ity and debasing superstition; and, instead of purity of morals and true devotion, offered little to God but a fiery zeal for the rights and ceremonies of the Church. Could we look among the mountains and valleys of Judea, we should, no doubt, in every age find many a devout Simeon and praying Anna, "waiting for the consolation of Israel." God has ever had a people to serve him.

This nation he had owned in his gracious covenant. Here, under his word and ordinances, lived the true Church. Here many souls were trained up for glory. But history chiefly presents us the painful conflicts of violent men, contending for the priesthood, and not less violent doctors, corrupting the law of Moses, and introducing tenets and customs which made void the commandments of God. These, with their results, must be recorded, that a full view may be presented of the state of the Church, and the providences of God in relation to it.

So early as the year 366 B. C. we find a conflict for the High Priesthood, terminating in blood, and bringing great oppression upon the Jewish nation. Johanan, the son of Jehoida, had succeeded his father in the High Priesthood; but Joshua, his brother, having insinuated himself into the favor of Bagoses, governor of Syria, obtained of him a grant of the office. A dispute ensued; and Joshua was slain by Johanan in the inner court of the Temple. This act of violence so enraged Bagoses, that he imposed an enormous fine upon the pontiff and Temple annually, for seven years.

A few years after this unhappy event, the Jews imprudently engaged with the Phenicians in a war against Ochus, the Persian monarch; in consequence of which he entered Judea, took Jericho, and carried captive many of the Jews into Egypt, and sent others to the borders of the Caspian

sea.

The Persian monarchy, (the breast and arms of silver, of the great image of Nebuchadnezzar,) had now continued about 200 years; but according to the sure word of prophecy, it was drawing to its close to be succeeded by the Grecian; represented by the belly and thighs of brass. For the accomplishment of this purpose, God raised up Alexander, the son of Philip, king of Macedonia, and endowed him with talents for the accomplishment of vast and glorious undertakings. Actuated by an ambition to conquer the world, this prince went forth furiously with a small but powerful army, against Darius, king of Persia, and became a triumph

ant conqueror of armies and dominions, which had been considered invincible, and established on the ruins of the Persians, the third great empire of the earth. These events took place-334-0 B. C.

Besides the general representations of it in the image of Nebuchadnezzar, and in Daniel's vision of four beasts, that distinguished prophet had another more particular and striking view of it in his vision of the ram and the he goat. "Then I lifted up mine eyes" said Daniel, "and saw, and behold there stood before the river a ram, which had two horns, and the two horns were high up, but one was higher than the other, and the higher came up last." This ram, according to the interpretation of Gabriel, was the empire. of the Medes and Persians. "I saw," says the Prophet, "the ram pushing westward and northward and southward so that no beast might stand before him." Under Cyrus and his successors, the Persians pushed their conquests on every side. "And as I was considering, behold an he goat came from the west, on the face of the whole earth and touched not the ground; and the he goat had a notable horn between his eyes." By the angel Gabriel the prophet was told that this rough goat was the king of Greece and the great horn that was between his eyes, was the first king. "And he came," said Daniel, "to the ram that had two horns which I had seen standing before the river, and ran unto him in the fury of his power. And I saw him come close unto the ram, and he was moved with choler against him, and smote the ram and break his two horns, and there was no power in the ram, to stand before him, but he cast him down to the ground and stamped upon him and there was none that could deliver the ram out of his hand."

This wonderful prophecy thus delivered 230 years before, received a most exact fulfilment in the rapid and irresistible movements of the Grecian conqueror. Alexander, the leopard in a former vision, and the he goat from the west in this, flew with incredible swiftness, and came upon his enemies before they were aware of him or could place themselves in a posture of defence. At the river Granicus he met Darius with all his army. He commanded 35,000 men, while Darius had five times that number. But he regarded him not. He ran unto him in the fury of his power, and he smote the ram and break his two horns. Media and Persia were no more. He routed all the armies, took all the cities and castles, and subverted forever the

Persian empire. Thus did this mad and ferocious heathen prince beome the instrument of effecting, in part, the divine purpose declared by Ezekiel,* "I will overturn, overturn, overturn it and it shall be no more, until he come whose right it is, and I will give it him."

Having overthrown the Persian empire, Alexander pushed his conquest into Phenicia. Every place opened its gates until he came to the ancient city Tyre, where he met a serious check. Tyre belonged to the tribe of Asher, but was never taken from the Canaanites. Situated upon the sea, it became a place of great trade, opulence and splendor. But it abounded also in pride and wickedness, and gloried over Jerusalem, the city of God, when she was chastened of heaven. God therefore determined to display over it his righteous indignation, and by his prophets, he declared that he would destroy it utterly. He first brought against it Nebuchadnezzar. It was a city of amazing strength; and for thirteen years this mighty potentate besieged it, until "every head was made bald and every shoulder was peeled." At length it was taken 572 B. C. and the predictions of the prophets were, in part fulfilled. But the inhabitants removed themselves and their effects to an island, and it was not utterly destroyed. It was for Alexander to complete the divine purpose. He found it again populous and strong; but after a costly and terrible siege he took the city by force, put 8000 of the inhabitants to the sword, crucified 2000, and sold 30,000 for slaves. After this it never recovered its glory. It is now in fulfilment of the divine decree, a place for fishermen to spread their nets. So true is it

that God reigneth in the earth, and will do all his pleasure. "The Lord of hosts hath purposed, and who can

disannul."

