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fuch vaft difficulties, and dreadful perfecutions, defigns their converfion in his own time to be altogether as miraculous as that of the heathen world. When that glorious and happy time will come is one of thofe infcrutable fecrets, which God hath been pleafed to referve in his own difpofal: altho? we cannot read the facred books of the Old and New Testament with any attention, without obferving indifputable promifes of their call and total converfion. But, as this laft is out of our province, we fhall readily refer our readers to thofe many and learned treatifes which have been written on the fubject, particularly those which the reader will find in the margin ; whilft we confine ourselves to what more properly relates to The chief their hiftory, their difperfion over the world, their various fubject of fettlements in the east and weft, their fufferings, their learned this hiftomen and writings, falfe Meffiahs and miracles, their academies . and famed profeffors, their difputes with Chriftians and other nations, as well as among themfelves: likewife to fuch material occurrences as have happened to them fince the deftruction of their city and temple, by the Romans, to the clofe of the foregoing century, beginning with thofe who retired immediately after the fad catastrophe into the eaftern, and ending with thofe who fettled in the western, parts of the world, from which they came to be diftinguifhed into eaftern and weftern Jews (A).

BY

a A&si. 7. b Vid. int. al. JOSE. MEDE, JURIEU, MEKLING, RHUD, and a late-treatife on the restoration of the Jews and Ifrael. Bishop SHERLOCK on Prophecy, & al. plur.

(A) We must here take no tice to our readers, that, by this distinction, we do not mean that ancient one which was made between the Jews, who were tranfplanted beyond the Euphrates; and whofe fituation being easterly from thofe of Judea, Syria, Egypt, &c. were called eaftern, and thefe weftern. But,by the former, we mean thofe who have difperfed themfelves thro' the eastern part of the world, fuch as Turky, Perfia, Egypt, Palestine, &c.; and, by the latter, or weftern, thofe who have been, or ftill are, tolerated in Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, England, Germany, and other

provinces of Europe, where they
have had, or ftill have, very
confiderable fettlements.

Befides this diftinction, the
European Jews divide them felves
into northern and fouthern; the
former of whom, being those
who for many ages lived in Ger-
many, Denmark, Poland, and
other northern provinces. not
only differ in their liturgy, ce-
remonies, and in fome of their
tenets; but, being more strict
adherers to them, do hate and
defpife the fouthern ones, which
are thofe chiefly of Spain and
Portugal, who are not only more
remifs in all thefe refpects, but,
go even fo far as to make out-

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By this vaft scope of time, place, and matter, which this chapter comprehends, the reader will eafily imagine, that we do not intend to give a full and regular history of the whole nation in every place of their difperfion, much less a chronological one through every age to this time, which would rather require fome volumes; and, confequently, can have no place in a work fo comprehenfive as this. Neither would the greater part of it be either inftructive or delightful to him, as most of our knowlege of it is fetched from the Jewish writers: who are justly noted not only for their more than ordinary partiality to their own, and hatred as well as contempt for other nations, but likewise for their constant dealing in the most palpable falfhoods and abfurdities. In reality, they outdo all the fabulous writers in the number, variety, and extraordinarinefs, of their miracles and furprising events; the fublime character of their doctors, Saints, and martyrs; the exaggerated defcriptions of their schools, academies, and cities, their riches, populoufnefs, and a vast number of other pretences. The whole calculated indeed to raise the credit of the Jewish nation above Their chro- all others, even under all the difadvantages lately mentioned; nology very but in effect these stupendous stories are couched in fuch poimperfect; fitive and unguarded terms, and with fuch magifterial confi

dence, as ferves rather to expofe either their impofture or credulity (B). To this if we add, that they are the most wretched

ward profeffion of popery in
thofe countries, for the fake of
enriching themselves; and fcru-
ple not to go to mafs, to con-
feffion, to worship the hoft, cross,
relicks, &c.; or even to take
priestly orders among them, and
enter themselves into their con-
vents, as we shall have further
occafion to hint in the fequel.

