Daughters of Israel, weep over Saul, Who clothed you daintily in fine linen, Who put golden ornaments on your garments, [and say:] "How have the mighty fallen in the midst of battle!" [Sidenote: _David's love for Jonathan_] Jonathan, in thy death hast thou wounded me! I am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan! Thou wert surpassingly dear to me, Thy love to me was far more than the love of woman! How have the mighty fallen, And the weapons of war perished! [Sidenote: _The blessing of Jacob_] The so-called _Blessing of Jacob_ (Gen. xlix, 2-27) is a poetical delineation of the strength and weakness of the different tribes of Israel with references to specific events in their history. These historical allusions suggest that it probably comes from the reigns of David and Solomon, when the tribes were for the first time all united under a common rule and had passed through certain of the experiences alluded to in the poem. [Sidenote: _Israel's heritage of oral traditions_] The Israelitish race was supremely rich in possessing not only many ancient songs, but also a large body of oral traditions which had long been handed down from father to son or else treasured by the story-tellers and by the priests of the ancient sanctuaries. Many of these traditions were inherited from their Semitic ancestors, and, in the light of recently discovered Babylonian literature, can be traced back far beyond the days of Abraham and Moses. Some were originally the possessions of certain nomadic tribes; others recorded the early experiences of their ancestors or told of the achievements of early heroes. In the process of continuous retelling, all unnecessary details had been eliminated and the really dramatic and essential elements emphasized, until they attained their present simple, graphic form, which fascinates young and old alike. [Sidenote: _Value of these oral traditions_] The superlative value of these varied traditions is apparent. They were the links which bound later generations to their prehistoric past. Incidentally, in the characteristic language of Semitic tradition, they preserved the memory of many important events in their early tribal history. They are also the illuminating record of the primitive beliefs, customs, and aspirations of their Semitic ancestors. Subject as they inevitably were to the idealizing tendency, they became in time the concrete embodiment of the noblest ideals of later generations. Thus they presented before the kindled imagination of each succeeding age, in the character and achievements of their traditional ancestors, those ideals of courage, perseverance, and piety which contributed much toward making the Israelites the chosen people that they were. [Sidenote: _Influences that led to the writing of history_]