DANIEL vii.

DANIEL had the vifion of the four monarchies, and of the kingdom

of the Messiah.

DANIEL viii.

DANIEL had the vifion of the ram and he-goat.

DANIEL v.

DANIEL reads the hand-writing on the wall. Belshazzar is flain. Darius the Mede took the Affyrian kingdom.

DANIEL vi.

DANIEL's being advanced by Darius above all the princes, and made prime minifter, next to the king, raifed fo great an envy against him among the courtiers, that they laid the fnare for him which brought him to the lion's den.

DANIEL ix.

DANIEL, apprehending from the prophecy of Jeremiah, that the 70 years captivity of Judah were drawing to an end, maketh his prayer to God for the restoration of Jerufalem. In anfwer to which, the Angel Gabriel was fent to affure him of a much greater redemption to the Jewish nation by the Meffiah, at the end of 70 weeks, or 490 years.

EZRA i, ii.

DARIUS dieth; Cyrus fucceeds him, and by his decree puts an end to the 70 years captivity of the Jews. This in the first chapter of Ezra. In the fecond chapter an account is given of the Jews that returned. Note-On the return of Judah and Benjamin from the Babylonifh captivity, feveral of the other tribes of Ifrael returned with them out of Affyria, Babylon, and Media, whither they had been before carried. Ezra vi. 17. See Dr. PRIDEAUX's Con. ad An. 536. p. 190. Upon this joyous occafion the 126th Pfalm was compofed.

EZRA iii.

THE Jews begin to rebuild Jerufalem and the Temple.

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CHAP. XXXVI.

СНА Р. XXXVI.

PROPHETS after the CAPTIVITY under the fecond TEMPLE.

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EZRA iv.

HE Samaritans obftruct the Jews in the building of the City and Temple and fo the work ceased till the fecond year of Darius Hyftafpes; namely, for 14 years.

DANIEL x, xi, xii.

THE vifions and prophecies in these chapters were revealed to Daniel in the third year of Cyrus, and the third year after the Captivity.

HAGGAI i. Ver. 1}2.

HAGGAI excites Zerubbabel, the governor, and Jeshua, the highpriest, to build the Lord's house, in the fecond year of Darius Hyftafpes

HAGGAI i. Ver. 12. to the end. EZRA v. 1, 2. ZERUBBABEL and Jeua immediately apply to the work.

HAGGAI ii. Ver. 1-10.

HAGGAI encourages them from the Lord to proceed.

ZECHARIAH i. Ver. 1-7.

ZECHARIAH makes his firft addrefs to the Jews, who were building the Temple, affuring them that God would turn to them with a blefling, if they turned to him by repentance and reformation.

HAGGAI ii. Ver. 1o. to the end.

HAGGAI rebukes the indifference of the Jews in building the Temple; encourages vigorous endeavours with the bleffing of plenty; and affures Zerubbabel of the extraordinary favour of God.

ZECHARIAH

ZECHARIAH i. Ver 7. to the end. ii, iii, iv, v, vi.

At this time thefe vifions, greatly encouraging the Jews in building the City and Temple, and affuring them of the Divine protection against all their enemies, were revealed to Zechariah.

EZRA v. Ver. 3. to the end.

THE Samaritans again difturb the Jews, and put a stop to the building of the Temple.

EZRA vi. Ver. I-15.

DARIUS fends a decree to Jerufalem, pofitively ordering the Temple to be rebuilt, and the expences of it furnished out of the taxes of the provinces. Which accordingly was done, till it was finished. See Dr. PRIDEAUX's Con. ad An. 518.

ZECHARIAH vii, viii.

The Jews who were in Babylon, (for great numbers ftill remained there, and in other parts of the Perfian empire,) judging that the ftate of Judea and Jerufalem was now fo thoroughly reftored and established by Darius's decree, that it might be no longer proper to keep the fast in the fifth month (when the City and Temple were burnt by Nebuzaradan), which they had hitherto obferved for 70 years together, fent two meffengers to Jerufalem, to ask the opinion of the priests and prophets that were there, about this matter. And God gave them, by the Prophet Zechariah, the answer relating to that and other fasts, which we have in the feventh and eighth chapters of his prophecy.

ZECHARIAH ix, x, xi, xii, xiii, xiv.

As thefe chapters have no date, we may fuppofe they were delivered in fome of the times fubfequent to the fourth year of Darius Hyftafpes.

EZRA vi. Ver. 15. to the end.

