THE RETURN FROM THE CAPTIVITY.

(Daniel ix. ; the Book of Ezra.)

As long as the children of Israel did what was right, and obeyed the law of their God, he blessed them, and caused them to live in peace and prosperity; but when they forsook the Lord, and worshiped other Gods instead of Him, he afflicted them with famine, or with drought, or pestilence, or stirred up other nations to fight against them.

At last, when they were grown very wicked, in order to punish them more severely, he suffered many of them (particularly those of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin) to be carried away to Babylon, as we have seen. There they remained for seventy years, working hard for their masters, and mourning that they were not permitted to live in their own beautiful country, and in their own holy city.

Towards the end of that time, Daniel, perceiving from a passage in the book of the prophet Jeremiah that the period of their deliverance was at hand, put up an earnest prayer to God, in which he humbly confessed how sinful his countrymen had been, and entreated Him to shew them his mercy. While he was still praying, God sent the angel Gabriel to comfort him; and shortly afterwards, Cyrus, who was then king of Babylon, issued a decree that the Jews should return to their country, and that their temple should be built up again. Accordingly, fifty thousand of them went back to Judæa, conducted by Zerubbabel; and they immediately set about repairing the city of Jerusalem, and building a new temple for their worship.

For some time their design was hin

dered by their neighbours the Samaritans, who were vexed that they would not accept of their assistance; but Darius, who had succeeded to Cyrus as king of

Persia, issued a second decree, commanding his governors to assist the Jews; so that at last the temple was completed, and it was dedicated to God with great rejoicing. The city was not yet finished, but Ahasuerus, another king of Persia, granted to Nehemiah a decree that the governors of his provinces should render assistance to the Jews; and thus was the Holy City at length restored to its ancient strength and grandeur.

God, who reigns in heaven above, has made all kindreds of people to dwell on all the face of the earth. He knows whatever they do, and they cannot transgress his laws without incurring his displeasure. He brings troubles upon them, in order to make them repent of their sins, and return unto Him in the way of well-doing; and if they do truly repent, He forgives them, and shews them his favour.

Let us, then, fear the Lord our God,

and walk always as in His sight. Let us set Him continually before us, and do those things which are well pleasing to Him. If we have been tempted to go astray from the path of his commands, let us quickly return to it, and continue therein as long as we live. Let us accept His gracious offer of forgiveness, and resolve that we will never offend Him any more.

HAMAN AND MORDECAI. (Esther iii.-viii.)

THE greater part of the Jews returned to their own country with Zerubbabel; but there were still many of them left at Babylon, and in Persia in the time of Ahasuerus; and this king took Esther, who was one of them, to be his wife.

Ahasuerus set Haman above all the

princes of his kingdom. Now Haman was a proud and haughty man, and Mordecai, who was a Jew and cousin to Esther the queen, would not bow down before him in token of respect as others did. Haman was very much vexed at this; and though he had great riches, and a large family, and was highly honoured by the king, yet he could not enjoy his prosperity, so long as he saw Mordecai the Jew sitting at the gate of the king's palace, and refusing to do him reverence.

He was so angry that he determined to destroy not only Mordecai himself, but all his countrymen. So he obtained from the king a decree, that on a certain day the Jews should be put to death in all the provinces of the empire; and he also ordered a gallows to be made fifty cubits high, on which to hang Mordecai.

Mordecai had once saved the king's life; and Ahasuerus, who happened one night to have the records of the king