And there was no day like that before it or after it, that the Lord hearkened unto the voice of a man; for the Lord fought for Israel.

The five wicked kings had, in the meantime, hid themselves in a cave, and the soldiers of Joshua knowing this, had been told to roll great stones upon the mouth of the cave, until all the enemies of God should be destroyed.

Then said Joshua, Open the mouth of the cave, and bring out those five kings unto me out of the cave.

And Joshua called for all the men of Israel, and said unto the captains of the men of war which went with him, Come near, put your feet upon the necks of these kings. And Joshua said unto them, Fear not, nor be dismayed, be strong and of a good courage, for thus shall the Lord do to all your enemies against whom ye fight.

And afterward Joshua slew them and hanged them on five trees, and at the time of the going down of the sun they were taken down and cast into the cave wherein they had been hid, and great stones were placed against the mouth of the

cave.

Joshua fought with thirty-one kings in all, and destroyed their cities and all the inhabitants. Some of these kings were

very rich, and were able to use chariots and horses. These chariots were armed on the side with iron scythes, and were enough to strike terror to the hearts of the Israelites, who had to fight on foot. But the Lord was with Joshua, and gave him such skill that he took his enemies by storm, and swept them from the field.

But he was now an old man, too old to go to war, and there remained many cities yet to be conquered. And the Lord

.

commanded him to divide the land of Canaan, and to give to each tribe a certain portion. And Joshua did so. And he also chose places that should be called Cities of Refuge. There were six cities in all. Three were on the east and three on the west side of the river Jordan. It was a crime to kill any And murderers were to be put to death. But one might kill another by accident, and then if he fled to a city of refuge he would be safe from the avenger of blood.

one.

God gave the children of Israel many years of rest from their enemies. And when Joshua felt that he had not much longer to live, he spoke to the children of Israel, and reminded them of all that God had done for them. He told them to be brave, and trust in God, for He would be with them and give them victory. But if they bowed down before idols God would punish them severely. The people said, The Lord our • God we will serve, and his voice we will obey.

Joshua wrote these words in a book, and then took a great stone and set it up under an oak tree that was by the sanctuary of the Lord. This stone was to remind them of the vow they had made to love and serve the only true God.

Joshua was one hundred and ten years old when he died, and they buried him in Mount Ephraim.

CHAPTER XVIII.

THE JUDGES OF ISRAEL-DEBORAH

AND BARAK-JAEL AND

SISERA-GIDEON JEPHTHAH'S RASH VOW-SAMSON.

AFTER the death of Joshua, the children of Israel asked the Lord who should lead them out now to fight the Canaanites. The Lord said that Judah should go with them, and take possession of the land. Judah took his brother Simeon with him, and they fought the Canaanites and the Perizzites, and they slew at Bezek ten thousand men. And on other occasions they distinguished themselves as true warriors of God.

The tribe of Ephraim also fought bravely and captured the town of Luz, afterwards called Bethel. The Israelites, however, soon forgot the commands of the law, and instead of driving the wicked inhabitants out of the land of Canaan were tempted to make leagues or alliances with them, then to intermarry with them, and then to attend their idolatrous festivals, and then to worship false gods themselves and to practice some of the worst crimes.

Then the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of a heathen king, whom they were obliged to serve for eight years.

They then cried unto the Lord, and he raised up a deliverer, and this deliverer fought for them and overcame the heathen king.

The children of Israel sinned again against the Lord, and the Lord sent another heathen king against them, and this king smote them and took from them the city of palm

trees.

The children of Israel were obliged to serve this king eighteen years.

Th n cried again to the Lord for help, and he heard their c, and sent them another deliverer, who killed their enemy, and after this they had rest and quiet during a period of eighty years.

And the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord sold them into the hand of Jabin, king of Canaan. This king had nine hundred chariots of iron, and for twenty years he greatly oppressed the children of Israel, who again repented of their wicked ways, and God now sent them a very remarkable woman to deliver them.

This woman's name was Deborah. She lived in Mount Ephraim, between Ramah and Bethel, and an old palm tree grew near her house. She was a prophetess as well as a judge, and could tell beforehand what was to take place. The Israelites were in bondage to the Canaanites, and would not make an effort to set themselves free.

Therefore Deborah sent for Barak, of the tribe of Naphtali, to lead ten thousand of the children of Israel to fight against the Canaanitish king Jabin, whose great army was com