| The Minor Prophets |
Hosea | Joel | Amos |Obadiah | Jonah | Micah |Nahum
Habakkuk | Zephaniah |Haggai | Zechariah | Malachi
This is data concerning the twelve minor prophets of the Old Testament of theBible. The information is divided under these headings:
For the headings (except "Variations" and "Outline") the following sources arebeing used: NAB, NJB, TDB, SBD, and TBA.
For the comparisons, I have selected at random one verse from each of thebooks. Then, I have listed each of these from eight Bible versions, which are from differingreligious backgrounds.
| Versions Compared |
| AAT | An American Translation (Beck) | Lutheran |
| IV | Inspired Version | Reorganized Latter Day Saint |
| LB | Living Bible | Evangelical Protestant |
| LBP | Lamsa Bible | Christian Church of the East |
| LXX | The Septuagint | Ancient Greek-speaking Jew |
| NAB | New American Bible | Roman Catholic |
| NJPS | New JPS Version | English-speaking Jew |
| NWT | New World Translation | Jehovah's Witness |
| Other Versions Used |
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| Hosea |
Who: Son of Beeri; possibly a priest.
Meaning: Jehovah is help.
Other Forms: Osee.
Time Period: When Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah were kings of Judah; whenJeroboam, son of Joash, was king of Israel; prophetic career 784 B.C. - 725 B.C.
Theme: Mercy and forgiveness.
Chapters and Verses: 14 chapters and 197 verses.
Variations:
LXX: Chapter 6 begins 5:15b; chapter 11 begins 10:15b; chapter 14 begins 13:16.
NJPS: Chapter 2 begins 1:10; chapter 12 begins 11:12; chapter 14 begins 13:16.
Comments:
SBD: His discourse is like a garland woven of a multiplicity of flowers; images are woven uponimages, metaphor strung upon metaphor. Like a bee he flies from one flower to another, that hemay suck his honey from the most varied pieces.
TBA: Hosea's prophecies are obscure and difficult because of their brief and condensed style,their sudden transitions from one subject to another, and the indistinct nature of theirallusions.
Outline:
| 1: 2 | Hosea Marries a Prostitute |
| 2: 2 | Israel Is an Unfaithful Wife |
| 2: 14 | God Is Faithful |
| 3: 1 | The Lord Wants to Bless His People |
| 4: 1 | More Sinning |
| 5: 1 | Unfaithful People |
| 5: 8 | God Will Be a Lion |
| 5: 14 | Superficial Repentance |
| 8: 1 | A Warning Trumpet |
| 9: 1 | Israel Will Go into Exile |
| 11: 1 | God Loves Israel |
| 11: 12 | Lies, Deceit and Violence |
| 14: 1 | Repent and Return |
| Hosea10: 7 |
| AAT | Samaria and her king will be cut off and be like a piece of wood on thewater. |
| IV | As for Samaria, her king is cut off as the foam upon the water. |
| LB | As for Samaria, her king shall disappear like a chip of wood upon an ocean wave. |
| LBP | Samaria has cast away her king like a chip on the face of the water. |
| LXX | Samaria has cast off her king as a twig on the surface of the water. |
| NAB | The king of Samaria shall disappear, like foam upon the waters. |
| NJPS | Samaria's monarchy is vanishing Like foam upon water, |
| NWT | Samaria [and] her king will certainly be silenced, like a snapped-off twig on the surfaceof waters. |
| Joel |
Who: Son of Bethuel.
Meaning: To whom Jehovah is God.
Other Forms: [None listed.]
Time Period: Some disagreement about dates; about 400 B.C. when Uzziah was king.
Theme: The day of the Lord.
Chapters and Verses: 4 chapters, 73 verses.
Variations:
NJPS: Chapter 3 begins 2:28; chapter 4 begins 3:1.
Comments:
NAB: This prophecy is rich in apocalyptic imagery and strongly eschatological in tone.
SBD: The book of Joel contains a grand outline of the whole terrible scene [during the reignof Uzziah], which was to be depicted more and more in detail by subsequent prophets.
