst make me clean.\n\n[Illustration: CUR-ING THE MAN LAME WITH PAL-SY.]\n\nJe-sus put out his hand and touched the man, and said, I will: be thou\nclean.\n\nAnd at once the sores left the man and his skin was white and smooth.\nThen Je-sus sent him off, and bade him tell no man who had made him\nwell, but to go to the priest and do as Mo-ses bid all those do who had\nbeen lep-ers and were cured.\n\nBut the man was so full of joy that he could not keep it to him-self,\nand he went out and told what Je-sus had done for him.\n\nNow there were some Jews who were known as Scribes and Phar-i-sees. They\nmade out that no one else was quite as good as they were. They knew all\nthe laws of Mo-ses by heart, and they were strict to see that no Jews\nbroke those laws. A Scribe is one who writes.\n\nThese Scribes and Phar-i-sees were thought to be wise and good men, for\nthey would fast and pray for a long while at a time, and look as though\nthey thought them-selves too pure for earth.\n\nBut their hearts were bad and full of sin, and when Je-sus told them\nthey must give up their sins and lead the right kind of lives, they were\nwroth with him, and tried to make all the rest of the Jews hate him as\nmuch as they did.\n\nJe-sus went down to Ca-per-na-um, and when it was known that he was in\nthe town great crowds came to the house where he was to hear him preach.\n\nNow there was a man who had been in bed for a long time, and could not\nmove hand or foot. He had heard of the fame of Je-sus, and it was the\nwish of his heart to get near him that he might heal him with a touch.\nBut Je-sus was a long way off, and the poor sick man could not walk one\nstep. But he had kind friends, and they thought of a plan by which he\ncould be brought near to Je-sus, that he might at least hear him preach.\n\nSo they took him on his bed and bore him to the town; but when they came\nto the house where Je-sus was, the crowd was so great that there was no\nchance to get near him. What were they to do?\n\nNow the house was low and had a flat roof, with a wall round it, so that\nthose who dwelt there could walk or sleep on it and have no fear that\nthey would fall off. All the rooms down stairs led out in-to a court,\nwhich had a roof that could be slid off when it did not rain, or there\nwas need of fresh air.\n\nSo the friends of the lame man drew the bed up on the house-top with him\nin it, and brought him to the space in the roof, through which they\ncould see Je-sus and the crowds round him. And they let the man down on\nhis bed in the midst of the crowd, which had to make way for him.\n\nWhen Je-sus saw what great faith they had, he spoke to the sick man, and\nsaid, Thy sins are for-giv-en thee. Some of the Scribes and Phar-i-sees\nwho sat near said, but not out loud, Who is this that dares speak in\nthis way? None but God can for-give sins.\n\nJe-sus knew their thoughts, and he said to them, Why think ye these\nthings? Which could be said with the most ease, Thy sins be for-giv-en\nthee, or Rise up and walk?\n\nBut to show you that I have pow-er to for-give sins, I will make him\nwell.\n\nSo he said to the sick man, Rise, take up thy bed, and go to thy house.\n\nAnd the man rose and stood on his feet, and took up the bed on which he\nhad lain and went out and gave praise and thanks to God.\n\nAnd those who saw him were in a maze and said, We have seen strange\nthings to-day.\n\nNow the Jews, as you know, were slaves of the Ce-sar of Rome, and to\nkeep their peace with him they had to pay a tax. And the men to whom\nthey paid the tax were known as pub-li-cans. Some of them were harsh and\nstern, and the Jews could not but hate them. But all were not so. And as\nJe-sus went by he saw one of these pub-li-cans with his gold and sil-ver\nclose at hand. His name was Matth-ew. Je-sus spoke to him, and said,\nCome with me.\n\nAnd Matth-ew left all, and went with Je-sus, and from that time did all\nthat he could to spread the good news, and to serve the Lord Christ.\n\nAf-ter this there was a feast of the Jews, and Je-sus went up to\nJe-ru-sa-lem. Now there was at Je-ru-sa-lem a pool, which was known as\nthe Pool of Be-thes-da. And there were five courts, or door-ways, that\nled down to the pool. And in these courts lay a great crowd of folks who\nwere sick, or blind, or lame.\n\nFor this was the time of the year when an an-gel came to stir the pool.\nAnd it was thought that the one who went in-to the pool the first, when\nthe an-gel had made it fresh and sweet, would be cured of all the ails\nthat he might have.\n\n[Illustration: THE POOL OF BE-THES-DA.]\n\nAnd a man was there who had been sick for most two-score years. Je-sus\nsaw him, and knew that he had been sick for a long time, and it made him\nsad to think of it. So he said to the man, Wilt thou be made well?\n\nThe man said, I have no one to help me in-to the pool, for when I try to\nget down to it, some one steps in a-head of me and I am too late.\n\nJe-sus said to him, Rise, take up thy bed and walk.\n\nAnd at once the man was made well, and took up his bed, and walked.\n\nNow it was the Day of Rest. And the Jews, who were quick to find fault\nwith those who broke the laws, said to the man when he came their way,\nIt is not right for thee to move thy bed on this day.\n\nHe said to them, he that made me well told me to take up my bed and\nwalk.\n\nThey said to him, Who was it told thee that?\n\nAnd the man did not know, and could not point Je-sus out to them, the\ncrowd was so great.\n\nBut ere the feast was at an end Je-sus met the man He had cured and said\nto him, Now thou art well, sin no more lest a worse thing come to thee.\n\nThen the man went out and told the Jews that it was Je-sus who had cured\nhim on the Day of Rest. And for this the Jews sought to kill Je-sus. But\nhe told them that the works he did were proof that God had sent him, and\nthat he was the one of whom the seers had told in the days that were\npast, and of whom Mo-ses wrote.\n\nHe said that the time was near at hand when the dead should hear the\nvoice of the Son of God, and those who were in their graves should come\nforth. Then he would judge them. Those who had done good would be blest,\nfor God would give them a home with him in the sky; but those who had\ndone ill, and died in their sins, would not meet the smile of God, nor\nhave a place near his throne.\n\nJe-sus said if the love of God was in their hearts they would trust him\nwhom God had sent, and feel that he had come to do them good, and to\nsave their souls from death.\n\n[Illustration: IN THE CORN-FIELDS.]\n\nJe-sus and his five friends, An-drew, Pe-ter, James, John, and\nMatth-ew, went out on the next Day of Rest, and their walk led them\nthrough a field of corn. And as the men had need of food, Je-sus told\nthem to pluck and eat the ears of corn. And they did so.\n\nIn the East they gave the name of corn to all kinds of grain.\n\nWhen the Phar-i-sees saw it they found fault, and Je-sus told them that\nhe was the best judge of what was right to do on that day; for he was\nLord of the Day of Rest.\n\n[Illustration: THE WITH-ER-ED HAND.]\n\nIn the course of a few weeks he went in-to a church and taught on the\nLord's day. And a man was there whose hand was so drawn up that he could\nnot stretch it out or do aught with it. And the Phar-i-sees kept a\nclose watch on Je-sus to see if he would heal the man on that day, so\nthat they might find fault with them.\n\nJe-sus knew their thoughts, and he said to the man with the lame hand,\nRise up, and stand where all can see you. And the man rose, and stood\nforth.\n\n[Illustration: JER-U-SA-LEM.]\n\nJe-sus said to them, I will ask you one thing: Is it right to do good or\nto do ill on the Day of Rest? to take life or to save it? And he stood\nand looked at all those that were in the place. Then he said to the man,\nStretch out thy hand. And he did so, and it was well and strong.\n\nThis made the Phar-i-sees hate Je-sus, so that they went out of the\nchurch and sought for some way to put him to death. When he knew of it\nhe left the place, and came down to the sea of Gal-i-lee. And crowds\ncame to him from the land of Ju-dah and from large towns that were far\noff, to see the great works that he did. And the sick crept near so that\nthey could touch him, and he made them all well.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VII.\n\nTHE SERMON ON THE MOUNT.\n\n\nJE-SUS left the crowd, and went to a lone place to pray to God. And he\nspent the night there. The next morn he chose twelve men, that he might\nsend them out to preach, and to heal those that were sick, and to cast\nout dev-ils. Their names were Pe-ter, An-drew, James and John, the sons\nof Zeb-e-dee, Phil-ip, Bar-thol-o-mew, Thom-as and Matth-ew, James and\nLeb-be-us, Si-mon and Ju-das Is-ca-ri-ot.\n\n[Illustration: THE SER-MON ON THE MOUNT.]\n\nAnd the crowd was so great that Je-sus went up on a hill, and the twelve\nwent with him and he taught them there. He told them that those who were\nin a high state of joy, with not a care to vex them, were called\nblest. And he said, not in these words, but in words that meant the\nsame:\n\nBlest are the poor in spirit, for God is with them.\n\nBy poor in spirit he meant those who did not think too much of\nthem-selves, who were not vain nor proud, but rich in love to God. And\nhe would be with them, and bless them all their lives.\n\nBlest are those that mourn, for their tears shall be dried.\n\nTo mourn is to weep, and to grieve. Je-sus meant that those who wept for\ntheir sins should shed no more tears, for Christ had come to save them,\nand the good news should make them glad.\n\nBlest are the meek, for the whole earth shall be theirs.\n\nJe-sus meant by this that those who were fond of peace, and did not love\nstrife, might dwell where they chose, and would be blest in this world\nand the world to come.\n\nBlest are those who hun-ger and thirst for that which is good, for they\nshall be filled.\n\nThis meant that those who sought to do right and to grow in grace had\nbut to pray to God, and he would give them all the strength they might\nneed from day to day.\n\nBlest are those who are kind and good, for the Lord will be kind to them\nin their hour of need.\n\nBlest are those who are pure in heart, for they shall see God.\n\nThose who are pure in heart will be fond of good works, and will lead\ngood lives, and God will not turn his face from them.\n\nBlest are the peace-ma-kers--those who try to keep the peace and to put\nan end to strife--for they shall be called the chil-dren of God.\n\nBlest are those who are ill-used for my sake, for the more the world\nhates them the more will God love them.\n\nJe-sus told them that when men said hard things of them for his sake,\nand called them vile, and were harsh with them and full of spite, they\nwere not to grieve but to be glad. For so did bad men treat the seers of\nold who told them of their faults and their sins and tried to lead them\nto Christ.\n\nSalt is good, and gives a taste to our food.\n\nJe-sus told them they were to salt the earth. This meant that they were\nto tell the good news in such a way that men should want it and need it\njust as they did salt.\n\nHe told them, too, that they must let their light shine; he meant that\nthey should let it be seen and known that they loved God, and tried to\ndo his will. They were not to hide it from men, but to do such good\nworks, in Christ's name, that those who did not love or care for him\nmight be drawn to Je-sus--the light of the world.\n\nJe-sus said that if we do as we ought to do our-selves, and teach men to\nkeep all God's laws, we shall be called great in the place where God\ndwells. But if, like the Scribes and Phar-i-sees, we teach what is right\nand do what is wrong, we shall not see God's face, or live with him on\nhigh.\n\nHe said, you have been taught not to kill; and that he who puts one to\ndeath will be brought to the judge, and made to suf-fer for the crime.\nBut I say to you that it is a sin to hate those who have done you no\nharm, and God will pun-ish you for it.\n\nThen he said that when they went to church to wor-ship God they must try\nand think if they had done wrong, had been harsh, or had said what was\nnot true. And they were to go at once and do right to those whom they\nhurt in this way, for God did not care to have them bow down to him if\ntheir hearts were full of sins they were not sor-ry for.\n\nWe must be good and pure, Je-sus says, in all that we say and do: we\nmust do no harm to those who harm us, but must be kind and good to them,\nand pray for them, and love them.\n\nBless those that curse you, and do good to those that hate you. This is\na hard task, and none but those who have the love of Christ in their\nhearts can do it. But if we pray for strength, the strength is sure to\ncome, and love takes the place of hate.\n\nSome folks when they do good deeds like to make a great show and noise,\nthat they may be seen of men, and have much praise from them.\n\nJe-sus told the Twelve that they were to do right, not to please men but\nto please God. When they gave to the poor they were not to tell of it;\nand when they prayed they were not to choose a place where they could be\nseen of men--just to show how good they were--but were to go to their\nroom and shut the door, that no one but God could hear them. Then God\nwould give them what they asked for.\n\nJe-sus taught them how to pray, and what words to use; and these words\neach child ought to learn by heart and use at least twice a day:\n\n\"Our Fa-ther which art in heav-en, Hal-low-ed be thy name. Thy King-dom\ncome. Thy will be done on earth as _it is_ in heav-en. Give us this day\nour dai-ly bread. And for-give us our debts, as we for-give our\ndebt-ors. And lead us not in-to tempt-a-tion, but del-iv-er us from\ne-vil: For thine is the King-dom, and the pow-er, and the glo-ry, for\never. _A-men._\"\n\nWhen they should fast they were not to look sad as those did whose wish\nit was that men should see them fast, but they were to hold up their\nheads and wear a look of cheer that no one but God should know it. And\nGod would bless them for it.\n\nJe-sus said we must not want to be rich or to lay up wealth in this\nworld, for when we die we can-not take it with us. But we should give\nour hearts to thoughts of God, and try to live so that we can share his\nhome, where we shall have more things to please us than all the gold in\nthe world can buy.\n\nJe-sus said that no man could serve God and serve Sa-tan too. We serve\nGod when we do right; and we serve Sa-tan when we do wrong.\n\nSo we can-not do the will of both, and must choose which one we will\nserve.\n\nHe told the Twelve not to judge folks; he meant that they must take care\nhow they found fault, and blamed them. For they may not have done wrong,\nor if they did they may have meant no harm. We can-not see men's hearts,\nor know how they felt at the time they did the deed. But God knows all,\nand may not blame them as much as we do. Je-sus said that we should\nstrive to do right our-selves, and then we should see with clear eyes\nwho did wrong, and have a right to tell them of their faults.\n\nHe said, that what we want men to do to us we must do to them. If we\nwant them to be kind and good and to treat us well, we must do the same\nby them.