In the case of those narratives which have come down to us in
double form, the difference of standpoint is unmistakable; but it
may also be perceived in cases where we have no direct parallels
to compare. How noticeably does the story of Abimelech differ,
say from that of Jephthah which follows it, in the rich detail of
its facts, and in the spontaneous interest it shows in the
secondary and subordinate links in the chain of events! There is
no gilding with a supernatural nimbus; facts are simply and
plainly set down such as they are; the moral is left to speak
for itself as the story goes on. In the Samson legends again we
find two souls united, as it were, in one body. Traits belonging
to the rough life and spirit of the people are wrought, especially
at the beginning and end of the narrative, into a religious
national form; yet the two stand in an inner contrast to each other,
and it is scarcely probable that the exploits of this grotesque
religious hero were at first conceived in the Spirit of Jehovah,
of which, in the story as we have it, they are the product. More
probably the religious way of telling the story was preceded
by a way considerably more profane; but we cannot now separate
the older stage from that which is more recent.
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