Outline:
| 1: 2 | The Plague of Locusts |
| 1: 13 | A Call for Repentance |
| 2: 1 | An Invasion Is Coming |
| 2: 12 | A Call to Repentance |
| 2: 18 | The Lord's Answer |
| 2: 28 | God's Spirit to Be Poured Out |
| 3: 1 | The Day of Judgment |
| Joel1: 15 |
| AAT | Oh what a day this is! The day of the Lord is near and it comes asdestruction from the Almighty. |
| IV | Alas for the day! for the day of the Lord is at hand, and as a destruction from theAlmighty shall it come. |
| LB | Alas, this terrible day of punishment is on the way. Destruction from the Almighty isalmost here! |
| LBP | Alas, alas for the day! for the day of the Lord is at hand, and as plunder from God shallit come. |
| LXX | Alas, alas, alas for the day! for the day of the Lord is nigh, and it will come as troubleon trouble. |
| NAB | Alas, the day! for near isthe day of the Lord, and itcomes as ruin from the Almighty. |
| NJPS | Alas for the day! For theday of the Lord is near; It willcome like havoc from Shaddai. |
| NWT | "Alas for the day; because the day of Jehovah is near, and like a despoiling from theAlmighty One it will come!" |
| Amos |
Who: Sheep farmer from Tekoah; gatherer of sycamore fruit.
Meaning: Burden-bearer.
Other Forms: [None listed.]
Time Period: When Uzziah and Jeroboam were kings; mid-eighth century B.C.
Theme: Warning of God's anger and judgment because of neglect of worship and ofindulgence in extravagant luxury.
Chapters and Verses: 9 chapters and 146 verses.
Variations: [No variations.]
Comments:
SBD: The chief peculiarity of his style consists in the number of allusions to natural objectsand agricultural occupations; as might be expected from the early life of the author.
TDB: Whence his superb mastery of classical Hebrew, his soaring imagination, his gifts as a poet and anorator? These were the inscrutable powers of genius.
Outline:
| 1: 3 | God Will Punish Nations |
| 3: 1 | Doom to the Nation |
| 3: 9 | Doom to Samaria |
| 4: 4 | You Didn't Return to Me |
| 5: 1 | A Funeral Song |
| 5: 4 | "Search for Me" |
| 5: 18 | The Lord's Day |
| 6: 1 | Woe to the Nation's Leaders |
| 7: 1 | The Vision of Locusts |
| 7: 4 | The Vision of Fire |
| 7: 7 | The Vision of the Plumb Line |
| 7: 10 | Amos and Amaziah |
| 8: 1 | The Vision of the Late Summer Fruit |
| 8: 4 | Judgment Is Coming |
| 9: 1 | The Vision of a Destruction None Will Escape |
| 9: 11 | "I Will Restore My People" |
| Amos3: 3 |
| AAT | Do two men walk together if they aren't agreed? |
| IV | Can two walk together, except they be agreed? |
| LB | For how can we walk together with your sins between us? |
| LBP | Will two men go on a journey together unless they have made an appointment? |
| LXX | Shall two walk together at all, if they do not know one another? |
| NAB | Do two walk together unless they have agreed? |
| NJPS | Can two walk together Without having met? |
| NWT | "Will two walk together unless they have met by appointment?" |
| Obadiah |
Who: Nothing known about the prophet.
Meaning: Servant of Jehovah.
Other Forms: Obdias.
Time Period: Sometime in the fifth century B.C.
Theme: Bitter cry for vengeance against Edom, and future glories for Zion.
Chapters and Verses: 1 chapter and 21 verses.
Variations: [No variations.]
Comments:
NAB: The twenty-one verses of this book contain the shortest and sternest prophecy in the OldTestament.
SBD: The book of Obadiah is a sustained denunciation of the Edomites, melting into a vision ofthe future glories of Zion when the arm of the Lord should have wrought her deliverance andhave repaid double upon her enemies.
Outline:
| 1: 1 | Edom's Doom |
| 1: 15 | The Day of the Lord |
| Obadiah1: 6 |
| AAT | Oh how Esau will be ransacked and his hidden treasures plundered! |
| IV | How are the things of Esau searched out! how are his hidden things sought up! |
| LB | Every nook and cranny will be searched and robbed, and every treasure found and taken. |
| LBP | How Esau is searched out! how are his hidden things sought out! |
| LXX | How has Esau been searched out, and how have his hidden things been detected? |
| NAB | How they search Esau, seek out his hiding places! |
| NJPS | How thoroughly rifled is Esau, How ransacked his hoards! |
| NWT | O the extent to which those of Esau have been searched out! [How] his concealed treasureshave been sought out! |
| Jonah |
Who: First Hebrew prophet sent to a heathen nation; son of Amittai; from Geth-hepher.
