luvian world, which seems to have been over-run with a complication of all manner of debauchery and wickedness, and above all with violence and injuftice towards one another. The eaftern authors affirm that the children of Seth were feduced to idolatry by the Cainites". Things being in this ftate, God, as the facred hiftorian pathetically expreffes it, "repented that he had made man on earth, and it grieved him at his heart." And the time of forbearance being elapfed, he paffed the fentence of their utter deftruction by a flood of waters; a fentenec which likewife included the beafts of the earth, and every creeping thing, and of the fowls of the air. But "Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord," who had before acquainted him with his defign of bringing a deluge on the earth; and directed him to make an ark, or veffel, of a certain form and fize, capable of containing not only himself and family, but fuch numbers of animals of all forts, as would be fufficient to preferve the several fpecies, and again replenish the earth, together with all neceffary provifions for them. All these injunctions Noah performed; and, by God's peculiar favour and providence, he and those that were with him, furvived this tremendous calamity. This event, the most extraordinary that is recorded in hiftory, must be the subject of a future discourse, after we shall have taken a view of what the profane writers offer us towards the hiftory of this period. Accounts of antediluvi an affairs bejdes that of Mofes. Sanchonia tho's Pho nician hif tory. SECT. VI. The Profane Hiftory before the Flood. BESIDES the particulars in the preceding fection, taken from the writings of Mofes, we have fome farther accounts relating to this period, tranfmitted to us by ancient authors; particularly those who have recorded the Phoenician, Babylonian, and Egyptian antiquities. Sanchoniatho, who wrote the Phoenician antiquities, began his hiftory from the origin of the world and of mankind; but his work being apparently written with a defign to apologize for idolatry, instead of deducing the hiftory from Adam in the line of Seth, the worshippers of the true God, he has, according to the most probable hypothefis (R), given us that of the idolatrous line of Cain n; that the religion patronized by this author, or those he transcribed, might appear to be introduced by the elder branch, a circumftance which they might think gave it no fmall luftre and reputation. In this author we find not the least mention of the deluge; an omiffion fo extraordinary, confidering the great antiquity of this record, and the country where it was written, that it has been adduced as a strong prefumption against the credibility of a general deluge. I.. Sanchoniatho, having delivered his cofmogony, or ge- Generation neration of the other parts of the world, begins his hiftory of mankind with the production of the first pair of mortals, whom Philo, his tranflator, calls Protogonus and Eon, the latter of whom found out the food which is gathered from trees. II. Their iffue were called Genus and Genea, and dwelt in Generation Phoenicia but when great droughts came, they ftretched forth their hands to heaven towards the fun (S), for him they thought the only god and lord of heaven, calling him Beelfamen, which in Phoenician is lord of heaven, and in Greek Zeus. III. From Genus, the fon of Protogonus and on, other Generation mortal iffue was produced, whofe names were Phos, Phur, and Phlox, that is, Light, Fire, and Flame. These found out the way of generating fire by rubbing pieces of wood against each other, and taught men the ufe thereof. They begat fons of vaft bulk and height, Generation whofe names were given to the mountains on which they feized: fo from them were named mount Caffius and Libanus, Antilibanus and Brathys. IV. V. Of these last were begotten Memrumus, and Hypfura- Generation nius, so named by their mothers, the women of those times, who lived in the moft brutal ftate of proftitution. Hypfuranius inhabited Tyre, where he invented the art of making huts with reeds and rufhes, and the papyrus. He fell at variance with his brother Ufous, who first invented a covering for his body made of the skins of wild (R) Viz. that of bishop Cumberland. (S) This feems to have been the first introduction of idolatry, which began with the worship of the fun feveral of Cain's defcendents added other methods of idolatrous worship, diftinctly set down by this au- beafts. Generation Generation VII. Generation VIII. Generation IX. beafts. He made a raft of boughs, and was fo bold as to venture upon it into the fea. He alfo confecrated two rude ftones, or pillars, to fire and wind, and he worfhipped them, and poured out to them the blood of fuch wild beafts as had been caught in hunting. But in procefs of time, ftumps of wood, and pillars were also confecrated to them, and they were worshipped as deities. Many years after this generation, came Agreus and Halieus (T), the inventors of the arts of hunting and fishing, from whom huntsmen and fishermen are named. They begat two brothers, the inventors of iron and of the forging thereof; one of these called Chryfor (U), the fame with Hephæftus, or Vulcan, exercifed himself in words, and charms, and divinations; he found out the hook, bait, and fishing-line, built light boats, and was the first of all men that failed: wherefore he also was worshipped after his death for a god, and they called him Zeus Michius, or Jupiter the Engineer; and fome say his brothers invented the art of making walls of brick. From this generation proceeded two brothers, one of them called Technites, or the Artift; the other, Geinus Autochthon, the Home-born Man of the Earth. Thefe found out the art to mingle ftubble (X), or fmall twigs, with the clay of which they