Although in truth the Torah and the moral influence of Jehovah upon the national life were things much weightier and much more genuinely Israelitic than the cultus, yet this latter held on the whole a higher place in public opinion.  To the ordinary man it was not moral but liturgical acts that seemed to be truly religious.  Altars of Jehovah occurred everywhere, with sacred stones and trees—­the latter either artificial (Asheras) or natural—­beside them; it was considered desirable also to have water in the neighbourhood (brazen sea).  In cases where a temple stood before the altar it contained an ephod and teraphim, a kind of images before which the lot was cast by the priest.  Of the old simplicity the cultus retained nothing; at the great sanctuaries especially (Bethel, Gilgal, Beersheba) it had become very elaborate.  Its chief seasons were the agricultural festivals—­the passover, the feast of weeks, and most especially the feast of the ingathering at the close of the year.  These were the only occasions of public worship properly so called, at which every one was expected to attend; in other cases each worshipper sought the presence of God only in special circumstances, as for example at the beginning and at the end of particular undertakings.  The cultus, as to place, time, matter, and form, belonged almost entirely to the inheritance which Israel had received from Canaan; to distinguish what belonged to the worship of Jehovah from that which belonged to Baal was no easy matter. 1

****************************************** 1.  The description of the cultus by the Prophet Hosea shows this very clearly.  It is obvious enough, however, that the object was to serve JEHOVAH, and not any foreign deity, by this worship. *****************************************

It was the channel through which also paganism could and did ever anew gain admittance into the worship of Jehovah.  Yet that publicity of the cultus which arose out of the very nature of Jehovah, and in consequence of which the teraphim even were removed from the houses to the temples, cannot but have acted as a corrective against the most fatal excesses.

As for the substance of the national faith, it was summed up principally in the proposition that Jehovah is the God of Israel.  But “God” was equivalent to “helper;” that was the meaning of the word.  “Help,” assistance in all occasions of life,—­that was what Israel looked for from Jehovah, not “salvation” in the theological sense.  The forgiveness of sins was a matter of subordinate importance; it was involved in the “help,” and was a matter not of faith but of experience.  The relation between the people and God was a natural one as that of son to father; it did not rest upon observance of the conditions of a pact.  But it was not on that account always equally lively and hearty; Jehovah was regarded as having varieties of mood.  To secure and retain His favour sacrifices were useful; by them prayer and thanksgiving were seconded.