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finished the work of our redemption on earth, he ascended into his father's presence with unspeakable joy and glory.

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To the hill of Zion, and the other mountains around, the sacred writers frequently and triumphantly allude. The references are so easy, as to occasion no difficulty; and so numerous, that only one or two can be quoted. The first is a beautiful allusion to the situation of Jerusalem, environed with mountains and rocks, which oppose a powerful barrier to the incursions of an enemy; They that trust in the Lord shall be as mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth for ever; as the mountains are round about Jerusalem, so the Lord is round about his people, from henceforth even for ever." The description which Volney gives of his approach to Jerusalem, furnishes no contemptible illustration of these verses; and as it is pleasant to compel an avowed infidel to illustrate and confirm the religion of Christ, which he detests, I shall subjoin his account. "Two days' journey south of Nablous, following the direction of the mountains, which gradually become more rocky and barren, we arrive at a town, which like many others already mentioned, presents a striking example of the vicissitude of human affairs: when we behold its walls levelled, its ditches filled up, and all its buildings embarrassed with ruins, we scarcely can believe we view that celebrated metropolis, which formerly baffled the efforts of the most powerful empires, and for a time resisted the efforts of Rome herself; though by a whimsical change of fortune, its ruins now receive her homage and reverence: in a word, we with difficulty recognise Jerusalem. Nor is

z Psal. cxxv, 2.

our astonishment less, to think of its ancient greatness, when we consider its situation amidst a rugged soil, destitute of water, and surrounded by dry channels of torrents and steep heights. Distant from every great road, it seems neither to have been calculated for a considerable mart of commerce, nor the centre of a great consumption. It however overcame every obstacle, and may be adduced as a proof of what popular opinion may effect, in the hands of an able legislature, or when favoured by happy circumstances."a The proud unbeliever had found a shorter and easier road to his conclusion, in the volume of inspiration; and particularly in the passages quoted above, from the Psalms of David, who refers the singular prosperity of Jerusalem to the peculiar favour of Heaven. This was the real source of her greatness, and it was this alone, and not the natural strength of her situation, nor the skill and valour of her defenders, which enabled her so long to baffle the designs of her enemies. This important and instructive truth the royal Psalmist acknowledges in the other passage to which I alluded, in the liveliest strains of devout gratitude: "Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north the city of the great king. For lo, the kings were assembled, they passed by together, they saw it, so they marvelled: they were troubled; they hasted away. Fear took hold upon them there, and pain as of a woman in travail." Behind the walls and bulwarks of salvation, contrived by the wisdom, and appointed by the distinguishing love of Jehovah, that highly favoured people, so long as they remained faithful to the covenant of a Volney's Trav. vol. ii, p. 195, 196. b Psal. xlviii, 2, 3.

their God, reposed in safety, and laughed at the shaking of the hostile spear: but when they forsook the service of Jehovah, for the worship of dumb idols, the impenetrable shield of divine favour and protection was withdrawn, and they became an easy prey to the invader; or, if, listening only to their own furious passions and infatuated counsels, they resisted his efforts for a time, it was only to aggravate their sufferings, and render their destruction more certain and complete.

CHAP. VIII.

THE LAKES AND RIVERS OF PALESTINE.

Lake of Tiberias, or Sea of Galilee-Its breadth forty, and length an hundred furlongs-Water, limpid, sweet, and wholesome-Very soft and cold—Abounds in fish.—Country on both sides uncommonly fruitful and pleasant-Celebrated for a spring of the purest water.—Asphaltites, or the Salt Sea-Description of it-Twenty-four leagues long; six or seven broad-Water intensely salt, bitter, nauseous, and heavy-Its exhalations not destructive to animal life-The soil around it impregnated with salt-All around it, desolate and waste-Sulphureous stones on its shores, which burn and yield a smoke of intolerable stench.-Apples of Sodom. The south-west shore remarkable for its rugged mountains and spacious caverns.-Rivers :-The Kidron-The Jabbok-The Arnon The Kishon-The Jordan-Sources of the Jordan-Depth of the stream six or seven feet-Banks double ; outer and inner-Passages of JordanOverflows in March—Empties itself into the lake Asphaltites.—The rivers of Damascus, Abana, and Pharpar.-The only river which now waters Damascus is the Barrady-Its great importance to the city.

THE only considerable lakes in the land of Promise, are those of Tiberias, and the Salt sea. The lake of Tibe

rias was also known to the sacred writers, by the name of the sea of Galilee, and the lake of Gennesareth. It was called the sea of Tiberias, from a town of that name on its western border; the sea of Galilee, from the province of Galilee in general; and the lake of Gennesareth, from that particular tract of Galilee which skirted its western shore. The breadth of this lake or sea is forty, and the length an hundred furlongs. Its water is limpid, sweet and wholsome: and lying upon gravel, is softer than the water either of a river or fountain; and at the same time so cold, that, says the Jewish historian, it cannot be warmed by exposure to the sun, in the hottest season of the year. It abounds in a great variety of fish, which for taste and shape, are peculiar to itself. The lake of Tiberias is properly a dilatation of the river Jordan; which through the middle of it pursues his course to the Dead Sea. The country on both sides, is uncommonly fruitful and pleasant. So fertile is the soil, that every plant thrives in it; and so great is the felicity of the climate, that nuts, palms, figs, and olive trees, flourish here in great profusion, although they naturally require a quite different temperature; which, observes the historian, looks as if Providence took delight in this place, to reconcile contradictions; and as if the very seasons themselves were in a competition, which should be most obliging. The durable character of the fruits produced in this charming region, is not less remarkable than their great variety and excellence. Figs and grapes continue in season there ten months in year; and other fruits the whole year round. Gennesareth is not more celebrated for its delicious air and

the

Josephus' Wars of the Jews, ch. x, p. 205.

temperature, than for a spring of living waters, clear as crystal, to which the natives give the name of Capernaum; which some have considered as a little gut of the Nile, because it contains a species of fish no where else to be found, but in the neighbourhood of Alexandria. The length of the country along the lake is about four miles, and the breadth four miles and a half. This district was, in the time of Josephus, inhabited by a skilful and industrious people, who, wisely availing themselves of the singular advantages which the soil and climate of their highly favoured country afforded them, carried the improvement of their lands to the highest degree of perfection. From the extraordinary fruitfulness of this tract, some conjecture, that the word Gennesareth is compounded of two words, Gan and Sar; of which the first denotes in Hebrew a garden, the last a prince; and consequently the compound, the garden of a prince, or a princely garden. But, although the name in this view sufficiently corresponds with the nature of the country, it is more probable that the word Gennesareth, in the New Testament, owes its existence to the term Chinnereth or Cinnereth in the Old; for, in the days of Joshua, Cinnereth was a fortified city in the tribe of Naphtali; and it is evident from a passage in the 1st book of Kings, that it gave its name to the surrounding country. The Jewish legislator in several parts of his writings, and Joshua in the history of his proceedings, place the city of Chinnereth on the shore of the lake Tiberias, calling it by the same name, the sea of Chinnereth." Hence it is more than probable, that Gennesareth in the New Testament, c 1 Kings xv, 20. d Num. xxxiv, 11. Deut. iii, 17. Josh. xii, 3.

b Josh. xix, 35.

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