that which is next to unity, the binary, and hastens to that which is strictly simple: Three, when, not yet initiated into the great mysteries, it is employed upon the less, and is unable to comprehend Him who Is, by himself alone without another, but sees him in his operations as the former or governor of all."

"89

After what has been advanced, the Platonism of Philo cannot, on any solid ground of argument, be called in question. It must, however, be remembered, that his Platonism was of that adulterated kind, which at this time prevailed in Alexandria.

The works of Philo abound with proofs of genius and erudition, and may serve to cast great light upon the state of the Platonic philosophy at that period; but they discover, in every page, a want of sound and accurate judgment: and the allegorical style which he borrowed from the Egyptians has cast such a veil of obscurity over his writings, that it is, perhaps, in vain to attempt to explain them throughout: some have even presumed to question, whether Philo himself always clearly understood what he wrote.

Josephus, the historian, was a native of Jerusalem, and a descendant of the illustrious Asmonean family: he was born in the year 37. At the age of fourteen, he had made great proficiency in the knowledge of the Jewish law. For the purpose of studying the history and tenets of the several Jewish sects, he became, for three years, a pupil of Banun, a hermit, who had acquired great fame for wisdom, and with him lived a recluse and abstemious life.. After this, he addicted himself to the sect of the Pharisees, and engaged in civil affairs. Visiting Rome, in the twentysixth year of his age, he obtained access to Nero, and procured liberty for some of his countrymen. On his return home, he in vain attempted to persuade his fellowcitizens to submit quietly to the Roman yoke. At length, in the war of Vespasian, after an unsuccessful defence of the citadel of Jotapata, he was taken prisoner. After a short time, however, when Vespasian and Titus, according to a prediction which he is said to have delivered, came to Vit. Op. p. 998, &c. Ant. J. l. xx. c. 9.

89 De Abrahamo, I. c.

the empire, he was restored to liberty. He now visited Egypt, and took up his residence at Alexandria, where he, doubtless, studied the Grecian and Egyptian philosophy.

Josephus accompanied Titus in the siege of Jerusalem, the memorable particulars of which he accurately minuted as they passed, and afterwards related at large in his Annals, He spent the latter part of his life at Rome, under the protection of Vespasian, Titus, and Domitian, and there wrote his Jewish Antiquities. He lived till after the thirteenth year of Domitian, when he wrote against Apion; but in what year he died is uncertain. His writings, at the same time that they discover an accurate knowledge of the affairs of his own country, shew an extensive acquaintance with Grecian learning and philosophy; but national vanity and partiality led him to imagine that all knowledge and wisdom had originated in Judea, and had flowed thence through all the nations of the earth; a notion which gave rise to many errors and misrepresentations in his writings, and which has since been too implicitly adopted by many Christian writers.91

91 Vidend. passim Reimann. Intr. in Hist. Theol. Jud. Carpzov. Int. in Theol. Jud. Eisenmenger. Jud. Detect. Maii Theol. Jud. Wolfii Bibl. Hebr. Buddæi Introd. ad Hist. Ph. Heb. Basnage Hist. des Juifs. Reland. Diss. de Samaritan. Cellarius de Samar. Gent. Hist. Horbius de Orig. Simon Mag. Huntington. Epist, Lond. 1704. Antiq. Eccl. Or. Lond. 1682. Vossius de Septuag. Interp. Hag. Com. 1661. Van Dale Diss. de Aristea. Hody contra Hist. Arist. Ox. 1684. et de Bibl. Text. Orig. et Vers. 1705. Nourry Apparat. Bibl. Diss. xii. Engelbach Diss. de Vers. Græc. Sept. antiquiore Viteb. 1706. Diss. de Vestig. Phil. Alex. in Libro Sapientiæ, Misc. Berolin. t. vi. p. 150. Bartoloccii Bibl. Rabbin. Buddæi Hist. Ecc. Vet. T. Zeltner de erud. Feminis Heb. Schudt. Memorab. Judaic. R. Mardochai de Karæis. Trigland. Syntagma trium. Script. de Trib. Jud. Seetis. Delph. 1704. Drusii Tract. de Hasidæis. Serarii in Trihæresin contra Drus. Scaligeri Elench. Trihæresii Scrarii. Shupart. de Sect. Karæor. Jenæ, 1701. Goodwin's Moses and Aaron. Willimer Diss. de Sadducæis. Reland. Ant. Sac. Geiger. de Hillele et Shammai. Lightfoot Horæ Hebr. &c. Vitringa de Vet. Synag. Deyling. Diss. de Ascet. Obs. S. p. iii. Langii Diss. de Essæis, Ital. 1721. Wachter de Essenis. Clerici Epist. Crit. viii. Fabric. Diss. de Platon. Phil. Lips. 1693. in Sylloge Diss. Vander Wayen de λów. Got. Olear. Diss. de Vaticinio Josephi, Lips. 1699. Pfeiffer Theolog. Jud. Schoetgen. Jesus verus Mess. ex Theolog. Jud. dem. Lips. 1748. Wachter de Primordiis Chr. Rel.

CHAP. II.

OF THE STATE OF THE JEWISH PHILOSOPHY FROM THE DESTRUCTION OF JERUSALEM TO MODERN TIMES.

