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customs of the East , that the next of kin of any one who » had been slain * even , unwittingly , was deemed infamous if he did not avenge him by putting to death the man who had killed
him . Moses , unable to eradicate this custom , had mitigated it by the appointment of six cities of refuse , three on each side of the Jordan , in which the unintentional homicide might be safe from the vengeance of the Goel . In these cities , and for a thousand
yards around , he could not be touched—if he ventured beyond these limits , before the death of th $ . High-Priest , the Goel might lawfully kill him . The roads and hedges leading" to the
city of refuge were to be kept in repair , that the fugitive might not be impeded in his flight . The son of the citizen of Jericho , whom Elisama had killed , had been fetched from the fields and had gone forth to avenge his father ; but he was too late :
Elisama had already reached Ramoth Gilead in safety . Salumiel , who had remained behind to attend the judicial proceedings , determined to go and see him , and Salamith could not be persuaded to remain behind . Ramoth of
Gilea ^ l lay on the other sid ^ Jordan , in the country called in ancient times Gilead ; a country not so fruitful as this side , from its many mountains and sandy deserts , yet rich in pasturage for cattle , and . watered by two mighty streams , the Arnon and the Jabok , which empty themselves into the Dead Sea and the Jordan .
The hills of Hasan , Gilead and Abarim , extending from Antilibanus , send their branches through this country . It wa 3 given on the conquest of Canaan to the tribes of Gad and Reuben
and the half tribe of Manasseh , as their residence . Ramoth , situated on the Jabok , was the principal city , celebrated in history by the vow of Jephtha , and the battle between Ahab and
Jehoshaphat and the Syrians . On their arrival , they learnt that Elisama was dangerously ill . The agitation of mind < and fatigue attendant on his flight , hacj overpowered his feeble frame : he had been attacked
by a fever , under which he was hourly sinking . A Levity , who was the physician of Raxnoth , arid possessed great knowledge of the human frame and the virtues of plants , h ^ d been sumt&Qtted . Strengthening bnths had
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been employed , and the precious balm of Gilead applied externally and internally . These were the two chief remedies of the Hebrews , But here they had lost their power . Elisama
fell into a death-like slumber . When he was delirious , the image of Myron seemed to be constantly before his eyes ; and he upbraided him with his ingratitude , and warned his son Helon to beware of him , as it would not be the last of his misdeeds . On the
following day his reasoxi returned for some hours , and he spoke calmly and clearly . It was the last revival of the flame of life . He requested Helon to repeat to him the prayer of Moses , the man of God . ' Lord , Thou hast been our refuge in all generations /
Ps . xc He heard it with great attention , and the emotions of his heart were visible , at many passages , in his looks and his clasped hands . He lay for a long time with closed eyes , but his lips were in motion , and it was evident that he was addressing himself to God , probably in a penitential
Psalm ; for once , when his voice grew stronger , he was heard to say , ( Ps . cii . 10 , ) 'My days pass away as a shadow , And I wither as grass , But thou , Jehovah , shalt endure for
ever , And thy name remaineth from generation to generation . Thou wilt arise and have mercy on . Zion ; For the time is come that thou shouldst favour her , The appointed hour is come . ' *
" His voice again becarrfe faint , and it was after some interval that he was heard to say' He vveakeneth my strength in the way , He shorteneth my days . ' xc And then with a firmer
tone—* The children of thy servants shall continue ,, And their seed shall prosper before thee . '
" He turned with an expression of the deepest affection to Helon , and said , ' Greet tliy inother from mewhqn the High-Priest dies , carry my bones to the valley of Jo&oshaphat and lay thein beside th y ' fathers 'vyait on JefcoVali an 4 , thou shalt obtain /—his words became " Waumbte
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18 " Heforft Pilgrimage to fervwfom , " by Af * Strauss *
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Citation
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Monthly Repository (1806-1838) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833), Jan. 2, 1823, page 18, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/mruc/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1780/page/18/
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