(B) To give at once a fatif-
factory proof of this, we fhall
fubjoin fome inftances of it by
way of fpecimen to the reft.
First, most of their eminent
men, either for fanctity or learn-
ing, have not only been very
converfant in miracles, but their
very conception and birth have
been accompanied or preceded
by fome fignal prodigy; whilft

their lives, and even deaths, have been fignalized with a much greater number and variety of them.

We begin with the famed Simeon Fochaides, the pretended author of the book of Zohar, faid to have lived a little before the deftruction of Jerusalem; and the first who ventured to write down the fublime myfteries of the Cabbala, which had, till then, been only conveyed by the angels unto the patriarchs, till Mofes; and by him revealed to the feventy elders, from whom it paffed from mouth to mouth unto his days, when he undertook, for the first time, to commit them to writing in the book above-named, as we

wretched chronologifts, not only in the imperfect calculations very often

have had occafion already to mention in a former part (†). They tell us, among other things, that he and his fon did, in fome miraculous manner, efcape the cruely of the emperor Titus, who had condemned them to die; and went and hid themfelves in a cavern, where they found leisure to write the book above mentioned, not without the affiftance of the prophet Elijah, who was fent to him, from time to time, by God, to explain to him fuch mysteries of that divine fcience as were above his reach. The book thus miraculoufly compiled, Simeon came forth to communicate the contents of it to fuch difciples of his as were fit to receive thofe fublime mysteries; and whilft he was uttering them, fuch a refplendent light filled the whole house, that they were not able fo much as to caft their eyes on him; and at the fame time a fire furrounded the place, which kept all other perfons from coming in. At length, the double miracle ceased; by which they perceived, that the light of Ifrael was gone out; upon which, one difciple kiffed his hand, another his feet, and vaft numbers came to attend and honour his fune.

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on his being let down into the grave, another voice was heard, faying, This is he who hath caufed the earth to quake, and the kingdoms to tremble. These are fome of the wonders, they tell you, of the author of the Zobar, whom they look upon as the chief of all the Cabalifts; altho' his book doth not appear to have been so much as known among the Jews till 1000 years after.

Nor are they less lavish of their prodigies, even to fome of their ancient doctors; whom the nation ought rather not only to have been afhamed of, but to have even execrated, for their impoftures, and for the dreadful calamities which those brought upon them.

Of this number was their famed Akiba, who set up for the forerunner of the false Meffiah Coziba, who appeared under Adrian, and took upon him the name of Bar-Chochab, the fon of a star; and of whom we shall have occafion to speak more fully in the fequel. Akiba, according to them, was defcended from Sifera, general of Jabin, king of Tyre, by a Jewish mother (1), who had kept the flocks of a rich inhabitant of Jerufalem 40 years, when his daughter became enamoured of him; and, being afhamed to marry an obfcure fhepherd, advised him to go and fpend 12 years in ftudy at fome academy, which our author does not name; and, upon his promife of doing fo, was privately. married to him (2). He went

(t) See ancient biftory, vol iii. p. 5. note (B). P. 99. (2) Ex Ketubotb, fol. 62. ap. Vegenfeil in

(1) Gantz Tzemach Dazid, 10 p. 312.`

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of time, in which they vaftly differ from us and other nations,

accordingly; and, at the end of 12 years, brought home 12,000 difciples; at fight of whom, the bad him go again another 12 years; at the end of which he came home to her with 24,000. She met him in tears, and, with her cloaths rent, told him, that her father had difinherited her on his account. However the old man had no fooner fet his eyes on him but he altered his mind, fell on his knees before his fon-in-law, and bestowed a handfome fortune on him. What they add, concerning the death of his pretended 24,000 difciples, who died every one between the feafts of Eafter and Whitfuntide, for fome misbehaviour to each other, and their being all buried in a valley near Tiberias along with their mafter and his first wife, is no lefs extraordinary.