The next movement of this weapon of the Lord, was against Jerusalem. The Jews pleading their oath to Darius, refused to furnish Alexander with supplies for his army while encamped against Tyre. This exceedingly enraged that successful monarch, and he determined to wreak his vengeance upon Jerusalem. At his approach the Jews were thrown into the greatest consternation. They immediately offered to God sacrifices, prayers and supplications; and, being directed, as it is said, in a vision by night, Jaddua, the High Priest went out to meet the con

xxi. xxvii. † Isaiah xxiii. Ezekiel xxvi. xxvii. xxviii.

queror, dressed in his pontifical robes, with all the priests in their sacerdotal vestments, and the people in white garments. Struck with awe at the solemn spectacle, Alexander hastened forward, and bowed himself to the earth before the High Priest, and worshipped Jehovah, whose name was inscribed on the mitre. Parmenias, his favorite, astonished at his behavior, inquired why he did thus? Alexander who well knew how to improve every occurrence in his own favor, assured him that when he was at Dio, in Macedonia, and deliberating with himself what he should do, this very pontiff, in this habit, appeared to him in a dream, and encouraged him to pursue the war against the Persians, assuring him of complete success in all his undertakings. The king embraced the High Priest, entered Jerusalem in a friendly manner with the procession, and offered sacrifices to God in the Temple. Jaddua then showed him the prophecies of Daniel, which predicted the overthrow of the Persian empire by a Grecian king. This produced a feeling of great exultation in the king, and made him favor the Jewish nation. He suffered them to remain unmolested under their own laws, and in the enjoyment of their own religion; exempted them from the usual tribute on the seventh or Sabbatical year, and gave many of them a place with important privileges, in a new city which he built in Egypt, and which he called Alexandria, after his own name. No power was yet to destroy a place where God had recorded his name.

Beholding the attention which the conqueror paid to the Temple and city of Jerusalem, the Samaritans immediately advanced to meet him, and asked the like favors; but as they were not Jews, they plead in vain; and when, a short time after, some of them mutinied against his Syrian governor, he drove them all from Samaria, and planted there a small colony of Greeks. The Samaritans retired to Shechem under Mount Gerizim, the place of their Temple, and there they have remained to the present time.

It will not be uninteresting to trace the further course and end of this distinguished man, so plainly pointed out in prophecy, and raised up for the execution of such important purposes. From Jerusalem, Alexander went into Egypt; founded the city of Alexandria, and visited the heathen Temple of Jupiter Ammon, situated about 200 miles in the deserts of Lybia. Having caused himself to be declared the son of that heathen god, he returned to Syria, and Per

sia; overcame again the Persians who had gathered against him; pushed his conquests beyond the Indus, and would gladly have gone beyond the Ganges; but his soldiers refused to follow him farther, and he returned to Babylon. There he suddenly died of a fever, produced by a drunken revel, 323 B. C. in the thirteenth year of his reign, and thirty-third year of his age. Thus, when "the he goat had waxed very great and when he was strong," the great horn was broken. He had subjected to himself all the countries from the Adriatic sea to the Ganges, embracing all the habitable world then known. God had raised him up for this purpose. He had marked out, hundreds of years before, his victorious path. He gave him his talents and his success, and carried him through all his difficulties. Alexander was unquestionably a great military commander. but he knew not God. He formed himself on the model of Homer's heroes, and was destroyed by vain glory. His ambition was to conquer the world; and to effect this object, he could wade through seas of blood; totally regardless of human happiness. His triumph led him to the grossest sensuality, and he died as a fool dieth, in bacchanalian revelries. Thus we see that God, who is higher than the highest, can employ the wicked to accomplish his purposes, though they mean not so; and when they have fulfilled his designs, then he casts them out of his hand as no longer useful, except it be in their everlasting destruction for their own vices and follies.

"The great horn was broken, and for it came up four notable ones from toward the four winds of heaven." This termination of the distinguished prophecy, Gabriel thus interpreted. "Now, that being broken, whereas four stood up for it, four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in his power." It was now literally fulfilled. Alexander's brother and sons took the throne, but they were all soon murdered, and the horn or kingdom was entirely broken. The governors of provinces usurped dominion, and being reduced to four, they divided Alexander's empire into four kingdoms, which are the four horns which stood up for the one which was great and terrible. Cassander held Macedon and Greece, and the west parts. Lysimachus had Thrace, Bithynia and the northern regions; Ptolemy took Egypt and the southern countries; and Seleucus, Syria and the provinces of the east.

Lying between these various kingdoms, Judea was often