miracles. As it was situated near the lake, there was a customhouse in the street between the city and the landing-place, at which taxes were levied on the goods conveyed across. Levi, one of the collectors of this tax, was selected by our Saviour to be an Apostle, under the well-known name of Matthew.2

Nothing is known of its ancient history, and so entirely is our Saviour's denunciation fulfilled, "that it should be brought down to hell," that its very site is uncertain. Buckland is of opinion, that it may have stood at a place called Tal-hewn, where there is a station of Arabs, and where there still exist the ruins of an important town, scattered over a wide space. The foundations of a large and magnificent edifice are still to be traced here, though there does not remain enough of the building itself to decide whether it was a temple or a palace. It appears to have been about two hundred paces in length and sixty in breadth, presenting its narrow part to the lake. Within this area are seen large blocks of sculptured stone, and among them two masses which look like panels of some highly decorated wall at least twenty pedestals of columns occupy their original places, and many others are overthrown near this edifice; and close upon the edge of the lake are the walls of a solid building, evidently constructed with fragments of the adjacent ruins; over this the Arabs have constructed a flat terrace, and have thus converted it into a rude dwelling. The remains of a bath are still in existence, the cistern and channels being yet perfect; it is attached to an ancient dwelling-house built of large blocks of stone, and scattered around are numerous fragments of white marble, proving the costly character of the architecture. The name Tal-hewn is supposed to have some affinity with Dalmanutha, a name

Peter saith unto him, Of

tribute? of their own children, or of strangers? strangers. Jesus saith unto him, Then are the children free. Notwithstanding, lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea, and cast an hook, and take up the fish that first cometh up; and when thou hast opened his mouth, thou shalt find a piece of money: that take, and give unto them for me and thee. (1) Mark i. 21-45. John iv. 46–54.

(2) Luke v. 27. And after these things he went forth, and saw a publican, named Levi, sitting at the receipt of custom : and he said unto him, Follow me.Matt. ix. 9. And as Jesus passed forth from thence, he saw a man, named Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he saith unto him, Follow me. And he arose, and followed him.

given in the Gospel to the country around Capernaum.' The lake on which it stands, called also the sea of Chinnereth, the sea of Galilee,3 and the lake of Tiberias, is described by Josephus as remarkable for the sweetness, purity, and coolness of its waters, and for the abundance and variety of its fish. There were fleets of some force on the lake during the wars of the Jews with the Romans, and very bloody battles were fought between them. It was much frequented by fishing-boats in our Saviour's time, and it was from among the fishermen of Gennesareth that he selected most of his Apostles. It lies very deep among hills which formerly were fruitful; and from its position, it is very liable to dangerous squalls, which often come on suddenly." The Jordan enters it on the north, and passes through it, with a current which is perceptible throughout its whole course.

The borders of the lake were anciently well peopled, being covered with towns and villages; but now they are almost desolate, and the fish and water-fowl are but little disturbed. Its appearance from Capernaum is still grand; but the barren aspect of the mountains on each side, and the total absence of wood, give a cast of dulness to the view; and this is increased to melancholy by the dead calm of its waters and the silence which reigns throughout its whole extent, where not a boat or vessel of any kind is to be found. Fish are caught by casting nets from the beach, a method which yields a small quantity compared to what would be obtained by boats; hence they are scarce, and as dear as meat.

Dr. Robinson fixes the site of Capernaum further to the south than Tal-hewn, in a place marked only by a mound of ruins, and near a spring which he supposes to be the same

(1) Mark viii. 10. And straightway he entered into a ship with his disciples, and came into the parts of Dalmanutha.

(2) Numb. xxxiv. 11. And the border shall descend, and shall reach unto the side of the sea of Chinnereth eastward.

(3) Mark i. 16. Now as he walked by the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea.

After these things Jesus went over the sea of Galilee, which is

(4) John vi. 1. the sea of Tiberias. (5) Mark iv. 37. And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat nto the ship, so that it was now full.

C

with a fountain which Josephus mentions under the name of Capharnaum; but, in either case, the city, which was the frequent witness of the Messiah's mighty works, and which was formerly "exalted unto heaven" in magnificence and pride, is now utterly cast down.'

It is a solemn fact, the voice of which ought to be listened to with attention, that there is no place mentioned in the New Testament as having rejected the mission of the Saviour, but bears evidence in a remarkable degree, either in its history or present condition, of the wrath of God: and as surely as the denunciations of old were fulfilled against the guilty cities that put out from their dwellings the candle of the Lord, so surely, we must remember, will still more awful threatenings be fulfilled against us, if we neglect to profit by the light that shines at present so brightly upon the world.

(1) Matt. xi. 23. And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.

SOUTH-EAST of Mount Lebanon, a lofty promontory, the only one of any size in Palestine, stretches into the Mediterranean Sea. The range of hills of which it is the extremity extends inland for more than twenty miles, being separated from the sea on the north by a large, fertile, and beautiful plain. This promontory is Carmel, the scene of the destruction of the prophets of Baal, and the spot from which Elijah's prayer for rain was heard and answered.' The meaning of the name is "fruitful field," a title which it well merits, the climate being most delightful, and the soil rich with luxuriant vegetation; hence Carmel is frequently made a prophetic type of beauty and prosperity, and the prophecies in which mention of it occurs, are not to be understood to allude so much to Carmel itself, as to the prosperous state of which it was the symbol. Thus the passages, "Thine head upon thee is like (1) 1 Kings xviii.

Carmel," and, "The excellency of Carmel shall be given unto it,"2 are descriptive of the future glory of the Church: and on the other hand, when it is said that "Carmel shall shake off its fruits," "3 we are to understand that the enemies of the Church shall meet with a reverse, contrasting terribly with their former prosperity.

The promontory in which mount Carmel terminates, is about 1500 feet high: its summit is covered with pines and oaks, and further down are olives and laurel trees in luxuriant abundance. It gives rise to a multitude of crystal brooks, the largest of which issues from the so-called "Fountain of Elijah ;" these all hurry along, between banks thickly overgrown with bushes, to the Kishon, the river which, after having traversed the fertile and beautiful plain of Esdraelon, falls into the bay of Acre. Carmel on the south-east unites with the mountains of Samaria; and the middle of the range, where it consists of varied hills and dales, adorned with shady groves and cool fountains, is said to be excelled in richness and depth of soil by no country in the earth. No mountain in or around Palestine retains so much of its ancient beauty; every species of tillage flourishes here to admiration, the surface is covered with a rich and constant verdure, and two or three villages and some scattered cottages add to the beauty of the scene. The mountain itself being of limestone, a kind of rock which frequently abounds in caves, a vast number of these are found throughout all parts of it, as many, it is said, as two thousand. In one tract, called "the Monk's" cavern, there are four hundred adjacent to each other, furnished with windows and places for sleeping, hewn out of the rock. The entrance to many of these is so narrow, that only a single person can creep in at a time, and is immediately out of sight unless closely followed. This may serve to give a clearer idea of what is meant in Amos ix. 3, where the Lord says of those who endeavour to escape his punishment: "Though they hide themselves in the top of Carmel, I will search and take them (1) Cant. vii. 5.

(2) Isa. xxxv. 2. The glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon.

(3) Isa. xxxiii. 9. The earth mourneth and languisheth: Lebanon is ashamed and hewn down: Sharon is like a wilderness; and Bashan and Carmel shake off their fruits.