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ESSAYS AND DISSERTATIONS 
 
 IN 
 
 BIBLICAL LITERATURE 
 
 BY A SOCIETY OF CLERGYMEN, 
 
 CONTAINING CUIEFI.Y TRANSLATIONS OF THJC 
 WORKS OF GERMAN CRITICS. 
 
 NEW-YOKK. 
 
 G. & C. & H. CARVILL 
 
 51 
 
 1829. 
 
\ 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 *. 
 
 
 Southern District of NeAV-York, ss. 
 iJE IT REMEMBERED, That oh the 18th day of September, A. D. 182£^, 
 in the fifty-fourth year of the Independence of the United States of America, 
 G. & C. & H. Carvill, of the said District, have deposited in this office the title 
 of a Book, the right whereof they claim as Proprietors, in the words follow- 
 ing, to wit : 
 
 " Essays and Dissertations in Biblical Literatui-e. By a Society of Cler- 
 gymen. Vol. I. Containing chiefly Translations of the Works of 
 German Critics." * 
 
 In conformity to the Act of Congress of the United States, entitled " An 
 Act for the encouragement of Learning, by> securing the copies of Maps, 
 Charts, and Books, to the Authors and Proprietors of such copies, during the 
 time therein mentioned." And also to an Act, entitled " An Act, supple- 
 mentary to an Act, entitled, An Act for the encouragement of Learning, by 
 securing the copies of Maps, Charts, and Books, to the Authors and Proprie- 
 tors of such copies during the times therein mentioned, and extending the 
 benefits thereof to the arts of Designing, Engraving, and Etching historical 
 and other Prints." 
 
 FRED. J. BETTS, 
 CUrk of the Southern District of New-York. 
 
 W. K. PEANf PRINTHR. 
 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 In publishing this volume, the authors beg leave to accompany 
 it with a few introductory remarks. 
 
 The object of the work is to advance the cause of Biblical 
 Literature, principally by placing within the reach of students 
 some treatises, which are not now readily accessible. At the 
 present time, this department of theological science is receiving a 
 thorough investigation. Scholars, celebrated for the accuracy 
 and the extent of their erudition, are devoting their talents to the 
 illustration of the Bible, by cultivating a fundamental acquaintance 
 with its languages, and with the whole circle of knowledge con- 
 nected with it, and by applying to the subject all the light, afford- 
 ed by historical research and philosophical investigation. In our 
 own country, there is an increasing interest in Sacred Literature ; 
 and the Clergy of all denominations are more and more impressed 
 with the importance of searching the Scriptures, in order to as- 
 certain and defend the fundamental truths of revelation. Our 
 Seminaries of theology are directing the attention of their stu- 
 dents, to the careful study of the Bible in its Original Languages, 
 and supplying them with aids, to prosecute this study with suc- 
 cess. In England, several of our critical works have been re- 
 printed ; a few productions of continental scholars have been 
 translated ; and some original publications have been added to 
 ^he sacred treasury. 
 
IV rREPACE. 
 
 But of all those who apply their learning to the explanation ot' 
 the Scriptures, not only the largest number, but we must say, the 
 clearest in arrangement, and the most satisfactory in collecting 
 knowledge, are to be found among the German writers. We are 
 well aware, that there is a prejudice in some minds, against Ger- 
 man divinity and philology in general, arising from that looseness 
 of interpretation, which has characterized the modern neological 
 school. We would by no means vindicate their views ; but it is 
 unreasonable to condemn the whole, for the errors of a part only, 
 even if that part should be considerable. And it is possible, that 
 the works of many, even of that part, may contain much, that is 
 of great interest and value. Is it wise, then, to forego the ad* 
 vantage, to be derived from the study of these authors, because 
 some of their sentiments are loose and untenable ? It is the part 
 of prudence, to use them with the proper caution ; for we may 
 guard against their errors, and avail ourselves of the ample fund 
 of learning, which they are ready to pour out before us. 
 
 With these views, we offer the following Essays to the student 
 of Sacred Literature, and to the intelligent Christian, who is in- 
 terested in whatever extends a knowledge of the Bible. With 
 one exception, they are selected from the works of able German 
 .scholars of the last half century. 
 
 The biographical sketch of such a man as Bochart will be 
 read, we think, with interest, by all who appreciate his vast 
 literary labors, and regard his productions as a storehouse of 
 learning almost inexhaustible. Mich ae lis deserves an honorabbe 
 place, m the estimation of all who have a due regard to criticism : 
 and his Treatise on the Use of the Syriac Language, to which, 
 as a favourite subject, he paid more than ordinary attention, may 
 excite the student to increase his knowledge of Hebrew, by an 
 acquaintance with this easy cognate dialect. Eichhorn and 
 Gesenius, the former of whom has not been dead two years, and 
 the latter is still living, are too celebrated, to require a particular 
 notice. The Treatise on the Canon of the Old Testament is 
 jrenerally allowed to be among the best, if not the very best, ever 
 
Written ; and the History of the Interpretation of Isaiah is evi* 
 dently the work of a writer, well acquainted with interpreta^ 
 tion, and able to form a judjjjment for himself, in all cases of dif- 
 ficulty. These two learned men, it is well known, exhibit inade- 
 quate views of revelation, although it is but seldom, hat, in the 
 treatises contained in this volume, any very objectionable features 
 are to be traced. Where this is the case, however, the translators 
 have either added notes, or wholly omitted the objectionable pas- 
 sages. The reader is informed of such omissions, and of the ex- 
 tent of them ; but they are, in general, only a few lines. With 
 the exception of such, the whole of the author's matter is, in every 
 case, given in the translation. 
 
 Storr and Tittmann are both decidedly orthodox. The 
 former is already favourably known among us, by his Treatise on 
 the Historic Sense, which was translated and published by Pro- 
 fessor GiBBs, of the Theological Seminary of Yale College, and 
 by his Biblical Theology, for which we are indebted to Professor 
 SoHMTTCKER, of the German Lutheran Theological Seminary at 
 Gettysburg. The author took a firm stand against the accommo- 
 dating system, as maintained by Skmler and his followers ; and 
 as a learned defender of the leading doctrines of the Gospel, he 
 arrested the progress of naturalism, by the salutary influence of 
 his able writings. His treatises unite the results of a vigorous 
 discrimination, and of an enlarged view of scripture truth. He 
 seems to bring together all that the Scriptures contain, on the 
 subjects which he is investigating ; so that the parallel or colla- 
 teral texts are either referred to, or brought to bear upon them. 
 In this respect, he is superior to any author with whose works 
 we are acquainted. ' Ttttmann is eminent, in the same honorable 
 rank with Storr. Orthodox in his views of divine truth, careful 
 in his investigations, and judicious in his conclusions, by his 
 Treatise on Gnosticism he has furnished us with valuable infor- 
 mation and sound criticism. 
 
 Great care has been taken, to make the translations accurate, 
 and we trust, that we have not often failed in this respect^ but. 
 
Vi PREFACE. 
 
 that we have presented the meaning of our authors, in clear and 
 intelhgible En^ish. 
 
 We hope that our efforts, to advance the cause of Biblical 
 Literature, will meet with the approbation of the intelligent ; and 
 especially, of our brethren of the Clergy, who are aware of the 
 importance of an enlightened study of the Bible. This must be 
 regarded the foundation of all Christian Theology. If our expec- 
 tation should not be disappointed, we intend, by the blessing of 
 God, to proceed in our undertaking, and to publish a volume from 
 time to time, as our other studies and avocations may allow us to 
 prepare appropriate materials. 
 
 New-York, September 25th; 1829. 
 
CONTEXTS. 
 
 History of Introductions to the Scriptures, by William Gsse- Page. 
 Nius ; translated from the German, by Samuel H. Turner, 
 D. D., Prof, of Bibl. Learn, and Interp. of Script, in the 
 General Theological Sem. of the Prot. Episc. Church in the 
 UnitedStates 1—15. 
 
 Treatise on the Authenticity and Canonical Authority of the 
 Scriptures of the Old Testament, by John Godfrey Eich- 
 HORN ; translated from the German, by John Frederick 
 ScHROEDER, A. M., An Assistant Minister of Trinity Church 
 in the City of New-York 17—104. 
 
 Essay.on the Life and Writings of Samuel Bochart, by William 
 R. Whittingham, A. M., Chaplain and Superintendent of 
 the New- York Protestannt Episcopal Public School 105— 16S. 
 
 Dissertation on the meaning of " The Kingdom of Heaven " in 
 the New Testament, by Gottlob Christian Storr ; trans- 
 lated from the Latin, by Manton Eastburn, M. A., Rector 
 of the Church of the Ascension, New York 169—212. 
 
 Dissertation on the Parables of Christ, by Gottlob Christian 
 Storr ; translated from the Latin, by William R. Whitting- 
 ham, A. M., Chaplain and Superintendent of the New-York 
 Protestant Episcopal Public School 213—273- 
 
 No Traces of the Gnostics are to be found in the New Testa- 
 ment: a Dissertation by C. C. Tittmann; translated from 
 the Latin, by Manton Eastburn, M. A., Rector of the 
 Church of the Ascension, New- York. ,,.,...,.,,, 275 — 399. 
 
VIU CONTENTS. 
 
 History of the Interpretation ot the Prophet Isaiah, by William Page. 
 Geseitius ; translated from the German, by Samuel H. Tur- 
 ner, D. D., Professor of Bib. Learn, andlaterp. of Script, in 
 the General Theological Sem. of the Prot. Episc. Church in 
 the United States .^ 401—479. 
 
 Treatise on the Use of the Syriac Language, by John David 
 MicHABus; translated from the German, by John Frede- 
 rick Schroeder, a. M., An Assistant Minister of Trinity 
 Church, in the City of New-York 481—62!^. 
 
 I?^DEXES. 
 
 I. Texts of Scripture illustrated -.... 537. 
 
 IL Words and phrases explained 540. 
 
 III. Authors and Books quoted 543. 
 
 IV. General Index of Matters. . . , „ 550. 
 
HISTORY 
 
 OF 
 
 IXTRODUCTIOXS TO THE SCRIPTURES. 
 
 BY W. GESENIUS. 
 
 Translated from the German. 
 By SAMUEL H. TURNER, D.D. 
 
 PROF. OF BIBL. LEARN. AND INTERP. OF SCRIPT. IN THE OENEBAL THEOL. 
 8BM. OF TUK PROT. EPISC. CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES. 
 
HISTORY 
 
 OF 
 
 INTRODUCTIOBTS TO THE SCRIPTURES, 
 
 Translated from the " Biblische Einleitung, oder Einleitung 
 in die Bibel" of Gesenius, published in the Allgtmtine 
 Enclyclopddie der Wissenschaftcn ttnd Kibiste von J. S. 
 Ersch imd J, G. Gruber. 
 
 Under the name of Introduction to the Bible is to be un- 
 derstood a species of learning, which has been fundamentally 
 cultivated within a century, and in its present form principally 
 by the Protestant divines of Germany ; and which is devoted 
 to a critical examination and discussion of the historical rela- 
 tions of the individual books, as well as of the whole collec- 
 tion ; and therefore the epithets of historical and critical are 
 often applied to it. Consequently it gives on the particular 
 books discussions respecting their authors and times of com- 
 position, genuineness and integrity, contents, spirit and plan ; 
 and £Llso, as the subject requires it, respecting the original 
 language, its earliest history, and so forth ; and further, in 
 general respecting the origin of the Bible-collection or Canon, 
 its original language and versions, the history of the original 
 text, and other matters of this kind. 
 
 It divides itself therefore into two parts, general and parti- 
 cular. It has been correctly obsei-ved, that this branch of 
 learning still requires to be more accurately defined and limit- 
 
4 HrSTORY Of IN'THODUCTIONS. 
 
 cd ; that in particular it often encroaches on tlie province of 
 criticism and hermeneutics : and certainly the latest authors 
 are still too discursive, especially in taking up their materials 
 for the general introduction ; and in fact, the older writers, 
 (and the modern among the English,) have even brought 
 together those branches of learning which are subsidiary to 
 interpretation, as sacred history, antiquities, geography, and 
 so forth. It will not therefore be inconsistent with my present 
 purpose, to attempt at least to mark out this limitation ; and, 
 in doing so, I shall principally keep in view the general in. 
 troduction, because the boundaries of the particular are more 
 accurately settled. 
 
 The leading features are the same, both with respect to 
 the Old and New Testaments, and it may even in many 
 particular points be of use to treat the general part of both in 
 connexion. Of this I would suggest the following fourfold 
 division : 
 
 1. History of the cultivation and literature of the Hebrew 
 people in general, under which section might be digested 
 the accounts of their language, (comprehending the various 
 fundamental tongues, Hebrew, Chaldee, Hellenistic, with the 
 history and character of each,) and also of their writing, (comr 
 prising the earliest formations of the Hebrew^ and Greek writ- 
 ing.) 
 
 2. History of the canon, or of the collection, arrangement, 
 and ecclesiastical authority of the books. 
 
 3. History of the original text, the various fates and changes 
 to which it has been subjected, and of the means of improving 
 it, (Criticism.) Here the authors of introductory works ap- 
 pear to have been principally in doubt respecting the extent 
 of the points which they ought to discuss. The following 
 principle will probably be found to mark a correct and proper 
 division. The criticism of the Old and New Testaments di- 
 vides itself into two parts, historical and didactic. The first of 
 these pursues the history of the text, discovers its changes, 
 shows the. critical labours which have been expended on it, 
 and the documents in which the text has been handed down ; 
 namely, immediate, (as manuscripts.) and mediate, (as ancient 
 
HISTORY OF INTRODUCTIONS. ^^^^^/l?'^^ 
 
 versions.) The second communicates the i-ules according to 
 which the critic must avail himself of these helps, in order to 
 recover the original text with as much probability as possible. 
 The historical part of this must now necessarily be compre- 
 hended under the learning which is comprised in an introduc- 
 tion ; but the didactic, which contains merely an application of 
 the general rules of criticism to the materials here sketched out, 
 must, by a strict limitation, be properly excluded, (as in Eich- 
 hom,) and preserved for criticism, as it is a science of a parti- 
 cular kind, or at least be handled with great brevity, (as in 
 De Wette.) This is also the case, 
 
 4. In the hermen euiical part of the general introduction, which 
 is required to exhibit the aids for understanding the Bible, and 
 directions for the use of them ; and which many authors of in- 
 troductory works, as Eichhorn and Bertholdt, either entirely or 
 in part omit. Jalm, however, has given them with considerable 
 extent, including also the didactic part, at least as far as regards 
 the investigation of language. To preserve consistency, the 
 last must be reserved for hermeneutics, in such a way that the 
 author should hmit himself to the historical part, which belongs 
 to it no less than the historical part does to criticism. The 
 helps for understanding it relate to language and to things ; and 
 of course hermeneutics ckvides itself into an investigation of 
 these two. For investigating the language, which is here the 
 principal point, we have as sources of information ; (a) the in- 
 terpretations of the books of Scripture which have been handed 
 down from antiquity ; that is, ancient versions, and expositions 
 of the Old Testament by Rabbins, and of the New by the fa- 
 thers, which it is necessary to adduce and to judge of ; (/3) our 
 knowledge, arising from other sources, of the Eastern lan- 
 guages and of the Greek, as existing in profane authors, which 
 must be applied to the thorough examination, correction, and 
 establishment of those transmitted interpretations. The in- 
 vestigation of things is exhibited in that branch of knowledge 
 which is called exegetical helps. This divides itself into his- 
 torical, (which includes biblical geography, together with na- 
 tural philosophy, biblical history with chronology, mythology, 
 
B HISTORY OP INTRODUCTIONS. 
 
 and so forth,) and dogmatic, (that is, biblical doctrine anfi 
 morals.) 
 
 It is impossible in an introduction to treat these subjects 
 fully; nothing more can be given than a general idea of 
 them. In this arrangement, however, doubts may arise 
 with respect to the ancient versions, since they must be intro- 
 duced as subsidiary to criticism as well as to hermeneutics. 
 Hence it is probably the most advisable course, to give the 
 general information respecting them in the critical part, and 
 their character, as far as regards interpretation, in that which 
 is appropriated to hermeneutics. Moreover, it must be re- 
 marked, that the very last consideration is the identical point 
 which is much neglected in recent works of this kind ; and this 
 is the more to be regretted, as the hermeneutical value of the 
 versions is on the whole much greater than the critical, since 
 their greater or less variations from the text do but very rare- 
 ly indeed contain improvements of it, but on the contrary are 
 for the most part founded on errors in the translations. In 
 the particular introduction to the individual books, only this 
 difference is to be observed in the plan, that some writers in 
 this department, as Jahn, give an explanatory view of the con- 
 tents of the books, which is omitted by most of the others. 
 But, at least in academical lectures, and especially on the Old 
 Testament, they are most undoubtedly necessary. 
 
 Besides introductions of a historical and critical character, 
 and vt^hich are properly speaking literary, the idea of a practi- 
 cal introduction has been suggested and carried into effect ; 
 that is to say, an introduction, which, setting aside discussions 
 of a critical kind, or taking for granted the results of them, con- 
 fines its attention to the books of Scripture in a practical point 
 of view, and gives directions for the use of them in reference 
 to the religious instruction of youth, and of people in general.^ 
 Such works are useful, when the authors, resting on the firm 
 basis of solid learning, make the religious and moral force in 
 
 * See Berger's prakt. Einleitung in das A. T., vom 3 Theile an 
 fortgesetzt von Augusti, 4 Theile, Leipzig, 1799 — 1804. 
 
HiSTORY OP INTRODUCTIONS. > 
 
 the particular books, sections, and characters of the Bible 
 stand out prominent ; * they will then often agree in contents^ 
 with the view of religion and morals given in the Bible, and 
 only vary from it in the free arrangement in which it is present- 
 ed. 
 
 The kind of learning which 1 have been describing is, as 
 has been remarked, the growth of the last century, and is in- 
 debted principally for its origin to the discussions of German 
 Protestants on the various subjects connected with the Bible ; 
 and the name, as now usually applied, was first employed by 
 J. G. Carpzov. a work in some respects similar to an in- 
 troduction to the Bible was first given to the world by 
 Aug us TIN in his Doctrina Christiana^ t which, however, is 
 rather hermeneutical advice in reading the Scriptures. This 
 was followed in the sixth century by a production of Cassio- 
 DORUS, t who begins his directions for the study of theological 
 literature with an account of the books of Scripture and then- 
 interpreters. In modern times Sixtus Sinensis first collect- 
 ed together the materials belonging to this subject in his 
 Bibliotheca Sandal § which remained an universally esteem- 
 ed manual, until it was supplanted, at least among Protestants, 
 by W ALT her' s Officina Biblica^ a pretty meagre production.|| 
 Yet even this work found its imitators and plagiarists, and 
 
 * See Nibmeyer's Characteristik der Bibel, 5 Theile, Halle,. 1775— 
 1782. 
 
 t AuGusTiNus de Doctrina Christiana, libri iv, ed. J. G. Chb. Tee- 
 «ui5, Lipz. 1769, 8vo. 
 
 i Marci Aurelu Cassiodori, Senatoris, de institutione divinanim 
 scrlpturarum liber, ed. Damelius, Antwerp, 1566, and in Cassiodori 
 0pp. ed. Caret 1679, Svol. fol. 
 
 $ Bibliotheca Sancta a F. (fratre) Sixto Senensi et prsecipuis catho- 
 licae ecclesiae auctoribus collecta et in octo libros digesta, Venetiis, 1666, 
 fol. The best edition is that of John Hav, 1591, 4to. 
 
 II D. MiCHAKLis Waltkri Officina Biblica, noviter adaperla, in qua 
 perspicue videre licet, quae scitu cogniluque maxime sunt necessaria de 
 S. Scriptura in genere et in specie, de libris ejus canonicis, apocryphis, 
 deperditis etspuriis, cet. Lips. 1630, 4to. 3nd ed. after the author's death, 
 1668, last 1703; fol., but full of errors. 
 
b HISTORY OF INTRODUCTIONS. 
 
 particularly in Heidegger. * All these books were, at mosty 
 zealous collections of what Josephus, the Rabbins, the fathers, 
 and later Christian doctrinal writers, had related one after 
 another, or had also conjectured and imagined respecting the 
 origin, authority, and history of the books of Scripture. 
 
 The first important steps for a thorough, learned, and critical 
 treatment, particularly of what is called the general introduc- 
 tion, were made, in the path opened by J. H. Hottinger, t a 
 man well versed in Oriental learning, and Leusden, | a pupil 
 and true follower of Buxtorf, during the latter half of the 17th 
 century, in England by Brian Walton, and in France by 
 Richard Simon. The former pubhshed in his Prolegomena to 
 the London Polyglot very learned disquisitions on the language 
 and ^\Titing of the Bible, the history of the text, and of the 
 versions of the Old and New Testaments. This was first 
 printed in the Polyglot, 1657, then as a separate work under 
 the title, Briani Waltoni Angli apparatus biblicus, ed. Hei-J 
 J0E6GER, Tiguri, 1723, fol., and again under this, Br. Wal- 
 toni in Biblia Polyglotta Prolegomena, ed. J. A. Dathe, 
 Lips. 1777, 8vo. The latter of these celebrated scholars 
 handled the same subjects at the same time with a spirit of 
 inquiry, a keenness of criticism and of judgment, and also a 
 freedom of thought far beyond his age ; so that the results of 
 liis investigations became first adequately valued in the latter 
 half of the 18th century, and particularly by means of Semler 
 were brought into notice and consideration in Germany. § 
 
 •^ Jo. HiNR. Heideggkri Enchiridion Biblicum U^efAtufidyiKov. Tiguri, 
 1681, 8vo., the last Jena, 1723. 
 
 t Thesaurus philologicus seu clavis Scripturae Sacrse. Tig. 1649, ed. 
 iii, 1696, 4to. 
 
 X Philologus Hebrajus, Ultraj. 1656, ed. v. 1696. Ejusd. Philol. He* 
 braeo-mixtus, Ultraj. 1663. ed. iv. Basle, 1739, 4to. 
 
 ^ Histoire critique du Vieux Testament, par le P^re Richard Simow, 
 pretre de la congregation de I'Oratoire, a Paris 1678, 4to. The Elzevir 
 edition, Amst. 1679,'is very erroneous, yet from it was the Latin transla- 
 tion of N. Anbert de Versi composed, Paris, 1681, 4to. The most cor. 
 rect and complete edition is that of Rotterdam, 1685, Histoire Critique 
 
HISTORY OF INTRODUCTiaNSi 'h 
 
 in the verbal criticism of the Old Testament, he pointed out 
 the weaknesses of the superstitious views of Buxtorf, and of 
 those of the opposite kind which were maintained by Cappel. 
 In interpretation he criticised, with distinguished ability, the 
 existing translations and commentaries ; and in the depai't- 
 ment of higher criticism on particular books, he was the first 
 who in modern times maintained, that the Pentateuch in its 
 present form could not have arisen from Moses. * As was 
 naturally to be expected, he met with many opponents, and 
 the critical history of the Old Testament, (which, however, 
 has been incorrectly considered as a complete introduction 
 in the modern sense of the word, since it merely contains 
 the general and some parts of the particular,) was even 
 seized and suppressed at the command of Bishop Bossuet. 
 With many of these opponents Simon was engaged in a coui'se 
 of bitter controversy, as for instance with Isaac Vossius, on 
 the authority of the Septuagint, and with Le Clerc, (Cleri- 
 cus,) who, however, far from finding fault with his boldness, 
 in many points goes still further ;t he upbraids him also, and 
 
 du teste du Nouveau Testament, par R. Simon, Rotterdam, 1689, 4to. 
 The same author's Histoh-e Critique des Versions du Nouveau Testament, 
 Rotterdam, 1690, 4to. Nouvelles observations sur le texte et les ver- 
 sions du Nouveau Testament, Paris, 1695, 4to. Hlstoire Critique des 
 principaux commentateurs du Nouveau Testament, Rotterdam, 1693, 
 4to. R. Simon's Krit. Historie desTextes des N. T. Aus der Franz, voa 
 H. M. A, Cramer, mit Vorrede und Aamevkungen von J. S. SsMLitR, 
 Halle, 1776, 8. R. Simon's Krit. Historie der Uebersetzungea des 
 N. T. u. s. w. Halle, 1777, 1780, 2 Bde. 8. Both works under the title, 
 R. Simon's Kritische Scbriften ttber dasN.T. 3 Bde. 
 
 * Hi^t. Crit. du Vieux Test. chap. 5—7. [The loose views of Father 
 Simon on this and some other points accord so well with those which the 
 author is known to entertain, that the reader will neither be surprised at 
 the high degreeof commendation here bestowed on the French critic, 
 nor at a loss how to appreciate it. For a valuable discussion of the 
 authenticity and genuineness of the Pentateuch, see Jahn's Introduction, 
 Partii. $ 3— 14, pp. 176— 202. Tr.] 
 
 t (Le Clerc) Sentimens de quelques Tbeologiens de Hollandc sur 
 I'histoiro critique du Vieux Test, coraposee par le P. Richard Simon, 
 Amsterdam, 1685, 12, ed. 2, 1711, 12. Briefe einiger HolJandischen 
 Gottesgelebrten ttber P, Simon's Kritische Geschichte des \. T. aui 
 
 2 
 
"^O WlSTORY OF INTRODUCTmSS. 
 
 Xvith justice, on account of his dogmatical manner in disput- 
 ing, and the unwarranted severity of his strictures on the 
 works of Protestants. 
 
 After these predecessors, J. G. Carpzov prepared in Ger- 
 many his work on the Old Testament, an introduction in the 
 present sense of the word, and gave to what may be consi- 
 dered as the outward part of this kind of literature, both its 
 form, and also the nam^ which it has since retained. Still, 
 however, the author limited its application to the particular 
 introduction,* and treated of the general in a separate work, t 
 He is, moreover, heartily opposed to the free views of Simon, 
 and to the yet bolder hints which, in the meantime, Spinoza 
 had thrown out, | considers it as his duty to reject and oppose 
 them, and fetters himself entirely by the doctrines of the 
 Lutheran church. 
 
 The first writer who trod again in the footsteps of R. Si- 
 mon was J. S. Semler ; § and, (to speak of the Old Testa- 
 ment first,) after, in our own time, by the eflforts of J. D. 
 MiCHAELis, a learned manner of treating the Old Testament 
 began to prevail in Germany, and, by means of the works of 
 X.OWTH and Herder, || these subjects were handled with more 
 taste, EicHHORN composed his introduction to the Old Testa- 
 ment, which is for the time so free and elegant, and which 
 
 dem Franz, (by Corrodi.) The place is not designated, but it was print- 
 ed at Zurich, 1779. 
 
 * Introductio ad libros canonicos V. T. Lipsiae, 1721, 4to. 3 edit. 
 1741, 4to. 
 
 t Critica Sacra V. T. Lips. 1728, 4t&. 
 
 t In his Tf actatus theologico-politicus, Hamburgi, 1672. . 
 
 § Apparatus ad liberalem Vet. Test, interpretationem, Halse, 1773, 
 8vo. Apparatus ad liberalem Nov. Test, interpretationem. Ibid, 1767, 
 8vo. 
 
 11 Rob." Lowth, de sacra poesi Hebrajorum praelectiones, ed. Mi- 
 CHAEUS, Gottingae, 1758. [An English translation of this work, with 
 '.' the principal notes of Michaelis, and notes by the translator and 
 others," by G. Gregory, F. A. S., was published in England, and re- 
 published in Boston, 1815, Tr.] Herder's Briefe, das Studium der 
 Theologie betreffend, 1780, Also his Geist der Hebr. Foesie, 1782, S 
 Theile. 
 
HISTORY OP INTRODUCTIONS, JT 
 
 avails itself with so much abiHty of the works which had pre- 
 ceded it, (of Walton and Carpzov's Critica Sacra in the 
 general divisons of the subject,) that with him a new epoch in 
 this department of literature was introduced. * A similar 
 work t begun by J. D. Michaelis did not advance beyond 
 the first volume, and some small compends by Gute and 
 Eabor are mere extracts of Eichhorn ; but soon other men of 
 investigating minds made their appearance, as Nachtigall 
 (Ottmar,) Hasse, E. F. C. Rosenmuller, Bertholdt, Va- 
 TER, De Wette, and others, tlirough whose investigations of 
 particular subjects, the views presented by Eichhorn were, in 
 many points, partly advanced and partly corrected and done 
 away. | The questions of higher criticism here brought to 
 the test of language were as follows : — whether the Penta- 
 teuch is of Mosaic origin or subsequent to the time of Moses ; 
 — ^whether the book of Job w^ere written before the age of 
 Moses or later ; — on the authority of the books of Chronicles 
 ^d their connexion with the books of Samuel and Kings ; — 
 the later composition of the book of Daniel ; and others of 
 this kind. But a learned Roman Catholic, and for many 
 members of his own church, much too free in his inquiries, § 
 appeared in the person of John Jahn, || who opposed the 
 
 * J. G. Eichhorn's Einleit. in das A. T. 3 Theile, Leipzig, 1780— 
 1783. [x\lso, considerably enlarged, in 5 volumes, at Gottingen, 1823, 
 1824.] 
 
 f Einleitung in die Gottlichen Schriften des A. B. 1 Tbl. Hamburg, 
 1787, 4. 
 
 t See Hasse Aussichten zu kunftigen Aufklarungen tiber das A. T. 
 Jena, 1785. Rosenmuller Scholia V. T., and the introductions therein 
 contained to the particular books, for example, to the book of Job, and 
 to the Pentateuch, in the 3rd edition. Vater's Comment, tiber den 
 Pentateuch, Part. Theil. 3, 1805. Bertholdt's Daniel, 1806—1808. 
 De Wette's Beitrage zur Einleit. in das A. T. 2 Bandchen, 1806, 1807. 
 tCompare also the author's Geschichte der Hebraischen Sprache und 
 Schrift. Leipz. 1815, Comment, de Pent. Sam., Halae, 1815, and Com- 
 ment, uber den lesaia. Leipz. 1820, Tr.] 
 
 $ SeeDe necessitate incautos praeveniendi adversus artes nonnullorum 
 professorum Hermeneutrces cet. Romae, 1818. On the other side, Vindi- 
 ciae Johan Jahn, Lipsiee, 1822. 
 
 H Einleitung in die GSttlichen BOrber des Alten Bundes. Wieii,1793, 
 
12 HISTORY OF INTRODUCTIONS. 
 
 bold views of these Protestant writers, or, at most, only im* 
 parted them where they did not come into collision with those 
 of his church : * whereupon Bertholdt, in his work which 
 comprehends both the Old and New Testaments, has at- 
 tempted principally to collect the various views and to effect 
 an accommodation between the ancient and modern.! Abridg- 
 ments, to be used at lectures, adopting the improvements which 
 have been made since Eichhorn wrote, were published by 
 Bauer t and Augusti ; § but by far the richest and most 
 original by De Wette. || 
 
 The plan of many of these Jast writers embraces also the 
 Apocryphal books of the Old Testament, to the higher criticism 
 of which the road had been opened by Eichhorn. H 
 
 After the very learned preparatory works of Richard Si- 
 mon, the first who published an introduction to the New Testa- 
 ment was J. D. MiCHAELis. His work was a very imperfect 
 manual, whidh in later editions was greatly improved and en- 
 larged, and by Herbert Marsh was enriched with learned 
 
 8, 2 Ausg. 1802 — 3, in 3 Banden. The same author's Introductio in li- 
 bros Sacros Vet. Fcederis in compendium redacta. Viennae, 1805, 8vo. 
 
 * [Although it must be allowed that Dr. Jahn does in some degree 
 permit himself to be fettered by the principles of his own communion, 
 yet no one who has read his introductions can have failed to observe, that 
 he frequently endeavours to explain those principles in accommodation 
 with the spirit of free Protestantism. Indeed, in some cases, he has ex. 
 ceeded the bounds of sober criticism. That the remark of Gesenius re- 
 quires to be greatly qualified is evident from the fact, that some of Jahn's 
 works were prohibited by a decree of Pope Pius VII. See Horne's 
 Introduction, vol. ii. Part ii. Appendix, p. 134, 6th edition, 1828, Tr.]} 
 
 t D. L. Bertholdt historisch-kritische Einleitung in samtlichekano- 
 nische und apokryphische Schriften des Alten und Neuen Testaments, 
 6 Theile, Erlangen, 1812—19. The aprocryphal books of the N. T. are 
 not included. 
 
 t Entvvurf eincr hist. krit. Einleit. in die Schriften des A. T. 1794, 
 Dritte Aufl. 1806. 
 
 § Chr. W. Augusti Grundriss einer hist. krit. Einleit. in das A. T. 
 Leipzig, 1806, 8. 
 
 {I Lehrbuch der hist. krit. Einleit. in das A. T. Berlin, 1817, 2, Auflo 
 1823. 
 
 11 Einleit. in die Apokryphischen Bttcher des A. T. Leipzig, 1795, 8. 
 
HISTORY or INTRODUCTIONS, 13 
 
 additions and corrections. * But the markod progress which 
 bihlical criticism and exeges'is had made towards the end of 
 the last and in the beginning of the present century, was con- 
 spicuous in the manuals respectively, of Hanlein, whose work 
 is particularly distinguished by its agreeable composition, of 
 J. C. Chr, Schmidt, who abounds with clear and unbiassed 
 views, and of J. L. Hug, who excels all his predecessors in deep 
 and fundamental investigations, t Eichhorn has also extended 
 his inquiries to the subjects comprehended in the introduction 
 to the New Testament, but has published no more at present 
 than the particular introduction, t The subjects,' in this de- 
 partment, which have engaged the attention of the inquirers, 
 as of principal importance, and have occasioned many hy- 
 potheses and learned controversies, are the following: the 
 arrangement of the manuscripts according to recensions and 
 classes, (Griesbach's system of recensions ;) — the manner of 
 illustrating the agreement of the first three gospels ; — the 
 chronology of FauFs epistles, and, since the publication of 
 ScHLEiERMACHER and Bretschneider's works on this sub- 
 ject, also the authenticity of the gospel of John, § and of the 
 epistles to Timothy. 1| 
 
 * J. D, MicHAELis Einleit. in die Gottlichen Schriften des Neuen Bun- 
 des, Gbttingen, 1760, Vierte Ausgabe, 1788. Introduction to the New 
 Testament by John Dav. Michaelis, translated and considerably aug- 
 inentediwith notes, explanatory and supplemental, by Herbert Marsh, 
 Cambridge, 1793, 6 vol. 8vo. A German translation of these additions 
 was published by C. Fr. C.Rosenmoller, at Goltingen in 1795, 1803, 3 
 Bande, 4. 
 
 t H. K. A. Hanlein Handbuch der Einleitung in die Schriften des 
 N. T. 2te Auflage, 1802—1809, 3 Thl. 8.— J. C. Chr. Schmidt's hist, 
 krit. Einleitung in das N. T. Giessen, 1804, 1805, 2 Theile, 8.— J. L. 
 Hug's Einleitung in die Schriften des Neuen Testam. Tubingen, 1808, 
 2te Aufl. 1821, 2 Bde. 8. [An English translation of this work was pub- 
 lished by the Rev. Daniel Guildford Wait, LL. D., London, 1827, 2 
 vols. 8vo. Tr.] 
 
 t Einleitung ins N. T. Th. 1—3, 1804—14. Also under the title, 
 Kriti€che Schriften, Th. 5—7. 
 
 $ [A view of the principal objections which have been reeently urged 
 against the authenticity of St. John's gospel, and a very able defence of 
 it, may be found in Kuinol's Prolegomena, $ 2, pp. 1 1—34, Lips. 1817, Tr.J 
 
 !! [The authenticity of the epistles to Timothy has been defended by 
 
14 HISTORT OP INTRODUCTIONS. 
 
 With respect to the subjects under review, other nations are 
 far behind the advances w^hich have been made by the Ger- 
 mans ; and Holland and England have contented themselves; 
 with acquiring some of the principal works of Michaehs and 
 Eichhorn by means of translations. The general causes of 
 this are to be found partly in this fact, that in those countries 
 the Bible is not studied with so much ardour as with us ; and 
 partly also in this, that the doctrinal views of foreign divines 
 are opposed to the results to which many of the disquisitions 
 tend. * Only the works of Lanigan, a Roman Catholic of 
 Italy, t and Horne, J deserve to be mentioned. Both these 
 writers compriehend the Old and New Testaments, and the 
 latter the exegetical helps also, as biblical antiquities, geo- 
 graphy, and other subjects of this kind. The author has made 
 use also of German writers, but not since the time of Michae- 
 lis and Eichhorn. § 
 
 J. F. Beckhaus, in a work entitled : Specimen Observationum critico- 
 esegeticorum de vocabulis *9r«| xtydfjuttus et variis dicendi formulis in 
 I ad Timotheum Epistolam authentiae ejus, nihil detrahentibus, Lingen, 
 1810, 8vo. Tr.] 
 
 * [The unrestrained licentiousness of assertion, founded in many 
 cases solely upon hypothesis, and in direct opposition to general tradi- 
 tion and whatever evidence is afforded by history, in which some of the 
 late German critics have indulged, has with reason given offence to 
 grave and sober men, both in their own country and elsewhere. Disquisi- 
 tions of the kind referred to, do by no means tend to the results with 
 which the German neologists have satisfied themselves. They tend to 
 a fundamental acquaintance with Scripture, to a confirmation of its 
 claims as the inspired Word of God, and to a sound and incontrovertible 
 system of religious faith, founded in all its parts, not on metaphysical 
 philosophy or traditional authority, but on the Bible, and nothing but 
 the Bible. Tr.] 
 
 t Institutiones biblicae, T. I, Ticini, 1793, 8vo. 
 
 t An Introduction to the critical study of the Holy Scriptures. Lon- 
 don, 1816, 3 vols. 8vo. [The sixth and last edition, in five vols. 8vo, 
 London, 1828, is much^enlarged and -improved. Tr.] 
 
 § [This is a mistake, as Mr. Horne has availed himself of some of the 
 latest German writers, especially in his last and improved edition. — rThe 
 author has omitted to mention the Introduction to the Old Testament 
 and Apocrypha, by Robert Gray, D. D. (now bishop of Bristol,) pub 
 lished at London, 1790, 8vo ; and the Key to the New Testament, bv 
 
ttlSTdRY OP INTRODUCTIONS, 15 
 
 To complete the account of German literatm'C in this de- 
 partment, it is necessary to give a place to the various periodi- 
 cal papers and magazines, which contain in part critical re- 
 views of writings on these subjects, and in part discussions 
 on particular points ; as, for instance : J. D. Michaelis exe- 
 getische und orientalische Bibliothek, 24 Bde. Gottingen, 1771 
 —83, 8 ; — the same author and Chr. Th. Tychsen's Neue 
 exeget. und oriental. Bibliothek, 8 Bde. 1784—1789 ;— Eich- 
 horn's allgem. Bibliothek der biblischen Literatur, 10 Bde. 
 Leipzig, 1787 — 1801 ; — the same author's Repertorium fiir 
 biblische und morgenlandische Literatur, 18 Thieile, Leipzig, 
 1777 — 1786, 8 ;— (Corrodi's) Beitrage zum vemiinftigen 
 Denken in der Religion, 18 Hefte. Winterthur, 1781—1794, 
 continued (by Keller,) Heft. 19, 20, 1801— 2 ;— Paulus N. 
 Repertorium fiir bibl. und morgenl. Lit. 3 Theile, Jena, 1*390 
 — 1 ; — the same author^s Memorabilien, B. 1—^8, Leipzig, 
 1787 — 96; — Henke's Magazin fiir Religions - philosophic, 
 Exegese und Kirchengeschichte, 12 Bde. (the last six also 
 under the title : Neues Magazin, Th. 1 — 6 ;) — the same au- 
 thor's Museum fur Religions wissenchaft in ihrem ganzen 
 Umfange, 3 Bde. Magdeburg, 1804 — 9 ; — J. C. Chr. Schmidt 
 Bibliothek fur Kritik und Exegese des N. T. Th. 1—3. 
 Herborn, 1796 — 1802 ; — Gabler's theol. Journal, u. a. m. ; 
 — E. F. C. Rosenmuller und G. H. Rosenmuller bibhsch- 
 exegetisches Repertorium, Heft 1. Leipzig, 1822 ; — Paulus 
 theologisch-exegetisches Conservatorium, Heft 1, 2, Heidel- 
 berg, 1821—22. 
 
 Thomas Percy, D. D., bishop of Dromore, 3rd edition, London, 1779, 
 12rao. These works are too well known to English readers to require 
 any notice. — He has also passed over the works of Harwood, Pritius, 
 and others ; accounts of which may be found in Home, ubi sup. and in 
 Marsh's Lectures, Lect. iii. Tr.] 
 
TREATISE 
 
 ON THE 
 
 AUTHENTICITY AND CANONICAL AUTHORITY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 BY 
 
 JOHN GODFREY EICHHORN. 
 
 Translated from the German, 
 Bt JOHN FREDERICK SCHROEDER, A.^. 
 
 AN ASSI^ANT MINISTER OF TRINITY CHURCH IN THE CITY OF NEW-YORK. 
 
PREFATORY NOTE, 
 
 This Treatise appeared at Leipzig, as early as the year 1771), 
 in Eichhoen's " Repertory for Biblical and Oriental Litera- 
 ture." * It afterward formed a part of the first volume of the 
 author's " Introduction to the Old Testament :" t and from the 
 fourth edition of this work it is here translated into English. The 
 subject has occupied the particular attention of a number of the 
 most eminent German criticks, and has been discussed with great 
 ability, in special publications, by Semler, Schmid, Coreodi, 
 Camerer, Spittler, Deuk, Frick, Hornemann, Sauer, Gul- 
 DENAPFEL, and others. The following Investigation | is regard- 
 ed among the best, and most concentrated of them all. It is giv- 
 en erdire, with the omission § only of a few lines in the third section. 
 The peculiar opinions which they advance are not essential to the 
 
 * Repertorium fiir Biblische und Morgenldndische Liileratur. Th. V. 
 S. 217—282. 
 
 t Einleiiung in das Alie Testament. The Jirst edition is in 3 vols. Oct., 
 Leipzig, 1780 — 1783; and the fourth edition is in 5 vols, oct., Gottingen, 
 1823—1824. 
 
 X It was originally entitled: " HisloTlsclie. Untersuchung liber den 
 Kanon des Alien Testaments;" Historical Investigation of the Canon 
 ofthe Old Testament. 
 
 ^ The omissions are noted bv asterisks : * * *,. 
 
20 PREFATORY NOTE. 
 
 argument ; and it is thought they should not be presented, witli- 
 
 out the addition of large notes, incompatible with the nature of 
 
 the present work. At some future period, the Treatise may be 
 
 submitted to the publick in a different form. It bears the impress 
 
 of Eichhorn's distinguishing excellences ; and while it is a brief, 
 
 but satisfactory confirmation of the Canon of the Old Testament, 
 
 it establishes our faith in these venerable records of the Word of 
 
 God. 
 
 The Translator. 
 
 New-Y<yrky April 8, 1829. 
 
AUTHENTICITY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 SCRIPTURES OF THE OJLD TESTAMENT. 
 
 §.1. 
 
 1. They did not proceed from one impostor. 
 
 Whoever, with knowledge and impartiality, examines the 
 question, whether the writings of the Old Testament are au- 
 thentick, will undoubtedly be compelled to reply in the affirma- 
 tive. 
 
 1. No ONE impostor can have forged them all :— this is 
 proclaimed by every page of the Old Testament. 
 
 What diversity in language and expression ! Isaiah does 
 not write like Moses, nor Jeremiah like Ezekiel ; and between 
 these and each of the Minor Prophets, as relates to style, 
 there is a great gulf fixed. The grammatical structure of lan- 
 guage, in the books of Moses, contains much that is peculiar ; 
 in the book of Judges occur provincialisms and barbarisms ; 
 Isaiah moulds common words into new forms ; Jeremiah and 
 Ezekiel abound in Chaldaisms. In short, as w^e proceed from 
 the writers who assume an early date, to those who are more 
 recent, we observe the language in a gradual decline, until it 
 sinks at last into phrases of mere Chaldee. 
 
22 AUTHENTICITY OP THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 1. 
 
 Then what diversity in the march of thought and range of 
 imagery ! The stringed instrument resounds when struck 
 by Moses and Isaiah ; and is soft in intonation at the touch 
 of David. The muse of Solomon swells in the splendour of 
 the most voluptuous court ; but her sister, artlessly apparelled, 
 strays with David along rivulets and banks, over plains, and 
 among flocks and herds. One poet is original, as Isaiah, Joel, 
 and Habakkuk ; another imitative, as Ezekiel. One wanders 
 the untrodden path of a genius ; while at his side, another 
 loiters along the beaten footway. From one proceed flashes 
 of surprising knowledge ; and about his neighbour, not a spark 
 of learning has ever kindled. Through the most ancient wri- 
 ter glow strong Egyptian tints ; in his successors they become 
 more and more languid, and in the latest they are entirely ex- 
 tinct.* 
 
 Finally, even in manners, — there is the most beautiful grada^ 
 tion ! At first, all is plain and simple ; as in Homer, and at 
 the present day, among the Bedoween Arabs. This ingenuous 
 simplicity is gradually lost in luxury and effeminacy, and at 
 last wholly disappears in the voluptuous court of Solomon. 
 
 There is nowhere a sudden transition ; but throughout, an 
 advance gradually progressive ! None but ignorant or thought- 
 less skepticks can admit, that the Old Testament has been 
 forged by one impostor. 
 
 * I' The characteristicks of language, style and manner, exhibited by 
 the sacred writers, are copiously illustrated by the author, in his parti- 
 cular introductions to the several books. See his Introduction to the O. 
 T., (in German'), vols. iir. iv. v., the sections on these subjects ; Jahn's 
 Introduction to the O. T., (translated by Prof. Turner and the Rev. Mr. 
 iVhittingham), . P. i. §. 9. &. P. ii., on the styfe of the respective books ; 
 Horne's Introduction, Vol. i. Ch. ii. S. i. subsect. iii. i. & iv. i. & Vol. 
 IV. P. I. Ch. I — VII, on the same. Gesenius, in his History of the Hebrew 
 Language, (in German), § $. 10. 11. supplies examples; andDiWEXTE, 
 an his Introduction to the Bible, (in Germa?i), $• 34. directs the student 
 to sources of information on the subject. See also Lowth's Lectures, 
 {Gregory's translation), particularly Lect. xxi. & xxxiv., with the Notes 
 of the Translator and others, Boston, 1815; and Rosenmllller's edition of 
 the original, with the Notes of J. D. Michaelis and the editor, Leipzig, 
 1815. TV. 1 
 
AUTHENTICITy OP THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. Si. Sj$ 
 
 §.2. 
 
 '2, And the Writings of the Old Testament did not proceed 
 from SEVERAL impostors. 
 
 '2. " But, perhaps, several impostors have made common 
 cause, and in a late century, have at the same time forged our 
 Scriptures of the Old Testament." — Yet how could they forge, 
 in a manner so conformable to the progress of the human 
 mind ? How was it possible, in modern times, to form the lan- 
 guage* of Moses? This evidently transcends all human 
 powers ! In fine, one writer always supposes the existence 
 of another ; t they could not therefore have arisen, all at the 
 same time ; it must have been in succession. 
 ' " Perhaps, then, at different periods there have been such 
 impostors, who proceed in the introduction of spurious writ- 
 ings, just where their forging predecessors had left off. Hence 
 may be explained the allusions of the writers to each other ; 
 hence that striking rise in all the parts ! " But (1.) How was 
 it possible, that no one discovered and exposed the imposition, 
 and so branded the impostor, that after ages might be secure ? 
 How could a nation, repeatedly, at different times, permit it- 
 self to be deceived? And (2.) What purpose could such an 
 impostor have ? To exalt the Hebrew nation ? — Then from 
 his praises result most grievous defamations ; for the Hebrew 
 people, according to the Old Testament, act at all times a most 
 unworthy part ! — Or to degrade the Hebrews ? — Yet, in this 
 case, hov/ could the nation permit books to be obtruded on 
 tliem, that defamed their character, and told in plain words, 
 
 ■^- [See Eichhorn's Introduction to the O. T., Vol. i. $ §. 10, 11; 
 .Tahn's Introd. to the O. T., P. ii. ^. 3 ; Horne's Introd., Vol. i. Ch. u; 
 .T. D. MicHAELis Introduction to theO.T., {in German), $. 31 ; Gesenius' 
 History of the Hebr. Lang., §. 11. subsect. 1. Tr, ] 
 
 t [ The author particuUuly illustrates this, in his Introd. to the 0. T., 
 vol, I. ^ 4. Tr. "' 
 
24 AUTHENTICITY OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 2. 3. 
 
 how often foreign conquerors may have trodden them under 
 foot?* 
 
 §.3. 
 
 Evidences of their Authenticity. 
 
 In addition to this, the Old Testament bears all the marks 
 of authenticity. 
 
 1. The very reasonings that argue for a Homer, maintain 
 even the authenticity of all the particular books of the Old 
 Testament. .Why are we disposed to deny merely the latter 
 that justice which we allow the former. If a profane writer 
 assumes a certain period, and all internal and external circum- 
 stances of his book accord with it ; then, no impartial inquirer 
 after truth permits himself to indulge a doubt to the contrary. 
 Nay, we do not hestitate a moment, in reference to a writer of 
 an unknown period, to decide his age by internal considera- 
 tions derived from his works. Why should the critical in- 
 quirer not pursue this course, in reference to the Bible ? 
 
 2. As yet, no one has been able to oppose with arguments, 
 the integrity and credibility of any writer of the Old Testa- 
 ment ; but every discovery in ancient literature has hitherto 
 been some new confirmation of the sacred books. As yet, 
 no one has demonstrated that any writer of the Old Testa- 
 ment may have composed in a style, with knowledge, and 
 under circumstances, that might not have been conformable 
 to the age in which he professed to live. 
 
 In short, all the Books of the Old Testament, the writers 
 of which we know by name, have been impressed with the 
 seal of the integrity of their authors. And in those books, the 
 authors of which have been unknown, internal considerations 
 always show, that we are compelled to recognise them as au- 
 thentick. The Book of Joshua, for instance, the author of 
 
 » [ On this subject, consult Jahn's Introduction to the 0. T., P. i. §. 9. Tr. 1 
 
AUTBENTICITY OP THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 3. 25 
 
 which is unknown, enters so deeply into the particulars of the 
 most ancient Geography, that miracle upon miracle must have 
 been wrought on an impostor, if he could have been in a situa- 
 tion to compose it thm. 
 
 Let any one examine, with due intelligence, and without 
 prejudice ; and I am certain, that he will convince himself of 
 the Authenticity of the Books of the Old Testament. 
 
 I here premise however, what any one will readily suppose 
 in works so ancient, that most writings of the Hebrews had 
 passed through several hands, before they acquired their pre- 
 sent form ; and that ancient and modern may sometimes be 
 mingled in them, without leading an impartial judge, on this 
 account to doubt of their authenticity. 
 
 1. No ancient author of any nation has survived the age 
 in which he wrote, but various particulars may have been 
 altered in his text, or additions have been inserted in it. 
 Sometimes, he was glossed designedly, and obsolete words 
 and expressions, and geographical names were changed for 
 others that were modern, to explain his meaning for the later 
 reader, Sometimes, a person made observations in the mar- 
 gin, for his own use or that of others, without intending that 
 they should be inserted in the writer ; but officious posterity 
 has transferred the marginal observations into the text. Thus, 
 before we can render the authenticity of a writing doubtful 
 on account of such passages, w^e must with critical minuteness 
 examine, whether they have from the first existed in it, and 
 have actually proceeded from the author's hand. 
 
 % The very nature of the origin of many Scriptures of the 
 Old Testament renders it necessary, that ancient and modern 
 passages and sections must interchange in them. Veiy few 
 proceeded from the hand of their authors, in the form in 
 which we now have them. The separate constituent parts 
 of many had long been extant as special works, before they 
 became united with certain parts now added to them. Should 
 even the Mosaick writings, in their present order, not be those 
 of Moses ; yet they have been collected from Mosaick docu- 
 ments, and have merely been dispose^d by a more recent 
 
W AU-T^HENTICITY OP T.H.E QLD TESTAMENT, §. 3. 
 
 hand. IF * * * Our Psalms, according to their existing ar- 
 rangement, first attained their present extent after the cap- 
 tivity, by the combination of several larger and smaller books 
 of Psalms, t The materials of our Daniel w^ere originally se- 
 parate, I in treatises that had been composed in difierent dia- 
 lects. * * * The golden proverbs of Solomon have been in- 
 creased by accessions : even in Hezekiah's time, there were 
 additions made to them. § * * * 
 
 If we should at once proscribe, as the works of impos- 
 ture, books in which all parts and sections do not evince the 
 same age, few authentick writings of the Hebrews would 
 remain ; but, at the same time, a great number of the classicks 
 of Grecian and Roman antiquity might be condemned. Higher 
 criticism || must fulfil its office for the former as well as for 
 the latter, before we venture a decision on their authenticity ; 
 and by internal considerations, it must separate what has been 
 brought together by various times and authors. Whoever re- 
 proaches the biblical critick, or merely with pious concern 
 heaves a sigh, while the latter is thus examining a book of 
 the Old Testament ; he must either be wholly unacquaint- 
 ed with antiquity, and profane literature, and the state of 
 things at the time ; or be so extremely weak in intellectual en- 
 dowments, that he does not perceive the important conse- 
 quences of an omitted test of this kind, and the invincible host 
 of doubts, which, by the proposed manner of proceeding, it is 
 practicable to drive from their strong holds. And indeed, 
 whoever may regard such a test as useful, important, and 
 
 l! [ That the Pentateuch is not a compilation of recent date, see 
 Jahn's Introd. to the O. T., P. n. $. 11 ; that it is the work of Moses, 
 -§. 12 ; that it has not been re-written, §. 13. Tr. J 
 
 t [ Eichhorn's Introd. to the O. T., Vol. v. § $. 624—626 ; Jahn's In- 
 trod. to the O. T., P. II. ^. 177. Tr. ] 
 
 t [ .Iahh 's Introd. to the O. T., P. ii. ^. 154. Tr. ] 
 
 ^ [ The design of the asterisks here used is staled iji the Prefatory 
 Note to this Treatise. Tr. j 
 
 ij [Some judicious observations, on the use of Higher Criticism, are 
 t<3 lie found in Ja«n's Ihtrod. to fhe O. T., P. i. 6. 147- Tr. 1 
 
AUXHENTICITV OF THE OLD TESTAMEN-l', §. 3. 'Si' 
 
 necessary, l)ut from over-pious timidity would prescribe 
 the rule to the critical inquirer, to separate there only, where 
 external evidences afford cause for a separation or require it ; 
 he might still belong to the weak in the republick of criticism ; 
 and still endanger the authenticity of most of the Hebrew 
 Scriptures. 
 
 The ancients indeed were accustomed sometimes to denote 
 the end of a writing by a subscription, as was the case, for in- 
 stance, with Moses and Jeremiah ; and thus too the author of 
 an ancient Psalter uses the words : " The Prayers of David 
 are ended." * Sometimes, continuators pointed out, by a 
 written note of the fact, the place where their continuation 
 commenced, as in the Proverbs of Solomon, by the words : 
 "** These are also Proverbs of Solomon, which the men of 
 Hezekiah copied out." t But such instances ai-e rare ; and for 
 the most part, we must endeavour to disclose by means quite 
 different, and by the most subtle operations of higher criticism, 
 what in the lapse of time may have been prefatory, what in- 
 serted, and what appended, in an ancient work. 
 
 Ps. Lxxii. 30. t Prov. XXV. I. 
 
S^ OF THE 
 
 'tjniversity; 
 
 CANONICAL AUTHORITY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 SCRIPTURES OF THE OLD TESTAMENT 
 
 §.4. 
 
 Canonical and Apocryphal Books, 
 
 Soon after the return of the Jews from the Babylonian 
 tiaptivity, a collection * was prepared, of all writings of the 
 Hebrews then extant, which, on account of their antiquity, 
 contents, and authors, became revered and holy, in the view 
 of all the members of the new government. In the temple 
 was reposited a sacred library t of these writings, which, for 
 
 * [ The author has treated of this subject at large, in his Introd. to the 
 O. T., Vol. I. $. 5. See also Prideaux, in his Connexion. Vol. ii. p. i. 
 B. V. Ann. 446 & 292. On the fables concerning nSn^n ripW, the Great 
 Synagogue, see Buxtorf's Tiberias, C. 10. 11; and Bartolocoi Bibl. 
 Rabbinlca, under the article Chenescih Hagghedola, Part iv. pp. 2. 3. 4. 
 Tr. ] 
 
 t [ The existence of a Temple Library is recognised by the most able 
 criticks. 
 
 (1.) Very early traces of it are to be found, befere the captivity: 
 
 see Deut. xxxi. 26. Josh. xxiv. 26. 1 Sam. x. 25. 
 (2.) Afttr the captivity, mentioa is made of it: Josephus, Anliqq. 
 B. in. C. I. $. 7 ; B. v. C. i. f 17. Wars eftfie Jaws, B. vii. C. 
 T. $.5; £1/6,$. 75. 
 Sec EicHH. Introd. to theO. T,, Vol. i- f.S? &DeWette IntroA to 
 the Bible, Vol, i. $. 14. Tr. ] 
 
^0 UANOX OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 4. 
 
 a considerable time before Christ, (the particular year is un- 
 known), (a) ceased to be further enlarged. (6) 
 
 After the period when this collection had been made, there 
 arose among the Jews authors of a different kind, historians, 
 philosophers, poets, and theological romancers. Now there- 
 fore they had books, ver}^ unlike in value, and of various ages* 
 The earlier were held, as productions of Prophets,* to be holy ; 
 
 (a) If JosEPHCs closes the Canon with the reign of Artaxerxes Lon- 
 jgimanus, this is his private opinion, founded on his view of the Book of 
 Esther. See $.30. 
 
 (6) I know not with what probability it can be asserted, in the Zurich 
 IjIBkaky of the latest theological, philosophical, and polite literature, (Zt^r- 
 cher Bibliothek der neuesten theologischen, philosophischen, und 
 schonen Litteratur), B. i. S. 180., that the Jews might have first agreed 
 as to the number of their sacred books, after the period when the Talmud 
 was compiled. If there might not have been, at a much earlier date, 
 a collection settled as to all its parts, how could Josephus, Philo, and 
 the New Testament have spoken of them, in terms so explicit, or 
 Josephus have made a distinction of two kinds Of ancient writings of 
 his nation ? He spoke of such as had been written, to the time of 
 Artaxerxes Longimanus, and might justly be regarded as credible, (or 
 divine) ; and of others, composed after Artaxerxes Longimanus, which 
 were not esteemed so credible. Must it not, therefore, have been ac- 
 curately determined how many belonged to each class? 
 
 '• But it is proved, that from time to lime there may have been as vari- 
 ous a decision on the sacred books> by the orthodox Jews, as by Chris- 
 tians. Has not Daniel, highly esteemed by Josephus, been little prized 
 "by other Jews : Ezekid almost rejected from the Canon ; Esther unduly 
 censure d ?" Certainly. But what can rereni private opinions determine 
 in a question, where the subject is ancient national opinion ? And we know 
 indeed, what considerations have prompted them to their unfavourable 
 opinions of the writings mentioned. The contents were repugnant to 
 them; from history they knew nothing to be advanced against them. 
 Would they not, with a view to be easily rid of these repugnant books, 
 have appealed to the times, when they might not have been found among 
 the number of sacred national writings ; could they, merely by a faint 
 tradition, have been authorized in doing so.-* 
 
 * [ On the meaning of the word Prophet, consult Gesenius' Hebrew 
 Lexicon, (translated by Prof. Gibbs, & also by Christopher Leo), & Si- 
 MONis' Hebrew Lexicon, {Eichhorn^s edition), on theivord N''J3 ; Eichh. 
 Introd. to theO. T., Vol. i. $. 9; Jahn's Introd. to the O. T., P. n. $. 83. 
 note\ Eichhorn's Library of Biblical Literature, (in German), Vol. i 
 Pt. 1. p. 91 ; & Koppe's Excursus in, appended to his Commentary 
 on the Epistle to the Ephesisins? ii) his ZVbv, Je^iam, Vol. vi, Tr. ] 
 
CANON OP THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 4. 31 
 
 the later were not, because they had been composed in times, 
 when there was no longer an uninterrupted prophetical suc- 
 cession, (c) The ancient were preserved in the temple (§. 28) ; 
 the modern were not. The ancient were introduced into a 
 publick collection ; the modern, as I think, into none what-^ 
 ever ; at least, certainly into none of a publick nature. And 
 if the Alexandrian Christians had not been such great ad- 
 mirers of them ; if they had not added them to the manu- 
 scripts of the Septuagint, (in the original ^ if composed in 
 the Greek language ; and in a Greek translatioriy if the 
 autograph was Hebrew :) — who knows, whether we might 
 have a single page remaining, of all the modern Jewish 
 writers ? {d) 
 
 (c) JosEPHus, contra Ap. lib. i. $. 8., thus expresses himself in reference 
 to these later Scriptures : Ttis'toes S't ov^ ofAoiac ^^iarctt rtii irgo ctvraf, 
 S'ta. TO fxii yma^At t«» rdv !r^o<p»Tay et)i^i0» S'lAifo^iif. [ See the en- 
 tire passage quoted below, §. 29. Tr. ] 
 
 (d) The Zurich Library makes some objections to this also. " There 
 are proofs," it says, Th. i. S. 178., "that the Grecian Jews, from 
 time to time, have conferred on more writings than the Hebrew Jews 
 possessed, the distinction of being receivedas ancient, sacred, and revered 
 monuments of the ag-es of antiquity ; nay, of being regarded even as re- 
 cords dictated by the Holy Spirit. The Apostles, Apostolick Fathers, 
 and Ecclesiastical Writers, in their citations, make no distinction 
 bestween v avIous pseudepigrnphs, and the canonical writings of the O. T. 
 Jude quotes the Assumption of Moses and the Books of Enoch ; Paul, the 
 Apocalypse of Elijah, and probably other apocryphal writings ; Matthew, 
 an apocryphal work of Jeremiah, which the Hebrew Christians in the 
 time of Jerome still possessed; Clement, the spurious Ezekiel ; Hernias, 
 the Eldad h Medad. It is clear, that the converts from among the 
 Grecian Jews knew and revered these writings. No Apostles first de- 
 livered or commended these to them. Besides, even those Fathers who 
 quote the Apocrypha without distinction, Clement &, Origen, did not 
 first introdyce this relish for such writings, but must have found it al~ 
 ready existing, and have accommodated themselves to it. Other Fa- 
 thers, Irenaeus, Tertollian, Ambrose of Milan, fcc, might never 
 have held the Wisdom of Solomon, the Books of Enoch, Baruch, Tohit, 
 Fseudo-Esdras, Additions to Daniel, &c., to be sacred and inspired, if 
 these books had not been commended to them by Jews." 
 
 There would be very little prospect of determining our Canon of the 
 O. T-, if this were so. But 
 
3^ CANON OP THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 4. 
 
 At a late period, a long time since the birth of Christ, these 
 two kinds of writings have been distinguished by appropriate 
 
 1. It is not true, that the Jews maybe supposed to have made no 
 distinction, between the ancient sacred books of their nation, and what 
 were called apocryphal, Josephus, who was acquainted however even 
 with the Grecian Jews, whose Version he every where adopts in his 
 writings, says in very general terms of all the Jews at large : " We 
 have but 22 books, which were composed up to the time of Artaxerxes 
 Longimanus. Since Artaxerxes, up to our times, much indeed has been 
 •written ; but, among us, all these modern writings have not by any 
 means the authority of the ancient." And if these recent works were 
 viewed by the Grecian Jews, as sacred records, as venerable, as die* 
 tated by the Holy Spirit, how then does it happen, that the Grecian 
 Jew Philo does not allegorize them, as he does those Scriptures to which 
 he attributes a divine origin ? 
 
 2. It is not true, that the Apostles may be supposed to have made 
 710 distinction between Canonical and Apocryphal writings. For how 
 could it happen, that among so many citations of the O, T. in the New% 
 so few passages are evidently taken from the Apocrypha ? If held in the 
 same estimation, they would have been as much used. 
 
 3. It is NOT true, that from the value which Jewish Christians at- 
 tributed to Apocrypha, it may be inferred, that the Jews rankedthem with 
 their sacred Scriptures. We know indeed that the Jewish Christians 
 held them in the highest esteem, because they yielded so much support 
 to their visionary ideas, hopes and expectations. And if we compare 
 their estimate with the description that Josephus gives, of the estimate 
 which his nation may be presumed to have set upon them, it is evident, 
 how many steps the Christians advanced further than the 'Jews ! And 
 from the opinions of the Fathers concerning them, what can be in- 
 ferred, in respect to the opinions of the Jews ? Must those of the latter 
 have also been those of iha former ? 
 
 But II. "In the Greek collection of the Scriptures are found many 
 apocryphal writings, as the W^isdom of Solomon, the third book of Es- 
 dras, Tobit, Baruch, Additions to Daniel and Esther. This is proved, 
 by the use which Josephus himself, (no doubt to please the Grecian Jews), 
 made of these writings, and even by the translations of them which were 
 made at a very early period, for the use of the Western Churches; and 
 also by the Canonical authority, which various councils attribute to 
 them." 
 
 1. In this objection, it is alleged without proof, that even before the 
 birth of Christ, the Apocrypha xvere appended to the Greek Bible : but 
 from what shall this be inferred? From the fact, perhaps, that 
 Josephus makes use of them ? Does his use of them prove any more, 
 than merely that they were then extant in that Greek Vei-sion which we 
 now possess? Cojuld they not have been in his hands in Greek, sepa- 
 
CANON OP THE OLD TESTAMENT, §.-4. 33 
 
 names, derived chiefly from the use which was made pf the 
 writings : the earUer were called Canonical ; the more re- 
 cent, Apocryphal Books. And the whole collection of the 
 former was comprehended under the appellation: Canon 
 OP THE Old Testament. 
 
 orately ? And as Philo and the New Testament make so little use of 
 the Apocrypha, is it at all probable, that they were then a part of the 
 Greek Bible ? Would they not, in this case, have been much better 
 known to Philo, and the authors of the New Testament, than we ac- 
 tually discover? Ought not Christians, those great admirers of them, 
 to have first assigned to them this place ? Yet admitting, that even the 
 ancient Grecian Jews before Christ may perhaps have done this, still 
 nothing results in opposition to the previously alleged extent of the He- 
 brew Canon, as we have adopted only the Palestine, and not the Egyp- 
 tian. 
 
 2. And what is proved by early Latin Versions of these Apocrypha, 
 made for the use of the Western Church 1 What but this, which no one 
 will doubt, that even at an early period, it held these Versions in great 
 esteem ? What is proved by the authority of Councils, which have at- 
 tributed Canonical Authority to these Apocrypha ? What but this, that 
 in their estimate of these Scriptures, they went still further than the 
 early Christians, and even attributed to them what the latter, (as far as 
 we know,) never did attribute ? 
 
 III. " The Egyptian Jews have invented fables, to gain authority for 
 the spurious writings which they had forged, from a propensity to fana- 
 ticism and sectarism. The Jew who wrote the fourth book of Esdras, 
 intending to excite among his nation, by a fictitious narrative, the 
 hopes of the Messiah's kingdom, sets forth an account of seventy con- 
 cealed books, which pui-ported to have been dictated to Ezra by the 
 Spirit of God. And this tradition of 70 Apocrypha is to be found also 
 in the Gospel of Nicodemus. That no Christian wrote the fourth book 
 of Esdras, in its most ancient form, is clear fi-om many evidences, al- 
 though Christians have interpolated it, and enlarged it by additions." 
 Even this representation of the origin of the fourth book of Esdras, (to 
 which, however, much might be objected,) being assumed, because the 
 examination of it might not here be in place, what follows from all this, 
 but merely that particular Jews may have put every thing in operation, 
 to acquire for their written productions great authority ? Does it even 
 prove, that all other Jews may have assented ? — that all, to approve of 
 these fables, may have even ascribed to the works themselves a divine 
 origin ? But I forbear — not to contend too long against objections^ 
 which have so little to do with the positions maintained ! 
 
34 CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §.,!>. 
 
 JVhat i& the meaning of the word Canonical '. 
 
 The word Kavwv had long been in use among the early 
 Ecclesiastical writers, and in very general acceptations, before 
 it was transferred to a collection of Holy Scriptures. 
 
 1. it often meant no more than " a book," and a "cata- 
 logue" generally; (e) but then, in particular — 
 
 2. A " Catalogue of things which belonged to the Church,'' 
 or a "Book, that served in general for the use of the 
 Church." (/) Hence a Collection of Hymns, which were 
 to be sung on festivals, {g) as also a List, in which were in- 
 troduced the names of persons belonging to the Church, ac- 
 quired the name Kavwv. (h) The word was used in a sense 
 yet more limited, of 
 
 3. A " Publickly approved Catalogue of all the Books, 
 that might be read in publick assemblies of Christians, for 
 instruction and edifioation." (i) Finally, but not until very 
 recent times, it has comprised immediately 
 
 4. A " Collection of divine and inspired writings." (k) 
 The last signification most modern scholars have adopted. 
 
 They use, therefore, Canonical and Inspired, (xavovixo^ and 
 
 (e) Hence the diminutive Kotvsytcy means simply libdlus. See Suidas 
 on the word Knvovtov. M. Frii>. Fkuiun. Druk, diss, deratione historic^ 
 canonis scribendae. Tub. 1778, 4. 
 
 (J) Synodus Laodic. Canon 42. 
 
 (g) Stjicer, in his Thes. Eccles., T. ii. p. 40., has this meaning, with 
 many examples from the Fathers. Thus, for example, Zonaras says, 
 ad Canon. Alhanasii Damasceni: K«tvay hiytTAi, ot* ci^ia-f^ivov 
 
 i^ei TO iUfXiTgOV £ V V i at. 0) S" A 7 c auVTi^oufJievoy . 
 
 (A) Socrates Hist. EccL, lib. i. c. 17. reU rra^Bhovc Tils dyayty^*f/.fJLi- 
 »<€ b Tfp T&y kmKtKxitti Kav 6v I . See DvFRE5NE,glossar. mediae etin- 
 finiae Graecitaiis. p. 579. 
 
 (i) See SuiCER Thes. Eccles. on the word Kdvciv ; or Cotta ad Gerhardi 
 hcos theol, T. u. p. 244. 
 
 (k) SuicER on the word Kjcvwv. Fricb de cura vet. eccl. drca Cano- 
 nem. p. 34 ss. [ See also, Lardner's Supplement to the Second Part 
 of thft Gosp. Hist.. Ch, r. Sect. iii. Tr. J 
 
CAN'ON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 5. G. 35 
 
 ho'nMBv^oc,) as perfect synonymes. Only a few understand by 
 the Canon of the Old Testament, the " Collection of sacred 
 and inspired writings, which Christ and his Apostles may have 
 recognised as sacred and inspired," 
 
 §. 6. 
 IVhat is the meaning of the word Apocryphal '( 
 
 The Apocryphal are so called, in opposition to the Ca- 
 nonical Scriptures. 
 
 1. At first, " Obscurely written Books " were called apo- 
 ciyphal. (/) As such writings were then above the capacity 
 of men in general, the heads of the Church accordingly pro- 
 hibited their being read in publick assemblies of Christians ; 
 yet not only were the teachers not forbidden to read them, 
 but, on thai account, to study them with diligence had been 
 made their express duty. Hence, among apocryphal writ- 
 ings, in opposition to canonical, were comprised 
 
 2. Such books as were " Set aside, and from which no- 
 thing might be publickly read." (m) 
 
 {I) SuiDAs on the word *«gt«t/«r«c. Epiphanius, Aacrms LI; Druk, 
 i, c. p. 8, Compare with this the remark of Semler, in his Treatise on 
 afree examination of the Canon, (Abhandlung von freyer Untersuchung 
 desKanons,) Th. i. S. 10,, that ctVo'jtgy^xss may sometimes be applied to a 
 writing, which only experienced Christians were permitted to read for 
 their instruction, but which was concealed from others. 
 
 (m) RuFFiN, Expositio Symholi inter 0pp. Cypriuni, p. 26; Cyril, 
 Catech. iv. p. 68, ed. Toutt. In this case indeed, aV({jcgo<p5? accords 
 with the Rabbinical V^^ , which denotes writings set aside, that 
 might notbe read in the synagogues ; at onetime, because they had been 
 inaccurately written ; and at another, because their contents were some- 
 what difficult to be understood. Thus the later Jews placed among the 
 yy^A, which ought not to be read, the beginning of Genesis, (in which a 
 creation in six days, so adapted to human views, was repugnant to 
 them) ; the Song of Solomon, (the contents of which they thought hazard- 
 ous for young persons ;) Ezekicl i. and xl. — xlviii. (because the contents 
 of these chapters were obscure to them, and the temple ofEzekid did not 
 correspond with their second temple.) See Hottinger, Thet, Phil., p. 
 521 ; and Castell's & Buxtorf's Lexicons, at these words. But we are 
 
3tJ CAXOA' OF ThK old TEStAMENT* §. 6. *. 
 
 3. Even "Supposititious Writings," (Pseudepigrapha,) \\ei*e 
 sometimes called apocryphal, from similar considerations, as 
 no publick use would be admitted, of such miserable produc- 
 tions as the Books of Adam, Methuselah, Enoch, and the like, (n) 
 Finally, canonical and inspired having been used as syno- 
 nymes, by an apocryphal book was understood 
 
 4. " A writing not inspired." The word acquired this 
 sense at a very late period, and perhaps not before Jerome. 
 He writes, however, in his preface to Tobit : Libruni 
 Tobiae, quern Hebraei de catalogo divinarum scripturarum 
 secantes, his, qua3 apocrypha memorant, manciparunt. 
 [ The Book of Tobit, which the Hebrews, removing it from 
 the Catalogue of Sacred Scriptures, have transferred to these, 
 which they call apocrypha. TV. ] 
 
 §. 7. ■ 
 
 Reviezi^ of this division of the Books of the Old Testament into 
 Canonical arid Apocryphal. 
 
 Thus varied in signification are the words canonical and 
 apocryphal. On this account, the learned of modern times, 
 who have entered into investigations of the Canon of the Old 
 Testament, might have been expected only with accuracy to 
 determine what signification they adopted. Unfortunately, 
 this has not always been the case, and hence their investiga- 
 tions have often been devoid of the precision required. 
 
 It might have been desirable, that the expression Canon, 
 on this account, had never been used in reference to the Old 
 Testament. A word so various in signification must give 
 rise to misapprehensions ; and unhappily, the most that it has 
 
 not to believe for this reason, that the ancient Jews understood by VU 
 a book not canonical. 
 
 (n) Athanasius, in the Synopsis S. S., T. ii. p. 154. A number of 
 passages, that are here appropriate as illustrations, Fabricius has col- 
 lected in his Cod. Pseudep. V. T. ; T. ii. p. 30a 
 
CANOX OP THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 7. 37 
 
 received, in the lapse of time, have been inappropriate to the 
 Old Testament. 
 
 1. If by the Canon of the Old Testament was understood 
 the " Collection of sacred and inspired writings of the Jews 
 in the period before the birth of Christ," then this was a sigi- 
 nification which most Christian Writers did not understand 
 by it ; and difficulties upon difficulties arrested the inquirer, 
 who examined the Fathers on the Canon of the Old Testa- 
 ment. He found, for instance, that Judith, Tobit, 2 Books of 
 Maccabees, 5 Books of Solomon, and others, were enumerated 
 among the CanoniccB Scriptures, (o) Alarmed at this ap- 
 pearance, he either gave up the whole investigation; or 
 he was even willing to carry it on, did he but derive 
 from it the conclusion : our present Canon may have been 
 of recent origin, and not determined in ancient times, as re- 
 gards all its portions, large and small, (p) 
 
 2. Or, if by the Canon 'of the Old Testament was under- 
 stood the " Books of the Jews before the time of Christ, that 
 were permitted to be read in publick ;" this signification again, 
 in reference to the Old Testament, is neither appHcable nor 
 adequate. Among whom could the reading of these Scrip- 
 tures have been allowed ? Among Jews or Christians ? 
 
 Among Jews ? In this case, there might have been nothing 
 more uncertain, than the number of the books deemed ca- 
 nonical ; for they did not use as synonymes, canonical 
 books, and books to he puhlickly read. The Song of 
 Solomon, for instance, they regarded as a sacred national 
 writing, and yet it had been forbidden to make a pub- 
 lick use of it in the synagogues ! {q) There ought to have 
 
 (o) CoNciL. Cakthag. 3. Can. 47. of the year 397. ''Placuit, ut 
 praeter canonicas scriptiiras nihil in ecclesia legatur sub nomine scriptu- 
 rarum divinarum ; sunt autem canonic^ scriptures : Genesis, Exodus/ 
 Leviticus, Numeri, Deuteronomium, Jesus Nave, Judicum, Ruth, Regno ^ 
 rum libri3., Job, Psalmorum unus, Salomonis libri quinque, libri 12 pro- 
 phetarum minorum, item lesaias, Jeremias, Ezech., Daniel, Tobias, 
 Judith, Esdrae libri 2., Maecabaeorum libri 2. 
 
 (p) Semler's Treatise on a free esamination of the Canon, [ quoted 
 before in note (l). ] Th. i. S. 14. s. 
 
 {q) Origex, in his ^raf. ad Canlic. Canlicontm. 
 
38 CA^'ON OP THE OLD TESTAA^ENT, §. 7. 8. 
 
 been admitted into the Canon, in this case, only the Five 
 Books of Moses, the Prophets, and the Book of Esther, which 
 was read with pecuhar solemnities on the feast of Purim ; but 
 not the Psalms, not the Proverbs, not Job, and the Historical 
 Books, 
 
 Was it among Christians then ? In this case, the Canon 
 of the Old Testament might have been yet more uncertain. 
 It might have been settled — at a time, when it could no 
 longer be known, which books were to be esteemed canoni- 
 cal ; for it might have been reduced to order after the lapse 
 of the first ages that followed the birth of Christ : — among a 
 class of men, from which could be expected no sure deter- 
 mination of the Canon of the Old Testament ; for it must 
 be determined, not by Christians, but by Jews : — without 
 settled principles, by which the authority of a book could be 
 examined ; for the New Testament does not pronounce upon 
 the subject. The selection depended, therefore, upon mere 
 caprice, and was directed, it may be, by pious considerations 
 which are often very doubtful, or else by uncertain authorities. 
 In fine, if we examine the existing Catalogues of the Writings 
 of the Old Testament, permitted to be publickly read among 
 Christians, we find even Judith, and Tobit, and other writings 
 inserted, which, for various reasons, can be allowed no ca- 
 nonical authority. — So unstable is the foundation, on which is 
 commonly reared the important investigation of the Canon of 
 the Old Testament ! 
 
 §.8. 
 
 In what sense Canoij op the Old Testament is understood, 
 in this investigation. 
 
 We proceed, therefore, in our examination of the subject, 
 merely from that time, when Christ and his Apostles, in their 
 teaching, pointed back to the instruction which had been re- 
 corded in the Old Testament. At that period, there was in 
 Palestine a Collection, which made up a complete whole, and, 
 
CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 8. 9. 39 
 
 in the New Testament, was sometimes comprised under the 
 appellation Scripture, or Holy Scriptures ; sometimes para- 
 phrased by Law and Prophets, or by Law, Prophets, and 
 Psalms. * We shall consider this Collection the Canon .f the 
 Old Testament. In this view, we set aside all theological ajid 
 doctrinal considerations, and our investigation becomes, as it 
 should be — merely historical, (r) 
 
 Of the Egyptian and Palestine Canon m general. 
 
 After the Babylonian captivity, the Jews were divided, m 
 reference to the principal countries of their settlement, into 
 Egyptian and Palestine. In both, they had a Collection of 
 sacred national writings. And it is worth while to inquire, 
 whether this Collection was of the same or of a different ex- 
 tent in the two countries, and what books and how many it 
 may have contained, both in Egypt, and also in Palestine. 
 
 According to our purpose, (§. 8.) we must indeed recur 
 principally to Palestine, and endeavour to ascertain the con- 
 stituent parts of the Palestine Canon, at the time of Christ 
 and the Apostles. An examination of the Egyptian Canon, 
 therefore, might seem needless ; particularly as the question 
 
 * [ The Scriptures of the 0. T. are called ^ >§«?«, " the Scripture," 
 John, X. 35. compare 34; .i Tim. iii. 16; U^d y^sL/ufjiaTet, "Holy 
 Scriptures," ii Tim. in. 15 ; o vd/uos Knit cj v^ixpiirctt " the Law 
 and the Prophets," Acts. xiii. 15; o v6/uo5 Maxrias, Kat tt^of^rsti, ndi 
 ■^aXfAot, the Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms. Luke, xxiv. 44. Storr, 
 in his Doctrinal Theology {translated by Prof. Schmitcker) Vol. i. B. i. 
 §. 14, has a concise and admirable view of the argument from the New 
 Testament, that the Jewish Canon, in the time of Christ and the 
 Apnstles, contained the same books which now constitute our O. T. 
 Scriptures. Tr. ] 
 
 (r) The Canon oj the O. T. ; a Treatise in Camerer's Theological & 
 Critical Essays, (Theologischea und kritischen Versuchen.) Stutt^ard, 
 1794. 8. 
 
40 CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 9. 
 
 in regard to that of Palestine would not yet have been settled ; 
 granting that we might be able to present a complete account 
 of the former. Yet without tliis, the history of the Canon 
 would remain defective : without this, we should be neces- 
 sarily deprived of many illustrations, in investigating the 
 Canon of Palestine. In fine, if a complete account of the 
 Egyptian Canon were to be found any where, and were it to 
 agree in all its parts with that of Palestine ; then, to the satis- 
 faction of every inquirer after truth, we should have a decisive 
 answer to the important question : Had the Jews, before the 
 time of Christ, a Collection settled as to all its parts great and 
 small, or a complete Canon ? 
 
 But should there be discovered, neither now nor henceforth, 
 such fragments of the Alexandrian Canon, that a complete 
 whole may be collected from them, it were truly ever to be 
 lamented, that rapacious time even here manifested its destruc- 
 tive influence. But the contents of the Canon will not, on 
 this account, be more uncertain. Should even traces be per- 
 ceived, that the Egyptian Jews might evidently have had 
 Apocryphal writings in their Canon, these would be just as 
 little raised to the authority of canonical books on this ac- 
 count, as the Apocrypha, which the authority of the Fathers 
 placed among the Canoniccs ScripiurcB. (§. 7.) The ques- 
 tion does not relate to Ecclesiastical Fathers, but Jews, and 
 especially Jews of Palestine. (§. 8.) Just as the Samari- 
 tans, by certain incidents, acquired a false Joshua, which 
 they ranked with the Five Books of Moses ; so indeed 
 might similar incidents in Eygpt have elevated to a place 
 among the Canonical Books, one or several that were apo- 
 crypha. 
 
'CANON P*' THE OLD I'ES-V AMEUt, §. 10. \X 
 
 L The Egyptian' and Palestine Jews had the 
 
 SAME CaNON', 
 
 . 10. 
 
 •First ground of Conjeciurt. 
 
 Still it is very probable from many considerations, that the 
 Canon of the Old Testament in Egypt and that in Palestine 
 were similar. 
 
 I. The relation, in wliich the Jews in the two countries 
 stood to each other, readily admits of this presumption. Both, 
 although at no period in an intimate, were yet always in some 
 connexion, and thus at times in a rehgious fellowship, {s) Both 
 were emulous to be entirely alike. The Egyptians built a 
 temple, after the model of the temple at Jerusalem, and with 
 the same solemnities practised their religion there. In their 
 synagogues, the Egyptians read the Five Books of Moses as 
 in Palestine. But when an intolerant edict of Antiochus 
 Epiphanes banished the use of the books of Moses from the 
 synagogues in Palestine, and they began there, from necessity, 
 to read out of the Prophets ; and afterward, when the in- 
 
 (s) Notwithstanding the jealousy that prevailed between the Jews in 
 the two countries, the religious fellowship proceeded sometimes to a re- 
 markable extent. Thus Philo himself, the celebrated writer, was once 
 sent to Jerusalem, to present offerings in the temple there, in the name 
 of his brethren. Philo, T. 2. 0pp. p. 646. ed. Mang.; or in Euse- 
 Bios praep. ecang. lib. viii. c. 14. p, o'JS. ed. Paris. T»f lu^lus iiti BxKaLvrti 
 TTohli Wiv, 'AT*«X£rV oyojux- jSi'd^KgiOf b ^^vryi kx6' o» ^^6vot il; to Trxr^aov 
 
 /i^ov 8r«?X5/X)»v 6v^6v.itci T.6 Ksti (ivcraav. tlixiyjtv^i Tt Tri>.UxSav v\tiQc( 
 
 iSa*o-iu«y ^Yet this was something extraordinary, as the Egyptian 
 
 Jews had their own temple ; and after its erection, offerings were made 
 there, as in the temple at Jerusalem. And I know not how to believe, 
 that the Egyptian Jews should have ordinarily sent offerings to Jeru- 
 salem, as HoRNEMA>-N assumcs, dt canone Philonis, p. 10. The Jews of 
 Home, and Italy in general might do so, because they had no temple in 
 ^b.o?e parts; but this reason does not apply to lb'? Jeus in Egvpf-. 
 
42 CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 10. IL 
 
 terdiction ceased, read on every Sabbath both Moses and 
 the Prophets ; the emulation of the Egyptian Jews did not 
 admit of their being behindhand in these particulars. In fine, 
 Jerusalem was constantly the city, to which the Jews traced 
 every thing ; the manners and customs of that place were the 
 originals which they always copied ; it was the rallying point 
 of all Jews who were dispersed in Europe, Asia, and Africa — 
 and thus too of the Egyptian. (/) In such circumstances, 
 should we not conjecture, {u) that the Jews in the two countries 
 might have agreed, in regard to the Collection of their ancient 
 sacred national books ? 
 
 §. 11. 
 
 Second ground of Conjecture, 
 
 II. Jesus the Son of Sirach and PniLO.the New Testa- 
 ment and Josephus, writers of Palestine and Egypt therefore^ 
 
 (/) The fact is well known. However, I refer to Hornemann, de 
 canone Phil. p. 8., who has shown this by some passages from Philo. 
 0pp. T. II. p. 524. Mang. p. 971. ed. Frank/. [ This reference is very- 
 apposite. " A single region cannot contain the Jews, on account of 
 their multitude. Wherefore, they inhabit the most numerous and 
 flourishing of those in Europe and Asia, both islands and continentsF; 
 considering the Holy City, {ti^ciroxiv), (in which stands the sacred 
 temple of the Most High God,) as their metropolis." TV. ] 
 
 (m) Thus it stands word for word in the former editions. It is not in- 
 tended, by the above reasoning, to prove any thing;; not to decide as a 
 judge ; it is only intended to derive from it the conjecture, that the Egyp- 
 tian and the Palestine Canon may have been of like extent. If then the 
 Zurich Library, Th. i. S. 178. objects: "Notwithstanding the uni(y 
 of the Palestine and Egyptian Jews, yet the Alexandrian synagogues 
 might boast of a more extensive collection of the sacred writings, 
 among which were even writings of Enoch, Moses, &c. ;" what shall be 
 said in reply? A might is objected, the denial of which could not enter 
 the mind of any one. The Egyptian synagogues, it is alleged, might in» 
 deed have boasted of a more extensive collection of the sacred writing?, 
 although no trace of it is found. The spurious writings of Enoch and 
 Moses are named, as if these may have been received into their 
 synagogues, although there is not the remotest cause, even for conjec- 
 turing this ? What, in such circumstances, may lie eaid in reply ^ 
 
 ■♦ 
 
CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 11. i^V 
 
 agree in calling their ancient sacred books by a periphrasis, 
 if not in the same words ^ yet in accordance with the main sub- 
 ject and contents, by the name " Law, prophets, and other 
 writings." 
 
 1. Jesus, the Grandson of Sirach, after his arrival in Egypt, 
 about the year 140 before the birth of Christ, translated the 
 precepts of his Grandfather from Hebrew into Greek. And 
 in the Former Prologue, (of which, if we may decide from in- 
 ternal evidences, he is the author), he speaks of the sacred 
 books of his nation, which had been translated into Greek 
 even before his time, and he calls them : " Laiv, Prophets, and 
 the rest of the Books ^ " Let me entreat you," he says, (r) 
 " to read it, (2. e. his translation) with favour and attention, 
 and to pardon us, wherein we may seem to come short of 
 some words which we have laboured to interpret. For 
 the same things uttered in Hebrew, and translated into another 
 tongue, have not the same force in them : and not only these 
 things, but the law itself, and the prophets, and the rest of the 
 books have no small difference, when they are spoken in their 
 own language." (w) The Collection of the Hebrew Books is 
 
 (t;) In the Former Prologue tojutf, k^i al ?rgo<^»Ts7at/, Kxt tx 
 
 i^itTTA Tar ^ifihimi ab (xu^iv t^^ii tyii J*i«?«gair sr jotj/TcTc Xiyo^uiv*. That 
 this Prologue must be very ancient, appears from this, among other rea- 
 sons, that we find in it the Hagiographa, (CD'3=inD,) called by a peri- 
 phrasis ra A6i:rx Tuv 0i0\iaiv, [the rest of the books. ] Before the birth 
 of Christ, there was no general name, w'hich comprehended all those 
 writings, that are now called Hagiographa. They must, therefore, have 
 always been named by a periphrasis. [ In H.E. G. Paulus' Repertory 
 for Biblical and Oriental Literature, (Repertoriuai fiir bibl. und orient. 
 Litteratur^, Vol. ii. Article v., pp. 225 — 247, is a comprehensive and 
 able Dissertation (in German) by Dr. Storr, on the earliest division of 
 the books of the O. T. See also our author's Introd. to the 0. T., Vol. 
 1. §. 8 ; Jahn's Introd. to the O. T., P. i. $ §. 1. 103. Bertholdt's 
 Introd. to the O. & N. T. (in German) Vol. i. § §. 18. 19; and De 
 Wette's Introd. to the Bible, Vol. i. $ §. 7. 10. Tr. ] 
 
 (w) Thus, Jesus the Son of Sirach clearly distinguishes the moral 
 sentences of his grandfather, (this apocryphal book as it is called), fronj 
 the Law, the Prophets, and the rest of the Books. Can he therefore have 
 reckoned the Hehreio original of the precepts among the rest of tfp& 
 Bookg, (a§ be emitles the H^giograpKa.) or have only conjectured, that 
 
44 CANON OF TIJE OLl> T/KSTAMENT, §. 11. 
 
 set forth in this representation, just as it existed at that time in 
 a Greek Version made in Egypt ; nothing is more probable, 
 therefore, than that in this passage we have to look for a peri- 
 phrasis of the Canon of the Egyptian Jews. 
 
 In another passage of this Prologue, the translator com- 
 mends Iiis grandfather, for the study of the " Law, the Prophets, 
 and the rest of the Books " of his nation, (x) Now his grand- 
 father lived in Palestine, and studied the Palestine Canon. 
 As he here speaks, therefore, of the Palestine Canon, as well 
 as of the Egyptian, in the very same words, does it not follow, 
 that the Jews in both countries may have had the same Canon T 
 If that of Palestine was different from that of Egypt, then Jesus 
 the Son of Sirach must have been led to take hotice of this, 
 by adding a word or two, or by changing the expression, that 
 he might speak the more distinctly for his immediate readers 
 the Egyptians. 
 
 2. According to Philo of Alexandria, the Therapeutae, a 
 fanatical sect of Jews in Egypt, read in their religious as- 
 semblies, not the fanatical writings of the founders of their 
 sect, but — " Holy Scriptures," as the " Law, Oracles of the 
 Prophets, Psalms of Praise to God, and other Books, by which, 
 knowledge and the fear of God are promoted and perfect- 
 ed." iy) Here Philo speaks, not indeed of the sacred books 
 
 his translation would in future be enumerated among them ? This an- 
 cient passage is refutation enough of the might of the Zurich Library, 
 Th. I. S. 177: "Which is proved by the appellation Moses, the Prophets, 
 and Writings, since under this title ( i. e. urilings), might be compre- 
 hended all pscudepigrapha and apocryphal writings of recent times." 
 What a nothing is a mere possibility, when there are in opposition to it 
 very probable considerations! 
 
 (jx) 'the Former Pre Icgiie : b irsLTint f/.cu 'Ixtf-ouc h) ttXuov tdvrov J'cvi 
 itc T* nh TeS fOfAcu K'it toay Tr^opHra^v xdi tuv etAAav TroLt^iuy fii^Kiuv 
 dtayyoffiv. [ My grandfather Jesus, being much devoted to the study of 
 the Law, and the Prophets, and the other books of our fathers. Tr.] 
 (i;) Philo dc Vita CorAcmpl. 0pp., T. ii, p. 476. ed Mang. p. 893. ed. 
 Frankf. '£» eKar» <ri oiKict (according to the Frankf. ed. i^as-do ii 
 Irrii einnfjict) ligoy, o K*\urai aifxxiiii jta?/ f/ovarinptov, h a' fAovSufAtvet Tci 
 row ffi^vou /3/ou fxv^rigiA rtxouvrat, fA«itv ilfKofJ-i^o^Tt;, fAti trotof, fci» 
 
*SflcANON or Tlifi OLD TESTAMENT, §. ij:. 45 
 
 of the Egyptian Jews in general j but only of those, which the 
 fanatical Therapeutae held sacred, and introduced into their 
 religious assemblies. But that the Therapeutae did not differ 
 from the other Egyptian Jews, in regard to their sacred books, 
 is evinced by the strict accordance of this periphrasis of the 
 Canon, with that given by Jesus the Son of Sirach, and by the 
 Palestine writers. 
 
 3. In the same manner that Jesus the Son of Sirach divides 
 the Egyptian Canon into three parts, and thence entitles it ; 
 so does the New Testament divide the Palestine Canon into 
 the " Law, Prophets and Psalms." Luke, xxiv. 44. 
 
 4. And with the Therapeutae in Egypt, Josephus also very 
 minutely accords, in his description of the Palestine Canon. 
 According to him, it contained " the Books of Moses, the 
 Prophets, Psalms of praise to God, and writings on moral 
 subjects." (z) 
 
 Although it does not admit of being absolutely demonstrated 
 from these considerations, that the Canon was the same in the 
 two countries ; yet it may hence be very probably conjectured. 
 To attain greater certainty on the subject, we will endeavour 
 to describe the Canon of the Egyptian and that of the Pales* 
 tine Jews, separately, from their own writers. 
 
 axxflt 1 6 fit V s KAi xlyiA Qiayria-Bhrci S'ldi it ^o ^ n t St v Kit v /ut v o v e 
 Kit T i £ \KA, oic hiTinH KXt ti/TiJiiia vvvaiu^ovrxi nit Ttxttov*ra.t 
 , . . . . 'Evruyj(^itofrts yi^ rait ti^oic y^x/u/xta-t, 9iASffO(^oy«-/ riiv ir«Tgiof 
 flXoaopiAV, ct'A.A«)/Ogou»Ttc. eTTuS'p vvfx&oKa rai Twr ^»tmc igjuijt/ac ro/Ut- 
 ^Qvri ^unaii u.ziiiU.^u(A(JLm^, h virovoixtt J'uKov/uiiviK. 'En tTi abrolc 
 itxt auyy^iufA.oiTA na\*tce* dv^^uf, oT TWf «ijg«a-iac dk^^)iyi'rai ytvdfjctyet 
 rrawi fAiH(xUa T»c h TO<c <tKKnyo^QUfA.aoti li'i*t eiTriMntt. [ Each com- 
 munity has a sacred house, called a sanctuary or monastery, in 
 which recluses devote themselves to the mysteries of the holy life. 
 They take nothing into it, neither food, nor drink, nor such other tilings 
 as are required for the use of the body ; but laws, and oracles divinely 
 communicated by the prophets, and hymns, and the other (books), 
 
 by which knowledge and piety are promoted and perfected They 
 
 study the Sacred Scriptdres. They have also 
 
 compositions of ancient worthies, who, being founders of their sect, left 
 
 many records Tr.] 
 
 («) JosEPHus contra Ap., lib. i. $ 8. [ See the passage cited below, 
 
46 CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 12. 13. 
 
 II. Canon of the Jews in Egypt. 
 
 §. 12. 
 
 Sources. 
 
 We collect, first of all, the testimonies of the Canon of the 
 Egyptians from Egyptian Jews. Especial care, not to wan- 
 der in inextricable labyrinths, requires that we here altogether 
 omit the opinions of the Egyptian Christians on the Canon 
 of the Old Testament. These are too recent to bear formal 
 testimony ; without settled principles, and from capricious 
 views, they merely pronounce opinions on the value of parti- 
 cular books of the Old Testament, and the use which may be 
 made of them ; and such opinions can be of no decisive 
 weight. (§. 7.) Hence too, as we learn from Origen, Jerome, 
 Ruffin, and Augustine, they admired apocryphal books, which, 
 among the Egyptian Jews, as we shall see below, were held 
 in no repute whatever. 
 
 We cannot therefore use as sources, from which to derive 
 our account of the Egyptian Canon, even the fathers that have 
 been named; but merely the Alexandrian Version of the 
 Old Testament, and Philo. 
 
 §. 13. 
 
 I. Alexandrian Version. 
 
 The Alexandrian Version is here mentioned, because it 
 has been used in modern times, as a source ; in my view, it is 
 inadmissable. (a) 
 
 («) Chr. FriDv Schmidh historia antiqua et vindic. Canonis V. e\ 
 N. r. p. 12r, 
 
CANON OP THE OLD TESTAMENT, ^. 13. 4!tI 
 
 L It is asserted, that the Alexandrian Version, in the most 
 ancient times, may have contained only as many books as we 
 now commonly enumerate in the Canon of the Old Testa- 
 ment. — This, however, has not hitherto been proved, but 
 only decided by authorities. And whence was it to be 
 proved ? " From the accounts of the origin of the Alex- 
 andrian Version ? " — because Eleazar may have sent to Egypt 
 a Hebrew MS. (for the forming of this Version,) of which, 
 however, we shall be left to conjecture, that it was transcrib- 
 ed from a genuine copy in Jerusalem, which contained all 
 our present canonical books ? — But is it even certain, that 
 Eleazar was under the necessity of sending to Egypt a Hebrew 
 MS., for the use of the Alexandrian translators, as the roman- 
 cer Aristeas pretends ? [h) Yet granting, that his account of 
 a copy directed from Jerusalem to Egypt might be correct — 
 is it not again asserted, what should first be proved, that the 
 Palestine Canon may have then contained just as many books 
 as we now enumerate in it ? What reasoning in a circle ! — 
 Nay, if we meant to conclude any thing from the account 
 given by Aristeas and his Epitomist Josephus : it would fol- 
 low, that only the five books of Moses belonged to the Ca- 
 non of the Alexandrians. For according to Aristeas and 
 Josephus, Eleazar is alleged to have sent to Egypt a manu- 
 script of the V fA g only, the pentateuch ; even Philo allows, 
 that at first, only the five books of Moses were translated. 
 
 2. The Alexandrian Version was gradually formed, at 
 diflferent times, from different inducements, and by differ- 
 ent learned men. If it had already been decided by other 
 testimonies, that all the books, which our editions of the Bible 
 contain, might have possessed canonical authority from the 
 most ancient times, and that they might have actually been 
 translated, all, at one time, by an individual, or by an associa- 
 tion of learned Jews in Egypt : then would the conclusion be 
 
 (6) HoDY, dt bibliorum text. 4>ng. ; wad J. G. Eichhoris's Repert, 
 Th. I. S. 266. ss.— [ See also Prideaux, Connex. P. ii. B. i. An. 277 : 
 and WaiSToy, AutheniicI: Renords, P. ii. p. 493 , Lond., 1727. Tr. "] 
 
48 CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. VS, 
 
 in a measure probable, that, on that account, they may have 
 been presented to the Egyptian Jews, at one time, in a Ver- 
 sion ; as hke value and like authority may have been attribut- 
 ed to them. But this has not been the case ; and the book of 
 Isaiah, for example, w^hich however must necessarily have been 
 a part of our Canon from the very first, was extant in Greek 
 at a much more recent date than the books of Moses. 
 
 3. And if even all might have been translated at once, yet 
 then, an inference of their complete canonical authority, found- 
 ed on this, would rest upon an unstable foundation and basis. 
 For the original occasion of this work is unknown. If the 
 desire of the Jews, to be able, in tlieir own synagogues, to 
 read the books of their religion in the Greek language, might 
 have led to this Version ; then only could it have been pre- 
 sumed, not without some foundation, that merely the canonical 
 would have been selected, and that the uncanonical, at least 
 those at hand, would have been deemed worthy of no transla- 
 tion. But all antiquity pronounces it an undertaking, merely 
 literary. Ptolemy Philadelphus wished to have reposited in 
 his library, the — books of the Mosaick Law, or the Jewish 
 Scriptures in general ? — translated indeed into Greek, be- 
 cause the original was not understood by the Greeks in Egypt ; 
 and with such a purpose, many apocryphal writings must have 
 been just as important to him as any inspired book, which, in 
 the library of a heathen, had no preference to one merely 
 human. 
 
 4. In fine, some of our apocryphal writings, in a transla- 
 tion, vfere actually put into the hands of the Egyptian Jews, 
 at a very early date : for example, the sentences of Jesus 
 Sirach, the Epistle of Mordecai, concerning the Feast .of 
 Purim, &c. (c) 
 
 (c) See the Former Prologue to Jesus Sirach; and then the Greek 
 Version of the book of Esther, at the end. [ On the subjects in this 
 section, Eichhorn is very able, in his Introduction to the 0. T., Vol. i. 
 ^. 161 — 183., and in his Repertory, (as quoted in the preceding note,) 
 Vol. I,, the concluding article, (in German), On the Sources, from which 
 the different accounts of the rise of the Alexandrian Version have been de- 
 
CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 13. 14. 49 
 
 Let it not be objected, that if this version had not com- 
 prised strictly all canonical Scriptures, with a rejection of 
 all apocryphal, it could have acquired no such general 
 authority. For it is known, that the Alexandrian Version 
 was half deified, on account of a prevailing story, that the 
 fipirit of inspiration rested upon the translators ! 
 
 i 14. 
 
 II. Pm LO. Flourished ^. i>. 4 1 . 
 
 Philo of Alexandria * is the only source remaining, from 
 which we can draw, for our investigation of the contents of 
 the Alexandrian Canon. He lived just at the time, from 
 which our investigation commences ; at the time of Christ 
 and the Apostles, (§. 8.) Now he gives us indeed, no where 
 in his writings, a full account of the Canon of the Old Testa- 
 ment ; but here and there, in passing, he throws out, as if by 
 the way, separate declarations, which evince to us his opinion, 
 and probably even the opinion of his brethren, on the value 
 and the authority of particular books of the Old Testament. 
 
 rived. See also Jahn's Introduction to the O. T., P. i. $. 34 — 37; 
 Horne's Introd., Vol. ii. P. i. Ch. v. S. i; and Bertholdt's Introduc- 
 tion, Vol. II. $. 155 — 159. For an ample account of the best works, on 
 the principal topicks suggested by the Alexandrian Version, particularly 
 on the Letter of Aristeas, its editions, translations, authenticity, and the 
 publications which illustrate it ; and on the Criticism and Exegesis of 
 the Septuagint in general, see E. F. C. Rosenmuller's Manual for the 
 Literature of Biblical Criticism and Exegesis, (in German)^ Vol. ir., on 
 the Alexandrian Version, Part in. Ch. i — v. pp. 344—458., GUtlingen^ 
 1798. Tr. ] 
 
 * [ De Wette, in the Introduction to his Archaiology, (in German), 
 §. 8., supplies a series of the best references, on the credibility and the 
 Hebrew learning of Philo. See also Eichhorn's Introd. to the O. T., 
 Vol. II. $. 339. a; and Horne's Introd., Vol. n. P. i. Ch. vii, S, m. 
 — 7V.1 
 
50 CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 14. 15. 
 
 Yet they are nothing but scattered fragments ; and no whole 
 can be recovered from them: yet these fragments must 
 be extremely useful to us, in the want of other more com- 
 plete accounts. 
 
 §. 15. 
 
 1. Philo on the Apocrypha. 
 
 Philo was acquainted with the apocryphal writings of the 
 Old Testament ; for he borrows phrases from them. But 
 he does not even once cite a single one, much less allegorize 
 them, or establish by them his views, (d) Thus, the fact that 
 he takes no notice of them, did not proceed from unacquaint- 
 ance with them, which might scarce have been supposed in 
 regard to a man of such extensive reading ; but probably be- 
 cause he esteemed them lightly, and — is it too hasty a con- 
 clusion, if I add ? — because he did not place them among the 
 Scriptures, which his age regarded as holy and divine. For 
 his neglect of them goes very far. He does not once pay 
 them that deference which he shows to a Plato, Philolaus, 
 Solon, Hippocrates, Heraclitus, and others, from whose writ- 
 ings he often inserts whole passages. («) 
 
 (d) Thus positive are the words of Hornemann, (observationes ad 
 illustrationem doctrinae de canone V. T. ex Philone, p. 28. 29.) ; and as 
 he asserts, that he read Philo's writings throughout, with a view to as- 
 certain his opinion of the Canon, he has a right to expect, that no doubt 
 may be raised upon his positive declaration. I shall therefore chiefly 
 follow him in this section, with the exception of some of his views, in 
 regard to which I am of a different opinion : — as to the others, his obser- 
 vations shall be enlarged by additions. 
 
 (e) The Zurich Library, (Th. i. S. 178.) objects : " Philo does not 
 " cite the Apocrypha. But as little as his silence on some canonical 
 " Scriptures proves, that they were not in the Canon of the Egyptian 
 " Jews ; so little does his silence on the Apocrypha prove this of them." 
 Entirely correct: an argument derived from silence no one will call 
 strong; but it does not deserve, however, to be passed over. Still it is 
 
CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 15. 51 
 
 Whoever examines the Indexes to the editions of Philo, 
 particularly the edition of Mange y, will find in them, it is 
 true, so many passages quoted from the Apocryphal writings 
 of the Old Testament, that Philo might seem to have made 
 great use of them. Yet the passages cited in the Indexes, 
 here as well as elsewhere, are very deceptive. Some refer 
 
 certainly a remarkable fact, that Philo quotes no one of our apocryphal 
 hooks, although they were so near to him, and the contents, at least of 
 of one, was so well suited to his purpose. Had there been none adapt- 
 ed to his spirit of allegorizing : what could be founded upom their not 
 being used ? But now, his silence concerning thera must at least attract 
 attention to such. 
 
 " The circumstance proves, that Philo never quotes these books, but 
 " not that he rejects them. Some, perhaps, that were most congenial 
 " with his meditations, had not yet been published ; as the Wisdom of 
 " Solomon, (which some are so ready to ascribe to him.)" And yet the 
 Author asserts in the very next page, that even Josephus may have met 
 with the Wisdom of Solomon, the third book of Esdras, Tobit, Baruch, 
 Additions to Daniel and Esther, appended to the Greek Bible. And the 
 Grecian Jew, Philo, was not acquainted with the books : the so well- 
 read Philo was so unread in the writings of his own nation ! ! ! 
 
 " Others," the Author proceeds, " he never had occasion to quote ;" 
 — which certainly is very probable, of many apocryphal, as it is of some 
 canonical books. " Furthermore, he might reject the Apocrypha, with- 
 " out therefore deciding on the opinion of the Grecian Synagogue con- 
 " cerning them. Even the historical contents of the Sacred Scrip- 
 " tures he did not highly esteem, and his way of thinking, as he 
 " had formed it by the Platonick Philosophy, was perhaps as diflFer- 
 " ent from the way of thinking among other Jews, as that of Maimo- 
 •' nides, Orobius, and Moses Mendelssohn, from the views and opinions 
 ** of their Jewish cotemporaries." But did he dare in this case to pro- 
 raulge it in writings ? Did he dare to depart from the faith of his whole 
 nation, without incurring the severe consequences of a grievous heresy ? 
 Have the Jews of superior intelligence who are named, and any not 
 named, publickly promulged in writings their departure from their na- 
 tion's faith ; or have they done so without great opposition ? Besides, 
 it is indeed assumed only as probable, that his opinion of the Canon may 
 have been the national opinion; his scattered expressions, indeed, are 
 collected, only with a view to ascertain what the most learned and 
 famous man among the Alexandrain Jews thought of the Hebrew Scrip- 
 tures ; and as there are no traces of his having departed, in writings, 
 from the faith and opinions of his Ration, it is accordingly presum- 
 ed, that in hira maybe found even the opinions of his EevPTiAy cos- 
 TEMPORARIES T>n the Carron 
 
b*Z CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §i 1*^>. 16, 17. 
 
 merely to notes of the editor, in which sometimes a word, 
 sometimes a various reading is illustrated by a passage of an 
 apocryphal book ; (/ ) but sometimes such passages are re- 
 ferred to, because Philo has asserted something, either swii- 
 lar (g) or directly the reverse, (h) 
 
 §. 16. 
 
 2. Philo on the Canonical zuritings of the Old Testament. 
 
 HoRNEMANN arranges the books of the Old Testament, ac- 
 cording to the expressions used by Philo, in three classes : 
 
 1. Books, which arc cited wilh the express addition, that they wire of divine 
 origin. 
 
 2. BookSf which are but casually cited. 
 
 3. Books, which he never mentions. 
 
 We shall indeed here also collect Philo's opinions on the writ- 
 ings of the Old Testament, severally, in the order stated ; but 
 distinguish with precision those books that Philo does not 
 speak of decidedly, which Hornemann has not always done. 
 
 First Class. Writings, to which Philo attributes a 
 divine origin. 
 
 All the books, which are of divine origin according to 
 thilo, are in his phraseology works of Prophets. Yet he 
 does not always apply to the authors of such the appellation 
 
 (/) Hornemann, de eanone Philonis, has culled, from the Indexes, 
 (p. 31. note n.) the passages of this class, which, however, to save room, 
 I shall not transcribe. 
 
 (g) See the Collection of these passages at the place cited, p. 20. 
 note m. 
 
 (h) The sStne, p. 31. note mm. 
 
CANON OP THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 17. 5ii 
 
 ■TT^ocpiirvii [Prophet], but varies it for *^o(p>}T>)s dvi^^, is^ocpavrrjg, 
 ^S(fiei(fios oAJ'n^t Mwutfg'wg ^lafl'wTyjff, rig <rwv (poiriiTWV Mwrfscof, 
 Muv(feug kaT^og, tou flf^otpriTixoiJ ^jacTwriis x°^°^j [ prophetick man, 
 hierophant, holy man, associate of Moses, one of the attend- 
 ants of Moses, companion of Moses, member of the prophetick 
 choir], all of which, with him, are perfect synonymes of 
 'r^^o(pyirrig [ Prophet ]. 
 
 The books themselves he calls, sometimes U^ai y^acpai [ Sa- 
 cred Scriptures ], sometimes *£^a» /3i^Xo< [Sacred Books], 
 sometimes is^o^ Xoyo? [ Sacred Word ], sometimes le^wraTov 
 y^a/x.aa [ Most Sacred Writing ], sometimes ra k^o(pavrri^ivra. 
 [ the hierophant words ], sometimes <r^o(pr)Tixos "Koyog [ Prophe- 
 tick Word ] or ir^ospyiTixa ^rjiiara [ Prophetick Sayings ], some- 
 times Xoyjov [ Oracle ] alone, or Xoyjov rod 06ou [ Oracle of God ], 
 sometimes x^^<^f*°5 [ Response], or to x^tic^sv [ the Response ]. 
 With him all these are synonymes, as appears partly from 
 the expressions themselves, and partly from a comparison of 
 the passages where they occur. 
 
 To apprehend these expressions in the spirit of Philo, and 
 to be able thoroughly to investigate the opinions which they 
 convey, in regard to the sacred books of his nation, we must 
 here premise his exalted views of a prophet With him, 
 Prophets are interpreters of God {l^iiyimg tov 0eou), instruments 
 of God, which he employs to make known that which he 
 wishes to have made known. They deliver nothing that is 
 their own, but mere extraneous things, communicated to them 
 by God, through inward operations. As long as a prophet is 
 rapt, of himself he knows nothing ; if the divine spirit has only 
 first taken possession of him ; it then acts upon his soul, as 
 well as upon his organs of speech — upon the former to reveal 
 to it things unknown ; upon the latter, so that they give utter- 
 ance to those words which it imparts, (i) 
 
 (i) Philo de monarchia, lib. i. 0pp. Tom. i. p. 222. M. p. 820. Fr. 
 After having spoken of Moses, he proceeds: l^fjutvuc >*'g «io-/» ol sr^o- 
 
 De legibus special., 0pp. T. ii. p. 343. 7rge<j»)T»; ^i /uh -yd^ 
 
54 CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 17. 18. 
 
 In fine, according to his opinion, Moses was the greatest 
 prophet. If then Philo intends to speak of the inspiration of 
 any writer in very strong terms, he makes the prophetick 
 spirit of Moses the standard, by which he estimates the 
 prophetick spirit of that writer. Hence the expressions : 
 MwOrf5W5 ^raT^os, Mwurfs'wj ^la^wrrj?, rig rwv (poiT>jTwv Mwtfgw^, 
 [ companion of Moses, associate of Moses, one of the attend- 
 ants of Moses. ] 
 
 §. 18. 
 
 Tlie FIVE BOOKS OP MosES, Joshua, first book of Samuel, 
 
 Ezra. 
 
 Of MosES and his five books, Philo expresses himself in 
 very strong terms. He calls Moses, sometimes 'n'^o(pV'»is 
 [ Prophet ], sometimes Is^ocpavr^jg [ Hierophant ] (A:), and the 
 like ; his inspiration is the standard by which he estimates 
 the inspiration of other writers. (§. 17.) His writings he 
 calls *f o(pr)Tixoff Xoyd^ [ Prophetick Word ], or 'S^ai /3/,/3Xoi 
 
 oi/eTiv 'iS'toV airoepaiiiTiti {airoif ^tyyir a l) tc TntgctTfaV, aK\^ tV/v sg/u»v«yf 
 yryomt h dyioU, jutrttvtTAfAinu fjist tov xoyia-fxav kai ttoi gxKiXO'gx- 
 
 XOTOC T»y T»f 4''/t*'f AK^SltiKlV tTT tTT i^ IT HKdrOg /« KXl eVO/X«K!TeC TOV 
 
 3"i/oy TTViv/uAros, kxi nsirav T»y <pccv^; ogyaVoTroiity K^ovovrcg tT* K^t 
 tv»')(^oZyro( tl( iva^yti SHXeenv dv ir^oS-gcTT/^i/. Quis rerum dwin. haeres 
 sit, 0pp. T. 1. p. 510. M. p. 517. Fr. : ^rgo^wTwc >«*§ iS'tcv /^h ovSh 
 dTto<^b'iyytt(ti, aChhoT^tx cTe irxvr*, VTriix^ovvrot ersgoy. De praemiis 
 et poenis, 0pp. T. ii. p. 417. M. p. 918. Fr. f^iu>ivtvs yai^ Wiv h 
 
 (k) PfliLo Alleg., 1. II. 0pp. T. n. p. 66. M. p. 1087. Fr. o Tt^o<p»'ni:. 
 Alhg., 1. ni. 0pp. T. I. p. 117. M. p. 89. Fr. 6 »«go<;>*yT»f . ihid, 0pp. T. i. 
 p. 121. M. p. 92. Fr. b li^o<pdyTng kai jrgo(^>iT»?. 7^e gigant., 0pp. T. i. 
 p. 270. M. p. 291. Fr. o li^o<pdvT>i( o^ytaev KdLi MdcKeLXog B-tim, 
 Uc. HoRNEMANN, pp. 34. 35., has collected several passages, in which 
 the quoted expressions are varied for others of the same meaning, and 
 ^^hich, for the sake of brevity, I omit 
 
CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 18. 56' 
 
 [ Sacred Books ], &c. (/) He also allegorizes particular 
 passages of all the five books, and all citations from them are 
 made in the same exalted terms. Genesis he calls le^ai y^DLcpat 
 (Sacred Writings] (m); the second book of Moses Jff^d 
 ^i(3\os [ Sacred Book ] (n) ; the third Is^og Xoyog [ Sacred 
 Word ] (o) ; and the fourth le^wTarev y^afAj^a [ Most Sa- 
 cred Writing ] (p) ; and lastly, the fifth book, xf^<^f*°^ 
 [ Oracle ] (q) ; and is^os Xoyog [ Sacred Word ]. (r) 
 
 The book of Joshua is denominated Xo'yiov tou i'Xsw esou 
 [ Oracle of the Gracious God ], on the occasion when Ch. i. 
 5. ia, cited, {s) 
 
 From the first book of Samuel, which Philo, after the 
 manner of all writers who use the Septuagint, calls the first 
 book of Kings, Ch. ii. 2. is cited with the formula: ws o is^og 
 Xoyo5 (pr\(fh [ as the Sacred Word saith ]. (j) 
 
 From the book of Ezra Ch. viii. 2. is quoted, and the con- 
 tents of the cited passage are called : '^a. sv ^aifiKixaTs /?»/?- 
 Xoij ȣ^o(pavTti^c'vra [the hierophant words in the royal 
 books], (tt) 
 
 (Z) Allegor., lib. in. p. 92. M. p. 68. Fr. de Plant, Noe, 0pp. T. u 
 p. 347. M. p. 230. Fr. de congressu quaer. erudit. gratia, 0pp. T. i. p. 
 543. M. p. 448. Fr. 6 7r^o<pn'riKoc x6yo(. de vita Mods, lib. in. Opp, 
 T. II. p. 163. M. p. 681. Fr. Jig** fiijiKot. On this also, Hornemann 
 has several passages, p. 36., in which these expressions are varied for 
 others of like signification. 
 
 (m) De mundi Opif., 0pp. T. i. p. 18. M. p. 16. Fr. For similar ex- 
 pressions, see de Mrah., p. 1. T. n. M. p. 349. Fr. Resipuit Noe, T- h 
 p. 400. M. p. 28l.Fr., &c. 
 
 (n) De migrat. Abrah., 0pp. T. i, p. 438. M. p. 390. Fr., &c. 
 
 (o) Lib. III. Alleg.y T. i. 0pp. p. 85. M. p. 1007. Fr. Desomniis, 
 Opp. T. I. p. 63S. M. p. 377. Fr. 
 
 (p) De eo quod Deus sit immutab., Opp. T. i. p. 273. M. p. 249. Fr, 
 De migrat. Abrah., Opp. T. i. p. 457. M. p. 409. Fr. 
 
 (q) De migrat. Abr., Opp. T. i. p. 454. M. p. 405. Fr. 
 
 (r) De somniis, Opp. T. i. p. 657. M. p. 601. Fr. 
 
 is) De confus. ling., Opp. T. i. p. 430. M. p. 344. Fr. 
 
 (0 De temulent., Opp. T. i. p. 379. M. p. 261. Fr. 
 
 (a) De confus. Unguarum, Opp. T. i. p. 427. M, p. 341. Fr. 
 
56 CANON OP THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 19. 
 
 §. 19. 
 
 Isaiah, Jeremiah, Hosea, Zechariah, Psalms, 
 Proverbs. 
 
 The prophet Isaiah Philo calls o raXaj •3r'^o(p>jT»i5 [the 
 ancient Prophet], {v) and his prophecies cr^wpiiTJxa ^%aTa 
 [ Prophetick Sayings], (w) 
 
 Jeremiah he denominates ^^otp^jTrjj, iivgrisy Ie^o(pavTrjj, [Pro- 
 phet, Initiated, Hierophant ], and the passage Ch. in. 4. which 
 he adduces, he calls x^'^^M'O^ [ Oracle ]. {x) In another 
 place, Jeremiah is described as " a member of the prophetick 
 choir, who spake in ecstasy:" 'rou ir^oqivirmu Sja^wng^ X°^°^> 
 og xarairvsuo'&s/s ^vSouCjwv avscr^'hiy^aro. (y) And elsewhere he 
 says, that God, " the Father of all things, hath spoken by the 
 prophetick mouth of Jeremiah :" 6 irarr,^ twv oXwv ^^eWjo's 
 (^/d <3r'^o(p>)TJXou ^ojxarog Is^SfAiou). (2) 
 
 Of the Minor Prophets, two only are cited in the works 
 of Philo : Hose A and Zechariah. 
 
 HosEA XIV. 8. Philo calls xf^<^^=^ "^^i^- '^'vi twv <3r^o9*j<rwv 
 [an Oracle of a certain Prophet], (a) and Hos. xiv. 24. ^o^arj 
 'jr'^o^rjTix^ &gtf«3ritfSsvTa ^ja^u^ov -x^^rid^ov [the glowing oracle, ut- 
 tered by the prophetick mouth]. (6) Zechariah he deno- 
 minates, on citing Ch. VI. 13., MwuCtw^ kaT^og^ [companion 
 of Moses], (c) 
 
 The Psalms are largely quoted by Philo ; but, for the most 
 part, without the addition of their high origin. David is ho- 
 noured with the same epithets as Moses ; he is called, some- 
 
 (») De Somniis, Opp. T. i. p. 681. M. p. 1132. Fr. 
 (w) De mutat. nom., Opp. T. i. p. 604. M. p. 1071. Fr. 
 (x) De Cherubim, Opp. T. i. p. 147. 148. M. p. 116. Fr. 
 (3/) Dc confus. lingu.j Opp. T. i. p. 411. M. p. 326. Fr 
 (s) De profugis, Opp. T. i. p. 575. M. p. 479. Fr. 
 (a) Deplantat. Noe, Opp. T. i- p. 350. M. p. 233. Fr 
 (6) De mutat. nom., Opp. T. i. p 599. M. p. 1066. Fr 
 (cj De confus, lingu., Opp. T. i, p. 414. M. p. 329. Fr. 
 
CANON OV THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 19. 20. 57 
 
 times 'n:^o(p'i}rrig [ Prophet ], (d) sometimes -jf^oqj^jTirij dv7?V [ pro- 
 phetick man ], (e) sometimes ^scfie'Kftog dv?!^ [ holy man ], (/) 
 sometimes " associate of Moses, who was not an inferior :'' 
 Mcdufl'swg ^laifCirifis og oup^i rwv ^fjusXyifisvcov ^v ; (g-) sometimes iraroos 
 •MwUtfiwg. (h) 
 
 Of Solomon, as author of the Proverbs, he expresses him- 
 self just as highly. He calls him a member ^x rou &s»ou x^^S^^ 
 £ of the divine choir ], (i) and in another place tIs twv 9ojt>]twv 
 Mwtfiwff [ one of the attendants of Moses ]. (A) 
 
 §. 20. 
 
 Second Class. Writings of which Philo makes only casual 
 mention, without the addition of a divine origin. 
 
 From the book op Judges — ( *j twv p^yj^arwv dvay^acpofxsV/j 
 ^i^Xog [ the Record-book of the Judges ], Philo calls it — ) 
 Ch. VIII. 9. is quoted, according to the Septuagint. (/) 
 
 Job XIV. 4. he merely interweaves with his own text, with- 
 out further addition, (m) 
 
 The FIRST BOOK OF Kings, ( the third, according to Philo 
 and the Septuagint ) is repeatedly quoted, {n) 
 
 {d) De agricult., 0pp. T. i. p. 308, M. p. 195. Fr. 
 
 (e) Qmm rerum divin. hcEres dt, Opp. T. i. p. 515. M. p. 522. Fr. 
 
 (/) De plant. Noe, Opp. T. i. p. 344. M. p. 218. Fr. compare de mun- 
 do, Opp. T. u. p. 608. M. p. 1157. Fr. 
 
 (g) De plantat. Noe, ed. Fr. p. 219. 
 
 (h) ^uod a Deo mittantur somnia, Opp. T. i. p. 691. M. p. 1141. Fr. 
 
 (i) De cbrUtate, Opp. T. i. p. 362. M. p. 244. Fr. 
 
 (k) De congressu quaer, erud. gratia, Opp. T. i. p. 544. M. 449. Fr. 
 
 (l) De confus. lingu., Opp. T. i. p. 424. M. p. 339. Fr. [ The peri- 
 phrasis here mentioned occurs a few lines before the quotation, near 
 the bottom of p. 338. in the Frankfort edition. Tr. ] 
 
 (m) De mulat. nam., Opp. T. i. p. 584. M. p 1051. Fr. 
 
 (») De Gi^ant., Opp. T. i. p. 274. M. p. 295. Fr. Compare 1 Sam. 
 II. 5. De ebriet., Opp. T. i. p. 380. M, p. 261. 262. F. comp. 1 Sam. 
 1. 14. 15. De migrat. Abr., Opp. T. i. p. 467. M. p. 418. Fr. ; comp. 
 1 Sam. X. 23. De mulat. nam., Opp. T. i. p. 600. M. 1067. Fr. ; comp, 
 
 S 
 
58 CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. '20. 21. 2*2. 
 
 Even many particular Psalms are merely cited, without 
 mention being made of a high origin, (o) 
 
 §. 21. 
 
 Third Class. Writings^ of which Philo makes no men- 
 tion 7ohatsoever, 
 
 Philo never speaks of:; — 1. Nehemiah ; 2. Ruth; 3. Es- 
 ther ; 4. Chronicles ; 5. Daniel ; 6. Lamentatio?js ; 7, 
 Ecclesiastes ; 8. The Song op Solomon. 
 
 §. 22. 
 Some notes and results of the preceding investigation. 
 
 I. Among the Jewish Scriptures, the divine origin of which 
 Philo expressly recognises, we may however, very probably 
 even in Philo's sense, enumerate the following: — 
 
 1. The second book op Samuel, and the two books op 
 Kings ; for he calls the first book of Samuel Is^ov Xo/ov [ the 
 
 X Sam. 11. 5. QwotZ Beus sit imm,, 0pp. T. i. p. 293. M. p. 313. Fr. 
 comp. 1 Kings xvii; 10.18; ix. 9. De migrat. Abr., 0pp. T. i. p. 441. 
 M. p. 394. Fr. Q_uis rerum divin. haeres sit, Opp. T. i. p. 483. M. p. 
 491. Fr. comp. 1 Kings, iX. 9. 
 
 (9) Quod Deus sit immut., Opp. T. i. p. 284, M. p. 304. Fr. comp. 
 Ps. 01. 1 ; T.sxv. 8 ;— and there, the following pages, comp. Ps. lxiii. 11. 
 De migrat. Mrah.,0])T[). T, i. p. 460. M. p. 412. F. comp. Ps. lxxx. 5 ; 
 xLii. 3.; De mutat. mm., Opp. T. i. p. 59G. M. p. 1062. F. ; comp. Ps. 
 xxn. 1. Quod a Deo mitt, somnia, Opp. T. i. p. 632. M. p. 576. F. comp. 
 Ps. xxvi.T. De confus. ling., Opp. T. i. p. 411. M. p. 327. F. comp. 
 Ps. xLiV. 13. De profugis, Opp. T. i. p. 595. M. p. 459. F. comp. Ps. 
 cxm.25. De som7dis, Opp. T. i. p. 691. M. 1141. F. comp. Ps. xlvi. 
 5. From these passages it is clear, that all books of Psalms, which were 
 collected at different times, arc cited by Philo. 
 
CANON Oi' TUtl OLD TE5TA:^ENT^ §. 2'2. 59 
 
 feJacred Word ], (§. 18.) Now he considers, with all writers 
 who follow the 8eptuagiiit, the two books of Samuel, and the 
 two books of Kings, as a zvhole or as one book, wliich they 
 divide into four parts or four books. Thus, whoever de- 
 clares the first of these four boolts to be Is^os K6yos [ the Sa- 
 cred Word ], declares also the other three to be so. 
 
 2. All twelve Minor Prophets. As far back as we 
 can trace the literary history of the Bible, the twelve mi- 
 nor prophets have ever been regarded as one book ; Ecclus. 
 XLix. 10. Whoever, therefore, quotes only one of the Minor 
 Prophets — (and Philo cites two of them, with the express re- 
 cognition of a divine origin,) §. 19.) ) — virtually cites all. 
 
 IL As Philo was certainly acquainted with the apocry- 
 phal books, but has never quoted any one of them ; (§. 15.) 
 it can be safely assumed, that all writings of his nation, 
 which he thinks proper only to quote, he considers authentick, 
 ancient, and sacred Scriptures. Thus, even a mere citation 
 of a book is evidence to us, that Philo had it in his Canon ; 
 and the books which, with a view to be impartial, we have 
 hitherto classed according to the manner of their being cited, 
 we may without doubt throw into one class. 
 
 III. As a consequence of this, the following books it is 
 certain belonged to . the Canon of Philo, or of the Egyptian 
 Jews :— 
 
 1. The FIVE BOOKS of 
 
 Moses. 
 
 7. Isaiah. 
 
 2. Joshua. 
 
 
 8. Jeeemiah. 
 
 3. Judges. 
 
 
 9. 12 MinortProphets. 
 
 4. 2 BOOKS OF Samuel. 
 
 
 10. Psalms. 
 
 5. 2 BOOKS OF Kings. 
 
 
 11. Proverbs. 
 
 6. EZKA. 
 
 
 12. Job. 
 
 IV. Even the others may have stood in the Egyptian Ca- 
 non. Probably Ruth was an appendix to the book of 
 Judges ; Nehemiah the second part of Ezra ; and the La- 
 mentations OF Jeremiah, it is probable, were appended to 
 to his prophecies, as in Palestine (§. 10. 11. and 42), &c. 
 
GO CANON or THE OLD TEST AMEKT, §. 22. ^3- 24. 
 
 Philo is only silent on this point, as he is on the existence of 
 the books. Our knowledge of the Egyptian Canon is thus 
 not complete. But neither this want of completeness, nor 
 the silence of Philo, can w^eaken the canonical authority of 
 any book, as long as it is warranted by no other considera- 
 tions. (^. 14.> 
 
 §. 23. 
 
 Canon of the Therapcutae. 
 
 In conclusion, it is scarcely worth while to examine, what 
 books particular Jewish sects in Egypt may have comprised 
 in their Canon; it belongs rather to the history of their 
 opinions, than to the history of the Canon. In our investiga- 
 tion, moreover, merely the opinion of the greater part of the 
 Jews, but not of the several sects among them, can be of 
 weight. It is, how ever, very probable, that on the subject of 
 the Canon, at least the fanatical Therapeutae did not differ 
 from the rest of the Egyptian Jews. (§. 11.) (p) 
 
 III. Canon of the Jews in PALESTiNE. 
 
 §.24. 
 
 Sources. Canon of the Sadducees and Samaritans. 
 
 At the time of Christ and the Apostles, among the differ- 
 ent sects and parties into which the Jews in Palestine were 
 divided, there appears to have been no dispute as to the num- 
 ber of their sacred books. The Fathers indeed suggest, that 
 
 (/>) Sec the passage cited from Philo, in $. 11. — But Josephus d& 
 hello Jud.^ 1. 11. c. 8. $. 6. at the end, and §. 12. cannot be used in proof- 
 It says nothine; further, than that the Efskves had sacred books. 
 
^ OF TBI 
 
 HANOtt OP THE OLD TESTAMENT, §* 24. ^i^jgi'POIl 
 
 the Sadducees may be supposed to have rejected all writings 
 of the Old Testament, except the Five Books of Moses ; (9) 
 and some modern criticks recognise this conjecture as pro- 
 bable, because Jesus, on a certain occasion, sought to prove 
 to the Sadducees the resurrection of the dead (which they 
 called in question), not from the Prophets and Hagiographa, 
 but merely from the books of Moses, just as if they attributed 
 to the former no authority, and no weight in the decision of a 
 doubtful question, (r) 
 
 If the Sadducean sect arose in those ancient times, when at ^ 
 
 first a part only of our writings of the Old Testament was / 
 extant, then a difference of opinion on their part, in regard to 
 the number of the books which belonged to it, admits of being 
 readily explained : they received only those Scriptures, which 
 were recognised as sacred before their separation, but reject- 
 ed all others, because the authors of them may have been 
 Jevv's not belonging to their sect. But as they first separated 
 from the great mass at a time, when the Collection of Sacred 
 Books among the Jews had already been long detennined as | 
 to its extent, and their Canon had been completed ; as it must 1 
 not have been difficult for them to reconcile their tenets with ' 
 ALL Writings of the Old Testament, when they accorded 
 with the contents of the books of Moses : a departure from 
 the opinion of other Jews, on this point, was not to be ex- 
 pected, and is hard to explain. 
 
 Josephus, who was so minutely informed of the doctrines 
 of the Pharisees, knew of no opinion peculiar to the Saddu- 
 cees on this point. He relates merely, that rejecting all tra- 
 dition, they adhered only to the written law, (s) not stating 
 how many books they reckoned in their sacred national writ- 
 
 Xq) J£RoME inMatlh.; Origen contra Celsum, lib. i. 
 
 (r) Matth. xxii. 23; Rich. Simoiv, Hist. Crit. du V. T., liv. i. c. 16. 
 
 (s) Josephus, in Antiqq., lib. xni. c. 18 ; according to Havercamp, 
 [ and Hudson], lib. xin. c. 10. §. 6. [ They allege, that " what is written 
 ought to be considered the law, but that what is derived from the tra- 
 dition of the fathers is not to be observed." Tr. 1 
 
Oj^ CANON OP THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 24. 
 
 ings. And if he mentions the doctrines, by which the Saddii*' 
 cees were distinguished from the Pharisees, he does not how- 
 ever let even one word escape, from which it might be in^ 
 ferred, that these two sects may have thought differently, in 
 regard to the number of their sacred books. How could 
 Sadducees have occupied the station of High Priest, if they 
 had deviated, on so important a point, from the faith of the 
 whole nation ? And after a Sadducean family, before and at 
 the time of Christ, had for a long while appropriated to itself 
 this preferment, how could they have sanctioned the reading 
 of the Haphtaroth after the Pareshioth, if they had not attri- 
 buted to the Prophets the same authority which they ascribed 
 to Moses ? And if we may found any thing on the subjects 
 agitated by the Pharisees and Sadducees in the Talmud, then 
 indeed Rabbi Gamaliel * argued the resurrection of the dead, 
 not only from the books of Moses, but even from the Prophets 
 and the Hagiographa, without his opponents, the Sadducees, 
 having objected to the authority and the weight of the latter 
 in theological controversies. Nay, more than this, they 
 endeavoured, on the admission of the authority of these 
 books, to weaken the force of the cited passages from other 
 considerations. In such circumstances, a conjecture of the 
 Fathers cannot at all invalidate the opinion, that the views of 
 the Sadducees and Pharisees were similar, as to the number 
 of the sacred national books. And if Christ, in disputing with 
 the Sadducees, proved the resurrection of the dead, by the 
 five books of Moses only, this may have been merely acci* 
 dental, (t) 
 
 * [ The passage here referred to is Sanhedfin, f. 90. 2 ; and is given 
 byMEUscHEN, in his JVovum Testamentum ex Talmude el antiquitatibus 
 Hebraeorum Ulusiratum. See his illustration of Matth. xxii. 29. See 
 also Jahn's Biblical Archaiology {translated by Upham), P. m. c. i. 
 ^.322. Tr. ] 
 
 (t) Basnage, Hisloire des Juifs, T. ii. P. i. p. 325 ff., and from him 
 Brucker, hist. crit. Phil. T. n. p. 721., have decided this question in the 
 same manner. Basnage, with a view not to let the good Fathers 
 be silenced, would only assume, that the Sadducees ascribed a much 
 
CANON OP THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 24. 25. 63 
 
 It was therefore the Samaritans alone, who received the 
 Pentateuch only, and rejected all other writings of our pre- 
 sent Canon. Even if the cause of their rejection were un- 
 known,* yet nothing would result from this, against the pre- 
 sent extent of the Hebrew Canon. They can inform us only 
 of the private opinion of their body, and not of that of the 
 Jews. This can be ascertained, only from the New Testa- 
 ment, JosEPHus, and the Christian Writers of the first century 
 after the birth of Christ, from a Melito, an Origen, a Jerome, 
 and from the Talmud. Even the later Fathers are too re- 
 cent for our investigation. 
 
 The Neio Testament. 
 
 The New Testament, in numberless passages refers to the 
 Old, but nowhere enumerates its several constituent parts. 
 In truth, this was not to be expected. If Christ and the 
 Apostles refer to the whole, every one at that time knew, 
 and if he did not know, yet it was in his power to ascertain 
 with requisite certainty, what books and how many were 
 comprehended in it. We must therefore avail ourselves 
 merely of casual citations of particular parts of it ; and for 
 the very reason that they are merely casual, no full t view of 
 the Old Testament Canon, as to its whole extent and as to 
 all its larger and smaller parts, can be expected from the New 
 Testament. If not the slightest trace of many particular books 
 
 greater authority to the Writings of Moses, than to the rest ; but 
 Brucker has already given the proper answer : that there is to be found 
 no proof of this, and there is no necessity, on account of any Fathers, to 
 make use of this desperate resort. It is possible, they were mistaken. 
 
 * [ Our author has treated of this, in his Introduction to the 0. T., 
 Vd, II. §. 383., On the age of tfie Samaritan Pentateuch. Tr.] 
 
 t [ See the Appendix to this Treatise, Note [ A ]. Tr. ] 
 
64 CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. "25. 26. 27. 
 
 of our present Canon of the Old Testament is discovered in 
 the New ; this does not accordingly pronounce their sentence 
 of condemnation. For the argument, derived from silence, 
 could then only be demonstrated, if it were practicable to show, 
 that Christ and the Apostles must have spoken of each book 
 in particular. 
 
 §. 26. 
 
 Quotations iji the New Testament. 
 
 The Quotations of the Old Testament in the New are of 
 two kinds. * Some books are quoted for the establishment of 
 religious truths ; thus^ by the use which is made of them, they 
 are declared to be divine : these, therefore, without contro- 
 versy, are held to be Canonical. Others are only cited by 
 the way, sometimes for illustration, sometimes for parallels. 
 To the first class, without dispute, belong the books of Moses, 
 Isaiah, Jeremiah, and the Psalms ; to the second, all our 
 other canonical books of the Old Testament, except the book 
 of Judges, Ecclesiastes, the Song of Solomon, Esther, 
 Ezra, and Nehemiah, which are not once cited. 
 
 §. 27. 
 2. Josephus. Born A. D. 37. 
 
 Josephus, next to the New Testament, is the principal wri- 
 ter whom it is necessary to consult, in examining the Canon 
 of Palestine. He was t a cotemporary of the Apostles, and 
 
 * r See the Appendix, Note [ B ]. Tr. ] 
 
 t [ On the life^ writings^ and credibilily of Josephus, and also on his 
 Hebrew learning, the best references are given by De Wette in his 
 Archaiology (in German), the introductory part, ?. 7. Tr. ] 
 
CAT^Oti OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 27. 28. f)5 
 
 US a priest, must have had the best knowledge of the Canon 
 of his nation, since in the temple, as it appears, there was re- 
 posited a genuine collection of the canonical books. (§. 28.) 
 He was, moreover, a sagacious investigator of truth, who cer- 
 tainly has avoided reckoning among the sacred Scriptures of 
 his nation, any book that was not generally acknowledged to 
 be so, lest he might increase the number of objections to the 
 Jewish History, (u) It is therefore much to be regretted, 
 that he nowhere fully exhibits all the books of his Canon, and 
 except a general comprehensive enumeration, only permits 
 himself, here and there to let fall, toward a precise determina- 
 tion of it, a few passing words. 
 
 §. 28. 
 
 Whether he presents the general opinion of his brethren^ as to 
 the Canon of the Old Testament. 
 
 He has never applied the word Kavwv to the collection of 
 the sacred books of his nation ; it was not extant in this sense 
 at his day. But he speaks of " sacred books, composed by 
 *• prophets, before the death of Artaxerxes Longimanus, and 
 " reposited in the temple." (v) This might indeed have been 
 Josephus' actual view of what we call Kavwv. 
 
 And as he exhibits this view, it is manifest, that as a Pharisee, 
 he entertained no opinion of the Canon of the Old Testament, 
 which deviated from the opinion of his other brethren ; or, if 
 he were inclined to a peculiar opinion, that he does not ad- 
 vance it, at least in the passage mentioned. The very con- 
 text, in which his notice of the Canonical collection of the 
 Writings of his nation stands, and the general comprehensive 
 
 (u) Read his celebrated passage contra Ap., lib. i. §. 8. at the com- 
 mencement. - . 
 <») See below, §. 36. note (a), contra Ap,i lib. i. $. 8. 'Ato M»iia^(»i 
 
bii CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. "JS,.ii\). 
 
 expression does not admit of our doubting on the subject. 
 Thus he says, for instance : " Since Artaxerxes up to our 
 " times, ali has indeed been committed to writing ; but these 
 " Scriptures are not held to be as worthy of credit as those 
 " WTitten at an earher period." IJad Josephus wished to present 
 his own opinion of the Canon, differing from that which pre- 
 vailed, he would undoubtedly have expressed himself in terms 
 more restricted : " I do not consider them to be as worthy of 
 credit as the former," or " the Pharisees do not consider them 
 to be as worthy of credit as the former " — especially, as he 
 elsewhere accurately distinguishes general aiid particular 
 opinions. 
 
 In fine, from many passages, at least of his Antiquitie s, it 
 is probable, that although he had attached himself to the 
 sect of the Pharisees in his youth, he left it in his maturer 
 years. Now as he wrote his books against Apion at a later 
 period than his Antiquities, he cannot possibly there follow^ 
 the principles of the Pharisees, (zv) 
 
 §. 29. 
 
 Principal Passage, 
 
 Josephus, in the celebrated passage against Apion, designs 
 to prove the credibility of the Hebrew historians, and of the 
 history itself at the same time. He refers therefore, partly to 
 the accordance of profane history with that of the Jews, 
 partly to the great care with which the historical books of his 
 nation had been composed. None of the Hebrew historical 
 books stands in contradiction to the others, because not every 
 person was permitted at pleasure to record the Hebrew history, 
 but Prophets were the only historians of the nation. Then 
 
 (w) SpiTTLER de usu Versioiiis Alexandrine apud Joseph.uro- Got 
 tingen^ 1779. pp. 4, 5. , 
 
t;ANON OF TflE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 29. 6'/ 
 
 commences the important passage, which is given also by 
 EusEBius with some trifling variations, (a) 
 
 fA^wv $vo ds fAova •n'^og Tor^ «'/xoO'» /3»/3X»(X, tou iravro^ e^ovra Xfovou 
 <ri9v dvay^acpigv, to, ^ixalod^ dsra (y) •are'ffissufxeva, Kai roili-wv crgWs 
 (X6V ^^» TO. Mwutfs'w?, a roCs rs vo'ffcoug 'T'e^is'^g* xa/ ri^v t»jj dv^^wcro- 
 •yoviag flra^a^otfiv, fA£'x§» T/^g aCrou tsXsut'^s. Ourog 6 X^o'vo^ d<jro- 
 XsjVsi r^i(f-)(i'kiuv oXj'yov srwv. 'Affo 5^ roj^ Mcoutfswj TsXeur^g 
 f*-X^' '"^^ A^TO^g'^lou, 70U ftSTd Hs^|>iv ns^rfwv ^atfjXs'w^, d^x^^i {^) 
 q] ^stoL Muiio^v cf^o(p>JToc» Td xar' auroug 'X^a'/PivTOL tfuvsy^a-j^av ^v 
 r^itfi xa/ 5e'xa (BifSXiotg, A] ^s Xoi-jra/ Ts(f<fa^s v^vovs Big rov 
 ®sov xai Tor^ dv^^w'B'oj^ vTro6r}xas tov ^jou Trs^iiyov(ftv, 'Aato 5s 
 A^rofg^lou (J-sx?' "^^^^ '^"^' ^JM-^ x^ovou 'yiy^aifrai fAsv sxa^a* 'n'feswg 
 iJs oux oixoiag rj^ioirai Trig "j* *^o aurwv, 5<d to jm,-)^ ysvsV^aj s-i^v qrojv 
 ^^0(priTWv dx^i/353 &a5oxV« A^Xov 5' ^^<v s^yw, cfw^ ^j/xsr^ rofg i^i'oig 
 y^dfi/fAaffi ifsiriisuxaij.sv, j TotfouTou yd^ a<wvoj ijdri ^a^wx^ixoroj, 
 ©yra 9r|o(J'd£rvai rig ou5sv, (a) oi;ts d^peXsrv (6) auTwv, oUts fxeradsrvat 
 ^sroXfiwiXff. ndtfi 5s' ^^^/^(puTov e^iv su^ug ^x r^jg 'if^CiTrig ygvstfswg 
 Iou5a»o»ff, TO vo|xi^£<v (c) aurd 0eou 56yfjia<ra, xai rovTotg ii^iivsiVy [d) 
 xai u^rs^ auTWV, si dioiy 6vr,(fxsiv tj^s'w^. 
 
 " For we have not innumerable books, which contradict 
 each other ; but only twenty-two, which comprise the history 
 of all times past, and are justly held to be credible, {according 
 
 (x) JosEPHUs contra Ap., lib. i. §. 8; compare Eusebius in his Hisi. 
 Ecd'Wb. 10. p. m. 103. 104. [ The passage in Eusebius is to be found 
 in Book iii. c. 10., at the beginning, Tr. ] 
 
 * [ Qy /uugiauTif oh url fiiBhietv tta^ fjfjiir, according to Euse- 
 bius. Tr. ] 
 
 Cy) The word fiiT* is wanting in the ancient editions of Josephus; it 
 has been introduced from Eusebius in modern times. 
 
 (a) MostCod. M^. of Josephus and Eusebius omit this a§;t»f' [ '* 
 is omitted in the Mayence edition of Eusebius, an. 1672. Tr. ] See be- 
 low, §. 30. 
 
 t L '■o'^f ^"^ Eusebius, and in Hudson's edition of Josephus. Tr. J 
 
 % [ ir»c »At«ic TTgoa-t^sy toic i^/otc y^aifAfxAo-i, in Eusebius. Tr, ] 
 
 (a) OwcTiv is wanting in Eusebius. The sense is the same. 
 
 (6) Eusebius has: a<j>«x«iy atf' ahtm. 
 
 (c) The false reading ofOfAoi^ui «yr*' has been thus corrected from 
 Eusebius. 
 
 (d) In Evismvs, tpfAhm, 
 
68 CATIOX OF THE OLD TESTjVMENT, §. 29. 30. 
 
 to EusEBius : and are justly held to be divine). Five of these 
 books proceed from Moses ; they contain laws, and accounts 
 of the origin of men, and extend to his death. Accordingly, 
 they include not much less than a period of three thousand 
 years. From the death of Moses onward to the reign of Ar- 
 taxerxes, {according to Eusebius : from the death of Moses 
 to the death of Artaxerxes), who, after Xerxes, reigned 
 over the Persians, the prophets who lived after Moses 
 have recorded, in thirteen books, what happened in their 
 time. The other four books contain Songs of praise to 
 God, and Rules of life for man. Since Artaxerxes up 
 to our time, every thing has been recorded ; but these writ- 
 ings are not held to be so worthy of credit, as those written 
 earlier, because after that time there was no regular succes- 
 sion of prophets. What faith we attribute to our Scriptures 
 is manifest in our conduct. For although so great a period 
 has already elapsed, no one has yet undertaken, either to add 
 any thing, or to take away, or to alter any thing. For it is, 
 so to speak, innate with all Jews, [ from their veiy birth ], to 
 hold these books to be God's instructions, and firmly to stand 
 by them, nav, if necessity required, gladly to die in their be- 
 half." 
 
 §. 30. 
 
 Why Josephus closes the Canon of the Old Testament with 
 Artaxerxes Longimanus. 
 
 As a consequence of this passage, Josephus reckons all 
 those Writings among the canonical, which were written from 
 the timeof Moses until the reign of Artaxerxes Longimanus. 
 With the reign ( d^x'^ ) of Artaxerxes Longimanus the collec- 
 tion was closed — a very general determination, by which, even 
 Writings that were composed during Artaxerxes' reign belong 
 to the canon. It is worth while to examine, why Josephus ex- 
 pressed himself in terms so general ? 
 
 Had he known a year, in which the Canon had been com- 
 pleted in a solemn manner, or a person who had established 
 it, he would certainly have specified this more precise deter^ 
 mination of time. Most probably, both were unknown to 
 
CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, <S, 30. 69 
 
 him. Notwithstanding this, he was obliged and he also wished 
 to state the time, since which no books had been written, in 
 as great a degree worthy of credit — there was therefore no 
 means remaining, but to take the collection itself, to ascertain 
 the latest book in it, and to determine the time to which 
 this belonged. Now the book o/* Esther was either actually, 
 or at least in the opinion of Josephus, the latest among them 
 all ; it belonged, either actually, or at least in the opinion of 
 Josephus, to the reign of Artaxerxes Longimanus ; (e) accord- 
 ingly, he closes the canon with his reign. (/) 
 
 (e) Of this we have Josephus' own acknowledgment; Antiq., xi. 
 c. 6. $. 1. fF. "Ey^a.'^i /« M3t.^^oj(^*ios roig h tm ^A^rit^i^^ou ^na^i- 
 jisajf ^aa-tv 'loytTa/oic, nrcturite 7rct^x<puXaia-a-iiv rite ;)/ueg*c, »«« togTwr 
 ayuf AuTciff k. t. X. [ These words occur near the close of §, 13: 
 And Mordecai wrote to the Jews who lived under the reign of Artax- 
 erxes, to observe these days, and to commemorate them by a festival. 
 
 (/) The Zurich Library objects : "The book of Esther Josephus 
 " professes to enumerate in the Canon, together with all books written 
 '* under Artaxerxes, and with this he would close the Canon ; as if he 
 ■" could not close it with Nehemiah, whose history necessarily goes 
 *' back to the beginning of Artaxerxes' reign, or with Malachi, whose 
 "" real time is not known ! Both might have been written under the Ar- 
 ■" taxerxes of Josephus. The book of Esther was probably first written 
 •" after Artaxerxes, under whom the historical facts purport to have 
 •' taken place. Already indeed, as is mentioned in the tenth Chapter, 
 " there was on record, in the Chronicles of the Persian Kings, all that 
 '* had taken place, after the elevation of Mordecai, as long as Mordecai 
 •" sat at the helm. At least, that is alleged. And if we even refer to 
 •' the Greek subscription in the Supplement, the book was first publish- 
 " ed by an unknown person, in a translation, at the time of the Ptole- 
 " mies in Egypt." So far the long objection, — to the force of which 
 nothing more is wanting, than that our opinion of the time, to which the 
 book of Esther, or the history of it belongs, or that the opinion oithc 
 Author of the Greek translation on this point should influence the ques- 
 tion agitated. AH results in Josephus' views of it } he must still be his 
 own interpreter ; and according to his express declaration, the book of 
 Esther belongs to the time of Artaxerxes. He could not close the Ca- 
 non of the Old Testament with Nehemiah, because he placed him and 
 his historical book in the time of Xerxes. Nor could Josephus make 
 Malachi the most recent book, ('even were it the most recent ), be- 
 cause it was unknown to him? under Avhich Persian reign he way have 
 proraulged his account?. 
 
70 CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §.30. 31. 
 
 " But why does he not rather say : Esther is the latest 
 book ?" Perhaps, because this determination of the time, 
 when the Canon became complete, was not generally under- 
 stood, and it was requisite previously to examine anew, what 
 was the date of the book of Esther ; perhaps, with a view to 
 elude the objection : that Esther was not found at the end ! In 
 truth, Esther might have always been the latest book, and yet 
 not occupy the last place in the Canon, because, according to 
 the plan of the collector of the Canon, the Supplementary 
 Records of the whole scripture history, the books of Chro- 
 nicles, must have closed the collection, and moreover, ac- 
 cording to the New * Testament, it did then actually close it, 
 as in our present editions. 
 
 How many difficulties are removed by this remark founded 
 on the writings of Josephus, and how many questions are at 
 once answered by it, may be perceived on its application to 
 the modern controversies relative to the Canon. . 
 
 According to Eusebius and most nianuscripts of Josephus, 
 the Canon of the Old Testament was first closed with the 
 DEATH of Artaxerxes — a determination, which does not 
 much differ, at least in sense, from the preceding. 
 
 §. 3L 
 Whi/ Josephus recognises XKii Canonical Books. 
 
 According to Josephus, the Hebrews had xxii sacred 
 BOOKS. He thus reckons with his nation, according to the 
 Hebrew Alphabet. For Origen, and other Fathers say 
 
 * [ Our author observes, in his Introd, to the O. T., Vol. i. §. 7: — 
 Christ entitles the Hagiograplia by the Psalms, as the first book, (Luke 
 XXIV. 44,) ; and designing to adduce, from the history of the O. T., ihe 
 first and the last instance of the shedding of innocent blood, he cites the 
 case of Abel from Genesis, as the Jirst book of the O. T. ; and from the 
 books of Chronicles, as the last of all, he cites the case of Zacharia?. 
 Matt, xxiii. 35. Tr.] 
 
CANON OP THE OLD TESTAftfENT, §. 31. 3^2. 7i 
 
 expressly, (§ §. 43, 44.) that in the Canon, a reference was 
 had to the number of consonants in the Hebrew Alphabet ; 
 even analogy* confirms this. Therefore, if properly 
 reckoned the Jews had strictly but twenty- two books, we 
 may perhaps so arrange merely those extant, that they will 
 admit of being restored to twenty-two. 
 
 §. 32. 
 1. General Computation. 
 
 Five books belonged to Moses ; thirteen were composed 
 by Prophets between Moses and Artaxerxes Longimanus ; 
 beside these, there were also extant four books on moral 
 subjects. 
 
 If we may follow a later writer, Origen, who with Josephus 
 states the number of the sacred books of the Old Testament 
 to be twenty-two, and enumerates them all severally, we 
 might arrange the thirteen of the Second Class in this man- 
 ner : 
 
 1. Joshua. 7. Esther. 
 
 2. Judges and Ruth. 8. Isaiah. 
 
 3. TWO BOOKS OF Samuel. 9. Jeremiah's prophecies 
 
 AND LAMENTATIONS. 
 
 4. TWO BOOKS OF KiNGS. 10. EzEKIEL. 
 
 5. TWO BOOKS OF Chronicles. 11. Daniel. 
 
 6. FIRST AND SECOND BOOK OF 12. TWELVE MINOR PROPHETS. 
 
 Ezra, Ezra AND Nehemiah. 13. Job. 
 The four books on moral subjects would be : 
 
 1. Psalms. 3. Ecclesiastes. 
 
 2. Proverbs. 4. the Song of Solomon. 
 
 * [The Greeks made the books of Homftr, and those of Theophras- 
 lus to consist of twenty-four, according to the nmnber of the Greek let»- 
 ters. See the author's Introduction to the O. T., Vol. i. $, 6, Tr ] 
 
72 CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 32, 33. 
 
 But was it a pure fountain from which Origen drew ? Had 
 not the great revolutions, which affected the Hebrew nation 
 between the times of Josephus and Origen, a prejudicial in- 
 fluence even on the collection of their canonical books ? 
 During this time, either from ignorance, accident, or fraud, 
 had there not been introduced into the canonical collection, 
 
 writings which did not previously belong to it ? Thus may 
 
 we propose inquiries ; and although much may be said in reply, 
 yet it is more advisable, and more worthy of the investigator 
 of truth, to avoid pursuing this course ; so that no one may 
 have it in his power, at any time to reproach him with the least 
 appearance of probability, and say that he is disposed to catch 
 at something, or to build all upon hypotheses. 
 
 Josephus may be his own Commentator : we design to ask 
 for his views, in regard to particular writings of the Old Testa- 
 ment, and on his answers below to ground a new computation. 
 
 §.33. 
 
 2. Vakticvlak Computation, Prefatory remarks. 
 
 I premise some observations, which may perhaps shed light 
 upon the passages, that I shall extract from Josephus, and 
 may direct our decision on them. 
 
 1. All the Writings, which Josephus attributes to Prophets, 
 belonged to his Canon. For he founds the chief credibility 
 and integrity of the writings of his nation upon this, that they 
 were the works of Prophets. (§. 28. 29.) 
 
 2. He undoubtedly declares those writings to be canonical, 
 which he calls 'iSPai (Si^Xoty al <rwv js^wv y^a(pwv /3i/3Xo», Is^cc 
 v^ajx^aaTa, to, ^v <r^ i£^w dvaksifisva y^ajXfxaTa, and /3jjSXoi 'S'^ocpt;- 
 csias, [ Sacred Books, the Books of the Sacred Scriptures, 
 the Writings reposited in the Temple, and Books of Pro- 
 phecy ]. This is apparent from the words selected, and the 
 passages to be adduced below leave no doubt of it what- 
 everc 
 
CANON OF THK OLD TESTAMENT, §. 33. 73 
 
 3. With the expressions above mentioned the following are 
 synonymous : oi^aTa /3»/SXja, /3i/3Xoi 'E/3^aiwv, ^j'^Xoj 'E^ai^ 
 xai [ Ancient Books, Booksof the Hebrews, Hebrew Books ]. 
 This is undoubtedly certain from several passages. — He regard- 
 ed Daniel as a very important Prophet, the accurate accom- 
 plishment of whose predictions he often commends in very 
 strong language (§. 35.). And yet he reckons his book merely 
 among the /3/^Xoj 'E(3^aixM, and d^x'^Toc ^ifSXia [ Books of the 
 Hebrews, and Ancient Books ], from which he derives his 
 history. After he has extracted much from Daniel, he 
 adds (g) : " Let no one find fault with me, for introducing all 
 " into my writings, just as I find it m the ancient Books {iv 
 *« roTs d^uiois /Jj/SXjoj^). For in the very beginning of my 
 " history, I have already secured myself, in regard to those 
 " who might require or find fault with any thing, by mention- 
 " ing, that I should merely translate into Greek the Hebrew 
 " BOOKS ( 'E/3^a/wv ^j/3Xoj5 ), without adding any thing of my 
 " own, or taking away any thing." 
 
 According to this passage, Daniel, a book replete with 
 prophecies, written by a prophet, belongs to the ^J^Xot *E.^- 
 ^ai'wv [ Books of the Hebrews ], and to the d^x°'-"^ /5</3Xja 
 [ Ancient Books ]. — In another place, he cites the incidents 
 which befel Jonah, just as they stand recorded in the prophet 
 Jonah, with the introduction only of his own, sometimes 
 erroneous, explanations ; but at the same time he observes {h) : 
 that he relates of the prophet, " what he found concerning 
 him in the Hebrew books ( 'El3^a'ixa7g f3i(3Xmg ) :" — clearly 
 proving, that by the jSiSXoi E[3^dixai [ Hebrew books ], he 
 understood the canonical writings of his brethren. 
 
 4. All the Writings, which he transferred into the history 
 of his nation until the time of Artaxerxes, must have been 
 comprehended in Josephus' Canon. For 
 
 I. Josephus grounds the very credibility of the Hebrew 
 history from Moses to Artaxerxes upon this, that it was writ- 
 
 (s;) Antiqq., x. c. 10. §. 6. ed. Havercamp, p. 536. [Hudson, p. 458- ]' 
 (h) Antiqq., ix. c. 10. «. 3. Hav. p. 497. [ Hud, p. 41P. 1 
 
 10 
 
74 CANON OP THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 33. 
 
 ten ONLY AND ALONE BY Prophets, and that there were 
 extant no other historical books, than those composed by 
 them, (i) Therefore in the history of the Hebrews until Ar- 
 taxerxes Longimanus, he can have assumed none whatsoever, 
 except these. So also 
 
 II. The most satisfactory evidence proves it. We find 
 those historical books which he expressly places in his Canon, 
 for instance, the five books of Moses, the book of Joshua, the 
 books of Kings (§. 35.), in substance wholly incorporated with 
 his Antiquities. Of the very same repute, therefore, were the 
 
 other sources of his national history until Artaxerxes. In 
 
 the mean time it is not to be denied, that he presents ac- 
 counts, even in the ancient Hebrew history, of which no trace 
 is to be found in the historical books of the Old Testament. 
 Probably, he derived these from national traditions, which in 
 his time were numerous, yet not put on record, but only trans- 
 mitted from mouth to mouth. Thus, for instance, Paul refers 
 to a mere tradition, when he makes Jannes and Jambres with- 
 stand Moses in the miracles wrought before Pharaoh (2 Tim. 
 iii. 8.) : a tradition, which even Pseudo- Jonathan has intro- 
 duced into his targum, Exod. i. 15 ; vii. 11. 
 
 5. All Hebrew books of every kind, which were extant in 
 the time of Josephus, from the times before the death of Ai*- 
 taxerxes, he deems without exception canonical. For he con- 
 cludes his account of the Canon of his nation with the remark : 
 that all books, the authors of which may have lived after Ar- 
 taxerxes Longimanus, were of much less value. Had he not 
 attributed the same value and the same authority to all books, 
 written before the time mentioned ; he would not have thrown 
 all into ONE class, and not have derived all from Prophets, 
 but have carefully distinguished those which were of inferior 
 authority. If then it can only be proved of any book, 1. that 
 Joseph us was acquainted with it, and 2. that it was not writ- 
 ten after Artaxerxes : that book is to be placed in the Canon 
 of Josephus. 
 
 (i) Contra ^p., lib. i. ^.8; quoted above, ^. ^, 
 
CANON OP THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 33. 34. 75 
 
 6. All the books which were composed after Artaxerxes, 
 in Ihe opinion of Josephus must have been apocrvphal, even 
 granting that their contents carry us back into that king's 
 reign, {k) 
 
 §.34. 
 
 Division of the opinions of Josephus on particular books of the 
 Old Testament. 
 
 These observations may now be appropriately followed by 
 Josephus' opinions on particular books of the Old Testa- 
 ment. (/) For the purpose of facilitating the examination, I 
 arrange them in three classes : — 
 
 1. Books, which he places expressly among the Sacred Writings of his 
 nation. 
 
 2. Books, of tvhich, toithiut this express testimony, he makes a mere 
 literary use. 
 
 3. Books, which he entirely passes over in silence. 
 
 (Jc) The doubts, which Spittler suggests, (in his Program de usu 
 versionis Alexandrinae apud Josephum, pp. 18 — 22,) as to the validity of 
 Josephus' account of the Canon, are in my view resolved, as soon as a 
 reference is made to all the passages, in which Josephus directly or in- 
 directly expresses an opinion on the books of the O. T. To the ac- 
 complishment of this, I hope to contribute in the following paragraphs. 
 
 (/) A good collection of these has already been made by Chr. Fred, 
 ScHMiD in two Programs, entitled: Enarratio sententise Flavii Joseph 
 de libris V. T. mttcnh,, 1777, 
 
"76 CAXO.V OF 'i'HK OLl> TE-SXAMENTy 0. 35. 
 
 First Class. Books which Josephus places expressly 
 among the Sacred Writings of his nation. 
 
 §.35, 
 
 Five books of Moses, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel^ 
 Jonah, Nahitm, Ha&gai, Zeghariah, Joshua, Books oif 
 Kings, Psalms. 
 
 The five books of Moses Jasephus mentions in the pas- 
 sage above cited, expressly ; and moreover, where he alludes 
 to them, lie speaks of them with great veneration and rever- 
 ence. He calls them is^ai ^j/3Xoj [ Sacred Books ] (m), and 
 a\ Twv Is^wv y^a^wv /3j,^Xo» [ the Books of the Sacred Scrip- 
 tures ]. in) 
 
 Isaiah. His prophecies he calls, in the account that Cyrus 
 read the very oracle respecting him : to ^i^Xlov, o rris auroj 
 'T^acpYiTsiag 'Hifaias xoltsXivs, 'rt^h irCJv 6iaxo(fiuv xai Sixa [the 
 book of prophecy, which Isaiah left, two hundred and ten 
 years before ]. (o) Elsewhere he calls him simply -tt^o^V'J^ 
 [ Prophet] (p)f and in the biography of Hezekiah: 6 -rr^ocpvJTyj?, 
 
 (m) Anliq., lib. i. Hav. p. 5. [ Hud. p. 4. ], at the end of the preface ; 
 lib. in. c. 5. $. 2. Hav. p. 128. [ Hud. p. 103. 1, lib. iv. c 8. §. 48. Hav. 
 p. 255. [ Hud. p. 176. ], lib. ix. c. 2. ^V 2. Hav. p. 476. [ Hud. p. 396, ], 
 lib. X. ft. 4.^. 2. p. 517. ed. Havercamp, which I always quote. [In 
 Hudson's edition, p. 439. Wherever, in this treatise, the author quotes 
 the page of Joscphus according to the edition of Havercamp, the cor- 
 responding page is given according to the edition of Hudson, Oxoniij 
 1720. Tr. ] 
 
 (n) Conlra Ap., lib. ii. $. 4. Hav. p. 1472. [ Hud. p. 1365. ] Many- 
 other passages are expressive of the reverence, Avith which Josephus 
 and his brethren spoke of the Mosaick Writings. Ant., i. Hav. p. 4. 
 [ Hud. pp. 3. 4, ] ; xx. c. 5. Hav. p. 966. [Hud. p. 888. ] ; in. c. 6. Hav. 
 p. 135. [ Hud. p. 110. ]; iv. c. 8. Hav. p. 251. [ Hud. p. 173. ] ; x. c. 4. 
 Hav. p. 517. C Hud. p. 439. ] ; xvi. c. 6. Hav. p. 800. [ Hud. p. 722.] 
 