\n\nHe said, Strive to go in at the strait, or nar-row gate; for wide is the\ngate and broad is the way that leads to death. He meant that the good\nand the bad ways are like two gates in our path, for us to choose which\none we will go through.\n\nThe good way is small and hard to find, and we have to search for it\nwith great care. But the path is one that leads to life and joy.\n\n[Illustration: THE UN-FRUIT-FUL TREE.]\n\nThe bad way is like a broad gate that stands o-pen and in plain sight.\nThis wide gate leads down to hell, and crowds and crowds go that way,\nwhile but few are found in the good way that leads to bliss.\n\nJe-sus said that at the last day some would call him Lord, Lord, and say\nthey had served him and taught as he did. But he would say that he did\nnot know them, for they had bad hearts, and had led lives of sin, and\nwere not fit to dwell with the good and pure in the home on high, where\nall is love.\n\nHe said that men were like trees. Good trees brought forth good fruit;\nbut a bad tree could not bring forth good fruit. And men were to be\nknown by their works, just as a tree was known by its fruits.\n\nThen he spoke of two men, each of whom built a house. One chose to build\non a rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew\nand beat on that house, but it stood firm and the storm did it no harm.\n\nBut one of the men built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and\nthe floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, and it fell\nwith a great crash, and was swept out of sight.\n\nJe-sus said that those who heard his words and did as he told them were\nlike the wise man who built his house on a rock. Christ is our Rock. He\nstands firm. No storms can move him. If we cling to him he will save us.\n\nJe-sus said that those who heard his words and did not do as he taught\nthem, were like the man who built his house on the sand. When the storm\ncame on the last day, when God would judge the world, they would be\nswept out of sight. And oh! what a sad, sad day that will be for all\nthose who have led bad lives, and done not the least thing to please\nGod, who took care of them and gave them all they had.\n\nWe must strive to be good all the time, and to love Je-sus, so that he\nwill be near us, and will take us home to live with him when we die.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VIII.\n\nGOOD WORDS AND GOOD WORKS.\n\n\nTHERE was at Ca-per-na-um a chief who had charge of five score Ro-man\ntroops. And one of his men, who was dear to him, was so sick that he was\nlike to die. When the chief heard that Je-sus was there he sent some of\nhis friends down to ask him to make the sick man well. Those who brought\nthe word to Je-sus were Jews, and they spoke a good word for the chief,\nwho had been kind to them.\n\nThen Je-sus went with them. But as they drew near the chief's house he\nsent some more friends out to tell Je-sus that he had not gone down to\nhim him-self, for he was not good e-nough. And now he sent word that he\nwas not good e-nough for Je-sus to come in-to his house. But if Je-sus\nwould speak the word, he was sure that the sick man would get well.\n\nFor I stand at the head of my troops, said the chief, and say to this\none, Go, and he goes; and to that one, Come, and he comes; and to a\nthird, Do this, and he does it.\n\nAnd he knew that if he could do this Je-sus could do more, and bid all\nthe ills leave the sick man at the sound of his voice.\n\n[Illustration: CHRIST AND THE CEN-TU-RI-ON.]\n\nWhen Je-sus heard these words he was a-mazed, and said to those who were\nwith him, I have found no one who has such faith in me as this Ro-man.\nAnd I tell you that at the last day those who have had faith in me shall\ncome from all lands, and have a place near God's throne; while the Jews,\nwho will not put their trust in me, will be shut out.\n\nAnd when the friends of the chief went back they found the sick man made\nwell.\n\nThe next day Je-sus went to the town of Nain. And a great crowd went\nwith him. And as they came near the gate of the town they saw a dead man\nbrought out to be borne to his grave. He was all the son his mo-ther\nhad, and her friends stood near her and wept with her.\n\nWhen Je-sus saw her grief his heart was sad, and he said, Weep not.\n\n[Illustration: THE WID-OW'S SON BROUGHT TO LIFE.]\n\nAnd he came up to the bier on which the dead lay, and those who bore it\nstood still. Then Je-sus said, Young man, I say to thee a-rise.\n\nAnd he that was dead sat up and spoke. And Je-sus gave him to his\nmo-ther. And a great fear came on all who saw it, and they gave praise\nto God, and said that a great proph-et had been raised up in their\nmidst.\n\nIn old times those who lived in the East did not wear shoes such as we\ndo. They wore light soles, or san-dals, which were bound on their feet\nwith straps, and thrown off as soon as they came in-to the house. Then\nwa-ter was brought for them to wash their feet.\n\nMuch oil was used in those lands, and is to this day. It was put on the\nhair to keep it moist, and on the skin to make it soft and smooth. This\noil, when some-what hard, was called oint-ment, and was kept in a box,\nand had a nice smell.\n\nNow a Phar-i-see, whose name was Si-mon, asked Je-sus to his house. And\nJe-sus went there, and they sat down to eat. And a wo-man of the town,\nwho had led a life of sin, when she heard that Je-sus was there, came in\nwith a box of oint-ment and bowed down at his feet.\n\nShe was full of shame, for her sins had been great, and she had come to\nJe-sus to ask him to for-give her and help her to lead a new life.\n\nShe wept, and washed the feet of Je-sus with her tears, and wiped them\nwith the hairs of her head. And she kissed his feet, and rubbed them\nwith the oint-ment she had brought, and which had cost her a high price.\n\nWhen the Phar-i-see saw it he said to him-self, If this man had come\nfrom God he would know what kind of a wo-man this is, and would send her\nout of his sight.\n\nJe-sus, who knew his every thought, said to him, Si-mon, I have\nsome-thing to say to thee.\n\n[Illustration: WASH-ING HANDS IN THE EAST.]\n\nAnd he said, My lord, say on.\n\nThen Je-sus said, Two men were in debt to a rich man. One owed him a\ngreat deal, while the oth-er owed him but a small sum. But they were\nboth so poor that they could not pay him, and he told them to think no\nmore of the debt, for it would be the same as if they had paid all they\nowed. Tell me now which one of these would love him the most.\n\nThe Phar-i-see said, I should think that he to whom he for-gave the\nmost.\n\nJe-sus said to him, That is true.\n\nAnd he turned to the wo-man and said to Si-mon, See'st thou this wo-man?\nI came to thy house, and thou didst bring me no wa-ter to wash my feet,\nbut she hath washed my feet with her tears and wiped them with the hairs\nof her head. Thou didst give me no kiss, but this wo-man, since the time\nI came in, has not ceased to kiss my feet. My head with oil thou didst\nnot an-oint, but she has poured her oint-ment on my feet. So I say to\nthee that her sins, though so great, will be all wiped out, for she has\nloved me much.\n\nAnd he said to the wo-man, Thy faith has saved thee; go back to thy home\nin peace.\n\nFrom this place Je-sus went on through all the large and small towns,\nand told the good news that God had sent his Son in-to the world to save\nmen from their sins. And the twelve were with him.\n\nJe-sus might have been rich, for all the world was his; but he chose to\nbe poor, and to bear all the ills of life for our sakes, that we might\nbe drawn to him, and be saved from our sins. Good wo-men, whom he had\ncured, gave him such things as he had need of, and he did not lack for\nfood or friends.\n\nJe-sus spoke at times in a strange way. He would take scenes from real\nlife and paint them, as it were, with words, so that they were plain to\nall. These talks were meant to teach great truths that would lodge in\nthe mind, and stand out like scenes of real life. They were to take them\nhome with them, and keep them in their thoughts from day to day.\n\nOne of these talks was of a rich man who had large fields and\nvine-yards. And when it was time for the crops to come in, the rich man\nfound that his barns would not hold them.\n\nAnd he said, What shall I do? for I have no room where I can put my\nfruits. This will I do: I will pull down my small barns and build large\nones, and there will I store all my goods. And I will say to my-self,\nThou hast much goods laid up that will last thee for years and years;\ntake thine ease, eat, drink, and be of good cheer.\n\nBut God said to him, Thou fool, this night thou shalt die. Then who\nshall have those things which thou hast laid up for years to come?\n\nThis was to teach us that it is of no use for men to lay up great wealth\nin this world, for they will have to leave it all when they die. And it\nis a sin for a rich man to spend all that he owns on him-self, to live\nat his ease, and to eat and drink, as if there were no poor in the\nworld, and no God to serve.\n\nJe-sus told the twelve not to fret be-cause they were poor, or to have\nthe least fear that they might want for food, or for clothes to wear.\nThink of the birds, he said. They do not sow seed in the fields, nor\nreap grain and lay it up for use in time of need. They have no\nstore-house or barn, yet they have all the food they want, for God feeds\nthem and takes care of them. And if he does so much for the birds, how\nmuch more will he do for you?\n\nLook at the flow-ers. See how they grow. They do not work, or spin the\nthread to weave in-to cloth as men must do, and yet I say to you that\nKing Sol-o-mon did not wear such rich robes as theirs. If then God gives\nsuch fine clothes to that which grows in the field like grass, and which\nin a day or two is burnt up, how much more will he clothe you, though ye\nare so loth to trust him. So do not fret lest you shall want for things\nto eat, and to drink, and to wear; for God knows that ye have need of\nthese things, and if ye seek first to do his will, he will give all\nthese things to you.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IX.\n\nJESUS AT THE SEA-SHORE.\n\n\nWHILE Je-sus was down by the sea, the crowd grew so great that he went\nin-to a boat and sat down to teach them as they stood on the shore.\n\n[Illustration: THE SOW-ER.]\n\nHe said, A man went out in the field to sow his seed. And as he threw\nthe seed from his hand, some of it fell on the hard path by the\nroad-side, and the birds flew down and ate it. Some fell on the rocks\nand stones where there was not much earth, and it soon grew up on top of\nthe ground. But the sun's warm rays made it droop, and as it had no\nroot, in a few days it was all dried up.\n\nSome of the seed fell where thorns and weeds were, and these took up all\nthe room, so that there was no space for the seed to grow. The air and\nthe sun could not get at it, and soon it was choked to death.\n\nBut some of the seed fell in good ground, that the plough had made soft.\nThe rain fell on it, the sun shone on it, and it sprang up and bore a\nlarge crop of grain.\n\nWhen the crowd had left Je-sus, the twelve came near to ask him what he\nhad meant to teach by this talk of seeds that were sown here and there.\n\nJe-sus told them the seed was the good news that he came to preach.\nThose who preach, or teach, sow good or bad seed, which takes root in\nthe mind or heart.\n\nSome who heard his words would not care for them, but would go on in\ntheir sins and feel no change of heart. New thoughts and fresh scenes\nwould come and eat up the seed-thoughts that Je-sus had sown, as quick\nas the birds ate up the seed sown by the road-side.\n\nSome who heard him thought of his words for a-while, and tried for a\nshort time to do right. But it did not last long. This was the seed that\nfell in the midst of stones, and sprang up at first, but in a few days\nwas all dried up.\n\nSome would hear Je-sus preach, and were glad of the words that he spoke;\nbut the cares of this world, their wealth, and the gay things of life,\nwere so much in their thoughts that they could not do the things he had\ntaught them.\n\nThis was the seed that fell in the midst of thorns, and the thorns grew\nup and choked it.\n\nBut there were some who heard Je-sus preach, and who tried each day to\ndo as he taught them. This was the seed that fell in good ground, which\ntook root and grew and brought forth ten times as much as had been sown.\n\n[Illustration: THE EN-E-MY SOW-ING TARES.]\n\nOne of the talks of Je-sus was of a man who sowed good seed in his\nfield. And while he slept a foe came and sowed tares, or weeds, in the\nmidst of the wheat, and then went on his way. And when it was time for\nthe wheat to grow up, the weeds grew up with it.\n\nAnd when the work-men on the farm saw this, they went at once to the\nman of the house, and said to him, Didst thou not sow good seed in thy\nfield? Where then have these tares come from?\n\nHe said to them, A foe has done this.\n\nThe work-men said, Shall we go out, then, and pull them up by the roots?\n\nAnd he said, No, lest while you pull up the tares you pull up the wheat\nwith them. Let both grow till it is time to reap the grain; and then I\nwill say to the reap-ers, Pull up the tares first and bind them in\nstacks to burn. But put the wheat in my barn.\n\nJe-sus told the twelve what he meant by this talk of the tares of the\nfield.\n\nThe field is the world. He who owns the field and sows the seed, is\nJe-sus him-self. The wheat that grows up means those who hear his words,\nand do as he has taught them.\n\nThe tares are bad men, who have no love for Je-sus.\n\nThe foe that sows them is Sa-tan.\n\nThe time to reap the grain is on the last great day. The reap-ers are\nthe an-gels.\n\nJe-sus will let the good and the bad live in the world till the last\ngreat day. Then he will send his an-gels to take the good to their home\non high, but the bad will be cast out in-to the fire that is to burn up\nthe world.\n\nThen Je-sus spoke of a man who went out to buy pearls. He went from\nplace to place, and those who had pearls to sell brought them out for\nhim to look at, but he was hard to suit, and bought but few. At last he\nfound one that was worth more than all the rest that he had seen. But\nits price was so great that he could not buy it. What did he do? Why, he\nwent and sold all that he had, and came back and bought this pearl of\ngreat price.\n\nSo will it be with those who wish to be rid of their sins, and to be as\npure as a pearl with-in. Je-sus in us is the pearl of great price. Gold\ncan-not buy it. But when we learn its cost we should make haste to get\nrid of all that keeps Christ out of our hearts, and make room for this\none pearl, which is worth more than all else in the world.\n\n[Illustration: SEEK-ING GREAT PEARLS.]\n\nThen Je-sus spoke of those who took their net, and went out in a boat to\ncatch fish. They cast the net out of the boat and threw it in-to the\nsea, and when it was full drew it back to shore. Then they sat down to\nsort the fish; the good ones were put in their boats, and the bad ones\nwere thrown a-way.