THE CONTRAST;

OR

MORE FOR US THAN AGAINST US.

And his servant said, Alas, my master! how shall we do? And he answered, Fear not, for they that be with us are more than they that be with them. 2 Kings vi. 15, 16.

To understand the force of this language, it will be necessary to glance at its history, which is replete with interest and instruction.

In the days of Jehoram, son and successor to Ahab, king of Israel, the king of Syria made war against Israel, and seems to have taken much pains in securing favorable positions, in order to ensure success. For this purpose he "took counsel with his servants, saying, In such or such a place shall be my camp." This prudence and foresight in laying the plans of his campaign, would, it appears, have proved fatal to the king of Israel, had he not been forewarned by Elisha, "the man of God," who sent to him, bidding him be on his guard, saying, "Beware that thou pass not such and such a place, for thither the Syrians are come down." The king of Israel sent and found it even as the prophet had said, and he "saved himself there," as the sacred historian informs us, not once or twice," that is, repeatedly,

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several times. At these repeated failures of his best laid plans, the king of Syria was greatly surprized, and ultimately grievously troubled, and suspecting some treasonable practices on the part of some of his confidential officers, he called them to council, and said, " Will ye not show me which of us is for the king of Israel? And one of his servants said, None my Lord, O King; but Elisha, the prophet that is in Israel, telleth the king of Israel the words that thou speakest in thy bed chamber."

As we may well suppose, such mysterious knowledge on the part of the prophet, greatly astonished the king of Syria; and he conceived the design of getting him into his own hands. Whether he wished merely to deprive the king of Israel of such a councillor, or whether he was anxious to avail himself of a knowledge that was so useful to his enemy, does not appear. But be this as

it may, he entered at once upon the enterprize of making "the man of God" his prisoner. " And he said, Go and spy where he is, that I may send and fetch him. And it was told him, saying, Behold he is in Dothan. Therefore sent he thither horses and chariots and a great host; and they came by night, and compassed the city round about." What notions the king of Syria entertained of the prophet, it is impossible to say, but it must be confessed that he made very ample provision for his capture.

On the following morning, we are told, the servant of the prophet rose early and went forth, and you may judge of his astonishment and perplexity, when he saw the whole city encompassed by a great host of warriors, with horses and chariots. He seems to have recognized at a glance who they were, and probably suspected their errand there. Filled with anxieties and fears, he hastily returned to the prophet, exclaiming, Alas my master! how shall we do?" Their condition was obviously alarming. They were not men of war, and behold the very prowess of the enemy had come up against them. Besides, they were only two, and lo, they were surrounded by a mighty host. with horses and chariots! Well might the servant of the man of God, under such threatening circumstances, cry out in despair, "Alas my master, how shall we do?" Truly, what could they do? To all human appearance there was nothing before them but captivity or death.

But the prophet saw what his servant did not see; and filled with a divine calmness and confidence, he replied, “Fear not; for they that be with us, are more than they that be with them." To the mind of the timid servant, acquainted as he was with the prophet's power, this answer was no doubt satisfactory, though it must be confessed that it appeared far more like a paradox, or a riddle, than like sober truth. And we are all ready

to ask what kind of verification it was capable of gaining. The sacred historian shall inform us in his own simple but most expressive language."And Elisha prayed and said, Lord I pray thee open his eyes that he may see. And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw; and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire, round about Elisha."

The sequel is soon told, and is interesting for the beautiful illustration it furnishes of the almost resistless moral power of kindness and love. At the prayer of the prophet the encompassing host of Syria was first smitten with blindness and then led into Samaria, to the king of Israel. The prophet prayed again, and the eyes of the blind were opened, and they saw with astonishment and dismay, that they were in the midst of Samaria, surrounded by its warlike hosts, and at their mercy. But when the king of Israel saw his enemies thus completely in his power, he said to Elisha, "My father, shall I smite them?-shall I smite them?" The very mode of expression employed by the king, shows how anxious he was to shed their blood. "And the man of God answered, Thou shalt not smite them; wouldst thou smite them whom thou hast taken captive with thy sword and with thy bow? Set bread and water before them that they may eat and drink, and go to their master. And he prepared great provision for them and when they had eaten and drunk, he sent them

away; and they went to their master." And the sacred historian adds these simple but richly instructive words with which he closes the narration: "So the bands of Syria came no more into the land of Israel."

What a cheap and bloodless victory! And yet it was better than a thousand triumphs! This one act of kindness, of noble generosity, of deep strong trust in goodness and humanity, is worth more in the annals of our race than all the battles our Alexanders and Napoleons ever fought. It excited no base passions; awoke no spirit of revenge; whetted no appetite for blood; but on the contrary, it called forth the best affections of the human heart-gratitude and good-will. The fruits of this noble action are briefly related, and we see how lasting as well as happy were its consequences. "The bands of Syria came no more into the land of Israel." An easy and bloodless victory, I say again; and yet when was there ever one more truly glorious, more worthy of praise? Would that the rulers of the nations were wise, then would they oftener follow so good, so divine an example; and learn even at this late day, that at all times and every where,“ mercy is better than sacrifice," and that kindness, simple kindness, all meek and gentle as it is, is stronger far than all the weapons and power of war!

But it is not for the purpose of drawing out lessons of political wisdom that I have introduced