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duced by him; and are, for the most part, such as were found in the ancient and existing governments of the East. The information is valuable in so far as it makes us acquainted with the fashion after which the business of the state was distributed: but as the organisation commenced by David was more fully elaborated by Solomon, it will be better to connect with his reign such further notice as it requires.

During the reign of David the Israelites experienced few of the evils from the kingly government which Samuel had predicted. The question, how the regal establishments and standing army were to be supported, does not appear to have occurred. His conquests in the neighbouring countries brought him such immense spoil, as, together with the produce of the permanent tributes imposed on the conquered nations, enabled him not only to support all his expenses, but to lay by vast wealth towards the erection of the temple to be built by his successor. For this great work, which for many years he had so much at heart, and which appears to have engaged a large portion of his thoughts, his preparations of every kind were so extensive, that he appears to us fully entitled to the chief share of whatever glory the founder of that celebrated fabric may fairly claim. For not only did he provide a great proportion of all kinds of materials, with vast quantities of gold and silver, but he purchased and prepared the site, and furnished Solomon with the plan of the building. His care extended still further; for he re-organised the whole Levitical institution, with a view to a more splendid ritual service in the future temple, and to the equal distribution of duties among the whole Levitical tribe. All his arrangements in this matter were religiously adhered to by Solomon, in assigning the priests and Levites their service in the new Temple. For this reason it appears more advisable to notice these arrangements for the Temple service, in connection with that account of the Temple itself which the next chapter will contain.

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tures and paintings of ancient Egypt offer, we find armlets very frequent ornaments of the woman; but among men they only appear on the figures of the kings. D'Herbelot, in mentioning the investiture of Malek Rahim in the dominions and honours of his father (Alp Arslan) by the Khalif, Kayem BemrilJah, observes that the ceremony of investiture was in such cases effected by sending to the Sultan, who received that honour, together with his patent, a crown, bracelets, and a chain. In India the armlet was a mark of sovereignty at the court of the Grand Moguls. It still is such in Persia, where no man but the king wears armlets. They figure conspicuously on the person, and even in the pictures of that potentate, and are, for their size, probably the most splendid and costly articles of jewellery in the world, the two which he wears on state occasions being, together, deemed worth a million sterling. This use of the bracelet was not, in ancient times, unknown in our own country. Thus the emblems of supreme authority among the British kings were golden bands, worn around the neck, arms, and knees.* One such ornament, set with jewels, and supposed to have belonged to Caractacus, was found at the Herefordshire beacon. In the early Saxon era, such ornaments, although become more common, were confined to persons of high distinction, and if of gold, were considered proper presents for the sovereign.

[Persiau Armlets.]

(2) MODES OF SITTING, p. 474.-The text says that" David went in and sat before Jehovah," and in that posture gave utterance to a very earnest address of thanksgiving and prayer. Commentators have taken considerable pains in the endeavour to explain how he

Turner's Anglo-Saxous,' i. 383.

+ Nash's Worcestershire,' ii. 142.

happened to sit down on such an occasion, instead of standing or kneeling. The plain fact is, that in the East the sitting postures are various, and that one of them is considered as respectful, or even reverent, as any posture can be.

The Orientals now sit upon the ground, or on carpets or cushions laid on the ground. And although there is evidence that the Israelites used raised seats, such as chairs and stools, it is clear that they also sat on the ground in the various postures now used in the East. The case, in this respect, appears to have been much the same with them as with the Egyptians, who, although they used all kinds of raised seats, yet also sat on the floor in every variety of posture. This is evinced by the small cut introduced in the text. The posture of crouching, shown in the second figure of the cut, was very common among the Egyptians, but is now rather unusual in the East. Sitting cross-legged, a posture rather awkwardly represented in the last figure, is now the usual and ordinary posture in common life. It is the same as that which tailors adopt in this country, and which to those used to it, is really the sitting posture which gives more perfect repose to the body than any other. The postures in which the figures 1 and 3 are represented in the cut-of sitting on the heels-are more difficult, and give less repose. These two were postures of respect among the Egyptians; and they are figured in them when in the presence of their superiors, as well as when bearing sacred emblems before the shrines of their gods. And this posture of sitting on the heels-the only one in which the Egyptians could sit before the shrine of their gods, is obviously that in which David sat before the shrine of Jehovah. This continues to be the posture of respect in the East; and no one thinks of using any other in the presence of a superior. Great personages sit thus, if they sit at all, in the presence of kings; and it is one of the positions, and the only sitting one, which the Moslems take in their devotions.

