=7. That some manuscripts did escape= that destruction is evident from the words of Daniel (9:2), by which we see that he, while in Babylon, was in possession of the writings of Jeremiah and of other books “and of the Law of Moses the servant of God,” verses 11, 13, seventeen years before the close of the captivity, namely B. C. 553. But even without any definite statement as to the actual existence of the manuscripts of the Old Testament books, it is incredible that with all their devotion to the Law there should have been no copies in the possession of any one. When we remember their intense regard for their ancient history and for the songs of Zion; and when we consider the reverential learning and ability of such men as Ezra, Nehemiah, Zechariah, Haggai, Malachi and others, it is not reasonable to suppose that there should have been no copies of the sacred books extant at the time of the return. =8. Ezra was not only skilled= in the Hebrew, but also in the Chaldee, called Aramaic. He was thoroughly acquainted with the literature of the Jewish nation and deeply imbued with the spirit of his office as priest and scribe. And Ezra was not alone in this respect. =9. It was in his time=, as the Jewish writings tell us, that able and devout men among the Jews, called elders, were assembled under Ezra’s direction with the purpose of forming a body sometimes called the Great Council or Synagogue. These elders, with Ezra and probably Nehemiah, the prophets Haggai, Zechariah, and years afterward Malachi, continued to meet through many years, some of the most learned and devout taking the places of those who died, until the death of one “Simon the Just,” about B. C. 300,[120] when this council was apparently resolved into that court of the Jews called the “Sanhedrin.” Jewish tradition asserts that the entire number of the Great Synagogue was one hundred and twenty, during about as many years. =10. This body of “The Great Synagogue”= determined the number of the books. A letter to some of the Jews in Egypt after the Temple was built states that Nehemiah had already collected “a library” in the Temple. In this account it is said that Nehemiah, while founding a library, gathered together the writings concerning the kings and prophets, and the writings of David, and letters of kings about offerings.[121] But the chief object was to collect those writings which were not only ancient and were copies of the ancient history, but those which had to do with the relations of God to the people and their duties towards God. =11. From many allusions= to these times it is evident that there never was a period when the people were so willing, and even earnestly desirous, to learn and obey whatever was duty.[122] What was now wanted by the whole Jewish people was such a collection from all their literature that it should be well authenticated and trustworthy as history, and at the same time authoritative as a guide and as a rule of faith and practice.