{b)Straba,SiZ.'\ Book XVL after theDefcription of the Lake Afphaltitis: *' There are many •* Signs of this Country's be- *' ing on Fire i for about Ma- " fada they (how many cragged *' and burnt Rocks, and inma- ** ny Places Caverns eaten in, ** andGround turned into Alhes, '* drops of Pitch falling from *' the Rocks, and running Wa- " ters {linking to a great Di- *' ftance, and their Habitations ** overthrown; which makes ** credible a Report amongft ** the Inhabitants, that former- ** ly there was thirteen Cities " inhabited there, the chief of •• which was Sodomy fo large as " to be fixty Furlongs round; ** but by Earthquakes and Fire ** breaking out, and by hot ** Waters mixed with Bitumen ** and Brimftone, it became a ** Lake, as we now fee it; " the Rocks took Fire, fome " of the Cities were fwal- " lowed up, and others for- ** faken by thofe Inhabitants " that could flee away.'* [c] Tacitus, &c.] In the Fifth Book of his Hiftory: ** Not far from thence, are ** thofe Fields, which are re- " ported to have been former- ** ly \Qry fruitful, and had *' large Cities built in them, " but they were burnt by " Lightning; the Marks of " which remain; in that the '* Land is of a burning Na- ** ture, and has loll its Fruit- ^rfulnefs. For every thing *^ that is planted, or grows of ** itfelf, as foon as it is come ** to an Herb or Flower, or " grown to its proper Bignefs, " vanifhes like Duft into nc- *« thing,".
58 Of the Truth of Book I.
J'acitus^ (a) Pliny^ (J?) Solinus fpeak of the of Sodom. (c) HerodotuSy Biodo- Burning rus.
{a) Pliny, &c.] He de- fcribes the Lake Afphaltitis, Book V. Chap. 16. and Book XXXV. Chap. 15.
{h) Solitius, &c.] In the 36th Chap, of Salmanus^ Edition: •' At a goodDiftance homje- **■ rufalem, a difmal Lake ex- *' tends itfelf, which was ftruck *' by Lightning, as appears from *• the black Earth burnt tq *' Alhes. There were tvvp " Towns there, one called *' Sodom, the other Gomorrah; ** the Apples that grow there, ** cannot be eaten, though " they look as if they were " ripe J for the outward Skin " inclofesakindcffootyAflies, •' which preffed by the leafi: *• Touch, flies out in Smoke, ■* and vanifnes into fine Duft.'* [i) Herodotus^ &c.] With fome little Millake. TheWords are in his Euterpe: •* Original- "•* Jy only the Colckia?is, and ** Egypt ianSf and Ethiopians ** v;ere circu-mcifed. For the ** Pcov?iicia/is tivA Syriarzs in •* Palefiiney COiifefs they learn- *■'- cdhfrothiheE^^ypiians And .** the Syrians Who dwell at ** Jhermoddon^ and on i\ie Far- ** ihenian River, and the ]V!a- ** cons their Neighbours, fay, '^ tiiey learnt it of the Cohhi- •* am. For thefe are the only •• Men ti»at are circunricifed, •' and in this particular agree *" with the Egyptians But " concerning the Ethiopians *' ^v^^Egyplians^ I caiinoulfirm •* pofitively, which learned it " of the other." Jofephus rightly obferves, that none were circumcifed in Pal^jiine Syria biit the Jeivsi in the Eighth Book, Ch. 14. ofhisancientHi- ilory, and Firfl Book againft Appion. Concerning which yenvSy "Juvenal fays, They take off their Forejkih; and Tacitus, That they injiituted circumcifing themfel-TjeSj that they might be knonvn by fuch dijlinhion: See Strabo, Book XVIL But the y^-xt/iare fo far fromconfeffing, that they derived this Cuftom from the Egyptians^ that, on the contrary, they openly de- clare, that the Egyptians learnt to be circumcifed of Jofeph, Neither were all the Egyptians circumcifed, as all the