made bricks and tiling. One of their pofterity was called Agrus (field), and the other Agrouerus, or Agrotes (Y) (husbandman), who (T) Thefe names are Greek, and therefore tranflated by Philo from eaftern names of like import. All that can be understood of this age is, that the arts or employments here mentioned were then much improved: for Ufous was a huntfman before. (U) Bochart's origination of this name from Chores-ur, which he renders ПugTexts, an artificer by fire, is not improbable. Yet bishop Cumberland rather derives it from a fimple root charas, to beftir one's felf vigorously, to cut, &c. from whence xpicos, beaten or cut gold, is allowed to come, and why not Chryfor? fince it had differs only in termination; and compofitions must not be admitted in eastern words without neceffity. (X) Technites feems to be a tranflation of the eaftern name Malachi, from malaca, workmanship, art. The other, Geinus, fignifying carthy, has fome affinity with Epher and Ephrow, Canaanitish names, probably used by Sanchoniatho. (Y) This generation is remarkable, because to the men thereof the first statue, or idol to be worshipped, and the first temple we read of, was erected in Phoenicia; a fmall temple, or rather tabernacle; it was had a ftatue much worshipped, and a temple carried about by one or more yoke of oxen in Phoenicia; and among thofe of Byblus he is eminently called the greatest of the gods. Thefe firft made court-yards about men's houses, fences, and caves or cellars. Hufbandmen, and fuch as ufe dogs in hunting, derive their origin from thefe; and they are alfo called Aletæ and Titans. Of these were begotten Amynus and Magus (Z), who taught men to conftitute villages, and feed flocks. In this age there was one Eliun, which imports in Greek, Hypfiftus (the most high); and his wife was named Beruth, who dwelt about Byblus; and by him was begotten one Epigeus, or Autochthon, whom they afterwards called Uranus, (heaven). He gave his name to that element which is over us, and by reason of its excellent beauty, is called heaven; and he had a fister of the fame parents called Ge (the earth), and by reason of her beauty, the earth from her took its denomination. Hypfiftus, the father of thefe, being flain by wild beafts, was confecrated, and his children offered facrifices and libations to him. But Uranus taking the kingdom of his father, married his fifter Ge, and had by her four fons; Hus, who is called Chronus (or Saturn); Betylus; Dagon, who is Siton, or the god of corn; and Atlas; but by other wives Uranus had much iffue. The Babylonian antiquities were collected by Berofus, Berofus's a Chaldean by birth, who lived in the time of Alexander Babylonian the Great. But of that work we have now remaining antiquities. only fome few fragments, the fubftance of which, so far as comes within the prefent period, we here subjoin. z Alex. Polyhift. apud Syncell. p. 28. like that of Moloch and his ftar Chiun, or Remphan, and drawn by oxen; in the fame manner as the ark, or epitome of God's tabernacle, was fent home by the Philiftines, fucceffors to the old Phoenicians in their religion and country. The names of these men import gods of husbandry, as Pan, Pales, and Sylvanus, among the Greeks and Romans. Bifhop Cumberland gueffes, that in Sanchoniatho, the perfon whom Philo ex- (Z) Amynus feems to im- After Manner of men's ac After a defcription of Babylonia, he writes, that in the firft year there appeared out of the Red Sea, at a place quiring the knowlege near the confines of that country, a certain irrational of arts and animal (A) whose name was Oannes. His body was like fciences. that of a fish, but beneath his fifh's head another grew; he had alfo feet like a man, which proceeded from the fish's tail, and a human voice, according to the picture of him which was preferved to the time of our author. This animal converfed with men in the day, without eating any thing; he communicated the knowlege of letters, arts, and sciences; he taught men to dwell together in cities; to erect temples; to introduce laws; and inftructed them in geometry; he likewise fhewed them how to gather feeds and fruits; and, in fhort, imparted to mankind whatever was neceffary and convenient for a civilized life. When the fun fet, this animal retired into the fea again, and stayed there in the night, being of the amphibious kind. After him there appeared several other animals of the fame form, mentioned in the enfuing hiftory. This Oannes did not deliver his inftructions by word of mouth only, but wrote of the origin of things, and of political economy 2. Antedilu vian kings of Chaldea. Other authors have alfo made mention of this Oannes. Helladius calls him Oes, and agrees in general with the foregoing account; but adds, that he had hands, as well as the head and feet of a man; that it was reported he was produced from the primigenial egg, as his name testified (B); and that he was in reality no more than a man, though he feemed to be a fifh, because he was completely dreffed in a fifh's fkin., Hyginus likewise writes, that Euahanes, a name not very diftant from Oannes, came out of the sea in Chaldea, and explained aftrology. Berofus proceeds to give us a feries of ten kings who reigned in Chaldea before the flood; but as there are a Alex. Polyhift. ex Berofo, apud Syncell. p. 28. (A) The Greek is below, it may feem a folly to pavov; but the fequel plainly offer at any explanation of fhews him to have been no- them. By their coming up thing lefs than irrational: fome out of the sea, it is most procorruption may therefore very bable they were strangers, and justly be fuppofed. arrived in Chaldea by fhipping. As to the names of Oannes and Annedotus given to this perfon, and thofe of the fame appearance who are mentioned (B) An called oon. egg in Greek is fome |