Page 211 - Third Book of Reading Lessons

210 THIRD BOOK OF
For "Ingenuity," see p. 86; "Intervals," and "Phenomenon," p. 30 ; "Mani station," p. 62: "Ecclesiastical," p. 182; " Testimony," , 76; and'' Historians," p. 89.
1-. Trrn emperor Julian, the immediate successor of the sons of Constantine, had apostatised from the Christian faith, openly pro ssed himself a pagan, and endeavoured, by every means which the most malignant ingenuity could devise, to extirpate the religion he had abandoned. All his e orts were un­ availing; but the very malignity of the impious prince was soon to rnish additional testimony to the divinity of our Redeemer, and to the truth and perpetuity of his doctrine. The Jewish temple had long been in ruins, its sacri ces abolished and almost rgotten. The prophet Daniel had distinctly re­
told its nal desolation; and our Redeemer himself had expressly declared, that not one stone of it should remain upon another. In order to lsify these pre­ dictions and thus to rend-er the Christian religion contemptible, Julian assembled the chief among the Jews, encouraged them to renew their ancient sacri­ ces, and, as Jerusalem was the only place at which the Jewish law permitted those sacri ces to be o ered, he promised to assist them in rebuilding their temple. He then collected the ablest workmen om all parts of the empire, hired numerous labourers, and com- mitted the superintendence of the work to Alipius, one of his most ith l o cers.
2. The Jews repaired in triumph to Jerusalem om all parts of the world, proclaiming everywhere, that the kingdom of Israel was about to be re-estab­ lished. That they might participate in the glory of the enterprise, the women of every rank assisted in digging the undations, and carried their enthusiasm
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so r as to remove the rubbish in their gowns and