doubt contributed to this end. The arrival of the Magi at Jerusalem at the time of the nativity affords some proof that this design was accomplished. (Matt. ii.) This dispersion was the first step towards returning to a general system. (88.) 122. Prophecies at the time of the captivity of Babylon Jer. xxxi. 31-34 : "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers, in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord but this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts, and will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord for they shall all know me from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more "; quoted Heb. viii. 8. Daniel ix. 25-27: "Know, therefore, and understand, that from the going forth of the command : ment to restore and to build Jerusalem, unto the Messiah, the Prince, shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks; and the streets shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself; and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary: and the end therefore shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate"; quoted by Jesus Christ. (Matt. xxiv. 15; Mark xiii. 14.) 123. The return of the Jews into their country, authorized by Cyrus, whose name and exploits are so wonderfully prophesied by Isaiah (Isa. xliv. 27, 28), and their reëstablishment in Judea, took place under Zerubbabel, Ezra, and Nehemiah. Their worship was immediately resumed. (Ezra iii. 2, 3.) But the building of the second temple and of the walls of Jerusalem was of slow progress, being continually impeded by the jealousy of the Samaritans (115), and the want of resources and zeal. Then appeared the prophets Haggai and Zacharias, whose mission was designed to sustain their fervor, encourage their patriotism, and hasten the rebuilding of the temple, and the entire reëstablishment of Israel. 124. Prophecies of the time of Zerubbabel:Haggai ii. 6, 7, 9. "Thus saith the Lord of hosts: Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; and I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come and I will fill this house with glory, saith the Lord of hosts. The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the Lord of hosts; and in this place will I give peace"; quoted Heb. xii. 26, 27. 125. The history of Esther, which shows that a large number of Jews had remained in Asia, has its date most probably in the time of the Persian king Xerxes. The truth of its record, among other proofs, is shown by the establishment and continuance of the feast of Purim; and the book which bears the name of Esther is apparently drawn from authentic memoirs of the reign of Xerxes. 126. Prophecies of the time of Nehemiah : Mal. iv. 5: "Behold I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord"; quoted by Jesus Christ (Matt. xi. 14; xvii. 12; Mark ix. 13). 127. The book which closes the Old Testament is that of Malachi, who did not appear till after the second temple was built. The latest date of the Old Testament is that of the chiefpriesthood of Jaddua, contemporary of Alexander the Great (Neh. xii. 11-22). Thus the sacred history closes when general history becomes certain. THE GOSPEL. 128. After an interval of about five centuries, during which no new revelation was given, the promise was fulfilled by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. "God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in times past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son." (Heb. i. 1, 2.) The condition of the world at this time, the corruption of the Mosaic law, the error of the Jewish nation, who expected a temporal Messiah, the obscurity and the poverty in which Jesus Christ was born, rendered a forerunner indispensable. John the Baptist, the son of a high-priest, fulfilled this high mission with great power, wisdom, and integrity. Between his ministry and that of Christ there was a perfect harmony, which proves their common origin. Thus it was among the disciples of John that the Saviour chose his apostles. 129. A short time after the birth of the Forerunner, Jesus was born, according to the predictions, at Bethlehem, of a young virgin of the race of David (118) named Mary, whom an angel had informed of the favor granted her of becoming the mother of the Saviour. All the circumstances of the nativity, the decree of taxation given by the Roman Emperor Augustus; the journey of Mary from Nazareth in Galilee to Bethlehem in Judea; the inn, the stable, and the manger; the celestial information given to the shepherds of Bethlehem; the song of the angels; the presentation at the temple; and the prayer of Simeon (Luke ii.); the arrival of the Magi; the persecutions of Herod, the king of the Jews; the flight into Egypt; the return to Nazareth (Matt. ii.) ;all these circumstances served to strengthen the trust of the faithful, and to prepare for the ministry of the Messiah. 130. But one circumstance of his youth is recorded, his conversation, at the age of twelve years, with the doctors of Israel in the temple. (Luke ii. 42-51.) From this time to the commencement of his ministry, the Evangelist tells us that he was subject to his parents. Thus we |