engaged in the fiege of Tyre, he fent to the neigh- The Soon afterwards, having built Alexandria in Egypt, he invited a great many of them to fettle there, and gave them all the freedom and privileges of his new city . At length having made a conqueft of great part of the world, which was then discovered, he came to Babylon, and there gave himself up to fuch extravagant gluttony and drunkennefs, that it put an end to his life °. Alexander being dead, his chief officers, in a little time fhared his vaft dominions; according to the prophecy of Daniel: P His kingdom fhall be broken, and be divided, but not to his pofterity: More particularly, the empire became divided between four, whereby was fulfilled that other prophecy * Jofeph. Antiq. book xi. 22, and chap. xi. 2, 3. chap viii. Jofephus's Wars, ferii Annal. A. M. 3681. I Chap. viii. 20, 21, m Jofeph. Antiq. book xxi. book ii. Chap. xxi, • Ufa P Chap. xi. 4, 1 phecy of Daniel, that the great horn, (viż. Alexander) being broken, four horns food up for it, that is, as it is there faid, four kingdoms. Thefe four of Alexander's generals were, at the firft, esteemed only as governors of their respective provinces, and, as it is faid, according to Alexander's appointment in his life-time'; but they foon made war upon each other, and acted separately as kings. Among thefe four, the countries of Syria, Judea, and Phoenicia, fell to Seleucus's fhare: Ptolemy fon of Lagus, furnamed Soter, had gotten Egypt; and for the better fecurity and defence thereof, coveted to make himself master of Seleucus's countries, that is, Syria, Phoenicia, and Judea. But the Jews would not easily submit, nor break their faith with Seleucus, till Ptolemy, having gotten poffeffion of moft part of their country, furprized Jerufalem on the fabbath-day, when the Jews could not defend themfelves, and tranfplanted divers colonies of captive Jews (to the number of one hundred thoufand) into Egypt, particularly a great number into Alexandria: Where, foon afterwards, reflecting on their fidelity to their former governors, he employed many in his army and garrifons, and granted them large immunities and privileges. The Jews were alfo favoured in their own country, and lived tolerably under their new mafters the Egyptian kings ". The next of these kings of Egypt, viz. Ptolemy Philadelphus, fon to the former, having built a famous library at Alexandria, furnifhed it with. the ¶ Chap. viii. 21, 22. r I Maccab. i. 6. s Diodorus, Juftin, & Q. Curtius apud Ufferii Annal. A. M. 3681 "Ufferii Annal. A. M. 3684 the choicest books; and among the rest, with the holy fcriptures of the Old Teftament, being tranflated out of the original Hebrew into the Greek language, as it is faid, by the labour of feventytwo learned Jews, procured by him for that purpofe: Whence this tranflation is called the Septuagint, taking the round number of feventy inftead of feventy-two. However this was, the tranflation itself feems to have been ordered by the Divine Providence for fome time before Christ's appearance; for by the help thereof, many Jews difperfed among the Greeks, ufing their language, and also the Greeks and other Hea thens, in the apoftles days, were made acquainted with the types and prophecies of Chrift, and fo were the fooner .converted. This tranflation the apostles, for the most part, used in quoting texts out of the Old Teftament, (though not altogether in the fame words, but according to the fenfe,) because in their times it was best known, and was in greatest authority amongst the difperfed Jews ". W V There have been great controverfies concerning the particular authors of this tranflation, and the exact time when it was made: Jofephus and fome other Jews, from Arifteas, the firft author, only mention the Jewish law to have been then tranflated: And further, Jofephus fays, The king had not the whole fcripture given him, but only the law; which a good judge obferves is rendered more conformable to the Hebrew, than the rest of VOL. I. 3 A V the Hottinger. Thefaurus, lib. i. chap. 3. fect. 3. p. 332. compare Heb. xii. 6. with Prov. iii. 12. Thefaurus, lib. i. chap. 3. fect. 3. queft. X Antiq. book i. chap. i. [Grec. Prooemium. Promium in queft. in Gen. 12. w Hottinger. p. 335, &c. y Hicronym. the Old Testament. Accordingly a very learned and inquifitive perfona concludes, that the law, or the books of Mofes only, were tranflated at the firft, and the other books of the Old Testament afterwards, by other authors, yet before the time of Chrift; because the evangelifts and apostles, for the most part quote the other books, according to the Greek verfion which we now have. Lastly, Since the compilers of that tranflation had better opportunities of knowing the propriety and extent of the Hebrew tongue, than we can have at this distance, there is the more regard to be had to their tranflation. After the Jews had been, for about one hundred years, fubject to the Egyptian kings, there happened a war between Antiochus, called the great, king of Syria, and the Egyptians, each contending for divers countries in Syria: The Jews, whofe country lay betwixt the two kingdoms of Egypt and Syria, fuffered much on both fides, fometimes by the Egyptians, fometimes by the Syrians: So that (as the hiftorian obferves) they fared like a fhip toffed in a form, which is battered and dafbed between two billows . In the end, Antiochus king of Syria prevailed; and having fubdued Samaria, the Jews upon that fuccefs, of their own accord, rendered themfelves to him, and then they enjoyed a calm, and were favoured with permiffion C a Dean z Du Pin on the Canon, lib. i. chap. 6. Prideaux having diftinctly confidered the feveral authorities produced for the feventy's tranflation, concludes, that there was indeed a tranflation of the Hebrew fcriptures into Greek, made at the time when the Ptolemies reigned in Egypt, and put into their library, and which we still have; but that it was procured by the Jews in Alexandria, for their own ufe, Connect, par. ii. book i. b Jofeph. Antiq. book xi. c Ibid. 3. miffion to live and govern themfelves according to their country laws. At length, one of the kings of Syria, viz. Antiochus furnamed Epiphanes, under whom the Jews were then in fubjection, occafioned very heavy calamities to fall upon them: And in the first place, being in want of money, for a large fum paid him by Jafon, brother to Onias the high-prieft, (who in those times had the temporal, as well as spiritual authority,) confented that Onias fhould be displaced, and Jason put in his room ". Jofephus obferves, that whereas the high priesthood was an office for life, Antiochus firft, and afterwards Aristobulus, and then Herod, broke in upon that rule, and made it arbitrary. Jason being a very ill man, as foon as he had thus gotten to be high priest, profanely changed the Jewish cuftoms, and brought in Greek and Heathen fashions, especially among the younger fort; which occafioned a neglect of the wonted attendance on the fervice of God, even among the priests, for the fake of being partakers of the Heathenish sports and exercifes f. By reafon whereof their hiftorian observes, that fore calamities fell upon them 3 as it came to pass fhortly after: For Antiochus, being then in Egypt, (which he also had in great measure fubdued) apprehended that the Jews had revolted, (among whom there had been fome tumults, by reafon of a false report of Antiochus's death, and alfo upon Jafon's ufurpations on them ;) whereupon he fell furiously on the city of Jerufalem, killed eighty thoufand men, women, and children, fold as many for flaves, polluted and 3 A 2 plundered d 2 Maccab. iv. 7. beginning. je Antiq. book xv. chap. iii. at the ? f 2 Maccab. 4. What became of Jason afterwards may be feen 2 Maccab. 5. 8 2 Maccab. 4. |