VOL. VIII.

Palestine.

In former numbers of the Chronicle we have given large extracts from the correspondence of the Deputation, appointed by the Church of Scotland to inquire into the condition of the Jews. We now insert the account given by the Rev. Messrs. Bonar and McCheyne of their visit to many places in Palestine, accompanied by Mr. Calman, a converted Jew. Their narrative will be read with great interest by every lover of interesting natural scenery, hallowed by its association with the persons and events described in the Sacred Scriptures, and illustrating many things in those inspired Records, as well as by every one who longs for the salvation of Israel.

The Rev. A. Bonar wrote on the 3rd of August from Smyrna:

Zidon.

We have accomplished what remained of our inquiries into the cities of Israel. Dr. Black and Dr. Keith left us on the 7th of July, and next day, Mr. M.Cheyne and I, in company with Mr. Calman, who has consented to go with us in our journeyings, set out to proceed southward once more. We slept that night at a place called Nab-Jounes, "Prophet Jonas," said to be the spot where he was cast ashore. We reached Zidon, now Saide, next morning. We found it a plain, quiet, sea-coast town

VOL. VIII.

No. 5.

frequented only by a few fishing-boats. We found no such company of holy believers as Paul did (Acts xxvii. 3); but there is a small synagogue of the Jews, into which we entered, though we met with nothing remarkable. They did not avoid direct conversation regarding their hope of salvation, and their rabbi, lately come from Barbary, afterwards invited us to his house.

Tyre.

Next day we came to Tyre, now Sour, and there too found, not an assembly of Jews. Of these, five families have lately saints (Acts xxi. 3,) but a synagogue of come from Algiers, and the rest are from Safet and other places of Palestine. The rabbi conversed freely with us at his own house, on every point in dispute,referring to the works of his Commentators, of which he had a few on a shelf beside him. His house was by the sea, the modern town,-a town without trafcommanding from its window a view of fic, marked out as once renowned by broken pillars and carved stones that lie on its shore and in its streets. There were two or three boats there when we passed; but there are no remains of Old Tyre; "it is no more found." (Ezek. xxvi. 21.) We had passed between these two places the ancient Sarpeta, now Sarphand, situated on a hill a little way from the coast, where they still point out the widow's house; and our way was thus full of pleasant associations, as we traversed not only the territories of mighty cities, but "the coasts," out of which multitudes used to come to Jesus -the Syrophenician woman was one.

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Safet.

After this, our way turned eastward into the heart of the country. It was the borders of the tribe of Asher that we were traversing. The road ascended a hill for many miles; but yet at every opening we looked back and saw the sea, as if at our feet. All was hilly, and some of the hills about fifteen hundred feet high; and yet we remarked, that the hills which bound that tribe on this point, bore marks of having been clothed with trees to their summit. Many of these remain; the olive-tree has been the chief, for it still abounds, showing how exactly true has been Gen. xlix. 20, "Out of Asher his bread shall be fat;" and Deut. xxxiii. 24, " He shall dip his foot in oil;" while, on the other hand, we had seen in the purple fish still found at the foot of Carmel, and in the splendid plains stretching from thence to Acre, how he had "yielded royal dainties." The distinct variety of the land has repeatedly struck us as astonishing. Among these hills of Asher, where they open out into a surface of some extent, we found a large village called Kanah. I have little

doubt this is the Kana of Asher, mentioned Josh. xix. 28. It is beautifully situated amidst the olive-trees, with some considerable spots around it laid out in

corn.

