games in honour of Augustus.--Conspiracy of Ten suppressed.-Herod resolves on garrisoning the country: restores Samaria, under the name of Sebaste.--Ambassadors reach Augustus from India and China.--Great calamitiés in Judæa: Herod increases in popularity and reputation. 463-502. BOOK IX. JEWISH AND ROMAN HISTORY, FROM THE ESTABLISHMENT OF AUGUSTUS CÆSAR Augustus invested by the Roman senate with absolute power.-Herod builds a palace on Mount Sion.-Roman expedition against Arabia: Felix joined by 500 men sent by Herod.-Failure of the expedition through the treachery of Syllæus.-Egyptian history: invasion of Southern Egypt by Candace queen of Ethiopia driven back by Petronius.Parthian history: contest between Phraates and Tiridates terminates in favour of Phraates.-Herod marries Mariamne daughter of Simon, and builds Herodium.-Augustus loses his nephew and adopted son Marcellus.-Herod builds Cæsarea. -Herod sends Alexander and Aristobulus, his two sons by Mariamne, to be educated at Rome.- Herod adds Trachonitis, Auranitis, and Batanæa to his dominions, and reduces the robbers of Trachonitis.-Augustus in Sicily: marries his favourite Agrippa to his daughter Julia. -Ambassadors from Candace queen of Ethiopia sue to Augustus for peace.-Progress of Augustus through Asia Minor into Syria: heaps fresh favours on Herod.-Phraates king of Parthia makes peace with Augustus, and returns the captives and ensigns taken from Crassus and Antony.-Augustus settles the affairs of Armenia: Tigranes succeeds to the kingdom.-Augustus winters at Samos.-Discontents in Judæa at the Romanizing tendencies of Herod.-Embassy to Augustus from Porus king of India. --Augustus returns to Rome.-Herod commences his preparations for rebuilding the temple at Jerusalem.-Gallus proceeds to Syene and the first cataract, accompanied by Strabo.-Herod commences the erection of the new temple.-Augustus declares Caius and Lucus to be his heirs to the empire.-Herod visits Rome and brings back Alexander and Aristobulus.-Progress of the rebuilding of the temple.-Augustus visits Judæa.— Herod assists Agrippa in his war in the Cimmerian Bosphorus: the kingdom conferred on l'olemon.-Herod successfully intercedes with Agrippa in behalf of the Jews in Asia Minor.-Augustus takes the office of Pontifex Maximus: burns 2000 spurious prophetical books, but preserves the genuine Sibylline oracles. II. The Sibyls and Sibylline oracles. 503-516. Accounts of the Sibyls.-Period when the first Sibyl flourished.-Story of the visit of the Sibyl to Tarquin II.-Preservation of the Sibylline books.-Spurious collection of Sibylline oracles still in existence. -Argument for the genuineness of the oracles, that they were appealed to by Justin Martyr, &c.-Refutation of the argument.-Summing up of the truth respecting the oracles.-I. The Sibylline oracles were anciently held in great estimation. II. The Sibyls could not have been divinely inspired.-III. If the Sibyls ever were inspired, it must have been by devils.--IV. The story of the three Sibylline books sold to Tarquin was a myth.-V. The oracles were composed for state purposes.-VI. Abundant Sibylline oracles discovered after the burning of the first books. -VII. Sibylline oracles foretelling the coming of the Messiah.-VIII. Means by which God foreshadowed the coming of the Messiah to the heathen.-IX. General expectation of the Jewish nation of the coming of the Messiah spread amongst the heathen by the Jewish dispersions.-X. Expectation of the Messiah to be traced in the heathen oracles generally.-XI. Probable origin of the book of Sibylline oracles still preserved. 516-528. III. Reign of Herod the Great, concluded, B. C. 13—4. Alexander and Aristobulus incur the displeasure of Herod: Antipater placed above them.-Agrippa recalled to Rome: Herod sends Antipater with him.-Death of Agrippa; Augustus adopts Tiberius in his room.-Herod carries Alexander and Aristobulus to Rome, to accuse them before Augustus: reconciliation effected by Augustus. -Herod completes the building of Cæsarea.-Jews of Asia and Cyrene obtain an edict in their favour from Augustus.-Fresh breach between Herod and his two sons, Alexander and Aristobulus. Second reconciliation effected by Archelaus king of Cappadocia.-Herod proceeds to Rome, to report the reconciliation to Augustus.-Robbers of Trachonitis commit fresh ravages under the protection of Syllæus.-Herod punishes the relatives of the robbers. Further rectification of the Roman calendar by Augustus.—Dedication of the new temple at Jerusalem.-Herod revenges himself upon the robbers of Trachonitis, and is falsely accused to Augustus by Syllæus.