Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1855-01-28
From the \. Y. Independent,
Elijah and EliSha--Ahab and Benhadad.


tually say. They give to the record character
that no modern ingenuity could counterfeit There
we see good old Shaphat and his son Elisha
Elisha ia in the act Of blowing with twelve
yoke OF oxen before him, and he with the Twelfth
| A modern farmer with team Of twenty+four oxen
dragging clumsy wooden pillow would be despair
But perhaps old Shaphat made the pillow himself,
and was caite proud of it, as chef dOarre of me-
chancal ingenuity. Elisha's sentiments on the
subject possibly might have been somewhat differ
ent. The manner in which Elisha was taken from
the pillow, was highly characteristic. If man is
to be prophet nowadays, he must usually study
seven years, have a license and be ordained. Not
so in Elisha's time Things were fresh and simple.
Life was less artificial. Proceedings were direct.
Powers came forth from God with original sane
tiOn. Order took care of itself
Elisha was toiling in the furrow, shouting to his
endless procession Of lazy-footed oxen, when he saw
a strange, haggard old gray-besrd coming up from
| the desert, dirty and toilworn. He came directly
towards him, and without a word, cast his mantle
upon him and passed on. Now, how should Elisha
know what that meant? Did the mantle magnet
| nc INV uC ulfIHC nc must IcdhC
and follow?
| Had he known Elisha before. Had he been at
the mass-meeting on Carmel Or did he judge
from his look and dress, that he was prophet?
Oriental minds are quick in signs and symbols
| That act of casting the mantle was significant
There was no need of words no necessity for mag
netism other than the magnetism of lofty and
| thrilling thought.
| That simple pillow boy, perhaps, had slumbering
fires in his soul that needed only touch to stir to
| fame.
He followed the oxen because it happened to be
his lot but dreamily it may be, and YEARLY, with
his truent thoughts strayng affair." ill., doubtless the
! oxen often wondered and the hands on the farm
wondered, and old Shaphat himself wondered what
possessed the boy.
| Possibly the old husbandman consulted his wife
on the matter and wondered, g" if our Elisha hadn't
! better get an education" We have heard of eel
| ebrated divine whose career commenced in some
| such way He used to trudge by the furrow, WELD
| ing the great whip, and saying, Gee :" Haw -
till his soul lOathed the monotonous employ.
One day accompanying his uncle to the woods
| WITHOUT team, he Icll one Ol Ills reVefleS.
and fancying the team was there, went on mechani-
cally welding his imaginary whip, and saying,
Gee! Hsw, ~ till at last his uncle said, "Why
L., did you think yon were driving the oxen?"
| And this led to his being sent to college There
can be no harm in imagining something similar to
have been the case with Elisha. Boys are very
| apt 70 loath that particular work which they must
do, and to fancy they have special adaptation for
some other work which they must not do
! Perhaps at the very moment Elisha was in
brown study completely lost in reverie. And 10 |
what does he see? What does he feel This
mighty prophet, wild of mein, with eye of FIRE and
brow of thunder, this prophet before whom Israel
trembles, clad almost with the omnpotence of God,
has gone suddenly by And this mantle2 " He
has cast it on my shoulders" thinks the boy, "He
! is gone. What docs he mean by that? He means
| that he wants me. l must follow. | must bear
| his mantle. / must minister unto him"
| And as he thinks, the thrilling fire of sacred
enthusiasm pervades his soul. He is as eifeetualy
alienated from that life of the farm, as if it had
nevar been his Fleet Of foot, he hastens after the
seer. Let me, pray thee, kiss my father and my
mother, and then will follow thee,7
The stern old prophet gazed upon bis rudy and
enthusiastic face with soltening look, and faint
| smile:
"Go back again. for what have done unto
! thee2'
But the tone cOntradicted the words. Elisha IN
derstood. He went back, summoned his parents
and the household, slew a yoke of oxen, kindled
fire with the elements of his toll, made saer6cia
! feast, and babe his home long farewell.
| From that hour he became the inseparabe at
| tendant friend and solace of the sorrowing pro-
! phet in all his wanderings.
About this time a cloud OF war gathered dark
! on the northern horizon. Syria was an ancient
kingdom. Damascus, one of the Oldest, most
! splendid and warks capitals in the world. On
the throne of that celebrated metropolis sat the
princely Benhadad renowned through the East
in arts and arms.
Israel had never fully recovered from the defeat
by Abijah, fifty years since, when 100000 men
were cut off. Hence the Damascene Sultan saw
an inviting prospect spread out before his eyes on
the vine clad hills of Samars and the fat valleys
of EPhraim.
Unable, at length, to withstand the temptation
he unsheathed the cimeter, and with thi-ty-awo
chiefs in his train, sat down before the gates Of
Samaria In the correspondence that ensued we
have choice specimen OF the policy Of the times.
Diplomacy was unknown The art of dressing
up piracy in the garb of piety was reserved for
later times The monarch of Damascus cooly
says to the monarch of Samaria.
THY silver and gold are mine, thy wives also
and thy children, even the goodiest of them
That was honest. Damascus wants your proper
ty and your wives and children, and she must
have them.
Ahab's answer was equally striking, My Lore
o King, according to thy saying, am thine, ant
all that have"
Is that the voice of Son of the Covenant
Comes such n craven speech from one of 1sraeli
princes! Is Israel sunk down so low already
All, then, the quarrel of the exiled prophet is be
ginning to be avenged The judgment pronoun
ced at Horebi is working its effects!
Perhaps Ahab thought the princely Damascen'
would be struck with his mild acquescence, ant
would show a chiyalrous magnamity
By no means. Ben-hsdad sent back word tina
besides what he had already demanded, "To-mor
row will send my servants, and they shall searcI