publican and semi-heathen soldier, met here as on common ground. Their bond of union was the common 'hope of Israel', the only hope that remained: that of'the Kingdom.' The long winter of disappointment had not destroyed, nor the storms of suffering swept away, nor yet could any plant of spurious growth overshadow, what had struck its roots so deep in the soil of Israel's heart.
That Kingdom had been the last word of the Old Testament. As the thoughtful Israelite, whether Eastern or Western, [1 It may be said that the fundamental tendency of Rabbinism was anti-sacrificial, as regarded the value of sacrifices in commending the offerer to God. After the destruction of the Temple it was, of course, the task of Rabbinism to show that sacrifices had no intrinsic importance, and that their place was taken by prayer, penitence, and good works. So against objectors on the ground of Jer. xxxiii. 18, but see the answer in Yalkut on the passage (vol. ii. p. 67 a, towards the end) dogmatically (Bab. B. 10 b; Vayyikra R. 7, ed. Warsh. vol. iii. p. 12 a): 'he that doeth repentance, it is imputed to him as if he went up to Jerusalem, built the Temple and altar, and wrought all the sacrifices in the Law'; and in view of the cessation of sacrifices in the 'Athid.labho' (Vay, u.s.; Tanch. on Par. Shemini). Soon, prayer or study were put even above sacrifices (Ber. 32 b; Men. 110 a), and an isolated teacher went so far as to regard the introduction of sacrificial worship as merely intended to preserve Israel from conforming to heathen worship (Vayyikra R. 22, u. s. p. 34 b, close). On the other hand, individuals seemed to have offered sacrifices even after the destruction of the Temple (Eduy. viii. 6; Mechilta on Ex. xviii. 27, ed. Weiss, p. 68 b).] viewed even the central part of his worship in sacrifices, and remembered that his own Scriptures had spoken of them in terms which pointed to something beyond their offering, [2 Comp. 1 Sam. xv. 22; Ps. xl. 6-8; li. 7, 17; Is. i. 11-13; Jer. vii. 22, 23; Amos v. 21, 22; Ecclus. vii. 9; xxxiv. 18, 19; xxxv. 1, 7.] he must have felt that 'the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean,' could only 'sanctify to the purifying of the flesh;' that, indeed, the whole body of ceremonial and ritual ordinances 'could not make him that did the service perfect as pertaining to the conscience.' They were only 'the shadow of good things to come;' of'a new' and 'better covenant, established upon better promises.' [1 Hebr. ix. 13, 9; x. 1; viii. 6, 13. On this subject we refer to the classical work of Riehm (Lehrbegriff des Hebraerbriefes, 1867).] It was otherwise with the thought of the Kingdom. Each successive link in the chain of prophecy bound Israel anew to this hope, and each seemed only more firmly welded than the other. And when the voice of prophecy had ceased, the sweetness of its melody still held the people spell-bound, even when broken in the wild fantasies of Apocalyptic literature. Yet that 'root of Jesse,' whence this Kingdom was to spring, was buried deep under ground, as the remains of ancient Jerusalem are now under the desolations of many generations. Egyptian, Syrian, Greek, and Roman had trodden it under foot; the Maccabees had come and gone, and it was not in them; the Herodian kingdom had risen and fallen; Pharisaism, with its learning, had overshadowed thoughts of the priesthood and of prophetism; but the hope of that Davidic Kingdom, of which there was not a single trace or representative left, was even stronger than before. So closely has it been intertwined with the very life of the nation, that, to all believing Israelites, this hope has through the long night of ages, been like that eternal lamp which burns in the darkness of the Synagogue, in front of the heavy veil that shrines the Sanctuary, which holds and conceals the precious rolls of the Law and the Prophets.