 (o) ^ntiq., XI. c. 1. §. 2. Hav. p. 547. [ Hud. p. 468. ] 
 
 (/J) Antiq., X. c. 2. §, 2. Hav. p. 514. f Hud. p. 436. ] 
 
CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 35. 77 
 
 9ra^' ou ( 'Efjsxiag ) flravr' dx^i/3wj <ra, (jLsXXovra s-ruv^avsTo, [ the 
 prophet, from whom he (Hezekiah) minutely ascertained all 
 that would come to pass]. (7) 
 
 jEREiuriAH is called -f^ocpV*)?* 0^ ^«' fAs'XXovra tt) croXsi ^sfva 
 'jf^osxvj^u^Sy [ the prophet, who predicted the evils that would 
 befal the city] (r)» by which the contents of his prophecies 
 are well characterized. 
 
 EzEKiEL is cited under the appellation '^^ocprirvig [ Prophet ], 
 and his prophecies are compared to the prophecies of Jere- 
 miah. (5) 
 
 Our Daniel Josephus places among the «fi^a y^a^nkroL [ Sa- 
 cred Writings ] (f), he entitles his prophecies ^^ocprirsja -tt^o 
 TST^axotfjwv xa« 6x<rw ysvo/xsvrj Jtwv, [a prediction, made four 
 hundred and eight years previous ] (w), and he expresses him- 
 self elsewhere in very strong terras, as to the truth of 
 them, iv) 
 
 (g) Antiq., ix. c. 13. §. 3. Hav. p. 506. [ Hud. p. 427. ] 
 (r) Antiq., x. c. 5. ^. 1. Hav. p. 520. [ Hud. p. 441. ] See the follow- 
 ing note. 
 
 (s) The same. Outoc rgo^wrxc ("l«gi^/*f ) kaI ti, /uIaxovt* tm 
 5r9AM S'iivA 7rgcgKi7gy|«, h yg9fxiA,avi KATAXtTreey, kai tjjv »Sr «<}>' 
 i^j^tfr ^fvojub»y xhacrtv t»v Ti ^n^uXeeviAV ai^s^tv. Ov /uSvoy i"* 
 
 Kinxoi. [This Prophet (Jeremiah) also predicted the evils that would 
 befal the city, leaving behind him, in writing, both the destruction which 
 has now come pass in our day, and the Babylonian captivity. And not 
 only did he predict these things to the people, but the prophet Ezekiel 
 did the same. Tr. ] 
 
 (0 ^ntiq., lib. X. c. 10. $. 4. Hav. p. 535. [ Hud. p. 447. ] After 
 having adduced something from Daniel, he concludes with the words : 
 " Whosoever wishes to examine this," tnzcvS'aira'To to ^i^xiov ayuy- 
 yuvAl Tov Azviiixov ivgyivn Ss tcuto iv roh hgoli ygv.fxfxAa-r [let 
 him carefully read the book of Daniel. He will find it among the Sa- 
 cred Writings ]. Comp. above, §. 33, note (/.) 
 
 (m) Antiq., lib. xii. c. 7. §. 6. Hav. p. 617. [ Hud. p. 540. ] 
 (r) Aniiq., lib. x. c. 11. $. 7. Hav. p. 544. [ Hud. p. 466. ] T-ttCT* 
 rrayrat «<cfc7ifOf, 0€cu Sn^AVToi aVTcf, avyytd-^Ac JtATtKei^iv, as"* tovs 
 avat^eVtoV/eovTatc, kolI fu. au/x^xivovrtt o-kovovvta?, d-etujuid^uv ini t« 
 TTA^d TOO ^6ov T/WM Toif Aotv/»xoj'. [ All thcse things, God having 
 communicated them to him, he left in writing, so that those who read, 
 
78 CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §.35. 
 
 The XII MINOR Prophets Josephus regards as one hook, 
 calls them ^a>Sr/.a tov d^j^fAov [twelve in number], and ranks 
 them, on account of their accurately fulfilled prophecies, with 
 
 the prophet Isaiah, (w) Some of them moreover, he cites 
 
 especially. 
 
 Jonah he declares to be a true Prophet ; hence he de- 
 scribes the remarkable incidents of his life in such a manner, 
 that it may be perceived, he drew from the account set forth 
 by Jonas himself, but with the introduction of his own, some- 
 times very erroneous, explanations, although he cites only in 
 very general terms, and refers to the /3i^Xoi 'E^^aixai [ the 
 Hebrew Books ]. (a?) 
 
 Even Nahum is entitled •jr^otpV'JS [Prophet], and com- 
 mended on account of the minute accomplishment of his pre- 
 dictions, (y) 
 
 Haggai and Zechariah are called Svo <r^o{p^c^at [ two Pro- 
 phets ]. (z) 
 
 The BOOK OF Joshua Josephus denotes one of the books 
 reposited in the temple, (a) 
 
 and see the events, are led to behold Daniel with wonder, on account 
 of the honour which God conferred upon him. Tr. ]. Josephus cites 
 moreover the first eight chapters of Daniel ; Antiq., lib. x. c. 10. & 11. 
 (u>) Antiq., x. c. 2. $. 2. Hav. p. .515. [ Hud. p. 436. ]. KatX obx, 
 ewToc fjiovos b 5rog9»T«f ('Ho-a/itf), aXA.a »«ic ^AXoc S'aJ'tKa Toy 
 agid'Moy ro avro iTro'iMCAV. Kstt Traty, i<t« ay*^ov %iri *«wxov yi- 
 ysTAi TTn^' ifAiv, KtLtti. <Ti>v iKsivuv aTTO^Aivn ■^gofnTUAV. [ And not 
 this prophet (Isaiah) alone, but others also, twelve in number, did the 
 same. And whether good or evil happens to us, all comes to pass ac- 
 cording to their prediction. Tr. ] 
 
 (x) Antiq., ix. c. 10. $. 1. 2. Hav. pp. 497. 498. [ Hud. pp. 418. 419.]. 
 tojJt» (it is said §. 1.) T:^ci(^>iTivc!i tU ^imetc. $. 2. he refers in the 
 biography of Jonas to the 0i0kovi 'E/^gatixatc (see above, §. 33.) and 
 concludes the second section with the words : «r/g|»AS-cv «r« t»v yrt^i 
 aUTOU hiynffii^ ui tV^ov aVAyiygctfJtfxivuv. 
 (y) Antiq., 1. ix. c. II. §. 3. Hav. pp. 501. 502. [Hud. pp. 422. 423. ] 
 (s) Antiq., I XI. c. 4. $. 5. Hav. p. 557. [ Hud. p. 479. ] 
 (a) Antiq., lib. v. c. 1. $. 17. Hav. p. 273. [ Hud. p. 185. ]. "O-ri ^t 
 
 y.ovTAi S'lx. Tav di'veiKti/uivwv h tw" Ue^a y^tt-fAfxitm. \ That the 
 
CANON Oi' THE OLD TEJiTAMENT, §. 35. 36. "39 
 
 The BOOKS OP Kings. The book, in which the history of 
 the Prophet Ehjah is recorded, i, e. the books of Kings, he 
 ranks with that which gives the account of Enoch, i. e. the 
 first book of Moses; he calls both is^ai ^I'^Xoj [Sacred 
 Books ]. (6) 
 
 Psalms. They are expressly named in the cited passage 
 (§. 29.) under the title: uM-voi sis tov 0£ov [Psalms to God]; 
 and Josephus makes mention of them elsewhere by the names, 
 Psalms of David, because David was the principal author of 
 them, (f) 
 
 .Second Class. Books, which Josephus merely cites, without 
 addition, or of which he makes a mere literary rise. 
 
 §.36. 
 
 Lamentations, Judges, Ruth, the books of Samuel, 
 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther. 
 
 The Lamentations of Jeremiah, which in his opinion 
 were composed on the death of king Josiah, Josephus refers 
 to, as a compostion still extant {d). comp. §. 33. Obs. 5. 
 
 length of the day increased at that time, aud surpassed what was usual, 
 is evident from the writings rcposited in the temple. Tr. ] 
 
 (6) Antiq., lib. IX. c. 2. §. 2. Hav. p. 475. |; Hud. p. 396. ]. Hsgi 
 fxhrocyi *H\f« k%\ ^Evd^ov tcu ytvo/xivou rgo «r»c ivofji.0gi*.( «v rxls 
 
 itgais ayAyiygATTTAt 0i$\oti} Sti ytyiycta-iv df*v«<? d-oLfarov (T'ctWav 
 
 oucTf/c otJ'tv. 
 
 (c) Antiq.y lib. vii. c. 12. §.3. [ o iixvUnc weTxc tl: tov Qtov 
 
 Kxi vfjtvov; c'JViTai^Aro. David composed odes to God and psalms. 
 Tr.-] 
 
 (d) ArUiq., lib. x. c. 5. $. l.Hav. p. 520. [Hud. p. 441. ]. Iig^wc 
 J' h 7:go^;iT«j iTTiK'iS'iiov dvrou auvhA^s fxiMi 9-gj»vjfT/>cor, o kaI 
 
 (jAxi^i vyy itafAini- [Jeremiah the Prophet composed his elegy, a 
 mournful poem, which is extant even at the present time. Tr."] 
 
80 CANON or THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 36. 
 
 Judges and Ruth. Both contain very ancient events, and 
 must have been vi^ritten long before the time of Artaxerxes ; 
 both were not only known to Josephus, but much used in the 
 fifth book of his Antiqq. comp. §. 33. Obs. 5. 6. 
 
 The TWO BOOKS op Samuel were extant in their present 
 form, long before Artaxerxes ; we even find them extracted 
 by Josephus, often word for word, from the fifth to the seventh 
 book of his Antiqq. (e) comp. §. 33. Obs. 5. 6. 
 
 The TWO BOOKS of Chronicles were used by Josephus 
 in his Antiqq., from the seventh to the tenth books ; but the 
 second is more freely used than the Jirst, because it contri- 
 butes more to the Hebrew History. (/) 
 
 Ezra and Nehemiah. According to Josephus, the con- 
 tents of these books belong to the times of King Xerxes {g) : 
 and as the Canon was first closed under his successor Artax- 
 erxes ; both may safely be placed in his Canon. He makes 
 free use of both, {h) 
 
 Finally Esther was undoubtedly a part of his Canon. For 
 he places the contents of the book in the reign of Artaxerxes 
 Longimanus, and closes the Canon with his reign, because 
 this book was the latest that he found in the collection of the 
 sacred books of his nation. (§. 30.) He designates the very 
 contents of the book, (i) 
 
 These are the writings of the Second Class. Should one 
 
 (fi) Thus the lamentation on the death of Saul andjonathan, 2 Sara- 
 I. Antiqq., vii. c. 1. $. 1. 4 
 
 (/) Antiqq., lib. viii. c. 12. ^. 4. Hav. p. 453. [ Hud. p. 375. ] comp. 
 2 Chr. xiv. 8. Antiqq., 1. viii. c. 15. §. 1. 2. Hav. p. 466. [ Hud. 387. J 
 comp. 2 Chr. xvii. 7, Lc. 
 
 (g) Antiqq., lib. xi. c. 5. $. 8. Hav. p. 566. [ Hud. p. 488. ] Josephus 
 makes mention of Nehemiah, and concludes with the words: TaSnt 
 /u.» euv ini Si^^ov ^cta-iKim lyhiro. — lib. xi- c. 5. §. 1. 2. Hav. p. 560. 
 [Hud. p. 481. ] "EcrtTgctf . . . ^tv6Ta« <^ihoi t» ^olciku Seg^ji. And 
 upon this follows a writing of Xerxes to Ezra. 
 
 {h) Particularly Aniiq., lib. xi— Yet he introduces also something 
 from the third book of Ezra. See Ant,, 1. xi. c. 3. 
 
 (i) Antiqq., lib. xi, c. 6 
 
CAiVON OP T HJi OLD TESTAMENT, ^. 36. 37. 38. §1 
 
 <j{ them be rejected from the Canon of Josephus, then, as the 
 same reasonings argue for all, all the rest must forfeit their 
 places in it — and what will then be the condition of the thir- 
 teen prophetical books ? 
 
 Third Class, Books, which Josephus passes over 
 in silence. 
 
 §. 37. 
 Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, the Song of Solomon, Job. 
 
 Josephus speaks of Solomon, the writer, but merely iu 
 general expressions (k) ; he cites neither the Proverbs, nor 
 Ecclesiastes, nor the Song of Solomon, by name. 
 
 Even of the book of Job he takes as little notice, as he does 
 of the hero of it. 
 
 §. 38. 
 Some Remarks. 
 
 ~^' According to these observations, therefore, Joshua, Judges, 
 KuTH, the two books of Samuel, the two of Kings, and the two 
 of Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Isaiah, Jeremiah, 
 with his prophecies and his lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel, 
 and the xii minor prophets, it is certain, belonged to the Canon 
 of Josephus ; all these books must be placed in the Second 
 Class, among the thirteen prophetical. For they are partly 
 prophecies, partly historical books ; and the latter, like the 
 former, are considered by Josephus and by other writers of 
 his time and after him, works of the Prophets (/), in part, 
 
 (k) Antiq., lib. vm. c.2. §. 5. Hav. p. 419. [ Hud. p. 339.] 
 
 (0 Philo, as quoted abt)ve, $. 17 ; Theodoret in Praef. a4 litres 
 
 11 
 
83 CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 38. 
 
 because some prophets did actually record the history of their 
 time, and in part because 5«'33 was then* sometimes the 
 titleof a wnfer. in general. Let us reckon then as we may, 
 there is still no doubt, that Josephus placed even Job in the 
 Class of Prophetical Books, in case Job was a part of his 
 Canon. 
 
 No one has yet indulged a doubt, that at the time of Christ 
 and the Apostles, Job may have had a place in the collection 
 of the sacred books of the Jews : Philo and the authors of 
 the New Testament knew the book ; it was certainly extant 
 long, long before the establishment of the Canon ; and al- 
 though Josephus makes mention, neither of it nor of its hero, 
 it by no means follows, that he may not have found it in his 
 collection of the national books. Would he necessarily speak 
 of it, when probably, according to the common opinion in 
 ancient times, he regarded the hero of the book as a foreigner, 
 an Arabian ; and could he not write a complete Hebrew his- 
 tory, without uttering even a syllable in regard to it ? And 
 if Josephus knew it, and found it among the sacred books 
 of his nation ; he most probably placed it in his Second 
 Class, among the thirteen prophetical books. For in the 
 Second Class he placed all historical books ; and to these 
 belonged Job, because all antiquity held the contents of it ta 
 be a true narrative set forth in poetry. 
 
 JRegum ; Eusebius in his praeparatio evaiig. ; aud Abarbanel pratf. in 
 Josuam. 
 
 * [ When the Treatise originally appeared, the author's words were : 
 ^X''DJ ''offt der Titel eines Schrifftsleller Uberhaupt ist," is often 
 
 the title of a writer in general. He here says: — it was "damals zu- 
 weilen," then sometimes. But it is not easy to discover proofs even ol 
 this. See the references above, p. 30. note *. Tr. ] 
 
i:anon op the old testament, §. 39. 40. 
 
 83 
 
 §. 39. 
 
 Result of the preceding Investigations, 
 
 Without any risk of error, we may then, with Origen, ar- 
 range the thirteen prophetical books of the Second Class in 
 the following manner. 
 
 1. Joshua. 
 
 2. Judges and Ruth. 
 
 3. TWO BOOKS OP Samuel. 
 
 4. two books of Kings. 
 
 5. two books of Chronicles. 
 
 6. Ezra and Nehemiah. 
 
 7. Esther. 
 
 8. Isaiah. 
 
 9. Jeremiah's prophecies 
 and lamentations. 
 
 10. Ezekiel. 
 
 11. Daniel. 
 
 12. XII MINOR prophets. 
 
 13. Job. 
 
 The four books of the last Class, which are on moral sub- 
 jects, cannot now be at all mistaken, although Josephus ex- 
 pressly mentions merely the Psalms ; for there are only four 
 b©oks left to be arranged. 
 
 1. Psalms- 
 
 2. Proverbs. 
 
 3. Ecclesiastes. 
 
 4. the Song of Solomon. 
 
 ^. 40. 
 3. Me LI to. Flourished Cent. ii. 
 
 The next writer after Josephus, who affords us accounts of 
 the Canon of the Jews in Palestine, is Melito, Bishop of 
 Sardis, in the second century after the birth of Christ. He 
 travelled into the East, with a view to ascertain, from the ac- 
 counts of the Jews there, the contents and the number of their 
 sacred books ; and he communicated to his brother, Onesi- 
 
^ CAKON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §.40. 
 
 mus, the result of his investigations, in a letter which Euse 
 Bius has preserved in his Ecclesiastical History. Euseb. 
 B. IV. c. 26. 
 
 <i<X0Mbv\ TY\ cr^oj Tov XoYov p^Wfjt-evog y2\ic^a.i doi gxXoyaj, ex <rs tou 
 vofwu xai <rwv ^^oqjvjTwv cr?^< «roi> tfwTi^^off xa« tfaCiig ^^jg flrfeswg 
 •Jjixwv. STI ^^ xa» iuahsTv t'/jv twv craXaiwv /3»^Xiwv £/3ouX»j^7)5 ^'*^''' 
 (Bsiav, flfoo'a <rciv d^j^/xov xaj o-rora Tr^v ca^iv s<ev, ^tf-ffou^otfa to 
 toioUto cf^o^aj, sflri^afi/gvog tfou to tftfou^arov irs^/ tt^v •n'fejv, xai (p»Xo- 
 /xa&sj 'n'sfi TOV Xoyov.. ot» t£ /xaXjra "jravTwv ^o^oj tw cr^og 0eov 
 TttCTa <r^ox^:v£iff, «b'S^/ T^if aiwv/ou CwTi^^jag dywv<<^o'(xsvo5' dvsX^wv 
 ouv stg T^v dvaroXi^v, xai sw^ tou tcVou ysvo/xsvo^ Iv^a sxtj^^i^j^^tj 
 xal ^cr^ap^^v], xa/ dx^i^ug (xaSrwv to. tS^j ^oikaiois 5iaSr^x»]^ /3ij8X»a, 
 i'?r'0Ta|af bVs/x-vj/a tfor (Sv £?< Ttt ovo/J^aTa* MwiJC^wj cTc'vtS' Tsvs(fig, 
 "E|o5og, AsuiTjxov, 'A^jS^/xo/, AeuTS^ovo'fAjov 'ItjCoC? Nau^, K^iTa/, 
 *PouS:* BaCjXsjwv TsVCa^a, na^aXst-Tro/Ji-c'vwv 5i;o. YaXjxwv Aa/3j^, 
 SoXofAwvoj na^oifJM'aj, ^ xaj 2o(pia, 'ExxX-Kitfja^i^^, aCfta 'ACjxaTwv, 
 'IwjS. n^o(piiTWv, 'HCatou, 'Is^gjxj'ou* twv. ^w^sxa sv fxovo/3»/3Xw. 
 Aavii^X, 'l£^£x<7^X, '^Eff^^ag- l| wv xc.< gxXoydj I'ffojyjo'ajxyjv, £i^ g^ 
 /?ij8Xia ^isXwv. 
 
 " Melito to his brother Onesimus greeting. Whereas> 
 from your great earnestness for the Word, you have often 
 wished to have selections from the liaw and the Prophets, 
 which relate to our Saviour and our w^hole faith ; and would 
 be glad to have a minute account of the ancient books, how 
 many of them there are in number, and in what order they 
 stand : I have endeavoured to effect this, because I was 
 aware of your earnestness in the faith, and your desire for in- 
 struction in respect to the Word, and knew that in your long- 
 ing after eternal happiness, from love to God, you prefer it to 
 all other things. As I was journeying in the East, therefore, 
 and came to the place where this was preached and exhibited, 
 I accurately ascertained the books of the Old Testament, and 
 subjoin a catalogue of them, and send it to you. They are 
 called as follows : Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deu- 
 teronomy, Joshua. Judges, Ruth, four Books of Kings, two 
 
CANON aP THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 40. 41. 8'5 
 
 Books of Chronicles, the Psalms of David, the Proverbs of 
 Solomon, w^hich is entitled also the Wisdom (m), Ecclesiastes, 
 the Song of Songs, Job. The Prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, the 
 twelve in one book ; Daniel, Ezekiel, and Ezra. From these 
 I have made the Selections, and divided them into six books.'" 
 
 §. 41. 
 
 Illustration of this Passage. 
 
 It is true that in this Catalogue Nehemiaii and Esther are 
 not mentioned ; but, whoever reads the passage and under- 
 stands it, will here discover both of them. Melito here ar- 
 ranges the books of the Old Testament, manifestly according 
 to the time in which they were written, or in which the facts 
 which they record occurred. Hence he places Ruth after the 
 book pf Judges, Daniel and Ezekiel toward the end of his 
 Catalogue, and Ezra last of all, because he wrote after the 
 Babylonian captivity. And accordingly, as he comprehended 
 the books of Samuel and Kings under the general appellation 
 Books of Kings, because they related the history of the He- 
 brew kingdom from Saul to Zedekiah, or until the Babylonian 
 captivity : in the same manner, he appears to comprise under 
 the name of Ezra all historical books, the subjects of which 
 occur in the times subsequent to the Babylonian captivity. As 
 it is very common to include Ezra and Nehemiah in one book^ 
 
 (m) According to Stroth's translation of this passage; it is only 
 here departed froin, because probably neither »» Kai a-o<j>ia, nor >) o-d^ia 
 is the true reading, but, according to Stroth's conjecture, » koi iro<piot. 
 Melito, and from him Eusebius, wrote without any accents or spiritus 
 » KAt copm. For even Nicephorus admitted Kni, and Ruffin trans- 
 lated : quae el sapienlia. Afterward, when accents were added, from » 
 arose the postpositive » Kal co^ia. But ij cannot refer to 0i0\ia, which 
 goes before ; so «*/ was omitted, and ^ aofU was written, which even 
 now occurs in some editions, as might indeed have easily happened 
 with P Ktl <roft*. 
 
86 CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 4L 42. 
 
 why might not even Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther also have 
 been regarded as a whole ? If we add to this conjecture, 
 that Nehemiah and Esther, according to Josephus (§. 36.), 
 must have been parts of the Canon, and that Fathers of au- 
 thority, such as Origen (§. 42.) and Jerome (§. 44.), expressly 
 enumerate both in it ; no impartial inquirer can well doubt, 
 that even Melito does not reject from the Canon of the Old 
 Testament the two books mentioned, (n) 
 
 §. 42. 
 Origen. Born A. D. 185. Died A. D. 253. 
 
 The next Father, whom we must hear, is Origen, whose 
 catalogue of the Canonical Scriptures of the Old Testament 
 has been preserved by Eusebius. Eccl. Hist. vi. 25. It is 
 of very great weight, because it is derived from the Jews, as 
 Origen himself, in the very beginning of it, expressly states. 
 
 Tov jtjLsv Tojys ^^wTov B^t\yo\}[iZMos vj^aXixov, g'xSeo'iv ors'ji'oiTjrai 
 ( 'n^jy£V»]g ) Tou Twv i5^w» y^a(pwv t% 'makmag 5»a^*jx»)g xaTaXoyou, 
 ^U flfwg ygoKpwv xara X^|iv* oux dyvorjT^ov 5'i/vai Tag ^v5iaS»)xou? 
 /3(/3Xouf, d)5 'EjS^aroi cr'a^a^iSoafl'iv, dua xai s'/xotfi* otfog 6 d^i'^ft.QS 
 <rwv leaf auTor? goixsiwv ktv £«<ra (xsm cjva, iieicpi^si T^syuv h(fi, 
 6s ai s'/xotfi dvo /3i/3Xoi xa^' 'E/3^aioug a5'5s* yj •n'a^' 'Jjfjiwv revstfi? 
 
 /S^tfj^, oVfi^ £^/v ^l> OL^ji' "'E^O^OJ:, OUaXSO'fAW^, oVs^ ^^< TttUTtt TO. 
 
 ovoftara* Asumxov, ouix^a, xa/ ^xaXgrfsv 'A^i^/xoi «-f«,(XeO'(pexoj5s<jui.* 
 AsuTS^ovojXJOv, tXXs a6ds(3afii^, outoi e» Xoyor 'iTjtfoug ulog Nau5), 
 
 (n) ScHMiD, hist, et vindic. Canonis, assumes with others, that Es- 
 ther, removed by the error of a transcriber, was originally mentioned 
 by Melito. I doubt this however, as there is to be found no trace of it; 
 and Athanasiiis, Gregory Naz., and others, who follow Melito, in like 
 manner omit Esther. See Schmid 1. c. p. 171. 173. 193. Bkuns in his 
 edit, of KennicoWs diss, gener. p. 178, is of my opinion. 
 
CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 4*2, 87 
 
 Xs»wv flT^wri}, Ssvri^cCj -ra^' airoTg ev Hafxou'iiX, o ^eoxXyj^og* /3atf<- 
 Xs<5v r^kri^ rera^Tyj, ^v lv<, ouafi-fAsXe;^ Aa8i8, oife^ ki /SatfiXs/a 
 ^a(3id, na^aXfiffofAivajv •tt'^wttj, Sevrs^Uf iv hvi, dilS^ri aiajxj'j*, oVsp 
 aV< Xo'yoi »3(XE^ojv '^Etf^^aj <ff^uTQS xai ^suts^oj ^v Iv/, ^(^^a, o ^g# 
 ^oYi^dg- /3ij8Xoff 'i'aXfi.GJv o's'ipe^ ^iXXi'fx. 2oXo|xwvtoj <a^oi|xiai /wioXw^, 
 'ExxXirjtfjasi^j, xwe'Xs^' aCfJt'tt aVfAarwv, tfi^ aCtfi^ifx. 'Htfaiaj, 'letfaVa. 
 'Ig^fAia^ tfOv ^^-^voij xai <r^ ^"tti^oXi] ^v Iv/, 'I^S/xia, AaviigX, Aavt^X. 
 'le^sxji^X, 'Igg|xrjX. 'ItfjS, Iw/3. 'Etf^ii^, EtfSrrj^, l|w 6s toutwv ^gi w 
 MaxxaySaixot, a^s^ intxyiy^cLitTai ^ol^^vi^ tfa^/3avs g'X. 
 
 In the exposition of the first Psalm, he (Origen) exhibits 
 a catalogue of the sacred books of the Old Testament, where 
 he writes as follows : " It must be known, that the canoni- 
 cal books, as the Hebrews relate, are twenty-two in number, 
 according to the number of their letters." Somewhat further 
 on, he proceeds : " these twenty-two books, according to the 
 Hebrews, are the following : the Book which with us bears the 
 title Genesis, is called by the Hebrews, from the beginning of 
 the Book, * Breshith,' that is : 'in the beginning/ Exodus 
 * Velleshemoth,' that is : * these are the names.' Leviticus 
 *Vayikra, and he called.' Numbers, * Hammishpekodim.' 
 Deuetoronomy * Ellehaddebarim, these are the words.' Jesus 
 the Son of Nave, ' Joshua Ben Nun.' The Judges, Ruth, 
 in one Book with thena, ' Shophetim.' (o) The first and se- 
 cond of Kings, one, 'Samuel,' that is: 'the called of God.' 
 The third and fourth of Kings, in one, ' Vammelech David,' 
 that is: ' and King David.' The first and second of Chro- 
 nicles, in one, ' Dibre Hayamim,' that is : ' Journals.' The 
 first and second of Ezra, in one, (p) ' Ezra,' that is : 'the 
 
 (o) A trace of it is found in the Masora Jinalis of a Spanish MS. 
 (Kennicott's num. 3.), where Ruth is called D^^at^n l^Qu "13?. from 
 
 the beginning of the Book. See Bruns, ad Kennicolti diss, gen., pp. 18, 
 19. nota. 
 
 (p) Proofs of this are also found in the modern Hebrew MSS. Many 
 still write, the two books of Samuel, the two of Kings, the two of Chro- 
 nicles, as Ezra and Nehemiab, in one, continuously, without an inter- 
 %"ening space ; and hence, all these books in the most ancieht editions, 
 
SS CANON OF THK OLD TESTAMfiiNT, §. 42. 43. 
 
 helper.' The Book of Psalms, * Sepher Thillim/ The Pro« 
 VERBS of Solomon, * Mishloth.' Ecclesiastes, * Koheleth/ 
 The Song op Songs, * Shir Hashirim/ Isaiah, ' lesayah.' 
 Jeremiah, with the Lamentations and the Epistle, in one 
 Book, * Yirmeyah.' Daniel, * Daniel.' Ezekiel, * Yehezkeel.' 
 Job, * Job/ Esther, ' Esther.' Beside these, there are also 
 the Books of Maccabeess, which are entitled : Sarbeth Sar- 
 bane EI." (y) 
 
 §. 43. 
 
 Illustralion of this passage, 
 
 . In this Catalogue of the Canonical Writings of the Old 
 Testament, the xii minor Prophets are wanting; notwith- 
 standing Baruch holds a place in it. The first difficulty 
 vanishes, on a comparison of Ruffin's Latin translation, and 
 Hilary's Preface to the Psalms. The former , in the passage 
 cited from Eusebius, has the twelve minor Prophets after the 
 Song of Solomon ; and the latter, (who, according to an ob- 
 sei-vation already made by Jerome, has derived his Preface 
 to the Psalms in great part from this passage), mentions the 
 twelve minor Prophets among the Canonical Writings of the 
 Old Testament, (r) The other difficulty is not so easy to re- 
 
 whicli follow as closely as possible the arrangement of the MSS.,were 
 thus printed in one, until Daniel Bomberg introduced the present 
 usual division of them. [ See Eichh. Introd. to the O. T., Vol. n. 
 §. 359. Tr. -j 
 
 (q) According to Stroth's Translation. 
 
 (r) Here is Valesius' note on the passage: Omissus est in hoc Cata- 
 logo liber duodecim Prophetarum. Quo factum est, ut cum viginti 
 duos libros se numeraturum promiserit Origenes, unus duntaxat et 
 viginti reperiantur. In Rufini versione recensetur hie liber statim post 
 Canticum canticorura. Nee aliter Hilarius in prologo enarrationis in 
 Psalmos, et Cyrillus Hierosolymitanus. Ceterum sacrae Scripturae libri 
 ?onge alio ordine hie recensentur, quam Epiphanio, et Hieronyrao f * 
 
OANON OF THE OLD T£STAM£^'T, §. 43. 44. 89 
 
 solve. Nowhere is there a trace, that Jeremiah's Epistle 
 ever was a part of the Jewish Canon. Origen was mistaken, 
 and perhaps he had before him a copy of the Septuagint, (in 
 which, as usual, Baruch was placed immediately after Jere- 
 miali,) and he suffered liimself to be betrayed by this into 
 his mistake, (s) 
 
 §. 44. 
 
 Jerome. A. Z>. 422. 
 
 Jerome reckons, according to the number of the conso- 
 nants in the Hebrew Alphabet, twenty-two books, and in his 
 Prologus Galeatus arranges them in the following order, 
 which the Bibliotheca Divina also follows : — 
 
 1 5. FIVE BOOKS OF MoSES. 8. TWO BOOKS OF SaMUEL, 
 
 6. Joshua. 9. two books of Kings. 
 
 7. Judges and Ruth. 10. Isaiah. 
 
 Melitone, cujus locum supra retulit Eusebius in fine lib. 4. Hilarius 
 vero in prologo Commentariorum in Psalmos, cum Origene prorsus 
 consentiL Nee Id mirum, cum totus fere prologus ille Hilarii translatus 
 sit ex Commentariis in Psalmos, ut testatur Hieronymus. 
 
 («) This is yet more probable, if we reflect, that the Egyptian Chris- 
 tians, those great admirers of the apocryphal writings, permitted Ba- 
 ruch to follow the Lamentations. [ The Ethiopians divided the Old 
 Testament into four parts. 
 
 I. The OcTATECCH, including the five books of Moses, Joshusi, 
 Judges, Ruth. 
 
 II. The Kings, in thirteen books: two books of Samuel, two of 
 Kings, two of Chronicles, two of Ezra, (Ezra and Nehemiah), Tobit, 
 Judith, Esther, Job, Psalms. 
 
 HI. Solomon, in five books : Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solos- 
 
 mon, Wisdom and Sirach. 
 IV, The Prophets, in eighteen books : Isaiah, Jeremiah's prophecies 
 
 and lamentations, Baruch, Ezekiel, Daniel, and the twelve minor 
 
 Prophets. 
 They had also two books of Maccabees. Sec Eichhorn's Introd. io 
 the 0. T., Vol. n. §. 309. note g. Tr. ] 
 
 12 
 
90 CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 44, 
 
 11. Jebemiah's prophecies 18. Song of Songs. 
 
 AND LAMENTATIONS. 19. DaNIEL. 
 
 12. EZEKIEL. 20. TWO BOOKS OF CbBU 
 
 13. XII MINOR Prophets. nicles. 
 
 14. Job. 21. Ezra in two books, i, e. 
 
 15. Psalms. Ezra and Nehemiah. 
 
 16. Proverbs. 22. Esther. 
 
 17. ECCLBSIASTES. 
 
 Viginti et duas litteras ( says he in the Prologus Galeatus ) 
 esse apud Hebraeos, Syrorum quoque hngua et Chaldaeorum 
 testatur, quae hebraeae magna ex parte confinis est. Nam 
 et ipsi viginti duo elementa habent, eodem sono et diversis 
 characteribus. ...... Porro quinque Htterae duplices apud 
 
 Hebraeos sunt, Caph, Mem, Nun, Pe, Sade. Unde et quin- 
 que a plerisque hbri duplices existimantur, Samuel, Melachim, 
 Dibre hajamim, Esdras, Jeremias cum Cinoth, id est lamenta- 
 tionibus suis. Quomodo igitur viginti duo elementa sunt, per 
 quae scribimus hebraeice omne quod loquimur, et eorum 
 initiis vox humana comprehenditur : ita viginti duo volumina 
 supputantur, quibus quasi litteris et exordiis in Dei doctrina, 
 tenera adhuc et lactens viri justi eruditur infantia. 
 
 Primus apud eos liber vocatur Beresith, quem nos Genesin 
 dicimus. Secundus Veelle Semoth. Tertius Vajicra, id est, 
 Leviticus. Quartus Vajedabber, quem Numeros vocamus. 
 Quintus Elle haddebarim, qui Deuteronomium praenotatur. 
 Hi sunt quinque Hbri Mosis, quos proprie Thora, id est 
 Legem, appellant. 
 
 Secundum Prophetarum ordinem faciunt, et incipiunt ab 
 Jesu filio Nave, qui apud eos Josue Ben JVwn dicitur. Deinde 
 subtexunt Sophetim, id est Judicum librum : et in eundem 
 compingunt Ruth, quia in diebus Judicum facta ejus narratur 
 historia. Tertius sequitur Samuel, quem nos Regum primum 
 et secundum dicimus. Quartus Melachim, id est Regum, qui 
 tertio et quarto Regum volumine continetur. Meliusque 
 multo est Melachim, id est Regum, quam Melachoth, id est 
 Regnorum dicere: Non enim multarum gentium describit 
 
oANON OP THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 44. 91 
 
 regna, sed unius Israelitici populi, qui tribubus duodecim 
 continetur. Quintus est Esaias. Sextus Jeremias, Septimus 
 Ezechiel. Octavus liber duodecim Prophetarum, qui apud 
 illos vocatur Tliereasar. 
 
 Tertius ordo Hagiographa possidet, Et primus liber 
 incipit a Job. Secundus a David, quern quinque incisionibus 
 et uno Psatmorum volumine comprehendunt. Tertius est 
 Salomon, tres libros habens, Proverbia, quae illi Misle, id est 
 Parabolas, appellant. Quartus Ecclesiastes, id est Coheletk. 
 Quintus Canticum Canticorum, quem titulo Sir hassirim 
 praenotant. Sextus est Daniel, Septimus Dihre hajammim id 
 est Verba dierum, quod significantius chronicon totius divinae 
 historiae possumus appellare, qui liber apud nos Paralipomenon 
 primus et secundus inscribitur. Octavus Esdras : qui et ipse 
 similiter apud Graecos et Latinos in duos libros divisus est. 
 Nonus Esther. 
 
 Atque ita fiunt pariter Veteris Legis libri viginti duo, id est, 
 Mosis quinque, et Prophetarum octo, Hagiographorum novem. 
 
 Quanquam nonnulli Ruth et Cinoih inter Hagiographa 
 scriptitent, et hos libros in suo putent numero supputandos, ac 
 per hoc esse priscae Legis libros viginti quatuor 
 
 Hie prologus scripturarum quasi galeatum principium 
 omnibus libris, quos de Hebraeo vertimus in Latinum, con- 
 venire potest : ut scire valeamus, quicquid extra hos est, inter 
 apocrypha esse ponendum. Igitur Sapientia, quae vulgo 
 Salomonis inscribitur, et Jesu Jilii Sirach liber, et Judith et 
 Tobias et Pastor non sunt in Canone. Machabaeorum primum 
 librum hebraicum reperi. Secundus graecus est, quod ex 
 ipsa quoque phrasi probari potest. 
 
 [ That the Hebrews had twenty-two books, is evinced by 
 the language of the Syrians and Chaldeans, which is in the 
 main nearly allied to the Hebrew. For they also have 
 twenty-two elements, with the same sound, but different 
 characters. . . . Moreover, the Hebrews have five double let- 
 ters : Caph, Mem, Nun, Pe, Sade. Hence five books also are 
 by many considered double : Samuel, Melachim, Dibre haja- 
 mim, Esdras, Jeremias with Cinoth, that is his lamentations. 
 As there are therefore twenty-two elements, by means of 
 
92 CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 44. 
 
 which we write in Hebrew all that we speak, and the human 
 voice is comprehended in their principles ; so twenty-iwo books 
 are reckoned, by which, as if by letters and rudiments, the 
 yet tender and nursing infancy of the righteous man is in- 
 structed in the knowledge of God. 
 
 The first book is named Beresith, which we call Genesis. 
 The second, Veelle Semoth. The third, Fajicra^ that is, Levi- 
 ticus. The fourth, Vajedabber, which we call Numbers. The 
 fifth. Elk haddebarim, which is denoted Deuteronomy. These 
 are the five books of Moses, which they call properly Thoray 
 that is, the Law. 
 
 They make a Second Class of the Prophets, and begin 
 with Jesus the son of Nave, whom they call Josue Ben Kun, 
 They then subjoin .Sophetim, that is the book of Judges ; and 
 attach to it Ruth, because history describes its events in the 
 days of the Judges. In the third place follows Samuel, which 
 we call the first and second of Kings. Fourth, Melachim, that 
 is Kings, which is comprised in the third and fourth book of 
 Kings. It is much better to say Melachim, that is Kings, 
 than Melachoth, that is Kingdoms. For it does not treat of 
 the kingdoms of many nations, but of the people of Israel 
 only, consisting of twelve tribes. The fifth is Isaiah. The 
 sixth Jeremiah. The seventh, Ezekiel. The eighth, the book 
 of the twelve prophets, which they call Thereasar. 
 
 The Third Class contains the Hagiographa. And the first 
 book begins with Job. The second with David, which they 
 comprise in five sections and one book of Psalms. The third 
 is Solomon, who has three books. Proverbs, which they call 
 Misle, that is Parables. The fourth, Ecclesiastes, that is, 
 Cohdeth. The fifth, the Song of Songs, which they denote 
 by the title Sir hassirim. The sixth is Daniel ; the seventh, 
 Dibre hajammim, that is words of days, which we may signi- 
 ficantly call a Chronicle of the whole sacred history : we en- 
 title the book, first and second Paralipomenon. The eighth, 
 Ezra, which also is divided into two books both by the Greeks 
 and Latins. The ninth, Esther. 
 
 And in this manner there are twenty^xuo books of the ancient 
 law, that is, five of Moses, eight of the Prophets, nine of the 
 Hagiographa. 
 
CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 44. 45. 93 
 
 Although some often mention Ruth and Cinoth among the 
 Hagiographa, and think that these books are to be reckoned 
 in their number, and that thus the books of the ancient law 
 are hoenty-four 
 
 This Preface, as a well furnished proem, may 'be applied to 
 all the books which we translate from Hebrew into Latin : 
 so that we may know, every one but these is to be placed 
 among the Apocrypha. Therefore the Wisdom, which is com- 
 monly entitled of Solomon, and the book of Jesus the son of 
 Sirachf and Judith, and Tobic, and the Shepherd are not in the 
 Canon. I have found the frst book of Maccabees in Hebrew. 
 The second is Greek, which may be proved from the very 
 phraseology. TV. ] 
 
 He thus divides the whole collection into three parts, Law, 
 Prophets, and Hagiographa: and reckons eight Prophets 
 and NINE Hagiographa; and even remarks, that some enu- 
 merated TWENTY-FOUR Books, and, to make out this number, 
 reckoned separately Ruth and Lamentations. And he thus 
 concludes, that all writings of the Jews, except those men- 
 tioned, were to be placed with the Apocrypha. 
 
 §. 45. 
 
 The Talmud. Cent, ii — iv. 
 
 The Jews, in their quibbling, introduced two jods into the 
 Hebrew Alphabet, that it might consist of twenty -four con- 
 sonants. Hence the Talmud reckons twenty-four canonical 
 books, in the following order (t) : 
 
 1—5. The FIVE BOOKS OF Moses. 8. two books of Samuel. 
 
 6. Joshua. 9. two books op Kings. 
 
 7. Judges. 10. Jeremiah. 
 
 (t) BuxTORFii Tiberias, cap. xt. 
 
94 CANON OP THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 4^. 
 
 11. EZEKIEL. 18. ECCLESIASTES. 
 
 12. Isaiah. 19. The Song of Solomon. 
 
 13. XII MINOR Prophets. 20. Lamentations. 
 
 14. Ruth. 21. Daniel. 
 
 15. Psalms. 22. Esther. 
 
 16. Job. 23. Ezra ( and Nehemiah. ) 
 
 17. Proverbs. 24. Chronicles. 
 
 The principal passage is found in the treatise Bava Bath- 
 ra (m). Having divided the Books of Scripture into 
 1. nnin [the Law], 2. D^K^p^ [ th^ Prophets ], and 3. D^a^ns 
 [ the Hagiographa ], and suggested ih regard to them much 
 that is not here in place ; it then nam^s the books of each 
 part separately, and exhibits those of the two latter parts in 
 the following order ; 
 
 bi^)t2ti/ D^coiDV^^i j^trin^ o^no^ hu^ pno 
 
 b^'^i niypi Dn^trn Tt^ nSnp ^StrDi 
 D^Dsn nnni Nnrr nnoN nS^jXDi 
 
 [ The order of Prophets is Joshua and Judges, Samuel 
 and Kings, Jeremiah and Ezekiel, Isaiah and the twelve. 
 . . . The order of Hagiographa is Ruth and the book of 
 Psalms, and Job and Proverbs, the Preacher, the Song op 
 Songs and Lamentations, Daniel and the roll of Esther, 
 Ezra and Chronicles, Tr. ] 
 
 («) Bava Bathka, fol. 13. 14. ed. Fenet., 1548. [ The passage cited 
 from the Talmud is given, as quoted by Eichhorn from the Venice 
 edition ; but in the edition of Amsterdam (an. Jud. 405), in which the 
 words occur p. 14. b., lines 26. 27. 34. 35., instead of the Talmudick 
 D'7D31, (see Buxtorf's Lexicon Chald. Talmud. Rabbin, col. 323, on 
 the root SoD) , is found the Hebrew DoSdV Tr. ] 
 
CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 46. 95 
 
 §. 46. 
 
 Result: history declares that all the books of our Hebrew 
 editions of the Bible are Canonical. 
 
 From the accounts thus far collected, it is undeniable, I 
 think, that at the time of Christ and the Apostles, the Canon of 
 the Jews corresponded in extent with our present editions of 
 the Bible. And if, before their time, in the period between the 
 end of the Babylonian captivity and the birth of Christ, it 
 may be presumed to have once contained fewer books ; we 
 must then either deny the truth of the picture, which antiquity 
 presents to us, of the opinion of the Jews in respect to their 
 sacred books, or maintain, that a designed and in all parts de- 
 terminate collection of their national writings never was pro- 
 vided by the Jews. The former is without any foundation, to 
 contradict to the face the most credible testimonies of anti- 
 quity, and the latter is to contend against all self-evidence. 
 
 From the remotest period, the Jews glowed with a sacred 
 reverence for their national writings. In the language of 
 Josephus, " it was, so to speak, innate with them, to regard 
 these as divine instructions ; in their solicitude they ventured 
 not, as he assures us, — to add^ or to take away, or to alter any 
 thmg, although some of the writings had a very high antiqui- 
 ty*" (§• 29.) Even by the greatest calamities, which the mad 
 spirit of persecution gathered around them on account of 
 their sacred books, they did not permit their reverence to be 
 repressed (y). How could a nation, with these sentiments, 
 suffer to be ranked with their sacred books, such as were of 
 inferior value and authority — in case it had been made out 
 and generally decided, how many and what books were enti- 
 tled to divine authority ? 
 This also was settled. As far as we can go back in their 
 
 {v} Compare Philo, in Eusebxus' praepar. evang., lib. viii. c, 6. 
 
96 CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, §. 4ti. 
 
 history, just there, where the Apocrypha unites the broken 
 thread of Hebrew Hterature, we find express mention of a 
 sacred national hbrary of the Hebrews, as the several parts 
 of it were strictly determined. It thus appears, that it was 
 begun soon after the Babylonian captivity ; or that, from the 
 Writings, which in regard to contents, authors, and date of 
 composition were so different, there was made a complete 
 whole, with a view that, for the future, no new writings 
 should be added to them ;* although, from the want of ac- 
 counts, we are not now able to specify, in what year, and why 
 additions at that period ceased to be made. 
 
 In short, history attests, that after the Babylonian cap- 
 tivity, AND INDEED SOON AFTER THE NEW ESTABLISHMENT OF 
 the HEBREW STATE IN PALESTINE, THE CANON WAS FULLY SET- 
 TLED, AND AT THAT TIME COMPRISED ALL THOSE BOOKS, 
 
 WHICH WE NOW FIND IN IT. Aud yct Icarncd men of modern 
 •times have endeavoured to prove, that the Canon of the Old 
 Testament was first determined in very recent times ; that 
 many of our books, regarded as canonical, formerly had no 
 place in the Canon, but were first raised to this distinction by 
 Christian Fathers, and modern Jews. 
 
 In this the favourite System was in fault. Men bad spe- 
 culated in the abstract, on the characteristicks of a Scriptu- 
 ral Book, and without any materials had erected a building in 
 the air. Then, innumerable appearances opposed the receiv- 
 ed general views of the nature of a Scriptural Book. With- 
 out demolishing the former building itself, and without taking 
 pains to seek for the materials of a new and more substan- 
 tial structure, they merely patched up the old castle in the 
 air, and they would no longer tolerate in the Canon those 
 books, to which the old theory, (consecrated indeed by the 
 prerogative of age, but otherwise baseless,) did not admit of 
 being applied. 
 
 * [ The author here refers to his Introduction to the O. T., Vol. i. §. 6. 
 which treats of the collection of the Hebrew Scriptures after the Babylonian 
 captivity. Tt. ] 
 
APPENDIX, 
 
 Note [A]. 
 
 The view which the New Testament gives of the particular 
 books belonging to the Jewish Canon, may be ascertained 
 by an examination of the references in the following Table. 
 It contains all the direct quotations from the Old Testament 
 in the New Testament. 
 
 Genesis. 
 
 G^PTESIS. 
 
 I. 27. Mark, x. G. 
 n. 3. Heb. iv. 4. 
 n. 7. 1 Cor. xv. 45. . 
 n. 24. Matt. xix. 5. 
 
 Mark, x. 7. 
 
 1. Cor. VI. 16. 
 
 Eph. V. 31. 
 
 XII. 1. Acts, VII. 3. 
 XII. 3. Gal. III. 8. 
 XV. 5. Rom. IV. 18. 
 XV. 6. Jam. ii. 23. 
 XV. 6. Rom. IV. 3. 
 
 XV. 13. 14. Acts, VII. 6. 7. 
 
 XVII. 5. Rom. IV. 17. 
 
 XVIII. 10. Rom. IX. 9. 
 XXI. 10. Gal. IV. 30. 
 
 XXI. 12. Rom. IX. 7. 
 
 XXII. 16. 17. Heb. vi. 14. 
 
 XXII. 18. Acts, III. 25. 
 
 Gal. III. 16. 
 
 XXV. 23. Rom. ix. 12. 
 xLvii. 31. Hebr. xi. 21. 
 
 Exodus. 
 
 II. 13. Acts, VII. 26. 
 
 II. 14. Acts, VII. 27. 28. 
 Acts, VII. 35. 
 
 III. 5. 7. 8. 10. Acts, VII. 33. 34. 
 III. 6. Matt. XXII. 32. 
 
 Mark, xii. 26. 
 
 - Luke, XX. 37. 
 
 Acts, VII. 32. 
 
 IX. 16. Rom. IX. 17. 
 
 XII. 46. John, XIX. 36. 
 
 XIII. 2. Luke, II. 23. 
 
 13 
 
98 CANON OF THE OLD TfeSTAMENT, 
 
 Exodus. Deuteronmy. 
 
 XVI. 18. 2 Cor. VIII. 15. 
 XIX. 6. 1 Pet. II. 9. 
 
 XIX. 12. 13. Hebr. xii. 20. 
 
 XX. 12. Matt. XV. 4. 
 
 Matt. XIX. 18. 
 
 Mark, vii. 10. 
 
 Mark, x. 19. 
 
 Luke, XVIII. 20. 
 
 Eph. VI. 2. 3. 
 
 XX. 13. Jam. ii. 11. 
 
 XX. 13. 14. Rom. xiii. 9. 
 
 XX. 14. Rom. VII. 7. 
 
 XXI. 17. Matt. XV. 4. 
 
 Mark, vii. 10. 
 
 XXII. 8. Acts, xxiii. 5. 
 
 XXIV. 8. Hebr. ix. 20. 
 
 XXV. 40. Hebr. viii. 5. 
 xxxii. 1. Acts, VII. 40. 
 XXXII. 6. 1 Cor. x. 7. 
 xxxiii. 19. Rom. IX. 15. 
 
 Leviticus. 
 
 XI. 44. 1 Pet. 1. 10. 
 
 XII. 8. Luke, II. 24. 
 xvHi. 5. Rom. X. 5. 
 
 Gal. HI. 11. 12. 
 
 XIX. 18. Matt. XIX. 19. 
 
 Matt. XXII. 39. 
 
 Mark, xii. 31. 
 
 - Luke, X. 27. 
 
 Rom. xiii. 9. 
 
 Gal. V. 14. 
 
 Jam. II. 8. 
 
 XXVI. 11. 12. 2 Cor. vi. 16. 
 
 Numbers. 
 
 xvi. 5. 2 Tim. u. 19. 
 
 V. 16. Eph. VI. 2. 3. 
 
 VI. 45. Mark, xii. 29. 30. 
 VI. 5. Matt. XXII. 37. 
 
 Luke, X. 27. 
 
 VI. 13. Matt. IV. 10. 
 
 Luke, IV. 8. 
 
 VI. 16. Matt. IV. 7. 
 Luke, IV. 12. 
 
 VIII. 3. Matt. IV. 4. 
 
 Luke, IV. 4. 
 
 IX. 19. Hebr. xn. 21. 
 
 XVIII. 15. 19. Acts, III. 22. 23. 
 
 Acts, VII. 37. 
 
 XIX. 15. John, VIII. 17. 
 
 2 Cor. XIII. 1. 
 
 XXI. 23. Gal. m. 13. 
 XXV. 4. 1 Cor. IX. 9. 
 
 1 Tim. V. 18. 
 
 XXV. 5. Matt. XXII. 24. 
 
 Mark, xn. 19. 
 
 Luke, XX, 28. 
 
 XXVII. 26. Gal. iii. 10. 
 
 XXX. 12. Rom. X. 6, 
 
 XXXI. 8. Hebr. xiii. 5. 
 xxxii. 17. 1 Cor. X. 20. 
 xxxii. 21. Rom. X, 19. 
 
 XXXII. 35. Rom. xii. 19. 
 XXXII. 43. Rom. xv. 10. 
 XXXII. 35. 36. Hebr. x. 30. 
 
 Joshua. 
 
 1. 5. Hebr. xiii. 5. 
 
 1. Samuel. 
 
 xiii. 14. Acts, xiii. 22. 
 
CANON OP THE OLD TESTAMENT. 
 
 m 
 
 2. Sahvel/ 
 
 vu. 14. 2 Cor. VI. 17. 18. 
 
 Heb. 1. 5. 
 
 1. Kings. 
 
 XIX. 14. Rom. XI. 3. 
 XIX. 18. Rom. XI. 4. 
 
 Job. 
 
 V. 13. 1 Cor. III. 10. 
 
 Psalms. 
 
 n. 1.2. Acts, IV. 25.26. 
 u. 7. Acts, xiii. 33. 
 
 Heb. 1. 5. 
 
 Heb. V. 5. 
 
 ii. 9. Rev. 11. 27. 
 V. 10. Rom. 111. 13. 
 viii. 3. Matt. xxi. 16. 
 vni. 5. Heb. u. 6. 
 viu. 7. 1 Cor. XV. 27. 
 VIII. 17. 18. Heb. II. 13. 
 X, 7. Rom. HI. 14. 
 
 XIV. 1. Rom. HI. 10. 11. 12. 
 XVI. 8. Acts, II. 25. 
 XVI. 10. Acts, xui. 35. 
 xviii. 50. Rom. XV. 9. 
 XIX. 5. Rom. X. 18. 
 XXII. 1. Matt, xxvii. 46. 
 
 - Mark, xv. 34. 
 XXII. 19. Matt, xxvii. 35. 
 
 - John, XIX. 24. 
 xxii. 23. Heb. ii. 12. 
 XXIV. 1. 1 Cor. X. 26. 
 
 XXXI. 6. Luke, xxiii. 46. 
 
 XXXII. 1. 2. Rom. IV. 7. 8. 
 xxxiv. 12. 1. Pet. III. 10. 
 
 Psalms. 
 
 xxxvi. 2. Rom. iii. 18. 
 XL. 7. Hebr. x. 5. 
 XLi. 10. John, XIII. 18. 
 xLiv. 22. Rom. viii. 36. 
 XLV. 7. 8. Heb. 1. 8. 9. 
 Li. 6. Rom. in. 4. , 
 
 Lxviii. 19. Eph. IV. 8. 
 Lxix. 10. John, II. 17. 
 
 Rom. XV. 3. 
 
 LXIX. 23. 24. Rom. xi. 9. 10. 
 LXIX. 26. Acts, 1. 20. 
 Lxxviii. 2. Matt. XIII. 35. 
 Lxxviii. 24. John, vi. 31. 
 Lxxxii. 6. John, x. 34. 
 Lxxxix. 21. Acts, xiii. 22. 
 xci. 11.12. Matt. IV. 6. 
 
 Luke, IV. 10. 
 
 11.^ 
 xciv. 11. 1 Cor. III. 20. 
 xcv. 7. Heb. iii. 7. 
 xcv. 7. 8. Hebr. iii. 15. 
 
 Heb. IV. 7. 
 
 xcv. 11. Heb. IV. 3. 
 xcvii. 7. Heb. 1.6. 
 cii. 26... Heb. 1. 10... 
 CIV. 4. Heb. 1. 7. 
 €ix. 3. John, XV. 25. 
 cix. 8. Acts, 1. 20. 
 ex. 1. Matt. xxii. 44. 
 
 Mark, xii. 36. 
 
 Luke, XX. 42. 43. 
 
 Acts, II. 34. 35. 
 
 1 Cor. XV. 25. 
 
 Heb. I. 13. 
 
 ex. 4. Heb. V. 6. 
 
 Heb. vii. 17. 21. 
 
 cxii. 9. 2. Cor. IX. 9. 
 cxvi. 10. 2 Cor. iv. 13. 
 cxvii. 1. Rom. XV, 11. 
 
100 
 
 CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT. 
 
 Psalms. 
 
 cxviii. 6. Hebr. xiii. 6. 
 cxviii. 22. Luke, xx. 17. 
 CXVIII. 22. 23. Matt. xxi. 42. 
 
 Mark, XII. 10. 11 
 
 Acts, IV. 11. 
 
 . 1 Pet. II. 7. 
 
 cxL. 4. Rom. III. 13. 
 
 Proverbs. 
 
 III. 1,1. Hebr. XII. 5. 
 III. 12. Hebr. xii. 6. 
 III. 34. Jam. iv. 6. 
 X. 12. 1 Pet. IV. 8. 
 XXII. 9. 2 Cor. IX. 7. 
 XXV. 21. 22. Rom. xii. 20. 
 xxvi. 11. 2 Pet. 11.22. 
 
 Isaiah. 
 
 1. 9. Rom. IX. 29. 
 VI. 9. Matt. XIII. 14. 
 
 Mark. iv. 12. 
 
 Luke, VIII. 10. 
 
 VI. 9. 10. Acts/xxviii. 26. 27. 
 
 VI. 10. John, xii. 40. 
 
 VII. 14. Matt. 1. 23. 
 
 VIII. 12. 13. 1 Pet. III. 14. 15, 
 VIII. 14. Rom. IX. 33. 
 
 Rom. X. 11. 
 
 viii. 23. Matt. IV. 15. 16. 
 ix. 1. 
 
 X. 22. 23. Rom. ix. 27. 28. 
 
 XI. 10. Rom. XV. 12. 
 XXII. 13. 1 Cor. XV. 32. 
 XXV. 8. 1 Cor. XV. 54. 
 xxvm. 11. 12. 1 Cor. XIV. 2L 
 xxvin. 16. Rom. ix. 33. 
 
 Isaiah. 
 
 — Rom. X. I L 
 
 1 Pet. H. 6. 
 
 XXIX. 10. Rom. XI. 8. 
 .XXIX. 13. Matt. XV. 8. 9. 
 
 Mark, vn. 6. 7. 
 
 XXIX. 14. 1 Cor. 19. 
 XL. 3. Matt. HI. 3. 
 
 Mark, i. 2. 3.' 
 
 Luke, HI. 4. 5. 6. 
 
 John,i. 23. 
 
 XL. 6. 1 Pet. I. 24. 25. 
 XL. 13. Rom. XI. 34. 
 
 1 Cor. II. 16. 
 
 XLH. 1. Matt. XH. 18. 
 
 xLv. 23. Rom. XIV. 11. 
 
 XLix. 6. Acts, XHi. 47. 
 
 XLix. 8. 2 Cor. VI. 2. 
 
 Lu. 5. Rom. 11. 24. 
 
 LH. 7. Rom. X. 1 5. 
 
 Lii. 11.12. 2 Cor. VI. 17. 18. 
 
 LH. 15. Rom. XV. 21. 
 
 Liii. 1. John XH. 38. 
 
 LHi. 3. Rom. X. 16. 
 
 LHi. 4. Matt. vHi. 17. 
 
 LHi. 5. 1 Pet. II. 24, 
 
 LiH. 7. 8. Acts, viH. 32. 33. 
 
 LiH. 9. 1 Pet. 11. 22. 
 
 LHi. 12. Mark, xv. 28. 
 
 Luke, xxH. 37. 
 
 Liv. 1. Gal. IV. 27. 
 Liv. 13. John, vi. 45. 
 Lv. 3. Acts, xiH. 34. 
 Lvi. 7. Matt. xxi. 13. 
 
 Mark, xi. 17. 
 
 '- Luke, xix. 46. 
 
 Lix. 7. 8. Rom. HI. 15. 
 
 Lix. 20. 21. Rom. xi. 26. 27. 
 
 Lxi. 1.2. Luke, IV. 18. 19, 
 
Isaiah. 
 
 UANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT. 
 MiCAII. 
 
 101 
 
 Lxiv. 13. 1. Cor. II. 9. 
 Lxv. 1. 2. Acts, vu. 49. 40. 
 ixv. 1.2. Rom. X. 20.21. 
 
 Jeremiah. 
 
 vii. 11. Matt. XXI. 13. 
 
 Mark, xi. 17. 
 
 Luke, XIX. 46. 
 
 IX. 23. 1. Cor. 1.31. 
 XXXI. 15.. Matt. II. 18. 
 XXXI. 31.. Hebr. viii. 8. 
 XXXI, 33. 34. Hebr. x. 16, 17. 
 
 HOSEA. 
 
 11. 1. Rom. IX. S6. 
 II. 25. Rom. IX. 25. 
 VI. 6. Matt. IX. 13. 
 — — Matt. XII. 7. 
 XI. 1. Matt. II. 15. 
 XIII. 14. 1 Cor. XV. 65. 
 
 Joel. 
 
 «i. 1. Acts, 11. 17. 
 ui. 5. Rom. X. 13. 
 
 Amos. 
 
 V. 25. Acts, VII. 42. 43. 
 IX. 11. 12. Acts, XV. 16. 17. 
 
 V. I. Matt. II. 0. 
 Habakkuk. 
 
 I. 5. Acts, XIII. 41.' 
 
 II. 3. 4. Hebr. x. 37. 38. 
 
 II. 4. Rom. !. 17. 
 Gal. 111. U. 12. 
 
 Haggai. 
 
 n. 6. Hebr. xii. 26. 
 
 Zechariah. 
 
 IX. 9. Matt. xxi. 5. 
 
 John, XII. 15. 
 
 XI. 13. Matt, xxvii. 9. 10. 
 xii. 10. John, xix. 37. 
 xiii. 7. Matt. XXVI. 31. 
 Mark, xiv. 27. 
 
 Malachi. 
 
 I. 2. 3. Rom. ix. 13. 
 
 III. 1. Matt. XI. 10. 
 
 Mark, i. 2. 3. 
 
 Luke, vii. 27. 
 
 III. 23. Luke, i. 17. 
 
102 CANON OP THE OLD TESTAM&NT. 
 
 There are, in the New Testament, no direct quotations from 
 the following books : 
 
 Judges. Nehemiah. Daniel. 
 
 Ruth. Esther. Obadiah. 
 
 n Kings. Ecclesiastes. Jonah. 
 
 I Chronicles. The Song of Solomon. Nahum. 
 
 II Chronicles. Lamentations. Zephaniah. 
 Ezra. Ezekiel. 
 
 But references are made to some of these : 
 
 To Judges, in Heb. xi. 30 — 34. and Acts, xiii* 20 ; to 
 II Kings in Luke, iv. 25 — 27. x. 4. Heb. xi. 35 ; i Chro- 
 nicles, in Heb. v. 4; ii Chronicles, in Matt. ii. 5L 
 xxni. 35. Lu. xi. 51 ; Nehemiah, Rom. ii. 24 ; Esther, 
 Rev. XI. 6; Ecclesiastes, in 1 Tim. vi. 7. Jam. iv. 
 5 ; Lamentations, 1 Cor. iv. 15 ; Ezekiel, in ii Pet. 
 II. 5. III. 4. Rev. ; Daniel, in Matt, xxxiv. 15. Mark, 
 xiH. 14. Heb. XI. 33. 34; Jonah, in Matt. xu. 39— 4L 
 Luke, XI. 30. 32 ; Nahum, Rev* xviii. 3. 
 
 Storr, in his Biblical Theology, (quoted above, §. 8. note *), 
 has exhibited, /rom the New Testament^ a View of the " Divine 
 authority of the Old Testament^^^ in Vol. i. B. i. §. 13.; and 
 in §. 14., he gives the " Proof ,''^ from the New Testament^ " that 
 the Jewish Canon, in the days of Jesus, contained the same booki 
 which now constitute our Old Testament," Horne, in his In- 
 troduction to the Holy Scriptures, Vol. n. P. i. Ch. ix. Sect, i., 
 has classified and arranged the " Quotations from the Old 
 Testament in the New." The most convenient and satis- 
 factory work, as an aid to the student, who desires to investi- 
 gate the subject, is entitled " Passages cited from the Old 
 Testament by the writers of the New Testament, compared 
 with the Original Hebrew and the Septuagint Version : ar- 
 
CANON or THE OLD TESTAMENT. 103 
 
 ranged by the Junior Class in the Theological Seminary, 
 Andover, and published at their request, under the super- 
 intendence of M. Stuart, Associate Professor of Sacrefl 
 Literature." pp. 39. Quarto, Andover, 1827. Tr. ] 
 
 Note [ B ]. 
 
 The quotations from the Old Testament in the New are of 
 two kinds. 
 
 I. Some books are quoted /or the establishment of religious 
 truths. To this class, without controversy, belong the fol- 
 lowing books. 
 
 1. The books of Moses. Matt. iv. 4. 7. xv. 4. xxn. 31. 37. 
 Mark, vii. 9. 10. 13. 1 Cor. ix. 8. 
 
 2. Isaiah. Matt. i. 23. (viii. 17. xii. 18. Mark, xi. 17. 
 John, VI. 45.), Acts, viii. 30 — 35. Rom. xii. i Pet. ii. 6. 
 
 3. Jeremiah. Hebr. x. 15. 16. 17. 
 
 4. Psalms. Matt. xxn. 43. 44. Acts, ii. 25. 
 
 II. Some books of the Old Testament are only cited by the 
 way ; sometimes for illustration, sometimes as parallels. 
 
 The student, who wishes to examine this part of the sub- 
 ject, will be furnished with a list of the direct and indirect 
 quotations, by consulting Knapp's edition of the New Testa- 
 ment ; in which, at the close of Tom. ii., is given a table, en- 
 titled : Recensus locorum Veteris Testamenti in Kovo vel ipsis 
 verbis, vel obscurius commemoratorum. 
 
 The whole subject is very ably discussed by the following 
 writers, in addition to those cited in the last note : 
 
 Drusius, in the work entitled ; In Parallela Sacra Kotae, 
 inserted in the Critici Sacri, Lond., 1660. Vol. virr. 
 pp. 1266— 1325. 
 
104 CANON OP THE OLD TESTAMENT. 
 
 SuRENHUSius, inhis niK^on -ISD sive B1BA02 K ATA AA APHIS, 
 in quo secundum veterum theologorum Hebraeorum for- 
 mulas allegandi, et modos interpretandi conciliantur loca 
 ex V. in JV. T, allegata. Amstelaedamiy 1713, small 4to. 
 pp. 712. 
 
 MicHAELis, in his Introduction to the New Testament, Vol. i. 
 P; I, Ch. V. Sect. I— V. 
 
 Owen, on the Modes of Quotation used by the Evangelical 
 writers. 
 
 Shlegel, in a Treatise printed in the Thesaurus Novus 
 Theolog. Philolog. P. ii. T. ii. 
 
 Scott, in his contributions on the subject, found in the 
 Christian Observer; see the Vols, for 1810 and 1811. 
 
 Some excellent observations may be found also, in a Lec- 
 ture by Professor Woods, Andover, pp. 32., on " The 
 Objection to the Inspiration of the Evangelists and .Apostles 
 from their manner of quoting texts from the Old Testa- 
 mmt." 
 
ESSAY 
 
 OS THE 
 
 JLIFE AND WRITINGS 
 
 OF 
 
 SAMUEL BOCHART. 
 
 BY WILLIAM R. WHITTINGHAM, A. M. 
 
 CHAPLAIN AND SUPEHINTHNDENT OF THE KHW-YOHK 
 PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL PUBLIC SCHOOL. 
 
 u 
 
ESSAY. 
 
 Success in giving a tolerably accurate outlhie of the events 
 of a scholar's life, and some idea of the contents and charac- 
 ter of the vrorks on which his fame is built, is all that will be 
 aimed at in the following Essay. The extraordinary reputa- 
 tion of BocHART would, it is true, justify a much more ex- 
 tensive work. His hfe, although not eventful, contains much 
 that would afford theme for copious remark ; and a thorough 
 <iriticism of his voluminous and most learned works would 
 fill a volume. The imperfect sketch which follows will not 
 do justice to the subject, but it may, at least, furnish a few 
 facts respecting a man who, once the wonder of his age, is 
 now almost forgotten, and excite some attrition to books 
 which are at this day more praised than read. 
 
 Few men have acquired a higher reputation for abstract 
 learning than Boch art. At an early period of his life his fame 
 i'was extended beyond the limits of his country ; and on the pub- 
 lication of his principal works, it almost instantaneously obtain- 
 ed the most exalted'rank. Tlie most distinguished scholars, in 
 an age which of all before or since excelled in varied erudition, 
 vied with each other in admiring and extolling the enjiinence of 
 BocHART in the very acquirements for which they themselves 
 were most celebrated, {a) From them the crowd of second- 
 
 (a) Sarrau, a coansellor at Paris, an accomplished scholar and patron 
 of learned men, says in a letter to Saumaise, as early as March 15, 
 1645: "Cadomensis BocHARTuseruditissimum commentarium in Genes, 
 cap. X. perfecit — in quo — omnigena doctrina — suaviter te afficiet." — 
 J. L. Fabricy (in Orat. Inaug. de Animarum Iramortalitale, in 3660,) 
 says of him "praecipuum aevi noslri dictus sit miraculum, cujus si 
 quis nomen ignoret, aut stupendum cumque summa mddestia con- 
 junctum ernditionem non suspiciat, ilium penitus eeyuxdcf esse o.porte-at*' 
 
108 MEMOIRS OF 
 
 rate writers, who depend on their Coryphaei for their judg- 
 ments and opinions, took the tone ; and since that time it would 
 have been hterary heresy to consider Bochart as other than a 
 scholar of the first rank. The honourable appellation of " the 
 learned " — eruditus — is almost invariably prefixed to his name, 
 and would you give an example of nearly unbounded reading {h) 
 and equal diligence in its appHcation, cite Bochart, and the 
 aptness of the illustration will be immediately allowed, (c) 
 
 Considering the exalted station which our author has main- 
 tained among the learned, — his intimate connexion with a 
 great number of the most celebrated literary characters of 
 his age and country, and his extensive correspondence with 
 eminent individuals, it is rather surprising that no independ- 
 ent biographical account of him should have been given to the 
 world. Within the last half century, many less prominent 
 and less interesting characters have been made the subjects 
 
 The opinions of G. J. Vossius, Isaac Vossius, Tanaquil Faber, Lewis 
 Cappel, Paul Colomies, and Meric Casaubon, to the same effect, are 
 cited by Spizehus, Inf. Lit. p. 917, 919, 925. 
 
 (6) In his excellent remarks on the antiquities of the Phoenicians, 
 Bochart appears to have made no use of a Spanish work on the anti- 
 quities of Spain and Africa, by Berna rd Aldrete, published in 1614 ; and 
 as this is an opus classicum, B.'s inattention to it must have arisen from 
 ignorance of it. The remark is made by Le Clerc, Bibl. Choisie, 
 V. 389. and 393, and after him by Fabricius, Bibliographia Antiquaria 
 p. 43. That two of the sharpest critics and greatest readers in the 
 learned world should have so carefully noted a single oversight in Bo- 
 chart, and should have been able to discover only one, is a strong proof 
 of the great extent of his reading. Such criticisms aregreatly creditable 
 to his learning. They show that its boundaries were those of human 
 infirmity; ' tantura nan omnia scivit.' 
 
 (r) SrizELius^ in that elaborately learned and eccentric work, the 
 ' Infelix Literatus,' has a chapter entitled ' Solertia Jugis, sive Litera- 
 torum, ingenio pariter ac laboriosa sedulitate aevo nostro maxirae 
 illustrium Quadriga pobilissima.' The illustrious ybw are Isaac Casau- 
 bon, Ger. Jo. Vossius, John Selden, and Bochart, He speaks of them 
 as '' fulgentissima orbis eruditi sidera;" and talks of *' quantis (inde- 
 fotigabili sua studiositate) thesauris universam rempublicam literariam 
 «»;tornRnnt. locupletarintnup " Inf. Lit. Common, xxx. p. 887. 
 
SAMUEL BOGHART. 109 
 
 i&f extensive works, while he has been suflered to languish 
 ia comparative obscurity. 
 
 Soon after Boc hart's decease, his junior colleague in the 
 pastoral care of the church at Caen, Du Bosc, who is well 
 known as the zealous and able advocate of the liberties of 
 his fellow Protestants in France, avowed an intention to 
 write his life, (d) But this intention was completely frustrat- 
 ed by the troubles which preceded the revocation of the edict 
 of Nantz, and the consequences of that revocation. These 
 commenced almost immediately after Bochart*s decease, 
 and resulted in the exile of Du Bosc, with the greater portion 
 of his flock, to Holland, where he shortly after died. Had 
 no such series of untoward events occurred, we should doubt- 
 less be in possession of a faithful portraiture of the life and 
 manners of our author, and that with the additional advantage 
 of its being from a master's pen. 
 
 This project having failed, Stephen Morin, a junior asso- 
 ciate with Bochart and Du Bosc in the care of the church 
 at Caen, was induced, by the intreaties of their common 
 friends, to draw up, partly from recollection and partly from 
 papers in the possession of Bochart's family, a short account 
 <}f the life and writings of our author in the Latin language, (e) 
 This has been prefixed to both the editions of Bochart's col- 
 lected works. It is the first article in the third volume of the 
 splendid edition of Leusden and Villamand. Narration was 
 not the forte of Morin, and accordingly, as a history of the 
 life of Bochart, his essay merits very little praise. The detail 
 of facts is dry, unnecessarily concise, and provokingly meagre. 
 His reflections are seldom more than common place, often 
 almost puerile. Bat as a friend and apologist of his deceased 
 colleague, he shows his zeal, and learning, and ingenuity, in an 
 advantageous light. His account of the origin and design 
 of the published and unpublished works of Bochart, also, is 
 
 (rf) MoRiNUs de Clar. Boch. p. 1. 
 
 (e) Stephanus Moeinus de Clarissirao Bocharto et omnibus ejus 
 i5cripti« 
 
no MEMOIRS OF 
 
 tolerably interesting and well arranged. On the whole, his 
 thirty-six folio pages are filled with matter rather above the 
 general character of the biographical notices commonly pre- 
 fixed to posthumous editions of the works of celebrated men. 
 From this life, a notice of Bochart contained in the Infelix 
 liiteratus of Spizelius, and several scattered anecdotes in 
 Huet's Commentaries on his own Life, the materials of the 
 following sketch have been principally derived. 
 
 When a man has acquired by his own talents and industry 
 an enduring reputation, it can add but little to his importance 
 to trace his descent from a noble ancestry. Yet that little the 
 biographer is seldom willing to spare ; and accordingly, scanty 
 as are the memorials of Samuel Bochart, it has been care- 
 fully recorded that he derived his origin, on the father's side, 
 from a noble family. The frequency of the instances in which 
 several individuals of the same family have excelled in the 
 same or similar branches of science or the arts attaches rather 
 more real value to a near connexion with men distinguished 
 for their natural endowments. Of this advantage, also, our 
 author was not destitute, his mother being sister to the famous 
 Peter Moulin or Molin^us. It was of more importance to 
 him, however, that his parents were themselves eminent for 
 their talents and their virtues. His father, Bochart de Mes- 
 NiLLET, having filled the station of Chief Pastor of the Re- 
 formed Church at Rouen, with reputation, for many years ; and 
 his mother having even acquired celebrity for her remarkable 
 prudence and sedateness, and unfeigned piety. Of such 
 parents he was born at Rouen in 1599. Nothing is recorded 
 of his early youth, except that it was well spent. There are yet 
 extant forty-four Greek verses of no contemptible character, 
 composed by him at the early age of thirteen, and addressed 
 to his preceptor, who deemed them of sufficient value to be 
 prefixed to a Corpus Romanorum Antiquitatum, published in 
 1612. These verses are of no small importance in tracing the 
 literary life of our author, since they inform us that he was 
 the cherished and grateful pupil of no less a scholar than 
 Thomas Dempster. This man, a Scotchman by birth, a 
 tutor in the University of Paris, was an object of admiration 
 
SAtfUEL fiOCUATt'A 111 
 
 wifi\ nis cotemporaries for his extraordinary talents, his un- 
 common boldness and great personal courage, and especially 
 his extensive reading and astonishing memory. It is said of 
 him that he did not know what it was to forget, and that there 
 was no passage or circumstance in any ancient author with 
 which he was not perfectly acquainted. (/) The number 
 and variety of his works prove the use which he made of such 
 extraordinary endowments. To have been placed at an early 
 age under the care of such a man was undeniably no small 
 advantage to Bochart, and in all probability contributed 
 greatly to form him to the character in which he afterward 
 appeared. On the other hand, that such an advantage was 
 not thrown away upon him, is evident from the fact that a 
 man of such distinguished learning as Dempster was willing 
 to prefix the commendatory verses of his pupil to one of his 
 most elaborate productions. Shortly after the publication of 
 those verses our author was removed to the College at 
 Sedan, (g) He there studied philosophy under John Smith, 
 a clergyman and professor of the institution ; and in 1615, 
 sustained his public theses in that branch with much credit. 
 These he dedicated in verse to his grandfather, Joachim 
 Moulin, a pastor at Orleans, and to his uncle Peter Mouliin', 
 then resident at Paris. About the same time he also publish- 
 ed several other minor poems, which do credit to his pro- 
 ficiency in the Latin language, and the principles of its versi- 
 fication. One in particular, bearing date 1616, is worthy of 
 notice, as a remarkable instance of the same indefatigable in- 
 dustry which adhered to him through life, and as exhibiting an 
 extraordinary ingenuity which, perhaps, contributed to lessen 
 the value of the learned labours of his maturer years. A 
 friend and classmate had published some theses De Mundo. 
 Bochart, to do him honour, composed a copy of complimen- 
 
 (/) Bayle,Dict. Art. DEMPSTER. NoteE. 
 
 (g) He was probably residing at Paris, in the house of his uncle Peter 
 Moulin, while he was under the care of Dempster. Morin. ubi supra, 
 p. 2. 
 
il2 MEMOIRS OF 
 
 taiy verses, increasing in six lines from a dimeter to a fuH 
 hexameter, and decreasing again to a dimeter in as many more, 
 so as to form the superficies of a circle. A large O circum- 
 scribed the whole, and this letter formed the beginning and 
 end of every line, (h) Some other complimentary poems, 
 published in 1618, on occasion of the departure of two young 
 noblemen from Sedan, display considerable powers of versi- 
 fication, and some invention, and prove the continuance of 
 Bochart's attachment to these lighter studies. Nevertheless, 
 although he indulged in these amusements, while at Sedan, he 
 made theology the principal subject of 1ms attention, studying 
 it under the learned and celebrated James Capel. About 1619 
 he left Sedan, and went, as nearly as Morin could ascer- 
 tain (i) to the Protestant university at Saumur, there studying 
 divinity under the famous Scotch divine John Cameron, who 
 succeeded Gomar in his Professorship in that university in 
 1618. The civil disturbances obliged Cameron to retire to 
 London in 1621. Bochart accompanied him, attending his 
 private lectures there. According to Morin, {k) his stay was 
 short, as toward the close of the same year he was at Leyden, 
 
 (h) I insert this literary trifle, to convey an accurate idea of the la- 
 bour which must have been wasted in its composition. 
 
 rbis orig^ ^^ 
 rnatus, situs, ord 
 / lympus ipse in parvul 
 / rdine pingitup hoc libell 
 nunc, quisquis es, aggredi cavet 
 pemque potius, ferre si potes, fert 
 rbe vel extorris fugies, extorris olympj 
 rcusque solus supererit tibi raiser 
 Isace, metum mente repellit 
 rbera quippe tegit tuus umb 
 rbis aderit tibi mutu 
 pponesvalidumtu 
 rbera inimic 
 
 (i) MoRiK. ubi supra. (k) Moriw. ubi supra. 
 
siudying the Arabic language, and perfecting his knowledge 
 of* Hebrew, under Erpenius, the first Arabic scholar of his 
 day ; and at the same time attending the theological lectures 
 of Andrew Rivet. (/) If this be correct, Bochart must 
 have visited England twice ; since it is certain that in 1622 he 
 was studying at Oxford, (w) and in the Lent or spring term 
 of the year was admitted a public student in the library of that 
 university, at that time the accustomed resort of studious 
 foreigners. The common complaint of continental scholars 
 respecting the peculiarity of the English pronunciation of the 
 Latin language was made by our traveller. A laughable oc- 
 currence, which took place during his residence at the Univer- 
 sity, afforded him, it must be confessed, some ground. A crea- 
 tion of Doctors being about to take place, Bochart paid a visit 
 to one of the Academical Senate for the purpose of obtaining 
 admission to a sight of the ceremony. After stating his request 
 with some urgency, he was no little surprized and mortified 
 to receive for answer that * the Academical funds were at that 
 time very low,' accompanied with the tender of a few crowns. 
 The good doctor had been unable to understand the continental 
 pronunciation of his visiter, and had only collected from his 
 speech that he was a foreigner in want of something. Accus- 
 tomed, no doubt, to applications for pecuniary aid (for Eng- 
 land was at that time noted for her liberality to needy scholars 
 from abroad) he presumed the object of Bochart to be of tho 
 same kind, and framed his reply accordingly. The difference 
 of pronunciation must have been great, which could so com- 
 pletely interrupt communication between two persons well 
 acquainted with the language in which they attempted to con- 
 verse. The same difference exists to the present day, al- 
 though it is impossible to prove that either of the modern me- 
 
 (l) Rivet was Bochart's uncle by marriage 'with his mother's sister; 
 and subsequently displayed his esteem for his distinguished relative and 
 pupil, by dedicating to him, jointly with P. du Moulin, W. Rivet, and 
 J. M. DE Langle, his Calholicm Orlhodoxus^ in 1629. 
 
 (m) Anth. Wood. Fasti Oxonienses, i. 158. 
 
 15 
 
114 MEMOIRS OF 
 
 thods is conlbrniable to the ancient pronunciation of the 
 language. There is no plea for such an obstinate adherence 
 on either side to peculiarities which deprive the Latin scholar of 
 half the benefit of his acquisition, by taking from it the cha- 
 racter of an universal language and general medium of com- 
 munication between the learned. As the English, and those 
 who in this country have followed their pronunciation, are the 
 raihority, it behoves them to cede to the generally prevailing 
 custom, and render their own Latin intelligible when spoken, 
 to the rest of the world, and themselves able to understand 
 the conversation of foreign men of letters. 
 
 BocHART, having spent his time abroad with pleasure and 
 profit, was recalled to his native place by the death of his 
 father, and the duties he owed to his widowed mother. With 
 her he resided some time at Rouen, until the Reformed Congre- 
 gation at Caen being deprived, by death, of one of its pastors, 
 and hearing of the young Bochart's extraordinary talents and 
 acquirements, unanimously elected him to supply the vacancy. 
 He accepted the appointment, and consequently removed to 
 Caen, which, excepting the short interval of his journey into 
 Sweden, was his place of residence during the remainder 
 of his life. The date of this settlement is not recorded, but 
 all accounts agree in speaking of its happy consequences ; and 
 stating that Bochart's assiduity and faithful attention to all 
 the duties of the pastoral office quickly gained him a very 
 great degree of popularit}^ Preaching, in consequence of 
 the peculiar, and perhaps undue, importance which is attach- 
 ed to that ordinance by the reformed churches on the conti- 
 nent, occupied a great proportion of his studies. As might be 
 expected when a man of such abilities concentrated his exer- 
 tions on a single object, he met with eminent success. His 
 discourses were warm and practical, while at the same time, 
 according to Morin, (n) he displayed consummate ability in 
 
 (n) I quote my author, because the assertion appears a little mar- 
 vellous, and because his judgment may have differed from that which 
 would have been formed in the premises by a modern sermon-critic. 
 
,^ LIB 
 
 'or TUB 
 SAMUEL BOCHART. Vv ^il5v ^Ti 
 
 rendering them replete with learning, without in the least un- 
 fitting them for popular effect, or rendering them above the 
 comprehension of his people. 
 
 But BocHART was not left long undisturbed in this happy 
 and useful connexion. The plans which the wily Richelieu 
 had set in operation were now beginning to take ef!ect, and 
 all things were fast ripening for the downfall of the re- 
 formed religion in France. Among other indications of the 
 approach of that event, was the appearance of a swarm of 
 self-constituted pacificators, who, under pretence of seeking 
 by the oft tried method of conference and disputation, to unite 
 both parties, were in reality deepening the prejudices of the 
 Romanists and exasperating their ill-will against the Protes- 
 tant minority. A conspicuous place among these wranglers 
 was held by one Veron, an ex-Jesuit, who, under authority 
 of a royal licence, migrated from place to place, holding 
 formal disputations with such of the reformed as he could 
 persuade or tease into the measure. He was one of the set 
 known in history by the name of Methodists, on account of 
 their adopting and rigidly observing particular methods of con- 
 ducting their controversies, which seemed to^them best suited 
 to effect their ends. His plan was to insist that his antagonists 
 should make good their arguments and opinions, in every in- 
 stance, by express and formal declarations of Holy Writ. 
 No inference or conclusion, however fair, no circumstantial 
 proof, however strong, was to be admitted. * You appeal to 
 Scripture,' was virtually his language to Protestants, * and to 
 Scripture we will go. But it shall be Scripture only, without 
 the least aid of human reason in any way applied.' Of course 
 there could be very little chance of failure in such a contest. 
 With all the advantage of the negative side of the question, he 
 deprived his opponents of the use of the only evidence which 
 they could, or desired to, bring in support of their affirma- 
 tive, (o) This champion made his appearance at Caen in 
 
 (o) MosHKMii. Hist. Eccles. p. 873. Simon Lettres Choisies, p. 212. 5 
 
116 MKMOIRS Ol 
 
 1628, and ^vitll persevering industry tormented Bochart till 
 he consented to a public disputation in the castle of the city. 
 The Due de Longueville, at that time Viceroy of Normandy, 
 and governor of the place, presided ; and a number of per- 
 sons of distinction, with a great concourse of* people, of botli 
 creeds, were present. The conference lasted nine days, and 
 turned upon all the principal points in dispute between the 
 Romanists and Protestants. Two secretaries appointed for 
 that purpose, one by each of the contending parties, took 
 down the arguments of the disputants, and at the close of 
 each day's session, these were read before the president and 
 the whole assembly, and signed by Bochart and his antago- 
 nist. Notwithstanding all this formality, the conference, as 
 might have been foreseen, produced no good result. Of course 
 neither the Jesuit nor his friends admitted that he was worst- 
 ed ; and yet Moiun asserts that he deserted the field of com- 
 bat, leaving Bochart to finish by himself the third part of the 
 disputation, as it had been previously arranged. The friendly 
 biographer even breaks out in admiration of the wonderful 
 work of Providence (' mirabili Providentiae divinae opera) by 
 which the acts were prepared with so much formality, as it 
 were merely for the purpose of displaying the superior learn- 
 ing and ability of Bochart, and the just predominance of the 
 good cause for which he was an advocate. It must be con- 
 fessed, however, that the advantage of the last zuord may have 
 conduced a little to this apparent superiority, as Morin al- 
 lows that the extraordinary acquaintance of Bochart with 
 the fathers and Ecclesiastical History appeared principally in 
 his additions to his arguments, made by him as they passed 
 through the press, — which he was prevented from using in the 
 debate by the procacity of his redoubtable antagonist ( ! ) : 
 and that the main strength of the support of Protestantism 
 lies in the last part, with which V^eron had no concern. 
 How, on the rule of disputing said to have, been invariably 
 observed by that Jesuit, opportunity was given to Bochart 
 to display his learning in the fathers and acquaintance 
 with church history, and, in particular, to adduce ffty testi- 
 monies of the fathers of tho first four centuries respecting the 
 
SAMUEL BOCHART. iVi 
 
 Eucharist, — to bring more than three hundred proofs from the 
 decrees of councils and canons of the church, of the falsity of 
 the doctrine of transubstantiation, — and to give a history of 
 clerical celibacy through sixteen centuries, — it is not easy to 
 imagine. But be that as it may, it is certain that no small in- 
 crease of fame accrued to our author from his contest ; and 
 that if silence is proof of defeat, Veron pleaded craven, by 
 suffering his adversary's edition of the dispute quietly to take 
 its course and enjoy its triumph. (/?) The book was in French, 
 and, like most others of its kind, has been long since buried in 
 oblivion. 
 
 This incident viras succeeded by an interval of quiet study 
 of some years' duration.. Not to say, with Morin^, that Boch- 
 ART had instilled a fear of his talents and acquirements into 
 the opposing party, it is more than probable that they had 
 discovered that he was not the man to suit their purpose ; he 
 was too well able at least, to defend himself and his cause, to 
 afford them any hopes of giving him a downright overthrow ; 
 and he was too cool in his temperament, and too much in- 
 volved in erudition, to indulge in any sallies of ill-temper 
 which might give an opportunity of exciting prejudice against 
 him. He was consequently left to the peaceful discharge of 
 his parochial duties, and cultivation of his favourite studies. 
 
 However extraordinary it may appear, the pastoral duties 
 of our author during this period were the occasion and the 
 source of the monuments of wonderful erudition, which he has 
 
 (p) So MoRiN explicitly, ubi supra, p. 4. ad im. Yet Rivet, in his De- 
 dication of his Calholicus Orlhodoxus to Bochaht, implies the contrary. 
 * You showed him ' (Verou), says he, * that he was ignorant in Greek 
 and in Hebrew, and put a bridle on his impudent sophistry, which he 
 has endeavoured to shake off by telling many lies (according to his cus- 
 tom,) about his imaginary victories ; but wise men have not been de- 
 ceived by them, and you have discovered his vanity by your answer.' 
 This looks as if Veron, so far from allowing himself beaten by his silence, 
 had publicly claimed the victory, and had forced Bochart to assert 
 his title to that praise by a printed answer. See Bayle, BOCHART. 
 llote B. 
 
118 MEiMOIRS OF 
 
 left to perpetuate his fame. He undertook, and accomplished 
 the composition of a course of sermons to his congregation on 
 the book of Genesis, from the beginning of the book to the 
 18th verse of the 49th chapter. These sermons, fairly writ-, 
 ten out with his own hand, he left among his other papers, to 
 his family. Bochart was not one who would content him- 
 self with a superficial or a partial view of any subject. While 
 engaged in the study of the sacred writings for the purpose of 
 eliciting from them practical instructions for his flock, he 
 could not pass over the difficulties which they occasionally 
 present, nor leave unexamined any, even the nicest, question 
 respecting the facts which they contain. The description of 
 Paradise in the second chapter of Genesis excited him to a 
 closer investigation of the real situation of that happy spot 
 than had ever before been instituted ; which resulted in the 
 treatise de Paradiso terrestri, now extant, though in a very 
 imperfect state, in the third volume of his works. In like 
 manner, almost every chapter presented some points not suit- 
 ed to be the themes of public discourses, and affording occa- 
 sion for the exercise of his deep research and unvaried erudi- 
 tion. The chronology and geography of the sacred volume, 
 — its natural history, — the origin of the names of men and 
 places which it records, and the more intricate portions of its 
 history, were not matters to be neglected by our studious pas- 
 tor. While plainer, and perhaps more useful, subjects formed 
 the matter of his weekly instructions to the people, these were 
 the favourite objects of his esoteric labours, and in these he 
 was gradually accumulating the astonishing mass of learning, 
 which he at length digested into his Sacred Geography and 
 Hierozoicon. 
 
 MoRiN, indeed, speaking with especial reference to the book 
 named Ph A LEG, gives a somewhat diflferent representation of 
 the matter. * Bochart,' says he, ' when he came to the 10th 
 chapter, and by his method was obliged to explain the origin 
 of nations as it is there narrated, bestowed all his powers 
 upon the work, and spared no pains to collect every thing 
 needful for the illustration of his subject, and to assure him- 
 self that every thing which he asserted in the pulpit was true. 
 
6AMUKL BOCHART. il^ 
 
 and capable of proof.' According to this view, we may sup- 
 pose his people to have been weekly edified with the erudite 
 discussions now arranged and condensed into a single work. 
 In charity to the preacher I would fain believe this to be an 
 incorrect account. Morin does not pretend to have seen his 
 discourses, and therefore may have founded his assertion mere- 
 ly on his own opinion, (q) But an examination of the ser- 
 mons preached by the friends and contemporaries of Bochart 
 will show, how contrary to prevailing custom such a proceed- 
 ing on his part must have been, and how little likely it would 
 be to procure him popularity. The pulpit discourses of the 
 age were almost exclusively doctrinal, and never was there 
 more of onction than they generally breathed. No doubt 
 the sermons of our author partook of the predominant charac- 
 ter, and we may charge it rather to his biographer's blind ad- 
 miration of his learning than to his own utter want of judg- 
 ment, that he is represented as having preached his Phaleg 
 piecemeal to a no doubt wondering, but surely spiritually starv^- 
 ing, flock. 
 
 Eighteen years elapsed before these lucubrations were suf- 
 fered to go abroad by their laborious author. At length, in 
 1646, he was induced by the solicitations of his friends and 
 learned correspondents, to commit the First Part of his ' Sa- 
 cred Geography ' to the press, at Caen, * whither a printer 
 had been induced to come, from Sedan, for the express pur- 
 pose of securing greater accuracy in its impression, t The 
 
 (g) He merely says of them — *' excellentissimis concionibris, quas 
 manu sud ad verbura nitide descriptas suo ex unica filia nepoti Samueli 
 le Seur domino de CoUeville in Parlamento Rothomaycnsi dim Sena- 
 tori cum multis aliis scrlptis auro contra aestimandis reliquit."— How 
 well they would deserve the epithet M. here bestows on them, if his ac- 
 count of them were correct, the reader is left to judge. 
 
 ^ It was printed at Bochart's own expense, with types purchased 
 for him, and by workmen in his pay. Like most authors who publish 
 for themselves, he was heartily tired of the undertaking before its com- 
 pletion. Ep. ad Voss. 0pp. iii. 862. 
 
 i And yet the editors of the edition published in 4to, at Frankfort, in 
 
12U MEMOIRS iJh ' 
 
 name Phaleg or Peleg, that of the descendant ot 8hem, in 
 whose days the dispersion of mankind took place, was given 
 to this part, to indicate its subject, — the origin of nations, and 
 their derivation from the Noachitic stem, according to the 
 table in the tenth of Genesis. 
 
 The Second Part of the work was immediately after put to 
 press, and appeared in the following year, under the title 
 ' Canaan,' expressing its relation to the settlements of the 
 descendents of Canaan, and the vestiges of their wanderings 
 and colonics, throughout the world. 
 
 The work thus completed had scarcely had time to be- 
 come known to the learned world, before it obtained for its 
 author an extraordinary degree of fame and admiration.* 
 The subjects were comparatively new, at least in the extent 
 to which he had carried his investigations. The treatment 
 of them was ingenious. The arrangement was perspicuous 
 and convenient. And above all, the mass of learning brought 
 to bear upon every point in the least connected with the ob- 
 ject of the work was almost incredibly great. Erudition was 
 at that period more in vogue than originality ; and research, 
 not invention or discovery, was considered the proof of in- 
 telligence. Accordingly Boon art, who seemed to have read 
 every thing that had been written on subjects which he dis- 
 cussed, (r) and to have remembered all that he had read, was 
 acknowledged as a genius of the first class, and took his sta- 
 
 1681, complain of 'Infinita 94)«x,MaTat * in that of Caen: — to the rea- 
 sonableness of which complaint I myself can testify. 
 
 *' Its character and effects are well illustrated by an anecdote told by 
 IIuET of himself, which shows that in all human probability, we are in* 
 debted for the benefit of his learned labours, to Bochart. " I was in- 
 vited to resume the pursuits of general literature and antiquities, by the 
 Sacred Geography of Samukl Bochart, which then began to be pub- 
 lished at Caen. By this rich store of Hebrew and Greek literature, I 
 was not only rendered sensible of my own poverty, but was made 
 ashamed of it; so that I adopted the resolution to abstain from all other 
 studies until I might be reckoned not uninformed in these." Comm. 
 de Vita. Lib. i. Aikin's Mem. i- 31. 
 
 (r) See note (&)• 
 
SAMUEL BOCHA&i. i^^i 
 
 tion, almost immediately, and without dispute, next the Scah- 
 OERS, Saumaise, and the elder Vossius. (s) 
 
 Of course, any reluctance to expose his productions to the 
 judgment of the world that our author might have previously 
 felt, was now completely overcome ; and he was inspirited 
 to proceed with alacrity in the arrangement of his collections 
 respecting the natural history of the Bible, preparatory to 
 their publication as a connected work. 
 
 While engaged in this, he received a flattering proof of the 
 degree of estimation which he had obtained even among 
 foreigners, in a correspondence which he had in 1650 with 
 MoRLEY, one of the chaplains of Charles II., at that time an 
 exile from his throne. That divine, who was high in the con- 
 fidence of his king, and at the Restoration v/as rewarded for his 
 fidelity, and his share in that event, with the Bishopric of Win- 
 chester, thought fit to consult our author as to the best method 
 of reconciling the religious differences between the contending 
 civil parties. The answer is a long and able letter, [t) writ- 
 
 (s) As an instance of this, it appears from a letter of his to Saumaise. 
 dated 1646, that even before the Second Part of his work had yet appear- 
 ed, he had been invited with some earnestness by that great man, to accept 
 of a situation in the same university with himself. On consultation with 
 his friends, and examination of his present engagements, Bochart de- 
 clined the offer. But coming, as it did, from a foreign country, from 
 one of the most celebrated seats of learning then in Europe (the Uni- 
 versity of Leyden) and more especially through the instrumentality of 
 the most eminent scholar of his time, it must be allowed to have been 
 no trifling honour. Boch. Ep. in 0pp. ni. 1161. A letter of Sarrau, 
 the Parisian counsellor, to Saumaise (already quoted in note a ) dated 
 March 15, 1645, speaks of the Phaleg as " Geographiae Sacrae illustris 
 et nova tractatio," and goes on " majus nostro testimonium habetab 
 Amplissimo Bignonio (Jerome Bignon, Avocat-general de France, one 
 of the most learned and accomplished men of his age) qui hodie mihi 
 affirmavit, Scaligerum, Drusiuji, Fullerum, prae hoc nostro ineptire." 
 BiGNON had himself written a Descripi'to Terrae Sanctae, which obtained 
 some celebrity ; and of course was qualified to pass an opinion on the 
 subject. 
 
 {I) " Viro amplissimo D. Morley, Regis Angliae Sacellano, S. Bo. 
 CHARTDS S. D. 1. De Presbyteratu et Episcopatu ; n, De Provocatione a 
 judiciis Ecclesiastcis ; iii. De Jure ac Potestate Regum. Cedomi. 4 Non . 
 Mart, 1650— Opp. Tom. iii. 988—1023. This letter has given occasjojj 
 
 16 
 
122 MEMOIRS Of 
 
 ten with much caution ; and, making allowances for the pe- 
 culiar opinions of the writer, much judgment and sound wis- 
 dom. The claims of Presbyteiy and Episcopacy to a divine 
 right and exclusive obligation : — the extent and limits of the 
 rights of magistrates to interfere in ecclesiastical affairs ; — 
 and the divine origin of the kingly power, with its claims to 
 passive obedience ; and those of the subject, on the contrary, 
 to a right of resistance and self-defence, were the subjects 
 
 to some curious blunders. Spizelius has given its title in one page 
 (Inf. Lit. p. 922) and in the next, quoting a letter of Sarrau, in which it 
 is mentioned by its subject, laments that it has never been made public, 
 (p. 923) and then again, in the errata, corrects himself by referring to a 
 mere re-impression, asif it had then first appeared. Bayle (Bochart. 
 note C.) points out the inaccuracy of Spizelius in the second pas- 
 sage, and is himself corrected by his translators (ed. Lond, 1735. ii. 41.) 
 with a reference to the Errata; while both have overlooked the first 
 passage in p. 922. Bayle's description of this letter as about * The au- 
 thority of Kings and the institution of Bishops and Priests ' is very incor- 
 rect, while that of Sarrau, as quoted by Spizelius, p. 923, ' de nupero 
 Regicidio Anglican©,' is still worse. This letter was published at Paris 
 in 1650, in 18mo., and an edition, which the paper and typography show 
 to belong to London, in 32mo., without place or date, bears the imprint, 
 'juxta exemplar impressum Parisiis, 1650.'* No doubt it was expected 
 to have influence ; in France, in favour of tha tottering cause of the 
 Huguenots, by proving their moderation and their loyal submission'to 
 * the powers that be,' — in England, by instilling moderate views into 
 both contending parties, and arousing the nation to a sense of the 
 criminality of the murder of their King. It was also reprinted at the 
 end of the Frankfort edition of the Geographia Sacra, in 4to., 1681. 
 
 A letter of very similar purport to this of Bochart, addressed by his 
 colleague Du Bosc to Brevint, another of the chaplains of Charles IL, 
 and containing opinions very much resembling those of our author, 
 may be found in Le Vie du P. du Bosc, par P. Le Gendre, Rotterdam, 
 1694, p. 18—29. 
 
 A correspondence of the same kind was held about 1680 by Comp- 
 TON, Bishop of London, with Claude, Le Moyme, and some other dis- 
 tinguished French Protestant divines. 
 
 * It is possible, but, I think, not probable, that this edition is referred 
 to by Spizelius (p. 922.) when he says " Paris, et Lugd. Bat. exctisa 
 An. 1650." I rather think he speaks of one edition, published in the 
 two cities simultaneous! v, as was at that time not uncommon. 
 
 :4' 
 
SAMUEL BOCHART. l^*S 
 
 which were submitted to his consideration. Taking into 
 view his situation as an eminent member of a Presbyterian 
 body, placed among men who were anxiously watching for 
 any thing which might involve him in trouble, and accelerate 
 the ruin of his church ; it must be confessed that it required no 
 small share of prudence and ingenuity so to frame his reply 
 as, without displeasing those to whom he wrote, to give his true 
 opinions, and yet bring no difficulties on himself by giving of- 
 fence either to his brethren, or to their watchful adversaries. 
 All this appears in his Epistle. He carefully holds the ba- 
 lance of the contending parties, never suffering an undue pre- 
 dominance in either scale, and at no time displaying any un- 
 wary preference of any disputed point. He decides between 
 Episcopacy and Presbytery by denying the exclusive claims 
 of either, and maintaining that circumstances must decide the 
 choice of either for an establishment ; hinting at the same time, 
 that in England both might be allowed to exist, respectively 
 prevailing in different sections of the country as the prevalent 
 opinions differed. On the power of magistrates in ecclesiasti- 
 cal matters, he merely draws a distinction between the inter- 
 nal government of the church — that which relates to spiritual 
 truth and the salvation of souls, and its external administra- 
 tion, or that which settles its form, provides for its mainte- 
 nance, enforces its regulations, &c. : and then quotes the re- 
 corded decisions of several Synods of the Reformed Church in 
 France in favour of a joint government of the church amd state 
 in the latter. On the right of kings to the passive obedience 
 of their people he is much fuller than on the other points, and 
 maintains it with much warmth of expression and multiplicity 
 of argument. It was the interest of his church that her 
 opinions on this point should be known to be entirely loyal, 
 and evidently his own inclination accorded with that interest. 
 In all this letter, there are much fewer traces of the multi- 
 farious reading of the author than in any of his other writings. 
 His language is more select and exact. His train of argu- 
 ment is neater and closer than usual. I have dwelt the 
 longer on it, because, although insignificant in bulk, and prin- 
 ^ipally occupied on subjects of trans^nt interest, it seems fo 
 
1^ ilEMOIRS OF 
 
 me better calculated than any of his other productions to do 
 him credit as an original thinker, and wise and judicious man. 
 
 In a letter written about this time to Saumaise, Bochart 
 maintains the same opinions ; and while he expresses his satis- 
 faction with the work of that celebrated writer entitled * Pro 
 Defensione Regis Angliae,' he manifests his own superior 
 judgment, by declaring his disposition to acquit the English 
 Presbyterians of any deliberate intention to destroy the king, 
 and to consider them rather as deceived and hurried on, against 
 their better intentions, by the duplicity and violence of the 
 Independents, (u) 
 
 The year 1652 was the era of an occurrence of lio small 
 importance in the quiet and sedentary life of such a laborious 
 student as Bochart. This Was no less than a journey through 
 Holland and Denmark, to the capital of Sweden, in company 
 with HuETj afterward the celebrated Bishop of Avranches. 
 As early as 1650 the capricious and pedantic Christina, Queen 
 of Sweden, whose hobby was at that time the higher branches 
 of classic erudition, had, at the instigation of her counsellors 
 Descartes and Saumaise, and her tutor Vossius, shown 
 marks of singular respect to our author. Letters approv- 
 ing of his works, and exciting him to continue the prepara- 
 tion of the remainder for the pubhc, and others inviting 
 him to visit the royal court, were written by her learned 
 friends at her command. These producing nothing but thanks 
 and flattery from Bochart, at last Christina sent an urgent 
 letter written with her own hand, intreating him to come 
 without delay ; and at the same time caused Huet, then rising 
 into fame as a man of extensive learning, to be invited to ac- 
 company him. The measure was effectual. Such powerful 
 solicitations could not be withstood. The good pleasure of a 
 queen was not to be resisted, nor her favour to be trifled with. 
 " In consequence of these allurements," says Huet, (v) speak- 
 ing of Bochart, " though fettered by the public ministry of his 
 
 (u) Ep. ad Salmasium, 17 Mali, 1650- 0pp. Tom. ni. c. 1161. s. 
 
 (if) Oommentaria de Vita sUa, Lib. n.— ^Aikin's Memoirs of Hnet. 1. 120- 
 
SAMUEL EOCHART. 125 
 
 religion, and the attractions of a very aftectionate family, and 
 habituated to the pleasures of study and tranquil leisure, he 
 postponed every consideration to the will of the Queen, and 
 was not to be deterred, either by the length of the journey, 
 the loss of time, or the inconvenience to his affairs." Yet 
 these sacrifices were not repaid. The usual fate of applicants 
 at courts was experienced by our travellers, and after all their 
 relinquishments, and all their pains, they returned neither 
 richer nor more honourable than they went, and well pleased 
 to regain the quiet and peacefulness of their former situations. 
 An intercourse of some weeks in Holland with Saumaise, 
 Heinsius, and Isaac Vossius ; — a personal inspection of 
 every thing worth seeing in the principal cities of Holland 
 and Denmark, and in the capital of Sweden ; — and some 
 months' uninterrupted use of the valuable hbrary collected by 
 the Queen, and especially of its stores of Oriental learning, — 
 were indeed, no small advantages, and perhaps well purchas- 
 ed, even at the cost of the personal fatigue and other incon- 
 veniences which they suffered. But certainly, with respect 
 to its principal object, this journey was an egregious failure. 
 
 BouRDELOT, a French physician, had made himself neces- 
 sary to Christina by his medical skill and perfect acquaint- 
 ance w^ith the arts of flattery. At the time of the arrival of 
 BocuART and Huet at her court, he was the prime favourite, 
 and the direction of her regards was under his control. Huet 
 shall give his naive account of the influence of this man upon 
 himself and his learned fellow-traveller. " As the Queen had 
 thrown herself into a state of languor by her intense applica- 
 tion to those studies, and was occasionally attacked by slight 
 fevers, Bourdelot, in the first place, craftily attending to his 
 own consequence and reputation, (zo) removed all books from 
 
 (w) He was himself illiterate, so far at least, as regards those deeper 
 studies to which Christina had been in the habit of attending. Yet there 
 is no need to impute to Bourdelot a sinister motive, as Huet has done^ 
 prompted by his affection for his beloved studies. The physician may have 
 been sincere in his advice, and the circumstances of the case render j< 
 very probable that he was 5=0. 
 
126 MEMOIRS 01 
 
 her sight, and denounced certain danger to iier life should she 
 persist in literary pursuits. He then, in private conversations, 
 insinuated that a learned woman was regarded in a ridiculous 
 light by the elegant ladies of the French court. And as he 
 besides amused her with his pleasantry and jocularity, he 
 gained so great an ascendancy over her youthful mind, that 
 she began to lose all relish for serious learning. For the dis- 
 position of Christina was so flexible and wavering, that she 
 entirely depended upon the opinions of others, especially of 
 those who had acquired her esteem by any species of merit." 
 " And now, having by the advice of Bourdelot laid aside 
 her studies, and indulged in leisure and relaxation, by which 
 her health was somewhat amended, she declared herself not 
 only cured, but preserved from death by his means ; and from 
 this period she gave so much credit to this buffoon, that she 
 almost repented of having learned any thing. This circum- 
 stance destroyed almost all the pleasure of our journey ; and 
 was the cause that Bochart, invited with so much earnest- 
 ness as it were from another world, was not received accord- 
 ing to his merits. Nor did we doubt that this was to be im- 
 puted to Bourdelot, who considered it as his interest to 
 banish learned men from court, lest his own conscious igno- 
 rance should be rendered apparent by the comparison." (x) 
 " Bochart was not received according to his merit," says 
 HuET : this is but a faint representation of the truth. His 
 welcome amounted at most to a free admission to the royal 
 library, and a maintenance, during his residence at Stock- 
 holm, at the Queen's expense. It is true, he was several times 
 admitted to her presence, but the circumstances rendered 
 these interviews so far from honourable, that, to say the least, 
 they must have covered him with ridicule. At one time, the 
 
 (x) Some allowance must be made for Huet's prejudices. The 
 caprices of Christina may have had as much to do in the dismissal of her 
 guest, as the intrigues of her Physician. But it was less discreditable to 
 himself and Bochart, and more comfortable to their feelings, to attri- 
 bute it to the latter. Huet Comm- de Vita sua, Lib. ii. Aikin's 
 Mem. 1. 149. e. 
 
SAMUEL BOCHiRT. 127 
 
 Queen had appointed him a day to hear him read a part of 
 his Phaleg. Bourdelot prevailed on her to refuse the per- 
 formance of her engagement, under the plea of illness. On 
 another occasion, she pressed Bochart to play with her at 
 battledore and shuttlecock, till, with all his gravity, he con- 
 sented, threw aside his minister's cloak, and awkwardly went 
 through a game, (t/) It is also said, but, perhaps without 
 foundation,(2:) that the physician persuaded Christina that Bo- 
 chart was an excellent performer on the flute, though modesty 
 led him to conceal it ; and that she absolutely compelled the re- 
 luctant minister to make an attempt to play upon that instru- 
 ment, with which he was entirely unacquainted. These were 
 not scenes well calculated to enhance the reputation of the 
 principal performer, or to recompense a studious man for the 
 sacrifice of his literary leisure, (a) 
 
 (2/) Menagiana. p. 340. Bayle. Diet. art. BOCHART, note D. 
 
 (s) Bayle (ubi supra) rejects this anecdote. Aikin (Memoirs of 
 HuET. I. 83. s.) gives it as true, but on what authority I know not. 
 
 («) It must be confessed that nothing of this gross treatment appears 
 in along letter of Bociv^rt to Saujiaise, dated from Stockholm in 1652. 
 On the contrary, in that letter he speaks of changing his residence [to the 
 palace ; of having interviews with the Queen ; and of conversing with 
 her respecting Saumaise's book pro Defensione Regis. (Ep. ad Salmas. 
 0pp. 111. 1165. s.). But B. would not have been content with a mere 
 cursory notice of such common civilities, had he possessed any better 
 grounds for boasting of his favourable receptifti to his old friend and 
 confidant. Besides, the positive testimony of Huet, and the evident 
 chagrin with which he gives it, are plain proof to the contrary. An 
 anecdote told by that writer proves, however, that Bochart and him- 
 self were admitted to so7ne intimacy with Christina ; and, what is more, 
 shows that the use they made of that intimacy was so indiscreet as fully 
 to justify her in shortening it. " In a copy of verses, composed in French, 
 I had with some keenness satirized the manners of the Swedes, When 
 I recited these to Bochart, he wrote them out, and carried them to the 
 dueen, to whom he read them as a piece of amusing pleasantry. She was 
 entertained by the verses, but observed that her countrymen would by no 
 means approve of an attempt to ridicule them ; and therefore it would 
 be better to keep them secret." (Huet. Comm. de Vit. Lib. 11. Aikin's 
 Mem. 1. 158. s.) Aikin's remark on this passage is pertinent: — " The 
 Queen appears in this instance to have been more prudent than the two 
 
IJ^ MEMOIRS OF 
 
 The learned world, however, have cause to rejoice at this 
 unlucky visit. During the researches of our travellers in the 
 library at Stockholm, Huet found a manuscript of some parts 
 of the Commentaries of Origen upon St. Matthew, and of 
 his work on Prayer ; and, at the earnest solicitation of Bo- 
 chart, consented to transcribe it, and undertake its publica- 
 tion.(6) To this we owe his learned and valuable Origeniana, 
 and the excellent edition of all the remains of Origen*s exe- 
 getical performances to which it is prefixed. Boo hart him- 
 self also employed his time very profitably in the acquisition 
 of Oriental learning, with which he afterwards enriched his 
 
 HiEROZOICON. (c) 
 
 The time of Bochart's return to Caen is not recorded ; 
 but it is certain that he staid longer than Huet, since the lat- 
 ter took with him as a travelling companion a young man of 
 noble family, who had been intrusted to the tutelage of Bo- 
 CHART ; but, tired of his tutor's long stay in a country whose 
 manners and chmate were disagreeable to him, gladly placed 
 himself under the charge of Huet, (d) During his absence 
 
 Frenchmen, who presumed not a little on her preference of foreigners, 
 when they expected to entertain her with a satire on her own country- 
 men. French petulance has seldom appeared in more striking colours." 
 ("Mem. of Huet. Note. i. p. 183.) This piece of thoughtless levity 
 was certainly not worthy of the author of the letter to Morlev. 
 
 (6) Huet. Coram, de Vita sua, Lib. ii. Aikin's Mem. of Huet, i. 152. 
 MoRiN. de Clar. Bociiart. p. 6. 
 
 (c) He had referred to this object as one reason for his accepting 
 the invitation of Christina, in a letter to Vossius, some time before the 
 commencement of his journey. (Ep. ad Voss. 0pp. iii. 1 163. s.). The 
 library of Christina had been enriched with the Oriental collection of 
 Gaulmix, at that time perhaps the best in Europe. Very likely, to 
 the use made of its stores by Bochart during his Swedish visit, we owe 
 the peculiar richness of his Hierozoicon in Oriental criticism and quota- 
 tions. 
 
 (d) This was Peter Cahaignes de Fiervillc, of Caen, of a family dis= 
 tinguished both for learning and nobility. His being entrusted to Bo- 
 chart is no small evidence of the reputation of the latter for general 
 accomplishments as well as mere erudition. Huet, Coram. Lib. i. ^. n 
 .^ikin's Mem. of Huet. i. 159. comp. p. 30, 8P, 
 
SAMUEL BOCHART. 129 
 
 on this journey, our author received a flattering testimony of 
 the estimation in which he was held at home, by the election 
 of himself and the companion of his travels to be associates 
 of a literary society then just formed at Caen, comprising no 
 small proportion of the talents and learning of France. (/) 
 Of this society he continued an active and eminent member, 
 honoured and beloved by his associates, and industriously en- 
 gaged in the prosecution of their common objects, till the 
 very hour of his death, which happened at one of their in- 
 formal meetings, {g) 
 
 When at length he had returned and settled in his ordinary 
 routine of employment, Bochart recommenced the prepara- 
 tion of his HiERozoicoN for the press with renewed ardour, 
 deriving additional encouragement to diligence from the con- 
 siderable augmentation which his materials had received from 
 his Oriental studies while in Stockholm. But he was hot 
 long permitted to devote himself to this favourite occupation : 
 a series of untoward events occurred, which distracted his at- 
 tention, Rn& retarded almost half a score of years the com- 
 pletion of his work, {h) 
 
 The first of these interruptions was his election to repre- 
 sent the Reformed churches of Normandy in a national synod 
 held at Loudun. (i) The perilous aspect of the times, and 
 
 (/) The provincial town of Caen contained at that time a surpris- 
 ingly large proportion of men eminent in one or other department of 
 learning. See an enumeration of those who constituted the Society 
 or ' Academy ' referred to in the text, with some account of their lives 
 and literary characters, in Huetii Coram, de Vita sua, Lib. iii. (Aikis's 
 Memoirs of Huet. i. 207.) and in Aikin's Notes (i. 295. ss.). 
 
 (g) Huet. Comm. de Vit. sua. Lib. iv. (Aikin's Mem. ii. 40.) 
 
 (A) It was more than half transcribed July 10, 1659 ; and Bochart then 
 wrote to Vossius, at that time in Holland, requesting him to negotiate 
 with some printer in that country for the publication of the work. Ep. 
 ad Voss. 0pp. Tom. iii. c. 862. 
 
 (i) It assembled on the 10th of November, 1659, and remained ex- 
 actly two months in session, closing on the 10th of Jan. 1660. This 
 was the last General Synod of the Reformed Church in France that 
 was permitted to assemble. Benoit Hist, de I'Edit de Nantes, Tom. 
 III. p. 36(5. ss. Quick's Synodicon. ir. 501 — 596. 
 
 17 
 
130 MEMOIKiJ Ot 
 
 numerous difficulties and dangers with which those ot his^ 
 communion were surrounded, rendered this station pecuHarly 
 important and delicate at that period. According to his bio- 
 grapher, BocHART discharged its functions with uncommon 
 prudence and dexterity in the transaction of business, (A-) and 
 returned with no inconsiderable increase of reputation. 
 
 Not long after his release from this engagement, he was 
 brought into still more unpleasant employment by the assaults 
 of the Jesuit, De la Barre, upon his church. The Second 
 National Synod of Charenton, held in 1631, had passed a de- 
 cree admitting membersof the Lutheran Church to communion 
 with the Reformed churches in France, if desiring, upon a 
 mere attestation of their belief in the Articles of the Augsburg 
 Confession. (/) At the time, this decree had given much oc- 
 casion of remark to the advocates of the Church of Rome ; 
 some regarding it with a jealous eye, while others considered it 
 as indicative of a disposition on the part of the Protestants to co- 
 alesce with the Church of Rome, inasmuch as the admission of 
 persons maintaining the doctrines of consubstantiation to com- 
 munion seemed a considerable approach towards agreement 
 with the advocates of f?ansubstantiation. (m) But now this 
 matter was revived by La Barre with an entirely difterent in- 
 tention. He laid hold of it as a proof of the rancorous enmity 
 to the Church of Rome entertained by the Reformed, who 
 would admit to their communion foreign religionists differing 
 from themselves respecting very important articles of faith, 
 and yet refused that mark of brotherly kindness to the pro- 
 fessors of the established religion of their couutry. His ob- 
 ject was, avowedly, to excite the indignation of the latter 
 
 (k) The only mention of him in the Acts of the Syuod, is as chairman 
 of a Committee appointed to see that all editions of the Geneva Transla- 
 tion of the Bible, of the Metrical Version of the Psalms, of the Liturgy, 
 and of the Book of Discipline, were printed conformably to the standard 
 copies. Quick's Synodicon. ii. 552. 
 
 0) Quick's Synodicon, n. 297. 
 
 {m) Benoit. Hist, de L'Ed. de Nantz. Tom. n. p. 524. Bossuet. Hist 
 des Variat. des Prot. ii. 328. ss. 
 
SAMU£L BOCHAKT. 131 
 
 against the Protestants, and so to procure a reduction of their 
 privileges. Bochart undertook to counteract this effect, by 
 refuting the Jesuit, and showing the entire dissimilarity of 
 the cases which he Iiad so invidiously placed in apposition. 
 This, according to Morin, (n) he did both in words and writ- 
 ing. If he published any thing upon the subject,(o) it must have 
 been of little magnitude, and transient interest ; as not even 
 the title has been handed down. Yet it must have caused 
 a material interruption to his studies, since, although his bio- 
 grapher assures us he found it an easy task, and obtained 
 a cheap victory over his antagonist, yet, as the same writer 
 shrewdly observes, "Bochart did not know how treat a 
 theological topic cursorily, but gave the utmost completeness 
 to his discussion of every subject which he undertook, and be- 
 stowed all his powers upon it, whatever might be its nature." 
 Bochart had again resumed his wonted studies, and had 
 actually commenced the publication of his Hierozoicon in 
 London, and was engaged in the laborious work of correcting 
 the press, and making out the full indices with which it is ac- 
 companied, (p) when another, and still greater hindrance in- 
 
 (n) MoRiNtJs de Clar. Boch. p. 7. 
 
 (o) Bayle says expressly "he published a. piece in 1661 against the 
 Jesuit La Barre." But as I have learned not to put implicit confidence 
 in the accuracy of Bayle, I think it probable he may have misunder- 
 stood Morin, and carelessly said this on his authority. 
 
 (p) There are no less than seven, more than usually full and accu- 
 rate, indices. The distance of Bochart from the place at which his 
 work was printing, obliged his bookseller to send a number of proof 
 sheets at once, which required immediate attention, that so large a 
 quantity of type might not be kept out of use. It is easy to conceive 
 how greatly such occasional influxes of employment, demanding much 
 care and considerable time, must interfere with his heavy stated duties. 
 Morin (ubi supra, p. 7) impliedly attributes the whole labour of correc- 
 tion to Bochart ; but B. himself, in the end of his Preface, says that the 
 London publisher provided correctors of the press ; complaining, how- 
 ever, that they had rendered him much more disservice than assistance. 
 He promises a statement of this from the corrector himself, which ought 
 to follow on the next page, but in the Leyden edition of 1712, is want- 
 ing, that page being blank, although the catchword * Eru-' (probably 
 
I3'2 MEMOIRS OF 
 
 tervenecl. One of his three colleagues, M. Le Couteur, was 
 a clergyman of the Isle of Jersey, who had gone into exile on 
 the dethronement of his king. On the Restoration, his 
 fidelity was rewarded with the Deanery of his native Isle, 
 and in the close of the year 1661 he vacated his place in 
 Caen to take possession of his new dignity. This threw an 
 additional portion of pastoral duty upon Bochart at a time 
 when it was peculiarly inconvenient. To relieve himself from 
 this burthen, he persuaded Morin, then pleasantly settled in 
 the vicinity of the city, to assume the share of duty relinquish- 
 ed by Le Couteur, performing the public services of one 
 Sunday, and two week-day evening lectures, in the month. 
 But scarcely had this arrangement been effected, when the 
 two remaining colleagues of Bochart were suddenly remov- 
 ed from their stations ; the eldest, Beaumont, (the Senior 
 Pastor of the church) by death ; the other, the celebrated Du 
 Bosc, by banishment, procured for him by the malicious ac- 
 cusations of those who rejoiced to wound his religion in his 
 person, (q) Thus left alone in the pastoral charge, our au- 
 thor, with some difficulty, procured the dismission of Morin 
 from his former cure, and obtained him for his colleague at 
 Caen. Even then, the important duties of their station re- 
 quired the whole of their united labours, (r) and compelled 
 
 the beginning of the usual caption of an advertisement, 'Erudite Lee 
 tori') occurs on the bottom of the one immediately preceding. 
 
 (q) He was banished to Cahors, April 2, 1664, being accused of 
 speaking injuriously of the Romish religion, by an apostate Protestant 
 surnamed Pommier. Vie de P. du Bosc. p. 32. 
 
 (r) In a letter dated Sept. 15, 1664, which manifests both the atten- 
 tion of our author to the general affairs of his congregation, and his af- 
 fectionate solicitude for his valuable colleague, he declares : " Notre 
 pauvre Eglise seroit en effet ruin^e si on vous mettoit ailleurs: car vous 
 savez que je me vieillis, et ai bien encore le meme courage, mais non 
 pas les meraes forces qu' autrefois; et ne pourrois gueres longtems 
 subsister dans le travail et chagrin que j'ai, qui me ruine le corps et 1'- 
 esprit. Ce n'cst pas que je n'aie beaucoup de soulagemcnt de M. 
 Morin, qui est un homme fort actif ; mais tant y a que nous ne sommes 
 que nous deux, et qu'il n'y a plus personne qui nous .<=Pcoure : et en 
 
SAMUEL BOCHART. 133 
 
 BocHART tor a period to relinquish all attention to his literary- 
 pursuits, (s) 
 
 A short time sufficed to demonstrate the innocence of Du 
 Bosc, and procure a repeal of his sentence, with permission 
 to resume his former situation, (t) He was triumphantly re- 
 ceived by his people and his brethren in the ministry, (u) and 
 by no one, probably, with joy greater than that of our author, 
 who, besides participating in the common causes of exultation, 
 was thus released from his extraordinary avocations, and en- 
 
 Petat ou est notre Eglise, et toute notre Province, nous avons deux fois 
 plus d'affaires qu'a I'ordinaire." Le Gentil Vie de P. du Bosc. 
 p. 378. s. 
 
 (s) MoRiN expressly states the imprisonment of Du Bosc as one ob- 
 stacle to Bochart's attention to his Hierozoicon ; and his opportunities 
 of knowing the truth were too great to allow a suspicion of inaccuracy. 
 Otherwise, as the Dedication of the work bears date March 1663, a 
 whole year before that event, and as the title of the book is dated 
 1664, which would scarcely allow any time for attention to it after the 
 liberation of Du Bosc, it seems probable that the work was completed 
 before Bochart was deprived of the assistance of his colleagues. 
 Probably the dedication was written soon after the work was put to 
 press; and when Bochart's attention to the correction of the press was 
 interrupted, his place was supplied by the correctors whom he mentions 
 in his Preface. This last circumstance, too. may perhaps account for the 
 incorrectness in this edition complained of by Dorn, who says it was 
 printed " splendide satis, sed admodum vitiose.' Bibl. Theol. p. 167. 
 
 (t) By a Lettre de Cachet dated Oct. 15, 1664.— Vie de P. du Bosc. 
 p. 41. s. 
 
 (tt) One method of demonstrating this joy was so singular, that al- 
 though irrelevant, I cannot pass it by. There was a gentleman in the 
 province, who, although himself of the Romish religion, and withal a 
 very irregular liver, openly professed a very great respect for the able 
 pastors of the Reformed persuasion, and especially for M. Du Bosc. 
 On the evening of his return this gentleman prepared a sumptuous sup- 
 per, and inviting two Franciscan friars notorious for their attachment 
 to the bottle, plied them so freely as to cause the death of one of them 
 upon the spot ! The next morning he called on Du Bosc, and de- 
 clared that he had thought it his duty to sacrifice a monk to the public 
 joy ; and that although a Jesuit would have been a much more suitable 
 victim, he hoped his offering would not be unacceptable, because it was 
 ■yrrerdi/ ft, Cordelier ! Vie de P. Du Bosc. p. 44. p. 
 
134 MEMOIRS 01 
 
 abled to resume his literary labour, and very speedily com- 
 plete the publication of his * opus magnum,' the Hierozoicon. 
 The work thus ushered into the world placed the key-stone 
 to the reputation of its author, and is indeed his masterpiece. 
 For varied learning, general interest, and practical utility in 
 sacred criticism, it excels its predecessor as much as it does 
 in magnitude. As the expectations of the learned had already 
 been excited, and kept, by the circumstances which retarded 
 its appearance, a considerable time in suspense, it created less 
 sensation than the Phaleg ; but its permanent popularity has 
 been even greater than that of the latter, (w) Yet even this 
 did not satisfy Bochart's desire of usefulness. He regarded 
 it merely as the second part of a design of which the * Sacred 
 Geography ' formed the first, and the third was to consist of 
 a treatise on the Plants and Gems of Scripture, probably of 
 equal magnitude ; at any rate of an equal extent of research 
 and variety of erudition. The plan was to be completed by 
 a dissertation on the * Terrestrial Paradise,' for which he had 
 already prepared the materials, and even put them into some 
 kind of order, although not such as would fit them for publi- 
 cation. But these plans were never to be completed. We 
 know of their existence only by some scattered intimations, 
 and by some disjointed and unfinished fragments preserved 
 for us by the diligence of his biographer and the editors 
 of his collected works. 
 
 It had pleased God to cast the lot of Bochart in troublous 
 times; and although he accomplished very much notwith- 
 standing their interference with his studies, yet the rapid in- 
 crease of difficulties towards the close of his life prevented his 
 completing all that he had designed to do. The machina- 
 tions of the Romish clergy for the destruction of the Protest- 
 ant cause in France grew every day more numerous, more ex- 
 tensive, and more successful. New pretexts were daily in- 
 
 (u)) It was published in folio, with the imprint, ' London, 1664.' The 
 Oriental characters throughout the work were printed with the type? 
 cast for ihp London Polyglot 
 
SAMUEL BOOHAKT. Vdi) 
 
 vented for intringement on the stipulated immunities of the 
 Reformed, and the most artful measures adopted to prepare 
 the way for a total annihilation of their religious liberties. In 
 such a crisis, it was the plain duty of every member of that 
 communion to devote all his influence and talents to the sup- 
 port of its sinking cause, and to consider himself as set apart 
 for the one object of the maintenance of religious liberty and 
 a true and uncorrupted faith. 
 
 Almost the last labour of our author's life was devoted to 
 this cause. One favourite mode of oppressing the Reformed 
 adopted by the Roniish clergy, w^as, to deprive them of their 
 churches on false pretences. The Edict of Nantz had se- 
 cured to the Protestants the enjoyment of their religious pri- 
 vileges, and exercise of their religion, as then established. 
 This was construed to preclude the formation of new congre- 
 gations, and the erection of new churches, except, by permis- 
 sion, to supply the place of old ones fallen into decay or 
 otherwise rendered useless for public worship. On this pre- 
 tence, the Protestants were continually vexed with prosecu- 
 tions alleging that one or other of their congregations or 
 churches had been formed or built since the passage of the 
 edict. Such a charge was brought by the Bishop of Bayeux 
 and some Benedictine monks, against the church at Caen ; 
 and it became necessary for Bochart and his colleagues, with 
 their flock, to defend in a civil court their right of existence 
 as a congregation. False evidence and forged documents 
 were no uncommon resources of the Romish party in such 
 suits ; and they were plentifully employed in the present in- 
 stance, (x) The patient research, multifarious erudition, and 
 habits of keen investigation, of Bochart, rendered him pe- 
 culiarly fit for the detection and exposure of such forgeries, 
 and were, most usefully for his congregation, employed in 
 that task for the remainder of his days, although he did not 
 
 (x) A pathetic statement of the situation of the oppressed Protestants 
 of Normandy, with particular reference to the suit at Caen, occurs in a 
 letter of Bochart to James CxrEL, bearing date April 19, 1665. Opp 
 Tom. in. c. 834. s. 
 
136 
 
 MEMOIRS OF 
 
 live to witness the victory which he materially contributed to 
 procure. 
 
 He found time, however, during these more necessary avo- 
 cations, for occasional essays in his favourite studies, as a few 
 of his minor works still extant prove : his long and able letter 
 to Louis Capel on the agency of the Serpent in the Temp- 
 tation bears date April, 1665 ; another on the pronunciation 
 of Chaldee and Syriac, and the utility of the study of Arabic, 
 is dated January, 1666 ; and his last literary labour, a long 
 letter to Hue t in defence of the Protestant doctrine of the 
 Eucharist, and in proof that it was maintained by Origen, (y) 
 was composed only a few days before his death. 
 
 (y) HoET had transcribed the Commentaries of Origen from a 
 Manuscript in the Royal Library at Stockhotm, at the request of Bo- 
 chart, ^oon after their return to Caen, Bochart consulted his tran- 
 script for the purpose of attentively perusing a controverted passage 
 relating to the Eucharist, which had already afforded occasion for much 
 debate. Hcet, in revising this transcript, had discovered Avhat he thought 
 an omission in copying, and had supplied it from a manuscript in the 
 library of the king of France. This supplement considerably altered the 
 sense, and that, too, in favour of the Romish church. Bochart, on pe- 
 rusing the passage, discovered the alteration, and without delay, warned 
 several of his learned friends, by letter, that implicit reliance was not 
 to be placed in the edition of Origen which Huet was then about to pub- 
 lish. The latter considered this as an imputation upon his honesty ; 
 and after expostulating with Bochart without obtaining satisfaction 
 ('viz. a retraction of his warnings) broke off the close intimacy in which 
 they had lived till that time.* Still, an occasional correspondence 
 on the subjects of their studies and interchange of mutual civilities, 
 continued ; and it appears that the subject which had produced their 
 difference was not excluded from farther discussion. The last letter, 
 mentioned in the text, was probably a continuation of that discussion, 
 although it took a wider range, applying the authority of Origen in 
 support of the Protestant opinions respecting the invocation and wop- 
 
 * This, however, may have been only a pretext; since Huet con- 
 fesses, that one principal reason of his leaving Sweden before Bochart^ 
 was the fear that his close intimacy with that divine Avould briug him 
 into trouble with his Romish friends. Comm. Lib. ii. fin. (Aikin'*' 
 Memoirs, i. 159. s. ) 
 
bAMUKL BOCHART. 137 
 
 The long and laborious life of this learned man was brought 
 to a characteristic close in the year 1667, in the midst of an 
 active and green old age. Three several times in the course 
 of six months he had been suddenly and alarmingly attacked, 
 by a temporary cessation of the heart to perform its functions, 
 brought on, as his physicians assured him, by excessive study 
 and abstinence from personal indulgence. Each time, how- 
 ever, he speedily recovered perfect health, and was promised 
 by his medical advisers a complete recovery from his affec- 
 tion, by means of the use of wine, and careful attention to 
 stated times of relaxation. But on the 16th of May, 1667, a 
 fourth attack proved instantaneously fatal. He had risen, 
 according to his custom, very early, and had spent the morn- 
 ing in his study, writing to some friends, and pursuing his 
 wonted labour. After a moderate dinner, he had gone out, 
 accompanied by Morin, to the College (Collegium Sylvanum) 
 where his only grandson, (M. de Colleville, the son of his 
 only daughter, afterwards Counsellor in tlie Parliament of 
 Normandy) that day maintained his philosophical theses. 
 From three to five in the afternoon the old man attended to 
 those exercises, and enjoyed himself in receiving the congra- 
 tulations of the Faculty of the College, and others present, 
 upon the excellent performance of his grandchild. Thence 
 he proceeded, still accompanied by Morin, to the house of 
 the learned and noble De Brieux, where, it being Monday, 
 the stated day of session, the Literary Society (or Academy) 
 of Caen was to meet. There he parted with his faithful 
 friend and colleague, but was gladly and affectionately re- 
 ceived by his fellow associates of the Academy. He had re- 
 ceived a letter from Bouteroue, a learned traveller and 
 medallist, and member of the Chambre des Accomptes at 
 Paris, requesting information as to the country and value of 
 the small coin known in trade by the name of Marbotins, and 
 proposed this question as a proper subject for the considera- 
 
 ahip of angels, as well as their doctrine of the Eucharist, the only topic 
 originally in dispute Aikis's Memoirs of Huet, i. 216. 306 ii. 41> 
 
 18 
 
138 MEMoius or 
 
 tion of the Academy. Several members had given different 
 opinions, when Bochaet proceeded to declare his own, that 
 the coin was of Arabic origin. (2) He was beginning to state 
 his reasons, when a sensation of choaking seized him: he 
 drew one breath, exclaimed * Mon Dieu, ayez misericorde de 
 moi ! ' and instantly fell down, insensible, in faint convulsions. 
 MoRiN was immediately sent for ; and on his arrival, found 
 his colleague in the midst of his astounded literary associates, 
 gasping for breath, and almost dead. He had the dying man 
 removed into an adjoining chamber, and there, to use his own 
 expression, * endeavoured to attract his notice by ardent 
 prayers to God." This was so far successful, that he opened 
 his eyes, fixed them on Morin, then raised them to heaven, 
 and closed them, to open them no more. After about half 
 an hour of continued suffering, he ceased to breathe. Thus 
 died, as he had lived, in the midst of learning, and in 
 the discharge of social duties, the learned, the great, Bo- 
 CHART. He had not yet completed his sixty-eighth year. 
 Although he may be comparatively said to have reached 
 a good old age, yet when we consider the vast quantity 
 of reading which must have been necessary to furnish him 
 with the almost countless quotations in his works ; the volumi- 
 nous nature of those works themselves ; — and his acknow- 
 ledged faithfulness and assiduity in the discharge of his duties 
 as a pastor and as a defender of the liberties of his church ; — 
 we shall be astonished that he could have done so much in so 
 
 (z) A striking exemplification of Mhe leading idea' is afforded by 
 Morin's relation of this event. He had been long on terras of the 
 closest intimacy and friendship with Bochart, and evidently enter- 
 tained a sincere affection for him. His account of B.'s illness and 
 death is interrupted, every five or six lines, with exclamations of grief 
 and tender regret. Yet he scarcely allows himsejf time to relate the 
 circqrastajices of Bochart's decease, before he flies off into a disserta- 
 tion of half a folio page upon the true nature and origin of the coin 
 which occupied the latest thoughts of that learned man. After he has 
 entirely exhausted his erudition upon the subject, he returns to the re- 
 lation of some circumstances attending the death of Bochart, and 
 breaks out afresh into expressions of lamentation. So completely para- 
 mount was his love of learning ! 
 
SAMUEL BOCHART. 139 
 
 short a time. An ordinary life might have been industriously 
 employed in the preparation of either of his great works ; and 
 that man would be said to have lived a useful life who should 
 have done no more than Bochart performed in the discharge 
 of his parochial duties, in his defence of the doctrines of his 
 church against Veron and La Barre, in his participation in 
 her legislative councils, and in his assertion of her rights against 
 the unjust pretensions of the Bishop of Bayeux. 
 
 It has been mentioned, that soon after his connexion with 
 the church at Caen, Bochart commenced a course of sermons 
 upon the book of Genesis. It was a somewhat singular coin- 
 cidence, that he brought them to the middle of the last chap- 
 ter but one of the book, after a duration of at least five and 
 twenty years, only the week before his death ; and that the 
 very text on which he had prepared to preach the Sunday fol- 
 lowing his decease, was the 18th verse, " I have waited for 
 thy salvation, O Lord." 
 
 The following description of his person and character is 
 translated from Morin, who certainly enjoyed great oppor- 
 tunities of forming an accurate opinion respecting both. 
 
 " His figure was good, although of a middling size. He 
 was rather agile than otherwise, and occasionally walked with 
 considerable rapidity. His head was well shaped, with hair 
 rather scanty, and, before it became grey, of an auburn 
 colour. A broad and prominent forehead, large and hand- 
 some eyes, florid cheeks, and slightly distended nostrils, were 
 so many signs of an ardent temperament. His mouth was 
 small and well formed ; and a pleasing symmetry w^as con- 
 spicuous in his whole countenance." (a) 
 
 («) It would be difficult from this description to recognize the face 
 prefixed to his Hierotoicon, and, in a very handsome engraving, to the 
 edition of his collected works published at Leyden, in 1712. In that, 
 the character of the French face seems to be mingled with that of the 
 inhabitant of the Upper Rhine. A rather low and retiring forehead, 
 and somewhat prominent eyes, a large and thick nose, high cheek-bones, 
 square and projecting maxillae, and a compressed mouth, altogether, 
 convey to the beholder the idea of a man of no extraordinary talent, 
 but of dogged perseverancej and of rather amiable disposition. 
 
140 
 
 MEMOIRS OP 
 
 " As to his manners, they were benign, harmless, and bene- 
 volent. He was inclined to gaiety, and easily irritated, but 
 his anger subsided spontaneously ; and while it was never 
 aroused by any thing but vice, seldom extended to the actors 
 even of that. His constancy and fidelity in friendship, his ex- 
 traordinary humility, meekness, and kindness towards every 
 one with whom he was connected, and his sincere piety united 
 with the most fervent zeal, were beyond all praise, and will 
 remain a perpetual example, as well as source of admiration, 
 to his pious friends." {li) 
 
 This is scarcely, if at all, overcharged. Almost every thing 
 that we have remaining of Bochart is evidence of his mo- 
 desty, kind dispositions, and readiness to oblige. His minor 
 works are almost all written at the request, and for the benefit, 
 of some learned friend. His few remaining letters show the 
 warmth and delicacy of his friendship, and bear testimony to 
 his extraordinary circumspection and good temper, which 
 could enable him so long to retain the friendship of the jealous 
 and rancorous Saumaise, at the same time with that of his 
 bitter adversary Vossius ; while he himself was in reality a 
 formidable rival to both, and must have been recognized as 
 such by men so tremblingly alive to the loss of literary pre- 
 eminence as they. Even his larger works are striking proofs 
 of his modesty, having been published only at the earnest 
 solicitation of men most eminently qualified to judge of their 
 real merit, after repeated delays, and with no parade of 
 anxiety respecting their reception. From all we can learn, 
 he seems to have committed them to the doubtful tide of pub- 
 lic opinion, in simplicity of heart, as his tribute to the instruc- 
 tion of mankind, without an anxious thought respecting their 
 reception, or one glance at their probable effect upon his cha- 
 racter and reputation. 
 
 It would be superfluous to say any thing respecting the 
 erudition of Bochart, after what has been already brought in 
 evidence upon the subject. In Latin, Greek, Hebrew, Chal- 
 
 (6) De Clar. Boch. p. 35. s 
 
SAMUEL BOCHART. 141 
 
 dee, and the Rabbinical dialect, he may be considered as a 
 perfect scholar. Few attain a more thorough knowledge of 
 the Arabic and Syriac languages than he possessed. The 
 Aethiopic he first made himself acquainted with by means of 
 the Prodromus of Athanasius Kircher, and afterwards 
 studied under Ludolf, who resided as his preceptor for some 
 months under his roof. Of this and the Punic, however, he 
 never accounted himself master, although his knowledge of 
 them was equalled by very few, until toward the close of the 
 eighteenth century, when the materials and means of informa- 
 tion had exceedingly increased. Of the modern languages, 
 after the fashion of the day, he knew only his native tongue, 
 and never attained to any degree of elegance of composition 
 even in that. 
 
 His correspondence was widely extended, and maintained 
 with the most eminent scholars of his day, but apparently 
 never very large. Among the great number of letters of 
 learned men of that age which have been preserved in various 
 collections, we find very few traces of Bochart ; and about 
 thirty epistolary disquisitions on matters connected with the 
 subjects of his larger works, were all that the industry of 
 MoRiN, Leusden, and Villamand was able to collect for 
 publication. Saumaise, the elder Vossius, M. Tapin, a Pas- 
 tor of Normandy, M. Herault, a Pastor of Normandy, 
 Etienne Lemoine, Sarrau, Segrais, Michel Fauquet, and 
 M. Carbonel, a Counsellor at Paris, are the persons to whom 
 they are addressed. 
 
BOCHART. 
 
 Part II. His Works, 
 
 If extended and lasting celebrity, and almost unqualified 
 applause, constitute a reward for labour, few have ever been 
 better remunerated for their efforts in behalf of theological 
 literature than Bociiart. Yet perhaps no author whose 
 works have attained the rank of standards is so little read, so 
 generally unknown, by those who quote and praise him at 
 second-hand. He affords an admirable instance of the value 
 of praise from men themselves praiseworthy — * laudari a viro 
 laudato.' Only men of extensive learning are fully qualified 
 to judge of the merits of Bochart ; and by these he has al- 
 ways been placed so high in the scale of literary merit, that 
 it has been impossible for the crowd, who follow them at 
 humble distance, to avoid bestowing on him their feebler suf- 
 frages. Hence the universality of his fame and acknowledged 
 merit. 
 
 He has not, however, been without his enemies. That 
 caustic critic, Father Simon, has most severely censured him 
 on more than one occasion, with what degree of justice it will 
 be more proper to examine in another place. Others have 
 not been wanting to take up the charges brought by Simon, 
 and to a greater or less extent, renew them against our au- 
 thor. He has still escaped, and his reputation has scarcely 
 received a blemish from all the attacks which have been made 
 upon it. 
 
144 AI£M01fih OF 
 
 It would be presumption to sit in judgment upon such a 
 writer ; but a review of the plan and execution of his works 
 may enable us with some degree of justice to appreciate his 
 value. 
 
 The first published, and in some respects the most valua- 
 ble, production of Bochart is his Geographia Sacra, com- 
 prised in two independent treatises, under the titles of Phaleg 
 and Canaan. 
 
 The subjects of this work are, the regions expressly or 
 tacitly mentioned in the Scriptures ; the dispersion of the sons 
 of Noah, and the origin of nations ; and the navigation, com- 
 merce, colonies, language, and learning of the Phoenicians. 
 
 The method of the author in the apportionment of this ex- 
 tensive field of inquiry is certainly deserving of much praise. 
 A general division distinguishes what relates exclusively to > 
 the Phoenicians from the remainder. The latter, under the 
 title of " Phaleg, sive de dispersione gentium e Babylonia fac- 
 tum, etdivisione terrarum inter Noae posteros," is first in 
 order, and occupies four books. The former, in two books, 
 constitutes a second part, entitled " Canaan, seu de coloniis et 
 sermone Phoenicum." 
 
 The^rs^ book of the First Part is occupied with disqui- 
 tions respecting Noah and his family, and the traces of them 
 supposed to be discoverable in heathen poetry ; concerning 
 the construction, voyage, and landing, of the ark j concerning 
 the relative situation of Armenia and Babylon, and the pro- 
 gress of the descendants of Noah to the latter place ; and 
 concerning the wonderful circumstances related of the city 
 supposed to have been founded there by them. The second 
 book treats of the settlement of the posterity of Shem ; the 
 third of that of the sons of Japhet ; and the fourth of the 
 children of Ham and their residence. 
 
 The/r5^ book of the Second Part relates to the intercourse 
 of the Phoenicians with other nations, and to their colonies ; 
 the second treats copiously of the remaining traces of their 
 language and literature. 
 
 In filling up these outlines, Bochart has found, or made^ 
 occasion to discuss the origin, site, language, customs, religion. 
 
SAMUEL BOCHART. 145 
 
 and ceremonial obsei-vances, of almost eVery ancient nation, 
 and to describe the natural features, boundaries, climate, and 
 divisions, of the several countries w^hich they inhabited ; — 
 we might say, without much exaggeration, of the whole an- 
 cient world. He gives his reasons, or quotes his authority, for 
 every assertion, at the utmost length ; and in so doing, displays 
 a depth of research, and untiring perseverance in investiga- 
 tion, which are perfectly astonishing. The most recondite 
 sources of information appear familiar to him. The his- 
 torical and geographical writers of antiquity are examined 
 with scrupulous minuteness and accuracy ; and not even a 
 line of their poets, pertinent to his subject, has escaped his 
 observation. At the same time he manifests an extensive and 
 intimate acquaintance with the best modern writers on the 
 topics of his book, which were extant in his day. 
 
 Throughout the whole of the work, he contrives to con- 
 vey an astonishing mass of historical information relating to 
 the rise and progress of kingdoms, the establishment and in- 
 crease of religions, the source and substance of the mytholo- 
 gical fables of the ancients, and almost all the minor branches 
 of Jewish and heathen antiquities. The author's plan in con- 
 ducting his inquiries, is, in every instance, to examine : 
 
 1. The sound and /orm of the names of the nation in ques- 
 tion. To this examination he attaches great, probably too 
 much, importance. Yet he is not blindly led by mere fancy, 
 as some have preposterously asserted, but lays down several 
 very judicious cautions, {a) which prove the justness of his 
 notions on the subject, however he may have failed in some 
 respects in practice. 
 
 2. The coincidences of general appellatives in sound or 
 form with names of particular places or persons belonging to 
 the nation bearing such appellatives. To this species of evi- 
 dence the remarks just made apply with greater force, as it is 
 certainly more precarious than the preceding. 
 
 3. The significalions of names ; which he considers as sel- 
 
 (a) Praefat. in Phaleg. Opp. Tom. ui. p. 38. 
 
 19 
 
146 MEMoins or 
 
 dom entirely destitute of meaning. Here, too, it must be 
 confessed, he is too apt to catch at overstrained coincidences, 
 and attach an undue importance to insignificant or isolated 
 facts. 
 
 4. The existence of synonyms^ in Scripture or elsewhere ; 
 which often create confusion, and yet not seldom, if properly 
 examined, afford considerable light. 
 
 5. The descriptive epithets and characteristics ascribed to 
 various countries and nations ; and the accordance or dis- 
 agreement of Scripture with profane authors in these. 
 
 6. The productions of a country ; the predominant occu- 
 pations of its inhabitants ; and the principal articles of its 
 commerce, 
 
 7. The prophetical and historical accounts in Scripture 
 and profane authors. 
 
 8. The natural and political connexions and alliances of 
 nations. 
 
 9. The respective situations of countries, especially with 
 reference to Judea. 
 
 10. Their several boundaries, as laid down in Scripture, or 
 learned from other sources ; and 
 
 11. The name, situation, and remarkable circumstances in 
 the history of the mountains, rivers, lakes, towns, &c. in every 
 country. 
 
 On all these points he derives his information from the Sa- 
 cred books themselves ; their commentators and versions in 
 every language ; almost every ancient writer in Greek, La- 
 tin, or the Eastern languages ; and the philological research- 
 es of the most learned and judicious of the moderns. His 
 quotations are made at full length, in the original languages, 
 with a punctilious nicety and attention to the integrity of the 
 text. -He is, in general, cautious to avoid reliance upon mu- 
 tilated passages, or such as are not in themselves entirely per- 
 tinent, and applicable when taken in connexion with their 
 context. In his choice of authorities he displays a nicety 
 even more than usual in his age. Although the nature of his 
 subject led him into the mist of mythological and poetic fable, 
 he resisted every temptation to accept the guidance of the 
 
SAMUEL BOCttART. 147 
 
 ignes fatui of supposititious relics of antiquity. The Jewish 
 Pscudepigrapha ; Berosus, as now extant ; the pretended 
 Thaut, or Hermes Trismegistus ; the Argonautics of Orpheus ; 
 Dares Phrygius ; Dictys Cretensis ; the forged Etruscan 
 antiquities ; and the Sibylline oracles ; he rejects, on the most 
 solid grounds. He disproves the pretensions of Zoroaster to 
 great antiquity ; and shows that the writings under his name 
 are spurious. Sanchoniathon he only admits after a strict and 
 able examination of the evidence in his favour ; and then, with- 
 out reposing implicit confidence in his translator, Philo-Byb- 
 lius. 
 
 Such were the materials and execution of a work which left 
 behind it at an immeasurable distance all that had previously 
 been written on the same subject ; and which for upwards of a 
 century maintained, without an attempt at rivalry, the rank of 
 sole standard in that bremch of knowledge. While its me- 
 rits were thus acknowledged, its faults were not unseen. 
 Father Simon tauntingly declared that the greater part of 
 the contents of the ' Phaleg ' were mere conjectures, (6) and 
 that the remainder of the work was filled with uncertain ety- 
 mologies ; (c) and Wolf {d) and Dorn (e) repeat the charges. 
 Yet at the very time, these critics allow that the conjectures 
 themselves are often happy and of no small use ; (/) that the 
 work so perfectly illustrates its subject as to leave nothing 
 
 (6) " La plus-part de ce qui est rapporte — dans la Phaleg — n'est sou- 
 vent appuye que sur des conjectures." Simon. Hist. Crit. du V. T. 
 Liv. Ill, 0. XX. p. 481. ed. Rot. 
 
 (c) " En eflFet, si I'on excepte la premiere partie de son Phaleg, queya 
 t' il dans le reste de ce livre — que des etymologies et un amas confus de 
 literature, qui n'est le plus souvent gueres k propos ?" Simon Rep. a la 
 Def. des Sent, de quelq. Theol. Holl. p. 72. ed. Rot. 
 
 (d) BocH. in Geographia Sacra — ^praecipue etymologiae, ut in aliis, 
 ita hie quoque, rationem habuit." Wolf. Hist. Lex. Hebraic, p. 239. 
 
 (e) "Quanquam meris plerumque nituntur conjecturis." Dornii 
 Bibl. Theol. Crit. P. ii. p. 167. 
 
 (/) " Ces sortes de conjectures sont quelquefois utiles, en ce que si 
 vous ne decouvrez pas toujours la verity, au moins pent on se precaution- 
 ner pour nc pas tomber dans rerreur." Simoit. Hist. Crit. du V, T. ubi 
 supra. 
 
148 MEMOIRS OF 
 
 more to be done ; {g) and that its conjectural disquisitions arr 
 replete with usefulness, and lead directly to the truth. (/*) 
 
 In the year 1768 the learned and indefatigable Michaelis 
 commenced the publication of a work upon the Geography 
 of the Old Testament, with especial reference to the 10th 
 chapter of Genesis. Vastly as the * subsidia ' were increased 
 in number, great as had been the progress of theological 
 science during the century and a quarter which had elapsed 
 since the publication of Bochart's Geography, he did not 
 deem it possible to supersede that work. On the contrary, 
 he gave the strongest testimony in its favour, by taking for 
 his own production the modest rank of a Supplement. " The 
 matter," says Eichhorn, in his biographical notice of Mi- 
 chaelis, {i) " had already been excellently handled by Bo- 
 chart, who had left scarcely any thing to be done in the way 
 of illustrating names from the ancient classics, the Versions of 
 the Bible, or the Arab writers. But one source of informa- 
 tion subservient to his purposes, which had at that time already 
 been partly opened, — modern travels in the East, — he had 
 disdained to use : and, on the other hand, he abounded in 
 etymologies, and often changed questions of historical re- 
 search into mere etymological inquiries. Since the time of 
 BocHART, moreover, Assemanni had laid open a new and 
 rich field of geographical discover j% of which no one had as 
 
 (g) BocH. in Geographia Sacra, locorum nomina in sacro codice oc- 
 curentia, ita illustravit, ut aliis otia fecerit." Wolfios, ubi supra. 
 
 (h) Cumulatissimae doctrinae volumina sunt, in quibus magnum diffi- 
 cillimorum Scripturae V. T. locorum numerum dilucide ubique explica- 
 vit. Et quancjuam, &c. — cae tamen ita sunt comparatae, ut summa ex 
 inde ad legentes redundet utilitas, etregiaad veritatem via digito quasi 
 commonstretur." Dorn. ubi supra. 
 
 (i) Eichhobn's AUg. Bibliothek der Bibl. Litcratur. B. iii. s. 849. f. 
 The title of Michaelis' work was ' Spicilegium Geographiae Hebrae- 
 orum exterae post Bochartum.' ii Ptes. 4to. Gottingae, 1768— 7a It 
 gave occasion to another by Jo. Rkinhold Forster, under the title of 
 ' Epistolae ad J. D. Michaelem, hujus Spicilegium Geographiae Hc- 
 braeorum exterae jam confirmantes, i>m castigantes., 4to. Gottingae, 
 1772. 
 
SAMUEL BOCHART. 
 
 149 
 
 yet been able to make use. Michaelis was desirous to 
 make trial how much light could be elicited upon this part of 
 the shades of antiquity from the travels and the writings of 
 learned Syrians. He wished to sift the Etymologies of Bo- 
 chart, and to reduce their application in geographical investi- 
 gations within narrower limits, and especially to give to such 
 investigations more of the character of historical research." 
 
 Many systems of Sacred Geography have been written 
 since that time, some of great value, and certainly far prefer- 
 able to BocH art's for ordinary use : but his still maintains its 
 character as a standard lx)ok of reference and ultimate au- 
 thority, and is universally allowed to merit at least the praise 
 of being " a very learned compilation," though by some it 
 may be thought to be " overfilled with bold hypotheses." {k) 
 
 The Geographia Sacra was first printed, each part sepa- 
 rately, at Caen, in folio, in 1646. This edition is neither neat 
 nor accurate. The Phaleg was republished at the same place 
 in folio, in 1651. (l) 
 
 The whole work was reprinted at Frankfort on Maine, in 
 4to., in 1674, and again in 1681 ; and in the collected works 
 of the author, in folio, at Leyden, in 1692, and in 1707. 
 
 This is undoubtedly the masterpiece of our author. It is less 
 behind the advanced state of modern science than either of 
 his other productions. This may be accounted for by the 
 fact that its subjects are of such a nature as to require little 
 more than accuracy of research and patient investigation, with 
 ordinary critical abilities for the management of materials 
 thus obtained ; and they admit of but little novelty of dis- 
 covery. The arrangement of the w ork, too, is more perspi- 
 
 (fc) "Eine sehr gelehrte, aber mitkuehnen Hypothesen ueberfuellte 
 Zusammensfellung." Gesenius. Art. Bibiische Geographic, in Allg. 
 Enc. (Bibel, Leipzig, 8vo. 1823, p. 206. not. 35). 
 
 (/) Bayle ( Diet. Art. BOCHART, Note C. ) with his usual flip- 
 pancy, questions the accuracy of Sir Thomas-Pope-BIount, who men- 
 tions this edition, because he (Bayle) had never seen it ! I have both 
 seen and used it. It appears to be a mere reprinted title, and is some- 
 times bound up with the older edition of the ' Canaan.' 
 
150 MEMOIRS OF 
 
 cuous, and its execution more correct, than that of the Hiero- 
 zoicon. 
 
 Nevertheless, the latter appears to have been the favourite 
 of the author, who bestowed more pains upon it, and occa- 
 sionally speaks of it as his * magnum opus/ It certainly has 
 secured for itself a greater share of public favour, as the num- 
 ber of editions and abridgments plainly testifies. Perhaps 
 we may attribute this to the greater degree of interest taken 
 in its subjects, and, in some measure, to its containing more 
 original discovery that has maintained its value. In variety 
 of learning, and multiphcity of quotations, especially from 
 Oriental writers, it undoubtedly much exceeds the Geo- 
 graphy ; and this was sufficient, at the time of its publication, 
 to secure it a superior degree of admiration, (m) which may 
 have been handed down, while the cause has ceased to exer- 
 cise any influence. 
 
 An incredible degree of labom- was bestowed by Bochart 
 upon this work. It occupied his leisure time for nearly twenty 
 years, of which the two that he spent in Sweden were devot- 
 ed almost wholly to researches on its subjects, principally in 
 the noble Oriental library at that time in possession of Chris- 
 tina. The diligence with which he examined the minutest 
 subjects may be inferred from the fact that in a letter written 
 about that time to Huet, he called the attention of that learn- 
 ed man to a passage consisting of only two words, illustrative 
 of a subsidiary argument in some portion of his work, and ac- 
 tually requested his assistance in the examination of so minute 
 a point, (n) 
 By way of displaying fully the merits of this fruit of many tpils, 
 
 (m) '' BocHARTi Hierozoicon, summo studio conscriptum opus, quod 
 raerito thesaurum quemdaraexquisitae et profuhdae eruditionis dixeris." 
 BudDjEI Isagoge. i. 275. 6. — " Stupendum illud opus Bocharti de ani- 
 malibus Sacrae Scripturae." Wolfius. Hist. Lex. Heb. p. 67. 
 
 (n) The passage in question was the words n«gff-//c» 7rtTTfit»», in the 
 poem of Paul Silentiarius on the Pythian thermae, contained in the 
 Greek Anthology. Huetii Coram, de Vit. sua. Lib. in, (Aikin's Huet. i. 
 212.) 
 
• ' bAMUEL BOCHART. 151 
 
 BocHART himself prefixed a perfect syllabus of its contents, in 
 the shape of a preface, of sixty-three closely printed pages. In 
 this he also fully states his views, and enters into some vindica- 
 tion of the manner ia which he had endeavoured to carry them 
 into effect. His design in the work he represents as twofold : 
 Jirsty to ascertain the animals designated by names used in the 
 Scriptures ; and secondly ^ to describe those animals, their ha- 
 bits, residence, and peculiarities, and to explain the manner 
 and occasion of their introduction in the sacred books. He 
 traces the peculiar necessity of the first species of investiga- 
 tion to the disuse of the Hebrew language, and the perfunc- 
 tory discussion of subjects of natural history in the Scrip- 
 tures, the only authentic depositary of that language. The 
 want of evidence which these causes create, he continually en- 
 deavours to supply from other Oriental languages, and from 
 the supplementary testimony of the ancient versions and com- 
 mentators. In his time, few subjects connected with the 
 Scriptures had received less attention than their natural his- 
 tory, and the number of errors in this department was pro- 
 portionably great. Of course it became the business of Bo- 
 cHART to notice and refute them, which he does at length, 
 and with such ability, that Simon, who is unwilling to concede 
 to him any other merit, is under the necessity of allowing that 
 in this respect his work is useful, (o) 
 
 In this preface, our author represents as one important ob- 
 ject of inquiry, the reasons why the several names of animals 
 occurring in the Scriptures were given to the creatures which 
 they respectively designate. He assumes that the Hebrew 
 was the primeval language ; — that Adam gave names to all 
 the animals ; — that he possessed an accurate and intimate 
 
 (o) " Au moins peut on se precautionner pour ne pas tomber dans 
 I'erreur: et c'est en quoi le — ^livre qui traite des animaux dont il est parle 
 dans I'Ecriture peut beaucoup servir; carbien qu'onne sgachepasau vrai 
 les noms d'une bonne partie des animaux dontil est fait mention dans 
 la Bible, il donne quelquefois assez de lumiere pour exclure de certains 
 animaux, auxquels ces meraes noms ne peuvent convenir." Simon, Hist. 
 Crit. du Vieux Test. Liv. in. c. xx. p. 481. ed. Roterd. 
 
152 MEMOIRS OP 
 
 knowledge of their natures ;— and that he intended to convey 
 all, or a portion, of that knowledge, in the names given them. 
 Either of these assumptions it would be difficult, not to say 
 impossible, for him to prove. The rule which he has founded 
 on them has given occasion to much unnecessary disquisition 
 in his work, and to the indulgence of some almost ludicrous 
 fancies, (p) 
 
 The Hierozoicon, like the Geography, is divided into Two 
 Parts, each containing several books, in all, ten in number. 
 
 The first book opens with a general introduction to the 
 subject, and, ancient precept to the contrary notwithstand- 
 ing, * orditur ab ovo,' affording no small occasion of sneering 
 to that critic-general of beginnings, Father Simon. The au- 
 thor treats of animals in general, — their origin, nature, and 
 use. According to his usual method, the discussion opens 
 with an examination of the word animal (n^n, ?wov.). In this 
 he spends some time to show that life is attributed to plants as 
 well as animals ; and quotes for that purpose the Scriptures, 
 Jewish Commentators, and Heathen Poets. The bearing 
 which this might have upon the precept of Pythagoras pro- 
 hibiting the use of any living thing for food, introduces that 
 philosopher, and a discussion of his opinions on the subject. 
 
 The grand divisions of the animal kingdom are next laid 
 down, and the several systems of subdivision stated. The re- 
 lative station of animals in the creation ; their subjection to 
 Adam, and their reception of names from him, are then as- 
 serted. On the assumption that the names now extant are 
 those which were then given, a long digression is entered into, 
 to prove that the Hebrew names of animals are indicative of 
 some quality in the animal itself, or circumstance in its habits. 
 Thus concludes the introduction to the work. 
 
 (p) The hog, for instance, he supposes to be called Tin, on account of 
 the smallness of its eyes, because in Arabic ,//^ means to have small 
 eyes:— just as if the Arabic word were not derived from TJtXl; as we now 
 speak of ' having pig's eyes' ! — The dog, too, is to be called ^Sd, from 
 UwD, translated by Jerome Uncinum, and the Arabic S'^-K^harpago ; 
 because he holds any thing in his jaws as if it were in a pair of tongs ! * 
 Hieroz. Lib. i. c. ix. p. 61, ed. Lugd. Bat. 1712. 
 
SAMUEL BOCHART. 153 
 
 The next three books relate to quadrupeds. 
 
 The second book contains the history of the domestic qua- 
 drupeds introduced in Scripture, of which ten sorts are enu- 
 merated. Their names, habits, pecularities, uses, and pro- 
 ducts are discussed at length. The accounts of them con- 
 tained in the writings of the ancients and Orientals are col- 
 lected. Events in sacred history in which they had a share 
 are recounted and examined. Miracles relating to them are 
 investigated. Laws having any reference to them are stated 
 and explained. Mythological allusions are elucidated and 
 applied to the illustration of sacred history. Proverbs in 
 which these animals are introduced, occurring either in Scrip- 
 ture or in the eastern languages, are collected and explained. 
 Figurative expressions, drawn from their appearance or habits, 
 are enumerated and elucidated. In fine, all the passages of 
 Scripture in which mention of them occurs are recounted, 
 and if difficult, cleared up. • 
 
 The third book treats of the wild quadrupeds mentioned in 
 Scripture, of which twenty-seven sorts come under observation. 
 
 The method is the same as in the last book (which, indeed, 
 is nearly uniform in all the succeeding books) but, if possible, 
 more particular, in proportion as the little known of the ani- 
 mals in question renders the subject more difficult ; and on 
 account of their more frequent introduction in metaphorical 
 expressions. 
 
 Book the fourth relates to oviparous quadrupeds. Those 
 noticed in the sacred books are few in number, but they have 
 created more difficulty than any other branch of the natural 
 history of the Scriptures. They were almost entirely un- 
 known, until the learned researches of our author threw new 
 and copious light upon the subject, derived, in a great mea- 
 sure, from the writings of the Arabians. The confusion among 
 the principal versions in modern languages, in rendering the 
 names of these animals, is amusing. Six animals are named 
 by Moses, Lev. xi. 29, 30, all of which Bochart has proved 
 to be different species of lizards, and has been followed in his 
 opinion by the most eminent Hebraists. Of these the 
 
 ^0 
 
154 MEMOIRS OF 
 
 first, ay, has been called a toad, a tortoise, and a sort of 
 SHELL-FISH. The sccond, np:K, a newt, a species of locust, 
 a SPIDER, a winged reptile, a castor, and an otter : the 
 third, n^, a chameleon, a tortoise, a snail, a squirrel, and 
 a crocodile : the fourth, hndS, a sort of salamander, a species 
 of amphibious animal (latacem), a mouse, a spider, a newt, 
 and a lizard : the fifth, tamn, a snail, a bat : the sixth, riD'^Jtn, 
 a chameleon, a mole, and a bat. From such perplexity has 
 the laborious investigation of Bochart delivered us ! In all 
 such cases, he patiently examines and refutes the variant mis- 
 interpretations, before he proceeds to establish his ov^rn, which 
 he generally does by nuiiierous and pertinent proofs from 
 Oriental writers. 
 
 With the fourth book ends the First Part of the work, or 
 that relating to quadrupeds. 
 
 The Second Part comprises six books. Of these the first 
 two relate to birds. 
 
