them in Grecce, and all the other parts of the Roman Empire, which häd at that time no other bounds, but thofe of the then known world. It is of the Jews difperfed among the Gentiles, that the Jews of Jerufalem fpeak, in the feventh chapter of St John's gofpel (a). Jefus Chrift likewife feems to allude to them, when he faith, he bath yet other sheep (b); without excluding nevertheless the Gentiles, who were alfo to enter into his fheepfold, or to be admitted into his church. Let this be as it will, fome of the difperfed Jews were met together from all parts of the world at Jerufalem on the day of Pentecoft, after our Saviour's afcenfion (c). It was then the critical time, in which the Jews openly profeffed they were in expectation of the coming of the Meffiah. moreover ordered it fo, (that they fhould now be at Jerufalem) to the intent that the miraculous effufion of the Holy Ghoft might be made known to all nations, in order to convince them of the divine mission of Jefus Chrift, and the truth of the Christian religion. God To thefe difperfed Jews it was that St. James and St. Peter wrote their epiftles; the former to thofe of the twelve tribes which were fcattered throughout the world; the latter to thofe in particular that were in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Afia, and Bithynia. We may judge of the prodigious number of them by what king Agrippa the Elder wrote to the emperour Caligula, to diffuade him from fetting up the ftatue of Jupiter in Jerufalem, and from ordering that he himself fhould be worhipped there as a god (d). "Jerufalem, faith he, is the metropolis not only of Judea, but of many other colonies that have been planted from "thence. In the neighbouring parts there are abundance of them, as "in Ægypt, Phoenicia, Upper and Lower Syria, Pamphylia, Cilicia, and feveral parts of Afia, as far as Bithynia and Pontus : And fo in Europe, "Theffaly, Boeotia, Macedonia, Etolia, Athens, Argos, Corinth, and the better part of Peloponnefus. And not only the continent, but the iflands alfo of moft eminent note, are filled with Jewish plantations; as "Eubea, Cyprus, Crete; to fay nothing of thofe beyond the Euphrates." Thefe words of Philo give a great light to the fecond chapter of the A&ts. And that the cafe was the fame even in the time of Jofephus, appears from the fpeech which Agrippa the Younger made to the Jews, with a defign to perfuade them not to engage in a war against the Romans; where, among other arguments, he offers this, that "the Jews, who were fcattered over the face of the whole earth, would be involved in "their ruin (e).” Thefe difperfions of the Jews were owing to particular occafions and caufes (f), but they were undoubtedly the effect of the wonderful wifdom of God, who thereby gave the Apoftles an opportunity of preaching the gofpel to the Gentiles, because the Jews, who were mixed with, and refided among them, profeffed to be in expectation of the Meffiah. It cannot moreover be queftioned, but that this difperfion (a) Vid. Philonis Legationem ad Caium, p. 16. Jofeph. de Bello Jud. 1. ii. c. 16. (e) Acts ii. 5, &c. You may fee an account of the feveral difperfions of the Jews, and the caufes and occafions of them, in the famous Mr. Bafnage's history of the Jews. difperfion did very much contribute towards the preferving the body of the Jewish nation, as a lafting monument of the truth of Christianity; fince very few of them furvived their country, and, fuch as then remained, were almoft entirely deftroyed and cut off by the emperor Adrian afterwards. But the Having given an account of the Jewish nation, properly Concerning fo called, it will not be amifs to give an abstract of the the Samarihiftory of the Samaritans, who were a branch of the Jews, tans. and of whom mention is often made in the New Teftament. The Samaritans were fo called from Samaria (g), which formerly was the capital of a country of the fame name, as it was alfo of the kingdom of the ten tribes: Omri king of Ifrael, by whom it was built, gave it that name, because he bought the hill, on which it ftood, of one Semer or Samar (b). One would be apt to think, by what Jofephus fays, that Samaria and Sichem were one and the fame city, fince that hiftorian places Sichem on mount Gerizim, and calls it the capital of the Samaritans (i). moft exact Geographers make Samaria and Sichem to have been two different cities. This being of little moment, we fhall fpend no time in examining it. What is certain is this, that Sichem is the fame with Sichar in the gofpel (4); the alteration of the name being occafioned, either by changing the letter M into an R, agreeably to the different dialects of the Jews and Samaritans, as the learned have obferved; or elfe by way of reproach, because the Hebrew word Sichar, according as it is written and pointed, fignifies feveral fcandalous and ignominious things, viz. a liar, mercenary, drunkard, fepulchre. We have fpoken already of the fchifm of the ten tribes, which was the firft rife of the extreme averfion the Jews had for the Samaritans, Samaria being the metropolis of the kingdom of Ifrael, and set up, in a manner, as a rival to Jerufalem. Samaria ftood firm, for a confiderable time, against the repeated and violent affaults of Benhadad king of Syria; but was, at laft, entirely destroyed