Meaning: Dove.
Other Forms: Jona; Jonas.
Time Period: Eighth century B.C.; difference of opinion on date of writing, to aslate as 300 B.C. by another person.
Theme: Universality of God.
Chapters and Verses: 4 chapters and 47 verses.
Variations:
LXX: Chapter 2 begins 1:17.
NJPS: Chapter 2 begins 1:17.
Comments:
NJB: A light satire, with no pretensions to being historical, it teaches the universality ofGod's love, probably to correct the exclusiveness of the post-exilic community.
TDB: Jonah is now generally accepted as an allegory, or, by some as a parable, with imagerycommon to its time.
Outline:
| 1: 3 | Jonah Runs Away |
| 1: 17 | Jonah and the Fish |
| 3: 1 | Nineveh Repents |
| 4: 1 | Jonah's Anger and God's Answer |
| Jonah2: 3 |
| AAT | You threw me into the deep water, into the middle of the sea, and thefloods surrounded me. All Your waves and billows went over me. |
| IV | For thou hadst cast me into the deep, in the midst of the seas; and the floods compassedme about; all thy billows and thy waves passed over me. |
| LB | You threw me into the ocean depths; I sank down into the floods of waters and was coveredby your wild and stormy waves. |
| LBP | For thou hadst cast me into the deep, in the midst of the sea; and the flood compassed meabout: all thy billows and thy waves have passed over me. |
| LXX | Thou didst cast me into the depths of the heart of the sea, and the floods compassed me:all thy billows and thy waves have passed upon me. (Verse 4) |
| NAB | For you cast me into the deep, into the heart of the sea, and the flood enveloped me; All your breakers and your billows passed over me. |
| NJPS | He said: In my trouble I called to the Lord, And He answered me; From the bellyof Sheol I cried out, And You heard my voice. (Verse 4) |
| NWT | When you threw me [to] the depths, into the heart of the open sea, Then a very riverencircled me, All your breakers and your waves -- over me they passed on. |
| Micah |
Who: From Mareshah; nothing else known.
Meaning: Who is like Jehovah?
Other Forms: Mica, Micaiah, Micha, Michæas, Michah.
Time Period: When Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah were kings of Judah, sometime between756 B.C. and 697 B.C.; contemporary with Hosea, Amos, and Isaiah.
Theme: Impending judgment, the glory of restored Zion, and the case against Israel,all ending with a note of hope and promise.
Chapters and Verses: 7 chapters and 105 verses.
Variations:
NJPS: Chapter 5 begins 5:2.
Comments:
SBD: His diction is vigorous and forcible, sometimes obscure from the abruptness of itstransitions, but varied and rich.
TDB: Although a short and little-known book, Micah is so full of significant content that itbecomes more interesting every time it is read.
Outline:
| 1: 5 | Samaria to Be Destroyed |
| 1: 10 | Disaster for Jerusalem and Eleven Towns of Judah |
| 2: 1 | Disaster Coming |
| 2: 6 | The Prophet Rebuked |
| 2: 12 | Restoration Promised |
| 3: 1 | The Rulers Rebuked |
| 3: 5 | The Prophets Rebuked |
| 3: 9 | Her Leaders Bring Ruin to Zion |
| 4: 1 | The Lord to Rule from Zion |
| 4: 6 | Exiles to Be Gathered In |
| 4: 10 | The Nations to Be Crushed |
| 5: 1 | Messiah Will Come from Bethlehem to Rule |
| 5: 5b | Deliverance from Assyria |
| 5: 7 | The Remnant Among the Nations |
| 6: 1 | The Lord Brings Israel to Trial |
| 6: 3 | The Lord |
| 6: 6 | His People |
| 6: 9 | The Dishonest Rich Rebuked |
| 7: 1 | Micah |
| 7: 8 | Zion's Future |
| Micah7: 11 |
| AAT | That will be a day to build your walls, a day when your border will beextended, |
| IV | In the day that thy walls are to be built, in that day shall the decree be far removed. |
| LB | Your cities, people of God, will be rebuilt, much larger and more prosperous than before. |
| LBP | It is a day to build your walls; it is a day to be lifted up. |
| LXX | It is the day of making of brick; that day shall be thine utter destruction, and that dayshall utterly abolish thine ordinances. |
| NAB | It is the day for building your walls; on that day the boundary shall betaken away. |
| NJPS | A day for mending your walls -- That is a far-off day. |
| NWT | The day for building your stone walls, at that day [the] decree will be far away. |
| Nahum |
Who: From Elkosh; nothing else known.