THIS year the Temple was finished, and dedicated with great joy and folemnity. The Jews had been about it, from first to last, 20 years.

ESTHER i.

ARTAXERXES, or Abafuerus, being thoroughly fettled in his throne, made a great feaft for all his nobles, and divorced Vahti his queen.

ESTHER ii. Ver. 1-16.

A collection of virgins made for the king, of which Efther was one.

EZRA vii, viii, ix, x.

In the beginning of this year Ezra received from Artaxerxes, or Ahafuerus, a very ample commiffion for his return to Jerufalem, with any of his countrymen that were difpofed to go along with him; giving them full authority in things both civil and religious, to regulate both according to the law. This decree was probably granted at the folicitation of Efther. See Dr. PRIDEAUX's Con, ad An. 458. The decree, the families and numbers of the Jews that went with Ezra to Jerufalem, fall within the compafs of this and the next year, and are contained in the four last chapters of this Book.

NOTE From Ezra's entering upon this work, the beginning of Daniel's 70 weeks is to be computed. Dr. PRIDEAUX's Con. ad An. 458, p. 377. Note alfo-That Ezra continued in the government about 13 years; till Nehemiah fucceeded him in the 20th year of Artaxerxes, or Abafuerus.

ESTHER ii. Ver. 16-21.

ESTHER, after having been only concubine about two years, is now made queen.

ESTHER ii. Ver. 21. to the end.

BIGTHAN and Tarefh, two eunuchs in the palace, entered into a confpiracy against the life of Artaxerxes, or Abafuerus, which was difcovered to the king by Mordecai, queen Esther's uncle.

ESTHER iii, iv, v, &c. to the end of the Book.

HAMAN, an Amalekite, defcended from king Agag, in Saul's time, made prime minifter to Artaxerxes, laid a plot to extirpate the whole race of the Jews. But it turned upon himfelf, as related in the book of Efiber.

NEHEMIAH

NEHEMIAH i, ii, iii, &c. to the end of the Book,

NEHEMIAH, with a commiffion from Artaxerxes, or Ahasuerus, probably by favour of queen Efther, (Neh. ii. 6.) fucceedeth Ezra in the government of Judea, rebuilds the walls, repeoples Jerufalem, reforms diforders, &c. Thus he was employed for 12 years; namely, from the 20th to the 32d year of Artaxerxes. Neh. v. 14. xiii. 6. Within which time Ezra is supposed to have published his edition of the Hebrew Scriptures. See Dr. PRIDEAUX's Con. p. 475, &c.

Nehemiah returns from Jerufalem to the Perfian court. Neb. xiii. 6.

MALACHI i, ii, iii, iv.

ABOUT this time flourished Malachi, the Prophet. See Dr. PRIPEAUX's Con. ad in. 428. p. 570.

NEHEMIAH xiii. Ver. 6, 7, &c.

AFTER certain days, i. e. after about five years, Nehemiah comes again to Jerufalem with a new commiffion, and makes further reformation with which act of reformation, the holy Scriptures of the Old Teftament are closed up.

Simon the juft, high priest of the Jews, completes the Canon of the Old Teftament, by adding the two Books of Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Efther, and Malachi. "That these could not be put into the Canon by Ezra, is plain: for four of thofe books are, upon juft grounds, fup"pofed to have been written by Ezra himself, (that is, the two books of Chronicles, and the Books of Ezra and Esther,) and the Book of Ne"hemiah was written after his [Ezra's] time; and fo moft likely was "the Book of Malachi also. And therefore a later time must be affigned "for their infertion into the facred Canon; and none is more likely "than that of Simon the just, who is faid to have been the last of the "men of the great fynagogue. What the Jews call the great fynagogue, 65 were a number of elders, amounting to 120, fucceeding each other in "a continued feries from the return of the Jews from the Babylonish "captivity, to the time of Simon the juft, and laboured in reftoring the "Jewish church and ftate in that country. In order to which, the "holy Scriptures being the rule they were to go by, their chief care and "ftudy was to make a true collection of thofe Scriptures, and publish "them accurately to the people, Ezra, and the men of the great fy"nagogue in his time, fettled the Canon of all but the forefaid books; "and those were probably fettled, and added to the Canon, in the times "of Simon the juft, who died about 31 years after Alexander the Great. "For in 1 Chron. iii. 19, &c. the genealogy of the fons of Zerubbabel is "carried down for fo many defcents after him as may well be thought "to reach the times of Alexander. And in Neh. xii. 22. we have the days

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