As to his learning and writings, they tell us wonders of them (3): they affert that he could account for the leaft tittle in the facred books. They even add, that God had revealed things to him which he had concealed from Mofes; and that the Mishna and Talmud have collected 1000 of his fentences, which are elteemed fo many judicious and infallible decifions: moreover that, a large volume would hardly contain all the memorable things which he wrote and did (4). They alfo affirm, that he was permitted to enter into paradife, as well as the famed Rabbi Afai, to whom he was to give his fifter in mar

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riage. Thefe are fome of the wonders which they tell us of the celebrated Akiba, who was nevertheless the pretended forerunner and ftrenuous fautor of that falfe Meffiah, whose impofture brought as great a deftruction on the Jewish nation under Adrian, as their former had been under Titus. This we fhall fee in the fequel, where we shall take notice of the fad catastrophe of both by order of that emperor.

In like manner they extol feveral of his difciples, particularly those who follow Rabbi Judah, the fon of Elai, not only for having been the prince of orators, but much more fo for not having committed one fingle fin during his whole life. He became the chief of an academy, and his comment on Leviticus, is ftiled, by way of excellence, the Book. He fafted moft of the year, lived upon herbs and roots; and was rank ed among their greatest faints after his death: infomuch that his tomb, which they place on a hill covered with olive-trees, near the little town of Zaithun in Galilee, was vifited and revered by all the Jewish devotees.

R. Chanina, the fon of Chachinai, another of Akiba's difciples in the fame reign, and one of the five judges of the Jewish tribunal at Japhnen, is reported to have married when young, but to have left his wife and home to ftudy the law; to which he applied himself with

(3) Ex Ketuboth, fol. 62, ap. Vagenfeil in 701, 312. in Jucbafin, p. 62.

(4) Zaccbut

fuch

as the reader may 'fee by the short account which we shall

;

fuch affiduity, that, upon his return, he neither knew his wife, houfe, nor family. Another, named Eleazer Ghifma, became fo profound an arithmetician, that he could calculate the drops of water that were in the fea (5). We omit feveral others of lefs note to come at the most celebrated of them, called, by way of excellence, Mehir, or inlightner, and was ftiled, the light of the learned, as his master Akiba was the light of the world which title defcended likewife on his difciple Judah Hakkodesh, or the faint of whom we shall have further occafion to speak. Mehir married a wife who became more learned than he, and whofe decifions bear a much greater authority; infomuch that she is reckoned in the rank of the Tanaites, one of the higheft claffes of their doctors. She has left 300 traditions,which she had learned from 30, or, according to others, 300, mafters. She one day, among the reft, took upon her to correct one of her husband's interpretations in fuch a manner as difplayed, if not a greater judgment, at least a higher degree of charity; for fome loofe fellows having by their noife interrupted him in his ftudy, Mehir immediately pronounced a curfe against them out of the civth Pfalm Let the finners be confumed out of the earth, &c. verfe ult.; upon which fhe checked him with fome emotion, telling him, that the curfe of the Pfalmift was levelled against the fins, and not against the finners; for that if the for

mer were routed out of the world, there would be none of the latter left in it (6). It is pity his refentment caufed her end

to prove difhonourable and tragical to her. For we are told, that fhe fuffered herfelf to be fo far deluded by one of her husband's difciples, who acted in concert with him, as to appoint a private meeting with him, in which being caught, and unable to outlive her dif grace, he went and hanged herfelf; foon after which, Mehir married another, which he took care fhould not eclipse his fame as this had done.

All these, as was lately obferved, were the difciples of Akiba above-mentioned; and this sketch of the surprising things which the Jewish Rabbies have wrote of them, will fuffice to give our readers an idea of their fwollen ftile and fondnefs for the fabulous fublime, We fhall only add, what they fay farther of the famed uni. verfity of Bether, or Bither, in which their mafter and his falfe Meffiah had refuged themselves against the army of the emperor Adrian; and which had 400 fchools or colleges, each college 400 profeffors, and each profeffor 400 difciples; all which formed fuch a potent army, that the defence they made against the Romans made not only Judea, but the whole earth to quake; there being none of them but was tout enough to pluck up a cedar by the root upon a full gallop.

(5) Bartolos Bibl. Rabin. tom. iii. p. 271. Wolf. fub voc. & alib. poff. (6) Gantz Tzemach, Wagens, ub. fup. p. 3co. See alfo Wolf. Bibl. Rab. fub voc.

MOD. HIST. VOL. XIII.

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