climb the Heavens? (a) Diodorus Siculus, (b) Strabo,

Tacitus,

The Giants by Report would Heaven have storm'd.

See also Virgil's First Georgic, and Lucan, Book VII. It is a frequent way of speaking amongst all Nations, to call those Things which are raised above the common Height, Things reaching to Heaven, as we often find in Homer, and Deut. i. 29. and ix. 1. Josephus quotes one of the Sybils, I know not which, concerning the unaccountable Building of that Town; the Words are these: "When all Men spoke the same Language, some of them built a vast high Tower, as if they would "ascend up into Heaven; but the Gods sent a wind, and over"threw the Tower, and assigned to each a particular Lan

guage; and from hence the City of Babylon was so called." And Eusebius in his Preparation, Book IX. Chap. 14. Cyril, Book I. against Julian, quotes these Words out of Abydenus: some say, that the first Men who sprung out of the Earth, grew proud upon their great Strength and Bulk, and boasted "that they could do more than the Gods, and attempted to "build a Tower, where Babylon now stands; but when it came I nigh the Heavens, it was overthrown upon them by the "Gods, with the Help of the Winds, and the Ruins are called Babylon. Men till then had but one Language, but the Gods "divided it, and then began the War betwixt Saturn and "Titan." It is a false Tradition of the Greeks, that Babylon was built by Semiramis, as Berosus tells us in his Chaldaics, and Josephus in his First Book against Appion; and the same Error is refuted by Julius Firmicus, out of Philo Biblius, and Dorotheus Sidonius. See also what Eusebius produces out of Eupolemus, concerning the Giants and the Tower, in his Gospel Preparat. Book XX. Chap. 17.

(a) Diodorus Siculus, &c.] Book XIX where he describes the Lake Asphaltitis: "The neighbouring Country burns with "Fire, the ill Smell of which makes the Bodies of the Inha"bitants sickly, and not very long lived." (See more of this in our Dissertation added to the Pentateuch, concerning the burning of Sodom. Le Clerc.)

(b) Strabo, &c.] Book XVI. after the Description of the Lake Asphaltitis: There are many Signs of this Country's being on Fire: for about Masada they shew many cragged "and burnt Rocks, and in many Places Caverns eaten in, "and Ground turned into Ashes, Drops of Pitch falling "from the Rocks, and running Waters stinking to a great "Distance, and their Habitations overthrown; which makes "credible a Report amongst the Inhabitants, that formerly. "there were thirteen Cities inhabited there, the chief of

(a) Tacitus, (b) Pliny, (c) Solimus, speak of the Burning of Sodom. (d) Heredotus, Diodorus,

"which was Sodom, so large as to be sixty Furlongs round; "but by Earthquakes and Fire breaking out, and by hot Waters mixed with Bitumen and Brimstone, it became a Lake, as we now see it; the Rocks took Fire, some of the Cities were "swallowed up, and the others forsaken by those Inhabitants that could flee away."

(a) Tacitus, &c.] In the Fifth Book of his History; "Not "far from thence are those Fields which are reported to have "been formerly very 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 Nature, "and has lost its Fruitfulness. For every Thing that is planted, or grows of itself, as soon as it is come to an Herb or Flower, or grown to its proper Bigness, vanishes like Dust " into nothing."

(b) Pliny, &c.] He describes the Lake Asphaltitis, Book V. Chap. 16. and Book XXXV. Chap. 15.

(c) Solinus, &c.] In the 36th Chap. of Salmanus's Edition; "At a good Distance from Jerusalem, a dismal Lake extends itself, which was struck by Lightning,, as appears from the "black Earth burnt to Ashes. There were two Towns there, one called Sodom the other Gomorrah; the Apples, that grow there, cannot be eaten, though they look as if they were ripe; for the outward Skin incloses a Kind of sooty Ashes, which pressed by the least Touch, flies out in Smoke, and vanishes into fine Dust."

