chiefly confift in reprefentations of our Lord's paffion, crucifixion, death, and refurrection;. all which are acted with their concomitant circumftances; though, we are informed by feveral witnesses of undoubted credit, in a manner not altogether fo fuitable to the facredness. of the fubject. At this folemnity, every pilgrim paying a certain fee, is admitted in to affift at the folemn proceffion, and other ceremonies belonging to it; and, at the end of it, is let out again and of thefe there is commonly a vaft concourfe, and fome of them that chufe to go in on the eve of Good-Friday, and to ftay till Eafter-Monday.

WE must refer our readers for further particulars of this grand ceremony, and of this and other edifices, built by that pious Emprefs in other parts of this city, to thofe authors who have written of them; and particularly to Radzivil, Thevenot, Sandys, Le Bruyn, Reland, Maudrel, &c. and, amongst them, to the Rev. Dr. Shaw, and Dr. Pococke, who have enriched their account of thefe facred places, with many curious and learned remarks, well worth the reading; but which we are obliged to omit, for fear of running beyond our bounds.

THE laft thing we fhall take notice of under this article, is an edifice erected on Mount Moriah, on the South-eaft part of the city, called Solomon's temple, and ftanding on, or near the spot where the antient one did. But, as we are well affured, that the old one was totally deftroyed by the Romans, according to our Saviour's prediction, it is not easy to guess when, or by whom this mock one was reared. The

The entrance into it is at the Eaft end, under an octagon, adorned with a cupola, roof, and lantern; and forward, towards the Weft, is a fair ftrait ifle, like that of a church; the whole furrounded with a fpacious fquare court, walled on every fide. The extent of this place, according to Mr. Maundrel, is 570 common paces long, and 370 broad. In the midft of it, and where the Jewish fanctum fanctorum is faid to have ftood, is erected a Turkish mofque, neither confiderable for its largenefs nor ftructure; but which, nevertheless, makes a stately figure, by the fole advantage of its fituation. This place, our author tells us, is held in fuch veneration by the Turks, that a ftranger cannot go near its border, without being in danger of forfeiting his life or religion. It lies over against the mount of Olives, and is parted from it by the Vale of Jehofaphat; and one may eafily judge what an immenfe labour it must have coft, to level fuch a fpacious area upon so strong and rocky a mountain. Dr. Pococke, who hath taken a more particular view of that edifice, much extols the beauty of the prospect, as well as the materials and workmanship of it; the ftones both without, and, as he was told, within, being cafed with tiles of different colours, but chiefly green; the colonnades being of the Corinthian order, finely wrought, and the arches turned over them; being, as he fuppofes, the porticos leading to the infide of the building, which, he thinks, was formerly a Chriftian church. The reader may fee the. farther particulars in that author.

THE city is now under the government of a fangiack, whofe refidence is in-an houfe,

faid

faid to have been that of Pontius Pilate, over against the castle of Antonia, built by Herod the Great where they fhew the flairs by which our Saviour afcended up to the gallery where the governor expofed him to the people; at leaft they fhew a new fight of them: for, aз to the old ones, called fcala fanca, they are faid to have been carried to Rome. All that we shall add concerning this famed city, is, that many of those ftately churches, built in memory of fome remarkable gospeltranfaction, have been fince turned into mofques; into fome of which money will procure an entrance, and into others not. Both friers, and other Chriftians, are kept fo poor, by the tyranny of the government, that the chief fupport and trade of the place confifts in providing ftrangers with food, and other accommodations, and felling them beads, relicks, and other religious trinkets; for which they are obliged to pay confiderable fums to the fangiack, as well as to his officers: and thefe are feldom fo well contented with their ufual dues, but they frequently extort fome fresh ones from them, 'efpecially from the Francifcans; whofe convent is the common receptacle of all pilgrims, and for which they have confiderable allowances from the Pope, and other crowned heads; befides the ufual prefents which thefe ftrangers generally make to them at their departure.

The

The History of JOSEPH, his being fold into Egypt, his imprisonment there, and of his brethren, &c.

JOSE JOSEPH, when about feventeen years of age, was the darling of his father Jacob, in regard of the excellencies both of his body and mind: but his fondnefs for him raised no fmall jealoufy in his brothers. What increafed it ftill more was, that Jofeph, having obferved fome vile actions in the fons of Bilhah and Zilpah, with whom his father had fent him to feed the sheep, in hopes that they would pay him a greater regard than his other brethren, came and acquainted him with it. But he himself helped to complete their envy, or rather to turn it into an irreconcileable hatred, by innocently telling them fome dreams he had, which feemed to forefhew, that he should one day get the power and authority over them. One of them was, that he faw, in a wheat field, his own fheaf ftanding upright, and theirs falling down before it, and paying homage to it. Another of them was, that he faw. the fun, moon, and eleven ftars, doing the like obeifance to him. This laft he likewife told his father; who, though he could not perhaps but think it fignificative of fome great fortune that would attend him; yet, obferving with what envy his brethren heard it, thought fit to rebuke him feverely before them; afking him, if he thought, that his father, mother, and brethren, were to bow themfelves to the earth to him? But this rather helped to increase their hatred

hatred against him, and made them resolve on his death. It was not long before an opportunity offered of executing their defign. Jacob, being uneafy that he had not heard from them fince they were gone to Shechem with their flocks, fent Jofeph to inquire after them; and these no fooner faw him, but they all agreed to rid themfelves of the dreamer, as they called him, and make their father believe that fome wild beast had devoured him. They had executed their bloody defign, without any regard either to his tears, his age, or to the grief which the news of his death would caufe to their aged father, had not Reuben diffuaded them from imbruing their hands in his blood, and advised them to throw him alive into a pit, and let hunger and grief perform that cruel office. Whether the fear of the guilt of blood, or defire to make him die a more Hingering death, prevailed upon them to take the advice, they let him down into the pit. In the mean time, a troop of Ishmaelites happening to pafs by, with fpices and balm from Gilead, and bound for Egypt; Judah perfuaded his brethren to fell him to them, fince his death would do them no more service than his being carried down to Egypt. Accordingly Jofeph was fold to the merchants, and carried off, unknown to Reuben; whofe design was to have got him out of the pit, and to have fent him back privately to his father. The furprife and concern he was in when he found he was gone, forced fuch complaints from him, that they took the more care not to let him know what was become of him. Soon after, having dipped his partycoloured