We then crossed a deep valley, which may be the Jipthtah-el of Josh. xix. 14 and 27, the boundary of Zebulon. The descent is very precipitous; we scarcely believed we had plunged into so deep a glen, till we looked up and saw on each side of us hills of about two thousand feet in height. We rode along this pass for about an hour and a-half, the road level, but apparently the dried up channel of a brook, amidst a variety of thick-set bushes and trees, wild flowers, honeysuckle, and especially woodbine (which the Arabs call the "Jessamine of the desert,") scenting the air, and fireflies streaming their light on all sides. We came up from the valley, and reached a village named Jettar, a little after sunset. The villagers told us, that to a pool which is there, herds of gazelles, and

also herds of leopards and wolves, often came from the valley to quench their thirst. Our passage through this spot, suggested to me the subject of Zechariab's valley of myrtle-trees (i. 8), wherein he shows Israel hid from view in such a retired bottom, till the leader comes to guide them up out of it into eminence and safety. At noon, on the succeeding day, we rested at Kafir-birchom, under some spreading fig-trees, and unexpectedly found in it interesting ruins. They are the ruins of an old synagogue, to which the Jews still occasionally repair to pray. There are remains of a very elegant doorway and two windows. The windows are fluted and wide at the foot, in the Grecian style; the doorway has pillars of the simplest form, and above is festooned with vine-leaves, grapes, and the pomegranate. We could not ascertain the date of its erection; it is now a ruin. We began now to hear much of the dangers of the road from the Bedouin Arabs; but the kindness of the God of Israel led us on next evening safe to Safet.

I cannot ascertain the name of this

town in ancient times. It is generally believed to be "the city set on a hill," in full view of our Lord when he preached the sermon on the Mount. It stands on the very top of a high hill-at least two thousand feet; it is visible on every side; it commands a magnificent prospect of the Lake of Galilee, the hills Tabor, Hermon, and Gilboa, the mountain of Beatitudes; and opposite is the noble hill of Naphtali, full of associations of what God has done for Israel (Judges iv.) ; with the plain Zaanaim at its foot. The height of the situation renders the climate the coolest in Palestine, quite like a pleasant summer day with us. Among the ruins of several buildings, we saw serpents gliding, and vultures were flying over our heads in great numbers. But we found the Jews of this place very miserable. The town is not yet recovered from the effects of the earthquake which two years ago made it almost a heap of ruins; ruins still meet the eye on every side. It was, however, the

moral state of the people that to us appeared most impressive. Nothing could more fully answer the description of Moses, "Thy life shall hang in doubt before thee, and thou shalt fear day and night, shalt have none assurance of thy life." (Deut. xxviii. 66.)—This arises from the circumstance, that in the absence of the Pasha's troops, who are all withdrawn to his armies in the north,-the Jews, always defenceless and an object of prey, are threatened daily with the attack of the Arabs. They were keeping watch when we were among them; four soldiers and ten Jews patrolled the town during night. They had buried their best clothes and precious articles under ground; and many were preparing to flee. We heard, while with them, that the Bedouins had plundered the village Medjel (supposed to be the ancient Magdala,) on the other side of the lake; and next day we saw the place actually deserted and left empty. Such was the state of things around, and these externally sufficient to move compassion. Yet there was more by far to move pity towards the people when you saw their worship, and the indications of their state of soul. On Friday evening, at sun-set, you might see the Sabbath-lamp, newly lighted, shining through the windows of every house in the Jewish quarter. Soon after, all were met in the synagogue, the women occupying their assigned compartments or hovering round the door with their children, leaving the care of their souls to the men,-for they are quite ignorant and deem it a duty to let others act for them. We had never witnessed any thing so earnest as the devotion exhibited here. The majority of those present were old men, some of them tottering with age, their white hairs covering their emaciated temples; yet the intense vehemence with which they sent up their prayers was most affecting. They used every action and intonation of voice that could extort pity; some lifted up both hands to heaven in the most imploring attitude, some clasped their hands, or wrung them together like people entreating for something which

In

they despaired of obtaining; others, again, bent their bodies, and bowed their heads, and struck their breasts. many there was the look and the expression of angry expostulation, as if saying to God, "Wherefore have we afflicted our souls, and thou takest no knowledge?" (Isa. lviii. 3.) A few, more violent and extravagant than their brethren, remained behind, and continued about half an hour longer in prayer, stamping on the ground, leaping, and striking the wall, so that we at first imagined them insane. When the service was over, they really seemed exhausted by the bodily exertion undergone.

