its meaning very well. It was terrible! It carried with it the sound
of doom and the end of his nation. The very thought of it terrified
him. Holding his head with both hands his back bent forward as under a
heavy weight, until his face touched his knees upon the floor, he
cried in heartbreaking tones:

"Lord! How long?"

And God answered him:

"Until the cities are in ruin without an inhabitant,
And the houses without a human occupant,
And the land become utterly desolate,
And God hath sent the men far away,
And in the midst of the land the deserted territory be great.
And should there be a tenth in it,
It must in turn be fuel for flame,
Like the terebinth and the oak,
Of which, after falling, but a stump remains."

For a long time after the voice had ceased speaking, Isaiah remained
in the position in which he had listened to the last reply.

When, finally, in fear and trembling, he slowly raised his head, the
vision had gone! Behind him the Priests' Hall and the Inner Court were
deserted. Before him a thin line of blue and purple smoke rose from
the live coals on the Incense Altar and wound its way upward to the
ceiling of the Hekal.

Isaiah passed his hands over his eyes. For a moment he let his cool