\n\nSo it would be at the last day. The an-gels would come forth and sort\nthe good from the bad. And the good would be borne to their home on\nhigh, but the bad would be thrown in-to a fire that would make them cry\nout with pain.\n\nJe-sus said, Have I made these things plain to thee? And they said, Yes,\nLord.\n\n[Illustration: PAR-A-BLE OF THE NETS.]\n\nOne of the Scribes came to Je-sus, and said, I will not leave thee; but\nwhere thou dost go I will go. Je-sus said to him, The fox-es have holes,\nand the birds of the air have nests, but I have not where to lay my\nhead. He meant by this that he was poor, and had no place where he\ncould go and lie down when he had need of rest.\n\nNight drew near, and the crowd was so great that Je-sus and the twelve\nwent in a boat to cross the Sea of Gal-i-lee. And there came up a great\nstorm, and the winds blew fierce, and the waves rose high and came with\na great dash in-to the boat.\n\nAnd Je-sus slept, for he was quite worn out. The twelve were full of\nfear; and at last they woke Je-sus, and said, Lord, save us, or we shall\nsink.\n\nThen he rose and spoke to the winds and the waves, and said to them,\nPeace, be still. And the wind ceased to blow, and soon all was still and\ncalm.\n\n[Illustration: STILL-ING THE TEM-PEST.]\n\nAnd Je-sus said to the twelve, Why are ye in such fear? How is it that\nye have no faith?\n\nAs Je-sus left the boat a mad-man came out of the tombs to meet him. He\nwas so fierce that no man could bind him, or tame him. He broke loose\nfrom all the ropes and chains, and no house could hold him. So night and\nday he would roam on the hills and in the caves or tombs, where graves\nhad been dug, and cry out and cut him-self with bits of stones.\n\nAnd while Je-sus was still far off, the mad-man saw him and ran and fell\ndown at his feet. And he cried out, What have I to do with thee, Je-sus,\nthou Son of God? Harm me not, I pray thee.\n\nNow there was there, close by the hills, a great herd of swine. And the\nfiends that were in the man begged Je-sus to send them in-to the swine.\nAnd Je-sus said, Go. And when they came out of the man they went in the\nswine, and the herd ran down a steep place and were drowned in the sea.\n\nAnd they that fed the swine went and told what had been done, and great\ncrowds came to the place where Je-sus was.\n\nAnd when they saw that the mad-man sat with his clothes on and in his\nright mind, they were in great fear. And they prayed Je-sus to leave the\nplace at once.\n\nWhen Je-sus was come in-to the boat, he that had been out of his mind\nbegged that he might go with him. But Je-sus would not let him, and said\nto him, Go home to thy friends, and tell them what great things the Lord\nhath done for thee.\n\nAnd the man went and told how he had been made well, and those who heard\nhim felt that Je-sus must have been sent from God, for no mere man could\ndo such strange things.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER X.\n\nJESUS BRINGS THE DEAD TO LIFE.--FEEDS FIVE THOUSAND.\n\n\nJE-SUS went back to Ca-per-na-um. And as he stood by the sea-shore, one\nof the chief men of the church came to him, whose name was Ja-i-rus.\n\nHe was in deep grief, for he had but one child, a girl twelve years of\nage, and she lay sick at his home and there was no help for her. And he\nsaid to Je-sus, My child lies at the point of death. I pray thee come\nand lay thy hands on her that she may live.\n\nAnd Je-sus went with him, and so did the twelve, and all the crowd that\nhad come up to hear Je-sus preach. And in the throng was a wo-man who\nhad been sick for twelve years. She had spent all she had to try to be\nmade well; but all the drugs she took did her no good, and no one could\nseem to help her case. So she went on from bad to worse.\n\nWhen she heard of Je-sus she came up with the crowd at his back, and put\nout her hand and touched the hem of his robe. For, she said, if I may\ntouch but his clothes I shall be made well. And as soon as she had done\nthis she felt that she was cured.\n\nAll this was known to Je-sus, and yet he faced the crowd and said, Who\ntouched me?\n\nPe-ter said that some one in the throng had been pushed up close to him\nand thought it strange that Je-sus did not know it.\n\nJe-sus said, Someone touched me, and he looked round to see who had done\nit.\n\nWhen the wo-man saw that Je-sus knew all, and that she could not hide\nfrom him, she shook with fear, and fell down at his feet, and told him\nwhy she had touched him, and how that touch had made her well.\n\nJe-sus said to her, Be of good cheer. Thy faith in me hath made thee\nwell.\n\nWhile he yet spoke to her, there came one from the house of Ja-i-rus,\nwho said to him, Thy child is dead.\n\nWhen Je-sus heard it he said, Fear not. Trust in me and she shall be\nmade well. And when he came to the house, he found a great crowd there,\nwho wept and mourned the loss of the young child.\n\nJe-sus said to them, Why do you weep? She sleeps; she is not dead.\n\nHe meant that she would soon rise from the dead, as one who wakes out of\nhis sleep.\n\nBut they saw that she was dead, and as they had no faith in his words\nthey laughed him to scorn.\n\nThen he put them all out of the room save three of the twelve--Pe-ter,\nJames, and John--and the fa-ther and mo-ther of the young girl. Then he\ntook the child by the hand and said, I say to thee a-rise. And she rose\nfrom her bed, and had strength to walk, and Je-sus bade them bring her\nsome food that she might eat.\n\n[Illustration: CUR-ED BY TOUCH-ING HIS GAR-MENT.]\n\nAnd her fa-ther and mo-ther knew not what to think of these strange\nthings. Je-sus bade them tell no one of what he had done, and there was\nno need for them to speak. For there was their child, well and strong,\nonce more the light and joy of their house, and their hearts must have\nbeen full of thanks and praise to God!\n\n[Illustration: THE DAU-GHTER OF JA-I-RUS.]\n\nWhen Je-sus went from the house of Ja-i-rus two blind men came near him\nand cried out, Thou Son of Da-vid have mer-cy on us. They said this\nbe-cause they knew that he was of King Da-vid's race.\n\nJe-sus said to them, Do you think that I can make you well? They said to\nhim, Yes, Lord.\n\nThen he touched their eyes, and at once their sight came back to them.\nAnd he said to them, Tell no man what I have done to you. But when they\nleft him they went from place to place and told all whom they met how\nJe-sus had brought back their sight.\n\nAnd they brought to him a dumb man who could not speak be-cause of the\nfiend that was in him. And as soon as Je-sus cast out the fiend the man\nspoke. And all those who saw it were in a maze, and said, Such things as\nthese have not been done be-fore in the land of Is-ra-el.\n\n[Illustration: THE TWO BLIND MEN.]\n\nBut the Phar-i-sees felt such hate for Je-sus that they said that he\ncould cast out fiends be-cause he had the help of Sa-tan, the prince of\nall fiends.\n\nJe-sus said to the twelve, Come, let us go to some lone place and rest a\nwhile. For the crowds were so great that they had no time to eat. And\nthey went in a boat quiet-ly to cross the Sea of Gal-i-lee, where they\nmight rest and take the food they were so much in need of. But as soon\nas the folks heard of it they set out on foot and went round by the\nshore till they came to the place where Je-sus was.\n\nAnd when Je-sus went out and saw them, his heart was moved, and he\ntaught them, and made the sick ones well.\n\nWhen night came on, the twelve said to Je-sus, Send these off that they\nmay go to the towns and buy food for them-selves, for they have nought\nto eat.\n\nJe-sus said, They need not go. Give you them some-thing to eat.\n\nThey said, Shall we go out and buy bread and give it to them?\n\nJe-sus said, How much have you? Go and see.\n\nWhen they knew they said, We have five loaves and two small fish-es.\n\nJe-sus bade the twelve have the crowd seat them-selves in rows on the\ngreen grass. Then he took the five loaves and the two fish-es, and gave\nthanks to God for them. And he broke the loaves, and the fish-es, and\nthe twelve gave them piece by piece to the crowd, till all had had their\nfill.\n\nWhen the feast was at an end there was e-nough bread and fish left to\nfill twelve bas-kets.\n\nThen Je-sus bade the twelve dis-ci-ples get in-to the boat and go back\nto Ca-per-na-um.\n\nAnd when the crowd had left him he went up on a high hill to pray. And\nwhen night came on he was there with none but God near him.\n\nThe twelve were in the boat, out in the midst of the sea.\n\nTheir oars were of no use, for the wind blew hard the wrong way, and\ndrove them back from their course, and made the waves toss the boat here\nand there.\n\nJe-sus could see it all from his high place on the hill, and in the\nnight he went down to the shore and walked out on the sea.\n\nWhen the twelve saw him they were in a great fright, for they thought it\nwas a ghost, and they cried out in their fear.\n\nJe-sus said, Be of good cheer. It is I.\n\n[Illustration: FEED-ING THE MUL-TI-TUDE.]\n\nPe-ter spoke from the boat, and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come\nto thee on the sea. Je-sus said to him, Come, and Pe-ter came out of the\nboat and walked on the waves to go to Je-sus. But when he heard the\nnoise of the wind, and saw the waves dash all round him, he was in\ngreat fear; and as he felt him-self sink he cried out, Lord, save me.\n\n[Illustration: PE-TER WALK-ING ON THE WA-TER.]\n\n\nJe-sus put forth his hand and caught him, and said to him, O thou of\nlit-tle faith, why didst thou doubt me?\n\nWhen Je-sus and Pe-ter came in-to the boat the wind was still, and the\ntwelve were soon on the shore they had set out to reach. Then they fell\nat his feet, and said, It is true that thou art the Son of God.\n\n[Illustration: CHRIST WALK-ING ON THE SEA.]\n\nAs soon as it was known where Je-sus was, crowds came from all the towns\nthat were near, and brought their sick in their beds that he might\nmake them well. And when he went through the large and small towns\nthey laid the sick in the streets, and begged that they might touch but\nthe hem of his robe. And at a touch they were all made well.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XI.\n\nJESUS HEALS THE SICK.--HIS FORM CHANGED ON THE MOUNT.\n\n\nJE-SUS went to Ca-per-na-um and taught the Jews there. But all that he\nsaid made them hate him the more, and their chief priests did all they\ncould to prove that he was not the Christ who was to save them. They\nthought that he who was to be the King of the Jews would come in rich\nrobes, and with all the signs of high rank. So they would have naught to\ndo with a poor man like Je-sus.\n\nIt made Je-sus sad to have the Jews turn from him, and he left them, and\nwent out to the towns of Tyre and Si-don, which were on the sea-coast.\nAnd no Jews dwelt there.\n\nYet a wo-man, as soon as she heard he was there, came out and cried to\nhim, O Lord, thou Son of Da-vid, come and heal my child, for she has\ngone mad.\n\n[Illustration: THE AS-CEN-SION.]\n\nJe-sus said he was sent to none but the Jews. This he did to try her\nfaith, for she was not a Jew.\n\nBut she fell at his feet, and cried out, Lord help me!\n\n[Illustration: SI-DON.]\n\nJe-sus said to her, Great is thy faith; thy child is made well.\n\nAnd when she went back to her house she found her child had been made\nwell at the same hour that she spoke to Je-sus.\n\nThen Je-sus and the twelve went down near the Sea of Gal-i-lee once\nmore. And they brought to Je-sus a man that was deaf, and who could not\nspeak plain, that he might lay his hands on him and heal him.\n\nJe-sus took him out of the crowd, and touched his ears and tongue, and\nat once the man was made well, so that he could both hear and speak.\n\nAnd crowds came to him, and brought those that were lame, blind, and\ndumb, and laid them down at the feet of Je-sus, that he might heal them.\nAnd Je-sus healed them all, so that the crowds were in a maze when they\nsaw the dumb speak, the lame walk, and the blind see; and they gave\npraise and thanks to God for what he had done.\n\nAt the end of six days Je-sus took Pe-ter, James, and John, and went up\non a high mount to pray. And while he was there a great change took\nplace in him. His face shone as the sun, and his clothes were as white\nas snow, and the light shone through them.\n\nAnd Mo-ses and E-li-jah came to him, and spoke with him.\n\nPe-ter said, Lord, it is good for us to be here. Let us make three\ntents, one for thee, and one for Mo-ses, and one for E-li-jah.\n\nWhile he yet spoke there came a bright cloud, out of which a voice spoke\nand said, This is my dear Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear ye him.\n\nWhen Pe-ter, James, and John heard it, they bowed down to the ground,\nand were in great fear.\n\nJe-sus came and touched them, and said, Rise. Fear not. And when they\nraised their eyes they saw no one but Je-sus.\n\nAs they came down from the mount, Je-sus bade them tell no one what they\nhad seen till he rose from the dead.\n\n[Illustration: PE-TER AND THE TRIB-UTE MON-EY.]\n\nThe next day, when they had come down from the mount, there was a great\ncrowd to see Je-sus. And one man knelt at his feet and said, Lord, help\nmy son, for he has fits, and the fiends in him vex him so that he falls\nin the fire and in the wa-ter. I took him to those whom thou hast taught\nto heal, to see if they could cure him; and they could not.\n\nJe-sus said, Bring him to me. And they brought him; and he fell on the\nground and foamed at the mouth.\n\nJe-sus said to the fiend that was in the young man, Come out of him and\nvex him no more.\n\nAnd the fiend cried with a loud voice, and shook the young man, and came\nout of him, but left him weak, like one dead. And those who stood near\nthought he was dead. But Je-sus took him by the hand and raised him, and\nhe stood on his feet and was well from that hour.\n\nThen Je-sus and the twelve went to Ca-per-na-um. And when they were in\nthe house Je-sus said, Why were ye at such strife in your talk on the\nway?\n\nAnd for shame they held their peace, for their talk had been as to which\nshould have the high-est place in the realm where Je-sus was to reign as\nKing of the Jews.\n\nWhen they had sat down Je-sus said to the twelve, He who seeks to be\nfirst shall be last of all.\n\nAnd he took a child and set it in the midst of them, and told them that\nthey must put pride out of their hearts and be as meek as a child. For\nhe who thought not of him-self, but did God's will as a child does the\nwill of its fa-ther, the same should be great in the realm which Je-sus\nwas to set up.\n\nJe-sus taught there for some time, and then set out for Je-ru-sa-lem.\nAnd the twelve went with him.\n\nWhen they were come to Ca-per-na-um, those that took in the trib-ute\nmon-ey came to Pe-ter and said, Doth not your mas-ter pay trib-ute.\n\nThis was the tax the Jews had to pay to Ce-sar as the price of peace.\n\nPe-ter said, Yes. And when he came in-to the house Je-sus met him and\nsaid.\n\nOf whom do the kings of the earth take cus-tom or trib-ute? of their own\nchil-dren or of stran-gers?\n\nPe-ter said, Of stran-gers.