I took notice above of the just censure that Josephus had paffed on the Greek writers, for not being fufficiently attentive to the truth; but endeavouring to make their hiftories rather agreeable than authentick. I am forry to say of Josephus, that, as he manifeftly imitates the Greeks in other refpects, fo he too frequently copies them in this: and is liable to have what he imputes to them retorted upon himself. He is too apt to accommodate his history to the difpofition of the very people he blames: and fometimes does not fcruple to facrifice his veracity to the taste of the times that he lived in. This juftice muft, however, be done him; that in the main he is a very useful hiftorian: and, in refpect to the age he lived in, and the circumstances that came under his own cognizance, he seems to have used great diligence and impartiality; and his accounts are very interesting and true. Hence Bochart's character of him may be fairly admitted: who, after having mentioned fome miftakes that he had found in him, concludes, however, with a compliment to his merit. Tot Josephi σQαλμaτa tam paucis verbis docent illi fcriptori fidem non effe temere adhibendam, cum verfatur in exoticis. Alioqui enim fatendum eft nos illi plurimum eo nomine debere, quòd fuæ gentis hiftoriam fummâ fide et fedulitate fcripferit.

It is manifeft from what has preceded, that the place allotted to Onias was not at Heliopolis, as has been pretended. It is called by Jofephus and others xwga Ove; and it's true fituation is defcribed in that paffage where Mithridates marches from Pelufium to Memphis. 3 Before he could get to

2 Geogr. Sacr. pars prior. Lib. 2. Cap. 26.

the

3 of Antiq. Jud. Lib. 14. Cap. 8. We find that the Jews at Heliopolis (the fame as Onium) were fo very numerous, that they withstood Mithridates Pergamenus at the head of his army, and difputed with him the paffage into Egypt: διεκωλυον οι Ιεδαίοι Αιγύπτιοι, δι την Ονια λεγομενην Xupar HATOSHUTES.. Such was the ftate of the place, which was inhabited by the Jews. Let us turn to the other city of the fame name. Strako paid a vifit to it, and speaks of it's former fplendour: but fays that,

when

the laft place, the Jews of Onium, δι την Ονια λεγομένην χωραν και TOUTES, stopt him in his march. His rout was not through the land of Egypt; but, as we are told afterwards, To AλTα WEBIEROWV: fo that Onium was exterior in refpect to Egypt: which fituation is agreeable to that which is allotted it both in the Itinerary, and by Ptolemy. I have fhewn that the true name of it was Onium; which was fo fimilar to the antient On or Heliopolis, that it began to obtain that name. This was caught at, and propagated induftriously. Many of the Jews were very averse to the erecting this temple; and held it as much in abhorrence as that on mount Gerizim. For the fake of fuch the prophecy was appealed to; and, with a very slight alteration, made to fpeak a language to the purpose. And, to give the place a proper antiquity, they pretended it was called Heliopolis of old; inserting in the tranflation of the 4 Seventy,

among

when he saw it, it was quite ruinous and defolate: JUDI MED OUD 851 TXVERNpos moxis. Vol. 2. pag. 1158. He could not have said this, if it had been the place where the Jews lived, and were so numerous. He moreover mentions the antient temple at Heliopolis, and the apartments of the priests, and particularly those where Plato and Eudoxus ftudied; but fpeaks of the whole as little frequented. Some few priests remained; but of a lower denomination, who ftill facrificed there, and performed the more fervile offices: but the antient priesthood and college were no more. Could this poffibly be the place where the Jews founded their temple? where the law of Mofes was observed, and the Jewish rites celebrated? It is plain that there were two places of the fame name; and that Onium was not the antient Heliopolis.

4 The translation of the Seventy is certainly of great fervice, and fhould be allowed it's weight. But, as it ought not to be undervalued; fo neither should it be over-rated, nor brought into competition with the original. In the preface to the Vatican copy, published at Rome, the editors fpeak of the first tranflators as infpired perfons. Conftat enim eos Interpretes, natione quidem Judæos, doctos verò Græcè-Spiritu Sancto plenos, facra Biblia interpretatos effe. And again; Septuaginta Interpretum editio -instinctu quodam divinitatis elaborata.-Septuaginta Interpretes Spiritus Sancti auctoritatem fecuti ediderunt. After all, there are many grofs miftakes in it and it not only varies fometimes from the Hebrew, but from itself; the interpretation being neither uniform nor true.