Meaning: Comforter.
Other Forms: Naum.
Time Period: Possibly when Hezekiah was king (726 B.C. - 698 B.C.); before fall ofNineveh in 625 B.C.
Theme: The burden of Nineveh -- its coming destruction.
Chapters and Verses: 3 chapters and 47 verses.
Variations:
NJPS: Chapter 2 begins 1:15.
Comments:
TBA: The prophecy of Nahum is a single poem of great eloquence, sublimity, and ardor.
TDB: His vivid imagery has won for him enthusiastic praise, placing him among the most giftedpoets of ancient times.
Outline:
| 1: 2 | The Lord's Anger |
| 1: 15 | Comfort for Judah |
| 2: 3 | The Destruction of Nineveh |
| 3: 1 | Woe to Nineveh |
| Nahum1: 13 |
| AAT | For now I'll break the rod he used on you and tear his bonds off you. |
| IV | For now will I break his yoke from off thee, and will burst thy bonds in sunder. |
| LB | Now I will break your chains and release you from the yoke of slavery to this Assyrianking. |
| LBP | For now I will break his yoke from off you, and will burst your bonds asunder. |
| LXX | And now will I break his rod from off thee, and will burst thy bonds. |
| NAB | Now will I break his yoke from off you, and burst asunder your bonds. |
| NJPS | And now I will break off his yoke bar from you And burst your cords apart. |
| NWT | And now I shall break his carrying bar from upon you, and the bands upon you I shall tearin two. |
| Habakkuk |
Who: No certain information.
Meaning: Love's embrace.
Other Forms: Ambacum.
Time Period: When Jehoiakim and Josiah were kings; just before Jerusalem was capturedby Nebuchadnezzar in 597 B.C.; contemporary with Nahum and Zephaniah.
Theme: A man questions the ways of God, and God replies.
Chapters and Verses: 3 chapters and 56 verses.
Variations: [No variations.]
Comments:
NJB: This carefully composed book contains a dialogue between the prophet and his God, curses onthe oppressor, and a liturgical psalm celebrating God's victory.
TDB: Habakkuk's meditations seem to have led him to a conclusion which, perhaps unintentionally, hasmade his tiny contribution one of the most distinctive in the history of religious thought.
Outline:
| 1: 2 | Habakkuk |
| 1: 5 | The Lord |
| 1: 12 | Habakkuk |
| 2: 2 | The Lord |
| 2: 5 | Troubles for the Oppressor |
| 3: 1 | Habakkuk's Prayer |
| Habakkuk3: 12 |
| AAT | In Your wrath You marched through the earth; in Your anger You thresh thenations. |
| IV | Thou didst march through the land in indignation, thou didst thresh the heathen in anger. |
| LB | You marched across the land in awesome anger, and trampled down the nations in your wrath. |
| LBP | Thou didst tread upon the earth in thy indignation, thou didst thresh the nations in thineanger. |
| LXX | Thou wilt bring low the land with threatening, and in wrath thou wilt break down thenations. |
| NAB | In wrath you bestride the earth, in fury you trample the nations. |
| NJPS | You tread the earth in rage, You trample nations in fury. |
| NWT | With denunciation you went marching [through] the earth. In anger you went threshing[the] nations. |
| Zephaniah |
Who: Son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezekiah.
Meaning: Jehovah has treasured.
Other Forms: Sophonias.
Time Period: When Josiah, son of Amon, was king (40 B.C. - 609 B.C.); contemporarywith Jeremiah.
Theme: The day of the Lord, and a promise.
Chapters and Verses: 3 chapters and 53 verses.
