puffed up by the great successes he had had, he went still on the ore boldly, and overthrew the cities and countries that lay in the eastern paris. But after some considerable time, Armais, who was left in Egypt, did all those very things, by way of opposition, which his brother had forbid him to do, without fear; foi he used violence to the queen, and continued to make use of the rest of the concubines, without sparing any of them: nay, at the persuasion of his friends, he put on the diadem, and set up to oppose his brother. But then he who was set over the priests of Egypt wrote letters to Sethosis, and informed him of all that had happened, and how his brother had set up to oppose him: he, therefore, returned back to Pelusium immediately, and recovered his kingdom again. The country also was called from his name Egypt; for Manetho says, that Sethosis was himself called Egyptus, as was his brother Armais called Danaus.”*

16. This is Manetho's account. And evident it is, from the number of years by him set down belonging to this interval, if they be summed up together, that these shepherds, as they are here called, who were no other than our forefathers, were delivered out of Egypt, and came thence, and inhabited this country, three hundred and ninety-three years before Danaus came to Argos; although the Argives look upon him† as their most ancient king. Manetho, therefore, bears this testimony to two points of the greatest consequence to our purpose, and those from the Egyptian records themselves. In the first place, that we came out of another country into Egypt, and that withal our deliverance out of it was so ancient in time as to have preceded the siege of Troy almost a thousand years;† but then, as to those things which Manetho adds, not from the Egyptian records. but, as he confesses himself, from some stories of an uncertain original, I wil) disprove them hereafter particularly, and shall demonstrate that they are no better than incredible fables.

17. I will now, therefore, pass from these records, and come to those that belong to the Phoenicians, and concern our nation, and shall produce attestations to what I have said out of them. There are, then, records among the Tyrians, that take in the history of many years, and these are public writings, and are kept with great exactness, and include accounts of the facts done among them, and such as concern their transactions with other nations also, those I mean which were worth remembering. Therein it was recorded, that the temple was built by king Solomon at Jérusalem one hundred forty-three years and eight months before the Tyrians built Carthage; and in their annals the building of our temple is related; for Hirom, the king of Tyre, was the friend of Solomon our king, and had such friendship transmitted down to him from his forefathers. He thereupon was ambitious to contribute to the splendour of this edifice of Solomon's, and made him a present of one hundred and twenty talents of gold. He also cut down the most excellent timber out of that mountain which is called Libanus, and sent it to him for adorning its roof. Solomon also not only made him many other presents, by way of requital, but gave him a country in Galilee also that was called Chabulon. But there was another passion, a philosophic inclination of theirs, which cemented the friendship that was betwixt them; for they sent mutual problems to one another, with a desire to have them unriddled by each other; wherein Solomon was superior to Hirom, as he was wiser than he in other respects: and many of the epistles that passed between them are still

*Of this Egyptian chronology of Manetho, as mistaken by Josephus, and of these Punioian shepherds, as falsely supposed by him, and others after him, to have been the Israelites in Egypt, see Essay on the Old Testament, Appendix, page 182-188. And note here, that when Josephus tells us that the Greeks or Argives looked on this Danaus as agxaúraros, a most ancient, or the most ancient king of Argos, he need not be supposed to mean, in the strictest sense, that they had no one king so ancient as he; for it is certain they owned nine kings before him, and Inachus at the head of them; see Authentic Records; Part ii. p. 983; as Josephus could not but know very well; but that he was esteemed as very an cient by them, and that they knew they had been first of all denominated Danai, from this very ancient king Danaus. Nor does this superlative degree always imply the most ancient of all without exception, but is sometimes to be rendered very ancient only, as is the case in the like superlative degrees of other words also. See the preceding note. +1 Kings, ix, 13. VOL. 11.