Je^s were, as we may fee from the Example of Appion, who was an Egyptian, in Jofephus. He- rodotus, undoubtedly put the Phcsnicians for the Iduma^ans % as Arifiophanes^QQ% in his Play, called the Birds, where he calls the Egyptians and Pha:ni^ cianSf The Circumcifed Ammo- nius, of the Difference of Words, fays, The Idumacans nicere not originally Jews, but Phoenicians «;?d' Syrians Thpfe Ethiopians which were circum- cifed, were of the Pofterity of Keturah, as (hull be obferved afterwards. The Colchians and their Neighbours, were of the. Ten Tribes thiit Salmanafar carried away, and from thence fome Seft. 1 6. the Chrijiian Religion, tfg rus (a), Straho {b\ Philo Bihlius {c), teftify the ancient Cuftom of Circumcifion, which is con- firmed by thofe Nations {d) defcended from Abra-^ ham^ not only Hebrews^ but alfo {e) Idtimaans^ IJmaeliteSy ibme came into Thrace. Thus the Scholiaft on Arijlophanes''^ A(. harnenfesy fays, That the Na- tion of the Odomants, is the fame as the Thracians; they are f aid to ^(? Jews. Where, by y<?wj, are to be underftood, improperly, Hebren.vs, as is u- fual. From the Ethiopians, Circumcifion went crofs the Sea into the New World, if it be .true what is faid of that Rite's being found in many Places of thatWorld. (The Learned dif- pute whether Circumcifion was inftituted firfi: amongft the E- gyptians Or amongft the Jeivs, concerning which fee my Notes upon Ger.ef. XVII. 30. LeClerc) [a] Diodorusy &C.] Book I. ,of the Colchians: ** That this Nation fprang from the E- Now fince the Hehrenvs were of old circumcifed j it no more follows from the Colchians be- ing ciicumcifed, that they fprang from the Egypt i an Sy than that they fprang from the • Hebrenvsy as we affirm they did. He tells us, Book III. that the Troglodites were cir- cumcifed, who were a Part of the Ethiopians.
{h) Strabo, &c.] Book XVr. concerning the Troglodites: Sofne of thefe are circumcifedy like the Egyptians. In the fame Book he afcribes Circum- cifion to the Jeivs, [c] Philo Biblius, Sec.'] In the Fable of Saturn, in Eufe- hius^ Book I. Chap. 10.
[d] Defcended from Abraham^ &c.] To which Abraham, that the Precept of Circumcifion, was firft of all given, Theodorus tells us in his Poem upon the Jeivs i out of which Eufebius has preferved thefe Verfes in his Gofpel Preparation^ Book *' gyptians\2iV)'r)t\iri from hence, ** that they are circumcifed af- •* ter the manner of the Egyp- •* tians } which Cuftom re- •♦ mains amongft this Colony, *' as it does amongft they^ivj.'* He nvhofrom Home the righteous Abraham brought. Commanded him and all his Houfe, <with Knife To circumcife their Forefkin. He obeyed, {e) Idumi^ans,SiC.']^oc2l\edi from Efai\ who is called Ov- er'^--oi OufoQs, by Philo Bihlius, His other Name was Edom^ which the Greeks tranllated " E J' 1/8^" h' Eruthrant fromvv hence comes the Erythr^an Sea, be- caufe the ancient Dominions of Efau^nA his Pofterity extended fo far. They who are ignorant of their Original, confound them, as we cbferved, with the 6o Of the Truth of Book I.
Jfmaelites (^), and others (^). The Hiftory of Ahrahaniy {hePhceniciafis. u4mmonius fays, the Idumaans were circum- cifed; and fo does JuJIin, in his Dialogue with Trypho; and Epiphanius againft i]\&Ebionites. Part of thefe were Homerites, who, Epiphanius againft the Ehionites tells us, were circum- cifed in his Time.
[a] Ifniaelites, &c.] Thefe were circumcifed of old, but on the fame Year of their Age as Ifmael. yofephus Book [.