by Salmanefer king of Affyria, when he carried away the ten tribes captive (/). It feems, nevertheless, to have rifen again out of its ruins, fince we read that the Samaritans got leave from Alexander the Great, to build a temple upon mount Gerizim (m), becaufe from thence had been pronounced the bleffings annexed to the obfervance of the law of Mofes (n). It became fubject to the kings of Egypt or Syria, till it was befieged and taken by Johannes Hyrcanus, the high-prieft of the Jews (); who defaced and laid it wafte to that degree, that (to use Jofephus's (p) words) "there was not the leaft mark left of any build"ing that had ever been there." It was afterwards wholly rebuilt, and confiderably enlarged by Herod the Great, who gave it the name of Sebafte, that is, Augufta, and who built therein a temple in honour of Cæfar (g) 1 Kings xvi. 24. & 2 Kings xxiii. 19. (b) 1 Kings, ubi fupra. The Hebrew name of it is Schomeron. (i) Jofeph Antiq. L 11. fub finem. (1)2 Kings xvii. (z) Deut. xi. 29. xxvii. 12. (k) John iv. 5. (m) Anno 3668. Jofeph. Antiq. l. 11. c. 8. Cæfar Auguftus (9). Laftly, as it was united with the kingdom of Ju dea, it became with it a province of the Roman empire. The origin of the Samaritans is well known; and the account which the fcripture gives us of it is undoubtedly to be preferred before that which we meet with in the Samaritan Chronicle (r), for this is manifeftly a new-fangled and fpurious work, and therefore deferves no credit. Jofephus agrees in this particular with the facred writings (s). The Samaritans were a mixture of fuch Jews as remained in the land, when the ten tribes were carried away captive; or of those that afterwards returned thither upon feveral occafions; as likewife of those idolatrous people, which were transplanted thither by Salmanefer, and are known by the general name of Cuthaans (t). These brought their gods along with them, and highly provoked the true and great God to indignation against them for the worship they paid to thefe idols; whereupon God, to punish them for their idolatry, and to keep the reft of the inhabitants from following their example, fent lions among them, which devoured several of them. But they having been informed (as Jofephus (2) tells us) by an oracle, that this punishment, which he calls a plague, was brought upon them, because they did not worship the true God; they fent commiffioners to the king of Affyria, with a petition, that he would be pleased to fend them fome of the priefts that were carried away captive with the Ifraelites, to teach them the worship of the true God, whom they called the God of the land. Which having been granted, they ceafed to be infefted with lions, but continued ftill to be idolaters; fearing the Lord, and ferving withal their graven images. Thus there came to be among the Samaritans a mixture of religions as well as of nations. It cannot exactly be determined how far the ancient inhabitants of Samaria were concerned in this way of worship; but it is very probable, that they embraced the religion of their conquerors, as people are naturally apt to do (x). And that even before this time they had not been entirely free from idolatry, as is plain from Jerobcam's golden calves (y), and the fcriptures reproaching them upon that score. What helped moreover to fpread the infection, was their neighbourhood to Syria, the kings whereof had great power in Samaria (2). It is however generally fuppofed that their worfhip was reformed by Manaffeh, whom Sanballat made high-prieft of the temple of Gerizim (a). At least it is certain that Manaffeh, who was the brother of Jaddus the high-priest of the temple at Jerufalem, was very zealous for the law of Mofes, though he had married a frange woman. Jofephus tells us that feveral Jews, whofe cafe was the fame with Manaffeh's, withdrew to Gerizim; from whence we may infer, that, bating thefe marriages, they obferved in other refpects the law of Mofes. He further teftifies, that the Samaritans kept the fabbatical year, and defired of Alexander (2) Jofeph. Antiq. xv. 12. & de Bello Jud. 1. i. c. 16. (y) Kings xii. 28. (*) 2 Kings xvii. (x) 2 Kings xvii. 29, &c. (2) Reland de Samarita. p. 6, 7• 7 ander the Great that they might be exempted from paying tribute that year; because they could neither reap, till, nor fow (b). St. Chryfoftom, who might poffibly have received it from tradition, fays, in his xxxth homily on St. John, that in procefs of time the Samaritans for fook idolatry, and ferved the true God. But it is plain from hiftory that their worship was far from being entirely free from idolatry (c). Their temple was dedicated to Jupiter of Greece in the time of Antiochus Epiphanes. And even, if we may believe Jofephus, they folemnly abjured their religion, in a letter which they wrote to that king in order to avert from themselves the terrible calamities which were by him brought on the Jews, pretending they were originally Sidonians, and that they looked upon the obfervance of the Mojaick law as a crime, moreover ftiling Antiochus a God. But it may be queftioned whether Jofephus is abfolutely to be depended upon in this matter; at least if we judge of him by other Jewish authors, who have, upon all occafions, made it their business to cry down the Samaritans, as a pack of idolaters. However this be, as the perfecution of Antiochus did not continue long, they might repent of this their fhameful diffembling, and return to the worship of the true God. Nevertheless one would be apt to conclude from these words of our Saviour to the woman of Samaria, ye worship ye know not what (d), that the faith of the Samaritans was neither grounded upon clear evidence, nor their worship fo pure as it ought to have been. The which would be no wonder at all, confidering the ftrange mixture. before obferved; but in the comment on this place it will be made appear, that our Saviour's words wili admit of another fenfe. In the mean time, these four things may be inferred from this paffage in St. John's gofpel concerning the Samaritans. 