AFTER the destruction of Jerusalem, and the dissolution of the Jewish state, the history of the dispersed Jews has little connexion with the history of philosophy. From this time to the Middle Age, we meet with nothing among them which claims our attention, except an excessive and absurd fondness for their traditionary institutions, and a kind of enthusiastic philosophy, called the Cabbalistic, which sprung from the Alexandrian schools, and mixed Oriental, Egyptian, Pythagoric, and Platonic notions with the simple doctrine of the Hebrew Scriptures. In process of time, when the Jews passed from the eastern to the western world, the Aristotelian philosophy, which became predominant among the Arabians, found its way into the Jewish schools.

In order to trace with precision the progress of the Jewish philosophy, it will be necessary to take a general survey of the state of Jewish learning at this period. Without this it would be impossible to discern, how far their Talmudic and Cabbalistic doctrines were grounded upon authority, and derived from their domestic sources; and how far they were borrowed from Gentile philosophy.

The devastation and ruin which fell upon the Jewish nation after the conquest of Vespasian and Titus, reduced them to so low and wretched a condition, that only a small number of learned men were left among them, to transmit their ancient doctrines and institutions to posterity. Of these, part escaped into Egypt, where a Jewish colony had resided from the time of Alexander; and part withdrew to Babylon, where also many Jews had remained from the time of the captivity. In both these countries, these Jewish refugees were humanely received.1 An inconsiderable body of this unfortunate people still remained be

1 Joseph. Bell. J. I. vi. Conf. Basnage, 1. iii. c. 1.

hind in the desolated country of Palestine. These collected the scattered fragments of Jewish learning from the general wreck into the school at Jafna2 (frequently called by the Greek writers Jamnia) where they also revived their forms of worship. The Rabbi Jochanan was the founder of this school; and the good design which he begun was completed, as far as the state of the times would permit, by the Rabbi Gamaliel, who is from this circumstance called Gamaliel Jafniensis. The success which attended this school induced many of the dispersed Jews to return to Palestine: and another school was formed at Tiberias, which soon became the chief seat of Jewish learning in its native country. This school obtained immunities and privileges from the emperor Antoninus Pius; and it produced that curious record of Jewish wisdom, the Jerusalem Talmud. Other schools, after the example of Jafna and Tiberias, were erected at Bitterah, near Jerusalem, at Lydda or Diospolis, at Cæsarea, and (which became more celebrated than the rest) at Zippora, or Sephora, in Galilee.3

From this time, there was not wanting a succession of Jewish doctors to transmit their religion and philosophy to posterity. They are arranged in a series of seven classes, the last of which brings down the succession to the time when the Jews, enticed by the example of the Saracens and Christians, engaged in the study of the Aristotelian philosophy. In each of these classes there were, doubtless, men of ability; but the talents which nature bestowed upon them were wasted upon the trifling and absurd study of tradition, which, as tares choke the wheat, suppressed every manly exertion of reason. Or, Or, if any among them attempted a superior kind of wisdom, they

Joseph. Ant. J. 1. xiv. c. 8. Bell. J. I. i. c. 5. Reland. Palæst. I. iii. p. 823. Lightfoot. Cent. Chorogr. Matt. Proem. c. xv. t. ii. p. 181. R. D. Ganz in Zemach David. p. 39. Buxtorf. Tib. c. 5. Lightf. Op. p. 87. Basnage, I. vi. c. 5. § 8.

* Lightf. Cent. Ch. c. 81. 52. 16. 82. 76. 96. Reland. 1. c. p. 409. 679. 877.

4 Pirke Abhoth. Maimonid. in Præf. Jad. Hassakah. R. Abr. B. Dior. in Cabbala. R. Zackhuth, in Juchasin. R. Gedalia in Shalsheleth Hakkabala. Conf. Hen. Othon. Hist. Mishnic. cum Relandi Notis. Wolf. Bib. Heb. P. ii. p. 924.

soon lost themselves in the mysteries of Cabbalistic metaphysics. It is therefore wholly unnecessary, in this work, to enter into a minute detail of their history. Only it must be remembered, that these Jewish doctors flourished not only in Palestine, but in the Babylonish schools which were established at Sora, Pumbedithena, and other places near the Euphrates: and we must not omit particularly to mention the Rabbi Jehuda Hakkadosh," who adorned the school of Tiberias, and whose memory is so highly revered by the Jews, that they compare him with the Messiah. He was born about the year 120. The Jews relate many extravagant stories of this Rabbi: among the rest, they assert, that he made the emperor Marcus Antoninus a proselyte to Judaism, and that it was by his order that Jehuda compiled the Mishna.

The history of the Mishna is briefly this: the sect of the Pharisees, after the destruction of Jerusalem, prevailing over the rest, the study of traditions became the chief object of attention in all the Jewish schools. The number of these traditions had, in a long course of time, so greatly increased, that the doctors, whose principal employment it was to illustrate them, by new explanations, and to confirm their authority, found it necessary to assist their recollection by committing them under distinct heads to writing. At the same time their disciples took minutes of the explanations of their preceptors, many of which were preserved, and grew up into voluminous commentaries. The confusion which arose from these causes was now become so troublesome, that, notwithstanding what Hillel had before done in arranging the traditions, Jehuda found it necessary to attempt a new digest of the oral law, and of the commentaries of their most famous doctors. This arduous undertaking is said to have employed him forty years. It was completed, according to the unanimous testimony of the Jews, which in this case there is no sufficient reason to dispute, about the close of the second century. This Mishna, or first Talmud, comprehends all the laws, institutions, and rules of life, which, beside the ancient Hebrew Scriptures, the Jews supposed themselves bound to observe. Notwithstanding the obscurities, in

• Bartolocc. Bibl. Rab. t. iii. p. 79. Basnage, l. iii. c. 3. § 2—6,