-Death of Obodas king of the Nabathæan Arabs succession of Aretas.--Dionysius of Halicarnassus commences his Roman history. ---Tiberius retires from Rome to Rhodes.-Renewal of the quarrel between Herod and his two sons by Mariamne.-Nicolaus Damascenus discovers to Augustus the falseness of the accusation against Herod execution of Syllæus.-Herod obtains permission from Augustus to proceed against his two sons.-Trial and execution of Alexander and Aristobulus.-Zacharias sees the vision in the temple.-Antipater conspires with Pheroras to poison Herod seditious conduct of the Pharisees.-Extraordinary discovery of the plot after the death of Pheroras.-Temple of Janus shut at Rome.-The angel Gabriel sent to the Virgin Mary. Issuing of the decree of Augustus for surveying the Roman empire.— Three years to be allowed for the execution of the decree.-No tax paid by the Jews to the Romans on account of the decree for twelve years afterwards.-Summing up of the matter: the survey of the Roman empire whilst Sentius Saturninus was governor of Syria, to be distinguished from the levying of the tax when Cyrenius was governor.Date of the birth of Christ.-Visit of the Magi to Bethlehem, and slaughter of the Innocents. Antipater returns from Rome: his execution.-Death of Herod the Great.Terrible nature of his disease.-Family of Herod. 528-544. IV. Jewish history from the accession of Archelaus to the death of Christ, B. C. 3 to A. D. 33. Accession of Archelaus to the ethnarchy of Judæa, Idumæa, and Samaria: flight of the Holy Family into Egypt.-Commencement of the Christian era.-Augustus adopts Tiberius as his successor.-Deposition and banishment of Archelaus.-Cyrenius appointed president of Syria, and Coponius procurator of Judæa.—Annas appointed to the high priesthood.-Christ's visit to the temple, in his twelfth year. Fulfilment of the prophecy of Jacob, respecting the coming of Shiloh.-Explanation of the prophecy.-Answers to the objections against the foregoing explanation.-Summing up of the matter.-Marcus Ambivius succeeds Coponius in the procuratorship of Judæa.-Augustus admits Tiberius to a co-partnership in the empire.-Annius Rufus procurator of Judæa.-Death of Augustus Cæsar and accession of Tiberius.-Valerius Gratus procurator of Judæa.-Germanicus recalled by Tiberius.-Ismael appointed high priest.-Eleazar high priest.Simon high priest.-Caiaphas, son-in-law of Annas, high priest, and Pontius Pilate procurator of Judæa.-John the Baptist commences his preaching.-Crucifixion of our Lord and fulfilment of prophecy. 545-554. Partition of the kingdom of Herod the Great amongst his three surviving sons, Archelaus, Herod Antipas, and Philip, according to his will, as revised by Augustus Cæsar. History of the destruction of Jerusalem: tyranny and rapacity of the Roman procurators.-Fearful warning.-State of parties: last rebellion during the procuratorship of Florus. Agrippa II. attempts to mediate.-Defeat of the Romans.-Vespasian sent to crush the revolution: Jerusalem torn by faction.-Vespasian made emperor of Rome.Three factions in Jerusalem-Eleazar, John, and Simon.-Titus blockades Jerusalem.Horrors of the siege, and fulfilment of prophecy.-Destruction of the city and Temple. -Dispersion of the Jews. 554-561. PREFACE ΤΟ THE SECOND PART. THE Second Part of this History, which I now offer to the public, completes the whole of what I intend. My first purpose was to have concluded it at the birth of our Saviour, and to have left what thenceforth ensues to the ecclesiastical historian of the Christian church, to whom it properly belongs. But since what is to connect the Old Testament with the New will there best end where the dispensation of the Old Testament endeth, and that of the New begins; and since that was brought to pass in the death and resurrection of our Saviour, I have drawn down this history thereto. For then the Jewish church was abolished, and the Christian erected in its stead; then the law of Moses ceased, and that of Christ and his gospel commenced, and therein the accomplishment of all the prophecies of the Old Testament, relating to the person of the Messiah, which began at his birth, was fully perfected. And therefore here I have thought it properest to fix the conclusion of this work. But to avoid encroaching too far upon the Christian ecclesiastical historian, I have from the time of Christ's birth treated but in a very brief manner of what afterwards ensued to his death; and have passed over the whole time of the public ministration both of him and