the Indian Ocean, the different groups of exiles quickly began to adapt
themselves to their changed surroundings and to absorb the new knowledge
and the powerful influences which gradually transformed their beliefs and
ideals. While their vision was vastly broadened by this contact, the
danger and horror of being completely engulfed in the great heathen world
bound the faithful more closely together, and in time made Judaism
the solid, unbreakable rock that has withstood the assaults and the
disintegrating forces of the ages. At first the survivors of the great
catastrophe were stunned by the blow that had shattered their nation. They
lived only in their memories of the past and in their hopes for the
future. At last, in the long period of misery and enforced meditation,
they began not only to accept but also to apply the eternal principles
proclaimed by their earlier prophets. Thus amidst these entirely new
conditions they gained a broader and deeper faith and were still further
trained for the divine task of teaching mankind.

II. The Book of Lamentations. After describing the destruction of the
little kingdom established at Mizpah under Gedaliah, the Hebrew historical
records suddenly become silent. This silence is due to the fact that there
was little of external interest to record. The real history of this tragic
half-century is the record of the anguish and doubts and hopes in the
hearts of the scattered remnants of the race. The little book of
Lamentations expresses dramatically and pathetically the thoughts of the
people as they meditated upon the series of calamities which gathered
about the great catastrophe of 586 B.C. Like the ancient Torah, or five
books of the Law, it contains a quintet of poems. These are very similar
in theme and form to many of the psalms of the Psalter. In the first four
the characteristic five-beat measure, by which the deep emotions,
especially that of sorrow, were expressed, is consistently employed. Each
of these four is also an acrostic, that is, each succeeding line or group