(d) Herodotus, &c.] With some little Mistake. The Words are in his Euterpe: Originally only the Colchians, and "Egyptians, and Ethiopians were circumcised. For the Pha"nicians and Syrians in Palestine, confess they learned it from "the Egyptians. And the Syrians who dwell at Thermodoon,

and on the Parthenian River, and the Macrons, their Neigh "bours, say, they learnt it of the Colchians. For these are "the only Men that are circumcised, and in this Particular "agree with the Egyptians. But concerning the Ethiopians "and Egyptians, I cannot affirm positively, which learned it "of the other." Josephus rightly observes, that none were circumcised in Palestine Syria, but the Jews; in the Eighth Book, Chap. 14. of his Ancient History, and First Book against Appion. Concerning which Jews, Juvenal says, "They take "off the Foreskin ;" and Tacitus, "that they instituted cir"cumcising themselves, that they might be known by such Distinction:"

dorus, (a) Strabo, (b) Philo Biblius, (c) testify the ancient Custom of Circumcision, which is confirmed by those Nations (d) descended from Abraham,

"Distinction:" See Strabo, Book XVII. But the Jews are so far from confessing that they derived this Custom from the Egyptians, that, on the contrary, they openly declare, that the Egyptians learnt to be circumcised of Joseph. Neither were all the Egyptians circumcised, as all the Jews were, as we may see from the Example of Appion, who was an Egyptian, in Josephus. Herodotus undoubtedly put the Phænicians for the Idumæans; as Aristophanes does in his Play called the Birds, where he calls the Egyptians and Phenicians, The Circumcised. Ammonius of the Difference of Words, says, The Idumæans

were not originally Jews, but Phanicians and Syrians." Those Ethiopians which were circumcised, were of the Posterity of Keturah, as shall be observed afterwards. The Colchians and their Neighbours were of the Ten Tribes that Salmanasar carried away, and from thence some came into Thrace. Thus the Scholiast on Aristophanes's Acharnenses, says, "That the "Nation of the Qdowants is the same as the Thracians; they "are said to be Jews." Where, by Jews, are to be understood, improperly, Hebrews, as is usual. From the Ethiopians, Circumcision went across the Sea into the New World, if it be true what is said of the Rite's being found in many Places of that World. (The Learned Dispute whether Circumcision was instituted first amongst the Egyptians or amongst the Jews, concerning which see my Notes upon Genesis xvii. 30. Le Clerc.)

(a) Diodorus, &c.] Book I. of the Colchians: "That this "Nation sprang from the Egyptians, appears from hence, that "they are circumcised after the Manner of the Egyptians; "which Custom remains amongst this Colony, as it does

amongst the Jews." Now since the Hebrews were of old circumcised; it no more follows from the Cholcians being circumcised, that they sprang from the Egyptians, than that they sprang from the Hebrews, as we affirm they did. He tells us, Book III. that the Troglodites were circumcised, who were a Part of the Ethiopians.

(b) Strabo, &c.] Book XVI. concerning the Troglodites: "Some of these are circumcised, like the Egyptians." In the same Book he ascribes Circumcision to the Jews.

(c) Philo Biblius, &c.] In the Fable of Saturn, in Eusebius, Book I. Chap. 10.

(d) Descended from Abraham, &c.] To which Abraham, that the Precept of Circumcision was first of all given, Theodorus

tells

ham, not only Hebrews, but also (a) Idumæans, Ismaelites, (b) and others (c). The History of Abraham,

tells us in his Poem upon the Jews; out of which Eusebius has preserved these Verses in his Gospel Preparation, Book IX. Chap. 22.

He who from Home the righteous Abraham brought,
Commanded him and all his House, with Knife

To circumcise the Foreskin. He obeyed.

