on the service of the tabernacle as a Levite, being the first-born and given to God. He was instructed to warn Eli of his coming calamities, although he did so in vain. When the ark of the covenant had been captured by the Philistines, they carried it into the house of their idol Dagon, whereupon the image instantly fell down and broke in pieces; they then removed it from city to city, but every where it smote the inhabitants with sore diseases. Notwithstanding it was placed in a carriage drawn by two milch-kine, whose calves are dependant on them, and shut up at home, the animals conveyed their precious charge back into the land of Israel, of their own accord. Samuel himself now assailed the Philistines, and a storm of thunder and lightning was miraculously afforded him to complete the route of his enemies, who never troubled Israel again during his lifetime. Peace being restored, the prophet travelled yearly through his country to administer justice-but in his old age, he made his sons judges, and they so oppressed and abused the people, that an universal cry arose for a king. Samuel opposed the renunciation of the Theocracy by every argument in his power: but the Israelites were obstinate as usual, and God himself at length directed the prophet to comply with their wish, and resign his office, 1195. Samuel lived nearly to the close of the reign of Saul, acting in his prophetic and monitory character only, and dying at Ramah, 1060.

EVENTS.

Return of the Heraclide. After and queen of the country. The people having been frequently driven back, of Sparta were always respectful to when attempting to gain possession of the aged. Their menial servants, Mycena, and other states to which or slaves were the Helots. The they laid claim, the descendants of monarchy lasted 883 years, after Hercules finally got possession of the whole Peloponnesus, 1104. This period is taken as one of the most important epochs of ancient history.

which its power gradually declined under the lashes of the Thebans and Macedonians, until it was wholly crushed by the Romans. It should be Founding of Sparta. Eurystheus observed, that Sparta had two kings and Procles, two of the Heraclidæ, always reigning together,one descended founded this famous state, 1102, and from Procles (the Proclidæ), the other ruled together. The country had very from Eurysthenes (the Eurysthenida) early been called Laconia, and the from 1102 to 210; in which latter capital was now named both Lacedæ-year the usurper Machanidas declared mon and Sparta, from a former king himself sole ruler.

SECTION VI.

THE REIGN OF SAUL, KING OF ISRAEL.

1095 to 1050-40 YEARS.

Saul, selected by Samuel, and anointed by him, had no sooner been proclaimed king of Israel, than the Philistines and others began fresh attacks. Jonathan, Saul's son, was successful against the Philistines; and Saul himself attacked the Amalekites, but lost God's favour by sparing their rebellious king Agag, and saving the best of their flocks and herds, under the pretence of keeping them for sacrifices. A melancholy seized him upon hearing that he should lose his kingdom; and David, son of Jesse, a young shepherd skilled in music, was employed to soothe him with his harp. When the Philistines shortly after dared the men of Israel to combat their gigantic leader, Goliath,

the same David agreed to contend with him in single combat; and with only a sling in his hand and a few pebble-stones went forward, and, supported by an invisible power, slew the boaster, who had threatened to give David's flesh to the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field. A complete victory over the Philistines followed; but Saul becoming jealous of the notice taken of David, the latter fled to Gath, when informed privately by Jonathan, who affectionately loved him, of his father's secret purpose to slay him. Saul hunted him from place to place, and once actually entered a cave where he was concealed with some followers. His friends earnestly called on David, now that Saul was in his power, to kill the man who was seeking his life; but he mildly answered, "God forbid that I should stretch forth my hand against the Lord's anointed!" and following the king from the cave, convinced him of the risk he had run, and of his own disinclination to be cruel. Saul felt his situation for the moment, but was soon after in arms to seek David with 3000 men. Encamping at Ziph with his forces, David entered his tent while he slept, and simply took away a spear and a pitcher, as tokens of the king's danger, and of his own innocence of heart. When Saul was apprized of this his second escape, he acknowledged the superior virtue of David, promised not to give him further disturbance, and having blessed him, returned to his own city. The Philistines again attacked Saul after this, and the Israelites were beaten, with the loss of Jonathan and his two brothers, who had command under their father. Saul was wounded with an arrow; and upon hearing of his children's death, fled to mount Gilboa, and threw himself upon his sword, lest he should fall into the hands of the enemy. The lamentation of David for Saul and his dear friend Jonathan is one of the most pathetic passages with which we meet.

EVENT.

The Death of Codrus. This last the Athenians, in honour to his meking of Athens, being attacked by the mory, would no longer be ruled by Heraclidæ, was informed by an oracle kings, but appointed nine archons, that victory would be granted to the with a short duration of power, to nation whose king was killed in the govern the state. The chief of the contest. The Heraclidæ tried to take nine was called archon, the second him alive; but disguising himself, basileus, and each had a particular Codrus attacked one of the enemy, duty. and fell, 1070. Victory ensued; and|

SECTION VII.