Ch. 12 and 13. J Child nxjas horn to them, (viz. Abraham and Sarah) <when they ivere both 'Very oldy vjhich they circuMcifed on the Eighth Day; js, to circumcife after fo many Days. But the Arabians defer it 'Thirteen Tears; for Ifmael, ihe Father of that Nation y nvho nvas the Child of Abraham by his Concubine, nvas circumcifed at that Age. Thus Origen in his excellent Difcourfe againft Fate, which is extant in Eufe- And in the Greek Colleftion, whofe Title is (^/Ao^cstAta; *' I don't know how this ** can be defended, that •* there (hould be juft fuch a <* Pofition of the Stars, upon *' every one's Birth in Jud^a, ** that upon the Eighth Day •* they muft be circumcifed, " made fowe, wounded, lamed, ** and fo inflamed, that they •* wanttheHelpofaPhyfician, <* as foon as they come into •' the World. And that there «* jhould be fuch a Pofition of "the Stars to the Jfmaelites in *' Arabia, that they muft be •' all circumcifed when they ** are Thirteen Years old j for " fo it is reported of them.** Epiphanius, in his Difpute a- gainft the Ebionites, rightly explains thefe Ifmaelites to be the Saracens; for the Saracens always obferved this Cuftom, and the Turh had it from them. {b) And others, &c.] Namely thofe that defcended from Ke- turah, concerning whom, there is a famous Place of Alexander the Hiftorian in fofephus. Book I. Ch. 16. which Eufe- hius quotes in his Gofpel Prepa- ration, Book IX. Chap. 20. Cleodemus the Prophet, nvho is called Malchus, in his Rela- tion of the Jews, gi'ves us the jame Hiflory as Mofes their Laivginjer, viz. *' That Abra-^ " ham had many Children by " Keturah, to three of which *' he gave the Names, Afer, " Affer, and Afra. AJfyria is *' fo called from Affer \ and *' from the other two, Afer *' and Afra, the City Afra " and the Country Africa is *' denominated. Thefe fought " with Hercules againft hybia ** and Antaeus. Then Hercu- ** les married his Daughter to " Afra: He had a Son" of *' her, whofe Name was Deo^ " dorus, of whom was born Sa- *^ phov, whence the Barba- '* rians are called Sophaces.^"* Here the other Names, through the Fault of the Tranfcribers, neither agree with Mofes, nor with Sed. 1 6. the Chrijiian Rcllgmi, 6i Jbraham^ IfaaCy Jacob and Jofeph, agreeable with Mofes^ {a) was extant of old in {b) Pbilo Biblius out of Sanchuniathon^ in (c) Berofus^ {d) Heeat^us^ (e) Damafcenus with the Books o^Jofephus and EufebiuSy as we have them now. But 'A;p^f, is un- doubtedly the fame as ")Dj; jipher in Mofes. We are to underftand hy Hercules ^ not the Ihebean Hercules, but xHi^Phcs- nician Hercules, much older, whom Vhilo Biblius mentions, quoted by Eufebius often, in the forementioned loth Chap- ter of the Firft Book of his Go/pel Preparation. This is that Hercules, who Sallujl fays in his JugurthineW2iXy brought his Army into Africa. So that we fee whence ihcjEihiopians, who were a great Part of the Africans, had their Circumci- fion, which they had in Hero- 4otus\ Time; and even now, thofc that are Chriftians retain it, not out of a Religious Ne- ceflity, but out of Refped to fo antient a Cuftom.
{a) Was extant of old, &c.] Scaliger thinks that feveral things which Eufebius has pre- fer ved out of Philo Biblius, certainly relate to Abraham; fee himfelf in his Appendix to th.Q Emendation of Time. There is fome reafon to doubt of it. {b) Philo Biblius, Sec.'] How far we are to give Credit to Philo^sSanchuniathon, does not yet appear; for the very learn- ed Henry Dod^ell, has rendred his Integrity very fufpicious, in his Englijh Difiertation on ^an- chuniathon\ Phaznician fiilto- xy, publiihed at London, in the Year MDCLXXXI, tovvhofe Arguments we may add this; that in his Fragments, there is an abfurd Mixture of the Gods unknown to the Eajiern Gre- cians in the firll Times, with the Deities of the Phcenicians^ which the Streightnefs of Pa- per will not allow me to en- large upon. Le Clerc.
