ing in unjust
taxation. Shall we say, then, that as a whole, the great enterprise
was a failure?

THE GREAT ACHIEVEMENT--A TRUE RELIGION

No, the great quest was not a failure, even though it was so far from
a complete success. Out of the long years of struggle and prayer had
come a new religion, not, indeed, understood by many but partly
grasped at least by some, and written down in books so that it could
never be wholly lost. This was a religion of the brotherhood of man
and of a universal Father-God. The four eras of their history when the
common people had been happy were eras when the principles of this
religion had partly prevailed. And these eras still shine out for us
as examples of what that kind of religion means in the life of a
people. And the lives and words of the great prophets, and, greatest
of all, the life of Jesus Christ, are a priceless legacy to us, who
are still continuing the quest which Abraham began.

=The truth which has been revealed to us.=--All men, everywhere, who
are longing and toiling for a better chance for life and happiness
and for knowledge and beauty and love for themselves and for their
children, may now know that they are not without a mighty helper.
There is One who revealed himself, in the history of the people of
Israel and uniquely in Jesus Christ his Son, who still speaks in the
name of all the hungry and thirsty and ragged and sick:

="I was an hungered, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty,
and ye gave me no drink: ... Inasmuch as ye did it not unto
one of these least, ye did it not unto me."=

STUDY TOPICS

1. Of the four short eras of righteousness, in the history of the
Hebrews, in which does it seem to you that the common people made the
greatest gains?

2. What were some of the improvements in civilization which rich or
well-to-do people, in the later centuries of this history, enjoyed, as
compared with the earlier centuries? Study Chapters I and II, VI, VII,
and VIII, and XXII.

3. Compare the earliest religion of the Hebrews with the religion of
the prophets and Jesus. Mention four great discoveries in regard to
the character of God.

REVIEW AND TEST QUESTIONS

1. Describe the daily life of the earliest ancestors of the Hebrews.

2. What valuable characteristic of these people is reflected in the
story of Joseph?

3. What were some of the evils of Babylonian life?

4. What kind of life did Abraham admire judging from the sto