1. That the Samaritans did at that time call themselves the pofterity of Jacob (e); which inclines one to entertain a favourable opinion of their religion and worship. 2. That they profeffed to be in expectation of the Meffiah (f); which was one of the chief Articles of the Jewish faith. 3. That Jefus Chrift found them well difpofed to embrace Chriftianity, before it appears he had wrought any miracles among them, which, had they been idolaters, would fcarce have happened (g). Befides, our Saviour's fojourning with them fo long as he did, is a good argument that they were not fuch. 4. That they looked upon the temple of Gerizim as the only place where men ought to worship. If the Samaritans had known or received all the books of the Old Teftament, they could nc poffibly have been ignorant that Jerufalem was the only place God had chofen and appointed for the performance of his worship. Perhaps, the reafon why they rejected all the facred writings, except the five books of Mofes, and it may be thofe of Jofhua and Judges, was, that they found therein all their pretenfions, which they alledged in favour of their temple on mount Gerizim, abfolutely condemned and overthrown. Though their hatred and averfion to the (b) Id. ibid. (e) Id. 1. xii. c. 7. Jews Jews was the true caufe of their adhering fo obftinately to Gerizim, yet they alledged fome fpecious pretences for what they did. They pleaded, in their defence, the bleffings that were pronounced on mount Gerizim on the faithful obfervers of the law. Moreover they found in their Pentateuch, that Joshua built an altar on the fame mount after the blesfings were pronounced, whereas in the Hebrew the altar is faid to be erected on mount Ebal (b). This fuppofed altar of Joshua, they pretend, was afterwards converted into a temple; and fo by a fabulous tradition they have afcribed to their temple on mount Gerizim a much greater antiquity than that of Solomon's; which Jeroboam had induced them to forfake, by erecting an altar at Dan, and another at Bethel, the latter of which places was apt to create reverence not only by its name, which fignifies the house of God, but efpecially upon account of the vifion which Jacob was there honoured with (i). The Samaritans, pot fatisfied with afferting their temple to have been built by Joshua, endeavoured to render mount Gerizim ftill more venerable, by affirming that the twelve patriarchs were buried there (k), and that Abraham was met there by Melchifedech (/); applying to it what the Jews fay of Jerufalem. The contefts and difputes between the Jews and Samaritans about their temples role to the greatest degree imaginable. Jofephus relates that they came to that height at Alexandria (m), that Ptolemy Philometor king of Egypt was forced to take the matter into his own cognizance, who accordingly appointed advocates on both fides, the one to fpeak in defence of the temple of Jerufalem, and the others of that of Samaria. The king was prevailed upon to decide the cafe in favour of Jerufalem, and the Samaritan advocates were condemned to death for having fo wretchedly defended their caufe. (1) The difference between the Jews and Samaritans in point of religion may be reduced to these three heads: (For we are not to believe all the fcandalous ftories, which are by the Jews laid upon them in this refpect) 1. That they looked upon the temple of Gerizim as the only place which God was pleafed to be worshipped in, and as the center of true religion. 2. That they received none other fcriptures but the Pentateuch, that is, the five books of Mofes, rejecting all the other books of the Old Teftament, excepting perhaps the books of Joshua and Judges, which they alfo acknowledged, but would not allow to be of the fame authority as the Pentateuch. 3. That their worship had fome tincture of paganism, and of the opinions of the nations with whom they converfed. But it is very probable it was reformed in the time of Jefus Chrift. The Jews indeed and fome ancient Chriftian writers, confound ing (b) Deut. xxvii. 4.To reconcile the greater veneration to mount Gerizim and their place of worthip thereon, they have been guilty of a very great prevarication in corrupting the text (here quoted) for they have made à facrilegious change in it, and inftead of mount Ebal have put mount Gerizim, the better to ferve their eaufe by it. Dr. Prideaux, Connect. Part 1. Book 6. ad Ann. 409. (i) Gen. xxviii. 16, 17. (k) Epift. Samar. ad Scalig. p. 126. Eufeb. Præp. Evangel. ix. 17. (m) Jofeph. Ant. 1. xiii. c. 6. (a) See Dr. Pideaux, Conn. Part. 1. B. 6. fub finem. |