CHAP. V.

OF THE EXPEDITION OF NECHO, KING OF EGYPT; THE DEATH OF JOSIAH; THE CAPTIVITY OF HIS SUCCESSOR JEHOAHAZ, AND THE ACCESSION OP JEHOIAKIM; ALSO OF THE PROPHETS JEREMIAH AND EZEKIEL.

NOW Necho,* king of Egypt, raised an army,† and marched to the river Euphrates; in order to fight with the Medes and Babylonians who had overthrown the dominion of the Assyrians. For he had a desire to reign over Asia. But when he was come to the city Mendes, which belonged to the kingdom of Josiah, he brought an army to hinder him from passing through his country, in his expedition against the Medes. Now Necho sent a herald to Josiah, and told him that he did not make this expedition against him; but was making haste to Euphrates; and desired that he would not provoke him to fight against him, because he obstructed his march to the place whither he had resolved to go. But Josiah did not admit of this excuse, but put himself into a posture to hinder him from

*Pharaoh signifies no more, in the Egyptian language, than king; and was therefore given to any one that sat upon that throne: but Necho (according, to Herodotus) was his proper name, though some will have it to be an appellative which signifies lame, because this Pharoah (as they suppose, had a lameness, which proceeded from some wound he had received in the wars. The same historian tells us, that he was the son and successor of Psammetichus king of Egypt, and a man of a bold, enterprising spirit; that he made an attempt to join the Nile and the Red Sea, by drawing a canal from one to the other; that though he failed in this design, yet, by sending a fleet from the Red Sea through the straights of Babel Mandel, he discovered the coasts of Africa, and, in this his expedition to the Euphrates, resolved to bid fair (by destroying the united force of the Babylonians and Medes) to be the whole monarch of Asia. Prideaux's Connection, anno 610 and Marsham's Canon. æg. sæcul. 18. B.

† An. 610.

This is a remarkable passage of Chronology in Josephus; that about the latter end of the reign of Josiah, the Medes and Babylonians overthrew the empire of the Assyrians; or, in the words of Tobit's continuator, that before Tobias died, he heard of the destruction of Nineveh, which was taken by Nabuchodonosor, the Babylonian, and Assuerus, the Mede. Tobit xiv. 15. Of which see Dean Prideaux's Connection, at the year 612.

his intended march. I suppose it was fate* that pushed him on this conduct; that it might take an occasion against him. For as he was setting his troops† in array, and rode about in his chariot, from one wing of his army to another, one of the Egyptians shot an arrow at him, and put an end to his eagerness of fighting: for being sorely wounded, he commanded a retreat to be sounded for his army; and returned to Jerusalem, and died of that wound, and he was magnificently buried in the sepulchre of his fathers, when he had lived thirty-nine years, and of them had reigned thirty-one. But all the people mourned greatly for him; lamenting and grieving on his account many days.§ And Jeremiah the prophet composed** an elegy to lament him; which is still extant. Moreover this prophet denounced beforehand the sad calamities that were coming the city. He also left behind him in writing a descrip

upon

Or Divine Providence; for this procedure was against a divine admonition. This battle is justly esteemed the very same that Herodotus mentions, when he says, that Necho joined battle with the Syrians (or Jews) at Magdolum (Megiddo,) and beat them as Dr. Hudson here observes.

It was the custom of war in former times for great officers to have their led horses, that if one failed they might mount another. The kings of Persia (as Quintus Curtius informs us) had horses attending their chariots, which, in case of an accident, they might make to; and, in like manner, we might presume, that, when it became a mighty fashion to fight in chariots, all great captains had an empty one following them, into which they might betake themselves if any mischance befell the other. Bochart's Hieroz. part I. c. 2. and 9. B.

From an. 641 to an, 610.

The Jews were wont to make lamentations, or mournful songs, upon the death of great men, princes, and heroes, who had distinguished themselves in arms, or by any civil art had merited well of their country. By an expression in 2 Chron. xxxv. 25. Behold they are written in the lamentations, one may infer, that they had certain collections of this kind of composition. The author of the book of Samuel has preserved those which David made upon the death of Saul and Jonathan, of Abner and Absalom : but this mournful poem, which the disconsolate prophet made upon this immature death of good Josiah, we no where have, which is a loss the more to be deplored, because, in all probability, it was a masterpiece in its kind: since never was there an author more deeply affected with his subject, or more capable of carrying it through all the tender sentiments of sorrow and compassion. Calmet's Commentary, and Preface sur les Lamentations de Jeremie. B.

** Whether Josephus, from 2 Chron xxxv. 25. here means the book of the Lamentations of Jeremiah, still extant ; which chiefly belongs to the destruction of Jerusalem under Nebuchadnezzar: or any other melancholy poem now lost, but extant in the days of Josephus, belonging peculiarly to Josiah, cannot now be determined.

tion of that destruction of our nation, which has lately happened in our days, and the taking of Babylon. Nor was he the only prophet who delivered such predictions beforehand to the multitude; but so did Ezekiel also; who was the first person that wrote, and left behind him in writing two books concerning these events. Now these two prophets were priests by birth. But of them Jeremiah dwelt in Jerusalem, from the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah, until the city and temple were utterly destroyed. However, as to what befell this prophet, we will relate it in its proper place.