 The first, or fifth of the whole Avork, contains the history of 
 those designated as clean in the Mosaic law. 
 
 The sixth book treats of the unclean birds, twenty in num- 
 ber, in the order in which they are recounted, Lev. xi. 13, 
 Deut. xiv. 2. 
 
 The seventh book relates to reptiles generally : but by far 
 the largest portion of its contents is occupied by the several 
 sorts of serpents mentioned, or supposed to be mentioned, in 
 the sacred books. 
 
 The eighth book gives an account of insects, with even 
 more than ordinary diffuseness. 
 
 The ninth treats of aquatile animals, of which but few are 
 mentioned in the Scriptures : and of the productions of the 
 ocean, such as pearls, the purple-fish, amber, &;c. 
 
 The tenth and last division of the work discusses the ac- 
 counts of fabulous animals transmitted by the ancients and 
 Oriental writers, mention of which, although not made in the 
 Scriptures themselves, repeatedly occurs in the ancient ver- 
 sions. Among these our author reckons the ant-lion, now 
 well known, and by no means considered as uncommon. 
 Beside this, the goathart, griffin, phoenix, syrens, lamia, 
 
bAMUEL BOCHART. 155 
 
 satyrs, fauns, onocentaurs, and hippocentaurs, are introduced. 
 Every thing related of them is collected ; their non-existence 
 is proved ; and the true meanings of the passages into which 
 they have been improperly introduced by the ancient inter- 
 preters, are given and defended. The whole concludes with 
 a similar notice of some fictitious animals of the Arabian na- 
 turalists, not in anywise connected with the Scriptures, but 
 introduced by Boo hart to show that he did not place an im- 
 plicit and blind confidence in those from whom he had bor- 
 rowed so extensively, and derived so large a proportion of 
 his discoveries. 
 
 Simon, while party feeling led him to depreciate the merits 
 of BocHART, showed his usual sagacity when he fixed upon 
 the destruction of prevailing errors as the principal utility of 
 his Hierozoicon. It cleared away the rubbish that ages had 
 been heaping upon its subject, and if it did not always bring 
 to light a perfect structure in its stead, we should remember 
 that ' non omnia omnes,' and that none but a Hercules could 
 have so completely removed the accumulated filth. The very 
 list of the more important errors which Bochart enumerates 
 as corrected in his work, and which have since been acknow- 
 ledged, almost without exception, as such, is appalling. One 
 species of the same animal has been mistaken for another; 
 animals of the same general class have been interchanged ; 
 beasts have been taken for birds, for insects, and even fishes ; 
 and the names of animals have been mistaken for those of 
 places. Under these four classes of misinterpretations he ar- 
 ranges a list occupying nineteen folio pages. It is important to 
 recount these particulars, because we cannot properly appre- 
 ciate the value of the Hierozoicon without an idea of its ef- 
 fects in this respect. If it had contained no original views, 
 nothing meriting transmission to posterity, its author would 
 have deserved well of biblical students for all generations, for 
 his exploits in the demolition of ancient prejudice and error. 
 
 But the work has its uses, and claims to notice, on its own 
 account. It would not be saying loo much to assert that 
 two thirds of all the explanations of Scriptural names of ani- 
 mals given by Bochart, have been adopted by the ablest 
 
lo6 
 
 MEMOIRS Oi' 
 
 Orientalists since his time. The treasure of zoological language 
 which he has gathered from Oriental writers has been draw^n 
 upon by every philologist of note, and is yet unexhausted. 
 The information w hich he has collected from the same sources 
 respecting the appearance, habits, and products, of animals 
 residing in the East, has been in the main confirmed by the 
 researches of modern travellers. He has afforded the key to 
 many discoveries which have been made in later times, and 
 assisted men of perhaps less learning and abilities to proceed 
 farther than he had done himself. In his preface he claims 
 to have thrown light upon many parts -of Holy writ by his in- 
 terpretations of single passages and whole phrases ; and it is 
 undeniable that he deserves great praise on that account. 
 
 Many explanations of passages formerly considered diffi- 
 cult, which are now universally received, and familiar to the 
 merest tyro, owe their origin to him. Many which for a time 
 were esteemed improbable, have gradually acquired an esta- 
 blished authority. Many, yet the subjects of a difference of 
 opinion, are nevertheless espoused by most learned and judi- 
 cious critics. 
 
 On the whole, the character of this work cannot be bettet^ 
 given than in the words of Gesenius, certainly a competent 
 judge. " The work of Boon art is in the highest rank of 
 classics in biblical Zoology. Its author was one of the greatest 
 Oriental philologists of modern times. In this production he 
 has made use of every thing that could be furnished by the 
 most extensive etymological knowledge of the Oriental lan- 
 guages, by the Arabian natural historians, and by the ancient 
 versions and classical writers, for the elucidation of the names 
 of animals w^hich occur in Scripture, and of all the passages 
 of the Bible which have any reference to Zoology. Yet per- 
 haps etymological disquisitions are too prevalent in the 
 work." (7) 
 
 (9) " Fuer — ^biblische Zoologle besitzen wir ein hocchst klassisches 
 Werk von Sam. Bochart, einem der groessesten orientalischen Philolo- 
 gen der neuern Zeit, worin alles aufgeboten ist, was die ausgebreit- 
 este etymologische Kenntnii*? der orientaJischen Sprachen. was Arab- 
 
SAMUEL BOCHART. I5T 
 
 The Hierozoicon was first printed at London, by Allestrey, 
 the pubHsher of the London Polyglot, and with the oriental 
 types used for that noble work, in 2 volumes folio, in 1663. 
 This edition is spoken of as being splendid, but by no means 
 accurately printed, (r) 
 
 As early as 1675 it was reprinted with more care, in folioy 
 at Frankfort on the Maine. It was again republished in the 
 author's collected works, at Utrecht, in 1692, and at Leyden, 
 in 1712. 
 
 In 1686 there appeared at Frankfort, in 8vo., an abridgment 
 of this work by Jo. H. Maius, of Giesse, who took the liber- 
 ty of frequently correcting his author in supplementary notes, 
 which, however, were of no great importance, {s) In 1690 
 it was again epitomized by Stephen M. Vesceus, or Veczci^ 
 a Hungarian, and published in 4to., at Franeker. 
 
 In 1793, the younger Rosenmueller superintended the 
 publication of a new edition in 3 vols. 4to., at Leipsic. But 
 he destroyed its value to the accurate philologist, by mutilating 
 the work at pleasure, and making additions of his own with- 
 out distinction from the original text. This excited consider- 
 able clamour at the time, (t) and although the book was in- 
 trinsically valuable to the biblical student, it has never obtain- 
 ed a full circulation. 
 
 Something of a different nature had previously been at- 
 tempted by F. J. ScHODER, who published at Tubingen, in 
 8vo., in the years 1784, 1786, three tracts, entitled * Specimi- 
 na Hierozoici ex Sam. Bocharto aliisque virorum commenta- 
 
 ische Naturhistoriken, die alten Versionen und kl assiken Schriftsteller 
 zur Erklaerung der vorkommendcn Thiernamen und aller auf Zoologie 
 irgend Beziig habenden Bibelsteller darbieten, und nur die etyraolo- 
 gische Ruecksicht vielleicht zu sehr vorherrscht." — Art. Biblisckk 
 Geographie in der Allgem. Encyklopaedie (Bibel. S. 215.) 
 
 (r) " Splendide satis, sed admodum vitiose.*' Dorn, ubi supra. 
 
 (s) " Animadversiones momenli sunt exigui ; " says Dork, ubi 
 supra, p. 167. But Fabricius, Bibl. Antiquaria, p. 499. appears inclined 
 to allow them more value. 
 
 (<) See Neues tbeologisches Journal, hcrausg. von Ammon, Haenlei.v, 
 nnd Paulus; vx B. S. 684. if. 
 
158 ' MEMOIRS OF 
 
 riis et itinerariis compositi/ In this the matter furnished by 
 BocHART was worked up together with that obtained from 
 other sources, into a new form, and the editor made iiimself 
 responsible for all. The want of a favourable reception, or 
 some other unknown cause, prevented the completion of this 
 work, which certainly possessed the merit of a good design 
 and well laid plan. 
 
 The Hierozoicon of Bochart formed only a single divi- 
 sion of a work which he had sketched out to himself, to com- 
 prize an entire system of the natural history of Scripture. 
 The vegetable and mineral kingdoms yet remained to be ex- 
 amined, and presented fields of investigation at least as broad 
 and difficult as that already explored. It is certain that our 
 author did at one time intend to complete this plan, as he re- 
 fers to a forthcoming work on the Plants of Scripture, in a 
 passage of the Hierozoicon. {u) Some disjointed fragments 
 left behind him (v) prove that his researches had been com- 
 menced, and give us ample reason to lament that circum- 
 stances prevented their completion. He had also begun a 
 work on the Gems of Scripture, a subject even to this day 
 almost wholly shrouded in gloom and difficulty ; and, ac- 
 cording to MoRiN, had collected a considerable quantity of 
 materials, which he was continually increasing in the course 
 of his multifarious studies. How far he had progressed to- 
 wards a perfect work is unknown, for his collections perish- 
 ed with him. (zu) 
 
 Beside these larger monuments of his industry and learning, 
 our author produced a considerable number of minor pieces. 
 
 (tt) Pt. II. Opp. Tom. n. p. 847. So also Fabricius Bibliotheca An 
 tiquaria, p. 501, on the authority of E. Benzel in Actis Literariis Sue 
 ciae, Ann. 1721. p. 157. 
 
 (v) ' An Dudaim sint tubera, &c. ad Gen. xxx. 14. Opp. in. 866. ss 
 De variis Mannae speciebus^c. Ibid. p. 871. De voce Talraudica Col 
 CHA, ad Lev. xix. 19. Ibid. p. 880. De vocum "ISD et rt^mw, signi 
 ficationibus, Ibid. p. 916, and, Quid sit Kikaion de quo Iona, iv. 6. Ibid 
 917. ss. 
 
 (w) MoRiN. de Vita Bocharti, p. 5. Braunius de Vest, gacerd. Lib. n 
 c. viii. p. 637. 
 
SAMUEL BOCHAKT. 
 
 l59 
 
 ot which such as could be recovered by the dihgence of the 
 editors, have been pubhshed in the third volume of his collect- 
 ed works. 
 
 Of these it will be impossible to give any detailed account. 
 They are fifty-three in number ; five being letters to Saumaise 
 and Vossius, and the remainder critical remarks upon several 
 works, and dissertations of various length addressed to several 
 of his friends, principally in answer to queries put to him, or 
 in compliance with requests for assistance in the examination 
 of particular topics. Most of these were hastily written, on 
 the spur of the moment, and many of them in French, whence 
 they have been translated into Latin by the editors. Of 
 course, they afford no fair specimens of the abilities of the 
 writer. Yet, such as they are, scarcely any one of them 
 can be read without deriving from it some curious remark 
 or profitable information, often on subjects of even more 
 general interest than those discussed in the larger works. 
 
 The most important are ; the Notes on the work of Stephen 
 OF Byzantium Us^i IIoXswv ; the Defence of the Geographia 
 Sacra against some objections urged by Saumaise ; the Let- 
 ter on Regal and Ecclesiastical power, already noticed ; the 
 treatise on the coming of Eneas to Italy ; the letter in ex- 
 planation of the article of the Apostle's Creed, " He descend- 
 ed into Hell ;" and a treatise on the temptation of Eve by 
 the Serpent, addressed to James Capel. 
 
 The dissertation on the landing of Eneas ui Italy, in which 
 Bochart asserts that no such event did ever happen, and 
 at the same time, excuses Virgil for having founded his 
 poem on the popular error, was written at the request of the 
 poet Segrais, in French, and published as a prefatory ap- 
 pendage to the translation of the iEneid by that writer. John 
 Schepfer, a friend of Bochart, translated it into Latin, and 
 pubhshed it separately, at Hamburg, in 12mo., in 1672. 
 Thence it was adopted into the collected works of the au- 
 thor, (x) 
 
 (x) See a list of the authors who have espoused the opinions main- 
 
160 MilMOIKS Ot 
 
 The brief essay on the * Descent into Hell/ contained in 
 a letter to Tapin, I have Httle hesitation in pronouncing 
 the very best among all our author's w^orks. There is less 
 display of learning, but there is a condensation of fact, and 
 sohdity of judgment, which are of far more value. Excepting 
 a single argument, with which the piece concludes, it con- 
 tains nothing which is not in the greatest degree pertinent to 
 the subject, and important. All the erroneous views are 
 treated of, and solidly refuted, in a few sentences. His own is 
 given, and established by cogent proofs, in as little space. It 
 is perhaps the best compendious essay among the multitudes 
 which have been written on the subject, (y) 
 
 To pass an accurate opinion upon the literary character of 
 Boo HART, and especially on his merits as a Biblical Philolo- 
 gist, would be a work of no small difficulty. There are, 
 however, a few traits which can hardly pass unnoticed, and 
 indeed, have been made ground of serious objection against 
 his writings. 
 
 It is impossible not to charge him with an excessive dif- 
 fiiseness and discursiveness. His learning is a deluge rather 
 than a noble, fertihzing stream. He buries his subject under a 
 massy pile of erudition when he should have raised a substan- 
 tial and convenient structure. His works are magazines of 
 learning, to which it is scarcely possible to add ; but whence 
 very much might be subtracted, and the reader be rather a 
 gainer than injured by the operation, {z) Simon long ago 
 
 tained by Bochart in this little treatise, and an account of the answer 
 to it by T. Ryck, in Fabricii Bibliographia Antiquaria. p. 216. 
 
 (y) It is mentioned by Dorn, Biblioth. Theol. Crit. Part ii. p. 451. 
 who, however, misrepresents B. as maintaining the article to mean a 
 mere state of death ; whereas B.'s reasoning and^tatement of his view 
 evidently include the idea of place. It is singular that Dietelmaier, in 
 in his full list of writers on this subject (Historia Dogmatis de descensu 
 Christi ad inferos, Norimb. 12mo. 1741,) should have passed by this 
 essay of Bochart. 
 
 (s) A single instance of a fault so constantly recurring, will suffice.-- 
 In treating of locusts, he observes that they are spoken of by Moses as 
 having four feet, while others, Aristotle, for instance, mention six. 
 
;bAIilUEL BOCHAHT. Wt 
 
 objected, that " he seemed to have desired rather to be thought 
 a man of learning than to be esteemed judicious." (a) This 
 is in some measure attributable to the spirit of the age in 
 which he Hved. He did but push a Httle farther a practice 
 which had been already extensively adopted by those who 
 were universally regarded as models of taste and judg- 
 ment. To make a proper allowance for his errors in this re- 
 spect, we must carry ourselves back to his days. The fashion, 
 then so prevalent, of pouring forth the whole treasures of the 
 author, old and new, upon his unfortunate reader, is, happily 
 for the cause of learning, now extinct. The division of la- 
 bour is better understood by the literary world; and, in general, 
 a writer who pretends to treat a particular subject, does not 
 expect the attention of his readers to more than is strictly re- 
 levant to that subject. Divines and critics have recognized 
 the truth of the adage * ars longa, vita brevis,' and are fain to 
 relinquish their claim to years for the study of a single work. 
 But, under any circumstances, this fault in the works of 
 BocHART would admit of some extenuation from a view of the 
 nature of their object. The author was almost the first in 
 his track, and was obliged to explore his way more carefully, 
 and more sedulously guard his outposts, than would have been 
 
 This apparent difference he easily reconciles, by observing that Moses 
 expressly distinguishes the long legs used for leaping, from the feet ; and 
 that this distinction is also recognized by Aristotle, while, for me- 
 thod's sake, he counts them as feet. Here Bochart's task was done. 
 But he goes on to say, that what Aristotle in this passage calls okXriKci 
 t*6gta,, he elsewhere terms »r>»(fat\iat. This gives occasion to correct 
 ScALioER, who had derived that word from vhS'av (salire), and to point 
 out its true meaning, viz. helms, (of a ship). Then,^ to show the rea- 
 son for the application of the name, he investigates the resemblance be- 
 tween the long legs of a locust and the helm of a vessel. Thus he in- 
 troduces a disquisition on the rudders of the ancients, which occupies 
 half a folio page ; and in the course of which he makes one quotation in 
 Ethiopic, five in Greek, and seven from Latin authors ! referring the 
 reader at the close for more to a work by Scheffer- Hiero25oic. Lib* 
 IV. c. I. 0pp. Tom. II. p. 452. s. 
 
 (o), Simon Hist, Crit. du Vieux Test. Liv, iii. c. xx. p, 481. ed Rot 
 erd. 
 
 ^1 
 
162^ MEMOIRS OP 
 
 necessary had he merely followed a beaten route. Much cf^ 
 his discursive matter has some bearing, though perhaps intri- 
 cate and remote, upon the proofs of his positions, if not di- 
 rectly upon the subject under discussion ; and much that now 
 appears unnecessary was by no means useless to the accom* 
 plishment of his design. It was prudent, too, in offering to 
 the public such a mass of original views and interpretations ; 
 and in levying war upcm so many errors, venerable for their 
 age and formidable from their universality, to use every 
 mean of pleasing and convincing. Variety of tastes was to 
 be consulted. Allowance was to-be made for the different 
 effects of argument upon different minds. The author- s 
 statements were to be defended at every point, that not the 
 smallest cranny might afford an advantage to those who 
 should be disposed to attack what they might consider as- 
 his presumptuous innovations, {b) 
 
 Another prominent fault is his fondness for recondite learn- 
 ing and minute disquisition. He cannot resist the temptation 
 to display to the admiring gaze of others the treasures which' 
 he has so hardly earned, however forced the occasion. He 
 seems to measure the value of his matter by its remoteness- 
 from the range of common knowledge ; and to suppose that' 
 the rarity of an author on the difficulty of his style or lan- 
 guage will amply excuse the improper length, or unnecessary 
 introduction, of an extract. The necessity of close and ac- 
 curate investigation, and long habits of minute research, had 
 accustomed him to attach importance to the minutest points, 
 which he discusses as gravely and with as much prolixity as 
 if the safety of the literary world depended on them. Hence 
 the same acute, but often captious and hasty writer, who has 
 been already quoted as a censor of Boo hart, takes occasion 
 to sneer at him as a mere grammatist and dictionary-hunter, 
 who loves to descant upon bare play of words and changes 
 of letters, and whose bulky works would shrink exceedingly 
 
 (6) The author evidently betrays a fear of such attacks in Praef. ad 
 Phaleg, 0pp. Tom. in. p. 43. s. and especially Praef. ad Hierozoicon, 
 Opp, Tom. I- p. 62. s. 
 
SAMUEL BOCHART. IBS 
 
 if they were trimmed of every thing that is good for no- 
 thing, (c) 
 
 As to the charge of ^ grammatism' the critical Pere Simon 
 can hardly have been in earnest, vvrhen he found fauh with 
 the grammatical learning of our author. Whether he were or 
 not, the defence of Bochart by Villamandy, the editor of 
 his collected works, is well enough. *' It is true," says he, 
 " that the numerous explanations of Hebrew, Rabbinical, 
 Greek, and other words, which occur in his works, display 
 much grammatical knowledge. But it is that kind of know- 
 ledge which relates to the true force and signification of 
 words, and to their genuine origin and use ; and which is 
 gained only by an accurate perusal of the best writers in the 
 language. Such is not the knowledge of the mere gramma- 
 list who trifles with the endless genealogies and forms of 
 grammar, and is for ever involved in doubt by the intricacy of 
 his own disputations." {d) 
 
 The assertion that Bochart was indebted to ' dictionaries ' 
 for his multifarious learning deserves a contemptuous denial. 
 Every page of his works shows that he derived his knowledge 
 of the languages in which he was so eminently skilled, from 
 the fountain heads. He is continually coirecting errors, or 
 supplying deficiencies, of modern lexicographers, especially the 
 Arabic. It would be diflicult to adduce a single instance in 
 which he has depended on the authority of a dictionary, except 
 it be one written in the language itself, as those of Jauhari 
 in Arabic, or Hesychius in Greek, to which no sober critic 
 would object. 
 
 But as to trifling, and, so to speak, conglomeration of un- 
 necessary learning, it is impossible to justify om- author. Oc- 
 casionally we cannot avoid imagining that he selects the least 
 obvious interpretations of a passage, that he may bring his 
 
 (c) Simon, Reponse aux Sentimens de quelque Theologiens de Hol- 
 lande, Liv. in p. 18. ed. Bpilerd — Reponse a la Defense des Sentimens, 
 «&c. p. 72, p. 74. 
 
 (d) Such is the substance of p. 5, U 4. of Praei^ \\x Tom. m. .Opp, 
 
 •BOCHAKTI.' 
 
fl6t MEMOIRS or 
 
 immense erudition to bear, in its establishment, (e) Elsewhere 
 he dallies, through whole pages, with the most absurd hypo- 
 theses, that he may enjoy the Titanic pleasure of heaving a 
 mountain to ci-ush a mouse. (/ ) The warmest admirer of 
 BocHART must allow, that his voluminous writings would well 
 admit of much retrenchment. 
 
 Another serious charge against Bochart, which must be 
 admitted to have some foundation, is, that he indulged to an 
 
 (e) For example. In Isa. vi. 6. he would render nS^*!, ** heattd 
 stone; relying on ancient authorities (neither numerous nor strong) for 
 that meaning of the word ; and then brings vast quantities of historical 
 reading to show that heated stones were used in ancient times for cooking, 
 &c., and therefore might have been upon the altar for the purpose of 
 consuming flesh put there. But after all he fails in showing the very 
 point to be proved — that it was customary to use heated stones in saeri- 
 Jices, or to place them on altars ; and he does not perceive that his far- 
 fetched rendering takes away a great deal of the beauty of the bold 
 figure of the prophet. It is astonishing that Simok, DdDERL£iN, Datbk, 
 and even Gesbnius, should have admitted implicitly this rendering.— > 
 HisRoz. P. I. L. n. c. xxxiii. 
 
 (/) An egregious instance of such trifling occurs in the Hierozoicon, 
 ¥. 11. B. II. c. xi., entitled ' God's providence towards crows.' In th* 
 first place he states the allegorial interpretation given to certain passages 
 of Scripture relating to ' young ravens ' by some of the early fathers, 
 who made the * ravens ' Gentiles^ the ^ young ravens ' The Christian church, 
 formed principally from among the heathen. This he gravely refutes 
 at some length. Then follows a literal exposition given by Solomon 
 Jarchi, Kimchi, and other Jewish, and many Arabian writers. They 
 say that ravens, on the first hatching of their youn*:, are so disgusted 
 with the appearance of the little animals, as to fly away and leave them ; 
 and that the young birds uttering their plaintive cries upon being press- 
 ed with hunger, the Deity, in pity on them, creates from their dung in 
 the nest, great abundance of lice, which run into the open mouths of 
 the nestlings. With all possible seriousness our author girds himself 
 for the work of showing this to be an untenable exegesis. The au- 
 thorities by which it is supported are quoted, lo the number of three 
 citations in Hebrew, four in Arabic, two in Greek, and three in Latin. 
 In answer, he undertakes to prove that it is not the habit of birds to foul 
 their own nests;— that it is not likely that the ravens think their young 
 ones ugly ; — and that there is no unquestionable evidence of their leaving 
 them in their vexation. During this process he makes eleven more quo- 
 ti^tions from Epicharmius, Cicero, Aristotle, Pliny, JEi.iav, Chalfho- 
 T^ACHMAR, and Servihs, The whole occupie.<5 three large folio pages. 
 
SAMUEL BOCUART. 165 
 
 excessive degree in conjecture and unwarranted hypothesis. 
 Much may be said in palliation of this fault, if such it be. The 
 subjects of his books were such as seldom to admit even of 
 the moral demonstration of probability ; and in many cases, 
 the best guesser is the wisest man. Many of his conjectures 
 have since been fully confirmed. Others are as near the 
 truth as the scanty data in existence will permit us to arrive. 
 Even of those which are palpably incorrect, no few command 
 our admiration by their ingenuity and the learning displayed 
 in their support, (g) 
 
 The only remaining objection which has been made against 
 our author, is, his overweening attachment to etymology. Si- 
 mon passes some bitter jests upon this foible, undertaking to 
 show, by some of Bochart's irrefragable proofs, that the 
 Borak, or winged animal on which Mahomet's followers feign 
 that their Prophet rode, was nothing else than a * she-ass,' in 
 French bourrique, (h) It is true that Bochakt did place too 
 much reliance upon etymological reasoning ; and he was even 
 reprehended for it by some of the most eminent of his con- 
 temporaries, {i) In his work on Animals, this is easily ac- 
 counted for by his opinions respecting the derivation of He- 
 brew names of animals from Adam, and their consequent ne- 
 
 (g) His explanation of the Egyptian mythological history of Osiris 
 and Typho, from the history of Moses, is a splendid instance. There is 
 scarcely room for a doubt that the whole will, in the more thorough 
 knowledge of Egyptian antiquity which is now dawning on the world, 
 appear to be a mere offspring of fancy. . Yet, as given by Bochart 
 (HiEROZ. P. I. L. n. c. 34.) and as well epitomized by Wixsius (Egyp- 
 tiacarum Lib. in. c. v. p. 216. 216. ss.^ there is hardly a part which 
 doe3 not seem highly probable, or an inference which does not possess 
 a show of adequate support by historical and most ingenious etymologi- 
 cal argument,— This tracing events of Jewish history in heathen mytho- 
 logy was a favourite employment of our author. He finds Moses in 
 Bacchus, Deborah in the Sphinx, &c., &,c. This fault was common in 
 his age. Huet is well known to have carried it to excessive lengths. 
 
 (h) Reponse a la Defense des Sentimens de quelques Theologiens de 
 HoUande. p. 72. 
 
 (i) Hurt is said to hare addressed a letter to him, containing very 
 -sensible remarks on the subject. Aikin's Memoirs of Huet. h. 492. 
 
166 MEMOmS OF 
 
 cessary relation to the nature of the animals theniselves. In his 
 Sacred Geography, too, the scarcity of other evidence would 
 naturally lead him to attach undue importance to that derived 
 from etymology. He is rather to be pitied than blamed for 
 this erroneous predilection, although it must be admitted thart. 
 it detracts in no small degi-ee from the utihty of his labours to 
 those who would build upon surer gi'ound. 
 
 As an interpreter of Scripture, Boch art is, to say the least, 
 respectable. His general views of the rules of interpreta- 
 tion, are, with the exception of his attachment to etymology, 
 for the most part good. Many of the most important of 
 these rules are clearly stated and well defended in different 
 parts of his writings ;{j) and most of them are well exem- 
 plified in the Preface to the Hierozoicon, where he was forced 
 to study brevity, (k) But he is by no means consistent or 
 uniform in his adherence to those rules. 
 
 His conclusions are sometimes hastily or incorrectly drawn, 
 or founded on insufficient premises. A partial glance at the 
 evidence before him seems to have seized upon the most pro- 
 minent, while other portions, conjointly of more importance, 
 are passed over. (/) 
 
 {j) The reasons against an allegorical interpretation of the history ot" 
 the temptation of Eve are well stated, De Serpente Tentatore. Opp. 
 III. 933 ; those against interpretation from the event, p. 836 ; — against 
 forcing tropes, 860. In the same piece, the determining of the scope of 
 a passage from its context is well exemplified, p. 904 ; and the means 
 of ascertaining the usus loqwndi are ably applied^ p. 906. 
 
 (fe) Let any one compare Bochart's interpretation of Prov. vii. 22. 
 (HiJtROZ.P. 1 Lib. III. c. Ivi. fin.) and his happy conjecture respecting the 
 present reading of the Septuagint in that passage, with Michaklis* ar- 
 ticle on the same passage ; Suppl. ad Lex. Heb. 1898, and the manifest 
 superiority of the former, will show the high ground which he at least 
 occasionally takes as a biblical interpreter. 
 
 {l) VoRSTius (De Hebraismis N. T. c. xxiii. Vol. ii. p. 33.) shows the 
 fallacy of an interpretation of Bochart by which he attempted to con- 
 firm his views (sufficiciently established on other grounds) respecting 
 the queen of Saba. She is said to have come asro jrtptirccv T»f yiis' 
 Bochart catches at this, and argues that her kingdom must have been 
 in Arabia, as that is bounded by the sea, while Ya$t districts extend be- 
 
SAMUEL BOCHART. J6T 
 
 He to6 readily indulges in conjectural emendations of pas- 
 sages in which the present reading presents difficulties to him 
 insuperable, or offers an obstacle to a favourite hypothesis. 
 The Scriptures themselves are by no means exempted from 
 the exercise of this wayward propensity, (m) It is true that 
 his emendations are sometimes very happy, and throw unex- 
 pected and vivid light upon a passage seemingly utterly ob- 
 scure, (n) It is also true that he had the sanction of the 
 greatest critics of his age in the employment of such means 
 
 yond Ethiopia. It is impossible that he could have been ignorant of 
 the common application of the phrase mpairet mc yue to countries 
 hot bounded by the ocean, which is clearly shown by Vorstius ; and 
 yet his eagerness for proof drew off his attention from that fact, and 
 caused him to rely upon a worthless argument. Very similar, and equal- 
 ly egregious, failures in exegetica! argument may be found corrected by 
 Vorstius, De Hebraismis, r. 393. s. and Brynaeus, de Calceis Hebrae- 
 orum, p. 8. ss. 158. ss. and 242. ss. 
 
 (m) So HiEROz. P. i. Lib, ii. c. xliii. Bochart agrees with Beza (and 
 they are followed by Benson, Doddridge, fcc.) in supposing the word 
 AC/nfx^, Ac. vii. 16., to be an interpolation by some ignorant transcriber, 
 who thought the verb mnoretro needed a nominative, and from indistinct 
 recollection supplied 'Abraham.' 
 
 Jebb, (Sacred Literature, p. 324,) cites- Bochart as agreeing with 
 Tana^uil Faber in a still bolder mutilation of the text of Scripture, 
 viz. representing Js-ig yd^ rietyttQS tai^ai rU xj rc^ft* ttTroBeivilr, (Rom. 
 V. 7.) as a marginal gloss. — But I have not met with this in the works 
 of Bochart, and find no mention of it in the indices. 
 
 Something nearly approaching to this conjectural licence appears 
 HiEROz. P. II. Lib. II. c. xii. where the author is willing to reverse the 
 present reading of the Hebrew text, in favour of the Greek version, on 
 the authority of a Grecian mythological fable, and the use of a term 
 among the Arabian astrologers: virtually admitting such testimony in 
 evidence respecting an event 2000 years previous ! 
 
 (n) Such is that by which he accounts for an apparently enormous 
 l)lunder in the Sibylline Oracles, placing Ararat in Phrygia Niger ; by 
 changing Mexatirw into Kex«i»«c, and referring it to Celene, afterwards 
 Apamj£a, called for some unknown reason K/CaToc .— Phaleg. P. i. 
 Lib. III. c. xiii. See Saurin Diss. Hist. ix. p. 115. s. and compare the 
 confirmation subsequently given by the medal, lb. p. 132. ss.— Most of 
 the investigations respecting the ancient Punic, in Part ii. of the Sacred 
 Geography, partake largely of the character of conjectural emendations^ 
 and roust be allowed, as such, to possess rare merit. 
 
I6B- MEMOIRS OP SAMUEL B06HART. 
 
 ef arriving at the sense of a difficult passage ; and that, with 
 regard to profane authors, the practice has been prevalent 
 to an extent only not universal. Still, the strict rules of exe- 
 gesis will not warrant it : much less can its results be used 
 as evidence in historical research, or as * media ' in the exa- 
 mination of other passages ; to both which uses they are not 
 unfrequently applied by our author. 
 
 Lastly, he is not always nice in his choice of proofs and 
 Scriptural authorities. Passages to which it is scarcely to= 
 be doubted that he would have given the correct interpretation 
 upon a professed examination, he often cites in a sense very 
 foreign from the actual import. Who, for instance, would, on 
 due reflection, bring forward Rom. x. 67 afe a * ratio non con- 
 temnenda ' for interpreting the ninth article of the Creed, of an 
 abode in the state of death ? Yet that does Bochart, Gpp. 
 iu.987. 
 
 To conclude this extended, yet imperfect, sketch:— the 
 works of Bochart have by no means survived their useful- 
 ness or reputation. They are yet treasures of philosophical 
 learning, which may be used to no small advantage by the in- 
 dustrious and discriminating student. The faults of their 
 writer were the faults of his age ; but his excellencies are his 
 own, and are such as will endure. 
 
 The praise of unparalleled industry, almost unlimited eru- 
 dition, great ingenuity, and no small degree of independence 
 as an interpreter of Scripture, wiU be awarded to Bochart 
 as long as Biblical Philology shall be studied as a sciencCo 
 His etymologies, conjectures, and occasional lapses in inter- 
 pretation, will be forgotten, or readily forgiven, by every one 
 qualified to judge of the true value of his works. 
 
DISSERTATION 
 
 ON THE MEANING OF 
 
 ^^THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN'' 
 
 IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 
 
 BY GOTTLOB CHRISTIAN STORK. 
 
 TRANSLATED FROM THK LATIN, 
 
 BY MANTON EASTBURN, M. A. 
 
 RECTOR OF THK CHURCH OF THE ASCENSION, NEW-YORK. 
 
 22 
 
DISSERTATION, 
 
 That the expectation of some heavenly kingdom had been 
 long entertained by Christ's hearers, may be even inferred from 
 the circumstance, » that both our Lord himself, {a) and John 
 
 («) Matt. iv. 17. 
 
 1 The extracts made by Wetstein from the Rabbinical writings, at 
 Matt. III. 2. are all of them, I think, irrelevant. To this conclusion I 
 have been led, in the first place, by considering the period at which these 
 authors lived : for though we may allow the earlier of them in particular, 
 and those who approach nearest to the apostolic age, to be brought for- 
 ward for the purpose of illustrating and confirming ancient authorities, 
 yet with Keil (Hist, Dogmatis de regno Messiae Christi et apostolorum 
 aetate. ad iliustranda N. T. loca accommodate exposita. Lips. 1781. 
 p. 6.) [ See Keil, Opilsc. Acad. p. 29. Lips. 1821.— Tr. ] I am 
 reluctant, for many reasons, to receive them as witnesses. The con- 
 sideration, however, which weighs the most with me, is, that the 
 Rabbinical modes of expression, as has been observed by Koppe, 
 (Vol. I. N. T. gr. p. 227.) are exceedingly different from that idea of 
 the heavenly kingdom, which is the object of my inquiries. The sub- 
 ject which I propose to discuss is some heavenly kingdom, which was 
 expected in course of time ; whereas, on the other hand, those Rabbinical 
 writers usually speak of that ancient heavenly government naaintainetJ 
 
ii.Z THE MEANING OF 
 
 the Baptist before him,(^) no sooner made their pubHc appeal^ 
 ance, than they immediately touched upon this topic of the 
 kingdom of heaven, as one that was quite famihar to all ; and 
 that furnished an extremely suitable argument by which to per- 
 suade their countrymen to repentance. And the testimony of 
 JosEPHUs,^ confirmed thus far by a comparison with the sa- 
 cred books, leaves us no room for doubt respecting the sources 
 whence the Jews derived their expectation ; since, from the 
 time of David, who peculiarly became possessor of a kingdom 
 divinely conferred,^ we see promised a certain king, distin- 
 guished by many appellations, who was to be of the stock of 
 
 (6) Matl. in. Q. 
 
 over all things (the monarchy, as it is called by Philo, p. 812 ss. ed. Fr.) 
 by Jehovah, the one true God, who, particularly in the later periods of 
 the Jewish commonwealth, was usually distinguished from the idols made 
 in the land, by the name of heavenly king, ("Dan. iv. 34,) and God of 
 heaven ; (ii. 18. 28.) and by becoming subject to the same, understand the 
 duty of acknowledging one God, of professing his name by reciting the 
 formula in Deut; vi. 4, and of reverently keeping his commandments. 
 i do not however deny, that the term kingdom of heaven is perhaps, in 
 the N- T. itself, though very rarely, applied to the perpetual government 
 of God over all things; (Ps. cm. 19. cxlv. 11 ss. 1. Tim. i. 17. vi. 15.) 
 so that Matt, xviii. 23, may be thus rendered : " that function of the divine 
 government, by which forgiveness is extended to any one, is regulated 
 by tlie same principle which an earthly king pursued, who, &c., i. e. 
 'Qod iv. 35.) proceeds in like manner with a king, who, i&c." 
 
 2 L. VI. de bell. Jud. c. 5. $.4. Add Tacitu^,^ L. v. Histor. c. 13. 
 
 3 Saul was made king, it is true, by divine authority ; but this was 
 a thing extorted by the importunity of the people, (i. Sam. viii — x. 
 XII. 12 s.) David» on the contrary, by the divine choice, was not only 
 made king, (xiii. 14. xv. 28. svi. I. Acts, xiii. 22.) but was also ho- 
 nored with the privilege (ii. Sara. vii. II ss.) of transmitting an heredi- 
 tary kingdom to his descendants. For though God could not but dis- 
 approve of (i. Sam. viii. 7.) the errtreaties of the Israelites for a king, to 
 the absolute rejection of himself; yat afterwards he signified, on another 
 occasion, that there was nothing in the designs of his Providence which 
 
 .opposed the administration, by human instntmentality, of that kingdom^ 
 which, being his oim, (xii. 12.) was therefore heavenly, or divine. To 
 what those designs had reference, both the history of David's progeny,, 
 invested with a heavenly, or divine kingdom, far more august than that 
 of David or Solomon, and the prophecies of the O T- themselves, clean- 
 ly explain. 
 
**THE KINGDOM OP HEAVEN." 173^^ 
 
 Bavid,* far superior to all kings, (c) lorcf not only of the Jews, 
 but of all nations, (c?) everlasting, (c) to be exalted to a govern- 
 ment altogether divine, (/) but, previously to the attainment 
 of that dignity, {g) was to endure the last extremity of suffer- 
 ing for the salvation of many, (h) 
 
 This kingdom therefore of the Messiah, {i) since itisbotb 
 divinely^ conferred, (y ) and is itself divine, (^) has obtained: 
 
 (c) Ps. Lxxxix, 28. lu (d) Dan. vii. 13 s. 
 
 (e) II. Sam. vii. 13. 16. Ps. lxxxix. 30. 37 s. Isai. uii. 10. Dan. vii. 14. 
 (/) Ps. ex. 1. (g) Isai. LU. 13. (h) liii. 3 ss. 
 
 0) Epfi. V. 5. Miatt. XI u. 41. Luke xxii. 30. Rev. i. 9. Matt. xv. 34. 40. 
 
 Rev. 1. 5. XVII. 14. xix. 16. 
 (j) II. Sara. VII, 12. 14. Ps. ii. 6. 7. comp. Heb. v. 5. (k) Ps. ex. 1. 
 
 * When Davich thou^t of building a house to the honor of God, 
 (ii. Sam. VII. 5 ss.) God promised on the other hand, that he would 
 sooner build a house for David, (v. 11. 27.) i. e. bestow a family (v. 
 18 s. 25 s. 29.) upon him, (Deut. xxv. 9. Exod. i. 21.) and enrich it 
 (Compare Ps. lxxxix. 5. Obss. gramm. p. 11.) with great blessings. 
 (ii. Sam. VII. 29.) It is not to be doubted, therefore, that j^-nr in v. 12, 
 signifies the whole family (f\>^) of David, (v. 16. comp. Ps. lxxxix. 37.) 
 and his posterity ( o»j3 v. 31. comp. ii. Sam. vii. 14. 12.) even to a re- 
 mote generation, v. 19. But if the reference is to the whole family of 
 David, it is certainly also allowable to ascribe to this family things, 
 which, though they did not apply to all and each of the posterity of 
 David, yet certainly did to many of them, as v. 14, at the end, or to one 
 of them, as Solomon, the builder of the temple (v. 13). We ought not 
 to be surprised, therefore, if, in ii. Sam. v^i. principal reference should 
 be made to one particular man (comp. Dan. vii. 13), who should be 
 singularly conspicuous among all the posterity of David, and give sta- 
 bility to the whole royal family. And as this might very properly have 
 been done, so it actually is the fact that it was ; as appears, on the one 
 hand, from the consideration, that, if we except Christ, the offspring of 
 David was clearly, according to the testimony of history, not placed in 
 that eternal (ii. Sam. vii. 13. 16. comp. with Ps. lxxxix. 30. 37 s.) and 
 most illustrious (i?. 28.) kingdom ; and as it might have been infeiTed, 
 moreover, even in David's time, from a true interpretation of the divine 
 prophecy contained in Ps. ex. ii. For mention is there made of a cer- 
 tain peculiar king, placed by God (ii. 6.) upon Mount Sion, where Da- 
 vid sat ; the reference is, therefore, to some successor of David, who, 
 most truly of all, should be both the Son of God (w. 7. comp. with 
 II. Sam. VII. 14), and possess divine (comp. i. Sam. xii. 12. note 3.) or 
 heavenly power (Ps. ex. 1.). 
 
 s Hence it is also called the kingdom of the Father, Matt. xxvi. 
 29, VI. 10. Lulce, xi. 2. \ 
 
174 THE MEANING OP 
 
 the name of the kingdom of God or ^ of heaven ; sometimes, 
 also, it is called the kingdom'^ xa-r' e^oxn^f as being that which 
 was so well known, both from the sacred books of the Jews^ 
 and from the gospel, of which it is the sum and substance,* • 
 that none could fail to understand the true signification of the 
 term. 
 
 §. 11. 
 
 It cannot indeed be denied, that the prevalent opinion itt 
 the time of Christ with regard to Messiah's kingdom, was 
 far removed from the true conception of its character ; and 
 that the Jews, whose thoughts entirely overlooked those pro- 
 phecies which related to the death of Christ, and the rest of 
 his humiliation, (/) supposed the grandeur of the kingdom of 
 heaven to consist in temporal riches and power, and in the 
 splendor of their capital f (m) and while they were deceived by 
 
 (D Luke, XXIV. 20 s. 25 s. xvui. 34. John, xii. 34. (m) Luke, xix. 11^ 
 
 6 St. Matthew, in his Hebrew gospel, uses this expression most fre- 
 quently ; ( e. g. Matt. iv. 17. x. 7. xih. 11, 24. 31. 33. v. 3. xix. 23.) 
 instead of which, both the Greek interpreter of St. Matthew, (e. g, 
 XII. 28. XIX. 24. comp. fiber den zweck der evl. Gesch. Joh. p. 369.) 
 and more frequently still the other evangelists, (e. g. Mark, 1. 15. Luke, 
 X. 9. 11. via. 10. Mark, iv. 11. 26. 30. Luke, xni. 18. 20. vi. 20. Mark, x. 
 23 — 25.) make mention of the kingdom of God. 1 have no doubt that the 
 word heaven, in that phrase of St. Matthew, has the signification of the 
 God of heaven. (Dan. ii. 44. note 1.) See Matt, xxi.25. Luke, xx. 4 s. 
 XV. 18. Dan. iv. 23. and Wetstein, ad Matt. 1. c 
 
 7 Matt. IV. 23 IX. 35. xin. 19. xxiv 14. 
 
 8 Mark, i. 14. Luke, iv. 43. viii. 1. ix. 2. 11. 60. xvi. 16 Acts, i. 3. viii. 
 12. XIX 8. XX 25 xxviii 23 31. 
 
 8 That the Jews connected the destruction of the temple of Jerusalem 
 with the commencement of the kingdom of heaven, cannot be proved 
 from the example of the apostles: (Matt, xxiv- 3.)- for these had been 
 informed of that catastrophe not through Jewish instruction, but by the 
 prediction of our Lord; (v. 2. Luke, xix. 44.) and they were so struck 
 with the strangeness of the annunciation., that they thought the world 
 itself, with whose duration they had connected that of their temple, 
 would be overwhelmed in the same overthrow. Nor am I at all influ- 
 enced by that passage of the Gemarists, adduced by Lightfoot at Matt. ii. 
 
THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN. 
 
 175 
 
 the vain expectation, that, having expelled the Romans, (n), 
 they should ere long (o) recover (p) and extend *° their do- 
 minion, in regard to the real grandeur and glory of the Mes- 
 siah's reign {q) were shamefully ignorant, (r ) We are not, 
 however, to imagine, that Jesus and his apostles were obliged, 
 on this account, either to make no mention at all of the 
 lungdom of heaven, or to maintain that notion of it which, 
 though by no means correct, was yet the only one known to 
 their hearers. It may be observed, on the one hand, that it 
 was altogether becoming in divine teachers generally, and 
 peculiarly so in the Messiah, to restore that true idea of the 
 kingdom of heaven which had been pointed out by the pro- 
 phets. But, besides this, the prevalent opinion of the Jews 
 is not to be deemed so entirely false, but that they may have 
 had some little insight, at least, into that true sense, which is 
 defined in the ancient prophecies, and repeated in the New 
 Testament ; and that while, under the teaching of Jesus and 
 his ambassadors, they unlearned what had been superadded 
 by the erroneous interpretation of the Jews, and discovered 
 what it had hidden from the view, they may have been, mean- 
 while, led to a change of views, by the general (s) doctrine 
 
 (>i) Luke, XXIV. 21, Acts, xvii. 7. John, xix. 12. compare Luke, xxiii. 2. 
 (o) XIX. U. (p) Acts, I. 6. (q) Matt. xxii. 43 s. 
 
 (r) V. 46. (s) Comp. Matt. xx. 2L with Mark, x. 37. 
 
 1; since, as it is allowed even by Keil himself, who lays great stress upon 
 the citation just mentioned, (p. 9.) [Keil, Opus. Acad. p. 32. Lips. 1821. 
 — Tr. ] the talmudical writings are to be referred to not so much for the 
 purpose of proof, as for that of illustrating and confirming points already, 
 from other quarters, well ascertained and established. We have the 
 testimony, moreover, of Josephus, (see note 2) that, by the expectation 
 of the Messiah, (comp. Matt xxiv- 4 s. 23—26,) the Jews were rather led 
 into the hope, that it might become their duty to contend fiercely with 
 the Romans for their liberty, city, and temple. Other traces of the 
 opinion respecting the wonderful security of the temple, are to be found 
 in Acts, VI. 11 ss; and in Josephus, L. vi. de bell. Jud. c 2. $. 1. 
 
 1 See several well-known passages of Josephus, Tacitus (note 2,) 
 and Suetonius (in Vespasian, 4). 
 
I're 
 
 THE MEANING 01' 
 
 which they held, concerning the great benefits they Xvei'e lo 
 receive from that king of theirs, {t) who was expected from the 
 family of David, (w) But let us turn for information to the New 
 Testament itself; from which it seems to me to be clearly esta* 
 blished, that so far Were Jesus and his apostles from accommo- 
 dating themselves to the Jewish opinion concerning Christ's 
 kingdom, that, on the other hand, they reduced it strictly 
 to the standard of truth, and of the ancient prophecies.* 
 
 §. III. 
 
 1. The commencement of the kingdom of heaven. 
 
 Upon one topic, the subject indeed of ancient prophecy, {v) 
 but more than any other overlooked by the Jews, Jesus and 
 the apostles were so much the more particular in their in- 
 structions ; setting forth the multiplied griefs, and painful 
 punishment, that were to be, or had already been endured by 
 Jesus, previously to the occupancy of that promised heavenly 
 dominion. Among numerous passages" we read some more 
 express than others, in which, were the order of time to 
 be regarded, it would be proper to begin with our Lord's 
 predictions ; but, as I have determined first to talie notice of 
 those passages where the ancient prophecies ^^ had been 
 clearly mentioned, another commencement must be adopted. 
 
 (t) John, 1. 50. comp. 46. Luke, xxiii. 2. Matt. ii. 4 s. comp. 2. 
 (m) Mark, xi. 10. Matt. xxn. 42. John, vn. 42. 
 (v) Isai. Lixi. 10 ss. Ps. xvi. 9 ss. 
 
 * Comp. Diss. I. in ll. n. t. hist, aliquot loca ad Matt, v— vii. Diss, 
 in. ad Joh. VI. 26 s. 
 
 1 1 See particularly Luke, xvii. 25. xxiv. 26 s. i. Pet. 1. 11. Phil, 
 n. 7 ss. Heb. ii 9. Eph. i. 20 ss. 
 
 1 2 To these, indeed, Jesus did not omit to bear testimony ; as in 
 Matt. xxii. 41 ss. he clearly declared, that the offspring of David was 
 to possess a kingdom so truly divine, that he deserved to be called Lord 
 
** THE KINGDOM OP HEAVEN." 177 
 
 When St. Peter, then, after the ascension of our Lord into 
 heaven, delivered his first public discourse, the substance of 
 what he wished his hearers to understand way this ; that the 
 miracle which had brought the multitude together was a proof, 
 that that same Jesus whom they had crucified {w) had not only 
 been restored to life, {x) but had ascended into heaven, and, 
 as Ps. ex. expresses it, had sat down on the right hand of 
 God,(y) and had thus, through the divine power, been exalted 
 to a station so preeminent, that he was both able to send fortli 
 this gift which was evident to the senses of the whole as- 
 sembly, (2) and ought to be regarded by all as one whom 
 God had made Lord, and that Lord, too, {a) who, under the 
 name of Christ, (b) i. e. the king, about to arise out of the 
 family of David, (c) had been all along the object of their 
 expectations, {d) With this representation harmonizes that of 
 St. Paul, that, in his day, it had come to pass, that God had 
 performed" his promise concerning the offspring of David,(e) 
 by making Jesus king ;^* (/) who, in pursuance of the predic- 
 tions of the prophets, {g) having suffered death, and been re- 
 called {h) to life eternal,(2) that that time bad-arrived, (j) which 
 the divine prophet had long ago (k) introduced as actually pre- 
 sent ;" — that now, since Jesus by his sacrifice had expiated our 
 
 (w) Acts, II. 36. 23. (x) v. 24. 32. 7 (y) Acts, n. 34 s. 
 
 («) V. 33. (a) V, 36. (6) Ps. 11. 2. 
 
 (c) V. 6. n. Sam. vii. 18 ss. (d) Acts, 11. 30. (e) xiii. 23. 
 
 (/; V. 32. (g-) V. 27. 29. 34. (/i) v. 27-31. 
 
 (i) V. 34. (j) V. 32:^3. ik) Ps. II. 7. 
 
 by the parent himself ; but in that place, which I shall make use of 
 hereafter in reference to my subject, there is certainly no mention made 
 of predictions. 
 
 I 3 On the construction of Acts, xiii. 32. see Bengel. 
 
 1 4 Since by that promise which the Apostle says was now accom- 
 plished, an expectation had been raised of some great king of the stock 
 of David, (r. 23.), and also a subsequent verse, 33. refers to the kingdom 
 of the Messiah (note 16.) ; without doubt avaariiasLc is to be taken in 
 the same sense as in the promise itself (11. Sam. vii. 12.) : " I will make 
 king (ama-Tiia-at) thine offspring after thee, and I will establish his king- 
 dom.^* Comp. Acts, VII. 18. 
 
 1 5 I do not apprehend that there will be very many, at the present 
 
 23 
 
178 THE MEANING OF 
 
 sins, (I) the declaration in Ps. ex. had had this issue, (m) that 
 Jesus was made greater than all things which are subject to 
 God,(n) and even than the angels themselves, and thus had ob- 
 tained that name and glory (o) which had been promised to 
 David's offspring ; (p) that now he is perceived to be that be- 
 gotten Son of God, who, in preference to all the kings of the 
 stock of David, deserves to be called the Son of God/° being 
 possessed of the same divine empire as the Father, {q) But 
 let us hear also what our Lord himself says. We find, then, 
 that to the disciples who acknowledged him(r) to be the 
 Christ, the Son of God, (s) he expressly shews, on the very 
 same occasion, (t) the sorrow and death he was to undergo^ 
 before he commenced his kingly life ; and publicly before the 
 multitude {u) he also bids his friends expect not wealth, and 
 a prosperous condition, but a similar destiny of calamities and 
 of death ; and, at last, when he should make a most splendid 
 exhibition of his glory, life, truly so called, and a most certain 
 recompense of reward : (v) but he adds, (w) that, although 
 
 (J) Heb. I. 3. X. 12. (m) Heb. i. 3. comp. 13, x. 12 s. (n) i. 2. 
 
 (o) V. 4. (/») V. 5. • (9) V. 2. 3, IS. 8 s. 
 
 (r) Matt. XVI. 16. (s) Ps. 11. 2. 7- (t) Matt. xvi. 21 
 
 (u) Mark, vin. 34. Luke, ix. 23. (v) v. 23—26. 
 (xv) t. 27. 
 
 day, disposed to doubt whether o^Tj in that place indicates some cer- 
 tain and definite period, (Heb. iv. 7.) which was present, not indeed in 
 the Psalmist's tim«, but in that to which the Psalm had reference, 
 (comp. X. 5.) 
 
 1 6 The Apostle, very suitably to the sense of the prophecy, (11. Sam. 
 VII. 14. Ps. II. 7. comp. Ps. lxxxix. 27 s. Ps. ii. 6) infers from that 
 name of Son of God the dignity of Christ's empire ; (Heb. i. 5. comp. with 
 2 — 4. comp- Luke, i. 32 s. Matt. xxvi. 63 s.) but at the same time very 
 clearly shews, that the offspring of David (Heb. i 5. comp. withn. Sam. 
 vii, 14.) could not have obtained the name and dignity of Son of God, 
 in the sense that he was made far superior to the angels, (Heb. i. 
 4.) and had sat down at the right hand of God, (t>. 3 ) and was appointed 
 Lord of all things, {v. 2.) unless, besides his human nature, he possessed 
 also one much more exalted, nay, higher than all others, which had 
 founded, and which supports all things, {v. 10—12. 3.) and in reference 
 to which God may be said {v. 2.) to have made the world by his Son. 
 Compare Roos, Lehre und Lebensgeschichte Jesu Christi. P. i. p. 295. 
 
'*THE KINGDOM OP HEAVEN." 179 
 
 that most glorious appearance of the kingdom of heaven {x) 
 was neither so near at hand, nor of that earthly form, that 
 any one ought to shrink even from undergoing death, for th6 
 gospel's sake, (y) yet those who are standing here " shall, a 
 part of them,^'' not die, till they shall have seen the kingdom of 
 God, or, as St. Mark expresses it, ix. 1. till they shall have 
 seen the. kingdom of God come with power, which, according 
 to the interpretation of St. Matthew, (z) means : until they 
 shall have seen this man, who now appears so abject and 
 miserable, (a) coming to ** his kingdom. Jesus, therefore, 
 some little time after that discourse, but while the apostles ^^ 
 however were, a great part of them, living, entered upon his 
 government ; so that it was permitted to them surviving to 
 see ^ his kingdom coming, and also with power : that is, they 
 
 (a;) V. 26. {y) v. 25. {z) xvi. 28. (a) v. 21. 
 
 17 The apostles appear to have stood next to Jesus, (comp. Mark, 
 III. 34) having been the only persons present with him while he was 
 praying, (Luke, ix 18. 21.) before the people were called. (Mark, 
 viJi. 34.) It is probable that he meant these, therefore, and perhaps 
 pointed them out, by some visible sign, (Mark, m. 34. Matt- xn. 49.) 
 when he uttered the words above cited. 
 
 1 8 Tim, in the passage referred to, signifies a part, in general ; which 
 may also be a great part. (John, vi. 64, comp. with 66. i. Cor. x. 7 ss.) 
 And Judas, whom our Lord usually excepts in other places also, when 
 he is speaking of the apostles, (John, xni. 10 s.) certainly died before 
 the commencement of the kingdom of God. 
 
 > 9 ^Ep^ofAtvov h tSi 03i.a-tKUA seems to mean the same thing (comp. 
 II. Kings, XIII. 20. Job. v. 26 ) as i^x.^f*tvov sle t»v ^ATtxiiav ; and 
 this phrase to signify coming to tJie kingdom, obtaining possession of the 
 government. Comp. Theodotion, Dan. iv. 33. and the word j<>fo which, 
 
 TT ' 
 
 though it properly signifies to come to any thing CObss. gramm. p. 272.), 
 frequently means to obtain possession of any thing. Perhaps also Luke, 
 XXIII. 42. ought to be rendered : ** when thou shalt have obtained posses- 
 sion o/thy kingdom." 
 
 3 Compare above Acts, xni. 32. 
 
 3 I In like manner, Matt. xxvi. 64. it is said that the Jews shall here- 
 after see this same Jesus, whom they were now so ignominiously treat- 
 ing, sitting at the right hand of God, as the Christ, the Son of God, 
 (v. 63.note 16.) and possessed of his divine government. But in this 
 place, as in that under discussion, (xvi. 27.) there is added the mention 
 of a most illustrious, though far distant, proof of his glory, for the ex- 
 
180 THE MEANING 01 
 
 were enabled, from many and great events, (among which, 
 besides the history of the ascension into' heaven, (6) we 
 reckon, for example, that remarkable and pubhc gift of the 
 promised Spirit,(c) a power which, through the divine efficacy 
 of Christ sitting on the right hand of God, {d) the apostles 
 sensibly felt to be communicated to them, for teaching, de- 
 fending, and by miracles establishing the gospel ; — and, last 
 of all, the destruction of Jerusalem ;) to perceive and know, 
 that that despised and crucified Jesus now possessed power- 
 ful and universal dominion. And this is the very point I 
 wished to enforce ; — that, after the death of Jesus ^ (e) from 
 the period of his resurrection and ascension into heaven, (f) 
 that heavenly kingdom which the ancient prophets had pre- 
 dicted, w^as entered upon by the offspring of David, {g) 
 
 §. IV. 
 
 But if the commencement of the kingdom of heaven is to 
 be reckoned from the period, when Jesus, having passed 
 through liis allotment of suffering and death, ascended into 
 heaven ; it is evident, that, during the time of John the Bap- 
 tist, and of Chrisf s residence on the earth, it was as near at 
 hand as possible, (h) nay, was actually present, (i) For not 
 only, as it is well known, does the usus loquendi, as well 
 generally, as in the sacred writings in particular,^^ allow 
 things to be spoken of as present which are near at hand ; 
 but the kingdom of heaven was not merely at hand, but in a 
 
 (b) Acts, I. 9. 11. (c) Acts, II. 33— 36. (d) Mark, xvi. 19 8. 
 
 (c) lleb, I. 3. (/) Acts, n. 31 s. 34. (g) v. SO. 33. 36. Heb. i. 3—5.13. 
 (/») Matt. III. 2. IV 17, X. 7. Luke, x. 9. 11. 
 
 (i) Malt. xii. 28. Luke, xi. 20, xvii. 21. 
 
 hibition of which he shall come again from heaven, (Acts, 1. 11.) as he 
 went up to heaven, when (ii. 34. Mark, xvi. 19.) he would enter upon 
 his kingdom, and sit down at the right hand of God. 
 
 3 3 Comp. Rev. xi. 15. xvi. 17. Matt. xxvi. 64. Luke, xxn. 69. 
 II Tira. IV. 6 s. 
 
^ OF THE ^4 
 
 UNIVERSn 
 
 certain sense was come, when Jesus was born. For since it 
 was promised to the offspring of David^ its commencement 
 could not in any way be imagined, unless he who was to reign 
 liad first been conceived and born ; and, on the other hand, 
 when he was born, the time was already come to which the 
 prophets had referred, when they foretold the government of 
 a man, about to spring from David, We know ^"^ certainly 
 that Jesus was born for the very purpose, that he might pub- 
 licly appear as the promised king ; and Christ's human nature 
 was, from the period of his conception, (j ) joined in that in- 
 timate union {k) with his divine, in order that (/) it might be 
 properly qualified to enter upon the august empire (m) of the 
 Son of God. (n) There are discoverable, moreover, in all 
 those places in which Christ says that his kingdom is come, 
 clear indications that a royal person ^ is chiefly referred to. 
 
 U ) Xuke, I. 35. (k) John, 1. 14. (0 Note 16. 
 
 (m) Luke, i. 32 a. (n) v. 35. John, i, 14. 
 
 3 3 As I am inquiring only about that kingdom, which the prophets 
 promised, but which the gospel shows to have come ; it is plain, that I am 
 not here referring to the divine nature of Christ, in itself considered, 
 whose government could not be the subject of promise or of expecta- 
 tion, (comp. John, i. 3. and note 16.) but to the kingdom of that man, 
 who, as it had been shewn in the ancient prophecies, was one day to 
 spring from the family of David. 
 
 2 4 <' I am a king, being bom for this end, that I might be a king, 
 (comp. Luke, i. 32 s.) and therefore (Matt. iv. 17. 23. comp. note 7.) 
 I came into the world, that I might confirm this truth (this doctrine con- 
 cerning my kingdom)." John, xvm. 37. I give to the article 7» the 
 same sense, which it has in Acts, ix. 2. comp. xxii. 4. and Heb. iii. 3. 
 " In proportion to the greater honor which redounds from this house, 
 over which Jesus presides, (». 2.) to him who built it, than from the 
 other, over which Moses presided." Comp. Obss. graram. p. Hi), n. 1. 
 [ That the article, however, has in Acts, ix. 2. the force assigned to it by 
 Storr, may well be questioned. See a judicious note of Bishop Middle- 
 ton, in his * Doctrine of the Greek Article,' in loco. — Tr. ] 
 
 2 5 The kingdom had so far come, that the king by whom it was to 
 be administered was certainly present. Unless, indeed, as is often the 
 case with the words t^ovria,^ a^x^, nu^Umc, the abstract ^acimIa be 
 used for the concrete ^AffiKtvt, Certainly the Hebrew term, which 
 commonly signifies king, properly means kingdonif (comp. Obss. gramm. 
 p. 151-) and was at length figuratively transferred to the signification of 
 
182 THE MEANING OF 
 
 Thus, in Maft. xn. 28. he shewed that his kingdom zvas 
 come, because (o) such manifest proofs existed of his power 
 over demons, that it was plain a person had made his appear- 
 ance, who might properly be accounted the conqueror of the 
 most formidable enemies. (;?) And when, in Luke, xvii. 20 s. 
 he shews that the kingdom of God does not come in such a 
 manner, that it may be easily observed by any one '^ or point- 
 ed out, by this argument, that the kingdom of God was already 
 in the midst ^"^ of the Jews, though ignorant of it, — he appears 
 to mean nothing else than this ; that Ac, the offspring of David 
 about to reign, was present among the Jews.{q) Thence he adds 
 immediately afterwards, Luke, xvii. ^2. that the time should 
 come, when the disciples would earnestly desire this presence 
 of the kingdom of God, and would long to recover one of the 
 days which he had passed among them ; but that he was then 
 about to cease for some time his appearance, and that those 
 ought to receive no credit, who should represent him as being 
 present, (r) For although he should at some future time re- 
 turn, (5) yet he should not then come fJt-sra flra^arYj^csw?, (t) 
 but suddenly, (m) and should take many by surprise, {v) If 
 therefore you would trace the kingdom of heaven from its 
 very beginning and foundation, which was laid in the concep- 
 tion and nativity of the king ; then it embraces the whole time 
 of the Messiah,^ which Moses and the prophets /oresAewe J as 
 
 (0) V. 29. Luke, xi. 22. (p) Corap. Ps. ex. (g) Comp. Joba, i. 26. 
 
 (r) V. 23. (.S) V. 24. 26. 30. (0 v. 20. 
 
 (u) V. 24. (w) V. 26 ss. 
 
 king. Its proper signification is to be found in Dan. viii. 21. at the be- 
 ginning, vii. 17 ; which the lxx. and THEODOTioif perceived in this last 
 place, though not in the first. On the other hand the lxx. i. Kings, xi. 
 14, translate the Hebrevvn^D which is to be understood concerning «Ac 
 king, {v. 15.) by the word ^utrixtU. Comp. Hess, tiber die Lehren, 
 Thaten und Schicksale unsers Herrn. p. 61. 178. 279 s. 
 
 2 6 Comp. Elsner, Obss. ss. ad v. 20. 
 
 2 7 See Raphel. Annott. in N. T. ex Xenophonte, ad v. 21. 
 
 2 8 la this are included, besides Christ's kingdom, properly under- 
 stood, all the other circumstances also, which, according to Moses and 
 the prophets, (Luke, xxiv. 26 s. 44 ss.) were to take place before the 
 Messiah entered upon that glorious kingdom- 
 
" THE KINUDOAI OF HEAVEN." 183 
 
 io come, (w) but John was able to announce as present,^ {x) 
 being in this very respect {y) superior to all the prophets, (z) 
 that immediately after him the last and greatest of all the pro- 
 phets, that is, the Lord himself, being then just at hand, was 
 openly to make his appearance. But if you inquire respect- 
 ing that time particularly, when the person whom the prophets 
 predicted as about to possess universal dominion, not merely 
 was present, but, in the sense intended by them,^" entered 
 upon his eternal kingdom ; then, indeed, the time of the Mes- 
 siah had arrived {<!tsir'kv]^(^r(u o xai^og), at that period when 
 Jesus, and before him John, pubhshed .the gospel ; — in such a 
 manner, however, that his divine kingdom was rather at 
 hand (a) than come, and was as yet to be looked for, (6) and 
 sought by prayer.^ (c) On which account, John, however 
 
 (w) npot(priTCv(rav, Matt. XI. 13. (ar) evayyeXt^eadai, Luke, xvi. 16. 
 (y) Matt. XI. 10. (z) r. 9, 11. (o) Mark, 1. 15. 
 
 (6) XV. 43. Luke, xxni. 51. (c) xi. 2. Matt. vi. 10. 
 
 2 » I think that that more comprehensive sense of the kingdom of heaven, 
 by which it is made to include the whole of Christ's history, obtains 
 universally in those places where the gospel (message) of the kingdom of 
 God is mentioned (note 7, 8) : since it is evident, that in the gospel are 
 included not only Christ's sitting down at the right hand of God, and 
 the administration of his divine government, but also all the transac- 
 tions of his former life. (John, i. 29. vi. 51 i. Cor. xv. 1 ss.) Hence 
 there is sometimes substituted for the phrase above mentioned (comp. 
 Acts, XIX. 8. XX. 25. with v. 21.), sometimes there is subjoined in the 
 same context (xxviii. 23. 31. vui. 12), an explanation, to inform us that 
 CAmt was intended. Add Luke, xviii. 29, him tm? 0*a-ixilit( tcu 
 ^iovj for which in Matt. xix. 29, is hiKiv tcE xi>ta-rav, and in Mark, x. 
 29, hiKiv ToD ^pio-rov Kat Toy ivix.yyzKiov, showing the reference to be 
 to Christ (or the kingdom of God.). 
 
 3 The ancient prophecies respecting Christ maybe said to have their 
 accomplishment, as soon as he had begun to reign in the manner pre- 
 dicted by the prophets. For all the events, which afterwards took 
 place, or which shall yet happen, as, for instance, the joyful extension 
 of the gospel, are included in that very empire (§. vii.) which was then 
 present. Jesus, therefore, towards the end of his life, when his sitting 
 down at the right hand of God (Luke, xxu. 69.) was just at hand (note 
 22,), shews that the things which had been written concerning him had 
 their accomplishment, v. 37. 
 
 3 J It is not to be hence inferred, that this prayer (Luke, xi. 2) is not 
 
184 TftE MEANING OF 
 
 superior to the prophets, who were able neither to point to a 
 present king, nor to announce the approach of his kingdom, 
 was judged by our Lord himself {d) to be less than the 
 apostles,^ though these latter, as having been formerly the dis- 
 ciples of John, were in this respect certainly his inferiors. 
 The latter exercised their public duty and ministry,^ not only 
 during that happy -^ period when Christ sojourned among men, 
 but actually in the midst of the supremely happy days^^ o^ his 
 heavenly empire ; they having lived to see these, which was a 
 privilege denied to John, (c) Whence also, during that period 
 which preceded Christ^s death and ascension into heaven, the 
 right of citizenship in the heavenly kingdom^^ which was to 
 
 (d) Matt. XI. 11. Luke, vii- 28. <c) Comp. Mark, ix. 1. 
 
 proper for use in our own day. For although the kingdom of God was 
 come, as soon as Christ had ascended into heaven ; yet we shall presently 
 see, that, in another sense, the kingdom of God maybe not yet arrived. 
 For, to say nothing of that most glorious manifestation of the kingdom 
 of God which is yet to be made ($. viii.), how many nations are there 
 to whom this heavenly kingdom has not yet come (Matt. xxi. 43.)? 
 how many Christians are there, who are not yet within the kingdom 
 (Col. I. 13.) of the Son of God? Comp. Luther's Larger Catechism 
 (p. 516 s. ed. Rechenberg.). 
 
 32 "' Those who are less; yet, in the kingdom of heaven, when it 
 shall have commenced, are greater than he (John)." The article does 
 not forbid, either that the singular fA.tK^6rt^os should be taken collectively, 
 (comp Diss, de sensu vocis eT/xa/ec in N. T. note 49.) or that, out of many 
 disciples, inferior to their teacher, cerlain ijidividttals, i. e. the apostles, 
 should be understood, comp. Apoc. viii. 2. 
 
 3 3 That it is to this that the declaration of our Lord refers, is shewn 
 by the circumstance, that John is considered, through the whole of this 
 passage, with reference to his public ministry, (v. 9.) 
 
 3 4 Comp. Luke, X. 23 
 
 3 s There were many things, which could not be proclaimed even by 
 our Lord himself (John, xvi. 12.) much less by John, which were after- 
 wards published and diffused far and wide by the. apostles; while, on 
 the contrary, John's sphere was circumscribed by the limits of Palestine. 
 Comp. MoscHE Bibelfreund, P. i. p. 380 s. and add John, vii. 38 s. 
 XIV. 12. 
 
 3 6 As the word jrox/TiTst, which signifies both the administration of 
 a free state (see, for example, Demosthenes, Vol. ii. ed. Reisk. p. 1396, 
 [Demosh. et Aesch. Op. Ed. Lond. 1827. Vol, 4. p. 420.— Tr. ] and 
 in many othqr places,), and any form of government whatever, asjn 
 
'* THli: klAM^DOM or H£AV£N." 185 
 
 begin when Christ had ascended into heaven, is said to be 
 sought for^ as it were with violence^ and seized before hand. 
 It follows, then, that the commencement of the Messiah's 
 kingdom, although in a certain sense it may be traced from 
 his birth, (/) yet properly is to be reckoned from his ascen- 
 sion into heaven, {g) Which proves, that a far different ap- 
 pearance was then given to the kingdom of David, which Jesus 
 possessed a/ier his death and return to a new life ; and that 
 
 (f) h IV. (go i. n:. 
 
 -fflscHiNES, (Vol. III. Orat. grace, p. 29. 389.) [Demosth. et Aesch. 
 Op. ed. Lond. 1827. Vol. 8. p. 9.— Tr. ] is transferred to the signi- 
 fication of the right of citizenship (see VVetsteix, at Acts. xxn. 28.) : 
 so also ^ATiXiicc T^v oi/!xvay means not only the em/)ire or government 
 of the Messiah, but tht right of citizenship in the Messiah's kingdom, and 
 all the felicity and duties connected with it, as Rom. xiv. 17. Matt. xiii. 
 44 s. xis. 12. ('' that either, in seasons of distress, they may the more 
 surely, i. Cor. vii. 26. or at all times, may the more evidently, v. 34. 
 sustain the part and obtain the privileges of cilizens,^^) and perhaps 
 Mark, xii. 34. where, however, as with respect to the word vnKirtittf, 
 in Eph. II. 12, I am in doubt whether we are to understand //je common- 
 ivtalth itself, that is, the multitude of citizens, who are followers of 
 Christ, seated at the right hand of God, (Col. i. 13.) or the right of dti- 
 scnship, which, in Latin, enters into the signification of the term civitas. 
 The right of citizenship ^ however, seems peculiarly to be intended, in 
 that passage of St. Matthew to which I have referred above (xi. 12.) : 
 " from the days of John the Baptist until these, in which ye are now 
 listening to my instructions, the right to the heavenly commonwealth is 
 sought for with violence, and those who use violence obtain it." We 
 have seen, indeed, that in Luke, xvi. 16. >; ^A<rthtix rtv ^-iou is used in 
 another sense, (note 28- 29.) But this is no reason why we should not 
 understand the pronoun airiti, which follows, to refer either to the 
 right to the divine commonwealth, in regard to which («/? uuTtif, comp. 
 Rom. IV. 20, and note 86) many strive as it were with great violence, — 
 or to the heavenly commonwealth itself, itilo which many press with 
 vehemence. For we have examples, elsewhere, of the word to which 
 a pronoun refers being used in a different sense, in the second instance, 
 from that which it had at first ; as Acts, viii. 5. ttoKic is the city itself; 
 but etvToli refers to the same word, just as if (comp. r. 14) it had signi- 
 fied the inhabitants of the city. Comp. Obss. gramm. p. 427. 
 
 •37 The signification of /3iit<^0iua<, which, in Matt. xi. 12, is used 
 passively, as is the case with rjayythi^ofjitti in the parallel passage^ 
 Luke, XVI. 16, may be seen from the citations adduced by £s£BS and 
 LoKS»XR on Matt. zi. 1^. 
 
 34 
 
186 THE MKANINfi CkV 
 
 the throne of David became a far more exalted seat of ma** 
 jesty, {h) from the time that it was occupied by Jesus. («) 
 
 §. V. 
 
 *2. Its perpetuity r 
 
 But tliis point being estabhshed, it follows, that the dura" 
 iion of this empire, which Jesus obtained with his new and 
 immortal life, is not* to be measured by that of other king- 
 doms. For since the heavenly kingdom can neither be de- 
 prived of its king, seeing he lives for ever, (k) nor ever left 
 destitute by his divine (/) power ; it can certainly have no 
 end, except one determined by God, who conferred ^ the 
 kingdom upon Christ. Moreover, that in the^very first pro- 
 phecy (m) an everlasting empire was promised to the offspring 
 of David, is evident from a correct interpretation both of the 
 Old (Ps. Lxxxix. 30. 37 s.=^ Dan. vii. 14. Isai. lv. 3.) 
 and New Testament. St. Paul, when he had shewn 
 that Jesus (w) was that same king, who had been so long 
 expected to arise out of the family of David, goes on to 
 shew, (o) that he was called by God to life and government *•* 
 with this provision, that he should never return to destruction,"' 
 
 (ft) Acts, n. 34. Heb. i. 3 s. 13. Malt. xxii. 41 ss. xxvi. 64. 
 
 (0 Acts, II. 30 ss. {k) Heb. vii. 23 ss. ix. 25 ss. Rom. vi. 9. 
 
 (0 Ps. ex. 1. (m) II. Sam. vii. 13. 16. 
 
 (n) Acts, XIII. 32 s. \. in. (o) v. 34. 
 
 3 3 Comp. Ps. ex. 1. 4. Heb. v. 5 s. Acts, ii. 36. Heb. i. 2. John, 
 V. 22— 27. Matti-xxviii. 18. Phil. ii.9ss. Eph. i. 20 ss. aod above, 
 
 3 9 Comp. MicHAELis, crit. Collegium tiber die drey wixihtigsten 
 Psalmen von Christo. p. 467 s. 
 
 4 That it was to this the apostle referred, appears from the passage 
 of Isaiah (r.v. 3.) which he cites. 
 
 4 1 Although ha.<^^ogaL v. 35—37. ir. 29- 31. signifies properly' that 
 consequence of death, which consists in the corruption and decay of 
 the lifeless body ; yet, in this place, destruction, in general, is meant 
 (comp. Ezek. xxi. 31. Jer. xin. 14.), of whatever kind it be. In the 
 
THE KINGDOM OP HEAVEN. 
 
 187 
 
 since that great blessing *» promised to David, (p) is eternal.*^ 
 Nay, that (9) so far was he from possessing, hke his father,(r) 
 
 (p) V. 32. 23. (q) V. 35—37. (r) v. 36. 
 
 . ^ ^ - 
 
 former sense, indeed, Jesus did not experience «riai<^9o§« (Acts, xm. 
 37.); all discussion, therefore, respecting his re/wrn ijc <f '/*<;) 9 og«v, is ne- 
 cessarily precluded. But no destruction, no death, any more (Rom. vi. 
 V.) awaits him hereafter. Whence his kingdom shall never be destroyed 
 (ov S'ix^^afyiTtrdu^ Dan. vii. 14. ap. Theodotion.), nor transferred to ano- 
 ther (comp. Heb. vii. 24). 
 
 4 8 The Greek Sr/*, whicli relates properly to j^icfy, partakes also of 
 the sense of the Hebrew ^on (Isai. lv. 3. comp. lxx. Deut.xxix. 19.), 
 and expresses a great benefit (comp, Obss. gramm. p. 97 ss.); as the 
 ■Greek word eiifmt, which signifies pains, has in Acts, ii. 24. borrowed 
 from the Hebrew ( t<73n ), which signifies both pains and cords, the 
 
 signification of cords. But what that benefit toward David is (comp. iv. 
 9. and note 43,), is evident from Psalm lxxxix. 2. This, both David 
 himself (ii. Sam. vii. 19. 26. 29.), and the Psalmist also {v. 5. 29 s. 35 ss.) 
 accounted of paramount value ; that an eternal dignity, namely, was 
 promised to David's offspring. 
 
 4 3 Since the blessing which God wished to confer upon David, con- 
 sists especially in the perpetuity of his kingdonl ; (note 42.) sure (jr/a-Tov) 
 cannot mean any thing but eternal. But the sense of perpetuity appears 
 to be the proper meaning in this place, for this reason, that with ri 
 Sa-ix Tfit rriard ( D"'JONJn ) ^^ Isaiah, (lv. 3.) there is joined Q^ip f|^«^3 
 
 a promise stable, and of perpetual /orce ; to which, in the principal pro- 
 phecy, (Ps. LXXXIX. 29.) answers nJO}<J ^'•'13 while, on the other 
 
 hand, for Q^jQK^n in npH in Isaiah, is read in the Psalm ^ipf^ {v, 
 
 ^1» inS ) iS'niDa^X thivh • so that it is evident that m^jj and dSi>S 
 
 are used for each] other, and that the blessing pKJ towards David, is a 
 
 bleasing to be kept for him for ever. The word mj^j moreover, is not 
 
 -uncommon in other places, in the sense of stability and perpetuity; as, 
 for example, in ii. Sam. vn. 16, when it is said that the family and king- 
 dom of David shall be established (|aX2) /<"* e^'er {th'\^' '^}!l\ reference 
 
 is made to the duration of the thing promised, not to the sure fulfilment 
 of the promise. In like manner, Ps, lxxxix. 38, the term fpKJ ^s ap- 
 plied to the oflfepring and kingdom of David ; but this, both the parallel- 
 ism and the adjunct pnt^a n;;, like that perpetual^ Ccomp. Gen. ix, IQ.) 
 
 sign in the clouds (c. 13 ss.), explain in this sense : Q^)y p3\ Finally, 
 perpetual fountains arc said to be D^J0k3» Isai, xxxiii. 16. Jer, xv. 18« 
 
 • tv:v 
 
 —The blessing; or kingdom, promise^ to Dayid; had a character far dif- 
 
188 THE MEANING OP 
 
 a government limited to a certain period, and to be terminat- 
 ed by death, that, even before he had attained that high dig- 
 nity, the power was not given (s) to that death which he 
 voluntarily underw^ent, of subjecting his flesh to the dominion 
 of destruction or decay, or of at all retarding the attainment 
 of that eternal (/) life and happiness at the right hand of 
 God, (m) to which he was advancing. More explicitly, how- 
 ever, and plainly than all. does the angel who foretold the 
 conception of Jesus declare, (w) that the son of Mary {x) who 
 was to arise from the stock of David, {y) should reign ik rove 
 aluvag, and that of his kingdom there should be no end ; where 
 that ambiguous expression eiV rovg a/wvaj, (ii. Sam. vii. 13. 16."*) 
 is, in the parallel part of the declaration, clearly explained in 
 such a manner, as to make it evident that w^e are to understand 
 an infinite and eternal duration. The declarations, therefore, of 
 David (z) and of St. Paul, (a) ought not to be taken in an op^ 
 posite sense. Nor does it seem difliicult to perceive, that their 
 meaning is far different from this. For since an eternal priest- 
 hood "^ is attributed to the Messiah, and this is very closely 
 allied *^ to his kingdom, (b) it is evident that they do not in^ 
 tend to deny eternity to the latter. Therefore Iw? in Ps. ex, 
 
 (s) Comp. II. 24. (f) Ps. XVI. II. («) Comp. ex. 1. 
 
 (w) Luke, I. 33. (x) v.^l. (y) v. 32. 
 
 (z) Ps. ex. 1. (a) I. Cor. XV. 24— 28. 
 
 (6) Ps, ex. 4. comp. with Heb. vn. 1—3, 
 
 ferent from the unstable'and brief kingdom of Saul (h. Sam. vn. 16. 
 comp. with 15.). 
 
 4 4 That that primary prophecy is referred to by the angel, is clear 
 from a comparison of the two places (Luke, i. 32, and ii. Sam. vii. 14. 
 16). 
 
 4 5 Jtlf rot ttlmat, (Ps. ex. 4. Heb. vii. 17. 21. 24.) is not only taken 
 by St. Paul in the sense of eternity (v. 3. 23 — 25.), but the Psalmist him- 
 self also pretty clearly interprets it in the same way, while he derives 
 the Messiah's priesthood from a divine decree, of a very solemn and sa- 
 cred character (Heb. vii. 20), and never to be changed. 
 
 4 6 Compare also Heb. v. 5. where it is shewn that Jesus obtained 
 from God a most glorious priesthood, from a passage which refers more 
 properly to his kingdom (note IG^. 
 
189 
 
 i. does not *^ mean, that, when every enemy has been subdued, 
 the government "' is to be taken away from Christ ; but as the 
 general object of this whole Psalm is to shew, (c) that the de- 
 signs of his enemies against the divine prince would at length 
 jiave an ending altogether different from that which they ex- 
 pected, it was in exact conformity with such a design to es- 
 tablish this point especially, that the divinely appointed Lord 
 should reign, until all his enemies should be subjected to his 
 own (d) power. Which does not mean, that he to whose go- 
 vernment the enemies shall be subjected, (which circumstance 
 proves of itself the continuance of that government,) should 
 then resign his power ; but, on the other hand, the result of 
 the whole matter is declared to be this, that they who had re- 
 fused to acknowledge this prince, and wished to remove him 
 
 (fi) V. 2 ss. compared with ii. 1 ss. (d) ex. 1. 
 
 4 7 Compare the passages cited by Glass (Philol. S. p. 382 s. Vol. i. 
 Ed. Dathe. Lips. 1776.) Isai. xlvi. 4. Matt, xxvin. 20. i. Tim. iv. 13. 
 
 4 8 That sitting at the right hand of God is in this passage indicative 
 of divine government, 1 gather from i. Cor. xv. 25. Heb. vm. ]., to say 
 nothing of other passages (xii. 2. Eph. i. 20 ss. Mark, xvi. 19 s.), which 
 not quite so clearly refer to the Psalm in question, treating of the kingly 
 priest (comp. Heb. viii. 1) and considered at large in Ch. vi. 20, vii. 
 But if it be inquired, for what reason mention is made of the right hand 
 of God, the answer is easy. For, as there was evidently no danger 
 (i. Cor. XV. 27), that he who bade the Messiah to sit on his right hand 
 should be thought inferior to him, and as, on the other hand, it was ne- 
 cessary to take particular care to place the wonderful dignity of the 
 Messiah clearly before the view, it was certainly proper to speak not of 
 the left, but the right hand, which is a token of honor (comp. Matt. xxv. 
 33 s. Gen. xlviii. 13 ss. and Muntinghe kurze Anm. zu den Psalmen, 
 p. 187 s.). But the meaning is, that the Messiah, generally near God . 
 sits on the very throne of God. Whence immediately after^vards (Ps. 
 ex. 5.) God is in turn (comp. Comm. in ep. adHebr. p. 81.) said (o be at 
 the right hand, that is, (comp. Herder, vom Geist derheb. Po6sie, P. ii. 
 p. 404. 409.) at the side of the kingly priest. But the reason why I hesitate 
 to refer the term ti^K v. 5. to the Messiah himself, is that otherwise the 
 
 T -: 
 
 pronoun of the secoryi person in the word nyj3> would have to betrans- 
 
 f ' ; • : 
 
 ferred to God^ although the Psalm in other places usually speaks of God 
 In the third {v. 1 s. 4.), but of the Messiah in the second (v. 2 s. 4. 1.) 
 iverson. (comp. Mu.vtinghe Besondre Anm. p. 170.) 
 
190 THE MEANING OF 
 
 by force from his government, are all overthrown and con- 
 founded, while he himself, on the contrary, is sitting at the right 
 hand of God, He shall reign for a considerable time in the 
 midst of enemies, (e) securely (/) expecting {g) an end of the 
 rebellion ; but, while he himself is sitting at the right hand of 
 God, it shall at length come to pass, that all his adversaries 
 shall be reduced under subjection to his authority. Such be- 
 ing the nieaning of the Psalm, and this sense of it being re- 
 cognized by St. Paul himself, who has evidently made the 
 dignity of the Messiah, described in the Psalm, coequal {h) 
 with his life, which he shews to be eternal ; (i) we seem to 
 be going quite in opposition to his design, by supposing that 
 in I. Cor. xv. any end is assigned to the Messiah's kingdom. 
 Therefore the government, which it is said in v. 24, he shall 
 restore *^ to God, even the Father, must not be supposed to 
 mean ChrisCs government, but thatof erery opposing ^ power, 
 which is evidently declared to be destroyed, that the power 
 may be restored to God. For since those who set themselves 
 against Christ, at the same time resist God also ; ( j ) the go- 
 vernment is restored to God, {k) when it is restored to Christ, 
 sul)duing ^* those who are at the same time the enemies of 
 himself and of God, and thus recovering the government for 
 God and for himself, (/) from the enemies who had usurped it. 
 That this is the meaning of the passage under discussion, 
 appears to me to be confirmed also by what immediately fol- 
 lows. For St. Paul clearly shews, in i. Cor. xv. 27, that r. 
 
 (e; V. 2. (/) n. 4. (g-) Heb. x. 13. 
 
 ih) Heb. VII. 23—25. <S) Rom. vi. 9. Heb. vn. 25. 24. 
 
 (j) Ps. II. 2. Uc) Rev. XI. 17. xix. 6. (/) xi. 15. 
 
 4 e Comp. 11. Chron. viii. 2. Obss. gramm. p. 357. 
 
 5 That hostile power is meant, is shewn not only by the explanation 
 {irhfAi Tdwf 'EX©POT'2), subjoined m v. 25, but by the very word 
 fcxTrtg^wVj) in r. 24, which, like the word dirtKi'vtrai/uivot and similar ex- 
 pressions (Col. ii. 15), shews plainly, tha^t inifjuical t^iX^i «*' l^ovr'i*t 
 are intended. 
 
 s 1 See Rev. vi. 16. 17. xvii. 14. xix. 11 ss. Ps. ii. 9. 12. ex. 3. Also 
 the loit enemy (i. Cor. xv. 26) Christ shall destroy (v. 21 s. 67. John^ 
 V. 21—29. VI. 39 s. Phil. m. 21.). 
 
191 
 
 "25 by no means expresses in the words a^^jg a a limit and end 
 of Christ's government ; but that all that we are to understand 
 is, that all things, and therefore all enemies also, (m) are to be 
 subjected to the empire of Christ. According to this interpreta- 
 tion, therefore, the general drift of the Apostle will be this : 
 that " for all ^^ the friends of Christ "^ who, after the example of 
 himself who was the first that rose again, (n) have been re- 
 called from death to a life of blessedness, (o) an end ^ is at 
 
 (m) V. 25 s. (n) v. 20. (o) v. 23. 
 
 3 2 Not only are these the only persons mentioned in v. 23 (we 
 know, indeed, that h th Treifiovvi-J. civrou he will restore life to others 
 also ; but it will not be such as to deserve the name, but only death and 
 penal suffering (John, v. 29);), but besides this, the whole context 
 speaks not of the dead in general, but concerning those particularly of 
 the KSKOtfjiiifjtivoi, who, 'EN XPI2Tn Kot/unBivrtf (v. 18.), shall, in their 
 own order and place, obtain the same life to which Christ first attained 
 {v. 23. 20. 49. comp. with Phil. in. 21.) ; a life more happy than this 
 present, not sought after by all (i. Cor. xv. 19.), but properly by those 
 only who have had faith in Christ (v. 19.) and in his gospel for the at- 
 tainment of their salvation (v. 14. 17. 2.), and who, on account of theic 
 love for Christ, and for that better life to which they believed him to 
 have gone before, (v. 14. 17. 4 ss ) have suffered multiplied hard- 
 ships (t? 19- 30 ss ) : — or, in short, the 3e»«V«ff/c of which St. Paul speaks 
 in this passage, is joined with ^na-ixtiai ^ioZ «x«§ovc»/Mt«t (v. 50), an ob- 
 ject worthy of the most ardent endeavours (». 58.), and of the warmest 
 gi-atitude {v. 54—57). Comp. Phil. in. 11. and Obss. gramm. p. 32. 
 
 5 3 As all those who have believed in the gospel of Jesus concerning 
 life eternal, who are no more h Tetli d/jiA^rUic (» 17.), who Koijuiivrat 
 £» XV^^? (^' ^8.), who are not unwilling, for the sake of Christ and in 
 the hope of a belter life, to pass the present in misery {v 19), and who 
 are among that number of mortals of whom Christ is the first (». 20), — 
 die on account of Adam : so these same shall also be all blessed through 
 Christ with a life {v. 22.) and resurrection (i'. 21.) which is not death 
 and punishment (ngiV/f , John, v. 29.), but exactly opposite to the death 
 introduced by Adam (i. Cor. xv. 21.). Comp. note 52. 
 
 54 " eTta (after the ivtiaTetcris i. Cor. xv. 23) to Tf^ec (that istr*/. 
 comp. Mark, xiii. 7- Luke, xxi. 9. with Matt. xxiv. 6. 14.), then, when 
 the time of the dead shall have come (Rev. xi. 18.), TEAE20H2ETAI 
 TO fAUT»^tor rou 3-2oy, ds tvayytKivt toTc Iuvtov Sovxoit Tttt 7rga<^»T«/c 
 (x. 7.), so that yiyavt, xxr. 6. may have the fullest force possible-" 
 Comp. <viK9iy Luke, xxii. 37- 
 
192 THE MEAMMti Ol' 
 
 hand, (p) to which both the expectations of behevers are di- 
 rected, (q) and the divine promises, upon which these ex- 
 pectations rest, all point, (r) For that this is as it were the 
 scope and end of the divine promises, that the empire of 
 Christ will at length so far prevail, that all enemies shall be 
 subjected to him, (5) of whom death must be reckoned the 
 last,^^ {t) which will be destroyed by the resurrection of those 
 who have died in faith, (w) For that God ^° has put all things, 
 and therefore all enemies, under him. (v) That, therefore, 
 when Clirist shall have destroyed death,(ro) and also (x) every 
 opposing power, and shall thus have restored the kingdom to 
 the Father ; t. e. when he shall have caused it to come to 
 pass, that God every where " prevails, and his majesty is uni- 
 
 (p) v.H. (q) V. 19. (r) V. 25. 27. 
 
 {s) V. 25. comp. with Ps. ex. 1. (t) i. Cor. xv. 2^ 
 
 (w) V. 54—57. iv) V. 27. com^. with Ps. viii. 7. note 68. 
 
 (w) 1. Cor. XV. 23. 54. (ct) v. 26. 
 
 5 5 Many enemies shall be subdued (Rev. xviii. xix. xx. 9. 10.) before 
 all the children of God shall have risen to life {v 12). But as soon as 
 these shall have come to life, all the wicked have been subdued, and are 
 paying; the punishment of their rebellion (v. 15.). After this there is no 
 death (xXi. 4.) except in hell (v. 8.) ; and not indeed here does the an- 
 cient form of death continue, but a death of a far different kind (SeTiwrigoc 
 S-ara-Toc) reigns there, an abiding testimony of the victory and power of 
 Christ (ii. Thess. i- 9.). As this abstract docir'me was to be represented 6y 
 a vision, and placed before the eyes of St. John, death and aS»s are de- 
 picted (comp. Rev. vi. 8.) as an enemy (comp. i. Cor. xv. 26. 54s.), op- 
 posed to the peace of them that are heirs of God (». 50.), and fellow-citi- 
 zens of Christ ; and, with other (Rev. xx. 15) enemies of Christ, are intro- 
 duced (xx. 14.) as conquered by him (comp. i. Cor. xv 57. 21 s.), and cast 
 into hell. If OEDERhad only been willing to perceive this circumstance, 
 and to distinguish the figure (Rev. xx. 14,) from the thing signified (xxi. 
 4.) ; or, in other words, to seek the interpretation of the former of theso 
 two places from the latter, he might easily have forborne the ridicule 
 in which he has thought proper to indulge. (Comp. Christl. freye Un- 
 ters. tiher sogenannte Offenb. Joh. p. 123 s. 308 s.) 
 
 5 a That both Cvhu^tv in v. 27, and 5-« in v. 25, refer to the more re- 
 mote (comp. Obss. gramm. p. 402.) 3-icc khI 7rsiT«g, not to the nearer 
 ;^5»roc (to which without doubt the word K<tTttgy«fii in i. Cor. xv. 24. 
 had reference), is evident not only from v. 27 s. but from Ps. ex. 1. viii. 
 7. Comp. also ex. 6. 6. (note 48.). 
 
 s 7 nst(7», r. 28, appears to be neuter, which is frequently used to fle- 
 
" THE KINGDOM OP HEAVEN." 193 
 
 versalJy acknowledged,^ some rejoicing exceedingly in God 
 their king,^ and deriving their whole pleasure and happiness ^ 
 from this source,*^* from which they see and inwardly feel it 
 to flow,®^ i. e, from the all-powerful and benignant government 
 of Gk)d, with never-ceasing reverence,"^ — others, (y) on the 
 contrary,^ feeling with terror ^^ the power of his just ^ govern- 
 ment, and not daring to open their mouths against him ; — 
 then shall come the end." (z) Nor should it seem strange, 
 
 (y) V. 24 s. (2) V. 24. 
 
 note place (comp. Acts, ix. 32,) and time. Thus God is said by Philo, 
 when describing his omnipresence (de sacrif. Abel. et. Caini. p. 141. ed. 
 Franc). 5rx>»gaVai IIANTA MA IlANTnN, to fill all things every where; 
 and by St. Paul, when setting forth the divine goodness, TrXwgouo-flati (to fill) 
 Ta IIANTA EN nA2I, all things every where and always, all things 
 completely. Eph. i. 23. Comp. Diss, de sensu vocis Trhvigoiifxti in N. T. 
 note 64. 
 
 5 8 As that is said to be nothing, which has little or no power, strength, 
 &c., and has nothing to boast of (Acts, v. 36. Gal. vi. 3.): so, on the 
 contrary, God is all things (i. Cor. xv.'28.), because every created 
 thing, however excellent, owes every thing it has to glory in to God ; 
 and even the man {v. 21.) Jesus himself, constituted by God the Lord of 
 of all things {v. 27, comp. with Ps. viii. 7. 5.), possesses this his kingdom 
 as a divine gift (Phil. 11. 9.). In this sense, indeed, (which is set forth 
 in I. Cor. xv. 28.) God is all things every where, even before his enemies 
 have been subdued, in whose foolish and impious (Ps. n. 4.) cpinion 
 God passes for nothing, or who account him as nothing, although he is 
 all things, and despise him tx. 4. xiv. 1.), or, at any rate, prevent (i. Cor. 
 XV. 26,) the glory of his kingdom from shining evidently forth. But 
 Christ shall restore the government to the Father, or shall vindicate his 
 glory and authority, by the conquest of all his enemies; that, as God 
 is in fact all in all, so he may every where be acknowledged to be such, 
 and may no more be accounted as nothing, but may every where pos^ 
 sess supreme authority. Comp. Kypke, ad v. 28, 
 
 s 9 Comp. Rev. xxi. 3. 7. xxii. 3. 
 fio XXI. 6- 4 s. 
 
 6 I XXII. 1. 5. XXI. 22 s. 
 
 8 3 XXII. 4. 
 
 6 3 r. 3 4. 
 
 C4 XX. 10. 15. XXI. 8. II. Thess. i. 8. 
 
 «5 Rer. VI. 15 ss. 
 
 e 8 u. Thess. i. 9. 5 s. Rev. xxii. 12. xiv. 10- 
 
 25 
 
194 THE MEAIMNtr OJi' 
 
 that the discourse in v. 24, changed from the government (a) 
 of Christy who *^ it was said should destroy every opposing 
 power, to the Father, to whom the kingdom is said to be 
 dehvered up by Christ. The reason of this the Apostle adds 
 in V, 27. 28 : " when it is written,®^ that all things are;?w/ under 
 him (by another), it is manifest, that he is to be excepted who 
 put all things under him. Since ^ moreover ^° all things are 
 
 (a) V. 25. 
 
 8 7 He delivers up the kingdom to the Father (i. Cor. xv. 24), he 
 must reign (v. 25), until all enemies are subdued. This same person, 
 therefore, uses his own power for the destruction of every opposing 
 power. Comp. note 51. 
 
 6 8 So hTTK must be rendered, being put for sZ/i^^lycy (Luke, iv. 12.), 
 or (v. 8. 10.) ytygttfAfAvov jT. Comp. Heb. iv. 3. 4. and Obss. gramm. 
 p. 412. But it appears from this place, that the preceding words were 
 taken from the Scripture. The Apostle has elsewhere (Heb. ii. 6—9,) 
 quoted the same prophecy (Ps. viii. 7.). 
 
 6 9 We are no more compelled to consider Srav in this place as in- 
 dicative of time, than we are the same word in v. 27 ; — the sense, on the 
 contrary, seems to be this : " since it is said, that all things are -put under 
 him, it is evident, that there is some one person to be excepted from 
 the number of all, he, namely, who put all things under him ; yes, I 
 say, since all things are fvi under him, it is still further most clear, that 
 there is a certain person superior, he, namely, who was able^o put all 
 things under his power. Comp. oTcey Rom. ii.^l4. and Aristot. de 
 mundo. c. 4. (in Hoogeveej^, Doctr. parlic. graec. ex ed. Schuzii. 
 p. 577 [ p. 386. Ed. Glasg. 1813— Tr. ] ). 
 
 1 Comp. (Ts Heb. iii. 17. 18. " When it fs said (Ps. xcv. 7. 8.) : to- 
 day, while ye hear the voice of God, do not be perverse, asin the place of 
 rebellion (Meribah) ; who (comp. Raphel. Annott. ex Xenoph. ad Matt. 
 xxvu. 23. and Loesner. Obss. e. Phil, ad Act. xix. 35), when they had 
 heard, rebelled ? Did not all they (comp. Raphel. Annott. ex Arriano 
 ad Jac. I. 17.) that were brought out of Egypt by Moses ? (was it not 
 clearly such as were on the way to Palestine, and also had a promise of 
 vest before them ?) With whom moreover was God disple?ised, but with 
 those who sinned against him (comp. Numbers, -xiv. 34. with xxxni. 9. 
 Add Heb. x. 26) ? Whom moreover did he deprive by an oath of the 
 promised rest, but (Numb. xiv. 3,) those that had no faith in God?" 
 There are three points which the Apostle establishes, Heb. in. 15 ss. by 
 the example of the Israelites: 1. that the simple hearing and know- 
 ledge of a promise are of little avail to us (comp. iv. 2.). 2. that apostasy 
 after a knowledge of the truth (x. 26.) precludes an entrance into the 
 promised blessedness ; but that this apostasy, 3. arises from a^r/rj* (iii. 
 
•• TIIE KINGDOM OF HKAVEN.*' 195 
 
 put under him '^ (by the Father), the Son himseh^ also will be 
 subject ^-' to him. who lias put all things under him, so that 
 
 19. IV. 2 3. 11). comp III- 12. "'Lest there he perceived to be in any one 
 (comp. 11. Cor. iv. 7. and Obss..graram. p. 14. n. 3.) air evil dms-tc heart, 
 by its departure from God." 
 
 7 • The words do not mean, that at the period when all things shall 
 Ic put under the Son, and every enemy subdued, the Son also him- 
 self will be subject ; but, that, since all things are (comp, wwote- 
 TatjtTtfi V. 27,) put under him by the decree t* vTrorct^^avroiy who, be- 
 fore all could see it with their own eyes (Heb ii. 8), frdvr* TIIE- 
 TASEN vno rve irSS'tts airS (i. Cor. XV. 27), it follows, that the Son 
 also is subject to him, from whom he has received this extensive 
 dominion (comp. note 38,). Bat if we take the words of St. Paul 
 in the former sense, we shall thereby deny, that the Son, who is never- 
 theless evidently considered in reference to his human nature («. 21. 
 45 ss. comp. with Phil m, 21), to which power is given over all 
 things (i. Cor. xv. 27. Heb. ii. 6—9), was subject to the Father before 
 he had delivered up the kingdom to him, having vanquished his 
 enemies. But the Messiah plainly declares, in Ps. xvi. 2, that he de- 
 rives all his happiness and dignity (v. 11.) from Jehovah, or, in other 
 words, that God is all, even to him, and not simply to the things which 
 are subjected to his government Comp. Schnurrer, Anim. ad quae- 
 dam loca Fsalmorum, p. 7. Fascic. i. 
 
 7 2 Both this future, and tots which precedes it, seem to mean a 
 logical inference, not something following in the course of time, and to 
 have the same force as if it had been said : on St uvoTirttKrat ttura frd. 
 jr*vT4t, AHaON OTI (comp. t>. 27,) jteti atuTOf o itk rnOTA22ETAI. 
 And ToTf may either be rendered therefore (comp. Jer. xxii, 15 s. in the 
 Hebrew) ; or it may be redundant (Ps.lxix. 5) ; or rather it may answer 
 to the preceding oTitv, as in that passage of Plato (0pp. Lugd. 1590. p. 
 158. [ Ed. Bipont. Vol. ii.p. 248— Ed. Bekker, Part ii. Vol. ii. p. 177.— 
 Tr.] ): OTAN rifl to <f>*yTaVft* avrh {a-o^iTtiy) aTrttrZf ^ufttv kai tjJf 
 T«;i(;yw thdi Tivat aTrnr^riKnv etuT?, TOTE jroTJgov -^iZSi So^d^uf vnr 
 ^wpC"* «(«»'i' <j>aVe^«» imo tjjc iMiva rrs^viif, >> ri ttot' igSfitv; comp^ 
 Lxx. Prov. n. 5. Ps xix. 14 csix. 92. But J understand iheftUure here 
 in the same way as in Rom. vi. 5. (where axx* is used instead of tot«, 
 to connect the inference with the premises) n. 26. i. Cor. xiv- 7—9. 11. 
 and in the argument wliich immediately follows (i Cor. xv. 29,) the 
 passage under discussion {v. 28.) : " else (if it sho jld be otherwise, t^an 
 as we have above?;. 20 — 23 endeavoured to shew,), what shall they 
 DO, who are baptized for the dead (comp. John, xi. 4. Rom. xv. 8. Acts, 
 XV. 26.), with this design, namely, that (John, in. 5 Tit. m 5. 7. Gal. m. 
 26 ss. comp. with iv. 7.) they may have the privilege of entering (i. Thess. 
 \v. 17. ii. Thess. u. 1. John, xvn. 24. Heb. xii 23 s.) into eternal fellow- 
 ship, not only with Jesus himself, but with those who iKotfAnd-uTctv (i. 
 / 
 
196 THE MEANING OF 
 
 God is therefore all in all." {h) When St. Paul magnificent- 
 ly describes that great power of the man (c) Jesus, which is 
 able to overthrow every enemy, {d) and even death itself, (c) 
 this kingdom of Christ, thus august, and delivered from the in- 
 jury and destruction of every opposing power, he gives to 
 God the Father, (/) not in order to shew that it ceases to be 
 Chrisfs, but that all things may at last be referred to the 
 glory of God the Father f'^ especially {g) as the Psalms which 
 he had in his mind, when he spoke of that rs'Xoj, (h) treated 
 the same subject in a similar manner, (i) But as we read, 
 both that the Father subjected all enemies to Christ, {j ) and 
 that Christ subjected them to himself, (k) so he who is said in 
 I. Cor. XV. 24. to restore the kingdom to the Father, after the 
 discomfiture of his enemies, may also be said to assert the au- 
 thority and dignity of his own government. In other places 
 we certainly find it said, that, even after the conquest of his 
 enemies, Christ shall continue to reign. (/) 
 
 Ch) Comp. note 58. 71. (c) Note 71. (d) v. 24. 
 
 (e)w. 26. 21s. (/) w. 24. (g-) r. 27 s. 
 
 (A) V. 24. (i) V. 25. 27. comp. with Ps. ex. 1. viii. 7. 1. 2- 
 
 0) Note 56. (A:) Note 67. 
 
 (I) Rev. xxn. 1. 3. xxi. 22 s. xi. 15. 
 
 Cor. XV. 18. I. Thess. tv. 16.) i? awrm. t. c. ovtic (Rom. xvi. 11. 7. 
 comp. with 13.), as it Were, U etbroZ (i. Cor. xv. 23. comp. at Phil. i. 
 1. a.). But if the dead rise not at all, and thus (i. Cor. xv. 16. 18.) both 
 Jesus and el KoifAnB-ivra h alrce airi^Kovro, and are no more, why are 
 they baptized for them ? How absurd will be the conduct of those;, 
 who, in the expectation of enjoying salvation and eternal life, with 
 .Tesus and his friends who have departed this life, become baptized, if 
 there be no life after death ; so that Jesus has not risen again, and all 
 the pious dead who received baptism were miserably deceived in the 
 hopes which they entertained ! 
 
 7 3 Comp.Phil.ii.il. Heb. ni. 4. r. Thcsame design is pursued by the 
 Book of Revelation, (comp. neue Apol. der Offenb. Joh. $. 26.22. note 
 6.) which I think is referred to by St. Paul in this same xvth Chap, of 
 1. Cor.; (1. c. $. 13.) and for that reason I have the more frequently 
 compared it with the declarations of the Apostle. 
 
'* THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN." 19* 
 
 §. VI. 
 
 3. Its extent. 
 
 As of all who have been seated upon the throne of David, 
 he who sits last upon it,(m) is infinitely the greatest in respect 
 to the duration of his life and kingdom ; so his authority and 
 empire are not circumscribed with the narrow boundaries of 
 Palestine, over which David reigned. For although he is 
 called king of Sion {n) and of the Israelities ; (o) yet we are 
 not warranted thereby in limiting his empire to these regions. 
 For, in the first place, under that illustrious off*spring of David 
 the boundaries of his father*s kingdom are said to be so ex- 
 tended, (Ps. ex. 2.^*) that the king of Sion (p) has possession of 
 the whole earth, [q) and all its inhabitants have either submitted 
 to his authority ,(r) or are forcibly controlled by him. (s) But 
 further, not even by these limits is Christ's kingdom circum- 
 scribed or bounded, but we read that it extends as far {v. L 
 Eph.i.20— 22. I. Cor. XV. 27.^^ Phil. n. 9—11. Matt.xxvui. 
 18.) as the kingdom of God himself For although the man Jesus 
 both has the peculiar charge (t) of human affairs generally, 
 whether as it respects men living on this earth,*^^ or the dead, 
 
 (?n) Luke, i. 32. Acts, ii. 30. (n) Ps. ii. 6. 
 
 (o) Lul^c, I. 33. John, xii. 13. 15. comp. with IG. 
 
 (p) II. 6. (q) V. 8. (T) V. 10 ss. Isai. m. 15. liii. 10 ss. Amos, ix. 12. 
 
 (s) Ps. ex. 2. II. 4 s. 9. 12. ex. 3. 1. 5 s. corap. note 67. 56. 
 
 (0 John, X. 16. V. 27—29. Rom. xiv. 9. Acts, x. 42. xvu. S;. 
 
 ■7 4" Jehovah shall extend (comp. Ezek. ii. 9. Exod. xxii- 7.) the 
 sceptre of thy kingdom out of Sion ; t. e. thou shalt not reign here only, 
 but other regions also shall obey thy sceptre, which belongs to them 
 also." 
 
 7 5 Comp. Reussii Opusc. Fascic. i. p 400 s. 
 
 •7 6 Hence the world has very properly received the name of 0ii<rt- 
 MiA Tou Xi'^"^ (Matt. XIII. 41.) or, the province of Christ. For the 
 the Lord compares it (r. 38,) with a field, which, after the good fruits 
 have for a long time been mingled with the tares, shall at length be 
 purified. But it is clear from many passages (c. g. Mark, vi. 23. Esth. 
 
198 
 
 THE MEANING OP 
 
 and attends particularly to the administration (m) of the faith-' 
 fill commonwealth of men, or the church f yet, fbr the good 
 of this church, (x) he governs all things without exception,(i^) 
 even angels themselves. (z) From all which it is easy to per- 
 ceive, that the sitting of Christ upon the throne of David may, 
 on the one hand, be reckoned a real succession to David's 
 place, inasmuch as («) for the purpose of fulfilling (6) the di- 
 vine promises, made to David, Christ actually sprang from 
 David, in that same land which his father had possessed, and, 
 on account of this peculiar relationship with the Jewish 
 people, (c) in the first place^ thought proper to present him- 
 self (d) particularly to them {e) as their king so long expected 
 and desired, and announce to them the approach of his king- 
 dom ; (/) in the next place, when he had ascended to hea- 
 ven, made the first proofs of his exaltation to be exhibited 
 within the ancient empire of David, (g) and invited the people 
 of Israel first, through the medium of his messengers, to his 
 service, and to the attainment of the happiness of his heavenly 
 kingdom, being about to add to these benefits others besides, 
 which we are warranted to look for with certainty ; {h) and, 
 finally, extended his sceptre to the other nations also out of 
 Sion,{i) and caused them to be brought by the instrumentali- 
 ty of Jews (Acts, XV. 7J' Rom. xi. 12 s."'®) into fellowship 
 and communion {k) with the citizens, who were his fa- 
 
 (u) Eph. V. 23 ss. Col. 1. 10. (x) Eph. i. 22. (y) v. 20 ss. , 
 
 (2) Heb. I. 2—4. 6. I. Pet. iii. 22. (a) Luke, i. 32. 
 
 (6) Rom. XV. 8. (c) ix. 5. {d) Matt. xxi. 1 ss. note 82. 
 
 (e) Acts, III. 25 s. Matt. viii. 12. (/) John, xviii. 37. §. iv. 
 
 (g-) Acts, II. 33 — 36. III. 16 ss. iv. 10 ss. v. 12 ss. comp. with i. 4. Luke, 
 
 XXIV. 49. (h) Rom xi. 2.? ss. 
 
 (i) Ps. ex. 2. (k) V. 16 ss. xv. 27. Eph. iii. 6. ii. 12 ss.. 
 
 I. 22. III. 13. VIII. 12 s.) that ^cta-ixHa not only signifies empire itself, or 
 supreme power (e. g. Ps. cm. 19. cxlv. 11 — 13. Rev. xn. 10. xvii. 12. 
 18.), but also the region or province, over which this authority extends- 
 
 7 f Hence the multitude of those who yield a pious obedience to 
 Jesus, their king, or the church, is sometimes with propriety called the 
 /3cta-iMict or (comp. Matt, xn 25 s. Amos, ix. 8. Gen. xx. 9, comp. 
 with 4. 7.) commonwealth of the Son of God (Col. i. 13.). 
 
 7 8 Comp. Bengel, on this passage. 
 
 "7 9 Comp. Diss, de sensu vocis ^r^»'gwft«, §. vn, 
 
" THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN." 199 
 
 thers, of the stock of Israel. But, on the other hand, the 
 government of David, held by mere mortal men (/) for a 
 brief space of time, and having jurisdiction only over a small 
 portion of the earth, is so far different from the eternal and 
 widely-extended empire of Christ, that the throne of Christ 
 cannot be called the throne of David, except Jiguratively, inas- 
 much as that divine (m) government over the Israelites, vs^hich 
 jj^as transferred (i. Chron. xxviii.5.^°) to David and his pos- 
 terity, as to the sons (w) of God< the king of the Israelites, was 
 a shadow and image of the divine government over the uni- 
 verse, (o) conferred upon that man who sprang from the stock 
 of David, and who was much more truly the Son of God. {p) 
 Which being established, it follows, that as Christ sits not on 
 the throne of David itself, but on its antitype, {q) so also the 
 Israelites, over whom Christ reigns, (r) are not only the 
 Israelites themselves, but the antitype of this commonwealth, 
 i. e. the whole commonwealth of God, and, in a certain pe- 
 culiar (5) sense, his church.^^ 
 
 (J.) Comp. Heb. vii. 23. (m) 1. Sam. xii. 12. vin. 7. 
 
 (n) Ps. Lxxxix. 27. 11. Sam. vii. 14. i. Chron. xxviii. 6. 
 
 (0) Heb. I. 2—4. (jt>) V. 5. Luke, i. 32. (q) v. 32. 
 
 (r) V. 33. (s) Note 77. 
 
 8 David and his posterity sat upon the throne of the kingdom of Je- 
 hovah, but of that only which had to do with the Israelites (v. 6.) ; whereas 
 Christ, on the contrary, sits on the throne of that (Ps. ex. 1. comp. note 
 48. 75.) kingdom of Jehovah, which is so extensive, that it reaches over 
 all created things (Eph. i. 20 — 22.), and that David himself, although in 
 that former sense he sat on a divine throne, and knew that by the time 
 this remote offspring of his should reign, he would have been long since 
 dead (11. Sam. vii- 12. 19.), yet declared that he himself would never- 
 theless be within the kingdom and jurisdiction of this his OAvn progeny. 
 SeePs. ex. 1. where Ihave preserved the reading •'jiN (Matt. xxii. 44), 
 which declares, that David regarded the Messiah as~i^w own lord, or 
 willingly submitted to him (comp. v. 43. 45. with r. Pet. m. 6.) in a 
 manner worthy of a lord reigning for ever (Ps. ex. 4. note 45.) with God 
 (v. 1. note 48. 75). Comp. Muntinghe, Besondre Anm. zu den Psalmen, 
 p. 168 ss. 
 
 8 1 In Amos, ix. lis. it is said that other nalions,aho, different from 
 the Israelites, shall profess the name of God, and thus be in the king- 
 dom and empire of David, or among the number of the Israelites (Acts, 
 
200 THE MEANING OF 
 
 §. VII. 
 4. Its administration. 
 
 Since therefore the kingdom of heaven neither has any 
 limit to its duration, (t) nor is confined within certain regions 
 of the universe ;(w) its form must be in all respects and widely 
 
 (t) $. V. (w) §. VI. 
 
 XV. 17. 14. comp. with ii. Chron. vii. 14. add Rom. ii. 26 ss. iv. 16 ss. 
 12. XI. 17 ss. Gal. vi. 16.). But let us look into this passage of Amos : 
 "At a certain (comp. Neue Apol. der Offenb. Joh. p. 325.) time, or, at 
 length {/uitrd txut* Acts, xv. 16 ), unless you would prefer: at that re- 
 markable period (comp. ii. Tim. i. 18. and Obss. gramm. p. 122.), the 
 time of the Messiah, 1 will most completely (this meaning is clearly in- 
 dicated by the accumulation of expressions, all conveying the same 
 idea,) renew the kingdom of David, which is so desolated (Amos, ix. 
 5 ss.) that it seems like a cottage (Isai. i. 8.) ; and, as in other days, and 
 particularly in the time of David, it was adorned by me, so now also I 
 will improve and enlarge it, so that in the renewed tabernacle of David, 
 or within his kingdom and empire, may dwell (Ps. lxix. 36. Ezek. 
 XXXVI. 12.) both the remnant of the Idumeans (to whom Amos, 1. 11 s. 
 had threatened a terrible destruction), even as foi'merly (comp. ix. 11.) 
 David had reduced this people under his authority (n. Sam. vm. 14.), 
 and all other nations, that are called by my name." The word ^>i 
 (Amos. IX. 12.) I consider with Louis de Dieu (Animad- ad Act. xv. 17), 
 Fessel. (Adv. SS. T. 1. p. 390.) and perhaps also Bengel, to be the sign 
 not of the accusative, but of the nominative (Obss. gramm. p. 264 s.) ; 
 both because we cannot otherwise easily explain, to what the plural 
 •j^yn"*^ refers, and especially because ^y^ when it refers to persons, 
 
 • • -T 
 
 usually signifies to succeed to their wealth, which shall be left by them ; 
 nor indeed do I think it was the design of the prophet to threaten the 
 nations, ioho professed the name of God^ as he certainly would have done, 
 if he had foretold that they were to be driven out from their dwelling- 
 places by the Jews. Now the Idumeans are said by Josephus (Antiq. 
 Jud. L. xni. c. 9. $. 1.) to have embraced the Jewish religion, a hundred 
 years, and more, before the birth of Christ. But as Amos foretold, that 
 many other nations also should profess the name of God, and enter into 
 the kingdom of David; we must go on a little farther, even to those 
 times, when not only many Idumeans, who had been long united with 
 the Jews (Acts, xxi. 20.) in civil compact, but great numbers also of 
 
•• THE KINGDOM OP HEAVEN." :20l 
 
 different^ from an earthly commonwealth. For he who 
 possesses an eternal government over all things, not only can 
 perform many things, which come within the reach of no 
 earthly power, however mighty, but easily dispenses with 
 many external aids, which, though splendid in appearance, 
 are after all only covers for human weakness. As the go- 
 vernment of David, even in its best days, was certainly by no 
 means adequate to the performance of those things, by 
 which (w) his offspring proved, at Jerusalem, his kingdom to 
 be divine (x), — and great as may seem to be the glory and 
 splendor of his triumph over those nations, whom he reduced 
 by his arms (y), — what is all this pomp, in comparison with 
 the dignity of Christ, who, trusting in his own legitimate and 
 almighty power over all things, dared to send unarmed mes- 
 sengers through the Roman empire, {z) and even into Rome, 
 with this order, (a) that they should proclaim him lord of all 
 men, and of all things ; and in this way obtained the obedi- 
 ence of many thousands, secured not by force of arms, of 
 %vhich he certainly stood in no need, who could protect and 
 
 (le) Acts, II. 2—4. (i) V. S3 ss. (y) Comp. John, xviu. 56. 
 
 it) Comp. Acts, xvii. 6. 7. (a) Acts, ii. 36. x. 42. xvii. 30 s. 
 
 other nations, exulted in being citizens of the kingdom of David, so 
 wonderfully enlarged (Am. ix.ll.) when Jesus sat upon the throne of 
 his father, and in being a people devoted to God (v. 12. comp. with 
 Acts, XV. 14.). This passage St. Luke has designedly (u. 14 s.) copied 
 (». 17.) from the lxx, who probably, when they lighted upon it, were 
 ignorant of its meaning ; being led in the translation of it, as they fre- 
 quently were in difficult places, rather by conjecture, than by certaia 
 reasoning. One thing I must add, that eTriaKi-^etro v. 14. as in Ezra, 
 1. 2. should be rendered has charged (comp. Acts, xv. 7. x. 20.). 
 
 8 a Jesus declared this with the greatest plainness both by wprds 
 (John, xviu. 36.) and deeds ; among which (comp. the above-mentioned 
 work of Hess, Sect. i. u.) the most remarkable is, that, in order the more 
 clearly and explicitly to leave in the minds of his countrymen his views 
 in regard to his kingdom, he permitted himself (Luke, xix. 30. 40.) to be 
 publicly saluted king of the Israelites (Mark, xi. 10. John, xu. 13.), but, 
 at the very same time, openly before all, and, in order to excite the 
 greater attention, with tears, predicted destruction (v. 41.) to that very 
 metropolis, in which they had been dreaming that he was just about to 
 commence his reign (v. II.). 
 
 26 
 
'iiiM, THK MKANlMi OB' 
 
 defend his messengers sufficiently well with his own (b) aid 
 alone, wherever they might travel, but by love and benevo- 
 lence. But it is by no means the least exhibition of the great* 
 ness of Christ, that he is not obliged to inflict immediate 
 punishment upon the rebellious, but can for a length of time 
 despise their arrogance : (c) securely confident that it shall 
 never come to pass, either that they shall dethrone him from 
 his seat, {d) which is elevated far above weak mortals ; or that 
 the opportunity shall cease (e) for baffling their attempts, or 
 turning them to the salvation of believers ; or that any enemy 
 can escape from his government and authority, or elude his 
 destined punishment, (/) either by death, (g) or any other 
 medium, than that of a seasonable and humble return to obedi- 
 ence. (A) This heavenly kingdom is therefore distinguished, 
 indeed, by some acts of a conspicuous character, and which 
 strike the attention of all f^ among which stand prominent 
 
 (i) Acts, IV. 9 ss. 30. (c) Ps. n. 1—4. Heb. x. 13. (d) Ps, n. 6. 
 
 (e; ex. 2. (/) II. 5. 
 
 (ff) Rom. XIV. 3. John, v. 28 s. (A) Ps. ii. 10 ss. 
 
 8 3 <' Then, when the Lord shall come (Matt. xsiv. 30. 37. 42. 50 s. xxv, 
 13.)> the administration of the kingdom of heaven (note 76.) shall be as 
 if a bridegroom, out of a number of virgins going out to meet him, 
 should admit to the marriage solemnities only those, whom, coming sud- 
 denly after some delay, he found prepared for him, excluding those who 
 pame late." (w. 1.) But that the form of expression, bf/.otoe^»a-irAi » ^etct- 
 XiisL tUv ^pavuv AEKA nAP0ENOl2, does not mean, that the kingdom 
 of heaven is properly compared to ten virgins, may be seen by many ex- 
 amples; as, for instance, the administration of this kingdom is not pro- 
 perly like a grain of mustard-seed, or a net (Matt. xiu. 31. 47.) ; but like 
 that action, whereby either a small grain is sown, which grows up to 
 a wonderful size, or fish of all kinds are caught, which are afterwards 
 to be separated one from another. In short, the administration of the 
 divine kingdom is compared to the whole narrative which is told ; and is 
 said, for example, to be as ^/(Mark, iv. 26) any one should sow seed, 
 and, from that action, by degrees ripe fruits should grow up with unob- 
 served progress, and without much labor. Comp. Diss, de parabolis 
 Christi, §. xix. But that function of theheavenly government, which re- 
 lates to the distribution of rewards, is in Matt. xx. 1. called, in general, 
 (inciktitt Tccr j»'/)«tv»ir : " the disfrihution ofrewardsj both in this life and in 
 
203 
 
 Ihe rewards and punishments, which are to be assigned publicly 
 by the king in his own appointed time : (i) but there are some 
 less conspicuous, though equally real * parts of the same go- 
 vernment, to be seen in the propagation of the doctrine of the 
 gospel, and in the government and protection of the church 
 universal, and of particular assemblies and individuals. He is 
 said to hold, as it were, the key of David, or ^* the heavenly 
 
 (i) Matt. XXV. 34. 31. 
 
 the other, is as if a householder, &c." Perhaps also the same meaning 
 ought to be assigned to that declaration of Christ, in which he com- 
 mands this inducement to be left (Luke, x. 11.) with those Israelites, 
 who should despise (v. 10.) the messenger (v. 9.) of the approaching 
 kingdom of God : " be ye sure, that that divine kingdom has come nigh, 
 which not only decrees to the obedient that happiness to which we 
 wished to invite you, (v. 9) but also appoints punishments the most 
 grievous, not only at the period of the general judgment {v. 13 ss.), but 
 even long before, in the overthrow of your state (Matt, xxiii. 37 s- x.23» 
 comp. with §.m.)." 
 
 * It is singular that Lange (zur Beford- des niizl. Gebr. des W. A. 
 Tellerischen Worterb. des N. T., P. iv. p. 85 s.) did not perceive, that, 
 in this place, and in what follows, (not to mention my former observa- 
 tions, $. 111. iv. VI. note 76 s. 81.) I referred to the opinion of Koppb, 
 though not mentioned by name. (Comp. also $. ix. at the beginning.) 
 If any one, however, would prefer to have a more express refutation of 
 this opinion, which woulci be inconsistent with my exegelical-doctrinal 
 plan, I recommend to his perusal pp. 69 ss. of the above mentioned 
 treatise. 
 
 «* Christ holds thb key, or (comp. Isai. xxii. 22. with v. 21, and 
 WoLL, in his edition of Blackw all's Sac. Class, p. 16^ s.) power of Da- 
 vid, since he sits on the throne of David, which form of expression, when 
 used concerning Christ, refers, as we have seen above ($. vi.), to his 
 government over all things, and particularly over the church. But the 
 keys of the kingdom of heaven are said (Matt. xvi. 19.) to be delivered 
 by Christ to the apostles, inasmuch as he wished that many departments 
 of his government over the church should be administered by them upon 
 the earth, and that they, as his ambassadors and officers (comp. Isai. 
 '' XXII. 22), should fulfil, in many respects, the office of the Lord of the 
 church. They had it in their power, as in the name, and by the au- 
 thority of Christ, who ratified their decrees in heaven, to ordain upon 
 earth divine laws (comp. Lightfoot's Hor. Heb. on Matt, in loc), and 
 to utter commands of divine weight and value (Acts, xv. 28. i. Thess. 
 IV. 2. 8. II. 13. John, xx, 23. Acts, v. 4. 9. i. Cor. v. 3—5, Acts, 
 III. 6. v. 12ss.>. 
 
^04 THE MEANING OF 
 
 empire, {j ) who, with his succor, so fortified the had of the 
 church of Philadelphia against the wiles of the Jews, (/c) 
 though he had httle strength of Iiis own, that both he himself 
 ndhered steadfastly to the truth, (/) and he was also useful to 
 many others who were desirous of the truth ; (m) and at 
 length, triumphing over his adversaries, {n) and delivered 
 from a new calamity which was impending, (o) he was crown- 
 ed with great rewards, (p) In like manner we read in St. 
 Matthew, xvi. 19, that it is the office of the kingdom of heaven, 
 io govern the church(q) which shall be gathered on the earth ;(r) 
 for example, to establish laws for it, and either to grant to its 
 members the pardon of their sins, or to inflict punishments, 
 or to aid the cause of the church by other miraculous opera- 
 tions. These ^^ departments of the divine government over 
 the church were certainly fulfilled by the apostles, to whom 
 the keys of the kingdom of heaven had been delivered by 
 Christ, as those of the house of David were given to Elia- 
 kim (s) by Hezekiah.* Wherefore St. Paul, also, declared 
 that he should estimate the merits of the inflated (<) teachers,(M) 
 not by their boasting words, but by what they had done, since 
 the kingdom of God^ or the superintending providence of 
 Christ, and his care for the welfare of the church, did not 
 consist in words, but is distinguished by its power and ef- 
 
 0') Rev. III. 7. (k) V. 9. (/) V. 8.10. 
 
 (m) V. 8. at the beginning, romp, with i. Cor, xvi. 9. and Acts, xviu. 8— 10. 
 
 («);Rev. in. 9. (o) v. 10. (p) v. 11. 
 
 (q) V. 18. (r) V. 19. (.s) Isai. xxii. 22. note 84. 
 
 it) I. Cor. IV. 18 s. ' (w) V. 15.. 
 
 8 s CdMp. note 84, and Bengel's gnomon on the words tr«V«f , ^va-^c, 
 Matt. XVI. 19. (also BAR-HEBRiEus in his Chron. Syriac. p. 593. XIC'^ TDX; 
 means one, possessed of supreme poivcr). 
 
 * [ Or rather by Manasseh, to whose appointment of Eliakim as his 
 minister of state, after that king's repentance, and return from captivity, 
 the prophecy contained in Isai. xxii. here quoted by Storr, properly 
 refers. Eliakim had, indeed, filled the office of master of the house- 
 hold under Hezekiah ; but the words of Isaiah relate to his elevation, 
 after the death of Shebna at Babylon, and the restoration of Manasseh 
 to his throne. See Prideaux's Connection, Vol. i. p. 152— Tr. ] 
 
•' THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN." 205 
 
 fects, {v) in which, therefore, those persons ought to be con- 
 spicuous, if they wished to be compared with Paul, the legate 
 of the divine king, and under that title holding the keys of the 
 kingdom of heaven, (w) This same providence of Christ, by 
 which he gathers together, and governs the church, seems also 
 to be meant in Matt. xin. 52, where one who is so taught as 
 to be able to subserve the Lord's designs, by the spread of the 
 gospel, is said to be instructed for the benefit of the kingdom 
 of heaven (tJ) /SatriXsj'a twv «/)dtvwv). In like manner su^stoj sis 
 «r»]» BA2IAEIAN t« ^s5 {x) may be interpreted /<, in reference 
 to^ that charge of the divine king, in virtue of which he pro- 
 vides that there shall be no deficiency of heralds of the doc- 
 trine of salvation : " he who, having put his hand to the 
 plough,'^ looks back, is an unsuitable person to be employed 
 by the providence of the Lord in promulgating the gospel."(t/) 
 In this same sense, those who labored with St. Paul, in refer- 
 ence to that same office of the divine king, or, in other words, 
 who toiled zealously and faithfully in tte service of the divine 
 government, by delivering and inculcating the gospel, he terms, 
 in Col. IV* 11, (fuvspyo} slg «n^v BA2IAEIAN t« ^sQ. Where- 
 fore also the kingdom of God is said to be given {z) to those, 
 among w^hom is perceived that function of the divine govern- 
 ment which relates to the promulgation of the gospel ; and, 
 on the other hand, to be taken azvay from those, to whom the 
 gospel is no more delivered. But let us proceed to those 
 passages, which do not refer to one department only of the 
 divine government, as, for instance, that which provides for, 
 and is employed respecting proclamation of the gospel ; but 
 which embrace many species of actions ; as, in Matt. xxii. 2, 
 
 (B) V. 20. . (w) Comp. II. Coiin. xu. 12. C • " Luke, ix. 62. 
 
 (y)v.60. (=■) Matt. ixi.''43. 
 
 8 6 Comp. note 36. and Diss, de sensu vocis irU^ufJLdi, note 28. 
 
 8 7 The reader need scarcely be reminded, how frequently figures 
 drawn from agriculture are made use of in the Scriptures, , in reference 
 to the instructions of a teacher of the gospel. Comp. Luke, vm. 11. 
 7. Cor. III. 6 sp. . 
 
206 
 
 THE MEANING Of 
 
 7) ffatfiksia cwv ypavwv ^s is said to attend both to whatever re* 
 lates to the spread of the gospel, (a) and also to the punish- 
 ment of contempt and neghgence. (b) Likewise in Matt. 
 XIII. 24. 31. 33. 47. Mark, iv. 26. 30. Luke, xm. 18. 20, 
 the offices of the kingdom of heaven are said to be these : to 
 supply and make provision for persons^ needed for spreading the 
 gospel, and for producing from thence^ gently by degrees, the 
 fairest and most abundant fruits ; (c) and at length to separate 
 the good from the wicked, who have been so long tolerated, 
 and to conduct the former to that felicity promised in the 
 gospel, but to inflict most grievous punishment upon the lat* 
 ten {d) 
 
 §. Vltl. 
 
 5. Its periods. 
 
 Since, therefore, the administration of the kingdom of hea* 
 Ven has such various forms, (ej it is evident, that this kingdom 
 may be variously divided. The first and that a most exten- 
 sive division, is into two parts, separated one from the other 
 by the victory which is to be gained over every enemy. For 
 Christ either reigns in the midst of his enemies, (/) expecting, 
 
 (a) V. 4. 9. (6) V. 7. IS, (c) Mark, iv. 26—32. Matt. xiii. 33. 37. 
 
 (d) V. 25—30. 47 ss. ie) ^. vii. (/) Ps. ex. 2. 
 
 8 8 As the kingdom is conferred upon Christ by the Father (note 38), 
 his government, and the administration of this kingdom, may be attri- 
 bated in general to the Father (note 5.). In this passage, however, 
 there is a particular reason for Christ's ascribing his oWn (comp- Matt, 
 xxiir. 34. John, xvii. 18. Matt. x. 23. xxv. 30 ss.) actions to the Fa- 
 ther. For, as he wished to mention his own and John's embassy (xxii. 
 3), — which ^vere included, in a certain sense, within the idea of the 
 kingdom of heaven ($. iv.), — separately from the teaching of theapostles^ 
 who were to invite the Jews, when all things were prepared (v. 4.), and 
 the kingdom, which was at hand during the life-time of Jesus, was ac- 
 tually present, he could not conveniently, in this parable, sustain th6 
 principal part himself, and therefore ascribed it to the Father (v. 2.). 
 
207 
 
 till they shall all be overthrown, (g) or he sits at the right 
 hand of God, while his adversaries are lying prostrate, {h) 
 Though, during the first of these two periods, the sway of 
 Christ is no less real and powerful, (i) yet we find that the 
 latter has the name ^(KftXsia applied to it xur 'sio^riv (ii. Tim. 
 IV. 1.''^ Luke, XXI. 31. xxii. 30. comp. with Matt. xix. 28. 
 Luke, XXII. 18.'"' Matt. xxvi. 29. Mark, xiv. 25.). For as 
 during that period which comes Jlrst in order, God is said to 
 reign, {k) when he makes such use (/) of his power, that all 
 perceive that he reigns f^ so it will have to be said with pe- 
 culiar force that he reigns, when, every enemy being subdued^ 
 his supreme power is acknowledged even by those very per- 
 sons, who treated with contempt the idea that the kingdom 
 must be thus far restored by Christ, (m) But even in this 
 period of the kingdom of heaven there will be a twofold di- 
 versity of administration. For some (?i) will perceive the 
 majesty of the divine government from the severity of their 
 punishment, or rather, they will be enemies subdued, it is true, 
 
 (§■) V. 1. Heb. X. 13. (/j.) 5. v. (i) Comp. ^. vii. 
 
 (A-) Rev. XIX. 6. (Z) v. 2. xviii. 8. (m) i. Cor. xv. 24. note 58. 
 
 i'li) Comp. notes 59— 66. 
 
 8 9 As it is said that Jesus shall judge the quick and dead at the 
 time of his coming and kingdom, it is evident that the commencement 
 of the kingdom, x.at'' i^o^iiv, is connected with the TRSurrection of the 
 dead, and is thus (note 54. seq.) referred to that time, when every encmjf 
 sliaU be destroyed. 
 
 6 From this passage it seems probable that in v. 16. we ought to 
 understand Trxw^aS-iT h th ^*7thi[& tk ^tS to mean the same (comp. 
 Obss. p. 453 ss. and Opus. Acad. i. p. 146.) as -a-^jj^ad-ii (IxS-ji) r) ^ao-i- 
 Miat. TH 3-8«, "until the kingdom of God is in perfect and complete 
 prosperity." 
 
 9 1 In like manner God is said (Rev. xii. 10. xi. 17.) /S*<rt\6t/cati (to 
 be acknowledged king, to be perceived to reign; comp. note 70, at the 
 end.), since (comp. note 22.) he has taken to himself (xA/nCccyn) his 
 great power to (v. 18.) punish his enemies (ch. xvi— xx. 3). Add xi. 
 15, where God and Christ are said to obtain the government over the 
 eBTth^hecause it is evident in the eyes of all, that the earth belongs to 
 God and Christ. (Comp. Neue Apol. der Offenb. Job. p. 330. note 18 ; 
 ■%nd ToBLER, Gedanken und Antworten aur Ehre J. C. und seines Reichs, 
 
 p. 371). 
 
5208 THE MKANING OF 
 
 but still rebels, paying the punishment of their lolly ; but 
 others will, as the pious people of God, (o) reap the blessings 
 of the divine government, and be, in a far higher sense, in 
 the kingdom of God : (p) even as now, all men are in the king- 
 dom of heaven, {q) but in a far different sense those, to whom 
 the gospel has been presented, (r) and in the most distinguish- 
 ed sense of all, those who obey it. [s) That province (region), 
 therefore, of the kingdom of God, in which after ^^ the resur- 
 rection of the dead (/) the pious people of God shall dwell, who 
 are to receive, from the benignant and all-powerful govern- 
 ment of Christ, (u) a mai-vellous and everlasting salvation, (v) 
 is by a certain peculiar right called the kingdom of heaven, or 
 of God, in which no place is allowed to the wicked, (w) al- 
 though they are under the authority of God. Of this kind 
 are those passages generally, in which are used the forms of 
 
 (0) Rev. XXI. 3. (p) XXII. 3. (q) J. vi. 
 
 (»■) Matt. XXI. 43. ^. VII. (i) Col. i. 13, note 77. 
 
 (0 1. Gor. XV. 50. ii. Thess. i. 5, comp. with 7. Matt. xiii. 43. xxv. 34, 
 
 add Luke, xiv. 15. co.Tip. with 14. (u) u. Thess. 1. 10. 
 
 iv) Matt. XXV. 54, comp. with 4G. Mark, ix. 47, comp. with 43. 45. and 
 
 Matt. xvui. 8 s. John, in. 3. 5.\coinp. with 3G, and Titus, in. 5. 7. 
 
 Matt. XIX. 23 s.; corap. with 16. 25. Mark, x. 23—25, comp. with 26. 17. 
 
 Luke, xviii. 24 s. comp. with 2G. 18. i. Thess. ii. 12. , Acts, xiy. 22, 
 
 comp. with Rom. viii. 17, and Luke, xxiv. 26. 
 :w) Luke, XIII. 28. Matt. viii. 11. 12. i. Cor. vi. 9 s. Gal. v. 21. , Eph. 
 
 V. 5, comp. with Rev. xxii. 15. / 
 
 3 As God and Christ are said t2ua-iKiuiiv particularly at the period, 
 when all enemies shall have been destroyed, and (note 89.) the dead 
 shall have been raised; so also that province (note 76.), to which the 
 most glorious fruits shall redound from this perfect splendor .and mag^ni- 
 ficence of the kingdom of God, takes by a peculiar right the appella- 
 tion of the kingdom of heaven. But since, before that time, in those re- 
 gions to which the spirits of departed believers are conducted, the ma- 
 jesty of the divine government is certainly everywhere acknowledged, 
 and the grandeur of its kingly offices much more clearly perceived than 
 in the present life (ii. Cor. v. 6—8. Phil. i. 23.) ; there was surely no 
 reason why St. Paul should not give to these seats of the blessed, also, 
 the name of heavenly kingdom, in ii. Tim. iv. 18. Though it cannot be 
 denied, that even this passage may be understood to refer to that fu- 
 ture happiness (comp. v. 6—8), upon which the blessed shall entev 
 after their resurrection, and the coming of the Lord. ^ 
 
*' THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN."' i409 
 
 "expression sl<fs\A6Tv slg rriv /3atf»Xs»av tww i«^avwv (Matt. vii. 21."^* 
 V. 20." XVIII. 3.*^ II. Pet. I. 11.), Ssxs(f^M «riiv ^atfiXs/av ci?' 
 ^SH, («) viisriioL ktv 7) (3a(fiks'M tH ^£«, (y) all which are used 
 promiscuously by St Mark, x. 15. 14. and St. Luke, xviii. 17. 
 16* More frequently instead of ^ifatfdcw ^ (2) is substituted 
 xXrj^ovofxgjv T11V ^arfiXslav t« &g«, (a) /o occupy those blissful 
 seats, (b) so that each individual may have his own share in 
 the possession. (c) Hence the term xXy]^ovofAo» rrts /3atfiXs<a?,(J) 
 or uioi rrjg /SatfjXs/af, (e) is applied to those, to whom the king- 
 dom of heaven belongs, or who shall enter into the region of 
 
 (x) Mark, x. 15. Luke, xvni. it. (y) vi. 20. Malt. v. 3. 10. xix. 14. 
 
 (z) Corap. I. Mace. 11. 51. (a) Matt. xxv. 34. i. Cor. vi.9 s. Gal. v. 21. 
 . (b) Comp. Gen. xv. 7 s. xxviii. 4, &c. (c) Eph. v. 5. 
 (tO Jam. Ui5. (e) Matt. sut. 38. 
 
 »3 What follows in v. 22. 23, shews with sufl&cient clearness, that 
 this passage does not refer to the kingdom of God, which is gathered to- 
 gether on the earth from the period of our Lord's ascension into hea- 
 ven, and Vfhose privileges were eagerly desired by many during the life- 
 time of Jesus (note 36). But in Matt. xxi. 31, xxiii. 13, it admits of a 
 doubt, whether ff ^*<rtxiia rov 3-ieu is to be understood in this sense 
 (comp. Luke, xi. 52.), or as referring to the seats of the blessed. 
 . 9 4 If this place be compared with ». 3 — 12, vi. 19 ss., it will readily 
 be s^dmitled, that both here, and vi. 33. Luke, xii. 31, the discourse is 
 concerning the dwelling-place and region of the blessed. Nor is there any 
 reason, why a different sense should be given to the expression in the 
 preceding verse (Matt. v. 19J : "Whoever shall wantonly, and without 
 hesitation,.violate one precept however small, and shall teach others to 
 do the same thing, and much more, therefore, he who, like the teachers 
 of the law and the Pharisees (1? 20), shall neglect so many and great 
 precepts, and shall be a leader and promoter of negligence in others (v. 
 21 ss. xxiu. 16 ss.), he, though highly esteemed on earth (Luke, xvi. 15), 
 shall in the regions of the blessed be reckoned of the least account (M«/- 
 X'^of xA»3"»»"8T*i) by God and his people, and be cast out from this pure 
 abode (Luke, xiii. v. 25. 27. 28.) as ^iikuyfAa. (Luke, xvi. 15, like iha.- 
 X's-oe, oviffxttroi, xin. 30. at the end.)." 
 
 9 6 Very similar are those forms of expression, by which any one is 
 said to he in the kingdom of heaven, v. 4. 1. Luke, xiii. 28 s. Matt. viir. 
 11. 
 
 • 6 This answers to Luke, xii. 22. tui'6Knr%i 5 a-^t^j tmdi AO*rNAl 
 
 27 
 
^210 THK MEANING OF 
 
 the blessed,^"^ or to whom indeed the right of citizenship ^ in 
 that most bhssfful (/) country principally belonged, (g) Per- 
 haps also Heb. xfi. 28, is a passage of the same description. 
 For as mention is made immediately before {h) of a new 
 heaven and a new earth,^ it is certainly not improbable, that 
 
 (/) VIII. 11. (§•) V. 12. comp. with Acts, iii. 25. Rom. ix. 4. (h) v. 27. 
 
 fl 7 Just as in Luke, xx. 36. si T«f amTufftees TWj^dirTJf (y. 35) are 
 called utci tmc aictrdffms. 
 
 • As ^ ^xa-txtict refers peculiarly to that administration of the king- 
 dom of God, which shall take place in the region of the blessed after 
 the resurrection of the dead (Matt. xxvi. 29. §. viii. at the beginning.) ; 
 the right of citizenship, also, in the king-dom of heaven, thus understood, 
 maybe called (note 36.) ^ 0a.(rihiiA. 
 
 9 fl Christ, who formerly, when the law was given on Mount Sinai 
 (». 18 ss.), shook the earth, which could equally well be declared of 
 him, in reference to his divine nature, as that he created all things (i. 2. 
 10.), now, when God spoke by him, is said to have promised (xii. 26.). 
 that he will once more shake the heaven and earth (comp. Rev. xx. 11. 
 XXI. 1. u. Pet. ni. 10--12.), from which it is evident (Heb. xii. 27.), that 
 the things which are shaken (heaven and earth, Heb. xii. 26.) are re- 
 moved from their place, as being made with this design, that they might 
 await (comp. Rom. viii. 19 ss. n. Pet. in. 7. and /«««<», Acts, xx. 6. 23.) 
 an immovable condition (comp. the neuters, Heb. vx. 9.), i. c. that that 
 signal change might remain, whereby the appearance of heaven and 
 earth shall become permanent. The words »t/ etjretf, used by Christ, 
 not only shew, that the heaven and the earth will be shaken, but also 
 imply at the same time, that no other shaking shall follow ; and that 
 therefore, subsequently to that event, to which the display at Sinai can- 
 not be at all compared, the state of earth and heaven will be such, that 
 things will cease to be movable and fragile. But it is probable that the 
 sentence quoted by the Apostle (xii. 26.), is not from Haggai, but that 
 it was uttered by Christ, when he was discoursing perhaps at some time 
 or other (comp. Acts, i. 3.) concerning the kingdom of God, and was 
 comparing this new economy with the old Mosaic dispensation (comp. 
 John, VI. 32.) ; and that it was never recorded in the gospel histories (Acts, 
 XX. 35.). For, to say nothing of the fact, that jhe words of Haggai are 
 not sufficiently like these, it appears to me to be very n^uch against the 
 commonly received opinion, that Jesus is said to have promised now, 
 when God commands by him (Heb. xii. 25. comp. with x. 28 s. i. 1 s. 
 II. 1 — 3.), Tov drr tf'gatvaiv (comp. John, iii. 31. i. Cor. xv. 47.), not by 
 Moses, Toir tVi TMC ytie (comp. Heb. in. 3 — 6 ), that he will once more 
 shake not only the earth, as was done at the time when he IttI t«? yUc 
 
•• THE KINGDOM OP HEAVEN." 211 
 
 the unchangeable kingdom which beUevers shall obtain/^ con- 
 sists in those happy seats in which the faithful shall dwell, (*) 
 after thev have been restored to life, (j ) 
 
 §. IX. 
 
 Although, therefore, a great number of passages refers to 
 that future and most conspicuous appearance of the kingdom 
 of heaven ; (k) yet it cannot be denied that there are also not 
 a few, which, if we ought to choose the most obvious inter- 
 pretation,"* lead us to a mucK broader signification of the ex- 
 pression. (/) And that same idea of the kingdom of heaven, 
 which includes the whole government of Christ from his as- 
 cension into heaven, seems to have been in the mind of the 
 apostles in those places also, which, — because (?n) that empire 
 is now established, whose extent and dignity will bring to 
 pass, in its own time, all that remains to be done, and could 
 perform it forthwith, did not the long-suffering (n) of the 
 judge prevent it, — shew that an end is at hand (Heb. ix. 2G}'" 
 
 (t) II. Pet. HI. 13. (j ) Rev. xx. 12. xai. 1. (&) }. vni. 
 
 (.1) }. III. vii. (m) Comp. note 30. 
 
 (n) n. Pet. iii. 9. 15. Heb. x. 13. 
 
 iX^hlxtttivi, or divinely instructed (Acts, x. 22.) the people, but also the 
 heaven. 
 
 1 • Utt^ttxttfiCdun also in Jer. xlix. 1. 2. means the sameas itx^^o- 
 yofxtn 'y but the present participle has the sense of the future (comp. Acts, 
 XV. 27.), as, in Heb. xii. 27, Ti o-ethtvofAtrx signifies things that are to be 
 shaken, movable. Comp- Obss. gramm. p. 134 s. 
 
 1 1 Comp. DoEDERLEiw, Instit. Theol. Christ, p. 748 s. [ p. 291. Vol. 
 n. Ed. Junge. Nor. et Alt. 1797.— Tr. ] 
 
 ^02 At the end of the world (comp. also Heb. i. 2. 1. Pet. i. 20.) it 
 was that Jesus was born, because, at his birth, the commencement was 
 at hand of a kingdom ($. iv.), which shall make all things new (Rev. 
 XXI. 5.), and which would immediately have proceeded to make hea- 
 ven and earth new and permanent (Heb. xii. 26 s.), and to display its 
 glorious {v. 28. $. viii.) and grand appearance, but for that divine good- 
 ness which desires first to make men new creatures (ii. Cor. v. 17.), and 
 that completely, too, that they may be able to rejoice in this wonderful 
 change of things (n. Pet. iii, ^15.). 
 
M^^ THE MEANING OP " THE KINGDOM OP HEAVEN.'' 
 
 1. Cor. X. 11. I. Pet. IV. 7. i. John, ii. 18.^°^ ) ; and exhort 
 to /xeTavoja and the cultivation of hohness (o) with this motive, 
 that that avvi^ now reigns, by whom God will judge men, (/)) 
 and is ready and prepared to malie the exhibition of his ma- 
 jesty {q) whenever it pleases him.^"^ 
 
 (o) Acts, XVII. 31. 1. Pet. iv. 7, Jam. v. 8 s. Heb. x. 25. 35-- 37. comp. 
 Luke, XXI. 34 ss. 
 f (^ Acts, XVII. 31. (5) Jam. v. 0. 8. i. Pet. iv. 5. 
 
 1 3 From the time that the king, descended from the family of Da- 
 vid (Ps. II. 6.), reigns, that last time is present (comp. note 30. 102.) 
 to which the ancient prophets looked. Iii it, also, are contained ivti- 
 XH^-Tt (comp. Ps. u, 2.), who, before the kingdom of Christ, had no 
 existence. Comp. ii. Tim. in. 1. ii. Pet. m. 3. Jud. ». 18. 
 
 10 4 Although the coming of the Judge did not overtake the first 
 readers of the N. T. while they were yet alive, yet of the whole num- 
 ber (Mark, xiii. 37. Luke, xu. 41. comp. with 45.) of those to whom 
 the instructions of Christ and the apostles are directed (comp. Diss, de 
 sensu historico, note 18, 183,), there will be certainly not a few, whom 
 that decisive period of the kingdom of heaven, though it be long delay- 
 ed (t> 45. Matt. XXIV. 48. xxv. 5. 19.), shall at length come upon un- 
 awares, while they are alive. But as this time was to be unknown 
 (Luke, XII. 39's. 46. Mark, xiu, 35. Matt. xxiv. 36.— xxv. 13. i- Thess. v. 
 2 ss.) ; teachers merely human could not exhort to watchfulness those during 
 whose, life-time the destined period for retribution wiU he just at hand, unless 
 they gave this advice to men of all periods of the world. But further : 
 men of former ages, who were negligent of this precept, certainly wUl be 
 taken unprepared by that signal period of retribution ; since by the ad- 
 vantage of death they neither become more prepared, nor do they es- 
 cape out of the power of the judge, so that he cannot subsequently ap- 
 point a day for them (n. Cor. v. 10.). 
 
DISSERTATION 
 
 PARABIiES OF CHRIST. 
 
 BY 
 
 GOTTLOB CHRISTIAN STORR. 
 
 TRANSLATED FROM THB LATIK, 
 
 BY WILLIAM R. WHITTINGHAM, A. M. 
 
 CHAPLAIN ASD SUPERINTENDENT OF THE NEW-YORK PROTESTANT 
 EPISCOPAL PUBLIC SCHOOL. 
 
THE PARABLES OP CHRIST. 
 
 §.I. 
 
 The word 's'a^a§oX>3 is derived from the verb flra^a§aXXs<v,(a) 
 which signifies to collate, compare, assimilate, Quinctilian 
 interprets it * by the words simihtudo, collatio ; Seneca {h) 
 uses imago. It is, therefore, a comparison (collatio), or to 
 nse the definition of Cicero, (c) " a form of speech, in which 
 we compare one thing with some other on account of a 
 resemblance between the two," which is designated by the 
 Greek word parable (parabola, cra^a^oX^.). In this sense ^ 
 Christ is said(rf) to have spoken in parables (sv ^ra^a^oXai^) when 
 
 (a)' Mar. iv. 30. (6) Ep. lix. («) Lib. i. de Inv. c. 30. 
 
 id) Mar. iii. 23. 
 
 1 De Institut. Orat. L. V. c. xi. VIII. iii. p. 298. 302. 470. [ p. 256. 
 260. 399. ed. Oxon. 1693. ] 
 
 « The word has the same signification in Lu. xii- 41. xv. 3. xxi. 29. 
 Mat. xxiv. 32. Mar. xiii. 28. [ in all which passages the comparison is 
 indicated by the subsequent use of hvtm. ] There is nothing strange in 
 the application of the name TragtuQoKn to an allegory, even though me- 
 taphorical as in Lu- V. 36. ; (that also being a form of speech in which one 
 thing is compared, although less evidently, with some other,) or even to 
 a thing which is the image, ovtype, of some other, as in Heb. ix. 9. 
 
216 
 
 THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. 
 
 he proved, by various similitudes, (e) that he cast out demons, 
 not by the aid of Satan, but by a higher power. 
 
 §. 11. 
 
 Parables are carefully distinguished by Aristotle (/) from 
 that species of composition which is known in Greek by the 
 names of Xoyoj and amg, and in Latin by that of fabula,^ prin- 
 cipally, as appears from the examples which he adduces,^ and 
 as has been more fully shown by Lessing,^ on the ground 
 that in a parable the object or event which is given as the 
 image of some other, is merely contemplated in the mind as 
 possible, while in a fable an event is related, as having ac- 
 tually taken place at some definite time. So the well known 
 fable of MENENms Agrippa, relating to the dissension be- 
 tween the members of the body and the belly, narrates ihot 
 the other members took umbrage at the belly, and conspired 
 against it f and the 32d of Lokman's Fables, which greatly 
 resembles it, recounts, that when the feet boasted that they 
 supported the body, the belly made answer : * what would they 
 be able to do, if it should prepare no food to afford them 
 strength ? ' On the other hand when Paul, in i. Cor. xii. 12 
 — 27, makes use of a parable derived from the same objects, 
 he does not relate (g) that the foot denied that it was a mem- 
 ber of the body, because it was not the hand, or that the eye 
 reproached the hand with being useless to it ; but says " if the 
 foot should deny that it was a member of the body, because it 
 was not the hand, would it therefore not belong to the body ? 
 or, if the eye should desire to reproach the hand with its hav- 
 
 (e> Mar. iii. 24—27. (/) Rhet. L. ii. 20. (g) v. 15 s. 21. 
 
 3 Comp. Q,uiNTiLiAN. L. V. c. xi. p. 301 s. [ 259. s. ed. Ox. ]• 
 * See below, note 9, and $. v. 
 
 5 In his First Dissertation appended to his Fables iu the German 
 language ; p. 160 ss. 
 
 fi See Livii Hist. Lib. ii. c. xxxii. 
 
THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. 217 
 
 ing no need of it, it could have no right to do so. The case 
 is just the same with those who envy the gifts of others, or 
 despise their inferiors." 
 
 The illustration given by our Saviour in Lq. xiii. 19, has 
 the form of a fable. In Mar. iv. 30 s. the same illustration is 
 given as a parable, for it does not assume as a fact that any 
 certain man committed to the ground in his garden any given 
 grain of mustard seed, but merely sets forth what was cus- 
 tomary and might happen at any time or in any place.'^ 
 
 §. III. 
 
 The object with which, in a parable, some other object is 
 compared on account of its resemblance, must be possible, 
 either under the actually existing state of things, or else on 
 some hypothetical and feigned condition. To the first class 
 belong not only those objects or events, the possibility of 
 which is so certain, that they customarily occur,^ but also 
 such, as although they do not customarily occur,^ yet certainly 
 
 7 In like manner in Lu. xviii. 2 ss. Christ himself substitutes a form 
 of composition (xsyov) which recounts the subject as a fact, for the para- 
 ble in Lu. xi. 6 ss. which merely regards it as posiible, and perhaps about 
 to happen. 
 
 % It is altogether possible that the facts, the reality of which is as- 
 sumed in a parable, may have actiutlly occurred a thousand times. But 
 the parable does not narrate any one of these occurrences, but merely 
 affirms the possibUUy of the fact, inferred from them, and describes 
 what may now and hereafter happen. 
 
 9 EusTATHius (in 11. B. p. 176. ed. Rom.) says that a parable is a 
 species of composition in which the truth intended to be conveyed is 
 taught and confirmed (p. 253,) by such things as are wont to happen aU 
 ways, or every day. And certainly we find that the resemblance which, 
 as Aristotle has taught (loc. citat.) it is necessary to observe in the 
 composition of parables, is most generally taken (as Eustathius has 
 remarked, II. B. n. p. 176. 1065,) as well from the natural history ei- 
 ther of animals, both rational and irrational, (h) or of inanimate things,(i) 
 
 (h) Jer. xiii. 23. M»t. xxiii. 37. <i) Lu. xxi. 2$ ss. 
 
 28 
 
^18 THE PARABLES OP CHRIST. 
 
 may exist. The second class consists of such as are possible 
 on the supposition of some change in the nature or state of 
 things, as, for instance, that irrrational things might have the 
 power of speech, which is assumed in the parable of St. 
 Paul, (/)in which he compares Christians with the several 
 members of the human body. 
 
 In both these classes of parables^ the object or event, 
 whether customary, or merely possible, or only hypothetical, 
 is only considered as possible — a thing that might have exist- 
 ed or happened. But if we change the statement, and sup- 
 pose the object or event to have actually existed or happen- 
 ed,^^ they become /a6/e5, ih^ first class of parables constituting 
 
 (i) §. II. 
 
 as from common life and circumstances of daily occurrence among 
 men. (fc) Of this sort is the parable of Sextius, in Seneca, vbi supra. 
 But the example given by Aristotle furnishes proof that the use of the 
 term parable is not confined to this species of comparison. He gives 
 the following as a specimen of a parable. '* A magistrate ought not to 
 be chosen by lot. For this would be like appointing as wrestlers, or as 
 pilots of vessels, not such men as were most skilful, but such as should 
 happen to obtain the office by lot." The absurdity of electing magistrates 
 by lot is illustrated in this parable not by events which customarily take 
 place, but by such as are merely possible. It is better, therefore, to em- 
 brace the more general idea of a parable ; which is given even by Eds- 
 TATHios himself, when he says (Odyss. A. p. 1406.) that a parable is a 
 comparison (vA^nQta-n ofxaia/uictriKHv) instituted for the illustration of 
 any subject under consideration. 
 
 1 Even such events as frequently occur, may be feigned by the au- 
 thor of a fable. For example, it is not necessary to suppose that Christ 
 had in view (Mat. xiii. 3 ss.) any particular man, to whom he recollect- 
 ed such circumstances to have happened as he was sowing grain. He 
 may have merely assigned occurrences which he knew might at any 
 time take place to a supposed individual (too iuvt) called up for that 
 purpose in his imagination. This is, in fact, the very point of distinc- 
 tion between a historical example {-ret^et^uyfAd.) properly so called, and 
 a parable or fable, as Aristotle has observed, (ubi supra, corap. Rhet. 
 ad Alex. c. ix.). He that would produce an example must derive such 
 as will suit his purpose from the records of transacticns that have actually 
 
 ik) u. Ki. xxi. 13. Lu, xi. 5 ss. xv. S—10, xii. S6 ss. xiv. 28 ss. Mar. 
 Jii. 24 ss. 
 
THE PARABLES OP CHRIST. 219 
 
 that species of fables which is denominated rational, and the 
 other that called moral}'' 
 
 taken place, while those who make use of parables or fables for the illus- 
 tration of their themes, may draw upon their own i7ivention* Even if it 
 should happen that a fable writer should meet with a true history suit- 
 ed to his purpose, which may save him the trouble of invention ; still, 
 his attention must be diverted from the truth of the fact, which has no- 
 thing to do with his design and of which he can make no use. There 
 is, therefore, no ground for alarm lest the licence of inventing fables 
 should either lessen the credit of true histoiy, or afford facility for 
 spreading falsehood. There cannot be even the appearance of false- 
 hood in a form of speech already in such general use, that, notwithstand- 
 ing its historical form of composition, it is impossible for any one not to 
 recognize it as a fiction. The Jews, in particular, had in the time of Christ, 
 been long accustomed to the ancient mode of teaching by means of 
 fables, (Judg ix, 7 — 15. ii. Sam. xii. 1 — 4. ii. Ki. xiv. 9. ii. Chr. 
 XXV. 18. Isa. V 1—6. Ezek. xvii. 3—10. xix. 1—9.) so that none of 
 them could have been so stupid, as not to understand that the histories 
 related were /etg-ucrf, not true, (comp. Mat. xiii. 10). Indeed it is not 
 the design of a fable to put on the semblance of a true history, but to 
 be understood as a fiction, that the reader, who would not perceive its 
 meaning, if he confined his attention to the narration ($. xi), maybe 
 led to inquire concerning the object for which it was invented. The 
 use of fables, moreover, is allowed to teachers only, never to historical 
 writers. We may conclude, therefore, that whatever credible historians, 
 — the evangelists, for instance — relate, is to be received as mattcT offatt, 
 and not sls fable. In the case of the evangelists, even in their accounts 
 of the discourses of Christ, it is generally easy to distinguish between 
 the true and the fictitious histories, although the latter are not always 
 pointed out as parables; e. g. Lu. vii. 41 s. xiv. 16 ss. xvi. 1 ss. Mat. 
 xviii. 23 ss. xx. 1 ss. xxv. 1 ss. Even when a teacher has been in the 
 habit of using fables for the purpose of instruction, we may nevertheless 
 be sure that examples adduced by him are historically true (e. g. Lu. iv. 
 25 ss. Mat. xii. 3 s. 41 s. xxiii. 35,) whenever either the same history 
 has been handed down by historical writers, and those such as are 
 worthy of credit, or the manner of arguing used by the teacher, and all 
 the context, show that he assumes the truth of the fact which he relates. 
 When we are unable by either of these criteria to discover whether & 
 narrative used by Christ is a historical example or n fable (Lu. xvi. 1^ 
 ss. X. 30 ss.) the probability is, that it is to be reckoned among the lat- 
 ter, as they were so frequently employed by him. 
 
 » 1 This distinction is derived from the progymnasmata of Aphthq- 
 
 * [ Fabulae exemplorum vicarii et supplementa olim extiterunt 
 Bacon de Augm. Scient. Works. IV. 214. 1 , 
 
^2'20 THE PARABLES OP GHRISt. 
 
 The rational fable " relates an event absolutely possible, 
 i, e which either customarily occurs, (m) or at least may do 
 so. (n) The moral fable recounts events possible only on the 
 supposition, either, that the objects of which they are related, 
 did exist, which species is called by Lessing the mythical 
 fable, or, that things really existing, such as brutes or inani- 
 mate substances, were in possession of certain gifts, such as 
 reason and speech, which they do not enjoy .'^ Of this latter 
 sort is the fable told by Jotham, Judg. ix. 8 — 15, 
 
 §. IV. 
 
 The evangelists', contrary to the Greek usage, ^^ (o) have 
 
 (m) Mat. xiii. 3—8. 31-33. 47 s. xxi. 28—30, &c. 
 
 (n) Lu. xil. 20. xiv. 21—23. Ma(t. xxii. 2 ss. (o) }. u. 
 
 A'lusj he makes three classes of fables, to xoyntov, to )iStKov, and t» 
 fxiKTof, which names. are retained by Wolf (Philos. Pract. Univ. P. ii. 
 $. 303.) and Lessing. (Diss. iii. p 191 ss.) although they have deter- 
 mined the character of each class with greater accuracy. The cl?is3 
 called mixed, comprises fables which narrate things absolutely possible as 
 facts, as well as those which relate things possible merely under a hypo- 
 thetical condition, as such. Of this class there is no instance in the New 
 Testament. — Further information on this subject may be found in Les- 
 sing's work, ubi supra, p. 204 s. 
 
 12 Fables of this kind occur in the Old Testament, in ii. Sam. xii. 
 1 as. Isa. V. 1 ss. 
 
 1 3 This hypothetical condition is expressly recognized by Menenius, 
 whose fable, as given by Livt, begins thus : *' At a time when the human 
 members were not, as now, inseparably united, but had each its private 
 interest, each its power of speech, the other members having taken 
 nmbrage," &c. 
 
 1 5 The words fabula, fabdla, affabulatio, (wrtjxvBtov, §. xiii.) have 
 already been applied to the parables of Christ by Grotius (Comm. in 
 Matth. xiii. 10. 44. 49. De Jure Belli ac Pacis, Lib. IL c xx. $. 48. 
 no. 3,) CoccEius (Schol. in Matth. xx. p. 32, and Disp. Select, xxxv. $. 1, 
 p. 89. 0pp. T. IV. and vi.) and many others. There is no reason to 
 consider the very ancient, and, as Luther (0pp. Lips. T. vi. p. 380. 
 Append. T. xxii. p. 61 ss.) has well observed, highly excellent ($. ix. x,) 
 
<" Tx;«"^'^i 
 
 tHE PARABLES OF CHRIST. 
 
 
 given to fables^* of the first class, (the only kind used by 
 Christ) the name of parables ^ (p) or comparisons, (q) This 
 may be accounted for by their tendency to the Hebraistic 
 idioms. The Hebrew word ^&d was used in the first place 
 to signify a similitude ^® or an image, (r) Poems generally 
 
 (p) $. I. (g) Mat. xiii. 3, 18, 24. 31, 33, 36, 53. xxi. 33 xxii. 1. Lu. 
 
 xii. 16. xviii. 1. 9. six. 11. (r) Ezek. xxiv. 3. 
 
 method of teaching by fables, as trifling or unworthy of Christ,* nor 
 are we immediately to conclude from there being no mention of the use 
 of the apologue, or completely moral fable by our Lord, that none of 
 that sort were ever told by him. Even the common definition of a 
 parable, that is, a history bearing the similitude of trtilh, invented for the 
 purpose of conveying through that medium some recondite and spiritual 
 meaning (see Glassii Philol. Sac. p. 479. ed. Lips. 1705, and Pfaffu 
 Commentat. de recta theol. parabolicae et allegoricae conformatione, 
 p. 2.) will suit many of the fables of JEsop, nay, all of the rational fables, 
 if we take from it the restrictive epithet spirit\ial,wh\ch seems to signify 
 not a moral of any kind but more definitely a divinely revealed doctrine. 
 This, however, is only what is called the specific difference of the para- 
 bles of Christ, which certainly does not deprive them of the gejseric 
 character of fables- Nevertheless, although in a treatise like the present, 
 we cannot dispense with the name oi fable, for the purpose of distin- 
 guishing the different forms of the parables of Christ (§ i — iv.) and of 
 ascertaining with the greater accuracy the nature of such of them as be- 
 long to the class of fables. (§. v. ss.) ; yet, as Wolf has remarked (ubi 
 supra, §. 302,) it is better to refrain from the use of that word in the 
 vernacular language, and to retain the Hebrew-Greek term parable, 
 lest the Latin word fable should be misunderstood by ulUearncd per- 
 sons, and they be induced to confound it with the idea of old wives^ 
 fables. 
 
