under their dominion is called Hazaret, which very much resembles Arsareth, the country to which it is faid. that the ten tribes carried captive by the Affyrians went in the Apocryphal book of Ezdras, Ch. xiii, 45, after they had been fettled in Affyria.

In the Letters Edifiantes et curieuses, written by the Jefuit miffionaries, it is faid, Vol. 4. p. 25, that formerly a great part of the inhabitants of the province of Sirvan, on the borders of the Caspian fea (once part of Affyrian empire) were carried to the extremity of Perfia, between Balk, Cabou, and Candahar, where they retain their antient name, and are called Agvans.

At what time this migration took place is uncertain. The writer of a note in this paffage of the Lettres Edifiantes, fays they were removed by Tamerlane. But it is evident from his history that they were where they now are before his time. The army of Mahmud Gafni, in A. D. 1000, is faid to have been chiefly composed of them.

5. Before this he conquered Moab, and deftroyed their principal cities, Ar and Kirhares, according to the prediction of Ifaiah, Ch. 16.

6. These places are in Media or Affyria, where others of their countrymen had been carried by Tiglathpilefer.

7. From this verfe to the feventeenth is an account of the reasons of the divine difpleafure against the ten tribes, in confequence of which they fuffered as they had done, and were finally carried captive by the Afy

rians.

8. They not only worshipped the golden calves fet

up

up by Jeroboam, but the gods of the devoted nations; and tho' this worship was not publicly practifed, and with the authority of the kings, after the reign of Ahab, it was, no doubt, done by many perfons in private, and probably without any restraint from the princes.

9. That is from cottages built on eminences, from which fhepherds could have an eye on their sheep feeding below them, or places in the country as well as in the city.

10. The word here rendered groves muft fignify the idols that were worshipped in the groves. The word that is commonly rendered grove very much resembles Ashteroth, which was Astarte, a female deity worshiped in many parts of the Eaft.

19. Several of the kings of Judah were as much addicted to idolatry as thofe of Ifrael; but others kept themfelves free from every thing of the kind, and on this account that kingdom continued about a century longer; and great numbers of this tribe returned from the captivity, tho' afterwards their fufferings exceeded thofe of the ten tribes; and the whole of the Ifraelitish nation has now been many centuries difperfed through all the nations of the world.

23. All these calamities, and efpecially their ejec tion out of their country, and their difperfion, were moft diftinaly foretold by Mofes.

24. This was done by Efarhaddon, Ezr. iv, 2, Babylon was then fubject to the Affyrians, but after this the Chaldeans revolted, and formed an independent kingdom, which foon fwallowed up that of Affyria. Cuthah was probably in the country in which Cufh ori

ginally

very common.

ginally fettled, in the land of Shinar, the people being called Cuthæi, this change of the letters into t being The Avites were an antient people driven by the Caphthorim from Hazerim, and who fettled beyond the Euphrates Deut. ii, 23. Hamath was a city of Syria next to the land of Canaan. There was a city called Siphora near the Euphrates, and not far from the fea.

25. Much of the country having been deferted, the wild beasts would naturally increase in it; and this was confidered as a divine judgment for their idolatry, all events being then afcribed to fupernatural influence.

26. It was a maxim with all the heathens that each country had its peculiar gods, or guardians, and that all the inhabitants ought to conform to the established mode of worshipping them. On the prefent occafion this opinion had a good effect, as it was the means of restoring the worship of the true God; and this gradually excluded that of any other; fo that foon after the Babylonish captivity all the Samaritans were as free from idolatry as the Jews themselves. To this Jofiah, no doubt, contributed. For we read 2 Ch. xxxiv, 33, that he took away all the abominations out of all the coun. try which pertained to the children of Israel, and made all that were present in Israel to serve the Lord their God; and all his days they departed not from following the Lord God of their fathers.

30. The term Succoth Benoth fignifies the tabernacle of daughters, and according to Herodotus all the Babylonian women profituted themfelves in the temples of their deities. From the word Bength Mr Selden con

jectures

jectures that the word Venus was derived; and in all her temples in the Weft proftitution was openly practi fed.com

This was the fame with the Phenician Venus worfhipped at Byblos, and on mount Lebanon, the rites of which worship hiftorians describe as abominably impure. This Venus was not the fame with the Venus ftyled Urania, or celestial, which was the fame with June. Fu rieu sur les dogmes, &c. p. 693.

The meaning of the word Nergal is very uncertain. Some think that his worship was that of fire, the people addicted to it being the fame that were afterwards called Perfians. Who was Ashima, or Nibhaz, or Tartach, is not known; and the conjectures on the fubject are not worth reciting.

81. Adrameleck, and Anamelick, are, no doubt, the fame with Molock, or the fun, to whom children were facrificed.

34. They fear the Lord, but not doing after the sta tutes, nor after the ordinances, nor after the law and commandment, &c. MSS. LXX.

41. This must have been written before the return from the Babylonish captivity. For after that time we read of no idolatry among the Samaritans.

Ch. XVIII. 1. As Ahaz lived only thirty fix years, Ch. xvi, 2, he muft, according to this account, have had Hezekiah when he was only eleven years old, which is incredible. Dr. Geddes fuppofes the true reading of Ch. xvi, 2, to have been twenty five, inftead of twenty, fo that Ahaz will have been fixteen when he had this fon.

Miftakes

Mistakes in copying numbers are common in all antient books.

4. In putting an end to the worship of God in high places, he carried his reformation farther than any of the former kings, even the most pious of them. When the fuperftitious practice of burning incenfe to the brazen ferpent began, how far it extended, or what was meant by it, is quite uncertain. By calling it Nehushtan, or a piece of brass, Hezekiah probably intended to fig nify, that it was of no more value than any other piece of the fame metal.

.

7. Ahaz had submitted to the king of Affyria.

8. This phrase from the tower of the watch men to the fenced city, has occurred before, Ch. xvii, 19. If it have the fame fignification in both places, the meaning in this will be that he took poffeffion both of the open country and of the cities. This agrees with the prophecy of Ifaiah, Ch. xiv 8, where he bids the Philiftines not to rejoice because the rod that fmote them was broken, viz, Uzziah (who as we read, Ch. xxvi, 6, had greatly distressed them) for that out of his root would come another who would diftrefs them much more,. meaning Hezekiah.

11. This account of the conqueft of Samaria was mentioned before Ch. xvii. 6.

13. Senacherib was the fon of Shaimanaffar, Tobit i, 15. From this place to the end of the reign of He zekiah the history is almoft word for word the fame with Is. xxxvi---xxxix; and from this book of Ifaiah,who lived at the time, it was, no doubt, copied. Senacherib

feems