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preserved among the Tyrians. Now, that this may not depend on my bare word I will produce for a witness Dius, one that is believed to have written the Pho. nician history after an accurate manner. This Dius, therefore, writes thus in his histories of the Phoenicians." Upon the death of Abibalus, his son Hirom took the kingdom. This king raised banks at the eastern parts of the city, and enlarged it; he also joined the temple of Jupiter Olympus, which stood before in an island by itself, to the city, by raising a causeway between them, and adorned that temple with donations of gold. He moreover went up to Libanus, and had timber cut down for the building of temples. They say farther, that Solomon, when he was king of Jerusalem, sent problems to Hirom to be solved, and desired he would send others back for him to solve; and that he who could not solve the problems proposed to him should pay money to him that solved them. And when Hirom had agreed to the proposals, but was not able to solve the problems, he was obliged to pay a great deal of money, as a penalty for the same. As also they relate that one Abdemon, a man of Tyre, did solve the problems, and propose others which Solomon could not solve, upon which he was obliged to repay a great deal of money to Hirom." These things are attested to by Dius, and confirm what we have said upon the same subjects before. 18. And now I shall add Menander, the Ephesian, as an additional witness. This Menander wrote the acts that were done both by the Greeks and Barbarians, under every one of the Tyrian kings, and had taken much pains to learn their history out of their own records. Now when he was writing about those kings that had reigned at Tyre, he came to Hirom, and says thus:-" Upon the death of Abibalus, his son Hirom took the kingdom; he lived fifty-three years, and reigned thirty-four. He raised a bank on that called the Broad Place, and dedi cated that golden pillar which is in Jupiter's temple: he also went and cut down timber from the mountain called Libanus, and got timber of cedar for the roofs of the temples. He also pulled down the old temples and built new ones: besides this, he consecrated the temples of Hercules and of Astarte. He first built Her cules's temple in the month Peritus, and that of Astarte, when he made his expedition against the Tityans, who would not pay him their tribute; and when he had subdued them to himself he returned home. Under this king there was a younger son of Abdemon, who mastered the problems which Soloman, king of Jerusalem, had recommended to be solved." Now, the time from this king to the building of Carthage is thus calculated." Upon the death of Hirom, Beleazarus, his son, took the kingdom; he lived forty-three years, and reigned seven years: after him succeeded his son Abdastartus; he lived twenty-nine years, and reigned nine years. Now, four sons of his nurse plotted againt him, and slew him, the eldest of which reigned twelve years: after them came Astartus, the son of Deleastartus; he lived fifty-four years, and reigned twelve years: after him came his brother Aserymus; he lived fifty-four years, and reigned nine years; he was slain by his brother Pheles, who took the kingdom, and reigned but eight months, though he lived fifty years: he was slain by Ithobalus, the priest of Astarte, who reigned thirty-two years, and lived sixty-eight years; he vas succeeded by his son Badezorus, who lived forty-five years, and reigned six years: he was succeeded by Matgenus his son; he lived thirty-two years, and reigned nine years: Pygmalion succeeded him; he lived fifty-six years, and reigned forty-seven years. Now, in the seventh year of his reign, his sister led away from him, and built the city of Carthage in Libya." So the whole time from the reign of Hirom till the building of Carthage amounts to the sum of one hundred fifty-five years and eight months. Since, then, the temple was built at Jerusalem in the twelfth year of the reign of Hirom, there were from the building of the temple until the building of Carthage one hundred forty-three years and eight months. Wherefore, what occasion is there for alleging any more testimonies out of the Phoenician histories [on the behalf of our nation,] since what I have said is so thoroughly confirmed already? And to be sure our ances

tors came into this country long before the building of the temple; for it was not till we had gotten possession of the whole land by war that we built our temple And this is the point that I have clearly proved out of our sacred writings in my Antiquities.

