The Origin of Freemasonry and Knights Templar ... - Lodge Prudentia

FREEMASONRY AND KNIGHTS TEMPLARland of the Edomites* (descendants of Esau, Jacob'stwin brother), but is positively refused andthreatened with the sword should he make theattempt. \Yhereupon the Israelites turn away,even avoiding the Moabites* and the Ammonites*(descendants of Lot by his two daughters),but proceeded boldly against the kings of theAmorites,* Sihon, who reigned at Hesbon, andOg, at Bashan. Both of these chieftains, livedeast of the Jordan, and were the descendantsof Canaan, an ancient patriarch, a son of Ham,and the ancestor of the Canaanites. They weredispossessed of their lands, which were bestowedon the tribes of Reuben and Gad and ahalf-tribe of Manasseh (Num. xxxii.). Aaron*died on Mount Hor, in Edom, Arabia,* in the fortiethyear after leaving Egypt, at the age of about123 years, and was succeeded in the priesthood byhis son Eleazer. Not long after this, in the year1451 B. C, Moses* died on Mount Nebo, one ofthe Abarim range of mountains, "which is in theland of Moab, that is over against Jericho,"* at theage of 1 20, and was succeeded in authority byJoshua of the tribe of Ephraim. Joshua proved himselfto be an able and resolute general. He led thetribes of Israel across the Jordan into Canaan, orthe Holy Land, and then began a war of exterminationupon the native inhabitants. All were exterminatedexcept the Gibeonites,* who securedtheir safety by a stratagem (Josh. lx.), and becamea dependent or servile class among theHebrews.* The tabernacle was set up at Shiloh*in 1444 B. C., and the rest of the land of Palestinedivided, makingin all twelve confederate states32