Upon the death of Josiah, his son, Jehoahaz by name, took the kingdom, being about twenty-three years old. He reigned in Jerusalem; and his mother was Hamutal, of the city Libnah. He was an impious man, and impure in his course of life. But as the king of Egypt returned from the battle, he sent for Jehoahaz to come to him, to the city of Hamath, which belongs to Syria; and when he was come, he put him in bands, and delivered the kingdom to a brother of his by the father's side, whose name was Eliakim; and changed his name to Jehoiakim; and laid a tribute upon the land of a hundred talents of silver, and a talent of gold: and this sum of money Jehoiakim paid by of tribute. But Necho carried away Jehoahaz into Egypt; where he died, when he had reigned three months and ten days. Now Jehoiakim's mother was called Zebudah, of the city Rumah. He was of a wicked disposition; and prone to mis

way

*Of these two books of Ezekiel, see Authentic Records, part II. page 778. Jeremiah i. 2.

This ancient city, Hamath, which is joined Damascus, 2 Kings xviii. 34. Isa. xxxvi. 19.

with Arpad or Aradus, and with Jer. xlix. 23. cities of Syria and

Phoenicia, near the borders of Judea, was also itself evidently near the same borders though long ago utterly destroyed. Nor ought the moderns to dream bere of Antioch at a vast distance from those borders; or even of Epiphania, or Emesa, or any other neighbours; as being still much too remote for the situation of this city. It was, I think, in or very near a famous passage between Judea and Libanus or Antilibanus, so frequently called the entrance of Hamath: Antiq. VIII. 6. Reland, Palestin. lib. 1. page 119, 120, 121, 122, and Maundrell, page 24, 25. who very well observes from 1 Macc. xii. 25, 30. that the river Eleutherus, which ran somewhat north of Sidon, ran also through this country of Amathis or Hamath. See Antiq. XIII. 4. which accurately determines the situation of that country.

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chief: nor was he either religious towards God, or good-natured towards men.*

CHAP. VI.

OF NEBUCHADNEZZAR'S EXPEDITION AGAINST THE KINGS OF EGYPT AND JUDEA; THE death of JEHOIAKIM, AND THE SUCCESSION OF HIS SON JEHOIACHIN.

IN the fourth year of Jehoiakim, one whose name was Nebuchadnezzar took the government over the Babylonians; who at the same time went up with a great army to the city Carchemish, which was at Euphrates; upon a resolution that he had taken to fight with Necho king of Egypt, under whom all Syria then was. And when Necho understood the intention of the king of Babylon, and that this expedition was made against him, he did not despise his attempt; but made haste with a great band of men to Euphrates, to defend himself from Nebuchadnezzar. And when they had joined battle he was beaten, and lost many thousands of his soldiers. So the king of Babylon passed over the Euphrates, and took all Syria, as far as Pelusium, excepting Judea. But when Nebuchadnezzar had already reigned four years, which was the eighth of Jehoiakim's government over the Hebrews, the king of Babylon made an expedition with mighty forces against the Jews, and required tribute of Jehoiakim; threatening upon his refusal to make war against him. He was affrighted at his threatening, and bought his peace with money; and brought the tribute he was ordered to bring for three years.

But on the third year, upon hearing that the king of Babylon made an expedition against the Egyptians, he did not pay his tribute; yet was he disappointed of his hope, for the Egyptians durst not fight at this time. And indeed the prophet Jeremiah fortold every day how vainly they relied on their hopes from Egypt; and how the city would be overthrown by the king of Babylon,† and Jehoiakim the king would be subdued

* 2 Chron. xxxvi. 5.

+ The prophet's words upon this occasion, are these: Because ye have obeyed VOL. II. A a

by him. But what he thus spoke, proved to be of no advantage to them, because there were none that should escape. For both the multitude, and the rulers when they heard him, had no concern about what they heard: but being displeased at what was said, as if the prophet were a diviner against the kings, they accused Jeremiah; and bringing him before the court, they required that a sentence of punishment might be given against him. Now all the rest gave their votes for his condemnation; but the elders prudently sent away the prophet from the court of the prison, and persuaded the rest to do him no harm. For they said he was not the only person who foretold what would come to the city, but that Micah signified the same before him, as well as many others; none of whom suffered any thing of the kings that then reigned, but were honoured as the prophets of God. So they appeased the multitude with these words, and delivered Jeremiah from the punishment to which he was condemned. Now when this prophet had written all his prophecies, and the people were fasting, and assembled at the temple, on the ninth month of the fifth year of Jehoiakim, he read the book he composed, containing his predictions of what was to befall the city, the temple, and the multitude. And when the rulers heard of it, they took the book from him, and bade him and Baruch the scribe to go their ways, lest they should be discovered by one or the other. They then carried the book to the king, who gave order in the presence of his friends, that his scribe should read it: but when he heard what it contained, he was angry, and tore it, and cast

*

the commandments of Jonadab, your father, and kept all his precepts, and done according to all that he hath commanded you; thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Jonadab, the son of Rechab, shall not want a man to stand before me forever, Jer. xxxv. 18, 19. To stand before a prince, or to see his face, in Scripture-phrase, denotes the honour which accrues from being in his service, but the Rechabites were neither priests nor Levites. Hitherto they had lived in the fields, separate from towns and villages, and were averse indeed to any employment either in church or state; but from the time of their captivity, (for they were carried along with the two tribes,) we find them employed as singers and porters in the service of the temple. To serve in this capacity, there was no necessity for their being of the tribe of Levi; the declaration of the divine will by the mouth of the prophet Jeremiah, was in this case a sufficient vocation. Calmet's Com mentary on Jer. xxv. 19. B.

* Jeremiah xxvi. 8—24.