Excerpt from History, Prophecy and the Monuments, Vol. 1 The work, of which the first volume is herewith given to the public, has been undertaken primarily in the interest of the study of the Old Testament. Its aim is to help those into whose hands it may fall to apprehend in its true relations the history of that ancient people through whom the world has gained most of its heritage of moral and spiritual light and power. It is a conviction of the writer that the vagueness and incertitude, and consequent indifference, with which the history and literature of Israel are regarded by the mass of intelligent people, are in great part due to the one-sidedness and false perspective of the picture which for one reason or another they have drawn for themselves. It is certain, at least, that the Hebrews have been gravely misapprehended because their vast political, social, moral, and religious environment has been so much ignored. They have been practically made a measure for themselves in all that concerns national characteristics, in all that has to do with culture and material power and the elements of civic life. Their place in time and order of development among the kindred peoples has been equally misconceived. In the attempt to account for their phenomenal history, full play has rightly been given to wonder and admiration, while little attention has been paid to their antecedents, their racial affinities, and those vital interrelations with the contemporary peoples which necessarily determined their destiny. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Excerpt from History, Prophecy and the Monuments, Vol. 2 It is scarcely necessary to add a word as to the more strictly narrative portion of the volume. The plan is here still pur sued of making the history of the leading nations of Western Asia illustrate in general the fortunes of the Semitic peoples, and in particular the career and fate of Israel. There is, per haps, not so much that is novel as was furnished in the first volume. But the interest of the story should increase as the events related become more implicated with the larger move ments which have drawn after them the main current of the world's history. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.