mine eyes and looked, and lo, two women came forth with the wind in
their wings, and they bore the barrel betwixt earth and heaven.

And I said to the angel that talked with me, "Whither do they carry
the barrel?"

And he said to me, "To build it a house in the land of Shinar, that it
may be fixed and brought to rest there in a place of its own."

VI

THE VISION OF THE CHARIOTS OF THE FOUR WINDS

(The four chariots of the four winds go forth to guard the boundaries
of the land from all threatening foes.)

And again I lifted up mine eyes, and saw, and behold, there came four
chariots out from between two mountains; and the mountains were
mountains of brass. In the first chariot were red horses; and in the
second chariot black horses; and in the third chariot white horses;
and in the fourth chariot dappled bay horses. {407}

Then I answered and said unto the angel that talked with me, "What are
these, my lord?"

And the angel answered and said unto me, "These are the four winds of
heaven, which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the
earth." The chariot wherein are the black horses goeth forth toward
the north country; and the white went forth after them; and the
dappled went forth toward the south country. And the bay went forth,
and sought to go that they might walk to and fro through the earth:
and he said, "Get you hence, walk to and fro through the earth." So
they walked to and fro through the earth.

{408}

MALACHI

(Malachi wrote after the Exile. The temple, whose building Haggai had
urged, was erected; but the people were already tired of its service.
"What a weariness it is!" they said. They brought worthless animals
for sacrifice, and would do nothing in the temple except for pay.
Malachi denounced their selfishness, but said that if they would turn
to God, he would still be ready to bless them. Malachi's writing is
less poetical in its style than most of the prophets, but he speaks in
a very plain, straightforward fashion.)

"Behold, I send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me:
and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple; and the
messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in, behold, he cometh,"
saith the Lord of hosts. "But who may abide the day of his coming? and
who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire,
and like fullers' soap: and he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of
silver, and he shall purify the sons of Levi