Those familiar with the Old Testament realize best that next to the New Testament, it is the most inspiring treasury of religious experience that the world possesses. Yet, it is well known that to many devout people, even among religious leaders, it is almost entirely a closed book. This is due, in part at least, to the great difficulty in gaining an adequate knowledge of the times and the conditions under which many of its messages were delivered. To meet this need, for those who are eager to follow the story of the Old Testament revelation, this book has been prepared. History and literature are here considered together. All phases of human activity, economic, social, philosophic and religious are but varying expressions of the unitary life of a people; the parts of one whole