till this time; and therefore, probably, he erected them. They were feminaries for the inftruction of youth in the knowledge of the law, and for training them up in the exercifes of piety; particularly in the finging of facred hymns, in concert with inftrumental mufic. This, in the language of those times, was prophefying, 1 Sam. x. 5. 1 Chron. xxv. 1, 2, 3, 7. They were not, ftrictly speaking, all of them Prophets; but upon fome of them God beftowed the fpirit of prophecy, or of predicting future events, 2 Kings ii. 3. And we may fuppofe, that most of the Prophets, properly fo called, came out of those schools. Amos excepts himfelf, chap. vii. 14.I was no Prophet, neither was I a Prophet's fon, i. e. Difciple; for the scholars were called the fans of the Prophets. At their head, as governor, they had some venerable truly-inspired Prophet, who was called their father. 1 Sam. x. 12. 2 Kings ii. 12. Samuel was one, and perhaps the firft of thofe fathers, or governors. 1 Sam. xix. 20. Elijah was another. 2 Kings ii. 12. And Elifba fucceeded him in this office. 2 Kings iv. 38. Elisha came to Gilgal and the fons of the Prophets were fitting before him. The mafter, or father, fat above; and the fcholars below, before him, at his feet. 2 Kings ii. 3. Knoweft thou that the Lord will take away thy master from thy head? or from the feat, where he fits above thy head-See Ats xxii. 3. They lived together in fociety, 2 Kings vi. 1; and when they had done their lectures, and religious exercifes, were wont to eat together with their mafters. 2 Kings iv. 38, &c. This inftitution had a manifeft tendency to advance religion and learning.

I. II. SAMUEL.

I SAMUEL was wrote before 1 Kings. 1 Kings ii. 17. 1 Sam. ii. 31, 35, compared; and it is not unreafonably fuppofed, that Samuel wrote the first 24 chapters; and that, after his death, the hiftory of David was continued in the first and fecond Books of Samuel by the Prophets Gad and Nathan. 1 Chron, xxix. 29.

I. II. KINGS.

THESE BOOKS contain the history of the kings of Judah and Ifrael, from Solomon to the captivity in Babylon, for the fpace of 423 years. In this Period were feveral hiftoriographers; for we read of the book of the Acts of Salomon, 1 Kings xi. 41. which Acts of Solomon were recorded in the Book of Nathan the Prophet, and in the Prophecy of Abijah the Shilonite, and in the Vifions of Iddo the Seer. 2 Chron. ix. 29. Which Iddo was employed, together with Shemaiah the Prophet, in writing the Acts of Rehoboam. 2 Chron, xii. 15. We also read of the book of Jehu, the Prophet, relating the Acts of king Jehoshaphat. 2 Chron. xx. 34. 1 Kings xvi.1. And Ifaiah, the Prophet, wrote the Acts of king Uzziah, 2 Chron. xxvi. 22; and alfo of king Hezekiah, 2 Chron. xxxii. 32. And it is highly probable, that he wrote the hiftory of the two intermediate

And, we

kings fotham and Ahaz, in whofe reigns he lived. Ifai. i. 1. may well fuppofe, all thefehiftories, added one to another, make the two Books of Kings.

Note No writer of the hiftory of the kings of Judah or Ifrael is any where expressly named; but his title is either given him as a Prophet, or it appears from fome other part of Scripture that he was a Prophet. This quality of the writer was given to draw from us a proportionable respect, and make us receive the hiftory with the reverence which is its due. The Prophets were the Jewish hiftorians; therefore to the hiftorical books, Jojbua, Judges, 1. II. Samuel, I. II. Kings, they give the title of the former Prophets; as they give the title of Os 1 the latter Prophets, to Isaiah, Jeremiah, &c.

The Book of PSALMS,

WAS Compofed by feveral authors, but chiefly by king David. Mofes compofed the xcth Pfalm, when God had fhortened the lives of the Ifraelites in the wilderness, as a punishment for their unbelief. The cxxxviith Pfalm was indited foon after their tranfportation to the land of Babylon, and captivity there, and the cxxvith upon their return out of it. Others were made upon other occafions; as may be feen in their titles, (although thofe are not fuppofed to be of the fame authority with the text) or collected from the fenfe and fcope of the Pfalm. For which Bp. PATRICK's Paraphrafe may be confulted.

The Book of Pfalms is divided into five parts. The first reaches to the end of the xlift Pfalm; the fecond, to the end of the lxxiid Pfalm; the third, to the end of the lxxxixth; the fourth, to the end of the cvith; and the fifth part, to the end of the whole.

It is a collection of divine odes, fublime and elegant, far beyond all human compofitions; confifting of the loftieft celebrations of the Divine Praifes, the moft lively and fervent devotions of meditation, thankfgiving, prayer and fupplication, faith, hope, and truft in God in every condition, and the most excellent inftructions in every branch of piety and virtue. And the frequent reading of it hath a strong tendency to establish in our minds the principles of true witdom, even every right difpofition towards God and man; and that purity of heart, and ferenity of mind, which is a fund of comfort and joy in the ways of God, and will animate us to walk in them with fteadiness and delight.