\n\nJe-sus said, Then are the chil-dren free. But lest we should give cause\nfor blame, go thou to the sea, and cast a hook, and take up the fish\nthat first comes up. In its mouth thou shalt find a piece of mon-ey.\nTake that and give it to them for me and thee.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XII.\n\nTHE GOOD SAMARITAN.--MARTHA AND MARY.--THE MAN BORN BLIND.\n\n\nJE-SUS went to the great church in Je-ru-sa-lem, and the Jews came there\nin crowds to hear him preach, and to find fault with him.\n\nAnd a man of law stood up and said, What must I do to be saved? Je-sus\nsaid to him, What does the law say? How dost thou read it? The man of\nlaw said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with\nall thy soul, and with all thy strength, and thy neigh-bor as thy-self.\n\nJe-sus said to him, That is right. Do this, and thou shalt be saved.\n\nThe man of law said, Who is my neigh-bor? Then Je-sus spoke in this way,\nand said, A man went down from Je-ru-sa-lem to Je-ri-cho. And the\nthieves fell on him, tore off his clothes and beat him, then went on\ntheir way and left him half dead on the ground.\n\nBy chance there came a priest that way, and when he saw the poor man he\nwent by him on the oth-er side of the road.\n\nThen one of the tribe of Le-vi came to the place, and took a look at the\npoor man, and went by on the oth-er side of the road.\n\nBy and by a Sa-mar-i-tan--that is, a man from Sa-ma-ri-a--came that way,\nand as soon as he saw the poor man on the ground his heart was moved,\nand he made haste to help him.\n\nNow the Jews did not like the Sa-mar-i-tans, and would have nought to do\nwith them. And those to whom Je-sus spoke would not have thought it\nstrange if this man from Sa-ma-ri-a had left the Jew to die by the\nroad-side.\n\nBut this he could not do, for he had a kind heart. He went to the poor\nman and bound up his wounds, and set him on his own beast, and brought\nhim to an inn, and took care of him.\n\nAnd the next day when he left he took out two pence and gave them to the\nhost, and said to him, Take care of him; and if thou hast need to spend\nmore than that, when I come back I will pay thee.\n\nWhich now of these three dost thou think was neigh-bor to him who fell\na-mong thieves?\n\n[Illustration: THE GOOD SAM-AR-I-TAN.]\n\nAnd the man of law said, He that was kind to him.\n\nThen said Je-sus, Go, and do thou like-wise; that is, to those who need\nhelp go and do as the Sa-mar-i-tan did.\n\nJe-sus came to Beth-a-ny--a small place near Je-ru-sa-lem--and a wo-man,\nwhose name was Mar-tha, asked him to come to her house. She had a\nsis-ter, whose name was Ma-ry, and while Mar-tha went to get things and\nto cook, and sweep, and dust, Ma-ry sat down at the feet of Je-sus to\nhear him talk.\n\nThis did not please Mar-tha, who felt that she had too much work to do;\nso she came to Je-sus and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sis-ter\nhath left me to do the work a-lone? Bid her there-fore come and help me.\n\nJe-sus said to her, Mar-tha, Mar-tha, thou art full of care and vexed\na-bout more things than there is need of. There is need of but one\nthing, and Ma-ry hath made choice of that which is good, and no one\nshall take it from her.\n\nHe meant that Ma-ry chose to care for her soul, and to be taught how to\nlive in this world, so that she might fit her-self for the next one. And\nthe one thing we all need is a new heart, full of love to Je-sus and\nglad to do his work.\n\nOne of the twelve said to Je-sus, Teach us how to pray, as John taught\nthose who were with him. Je-sus taught them to pray thus:\n\nOur Fa-ther, who art in heav-en, Hal-low-ed be thy name, Thy king-dom\ncome, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heav-en, Give us this day\nour dai-ly bread, and for-give us our debts as we for-give our debt-ors.\nLead us not in-to temp-ta-tion but de-liv-er us from e-vil, for thine is\nthe king-dom, the pow-er, and the glo-ry, both now and for-ev-er. A-men.\n\n[Illustration: MA-RY AND MAR-THA.]\n\nThen he said, Which of you shall have a friend and shall go to him at\nmid-night and say to him, Friend, lend me three loaves: for a friend of\nmine has come a long way to see me, and I have no food for him.\n\nAnd he who is in-side shall say, The door is now shut, and my chil-dren\nare with me in bed; I can-not rise and give thee.\n\nI say to you, though he will not rise and give him be-cause he is his\nfriend, yet if he keeps on and begs hard he will rise and give him as\nmuch as he needs. And I say to you, Ask God for what you need and he\nwill give it to you. Seek and ye shall find. Knock, and the door that is\nshut will o-pen for you.\n\nFor, he said, if a child of yours should ask for bread, would you give\nhim a stone? or should he ask for a fish, would you give him a snake? If\nye then, who are full of sin, know how to give good gifts to your\nchil-dren, how much more sure is it that God will give good things to\nthose who ask him.\n\nJe-sus chose three-score and ten more men and sent them out, two and\ntwo, in-to all the towns where he meant to come, that they might heal\nthe sick and preach the good news. And they did as he told them, and\ncame back full of joy at the great things they had done through the\nstrength that he gave them. Je-sus told them that they should feel more\njoy that their names were set down in the Book of Life--God's\nbook--where he keeps the names of all those who love him, and do his\nwill on earth.\n\n[Illustration: THE SEND-ING OUT OF THE SEV-EN-TY.]\n\nThe Feast of Tents was near at hand, and Je-sus said to the twelve, Go\nye up to this feast, but I will not go now, for my time has not yet\ncome. So he staid in Gal-i-lee for a-while. Then he went up to\nJe-ru-sa-lem, but did not make him-self known lest the Jews should kill\nhim.\n\nThe Jews sought for him at the feast, and said, Where is he? And there\nwas much talk of him. Some said, He is a good man; and some said, No, he\nis a fraud. But no one dared to speak well of him out loud for fear of\nthe Jews.\n\nIn the midst of the feast Je-sus went up in-to the church and taught\nthere. And he said, Ye both know me, and ye know from whence I came. I\nam not come to please my-self, but to do the will of him that sent me,\nwhom ye know not. But I know him, for I have come from him, and he hath\nsent me.\n\nThen they made a rush for him, but no man laid hands on him, for his\nhour had not yet come. God had set the time for him to die, and no one\ncould harm him till that day and hour.\n\nAs he came from the church he saw a man who had been blind from his\nbirth. Je-sus spat on the ground and made clay of the moist earth, and\nspread the clay on the eyes of the blind man.\n\nThen he told him to go and wash in a pool that was near. And he went,\nand did as he was told, and his sight came back to him.\n\nAnd his friends, and those who had seen him when he was blind, said, Is\nnot this he that sat and begged?\n\nSome said, This is he; and some said, He is like him; but the man said,\nI am he.\n\nThen they said to him, How were thine eyes cured?\n\nAnd he said, A man, by the name of Je-sus, made clay and spread it on my\neyes, and said to me, Go to the pool of Si-lo-am and wash; and I went\nand did so, and my sight came back to me.\n\nThen they said to him, Where is he? He said, I know not.\n\n[Illustration: \"ONCE I WAS BLIND, BUT NOW I SEE.\"]\n\nIt was on the day of rest that Je-sus made the clay, and the\nPhar-i-sees, when they heard of it, said, This man is not of God, for he\ndoes not keep the day of rest. And they went to the fa-ther and the\nmo-ther of the man who had been blind, and said to them, Is this your\nson, who ye say was born blind? How then doth he now see?\n\nHis pa-rents said, We know that this is our son, and that he was born\nblind; but by what means he now sees, or who hath cured his eyes, we\nknow not. He is of age, ask him; he shall speak for him-self.\n\nThey spoke thus for fear of the Jews; for the Jews had made it known\nthat all those who said that Je-sus was the Christ should be put out of\nthe church. So they said, He is of age; ask him.\n\nThen the Phar-i-sees went to the man that was blind, and said to him,\nGive God the praise, for we know that this man is a man of sin.\n\nHe said to them, What he is I know not; but this I do know, that once I\nwas blind, but now I see.\n\nThen they said to him, What did he do to thee? How did he cure thine\neyes?\n\nThe man said, I have told you be-fore, and ye did not hear. Why would ye\nhear me say it once more? Would ye be of his band?\n\nThen they spoke harsh words to him, and said, Thou dost take sides with\nhim, but we stand by Mo-ses. We know that God spoke to Mo-ses; but as\nfor this fel-low, we know not who sent him.\n\nThe man said, It is strange that ye know not who sent him, when he has\nbrought sight to my blind eyes. Since the world was made we have not\nheard of a man who could give sight to one that was born blind. If this\nman were not of God he could not have done this thing.\n\nThe Phar-i-sees were full of wrath, and said to the man, Thou hast dwelt\nin sin from thy birth, and wilt thou try to teach us? And they drove him\nout of the church.\n\nJe-sus heard of it, and when he found the man he said to him, Have you\nfaith in the son of God?\n\nHe said, Who is he, Lord, that I may put my trust in him?\n\nJe-sus said, It is he that talks with thee.\n\nThe man said, Lord, I know that it must be so; and he fell at the feet\nof Je-sus, and gave praise to him.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIII.\n\nJESUS, THE GOOD SHEPHERD.--LAZARUS BROUGHT TO LIFE.--THE FEAST, AND\nTHOSE WHO WERE BID TO IT.\n\n\nJE-SUS said to those whom he taught, I am the good shep-herd. The good\nshep-herd will give his life for the sheep. But he that is hired, and\nwho does not own the sheep, when he sees the wolf will leave the sheep\nand run to save his own life. Then the wolf lays hold of the sheep, and\nputs the flock to flight. He who is hired flees from the sheep, be-cause\nhe does not care for them.\n\nI am the good shep-herd and know my sheep, and my sheep know me. And I\nwill lay down my life for the sheep.\n\nSome sheep I have which are not of this fold; they too must I bring in,\nand they shall hear my voice, and there shall be one fold, and one\nshep-herd.\n\nThe Jews found fault with his words, and some said, He talks like a\nmad-man.\n\nAs Je-sus went out on the porch at one side of the great church that\nHe-rod built, the Jews came round him and said, How long wilt thou keep\nus in doubt? If thou be the Christ, tell us so in plain words.\n\nJe-sus said, I told you, and ye had no faith in me. The works that I do,\nin God's name, are proof that I am sent from him. But ye do not trust me\nbe-cause ye are not my sheep. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them,\nand they go the way I lead. They shall not be lost, and no one shall\ntake them from me. For God gave them to me, and no one can take them out\nof his hand. I and my Fa-ther are one.\n\nThen the Jews took up stones to stone him, be-cause he said that he was\nGod.\n\nBut he fled from them, and went out of Je-ru-sa-lem to a place near the\nJor-dan, where crowds came to hear him, and to be taught of him. And not\na few gave their hearts to Je-sus, and sought to lead new lives; to do\nright and to be good.\n\n\n[Illustration: THE LOST SHEEP.]\n\nMa-ry and Mar-tha, who lived at Beth-a-ny, had a bro-ther whose name was\nLaz-a-rus, and he was sick. So his sis-ters sent word to Je-sus, but\nthough he was fond of these friends at Beth-a-ny he made no haste to go\nto them, but staid two days in the place where he was.\n\nThen he said to the twelve, Let us go back to Beth-a-ny, for my friend\nLaz-a-rus sleeps, and I must go and wake him.\n\nHe meant that Laz-a-rus was dead, and that he must go and bring him back\nto life.\n\nBut the twelve thought that he meant that Laz-a-rus slept, as we do when\nwe take our rest.\n\nNow Beth-a-ny was near Je-ru-sa-lem, and a crowd of Jews had gone there\nto weep with Ma-ry and Mar-tha. As soon as Mar-tha heard that Je-sus was\nnear she ran out to meet him; but Ma-ry sat still in the house. And\nMar-tha said to Je-sus, If thou hadst been here my bro-ther would not\nhave died. But I know that e-ven now what thou wilt ask of God he will\ngive it thee.\n\nJe-sus said to her, Thy bro-ther shall rise a-gain.\n\nMar-tha said, I know that he shall rise at the last day.\n\nThen Mar-tha went back to the house and said to Ma-ry, The mas-ter has\ncome and asks for thee.\n\nMa-ry rose at once and went out to meet him; and those who saw her leave\nthe house, said, She goes to the grave to weep there.\n\nAs soon as Ma-ry came to the place where Je-sus was, she fell at his\nfeet and said, Lord, if thou hadst been here my bro-ther had not died.\n\nWhen Je-sus saw her tears, and the tears of those who wept with her, he\nwas full of grief, and said, Where have ye laid him?\n\nThey said, Lord, come and see.\n\nJe-sus wept. And when the Jews saw it they said, See how he loved him.\nAnd some of them said, Could not this man, who gave the blind their\nsight, have saved Laz-a-rus from death?\n\nJe-sus came to the grave. It was a cave, and a stone lay at the mouth of\nit.\n\nJe-sus said, Take a-way the stone. Mar-tha said to him, By this time he\nmust be in a bad state, for he has been dead four days.\n\nJe-sus said to her, Did I not tell thee that if thou hadst faith thou\nshould see what great things God could do?\n\nThen they took the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And\nJe-sus cried out with a loud voice, Laz-a-rus, come forth.\n\n[Illustration: LAZ-A-RUS RAISED FROM THE DEAD.]\n\nAnd he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot in his grave\nclothes, and with his head tied up in a cloth. Je-sus said, Loose him\nand let him go.\n\nAnd some of the Jews who came to be with Ma-ry and Mar-tha, and saw\nthis great thing which Je-sus did, had faith in him that he was the son\nof God. But some of them went to the Phar-i-sees and told what he had\ndone.\n\nAnd the Phar-i-sees and chief priests met to talk of Je-sus and his\ndeeds. They said it would not do to let him go on in this way, for he\nwould raise up a host of friends who would make him their king. That\nwould not please the Ce-sar of Rome, who would come and take\nJe-ru-sa-lem from them, and drive the Jews out of the land.\n\nSo from that time they sought out some way in which they could put\nJe-sus to death.\n\nAs Je-sus went out of the church where he had taught on the Lord's day,\nhe saw a wo-man all bent up in a heap. She had been so for near a score\nof years, and could not lift her-self up.\n\nJe-sus said to her, Wo-man, thou art made well. And he laid his hands on\nher, and she rose at once, and stood up straight, and gave thanks to\nGod.\n\nAnd the chief man of the church was wroth with Je-sus, be-cause he had\ndone this deed on the day of rest. He said to those in the church, There\nare six days in which men ought to work; if you want to be cured come\nthen, and not on the day of rest.\n\nJe-sus spoke, and said, Doth not each one of you loose his ox or his ass\nfrom the stall and lead him off to drink? And if it is right to do for\nthe ox and the ass what they need, is it not right that this wom-an\nshould be made well on the day of rest?