This great expectancy would be strung to utmost tension during the pressure of outward circumstances more hopeless than any hitherto experienced. Witness here the ready credence which impostors found, whose promises and schemes were of the wildest character; witness the repeated attempts at risings, which only despair could have prompted; witness, also, the last terrible war against Rome, and, despite the horrors of its end, the rebellion of Bar-Kokhabh, the false Messiah. And now the cry had been suddenly raised: 'The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!' It was heard in the wilderness of Judaea, within a few hours' distance from Jerusalem. No wonder Pharisee and Sadducee flocked to the spot. How many of them came to inquire, how many remained to be baptized, or how many went away disappointed in their hopes of 'the Kingdom,' we know not. [2 Ancient commentators supposed that they came from hostile motives; later writers that curiosity prompted them. Neither of these views is admissible, nor does St. Luke vii. 30 imply, that all the Pharisees who come to him rejected his baptism.] But they would not see anything in the messenger that could have given their expectations a rude shock. His was not a call to armed resistance, but to repentance, such as all knew and felt must precede the Kingdom. The hope which he held out was not of earthly possessions, but of purity. There was nothing negative or controversial in what he spoke; nothing to excite prejudice or passion. His appearance would command respect, and his character was in accordance with his appearance. Not rich nor yet Pharisaic garb with wide Tsitsith, [1 Comp. St. Matt, xxiii. 5. The Tsitsith (plural, Tsitsiyoth), or borders (corners, 'wings') of the garments, or rather the fringes fastened to them. The observance was based on Numb. xv. 38-41, and the Jewish practice of it is indicated not only in the N.T. (u. s., comp. also St. Matt. ix. 20; xiv. 36) but in the Targumim on Numb. xv. 38, 39 (comp. also Targ. Pseudo-Jon, on Numb. xvi. 1, 2, where the peculiar colour of the Tsitsith is represented as the cause of the controversy between Moses and Korah. But see the version of this story in Jer. Sanh. x. p. 27 d, end). The Tsitsith were originally directed to be of white threads, with one thread of deep blue in each fringe. According to tradition, each of these white fringes is to consist of eight threads, one of them wound round the others: first, seven times with a double knot; then eight times with a double knot (7 + 8 numerically = ); then eleven times with a double knot (11 numerically = ;) and lastly, thirteen times (13 numerically = ; or, altogether , Jehovah One). Again, it is pointed out that as Tsitsith is numerically equal to 600 ( ), this, with the eight threads and five knots, gives the number 613, which is that of the Commandments. At present the Tsitsith are worn as a special undergarment (the ) or on the Tallith or prayer-mantle, but anciently they seem to have been worn on the outer garment itself. In Bemidbar R. 17, end (ed. Warsh, vol. iv. p. 69 a), the blue is represented as emblematic of the sky, and the latter as of the throne of God (Ex. xxiv. 10). Hence to look upon the Tsitsith was like looking at the throne of glory (Schurer is mistaken in supposing that the tractate Tsitsith in the Septem Libri Talmud, par. pp. 22, 23, contains much information on the subject).] bound with many-coloured or even priestly girdle, but the old prophet's poor raiment held in by a leathern girdle. Not luxurious life, but one of meanest fare. [2 Such certainly was John the Baptist's. Some locusts were lawful to be eaten, Lev. xi. 22. Comp. Terum. 59 a; and, on the various species, Chull. 65.] And then, all in the man was true and real. 'Not a reed shaken by the wind,' but unbendingly firm in deep and settled conviction; not ambitious nor self-seeking, but most humble in his self-estimate, discarding all claim but that of lowliest service, and pointing away from himself to Him Who was to come, and Whom as yet he did not even know. Above all, there was the deepest earnestness, the most utter disregard of man, the most firm belief in what he announced. For himself he sought nothing; for them he had only one absorbing thought: The Kingdom was at hand, the King was coming, let them prepare!
Such entire absorption in his mission, which leaves us in ignorance of even the details of his later activity, must have given force to his message. [3 Deeply as we appreciate the beauty of Keim's remarks about the character and views of John, we feel only the more that such a man could not have taken the public position nor made such public proclamation of the Kingdom as at hand, without a direct and objective call to it from God. The treatment of John's earlier history by Keim is, of course, without historical basis.] And still the voice, everywhere proclaiming the same message, travelled upward, along the winding Jordon which cleft the land of promise. It was probably the autumn of the year 779 (A. U. C), which, it may be noted, was a Sabbatic year. [1 The year from Tishri (autumn) 779 to Tishri 780 was a Sabbatic year. Comp. the evidence in Wieseler, Synopse d. Evang. pp. 204, 205.] Released from business and agriculture, the multitudes flocked around him as he passed on his Mission. Rapidly the tidings spread from town and village to distant homestead, still swelling the numbers that hastened to the banks of the sacred river. He had now reached what seems to have been the most northern point of his Mission-journey, [2 We read of three places where John baptized: 'the wilderness of Judaea', probably the traditional site near Jericho; Aenon, near Salim, on the boundary between Samaria and Judaea (Conder's Handbook of the Bible, p. 320); and Beth-Abara, the modern Abarah, 'one of the main Jordan fords, a little north of Beisan' (u. s.).] Beth-Abara ('the house of passage,' or 'of shipping'), according to the ancient reading, Bethany ('the house of shipping'), one of the best known fords across the Jordon into Peraea. [3 It is one of the merits of Lieut. Conder to have identified the site of Beth-Abara. The word probably means 'the house of passage' (fords), but may also mean 'the house of shipping,' the word Abarah in Hebrew meaning 'ferryboat,' 2 Sam. xix. 18. The reading Bethania instead of Bethabara seems undoubtedly the original one, only the word must not be derived (as by Mr. Conder, whose explanations and comments are often untenable), from the province Batanea, but explained as Beth-Oniyah, the 'house of shipping.' (See Lucke, Comment, u. d. Evang. Joh. i. pp. 392. 393.).] Here he baptized, [a St. John i. 28.] The ford was little more than twenty miles from Nazareth. But long before John had reached that spot, tidings of his word and work must have come even into the retirement of Jesus' Home-Life.
It was now, as we take it, the early winter of the year 780. [4 Considerable probability attaches to the tradition of the Basilideans, that our Lord's Baptism took place on the 6th or 10th of January. (See Bp. Ellicott's Histor. Lect. on the Life of our Lord Jesus Christ, p. 105, note 2.] Jesus had waited those months. Although there
