The Founders and Rulers of United Israel from the Death of Moses to the Division of the Hebrew Kingdom (Classic Reprint)

Excerpt from The Founders and Rulers of United Israel From the Death of Moses to the Division of the Hebrew Kingdom

Although probably not written until after the division of the Hebrew kingdom, the stories which they contain were doubtless told in the days of Saul and David, and therefore shed almost contemporary light upon the chief characters and events of the period.

Their language, point of view and ideas are those of the golden era, when Israel was rapidly attaining its full material growth and splendor. They are full of dramatic action and simple, strong emotion. The reader is made to behold with his own eyes the more important scenes in this stirring epoch of Israel's history. Through the vivid dialogues he is admitted to the councils of kings, prophets and warriors. His atten tion is constantly fixed on the fortunes and deeds of certain heroes, and through their personal experiences the significant facts and forces of the history are clearly revealed. In these oldest records there is no at tempt to idealize the history or to conceal the faults of its heroes. Life and human nature are presented with a simple realism which makes these narratives invaluable guides to all who would know the soul of man and the eternal laws which govern human life.

The selection of material and the prominence given to the personal element also reveal the noble religious and ethical purpose which actuated the later prophetic authors of Joshua, Judges, Samuel and Kings. They aim not merely to write a history of their nation, but also through its most significant characters to interpret that history, so that the vital spiritual truths which it illustrates shall stand out in clear relief.

Fortunately, the Greek translation has preserved many clauses and even verses, which have been lost in the Hebrew text. Restoring these, the result is a remarkably complete and well-rounded narrative. The language in these stories, which come from the lips of the ancient story tellers, is often exceedingly idiomatic and even colloquial; and an attempt has been made in the present translation to reproduce these picturesque qualities. The evidence which has determined the analysis of the sources, and detailed textual notes, will be found in the correspond ing volumes of the author's Student's Old Testament, to which refer ences are made in the table of contents.

About the Publisher

Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com

This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.