Intensely patriotic as the prophets were, the chief object that engaged their attention was the depression of Israel’s fortunes. However weak the allegiance of the Israelites in general to him had been, still they were Jahveh’s people, his representatives on earth.[25] In spite of much back-sliding, he had given them prosperity, and under the first kings had made them a powerful nation. In their own time, on the other hand, the early prophets saw Israel divided and weak, and threatened with utter destruction; and the later prophets saw this destruction fall on one kingdom after the other, until the national existence ceased. Believing that all events were under the control of Jahveh, and that he had made the covenant with Israel mentioned in the last chapter, they could accept only one explanation of their country’s calamities. They could not imagine Jahveh false to his promise, and so the alternatives would be presented to them as the second Isaiah puts them before his countrymen: “Behold, Jahveh’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: but your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.”[26] This is the burden of all the preaching of the prophets. They were ever saying to their countrymen, “You have broken your covenant; you have deserted Jahveh; and now he has deserted you.”[27] The almost invariable image under which they describe Israel is that of an adulterous woman who has forsaken her husband. By their violation of the covenant, the Israelites had provoked Jahveh’s wrath, and all their misfortunes were sent as a punishment by him.[28] Compelled professionally thus to believe that Israel had been false to Jahveh, the prophets were not good judges of the actual extent of this falsehood. They denounced the wickedness of the people, not so much because they saw it as because they felt it must be there as the explanation of Jahveh’s harshness. Hence it is very likely that their reports of the evil doings of their countrymen are exaggerated. If we did not know from internal probability that the religion of Jahveh was then in danger, we might suspect that the prophets were fighting imaginary foes. Knowing, however, that they must have had great forces opposed to them, we can allow for the exaggeration, and yet admit the general truth of their statements.