 » * EusTATHius indeed (p. 176, below) comprises even that species 
 of the Aoyoc in which a historic style is used, ($. ii.) under the name of 
 tTtf^aCo^M or parable. But it is very possible that the Archbishop of 
 Thessalonica may have been led to this by some recollection of the 
 more extended use of the word in the New Testament. 
 
 1 • The word tjj^jj, like the Arabic J£j^ , is plainly used for compari- 
 
 * C See some valuable remarks on this feature of the teaching of our 
 Saviour in Scmner^s Evidences, p. 141 s. Am. ed. ; and a full discussion 
 of the subject in Newcome's Observations on our Lord's conduct as a 
 divine instructor, Chap. II. Sect. X. pp. 141 — 158. Tr.l J 
 
^222 THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. 
 
 abounding in images, it was applied toi;hem. (5) Ingeniousr 
 sayings being usually couched in poetic style, and replete with 
 comparisons, next acquired the name ; (t) hence it came to be 
 applied to proverbs, (?/) which constituted the most usual and 
 favourite class of ingenious sayings, and at lastto/a6/65. (w)" 
 Thus, the Hebraizing writers were led to give the Greek word 
 rra^aCoXTj besides its proper meaning of similitude, {x) not only 
 the other meanings of the Hebrew word, for instance, that of 
 an ingenious saying, {y) and that of a proverb, (z) but also the 
 signification of « fable, {a^^ And indeed both fables (6) and 
 similitudes (c) might with the more propriety be included un- 
 der the common name -Tra^a^oX-y), [d) as all the fables of Christ 
 are a kind of similitudes, which is far from being the case with 
 any other fables than those of the compound or mixed class. 
 
 §. V. 
 
 This will appear more evident, upon a closer investigation 
 of the nature of a fable. In the first place, then, it is well 
 
 (8) Isa x\v. 4. Ps. xlix. 5. Num. xxiii. 7, 18. xxiv. 3, 15, 20 s., 23. 
 * (0 Prov. i. 1. (m) 1. Sam. x. 12. xxiv. 14. (to) Ezek. xvii. 2. 
 
 (as) 5. I. (y) Lu. XiV. 7. Mar. vii. 17 Matt. xv. 15. 
 
 (2) Lu. iv. 23, and in the Ixx. i. Sam. x. 12. xxiv. 14. 
 (o; In the Ixx Ezek. xxii. 2. (6) Mar. iv. 3 ss. 
 
 c) Mar. ix. 28—32. id) v. 33 s. 
 
 son (e. g. Isa. xlvi. 5.) On the etymological derivation of its meanings 
 ScHULTENs (in the beginning of his Comm. in Prov.) and Michaelis (in 
 LowTHU Prael iv. de Sac. poesi.Hebr. p. 64 s.) may be consulted. [ See 
 also Dathe's examination of its meanings, in his edition of Glassii 
 Philol. Sac. Lib. u Tract. 1 c. xxi. p. 1305 s ] 
 
 17 The Arabic Jlit-^aJ has the same meaning. [The Syriac t^'A^^ 
 also is used for the Greek Trct^itSo^n in an equally extended application, 
 (e. g. Mat. xiii. 18,) and the fables of Talmud are called j^SnO Dathe, 
 ubi supra. 
 
 > 8 On the other^hand the word Trufot/utei which properly answers to 
 the Htbrew "^^yo in its signification of a proverb, is made to receive the 
 
 TT 
 
 other sense of the Hebrew word in which it expresses an image, an al- 
 legory, e. g. Jo. X. 6. See by all means^VoRSTn Philol. Sac. P. 1. c. iv. 
 end,. 
 
THE VAKABLES OF CBRlST. 223 
 
 known ^* that the name of fabh (Xoyoj) belongs only to that 
 species of narration of fictitious events^ which inculcates some 
 moral instruction adapted to reclaim from sin, and to recom- 
 mend the practice of virtue and prudence, (e) With this view 
 it may either delineate an image of human manners, (/) or 
 set before the eyes the melancholy consequences of sin, (g) or 
 by declaring the principles of the divine government {h) re- 
 move the occasions for rash judgments and attempts, and the 
 other vices which spring from ignorance of those principles ; 
 or, as is generally the case, serve for several of these moral 
 uses. 
 
 Now a fable may illustrate such a moral doctrine either 
 generally, or with a particular reference to some certain event, 
 or to some impending emergency, which may have furnished 
 occasion for it. There are therefore two sorts of fables, the 
 simple and the compound. 
 
 The first sort, or simple fable, is not to be reckoned among 
 metaphorical allegories. There is no similitude between it 
 and the doctrine which it expresses, inasmuch as the subject 
 and predicate of the latter form the genus of which the sub- 
 ject and predicate of the fable are a species. There cannot 
 be said to be a similitude between a genus and any species or 
 individual comprehended in it ; and therefore a simple fable is 
 rather an example of moral doctrine than an allegory. 
 
 But a compound fable may be considered as an allegory of 
 the thing or event on occasion of which it was narrated:^ For 
 example, the fable of the conspiracy of the human members 
 for the destruction of the belly (i) is simple, if intended merely 
 to teach the general truth, that dissensions are injurious to 
 both the contending parties. For the hand, and mouth, and 
 
 ie) Mat xviii. S5. Lu. k. 37. xii. 21. xvi. 8 ss. 19 ss. xviii. 1. 9. 14. \v. 2Q. 
 comp. 2. Mat. xx. 15 s. xiii. 44 — 4fi. xxv. 1 ss. corap. 13. and xxiv. 47 ss. 
 (/) Mat. xiii. 19 ss. xxi. 31 s. Lu. vii. 44 ss. 
 (g) Mat. XX!. 43 s. xxii. 7. 13. Lu. xiv. 24. 
 (A) Mat. xiii. 24— 33. Lu. xiii. 6 ss. (i) o. ii. 
 
 1 « Lessing, Diss. I. p. 131 ss, 
 2 Le/sswg, p. 114 S5. 
 
224 THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. 
 
 teeth, and belJy, bear no resemblance to contending parties, 
 considered generally, but are among their number. Nor does 
 the conspiracy of the other members to subdue the belly by 
 starvation resemble discord, considered generally, but it is a 
 dissension with the adverse member, one of the several kinds 
 of discord. Nor, lastly, is the extreme wasting of the whole 
 body similar to the unhappy consequences of dissension, but 
 it is comprised in the class of the evils which arise from dissen^ 
 sion generally, and is an example of them. But Menenius 
 used this fable for the purpose of comparison, that is, as a 
 fable of the compound class, and consequently, allegorical. 
 For he compared the belly to the patricians, the other mem- 
 bers to the Roman people, the intestine strife between the 
 members of the body to the hatred of the people against the 
 patricians, and the starvation of the body to the impending 
 ruin of the city. 
 
 To give another instance ; Stesichorus, as quoted by 
 Aristotle, (k) compared the Himerians to the horse* who, 
 desirous of revenge upon the stag, permitted the hunter to 
 bridle, saddle, and mount him for the chase ; their enemies, 
 to the stag ; Phalaris, whom they had elected their com- 
 mander in chief {quTriyov auroxparo^a) to the man j his govern- 
 ment to the bridle, already put on ; and the grant of body 
 guards, from which the fable was intended to dissuade them, 
 to the act of mounting. But if this same fable were used for 
 the purpose of persuading any one not, in avoiding one ex- 
 treme, to hurry to the other, or not to" make use of a remedy 
 worse than the disease, the allegory would vanish. The horse 
 could not be said to resemble a person, who, to shun a lesser 
 evil, runs into a greater, but as he actually does so, would be 
 
 (fc) Rhetor. Lib. ii. c. \t. 
 
 * Quern cervus, pugna melior» communibus herbis 
 Pellebat, donee minor in certamine longo 
 Imploravit opes hominis, frenumquc reccpit ; 
 Sed, postquam victor violens discesait ab hoste, 
 Non equitem dorso, non frenum depulit ore. 
 
 HoRAT. Epist. I. xi. 34 s». 
 
THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. 225 
 
 an example of that fault, displaying the need of prudence in 
 avoiding difficulties* 
 
 §. VI. 
 
 Whenever, therefore, any fable of our Lord is so constructed, 
 as that its subject and predicate are included as a species in the 
 subject and predicate of the moral precept which it is intend- 
 ed to express ; such fable is rather, with respect to moral 
 doctrine, an example, than a similitude. Yet on another ac- 
 count, namely, with respect to the fact which occasioned 
 its composition, it may be a similitude or comparison of one 
 example of a general truth or precept with another. Thus 
 the Pharisee and the publican (/) have no resemblance to the 
 •whole class (m) of men who indulge in self-complacency, or 
 who are mindful of their own sinfulness, but each is an exam- 
 ple of the class to which he belongs. In like manner, the rich 
 men, the end of whose course is described by Christ, (n) are 
 comprized in that class of men who, neglecting religious mat- 
 ters, set their affections on the good things of this world, and 
 experience a great and melancholy change at the time of 
 death. Yet the object particularly pointed at in Lu. xviii. 9, 
 is not the class of self-righteous men, but a certain species in- 
 cluded in that class equally with the Pharisee who is repre- 
 sented in the fable. Now as individuals may resemble an in- 
 dividual, the persons against whom the fable is especially di- 
 rected, may be said to be like the Pharisee, and those whom 
 they despised to be like the publican. So in the second instance, 
 the person who disagreed with his brother concerning his in- 
 heritance, (o) and such of the others (jo) as, like the rich man 
 described by Christ, {q) displayed an over-fondness for earthly 
 things, were all of the number of those who care only for the • 
 
 Lu. xviii. 10. ss. (?/i) v. 14. . (n) Lu. xii. 16. ss. xvi. I9, ss. 
 
 (0) Lu. xii. 13. Q}) V. 15. (9) v. 16. ss. 
 
 ♦ Incidat in Syllam cupicns vitarc Charybdim. 
 
 29 
 
226 THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. 
 
 comforts of this life, and neglect the things of God (r),—- and 
 therefore might and ought to be compared with that rich ma». 
 Again, the Pharisees, who were covetous, {s) proud, (/) given 
 to pleasure, (u) and disobedient to the law and the pro- 
 phets, (w) ^* might with propriety compare their present pros- 
 perity and their manners with the prosperity and character of 
 the rich man, {x) and learn what a sudden change of circum- 
 stances might ensue, (y) 
 
 §. VII. 
 
 There are, however, other fables which in reality are not 
 examples of the general doctrine which they inculcate, but are 
 images and allegories of the doctrine itself. For it may happen 
 that a fable is used to express some general doctrine, which 
 again is comprized in some other still more general, in which 
 case the subject and predicate of the fable will be included 
 as species in the subject and predicate of the latter, and not 
 in those of the former.^^ Thus the fable of Menenius not 
 
 (r) V. 21. (5) xvi. 14. (0 V. 15. 
 
 (u) V. 18. comp. Matt. v. 20. 31. s. (w) Lu. xxi. 16. comp. vii. 30. 
 
 (x) xvi. 19^. ss. 30. [(y) v. 22. 25. s. 
 
 2 1 It is probable that the rich man described in the parable, Lu. xvi, 
 39. ss.is intended to be censured for a want of regard for the Holy 
 Scriptures, as bis brothers, who resembled himself (v. 28,) are repre- 
 sented (v. 30,) as likely to pay no respect to their authority. 
 
 a 2 We do not deny it to be possible, that the subject and predicate of 
 the fable may be comprized, as species in a genus, in the subjects and 
 predicates both of the more general doctrine and of that which is 
 subordinate. So the horse in the fable of Stbsichorus may be an ex- 
 ample not only of such as for the sake of avoiding a lesser evil, incur a 
 greater^ ($• v.), but also in particular of those who give up their liberty ta 
 Iteep out of poverty, in which way it is applied by Horace (Epist. Lib. i- 
 Ep. X.) who, after recounting the fable ($. v. notet ) subjoins the fol- 
 lowing moral (itjimoS/ok) v. 39 — 41 : 
 
 Sic, qui pauperiera veritus potiore metallis 
 Libertate caret, dominum vehet improbus, atque 
 Serviet aeternum, que parvo nesciet uti. 
 This doctrine is comprized in the other of a more general nature, which 
 is pointed out in $. v. 
 
THE PARABLES OP CHRIST. 227 
 
 ©nly admits of being used for the purpose of reconciling the 
 Roman plebeian party with the patricians, (2) or of teaching 
 the injurious effects of dissensions upon both the contending 
 parties generally, but is also capable of being employed to show 
 tliat mutual contentions between any magistrates and subjects 
 whatsoever, or if you please, between the citizens of a state or 
 in a family or among Christians, are productive of evil to the 
 contending parties, none of which can dispense with the ser- 
 vices of the others. Now it is plain that the contending 
 members of the human body are not to be considered as parts 
 of th^ class of citizens (to select this from the preceding ex- 
 amples), but that the latter are one species of the class of con- 
 tending parties, the former another, so that the one may be 
 used as an image, or similitude, of the other, but not as an in- 
 stance or example. The fable of Menenius, therefore, be- 
 comes an allegory when applied to the dissensions of citizens, 
 while on the other hand both the less general precept which 
 it would then convey, — that dissensions among citizens are 
 injurious to both, — and the allegorical illustration of that 
 precept in the fable itself, would be distinct examples of the 
 more general doctrine — that all dissensions are hurtful to 
 both contending parties. To give another instance, the fox 
 in the fable, who despises the bunch of grapes above his 
 reach, belongs to the number of those who pretend in a case 
 of necessity to be guided by deliberation and choice, and 
 therefore the fable may be considered as an example of the 
 general doctrine which it inculcates, if applied to such as 
 make a merit of necessity, {rovg •s'owvrag Tr]v amyxviv (piXor/juwav). 
 But suppose the fable to be addressed to those who despise 
 the liberal arts, which they are unable to acquire, and to con- 
 vey the moral, that the arts are despised by the ignorant only, 
 which is a branch of the more general doctrine. In this case 
 the fox would be an image or similitude, not an example, of 
 those^against whom the fable would be directed, and the 
 bunch of grapes, which in the first instance was an example 
 of things which are not attainable, would now be an image 
 
!228 THE PARABLES OP CHRIST. 
 
 of another sort of impossibility, — ^the acquisition of the arts 
 by those who profess to despise them, because above their 
 capacity. 
 
 Many of the fables (Xoyoi) of Christ, are of a similar descrip- 
 tion ; for the Saviour, in pursuance of the object of his mis- 
 sion, was accustomed to inculcate morals having a particular 
 reference to God and the truths of religion, rather than merely 
 general precepts. So, in Matt. xiii. 3. ss., 24. ss., 31, s., his de- 
 sign was not to declare the general truths ; that the best in- 
 structions are, with respect to a majority of the hearers, thrown 
 away ; that evils are to be borne with, lest their removal be 
 attended with that of good also ; and, that great events often 
 spring from small beginnings : but to teach the following, 
 comprized respectively in those just mentioned; that from 
 various causes the generality of men would receive little or 
 no benefit from the most salutary doctrines, divinely promul- 
 gated; that even wicked men are to be tolerated in the 
 Christian church till they may be separated from the number 
 of the citizens of the heavenly kingdom, at the command of 
 the Lord, without any injury to the good, whom we should 
 not be able always to exempt from sharing in their fate ; and 
 that there is no reason to despair, if the commmencement of 
 the divine kingdom be but small. The fable of the grain of 
 mustard seed, therefore, although it might have been an ex- 
 ample of the general truth, that great events often take their 
 rise from small beginnings, yet in the intention of Christ was 
 rather an allegory inculcating a doctrine included in that 
 general truth, respecting the great increase which the king- 
 dom of God should receive, notwithstanding its small begin- 
 nings. With respect to the others (the other wvoi), (a) no one 
 will deny that they are allegories, who has reflected on the in- 
 terpretations given by Christ himself, {b) in which the sub- 
 ject and the image used are plainly compared. 
 
 (o) Matt xJii. 3. ss. 24. ss. (6) Lu. viii. M. ss. Matt. xiii. 37. ss. 
 
THE PARABLES OP CHRIST. 
 
 §. VIII. 
 
 Even the loss general doctrine thus conveyed by a fable, 
 may be applied, in the same manner as the most general 
 truth, (c) to the instruction of particular individuals. The 
 fable of the fox and grapes, for instance, may be applied, not 
 only to ignorant despisers of the arts in general, {d) but also 
 specifically to some particular despisers of a certain art. 
 Not a few of this sort of fables, too, occur in the New Testa- 
 ment. That in Matt. xxi. 28. ss., for instance, might, in a 
 general sense, apply to all who promise readily, but perform 
 less than those who at first display some degree of unwilling- 
 ness. But Christ makes use of it to rebuke such as were dis- 
 obedient to God, although they boasted of their piety ; and 
 among these, it relates in particular t© the Pharisees and 
 Jewish nobles, (e) who esteemed themselves much better 
 than the rest of their nation, and yet made much more opposi- 
 tion to the will of God, declared to them by John, (/) than 
 the very persons whom they despised as sinners. The fa- 
 ther, therefore, is not to be considered as an example of any one 
 that makes some request to another ; the first mentioned son, of 
 one that denies a request , yet at length performs it, and the other 
 son, of owe that promises without performance : but the father 
 is an image, or allegorical representation, of GOD ; the first 
 son, of men now pious, although at first of a different charac- 
 ter, and yet not of these in general, but properly of the publi- 
 cans and sinners, who had suffered themselves to be convert- 
 ed by John ; and the other son, of men really wicked, although 
 professing to be pious, and among these more particularly of 
 the Pharisees. In like manner, the object of the fable in 
 Lu. xiv. 16. ss., is not to inculcate the general truth, that con- 
 tempt of benefits affords so much the greater cause for indig- 
 nation, but to show how GOD will regard the contempt of his 
 benefits, and particularly of those which related to the etei-nal 
 salvation of the Jews. It is therefore an allegory, in which 
 
 (c) $, VI. (d) \. VII. (<•) V. 23, 45. (/) V. 25. s., 32, 
 
230 THE PARABLES OP CHRIST. 
 
 the feast represents the future happiness of the good ; (g) the 
 giver of the feast, is not an example of a benefactor in general, 
 but strictly an image of GOD ; and the guests who excuse 
 themselves represent, not generally, those vs^ho despised prof- 
 fered benefits, but in particular the Jews who rejected the di- 
 vine benefit offered them by Christ. 
 
 The preceding remarks (Ji) we deem sufficient to show 
 that even the fables employed by Christ are a sort of simili- 
 tudes,^ and on that account may rightly receive the name of 
 Parables, (i) 
 
 §. IX. 
 
 The use of a fable agrees with that of an example, properly 
 so called, in this resp«ct, that its object is to illustrate the doc- 
 trine of which it is a fictitious example, (k) For as an ex- 
 ample serves to reduce a general doctrine to a particular 
 case, and so conduces to the intuitive knowledge of that doc- 
 trine,^ in the same way a fable, so far as it is an example of 
 a general doctrine, assists the acquisition of an intuitive know- 
 ledge of the truth.* Nor is it any objection, that the ex- 
 ample thus presented to our consideration, is merely ficti- 
 tious. For although true examples possess this peculiar ad- 
 vantage, that they confirm the doctrine which is deduced from 
 them,^^ yet those of s. fictitious character are equally service- 
 rs-) V. U. 8. (A) 5. VI— vni. (i) }. IT. ik) {. vi. 
 
 2 3 Of this description are evidently Mat. xiii. 24, 31, 33, 44, 47. 
 xviii. 23. XX. 1. xxii. 2. xxv. 1. Lu. xiii. 18 — 21. 
 
 2 * Comp. WoLFius Philos. Pract. Univers. P. II. $. 258. ss. [ " Ex- 
 amples give a quicker impression than arguments," says Bacon, which 
 is the purport of Stork's 'conducing to an inluitive knowledge.' Tr. ] 
 
 * [ Senkca declares ' Parabolas crebro usurpandas esse, ut imbeeili- 
 tatis nostrae adminicula sint.' Ep. LIX. p. 149. Tom. 11. 0pp. ed. 
 Gromov. Tr. ] 
 
 2 « See WoLFiDS, ubi supra, $. 266. ss. 
 
THE PARABLES OP CHRIST. 231 
 
 able in producing vl clear and vivid knowledge of a doctrine 
 the truth of which is already ascertained from other sources. 
 Rational fables, moreover, (to which description all those of 
 Christ belong,) assume nothing which is at all at variance 
 with the natural course of things, (/) and therefore are the 
 less likely to convey to the mind, intent upon the doctrine 
 which they teach, the notion of their fictitious character. The 
 folly, for example, of men who are solely intent upon heaping 
 up riches which they never have an opportunity to enjoy, is 
 much more clearly and vividly perceived, when we place be- 
 fore our eyes, as it were, the rich man Lu. xii. 16. ss., with his 
 possessions and his hopes and projects, and the awful circum- 
 stance of his unlooked for death, about to take place that very 
 night, than it would be in any other way. This effect will be in 
 no^wise lessened by the knowledge that the story is but a fiction, 
 because the frail and transitory nature of earthly things is al- 
 ready so well known from experience, that it is not proof of 
 this by argument, but a vivid sense of the truth already ac- 
 knowledged, that is needed, and the very fable which is used 
 to produce this sense, contains only such circumstances as our 
 previous knowledge of this general truth convinces us may 
 have actually occurred, and therefore may be assumed as facts. 
 It may be objected that this use cannot pertain to all the 
 fables of Christ, inasmuch as it is undeniable that many of 
 these are not examples of the doctrine which they inculcate, 
 but allegories, (m) But certainly the less general doctrine 
 which they convey is subordinate to another of a more general 
 character, of which the fables themselves may be considered 
 as examples, (n) and so assisting to the intuitive knowledge of 
 that doctrine, which knowledge produces the effect of render- 
 ing the less general doctrine, which it was the immediate ob- 
 ject of Christ to inculcate in such fables, more easily proved, 
 and more distinctly known. For example, the analogy ofna^ 
 tural events, made use of in Matt. xiii. 3. ss., 24. ss., 31. ss., 
 remarkably illi^strates the facts that divine truth is not defec- 
 tive although it may produce no good to many ; that it may be 
 
 (/) {. III. Uft) {. VII. vin. (n) 5. vin. 
 
232 THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. 
 
 prudent to tolerate wicked persons in the church ; and that 
 the small beginnings of the Christian dispensation might pro- 
 duce a great and salutary change in the condition of the hu- 
 man race. The fables there given are examples of the general 
 truths already pointed out, (o) (as, for instance, of this, that 
 small beginnings often give rise to great events,) assisting the 
 attainment of an intuitive knowledge of those truths, and 
 even, (inasmuch as experience teaches us that the circum- 
 stances related by Christ do often occur, although the his- 
 tories are feigned), (p) confirming their truth. In this way 
 they induce us readily to acknowledge that the case may be 
 similar in the Christian dispensation, e. g. that great events 
 may spring from small beginnings.^ — To give another instance, 
 the fable which occurs in Matt, xviii. 23. ss. is an example of 
 the general doctrine, that we must not do to others what we 
 would not that others should do to us, and that we have no 
 just ground for complaint when we receive the same usage 
 that we have not scrupled to give to them ; and is very useful 
 in conveying an intuitive knowledge of that doctrine. The 
 effect of this is, that it is impossible to disapprove of the pre- 
 cept, subordinate to the same general doctrine, which it was the 
 object of the Saviour to convey, (q) and as our own judgment 
 has approved of the sentence passed by the king in the fable, (r) 
 we cannot do otherwise than allow the justice of the divine 
 determination not to forgive the sins of the implacable, who 
 refuse to forgive the sins of others, since this determination is 
 another example comprized in the same general rule of con- 
 duct. 
 
 The great utility of fables in general,^ consists in this, that 
 
 (o) {.VII. (/)) Note 10. (q)v.35. (r) i>. 32, ss, 
 
 a 6 If a fable were used as an example (J. vi.) of the general principle, 
 contained in it, its application to sxny particular persojis, either by the 
 author or by the hearer or reader, would be a discovery of something 
 similar. So the general rule, that he wl^o extorts from his inferior an 
 article which kc himself possesses in abundance, acts most unjustly, and 
 
 I 
 
IHE PARABLES OV CURlbT. 233 
 
 they declare the doctrine or truth, which if it were directly 
 pressed upon us, would doubtless be much weakened by the 
 force of our passions, by another exaoiplc, similar to our case, 
 and comprized under the same general rule. In proportion, 
 too, as fables assist the acquisition of inttdtive knowledge in a 
 remarkable degree, they also facilitate the recollection of the 
 doctrines which they inculcate, and consequently, their use. 
 For the more clearly and distinctly we know a thing, the 
 more deeply is it impressed on our memory. Comp. Chry- 
 sosTOM in Joan. iv. 35. 
 
 §. X. 
 
 But although even tlie fables which are to be ranked as 
 allegories, serve to illustrate the subjects to which they are 
 applied ; (s) yet they may also answer the end of clothing 
 
 is) a. IX. 
 
 is deserving of very heavy punishment, might be extmplijied by the 
 fable in ii- Sara. xii. 1 — 4, in which case the act of David, v. 7 — 9 
 would be a similar instance. But Nathan very wisely avoided a direct 
 introduction of the general principle in his reproof of David, and first 
 induced the king to acknowledge its truth in another example where 
 there was no danger of his being swayed by partiality. After this ac- 
 knowledgment, he could not deny the correctness of the principle (?;. 13.) 
 
 even though turned upon himself (v. 7. ss.) ; (comp. Lu. x. 37.) * 
 
 In the same manner as a general rule is much more readily and vividly 
 perceived when conveyed in a fable which is an example of that very 
 ■principle, ($. VI.) and admits of a much readier application to particu- 
 lar individuals; so the application of a general principle to one less 
 general is much facilitated by a fable which exemplifies the former, 
 ($. Vlf.) as we have ssen in the instance from Mat. xviii. 23. ss., and it 
 thus becomes much more eff*ectual with relation to particular individuals 
 (comp. Mat. xxi. 31, 41. Lu. vii. 43.) if the less general principle, to 
 which the application of the more general has been made ($. VII.) be. 
 again applied ($. VIII.) to them. 
 
 * [See this ^sjubject happily treated in Porteus' Lecture^.- I^ect xi 
 Vol. 1. p. 283. s?. ed. I.ond. 1808. 
 
 30 
 
^34 IHE PARABLES OF CHRIST. 
 
 them in obscurity^ and become ofescwre allegories, or enigmas, 
 if propounded without any explanation. Many ^ of this sort 
 were uttered by Christ, especially at the time described by 
 Matthew, c. xiii, Mark, c. iv, and Luke, c. viii., he having de- 
 termined to discourse of the heavenly, {t) i, e, ^' divine (m) 
 kingdom of the Messiah and his Father, (v) more fully than 
 at other times. His object was to show at length, that the 
 
 (0 Mat. xiii. 11, 24, SI, 33, 44, s. 47. 
 (u) Mar. iv. 11, 26, 30. Lu. xiii. 18, 20. 
 iv) Dan. vii. 13. s. Mat. xiii. 37, 41, 43. 
 
 3 7 Comp. Flacii Clavem Script. P. ii. p. 267, and the celebrated 
 Teller's note * * on Torretini Tract, de S. Scripturae interpreta- 
 tione, p. 254. 
 
 3 8 This is so plainly affirmed by Matthew (xiii. 3,) and Mark (iv. 2, 
 13), that there seems to be hardly any doubt that more were spoken to 
 the people than the four which Matthew relates (xiii. 3. ss. 24. ss. 31 — 
 33,) as having been uttered in the public discourse. The three others 
 given in that chapter (v. 44. ss.) cannot be taken into account, as they 
 were propounded to the disciples bi^ themselves (». 36. 51. s.). But the 
 testimony of Mark in iv, 33, is even more express than the preceding, for 
 he makes mention of many other parables, beside those which he himself 
 has given. Now Matthew (xiii. 24. ss. 33.) only relates two which are 
 not recorded by Mark, as having been publicly spoken. If, then, we 
 suppose that he has given all the ' other parables ' to which Mark re- 
 fers, we must allow that the expression ' many others ' may signify only 
 two. And even in this case it must be taken for granted that the para- 
 ble related Mat. xiii. 24. ss., is different from the similar one in Mar. iv. 
 26. S3., else there will be but one short parable peculiar to Matthew 
 (xiii. 33.) which, surely, is not the ' many ' spoken of by Mark. — But 
 the parable in Mark, iv. 26, ss. seems to be no less distinct from that 
 in Matt. xiii. 24. ss., than the latter is from the one which so mu«h re- 
 sembles it in V. 47. ss. For in Mark there is no mention of the tares, 
 which in Mat. xiii. 25. ss. are the principal feature of the parable, (r. 
 36.) ; and, on the other hand, Matthew is entirely silent respecting the 
 unobserved progress of the kingdom of heaven, which it is the chief ob- 
 ject of the parable given by Mark to represent. Now if the parable 
 given by Mark is different from that in Matthew, it is evident that Mat- 
 thew does not relate aU the parables spoken publicly on that occasion, 
 and that it is one of the 'many others ' omitted by Matthew, that has 
 been preserved by Mark, iv. 26. ss. 
 
 .* » Comp. Dan. iv. 23. Lu. xv. 18. and Koppe, Nov. Test. Gr. Vol. i. 
 p. 216. [also the author's Dissertation De notione regni ccelestis, 
 Note 6. Tr.1 
 
THE PARABLES OP CHRIST. '235 ' 
 
 character of this kingdom would certainly in the end appear 
 to be in the liighest degree glorious, {w) but that notwith- 
 standing this, its condition would at first be different, and its 
 foundation be laid in the very preaching of the gospel which 
 was so much despised, by which, although extended to many 
 with no effect, the subjects of the heavenly kingdom should 
 be collected and prepared (x) for future glory, (y) But as 
 this world is a nursery (z) for heaven, it is absolutely neces- 
 sary that the evil be mingled with the good, (a) lest either 
 such as might afterwards reform, should be untimely remov- 
 ed, or such as were really better than they appeared, should 
 be reckoned among the bad, and destroyed together with 
 them, [bj For both the extensive and, ultimately, splendid 
 kingdom of God generally, and the excellence and happiness 
 of each of its members in particular, would take their rise 
 from small beginnings, (c) and increase by imperceptible de- 
 grees, {d) Nevertheless, the privileges of this invisible king- 
 dom would be so greatly prized by all that were truly wise («) 
 that, setting aside all the enjoyments and advantages of this 
 life, they would pant after that alone. — But the notion of the 
 kingdom of the Messiah entertained by the Jews (/) was so 
 different from this, that it was impossible they should be {^eas- 
 ed with those beginnings, so far removed from every sort of 
 pomp, and with such a long delay (g) of its ultimate splendour. 
 Besides, by far the greater part had been so deaf to the other 
 instructions and admonitions of Christ, and so blind to the 
 evidence afforded by miracles so many and so great, (h) that 
 they were neither desirous of salvation, (i) nor possessed of a 
 teachable disposition, nor willing to beheve in such doctrines 
 as were mysterious {k) {i, c. till then unknown, and out of the 
 range of popular opinion,) on the sole authority of Jesus, as a 
 divinely commissioned teacher. On account (/) of this their 
 general ignorance of religious things, our Lord in teaching 
 
 (to) Mat. xiii. 43. (x) v. 43. (y) v. 3. ss. 
 
 (z) V. 38. (a) V. SO, 47. (b) v. 29. 
 
 (c) V. 31—33. (rf) Mar. iv. 27. s. (e) Mat. xiii. 44-46. 
 
 (/) Lu. xvii. 20. (g) Comp. Lu. six. 11. 
 
 {h) Mat.xiii. 13—15. (t) v. 15. (k) v. 11. (0 v. IS. 
 
2S6 THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. 
 
 them made use of parables without explanations, (m) that see- 
 ing the image they might not perceive the object which it 
 was intended to represent, and that they might hear the words 
 indeed, but not comj)rehend their meaning, (n) if peradven- 
 ture ^ they might in this way be led to reform and obtain the 
 pardon of their^sins. (o) This proceeding might be adopted^* 
 for this reason ; that so the very ohsG^irity of the obnoxious 
 doctnnc taught zcould prevent the worst of the people from 
 deriding Jesus on account of his preaching a kingdom of the 
 Mei^siah so different from that which they expected, and from 
 thus increasing their crime, (a measure particularly necessary 
 at that time, on account of the detestable {p) reports lately 
 spread among the populace) (7) while at the same time others 
 might be roused by this enigmatic teaching out of the stupid 
 indifterence with which they had been accustomed to re- 
 gard the deeds and instructions of Jesus, and brought to re- 
 flection, w^hich might, in the better disposed at least, result in 
 a more careful attention to the precepts of our Lord, and a 
 more diligent examination of his conduct, for the time to 
 come, and so produce their gradual conversion. Even to the 
 disciples themselves, who, unlike the rest, (r) were so far led 
 by the authority of Christ, as to be able to hear the truth un- 
 (hsguised without oftence, (s) the enigmas propounded to the 
 people would be useful, not only on account of their throwing 
 greater light upon the subject to which they related, (<) as 
 soon as, by means of the explanation afterward given, (w) 
 their meaning was understood, but also because they excited 
 anjncreased degree of attention to the instructions which they 
 
 On) Mar. iv. 34. (m) Lu. viii. 10. (o) Mar. iv. 12. 
 
 ip) Mat. xii. 31. ss. (?) v. 24. (r) Mar. iv. 33. 
 
 (s) Mat. Xiii. 11. (/) \. IX. (w) Mar. iv. 34. 
 
 3 Comp. (MjfTCTJ 11. Tim. ii. 25. Lu. iii. 15. and Brit. Magaz. T. in. 
 
 p. 721.S. 
 
 3 J It was well said by Sallust, as we find it quoted by BLACBwALr 
 (Critica Sacra N. T. p. 274. ed. VVollh. [ Sacred Classics. Vol. 
 P- ] ) ''■'' *^^* fAvQuv t' AXiiQis iTTiKgvTrTUf rovs fiisv ayoifTovs 
 
 KxtA*§ovi»y UK %x, Tout cTi (TTrvS^cHov? <j>i\oa-o<pftv avctyK^tft 
 
THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. I^St 
 
 involved, (v) Moreover, we find that the very parables whicti 
 vv^ere used for the purpose of rendering the instructions they 
 conveyed obscure to the ignorant and unprepared, were ser- 
 viceable to the disciples of Jesus in rendering them perspi- 
 cuous, so as both to afford them at that very time a degree of 
 certainty respecting doctrines before unknown {w) and to con- 
 tribute to their preparation for the full illumination which they 
 were to receive subsequently to the resurrection of their 
 Lord. And after they had received that illumination, these 
 parables enabled them besides imparting the Imowledge which 
 they then received, to communicate to their hearers the older in- 
 structions which had been given them before the death of Christ, 
 and to confirm the new and important doctrines which they 
 taught by the antecedent agreement of their master, {x) and, 
 by repeating the' parables of our Lord, to impart a knowledge 
 of those doctrines to many, more easily and vividly (y) than 
 they would otherwise have done. (2:) 
 
 §. XL 
 
 The Parables, the interpretation of which it is the object of 
 this essay to teach, are rational fables, or fictitious narration 
 bearing the semblance of truth, (a) by means of which our Lord 
 illustrated (6) some moral doctrine, (c) There are, therefore, 
 two things in them to be considered, the doctrine which they 
 convey, that is, the thing signified; and the narration, or 
 similitude^ by which it is signified. But the parable itself, {d) 
 
 (V) Lu. viii. 9. Mat. xiii. 36. (to) v. 11, 51. (.x) Mat.xiii. 
 
 (y) 5- IX. (2) Mat. xiii. 52. comp. Mar. iv. 21. s. 
 
 (O) ^. III. IV. (6) 5. IX. X. (c) ^^ V. 
 
 (d) Mar. iv. 10. Mat. xiii. 18, 36. 
 
 3 2 It is true there are some parables of our Lord, which considered 
 in themselves, ought rather to be designated as examples than ns similitudes 
 (§ . VI.). Butas the majority are to be classed as allegories(^. VII. VIII.), 
 and as even those just mentioned, in as far as they are compound (^. V.) 
 partake of the nature of a similitude ($. VI.), we may for the rest of the 
 
ii38 THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. 
 
 that is, (e) the sense of the parable can only be perceived by 
 those *^ who understand the Jodrme conveyed, by means of 
 the narration used. For example, David did not understand 
 the meaning of Nathan, (/) so long as he on/^ understood 
 and passed judgment on the fact narrated by the prophet, (g) 
 For the object of the latter was not to obtain a decision 
 against the rich man whom he represented as acting with so 
 much injustice. The king's idea did not correspond with that 
 of the prophet, till the former perceived the object {h) for 
 which the history had been invented and narrated, (i) — It 
 would be no less a departure from the meaning of Christ, if 
 any one should read such parables as those in Lu. xvi. 1 — 8. 
 and xviii. 1 — 5, as histories. Their design was certainly 
 neither to hold out a pattern for imitation, nor to warn against 
 the sorts of conduct which they describe, but of a very dif- 
 ferent character, {k) On the other hand, any one who un- 
 derstands the passage in Matth. vi. 15. will certainly perceive 
 the doctrine taught in xviii. *23. ss., but he will not be able to 
 comprehend the parable in v. 23. ss., until he has learned to 
 apply the narration to that doctrine. This intimate connexion 
 of the similitude with the thing signified occasionally produces 
 the insertion of words in the similitude which properly belong 
 only to the object connected with it in the mind of a person 
 who understands the parable. So in Matt. xxii. 10,^ the ser- 
 
 ie) Lu. viii. 9, 11. (/) ii. Sara. xii. 5. s. (g) ii. Sam. xii. 1—4. 
 
 {h) V. 13. (i) V. 7. ss. (k) xvi. 8. s. xviii. 6 ss. 
 
 essay make use of the term simihiude [ or parable ], in reference to all. 
 By this the whole comparison (§. I.), that is, both the image and the ob- 
 jecU are usually intended, although occasionally it is applied to the 
 imaire alone. See Q,uiiitilian L. VIII. c. iii. 470. [ p. 398. ed. Ox. ] 
 Others use the name similitude to express the irgcnte-tt net^AQtcic, (first 
 member of the comparison) which, in a regularly drawn comparison, is 
 connected by the ef.vta.TrcJ'cvK or reciprotol reference, with the object of 
 which it is the image. Quiktil. ubi supra, p. 471. [ p. 399. ] 
 
 3 3 Comp. Calixti Concordia iv evangel, scriptorum, L. IV. c. vii. 
 p. 184 s. 
 
 3 4 The description in «. 13 of this chapter and in c. xxv. 30, is to 
 be understood of a prison, wry remote from the place of the feast, and from 
 
THE ^ARABLES OF CHRIST. 239 
 
 vants are said to have brought in * both bad and good,' mean- 
 ing * guests both suitably and unsuitably clothed' (I) which in 
 the parable represent the good and bad. On the other hand, 
 an occasional feature of the image may be retained even in the 
 explanation, if the interpretation of the other parts i^ so clear 
 as to leave no difficulty in comprehending the metaphor. 
 Such is the case in Mat. xiii. 19, 22, 23. So also Horace (m) 
 inserts a tropical word (n) in the application (o) of his fable : 
 vehet, having reference to the it^oratfig (p) of the fable of the 
 horse and the stag which he had used. 
 
 §. XII. 
 
 It is evident, then, that three things are requisite to the dis- 
 covery of the grammatical sense of a parable. First, that 
 the fictitious narration, or similitude, be understood. Second, 
 that the thing signified be ascertained. Third, that the cor- 
 respondence of the similitude, or narration, with its object be 
 learned. 
 
 With the first of these requisites we are at present not 
 concerned, as nothing more than the ordinary rules of in- 
 terpretation, such as are apphcable to any true history, is 
 needed for its attainment. However, not to pass it over en- 
 tirely, we may subjoin the single remark, that in order to give 
 the feigned history all its concinnity, it is sometimes necessary 
 to imagine a circumstance not expressed. So in Mat. xxii. 
 we must supply in imagination the circumstance, that the 
 guests were not led directly into the banqueting room, but 
 allowed a sufficient opportunity to change their dress. This 
 is not expressly affirmed in the narration, but it may be infer- 
 
 (0 V. 11. (m) Epist. Lib. i. Ep. x. (n) v. 40. 
 
 (0) See above, Note 22. ' (p) v. 36, 38. 
 
 all human society J and very dark. This is an image of the punishments 
 which will be inflicted upon the wicked in the world to come. See 
 yiii. 12. 
 
>i40 THE TARABLES OF CHRIST. 
 
 red from the expression scpt/xw^rj in v. 12, and must be assum- 
 ed, because the command in i?. 13 would otherwise be liable 
 to the imputation of great injustice. Yet it is not necessary 
 to determine whence the wedding garment was to be pro- 
 cured; whether, for example, we are to suppose that the 
 manw^ho appeared without one had a suitable garment at home, 
 but had neglected the opportunity given him to go thither 
 and procure it ; or whether it is to be assumed that the king, 
 who had invited his guests in such an unusal \vay,{q) had also, 
 contrary to the general practice,^^ taken care to offer theni 
 garments suitable to the occasion. Neither of these hypo- 
 theses is susceptible of proof, for Christ himself has said no- 
 thing determinate upon the subject, his design being merely to 
 show generally that the soul must be clothed anew with 
 righteousness (r) before an admission to eternal happiness can 
 be obtained, without any intention to teach the method of pro- 
 curing the necessary vesture. 
 
 §. XIII. 
 
 The thing signified, or doctrine with reference to which a 
 fable is propounded, (the ascertaining of which is the second 
 requisite to the discover^^ of the grammatical sense of a para- 
 ble) is usually indicated in the moral, called by Apthonius 
 'XPoiLv&iov, but more commonly s'^'/acu^jcv. Our Lord himself* 
 
 Oj) i\ 0. ' (r) V. 10. 
 
 a 5 It cannot be shown by any good arguments that it was customary 
 to present the guests with garments suited to the festal occasion. See 
 IvREBs Observ. e Flav. Josepho, in Matt. xxii. 12. We leave it to 
 others to decide whether the custom of presenting a Caftan to those 
 who are admitted to an audience of the Turkish Sultan bas any bearing 
 on this subject. Comp. Luedeke Expositio Loconim Script, ad. orien- 
 tem se referentium <S. 49, and Michaelis Orient. Biblioth. P. viii. p. 
 HO. 
 
 "' The Evangelist has prefixed an indication of thq subject of the para 
 Me. in Ln xviii. 1.9. xix. 11. 
 
 4^ 
 
THE PARABLES OT CHRIST. 241 
 
 not unfrequently subjoined to his parables some indication of 
 their object or even a somewhat copious exposition ; e, g, 
 Lu. xii. 21. xviii. 14. Matt, xviii. 35. xiii. 49. s. xxi. 42. ss. 
 Lu. vii. 44. ss. xvi. 8. s. xviii. 6. ss. Occasionally, such no- 
 tices both precede and follow, as in Mat. xix. 30. xx. 16. But 
 the parables of Christ differ from other fables in being gene- 
 rally given, not, like them, in a separate state, but in some de- 
 finite connexion with a context. This pecularity affords a 
 means of eliciting their meaning, so that a moral, or g«'»(;.udiov, 
 is not always needed. 
 
 The context of a parable remarkably conduces to a know- 
 ledge of its meaning, by pointing out the occasion in which it 
 was uttered. This will be found to be either the actions and 
 opinions of the hearers of Christ, as in Lu. xv. 11. ss. comp. 
 1?. 1, 2 ; xix. 12. ss. comp. t. 11 ; or some of our Lord^s dis- 
 courses, with which it is in connexion, as in Mat. xxv. 1 — 30, 
 which passage contains two parables, one teaching the necessi- 
 ty of prudence, the other recommending fidelity, both of which 
 virtues had been previously mentioned. (5) So in the parable of 
 the wedding feast, {t) it is the more certain that the invited 
 guests, of whom but few were admitted to the feast, (m) re- 
 present the Jews and Gentiles, because it appears from the 
 context {v) that there was then occasion for Christ to discuss 
 that subject. 
 
 Lastly, as in interpretation generally, great assistance may 
 be derived from the use of parallel passages, so occasionally 
 the sense of a parable may be ascertained or confirmed by 
 means of some other, similar to it. For instance, if there 
 were no other reasons, a comparison of Mat. xxii. ss., alone, 
 would render it credible that the similar parable in Lu. xiv. 
 16. ss. relates, like the former passage, to the contempt of the 
 
 («) xxiv. 45. (0 Matt, xxik 7, 9. (u) v. 8. 13. ». 
 
 (f) xxi. 43. 
 
 3 « This may directly impugn the opinions of the hearers, and on that 
 account; be properly continued in the parabolic form, as in Lu. xiii' 
 
 2—2. 
 
 31 
 
242 TH£ PARABLEii OF CHRIST. 
 
 preached gospel by the Jews, and its propagation among th© 
 heathen. We may reasonably infer that our Lord himself 
 intended this resemblance between his parables to be observ- 
 ed and used for their interpretation, from the fact that when 
 he uttered a parable (w) which contained an image similar to 
 that previously used by him in another parable, (x) he consi- 
 dered it easier to be understood than others, {y) 
 
 §. XIV. 
 
 Besides these external aids, (2) there are others principally 
 contained in the parable itself, that assist the discovery of its 
 meaning. 
 
 The meaning of that class of fables which consists of 
 examples of the thing signified, is to be discovered by abstrac- 
 tion, which substitutes generals for particulars, and classes for 
 individuals?'^ This rule may be tried by the fables of iEsop 
 and others of that kind ; but we w^ill proceed to its application 
 to the parables of Christ. In the parable in Lu. xviii. 10. ss., 
 for instance, in order to ascertain its meaning, we must substi- 
 tute for the Pharisee, who exalts himself above other men, 
 and particularly above the publican, and boasts in his prayers 
 which he offers in the temple of his fasts and giving of tithes, 
 all arrogant men and contemners of others, whatsoever, who 
 are inflated with an exalted opinion of their own merits, of 
 whatever description they may be, and who betiny this despo- 
 tism in any way. By the publican who stands afar off from 
 the Pharisee, with downcast eyes, and beating his breast, prays 
 
 (to) Mar. iv, 3. ss. (at) Jo. iv. 35. ss. (^) Mar. iv. 13. 
 
 iz) $. xni. 
 
 3 7 That is to say, as far as the subject admits of it. There are parti- 
 cular ideas (for instance, those of death, and sepulture. Lu. xii. 20. xvi. 
 22.) which do not admit of generalization, such as that by which a 
 copious harvest (Lu. xii. 16. ss.) is understood to mean riches of every 
 kind, and begging (Lu. xvi. 20), miseri/ in general (v. 26,) 
 
THE PARABLRS OP CHRIST. ^43 
 
 God to be merciful to him a sinner, we must understand all 
 such aSf although despised hy others, are impressed loith a deep 
 sense of their own sinfulness, are desirous of the divine mercy, 
 and indicate this disposition in any way. The result is, that 
 we must conclude that the latter description of persons will 
 receive the approbation of God, while the former will be re- 
 jected and humbled by him. So, again, from the example of 
 the Samaritan, Lu. x. 33. ss., who being strongly moved by 
 pity, and of a liberal disposition, bound up the wounds of a 
 Jew who had been cruelly maltreated, had been left without 
 aid by his countrymen, the priest and Levite, and must 
 perish for want of speedy help, — conveyed him to an inn, 
 and even provided for his future sustenance, — ^^this too, in k 
 road infested by the incursions of robbers,^ (6) and when he 
 could hardly spare the two denarii paid for the support of the 
 
 wounded man:(c) from this example we learn that it 
 
 is our duty to afford assistance to any man who may absolute- 
 ly need it, even though he be of different nation, customs, re- 
 ligion, or dispositions from ourselves, (J) and even if such as- 
 sistance be attended with difficulty, expense, and peril ; much 
 more to do any kind offices, attended with less difficulty and 
 danger, that may be needful, even to an enemy, (e) ^ 
 
 But there are many other fictitious narrations, (/) which 
 cannot be considered as examples of the thing signified, but 
 are included as species under the more general doctrine, which 
 includes in like manner the precept intended to be conveyed. 
 
 (6) V. 30. (c) V. 35. (rf) Cortip. Jo. iv. 9. Eccltts. i.37. s. 
 
 («)Lu.x. 37. (/) {. VI. vn. 
 
 3s Comp. MicBAELis Gedanken von Stinde und Geneigthung, p. 
 462,448. 
 
 3» There is reason for laying stress upon this circumstance, as the 
 lawyer (v. 29,) betrayed a disposition to consider strangers and enemies 
 as having no claim upon him, (comp. Mat. v. 43,) and our Lord intro- w^ 
 dnced a Samaritan as more benevolent to a Jew than the Jews them- -i, 
 selves, for the very purpose of shaming the Jews who were unwilling to 
 afford any assistance to Samaritans, and showed little kindness to 
 stranger* in general, [ See Porteus' Lectures. Lect. zi. Vol. i. p. 280. 
 ^s. ed. Lond. 180&. Tr. li 
 
244 THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. 
 
 Here abstraction alone will not suffice to ascertain the mean- 
 ing of the parable, as it will discover only the more general 
 doctrine, to which both the example given and the thing signi- 
 fied are subordinate, but cannot define the latter. In this 
 case, the general doctrine being first discovered by abstrac- 
 tion, other aids (g) must then be used to ascertain the specific 
 dijfference between the example in the parable, and the thing 
 intended to be signified. So, in the parable in Mat. xiii. 31. s., 
 we first learn by the process of abstraction that it conveys the 
 general rule, that often a thing from small beginnings attains 
 to an exalted eminence. But that this general truth is ap- 
 plied by Christ peculiarly to the heavenly kingdom, is to be 
 learned from the words prefixed to the parable : ofAoia sgiv ^ 
 §acriXsia Twv x^avwv.^" Again, in Mat. xxi. 28. ss. we discover, 
 by abstraction, that the parable conveys the general declara- 
 tion, that it is not he who makes a boast of his obedience, but 
 he who renders it, although at first he may have refused, that 
 does the will of him who imposes a command, {h) But it is 
 from the moral or application of the parable in v. 31. s. that 
 we learn its particular reference to the Pharisees w^ho boasted 
 of their obedience to the divine commands, and the Publicans, 
 who really rendered such obedience. 
 
 From all this it appears, that even in this class of parables 
 there remain some particulars which must be converted into 
 generals. For example, the particulars in the parable of the 
 grain of mustard seed, (i) that it is less than all seeds, and that 
 in its growth it surpasses all herbs, and becomes a tree of such 
 a size as to afford shelter in its branches to the birds, that is,{k) 
 becomes a large (I) tree ; convey this general meaning ; that 
 great progress may be made from a small beginning. There is 
 no danger of running into error by this process of generaliza- 
 
 {g) {. XIII. (h) Comp. V. 31. (t) Matt. xiii. 32. 
 
 (.k) Comp. Dan. iv. 9. 18. with v. 7. 8. 17. (/) Lu. xiii. 19. 
 
 f » These form a sort of introductory moral (a-go/Mt/flior) which, how- 
 ever, only indicates the Buhjed of the fable, the predicate appearing with 
 suffipient clearness from the general doctrine, which may be found by 
 abstraction." ' 
 
THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. 24$ 
 
 tion, for we are sure to find all that the general truths thus 
 arrived at may contain, in the less general, which are subor- 
 dinate to them, and form the subject of the parable. But 
 when we proceed to determine the particular application of 
 these general truths to the doctrine taught in the parable, 
 there are two things to be avoided. First, we must not sup- 
 pose that there is any necessary correspondence between the 
 particular idea conveyed by the narration, and the thing which 
 the parable is intended to signify. Secondly, we must not take 
 it for granted that all the particulars distinguishable in the 
 narration, answer to as many particulars in the thing signi- 
 fied* 
 
 We do not deny that it is possible that things belonging to 
 the same class, may possess the same attributes in common, 
 and thus agree in many particulars, as well as in their generic 
 character. It would even be wise, if the natures of the thing 
 narrated and of that signified would admit such an agreement, 
 to express such predicates in the narration, as would equally 
 suit the thing signified. This may be exemplified by the 
 parable of the wedding feast, (m) where the general truth con- 
 veyed, when obtained from the narrative by abstraction, is, 
 that the rejection of repeatedly proffered benefits zoill afford 
 ground for heavy punishment, and procure the transfer of those 
 benefits to others, if they will receive them as they ought. To 
 this is subordinate the doctrine which it was the intention of 
 our Lord to teach, that the contempt of the blessings of the 
 heavenly kingdom by the Jews would draw down upon them 
 heavy punishment, and that on the other hand, such of the 
 
 (m) Matt. xxii. 2. ss. 
 
 * [ *^* Ante omnia scopus cujusque parabolae est considerandus, et 
 non modo, quod huic adversatur, sed etiam, quod ad eum nihil confert, 
 pro sensu loci alieno habiendum, quem auctor parabolae nee intenderit, 
 nee intendere potuerit. Unde consequens est, magis ad ostentationem 
 ingenii et foecundae imagination is facere, ilias doctrinas et usus, quae 
 ex omnibus et singulis parabolae circumstantiis petuntur, et mysteria, 
 quae in iis queruntur, quam ad parabolae interpretationem, verumque 
 et ^ loquente intentum carum sensura indagandum et declarandum." 
 Wkrbnfbm. Opusc. u. 362. Tr. ] 
 
ii46 'I%E PARABLES OP CHRIST. 
 
 Gentiles as should prove worthy, should be admitted to the 
 enjoyment of those blessings. In this instance, the punish- 
 ment to be inflicted on the Jews was of such a kind, that it 
 would be explicitly/ described in the narration, as in v. 7. — 
 But very often the case is otherzoise. So in this same parable, 
 the general idea of being not unworthy of a benefit, (n) is in the 
 narrative converted into the special circumstance of being 
 clothed in a wedding garment ; whereas the import of the 
 parable requires a different special notion, that of being goody{o) 
 possessing a habit of mind adapted to the heavenly kingdom. 
 To use another example : the general idea of obedience to the 
 will of another, is expressed in the narration of the parable 
 of the two sons, (p) by the particular action of going into the 
 vineyard J which does not at all suit the thing signified, in which 
 it must be changed to the repentance (fAsravoia), (^) productive 
 of obedience to the will of God, which had been preached by 
 John, (r) It would be improper, therefore, to conclude from 
 Lu. xix. 27^ that on the return of our Lord, {s) and his glorious 
 manifestatibn, {t) (after having suffered his kingdom to exist 
 some time in comparative obscurity, for the purpose of afford- 
 ing an opportunity to its enemies to display their fury, (m) and 
 to his servants to show their faithfulness,) {v) his enemies 
 should be slain, although that punishment is named in the nar- 
 ration. For it does not follow that the punishment to be 
 inflicted on the enemies signified in v. 14 and 27, now for the 
 most part dead, must be the same as that said to be inflicted 
 on the enemies of the nobleman (eu/svrig) whose history is re- 
 counted in the narrative.*^ In like manner, v. 17, 19, afford 
 
 (71) Co.i>p. V. 8. (0) V. 10. (p) Matt. xxi. 29. 
 
 (g) V. 33. (r) iii. 2. (s) v. 15. 
 
 (0 V. 11. (w) V. 14. (v) V. 13. 15. ss. 
 
 * 1 For the same reason a distinction must be made between the 
 form of the sentence of the king in Matt, xviii. 34. and the form of 
 the divine judgment, and no stress is to be laid on the expression 
 CArxnreu, or on the other ••{ tk*. From the special sentence of the 
 king against this merciless servant, that he should be delivered to the 
 tormentors ' until the payment of his debt,'' vre are merely to collect 
 fhejg'fnerdf idea, that the king refused, to forgive the debt due him by his 
 
THE PARABLES OP CHRIST. 347 
 
 no proof that the faithful servants of Christ shall be appointed, 
 some to the government of ten cities^ some to that of five. 
 For this particular method of reward, accommodated to the 
 worldly nature of the fictitious history, may only signify in 
 general, that a reward proportioned to the degree of fidelity 
 will be given, and more particularly, that each should receive 
 employment and enjoy felicity in the kingdom of heaven in 
 proportion to his faithfulness, (w) 
 
 With relation to the second rule above given, (x) it cannot 
 be denied that it may happen that the particulars given in the 
 protasis, or similitude, may correspond to as many in the 
 thing signified. It is, for instance, altogether probable that 
 the parable of the wedding feast (y) not only expresses the 
 general idea of repeated invitations to the Jews to partake of 
 the blessings of the kingdom of heaven, but also inore particu- 
 larly distinguishes two *^ distinct times of offering, one, {z) that 
 in which the Jews were called by the prophets, the other, {a) 
 that in which, on the nearer approach of the heavenly king- 
 dom, (6) the call was repeated by John, and by Christ and his 
 
 (w) Mat. \xt. 21. 23. (x) p. 245. (3^) Mall. xxti. S. ss. 
 
 (z) V.3. (a) V. 4. (6) iii. 2. iv. 17. 
 
 unforgiring servant, and that in like manner God will not jorgive the 
 sins of those who show no mercy to their fellow men (comp. vi. 15.). 
 The same remark applies to a parable of another class (note 21), in 
 Mat. V. 25. s. where the particulars in the narration, of the officer des- 
 patched to seize the debtor, and of the duration of the imprisonment un- 
 iil the entire payment, relate only to the human judgment, which is an 
 image of the divine. 
 
 *a The word «cs/c^»^«»«c, v. 3, does not necessarily prove b. prior in- 
 vitation, as, according to Hebrew usage (see Obss. ad Anal, et Synt. 
 Heb. p. 135," and add i Pet. i. 13. 11. Pet. iii. 11. comp. v. 10,) it may 
 indicate the persons to be invited, that is, the guests generally. Comp. 
 Krebsii Obss. Flavianas ad Mat. xxii. 3. 
 
 * C The author has there shown by a multitude of examples (pp. 133. 
 ss.) that the Hebrew participles Benoni and Paoul are used indifferently 
 to express the past, the present, and the future. Among other instances, 
 he gives mna^» vastanda, Ps. cxxxvii. 8. and -jSlj, qui nascetur, Fs 
 xxii. 32. comp. Ixxviii. 6. Tr. 1 
 
^ 
 
 THE PARABLEJi OF CHRIST. 
 
 apostles. So, too, the invitation by the prophets seems to be 
 distinguished from that given by Chriat in Lu. xiv. 16. s. And 
 as this last parable was spoken before the Pharisees, (r) ^ to 
 whom our Lord on another occasion, making use of a simi- 
 lar {(l) parable, [e) had preferred both the publicans and har- 
 lots (/) dwelling among them,^* and the heathen ; {g) it is 
 very probable that Lu. xiv. 21, 23, is intended to distinguish 
 the iiivitation given to the publicans and heathen, — But it is to 
 be maintained that it may also happen otherwise in this respect ; 
 lest we be led to seek for some particular signification for every 
 particular in the protasis or similitude even when it does not ^ 
 spontaneously present itself,* and so fall into forced, or rash 
 and absurd interpretations. 
 
 In the Jirst place, then, it is to be assumed, that the general 
 enunciation may, agreeably to Hebrew usage, be distributed into 
 fewer or more particidar or integral parts.*^ t So in Lu. xx, 
 
 (c) Lu. xiv. 1. ((2) {. XIII. (e) Mat. xxii. 
 
 /; Mat. xxi. 31. 8. (g- Mat. xxi. 43. 
 
 4 3 It was addressed to one of them in particular (v. 16), in whom the 
 recollection of the resurrection to happiness, which was an article of be- 
 lief among the Pharisees, had excite^ a desire of the blessings of the 
 kingdom of heaven (v. 14. ss.), but the love of worldly things (comp. 
 xvi. 14. lo. xii. 42. s.) seems to have hindered him from embracing the 
 doctrine of Christ. This circumstance shows the wisdom of our Lord, 
 in making no mention in this place (comp. Mat. xxii. 6.) of open hatred 
 against himself, from which this comparatively well disposed Pharisee 
 seems to have been free, but confining his reproof to the immoderate love 
 of wordly goods, Lu. xiv. 18 — 20. 
 
 4 4 Comp. Tus noKtmc, Lu. xiv. 21. 
 
 * C 'O" Xi** TTXvra Tcl it ?r<ig*CeXat7c k«t« M^ifn'%^it^yd^ta^^oLt ct'xxci 
 tor C'KiTTot fict^ivrAS t* h auvtri^n ruroi 3"{fjriff3"*/, 5 fj.nS'if jroKV- 
 jT^etyfAoiin irt^etni^u. Chrysost. Horn. Ixiv. in Matth. ] 
 
 *s See Num. vii. 12. ss, ix. 17. ss. Rev. vii. 4. ss. Mar. xii. 20. ss. 
 Lu. XX. 29. ss. 
 
 t [ So in the fable of Jotham, the disinclination of persons who by 
 their endowments are best qualified for the office of governing (Ju. ix. 
 9. 11. 13,) to undertake that office, is represented under the general 
 similitude of a tree valuable for its usefulness {v. 9. 11. 13,) refusing the 
 government of the other trees. But to give a more vivid idea of the 
 superiority of their claims^ and to increase the evidence of a general 
 disposition to decline the office by the introduction of a reptaled refusal, 
 
THE PARABLES OP CHRIST. ^£4^ 
 
 10 — 12, we are not to seek for three prophets, who may have 
 exercised their commissions in the order given, and suffered 
 the insults ascribed to the several servants. For Matthew, 
 c. xxi. 34 — 36, and Mark, c. xii. 2 — 5, expressly add, that 
 there were many others sent, and even as to the three who 
 are mentioned, those evangelists do ^o not entirely agree 
 with each other or with St. Luke, in their accounts of the 
 treatment received by them, and the order in which they 
 were sent. The ojjject of our Lord was merely to inform uy, 
 that many servants having been repeatedly sent, were received 
 with various insults and harsh treatment. This general de- 
 claration admitting of division into many of a more special 
 nature, some of these, of any of the different kinds, might be 
 selected for the sake of illustration, {h) Nor is it any more 
 necessary to be at pains to^a; the definite periods of time ^ at 
 which men are represented as divinely called, in the parable 
 of the labourers, (i) and even the words of the narration will 
 bear this general signification, that some were sent earlier^ 
 some later, into the vineyard by its master. 
 
 Secondly, as one great use of parables is to assist in afford- 
 ing a vivid knowledge of what they teach, {k) it is the more 
 
 (A) Comp. Lu. xiv. 18 —20. xvi. 5—7. (?) Malt. xx. 2—6. {k) \. rx. 
 
 three several offers to particular trees are specified. That the particular 
 application of the offers of the trees to the olive, the fig, and the vine, to 
 distinct and unsuccessful offers of the crown to Othniel, Deborah, and 
 Gideon, which has been made by some (Saurin, Disc. Hist, iii, 405,) 
 could not have been in the mind of Jotham, is proved by his confining 
 his application (r. 16. ss.) to the choice of Abimelech, and the injury 
 done thereby to the house of Gideon ; not to mention the far-fetched re- 
 semblance between the several particulars in the narrative and those 
 supposed to belong to its application. Tr. ] 
 
 4 6 The variety, and uncertain and precarious nature, of the interpre. 
 tations which have arisen out of an attempt to do this, will be very evi- 
 dent to any one who compares Theophylact (Comm. in Matt, xx.) 
 with Jerome (in loc.) or consults Petersen's work entitled: das 
 Geheimniss von den Arbeitern in Weinberge ;* c. vi. 
 
 * [ The Mystery of the , Labourers in the Vineyard. ] 
 
 3^ 
 
250 THE PARABLES OP CHRIST. 
 
 proper in such narrations to substitute for generals, or (conjoin 
 with them, particulars which may contribute to bring the mat- 
 ter as it were before the eyes. For although in this way the 
 several particulars will not have each its peculiar signification ; 
 yet the thing expressed by them conjointly, or by such parti- 
 culars in connexion with generals, will be more clearly and 
 strongly represented to the mind than it would be in any 
 other way. Thus the expression * my oxen and my fatlings 
 are killed,* in Matt. xxii. 4, means nothing more {I) than the 
 phrase which immediately follows, 'all things are ready;' 
 but it conveys that meaning with more force. The words in 
 the parable of the prodigal, (m) * I have sinned against God ' 
 have no signification other than that conveyed by the expres- 
 sion * I have sinned against thee,' as the father himself is 
 there an image of God. But as they are well adapted to the 
 human father and son to whom the narrative relates, they 
 serve to express a deep sense of sin much better than the 
 mere acknowledgment * I have sinned against thee,' which in 
 that case would not sufficiently convey the idea of a lively 
 sense of sin in the returning prodigal. — The particulars men- 
 tioned in Matt. xxi. 33, express nothing more (w) than that the 
 vineyard, when planted, was furnished with every necessary, 
 so that there was nothing wanting. But although neither the 
 hedge, nor the tower, nor the press, have ^uy particular sig- 
 nification, yet the introduction of these circumstances adds 
 much force to the representation, that God had omitted no- 
 thing to effect the salvation of the Jews, and yet neither the 
 prophets nor Christ himself had found any fruits (o) worthy 
 of such extraordinary care, in that people, whose chiefs were 
 so far from aiding in the counsels of the divine Providence, 
 that they rather sought only to increase their own enjoyments, 
 by obtaining offices for themselves, {p) — In Lu. xv. 20. 22 — 
 24, too, who would wish to deprive the admirable narrative 
 of the particulars which so strikingly represent the parental 
 tenderness and joy, notwithstanding that the ring, the calf, 
 &;c., cannot be said to have any signification in themselves, 
 
 (I) Comp. Lu. siv- 17. (m) Lu. xv. 18. 21. (n) Comp. Isa. v. 2. with v. 4 
 (o) V, 43. (p) Comp. Jo. li. 48, 
 
THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. "'251 
 
 but merely, taken altogether, have the same^' meaning that a 
 general mention of great tenderness and extraordinary plea- 
 sure received from the safety of the son, would have convey- 
 ed, although with less significancy ; viz. the great mercy of 
 God towards sinners, his pleasure in their conversion, and 
 the great benefits by which he is accustomed to declare that 
 pleasure. 
 
 §. XV. 
 
 But, as there are many particulars in the narration,(q) which 
 do not apply to the thing signified ; so, the narration may also 
 have other parts which must not be insisted on by those who 
 institute a comparison (/•) between the object and the nar- 
 rative, or similitudes^ We will readily grant to Peter- 
 
 (5)$. XIV. (r)§. XII. 
 
 * 7 So our Lord himself, in Matt, xviii. 33, expresses by the single 
 gtneral term ;^^atig«r, whathe had elsewhere, by the introduction oi par- 
 ticulars brought as it were before the eyes,Lu. xv. 5, 6. Even in the lat- 
 ter passage, in the KTro^oats (v. 7,) he substitutes the general word ;t*§*"' 
 for all the particular signs of great joy which he had previously recapi- 
 tulated. 
 
 * 8 This same rule is given, with relation to parables or (comp. note 
 15,) fables, generally, by Eustathius (ix. B'. A', p. 177. 856.) among 
 the ancients, and among the moderns by Sulzer, Allg. Theorie der 
 schoenen Kuenste, P. 1. p. 107. With respect to the parables of Christ 
 in particular, it is confirmed by Tertulliabt, as quoted by Semler, 
 Antt. Hermeneut. ex Tertall. Spec. 1. p. 27., by Chrysostom, Comm 
 in Matt. xx. 1. ss., and by other fathers, cited by Suicer, Thesaur 
 Eccles. Tom. 11. p. 570. So also Lother, Postil. in Evang. Dom 
 Septuagv 0pp. T, xiii. p. 387 ; Bccer, Enarrat. in Matth. xx. xxii. xxv 
 Lu. xvi. (fol. 154. 161. 178. 215); Flacius, p. 40; Glassius, p. 489 
 Cahxtds, p. 186. 5. ; Wollius, Herm. Nov. Foed. p. 131. ss. ; Turre 
 Tuc, p. 262. ss., 148. ; Ernesti, Inst. Interp. P. i. S. u. c. iv. extr. ; and 
 many others. Even Cocceius himself does not deny that the literal 
 sense of the parables may be found without a nice accommodation of 
 each, and every circumstance in the narrative to the object of the para- 
 ble ; although he thinks that those circumstances may receive a mystic 
 and prophetic sense. Such is his declaration (Schol. in Luc xv. 0pp. 
 Tom. IV. 54.) * that the misery of the prodigal son, and the indignation of 
 Jhis elder brother, which are so minutely described, are intended, perhaps. 
 
^52 THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. 
 
 SEN^^that nothing ,^is , introduced into the narroiion without 
 seme reason ; but that the cause why this or that circumstance 
 is related, must necessarily exist in its agreement with the sub- 
 ject, we deny. Yet we would not have any thing considered 
 as merely ornamental, for though it is allowable in poetry to 
 to make use of circumstantial narrative merely for the pur- 
 pose of giving pleasure, yet in fables, the object of which is to 
 assist the acquisition of intuitive knowledge of the truth, the 
 only ornament ought to consist in brevity and simplicity ^^ as 
 the careful exclusion of every thing foreign to the subject, 
 however agreeable in other respects, tends greatly to secure 
 the accomplishment of their object, and a ready recollection (s) 
 of the fables themselves. There can, therefore, be no adequate 
 reason assigned for the use of any thing that is not serviceable 
 in the parabolic illustration of doctrine. But then the para- 
 bolic illustration of doctrine requires, not only that the doc- 
 trine be illustrated, but also that it be illustrated by a parable. 
 It was not our Lord's intention in his parables to afford an 
 illustration of his teaching of any kind whatever, but to illus- 
 trate it by parables."^ Any thing, therefore, required by the 
 
 (5) 5. IX. 
 
 for a description of the misery of those who wallow in sin, and/or an illus- 
 (ration of the affection of the father (comp. below, §. xvni. extr.) ; yet 
 perhaps they also contain a mystical signification, which may be ascer- 
 tained from oiher propliecies.'' Bnt that Christ had in view, beside the 
 proper signification of the parable, other future events, is entirely with- 
 out proof in Scripture, unless we admit as proof the existence of parts of 
 the narration to which there are no correspondent particulars in the thing 
 signified. The inadmissibility of this will appear when we shall have 
 shown, as we propose to do, that there were sufficient reasons why our 
 Lord should interweave such parts in the narration, even though he did 
 not intend to represent by thena any thing similar either in the subject pro- 
 perly signified, or, in something else to be mystically understood. Nor 
 is any great credit done to this hypothesis by the precarious interpreta- 
 tions of CoccEius (Disp. Sel. xxxv. §. i.p. 89. Opp. T. VI.) and his dis- 
 ciples, specimens of which are given by Pfaff, in the Dissertation 
 already cited, p. 16. ss., where that author also enumerates the prin- 
 cipal defenders of this opinion, p. 21. 
 
 *o Ubi supra, p. 123, and in his work: die Gleichnisse des Hem, 
 «tc. p. 285. 338. 362. s. 393. 507, 746. 
 
 5 » See Lessing's Fourth Dissertation ; ubi supra. 
 
 * £ " IJcet non existimemus, qnamlibet parabolae circumstantiam 
 
THE PARABLES OP CHRIST. 253 
 
 nature of a parable, was necessary, although devoid of any- 
 particular correspondence with the subject of the parable.* 
 
 Now a parable is a narrative bearing the resemblance of 
 truth, (t) 
 
 §. XVI. 
 
 In the/r5( place, then, things which, so far as relates to the 
 signification of the parable only, might have been omitted, 
 are sometimes necessary to give the narrative designed to 
 convey instruction the appearance of a real history, and 
 to render it agreeable to the ordinary course of things. For 
 example, the mention of the man who sowed the grain of 
 mustard seed (w) was altogether unnecessary, taking into con- 
 sideration only the nature of the thing signified. (i>) But, 
 without it, the comparison would have been a parable in the 
 strictest sense, (w) In order to change this into the kind (x) 
 of which alone our Lord made use, {y) it was necessary to 
 introduce a particular man as having sowed the seed, in place 
 of the general statement of its being sown. The same prin» 
 ciple applies to the introduction of the woman in Matt. xiii. 
 33, which is merely for the purpose of reducing an event 
 which daily occurred to women making bread, to a singh 
 definite example. So again in Lu. xvi. 28, it was much 
 better to represent the rich man as speaking of a certain num- 
 ber of brothers, than to make him speak of them in a general. 
 
 (t) §. XI. (U) Matl. xiii. 31. (v) Comp. Mar. iv. 31. 
 
 (w) §. I. (x) b. IV. (y) §. u. 
 
 peculiarem habere significationem, illas propterea non vanas et inatilcs 
 esse credimus; faciunt enim ad parabolarum non modo elegantiam, 
 sed ad earutn etiam naiuram, quae haec est ; ut narrentur cum quibus- 
 dam circumstantiis, alioquin enim narrationum historicarum speciem 
 non haberent." Werknfels. Opusc. ii. 352. Tr. ] 
 
 * [ " Non seulement il n'est pas n6cessaire que chacun de leurs 
 membres ait une veu particuli^re, qui se rapporte directeraent au but de 
 celui qui la propose ; il faut m^me que ce but soit en quelque sort cache 
 sous des images dtrangeres, destinies a I'enveloper." Saurin Disc. His» 
 tor. Tom. in. p. 405. ». Tr. ] ' ^ 
 
^04 TH£ PARABLES OF CHRIST. 
 
 }:t^ .. " ■■•J' " '• ■ -^'.v .■> ■- ■.. • r 
 
 way, as if he had been ignorant of their number. In this 
 case, it is unnecessary to inquire the reason for choosing the 
 number /re. As it suited the historical form of the parable 
 best to speak of a definite number, all that was needful was, 
 to fix some certain number not in itself incredible, and 
 in doing this, it mattered not which might be selected, there 
 being no more reason for the choice of Jive than for that of 
 any other number, say, for instance, /owr. The ^ame remark 
 may be made of the use of the number ten in Lu. xix. 13. 
 and Matt. xxv. 1., where it only occurs because, as in every 
 single event, the number concerned in it, e. g, of human 
 agents, is necessarily definite, the case must be the same in 
 z. fictitious history. Our Lord, therefore, intending to fix the 
 number of the talents, and of the virgins, was unable in that 
 respect to have any reference to the thing signified in the 
 parable, and so took the first that occurred, e, g, that, which 
 it was usual to employ in expressing generally an indefinite 
 number, (z) of, perhaps, was commonly preferred in different 
 kinds of business.^* As the virgins in Matt, xxv. 1. were to 
 be distinguished into two sorts, the whole number, ten, was 
 divided into two smaller numbers. These were made equal, 
 because that method of division is the most simple possible, 
 not with any intention to signify that the number of watchful 
 Christians and that of persons of the opposite description will 
 be equal ; unless we choose to believe that c. xxi. 28. ss. proves 
 the equality of numbers of both classes, or to infer from c, 
 xxv. 15, that the number of faithful Christians will be greater 
 than that of the wicked, because two faithful servants are men- 
 tioned, while but one is slothful.^^ — In the parable of the lea- 
 
 (2) Dan. i. 20. Neh. iv. 6. 
 
 5 » Comp. LiGHTFOOT, Hor. Heb. in Matth. xxv. 1.; and RHEirreRDii 
 Opera Philologica, p. 729. s. 
 
 5 2 There was, it is true, a weighty reason for the mention of two 
 faithful servants ; but this related, not to the number of faithful and 
 careless Christians, but to the proportion of the goods entrusted to the 
 faithful servants respectively, with the increase made by them. For if 
 no mention had been made of a second servant (v. 17,; it could not have 
 been learned from the parable that most will be expected from him to 
 whom mo'st has been entrusted (v. 16, comp. v, 17,) and must be ren- 
 
THE PARABLES OP CHRIST. 255 
 
 ven {a) the narrative is rendered much more neat and pro- 
 bable by the mention of the particular number of three mea- 
 sures of the meal, as some definite number must certainly have 
 been employed in a real event of that kind, (b) This alone 
 was a sufficient reason why Christ, when intending to frame 
 a fictitious narrative on the subject, should mention a particu- 
 lar number of measures of meal, (perhaps the number most 
 commonly used,) although there is no discoverable relation 
 between the object of the parable and the number three.^ — 
 For similar reasons we dare not attach any particular import- 
 ance to the mention of three years in Lu. xiii. 7, especially as 
 the Jews were allowed not merely the third year (c) of the 
 ministry of Jesus, but also several others in addition, for the 
 purpose of hearing the preached gospel, and bringing forth 
 corresponding fruits. It seems rather to convey this general 
 truth, that God, who for a long while {d) had discovered In 
 them no fruits worthy of the excellent instructions they had 
 received, would yet grant to the Jewish nation a period, short 
 indeed, but well suppHed with the means and opportunities of 
 improvements, (e) after the expiration of which without any 
 great conversion of the people, certain destruction would be- 
 fal their country. 
 
 (a) Matt. xiii. 33. Lu. xiii. 21. (b) So Gen. xviii. 6. 
 
 (c) Comp. V. 8. id) Comp. Matt. xxi. 34. ss. 
 
 («) Lu. xiii. 8. comp. xix. 44. xxiv. 47. Ac. iii. 19. ss. 
 
 dered, if he wishes to obtain the credit of being faithful (v. 21,) and to 
 retain his place (v. 28. s.). So in Lu. xix. the express introduction of 
 the other servant {v. 18. s) was necessary, as without it we could not 
 have known that the extent of reward could be proportioned to the de- 
 gree offatthfidness, which now appears from a comparison of the services 
 of each servant (v. 16. 18,) with his respective reward {v. 17. 19. 24. ss.), 
 — So in other places, as in Lu. vii. 41, comp. v. 43. and in Matt, xviii. 
 24. 28. comp. v 32. the mulual relations of the numbers introduced are 
 of great importance. 
 
 5 3 Interpreters, indeed, have invented several. But as these diflFer 
 from each other, and each has as much right to credence as the rest, 
 their variety itself gives rise to suspicion. Examples may be found in 
 
 the work of Petersen; Gleichnisse des Hern. p. 260. ^although the 
 
 number might easily be enlarged. 
 
2;56 THE PARABLES OV CHRIST- 
 
 §. XVII. 
 
 In the second place, the narration ought to be apt and con^ 
 sistmt in all its parts. If it were otherwise, it would not 
 please, and therefore would excite no desire \o learn ; (/) 
 and as it would be in many respects defective, it would da 
 little for the general recommendation of the doctrine, the intui- 
 tive knowledge and easy recollection of which it was designed 
 to aid : (g) least of all would it wear the gmh of probability, {h) 
 
 The subjects of the narration, therefore, must be such, that 
 the predicates necessary to express the nature of the subject 
 of the parable, may suit them. Hence it may happen that 
 a thing may be taken for the subject of the protasis, or 
 fictitious historj^ although it bear no close resemblance to 
 the subject of the apodosis, or truth conveyed,^ on account 
 of the agreement of its predicates wtth those of the apo-- 
 dosis. Of this the parable of the wise and fooHsh virgins 
 may serve as an example. Our Saviour, designing to re- 
 prove the folly of temporary Christians, {%) who would be 
 ready to accompany him (A:) to the regions of eternal happi- 
 ness, if his advent were to be immediate, but neglected to 
 lay a solid foundation of faith and piety, capable of enduring 
 a longer period,^' represented in a parable a number of per- - 
 
 (0 Coinp. Lu. viii. 13. (A) Matt. xxv. 13. 
 
 5 4 Where the predicates do not absolutely require any particular 
 subject as the most suitable, that would doubtless be preferred which 
 may be most significant. So what is related in Lu. x. 33. ss. might be 
 attributed to others as well as to the Samaritan, but the latter.is design- 
 edly introduced. See note 39. 
 
 SB The principal cause assigned (v. 13,) for watchfulness lest our 
 Lord at his return may find us unprepared, (v. 10,) is the ignorance of 
 the time when that return will take place, and the possibility that it may 
 be farther oiFthan we anticipate (v. 5). We are therefore to take care, 
 that in case we be found alive, we may be ready, not having lost our 
 faith and Christian virtue ; and that if he is to find us dead, the uncertain 
 time of death, which, as it finds us, will leave us for the judge (n. Cor. 
 V. 10. n. Tim. iv. 7. s.) may not have surprized us while unprepared, 
 and slackened in our zeal by the lapse of time 
 
THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. $SS 
 
 sons pin3paring to go out by uiglit and meet a bridegroom, 
 but not reflecting on the possibility that his conning might be 
 delayed, and neglecting to provide themselves \*^ith a sufficient 
 supply of oil, to feed their lamps, which in consequence, go 
 out, and they, while gone to purchase oil, are excluded fronj 
 the wedding. In this case, it is evident, a bride, who was 
 usually brought from her father's house by the bridegroom 
 himself, and would neither come late, nor be excluded from 
 the wedding, would not be a suitable object to represent the 
 procrastinating Christians in question, as the predicates ne- 
 cessary to express their character, would not apply to her : 
 while, on the other hand, they would perfectly suit the virgins 
 who were wont to go forth to meet the bridegroom, whom 
 it was proper, for that reason, to make the subject of the nar- 
 rative. A suflicient reason for the choice of the subject, then, 
 being discoverable in its predicates, which certainly have 
 their proper significations, no other w^as needed, nor can the 
 use of this image afford any ground for the inquiry, in what 
 the difference between the Christians whom it designates, 
 and those who are elsewhere called the bride of Christ, con- 
 sists. — To make use of another example, in Matt. xiii. 44, the 
 reason why the treasure is represented as hidden in the field, 
 appears to be, that if it had been represented as exposed, it 
 would either have belonged to no one, and so have been ob- 
 tainable without expense, which would not have suited the de- 
 sign of our Lord in his parable ; or, it must have been the sub- 
 ject of a direct purchase, in w^hich case this similitude would 
 differ in no respect frc«n the other of the pearl, (/) as that is a 
 species of merchantable treasure. Supposing it, then, to have 
 been the design of our Lord to convey the same instruction in a 
 twofold mgmner,^ he would not have done otherwise than re- 
 
 (Z) V. 45. s. 
 
 5 8 There could be no objection to thus illiistrathig the sarwie truth by 
 means of several parables, as the object of parabolic instruction is to 
 convey a more vivid knowledge of the subject than could be otherwise 
 obtained (^. IX.), and variety of illustration will more effectually ac 
 
 38 
 
25S 
 
 THE PARABLES OP CHRIST. 
 
 present the treasure to be bought, as hidden.^ It follows of 
 course that nothing can be necessarily inferred from the con- 
 cealment of the treasure as to any occult state of the heavenly 
 kingdom.! 
 
 complish that veiy end. In Matt. xiii. 44, for instance, we learn, it is 
 true, that the worth of the kingdom is so great as to deserve our efforts 
 to obtain it, in preference to all other matters ; and this is the more 
 forcibly pourtrayed by the significant manner in which we are informed 
 of the value of the treasure, it being represented as sufficient to warrant 
 the purchase of the field under the necessity of parting with every other 
 possession, simply because it contained that treasure, the image of the 
 heavenly kingdom. But the reasonableness of setting aside every other 
 pursuit in comparison with that of the kingdom of heaven is still more 
 strongly felt, when in another example (v. 45. s.) we are reminded bow 
 plainly accordant with common sense it is, to acquire what is more 
 valuable by foregoing things of less worth. In the same chapter, the 
 possibility of the great increase of the kingdom of God from small be- 
 ginnings, is more fully-shown by two examples of the increase of little, 
 things (v. 31. s. and 33,) than it could possibly have been by one. — The 
 propriety of the great pleasure taken by all good persons in the conver- 
 sion of sinners is held up to view too by our Lord, in Lu. xv., with the 
 more vividness, in proportion as he has shown, in a manner adapted 
 to the common sense of all, shepherd, woman, and father,* that in 
 similar cases all are actuated by the general principle of taking most 
 pleasure in the safety and preservation of such things as had previously 
 been thought in danger. 
 
 * [ Another reason for the insertion of this circumstance is given in 
 ^. XVIII. p. 78. Tr. ] 
 
 t [ In the parable of the leaven, on the other hand, while the actor 
 in the transaction represented (p. 65,) and the particular quantity of the 
 meal (p. 67,) are both unconnected with the signification of the para- 
 ble, the circumstance of the production of a change in the state of the 
 whole quantity of meal by a little leaven hidden within it, is the prin- 
 cipal point in the protasis. " Peculiar as this comparison is, none could 
 be found which should more justly characterize the nature of the pro- 
 gress of the gospel. Not compelling proselytes by force of arms, as the 
 religion of Mohammed afterwards ; but so hidden at first, that we are 
 obliged to seek carefully for traces of its growth in the history of na- 
 tions ; yet maintaining its place, and effecting its purpose ; gradually meli- 
 orating the laws, and changing the moral aspect of the countries where it 
 it was received! and insinuating its renovating views of God and man 
 
 * [ See an excellent sermon on these three parables in connexion, 
 by Waterland, Sermons, Vol. i. Serm. xvr. p. 170. ss. ed. 1776. Tr. ] 
 
IflE 1'ARA6LES OF CHRIST. *259 
 
 §. XVIII. 
 
 To- fender the narration apt, (m) especial care must be 
 taken in the arrangement and connexion of its several parts.^ 
 Whenever, therefore, it is impracticable to reduce the prin- 
 cipal parts of the narration, on which the knowledge of the 
 thing signified properly depends, into some certain and apt 
 order, without the introduction of other parts having no re- 
 semblance to the thing signified, such adjectitious parts may 
 with propriety be inserted.*^ Of this the parable of the 
 tares (n) may serve as an example, since Christ himself, when 
 interpreting that parable, (o) lays no stress upon the questions 
 of the servants, (/?) thus intimating that it was not his inten- 
 tion to foreshow by them any wonder on the part of the 
 apostles at the admission of bad men into his church, or any 
 attempt of theirs by prayer to obtain divine directions on the 
 subject : all occasion for such wonder he was at that vefy 
 time removing, by the doctrine conveyed in the parable it- 
 self {q) But there would have been no suitable place in the 
 narration for the answer in which that doctrine is contained, 
 if previous mention had not been made of the notice of the 
 tares by the servants and their conversation with their mas- 
 ter ; these incidents affording the occasion for that principal 
 part of the narration, in v, 26. s.^^ — Nor does the divine 
 
 (m) {. XVII. («) Matt. xiii. 24. ss. (o) tJ. 37. ss. 
 
 (p) V. 27. s. (j) V. 29. s. 
 
 into the heart of those with whom it came in contact." Summer, Evir 
 dences, p. 130. ed. Am., who refers to Benson, Hulsean Lectures, Disc, 
 xi. Vol. I. Tr. ] 
 
 5 7 C<ymp. Lessing, Diss, i p. 135. ss. 
 
 5 8 These are of no disservice to the more essential parts, as the lat- 
 ter are even brought more plainly into notice by the obviousness of the 
 fact that the others are subordinate to them, and invented and intec- 
 woven with them solely on their account. 
 
 5 9 In like manner the notice of the murmurs of the labourers in 
 Matt XX. 11. s- is not to be considered as a prophecy of any disposition 
 of men in this life to dispute against the arrangements of Proyidence ; 
 
2i}0 Till: PARABLES OF CHRISl. 
 
 teacher, in his interpretation, (r) give any warning to his 
 apostles and other teachers of his rehgion, to beware of be- 
 coming sources of evils in the church through their drowsiness 
 and neghgence of their official duties. This rule, however 
 true and salutary in itself, is certainly not conveyed in the 
 parable in question, (5) since in that it is not the servanis oi 
 the master, (t) but men in general that are introduced as 
 sleeping, and the reply of the master to his servants (u) is en- 
 tirely devoid of any appearance of rebuke. It was in order 
 to introduce the declaration in v. 29. s., an essential part of 
 the narration, that the tares are represented as having been 
 sown without the knowledge of the servants, and thus, when 
 
 (.') V. '27. <u) r. 28, ss. 
 
 much less of any conduct of theirs iu the life to come ; provoked in ei- 
 ther case by the Divine determination to reward with the same benefits 
 as he will confer on others (xx. 9. s. 12,) and perhaps even more speedi- 
 ly, (v. S' 16. xix. 30,) either in this life or in the next, (v. 29,) such per- 
 sons as, although they may seem to have done less in his service, and 
 to have been less time devoted to it, nevertheless possess a higher de- 
 gree of excellence of character (fx^kro/, v. 16,*) are free from reliance 
 on their OAvn deservings (comp. xix. 27.), and are tiioroughly imbuetl 
 •with a sense of his free and unmerited favour towards them. On the 
 contrary, the only object of the mention of those murmurs was, to in- 
 troduce the answer (xx. 13 — 15,) which is the principal point in con- 
 nexion with the apodosis, and by declaring the supreme right of God to 
 dispense the blessings of this life and that to come according to his plea- 
 sure, rather tends to prevent the occurrence of such murmurs. 
 
 *■ [ Such a meaning is undoubtedly attributable to iKhtKTos in some 
 passages of the N. T. (See Schleusner, in voce No. 1. 4; Wahl, 
 No. 2. a. b.) But in Matt. xx. 16, the expression vof^oi yx^ uat kxutoi, 
 ohiyot «r« tK\tKtci is certainly of similar import with the same expression 
 as used in xxii. 14. and in this latter passage, no mere excellence of cha- 
 racter, but separation, distinction from the great ftiass, is evidently the 
 idea which tKhtK^uc is intended to convey. The contrast is in both 
 places between the many who make pretensions to the character of fol- 
 lowers of Christ, and the comparatively /ew who really possess that cha- 
 racter, and are distinguished by it from the rest, in this case, of the Jewish 
 nation, — in other passages where the word is used, of the world. See 
 Matt. xxiy. 22, 34. 31. and oomp. Tit. i. 1- J. Pet. i. 1. Tr.-} 
 
fHE FARABLLS OF CHRIST. 261 
 
 noticed, (v) exciting their surprize : (w) for such a proceeding, 
 the uight (a;) when men are accustomed to sleep, (?/) would 
 be the most appropriate tinie. If the tares had been repre- 
 sented as sow n with tlie knowledge of the servants, it would 
 have been their duty to have hindered the enemy from doing 
 it, there would have been no room for their com[)laint and the 
 promise of extirpation made to them, {2) and the lenient re- 
 commendation of patience by the master, (a) which is of so 
 much importance to the subject of the parable, would have 
 been improper. — The same account may be given of the sleep 
 in the parable of the virgins, (h) It undoubtedly was intro- 
 duced, not as a defect in the wise virgins, who, on the con- 
 trary, are an example of vigilance, (c) and prudent circum- 
 spection ; (d) but on account of its being necessary to the or- 
 der of the narrative* The design of our Saviour in the para- 
 ble (c) required that the cause of the exclusion of the foolish 
 virgins should be, their neglect to furnish themselves with oil. 
 They would not have been excluded, had they perceived the 
 approaching extinction of their lamps before the oil was quite 
 exhausted. For if the bridegroom had come early, the oil 
 that yet remained would have been sufficient for their pur- 
 pose ; or if his coming had not been more timely known, (f) 
 there w^ould have been an opportunity of purchasing {g) a 
 fresh supply. It was therefore necessary to represent them 
 as having only perceived the extinction of tlieir lamps when 
 the oil was already exhausted, and the bridegroom near at 
 hand. It was also necessary to suppose the wise virgins to 
 have slept as well as the others, lest it might have been ob- 
 jected to their answer in v. 9, that they had neglected to ad- 
 monish their companions of their danger while there w^as yet 
 an opportunity to avoid it, although, haying been awake, they 
 must have known it.— It would be equally improper to lay stress 
 on the word sk§v^s in Matt. xiii. 44, which has no bearing on the 
 subject of the parable, but is necessary to make the narrative 
 
 (V) V. 2G. {w) V. 27, (a-) Comp. Job. xxxiii. 15. 
 
 (y) And that witliout affording any ground of censure; Mar. iv. 37. 
 (») Matt. siii. 37, s. («) v. 29. s. (6) Matt. xxv. 5. 
 
 (c) v.\S. (d) ^.4. («) 6. XVII. 
 
 ( O V. 6. . (§•) V. 9. s. '' ' ^.# **' 
 
ii(}5i. 
 
 THE PARABLES OP CHWS'J 
 
 complete, as it would have been folly to purchase a field on 
 account of the treasure it contained, while that very treasure 
 w^as left exposed, and liable to be removed in the meanwhile. 
 In Matt, xviii. 23. ss. it is in order to render the com- 
 mencement of the parable less abrupt,^" and to smooth the 
 transition to its proper subject in v. 24, that the king is repre- 
 sented as taking account of his servants generally, (k) and by 
 that means occupied in hearing others (i) while the merciless 
 servant withdrew,*^' and ignorant of what he did without .^^ 
 Thus the passage in v. 31, became necessary, to connect this 
 portion with the remainder of the parable, (k) although it has 
 no part in the application of the whole, since a relation of the 
 kind which it describes must certainly be unnecessary to the 
 Deity. (/) There are many things of this sort in the para- 
 ble of the prodigal son ; (m) where, for instance, we are not 
 to look for any particular signification in the division of the 
 father's goods, (w) or in the departure of the prodigal.* (o) 
 
 (h) V 
 
 .23. 
 
 (i) . Comp. V 
 
 .24. 
 
 ik) V. 
 
 .32. 
 
 ss. 
 
 (Z) V. 
 
 35. 
 
 m) Lu. XV. 
 (0) V. 13. 
 
 11. ss. 
 
 in) V. 
 
 12. 
 
 
 6 So in Lu. xvi. the compulsion of the steward to render his account 
 is not abruptly introduced, but the way to that event is prepared by the 
 mention of the accusation {S'tiCx}iBn) in v. 1. 
 
 6 1 Our Saviour's representation of the cruelty of the man to his fel- 
 low servant, as having occurred when he was scarcely out of the pre- 
 sence of his judge, who was yet sitting, and taking account of his fel- 
 low servants, tends to excite in us the greater detestation of the man who 
 can so far forget the mercy and indulgence of God, of which he con- 
 tinually stands in need, as to be unmerciful to his fellow men. 
 
 6 2 The subject of the narration being a human monarch, was to be 
 described with all the characteric-.tics of a 7nan. Co nip. also ctxa; in Lu- 
 XX. 13. a'.d also Lu. xv. 18. '21. (§. XIV. end). 
 
 * [ With respect to the former of these examples, it is so evidently a 
 piece of ihe necessary machinery of the story, and so little connected 
 with the general scope of the parable, that there can be no doubt of the 
 correctness of S torr's remark. But it appears very questionable whether 
 the removal of the prodigal to a far country has no bearing on the apo- 
 dosis of the parable. The sin against the father (v. 18. 21.) could only 
 Lave consisted in the demand of a division of his goods, and this departure. 
 The latter alone ^jan be alluded to in the expressions Kiwgcf ntf and «t?ro- 
 
THE PARABLES OP CHRIST. 203 
 
 The latter was introduced because it would be incongruous 
 to represent an indulgent (p) father suffering his son to sink 
 *to such a pitch of disgrace and misery (7) if he were resident 
 in the same place, so that his necessity must have come to the 
 knowledge of the father. The other was introduced in order 
 that we might perceive the poverty, (r) which so strongly de- 
 picts the misery of sinners, {s) to be the consequence of the 
 son's own crimes, and for the purpose of setting in a stronger 
 light the mercy of the father towards his son who had no 
 right to expect any more from him than he had already re- 
 ceived. (0 See the passage of Cocceius, quoted in note 48. 
 
 §. XIX. 
 
 All these minor discrepancies between the narration and 
 the thing signified {u) will create less difficulty to us, if we 
 carefully attend to the fact, that the great cause of the utility 
 of parables is that they do not immediately present to notice 
 the thing signified itself, but first prove that with reference to 
 some other thing, which they are designed to teach concerning 
 it. The construction of language therefore, in' which the narra- 
 tive is clothed, should be such that it may bear inspection hy 
 
 (p) V. 20. (9) V. 15. s. (r) V. 14—16. 
 
 {S) §. XIV. end. (0 v. 19, end, and v. 30. (w) §. xvi — xviit. 
 
 xaXflDf »?(». 24, 32,) which are the only epithets used by the fatherto desig- 
 nate the former miserable condition of his son. In fact, in any case, the 
 entire separation from the paternal care and superintendence would be a 
 weighty cause of complaint, but is more particularly heinous in the East, 
 where the distinction of tribes, &c., is religiously observed, and the pater- 
 nal authority is much more strictly exercised than in western nations. 
 Now the sins of the prodigal against his father are certainly an import- 
 ant part of the protasis of the parable, corresponding to the sinfulness of 
 men, and their liability to the just wrath of God in the apodosis. If, then^ 
 the departure of the prodigal be a prominent part of his offences against 
 his father, and these essential to the meaning of the parable, it is surely 
 
 improper to place the former in the low rank assigned to it by Stork 
 
 Tr] 
 
U64: 
 
 THE PARABLES OF CURtST. 
 
 itself as cm indepmdent whole, and afford satisfactioh when so 
 considered, and be perfect in its kind. Now as the thing nai^ 
 rated is distinct from the thing signified, some things may be 
 required to m:ike the narration of the former perfect, which 
 are unnecessary in the signification of the latter. The exist- 
 ence of this distinction cannot be any hindrance to the per- 
 ception of the signification, if we orAy acknowledge it, and seek 
 to discover the signification not so much from particular parts 
 of the narration, as from its whole context. This course is 
 plainly taught by our Lord himself,*^^ who, for example, com- 
 pares the kingdom of Heaven (t;) indiflferently to of frco^iire, 
 and to a merchant seeking pearls,^"^ which he could not have 
 done unless his intention had been that the whole context of 
 his narrations should relate to the kingdom of heaven, and so 
 should be understood to signify that the case of the kingdom 
 of heaven was similar to those of a man discovering a trea- 
 sure, or a merchant seeking pearls.*'' For certainly, in the 
 latter instance, the kingdom of heaven does not resemble the 
 single part of the narration which the merchant constitutes, 
 but rather that of the pearl, {w) But the case of the heaven- 
 ly kingdom — its value, and the manner in which it is to be 
 sought — agrees remarkably well with the zvhole history of the 
 merchant. 
 
 Again, if it were part of llie nature of a parable that the thing 
 signified and the narration should correspond so perfectly, a^ 
 that the former should be intelligible, not from the whole struc- 
 ture of the latter, but from its several individual parts ; how 
 then, (to use the words of Augustin ^'^ ) could the parable 
 prove any thing from its very dissimilitude? In the parable 
 of the unjust judge, {x) for instance, there certainly is no re- 
 semblance between the latter and the Deity, but it is the 
 
 (p) Malt. xiii. 44. (jv) v. 46. (x) Lu. xviii. 1. 
 
 6 3 Gomp. CAiixTtis, p. 185. s. 
 
 4 Gomp. similar formulae, v. 24. xxii. 2. xviii. 23. 
 
 6 5 Gomp. xiii. 18. 
 
 • « Lib. n. Quaest. Eyang. v. xiv. 0pp. Tom. iv. p. 358 
 
* THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. 265 
 
 ■whole histoiy concerning him (y) that conveys the purport of 
 the parable, (z) From this we learn that even an unjust 
 judge, wearied with the continual repetition of prayers for 
 justice, will deliver the innocent from injury ; there is far 
 greater (a) reason to expect that the perfectly/ just (6) judge of 
 all will willingly grant the continual (c) prayers of men who 
 are the objects of his love, {d) In the parable of the un- 
 just steward, (e) the repentant pubhcans (/) who spent their 
 unjustly gotten gains in acts of beneficence to the poor, (g) 
 and especially to the pious poor, {h) bear no resemblance to 
 the steward who aggravates his former guilt (i) by a new act 
 of dishonesty ; {k) nor is God like the master (/) who praised 
 an act of wicked cunning. The object of our Lord is to teach 
 by the whole narration : that " if that master praised the cun- 
 ning injury done himself, by which his steward, making a 
 dishonest use of his master's property, provided for his own 
 future wants in such a way that when he should have no fur- 
 ther controul over his master's goods, there should be some 
 at any rate that would receive him ; much more will God ap^ 
 prove the faithftd (m) use of ill gotten riches, in a way agree- 
 able to his will, (m) by a distribution of them among the poor 
 of your generation, (o) i. e. among my disciples, (p) in conse- 
 quence of which those beneficiaries will receive you, when 
 the goods of this world shall fail you, into the eternal habita- 
 tions of the blest, (q) — in other words, it will have the effect, 
 that you, having thus by the communication of your benefac- 
 tions to my worshippers, shown the sincere conversion of your 
 mind ^ from its former covetousness to me, and proved your 
 faithfulness by your care of greater riches, (?) shall re- 
 ceive from me {s) on whom you will have been conferring the 
 same benefits bestowed on them, {t) the reward of everlasting 
 
 (ij) V. 2—5. (z) V. 6—8. (a) Comp. xi. 13. 
 
 (6) Comp. n. Thess. i. 6. (c) v. 1. (d) c*cXc«ro)v, Lu. xviii. 7. 
 
 (e) Lu. xvi. 1. ss. (/) xv. 1. (g) xix. 8. 
 
 (h) xvi. 0. (i) xvi. 1. (k) V. 6. 7. 
 
 {D V. 8. (m) V. 10—12. (n) xii. 21. S3. 
 
 (o) yeveag, xvi. 8. (p) v. 1. (q) v. 9. 
 
 (r) V. 10—12. (.0 Mat. XXV. 34, (t) v. 35—40 
 
 34 
 
266 THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. 
 
 happiness." {u) — —In the parable of the prodigal son, the 
 Pharisees are not directly represented by the elder son, (v) for 
 they, who blamed the kindness of Christ to publicans and sin-., 
 ners, {w) were nevertheless as much degenerate sons of God', 
 as the publicans and sinners yet unconverted from their 
 sinful lives, (x) The reasoning of Christ appears to be as 
 follows : " if even they, who have long zvorshipped God, (y) — 
 if even those just ones who have never departed from his 
 ways, {z) have no right to make any objection («) to the great 
 pleasure which is taken by the good (6) in the conversion of 
 sinners ; hoiu much less ought you, who in fact are no better 
 than the sinners whom you despise, to find fault with my care 
 for the salvation of sinners ? " (c) — Lastly, the import of the 
 parable of the debtors, (d) is, that to whomsoever most sins 
 are forgiven, that man will be the most grateful in will and 
 deed, (e) a truth which is remarkably confirmed by the in- 
 stance of St. Paul. (/) Yet there is no need of concluding 
 from this parable that Simon, to whom in particular it was 
 applied, had been forgiven fewer sins (g) than the penitent 
 woman. The argument is this : " if he who has been for- 
 given fewest sins, is less at pains to show the love of which in 
 reality he feels less than one who has been forgiven so many ; 
 how much more is it to be expected that thou, who hast re- 
 ceived no forgiveness shouldst come far short in thy demon- 
 strations of respect and love, (/^) of this woman who has re- 
 ceived froiti me (i) forgiveness of many sins ? " {k) 
 
 §. XX. 
 
 Any thing intentionally signified by Christ in any of his 
 parables, is equally sufficient for the proof of doctrine with 
 any other of the sayings of our Lord. Such proof, therefore, 
 
 (u) V, 46. (v) Lu. XV. 25. ss. (w) v. 2. 
 
 (x) Comp. Mat. xxu 30. 32. xxiii. (y) v. 29. 3!. 
 
 («) V. 7. (a) V. 32. (6) v. 7. 10. 32. 
 
 (c) V. 1. s. (d) Lu. vii. 41. s. (e) v. 4,7. 
 
 (/) I. Tim. 1 12. ss. (g) Comp. Lu. vii. 47. (h) v. 44. ss. 
 
THE PARABLES Of CHRIST. 267 
 
 may be very properly derived, not only from the authentic in- 
 terpretation of any parable, whether full, as in Matt. xiii. 19. 
 ss., 37. ss., or more general and brief ;(/) but also from the 
 fictitious narration, or all such parts of it as are not inserted 
 merely for the purpose of preserving its historical form or keep- 
 ing up the connexion, (m) but are plainly either altogether 
 superfluous, or else invested with a certain signification : what- 
 ever signification can be deduced from these by legitimate (n) 
 interpretation, is properly (o) a proof of the truth of any doc- 
 trine which it may contain.* But no such use can be made 
 of a rash accommodation of a parable to a subject foreign from 
 the known (p) design of the Saviour, as has been done by 
 those who have found in the parable of the good Samari- 
 tan, (q) Mam under the figure of the way-laid traveller, 
 Christ ^ under that of the good Samaritan,t (r) and a number 
 of other allegorical and mystico-prophetical senses, (s) Nor 
 can anything be positively proved from such parts of the nar- 
 rative as may have been admitted only on account of its his- 
 torical form and connexion, {t) or from a too minute ^ in- 
 terpretation (m) of even the principal parts. To give an in- 
 stance of the legitimate use of parables in proof of doctrine ; 
 — in Matt, xxii., the parts of the parable which occupy verses 
 8 — 10 and 11 — 13, might have been omitted without any in- 
 jury to the completeness of the narration ; but, as they cannot 
 have been altogether useless, they must have a necessary apo- 
 
 (T) 5. XIII. beginning. (m) §. xvi. xviii. (n) {. xui. xiv. 
 
 (0) {.XV. (p) $. xni. XIV. (q) Lu. x. 30. 
 
 (r) V. 33. (s) See note 48. (0 §. xv— Xix. 
 
 (m) §. XIV. 
 
 * [ " Though every thing in a parable be not argumentative, yet the 
 scope of it is, as all divines acknowledge." Bull. Sermons ; Vol. i. Semi, 
 in. p. 63. Tr.1 
 
 6 1 Comp. Franzius de Interp. Orac. cxxiii. p. 763. s. 
 
 t [ See Ernesti's Elements of Interpretation. Stuart's Trans. §. 158, 
 note, p. 80. Tr. 1 
 
 « t Such, for instance, as should not recognize the existence oitynec- 
 doche, nor allow the possibility of a substitution of a species or individual 
 for a genus i but should every where consider the same 8peciC9 or in- 
 dicidml object to be intended. 
 
"i^S THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. 
 
 dosis of their own, and it may be very certainly inferred tironi 
 them, that the calling of the Gentiles was foretold by Christ, 
 arid that, he inculcated a diligent study to prepare the soul for 
 the possession of the blessings proffered by the gospel.^^ In 
 like manner, we need not hesitate to found an argument, as 
 has been done by Bucer {v) and Weisman, (w) on the phrase 
 viro rwv ay/sXwv, (a) in the parable of the rich man and Laza- 
 rus ; since there is nothing in all the structure of the narrative 
 to render that addition necessary, the narration being per- 
 fectly complete without it. There could therefore be no rea- 
 son ^° why our Lord should have mentioned the conveyance 
 of the soul of Lazarus to Paradise by a company of angels^ 
 except a design to signify some circumstance of the blessed- 
 ness of the pious dead. Nor can his intention be to convey a 
 general notion by this special illustration ; for that it was by 
 the providence of God that Lazarus was brought to Abraham's 
 bosom, is so evident, that the phrase ucro twv ayysXwv, if de- 
 signed to convey that meaning, would have been perfectly 
 needless. Hence we may believe '^ that our Savionr intend- 
 ed to point out,'^ in the example of the dying Lazarus, the 
 manner in which the divine providence is exercised towards 
 the good in the hour of death.— But, on the other hand, there 
 is no more reason for concluding from the same parable (a/) 
 that the souls of the blessed hold intercourse with other spirits 
 
 (V) Comm. in loc. (w) Inst. Theol. exegetico-dogm. p. 283. 
 
 (x) Lu. xvi. 22. (y) v. 23. ss. 
 
 e 9 We have already seen (note 52,) that the gradation of future re- 
 wards can be proved from Lu. xix. 17. ss. 
 
 7 e The reasons why the mention of this circumstance cannot be at- 
 tributed to accommodation to a common, but false, opinion of the 
 Jews, are given at length in the Dissertation on the Historic Sense. 
 
 1 » Nor does any objection arise from the nature of the thing itself, 
 as certainly the ministration of angels (Heb. i. 14,) is of all things least 
 incredible in that most important change of our condition. 
 
 ' 2 We have already seen ($. XIV.) that this may take placefin para- 
 bles which are not examples of the thing signified. It ought to create 
 much less surprize in such as are cxawp?w of the very thing signifieii. 
 (n.37). 
 
THE t>ARAHLES OF CHRIST. ^69 
 
 of the departed, than there is to infer from Lu. xii. 20, that 
 men are usually divinely premonished of their death. For 
 those who neither spoke nor acted, might be introduced by 
 Christ, in accordance with the parabolic usage, (z) as speak- 
 ing or acting, whenever there was a sufficient reason for the 
 fiction. But the precepts in xvi. 25. s. 31, would not have 
 been inserted in the narration, if some conversation had not 
 been invented. It cannot, therefore, be proved that the conver- 
 sation, which the historical form of the parable, (a) of itself, 
 rendered necessary, was introduced for the purpose of giving 
 us to understand that there is some intercourse between the 
 departed spirits of the good and of the wicked. - Nor does it 
 seem to follow from the speech of the rich man in v. 27. s. 
 that we ought to suppose the wicked solicitous for the salva- 
 tion of their survivors. We are rather to consider all that is 
 said by the rich man in v. 24. 27. s. as inserted merely for 
 the purpose of introducing (b) the instructions of Abraham,(c) 
 which form one of the principal parts of the parable, and, if 
 rightly explained, afford an ample fund of most important 
 and substantial doctrinal proofs. 
 
 §. XXI. ■ '-'•^'^ 
 
 There is no reason to consider the rules of interpretation 
 thus laid down as hnposing needless restraint upon the preacher 
 who may take a parable for his subject ; although it be our 
 firm persuasion that the popular interpreter should be govern- 
 ed by the same laws, and that the knowledge of Christians 
 generally should be founded, not on human ingenuity, but on 
 sure oracles of God, the force of which is beyond a doubt. 
 
 For in the first place, the inadmissibility of making every 
 thing out of any thing in a parabolic text, creates no peculiar 
 difficulty. The ordinary helps in homiletical interpretation 
 are not excluded from application to such passages. The 
 part of the preacher is to make use of the doctrine legitimate- 
 
 (z) J. in. (a) 5. XVI. (6) $. xvni. (c) v. 25. 8.,25, 31, 
 
^70 THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. 
 
 ly {d) derived from the parable, just as he would of that drawn 
 from any other part of the Scriptures :— to confirm it with 
 proof from holy writ, and from the nature of tlie subject ;— - 
 to define its meaning accurately and illustrate it by examples ; 
 —to show its connexion with other doctrines and their mutual 
 dependance on each other ; — and to apply the whole to practi- 
 cal use. 
 
 Take for example that one point of the immoderate care 
 for earthly goods, which is the true object of the parable in 
 Lu. xiv. 16. ss. What ample field of disquisition and what 
 useful matter it affords, if the preachw be prepared rightly to 
 explain the vice and prudently distinguish it from a lawful re- 
 gard for earthly things ; — to explain the evils of such immo- 
 derate care from the context (e) and other passages of Scrip- 
 ture, considered together with the nature of the subject ; — 
 and to produce incitements of different kinds, and helps, for 
 surmounting an immoderate attachmeht to this world 1 — In 
 like manner, the parable of the good Samaritan is already suf- 
 ficiently full of meaning and useful in its application to ob- 
 viate all necessity of resorting to the allegorical interpretation 
 already mentioned (/) or any hke it. 
 
 Often it is even possible to introduce the particular applica- 
 tions, which it would be rash to deduce from the parable itself, 
 in a discussion of the general doctrine which the parable 
 really does convey. So in the parable of the prodigal (g) 
 it would be improper to consider the several marks of the 
 father's joy and pity as proofs of so many benefits of God 
 to men ;* but as these particulars, collectively taken, desig- 
 
 (d) §. XX. (e) Note 43. (/) §. xx. (g-) Lu. xvi. 22. s. 
 
 * [ Sumner, for instance, a writer generally remarkable for sound 
 judgment, has certainly erred in considering the circumstance in the 
 narration that when the returning prodigal ' was yet a great way off' 
 his father ran to him, and affectionately greeted him — as a representa- 
 tion of the eo-operating grace of God. Apostolical Preaching, p. 127. 
 The design of the parable is to express the willingness of God to receive 
 repentant sinners, and his pleasure in their conversion ; it does not re- 
 late to the means by which that event is brought about. Tr. ] 
 
THE PARABLES OP CHRIST. 271 
 
 iiate generally the great mercy of God towards repentant sin- 
 ners, for that very reason they afford an opportunity of re- 
 counting particularly these benefits from other parts of Scrip- 
 ture. 
 
 Secondly, the parabolic method may be turned into an ad- 
 vantage to the hearer, if the desire {h) of applying every par- 
 ticular of the parable directly to the thing signified, be avoided. 
 — For instance, the justice of the punishment of tliose who 
 esteem the things of heaven more lightly than those of 
 earth, may be much more vividly represented to the hearer 
 than it would be otherwise, if the master of the feast intro- 
 duced in the narrative, Lu. xiv. 16, be first proposed to his 
 consideration separately from any reference to God, and it be 
 left to his own judgment to decide whether that man might 
 not be justly offended with his guests, who at his previous in- 
 vitation had given him hopes of their appearance, but, when 
 he had made every preparation on their account, had not 
 scrupled to refuse to come. The effect of this will be, that 
 the hearer having perceived in another case, that the con- 
 tempt of proffered benefits may justly provoke indignation, 
 vdll so much the more readily allow that contempt of the joys 
 of heaven, (i) even though unaccompanied by any enormous 
 sin against men, is a grievous crime, (k) In the same way it 
 may be practicable to throw no small degree of light upon 
 the minor parts of the narration,"^ and thus to prove generally 
 the great wisdom of its author ; — a popular method of de- 
 fending the authority of Scripture which seems worthy of par- 
 ticular attention. For example, if we examine the whole series 
 of the narration in Lu. xiv. 16. ss. it will appear much more 
 plainly how ill the giver of the feast must have taken the con- 
 tempt of his entertainment, since he preferred inviting the 
 most abject, (/) to leaving room for any of those who had des- 
 pised his invitation, (wi) For although God has invited the 
 
 (h) 5. XIX. (0 V. 14. s. ik) Add {. ix. end. 
 
 (0 V. 21.23. (m) r. 24. 
 
 " 3 Comp, Lu. X. (p. ) Matt, xviii. (note 61.) 
 
272 THE PARABLES OP CHRIST. 
 
 publicans (n) and gentiles, (o) to a participation of eternal 
 happiness, on the same terms as others ; yet Christ in this 
 place designedly omits to mention the great change (p) which 
 such persons must undergo if desirous of partaking of the 
 offered blessings', and considers them with reference only to 
 their first condition.* This he did for the purpose of more 
 vividly representing to the man for whose use the parable was 
 especially designed, (9) that persons longing after this world's 
 goods, be they ever so much more disposed toward Christ 
 than others, — be they ever so often affected with good de- 
 sires, (r) are so displeasing in the sight of God, that he will ad- 
 mit rather than them the veiy persons whom they despise as 
 wicked and idolaters, {s) to the possession of eternal happi- 
 ness. 
 
 Lastly, as even the Apostles often adopted the language of 
 the sacred writings, although in a sense different from that 
 which it possessed in the Old Testament f* it is certainly al- 
 lowable in the preacher to accommodate the particular parts 
 even of Ihe parables of Christ to his own purpose, although 
 that may differ from the original intention of our Lord, pro- 
 vided he do it with prudence and moderation. In doing this, 
 however, he must be careful never to appear to prove what- 
 ever doctrine he may advance, by the declarations of Christ, 
 but to speak plainly in his own name, and merely borrow his 
 expressions from the parable. — This liberty of accommodation 
 may be exemplified by Matt. xiii. 24. ss. To the demonstra- 
 tion derived thence, that the Lord wisely tolerates for the 
 
 (n) V. 21. (0) V. 23. comp, p. (p) Mat. xxii. 11. ss. 
 
 (j) Note Ao. (r) Lu, xiv. 15. («) Mat. viii. 11. s. xxi. 31. 
 
 ^ [ The very same peculiarity is observable in the parable of the 
 Pharisee and publican. The latter is represented as filled with the 
 deepest contrition and humility, it is true, but no mention is made of 
 any previous reformation. *' The true purport of the parable appears to 
 be, that an humble Publican, disposed towards repentance, is, with all his 
 ricei, more acceptable to God, than a proud censorious Pharisee, with^all 
 his strictness, sobriety, and regularity." Waterland, Serm. Vol. t. 
 p- 193. Of course the application is a /brfion. ZV. ] ■ 
 
 ■''* Comp. Diss, de sensu historico, ^. XXIV. 
 
THE PARABLES OF CHRIST. 273 
 
 present the wicked in his church, whence they are ultimately 
 to be separated, the preacher might, with the utmost propriety, 
 join an admonition that every one for his own part guard 
 against evil as carefully as possible. In doing this, we see no 
 reason why he might not make use of the expression, " it is 
 therefore not allowable in us to sleep " although the words of our 
 Lord {t) to which it alludes, have not the signification it would 
 attribute to them, (m) But we take for granted that this pas- 
 sage would not be adduced as proof, but that the proof of the 
 doctrine would be derived from other passages of Scripture, 
 and from the very nature of the subject. 
 
 (0 V. 25. iu) 5- xviiz. 
 
 35 
 
1(^ 
 
 NO TRACES OF THE GNOSTICS 
 
 AHE TO BE FOUND 15 THE 
 
 NEW TESTAMENT. 
 
 A DISSEKTATION 
 
 BY 
 
 C. C. TITTMANN- 
 
 THA.NBLATED FROST THE LATIN, 
 
 BY MANTON EASTBURN, M. A. 
 
 RECTOR OF THE CHURCH OF THE ASCENSION, NSW-VORK. 
 
V^ OF THE '/^ 
 
 ■w^^ 
 
 NO TRACES OF THE GNOSTICS 
 
 IN THE 
 
 NEW TESTAMENT. 
 
 Among the adversaries of the Christian religion, there ap- 
 pear to have been some, who, on account of a certain pecu- 
 liar knoveledge (yvwtf<s) which they professed to possess of 
 things divine and human, presumed to distinguish themselves 
 by the pompous name of Gnostics. It is not necessary to 
 enter here into a lengthened discussiun, as to the nature of 
 this knowledge of theirs ; my object being rather to inquire 
 into the period at which it took its rise. It would moreover 
 be entirely impracticable ; for such a discussion would re- 
 quire a whole volume, if we would repeat all that learned 
 men have written, and that too with much profound erudition, 
 on the character of the Gnostic philosophy. Those who 
 are desirous of acquiring an accurate acquaintance with 
 this subject, may obtain it by examining these writers. 
 Among them may be mentioned Hammond, in his Diss. I. de 
 Episcopatu, and his Annotations on the New Testament : Jac 
 Thomasius, who was the first to publish any thing worthy of 
 commendation on the subject of the Gnostics, in his work 
 " de Originibus Hist. Phil, et Eccles. ;" but especially Beau- 
 soBRE, in his learned work entitled, " Histoire Critique de Ma- 
 nichee et Manicheisme ;" Mosheim, Institutiones H. E. maj. 
 p. 136 s. and 339 s. — Diss, de Caus. suppos. Libr. inter Christ., 
 
37S NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTICS ^ 
 
 in Dissert, ad H. E. pert. Vol. i. p. 223 s., and in many other 
 places ; Brucker, Hist, Crit. Phil. T. ii. p. 639 s. ; and vi. p. 400 
 s. ; Walch's Hist, of heresies, P. i. p. 224 s. ; and above all, the 
 learned Semler, in his Hist, dogmat. fidei, prefixed to Baum- 
 garten's Polemical Theolog}% Tom. i. p. 121 s. and in Sel. 
 Capita H. E. T. i. p. 22. 40 ss. A summary account of the 
 whole Gnostic system has been given by Schroeckh, H. E. 
 Tom. I. p. 338 s. and Tom. ii. p. 348 s. — Leaving this out of 
 the question, therefore, I shall proceed, in order to avoid the 
 appearance of vagueness and ambiguity, to state the precise 
 subject which I propose t6 discuss. The reader is not to 
 suppose, that I consider all which has come down to us re- 
 specting the Gnostics and their errors, as nothing better than 
 idle fictions ; which is the ridiculous opinion of Arnold, 
 in his Hist. Eccles. et Haeres., and has been long ago explod- 
 ed by Mosheim and others. Nor can I absolutely deny, that, 
 about the time of Christ, and a little before, there was in use 
 among the Persians, and those neighboring nations which, 
 according to the Hebrew mode of speaking, w^ere properly 
 called Oriental,* a certain kind of philosophy, or even of the - 
 
 * It must be borne in mind that the Hebrews called those nations East- 
 ern, who lived between Egypt and the Euphrates, namely, the Persians 
 and Arabians ; and the region inhabited by them, the East, jj-jp ; as 
 
 in Gen. xvi. 12. xxv. 6, where Abraham is said to have sent away the 
 sons of his concubines, i. e. of Keturahand Hagar, mp 2f>t<~'7K HOlp , 
 
 towards the East, into that country which is commonly called the East, 
 and in chap. x. 30, is termed DlpH IH* Hence, in Judges, vi. 3. and 
 
 Job, I. 3, the Arabians are called Dlp-'J3, vtoi avArohay, men who 
 
 dwell in the East ; and the Egyptians are distinguished from them in 
 I. Kings, IV. 30, where Solomon is said to have excelled the people of 
 the East, i. e. the Arabians, who were very famous for their wisdom, 
 especially in pointed sayings ; and the Egyptians. They styled them- 
 selves people of the East, in Arabic c^+£r^ , and are called by ns 
 Saracens. Jer. xlix 28, Hence the wise men, Matt. ii. 1, are said to 
 have come d^ro dyftToxav. And in this sense the term East should be 
 understood, in all inquiries on the subject of the Oriental philosophy : 
 the mind must not, therefore, go, in this treatise, to Western, or Jew- 
 ish Asia, and Greece ; much less to those European provincefs, which, in 
 any other case, are reckoned as part of the East. 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 
 
 279 
 
 ology, which, as it flourislied in the East, may be termed Ori- 
 riental ; although it was unknown by this appellation to all 
 antiquity, and embraced opinions respecting God, and the 
 origin of all things, both moral and naturah but chiefly the 
 latter. This has been long since shewn by learned men. 
 But whether, besides this philosophy, about which all are well 
 agreed, another, of a peculiar and different character, was cul- 
 tivated in Western Asia among the Greeks and Jews, which 
 Mosheim considers as properly the Oriental philosophy ; and 
 from this as the fountain-head, according to the opinion of 
 MosHEiM, 11. cc. and Brucker, Tom. vi. p. 407, sprang, 
 not in the time of Christ only, but even long before, a certain 
 new philosophy, viz. that of the Gnostics, (Mosheim, Instit. 
 H. E. maj. p. 142, and Brucker, Tom. ii. p. 642.) mixed up 
 with various and peculiar opinions of different sects , which 
 carried with it a new and mystical appearance of a more divine 
 philosophy, and constituted a peculiar system ; and, above all, 
 whether, already in the time of Christ and the Apostles, it had 
 spread from Egypt and Syria into Asia Minor and Greece, 
 was well known among the Jews in Palestine, was favorably 
 regarded by many, was made use of, in numerous instances, 
 for the purpose of confusing and deceiving the minds of 
 Christians, was diligently practised and studied with the view 
 of corrupting the pure doctrine by sundry errors, and of thus 
 weakening, unsettling, and at length altogether overthrowing 
 the foundations of the Christian religion, while as yet in its 
 incipient and growing state ; and defiled the whole world with 
 its iniquitous doctrines ; (Brucker, Tom. n. p. 639,) so that 
 the Apostles were obliged seriously to admonish Christians — 
 to prove the wickedness of the system in their writings — 
 and to establish and defend the truth of Christianity against 
 these its worst enemies — and so that, moreover, traces of this 
 philosophy are found in their writings, both in allusions to it, 
 in refutations of it, and in the mention of it by name ; — this 
 is the subject into which I propose to inquire ; and about 
 which, I confess, I entertain very strong doubts. 
 
 In order to proceed in the discussion of this question with 
 the greater advantage, I have thought it best to divide i^ 
 
280 NO TRACES OP THE GNOSlics 
 
 into two parts, the one historical, the other philological. In 
 the former, I shall bring forward the grounds upon which I 
 contend, that the philosophy of the Gnostics did not take its 
 rise in the time* of the Apostles, but at a later period, viz. in 
 some part of the second century ; and certainly was not be- 
 fore this time injurious to the cause of Christianity. In the 
 elucidation of this point, I shall adduce two separate kinds of 
 proofs : the one drawn from the express testimony of ancient 
 writers, the same being competent witnesses upon the sub- 
 ject ; the other, from their silence. At the end I shall subjoin 
 a brief discussion on the Oriental philosophy. In the philolo- 
 gical part, I shall mention the principal places of the New 
 Testament, in which traces of the Gnostic philosophy have 
 been commonly found, and shall endeavour to shew, that a 
 more suitable, and perhaps a more probable interpretation 
 may be given to these passages ; adding some few general ob- 
 servations at the last in regard to the opposite opinion to my 
 own, and in relation to the whole Gnostic philosophy, and its 
 sources and beginnings. I think that I have taken the correct 
 course for the discussion of the present inquiry. In proving 
 questions of fact, such as this is, the thing before all others 
 to be regarded is the order of time, which, it is obvious, is of 
 no little importance to either side, in determining upon the 
 credit to be attached to a representation. For, as the credit 
 to be placed in any thing is, rightly enough, considered to 
 be very sure, if it is suitable to the times with which it is 
 connected, and unless there are other circumstances which 
 lead to an opposite conclusion ; so this credit is destroyed, if 
 it can be shewn that what is related is unsuitable to the pe- 
 riod to which it is assigned : by which means numerous false- 
 hoods have been cleared away from history ; and it is with 
 truth asserted of chronology, that it brings history to the highest 
 possible degree of certainty. We must see first of all, then, 
 in the present instance, whether the philosophy in question 
 was, as early as the time of Christ and the Apostles, diffused 
 through so many parts of the world, and was pernicious to the 
 true doctrine. As I think it can be proved that this happen- 
 ed at a later period, that is, in the Second Century, it will 
 
IN THK NEW TESTAMEm". '281 
 
 immediately be seen what we are to conclude, in i^gard to 
 the alleged traces of the philosophy of the Gnostics in the 
 New Testament books. 
 
 Part I. historical. 
 
 I SHALL begin by mentioning the almost universal opinion, 
 and that entirely in my favor, of the ancient ecclesiastical 
 writers : among whom although there were some, who 
 thought that the doctrine itself of the Gnostics began in the 
 First Century, with Simon, Basilides, and others, yet they 
 agreed in this, that the name of Gnostics began to be used, 
 though indeed in rather an unfavorable sense, in the Second 
 Century ; for example, Irenaeus, adv. haeres. L. i. c. 24, and 
 m. 11, (which last passage is a subject of considerable contro»- 
 versy between Lardner, in his Supplement to the Credibility 
 of the Gosp. Hist. Vol. i. p. 383, and Michaelis, Einleit. ins N. 
 T. P. n.p. 1133, Gott. 1788.*) Jerom, de Script. Eccles. c. 
 21, and especially Epiphanius, in whom some passages occur, 
 which deserve to be mentioned. For instance, in Haer. 21, 
 he speaks of Simon, and says that he delivered fj^uCr^pia yvCxfsus 
 TTis rsKsiorarris ; and a little afterwards he adds, x-ai o-orug ap-)(s- 
 roLi TQM rva>tf'nxwv xaXoufjos'vwv >j dpx^- He undoubtedly means to 
 say, not that the name of the Gnostics, but their doctrine, 
 had its beginning, or rather was first broached, at that time. 
 For, in haer. 27,t he says ; xai sv&sv (i. e. in the times of Ani- 
 Cetus, of which he is speaking,) ysy ovsv vi dpx»j rvwCTixuv twv 
 xoXoujxsviJv. From which it is plain, that it was the opinion of 
 Epiphanius, that the Gnostics were first called by that name 
 in the time of Anicetus, i. e. in the Second Century. Which 
 was the opinion of Chrysostom also : certainly he evinces 
 great hesitation, and speaks with much caution, on i. Tim. vi, 
 as we shall see hereafter. 
 
 * [ Marsh's Michaelis, Vol. iii. Part i. pp. 278. 279. Lond. ISO?. -..Tr, I 
 ' [ Pa^e 108. Vol. 1, Ed. Paris, 1623 ; and Ed- Col 16^.— Tr. | 
 
 36 
 
282 NO TRACES OF THE GNOSTPCS 
 
 \ 
 
 Among the ancient ecclesiastical writers, however, tliere 
 were others also, and they very competent witnesses on this 
 subject, who expressly asserted, that neither the name of the 
 Gnostics, nor the heresy itself, existed in the time of Christ and 
 the Apostles, but that both prevailed about the time of Adrian, 
 and therefore in the Second Century ; and were a source 
 of trouble to the Christian church, after the Apostles were 
 dead. Let us now examine the testimony of these writers. 
 The most ancient is that of Clemens Alexandrinus, Strom. 
 L. VII. p. 764, ed. Sylburg. where he says, xarw 8s, \. e. after 
 the Apostles, of whom he had been speaking, *tp< rovg ASptavou 
 ^ou jSaCiXswg p(p6vouj, oi raj atp^tfsig sVjvo^fl'avrs^ ysyovatfi. Though 
 I am well aware, that this excellent work of the Stroma- 
 ta is in many places very difficult, and perhaps in some cor- 
 rupted, since we have not very many manuscripts, wherewith 
 to obviate this difficulty by various readings ; yet in the passage 
 before us, which is quite clear, I have never been able to per- 
 ceive what confusion or manifest error there is, as Mosheim 
 thinks, InstiK H. E. Maj. p. 315 ; though, as he himself has not 
 pointed out the precise confusion or error which he means, 
 I have diligently examined the whole place. Clement is em- 
 ployed to the end of Book vii, in refuting the opponents of the 
 Christian religion ; and principally in answering that objec- 
 tion, which is drawn from the existence of heretics. Having 
 advanced some sound arguments, and then, after his usual 
 manner, made a digression, he goes on to shew the antiquity 
 of the doctrine inculcated, and thence to determine its truth ; 
 and to exhibit, on the contrary, the novelty, and therefore the 
 corruption, of heresies. He goes back, therefore, as it were, 
 to the fountain-head, and shews that the commencement of 
 the delivery of the gospel doctrine was made by Jesus Christ 
 and his Apostles, while Augustus was emperor, and that its 
 termination was in the reign of Nero ; but that the absurdi- 
 ties of the Gnostics (for that it is of these that Clement 
 speaks, is very clearly shewn by the whole tenor of the 
 discourse,) began to be disseminated, and to be pernicious to 
 the pm'e doctrine, after the time of the Apostles, and some- 
 ^vhere in the reign of Adrian. He goes on to observe^ '^fiv 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAilENT. 
 
 28S 
 
 rfi'aj, ras jXSTaysvgo'Tepag raura?, xai Ta^ sVi toutojv uiTo/Ss^iixuia^, to) 
 ^(povw xsxaivoro/x^tf^ai 'Ka^cc/OLfCLy^sidas a\ps(^sis. From which he 
 draws the conclusion, that that doctrine only is true, which is 
 ancient Now I do not see how Clement, arguing against 
 the heretics of his time, would have gained any thing, or ad- 
 vanced his cause, by wishing to keep out of sight the antiqui- 
 ty of the heresy which he was opposing. Could not his op- 
 ponents, and especially those to whose CcrsfxvTjixaTa he opposed 
 
 TO. xara <n^v aXr)5>j 9»Xo(J'o(p»av yvwtfTixa uifo/xvr/fjLaTa (i. e. Commen- 
 taries on the true yvwrfi^, or knowledge, for this is the real title 
 of the Stromata,) have accused him of falsehood, and instant- 
 ly refuted his declaration, if he had attempted to deny any 
 thing, which was known by all, and certainly by them, just 
 as well as by himself? By such a course Clement would 
 surely not have considered the true interests of his cause. 
 But was he so totally ignorant, and so unacquainted with the 
 Gnostic philosophy, that nothing respecting it was fami- 
 liar to him, and therefore it is not to be wondered at, that he 
 committed an error of this kind ? So indeed Mosheim thinks, 
 Instit. H. E. Maj. p. 326. But quite differently Brucker, 
 who expressly says, that Clement not only was intimately ac- 
 quainted with the Greek philosophy, and is to be classed 
 among those ancient ecclesiastical writers who were most 
 distinguished for their knowledge of it, and for turning it to 
 the advantage of Christianity, Hist. Crit. Ph. Tom. iii. p. 
 304 ; but was also thoroughly skilled in Oriental history and 
 learning, Tom. vi. p. 410. And how could it be otherwise, 
 when Clement was born and Hved in Egypt, where, as 
 Brucker expressly states in more places than one, the Gnos- 
 tic philosophy was in very great repute ; and when, more- 
 over, he was the first to write against it ? This circumstance 
 ought certainly to give the more weight to his testimony. 
 Mosheim appears to have felt this difficulty ; for, in his 
 Institut. Hist. Eccl. Ant. et Rec. p. 56,* he supports his own 
 
 * [ Cent. I. Part ii. Ch. v. Sec 3, of Mosheim's Eccl. Hist, translat- 
 ed by MAeLAiNB.—Tr. ] 
 
*2S4 XO TflACKS OF THE GNOSTICS 
 
 opinion, but attempts to soften it down, by adding, that thtst 
 stray Jlocka did not arrive at any great number, confederacy^ 
 or reputation, before the time of Adrian : and in his Institut. H. 
 E. Maj. p. 310, he observes, those halfchristian sects, which 
 PERHAPS became united before the death of the Apostles, were 
 not numerous, nor well organized and established, because the 
 friends of our Saviour made every effort to prevent their gain- 
 ing strength ; although in p. 142, he says that the sect did not 
 arise when Christianity was beginning to pervade the whole 
 loorld, but was in existence long before; and Brucker himself 
 says, that Mosheim discovered, that the Gnostic philosophers 
 defiled the whole world with their depraved doctrines about the 
 time of the birth of Christ. Tom. ii. p. 639. Such continual 
 wavering is surely evidence enough of a doubtful cause. 
 
 Another very remarkable testimony is that of Hegesippus. 
 who lived in the time of Adrian, according to Eusebius, Hist. 
 Eccles. L. IV. c. 8, p. 121 ; though Valesius, in his note on 
 this place, doubts the truth of the statement. The testimony 
 referred to is to be found in Eusebius, Hist. Eccl. L. m. c. 
 32. p. 104 s. edit. Mogunt. ; and is as follows : 'fig apa 
 fiig^pi rwv TOTS "Xj^^r^y ^ap^s'vo^ xaSapa xa< d^ja(pSo/JO£; tfxsjvsv vi 
 sxxXyitfla, sv dS/iK(f) crou tfxoTSi (pwXsuovTOJV sjVsVi tots, twv, el xai TJVffj 
 y^^^j^ov, 'r:apa(p'hslp?iv i'r^i-)(Sfpo6vTuv tov vyirj xavova tou CwT*]pjou xtfipvy' 
 jftttTOff. *f2ff 5' Ispog TWV 'A-rrotfToXcov x°^^^ diacpcpov slK'/}(p£i tow /8iou 
 TsXoj, 'n'apBKri'Kv'^si rs '/j ysvsa sxeivi^ twv aMrcug dxoaTg Ty\z IvSe'ou tfo^iaj 
 gflr'axoutfaj xaTyi|iwfXsvwv, Tr^vwauTa t^j d^sou -rXavajj to^'v ctpp^oi'v sXafX- 
 €avsv ^\ (fC(f7a(fig, SioL T>jg twv iTS^o^i^atfxaXwv dcfaT-yj^. oi' xai otTS 
 IXTjSsvog gTj TWV 'A's'oo'to'Xwv Xsj'Tojxgvou, yufjLv^ Xoicrov ^8yi t^ xs^aXof, 
 Tw T^jg dXiidefag xyjpuy/xaTi ttj'v -vl^sufJwvujAov yvwtfiv dvTJXvj/ji^TTeiv ^<n's- 
 XSjpouv. ' After this Hegesippus adds ;' " that the church un- 
 til this time, (viz. that of Adrian) remained as a virgin, pure 
 and uncorrupted, while those who were endeavoring to cor- 
 rupt the sound standard of the preaching of the gospel, hither- 
 to lay hidden in dark obscurity. But after the sacred compa- 
 ny of the Apostles had terminated their lives in various ways, 
 and the generation had passed away of those who had been 
 deemed worthy to listen, with their own ears, to the divine 
 Wisdom himself, then arose the conspiracy of impious error. 
 
IN 'iHFi NEW TESTAMENT. '285 
 
 liirougli the deceit of strange teachers ; who, as none of the 
 Apostles now remained, attempted, from this period, to pro- 
 claim, in opposition to the preaching of the truth, that know- 
 ledge (yvojtfiff) of theirs, falsely so called, without shame 
 or concealment/' — A plain and very clear testimony, surely, 
 is this. But is it also certain and unquestionable ? Mosheim 
 considers it as by no means such : for he thinks, in the first 
 place, that the authority of Hegesippus is not of any great 
 weight ; and secondly, that he is not speaking of the whole 
 Christian world, but only of the church of Jerusalem ; and 
 that he is relating, that this church enjoyed tranquillity and 
 peace until the time of Simeon the bishop ; when it began to 
 be distracted and disturbed by some men, who were more 
 fond of their own glory than of the truth. As to the first ob 
 jection, it seems hardly just to make such an assertion of 
 Hegesippus, without any reason being mentioned : for it is 
 very evident that this writer was not only learned, but also 
 diligent and w^orthy of credit ; and he receives this commen- 
 dation both from Eusebius, Hist. Eccl. L. iv. c. 8, and Pho- 
 Tius, who have recovered some fragments of him from the 
 spoils of time. As for the other objection, so far from fa- 
 voring the views of my opponents, it is directly against them, 
 and completely agrees with my own. So then the Gnostic 
 philosophy, by the confession of the learned men from whom 
 I differ, did not spread through all the churches of the world I 
 So it did not, in the time of Christ and the Apostles, conta- 
 minate the whole world with its iniquitous doctrines ! But 
 there were some churches, and, among these, if you please, 
 that of Jerusalem, which remained pure, and were not cor- 
 rupted by wicked doctrines. I might, therefore, without any 
 injury to my own side of the question, agree with Mosheim, 
 that this passage of Hegesippus is to be understood only of 
 the church of Jerusalem. But even this is unnecessary, 
 since Eusebius himself did not consider it as referring to that 
 alone ; as appears plainly from Hist. Eccl. L. iv. c. 22. p. 
 142 s, where he cites other passages of the same Hegesippus, 
 from which it is evident, that this writer attributed to other 
 churclfes, in which he himself was, viz. the .Corinthian and the 
 
^M6 NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTICS , 
 
 Roman, the same purity of doctrine, which in the above^ 
 mentioned passage he had commended in the church of Jeru- 
 salem. Valesius, indeed, as Mosheim has also observed, 
 finds fault with Eusebius, in his note on the place under dis- 
 cussion, for understanding the words of Hegesippus to apply 
 to the whole church : he does not, however, deny the fact it- 
 self, as may be seen by his observations on L. iv. c. 7, where 
 he says, that Eusebius correctly states that the heresy of Ba- 
 silides began in the reign of Adrian ; for^ he adds, the heretics 
 first began to emerge from obscurity, and to raise their heads t 
 when, the Apostles being all dead, they thought that a good op- 
 portunity was now come for spreading their erroneous doctrines. 
 And, in short, the passage of Eusebius just referred to is 
 abundantly clear ; for he there very plainly assigns the Gnos- 
 tics to the time of Adrian ; and shews, principally from the 
 testimony of Irenaeus, that there lived at the same period one 
 Carpocrates, the founder of a sect, called Gnostics* 
 
 But let us turn to another testimony, that of Firmilian, 
 bishop of Caesarea ; which is found in a letter to Cyprian, 
 and is among the Epistles of the latter. It is as follows : 
 " Quantum ad id pertineat, quod Stephanus dixit, quasi 
 Apostoli eos, qui ab haeresi veniant, baptizari prohibuerint, et 
 hoc custodiendum posteris tradiderint, plenissime vos re- 
 spondistis, neminem tam stultum esse, qui hoc credat Apos- 
 
 * [ Notwithstanding the ingenuity which the author has here displayed 
 in his argument, it must certainly be admitted, that there is no little dif- 
 ficulty connected with these passages of Eusebius to which he refers. 
 The inference as to the period at which Hegesippus lived, drawn by Eu- 
 sebius from the words of that writer, as he has given them to us in Lib. 
 IV. c. 8. p. 121 s, seems to be by no means well-founded ; and the testi- 
 mony of Hegesippus in Lib. in. c. 32. p. 104 s, of Euseb. if examined 
 in connection with the note of Valesius, will be found to be so vague, 
 as to leave the questioi^ of a general application to the church at large, 
 or of a particular reference to that of Jerusalem, quite open and unde- 
 cided. One thing, however, is clear ; that, whether Hegesippus was de- 
 scribing thepure state of the church universal, or of one particular sec- 
 tion of it, the inference is fully warranted, that the Gnostic heresy was 
 not, during the time of the Apostles, generallv known and diffused.— 
 Tr.-] 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 287 
 
 tolos tradidisse, quando etiam ipsas haereses constet execra- 
 biles et detestandas postea extitisse ; cum et Marcion, Cer- 
 donis discipulus, inveniatur sero post Apostolos et post longa 
 ab iis tempora sacrilegam adversus Deum traditionem indux- 
 isse, Apelles quoque blasphemiae ejus consentiens, multa alia 
 nova et graviora fidei et veritati inimica addiderit. Sed et Va- 
 lentini et Basilidis tempus manifestum est, quod et ipsi post 
 Apostolos et post longam aetatem adversus ecclesiam Dei 
 sceleratis mendaciis suis rebellarint. Cseteros quoque haere- 
 ticos constat pravas suas sectas et inventiones perversas, 
 prout quisque errore ductus est, postea induxisse." "As 
 for that which Stephen has said, as though the Apostles for- 
 bade those to be baptized who came over from heresy, and de- 
 livered this as a rule to be observed by those who should suc- 
 ceed them, you have very completely answered, that there is 
 none so absurd as to believe that the Apostles made any such 
 regulation : since it is plain that even these execrable and 
 abominable heresies themselves arose at a subsequent 
 PERIOD ; for Marcion, a disciple of Cerdo, is found to have in- 
 troduced his impious tenets long after the time of the Apostles ; 
 and Apelles, agreeing with him in these bfasphemous senti- 
 ments, added to them many new and more heinous doctrines 
 in opposition to faith and verity. Again, in regard to the 
 period of Valentine and Basilides, it is well known that, by 
 their infamous falsehoods, they rebelled against the church of 
 God, subsequently to the days of the Apostles, and after a 
 long interval of time. It is evident, also, that the other here- 
 tics introduced their different depraved sects, and wicked no- 
 tions, according as each one was led away by error, at a sub- 
 sequent period." 0pp. Cyprian, edit. Baluz. p. 144. and 
 Bremens. p. 219.* — Is it possible, therefore, that the doctrine 
 of the Gnostics could have been spread far and wide in the 
 time of the Apostles, if, as we are assured on the authority of 
 Firmilian, heresies did not arise till afterwards ? J am not, in- 
 deed, ignorant of what learned men advance, in order to 
 
 * C Page 219 s. Ed. Oxon. 1683.— Tr. ] 
 
288 * NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTICS 
 
 weaken the force of this testimony ; viz. that heresies are men- 
 tioned by St. Paul himself, and are enumerated among the 
 works of the flesh ; i. Cor. xi. 19. Gal. v. 20 : and also that 
 instances of heretics are adduced in the New Testament, as 
 Alexander, Hymenaeus, the Nicolaitans, Simon Magus, and 
 others. These objections, however, may soon be answered. 
 The word aipstfi?, in the sense in which it is used of one, who, 
 while he professes himself a Christian, dissents from the 
 truth delivered in Holy Scripture, and so dissents, moreover, 
 that his difference of opinion relates to some doctrine of re- 
 ligion, on the removal of which the very foundation of the 
 faith is weakened and overthrown ; and who, finally, so de- 
 fends this antichristian opinion, that he founds some new sect, 
 distinct from the Christian church, — is unknown through the 
 whole volume of Scripture ; but obtained that signification in 
 subsequent times. At^sifts is used in Scripture to denote the 
 party to which any one belongs; as atpsiftc twv la88ovxaiuv. 
 Acts, v. 17. L e. the sect of the Sadducees, in an inoffensive 
 sense ; ai'pstfig (papi(ra«wv, xv. 5, called in xxvi. 5, dxpi(3s<iTDL7Yi 
 aVpetfig ; and xxiv. 14, which passage is likewise in point. And 
 the use of ai'^etfis in this sense is borne out by the authority of all 
 the best Greek writers. For (1 add this for the benefit of young 
 persons who are studying the language,) aipeCig is equivalent to 
 •nr^oai^gtfi^, and a'l^sitf&ai to 'jepoaipsT(f&ai ; for it is a mistake to suppose 
 that the preposition •n'^o is at all emphatic, since it is plain, from 
 the usage of the best writers, that frequently there is no force 
 in the prepositions -Jf^o, rrs^t^ sx, rfOv, dva, &c., joined to words, 
 and therefore no regard to be had to them in the interpreta- 
 tion. But Demosthenes frequently uses cr-poajpstfj^ in the sense 
 of the sect, or party, either of the Optimates, or the Populares, 
 to which any one is attached ; and flr^oaj^src^ai also means, with 
 him, to follow the party either of the Optimates, or the Po- 
 pulares. But in the same sense in which he has used crpoai- 
 psftf^ai and "Tpoalpstfj^, he employs, in another place, a«pe«<J'^a< and 
 oi't^s<fie. Examples have been adduced by Krebs, Commentar. 
 ad decreta Rom. pro lud. p. 402 s. So also in Josephus, 
 Antiq. Jud. Lib. xii. c. 5. §. 3. Ed. Oxon. 1720, '^rpocctpiasdg 
 cms fivai, is to be of any one^s party ; and in Clemens Alex. 
 the phrases aj'f«tf<? lisei'ffaTsri'Kr;, Htmuv^ &c., occur ; See Strom. 
 
IN t.he new testament. 289 
 
 I. p. 301. — In other places of the New Testament, however, 
 ai§s(tis occurs in another, and, as it were, a new sense besides 
 this ; signifying, not only the party to which a person is attach- 
 ed, but also the dissensions which were then arising in certain 
 assemblies, though meanwhile the pure doctrine of religion 
 continued sound, and the communion of the Christian church 
 still remained unbroken. And such a^s(feis were spreading in 
 the church of Corinth, as appears plainly from i. Cor. xr. 19, 
 ox»Vf*ara, as they are termed in ver. 18 ; having no relation to 
 doctrine and opinions, but manifested in strifes, arising from 
 the circumstance, that one was of the party of Paul, another 
 of Peter, another of Apollos ; as appears from Ch. i. 12. And 
 accordingly St. Paul says, SsT ya^ xai ai^idsig, x. r. X. ; since 
 there was some advantage attending them, viz. iVa s» ^oxifAo/, 
 &c., i, e. that the good might become conspicuous, and 
 be sepai'ated from the wicked. And strifes of the same kind 
 are to be understood, in Gal. v. 20. The word aJ'^stf*?, how- 
 ever, occurs in a sense somewhat different, in ii. Pet. ii. I, 
 where it signifies any mischievous opinion ; not by itself, in- 
 deed, but with the word d^raiXsjag following it. But -jra^sirfcc- 
 ysiv (in this word, again, the preposition has no force, as is 
 evident from the usage of Polybius, iv. 20.) ai^s'tfstj d^wXe/a?, 
 i. €, dcroXXu/jt-svacT, signifies : to devise false and pernicious 
 opinions, and to obtrude them upon others. — Thus much 
 about heresies in general. Let us now proceed to the in- 
 stances of heretics, which are adduced for the purpose of 
 lessening the force of the above mentioned testimony. Now, 
 in my opinion, neither Alexander and Hymenaeus, nor the 
 Nicolaitans, ought to have been cited : the former, because 
 they were merely individuals, and did not form whole sects ; 
 the latter, because their oflfence appears to have consisted rather 
 in their practice, than in their doctrine. Nor is the instance 
 of Simon Magus at all in point. The ancient ecclesiastical 
 writers, indeed, place him with one consent on the list of 
 heretics ; nay, even consider him as the father of heretics, 
 and the founder of all the sects which afterwards arose, but 
 especially of the Gnostics. I cannot, however, agree with 
 them in this opinion. I can readily allow, that -he was the 
 
 37 
 
290 NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTICS 
 
 first who created disturbance among Christians by the dis^ 
 semination of false doctrines ; but I cannot as easily admit, 
 that he ought to be termed a heretic. I think rather, with 
 MosHEiM, Instit. H. E. Maj. p. 394 ss.,* that he is to be styled 
 a most wicked, inveterate, and impudent opponent of the doc- 
 trine of Christ, who labored to weaken, unsettle, and entirely 
 overthrow the foundations of our holy religion ; setting him- 
 self up for the Messiah, as did also his teachers or disciples, 
 Dositheus and Menander. Josephus informs us, Ant. Jud. 
 L. XX. c. 7. §. 6, Ed. Oxon. 1720, and De Bell. Jud. L. ii. c. 
 13, §. 4, that there was, at that period, a great number of 
 mad men of this kind. Mosheim has the same opinion in re- 
 gard to Dositheus, 1. c. p. 376 ;t and it has been clearly as- 
 serted by Origen, L. i. adv. Cels. p. 44, and L. vi. p. 282. 
 Ed. Spencer. Cantab. 1677. The most satisfactory evidence, 
 however, on this point, is to be found in Tertullian, de 
 Praescrip. adv. Haer. c. 46, where he says, " Simon Magus 
 ausus est summam se dicere virtutem, id est, summum Deum. 
 — Post hunc Menander, Discipulus ipsius, eadem dicens, qua^ 
 Simon ipse : quicquid se Simon dixerat, hoc se Menander 
 esse dicebat, negans, habere posse quenquam salutem, nisi in 
 nomine suo baptizatus fuisset, rell. ;" " Simon Magus presum- 
 ed to style himself the supreme power, i. e, the supreme God. 
 — After him came his disciple, Menander, avowing the same 
 tenets as Simon himself; whatever titles Simon had given 
 himself, these Menander also assumed, denying that any could 
 'be saved, except those who were baptized in his name, &c.'* 
 I would observe, by the way, that the opinion which has been 
 held by modern writers, and advanced also by some ancient 
 ecclesiastical writers, that this Simon professed many doc- 
 trines in common with the Gnostic sects, does not, in the 
 first place, necessarily lead to the conclusion that he was the 
 founder of these ; and, in the next place, the things which ai'e 
 related in general respecting Simon, by Iren^us, adv. Haer. 
 
 * [ Cent. I. P. n. Ch. v. Sect. 11, of Mosheim's Eccl. Hist, by Mac- 
 
 LAIITE. — Tr. ] 
 ^ I Ibid. sect. 10.— TV. 3 
 
^91 
 
 L. I. c. 20 ; the Author of the Apostol. Constitut. L. vi. c. 8, 
 9 ; in the Recog. of Clem. Rom. L. i. c. 19 s. 74. L. ii. iik 
 Homil. Clem. ii. m; by Eusebius, Hist. Eccl. L. ii. c. 13. 
 14 ; and othei-s, are, for the most part, if we except what St. 
 liuke tells us in the Acts, and if, indeed, there were not two 
 persons of the name of Simon, — obscure, doubtful, and al- 
 together uncertain ; some of them even trifling and ridiculous ; 
 as, for example, what is related by Justin Martyr, Apol. 1 ; 
 so that nothing can be advanced on the subject, which carries 
 with it the least appearance of truth. I have entered into 
 this brief discussion, in order to shew, that there is nothing ei- 
 ther in the word aJ'^stfij which occurs in Scripture, or in the 
 instances of Alexander and others, which makes against my 
 opinion; or is calculated to render Firmilian's testimony 
 doubtful, and to expose it to the suspicion of falsehood : but 
 rather that it can thence be fully established, that the heresies 
 of the Gnostics arose after the time of the Apostles ; and cer- 
 tainly did not, before that period, prove injurious to the Chris 
 tian church and doctrine. 
 
 I add lastly the authority of Tertullian, who expressly 
 denies that the Gnostics arose at the period commonly assign- 
 ed. The passage most in point occurs in his work entitled 
 * De praescrip. adv. haer.' c. 29 s. ; where Tertullian makes 
 use of the same argument employed by Clemens Alex, in the 
 passage above-mentioned ; namely, shewing the antiquity of 
 the Christian religion, and the novelty of heresies. The first 
 argument he adopts, is drawn from the nature of the case. 
 " Ante Christiani," he says, " quam Christus inventus ? ante 
 haereses, quam vera doctrina ? Sed enim in omnibus Veritas 
 imaginem antecedit ; postremo similitudo succedit. Caeterum 
 satis ineptum, ut prior doctrina haeresis habeatur, &c." " Were 
 Christians found before Christ came ? were there heresies 
 before the true doctrine ? For, m all cases, truth precedes 
 the resemblance of it ; the likendSs comes afterwards. It is 
 absurd enough, then, to maintain that the doctrine of the 
 heretics came first in order, 6lc" He then goes on to treat 
 of the authors of the different heresies, c. 30 ; and shews 
 that they were all subsequent to the time of the Apostles. 
 
!!J92 NO TKACES OP THE GNOSTICS 
 
 " tJbi tunc Marcion, Ponticus nauclerus, Stoicae studiosus ' 
 Ubi tunc Valentinus, Platonicse sectator ? Nam constat, illos 
 neque adeo olim fuisse. * Antonini fere principatu et in catho- 
 licam pene doctrinam credidisse, apud ecclesiam Romanen- 
 sena, sub episcopatu Eleutheri benedicti, donee ob inquietam 
 eorum semper curiositatem semel et iterum ejecti." " Where 
 was Marcion then, the pilot of Pontus, the disciple of the 
 Stoic philosophy ? Where was Valentine, the follower of 
 Platonism ? For it is well known that they were not of 
 so ancient a date ; and that, somewhere in the reign of An- 
 toninus, they believed in the doctrine which almost universally 
 prevailed -, being of the church of Rome, during the episcopate 
 of the blessed Eleutherus, until, on account of their continually 
 restless inquisitiveness, they were once and then a second time 
 ejected." And then he proceeds as follows : " Si Marcion 
 Novum Testamentum a Vetere separavit, posterior est eo, quod 
 separavit ; quia separare non posset, nisi quod unitum fuit." 
 " If Marcion separated the New Testament from the Old, he 
 must have come after that which he thus separated ; he could 
 not have separated what had never been united." He re- 
 fers, moreover, to the churches and bishops of the Gnostics?, 
 who were neither appointed by the Apostles, nor reached up 
 to their time. " Caeterum," says he, c. 32, " si quae audent 
 interserere se aetati Apostolicae, ut ideo videantur ab Apostolis 
 traditae, quia sub Apostolis fuerunt : possumus dicere, edant 
 ergo origines ecclesiarum suarum, evolvant ordinem episco- 
 porum suorum, ita per successiones ab initio decurrentem, 
 ut primus ille episcopus aliquem ex Apostolis vel Apostolicis 
 viris habuerit auctorem et antecessorem. — Ita omnes haereses 
 probent se quaqua putant Apostolicas. Sed adeo nee sunt, 
 nee possunt probare, quod non sunt, &c." "But if any 
 of these presume to make themselves contemporary with the 
 Apostles, that they may thereby appear to have been trans- 
 mitted from them, because'they were during their time ; we 
 may say, let them shew, then, the origin of their churches, 
 let them unfold the series of their bishops, coming down in 
 such a regular succession from the beginning, that their 
 first bishop was constituted and preceded by some one of the 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. ^3 
 
 Apostles, or some Apostolic peraou. — In this manner let all 
 heresies prove that they are, as they suppose themselves, 
 Apostolic. But they are not such, and therefore cannot prove 
 it, &c." At the end of c. 33, he uses the very authority of 
 the Apostles, v^ho pointed out by name the enemies of the 
 Christian religion w^ho vsrere then in existence ; but among 
 these did not make any mention at all of the Valentinians, the 
 Marcionites, or the Gnostics ; from v^^hich he infers, that the 
 opinions of these were subsequent to the doctrine of the 
 Apostles. C. 34, he says, " Eligant igitur sibi tempora uni- 
 versae hsereses, quae quando fuerint ; dum non intersit, qtee, 
 quando de veritate non sint ; utique, quae ab Apostohs no- 
 minatsB non fuerunt, sub Apostohs fuisse non possunt. Si enim 
 fuissent, nominarentur et ipsae, ut et ipsae coercendae. Quse 
 vero sub Apostohs fuerunt, in sua nominatione damnantur." 
 
 Such, then, are those testimonies of the ancient ecclesiasti- 
 cal writers, by which I designed to prove, that the philosopliy 
 of the Gnostics did not reach as far back as the age which is 
 commonly assigned to it. I shall now proceed to another 
 argument, by which to strengthen this opinion, and to shew 
 the falsehood of the opposite position. The sentiment which 
 I oppose cannot be proved by a single testimony of the wri- 
 ters of the First Century ; but they observe in their writings 
 a profound silence on the subject ! I will not deny, that this 
 species of argument, derived from the silence of writers, h 
 not capable of a universal application, and that, even in the in- 
 stance before us, many allow little, or no weight at all to it ; 
 and I admit that, in many cases, this is a correct mode of pro- 
 ceeding: but not, when writers who are diligent, and worthy 
 of credit, are engaged in relating facts of this kind, and when 
 the thing is itself of such a nature, that from its notoriety it 
 could not have been unknown, nor, from the very design of 
 the history, could it have been omitted without fear of blame 
 by the writers of the age to which it belongs, when they had 
 a reason and an opportunity for mentioning it. If I shall be 
 able to shew, then, that such was the case in the present in- 
 stance, I trust that this kind of argument will not be deemed 
 altoj^ether without weight. It is plain, and appears, indeed. 
 
2i94 NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTICS 
 
 from the observations already made, that the authors and 
 supporters of the opposite opinion suppose, that the Oriental 
 and Gnostic philosophy not only began before the time of 
 Christ, but was besides this in such reputation, was so cele- 
 brated and favorably received through all the world, as to 
 h£ve admirers and disciples both very numerous in multitude, 
 and distinguished for the elegance of their genius and learn- 
 ir^. Now it is altogether improbable, that the ancient wri- 
 ters would be silent upon such a subject as this, those of them 
 especially, who were treating of philosophical and theological 
 subjects : we might rather expect, that in their works, nume- 
 rcus as they were, and of such a kind, they would enter into 
 considerable discussion respecting it, as being something new 
 aid strange ; or, at any rate, would say a word in mention of 
 it. But, as I have already said, there is nothing of the kind 
 tc be found in any Greek, Latin, or Jewish writer. In the 
 former, indeed, the Greek and Latin writers, not the faintest 
 shadow of any trace of the Oriental or Gnostic philosophy 
 among the Asiatic Greeks is discovered, which would lead us 
 to suppose that they knew any thing about it ; nor has it been 
 found possible, even to this day, to adduce one testimony from 
 all antiquity, which carries with it even any semblance of truth. 
 Some, I know, are cited, but we shall presently see to what 
 they amount. Luci an handled all kinds of philosophers very 
 severely ; but it is worthy of remark, that he let the Gnostic 
 philosphers pass without censure ; or rather, he made no 
 miention of them ; which certainly would not have been the 
 case, if any thing had been known about them at that time in 
 Asia : unless, perhaps, he did this out of regard for them, 
 being himself strongly attached to that excellent philosophy ! 
 But much more remarkable is it, that a subject of such im- 
 portance as this was entirely passed over by the Jewish wri- 
 ters, and by those of them most worthy of credit, viz. Josephus 
 and Philo. As these authors were extremely diligent in re- 
 cording every thing relating to the Jews, and were very learn- 
 ed in the Greek language, they must have been mtimately ac- 
 quainted with the Gnostic philosophy ; and would certainly 
 have mentioned it, if it had been so extensively known and dis- 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 295 
 
 seminated in Palestine, the country of Josephus, and in Egypt, 
 where, according to the opinion of very learned men, Philo 
 lived. 
 
 It is well known with what minuteness Josephus treated of 
 all the sects of the Jews, and related their history, doctrines, 
 and opinions ; with the exception of the Therapeutae, whose 
 school was established only in Egypt. He did not even omit 
 the Zealots, although they were rather a faction among the 
 Jews, than a sect. But he has not said a word respecung 
 the Oriental or Gnostic philosophy. Now is it likely, that 
 Josephus would have passed by this philosophy and its fol- 
 ■ lowers, if at that period, and for a short time before, it kad 
 been known and also cultivated in Judea ? Would it not 
 have been a culpable omission on his part, to say nothng 
 about a subject so important as the Gnostic philosophy is 
 thought to have been ? But he was unacquainted with it, aid 
 did not understand it ! On the contrary, he did acquire a knov- 
 ledge of it, during his stay in Egypt, asBaucKER supposes, X 
 II. p. 709. Yet he has not said a word respecting it, nor ha? 
 given us the faintest trace of it. He himself, moi-eover, re 
 lates, that, saving the education peculiar to his own country, 
 he bestowed his attention exclusively upon Greek learning, 
 although it was the custom of his nation to despise every 
 thing foreign. Antiq. Jud. Lib. xx, at the end. Yet he does 
 not mention the Oriental and Gnostic philosophy. 
 
 We must come to the same conclusion in regard to the au-^ 
 thority of Philo, who is also silent about this philosophy in 
 those places, where he would have been no less inexcusable in 
 omitting it than Josephus : and further, if he had had any know- 
 ledge of it, he would certainly have mentioned it in his work 
 * de Vita Contemplativa,' throughout the whole of which book 
 he has treated of the Therapeutae, who are thought by some 
 of the learned to have agreed in many respects with the 
 Gnostics. He has nowhere, however, mentioned it, although 
 he lived and wrote in Egypt, where, in the opinion of learned 
 men, the Oriental and Gnostic philosophy began, and was in 
 very great repute ; and used, and particularly delighted in 
 the allegorical mode of interpretation, from which the Gno«- 
 
296 NO TRACES or THE GNOSTICS 
 
 tic philosophy was derived, and of which it ahnost altogether 
 consisted. I am indeed aware, that some very learned men, 
 as Mosheim, Brucker, Michaelis,* and Walch, suppose that 
 the Essenes were those Oriental philosophers, at least that 
 they had many things in common with them ; respecting 
 whom both Josephus and Philo have treated at large, in whose 
 books there are also traces of these philosophers. Two ar- 
 guments, however, may be urged against this opinion. In the 
 first place, Josephus and Philo, with one consent, class the Es- 
 senes among the Jewish sects. The principal places in Jo- 
 SEfHus, are Lib. n. c. 8. §. 2, de Bell. Jud., Ed. Oxon. 1720, 
 wkere he says expressly, that among the three sects of the 
 Jews are the Essenes, who are Jews by birth, and pay great 
 attention to the cultivation of mutual affection ; and Ant, 
 J^d. L. XV. c. 10. XIII. c. 10 ; but particularly Lib. xviii. c. 
 ^, where he says, lovSaiais rpsTg s/vai h rov cr'avu dp-xam twv *aT^i- 
 (Jj Twv Etftf'Jivwv, xa« rriv rdv 2a55ojxaiwv, t^(tojv ds (piXo(fo<pwv twv 
 (^apjfl'aiwv. Philo expressly states the same thing in several 
 i)laces ; for example, ' Quod om- prob. Lib.' p. 876, Ed. Franc. 
 1691, where he thus speaks ; Xsyovrai Tivsg cra^' auror^ (i. e. 
 lo\)8a'm$) ovofAtt Etftfajoi : " there are certain persons among them, 
 (i. e. among the Jews,) called Essenes." But, m the next 
 ) place, facts are opposed to this opinion ; for the philosophy 
 under discussjon rejected the whole law, while, according to 
 Philo, in the passage just referred to, the Essenes were very 
 much attached to it ; and, moreover, it inculcated so many 
 false and pernicious opinions respecting God and divine 
 things, that neither a disciple of the Essene school, nor any 
 
 * Einleit. ins N. T. P. ii. p. 1247, Gott. 1788. His words are these : 
 '< The scattered observations made by Philo and Josephus respecting the 
 Essenes, may all be explained from the principles of that philosophy, 
 which I might briefly term the Oriental or Gnostic ; though it is to be 
 observed, that the Essenes did not adopt all the peculiarities of this phi- 
 losophy, but principally the moral part of it, and truly a gloomy and 
 monastic morality. At least, Philo is their great eulogist, who, in other 
 matters relating to doctrine, is a violent opponent of the Gnostics." — 
 [See Marsh's Michaelis, Vol. iv. p. 82. Lond. 180?.— Tr.] 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 397 
 
 Other Jew, could, without losing liis purity of doctrine, approve 
 and follow it. 
 
