heir development?
Were the early Hebrews a pure or a mixed race?

More important than the spoils and lands which fell to the Hebrews
was the new demonstration of Jehovah's ability and willingness to
deliver his people which they received in the battle beside Kishon.
Throughout all of Israel's colonial period the chief force binding
the scattered Hebrew tribes together was their faith in Jehovah.
The victory greatly strengthened that faith and prepared the way
for the closer union which was necessary before Israel could become
a permanent force among the nations of the earth. The vision of
what they had been able to achieve through united action never
completely faded from the memory of the Hebrews. Their subsequent
experiences also tended to revive this memory. Amidst the warring
elements in Palestine a powerful nation was gradually taking form;
in the school of hard experience it was learning the lessons that
were fitting it for a large life.

VI.

THE FINAL STAGE IN THE MAKING OP THE HEBREW NATION.

The final stage in the evolution of Israel is recorded in the
opening chapters of I Samuel and is best studied in detail in
connection with the history of the nation at its zenith. We have
studied the forces which made the nation. A brief summary will
indicate the transition to the next period, that of the kingdom.
The victory over the Canaanites gave the Hebrews possession of the
land and left them free to coalesce into a united nation; but the
centrifugal tribe spirit for a time proved the stronger. Under
Gideon a beginning was made in kingdom making, but owing to the
cruelty and inefficiency of his son Abimelech, the first Hebrew
state lasted little more than a generation.

The compelling power that finally brought all the rival Hebrew
tribes together under a common leader was the conquest of their
territory by the warlike, ambitious Philistines. In inspiring the
Benjamite chieftain Saul to deliver his countrymen in their hour of
shame and peril, Samuel the prophet proved the true father of the
Hebrew kingdom. Under the compulsion of common danger the
Israelites not only followed Saul to victory, but also made him
their king. From this time on Israel took its place among the
nations of the earth.

During their formative period the Hebrews acquired many
characteristics that they have retained throughout their history.
From their early nomadic life they inherited physical strength,
hardihood, adaptabi