in chap. x. 40, had really subdued the whole of the south of Canaan in the length and breadth of it, and had slain all the kings and taken their country, it is evident that he must have slain more kings and conquered more cities than those which are mentioned by name in chap. x. In chap. xi. we have only an account of the conquest and burning of Hazor, and the slaying of its king, who was leader of the allied Canaanites in the north (ver. 10); the conquest of the other cities and the death of their kings are merely described in a summary manner in ver. 11, without the record of a single name. Where, then, is the justice of objecting to the special catalogue, which is introduced at the close of this history, simply on the ground that it supplies the details omitted in the previous narrative, and gives the names of all the slaughtered kings?*

CHAPTER XXIII.

"And Joshua called for all Israel... and said unto them... I have divided unto you by lot these nations that remain, to be an inheritance for your tribes, from Jordan, with all the nations that I have cut off, even unto the great sea westward. And the Lord your God, he shall expel them from before you, and drive them from out of your sight; and ye shall possess their land, as the Lord your God hath promised unto you."-Ver. 2—5.

In addition to what has been offered on chap.xi. 16-23, on the alleged contradiction between that portion of the narrative and this, we add from Keil,† who refers to Hävernich, that those who allege an irreconcilable variation in the two accounts, altogether overlook the point of view from which the book was written. "In accordance with its design." observes Hävernich,‡ "to make the fulfilment of the * Keil, Comment., in loco. + Comment. on Joshua. Einl. ii. i. p. 18 seq.

divine promises everywhere prominent, Jehovah, who fights for Israel, is described as giving to them the land of promise, and the work is so far completed by Joshua, that he is able to portion out the whole land. This does not, however, place the Israelites in such a position that they had nothing more to do. On the contrary, the strongholds of the Canaanites are to serve as a test of the faith, even of future generations. By means of these the question is to be decided, whether Israel will henceforth continue to be what it has been under the command of Joshua. This view is rendered most apparent in this text, where the Israelites are called upon to regard all the nations as really conquered, and yet are exhorted to be mindful of their duty to drive out those who still remain. There is no discrepancy between this ideal view and the description of the actual state of things. The author's theocratical stand-point resolves the whole difficulty. According as he looks at the circumstances, from the one or the other point of view, so does he express himself in the one way or the other.

THE BOOK OF JUDGES.

Ir is obvious that a dislocation has befallen a portion of this book. The Jews were wont to separate the text into small sections, consisting of a few verses each; and these are still distinctly marked in some of the manuscript copies of the original Scriptures. The second chapter appears to have been divided into portions of five verses, every one of which begins a new subject, or at least introduces a different train of thought and illustration; and there is great probability that the second, and even the third, section ought to be read before the first. According to the present arrangement, the rebuke of the angel at Bochim is narrated before the account given of the death of Joshua, and of the subsequent defection of his people from the religion which he had made them swear to observe.

The following distribution of the chapters, though probably not quite accurate, may be useful:

Interregnum after the death of Joshua
Introduction of idolatry among the tribes

The Levite of Ephraim, and war among the tribes
Intermixture of the Israelites with the Canaanites
Servitude and deliverances of the Israelites
Triumphant song of Deborah and Barak.

Subjugation of eastern and northern Israelites by
Midian, and their deliverance by Gideon
Usurpation and death of Abimelech .

Administration of Tola and Jair

Oppression of the Israelites by the Philistines and

i-ii. 10. xvii. xviii. xix.-xxi. ii. 11-iii. 7. iii. 8.-iv.

V.

vi.-viii. ix.

x. 1-6.

Ammonites, and their deliverance by Jephthah. x. 7—xii. 7.

Administration of Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon

Oppression of the Israelites by the Philistines, and

their deliverance by Samson

xii. 8-15.

xiii.—xvi.

CHAPTER V.

"Then were the horsehoofs broken by means of the pransings, the pransings of the mighty ones."-Ver. 22.

"Then

THIS verse would be better translated thus:were the horse-hoofs broken by the means of the pransings, the pransings of their strong steeds."

Anciently, horses were not shod; nor are they at the present day, in some parts of the East.*

"She put her hand to the nail, and her right hand to the workmen's hammer; and with the hammer she smote Sisera, she smote off his head, when she had pierced and stricken through his temples."-Ver. 26.

The original of the second clause of this verse would be more correctly rendered :-" She smote his head, then she struck through and pierced his temples." It does not appear that she smote off his head.

CHAPTER VI.

"And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord; and the Lord delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years."-Ver. 1.

THIS has been alleged to be in contradiction of Numb. xxxi. 9, 10; but it was not the whole of the Midianites that Moses is there said to have destroyed, but only that portion of them who were in the neighbourhood of the Hebrew camp, as these only were the criminals. They were, to a considerable extent, a nomade tribe, extending their wanderings much beyond any limits which could be assigned to them as a territorial possession. Two hundred years had intervened between the two events, during which time Midian had grown, but after the discomfiture of *See vol. ii. p. 132.

them by Gideon, who delivered the Israelites, they appear to have lost their distinct national existence, and to have become mixed with the kindred nations, the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, and Arabians.

CHAPTER XV.

"And Samson went and caught three hundred foxes, and took fire-brands, and turned tail to tail, and put a fire-brand in the midst between two tails. And when he had set the brands on fire, he let them go into the standing corn of the Philistines, and burnt up both the shocks, and also the standing corn, with the vineyards and olives."-Ver. 4, 5.

IT has been asked how Samson could catch so many foxes in so short a time; and when caught, how he could make them the instruments of his revenge on the Philistines, in the manner which the story represents? To these questions satisfactory replies we think may be given.

That the fox called Jackal is very numerous in the East, is attested by all travellers. They are concealed by hundreds in the gardens, and among ruins and tombs. Where then was the difficulty for Samson to procure three hundred of them, especially as the time during which he had to do it is not limited to a week, or a month? Besides, he at this time sustained the highest office in the commonwealth, and consequently could be at no loss for persons to assist him in his singular enterprise. Having secured the instruments by which he designed to ruin the oppressors of his country, the next thing for consideration is the method by which he effected his purpose. In considering the circumstances of this narrative, as Mr. Charles Taylor suggests, there is some attention due to the nature and uses of the torches, or flambeaux, or lamps, employed by Samson in his procedure; and, perhaps, could we identify