 But Philo, although he either designedly abstained frowi 
 mentioning the Oriental and Gnostic philosophy, or negligent- 
 ly passed it by as being improper for his own nation, yet in 
 particular opinions followed the principles of that philosophy ,, 
 and gives frequent and evident marks of this in his writings. 
 I know, indeed, that this assertion is made by learned men^ 
 particularly by Brucker, in order to prove, that traces of the 
 Oriental and Gnostic philosophy are not altogether wanting 
 in the works of Philo. But, in the first place, it is injpossible 
 to discover for what reason Philo observed an utter silence 
 about this kind of philosophy. Because he thought it did no 
 credit to his nation ? Such a reason as this amounts to no- 
 thing, and, in my opinion, ought never to have been mention- 
 ed : that Philo, forsooth, considered it as unworthy of his 
 character and his nation, to give any account of philosophers 
 and of polite learning, which he himself, so far from despising, 
 admired and cultivated to such a degi'ee, that he may rightly 
 be ranked among the most successful imitators of the more 
 elegant learning of the ancients ; so much so, that, if he did not 
 quite come up to it, he seems to have approached very near, 
 and, in acuteness of mind, and elegance of language, to have 
 borne a close resemblance to Plato and Demosthenes. In 
 the next place, I should like to see the passages, where Mosg 
 heim and Brucker have thought they discovered traces in 
 Philo of the Oriental and Gnostic philosophy, expressly point- 
 ed out by them ; that we might have something definite on 
 the subject. I perceived, indeed, when I read that very 
 learned, but somewhat too prolix work, the " Hist. Crit. Phi- 
 losoph.," that passages of the kind referred to are here and 
 there cited by Brucker ; whose principal aim is to establish 
 the opinion, that Philo was veiy fond of the Oriental and 
 Gnostic philosophy, and that this is very evident from his 
 writings. But the reply to these is easy. For; in order to 
 let us see with clearness the main particulars of a man's doc- 
 trine, and to what school he was attached, it is not enough to 
 adduce passages of any kind whatever : but. in the first place. 
 ' ' ' * 38 
 
298 NO TRACES OF THE GNOSTICS 
 
 they must be doctrinal, i. e. places in which the author is de- 
 livering his own doctrines ; not historical, that is, where he is 
 relating the sentiments and opinions of others : and, in the 
 second place, they must be plain and clear. Now the 
 places cited by Brucker do not appear to be of this charac- 
 ter ; being either historical, or obscure and doubtful. That 
 I may not appear to accuse unjustly this learned man, I shall 
 endeavor to prove my assertion. To the first class belongs 
 that passage to which he refers in Vol. vi. p. 415 ; conip. Vol. 
 11. p. 772 s. It is in p. 876 s. Ed. Franc. 1691, of Philo's 
 work entitled * Quod om. prob. lib.,' where he is treating of 
 the Essenes, and is handling the subject historically ; and re- 
 lates their manners, rites, and customs ; and says that they 
 leave to others the dialectic part of philosophy, as being not 
 necessary for the formation of a virtuous character ; bestow- 
 ing their attention on that alone which gives rules of life and 
 morals ; that they examine every thing by the threefold law, 
 which inculcates the love of God, of virtue, and of men ; 
 that they have great reverence for God ; despise riches and 
 honors ; live continently ; and other things of the same kind. 
 What trace is there, I would ask, of the Oriental philosophy, 
 in such a passage as this ? and even if there were any, it 
 cannot be thereby proved, that Philo was a follower of it ; 
 since the passage is not doctrinal, but historical, and is not 
 at -all, therefore, to the purpose. But how Brucker came 
 to think so, may be easily conjectured ; for he thought that 
 the Essenes w^ere those very philosophers themselves. 
 
 To the other class of passages, that is, obscure, doubtful, 
 and therefore uncertain, belong those places cited by Brucker 
 and others, in which Philo discourses concerning the "kdyog. 
 As the Gnostics trifled a great deal about this subject, there- 
 fore Philo himself was also a Gnostic ! Those who have ad- 
 vanced this opinion did not recollect, that some consider this 
 use of the term Xoyog as peculiar to Philo ; while others think 
 it was borrowed from the diction and refinement of Plato^ 
 whom Philo copied : and that this very difference of opinion 
 shews the obscurity and difficulty of these passages ; a dif- 
 ficulty which verv learned men have not hesitated to acknow- 
 
iN THE N^iW TESTAHENT. 290 
 
 lodge. Neither is it enough to say, that, because Phiio main- 
 tained one or two opinions, or modes of phraseology, in com- 
 mon with the Gnostics, he learned and adopted them from 
 these. So, however, Brucker thinks, Tom. ni. p. 385 ; and 
 he thence proves, that Philo was attached to the Gnostic and 
 Oriental philosophy, since, in his work ' de Mundi Opif.,' p. 
 3 s. Ed. Franc. 1691, he agrees with Jamblichus, * de 
 Myster. iEgypt.' Sect. v. c. 23, p. 183, and derives from 
 Demiurge the origin of the world and of matter. But, in 
 the first place, in regard to the opinion itself, there is no 
 such thing as this in the words of Philo. For he says nothing 
 more, than that God, in the creation of the world, formed to 
 himself, first of all, an intelligible image of it, that he might 
 complete the corporeal world after the pattern of that 
 which was incorporeal, and most like to God ; this more re- 
 cent one being a resemblance of the older, and being intend- 
 ed to embrace as many sensible kinds of objects, as there 
 were intelligible kinds in the other. His words are these : 
 Oso^ ^ov\ri6sts <r6v oparov rouTev/ xetffji/ov ^rjfJMou^yijo'aj, cff osfSTU'Tr'ou rov 
 vorjTov, i'va ^pCifisvog difujiiarc} xui '$ssosiSs(fTarui 'gapoidzl'y^a.riy rov 
 tfWfAaTixov difSpyacfriTai, 'sfps&QvTSpou vsdrspov d'Tr'sjxo'vifl'fjLa, ro(favTa «»'£- 
 pis^ovra ai(f6yiTa ys'vij, oda.itzp ^v Ixsivw \ot\ra» What is there, I 
 would ask, in this place, about Demiurge, or the origin of the 
 world and of matter from him, or about seons, sephirs, ema- 
 native virtues, and other things of that kind, which Brucker 
 thinks it contains ? Philo speaks of God in a human way ; 
 and, as what follows clearly shews, compares him with a 
 king, who, if he has undertaken to build a city, first con- 
 ceives in his mind and thoughts that which he terms the in- 
 telligible city, voYjri^v croXiv, and then orders the city which he 
 has thus conceived to be built ; this last being called by Phi- 
 lo the corporeal city, cwfAaTwaj. He himself explains his 
 meaning more clearly in p. 5, where he says ; ou^evav eVejov 
 hitai Tov vo>jTov sfvai xorf^ov, ^ ^£ou Xo/ov -^Srj xotrfAotfoiouvro^ oudi 
 /ap v} voriT-^ <3ro'Xi5 sVepov ti kth, -?} h tou d/»xi^sxTovog XoyjtffAoj ''ih t^v 
 voiir75v *6Xiv xri^iiv 5<avosfjLsvou. There is, therefore, no reason 
 for supposing, that Philo in that place referred ta the doC" 
 
?JO0 NO TRACTiS OF THE GNOSTICS 
 
 Irines of the Gnostics. If the reader, however, prefers the 
 opinion, that he had some particular philosophy in view, I 
 should rather think it to be the barbarian, which, according 
 to Clem. Alexand., Strom, v. p. 593, recognized a xoC/aos 
 vo»)To5 and a<V^7]To?5 the former being the dp-^^srvifog, and the 
 latter an e/jcwv tou xaXoufts'vou 'xapaSsiyij.ards ; and which opinion 
 he classes among those, borro^ved by the Greeks from the 
 Barbarians. Brucker does not seem to have been altogether 
 opposed to this opinion, and, on this account, appears some- 
 what inconsistent with himself ; for, in another place, viz. 
 Tom. n. p. 802, he thinks that these ideas are to be regarded 
 as improved Platonism. Perhaps, however, in the passage 
 above mentioned, he was deceived by the word ^ri^io'jpyog, 
 which Philo uses in the place cited, and in a thousand others ; 
 and which it is surprising that even some among the 
 ancient ecclesiastical writers, considered as unsuitable to 
 God. This w^ord, however, ought not to be offensive, since 
 it is applied to God not only by profane writers, but also in 
 the sacred Scriptures ; as Heb. xi. 10. Comp. Elsner, Obs. 
 ISac. Tom. i. p. 365. 
 
 I cannot pass by another passage, particularly worthy of 
 ijotice, in w^hich Philo is thought to have followed the Oriental 
 philosophy. It occurs in his work ' de Great. Princ' p. 728, Ed. 
 Franc. 1691, where there is found a description of the creation 
 of the world, in which, among other things, he uses these words : 
 0sog Ttt fji.7] ovra ixaXstfsv slg to s/vai, and, sx (fxoTovg cpCig ipyoctfa^svog ; 
 which, to my great surprise, Brucker, Tom. ii. p. 884, 
 thinks cannot be understood, " unless, according to the doc- 
 trine of the Cabbalists, which arose in Egypt, we maintain, 
 that divine emanations, when they removed to a great dis- 
 tance from the supreme light, became darkness, on account 
 of being deprived of light ; but that, through Sephiroth, and 
 the canal of Adam Kadmon, a ray of light was transmitted 
 into the darkness, and thus the material w^orld was formed." 
 But is not the passage in question perfectly intelligible, without 
 maintaining any such thing ? To me, indeed, this doctrine of 
 the Cabbalists, so strange and seraphic in its character, wraS 
 'much more obscure than the passage of Philo, the meaning of 
 
IN 'nit NEW TESTAMENT. ^Ol 
 
 which, without thinking any thing about those egregious trifles^ 
 I perceived as soon as I looked at it ; recollecting some 
 places to be met with in the sacred books, in which both 
 those phrases occur. The first, xaXsTv tol fA>j ovra slg to sivai. oc- 
 curs, with a slight variation, in Rom. iv. 17, where it is, xoCksTv 
 ra ju.^ ovfa i}s ovra ; though this place of St. Paul may be ex- 
 plained in another way also, viz. as referring to future things, 
 and the foreknowledge of them. But there is another place^ 
 II. Mace. VII. 28, where the phrase to, oux ovra occurs in the 
 same way as to, ^iri ovra in the passage of Philo. Now the 
 words TO, ovra, in common Greek language, generally signify 
 " the things which are ;" and ra iiri 6Wa the same as f/^r^ s-k 
 (pajvofxs'vwv, in Heb. xi. 3, which is* for h it^n (paivofAs'vwv ; a phrase 
 particularly frequent with Thucydides, as Markland, who 
 was thoroughly versed in the Greek language, has observed in 
 his notes on Lysias.* But the phrase ra, iiij 9a»vo/xiva signifies, 
 " things which do not exist, and therefore cannot be perceiv- 
 ed ;" in which sense it occurs also in Joseph us. Ant. Jud. L. 
 v. c. 10. Ed. Oxon. 1720. The other phrase occurs, in a simi- 
 lar manner, in ii. Cor. iv. 6 ; except that for ipyu(faiisvog (pwj h 
 (fxoTovg there is the Hebrew form of expression o skwv ex tfxo- 
 Tous <?wj XajXvj^ai ; evidently, however, in the same sense. In 
 my opinion, therefore, this passage of Philo is clear enough, 
 without bringng any light upon it from the absurdities of the 
 Gnostics ; and, as the phrases used in it are common both 
 with the sacred writers and with Philo, it is evident, that they 
 were derived not from the usage of the Gnostic philosophers, 
 but from the customary mode of speaking of the Jews ; who, 
 when they wished to describe the creation of things -which 
 before had no existence, said, that God produced things that 
 were not, or ordered light to arise in the place of darkness. 
 
 But I will grant, although, as I have shewn, there is no ne- 
 cessity for doing so, that Pliilo in certain opinions agi-eed with 
 the Gnostics. Is Philo, I would ask, on that account, to 
 be called a Gnostic, or a votary and defender of the Orien- 
 
 * [ See Lysias, Ed. Reiske, Vol. i. p. 281.--7V. ] 
 
^0^ NO TRACES OF THE GNOSTICS 
 
 tal philosophy ? For it is evident, that many persons ire- 
 quently entertain, or seem to entertain, certain opinions in 
 common with others, which they can by no means be said to 
 have derived from them. The Pharisees, according to Jose- 
 phus, held in common with the Pelagians the doctrine, that a 
 man can live a holy life by his own strength ; and thus they 
 were the first broachers of Pelagianism. But did they learn 
 this from the school of Pelagius, and did they follow him ? 
 Was the Pelagian error known, and diffused far and wide, at 
 that period ? The case is precisely the same in regard to 
 Philo ; who must not be supposed to have been attached to 
 those egregious trifles, for so they ought to be called rather 
 than elegancies, but' rathef to have learned them from his 
 own Platonic school. The Gnostics, on the other hand, must 
 be said to have derived some things from Philo and Plato, if 
 we determine that there is any agreement between their 
 doctrine. 
 
 It ought, however, to be borne in mind, that the Gnostics dif- 
 fered in many respects from one another, and that we have no 
 certain knowledge what their opinions were ; our information 
 being for the most part obscure and doubtful. The reason of 
 this lies, partly in the Gnostic tenets themselves, which are ex- 
 ceedingly obscure and involved ; and partly also in the circum- 
 stance, that not a single book or confession of theirs is extant, 
 from which we might determine something certain respecting 
 their opinions. The whole matter, therefore, has to be de- 
 cided by reference to the works of others, and of those, more- 
 over, who have undertaken to refute the Gnostics; who, 
 though it cannot be laid to their charge, that, through hatred 
 or ignorance, they branded these their enemies with infamy, 
 cannot, however, be pronounced altogether free, in their fre- 
 quent controversies, from the appearance of too impetuous a 
 zeal, and of the frailty belonging to human nature. The 
 system of the Gnostics was first explained by Irenseus, whose 
 ^ Books against Heresies ' are among the sources, from which 
 a knowledge of the Gnostic heresies is to be derived. He has 
 this fault, however, in common with others, that he employs 
 himself rather in refuting, than simply recording, their wicked 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. SO*^ 
 
 tenets, and speaks more like a censor, than a historian : not 
 to say, that only a Latin version of his work is extant, and 
 that, too, a baVbarous and uncouth one ; the author of whicli 
 had no competent knowledge either of Greek or Latin, and is 
 therefore in many places very obscure. Now if any person 
 liad it in his power to become acquainted with these difficul- 
 ties, with which, so far as its tenets and character are concern- 
 ed, the philosophy of the Gnostics is beset, it must certainly 
 have been those, whose studies were chiefly devoted to its 
 illustration. These persons, accordingly, have not hesitated 
 to avow them ; as, for example, Mosheim, Instit. H. E. maj. 
 p. 142, and 372 : Brucker, Tom. ii. p. 639 s. where he thus 
 speaks ; " It is to be lamented that the books of these men 
 are no longer in existence, and that only a few small frag- 
 ments remain ; and also that the ecclesiastical writers, per- 
 plexed from various causes, have rendered the knowledge of 
 their system so confused, that thus far little can be said re- 
 specting this philosophy, and its true reasonings and principles, 
 which is not, by the insuperable difficulties with which it is 
 surrounded, nearly proof against the most diligent scrutiny." 
 He shews the same thing at the end of the chapter, through 
 the whole of §. xi. p. 651 s., and Tom. vi. p. 402 s. Mi- 
 CHAELis agrees with him, in his Einleit. ; and also Semler, 
 who in his * Comment. Hist, de ant. Chr. Statu, p. 76, says, 
 " It is to be regretted, that we have nothing at all remaining 
 of the writings of the Gnostics, except scattered and obscure 
 opinions, of which we find it hard to form even a small collec- 
 tion, out of the writings of Irenaeus, Tertullian, and others of 
 later date." But if this be the fact, how vain the attempt to 
 determine upon the agreement that exists, between Philo and 
 the Gnostics. 
 
 Some things, however, remain to be said, respecting the 
 source of the Gnostic philosophy^ the parent, so to speak, t>f this 
 offspring, namely, the Oriental philosophy, which I might very 
 well have omitted, had I not thought that they tended strong- 
 ly to confirm and throw light upon my own opinion. The 
 opinion of Mosheim and Brucker, 1 shall give in their own 
 words : "that a certain philosophy prevailed through almost all 
 
304 NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTICS 
 
 the provinces of Asia, and of the whole East, different from the 
 Greek, and from that which is called the barbarian, and en- 
 tirely opposite to it ; and that this was not only known to 
 other nations, but was also cultivated by them, as a superior 
 part of philosophy, and constituted a peculiar kind of diviner 
 wisdom or theology, in relation to God and the world ; and 
 that this same philosophy, or theology, is the source of the 
 Gnostic philosophy." Now I am certainly not among those, 
 who would entirely reject the testimonies adduced in support of 
 this opinion, drawn as they are from a rich store of profound 
 erudition ; and who would pertinaciously deny what has been 
 advanced by two men of such distinguished attainments. Two 
 things, however, I propose to do ; in the first place, to the 
 testimonies cited by them I shall oppose others ; and, in the 
 next place, I shall offer some doubts in regard to those which 
 Brucker has adduced, Tom. vi. Hist. Crit. Phil. p. 411 ss. and 
 which are the most prominent, and exceedingly plausible. 
 
 And first, one suggestion presents itself, which I cannot 
 think entirely unworthy of attention, that all the ancient ec- 
 clesiastical writers were evidently unacquainted with the 
 Oriental philosophy, much less considered it as the source of 
 that of the Gnostics : but, on the contrary, derived the origin 
 of the latter partly from the doctrine of the Jews, which at 
 that period abounded in errors and trifles, and partly from the 
 Greek philosophy, particularly the Platonic. Clear proofs of 
 this statement are to be met with ; and how they are to be re- 
 conciled together, will be seen at the end of the present treatise. 
 Among those ancient ecclesiastical writers, who considered 
 the doctrines of the Gnostics as being derived from the idle 
 fables of the Jews, is particularly to be mentioned that same 
 Hegesippus, of whom I have spoken above ; who, in Euseb. 
 H. E. IV. 22. p. 142 s., clearly shews, that the heresies of Si- 
 mon, Positheus, Menander, Marcion, Carpocrates, Valentine, 
 Basihdes, and others, who, if not all, yet most of them, were 
 either authors of the Gnostic absurdities, or their promoters 
 and disciples, at least the persons who first suggested them, 
 derived their origin from Juda3ism, or, to use his own words, 
 from the seven sects of the Jews, (which are then enumerated. 
 
IN THE NKW TESTAMENT. 
 
 -m 
 
 VIZ. the Essenes, Galileans, Hemerobaptists, Masbotheatis, 
 Samaritans, Sadducees, and Pharisees,) and that thence arose 
 false prophets, false apostles, and false Christs. And Has 
 opinion is approved of by Valesius, in loc. Other ancient ec- 
 clesiastical writers, however, and, which is particularly to be 
 borne in mind, those who more thoroughly than any otheii?s 
 investigated and refuted the Gnostic doctrines, viz. Irenaeus, 
 ' adv. haer.' L. ii. c. 14, Clemens Alexandrinus, and Tertullian, 
 passages from whom I shall presently cite, suppose that the 
 Gnostics learned their tenets from the Greek philosophers, 
 but particularly from Plato ; and that they were either dis- 
 ciples or rivals of him, and altered his system for the worse : aii(t 
 the testimony of these men ought to be considered as of grea£ 
 weight for this, among other reasons, that they had come over 
 to Christianity from the schools of the Platonic philosophers. 
 In order to prove their point, they have adduced examples by 
 no means undeserving of attention ; and have instituted com- 
 parisons between the philosophers referred to, which, how- 
 ever they may appear to some to be a little far-fetched and 
 refined, and more ingenious than correct, yet shew that it was 
 not through ignorance of the Oriental philosophy, that those 
 writers derived the heresies of the Gnostics from the Grecian 
 philosophy. Their opinion, moreover, receives great proba- 
 bility from the circumstance, that the philosophy of the Gnos- 
 tics took its i-ise in the same regions, in which that of the 
 Greeks almost exclusively prevailed. This has led many verj^ 
 learned men to assent to their decision ; among whom are 
 Massudt, Diss. I. in Iren. p. 93 s. Vitringa, Obss. Sac. p. 135 
 ss., &c. And, in truth, it is very surprising, that Clemens Alex- 
 andrinus, in so lai'ge a work as the * Stromata,' in which he has 
 so many admirable discussions respecting the Gentile philo- 
 sophy, does not utter a syllable about the Oriental philosophy. 
 On the contraiy, though he had no enmity against schools 
 of this nature, and admired to the gi-eatest degree every kind 
 of liberal learning, (comp. Strom. L. i. p. 292. and 297, and 
 the very honorable testimony borne to him by Eusebius, H. 
 E. VI. 1, 13, 18.) yet he constantly speaks of the philosophy 
 of the Greeks and Barbarians only, except in one passage^ 
 
 39 
 
306 NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTICS 
 
 about which we shall see presently ; and in Lib. i. Strom, p. 
 302, he divides all learning into the Grecian and Barbarian only, 
 and shews that from it one system must be selected. Hence 
 we may infer, I think, not without reason, that Clemens knew 
 nothing about any Oriental philosophy ; but rather that he 
 traced the opinions of the Gnostics, which are usually consi- 
 dered as being derived from that source, to the Grecian and 
 Barbarian. With Clemens Alex, agrees Tertullian, *de 
 praescrip. adv. ha?r.' c. 7. His words are as follows : " Ipsa^ 
 haereses a Philosophia subornantur. Inde seones et forma?, 
 nescio quae, et trinitas hominis apud Valentinum. Platonicus 
 fuerat. Inde Marcionis Deus melior, de tranquiUitate ; a 
 Stoicis venerat : et uti anima interire dicatur, ab Epicureis 
 observatur. Et ut carnis restitutio negetur, de una omnium 
 Philosophorum schola sumitur. Et ubi materia cum Deo 
 sequatur, Zenonis disciplina est : et ubi aliquid de igneo Deo 
 alligatur, Heraclitus intervenit. Esedem materiae apud haere- 
 ticos et Philosophos volutantur, iidem retractatus implicantur^ 
 Unde malum et quare ? et unde homo et quomodo ? Et quod 
 proximo Valentinus proposuit, unde Deus ? Scilicet de En- 
 thymesi et ectromate. Sequitur Aristotelem, qui ilhs Dialec- 
 ticam instituit, &c." " Heresies themselves are suborned by 
 philosophy. Thence came aeons, and I know not what other 
 forms, and the human trinity of Valentine. He had been of 
 the Platonic school. Thence the superior Deity of Marcion,- 
 as respects the tranquillity ascribed to him ; this idea cam^ 
 from the Stoics. The doctrine that the soul dies, is maintain- 
 ed by the Epicureans. The denial of the resurrection of the 
 body, is taken from all the philosophers without exception. 
 Where matter is made equal with God, it is the school of 
 Zeno : and where any confused remarks are made respecting 
 a fiery God, there it is Heraclitus. The same subjects are 
 treated by the heretics and by philosophers ; both discuss the 
 same intricate questions. Whence came evil, and wherefore ? 
 Whence came man, and how ? And the inquiry next pro- 
 posed by Valentine, Whence came God ? Forsooth, an in- 
 vention of caprice and distorted fancy. He follows Aristotle, 
 who taught all those persons dialectics : ^c." I have added 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 307 
 
 this passage, indeed, with some diffidence ; as Bruckeb, Tom. 
 VI. p. 402, wonders " that it is mentioned at the present en- 
 lightened period of the history of philosophy ; it being ob- 
 vious that Tertullian wrote in this manner, merely for the 
 purpose of heaping odium upon the heretics." I must con- 
 fess, however, that I cannot see how Tertullian would have 
 stained the character of the Gnostics, by saying that they 
 learned their system from the Greeks. Perhaps because the 
 worthy writers of the church, like many in our own day, despisp 
 ed the instruction which is to be derived from polite, or, to use 
 plainer terms, profane learning ; and endeavored to dissuade 
 persons from the study of it, as being dangerous and perni- 
 cious, and tending to Atheism and paganism. This, how- 
 ever, is by no means the fact. Yet no other reason appears 
 for supposing, that Tertullian, in the expression of this opinion 
 of his, desired to detract from the character of the Gnostics. 
 Not to say that it has been admitted by very distinguished 
 men, and also by Brucker himself, as we shall hereafter see, 
 that we have had as yet very little light in the work of illuS" 
 trating the Oriental philosophy. 
 
 I now proceed to consider those testimonies which are ad- 
 duced by learned men, in order to prove, both that there was 
 a philosophy of this sort, which they have been pleased to 
 term Oriental, and that the Gnostic was taken from it ; and 
 to offer some doubts in regard to them, especially to those 
 cited by Brucker, 1. c. which are prominent, and have been 
 most recently advanced. These testimonies, I must confess, 
 appear to me rather vague and ambiguous. They shew 
 clearly, indeed, that the Persians, Egyptians, and others, 
 were famous for their extraordinary learning or wisdom, and 
 that this induced the Greeks to become acquainted with it ; 
 and this nobody is disposed to deny : for Clemens Alex, 
 shews through the whole of the Fifth Book of tlie Stromata, 
 that the latter took many ideas from them, and transferred 
 them to their own philosophy. But it cannot in any way be 
 discovered by what is there said, whether these nations had 
 any peculiar system of philosophy, or mystical theology, dis- 
 tinct from that general wisdom ; of what sort it was ; what 
 
308 NO TRACES or THE cTnOSTICS 
 
 was' its character and genius ; or wliat doctrines it delivered ; 
 which, however, is very necessary, if these testimonies are 
 to prove any thing ; for otherwise this philosophy may be 
 made to suit any opinions whatsoever. But, as I have 
 said, we do not find this in the passages cited. The princi- 
 pal references are these. In Pliny, H. N. L. xxx. proem;, 
 Democritus is said to have gone " to learn the magian philo- 
 sophy ;" (ad philosophiam magicam discendam,) and in Por- 
 phyry, Vit. Plotini, c. 13, Plotinus is also stated to have set 
 put " to endeavor to learn the philosophy cultivated among 
 the Persians ;*' {(piXocfocpias cra/)a toTs Tlsptiafs iifirridsmii^ivrig ifsTfav 
 Xa^sTv,) and finally, in EuNAnus, Aedes. p. 61, two strangers 
 
 profess, ^rvai Trjg-xoLKdoCixrjg (fo(pias xaXou|ASV*js oux (tfAu'^TOUg, that they 
 
 are initiated in the Chaldaic wisdom, as it is called, and in- 
 structed in its mysteries. But what is this (piXotfo(pIa ? None 
 other than the Oriental, they tell us. But as in these places 
 the term Oriental philosophy does not occur ; and no one ap- 
 pellation in particular is used, but sometimes it is called the 
 magian philosophy, sometimes the Persian, sometimes the 
 Chaldaic ; and as there are no certain and clear marks, from 
 which the nature and character of the magian, Persian, and 
 Chaldaic wisdom, may be known, and which would lead us 
 thence to infer, that it was the Oriental philosophy ; I think 
 that my assertion is just, that these testimonies are doubtful, 
 and of no weight. It is evident, moreover, in how various a 
 sense the Greek writers used the term 9iXoo'o(p«'a ; compre- 
 hending in it, chiefly that wisdom, which relates to the go- 
 vernment of human life ; also eloquence ; and great fortitude 
 in the endurance of afflictions : but, as far as I know, there 
 is no example to prove, that they employed it with reference 
 to any theological system, or to opinions in regard to God, 
 and divine things. But, to speak my own opinion in respect 
 to this (piXotfo(pia <rapa ro7s nF^tfaiV, and Coqji'a p^aX^aVxi^, I consider 
 it as nothing else than that ancient science of the Eastern na- 
 tions, called Magic ; which was supposed to consist in a se- 
 cret knowledge of spiritual beings, and a famihar intercourse 
 with them, and arose first in Chaldea, Persia, and other neigh- 
 boring countries^ but not vfiry long afterwards was spread 
 
IN THE NJIW TESTAMENT. 309 
 
 and boasted of among the Egyptians ; who, owing to their 
 fanatical and superstitious character, (Brucker, Tom. ii. p. 
 219.) went even farther still, and attributed to this familiarity 
 with spirits a power of doing things, which were beyond hu- 
 man ability. Men of this kind, who cultivated that science, 
 and a very ancient example of whom is to be found in those 
 Egyptian impostors, who, imitating by their fraudulent; con- • 
 trivances the miracles of Moses, endeavored to deceive the 
 eyes and the minds of the unwary, were called ^aufxatfioi or 
 Sau/jiaTO'jroioi' ; not only because they were distinguished for 
 their wonderful power and learning, as Cicero, in his Ora- 
 tor, calls Herodotus "wonderful" (mirabilem),* and as 
 Athenaeus, Deipnos. iii. 5,t terms him " most wonderful," 
 (^au|uia(rjwrarov,) but because they performed miracles, or ra- 
 ther false appearances of miracles, feigned either for the sake 
 of gain, or for superstitious purposes, or in adaptation to the 
 opinions of the people, who were given up to weak supersti- 
 tion. Among these was particularly famous that Apollonius 
 Tyanaeus, of whom the garrulous and trifling Philostra- 
 Tus, in his ' Vit. Apoll. Tyan.'J has not blushed to say, that 
 he raised the dead to Hfe. After Apollonius, the next place 
 in the school of wonderful (^auf*atf»oi) philosophers must be 
 assigned, as Brucker himself shews, Tom. ii. p. 227, to Plo- 
 tinus, " since not only, (I use his express words) was he al- 
 together occupied in metaphysical speculations, but also 
 boasted of theurgic powers." Compare also p. 143 s. and 
 265 of the same Volume. Which circumstance is itself a 
 proof, that by (piXotfo^/a -jrapot roTs liipdats is meant Magic, for 
 the sake of acquiring which it appears that many philoso- 
 phers travelled to the nations which were famous for the pro- 
 fession of it, and on their return boasted that they were com- 
 pletely instructed in it ; to prove which Brucker, Tom. iii. 
 p. 379, cites the testimony of Tatian, who, after he had said 
 
 * [ Orator, ad Brutum ; Cicer. Opera, Vol. n. p. 5S2, Edit. Gronoy. 
 Lugd. Bat. 1692.— Tr. ] ' 
 
 i [ Vol. I. p. 309. Ed. Schweigh.— Tr. ] 
 t C IV. 16, p. 206, Ed. Morell. Par. 1608.— Tr. ] 
 
3lO NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTICS 
 
 " that he had gone over a great part of the earth, and had 
 acted the philosopher ((ro(pi(rrsu(ra^)," adds, "that he had acquired 
 innumerable secret arts and inventions/' The case of De- 
 mocritus, however, is the plainest of all. He vsras universal- 
 ly charged by the ancients with magic ; and the same Pliny, 
 who states that he went to learn the magian philosophy, class* 
 • es him among magical authors, H. N. xxiv. 17. xxx. 1. 
 Though some learned men, particularly Brucker. Tom. i. 
 p. 1184, do not agree with him in this representation, and 
 Gellius, xvii. 21, reproves him for ascribing to Democritus 
 a number of intolerable absurdities ; yet others, for the most 
 part, assent to Pliny's account, and are not so ready to acquit 
 Democritus of the charge of magic. At any rate, it may be 
 perceived from what has been said, that this passage of Pliny 
 cannot, with any propriety, be cited, for the purpose of prov- 
 ing the Oriental philosophy ; since Pliny understood by * ma- 
 gian philosophy,' though incorrectly, as learned men think, 
 magic and magical arts. 
 
 And that the same thing is meant by * Chaldaic philosophy' 
 in Eunapius, the whole tenor of the narrative may shew to 
 any one, even at the slightest investigation. I will give the 
 reader a brief statement of the writer's subject, that he may 
 the more easily judge of the great weight of this testimony, 
 adduced in proof of the Oriental philosophy. To two old 
 men, Eunapius tells us, who had come to the farm of Sosi- 
 patra's parents, dressed like travellers, and having the ap- 
 pearance of rustics, was entrusted, at her request, the care 
 of a vineyard ; which, from that time, bore fruit in far great- 
 er abundance than ever, so that every one who saw it imme- 
 diately suspected a miracle. Wherefore the old men, having 
 been very handsomely attired, and sent for to a feast, when 
 they saw Sosipatra, and were captivated with her beauty, 
 entreated that she might be committed to their instruction 
 for five years ; beseeching her father not to be anxious ei- 
 ther about his farm, or his daughter ; but to expect that the 
 former would yield very abundant fruits, and that the latter 
 would rise above the condition of mortals. The father com- 
 plied. When the five years had elapsed, the daughter re- 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMEiNT. **}11 
 
 turned ; and her father not knowing lier, from the size and 
 beauty of her body, worshipped her, thinking that he saw a 
 being altogether of another nature. When she had at length 
 been recognized, she told every thing, from the greatest to 
 the least, that had happened to her in the mean time ; and 
 threw her father into such admiration and astonishment by 
 this account, that he thought his daughter a goddess, and fall- 
 ing down at the feet of the old men, begged that they would 
 tell him who they were. They hesitating, said with difficulty, 
 after a while, that they belonged to the cect, called Chaldaic, 
 and were initiated in its mysteries ; and this in an enigmatical 
 manner, and with downcast faces. When the father had 
 heard this, he begged them, in an imploring manner, that they 
 would become the proprietors of the farm, and would more 
 fully instruct his daughter, who was consecrated to the 
 Gods ; to which they signified their assent by signs, not ut- 
 tering another word. In what follows, these old men are 
 called genii ; and she is stated to have been Srsiarf/xsvii xai iv. 
 Soufl'»(iio'a, (agitated by a divine power, and filled with inspira- 
 tion,) and Sffjors'/ja, and to have been every where present, and 
 to have predicted future events, which were brought to pass. 
 I do not know what others may think, after reading this ; 
 but, for myself, I do not see even the shadow of a trace of 
 a certain peculiar science, viz. the Oriental ; but am persuad- 
 ed that all this relates to magic. And, in truth, I cannot 
 cease to wonder, that so much stress has been laid upon 
 this passage, which is evidently to be placed on the list of 
 mere idle fables ; and ought never to have been cited by 
 way of proof on such an occasion as this. This is also the 
 opinion of Walch, in his 'Dissertation on the Source of the 
 Gnostic System in the Oriental philosophy,* which is added 
 at the end of Part ii. of the Commentatt. of Michaelis, p. 
 284 ; where he alsp adds, that not only is the credit of Eu- 
 napius injured, by his relation of such absurdities, but his tes- 
 timony is not of much weight, on account of the character of 
 the age in which he lived. 
 
 From what has been said, the point I designed to establish 
 is clear ; viz. that the passages cited by Brucker from Pliny 
 
312 NO TRACES or THE GNOSTICS 
 
 and other writers, do not relate to the Oriental philosopKy, 
 but to Magic ; and therefore that the whole subject of the 
 Oriental philosophy is uncertain. But let us grant that those 
 passages have a different meaning from that which I have as- 
 signed to them : at any rate they are not to be explained of 
 the Oriental philosophy, but rather of the barbarian ; which, 
 though held in great contempt by some of the ancient philo- 
 sophers, as was the case with Epicurus, according to Cle- 
 mens Alexand RiN us, * Strom/ L. i. p. 302. ed. Sylb., was 
 held in the greatest estimation by others ; so that it is easy to 
 see the reason of the journies made to those nations by the 
 Greeks. Hence Clemens, in the place just mentioned, ob- 
 serves that it would be superfluous to prove, that some very 
 distinguished philosophers and wise men of the Greeks were 
 both barbarian in their extraction, as Pythagoras, Antisthenes, 
 Orpheus, and Homer ; and also instructed by the barbarians. 
 He relates, moreover, that Plato, (as is shewn by his very ele- 
 gant writings, from which Sylburg has cited passages, at this 
 place of Clemens,) not only was a great admirer of the bar- 
 barians, but also frankly confessed, that he and Pythagoras 
 acquired among those nations the most excellent part of phi- 
 losophy. Hence he observes, L. vi. p. 629, that Epicurus, 
 though he said that none but the Greeks understood philoso- 
 phy, (as had been shewn in the above mentioned passage, L. 
 I.) stole his principal doctrines from that same Democritus, 
 who was very learned in the barbarian philosophy ; and also 
 that Pythagoras conversed intimately with the prophets of the 
 Egyptians, L. i. 1. c, on which account he submitted to cir- 
 cumcision, in order that, by entering into their secret recesses, 
 he might acquire the mystical philosophy of the Egyptians ; 
 and that he was intimate with the most distinguished of the 
 Chaldeans and Magians. And no one, I imagine, would deem 
 Pythagoras a Gnostic ! To this testimony is added that of 
 Origen, cont. Cels. L. i, p. 5. ed. Hoeschel, who derives the 
 origin of almost all schools and philosophy from the barba- 
 rians. There is no need, however, of these proofs, the thing 
 being quite evident. Nor do I perceive any thing in that 
 place of Clemens. L. r. p. 303, so far as I can understand it : 
 
IN the; new testament, 313 
 
 irom which, because he speaks of the philosophy of tho 
 Brachmans, the Odrysoe, and the Getae, and also of the Chal- 
 deans and Arabians, Brucker thinks it may be discovered, that 
 both the name and reputation of the Oriental philosophy had 
 spread among the Greeks. This only I can see ; that what 
 is said relates to the barbarian philosophy, to which the Greeks 
 accommodated their own ; not to the Oriental, i. e. some pe- 
 cuhar system, different from the Greek and the barbarian. 
 
 The testimonies, therefore, cited by Brucker, in proof of 
 an Oriental philosophy, have not sufficient certainty, and are 
 of no weight. It is, indeed, evident from these, and cannot 
 be denied, that some of the learned men of antiquity had 
 heard of the remarkable knowledge of the Persians and Chal- 
 deans ; and that some among them, ardently desirous of ac- 
 quiring it, took journies to them, and were considerably be- 
 nefited by their instructions. But the great point under dis- 
 cussion, and against which I contend, can in no way be made 
 to appear by these citations ; viz. first, that these nations, be- 
 sides that philosophy which is commonly attributed to them, 
 had a ccrttiin peculiar system, of a mystical and theological 
 nature, different from the barbarian wisdom, so called, and 
 termed Oriental ; secondly, that this is the source of the Gnos^ 
 tic philosophy ; and iastly, what is absolutely necessary to be 
 shewn, if any passages of the N. Testament are to be illus^ 
 trated from the Gnostic philosophy, that this Gnostic philoso- 
 phy took its rise from that Oriental philosophy as early as the 
 time of Christ, and perhaps long before ; and, what I wish 
 chiefly to be borne in mind, that it was approved of by the 
 Jews in Palestine, and by the Greeks in Asia Minor, and also 
 in Greece itself, at Corinth, and in other places ; and was ea- 
 gerly received by so great a number of people, and so made 
 use of to corrupt, and defile with various errors the pure 
 Christian doctrine, that the Apostles were put to the necessity 
 of seriously admonishing Christians, not to suffer themselves 
 to be deceived by it, and of rejecting and vehemently refut- 
 ing, in their writings, its false doctrines, which had already 
 crept into the Apostolic doctrine, and $ystem of morals. I 
 think, therefore, th^re will be none disposed to blame me, be- 
 
 40 
 
314 NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTICS 
 
 cause I have ventured to differ from the opinion of so many 
 distinguished men ; and to doubt both as to the existence of 
 the whole Oriental philosophy, and as to the position that 
 from it the Gnostic system was derived. 
 
 I shall now briefly sum up what has been said. In the 
 first place, I cited the testimony of authors worthy of credit^ 
 who assign a somewhat later date to the Gnostic philosophy, 
 than is commonly supposed, and clearly shew that it became 
 generally known in the Second Century. In the next place 
 I shewed, that Greek writers, and the Jewish authors Jose- 
 phus and Philo, have not said a word about the Gnostics even 
 in those places, where they could not properly have passed 
 them by, or, at any rate, where they had a convenient oppor- 
 tunity for mentioning them ; and that it can by no means be 
 believed, that they would have omitted a subject of so much 
 importance, as it is commonly supposed this system had ob- 
 tained, if it had indeed existed in their time. I then consi- 
 dered some passages of Philo in particular, in which learned 
 men have thought they discovered traces of the Gnostic phi- 
 losophy, and defended them against this supposition ; shewing 
 that they can be easily otherwise explained, and ought there- 
 fore to be so. In the third place, 1 treated of the source of 
 the Gnostic philosophy ; that philosophy, viz. which Mosheim 
 first termed Oriental ; and shewed, not only that the ancient 
 ecclesiastical writers were entirely unacquainted with this 
 Oriental philosophy, and suppose the Gnostics to have drawn 
 their doctrines from another source, but that in the passages 
 of PHny, and of other writers, from which learned men have 
 attempted to prove, both that there was a certain Oriental phi- 
 losophy, and that the Gnostic was derived from it, there is 
 nothing of the kind ; but that they ought to be understood in 
 some other sense, certainly not as referring to the Oriental 
 philosophy. And thence I think it may with good reason be 
 inferred, that that opinion is doubtful, not sufficiently esta- 
 blished, or, to speak freely, is false, which maintains that the 
 philosophy of the Gnostics was known, spread, and receiv- 
 ed, through nearly all the world, in the time of Christ and the 
 Apostlcr^. or rather during that of the Seventy Interpreters ; 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 315 
 
 biit that there is much more probabihty, and therefore cer- 
 tainty, in that which supposes the Gnostics to have been sub- 
 sequent to the ApostoHc age. And here I cannot refrain from 
 adding the words of Brucker ; in which he appears to utter 
 an opinion precisely in accordance with my own : though the 
 praise is due to him in common with Mosheim, of having 
 brought forward, and defended, the opposite sentiment. In 
 Tom. VI. Hist. Crit. Phil. p. 402, he thus expresses himself : 
 " Although these testimonies which I have cited, to prove the 
 existence of some theological and mystical system, flourishing 
 every where among the Eastern nations at the first period of 
 the Christian religion, are sufficient, if not fully to satisfy an 
 inquisitive mind, at any rate to convince it that the position is 
 probable ; yet it must be confessed, that, amidst so many 
 traces of its existence, historical circumstances are very ob- 
 scure ; and that as clear a light is not shed upon the history 
 of this sect, or of the Oriental philosophy, as that which 
 guides us in the history of the Grecian school of philosophy, 
 or even of the heresies, which sprang up within the Christian 
 church." Mark how doubtfully he speaks, and with what lit- 
 tle confidence in his own opinion ! And in p. 403, he says ; 
 •' I confess also, that, although I have been engaged for al- 
 most fifty years in investigating the history of ancient philoso- 
 phy, I have not yet arrived at as certain and clear a know- 
 ledge, as we have, for example, in regard to the Socratic, or 
 even the Pythagorean sects ; and that great darkness hangs 
 over this portion of the subject, &c." The same admission 
 is made also by Mosheim, De Reb. Christ, ante Constant. M. 
 §. xxxi. p. 26 ; by Michaelis, in the Dissertation above re- 
 ferred to, respecting the traces of the Gnostic philosophy in 
 the time of the Seventy Interpreters, and of Philo ; and by 
 Walch, in the work just cited. 
 
 I would here make the general remark, h6wever, that I 
 cannot cease to wonder at this inconsistency of learned men, 
 in their defence of the point under discussion ; and particu- 
 larly of Mosheim and Brucker, who are every ^here so con- 
 fused, that they do not know where to turn amidst the difficul- 
 ties into which they have brought themselves, and frequently 
 
B16 NO TRACES OF THE GJ^OSTJCS 
 
 run hither and thither into opposite assertions : and some- 
 times it is impossible to know with any certainty what is 
 their real opinion. Thus, for example, Mosheim, when he is 
 endeavoring to illustrate, and prove the existence of the 
 Oriental philosophy, attempts to benefit his cause by saying, 
 that the doctrine of the Chaldeans and Persians respecting 
 the origin of evil is so very ancient, that none can have any 
 doubt in regard to it. This is true enbugh, and about that 
 doctrine there is no question : but whether, besides it, there 
 was another peculiar system among the Chaldeans and Per- 
 sians, which was professed also by the Jews and Greeks in 
 Palestine and Asia Minor, iii the time of Christ and the 
 Apostles, and which was termed the Oriental philosophy i 
 and whether from this had arisen, even at that time, the 
 Gnostic system ; this is the point, as to which I ask for histo- 
 rical proof — Moreover, when he finds it impossible to get 
 clear of the difficulty presented by those passages of ancient 
 ecclesiastical writers, in which it is expressly asserted, that 
 the Gnostics arose subsequently to the times of the Apostles ; 
 .he admits, indeed, that the Gnostics were not, at this period, 
 called by that name, but says, however, that their philosophy, 
 which was termed /vwo**^, was then in existence. This is no- 
 thing more than strengthening one conjecture by another* 
 And besides, he himself thinks that he has proved, in many 
 places, " that in the time of Christ, and before that period, 
 there wef^ philosophers, who were called Gnostics by others, 
 or aspired to that title themselves." See Instit. H. E. maj. p. 
 260 s., and other places already cited. How do these things 
 agree one with the other ? But conjectures, and predeter- 
 mined opinions, never afe consistent with themselves. — Fui»- 
 ther, in his Commentary on the two Epistles to Timothy, 
 p. 597, he divides the Gnostics into two separate classes ; 
 saying that some of these heretics were united with the 
 Christians, while others had no communion with them. 
 There is no warrant, however, for such a distinction, but Mos- 
 heim's own imagination ; nor can it be established by any 
 historical proof. — At length he creeps out, either by saying, 
 that every thing is false and uncertain, which the ancient eft?- 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. dVt 
 
 xilesiastical writers have told us respecting the period and 
 sources of the Gnostic philosophy, as we have seen above ; 
 (but I have just as much right to say, that what M osheim as- 
 serts is false ;) or by perverting and confusing the passages 
 which occur in these writers, until they are made to coincide 
 with his own opinion. Thus in his Commentary just referred 
 to, p. 105, he wishes to prove from a place of Clem. Alex. 
 Strom. II. 11, that the Gnostics themselves also allowed, that 
 their opinions were condemned by St. Paul in his Epistles to 
 Timothy ; and that, on this account, they rejected these epis- 
 tles. There is no such thing, however, as this, in the whole 
 passage. Clement says, indeed, that these epistles were re- 
 jected by the Gnostics ; not, however, because they thought 
 that they had been attacked in them, but rather for this reason, 
 which he adds expressly ; viz. because some passages might 
 be adduced from these epistles in refutation of their opinions, 
 which they could not answer : and the same course ever has 
 been, and is now pursued by those, who are the inventors of 
 erroneous doctrines. — From all this therefore, it may be seen, 
 how learned men are compelled to turn from one resource 
 to the other, in order to establish their opinion as to the anti» 
 <juity and the source of the Gnostic philosophy ; and also 
 what weight is to be attributed to it, in the midst of such in- 
 consistency and uncertainty. 
 
 Part II. philological. 
 
 Mlaving in the former part proved, by arguments which 
 appear to me conclusive, that the pernicious philosophy of 
 the Gnostics did not arise among the Jews in Palestine, and 
 the Greeks in Asia Minor and in Greece itself, during the 
 times of the Apostles, but somewhere in the Second Century, 
 at any rate that it was not before this period injurious to 
 Christianity ; I shall now proceed to the consideration of 
 those passages of the New Testament, in which learned men 
 are of opinion that the sacred writers are opposing the Gnos* 
 tics, and that verv clear traces of these heretics exist. 1 
 
318 . NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTICS 
 
 shall, therefore, bring forward these places, and' endeavor 
 to shew, that they can be explained in some other more suita- 
 ble, and perhaps more probable way : not, indeed, with the 
 intention of proposing a new meaning and scope for all the 
 passages under discussion ; but in order to render more pro- 
 bable, by an exhibition of the very words and subject- 
 matter, and using, as it were, the authority of the inspired 
 writers themselves, that explanation which, I think most 
 agreeable to the best interpreters ; and to estabhsh and illus- 
 trate it by arguments either new, or at any rate supplied with 
 new force ; and thus to endeavor to put the interpretation 
 in a clearer light. I shall not, however, cite and examine 
 every single place, in which some learned writers, blinded by 
 attachment to their own preconceived opinion, and particu- 
 larly Hammond, have thought they discovered something of 
 the kind. In this case I should have no end to my labor ; 
 for they bring forward such a multitude of passages, that 
 there is scarcely a page, in which they do not seek, and of 
 course find, traces of the Gnostics : for an eager anxiety to 
 maintain a new opinion never is in quest of any thing, which it 
 does not with ease discover. A course which some distin- 
 guished men, who, in other respects, have gone to the great- 
 est lengths in their anxiety to hunt after traces of the Gnos- 
 tics, and particularly Mosheim, Institut. H. E. maj. p. 316, 
 have exceedingly blamed in Hammond ; not hesitating to 
 confess, that he has transgressed all proper bounds. Nor 
 shall I say any thing about places in the Old Testament ; 
 either in the Hebrew text itself, where Vitringa thinks he 
 sees something in reference to the present subject, in his Com- 
 mentary on Isaiah, Vol. n. p. 583 ; or in the Septuagint ver- 
 sion, where Michaelis, in his learned dissertation above re- 
 ferred to, has maintained that there are traces of the Gnos- 
 tics. From this labor I may be excused ; since, so far as the 
 dissertation just mentioned is concerned, Ernesti has al- 
 ready performed it in the N. th. Bibl. T. vni. p. 721 s., where 
 he has brought forward some arguments in support of my 
 opinion, few in number, indeed, but, as is usual with him, ex- 
 ceedingly weighty. I shall only observe this much, that it 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 319 
 
 may perhaps seem wonderful, that such a degree of proba- 
 bility should be attached to two or three passages, and those, 
 too, ambiguous in their character, in a version of such ^ize. 
 I shall only, therefore, cite the principal places of the rfew 
 Testament, which have been adduced, in order to prove 
 traces of the Gnostics in the New Testament, by those who 
 profess to take a middle path on this subject. As this middle 
 path, however, is not defined by any certain limits, the same 
 thing has happened to them, as to all who give out that they 
 take a moderate course on any subject ; viz. that they fluc- 
 tuate, and step aside from their path ; and think that they 
 have discovered the inspired writers to be, in some places, 
 opposing certain opinions, of which, in those passages, not a 
 trace exists. Of this kind are chiefly those places, in which 
 the name of a certain philosophy, and also yvwo'jj itself oc- 
 cur ; viz. Coloss. n. 8 s. and i. Tim. vi. 20. It is thought, in- 
 deed, that these entire epistles, as also the Epistle to the 
 Ephesians, have reference to this subject ; but that these 
 places are particularly clear on the point : I shall consider 
 these, therefore, first of all ; and afterwards attend to the 
 other passages, from the writings of St. John and St. Peter. 
 
 I begin with the Epistle to the Colossians ; in which some 
 learned writers are particularly struck with the Apostle's ar- 
 gument in opposition to a certain philosophy, which they 
 think is none other than the Gnostic ; and this they have en- 
 deavored to prove in a very ingenious manner. There is 
 very great difficulty in the word (pjXotfotp/a itself; respecting 
 the signification of which, in this place, there is much differ- 
 ence of sentiment among the learned, whose opinions I need 
 not here mention. Let it suffice to name one, whom I have 
 recently read, viz. Clemens Alexandrinus, whom most others 
 follow ; who understands <p<Xotfo(pja of the Greek philosophy, 
 and particularly the Epicurean and Stoic, and adds to the 
 words of the Apostle these which follow : t% dvatpoCdT^g Trjv 
 'jfpovoiav, Strom. L. i. p. 295 s. and L. vi. p. 645 ; where he 
 says, that the Apostle's meaning is, that he who has aspired 
 to a more exalted knowledge, i. e. has learnt the doctrine 
 of Jesus Christ, should no more resort to the Greek philoso- 
 
320 NO TRACES OF THE GNOSTICS 
 
 phy ; and that he calls this to. ioixsTa <rou xotrM-ou, the elements 
 of the world, since it teaches, after a certain manner, the first 
 beginnings, and is, as it were, the instruction which precedes 
 truth. But it is a very ancient meaning of (piXorfoipla with the 
 Greeks, to denote all science, and particularly eloquence ; in 
 which sense the word is frequent with Isocrates, as in the 
 beginning of the Panegyric,* and of Evagoras ;t though the 
 word was subsequently applied to human life, so that (piXotfo- 
 (p»a was the same as wisdom, of which signification abundant 
 examples and proofs are to be found in ancient works, parti- 
 cularly those of the Greeks. Comp. Ernesti, opusculaOra- 
 toria, p. 200. But the Jews, when they began to speak and 
 to write in Greek on their various subjects, had no better or 
 more suitable word than (p»Xo(ro(p<a, wherewith to express the 
 system of revealed religion, which we term Theology ; and 
 accordingly called it by that title. For at that time the word 
 &soXoy»a was not in use, unless the heathen writers happened 
 to be discoursing of their opinions in regard to the gods, and 
 their generation, which they usually called Srso^oyfa ; but to 
 apply the term to the knowledge of sacred things, was not 
 warranted by the usage of those times. The Jews, therefore, 
 having no word in the Greek language to express the doc- 
 trine of divine things, employed the word (piXotfoipja for this 
 purpose, as appears plainly from the writings of Philo and 
 Josephus ; various places from whom have been cited by the 
 learned, particul£u*ly Krebs, in his * Observatt. in N. T. e 
 Joseph.,' at this place, p. 336, and Wolfius in loc. Parti- 
 cularly clear is that passage of Josephus, Ant. Jud. xviii. 3. 
 1., where he calls the ceremonial law (piXotfocpla vo/xou ; and that 
 also of Philo, ' Quod om. prob, lib.' p. 878, Ed. Franc. 1691, 
 where he applies the term (ptXcCo^ia to the whole sacred doc- 
 trine of the Essenes ; and, in what goes before, uses this 
 same word in the sense of the lazvs of their country, which 
 the human mind cannot understand without divine inspiration 
 
 * [ I30CR. Op. Vol. I. p. 124, Ed. Lond. 1749.— Tr. 1 
 t [Ibid.Vol. ii.p,73.— Tr. 3 
 
IN THf: N£W TESTAMENT. «i*21 
 
 (var^i'oi^ vof/.o(^, ovg ofA^^avov a.Mdpu'slvYiv i1e^vo1^(f^x.^ •4>i>}(^v etvsu xenraxu- 
 X^jff iv^iou). And this was the only philosophy with which 
 the Jews were acquainted, viz. that science which related to 
 the sacred writings, and to their right interpretation : this 
 was their philosophy, and was taught in their schoob. Those 
 who had not learnt it, were called aypAj^fAaroj, Acts, iv. 13 ; 
 and the science itself was termed y^af^fAora, John, vii. 15. 
 Now, from this usage of speech of the Jews, it may be seen 
 what the Apostle means by (piXotfocpia in the passage referred 
 to ; viz. as has been remarked by some learned writers, the 
 Jewish theology, which, in those times, had assumed almost 
 entirely the form of philosophy : and as the Jews supposed 
 the knowledge of the laws to be the perfection of wisdom 
 (tfo^ia), as is shewn by Josephus, Ant. Jud. Lib. xx, c. 10. 
 §. 2, Ed. Oxon. 1720, f^ovois tfofptav fAa^u^outfi roTg to, v6jui,»|*a (fci(pug 
 itmikivois, * they allow those alone to be considered as wise, 
 who have acquired a thorough knowledge of the laws ; ' 
 therefore, in the passage under discussion, may be understood 
 principally the knowledge of the Mosaic law, not only that 
 possessed by the Jewish teachers, but also that of some 
 Christians themselves, who, while they professed faith in 
 Christ, inculcated the necessity of obedience to the ritual 
 law, and particularly to circumcision, as being an eternal co- 
 venant between God and men. This, then, is that deceitful 
 and vain philosophy, (for <piKo(fo<pia, xcu xevfj aflrarii, as Grotius, 
 and others after him have observed, is a hendiadis for (piXotfo- 
 <pia xai xsvYi xai d^ar/}Xi9,) against whose deception the Apostle 
 wishes Christians to be on their guard. How common, at 
 that time, was this sense of the word (pjXotfoipia, is evident from 
 the fact, that it was adopted also by the ancient ecclesiastical 
 instructors, and Christian writers. For it is very common 
 with them, to call the doctrine delivered by Jesus Christ aX*3- 
 Qris (^Xo(fo(pia^ the true philosophy, which certainly is not any 
 Gnostic or Oriental philosophy ; as in Clemens Alex., Stro- 
 mat. L. I. p. 314, and^SocRATES, H. E. L. iv, c. 27 ; and al- 
 so iuayyBlix'?! (piXotfotpla, the evangelical philosophy, as in Thd* 
 
 41 
 
32^ NCF TRACES OP THE GNOSTICS 
 
 ODORET, de Cur. Graec. Affect. L. xii ;* and Christians them^ 
 selv6s (piXotfo'tpoi Tov 0£ou, philosophers of God, as in Clemens, 
 Strom. L. vi. p. 642. Who these (piXoVoipoi are, he himself 
 explains ; viz. oi docpiag ipuvrsg^ «r^s ifavruv 6y]iiiovp'yo\j xai 5i5atfxa- 
 XoD, TouTgtfTi yvCi^sug tou Omrov Qsov, * those who are lovers of 
 wisdom, which is the creator and teacher of all things, that 
 isj of the knowledge of the Son of God.' Jonsius, 'de 
 Scriptor. Hist. Phil.,' L. iii. p. 16, and Wolfius, in loc. have 
 cited a number of passages. From these it may be perceiv- 
 ed, that this sense of (?»Xo(ro(p/a is not entirely new, but was in 
 use as early as the time of the Apostles, and was subsequent- 
 ly very common in the Christian church. 
 
 This interpretation, moreover, of the word (piXotfoipia, as it 
 is clearly proved by the usage of speech of those times, is al- 
 so required, and rendered absolutely necessary, by the whole 
 connexion of the discourse, the design of the Apostle, and the 
 character of that period. I shall now attend to this some- 
 what more minutely, that it may the more plainly appear, that 
 the Apostle is speaking of nothing else than the ceremonial 
 law, and that his words cannot possibly be referred to the 
 Gnostic, or to any other philosophy. And, in the first place, 
 it is evident, that the first part of this Epistle is employed in 
 unfolding, on the one hand, that divine favor which has been 
 conferred upon all men in common by the redemption of Je- 
 sus Christ, and, on the other, that, in particular, which has been 
 displayed to the Gentiles ; and that this exhibition is made, 
 partly with the view of exciting their minds to admiration of 
 the divine benevolence, and partly to confirm their opposition 
 to that doctrine, which defended the Mosaic law, and requir- 
 ed from Christians the continuance of circumcision, and other 
 ritual observances. This is the scope of the First and Se- 
 cond Chapters ; which I shall now consider in detail. The 
 Apostle first mentions the greatness of the faith of the Colos- 
 siaos, and their constancy in the same (Ch. i. 3 s. dxovtfavTss rnv 
 flfijiv ufAwv,), to which they had been led through the mercy of 
 
 * ITftEOD. Op. Tom. IV. p. 666, Ed. Par, 164^— Tr- ] 
 
la THE NEW TESTAMENT. 323 
 
 God ; and exhorts them not only to persevere in it, but alst) 
 to increase daily more and more. He then begins, from verse 
 12, to extol the divine goodness and wisdom, and particularly 
 that of our Lord Jesus Christ ; vi^hich is conspicuous not on- 
 ly in his redemption of the human race, but also in his call- 
 ing and bringing the Gentiles to a share in the blessings ob- 
 tained by Christ, and in his abolition of the ritual law ; which 
 was odious to them, now that they were engrafted into the 
 true church, and, with those who had been converted from 
 Judaism to Christianity, belonged as one body to Christ, the 
 head. This union of the two divisions of Jews and Gentiles, 
 which, in verse 20, he had termed the reconciliation of those 
 things which are in heaven, and those which are in earth, (as 
 Ernesti first proved very clearly, in a particular essay on the 
 subject,) he declares, in verse 26, to be a mystery, a thing un- 
 known before, (for this is the meaning of jxugripjov,) which had 
 been hidden from all time, d's'oxsxpufAfjilvov aero twv aiwvwv xa» a^ro 
 Tuv ygvswv, and was also by the Jews themselves, not designed- 
 ly on the part of God, for it was revealed in the Old Testa- 
 ment, but through their own fault, either not at all, or imper- 
 fectly understood ; but which was now made known to them, 
 and to others, to whom it pleased God to reveal it, that it 
 might be seen, rig o leXovrog Tvjg So^rig cou fiiu^ripi'ou Tourou iv rtTg e&- 
 vctfiv, i. e. how wonderful was the divine goodness toward the 
 Gentiles, clearly manifested in that secret design of bringing 
 the Gentiles to a share in the benefits, obtained by Christ ; 
 and this is Christ in you, 05 ki Xpjgo? iv {,^Tv, i. e. it is evident 
 that this is the divine intention, to make the Gentiles as well 
 as the Jews partakers of eternal salvation, from the circum- 
 stance that the doctrine of Christ is preached to you, and the 
 hope of salvation, ^ i'kieig Trig dhlrig, which before was granted 
 to the Jews alone, is announced, without circumcision, to you, 
 no less than to them. But those who had come over from Ju- 
 daism to Christianity, were now quite indignant at the Gen- 
 tile Christians, whom they found to be, in this way, made 
 equal with themselves ; and were also hostile to St. Paul him- 
 self, Ch. II. 1 : partly because he taught that the Jews and 
 the Gentiles were on the same footing, and partly because hfe 
 
324 NO TRACES OF THK GNOSTICS 
 
 shewed the ceremonial law to be abolished, which, and parti- 
 cularly circumcision, they required to be continued in the 
 Christian religion. This opinion, carrying with it much plau- 
 sibility, so harassed the minds of Christians, that the Apostles 
 were obliged to meet together, and with united strength to 
 set themselves in opposition to this prevailing error of the 
 Jews ; and fortify the minds of Christians against this opinion 
 in favor of the Jewish law. St. Paul, therefore, aroused by 
 the great necessity of the case, and by the extreme danger of 
 the C(5lossians, seriously admonishes them, verse 4, not to per- 
 mit themselves to be deceived by these specious representa- 
 tions (^iSavoXoyia), or to be led away from the firmness and 
 constancy of their faith ; which admonition the Apostle re- 
 peats, and sets forth more fully, from verse 8 ; as is manifest 
 from the following verses, where he shews the excellence of 
 the gospel doctrine above the Jewish law, and the obligation 
 to follow and embrace the former, and abandon the latter, by 
 three arguments. The first is this, that the Author of the 
 gospel is the true God (verse 9, oVi iv dvri^ xutoixsI itSiv to ir\ripu> 
 fia rris ^soTr]rog tfwfAotTixwg, i. e. in him is truly divinity itself,), 
 who knew very well the will of the Father in regard to this 
 law, and is therefore a most perfect instructor, and infinitely 
 to be preferred to the Jewish and all other teachers, who re- 
 commend the observance of the ceremonial law. The se- 
 cond is, that those good things, greater than all others, which 
 the ritual law had only faintly shadowed forth, and prefigured 
 by mere images, he had actually produced by his redemption, 
 and conferred through a spiritual circumcision, made in bap- 
 tism, and sealed in justification, verse lis. The last is, that, 
 by his death on the cross, he had also destroyed, transfixed, as 
 it were, with nails, torn in pieces, and altogether abrogated, 
 the ritual law, verse 14 s. sgaXgl-^^ag to xa^' Tjfjuwv j^ei^o^/paqjov roTg 
 ioyy^adiv (i. e. having ritual precepts,) o ?v CcrsvavTlov r}iuv, (i. e. 
 which law produced such a separation between Jews and 
 Gentiles, and prevented them from uniting together in peace 
 and fellowship) xai' aM ?pxsv ex, x.t.x. Now, therefore, the 
 Apostle proceeds, in verse 16, to shew, that, for these reasons, 
 Christians cannot be compelled to observe those rites ; and. 
 
IN THS NEW TESTAMENT. 325 
 
 accordingly, that the Jews, and the defenders of the ceremo- 
 nial law, have no reason for being inimical to the Gentiles, or 
 for blaming the Christians (xpiv^Vw for xaraxpiv^rw), because 
 they observe no difference in meats and drinks, in festivals 
 and sabbaths, and altogether neglect the Jewish law. That 
 they who still retained this law, carry with them a great ap- 
 pearance of modesty, and affect peculiar piety and obedience 
 to the divine precepts (^pri^xela <rwv dyysKuv) ; but that they 
 are vainly puffed up with human wisdom, and abandon the 
 true instruction which Christ requires. At length the Apos- 
 tle draws from all this, in verse 20 s, the following inference ; 
 If, therefore, ye have been made free from the ceremonial 
 law, through the death of Christ, of which ye have been 
 made partakers in baptism, so that ye are reckoned, as it wei-e, 
 dead with him, why do you still submit yourselves to its or- 
 dinances, as if you were in that former condition ? Why do 
 you pay any attention to those who say. Do not eat this or that 
 food ! Which meats (the words a ki iravTa sis (p^opav ttJ dm- 
 X?^<is^ are parenthetical) add nothing to real piety, but yield 
 to corruption in their very use ! Which, indeed, is nothing 
 more than a human system, not enjoined upon us of the pre- 
 sent day, xoLTOi TO. ivTaX|xara xai Sidatfxakias twv dvdpw<7fwv, after the 
 commandments and traditions of men ; though it has a certain 
 appearance of wisdom, affecting great piety, modesty, and 
 severity to the body, which, in this way, is deprived of that 
 attention which it requires, and naturally seeks. 
 
 In such a course of argument as this, what room is there 
 for the absurdities of the Gnostics, or the trifles of the Essenes 
 about the adoration of angels ? Who does not at once perceive, 
 that a controversy of such a nature, instituted against this class 
 of men, is entirely foreign from the purpose in the explana- 
 tion of an argument like that before us ; or, at any rate, would 
 not have deserved to be so long dwelt upon by the Apostle ? 
 The former subject, on the contrary, was highly important 
 and proper, and moreover absolutely necessary to be exhibit- 
 ed in the clearest manner ; since not only a great proportion of 
 the Christians were infected with that Jewish opinion, respect- 
 ing the necessity of still adhering to the ceremonial law, but 
 
326 NO TRACES or THE GNpSTICS 
 
 / 
 
 also St. Peter himself was striving, at least in secret, through 
 a too great fear of offending the friends of the ceremonial law, 
 to recommend it by his own example in abstaining from meats 
 forbidden in it, and appeared to approve of it, Gal. ii. lis.; 
 and on this account caused great confusion among the Chris- 
 tians, when they saw the course he took ; and not merely led 
 those who were of Jewish origin, and Barnabas himself also, 
 to imagine that it was necessary to keep the law, but also 
 those who had been converted from among the Greeks. And 
 accordingly, in many other places also, and in whole chapters, 
 as Rom. xiv, the Apostle seriously admonishes Christians 
 in regard to this matter. Nor did the trifles of the Gnostics 
 recommend themselves by any great plausibility of language, 
 so that the Apostle could not be afraid of the Colossians 
 being deceived by it, as we shall see hereafter. Not so, 
 however, with that Jewish opinion : first, because the 
 ceremonial law had been once given by God himself ; next, 
 because the Jews had been accustomed from childhood 
 to reverence Moses, and their eyes had become used to 
 the pomp of the sacrifices, and of the High-Priest, and of 
 the whole priesthood, to which they found nothing to com- 
 pare, for external grandeur, either in Christ himself, or any 
 where among the Christians, or in the teachers, or in the re- 
 ligious worship ; every thing, on the contrary, being mean, 
 humble, and simple in its character, and all pomp and out- 
 ward show being removed. My interpretation, therefore, 
 seems to be confirmed by the testimony of facts. 
 
 There are some things, however, in this portion of Scrip- 
 ture, which must be more accurately explained, and which I 
 have found to be urged very strongly by those, whose opinion 
 difl^ers from my own ; and a reason must be given for certain 
 words and interpretations, which I have given above. If, in do- 
 ing this, I shall be thought by the learned to have, here and there, 
 exceeded proper bounds, and to have dwelt too much upon 
 the illustration of refined terms, and phrases, which have been 
 already treated of by men eminent in this department of lite- 
 rature ; they must ascribe this to my desire to benefit young 
 persons, who are engaged in studies of this nature. And, in 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 327 
 
 the first place, the reason why the supporters of the opposite 
 opinion think that (piXocfocpia, ch. ii. 8, cannot mean the Jewish 
 law, is this ; that the Apostle adds, nai xsvr}g diraryig, xaTot t^v 
 ifapaSotftv <rwv av&pw'^rwv, xard to- ^oi/sTa too xntf^Aou, xai ou xam 
 X^itfTov (and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the 
 rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.). This, they think, 
 cannot apply to the law, which was enacted by God ; but is 
 peculiarly suitable to the Gnostic, or Oriental philosophy. As 
 I think differently, I shall now proceed to inquire, whether, 
 by a correct interpretation, these words may not be made 
 perfectly appHcable to the. subject to which I have referred 
 them. 
 
 It must be chiefly borne in mind, that the Apostle is speak- 
 ing, in this place, not of the law in general, or the Jewish 
 Theology, which was nothing but the knowledge of the law, 
 and particularly the ceremonial, as we have already seen ; 
 but of the law, as it then was : viz. deformed with the in- 
 ventions and absurdities of the Jews ; and which, though it 
 had been annulled by the death of Christ, was required to be 
 still observed among Christians themselves. Very correctly, 
 therefore, this Theology may be termed cpikotfoar^ia xsv/i, vain 
 philosophy, for the reasons just stated ; which are express- 
 ed also in the words that follow, xara tt^v irapaSotfiv, x, <r, X., 
 after the tradition of men, &c. With the same propriety may 
 it be further called <p»Xoo'o(pja t^^ aitarvig^ i. e. a^ariiXii, deceit- 
 ful ; for any one might easily be deceived by it, as it com- 
 mended the law, which was given by God himself, and which, 
 as I have already observed, the Jews had been accustomed 
 to admire from their childhood, on account of its outward 
 splendor. Now this doctrine, inculcating and commending 
 the Jewish law, he calls (piXoCo^ia xara ti^v •Wa/ja^oO'iv Twv avSi/Jw-jrwy, 
 
 i. e. a human system.* The word •jrapa^otfj^ is exactly 
 
 * I have thus rendered the words jtatTa tjjf irapeiS^ociv tSv dy^puTrui, 
 in conformity with an elegant use of the preposition Kara^ which is em- 
 ployed by the Greeks in place of the substantive verb, or of the adjec- 
 tive or substantive in the Genitive case. Thus, in the inscription of St. 
 Matthew's gospel, to /c«t* M«tTS-«7o» '^vxyyihrn, the gospel of Mat- 
 
328 NO TRACES OF THE GNOSTICS 
 
 suitable to the Jewish theology, which was pecuHariy distin- 
 guished by this name ; as is evident from several places in 
 the New Testament. See Matt. xv. 2. 3. 6. Mark, vii. 3. 
 5. 8. Gal. I. 14. For it signifies any system of instruction 
 whatever ; particularly, that which relates to external wor- 
 ship, in which sense, undoubtedly, it occurs in i. Cor. xi. 2, 
 where Luther has well rendered it, * die Weise,' (the ordi- 
 nances). But the ritual law is called •jra^a^oo'ij twv av^^w^wv, a 
 human system, either because it was enlarged, or rather de- 
 filed, with innumerable inventions of men, which were more 
 scrupulously observed than even the commandments of God 
 himself; (which is the opinion of Deyling, in his * Diss, de 
 Chirographi et Principum legalium abolitione,' contained in 
 Obs. S. Tom. IV. p. 58%) or because, now that Christ had 
 died, the observance of it was still enforced, which certainly 
 was nothing more than the system of men ; or, finally, be- 
 cause it was imperfect, and was of no avail for the attainment 
 of inward holiness, and eternal salvation ; so that it is called 
 human in the same sense in which the whole law is termed 
 tftt^^, and also the ritual law itself, in Heb. vn. 16. ix. 10, in 
 order to express its imperfection ; as is well known. Neither 
 of these opinions is contradicted by facts, or the usage of 
 speech. The Apostle then adds, xaTd -ra (froixsTa <rou xotffAou ; 
 (after the rudiments of the world,) in the explanation of which 
 words, ancient and later commentators are very much divided 
 in opinion. Chrysostom and Theophylact understand them to 
 mean the stars. Though I shall not deny, that the term (froi. 
 yfoi was formerly applied to the stars, and that these are un- 
 
 thew, or, which is Matthew's, or written by Matthew ; as also in Jose- 
 phus, oi Teic »«fcTA noiMffif/oF vpA^ut <»'vae^p*4'itv'r«c, meaning clearly: 
 t^ose who wrote the history of the actions of Pompey. So $ K.ctrd 
 xirTii iiKsttoa-vvh, is the same as what is sometimes callp.d ^ tjc or JVa 
 ziarrto): S'uaitoauvn^ or simply i'tKXiotrvm tmc ?rtVT«a)f. So also tj »ar 
 Uxeyh vpo^d'tTts, the free kindness ; and the Greeks frequently use the 
 expression, ot xctr' iKXoym avfptt, chosen men. In Acts, xvii. 38, rme 
 Tur K»^' vfAtit TTomtmr some of your own poets. According to thitf 
 elegant Greek usage to <c*t* in this passage must be expteined ? In : 
 stead of which tt? Ttpi is sometimes used. 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMEiNl. 321^ 
 
 doubtedly referred to in ii. Pet. iii. 10. 12, where the Apostle 
 had reference, without question, to 0]u}i; nnpiD, which was 
 imitated also by the ancient ecclesiastical writers ; yet the 
 context forbids v^ to understand the word in this sense, in the 
 passage before us. We must look, therefore, for some other 
 signification. The word (froixsTa properly means, letters, and 
 is used in this sense by the ancient grammarians : but further 
 signifies, the first principles of any subject, which are taught 
 young pupils ; according to the phraseology of the Hebrews, 
 who call the ground- work of a thing nnPiD. Whence, also, 
 the Jewish teachers call the elementary parts of philosophy, 
 and the first principles of a subject, by the names nio; and *ip. 
 derived from '^d\ Hence, however, the term c-a tfroixsra came 
 to be applied to religion, and signifies its very beginnings, the 
 first instruction in Christian doctrine ; as in Heb. v. 12, where, 
 by an allowable pleonasm, (See Horat. Sat. L. i. Sat. 1. 1. 26, 
 where the phrase * elementa prima ' is used,) is added, 
 T^s oLffx/is, which, according to the Hebrew mode of speaking, 
 is for •jr'puTa ; and this latter word is applied to the first prin- 
 ciples of i-eligion, in i. Cor. xv. 3.* In the same way the 
 word tfToip^s'w was applied to religion, for the purpose of ex- 
 pressing, both the manner of outward life, and the inward 
 feelings of the heart ; this mode of speaking being derived not 
 merely from the Hebrew usage, in the word "fyn, but from 
 the practice of the Greek writers, who use in the same sense 
 the word /3aivw. Thus, in Gal. vi. 16 ; oVoi <r^ xavovi toutw 
 (fToij^^jtfouCjv ; in the explanation of which words commentators 
 have been very much embarrassed. Every thing is plain, 
 however; if this sense of tfroixs'w only be borne in mind. The 
 meaning is this ; whosoever, in their faith and life, follow this 
 rule (viz. that which the Apostle had given in verse 15, iv 
 XpitfTw 'Iiitfou OUTS 'TfspjTojXTj 71, X. T. X.) ; or, who SO believe and 
 act, as if they thought that nothing is of any avail in the 
 Christian religion but xa»vii xritfig, a new creature, shall be 
 saved. In the same sense this word Ctoixs'w occurs in Phil, 
 
 42 
 
330 NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTICS 
 
 III. 16, where I should apply it principally to the mind ; dince 
 (pftovsTv is added, which I understand as referring to a prudent 
 manner of life ; and the meaning is this : that rule which we 
 have thus far followed, we ought to maintain in our way of 
 thinking and of living ; for the infinitives (/roix^Tv and (pponTv 
 are governed by <5sr understood, according to an elegant usage 
 of the Greek writers, of which Krebs has cited some ex- 
 amples, in his Comment, ad Deer. Rom. pro. Jud. p. 428. 
 Now from all this it may be seen, that, in the passage before 
 us, ra tfrojp^sra is to be understood as referring to religion, and, 
 indeed, to that divine instruction which the Jews had, when 
 they were only, as it were, novices and infants. But they 
 were such, the Apostle tells us in Gal. iv. 3, so long as they 
 were bound under the irksome and severe discipline of the 
 ceremonial law ; which law, the Apostle says, Ch. in. 24, 
 was a schoolmaster until Christy or until the death of Christ, 
 whereby we are delivered from it. Therefore by ra rfrou 
 ysTa Tou x6(j'fji,ou, i. e. TotJcou, in Hebrew, n^n DSi;r "nTo^ is to be 
 understood the ceremonial law itself; to which, as it was im- 
 perfect, is therefore opposed the perfect doctrine of Christ, 
 (p\Ko(to(pia xoLTo. Xpitfrov. This is very plainly shewn by verse 
 20 ; dflr's^avSTS tfOv <rw XpKJ'Tw ctflTo rwv tfroip^ciwv tou xoo'fiLou, where 
 the reference is evidently to the laws of Moses, from the ob- 
 servance of which we have been freed. And no less clearly 
 is this meaning established by Gal. iv. 3 ; where the Apostle 
 says, ^l^^'iSi oVs 'JfASv vrjiriot, C-n-o TO. (fTQi-)(£Ta rou xorf/xou ^fjisv Ss- 
 oouXwH-^voi; which (frotxsTa are, in verse 9, called daGsvT} xolI 
 ifTUix^} in comparison to the good things of the New Testa- 
 ment ; those (fToix^Ta, having no power to procure salvation. 
 And finally, my interpretation is exceedingly strengthened by 
 the circumstance, that these tfToi^sra are called (froix^Ta <rou 
 -xotffxou. For it is the usage of the sacred writings, to call by 
 this name the Jewish law of the Old Testament, in compari- 
 son to the Gospel, which was the doctrine concerning /Satf*- 
 Xsj'a Twv ou^avwv, the kingdom of heaven, or of God, to which 
 is opposed o xotf^og ; as is very plainly shewn by the words wV 
 ?wvrsg ^v x6(ffi(f), in verse • 20 ; i. e. as if ye were still in that 
 former condition of the Old Testament.— The sense of the 
 
IN THE XEW TESTAMENT. ^1 
 
 Verse under discussion, therefore, I think to be this : Let no 
 man impose upon you by that deceitful (for the Apostle refers 
 to verse 4) and vain Jewish doctrine, which recommends the 
 Mosaic law ; and exacts the observance of that which is a 
 mere human system, and which (inasmuch as it was once de- 
 livered by God) contains merely the first and imperfect in- 
 struction of men under the Old Testament ; which is nothing 
 in comparison of the more perfect system of Jesus Christ. 
 The Apostle, therefore, brings forward two arguments, where- 
 with to fortify the minds of Christians against that vain and 
 deceitful Jewish doctrine, which required the observance of 
 the ritual law ; the first, that this is a doctrine of men ; a point 
 which he explains more fully in what follows, by shewing, 
 that this law has been abrogated by Christ : the second, that 
 the ceremonial law contained simply the first teaching, and 
 small beginnings of the worship of God under the Old Testa- 
 ment ; of which Christians stood in no need, inasmuch as 
 they had the much more perfect doctrine of Jesus Christ, and 
 by far the most excellent worship. The word tfuXaywysij is 
 from tfuXov, or tfxuXov, a booty,* and ayw ; and signifies, there- 
 fore, to rob, to carry oflf as a prey, and further, to take any 
 advantage of a person, either by force, or by fraud. Hence 
 arises a very suitable interpretation : " beware least any man, 
 by the deception of this judaizing doctrine, deprive you of 
 that freedom from the ceremonial law, which has been pur- 
 chased by Christ ;" which, moreover, agrees entirely with the 
 character of the Jews, and of all the defenders of the Mosaic 
 law. Comp. Matt, xxiii. 15. Certainly all these things do 
 not accord well together, if you understand the reference to 
 be to the Gnostic or Oriental philosophy. 
 
 * Students of the sacred writings would do well to observe another, 
 
 though somewhat less frequent sense of this word. It is used in the N. 
 
 T. to signify goods of any kind ; e. g. Luke, xi. 22 ; as is shewn not only 
 
 by the parallel place, Matt. xii. 29, where we find t« y*«/», instead of 
 
 T» a-KvKct, but also by the usage of the Hebrews, who apply the term 
 
 ^Sj^, booty, to all kinds of goods ;];as Prov. 1. 13, xvi. 19, Dan. xi. 24, 
 
 y T 
 Esth. 111. 13 ; in which last passage the Septuagint has t«' vrdfx^frat. 
 
333 
 
 :N0 traces of the GNOSTUi 
 
 The same observation may be tnade in regard to what fol- 
 lows ; for every thing relates to the ceremonial law, and its 
 abolition, concerning which the Apostle speaks so plainly in 
 verse 14, that this passage is exactly in point. But before I 
 say any thing of this verse, a few observations must be made 
 in regard to verse 9 ; which I should have omitted had I not 
 observed, that learned men lay much stress upon the word 
 ^X^^wfAa in particular, and give it I know not how many dif- 
 ferent applications. For some think that they have drawn 
 from this word a very weighty proof, that the Apostle is, in 
 this passage, opposing the Gnostics, and particularly their 
 Aeons ; which they usually distinguished by this name. 
 Others, however, think that the reference is to the Oriental 
 philosophy, or to the Essenes ; and suppose that this way of 
 speaking is taken from the temple, of which God himself 
 was the •jr'Krjpuika ; and that the Apostle argues thus : " Christ 
 is the head of the whole church, and greater than all the an- 
 gels ; we must not think of any other mediator, therefore, 
 in our approaches to God (as the Essenes did, thinking that 
 we must have an angel as a mediator with God), since we 
 are ourselves the temple of God." I certainly never saw 
 an interpretation more far fetched than this ; and cannot sup- 
 press my astonishment, that men in other respects very 
 learned, and skilful in the Hebrew tongue, should have 
 brought forward such an idea : it being as plain as possible, 
 that the Apostle, in the use of the word -rX-^/iwfjLa, imitates the 
 phraseology of the Hebrews, who, as Schoettgen, Hor. Heb. 
 and after hin Wolfius, in loc. have observed, use the word 
 «SP to express the whole of a thing, or all that belongs to it. 
 Thus in Psalm xxiv. 1, hkiSd^ y^xn n^n^h; l. 12. and i. Cor. 
 X. 26, flrXrj^wfxa rris yrig. According to this usage, -rX^^^wfjia rrjg 
 agoT»)T05 means the whole of divinity ; or the divinity itself, 
 with all its attributes, as in Eph. iii. 19. -ffSiv rh 'rXvj^w/xa.Tou 0g- 
 ou, the sum total of those divine blessings, which are confer- 
 red upon the faithful. This latter passage throws light upon 
 the words which follow : xal id^s Iv auTw (for ^»' durov) 'jesieXr- 
 fwftsvoi ; i. e. by whom, or, by whose kindness, also, you have 
 been enriched with the gifts of divine grace : which gifts the 
 
IX THE NEW TESTAMENT. 333 
 
 Apostle then -enumerates, viz. faith, hoHness, and the pardon 
 of sins, with words and figures taken from the ritual law. 
 All these things he mentioned, for the purpose of shewing the 
 excellence of Christ, and his doctrine, above that Jewish no- 
 tion ; and the duty of embracing the former, and rejecting 
 the latter. What connexion, then, is there, between such a 
 course of argument, and the Aeons of the Gnostics, or the 
 worship of angels, required by the Essenes ? 
 
 And it cannot be doubted, that in verse 14 s, the Apostle is 
 speaking of the ceremonial law, which he shews to have been 
 blotted out on the cross ; and thus that the distinction between 
 Jews and Gentiles was done away, and peace had been made 
 between them. For xs'porpa<?ov ToTg Uy^^adi, the ritual writing, 
 or that which related to rites, is the same as vo'/xog twv t^ToXwv Iv 
 ooyftatf/, in Eph. ii. 15, the law, which consisted in ceremonial 
 ordinances and rites, as Deyling has shewn, 1. c. To this 
 law he elegantly applies the name x-'P°7po'-9ov, which has the 
 same signification as /pViui-a, i. e. a writing : and he thus not 
 only alludes to the use of this word in pecuniary matters, as 
 is plain from the words klaKB\-\,as and ■n'potfTjXwo'ar ; but also, as 
 Ernesti has shewn, 1. c. and in N- th. Bibl. T. i. p. 159, to the 
 difference between the law and the gospel ; inasmuch as the 
 law, being first promulged by writing, is called p(;^ipoypa9ov, 
 as II. Cor. ni. 6, ypafxfia ; while the gospel is called 'tfvsujxa, the 
 Spirit, because its first promulgation was made, without letters 
 and writing, by the Holy Spirit, speaking through Christ and 
 the Apostles. It is called, moreover, to xa^' '/jf^-wv p^^jpoypacpov, 
 i. e. standing in the way of you Gentiles, as a cause of sepa- 
 ration ; I think, therefore, that >)ixwv is put for 6fJ^wv, these terms 
 being often used for each other.; as in Eph. ir. 1. 5, where 
 those who, in verse 1, are called ^M-a?, are, at the end of the 
 parenthesis, called V"s ; and then follows, Xap«V< Icrs o'g<j'w(rjxs- 
 voi. 1 would, therefore, refer to xa^' >j/ji<wv to the Gentiles, but 
 the words which follow, o ?v Cflrsvavn'ov ^/xn/, tp the Jews ; and I 
 think, with GrotiUs, that they ought to be interpreted from the 
 usage of the Hebrew verb "i^y, to oppress, from which comes 
 "^J, which is, in many places, rendered by the Greek interpre- 
 ters, SflTsvavTioff ; and I would thus understand the phrase ; hy 
 
334 NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTICS 
 
 which we also were oppressed^ in reference to the irksomenesii 
 of the Levitical worship. This worship, however, Chnst is 
 now said to have entirely annulled, and to have taken away 
 the force of the law which enjoined its observance, (■jrpotftjXw- 
 (fas ctuTo Tw (Traupw) and to have deprived of their dignity and 
 authority all those, who thus strongly urged the necessity of 
 adherence to it, (for I understand dpx^s xaj slovdias to mean, 
 not the devil, as Grotius thinks, but, according to Deyling's 
 view, the Jews, who, in i. Cor. ii. 6, are called ap^^ovrsj tou 
 a/wvo^ rovTov ; and also all, who, either by their authority or re- 
 commendation, were able to compel others to the observance 
 of that law,) and to have exposed them to signal scorn {ISsiy- 
 lioLTKfsv sv <n'a^|>)(r/a) in a pubhc manner, that all might perceive, 
 that this law was no more of any force ; and, as it were, to 
 have triumphed over them. And it is plain that the Apostle 
 had reference to the same thing in verse 16, and 17 ; since 
 he draws an inference from what he had said, and makes an 
 excellent comparison between the tfxia <rwv fxsXXovrc^v, and the 
 tfcjfxa Tou XpirfTou. For tfxia means a faint shadowing forth, a 
 type, or symbolical representation ; tfw/xa, therefore, signifies 
 the thing or blessing itself ; whence we obtain a sense not 
 only very elegant, but perfectly suitable to the subject, and to 
 the whole context ; viz. " in things of this kind, or, in the 
 whole ceremonial law, there were only to be found images of 
 benefits to come ; but in Christ, i. e. in the New Testament, 
 were the benefits themselves. The Apostle makes use of the 
 same comparison, with a slight difference, in Heb. x. 1 ; and 
 also JosEPHus, de Bell. Jud. Lib. ii. c. 2. §. 5. Ed..Oxon. 
 1720. • 
 
 In verses 18, and 19, he describes more minutely those who 
 held the Christians in contempt, because they laid aside the 
 Jewish law ; in order to put the Colossians the more upon 
 their guard against them. These same verses, however, have 
 led some learned writers to suppose that the Gnostics, or the 
 Essenes, who they think may, in a certain sense, be termed 
 Gnostics, are here intended ; principally, because in this, and 
 other places, the Apostle opposes the worship of angels, in 
 which they suppose that he referred to both those classes of 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 
 
 335 
 
 men, who maintained that angels ought to be devoutly wor- 
 shipped, as intercessors with God. We must inquire, there- 
 fore, whether we are obliged to understand men of this kind 
 in the present passage ; or whether we can find another in- 
 terpretation, agreeable to the usage of speech, and to the con- 
 text itself. I shall first, however, make a few observations in 
 regard to the opinion, that the Essenes paid religious worship 
 and honor to the angels ; after which I shall consider the pas- 
 sage before us. 
 
 With respect, then, to this opinion, which is maintained by 
 some very learned commentators, and, among these, Grotius, 
 Price, and after him Michaelis, in his Comm. in loc, it seems 
 to be very doubtful, and without foundation in history. For 
 there is not sufficient certainty in the testimonies which have 
 been adduced, to lead us to the inference that angels were 
 worshipped by the Essenes. One proof adduced from Jose- 
 PHus, de Bell. Jud. Lib. II. c.8. §7. Ed. Oxon. 1720, (for 
 that which is cited from Philo By Price, ought not to have 
 been mentioned) has some plausibility. It is as follows : 
 
 avrCtv §i^»a, xai ra twv dyys'Xwv ovo'/xara. " They swear, that 
 they will abstain from robbery, and will keep with equal re- 
 verence the books of their sect, and the names of the an- 
 gels." This testimony, however, is not sufficiently certain ; 
 and there are two objections, moreover, which may be made 
 to it. In the first place, this passage of Josephus is very ob- 
 scure ; for what is the meaning of " keeping the names of 
 the angels ?" Does it signify, honoring the angels with 
 divine worship ? Let the learned decide ! But, further, 
 this passage has undoubtedly been corrupted, as has been 
 shewn by Havercamp, the very learned editor of Jose- 
 phus ; who thinks that for dyyiXuv should be read ayvs»wv ; 
 so that the Essenes are stated to have bound themselves by 
 an oath, not to betray to the uninitiated the rites, and names 
 of the methods, whereby they were wont to be cleansed 
 and purified. Josephus had made mention of ayvsia in this 
 sense, in the fifth section of this same chapter. And, indeed, 
 if .by (fvv7r}fr\<fsiv Tot ovofXafa cwv ay^sXwv, he had meant thf 
 
33t) NO TRACES OF THE GNOSTICS 
 
 worship of angels, although the usage of speech by no means 
 allows of such an interpretation of his words, Josephus cer- 
 tainly would have explained this point more fully afterwards, 
 where he sets forth more minutely the religion and customs 
 of the Essenes. Nor does this idea agree with the character 
 of those times ; since it is well known that the Jews, after 
 the Babylonish captivity, altogether abstained from idolatry, 
 which the worship of angels, if there was any, must certainly 
 be accounted. The opinion itself, therefore, in respect to the 
 worship offered to angels by the Essenes, which the Apostle 
 is thought to have been opposing, is very uncertain ; a point, 
 however, which ought, above all others, to have been clearly 
 established. 
 
 But what is to be done, then, with the passage before us, 
 in which the Apostle has certainly mentioned worship offer- 
 ed to angels ? Let us see. It must be particularly borne in 
 mind, that the genitive tuv ayysXwv is to be referred not only 
 to ^f^tfyisia, but also to Ta<n'Sivo(ppo(fvvyi. But '^pri(fxsia <rwv dyys'Xwv, 
 as Ernes Ti .has shewn, N. th. Biblioth. T. in. p. 420, means 
 the same as ik\o'^pri(fxsiUf in verse 23, which is there joined 
 with the word <ra':r£<vo(p^oo'uv>]. But ^pri^xsioL does not refer to 
 inward worship, (as even Wolfius has shewn, at this place, 
 though he has erred in saying, that the word ^^vjCxeia is never 
 followed by the genitive of the object, to which the worship 
 is offered ; which Krebs, in his Observ. on this place, has 
 shewn to be a thing of very frequent occurrence,) but is used 
 with reference to that part of religion, which consists in ex- 
 ternals ; and this interpretation is rendered necessary, in the 
 present passage, by the whole context, and agrees with the 
 usage not only of the sacred writers, (as James, i. 26, where 
 ^firi<fxog means one, who thinks that he complies with the re- 
 quirements of religion, by observing some outward appear- 
 ances of holiness ;) but also of Greek authors. There is a 
 remarkable place in Philo, in his work entitled, ' Quod dete- 
 rior potiori insidiari soleat,' p. 159, Ed. Franc. 1691, where 
 he says of a hypocritical man, ^pri(fxsiav dvT< otfioVajToj Tjyov^svos. 
 This is also strongly confirmed by the interpretations of He- 
 sychius in his Glossary ; where ^py}<f^og is explained by ktpo^ 
 
IW THP NEW XESTAMENT, 337 
 
 0»fo^, i. e. one who liolds false opinions in regard to holiness 
 and the mode of procuring the divine favor ; and ^pid^os, 
 which is the same as ^pr}(fxos, by 'KSfirrhSy that is, one who is in 
 any respect given to affectation, and also by ^sitfi^aifAwv, a su- 
 perstitious person, one who seeks the divine favor by methods 
 which cannot obtain it. In regard to the meaning of Ss'Xwv Jv 
 T«*eivo(p^oo'j>v>j xa/ ^pijo'xgia, commentators are very much em- 
 barrassed. The explanation, " affecting humility and piety," 
 is the most natural, and suitable to the usage of speech. For 
 it is necessary to bear in mind a somewhat refined use of the 
 verb ^^Xw or ^Ss'Xw, that when simply joined to another verb, 
 or placed in connection with a preposition, it signifies a some- 
 what vehement desire of any thing, and also, particularly in 
 composition, affectation of any thing. This signification is 
 found not only in the Greek writers, but also in the New Tes^. 
 tament, as Markland has shewn, in his notes on Lysias.* Thus 
 in John, vni. 44, Tag s-ffiSfu/xjag <rou ^arpog C/xwv ^s'Xsts iroisrv, " ye 
 do voluntarily and freely, and with pleasure and eagerness ; 
 ye eagerly do." Ch. vu. 17, sav tis ^sXt} to ^iXruLo. auro? iroisTv, 
 i. e. if any one desires ; and Ch. vi. 21, ^^sXov \aQsTv dorhv slg 
 TO ffXordv, " they willingly received him into the ship." — This 
 usage is very common also in the Hebrew language, where it 
 answers to yBV}, which, joined with :3, signifies, to be exceed- 
 ingly delighted with any thing, so that one vehemently de- 
 sires it ; and it is rendered by the Septuagint either by ^sXw 
 £v Tiv/, where they have imitated either an elegant Greek, or a 
 Hebrew usage, or by iv5oxs(^ ; as in u. Sam. xv. 26, ^n^an xS 
 ^5, oux 7j3-£Xr]xa 8v rfo/, i. Sam. xvui. 22. Ps. cxLvn. 10, oux Iv Tjf 
 8wa(ftSi(t Tou iVcrou S-sXiyrfs*, ouSs iv tolTs xv^fjuaig tou dvSphs svSoxsT, i. 
 Kings, X. 9. Of the same kind also is i. Mace. iv. 42, where 
 the words ^sXriral vo'jxou mean, those who were eager for the 
 law. From this signification, therefore, of the verb 3-s'Xw, its 
 compounds are to be explained ; as ^SsXoVovoj, i. e. he who, 
 for the sake of a little vain glory, desires to appear laborious, 
 in Aelian, de Nat. Anim. iv. 43 ; also i^sXatfreiog, an elegant, 
 
 *[ Lys. Op.; p. 616, Ed.Reiske, Lips. 1772.— 2V.j 
 43 
 
338 NO TRACES or THE UN08TICS 
 
 effeminate man, one who affects polish and urbanity, in He- 
 LiODOBUs, Aeth. Lib. vu ; i^s\6(focpog, one who affects wisdom ; 
 and in the same manner also i^sXo^-pridxog, one who desires to 
 appear religious. Hence ^^-sXoa-^Tjo'xsra, verse 23, does not 
 meaa, a cunningly devised worship, formed after their own fan- 
 cy, as Luther renders it, and as Grotius also thinks it should 
 be interpreted ; but, according to this usage of speech, it sig- 
 ni$es, an affected love of religion, for which a person looks 
 upon himself with great complacency. In this manner, more - 
 over, the word has been explained by ancient commentators ; 
 as Augustin, Ep. 59 ;* Chrysostom, who explains it by h\k- 
 §5ia ; Theophylact, who interprets it, C^rox^tvoix^vr} guXa§sia ^v <r5j 
 ^fy\<tmc^ ; Hilary the deacon, who, in his Scholia On the epis- 
 tles of St. Paul, which are attributed by some to Ambrose^ 
 understands by it, a pretence of religion. Therefore also, 
 S-eXwy £v ra-rsivo^-^otfuvrj xou ^piqcfxsicL in the place before us, means, 
 one who affects humility and holiness ; or, who aims at an af- 
 fected humility and holiness. In this way the words are explain- 
 edbyalearned commentator of the tenth century, Atto, Bishop 
 of Vercelli, in his Commentary, h. 1. His words are these : " If 
 this could be expressed by a Greek word, it would sound still 
 more familiar in the ordinary Latin usage. For he who af- 
 fects to be rich, is, in the same way, commonly called thelo- 
 dives, and he who affects to be wise, thelosapiens ; and so al- 
 so in other cases of the same kind. Therefore, also, in this 
 place, thelohumilis, i. e. one who affects humility, &c."t And 
 this interpretation is exactly applicable to the Jews, and par- 
 ticularly the Pharisees, and to all who w^ere in favor of the 
 ceremonial law ; of whom the Apostle is speaking in this 
 place. Atto perceived this, and considers the passage as re- 
 ferring to the Jewish observances ; though he, too, trifles a 
 great deal about the worship of angels. 
 
 * [August. Op. Vol. I. p. 389. Ed. Antw. 1700.— Tr.] 
 t [The learned author has committed an error in attributing these 
 words to Atto. They are Augustin's own expressions, in the very pas- 
 sage referred to just before by Tittmann ; who must, therefore, have 
 cited this place of the Latin Father without having seen it.— Tr.] 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. t)l3il 
 
 Why, however, does the Apostle add twv ayyg'Xwv ? To 
 «hew the nature of this ^pYi(fxsia and TaitsmcpfotfCvri, and to in- 
 timate their greatness, dignity, and excellence. For the He- 
 brews, when they wish to express things that are great and 
 remarkable, make use of names, indicative of objects of this 
 character ; as, for example, the name of Gk>d, which is very 
 common in the Scriptures, as may be seen by a reference to 
 Glass. They employ, however, for this purpose, the name 
 il^b^ also ; for instance, when they wish to express remark- 
 able wisdom, as in ii. Sam. xiv. 20 ; o xvpi6s fxou tfocpog xa^wj 
 <fo<pia dyyiXou «rou ©sou, cou yvmm <n:6LVTCc ra iv t^ yvf, i, e, thou art 
 exceedingly mighty in wisdom and understanding ; or, when 
 they would speak of distinguished kindness and justice, as in 
 II. Sam. XIV. 17. XIX. 27, o xvpiog jjiou 6 .SatfiXsus ug ayysXos tou 
 ©5oy, xtti 'ffoivicfov to dya^ov iv oqj^-aXftof? tfou ; or, when they de- 
 scribe great good- will in any one, as in i. Sam. xxix. 9, aiD 
 o^HSk ^kSds •'Vi^a nnx ; where the Septuagint has omitted the 
 last words, and rendered the phrase, dya^og cO iv Icp^akit^oTg jjlou ; 
 or, when they speak of very great majesty, as in that descrip- 
 tion of Stephen, Acts, Vl. 15, sfdov to •rpotfojcr'ov auTou wCs/ *po- 
 tfw^ov dyyshov, i. e. his face was full of dignity and gravity ; or, 
 finally, when they are describing a great multitude, as in i. 
 Cor. XIII. 1, where nobody surely can suppose, that the lan- 
 guages of angels are meant ; but we perceive immediately, 
 that by yXwaftfaig twv dv^-puifuv xai twv dyysXojv, are intended 
 all languages whatever. From all this it may be perceived, 
 what is the meaning of S-piQtfxsia twv dyyiXuiv, in the place be- 
 fore us ; viz. a life and holiness, which resemble the life and 
 holiness of angels, and are therefore most pure and perfect 
 There is no need of a long proof, as Wolfius has already per- 
 ceived this to be the meaning, as well as a great proportion of 
 the very learned commentators whom he cites. But what t«« 
 ^eivocppotfyvT} twv dyyiXuv means, is shewn by verse 23, where 
 it is connected with dopstSiti (fu^a'ne;, which consists in severe 
 treatment of the body, and in abstinence from such food as 
 men naturally desire ; and is opposed to rii^i, viz. tou (fdfMroe, 
 which signifies, attention to the body, both in general, and par-' 
 ticularly as it regards the nourishment of it. This signification 
 
3J0 NO TRACES OF THE aNOSTICS 
 
 of TifAi?, as also of the verb T»fjoaw, is not, indeed, very common ; 
 sometimes, however, it occurs in Scripture, as in Matt. xv. 5, 
 6u fAii Tiju-V;'? ^ov flfaTspa auTou, x. r. X. where T»(xa.w is to be un- 
 derstood as referring, not merely to the paying of proper re- 
 spect, but also principally to liberality and munificence in the 
 support of parents ; as even the parallel place, Mark, vii, 12, 
 shews, where, instead of TifAaw, the verb •roj^w is used, which, 
 as Grotius observes, is for ayaS^oTroiiw. Ti^xig occurs, in the 
 same sense, in i. Tim. v. 3 ; as is evident from the verse 
 which follows, where the Apostle orders, that widows who 
 have children should be supported by them, and not by others. 
 Particularly clear, however, is verse 17, which is exactly to 
 the point. See also Ecclesiasticus, xxxviii. I. The Apostles, 
 in their use of this word, imitated, without doubt, the usage 
 of the Hebrews, who use in the same sense the verb nD3 ; as 
 in Numb. xxiv. 11. T»jxaw, however, is to be found with this 
 signification in the Greek writers, who also, in the same way, 
 elegantly employ the verb iiratviu ; as in Demosthenes, de 
 Corona,* i^aivsn/ xp^^V CTf^avw, i. e. to honor ; or rather, to 
 reward with a golden crown ; for Demosthenes had a little 
 before said, in reference to the same subject, (fTscpavutfai XP^^V 
 tfrs^avcj. Nor is it unusual with Latin writers to use the words 
 honor and honoro in this sense, i. e. instead of pramium, and 
 beneficiis officio. Thus, for example, in Cicero, pro Quintio, 
 4 ; pro Roscio Amerino, 37, and 47 ; quod virisfortibus honos 
 habitus est, laudo ; also in his Epist. L. xvi. 9, medico honos 
 haberetur, i. e. it was proper to give him a reward ; but in 
 what way, Cicero could not tell. In the same sense, also, the 
 word occurs in Suetonius, August. 45, where see the com- 
 mentators ; comp. Krebs, Comm. ad Dec. Rom. et Athen. 
 pro. Jud. p. 416, and Elsner, on this place, p. 416. And that 
 this is the sense of the word ti/xi) in the passage before us, 
 the words that follow clearly shew ; 'Spk •rX^io'fj.ov^v t^j^ Ca^xo^, 
 i e. to the satisfying of the body ; which expressions point 
 out the nature of the ^[tA before mentioned. For crXijtf/jiovii 
 
 ' C Denrosth. et Aesch, Op. Ed. Lond* 1824, Vol. j. p. 190.— Tr. 1 
 
'OF TBJB ^4 
 
 IN THE NEW TESTAMEiNT. 
 
 signifies that satisfying of the body, which is produced by 
 food ; as appears from the usage of the Septuagint, which al- 
 most always employs the word to express this idea, and ren- 
 ders by it the Hebrew words j;Dir, and jrgiv, as in Exodus, 
 XVI. 3, V^jofjtsv aprouff sig -rXijtffji-ovyiv. The Apostle, therefore, 
 refers to those, who abstained on certain days from food and 
 drink, through their scrupulous reverence for the ceremonial 
 law ; and used severe bodily mortification ; and in this man- 
 ner dealred to appear more holy than others, to imitate the 
 angels, and to lead an angelic, i. e. a perfectly humble and 
 pure life. It is evident how suitable this is to the design of 
 the Apostle ; since he is speaking of those who were too par- 
 tial to the Jewish law, which required a severe treatment of 
 the body, and who, on this account, thought themselves more 
 holy and religious than others. Nor is the usage of speech 
 against it : for abstinence from marriage is also called an 
 angelic life ; whence the term iVayysXoi, in Luke, xx. 36 ; and 
 therefore abstinence from food may be spoken of in the same 
 w^ay, and that, too, according to the usage of the Hebrews, 
 with whom any one who eats little, or mean food, is said not 
 to eat, and he that eats so as to satisfy the natural wants of 
 the body, or lives on delicate and dainty food, to eat ; as ap- 
 pears even from Matt. xi. 18 s. Tairsmcppoffuvri twv dyyi'huv 
 consists, therefore, in abstinence from food, and too great 
 mortification of the body. And to this agree the words a ffcog 
 hupaxsv ^.a/3aT£uwv, if they are explained thus ; bestowing in- 
 cessant attention upon what he does not understand ; or, he 
 is ignorant of that which he is doing ; or, as Vatablus inter- 
 prets it, " agens, quae pro certo non habet, Deo accepta esse, 
 doing things which he does not know certainly to be accepted 
 by God." For 6^a,w is used according to the Hebrew man- 
 ner of employing the verb nx";, viz. to understand, as Gen. 
 XLii. 1. 1. Kings, X. 4. and also in numerous places in the New 
 Testament. The verb ^/x§areu'w means properly, to enter 
 into ; and also, figuratively, to bestow constant labor and at- 
 tention upon any thing, as was the case with those who were 
 zealous for the ceremonial law. Comp. Krebs, on this pas- 
 'Eix>j (putfioufASvo^ u'To Tov vohe: <rrjs (fapMS aurou, i. e. who 
 
•342 NO TRACES OF THE GNOSTICS 
 
 nevertheless is proudly elated in the midst of this his igno- 
 rance, and is vainly puffed up with human wisdom, and led 
 away by empty arrogance, and an eager desire for human 
 applause, as were the Pharisees and Jewish teachers. Kara- 
 ^patosuw, I think with Casaubon on this passage, means, to cori' 
 demn, so that it is the same as x/>»vw in verse 16, which is used 
 in numerous places for xarajc^ivw ; so that the Apostle repeats, 
 in this place, the admonition given in verse 16, only using 
 another word. I would therefore render the passage thus : 
 Let no man, therefore, I say, condemn you, or charge you with 
 doing wrong. The word xara§^a§£uw is taken from the mode 
 of conducting the games. B^a^suw is applied to the master, 
 or president of the games, who not only distributes the prizes, 
 but also decides who is worthy to receive them. Hence it 
 denotes, in the next place, in general, to preside over, to rule, 
 as in Ch. in. 15. But xam, in composition, sometimes has the 
 force of giving an unfavorable sense to a word. Kara^^aSsvw, 
 therefore, signifies, to judge in an unfavorable way, or, to 
 condemn. Hesychius, accordingly, interprets the word by 
 xaraxgjvw. Krebs, on this passage, thus explains it ; " Let no 
 man artfully and unjustly circumvent and deceive you." 
 This, also, is a very suitable sense. 
 
 The Apostle now proceeds, in verse 19, to describe a per- 
 son who advocates, and submits himself to the Jewish law : 
 leaving, says he, the doctrine of Jesus Christ, (viz. while he 
 recommends and observes what Christ has forbidden,) by 
 whose power the whole of this spiritual body (he speaks of 
 the church as of a body, of which Christians are the mem- 
 bers,) receives nourishment and strength through all its parts 
 and joints, so that it gains increase pleasing to God. The 
 verb sVip^o^'o/^w, which is freely used by the Apostle, I have 
 rendered, " to receive nourishment." Xopriyew and iirixopriyiu, 
 and also xoLroLxof^ysc^, (for those persons are much mistaken, 
 who think there is any particular force or emphasis in the 
 compound verb) are used by the Attic writers principally ; 
 and signify, to furnish the expenses necessary for the celebra- 
 tion of the games. Hence, the person who is at the expense 
 of the games is called x^f^Y^^^^ as Emesti has shewn, on Xe- 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 343 
 
 uophont. Memorabilia, in. 4 ; and xmy^^^t and the Latin cho- 
 ragiwn, mean the apparatus necessary for the celebration 
 of the games, as, for instance, garments, statues, &c., and, 
 further, any apparatus for the execution of any design. 
 Hence y^fv\yi^ and l^tdy^^rtiy^^ mean simply to give, to furnish 
 what is requisite for the accomplishment of any thing, to sup- 
 ply with the necessary articles and aid ; and, in the passive 
 voice, to receive these same things. These verbs are always 
 used in these senses in the New Testament ; as, ii. Cor. ix. 
 
 i. e. he who supplies seed to the sower, will also furnish every 
 kind of food ; as appears from the parallel place, Isai. lv. 
 10, from which these words are taken and translated ; for 
 the Hebrew there is \T}}, which the Septuagint has rendered by 
 ^i^wfAi. Accordingly, x'^^'^7^^ ^^^ i-rj^^o^iiysw are used one for 
 the other, as in the passage now cited, and also in Gal. in. 5, 
 and I. Pet. iv. 11 ; and likewise for 5«5wfjii, as Luke xi. 13. 
 Hence oupV) r^g girip^o^tiyiag, Eph. iv. 16, is the joint, by which 
 any member supplies another with what tends to its increase. 
 Let us here add the sense of this whole passage ; as it is ve- 
 ry intimately allied to that before us. It is this : By whose 
 power this whole spiritual body, fitly joined and compacted, 
 through that junction by which the members communicate to 
 each other spiritual benefits, (as the members of the body 
 impart to one another the nervous moisture,) according to the 
 measure and power of every member, increases, so as to ad- 
 vance in love. Respecting the words ^of ^y^'w and i-jrip^o^Tiysw, 
 Krebs has treated extensively, and, as usual, with great 
 learning, in his Commentar. ad Decreta Rom. pro Jud. p. 
 22 s. 
 
 In the verses that follow, it is evident at once that the 
 Apostle is repeating the admonition, delivered in verse 8 s. ; 
 and giving a reason for the statements which he had made, 
 and the substance of which has been already mentioned. 
 This only I would observe, that m a'^r), iirids x. t. X. in verse 
 21, are expressions referring to the same subject, and are to 
 be explamed without any distinction as relating to food ; ui 
 which sense they occur in Xenoph. Cyropaed. Ii. i. c. 3, as 
 
344 NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTICS 
 
 Bos has observed in his Exercitt. Phil. p. 207. So in the 
 Memorabiha, L. i. c. 3, (fkuv a'K^sd&ai does not mean, to touch 
 food, but to eat it. As for ysuo^Aai in particular, that it signi- 
 fies not to taste, but to eat, Bos has shewn by several instan- 
 ces, in his Animad. ad Vorstium, which are added to the Ob- 
 servv. Miscell. p. 249, where he establishes this sense of the 
 word, by reference to several authors, principally profane 
 writers. The words « stfri cravra sfe (p^ofotv Tr\ d^opf^^csj, in verse 
 22, are parenthetical, and are to be understood in the same 
 way as the words of Christ, Matt. xv. 17. 'EvraXfjoara tw» 
 av^pw-jrwy, mean the same as tta^a^odig twv av^^wir'wv, in verse 8. 
 A6705, in verse 23, means, appearance ; for the word is used 
 in this sense by the Greek writers ; whence the phrase X670V 
 sysiv means, to have or to shew the appearance of any thing, 
 as Bos, 1. c. has proved by several examples. 
 
 Having thus given my explanation, and established it by 
 the usage of language, not less than by the design of the 
 Apostle, and the whole context ; I think that I have asserted 
 not without reason, that, through the whole of this Epistle to 
 the Colossians, there is not so much as the shadow of a trace 
 of the Gnostic or Oriental philosophy, but that every thing 
 is to be understood as relating to the ceremonial law, and its 
 zealous supporters. 
 
 I have occupied considerable time in the elucidation 
 of this passage ; and must now hasten to the considera- 
 tion of others. It is thought by some learned writers, 
 that there are nowhere more clear and evident traces of 
 the Gnostics than in 1. Tim. vi, and particularly in the 
 concluding verses of the chapter, where they think that 
 the Apostle points them out by name ; being no doubt de- 
 ceived by the sound of the word yvwc*^. Let us see, how- 
 ever, whether an interpretation cannot be given, which may 
 suit both the usage of language, and the design and views of 
 the Apostle, without making the place refer to the Gnostics, 
 or other philosophers of that kind. First let us inquii-e 
 into the meaning of the word /vwC/^, which I think signi- 
 fies here the Imowledge of divine things, or religion ; which 
 is perfectly agreeable to the other and most ancient use of 
 
IN THE N£W TESTAMENT. 345 
 
 the word. The Septuagint sometimes renders by yvwtf<^ the 
 Hebrew word na^a, which properly signifies, an accurate and 
 distinct knowledge of any thing ; from the word |n, which, 
 like the Arabic uLj , means properly, to cut ; and hence, to 
 consider any thing part by part, i. e. more accurately, as 
 ScHULTENs has shewn, on Prov. i. 2. But nra signifies fur- 
 ther, the knowledge of divine things, or also divine inspira- 
 tion, as Dan. ix. 22. For it answers evidently to the Arabic 
 i'-jC.X^i, which occurs very frequently in the Koran, and 
 is the ordinary word for expressing those divine inspirations, 
 with which Mohammed professed to be favored. For the 
 most part, however, and very frequently, the Septuagint trans- 
 lates by yvCxiig the word riri, which signifies any kind of know- 
 ledge whatever ; but, especially, the knowledge, and also the 
 system itself, of things relating to religion, as Mai. n. 7, where 
 the prophet says, nn-nn^'". |n3 'naif', i. e. it is the duty of the 
 ministers of God, to watch over doctrine and its purity ; care- 
 fully to keep the divine doctrine ; or rather, so to deliver it, 
 that its purity may receive no injury. The Septuagint has 
 rendered the passage word for word ; x^iX^i le^sw^ (pi^Xafsrat 
 /vojfl'jv. And the word ^vwCig has this sense in the New Tes- 
 tament also, so that it signifies simply, knowledge concerning 
 God ; as Rom. i. 19, where, indeed, the words are yvw^rov t«u 
 GsoiJ, but this is for yvwCi^ <rou ©$ov, as Ch. n. 4, x^tjCtov for x^riC- 
 ToVyjs ; and in Chap. xi. 33, yvwCi^ is attributed to God him- 
 self, for which reason he is called, in i. Sam. u. 3, niiri Sk, ®shc; 
 yvwtfswv. In this sense the word occurs in numerous places of 
 Clemens Alexandrinus ; as at the beginning of Book V, of 
 the Stromata, where he speaks of yvwo'jj uiou xou "rrar^o?, which 
 he says ought to precede -rirfTi^. Thence, also, /vwiTi? signifies 
 every kind of knowledge of divine things ; as in that diflicult 
 passage, i. Cor. vin. 1, though even this place, also, Hammond 
 and Brucker have made to refer to the Gnostics, because they 
 found the word yvw^jg there ! Those who entertain this opi- 
 nion, however, do not understand the real meaning of the 
 place. It is this : " The generality of us (-ravrfg, on account 
 of verse 7,) have a knowledge of such things (he particular- 
 ly refers to knowledge concerning the nothmgn^gs of idol?, 
 
 44 
 
346 KCf TRACES OF THE GNOSTrCo 
 
 as the context very clearly shews,), without doubt, (finalfy we 
 are in part not wanting in knowledge ; for a parenthesis be- 
 gins from these words, which is continued to the end of verse 
 3, as Schmidt and Bos have correctly observed) but this know- 
 ledge by itself usually leads to pride ; but it will profit, if love 
 be added to it, which is the most excellent teacher of our du- 
 ties." So Ch. xui. 2. rvwrf/f, however, signifies besides this, 
 religion itself, as Phil. m. 8, which is a very clear passage. In 
 the same way yivwcxw is used, John, xvn. 3, where, without 
 doubt, reference is made to Isaiah, lui. 1 1 , where our Lord 
 Jesus Christ is said to bring many to the faith ^P^vi^, i. e. by 
 his gospel and doctrine. This use of y^ddig, in the sense of 
 religion and divine doctrine, is also found in Clemens Alexan- 
 drinus ; as in Strom. L. vi. p. 645, where he speaks of ymiig 
 ira^OL Tou uiou Tou ^goi; ifuPaSo^sTda xai aitoxa'kv(p'^sT(fa, " the know- 
 ledge delivered and revealed by the Son of God," and also 
 in numerous other places ; and he constantly distinguishes by 
 the term yvwCTjxo^, one who has embraced the religion of Je- 
 sus Christ. From all this, therefore, it may be perceived, 
 that yvwrfjj, in the place before us, may, according to the usage 
 of language, have the meaning which I have assigned to it ; 
 and that it has, is, in the next place, proved by the con- 
 text. This yvwtfjg is called -^suduw^Log, i. e. that system of di- 
 vine things, which is not worthy of this name, and, on ac- 
 count of its corruptions, can no more be spoken of in 
 this way ; in a word, false religion. Ygudwvu/xo? yvwtfj^, there- 
 fore, is precisely the same as 9»Xo(j'ocpja, in tlie Epistle to the 
 Colossians ; viz. the Jewish doctrine, depraved and corrupted 
 in various ways, which is, therefore, no more worthy of the 
 name of divine doctrine. The word avTt^s(feig either means ques- 
 tions and discussions respecting this doctrine, or is redundant. 
 Now the Apostle calls this same doctrine cag ^s^rjXous xsvocpu- 
 viag. The word xsvoqjwv/a is from xsvog, which is used in the New 
 Testament according to the Hebrew manner, and answers 
 to p"^, vain, void ; as xsvm answers to pOI? which signifies, ei- 
 ther to take away altogether, or to diminish, or to abase one's 
 self, to lower one's self, or to makes one's strength less than 
 the natural ability ; which the Greek writers elegantly ex- 
 press by frau«e'uoaa», and the Latin by the words, ' dispenso 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. ^^4"? 
 
 Vii^s meas/ We find xsvoj, in this sense, in Luke, i. 53, 
 ^XouTouvraf s^afkrsiKs xsvovg, he makes the rich poor, he de- 
 presses them, so that they have nothing of which they can 
 boast ; and xsvow, in i. Cor. i. 17, i'va it^rj xsvy^Jj 6 tfraupog cou 
 XpKfTovy i. e. least that power, which is pecuUar to the gospel, 
 and which it has over the minds of men, although no art be 
 used, should be taken from the gospel, and ascribed to hu- 
 man artifice. Hence we may perceive the folly of those, 
 who, in Phil. ii. 7, and in the condition of our Lord Jesus 
 Christ while on the earth, termed in scholastic language his 
 state of humiliation, imagine a certain emptying, and philoso- 
 phize about it to a wonderful degree. Still better known is 
 the meaning of the Hebrew word p^, as in that well-known 
 declaration, Kin p;^ V^'^S Deut. xxxii. 47, which is^ trans- 
 lated by the Septuagint ou^' Xoyo? xsvos ourog, i. e. this promise 
 shall not be void, it shall have its efficacy, or fulfilment. The 
 word xsvo(pcjvi'a?, therefore, means vain discussions, having no 
 utility, no efficacy for the production of piety, and therefore 
 without effect ; and is the same as asmg Xoyoij, in Eph. v. 6. 
 Hence Hesychius interprets xsvo(p6jvia? by fxaraioXoyia^. |But 
 the Apostle calls them ^sj3rfKovg, i. e. profane ^nd impious, 
 on account of their remarkable wickedness, and contempt of 
 the true and purer doctrine ; such as characterized the ques- 
 tions respecting Jewish rites, keeping the ceremonial law, and 
 other things of the same kind. And this -^^sMwikog yvwtfj^ the 
 Apostle opposes to ^apaxara^^jxTj or -jrapa&Tixy]. For it makes no 
 difference, whether we read flra^axaraa^x/j or flra^aS>jx*j, since 
 both have the same meaning, and both are used in a good 
 sense. In this place is meant, without doubt, the doctrine of 
 the gospel ; as is shewn by the parallel places, Ch. i. 18, 
 where the verb -ra^arja-sjuoai is joined with cra^a/ysXia ; and lu 
 Tim. I. 14. 
 
 Thus much respecting the words ; let us proceed to the 
 subject-matter, the context, and parallel passages. And, 
 first, I shall assume a point which is freely conceded by 
 all commentators, that the Apostle is evidently, in these 
 words of which I have been speaking, repeating the admoni- 
 tion given before in Ch. i. 4, comp. with verse 18 : for the 
 
MS NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTICf 
 
 discourse begun in verse 3, he continues in verse 18 ; and 
 verses 4 — 17, are parenthetical, as Heumann, and Michaelis, 
 in loc. have observed after Melancthon, Oper. Tom. iv. p, 
 380. Perhaps, also, the opinion of Heumann and Grotius isl 
 not entirely unworthy of attention, that verses 20 and 21, oi 
 Ch. vr, were added by the Apostle, with his own hand, by 
 way of appendix to the epistle after it was finished, in order 
 to press the more thoroughly this admonition upon Timothy* 
 It is evident, therefore, that the words ^s^rfkovg xsvocptAiviag xai 
 dvri^i<t€ts *rrjg ^J^eu^wvu^ou yvwCgw^, mean the same as (A^a-oig xai 
 ysvsakoyims difs^oivrois in the other passage, or, as they are call- 
 ed, ch. IV. 7, fSs^rjkovg TLOA ygauSsig iJ^v&ovg. By if^v6oi, however* 
 are not meant, as is commonly supposed, fables, this not being 
 the pecuHar and only signification of the word, with Greek 
 writers : but the Apostle means, discourses, discussions, narra^ 
 tions ; hence f^u'aoig (rsCo^Kfjutsvoi^, ii. Pet. i. 16, means, cunning 
 and artificial accounts; or discussions, skilfully and craftily 
 devised, calculated to deceive the minds of men, (Diodor. 
 SicuL. I. 93, calls them ii^vdovg -Tre^XarffAsvou?) which the 
 Apostle says that he had not used, ( IfaxoXouS^jrfavTe^ ) in 
 shewing to Christians the very present, i. e. efficacious 
 majesty of Jesus Christ ; but that he had only delivered, in 
 a simple narrative, what he had perceived with his own eyes 
 and ears. U^o&ixsiv f^us-oig signifies : to yield assent to refined 
 discussions ; to dehght in them, and to be absorbed in the 
 study of them : for this is the meaning of the phrase cr'^oo'- 
 gj^gjv Tivi, as Krebs, in his Obs. in N. T. e Josepho, on Acts, 
 Viu. 6, p. 203 s., has proved from several passages of Jose- 
 phus. The meaning, therefore, of m-ti 'rt^odix^w ^iAj^oig is : not 
 to care about these things, to shun them, to reject them* 
 Now it is evident that "jr^ocs'^^eiv [hu^oig xai ysveoLkoyiat^ dcrs^avro/^, 
 is that same iia.raio'ko'yta, to which the Apostle says, in verse 
 6, that some had turned aside. These, however, he calls, in 
 the following verse, voiioSidatfxakoi ; and by this vofAoj he means 
 the Jewish law, as appears from verse 8 s., where the Apos- 
 tle speaks of this, and especially of its threatenings against 
 violators of the law. See Grotius, on this place, and Heu- 
 -HiANN. Hence the teachers of the Jews are called fj^aratoXSyeu 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 'M^ 
 
 in Tit. I. 10. — In such a train of thought as this, how can it 
 be supposed that there is any reference to the Gnostic philo- 
 sophers ; and what other persons can possibly be intended, 
 but Jews, and teachers of the law, and those who were stre* 
 nuous advocates of the Jewish religion ? A comparison, 
 moreover, of the words themselves by which the Apostle 
 describes that class of men, with other forms of expression 
 in relation to the same subject^ will establish the correctness 
 of my interpretation. For, in other places, he speaks of the 
 Jews exactly in the same way, and almost in the same words, 
 as in verse 7, where he says ; it^-n voowvres fx^TS cl Xsyoutf*, jw-^ts 
 'fs^i rivuv ^la^s^aiouvrai, i. e. even they themselves do not suffi- 
 ciently understand the things which they teach, nor can they 
 explain and clearly prove them to others. Now do not these 
 words agree entirely with what the Apostle says of the Jews, 
 in Rom. X. 2 ; ^5jXov ©sou s^outfiv, aXX' ou xar' ^flrlyvwfl'jv, i. e. 
 they are, indeed, zealous in defence of the religion and law 
 of God ; but their zeal is not enlightened, nor united with a 
 just knowledge of God and of religion. And in what res- 
 pect do they differ from those words in Col. n. 18, a ixij kd^ 
 jpaxsv i^^ariuuv ? MosHEiM himself, accordingly, understands 
 this passage as referring to the Jewish teachers. — Not less im- 
 portant, moreover, is the consideration, that, of this class of 
 men, Hymenaeus and Alexander are mentioned by name, in 
 Ch. I. 20 ; whom nobody but Mosheim can readily think 
 were Gnostics, that bears in mind the fact, that these men 
 were delivered to Satan, or, at any rate, were expelled from 
 the Christian church by the Apostle, that they might return 
 to a better mind. For whether we understand these words 
 as referring to excommunication ; which was performed, by 
 Christians separating such persons from their society, and not 
 permitting them to enter into the public assemblies, that at 
 length, perhaps, being driven into the company of the hea- 
 then, they might repent ; or whether we adopt another, and 
 more probable interpretation, that Hymenaeus and Alexan*. 
 der were delivered over to the power of Satan, in order that, 
 through the afflicting of their bodies, they might return to a 
 sound mind, as was done in the case of the incestuous person. 
 
i^50 NO TRACES or THE GNOSTICS 
 
 I. Cor. V. 5 ; either way it is clear, that these men Were 
 members of the church. For the Apostle expressly asserts, 
 I. Cor. V. 12 s. that it does not belong to themselves and to 
 Christians to judge those, who are out of the pale of the 
 church ; that it is enough to judge Christians ; that others are 
 judged by God. Unless, therefore, Hymenaeus and Alexander 
 had been Christians, the Apostle could not have expelled them 
 from the Christian church, nor delivered their bodies to be af- 
 flicted by the devil. — Nor ought it to be forgotten, that the 
 words Tous €£§»3>oug xtti y^aw^sis jxu^ou?, in Ch. iv. 7. are explain- 
 ed by the Apostle himself, in the next verse, as referring to tfw- 
 jaarix^ yi^ftvaCia ; and this, he says in verse 3 s., consisted 
 in abstinence from meats, and drinks, and other things of 
 that nature. Now to what can these things be more suitably 
 referred, or to what ought they rather to be applied, than to 
 the Jewish ceremonial law, which, it is well known, persons 
 of that period, and even some Christians, so strongly urged, 
 and recommended both by words and example ? Finally, it 
 is no unimportant consideration, and perhaps deserves the 
 greatest weight of all, that the Apostle calls those very M-i^^oj 
 by the name of 'lou^ajxoi, in Tit. i. 14, and uses the same verb 
 cr^otfg'xw, which he has in i. Tim. i. 4 ; and in Tit. in. 9, speaks 
 of fxw^aj ^vjTTjtfsj?, which answers plainly to §e§ri^oi jxu^oi. For 
 the word ^■nrr}(fsts signifies questions, refined discussions, and, 
 principally, allegorical reasonings. Hence <fv^r]rriTri£ means a 
 person, who can argue ingeniously respecting every kind of 
 doctrine ; and du^riTriTriS <roi>ulQvog rouTou, i. Cor. i. 20, signifies 
 a man accomplished in the refinement of human wisdom. 
 The Hebrews call such a person If^?, whence i^Jl^, mean- 
 ing the refined, allegorical, or mystical sense. Hence also 
 (fv^-y}Tri(fis, in the sense of which I have spoken ; for example, in 
 Acts XV. 2, where it is connected with the word tfTocCsw?, which 
 means altercation, as is shewn by the usage of the Septuagint, 
 which sometimes renders by this word the Hebrew ti. Not 
 only, however, does the Apostle, in the passage referred to, 
 speak of (xw^ag JiqtVsij, but also of yevsaXoy/ag,* xai sgsts, xa* 
 
 * TtiitAheyietf. Semler adds, 'A/awr, in Comment. Hist, de ant. 
 Christ, statu, p. 30- But what grounds has he for this ? 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 351 
 
 fiw»xaf vo(/>ixoLS ; in which it is very evident, that reference is 
 made to the contentions of the Jews respecting the ceremonial 
 law, and religious subjects in general. Some, however, are 
 of opinion, that the passage relates particularly to their dis- 
 putes on the genealogies of the Chief-priests and priests, to 
 which, according to Josephus, they paid very scrupulous at- 
 tention ; the Jews being universally of opinion, that the immor- 
 tality, and everlasting honor of their name, depended on the 
 genealogical tables. On this subject, see Michael is, Com- 
 mentationes, presented to the Royal Soc. of Gotting. during 
 the years 1763 ss ; p. 2 s. — Now either comparison of dif- 
 ferent passages, and the reasoning founded upon it, are no- 
 where of any weight in interpretations of this kind, or it is 
 evident from what has been adduced, that, through the whole 
 of the passage under discussion, there is no trace of the Gnos- 
 tic, or of any other philosophy ; but that its meaning is that 
 which I have assigned to it. And here 1 cannot but notice 
 the caution of those two distinguished commentators, Chrv- 
 sosTOM and Camerarius ; both of whom considered this 
 place as referring to the Gnostics, but only on conjecture. 
 Chrysostom, Op. Tom. vi. p. 531. Ed. Par. 1636, says, v Tax^- 
 
 rovTo (pYitfi, SioTi rtvss lauToOg sxaXouv tots TvudTixovs, us 'rrXsov ri 9"wv 
 aXXwv Mtss, " or perhaps he says this, because certain per- 
 sons, at that period, called themselves Gnostics, as knowing 
 somewhat more than others." And it is evident that he add- 
 ed this only in the way of conjecture, from the fact that he 
 explains the whole of this Epistle with reference to the Jews. 
 Thus, for example, he expressly says that hs^odiSadxa'ksTv, Ch. 
 1. 3, refers to " the Jews, who wished to bring believers again 
 into subjection to the law ;" (IovSoliovs, ^ouXoAts'^ou^ •n'aXiv i<Ki 
 Tov vo>ov sXxsjv Tovg nticfTovs) and he adds, that the Apostle re- 
 proves them for this in almost all his epistles. Moreover, he 
 thus explains jxuSoig xa< ysvsoKoy'mSj in the next verse ; fjiuSou^ 
 ou Tov vo'fxov 9y)(j'/v, acfaye, aXXa Tag cra^a'ToiV^'^j '<«' ''■«' flra^a^a- 
 ^a^jxara, xa< ra cra^atfrjfxa 5oy|xara. 'Eixoj ya^ ^ovs i^ lou^aiwv 
 &v ToTg dvovrjTois to, 'ffOMra Xoyov dvaXiVxsiv, ifa'ffirovs xai cr^ocraTr- 
 flroug d^i^^ovvTCLg, i'va 5^d£v ii^ifsi^iag leoXKris xctl \(fTopias do^uv 
 sywtfjv. " He does not refer to the law ; far from it ; but to 
 
Sbil NO TRACES OF THE GNOSTlCb 
 
 fictions, and false doctrines. For it is known, that some of the 
 Jews employ their whole discourse on useless topics, reckon- 
 ing up their pedigree, that they may acquire a reputation for 
 great learning and investigation." In the same way, he inter- 
 prets ^sQrfKovs xa/ y^aw^sjg (jw;3-ou?, ch. iv. 7, by tols lou5aiwv flraga- 
 fr7]p7](fsis, — So also Camerarius, on this passage, observes, " I 
 suspect, also, that the Apostle here refers to a certain sect, 
 called Gnostics, (twv rvw(j'<nxwv >caXoufx^vwv) who are supposed 
 to have sprung from the Nicolaitans, and who shewed a won- 
 derful acquaintance with abstruse subjects." Many veiy 
 learned commentators have been equally cautious, in express- 
 ing their opinions on this subject ; among whom I think Gro- 
 Tius also may in a certain sense be classed, who speaks, I per- 
 ceive, rather in a hesitating manner at Matt. xxiv. 11. He 
 there observes ; " And this (the Gnostic philosophy, of which 
 he is speaking,) is, if 1 am not mistaken, that •4^svduvviios yvwtfj^, 
 mentioned by St. Paul in his epistle to Timothy." At this 
 place of the Apostle, however, he speaks with greater con- 
 fidence, saying ; " you perceive here, how ancient is the name 
 of Gnostics, which these philosophers, mingling themselves 
 with the Christian assemblies, assumed ; despising others as 
 ignorant persons :" though, even at the former place also, he 
 pronounces his opinion with some degree of confidence, in the 
 remarks which he afterwards makes. 
 
 l^et us now proceed to the writings of St. John, and par- 
 ticularly his Gospel, and First Epistle ; in which some very 
 learned men think that there are such evident traces of the 
 Gnostic philosophy, that no doubt can remain upon the sub- 
 ject. With respect to the former, they assert, with great 
 unanimity, that the whole of it was written in opposition to 
 this class of men ; both because it is too evident, that the de- 
 sign of the sacred Evangelist was to defend the divinity of 
 our Lord Jesus Christ against the objections of enemies, and 
 because he makes use of those very words, which the Gnos- 
 tics employed in a different sense. Among these they class 
 the terms Xo^oj, ^6j>), cpus, yuovoysvrig, (fwr^i^j and the phrases, '^rfog 
 Tov 0SOV shoLi, irXii^-rig X'ip'roz xcd akyi^s.'ia.g, and others. Objections, 
 however, may be urged against both these proofs. 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 353 
 
 As Ibr the first argument, that it was the design of St, John 
 to contend against the opponents of Christ*s divinity, i. e. the 
 Gnostics, I have not as yet been persuaded into this opinion 
 by what some learned writers have advanced in support of 
 it, with more ingenuity and plausibihty than correctness. For, 
 first, the whole tenor of the discourse, and even the first 
 fourteen verses, which are particularly thought to refer to 
 this subject, have no appearance of any refutation, or ar- 
 gument ; on the contrary, it is plain that it is a doctrinal 
 passage, in which the inspired writer, according to a method 
 pursued in other parts of Scripture, makes some explanato- 
 ry observations in regard to our Saviour, his natures, and the 
 union of them, by way of preface and introduction to the 
 subsequent history of Christ ; and clearly and minutely shews 
 the design of this great mystery, at that time altogether re- 
 jected by the Jews ; which the Christians might make use of 
 as well for convincing the Jews, as for strengthening their 
 own belief, by a certain and clear examination of the whole 
 nature and truth of the matter. And this was the design and 
 plan of the other writers also of the gospel history, though 
 of none so plainly as of St. John ; and yet no other, except 
 him, has ever been thought to have combated the errors of 
 the Gnostics. There is no reason, therefore, for the assertion 
 of some learned men, and, among these, of Schroeckh, Hist. 
 Eccl. Tom. n. p. 312, that this doctrinal discourse of St. John 
 is altogether out of place in a historical book, unless the in- 
 tention of it is to refute some doctrinal error. For granting, 
 that St. John departs somewhat from the character of a his- 
 torian, and undertakes the office of a teacher ; is he necessa- 
 rily, on that account, contending against the Gnostics, or other 
 heretics of that kind ? On the contrary, as I have already 
 said, he added these remarks for the benefit of the Jews, and 
 of Christians, who were not sufficiently confirmed in the faith. 
 And what else is it but to fulfil the office of a historical writ- 
 er, to relate, that the Son of God existed before the begin- 
 ning of the world, that he formed this whole universe, and, 
 having assumed a human nature, proved himself, on the earth, 
 by various circumstances and actions, to be the tnie God ? 
 
 45 
 
354 NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTICS 
 
 But it will be said, that for this very reason, that 8t. John pur* 
 sues a more extensive and clearer plan, than the other writers 
 of the gospel history, it is evident, that his intention was to 
 put Christians upon their guard against the errors of the Gnos- 
 tics. Be it so. But why does he speak so much about the 
 Xoyog, and directly explain who he is ? Why does he not dis- 
 course rather about Demiurge, whom these men maintained 
 to be the author of all things, but inferior to the supreme 
 God, nay, wicked and impotent in nature ; and shew that this 
 same ^^jjxiou^yo?, i. e. creator of the world, is the supreme God 
 himself ; and that he has a Son, who partakes of divinity in 
 the same measure with the Father, and who may in a harm- 
 less sense be termed Xoyo? ; and why does he speak of this 
 X670? in such a manner, as if Christians had never known any 
 thing about any other ? Why is he silent about Aeons,* re- 
 specting whom the Gnostics philosophized in as trifling a man- 
 ner, as they did with regard to the Xoyog ; and why does he 
 not prove to these philosophers, that their opinion in regard 
 to other natures, viz. Aeons, between the supreme God and 
 Demiurge, is absurd and impious, and is grounded upon a false 
 opinion respecting the origin of evil ? I like better, there- 
 fore, the opinion of those, who think that it was St. John's 
 intention, in this work, to write a sort of compendium, (not 
 because there is an ancient tradition to this effect, for I can- 
 not hesitate to pronounce this, with Semler, in the Pref. to 
 his Paraph, of St. John's gospel, a mere fable ; but because 
 any person, who reads the Gospel, and other writings of St. 
 John, may easily perceive this for himself,) and to explain the 
 Christian doctrine somewhat more minutely and fully ; (which 
 
 * Whoever wishes to know something of the Aeons of the Gnostics, 
 may consult Beausobre, Hist. Crit. de Manich^e et Manicheisme, Tom. 
 n. Lib. V. c. 2. p. 574 ; Mosheim, Instit. H. E. maj. p. 143 s. ; and 
 Brucker, Hist. Crit. Phil. Tom. h. p. 647, where he thus observes: 
 " They are substantial virtues, which, having come out and emanating 
 from God, have, indeed, a divine nature and essence, yet different from 
 its source by a certain mode and peculiar way of existence of its own; 
 intellectual and immortal, and having no reference to that time which 
 is the continuing result of mutation. " 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 355 
 
 IS the opinion of Semler, Hist. dog. fidei, prefixed to Baum- 
 garten^s Polem. Theol. T. i. p. 61.) and, as there were not 
 only many Jews, who impugned the divine nature of Clirist, 
 or, at least, had doubtful and various sentiments in regard to 
 it, but also many Christians, who did not understand it with 
 sufficient certainty, that he wished to prove it by arguments, 
 and, at the same time, to explain the subject of his human na- 
 ture, and of the union of the former with it ; so that the whole 
 doctrine in regard to our Lord Jesus Christ might be better 
 understood, and be more clearly evident to all, and thus Chris- 
 tians might have, in this work, a kind of spiritual gift (x^^o"- 
 fAa flrvsufAttTixov). And this opinion, no less than that which sup- 
 poses St. John to have written against the Gnostic heresies, 
 is supported by the authority of antiquity ; and, as it has been 
 thoroughly approved of by men deeply versed in Greek and 
 Hebrew learning, it ought to be adopted by us. It may be 
 sufficient to mention Origen, passages of whom, as also of 
 other writers, have been cited by Lardner, in his Supple- 
 ment to the Credibility of the Gospel History, Vol. i. p. 383 s. 
 The Apostle, however, uses a phraseology, which bears a 
 strong resemblance to that of the Gnostic philosophers ! So, 
 indeed, some learned writers say, in order to shew that St. 
 John contended against that class of men. I grant it. In 
 the first place, however, these are single words, and particu- 
 lar phrases, separated from the context ; some of which I 
 have cited above. Now who can draw any inference from 
 single words, in regard to the resemblance of the whole 
 style ? . Many words pccur in the New Testament, which 
 are found also in Demosthenes, and other elegant Greek 
 writers. - But is the style of the New Testament that of De- 
 mosthenes, and pure Greek, or is it derived from Demosthe- 
 nes ? (Unless any one will be so absurd as to say, with a 
 certain writer, that the Holy Spirit had great delight in the 
 eloquence of Demosthenes.) There are also, in the New 
 Testament, entire phrases, resembling the Hebrew usage, 
 which are found in Aeschylus and Sophocles, and some- 
 times also in the same sense. But who can imagine that they 
 are taken from them ? — But, in the next place, it would be a 
 
ZS^ NO TRACES OF THE 6N0ST1C3 
 
 Strong presumption against my opinion, if the words and 
 phrases supposed to have been derived from the Gnostics, 
 were entirely unknown in the sacred writings. I shall now 
 attempt to shew, however, that this is not the fact. If I shall 
 be able to do this, it will be evident, that neither are these 
 words derived from the Gnostic or Oriental philosophy, nor 
 is it aimed at by St. John in this place. 
 
 Let us begin with the word ^oyof, the origin of which, I 
 must freely confess, cannot be very easily explained ; espe- 
 cially as it is peculiar to St. John alone, among the New Tes- 
 tament writers. I like, most of all, however, the opinion, 
 that reference is made in this word to the Hebrew language. 
 There are some, also, who refer to the usage of the Chaldee 
 tongue, and particularly to the word K}^'^ ; on which subject 
 there has been much discussion among various writers. 
 The point has been certainly enforced with great learning ; 
 and I should be strongly disposed to agree to it, were not the. 
 'koyos distinguished from God, as a difterent person from the 
 Father and the Holy Spirit. But it has not been proved with 
 sufficient certainty, as some think, that the Chaldee writers 
 use this word in any other way, than in descriptions of God, 
 or of some peculiar divine revelation ; as may be seen even 
 by Mai. iii. 5, where, instead of " I the liord," the Chaldee 
 version has no^?:, my word. As it is still, therefore, a subject 
 of doubt, whether it was customary to use this word in a pe- 
 culiar manner respecting the Son of God, I would not as- 
 sert positively, that the usage of St. John is to be traced to 
 that source. See Deyling, Obs. S. T. i. p. 221 s., Carpzov, 
 Crit. Sac. p. 479 s., and especially John Henry Michaelis, 
 Diss, de n"<D'D Chaldaeorum. I should think, however, that 
 this appellation of the Saviour, o Xo'/og, ought to be accounted 
 one of those usages of speech, which were at that time, in- 
 deed, frequent among the Jews, but of which no examples 
 have reached us. But that this term Xoyoj, used by St. John, 
 was customary among those for whom he wrote, is evident 
 from the fact, that he adds nothing in explanation of it ; 
 which, perspicuous as he is in all other respects, he would 
 Qertainly otherwise have done, and not have used it as 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 35'7 
 
 a word well known to all. There are some remains, how- 
 ever, of this usage, in the Hebrew language ; and these I 
 shall now proceed to consider. It was customary with the 
 Hebrews to use the word ^^2^^ to express a divine person, and 
 particularly the Son of God, and to employ it as a synony- 
 mous term with 12);. I would not, however, with Deyling, 
 I. c. quote as an instance of this, Ps. xxxiii. 6 ; as commentators 
 now generally agree, that "^3*1 signifies, in that passage, the 
 divine decree, and that this place, therefore, ought no more 
 to be cited in proof of the divinity of the Son of God, and of 
 the Holy Spirit. I would rather, therefore, with Witsius, 
 Miscell. Sac. Tom. ii. p. 102, and Deyling, 1. c. p. 223, re- 
 fer to n. Sam. vii. 21 ; where David confesses, that all his 
 blessings had come to him ^^T\ "10^3 : and that this does not 
 mean, " on account of the promise, kindly made to me by 
 thee," as it may perhaps elsewhere, is shewn by the parallel 
 passage, i. Chron. xvu. 19, in which those same supplications 
 of David are repeated ; for there, in reference to the same 
 subject, the words are.-jnaj;; "^i^^^, instead of ^w *i^3^3, as in 
 the former place. It is evident, therefore, that these words 
 set forth the same idea, inasmuch as thev are used concern- 
 ing the same subject ; and that they express the Messiah, who 
 is sometimes called najP, as appears from Isai. xlu. 1. xlix. I. 
 3. LU. 13, and also from the circumstance that the Septuagint 
 renders "iji, in the passage of Samuel referred to, by 5ouXo^, 
 which is no unimportant argument in favor of the opinion 
 which I advance. But the sense of this word 12V is to be 
 determined from the usage of the Hebrew language, accord- 
 ing to which it does not mean the same with the Latin word 
 servus ; but the Hebrews call those persons the servants of 
 kings, whom we, at the present day, call ministers, in a very 
 honorable sense : this, therefore, is a title of dignity, with 
 which Moses also is distinguished in the Old Testament, 
 Josh. 1. 1, as has been remarked by Masius, in his Commentary 
 on this place, contained in the Critici Sacri. This circum- 
 stance may be urged against Geier, on Ps. xvm. 1, who sup- 
 poses that the word signifies an abject condition ; which is 
 not the fact. For i?^, like the same word in Arabic, means 
 
358 NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTICS 
 
 properly, " to work as a laborer," as xo^riaw in the New Testa- 
 ment. Thus, in Gen. n. 5, nnnNn-nx t':]!^ ; iv. 2, nnn^ -r^jr ; 
 Prov. xii. 11. Isai. xix. 9. DWa nb;;, workers in flax. But 
 12^ means, further, to pay attention to, to be devoted to', 
 as in n. Kings, xvni. 7. Isai. xix. 23. Whence Dnn^ 
 signifies ministers, whom any person employs for the accom- 
 plishment of his designs. The Septuagint almost always ren- 
 ders D^ _j^ by -jrar^sg ; but in Esth. ii. 18, it translates it by the 
 honorable appellation 91X01. The term -rar^s?, moreover, is 
 used in the New Testament, in the same way as on?:^ ; a 
 clear instance of which occurs in Matt. xiv. 2, where the 'ffaTSee 
 of Herod, are his friends, or ministers, called in Mark, vi. 21, 
 ^isyKfravss. Hence the Apostles are called ^ouXoj, on account 
 of the august office of the Apostleship ; and SovXivsiv Kup»w, 
 means, to teach the gospel. Of the same force is the word 
 T^iTovpyhs in the New Testament, which is a title applied to 
 kings, who are called Xsiroup/o/ to^ ©2oiJ, and 5»axovoi, Rom. xiii. 
 4. 6 ; and even to the angels themselves, Heb. 1. 14 ; nay 
 more, even to our Lord Jesus Christ,- ch. vni. 2. 6 : and ch. 
 ni. 1. he is called ct^otfToXof ttjj 6^J^oXoy^a^, i. e. the interpreter 
 of the covenant, sent by God, in order that he might ratify 
 the covenant ; which titles have nothing, certainly, of an ab- 
 ject signification in them, and do not detract at all from the 
 dignity of the person who bears them. The word n.^jf^, there- 
 fore, means nearly the same as ^^{SD, by which very title the 
 Saviour is distinguished in the Old Testament. But ^«^D 
 means, any minister, i. e. one who manages aflfairs in the place 
 of another; and is applied principally to the counsellors of 
 princes, and generals and commanders in war, not only in the 
 Hebrew, but also in the other Oriental tongues. Hence, in 
 the Ethiopic, it signifies a president, a governor ; and is used 
 for app^wv in John, ui. 1, and for /jySfAwv, in Matt. xxvn. 2. For 
 the same reason :!xHp and n-^ij'D, Ps. civ. 4, and 124? and P'?.iyD, 
 Josh. 1. 1, are used indiscriminately, although it cannot be 
 denied, that pntjp is used by the Hebrews in a somewhat 
 more honorable sense. — I have made these observations 
 that it might be seen, that the words "^31, n.3V, and ^^)q 
 are synonymous, and, when used with reference to our Sa- 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 359 
 
 viour, signify the whole office, committed to him by God the 
 Father for the benefit of men ; and that thus the reason might 
 clearly appear, why the term Xoyo? is used by St. John ; and 
 that it might be evident, that this title was applied to the Mes- 
 siah in the Old Testament, and is not, therefore, to be looked 
 for in the Gnostic, or any other philosophy of that kind. But 
 as that ministry consisted principally in recovering the salva- 
 tion and happiness of men, to the great glory of God, and 
 not simply in making it known to mankind, and unfolding the 
 way to its attainment ; on this account, I think that the title 
 Xoyog refers not merely to the office of a teacher, which our 
 Lord Jesus Christ bore, but principally to his character as Re- 
 deemer, and that it means, therefore, not only a teacher, or, 
 as Heumann understands it, in his Explic. Libr. N. T. Tom. 
 Ill, p. 7, one who makes an annunciation, but the author of the 
 salvation and happiness of the human race ; such as n3jr is de- 
 scribed to be, by Isaiah, Ch. lii, and liu, and as St. John 
 speaks of him, when he calls him (pwf, ^wrj, x.X. And this is 
 particularly consonant with the genius of the Hebrew lan- 
 guage. For the primary and proper signification of 13*1 is 
 that of drawing, leading : «ind it was formerly applied, like 
 the same word in the Syriac, to shep erds, who lead their 
 flock, and to husbandmen, who draw furrows, on which ac- 
 count the Syriac word denotes a field, and plain ; and it thus 
 agrees with the primary signification of i^v. Hence "i^'^p 
 means properly, not a desert, but a place in which there are 
 no cultivated fields, but which is designed for pastures, or in- 
 to which a flock is led, as Reland ha^^ observed, Palaest. 111. 
 L. I. c. 56. p. 374. Thus Joel, i. 19, where the words nfN3 
 "^J'ln mean, either the cottages of the shepherds and the sheep- 
 folds, or rather pleasant pastures, green meadows ; " the ex- 
 cessive drought has consumed the places in which there are 
 pastures." In the next place, however, the word 13t is ap- 
 plied to the office of generals and kings, and also of teachers. 
 Hence it signifies, either to rule, govern, subject, compel, lead ; 
 as Ps. xvm. 48, where ^{^nn d^sj; "^t^h is well translated by the 
 Septuagint, xai uflroTagajXaoOg u-ff' ^fji.s, instead of which, in u. Sam. 
 xxii. 48, it is "'^^nili xy^v T*?0'> irai5s'uwv XaoO? uiroxorw (aou. In Ps. 
 
360 NO TRACES OF THE GNOSTICS 
 
 XLvii. 4, and cxxxvii. 3, the Syriac word occurs in the same 
 sense, in reference to those who lead others into captivity, 
 and expresses the very difficult verb SSn, hence na^ signifies 
 a general ; or to teach, discourse, and also to be eloquent ; 
 for example, in i. Kings, v. 13, where Solomon's acquaint- 
 ance with natural productions is mentioned, that he could 
 also explain the qualities of these. See also Hos. x. 4, 
 and XaXsw in the New Testament, Mark, ii. 2, i. Pet. iv. 11. 
 Hence nnn is, in numerous places in the Psalms, synonymous 
 with n^in, which means the whole system of divine instruc- 
 tion, and in this way also Xo'yo.c is used in the New Testament, 
 as 1. Cor. 1. 18, Xop^ tou s'TauprG, the doctrine concerning Christ 
 crucified ; also Xoyog <rou X^ja'tou, Xoyo? rrjg dXi^de/ac:, n. Tim. n. 
 15 ; X6705 Tou koZ, 1. John, n. 14, Apoc. 1. % in which last 
 place XoYog Tou dsoiJ and /xa^ru^ia Tou x^itfroi; are synonymous, 
 and signify the Christian doctrine, and M-a^cu^srv tov Xoyov toCi 
 0SOU, to teach the gospel. Compare also Exod. iv. 14, and 
 Jer. 1. 6. Now if these significations be applied to the Sa- 
 viour, when distinguished by the title of Xoyoj, the reason of 
 so calling him may be more easily perceived ; and it may 
 thereby be seen, that the name is 'not to be looked for in the 
 Gnostic, or any other philosophy. If the observations 1 have 
 now made are thought, by some, not to carry with them that 
 complete evidence which ought to exist, when we are oblig- 
 ed to gather the meaning and sense from the words, as in 
 prominent points of doctrine, or when the context and sub- 
 ject-matter give no assistance in arriving at a true understand- 
 ing of the signification ; yet they are of some weight in es- 
 tablishing the interpretation for which I contend, from the 
 usage and analogy of languages : and this is, perhaps, all that 
 is necessary, in passages of this kind. 
 
 Let us now proceed to those other traces of the Gnostics, 
 which are thought to exist in the gospel of St. John ; in the 
 examination of which I may be more brief. Besides the 
 word Xoyoff, particular stress is laid upon the terms <P<*>s and 
 ^w?5, which are thought to have been used for the purpose of 
 opposing the Gnostics. Thus Grotius observes, at this place. 
 
IS THE NEW TESTAMEJ^IT. 36t 
 
 *• The fable of the Gnostics is refuted, that the Xo'ycs is one 
 emanation of God, ?w>? another, cpCJs another. St. John shews, 
 on the contrary, that all these titles suit Christ alone." It is 
 hardly necessary to say any thing in opposition to this idea, 
 since it is obvious, that the words opdg and ^wn savor, not of 
 Gnosticism, but Hebraism ; for the words D^;n and "iiK oc- 
 cur in numerous places of the Psalms, in the sense of felicity 
 of every kind, tranquillity of mind, joy, and the hope of ever- 
 lasting life ; as niD, b)K^, and ^K^n, are used for miseries and 
 calamity : for example, Ps. xxxvi. 10, where the two word§ 
 above mentioned are connected together;* Ps. lxxi.20; 
 Isai. IX. 1 ; and in the New Testament, John, x. 10. And 
 such a Saviour is promised in the Old Testament ; that he 
 should be D:u "tin, Isai. xlix. 6 ; and he was acknowledged to 
 be such in the New Testament, Luke, ii. 32, <pws elg dToxaXu- 
 ^j^jv ^^vwv ; and he himself, also, applies this title to himself, 
 John, VIII. 12, ^yw £»>» to (pwj tov xoV^ou, which words I would 
 thus render, *' I am that light of the world," predicted, viz. 
 by the prophets : and I would understand it as referring not 
 to the doctrine, delivered by him, but to the salvation pro- 
 cured by him ; as appears not only from the words that fol- 
 bw, «|e« <ro (pwff 7r)g ^w>jf, but by the parallel places, ch. ix. 5, 
 and XII. 46. And so, also, I think those words D!U ifN» ought 
 to be interpreted ; viz. in reference to the author of human sal- 
 vation and happiness ; and also (pug and ^wn in the place before 
 us. For these words are used indiscriminately, although with 
 some slight difference of meaning, which is this. The word ^wt? 
 signifies happiness, in such a manner as to refer, at the same 
 time, to the power of conferring it upon men ; on which ac- 
 count Christ is said to quickei;! (^wo<jfoj5rv) men, which does not. 
 mean, as interpreters commonly suppose, to regenerate, but to 
 bestow salvation ; but ^wg signifies happiness, so as to indicate. 
 
 "* The sense of this most beautiful passage is this: Thou art the 
 source of true and permanent happiness, and from this source every 
 kind of happiness abounds to us ; 7^% according to the Hebrew iffiage 
 means, "to enjoy." 
 
 46 
 
vTdl^ KO TRACE3 OF Tllli GNOSTICS 
 
 at the same time, the method of obtaining it, viz. by the illu- 
 mination of the mind, i. e. the knowledge of God and of Jesus 
 Ghrist. Since these words, therefore, are used in such a man- 
 ner, as to be in no way applicable to the Gnostics, and since 
 the signification which they have is not unknown in other 
 parts of Scripture ; it is evident, that the use of them should not 
 be considered as being derived from the Gnostic, or Platonic 
 philosophy, as many think with Le Clerc ; and that the word 
 ^w'^ V. 4, must not be explained according to Semler's inter- 
 pretation, in his Paraphr. of St. John's gospel, with reference to 
 " spiritual natures enjoying perpetual life, as the most excellent 
 species twv *avTWv, and Christ, the creator of them." It may be 
 further remarked, that the use of the words ^(^r, and (pdg, in the 
 sense of happiness, as of djcorog in the sense of misery, is con- 
 formable to the custom of all languages ; as has been already 
 observed by others, and shewn, with reference to profane wri- 
 ters, by Bos, Exercitatt. ad M. T. p. 52, and Elsner, Obs. 
 ■ Sac. p. 290 s. I am very much surprised that Grot i us, who, 
 in other places, perceives all this perfectly well, should have 
 liesitated with regard to this passage. Such, however, is 
 usually the case with those, who go to the investigation of 
 any writer's meaning, when blinded by a preconceived opi- 
 nion. 
 
 No less clear is the matter, in regard to the word iJ^ovoysv-ng^ 
 r. 14, and 18. Grotius is of opinion that this word, also, is 
 used in opposition to the Gnostics, observing, that " the 
 ^Gnostics are in brief terms condemned, who made the Xoyo^ 
 one, iiQvoysvyig another, and Jesus another." And yet he him- 
 self has well shewn, that, in order to understand this phrase, 
 we must recur to the usage of the Septuagint in rendering the 
 Hebrew Tn^, examples of which are to be found in Gen. xxii. 
 2. 12. 16, Amos, VIII. 10, Zech. xii. 10, &c., and Prov. iv. 
 "3 ; from which places it may be seen, that this word means 
 ♦ very much beloved ;' for, in the former of them, they trans- 
 late it by ayoL'Xrirhg, and, in the last-mentioned, by dyairuii^svos. 
 This is certainly true; except that Grotius is mistaken in 
 supposing, that aya-riiTo? means, dear, or very much beloved ; 
 since it rather signifies " only ;" for, in the above-mention- 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 363" 
 
 ed passage of Genesis, kaac is called Dn^nx Tn^ |3, and it 
 is added, r»j3nK-'iL7K ; which would have been superfluous, had 
 not the whole place signified, " take thine only son, who is 
 also very dear to thee." This is evident, also, from the trans- 
 lation of Symmachus, who has rendered TTS'^ by m-ovo^, and 
 that of Aquila, who translates it by iMvoytvris ; as St. Paul also 
 does, in Heb. xi. 17. Finally, this is in accordance with are- 
 fined usage of the Greek language, by which an only son is 
 called dya1rv^rog, In reference to this are to be explained the 
 well-known words, in Matt. ni. 17, and Luke, ui. 22. ouVo'g 
 l(fTiv 6 ulo'g fAou 6 dya'ifrirog, iv w su^oxirjo'a, i. e. this is my son, 
 beloved as an only son. — Since St. John, then, in the use of 
 this word, followed the usage of the Septuagint, and it was a 
 common thing with the sacred writers to distinguish the Son 
 of God in this manner ; for what reason, I pray, should it be 
 asserted, that the Gnostics are condemned in this place ? The 
 Gnostics, forsooth, had one called Xo'/o^, another fxovoysvr^f : 
 St. John here mentions fAovoygviiff ; ergo 
 
 I am surprised that Grotius should consider the words *X'<i- 
 ^ne X^^""^ '*'*' aX»3^e<aff, in the same verse, as referring also to 
 the Gnostics. " Here, also," he observes, " the dream of the 
 Gnostics is refuted, according to whom ahyj^sia was different 
 from Xoyof and Christ." For it is well known, that the words 
 non and noi* are, in numerous places of the Old Testament, 
 joined together, as Ps. xxv. 10, lxxxix. 15, and in this very 
 Ch. I. of John, verse 17 ; and that they ai-e, by a hendyadis, 
 for x°^P'^ dXifi&ivYi^ i. e. very true, or, perfect grace. But * full 
 of perfect grace,' means, very gracious, by far the most be- 
 nignant. But if we thus interpret these words, as we mu^t 
 do, according to the Hebrew usage ; how can we suppose 
 them to refer to the dx>j&£<a of the Gnostics ? Perhaps the 
 Gnostics had a x^P'^ ^i^so ? 
 
 Grotius also thinks, that, in verse 16, " St. John shews the 
 true use of the word wX»)pwfAa, in opposition to the Gnostics." 
 The Gnostics talked about a certain crXTjpw^ta, therefore St. 
 John, in this place, referred to the same. This otherwise ex- 
 cellent commentator did not bear in mind, that the Apostle fol- 
 lows the Hebrew use of the word nSo. which, jts I have aK 
 
Sl'&i NO 'I RACES X)F TH.H: GNOSTICS 
 
 ieady shewn, on Col. u. 9, means either a quantity destined 
 for some purpose, or absolutely, which signification is not 
 without examples in Greek writers ; or plenty and abundance ; 
 and that this is the meaning in the present passage : so that 
 the sense is ; out of the abundance of his favors, we have 
 obtained very great and constant gracfe ; or, we have receiv- 
 ed very great benefits from him ; for this is the meaning of 
 p^a^ig avTi x^piTog, This same usage St. John undoubtedly had 
 in view, in the words 6 wv sis tov koX-^'ov tou "ffarpoc, in verse 18 ; 
 which phrase is thought by Grotius, and others with him, 
 •* to have been used in an improper sense by the Gnostics, and 
 here in its true and correct meaning." It is derived, how- 
 erep, from the Hebrew mode of banqueting, and signifies the 
 greatest degree of intimacy, and community of purposes. 
 Profane writers use the same phrase to express this idea : 
 see Elsner, Obs. Sac. p. 295. In this sense it is, that Laza- 
 rus is said, Luke xvi. 22 s. to be sv rw xoXiru) cou 'A/3^aa/x, i. e. 
 intimate with Abraham, or, very near to him, or, enjoying the 
 same happiness. And the same is the meaning, in the pre- 
 sent passage, in regard to the Son of God : he has the same 
 nature and dignity with the Father. I do not see, therefore, 
 \iOVf St. John is defending the sense of this phrase from the 
 perversions of the Gnostics ; and I am clearly of opinion, 
 that Grotius, and the other learned men who follow him, 
 would never have thought of such an idea, nor have seen any. 
 thing here of the Gnostics, unless they had been at great pains 
 to discover them. 
 
 So much in regard to St. John's gospel. Let us now pro- 
 ceed to his First Epistle ; of which the following places are 
 generally considered as having the same bearing ; viz. Ch. 
 n. 18 s., 22 s., and 26. ni. 4—7, iv. 1—3. I shall briefly con- 
 sider the principal passages. The greatest diflSculty consists 
 in the question, whom the Apostle means by avT/p^pitfToi and 
 ■l^sudorf^ocprirai ; in determining which commentators diflfer, as the 
 terms are used in various ways in Scripture. It is evident, 
 however, that the dvTj'x^jrfTo^, in these passages, is diflferent 
 from that spoken of in n. Thess. u ; and that the ■^evSo'jr^ocpyi- 
 ^0.1 are not the same who are mentioned in that w^ell-known 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMET^r. 3(i5 
 
 place, Matt. vu. 15, where we are to understand, not those 
 who teach false doctrines, but those who live in a manner un-. 
 worthy of Christ and of his gospel, as the context there evi- 
 dently shews ; and they appear to be the same with the 4>6u- 
 Su'jrctf roXoi, ii. Cor. xi. 13, who are so called, partly for the rea- 
 son just stated, and partly because they professed to be great- 
 er than the Apostle Paul, on account of some outward advan- 
 tages. In this place, however, it is evident that the dyn'-x^^KfToif 
 Ch. II. 18, and the 4/eu5o<n'/)0(p>3rai, Ch. iv. 1, are the same ; for 
 they are so described by the Apostle, viz. Ch. ii. 22, as dpnC- 
 fASvoi, on 'Iijtfoug oux gtfTiv xp'^'J'of > denying that Jesus is the Christ ; 
 and Ch. iv. 3, as l"-^ o^uoKoyoxlvTSg cov 'iTitfouv p^^irfTov £v (fapxi eXriXu- 
 ^o'ra, Hot confessing that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. But 
 whom are we to understand as being here referred to ? Mos- 
 HEiM, Instit. Hist. Eccl. maj. p. 313, and others with him, 
 think that these two classes of men are to be clearly distin- 
 guished from each other, and that by the former are to be un- 
 derstood the Jews, who denied the divine nature of Jesus 
 Christ, and by the latter, without doubt, the Gnostics, who 
 denied his human nature ; for it is one thing, he observes, apvouC- 
 6ai, oTi 'I^irfoug oux IWiv o XpitfTaf, to deny that Jesus is the Christ, 
 and another, f*^ oixoXoysh rhv 'IvjtfoiJv X^irfrov ^v (fapxi ^X'»iXu5oVa, not 
 to confess that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. I am sur- 
 prised, however, that Mosheim should have made a distinc- 
 tion, where none existed ; for, by a comparison of both pla- 
 ces, it is plain that these phrases mean exactly the same thing, 
 viz. to deny that Jesus, the son of Mary, is the Christ, the 
 Saviour of the human race, sent by God into this world : for 
 it is evident that in Ch. iv. 3, the Apostle repeats what he had 
 said in Ch. ii. 22, and that he makes it a token for distinguish- 
 ing true from false teachers, that the former confess that Je- 
 sus is the Christ, the Redeemer of the human race, but the 
 latter deny it. What, therefore, is expressed in one place by 
 b dpvoufAgvoj, on li^tfoug oux Itfriv o XpitfTo?, is, in the Other, 6 f/,r) ofjio- 
 Xoygr Tov 'IrjCouv X^iCtov iv <fapxi iXYfkv&ora, And what difference 
 is there, whether I should deny that Jesus, the son of Mary, 
 is the Messiah, i. e. the Saviour of the human race, or, that 
 Jesus, who is the Messiah, has come into the world ? It is 
 
366 
 
 NO TRACES OF THE GNOSTICS 
 
 impossible, moreover, that the Jews or Gnostics can be meant ; 
 for, in the first place, those avrly^pidTtn are said, Ch. ii. 19, to 
 have abandoned the Christian religion, ^^ -^/awv i^TjXaov ; which 
 is not applicable, at least, to the Jews ; and, in the next place, 
 MosHEiM shews, in regard to the Gnostics, (see his work, 
 cited above, p. 395, and in many other places,) that they con- 
 sidered Jesus as the Son of God, and the Saviour of the hu- 
 man race. This excellent writer, therefore, has allowed that 
 they did not altogether deny Christ's humanity. What other 
 persons, then, are we to understand as being here described ? 
 Those adversaries, truly, of Jesus Christ, who, rejecting the 
 Christian faith, spoke in the most reviling terms of his redemp- 
 tion, and of his whole religion ; and particularly those impos- 
 tors, who, boasting themselves to be the Messiah, endeavor- 
 ed totally to destroy the claims of our Saviour : so that avrU 
 j^pitfroi are the same as 4^u^o;)^/»(fTo», which is not only allowed 
 by the nature of the case, for he who is 4^su^6p^pi(rro^, a false 
 Christ, is also avTi;)^pid'«rof, antichrist ; but also by the nature of 
 the Greek language, according to which avrij^^io'TOff may mean, 
 one who boasts himself to be Christ, or, who assumes the 
 place of Christ ; for avW is so used in composition, as, for ex- 
 ample, avTi'Sorov, a gift, which is conferred in the place of ano- 
 ther. The instances cited to prove the contrary, by Brucker, 
 on this place, and by Calovius, against Grotius, are of no 
 force. And that there were, at that period, many such mad- 
 men, who professed to be the Messiah, I have already shewn 
 from JosEPeus, and others ; and it is also plain from the pro- 
 phecy of Christ, Matt. xxiv. 5. 24. There is no necessity 
 for mentioning every individual, the thing being evident ; and 
 this, moreover, cannot be done, as the names of most of them 
 have not come down to our times. Otherwise I would, with 
 Grotius, class among such persons Simon Magus, and Dosi- 
 theus, both of whom, as I have already observed, were rather 
 enemies of Jesus Christ, than heretics. 
 
