Stories of the Prophets (Before the Exile)

Stories of the Prophets (Before the Exile)

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Title: Stories of the Prophets (Before the Exile)
Author: Isaac Landman
Release Date: February, 2005 [EBook #7482] [Yes, we are more than one year ahead of schedule] [This file was first posted on May 9, 2003]
Edition: 10
Language: English
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STORIES OF THE PROPHETS

COMMISSION ON JEWISH EDUCATION
of the
UNION OF AMERICAN HEBREW CONGREGATIONS
and the
CENTRAL CONFERENCE OF AMERICAN RABBIS
DAVID PHILIPSON, Chairman
JOSEPH L. BARON DAVID MARX EDWARD N. CALISCH S. FELIX MENDELSOHN H. G. ENELOW JULIAN MORGENSTERN HARRY W. ETTELSON JOSEPH RAUCH MAX HELLER WILLIAM ROSENAU SAMUEL KOCH SAMUEL SCHULMAN GERSON B. LEVI ABBA H. SILVER HARRY LEVI ABRAM SIMON LOUIS L. MANN LOUIS WITT LOUIS WOLSEY
GEORGE ZEPIN, Secretary

STORIES OF THE PROPHETS
(Before the Exile)

BY ISAAC LANDMAN

To My Parents
Who first introduced me to the Prophets, this book is dedicated with love and devotion.

CONTENTS.
I. THE SHEPHERD OF TEKOAH. 1. An End to War 2. In the Days of Prosperity 3. The Man Who Dared 4. Treason and a Fight 5. Priest Against Prophet 6. The Prophet in Tekoah
II. THE MAN WHO LEARNED HIS LESSON. 1. An Eventful Night 2. The Tragedy with a Purpose 3. The Repentant Returns
III. THE STATESMAN PROPHET. 1. The Vision in the Temple 2. The Parable of the Vineyard 3. A Coward on the Throne 4. On Deaf Ears 5. The Survival of the Fittest 6. Working with the Remnant 7. Like Father, Like Son 8. The Prophet Triumphs 9. The Fruit of His Labor
IV. THE COMMONER. 1. His Awakening 2. The Cause of the Common People 3. When Samaria Fell 4. Judah Learns Its Lesson
V. THE PROPHET OF WOE AND HOPE. 1. The Escape 2. The Boy King 3. Jeremiah's Call 4. The Seething Caldron 5. The Great Discovery 6. A New Covenant 7. To the Fore Again 8. The Shadow of a King 9. The Temple of the Lord 10. A Narrow Escape 11. A Taste of Martyrdom 12. The Woe of the Prophet 13. Teacher and Pupil 14. Baruch's First Venture 15. The King Hears and Acts 16. Beginning of the End 17. The First Deportation 18. In Exile and in the Homeland 19. A Friend in Need 20. In the Midst of Despair 21. Lamentations and a Vain Hope 22. Cowardice and Treachery 23. Jeremiah, the Martyred

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
"_The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz._"--Isaiah I, 1
"_Prepare to meet thy God, O Israel._"--Amos IV, 12
"_Yea, I will betroth thee unto me in righteousness, and in judgment, and in loving kindness, and in mercy._"--Hosea II, 21
"_Here am I, send me._"--Isaiah VI, 8
"_And they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks._"--Isaiah II, 4
"_For the transgression of Jacob is all this, and for the sins of the house of Israel._"--Micah I, 5
"_I sat alone because of Thy hand._"--Jeremiah XV, 17
"_And thou, Pashur, and all that dwell in thy house shall go into captivity._"--Jeremiah XX, 6

FOREWORD
The company of inspired men, commonly known as the prophets of Israel, were the unique product of the Jewish religious genius. They were pre-eminently preachers of righteousness. Fearless and undaunted, they told the house of Israel their sins and the house of Jacob their transgressions. They contemplated the facts of life from the highest point of view. For them religion and morality were blended, ethics and politics were one. Theirs was peculiarly a social message; the demand for justice underlies all their thinking and speaking. They had a veritable passion for righteousness; through all the ages their words have been torches lighting the way of men struggling upward towards the truth.
Though living over twenty-six hundred years ago, these men are very modern. As a great thinker has well said, "The spirit of the prophets of Israel is in the modern soul." The foremost workers for the welfare of their fellowmen to-day posit