his forerunner. For all things that were done therein being fully related in the four Gospels, which are, or ought to be, in every one's hands, barely to repeat them here would be needless, and all that can be done beyond a bare repetition is either to methodize them according to the order of time, or to explain them by way of interpretation; but the former belonging to the harmonist, and the latter to the commentator, they are both out of the province I have undertaken. I having in a Preface to the First Part of this History recommended to the reader, for his geographical guidance in the reading of it, the maps of Cellarius, the bookseller hath, in the third edition of that part, inserted into it as many maps out of him as may be useful for this purpose. And there hath also been added, in the same edition, a map of the temple of Jerusalem, which had been drawn and published by me in a single sheet some years before. All these may serve for the second part as well as for the first. Perchance there may be some, who will think the history which I give of the Jewish cycle of eighty-four years, and of the other cycles, which, as well as that, have been made use of for the fixing of the time of Easter, to be too long a digression from that which is the main subject of this work. And therefore I think it necessary to acquaint the reader, that I have been led hereto by these following inducements :First, To give him an account of the controversies which happened among Christians about the time of celebrating Easter, during the use of this eighty-four years' cycle among them. Secondly, To explain one important part of our ancient English history, by showing upon what foot that dissension about Easter stood, which was here carried on between our British and Saxon ancestors on the account of the same Jewish cycle, during the whole seventh and eighth century, which hath nowhere else, that I know of, had a thorough and clear account given of it. And lastly, To open the way to a better understanding of the modern dispute, which our dissenters have here set on foot among us upon the same argument: for they allege it as one reason of their dissension, that Easter is put wrong in the calendar before the Common Prayer Book, and that therefore they cannot give their assent and consent thereto. It is a very odd thing that this sort of people, who are against keeping any Easter at all, should raise any quarrel about the time of its observance. But since they are pleased so to do, I will here apply what is written in the ensuing history, about the time of this festival, to the present case, and endeavour thereby to give them full satisfaction in it. In order whereto I shall lay down, first, The rule in the calendar against which the objection is made; secondly, The objection itself that is urged against it; and then, in the third place, I shall give my answers thereto. 66 I. The words of the rule in the calendar, as they lie in the page next after the months of the year, are these following:- Easter-day is always the first Sunday after the first full moon which happens next after the one-and-twentieth day of March. And if the full moon happens upon a Sunday, Easter-day is the Sunday after." II. The objection urged against this rule is, That if we take the common almanacks, in which the new moons and full moons are set down as they are in the heavens, it will seldom be found, that the first Sunday after the first full moon which happens next after the one-andtwentieth day of March is the Easter-day which is appointed to be observed, according to the tables in the Common Prayer Book; and that therefore, if the rule be true, the tables must be false. And this, the dissenters think, is reason enough for them to deny their assent and consent to the whole book. III. I answer hereto, first, That it must be acknowledged this objection would be true, were it the natural full moon that is meant in the rule. But besides the natural full moon, that is, that which appears in the heavens, when the sun and moon are in direct opposition to each other, there is also an ecclesiastical full moon, that is, a full moon day, so called by the church, though there be no natural full moon thereon. To explain this by a parallel case, it is in the same manner as there is a political month, and a political year, different from the natural. The natural month is the course of the moon, from one new moon to another; the political month is a certain number of days which constitute a month according to the political constitution of the country where it |