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Show DESTRUCTION ari +) ‘ of the prophets? ae eat ig yd Abas ne ry, ef .F a &ie sie | \ ret 1 7: ¥ 7 oe ieee i , 4 » j ; $ - a rf - 1 - ; ‘ Ba: i k " a 7; ol oj - a Ey By a fr ai tS Fs ea ae oe oe fy a, 7 . is LS oe 2 2 we ange ce 3 Pe = => oe a 3 ay ae a | Sas wees ae ee BR SNe Pe Rt OP , ver Rat -Q a Micah had foretold that in this ve- Apes gales. ry calamity they would presumptaously ‘lean upon the Lord, and say, Is not the Lord among us? No evil shall come upon us.” So blind and presumptuous The famine in the city became ted) still more deadly. the Jews - But Godhad be many tot, awful notso determined. devices in a man’s And“ though there heart ; nevertheless the fire. with his rushed with horrid outecries to extin- Titus too flew to the spot in his char- chief officers and legions. With loud enforced So great to him. His soldiers, deaf to all cries, assiduously spread the flames far and wide ; rushing atthe same time on the. Jews, sword in hand, slaying and trampling down, or crushing them to death ayainst the wails, Many were plunged into the flames, and perished in the and for your children; for behold the days are coming, in which they shall say, Blessed are the barren, that never gave suck.”? Moses had long predicted this very scene. ‘Ibe tender and delicate woman among you, (said he,) who would not venture toset the sole of her foot on the ground for delicateness; her eye burning of the out buildings of the temple. ry of the Roman soldiers slaughtered the The fu- poor, unarmed, and the rich, as well as men in arms. toward her children, which she shail bear; for she shall eat them, for want of all things, secrctiy in the siege and straitness wherewith thine enemy shall distress thee in thy if there council of war had form- was the confusion, that no attention was paid but weep for yourselves and that command, and every token of anxiety, he the extinguishing of the fire ; but in vain. who followed him, going to the cross: ‘“* Daughters of young one, witnesses of that ‘Titus withhis perceiving this, Such scenes force upon our recollection the tender pathetic address of our Saviour to the pious females her deciares, credibie in hurling a brand of fire into the golden window of the temple; and soon (as righteous Heaven would have it!)the sacred edifice was in flames. The Jews guish the towards many counsel of the Lord that shall stand.?? A Roman soldier, violating the general order of Titus, succeeded and con- tion of the female part of the community at that period. shall be evil that ail things that are written Josephus ~*~ : been of the world will not God prepared peculiar horrid crimes! ‘“ These be ed a determination to save the temple, to grace his conquest, and remain an ornament to his empire.— to obey, produced the remaining The soldiers stood aghast; and that never bare, and the breasts for peculiarly the temple. ready tostnk at the recital of the woful events of that day. No words can reach the horrors of the situa- the wombs this. manding tower of Antonio, which seemed to overlook gratulations were poured on those whose eyes death had closed upon such horrid scenes. Humanity seems and + perpetrated by any Greek or barbarian.” | While famine thus spread desolation, the Romans finally succeeded in removing part of the inner wail, and in possessing themselves of the high and com- threatened her with instant death, if she did not produce to them the food she had in possession. She be- Jerusalem, weep not forme; > fact, he never would have recordéd it; for, said he, ‘such a shocking violation of nature never has been had eaten half the horrible preparation, when the smell of food brought in a hoard of soldiery, who the recital petrified the hearers with horror; to be iulitiled.’’ had not ate their belts, sandals, skins of their shields, dried grass, and even ordure of cattle. Now it was that a noble Jewess, urged by the insufferable pangs of hunger, slew and prepared for food her own infant child! She ing thus compelled half of her child! parallel the days of vengeance; (as might be expec- For want of food a judgments may 35 the history ‘afford are hypocrisy and self-confidence! *’ “he temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of tie i “— DESTRUCTION OF JERUSALEM. Lord, are these.’”’ ae F JERUSALEM. he history of his own nation, and the denunciations Pa 4! OF the Mul- titudes of dead bodies were piled round about the altar, to which they had fled for protes tion. The way t leading to the inner court was deluged with blood, |