The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1885-03-15

purVeyer, ne amaSSeS wealth., anu De
sides practising generous hospitality
and habitual almsgiving, he lends the
| princely sum of ten silver talents TO a
countryman in Media. By and by
comes change, not so sudden or severe
as upon job. Another sovereign who
knew not this Joseph" reigned in
Nineveh, and his good fortune
is gone, seemingly forever. He
is Charged with giving honorable
burial to condemned Jews, and
he is compelled to save himself by a
flight which must have stripped him of
all his possessions, The sudden death
of this Sennacherib enables Tobit to re-
turn to his exile, endeared by the many
graves his own hands had dug, his tears
! alone consecrated. He renews at once
his old habits of Defriending his Jewish
brethren. The burial of a strangled
Jew obliged him to sleep out of doors,
as unclean. He awoke in the morning
to lind himself blind, through the drop
pings OF the sparrows upon his I'M
guarded eyes. His wife went TO his
help. Her spinning wheel saved
him from starvation. He heard q
KID bleating within his poor home, and
he commanded her to return what he
thought must be stolen goods. She
replied that it was a gift above her
wages. He did not believe her, and
insisted that it should be returned to
the owner, but he drew upon himself
rebuke so severe that it sent him to his
knees for comfort in prayer.
At the same time in a distant city, q
family of Tobit's friends was asking
relief, unknown to him, from a greater
trial than his: Raguel, his cousin. had
an only daughter seven times
married, yet still virgin, with the
terrible fame of being possessed
by an evil spirit who des-
troyed her husbands upon the
wedding night. The evil spirit,
Asmodeus, though not inhabiting her
person, wanted the maiden for himself,
and took the method OF destroying her
husbands that he might finally secure
her. Not strange conception of an
Oriental fancy. The disappointed
maiden was in earnest supplication at
the same time with Tobit, and the
prayers of both were heard before the
majesty Of the great God"
The divine cure was marriage. Tobit
naturally recalls the old debt due him,
which might change his want to abund-
ance; he determines to send his only
son, Tobias, after the ten talents; but
like traveller in the east to-day, that
son must be attended by compe-
tent guide, filling the indispensable
functions of servant. interpreter,
counsellor, guard. The first that
offered his services was accepted, so
they entertain an angel unawares,"
for the stranger was the angel Raphael.
who passed himself offas a relative of
FOL w. l.
sometimes, even now, accept first offers
for guides, and entertain angels thus
unawares. A whole chapter is filed
with the fathers excellent counsel, in
Luther's,c Observation-Disclosures version,
tanning the Golden Rule, do that to no
man, which thou hatest." The young
mans faithful dog followed the
CHEEKY companions. At the River
Tigris, the supernatural mingled with
the homely elements of life A fish leaped
furiously from the water upon Tobias.
The angel companion commanded it to
be seized, its liver and heart TO be
burned in the wedding chamber OF his
young master, and its gall to be applied
to the fathers eyes OF their return.
When they drew near the debtors
city, the angel apprized his ward that
they would lodge with his cousin W hose
fair daughter he could wive, as by the
Mosaic law of inheritance there was no
other person who had any claim upon
her. The advice was accepted with re-
luctance, because the young man had
heard of the peril of attempting to marry
demons bride He had not seen the
comely Sara then, nor those possessions
which would reconcile brave sutton to
no littleperi An eager welcome awaited
them at Ecbatana. The parents reeog-
nHed the family likeness in Tobias;
Raguel kissed him, inquired after his
father, and wept over his calamity.
The daughter was esponsed at once,
her consent not being asked. Tobias
followed the advice OF his guide,
prayed, and offered up the fish, and the
evil spirit took fight into Egypt, where
he seemed TO have remained until now.
On the morrow there was joy in that
household. The grave which the old
father had prepared over night for the
young husband was closed up without
q tenant, the bride blessed Jehovah
that she was a BRIDE indeed. The old
debtor was invited to the wedding feS-
tival. but sent the money instead
by the angels hand, although the
debt was ''outlawed') AIRED by the
Utah Statute oil Limitations, had il been
in force then and therel The doubly
successfully bridegroom was naturally
eager to geturn to his parents. RagueI
yielded reluctantly. lowering him with
half his goods, his cattle, his servants
and money. bidding his daughter honor
her new parents that he might hear
good report of her. Tobit had nearly
despaired of their return. having had 10
bear the reproaches of his Job-like wife
as well rs he could. Now he vas re-
warded with the restoration of sight ac-
cording to the direction OF the angel,
who declined any return for his services,
but gave them parting charge
of Charity. Finally, the young
couple, after the death and
burial of the NineYite par
ents, migrated to Medea, in time to
bury the brides father and mother, es-
cane the destruction of Nineveh, and go
to their own graves full of years, full of
blessedness.
Now, 1 submit. in view Of all our
Protestant prejudice against apocry-
phal books, that Tobit deserves, atleast,
to be an exception; that ii IS healthYin
tone, beautiful in spirit. free from any
thing offensive, and is Jar more profit
able than some books admitted within
the canons. Nay, that it deserves the
especial favor of Luther, the honor Of
quotation in the English Book of HON.