LYING between the Dead Sea and the river Jordan on the east, and the Mediterranean on the west, and extending from Mount Hermon on the north to the desert of Arabia on the south, is a country whose influence has been more far-reaching than that of any other country on the globe. The influence that this country has exerted upon the world is truly remarkable when we consider the limited extent of its territory, and the previous servile condition of the people who made it famous. From the southern end of the Dead Sea to Gaza, on the Mediterranean, the distance is only sixty-five miles, while it is not more than twenty-three miles from the Sea of Galilee to Mt. Carmel. The average breadth of the country does not exceed forty miles. Dan and Beersheba stand respectively for the northern and southern limits of Palestine; and these two cities are not more than one hundred and sixty-five miles apart. “The whole area of the land of Palestine,” says Dr. Robinson, “does not vary greatly from 12,000 geographical square miles,—about equal to the area of the two states of Massachusetts and Connecticut. Of this whole area, more than one-half, or 7,000 square miles, being by far the most important portion, lies on the west of the Jordan.” This small land, inhabited by a feeble folk, who for four hundred years had their necks galled by the yoke of Egyptian bondage, has given to the world a Church, a Creed, and a Christ! The Church has carried the Creed into every land under every sky. The Christ of Palestine has become the Christ of the world; and wherever He is enthroned idols fall and nations bow. Small is the country, but important is the geographical position. It has been called “the very out-post on the extreme western edge of the East, pushed forward, as it were, by the huge continent of Asia.” Cut off from Asia by the desert, and from Europe by the sea, Palestine stands alone. And yet it was the door through which Asiatic and European nations had to pass in order to visit, trade with, or fight each other. There was a constant stream of commerce flowing through the country. Hostile armies frequently met upon her hillsides, and watered her fertile valleys with each other’s blood. It was therefore of the very greatest importance as a strategical point. Thus, by their unique geographical position, the inhabitants of Palestine could, by staying at home, wield a most powerful influence upon the people of Europe, Asia and Africa.