 How Chapter ni. v. 4, is at all in point, I cannot possibly 
 perceive. Perhaps because the Apostle is commonly suppos- 
 ed to be arguing, in that place, after the manner of a refined 
 philosopher, who begins with the explanation of his subject ; 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMEIJT. 
 
 wluch he would not have done, unless his intention had been 
 to refute some particular persons. But who are these ? No 
 others, without doubt, but the Gnostics. I doubt it, however, 
 exceedingly. For there is, in this place, no explanation of 
 sin, as is generally supposed, but rather an admonition to avoid 
 sin, grounded upon two reasons ; the first of which is drawn 
 from the defilement, both to body and mind, contracted by 
 sin ; and the second, from the guilt of a violated law, which 
 accrues from it. For though I do not think there is any great 
 emphasis in the words, -srag 6 ^oiwv rviv af^apTjav, as Alberti, in 
 his Observationes, on this passage, and others are of opinion, 
 yet I do think that the word ajuta/jTia has here the sense of the 
 defilement of sin ; as is evident from its being opposed to the 
 words, otyvi^si Jajrov, xadus hsTvos oLyvog i(fTt. The meaning of 
 this place, therefore, is this : " Whosoever defiles himself by 
 doing what is wrong, at the same time violates the law, and 
 contracts the guilt of a violated law ; but that very defile- 
 ment, which is in sin, is a departure from the law." This 
 admonition is in itself so excellent and admirable, that 
 it cannot be thought too identical, or superfluous, even if we 
 do not adopt the opinion of Michaelis, Einl. ins N. T. P, 
 M. p. 1524. Gott. 1788,* that the design of it was to con- 
 fute the wickedness of the Gnostics. Verse 9, of the same 
 chapter, which also some think, though I know not for what 
 reason, to refer to the Gnostics, seems to me to be capable of 
 an easy application to apostasy. I approve, indeed, exceed- 
 ingly, of the interpretation of some very learned divines, who 
 understand the words xa< ou 5vvaTou afji.apTav5iv, thus; "inas- 
 much as he is born again, and so long as he continues in re- 
 generation and faith." There is no necessity for this, how- 
 ever, if we interpret the words, thus ; " whosoever has been 
 led, by the power of the divine word, to embrace the Chris- 
 tian religion, has known its truth, excellence, and pleasantness, 
 
 * His words are, " which seeras to he a proposition too identical, and 
 superfluous, if we read it without reference to any polemical design." 
 C See Marsh's Michaelis, Vol. iv. p. 406, Lond. 1803.— Tr. "] 
 
368 NO TRACES OP THli GNOSTICJS 
 
 and has thoroughly felt and experienced it, will certainly not 
 apostatize from it, since the divine word continually exerts its 
 efficacy in strengthening his mind-; yea, it cannot be, that he 
 should abandon and abjure this religion, after having once ac- 
 knowledged it, for, through the divine goodness, his mind is- 
 so strengthened and confirmed, that such a thing appears to 
 be altogether impossible (d(5uvarov)." This meaning is certain- 
 ly not absurd, and agrees perfectly with the context, and with 
 the subject itself; for the Apostle adds, vn ccrsp^a aurou Iv 
 ca)Tu fxs'vsj. Now (f^opoL, which is the same as (ftipiiotf is ele- 
 gantly used, 1. Pet. i. 23, in reference to the power of the gos- 
 pel, or the Xo'yoj Jwv ©sou. Moreover, the power exerted 
 upon the mind by the truth and excellence of the Christian 
 religion, is proved by personal experience ; and may be per- 
 ceived in the fact, that so many thousands of men, of different 
 ranks, not only have defended it with the utmost constancy, 
 amidst threatenings of the most cruel punishments, but have 
 also, with astonishing cheerfulness, sealed the truth of it with 
 their blood, and with an ignominious and most excruciating 
 death ; and were willing to die a thousand times, rather than 
 abjure and deny it. 
 
 I now proceed to consider the Second Epistle of St. Peter ; 
 for here also, and particularly in Chapter n, traces of the 
 Gnostics are looked for, and of course found. There is men- 
 tion here made, it is said, of ■^s-oSo§i8a<fxci\oi (false teachers,), in 
 describing whom the Apostle uses a phraseology, different 
 from that which he employs in the First Epistle, and also in 
 the other portion of the Second, and agreeing with the lan- 
 guage of the Gnostics ; it may hence be clearly perceived, 
 therefore, that, in this chapter, , reference is made to them. 
 Let us consider, then, first, these i^sutJo^j^aCxaXoi, and see who 
 are to be understood by them ; and then examine the phraseo- 
 logy of tjie Apostle, and its diversity. On both these points 
 I shall be brief. 
 
 It is evident that these -^svSodiScLdxakoi are so called by the 
 Apostle, not only on account of very grievous errors, but be- 
 cause of their wicked life ; and that two crimes are especially 
 laid to their charge. The one was, in general, their abandon 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 369 
 
 !)(] morals, and dissolute and licentious mode of life ; the other, 
 which arose out of this, their contempt of magistrates. They 
 obtrude upon others, says the Apostle, i). 1, very pernicious 
 
 opinions, itapsKfa^ovcfiv aipidetg d'n'uKeias, (which phrase has been 
 already considered,) rejecting the Lord Jesus Christ, who re- 
 deemed them by his death, (tov dyopatfcLvra. aurovg 6s(fiF6rriv 
 apvo!;fji£vo«,) and placing their chief happiness in feasting sumptu- 
 ously every day, and indulging in the most depraved passions ; 
 V. 13. They are inflamed with inordinate lust, v. 14, (o(p9-aX- 
 fAoug E^ovTss f^stfToug fj^oj^aXi^og,*) and are thoroughly practised 
 in all the arts of heaping up and collecting money (xa.p6iav 
 y£yufji.voctffAsvT)v crXsovs^jajg f sxo^'rsg). And not only by this aban- 
 doned course of life, but also by their way of talking, carrying 
 the appearance of great affection and benevolence, in order 
 that they may make whatever they wish a source of gain, (sv 
 'jrXsovs^ia-^ 'n'XatfToTg Xoyoig, v, 3.) they endeavor to deceive minds 
 that are not sufficiently confirmed, +ux^^ acrrjpjxToug dsKsa^ovrsg^ 
 ^. 14 ; and insolently treat them, as merchandize to make a 
 traffic of, s^'s'opsuo'ovTai, § v. 3 ; and entice them to the farthest 
 and most wanton extremes of lust ; 11 and teach that therein, 
 
 * See Bos, Exercitt. Phil. p. 287 ; who admirably explains thes& 
 words. 
 
 t It matters not whether we read TrKisvi^Uii, or wxtan^Ui , since 
 both readings are supported by the authority of MSS., and allowed by 
 the genius of the Greek language. Comp. Wolfius, on this passage- 
 
 X if TtKtm^iat.. There is here observable a twofold hebraism ; first, in 
 the signification of the word Trxeovi^itt, which answers to the Hebrew 
 word ^V3> which means gain, and is sometimes rendered in the Septua- 
 gintby 3-^8ove|<at, as Grotius shews, onEph. iv. 19; Sind secondly, in 
 the structure of the words : for f» is for ^tal, as Grotius has also observed, 
 on this passage of St. Peter. 
 
 §. Compare Gaorius, on this place, respecting the meaning of this 
 word. 
 
 11 Instead of dt\oMUis, v. 2, we ought undoubtedly, with Grotius, to 
 read ct^ihytixn; in which reading the MSS. and Versions generally 
 agree. This great man, however, is mistaken in supposing, that uath- 
 yuu, Eph. IV. 19, means the beginnings, or first degrees of lewdness. For 
 this word always signifies violent, unbridled, and shameless lust. 
 Hence daxyk means one who is lustful to a shameless and rare degree : 
 and ti<rt\yio» is applied to a species of lust, which decency forbids nae to 
 ijame. 
 
 47 
 
370 
 
 NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTICS 
 
 partly, Christian liberty consists. Comp. v, 12, and Jude, 
 V. 4. And, on account of this same Christian liberty, they 
 despise magistrates, and are not afraid to refuse obedience to 
 them, V. 10, pretending that Christians are not subject to hu- 
 man governors : and they promise things that are utterly vain, 
 iiifipoyxa fxaTai6<riiTog (p^syyo'fjtsvoi, v. 18; viz. v. 19, full liberty to 
 gratify every lust and desire, iXsu^sp/av, while, nevertheless, 
 they subject themselves and others to the severe and cruel bond- 
 age of the filthiest ((p^opa) vices. Abandoning, therefore, the 
 doctrine of our Lord Jesus Christ, they have very grievously 
 gone astray, r. 15, exactly according to the plan and course 
 of Balaam, {o^k tou BaXaafx) who preferred (d/a-n'aw, from the 
 Hebrew 3n}<) the unrighteous rewards received from Balak, to 
 obedience to God. But as Balaam instigated the Moabites 
 to entice the children of Israel to share in their forbidden 
 lusts, and through these lusts to lead them into idolatry, and, by 
 this means, brought upon them the severest punishments from 
 God ; so these false teachers, giving Christians the Hberty of 
 gratifying their carnal appetites, in order to answer their own 
 avaricious views, have, in like manner, provoked against the 
 church and themselves the anger of God, and those severe 
 chastisements and penalties which usually follow this anger ; 
 which, indeed, shall not linger ; on the contrary, they are al- 
 ready prepared for them ; olg to x^r^Aa hitakai ovx dpysT, xai 
 Jj ditCSKsioL auTWv ou vutfrajsi ; r. 3» 
 
 But the question now comes, who these 4^£u5o5»5a(rxaXo( 
 were ? No other, undoubtedly, than the Gnostics, say some 
 learned writers. Now 1 will not urge too strongly the fact, 
 that the place referred to, in this chapter, is a prediction re- 
 specting teachers of this kind, who were yet to arise ; and 
 that the Gnostics, therefore, cannot be meant, because, ac- 
 cording to the opinion of these same writers, the origin of 
 the Gnostic philosophy is to be traced much higher than that 
 period, which St. Peter here predicts. At any rate it may 
 be seen, that if this place be regarded as referring to the 
 Gnostics, their doctrine had not, as those writers think, as yet 
 arisen, nor begun to be celebrated and spread abroad : 
 which is what I have been contending for. There is no ne- 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 37V 
 
 BF cessity, however, for supposing the Gnostics to be meant 
 W liere, as it is well known that, among Christians themselves, 
 I there was a great number of teachers, and of others, who 
 I maintained wicked opinions of this kind both by word and 
 example, of whom the Apostle, in this place, predicts a larger 
 and more conspicuous number. And, for this reason, there 
 are so many explanations of the nature of Christian liberty, 
 in the writings of the Apostles, as in i. Peter, n. 16 ; Rom. 
 XI. 20 ; vm. 2 s. 14 s. xiv. 16 ; ii. Cor. in. 17 ; so many 
 severe reproofs and threatenings, i. Cor. v. and vi ; so many 
 injunctions to connect, with faith, holiness and true piety of 
 heart and life. Jam. n ; so many exhortations to perseverance 
 in faith ; finally, so many admonitions to obey the civil ru- 
 lers, even though they were heathens and wicked men ; i. 
 Pet. II. 13 s. Rom. xm. 1 s. Now do these explanations, re- 
 proofs, exhortations, and precepts, relate to the wickedness 
 of the Gnostics only ? Who ever supposed that the Second 
 Chapter of St. James, throughout the whole of which he op- 
 poses men, who led a wicked hfe, refers to the Gnostics ? It 
 is more probable, therefore, that in this place are meant per- 
 sons of notorious wickedness ; who, having abandoned the 
 Christian faith, disseminated iniquitous opinions not only by 
 their example, but also by their language and system, and 
 enticed others to embrace and follow them ; in a word, apos- 
 tates, who, having abjured their faith, and Jesus Christ, lived 
 in a most abandoned manner, and also corrupted others ; of 
 whom St. John, after Peter, speaks in his First Epistle, saying 
 that Antichrist, of whose coming Christians had already been 
 warned, is now come. This, moreover, may be clearly per- 
 ceived from verse 20 s., where the Apostle expressly says, 
 that these -v^su^o^KJarfxaXoi had acknowledged and received 
 the truth of the Christian religion, but afterwards had ma- 
 liciously abandoned and abjured it. Further, it is evident 
 that those '\^s\)8oMa(fxa'Koi were of Jewish origin ; for St. Pe- 
 ter had addressed the Jewish Christians, and, in tJ. 1, he ex- 
 pressly shews, that now also, as had before been the case, 
 men of this kind should arise from among them, iysvovro Ss xai 
 4/£u5oflrpo(|)SiTai iv rw Xaw, ois xai iv CfAM/ etfovraj ^psudoSiSacfxaKoi. It 
 
 may be added, finally, that learned writers, even among those 
 
35S NO TRACES OF THE GNOSTICS 
 
 who, in other respects, most strenuously contend that traces 
 of the Gnostics are found in tlie New Testament, and espe- 
 cially MosHEiM, maintain that the Gnostics were not all so 
 depraved in their opinions and lives, as the ^f su^o^i^aCxaXoi are 
 here described. Comp. Mosiieim, Institut. H. E. maj. p. 
 359, where he observes, that " most of them prescribed for 
 themselves a severe rule of living, and, by abstinence, and 
 various inconveniences, emaciated and tormented their bo- 
 dies :*' and, p. 357 s., he says, " they all certainly committed 
 to our Saviour the office of informing, both by words and 
 deeds, the souls of men, which had fallen into extreme igno- 
 rance of their origin and condition, and were forgetful of 
 God, how they might escape from the snares of the wicked 
 prince of darkness ; &c." Semler expresses the same opi- 
 nion, in his Comment. Hist, de ant. Chr. statu, p. 79 ; where 
 he observes, that " most of the Gnostics were strict teachers 
 of virtue." But if this be so, how can those -^^svdodidatfxoikoi 
 mean the Gnostics ? For this reason, Mosheim here agrees 
 with me ; for he expressly maintains, in the above work, p. 
 317 s., that this epistle does not speak of philosophers, nor of 
 those who advocated the ceremonial law, but of abandoned 
 Christians, " who maintained that the holy system of Jesus 
 Christ was the teacher of every vice and lust, and, by their 
 own impure lives, supported this horrible doctrine." — So 
 much with respect to the ■]^s\}§o8iSa<fxoikoi. 
 
 As for the phraseology which the Apostle has used in this 
 Chapter, and which, as has been very correctly remarked by 
 learned men, (as, for example, among the ancient ecclesiasti- 
 cal writers, Jerom, de Script. Eccl. c. 1,) differs very much 
 from his style in other parts, and has a great resemblance to 
 the Epistle of St. Jude, while this Second Epistle of St. Pe- 
 ter, and the Epistle of St. Jude, resemble very much the 
 phraseology of the Gnostics ; learned men seem to have here 
 needlessly sought out and devised difficulties. If it is neces- 
 sary, however, to assign any reason for the circumstance re- 
 ferred to, the most probable is, that it was in consequence of 
 the prophecy, and denunciation of severe punishments, con- 
 tained in this chapter. Now who does not know that in pro- 
 phecies, or severe reproofs, the style is more elevated., and 
 
IN THE NEW tJESTAMENT; 373 
 
 sometimes also more uncommon, tlian in the simple statement 
 of doctrines, and systems of morals ? Who can read the 
 xivth chapter of Isaiah, where the destruction of the Babylo- 
 nians is threatened, or the reproof contained in Jeremiah, ii. 
 12, without perceiving that a very elevated style, and bold 
 figures, are used ? And from this circumstance not having been 
 borne in mind by some commentators, those passages have 
 been explained in a most extraordinary and unnatural manner. 
 Or, to take an example from the New Testament, who can 
 read the Apocalypse, and other writings of St. John, without 
 observing the great difference there is between them ? In 
 the latter, the style is simple, sweet, and flowing softly along ; 
 in the former, it is elevated, magnificent, and also, in some 
 places, repugnant to the usage of the Greek language ; and 
 therefore abounding in faults of expression, not to be found 
 in his other writings, and such as we should not have expect- 
 ed to find in him. 
 
 The words themselves, moreover, and phrases, which the 
 Apostle has employed in this prophecy, are such as may ea- 
 sily be accounted for, and explained, from the usage of the 
 sacred writers, without having any regard to the trifles of the 
 Gnostics. Of this kind, are, particularly, the phrase (fsipaTg ^6- 
 (pou Ta^rapwo'aj, leapiSi^xsv sis >:p«V<v rsrYiprifj^svovg, in r. 4 ; and ols o" 
 (^ocpos rov (fxoTovs ^k aJwva Tsr^^TjTai, in v, 17, and the words im- 
 mediately preceding, outoj £»Vi ifriyai avu^^oi, vS(psXai virh XaiXairog 
 iXcfuvoiLsmi. Some learned writers are of opinion, that these 
 phrases are either derived from the usage of the Gnostics, 
 that is to say, borrowed from them, or that they are employed 
 in opposition to them ; as Michaelis thinks, Einleit. ins. N. 
 T. P. n. p. 1482 s. ed. Gott. 1788.* Let us, however, exa- 
 mine this point. We must here bear in mind, particularly as 
 it respects the two first of the above phrases, an observation 
 of some very learned commentators in regard to certain words, 
 which are somewhat uncommon in the New Testament. When 
 the Apostles undertook to teach the Christian religion in the 
 Greek language, many subjects were necessary to be spoken 
 
 * [ See Marsh's Michaelis, Vol, iv. pp. 356, 356. Lond. 1802.— Tr. ] 
 
374 NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTICS 
 
 of, with which the Gentiles were unacquainted, or which, at 
 any rate, they erroneously held ; so that there were no words 
 to express these : as, for example, when the punishments of 
 evil angels and men were to be mentioned. In order to ex- 
 press these, they were obliged either to invent new words, or 
 to select others, whose ordinary signification had some resem- 
 blance to that which they wished to express. New terms they 
 neither did, nor could invent ; for this is only to be expected 
 from great genius, disciplined by education, not from fisher- 
 men and illiterate persons : they accordingly selected words, 
 which were already well known, and employed on similar 
 subjects. Thus, for example, they made choice of the word 
 a%, which is used by the Greeks in reference to the condi- 
 tion of both classes of men after death : the Apostles, how- 
 ever, after the usage of the Septuagint, which employs this 
 word to express the Hebrew terms h)H^ and npSv, added ano- 
 ther signification ; using it, viz. with reference to the wicked 
 only, and expressing by it their utterly miserable condition. 
 But as this condition is frequently represented, in other pla- 
 ces, by the word * darkness,' ?o(po^, they employed this like- 
 wise to express the same meaning ; and added to it the word 
 (fsipa, instead of which, in the Book of Wisdom, xvii. 17, the 
 word aXutfig is used, to signify the constraint, severity, and 
 long duration of these punishments (for chains, and bonds, 
 are used by the poets to express extreme constraint,). And 
 as Tartarus signifies, with the Greeks and Latins, a dark and 
 low place, where the wicked are tormented, they according- 
 ly employed the w^ord rapTap'jc^, entirely divested, however, 
 like the rest of the terms now referred to, of the supersti- 
 tious meaning attached to it by the heathen ; and signifying, 
 to subject to the severest punishments which a spiritual nature 
 can suffer. Now as it was no less difficult to select these 
 words, so as to suit the comprehension of men, than to invent 
 new ones, it is evident that they were suggested not by the 
 genius of the writers, but by the Holy Spirit himself; and 
 this is certainly a strong argument for the idea, that words 
 themselves were communicated by divine inspiration. On 
 the signific^ition of those terms among the Greeks, see, be- 
 
IN THK NEW TtSTAMENT. 375 
 
 sides Grot I us, Bos, Exercitatt. Phil, on this place, p. 285 ; on 
 Jude, V. 6, p. 293, and Apoc. i. 18, p. 295. There is, more- 
 over, some ground for the use of these words, in that ancient 
 opinion of the Eastern nations, that the souls of the dead 
 pass into a dark and low place, where there is night and drea- 
 ry solitude, and where past things are forgotten. This they 
 called by the names, biN^'j^, niDSv, in, px \n3T, n;pn, i\m, &c. ; 
 and the Greeks called it aSrig, or ra^prapog. Hence, in explain- 
 ing passages of Scripture, it is necessary to be somewhat cau- 
 tious ; and even in interpreting Greek words, which have the 
 same meaning, we must sometimes have recourse to this an- 
 cient opinion, if we would arrive at their exact signification. 
 This was the opinion of that eminent critic Vitringa, on Isai. 
 xiv. 9 ; and has been farther illustrated by Venema, on Ps. 
 VI. 6, XVI. 10, who has cited a great number of passages to 
 establish the point. Everard Scheid has also discussed the 
 subject at large, and in a learned manner, in his Diss, ad Cant. 
 Hiskiae, p. 27 — 43. And if ancient and modern ecclesiasti- 
 cal writers had borne all this in mind, they certainly would 
 not have looked in this place for the Gnostics ; who perhaps 
 used words of this sort on account of the usage of the Greeks 
 and Latins, who held nearly the same opinion, and used them 
 in a Greek and liatin sense. Neither, which is more impor- 
 tant, and applies chiefly to the ancient ecclesiastical writers, 
 would they have philosophized in so trifling a manner about 
 the condition of souls after death, and even respecting the 
 descent of our Lord Jesus Christ into the lower world. 
 
 As for the phrases,yii7a« avu(5poi, and vscpiKai ■j<ro "kaiXaifog sXauvo- 
 fAsva*, V. 17, these also are not entirely unknown in the sacred 
 writings ; the former signifying imperfection of doctrine, the 
 latter inconstancy in the faith. For example, in Ps. xxxvi. 9, 
 pious men are said to be completely satisfied with the fatness of 
 the house of God, and to be rather overflowed, than watered, 
 with the sweetest rivers of pleasures ; i. e. to be enriched by 
 God, here below, with the most choice and excellent gifts, 
 productive of the greatest delight ; for this is the meaning of 
 that very beautiful passage. And, on account of this plenty 
 and abundance of spiritual blessings, they are compared to a 
 
376 
 
 NO TRACES OF THE GNOSTICS 
 
 perpetual and most copious fountain ; as, in Isai. lviii. U, 
 rn\9 i3o;-kS w d;d J<jiDp, us ir'nyri, -^v ju.ii i^iXiirsv v8up ; that 
 is, thou shalt be like a fountain, which emits water continually, 
 without cessation, i. e. a very abundant fountain ; by which 
 phrase is expressed the exceedingly happy condition of the 
 pious and faithful. So also, in Zechariah, xiv. 8, it is said 
 that out of Jerusalem, i. e. the church of Christ, shall flow D;p 
 D^^n, living waters ; which is to be understood not literally, 
 as Grotius thinks, but as referring to the successful propaga- 
 tion of the gospel. To the above place in Isaiah Jesus Christ 
 seems to have had reference, in John, iv. 14 ; but especially 
 in Ch. VI h 38, where he thus describes the happiness of a 
 pious man: *orajxo< h tris xoiXi'ag aurow (which, according to 
 the Hebrew usage, is for s^ auTou) ^suCoutfiv u^arof; ^dvros, which, 
 laying aside the allegory, means nothing else but this ; " he 
 shall be filled with the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and with a great 
 abundance of divine knowledge, tranquillity, joy, &c." See 
 Rev. XXI. 6. And therefore God himself, from whom all 
 these benefits proceed, is called in Ps. xxxvi. 10, D':n -^ipp, 
 'rTYiyri ?w»i?, and in Jer. ii. 13, and xvii. 13, D^n D^D mpp ; they 
 who cease to worship and reverence Him being said to leave 
 the exhaustless fountain, and to hew out for themselves broken 
 wells, D'"]3K'J ^'^ii^, which cannot hold water, and are there- 
 fore altogether destitute of it. Hence the mouth and law of 
 a wise man, i. e. his doctrine, are called, in Prov. x. 11, and 
 xiu. 14, D'^Ti ^ipp, because this doctrine leads to true happi- 
 ness ; as appears from what follows ; " by obeying which, 
 you will avoid all danger :" and for this same reason, piety 
 towards God receives the same appellation, in ch. xiv. 27. 
 Now it may hence be perceived, why wicked teachers are 
 here called by the Apostle 'Jtr.yai awdpoi ; namely, because 
 they themselves are destitute of those divine gifts, and cannot, 
 therefore, lead others to their attainment. This is shewn clear- 
 ly by the parallel passage, Jude, verse 12, where they are 
 called Scvdpa cp'^mitupiva, trees that are decaying, or, destitute 
 of leaves, (referring, without doubt, to Ps. i, 3.) axap«ra, dig 
 dieo^avovra, entirely dead and dried up, so that there is no hope 
 of their reviving, (for to die twice, means, to suffer a more 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 377 
 
 bitter death ; as in that celebrated passage of Phsedrus, " bfe 
 vidcor mori,") ^xpi^w&svra, fit to be burned, — But these teach- 
 ers are further called v£9sXai o-jto XaiXa-roj JXauvo'/xsvai, i. e, 
 clouds, which are swiftly carried along by a wind, or tempest. 
 Commentators differ in regard to the reason for this appella- 
 tion. Some are of opinion, that they are so called on the 
 same account for which they are termed '^'nyal awSpoi ; others, 
 however, think that it is because of their pride, and vain boast 
 of knowledge (yvwCig), as Michaelis, Einl. ins N. T. P. ir. 
 p. 1483. Ed. Gott. 1788.* Forsooth, because the Apostle 
 speaks of the Gnostics in this chapter ! But it has been al- 
 ready observed by Grotius, and Calovius agrees with hira, 
 (Bib. 111. on this place,) that those teachers are so called on 
 account of the wavering character of their faith ; and this is 
 not only clearly proved, but absolutely required, by the whole 
 tenor of the discourse. For what the Apostle had first said 
 figuratively, he unfolds more clearly and without a figure, in 
 V, 20, 21 ; and who else can be there meant, but those who, 
 having abandoned tjie Christian faith, have turned back again 
 to their former wickedness ? To this agree the parallel 
 passages, Eph. iv. 14, where the Apostle admonishes them 
 not to be like children, tossed and driven about by every w^ind 
 of doctrine, xXu^wvi^ofxsvoj xa< -rs^jips^oixsvot '^avri avi^kui Tr}S 6ida<f^ 
 xaXias ; intending hereby, without doubt, to warn them against 
 inconstancy in doctrine and faith : and Hebrews, xiii. 9, 
 where he says, SiSa-xa-Ts -jroixiXaig xc/J ^imig jxtj <ffs^Kpi^s(f&Sj i. e. 
 do not permit yourselves to be carried and tossed about by 
 various and novel opinions. Moreover, the -^^sudoSidatfxakot, of 
 whom St. Peter speaks, are called by the Apostle Jude, v. 12, 
 vs^psXai ucro ctvs'fxwv ^ffs^Kps^o^svai ; and v. 13, d(fTs^S5 crXav^rar, 
 which Grotius well renders, wandering, or flitting stars ; and 
 says that their inconstancy is here meant. James, i. 6, is also 
 a passage somewhat applicable to the illustration of the phrase 
 under discussion. There is, therefore, no necessity for re- 
 ferring this chapter to the Gnostics ; and it is plain, tfiat the 
 
 *< C Marsh's Michaelis, Vol. iv. p. 365. Lpnd, 1802.— Tr. J 
 48 
 
378 wo TRACES OF THE GNOSTICS 
 
 words themselves which the Apostle uses, and the whole dis- 
 course, are sufficiently to be accounted for from the nature 
 of the Greek language, and the usage of the other sacred wri- 
 ters; 
 
 On Chapter m, of ii. Peter, there cannot be much said ; 
 as even those learned writers who are most firmly of opinion, 
 that there are traces of the Gnostic philosophy in the New 
 Testament, differ in the explanation of it : some asserting, 
 but the greater part denying, that it is also referred to in this 
 place. It may be sufficient to state, that this chapter cannot 
 refer to any other advent of Christ, than that to the last 
 judgment; as has been very clearly shewn by several learn- 
 ed writers, and as Michaelis himself thinks, 1. c. There is 
 no necessity, however, for supposing, that by the lii^ieaTxrai, 
 whom he predicts as hereafter (i-^' £V;)^aTou twv tj/xs^wv) to arise, 
 are meant the Gnostics ; since at all periods impudent men 
 of this kind, who have derided the divine promises and 
 threatenings, have existed in gi-eat numbers. Such persons, 
 for instance, were found in the days of Noah ; and of Mala- 
 chi, who speaks of them in Ch. m. Will any one say that 
 these were Gnostics ? * 
 
 Something yet remains to be said, (that I may not be 
 thought to have left untouched any thing of importance,) in 
 regard to the meaning of the words 6 aim and 6 ap^wv, Eph. 
 n. 2 ; which some learned writers, particularly Brucker, on 
 this passage, and Mosheim, on i. Tim. i. 17, suppose, with 
 Jerom, to be used in the Gnostic sense in the sacred writings, 
 and to refer to a certain eternal, unchangeable Substance, and 
 Spirit of the first rank, or prince of spirits. They appear to 
 have been led to this idea, however, by the signification of 
 eternity, which is supposed to be contained in the word alav, 
 and of chief power, thought to be comprehended in the term 
 op^wv. Neither the one, nor the other, however, can be 
 proved either from the usage of the Bible, or that of the best 
 writers. 
 
 The word a«wv answers exactly to the Hebrew oSt;;, which, 
 by its derivation, and the constant usage of the sacred writ- 
 ings, means time, tlie end of which is concealed from us ; 
 
ffrr %rr "'^»«"'^/ 
 
 IN THE NEW TESTAMENl'. I( ^ *^*V]^f^<* T m . 
 
 or any space of time whatever, the length of TiF^^^SjJ'i^^aljie n^. 
 determined, in each particular passage, by the cdnteift,STid -^ 
 the design of the writer. It may therefore, indeed, signify a 
 somewhat extended period, and even the highest extent of 
 duration : for example, in that phrase, oSi^-ni; ti^'i^Dt or 
 D^rphiy^, Ps. xc. 2, cui. 17 ; in Greek, cc-tto tcu a/wvos h)s tou 
 ctjwva^, or, sig tovs a/wvag rwv aiwvwv, i. e. as long as possible, or, 
 for ever ; Gen. xxi. 33, dSi;; S«, which is well rendered by the 
 Septuagint, Gsog a/wvio^. From the term by itself, however, we 
 cannot prove the eternity of any thing ; as appears plainly both 
 from the Chaldee, as Esra, iv. 15. Dan. n. 4. ^:.n ppS^rS fc{2i,p, 
 and also from other places, which it is unnecessary to men- 
 tion. A clear example is to be found, however, in Exod. 
 XXI. 6, where the servant who does not wish, in the seventh 
 year of his service, to embrace the privilege of freedom, is 
 said to continue a servant d'7i;;S, i. e. till the time of the year 
 of jubilee, or, as long as he lives. Deut. xv. 17. Those 
 places are principally to be borne in mind, in which n^? is add- 
 ed ; as, Isai. xlv. 17, i}) ^rhiyipj ?w5 f<^^ a»wvos sVi, a salvation 
 to endure for a very long period. Hence the D'pSi;^ of the 
 Hebrews are distinguished by them into njn dSij; and Njn u^ip : 
 on which account cclm or ccluvsg are used, in the New Testa- 
 ment, in reference to the N. T. times, if 6 (x^XXwv is added, 
 or oS lp-xpit.sm ; as Heb. n. 5, where, indeed, the words are 
 oixouftsvr] fji.lXXoufl'a, in the same sense, however, in which the 
 phrase aJwv fxsXXwv is used in Ch. vi. 5 ; and ^uvaf^sig fAiXXovro? 
 alutog means, the power of the doctrine of the New Testa- 
 ment, which is expressly termed, in Rom. i. 16, 6vmii.ig esQv\ 
 and in Eph. i. 19, vifsp^aXkav fjisysS-oj Trig ^uva/xswj. In the same 
 way we are to understand a'iuvsg ^p-^piism, in Ch. n. 7, of the 
 Epistle to the Ephesians. Hence our Lord Jesus Christ is 
 called, in Isai. ix. 5, n^'^^* i* e. the founder of the future age ; 
 where the Septuagint has crari^f tou fAs'XXovToc: atCivog. The 
 same meaning is assigned by Locke and Michaelis to 
 Gal. 1. 4 ; so that the phrase aiwv hsdrag signifies the times 
 of the New Testament, and refers to freedom from the 
 yoke of the ceremonial law. To this, however, seem to 
 be opposed the words tou ^ovtoj lauTov vifBf twv a^a^^mv 
 
380 n6 Graces op the Gilostics 
 
 7jjui,wv, which clearly shew that the expression oVwj i^sXr^Tm 
 «Jj/xag h TOO ^vsrfTWToj aiwvog <:eovY\po\) means somewhat more than 
 deliverance from the ritual law. — Now from this signification 
 is derived another ; that, namely, by which a/wv, and aldvzg^ 
 al^ij; and D'dSij?, denote time and the world itself; as Joel, ii. 
 2, where DSi)rri-|D means, * at any time,' or, * ever :* Eccles. ni. 
 ll, where the Septuagint has translated word for word, tov 
 aiQva Uuxsv iv xapdia auTwv, but the English Version more ac- 
 cording to the sense, " he hath set the world in their heart :" 
 Heb. I. 2, XI. 3, which passages are in point, and ought not 
 to be thought to refer to the aeons of the Gnostics : for they 
 are a mere Hebraism, expressing the formation of the world, 
 as they have been hitherto universally understood. Hence 
 DSi;;p and a-zf' a'/wvo? mean, from the foundation of the world ; 
 Gen. VI. 4, Luke, i. 70, John, ix. 32 : and 'jfpo tC^v a/wvwv, before 
 the foundation of the world ; i. Cor. n. 7, Moreover, as eve- 
 ly period of time has its peculiar manners, vices, pursuits, 
 and dispositions ; hence dSi;;, or also mn, ai'wv, and ysvsa, are 
 used in reference both to the manner of life and conduct of 
 any one, as Gen. vi. 9. Luke xvi. 8, which the Hebrews other- 
 wise express by the term ^nn ; and also to the manners, dis- 
 positions, and feelings, which distinguish any particular a/'wv, 
 or ysvsa. The Latins use the word cetas, or seculum, in the 
 same way ; as, in Pliny, " seculum est, pecuniam amare ;" 
 and Tacitus, Germania, 19, " nemo enim ilhc vitia ridet, nee 
 corrumpere et corrumpi, seculum vocatur." The French use 
 the word siecle precisely in the same way. See Wolfius, 
 and the citations there made. A place in point here, is Rom. 
 xn. 2 ; where the Apostle says, (xii (fv(tx'»^iiaTi^sifk tuj alC)vi ro\j- 
 T^, i. e. do not imitate the present age, i. e. the corrupt man- 
 ners of this age. Therefore the words itspis'jrarrj(fars xara Hv 
 etj'wva Tou xotffxou tovtov, in this passage of the Epistle to the 
 Ephesians which I have been endeavoring to explain, cannot 
 possibly refer to a certain nature ; but, as we have seen, to 
 the manners and habits of the men of that period, who re- 
 j^isted the gospel of Jesus Christ, which was delivered with 
 su«h abundant clearness, and confirmed by so many and sig- 
 nal miracles. I would therefore translate the place thus : 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 381 
 
 " to whicli crimes ye also were sometime abandoned, after the 
 manner of tliis period," or, " as men are wont to live in this 
 our age." Grotius has admirably rendered it ; " vixistis, lit 
 mos erat plerisque." 
 
 Neither are we to imagine the idea of any great and dis- 
 tinguished power, to be implied in the word a^wv. For, as 
 Ernesti observes, Instit. Interp. p. 217,* he who possesses 
 d§xn, i. e. any power and dignity, though small, such as be- 
 longs to the lesser judges in particular towns, is called a^wv^ 
 For every town in Judea, however small, had, like us, its %- 
 X0VT5J, i. e. magistrates, or judges, who took cognizance of 
 lesser causes, determined suits and controversies, and con- 
 sulted the advantage and security of their countrymen. On 
 the subject of these Archons of the Jews, Wesseling has 
 written an entire treatise, to which I would refer the reader. 
 It is a person of this kind that is meant in Luke xii. 58 ; and, 
 as Grotius has already observed, he is expressly termed x^iT^jg 
 in the parallel passage. Matt. v. 25. Such also was Jairus, 
 who, in Matt. ix. 18, is called afX"^, and in Luke, vm. 41, %- 
 ^wv <rris (fvvoLyuyrjs : compare Markland, in his Notes on Ly- 
 sias.t In the same way Nicodemus, who, in John, in. 10, is 
 called SiSa(fxakog tov 'l(f^a'o\ is termed in v, 1, of the same 
 chapter, a^X"^ twv 'lou^ajwv ; in which place, as Brucker like- 
 wise has observed, bringing forward, at the same time, other 
 passages in proof of this signification, a person is meant, who 
 has any power whatever in ecclesiastical affairs, or, a public 
 teacher. And this is perfectly agreeable to the use of the 
 word by the Septuagint, from which, without doubt, this sense 
 of ci^X'^v with the New^ Testament writers was derived. For 
 in that version, this word is used to render the Hebrew liy, 
 Exod. u. 14, and pn^, Isai. xxii. 18, which, particularly in the 
 Chaldee, signifies any possessor and lord. Nor, finally, is it 
 repugnant to the usage of the best writers, who employ a^wv 
 in no less simple a manner. Whence it is evident, that there 
 
 * C Page 413, Ed. Lips. 1809.— Tr. ] 
 
 + [ Lys. Oper. p. 533, Ed. Reiske, Lips. 1772.— Tr. ] 
 
382 NO TRACES or TUE GNOSTICS 
 
 is no necessity for understanding by a^x'^^v c^j? i|ourfia^ rou ds^o^, 
 a spirit of the first rank, or the prince of spirits, or any thing 
 of that kind : but he designates by this phrase one who pos- 
 sesses any power whatsoever ; by which, however, I would 
 not be understood as taking from the devil, who, I doubt not, 
 is here meanf, all the power that is attributed to him in other 
 places also of the sacred Scriptures, and that is here ascribed 
 to him by the expression, t% i^ovceias <rou ds^og^ who exercises 
 power in darkness, i. e. among wicked men. But, on the other 
 hand, we must beware here of the absurdity of those who 
 philosophize, to an extraordinary degree, about the power of 
 the devil over the air, and miserably confuse themselves in 
 the explanation of it ; as Wolfius, and those whom he cites, 
 and, which much surprises me, even Grotius. Into which 
 error they would not have fallen, if they had attended to the 
 use of the word d^j^ by all the best Greek and liatin writers, 
 and particularly the poets ; in the sense, namely, of dark- 
 ness and obscurity. For example, in that celebrated passage 
 of Virgil's Aeneid, i. v. 415, 
 
 Venus obscuro gradientes a6re sepsit. 
 
 So also in the sacred writings, Wisdom of Solomon, xvu. 
 10, the Egyptian darkness is called d^^. There is no necessity, 
 however, for citing examples, since they are easy of access, 
 and this use of d»j^ is so well known and understood, and has 
 been so established by learned writers, that there can be no 
 doubt that it obtains in this place also. This is evident parti- 
 cularly from the fact, that the Apostle, as Luther, in his Ger- 
 man version, has pretty clearly intimated, immediately him- 
 self adds an explanation in the words that follow, viz. : tou 
 crvaOixaToj <rou vuv ivs^ymvrog sv roTs vhTg rr,s cMfsi^Biag^ i. e. that 
 spirit namelify who now particularly displays his efficacy among 
 unbelievers.* Whence it is evident, that d^| does not inean 
 
 * [ Luther's translation of the verse is as follows : " In welchen ihr 
 weiland gewandelt habt, nach dem Lauf dieser Welt, und nach dem 
 FQrsten, der in der Luft herrschet ; nemlich nach dem Geist, der zu 
 dieser Zeit sein Werk hat in den kindern des Unglaubens."— Tr. ] 
 
KN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 383 
 
 the air, for the ah* belongs to God, not to the devil ; but dark- 
 ness, i. e. vUt Trig dirsiB-stas, for in the parallel place, Ch. vi. 
 12, and Col. i. 13, the Apostle uses the word tfxoVo^ ; but all 
 know that CxoVo? signifies ignorance, vice, misery. — But the 
 devil is called a^wv tou di^og, or, rov tfxorou^, i. e. of the wick- 
 ed, since he exerts his power among them, and by them ; 
 and this power, moreover, is not inconsiderable, not indeed 
 on account of the word afX""> <^i' ^outfi'a, but because of the 
 multitude of wicked men, who are the instruments whereby 
 the devil exercises his power. This explanation is so clear, 
 and agrees so well with the usage both of the best writers, and 
 of the sacred books themselves, and with the connexion of the 
 whole discourse, that I cannot understand how Brucker 
 could call it forced. Hist. Crit. Phil. Tom. vi. p. 417 s. ; nor 
 how those remarks can be considered as having any weight, 
 which he has made against it, in the Caten. Exeget. Bibl. An- 
 glic. Tom. iv. N. T. p. 828, and Tom. vi. p. 62. Moreover, the 
 words af^a/, e^outfj'ai, xotf/xox^aro^sg rou Cxotou^ tou aj'wvo^ <rou-rou, and 
 osufxaTixot Trig flrovrj^ioj, in this Epistle to the Ephesians, Ch. vi. 
 12, and in Coloss. n. 15, are explained by most commentators 
 in reference to the devil ; by some also, with much less pro- 
 bability, as meaning Jupiter, and the gods of the Gentiles, 
 which is the opinion of Harwood, in his " New Introduction 
 to the study and knowledge of the New Testament," p. 303 s. 
 The most learned critics, however, explain them far differ- 
 ently, and are of opinion that the Jewish rulers, and men yi 
 authority are intended. This they prove very clearly, Jlrsi, 
 from the context ; for, in the epistle to the Ephesians, there 
 is an opposition between weak men (for this is the meaning, 
 in that place, of aT/jt-a xa; tfa/ig,),* and dpx^'h s^ourfjaJ, xa; xotfjuiox^a- 
 7oPsg TOU (fxoVou^ TOU aJuivog <rourou, i. e. the powerful men of that 
 period, who were also distinguished for their wickedness ; and 
 
 * [ The reader will at once perceive, that the author has departed 
 from the correct and natural interpretation of the phrase eiT/xst kai <7«'/>|, 
 in this passage ; which signifies here, as in several other places, men, 
 and is opposed to spiritual enemies, or demons. See some excellent re- 
 marks in KopPE, N. T. in loc— Tr. ] 
 
384 NO TRACES OF THE GNOSTICS 
 
 in the Epistle to the Colossians, the discourse, as we have al- 
 ready seen, is respecting the abolition of the ceremonial law, 
 a subject which certainly can have no reference to the devil : 
 and secondly, from the usage of speech both of the Jews, who 
 usually distinguished by these appellations men of influence, 
 kings, and princes, and also of the sacred writings themselves. 
 For, in Acts, iv. 23, and 26 s., oi^xH^'^^ ""' °* -jr^stf^i^Ts^oi, the chief 
 priests and elders, and also those who are afterwards mention- 
 ed by name, 'H^w5»)f, IIovtios n»XaTo^, Cuv g^vgCi xod XaoTs 'Itf^aiiX, 
 are called ^adikBlg r7}g 7% xal a^x^vrss. And in 1. Cor. u. 6, St. 
 Paul says, that he had delivered, indeed, wisdom to the Chris- 
 tians, but not of that kind which was possessed, extolled, 
 and set forth, by the a^ovrsg tou aldvog toutou, by whom are 
 meant, undoubtedly, the rulers of the Jews; for he adds, <rwv 
 xara^youfxsvwv, as before, in Ch. 1. 19, he had said, that they 
 were brought to nought by God. Of the number of these 
 was Nicodemus, and he is expressly called, in John, 11 1. 1, 
 a^c»r; twv 'Iou(5a»wv, as we have already seen. Precisely in the 
 same sense, St. Paul, in 1. Cor. xv. 24, speaks of a^x^, ^ioutfja, 
 xoj 66\ja,^i5, which Semler, in his paraphrase of this passage, 
 explains, to my great surprise, of different orders of demons. 
 More correct is the interpretation of Heumann, who, with 
 Grotius, considers the words as denoting civil magistrates, 
 or rather, those who have possessed power of any kind in this 
 world, but have abused it in opposition to our liOrd Jesus 
 Christ and his gospel, and have therefore been his enemies ; 
 an explanation quite suitable to these passages which we are 
 considering. Moreover, to understand xoC/jLox^aro^ss in a dif- 
 ferent sense, is forbidden by the usage of the Greeks, who 
 apply that title only to men in power. Compare Doddwell, 
 Diss. IV. in Irenaeum, §. 38, p. 369, and Deyling, Diss, de 
 Chirographi et Principum legalium abolitione, §, 15. 
 
 These are the principal places, in which some learned wri- 
 ters are unanimously of opinion that there are traces of the 
 Gnostic and Oriental philosophy ; but in which I have attempt- 
 ed to shew that there are none whatever. To adduce any 
 more, (for the multitude cited by some authors is almost without 
 number,) was not my design^ neither is it at all necessary ; 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 385 
 
 since these arc undoubtedly the princiipal passages, that can 
 appear in any degree plausible. I shall now enter into a 
 brief discussion respecting the Gnostics and their philosophy, 
 wliereby, perhaps, some light may be thrown upon what I 
 have already said : and I shall venture to offer my own opi- 
 nion, such as it is, in regard to them. 
 
 And first, let us consider the resemblance of style, which 
 some have thought they discovered between the sacred wri- 
 tings, and the language of the Gnostics ; and which, without 
 doubt, gave rise to the opinion which I have been refuting. 
 The fact itself I may concede, with perfect safety to my own 
 opinion : for this is not to be decided by particular words or 
 phrases, in which, however, the whole similarity consists ; 
 neither can it be inferred from them, that the inspired writers 
 were thoroughly acquainted with the Gnostic and Oriental 
 philosophy. This is just like saying that a man possesses the 
 eloquence of Cicero, because he has understood the art of 
 attaching some of his phrases, like a splendid patch-work, to 
 his discourse ; or that St. Paul had read Philo, or Josephus 
 derived advantage from the writings of St. Paul, as some sup- 
 pose, because both these authors bear a great resemblance to 
 the Apostle ! I may allow, therefore, without detriment to 
 my own opinion, that some phrases are used by the sacred 
 writers, which, in regard to sound, appear to have some re- 
 semblance to the language of the Gnostics. But I do not 
 think that the reason of*this circumstance is that which is ad- 
 duced by some learned men, viz. that the Apostles referred 
 to them : but rather that it is that which is mentioned by 
 Tertullian, De praescript. adv. hseret. . c. 38. and 39, bj^ 
 Iren^us, respecting whom we shall see presently, and b)' 
 others, viz. that the Gnostics, in order to give a show of truth 
 to their notions, alluded to different places of the Apostles, 
 and borrowed words from them, and also the word yvuxfis it- 
 self, and glossed over their own opinions with expressions 
 from the sacred Scriptures, as impostors have always done, 
 and as it is evidently the fact in respect to the Koran. In 
 order to illustrate this more clearly, permit me to cite an 
 example from the Valentinian school, which was almost the 
 
 49 
 
386 NO TI^ACES OF THE GNOSTICS 
 
 chief of the Gnostic sects ; provided that the patience of the 
 reader can endure the repetition of such absurdities. Others 
 will thus be enabled to participate with me in the enjoyment 
 of this feast, and to judge more certainly as to the correctness 
 of my opinion. In the highest heavens, v-^^it^atfi, so trifled these 
 veiy acute philosophers, is TsXsiog 'Aiwv, supreme, invisible, 
 eternal, and unbegotten ; whom they called n^oa^^^j, n^o-TraTW^, 
 and BC^os. With him is another first cause, "Evvo»a, and ^tyh* 
 He determined with himself, -r^o^aXXsiv, to produce from him- 
 self the beginning of all things. He cast this ir^o^okYi, as seed, 
 into the generative parts of 2iyii, who thence conceived, and 
 brought forth a son, very like his father, ofAoio^ xai IVoj, called 
 Nou^ and Movoysvris. This parent, as it were, and original, of 
 all things which were afterwards created, and, as it were, 
 f^o^cpwfl'js <avToff Tou 'B'Xii^wfAaTo?, produced (^^ou^aXsv) Aoyoj and 
 Zwi), from whom av^pcj^or and ixxX^jC/a have their origin, but 
 Zw^ is TO <pwg Twv dv^^wfl-wv, — Every one immediately perceives, 
 that these things are derived from Ch. i, of St. John's gospel. 
 Col. 1. 15 s., &c. ; and Iren^ us has expressly asserted it, Lib. i. 
 * adv. haeres.' there telling us, that the Valentinians themselves 
 also referred to the beginning of St. John's gospel, and to 
 many other places. — Moreover, this Nouj, or Movoyev^rig, as he 
 alone knew the if^QitMu^, wished to impart this knowledge to 
 the other Aeons also, but 2iy>), by the desire of the parent, 
 prevented him ; though, meanwhile, the rest of the Aeons 
 secretly wished to know the ir^oirdru^. — Here, again, allu- 
 sion is evidently made to John, i. 18, Osov ouSsls sw^ax^, 
 y.. T. X., to fjt<utfr*?P(ov X^^^^^S atuvioig (rgCjyrijxsvov, Rom. XVI. 25, 
 and to a<jroxsx^u]ui<(xsvov dito <rwv a/'wvwv, Eph. Ul. 9. Col. 1. 26. 
 — Moreover they called Nou? by the name 'ra^ itoMra^ in 
 which they undoubtedly referred to Col. in. 11 ; and they 
 said that Christ took pity on the ^v^i^^x^tfij t% avw 2o(pia£^, 
 wiio also was an Aeon, but out of the nX>j|9Wfjt,a, and that 
 he extended himself upon Horus, or . ^Tau^o^, was slain, 
 (dofsxTcivso'^ai) and by his own power produced a certain M-o^- 
 (pw«J'ic:, only, however, xar' ouo'iav, but not xara yv^rfiv, and then 
 returned on high. Eph. n. 14. Col. i. 20. She then sought 
 r§ *w^, since she had the odor of a©^a^tfja, left her by Christ 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 
 
 :i8? 
 
 and the Holy Spirit, inasmuch as she had not comprehended 
 To (pwf, while it was in the world. — This is an evident allusion 
 to John, 1. 5. — Christ was unwilling to return, but sent Ilaga- 
 xXrjTo?, to whose power the Father delivered all things, oVw^ 
 £v avruToL w'avTa xtjo'^tj'? 'ra o^cctol y.ai to, do^aTa, ©^6vo<, ©soVyirsg', 
 Ku^io'rrjrfff — Col. 1. 16. — Such is the way in which those fa- 
 mous philosophers discoursed ! My readers will, without 
 doubt, exclaim to themselves, — Here, infelix lolium, et steri- 
 les dominantur avenae. If any one would become further 
 acquainted with these egregious trifles, let him consult Ire- 
 NAEus, I. c, and Tertullian, adv. Valentin, c 7 s., or the 
 learned Semler, who has collected them together, in his 
 Hist. Dogmat. fidei, prefixed to Baumgarten's Polem. Theo- 
 logy, T. 1. p. 147 s. Let it suffice to have adduced these in- 
 stances by way of sample, in order to shew, that the Gnos- 
 tics glossed over the wickedness of their impious and de- 
 testable opinions with words and phrases of sacred Scrip- 
 ture ; and that, for this reason, if one or two examples be 
 found in the Gnostics of any phrase common with the in- 
 spired writers, it is very reasonable to suppose, that they 
 were not taken by the sacred authors from the language of 
 the Gnostics, but by these latter from the works of the for- 
 mer, and turned to an improper use. There are some obser- 
 vations of Brucker, Tom. m. Hist. Crit. Philos. p. 299 g., 
 which deserve to be transferred to my pages. He there 
 maintains the same opinion which I have just stated ; observ- 
 ing, " let us bear in mind, and well remember, that Valen- 
 tine accommodated this system to the Scripture doctrine of 
 Christ ; and, perceiving that various attributes of the divine 
 Aoyof are therein described, took occasion thence of convert- 
 ing those attributes into aeons, and emanative natures." 
 This distinguished man has surely not been consistent with 
 himself, in maintaining at one time, as strenuously as possi- 
 ble, that the New Testament writers oppose the Gnostics, 
 and yet here expressing the opinion, that the Gnostics accom- 
 modated their opinions to the doctrine of the former, as deli- 
 vered in the sacred writings. 
 Now from this very example, which I have cited, I think 
 
388 
 
 NO TRIAGES OP THE GNOSTICS 
 
 every one must have perceived that which I designed, in the 
 second place, to state ; viz. that the system was so absurd, 
 that the Apostles could not deem it necessary to refute it ; 
 and so refined, that illiterate men, writing to illiterate men, 
 could not possibly treat of it. For not only was the Gnos- 
 tic philosophy very difficult to be understood, but it contain- 
 ed also an innumerable quantity of subtle trifles, silly fables, 
 ridiculous absurdities, foolish dreams and stories, (as Bruck- 
 ER himself asserts constantly, in his Diss. Crit. de Caulacau 
 Basilidis, Hist. Crit. Phil. Tom. vi. p. 507 s.) and unmeaning, 
 shocking, barbarous expressions, ixshuovros xai ^ra^aXaXovvTos m 
 f^fAttTa, TO, iisv ysXojTi *e*oi>]iiAsva, srspcx. 6s xXau&fAou gfJtcrXsa, ' thfe 
 words of a drunkard and trifler, some of them ludicrous, 
 and others full of lamentation,' as is the opinion of Efipha- 
 Nius, adv. haeret Lib. i. haer. 26. Brucker, also. I.e.; 
 which, to be comprehended in any degree, require an incre- 
 dible] amount of labor, vexation, and weariness. It can 
 scarcely, therefore, be understood, how the Apostles, entirely 
 destitute of Greek learning, and particularly of the aids of 
 philosophy, and dwelling upon one doctrine, delivered by 
 their Master, and communicated by the Holy Spirit, and, at 
 other times, always using both in matter and in words the 
 greatest perspicuity, in accommodation to the mass of the 
 people, could have wasted their labor in refuting absurdities 
 of this kind ; and should not rather have passed over, in si- 
 lent contempt, the novel words of that pretended wisdom, 
 perishing after a while by their very emptiness, and deserv- 
 ing pity rather than refutation. Far less can it be conceived, 
 how illiterate Christians, unaccustomed to those, subtleties, 
 and instructed in a purer doctrine, could have had any desire 
 to become acquainted with a system of that kind ; or, if 
 they had made themselves acquainted with it, could have 
 been led away by any wish to profess it. Neither can it be 
 comprehended, how the more learned and accomplished 
 could have done otherwise than to deride and explode this 
 wretched philosophy ; (as Tertulltan has done in the whole 
 of the Book * adv. Valentinianos,') and say to those triflers 
 what Balbus did to Velleius, the Epicurean, Cic. de Nat. De- 
 
IN.THE VEVr TESTAMENT. 389 
 
 orum, 11. 29 ;* ' Salem istum, quo caret vestra natio, irriden- 
 dis nobis iiolite consumere ; et mehercule, si nos audiatis, 
 ne experiamini : non decet : non datum est : non potestis." 
 So full of stupidity, folly, and trifles, was the whole system ! 
 It is very certain, therefore, at least it is highly probable, that 
 these subtleties were known, at most, only to learned men, who 
 acquired them not, indeed, for the purpose of embracing 
 them, but that they might hold them in abhorrence ; but that 
 they were in no respect suited to the mass of the people, who 
 were unacquainted with refinements and subtleties of that 
 kind, and therefore were equally unknown to St. Peter and 
 the other Apostles, and to those to whom they wrote ; and 
 that fishermen no more comprehended them, than, in our own 
 day, mechanics, shoemakers, and persons of that class, un- 
 derstand algebraic or metaphysical niceties. For even the 
 Apostles themselves had not come forth from the schools of 
 the philosophers, nor been accustomed to use words, phrases, 
 and sentences, required by these men to express their subtle 
 distinctions ; on the contrary, they were all taken from among 
 the common people, and were unlearned men, unacquainted 
 with literature, av^pwiro; aypa^jxaToj xa/ ISiCiTat :t (St. Paul alone 
 excepted ; and he, too, was educated in the schools of the 
 Pharisees, not of the Greeks, and not merely frankly con- 
 fessed, but joyfully boasted of the fact, that he was i<5iwT»jff rw 
 Xo'ywjJ i. e. unacquainted with the art of eloquence, and with 
 human learning ;) nor were their instructions addressed to 
 philosophers, but to an ignorant people, entirely unable to 
 comprehend refinements of this description. But let it be 
 granted, that, as some learned writers are of opinion, St. Paul, 
 at any rate, had some knowledge of these subjects, which he 
 may have acquired perhaps by hearsay ; yet Brucker him- 
 self expressly states, Tom. iii. Hist. Crit. Phil. p. 263 s. that 
 *' it was nothing more than superficial, and taught him, as it 
 were, by the way :" (" superficiaria tantum et ug h 'xapodu in- 
 
 [ Cicer. Op. Vol. ix. p. 3676, Edit, Gronov. Lugd. Bat. 1692.— Tr. ] 
 
 i Act3,iv; 13. t n. Cor. XI. 6. 
 
d&O NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTtCS 
 
 stituta,") and he shews that those are greatly mistaken, who 
 would place him on the list of pMlosophers ; though C. G. 
 Thalemann, Diss, de doctrina Pauli Judaica, non Grseca, p. 
 7, thinks that even Brucker has attributed more than was ne- 
 cessary to St. Paul. Be it, therefore, as I have said, that the 
 Gnostic philosophy was not altogether unknown to him : who 
 can suppose, I would ask, that the Apostle, in letters address- 
 ed to illiterate persons, would have expressed himself so ob- 
 scurely, that perhaps, out of the whole number of those to 
 whom he wrote, there could scarcely be one who would be 
 able to find out the meaning, and in the least degree to see 
 through the fallacies, and trifling refinements, of the Gnostic 
 philosophers ? In refuting a system of such importance, as 
 this is generally supposed to have been, they certainly ought 
 not to have been so brief, or rather obscure, or to have only 
 touched upon it with a word here and there ; but to ha\»e 
 spoken more plainly and minutely, and explained the subject 
 more fully and clearly, in order that every one might perceive, 
 as evidently as possible, the wickedness of the Gnostic opi- 
 nions, and the true character of the doctrine of Jesus Christ. 
 This they were prevented from doing by the niceness of the 
 subject, which could not possibly have been comprehended 
 by the minds of the persons, whom they wished to instruct 
 in the knowledge of divine things ; otherwise they would have 
 done a thing very far from being useful to men, and such as 
 no wise person, much less an apostle, can be thought to have 
 committed. It was better, therefore, and productive of great- 
 er utility to others, silently to pass by these niceties, even if 
 the sacred writers understood them, than to be writing what 
 could not be understood. And for this reason, also, the Apos- 
 tles, even if they had ever so well learned, yet, in their writ- 
 ings, have industriously avoided new words and expressions, 
 invented by the philosophers, and to be borne, perhaps, in 
 the schools, but not at all in the instruction of the common 
 people ; and also all the elegance of the Greeks, which would 
 not have been comprehended by those to whom they were 
 writing : but, on the contrary, have observed the manner and 
 usage of the Hebrews, that their works might easily, and with- 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 391 
 
 out need of any explanation, be understood by all those on 
 whose account principally they were then written ; and who, 
 chiefly from the use of the Septuagint version, were accus- 
 tomed to the Hebrew mode of discoursing on divine subjects, 
 and to the peculiar forms of expression of the Hebrew lan- 
 guage. And it is, and always has been the plan pursued by 
 those, who write not for philosophers, but for the mass of the 
 people, (and such is the object particularly of those, whose 
 aim is to instruct the human race, and even the lowest of man- 
 kind, in the knowledge of divine things,) not merely to be at 
 no pains in regard to refinement of style, in using meanings 
 of words, opinions, and phrases, taken from the schools of the 
 philosophers, but even most studiously to shun and avoid them. 
 Those who do not adopt this method, certainly shew a very 
 great ignorance of the art of composition ; and are deserv- 
 edly ridiculed. 
 
 That interpretation, moreover, which finds the Gnostics 
 in the sacred writings, though learned, indeed, and ingenious, 
 yet appears altogether too refined and subtle, and evinces 
 a certain labor in invention and explanation, which at once 
 indicates artifice. Indeed it is at times utterly astonish- 
 ing, how harshly every thing, that has the least appearance 
 of probability, is made to bend to the great object of dis- 
 covering traces of the Gnostic philosophy : nay, how pas- 
 sages are forced and perverted, and the inspired writers 
 are made to say things, that never entered into their mind^, 
 and one is obliged to confess, on many occasions, that the 
 interpretation itself is much more difficult to be understood 
 than that which it explains. Now I have always been taught 
 to think, both by the precepts and the example of the most 
 distinguished men, that the highest excellence of a good in- 
 terpreter is simplicity ; and that the greater appearance of 
 ease any interpretation possesses, and the more it seems to 
 be of such a kind, that it must have presented itself sponta- 
 neously to the mind, the more true it may, generally speak- 
 ing, be considered. See Ernesti, Instit. Interpret. N. T. 
 
392 
 
 NO TRACES 0¥ THE GNOSTICS 
 
 jj. 78.* — Whoever thinks, therefore, that there are traces of 
 the Gnostics in the passages to which I have referred, and 
 also in other places, appears to give an interpretation of too 
 refined a nature, and to bring forward a forced and labored 
 explanation ; w^hich, the greater appearance of learning it 
 carries before it, the more its truth ought to be suspected. 
 
 Fiually, a strong presumption against this method of in- 
 terpretation is to be found in the circumstance, that, in the 
 explanation of certain passages, the Gnostics are frequently 
 described as having held some opinion, which they cannot be 
 proved to have maintained by any historical evidence. 
 Those, accordingly, who maintain that there are traces of the 
 Gnostic philosophy in the New Testament writings, are very 
 often obliged to confess, that they cannot, indeed, prove by 
 history this or that opinion to have been held by the Gnos- 
 tics ; but that they undoubtedly did hold it, because St. John, 
 or some other person, refutes them. The greater portion of 
 these writers argue in this way : St. Paul speaks of the 
 Grnostics ; therefore they were at that time in existence. I 
 might, if it were necessary, bring examples of this : it will 
 be sufficient, however, to refer to Michaelis, Einleit. ins N. 
 T. Part. II. p. 1134, Ed. Gott. 1788,t and Mosheim, on i. 
 Tim. 1. 4. In the first place, however, it cannot be denied, 
 that these learned writers, by their very confession that they 
 are in doubt, and that they cannot advance any thing more 
 certain than conjectures, betray the insuperable difficulties 
 which stand in the way of their interpretation, and, in con- 
 sequence, reason, as we say, in a circle. And, in the next 
 place, this way of proceeding is completely to draw the 
 meaning from another source, not from the sacred writings ; 
 and belongs to that species of interpretation, which seeks 
 the meaning from things, and is employed rather about these, 
 than the explanation of words ; and derives the meanings of 
 words rather from the opinions of some sect or philosophy, 
 of which no trace has been left there by the inspired writ- 
 
 * [ Page 167, Ed. Lips. 1809.— TV. ] 
 
 t [ Marsh's Michaelis, Vol. in. Part i. p. 279. Ed. Lond. 1S02.— Tr.] 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 393 
 
 ors, than from the observations of grammarians, from the 
 usage of speech of that period, and from the words and 
 their meaning, legitimately investigated. The slippery and 
 fallacious character of this method of accommodation, (for 
 so it ought to be called, rather than interpretation,) may easily 
 be perceived by every learned and intelligent man, at least 
 if he is not already imbued with some false opinion, or hin- 
 dered by any other cause from forming a candid judgment : 
 and all the most distinguished theologians, and commentators 
 on the sacred books, have already pronounced decidedly up- 
 on its uncertainty, and the greatest masters of interpretation 
 have very clearly proved it. Finally, I will boldly assert, 
 that learned men would never have fallen into this opinion, 
 which I have attempted to refute, nor so strenuously insisted 
 upon it, unless they had had the Gnostics in their minds, 
 before they came to the task of interpreting the sacred 
 books. This circumstance, however, is a proof, how much 
 opinions, once imbibed, stand in the way of a correct deci- 
 sion, and, when brought to the explanation of the sacred 
 writings, hinder a discovery of the true meaning ; so strong- 
 ly prejudicing the mind, that it is blind amidst the clearest 
 light, and resorts to every expedient, before it permits it- 
 self to be shaken from an opinion, once received and che- 
 rished. 
 
 In conclusion, let us make a few observations respecting 
 the sources and origin of the Gnostic heresy ^ for, although 
 these may be understood, I think, from the foregoing pages, 
 yet it w^ould seem as if they ought to be stated, before I close, 
 somewhat more summarily and clearly. Learned writers ex- 
 ceedingly differ in opinion, in regard to the quarter whence 
 the Gnostics drew their opinions, and the source from which 
 their errors flowed. Most authors consider the fountain-head 
 to have been a certain philosophy, which Mosheim has dis- 
 tinguished by the name of the Oriental ; and even contend in 
 the most strenuous manner, that from this the whole Gnostic 
 doctrine took its rise. I have above shewn, however, and 
 not, I think, without good grounds, that this opinion, if not en- 
 tirely false, is at least very uncertain ; since it has never yet 
 
 50 
 
394 NO TRACES OF THE ONOSTICS 
 
 •been proved by any testimony, which even has any semblance 
 of probability, that such a philosophy ever existed. We must 
 look ai'ound, therefore, for some other origin of the Gnostic 
 errors. And of these there were, in my opinion, more sources 
 than one ; as may be perceived even from the fact, that the 
 Gnostics, as before observed, separated into parties, widely 
 different, and completely disagreed with each other. It is 
 my opinion, therefore, that the Gnostics derived their doc- 
 trines from a threefold source : firsts from the Greek philoso- 
 phy, the Platonic and the Pythagorean, and principally from 
 the fictions of the poets concerning the gods and their genea- 
 logy, and other things of that nature ; and of this, even that 
 example just adduced from the school of Valentine, may serve 
 for a proof; secondly, from the Jewish theology, which at 
 that period had nearly assumed the garb of philosophy, and 
 chiefly from the Cabbalistic trifles ; finally, also, from cer- 
 tain doctrines of the Christian religion, which they mingled 
 with their own opinions, in order to make them more accept- 
 able to persons of every description. And, on this account, 
 indeed, the Gnostic philosophy seems to me to have been a 
 mixture, as it were, of Paganism, Judaism, and Christianity ; 
 a;nd the Gnostics themselves to have been nothing but fana- 
 tics, or rather, if I may so speak, to have professed a system 
 of naturalism and indifferentialism. As to my last observa- 
 tioii, that the Gnostics were fanatics, in this Semler and 
 MosHEiM agree with me. The former, in his Comment. 
 Hist, de ant. stat. Christ, p. 30, observes ; " we readily dis- 
 cover the uneasy earnestness, and somewhat fanatical disposi- 
 tion of these men :" and the latter, in his Institutt. H. E. ma], 
 p. 147, remarks, " the Gnostics were not indeed dull, and 
 entirely sluggish in their character ; but they were not, how- 
 ever, sufficiently sound in mind ; in a word, they were meta- 
 physicians, infected with a kind of fanatical contagion." No 
 man can be at all doubtful as to this point, who has even 
 slightly examined the opinions of the Gnostics. — Something 
 remains to be said, however, in regard to the Jewish theology, 
 from which, as I observed, the Gnostics partly derived their 
 opinions. The chief source, and the foundation, as it were, of 
 the Gnostic opinions, appears to have been the allegorical 
 
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. 395 
 
 mode ot'interpretation ; not indeed that in general use, but that 
 inferior kind, used by the Alexandrian, or Greek Jews. For it 
 has nothing improper in itself; and is accordingly used by St. 
 Paul in the Epistles to the Galatians and Hebrews, and was 
 formerly adopted frequently by the prophets themselvesi 
 And that method of allegorical interpretation which is found 
 in Philo, though carried to too great an extent, is not to be al- 
 together rejected, but deserves some toleration and excuse. 
 From Philo principally, the ancient ecclesiastical writers de- 
 rived this method, transmitted, as it were, from hand to hand : 
 and used it very generally : among these, Clemens Alexandri- 
 nus, Origen himself, and others, principally Latin writers, not 
 much versed in Greek and Hebrew. For they were ex- 
 ceedingly pleased with this method of accommodating the figu- 
 rative meaning of words, and of the things indicated by them, 
 to their prominent doctrines ; as is the case with persons, 
 who have no acquaintance with literature : and it appeared 
 to them, accordingly, to be something secret, and, as it were, 
 revealed from above. This very method, therefore, (which 
 ought to be borne in mind, and is evident from the Stro- 
 mata of Clem. Alex.) was called yvCitfig ; and those who 
 were skilled in it applied to themselves, xar' i^oxnv, the title 
 of yvucfTixoi, And this very circumstance was perhaps 
 also the reason, that Clemens Alexandrinus, throughout 
 nearly the whole of that excellent work, usually distin- 
 guished by this title pious, religious men, and the teachers of 
 the church themselves ; persons as different as possible from 
 those heretics, who presumed to call themselves Gnostics. 
 There have always, however, been those in the Christian 
 church itself, ^^ho have abused this method, and thus brought 
 very great injury upon the pure doctrine ; not only causing 
 grammatical interpretation to be neglected, and empty trifling 
 to be every where substituted in its stead ; (as, in more mo- 
 dern days, it is evident has been done by Coccei'us, a very 
 distinguished man, and his followers,) but also opening the 
 way to very grievous errors. This is plain even from the 
 single example of Hymenaeus and Philetus, ii. Tim. ii. 17 s., 
 to whom, undoubtedly, St. Paul referred in i. Cor. xv. 1^> 
 
S96 NO TRACES OP THE GNOSTICS 
 
 since they denied that the dead will return to life ; into whicii 
 error these persons and others fell from no other cause, than 
 interpreting allegorically several passages of the prophets 
 and of the gospels. Far more grievously, however, did the 
 Jews err ; who, as they indulged their ingenuity much more, 
 which was acute, indeed, but not enlightened from above, 
 nor cultivated by sound philosophy and letters, and too luxu- 
 riant, were led by the use of this method to mingle with the 
 pure doctrine, besides other corruptions, pernicious inven- 
 tions, and horrible errors. And these Jewish inventions, aris- 
 ing from the allegorical mode of interpretation, and other opi- 
 nions of that kind, peculiar to this people, if they were not 
 the origin of the Gnostic errors, at any rate gave occasion to 
 them, and were their principal source. Of this, in addition 
 to what I have already stated, no small proof is afforded in 
 the use of allegorical interpretation by the Gnostics, for the 
 explanation of the Old Testament books ; as Tertullia?^ 
 tells us, adv. Valent. c. 29 : and, besides this, in the remark- 
 able agreement between the Gnostics and Jews as to some 
 doctrines ; it being evident to any one, who compares the 
 opinions of both, that those of the one were derived from 
 those of the other. If these observations which I have thus 
 far made respecting the sources of the Gnostic errors, are 
 borne in mind, the ancient ecclesiastical WTiters may be re- 
 conciled ; some of whom, as we have already seen, suppos- 
 ed the doctrines of the Gnostics to have been derived from 
 the Jewish fables, and others from the Greek philosophy ; 
 neither is it necessary to look for any other source. I am 
 surprised at the inconsistency of Brucker upon this subject : 
 for, in the passages cited above, he thinks that there is nothing 
 more certain, than that the Gnostic philosophy was derived 
 from the Oriental alone ; and yet in Tom. ni. of the work so 
 often mentioned, p. 296 s., where he is treating of Valentine, 
 who was the most virulent and wicked of all the Gnostics, he 
 wavers ; not rejecting the opinions of the ancient ecclesiasti- 
 cal writers, but saying that they all have some truth. This 
 inconsistency is itself a proof of a doubtful and uncertain 
 cause. 
 
151 THE NEW TESTAMENT. 39T 
 
 Finally, as for the origin of the Gnostic heresy, tliis, in my 
 opinion, is to be traced primarily to Egypt, as late as the se- 
 cond Century. For there both the Greek philosophy, espe- 
 cially the Platonic, (ks Brucker has shewn. Hist. Crit. Phil. 
 Tom. 1. p. 644, and 667,) and also the Jewish allegorical 
 theology, if I may so term it, had many admirers and follow- 
 ers among the Greek Jews. In the next place, he who first 
 treated of the Gnostics, was an ecclesiastical writer in Egypt, 
 and, as he is called by Brucker, Tom. vi. p. 516, " a person 
 very conversant with the opinions of his own nation ;" (na- 
 tionis suae opinionum callentissimus,) namely, Clemens Alex- 
 andrinus. Finally, all the leaders of this heresy were Egyp- 
 tians ; for example, Basilides, Carpocrates, Valentine, and 
 others : as has been shewn by Semler, Select. Capita H. E. 
 Tom. 1. p. 41 s. ; Comment. Hist, de antiquo Christ, stat. p. 
 77 s. ; where he says, " it is to be observed, that the greater 
 part of the Gnostics were from Alexandria ;'' — and by Mos- 
 HEiM himself, Instit. H. E. maj. p. 148, and 326. It is not 
 probable, therefore, that that heresy prevailed, at first, chiefly 
 in Asia and Palestine, but only in Egypt. This I said was in 
 the time of Adrian ; though I do not mean to deny positively, 
 that there were some, before this period, who agreed in many 
 opinions with the Gnostics. Tertullian, de Praes. adv. 
 Haer. c. 33, has not denied this ; and indeed it could not be 
 otherwise ; since these heretics were not themselves the au- 
 thors of their opinions, but received most of them from others, 
 and fashioned them after their own pleasure.* I intended, 
 therefore, only to say this, that, before the second Century, 
 neither the name of the Gnostics was in existence, (for I 
 stated, a short time since, that those who, in the First, and 
 in the beginning of the Second Century, are called Gnostics 
 
 * This is what Tertullian means, when he says, adv. Hermog. c. 8. 
 " haereticorum patriarchae Philosophi;" which observation refers parti- 
 cularly to the Gnostics, and by which Tertullian means to shew, that the 
 heresies of the Gnostics were derived from certain opinions of the phi- 
 losophers. If some learned writers had thus understood Tertullian, it 
 would have saved many unproiitable discussions and cdntroversie*:. 
 
398 K.O TRACES OF THE GNOSTICS 
 
 by Clemens Alexandrinus, were different persons,) nor any 
 peculiar sect, or heresy, pernicious to the Christian doctrine. 
 To this those on the opposite side of the question usually ob- 
 ject, that it is difficult to perceive how the Gnostics could, in 
 the second Century, have acquired such numbers and reputa- 
 tion, unless we suppose that their trifles began long before. 
 This makes nothing, however, against my opinion. For these 
 learned writers appear to have no just ground for supposing, 
 that the number of those who embraced the opinions of the 
 Gnostics was large ; since this cannot be proved by any tes- 
 timony from the ancient writers, who nowhere so express 
 themselves as to lead us to the inference, that the number of 
 the Gnostics was extraordinarily great. But even supposing 
 that it was, I do not see that this circumstance ought to present 
 any difficulty to the mind, or that it can prove the antiquity of 
 the Gnostics ; since folly, barren and obscure as it is, generally 
 finds more followers in a short time, than wisdom, with all its 
 fruitful lustre, after a long period. And even those very in- 
 juries which they brought upon the Christian faith and doc- 
 trine, in the second, and two succeeding centuries, do not 
 appear to have been as great as is generally supposed. That 
 they were severe and various ; that many who had recently 
 embraced the Christian faith, and were not as yet sufficiently 
 confirmed in it, fell into doubts and errors through the abo- 
 minable opinions of the Gnostics ; that the wavering were 
 staggered ; and that thus whole churches were thrown into 
 confusion ; I would not venture to deny. But that the true 
 faith was, every where, entirely corrupted and weakened by 
 them ; — that an innumerable multitude of persons was in- 
 duced to embrace them ; — and that the whole world was de- 
 filed with these iniquitous doctrines ; — as is generally sup- 
 posed by learned writers ; this I have never yet been able 
 to persuade myself to believe. There is not the least trace 
 of such a fact in any ancient author, nor any statement what- 
 ever that the number of these heretics was at all consider- 
 able. Neither can it in any way be conceived, how the ec- 
 clesiastical writers, burning, as they did, with an eager de- 
 sire to oppose heretics, to expose all their errors, to drive 
 
IN THE NEW TE&TAMENT. 399 
 
 away what were plainly detected, and to refute them in the 
 most convincing manner, and entirely root them out of the 
 minds of men, could have suffered Christians to be corrupted 
 and led away by detestable opinions, and poisonous reason- 
 ings of this kind ; and would not, on the contrary, have used 
 every effort for averting so great a danger. Moreover, ge- 
 nerally speaking, (and I perceive that Semler is of the same 
 opinion, Comment. Hist, de antiq. Christ, stat. p. 78,) these 
 numerous sects of the Gnostics seem to have been of more 
 profit than injury to Christianity : since, like all who ever 
 plotted ruin to the holy religion of our Lord Jesus Christ, 
 they afforded a most favorable opportunity for more clearly 
 perceiving its truth, for embracing it more heartily than ever, 
 and for establishing it on firmer ground ; and thus, by the 
 very snares which they laid, gave this most important evi- 
 dence in its favor ; viz. that, in the midst of so many, and 
 such various and pernicious enemies, and in spite of all the 
 hostile attacks, and malicious insults of its assailants, it re- 
 mained constantly unshaken and uninjured, supported by the 
 divine aid, sustained by its own strength, and trusting to the 
 justice of its cause ; and at length victoriously triumphed 
 over every enemy. 
 
HISTORY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 INTERPRETATION OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 
 
 BY W. GESENIUS. 
 
 Translated from the German, 
 BY SAMUEL H. TURNER, D. D. 
 
 PROrSSSOR 07 BIB. LEAUN. ilND INTERP. OF SCRIPT. IN THS GENERAL 
 
 THEOL. SEM. OF THE PROT EPISC. CHURCH 
 
 IN THE UNITED STATES. 
 
 51 
 
INTERPRETATION 
 
 OF THE 
 
 PROPHET ISAIAH 
 
 I. Ancient Versions. 
 
 § 1. 
 The Septuagintf together with the other Greek Versions. 
 
 The Alexandrine version presents us with the first attempt 
 that was made to exhibit the prophecies of Isaiah in a foreign 
 idiom. It deserves the most particular attention, partly on 
 account of the antiquity of the traditional interpretations 
 which are contained in it, and partly because it is the ground- 
 work of several other versions, as the Vulgate and Sjrriac. 
 The translator has probably left no other book than this, al- 
 though' it discovers some resemblance to the translation of the 
 Pentateuch.* In common with the translators of most of the 
 
 1 The expression niSO^ TTin is preserved in Kt/^io; 1»&^au^ almost 
 
 T : f '• 
 
 exclusively by this translator. In the other books, it is K(/§i»( tm fwuf 
 fximf or T»» ffr^ftneiv. ri'^Z'j< *s rendered eTsyJ'goir only in xvii. 8. xxvu, 
 9 ; elsewhere d\<ros is generally used. 
 
 Particular instances of agreement with the translator of the Penta- 
 teuch are the following : "^Vili >«»g<»f , a stranger, a proselyte, only in 
 XIV. 1, and Ex. xii. 19 ; npji |*j, jfcctTat^«/u/t««i jc«l ffm^fjta., xiv. 22, and 
 •Oen. XXI. 23 ; nS'K* f*"*;* tj/oi, v. 10, and Deut, xyi. 36, (elsewhere i^ 
 
404 ON THE INTERPRETATION 
 
 other books, especially the poetical and prophetic, he is defi- 
 cient in comprehensive and general knowledge of language, 
 and in giving the grammatical sense, and interpreting with 
 the necessary accuracy.^ Consequently, he fails in making 
 an adequate version of a text, which is in itself so difficult, 
 and the obscurities of which are increased by its want of vow- 
 els^ and of spaces between the words. For these reasons 
 difficult places are often misunderstood, (see ix. 21,) a suita- 
 ble connexion very frequently missed, and in numerous in- 
 stances it becomes necessary to express a meaning, which 
 has no better foundation than critical and philological conjec- 
 ture. 
 
 The following peculiarities of this translator are worthy 
 of notice. 
 
 1. He is fond of explaining tropical expressions in proper 
 language, although his success in thus giving the meaning is 
 by no means uniform. For example : i. 25, i'Sn:j~Sr, 'KOMTag 
 Toug ctvo/xou^, (Aq. Sym. Theod. xatftfiVspov tfou ;) in. 17, naa^ 
 tvy mi2 "tpnp 'J^Js*, 'TOLirs'wiuidBi &£og app^outfag ^uyars^a? 2»wv ; v. 
 17, 0*1313 U'\tf1^ 1;;i, ^^(iy.y{h'ri(i(ivtui h ^<>]p'tfa(3'|X£'vo» (Sym. hi a/xvoj) 
 («;S raufoj ; vi. 1, So^nn HK D^kSd vSi^^, xa»' crXTj^Yjj o ojxog t^j (5o'|7)5 
 durou* (Sym. Theod. xai Ta crpoj "To^wv aucou IcrX'^pouv cov vaov ;) 
 Vlh. 6, H'SdI pi rxi nx Vrmt^'^, aXka, .SouXeCSai s'xs'v <rov 'Pac'c'/v 
 xai rov iiiov 'PofjisXi'ou /SatfiXsa ^(p' Cfxwv ; ix. 14, pDJNI n33, fJ^eyav 
 xai fA»xpov, but in xix. 15, app^ijv xai rsKog ; x. 14, f]J3 in: n*n kS 
 
 is oi^t ;) rift'^Vt tk&ifJLarv^n, in i. 27, xxviu. 17, lix. 16, and Deut. vi. 25, 
 
 Itt : 
 
 XXIV. 13. Comp. also xni. 16, and Deut. xxvin. 30. Also Isa. xxxvm. 
 
 11, where the idea of seeing God is removed. Comp. Ex. xxiv. 10. 
 
 The difference between the translator of Isaiah and that of the Minor 
 
 prophets may be seen by comparingii. 1 — 4 with Mic. iv. 1, ss., and from 
 
 that of the historical books, from xxxvi — xxxix compared with 2 Kings, 
 
 xvin. ss. — A remarkable coincidence with the translation of the Psalms 
 
 occurs m xxvi. 14 : ^r^f^ry ^3 D"'X9*1j o^^* litTgoi Iv fjm aiAcrToa-ovvt, nor 
 I T - 'T : 
 
 can the physicians raise up [a dead person], as if it were :iD»p"' cxSl? 
 
 just as in Ps. lxxxvii. 11. 
 
 a See my history of the Hebrew language and writing, [ Gescbichte 
 d€r Heb. Sprache und Schrift. S. 78, 79. ] 
 
 » See, in proof of this, Gesch. der Heb. Spr. und Schr. S. 190. 
 
OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 405 
 
 '"]2fiD3f01 Hi) nV31 ««< oux fc^iv og dioLtpsu^srai fte, ^ oL^miirj] f/-oi, (Theod. 
 xai avoiywv to CTofia xai tfrpoud-i^wv ;) x. 16, Vil^WD^ "^in, s/g ttjv 
 tfigv TifAiiv arifAiav ; x. 19, n>;' ]*;? *ix;&' it xuTokSKp'^ivTSs dcr' duTWV, 
 (Sym. TO, gViXoi-ara cwv ^iJXwv tou opu/xou ctuTou ;) xi. 4, V2 122V2, 9"? 
 Xoyw Toy CrofXaTo^ du<rou ; xi. 14, D"'ntB^'?a ^nD3 13;r, flrgTcwr^^tfovTai sv 
 vrXoioig 'AXXotpuXwv ; xiv. 9, yMi mn;;, dp^ovrs^ t^? y^S ; xiv. 12, 
 iriK^ |3 hh'i}f 6 'Ewtfipopog 6 "jr^wi dvaTsXXwv; xxi. 10, 'JIJ j3 'H^^nD, 
 Of 3caTaX£Xsj|X|xivoi xa/ oi o(5uvwf/»£vo» ; xxil. 23, xa/ Ct^Cw auTov d^ovra 
 (nn**) sv TO'ffCf} ieis(f> ; 24, xa/ s?cm crs-roi^wg (vSj? iSnl) s<n'' au<rov <xoig 
 sv^o|oj dflfo fxixpou £Wj fisyaXoy, xa< sCovrat scrjxps/xdjxgvai duT(/T 
 
 (D^Sajn ^S3 S3 ly) m^i^^ '^30 |»pn '^^ "^^ mjr'asn) D^K:fNvn ;) uii. 
 
 4, IJ^Sn, ^a^ djxa^Ti'a^ ujuowv ; LVill. 1, |n:i3 N"lp, dva/So'rjtfsv Iv iVp^uj. 
 
 As an instance of erroneous explanation, xxviii. 20 may be 
 given : ojjnnD niv njODni ;;"»nK^nD _j7VDn "^vp ' j, ctsvoxw^ou/xsvoj, 
 
 ou duvdjiAS&a /xd;(£(r^a<, auroj ^s d^r^evoufxfv tou y^dg tfuvax^^vai, (JSym. 
 sxoXo/3w&>) ydp Yj (fTpuii^vri ii£ ro fjii^ dva'jrstfsiv^ xa< »j Cxrjvii Jygvsro iig 
 TO ^17 EKTsX^srv.) See also xxii. 23, xxv. 4, 5, xxxu. 2, xxxvn. 
 27. 
 
 2. He often introduces short explanations to make the sense 
 •clear. For example : i. 21, "TroXig '^rio'H, (lii^v ; ) iv. 4, (twv 
 ■jiwv xoi) Twv ^yyaTSPWv 2iwv ; v. 13, Dyi 'SjO, <5id to p^rj hdsvat 
 auToC'g (tov Ky'^ov) ; ix. 1, (toiJto ir^wTov cn's^J ; ix. 10, (:'«' oixooo/a^- 
 tfofxev ^auToij 'jry^yov) ; ix. 21, ort d/A-a (croXjo^x^o'eufl'j) tov 'IquSolv ; x. 
 9, XaXdvTf]5 (6u 6 Ty^yos uxoSoixyj^y)) ; xxill. 15, wj Xf°^°^ ^atftXew^, 
 (t^S X^^°^ dv^^wflrou;) xL. 1, (»5^s»?) ; XLii. 1, ('Iaxw/3,) 6 flrar^ 
 jxou. . . . ('Itf^aigX,) o sxXsxro'g /xou ; XLVin. 11, oti (to £fji,ov ovojwx) 
 Ssprikourai ; lx. 1, (pwrt'^ou, (pwTi^ou, ('Is^ouCaXTjiw.) ; LVHl. 13, 
 XaXTjtfs'? Xoyov (sv ojpy^) ; lxv. 4, (didivy-rvia), see the note on this 
 place. — Short interpolations taken from parallel places arc 
 also to be found ; for example, i. 7, in the Alexandrine manu- 
 script, which is from i. 22 ; xl. 5, to Cwttjpjov Toy ^soy, from lit. 
 
 ♦ The meaning of this addition to the text is explained in the Chal- 
 dee, which expresses the signification of j^g^ra in xiii. 1, xv. 1, xxi. 1, 
 
 T — 
 
 by a periphrasis: (^33) ni riNpS'NS DlSl D3 SCJD, the raising up of 
 ibt cup <^ malediction thai {^Babylon) may drink if. 
 
4D6 QN THE INTERPRETATION-. 
 
 10 ; XLVii. 16, ov6s iv roircf) yr^g Cxoreivw, from xlv. 1^. Two 
 larger interpolations, the causes of which I am not able to 
 discover, occur in xiv, 20, ov t^oVov {jxarjov iv aj/xari -Trscpu^fA-svov 
 oux 'idToa xoL^OL^h ovruis oUds (fv stfr xa^-a^oV, and XXII. 22, >iOL' ^wtfw 
 qr-^v 5ofav Aaui5 aurw, xa/' a^^?<, xai oux sWaj 6 dvTiXgywv. On the 
 Other hand, there are also some omissions, as in xxxvi. 7, and 
 V, 13 of ch. xxxvu. 
 
 3. He avoids such expressions as may be thought indecent 
 and offensive, for which he substitutes euphemisms.' For 
 'example : ui. 17, rri;;" |nr\3, avaxaXJ4'£i to cx^f^a aurwv ; xiii. 
 
 16, njSjB^n DH'B^JI, xcti ras yuvaixa^ duTWv £|outf<v, (comp. Deut. 
 
 xxviii. 30 ;) XX. 4, niy ^aiiyn, dvaxsxaXufAfx^vai ; xxni. 17, nmn 
 
 'pxn noSDD Sj nw, xa/ eWai ^/AflTo^iov flratfajj Tafg ^adikslais 
 trriS oixovii^ivris ; XXVUI. 8, a^a g^srar TauTiiv ti^v /JouXi^v, duTo^ yd* 
 »j /SouXii svsxa 'fl'Xsovs^iaf. The last instance is a perfect quid 
 pro quo for the correct translation of Aquila, Symmachus, 
 and Theodotion, oVi 'jcagai di T^d-n-s^ai S'rXri^wS-Tjo'av gjuisrou. wC-rg {iri 
 {i^d^siv To-TTov. — The author appears also to have taken umbrage 
 at the cursing of God mentioned in vni. 21, and therefore in- 
 stead of Vn^KI oSd SSp, he substitutes xa/ xaxQg i^sTrs tov a^- 
 ^o»Ta xa< rd ^dr^ia. (Symmachus ha«, in like manner, 9rd- 
 r^oL^a g»5wXa, his country's idols.) It is not improbable, in- 
 deed, that in this passage the true meaning may be given. 
 
 4. In explaining geographical names he is often . ignorant 
 and arbitrary. Thus, x. 9, nan ^shnj vh D« )jSd b'^dj'^do K^n, 
 
 ")}) oux eXa/3ov tt^v ^wp^^v tijv s<jrdvw Ba^uXwvo? xa/ XaXdv7)g, (6u 6 cnJ^- 
 
 yo?wxo5f)(jL»j&>],) xa/ eXa^ov 'Apd^iav . . . . in X. 29, he connects 
 the words Sixty n;r3: rrai thus, *Pa/xd, flroXij SaouX ; xi. 11, onns 
 is here translated by Ba^uXwvia, and O'n "kdi nDHD *i;;:ipd by 
 
 difh ^Xi'ou dvaroXwv, xa/' i| 'Apa/Sia? ; xv. 1. 3K1D l^p, to t^i^oS «"^S 
 Mcjaj8»Ti5o5 ; in xxni. 1 and x. 14, he explains Br'B'"in by Kap^ri- 
 5cdv, as the translator of Ezekiel does in xxvn. 12, 25, xxxvni. 
 
 » The same effort shows itself in the Talmudists and Masoriies, and 
 in the alterations which the Samaritans have made in the text See my 
 Comment, de Pentat. Sam. p. 60. These learned Jews seem to have 
 considered such offensive expressions as inconsistent with the dignity 
 of the holy scriptures. 
 
OP THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 407 
 
 13, but in Lx. 0, ly'Bfin nvix is leXoTn ©a^tfic, and in u. 16, lekom 
 ^a.Xa(f(trig ; xxxvii. 13, Hijn JT^n D^IISD, *E'r(papouaj> 'Avayouyava* 
 yet in the Alexandrine text it is, 2s*(?a^gifA ; v. 12, p;^ '33 
 
 n^N^nj, Oil IWiv ^v Xw^a 06efxa&, Alex, ^aifxa^ ; XLIll. 3, K3D, Sovjvt;, 
 
 (but that is miD ;) xlix. 12, D'^d p«3, ^x ySj^ nsptfwv (Aq. 
 Sym. Theod. 2ivsi|ut.) 
 
 5. Very frequently does he show the Alexandrine and ge- 
 nerally the Egyptian Jew :. for, when the subject relates to 
 Egypt, he selects those terms which were the most usual 
 and expressive in that country ; and, indeed, he introduces 
 such where they are less appropriate. Thus in v. 10, he ex- 
 plains the word i^n by the Egyptian measure aprafSai s^- (see 
 the note ;) in xxu. 15, pon by ira^To(popSiov, (which in other 
 places is used for the Hebrew ryDHfh,) a cell, a treasury of the 
 Egyptian priests. Creuzer's Symbolik, Th. 1. §. 247, 2te. 
 Ausg. In xxxiv. 11, fj^u^r, a heron, is translated '{$is. The 
 observation is particularly applicable to ch. xix., which con- 
 tains a number of expressions very familiar to an Egyptian. 
 Thus, in v. 2, for hdSod Sk hd^oo we have vofAov i<n:l vofxov ; in 
 V. 6, for "iiVD nN% ai ditipv/sg tou flroTflfAou ; in V. 7, for nny, oix'f 
 the Egyptian word for reeds of the Nile : comp. the Heb. 
 m^ ; in V. 9, for '"»in, Burftfov ; in v. 10, for ^2^ 'vy, ^oiovvrsg rov 
 ^u^ov ; V. 11 and 13, for |;>y, Tavij. He appears also in the 
 last passage to have availed himself of the history of Egypt, 
 in order to illustrate the meaning ; i^sXiirov o» ap^ovrs^ Tavsw^, 
 Tccci 64'W&ii(j'av 01 'ip'^ovTSs Msfjoipscijs* provided Memphis raised her- 
 self above the older chief cities of Egypt at a more recent 
 period than the other. See Diod. Sic 1. 50. 
 
 6. The translator of Isaiah has occasionally introduced in 
 his version allusions to relative circumstances in his own times, 
 and arbitrary changes made out of respect to the Egyptian 
 Jews and also to the Jewish theology of his day. This is a 
 disposition which appears to have been common to the learn- 
 ed of Alexandria and many others with the Samaritans®, 
 and which seems heretofore to have been altogether over- 
 
 * Sec my Comment, de Pent. Sam. $ 16. 
 
408 OF THE INTERPttETATlON 
 
 looked. Thus in ix. 12, for : * the Syrians from before, and 
 the Philistines from behind, they devour Israel with open 
 mouth,* the Septuagint has : Supj'av a<f' rihis avaToXwv, xai toO^ 
 '''EXXrjvas (Aq. Sym. Theod. tdvs ^iXjrfTjSiV) a(p* rtkm (^'uo'fji.wv, 
 probably in order to introduce the subjection of the Jewish 
 nation by the Greek dynasties of the Ptolemies and Seleu- 
 cidae. As in the other places where the word D^niySs occurs, 
 it is always correctly translated by 'AXX6(puXo», it is plain that 
 intention, not ignorance, lies at the bottom of his version in 
 this passage. According to the- translator, then, the subjec- 
 tion of the Jews by the Greek dynasties was predicted by 
 Isaiah.'' — In xix. 25, the Hebrew means : * blessed be my 
 people Egypt, and Assyria the work of my hands,' which the 
 Alexandrine translator interprets as a blessing pronounced 
 on the Egyptian and Assyrian Jews : ^uXoy^if^osvo? o Xaog fAou 6 iv 
 'Aiyu-n-Tw, xa< sv 'Atftfupjoij. As the prophets had frequently 
 censured in plain terms the emigrations of the Jews to 
 Egypt as opposition to the theocracy, (see Jer. xbii. 43,) and 
 as the Hellenists were generally considered by the Hebrews 
 as half" profane, the Alexandrine translator avails himself of 
 this passage, wherein Jehovah himself declares them blessed. 
 ~^In xix. 18, the Hebrew Dinn '^y, city of destruction, as the 
 Chaldee also interprets it, was probably altered in the He- 
 brew text of the Alexandrine Jews into pnxn T;r, city of 
 righteousness ; and hence the translation, ^oXi^ 'Atfs^sx, which 
 was explained of LeontopoHs with its Jewish temple. See 
 Joseph. Ant. xiii. 3. § 3. — Whoever is acquainted with the 
 spirit of the more modern, sectarian Judaism, and with the 
 art with which the Jewish parties explain, and even alter, the 
 Old Testament to serve the views of their schools and sects, 
 will readily perceive what value the polemics of the Alexan- 
 drians may have attached to such places. The last cited al- 
 teration is altogether analogous to the well known Samaritan 
 reading of Deut. xxvii. 4. 
 
 t The Mohammedans also find in this book predictions of their ourn 
 prophet. See D'Herbklot, Orient. Biblioth. under Isaia. 
 
OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 409 
 
 It is one consequence of the more modern Jewish theology^ 
 that the translator sometimes speaks of demons, (xni. 21. 
 ixxiv. i4. Lxv. 11.) with which the age of Isaiah, properly 
 speaking, was unacquainted.* To this subject is to be re- 
 ferred, perhaps, xxx. 4, where, for the Hebrew, |;;2f:i rn o 
 
 V2K'7D> VlB^, the SeptUdgint has, on hat iv Tavsi d^fiyoi ayysXoi 
 
 •ro'vii^oi' evil angels rule in Tanis, probably, in reference to the 
 idolatrous worship which prevailed there, and which the 
 Jewish theology ascribed to evil angels. But the passage 
 relating to the Messiah, which in xxxviii. 11, the translator 
 introduces, is of particular importance, while at the same time 
 he removes the offensive declaration which might seem to 
 be implied in the Hebrew, that Hezekiah had seen God.* 
 For: D^'H pNj n^ n^ nxnj< ifh he has: 'OuksVj 6m iirj i'^w ro 
 
 'Itf^ttTjX sT^t yris. To see the meaning of this expression, 
 which is hardly to be misunderst* ;od, compare Luke, u. 30, 
 on hdcv hi 6(p3-aXfxoi (xou 70 tfwT^piov ffo^ ; ni. 6, 'xai o-^srou ^oLttcc 
 tfa^f TO tfwrri^iov rov ^sov, and Acts, xxvm. 28, Torg gS-vstfiv dirsia- 
 Xt] to tfwT^^jov Tou ^sov, Scc also Isa. xl. 5. lii. 10. in the Sep- 
 tuagint. 
 
 There are some passages where the translator has given a 
 Chaldee signification to HeBrew words, because, undoubted- 
 ly, the Syro-Chaldaic idiom which then prevailed in Palestine, 
 was familiar to him. For instance, in iv. 2, no^f n^n is render- 
 ed i'leiXait.^^st, Comp. l^^s, brightness, splendor; lui. 10, lfc«OT 
 
 • [ That the doctrine of demons or evil angels was unknown in the 
 age of Isaiah is a statement, which will not be very readily conceded 
 by those who admit the genuin,eness and authenticity of the books of 
 the Old Testament. The reader may find it in Deut. xxxii. 17. Ps. xc. 
 (Sept.) 6. xcvi. (xcv. Sept.) 5, where J'^iiu.ovott is used, and in 1 Sam- 
 ivi. 14, 16. xviii. 10, and elsewhere. Tr. ] 
 
 How oflFensive this language has* been thought by the more 
 modern of the learned Jews, is shown by the alteration of the Samari- 
 tan text in Ex. xxiv. 10, the Alexandrine version of y. 10 emd 11, (see 
 my Comment, de Pent. Sara. p. 51,) and the place in the Talmud, which 
 relates to Isaiah's condemnation, Mishna, Tract, Jdtamoth, iv. ^r?. 
 
 52 
 
4l0 UN THE INTERPRETATION 
 
 xa&ttfjVai ctuTov, Comp. «3^, equivalent to hdt, to be pure. But 
 that this, or any other of the Alexandrine translators, was ac- 
 quainted with any well founded meanings drawn from the 
 usage of the Arabians,^ I am now obliged altogether to ques- 
 tion. The instance in vu. 6, which, in an earlier publication,*" 
 I alleged in favour of this opinion, may be differently explain- 
 ed ; and if, in other places, significations are to be found which 
 are now pecuhar to the Arabic, yet is it to be considered, that 
 the Alexandrian was acquainted with them as Hebrew or 
 Chaldee.'* See the note on lxv. 23. 
 
 The Hebrew text, from which the Alexandrine version was 
 made, had, almost throughout, the same readings as have been 
 preserved in the masoretical text. A right apprehension of 
 the character of this version will easily convince a man of 
 this. All the evident aberrations are to be attributed to con- 
 jecture, as, for instance, ^«j Stavarov in liu. 8, for idS, or, to other 
 liberties taken by the translator. In general, too, the clear 
 or real varieties are manifestly worse than the masoretical 
 text ; for example, <5w^a in vni. 20, for ^n^, after the reading 
 nnt^r, fAaTTjv in xxx. 4, for DJn, according to the reading D:n. 
 
 The writers of the New Testament employ, almost entire- 
 ly, the Alexandrine version of our prophet, from which they 
 make quotations w^ith various degrees of accuracy, or merely 
 according to their recollection. Only Matthew follows it 
 more rarely, (for example, in. 3. comp. Isa. xl. 3 ; iv. 15, 16, 
 comp. Isa. vui. 23, ix. 1, according to the Alexandrine text ; 
 xni. 15. comp. Isa. vi. 9), and sometimes recurs to the He- 
 brew text, which he explains in a different manner, probably 
 according to the Chaldee version then in circulation. Comp. 
 Matt. 1. 23, <5ou ^ cra^&svo? iv yadT^i s^si^ (Sept. XTj-vj^srar) xai ts^s- 
 Ttti uiov, xai xaXsVoutfi (Sept. xaktcfsis) to ovofxa aurou 'EfjijuLavou^X. 
 The expression xaXsVouCi for the passive xXrjS^tfsTaiis very com- 
 
 9 Gesch. der Heb. Spr.TP. 78. 
 
 1 Ubi sup. 
 
 « I To show this is the principal design of the valuable work of Ko- 
 i;her against Lowth, see below, $ 20, 1, note 1. For critical improve- 
 ment of the Greek text, see the remarks of Schleusner, in his Opu5.. 
 efii. ad Versiones Greecas V. T. pertinent. Lips. 1813, pp. 326. ss. 
 
OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 411 
 
 raon in the Aramaean, (see Gram. Lehrgeb. S. 798,) and bears 
 upon an intermediate Chaldee idiom. — vni. 17, aurog rag dtf&s- 
 vsiag TiyMv eXa/Ss xai ras v6(f ovg sf36L(f<ru(fsv' Comp. Isa. LUl. 4, 
 where the Septuagint expresses a sense altogether different, 
 and not adapted to Matthew's purpose, outo? las aixa^riag *jfA.wv 
 (ps'^gi, xai cre^/tjfxwvc^uvttTOT.* — Matt. xn. 18 — 21. Here Isa. xlu. 
 1, ss. is introduced, but very different from the Alexandrine 
 version, and agreeing with the sense of the Chaldee, although 
 not literally with our Targum of Jonathan. But that there 
 was a Chaldee translation approximating partly to the He- 
 brew text, and partly to the Greek of Matthew, is probable 
 even from particular explanations of words. See the Com- 
 mentary on xLii. 4. A similar instance is afforded in 1 Cor. 
 XV. 55, where Paul expresses the words of Isa. xxv. 8, jrbs 
 fIVjS n^rsn thus : xmsito^y] 6 ^avaro^ slg vTxog, while the Septuagint 
 is, xarsVjsv 6 ^avarog iVp^urfag. He takes nvjS in the Chaldee sig- 
 nification, as Aquila also does in the same passage. Of the 
 versions which have sprung from the Alexandrine, see below, 
 §6. 
 
 Aquila, Symmachus, and Theodotion, of whose versions 
 some fragments only are extant, are more literal translators, 
 and confine themselves more closely to the text, than the au- 
 thor of the Septuagint, and no one of them allows himself such 
 arbitrary freedoms as are so often met with in this version. 
 They retain also the figures and tropes without attempting to 
 explain them in proper language. Their translations of some 
 places of this kind, which have been preserved, varying from 
 those of the Septuagint, have been already introduced in or- 
 der to afford a comparison, and may serve as examples. 
 
 * [ On this verse, see Magee on Atonement and Sacrifice, No. XLii. 
 p. 227, ss. In addition to the valuable observations which the reader 
 will find in this work, I would just remark, that, although the prophet 
 speaks directly of Christ as the atoning sacrifice for sin, yet his language 
 implies also, as the ultimate effect of that sacrifice, the removal of bodi- 
 ly diseases, together with every evil to which we are here subjected. 
 The evangelist may therefore very properly use this language in refe- 
 rence to the healing of diseases, although this is but a small part of the 
 prophet's view. Tr.'\ 
 
A:l*2 ON THE INTERPRETATION" 
 
 Pretty often they all three agree, and in sucli cases {5Jyrnma» 
 ehus and Theodotion follow Aquila. In other respects, the 
 etymological character of Aquila, which is also anxiously and 
 even absurdly literal, the somewhat discursive freedom of 
 Symmachus, and the manner of Theodotion who selects with- 
 out a remarkable knowledge of language, are well known. 
 At times, the Septuagint had given a belter version, than all its 
 three successors, as, for instance, vn. 16, 'fp nn«, which it ren- 
 ders (po(3r]j where Aquila has (uxxaivsi^, Symmachus iyxaxsTg, 
 and Theodotion /S^aXuCtf/j. See the note. Theodotion helps 
 himself occasionally by retaining the Hebrew word, as in u. 
 20, 'a(pa|p;ps^wa, lu. 24, (psuyiK 
 
 §2. 
 
 The Chaldee Version. 
 
 The Chaldee version of Isaiah is a part of the Targum of 
 Jonathan ben Uzziel, which extends through all the former 
 and later prophets, Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings, Isaiah, Je- 
 remiah, Ezekiel, and the minor prophets. Its author was of 
 Jerusalem, and a pupil of Hillel, who was a fellow pupil of 
 Simeon the just, and Gamaliel, the instructor of Paul, and 
 must therefore have flourished a short time before the birth of 
 Christ.*^ Against assigning so early a date to this' work, Jo/jn 
 MoaiN and Isaac Vossius^^ were the first to object. They 
 maintained, that it was not composed until after the Talmud, 
 
 13 See Baba Bathra, fol. 134, col. 1. Succa, fol. 28, col. 1. The 
 saying that he received his interpretation from the prophets Haggai, 
 Zachariah, and Malachi themselves, (in the natural way, by tradition,) 
 shows, as well as other fables, the high consideration in which his work 
 must have been held. See Megilloth^ I. p. 3. Carpzov. Crit. Sac. 
 p. 450. 
 
 t 3 Jo. MoRim Exercital, Bibl pp. 321. ss. Is. Vossius de Sepluaginta 
 interp.Ctip.2S. 
 
OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 413 
 
 Hnd appealed partly to certain fabulous interpolations, as in 
 Isa. X. 32 ; and partly to some representations contained in it, 
 which they explained as subsequent to the age of the Talmud. 
 In a later period, Eichhokn and Jahn have endeavoured to 
 place Jonathan as lovv^ at least as the 2nd or 3d century after 
 Christ, rejecting the accounts which the Jewish writers give 
 of him, or conjecturing that the Talmudists may have con- 
 founded the older Jonathan with some more modern writer 
 of the same name' . They have also questioned the unity of 
 this work ; and, on account of the unequal composition of its 
 various parts, have considered it as the production of many 
 of the Rabbins'". 
 
 The reasons, however, which have been alleged against 
 the antiquity of this Targum, are not satisfactory. " Were 
 it as old as its advocates maintain, (says Eichhorn,) it could 
 not have been unknown to the fathers; — it contains fables 
 which came into circulation in a later age, (see Morin, ubi 
 sup. ;) — it attempts to remove the Messiah from the places 
 which the Christians explained of him, (Isa. lhi. lxhi. 1 — 5,) 
 which proves that controversies against the Christians were 
 usual at the time of its composition ; — not to urge the consi- 
 deration, that a Chaldee translation was unnecessary at the 
 period assigned to it." The first and last of these reasons 
 carry their own refutation along with them : for the fathers, 
 generally, had no knowledge of these Jewish works ; and, the 
 prevalence of the Chaldee dialect in the time of Christ shows, 
 that such translations, which were, at the same time, inter- 
 pretations, were then undoubtedly necessary. That the ex- 
 planation of Isa. LHi. Lxm. 1, ss., which considers these places 
 as intended to apply to tho Mcsaifih, is set aside, is an asser- 
 
 I 4 Eichhorn, Einleit. in das A. T. 1. S. 455, dritte Ausg. [11. S. 83, 
 Vierte, ; 231. Tr.] Jahn*s Einleit. I. S. 192. [Part I. $ 47, p. 66. Trans- 
 lation. Tr."] 
 
 » ' To the same purpose Bertholdt, II S. 570. Schmidt also gives 
 the author the appellation of Pseudo-Jonathan^ w hich is applied to the 
 translator of the Pentateuch. See Chrisiologischc Fragmente, in jBtW. /. 
 Exeges. 1. S. 46. 
 
4l4 ON The interpretation 
 
 tion which is utterly unfounded. In ch. Liii. it is expressly 
 given and with the greatest arbitrariness/^ And if this is 
 not the case with lxui. 1, ss., there is no reason to presume 
 that the omission arose from any polemic intention, especially 
 as it cannot be proved that the Christians attached any extra- 
 ordinary value to this passage as one referring to the Messiah, 
 although it is imitated in a representation of him which is 
 given in the Apocalypse, xix. 13 — 15. At the same time, the 
 Targumist agrees with the Christians in most of the other pla- 
 ces which they explained of the Messiah, particularly chaps. 
 Hc. XI. XLU. The introduction of the later Jewish fables would 
 be a most serious difficulty, were it possible to show with any 
 certainty the time of their origination. Morin, ubi sup., appeals 
 to the mention which is made of Antichrist's Armillus in Isa. xi. 
 4, which is more modern than the Talmud, (comp. Deut. xxxiv, 
 3, Pseudo-Jonathan.) But the general idea of Antichrist is 
 more ancient than the New Testament, and that the name 
 Armillus, the origin of which is unknown, must be so late, is 
 destitute of proof. In addition to the mark of a modern age 
 already noticed, I have found the following : the explanation 
 of Edom in Isa. xxxiv. 9, by Rome, Gomer in Ezek. xxxvui. 
 6, by j^^DD-^j, that is, Germany, (comp. n>jd*ij is the Jerusalem 
 Targum on Gen. x. 2,) and the most extravagant additions in 
 Isa. X. 32, respecting the army and camp of Sennacherib, 
 and in Judg. v. 8, respecting that of Sisera. But not one of 
 them obliges us to place the work after the destruction of 
 Jerusalem, or after the Talmud ; and there is reason to think 
 that the additions may be interpolations, as they are entirely 
 
 »» It was inconceivable to the author, and it must be so likewise to 
 every one who has really read this version, how Eichhorn, ubi sup., 
 should have got this account, which has also been repeated by BsR- 
 THOLDT, (who, nevertheless, in his ChristologiaJiidaeorum, p. 158, ii as giv- 
 en a perfectly correct view,) until he found the sources of these and of the 
 other quotations and statements in C arpzov's Critica Sacra, p. 462. Be- 
 sides Carpzov, complains only on the ground of his view respecting this 
 perversion of the chapter applied to the Messiah, without making that 
 use of it which Eichhorn has done. 
 
OF THE 4'ROPHET iSAlAH. 415 
 
 wanting in the printed text of the Antwerp Polyglot, and con- 
 sequently were wanting also in the manuscripts used in form- 
 ing that text. Until stronger proofs therefore are alleged for 
 the contrary, I shall adhere to that designation of its age 
 which is marked out by tradition, especially as the Chaldee 
 of this Targum is pure and similar to that of Onkelos,' the 
 doctrine which it contains respecting the Messiah seems to 
 be rather earlier than the New Testament than later, (see be- 
 low, or rather, comp. Isa. xlii. in the Targum with Matt. xn. 
 17 — 21,) and no definite trace of the government being over- 
 thrown appears in it, although the author has intermingled re- 
 ferences to his own times/^ 
 
 With more certainty still may the unity of this Targum^ 
 which almost all late critics have denied,^^ be maintained. 
 " The work," it is said, " is altogether unequal ; the historical 
 books are translated pretty literally, but the prophetical are 
 paraphrased, and additional ideas often introduced. This 
 shows the version to have been composed by various authors." 
 Not necessarily : for the author does certainly interpret the 
 historical parts of the prophetical books, (for instance, Isa* 
 
 J 7 According to Eichhorn and Bertholdt (ubi sup.), it abounds with 
 foreign words. I confess that I have never been able to discover this 
 multitude, and I find the judgment of Carpzov confirmed, who ascribes 
 to it " a neatness of Chaldee expression and a purity of diction, ap- 
 proximating very nearly to that of Onkelos, and but little inferior to 
 the pure and polished Chaldee of the Bible." Some Greek words are 
 indeed to be met with, as n>jjn fjy^i^ocv, for instance, in ix. 13, but at 
 
 most in the same proportion as in Daniel and Ezra. 
 
 > 8 I once thought that an undoubted reference to the destruction of 
 the temple was contained in liii. 5, where it is said of the Messiah, 
 
 t«in^i3?3 "ijDnN M2}r\2 SnnxT liw^pn n'2 ^33^ ^m :— Ae wirt &m'W 
 
 the holy place which has been profaned by our sin, and given up on account 
 of our transgressions. But it is more natural to consider the author as 
 placing himself iu the situation of the prophet, and referring to the de- 
 struction by Nebuchadnezzar. The passage in v. 10, v^bich incul- 
 cates the paynent of tythes, seems, again, to presume that the temple 
 was standing, and its worship &till celebraied. 
 
 1 9 Bertholdt supposes that Jonathan or the Pseudo-Jonathan lived 
 in the 2nd and 3d centuries, and that he merely collected together 
 and reduced to order more ancient fragments of Synagogue-Targums. 
 
4lt) ON THE INTERPRETATION 
 
 xxxvi — xxxix, and the book of Jonah), for the most part, in a 
 simple and hteral manner, while he paraphrases the poetical 
 parts of the historical books, (Judg. v. i Sam. n. ii Sam. xxu. 
 23,) and explains the figures which they contain : so that this 
 supposed inequality rather seems to belong to his manner. 
 With regard to the degree, moreover, in which he acts the pa- 
 raphrast, he is not entirely uniform ; so that, for example, Isa. 
 1. V. xxvni. especially, are greatly paraphrastic, and other chap- 
 ters less so ; but it would be very unreasonable to ascribe the 
 work on this account, to various authors, since the same thing 
 is true of the Septuagint, which sometimes varies in the same 
 chapter, as in i, where, v, 22, the figures of silver and wine 
 are retained, while in v. 25, those of dross and tin are aban- 
 doned. This want of uniformity is rather to be attributed to 
 the inequality and variable maimer of the translator. But it is 
 said further, that " for certain Hebrew forms of speech, ex- 
 pressions occur in the former prophets which are not em- 
 ployed in the later, although the same forms of speech are 
 contained in the original. In the former prophets, idols 
 are almost constantly denominated n^dd;; mj^is, error gentium, 
 (i Sam. VI. 5. i Kings xiv. 9,) and enemies are named ^S^3 
 ii^22ii (i Kings 111. 11. viii. 46. n Sam. xviii. 19,) while 
 if these expressions are ever to be met with in the latter, they 
 are exceedingly rare indeed."^'' If these two examples could 
 justify any general conclusion, it would be the very contrary ; 
 for n^r.M (x'Dd;; is of no importance, and only occurs in i 
 Kings,) is also in the prophets the predominant, and probably 
 the only designation of idols, (see Isa. i. 29. ii. 6, 7, 18, 
 
 3 Thus Eichhorn literally,!. S.452. Or. II. S. 67.] Comp. Carpzov. 
 Crit. Sac. ubi sup. 8). " He has certain periphrat-es and descriptions 
 peculiar to himself, which he almost every where employs: as, for in- 
 stance, when he very often calls idols a'^O'OV »"*1.I^tO ^^^r gentium; i 
 Sam. VI. 5. i Kings xiv. 5; or, for the Hebrew D"'3"''1J<> enemies, uses 
 the phrase N':331 'Si^Uj authors of tnmities, \ Kings, ui. 11. vui. 46. u 
 Sam. xvm. 19, &c." But Carpzov very correctly mentions these phrases 
 as general expressions of the whole work, in the former and later pro- 
 phets; and the above conclusion, which is not Carpzov's, is undoubted- 
 ly drawn, because he had adduced no examples from the later prophets- 
 
or THE rUOPHET ISaIAH. 41*? 
 
 20. XIX. 1, &c.) and K^an '7j;a the usual translation of T)h, 
 (see Isa. i. 24. n. 8. Lxii. 8. lxiii. 10. Jer. xliv. 30,) although 
 rmfD does also occur. (See Jer. vi. 25.) But, in addition 
 to these, other instances of uniformity are to be met 
 with, which are far more remarkable and conclusive. Isa. 
 XXXVI — xxxix agrees literally with ii Kings xvm. 13, ss« 
 as far as the agreement exists in the original ; Isa. n. 2 — 4 
 also with M icha v. 1 — 3, which is very different in the Sep- 
 tuagint. In Nah. i. 1, NJy? is understood of the raising of the 
 curse cup, as in Isa. xui. 1. xv. 1. xix. 1. xxi. 1. xxn. 1. xxm. 1 ; 
 ^^ty\_ is rendered xrs^ in Jon. i. 3. Jer. n. 16. xxm. 1, 6, 10. 
 Lx. 9. Lxvi. 19. Ezek. xxvu. 12. xxxni. 13, instead of which it is 
 0^D-»o in Ps. Lxxn. 20, and B^^iJ^^n in Deut. x. 4.) In Isaiah the 
 trees, and particularly cedars, are often explained by kings and 
 princes, (see u. 13. xiv. 8. xvm. 5,) and in the same manner does 
 the translator interpret i Kings iv. 33 : " and Solomon spake of 
 trees from the cedar that is in Lebanon, &c." by : " he pro- 
 phesied of the kings of the house of David, his successors, 
 &c." The very extraordinary statement, that the sun should 
 shine 343 times 7x7x7) clearer, in Isa. xxx. 26, is contain- 
 ed also in 1 1 Sam. xxm. 4. And the addition also respecting 
 Sennacherib*s army and camp in Isa. x. 14, and that of Sise- 
 ra's in Judg. v. 8, (if they be genuine,) have great resem- 
 blance to each other. To avoid being tedious, I abstain from 
 introducing any other instances ; but, if some passages which 
 have been interpolated are excluded, I must contend, that 
 with the exception of unavoidable varieties in particular 
 parts, the whole translation shows an uniformity which proves 
 it to be the work of one author. 
 
 But it is proper to proceed from discussions of this nature, 
 which are only introductory and incidental, to the character 
 of this version, a subject which is particularly connected with 
 my purpose. If it be compared with the other Targums, it 
 must be placed, in respect to an exact erception and repre- 
 sentation of the sense, between Onkelos and the more mo- 
 dern Targums ; if it be compared with the Alexandrine 
 version, although it may probably display a more accurate 
 knowledge of language, yet. in consequence of a false me- 
 
418 
 
 ON THU INTERFRETATION 
 
 thod of interpretation, it indulges itself much more largely m 
 arbitrary expositions, especially where chronological and 
 doctrinal points are concerned, and make much more arbitra- 
 ry paraphrases. Its character in general may be learned 
 from the following notices. 
 
 1. This paraphrast frequently understands his text philolo- 
 gically and exegetically with perfect correctness, and ex- 
 presses it, especially in historical discourses, with literal accu- 
 racy ; but where the language is figurative, he attempts, in 
 his paraphrastic manner, to elucidate it, either by explaining 
 the figures or by introducing an additional observation. For 
 example : i. 8, " as a cottage in a vineyard ;" the Targum 
 adds, " after the vintage ;" — i. 21, " harlot ;" Targ. idola- 
 tress ;— 1. 25, "thy lead ;" [" tin," Eng. Tr.] Targ. thy guilt : 
 — In n. 13, ss. all the figures are explained ; the cedars and 
 fir-trees are interpreted of princes, the walls and towers of 
 the inhabitants of towers and fortified places, the ships of 
 wealthy merchants traversing the seas. — In v. 1 — 6, the para- 
 ble is altogether removed, and in place of it a prolix inter- 
 pretation is substituted : — in v. 17, for " sheep," [" lambs," 
 Eng. Tr ] the Targum has righteous : — in vu. 3, for : " the 
 Syrians stand in Ephraim," [v. 2, " Syria is confederate with 
 Ephraim," Eng. Tr.] the Targum is : the king of Syria is 
 associated with the king of Israel : — x. 14, " there was none 
 that opened the mouth or peeped ;'' Targ. spoke a word : — 
 xxu. 23, Targ. / will appoint him as a true commander in a de- 
 fended place ; V. 24, and on him will all the nobles of his fa- 
 ther's house support themselves, children and children's chil- 
 dreni honorable and ignoble, from the priests in the Ephod to 
 the Levites who play on the harp. He translates very happily 
 xxu. 22, " the key of the house of David will 1 lay upon his 
 shoulder," by : / will give into his hand. 
 
 2. But not unfrequently his exposition is altogether arbi- 
 trary, the grammatical interpretation is abandoned, the fi- 
 gures erroneously explained, and although the very words of 
 the text may be repeated in the paraphrase, this is done in 
 the most arbitrary connexion, and sometimes with an over- 
 whelming flood of fictitious trifling. Chap. i. 6, " from the 
 
OP THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 419 
 
 scAe of the foot even unto the head, there is no soundness 
 in it ;" Targ. from the populace even to the honorable, no one 
 is perfect in the fear of God. (But the prophet is not speak- 
 ing of the immorality of the nation, but of its unhappy poli- 
 tical condition.) Vs. 24, '2^^ ^nj?* ["I will avenge me of 
 mine enemies," Eng. Tr.] Targ. Jerusalem will I comfort, 
 but wo to the zoicked, when I rise up to hold a court of ven- 
 geance on the enemies of my people. He has not understood 
 the meaning of DhJ, and has therefore availed himself of a 
 paraphrase. III. 24, ^sr nnn ^3, Targ. this vengeance will be 
 taken on them, because they sinned with their beauty. VII. 
 3, ^J3. 3WO«Bf', Targ. the remaining disciples, those who 
 have not sinned and those who have turned from their sins. 
 He takes ^33 for sons equivalent to disciples. The proper 
 names he frequently interprets. For example : v. 6, '?^3W, 
 [^Tabeal,^ Targ. he who will please us ; (comp. ii Sam. xvii. 
 7) :" — IX. 20, " they shall eat every man the flesh of his own 
 arm ;" Targ. shall plunder the treasures of his nearest neigh- 
 bour : — XI. 14, " they fly together on the shoulders of the 
 Phihstines ;" Targ. thei^ associate with one shoulder, (i. e. 
 unanimously, see in the iieb. Zeph. iii. 9,) in order to beat 
 the Philistines. It is plain, that he is only intent on 
 bringing in the original word, without any anxiety whe- 
 ther correctly or not. xiv. 14, "I will ascend above 
 the heights of the clouds ;" Targ. over all the people : 
 — xvm. 1, d;S3P Sv^X y;iK, Targ. the country, whither ships come 
 from foreign lands, like an eagle, flying with its wings : — xix. 
 10, »fl3 'DiH "^^z^ 'Wp So, [" all that make sluices, and ponds for 
 fish." Eng. Tr.] Targ. •TffSjSia^ k^d ynrp^ Hiiio \n2v im im 
 it will be a place where they make lakes, ponds of water each 
 one for himself : — ^xxi. 8, nnK «Jp'i [" and he cried, a lion." 
 Eng. Tr.] Targ. the prophet spake ; / hear the voice of the 
 
 > 1 By means of an operation of this kind, he excludes Malachi from 
 the list of tke prophets, since he explains the name okSo in Mai. 1. 1, 
 thus: KisD «1TV H^OB^ *!?pn"? '^!?SDi wiy meuenger, who is caUtd Eitti 
 th* scribe^ 
 
42f) ON THE INTERPRETATION 
 
 hosts, 7vho come on in their armour, like a lion : — ^xxi. 10, 
 '-?;^4 1? ''?i?:^?» [" my threshing, and the corn (lit. son) of my 
 floor." Eng. Tr. j Targ. the kings, accustomed to wage war, will 
 come against her, in order to plunder her, like the countryman, 
 who is accustomed to thresh the floor :*" xxi. 12, " from 
 Seir they call to me ;" Targ. from heaven he calls to me, the 
 idea being drawn probably from Deut. xxxiii. 2, where 
 Seir has been taken as the dwelling of Jehovah :— xxii. 18, 
 in3 nsjy -"ISH; ^^jV, [ " he will surely violently turn and toss 
 thee like a ball." Eng. Tr. ] Targ. ^J'Spl] i^nsjxa ni ^^p ''•yjn 
 ^pD i?a^9 35*1 ^b^^i he will take away from thee thy turban, 
 and the enemy will surround thee, like an enclosing wall ;— - 
 XXVI II. 10, "):\ )p^^ ^p ^y*? ly '3, f/' for precept upon precept, 
 line upon line, &c." Eng. Tr.] To-rg. when they were com- 
 manded to do the law (iif), they would not do what was com- 
 manded them. The prophets prophesied to them, that, if they 
 were converted, their sins should be forgiven them^ but they dis- 
 regarded the words of the prophets, walked according to the de- 
 sire of their souls, and had no inclination to obey the law. They 
 expected (ID from njp) that idolatry should be established 
 among them, and they waited not on the service of my holy 
 temple. Little iyv}) in their eyes was my sanctuary to pray 
 THERE (DkO- Little in their eyes was my dwelling there: 
 — XXX. 7, n2»^ on ^n-* nxrS ^^tfn^ pS, [ " therefore have I 
 cried concerning this, their strength is to sit still." Eng. Tr. ] 
 Targ. therefore I struck (as if from n;jp) many of them dead, 
 armed men sent I upon them ; for which translation no found- 
 ation is discoverable. Further examples may be seen under 
 nos. 4 and 6. 
 
 3. For the most part he retains the geographical names, like 
 Onkelos, and seldom substitutes the modern terms, but then 
 
 3 2 It is necessary expressly to warn every one who wishes to consult 
 this Targum nor to trust the exceedingly bad Latin translation in the 
 Polyglots. This verse, for example, is thus translated : reges, qui con- 
 sueti sunt ad ineundum proelium, venient contra eani: ut diripiant earn, 
 sicut plaustrum artificia ad triturandam aream. The Chaldee is : p^^D 
 
 »;«nN n; a^npS jD^sn *n3«3 *<33oS Thv t^^".«3;jp wi^^S r?w«^ 
 
OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 4Qi 
 
 he is often correct. Examples : |^v, xix. 13, and xxx. 4, 
 OJKO ; -Y-, XIX. 13, D^3D, {Memphis) ; |^'3, xxxiii. 9, Nah. i. 4, 
 ]2nD, BatancBa, (see the note on ii. 13 ;) ^^p, xi. 11, S^3 ; and, 
 not unsuitably at least, ojn, xxx. 4, Djgrin {Daphne). Al- 
 though he translates '^i3 in xi. 1 1 by nn, /nf/m, it must be 
 remembered, that by the ancients Ethopia and India were 
 often interchanged in common life * * * t — Occasionally, 
 he has rendered a geographical name as an appellative, as he 
 has also done with the names of persons. See lx. 6. 
 
 4. I^ike many ancient translators, (the Alexandrine and 
 Saadias particularly,) he very willingly rejects those anthro- 
 popathic terms, [in other words ; expressions used in relation 
 to the Deity which are founded on human analogies. Tr.] 
 and other language zohich might give offence : both of 
 which appear to him inconsistent with the dignity of God, 
 and of the Holy Scriptures. Examples : i. 18, God says, 
 " let us reason together :" Targ. 'P'JfJ.. j? p;^^^ ask of me : — 
 iii. 17; he " will discover their secret parts;" larg. remove 
 their glory. Comp. xxviu. 7. 8. — vi. 1, " his train filled the 
 temple :'* Targ. the temple was filled with the splendor of his 
 glory : — v. 6, " a live coal in his hand, which he had taken 
 with the tongs from off the altar ;" Targ. in his mouth was an 
 oracle which he received from the divine majesty (Shecinah,) 
 on the throne in heaven above over the altar : — x. 6, the rod in his 
 hand, instrument of his indignation ; Targ. the messenger sent 
 by him, for a curse against them. — Neither does he bear with 
 the exoression, to see God, (see above, p. 409), but substitutes 
 for it in xxxvni. 11, / shall appear before God. So also i. 12. 
 
 5. Another characteristic of this version is, that it intro- 
 duces additions to the text, some ot which, as connected with 
 its paraphrastic manner, have been exhibited under nos. 1 and 
 3. Among these additions, there are some which are con- 
 stantly recurring, as r.i^ ^p-;, the prophet saith, xxxv. 3. xlvui. 
 16, LViu. L LXL 1. Lxn. 10. lxui. 7. Less frequently they are 
 longer, as in x. 32, that relating to Semiacherib's army drink- 
 ing up the Jordan, &c. See above. 
 
 t [ Three lines are here omitted. Jr.] 
 
4^3 ON THE INTERPRETATION 
 
 6. Much more abundantly than the Alexandrine translator, 
 does he arbitrarily introduce into his paraphrase views which 
 belong to a later period than that of his author; Rabbinical 
 sayings, and the Jewish theology of his own time, and often in 
 such a way as to show too clearly the Rabbin of the Phari- 
 sees, and the learned scribe. Examples : i. 15 ; " when 
 ye spread forth your hands;" Targ. when the priests 
 spread forth their hands to pray for you / as if the prayer 
 of the priest alone could in general prevail with God : — ^v. 
 10 ; he adds here : on account of the sin of not paying the 
 iythes : — ix. 15 ; here, in place of " the prophet that teach- 
 eth lies," and who " is the tail," he substitutes, the scribe who 
 explains falsely, (How confident was this learned scribe in 
 the correctness of his own interpretations ! And how charac- 
 teristic of the different periods of prophecy and of Rabbi- 
 nism, that the author of this gloss makes a false prophet, and 
 the translator a false interpreter, the tail, in other words, the 
 very lowest of the people!) In general scn'6fi5 are promis- 
 cuously introduced, especially for prophets. — xxvui. 7 ; in- 
 stead of, " priests and prophets err through strong drink 
 * . . . . they err in vision, {prophesying,) they stumble in 
 (pronouncing) judgment, the Targum h-diS, priests onrf scribes 
 are intoxicated with old wine they are turned to de- 
 licate food, and err in pronouncing judgment. (Thus the 
 translator every where brings the charge of luxuriously fur- 
 nished tables against the Rabbins.) — Better still in v. 8, " their 
 tables are full oi filthy vomit, there is no place more ;" Targ. 
 all tables are full of unclean and abominable food, there is 
 no place where there is not some plundered good thing. (It 
 was necessary that the offence which the laity must have 
 taken at such unlawful and extravagant indulgences of the 
 Jewish clergy should be removed, especially since swines' 
 flesh on their table was sufficiently obnoxious.) See also 
 XXIX. 10, XXX. 10. A strong trace of national pride appears 
 in translating ** the stars of God" in xiv. 13, by the people of 
 God^ suggested perhaps by the antecedent representation in 
 Dan. vui. 10.— In vi. 1, instead of " the year that king Uzziah 
 diied," he has, with Saadias and others, the year that he became 
 
OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 423 
 
 LEPROUS ; — in x. 32, he has in mind the fabulous account of 
 Abraham's deliverance from a burning furnace, in which he had 
 been thrown as a destroyer of idolatry ;* in xxvui. 1, he intro- 
 duces the earthquake under Uzziah, in xlix. 15, the golden calf, 
 in LXi. 1, Elias. — ^Amongthe points of Jewish theology which 
 the author has incorporated in his version, the views which he 
 gives respecting the Messiah are of real interest and impor- 
 tance in reference to the history of Jewish doctrines. He in- 
 terprets numerous passages of the Messiah, and for the most 
 part, in harmony with the New Testament.'" " The branch 
 of Jehovah," in iv. 2, he explains by the Messiah, (no doubt 
 according to the phraseology in Jeremiah and Zachariah, see 
 the note on that place ;) " the fruit of the earth," (land,) by, 
 those who keep the law ; and v. 3 runs : who is written for eter- 
 nal life, sees the consolation of Israel : that is, the time of 
 the Messiah, (comp. Dan. xn. i.) — ix. 6, is thus translated : he 
 takes the law upon himself in order to keep it perfectly, (Matt. 
 V. 17.) and he is named on the side of him,\ whose counsel is 
 wonderful, (on the side) of God:^ a hero remaining for 
 ever, from whom much felicity will come over us in his days. — 
 XI. 1, ss. According to this passage, the spirit of prophesying 
 {v, 2.) rests on the Messiah: he will slay (r. 4) with his 
 speech the wicked Armillus (the Antichrist,) really righteous 
 men will surround him, {v. 5.) — In xiv. 29, he understands the 
 Messiah by the cerastes that should spring out of the serpent's 
 root, (that is, the son of Jesse,) and also in xxvin. 5, by Jeho- 
 
 * [ Two lines omitted. Tr. ] 
 
 a 3 The greater part of these, together with those which Jonathan 
 translated from the other books, may be found in Buxtorf. Lex. 
 Chal.etTalm. Col 1269, ss. 
 
 t [ Literally, from the Chaldee : and he is named from before Mm, 
 &c. Dip I p. Tr.] 
 
 a 4 The word iffhvit God, in this passage, may, according to the usage 
 
 of the language, be taken as the object, and then the Messiah will be 
 called Gorf. But this would be altogether at variance with the Jewish 
 theology, and to this, in all the elevated representations of him, (see 
 Bertholdt, Christologia Judseorum, § 22,) it will be difficult to adduce 
 one parallel instance. 
 
424 ON THE INTERPRETATION 
 
 vah Iiimself, who should be an ornament of the people.^ — 
 The " servant of God," in xLn. 1, he explains of the Messiakf 
 (»ry'2fp ^n^j?), and almost all in the future, exactly as in Matt, 
 xii. 17 — ^21, (see my commentary,) so that he considers this 
 place as prophetic of a Messiah, who should be the comforter 
 of the poor, and the instructor of the heathen. In the same 
 way does he explain " servant of God," in xtin. 10, which, in 
 other places, he interprets of the people, and often in the same 
 section. So especially, in the celebrated passage lu. 13 — lui, 
 where what is said of the depressed state of the servant of 
 God is referred to the people, (lii. 14, lhi. 2, 3,) and what 
 is announced respecting his elevation, or at least what he thus 
 considers, is applied to the Messiah, (lii. 13, 15. lii i. 4, ss,) 
 The grammatical interpretation is here deserted more than in 
 any other place ; and that most celebrated chapter ^ ap- 
 pears in reality to have been, in the time of the New Testa- 
 ment, a very important source of views relating to the Mes- 
 siah. He illustrates thus: * Israel, indeed, was long poor and 
 despised, and waited long for the Messiah (lii. 14. liii. 3), 
 but he will come, will scatter the heathen (lii. 15), will asto- 
 nish the kings, and Israel will flourish and bloom before him, 
 like a tree by the water brooks, (liii. 2 ;) for he will intercede 
 for the sins of the people, and God will pardon them for his 
 sake, when the people become obedient to his instruction (v, 
 4, 6, 7). He builds up again the holy place, which was polluted 
 
 3 * Whether by anointed of Israel, in xvi. 1,5, he means the Messiah, 
 is uncertain, since this expression is elsewhere used of earthly kings. 
 
 2 Respecting Jonathan's interpretation of this passage, see Di< Wette 
 de morte Jesu Christi expiatnria, pp. 70. ss. Respecting the more an- 
 cient Jews, who, according to the accounts of the more modern, have 
 explained this section of the Messiah, see, as a supplement to the literary 
 history of chapter liii, wnich is given in my commentary, (Th. 3. S. 160, 
 ff.) ScHOTTGEN deM«^ssia, in liis Horae Heb. et Talmud. V. II. pp 181, 
 ss., EisEiVMENGt.R entdccktcs Judenthum, II. S. 757, Hulsi- Theologia 
 Judaica, pp. 321, ss. That the idea of a suffering and dying Messiah can, 
 in no way, be derived from this place of Jonathan, as Staudlin, (G6t- 
 TiNG. Theol. Bibliothek, Th. 1. S. 241,) and Bertholdt, (Christologia 
 Judaeorum, $ 29,) suppose, has been shown by De Wette, nbi sup 
 Oomjiftre also his Bibl. Theologie, ^ 201. 
 
OP THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 435 
 
 by our sins (5) ; he leads the princes of the nations to slaugh- 
 ter (7), and the wicked into hell. The remainder of his peo- 
 ple he purifies, and expiates their sins (10). Then they live 
 long in Messiah's kingdom, see sons and grandsons, are deli- 
 vered from the dominion of the heathen, become victors over 
 their enemies' (11, 12). In v. 5, the discourse is expressly of 
 his doctrine : through his doctrine are we made abundantli/ 
 happy, and when we obey his zoords our sins xoill be forgiven us, 
 Comp. XLii. 3, 4, and xi. 2. In this and in the intercession 
 for the people which is ascribed to him, we have evidently 
 the prophetic and high-priestly offices, which, together with 
 the kingly, the Jews thus attached to the character of the 
 Messiah, and which, in the epistle to the Hebrews, we find 
 committed to Christ. — Other references to Jewish theology 
 are the mention of the second death in xxri. 14, which the 
 damned undergo in another world, (comp. the Jerus. Targ. 
 on Deut. xxxm. 6. Rev. ii. 11, and Wetstein in loc, xx. 6, 
 14. XXI. 8.) ; the explanation of xxv. 33, by hell, (Gehenna) ; 
 and the frequent mention of the Schecinah (nJOB'), xl. 22* 
 Lvii. 15, and elsewhere. 
 
 The text, which Jonathan had before him, was on the whole, 
 the masoretic, and with this text he agrees also m the vowels, 
 the cause of which mriy be, that the authors of the points were 
 led by the paraphrjases, or that the same interpretation which 
 they exhibit was established as early as the time of Jonathan. 
 Yet there are also varieties both in the consonants and vowels. 
 For example : ni. 12, D^i^^ ; Targ. xjin 'y^, creditors, (as if it 
 were d\'j) :— ni. 6, nW'^o; Targ. nva^D, after the reading, 
 rh^'o^ : — XIX. 18 ; here at onnn Tjr, for which also onnn y^; is 
 read, both readings are expressed ; 3"inpS xTPj^-n wmi n^3 ^r^')\>^ 
 the city [Bethshemesh], city \ house], of the sun, (Heliopolis), 
 which will be destroyed, — from Din, the sun, and D"»n, to de- 
 stroy. The explanation is founded on Jer. xlui. 13, and al- 
 though it may have had a controversial bearing against the 
 Alexandrine Jews, (see above, p. 408,) yet it lays the founda- 
 tion for other results. — u. 6, S^yf\ n^3 ^rpv_ rsmm ^2, [" there- 
 fore thou hast forsaken thy people, the house of Jacob." Eng. 
 Tr.] is translated in the Targum, thus : you have deserted the 
 
 54 
 
4^ 
 
 UN TilE INTERPRETATION 
 
 dreadful one, the strong, zoho delivered you, house of Israel. It 
 is probable that after ^r^V he read ^iiv, (comp. Deut. xxxii. 
 15,) which reading would give a very suitable sense. How- 
 ever, he has elsewhere allowed himself too great liberties, to 
 permit us to attach much weight to this supposition. 
 
 From what has been said, it is evident, that this version, 
 although of real advantage, should be used with great cau- 
 tion, and it appears to me that Dr. Rosenmiiller has depend- 
 ed too often OB its interpretations. 
 
 That there must have been a Jerusalem Targum on the 
 prophets, is plain from a fragment, which Bruns in Cod. 
 Kennic. 154, found on Zech. xii. 10. Whether this is the 
 same with that which Asseman deposited in the Vatican libra- 
 ry, I am unable to determine. 
 
 The Syriac Version. 
 
 Among the old versions, the third place in point of time 
 belongs to the Peshito Syriac, which, resting on the authority 
 of the two last, and, moreover, conducted by more correct 
 principles of interpretation and translation, meets the de- 
 mands of a correct and faithful translator far better than 
 those, and nearly in the same manner, as Symmachus and 
 Theodotion. The author translates from the Hebrew text, 
 not without knowledge of the language, with selected use of 
 the Alexandrine version, more rarely of the Chaldee, but 
 frequently also independently of both, agreeably to his own 
 feeling and judgment. Where he does not happen to follow 
 the Septuagint, he preserves the figures and tropes, and from 
 arbitrary introduction of opinions he is freer than almost any 
 other ancient translator, so that the name of Peshito, that is, 
 
OF THE I'ROPHET ISAlAU. 427 
 
 ihe simple and faithful^" is most appropriately^applied to his 
 work. Since also the cliaracter of both tongues favours 
 this close approximation, the imitation is sometimes to be 
 called masterly. As a proof of what has been said, so far 
 as this may be shown in particular instances, the reader is re* 
 ferred to, 
 
 1. Some places where he has openly followed the Septua- 
 gint, even in cases of free and somewhat arbitrary translation. 
 Compare in the Hebrew, Septuagint and Syriac, the following 
 places : i. 22, 25. n. 20. ni. 17. vu. 20. ix. 13. xxx, 4, 
 20. Lui. 2.* — Still, in such cases he much more frequently 
 abandons the Alexandrine version : see v. 17. vi. 1. ix. 8, 
 10. x. 14, 16. XI. 4, 14. xxn. 23. xxvni. 8. xxui. 17. He 
 preserves the expression to see God in the two places (i. 12. 
 xxxvni. 12.) where it occurs. Yet he agrees with Theodo- 
 tion, for instance in xxvm. 6. 
 
 2. Less observed is his agreement with the Chaldee, which, 
 
 3 7 In the place of this usual interpretation, which, we shall see is 
 also the correct one, Dr. Bertholdt (Einieit. 11. s. 593) has brought 
 forward another, according to which it signifies the extended^ commonly 
 •used, and is equivalent to koivi], vulgata. He adduces the Chaldee ex- 
 pressions, t3icy3 jnjQj common custom, tJv.i'B Vlf commonmanner. But 
 in the alleged cases the idea of simple lies at the bottom of the word, 
 as Buitorf has expressly remarked in his Chaldee Lexicon ; and, which 
 is chiefly important, this change of the idea is inappropriate in the pre- 
 sent instance, since t3^{£'»3 is constantly used of literal interpretatJons 
 of Scripture, in opposition to the Medrashin, allegorical and B*ysticai 
 interpretations. This is its meaning in this case, as is shfw'n also by 
 the use of the cognate words in the Syriac and Arab'-; languages. I 
 agree entirely in the remark of the same author, (3. 694 — 5 ) that the 
 version is to be ascribed to the third, or probably to the second century 
 after Christ. 
 
 * [ In the original these references, and others in this and the two fol- 
 lowing sections are given in full, in the oriental languages. From the 
 difl&culty of procuring suitable type for the Syriac and Arabic, and be- 
 cause the Hebrew and Greek quotations would be useless without the 
 Syriac, I have been obliged to content myself by referring to thepla- 
 *.-es. Tr. 2 
 
428 UN THK, INTERPRETATION 
 
 as we shall see below, is real dependence. See, for example, 
 in Hebrew, Chaldee and Syriac, in. 3, 16, xxn. 5, xxni. 10. 
 xxvn. 8, nNpND3 ; Targ. ivith the measure wherewith thou mea- 
 surest, will they measure to thee, (see Matt. vn. 2, and Ljght- 
 FOOT in ioc. Mark, iv. 24,) Syr. with the measure wherewith 
 thou measurest, wilt thou judge him. xxv. 7. xxvni. 28. liv. 7. 
 LVii. 8. Lvm. 3. Lxi. 8. lxvi. 18. — But that the Syriac trans- 
 lator really had the Chaldee version before his eyes may be 
 inferred with some probability from the following examples. 
 The difficult clause in xxxni. 7, D^s*")*;: jn [ " behold, their vali- 
 ant ones ;" Eng. Tr. ] is rendered by the Syriac : if he sho7u 
 himself to them. It is evident that he has interpreted dSk"^x 
 by D"? Tiii'^ii for dhS riN^»s;, but this gives us only the /rs/, not 
 the third person, and the Syriac translator does not allow him- 
 self such arbitrary changes without reason. This is to be 
 traced to the Chaldee. Here the version is pnS ^SjnK, which 
 should undoubtedly be read in the first person, jinS '^jpn ; but 
 the Syriac translator read it, as it stands in the Polyglott, 
 \inh '''^iJ^ii, and consequently rendered it also in the third per- 
 son. See also xxii. 6, 24. 
 
 3» Where he translates independently, he often follows in 
 difficult places exegetical conjectures, which have no further 
 authority; but, in some cases, they may really be called 
 happy. — Examples of independent exposition are as follows : 
 m. 24, ^'.J'np, their purple blue, — (he combines it with r^S^n). 
 V. 2, 4, Siliqu(S, caroh fruit ; (to suit the context he chooses 
 a contemptible species of fruit, scarcely fit for cattle. See 
 LuV. XV. 16. Sept. dxxv^ag : — ix. 5, he commutes pxp with 
 pW I — XX VIII. 10 ; here the paronomasia is followed up, and 
 the translativin \^ filth upon filth, (as if i^ were equivalent to 
 71^12:,) vomit ypan vomit. Sometimes he omits words which 
 are difficult, or at least difficult in the connexion in which 
 they stand, or which appear to him superfluous ; as, for in- 
 stance nnx in XXI. 8, and the repetition in xxi. 11. —A truly 
 happy exposition is that in x. 27, broken is the yoke from the 
 fat steer. See my commentary on this place. — xxvii. 25, 
 with the steps [ " sole " Eng. Tr. ] of my feet; Syriac, with 
 
OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 4*29 
 
 iht hoofs of my horses. — He has also occasionally supposed 
 Syriac idioms to be found in the Hebrew, and translated ac- 
 cordingly. Thus XIV. 12, ^nw-{3 ^Vn, ["O Lucifer, son of 
 the morning," Eng. Tr. ] he translates, howl in the very dawn. 
 His mind dwells on the idiom nj.'^ |3 in the same night, Jon. 
 'v. 10, i^a-» i'^ in that very day, l^^-» J^ in the same hour, 
 Comp. Deut. x\iv. 15. Prov. xn- 16. 
 
 To the question which has been so often asked, and which 
 has not been answered on internal grounds, whether the author 
 of this version were a Jew or a Christian, 1 can confident- 
 ly reply, at least in reference to the translation of Isaiah, in 
 favour of the latter opinion.^ In support of a Jewish author 
 no reason is alleged which can be considered as satisfac- 
 tory, while in some places the Christian appears very plain- 
 ly. Although he generally follows his text step by step, 
 yet there are some translations which intimate the belief to 
 which he was attached. The most important is vn. 14, 
 where he translates r\rhy, young woman, the mother of Em- 
 manuel, by virgin, while, in all other places where the samd 
 Hebrew word occurs, he gives the term which corresponds 
 with it, (Gen. xxiv. 43. Ex. n. 8- Ps. lxvhi. 26. Cant. i. 3. 
 VI. 7,) as the Chaldee also does in this passage, &<npSij;. Also, 
 rr^^J, in Gen. xxiv. 16, he translates by tne same term. In 
 like manner h^ in ix. 6, used of the Messiah, he renders by 
 the word God, just as the Arabic translator ; and in lh. 15, 
 like Jerome, he makes the servant of God purify and expiate 
 the sins of the people (with his blood) ; nr, Syr. Xot^, Vulg. 
 asperget — lhi. 8 : )df, in reference to the servant of God, 
 is rendered t-j him, so that he appears as an individual and 
 not as a collective body. The same interpretations are found 
 again in Jerome and the (Christian) translator of the Arabic 
 in the Polyglots ; so that we see, that the Christian transla- 
 tors have not indeed allowed themselves such gross altera- 
 
 3 • For a Christian origin, see Kirsch Praef. ad Pent. Syr. S. 6> 
 Be«tholdt's Einieit. n. S. 596, 598 ; for the Jewish, R. Simon, Hist> 
 Crit. du V. T. p. 272. Rotterdam, 1685. 
 
430 ON THE INTERPRETATION 
 
 tions as meet us in the Septuagint and Chaldee, while at the 
 same time, in classical* places, they have maintained the 
 claims of Christian doctrine. In the Psalms, the views of 
 the translator appear in the circumlocutory interpretations of 
 the titles, which are arbitrary and Christian. See Ps. u. vu. 
 X. xvni. xxii. 
 
 Besides the internal evidence, the fact that this version 
 was, in a very early period, the generally acknowledged 
 church version of the Syrian Christians, comprehending all 
 parties, confirms the opinion that the author was a Christian^ 
 In addition to which it may be urged, that formerly the Sy- 
 riac language appears to have been employed exclusively by 
 Christian writers, and that not the least trace of its use 
 among the Jews is discoverable- Its literal simplicity, which 
 Simon considers as a mark of its Jewish origin, (where he 
 seems to have had Aquila principally in view,) leads rather 
 to the opposite conclusion, when the connexion between the 
 Septuagint, the Targum of Jonathan, and Saadias on the one 
 hand, and between Symmachus, Theodotion and Jerome on 
 the other, are attentively considered. The literal simplicity 
 of this Christian translator is, moreover, essentially different 
 from the syllable numbering manner of Aquila and of the 
 Venetian translator. But that an occasional consultation of 
 the Targum is no proof that the translator belonged to the 
 Jews, is abundantly clear even from this translator of Isaiah, 
 who never grants them, in doctrinal passages, the least influ* 
 ence. And yet even Jerome did not disdain to avail himself 
 of Jewish instructors. — If no more definite grounds for the 
 Jewish origin of this version in the other books can be ad- 
 duced, (and I doubt whether this be possible,) even the act 
 '^iommodating views of Eichhorn must be given up^ ; and^ 
 
 * [ This word is technically applied to passagesL which are considered 
 as prominent in reference to any particular point. Tr. ] 
 
 a 9 EicHHOR> (Einleit. S.482, \\\. S. 133,] §250) endeavours to dis- 
 tinguish the various books, appropriating them to various authors, and 
 Dathe (Praef. ad Psalt. Syr. pp. 23, ss.) suggests a proselyte as the 
 translator 
 
OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 431 
 
 when we consider the similarity of the Chaldee and the Sy- 
 riac, the supposition of a proselyte from Judaism is altogether 
 unnecessary. 
 
 His text varies here and there from the masoretic, but the 
 variations are never superior to that text. In general the con- 
 trary is the case, as in viu. 20. x- 9. xvi. 1. luI. 7. xxviu. 26. 
 XXV. 8. In the last text, he expresses the word nyjS twice 
 with different meanings, thus : to victory for ever. It is fre- 
 quently the case, that where many critics, particularly Lowth 
 and Koppe, have been anxious to discover variations, none 
 such are to be found. For instance in xiii. 10, Dn'S'pP, [ " con- 
 stellations thereof," Eng. Tr. ] is rendered their hosts or 
 powers* Here Koppe conjectures that the translator read, 
 °D'':!'r!» whereas he considered D'^t?^ as the name of a star, 
 and his hosts or powers is the Chaldee kw S^n of Dan. iv. 
 32, the 5uvajxsiff tou ou^avou of Matt. XXIV. 29. — The text of the 
 translator himself differs occasionally in ^ the citations of 
 Ephraim the Syrian from that of the Polyglots, because he 
 sometimes rather follows the Septuagint, and sometimes ra- 
 ther the Hebrew text."" 
 
 § 4. . „ 
 
 Latin Version of Jerome. 
 
 The same select use of the earlier translations which is 
 made in the Syriac, and particularly of the Alexandrine and 
 three other Greek versions contained in the Hexapla, we find 
 in Jerome, and in addition also to this, oral instruction com- 
 municated by Palestine Rabbins,^^ For this reason his exposi- 
 tions very frequently agree with those of the later Rabbins : 
 
 3 See G. L. Spohn CoUatio versionis Syriacae, quam Peshito vocant, 
 cum fragmentis in commentariis Ephraemi Syri obviis. Spec. I. Lips. 
 1785. Spec. II. Vitebergee, 1794, 4to. Both together comprehend 
 Isaiah. 
 
 31 Geschichte der Heb. Sprache und Scrift. S. 92. 
 
432 on THE INTERPRETATION 
 
 however, he does not on that account abandon the cause o{ 
 Christian doctrine any more than the Syriac translator, with 
 whom he agrees most accurately in the places which have 
 been before adduced. For instance vii. 14, noS^, virgo, see 
 my commentary on this place ;) ix. 6. S«, Deus (of Christ) ; 
 LU. 13, nij asperfrtt ; lhi. 8, idJ j^jj ^^s;; i'^sp, propter scelus 
 populi mei percussi eum. With the well known character of 
 this version, and the abundant use which is made of it in the 
 commentary, it would be unnecessary to illustrate what has 
 been said by examples. But on the commentary of Jerome, 
 compare § 7, 2. 
 
 §5. 
 
 .Arabic Version of Saadtas. 
 
 The celebrated Rabbi Saadias Gaon, who died A. D. 942, 
 after he had been since 927 principal of the Jewish acade- 
 my at Babylon% was the first who composed a grammar of 
 the Hebrew language. He was also the author of the Ara- 
 bic Pentateuch printed in the Polyglots, and of a version of 
 Isaiah which, in its whole character, agrees most accurately 
 with that of the Pentateuch.^ Through the laborious exer- 
 tions of Dr. Paulus, this version has been given to the 
 world, from the only known manuscript extant, which is pre- 
 served in the Bodleian liibrary at Oxford. Cod. Pocock. No. 
 32. Uri catalog. Cod. Heb. No. 1 56. It is printed under 
 this title: R. Saadiae Phijumensis Versio Jesaiae Arabica, 
 cum aliis speciminibus Arabico-biblicis, e manuscripto Bod- 
 leiano nunc primum edidit, alque ad modumchrestomathiae 
 Arabicae biblicae glossario perpetuo instruxit, H. E. G. 
 Paulus. Fasc. I. continens cap. i — xxxvm. Jenae, 1790. 
 
 3 2 WoLFn Biblioth. Heb. T. I. pp. 932—936. 
 
 3 3 On the identity of the translator of the Pentateuch and of Isaiah, 
 seeTvcHSEif in MiCHAEtisNeue Orient. Bibliothek. vm. S. 76, ff. 
 
I 
 
 OF THE PROPHEF ISAIAH. 433 
 
 Fasc. II. continens Jesaiam jam totum, ex ii aliis versionibus 
 prophetae specimina exhibens. 1791, 8vo." The work, ori- 
 ginally written in the year 1244 in Hebrew letters, often 
 without diacritical points, and not unfrequently erroneous, is 
 published by the editor in the Arabic character, and provid- 
 ed with the vowel points. If, in a work involving very many 
 difficulties, the editor has left much to be wished for in refe- 
 rence to the explication and right understanding of the text, 
 yet in a first publication this is not to be severely found fault 
 with. There is in this edition, and especially at the begin- 
 ning, so much of this kind, that the reader stumbles at every 
 step, and a reference to the many improvements at the end 
 of the second part, which yet are not sufficient, is hardly to 
 be expected of him, and therefo/fe a new edition, corrected 
 and improved as far as possible, is much to be wished for. 
 It should be accompanied by an accurate punctuation and a 
 Latin version, as it is difficult now and then to understand 
 the meaning.^ 
 
 In general, as far as regards apprehension of the sense, 
 the version, in an exegetical point of view, follows closely 
 that interpretation of particular places which originated from 
 the Jews and was admitted by their expositors. Consequent- 
 ly it has a frequent affinity with the Chaldee and the later 
 Rabbinical commentators, although it possesses much thought 
 and originality. In respect to giving the sense, it often takes a 
 
 3 4 Many improvements in the text, and in the explanation contained 
 in the subjoined notes, may be found in Eichhorn's Bibiiothek. Th. in. 
 S. 9. flF. and 455, fF. Others, with remarks in other respects important, 
 are contained in Michaelis Neue Orient. Bibiiothek, Th. viii. S. 75, IT. 
 The publication of Ch. Dan. Breithaupt (Commentationis in Saa- 
 dianam versionem lesaiae Arabicam, fasc. 1. Rostochii et Suerini, 1819, 
 pp. 96, 8vo.) consists of an introduction and merely some improve- 
 ments and observations of another kind on chaps, i — ni. A new edi- 
 tion however is promised. (Comp. Algem. Zeitung. 1819, No. 269.) 
 RosENMiJLLER, in his Scholia, has certainly done more than any other 
 writer, although constantly, and even in the first chapters, where so ma- 
 ny have gone over the ground, a gleaning still remains- Sese, for ex- 
 ample, the note on i. 7. 
 
 55 
 
434 0.M THE INTERPRETATlOxN' 
 
 free paraphrastic course, explains tropes, does away aiithro- 
 popathic expressions, indulges in numerous additions, and 
 changes the old geographical names for new. AH this I 
 ^all now endeavour to evince by some examples. 
 
 1. This translator explains tropes and figurative forms of 
 speech, or softens them by circumlocutions. For instance, 
 in 1. 21, nJU is translated idolatress ; i. 8, jr^ ^h standing for 
 the city, merely Zion, but, when it stands for the nation, as- 
 sembly, people of Zion, xvi. 1 : — i. 10 is thus translated: ye 
 tuho are like the rulers of Sodom — ye who are similar to the 
 people of Gomorrha : — v. 11, 'y\j?yz% [ ' I am full," Eng. Tr.] ; 
 Ai'ab. / consider it as too much : — ni. 6, nxin nSi!0?3n, [" this 
 ruin," Eng. Tr.] ; Arab, this poor people : — vni. 1, iyiJ.« D;^n5, 
 [" with a man's pen," Eng. Tr.] ; with the usual writing : — 
 x. 15, ]y'vh ni^p onn^, ["as if the staff should lift up (itself, 
 as if it were) no wood," Eng. Tr.] ; Arab, as if the lifting 
 up of the staff did not proceed from him, namely, from him 
 who raises it. Sometimes he adds the particle like as. See 
 11. 21. xiv. 3. Moreover, he is not always uniform, and some- 
 times preserves such expressions unaltered, as in ix. 14, 
 |iDJNi n33, [" branch and rush," Eng. Tr.] ; Arab pond and 
 palm twig, ^^ (only by an everted arrangement ;) or selects the 
 trope somewhat differently, as in ix. 6 ; on whose head the 
 government rests, where his mind is dwelling on a crown. 
 
 2. He removes anthropopathic expressions or softens them. 
 I. 15, ^^4? Q')):^, [ " I will hide mine eyes," Eng. Tr. ] ; Arab. 
 I will shut up my compassion: — v. 18. nnp^J} N3-oS ["come 
 now and let us reason together," Eng. Tr. ] ; Arab, come on 
 until we meet one another : — vi. 1, his splendor filled the tem- 
 ple ;— XIX. 1, Sp_ 3r Sjtr njS mn;, [ "the Lord rideth upon a 
 swift cloud," Eng. Tr. ] ; Arab. God covered his word in swift 
 clouds :~xxx\\. 16, 17 "iji ^3 7, ["for my mouth it hath 
 commanded, and his spirit it hath gathered them," Eng, Tr.] ; 
 
 3 5 Dr. Paulus ^ives a different punctuation to one of the words, and 
 translates : jugulwn et ulcus (capitis aut faciei) ; but this gives no intel- 
 
 itgible sense. 
 
OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 435 
 
 tie with his zvord-gives command respecting thcmy and his angel, 
 he makes them together. Like a king he casts lot respecting 
 fhem and divides it among them. Thus, in the manner of the 
 later Jews, he makes God's angel or word (i<Jr2'D) instead 
 of himself to be engaged in the work of creation. Comp. 
 also XXVI. 21. XXVIII. 3, where word of God \s used for Je 
 hovahf and xxv. 10, for hand of Jehovah. For father of men" 
 applied to God, he uses creator, lxui. 16. lxiv. 7, for arm of 
 Jehovah Lxiii. 12, power of God, while on the other hand in 
 X. 2, the trope short hand of God is retained, probably because 
 it was used in the Arabic, and, as a trope, without being of- 
 fensive. In L. 5, instead of, " the Lord God hath opened 
 mine ear," the Arabic is, God has before instructed me in the 
 matters. Comp. yet i. 12, 18, 20, 24. — Like other translators, 
 he supposes indecorous expressions to be inconsistent with 
 the dignity of Scripture, and removes them. For instance, 
 111. 17, n^y: \r}m, [ " will discover their secret parts," Eng. 
 Tr, ] ; Arab, he will bare their parts (or sides) :^-Lvn 8 ; here 
 for n\Tn t ["where thou sawest «7," Eng. Tr. ] he leaves 
 an empty space : — and in xiii. 16, he expresses at least the 
 milder reading of the Keri ru^Diyn. 
 
 3. His additions are similar to those of the Chaldee inter- 
 preter, and are very frequently intended to designate a 
 change of the party speaking. For example, lvui. 1, he 
 (God) spake to me : — v. 3, in the beginning, thei/ say ; and 
 before the last member, O prophet, answer him : — lx. 8, then 
 will J say : — lxhi. 1, then will it be said. See u. 10. viii. 19. 
 Lxu. 1. Lxni. 11. Others are of less frequent occurrence. 
 One which is more doctrinal is in xlu. 19, where to the 
 words explained of the Messiah, who is deaf — if it be not he 
 to whom I send my messenger, (i. e. the Messiah,) immediate- 
 ly he adds in a parenthesis, zy/ien I shall have sent him to them, 
 (the people), thereby retaining the suggestion that this mes- 
 senger is a personage whose coming was still to be expect- 
 ed.^ — On the other hand, he has also again omitted what 
 
 3 6 Dr. RosenmflUer, on XLii. 19, considers these words as anintff' 
 
436 ON I'riE IN^'ERPRKTATION 
 
 appeared to him to be superfluous, as, for instance, tlie im- 
 pressive repetition in li. 15, 17, and frequently. 
 
 4. Like the author of the later Targums and of the Samari- 
 tan version, mstcdd of the old geographical names he intro- 
 duces the more modern terms which were in use in his own 
 day, and is very often correct. Thus, for example, jsf 3 is 
 Batan(Ba, u. 13 ; u/^r^^'^2Cercusium, x. 9 ; r>3 Ahhysinia, xi. 
 II. xvn. 1; D'.IV? ^r^ ^^* •^^^•''■^j xxvn. 12; jnTpi^ Sebaste. 
 X. 9 : others are not unsuitable, as D^'i^, Cyprus, xxni. 1 > 
 (see my Lexicon on this word ;) jn^, the capital city of Cho- 
 rasan, xxxvn. 12, (see the Commentary in loc. :) DJn, a city in 
 Egypt, xxx. 4, (see Comment. ;) uS3, a city in Mesopotamia, 
 X. 8, (see Schultens ind. ad Vit. Saladini on the word Racca ;) 
 dVj[ XI. 11, and xxii. 5 ; '^r^ Hamedan^ i. e. the chief city of 
 Media, xni. 17, and xxi. 2 ; 5<5*^* a city in Arabia, lx. 6, (see 
 AfiALFED-ffi Arabia, cur. Rommel, p. 30, 42 — Some others, 
 however, are very erroneous, as d^n Armenia, vn. 5. ix. 11, 
 (comp. Gen. x. 22,) where the similarity of the name has 
 given rise to the mistake ; njn Antioch xi. 11 ; also, "yw^ in 
 vn. 18, XI. 11, XX. 4, while Mesopotamia constituted only one 
 part of the Assyrian empire. But he is not uniform, and 
 sometimes explains "\r^^N by southern Mesopotamia, vn. 20, 
 vm, 4 ;t oV^n^ he sometimes translates by dwelling of peace, 
 ^LX, L or city of peace, xl. 2, which is of some importance in 
 
 potation hy a Christian hand, and translates them, sane misi mm ad ilium, 
 according to which the advent of that messenger is presumed to have 
 taken place. But interpolations made in this work by a Christian wri- 
 ter are quite improbable, and the translation given above in the text is 
 undoubtedly AVell founded, since \a^ for tehen, used of the future, is a 
 very common meaning, and then the preterite must be taken by the 
 future completed.* Thus, for instance, when you shall ha ce come together 
 wilhher, (Thousand and one nights. No. 162, in Michaklis' Chrestoma- 
 thy, third edition, edited by Bernstein, p. 188,) or, I will come to you, 
 lohen that one shall have come before, (DscUauhari in GoLius, col. 54,)' 
 in both which places, the Arabic uses the same word. 
 
 * [ In the original, it is futurum exacium. By this the author means 
 what Webster calls the Prior-Future, indefinite. Tr. ] 
 
 i [ An omission of one or tw^o lines in this place is caused by the dif- 
 ficulty of printing the Arabic words. Tr. 1 
 
OV THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 
 
 437 
 
 reference to the etymological interpretation. The word \if'V:']i^ 
 he renders sea in n. 16, xxui. 1, 10, 14. lx. 9, agreeing with 
 the Targum, but in Gen. x. 3, he translates it Tarsus. 
 