Variations: [No variations.]
Comments:
SBD: The chief characteristics of the book are the unity and harmony of the composition, thegrace, energy, and dignity of style, and the rapid and effective alternations of threats andpromises.
TDB: In a Latin rendering, Zephaniah's poem became one of the most famous hymns of the MiddleAges, the Dies Irae, Dies Illa.
Outline:
| 1: 2 | The Whole World to Be Judged |
| 1: 4 | Judah to Be Judged |
| 1: 14 | The Day of the Lord Is Coming |
| 2: 1 | Look for the Lord! |
| 2: 4 | Against the Philistines |
| 2: 8 | Against Moab and Ammon |
| 2: 12 | Against Ethiopia |
| 2: 13 | Against Assyria |
| 3: 1 | Jerusalem's Doom |
| 3: 6 | Respect Me |
| 3: 10 | The Humble Remnant |
| 3: 14 | Zion Will Be Happy |
| 3: 18 | The Exiles Will Return |
| Zephaniah3: 10 |
| AAT | From the other side of the rivers of Ethiopia the scattered people who prayto Me will bring Me a present. |
| IV | From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia my suppliants, even the daughter of my dispersed, shallbring mine offering. |
| LB | Those who live far beyond the rivers of Ethiopia will come with their offerings, asking meto be their God again. |
| LBP | From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia they shall bring me sacrifices. |
| LXX | From the boundaries of the rivers of Ethiopia will I receive my dispersed ones; they shalloffer sacrifices to me. |
| NAB | From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia and as far as the recesses of theNorth, they shall bring me offerings. |
| NJPS | From beyond the rivers of Cush, My suppliants Shall bring offerings to Me in Fair Puzai. |
| NWT | "From the region of the rivers of Ethiopia the ones entreating me, [namely,] the daughter ofmy scattered ones, will bring a gift to me." |
| Haggai |
Who: Post-exilic layman; reported later to have been a member of the Great Synagogue.
Meaning: Festive.
Other Forms: Aggæus.
Time Period: Sixth month of the second year of King Darius; a contemporary withZechariah.
Theme: An appeal to the self-respect of the people, and a strengthening of theirfaith in God.
Chapters and Verses: 2 chapters and 37 verses.
Variations:
LXX: Chapter 2 begins 1:15.
Comments:
SBD: The brevity of the prophecies is so great, and the poverty of expression whichcharacterizes them so striking, as to give rise to a conjecture, not without reason, that intheir present form, they are but the outline or summary of the original discourses.
TDB: His address, a post-exilic epic of an heroic people, inspired such resolute leadershipthat the Temple construction began at once.
Outline:
| 1: 1 | Rebuild the Temple |
| 2: 1 | The Lord's Glory Will Fill the Temple |
| 2: 10 | A Curse Turned to Blessing |
| Haggai1: 8 |
| AAT | "Go up into the mountains, get wood, and build the temple. I will be delightedwith it and honored," says the Lord. |
| IV | Go up to the mountain, and bring wood, and build the house; and I will take pleasure in it,and I will be glorified, saith the Lord. |
| LB | "Then go up into the mountains and bring down timber, and rebuild my Temple, and I willbe pleased with it and appear there in my glory," says the Lord. |
| LBP | Go up to the mountain, and bring timber and build this house; and I will take pleasure init and I will be glorified in it, says the Lord. |
| LXX | Go up to the mountain, and cut timber; build the house, and I will take pleasure in it,and be glorified, saith the Lord. |
| NAB | Go up into the hill country; bring timber, and build the house That I may take pleasure in it and receive my glory, says the Lord. |
| NJPS | Go up to the hills and get timber, and rebuild the House; then I will look on it with favorand I will be glorified -- said the Lord. |
| NWT | "Go up to the mountain, and you must bring in lumber. And build the house, that I maytake pleasure in it and I may be glorified," Jehovah has said. |
| Zechariah |
Who: Son of Berechiah, son of Iddo; a priest; reported later to have been a memberof Great Synagogue.
Meaning: Jehovah my righteousness.
Other Forms: Zachariah, Zacharias, Zacher.
Time Period: Eighth month of the second year of King Darius; contemporary with Haggai.