THE REIGN OF DAVID, KING OF ISRAEL.

1055 TO 1015-40 YEARS.

David, who had been privately anointed by Samuel, was directed, upon the death of Saul, to remove to Hebron, where the tribe of Judah acknowledged him for their sovereign. The other tribes, however, proclaimed Ishbosheth, Saul's remaining son, king of Israel at Jerusalem; and a war of seven years ensued between the parties, which was only put an end to by the murder of Ishbosheth by two of his own captains. The assassins fled to David with the news, thinking to please him; but he had them put to death; after which the Saulite party submitted to his authority. Thus undisputed master of Israel, David studied to promote the glory and worship of God, and to discharge the duties of his high station with alacrity and dig

C

nity; but good as was his heart naturally, he suffered his passions occasionally to overpower his better principles. Captivated by the beauty of Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah, one of his generals, he caused her husband to be slain, by exposing him in battle, and then married her. The prophet Nathan finely reproved him by his story of the pet-lamb; and the king's repentance thereon was sincere. The last years of David's life were imbittered by public and private calamities. His son Absalom having in a great degree stolen the affections of his people from his aged father, broke out into open rebellion, and obliged him to flee from Jerusalem: but the rebels were soon defeated, and the young prince, as he fled upon a mule, was caught by his hair in the boughs of a thick oak, and suspended between heaven and earth, till Joab, David's general, slew him. Soon after this and the insurrection of Sheba had been put down, David drew upon him the divine anger by numbering his people, as if distrustful of the Almighty hand; and a pestilence which destroyed 70,000 persons was the consequence. At length the king's end approached; and after urging his son, Solomon, to walk in God's ways, and keep his commandments, he expired at Jerusalem, aged seventy. As a warrior, a poet, a musician, a prophet, and a king, David is one of the most remarkable characters of antiquity. His pieces in the book of Psalms, in addition to their worth as inspired and didactic compositions, are amongst the most elegant specimens of poetry extant. As the lineal descendant of Abraham, and the progenitor of the Saviour, in his human capacity, he was above all men glorious; while his marked inclination to the side of mercy, and abhorrence of revenge, his piety, and his humility, obtained for him the enviable title of the man after God's own heart.'

EVENT.

The Ionian Migration. The Ionians | during one of the Romans. This mi(from Ion) of the Peloponnesus, ha-gration was a prelude to the division of rassed by the Heraclidæ, at length mi- the Greeks into three distinct tribes; grated, as the Eolians had done, to Asia Minor, and founded the Ionian states there, twelve in number, of which Ephesus, Smyrna, Miletus, and Samos became the most celebrated. Samos (an island on the coast) was noted for having been the birthplace of Juno, and for her magnificent temple. Pythagoras was also born there. Crasus made the Ionians, in aftertimes, tributary to Lydia, and they joined Xerxes against the Greeks. Alexander delivered them from the Persian yoke, but Sylla put them under the more en

the Eolians, having for their possession the plain land of Thessaly with Phocis, Boeotia, part of Peloponnesus (Arcadia and the parts near), and their colony in Asia Minor; the Ionians, having Attica in Peloponnesus, Megara, Euboea, and the surrounding islands, with their colony in Asia Minor; and the Dorians, who had the mountains of Thessaly, a large portion of Peloponnesus, and the isles to the south of Asia Minor, with those on the coasts of Italy and Sicily. Hence the dialects.

SECTION VIII.

THE REIGN OF SOLOMON, KING OF ISRAEL.

1015 TO 975-40 YEARS.

Solomon, as soon as he was settled firmly in his kingdom (having been compelled to put his brother Adonijah to death, for sedition), applied himself to the nanagement of public affairs. When divinely assured that he should receive