At present, there are just one thousand nine hundred Jews in Safet; but there is no doubt the number will rapidly increase so soon as the present cause for alarm is past; there used to be seven thousand. They have four synagogues, and several reading-rooms. We had not much intercourse with them, because of their natural bigotry, and also because they had been specially warned beforehand of the object of our coming. With some we did get into conversation, and found them most interesting in regard to their real belief of what they practise; but in general they kept aloof from us.

There was one among those we met of a strange class; he was a Russian, who had become a Jew a few years ago. Of this there are occasional instances, though not many. Next day we rode out to a village named Merona, two hours distant, and on the slope of the hill of Napthali, where are many tombs of the rabbies and illustrious men that have made Safet a holy city. The tombs are not interesting; but we found in the village, remains of a building in the very style of that at Kafir-birchom, said to be an ancient synagogue. But more interesting still; we rode on an hour farther, by a path that led into the hill, and farther up, a delightful road, from the myrtles and other shrubs that lined it,— to a village, Jermach. Here are ten or twelve Jews settled, dwelling in the unwalled village, a thing very rare at present in Palestine. We wished to have

gone three hours farther to see another village, Bereeah, where it is said there are nearly twenty Jews settled, supporting themselves by cultivating the soil,thing new in Israel, though soon to be universal among them. (Ezek. xxxviii. 8, 11, 12.) We had not, however, time to get to it that day; and next day was the Sabbath, which we spent at afet, often looking down upon the lake, and around on the hills which Christ had once made his place of rest.

Tiberias and the Sea of Galilee.

On Monday we left "the city set upon an hill." Our way was by the banks of the Lake of Tiberias, and nothing could be more pleasant than to be at every step reminded of the words and works of Jesus by the places we passed. The Plain of Gennesareth first meets you. It is the only plain of any extent along the lake, and must have been above measure delightful in the days when Capernaum raised its head to heaven, amidst the luxuriant gardens, and groves, and fields that are known to have flourished there. Now it is waste,-like Israel, scattered and peeled, in order that even their external state may declare the guilt of rejecting an offered Saviour; here you see not a tree of any beauty, and scarcely a cultivated field, for "it has been cast down to hell." We soon felt, especially at evening, the peculiar calmness and retirement that invests the lake, and could perceive, we thought, why Jesus, when vexed by an unbelieving generation, "withdrew himself with his disciples to the sea." (Mark iii. 7.) No place except Jerusalem has so deeply impressed us. Jerusalem presents those scenes of intense importance, that show the saint the beginning and end of his hope, the work of Christ from his first to his second coming; while the Sea of Galilee ever referring back to what was accomplished there, brings before the soul the common and quiet scenes of life pervaded and hallowed by the Redeemer's work. In complete contrast, however, to these associations, we found the men of Israel at

Tiberias in a state of misery, fitted to move us to prayer and labour. The town was overthrown by the earthquake two years ago, and not a house left uninjured. Hence the daughter of Zion is here literally sitting in dust. We went to the synagogues over heaps of ruins. At the same time, the Jews are the most cleanly of the population, and their synagogues, like those of Safet, especially clean, and well furnished with simple but elegant lamps. Their reading-rooms, also (of which they once had above thirty, and relics of which still exist throughout the town), are kept cool and pleasant; we visited one that opened out to the lake. The Jews were very reserved towards us, for the same reason as at Safet. They knew why we came, and they are even more superstitious and bigoted than those of Safet, using gestures more extravagant and vehement in their worship. They have five synagogues, none of them large. They were in the same state of fear from dread of the Arabs as elsewhere; many had already fled to more secure places, such as Acre and Khaipha. We saw plainly their temper and state of mind; they are sincere in their superstition and bigotry. And this very fact may prove the best opening to real missionary work among them. For all earnest and sincere Jews are restless in search of salvation, and to such peculiarly may the words of life spoken by this Sea, apply with power, "Come unto me, all ye that are heavy laden." It has been our conviction, as it was also of our brethren who have left us, from the reports they heard, that this spot, "the land of Zebulon, and the land of Naphtali, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles," where the light first sprang up (Matt. iv. 15, 16,) may be the most eligible spot for a mission from the Church of Scotland. In the region where Jesus himself began, at his first coming, to proclaim "The kingdom of heaven is at hand," heralds of salvation from Scotland may raise the same cry in prospect of his second coming. I may mention as an illustration of the Scripture,

