house; he even took away all. And he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made."

Here we have an historical event handed down to us, and many very thrilling incidents in connection with it are minutely recited; thus we are left to suppose that the writers had the fullest information to draw upon; and as we find this invasion of Judea by Shishak is recorded on the walls of Karnac at Thebes, we may be sure it was a successful and very important campaign. We may therefore safely conclude that it represents a wide spread rebellion, and shadows a hotly contested conflict for supremacy in the empire between the Cushite house of David (ie., Hirhor) and the Elamite house of Shishak.

The reader will notice that the Elamites are first obscured by referring to them as Assyrians; and, again, by alluding to the invasion of Judea by the Elamite Pharaoh, as the Pharaoh of Egypt; leading us insensibly to infer that he was a native Egyptian king, and that it was a war between Egypt and Judea.

The combinations supporting the plot are truly admirable!

73

xii. 12.

We gather from the Biblical records that Shishak did not depose Rehoboam, but merely put him under tribute and concluded a peace. So we may infer that Reho- II. Chron. boam still represents a powerful party, but now served under the Elamite flag: "Now the acts of Rehoboam, first and last, are they not written in the book of Shemaiah the prophet, and of Iddo the seer, concerning genealogies? And there were wars between Rehoboam and Jeroboam continually."

This record explains the sources from whence the compilers derived their information, and, as it could hardly be termed a Divine inspiration, we can only inquire what has become of these priceless archives.

The records also inform us that the struggle for supremacy in the Empire between the two great parties continued with unabating energy. As Rehoboam and Jeroboam were both vassals to the great Elamite King, a war between them must certainly disclose a conflict for supremacy between the Semitic and Hamitic races.

CHAPTER V.

IT will be remembered when the Cushites under David (i.e. Hirhor) overthrew the Elamite Ramessides, the malcontents were banished to an oasis. It was only natural then, when the Elamite Assyrians came into Brugsch, vol. power, that they should banish the Cushite malcontents; and we learn from the inscriptions that they retired to their dominion in Ethiopia, and are designated as kings of Cush. This was no new title, as Hirnor (i.e. David) styled himself a king's son of Cush before he supplanted the Elamites.

ii. 234.

I. Kings ii.

1.

11. Chron. xii. 12.

Solomon, a younger branch of the Cushite house of David, it is true, had made terms with his conquerors and had elected to serve as King of Judea under the Elamite flag. I have pointed out that his son Rehoboam had rebelled against the Elamite rule, and the Elamite Pharaoh, Shishak, had invaded Judea and put him under tribute as

his vassal. The Elamite flag must, therefore, have floated over Jerusalem, and his son Abijah must have sworn allegiance to the great king in Nineveh before he succeeded to the throne.

xiii. 21.

"And Abijah waxed mighty, and married II. Chron. fourteen wives, and begat twenty and two sons and sixteen daughters. So Abijah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David and Asa his son reigned in his stead. In his days the land was quiet ten years."

Asa succeeds to the throne in peace, "and he built fenced cities in Judah, for the land had rest and he had no war in those

days." The Elamite flag must, therefore, have still floated over the fortresses from Nineveh to Thebes. This is amply confirmed, for it is recorded that the Elamite army numbered 540,000 mighty men of valour. The priestly writers ingeniously lead us to infer that these forces were under the independent command of Asa.

We now come to another revolution, and are again insidiously led to believe that a new power comes on the scene :-" And

II. Chron.

xiv. 9.

there came out against them Zerah the Ethiopian with an host of a thousand thousand and three hundred chariots. Then Asa went out against him, so the Lord smote the Ethiopians before Asa and before Judah, and the Ethiopians fled."

The reader will notice it is recorded that the Ethiopians fled before Asa, and Judah; are not the two rival parties here distinctly defined? It must be remembered that Solomon was David's youngest son, hence Asa was only a junior branch of David's family.

When the Elamites under Shishak secured dominion, the Cushite royal family retired to their dominion in Ethiopia; but Solomon accepted office under Shishak, and his family had considered it prudent to continue his policy. We may, however, presume that Asa still led a considerable Cushite following, who supported his family from motives of personal interest; hence the writers dimly distinguish the Cushite and Elamite forces under Asa. It assists the priestly plot, and is admirably adapted to create confusion; for unless we thoroughly