S

This

tranf

On,

among the cities built by the Ifraelites for Pharaoh, “ "which is Heliopolis." Which name however it never received, till after it was built; and then, through a mistake that they took advantage of. So that this prophecy was never thought of previous to it's being founded; nor introduced to encourage the work: but was made use of by Onias and his friends to establish the temple when finished, and to sanctify their proceeding.

That it was generally called Onium, may be likewife gathered from the strange mistake that took it's rife from this name. For the Greeks in Egypt, hearing that the chief temple of the Jews was called Oviov, Onium; and, as I have often observed, catching at every fimilitude of found; imagined that this name was derived from the Greek word ovos; which in their language is well known to fignify a particular animal. They therefore concluded that they had found out the fecret object of the Jewish worship; and that all their devotion was paid to an 5 afs. This notion was foon propagated: and it was afferted, that in the vestibule of every Jewish temple there was an ass's head. Hence those fatyrical verses;

6 jura, verpe, per Anchialum; i. e. afinum.

and in another place,

7 Judæus licet et porcinum numen adoret,

Et Cilli fummas devocet auriculas ; fc. afini.

Nor did this ridicule ftop here: it reached even the Chriftians; between whom and the Jews there was a wide disparity: but the Greeks did not trouble themselves to find out the diffe rence. Hence arose that idle and blasphemous notion about the

tranflation is supposed to have been made in the reign of Ptolemy Philadelphus: but it certainly was not all done at one time, nor by the fame hand. See Prideaux's Connection. Part. II. Book. I.

5 Tanaq. Fabr. Epift. Criticæ. Spanheim is of a contrary opinion; and Hafæus in his treatise de Onolatreid, which I have not seen.

6 Mart. Lib. 11. Epigr. 95.

7 Petron. Fragmenta.

the God of the Chriftians, Deus Chriftianorum Onochoirites; and the title that was given them of Afinarii. They likewife had the credit, as well as the Jews, of having an afs's head in their churches for an object of their worship. All which took it's rife from the name of this temple, and the mistakes in confequence of it.

As this temple was built in imitation of that at Jerusalem, so it survived it not long: and there seems to have been fomething extraordinary' in it's catastrophe. Our bleffed Saviour and the prophets had foretold the ruin of the Jewish nation, and the destruction of their temple at Jerufalem: which temple Vefpafian had been very defirous of faving, but could not prevent it's being destroyed. For it was the determined will of God, which he had declared by the prophets, that the daily facrifice should cease, and the Jewish polity be no more. If the temple of Onias had remained, this decree might in fome measure have appeared to have been evaded; and the prophecies would have been rendered lefs complete. It was fituated fo remotely; and was fo obfcure, that one would have imagined it could not have alarmed the jealousy of the Romans, nor have deserved their notice. Vefpafian, however, was moved to destroy it; and, hearing of fome difturbances among the Jews, gave orders for it's demolition: acting herein as an inftrument of God's vengeance, to the confummation of these prophecies upon the Jewish nation; which were thus far fully completed.

8

8 Δεισας [Καισαρ] μη παλιν εις εν αθρόοι συλλεγωσι προσέταξε τῳ Λόπῳ του εν τη Ονια καλυμένη νεων καθελειν των Ιεδαίων. fof. Bell. Jud. Lib. 7. Cap. 10. Some defer the destruction of it to the reign of Trajan. The temple upon mount Gerizim had been deftroyed long before; probably when Hyrcanus took Samaria. See Jof. Bell. Jud. Lib. 1. Cap. 2.

OF THE

SHEPHERDS IN EGYPT,

AND THE

LAND OF GOSHEN.

Y endeavour has been, throughout this argument, to fhew that there were no provinces of lower Egypt to the east of the Nile; which I have been obliged to prove by all poffible means. As many of the antients speak of provinces in those parts; and all the moderns place the Arabian nomes there; without knowing that there were two cities of the fame name; they have caused great confusion in the geography of Egypt. Ptolemy feems to speak only of one Arabian nome, Phaccufa: but, as others add to it both Heliopolis and Bubaftus; and they are all three referred alike to that part of the world; I shall join them together. It is to be observed, that these are the only provinces that have been stiled Arabian. It may therefore be asked, how they came to have this particular mark of distinction; to which at first fight they seem to have little pretenfion? There were many prefectures downward upon the Pelufiac branch of the Nile, that were rather more advanced towards Arabia: and there were others above, that were really fituated in that country, and yet not termed Arabian. Whence then came the provinces we are speaking of, above all others, to be thus denominated, and to be

Μ My endeavour res bren,

con