New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1897-01-16

THIS STORY SHOULD BE oBsCURE-DIs-
covERIEs ON MONUMENTS
Mrs Louise Seymour Houghton gave her fifth
lecture on THE Literary Study of the Bible yes
terday morning az the home of Mrs. Crittenden
Adams No 200 West End-ave Her subject was
Eastern Light on the sto7 Of Elisha" and the
address 10 its title threw food OF light on
many things that must have puzzled those who
have paid any attention to the subject since they
have puzzled scholars for hundreds of years .
The story is contained in twelve chapters of the
Second Book OF Kings. from the second to the
thirteenth and is the dates in It that the
perplexty.
For instance in chapter VI. verse o. one reads:
80 the bands of Syria came no more into the
land of Israel" and then the very next verse
proceeds 10 that after this Ben-habab. King
Of Syria gathered all his host and went up and
beseged Samaria."
Again in chapter " verse a. the curse of per-
petual eprosy is pronounced by Elisha upon his
saryant Gehazi. while in chapter viii he is found
conversing with the King. thing which leper
could not have done.
Moreover according 10 the Bible narrative. all
The deeds OF Elisha appear TO have been performed
under one King Joram. who reigned only twelve
years Now Elisha lived forty years after that
and II these years had been spent in inactivity 1t
would be- hard TO understand the lament OF the
young King Joash when at the deathbed of the
prophet ne calls him the chariot OF Israel and
the hOrseman thereof
MANY OF these difficulties disappear Mrs.
Houghton said when we understand Hebrew lit
erary Methods. II had time to examine the
story we would fad that il is constructed on a
very elaborate mechanical principle The writer
was perfectly consistent with his own methods.
though a regard for historical sequence was not
OF them.
There are other reasons. also, why the dates
should be obscure.
The Hebrews had date from which TO reckon
events like our Christian era. and the story of
Elisha had become part Of the folklore Of the
people His deeds repeated. just the tales
o. Alfred and Washington among us and II
had long since been forgotten under which of the
kings with whom he was contemporary they
Were performed.
But all these dehciences" the lecturer continued.
have been supplied by recent discoveries on East
ON monuments Two the Black Obelisk and the
VI, ahite Stone. bear especially on this story. ana
enable US 70 arrange IL in chronological order
I'VE have had these stones some time, the Moab
it, for thirty years, and the Obeisk for a much
lorger time but il is only recently that the IN
scr.pton- nave been decipherec
The language Is closely allied 10 Hebrew, as
closely in fact. Chaucers English with the mod
The Black Obelisk is preserved in the British
Muse N. and fac-smiles or both stones are N our
scum here. r.,,.
Ms Houghton then took up the story Of Elisha
In MS chronological order. showing by means OF
columns OF figures blackboard how II differs
from the order in which the events are given III
tho Bible narrative r-, ~,
ln estimating the chararter Vi Hiis"d' MIS-
Hough-or preferred him 10 Elijah
lie was warn-hearted. generous anectionate
aud charming" she said and although the ar
Seni reforrner zeal Of Elijah appeals 10 the i'm
ag,na+ion one feels At the same time the reform
er's .r,k OF anna oeness