over the place an oriental charm, and the numerous Pride of India trees interspersed among the houses and gardens, with their beautiful foliage, give it a pleasing aspect. The taxable men at this time were reckoned at four hundred Mahommedans and three hundred Christians-implying a population of less than three thousand souls."

Before we have done with the history of Tyre, we embrace the opportunity it affords of exemplifying the striking fulfilment of prophecy. In order to make out a real case of prophecy, some such criteria as the following must be laid down for our guidance: 1st, that the prediction be delivered before the occurrence of the thing predicted; 2dly, that there be no ambiguity in the terms of the prediction; 3dly, that the event foretold be improbable at the time the prophecy was delivered; and, 4thly, that the person who is the instrument of fulfilling it do not go to work for the express purpose of accomplishing the previous predictions. Keeping these things in mind, let us now look at the prophecies regarding Tyre, and place their fulfilment alongside with them. First, it was foretold that Tyre would be brought to ruin by the Chaldeans. (See Isaiah xxiii. 13.) At the time that Isaiah delivered the "burden of Tyre," the Chaldeans were but a recent and insignificant colony from Assyria. Tyre was then at the height of its glory. Few things, therefore, could be more unlikely at that period than the overthrow of the Tyrians by the Chaldeans. About one hundred and thirty years

had passed away. Meanwhile the Chaldeans had become a numerous and powerful nation. They were otherwise called the Babylonians; and we have already seen how Nebuchadnezzar, the king of that empire, came against the ancient Tyre, and, after a siege of thirteen years, left it in ruins. Secondly, it was predicted that Nebuchadnezzar should receive no remuneration for his protracted siege of Tyre. Ezekiel xxix. 18-"Yet had he no wages, nor his army, for Tyrus." At the time this prediction was made, Tyre was still in its glory; and, of all unlikely things, this prediction was certainly the most unlikely, for Tyre was proverbially the wealthiest city in the world. Still the prophetic word did not fail. We have already seen that nothing was left for the Babylonian but the bare walls and empty houses. The Tyrians had fled, and carried all their valuable property and wealth with them. Thirdly, it was prophesied that Tyre should be sought for, but not found. Ezekiel xxvi. 21— Though thou be sought for, yet shalt thou never be found again." Any one acquainted with the ancient state of this city will not need to be informed that, at the time Ezekiel lived, this must have appeared a very unlikely thing indeed. And yet, marvellous to say, to ascertain with precision the site of old Tyre has baffled every traveller that has visited that quarter. This even the daring sceptic Volney is, as it would seem, somewhat reluctantly compelled to admit. Fourthly, it was predicted that the very stones and timber of Tyre

would be laid in the midst of the water. Ezekiel xxvi. 12—"And they shall lay thy stones and thy timber in the midst of the water." The other circumstances prophesied of Tyre were very unlikely; and this certainly was not less so. Meanwhile,

two hundred and fifty years rolled away, and Alexander came up against Tyre. By this time it was exclusively in the midst of the sea; and the Macedonian stood in need of materials to make a mound on which his warriors could walk across to take possession of the city. These were supplied by the stones and the timber of which the old Tyre was built. These were removed and laid in the midst of the water, and constituted the embankment between the shore and the island. So the historian informs us, without ever thinking how strikingly he is thereby supplying us with materials to evince the fulfilment of prophecy. Fifthly, it was further foretold that the very dust of Tyre should be scraped from its streets, and placed in the midst of the water. Ezekiel xxvi. 4, 12-"I will also scrape the dust from her. They shall lay thy dust in the midst of the water." When the mound before referred to was nearly completed, it was broken down again by the waves of the sea rolling heavily against it, so that Alexander's soldiers had to commence work afresh; and Arrian, the historian, tells us that they "scraped the very dust off the ancient site of Tyre," and made use of it to build up the embankment. Sixthly, it was predicted that the walls of the city should be demolished. Ezekiel

xxvi. 4, 12-"They shall destroy the walls of Tyrus. They shall break down thy walls." This was done first to the continental Tyre, by Nebuchadnezzar; and then to the insular Tyre, by Alexander. Seventhly, it was prophesied that the city would be burnt down. Amos i. 10-"I will send a fire on the walls of Tyrus." Zechariah ix. 3 —"Tyrus shall be devoured with fire." Alexander, when he made himself master of Tyre, was careful to have it burnt to the ground. And, eighthly, it was foretold that Tyre would be a place for fishers to spread their nets upon. Ezekiel xxvi. 5, 14— "It shall be a place for the spreading of nets. Thou shalt be a place to spread nets upon." That, in modern times, this has been the state of Tyre, is confirmed by the unanimous testimony of all travellers who have visited the spot. From the pen of the avowed infidel Volney, who was there, we will draw confirmation of this prediction. After quoting largely from Ezekiel's prophecies regarding Tyre, he says-"The vicissitudes of time, or rather the barbarism of the Greeks of the lower empire, and the Mahommedans, have accomplished this prediction. Tyre is reduced to a miserable village. The whole village of Tyre" (this was in the last century) " contains only fifty or sixty poor families, who live obscurely on the produce of their little ground, and a trifling fishery. The houses they occupy are no longer, as in the time of Strabo, edifices of three or four storeys high, but wretched huts, ready to crumble into ruins."

PETRA, THE LONG-LOST CAPITAL
OF EDOM.

Or the many great discoveries by which the early part of the present century was distinguished, not the least important was that of Petra, the long-lost capital of the Edomites. Not only did this discovery enlarge and enrich geographical science; it added, moreover, another and a most important fact to the stores of our biblical literature. On the pages of the Bible it shed a new light and a new interest. The unerring precision with which those prophecies which relate to the land of Edom, had pointed out the future state of its capital, now began to be understood, though before we had been able only to guess at the meaning of these predictions, and were not prepared to verify, at least in every parti cular, their accomplishment. Petra, the capital of Edom, after being lost for ages, was discovered by Burckhardt in 1812. Everything which relates to the manner in which this discovery was brought about is interesting; but, before we can judge of its importance, and the service it has rendered to revelation, we must advert for a little to the early history of the city to which it relates.

A dark chain of mountains, whose singularly ragged and broken outline presents to the eye many a romantic peak, stretches between the southern extremity of the Dead Sea and the head of the eastern arm of the Red Sea. Here, in ancient times, dwelt