Thus Jehovah was in a very real sense a living God; but the
manifestations of His life in the great crises of His people's
history were of necessity separated by considerable intervals
of time. His activity had something abrupt and tumultuary about
it, better suited for extraordinary occasions than for ordinary
daily life. Traces of this feeling appear very prominently in
the later stages of the development. But although the relations
between Israel and Israel's God came most strongly into
prominence in times of excitement, yet it did not altogether die
out in the periods of comparative repose. It was in the case of
Jehovah just as in the case of the human leaders of the people, who
did not in times of peace wholly lose the influence they had
gained in war. Jehovah had His permanent court at the places of
worship where in times of quietude men clung to Him that they
might not lose Him in times of trouble. His chief, perhaps in the
time of Moses His only, sanctuary was with the so-called ark of
the covenant. It was a standard, adapted primarily to the
requirements of a wandering and warlike life; brought back from
the field, it became, as symbol of Jehovah's presence, the central
seat of His worship.
Pages:
938
939
940
941
942
943
944
945
946
947
948
949
950
951
952
953
954
955
956
957
958
959
960
961
962