Mofes was the firft that compofed facred hymns, that we read of, Exod. xv. Deborah the next, Judg. v. and then Hannah, 1 Sam. ii. But David, an admirable artift in mufic, (1 Sam. xvi. 18. Amos vi. 5.) car ried divine poetry and pfalmody to its perfection; and therefore is called the fweet Pfalmift of Ifrael. 2 Sam. xxiii. 1. He, doubtlefs by Divine Authority, appointed the finging of pfalms by a felect company of skilful perfons, in the folemn worship of the tabernacle, 1 Chron. vi. 31. xvi. 4-8. which Solomon continued in the temple; 2 Chron. v. 12, 13. And fo did Ezra, as foon as the foundation of the fecond temple was laid, Ezra iii. 10, 11. Hence the people became well acquainted with the fongs of Sion; and having committed them to memory, were

famous

famous for melodious finging among the neighbouring countries. Pfal. cxxxvii. 3. And the continuance of this branch of divine worship is confirmed by the practice of our Lord, and the inftructions of the Apoftle. Mat. xxvi. 30. Mark xiv. 26. Ephef. v. 19. Col. iii. 16. See allo Rev. v. 9. xiv. 1, 2, 3. Pfalm-finging is a part of Chriftian worship, which ought to be fupported, encouraged, and performed in the moft fkilful and harmonious manner.

Thefe are the books that were written before the founding of Solomon's Temple.

СНА Р. XXXI.

From the Founding of SOLOMON's Temple, till the Deftruction of it by NEBUCHADNEZZAR, 423 Years.

RULES for calculating and adjufting the Chronology of this Period.

THE

THE Chronology is here carried on by the facred Hiftorians in a double feries of fucceeding kings; one in the kingdom of Judab, the other in the kingdom of Ifrael; the year of the reign of every king of Judah being mentioned, in which any king of fract began his reign; and vice verfa. Therefore,

1. To be able to form a true judgment of the Chronology, it is neceffary that we draw up two columns, one of the kings of Judah, and the other of the kings of Irad, in fuch manner, that the years of their feveral reigns may be fet exactly over-against each other; together with the texts which prove the order of fucceffion, and the years of the feveral reigns. Thus the two columns will be a check upon each other; and the general rule will be,

II. So to adjust the correfponding numbers of years in both the columns, as that they may be reduced to a confiftency. Otherwife, the' calculation cannot be juft and true. Here lies the difficulty; and in order to furmount it fome allowance must be made. As,

III. That Succeffors may be fuppofed fometimes to reign with their fathers, when the confiftency of the two lifts of kings cannot otherwife be made out. Thus it is certain, that Solomon was anointed king by order of his father David. I Kings i. 34. And Jehoram did begin to reign while his father Jehoshaphat was alive. 2 Kings viii. 16.

IV. The years of reigns is delivered in full fums, without taking notice of the odd parts of a year, either at the beginning, or at the end of a reign. Therefore, to bring the two lifts to an agreement, it may reafonably be fuppofed, that, for inftance, 12 years (or the 12th year) are put down, when only cleven complete years are intended. So 2 Kings xviii. 9, 10, it is faid, that Salmanefer laid fiege to Samaria in the fourth

3

year

year of Hezekiah's reign, and, after a fiege of three years, took it in the fixth year of Hezekiah. Hence it appears, that the three years of the fiege are not to be understood of three full years, but only of two such years; the fiege beginning in the middle, fuppofe, of Hezekiah's fourth year, continuing the whole fifth year, and ending in fome part of the fixth year. It is therefore plain that, according to the ftyle of the facred hiftorians, one whole year and two parts of two years, one before, and another after that year, may be called three years.

V. In a turbulent flate of things, an inter-regnum may be allowed, where confiftency cannot be preferved without it.

VI. To find the year before Chrift, (or before A. D.) in which any reign began, fubtract the years of the preceding reign from that year before A. D. in which the preceding reign began. To find the year of the world, (or A. M.) fubtract the year before A. D. from 4004, which is the A. M. in which our Lord was born, according to Archbishop USHER, who is generally followed by our Chronologers. Further, from 4714, the year of the Julian Period, correfponding to A. M. 4004, fubtract the year before A. D. and it will give the year of the Julian Period. E. g. To know what year before A. D. Jehoshaphat Degan to reign, fubtract 41, the years of his father Afa's reign, from the year before A. D. 955, when Afa began to reign, and the remainder will give 914, the year before A. D. when Jehoshaphat began to reign. Subtract the year 914 from 4004, and it will give 3090, the A. M. of the fame event. Subtract 914 from 4714, and it will give 3800, the year of the Julian Period when Jehoshaphat began to reign.

From

From the Founding of SOLOMON's Temple till the Destruction of it by NEBUCHADNEZZAR, 423 Years.

2

XV. 2, I.

XV. 25.

929

26

xvi. 8.

ELAH (e)

I

929

928

27

xvi. 10, 15.

ZIMRI

7 days

928

928

27(ƒ)

xvi. 23.

OMRI (g)

II

928

(a) Solomon laid the foundation of the Temple in the 4th year of his reign;
(6) 17th complete.

(c) Nadab reigned two parts of 2 years, which together made 1 year.
(d) The latter part of Baasha's first year is laid to Nadab's fecond year.
(e) Part of 2 years, or complete.

and after that year he reigned 36 years.

To preferve a confiftency with the Chronology of the kings of Ifrael, we muft fuppofe, that Omri reigned with Tibni 4 years, 1 Kings xvi. 21, 22, beginning in the 27th year of Afa: that after Tibni's death he reigned alone 8 years, or 7 complete, beginning at the 31ft year of Afa. For the text, 1 Kings xvi. 22, 23. may be read-fo Tibni died, and Omri reigned alone in the 31ft year of Afa king of Judah. Omri reigned in all twelve years: in Tirzab he reigned fix years. (g) Eleven years complete.

When it is faid that he reigned twelve years, part of a year is counted for a whole year.