19. I will now relate what hath been written concerning us in the Chaldean histories, which records have a great agreement with our books in other things also. Berosus shall be witness to what I say; he was by birth a Chaldean, well known by the learned on account of his publication of the Chaldean books of astronomy and philosophy among the Greeks. This Berosus, therefore, following the most ancient records of that nation, gives us a history of the deluge of waters that then happened, and of the destruction of mankind thereby, and agrees with Moses's narration thereof. He also gives us an account of that ark wherin Noah the origin of our race, was preserved, when it was brought to the highest part of the Armenian mountains: after which he gives us a catalogue of the posterity of Noah, and adds the years of their chronology, and at length comes down to Nabolassar, who was king of Babylon and of the Chaldeans. And when he was relating the acts of this king, he describes to us," How he sent his son Nabuchodonosor against Egypt, and against our land, with a great army, upon his be ing informed that they had revolted from him; and how, by that means, he sub dued them all, and set our temple that was at Jerusalem on fire; nay, and removed our people entirely out of their own country, and transferred them to Babylon; when it so happened, that our city was desolate during the interval of seventy years, until the days of Cyrus king of Persia." He then says, that "this Baby. Ionian king conquered Egypt, and Syria, and Phoenicia, and Arabia, and ex. ceeded in his exploits all that had reigned before him in Babylon and Chaldea." A little after which Berosus subjoins what follows in his history of ancient times: I will set down Berosus's own accounts, which are these." When Nabolassar, father of Nabuchodonosor, heard that the governor whom he had set over Egypt, and over the parts of Celesyria and Phoenicia had revolted from him, he was not able to bear it any longer, but committing certain parts of his army to his son Nabuchodonosor, who was then but young, he sent him against the rebel: Nabuchodonosor joined battle with him, and conquered him, and reduced the country under his dominion again. Now it so fell out, that his father Nabolassar fell into a distemper at this time, and died in the city of Babylon, after he had reigned twenty-nine years. But as he understood, in a little time, that his father Nabolassar was dead, he set the affairs of Egypt and the other countries in order, and committed the captives he had taken from the Jews, and Phoenicians, and Syrians, and of the nations belonging to Egypt, to some of his friends, that they might conduct that part of the forces that had on heavy armour, with the rest of his baggage to Babylonia; while he went in haste, having but a few with him, over the desert to Babylon; whither when he was come, he found the public affairs had been managed by the Chaldeans, and that the principal person among them had preserved the kingdom for him. Accordingly, he now entirely obtained all his father's dominions. He then came and ordered the captives to be placed as colonies in the most proper places of Babylonia: but for himself he adorned the emple of Belus, and the other temples, after an elegant manner, out of the spoils he had taken in the war. He also rebuilt the old city, and added another to it or the outside, and so far restored Babylon, that none who should besiege it after. wards might have it in their power to divert the river, so as to facilitate an en. trance into it; and this he did by building three walls about the inner city, and three about the outer. Some of these walls he built of burnt brick and bitumen, and some of brick only. So when he had thus fortified the city with walls, after an excellent manner, and had adorned the gates magnificently, he added a new palace to that which his father had dwelt in, and this close by it also, and that more eminent in its height and in its great splendour; it would, perhaps, require

too long a narration, if any one were to describe it; however, as prodigious large and as magnificent as it was, it was finished in fifteen days. Now in this palace he erected very high walks, supported by stone pillars; and by planting what was called a pensile paradise, and replenishing it with all sorts of trees, he rendered the prospect of an exact resemblance of a mountainous country. This he did to please his queen, because she had been brought up in Media, and was fond of a mountainous situation."*

20. This is what Berosus relates concerning the forementioned king, as he elates many other things about him also in the third book of his Chaldean his. ory: wherein he complains of the Grecian writers for supposing, without any foundation, that Babylon was built by Semiramis* queen of Assyria, and for her false pretence to those wonderful edifices thereto relating, as if they were her own workmanship; as, indeed, in these affairs the Chaldean history cannot but be the most credible. Moreover, we meet with a confirmation of what Berosus says, in the archives of the Phoenicians, concerning this king Nabuchodonosor, that he conquered all Syria and Phoenicia; in which case Philostratus agrees with the others in that history which he composed, where he mentions the siege of Tyre; as does Megasthenes also, in the fourth book of his Indian history, wherein he preter ds to prove, that the forementioned king of the Babylonians was superior to Hercules in strength and the greatness of his exploits; for he says that he conquered a great part of Libya, and conquered Iberia also. Now, as to what I have said before about the temple of Jerusalem, that it was fought against by the Babylonians, and burnt by them, but was opened again when Cyrus had taken the kingdom of Asia, shall be now demonstrated from what Berosus adds farther upon that head; for thus he says in his third book. -"Nabuchodonosor, after he had begun to build the forementioned wall, fell sick, and departed this life, when he had reigned forty-three years; whereupon his son Evilmerodach obtained the kingdom. He governed public affairs after an illegal and impure manner, and had a plot laid against him by Neriglissor, his sis. ter's husband, and was slain by him when he had reigned but two years. After he was slain, Neriglissor, the person who plotted against him, succeeded him in the kingdom, and reigned four years; his son Laborosoarchod obtained the king. dom; though he were but a child, and kept it nine months; but by reason of the very ill temper and ill practices he exhibited to the world, a plot was laid against him also by his friends, and he was tormented to death. After his death, the con. spirators got together, and, by common consent, put the crown upon the head of Nabonnedus, a man of Babylon, and one who belonged to that insurrection. In his reign it was that the walls of the city of Babylon were curiously built with burnt brick and bitumen; but, when he was come to the seventeenth year of his reign, Cyrus came out of Persia with a great army; and, having already conquer. ed all the rest of Asia, he came hastily to Babylonia. When Nabonnedus perceived he was coming to attack him, he met him with his forces, and joining battle with him, was beaten and fled away with a few of his troops with him, and was shut up within the city Borsippus. Hereupon Cyrus took Babylon, and gave order that the outer walls of the city should be demolished, because the city had proved very troublesome to him, and cost him a great deal of pains to take it. He then marched away to Borsippus to besiege Nabonnedus; but as Nabonne. dus did not sustain the siege, but delivered himself into his hands, he was at first kindly used by Cyrus, who gave him Carmania as a place for him to inhabit in, but sent him out of Babylonia. Accordingly, Nabonnedus spent the rest of his time in that country, and there died."

