Of one thing we may be certain regarding the ancient Hebrews,
namely, that their religion brought something into the world
that can never again be lost. It fostered idealism, and gave
mankind something pure and noble to live for, a religion
over which Christianity shed the sunshine of divine mercy
and hope. That the change which was to be wrought in life was
sharply defined may be seen by comparing the great songs of the
different nations. For up to that time a song of praise meant
praise of a _King_. He was the sun that warmed men's hearts,
the being from whom all wisdom came, and to whom men looked
for mercy. If we compare the Egyptian hymns with those of the
Hebrews, the difference is very striking. On the walls of the
great temples of Luxor and the Ramesseum at Thebes, as well as
on the wall of the temple of Abydos and in the main hall of the
great rock-hewn temple of Abu-Simbel, in Nubia, is carved the
"Epic of Pentaur," the royal Egyptian scribe of Rameses II:

My king, his arms are mighty, his heart is firm. He
bends his bow and none can resist him. Mightier
than a hundred thousand men he marches forward. His
counsel is wise and when he wears the royal crown,
Alef, and declares his will, he is the protector of
his people. His heart is like a mountain of iron. Such
is King Rameses.

If we turn to the Hebrew prophets, this is their song:

The mountains melted from before the Lord and before
Him went the pestilence; burning coals went forth at
His feet. Hell is naked before Him and destruction