whatever blessing he should ask, he prudently and modestly desired, not riches and honour, but a wise and understanding heart. An opportunity soon offered for the trial of his wisdom; two women, bringing two children, the one dead and the other alive, came to him for justice; both disowned the dead child, both claimed the living one. How could the truth be discovered, and the infants be given to their proper mothers? Solomon had recourse to the workings of nature for the discovery of the secret. He commanded that the child for which they contended with equal warmth should be divided, and half of it given to each woman. One of them was willing to have it so divided; but the other cried out, in despair and agony, that it should not be so ; 'O my lord, give her the living child, and by no means slay it!' This affectionate, anxious desire to save the life of the infant, manifested the true mother; and Solomon accordingly gave her the child, to the satisfaction of the whole assembly. His wisdom was no less distinguished in the government of his kingdom, and in many learned treatises which he wrote, upon the nature of plants and trees, and of beasts, birds, and fishes. Peace and plenty were diffused through his dominions; and by his extensive alliances and commerce, gold and silver were brought to him in such abundance, that the riches of the world seemed to have been gathered together in the city of Jerusalem. Having by these means added a vast quantity of materials to those which David had collected, he applied himself to the great work which his father had so much at heart, and built a temple to the Lord. It was the most beautiful and magnificent edifice in the world, and was erected on mount Moriah, where Abraham had offered up his son Isaac, and where God appeared to David when he stopped the pestilence. The grandeur and richness of it exceeded all power of description; and when the ark was deposited in it, a divine light filled the building. The fame of the wisdom and magnificence of this prince spread over the whole earth, and drew many persons of wealth and learning from distant nations to his court. Particularly the queen of Sheba, a princess as remarkable for understanding as for power and riches, came from the farthest part of the south to see his glory, and be an ear-witness of his wisdom. Solomon, however, so beloved of God, and so admired by men, did not persevere in virtue; but, strange to say, fell towards the close of his life into idolatry. He took wives out of those nations with which God had commanded the Israelites not to make any alliance; and these drew him from the service of the true God, to bow down to the false deities of the Ammonites. He was punished, however, by the assurance from Abijah, the prophet, that his successor should be deprived of ten of the tribes; and his repentance is evinced by his book of Ecclesiastes, wherein he well describes the vanity of every earthly labour and enjoyment, and enjoins the fear of God, and the observance of his laws, as the only means of happiness. Solomon was fifty-eight when he died.-He was author of the Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Canticles, to which some add the book of Wisdom. He must have been highly renowned amongst kings, if we simply remark the manner in which his actions have been recorded by all eastern writers, Arabs, Persians, Moguls, and even Chinese; and the mere circumstance of his having built Tadmor or Palmyra, a city ten miles in circumference, as an intermediate station for carrying on an intercourse with India, besides other large towns for similar purposes, would show him to have been one of the most enterprising and wealthy of monarchs.

EMINENT PERSON.

Hiram, king of Tyre or Phoenicia, had always been a lover of David; and when Solomon succeeded to the

throne, he sent an embassy to congratulate him. Solomon soon after applied to him for cedar-wood, fir-wood,

and stone, for the construction of the temple, which Hiram sent down on floats from Lebanon to the port nearest Jerusalem. The Phoenicians were then what the Venetians were afterwards, and the English are now-the

first commercial people in the world. No less than 150,000 of Solomon's people were employed in assisting Hiram's workmen, to hew the timber, and raise and cut the required quantity of stone.

SECTION IX.

REHOBOAM, KING OF JUDAH.

975 TO 958-17 YEARS.

Rehoboam. Solomon's bones had scarcely been committed to the tomb, when the people called upon his son and successor Rehoboam, at Shechem, to lighten the burdens which his father had placed on them. The old counsellors, who were experienced in the affairs of the nations, advised him to give a kind and gentle answer, that he might secure the affections of the people, and establish himself firmly upon the throne; but the advice of his young, giddy companions seemed, in his vain imagination, more agreeable to the dignity of his government; and therefore, instead of soothing his subjects and promising redress, he threatened to increase their burdens, and govern them with greater severity than his father had done. Ten of the tribes were so offended at this harsh answer, that they disclaimed all allegiance to him; and made Jeroboam, a bold ambitious youth, king over them. The other two tribes, Judah and Benjamin, adhered to Rehoboam, and conveyed him safely to Jerusalem; so that, in the emphatic words of scripture, there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all their days.' Thus Israel, which was just rising into fame, was divided into two parts, the kingdom of Judah and the kingdom of Israel. Rehoboam raised a large army to reduce the revolted tribes; but was prevented from marching against them by the prophet Shemaiah, who informed him that the division of the kingdom took place by divine appointment. He soon gave himself up to idolatry, in which he was too readily followed by his subjects; and at length the Egyptians, under Shishak, entered Jerusalem, and spoiled the temple and the palace of their treasures; so that Rehoboam left the state much impoverished at his death,

EVENT.

Jeroboam's Revolt. This person was | priest, and appointed the lowest of the son of Nebat, one of Solomon's othcers, people to be priests of the polluted and had been made superintendent of high-places. But as he was about to the revenues of the tribes of Ephraim offer sacrifices at Bethel, a prophet and Manasseh for his bravery. On from Jerusalem declared that the altar being declared king by the ten tribes, should be destroyed by a king of Jeroboam beautified Shechem for his Judah named Josiah, a prophecy capital, and built a palace there; and which was fulfilled 340 years afterfearing lest the people, if they went at wards: and when Jeroboam, being the public festivals to worship God at angry, stretched forth his hand to apJerusalem, according to the law, should prehend him, it became withered; be induced to dwell there, and become yet, upon his humiliation, it was resubjects of the king of Judah, he set stored to him. He was not, however, up two golden calves as gods in dif- reclaimed by this wonderful event, so ferent parts of his kingdom. He also that the prophet Ahijah was instructed took upon himself the office of high- to tell him that his sick child should