{c) Berofus, &c.] Jofephus has preferved his Words in his antient Hiftory, Book I. Ch.8. In the Tenth Generation after the Flood, there nvas a Man a" tnongfl the Chaldaeans, ivho^as 'very Jujl and Great, and fought after Heavenly Things. Now it is evident from Reafon, that this ought to be referred to the Time of Abraham.
{d) Hecataus, &c.] He wrote a Book concerning^^r^i- hani, which is now loll, but was extant in Jofephus'*^ Time. {e) Dav'.afcenus, &c.] iVif- colaus, that famous Man, who was the Friend o? Augujius and Herod, {omc of vvhofe Reliques were lately procured by that excellent Pcrfon, Nicholas Pet- refuis', by whofc Death, Learn- ing and Learned Men had a very great Lofs. The Words of this Nicolcius Damafcenus, Jofephus relates in the; forecited Place: *' Abraham reigned in ** Dumafcus, being a Stranger ** who came out of the. Land " of the Chaldeans, beyond ** Babylon-, and not long after, *• he and thofe that belonged 62 Of the Truth of Book 1 mafcenus^ {a) Art ap anus ^ Eupolemus^ 'DemetriUsi and partly (h) in the antient Writers of the Orphick Verfes •, and fomething of it is ftill extant in (c) Juftin^ out of Trogus Fompeius, ■ (d) By ahnoft all *' to him, went from hence " into the Land called Ca- *' naan, but now Jud^a, ** where he and thole that de- *• fcended from him dwelt, " of whofe Affairs I ihall treat ** in another Place. The ** Name o{ Abraham^ is at this ** Day, famous in the Country «« about Damafcus^ and they •* {how us the Town, which ** from him is called Abra- <* /J'flw's Dwelling."
[a] Ariapanm^ EupolemuSy &c.] Eufebius in his Prepara- tion, Book IX. Chap. i6, 17, i8, 21, 23. has quoted feveral Thing?, under thefe Mens Names, out of Alexander the Hiftorian, but the Places are too long to be tranfcribed; no body has quoted them before Eufebius. But the Fable of the Bethulia ns, which Eufebius took out of?hilo Bib litis, Pre- par. Book I. Chap. 10. came from the Altar of Bethel, built by Jacob, mentioned Gen. 36. {^) In the antient Writers, &c,] For certainly thofe that we find in Cletnens Alexandri- mis. Storm. V. and Eufebius, Book Xlir. Chap, i 2. can b© underftood of no other.
^he Maker of all Things is knonvn to nonty But One of the Chaldean Race, his Son Only begotten, <rvho ^vell underjiood, I'he fiarry Orb, and h^ nvhat La-ns each Star Moves round the Earth, embracing all Things in it.
Where Abraham is called 9nly Begotten, as in Ifaiah LI. 2. "THN Achad. We have before feen, in Berofus, that Abraham was famous for the Knowledge of Aftronomy; and Eupolemus, in Eufebius, fays of him; that he ivas the Inventor cf Aflronomy amongjl the Chal- deans.
(f) In Jujlin, &C.J Book XXXVI. Ch. 2. •' The Ori. " ginal of the Jenjus, was from ** Damafus, an eminent City ** in Syria, of which afier- •' wards Abraham and Ifraei " were Kings." Trogus Poin- peius calls them. Kings, as A7- colaus did; becaufe tr.ey exer- cifed a Kingly Power in theii* Families; and therefore they are called Anointed, Pf. CV.
