The tenderness of the bond which united Jewish parents to their children appears even

in the multiplicity and pictorialness of the expressions by which the various stages of

child-life are designated in the Hebrew. Besides such general words as "ben" and

"bath"-"son" and "daughter" --we find no fewer than nine different terms, each

depicting a fresh stage of life. The first of these simply designates the babe as the

newly -"born"--the "jeled," or, in the feminine, "jaldah"--as in Exodus 2:3, 6, 8. But the

use of this term throws a fresh light on the meaning of some passages of Scripture. Thus

we remember that it is applied to our Lord in the prophecy of His birth (Isa 9:6): "For a

babe" ('jeled') is born unto us, a son ('ben') is given to us"; while in Isaiah 2:6 its

employment adds a new meaning to the charge: "They please themselves (or strike

hands) with the 'jalde'--the 'babes'--of strangers"--marking them, so to speak, as not

only the children of strangers, but as unholy from their very birth. Compare also the

pictorial, or else the poetical, use of the word "jeled" in such passages as Isaiah 29:23,

57:4; Jeremiah 31:20; Ecclesiastes 4:13; 1 Kings 12:8; 2 Kings 2:24; Genesis 42:22; and

others. The next child -name, in point of time, is "jonek," which means, literally, "a

suckling," being also sometimes used figuratively of plants, like our English "sucker," as

in Isaiah 53:2: "He shall grow up before Him as a sucker" --"jonek." The word "jonek"

occurs, for example, in Isaiah 11:8, and in Psalm 8:2. On the other hand, the expression in

the latter passage, rendered "babes" in our Authorised Version, marks a yet third stage

in the child's existence, and a farther advancement in the babe-life. This appears from

many passages. As the word implies, the "olel" is still "sucking"; but it is no longer

satisfied with only this nourishment, and is "asking bread," as in Lamentations 4:4: "The

tongue of the 'jonek' cleaves to the roof of his mouth for thirst: the 'olalim' ask bread." A

fourth designation represents the child as the "gamul," or "weaned one" (Psa 131:2; Isa

11:8, 28:9), from a verb which primarily means to complete, and secondarily to wean. As

we know, the period of weaning among the Hebrews was generally at the end of two

years (Chethub. 60), and was celebrated by a feast. After that the fond eye of the

Hebrew parent seems to watch the child as it is clinging to its mother--as it were,

ranging itself by her--whence the fifth designation, "taph" (Esth 3:13, "The 'taph' and

the women in one day"; Jer 40:7; Eze 9:6). The sixth period is marked by the word "elem"

(in the feminine, "almah," as in Isa 7:14, of the virgin -mother), which denotes becoming

firm and strong. As one might expect, we have next the "naari," or youth--literally, he

who shakes off, or shakes himself free. Lastly, we find the child designated as "bachur,"

or the "ripened one"; a young warrior, as in Isaiah 31:8; Jeremiah 18:21, 15:8, etc.

Assuredly, those who so keenly watched child -life as to give a pictorial designation to

each advancing stage of its existence, must have been fondly attached to their children.

There is a passage in the Mishnah (Aboth. v. 21), which quaintly maps out and, as it

were, labels the different periods of life according to their characteristics. It is worth

reproducing, if only to serve as introduction to what we shall have to say on the

upbringing of children. Rabbi Jehudah, the son of Tema, says: "At five years of age,

reading of the Bible; at ten years, learning the Mishnah; at thirteen years, bound to the

commandments; at fifteen years, the study of the Talmud; at eighteen years, marriage; at

twenty, the pursuit of trade or business (active life); at thirty years, full vigour; at forty,

maturity of reason; at fifty, of counsel; at sixty, commencement of agedness; at seventy,

grey age; at eighty, advanced old age; at ninety, bowed down; at a hundred, as if he

were dead and gone, and taken from the world." In the passage just quoted the age of

five is mentioned as that when a child is expected to commence reading the Bible --of

course, in the original Hebrew. But different opinions also prevailed. Generally speaking,

such early instruction was regarded as only safe in the case of very healthy and strong

children; while those of average constitution were not to be set to regular work till six

years old. There is both common sense and sound experience in this Talmudical saying