\n\n[Illustration: THE GREAT SUP-PER.]\n\nAnd when he said this his foes hung their heads with shame, and all his\nfriends were glad for the great deeds that were done by him.\n\nOne Lord's day he went to the house of one of the chief Phar-i-sees, and\nwhile there he spoke of a man who made a great feast.\n\nAnd when it was all spread out, he sent his ser-vant out to bid those\ncome in whom he had asked to the feast.\n\nAnd they all cried out that they could not come. The first one said, I\nhave bought a piece of ground, and must go and see it; so pray do not\nlook for me.\n\nThe next one said, I have bought five yoke of ox-en, and must go and try\nthem; so pray do not look for me.\n\nThe next one said, I have just ta-ken a wife, and so can-not come.\n\nSo the ser-vant came back to the house and told his mas-ter these\nthings. Then the rich man was in a rage, and he said to his ser-vant,\nMake haste and go out through the streets and lanes of the town, and\nbring in the poor, the lame, and the halt and the blind.\n\nAnd the ser-vant did as he was told. Then he came and said, Lord, I\nhave done as thou didst bid me, and yet there is room for more.\n\nThe lord of the house then said, Go out through the high-ways, and down\nby the hedge-rows, and make the folks come in, that my house may be\nfull; for none of those who were first called shall taste of my feast.\n\nThe man who spreads the feast is God. The feast is the good news--that\nChrist will save us from our sins. The ser-vant means those who preach,\nand urge men to come to Christ. Those who were first bid to the feast\nand would not come mean the Jews. And to bid the poor, the lame, and the\nblind come in-to the feast, means that the poor and the sick are to be\nsaved as well as the rich and the great.\n\nGreat crowds drew near to Je-sus, and he told them that though they\nmight come and hear him preach, if they did not care for him in their\nhearts they were not true friends, and could not be of his band. They\nmust care more for him than for all else in the whole world; and must\nbear his cross--that is, they must do what is right, as Je-sus did.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIV.\n\nTHE PRODIGAL SON.--THE PHARISEE AND THE PUBLICAN.--BABES BROUGHT TO\nJESUS.--ZACCHEUS CLIMBS A TREE.\n\n\nJE-SUS said, There was a rich man who had two sons. One of them was\nwild, and fond of feasts and of gay times, and did not care for his\nhome, or the life that he led there. So he went to his fa-ther and said,\nGive me, I pray thee, my share of the wealth thou hast laid up for thine\nheirs, that I may spend it as I choose. And he took his share, and went\nfar from home, and led a gay life.\n\nAnd when he had spent all he had, there came a dearth in that land, and\nhe was in great want.\n\nThat he might not starve, he went out in search of work, and a man hired\nhim, and sent him in the fields to feed swine. And so great was his need\nof some-thing to eat that he would have been glad to have had some of\nthe coarse food with which the swine were fed, but none of the men gave\nit to him.\n\nThen he said to him-self, The men my fa-ther hires have more food than\nthey can eat, while I starve for want of what they can well spare. I\nwill rise and go to my fa-ther, and will say to him, Fa-ther, I have\ndone wrong in thy sight, and in the sight of God, and have no more right\nto be called thy son. Let me come back to thy house, and be as a\nser-vant.\n\nSo he rose and went to his fa-ther. And while he was yet a long way off\nhis fa-ther saw him, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.\n\nAnd the son said to him, Fa-ther I have done wrong in thy sight, and in\nthe sight of God, and have no more right to be called thy son.\n\nBut the fa-ther said to his hired men, Bring forth the best robe and put\nit on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. And bring\nin the fat-ted calf, and kill it, and let us eat and be glad. For this\nmy son was dead, and now lives; he was lost and is found. And tears and\nsighs gave place to smiles and songs of joy.\n\n[Illustration: THE PROD-I-GAL'S RE-TURN.]\n\nNow the son who had staid at home and kept his share of wealth that his\nfa-ther gave him, was at work in the field. And as he came near the\nhouse he heard the gay sounds, and called one of the hired men to him\nand asked what it all meant.\n\nThe man said, Thy broth-er is here, and thy fa-ther has made a feast, so\ngreat is his joy to have him back safe and sound. And the young man was\nin a rage, and would not go in the house; so his fa-ther came out and\ncoaxed him.\n\nAnd he said to his fa-ther, For years and years have I been true to thee\nand broke none of thy laws. But thou didst not kill a kid for me that I\nmight make a feast for my friends. But as soon as this thy son was come,\nwho spent thy wealth in ways of sin, thou didst kill the fat-ted calf\nfor him.\n\nAnd the fa-ther said, My son, I have loved thee all thy life, and all\nthat I own is the same as if it was thine; yet it was right that we\nshould be glad and sing songs of joy, for this thy broth-er was dead and\nnow lives; he was lost and is found.\n\nIn this way Je-sus taught those who found fault with him, that God was\nglad to have men turn from their sins and come back to him. He loved\nthem in spite of their sins, and when they made up their minds to leave\nthem, and to do what was right, God met them more than half way, and\ngave peace and joy to their hearts.\n\nA prod-i-gal is one who wastes all that he has.\n\nThen Je-sus spoke to those who were proud, and felt as if no one else\nwas quite as good as they were. And he said, Two men went up in-to the\nchurch to pray. One of them--a Phar-i-see--chose a place where all could\nsee him; and he stood up and said, God I thank thee that I am not like\noth-er men. I fast twice a week, and I give to the aid of the church a\ntenth part of all I own.\n\n[Illustration: THE PHAR-I-SEE.]\n\nBut the oth-er man stood far off, and bowed his head, and beat on his\nbreast as he said, God help me, and for-give my sins. And God for-gave\nthis man more than he did the oth-er, for those that are proud shall be\nbrought low, and those who are meek shall be set in a high place.\n\nThen babes were brought to Je-sus that he might lay his hands on them\nand bless them. And when the twelve saw it, they tried to keep them\nback, and would have sent them a-way.\n\nThis did not please Je-sus, and he said to them, Let the chil-dren come\nto me, and do not hold them back, for of such is the king-dom of God.\n\nHe meant that no one could have a home with God who was not as good, and\nsweet, and pure as a young child, who hates sin, and loves God with his\nwhole heart. Then Je-sus took the babes up in his arms, and laid his\nhands on them, and blest them.\n\nAnd as he and the twelve went on their way, Je-sus told them that they\nwere to go to Je-ru-sa-lem that those things might be done to him of\nwhich the seers and proph-ets spoke. He said that the Jews would beat\nhim and put him to death, but that he should rise from the dead on the\nthird day.\n\nNone of the twelve knew what he meant by these things, but thought he\nwould set up his throne on earth, and reign as kings do in this world,\nand that each one of them would have a place of high rank near his\nthrone.\n\n[Illustration: \"SUF-FER LIT-TLE CHIL-DREN TO COME UN-TO ME.\"]\n\nWhen it was known that they were to pass through Jer-i-cho a great crowd\ncame out to meet them. And there was a rich man there who had a great\nwish to see Je-sus. And his name was Zac-che-us. He was so small that he\nwas quite hid by the crowd, and he was in great fear that Je-sus would\npass and he not see him. So he ran on a-head of the crowd; and got up\nin-to a tree, from whence he could look down at this great man of whom\nhe had heard.\n\nAnd when Je-sus came to the place he raised his eyes and saw him, and\nsaid to him, Zac-che-us, make haste and come down, for to-day I must\nstay at thy house.\n\nAnd Zac-che-us came down and went with Je-sus, and was glad to have him\nas a guest. And there was quite a stir in the crowd, and the Jews found\nfault with Je-sus, and said that he had gone to be a guest with a man\nthat was full of sin.\n\nBut Zac-che-us told Je-sus that if he had done wrong he would do so no\nmore, but would try to be just to all men and to lead a good and pure\nlife.\n\nAnd when Je-sus saw that he meant what he said, he told Zac-che-us that\nGod would blot out the sins of the past, and help him to lead a new\nlife. For he said that he had come to the world to seek those who had\ngone wrong, and were like lost sheep, and to save them and bring them\nto his home in the sky, where there was no such thing as sin or death.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XV.\n\nTHE FEAST OF THE PASSOVER.--THE SUPPER AT BETHANY.\n\n\nNOW the great feast of the Pass-o-ver was near, and a great crowd of\nJews went up to Je-ru-sa-lem to keep it. It had been kept since the days\nof Mo-ses, when God smote the first-born of E-gypt, and passed o-ver the\nhomes of the Jews.\n\nAnd those who were on the watch for Je-sus to do him harm, said, as they\nstood in the church, What think ye? will he not come to the feast? For\nthe chief priests and Phar-i-sees had sent out word that those who knew\nwhere Je-sus was should make it known, that they might take him.\n\nNow six days be-fore the great feast, Je-sus came to Beth-a-ny, where\nLaz-a-rus was whom he had raised from the dead. Some of the Jews knew\nthat he was there, and they came not so much to see Je-sus as to see\nLaz-a-rus.\n\nAnd the chief priests sought for a way to put Laz-a-rus to death, as\nsome of the Jews, when they saw him had faith in Je-sus, and gave their\nhearts to him.\n\nJe-sus left Beth-a-ny to go to Je-ru-sa-lem, and on the way the mo-ther\nof Zeb-e-dee's chil-dren came to Je-sus and begged that he would do one\nthing for her.\n\nJe-sus said to her, What wilt thou? She said to him, Grant that these my\ntwo sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the oth-er on thy left,\nin thy king-dom.\n\nJe-sus said, Ye know not what ye ask. Can ye drink of the cup that I\ndrink of, and bear all that I shall have to bear? They said, We can.\nJe-sus said, Ye shall drink of the cup, and bear the cross, but to sit\non my right hand and on my left is not mine to give; but God gives it to\nthose who are fit for it.\n\nWhen the ten heard this they were wroth with James and John. But Je-sus\ntold them that those who sought to rule would be made to serve, and that\nhe him-self came not to be served by men but to lay down his life for\nthem.\n\n[Illustration: CHRIST AND THE MOTH-ER OF ZEB-E-DEE's CHIL-DREN.]\n\nAnd when they came to the Mount of Ol-ives, Je-sus sent two of the\ntwelve, and said to them, Go to the small town which is near you, and\nyou shall find there a colt tied, on which no man has rode. Loose him,\nand bring him to me, and if you should be asked, Why do ye this? Say\nthat the Lord hath need of him, and he will be sent at once.\n\nThe men did as Je-sus told them, and brought the young ass and put their\nrobes on his back, and Je-sus sat on him.\n\nAnd as he went out on the road the crowds on their way to the feast\nspread their robes be-fore him, and strewed the way with green boughs\nfrom the palm trees. And they waved palms in their hands, and made the\nair ring with shouts of, Ho-san-na to the son of Da-vid! Blest is he\nthat comes in the name of the Lord! Ho-san-na in the high-est!\n\n[Illustration: CHIL-DREN IN THE TEM-PLE CRY-ING, \"HO-SAN-NA TO THE SON\nOF DA-VID.\"]\n\n[Illustration: THE EN-TRY IN-TO JER-U-SA-LEM.]\n\nThis was the way in which they used to meet and greet their kings, and\nthey thought to please Je-sus so that he would pay them back when he set\nup his throne on earth. For the most of them did not love him in their\nhearts.\n\nAs Je-sus came near to Je-ru-sa-lem he looked at it, and wept when he\nthought of the grief that the Jews were to know.\n\nAnd he taught each day in the church at Je-ru-sa-lem, but at night he\nwent to Beth-a-ny to sleep.\n\nOne morn as he was on his way back to Je-ru-sa-lem he saw a fig-tree by\nthe road-side, and went to it to pluck some of the fruit. But he found\non it naught but leaves. Then he said to it, Let no more figs grow on\nthis tree.\n\nThe next day when the twelve went by they saw that the fig-tree was\ndried up from its roots.\n\nAnd they thought of the words that Je-sus spoke, and said, How soon has\nthe fig-tree dried up!\n\nJe-sus told them that they might do as much and more than he had done to\nthe fig-tree, if they had faith in God, and sought strength from him.\n\n[Illustration: CHRIST WEEP-ING O-VER JER-U-SA-LEM.]\n\nThen he spoke to them in this way: There was a rich man who laid out a\nvine-yard, and dug a ditch round it to keep wild beasts and thieves\na-way, and made a wine press, and let the place out to men who were to\ngive him part of the fruit. Then he went off to a far land.\n\nWhen the time had come for the fruit to be ripe he sent one of his\nser-vants to the men who had charge of the vine-yard, that he might\nbring back his share of the grapes.\n\nBut the men took the ser-vant and beat him, and sent him off with no\nfruit in his hands.\n\nThen the one who owned the place sent once more, and the bad men threw\nstones at this ser-vant, and hurt him so in the head that he was like to\ndie. The next one they killed, and so things went on.\n\nNow the rich man, who owned the place, had but one son, who was most\ndear to him. And he said, If I send my son to them they will be kind to\nhim, and treat him well.\n\nBut as soon as the bad men saw him they said, This is the heir; let us\nkill him, and all that is his shall be ours. And they took him and put\nhim to death, and cast him out of the vine-yard.\n\nThe vine-yard is the world. The one who owns it is God. The bad men are\nthe Jews; he had taught them his laws, and they had vowed to keep them.\nWhen they did not do it, God sent priests and wise men to try and make\nthem do what was right. These were stoned, and not a few were slain.\n\nAt last he sent his own dear son, Je-sus. Now they meant to kill him,\nas the bad men had killed the heir of the vine-yard.\n\nWhen the Jews heard this talk they knew that Je-sus spoke of them, and\nthey were wroth with him, and in haste to kill him.\n\nOne day, on his way out of the tem-ple, Je-sus sat down near the box in\nwhich mon-ey was put for the use of the church. And he saw that the rich\nput in large sums. And there came a poor wid-ow who threw in two mites,\nwhich make a far-thing, or the fourth of a pen-ny.\n\nJe-sus said to the twelve, This poor wid-ow has cast in more than all\nthe rest. For they had so much they did not miss what they gave; while\nshe, who was poor and in want, did cast in all that she had.\n\n[Illustration: THE WID-OW'S MITE.]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVI.\n\nPARABLES.\n\n\nA par-a-ble is a sto-ry of some-thing in real life that will fix in our\nminds and hearts the truth it is meant to teach.\n\nJe-sus said the king-dom of heav-en was like the mas-ter of a house who\nwent out at morn to hire men to work in his vine-yard.