Theme: The promotion of the rebuilding of the temple, encouragement of returnedexiles, and a messianic vision.
Chapters and Verses: 14 chapters and 211 verses.
Variations:
NJPS: Chapter 2 begins 1:18.
Comments:
TBA: He was a visionary prophet to whom was given vivid insight into God's plans for thefuture.
TDB: This book includes two contrasting types of expression, one of straightforward exhortationlike that of previous prophets, and the other of fantastic and mysterious visions, known asapocalyptic writing.
Outline:
| 1: 7 | Vision 1: Myrtles in the Valley |
| 1: 18 | Vision 2: 4 Horns and 4 Smiths |
| 2: 1 | Vision 3: Jerusalem Without Walls |
| 3: 1 | Vision 4: The Highpriest Is Cleansed |
| 4: 1 | Vision 5: Oil for the Lamps |
| 5: 1 | Vision 6: The Flying Curse |
| 5: 5 | Vision 7: Putting Away Sin |
| 6: 1 | Vision 8: God's Chariots |
| 6: 9 | Priest and King |
| 7: 1 | Better Than Fasting |
| 8: 1 | 10 Promises |
| 9: 1 | A Revelation from the Lord |
| 9: 9 | The Messiah Is Coming |
| 10: 1 | "I Will Gather My People" |
| 11: 4 | The Good Shepherd |
| 11: 15 | The Worthless Shepherd |
| 12: 1 | Jerusalem's Victory |
| 12: 10 | The Spirit Makes People Weep |
| 13: 1 | A Fountain Opened |
| 14: 1 | The Day of the Lord |
| Zechariah14: 3 |
| AAT | Then the Lord will go out to fight against those nations as He used to do whenthere was a battle. |
| IV | Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the dayof battle. |
| LB | Then the Lord will go out fully armed for war, to fight against those nations. |
| LBP | Then the Lord shall go forth and fight against those nations as when he fought in the dayof battle. |
| LXX | And the Lord shall go forth, and fight with those Gentiles as when he fought in the days ofwar. |
| NAB | Then the Lord shall go forth and fight against those nations, fighting as on a day ofbattle. |
| NJPS | Then the Lord will come forth and make war on those nations as He is wont to make waron a day of battle. |
| NWT | "And Jehovah will certainly go forth and war against those nations as in the day of hiswarring, in the day of fight." |
| Malachi |
Who: Pseudonym; author of a series of prophetic utterances; nothing else known.
Meaning: My messenger.
Other Forms: Malachias.
Time Period: Just before the reorganization of the Jewish community; contemporarywith Nehemiah.
Theme: Reflection of the condition of an impoverished nation, and a demand for afaithful ministry dedicated to Israel's holy mission.
Chapters and Verses: 4 chapters and 55 verses.
Variations:
NJPS: Chapter 3 includes 3:1 - 4:15.
Comments:
NJB: The book consists of six short passages, alternately on the Day of Yahweh and on purityof observance.
TDB: The most attractive note to the book, to many readers, is in the lines of chapter 2,verse 10.
Outline:
| 1: 2 | The Lord's Love Despised |
| 2: 1 | A Warning to the Priests |
| 2: 10 | A Warning to the People |
| 3: 1 | The Day of the Lord's Coming |
| 3: 6 | Return to Me |
| Malachi3: 2 |
| AAT | But when He comes, who can bear it? When He shows Himself, who can stand it?He is like a refiner's fire, like cleaners' soap. |
| IV | But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for heis like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap; |
| LB | "But who can live when he appears? Who can endure his coming? For he is like a blazingfire refining precious metal and he can bleach the dirtiest garments!" |
| LBP | But who can endure the day of his coming? And who can stand when he appears? For he islike a refiner's fire and like fullers' soap; |
| LXX | And who will abide the day of his coming? or who will withstand at his appearing? for heis coming in as the fire of a furnace and as the herb of fullers. |
| NAB | But who can endure the day of his coming? And who can stand when he appears? For heis like the refiner's fire, or like the fuller's lye. |
| NJPS | But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can hold out when he appears? For heis like a smelter's fire and like fuller's lye. |
| NWT | "But who will be putting up with the day of his coming, and who will be the one standingwhen he appears? For he will be like the fire of a refiner and like the lye of laundrymen." |