(a) Idumæans, &c.] So called from Esau, who is called Our was Ousoos, by Philo Biblius. His other Name was Edom, which the Greeks translated "Epupav Eruthran, from whence comes the Erythræan Sea, because the ancient Dominions of Esau and his Posterity extended so far. They who are ignorant of their Original, confound them, as we observed, with the Phænicians. Ammonius says, the Idumaans were circumcised; and so does Justin, in his Dialogue with Trypho; and Epiphanius against the Ebionites. Part of these were Homerites, who, Epiphanius against the Ebionites tells us, were circumcised in his Time.

(b) Ismaelites, &c.] These were circumcised of old, but on the same Year of their Age as Ismael. Josephus, Book I. Chap. 12 and 13. "A Child was born to them, (viz. Abra"ham and Sarah) when they were both very old, which they "circumcised on the Eighth Day; and hence the Custom of "the Jews is, to circumcise after so many Days. But the "Arabians defer it Thirteen Years; for Ismael, the Father of "that nation, who was the Child of Abraham by his Concu"bine, was circumcised at that Age." Thus Origen in his excellent Discourse against Fate, which is extant in Eusebius, Book VI. Chap. 11. And in the Greek Collection, whose Title is Φιλοκαλία ; "I don't know how this can be defended, that "there should be just such a Position of the Stars upon every "one's Birth in Judea, that upon the Eighth Day they must "be circumcised, made sore, wounded, lamed, and so inflamed, that they want the Help of a Physician, as soon as they come into the World. And that there should be such a "Position of the Stars to the Ismaelites in Arabia, that they "must all be circumcised when they are Thirteen Years old; "for so it is reported of them." Epiphanius, in his Dispute against the Ebionites, rightly explains these Ismaelites to be the Saracens, for the Saracens always observed this Custom, and the Turks had it from them.

(c) And others, &c.] Namely those that descended from Keturah, concerning whom there is a famous Place of Alexander

the

ham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph, agreeable with Moses, (a) was extant of old in (b) Philo Biblius out

the Historian in Josephus, Book I. Chap. 16. which Eusebius quotes in his Gospel Preparation, Book IX. Chap. 20. Cleodemus the Prophet, who is called Malchus, in his Relation of the Jews, gives us the same History as Moses their Lawgiver, viz. "That Abraham had many Children by Keturah, to three "of which he gave the Names Afer, Asser, and Afra. As

syria is so called from Asser; and from the other two, Afer, "and Afra, the City Afra, and the Country Africa is deno"minated. These fought with Hercules against Libya and "Antaus. Then Hercules married his Daughter to Afra: He "had a Son of her, whose Name was Deodorus, of whom was born Sophon, whence the Barbarians are called Sophaces."

Here the other Names, through the Fault of the Transcribers, neither agree with Moses, nor with the Books of Josephus and Eusebius, as we have them now. But App is un

doubtedly the same as y Apher in Moses. We are to understand by Hercules, not the Thebean Hercules, but the Phænician Hercules, much older, whom Philo Biblius mentions, quoted by Eusebius often, in the forementioned 10th Chapter of the First Book of his Gospel Preparation. This is that Hercules, who, Sallust says in his Jugurthine War, brought his Army into Africa. So that we see whence the Ethiopians, who were a great Part of the Africans, had their Circumcision, which they had in Herodotus's Time; and even now, those that are Christians retain it, not out of a religious Necessity, but out of Respect to so ancient a custom.

(a) Was extant of old, &c.] Scaliger thinks that several Things which Eusebius has preserved out of Philo Biblius, certainly relate to Abraham: See himself in his Appendix to the Emendation of Time. There is some Reason to doubt of it.

(b) Philo Biblius, &c.] How far we are to give Credit to Philo's Sanchuniathon, does not yet appear; for the very learned Henry Dodwill has rendered his Integrity very suspicious in his English Dissertation on Sanchuniathon's Phenician History, published at London, in the Year 1681, to whose Arguments we may add this, that in his Fragments there is an absurd Mixture of the Gods unknown to the Eastern Grecians in the first Times, with the Deities of the Phenicians, which the Straitness of Paper will not allow me to enlarge upon. Le Clerc,

of