"_It was the fate of all (these) pioneers, not only to be left behind in the assault which they had planned, but to find that many of their approaches were made in a false direction, and had to be abandoned._"[107:2]
Before closing this chapter, we shall say a few words on the religion of Israel. It is supposed by many--in fact, we have heard it asserted by those who should know better--that the Israelites were always _monotheists_, that they worshiped One God only--_Jehovah_.[107:3] This is altogether erroneous; they were not different from their neighbors--the Heathen, so-called--in regard to their religion.
In the first place, we know that they revered and worshiped a _Bull_, called _Apis_,[107:4] just as the ancient Egyptians did. They worshiped the _sun_,[108:1] the _moon_,[108:2] the _stars_ and all the host of heaven.[108:3]
They worshiped _fire_, and kept it burning on an altar, just as the Persians and other nations.[108:4] They worshiped _stones_,[108:5] revered an _oak tree_,[108:6] and "bowed down" to _images_.[108:7] They worshiped a "Queen of Heaven" called the goddess _Astarte_ or _Mylitta_, and "burned incense" to her.[108:8] They worshiped _Baal_,[108:9] Moloch,[108:10] and _Chemosh_,[108:11] _and offered up human sacrifices to them_,[108:12] after which in some instances, _they ate the victim_.[108:13]
It was during the Captivity that idolatry ceased among the Israelites.[108:14] The Babylonian Captivity is clearly referred to in the book of Deuteronomy, as the close of Israel's idolatry.[108:15]
There is reason to believe that the real genius of the people was first called into full exercise, and put on its career of development at this time; that Babylon was a _forcing nursery_, not a prison cell; _creating instead of stifling a nation_. The astonishing outburst of intellectual and moral energy that accompanied the return from the Babylonish Captivity, attests the spiritual activity of that "mysterious and momentous" time. As Prof. Goldziher says: "The intellect of _Babylon_ and _Assyria_ exerted a more than passing influence on that of the _Hebrews_, not merely touching it, but _entering deep into it_, and _leaving its own impression upon it_."[108:16]