also chastised you with whips, but I will chas tise you with scorpions."

The applicants had political virtue enough to resist the tyrant, without possessing the wisdom requisite for the undertaking. The contest terminated in a revolt, which divided the Israelites into two distinct nations, and was productive of numberless wars, during several generations.

The adherents to Rehoboam enjoyed the great advantage of locality; which had a religious influence of no small importance. Aceording to the established law, the city of Jerusalem was the only place appointed for acceptable service; probably with a view of preventing the people from intermixing their worship with that of the idolaters, surrounding their respective districts. Jeroboam, whom the seceders had chosen to be their king, perceiving the dangers that would arise to himself from this circumstance, attempted to counteract its effects, by an expedient, which, as it was unlawful in itself, and must have been considered as profane by all true worshippers, had a natural tendency to alienate the minds of the ten revolting tribes

* 1 Kings ch. xii. v. 14.

from the service of the true God. "Jeroboam said in his heart, now shall the kingdom return to the house of David, if this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the Lord in Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their Lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah." Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them," it is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem, bebold thy gods O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt; and he set the one in Bethel, and the other put he in Dan: for the people went to worship before the one even unto Dan. And he made an house of high places, and made priests of the lowest of the people, which were not of the sons of Levi," &c.*

These proceedings had a natural tendency to relax the genuine principles of Monotheism, and to render the subjects an easy prey to the seductions of idolatry. We read accordingly, that in the space of about two hundred and fifty years, the whole kingdom of Israel became profligate as the surrounding nations; and equally ripe for destruction, as the countries which their

* 1 Kings ch. xii. v. 16, 32.

ancestors were permitted to supplant on account of their iniquities. They were completely subdued by Shalmenezer king of Assyria, carried into captivity, were blended with other nations, and as a distinct people, their names were effaced from the earth.

It is a singular fact, that not one of the kings of Israel was entirely free from idolatrous worship: they all" did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord;" and some of them were totally abandoned; particularly Ahab the son of Omri, who "did evil in the sight of the Lord above all that went before him." He did not so much as continue in that wretched compromise with true religion, which Jeroboam had introduced, but "he took to wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Zidonians, and went and served Baal and worshipped him; and he reared up an altar for Baal in the house of Baal which he had built in Samaria; and Ahab made a grove; and Ahab did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger, than all the kings of Israel that were before him."*

Jehu made some exertions to check the progress of idolatry; but his manner proclaimed the infamy of his own character. He was vio

* 1 Kings ch. xvi, v. 20.

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lent, savage, and treacherous. Being anointed to the kingdom by the prophet Elijah, he be came a willing instrument in the hands of providence, to punish the iniquities of the house of Ahab. "But he took no heed to walk in the law of the Lord God of Israel; for he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam, who made Israel to sin."* The degeneracy of their priesthood was equally rapid. From the commencement: they had no dignity of character, for they were not of the tribe of Levi, but were taken out of the lowest of the people; and they always rendered themselves subservient to the schemes and plans of their sovereigns. They soon became the priests of Baal rather than of Jehovah; manifestly learned the arts of divination from the pagans, and practised their deceits to gratify the ambition of their principals. Many instances confirming this assertion might be adduced, but we shall only mention the following: when Ahab of Israel, in alliance with Jehoshaphat king of Judah, proposed to seize Ramoth of Gilead, Jehoshaphat hesitated, and he said to the king of Israel, enquire I pray thee at the word of the Lord to day. Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, about

* 2 Kings ch. x. v. 31.

four hundred men, and said unto them shall I go against Ramoth Gilead to battle, or shall I forbear? And they said go up; for the Lord shall deliver it into the hand of the king." Jehoshaphat, not satisfied with the advice of these prophets, said, "is there not here a prophet of the Lord besides, that we might enquire of him?" The king of Israel mentioned one whom he hated, because he never prophesied good concerning him. Upon his being consulted, he asserted that under the government of Ahab, the people were as sheep without a shepherd; and also that the prophets whom he had conşulted, were possessed of a lying spirit. The false prophets were believed and Ahab was slain.*

6

These were obviously the prophets whom Elijah challenged, ridiculed for their imbecilities, and destroyed for their impostures. It was also under the reign of this wicked king, that Elijah supposed that the worship of the true God was extinct. He was surprised at the information, that there were not less than seven thousand pious Israelites, who had not bowed the knee to Baal. However large this number may appear, collectively, it was obscured and lost in the multitudes of apostates, or the prophet would * 1 Kings ch. xxii. v. 8.