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(3) AммON, p. 477.-The site of the ancient capital of the Ammonites was first indicated by Seetzen, and has since been visited by various travellers. The original names of this town, which existed in the time of Moses, Ammon, and Rabbath-Ammon, was for a time observed by that of Philadelphia, which it took from Ptolemy Philadelphus, by whom it was rebuilt. That any portions of the ruins are of earlier date than this rebuilding by him, it would be absurd to expect; and most of them

are obviously of later date, and may, for the most part, be referred to the period of the Roman domination in Syria. The present natives of the country now know nothing of the name of Philadelphia, but give to the site its original name of Ammon.

The very precise manner in which the prophecies applicable to the city have been fulfilled, gives to the place more interest than it could historically claim, although even that is not inconsiderable. The description which is the most available for our purposes is that which Lord Lindsay has given. In transcribing it, however, we omit the account of the ruins, which although of high interest in themselves, are not such as the purpose of the present work requires us to describe:

found much more extensive and interesting than we expected, not certainly in such good preservation as those of Jerash, but designed on a much grander scale. Storks were perched in every direction on the tops of the different buildings, others soared at an immense height above us."

Then follows a more detailed account of the ruins, the predominant architectural character of which is indicated by the very fine specimen inserted in our text. By far the best and most ample description of the whole is that which has been given by Buckingham in his 'Travels among the Arab Tribes,' 67-81. After his description, Lord Lindsay resumes:—

"Such are the relics of the ancient Ammon, or rather of Philadelphia, for no building there can boast of a prior date to that of the change of name. It was a bright cheerful morning, but still the valley is a very dreary spot, even when the sun shines brightest. Vultures were garbaging on a camel, as we slowly rode back through the glen, and reascended the akiba by which we entered it. Ammon is now quite deserted except by the Bedouins, who water their flocks at its little river. We met sheep and goats by thousands and camels by hundreds coming down to drink, all in beautiful condition. How-let me again cite the prophecy -how runs it? Ammon shall be a desolation!

"The scenery waxed drearier and drearier as, at ten hours and a half from Jerash, we descended a precipitous stony slope into the Valley of Ammon, and crossed a beautiful stream,* bordered at intervals by strips of stunted grass, often interrupted; no oleanders cheered the eye with their rich blossoms; the hills on both sides were rocky and bare, and pierced with excavations and natural caves. Here, at a turning in the narrow valley, commences the antiquities of Ammon. It was situated on both sides the stream: the dreariness of its present aspect is quite indescribable -it looks like the abode of death; the valley-Rabbah of the Ammonites...shall be a desostinks with dead camels: one of them was rotting in the stream, and although we saw none among the ruins, they were absolutely covered in every direction with their dung. That morning's ride would have convinced a sceptic; how runs the prophecy?—I will make Rabbah a stable for camels, and the Ammonites for flocks; and ye shall know that I am the Lord!'

"Nothing but the croaking of frogs, and screams of wild birds broke the silence, as we advanced up this valley of desolation. Passing on the left an unopened tomb (for the singularity in these regions is where the tomb has not been violated), several broken sarcophagi, and an aqueduct, in one spot full of human skulls, a bridge on the right, a ruin on the left, apparently the southern gate of the town, a high wall and lofty terrace, with one pillar still standing, the remains probably of a portico, we halted under the square building supposed by Seetzen to have been a mausoleum, and after a hasty glance at it, hurried up the glen in search of the principal ruins, which we

Called Moiet Ammon. It has its source in a pond a few hundred paces from the south-west end of the town, and after passing under ground several times, empties itself into the Zerka (Jabbok).

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late heap! I will make Rabbah a stable for camels, and the Ammonites a couching place for flocks; and ye shall know that I am the Lord!'"

