TABLE OF THE THIRD AGE OF THE WORLD. Abraham came into Canaan, Terah being dead 2083 427 이 430 1921 Ishmael born in the 86th year of Abraham's age Isaac weaned at five years old, and Ishmael turned out Isaac takes Rebekah to wife in the 40th year of his age Abraham dies, being 175 years old, 15 years after Jacob's birth 2183 527 100 330 1821 2231 575 148] 282 1773 Jacob flies to Laban at 77 years old, and serves 20 years Joseph born of Rachel |2259 603 176 254 1745 Jacob returns to his father after 20 years' service with Laban .... 2265 609 182 248 1739 Joseph sold at 16 years old, and serves Potiphar Isaac dies 12 years after the selling of Joseph 2276 620 193 237 1728 225 1716 Joseph is presented to Pharaoh at 30 years of age. Jacob dies at 147 years old, having been in Egypt 17 years Levi dies. 2392 736 309 121 1612 Dialogue BETWEEN A PILGRIM AND SIMON CLEOPHAS, IN FOUR PARTS. PART II. Containing the Space of Six Hundred and Five Years, namely, from the Babylonish Captivity to the Nativity of our blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. The desolate state of the Jews in Babylon-Daniel's preservation -Cyrus obtains the Persian monarchy-Belshazzar slain-The Jews return from captivity-Death of Cyrus-Temple rebuilt -Prophecy sealed up-Account of queen Semiramis-Temple built on Mount Gerizim-Tyre taken by Alexander the GreatHe marches to Jerusalem-Ptolomy Lagus invades JudeaPtolomy Philadelphus translates the Bible into Greek-Antiochus Epiphanes puts Jerusalem to the sword-Antiochus' officer slain by Mattathias-Judas Maccabeus takes the command of the Jews-Defeats Antiochus Eupater-Nicanor slain-Conquests of the Roman arms-Onias builds a temple at Heliopolis in Egypt-Corinth and Carthage destroyed-The temple on Mount Gerizim demolished-The Jews compelled to eat their wives and children-The cruelty of Alexander Jamme—Aristobulus and Hyrcanus' bloody dispute-Commencement of the Roman monarchy-Jerusalem again molested by Antigonus Herod gains the kingdom PILGRIM. YONDER is the good old man already sitting on Mount Sion, with his silver beard. I wonder how he gets there so readily; for to me, from this plain here to the top of the hill seems not less than 800 feet perpendicular height. Then the way is encumbered with nettles and stones: but good will and zeal level all difficulties. I see his eye is towards me: and he seems ready to oblige me with a further account of the great events which he has treasured up in his memory. Good morrow, father! May the divine light shine on your heart, as the glorious sun now irradiates the earth. Cleophas. The best of wishes, son! But are not you late? Pilgrim. Why, indeed, in walking about the city, and viewing the noble remains, I had a little forgot myself. The multitude of grand ruins which now I perceive are haunted by owls, crows, and swallows, have whetted my desire to know the final conclusion of the history of a city, which once must have been of an amazing magnificence; and as you have related to me its vicissitudes till its first destruction, together with the carrying away of the children of Israel into Babylon, I could wish you would go on with some particulars of the state and condition of that people among their new masters. Cleophas. There it was where we broke off. You will naturally think in what plight those captives must have been, carried some hundred of miles from their own country. Every thing had now a different appearance; hills, rivers, fields, woods, animals, dress, customs. They were looked ou disdainfully, and their treatment was harsh. They saw dumb idols worshipped in contempt of the one God. Their own rites were the subject of mockery; they themselves insulted and ridiculed for worshipping a Deity who had not been able to protect them; this was an extreme affliction to the more considerate.Now they saw in themselves fulfilled what David had long before prophesied, that they should hang their harps on the willows, and think on Jerusalem with tears. They were stung to the heart for their profligate abuse of time in the days of prosperity.They lamented, wringing their hands: "Oh Jerusa lem, Oh! our sanctuary, how art thou laid waste and defiled! O good Jeremiah, how affectionately didst thou counsel and forewarn us; but we despised thee! Oh could we recover past time! Were we restored to our former state how would we behave! with what assiduity and fervour serve our God, love one another, and punctually observe all the ordinances of the law!" Vain remorse! and vows too probably arising only from a sharp sense of their wretchedness. They were now in the hands of the Chaldeans; to them they were to bow, them they were to serve, and submit to their caprice and haughtiness: And such irksome servitude would naturally obtrude on their minds the sad remembrance of their former abuses of God's goodness, their revels, their spectacles, their avarice, their oppression, their voluptuousness, their violences, their homicides, and other abominations. Stripped of their wealth they now saw in themselves all the miserable state of the poor whom their pitiless usury had exhausted; they felt in themselves the anguish which their blindness and obduracy had caused to the holy prophets, contemptuously turning the deaf ear to them. Now they grieved and vowed, wept and wailed when their case was irremediable. Pilgrim. I should rather think from your discourse, that it were much better for them to be thus chastised, than to have continued in a dissolute prosperity. Cleophas. That is no bad observation, son; for God permits all things to fall out for man's greatest good. It would have been better, had they never given occasion for such chastisement. Pilgrim. Agreed; but I have another question. Were they not compelled to worship the idols of their country? Cleophas. This opens a new scene of wonders. This king Nebuchadnezzar, had reduced the Ammonites, Moabites, Egyptians, and the whole coast of Lybia, as far as Spain: and ascribing such sig nal successes to Jupiter Belus, the idol of his ancestors, he erected to it a huge golden image, with a proclamation that every one should fall down and worship it, and the recusants be thrown into a fiery furnace. You may well think how this affected the Jews, who would rather have died than complied. The nobility, and particularly three youths, who had been brought captives with Jehoiakim, were first practised upon. The king threatened, and they refused. They were shown the flaming furnace.Even by that they were not intimidated. On which the king, scarce possessing himself through rage, ordered them to be bound and thrown in; when, behold, the fire, that destroying element, made no hurtful impression on these magnanimous youths. Their bands fell off, and they walked serenely together amidst the flames, as in a cool embowered alley; and instead of the shrieks and outcries expected from such a place of torture, the vast furnace resounded with strains of cheerful melody; and instead of the wide-blazing flames, were seen the resplendent beams of an angelic form. Such wonders could not fail of making an advantageous impression on the king, and thus saved not only the three youths from death, but probably the whole race of the Jews from utter extermination; and by the most torturing deaths which idolatrous bigotry could invent. Pilgrim. Those things were unquestionably the effects of a divine superintendency in their favour. Cleophas. From a similar danger the prophet Daniel was also delivered some years after; being for his attachment to the sacred religion, thrown among a troop of lions which immediately were seen to become as lambs, playing before him, fawning on him, and licking his feet: and this did not proceed from their not being hungry, but their voracity was restrained, and a gentleness infused into them; till the king, being by this miracle. convinced that the God whom Daniel worshipped was the true God, |