whither Thou hast driven them, because of their trespass that they have trespassed against Thee. O Lord, to us belongeth confusion of face, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against Thee. To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, though we have rebelled against Him; neither have we obeyed the voice of the Lord our God, to walk in His laws, which He set before us by His servants the prophets. Yea, all Israel have transgressed Thy law, even by departing, that they might not obey Thy voice; therefore the curse is poured upon us, and the oath that is written in the law of Moses the servant of God, because we have sinned against Him." "We do not present our supplications before Thee for our righteousnesses, but for Thy great mercies. O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive; O Lord, hearken and do; defer not, for Thine own sake, O my God: for Thy city and Thy people are called by Thy

name."1

A psalm of praise is occasioned by the revelation of Nebuchadnezzar's secret dream to Daniel: It shows that a profound conviction of the power and goodness of God, no less than a profound conviction of the sinfulness of man, had taken possession of his mind.

"Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever: for wisdom and might are His: and He changeth the times and the seasons: He removeth kings, and setteth up kings: He giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding: He revealeth the deep and secret things: He knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with Him. I thank Thee, and praise Thee, O Thou God of my fathers, who hast given me wisdom and might, and hast made known unto me 1 Dan. ix. 5-11, 18, 19.

now what we desired of Thee: for Thou hast now made known unto us the king's matter."1

In connection with the history of Daniel it is proper here to remark that there was a remarkable return of the spirit of devotion to the captive church of Israel in Babylon. We select as examples of this the following passages from a group of psalms written in the days of Daniel. We begin with the hundred and thirty-seventh, which, with a touching strain of lamentation, unites an expression of indignation against the enemies of the people of the Most High. In this last respect it is far different from the tone of the New Testament.

"By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down; yea, we wept, When we remembered Zion.

We hanged our harps

Upon the willows in the midst thereof.

For there they that carried us away captive required of us a

song;

And they that wasted us required of us mirth,

Saying, Sing us one of the songs of Zion.

How shall we sing the Lord's song

In a strange land?

If I forget thee, O Jerusalem,

Let my right hand forget her cunning.

If I do not remember thee,

Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth;

If I prefer not Jerusalem

Above my chief joy.

Remember, O Lord, the children of Edom

In the day of Jerusalem;

Who said, Rase it, rase it,

Even to the foundation thereof.

O daughter of Babylon, who art to be destroyed;
Happy shall he be that rewardeth thee

As thou hast served us !

1 Dan. ii. 20-23.

Happy shall he be that taketh and dasheth thy little ones
Against the stones."

In the eightieth psalm we have this earnest prayer and plea:

"Turn us again, O God of hosts,

And cause Thy face to shine; and we shall be saved.

Thou hast brought a vine out of Egypt:

Thou hast cast out the heathen, and planted it.

Thou preparedst room before it,

And didst cause it to take deep root, and it filled the land.

The hills were covered with the shadow of it,

And the boughs thereof were like the goodly cedars.
She sent out her boughs unto the sea,

And her branches unto the river.

Why hast Thou then broken down her hedges,

So that all they which pass by the way do pluck her?

The boar out of the wood doth waste it,

And the wild beast of the field doth devour it.

Return, we beseech Thee, O God of hosts :

Look down from heaven, and behold, and visit this vine;
And the vineyard which Thy right hand hath planted,
And the branch that Thou madest strong for Thyself.”1
In the hundred and thirtieth psalm we read:

"Out of the depths have I cried unto Thee, O Lord.
Lord, hear my voice;

Let Thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications.
If Thou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquities,

O Lord, who shall stand?

But there is forgiveness with Thee,

That Thou mayest be feared.

I wait for the Lord, my soul doth wait,

And in His word do I hope.

My soul waiteth for the Lord

More than they that watch for the morning :

1 Perhaps this psalm was written at the beginning of the captivity.

I say, more than they that watch for the morning.

Let Israel hope in the Lord:

For with the Lord there is mercy,

And with Him is plenteous redemption.

And He shall redeem Israel

From all his iniquities.” 1

"The psalms written during the exile are not numerous, but are deeply interesting; those written later than Psalm cxxxvii. are partly gnomic, partly liturgical." "A general resemblance is notable between Psalms lxxviii. cv. cvi., which are in some sort supplementary one to the other; Psalm 1xxviii. is didatic; Psalm cv. a song of praise; Psalm cvi. a confession of sin and prayer for pardon, with which compare Dan. ix. 4, 5; Neh. ix. 4. All these Psalms seem of the date of the captivity."2 These specimens of the hymnology of the suffering Church of Israel are very affecting; they remind us of the old story of the nightingale's song with a thorn in her breast.

1 This psalm seems to belong to the captivity.

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CHAPTER XXV.

EZRA, NEHEMIAH, AND ESTHER. 458-428.

NEB

EBUCHADNEZZAR took Jerusalem in the year 606. Numbers of the Jews were carried captive to Babylon; the city was left in ruins; the ark was destroyed; the temple was burned; and the land was laid waste. The Book of Lamentations by Jeremiah depicts the scene of misery, and records the sorrows of patriotism and piety. Seventy years had been predicted as the term of the captivity; and when that period expired, Cyrus issued his decree for the rebuilding of the temple, and the return of the Jews to their own country.1 The restoration was slowly accomplished; and there was a lapse of more than ninety years between the issue of the decree and the first commission of Nehemiah to complete the re-establishment of the nation.

Ezra and Nehemiah were servants of God employed in connection with this signal instance of the Divine mercy; and from about the year 458 to about the year 428 they more or less prominently appear upon the pages of the books which bear their name.

They were not prophets. They did not foretell what was to happen, as did Isaiah and Jeremiah; nor did they work miracles, as did Elijah and Elisha. Their contributions to the canon of Scripture consist of annals 1 Ezra i. 1-4.