(*) ABSALOM'S SEPULCHRE. p. 486.—Of the monument represented in the engraving, a very good and satisfactory account has been given by Mr. Wilde, whose description we shall here transcribe :

"Descending to Gethsemane, we continued our course through the valley of Jehoshaphat by those remarkable monuments denominated the Sepulchres of the Patriarchs, which have been described, as well as drawn with great accuracy by most writers on Palestine. They are placed on the eastern side of Kedron, nearly opposite the southern angle of the present wall, and are some of the rarest and most extraordinary specimens of sepulchral architecture in existence. They are hewn out of the solid rock, with temple-like fronts. Some of them are enormous masses separated from the rest of the rock, and left standing like so many monolithic temples-monuments that record as well (if not more so) the labour and ingenuity of their constructors as those to whose memory they have been erected.

The names assigned to these tombs are Jehoshaphat, James, Zechariah, and Absalom. This latter is the most elegant and tasteful piece of architecture in Judea, indeed, I might almost add, in the East, and viewed from the valley beneath, it is one of the most beautiful tombs that I have ever seen in any country. It consists of a mass of rock twenty-four feet square, separated from the rest, and standing in a small enclosure that surrounds three of its sides. It has four pilasters with Ionic capitals on each front, the two outer ones being flat, while those in the centre are semicircular; the frieze is ornamented with triglyphs. The upper

part is composed of several pieces, and surmounted by a small spire terminating in a bunch of leaves. There is a hole in the back immediately beneath the architrave through which I was enabled to climb into its interior. As the door by which it was entered was concealed, this opening was formed, in all proba bility, for the purpose of rifling the sepulchre of its contents. Within, it presents the usual form of eastern tombs, having niches at the sides for bodies. The general opinion of antiquaries is, that the Grecian architecture exhibited on the exterior of this rock is no test of the date of its construction; and, that it was added in later times, and a similar workmanship is visible in the other neighbouring tombs. To it may be referred that rebuke of our Lord to the Pharisees, regarding their garnishing the sepulchres of the prophets. The tradition is, that this pillar, of which we have an account in the Book of Samuel, was erected by Absalom. 'Now Absalom in his lifetime had taken and reared up for himself

a pillar, which is in the king's dale; for he said, I have no son to keep my name in remembrance; and he called the pillar after his own name; and it is called unto this day Absalom's Place.' Josephus also informs us that Absalom had erected for himself a stone marble pillar in the king's dale, two furlongs distant from Jerusalem, which he named Absalom's Stand, saying, that if his children were killed, his name would remain by that pillar.' I see no reason to doubt the tradition regarding this monument, although the historian has stated it to be a greater distance from the city than we now find it: but this is an error into which he often falls. In confirmation of its supposed origin I may add, that it has ever been a place of detestation to the Hebrews; and every Jew who passes it by throws a stone at it to this day, so that a large cairn has formed round its base.

"The style of the whole of these four sepulchres, but especially the two I have more particularly noticed, is very peculiar, and is totally different from other tombs in this neighbourhood. An inspection of them would lead us to believe that, at the time of erection, the Hebrews had not quite forgot the lessons on architecture which their forefathers had learned in Egypt. Around these mausolea, upon the sides of the rocks, and the slopes of Mount Olivet, there are hundreds of plain flat gravestones belonging to the Jews. All these have Hebrew inscriptions, some of which a Hebrew scholar resident in the city informed me were dated a short time subsequent to the Christian

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KING SOLOMON Succeeded his father David in the year 1030, B.C., when he was about twenty years of age. Never monarch ascended the throne with greater advantages, or knew better how to secure and improve them. Under David, the kingdom had been much extended, and brought under good regulations. The arms of the Hebrews had for so many years been feared by all the neighbouring nations, so that the habit of respect and obedience on their part, offered to the new king the reasonable prospect, confirmed by a Divine promise, that his reign should be one of peace. Now, the predominant tribe of Judah lay as a lion and as a lioness, which no nation ventured to rouse up. The Hebrews were the ruling people, and their empire the principal monarchy of Western Asia. From the Mediterranean Sea and the Phoenicians to the Euphrates, in its nearer and remoter bounds,-from the river of Egypt and the Elanitic Gulf to Berytus, Hamath, and Thapsacus, all were subject to the dominion of Solomon; nor were the tribes which wander in northern Arabia, eastward to the Persian Gulf, unconscious of his rule. At home, the Canaanites had not, as we have seen, been either

Gen. xlix, 9; Num. xxiii. 24, xxiv. 9.

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