[d] By almoflnll nvhich, d'c] See Eufebius in the foremen- tioned Book IX. Ch. 26, 27,- 28. Thofe things arc true, which are there quoted out of Tragicus fudaus Ezechiel, part: of which we find in Cle?nens Alexandrinus, Strom. I. who* reports out of the Books of the Priefts, SeS. 1 6. the Chrtftian Religion. 6^^ all which, is related alio the Hiftory of Mofes, and his principal Adls. The Orphick Verfes ex- prefsly mention {a) his being taken out of the Wa- ter, and the two Tables that were given him by God. To thefe we may add {b) Polemon: (c) And feveral Priefts, that an Egyptian was flain at Mofes's Word j and Strom. V. he relates fome things belonging to Mofes, out of Jrtapanus, tho* not very exaftly. yujiin, out of Tragus Pompeius, fays of Mofes, ** He *' was Leader of thofe that ** were banilhed, and took ** away the facred Things of ** the Egyptians; which they ** endeavouring to recover by ** Arms, were forced by a *' Tempell to return honrxe; ** and that Mofes having en- " tered into his own Country ♦* of Damafcus, took Pofleffion ** of Mount 5/««/&;" and what follows; which is a Mixture of Truth and Falfehood. Where we find Ar^vas written by him, it (hould be read Amas, who is Aaron f not the Son, as he imagines, but the Brother of MofeSy and a Prieft.
{a) His being taken out of tht Watery &c.] As the great 5'r«- liger has mended the Place; who with a very little Varia- tion of the Shape of a Letter, inftead of Jaoq/^^ik, hulogenes^ as it is quoted out oi Ari/iobu- lusy by Eufebiusy in his Gofpel Preparation. Book XIII. Ch. 1 2. bids us read vJ^oyiViic^ hu' dogeneSf Born of the Water^ So that the Verfes are thus; So nvas it fat d of Old, fo he commands Who* s born of Watery njoho received from Gad The t=tvo great Tables of the moral Lanxj.
The antient Writer of the Orphick Verfes, whoever h«e was, added thefe Words, after he had faid, that there was but one God to be worfhipped, who was the Creator and Go- vernor of the World.
[b] Polemon, &c.] He feems to have lived in the Time of Ptolemy Epiphanes', concerning which, fee that very ufeful Book of the famous Gerard Vofjiusy of the Greek Hillo- rians. Africanus fays, the Greek Hiftories were wrote by h?m; which is the fame Book Athen.'eusz^XW E.hKciS'iKov. His Words are thefe: "In the *' Reign of Apis the Son of ** Phoraneusy part of the Egyp* ** tiankxmy went out of Egypt, ** and dwelt in Syria, called ** Palefine, not far from Ara- *' bia.''' As Africanus "prefcTved the Place of Polemon^ fo Eufe- bius in his Chronology, pre- ferved that of ^/"r/r^?;?^.
(f) And federal Things, Sec,'] The Places are in Jojephus againft Appion, with abundance of feveral Things about his coming out of Egypti from the Egyptian Writers, Manetho^ Lyfima^ chus^ Cbaremon, Neither can any prudent Man think it at all credible, that Mofes^ (a) who had fo many Enemies, not only of the Egyptians^ but alfo of many other Nations, as the (J?) Idu^ m^eansy {c) Jrabians^ and {d) PhcenicianSy would venture to relate any thing concerning the Crea- tion of the World, or the Original of Things, which could be confuted by more antient Wri- tings, or was contradidtory to the antient and received Opinions: or that he would relate any thing of Matters in his own Time, that could be confuted by the Teilimony of many Perfons Perfons of Falfities, as coming from People who hated the Jeivs; and from hence Tacitus took his Account of them. But it appears from all thefecompared together, that the Hebreivs dc' fcended from the Ajfyriansy and poffefGng a great Part of Egypt, led the Life of Shep- herds; but afterwards being burthenM with hard Labour, they came out of ^gypt under the Command of Mofes, feme of the £'^y;5^/^;7j accompanying them, and went through the Country of the Arabians unto Palejiine Syria, and there fet up Rites contrary to thofe of the Egyptians: But Jofephus in that learned Book has furpri- zingly Ihown, how the Egyp- tian Writers, in the Falfities which they have, here and there, mix'd with this Hiftory, differ with one another, and fome with themfelves, and bow many Ages the Books of Mofes exceeds theirs in Anti- quity.
\a) Who had fo many Ene- mies, &c.] From whom they went away, by Force, whofc Laws the Je^ws abolifh'd Con- cerning the implacable Hatred of the Egyptians againft the "Jeivs, fee Philo againft F/«£-f«/, and in his EmhaJJy; and Jofe- phus in each Book againft Ap-^ pi on, [b] Theldum^ans,8cc] Who inherited the antient Hatred between Jacob and Efau j which was increafed from a new Caufe, when the Idu- maans denied the Hebreivs a PafTage, Numb. XX. 1 4.