\n\nThe price was fixed at a pen-ny a day, and those who would work for that\nwere sent out to the vine-yard.\n\nAt nine o'clock in the day he went out and saw men in the mar-ket place\nwho were out of work, and he said to them, Go ye to the vine-yard, and I\nwill pay you what is right. And they went their way.\n\nHe went out at noon, and at three o'clock, and found more men whom he\nsent to work in his vine-yard. Later in the day, when it was near six\no'clock, he went out and saw more men, to whom he said, Why stand ye\nhere all the day i-dle?\n\nThey said to him, Be-cause no man has hired us.\n\nHe said, Go ye in-to the vine-yard, and what is right I will give thee.\n\nSo when night came, the lord of the vine-yard had the work-men called\nin, and each one was paid a pen-ny.\n\nWhen the first came they thought they should have more, and when they\nwere paid but a pen-ny they found fault, and said, These last have\nwrought but one hour, and thou hast paid them the same as us who have\nborn the toil and heat of the day.\n\n\n[Illustration: LA-BOR-ERS IN THE VINE-YARD.]\n\nThe mas-ter said, Friend, I do thee no wrong. Didst thou not say thou\nwouldst work for me for a pen-ny a day? Take what is thine, and go thy\nway; for I have a right to do as I will with mine own. And the last\nshall be first and the first last.\n\nJe-sus told them a par-a-ble of ten maids who went out to meet the\nbride-groom. For in those days the man who was wed brought his bride\nhome at night, and some of his friends used to go out to meet him.\n\nThese ten maids had lit their lamps, and gone out to meet the\nbride-groom. But he did not come as soon as they thought he would, and\nas the hours went on they all fell a-sleep.\n\nNow five of these maids were wise, and five were not. The wise ones had\nbrought oil with them, so that if their lamps should go out they could\nfill them. Those who were not wise had no oil but that which was in\ntheir lamps.\n\nAt mid-night those who were on the watch cried out, Lo, the bride-groom\ncomes! Go ye out to meet him.\n\nAnd the five wise maids rose at once, and went to work to trim their\nlamps.\n\nThe five who were not wise, stood by and said, Give us of your oil, for\nour lamps have gone out.\n\nBut the wise ones said, Not so; for we have no more than we need. Go ye\nand buy of those who have oil to sell.\n\nAnd while they went out to buy, the bride-groom came, and those who were\nin trim went in with him, and the door was shut.\n\nThen the five maids who had been out to buy oil came to the door, and\ncried out, Lord, Lord, let us in. But he said, I do not know you; and\nwould not let them in.\n\nThe bride-groom means Je-sus, who is to come at the last day. The ten\nmaids are those who claim to love him, and who set out to meet him on\nthat day. The oil is the love in our hearts, which burns and keeps our\nfaith bright. We are to watch and wait for him, for we know not the day\nnor the hour when he will come.\n\n[Illustration: THE FOOL-ISH VIR-GINS.]\n\nJe-sus came to the town of Beth-a-ny, and they made a sup-per for him\nthere. In those days they did not sit at their meals on chairs as we do,\nbut lay down on a couch, or lounge, as high as the ta-ble, so that they\ncould rest on the left arm, and have the right hand and arm free to\nuse.\n\nMar-tha, Ma-ry, and Laz-a-rus were there, and while Je-sus sat at meat\nMa-ry came with a flask of rich oil, that was worth a great price. And\nshe broke the flask and poured the oil on the head of Je-sus.\n\nAnd there were some there who found fault with this great waste, and\nJu-das--one of the twelve--said that the oil might have been sold for a\nlarge sum that would have done the poor much good.\n\nJe-sus said, Blame her not. She has done a good work on me. For the poor\nyou have with you all the time, and you may do them good when you\nchoose. But you will not have me al-ways.\n\nThen Ju-das went to the chief priests and said, What will you give me if\nI bring you to the place where Je-sus is, so that you may take him? They\nsaid they would pay him well. And from that time he was on the watch to\ncatch Je-sus a-lone.\n\nJe-sus said, There was a rich man, who wore fine clothes, and had great\nfeasts spread for him each day. And a beg-gar named Laz-a-rus lay at his\ngate, full of sores; but the rich man gave him not so much as a crumb.\nAnd the dogs came and licked his sores.\n\nThe beg-gar died, and was borne by the an-gels to A-bra-ham's bo-som.\nThe rich man died and was laid in the ground. And while in the pains of\nhell he raised his eyes and saw A-bra-ham with Laz-a-rus on his bo-som,\nand he cried and said, Fa-ther A-bra-ham, have mer-cy on me, and send\nLaz-a-rus that he may dip the tip of his fin-ger in wa-ter and cool my\ntongue, for this flame tor-ments me.\n\n[Illustration: THE RICH MAN AND THE BEG-GAR.]\n\nBut A-bra-ham said, Son, thou in thy life-time had thy good things,\nwhile Laz-a-rus was poor and had a hard lot. Now he has ease from all\nhis pains and thou art in tor-ments. And be-tween us and you there is a\ngreat gulf; none can go from here to you, nor come from you to us.\n\nThen the rich man said, I pray thee then send him to my fa-ther's house,\nfor I have five breth-ren, that he may speak to them, so that they come\nnot to this place of tor-ment.\n\nA-bra-ham said, They have Mo-ses and the proph-ets, let them hear them.\n\nAnd the rich man said, Nay, fa-ther A-bra-ham; but if one went to them\nfrom the dead they will turn from their sins.\n\nAnd he said to him, If they hear not Mo-ses and the proph-ets they will\nnot turn from their sins though one rose from the dead.\n\nA stew-ard is one who takes charge of a house or lands, pays bills,\nhires work-men, and is the mas-ter's right-hand man.\n\nJe-sus said, There was a rich man who had a stew-ard. And word was\nbrought to him that this stew-ard made a bad use of his mas-ter's\nwealth. So the rich man said to him, What is this that I hear of thee?\nLet me know how thou hast done thy work, if thou wouldst keep thy place.\n\nThe stew-ard said to him-self, What shall I do if my lord takes my place\nfrom me? I can-not dig, and am too proud to beg. I have made up my mind\nto do some-thing that will put me on good terms with the rich, so that\nthey will not close their doors to me should I lose my place here as\nstew-ard.\n\nSo he sent for all those who were in debt to his lord. And he said to\nthe first, How much dost thou owe? And he said, A hun-dred mea-sures of\noil. The stew-ard said, Take thy bill, and sit down and write fif-ty.\n\nThen said he to the next one, How much dost thou owe? The man said, A\nhun-dred mea-sures of wheat. The stew-ard said to him, Take thy bill,\nand write four-score.\n\n[Illustration: THE UN-JUST STEW-ARD.]\n\nAnd the lord praised the un-just stew-ard, for he thought he had done a\nwise thing.\n\nJe-sus said we were to use our wealth so as to make friends who will\ntake us in their homes should we be-come poor.\n\nHe that is faith-ful in small things is faith-ful al-so in large ones.\nAnd he that is un-just in the least, is un-just in much more.\n\nNo man can serve two mas-ters.\n\nAs Je-sus drew near to Je-ru-sa-lem those who were with him thought that\nthe king-dom he spoke of was close at hand.\n\nHe said to them, A rich man had to go to a far land, so he called his\nten ser-vants that he might leave his goods in their charge. To the\nfirst one he gave five tal-ents. A tal-ent is a large sum in sil-ver. To\nthe next he gave two tal-ents; and to the third one. And he said to\nthem, Make a good use of these gifts till I come back; and then went on\nhis way.\n\nThen he that had five tal-ents went out and bought and sold and made\nfive tal-ents more. And the one that had two did the same. But he that\nhad one dug a hole in the earth and hid his lord's mon-ey.\n\nWhen the rich man came back he sent for his ser-vants that they might\ntell him what they had done while he was gone. So he that had had five\ntal-ents came and said, Lord, thou didst give me five tal-ents, and\nsee--I have gained five more.\n\nHis lord said to him, Well done, good and faith-ful ser-vant, thou hast\nbeen faith-ful o-ver a few things, I will make thee ru-ler o-ver ma-ny\nthings; en-ter thou in-to the joy of thy lord.\n\nThen he that had two tal-ents came and said, Lord, thou didst give me\ntwo tal-ents and I have gained two more.\n\nHis lord said to him, Well done, good and faith-ful ser-vant, thou hast\nbeen faith-ful o-ver a few things, I will make thee ru-ler o-ver ma-ny\nthings; en-ter thou in-to the joy of thy lord.\n\n[Illustration: THE TAL-ENTS.]\n\nThen he who had but the one tal-ent came and said, Lord, I knew that\nthou wert a hard man, and didst reap where thou hast not sown, and\ngleaned where thou hast not strewn; and, for fear I should lose it, I\nhid thy tal-ent in the earth, and here it is.\n\nHis lord said, Thou wick-ed and la-zy ser-vant, if thou didst know me to\nbe such a harsh man thou shouldst have lent my mo-ney to those who would\npay for its use, so that when I came back I should have my own and more\nwith it. Take there-fore the one tal-ent from him and give it to him\nthat hath ten tal-ents. For to him that hath much shall more be giv-en;\nbut from him that hath not, shall be ta-ken a-way all that he hath. And\ncast ye the use-less ser-vant in-to out-er dark-ness, where shall be\nweep-ing and gnash-ing of teeth.\n\nChrist meant to teach by this that we were to make use of the gifts or\ntal-ents that God gave us, and add to them as much as we could. Then\nwhen we die God will say to us, Well done, and bid us share in the joy\nthat our lord has in store for us.\n\nIf we have but one gift we must use that and serve God with it, or at\nthe last day he will take that from us, and we shall have no part in the\njoy of our lord.\n\nJe-sus said, The good news is like a king who made a wed-ding feast for\nhis son. And he sent his ser-vants to call in those who were bid to the\nfeast. But they would not come. Then he sent out more ser-vants to urge\nthem to come to the wed-ding. But they made light of it, and went their\nways, to their farms or shops; and some fell on the king's ser-vants\nand slew them.\n\nWhen the king heard of this he was wroth, and he said to his ser-vants,\nGo ye out to the high-ways and bring in to the wed-ding those ye find\nthere.\n\nAnd the ser-vants did so, and brought in both bad and good, so there was\nno lack of guests at the wed-ding.\n\n[Illustration: WED-DING GAR-MENT.]\n\nWhen the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man who had not\non a wed-ding gar-ment. And he said to him, Friend, why art thou here\nwith-out a wed-ding gar-ment. And the man spoke not.\n\nThen said the king to the ser-vants, Bind him hand and foot and take him\noff, and cast him in-to out-er dark-ness. For ma-ny are called but few\nare cho-sen.\n\nGod is the king who made the feast for Je-sus Christ, his son, to which\nall are bid. The wed-ding gar-ment we need is a true heart, full of love\nto Je-sus. The good news is for all, yet those who think more of this\nworld than they do of heav-en, Christ does not choose for his own, and\nthey are lost.\n\nJe-sus said the good news is like un-to leav-en or yeast, which a wo-man\ntook and hid in some meal till the whole of it was light.\n\n[Illustration: LEAV-EN.]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVII.\n\nTHE LORD'S SUPPER.--JESUS IN GETHSEMANE.--THE JUDAS KISS.--PETER DENIES\nJESUS.\n\n\nNOW the day was come when the Jews were to keep the feast of the\npass-o-ver. To do this each man took a lamb to the church, and killed it\non the al-tar. The priest would burn the fat, but the rest of the lamb\nthe man took home, and it was cooked, and he and his folks ate of it in\nthe night.\n\nThe twelve came to Je-sus to ask him at what place they should set out\ntheir feast. For they had no house or home of their own.\n\nJe-sus sent forth two of them and said, Go ye to Je-ru-sa-lem, and there\nshall meet you a man with a jug of wa-ter. Go to the house where he\ngoes, and say to the man who lives there, The mas-ter bids thee show us\nthe room where he shall come to eat the feast with his friends.\n\nAnd he will show you a large room, up-stairs; there spread the feast.\n\nThe men did as Je-sus told them, and the man showed them the room, and\nthere they spread the feast.\n\nAnd at night Je-sus came with his twelve friends. And as they did eat,\nJe-sus said, There is one here who will give me up to the Jews.\n\nThese words made them all feel sad.\n\nNow there was one of the twelve of whom Je-sus was most fond. His name\nwas John. And as he lay with his head on Je-sus' breast he said to him,\nLord, who is it?\n\nJe-sus said, It is he to whom I shall give the piece of bread I dip in\nthe dish.\n\nAnd when he had dipped the bread he gave it to Ju-das. And he said to\nhim, What is in thy heart to do, do at once.\n\nNow none of the rest knew why Je-sus spoke thus. But as Ju-das had\ncharge of the bag in which the mon-ey was kept, some of them thought\nthat he bade him buy things they were in need of, or give some-thing to\nthe poor. Then Ju-das went out of the house where Je-sus and his friends\nwere; and it was night.\n\nAnd when he had gone, Je-sus said to them, I shall be with you but a\nshort time. But ere I go a new law I give to you--the law of love. As I\nhave loved you so shall ye love each oth-er. By this shall all men know\nthat ye love me.\n\nPe-ter said, Lord, where dost thou go?\n\nJe-sus said, Where I go thou canst not come now, but thou shalt be with\nme by-and-by.\n\nPe-ter said, Lord, why can-not I go with thee now? I will lay down my\nlife for thy sake!\n\nJe-sus said, I tell thee, Pe-ter, the cock shall not crow thrice till\nthou hast sworn thrice that thou dost not know me.\n\nAnd as they did eat Je-sus took the bread and gave thanks and broke it,\nand gave to them, and said, Take and eat.\n\nThen he took some wine in a cup, and when he had thanked God, he gave it\nto them and they all drank of it.\n\n[Illustration: PRAY-ING IN THE GAR-DEN.]\n\nAnd he told them that when he was dead they must meet from time to\ntime, and eat the bread and drink the wine in the same way that he had\nshown them; and as of-ten as they did it they were to think of him, and\nthe death that he died to save men from their sins.\n\nJe-sus spoke with them for some time. Then a hymn was sung and they all\nwent from the house, and came to the Mount of Ol-ives. And they went to\na gar-den there, known as Geth-sem-a-ne. And Je-sus took with him\nPe-ter, James, and John, and said to them, Sit ye here and watch with me\nwhile I go and pray. And he went from them a short way, and knelt down\nand prayed. And when he thought how soon he was to be put to death for\nour sins, he was in such grief and pain that the sweat seemed like great\ndrops of blood as it fell to the ground. And God sent an an-gel to calm\nhim and give him strength.\n\nAnd when he rose from his knees and went back to where his friends were,\nhe found that they slept. And he said to Pe-ter, What, couldst thou not\nwatch with me one hour?