HOW THE WALLS OF JERICHO FILL.

Otago Witness, Issue 2860, 6 January 1909, Page 80

HOW THE WALLS OF JERICHO FILL.

I NEW LIGHT ON OLD TESTAMENT HISTORY. I Every once in a while, Jib© a mummy come to life, either in. Egypt or the Holy Land, or elsewhere in the East, a tablet, ; inscription, or parchment appears with a. 1 message 1000 ox 2000 years old, which throws amazing light upon that most interesting of all historical narratives — the Bible. The latest message is 2000 years old, and only once before has the darkness been lightened by a flash .{com this source. Once the scholar Scaliger got into friendly communication with the Samaritans in Cairo during the sixteenth century, and: obtained from them copies of certain parts of their calendar amd an Arabic chronicle written in the twelfth century aoid called the Book of Joshua. With the copies was a letter mentioning other Hebrew books, of which Scaliger at once begged copies. But the Samaritans had learned that their correspondent was a Gentile, and absolutely refused to graaro copies of their treasures to him. No more information came from the Samaritans during all the succeeding years until just now. Dr Moses Gaster, a great Hebrew authority, has long been on terms of intimacy with the Samaritans. This year when in Samaria he was allowed to search throughout their libraries. Nablus, the High Priest, gave him a chronicle of the Samaritans from the entry of the Children of Israel into Palestine to the present year. Prom the verger of the library ho bought another ancient pa.rchme(nft, supposed to be almost identical with the first part of the other manuscript. He has now discovered that this second parchment is nothing less than the longlost Samaritan version of the- Book of Joshua. For 2000 yeans (says Science Sittings) this work has lain hidden in the hands of the Samaritans, and by some mistake has now been sold by them far a trifle. For centuries there has been a discussion whether this work had really ever existed. The majority of authorities held that jj. was a m.yth. The newly- discovered book startp with a new and interextdnig point. It places a definite date on the creation of the world, giving the year of the death of Moses as the 2794 th from the Creation. Another item of importance that the Bible omits is Joshua's order for the ooumtdnjj of the people. — The Horn-blowing of Joshua's Host.— Most interesting of all is the light it throws on the miraculous falling of the walls of Jericho. From the biblical account it was understood that, the actual stone walls of the city fell at the blowing of the horns of Joshua's host. This incident has always been hard to explain, and many an ingenious attempt has been made to show now noise might have knocked down the walls. The new book has a wholly different story. It seems the walls in question were not the solid masonry walls of Jericho at all, but were seven magic walls of iron with which the wicked necromancers of King Shobach had surrounded Joshua's army. Surrounded by these seven magic walls of iron, the army of the Children of Israel was helpless to attack the hosts of Shobach or to escape. But Joshua prayed to God, who sent him a dove in aarawer. Joshua wrote a message to King Nobah asking him for help. The dove flew over the seven magic walls to Nobah, who marched with his tribes to Joshua. Just at the proper moment the prieet Phineas inarched out with a trumpet, upon which he blew just one bla3t. At the eouml of the trumpet the magic seven iron walls fell and vani&hed, and Joshua defeated Shobach. If the walls were magic walls to begin with it makes unnecessary the laboured explanations of how noiso could knock them down. Nobah, it seems, had been, appointed King over the two and a-half tribes, returned beyond the Jordan. The biblical narrative of the spies sent to Jericho aai<J« saved by Rahab, hidden in. her hou.'o on the wall o-f the city, and 1 later lowered to safety by her with a cord, is confirmed in detail by the Samaritan account. In many way<- the new work is defective as compared with the Bible. And coneidering that the Samaritans did not look upon it as sacred, and even let the work get out of their knowledge altoget her, so that it was s-old for a trifle, it ia almof-t miraculous that it should have been preserved. However, biblical studentt are congratulating themselves that it fell into such expeit h:n"Js. and await with ejgf-mccs Dr Ga'-ter'.s complete tianslation.

— Although tlio "■and in the .Sjhara. only Averago- 30fc in d^pth, it Jias been found 200fr below th« surface. — The ma'ntenaTico of children in Kncr-]'-h ai.d Wel-h ic-formalory ami industrial F-cbooU la -,t yc-dr cott iuct £10 un.<l«r £120,000.