Herod the Great had ascended the throne of Israel, yet the sceptre was not departed from Judah. Herod was an Idumean, which nation had, for nearly two centuries, been proselytes to Judaism, and so incorporated and mingled with the Jews, as to be regarded as one people. Judea bowed to the Roman power, yet Herod exercised the regal authority, and was universally acknowledged as the sovereign of Jewry, when Jesus, the prince of peace, the king of Israel, appeared a babe at Bethlehem but no sooner was the Shiloh come, than the sceptre departed from Judah. On the death of Herod, which happened soon after the birth of Christ, Augustus Cæsar divided the kingdom of Judea between Archelaus, Herod, and Philip, the three sons of Herod. Archelaus succeeded to the half of his father's dominions by the title of tetrarch, but not of king; his tyranny and oppression were so great, that, in less than ten years, he was deposed and banished to France by the emperor, who then reduced Judea to a Roman province, and ruled it afterwards by procurators or governors, who were sent thither and recalled at pleasure; the taxes were now paid more directly to the Roman empire, and gathered by the publicans; the power of life and death was taken out of the hands of the Jews, and placed in those of the Roman governors. The Lord, when he is pleased, can make the wrath of man to praise him, and his enemies to minister to his glory. This sentiment we have most strikingly illustrated in the conduct of Caiaphas, who, in the moment he was plotting the destruction of Jesus, and thirsting for his blood, delivered a very remarkable prophecy,[16] the exact counterpart of the one we are now considering, in which he declared Jesus to be the promised Shiloh, who should gather together in one, all the children of God which are scattered abroad, not the nations of the Jews only, but the Gentiles also. Yes, Jesus will seek out and bring his people from the mountains whence they are scattered; in the cloudy and dark day he will bring his sons from afar, and his daughters from the ends of the earth, and there shall be one fold under one shepherd, even the glorious Shiloh.

CHAPTER IV.

And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. And in that day, there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious.—Isaiah xi. 1. 10.

The Jews, from these prophecies, expected the Messiah would spring from the family of David, the son of Jesse; and this led them to preserve, with unusual attention, the genealogy of his descendants. We have abundant testimony that Jesus is of "the house and lineage of David."[17] By comparing scripture with scripture,[18] we may venture to affirm, Jesus is the "glorious branch" Jehovah hath made strong for himself. With regard to his human and divine nature, he is both "David's son and David's Lord." He is the "root and offspring of David," and the "bright and morning star." The Gentiles shall come to "his light," and kings to the "brightness of his rising." He is not only a "rod out of the stem of Jesse," but he is the "tree of life" whose "leaves are for the healing of the nations," whose top shall "reach unto heaven," and his branches "cover the earth." He is Jehovah's ensign of mercy displayed to a rebel world, and both the Jewish and Gentile nations are invited to enlist under the banners of the cross. Those who seek an inheritance in the kingdom of the true David, if it be agreeable to the charter of Immanuel's land, shall find his rest to be glorious.

CHAPTER V.

Thus saith the Lord, remove the diadem and take off the crown, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it him.—Ezekiel xxi. 26, 27.

For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim. Afterwards shall the children of Israel return, and seek the Lord their God, and David their king; and shall fear the Lord and his goodness in the latter days.—Hosea iii. 4, 5.

The Jews themselves must confess this prophecy to be in part fulfilled. They are wanderers from their beloved Canaan, strangers in a strange land, scattered over all parts of the globe, and destitute of all the local privileges which constitute a nation, although they still retain a distinction of character; but it only tends to make them a reproach, and their name a by-word amongst all classes. They dwell alone, and are not now reckoned amongst the nations of the earth. The insignia of royal dignity are useless to them, having no king or prince on whom to bestow the crown or diadem. They are deprived of their temple and its services, and of all the glorious distinctions which marked it from those dedicated to false or unknown Gods. The latter clause of this prophecy shall as assuredly be fulfilled, for heaven and earth shall pass away, sooner than one of the promises of God fail to be accomplished. Yes, the children of Israel shall return, and seek the Lord their God, and him of whom David was only a type, even King Jesus,[19] who is of David's royal line, "and the government shall be upon his shoulders," for he is the "wonderful counsellor, the mighty God, the everlasting father, the prince of peace." Hasten, Lord! we would say, the time "when the deliverer shall arise out of Zion, and turn away ungodliness from Jacob." Assume the sceptre of thy power, Jesus, thou king of Zion, thou "Son of the Highest! for the Lord God has given unto thee the throne of thy father, David; thou shalt reign over the house of Jacob for ever." "Of the increase of thy government and peace there shall be no end; upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice, from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this."

CHAPTER VI.

The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken.—Deut. xviii. 15-19.

This is one of the many precious promises given by God to Israel. Moses is a character justly deserving our regard and veneration. The Jewish nation held him in high estimation, and almost idolized his memory. Perhaps our time may not be misemployed in searching for proofs of the fulfilment of this prophecy, and in examining the character of one (even Jesus) who declares himself to be not only a prophet like unto Moses, but in every respect his superior; which, if proved, will clearly warrant their giving unto Jesus far greater honour than was even due to Moses. In drawing a comparison between these illustrious personages, we observe; they both sprang from the family