"1 Hebrew Nation. 
"19 
Nation—the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, He who 
Commanded them to depart out of Egypt and gave them the 
land of Canaan. With the other Eastern nations, the primary 
and fundamental existence was Nature; but that, with the 
Hebrews, becomes a mere creature, and Spirit is foremost. 
God is the creator of Nature and all men, the only first cause 
of all things. "The great element in the Jewish religion was 
exclusive unity—only one people, only one God. All other 
80ds were regarded as thoroughiy false; nothing divine was 
admitted to exist in them. Of course, the fact is, that. however 
&rroneous a religion may be, it possesses at least some mutilated 
and obscured truth. In the most imperfect forms some spiritual 
element exists, or existed, though the Jews were practically 
Might in regarding the heathen worship as simply sensuous and 
Immoral. In the religion of the Hebrews, Spirit became the 
One great truth, and true morality appeared; God was honoured, 
and could be honoured, only by righteousness, the reward of 
Which was to be happiness, life, and temporal prosperity. 
4. In the earliest history, that of Abraham and his first 
descendants, we have merely a family history, and Historical 
the Jewish nation begins with the departure from data. 
Egypt in B.C. 1491. We may divide the interval between that 
"me and the conquest of Judea by the Romans into four 
Periods; all the earlier dates being far from certain. 
(a) From the departure out of Egypt to the establishment of the 
Monarchy under Saul, B.C. 1491-1095. , 
. (6) Zrom the establishment of the monarchy to the separalion 
Into the two kingdoms of Israel and Judah, B.C. 1095-975: 
. (c) From the separation of the kingdoms to the Babylonian cap- 
Ävity, B.C. 975-588. 
(4) From the Babylonian captivity to the conquest of Judea by 
Rome, 2.C. 588-63. , 
5. The first period opens, on the departure from Egypt, with 
the fheocracy or government by God in revelations of x. period; 
His will to the people, through laws directly given | 
from Sinai, and communications made to the high-priest. This 
lasted, during the wanderings in the wilderness under Moses, and 
the conquest of Canaan under Joshua, until B.C, 1426. Then 
Came the Federal Republic, from 1426 to 1095, under which sySs- 
tem the tribes were separately governed, subject to the divine 
laws, by their own patriarchs, but were all united in one state 
and one common bond by the worship of Jehovah. As the people