that while conversing with a very respectable and intelligent Jew regarding the Sea, we asked him about the squalls that sweep over it; and he said, that in winter time, "it was often more stormy far than the great sea."

An extract from another letter, dated July 15, on the Lake of Galilee, should be inserted here:

We are now in our tents by the side of this memorable lake, close by the town of Tiberias. We washed in its waters, and got into the only boat upon it, and now we have just seen the last tint of the setting sun fade from the hills of Bashan, which are full in our view, and there is a deep stillness and serenity on the surface of the lake. We sat in quiet and thoughtful meditation till near midnight, remembering how Jesus twice came to deliver his disciples at the darkest hour; how he walked over the waves and spoke peace. "It is I," Is not this saying to a sinner, "I am thy salvation?" We could fancy it was on such a night as this that Peter and the others (John xxi.) went out to fish, and caught nothing till next morning. Jesus came and stood on the shore, and said to them as they slowly sailed along, "Children," TEKVIx, "Dear children," "have ye any meat." That chapter of John seemed to us intensely interesting as we sat together and beheld the scene. We got some of the fish of the lake-" broiled fish," to our evening meal. The lake is clear, and its channel is not muddy, but pebbly. The water is sweet and soft. The edge is generally either bare or fringed with reeds, but occasionally rhododendrons in full bloom and a species of convolvulus form a beautiful border. Part of the Plain of Gennesareth is full of these, and in the stream of water that issues from a fountain in the heart of the plain, we saw tortoises swimming in abundance. The hills on the opposite side are very steep, just such as the swine might run down. At the foot of Tabor and other places where we slept, we heard, during night, the cry of wolves, jackalls, and leopards, sometimes filling the whole

region with their howlings at midnight, illustrating Ezekiel xxxiv. 24, "I will cause the evil beasts to cease out of the land, and they shall dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods." We visited Nazareth. It is a town shut in with hills, and when in it you look round on white limestone cliffs; it calls to mind "the dry ground," out of which the root of Jesse sprang. Its retired obscurity struck me, the Saviour thus teaching his people to be willing to be unknown even thirty years of their life, or all their lives, if he choose so to appoint. I wish I had space to tell you illustrations derived from the fountains we daily came to, where men, women, and children came at noon to drink, and be revived and enjoy the coolness that is round it; a beautiful type of thirsty souls, men, women, and children, coming to "the fountain of living waters." And the "dew" "resting all night on the branches," (Job) and on the grass, reviving the withered leaves, and keeping them moist and preparing them for the coming heat of next day,-like the sweet influence of the Lord's presence with the saint at evening and morning, when He sheds the truth over the soul, while it reads and prays.

Return to Beyrout.

We

We now prepared to return. paid a visit to the remarkable springs near the town, as we had done to a singular pool of a water, like the extinguished crater of a volcano, near Safet, and then set out for Nazareth. In our way we crossed Mount Tabor, where experience taught us what shall be the blessedness of the promise, "violence shall no more be heard in thy land." (Isa. lx. 18.) We had reached the foot rather late in the day; fearing, therefore, that we might lose the magnificent view from the summit if we did not use all speed, we did not go round by the regular path, but pressed up through bushes and rocks with great difficulty to the top. We had time to see where Christ, hid from the eyes of all others, is belived to have been trans