4.  Jehovah  and  the  Prophets


by  W.  ROBERTSON  SMITH


the  primary  difference  between  the
religion  of  Israel  and  that  of  the  surrounding  nations
does  not  lie  in  the  idea  of  a  theocracy,  or  in  a  phi-
losophy of  the  invisible  world,  or  in  the  external
forms  of  religious  service,  but  in  a  personal  differ-
erence  between  Jehovah  and  other  gods.  That  dif-
ference, again,  is  not  of  a  metaphysical  but  of  a
directly  practical  nature;  it  was  not  defined  once
for  all  in  a  theological  dogma,  but  made  itself
felt  in  the  attitude  which  Jehovah  actually  took  up
towards  Israel  in  those  historical  dealings  with  His
nation  to  which  the  word  of  the  prophets  supplied
a  commentary.  Everything  that  befell  Israel  was
interpreted  by  the  prophets  as  a  work  of  Jehovah's
hand,  displaying  His  character  and  will —  not  an
arbitrary  character  or  a  changeable  will,  but  a  fixed
and  consistent  holy  purpose,  which  has  Israel  for
its  object  and  seeks  the  true  felicity  of  the  nation.
but  at  the  same  time  is  absolutely  sovereign  over
Israel,  and  will  not  give  way  to  Israel's  desires  or
adapt  itself  to  Israel's  convenience.  No  other  re-
ligion can  show  anything  parallel  to  this.  The  gods
of  the  nations  are  always  conceived  either  as  arbi-
trary and  changeful,  or  as  themselves  subordinate
to  blind  fate,  or  as  essentially  capable  oi  being  bent
into  sympathy  with  whatever  is  for  the  time  being
the  chief  desire  of  their  worshippers,  or,  in  some


Reprinted  from  W.  Robertson  Smith,  The  Prophets  of
Israel  (New  York:  D.  Appleton  Co.,  1882),  pp.  70-75,
78-83.
