by a highly idealized conception of the tribes and a thrilling tone of martial enthusiasm, is probably more ancient than the 'Song.' It bears traces of having been composed at a period when Ephraim and Manasseh (the descendants of Joseph) stood foremost among the tribes in power and prestige. It may be regarded as a war-song, intended to keep alive in the hearts of the tribes the memory of the glorious days when Jeshurun (the 'righteous nation,' i.e. Israel), as a strong and united people, loyal to its God and devoted to its leader Joshua, marched from one scene of victory to another, and at length rested from its martial toil, secure in the sense of Jehovah's favour and protection. The tone and spirit indeed of the Blessing' differ widely from those of the 'Song.' In the latter Israel is described as having fallen into apostasy and brought upon itself the consuming anger of Jehovah. The 'Blessing,' on the other hand, reflects the aspirations and temper of a prosperous and powerful people.

Happy art thou, O Israel:

Who is like unto thee, a people saved by Jehovah,
The shield of thy help,

And that is the sword of thy excellency!

Thine enemies shall submit themselves unto thee;
And thou shalt tread upon their high places.

(Deut. xxxiii. 29.)

And now the closing scene of Moses' life was at hand. He received the divine command to get him up into Mount Nebo, one of the heights of the 'Abârim (the ranges running east of the Jordan valley), and there to behold with his eyes the land of promise in its entire breadth and length. Here on the barren height or summit (Pisgah) of a mountain, he yielded up his spirit, and was buried in the valley in the land of Moab over against Beth-peor: but no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day. His prayer for a successor qualified to be a true shepherd of the

G

Death of Moses: Deut. xxxiv.

Num. xxvii. 17, 23.

congregation, to lead them out and to bring them in, had already been answered; before his departure he had been commanded to lay his hands upon Joshua, the son of Nun, and to give him a charge. For the difficult task that now lay before them, the tribes of Israel were provided with a leader whose very name, 'Jehovah's salvation,' was a pledge of divine aid and of ultimate triumph.

CHAPTER IV.

THE CONQUEST OF PALESTINE.

The conquest of Western Palestine its general

course.

THE account of the invasion of Western Palestine by the Israelites is contained in the first half of the book of Joshua, chh. ii. 1-xi. 23. There are also scattered notices in later parts of the book and in Judges, ch. i. The narratives are not in every particular clear or consistent, but the main facts can be ascertained without much difficulty. The invasion appears to have been a simultaneous movement of all the tribes under the leadership of the Ephraimite Joshua; the Jordan was crossed at a point near the city of Jericho, which was the first place that succumbed to Israel's impetuous onset. The inhabitants of the important stronghold of Gibeon, situated on the central plateau some six miles north-west of Jerusalem, were panic-stricken at the speedy fall of Jericho, and hastened to come to terms with the conquerors. Gilgal, in the plain between Jericho and the Jordan, was selected by the Israelitish leader as the site of his central camp, and from this base a further campaign was directed against the Canaanites. A coalition of petty kings was hastily formed in the hope of checking the advance of the Hebrews, but the Canaanitish forces were completely overthrown and scattered near Bethhoron in central Judaea. After this the operations of the

invaders were divided: the tribes of Judah and Simeon, aided by the Calebites, overran and occupied the highlands of central and southern Judaea; while Joshua at the head of the powerful tribe of Joseph, penetrated by way of Ai, Bethel, and Mount Ephraim, into the plain of Esdraelon, and finally defeated a confederacy of northern kings at the waters of Merom. The subjugation of Palestine however was apparently by no means completed at Joshua's death. By that time indeed the Israelites had gained a permanent footing on Mount Ephraim and on the highlands of southern Canaan, but most of the larger cities, together with the cultivated valleys and the maritime plain, were still in the possession of the Canaanites. The effects of this partial occupation were in many respects disastrous, but they only became fully apparent in the subsequent age of the Judges.

The crossing of Jordan:

There is little reason to doubt that the Jordan was actually crossed opposite to Jericho. After due preparation for this important crisis in the history of Josh. iii.-v. 9. the nation, the Hebrew host, headed by the priests bearing the ark, marched across the bed of the stream, the waters of which, as in the case of the Red Sea, were wholly cut off, thus enabling the people to pass over dryshod.1 The passage of the Jordan was commemorated by the erection at Gilgal on the western bank of a cairn or circle of twelve stones taken from the bed of the river. At Gilgal Joshua fixed a permanent camp, and here the rite of circumcision, which had been neglected during the later period of the wanderings, was again enforced, and the ordinance of the Passover was observed. Thus the Israelites were prepared,

2

1 Sayce mentions that a parallel phenomenon is recorded by an Arabic historian as having happened in 1267 A.D., when the river was suddenly dammed up by a landslip (EHH, p. 249).

2 Gilgal means 'cairn' or 'circle' of stones. A popular etymology explained the name by the rite of circumcision which 'rolled away' the reproach of Egypt.

and as it were consecrated, for their approaching conflict with the Canaanites.

The fall of Jericho :

Josh. ii., vi.

The first city which confronted the invaders was Jericho a strongly fortified place lying near the foot of the steep central range, and commanding the fords of Jordan. After an interval which Joshua employed in sending two spies to ascertain the strength of the city and the temper of its inhabitants, he led the Israelites to the attack. The biblical account of the fall of Jericho seems to be an instance of the way in which a graphic or poetic figure of speech may become in process of time hardened into a circumstantial narrative. The statement that the wall of the city fell down flat at the sound of the great shout which the Hebrews raised at a given signal, evidently implies that Jericho yielded almost at the first onset. Throughout its history, indeed, the city has never been able to resist the pressure of a siege: the enervating effect of its tropical climate and luxuriantly fertile soil, together with its low-lying and exposed situation near the entrance of a steep mountain-pass these always rendered Jericho an easy prey to its assailants. "That her walls fell down at the sound of Joshua's trumpets is no exaggeration, but the soberest summary of all her history.' The city was razed to the ground, and a curse was pronounced upon its very site. None of the inhabitants were spared, except the household of Rahab, who had hospitably received the spies and aided them to escape. Rahab was admitted into the Hebrew community, and by her subsequent marriage with Salmon of the tribe of Judah became the ancestress of David.2 The pass into the hill-country was now open, and the Israelites advanced westward towards the level plateau on which the strongholds of Bethel and Ai were situated. An attack on the latter city failed in the first instance owing to the trespass of Achan, the

1 G. A. Smith, HGHL, p. 267.

2 St. Matt. i. 5.

"1

Capture of Ai: Josh. vii.,

viii.