\n\nAnd he went off to pray once more. And when he came back his friends\nstill slept! And he left them and came back a third time. Then he said,\nRise up and let us go, for the worst of my foes is close at hand.\n\n[Illustration: JU-DAS BE-TRAY-ING CHRIST.]\n\nNow Ju-das had been on the watch, and knew when Je-sus went to the\ngar-den. And as it was dark he thought it would be the best time to give\nhim up to the Jews. So he went to the chief priests and told them, and\nthey sent a band of men out with him to take Je-sus.\n\nJe-sus, who knew all things, knew that Ju-das was near, yet he did not\nflee.\n\nJu-das had told the band that he would give them a sign by which they\nmight know which was Je-sus. He said, The one I shall kiss, is he; take\nhim, and hold him fast. Then he came to Je-sus and gave him a kiss.\n\nAnd the men laid their hands on Je-sus and took him. His friends who\nwere near him said to him, Lord, shall we fight them with the sword?\n\nPe-ter who had a sword struck one of the band and cut off his ear.\n\nJe-sus said to him, Put thy sword back in its sheath. Could I not pray\nto God to send me a host of an-gels to fight for me and save me from\ndeath? But how then could the words of wise men come true? Then Je-sus\ntouched the man's ear and made it well. And he said to those who took\nhim, Have ye come out with swords and staves as if I were a thief, to\ntake me? I sat from day to day and taught you in the church, and you did\nnot harm me.\n\nThen Pe-ter, James and John, and the rest, were in great fear, and fled\nfrom him.\n\nThe men that took Je-sus led him off to the house of the high priest,\nwhere the scribes and those who had charge of the church had all met.\n\nPe-ter kept up with the crowd and went in a side door of the house to\nsit by the fire. And one of the maids of the high priest came to him,\nand said, Thou wast with Je-sus. But he said, I know not what you mean.\n\nThen he went out on the porch and the cock crew. While there a maid said\nto those who stood near, This one was with Je-sus.\n\nAnd Pe-ter said once more that he did not know him. And the cock crew\nonce more.\n\nNow it chanced that one of the high priest's men was a kins-man of the\none whose ear Pe-ter had cut off. And he said to him, Did I not see thee\nin the gar-den with him?\n\nPe-ter swore that he was not there, and did not know the man. And Je-sus\ngave him a look as he went by, that was like a stab in Pe-ter's heart.\nFor then the cock crew for the third time, and it came to Pe-ter's mind\nwhat Je-sus had said,--Ere the cock crow thrice, thou shalt de-ny me\nthrice. And he went out and wept as if his heart would break, so great\nwas his grief and shame.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVIII.\n\nCHRIST BEFORE PILATE.--ON THE CROSS.\n\n\nTHE chief court of the Jews met in a room near the church, and was made\nup of three-score and ten men. The high priest and chief priests were\nthere, and the scribes, and head men of the church, and it was for them\nto say what should be done to those who broke the laws of Mo-ses; some\nof whom had to pay fines, or to be shut up in jail. But if a man was to\nbe put to death they had to ask the chief whom the Ce-sar of Rome had\nset to rule in that part of the land if he would let the deed be done.\n\nIt was night when the Jews took Je-sus, and as soon as it was day they\nbrought him in-to court to have him tried. The high priest said to him,\nArt thou the Christ? tell us.\n\nJe-sus said, If I tell you, ye will not think I speak the truth.\n\nThen they all said, Art thou the son of God?\n\nAnd he said, I am.\n\nThen the high priest rent his clothes, and said, By his own words we can\njudge him. What do you say shall be done to him? And they all cried out,\nLet him be put to death!\n\nThen they spit in his face, and struck Je-sus with the palms of their\nhands. And they bound him and led him blind-fold to Pi-late's house, and\ntold Pi-late some of the things he had said and done.\n\nPi-late said to Je-sus, Art thou a king? Je-sus said, I am. But my realm\nis not of this world, else would my men have fought to set me free.\n\n[Illustration: \"BE-HOLD THE MAN.\"]\n\nPi-late said, I find no fault with this man. And the Jews were more\nfierce, and cried that his words had made a great stir in all the land\nfrom Gal-i-lee to that place. Pi-late said, if he came from Gal-i-lee\nthey must take him to He-rod, who ruled that part of the land. And\nHe-rod was in Je-ru-sa-lem at that time.\n\nWhen He-rod saw Je-sus he was glad, for he had heard much of him, and\nwas in hopes to see some great things done by him. But when He-rod spoke\nto Je-sus, Je-sus said not one word. And the chief priests and scribes\nstood by, and cried out that he claimed to be king of the Jews, and the\nson of God, and had taught men that they need not keep the laws of\nMo-ses or of Rome. These were crimes for which he ought to be put to\ndeath.\n\nSo He-rod and his men of war made sport of Je-sus, and put on him a robe\nsuch as kings wear; for he had said he was a king. And then He-rod sent\nhim back to Pi-late.\n\nPi-late said, I find no fault in this man; nor does He-rod, for I sent\nyou to him; he had done naught for which he should be put to death.\n\nNow it was the rule when this great feast was held, that one of those\nwho were shut up in jail should be set free. And at this time there was\na Jew there, whose name was Ba-rab-bas; and he had killed some one.\n\nPi-late said, Which one shall I set free--Ba-rab-bas, or Je-sus, who is\ncalled Christ?\n\n[Illustration: PI-LATE WASH-ING HIS HANDS.]\n\nWhile Pi-late spoke, his wife sent word to him to do no harm to that\njust man, for she had had a strange dream a-bout him. But the chief\npriests urged the mob to ask that Ba-rab-bas be set free.\n\nPi-late said, What then shall I do with Je-sus, who is called Christ?\n\nThey cried out, Hang him! Hang him!\n\nWhen Pi-late saw that he could not get them to ask for Je-sus, he took\nsome wa-ter and washed his hands in full view of the mob, and said, I am\nnot to blame for the death of this just man; see ye to it.\n\nThen the Jews said, Let his blood be on us and on our chil-dren.\n\nBut Pi-late was to blame for Je-sus' death; for he gave him up to the\nJews that he might please them, and keep the place that he had.\n\nNow it was the law of the land that a man should be scourged ere he was\nhung. So Je-sus was stripped to the waist, and his hands were bound to a\nlow post in front of him so as to make him stoop, and while he stood in\nthis way he was struck with rods, or a whip of cords, till the blood\nburst through the skin.\n\nThen Pi-late's men of war led him to a room, and took off his own robe,\nand put on him one of a red and blue tint. Then they made a crown of\nthorns and put it on his head; and they put a reed in his right hand.\nThen they bowed down to him, as if he were a king, and mocked at him and\nsaid, Hail, King of the Jews! And they spat on him, and took the reed\nand struck him on the head, and smote him with their hands.\n\n[Illustration: BE-HOLD THE MAN.]\n\nWhen Ju-das saw that Je-sus was to be put to death, he was in great\ngrief to think he had brought such a fate on one who had done no wrong.\nAnd he took back to the chief priests the sum they had paid him, and he\nsaid to them, I have done a great sin to give up to you one who had done\nno wrong. They said to him, What is that to us? See thou to that. Then\nJu-das threw down the sil-ver, and went out and hung him-self.\n\nThen the men of war took off the gay robe from Je-sus, and put his own\nclothes on him and led him out to put him to death.\n\nThey met a man named Si-mon, and made him bear the cross. And a great\ncrowd of men and wo-men went with them who wept and mourned for Je-sus.\nJe-sus told them not to weep for him, but for them-selves and their\nchil-dren, be-cause of the woes that were to come on the Jews.\n\nThey brought him to a place called Cal-va-ry, not far from the gates of\nJe-ru-sa-lem. And they nailed his feet and hands to the cross, which was\nthen set up in the ground. And all the while Je-sus prayed, Fa-ther\nfor-give them, for they know not what they do. He meant that they did\nnot know how great was their sin; nor that they had in truth put to\ndeath the son of God. With him they hung two thieves, one on his right\nhand, and one on his left.\n\n[Illustration: CHRIST CAR-RY-ING HIS CROSS.]\n\nThen they sat down to watch Je-sus, who hung for hours on the cross in\ngreat pain, ere his death came to him. And they took his robes and gave\neach one a share; but for his coat they cast lots. And at the top of\nthe cross Pi-late had put up these words:\n\nJE-SUS OF NAZ-A-RETH, KING OF THE JEWS.\n\nAnd the Jews as they went by shook their heads at him, and said, If thou\nbe the son of God come down from the cross, and the chief priests and\nthe scribes mocked him and said, His trust was in God; let God save him\nnow if he will have him.\n\n[Illustration: CHRIST ON CAL-VA-RY.]\n\nOne of the thieves spoke to Je-sus and said, If thou art the Christ save\nthy-self and us.\n\nBut the oth-er said, Dost thou not fear God when thou art so soon to\ndie? It is right that we should die for our sins, but this man has done\nno wrong. And he said to Je-sus, Think of me when thou art on thy\nthrone. Je-sus said to him, This day shalt thou be with me where God\nis.\n\n[Illustration: THE CRU-CI-FIX-ION.]\n\nNow there stood near the cross of Je-sus his mo-ther, and John--the one\nof the twelve most dear to him. And he bade John take care of his\nmo-ther, and told her to look on John as her son. And John took her to\nhis own home to take care of her and give her all that she had need of.\n\nFrom the sixth to the ninth hour--that is, from twelve to three\no'clock--the sky was dark in all the land. And Je-sus thought that God\nhad turned his face from him. And he cried out with a loud voice O God!\nO God! why hast thou left me?\n\nOne of the men near thought he was in pain, and he took a sponge and\ndipped it in the gall, and put it up on a reed to his mouth, so that\nJe-sus might drink. Je-sus wet his lips with the drink that was to ease\nhis pain, then spoke once more, bowed his head and died.\n\nThen the veil which hung in the church, in front of the ark, was torn in\ntwo; the earth shook; the rocks were split; the graves gave up their\ndead, and those who, while they lived, had served the Lord, rose and\ncame out of their graves and went in-to Je-ru-sa-lem and were seen\nthere.\n\nWhen those who had kept watch of Je-sus as he hung on the cross, saw\nthese things that were done, they were in great fear, and said, There is\nno doubt that this man was the son of God.\n\n[Illustration: LAY-ING IN THE TOMB.]\n\nAs night came on the Jews went to Pi-late and begged him to kill Je-sus\nand the two thieves so that they could be put in their graves. For it\nwould not do for them to hang on the cross on the day of rest. The men\non guard broke the legs of the thieves to kill them, and thrust a spear\nin-to Je-sus' side to make sure that he was dead.\n\n[Illustration: DEATH OF SAP-PHI-RA.]\n\nNow there was near Cal-va-ry a gar-den, in which was a tomb in which no\none had been laid. It was cut in a rock, and was owned by a rich\nman--Jo-seph of Ar-i-ma-the-a. He came to Pi-late and begged that he\nmight lay Je-sus in this grave, and Pi-late told him to do so. And\nJo-seph took Je-sus down from the cross, and wrapped him in the fine\nlin-en he had brought, and laid him in the tomb, and put a great stone\nat the door, and left him there.\n\nThe chief priests went to Pi-late and said, It has come to our minds\nthat Je-sus said that he would rise on the third day, so we pray thee to\nhave men watch the tomb lest some of his friends come and steal him, and\nthen go and say that he rose from the dead.\n\nPi-late said, Ye have your own watch-men. Go and make it as sure as you\ncan.\n\nSo they went and put a seal of wax on the great tomb, and set men to\nwatch by the tomb.\n\nBut that night God sent down an an-gel, and he came and rolled back the\nstone from the door, and sat on it. His face shone like fire, and his\nrobes were white as snow. And the watch-men shook for fear of him, and\nhad no more strength than dead men.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIX.\n\nJESUS LEAVES THE GRAVE.--APPEARS TO MARY.--STEPHEN STONED.--PAUL'S LIFE,\nAND DEATH.\n\n\nON the first day of the week, as soon as it was light, three wo-men,\nfriends of Je-sus, came to the tomb with the gums and spice they used to\nlay out their dead.\n\nAnd they said as they went, Who shall roll the stone a-way from the door\nof the tomb?\n\nAnd lo, when they came near they found that the great stone had been\nrolled a-way. And when they went in the tomb, they saw an an-gel clothed\nin a long white robe, and they shook with fear.\n\nHe said to them, Have no fear. Ye seek Je-sus, who was put to death on\nthe cross. He is not here, though this is the place where they laid him.\nGo tell his friends that he has ris-en from the dead, and bid them go to\nGal-i-lee where they shall see him.\n\nTwo of the wo-men from the tomb, with fear and yet with joy, ran to tell\nthe good news.\n\nBut Ma-ry Mag-da-le-ne stood out-side the tomb and wept. And as she\nstooped down and looked in the tomb, she saw two an-gels in white, the\none at the head, the oth-er at the foot of the place where Je-sus had\nlain.\n\nAnd they said to her, Why dost thou weep? She said, Be-cause they have\nta-ken my Lord a-way, and I know not where they have laid him. And when\nshe had thus said, she drew back and saw that Je-sus stood near, yet\nknew not that it was he.\n\nJe-sus said to her, Ma-ry! She turned and said to him, Mas-ter!\n\nJe-sus said, Touch me not, for I have not yet gone up to my Fa-ther; but\ngo tell the breth-ren what thou hast seen and heard.\n\nAnd Ma-ry told them that she had seen the Lord, and all that he had said\nto her.\n\nAnd Je-sus was seen two or three times on the earth af-ter his death,\nand he came and spoke to those who were to teach and preach as he had\ntaught them. But Thom-as was not with the rest when the Lord came. And\nwhen they told him that they had seen the Lord, he said, I doubt it. But\nif I shall see in his hands the marks of the nails, and thrust my hand\nin the wound the spear made in his side, then shall I know that it is\nhe.\n\n[Illustration: HE IS RIS-EN.]\n\nIn eight days these friends met in a room to talk and pray. Thom-as was\nwith them and the door was shut. Then came Je-sus and stood in their\nmidst and said, Peace be un-to you. Then said he to Thom-as, Reach here\nand touch my hands, and put thy hand in my side, and doubt no more that\nI have ris-en from the dead.\n\nWhen Thom-as heard his voice and knew that it was Je-sus, he said, My\nLord and my God. Je-sus said to him, Thom-as, be-cause thou hast seen\nme, thou hast faith in me; blest are they that have not seen me, and yet\nput their trust in me.\n\nAt the end of five weeks he met with these friends at Je-ru-sa-lem. And\nwhen he had had a talk with them he led them out as far as Beth-a-ny.\nAnd he raised his hands and blest them, and as he stood thus he went up\nin a cloud out of their sight.\n\nWhen the day of Pen-te-cost, or har-vest feast, had come, Pe-ter, and\nthe rest of those whom Je-sus had taught, were all in one place.