 5. Not unfrequently does he make an attempt to retain 
 the Hebrew words themselves, or with slight alteration, in 
 the Arabic, which to his ear is generally euphonic. See i. 8, 
 9, 12. n. 3. V. 2, and compare Gen. xlix. 11. Sometimes 
 the exposition acquires in this w^ay additional force, as in i. 7, 
 where on? nDSnoa is translated like the rushing course of 
 streams, 
 
 6. Interpretations which correspond with those given in 
 the Targum and by the Rabbins are constantly to be met 
 with. Thus, for example : vi. 1, in the year when King Uz- 
 ziah became leprous : — ^xxi. 5, |iO *n^'p, and they anointed 
 a king from them ; comp. Abarbenel, who explains jiD, 
 .'ihieldf by king, and Aben-Ezra who refers it expressly to 
 Darius : — v. 24, fro?n the ornament of the people to the orna- 
 ment of the priests, who take charge of the basins, and to the 
 ornament of the Levites, who sing hymns. See above the 
 Chaldee and Syriac. — xxiv. 15, onxs, Targ. when light 
 comes for the righteous ; Saadias, when his light will appear ;— - 
 XXVI. 3, "^IiDD '^2f;, the creatures who are supported, i. e. who 
 need support. In this way is the word nv"; explained b}^ 
 Jarchi. Comp. ix. 4, with his note. — Ungrammatical con- 
 nexions of words occur also, as in Jonathan ; thus in xxii. 3, 
 nDJ|inK/pD nn^, 50 that they are bound by one 6 ow, as if the 
 reading were, nn^; r\p^p, Comp. vii. 21. On the other 
 hand examples of meanings peculiar to the author and very 
 suitable will be found in abundance in my Commentary. 
 
 Various readings in the consonants will probably not be 
 found, provided the reader be thoroughly acquainted with his 
 manner, and constantly keep it in view. In the vowels there 
 are sometimes variations. See xmx. 37, where instead of 
 T33 he reads yj3. 
 
438 OS THE INTERPRETATION 
 
 §6. 
 
 Versions which have sprung from the Alexandrine, 
 '% 
 
 Of the versions founded on the Alexandrine, all of which 
 were composed by Christians, and may be made very ser- 
 viceable in the criticism of the Septuagint, on the prophet 
 Isaiah it is only the Latin, as far as it remains, the Arabic, 
 the Armenian and the Georgian, that have appeared in print. 
 Omitting the two last, which are not accessible to me, nor do 
 I sufficiently understand them, I shall confine my remarks to 
 the first, in reference to its critical relation to the Septua- 
 gint.'^ 
 
 1. It is well known that the old Latin version, antecedent 
 to the time of Jerome, was lost, with the exception of such 
 books as were incorporated in the Vulgate. From the high 
 estimation, however, in which the Old Testament writer un- 
 der consideration was held, such a multitude of quotations 
 from him according to this version is to be found in the early 
 fathers, that Sabatier, in his important collection of fragments 
 from them and from other manuscripts,^ was able to restore 
 three fourths of the whole book, 1000 verses out of 1293, 
 which is not the case with regard to any other book of the 
 Old Testament. This version follows, as is known, the text 
 of the Septuagint which existed before the time of Origen, or 
 
 3 7 The most important of these versions that have sprung from the 
 Septuagint is undoubtedly the Hexaplar Syriac, of which the Ambro- 
 sian manuscript, which in the Norberg copy has but lately been used 
 by MiDDLEDORPF, (cuTse Hexaplares in Jobum, 1817, 4to.) contains 
 Isaiah. The Ethiopic is in the British Museum, and contains, along with 
 the canonical Isaiah, the manuscript of Lawrence, from which The, As- 
 cension of Isaiah was printed. See Praet. p. v. It follows the Alex- 
 andrine recension. 
 
 3 8 Petri Sabatier Bibliorum sacrorum Latinae versionis antiquae, 
 seu vetus Italica et caeteras quscunque in Codd. MSS. et antiquorum 
 libris reperiri potuerunt Romis, 1743. T. j. — iii. Fol. The version of 
 Isaiah is in T. ii, pp. 515—639. 
 
OP THE PROi»HET ISAIAH. 439 
 
 what was called the xoivr] or vulgate, and therefore agrees for 
 the most part with the Vatican text of the Septuagint, which 
 comes nearest of all to that of the xo<v>).^ On this account it is 
 able, from its close literal manner, to afford important service 
 for the restitution of the ancient readings. Thus, for example, 
 in Lx. 5, something is missed in the Septuagint which should 
 correspond with the word mn:i. Theodotion has, xai XH^^V '•> 
 and that it should also be so read in the Septuagint is shown 
 by the Old Vulgate, et gaudebis, and also by the Arabic. It 
 contains, too, all the additions of the Alexandrine version 
 which are not founded on the Hebrew text, as in i. 21. iv. 4. 
 ix. 1, 21. XXX. 4, XL. 1, 5. xLii. 1. Lxv. 4, which, in part, as 
 XL. 1. 5, are not found in the copies that have been affected 
 by Origen's revision Traces of the influence of Christian 
 dogmatic or polemic theology I have no where found, and, 
 were they in general circulation as early as the time of the 
 translator, there was indeed no opportunity for it, since in the 
 Septuagint according to the ^oivr] all the places which were 
 formerly brought into consideration, as ix. 6, lii. 13. liii. 8, 
 have entirely perished. The occurrence of virgo in vu. 14, is 
 not to be taken into account, since this is the natural transla- 
 tion of "B-apSsvo?. In some places vi^hich have been misunder- 
 stood by the Arabic translator, he has given the sense more 
 correctly, as, for example, in xxvi. 14. 
 
 2. According to the subscription of the Paris manuscript, the 
 Mrabic translation'm the Paris and London Polyglots, in Isaiah, 
 as in the prophets generally, was composed by an ecclesiastic 
 of the Alexandrine church, whose age cannot be ascertained 
 with certaity.'^" But the manuscript was written A. D. 1584. 
 In reference to his age, thus much only can be said, that he must 
 have written when the Arabic language had excluded in 
 
 3 9 Rob. Holmes, Praef. ad ed. Oxen, lxx Interp. 1798, fol. Cap. 2. 
 No. 2. 
 
 * See GabrielSionita in the preface to the Syriac Psalter, Paris, 
 1625, Alder's Bibliscb. Kritische Beise, S, 208. 
 
440 OS THE INTEKFRETATION 
 
 Egypt the Greek (and Coptic), or had begun to exclude them, 
 so that such versions had become necessary for the use of 
 Christians ; in other words, somewhat after the 10th century.*^ 
 At that period the patriarch of Alexandria, Etychius, son of 
 Patrick, wrote a history of the world in Arabic, and afterwards 
 many Christian writers in Egypt made use of that language, 
 for instance, Elmacin. The Arabic diction of this translator 
 seems at times to approximate to the vulgar dialect, as when 
 he usually begins his version of the books with the form : we. 
 begin the translation ofMalachi, c^c, for : / begin. If we were 
 better acquamted with the history of the lessons and portions 
 of the Bible used in the Greek church, (of which further be- 
 low,) we should probably be able to arrive at some conclusion 
 respecting the age in which he lived. 
 
 Pecuhar to this version, at least in Isaiah, in its external 
 form, is a threefold division, each of which appears continu- 
 ously in the same text. In the first place, Isaiah, as well as 
 the other prophets, is divided into a number of sections,"^ of 
 which Isaiah contains thirty, the portions being in general 
 very badly divided, as no other principle seems to have been 
 kept in view, except that of giving to each a nearly equal 
 number of verses. Thus, for instance, number 2 begins 
 with n. 10, (number 3 is wanting,) number 4 with vu. 3, 
 number 5 with ix. 1, number 6 with x. 22, number 7 with 
 xm. 11. Better is that division, which however is confined 
 to the beginning of Isaiah and to Daniel, which designates 
 the oracles or visions, for instance, number 2 at n. I, number 
 3 at VI. 1, number 4 at vii. 1, number 5 at xni. 1, number 9 
 at xix. 1, number 10 at xx. 1 Beside these two divisions," || 
 there is also another of a liturgicaj kind, which is peculiar to 
 Isaiah. Very frequently we meet with express indications 
 by means of titles thrown in, that here a (church) lesson be. 
 gins, with which an outhne of the contents is usually given ; 
 
 * J Renaudot Hist. Patriarch. Alexand. Jacobit. pp. 367, 418. 
 
 * Tbe Arabic word is, in the Polyglot translations, incorrectly ren- 
 dered text. 
 
I 
 
 or THE PROPHET ISAIAH- 441 
 
 sometimes the festival on which the lesson is to be read is 
 also mentioned, but never how far it extends. Yet this is, 
 as I conjecture, only omitted in the impression in the Poly- 
 glots, The following may serve as specimens of such ti- 
 tles: 1.21, Lesson, wherein the prophet's amazement at the 
 city of Jerusalem and its changts is i^ontained, and what 
 should happen to it and its inhabitants i^ mentioned / — in. 16, 
 Lesson, containing the prophefs denunciation against the in^ 
 continence of the women of Zion. Such are found too in m. 
 1. V. 1. VI. 1, IX. 8. X. i, &c. with the addition of the fes- 
 tival before vu. 10, thus : Lesson for the festival of the birth 
 (of Christ), containing the prophefs message to the house of 
 David respecting the birth of Christ ; — before xl. 3, Lesson 
 for Si, John's day ; — before lvu. 3, Lesson for the Sunday — , 
 where something seems to be wanting ; — before lx. 1, Lesson 
 for Easter Sunday.'^ There are also other titles, which con- 
 tain notices of the contents together with historical and doc- 
 trinal explanations. Por example, in xxv. 1 : thanksgivings 
 
 4 9 As it has been ascertained, that definite portions for the festival 
 were earlier in use than for all Sundays, this directs us to that earlier 
 time. Of the portions above referred to, two, namely vii, 10, ss. and 
 ^L. 3, ss., agree with the usage of tlie Western, that is, the Gallicaa 
 «hurch, which we learn from a Lectionariiim G&llicum of the seventh 
 century, (See Mabillow, Lib. 2. Liturg. Gallic. Paris, 1782, ed. ii. 
 Paris, 1729, pp. 106, ss. and comp. Thameri Schediasma de origine ^ 
 dignitate pericoparum, Jenae 1716, pp. 102, ss.,) and xl. 3, ss- with our 
 ^wn portion in the Epistles.* The Section lx. 1 ss,, on the other hand, 
 \vas read in the Galilean chufch on the festival of the Epiphany, and 
 tiii., moreover, on Good friday. With respect to the reading of de- 
 finite portions of the gospels in the Greek church, the chief places may 
 be found in Chrysostom, Homil. xi and lvu on John, and in Leo 
 Allatids as quoted by Thamer ubi sup. p. 66. Respecting those from 
 ihe epistles, I am not able to obtain any further accounts. The consecu- 
 tion of the lessons in the first chapters of Isaiah shows that they must 
 Slave read all the books of the Bible in continuous euccession. But ge<- 
 «erally in the history of liturgies these circumstances are not to be dis- 
 covered. 
 
 * [ The author refers to the portions appointed to be used by th« 
 fiUtheran church, which ar^ marked also in some e4iti(Mis of the Ger^ 
 aian Bible. Xr. ] 
 
 ^6 
 
443 ON THE INTERPRETATION 
 
 of King Hezekiah to the Lord on account of having conquer'- 
 ed ; — ^xxxi. 1 : prophecy respecting the Jews, who went doivn 
 to Egypt ; — xxxiii. 7; prophecy respecting the King of Mosul 
 (Assyria), on the victory of the King of Babylon over him, 
 and how he would take the kingdom from him ; — xxxv. 2 : ex- 
 hortation of the prophet to the weak, and annunciation of the 
 coming of Christ ; — xlii. 1 : prophecy respecting the Lord 
 Christ ; — Lii. 13 ; prophecy respecting Christ, of his crucifix- 
 ion, and of the forgiveness of sins. In these additions the 
 translator has availed himself of the traditions of the eastern; 
 Greek church. 
 
 With respect to the internal character of this version, it 
 expresses, as might be expected from a work composed iq 
 Alexandria, the recension of the Seventy which was in ge- 
 neral use in that church, and agrees therefore for the most 
 part with the Alexandrine manuscript, which seems to have 
 been derived from the Hexapla, in opposition to the Vatican, 
 which is closely allied to the Ko/vii.'*^ But the copy used by 
 the translator must have approximated more nearly still to 
 the Hexaplar text, since he frequently shows a closer affinity 
 to the Hebrew than the Alexandrine manuscript, in which 
 be often agrees with the excellent Hexaplar Codex Marcha- 
 lianus,'^^ In particular, he fills up many chasms in the Sep- 
 tuagint, following Theodotion, as Origen also does in the 
 Hexapla. But in these cases, I am not able to perceive 
 that he has gone back to the Hebrew text itself,''^ which at 
 that period was seldom done by Christians, or rather not at 
 all, but merely that he has limited his sources to as complete 
 a Hexaplar copy as could be procured. 
 
 As agreement with the Alexandrine manuscript is uniforrp 
 and habitual with him, I think it preferable to give some ex- 
 amples in which he has varied from it, and scenes to have ap? 
 
 4 3 See Holmes, Praef. ad Pentateuchum, (prefixed to the first volume 
 pf his edition of the Septuagint,) Cap. 2. No. 2, 3. 
 
 4 4 See Stroth in the Reportorium fUr Bibl. und morgenlancjiscl^ 
 I^Ueratur, Th. 8, S. 189. 
 
 4 5 See RosENMiiLLER Scholia ip Jes. on xlv. 9. 
 
OP THE rilOPHET iSAlAH. 
 
 443 
 
 J>roachccl nearly to the Hexaplar copy. Thus in i. 22, he wants 
 the additional clause in the Alexandrine manuscripts, ai iroXsis 
 u^wv flTu^/xau^oj : — X. 14, besides the words which are contained 
 in the Vatican and Alexandrine manuscripts, xa< 6w sCtjv og (5ia- 
 (psu^sTai jxs, ^ oLVTsi'ffr} fjto'i, he expresses also the addition of Thoo- 
 dotion founded on the Hebrew, xaj'dvoi'/wv ro tfrojuka xal Ct^ou^i^wv. 
 "I'heodoret, 0pp. T. n. p. 244, has also the same. — xni. 31 ; 
 here the usual text of the Septuagint has a chasm : xccl oux gtfTi 
 Tou timt. ... for the Hebrew r*T>nDn mn px. The conjec- 
 ture of Lambert Bos that fAsn/aj is the true reading is strength- 
 ened by the Arabic : no one remains on their traces. What 
 he found in his Greek copy corresponding with in;?in::, I do 
 not venture to deterjnine, probably ^v ToTg 'ix^sdi, so that vnj^vn 
 was expressed, as in Prov. v. 6. — -xxi. 1 : here the usual text 
 for D^ *i3ir3 K»'D is, ro o^afxa TTjg sPTjfxou. Only the Cod. Mar- 
 chaL adds, ^ccXaddvig, and thus also the Arabic : prophecy to 
 ihe inhabitants of the desert near the sea. And the same read- 
 ing is also to be found in the Old Vulgate, visio deserii maris, 
 and in the commentaries of Theodoret and Procopius. — ^xxj. 
 13 ; the usual text is : ^v rw (5^|xcJ eC-^'t'^a^ xoi/xijS-rr, ^ Iv vfi 65w 
 AatSoiv, where both the tense of yoiiLri^-fig and the particle -^ are 
 unsuitable. Only the Cod. Marchal., Mediol in Sabatier, and 
 Gyrill of Alexandria (0pp. T. n. p. 312.) connect them and 
 read xoi/xti^Vt;. Thus also the Arabic, which besides places 
 here the words cfa^' sfxoi o»xsi from v. 12 : dwell with me in 
 the wood, thou wilt rest in the evening on the way to Dadan. 
 The Vulgate is still more accurate, according to the Hebrew : 
 i?i saltu ad vesperam dormietis, in via Daddn. — xlv. 9: here 
 the Septuagint is quite arbitrary : rroTov j3i\riov xarso'xsuafl'a ws 
 crrjXov xs^aiidus J M o cc^or^jwy d^or^iao'cj tyiv yr^v oXrjv t'/)v vj/xs^av 
 (probably conjectural from xxvni. 24.) The Arabic is, accord- 
 ing to the Hebrew : wo to him that quarrelleth with his ma- 
 ker, and doth not know that he is made of a potter'' s sherd. The 
 first member is according to Theodotion *, oua/ o x^miusvog ilsto. 
 coy ffXas'tfovTog auro'v ; in the second the intermediate Greek ver- 
 sion, (probably Symmachus, Aquila,) is lost to us, for Theodotion 
 also has here, dporpMv rovs dporpil^vrag <niv y^jv. — lxvi. 17 ; here the 
 Hebrew *]inD nnx nnx is expressed in the Septuagint merely by 
 
4i# ON THE INTERPRETATION 
 
 h ToTs rpo^-upo/j, which the old Vulgate gives in the words, i« 
 liminibus. The Arabic follows a more complete text : before 
 the doors, and in the enclosed hedges, (septa sacra ?)-^-'TW 
 place LX. 5, has been already touched on above, when treating 
 of the Vulgate. — ix*. .6 : This is a case, worthy of notice, where^ 
 a Christian doctrine, the divinity of Christ, is brought before 
 us. In this text, where the Vatican, followed by the old Vul- 
 gate, reads, very widely different from the original, xai xaXsu 
 Tai <ro ovo/xo^^ cturou, ixsyaXyis /SouXt^j ayyskos' ct|w Y^^ ^^p^VTjv iifl 
 roOff apxovra^, xal vyisiav ctuTw^ this Arabic version follows, as inf 
 general, the Alexandrine text : xaki(fst to &vo|xa avrou, jxe/aXiiffy 
 l^ov\^S ciyyskoeiy ^auy-atfTof, tfu|x/3ouXo&, «<''X"P°^ (^^)? i^ou(fia(fTr\g^ 
 ot^wv iipriVTigy irarri^ vov /xsXXov-to? diwvo^. 'Eyoj ya^ a^w ^i^^vtjv xai 
 
 vyiav dvrov, which, through its exceedingly great completeness 
 and the union of the old reading with that of TheodotioOy 
 cannot at all be denied to be of Hexaplar origin, only instead 
 of iV^upos it expresses ^sos t^fx^pk. This reading, in whicb 
 ^sos is plainly introduced, (for 113^ Sx is expressed by it^x^fosr 
 Ifourfiarfcin^,) is found in the Aldine and Complutensian texts,, 
 and with the fathers, who strenuously defended it, and cxie^ 
 out against the Jews for corrupting the text.^** 
 
 ♦fl Thus it is cited in the epistle of Ignatius (o the AntiocKJanSiT 
 cap, 3/ Irknaeus adv. Haeres. iv. 66 : et vocabitur nomen ejus, ad* 
 mirabilis, consiiiarius, Deus fortis cet. Eusebius Demon. Evan g. vii. p. 
 208, edit, Rob. Stefh., accompanied, however, by the observation, thai 
 it stands so only in some manuscripts. After Ire has quoted the ver- 
 sions of Aquila, Symmachus, and Theodotiour be proceeds thus : iji'ii 
 *R0fetien<fmi*i viirl tow h^vfos Hk 9nfiix,tt^ <^<' ov anfiaiirtmi o 3-j(5;. T16X' 
 X«;^eu yatg tJJc yfa^'^t roiJ »\ htl too 3-»ey xemfvev, kha ti ToiifxiTd ^«'^*ff 
 iluioie$( nra.ftixin:ritr aart J*i«t' ret.6r)ts tj»c ^»»Iic it*t_^io( ^a^o/n^iTtfi te ytf' 
 tn^h ifJih TTAlS'ioi' fijutli Tdtvvv hu«, dr i/uaiprotfjitv,' ^tor J'vr«'rc>ytffJi>ivti/»f' 
 ♦•r. In his commentary on this place he merely mentions the old coBOk 
 mon reading. Theodoket 0pp. T. ii. p. 235, edit, Schulze : «/t« T«r 
 iltfJtttTetv TO fAil^ov, Qtof lax^f^i' Tcuto eTi KttKWfyirtattt ht tetpl rer 'A«y- 
 Xay, Iv^fls S'vtATCK {}i>fAmtv<rav' Kilrm J'l Treipx <r» 'E^p-tim ixytfiei^' to /i 
 T^h S"Mf, ««t4 T»r Tovrav *f/x»iUAV' to y»^ /uiS-' nfAih o ©lof ^V-fitfJutitvix 
 xttfAtroy, iuTut ^/AMitvTctr. 
 
 • [ CoTELERlus, Ed. Ant. 1700, vol. il. p. 110, This ir one of tbr 
 supposititious epistlei . Tr. ] 
 
OP tHE PROPHET ISAIAK, 445 
 
 Some instances of evident variations I should prefer as- 
 cribing to a somewhat free translation. For example, in vii. 
 20, the Septuagint, accordmg to the Alexandrine manuscript, 
 is, £v T^ ^u^w Tw fAsyaXw^ xai fjLSfXES-utffA^vw ; the Arabic, with his 
 great sharp rasor. This is an explanation of the poetic fh 
 gure, (which may have been interpreted by xxxiv. 5,) and is 
 found also in the Syriac, according to Ephraim's reading, 
 (fAr^JTfju, sharp,) in the Ghaldee, and in Saadias. — xxu. 3, o» 
 akovTSs (fxkri^dg ^g^sfisvoi liCr Arabic, and those who fall (name- 
 ly, into their hands,) zoill be harshly bound. — Sometimes he 
 entirely misunderstands the Greek text, an instance of which 
 occurs in xxvi. 14, imp" kS d^nsi, <aTPo< ov fxoi avatfT-^couCj. Here 
 the Vulgate has correctly, neque medici resuscitabunt (sc. mor- 
 tuum), but the Arabic version is, the physicians do not stand 
 up : a Greek gloss must therefore have been introduced, which 
 expressed the Hebrew imp', (perhaps by dvatfT^ovTaj.) In 
 other places his reading is no less erroneous than that of the 
 common text. This is the case in v. 17, where the Hebrew 
 D'^HD nnin is expressed by rag i^rj^iovs twv airgiXTifAixgvwv, (of those 
 who are taken or carried away,) which certainly can hardly 
 be right and founded on the Hebrew text. And the Arabic 
 is no better; the fragments of the threatened ; and the trans- 
 lator may have had before his eyes the reading in bad Greek 
 dweiXiiiui^vwv, (which occurs in the Cod. Alex.,) and have deriv- 
 ed it from d'jr'sjXc'w, which could give no such form, as it must 
 have made d'rsiXoufji.svwv. The true reading is, as I conjecture, 
 dflrnXsijXft^vwv, (which might easily be corrupted into difsukruu^s^ 
 vwv, especially, if read according to the itacism,) from d'j^a^ 
 Xg/(p6j, to wipe away, to destroy. The Septuagint translators 
 use this word in three places for the Hebrew nnn, (Gen. vi. 
 7. IV Kings, XXI. 13. Isa. xliv. 21,) from which they have 
 here deduced D'HD, which they may have read as if it had 
 been pointed D^np."' 
 
 4 7 BocHART, who, in his Hierozoicon, T. i. p. 524, edit. Lips., has 
 examined this place, wishes to read u7ra.\u<pofiiivav. In reference to the 
 verb this is admissible, but he gives no reasons for tlie alteration, and it 
 i« too remote from the letters of the word !n question. Rosenmullek 
 
446 ON THE iNTERPRETATlDar 
 
 II. Interpretations of the Christian Fathers 
 AND OF the Jewish Rabbins.* 
 
 "Eotpbsitions of the Fathers. 
 
 Before the time of Origen, we find nothing in the father^/ 
 except some occasional observations of a doctrinal kind, in- 
 tended to illustrate the places which are referred to the Mes- 
 siah, and these observations are generally of a polemical cha- 
 racter^ aad directed against the Jews. See the introduction 
 to ch. vii."^ From the age of Origen, whose works on Isaiah 
 arc almost entirely lost,"*^ to the middle of the fifth century^ 
 
 endeavours to defend the usual reading : " instead of the allegorical^ 
 the translator has given the proper reading, understanding by fat ones, 
 or furnished with marrow, (dTID.) rich persons carried away to foreigrt 
 countries." According to Schneider (Griech. WSrterb. lu 158,) aa-«/- 
 KiiufAyfii h derived also from aTf-toAo), equivalent to aTrti^u, to drire'inio 
 slrails^ io embarrass, and the Arabic translator may have used the pre- 
 sent reading, if he had had this derivation and meaning before his eyes. 
 But the knowledge of an ancient and unusual term is not to be taken 
 for granted in a translator of so modern a date. 
 
 * There is a very accurate list of the older commentaries uiitil the 
 year 1754 rn Calmkt's Bibl. Biblioth., and another in his Difctiopary of 
 the Bible. 
 
 4 Through tte limited diffusion of the N. T., and on account of 
 the very frequent discussions with the Jews, the most aricierit Chris- 
 tian writers attach an exti'aord'nary value to the proof-places from thd 
 O. T. See J. G. RosENMiJLLERi Hist. Interpretationis librorum sacro-* 
 rum inecclesia Christiana, Tom. i. p. 231, and compare Cramer, His* 
 toria sententiarum de sacra libronim V. T. auctoritate ad Chrislianoa 
 spectante. Lips. 1819. 4, Comment. 1. p. 32. 
 
 * t He had written on Isaiah in the three methods which were usual in 
 his time, that is to say, a commentary in 30 books, extending to xxx. G., 
 Scholia, (o-»fi«»(ri/c,) and 25 Homilies. Some of the last are still ex- 
 tant. See Origenis Opera, Edit, de la Rue, T. hi. Orig. Comment. 
 Edit. HuET. Rothomagi, 1668. Hieron. Praef. ad Jes. He is, most 
 probably, the source from which many interpreters have drawn, and 
 
or THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 447 
 
 (for after this period interpreters merely compiled from the 
 works of their predecessors,) we meet with a small succes- 
 sion of commentators among the fathers, all of whom unite 
 in making the received version the subject of their interpre- 
 tations, and, with the exception of Jerome, in betraying an 
 almost total ignorance of the original" text. They find, also, 
 numerous definite prophecies relating to the' New Testament 
 and later Christian periods, and add to the historical sense an 
 allegorical and mystical one, which they, in a greater or less 
 degree, consider as the principal meaning. In the interpreta- 
 tions advanced remarkable agreement appears conspicuous in 
 all these commentators, because the later made so much use 
 of the earlier.''^ Still, however, their importance is not con- 
 fined to the aid they afford to the history of interpretation, 
 and to the materials which they add to the documents of the 
 times ; the modern critic may discover among them grains 
 of gold. With regard to the more remarkable proof-places 
 which relate to doctrine, it is necessary, in addition to those 
 writers who are professedly exegetical, to examine also the 
 dogmatic and apologetic works, because such places are 
 generally treated in them much more extensively. 
 
 1. Among the Greek Fathers the first who followed the 
 steps of Origen was Eusebius, whose 'X-n-o.avTjjAaTa hg 'Hrfaiav 
 was first made public by Montfau^on/* He had the Hexa- 
 pla before him ; he compares very largely Aquila, Symma- 
 chus, and Theodotion with the Septuagint, and connects the 
 
 particularly Jerome. — Olher expositors, now lost, are, Didtmus, who 
 explained xl — lxvi. in 18 volumes, and Apollinarics, who merely gave 
 brief views of the contents, (See Jer. Praef.) also Eusebius of Emesa, 
 and Theodorus of Heraclea, who are cited in the Catenae. See Mont- 
 FAUCONT, Coll. Nov. Patrum, T. n. p. 350. 
 
 4 « See, for example, Cyrill, Theodoret, Jerome, Ephraem Syrus, 
 on^vi. 1, 3. vii. 14, where the agreement is almost verbal. Coiiip, 
 Note 58. 
 
 4 Bern, de Mostfau^on, Coll. nova palrum et Scriptorura Graeco- 
 rum (Paris, 1706, ii Tom. fol.) T. i. p. 357 ss. with an introduction. 
 Very many passages are also illustrated in the Dempnstrntio Evapgeliv 
 ^a, especially in the 7th and 9th books. 
 
448 ON THE INTERPRETATION 
 
 literal interpretation with the ailegoriGal, although he pro- 
 fesses to consider the former as his principal object.^ Some- 
 times he coincides with Jewish interpretations, as, for ex- 
 ample, on vn. 8, and at others he controverts them, as on 
 V. 20. Like most of the fathers, he is fond of tracing in his- 
 tory the accomplishment of every portion of predictions how- 
 ever minute, and-hence the real historical point of view is, of 
 course, entirely lost.^^ The commentary of Eusebius is very 
 extensively used, and is in fact transcribed in an exposition of 
 1 — XVI, attributed to Basil the great, who died in the year 
 
 io Jerome, on xviii. 1, says of him ; "Eusebius of Caesarea, after 
 he had pledged himself in his title to give a historical interpretation, 
 runs out into various senses, and upon reading his work, I found it very 
 different from what the title promised. For whenever history fails him, 
 he passes on to allegory, and connects subjects which have no affinity in 
 such a way, that I am surprised at his joining together in a novel man- 
 ner of discourse stone and iron in one " mass." In truth, however, 
 Jerome himself does not succeed much better ; only he generally makes 
 a distinction between the literal sense and the tropical. 
 
 * 1 Wherever any thing occurs which relates to destruction, he un- 
 derstands it of the Roman devastations under Titus, as in i. 5 ss. xix. 2, 
 refers to the introduction of Christianity into Egypt, and the difficulties 
 and contentions which arose ; vi. 9, 10, to the obduracy of the Jews in 
 the time of Christ. In the present day, we should certainly consider 
 many of these applications as irrelative ; as, for example, that of in. 4, 
 to the childish folly of the Rabbins and Jewish leaders, that of xviir. 1, 
 (after Symmachus,) to the Jewish emissaries and proselyte-makers, that 
 of XIX. 1, to Christ's journey into Kgypt, where the light cloud is the 
 body of Christ himself born of the virgin. Some of these interpreta- 
 tions, however, contain historical information of real utility. Thus, from 
 XLiv. 5, we learn, that the Gentile Christians, when they suttered mar- 
 tyrdom, were accustomed to give themselves scriptural names ; from 
 XLix. 23, that the secular officers of the provinces, who had formerly 
 persecuted the Christians, then, at the emperor's command, bent them- 
 selves and bowed the knee in the churches with profound humility, and 
 were attentive in supplying the wants of the spiritual. — It is not unim- 
 poi'tant in reference to the history of doctrines, that no mention is made 
 of the Trinity in vi. 3, the threefold repetition being understood as indi- 
 cative of emphasis. [ And as this repetition may very well be thus ex- 
 plained, (comp. Jer. xxn. 29. Ezek. xxi. 27,) the omission to notice the 
 doctrine of the Trinity can hardly be adduced as evidence that Eusebius 
 did not believe it. That it was the doctrine of the church i?i his day ts 
 wodeniablc. Tr ] 
 
t 
 
 Of TU£ PROPHET ISAIAH. 449 
 
 "^79.* The genuineness of this work, however, which in an 
 early period was doubted, has been denied in our own time 
 for reasons of no slight weight ; and both on account of its 
 tediousness and of its contents, which are, for the most part, 
 of a moral and allegorical character, it has but little valuc.^ 
 The interpretation (l^/x^jvsia,) which Chrysostom has left of 
 the first eight chapters is preferable, to which may be added 
 six homilies on vi. 1.^ The commentary of Cyrill of Alex- 
 andria, who died in the year 444, is not so tiresome as that 
 of the same writer on the Pentateuch, but, notwithstanding 
 all its prolixity, (it occupies a tolerably large folio volume,) it 
 contains but little that is really solid and to the purpose. Yet 
 be has not altogether neglected the literal explanation of the 
 Septuagint, (which he seems to have cited according to the 
 text antecedent to the time of Origen,) and the grammatical 
 application of the Jewish history ; but of the other versions 
 he makes no use at all.^ But all the other writers in the 
 Greek church are inferior to Cyrill's cotemporary, Theodo- 
 RET, who was suspected of heterodoxy, and who died in the 
 year 457. The substance of his commentaries on Isaiah has 
 been published by John Sirmond from the Catenae, yet so 
 that some parts of them seem to belong to Theodore of 
 Mopsuestia.^* The reader will find here all that can be ex- 
 
 * [Cave, in his literary history, vol. i- p. 239, says^ about the year 
 370. Tr.] 
 
 5 2 See the writer of the CatenaR, John Drungar in Montfauqon'» 
 Nova Coll. r. n. p. 351. Then, particularly Garnier's Praef. in T. i. 
 Opp. Basilii Mag. p. 47 — 63. The exposition is in T. i. pp. 378 — 617, 
 Opp. Edit. Garnier. 
 
 S3 See Tom. i. p. 1016, T. v. p. 127, Edit. Savill. [T. vi. Edit. 
 Mont. ] Some of the homilies are considered as spurious. See SixTi 
 Sinensis, Bibl. s. iv. p 326. 
 
 5 4 CyRiLLi Alex. Opp. T. ii. Edit. Aubert (Lutet. 1638, fol.) Com- 
 pare RosENMiJLLKRi Hist. IV. 142 ss., Schroeckh's Kirchcngeschichte 
 xvM\. S. 327. He generally coincides with the Vatican manuscript 
 against the Alexandrine, as, for example, in that principal text ix. 6, 
 whereby he loses the important proof-place for Christ's divinity. 
 
 « 5 Sec Theod. Opp- Ed. Sirmond, T. it. and Edit. J. L. Schultzt 
 'Halae, 1770, 8vo.) T= ii. pp. 165—400. Compare Cayc, Jlist 
 57 
 
450 ON THK INTERFRETATIGN 
 
 pected, in a commentator on the Septuagint merely, and in 
 the condition of biblical interpretation at that period ; viz. 
 historical and philological illustrations drawn from the other 
 books of Scripture, analogous figures and scriptural represen- 
 tations, and frequent comparisons of the other Greek ver- 
 sions. The ?iuthor confines himself to the Alexandrine text 
 of the Septuagint, refers to the Hebrew only in difficult and 
 classic places, (see p. 105 on ix. 6 ;) but sometimes he uses 
 even the Syriac, as, for example, on vui. 21. (Comp. also on 
 Dan. viii. 23.) That in certain places, however, as vii. ix. 
 XI. uii. no historical interpretation is to be expected, but only 
 a prophetical one, is in no degree surprising. — The commen- 
 tary of Procopius of Gaza, a teacher of eloquence in the 
 -6th century, brings into one view the best of the old Greek 
 expositors, and may therefore be called a Catena, although he 
 adds also original observations. It is of importance for the 
 criticism of the Septuagint and of the other Greek ver- 
 sions.*^ Of the later catenae on Isaiah nothing has been 
 printed.^'' 
 
 2. Of the Latin church, we have only one single commen- 
 tary extant, that of Jerome, in IS books, written in the year 
 410. See on vi. 1. But on account of its copiousness, and be- 
 cause it is the only one which goes back to the Hebrew text. 
 
 Lit. Scrip. Eccles. p. 225, and Schultze's Praef. ad T. i. The 
 complete commentary is to be found, according to the notice con- 
 tained in catalogues, in some Italian libraries, and yet the Halle editor 
 troubled himself to no purpose, either to get possession of it, or to obtain 
 any certain account of it. See Praef. ad T. n. pp. 8— 11. Respecting The- 
 odoret as an interpreter generally, compare Rosenmttlier, ubi sup. iv, 
 p. 38ss. 
 
 s « Procopii Gazaei variorum in Esaiam prophetam commentario- 
 rum epitome, Graece et Latine edit. Jo. Curtkrios, Paris. 1580, fol. 
 comp. RosEKMULLER ubi sup. IV. p. 234 ss., Sghroeckb, XVII. p. 530, 
 Simon Bibl. crit. (Amstelsd. 1708, 12mo.) T. i. p. 179, and Lettrcs 
 chobies, iv. p. 122 ss. 
 
 See the notices in Fabrich Bib. Graec. voL vh. cap. 17, p. 764. 
 Respecting a catena of John Drungar, (^laaffn: tji; Afovyyaflms,) set 
 MoNTFAucoN, Collect. F&tv. li. pp. 350, 353 • 
 
OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 451 
 
 it is the most important of all.® Much of it is borrowed from 
 Eusebius, and in part hterally translated,^ and probably much 
 more from Origen. He adds the commentary to his own 
 translation, which he had published before, and which he 
 illustrates, philologically, historically and tropologically. The 
 philological or critical part of his illustration consists in this, 
 that he often gives the variations in the Septuagint, in the 
 three other Greek translations, and in the old Vulgate, and then 
 goes back to the Hebrew for explanations, which are certainly 
 of very unequal tenor and value. He is particularly remark- 
 able for frequently advancing the most forced etymology of 
 proper names, in order to support a mystical signification.^'^ 
 
 5 8 It is in HiERON. Opp. T.v. Edit. Francof. T. iii. Kdit. Martianjei, 
 T. iv. Edit. Vallars. Compare (Engelstoft) Hieronymus interpres, 
 criticus, exegeta, apologeta, cet. (Hauniae, 1787, 8vo.) pp. 129 ss., from 
 which the view given by ^osenmijller, ubi sup. m. pp. 345 ss., is taken, 
 and my Geschichte der Hebr. Sprache, S. 92. Jerome mentions as his 
 predecessor in the Latin chur .\ (Praef. ad Jes.) th - martyr Victorinus, 
 whom he names as not eloquent, but learned, etsi imperitum sermone, 
 non tamen scientia. i 
 
 5 9 Comp. Eusebius and Jerowe on i. 8, 17, 21. iii. 4, 12 v. 13. vi. 
 11. vn. 15, 18. XI. 3, 7. xn. 1. xvii. 1, 6. xix. 1, 12, 18, 19, 23, &c., 
 M0NTFAU90N, in his notes on Eusebius, has noticed many places. 
 
 6 Some examples of good and important philological expositions are 
 the following: On the word ny|-| in i: 1. '* Nou solum autem hicpropheta, 
 sed et alii, cum habeant in titulo, visio quara t i' Esaias sive Abdias, 
 non inferunt qiiiae viderint, v. o. vidi dominum Sabaoth, cet, sed quae 
 dicta sunt, narrant, id est : * audi ccelum et ausculta terra.' Prophet® 
 enim prius dicebantur tirfenfcs, cet." He means to say, that u-v^^ does 
 not apply merely to visions, as in ch, vi. but also to oracular declara- 
 tions. See afterwards on the paronomasia in v. 7, on vik> >»»> for 
 land in xiii. 5, and S^n '^^ *'''^- ^1' ^^r Babylon. But along with these 
 illustrations we find others so wretched and doubtful, and only half true or 
 not at all so, as to raakehisstatementsof but little value. Thuson vii. 12, 
 he says : " Juxta Hebraei sermonis ambiguitatera pro non tentabo Dom- 
 inum possit le^i non-ezaUabo Dominum. He refers to a commutation of 
 nOJ *"<^ ^flSfy ^° ^'"' ^"^J ^^ ^^^^ explains alma by " virgo abscondUa 
 et secreta, quae nunquam virorum patuerit aspectibus, sed magna pa- 
 rentum diligentia custodita sit ;" contrary to the usage of language and 
 from a false etymology, although admitted by modern writers. Ifirome 
 proceeds further: "Lingua quoque Punica, ae de Hebraeorum fonti- 
 bus manare dicitur, proprie virgo alma appellatur," Importance has 
 
452 O^ THE INTEnrREtATlOTsr 
 
 In a historical point of view, he has this great fault, that hef 
 can scarcely ever place himself in the circumstances and feej 
 the relations of the period of which he is writing, that he con-* 
 siders every place as if it were disjoined from the others, en-* 
 tirely confounds delineations of the present and predictions 
 of the future, and is too much inchned to refer the latter to re- 
 mote periods." He frequently adds, moreover, illustrations 
 and traditions, which had been communicated to him by his 
 Rabbinical instructor, and which are found again in the Rab- 
 bins, as a proof of a constant tradition.''^ From his remarks 
 
 been attached to this remark, but let us read further: "Et ut risum 
 praebeamus Judffiis, nostro quoque sermone alma sancta dicitur, omm- 
 Mm pene linguarum verbis utuntur Hebraei. Ut et illud in Cantico 
 Canticorum de Grajco <|>c5«toj» (pnD{<> m- 9 ) id est ferculum sibi fecit 
 iSalomo, quod et in Hebraeo ita legimus. Verbura quoque n»ga5[»j^3 
 !Zeph. ni. 18. those that are removed, ] etmensuram (n'l^B'P. o, measure,) 
 Hebraei eodem modo et iisdem usurpant sensibus" (?). Compare xin. 
 1, on X5i^73» which he translates ont*5, because itconsistsmerely of burden- 
 some predictions, and such as bring- destruction ; also others of the same 
 sort. The remark which is made on ii. 16. is given merely as Jewish 
 opinion, but certainly it is without the least weight : <' Hebraji putant^ 
 lingua propria sua mare tarsis appellari, quando autem dicitur jam, non 
 hebraico sermone appellari, sed Syriaco. Comp. f'j*; . 
 
 Unfortunate etymologies are these : *' Mizraim, d-ht^ova-tt, iribulans, 
 XIX. 1 ; Memphis, I.e. os, ex ore^ ("cj |^, readmemp/ii;) Canaan, commotio 
 or quasi respondens, xix. 18; Hierusaletn^ i. e. visiopacis, i. 1; Basan, 
 i. e. etia-x'JV}!. Many of these are probably taken from Philo's significa- 
 tions of scriptural names, which Origen and Jerome afterwards trans- 
 lated. See my Geschichte der Hebr. Spr. S. 83. They are too poor to 
 be attributed to Jerome's Hebrew teacher. 
 
 Jerome has, moreover, written the Hebrew words in Latin characters, 
 and hence some editions have attached an erroneous punctuation to the 
 Hebrew writing. See Simon, Lettrcs choisies, T. r. p. 301, and com- 
 pare ep. 20 ad Damasura. 
 
 « » Thus he refers i. 5 — 7 to the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus, n- 
 8, to the condition of JElia Capitolina, the corrupters of wine, i. 22, to 
 the Pharisees and heretics ; the new judges, i. 26, to the Apostles; ii. 
 4, to the peace which prevailed in the Roman empire at the time of 
 Christ. Comp. Luther's judgment respecting such historical exposi- 
 tions, in $ 9. So much less value should we attach to his opinion with 
 respect to the arrangement of the Collection. See Einleit, S. I&. [ § 3. 1 
 fl2 Se^ on I. 10. VI. 1. vii. 8. xiii. 10. xiv. 19, xx. 6. Something of 
 this sort is found in Eusebius, for example, on vn. 8. But when there is 
 
 I 
 
at TftE fROPHET ISAlArf. 
 
 45S 
 
 ulso which relate to geography and antiquities, most valuable 
 information may be obtained.*^ But altogether insipid is his 
 allegorical and mystical interpretation, (" tropologia,") the 
 greater part of which he probably borrowed from Origen, re- 
 specting the value of which he expresses, with his usual in- 
 consistency, very different opinions, but which nevertheless 
 he seems to estimate very highly, and to consider as the most 
 important.^* His mode of treatment also is very dissimilar. 
 Sometimes he gives almost exclusively historical interpreta- 
 tions, as, for instance on xui. 14, and sometimes nothing but 
 tropological, as on xix. ; so that the reader can hardly believe 
 that he has only one writer before him. A multitude of these 
 interpretations relate to views and circumstances, which be- 
 long to events connected with Christianity .«* 
 
 any opposition to Christian vieWs, he contends the point with earnest- 
 ness. See, for instance, ii. 22. , 
 
 8 3 See on dx^ in xix. 7, on ^u^-oc in xix. 10, and on the state of Baby- 
 lon in xni, at the end. On the other hand, it is extraordinary that he 
 should identify Rebla in xiii. 1, with Antioch 
 
 « * l^raef. ; *' Post historia) veritatera spiritualiter accipienda sunt om- 
 nia: et sic Judaea et Jerusalem, Babylon et Philistim, Moab et Damas- 
 cus, ^gyptus et desertum mare, Idumaea et Arabia, ac valiis Sion vel 
 vallis visionis et ad extremum Tyrus et visio quadrupedum (xxx. 6.) in- 
 telligenda sunt, ut cuncta quaeramus in sensu: et in omnibus his, quasi 
 sapiens Faulus Apostolus jaciatfundamentum, quod non est aliud, v as- 
 ter Christum Jesum." On xiv. 1, 2, he calls the historical interpretation 
 which he had given, an ea^g of dust in the manner of the serpent, " in 
 modum serpentis terrain comedo.^' On the contrary, xui. 19, and vii. 11, 
 he expresses himself thus: " Legi in cujusdam commentariis hunc locum 
 per allegoriam extenuatam, sed nos elixas agni carnes non comedimas, 
 verum assas: et quae in nobis possint omnes voluptatum siccare pituitas, 
 re sacramentum fidei nostrae, dum plus sapimus, quam oportet sapere, 
 negligamus." 
 
 6* The firebrands in vii. 4, show him the wisdom of this world, 
 philosophy and hereby, the euH of which is burning ^in hell); in vii. 6, 
 Marcion is denoted, who wished to set the son of the^oorf God ("7K2£3) 
 
 ••: IT 
 
 for his Christ, but whose attempt proved abortive. By Egypt in ch. 
 XIX. we are not to understand the country of that name, for then much 
 of the prophecy would not be appropriate, as, for instance v. 24, but it 
 should be explained of the wicked world and sinful spirit o£ the age. 
 
454 ON THE lNTERPRETATlQJ<f 
 
 3. On the Syriac version we have a commentary in the 
 same language by the celebrated Ephraim, the Syrian, who died 
 A. D. 378.^ Although his expositions are brief and not in 
 all respects complete, yet, so far as relates to a correct appre-* 
 hension of the historic sense, he is far superior to his prede- 
 cessors in the Greek church, which no doubt was greatly ow- 
 ing to the superiority of the translation that was the subject 
 of his commentary. Like Jerome, he usually gives, in the 
 first place, and where the passages do not relate to the Mes- 
 siah, simply the historic sense, to which he then adds the pro- 
 phetic. Some examples from Vn — ix^ may be sufficient to 
 show his manner. 
 
 On the words in vn. 15, " before the child shall know to 
 distinguish between good and evil, the land shall be forsaken, 
 &c." he comments thus : " also the land was really forsaken 
 by the two kings. But he rather intends to declaie, that the 
 country, that is, the Jewish nation, was forsaken, previously to 
 the time when the son of Mary was able to distinguish good 
 from evil." Herehejias in mind the fact, that the Jews were, 
 at the time of Christ's birth, in subjection to the Romans, and 
 obliged to pay capitation-tax. 
 
 On VIII. 1, " write thereon with a man's pen," (in the Sy- 
 riac, '* a man's writing/') he remarks : " that is, not with 
 writing which is hard to be read, but make the strokes dis^ 
 tinct, so that they may be clearly seen ; thus write it with a 
 man's writing, that is, such as shall be clear and intelligible to 
 every man." * 
 
 On V. 4 : " Before the. son of Isllah shall be old enough to 
 call father and mother, Tiglathpileser shall come, and put to 
 death Rezin, king of Damascus, and in a short time, in the 
 days of Pekah, will lead away captive the Samaritans." 
 
 and the light cloud r. 1, of the body of the holy virgin Mary» which 
 carried Christ, in ord " lo conquer them. 
 
 c The commentary on Isaiah may be found in T. n. pp. 20 — 97 of 
 the edition of his works by the three Maronites J., S., and St. Ev. Asse- 
 kjlk, and JPetek Benedict, published at Rome, 1732 — 46, in 6 vols. fol. 
 The Latin translation is in the second volume by the last named scholar, 
 and is rather a free paraphrase. With a ^ood deal of extraneons matter. 
 
OF TU£ PROPHET ISAlAH. 455 
 
 On IK. 6 : ** A child is born to us, a son is given to us." — • 
 
 Although some parts of what is here said" (meaning, of what 
 follows,) " apply to ilezekiah, yet there are other parts which 
 are not applicable to him. And even in those which do ap- 
 ply to him, there is reference to the mysteries of his Lord, 
 who should appear in his land." Afterwards, on the appella- 
 tion, prince of peace : " this applies to Hezekiah, on account 
 of his mildness. The increase of his government refers to the 
 prolongation of his' life (Is. xxxvui. 5.), and the perpetuity of 
 peace applies to our Lord (Christ). 
 
 V. 7 ; " Even for ever. This is to be understood as in the 
 salutation, let my lord, the king, live forever." See Neh. n. 
 3. Dan. n. 4. He means to say, that it signifies a long time, 
 and is not to be taken literally. 
 
 From the total want of all definite principles of interpre- 
 tation, the reader will find, along with these interpretations 
 jof the better class,* some others which are certainly of the 
 most extravagant kind. For example, he refers the moun? 
 tain, mentioned m ii. 2, to Golgotha, consecrated by the death 
 of Christ, the union of the wolf and lamb, in xi. 6, to the 
 Christian church, the wolf denoting heretics, and xi. 7, to the 
 common enjoyment of the body of Christ in the eucharist, 
 — " The lion eats straw like the ox : this teaches us, that the 
 righteous along with the sinful will eat of the living body on 
 the altar." 
 
 In this commentary fragments of other Syriac interpreters 
 are occasionally interpolated, as, for instance, that of St. Ja- 
 cob in VI. 7. These are usually in'the spirit of the interpre- 
 tations last quoted.^' 
 
 * [ The looseness of the author's principles on the subject of pro- 
 phecy, would lead him to consider as most correct, those illustrations, 
 which limited the prophet's views to events nearly or quite contempo- 
 raneous with his own age. This remark may serve as a caution to the read- 
 er, and dispose him to qualify some of the author's observations. Tr. ] 
 
 • T la what spirit the Abbot Joachim, who died A. D. 1202, and who 
 was so renowned for his apocalyptic dreams, and the holy Thomas 
 A<ltjisAs must have commented on Isaiah, may be judied- of from the 
 
45<J ON THK JHTEHrRETATlON 
 
 Rabbinical Expositions. 
 
 A second class of the old expositors is formed by the Rab- 
 bins. Although these writers began to be distinguished and 
 flourished principally from the 12th to the 15th century, yet, 
 in addition to their own views, they contain ihose of the 
 more ancient interpreters, as is proved by the coincidence of 
 their illustrations with what the fathers have occasionally 
 given from Jewish expositions. All of them are superior to 
 the fathers as grammatical and historical commentators, and 
 the weak and exceedingly tasteless allegorical and cabbalisti- 
 cal manner of expounding which distinguished the earlier 
 ages, begins with many of them to give place to an improved 
 system of interpretation/' 
 
 1. The way to such a method of explaining scripture was 
 opened in the latter half of the li2th century by the two co- 
 temporaries, Jarchi (Rashi) and Aben Ezra, both of whom 
 composed complete commentaries on the Old Testament. 
 The.former^^ adheres closely to the Chaldee version, which 
 is generally his guide in showing the sense. He gives also 
 historical illustrations, and for the most part follows those, 
 however insipid, v^hich tradition had sanctioned. As he was 
 a strong Talmudist, these were very familiar to him, and he 
 does not rise above them. He frequently gives the corres- 
 
 known character of these men, their education, learning, habits of 
 tliought, and whole mental constitution. The exposition of the former 
 was printed at Cologn in 1577, 4to, and that of the latter at Lyons in 
 1531. 
 
 « 9 See particularly Aben Ezra's Preface to the Pentateuch, and 
 compare Simon's Hist. Crit. du V. T. L. in c. 3. 
 
 6 His work is coiitained in Buxtorf 's Rabbinical Bible (Basil. 1618, 
 1619, 4 vol, fol.) aloog the margin of the Hebrew and Chaldee texts. 
 It was printed also at Thessalonica in 1600, and at Verona in 1661. 
 
OF THE FROPHET JSAIAH. 457 
 
 ponding words in his vernacular tongue, the French, which, 
 as they are written in Hebrew characters, are often extreme- 
 ly puzzling. *° He is also in other respects sometimes ob- 
 scure, so that the very careful Latin translation which has 
 been made of his work, and which is accompanied by learn- 
 ed annotations, is a very acceptable assistance.'' — Far supe- 
 rior to him is Ahen Ezra^^ in respect to independence of 
 mind, freedom from prejudice, correct exegetical views, and 
 thorough knowledge of the language. Although he does not 
 reject the use of traditional interpretations, and generally 
 touches the prejudices of his people with caution, yet every 
 where the reflecting grammatical and historical interpreter 
 shows himself, and as such he stands unrivalled in his nation. 
 He is acquainted also with the Arabic language, which he 
 often happily employs to throw light on the Hebrew."^ 
 
 As no accurate representation of the different character 
 of these commentators can be obtained from the quotations 
 6f particular passages which are made in the commentary 
 that follows this introduction, I will here present to the reader 
 the most important remarks of both on chap. vi. 1 — 6, and 
 vn. 1 — 9, in order to enable him to make a comparison. 
 
 Jarchi. 
 
 VI. 1. The year of Uzziah's death is the year in which he 
 became leprous. God sat on his throne in heaven, and his 
 feet were placed upon the ark of the covenant in the tern- 
 
 10 For example, TB^ID poser, JJ'JirtD and 1^31 rt3 tisohs, l3Jty"i:JX 
 engraissant, jyifl'^3 brosses. 
 
 7 « R. SALomoNis Jarchi, ''^-> dicti, commentarius Hebraicus, in 
 propbetas majores et minores, ut et Jobum et Psalmos, Latine versus at- 
 que notis criiicis et philologicis illustratus, a Jo. Frid. Breithau1»t 
 Gothae, 1713. 4to. 
 
 7a Printed in Buxtorf's Bible vol. m. fol. 511 — 520 after IsaiaH; 
 also separately at Venice in 1526, fol., and at Basil in 1619. 
 
 7 3 He is not here, however, to be implicitly trusted. J^ee on v. <?, 
 and comp. in. 9. 
 
 58 
 
458 ON THK interpiie'i;atk>n 
 
 pie. He sat to pronounce sentence on Uzziah. — '2. The Se- 
 raphim stood S^sp, that is, in heaven, )\ in order to serve 
 him. The covering of the feet was done from modesty, that 
 the whole body should not be exposed. — 3. One cried to the 
 other : that is, they gave each other (the more exalted angels 
 gave to the lower) the permission to begin, that one should 
 not begin before the other, and the burning be faulty. (In 
 the Synagogues something like this took place.) The three- 
 fold holy is to be illustrated after the Targum. — 4. nT^j* is 
 used for the posts, because they were measured with the cu- 
 bit, rvpv. The quaking of the threshold refers to the earth- 
 quake which God sent in the time of Uzziah, (Zech. xiv. 5,) 
 as a punishment on account of his sins. — 5. ^n^Dn:, comp. 
 Judg. xui. 22. Zeph. i. 11. Of unclean lips, that is, defiled 
 by sins. — 6. nsx"^ and •']?f*i occur here, and in i Kings xix. 6, 
 in Elijah ; in other places it is written with w. Whence comes 
 the -a ? This is used in Isaiah and Elijah, in places where 
 they bring unfounded accusations (N^noSn delatoria) against 
 Israel. Wherefore God spoke to an angel : ' smite (vi^'^) 
 the mouth of this prophet.' Hence the y (! ! !). — 7. The 
 touch with the coal must be chastisement. But what was the 
 prophet's strength, that the coal, which the angel was obliged 
 to take up with the tongs, could be applied to his mouth with- 
 out injuring him ! In Tanchuma it is : stronger than the an- 
 gels are they who do his word, these are the prophets. — 8. 
 Whom shall 1 send ? I have, saith God, sent Amos, but the 
 Jews called him a stutterer, because he had a stammering 
 tongue. (See Rashi on Amos vii. 14.) 
 
 vu. 1. Why is the genealogy of Ahaz placed here ? The 
 scripture intends us to understand, that God has delivered 
 him on account of his pious ancestors. Because he himself 
 was irreligious, he is not mentioned in v. 2, but the house of 
 David, — 2. r\ry^ is feminine, in reference to noS?. He was 
 the more terrified, because he had already sustarned a defeat. 
 See n Chron. xxvni. 6. It is said in Bereshit Rabba, that 
 the unproductive trees are more agitated than the fruitful. 
 —3. ii'2 aiB?^ iNB^, the remainder, who will become converted 
 
OP THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 459 
 
 by means of Isaiah, they shall be my children. Fuller* s field; 
 after Jonathan. The Rabbins say, that Ahaz humbled him- 
 self before Isaiah, because he had covered over his head 
 with a fuller* s lie strainer. Sanhed. fol. 104, 1. — 4. "^OBfn, 
 that is, be at rest, like wine on its lees, {'"^^^* "iV,) — 6. nr^^p3» 
 we will excite them by war, n:;?*pD3, we will make it even, 
 like a plain, (nrp3,) that they, like us, may be subjected to 
 one king. Ben Tabel : according to Jonathan, the son that 
 pleases us ('Sx did) ; it may also be explained thus : who is 
 not good in the sight of God. According to the Gematry? 
 Tabel is Albam, equivalent to kSd"«, thus : the son of Remlus. 
 — 8. For the computation of the sixty-five years see the 
 commentary in loc. 
 
 Aben Ezra. 
 
 VI. 1. The ancients tell us, that death is here put for leprosy, 
 and understand it of the leprosy of Uzziah which was inflict- 
 ed on him as a punishment for burning incense. But it may 
 be explained, according to the literal meaning of the word, 
 of Isaiah's beginning to prophecy in the last year of Uzziah's 
 life : and then this will be the first prophecy. The train is 
 that belonging to the throne, for it is usual with kings to 
 spread long vestments over their thrones. — 2. Seraphim 
 (burning ones) : these are so called, because they burned his 
 mouth. )h SV3p is equivalent to r^r around him, on the right 
 and left, as is the practice with great kings. The covering of 
 the face is to be taken as that of the feet in Moses, (Ex. xxxiii. 
 22.) it is a mark of honour. — 3. It must not be concluded 
 from r?! ha nr, that there were only two of them ; there are 
 many. The threefold repetition signifies, that they constantly 
 thus cried, as in Jer. vn. 4, xxn. 29, mn^ hyn and yij« 
 are three times repealed. — 4. It is to be observed that u^^^i^is 
 in the past time, and Ji-p; in the future, as is usual with He- 
 brew writers, for the sake of elegance (?). — 5. *n^DiJ is syno- 
 nymus with ''Pf^^h He applies the phrase, of unclean lips, to 
 the people, who were impure in language and conduct. — 6. 
 
460 OS THE INTERrREf ATION 
 
 s]^ with Kamei^'Chatuph from =)^j?, c|iri from *)*j?. Pure, not 
 ordinary fire, was upon the altar. — ^7. The sin of the prophet, 
 which was expiated, consisted of sinful words, since he had 
 spoken as men of the world. — 8. ijS iV 'o is spoken by Je- 
 hovah to the Seraphs ; hence the plural u*?. — ^We see also 
 from what is said, that this must be the first oracle, because 
 before it the prophet was unclean. 
 
 vii. 1. hy vh refers to Rezin. Comp. ;:;. 3. — % Ephraim 
 stands for the kingdom of the ten tribes, because the kings 
 were originally taken from this tribe. — 3. Shear Jashub is the 
 name of the prophet's son, as I explain it, (lyiQX njsrxD.) The 
 derivation of pa from yn is ungrammatical, — 4. '^pii''7 (•^*^^«) 
 means : remain on thy lees ; but "io'^>n [Milel) has the signifi- 
 cation of, watch, preserve. — 6. The son of Tabeel : some say 
 that this stands for xSd-), but this is trifling. The truth is, it is 
 the name of some Syrian or Israelitish nobleman. 
 
 This may be sufficient to show% how little honour it does to 
 the taste and judgment of the Jews, when they prefer the su- 
 perstitious and often trifling Jarchi to the clear thinking and 
 investigating Aben Ezra. 
 
 3. Much more extensive than both these writers is the com- 
 mentary of D .viD KiMCHi on the prophets.^* He flourished 
 about ten years later, and endeavours to unite the most im- 
 portant matter of both his predecessors. To grammatical il- 
 lustration he adds various meanings, and introduces prolix 
 ^controversial questions, without any connexion, on points of 
 history and doctrine. His work contains also several polemic 
 places directed against the Christians, whom he calls D^rp, he- 
 retics, against whom he probably inherited a hatred from his 
 father, Joseph Kimchi, who was the author of many contro- 
 versial works. These places are usually suppressed in the 
 printed editions by the censor, and in manuscripts they are 
 
 "7 4 His commentary is printed in the Rabbinical Bibles of Bomberg 
 and BuxToRF, on the margin of the text. Wolf has given a list of the 
 various editions. See Bibl Heb. T. i. p. 301. A Latin translation of 
 the Commentary on Isaiah by C«sar Maxajtimeus appeared at Florence* 
 ?n 1774 
 
p 
 
 or THE PROPHET ISAIAU. 461 
 
 in part erased, both by the Christians through polemic zeal, 
 and by the Jews themselves through fear of the inquisitorial 
 and other persecutions. Such places in Isaiah are, ii. 18, 
 where the Christians are called idolators, because they wor- 
 ship the image of Christ; xxv 3. xxvi. 5. xxxiv. 1, ss. lxui. 
 1, ss., where Edom, devoted to destruction, is explained of 
 Rome, the chief city of Christendom ; xlix. 6. lui. 1, ss. vii. 
 14, ss., where the reference to Christ is opposed; lavi. 17, 
 where the self-consecration of the idolators is applied to the 
 sign of the cross made by Christians, who are also identified 
 with the eaters of swine's flesh. It is, at the same time, evi- 
 dent from this, that his exposition must, in part, have deserted 
 the station of history. In the philological observations of his 
 father, the Arabic is frequently employed. 
 
 In proof of what has been said, it may be proper to intro- 
 duce here some of the places which are entirely suppressed 
 in the printed editions. On xlix. 6, he remarks thus : " With 
 regard to the Christians, who explain this verse of him that 
 was crucified, saying, that he is a light of the nations, because 
 he hath enlightened the eyes of the nations even to the ends of 
 the earth ; tell them, that if he were a God he had not been 
 a servant. As it is further said, my God is my strength^ he 
 had no strength of himself, and consequently was not God. 
 And how has he also enlightened by his faith the eyes of the 
 nations to the ends of the earth, while a large proportion of 
 the nations remain who have not received his faith, the 
 Israelites and Ishmaelites." The Pisaro edition adds : and 
 again, as he says, God is his strength, to deliver him from the 
 hand of his enemies, lo ! he has not been yet delivered, nor 
 preserved from the power of his enemies, who aimed at his 
 life, and brought evil upon him. 
 
 7 5 PococKB has pointed out and supplied these places, as far as re» 
 lates to the prophets, partly from the edition printed at Pesaro in 1515, 
 and partly from two Oxford manuscripts. See Not. ad Portam Moais, 
 pp. 318 — 343. In the editions and in other manuscripts the Persians and 
 Samaritans are sometimes introduced instead of the Christians and Ma- 
 Hommcdans 
 
40^ ON THE INTERPRETATION 
 
 On Liii. 1, [lti. 13,] it runs as follows : To the Christians, 
 who explain this of the crucified, you must answer, — how can 
 k be said : he shall be blessed, exalted and extolled, and very 
 high ? As man he was not elevated and exalted, [ except on 
 the wood to which he was fastened ;* ] as God he was so from 
 the beginning. But it says also ; )D^ ;rij, (r. 8.) Here it 
 must mean i^, for loS is equivalent to '-nS, and plural/^ — It 
 is ; he shall see posterity, {v. 10.) As man he had no posterity ; 
 and if this be interpreted of the divinity, and posterity be ex- 
 plained by followers or disciples, this is contrary to usage, for 
 disciples are never called sons.'' But God has no posterity. 
 Further we read : he shall live long (ubi sup.) As man he 
 did not live long. But could it be said of him as God, that 
 long life should be granted him as a reward ? does not his life 
 continue from everlasting to everlasting. — Lastly, {v. 12 ;) he 
 made intercession for the trangressors. But were he God 
 himself, to whom could he direct his intercession ? 
 
 The same bitter and open hostility to Christianity is found 
 also in the commentary of Don Isaac Abarbenel, compos- 
 ed about the year 1496,'^ the most extensive and also the most 
 
 * This clause is wanting in the Pisaro edition. 
 
 7 6 KiMCHi, forgetting himself, contradicts this remark in another 
 work. See his Heb. Gram. fol. 266. pag. 1. Ed. Venet. 8. 
 
 7 7 Maimonides very justly opposes this, appealing, among other ex- 
 pressions, to this, D'X'^jn ''}2f sons of the prophets. See Pococke 
 ubi sup. p. 433. The very same trope is used, when, in the present day, 
 Christians are called in the East, [ -^vj.aa».+)) cjj^Ji,/o oo« ] those who 
 are of the rare of Christ. See Steph.'Schultz in the Collection of 
 Travels, by Paulus, vu. p. 49. 
 
 7 8 On Abarbenel, see the article Abrabanele. by J. M. Hartmann in 
 the Hall. Encyclopadie, i. s. 150 ff. The commentary on the prophets 
 was printed at Pesaro in 1520, fol., and at Amsterdam in 1641, fol. under 
 the title: '7X32"13i< pnr |n . . . "l^HrD D^HN D'i<'3J hp B^n'S. A 
 Latin translation by Jo. Henr. Maids appeared at Frankfort in 1711, 
 4to., and an earlier one at Amsterdnm in 1641, fol. Only the veiy rare 
 edition of Pesaro contains the passages against the Christians, (see de 
 Rossi, Bibliotheca Judaica Antichristiana, p. 7, ss.) in opposition to 
 which many writers, as Dantz, Constantine L'Empereur, A. Pfeif- 
 FEE, and others, have defended the more ancient, and often unhistorical 
 'doctrine and interpretation.— An examination of all the places of Isaiab 
 
OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 463 
 
 tedious of all. Peculiar to him is that tiresome manner, like 
 the scholastic writers, of throwing in, at every chapter or sec- 
 
 whicb are applied by Christians to Jesus and to Christian doctrines, with 
 the view of showing their irrelevancy, is contained in an exegetical po- 
 lemic work, which goes through the whole of the Old Testament with 
 this design. It is entitled : Sepher Nizzarhon jashan, and is containf-d in 
 Wagenseil's teia iyrnea SatantB^ AUdorJi, lt>81, pp. 78 — 111. Where it 
 opposes, by appealing to the connexion, the historical references to Jesus 
 and his death in certain places, as vii. 14, ix. 1, ss. xi. 1, ss. lii. 10 — liii. 
 12, it will have the historical interpreter on its side,* and it is often suc- 
 cessful agninst the arbitrary expositions of Christian cotemporaries, 
 who, for example, found Jesus pointed out in xxv. 9, xxvi. 9, lu. 1, xlv. 
 1, (in Coresh,) lix. 20, lxi. 1. We find here again also some expositions 
 which are given by the fathers : for example, the government on his 
 shoulder in ix. 6, explained of the cross which Christ bore, as in Cyrill; 
 XXXV. 10, XLix. 13, of the Christian souls delivered from hell by Jesus, 
 and others of the same kind. In short, as far as this controversial work 
 maintains the defenj^ive, it is tolerable, and keeps to the point of history. 
 But when it attacks, the reader scarcely knows w heth< r to believe his 
 eyes. It must, however, be confessed, that, as to the principle, the fathers 
 have done no better, and such self-defence and bitterness are at least ve- 
 ry readily to be accounted for in a people reduced probably to despera- 
 tion, (the work seems to have been composed in Spain,) by the priests 
 and inquisition. Thus mx '^ "• ^^t ^^ explained of the man, who an- 
 
 T T 
 
 nounced himself as a God, and who should no longer be trusted; v. 8, 
 of the monks (o'n^J* hald-headtd,) and priests, who seized all the land 
 
 • T- 
 
 to themselves, and v. 11, of the gluttony of the monks in their monas- 
 
 * [ It will undoubtedly have on its side the German neologist, and the 
 infidel of every name and country, who would undermine Christianity, 
 by injuring the credit of the writers of the Old Testament, and t)y weak- 
 ening our faith in the inspired assurances of the prophets, that God would 
 send a spiritual deliverer for 'he benefit of mankind ; but the man, who 
 receives the doctrine of inspiration, and believes in the divine origin of 
 the Gospel, will not very readily admit a principle, which takes it for 
 granted, that Christ or his Apostles or both have either mistaken or per 
 verted the meaning of the Old Testament writers. — It may be expedient, 
 although it can hardly be necessary, again to remind the reader, that the 
 author rejects the doctrine ol inspiration, and that his philosophy will 
 not allow him to believe in miracles. The translator supf)o&es it prefera- 
 ble to give the sentiments of his original, with this accompanying caution, 
 than to omit a note which contains information not accessible to an Eng- 
 lish reader. Tr. ] 
 
4454 ON THE INTERPRETATION 
 
 tioii, a multitude of subtle questions, which he then an- 
 swers largely enough. The Arabic commentary of Tan- 
 chum of Jerusalem on the prophets, from which P<jcocke 
 and especially S* hnurker have given specimens, which 
 make us wish to possess the whole, is yet preserved in 
 manuscript at Oxford."^ We have therefore no other wri- 
 ters to mention, except Salomo bkn Me lech, who, in his 
 Michlal Jophi,"° gives almost exclusively grammatical and 
 lexicographical expositions, which are generally taken 
 froni Kimchi's works. But for this very reason, and on ac-, 
 count of the brevity and precision of his statements, he is ve- 
 ry useful. The best interpretations of Jarchi may be found 
 in abundance in the Postillae of Nicolads de Lyra, who 
 died in 1340, where they are introduced and employed. Of 
 this work Luther often availed himself. A late German 
 translation, according to the expositions of the Rabbins, has 
 been lately presented to the pubhc, by a learned Jew, David . 
 Ottenzoser.^* 
 
 teries. V. 18, is pleasantly enough interpreted of the bell ropes. From 
 his modification of some places, for example, in chap. n. 1, it may also 
 be really conjectured, that the author was not serious, and that he had 
 no other design, than to subject to the severest ridicule the explanations 
 which were then current in the church. 
 
 1 9 See Uri catalog. Bibl. Bodlei. p. 16. Compare also Pococke in 
 many of his writings : viz. Commentary on Joel, Hosea and Micha; 
 miscellaneous notes ad Portam Mosis; — ScH^URRER, Dissert Phil. 
 Crit. pp 45,324, also, Specim. Tanchum. Hieros. Tubingae, 1791, 4to. 
 — Pococke intended to give an edition of the whole commentary. 
 
 8 Sal bbn Melech Michlal Jophi, Const. 1685, fol. 
 
 y'aS T"Opn HJB^D Knrsn 03*13, t^^t is: the book of Isaiah, translated 
 into German and explained, by David Ottenzoser. Printed at Ftlrth, 
 in the year .>f the, world 5567, (A. D. 1807,) 8vo. The commentaries of 
 .Tarchi and Kimchi accompany it. 
 
V^ or THE ^ 
 
 OF THE PROPHET ISAIAHi VJ N I V E £#Mr ^ ' 
 
 Modern Translators and Expositors,* 
 
 Among the commentators who belong to the period of the re- 
 formation, we wilhngly assign the first place of all to Luthbr.* 
 His translation of Isaiah first appeared alone in 1528, then in 
 1532 along with the other prophets, and in 1534 in the first 
 edition of his complete bible.'^ He did not himself pub- 
 lish a commentary on it, but some sheets of college notes 
 taken during his lectures were prepared for the press in 1534, 
 by one of his hearers.'^ The notes are brief, chiefly of a 
 
 * Those translators and expositors, with whom Isaiah forms only a 
 part of a work on the whole bible, shall be designated by an asterisk. 
 
 «2 Der Prophet lesaia, Deudsch. Wittemberg, b. Hans LufFt. 1528. 4. 
 In the preface he speaks as follows : " We have indeed taken all possi- 
 ble pains in order that Isaiah should speak good plain German, althotigh 
 it is with difficulty that he can be made to do so, and has strongly re- 
 sisted our efforts, for in the Hebrew he was very eloquent, so that it is 
 with great labour that the unbending language of the Germans can be 
 made to accommodate itself to his style. "t The text is accompanied 
 by some short notes in the margin. — The complete edition bears this 
 title: Die Propheten alle deudsch D. Mart. Luth. m. d. xxxii Witten- 
 berg, durch Hans. Luft. fol. Respecting the changes it has undergone, 
 see Palm's Geschichte der Luth. BibelUbers. S. 366. Considerable altera- 
 tions were introduced in the complete edition. Thus in v. 1 : ich wilt 
 meinen Vettern, for meinen Lieben; in xl. 31 : wcrden mit Krafftveren- 
 dert, for kriegen neue Krafft. 
 
 » 3 It is to be found in German in Th. 6, S. 1, ff. of the Halle edition. 
 On the arrangement of the prophecies of Isaiah he says, S. 9: "But he 
 
 t t As this passage is, of course, in old German, I subjoin the original, 
 that the reader who understands the language may form his own judg- 
 ment. " Wir zwar haben miiglichen vleys gethan, das lesaias gut klar 
 deudsch redet, wiewol er sich schwer dazu gemacht, und fast gewee- 
 ret hat, denn «rist ym Ebreeischen fast w^ol beredt gewesst, dasylira 
 ^ie ungelenke Deudsche zunge saur ankomraen ist," Tr. ] 
 
 59 
 
466 ON THE INTERPRETATION 
 
 practical kind, and he abounds with digressions on his ikvour- 
 ite subjects ; some chapters, however, he treats more parti- 
 cularly. The allegorical interpretation he decidedly rejects^ 
 and only gives one specimen of it in Chap. vi.-^More exten- 
 sive and more learned, but at the same time rath* doctrinal 
 than historical and philological, are the commentaries of two 
 other fathers of Protestantism, Zwingle^'' and Calvin.^^ Yet 
 
 is not attentive to order, so as to give to each particular portion its pro- 
 per place and with its own chapters and pages; one is so intermingled 
 with another, that much of the first portion is introduced in connexion 
 with the second and third, and the third is treated of somewhat before 
 the second. But whether this is to be ascribed to the person who col- 
 lected and wrote out the prophecy, (as appears to be the case with the 
 Psalter,) or whether the author himself has so framed it as to make it ap- 
 pear that time and causes and persons have occurred in the order spoken 
 of, which time and causes may not be cotemporaneous or in proper 
 order, this, I must acknowledge, I do not know.'' * Also, S. 12 ; re- 
 specting the means of understanding the author : " Whoever attempts to 
 explain this prophet, must be conveisantin two things, fnthe first place, 
 he must possess a thorough and fundamental knowledge of the Gram- 
 mar, which I candidly confess I have not yet acquired, and wherein 
 many distinguished teachers in the church, as Augustin and others, have 
 been deficient. The second particular is an acqunintance with sacred 
 history, which is still more necessary; and therefore, if only one of 
 these two acquisitions can be made, I would prefer the latter." This 
 observation he illustrates by the example of Augustin, who, by means 
 of his acquaintance with history, has succeeded better than Jerome, 
 Avho, with his knowledge of the language,, treats the history somewhat 
 negligently. 
 
 S4 ZwiNGLiiContemplationesIsaiaj prophetae, Turic. 1529, fol. Also, 
 Opera, Turic. 1544—45. T. ni. 
 
 3 5 Calvi:!^! Commentarii in lesaiam prophetara. Primum coUecti 
 
 * " Aljcr die Ordnung halt er nicht, dass er ein jegliches du seinen Ort 
 undraiteigenen Kapiteln undeBliittern fassete,soridern istfast gemenget 
 durch einander, dass er viel des ersten Stuckes under das and ere und 
 dritte mit einftihrl, und wol das dritte Stiick etwa ehe handelt, als das 
 andere. Ob aber das geschehen sey durch den, so solche seine Weissa- 
 gung zusammengelesen und geschrieben hat, (als man im Psalter achtet 
 geschehen zu seyn,) oder ob er cs selbst so gestaltet hat, darnach Zeifj 
 Ursachen und Personen sich zugetragen haben, von einem jegJichen 
 Stuck zu reden, vvelehe Zeit und Ursachen nicht gleich seyn no^h 
 
 Ordnung haben m^gen, das weiss icb nicht." 
 
OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 467 
 
 With respect to a knowledge of Hebrew, not one of these men 
 had made such advances as are requisite to communicate in- 
 struction to posterity. More important were these studies in the 
 view of Oecolampadius''*^ and Brentz ;* '^' and Sebastian" 
 MiJivsTER * and Wolfgang M eusel (Musculus,) among the 
 Protestants, and V atablus * of the Catholics, availed them- 
 selves of their acquaintance with the Rabbins, in order to cir- 
 culate the interpretations which they contain among Chris- 
 tians.^'' About the same time, Castalio * ^ at Basle gave to 
 the world a translation composed in good Latin with some 
 annotations, and the Portuguese prelate Forerius ^" an exten- 
 sive commentary, and for that age valuable and learned. 
 
 2. The commentary of Caspar Sanctius^* is the only one 
 belonging to the early part of the 16th century which de- 
 serves to be mentioned. But towards the middle of it ap- 
 peared Hugo Grotius* and Louis de Dieu,* two equally 
 celebrated expositors, who opened the road, each in his own 
 way, to a more learned, enlarged, and liberal method of inter- 
 pretation : the former by an unprejudiced treatment of the 
 Old Testament, with the same correct spirit and elegant feel- 
 ing which are applied to the other classic writings, from 
 which he adduces the most appropriate parallel places ;^^) the 
 
 opera N. Gallasii, deinde locupletati cura ipsias auctoris. Ed. iii. 
 Genevae, 1570, fol. It was reprinted in 1583, and in the Amsterdam 
 edition of iiis works, 1671, T. iv. 
 
 3 a Hypomneraata in Esaiam. Basil, 1525, 1567, 4to. 
 
 8 7 Jo. Brentii Esaias commentariis explicatus, Francof. 1550. Also 
 Opp. T. IV. p. 124, Tubing. 1675, fol. See a conjecture of his on ii. 6. 
 
 8 8 Seb. MiJNSTER in the Critici Sacri. Mosculi Comment. locu- 
 pletissimi et recens editi in Esaim prophetam. Basil. 1570, fol. The 
 notes of Vatablus are in Rob. Stephens' edition of the Vulgate, 1557, 
 and also in the Critici Sacri. The last contain brief but very useful 
 glosses, in the form of scholia. 
 
 8 8 Biblia, interprete Seb. Castalione, una cum ejusdem annota- 
 tionibus. Basil, 1531, fol. The notes are in the Critici Sacri. 
 
 9 Franc. Forerii, Lusitani Olyssiponensis, Coxnmentarius in Es. 
 Venet. 1553, fol. Reprinted in the Critici Sacri. 
 
 1 Casp. Sanctu Commentarius in prophetas majores et minores. 
 Antwerp. 1621, fol. 
 
 9 3 HcG. GROTiiannotationes in V. T. Paris. 1644. They ar^ also in 
 
46h ON THE interpretation; 
 
 latter by careful grammatical and philological investigation oi* 
 particular passages, accompanied by a learned and judicious 
 use of the cognate dialects, especially the Syriac and Ethio- 
 pic.^^ The most important interpreters, until the middle of 
 the 17th century, are to be found collectively in the Critici 
 Sacri,^^ and are embodied in one continuous commentary in 
 the publication of Matthew Poole.^^ As far as relates to 
 the extensiveness of the selection of notes, the latter work is 
 the richer of the two. 
 
 § 10. 
 
 It cannot be stated without regret, that the course thus^ 
 opened by De Dieu and Grotius was pursued in the 17th cen- 
 tury, by a much smaller number of interpreters than could be 
 wished, and might have been expected. Among the great 
 oriental scholars, who, from that period, adorned the reformed 
 church, from the time of Edward Pococke and Samuel Bo- 
 chart to that of Albert Schultens, no one has chosen Isaiah 
 for the especial subject of a work, although excellent ma- 
 terials may be found in Bochart's writings to illustrate this 
 
 the Critici Sacri ; and Calovius, who, in his Biblia lUustrata, took the 
 useless trouble to controvert at length whatever they contained in oppo- 
 sition to Lutheran orthodoxy, has introduced Ihem into his work. A 
 new edition appeared, under the superintendence of Vogei, and D5der- 
 i.EiN, in which Isaiah is to be found in the third volume, with some ad- 
 ditional remarks by Doderlein, in a separate auctarium, 1779, 4te. 
 
 3 LuD. DE Dieu animadvers. in V. T. libros omnes. Lugd. Bat- 
 1648, 4to. It was afterwards reprinted, with his observations on the 
 New Testament, under the title : Critica Sacra, Amstelod. 1693, fol. 
 The notes on Isaiah are in {)p. 190 — 243, 
 
 9 4 The Critici Sacri (London, 1660, 9 vol. fol) contain, in the fourth 
 volume, the notes on Isaiah of MOnster, Vatablos, Castalio, Clarius, 
 FoRERifs, Drusius, and Grotius : most of whom have been already no- 
 ticed. Clarius is not of much importance; he generally contents 
 himself with transcribing Miinster. Drusius has given a collection of 
 the fragments that remain of the lost Greek versions, which afterwards 
 MOiNTFAU^ON made the groundwork of his own publication. 
 
 9 5 Matthjei Poli Synopsis Criticorum alioruraque sacrae scriptura 
 interpretun> et coramentatorum. Lond. 1669, 4to, Franco^ 1679, fol. 
 Y. Voll. T=aiah is in volume lo. 
 
OP THE PROl'HET ISAIAH. 469 
 
 prophet, and a series of valuable observations on him has 
 been left by Schultens.* ^ Whatever, in addition to these, 
 was published in complete works previously to Vitringa's, is 
 not of great consequence. John Cocceius* ^- is indeed often 
 happy in his philological illustrations of particular places, and 
 in this respect he deserves praise ; but, in consequence of his 
 notorious attachment to a system of interpretation, which is 
 perpetually discovering types and prophecies, and which is 
 every where prominent in his work, is at present scarcely to 
 be read with pleasure. Of Sebastian Schmidt,^* an inter- 
 preter by no means to be despised, properly speaking, only 
 notes taken on the delivery of his college lectures have been 
 printed. The critical notes of Louis Capel adhere, for the 
 most part, to the various readings which he supposed to be 
 discoverable from the versions, as in a late period those of 
 HouBiGANT and Lowth,^ The commentary of Varenius, 
 Professor at Rostock, who died in 1684, which contains some 
 useful collections, is by no means an agreeable work, in con- 
 sequence of its scholastic method, and the introduction, with 
 tedious prolixity, of matters unconnected with his subject.*"** 
 
 9 6 Alb. Schultens. animadvers. philol. et criticae ad varia loca, 
 V. T. Amstelod. 1709. It was repriated, together with other writings, 
 under the title: Opera minora, I ugd. Bat. et Leovardiae, 1769, 4to. 
 The observations on Isaiah are in pp. 252 — 292. In this work Schultens 
 made great use of the Arabic language to illustrate Hebrew words and 
 phrases, although he generally adduces passages from the grammarians 
 and prose writers: indeed, no acquaintance at all with the Arabic poets 
 is discoverable in his work. The philological interpretations which he 
 thus deduces, he places in contradistinction lo those which the tradi- 
 tions of the Rabbins had preserved. In his later works he speaks of 
 these observations as of a youthful publication, and does himself retract 
 several of them: however, it is often superior, for natural and unforced 
 interpretations, to the other. 
 
 8 7 Jo. CoccEii 0pp. Amstelod. 1701, fol. T. n. 
 
 • 8 See. Schmidii Commentarius super illustres prophetias lesaiae, 
 Hamb. 1702, 4to. It is edited by Sandhagen, during the life and with 
 the permission of the author. 
 
 9 8 LuD. Cappelli Commcntarii et nota) criticae in V. T. Amstelod. 
 1689, fol. pp. 492—520. 
 
 I August. Varenii Comment, in Esaiam, ed. Jo. Fecht.Up3. 1708, 
 4to. 
 
470 ON' THE INTERPRETATION 
 
 But the publication of Vitringa's commentary constitutes an 
 epoch in the history of the interpretation of this prophet. 
 This work alone is of far more weight than the earlier expo- 
 sitions and a large proportion of the later. He is certainly 
 attached to the Cocceian method of interpretation, and the 
 frequency with which he shows when and how far the predic- 
 tions of the prophet come down into modern periods of his- 
 tory, even to the middle ages, the interpreter of the present 
 day will find it necessary to pass over ; yet this weakness of 
 his times* is abundantly redeemed by his superiority in other 
 respects. The sense of every passage and of every difficult 
 word is weighed by the assistance of a remarkable knowledge 
 of scriptural language and of antiquities in general, by the use 
 of all the literary preparation that his age could furnish, to- 
 gether with a carefulness and extent of examination which is 
 often astonishing. Greatly worthy of attention also are his 
 collections of historical notices relating to foreign nations, 
 against which many of the prophecies are directed. On ac- 
 count of his views above mentioned, and because he has made 
 but little use of the dialects, and in general only where they 
 had been already compared by others, his value has often been 
 estimated too low ; but not a few biblical critics^ who look 
 down upon him with arrogance, would have done better to 
 avail themselves of his labors, which could not but have been 
 advantageous to their own."' 
 
 • [ This is another ilhistration of the author's views and feelings on 
 the subject of prophecy, which the reader is prepared to receive with 
 caution. Tr. ] 
 
 1 1 Camp. Vithing^ Commentarius in librum Prophetiarum lesaiae, 
 Lcovardifp T. i. 1714 T ii. 1720. fol. Editio nova, Basil, 1732, 2 vol. 
 fol. -Another iibpression was given at Herborn, 1715, and another at 
 Tubingen, 1732. A German translation, from which all the useless mys- 
 tical interpretations are expunged, w^as made by Ant. Friedkich Bijs- 
 CHING, with the title: Camp. Vrrni gje, Auslegung der Weissagungen 
 lesaiii. Th. i. with a preface by Mosheim. Halle, 1749 ; Th. ii. 1751. 4. 
 The author was professor of Theology at Franeker, and died in 1722. 
 See the funeral oration on him by Schultens, prefixed to the first volume. 
 
OF THE PROPHET ISAIAII. 
 
 471 
 
 § 10. 
 
 Since that time but little, comparatively speaking, has been 
 effected in forming a collection of rich exegetical materials. 
 It was reserved for the last twenty or thirty years of the 18th 
 century to interpret the prophet, and the Old Testament in 
 general, with feeling and taste, and in a manner worthy of the 
 eastern poet ; to treat the places applied to the Messiah, with 
 a reference to genuine points of history, and to show that a 
 considerable part cannot possibly look beyond the cotempo- 
 raries of Ahaz and Hezekiah.* For this period also it was 
 reserved by profound and learned philological investigation to 
 settle the meaning of words, especially in difficult places, by 
 the aid of the dialects, for which Vitringa had done nothing ; 
 but which were shown by N. W. Schroeder, in a splendid 
 specimen, to contain treasures that might be applied to the 
 explanation of the prophet. 
 
 1. Cotemporaneous with Vitringa was J. H. Michaelis,* 
 who published his valuable notes in the margin of his Hebrew 
 Bible, printed at Halle, and which is particularly useful for the 
 accurate references which it contains to verbal and real pa- 
 
 " [ The imperfect and erroneous view which the author had formed 
 respecting the character of the Hebrew prophets (see Einleitung. $ 7,) 
 would lead us to expect that he would endeavour to connect the pro- 
 phetic representations of Isaiah with cotemporaneous persons and 
 events. It is easy to perceive that the tendency of such an eifort must 
 be, to sap the foundations of revealed reli^io^j by destroying our faith in 
 prophecy. But this " word, spoken by holy men of old as they were 
 moved by the Holy Ghost," is too " sure" to be weakened by any at- 
 tempts, and constitutes one of those proofs in defence of revelation, 
 which time, that covers other subjects with obscurity often impossible 
 to be removed, only serves to render more striking and conspicuous. 
 See some good remarks on prophecy in Jahn's Introduction to the Old 
 Testament. Part u. ^ 73—88, pp.394— 331. Tnj 
 
47S ON THE INTERPRETATION 
 
 rallelisms."^ The commentary of Le Clerc*"^ is not so va- 
 luable on the prophets as on the historical books ; but Cal- 
 MET***^ contains a very laborious, although not a critical, col- 
 lection of historical materials. The critical notes and conjec- 
 tures of HouBiGANT*"^ are characterized by boldness, injustice 
 to the received text in favour of the versions, and want of 
 grammatical acquaintance with the language, w^hich is often 
 conspicuous. Robert Lowth"^ also is frequently not less 
 bold as a conjectural critic, although his work on Isaiah pos- 
 sesses distinguished merit for elegant and poetical discern- 
 ment. Himself a poet, endowed with true classical taste and 
 feehng, he considered our prophet, and generally the Old 
 Testament poetry in this view, which, since the time of Gro- 
 tius, had been again altogether neglected ; but afterwards, 
 principally by means of Herder, became current in Germany. 
 The notes relate in part to history and antiquities, in part to 
 doctrine, (without derogating from the claims of the church 
 system,) and in part to criticism. In this last department he 
 ventures to introduce a multitude of alterations in the text, 
 partly according to various readings supposed to be derived 
 from the old versions, and partly from conjectures of his 
 own, and of his friends. Dr. Jebb and Archbishop Seeker. 
 How unimportant and unnecessary these emendations so 
 called were, is shown in a very profound manner by Ko- 
 
 1 ea Biblia Hebraica, ed. J. H. Michaelis, Halae, 1720. The notes 
 are on the margin of the text. 
 
 1 3 Vetoris Testamenti prophetae ab Esaia ad Malachiam usque ex 
 translatione .To. Clerici, cum ejusdem commentario philologico etpara- 
 phrasi in Esaiam, Jeremiara, ejus Lamentationes et Abdiam. Amstelod. 
 1731, fol. 
 
 1 4 Aug. Caemet Conlraentaire literal sur tdus les livres de Pancien 
 el noaveau Testament', Paris, 1724—26. 
 
 I 5 C. Fr. HouBiGANT Biblia Hebr. cum not. crit. et vers. Lat. Fa- 
 lis. 1753, 4 vol. fol. The notes were reprinted at Frankfort in 1777, in 
 in 2 vols. 4to, under the care of C. F. Bahrdt. Those on [saiah are in 
 V ol. II. p. 543, ss. 
 
 1 6 Isaiah- A new translation, with a preliminary dissertation, and 
 notes critical, philological and explanatory. By Robert Lowth, D. D. 
 Lord Bishop of London. London, 1778, royal 8vo. 
 
OF THE FROPHET ISAIAH. 4715 
 
 CHER,***' a learned Swiss, educated in Holland, who, treading 
 almost in the footsteps of Buxtorf, will not deviate a hair's 
 breadth from the masoretical text, while at the same time he 
 gives many useful illustrations. Koppe"^ soon gave to the 
 world a German translation of Lowth^s work with additional 
 notes of his own, critical and expository, far superior to those 
 of his author. Here and there they justify Lowth's decisions, 
 and exhibit some illustrations and criticisms, which, although 
 more cautious than his, are still however often inadmissible. 
 What Koppe has afforded for the higher criticism of Isaiah, 
 has been already partially touched on, (Einleit. § 3, 3.). He 
 first directed our attention to the necessity of denying, on 
 historical grounds, the genuineness of many pieces ascribed 
 to this prophet. But as in his division of the whole work 
 as collected together he goes too far, and often proceeds ar- 
 bitrarily, his criticism wants a firm support, and the collec- 
 tion appears to him as a loose intermingled heap composed 
 of disjointed fragments taken from the works of various po- 
 ets belonging to various periods. Although this hypothesis 
 will appear unfounded in proportion as it is examined, yet 
 many modern writers have adopted it without any limitation. 
 The Clavis of Paulus"^ contains ideas for historical inter- 
 pretation much better digested and very appropriate, but 
 still the number of persons acquainted with the Shemitie 
 languages who would accede to its philological interpretation 
 
 107 Vindiciae S. textus Hebraei Esaiae adversus D. Robert! Lowthi 
 criticam, a Da v. Kochero.. V. T. et ling. Orient, profess. Bernac, 
 1786, 8vo. 
 
 1 8 D. Robert Lowths, Lordbischofs zu London, Tesaias, neu flber- 
 setzt, nebst einer Einleitung und critischen philologischen und erlaa- 
 ternden Anmerkungen. A. d. Engl, (by Richerz). Mit Zusatzen und 
 Anmerkungen von J. B. Koppe, Prof, zu Gottingen, B. 1—4. 1779 — 
 81. 8vo. 
 
 1 9 Philologischer Clavis (iber das Alte Testament fflr Schulea und 
 Acadamien. lesaias. 'Von Hein. Eberh. Gottl. Paul^js, Jena. 179? 
 8ro. 
 
 60 
 
474 ON THE INTERPRETATlOiV 
 
 is yet fewer. The scholia of Bauer,"" and the work in the 
 exegetical manual of Augusti and Hopfner,"^ are among 
 the most useful of those modern helps which have appeared 
 up to the present time for cursory reading. The former of 
 these works especially, although a hasty composition, like 
 most compositions of this author, shows every where his cor- 
 rect and striking discernment. But all the above mentioned 
 expository writings are far exceeded by the commentary of 
 Rosen MULLER, a second edition of which, revised and im- 
 proved, has lately been published."^ In the first notes select- 
 ed from the works of Grotius, Dathe, and J. D. MichaeHs are 
 principally conspicuous, and with much that is valuable in 
 the first part, it wants completeness in the last, (Ch. xl — 
 Lxvi.) In the second edition, which may be considered as 
 an entirely new work, the author very frequently goes back 
 to Vitringa, employs his materials, often introduces him in his 
 own words, and has secured for himself great merit in the 
 history of interpretation, by exhibiting almost throughout a 
 very learned critique and comparison of the ancient versions, 
 abundant quotations from the Rabbins, especially larchi, (we 
 should greatly have preferred A ben- Ezra,) and from Jerome, 
 particularly where he follows his Hebrew teachers. Per- 
 haps indeed the author has too often followed such tradition- 
 ary interpretations. Some historical and critical views pre- 
 sented in the earlier edition are more satisfactory to me, than 
 those adopted in this, as, for example, in ch. vu. When the 
 author notices the conjectures of Lowth and Koppe, he often 
 
 1 1 Jo. Chu. F'. ScHULzii Scholia in V. T. continuata a G. L. Bau- 
 15R. Vol. viu. pp. 173 ss. and vol. iy. 1794 — 5. 
 
 I 1 1 Exegetisches Handbuch des A. T. ftir Prediger, Schullehrer und 
 gebildete Leser. FUnftes und Sechtes Sttick, enthaltend den lesaias (v. 
 J. Chk. VV. Augusti). Leipz. 1799. 
 
 • 1 i Ern. Fr. Car. RosesmUlleri Scholia in Vetus Testamenturn. 
 T. III. lesaiae vaticinia coniplectens. Sect. 1. Lips. 1791. Sect. 2, 17&3. 
 Sect. 3, 1793. — The new edition bears the particular title : lesaiae va- 
 ticinia annotatione perpetua illustravit E. F. C. RosEWMiJLLER, Vol. u 
 Lips. 1811, <on the general title page, 1810.) Vol. ii. 1818. Vol. iii. 
 1820. 
 
or THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 47^ 
 
 rejects them in the words of Kocher. The well known prin- 
 ciples of philological interpretation which he pursues in res- 
 pect to the analogy of scriptural language with the usage of 
 the cognate dialects, which are the only correct principles, 
 contribute to increase the superior excellence of his work ; 
 and indeed nothing else could be expected from the scholar, 
 whose acquaintance with the Shemitic languages is learned 
 and comprehensive. 
 
 2. The number of translations, especially in German, which 
 the present period produces, is very great, and although they 
 are generally accompanied by some critical and exegetical 
 remarks, it is only in a few that these remarks discover pro- 
 found investigation. Before the appearance in German of 
 the work of Lowth, translations had been made by Vogel,"^ 
 Struensee,'" Waltiier,"^ and J. D. Michaells.*"° The 
 latter follows a multitude of critical and exegetical conjec- 
 tures, which are now for the most part abandoned, and is 
 destitute of force and dignity of language ; but his remarks 
 for the unlearned abound with observations very acceptable 
 even to the learned interpreter. Moldenhauer""' translates 
 with little taste, and his interpretation contains httle that can 
 be called his own. 
 
 11^ Geoug Joh. Ludg. Vogel's, Beysitzers der phil. Fac. zu Halle, 
 Umschreibung der Weissagungen des Propheten lesaias. Halle, 1771. 
 8vo. 
 
 » 1 4 Neue Uebersetzung der Weissagungen lesaia, Joels, Amos, Oba- 
 dia und Micha, nach detn Heb. Text, mit Zuziphung der Griechischen 
 Version, von Chr. Gottfr. Sthuensee, R cior der Domschule in Hal- 
 berstadt. Halberst. 1773. — He attaches far too great value to the va- 
 rious readings supposed to be suggested by the lxx. 
 
 1 1 fi Die Weissagungen des Propheten lesaias, Obersetzt von Joh. 
 Heinr. Waltheh, Repetenten zu Gottingeii. Mit einer Vorrede von 
 ZACHAiiA. Halle, 1774, 8vo. 
 
 1 1 J. D. MiCHAEi.is deutsche Uebersetzung des Alten Testaments, 
 mit Anmerkungeri ffir Ungelehrte. Der aclite Theil welcher die Weissa- 
 gungen lesaia enthalt. Getting. 1777, 4to. Respi cting the alterations 
 of the text, see the same author's Orientalische Bibliothek, Th. 14. 
 
 1 1 7 Uebersetzung und Erlauterung des Propheten lesaia. Ent- 
 worfen von D. Joh. Hei.v. Moldenhacer, Pastor am Dom in Hamburg, 
 auedlinburg, 1780. 
 
4:'76 UN THE INTERPRETATIOK 
 
 Metrical versions, but too free and modernized, with over 
 bold critical improvements, borrowed in part from Lowth and 
 Koppe, have been published by Cuhe"'^ and Kragelius.''° 
 The works of Seilkr'^' and Holster'^' are altogether adapted 
 to practical purposes. The translation of Hknsler'-^ is har- 
 monious, without being too free, and the notes and views of 
 the contents comprise many just and well-founded remarks. 
 It is surprising that Hensler, a divine in other respects pretty 
 free from prejudice, should have shown but little congeniality 
 with the correct critical views of this book, and that he 
 should have opposed them on such weak grounds. Au- 
 «usTi,'23 in his translation, opposes with reason the practice, 
 which, during the latter part of the preceding century, had 
 become prevalent, of translating in a modernized manner and 
 in Iambic verses, and therefore chooses on the other hand 
 simple prose ; yet he has probably attended too little to the 
 harmony, and to a thorough investigation of difficult places. 
 In the latest work of Ek huorn on all the prophets,'-' Isaiah 
 is divided into not less than 85 of their oracles or fragments, and 
 
 ' I 8 tesaias metri'^ch ttbersetzt mit Anmprkungen, von Joh. Dav. 
 CoBE. Th. 1. Berlin, 1785. Th. 2. 1786, 8. (It is incumplete, extend- 
 ing no further than the 39th chapter.) 
 
 1 I » lesaias, Erstrr Theil. Neu tibersetzt und critisch bearbeitet von 
 Gebh. Ki agelius, Prediger in I.ippstadt Bremen, 1790. 8. 
 
 12 lesaias aus dem H^braischen tibersetzt und mit Anmerkungen 
 er autert von D. Geo g Fkied. ^ eile . KHangen, 1783. 8. 
 
 • 2 1 Die pro|)h'-tische Schrift des lesaias, ein Lieblingsbuch Jesu. 
 Ton R. Holster, Hanover, 1819. 8. 
 
 12 2 lesaias, neu tibersetzt mit Anmerkungen von Ch ist. Gott. 
 UiLF Hknsle , Pntf. dcrTheologie zn Kiel. Hamburg und Kiel, 1788. 
 
 '2 3 Die Schriften dps Allen Testamf^nts. Neu tibersetzt von J. C. 
 W. AuGisTi nd W. iM, L. de Wette. Vierter Bd. Die Propheten. 
 Heidlebf-rg, 1810. 8. The translati<m of Isaiah is by August!. See the 
 exegetische Handbuch mentioned above, No. 111. 
 
 124 Die Hebraischen Propheten, von J G. Eichhorn. G (tingen, 
 B. 1, 1816. B. 2, 3, 1819. 8. For the places of Isaiah, see the list at the 
 end of the third volume. The genuine pn^phecies of Isaiah had been 
 published before by the author in Jusxi's Blumen althebrdisclier JDicht- 
 iunst, Gicsscn, 1803, the text of which is here reprinted. 
 
I 
 
 OF THB PaOPHBT ISAIAH. 477 
 
 these are ascribed to various authors and times, and arranged 
 according to the editor's hypothesis, for the most part in pur- 
 suance of the hints of Koppe. With the text are connected 
 notices of the contents and historical remarks, which present 
 the point of view in which the translator has considered them. 
 The view given of the prophetic oracles in this work is in 
 general quite characteristic of the author. According to it 
 we have here for the most part no predictions of the future, 
 but poetic descriptions of the present and even of the past.'^^ 
 In the German translation of Dbreser with remarks, the au- 
 thor has availed himself of the progress made by the investiga- 
 tions of Protestant writers only so far as they supported the doc- 
 trines of his church.'^ Among the Latin versions of late date 
 those of DoDKRLEiN '2 and Da the ^^ deserve a conspicuous 
 rank, and are similar both in respect to manner and prin- 
 dples. Both these translators are strictly careful to express 
 the sense of the original according to the genius of the Latin 
 language, and at the same time never to paraphrase. Both of 
 them also give some exegetical and critical remarks, which 
 contain much valuable matter, although they both constantly 
 alter the text and often without necessity. 
 
 3. It is proper to mention here those writers who have 
 sought to acquire reputation by exegetical and critical exami- 
 nation of particular places, or of certain portions of the whole. 
 To the -latter belongs particularly the Hollander Greve, who 
 had formed the plan of a complete commentary, but has yet 
 
 13 s See fhe Inirodiiction to chaps, xxviii — xxxiii. 
 13 6 Die lieiligp Schrift des A. T. 4te.i Theiles Ister Band. Von 
 D. Th. Ant. Dereser Frankf. am Mayn. 1808. 
 
 127 Esaias, ex recensione textus Hebraei ad fidem codd. manuscrip- 
 torum et versionum anti<^«aium Latine vert it notasque varii argument! 
 aiibjecif Jo, Christoph. Doderlejn, D. Altorfi, 1775. Ed. 2 1780. 
 Ed. 3. 1789. 8vo. 
 
 1 2 8 Prophetae raajores ex recensione textus Hebraei et versionum 
 antiquarura Latine versi, tiotisque philologicis et criticis illustrati, a Jo. 
 Avo, Dathio, Tbeol. D. et Prof. Lips. 1779. Ed. 2. 1785. 8vo. 
 
I 
 
 478 OS THE INTERPRETATION 
 
 only published a work on chaps xl — lvi.^^^ In the introduc- 
 tion, he states his objections to the view, maintained by Ger- 
 man critics, that certain parts of Isaiah are not genuine. He 
 also proposes a metrical scheme of his own, which rejects 
 the present punctuation and rests upon a system of the author's 
 invention having a closer connexion with the Arabic ; and, to ac- 
 commodate to this system when it will not suit the Hebrew text, 
 he introduces a multitude of arbitrary alterations. Among the 
 philological and exegetical observations on particular places, the 
 works most distinguished for learning and happy conception of 
 the author's idea are those of Hoheisel,^^" Schelling,^^* and Ar- 
 ?fOLDi :*^^ those of Schleusner^^^ and Mossler^^" are less so. The 
 
 12 9 Vaticiniorura Jesaise pars continens carmina a cap. xl. usque 
 Lvi. 9. Hebraica ad numeros recensuit, versionem et notas adjecit C. 
 J. GuEV ,Lin^. Orient et Antiq. Tad. Prof. Ordinarius in Acad. Francq. 
 Accedit interpretatio Belgica, 1810. in long 4to. Conip. Allgemein. 
 Lit. Zelt. 1816, Supplementary pages, (Er^^anzungs Blatter,) no. 1. As 
 early as the year 1793, the author announced an extensive work, 
 in 3 or 4 quarto volumes : Programraa editionis vaticiniorum Jesaia? 
 novae. Daventriae, anno CID'dCCXCV. 
 
 » ^ Car. Lud. Mohi isel. Prof. Gedanensis, Observationes philologi- 
 co-exegeticae, quibus iion nulla S^vtvohtsl Esnias loca ex indole linguae 
 S.,ex accentuatjone Ebraeorumetantiquitatibusillustranturet exponun- 
 iiir. Gedani, 1729, 8vo. 
 
 1 3 I Animadversiones pliilologico-criticae in loca difficiliora lesaiae, 
 q«ibus praestantissimorura interpretum sententias exponit; suam novam- 
 que proponit Jos. Frid. Schelling, Superintendens Schorndorf. in 
 iluc. Wirtemb. Lips. 1797, 8vo. 
 
 1 33 Alb. .1 AC. Arnoldi Observationes ad quaedam Jesaiaeloca. This 
 is a new year's P o^ram of the University of Marbura:, 1796. 4to. Un- 
 fortunately, it only treats of three places, i. 8, 28. n. 6 , but these are 
 •examined with that profound investigation and- learning for which the 
 author is distinguished. 
 
 J 33 Beitrage zur Erlauterung der Weissagungen des Prophelen le- 
 saias, von D. Joh. Fki.ed. Schleusner, in the Analekten ftt'- das Stu- 
 dium derexeget. undsystemat. Theologie, edited by Keil and Tzsch'R- 
 NER. B. 1. H. 2. S. 1, ff. (Leipz. 1813.) They extend through chaps. 
 
 1 XXIX. 
 
 1 3 4 Chr. GuiL. Mossler novae locorum nonnuUorum Ie.«aiae expli- 
 catu diffioiliorum interpretationis periculum. Viteb. 1808. 4to. It com- 
 prehends the first five chapters. 
 
OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 47^ 
 
 most profound philological investigation, applied principally 
 to Isaiah, is undoubtedly to be found in Schroder's mono- 
 graphic on Is. ni. 16, ss. ; the next in Martini's work on 
 chap. LIU', with whom also St hnurber*^ and Aurivillius 
 must be mentioned, as accurate and able interpreters of par- 
 ticular places. The latest specimen of a translation, accom- 
 panied by a historical exposition of a popular kind,^^ may in- 
 deed contain much that is original both in respect to language 
 and history, but proportionably less that is well founded and 
 w^orthy of the present advanced state of interpretation.""^ 
 
 I 3 5 Besides the Programs to be mentioned on xv. we may notice al- 
 so the brief significations which are contained in some academical the- 
 ses : Theiium inauguralium pars philologico-critica, praef. Schkurrkk, 
 1783, 1788. 4to. 
 
 13 6 Reden und Lieder aus dem lesaias, theils ganz, theils nach ihren 
 schwersten Steilen tibersetzt und erklart, alle aber nach ihren geschicht- 
 lichen Beziehungen dargestellt. Nebst einem Anhange aus dem Buche 
 der Weisheit. Freyberg, 1815 8. 
 
 I 3 y A large and very minute list of old writings and dissertations 
 on particular places, for the most part small and of little value, may be 
 found in CALHaT'e Bibl. Biblioth. S. 414 if. 
 
TREATISE 
 
 ON THE 
 
 USE OF THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE. 
 
 BY 
 
 JOHN DAVID MICHAELIS. 
 
 Translated from the German, by 
 JOHN FREDERICK SCHROEDER, A. M. 
 
 AN ASSISTANT MINISTER OF TRINITY CHURCH, IN THB 
 
 CITT or NEW-YORK. 
 
 61 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 The following pages are extracted from the Preface to Mi- 
 CHAELis' Syriac Chrestomathy. This Preface was first pub- 
 lished with the Chrestomathy in the year 1768 ; but it appeared 
 at Gottingen in the year 1786, corrected, and enlarged by the ad- 
 dition of the author's valuable notes. 
 
 It is entitled : " Johann David Michaelis Abhandlung von der 
 Syrischen Sprache, und ihrem Gebrauch : nebst dem ersten 
 Theil einer Syrischen Chrestomathie ;" John David Michaelis* 
 Treatise on the Syriac Language and its use ; together with the 
 first part of a Syriac Chrestomathy. The first seven sections of 
 the work are <ievoted to the following subjects : 
 
 §. 1. View of the" Syriac Language in general ; 
 
 §. 2. Chaldee and Syriac are the same language ; 
 
 §. 3. Syriac and Chaldee differ chiefly in the alphabet ; 
 
 §. 4. It would be advisable, to commence the study of the 
 
 Oriental Languages with the Syriac, and to learn it 
 
 before the Hebrew. 
 §. 5. "The Syriac is the easiest among the Oriental Languages, 
 
 and the Hebrew the most difficult. The causes of this. 
 §. 6. The Arabic is more difficult than the Syriac. The causes 
 
 of this. 
 §. 7. Is it easier to learn the Syriac or the Chaldee ? 
 
 The next seven sections, from the eighth to the fourteenth in- 
 clusive, are devoted to the use of the Syriac Language. In the 
 §. 15th, the author shows, that " Models of Poetry or Taste are 
 not to be sought for in Syriac ;" in the §. 16th and §. 17th, he 
 gives a " View of the Chrestomathy," and the " Contents of the 
 first part" of it ; and in the §. 18th, he concludes with a very fa- 
 vourable Account of Castell's Syriac Lexicon. 
 
 The accompanying pages are a translation of the seven sec- 
 tions, which relate to the Use of the Syriac Language. 
 
 New.York, June 29, 1829. The Translator, 
 
§. I. The use of the Syriac Language for the illustration of 
 the Hebrew. 
 
 §. II. The use of the Syriac Language, particularly in regard 
 to Hebrew Grammar. 
 
 §. III. The use of the Syriac Language, in elucidating the 
 phraseology of the New Testament. 
 
 §. IV. Of books written in Syriac : and of the use of the Sy- 
 riac New Testament. 
 
 §. V. Some account of the Syriac Version of the Old Testa- 
 ment. 
 
 §. VI. The use of the Syriac Version of the Old Testament. 
 
 §. VII. The use which may be made of other Syriac works, 
 particularly those published by the Assemans. 
 
THE USE OF 
 
 THE 
 
 SYRIAC liANGUAGE, 
 
 §1. 
 
 The use of the Syriac language for the illustration of the 
 Hebrew. 
 
 The first and most usual object that is proposed, in learn- 
 ing the Syriac language, is derived from its illustration of the 
 Hebrew. It is not necessary for me here to say all that 
 might be said, since I have already stated the prominent to- 
 pics, in the forty-first and forty-second paragraphs of my 
 View of the means which are employed for acquiring a know- 
 ledge of the Hebrew Language ;* and I must request that 
 these paragraphs be re-perused. I deem it necessary, how- 
 ever, to subjoin to them the following. 
 
 1. I have there indeed already observed, that the Syriac is 
 less used than the Chaldee and the Arabic, for the illustration 
 of the Hebrew ; and hence it readily follows, that any one, 
 
 * [ The title of this work is : " Beurtheilung der Mittel, welche man 
 anwendet, die ausgestorbene Hebraische Sprache zu verstehen." It 
 was first published in the year 1756, when the author had resided at 
 Gottingen ten years, devoting his chief attention to Hebrew Philology, 
 and the works of Albert Schultens. See Eichhorn's Biblioth. der Bibl. 
 Lit. B. III. pp. 862. 863. Tr. ] 
 
486 THE USE or the syriac language, §. I. 
 
 ^^ho learns this easy language in any degree of perfection, 
 can obtain from it more that was previously unknown ; and in 
 the explanation of the Scriptures, he can so much the more 
 frequently have the advantage of something new. 
 
 It is only necessary, to take particular notice* of some of 
 the reasons, why so little has hitherto been derived from the 
 use of a language as easy as this is. 
 
 The following is one. The Jews, our first teachers in He- 
 brew, understood the Chaldee, as it occurred in the Targum, 
 xmd applied it to the Hebrew. Some of them, under the do- 
 minion of the Saracens, spoke the Arabic as their vernacular 
 language ; or, as learned men, they understood and used it. 
 But, though they must have understood Syriac books, they 
 could not read them, on account of tlieir peculiar written cha- 
 racter ; and they were not interested in these books, because 
 they were for the most part the productions of Christians. 
 Thus hey did not use the Syriac ; and most philologists 
 among Christians tread in the footsteps of these their precur- 
 sors. Some few, who rose above the character of mere 
 imitators of the Jews, and among such I would name the ve- 
 nerated St;HULTENs as one of the most conspicuous exam- 
 ples, had unhappily too little knowledge of the Syriac, and a 
 predilection for the Arabic, which this language can readily 
 exCite among its votaries, by its beauty, and the charm of its 
 compositions : for, that beauty and poetry do not enter into 
 the commendation of the Syriac language, I shall evince in a 
 following* page. 
 
 In the second place, most students acquired their know- 
 ledge of Syriac, as I have already stated in the work before 
 referred to, merely from the New Testament, without ever 
 veading the Version of the Old. Now it is scarcely practi- 
 cable, so to learn a language from the New Testament alone, 
 that it may serve as a literary resource, independent of its 
 
 * [ In the author's work, from which the present Treatise is extract- 
 ed, may be found a section ( §. 15. ) entitled : Models of Poetry or Taste 
 nre not to be sought for in Syriac. Tr. ] 
 
THE USE OP THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE, ^. I. 48T 
 
 connexion with the New Testament ; for there ocrur too 
 few words, and what is of importance here, very few names 
 of the works of nature and art. The Old Testament is, in 
 this respect, of a character entirely tht' < | posite, and to a re- 
 markable degree more rich in its vocabulary. 
 
 In the third place, there has been, for fifty years past, a 
 want of such books of inter st, written in the Syriac lan- 
 guage, as we may now own and use. And if any one de- 
 voted much attention to the language, he was obliged, if he 
 had no access to manuscripts, to avail himself chiefly of the 
 Versions of the Old and New Testament. Now it is easy to 
 perceive, that from these alone the language cannot be ac- 
 quired, in that extent and copiousness, which is practicable, 
 if, as is the good fortune of our age, one has ly ng before 
 him, and can make use of the Oriental Library of the truly 
 excellent Joseph Simonius Asseman (so replete with important 
 and various extracts from Syriac books), the admirable Sy- 
 riac Martyrology, ^nd the Syriac Works of Ephrkm Syrus.* 
 Should even the same word occur in these books and in the 
 Bible, it is not the same to the reader ; for he here meets 
 with it in a varied connexion, from which he can ascertain its 
 meaning, and not unfrequently with certain characteristics, 
 whereas, if a Hebrew word were extant at the same time in 
 Syriac, and the Syrian had retained it in his translation, I am 
 none the wiser for reading it in his version, than if I had pre- 
 
 * [ The titles of these three valuable publications are : 
 
 1. Bibiiotheca Orientali& Clementino-Vaticana,recensensMpuuscrip- 
 tos, Codices, Syriacos, Arabicos, Persicos, Turcicos, Hebraicos, Sa- 
 raaritanos, Armenicos, ^thiopicos, Graecos, iEgyptiacos, Ibericos, et 
 Malibaricos, ex priente conquisitos, coraparatos, avectos, et Bibliothe- 
 cae Vaticanae addictos recensuit, digressit, &c. Auctoritate, Jussu et 
 MunificentiA Clem. XI. It was published at Rome, 1719—1728. in 4 
 vols. fol. 
 
 2. Acta Sanctorum Martyrum Orientalium et Occidentaliura, &c. 
 /2o?ne, 1748. 2 vols. fol. 
 
 3. Ephr. Syr. Opera, in six vols, fol., published at Rome in the years 
 1732—1746. See Watt's Bibiiotheca Britannica. Tr ^^ 
 
 i 
 
488 THE USE OF THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE, §, I. 
 
 viously read it in Hebrew. It stands in the very same con- 
 nexion, and thus is no further illustrated. 
 
 Here then the Syriac supplies us with records of great ex- 
 tent, from which we may elucidate the Hebrew, and which 
 are not in use, because the public has been in possession of 
 them but a few years. It is not the fate of learning, that very 
 prompt use is made of the treasures, which enrich her. A 
 book is printed, and lies long upon the shelf as an ornament 
 not in use ; for it does not immediately serve the purpose 
 of the learned ; and too little indeed was he favoured by 
 fortune, that could buy it. How commonly does this occur ! 
 It is a chance, if within a hundred years of the printing of an 
 old outlandish book, any one can guess all, for which it might 
 be useful, and of which the editor perhaps never once 
 thought. In some cases this always remains undiscovered ; 
 and the book is lavished, as those blossoms, which nature de- 
 signs only to change again to garden-mould, after they have 
 for a short time exhibited their beauties. 
 
 It is true, that Rome long since had these treasures in her 
 Vatican Library : and I may with justice call this city the 
 special seat of Syriac learning. But the best votaries of Sy- 
 riac there do not occupy themselves, with a reference to He- 
 brew ; and they generally use their Syriac learning for a 
 purpose, different from that of us Protestants. For as a 
 great part of the Syrian church has submitted to the See of 
 Rome, and efforts are made to gain the other also, it is ne- 
 cessary, with a view to be well versed in the usages, the li- 
 turgies, the antiquities, and the history of the Syrian Church, 
 that an acquaintance be formed with* their own writings. At 
 Rome, therefore, the Syriac is pursued, almost after the same 
 propensity, which Virgil ascribed to the Romans of old : 
 
 Tu regere imperio populos, Rornane, memento. 
 
 And it is important, in some measure to retrieve in the East, 
 what seems to have been lost in Europe. In this manner is 
 the Syriac, as to the actual knowledge that is obtained by its 
 study, an important part of Roman learning ; and such is the 
 
tHE UbE OF THE SYKiAC LANGUAGE, §. 1. 4SU 
 
 niaiiiier of its occupying those engaged in it, that they littlu 
 think of making it ilkistrate Hebrew words. 
 
 2, From the Syriac, we may not only derive much more 
 for the elucidation of the Hebrew, but often somewhat more 
 certainly, than from the Jewish Chaldee with which we are 
 acquainted. 
 
 The former of these two propositions I have already casu- 
 ally treated.* We have far more books of every kind in Sy- 
 riac, from which we may learn this language to a much 
 greater extent ; and more words, phrases, and constructions 
 are to be met with, in so varied a connexion, that it is easy to 
 determine with certainty their true sense. This is not the 
 case in regard to the Chaldee, where our limited reading is 
 restricted to the versions of the Bible. 
 
 From this very difference arises the second claim : that the 
 elucidations of the Hebrew from the Syriac are often more 
 certain, and carry with them greater conviction, than those 
 derived from the Chaldee. I can at least say, that as long as 
 I have illustrated an obscure Hebrew word merely by the 
 Chaldee, and miss that word or its signification in Syriac, I 
 am not without sensible fear, lest I should go astray. We are 
 acquainted with the Chaldee, T excepting Daniel and Ezra), 
 only from the writings of such Jews, as undertook to translate 
 and explain the Hebrew Scriptures ; and they lived pretty 
 long, somewhere between four and ten centuries, after the 
 cessation of the Hebrew language. They introduced into 
 their Chaldee many words, which, as learned men, they had 
 obtained from the Hebrew Scriptures ; just as the Christian 
 Church has enriched other languages with Latin and Greek 
 words. And they gave them, in Chaldee, that meaning, in 
 which the Rabbins had properly or improperly understood 
 them in the Bible. I am not certain then, whether this or 
 that particular word of the Hebrew Bible, which I meet with 
 in Chaldee books, was at any time a part of the vernacular 
 language of the Chaldeans, or was only introduced into it by 
 
 r See vV 4. of the work fiom which this Treatise is extracted. Tr. "^ 
 
490 THE USE OF THt: SYRIAC LANCxUAGE, §, J. 
 
 the Rabbins ; and whether it owes the meaning, which Jew- 
 ish writers give it, merely to their exposition of the Hebrew 
 Scriptures, or to the existing usage of the Chaldec. But 1 am 
 safe from this twofold apprehension, as soon as I meet with 
 the word in Syriac, in that sense ; for it was not spoken, as a 
 half-learned language, by Rabbins, but as a native tongue, by 
 such as were not at all concerned with the Hebrew Bible, or 
 at least too seldom, to acquaint themselves with its unknown 
 words, and to employ it in the acceptation, which exegesis 
 required. 
 
 Whenever therefore, I meet merely in the Chaldee, with 
 a word or alleged sense of the Hebrew Bible, that is not 
 found in the other Oriental Languages, I have misgivings on 
 the subject. And I am afraid, that it may be a word, not 
 nurtured in its parent's arms, but in the schools ; and that the 
 Rabbi took it from the Bible, well or ill interpreted by him, 
 and trans-ferred it into the Jewish Chaldee. 1 am at least 
 very distrustful, if I do not meet with the word in the Syriac. 
 But as soon as this is the case, I am freed from my apprehen- 
 sion, and 1 think I am no longer about to move in a circle, if 
 only I illustrate the Hebrew that is not clear to me, by meaiiiS 
 of the Chaldee and Syriac. 
 
 I will endeavour to make this more intelligible by an example, 
 where the mere Chaldee is doubtful to my mind. The words of 
 
 Isaiah, Chapter XIV. ver. 23. nb*y^rT J<DKtOD!J H^'riXDKDI 
 
 •• : - J--: : - : T • •• r :■ 
 
 are most generally translated I will sweep it with the besom of 
 destruction* The Chaldee, Syriac and Vulgate here led the way 
 of the modern versions ; and I have nothing whatever to say, 
 in opposition to the sense, which is afforded b)^ this translation. 
 It is my wish only, that an explanation of the Hebrew words 
 J<DNt? and NDKtpO, which occur no where but here, should 
 be obtained from the passage, independently of the other Orien- 
 
 ■'* Supplementa ad Lexica Hebraica, p. 995. In lliese Supplemeiita may 
 be found many other examples, where fve must remain in doubt, if we 
 are acquainted with the signification of r word merefv froni the ChaK 
 
THE USE OP THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE, §. I. 491 
 
 '^a\ languages, so that the noun may mean besom, and the verb 
 ^weep. The Chaldee alone very promptly offers this to me : for 
 Ihere tO^?'tp signifies to sweep, and KD^tO^D besom, both 
 from D'p (Urt, and tO^tQ to cleanse from dirt.* Can I 
 with safety rely on this ? May it not be the case, that this 
 Chaldee word is merely Rabbinic, and originated from the 
 fact, that certain Rabbins interpreted the unknown Hebrew 
 noun and verb, by besom and sweep ? If it be so, I should 
 ^rgue in a circle, in case I proved the sense of the Hebrew 
 word from the Chaldee : for in the Chaldee, the Rabbins mere- 
 ly so used it, because they believed, that it was to be so un- 
 derstood in the Hebrew ! 
 
 I am free from this uncertainty, as soon as I find the same 
 words in Syriac with the same meaning. But should that not 
 be the case, my distrust in regard to the mere Chaldee is in- 
 creased : and although I do not contradict it, yet I follow that 
 sound logic, which it is so .difficult to find, among most of 
 those who interpret the Hebrew Scriptures. 
 
 Shall I mention one other example, where I decide, with 
 more confidence, against the mere Chaldee ? Cocceius, a 
 man truly great in philology, who has furnished us with by 
 far -the best Hebrew Lexicon hitherto extant, (I make an ex- 
 ception, however, in favour of Castell, for in the Hebrew his 
 is better still, although it is not used), would translate nT\^ 
 0*^5 in Isaiah I. 22. po/?i.5fMW5 circt<mcisw5 C5^ ag^wa. The 
 expression is indeed peculiar. I understand it to be Wint 
 adulterated t with zuater ; but to circumcise wine with water 
 sounds to me, almost the same, as if I heard of Jewish infant- 
 Ijaptism. Cocceius, however, took this sense of the word 
 from the Chaldee, where certainly ?71J2 is the same as ^?1D 
 to circumcise. But as long as I discover this word, neither in 
 
 * [ See Buxtorf's Lexicon Chald., Talmud., Rabbin., Col. 847, on the 
 Chaldee words cited; and Gesenius' Hebr. HandwOrterbuch, on the 
 word j<C3XD and his Commentary on Isaiah, xiv. 23. Tr. ] 
 
 t [ The German epithet here used by Michaelis is getau/t, which sig- 
 fies baptized, as well as adulterated; hence his play upon the word, at the 
 cfose of the sentence. Tr.'] 
 
492 THE USE OF THE SVRIAC LANGUAGE, §. 11. 
 
 one of the other Oriental Languages, nor in the Syl'iac, whicir 
 appears in other particulars to be the same as the Chaldee, 
 I believe that ^IID to circumcise, is no word of the Chaldees 
 
 themselves, derived from the parent stock ; but that it is 
 merely a w^ord of the Rabbins who spoke Chaldee. And I 
 believe, that it was formed by them from this passage of 
 Isaiah, because they did not know what ^JlD ineant, and re- 
 presented it as well as they could by 7^D. In short, it is not 
 ancient Chaldee, but modern and Jewish ; and consequently, 
 it is of no service for the explanation of a passage of Isaiah, 
 
 But, on the other hand, if ^cn 2o in Syriac also signified to cir- 
 cumcise, the views of Cocceins would have had somewhat 
 greater probability. 
 
 §. II. 
 
 Tlie use of the Syriac language, parhcularly in regard to 
 Hebrew Grammar. 
 
 In the application of the Syriac to the Hebrew, we mmt 
 bear in mind, not merely words and phrases, (the contents of 
 the Lexicon,) but principally the Grammar of the language. 
 Here also the Hebrew cannot well dispense with the aid of 
 the Arabic and Syriac, because the Hebrew Bible is far too 
 inconsiderable, to admit of a complete grammar being formed 
 from it with sufficient accuracy. For, to give an illustration 
 of the case : — if a certain alleged grammatical rule or excep- 
 tion depended only on a very few examples, and as to these, 
 there was a possibility of giving a different analysis of the 
 word, or of reading it in a quite different manner, the inquiry 
 would be suggested : Is the alleged rule, exception, or ano- 
 maly, well founded, or only imagined ? And this case is of 
 frequent occurrence in Hebrew Grammar, which appears to 
 some a mere assemblage of exceptions. In such a case, we 
 cannot well decide on any thing, without adopting the aid of 
 the other Oriental Languages, of w'hich we know more than 
 
THE USEOF THK SYRIAC LANGUAGE, §. 11. 491^ 
 
 ottlie Hebrew. Jf these recognize just such a grammatical 
 deviation, it is thus rendered evident, that this has been adopt- 
 ed in the Hebrew ; and it explains the example stated. But 
 if such is not the case, the contrary continues probable, until 
 it is shown, (at least by a sufficient number of undeniable ex- 
 amples, that is to say, such as cannot be otherwise explained,) 
 that the Hebrews actually had such a rule, or exception, or 
 anomaly. 
 
 Even the well-known rule, which is found in all grammars, 
 that Vav and Yod, if they quiesce, may be omitted ; or, that 
 they may be inserted as matres hctionis, (so that we have the 
 liberty of writing the same word both in full and defectively) 
 is called in question by critics ; some of whom are of opinion, 
 tliat all these differences of orthography are not grammatical 
 license, but errors of the transcriber. The Syriac language 
 here turns the balance in favour of the grammarians, and 
 against the rectifying critics -^ for in the records of Palmyra I 
 discover, that the same word is written, sometimes in full, 
 and sometimes defectively. 
 
 The Hebrew Grammar occupies, to a certain extent, a mid- 
 dle course between the Arabic and Aramaean. Where the 
 consonants, the most important part of the language, are con- 
 cerned, it appears in general somewhat more hke the Arabic 
 than like the Aramaean ; but this is not the case without de- 
 viation, and we may err, if we reject a Hebrew anomaly, 
 with which the Arabs wTre unacquainted. 
 
 I will adduce an example, in which this happened to my- 
 self. The J^un paragogic of the Hebrews after the Future is 
 well known. And it is still more common in Arabic, where 
 there is inflected a. future paragogic, which is so entitled. But 
 the Hebrew grammars generally state, that beside this, there 
 is also, although not often, a paragogic Nun suffixed to the 
 
 * [ Hoffmann (in his Syriac Grammar, Lib. i. Cap. i. §. 12.2.) give& 
 examples in proof of this. He says, however, that the occurrence of the 
 malres lectionis is more frequent in modern than in ancient Syriac ; and 
 he accounts for the fact, by ascribing it to the inflnenre of the Greek 
 language, TV. "] 
 
4&4 
 
 THE USE op THE SYRIAC LANGUAXiE) §. Ih 
 
 Preterit. Most examples of it are erroneous ; and those ad- 
 duced are only the result of perplexity, because it was found 
 impracticable, to explain a certain obscure word, but by taking 
 away something at the commencement, rejecting it from the 
 middle, and suffixing it at the end. 
 
 The word P-J^ 7.t I^eut. viii. 3. 16., to be met with twice in 
 the same chapter, is at least an appropriate instance of this 
 anomaly. But, because I did not meet with any example of 
 a paragogic Nun after the Preterit, in the other Oriental Lan- 
 guages, I suspected this also, and 1 intended to omit it in the 
 future editions of my Hebrew Grammar. 1 would have ven- 
 tured to change the vowel-points of the only example, and to 
 express it in the Future pj^*!^ • The Future was not indeed 
 
 quite appropriate to the context ; but in this too, I adopted an 
 expedient, to aid it, and to translate : which thy fathers loould 
 not have known. This opinion did not last long. In Syriac 
 writers, that had not hitherto been printed, I met with what 
 
 grammarians keep out of view, that instead of aX^i) may 
 
 be inflected also ^a!s»^'^^ : for instance, in Asseman's On- 
 
 aital Library , T. i. p. 235. .aXiiA , or to take an example 
 
 N • 
 
 i\ * 
 
 found in this Chrestomathy,* p. 78. *ar::) \.£i . From this fact! 
 
 I concluded that the Chaldees do the same ; and in the Tar- 
 gum of Jerusalem and the Targum of Pseudo-Jonathan, in- 
 stead of ^7^ vv^e often find f l^r- Then I began to think, that 
 the same might once have been the case in Hebrew. 
 
 * [ The extract in the Chrestomathy is from the Chronicle of Dio- 
 mjsius, in Asseman's Oriental Library, T. i. p. 411. In the Author's Sy- 
 riac Grammar, §>. 43., there are further examples. Tr. ] 
 
 i [ The use of the Paragogic Nun of the Preterit is well known in Sy- 
 riac; for in the Preterit of almost all verbs, some of the persons appear 
 with it. See Hoffmann's Syr. Gram, Lib. ii. Cap. i. §. 53. Annot. 3. In 
 Chaldee also it is to be met with, as the author states ; for instance, in 
 the Targum, it occurs three times in a single verse. Ps. lxxvii. 17. Eich- 
 HORN, (in his Einleitung iiis A. T. B. i. $. 11. pp. 76. 83.,) looks upon 
 the Nun paragogic of the Hebrew as an archaism; but Gbsenius, (in his 
 LehrgebHude der Hebr. Sprache. $. 78. Anmerk. 2.,) expresses a different 
 opinion. Tr. "} 
 
THE USE OF THE SVRIAC LANGUAtiE, §.11, 4!^^ 
 
 Ill regard to the vowels and diacritical marks, Hebrew 
 Grammar derives more illustrations from the Syriac, and but 
 few from the Arabic. The probable cause of it is this : that 
 after the Babylonian captivity, the Aramaean was for several 
 centuries vernacular among the Jews who dwelt in Asia, 
 and continued for a long time to be their learned language. 
 It was no wonder then, if they at this time pronounced 
 the Consonants of the unspoken Hebrew, according to 
 their living language, that is, Aramaean ; and were un- 
 acquainted with the ancient pronunciation, which, as I ap- 
 prehend, may have approached more nearly to the Arabic. 
 At the present day, almost every people in Europe pronounce, 
 according to their own native language, the Latin, which was 
 written with consonants and vowels : the Itahans pronounce 
 in a peculiar manner ; the Germans and the French also ; and 
 the English depart very widely from them all. If it occurred 
 to the Jews, therefore, a thousand years or more, after the 
 total extinction of the Hebrew language, to add to the He^ 
 brew text the present vowels and diacritical marks ; it can 
 scarcely be supposed otherwise, than that, from their igno- 
 rance of the long lost ancient pronunciation, they would have 
 adapted their native language to the Chaldee or Aramaean. 
 And that is not merely probable a prior e, but I can prove it. 
 When I issue my new Hebrew Grammar, on which I am now 
 occupied, and which is to be reprinted in a form, entirely dif- 
 ferent from the editions of 1745, 1768, and 1778, there shall 
 be given illustrations of the fact. 
 
 My late revered father, in his Dissertation entitled Lumina 
 Syriaca pro illustrando Ebraismo (Halle 1756),^ derived 
 many grammatical elucidations from the Syriac ; and as I 
 have made his Syriac Grammar the ground of illustrations for 
 my Chrestomathy, I hope that no one may have this Syriac 
 Grammar, without connecting with it the above-mentioned 
 Dissertation. 
 
 * [ This Dissertation may be found in Pott's Sijlloge Comnieritt. Theffff' 
 P. I. p. 170. ss. Tr. 1 
 
4^0 THE USE OP THK SYRlAC LANGUAtrK, §. II J. 
 
 §. III. 
 
 The use of the Syriac language, in elucidating the phraseology 
 of the New Testament, 
 
 The second use of the Syriac regards the Greek of the New- 
 Testament, which is so replete with Oriental phraseology. 
 Cases of this are generally called Hebraisms ; and I will not dis- 
 pute about this word, since undoubtedly no man understands so 
 much of the ancient Hebrew language, that he can with con- 
 fidence deny it any expression of another Oriental language. 
 It may have been Hebrew, without occurring in the small col- 
 lection of Hebrew books now extant. But Christ, whose 
 words are translated in the Gospels, and the other Jews of 
 his day did not use, as their vernacular language, the Hebrew, 
 but the Chaldee or Syriac. And many of the peculiar Greek 
 phrase.5 of the New Testament will be in vain sought for in 
 the Hebrew Scriptures ; j^et they are to be met with in 
 8yriac. 
 
 I have been marking, from time to time, in my New Tes- 
 tament, such Syriac phrases, and shall perhaps publish them, 
 when the collection is more enlarged. Should 1 not have time 
 for this, there will at least be found after my death, on the 
 margin of my copy of Wetstein's New Testament, what I 
 have thus collected out of Oriental as well as Greek writers, 
 that has not been taken notice of by others. I made use of 
 Wetstein's margin, because this kind of collection, on ac- 
 count of its similarity to his notes, seemed there to be most 
 appropriate.* I will, however, adduce one or two examples. 
 
 The New Testament says sometimes : to taste of death ; 
 
 * Something of this may be found in myEinleitung ins N. T., ilntro- 
 duclionto the New Testament, ] §. 20. ; in the fourth edition, pp. 145 — 149. 
 [ The corresponding reference, in Bishop Marsh's Translation, is Vo/ 
 J. Pt. 1. Ch. IV. Sect. y. pp. 135—139. Tr. •] 
 
THK USE OF THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE, §. III. 4Wt 
 
 lor instance, in John vm. 52. Hebr. ii. 9.* Because this is 
 not customary in the Greek, and is as httle in accordance 
 with our living languages, as they do not imitate the expi'ession 
 of the Scriptures, the learned have found in the taste of death, 
 according to their pleasure, emphases, mysteries, and depths. 
 At one time, it describes the easy and rapid transition of 
 death ; and at another, the bitierntss of its taste ; then again a 
 third found in it a deep theological sentiment or allusion, be- 
 cause our first parents brought death upon themselves and all 
 of us, by eating of a forbidden fruit, that was pleasant to the 
 taste. In this emphasis and allusion to a mere scriptural nar- 
 rative, we may truly be astonished to find, that the phrase is 
 nowhere in the Old Testament ; and this very deficiency 
 might have been enough, to prevent the interpreter's explain- 
 ing it merely by the emphatic word, a Hebraism, But we 
 may find it in the Syriac and Arabic writers ; the former of 
 whom are more nearly allied to the New Testament, because 
 Jesus and his Apostles spoke Aramaean. 
 
 In AiSEMAw's Oriental Library, T. i. p. 51. the Edes- 
 
 senes say: ^^^^-2 -a^-^ ZUj f^alo ^yw but one 
 
 death awaits us, which we must taste,'\ that is, we can die but 
 once. Here is the same expression, except only, that we see 
 whence it is derived. A passage of Ephrkm is more explicit, 
 in his Commentaty on the book of Genesis, Tom. i. p. 46. where 
 he makes Lamech say ; Before that comes to pass^we shall die, and 
 
 escape the misery ( l^i^^ ^ Sflp Q Ja:s) by the cup of deaths 
 
 which 7oe must taste. They imagined, therefore, that Death 
 held in his hand an empoisoned cup, which mortals were 
 compelled to drink: in the same manner, perhaps, that 
 
 * L The passages of the New Testament, in which the phrasp ytCofAAt 
 QAvdrovfto tasU of deatk, occurs, are the following : Matt. xvi. 28. Mark 
 IX. I. Luke IX. 27. John viu. 52. Hebr. ii. 9. In Hebr. xi. 5. also, 
 where the Greek is wh ihh bdrarov, not ste death, the Syriac is 1^21 as5 
 ^^2 p' "<^^ ^^^^(^ of death. Tr .] 
 
 + f FJterallv : One d^ath it btfvre. usy which tee shall tii,^e. Tr, \ 
 
 m 
 
4JJ8 THE ¥SE OP TBE SYRFAC LANGOAGE, §.111; 
 
 iQther nations are accustomed to furnish him with a fatal shatit, 
 the Jews with a sword, and the common people in Germany 
 with a scythe. Thus, too, may we understand the expression 
 of Christ, when he so repeatedly calls the death which awaited 
 him, a cup which he must drink. 
 
 There may be a doubt, perhaps, whether the Syrian Chris- 
 tians did not obtain these expressions from the New Testa- 
 menty somewhat in the same manner that our German, and to 
 a still greater degree the English language, have acquired 
 many Scriptural phras(\s, because some people are desirous at 
 all times to speak according to the Scriptures, or as Swift * has 
 it, in his satire on the Puritans, according to their father's will. 
 
 This cannot, indeed, be confuted from the Syriac alone^ 
 because our Syriac writers generally are Christians : though 
 the contrary may still be probable, on this account, that the 
 New Testament must have received the expression from some 
 other language, and Christ must have received it from the 
 common language of the Jews. The Arabic here furnishes 
 Us with new aid, from the circumstance that it exhibits 
 to us, as evidences of the expression, ancient poets who 
 Avere not Christians. An Arabian bard of pagan times, 
 whose poem I have transferred from Schultens' Gram- 
 mar into my Arabic Chrestomathy, [ see p. 77. ] f says : 
 
 (jX-4 J^-i ei--^-^ //"L-^ L«iw-X-5— ;:i 
 
 w6 must give the Hudailites the cup of death to drink ; and 
 ScHULTENs cites, (p. 442. of his Arabic Grammar,) a corres- 
 ponding passage.^: 
 
 • Tale of a Tub, p. 115. of the first volume of Swift's Works, accord- 
 ing to the Hawkesworth edition of 1760. 
 
 t Professor Adler, in Nonnulla Malthasi et Marci enunciata, ex ndolc 
 tinguae Syriacae explicata, p. 13. states some further examples of Arabic 
 phrases, which give appellations to Death, from drinking or intoxication^ 
 Some of these 1 think inapposite. 
 
 ^ [ A similar phrase is often found in Rabbinical writers. Thus: All 
 the children of the world NniDl NDi7C3 V 't-' taste the tasle of death. 
 Dr. Gill (in his Comment, on Matt, xvi. 28.,) quotes, in proof of this, 
 Zohar on Gen., fol. 2:, 4. and 37, 1. and on Exod., fol. 19, 2. and on 
 Numb., fol. 60, 4. and 61, 2. 4 \ and Midrash Kohelelh, fol. 83, 2. He 
 refers also to Berestiit Kabba, Sect, 9, fol. 7-3. 4., and Bpxtorf (in \rh 
 
THE USE OF TH£ SYRIAC LANGUAC^S, §. HI. 4H!^ 
 
 "St. PauPs expression, ii. Cor. xii. 7., the angel or messenger 
 of Satan, to buffet me, the best interpreters understand, as re- 
 ferring to a bodily disease. It is not my purpose at this time, 
 to explain it from the opinion of the Jews, who ascribed every 
 disease to some evil spirit, and regarded all these spirits, as 
 subjects and messengers, or angels, of the Angel of Death, 
 who in particular is called Satan. It is «ow my intention 
 only, to supply a very similar Syriac expression, which I have 
 met with in Asseman's Oriental Library, T. i. p. 215.^ 
 where a transcriber, in the subscription of a book, says 
 that he wrote it at a time when he was sick ; which is in 
 Syriac, when I received buffetings on account of my sins : — ■ 
 
 I . \.. ^ . . • 
 
 The verb (fxavSaki^u, so common in the New Testament, 
 and of which I made mention some time since, 'm the Pro- 
 gram * to my Lectures on the Septuagint, pp. 20. 21., may 
 be here introduced ; as I then expressly deferred what may- 
 be better stated while I am treating of the Syriac, than when 
 speaking of the Septuagint. 
 
 The noun (fxavdakov is sufficiently explained by Commenta- 
 tors, and good Greek writers were not unacquainted with it. 
 It properly signifies : the loose and lightly set small stick of a 
 trap, which, at the slightest touch, suffers the weight resting 
 
 Lexicon Chal. Talrn. Rabb.) gives the words of the citation. Dr. 
 Paulds (in his Commentar fiber das N. T., Vol. ii. Absch. lxxvii.) adds- 
 the following passage from JalktU Chadasch, fol. 69, 2.: "There are 
 thirteen who taste not the taste vf death : Enoch, Eliezer the servant of 
 Abraham, Methuselah, Hiram king of Tyre, Ebed-Melech the Ethiopian^ 
 Pharoah's daughter, Serah the daughter of Asher, the three sons of 
 Korah, Elijah, Messiah." Tr. ] 
 
 * f The title of this work is : Joh. Dav. Michaf.lis Programma, 
 vjorinne er von seinen Collegiis Uber die lxx. DoUmetscher Nachricht giebt, 
 und zugleidi das aste von diesen Collegiis Uber die Sprilchwdrter Salomoni^ 
 ankiindigt. Gdtlingen, 1767. octavo. Program, in which he gives an ac- 
 count of his Lectures on the Septuagint, and at the same time submits 
 the first of his Lectures on the Proverbs of Solomon. See Rosesmullek 
 Handb. fUr die Literal, der bibl. Krit. und Exeg, B. ii, Abth. i. Absch. £. 
 St. 3. at the close. Tr. ^ 
 
506 THE USE OF THE SYIllAC LANGUAGE, §. 111. 
 
 on it to fall ; and in a general sense, the trap itself may bfe 
 called (Txixv^aXov. The verb (fxav8aki^(^ derived from it, is not 
 deduced from classic authors ; but it must, according to its 
 derivation, be the same as the phrase, to set a trap for any 
 one, or to catch him with it, or, if the trap itself be in the 
 Nominative, fhe trap cavght some one. The pure Greek was 
 still less acquainted with this verb in a moral acceptation. 
 
 In the New Testament the noun and verb are often met 
 with, and perhaps not at all times in the same sense. We 
 cannot properly call it a Hebraism, as we do not in one in- 
 stance find the verb, in the whole Greek version of the cano- 
 nical books of the Old Testament.* The Book of Sirach is the 
 first that has it, Ch. ix. .5. xxui. 8. xxxn. (or according to 
 others xxxv.) 15. or as others have it 16. or 19; but still the 
 New Testament may hence derive much for its elucidation. 
 The last passage of 8irach requires more illustration that it 
 gives ; and in the two preceding, the word is used of a more 
 particular catching, and placing of the snare. In the New 
 Testament, on the contrary, it most generally occurs in such 
 a manner, that (if I may be permitted, on account of the am- 
 biguity, to retain the Greek word,) by scandalizing, inconsi* 
 deration seems to be alleged, rather than wickedness and de- 
 sign* it does not, so to speak, set a trap, but only permits 
 something to lie in the way, over which a person may fall. 
 
 It herq seems to be the translation of the Syriac \\ AiD Z j >* 
 i . . . . . : " .' .. 
 
 which pnmarily, in its proper signification, means to fall, but 
 
 then, to fall away from a religion, be it true or false ; to he 
 irritated dt any thins;, and on this account, to break off from 
 fellowship^ with him who does it. I will adduce some exam- 
 ples from my Chrestomathy. At page 43, it is related, that 
 the King of the Homerites desired and received from Alex- 
 andria a Bishop, before the decree of the Council of Chal- 
 cedon, which condemned Eutychus, was recognized at Alex- 
 
 * I have since, however, found one example of it in a canonical book. 
 Dan. XI. 41 ; but that I could not have known in the year 1768, for Da- 
 niel in the Version of the lxx. was first published at Rome in the }np«r 
 
 .177^ 
 
THK USE or tHE SYRIAC LANGUAGE, §. Hi. 5W1 
 
 Bftdria ; but this Bishop soon died, and as this Council in the 
 mean time was there recognized, and Theodosius was pro- 
 scribed, on account of the, faith, and because he would not 
 subscribe to it, the King of the Homerites was displeased 
 
 OOl 4-s( ^j&jdZJ ), and would not receive any Bishop 
 
 from Alexandria. It may be remarked, that the word is here 
 used, not of an apostasy, but of an affront, on account of which 
 the Homerites separated from a Church, regarded by the wri- 
 ter as heterodox. 
 
 Bishops were introduced among the Homerites, in violation 
 of the usages of the Church, and without being consecrated 
 by Bishops ; see p» 45. The author greatly disapproves of 
 this ; and he thus writes of those who disapproved of it, as 
 
 well as himself: " but many ( a^ .•-^Zf ), did not regard 
 
 this as an ordination, and did not recognize them ; upon which, 
 there arose a great schism." In this passage, it might be 
 thought, periiaps, that the Syrians may have derived from 
 the New Testament, their signification of the word, because 
 
 it occurs in an ecclesiastical sense : but in p. 97, ^OwaJlO 
 
 fallen, has the same sense as ansrered, displeased. 
 
 This gives, it is true, to most passages of the New Testa- 
 ment where (fxavSaXi^M <)ccurs, no other sense than they al* 
 ready have among commentators : but still it illustrates them, 
 and evinces, that this verb had acquired, in ancient Greeks 
 and even with the Septuagint, a signification so unusual.* 
 At direct variance with it, is a common pulpit observation, 
 that [ the German word ] drgerti [ to offend ] does not mean 
 to irritate a person, but to make him drger [ worse ], or to cor* 
 rupt his principles. This is a w^ell meant moral and etymo* 
 logical reflection on the German word : but it is unwarranted 
 
 * [ A very full investigation of this subject may be found in Johan- 
 SIS VoRSTii de ffehraismis N. T. CommeiUarius, Pars i. Cap. in. 9. pp. 8T 
 —105. of the edit. Lipsiaei, 1778. IV. ] 
 
J(te THE USE OP THE SVRIAC LAIfGUAGE, §. Uh 
 
 in the Greek, which actually says with a Syriasm, to provoke 
 one to anger, to irritate. And I must ascribe it to a happy 
 accident, that in the German there is found a word, which so 
 well expresses the sense of the Syro-Greek, although the Ger- 
 man Translator knew nothing of the Syriac. 
 
 One particular passage of the New Testament, however, 
 seems to be still more indebted to this interpretation from 
 the Syriac, and to be, for the first time, by means of it, ren- 
 dered intelligible and consistent. In Matt. xvni. 1 — 10. the 
 subject is pride, and the severest curse is denounced against 
 those, who offend one of the least ; but of this it is said again, 
 verse 10., take heed that ife despise not one of these little ones -: 
 just as if to offend and to despise were the same, or that to 
 offend was a consequence of pride. This removes a great 
 obscurity in the passage, as long as to offend is taken, in the 
 usual ecclesiastical sense, of setting a bad example. But as 
 soon as we understand by 'i-navdoChi^u, to provoke one in such a 
 manner, that in anger he xbithdraios himself from us ; yes, 
 and apostatizes from Christ himself and supply* the narrative 
 from Mark ix. 33 — 50, all is then clear. As the disciples of 
 Jesus disputed by the way, wh() among them should be the 
 greatest in his kingdom, Jesus places a little child in the midst 
 of them, takes it up in his arms, and says, if they do not be- 
 come as this child, they cannot enter into his kingdom ; and 
 whosoever shall receive one such child, or the least disciple 
 of Christ, in the name of Christ, and for his sake, will have 
 received Christ himself John ventured in reply, to make a 
 suggestion to this effect : his master Jesus spoke somewhat 
 too indefinitely. ' Many strangers called upon his name. 
 He himself, and his fellow-disciples, had in short met with 
 one, who prayed over those who were possessed, and wished 
 to cast out the evil spirit in the name of Christ ; but they 
 
 * I refer to my latroduction to the New Testament, $. 96. pp. 910— 
 915. In the third edition, §. 120. pp. 772—774. [ In the fourth edition 
 §. 121. pp. 879—881 ; and in Bishop Marsh's^ translation.. Vol.iu.Pt. i. 
 Ch. u. Sect. ». pp, 0—9. Tr. 1 
 
TUE USE OP TflE SYRIAC LANGUAGE, §. IV. 503 
 
 forbid him, because he was not in fellowship with them ; and 
 yet he supposed, that Jesus would not disapprove of their 
 conduct/ Upon this, Jesus answered : he did greatly disap- 
 prove of it. At least, this man could have been no adversa- 
 ry of his, but must have been a worshipper. And whosoever 
 held in contempt only one of the least of his disciples, and 
 injured him, and provoked him,, on that account ; he would 
 have severely to answer for it. If such an one, only an 
 humble disciple, as was that individual of whom they spoke, 
 should by their opposition be alienated from faith in him ; 
 one of the greatest sins would have been committed. Here, 
 to provoke, to alienate from Christ, and to despise^ are: very 
 nearly allied to each other. 
 
 §IV. 
 
 Of Books written in Syriac ; and of the use of the Syriac 
 New Testament. 
 
 The third use of the Syriac language consists in this, that 
 it puts us in a situation, to read and understand a number of 
 useful books, which are written in it.* This is generally the 
 object for which we learn a language ; but we are apt to pass 
 by this in regard to the Oriental Languages, at one time, be- 
 cause we design merely to use them for their illustration of 
 the Hebrew, and our intention leads us no further than this : 
 and at another time, because in these languages, (excepting 
 a version of the Scriptures, or Liturgies,) very little is extant 
 or known. The latter is not the case, in regard to the Sy- 
 riac language. Independently of a complete Version of the 
 whole Bible, and even of the Apocryphal Books, we are of- 
 
 '* [ An Essay on the Literature of the Christian Syrians, ( Ueber die Lit- 
 teratur der christlichen Syrer,) by J. F. Gaab, is inserted in Pauios' 
 Repeitorium fQ.r biblische widmorgenl&ndischc Lilteralur, VoLin. pp. 358 
 s?. of the edit. Jena,, 1791. Tr. ") 
 
504 THE USE or THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE, §. IV, 
 
 fered a valuable library of important, and for the most part 
 unexamined works, most of them indeed as yet in manuscript^ 
 but some in print, and I would add, (lest the latter should be 
 thought single sheets,) even folio volumes. 
 
 Among these works, it is true, the version of the Scrip- 
 tures holds a very dii-tinguished place, on account of its criti- 
 cal and philological use ; and an omission would be discover- 
 ed here, if I did not make particular mention of it. 
 
 In regard to the versions of the New Testament, I shall 
 readily be relieved from the necessity of this, as I should be 
 compelled to repeat what .1 have treated at length on this 
 point, in my Curat in versionem Syriacam Acluum Jpostoli- 
 corum, cum consectariis criticis, de indole, cognationibuSy et 
 •iisu versionis Syriacae tabularum novi foederis, (published in 
 the year 175;>),* and also in the second edition of the Intro- 
 duction to the New Testament, §§. 24 — 31.1" 
 
 But I must say something, in regard to the version of the 
 Old Testament, at least as preliminary, and defer the proofs 
 of what 1 state. Those, who have hitherto attended my 
 usual College Lectures, which I read on some one or other 
 chapter of the Bible, will readily recal to mind the proofs. 
 If 1 have time, I will on some future occasion gather them 
 from these Lectures, where they lie scattered, and transfer 
 
 * [ This valuable work is a small quarto of two hundred pages, pub- 
 lished at Gbttin^en, in the year above mentioned It contains : $. x. 
 interpretations of the Grtek text derived from the Syriac ; $$. ii — vi. 
 a critical examination of the Arabic Version uf th Epistles, ai the Acts 
 of the Apostles, edited by Erpenius, and a comparison of this version 
 with the Syriac ; §. vii. a collection of readings in ihe Syriac not noted 
 by Dr. Mill ; $§. vni — x. a comparison of the Syriac and Latin Ver- 
 sions; §. XI. a list of Greek MSS. allied to ^he Syriac ; $. xii. a view of 
 the peculiar readings of the Syriac ; §. xiii. remarks on Wetstein's want 
 of due care in examining Greek i\tSS. Tr. ] 
 
 t In the fourth edition, more shall be stated on the value of this 
 version; but [ cannot designate the parasjraphs, because so much of the 
 work is not yet printed. [ The author wrote these words in 1786, and 
 in 1788 the /oMr//i edition of his work was published. The passage re- 
 ferred to is ^§. 53—60. pp. 361 — 409; in Bishop Marsh's Trans. Vol. ii. 
 Pt. I. Ch. vu. Sect. 11— )x. pp. 4—51. Tr. ] 
 
%'HE USE OF THE SYRIAC LANttUAGE, §♦ V. 505 
 
 diem to the critical Dissertations, which I propose to 
 ■\yrite,* on the causes of the various^readings in the Hebrew 
 Bible. 
 
 §. V. 
 
 l^onie account of the Syriac Version of the 
 Old Testament. 
 
 The Syriac Version of the Old Testament is of great un- 
 ■portance, and pleases me more than that of the New. It is 
 incorrectly stated by some, that it was made from the Greek : 
 as fkr as I have hitherto examined it, sometimes casually at 
 isolated passages, and sometimes in my critical lectures on 
 entire chapters, I find it throughout, immediately translated 
 irom the Hebrew text.t In the readings of the Hebrew 
 text which it expresses, and in the interpretation which it 
 gives of Hebrew words, it is very often different from the 
 S.eptuagint : and in each chapter where I have instituted a 
 .epmparison, 1 have found several such differences. I would 
 offer to give examples, from any chapter that might be se- 
 lected ; but it is the less necessary, because my reader may 
 find them, in the printed critical Lectures on the 16th., 40th., 
 and UOth. Psalms. 
 
 * This is now out of the question; but some of the kind alluded io 
 will be found in my Introduction to tfie Old Testament, if I live to finish 
 it. [ Of this work, only a small part ever appeared. It is the first por- 
 tion of the first volume, published at Hamburg in the year 1787, com- 
 prising Introductions to the Book of Job and the Books of Moses. It 
 contains 352 pages, small quarto, and is written in German. The au- 
 thor died four years after its publication ; in the year 1791. Tr. ] 
 
 t [ This is also asserted, in express words, by Gregory Barhe- 
 BRAEus. See AssEMANS Oriental Library, T. ii. p. 274, and Abulfhara- 
 G^os' History of the dyrmties, p. 100, together with tlie internal evi- 
 dences adduced by Eichborn, in his Jntroduclion to the 0. T, Vol. u, 
 5.253. Tf.] 
 
 64 
 
"^Q^ .THj: USE or TH|2 SYRIAC LANGUAttE, §. V. 
 
 I do not deny, that the Syriac Version not unfrequently 
 agrees also with the Septuagint ; but that is not to be wonder- 
 ed at, and is no objection to what I state. No two transla- 
 tors always read or interpreted differently from each other ; 
 and just as well do I discover, that the Syriac accords, some- 
 times with the Chaldee, and sometimes with Symmachus, 
 or other Ancient Versions. 
 
 Nor will I deny, that the Syriac translator had at hand the 
 Greek Version of the Scriptures, and may have taken much 
 from it ; and I should wonder if he had not done so, as the Greek 
 language was so much spoken in the cities of Syria, and in- 
 deed yet further in those of the Euphrates, and in Edessa. I 
 do this, even in the German translation of the Hebrew Bible, 
 in which I am now occupied.* In the preparation for it, I 
 consult, not merely the Greek, but at the same time the other 
 Ancient Versions, as often as I find it necessary ; and in the 
 execution of it, I look into Luther's Bible, to borrow from it a 
 happy expression, when I am in want of one ; but still I trans- 
 late from the Hebrew. Just in this manner, I imagine, the 
 Syriac translator acted, in regard to the Septuagint. 
 
 Some of the more remarkable coincidences, between the 
 Syriac Bible and the Greek, did not however proceed from 
 the original translator, but from a supposed improvement^ 
 which Jacob of Edessa undertook, at the beginning of the 
 eighth centuiy, and of which important notices may be seen 
 in the Journal des S^avaiis.'t As far as my observation ex- 
 tends, the Syriac accords with the Greek, more frequently in 
 Ezekiel, than in the other books ; but I do not know the cause 
 of this. I have observed the same also, in regard to the Pro- 
 verbs of Solomon, yet with the particular and unexpected 
 circumstance, that the Chaldee Version follows the Septua- 
 gint still more ; so much so, that in my notes of readings to- 
 
 * [ Michaelis made this observation in the year 1768 ; and the next 
 year, a part of his very able German Transh'iion of the Bible was first 
 . published. The entire work, in part improved and enlarged by the au> 
 
 t%. ihor^afterward appeared, between the yeaj-s 17'73 and 1793. Tf. 1 
 
 t Tlie dmn^dum ^ditioa, OcWber }7Q^, Vol i. pp. 67—99, 
 
THE D3E OP THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE, §. V. 507 
 
 ward the middle of this book I find, in those readings of the 
 Hebrew text which they translate, that the Septuagint is more 
 frequently accordant with the Chaldee and Syriac, than with 
 the Vulgate.* 
 
 It seems, that the books of the Old Testament were not all 
 translated into Syriac by one hand ; for example, the transla- 
 tor of the books of Moses appears to me a diiferent person 
 from him, who furnished the Syriac Bible with the books of 
 Chronicles. This may have a bearing on the preceding ob- 
 servation. Now and then I discover traces of the religion of 
 the translator, which indicate a Christian and no Jew. A 
 Jew by religion would not have employed the Syriac, but 
 the Hebrew letters, and would have used the Chaldee Tar- 
 gums more copiously, than is obser\'ed in most books of the 
 Syriac Old Testament. This a Jew by birth would have 
 done, if even he had been converted to Christianity. If there- 
 fore most books of the Syriac Bible thus evince, that the in- 
 terpreter had no acquaintance with the Targums, I then think, 
 that the translator! never was a Jew by birth. 
 
 In the Polyglots, the Syriac text is not the best, but often 
 very incorrect. The fault of this cannot be ascribed to the 
 
 • When T wrote this I was unacquainted with a Treatise by Dr. 
 Da THE, De raliorif conscnms versionis Chaldaicae el Syriacae proverbio- 
 rum Sitlomonis, Lipsiae, 1764, in which he makes this observat on, and 
 states as the cause of tfie fact, that the Chaldee translation was made 
 from the Syriac, and afterward only altered in some places by the JewsL 
 This subject I must defer, and treat of it in my Introduction to the Old 
 Testament. 
 
 + [ The religion and nation of the Syriac translator are unknown, 
 KiRSCH, in the Preface to his edition of the Pentateuch in Syriac, (pp. 
 II — vui. of the edit. Leipzig, A. D. 1787), presents a brief view of the 
 different opinions on the subject, and adds also some judicious observa- 
 tions. He argue*, that the author of the Syriac Version was a Syrian. 
 According to Richard Simon he was a Jew; that he was a Jewish Chris- 
 tian is maintained by Dathe ; and in the- opinion of Bertholdt and 
 our aqthor, he is to be regarded as a Christian. Gesekius, in the Intro- 
 duction to his Commentary on Isaiah, Th. ii. $. 12. 3., (or pp. 429. 43Q. 
 oSlhis volume,) maintains the last opinion. Tr. 1 
 
i>08 '^'^^ ^^^ ^^ ^'"^ SYRIAC LANGUAGE, ^> V. 
 
 editor solely, although it is certain, that Gabriel Sionita vma 
 by no means an Asseman ; and for the publication of the Sy- 
 riac Bible he brought neither the skill, nor even the care requi- 
 site, which might in some measure have supplied the want of 
 karning. But the fault is pai'tly to be ascribed to this : that in 
 the execution of the work, there was unfortunately employed 
 a very faulty manuscript. Dolath and Rish, Yud and Nun,- 
 especially in proper names, are often evidently altered. How 
 frequently does this deviation give a sense, not all accordant 
 with the Hebrew text ! Although the faults are not limited 
 to these few letters ; yet I mention these only, because they 
 are very frequently committed. But I have also found at 
 times, in using the Syriac Version, that it rhust be printed in- 
 correctly, and even so much so, that I can readily conjecture 
 the true reading.* That word conjecture may indeed excite 
 some suspicion, whether I may have guessed rightly : but if I 
 add that I have at times confirmed my conjecture, on com- 
 paring Ephrem, and have found the reading which /conjec- 
 tured, the text with him, or where the text was faulty and- 
 printed according to the Polyglots, still illustrated by him, 
 this may in a measure call forth a favourable prepossession. 
 I do not readily venture a critical conjecture ; but if, sa to 
 
 speak, it obtrudoe iteolf upon me, T adopt it. 
 
 From what has thus far been said, it follows, that whoever 
 reads the Syriac Version of the Old Testament, not merely 
 for the acquisition of the language, but w ould apply it to a 
 critical use, or judge of its interpretations of the Old Testa- 
 ment, he will do well, at least wherever any thing appears to 
 him obscure or doubtful, to examine the various readings of the 
 Syriac Version, which are to be found in the sixth volume of 
 the London Polyglot. I have commonly found among these 
 
 * in (lie Polyglot' BiUe which my reveVeid fatter left me, t somelftoes 
 fend, written on the margin, his conjectural emendations of tlie Syriac 
 text; apd I regard these conjectures in the main as probable, and most 
 of them astf«e. 
 
f HE USE OF THE SYRUC LANGUAGE, ^. V. 509 
 
 what I sought for, bat liot always ; on many occasions EpHnEitt 
 has had it, and other conjectures remain as yet mere conjec- 
 tures, that is, without evidence. 
 
 Of how great importance Epiirem Syrus may be to a 
 sehalaFj who desires to read and use the Syriac Version, WJr^ 
 reaider may have already observed ; but in regard to hi^ 
 Works, I shall soon speak further. It is my intention herfe, ta 
 {Joint out only a few other helps, which the scholar, \^lKy 
 wishes, if I may so speak, to exhaust the uses of the Syriac 
 Version, must employ. 
 
 Of some books of Scripture we hate Arabic Versions, 
 which are made from the Syriac ; of this character is the 
 Arabic version of the book of Job, which is printed in the 
 Polyglots, and in great part the so called Maronite Arabic 
 Version of the Psalms.* Whoever compares these with the 
 Syriac, will sometimes be enabled to understand an uncommon, 
 and on that account obscure or doubtful Syriac word, with 
 more correctness, or at least with a greater degree of certainty. 
 This is particularly useful, in regard to the names of animals and 
 plants ; for these words have heretofore been very little un- 
 derstood, because we have no works on Natural History, in 
 Syriac as we have in Arabic. Gabriel Sionita was accus- 
 tomed to translate them, so to speak, without the least regard 
 for the public, as it casually occurred to him, and as he under- 
 stood the Hebrew word to which the Syriac answered, from 
 the Vulgate, or from a Hebrew Lexicon ; just as if the Syriac 
 
 * [ The Author here inserts a long note, on this and other Arabic 
 Versions of the Psalms, which it is thought proper to omit. 
 
 It may be well to state, however, that the Arabic Version of the 
 rsalms, in the LoN'DON Polyglot is formed from the Oreek, and not 
 from the Hebrew, as alleged by Baumgarten in the Hallischerx Bihlio- 
 thek. 
 
 The Maronite Arabic Version of the Psalms, our author asserts in the 
 omitted note, was formed, not from the Greek, but from the Syriac. See, 
 to the contrary, Rosemijller's Handbuch filr die Literatuf dcr bibl. 
 Kritik und Exegese, B. ui. Abth. 5. Absch. 3 ; also EicHHOfeu's Einleit. 
 ins A, T. B. ii. Kap. m. «S. 297, and his Reperlorium^ Th. iv. Abh". in, 
 
510 THE USE OF THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE, §. VI, 
 
 translator must have understood the Hebrew word, in that 
 manner which prevailed in Gabriel's day. Castel , whose 
 Syriac Lexicon I estec m very highly, and regard as the most 
 complete portion of his Heptaglot Lexicon, h ;s indeed correct- 
 ed many of these faults, and translated in his Lexicon different- 
 ly from what occurs in the Latin Version of Gabriel Sionita : 
 but words from natural history are still the very poorest part 
 of his Dictionary. Here then the Arabic Versions sef m to me 
 to be of great use. They were made at a time, when both 
 the Arabic and the Syriac were vernacular and living lan- 
 guages, in Syria, Mesopotamia and Assyria ;* and when we 
 might expect, that the translator knew, which plant or animal 
 was called by this or that name in Syriac, as it was a common 
 appellation ; and in Arabic we are still less exposed to error. 
 The Latin Version, which accompanies the Syriac in the 
 Polyglots is not to be trusted ; and it has been made, neither 
 with the necessary skill, nor even with proper care. 
 