21. These accounts agree with the true history in our books: for in them it is

The great improvements that Nebuchadnezzar made in the buildings at Babylon, do no way contra dict those ancient and authentic testimonies which ascribe its first building to Nimrod, and its first rebuild ing to Semiramis, as Berosus seems here to suppose.

occasion.

written, that Nebuchadnezzar, in the eighteenth year of his reign, laid our temple desolate, and so it lay in that state of obscurity for fifty years; but that, in the second year of the reign of Cyrus, its foundations were laid, and it was finished again in the secondt year of Darius. I will now add the records of the Phoenicians; for it will not be superfluous to give the reader demonstrations more than enow on this In them we have this enumeration of the times of their several kings. "Nabuchodonosor besieged Tyre for thirteen years in the days of Ithobal, their king; after him reigned Baal, ten years; after him were judges appointed, who judged the people. Ecnibalus, the son of Baslacus, two months; Chelbes, the son of Abdeus, ten months; Abbar, the high priest, three months; Mitgonus and Gerastratus, the sons of Abdelemus, were judges six years; after whom Balatorus reigned one year; after his death, they sent and fetched Merbalus from Baby. lon, who reigned four years: after his death they sent for his brother Hirom, who reigned twenty years. Under his reign Cyrus became king of Persia." So that the whole interval is fifty-four years besides three months; for on the seventh year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar he began to besiege Tyre, and Cyrus the Persian took the kingdom on the fourteenth year of Hirom. So that the records of the Chaldeans and Tyrians agree with our writings about this temple; and the estimonies here produced are an indisputable and undeniable attestation to the antiquity of our nation. And I suppose that what I have already said may be sufficient to such as are not very contentious.

22. But now it is proper to satisfy the inquiry of those that disbelieve the records of barbarians, and think none but Greeks to be worthy of credit, and to produce many of these very Greeks who were acquainted with our nation, and to set before them such as upon occasion have made mention of us in their own writings. Pythagoras, therefore, of Samos, lived in very ancient times, and was esteemed a person superior to all philosophers in wisdom and piety towards God. Now it is plain, that he did not only know our doctrines, but was in a very great measure a follower and admirer of them. There is not, indeed, extant‡ any wri. ting that is owned for his; but many there are who have written his history, of whom Hermippus is the most celebrated, who was a person very inquisitive into all sort of history. Now this Hermippus, in his first book concerning Pythago. ras, speaks thus :-That "Pythagoras, upon the death of one of his associates, whose name was Calliphon, a Crotoniate by birth, affirmed that this man's soul conversed with him both night and day, and enjoined him not to pass over a place where an ass had fallen down; as also, not to drink of such waters as caused thirst again, and to abstain from all sorts of reproaches." After which he adds this:-"This he did and said in imitation of the doctrines of the Jews and Thracians, which he transferred into his own philosophy." For it is very truly affirmed of this Pythagoras, that he took a great many of the laws of the Jews into his own philosophy. Nor was our nation unknown of old to several of the Grecian cities, and, indeed, was thought worthy of imitation by some of them. This is declared by Theophrastus, in his writings concerning laws; for he says, "that the laws of the Tyrians forbid men to swear foreign oaths." Among which he enumerates some others, and particularly that called Corban, which oath can only be found among the Jews, and declares what a man may call

* This number in Josephus, that Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the temple in the 18th year of his reign. in a mistake in the nicety of chronology; for it was in the 19th.

+ The true number here for the year of Darius, on which the second temple was finished, whether the 2d with our present copies. or the 6th with that of Syncellus, or the tenth with that of Eusebius, is very uncertain; so we had best follow Josephus's own account elsewhere, Antiq. B. xi. ch. iii. sect. 4, which shows us, that, according to his copy of the Old Testament, after the second of Cyrus, that work was interrupted till the 2d of Darius, when in seven years it was finished, on the 9th of Darius.

This is a thing well known by the learned, that we are not secure that we have any genuine writings of Pythagoras; those Golden Verses, which are his best remains, being generally supposed to have been written not by himself, but by some of his scholars only, in agreement with what Josephus here affirma of him.