\n\nAnd all at once there came the great rush of a strong wind that filled\nthe room where they were. And tongues of fire came down on each one of\nthem, and their hearts were filled with a strange pow-er, and they spoke\nall known tongues.\n\nAnd there were men there from all parts of the East, and when they heard\nthese men of Gal-i-lee speak in their own tongues of the works of God,\nthey were in a maze. And some said, These men are full of new wine.\n\n[Illustration: CHRIST AP-PEAR-ING TO MA-RY.]\n\nBut Pe-ter stood up and said the men were not drunk, but that this\nstrange gift of speech was one of the signs that God had told the Jews\nthat he would send on the earth. And Pe-ter preached so well to the\ncrowd that not a few left the ranks of sin and gave their hearts to\nChrist, and to good works.\n\nFrom that time those who had been in the school in which Je-sus taught\nwhile on earth went out to teach and preach the good news. They gave\nalms to the poor, healed the sick, and did all the good that they could.\n\nOne of them, named Ste-phen, stood up to preach and to tell the Jews\nwhat God had done for them, and to try to make them give up their sins.\nHe spoke in plain words, and said, The Jews of old put to death those\nwho were sent to tell them that Je-sus was to come; and now you have\nslain the Just One him-self.\n\nWhen the Jews heard this they were full of rage, and gnashed their teeth\nat him like wild beasts. But he raised his eyes to the sky, and saw a\ngreat light there. And he said, I see Je-sus on the right hand of God.\n\nThen they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears so that\nthey could not hear his words; and they brought him out of the town, and\nstoned him.\n\n[Illustration: THE AS-CEN-SION TO HEAV-EN.]\n\nAnd Ste-phen knelt down, and asked God to for-give them for this sin.\nAnd then he died.\n\nThe men who threw the stones at Ste-phen took off their cloaks, that\nthey might have the free use of their arms, and laid them at the feet of\na young man named Saul.\n\n[Illustration: HOU-SES ON THE WALLS OF DA-MAS-CUS.]\n\nNow Saul had done much harm to the good cause, and was in a great rage\nwith those who were friends of Je-sus and taught his truths. So he went\nto the high priest at Je-ru-sa-lem and asked to be sent to Da-mas-cus,\nthat if he found friends of Je-sus there he might bind them with cords\nand bring them back to Je-ru-sa-lem. And the high priest gave him\nnotes to those who had charge of the church-es in Da-mas-cus, and he set\nout for that place. But when he came near the town there shone round him\na great light, and he was in such fear that he fell to the ground. And a\nvoice said to him, Saul, Saul, why dost thou hate me and hunt me down?\n\n[Illustration: THE COM-ING OF THE HO-LY GHOST.]\n\nSaul said, Who art thou, Lord? The voice said, I am Je-sus, whom thou\ndost use so ill.\n\nThen Saul shook with fear and said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?\nThe Lord said, Rise, and go in-to the town, and it shall be shown thee\nwhat thou must do. And the men who were with him stood dazed and dumb,\nfor they heard the voice, but could see no man.\n\nWhen Saul rose from the earth he could not see, for the light had made\nhim blind; and those who were with him led him by the hand in-to\nDa-mas-cus. And for three days he had no sight; and he could not eat nor\ndrink.\n\nBut God sent An-a-ni-as, a good man, to touch his eyes, and his sight\nand his strength came back. And his heart was changed, and there was no\nman who could preach as Paul did, by which name he was now known.\n\nFor a while he went with Bar-na-bas. Then he took Si-las with him, and\nthey made both friends and foes. The Jews at Phil-ip-pi found fault\nwith them, beat them and put them in jail, and bade the jail-er keep\nthem safe. So he made their feet fast in the stocks--which were great\nblocks of wood with holes in them.\n\nAt mid-night Paul and Si-las prayed, and those in the jail heard them.\nThen all at once there came a great earth-quake which shook the jail,\nand the doors flew o-pen, and the chains fell from those who were bound.\nThe jail-er woke from his sleep, and when he saw that not a door was\nshut, he feared he would be put to death if those in the jail had fled.\nSo he drew his sword to kill him-self. But Paul cried to him with a loud\nvoice, Do thy-self no harm, for we are all here.\n\n[Illustration: THE CON-VER-SION OF ST. PAUL.]\n\nThen the jail-er brought a light, and came to the cell where Paul and\nSi-las were, and he knelt there, and cried out, Sirs, what must I do to\nbe saved? And they said, Have faith in the Lord Je-sus Christ, and thou\nshalt be saved.\n\nThat same hour of the night the jail-er took Paul and Si-las and washed\ntheir wounds, and brought them food, and his heart was full of joy, for\nhe and all in his house were made Chris-tians, and God would for-give\ntheir past sins.\n\nThe next morn the chief men at Phil-ip-pi sent word to the jail-er to\nlet those men go, for the Jews found they had no right to beat Paul. And\nthey feared the law, and begged him to leave the town.\n\nPaul went to A-thens, the chief town of Greece, which was full of false\ngods, to whom al-tars had been built. But there was one al-tar on which\nwere the words, TO THE UN-KNOWN GOD.\n\nThose who built it felt that there was one God of whom they had not been\ntaught, and this al-tar was for him.\n\nPaul taught in A-thens, both in-doors and out-doors. And when the wise\nmen heard that he told of Je-sus, and that we were all to rise from the\ndead, they brought him to Mars' Hill, where the chief court was held.\nAnd they said to him, Tell us now what the good news is. For thou dost\nspeak strange words, and we would like to know what they mean.\n\nPaul told them there was but one true God, and they must serve him and\ngive up their sins, and put their trust in Je-sus, and they would all be\nsaved at the last day.\n\nThen Paul went to Co-rinth, where he spent some time. At the end of some\nyears he came back to Je-ru-sa-lem. And the Lord's friends met him, and\nwere glad to see his face once more. And he told them where he had been,\nand how God had helped him.\n\n[Illustration: ST. PAUL LEAV-ING TYRE.]\n\nAnd Paul went up to the church. And while he was there some Jews from\nA-si-a saw him and took hold of him, and cried out, Men of Is-ra-el,\nhelp us. This is the man who has taught that we were not to do as\nMo-ses told us, nor to come here to pay our vows. And he has brought\nwith him Gen-tiles whom it is a crime to let come in-to our church.\n\nSoon all the town was in an up-roar, and Paul was brought in-to the\nchurch, and the gates that led to the courts were all shut. As they were\na-bout to kill him, some one went and told the chief who had charge of a\nband of Ro-man troops, and dwelt near the great church to guard it. And\nhe and some of his men ran down in the midst of the crowd, who, as soon\nas they saw them, ceased to beat Paul.\n\nThe chief took Paul from them, and had him bound with chains, and asked\nwho he was and what he had done. Some cried this, and some that, and no\none could tell just what they said.\n\nAnd the chief led him off to his own house, to save Paul's life, and the\nmob brought up the rear, and cried out, A-way with him! Kill him! The\nnext day the chief let Paul go, and sent him to Fe-lix, who ruled in\nJu-de-a. And here he was shut up in jail, and was there for two years or\nmore. He told them who he was, and why he had gone to Je-ru-sa-lem, and\nsaid he had done no wrong that he knew of; though some might say it was\nwrong for him to preach that the dead should rise from their graves at\nthe last day.\n\n[Illustration: ST. PAUL PREACH-ING AT A-THENS.]\n\nFe-lix sent the Jews off, and bade the jail-er let Paul walk in and\nout as he chose, and see all the friends who might call. He was there\nfor two years, and at the end of that time Fes-tus took Fe-lix's place.\n\nAt last he was sent to Rome to be tried be-fore the Ce-sar. While on the\nsea a fierce wind sprang up, and beat the ship so that the men could not\nsteer. And they were in great fear lest they should drown. But Paul told\nthem not to fear, for though the ship might be a wreck there would be no\nloss of life. At the end of two weeks the ship struck the isle of\nMal-ta, and the men swam to the shore on bits of boards.\n\n[Illustration: ST. PAUL'S SHIP-WRECK.]\n\n[Illustration: MEET-ING PLACE IN A-THENS.]\n\nPaul staid here for three months, and then went to Rome, where he dwelt\nfor two years or more, and taught men to trust in the Lord and to do\nright.\n\nWe are not told when or how he died.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XX.\n\nWHAT JOHN SAW WHILE ON THE ISLE OF PATMOS.--THE GREAT WHITE THRONE.--THE\nLAND OF LIGHT.\n\n\nJOHN wrote the last book in the New Tes-ta-ment. It is called\nRev-e-la-tion; and that means that it tells what no one else but John\nknew.\n\nJohn was sent to the lone isle of Pat-mos by one of the bad Em-pe-rors\nof Rome, who would not let him preach or teach the truths that Christ\ntaught.\n\nWhile he was at Pat-mos Je-sus came to him in a dream, and showed him\nall the things that he wrote of in this book.\n\nJohn says: I heard a great voice like a trum-pet, and as I turned to see\nwho it was that spoke to me, I saw Je-sus clothed in a robe that fell to\nhis feet, and was held at the waist by a belt of gold. And when I saw\nhim I fell at his feet like one dead. And he laid his right hand on me,\nand said, Fear not; I am he who died on the cross, but who now lives to\ndie no more.\n\n[Illustration: PAT-MOS.]\n\nJe-sus told John to write down all that he saw, and to send it to the\nchurch-es for which it was meant.\n\nThen John saw a door o-pen in the sky, and a voice said to him, Come up\nhere, and I will show thee what will take place in the time to come. And\nhe heard the an-gels sing songs of praise to Je-sus, whom they called\nthe Lamb that was slain. And John was shown strange things that were to\nteach him what the friends of Christ would have to put up with till the\nend of the world. And he was shown, too, how the Lord would save them\nfrom their foes, so that at last no one could hurt or harm them.\n\nThen John saw a great white throne in heav-en, and Je-sus sat on it. And\nthe dead rose from their graves, and came and stood near the throne to\nbe judged. All the things that they had done while on the earth were put\ndown in the books out of which they were judged. And if their names were\nnot in the Book of Life they were cast in-to the lake of fire.\n\nWhen this great day was past, John saw new skies and a new earth, for\nthe old earth and skies had been burnt up, And he saw the New\nJe-ru-sa-lem come down from the skies, and heard a voice say that God\nwould come and live with men.\n\nRound the New Je-ru-sa-lem, which was built of gold, was a high wall\nwith twelve gates, three on each side. At each gate was an an-gel to\nguard it. In the walls were all kinds of rich and rare gems, and its\ntwelve gates were made of pearls.\n\nThere was no need of the sun or the moon, for God was there and Je-sus,\nand they made it light. And those whom Je-sus had saved--Jews and\nGen-tiles, rich and poor--were to come and live in it. And the gates\nshould not be shut, for there will be no night there. And none but those\nwhose names are in the Book of Life shall go in-to it.\n\n[Illustration: ST. JOHN'S VIS-ION.]\n\nAnd John saw a pure riv-er called the wa-ter of life. On each side of it\ngrew the tree of life that bore twelve kinds of fruit, which were ripe\neach month. And those who dwell in that land of light, and eat the\nfruits of the tree of life, and drink of the wa-ter of life, shall see\nthe Lord's face and be with him and serve him.\n\nHe will wipe all tears from their eyes, and there shall be no more\ndeath, nor grief, nor pain.\n\nJe-sus said to John, Blest are they who keep God's laws and do his will,\nthat they may pass through the gates to his bright home on high.\n\nTHE END.\n\n\n\n\nRoutledge's Historical Course.\n\n\nIN WORDS OF ONE SYLLABLE. Each book containing about 225 pages. With\nnumerous illustrations, portraits and maps. Boards, lithographed double\ncovers. Price per volume, $1.00.\n\n  HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES,        BY MRS. HELEN W. PIERSON.\n\n  HISTORY OF ENGLAND,                  BY MRS. HELEN W. PIERSON.\n\n  HISTORY OF FRANCE,                   BY MRS. HELEN W. PIERSON.\n\n  HISTORY OF GERMANY,                  BY MRS. HELEN W. PIERSON.\n\n  HISTORY OF IRELAND,                  BY MISS AGNES SADLIER.\n\n  HISTORY OF RUSSIA,                   BY MISS HELEN AINSLIE SMITH.\n\n  HISTORY OF JAPAN,                    BY MISS HELEN AINSLIE SMITH.\n\n  HISTORY OF THE BATTLES OF AMERICA,   BY MISS JOSEPHINE POLLARD.\n\n  LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED\n      STATES,                          BY MRS. HELEN W. PIERSON.\n\n      \"Simple, bright, intelligent, interesting, instructive\n      histories are here brought to the younger readers, and\n      abundance of illustration serves to increase the\n      pleasure of reading and the chances of\n      remembering.\"--_New York School Journal._\n\n      \"The words used are simple, and considerable\n      information is given about the countries in a pleasant\n      way. Excellent maps line the covers, and the histories\n      are brightly and accurately\n      illustrated.\"--_Springfield Republican._\n\n      \"We know of no other books which treat the same\n      subjects in such a way as to interest a juvenile\n      audience.\"--_Philadelphia Telegraph._\n\n      \"The broad pages, printed in very large, open type,\n      the beautiful and appropriate illustrations, make\n      these books the best, on _historical subjects_, in the\n      language.\"--_New England Journal of Education._\n\n      \"They are profusely and well illustrated, with\n      brilliantly illuminated covers, and are strongly\n      bound, as books which are certain to be as largely\n      read as these should be.\"-_New York Mail and Express._\n\n\n    GEORGE ROUTLEDGE & SONS,\n    9 LAFAYETTE PLACE, NEW YORK.\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\n\nTranscriber's Notes:\n\nAs the reader will have noted, words that are more than one syllable are\nhyphenated. Frequently the printer made an mistake and forgot to\nhyphenate all or part of a word. This has been corrected where found.\n\nObvious punctuation errors have been repaired. Some times high priest\nwas hyphenated and sometimes it was two words. This was retained.\n\nPage 78, \"Ja-cob\" changed to \"Jo-seph\" (And Jo-seph went to Do-than)\n\nPage 100, \"se\" changed to \"sent\" (food that God had sent)\n\nPage 109, \"the the\" changed to \"the\" (do the king's will)\n\nPage 164, \"plead\" changed to \"pled\" (Da-vid pled so hard)\n\nPage 178, \"wo-men\" changed to \"wo-man\" (I and this wo-man live in)\n\nPage 342, \"Ce-ser\" changed to \"Ce-sar\" (please the Ce-sar of Rome)","title":"Young Folks' Bible in Words of Easy Reading: The Sweet Stories of God's Word in the Language of Childhood","tradition":"scripture-revelation","translated_text":null,"word_count":75464}