(c) Arabians, Sec] Thofe, I mean, that defcended from Ifmael.
[d] Phoenicians, Sec] Namely, the Canaanites, and the neigh- bouring Nations, who had continual Wars with the Be- bre'vjs.
6eA. 1 6. the Chrijlian Religion, Perfons then alive. (^) Diodoriis Siculus, 65 and (l) [a) Diodorus Siculus, &C.] In his firll Book, where he treats ofthofe who made the Gods to be the Authors of theirLaws, he adds; Amongjithe Jews <:u/7x ^'iofes, 'who cdlled God by the Name of ^la.&t lao, where by 'Icti.', Ino, he means, mn* Jehovah, which was io pro- nounced by the Oracles, and in the Orphick Verfes men- tioned by the Ancients, and by the Bafilidian Hereticks, and other Gnoiticks. The fame Name the Tyrians, as we learn from PhiloBiblius, pronounced '*livc'\ leno. others 'Ic'.K, laoit^zs we fee in Clemens Jhxandrinus. ThtSamaritans pronounced it, "U'l^cc/, labai, as we read in Theodoret; for the Eafiern Peo- ple added to the fame Words, fome one Vowel, and fome an- other; from whence it it is that there is fuch difference in the proper Names in tlieOldTefta- ment. Fhilo rightly obferves, that this Word lignifies Exiji- ence. Befuics Diodorus, of thofe who make mention of Mofes^ the Exhortation to the Greeks^ which is afcribed to Ju/iin; v.zmesJppiany P/oIemy on Man- deJiuSf Uellanicus^ PhilochoruSy Cajior, Thallus, Alexander the llifiorian: And Cyril mtnuon^ iome of them in his firft Book again il Julian.
{b) Straboy&c] The Place is in the fixteenrh Book, where he thinks that ]}>I:/ej was an Egyptian Pridl; which he had from the Egyptian Writers, 2.1 apj^rs in Jo/ephus: Afterwards he adds his own Opi- nion, which has fome Mifiokej in it. *' Many who worfhip- ** ped the Dei:y, agreed with " him ( Mofes ) \ for he both " faid and taught, that the ♦* Egyptians did not rightly *' conceive of God^ when *' they likened him to wild •* Beafts and Cattle; nor th* ** Lybians, nor the Greeks, in ** refembling him by a hu- ^* man Shape; for God is no ** other than that Univerfe ** which furrounds us; the ** Earth, and the Sea^ and ** the Heaven, and the World, ** and the Nature ofallThings, " as. they are called by us. *' Who (fays he) that has any ** Underiianding, would pre- " fame to form any Image •* like to thefc things that are '* about us? Wherefore we *' ought to lay afide all carved *' Images, and worfbip him in •* the innermofti^artof aTem- *' pie worthy of him, withcut " any Figure." He adds, that this was the Opinion of good Men: He adds alfo, that facred Rites were inilituted by H.-ra, which were not burdenfoma for their Coillinefs.uor hateful, as proceeding from Madnefs. He mentionsCircumcifion, the Meats fhit were forbidden, ai d the like; and after he h?d fhovvn that Man was naturally defirous of civil Society, he tells u5, that it is promoted by Divine and Human Precepts, bat more cfFisdluaUy by Di- vine.
F F 66 Of the Truth of Book I.
Strabo^ and {a) Fliny^ (h) 7'acitus, and after them (c) Diqtiyftus Longifius^ (concerning Loftinefs of Speech) make mention of M<?/^j. (d) Befides the {a) Pliny, &C.] Book XXX. cfMagiciansnvhkhfpran? from Q\iVi^.l.fhereisa?iotherSeSi. Mofes. And Juvenal i Ihey learn, and keep, and fear the Jevvifh Lai-v, Which Mofes /« his fecret Volume gave.
