And the yearning converts itself into prophecy. What he, as man, can
desire for his fellow-man, God will surely give. What he would suffer
for those he loves, surely God would suffer. Human nature in its power
of love would otherwise outstrip the Divine. He cries for the weakness
to be engrafted upon strength, the human to be manifested in the Divine.
And exulting in the consciousness that his cry is answered, he hails the
advent of Christ. He bids Saul "see" that a Face like his who now speaks
to him awaits him at the threshold of an eternal life; that a Hand like
his hand opens to him its gates.

David's prophecy has rung through the universe; and as he seeks his home
in the darkness, unseen "cohorts" press everywhere upon him. A
tumultuous expectation is filling earth and hell and heaven. The Hand
guides him through the tumult. He sees it die out in the birth of the
young day. But the hushed voices of nature attest the new dispensation.
The seal of the new promise is on the face of the earth.


The EPILOGUE is spoken by three different persons, and embodies as many
phases of the religious life. The "FIRST SPEAKER, _as David_,"
represents the old Testament Theism, with its solemn celebrations, its
pompous worship, and the strong material faith which bowed down the
thousands as one man, before the visible glory of the Lord.

The "SECOND SPEAKER, _as Renan_" represents nineteenth-century
scepticism, and the longing of the heart for the old belief which
scientific reason has dispelled. This belief is symbolized by a "Face"
which once looked down from heights of glory upon men; by a star which
shone down upon them in responsive life and love. The face has vanished
into darkness. The star, gradually receding, has lost itself in the