 §. VL 
 
 lilt use of the Syriac Version of the Otd Testament. 
 
 . The use which may be made of the Syriac Version is 
 partly critical, in the proper acceptation of the word, and 
 partly exe^etical. 
 
 The critical is afforded, if we collect from this version the 
 various readings of the Hebrew text which it expresses. It 
 furnishes us with a great supply of these, hitherto not known 
 
 * It may be objected, that in this case no Arabic Version would be ne- 
 cessary. On this account I would state, that in cities where the conquering 
 nation, the Arabian, prevailed, there the Syriac langua;je gradually sunk 
 more and more into disuse ; and that as the Christians who resided out 
 of the above-mentioned provinces used the Syriac language in divine 
 worship, this language became unknown, at an earlier period, out of 
 Syria, Mesopotamia and Assyria. This rendered Arabic Versions of the 
 existing Scriptures necessary, before the Syriac vfholly ceased fo be ft 
 liviog^languaj^e. 
 
THfi USE OF TH£ SYftlAC LANGUAGE, §. VI. 5ll 
 
 und still less examined, and many of them important. Some- 
 times it confirms the common reading of the Masorites, in 
 opposition to other Ancient Versions, or to the Samaritan 
 text ; sometimes it contributes by its oVn, to set forth other 
 readings of the Masorites. To what deference it may be 
 entitled in either case, I cannot now inquire. 
 
 The exegetical uses I value far more highly, in regard to 
 the Syriac Version of the Old than of the New Testament: 
 and for this reason, because in the Old Testament there is 
 more obscure, that stands in need of explanation. This is the 
 case particularly, if obscure Hebrew words are translated by 
 the Syriac interpreter, who might know much more concern- 
 ing them, than we in Europe, after the lapse of so many cen- 
 turies. I have treated of this, in my Fiew of the means^ to ac- 
 quire a knowledge of the Hebrew language, § §. 22. 23. 24., to 
 which I now refer, to save repetitions. Here, and as far as 
 it relates to the signification of particular words, the Syriac 
 Version (on account of its age, and because its author spoke, 
 as his native language, one that was allied to the Hebrew,) 
 has in a degree, the authority and credibility of a witness. 
 The case is different, as soon as the question is, whether this 
 or that meaning is to be adopted in a particular passage point- 
 ed out ; for the question, in this case, is merely logical, and 
 can depend neither on witnesses nor authority. Yet still an 
 Ancient Version may possess another kind of merit ; which 
 is, that it may elucidate an obscure passage of the Hebrew 
 Bible, the sense of which at least modern commentators have 
 misapprehended, and give an explanation that was not thought 
 of, and which on close investigation may prove true. It is 
 indeed merit enough, if this true explanation were to be met 
 with only in a degree, and it gave us a hint, which led us 
 further. I must acknowledge, that I have not unfrequently 
 been indebted to the Syriac Version for something of this 
 kind, and lest the supposition should arise, that it always con- 
 sisted in trifles, I will give an example ; a^d doubtful as it is, 
 on account of a double reading, no friend of Christianity, no 
 intelligent skeptic can regard it among trifles. 
 
 If we understand Isaiah xxv, 7. according to the usual in- 
 
i>ii^ THE OgE PI- TBie ^VflUC LANGUAGE, §* Vi. 
 
 terpretatipn,* in which ^ 72 is ^o swallow up, £0^7 <Q co^er, 
 
 and niDpp « 'Cfli/, then there arise phrases, the unfitness of 
 
 which might convince toy one, that Isaiah ha4 in view ^pr 
 thing of the kind, Wha.t expressions ! The Loud will swaU 
 low up the face of the covering, that is covered over all people, 
 and the vail that is spread over all nations. What is aface of 
 the covering : a covered face ! some may reply. But how then 
 qan it be spread over the people ? We cover a face, but we do 
 not cover it over other heads. What an idea, to swallow up the 
 vail j or if you will, destroy the vail, or cast it into the seal 
 liUTHER had too nice a sense of the proprieties of the Ger-? 
 man language, to have translated this : he used other words, 
 and thus softened the hardness of expression, which he dis- 
 covered.! The moderns have brought to the interpretation of 
 the Scriptures more learning, but not equal taste. If we com^ 
 pare them with him. he appears to be an intelligent man, who 
 had good taste, but was bold in translating, and attributed to 
 his author his own sentiments ; while all learned Commenta- 
 tors appear to be, I dare not say what, but only the contrary 
 of the excellencies just commended. 
 
 I shall not adduce all that has been suggested, with a view 
 to give a tolerable sense to the w^ords of Isaiah ; for how 
 w^ould it comport with a preface to a Syriac Chrestomathy ? 
 The only suggestion that I can make, before I proceed to the 
 svibject itself, is that all difficulties vanish, if instead of Dl /|1 
 we read with the Syriac, Chaldee, and Symmachus t3'7t!^. 
 For as the verb ^^2 signifies to smite (and particularly so 
 
 '^ [ In the text of our Knglish Bibles, it is thus : '• And he will destroy 
 in this mountain the face of the covering cast over all people, and the 
 vail thai is spread over all nations." In the margin, we read swallow up, 
 jjjstead oi^ '• destroy," and covered instead of " cast over.' Tr, ] 
 
 i [Luther's words are these: Vrnf er wird auf diesem Berge das 
 Hilllen icegthun, damp alle VGlktr verhRllet sind, und die Decke, damit alie 
 Ileyden zugedeckl sind; i. e. And on this mountain he will remove the 
 vail wherewith all people, are vailed, and the covering^ wherewitk alli 
 nations are covered. Tr. ] 
 
THE USE or THE SlTKIAC LANGUAtJE, §. VI. 513 
 
 211 Syriac), and T|D^ is used in reference to anointing kings, 
 
 we may actually translate very handsomely, and agreeably 
 to the context : The Lord will smite the face of the tyrant, 
 who rules over all people, and is anointed Lord over all na- 
 iions : he will smite death for ever. Here Death would signi- 
 iy the universal tyrant over all people ; and as to jlDDD, 
 which 1 translate Lord, or more strictly, unctio ad magistra- 
 turn, we need only be informed, that magistrates in the East 
 assume as a title the ahstracta generis fejuinini.* I regard 
 this reading as any thing but substantiated, yet as I have men- 
 tioned the readings of the Syriac translator, it may serve for 
 an example. I proceed to what I particularly propose to 
 say. 
 
 I will, then, not change the Hebrew text at all, but take it 
 as it stands in our printed Bibles ; and the Syriac Version of 
 
 the words : CD^l:in"S3"Si; HD^D^n riDD^Dm first put 
 
 me in the way for a better explanation. The Syriac 
 translator renders them, almost retaining the Hebrew words : 
 
 LiM^Hi S^ .^ and the offering which is slain for t all peo- 
 ple* The Hebrew words may by all means signify this ; 
 TjD^ to pour, to shed, is the common word among the He- 
 ;brews, that is used of drink-offerings, and in Arabic it is ap- 
 plied to offerings in general, without this restriction. For 
 
 * [ On the use oi the feminine e^stract in Syriac, see Hoffmanw's Sy- 
 riac Grammar, Lib. iii. Cap. i. $. 110. Tr. ] 
 
 i L The words ^sli \^}^ may be traHslated in behalf of, as in Acts 
 
 sxvi. 1. Agrippa said unto Paul, Thou art permitted to speak 
 
 «^ A^^ ^^V ^1. in behalf of thyself Tr. ] 
 
 65 
 
614 THE USE OP THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE, §. VI- 
 
 cA..M\.^ signifies he has offered, (J\mm.^^MxJx 
 
 an offering, and c5\-*— wx-S the blood of the offering. 
 
 y 
 The very Syriac u iXI^.^ to offer seems to be the same as 
 
 this, and a mere transposition of letters. As soon as the 
 Syriac translator suggested to me this thought, it occurred, 
 
 that I might permit Dl7 to remain in the former part of the 
 verse, without a single alteration of the reading, but in the 
 sense which it has in the Chaldee, Syriac and Arabic, io de- 
 vote. Then Isaiah is made to speak of an ofiering for all 
 people, and of one, who was made a curse for all nations ; 
 and this in a very appropriate connexion. He had just been 
 speaking, at least as I understand him, of the fall of Baby- 
 Ion, and had connected with it the happy period of the New 
 Testament, which he delineates as a feast unto Zion, pre- 
 pared for all people. Then follows, that with the offering 
 for all people, Death also shall be destroyed for ever ; that 
 is, his power shall be taken from him, and immortality shall 
 be restored. Is not this almost as express a prophecy of 
 Christ, as that in Chapter liii., and without the least 
 violence to the words ? To present it at one view, I will 
 translate the 6th. to the 8th. verse, according to the interpre- 
 tation, which I am accustomed to give in Lectures, and to 
 establish by proofs, on account of its departure from that 
 which generally prevails : — 
 
 Jehovah will prepare on this mountain a feast for all people, 
 a feast of costly meats and of wine, the fat of which shall be 
 pure marrow, and where casks of wine shall be emptied. 
 And he will smite on this mountain the visage of the curse, that 
 has been cursed for all people, and the offering that is offered 
 for all nations. He will destroy death for ever, and Jehovah 
 will wipe away all tears from all faces.* 
 
 * [ Our atithor adopted this version, almost word for word, in his Ger- 
 wiftfe translation (jflAe Bible, Vol. via., containing a Translation of 
 
THE USE OF THE SYRIAC LANGUAfc^E, §• VI. 515 
 
 In respect to this value of the S} riac Version of the Old 
 Testament, I have often regretted, that it could not be had 
 for the use of students, in a cheap edition. The diminished 
 price of the London Polyglot, which has hitherto cost fifty 
 or sixty, and now may by chance be had at public sales for 
 twenty Rix dollars, will suit a scholar here and there. Yet, on 
 account of its size, it is not a book to be read in Universities. 
 
 Two days previous to my writing this, 1 have receiv- 
 ed the Syriac Psalter, which Professor Dathe has pub- 
 lished at Leipzig. I consider it very useful, and we should 
 have advanced further in Oriental learning, if, instead of the 
 numerous editions of the Syriac Kew Testament, there had 
 sooner been in existence a manual edition of the much more 
 instructive Version of the Old Testament. Upon the first 
 inspection of this Psalter, I see one thing which 1 could have 
 little desired ; it is the Latin Version, which makes it unfit for 
 a manual in colleges, and renders the student remiss. The 
 Syriac language is almost too easy, for any -one to require a 
 translation ; it must therefore be for the use of those, who 
 desire to learn no Syriac at all, and yet wish to read what is 
 contained in the book. Since I have read the preface, I am 
 feitisfied with the translation ; yet with the feelings of one 
 who cannot alter it. 
 
 Isaiah, and a Commentary on the text. Rosenmuller ( in his Scholia 
 in V. T. Pars ni. Vol. ii.) translates : " Et abolebit in monte hoc spe- 
 ciem operimenti operientis omnes populos, et velamen expansum super 
 omnes populos " Gesenius ( in his Version of Isaiah ) says : " He des- 
 troys on this mountain the vail ( Schleyer ), which covers the face of all 
 people, the vail ( Hillle ) which vails all nations." AuGtJSxi and De 
 Wette ( in their Translation ) render thus : " And he removes from 
 this mountain every appearance of the vailing ( Verhilllung ), the vail- 
 ing, which spreads itself over all people, and the covering ( Dec/i^ ), 
 ■ivherewith all nations are covered." Tr. ] 
 
,>16- THE tSE OF THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE. »^. V*/. 
 
 §. VIL 
 
 The uae which may he made of other Si/riac Works^ particular ii^ 
 those published by the AssEiAANS. 
 
 Beside the Version of the ScriptureSy^ of which I have ne- 
 cessarily treated more at length, the Syriac language offers us 
 a very large store of valuable works, for the most part in< 
 manuscript, but some in print. 
 
 Joseph Simonius Asseman, (Europe has not heretofore 
 recognized a scholar as accomplished in the Syriac lan- 
 guage,) gives in his admirable Oriental Library an account 
 of these, and sometimes extracts also from them. Some of 
 the smaller works he has even published entire. 
 
 Another very important contribution is made by the 
 works of Ephrem Syrus, pubhshed at Rome in the year 
 1732 — 1746 ; but without some knowledge of Syriac, all 
 hope must be relinquished, of becoming acquainted even 
 with the subjects of which Ephrem treats, by the aid of the. 
 accompanying Latin translation of the work. This transla- 
 tion, which did indeed proceed from an Asseman, yet not 
 from Joseph Simonius, but his nephew, Stephen Evodius 
 Asseman, is exceedingly loose. Sometimes the translator did 
 not understand the Syriac ; and in other places, which are so 
 easy, that one cannot go astray, he is so unfaithful, as to write 
 differently from what is found in the Syriac. Here he omits 
 what Ephrem says, and then he adds what the author never 
 thought of; and all this so paraphrastically, that we do not 
 read Ephrem, as much as Asseman. 
 
 This Asseman published the Jlcts of the Oriental Martyrs, in 
 the year 1748, which I highly value, on account of its Syriae 
 text, and 1 mention it among the most valuable works. It is not 
 my intention, however, to give an account of books, but of the 
 use to which they mny be applied. General and Ecclesiasti- 
 cal History, the Geography of Asia, and certainly the Inter- 
 pretation of the Scriptures, as far as I have been able to 
 
THfc USE OP THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE, §. VU. 517 
 
 observe, "will profit most largely, from the perusal of these 
 works. 
 
 1. The Profane History of Asia has already acquired much 
 new light, by means of what has hitherto been published of 
 Syrian affairs. If space admitted, I might establish this, by 
 the additions which I have noted, in the sixteenth volume of 
 the Universal History (pp. 413 — 431. of the Qerman transla- 
 tion), and which I mention, because they are derived merely 
 from my Syriac and Arabic Chrestomathy. This portion of 
 the Universal History is, however, one of the good parts of 
 the work, and is probably the production of Sale, the best 
 contributor to the Ancient History ; a circumstance which I 
 must state, because my additions certainly could not do much, 
 if they should be added to the miserable Continuation of the 
 Universal History, which is regarded in England as a Book- 
 seller's publication, that gives bread to hungry authors. That 
 in this compilation, there is something to be improved or 
 added, need not be wondered at. Or I need merely mention 
 the 46th. page of this Chrestomathy, where is printed the 
 Edessene Chronicle. Together with the notice of the Edes- 
 sene kings, extracted m Asseman's Library, it is the most con- 
 siderable portion of the materials, which Bayer* used, in his 
 Historia Osro'ehna et Edessena ex nummis illustrata. And in 
 regard to all this, these few sheets, which I publish under the 
 title Chrestomathy, are a very small part of the stores in His- 
 torical materials, that are to be found merely in Asseman's 
 Oriental Library, from which General History might obtain 
 very great additional accessions, although Asseman did not 
 write with a view to it, but to Ecclesiastical and Literary 
 History. 
 
 How important would be the use of Syriac, if we had more 
 entire works in that language, especially if they were histori- 
 cal. I will only mention one, a part of which we possess in a 
 condensed form, in Arabic and Latin. Grrgory Abulpha- 
 
 * [ This is Theophilus Siegfrid Bayer or Baier ; and his very valu- 
 able work referred to, (see Watt'? Biblioth. Britan.) was published A. P 
 1734, in 4to. Tt. 1 
 
518 THE USE OP THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE, §. Vlls 
 
 BAGius <whose History of the Dynasties Edward Pococke, in 
 the year 1663, published in Arabic, with a Latin translation, 
 and which is as yet one of the chief sources of Asiatic history,) 
 is the same person, whose life is to be found in this Chrestoma- 
 thy, at page 81 :* G.iEooRY Barhkbraeus, primate oj the JacO' 
 bite Christians in Chaldea and Assyria, The work was origi- 
 nally written in Syriac, and was entitled iiojrbA^ii> 
 £^:Ol .t It will be found in the notice of his writings, 
 at page 112. numb, ^j^^i^i- e. 19). The Arabic is merely 
 
 a translation, or rather, a general abridgment of it, 
 which was made by Barhkbhaeus himself, a short time before 
 his death, at the request of certain Arabians ; and he devoted 
 not more than a month to it, as is related in his Life, at p. 105. 
 of this Chrestomathy. But the Arabic Version, if 1 may so 
 call it, does not by any means exhaust the uses of the original 
 Syriac work. This consists of three parts, which Asseman 
 entitles : 1. Chronicon Patrum et Regum ; 2. Chronicon Patri- 
 archarum Antiochice et Jacobitarum ; 3. Chronicon Primatumf 
 Patriarcharum, et Maphrianornm Orientis, The Arabic 
 wholly omits the last two parts, which indeed generally relate 
 to Ecclesiastical history, but often comprehend particulars 
 connected with General History ; and it contains the first 
 only, and that never entire, for Asseman states', that the Sy- 
 riac here comprises far more than the Arabic abridgment. 
 Asseman's words are : sed et prior pars, quam idem auctor 
 Arabics postea publicavit, et Pocokius latine interpretatus est, 
 MULTo PLURA continet, quam historia dynastiarum, sive facta 
 Arabum et Mogulensium spectes, sive res Christianorum in 
 Thracia, in Syria, in Mesopotamia et in Perside, 
 How much would be gained by Asiatic history (which is so 
 
 * [The extract, containing the life of 4v.^fis!^a.ol > is from 
 
 As3BMan'9 Oriental Library^ T. ii. pp. 248 fF. Tr. ] 
 + [ That is : *• History of the times." Tr. } 
 
TUfi USB OF THE SFAIAC LANGUAGE, §. VII. 519 
 
 greatly interwoven, in the middle ages, with that of Europe, 
 particularly of Byzantium, of the holy wars, and of the Rus- 
 sian that is now coming to light ;) could we but read this au- 
 thor in the original, and without abridgment ! Among all the 
 Syrians, with whom we are acquainted, he is by far the most 
 learned man. He collected the materials for his history, in 
 places where now ignorance prevails, from the treasures of 
 ancient Libraries, which have probably been long since de- 
 stroyed, and particularly, as he says himself, from Syrian, 
 Arabian, and Persian writings, belonging to the archives of 
 Maraga, in the province of Adorbigan. And, moreover, in 
 his Syriac Preface, he declares it to be his chief object, to 
 preserve to posterity the remembrance of what occurred in 
 his time and that immediately preceding. This gives his work 
 a still greater value, for Gregory Barhebraetjs lived, just at 
 one of the most interesting points of time, from A. D. 1226 to 
 1286, under the great Tatar conqueror, Hulak ; and as his 
 predecessors lived to see the conquest of Jenghiskan, he lived 
 to see Hulak, a brother of Mangu, restore at Bagdad the em- 
 pire of the Califate. He was himself a resident in those 
 countries, which were the theatre of this great revolution ; 
 and as he was primate, he had the honour of seeing and being 
 established by this great king, the very name of whom (to 
 the humiliation of historical science, and of all thoughts of 
 posthumous renown,) many an accomplished historian has not 
 once heard ! 
 
 Of this work (the manuscript of which is reposited in the 
 Vatican Library, and has been used with so much advantage 
 by Asseman in his Oriental Library,) I have spoken the more 
 fully, because I desire, that the scholars of Germany may use 
 it, not as a printed book, but by means of a copy in Libraries, 
 I have some hope of this, which rests upon the deep interest 
 which his Excellency the Prime Minister, Baron von Munch- 
 HAUSEN* manifests in our university. This eminent promoter 
 
 * [ The University of Gottingen long flourished under his auspices ; 
 for the space of more than thirty years, he was entrusted with its interests 
 as Curator; but, two years after the hope of Michaelis had been ex- 
 
b20 THE USE OF THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE, §. yiU 
 
 of the sciences is engaged, in making one of the most impor- 
 tant contributions to historical knowledge in Germany, and 
 obtaining in manuscript, for our University, the Syriac Origin 
 nal of the Chronicle of Barhebraeus. Should this succeed, it 
 shall be my first concern, in the subsequent* parts of this 
 Chrestomathy, to print, as specimens, some of the most re- 
 markable passages of the Syriac Work, which are not found 
 in the Arabian Version, and consequently could not have 
 hitherto been used by our historians. My wish extends indeed 
 much further, and I would publish the entire work with a 
 Latin Version ; but this depends so much upon the will of 
 booksellers, on the taste of the public, which alone engages 
 publishers in such an enterprise, and on my life, health, and 
 circumstances, that I will not now promise any thing. But 
 this is certain, that what I cannot do, will be done by others 
 after me.t 
 
 pressed, the great patron of learning was no more. He died A. D. 1770. 
 See the Co;jversations-Lexicon (in German, an English translation 
 of which is forthcoming at Philadelphia, under the title: American En- 
 cyclopedia,) Art MOnchhausen. Tr. ] 
 
 * [ These were never published. But, as a substitute for them, we are 
 furnished with a Syriac Chrestomathy by Gustavus Knoes, which is 
 derived in great part from valuable manuscripts. It first appeared at 
 Gottingcn, in the year 1807. Tr. ] 
 
 t The whole aspect of things. has been changed since the time when 
 the above was written. The venerated Winckelmann, who would have 
 been useful in obtaining the copy from Rome, was assassinated, and thus 
 all failed. But new hopes have arisen. Prof. Bruns found the same 
 work in the Oxford Library, transcribed it, and printed a specimen of it 
 in the year 1780, under the title: Dc rebus gestis Richardi Angliae regis 
 in Palaestina. Exccrptum ex Gregorii Abulpharagii Chronico Syriaco. 
 Edidit, vcrtit, illustravit Paxil Jac. Bmns, LL. D. Oxonii, 1780. Since 
 his return to Germany, he has offei:ed an edition of the entire work. It 
 is very desirable, that it should be obtained by subscription or limitation. 
 The ordy evil is, that as soon as a particularly useful work, which proba- 
 bly a thousand persons would procure if it were out, (I think such might 
 well be the case, as a far greater number of this Syriac Chrestomathy is 
 already disposed of, and it was long since printed for the second time)) 
 has been printed by limitation, the limited copies become rare ; not 
 Trom scarcity, for they are to be bought afterward at double price, but 
 
THE USE OP THE SYRIAC JijANGUAGE, §. VlJ. 521 
 
 3. Ecclesiastical history has already acquired very impor- 
 tant accessions, merely from Asseman's Oriental Library, We 
 cannot peruse Beausobre*s Histoire Critique de J\1anichee et du 
 Manicheisme, without remarking, how much light is shed on 
 the history of Manes by a single line of the Edessene Chroni- 
 jcle,* and what Beausobre in other respects owes to Asseman. 
 From the same work are derived some of the most important 
 additions, of which Mosheim availed himself, as his guides in 
 Ecclesiastical History. And yet Mosheim, from his ignorance 
 of Syriac, could make only an imperfect use of Asseman's 
 work ; for although Asseman annexes a Latin translation, and 
 one indeed that is correct, to the Syriac passages which Mos- 
 heim cites, he that reads the text will discover more, than 
 one whose attention, while he reads the Latin, is distracted by 
 'the intervening lines which are unknown to him. 
 
 But many resources, that might contribute much to Eccle- 
 siastical History, have not hitherto been used at all. The 
 third part of the Syriac Works of Ephrem, which is almost 
 entirely directed against heretics, may, notwithstanding its 
 declamatory tone, and its want of solidity, shed much new 
 light upon the History of Polemics. I have found this parti- 
 cularly the case, in regard to the Manicheaxis ; and I think it 
 ^certain, that Beausobre might still receive considerable ac- 
 .cessions from Ephrem. On this account, I propose to print 
 something relative to this, in the future portions of my Chres- 
 tomathy. I shall make no mention of Asseman's Acts of the 
 Martyrs : for while in the history of the martyrs there ap- 
 pear to be many fables, yet every one acquainted with Ec- 
 clesiastical History knows, how important they are, on ac- 
 
 from indifference, and because no one has " public spirit," as the English 
 call it, to promote what is useful. I could wish, for the best interests of 
 Oriental and Historical literature, that I might be put to the blush by the 
 result, and reduced to the necessity of recalling my censure; with plea- 
 sure would I do so. 
 
 * It occurs in the Chrestomgithy, at p. 52. [ The extract in the Chres- 
 tomathy is from Asseman's Oriental Library, T. i. p. 387 ff. Tr. ] 
 
522 THE USE OP THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE, §. Vll. 
 
 count of the truth contained in them, which a critical eye can 
 readily discover. 
 
 To Ecclesiastical History appertains, among other particu- 
 lars, what is called historia dogmatnm. This is indeed not as 
 important to us, as to the Roman Catholics, because we do 
 not establish our faith upon the authority of the fathers, or of 
 an ancient Church ; but it is still important to us, in regard to 
 the Canon of the Scriptures. As in my Introduction to the 
 JsTew Testament, I have now and then derived something 
 from the decision of the Syrian Church, on those Books that 
 are called in question, I must here correct an error which I 
 have committed. I stated, p. 1899,* that Ephrem Syrus did 
 not cite the Revelation of St, John, in those places, where 
 Lardner, from his ignorance of the Syriac language, and his 
 reliance on Asseman's translation, thought they were to be 
 found cited ; and this is and continues to be the truth. I 
 said, p. 1901, that no passage occurred to me, where Ephrem 
 cited the Revelation, (I had not indeed perused his work for 
 this purpose, but made extracts from it), and I intended to 
 give a probable proof, that he did not regard it as authentic. 
 But this will not now hold true ; for at p. 332. of the Second 
 Part are the decisive words, which I here arrange in the po- 
 etic form, as they are metrical : 
 
 * [ The author here refers to the second edition of his Introduction. 
 In the /ourf^ edition, (§.278. pp-1605. 1606.) he corrects his error; 
 gives a German translation of Ephrem's words ; and with great respect 
 quotes Hassencamp. He says, p. 1605; "Ephrem Syrus, of whom J 
 " believed in my second edition, that he had never cited the Revelation, bc- 
 " cause I found, that the passages quoted by Lardner were insufficient, has 
 " indeed cited it, and even as a divine book. In the second part of his 
 " Syriac works he writes, ( p. 332. ) expressly : ' John saw, &-c.' " 
 
 The words here given in Italics are omitted by Bishop Marsh in 
 his Translation. See Vol. iv. Cb. xxxni. S. iv. p. 495. of the Lond. 
 edit, 1802. Tr. ] 
 
THK U5K OP THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE, §. VII. 52^ 
 
 [oilLp 01^^ [ocn u^^^ci\ 
 
 that is, Joha saw in his revelation a great and wonderful book,, 
 written by God, and sealed with seven seals. M. Hassencamp 
 has pointed out the passage, in his work* against my Intro- 
 duction, and in the preface, he has declared his -purpose to 
 make, from the Syriac Fathers, a collection of that kind, 
 which Lardner has given us from the Greek and Latin, 
 The materials for such a collection are not indeed as impor- 
 tant, as those which Lardner had before him ; because we 
 now have no Syriac writers so old, and as testimonies, almost 
 all relates to antiquity. But I expect something more from 
 the collector than from his precursor ; for Lardner was a 
 mere compiler, who always deserved the thanks of his read- 
 ers, when he abstained from giving them opinions, and 
 grounds for deciding : and in this Hassencamp is his opposite. 
 If Lardner's errors are to be attributed to his advanced age, 
 in which he continued to write, Hassencamp has the advan- 
 tage of being young. In short, I include such a collection 
 among the uses, which Ecclesiastical History and Doctrinal 
 Theology may derive from Syriac records. This impartial 
 notice must not be regarded as a singularity in me. I am 
 displeased with no one, because he differs somewhat from me 
 in opinion, and writes against me ; nor yet, because he disco- 
 vers a remarkable passage, which I did not discover. The 
 belligerent manner of some scholars induces me to think it 
 necessary, thus to apologize for my favourable notice of M. 
 Hassencamp. 
 
 * [ Anmerkungen fiber die letzten Paragraphen des H. Hofrath Mr- 
 chaelis Emleitung ins N. T. ; Marburg, 1767. Tr. ] 
 
534 THE USE OP THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE, §. Vll. 
 
 3. The Geography of the East derives endless profit from 
 the Syriac writers, particularly those of the middle and early 
 ages. I need only mention the two geographical tables of 
 the Monophysite and Nestorian Episcopal sees and monaste- 
 ries, which are found in the second and fourth volumes of As- 
 seman's Library : and yet they do not by any means contain 
 the whole of what is geographical, nor do they cite ali^ 
 as we may learn from Asseman. I am at least indebted to^ 
 them in this respect, that I discover much which before was 
 obscure, in ancient geography, particularly that of Syria,- 
 Chaldea, Mesopotamia, Assyria, Media, and Persia ; and I 
 avoid the false steps of my predecessors. I have often stat- 
 ed, that if errors or uncertainty prevail in Boch art's Gee- 
 graphy, neither is this to be accounted to the disparagement 
 of Bochart, nor is what I* say more correctly to be accounted 
 to my praise, but that the latter belongs to the good fortune 
 of our day, which in truth I value as a sufficient recompense. 
 Bochart wrote before these Syriac records were in prints 
 and he could not predict what would be contained in them. 
 This is sometimes the case with Cellarius also, in his An- 
 cient Geography ; though in general he was ignorant of that 
 only, which he might have learned from Asseman, if he had 
 lived in his day ; and he commits few faults of his own. 
 The views of Cellarius were indeed far more correct than 
 those of Bochart, who was partial to a hypothesis chosen al- 
 most by an absolute decree, and was far too etymological* 
 The Rector of Merseburg appears in the character of the 
 judicious man, and the Frenchman, who was advanced at 
 court, is the etymologizing pedant : and still, (with what in- 
 justice !) Bochart is valued in Germany more highly than 
 Cellarius. Yet while Cellarius discovers a Syrian city, Ma- 
 gog, which is nowhere to be found, but which it was thought 
 Pliny mentioned in his Hist. Kat. L. V. c. 23. ,t and the ex- 
 
 *[ Our author here alludes to his work entitled: Sper/degium Geo- 
 graphiae Hcbraeorum exlcrac post Bocharlum, Goetting. 1769. 1780. S 
 vols. 4to. Tr. ] 
 
 + Bnmhycen, quae alio nomine HierapoUs vacatur, Syris vero Magog. 
 
THE USE OP THE SVRIAC LANGUAGE, §. VII. 525 
 
 cessively sceptical Harduin did not doubt of this, but was 
 more inclined to think of Gog and Magog ; on the contrary, 
 it immediately follows from Ass e man's Library, that we must 
 
 read Mabog, and have no thought of Magog : for «. ^<. O ^ ^ 
 
 IS the city of Hierafolis* in Syria. 
 
 The only writer, who has hitherto employed these records 
 for a geographical purpose, is Dr. Bu^^cHl^G, in his Description 
 of Asia, It is not yet to be had in book-stores ;t but as I am 
 in possession of the first sheets of it, I can state, that AssKMA»^i's 
 Oriental Library is one of the best and most advantageously 
 applied resources of this Geography. Dr. Bushing's purpose 
 is properly the Geography of modern times, and the present 
 condition of the earth ; yet he has much of what relates to the 
 middle and the early ages. If I would treat of these in refe- 
 rence to the Scriptures, how much aid do I then derive from 
 
 * [ This is the city which contained the celebrated temple of the 
 goddess |^\V?^ ^^ I A">^i^ Xhartho or Theratbo ; and it has 
 had the following names : 
 
 1. In Syriac «,y>022o Mabug ; 
 
 2. In Arabic ^sy^^J^^lm^ Jo Manbodg, from which, by an ea- 
 sy change of letters, may have originated, 
 
 3. In Greek and Latin Bambvce. 
 
 4. It was afterward called Hierapolis, ('lega'To^/f, ) the Holy 
 City ; and 
 
 5. Its present name is Mabug, which is pronounced Mambedge. 
 
 See MiCHAELis' Lex. Syr. on the words ^.^OSio and j ^^^^ '^ 
 
 See also Malte-Brun's Geog. Vol. n. P. i. B. xxvni. Ruins of Hiera" 
 polis. Tr. ] 
 
 t Itis evident, that this must be understood of the year 1768, and not 
 of 1786, as the second edition of the work may have already been in a 
 great measure disposed of. [ An English translation of Dr. Busching's 
 Geography was published in England, in the year 1754, 6 vols. 4to.; and 
 an English Translation with 36 maps, which I now have before me, af- 
 terward appeared. Lwid., 1762, 6 vols. 4to., Tr. ] 
 
526 THE USE OB' THE Sl'RIAC LANGUAGE, §. VII. 
 
 Syriac ! The Syrian Zobah of David has been dihgently 
 sought for, and nowhere found ; but at last, from mere con- 
 jectures, and moreover in opposition to the whole connexion 
 of history, it has been placed on this side of the Euphrates. 
 They were the records of Syria alone, that ever taught me, this 
 was a kingdom, the chief city of which was Nisibis ; for such 
 
 is the Syriac L ^ O t. •* 
 
 I have as yet spoken only of one book. It is not necessary 
 for me to remark, that out of the Jets of the Martyrs also, 
 geographical knowledge may be obtained ; and how much 
 must be expected, if we acquire more Syriac works, particu- 
 larly that above mentioned of Gregory Barhebraeus ! 
 
 Geography becomes possessed of those regions, in which 
 the Syriac language was formerly spoken, if we find the pro- 
 per names of Countries, Cities, Rivers and Mountains, writ- 
 ten in Syriac letters. As long as we are acquainted with them 
 in European letters, we are often in danger of making two 
 cities out of one name that is differently written. And two 
 actually different cities, the names of which do not admit of 
 being readily confused in Oriental orthography, but from the 
 imperfection of our alphabet, when they are written in Euro- 
 pean letters, sound nearly alike, may be regarded as the same. 
 At another time, we mistake an Oriental name, if we have it 
 before us, merely in our own orthography : as many know, it 
 must have happened in regard to Jocheh's learned Lexicon, 
 under the article Hebedjesu, where is given a Syrian city, 
 called Saba ; but no one would hence suppose that this city 
 
 was written y£^Ojf, and revealed to us that Zoba, H31V. 
 
 with the king of which David w aged such dreadful wars. 
 
 ** See my treatise De Syria Sohaea, which was read before our Society, 
 on the 16th of November, 1765, and shall appear in the second part of 
 my Commentationes Societati Scientiarum oblalae. [ The Syrians and Arabs 
 
 call it — .Aill^aLt A and /J^»^-^•^•A^■', iVetsiiin and iVafsiAiw, from 
 
 which the Greeks have derived lSi<ri0i(, on Coins Nesibis and according 
 to Stephens Nax/,/?/?. See Gesenius' Hebr, Dent. Handw. n3fy- Tr. ] 
 
THE USE OP THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE, §. VII. 527 
 
 4. The Syrian Interpreters of the Scriptures appear to me, 
 to be worthy of regard. From my own use, I am acquainted 
 only with Ephrem f for the others are not in print, and I 
 possess no manuscripts of them. But I will describe his work, 
 according to my view of it. ' 
 
 We shall generally in vain consult him for elucidations of 
 Hebrew words, and particular philological observations ; be- 
 cause he comments on the Syriac Version, and not on the 
 original text. What is valuable therefore in jERtuwE, and 
 what Ephrem, by means of his native language, might have 
 more fully effected, he has not effected. On the contrary, in 
 a favourable point of view he is the opposite of J; aoME. As 
 the latter seems to love truth almost solely for philology, and 
 to reserve nothing for the explanation of the subject that is 
 homiletic or allegorical ; Ephrem is judicious in this respect, 
 and sometimes acute ; no friend of miracles, and still less of 
 fables. And in the prophecies, he is free from the propensity 
 of endeavouring to find Christ every where, even when not 
 the subject of prediction. A disciple of Cocceius, therefore, 
 would not be satisfied with him ; but that is no disparagement. 
 
 I will give one or two examples of his way of thinking. 
 He thus understands Genesis iv. 1. I have borne a man-child 
 
 unto the Lord. This is incorrect : for l.^i.— JSO—^ must 
 
 be the accusative, on account of the Hebrew.t But yet 
 I commend him, because he was not disposed to ascribe to 
 Eve the knowledge of the whole doctrine of Christ. 
 
 Chap. VI. 4. he calls the sons of God, ^m,J^m^'A^^ judges. 
 
 He had previously explained : the sons of Seth, which are the 
 people of God, In the second interpretation, did he refer to 
 
 * [ This celebrated Syriac author lived in the fourth century. He 
 was commended in the loftiest terms by the Greeks, Latins, Copts and 
 Armenians ; and was entitled by the Syrians Master of the World. See 
 Hoffmanh's Prolegomena to his Syriac Grammar, §. 2. N. J. Annot. 3. 
 Jr.] 
 t [ : mnr'n^ B^^N '•nop is the Hebrew ; and the Samaritan is 
 
 IT • V V -J* It 
 
 precisely the same. Tr. 1 
 
528 THE USE OF THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE, §. Vll. 
 
 Psalm Lxxxii. 6. ? He is not willing that giants should be 
 found in this chapter, and to get rid of them, he assumes, that 
 the posterity of Cain, who inhabited an unproductive region, 
 were diminutive, and therefore the well-grown posterity of 
 Seth seemed to be giants. 
 
 In Chapter vni. 14. he makes the observation, that as early 
 as the time of Noah, the Solar year, consisting of 365 days, 
 seems to have been known ; for on the 17th. day of the second 
 month the deluge began, and it ended on the 27th. of the same 
 month, in the year following. If then we reckon : 
 
 days, 
 from tlie 17th. of the second month to the 16th. of 
 the same in the following year, by the lunar year, 354 
 and thence to the 27th - - - 11 
 
 the result is just - - ^ - - 365 
 
 Whether the suggestion be true or not, it evinces no or- 
 dinary genius. Another might perhaps have said more pro- 
 perly, God afforded the means of discovering the true year, 
 but Ephrem gave rise to the suggestion. 
 
 In Chap. X. 9. we recognize the Mesopotamian, who thought 
 more favourably of Nimrod, than other Commentators are 
 accustomed to do. No one interprets the 10th. and 11th. 
 verses better than he. Ephrem was at home in this country, 
 and was acquainted with the common and the ancient names 
 of cities. 
 
 In Chap. XV. 1 — 7. he so writes, that we must believe, by 
 righteousness he understands as much as a merit : faith was 
 reckoned to Abraham as a merit, and was rewarded by God 
 with the performance of such great promises. 
 
 He suggests, at Chap, xxvui. 12., very judiciously, the lad- 
 der has no appropriate signification, but is introduced, that the 
 angels may ascend and descend upon it : yet these angels are 
 a representation of divine providence in behalf of Jacob.* 
 
 * L The Author adds some further observations, derived from Ephrem, 
 which it is thought proper to omit. Some ^^examples of his mode of 
 interpretation are given above in this volunje. See pp. 454. 455. Tr. jj 
 
THE USE OF THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE, §. VII. 55J9 
 
 These examples may very well suffice, to excite to the study 
 of the Biblical Interpretation of this Father. But I wish we 
 liad several other interpreters, whom Asseman mentions, and 
 who might in part be of more importance than the ascetic 
 Ephrem. 
 
 MosHEiM, in his InMituliones Historiae Ecclesiasticae, p. 
 208,* writes of Theodore of Mopsuestia, (who is mentioned 
 in this Chrestomathy, p. 4. t ) : *' Theodori Mopsuesteni opera, 
 quamvis post obitum maximorum errorum accusatus sit, aut 
 prorsus periisse, aut inter Nestorianos hodie tantum Syriace 
 legi, dolebunt cuncti, qui vel ea considerarunt, quae Photius 
 ex illis retulit." [ Although Theodore of Mopsuestia, after his 
 death, was accused of very great errors, the loss of his works, 
 or their existence at present among the Nestorians in Syriac 
 only, is lamented by all, who have paid attention merely 
 to what Photius has cited out of them. ] And he writes, 
 at p. 211: if — "Nemo iongius in reprehendendis Origenis 
 sectatoribus progressus est, quam Theodorus Mopsuestenus, 
 qui .... etiam in commentariis suis ad veteris Testamenti 
 vates, ex antiquiori historia oracula eorum pleraque declarare, 
 ausus est." [ No one went further, in censuring the fol- 
 lowers of Origen, than Theodore of Mopsuestia, who .... in 
 his Commentaries on tlie prophets of the Old Testament, did 
 not hesitate to explain most of their predictions by ancient 
 history. ] It may well be the case, that Theodore goes too 
 far, by not interpreting of Christ certain passages which ac- 
 tually relate to him, so that he may be regarded as a Judaizing 
 interpreter. But a Christian expositor, who in a certain de- 
 gree thinks with Grotius and Le Clerc, and is of so re- 
 mote a period, may teach us much that is unknown ; and he 
 is better than a Jerome. Perhaps he has not gone too far, but 
 
 * [ The passage is to be found in Mosheiai's Eccl. Hist. Cent. v. P. ir. 
 Ch. II. §. X. ; in the Hclmstadt edition (A. D. 1764), at p. 186. Tr. ] 
 
 t [ This mention of Theodore occurs in the " Epistle of Simeon, 
 Bishop of Betharsama, concerning the Nestorians." found in Assemak's 
 Oriental Library, T. i. p. 346 fF. Tr. ] 
 
 t [ See Mosheim's Eccl. Hist., Cent. v. P. ii. Ch. iii. §• v. ; ia the 
 Helvtst, edition (A. D. J1764),. at p. 189. Tr. ] 
 67 
 
530 THE USE OF THE SFRIAC LANGUAGE. 
 
 while innocent is accused by those who are uninformed, as 
 Mosheim seems to think.* 
 
 ^ [ The character of Theodore of Mopsuestia, as a Commentator on 
 the Scriptures, is given by Dr. J. G, Rosknmuller in his Hisioria Inter- 
 pretationis Librorum Sacrorum, Vol. iii. pp.250 — 265. of the edit. Leipzig, 
 1807. On the subject of the Literature of Syria in general, Hoffmann 
 wrote an Essay (which appeared in Bektholdt's Theological Journal, 
 T. XIV. pp. 225 — ^291.) entitled : Kurlze Geschichte der Syrischen Litlera- 
 tur. Brief History of Syriac Literature. On the History of the SyriMc 
 Language also, he treats at large, in the valuable Prolegomma which ac- 
 company his Grammar. Tr. ] 
 
THE STRIAC LANGUAGE. 
 APPENDIX, 
 
 BY THE TRANSLATOR. 
 
 531 
 
 The best elementary works, for the study of the 
 Syriac Language. 
 
 Until the commencement of the sixteenth century, the 
 Syriac Language had been httle studied in Europe; but 
 since that period, it has engaged the attention, and been illus- 
 trated by the publications of very numerous and able writers. 
 
 Among the elementary books, which have appeared, the 
 following may be regarded as particularly valuable to the Sy- 
 riac student. 
 
 I. Grammars. 
 
 1. Henry Ofitz's Syriasmus, Leipzig and Frankfort, 1678, 
 4to. 
 
 It is highly commended by HoPFMAifN, ( Gram. Syr. Prolegg.^. 5. 2, ) 
 as excelling all that preceded it. 
 
 2. John David Michaelis' Grammatica Syriaca, Halae, 
 
 1784. 
 
 This is little more tbau a. revised edition of the Syriasmus of Chris- 
 tian Benedict Michaelis, the author's father. The work is not a 
 mere compilation, as most publications of the kind, but is original, and 
 the result of indefatigable labour. Its copious Paradigms of verbs and 
 nouns are very useful. The volume is a small quarto, pp. 299. 
 
 3. Andrew Theophilus Hoffmann's Grammaticae Syria- 
 CAE LiBRi III. Halae, 1827. 
 
 No other Grammar of the language will compare with this. Hoff- 
 mann occupies, in Striac, the place assigned to De Sacy in Arabic, and 
 to Gesenius in Hebrew Literature. To the Syriac student, no 
 other elementary work can be as valuable. It is a quarto volume, 
 pp. 418. 
 
532 THE SYRIAC LANGUACTE. 
 
 IL Lexicons. 
 }. Edmund Castell's Lexicon Syriacum. 
 
 It originally appeared, as part of the Heptaglot Lexicok, which gc 
 nerally accompanies the London Polyglot, and was published at Lon^ 
 don, 1669. Dr. Castell was aided in the execution of it by Bishop Be- 
 
 VEKIDGE. 
 
 2. John David Michaelis' edition of this work. 
 
 It was published in a separate form, at Gdttingen, 1788, and is enti- 
 tled : Edmundi Castelli Lexicon Syriacum, ex ejus Lexico Heptaglotto 
 seorsim typis describi curavit atque stia adnotaia adjecit Joannes David 
 MicHAELis. It consists of two volumes 4tG., pp. 978. 
 
 S. Charles Schaaf's Lexicon Syriacum Concordantiale, 
 • , Lugd. Bat, 1708. 
 
 This admirable work contains all the words of the New Testament, 
 and at the same time numerous other words and phrases, belonging to 
 the Syriac and its kindred languages. It has also very useful indexes, 
 in Syriac and Latin. Hoffmann ( in his Gramm. Syr. Prolegg. §. 5. 
 3. ) says of this Lexicon : It can scarcely ever fail the student of the New 
 Testament. 
 
 4. Etienne Quatremere's Syriac Lexicon. 
 
 This indefatigable student has for some time contemplated a Lexi. 
 con. He has examined, with this view, all Syriac works now in prints 
 and some MSS. also ; he has visited the rich treasures in the Oxford 
 library and the Vatican : and the result of his labours will, no doubt- 
 be a far more complete Syriac Lexicon than any extant. 
 
 III. Chrestomathies* 
 
 L JoiiN David MicHAELis' Syriac Chrestomathy, Goitin- 
 gen. 
 
 It was the original design of the author, to issue this work in parts. 
 The first Part, however, is all that appeared. It is a small octavo vo- 
 lume ; and comprises a Treatise ( in German ) on the Syriac Language and 
 its use (pp. I24.small 8vo. ), and a Syriac Chrestomathy (pp. 118.). The 
 first edition of the work appeared at Gottingen, in 1768 ; and the second 
 edition, containing some additional notes to the Treatise, was published 
 at the same place, in 1786. 
 
THE SYRIAC LANGUAGE. 533 
 
 EiCHHORK (in his Allgemeinc Bibliotkek der Ubl. Litt. B. i. SS. 144 
 —148.) gives a brief notice of the second edition of the Treatise ; 
 and a critical examination of certain passages in the Chrestomathy 
 was published by J. F. Gaab, in Paulus' Neues Repertorium fUr bib- 
 lische und morgenldndischt Litteratur, Th. iii. Abh. xi. S3. 366 — 
 378. 
 
 2. George William Kirsch's Syriac Chrestomathy, Ho- 
 fae, 1789. 
 
 This is an octavo volume, including a Chrestomathy, and a Lexi- 
 con. The Chrestomathy, highly commended by Hoffmann, is derived 
 chiefly from the Chronicle of Barhi braeus. It has other extracts 
 also from this author's writings, and from those of Ephrem Syrus. The 
 Lexicon is very useful. 
 
 A brief notice of the work is given by Eichhorn, in his Allgemeine 
 Bihliothekderbibl. Litt. B. n. SS. 548—550. 
 
 3. GusTAvus Knoes' Syriac Chrestomathy, Gottingen, 
 1807. 
 
 On this valuable work, derived chiefly fromMSS., see above, p. 
 520. 
 
 4. O. G. Tychsen's Elementale Syriacum, Rostock, 1793. 
 
 Beside a Chrestomathy (pp. 112. small octavo), and a Glossary (pp. 
 113 — 169 ), this work contains' a comprehensive Grammar, of which 
 EicHHORN ( in his Allgemeine Bibliotliek der bibl. Litt. B. viii. S. 699. ) 
 says : " To this Grammar, which consists of only 31 pages> we may 
 with strict propriety apply the adage Short and Good,'^ 
 
 The work is accompanied with nine well-executed plates, contain- 
 ing various specimens of Syriac MSB., transcribed at Rome by Ab- 
 ler. It comprises 28 specimens ( pp. 32 — 82 ) of pointed Syriac, 
 and a number of Extracts ( pp. 82 — 1 12 ) not pointed. The volume 
 contains 169 pages, and is perhaps to be preferred to any other manual 
 of the language. 
 
 Many new works, relating to the Oriental Languages in 
 general, and to the Syriac in particular, have recently appear- 
 ed. The importance of these languages seems to be more 
 and more discovered ; and the sentiments of Professor Lee 
 of Cambridge (in the Preface to his admirable Hebrezo Gram- 
 mar, pp. xvu — XIX.), it is hoped, will soon become the prevail- 
 ing sentiments of those who profess to be expounders of the 
 Sacred Volume. " To expect fully to make out an Oriental 
 
ii'M THE SYRIAC LANGUAcf. 
 
 book, such as the Bible is, without the assistance of Orien- 
 tal learning, is, in my estimation, a perfect absurdi- 
 ty The names of Pococke, Castell, De Dieu, 
 
 Schultens, Schroeder, and others, will ever be revered by 
 
 those who appreciate the Holy Scriptures They have 
 
 left behind them enough to convince every candid mind, 
 that there are in these dialects treasures innumerable, which 
 have escaped their observation Generally speak- 
 ing, he who is best acquainted with these dialects, is by far 
 the most likely person to be a successful commentator on 
 the Hebrew Scriptures." 
 
INDEXES. 
 
 I. Texts illustrated. 
 
 II. Words and Phrases explaiked. 
 
 III. Authors and Books quoted. 
 
 IV. General Index of Matters, 
 
537 
 
 INDEX I. 
 
 TEXTS OF SCRIPTURE ILLUSTRATED. 
 
 GsNESis. Page. 
 
 IV. 1 527. 
 
 VI. 4 527. 
 
 VIII. 14 528. 
 
 X. 9. 528. 
 
 XV. 1—7. .... 528. 
 
 XXVIII. 12. ... 528. 
 
 XXX. 14 158. 
 
 Leviticus. 
 
 XI. 29 s 154. 
 
 XIX. 19 158. 
 
 Df,utsko>-omy. 
 
 vut. 3 494. 
 
 16 494. 
 
 Judges. • 
 
 IX. 8— 15. . . 220.248?. 
 
 TI Samuel. 
 
 VII. 12 173, 
 
 XII. 1—9. . . •. . 233. 
 
 Psalms. 
 
 XXII. 32 247. 
 
 XXXVI. 9 375. 
 
 10. ... 361. 
 
 ex. 1 188 ss. 
 
 — 2 197. 
 
 CXXXVIT. R. . . %i7. 
 
 PnovERBS. Page. 
 
 vn.22 166. 
 
 Isaiah. 
 
 I. 22 491. 
 
 VI. 6 , 164. 
 
 XIV. 23 490. 
 
 XXII. 22. .... 204. 
 
 XXV. 7 611 ss. 
 
 6—8. . . . 614. 
 
 L.5 '435. 
 
 Lii. 13— LIU. 4. . . 424 s, 
 
 Lvin: 11. . . . . 376. 
 
 Jeremiah. 
 
 xLix. 1. 2. ... 21J. 
 
 Joe I.. 
 
 1. 19 359, 
 
 Amos. 
 
 IX. 11. 12. . . '. 199s. 
 
 Jonah. 
 
 IV. 6 158. 
 
 Zkchariah. 
 
 XIV. 8 37^>, 
 
 08 
 
538 
 
 INDEX OP TEXTS ILLUSTRATED. 
 
 Malachi. Page. 
 
 11.7 345. 
 
 Matthew. 
 ( 
 
 V. 19,20 209. 
 
 — 25 s 247. 
 
 VII. 15 365. 
 
 21 209. 
 
 vin. 17 411, 
 
 XI. 11. .... 184. 
 
 — 12 185. 
 
 XIII. 3. .... 234. 
 
 3ssi-. . 218.228.231. 
 
 24 ss. . . . 228.231. 
 
 31.47. . 202.228.231. 
 
 44 261s. 
 
 52. .... 205. 
 
 XV. 5 340. 
 
 XVI. 28 497 ». 
 
 xviii. 1—10. . . 502. 
 
 23 ss. . . . 172. 232. 
 
 34 246. 
 
 XX. 1 1 s 259. 
 
 XXI.28SS. . . . 229. 
 
 31 209. 
 
 33 250. 
 
 xxTi. 3. .... 258 s. 
 
 4. .... 250. 
 
 10 238. 
 
 12 ss. . . . 239 s. 
 
 13 238. 
 
 xxiii. 13 209. 
 
 XXIV. 32 215. 
 
 XXV. 1 202. 
 
 30 238 s. 
 
 Mark. 
 
 IV. 30 s 217. 
 
 — 33 234. 
 
 IX. 1. . . . 179. 497 s. 
 
 — 33—50 . . . 502. 
 
 XII. 34 185. 
 
 XIII. 28 215. 
 
 Luke. 
 
 I. 33 188. 
 
 Luke. 
 
 F&Se- 
 
 I. 53 347. 
 
 V.36 215. 
 
 VII. 28 184. 
 
 VI n. 10 236. 
 
 IX. 27. . . . 179.497 s. 
 
 — 62 205. 
 
 X. 11. 203. 
 
 XI. 5 ss. . . . . 217. 
 
 — 22 331. 
 
 XII. 16 225. 
 
 41 215. 
 
 XIII. 7 255. 
 
 19. .... 217. 
 
 XIV. 21. 23. . . . 248. 
 
 XV. 3 215. 
 
 — 21 250. ' 
 
 — 22 ss 250 s. 
 
 XVI. 22. . . . . 268. 
 22. 23. . . . 364. 
 
 XVII. 20. 21. . . . 182. 
 
 XVIII. 2 217. 
 
 9 225. 
 
 10 ss. . . . 225. 
 
 XIX. 13 250. 
 
 — 17 ss. ... 268. 
 — - 27 .... 246. 
 xsi. 29. .... 215. 
 
 XXII. 16 207. 
 
 xxm. 42. .... 179. 
 
 John. * 
 
 1. 14. 18. . . 362—364. 
 
 HI. 1 381. 
 
 VII. 38. .... 376. 
 
 vm. 12 361. 
 
 44 337. 
 
 ——52 497 s. 
 
 X. 6 222. 
 
 xriii. 37. .... 181. 
 
 Acts. 
 
 V. 17 288. 
 
 VII. 16 167. 
 
 xm. 34. .... 186 s. 
 
 35—37. . . 186. 
 
 XV. 5 288. 
 
INDEX OP TEXTS ILLUSTRATED. 
 
 539 
 
 Romans. Page. 
 
 IV. 17. . . . . . 301. 
 
 V. 7 167. 
 
 X.2 349. 
 
 X. 6. 7 167. 
 
 XII. 2 380. 
 
 1 Corinthians. 
 
 I. -17 347. 
 
 — 20 350. 
 
 VIII. 1 345 s. 
 
 xn. 12— 27. . . . 216. 
 
 xiii. 1 339. 
 
 XV. 3 329. 
 
 — 24—27. . . . 190 ss. 
 
 — •28.* 192 ss. 
 
 — 29. . . . . . 195SS. 
 
 2 Corinthians. 
 
 XII. 7. . . : . . 499. 
 
 GulItians. 
 
 V.20 289. 
 
 VI. 16 ^, 329. 
 
 EPHBSIANS. 
 
 II. 2. . . . 378-^84. 
 
 — 12. ..... 185. 
 
 IT. 16 343. 
 
 VI. 12 383 8. 
 
 Philippians. 
 
 111.16 3«9s. 
 
 Colossi AN 9. Page. 
 
 I. II. . . . 322-344. 
 11.15 383 )». 
 
 1 Timothy. 
 
 VI. 20. . . . 344— Q52. 
 
 Hebrews. 
 
 n.9 497 s. 
 
 ni.l 358. 
 
 — 12 195. 
 
 — 15—19. . . . 194 6. 
 
 IX. 9 215. 
 
 XI. 3 301. 
 
 — 5 497. 
 
 XII. 26 210. 
 
 2 Peter. 
 
 I. 16. ..... 348. 
 
 II 368—378. 
 
 II. 1 289, 
 
 HI. 378. 
 
 1 John. 
 
 II. 18 s. 22 s. 26. . 364 ss. 
 
 III. 4. . . . . . 366 s. 
 
 — 9 367 8. 
 
 IV. 1—3 364 ss. 
 
INDEX II. 
 
 WORDS AND PHRASES JEXPLAIIVED. 
 
 Hebrew and Chalde£. Page. 
 
 np3i< - - ^ - ^ ^ - - - 154. 
 
 2nx -------- - 370. 
 
 y^l ------- ^ - *369. 
 
 pjj --------- 35. 
 
 I^T - . . . 357. 
 
 rj^T -^ - - - . ^ - - - 380. 
 
 Dl'n - . - - 178. 
 
 biVn 512. 
 
 iflDin 154- 
 
 inn 152. 
 
 N0X13 490. 
 
 DX'P 491 
 
 ^rr-'p^D "^^i- 
 
 J^niDT «DpID |^l3;;t0 - - - - 498. 
 
 nj^n" 494. 
 
 ^j^-^^ - - 200. 
 
 -,3^ ......... 340. 
 
 ri^ 154. 
 
 5i? - • 152. 
 
 nDD :• - - - 158. 
 
 nxoS - - 154. 
 
 ID' aSlHD 491. 
 
 .|T- T 
 
 ^no " - - - 491s. 
 
 Xt3.^pp .--"---. 490. 
 
 ,sSd' ----- ^ - . 36?. 
 
 Hebrew and Chaldee. Page. 
 
 ^xSd - - - ■ 358. 
 
 ffD 183, 
 
 n3DD -------- 513. 
 
 NVO 179. 
 
 TT 
 
 I Paragogic - -^ - - - - - 493. 
 N^3J .-..'.•--. 30.82. 
 
 •T 
 
 ^DJ - - - 613. 
 
 yJ- - '■ 154. 
 
 nj12f - -. 526. 
 
 nXT 341.361. 
 
 TT 
 
 nSlf^ 164. 
 
 nJl?V^ 158. 
 
 O^W - - - - ^12' 
 
 riDtirin - - 154. 
 
 Arabic. 
 JL^^T 222. 
 
 ei- i.-:^ ^^ L-^ 498 
 
 0\-—**^«-i2k and its deriVa- 
 lives 514 
 
 ^yk.J^Ji.AOi .... 526 
 
INDEX OP WORDS ANIX 
 
 Syriac Page. 
 
 ^^A^2| 500SS. 
 
 j2al»^ \,sbb 497s. 
 
 }1a*^-.:SO-.^ 527. 
 
 «.^0^10 v.. ..525. 
 
 Nun Paragogic 494. 
 
 i.m:^-> *»5i4. 
 
 Y^^l^^A 526. 
 
 I-Lol ii. 
 
 \a^Ai3 494. 
 
 ^Xilfl ,ik 
 
 ^^V-O A.' ik 
 
 Gruek. 
 
 'AyaTTdot 370. 
 
 ^Ay^dufA.uroi 321. 
 
 "A(r«c 374s. 
 
 A»g 3S2s. 
 
 Ai/ji* Kcti fl-sc'gl 383. 
 
 A/iroc 216. 
 
 Aifg«(r/c 288 s. 
 
 Aleiv 378 ss. 
 
 ''AvaaTHva.i 177. 
 
 AirT»5rc<rc9-/f 238. 
 
 'AtTlx^irot 364 ss, 
 
 ^Amit^u<pot 35 .s. 
 
 'A^X.'^i Kal i^ovaUt 334. 383. 
 
 'Ag;t» 68s. 
 
 "Ag;^** 378. 381 ss, 
 
 'A<riKytiit 369. 
 
 Baa-ixtiA 181.198.210. 
 
 B«ri\ii<t Toy eicD 209 
 
 PHRASES JOXPIiAINElJ. .">41 
 
 Greek. ^ag^- 
 
 Bx<rikti(X, Tm cv^ittuv., 185. 
 
 BafftXiua-ui 207. 
 
 BlX^OfAXl 185. 
 
 TtuofAu.1 o344. 
 
 Tiv(i/uut BavATov ' 496 S. 
 
 Tv^a-ic 344 ss. 395. 
 
 Tg4/ufjia.'T* 321. 
 
 As 194. 
 
 AMajtc 204. 
 
 ^ta<pBo^ti 186. 
 
 'Efie^ofi^«ff/c«la f^38. 
 
 'E8f/« 337. 
 
 "h-tiDj 194. 
 
 Eif TOK cclutat 188. 
 
 EKXiKTxi .-... 260. 
 
 'EAc^aTtya.. 341. 
 
 'E/c/.ir«»JtT3ti . i 378. 
 
 •Ezr«/vf« 340. 
 
 ^f.irecKi^uro 201. 
 
 RirtfAvbtuv 220.240. 
 
 ^'E^X.'^fiiivov iig T«K 0(1- 
 
 fthtiav 179. 
 
 ^F.VityytKi^ofiitvoi 185. 
 
 Zo^oc 374. 
 
 Z»»'.... 360ss. 
 
 QitVu etTiOt. . 309. 
 
 Qfohay'nt 320. 
 
 ayyiy^cev 336. 339. 
 
 X«v(Ji'/o» 34 note. 
 
 Kctvonjt<5f 34. 
 
 KaVtoK 34. 
 
 Y^ant^gt^vjoi 342. 
 
 Y^tKKvifxivovi 247. 
 
 K«A4iv«f 167. 
 
 K8»o« „ 346 s. 
 
 A&yoi. .. 216. 221.223. 356 ss 
 
 A«/<rjjf 204. 
 
 Mixxins 167. 
 
 MiK iK<fxivo,uiyav 301 . 
 
 Mj»iroTe 236. 
 
 Mi*g^TSgOC 182. 
 
 Moioytyic- 362 s 
 
 N8?8X«t/ vttO XaihciTroe 
 (KavnfAtvai 375. 377 
 
542 IJIDEX OF WORDS Aj\I> 
 
 Greek. Page. 
 
 tiwi^tt and -biiat^K.,. 526. 
 
 'O our tie TOV KdKTTOV 
 
 TOW T*Tgof 364. 
 
 '0§% 341. 
 
 "OffAi 187. 
 
 'Ot«v. 194, 
 
 nag /gir'xAa 215. 
 
 Ha.^a$o\i^ 215. 221 s. 
 
 notgacToo-zf 327. 
 
 Tla^*\atiu04vev 211. 
 
 Tlatgoi/nta ,...,.. 222. 
 
 n«f 192. 
 
 TltS'ctktai 161. 
 
 Il8g*T!* TXC T'iJC 166 S. 
 
 Uiiyai 'i'wS'got 375 s. 
 
 nhtovt^ix 369. 
 
 nx»5a/uct 332. 363. 
 
 Tou ©sow 207. 
 
 HviuMa 333. 
 
 nox«T«7«.. 184 s. 
 
 rigo^ufi/oy 240. 
 
 n^otri^tn T<y/ 348. 
 
 ngo4.»T«c 30. 53. 82. 
 
 ng«T«t 329. 
 
 2«5| 328. 
 
 SitstvcTaXiffl) 499 ss. 
 
 iKMiSiXiv ih, 
 
 2k/x 334. 
 
 IkvKov 331. 
 
 2o«})»«t x*^^*''i*>- •' ^8. 310. 
 
 '^iro^x 380. 
 
 2To/;t«'* 328 ss. 
 
 2w^«T»T>)f 350. 
 
 'SvKctyaiyut 331. 
 
 Swxov ib- 
 
 SeTjUai 334. 
 
 Trf jUM <})a<vo^iey«t 301. 
 
 Trt o»T«t «6- 
 
 iyy'iKtov 339.341. 
 
 PHRASES EXPLAINED. 
 
 GnEEK. Page. 
 
 TagTsfgoo) 374. 
 
 T/At» 339s. 
 
 Tdre 195. 
 
 *</o«rc<j)/tf . 308. 319 ss. 327. 346. 
 
 Tii^atK 308 s. 
 
 ibm 360 ss. 
 
 Xs/^d>gst4>o>'.. 333. 
 
 y^o^i\yia> 342 s. 
 
 '¥ivS'oSiSet<TK*hoi 368 ss. 
 
 '^tvSo'r^<i<^yrtti 364 ss. 
 
 'ariHi 187. 
 
 Latin, French, German 
 AND English. 
 
 Abstracta feminini . . . « . 603. 
 
 J^.tas 380. 
 
 Apocrypha 35 s. 
 
 Argern 501.. 
 
 Buffet 499. 
 
 Canon and canonical. 33 s. 36. 39. 
 
 Cup of Death 497 ss. 
 
 Despise 499 ss. 
 
 Flesh and blood 383. 
 
 Hebraisms... 499. 501. 
 
 Honor and honoro 340. 
 
 Mabog 525. 
 
 Methodists 115. 
 
 Messengers of Satan .... 499. 
 
 Offend 499ss. 
 
 Parable 215 s. 
 
 Peshito 427. 
 
 Prophet 30.53.82. 
 
 Saba 526. 
 
 Scandalize 499ss. 
 
 Seculum 380. 
 
 Si^cle ih. 
 
 Taste of Death 496 ss. 
 
548 
 
 INDEX III. 
 
 AUTHORS AND BOOKS QUOTED. 
 
 Abarbanel^ Praefatio in Josuam ; 82. 
 AbuipharagiuSi Chronicon Syriacum ; 
 204. 
 
 ' Historia Dynastia- 
 
 rum ; 505. 518 s- 
 
 Acta Sanctorum Martyrum; see As- 
 
 seman, S. E. 
 Adler, Norinulla Matt, et Marci enun- 
 
 ciata ex indole linguae Syriacae 
 
 explicata ; 498. 
 .Mian, de Nat- Animal. ; 337. 
 .^chines. Opera ; 185. 
 Mberli, Observationes ; 367. 
 American Encyclopedia ; 520. 
 AquUa, Greek Version ; 363. 411. 
 Arnold, Hist. Eccles. et Haeres. ; 278. 
 Asseman, J. S., Bibliotheca Orienta- 
 
 lis ; 487 494. 497- 499. 505. 516. 
 
 518 s. 521 524. 529. 
 r— S. £., Acta Sanctorum 
 
 Martyrum; 516.521. 526. 
 Atliantsius, Synopsis S. S. ; 36. 
 Athenaeus, Deipnos. ; 309. 
 AttUy Commentary ; 338. 
 Au^tisti, Einleitung ins A. T. ; 12- 
 
 German Version of the Bi- 
 ble ; 515. 
 
 uiugustine. Opera ; 33S. 
 
 de Doctr- Christ. ; 7- 
 
 Barhebraeus, see Abulpharagius. 
 Barre, de La ; 130. 
 Bartolocci, Bibliotheca Rabbinica ; 29. 
 Basnage, Histoire des Juifs ; 62. 
 Baiier, Abridgment : 12 
 
 Baumgarten, see Hallischer BMio' 
 
 thek. 
 Bava Bathra, see Talmud. 
 Bayer or Baier, T. &., Hist. Osro6hna 
 
 et Edessena ; 517. 
 Bayle, Diction naire ; 122. 149. 
 Beavsobre, Histoire critique de Manl- 
 
 ch^e ; 277. 354 521. 
 Bengd, Gnomon Nov. Test. ; 177- 
 
 198 204. , 
 
 Bertholdt, Einleitung in die Schriften 
 
 des A. und N. Test ; 12. 43 49. 
 
 507 
 
 Daniel; 11. 
 
 r- Theological Journal ; 530. 
 
 Bibliotheca Orieutalis, see AsseTnan, 
 
 J. S. 
 Bignon, Jerome ; 121. 
 Bochart, Sam., Geogr. Sacra ; 144 as. 
 
 149. 524. 
 
 Hierozoicon ; 129. 
 
 134. 150 ss 157. 
 
 Phaleg, 119 s. 149. 
 
 Bomberg, Daniel ; 88. , 
 
 Bos, Exercitat Phil. ; 344. 346 362. 
 
 369. 375. 
 Bossuet, 9. 
 Bourdelat ; 125 s. 
 Brentz, Jo., Esaias commentariis ev 
 
 plicatus; 467. 
 Brucker, Hist Crit. Philosoph ; 62. 
 
 278 s. 283. 295. 298 s 300 303 s. 
 
 307. 309 s. 315. 354. 37a 383. 387 s 
 
 389. 397 
 
M4 
 
 INDEX OF AUTHORb AND BOOKS QUOTED. 
 
 Bruns, 86 s (see KenriicoU-,) 520. 
 
 Brynneus ; 167. 
 
 Bilsching, Geography ; 525. Descript. 
 
 of Asia ; ib. 
 Buxlorf, Lexicon Chald. Talmud. 
 
 Rabbin ; 35 94 491 498 499- 
 
 J., Tiberias ; 29 93, 
 
 Ca/met, Com mentaire; 472 
 Calovius, Biblia Mlustrata ; 468. 
 Calvin, Commentarii in lesaiam pro- 
 
 phetam : 466. 
 Camercr, Tii6ologischen und kritis- 
 
 chen Versuchen ; 39. 
 Cameron, John ; 1 12. 
 Cap I, Commentt. in V T ; 469. 
 Carpsoo, Introiiuctio in V T ; 10. 
 
 Crit. "^acr. ; 356. 
 
 Cassiodorus ; 7. 
 
 Castalio, B'blia, cum annotatt. ; 467. 
 
 Casiell, Lexicon Heptagl. ; 35. 491. 
 
 510. 532. 
 Cdlar'ms, Geograph Ant ; 524. 
 ChriMian Observer ; 104. 
 Chronicon Syriacum, see Abulphara- 
 
 gius 
 Chrifsostem, Opera ; 351. 
 Cicero, Orator; 309 
 
 proQuintio; 340 
 
 pro Roscio Araerino ; 340 
 
 Epistt ; 340 
 
 de Nat. Deer ; 398. 
 
 Clarius; 468 
 
 Clement of Alexandria, Stromata ; 
 
 282 288 300 305 s 312 317 319. 
 
 321 345 s. 395 
 Chricus ; see Le Clerc. 
 Cofrei'S, Opera; 251 469 491. 
 
 Lexicon H*br ; 491- 
 
 Compton, Blshftp ; 122. 
 
 C'>ncil. C rlhas ; 31. 
 
 Conversations-Lexicon ; 520. 
 
 Cotta; 34 
 
 Cyprian, Opera ; 287. 
 
 Oyril, Opera ; 35 
 
 Dalhe, PsaUer Syriac ; 515- 
 
 ^de ratione consensus Vers. 
 
 Chald. et Syr. Prov. Sol. ; 607. 
 r edition of Walton's Prolegg. ; 8. 
 
 De Dieu, Louis, Crit, Sacra ; SOU. 
 Animadvers. in V 
 
 T.; 467 s. 
 Demosthenes, Opera ; 184. 
 
 de Corona ; 340. 
 
 Dempster, Thom.ns ; 110 
 
 De Wette, Lehrbrech der hist- krit. 
 
 Einleit. in die Bibel ; 22. 29 43. 
 German Version of the 
 
 Bible; 515. 
 
 Archaologie ; 49. 64. 
 
 Deyling, Obss. Sacr. ; 328. 333. 3&S 
 
 s. 384. 
 Dietelmaier, Hist, dogmatis de de- 
 
 scensu Christi ad inferos ; 160. 
 Doddwell, Diss, in Irenaeum ; 384. 
 Doederlein, Instit. Christ. Theol; 
 
 211. 
 Drilk, Dissert, de ratione hist. Cano- 
 
 nis scribendae ; 34 s. 
 Drvsius, Parallela Sacra ; 103. 
 Da Bosr, Pierre, 109. 122. 132 s. 
 Du Fresne, Glossarium ; 34. 
 Eichhorn^ J. G., Einleitung ins A. 
 
 T. ; 10 s. 19. 22. 23. 26. 29. 30. 43. 
 
 48 s. 63. 70 s. 88 s. 96. 494. 505. 
 
 509. 
 Einl. in die Apokryphischen 
 
 Bucher des A. T. ; 12. 
 
 Einl. ins. N. T. ; 13. 
 
 edit, of Simonis' Hebr. 
 
 Lexicon ; 30. 
 AUgemeine Bibliothek ; 30. 
 
 485. 533. 
 Repertorium; 19. 47. 48. 
 
 509. 
 — Historische Untersuchung 
 
 tiber den Kanon des A. T. ; 17— 
 
 104. 
 Eisner, Obss. sacrae; 182. 300. 362. 
 
 364. 340. 
 Ephrem Syrus, Opera ; 487. 508. 516. 
 
 522 527. 
 Commentary ; 497. 
 
 527 s. 
 Epiphanius, Haereses ; 35, 281. 388. 
 Ernesti, Instit. Interp. ; 381. 391. 
 N. th. BibL ; 318, 333. 336. 
 
NDEX OF AUTHORS AXU BOOKS QUOTED. 
 
 545 
 
 IJmesli, Xenophont. Memorab. ; 342. 
 
 Opuscula Oratoria ; 320: 
 
 Eunapius, JEdes] 308. 
 
 Eusebius, Hist- Eccl. ; 67 84. 86. 
 
 284 s. 291. 304 s. 
 Fraep. Evangel-; 41. 82. 
 
 95. 
 
 ^TvoiuYHfAsLTA ; 447. 
 
 Fabriciiis, Codex Pseudepigr. V. T. ; 
 
 36. 
 Fessel, Adv. SS. ; 200. 
 Forerius, Comment, in Esaiam ; 467. 
 FoTster, J /?., Epistolae ad J. D. Mi- 
 
 cbaelem ; 148. 
 Flick, de Cura vet. eccl. circa Cano- 
 
 nem ; 34. 
 Gaab, J. F., Ueber die Litteralur der 
 
 Christ Syrer ; 503. 
 Geier, Comment, in Psalmos ; 357. 
 GeUius; 310. 
 Gesenius, Gescljichte der Hebr. Spra- 
 
 che und Schrift ; 22 s. 
 Hebraish-Deutsches Hand- 
 
 worterbuch; 30. 491. 
 Commentar fiber lesaias; 
 
 491. 507. 515. 
 
 Lehrgebiiude der Hebr. 
 
 Spr. ; 494. 
 
 Gibbs, Translation of Gesenius' He- 
 brew Lexicon ; 30. 
 
 Gill, Commentary on tlie Bible ; 
 498. 
 
 Glass, Philologia Sacra ; 189. 
 
 Gray, Introduction to the Old Testa- 
 ment and Apocrypha ; 14. 
 
 Gregory, Translation of Lowth's Prje- 
 lecttones ; 22. 
 
 Grolius, Annotationes ; 348. 352. 
 362 SS. 369. 375- 377. 381 s. 384. 
 467. 
 
 Illtnlein, Manual ; 13. 
 
 Hallischtr Bibliolheki 509. 
 
 Hammond, Annotations on the N. T. ; 
 277. 
 
 Dissert. dc-Episcopatu; 277. 
 
 Harwood, Introd. to the N. T. ; 383. 
 
 Hasse, Aussichten -,11. 
 
 Hassencamp, Anraerkk. tiber die letz- 
 
 ten Paragraphen des H. Hofr. Mi- 
 
 chaelis Einleit. ins N. T. ; 523. 
 Hazercamp, edition of Josephus ; 61. 
 
 73. 76 SS. 
 Heidegger, Enchiridion ; 7. 
 edition of Walton's Appa- 
 ratus ; 8. 
 Heliodorus, iEthiopica ; 338. 
 Herder, Briefe das Studium der The- 
 
 ologie betrefFend ; 10. 
 Geist der Hebr. Poesie ; 10. 
 
 189. 
 Hess, Ueber die Lehren, Thaten, 
 
 und Schicksale unsers Herrn ; 182. 
 
 201. 
 Heumann, Explic. libr. N. T. ; 359* 
 
 384. 
 Historia Dynastiarum, see Abulpha- 
 
 ragius. 
 Uody. de Bibliorum Text. Origina- 
 
 lib. ; 47. 
 Hoffmann, Grammat. Syr. ; 493. 
 
 494. 513. 527. 529. 531 s. 
 Geschichte der Syr. Litte- 
 
 ratur; 530. 
 Hoogeveen, Doctrina Partic. Grae- 
 
 car. ; 194. 
 Horace, Satires ; 329. 
 Home, Introduction to the Critical 
 
 Study of the Holy Scriptures; 14. 
 
 22 s. 49. 102. 
 Hornemann, de Canone Philonis; 41 
 
 s. 50 52. 54 s. 
 HoUinger, Thesaurus Philologicus ; 
 
 8.35. 
 Houbigant, Bibl. Heb. cum not. crit. 
 
 et vers. Lat. ; 472. 
 Hudson, edit, of Josephus ; 61.67. 
 
 76 ss. 
 Huet, Origeniana ; 128. 136. 
 Hug, Einleitung in die Schriften des 
 
 N. T. ; 13. 
 Irenaens, adv. Haereses ; 281. 290. 
 
 305. 386 s. 
 Isocrates, Opera ; 320. 
 Jacob of Edessa ; 506. 
 
 09 
 
54ti 
 
 ,. IJNOJJX Oi; AXJTHUKi5> AiSt> BOOKS UDOTliO. 
 
 John, Einleitung in die g&ttlichen 
 
 Bacher des A. B. ; lis. 22 ss. .26. 
 
 43.49. 
 
 Arcbaeologia BibI, ; 6*2. 
 
 Jamhlichus, de Myster. ^Egypt. ; 299. 
 Jerome, Latin Version ; 431 s. 
 de Scriptor. Eccles. ; 281. 
 
 372. 
 
 Opera ; 36. 61 90 6. 
 
 Jocher, Lexicon ; 526. 
 
 Jonathan, Btn Vzziel, Targinn ; 412 
 
 ss. 
 Jonsius, de Scriptor. Hist. Phil. ; 
 
 322. 
 Joseplms, deBello Jud. ; 29.60. 172. 
 
 175.290 296 334 s 
 Antiqq. Jud.; 29. 61.69. 
 
 73. 76 ss. 200. 288. 290. 295 s. 300. 
 
 320 s. 
 
 • contra Ap. ; 31. 45. 65. 76. 
 
 77 ss. 
 Journal des Sgavans ; 506. 
 Justin Martijr, Apology ; 291. 
 Keil, C. A. T„ Opuscula Academica; 
 
 171. 175. 
 Kennicolt, Dissert. General. ; 86s. 
 Kirsch, edition of the Syriac Penta- 
 teuch ; 507. 
 
 Syriac Chrestoinathy ; 533. 
 
 Knapp, edition of the N. T. ; 103. 
 Knites, Gustai\, Syriac Chrestoma- 
 
 thy ; 520, 533. 
 Koppe, J. B., Nov. Test. ; 30. 171. 
 Krebs, Observatt. in N. T. ; 185. 320. 
 
 336. 341 s. 348. 
 Coranientar. ad dec. Rom. 
 
 pro Jud. ; 288. 330. 340. 343. 
 Kypke, Observatt. in N. T- ; 193. 
 
 336. 
 Lanigan, Institutiones Biblicae : 14. 
 Lardner, Supplement to Credibil. of 
 
 Gosp. Hist.; 34.281.355. 
 ie Clerc, Veteris Testament! prophe- 
 
 tae ; 472. 
 Xe Couteur ; 132. 
 tee, Professor S., Hebr. Grammar; 
 
 533 s. 
 
 Leo, Christopher, Translation of Ge 
 
 senius' Hebr. Lexicon ; 30. 
 Leusden, Philologus Hebraeus ; 8. 
 Lighljoot, Horae Hebr. ; 174. 203. 
 Locke, on the N. T. epistles; 379. 
 Loesntr, Obss. in N . T. ; 185. 
 Lokman, Fables : 216. 
 Lowth, Praelectiones ; 10. 22. 
 
 Translation of Isaiah ; 472. 
 
 Luther, German Version ; 465. 512. 
 
 Larger Catechism ; 184. 
 
 BLiius, J. IL, Abridgment of Bo 
 
 chart's Hieroz. ; 157. 
 M Uc-Brun, Geograph. ; 525. 
 Maagey, edition of Philo; 51. 
 Markland^ Notes on Lysias; 301. 337. 
 
 381. 
 Marsh, Bishop, Translation of Mi- 
 
 chaelis' Einleitung ins N. T.; 12 s. 
 
 496. 502. 504. 522. 
 Masius, Joshua illustratus ; 357. 
 Massuet, Diss, in Irenaeum ; 305. 
 Melavxthon, Opera ; 348. 
 Melito, Epistle to Onesimus ; 84. 
 .\ieuschen, Nov. Test, ex Talmude, 
 
 &c. iliustratum ; 62. 
 Meusel, Comment, in Esaiam prophe* 
 
 tam; 467. 
 Michnelis, J. D. Einleitung in die 
 
 gottl. Schriften des A. B. ; 11. 23. 
 
 505. 
 Kinleitung ins JN. 
 
 T. ; 12. 104. 281. 296. 303. 367. 
 
 373. 377 s. 392. 496. 5()2. 504. 522. 
 edit, of Lowth's 
 
 Praelectiones; 22. 
 — '■ SpecilegiumGeogr. 
 
 Ht br. exterae ; 148. 524- 
 '- German Version of 
 
 the Bible ; 506. 514. 
 Arabic Chrestoma- 
 
 thy ; 498. 
 
 526. 
 
 525 532. 
 
 de Syria Sabaea ; 
 
 Lexicon Syriacum ; 
 
 Abhandlung von 
 
INDEX OP AUTHORS AND BOOKS QUOTED. 
 
 541 
 
 ♦3er Syrischen Sprache ; 481 — 
 
 534. 
 JVfichadis, J. D. Gramraatica Syria- 
 
 ca; 494.531. 
 Syrische Chresto- 
 
 mathie ; 483. 494. 500. 617. 521. 
 
 532. 
 Supplementa ad 
 
 Lex. Hebr. ; 490. 
 Commentationes ; 
 
 311.351.526. 
 
 Crit. Collegium 
 
 fiber die drey wichtigsten Fsalmen 
 von Christo ; 186. 505. 
 
 Program ma, uber 
 
 die Lxx. Dollmetscher; 499. 
 
 Cuiae in Vers. Sy- 
 
 riac. Actuum Apost. ; 504. 
 Beurtheilung der 
 
 Mittel, die Hebr. Spr. zu verste- 
 hen; 485.511. 
 
 Dissert, de j^-^q'q 
 
 Chaldaeorum ; 356. 
 
 Lumina Syriacapro 
 
 illustr. Hebr. ; 495. 
 
 1 edit, of the He- 
 
 brew Bible ; 471. 
 Middleton, Bishop, Doctrine of the 
 
 Greek Article ; 181. 
 Morin, Stephen ; 109. 132. 138. 
 MorUy, George, 121. 
 Miische, Bibelfreund ; 184. 
 ItfoiAetm, Instil utt. Hist Eccl. raaj.; 
 
 277. 279. 282 ss. 290 Q»3 310.318 
 
 354. 365 s. 372. 394. 397. 
 , Diss. ad. H. E. pertinent.; 
 
 278. 
 
 283 529. 
 
 392 
 
 Instit H E. aut. et rec. ; 
 -, Commentary ; 316 s. 378. 
 
 de rebus Christ, ante Con- 
 
 stant •, 315. 
 Milnchhausen, 5l9 s. 
 Monster; 467. 
 M&nthinge, Kurtze Anm. zu dett Psal- 
 
 iaien: 189. 199. 
 
 CEcolampaiHus, Hypomnematain Esa- 
 
 iam; 467. 
 Opilz, Syriasmus, 531. 
 Origen, contra Celsum ; 61. 290. 312. 
 
 Opera; 37. 8&s. 
 
 Owen, Modes of Quotation ; 104* 
 Paulus, Reperiorium ; 43. 603. 533. 
 ' Commentar Uber das N. T. t 
 
 499. 
 Philostratm, Vita Apollon. Tyan.-; 
 
 309. • 
 Plato, Opera ; 195. 
 I'liny, Hist. Nat.; 308.310. 
 Pococke, edit, of Abulpharagius' Hist*. 
 
 Dynast. ; .518. 
 Polyhius; 289. 
 Porphyry, Vila Plotini; 308. 
 Pott, Sylloge Commentt. TheolJ.', 
 
 495. 
 Prideaux, Connexion; 29.47.204. 
 Pseuilo-Jo alhan, Targum, 74. 
 Qu tremtre, Syriac * exicon ; 532. 
 Raphe!, Annott. in N T. ex Xenoph. ; 
 
 182. 194. 
 
 Annott. in N T.;ex Ariano ; 194. 
 
 Reland, Palaestiiia illustrata ; 359. 
 Perry, Key to the N. T. ; 14 s. 
 Philo, Opera; 41s. 172. 193. 296- 
 
 298 s. 300 336. 
 
 de Vita Contempl. ; 44 s. 
 
 de Monarchia ; 53. 
 
 de Legibus special. ; 53 s. 
 
 Q,uis rerum divin. haeres, sit ; 
 
 54 57. 58. 
 
 de Praemiis; 54. 
 
 AUegor. ; 54. 55. 
 
 de Gigant ; 54. 57. 
 
 de Plant Noe ; 55. 56. 57. 
 
 de congressu quaer. erudit. 
 
 gratia ; 55 57. 
 
 de Vita Mosis ; 55. 
 
 de Mundi Opif ; 55. 
 
 de migrat Abrah ; 55. 67. 5&. 
 
 Resipuit Noe ; 55. 
 
 de Somniis ; 55. 56 58. 
 
 de eo quod Deus sit inamutab. ; 
 
 55. .5P. 
 
548 
 
 INDEX OF AUTHORS A'ND BOOKS QLOTED. 
 
 Philo, de Confus. lingg. ; 55. CC 57. 
 
 58. 
 .. de Temulent. ; 55- 
 
 de Mutat Norn ; 56 57. 5S. 
 
 de Cherub. ; 56. 
 
 de Profugis ; 56. 58. 
 
 de Agricult. ; 57. 
 
 1 Quod a Deo mittitur somnia ; 
 
 57. 58. 
 de Ebrietate ; 57. 
 
 Schinigen, Horae Hebr. ; 332. 
 Schoder, F. J., Specim. Hieroz., ex 
 
 Boch. ; 157 s. 
 Sfhroeckh, Hist. Eccles.; 278. 353. 
 S(:hulle7is. Proverbia Salom. ; 345. 
 
 Gram. Arab.; 498. 
 
 Segrais; 159. 
 S'tm/er, Apparatus ; 10. 
 . Hist, dogmat. fidei; 278. 355. 
 
 jReus5, Opuscula ; 197. 
 
 Rivet, Andrew; 113. * 
 
 Jioos, Lehre and Lebensgesch. J. C. ; 
 
 178, 
 Rosenmulkr, E. F. C, Scholia in V. 
 
 T.; 11.515. 
 
 Handbuch fiir die Lit- 
 
 teratur der bibl Kritik undExegese ; 
 
 49. 499. 509. 
 edit, of Lovvth's Praelec- 
 
 tiones; 22. 
 
 roz- ; 157. 
 
 edit, of Bochart's Hie- 
 
 J. G-, Historia Interpre- 
 
 387. 
 
 Comment. Hist, de ant. Chi 
 
 tationis; 530. 
 Buffin, Expositio Symbol i ; 35. 
 Saadias, Arabic Version; 432 ss. 
 Sanchoniathon ; 147. 
 Sanctius, Comment, in prophetas; 
 
 467. 
 Sarrau, Claude; 107. 121. 
 Saumaise; 121. 124. 
 Schaaf, Lexicon Syriacum Concor- 
 
 dantiale; 532. 
 Scheid, Diss, ad Cant. Hiskiae ; 375. 
 Scheffer, J., 159. 
 Schmid, C. Fr., Hist, et Vindicat. 
 
 Canonis ; 46. 86. 
 Enarratio sententiae Flavii 
 
 Josephii de libris V. T. ; 75. 
 Schmidt, J. C, Einleitung ins N. T. ; 
 
 13. 
 Schmid, Seb., Commentarius super 
 
 iliustres prophetias lesaiae ; 469. 
 Schmiicker, Translation of Storr's 
 
 Theology; 39. 
 ^chnurrer, Animad. ad qiiaed. loc 
 
 P.'salmoi'. : 195. 
 
 Statu ; 303. 350. 372. 394. 397. 399. 
 
 — Paraph. Gosp. of St. John ; 
 
 354. 362. 
 
 Select. Capita H. E. ; 278. 397. 
 
 Abhandlung vonfreyer Unter- 
 
 tersuchung des Kanons; 35. 37. 
 Shlegel, Parallela Sacra ; 104 
 Simon. Hist. Critique ; 8. 9 61 147. 
 
 Reponse aux Sentt. Theol. de 
 
 Hollande, 163. 
 Simonis, Lex. Hebr ; 30. 
 Sionita, Gabriel ; 508 s. 
 Sijtus Sinensis, Bibliotheca Sancta: 
 
 7. ' * 
 
 Socrates, Hist EccL ; 34 321 
 Spittler, de usu versionis Alexand. 
 
 apud Josephum ; 66. 75. 
 Spizelius, InfeVix Literatus; 108. 110. 
 
 122. 
 Stesichorus ; 224. 226- 
 Storr, G C , Obss. Gram. ; 173. 179. 
 181. 185 190 ss. 195. 200 211. 
 
 Opusc Academ. ; 176. 193. 
 
 198. 2O2.'^05 207 212 
 
 Biblical Theology ; 39 102. 
 
 Ueber die eilteste Eintheilung 
 
 der BUcher des A. B. ; 43. 
 Slroth, Uebersetzung des Eusebius; 
 
 84. 87. 
 Stuart, Moses, Passages cited from the 
 O. T. by the writers of the N. T. : 
 102. 
 Suetonius, Vespasian ; 175. 
 
 Augustus ; 340. 
 
 Suicer, Thesaurus Ecclesiasticus ; 34. 
 
 Suidas; 34 s. 
 
 Snrenhwius.Bi^hti YidrsthXetyne: : 104. 
 
INDEX or AUTHORS AND BOOKS t^UOTED. 
 
 Mi) 
 
 6mft, Works ; 498. 
 
 Stfmmaehtcs, Greek Version ; 363. 411 . 
 
 Sj/nodus Laodic. ; 34. 
 
 Tacit s, Historiae ; 172. 175. 
 
 Gerraania ; 380. 
 
 Talmud, Bava Bathra, 94. 
 
 Sanhedrin, 62. 
 
 Midrash Koheleth ; 498. 
 
 Tcrtvllian, de Praescrip. adv Haer. ; 
 
 291 306 385 397. 
 adv Valentinianos ; 387 s. 
 
 396 
 
 adv Hermog. ; 397- 
 
 Thalemann, C. G., Diss, de doctr Pau- 
 li Judaica, non Graeca ; 390. 
 
 Theodore of Mopsuestia ; 529 
 
 Theodoret, Opera ; 81 322. 
 
 Tfieodotion, Greek Version ; 179. 187. 
 411. 
 
 Thomasius, J, de Originibus Hisl. 
 Phil etEccles. ; 277. 
 
 Tobler, Gedanken und Antworten 
 zur Ehre J. C. und seines Reichs; 
 297. 
 
 Turner, S. H., and W. R WhitUngliam, 
 Translation of Jahn's Einleit ins 
 A. T ; 22 ss- 26. 43. 49. 
 
 Ttjcfiscn, 0. G., Elementale Syria- 
 cum; 533. 
 
 Universal History, (German Transla- 
 tion of); 517. 
 
 Upham, Translation of Jahn's Ar- 
 chaeologia ; 62. 
 
 Valenus, Notes on Euseb Hist Eccl. ; 
 88 
 
 Varenius, Commentt in Esaiam ; 469. 
 
 Voter, Commentar tlber den Penta- 
 teuch ; 11. 
 
 Vmema, Commentt. ad Psalmos ; 375. 
 
 Veron; 115 s. 
 Vetahlus;Am 
 Viczti, Abridgment of the Hierozoi- 
 
 con of Bocliart; 157. 
 Virgil, ^neid ; 382. 488. 
 Vitringa, Obss. sacr. ; 305. 
 Cominentary on Isaiah ; 
 
 318. 375. 470. 
 Vorstius, de Hebraismis N. T. ; 501. 
 Vossius ; 9. 
 
 JValch, Hist, of Heresies ; 278. 
 Walton, Prolegomena ad Polyg. 
 
 Lond. ; 8. see Heidepger, Dathe. 
 Wallher, Officina Biblica ; 7. 
 Walt, Bibliotheca Britannica; 487. 
 
 517. 
 Wets!ein,]Sov. Test.; 171. 174. 185. 
 
 496. 
 Whiston, Authentic Records ; 47. 
 WliitlhiirJiam, W. R. and i>. H. Tur- 
 ner, Translation of Jahn's Einleit. 
 
 ins A. T. ; 22 ss. 26. 43. 49. 
 Winckdmann ; 520. 
 Witsius, Miscell. sacr. ; 357. 
 Wolf, Curae ; 320. 322. 332. 336. 339. 
 
 369. 380. 382. 
 Wall, Christ., edition of Blackwall's 
 
 sacred Classics ; 203. 
 Woods, Lecture on Quotations of the 
 
 0. T. ; 104. 
 Xcnophon, Cyrop. ; 343. 
 
 Memorab. ; .344. 
 
 Zohar; 498. 
 
 Zonaras ; 34. 
 
 Zoroaster; 147. 
 
 Zurich Library ; 30 s. 42 44 50 s^ 
 
 69. 
 Ziiitt^le, Contemplationes Isaiae pro 
 
 petae; 466. 
 
r>r>(> 
 
 INDEX IV 
 
 GENERAL INDEX OF MATTERS. 
 
 Abarbanel, Commentary of, when 
 composed, 462. lis character, 462 
 —464. 
 Abulpharagius, Gre^^ory, account of 
 him and of his writings, 518 s. 
 .Why the time when he lived was 
 peculiarly interesting, 519. The 
 valuable libraries from which he 
 obtained the materials of his His- 
 tory, it. The three parts of which 
 it consists, 518. His assertion, in 
 regard to the Syriac Version of the 
 Old Testament. 505. When and 
 why he composed an abridgment 
 of his History, in Arabic, ib. The 
 time occupied in making this 
 abridgmefit, ib. The manuscript 
 copy of the original work, in the 
 Vatican, used by Asseman, 519. 
 Why a copy of it for the Universi- 
 ty of Gottingen, proposed by Ba- 
 ron von IMtinchhaussen, was not 
 obtained, 519, 520. The printing 
 of the entire work proposed by 
 Prof. Bruns, 520. Where he made 
 his MS. copy of the work, ib. (See 
 Bruns.) Edw. Pococke's edition 
 of the Arabic abridgment, 518. 
 See Pococke. 
 
 Mneas, landing of, in Italy, 159 s. 
 
 Aeons, of the Gnostics, waiters who 
 treat of them, 354. 
 
 Atexandtr. not to be classed among 
 
 heretics, and why, 289. Case of, 
 considerec^, 349, 
 
 Alexandrian Christians, their admira- 
 tion of the Apocrypha, 31. 33. 
 
 Alexandrian Version ; See Septua- 
 gint. 
 
 Amos, his prophecy ix. 11 s. consider- 
 ed, 199. 200. See Miuor Prophets. 
 
 Angels, ministry of, 268. Whether 
 they were worshipped by the Es- 
 se nes, 355. 356. 
 
 Aniiochus Epiphanes, his intolerant 
 edict, 41. 
 
 Apamaea, 167. 
 
 Apoca.ypse, difference of its style 
 from that of the other writings of 
 St. John, 373. 
 
 Apocalypse of Elijah, cited by St- 
 Paul, 31. 
 
 Apocrypha, when added to the Greek 
 Bible, 32 Some of them, in a 
 translation, very early in the hands 
 of the Egyptian Jews, 48. Why 
 translated into Latin at an early 
 period, 33. Cited by St Paul, 31. 
 JNot cited by Philo, 59- What 
 books are to be so called, in the 
 opinion of Josephus, 75. Not al- 
 lowed to be read in public, 35. 
 Canonical authority attributed to 
 them by Councils, 33. 
 Apocryphal, meaning of, 36 s. 
 Apostles, make a distinction between 
 
GEiSBRAL IjSDEX UF MATTEKfii. 
 
 551 
 
 , Canonical and Apocryphal writ- 
 ings, 32. Unlearned men, 389. 
 
 Apostolic Fathers, and the Apostles 
 atid Ecclesiastical Writers, repre- 
 sented as making- no distinction 
 between various pseudepi^raphs, 
 and the canonical books of the O- 
 T.,3!. 
 
 Aquila, character of his Version of 
 Isaiah, 411 s. 
 
 Arabic Latr^uage, the vernacular lan- 
 guage of some Jews undrr the Sa- 
 racens, 486. Compared wiih the 
 Hebrew, 493. Its illustrations of 
 Hebrew, fewer than those derived 
 from the Syriac, 495. Used in il- 
 lustrating the Greek of the New 
 Testament, 498. 
 
 Versions, why useful, 510. 
 
 Necessary at an early date, ib. 
 
 Fersiom of the Psalms, notice 
 
 of, 509. 
 
 Version of the Prophets, in the 
 
 London and Paris Polyglots, found- 
 ed on the Alexandrian, 439. 
 
 Fersion of Job, made from 
 
 the Syriac, 509. 
 
 Version of Saadins, notice of, 
 
 434. Follows Jewish interpreta- 
 tions, 433. Its characteristics, 
 434 ss. 
 
 Aramaean Language, when spoken 
 by Jews, as their vernacular lan- 
 guage, 495. Spoken by Christ and 
 the Apostles, 497. iS early allied to 
 Hebrew, 493. Its influence on 
 Hebrew, 495. 
 
 Arisieas, his account of the Septua- 
 gint Version, 47 s- See Septua- 
 gint. 
 
 ArnoUi, his opinion respecting the 
 Gnostics, 278. 
 
 Arlaxerxes Longimanus, why Jose- 
 phus closes the Canon of the O. 
 T. with his reign, 68. 
 
 Asseman, J. S., bis Oriental Library 
 commended, 487, 516. 521. 
 
 ' S. E., his Acts of the Mar- 
 
 tyrs valuable, 516. His translation 
 of Ephrem censured, ib. 
 
 Assumption of Moses cited by St. 
 Jude, 31. 
 
 Auguti, J. C. W., character of his 
 Handbuch des A. T., 474. Of his 
 translation of Isaiah, 476. 
 
 Aufiustine, cliaracter ol bis Doctrina 
 Christiana, 7. 
 
 Auririllius, character of, as an inter- 
 preter of Isaiah, 479. 
 
 AniheAicily, of the Books of the Old 
 Testament, 21 ss. Evidences of it, 
 24 s. 
 
 Bnmbyce ; See Mabog. 
 
 Barhebraeus, Gregory, see Ahulpharu- 
 gius. 
 
 BarucA, held a place in the Canon of 
 Origen, 88. 
 
 B>uer, G. C, notice of his Scholia, 
 474. 
 
 Bava Bathra, see Talmud. 
 
 Bayle, blunders of, relative to Bo- 
 chart, 122 149. 
 
 Bible, Introductions to ; See Intro- 
 ductions^ 
 
 Versions of; See Arabic, Sy- 
 riac, &c. 
 
 Polyglot : See Polyglot. 
 
 Bochart, his birth, 110. Ancestry, 
 ih Education ilO S5. Character, 
 140. Acquirements, 141 Person, 
 139. Controversy with De la 
 Barre, 130 s. Correspondence 
 with Morley, 121 s. Dispute with 
 Veron, 115 ss. Journey to Swe- 
 den, 124. Visit to England, 113. 
 Settles at Caen, 114. Publishes 
 his Sacred Geography, 119 s. In- 
 vited to Ley den, 121. Sermons 
 on Genesis, 118 s. Minor Writ- 
 ings, 136. 158 ss. Plan of a Scrip- 
 ture Natural History, 158. Merits 
 as a writer, 160 ss. Ditliculties 
 caused by the death and removal 
 of his colleagues, 132 s. His death, 
 137 s. 
 
 Bombcrg, Daniel, first introduced the 
 
552 
 
 GENERAL INDEX OF MATTERS. 
 
 present division of the Books of 
 Scripture, in his edition of the 
 Hebrew Bible, 88. 
 Bossuel^ suppresses S'raon's History 
 
 of the Old Testament, t). 
 JBourdelal, physician to Christina, 
 
 Queen of Sweden, 125 s. 
 Brucker, his theory in regard to the 
 Gnostics, 279 His definition of 
 their JEom, 354 
 Brum, his discoveryof the Chronicle 
 of Barhebraeus in the Oxford Li- 
 brary, 520. His publication of a 
 specimen of it, ib. And proposed 
 edition of the entire work, j6 
 Brynaem, corrects errors of Bochart, 
 
 167. 
 BUsching, his use of Syriac works in 
 his De-i-ription of Asia, 525. His 
 Geography translated into English, 
 ib 
 Cam, literary society and academy 
 
 of, 129. 
 Calmet, notice of his Commentary, 
 
 472. 
 Calvin, character of his Commentary 
 
 on Isaiah, 4t)G s. 
 Canon, the acceptation of the word 
 among early Ecclesiastical Writers, 
 34 s. 37 Consequences resulting 
 from its unsettled meaning, 37. 
 Why the word ought not to have 
 been used in reference to the O. 
 T-, 36. Determination of its mean- 
 ing, 38 s. Closed by the Jews un- 
 der Artaxerxes Longimanus, 68. 
 Of what it consisted in the time of 
 Christ and the Apostles, 95 Settled 
 after the Babylonian Captivity, 
 98 Contains the books of our pre- 
 sent Bibles, 96. The Jews of Egypt 
 are sources of information concern- 
 it, 42 s. The Jews of Palestine 
 also, 60 ss. Of the Egyptian and 
 Palestine Canon in general, 39 s. 
 Arc one and the same, 41 ss. 
 Whence this results, 42. The Ca- 
 non of Philo. 59. That of the Sad- 
 
 duceesand Samaritans, 60 s That 
 oftheTherapcutae, ib. The Epistle 
 of J« remiah never a part of it, 89. 
 See Josephus, Origen, ^1elito, Philo. 
 
 Canonical, meaning of the word, 34. 
 The same as inspired, 35. 
 
 Carpsov, character of his Introduction 
 to the Old Testament, 10. 
 
 Castelt, his Hebrew Lexicon the best 
 extant, 491. His Chalnee Lexicont 
 when and where published, 532. 
 Aided in its execution by Bishop 
 Beveridge, ib. See Michaelis, J. D. 
 
 Celene or A) amaea, 167. 
 
 Cellarius, his views more correct than 
 those of Bochart, 524. Less valued 
 than Bochart, in Germany, ib. 
 
 Chaldaisms, abound in Jeremiah and 
 Ezechie!,21. 
 
 Chaldee Language, our reading in it 
 limited, 489. When the authors, 
 extant in it, wrote, ib. How foreign 
 words were introduced into it, ib- 
 More used than Syriac, in illustra- 
 ting Hebrew, 485. 
 
 Charenton, decree of the Synod of. 
 130. 
 
 Chrestomalhies, Syriac, notices of the 
 best, 532 s. 
 
 Christ, his sutFerings before he enter- 
 ed on his kingdom, much insisted 
 on by himself and his apostles, 176 
 — 178. In what respect he suc- 
 ceeded to David's place, 198. His 
 proof of the Resurrection, 62. His 
 discourse on pride and offending, 
 502. The passage of Isaiah xxv. 
 6 — 8. interpreted of him, 513 s. 
 His vernacular language, 497. See 
 Churrh of Christ. 
 
 Christians; See Egyptian, 
 
 Chronicles, the two books were only 
 one at first, 87. Closed the Canon 
 of the O. T., 70. They are not 
 mentioned by Philo, 58. No di- 
 rect quotation from them in the 
 N. T., .102. Are used by Josephus, 
 80. Are found in the Canon of 
 
GENERAL INDEX OF MATTERS. 
 
 553 
 
 Melito, 84. Of Origen, 87. Of 
 Jerome, 91. And of the Talmud, 
 94. 
 Church of Christ, its nature and pro- 
 gress, 235. 
 Citations, see Quotations. 
 Clement of Alexandria, his testimony 
 as to the period when the Gnostic 
 heresy prevailed, 282. Thoroughly 
 skilled in Oriental learning, 283. 
 Character given fo him by Euse- 
 bius, 305. His silence respecting 
 the Oriental philosophy, ib. 
 Clement of Rome, cites the spurious 
 
 Ezechiel, 31. 
 Cocceius, character of, as a critic, 469. 
 491. His Hebrew Lexicon next 
 in value to that of Castell, 491 
 His translation of Isaiah, i. 22. ib. 
 Colossians, Epistle to, scope and 
 meaning of the first two chapters of, 
 322—344. 
 Conjecture, Bochart charged with an 
 excess in the use of it, 164. J. D. 
 Michaelis' conjectural reading of 
 Deut. VIII. 3. 16. And of Isaiah 
 XXV. 7. 512 s. 
 Context^ use of, in interpretation of 
 
 Parables, 241. 
 Critici Sarri, comparison between it 
 
 and Poole's Synopsis, 468 
 Criticism, of the O. and N Testament, 
 how divided, 4. Questions relat- 
 ' ing to the Old Testament brought 
 into view by Higher Criticism, II. 
 Questions relating to the New Test , 
 13 The use of Higher Criticism, 
 26 s. 
 Cyril of Alexandria, character of hit 
 Commentary on Isaiah, 449 Year 
 of his death, ib 
 Daniel, his Book originally in sepa- 
 rate treatises, 26. And in different 
 dialects, ib The Jews have diffe- 
 rent opinions of its value and au- 
 thority, 30 Not mentioned by 
 Philo, 58. No direct quotation 
 from it in the N- T., 102. In the 
 
 Canon of Mellto, 85 And in that 
 of Joseph u«, 77 81 Where and 
 when the Sepiua^int Version of his 
 Book was publishec j500. 
 Dathe, notice of bis Latin Version of 
 Isaiali, 477 And of his Syriao 
 Psalter. .=.15 
 David, the epithets applied to him by 
 Philo, 56 s. Inferiority of his go- 
 vernment t«» that of Christ, 201. 
 De Dieu, Louis, character of his me« 
 
 thud of exposition, 467 s. 
 Death, differently depicted by diffe- 
 rent nations, 498. See Taste of 
 Death 
 Dereser, notice of his translation bf 
 
 Isaiah 477. 
 Descent, of Christ iato hell, Bochart 
 
 on, 160. 168. 
 Deuteronomy, the epithet applied to 
 
 it by Philo, 55. See Moses. 
 Diffusii eness^ Bochart not to be charge 
 
 ed with, 160 
 Ddderleiii, J C, notice of his Latin 
 
 Version of Isaiah, 477. 
 Eastern, what nations were so called 
 
 by the Hebrews, 278. 
 '?,/i^aicev ^iBf.ot, what is to be under- 
 stood by the phrase, 73. 
 Ecclesiasies, not cited by Josephus nor 
 Philo, 59. 81 But by Melito, Ori- 
 gen and Jerome, 84. 87. 91. 
 Ecclesiastical History, receives im- 
 portant accessions from Syriao li- 
 terature, 521. 
 Edessa, Juioh of see Jacob. 
 Egyptian Christians, their opinions 
 on the Canon, 46. 
 
 Jews, held the Apocrypha 
 
 in no repute, 46. Had the same 
 Canon as the Palestine Jews, 41 ss. 
 Sre Canon. 
 Eichfiorn, opinion of, as to the period 
 when Jonathan Ben Uzziel lived, 
 413. His thetry in regard to the 
 writings of Isaiah, 476. His trea- 
 tise on the Canon of the O. T., 17 
 -^104. Account of its first rnibli- 
 
 ro 
 
554 
 
 GENERAL INPEX OF MATTERS. 
 
 cation, 19. Four editions of his 
 Introduction, ib. His opinion on 
 the use of the Paragogic Nun of 
 the Preterit, 494. 
 
 Ehazar, whether he sent to Egypt a 
 Hebrew MS. for forming the Sep- 
 tuagint Version, 47. 
 
 Enoch, Books of, cited by St. Jude, 
 31. 
 
 Episcopacy, Bochart's letter on, 122. 
 
 Epistle of Aristeas ; See Septuagint. 
 
 Ephrem Synts, when, where, and by 
 whom his Works were published, 
 516. 487. S. E. Asseman's Latin 
 translation of them censured, 516. 
 Commended in lofty terms by 
 Greeks, Latins, Copts and Arme- 
 nians, 527. Entitled by the Sy- 
 rians Master of the World, ib. His 
 mode of interpretation illustrated 
 by examples, 527 s. Comments 
 on the Syriac Version, and not on 
 the original text, 527. Character 
 as a Commentator, 527. 454 s. 
 Character of his Commentary on 
 the Syriac Version of Isaiah, 454 s. 
 Quotes Rev. of St. John, 523. 
 
 Esseiies, had sacred books, 60. Whe- 
 ther they worshipped angels, 335 s. 
 
 Esther, is not held in the same repute 
 by all Jews, 30. 
 
 Ethiopians, their division of the books 
 of the Old Testament 89. 
 
 Etymological inte.rpr. tation, Bochart's 
 overweening atlachment to, 165. 
 
 Eunapius, what he means by Chal- 
 daic philosophy, 310 s. 
 
 Eusebius, his 'TfrofAvrifxtTet. tU 'Htntinv 
 first published by IVlontfau9on, 447. 
 Character of this work, 447—449. 
 
 Exodus, the epithet applied to it by 
 Philo, 55. 
 
 Ezechiel, abounds in Chaldaisms, 21. 
 Not certainly included in the Canon 
 of Philo, 59. Not cited in the N. 
 T., 102. Found in the Canon of 
 Josephus, 71. 77. And of Melito, 
 S4. And of Origen, 87. And of 
 
 Jerome, 91. And of the Talmud, 
 94. The Syriac Version accords 
 with the Greek more frequently in 
 this, than in the other books of the 
 O. T., 506. 
 
 Ezra, not cited in the New Testament, 
 64 102. Cited by Philo, 55. Used 
 by Josephus, 80. In the Canon of 
 Melito, 84. Of Origen, 87. Of 
 Jerome, 91. And of the Talmud, 
 94. 
 
 Fables, how different from parables, 
 216 ss. Classification of, 219 s. 
 Nature of, 223. Use of, proper, 
 219. 221. Utility of, 232 s. 
 
 Fathers, after Origen's time, until the 
 fifth century, almost entirely igno- 
 rant of the Hebrew text, 446 s. 
 Their opinion on the number pf 
 the Books of the O. T., 70 s. And 
 on the sacred books of the Saddu- 
 cees, 60 s. And on the Apocry- 
 pha, 31. 
 
 Firmilian, testimony of, as to the 
 date of the Gnostic heresy, 286 s. 
 
 Forerivs, notice of his Commentary 
 on Isaiah, 467. 
 
 Fox and trapes, fable of, 227. 
 
 Franciscan Friar, anecdote of, 133. 
 
 Future Paragogic, more common in 
 Arabic than in Hebrew, 493. 
 
 Gabriel Shmiia ; see Sionita. 
 
 Gamaliel, Rabbi, his proof of the re- 
 surrection of the dead, 62. 
 
 Gems, of Scripture, 158. 
 
 Genesis; see Moses. 
 
 Geography, derives important aid from 
 Syriac learning, 524. Geographi- 
 cal tables of the Monophysite and 
 Nestorian' Sees and Monasteries, 
 ib. Bochart's errors in, ib. And 
 those of Cellarius, ib. See Mabog. 
 
 Gesenius, W., hit History of Intro- 
 ductions to the Scriptures, 1 — 15. 
 And his History of the Interpreta- 
 tion of the prophet laeiah, 401— 
 479. His criticism on the Hiero- 
 zoicon of Bochart, 156. 
 
GENERAL INDEX OP MATTERS. 
 
 555 
 
 GiU, his illustrations of the phrase 
 
 Tasle of Death, 498. 
 'Gnoslics, origin of the name, 277. 
 
 Opinion of Arnold respecting them, 
 
 278. Of Moshelm and Brucker, 
 
 279. The name shewn to be first 
 used in the Second Century, 281. 
 Testimony of Clemens Alexandri- 
 nus, as to the time when the Gnos- 
 tic heresy prevailed, 282. Of He- 
 gesippus, 284. Of Firmilian, 286, 
 287. Of Tertullian, 291—293. 
 Date of the Gnostic philosophy 
 proved not to be so early as the 
 time of the Apostles, from the si- 
 lence of the writers of the First 
 Century, 293. Difficulty of ascer- 
 taining the real opinions of the 
 Onostics, and reasons for this, 302, 
 303. Their tenets supposed by 
 some to have been derived from 
 the Jews, 304, 305. By others, 
 from the Greeks, 305, 306. Rigid 
 in their lives, 372. Cause of the 
 occasional resemblance between 
 their language, and that of the sa- 
 cred writers, 385—387. Their sys- 
 tem too absurd, and too refined, to 
 have been a subject of discussion 
 with the Apostles, 388—391. That 
 mode of interpretation which finds 
 them in the sacred writings, too 
 laboured and artificial to be true, 
 391. Their doctrines derived from 
 a threefold source, 394 — 396. Ap- 
 parently contradictory statements 
 of the ancient ecclesiastical writers 
 on this subject, reconciled, 396. 
 The origin of the Gnostic heresy 
 to be traced to Egypt, 397. The 
 number of the Gnostics not great, 
 398. Their various sects more 
 profitable than injurious to Chris- 
 tianity, 399. 
 
 Gradation, of fnture rewards, 255. 
 268. 
 
 Grammar, importance of its know- 
 ledge, 163. TJiat of the Hebrew. 
 
 compared with the Arabic and Ara- 
 maean, 493. Hebrew Grammar 
 illustrated by Syriac, 492. And 
 by Arabic, ib. 
 
 Grammars, the best Syriac, notices 
 of, 531. 
 
 Grei^k Version of the O. T. ; see Sep- 
 tu'igint. 
 
 Gregory Barhebraeus ; see Ahidphara- 
 gius, 
 
 Grotius, his method of exposition, 
 467. 
 
 Habakkuk ; see Minor Prophets. 
 
 Haggai; see Minor Prophets. 
 
 Hammond, Dr., undue eagerness of, 
 to find traces of the Gnostics in the 
 N. T., 318, 
 
 Han/ein,* character of bis Introduc- 
 tion to the N. T., 13. 
 
 Harduin; see Mabog. 
 
 Hasseniamp, points out an error of J. 
 D. Michaelis, 523. Writes a book 
 against bis Introduction to the N. 
 T., ib. Proposes a Collection of 
 Testimonies from the Syriac Fa- 
 thers, iZ>. Favourable notice of 
 him by Michaelis, ib. 
 
 Hebraisms, improper application of 
 the word, 497. Treatise on, cited, 
 501. 
 
 Hebrew Language, the Scriptures of 
 the O. T. the only repository of it, 
 151. Importance of Syriac for 
 its illustration, 486—490. Exam- 
 ples of this, 490—492. 513 s. 526. 
 Influence of the Aramaean on the 
 Hebrew, 495. 
 
 Hebrew Grammar, illustrated by Sy- 
 riac, 492—495. The Nun Para- 
 gogic of the Preterit, 493. Vowels 
 and diacritical marks, 495. Con- 
 sonants, ib. Illustration from the 
 records of Palmyra, 493. 
 
 He^esippus, testimony of, as to the 
 date of the Gnostic heresy, 284. 
 When he lived, i6. Testimony of 
 Eusebius to his character, 285.* 
 
566 
 
 GENERAL INDEX OF MATTERS. 
 
 Heresies, what St. Paul means by 
 
 them, 288 s. 
 Btrmas, cites the Eldad and Medad, 
 
 31. 
 Hierapolis ; sec Mahog. 
 Hierozoicon, of Bochart, 129 150 ss. 
 Its publication, 134. Editions of, 
 157. 
 History, Ecclesiastical and Civil, the 
 great light shed on it by Syriac li- 
 terature, 517—522. 
 Hoffmann, A. T., his eminence as a 
 Syriac scholar, 531. The excel- 
 lence of his Syriac Grammar, ib. 
 His brief history of i^yriac Lite- 
 rature mentioned, 530. His re- 
 mark on the Paragogic Nun of the 
 Preterit in Syriac, 494. And on 
 the matres lectionis, 493. 
 HoTmsel, notice of his work on Isai- 
 ah, 478. 
 Hosea ; see Minor Prophets. 
 Houbigajit, his character as a biblical 
 
 critic, 472. 
 Huet, his disputes with Bochart, on a 
 passage of Origen, 136. Fond- 
 ness for mythological illustrations 
 of Scripture, 165. Letter to Bo- 
 chart, on the abuse of etymology, 
 165. Journey to Sweden, 124 ss. 
 Origeniana, 128. Effect of Bo- 
 chart's Sacred Geography on him, 
 120. 
 Mug, J. L., character of his Intro- 
 duction to the N. T., 13. 
 Hymenaeus, not among heretics, and 
 why, 289. Case of, considered, 
 349. 
 Inspiration, the manner in which 
 Philo expresses himself, in regard 
 to it, 53. See Canonical. 
 Interpretation, rules of, exemplified, 
 
 166. 
 Introduction, to the Bible, meaning 
 of, 3. How this species of learning 
 is divided, ib. Proposed fourfold 
 division, 4 s. Nature of a practical 
 Introduction,^. Origin of this de- 
 
 partment of learning, 7. When the 
 name Iniroduclion was first used, 
 ib. First important steps in treat- 
 ing this subject, 8. Other nations 
 far behind the Germans, in their 
 prosecution of it, and why, 14. 
 Is'tiah the epithets applied to him by 
 Philo, 56. His writings found in 
 the Canon of Philo, Josephus, Meli" 
 to, Origen, Jerome, and the Tal- 
 mud, 19. 76. 84. 87. 9L 94. Is 
 quoted in the N. T., 100 s. His 
 style, 21 s. Extant in Greek, at a 
 more recent date than the books of 
 M ses, 48, Character of the Sep- 
 tuagint Version of, 430 s. Its pe- 
 cularities, 404 — 410. Use of it by 
 the N. T. writers, 410 s. Charac- 
 ter of the translation of Isaiah by 
 Symmachus, 411 s. By Aquila, ib. 
 By Theodotion, ib. Antiquity of 
 the Chaldee Version of, defended? 
 412—415. its unity, 415—417. 
 Its character, 417 — 426. Charac- 
 ter <»f the Syriac Version of, 426 — 
 429. 431. Whether the author of 
 this version was a Jew or a Chris- 
 tian, 429—431. 507. Character of 
 Jerome's Latin Version of Isaiah^ 
 431 s. Age of the Arabic Version 
 of Saadias, 432. Its character. 433 
 — 437, Remains of the Old Latin 
 Version of Isaiah, 438. Its charac- 
 ter, 438 s. Arabic Version of, 439. 
 Age of, 439 s. Peculiarities of, 
 440 ss. Its external character, 442 
 — 445. Observations of the Fathers 
 on Isaiah, before Origen's time, 
 chiefly doctrinal, 446. Cbaracter 
 of the work of Eusebius. *r To,uv»y«<- 
 tet tk "Ho-aiav, 447—449. The 
 Commentary of Cyril of Alexan- 
 dria, 449. The Commentaries of 
 Tiieodoret, 449 s. Those of Pro- 
 copius of Gaza, 450. The Com- 
 mentary of Jerome, 450 ss. That 
 of Ephrem Syrus on the Syriac 
 Version of Isaiah, 4-54 '. Remarks 
 
GENERAL INDEX OF MATTERS. 
 
 557 
 
 t)t Jarchi on Is. vi. 1—6. wid vii. 
 1—9., 457—459. Of Al)en Kzra on 
 the same, 459 s, Cliaracler and 
 specimens of David Kimchi's Com- 
 mentary on Isaiah, 460—462. Of 
 Isaac Abarbanel's, i62 — 464. Of 
 Luther's, 465 s. Of Zuingle's 
 and Calvin's, 466 s. Of Varenius, 
 469. Of Vitriiiga's, 470. When 
 the dialects were fir=t used in tlie 
 interpretation of Isaiah, 471. Cha- 
 racter of Bishop Lowth's work on 
 Isaiah, 472 s. K"ppe's edtiion of 
 it, 473. Paulus' Clavis, 473. J. 
 D. Michaelis' and Moidenhauer's 
 translations, 475. • Of the works of 
 Cube, Kiagelius, Seller Holster 
 and Heiisler, 476. Augusti's trans- 
 lation, ib. Eicbhorn's theory, in 
 regard to the writings of Isaiah, 
 476 s. Notice of D*^reser's transla- 
 tion, 477. Of the Latin Versions 
 ofDdderleinand Dathe,i&. Greve's 
 work, 477. The works of Hohei- 
 sel, Scheliing, Arnoldi, Schleusner, 
 and Mossier, 478. Schroder's Mo- 
 nographic on Is. III. 16 ss., 479. 
 Martini on Chap liii. ib. Cha- 
 racter of Schnurrer and Aurivillius, 
 •as interpreters of Laiah, 479. 
 
 Jofob of Edessa, his recension of the 
 Syriac version, 506. When intrp- 
 duced, ib. 
 
 JaJm, character of his Introduction, 
 11 s His opinion on the time of 
 Jonathan Ben Uzziel, 413. 
 
 Jarchi, time when he flourished, 456. 
 character of his Commentary, 456 
 s. His remarks on Is. vi. 1 — 6. 
 and vn. 1 — 9., 457 ss. 
 
 Jeremiah, liis writings abound in 
 Chaldaisms, 21. The subscription 
 to bis paK):|>bccies, 27. Spoken of 
 with great respect, by Philo. 56. 
 And by Josephus, 77. Found in 
 the Canon of Melito 84. And of 
 Origen, 87. And of Jerome, 91. 
 Quoted in the N. T., and how, 64. 
 
 Placed among the Prophets, by the 
 Talmud, 94 logethi-r with the 
 Lameiita(i.»nsconstiiutesone book, 
 Virmeyah. 88. The apocryphal 
 wjirk ascribed to him, 31. The 
 Epistle which bears his name ne_ 
 ver was a part ol the Jewish Ca- 
 non, 89. 
 
 Jerome^ arranges the Scriptures under 
 three h< ads, Law, Prophets and 
 Hagiogra[iha, 90 s. Enumerates 
 the books of Scripture, ib. The 
 Apocrypha, according to him, 93. 
 Character of his Commentary on 
 Isaiah 45(.»— 453. 
 
 Jesus SiracA, translates the Sentences 
 of his grandfather, from Hebrew 
 into Greek, 43. His periphrasis, to 
 designate the O. I ., jb. 
 
 Jews, after the Bab) Ionian captivity, 
 divided into Egyptian and Pales- 
 tine, 39. Notwithstanding their 
 jealou^y, their religious fellowship 
 was remarkable, 41. They had 
 the same Canon, 41 ss. Their sa- 
 cred books in ancient times were 
 twenty -two, 70. But afterward 
 twenty-toui,93. When they agreed 
 on the number of their sacred 
 books, 30. Did not rank the Apo- 
 crypha with their saered books, 
 35. 
 
 Jtb, known to Philo and the writers 
 oilheiN.T., 82. Among the sa- 
 cred writings in the time of Christ 
 and the Apostles ib. Cited by 
 Philo, 57. But not by Josephus, 
 81. Placed after the Song of So- 
 lomon, by Melito, 84. After Eze- 
 chiel by Origen, 87. After the Mi- 
 nor Prophets, by Jerome, 91. 
 
 JGcher, hi? deviaiion from the proper 
 orihograf-hy of a Syrian city, 526. 
 
 Jofi ; see Yod. 
 
 Joel, an original poet. 22. See Minor 
 Prophets. 
 
 John, the Evangelist, design of his 
 Gospel, a53— 355. Difference of 
 
558 
 
 GENERAL INDEX OF MATTERS. 
 
 his style in the Apocalypse, from 
 that of his other writings, 373. 
 His Apocalypse cited by Ephrem 
 Syrus, 523. 
 
 ■John, the Baptist, in what respect in- 
 ferior to ihe Apostle-?, 183 s. 
 
 Jonah ; see Minor Prophets. 
 
 Jonathan Ben Uzziel, his Targura,date 
 of, 412 ss. The work of one au 
 thor, 415 ss. Its character, 417 ss. 
 Contains views similar to some in 
 the New Testament, 425. Made 
 in general from a Masoretic text, 
 425. 
 
 Josephus, a contemporary of the 
 Apostles, 64. Attached himself to 
 the sect of the Pharisees in his 
 youth, 6§. But left it in his ma- 
 turer years, ih. A priest, and a sa- 
 gacious investigator of truth, 65. 
 Speaks of two kinds of sacred 
 writings of his nation, 31 s. His 
 mode of designating the later writ- 
 ings, 31. His use of the word Ca 
 non, 65. Speaks of twenty-two 
 sacred books, 67. And gives a ge- 
 neral enumeration of them, 71. 
 Speaks of thirteen prophets and 
 four hagiographa, 71. His view 
 of the Palestine Canon, 64 ss. 
 And of the contents of it, 45. 
 Writings which he places express- 
 ly among the sacred books, 76 ss. 
 Writings which he merely cites, 
 79 ss. Writings which he passes 
 by in silence, 81. His celebrated 
 passage contra Ap., on the credibi- 
 lity of the Scriptures, 67. Closes 
 the Canon with Artaxerxes Longi- 
 manus, 30. And why, 68 ss. On 
 the books of Moses, 76. Says the 
 book of Joshua was repositf^d in 
 the temple, 78. On the hooks of 
 Kings, 79. Made use of Ezra, 80. 
 And Neheraiah. ib. Designates the 
 contents of Esther, i&. Considers 
 it to be the latest book, of all those 
 in the O. T., 80. 69. His view of 
 
 the book of Judges, 80. And of 
 Ruth, ib. Considers Isaiah to be 
 among the sacred books, 76 s. And 
 to be the author of the prophecies 
 ascribed to him, 76. ('alls Jeremi- 
 ah a propnet, 77. And Ezechiel, 
 ib. And Nalium, 78. And Jonah, 
 ib. Places Ha-gai among the sa- 
 cred writitgs, 78. And calls him 
 and Zechariah prophets, ib. Plac- 
 es Daniel among the /•§* ^g«;*^«- 
 T«t, 77 Calls the Psalms uiuvot tie 
 Tov ei<5v, and places them among 
 the sacred books, 79. Does not 
 mention Proverbs, nor Ecclesias- 
 tes, nor the Song of Solomon, 81. 
 Makes no mention of Job, ib. 
 Makes use of the Hebrew Books, 
 in composing his history, 73. 
 Treats minutely of the Jewish 
 sects, 295. Makes no mention of 
 the Gnostics, ib. A passage in his 
 works corrupted, 335. 
 
 Joshua, enters deeply into the particu- 
 lars of the most ancient Geography, 
 25. What Philo calls this book, 
 55. What Josephus says of it, 78. 
 In Philo's Canon, 55. And in that 
 of Josi-pbus, 78. And of Melito 
 and Origen, and Jerome, 84. 86. 
 90. Placed in the Canon by the 
 Talmud. 94. Cited in the N. T., 98. 
 
 Jude, cites the Assumption of Moses 
 and the Books of Enoch, 31. 
 
 Judges, its provincialisms and barba- 
 risms, 21. Together with Ruth, 
 one book, called Shophetim, 86. 90. 
 Not cited in the N. T., 64. But 
 referred to, 102 Philo's view of 
 it, 57. Josephus', 80. Quoted by 
 Philo according to the Septuagint, 
 57. The Arabic Version of Job in 
 the Polyglots is made from the 
 Syriac, 509. His book in the Ca- 
 non of hilo, 59 And of Jose- 
 phus, 83. And of Melito, 84. Of 
 Origen, 86. And of Jerome, 90. 
 And of the Talmud^ 94. 
 
UE^EAAL LNUHTL OF MATTERS. 
 
 >5d 
 
 Kimchi, time when he flourished, 
 460. Character and specimens of 
 his Commentary on Isaiah, 460 — 
 462. 
 
 Kingdoniy heavenly, had long been 
 expected by Christ's hearers, 171. 
 The sources of this expectation 
 pointed f)Ut by Josephus and Ta- 
 citus, 172. The Messiah's king- 
 dom sometimes called the King- 
 dom of the Father, and why, 173, 
 206. Why sometimes called the 
 Kingdom, 174. Erroneous opi- 
 nions prevalent, in Christ's Jtime, 
 respecting it, 174. Its commence- 
 ment, 180, 185 In what sense it 
 was present daring John the Bap- 
 tist's time, and Christ's residence 
 on the earth, 180, 181. In what 
 passages that more comprehensive 
 sense of the Kingdom of heaven 
 obtains, by which it includes the 
 whole of Christ's history, 183. 
 Perpetuity of Christ's Kingdom, 
 186—196. Its extent, 197—199. 
 Greatness and power of its admi- 
 nistration, 200—206. Into what 
 periods the Kingdom of Christ, 
 is divided, 206. To what the term 
 Kingdom of heaven may pecu- 
 liarly be applied, 208. 
 
 Kings, the first and second books, 
 together called Samud, 87. The 
 third and fourth called Vammelech 
 David, ib. The first book called 
 the third, by Philo and the Sep- 
 tuagint, 67. How regarded hy 
 Philo, 58 s. In the Canon of Jo- 
 sephus, Melito, Origen, Jeiome, 
 and the Talmud, 83. 84. 87. 90. 
 94. Cited in the N. T., 98. 99. 
 
 Kirschy G. JV., notice of his Syriac 
 Chrestomathy, 533. It is derived 
 chiefly from the Chronicle of Gre- 
 gory Abulpharagius, ib. 
 
 Knoes, Guslavus, notice of his Syriac 
 Chrestomathy, 520. It is in great 
 
 part derived from valuable MSS., 
 ib. 
 
 Lamentations of Jeremiah, appended 
 to the Prophecies of Isaiah, 59, 
 87. Not s ) in the Taimud, 94. 
 JNot cited by Philo, 58. Merely 
 mentioned by Josephus as a book 
 composed by Jeremiah, 79. But 
 is to be considered a part of his 
 Canon, 83. And was in that of 
 Origen, 87. And the Talmud, 94. 
 Not cited in the N. T., 102. 
 
 Lar'i'ner, controversy of, with Mi- 
 chaelis, respecting a certain pas- 
 sage in Irenaeus, 281. Unfavour- 
 able notice of him by J. D. Mi- 
 chael is, 523. 
 
 Lattn Language, prbnunciation of, 
 113 s. 495. 
 
 Le Clerc, notice of his Commentary, 
 472. 
 
 Lee, Prof., his opinion of the impor- 
 tance of the Oriental Languages, 
 533. 
 
 Leviticus ; see Moses. 
 
 Lexicons, the best Syriac, 532. 
 
 Lizards, species of, mentioned by 
 Moses, 153 s. 
 
 Locusts ; 160 s. 
 
 Loudon, Synod of the Reformed 
 Church of France at, 129 s. 
 
 Lowth, Bishop, character of his work 
 on Isaiah, 472 s. Koppe's edition 
 of it, 473. 
 
 Lucian, silence of. in regard to the 
 Gnostics, 294. 
 
 Lulher, his translation of Ephesians, 
 n. 2., 382. When his translation 
 of Isaiah appeared, 465. Charac- 
 ter of his Commentary on Isaiah^ 
 465 s His excellencies as a trans- 
 lator, 512. 
 
 Mnbos, a Syrian city, tfte error of 
 Cellarius in regard to it, 524. Sup- 
 posed to be mentioned by Pliny, 
 ib. Harduin's opinion on the 
 name, 525. Its changes, ih. The 
 
360 
 
 GENERAL INDEX Ol^ MATTEKS. 
 
 same as Bambyce and Hierapolis, 
 ib. Its orthography decided by a 
 referenee to the Syriac, ib. 
 
 Lyra, de; see Nicolaus <ie Lyra. 
 
 Mclachi ; see Minor Prophets, 
 
 Martin^, .lOtice oi his work on Isai- 
 ah, uii. 479. 
 
 Matr'S lectionis, more frequent in 
 modern, than in ancient Syriac, 
 493 
 
 Melito, Bishop of Sardis, 83 Lived 
 in the second century, ib. His ce- 
 lebrated Epistle to Oiiesiuiiis, 84. 
 Illustration of it, 85. Wrote with- 
 out accents or spiritus, ib. His ar- 
 rangement of the books of Scrip- 
 ture, 84. Omits Nehemiah and Es- 
 ther, 85. Arrd Malachi, 84 
 
 Menenin Agrippa, bis fable of the 
 members of ihe body, 2i6. 224. 
 226 s. 
 
 Methodists, a set of Romanist dispu- 
 tants so called, 1 15. 
 
 Micah ; see Minor Prophets. 
 
 Michaelis, J. D.. devoted his chief 
 attention to Hebrew Philoloijy. for 
 ten years, at GSttingen, 486. His 
 Criticisms on Is. xiv. 23. and i. 
 22., 490—492. On xxv. 7., 51 1 ss. 
 On the phrase Taste of Drath, 497 
 ss. (See Taste of Death.) On 
 Deut. VIII. 3 16., 494 Oa ii. Cor 
 XII. 7., 499 ss. His notice of the 
 Syriac text in the Polyglots, 507 ss 
 Thinks that the author of this ver- 
 sion was a Christian, 507. His 
 censure of Lardner, 5 >3. Of Bo- 
 chart, 624 And of Gabriel io- 
 nitas, 509. And of S. E. Ase nan, 
 516. Favourable notice of Has- 
 sencamp, V23 And of Cellarius, 
 
 524. His notice of the publica- 
 tions of the Assemaiis, 516 s. Of 
 Dr. BUsching's Description of Asia, 
 
 525. Censure of the Continuation 
 of the Universal History, 517. 
 Notice of Dathe's Syriac Psalter, 
 515. Of the Chrpnicle of AbuN 
 
 pharagius, 517—520?. (See AhuO 
 pharagius.). His mention of the 
 copy of this work proposed by Ba- 
 ron von Mtinchh«usen, 519 s. And 
 of the copy made by Bruns, 520. 
 His account of Theodore of Mop- 
 suestia. as a Commentator, 529 s. 
 And of Ephrem Syrus 527 s. Errs 
 in saying that Ephrem did not re- , 
 gard the Revelation of St. John 
 as authentic, 522. CJorrects his 
 error, 522 s. Notice of the publi- , 
 cation of Ephrem's works, 616. 
 Collection ot Syriac phrases, to 
 illustrate the N. T , 496. An ac- 
 count of his Introduction to the 
 O. 1., 505. Of his Curae in Versi- 
 onem Syriacam, 504. Of his Trea- 
 tise on the Use of the Svriac Lan- 
 guage, 485. Of his View of the 
 means foi acquiring a knowledge 
 of the Hebrew Latjguagn, 455. % 
 Of his Introduction to the N. T., 
 12. Of bis Translation of Isaiah, 
 476. Of his Syriac Grammar, 531. 
 And Syriac Chrestomxthy, 532. 
 Of his edition of Castells ?^yriac 
 Lexicon, ib. His Treatise o.\ the 
 Use of (he Syriac Language, 481 
 — 534. ( See Syriac Language. ) 
 Date of his death, 505. 
 Michaelis, J. ., value of his He- 
 brew Bible. 471 s. 
 
 Chr. Benedict, his Syriac 
 
 Grammar an ongimtl work, 531. 
 His conjectural emendations of the 
 Sv riac Version, 508. 
 Mi or Prophets, all quoted in the N. 
 T except Obadiah. Jonah, Nahum 
 and Zephaiiiah, 102. Called the 
 tirelve in the Targum, 94, Only 
 Hoseaand -Zechariah are cited by 
 Ph.lo. 56 Bui he virtu dly cites all, 
 59. J isephus regards them as one 
 book, 78. And also Melito. 84. 
 And Jerome, 91. Origen omits 
 them in his catalogue, 88. The fact 
 accounted for, ih. 
 
GENERAL liSDEX OF MATTERfe; 
 
 561 
 
 Minor Prophets, Hosea, the epithet ap- 
 plied byPhilo to his Prophecies, 66. 
 Called by Philo a prophet, ib. 
 Often cited in the N. T., 101. 
 
 ■■ ' Joel, his origiaality, 22. 
 
 ■■ JonaJi, reference to his narra- 
 tive, in the New Testament, 102. 
 Called a prophet, by JosephuS; 78. 
 
 '<■• " ■ "" Micah, only once cited in the 
 N. T., 101. 
 
 Nahum, called a prophet by Josephus, 
 78. 
 
 ■ ■■ Habakkttk, his originality, 22. 
 
 ' " ' ■ Haggai, only once cited in the 
 N. T., 101. Josephus calls him a 
 Prophet, 78. 
 
 Zechariah, called by Philo 
 
 companion of Moses, 56. Called a 
 Prophet, by Josephus, 78. 
 
 Malachi, no special mention 
 
 of him by Philo, Josephus, Melito, 
 Origen, Jerome, or the Talmud, and 
 why, 59. Particularly cited in the 
 N. T., 101. 
 
 Moldenhauer, notice of his Translation 
 of Isaiah, 475. 
 
 Moral fable, nature of, 220. 
 
 Morin, John, objection of, to the sup- 
 posed early date of the Chaldee 
 Version, 412 s. 
 
 Moses, his five books are all cited in 
 the New Testament, 97 s. They 
 were in the Canon of Philo, 54. 
 And of Josephus, 76. And Melito, 
 84. And Origen, 86. And of 
 Jerome, 90. And of the Tal- 
 mud, 93 s. They are called by 
 Josephus £«/>«< 010KOI, and al tav 
 Itpuv yp*<pcet 0i0Kii, 76. Are spoken 
 of in very high terms by Pbiio, 54. 
 And called by m hp«i ^iShtt, ib. 
 
 '— — his book Genesis is called by 
 Philo tiffi ypafxi, 55. Exodus is 
 called Up* 0i8\o(, ib. Leviticus, 
 UfOf Adyoc, ib. Numbers, ItpsiritTov 
 yp^ftut, ib. And Deuteronomy, 
 ^piicrfAot and Up6( Mya, ib. 
 
 Mossier, notice of his work on Isaiah; 
 476 
 
 Mosheini, availed himself of the Edes- 
 sene Chronicle, in composing his 
 History, 521. His ignorance of 
 Syriac, ib. His account of Theo- 
 dore of Mopsuestia, 529. His vin- 
 dication of him, 530. His opinion 
 respecting the Gnostics, 279. His 
 objection to the testimony of 
 Hegesippus concerning them, 285. 
 His opinion as to Simon Magus,290. 
 
 Mythical fable, nature of, 220. 
 
 Nahum ; See Minor Prophets. 
 
 Nantz, edict of, 135. 
 
 Nehemiah, was called the second book 
 of Ezra, 59. Not cited in the N. T., 
 102. Nor by Philo, nor Melito, 
 58. 85. Used by Josephus, 80. 
 Found in the Canon of OrigeD, 
 Jerome, and the Talmud, 87. 90. 94. 
 
 Ntw Testament, refers to the Old 
 Testament very often, yet never 
 enumerates its parts, 63. Its citations 
 of two kinds, 64. (See Quotations.) 
 
 Nicolaitans, ought not to be called 
 heretics, and why, 289. 
 
 Nicolaus de Lyra, year of his death, 
 464. Notice of his Postillae, i6- 
 
 Numbers ; See Moses. 
 
 Nun, Paragogic ; See Paragogic Nun. 
 
 Obadiah; See Minor r.ophets. 
 
 Obscurity, occasionally an end of 
 parabolic instruction, 234. 
 
 Opitz, his Syriac Grammar highly 
 commended by Hoffman, 531. 
 
 Origen, when he lived, 86 His cele- 
 brated passage on the Canon, 86 s. 
 Importance of it, ib. Illustration 
 of the passage, 88 s. His ar- 
 rangement of the Books of Scrip- 
 ture, 86 s. Why h^ made Ba- 
 ruch a part of the Canon, 88. Se- 
 parates the books of Samuel from 
 the bouks of Kings, 87. Mentions 
 Nehemiah as the second book of 
 Egra, i6. Mentions Esther, »&. Had 
 Jeremiah in his Canon, 87. Men- 
 lions Ezechiel, ib. Thinks Jere- 
 miah and the Lamentations to be 
 one book, ib. 
 
 I 
 
562 
 
 GENEBAL INDEX OF MATrJEKS. 
 
 Oriental Languages, opinion of Pro- 
 fessor Lee of Cambridge on their 
 importance, 533. A knowledge of 
 them essential to the Biblical 
 scholar, 533 s. Example of the ap- 
 plication of Syriac, Arabic and 
 Rabbinic, to the interpretation of 
 the N. T., 497 s. Of Syriac, to 
 the illustration of Hebrew Gram- 
 mar, 494. Of Syriac and Arabic, 
 to the interpretation of the Old 
 Testament, 511—514. Importance 
 of Syriac, in General History, Ec- 
 clesiastical History, Geography, 
 and Biblical Interpretation, 517 — 
 630. See Syriac Language, Ara- 
 maean Language, Chaldee Lan- 
 guage. 
 
 Oviparous quadrupeds of Scripture, 
 ]53. 
 
 Palmyra, records of; See Hebrew 
 Grammar. 
 
 Parable, of the excuses, 248. 270 s, 
 Father and two sons, 229. '244. 
 246. Fig tree, 255. Good Sama- 
 ritan, 243. 267. Hidden treasure, 
 
 257. 261 s. King taking account 
 of his servants, 232. Labourers in 
 the vineyard, 249. 259 s. Leaven, 
 253. 255. 258 Marriage supper, 
 241. 245. 247. 267 s. Mustard seed, 
 244. 253. Pearl of great price, 
 
 258. 264. Pharisee and Publican, 
 225. 242 s. 272. Prodigal son, 250 
 s. 262. 266. 270. Rich n:an, 225. 
 231. Rich man and Lazarus, 253. 
 268 s. Talents, 246 s. 254. Tares, 
 259.272 s. Ten virgins, 254.256 
 S.261. Two debtor>, 266. Unjust 
 judge, 264. Unjust steward, 265. 
 Unmerciful servant, 262. Wed- 
 ding garment, 239 s. 245 s. Wick- 
 ed husbandmen, 249. 
 
 ■ — Origin of the word, 215. 
 
 Construction of, 217 ss. Distinct 
 from fables, 216 s. Effect of, with 
 regard to unbelieving Jews, 235. 
 With reference to the disciples, 
 236 s Supply t-he want of exam- 
 
 ples, 230. Use of, by our Saviouiv 
 220 s. As proofs of doctrine, 266* 
 s. In preaching, 272. 
 
 Paragogic Nun, of the Future, com 
 mon in Arabic, 493. Well known 
 in Hebrew, ib. Of the Preterit, 
 well known in Syriac, 494. Iho 
 opinion of Eichhorn, on the oc- 
 currence of it in the Preterite of 
 the Hebrew, ib. The opinion of 
 Gesenius, ib. Hoffmann's remark 
 on its use in Syriac, 494. Its oc- 
 currence in the Chaldee Targums, 
 ib. The inference of Michaelis, 
 ib. 
 
 Paul, St., how educated, 389. 
 
 Paulm, H. E. G., character of his 
 edition of the Arabic Version of 
 Isaiah by Saadias Gaon,433. No- 
 tice of his Clavis, 473 s. 
 
 Peshito, meaning of the term, 426 s.. 
 See Syriac version. 
 
 Peter, St., peculiarity of his phraseo- 
 logy in the second Ch. of his se- 
 cond Epistle, and cause of it, 372 
 s 
 
 Phaleg, Bochart's, editions of, 149.' 
 
 Fhilo of Alexnndria, when he lived, 
 49. Sent to Jerusalem, to present 
 offerings in the name of his bre- 
 thren, 41. His testimony, on the 
 Canon of the Alexandrian Jews, 
 49 ss. Divides the O T. into three 
 parts, 44 s. His view of the cano- 
 nical books of the O. T., 52 ss 
 Writings to which he attributes a 
 divine origin, 52 — 57- Writings 
 which he only cites, 57 s. Writ- 
 ings of which he makes no men- 
 tion whatever, 58. Calls the au- 
 thors of the O. T. Prophets, 62. 
 His meaning of the word, 53. 
 His view of the Apocrypha of the 
 O. T., 50 s. He does riot ailego- 
 rize them, 32. 60 s. Does not even 
 cite them, 51. What books are 
 contained in his Canon, 59. He 
 calls Moses a Prophet, 54. Re- 
 gards him asj the greatest of ^thf 
 
GENBKAli INDEX OP MATTEKS. 
 
 5tj3 
 
 3?rophets, id. Speaks of each of 
 the five books of Moses, 54 s. 
 Mentions Joshua, the first book of 
 Samuel, and Ezra, 55. Cites two 
 of the Minor Prophets, 66. Calls 
 Isaiah the ancient Prophet, ib. Calls 
 Jeremiah a Prophet, ib. Express- 
 es himself highly of Solomon, 67- 
 Calls David a Prophet, 56 s. Eze- 
 chiel not found in his Canon, 59. 
 Makes no mention of Daniel, 58. 
 Uses the words of Job xiv. 4., 57 
 Makes no mention of the Song of 
 Solomon, 58. Nor Ecclesiastes, 
 ib. The Wisdom of Solomon sup- 
 posed to have been written by 
 him, 51. His silence respecting 
 the Gnostics, 295. Alleged traces 
 of their philosophy in his writings, 
 -297—302. 
 
 JPhilosopky, Oriental, unknown to 
 the ancient ecclesiastical writers, 
 304. Magian, mentioned by Pliny, 
 308. And what he meant by it, 
 310. Chaldaic, meaning of, in 
 
 ' Eunapius, 310 s. Barbarian, high- 
 ly esteemed by some of the an- 
 cient philosophers, 312. 
 
 Plants, of Scripture, 158. 
 
 Pliny, speaks of the Magian Philoso- 
 phy, 308. And what he meant by 
 it, 310. 
 
 Tococke, his edition of the History 
 of the Dynasties by Abulpharagius, 
 518. It contains the Arabic text, 
 and a Latin translation by the edi- 
 tor, ib. 
 
 Foeiry, no models of it in Syriac, 
 486. 
 
 JPolyglot, the Arabic Version of Job 
 contained in the Polyglots is made 
 from the Syriac, 509. The Arabic 
 Version of the Psalms in the Lon- 
 don P. is from the Greek, ib. 
 Baumgarten's error on this sub- 
 ject, ib. The Syriac text in the 
 Polyglots, very incorrect, 507. 
 Causes of this, 508. Christ. Be- 
 
 ned. Michaelis' conjectural emen- 
 dations of it, ib. The critical va- 
 lue of Ephrem Syrus, in correct- 
 ing this text, 508. See Syriac Ver- 
 sion, Jrabic Version, he 
 
 Poole, Matthew, comparison between 
 his Synopsis and the Critici Sacri, 
 468. 
 
 Prayer, Lord's, why proper to be us- 
 ed in our own day, 183 s. 
 
 Preaching, use of the parables in, 
 269 ss. Bochart's, 114 s. 119. 
 
 Presbytery, Bochart's letter on, 122 ss. 
 
 Procopius, of Gaza, character and 
 im|»ortance of his commentary on 
 Isaiah, 450. Age in which he liv- 
 ed, ib. 
 
 Prophecies, concerning Christ, whei> 
 they may be said to have their ac- 
 complishment, 183. Prophecy of 
 Amos, IX. 11 s., considered, 199 s. 
 Character of the prophetic style, 
 372 s. The Prophecy of Isaiah, 
 XXV. 6 — 8, applied to Christ, 513 s. 
 
 Propltet, Philo's use of the word, 53. 
 Alleged to be sometimes the title of 
 a writer in general, 82. The as- 
 sertion doubted, ib. Meaning of 
 the words j^^^j and Te^o^hntc, 30, 
 
 •T 
 
 82. The Talmud enumerates five 
 books of Prophets, 94. Josephus, 
 thirteen, 81, Jerome, eight, 93. 
 The twelve Minor Prophets, one 
 book, 59. These are not mention- 
 ed in the Canon of Origen, 88. 
 
 Proverbs, in the Canon of the Tal- 
 mud, 94. Not mentioned by Jose- 
 phus, 81. But by Philo, and to be 
 placed in his Canon, 57. And in 
 that of Melito, Origen and Jerome. 
 84. 87. 91. Solomon is the author 
 of them, according to Philo, 57. 
 Cited in the N. T., 100. 
 
 Psalms, very often cited in the N. 
 T., 99. 100. For what purpose, 
 103. Called by Josephus Psalms 
 of David, 79. Very often quoted 
 by Philo, 56. Tn the Canon of the 
 
5(34 
 
 GEINEKAL IMJE.V (>F MATTERS. 
 
 Talmud, Philo, Joseplius, Origen, 
 Melito and Jerome, 'M. 59. 83. 84. 
 87. 91. 
 
 Prepositions, Greek, frequently of no 
 force in composition, 288. 
 
 Qimtremdre, his Syriac labours and 
 proposed Lexicon, 532. 
 
 ^uotatio7is, from the Old Testament 
 found in the New T , tabular view 
 of, 97—101. Of two kinds, 103. 
 64. The books of Moses, Isaiah, 
 and Jeremiah, and the Psalms, cit- 
 ed for the establishment of reli- 
 gious truths, 64. 103. What books 
 of the O T. are never cited in the 
 New Testament, 64. What books 
 are cited, and where, 97 — 101. 
 Citations from the Psalms most 
 frequent, 99 s. Only one direct 
 ijuotation in the N. T. from Joshua, 
 98. And only one from Micah and 
 Haggai, 101. The best works on 
 the subject of Quotations from the 
 O. T. in the N. T., recommended, 
 102. 103 s. 
 
 Rabbins, character of, as expositors, 
 456. Application of their writings 
 to the interpretation of the N. T., 
 498. 
 
 Rational fable, 220. 231. 
 
 Ravens, curious disquisition, 164. 
 
 Reformed Churches of France, dis- 
 putes of, with the Romanists, 115. 
 Troubles of, 129 s. 134 ss. 
 
 Regal Authority, Bochart's letter on, 
 123. 
 
 Resurrection^ Christ's proof of, from 
 the books of Moses, no argument 
 that the Sadducees received these 
 books and none else, 62. Rabbi 
 Gamaliel's proof of it from the Pro- 
 phets and the Hagiographa, without 
 objections from the Sadducees, ib. 
 
 Rome, the special seat of Syriac learn- 
 ing, and why, 488. Efforts of the 
 See of, to gain the Syrian Church, i/>. 
 
 RosenmUUer, E. F. C, character of 
 bis comraentaryj on Isaiah, 474 s. 
 
 His edition of the Hierozoieon oi 
 Bochatt, 157. 
 
 Rvfjin,.\\\s translation of a phrase in 
 thf Canon of Melito, 85, His La- 
 tin translation of the eel. brated 
 passage of Origen on ihe Canon, 
 has the twelve Minor Prophets af- 
 ter the Song of Solomon, 88. 
 
 Ruth, an appendix to the book of 
 Judges, 59. Not cited by Philo, 
 58 In the Canon of the Talmud, 
 94. Cited by Josephus, 80. In 
 the Canon of Melito, Origen, and 
 Jerome, 84 86.90. 
 
 Saadias, Rabbi, works of, 432. When 
 he flourished, ib. Character of his 
 Arabic Version of Tsaiah,433 — 437. 
 
 Salomn, Ben Melech, notice of his 
 Michlal Jophi, 464. 
 
 Samaritans, received the Pentateuch 
 only, 63. 
 
 Samuel, the books of, together with 
 the books of Kings, called by Meli- 
 to : the four books of Kings, 84. 
 Origen separates them, 86 s. Used 
 by Josephus, 80. The first book, 
 called by Philo : the first book of 
 Kings, 55 The second book, re- 
 ceived by Philo, 58 s. 
 
 Sanctius, Caspar, notice of his com- 
 mentary, 467. 
 
 Scandalize, the use of the word in the 
 N. T. explained by the aid of 
 Syriac, 499 ss. 
 
 Schaaf, C, his Syriac Lexicon re- 
 commended, 532. 
 
 SchelJing, notice of his work on Isaiah, 
 478. ^ 
 
 Schleusner, notice of his work on 
 Isaiah, 478. 
 
 Schmidt, J. C. C, character of his in. 
 troduction to the N. T., 13. 
 
 Sebastian, notice of, 469. 
 
 Schnvrrer, character of, as an inter- 
 preter of Isaiah, 479. 
 
 Schroder, character of his Mono- 
 graphic on Isaiah, tri. 36 ss.- 
 479. 
 
G^GNEBAL INDEX OP MATTERS. 
 
 5^ 
 
 Schultens, his predilection for Arabic, 
 486. 
 
 Sender, opinion of, in regard to the 
 design of St. John's Gospel, 354 s. 
 
 Sermons, Bochart's, on Genesis, 1 18 s. 
 139. 
 
 Septuas^inl Version, its origin, 37. 
 Books of Scripture which it con- 
 tained, 49 ss. It was gradually 
 formed, at different times, and by 
 different persons, 47 The story 
 of Aristeas, respecting its formation, 
 ib. Reposited in the Alexandrian 
 Library, 48. Its general authority 
 in Egypt, and the cause of this, 49. 
 Philo's account of it, 62 ss Jose- 
 phus' account of it, 64 ss. Its 
 version <»f Daniel, when and where 
 published, 500. Its agreement with 
 the Syriac Version, 506. This 
 fact accounted for, ib. Accords 
 with the Syriac more frequently in 
 Ezechiel, than in the other books, 
 506. Its agreement with the Syriac, 
 in Proverbs, examined by Dr. 
 Pathe, 507. His opinion of the 
 cause of this agreement, ih. Its ac- 
 cordance with the Targum, in Pro- 
 verbs, 506 s. 
 
 Simon, Richard, character of, 8 s. 
 His opponents, 9. Thinks a Jew 
 was the author of the Syriac Ver- 
 sion of the O. T., 507. 
 
 Simon Ma^s, not to be classed among 
 heretics, 289—291. 
 
 Sionita, Gabriel, censured for his 
 loose translation of the Syriac text 
 in the Polyglots, 510. Many of his 
 errors corrected by Casteli, 510. 
 
 Sixtus Sinensig, the last edition of his 
 Bibliotheca Sancfa, 7. 
 
 Song of Solomon, forbidden to be read 
 in the Synagogues, 35. Not cited 
 in the N. T., nor by Philo, nor 
 Josephus, J02. 58. 81. But in the 
 Canon of the Talmud, and Melito, 
 and Origen, and Jerome, 94. 84. 87. 
 
 Slcsichorus, fable of the Horse and 
 the Stag, 224. 226. 
 
 Symmachns, character of his version 
 of Isaiah, 411 s. 
 
 Syriac Version, of the 0. T., an ac- 
 count of it, 505 ss. The religion 
 and nation of the author, unsettled, 
 507. The different opinions ex- 
 pr-'ssed on the subject, by Kirscb, 
 Simon, Dathe, Bertholdt, Michae- 
 lis and Gesenius, ib. Not the work 
 of a single translator, ib. The 
 Latin version of it in the Poly- 
 glots, not to be trusted, 510. Cha- 
 racter of its text in the Polyglots, 
 507 s. Conjectural emendations 
 of it, by Chr. Ben Michaelis, 508. 
 The various readings of it in the 
 sixth volume of the London Poly- 
 glot, recommended, ih. The va- 
 lue of Ephrem's works, in its emen- 
 dation, 509. Translated from the 
 Hebrew, 505. The testimony of 
 Abulpharagius on this subject, ex- 
 press, ih. Its agreement with the 
 Septiiagint version, 506. (See Sep- 
 iuasint.) Often differs from the 
 Septuagint, 505. The coinciden- 
 ces of the Syriac and the Greek 
 Version, ascribed in part to Jacob 
 of Edessa, 506. The value of the 
 Syriac Version, critical and exege- 
 tical, 510 ss. Exampl-e of its exe- 
 getical use, 511 ss. Ephrem Syrus 
 wrote his Commentary, not on the 
 Hebrew text, but on this version, 
 527. 
 
 of Isaiah, characte 
 
 ristics of, 427 ss. Made by a Chris- 
 tian, 429 3. Varies from the Ma- 
 soretic text, without improving it, 
 431. 
 
 Language, together with 
 
 the other Oriental languages con- 
 tains treasures innumerable, 534. 
 Numerous valuable works extant 
 in it, .504. 516 s. The Chroni- 
 cle of Abulpharagius, 518. fSefe 
 
^5m 
 
 GENERAL INDEX OF MATTERS. 
 
 Abulpharagius.) The Worlds of 
 Ephrem Syrus, 516. (See Ephrem 
 Syrus.) The compilations of the 
 Assemans, 516. (See Assemnn, J. 
 S, and S. E,) And a complete 
 Version of the Bible, and of the 
 Apocrypha, 503. Importance of 
 the Version of the O. T , 505. 
 (See Sj/riac Version.) Far more 
 books of every kind extant in it 
 than in Chaldee, 489. These use- 
 ful books an inducement to its stu- 
 dy, 503. Tn atise on its Uteralure 
 by Gaab, 503 Useful in illustrat- 
 ing Profane History, 517 And 
 Ecclesiastical History, 521 s. And 
 Geography, 524 ss. And the He- 
 brew Language, 489 ss. And the 
 Interpretation of Scripture, 527 ss. 
 The publications in it supplied 
 Bayer with the most important ma- 
 terials of his Historia Osrofthna, 
 517. Greatly aided Beausobre, in 
 his History of Manes, 521. And 
 BQsching, in hi? Description of 
 Asia, 525. Aud Mosheim, in his 
 Ecclesiastical History, 521. Pos- 
 sesses resources. for Ecclesiastical 
 History, not yet used, ib. And 
 may shed new lijrht on the Histo- 
 ry of Polemics, ib. Example of 
 its illnstrating the history of 
 the Canon, 522. Example of 
 its illustrating Geography, 525. 
 (See Mabog.) Less used than 
 Chaldee and Arabic, for the illus- 
 tration of the Hebrew language, 
 485. Books in Syriac, not read 
 by the Jews, and why, 486. Af 
 fords more for the illustration of 
 the Hebrew, than can be derived 
 from Chaldee, 489. Its elucida- 
 tions derived from a rich vocabu- 
 lary, 487. Their CfTlninfy, 489. 
 Illustrates Hebrew Grammar, 492 
 ss. C. B Michaelis' use of it, for 
 this purpose, 495. Its illustration 
 
 of thematreslectionis,493. Hoff« 
 mann's remark on this, ib. Its il- 
 lustration of the Nun Paragogic of 
 the Preterit, 494. The views of 
 Michae'is, Eichhorn and Geseuius 
 on tills subject, ib. More useful 
 than Arabic, in Illustrating the 
 vowels and diacritical marks, 495. 
 Cause of this, ih. Illustrates the 
 phraseology of the N T., 496. J. 
 D. Michaelis' collection of Syriac 
 phrases for this purpose, ib. Ex* 
 amples of this source of interpre- 
 tation, 497 ss. (See Taste of 
 Death.) A motive to the study of 
 the Syriac language, from the new 
 light afforded by it, 486. Beauty 
 and Poetry do not enter into it? 
 commendation, ib. Study of, lit- 
 tle attended to in Europe, until the 
 commencemeut of the sixteenth 
 century, 531. Pursued with dili- 
 gence at Rome, and why, 488. Not 
 pursued there with a view to the il- 
 lustration of the Hebrew, 488 s. 
 Lardner's ignorance of the lan- 
 guage, 522. And Mosheim's, 521. 
 A proper knowledge of it not to 
 be acquired from the Syriac xet- 
 sion of the N T., and why, 486 e. 
 The use' of the Syriac version of 
 the O. T., most important, 487. 
 Notices of the best elementary 
 works for the study of it, 531 ss. 
 
 Talmud, date of its compilation, 93. 
 Its view of the Canon of the O. 
 T , 93 s. Reckons twenty-four 
 books, 93. Divides them into three 
 part, s94.' Enumerates eight Pro- 
 phets, and nine Hagiographa, ib. 
 Considers Ruth a distinct book, ih. 
 Names Esther, ib Its quibble res- 
 pecting Yod, 93. The argument of 
 Rabbi Gamaliel, on the resurrec- 
 tion of the dead, 62. 
 
 Tanchum of Jerusalem, notice of his 
 
GEIv'ESAL INPEX OF IJIATTEIfS. 
 
 mi 
 
 commentary on the Prophets, 
 464. 
 
 Targum, of Jonathan Ben Uszid; 
 See Jonathan, Ben Uzziel. 
 
 — — — — of Jerusalem ; 494. 
 
 '■ of Pseudo-Jonathan, con- 
 tains the tradition of Jannes and 
 Jambres, 74. 
 
 Taste of Death, enumeration of the 
 passages of the N. T., in which 
 the phrase ^ occurs, 497. Loose in- 
 terpretations of it, ib. Found no- 
 where in the O. T., ib. Illustrated 
 by the Syriac, ib. And by the 
 Arabic, 498. The phrase used by 
 the Rabbins, ib. Proofs of this, 
 498 s. 
 
 Temple Library, traces of its exis- 
 tence before the Babylonian cap^ 
 tivity, 29. And after the captivity, 
 ib. 
 
 Temple of Jerusahm^kis destruction 
 not connected by the Jews, with 
 the commencement of Messiah's 
 kingdom, 174 s. 
 
 TertuUian, his evidence in regard to 
 Simon Magus, 290. His testimony 
 respecting the date of the Gnostic 
 heresy, 291 ss. Respecting the 
 source of its tenets, 316. What he 
 means by haereticonim patjuar- 
 chae philosophi, 397. 
 
 Theodoret, character of his com- 
 mentary on Isaiah, 449 s. Year of 
 his death, 449. 
 
 Tkeodotian, character of his Version 
 of Isaiah, 41 1 s. 
 
 Timothy, Epistle of St. Paul to, why 
 rejected by the Gnostics, 317. 
 Illustration of i Tim. vi., 344 — 
 852. 
 
 Therapeutae, their Canon of the Old 
 Testament, 60. What books of 
 Scripture they used, 45. 
 
 Tittmann, C. C, mistake of, in at- 
 tributing a certain passage of Augus- 
 tine to Atto, 338. 
 
 Tychsen, O. G., notice of his Elemen- 
 tale Syriacum, 633. Eichhorn's 
 commendation of it, ib. 
 
 Universal History, the Continuation 
 of it censured by J. D. Michaelis, 
 517. 
 
 Varenius, Augustus, character of his 
 ct nimentary on Isaiah, 469. Year 
 of his death, ib. 
 
 Vatican, contains a MS. of the Chro- 
 nicle of Abuiphaiagius, 519. 
 
 Vav and Yod, the rule in Syriac re- 
 specting them, 493. 
 
 Verses, Latin, a singular description 
 of, 112. 
 
 Vitringa, character of his commentary 
 on Isaiah, 470. 
 
 Vossius, Isaac, objection of, to the 
 supposed early date of the Chaldee 
 Version, 412 s. 
 
 Wetstein, his extracts from the Rab- 
 binical writings, in relation to the 
 kingdom of Heaven, of no weight, 
 171 s. 
 
 Yod, the quibble of the Talmud in 
 regard to it, 93. Rule in Syriac, 
 respecting Yod and Vav, 493. 
 
 Zechariah ; See Minor Priphets. 
 
 Zephaniah ; See Minor Prophets. 
 
 Zobah, errors in regard to the region 
 so called, 526. JScher's orthogra- 
 phy of the word, ib. The word 
 illustrated by the use of Syriac. 
 
 Zwingle, character of his commentary 
 
 on Isaiah, 466 s. 
 
 % 
 
ERRATA^ 
 
 fage. 
 
 
 
 30 
 
 read . 
 
 «^5I • ' 
 
 45. last line 
 
 
 5.29; 
 
 J 55. 1.3. . 
 
 
 ItpaH ypa(pa. 
 
 107. note, 1. 7. . 
 
 
 stupendam 
 
 last line 
 
 ■ 
 
 junctara 
 
 118. 1. 20. . . 
 
 
 varied 
 
 119. 1. 13. . . . 
 
 
 
 unction 
 
 note, 1. 3. . 
 
 
 Rothomagcnsi 
 
 120. note, 1.1. . 
 
 
 
 trfaXiiara 
 
 121. 1. next to the last. 
 
 
 
 ceclesiasticis 
 
 
 
 
 Cadomi 
 
 149.1.3. . 
 
 
 the modem travelr- 
 
 154. 1. 7 
 
 
 HDZ^Jn 
 
 162.1.21 
 
 
 
 or 
 
 164. note, 1. 15. . 
 
 
 
 allegorical 
 
 166. notes, 1. 15. 
 
 
 sufficiently 
 
 168. 1. 13. . . . 
 
 
 
 Rom. X. 6. 7. 
 
 178. notes, . . . 
 
 
 • Drn 
 
 205.1.28. . 
 
 
 the proclamation 
 
 206.1.7. 
 
 
 gently and by degrees^ 
 
 245. note, 1. 8. . 
 
 %• 
 
 earum 
 
 246. note, 1. 4. . 
 
 fO)5 ov 
 
 258. note, 1. 24. . 
 
 
 p. 262. 
 
 note, 1. 26. . 
 
 
 p. 253. 
 
 note, 1. 27. . 
 
 
 p. 255. 
 
 328. note, 1. 9. 10. 
 
 . dele 
 
 rb 
 
 417. 1. 5. from the last. . 
 
 read 
 
 perception 
 
 503.1.1. 
 
 
 forbad 
 
 508.1.9. 
 
 
 not at all 
 
 516.1.21. . 
 
 . dele 
 
 other 
 
 I In the Greek type, elsewhere, over the final syllable of a separate word, or of the 
 last word in a distinct phrase, the grave accent is sometimes found, instead of the 
 acutr. An accent is often placed over thejirst vowel of a diphthong, instead of the 
 second. And over the final syllable of a word, when followed by another in connex- 
 ion with it, an acute accent sometimes occurs, irtstead of a grave. 
 
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