{h) Tacitus, See.'] FliftoryV. the Tanchuma or llmedenu. Where, according to the Egyp- Mention is there made of the tian Fables, Mofes is called one of thofe that 'were banifhed.
(r) Dionyjius Longinusy &C.3 He lived in the lime of ^//:- relian the Emperor, a Favourite oiZenobia, Queen of the Pal- tnyrians. In his Book of the Sublime, after he had faid, that they who fpeak of God. ought to take care roreprefent him, as Great, and Pure, and without Mixture j He adds, ♦• Thus does he who gave •• Laws to the Jen.1'3, who wab *' an extraordinary Man, who ** conceived and fpoke worthi - " \y of the Power of God, •' when he writes in the B6- ** ginning of his Laws, God ** ipake: What r Let there'bs •* Light, and there Was Light. •• Let there be Plarrh, and 'it *' was (0^"^' Cha/cidi:;s t^Qk many Things out of Mofes,' of whom he fpeaks thus^j -"*^'Mc- **fgs was the wifeft of MeA, ^* who, as they fay, WaS en- ^ livened, not by human El6- •♦ quehce, but by Diviiie Itt- [dt BffdestheTalmWfpr,^'] In the Gemara, in the 'I'ltle, Concerning Oblations, and the Chapter, Jll the Oblatiifns of thf Synagogue, To which add chief of Pharaoh'' % Magicians, and their Difcourfe witn Mofes is related. Add alfo Numenius, BookllL concerning they*?wj: Eufehius quotes his Words, Book VIIL Chap. 8. •' Af- " rer-.vards Jamnes and Mam- *' bres, Egyptian Scribes, were ** thought to be famous for •* magical Aits, about the *' time that the Jezvs were ** driven out of Egypt; for •*' thefe were they who were ^' chofen, out of ihc?vlulritude *' of the Egyptians, to contend ** wixh Mufa^us the Leader of **the '/ff^cy, u Man very pbW- ^' erfulvvith God by Prayers; *' and they feemed to be able ^' to repel thoie fore Calami- *' ties which Weic brought •' upon Egypt by Mzfce-us^'' ■■Where Mojes'n Called Mufiay,^ Word very near it,a6isc^{lom- ary with the Greeks; as others Call feff.Sy Jafon; and Sai'l, Paul. Grigen againft Celfus re- fers as to the fame Place ofA«- meiiius, Artabanus in the fame Eufehius, Book I X Chap. 27. •Ciills them the Priefls of Mem- fhis. who were commanded by the King to be put to Death, if they did not t<^ things ecjual to M<}fesn Sed:. 1 6. the Chriftian Religion. 67 Talmudijis, {a) Plhiy^ and {h) Apuleius^ fpeak of Jamnes and Mamhres^ who refilted Mofes in £- gypt, (c) Some things there are in other Writers, and many things amongft the (d) Pythagoreans^ about ciied Place.
{b) Jpuhiusy &c.] In his fe- cond Apologetkk (c) Some things there are, Scz.*\ As in Strabo ^ Tacitus^ and Theophrajliis^ quoted by Por- phyry, in hisfecond Book againll eating living Creatures, where he treats of Priefts and Burnt- ofFerings; and in the fourth Book of the fame Work, where he fpeaks of Fillies, and other living Creatures^ that were for- bidden to be eaten. See the ]t*hceof Hecat^us, in 'Jofephus'^ firR Book againft Appioriy and in Eufehius'i Prepar. Book IX. Chap. 4. You have the Law of avoiding theCuftoms of llrange Nations, iny2f/?/«'sand7^aV//i's Hiftories -, of not eating Swines Flefh, in Tacitus, Jwvenal, Piutarch's Sympof iv. and Ma- fro^/«^ from the Ancients. In the fame place of Plutarch, j'ou will find mention of the Le^itesy and the pitching of the Tabernacle.
{d) Pythagoreans y 5^c.] Esr- tiiippui in the Life of Pythago- ras, quoted hyjofephas againft /Ippion, Book II. ** Thefe ** Things he faid and did, *' imitating the Opinion of the ** yeuji and '^Phracians^ and " transferring them to himfelf; *' for truly this Man took ** many Things into his own