said to be literally covered by them." Mr. Forbes states, that when at Barodha, in India, where the locust is not near so pernicious as in Africa and Arabia, he saw a flight of them extending above a mile in length, and half as much in breadth; they appeared, as the sun was in the meridian, like a black cloud at a distance. As they approached from the east, the density of the host obscured the solar rays, cast an awful gloom, like that of an eclipse, over the garden where he was, and caused a noise like the rushing of a torrent. They were near an hour in passing over the spot. In Kirby and Spence's "Entomology," it is said that one of the swarms which entered Transylvania, in August, 1748, was several hundred fathoms in width (at Vienna the breadth of one of them was three miles), and extended to so great a length as to be four hours in passing over the Red Tower; and, such was its density, that it totally intercepted the solar light, so that, when they flew low, one person could not see another at the distance of twenty paces. These extracts, which might be greatly multiplied, will show the propriety of the Scripture references to the numerical strength of the locust armies. See Judg. vi. 5; vii. 12; Psalm cv. 34; Jer. xlvi. 23 ; Nah. iii. 15, etc.; for although our translation has grasshopper in some of these passages, the locust is no doubt the creature intended by the original. 66 How terrible is the description given of them in Joel ii. 3-10, one of the most striking and animated pictures to be found in the whole compass of prophecy. The contexture of the passage is extremely curious; and the double destruction to be produced by locusts, and by the enemies of which they were the harbingers, is painted with the most expressive force, and described with the most terrible accuracy. We may fancy the destroying army moving before us while we read, and the desolation spreading while we turn over the pages. Many writers mention the resemblance which the head of the locust bears to that of the horse; whence the Italians call them cavallette. But the prophet does not appear to be describing the shape of the insect, when he compares it to a horse, but rather its properties, its fierceness, and its swift motion. Thus, in Rev. ix. 7, the locusts are compared to horses prepared for the battle; furious and impatient for the war. Like the sound of chariots, on the tops of the mountains shall they leap: Like the sound of a flame of fire which devoureth stubble. The noise of their coming shall be heard at a distance, like the sound of chariots passing over the mountains. When they fall on the ground and leap from place to place, and devour the fruits, the sound of them will resemble the crackling of the stubble when consuming by the flames; or the din and clamour of an army ready prepared to engage in battle. How this description agrees to the locusts, is shown abundantly by Bochart, who tells us from several authors, that they fly with a great noise; as John has also described them: "The sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots, of many horses running to battle" (Rev. ix. 9); that they may be heard at six miles distance; and that when they are eating the fruits of the earth, the sound is like that of a flame driven by the wind.* The CATERPILLAR, is in Hebrew called the consumer; and in Joel i. 4, it is mentioned as eating up what the other species had left, and therefore might well be called the consumer, by way of eminence. Cyril says of them, that while they are breaking their food with their teeth, the noise is like that of a flame driven about by the wind. See Forskal," Descript. Animal. quæ in Itinere Orientali," obs. p. 81. VII. SCRIPTURE DIFFICULTIES, REAL AND IMAGINARY. BY WILLIAM CARPENTER, EDITOR OF THE FIFTH EDITION OF CALMET'S DICTIONARY, "When our contentious controversies, which are of the earth earthy, shall have been clean swept away, when learning and criticism shall have satisfied the devout scholar in clearing the sacred text, and when our slow hearts shall have been quickened, and in the diligent search for truth, with faith and prayer, we have come with simplicity to God's word, to seek therein the divine knowledge of His will, of our destiny and our duties, willing to deal with the volume of His word as with the volume of His works, expecting like difficulties in each, and recognising their relative purposes in the discipline of life, we may hope that there will be a genuine science of Scripture, and a reformed philosophy of faith." |