Imatges de pàgina
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Syria, and of the Hittites, as well as Solomon himself, who bought his horses at 150 shekels which (at Dean Prideaux's calculation of 3s. the shekel) is 221. 10s. each, a very considerable price at which to purchase 12,000 horses together! The qualities which form the beauty of these horses, are tallness, proportionable corpulency, and stateliness of manner; the same qualities which they admire in their women; particularly corpulency, which is known to be one of the most esteemed characters of beauty in the east. Upon this principle is founded the compliment of Solomon; and it is remarkable that the elegant Theocritus, in his epithalamium for the celebrated Queen Helen, whom he describes as 'plump and large',' he uses exactly the same image, comparing her to 'the horse in the chariots of Thessaly*.'

1 The fame of Solomon's horses is still preserved in Arabia, and the horses called Kochlani, whose pedigree is as carefully preserved as that of the first nobility, are said to be derived from Solomon's studs. The chief excellence of these horses is their strength, courage, and swiftness. Niebuhr's Travels, vol. II. p. 301.

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2. We find in the Travels of Egmont and Heyman, (vol. I. P. 93.) that corpulency is in high esteem, especially among the Turks, and that the supreme beauty in all these parts is a large fat body, and prominent breasts.-Niebuhr says, As plumpness is thought a beauty in the east, the women, in order to obtain this beauty, swallow, every morning and ⚫ every evening, three of these insects (a species of Tenebriones) fried in butter.' Travels, vol. II. p. 339. Edinb. edition, 1792.

Πιειρη μεγάλη.

"H aquati Oεσrahos inToç. Idyl, xviii. ver. 29. The ingenious editor of the new edition of Calmet's Dictionary is

And the similarity of the compliment is so striking, as to persuade many of the learned that the Greek poet must have seen the Septuagint version of this book. Plato, however, and Horace, have both employed the same image, and it is observable that the Greek name for a horse is admitted into the composition of a great number of Greek names of women, as Hippe, Hippodamia, Mercippe, Alcippe, and many others.

The easterns, so highly valuing their horses, spare no expence to ornament them with the most costly trappings of gold, enriched with pearls and precious stones; and it is very observable that the Arabian and Turkish ladies decorate themselves in a very similar manner, wearing rows of pearls or precious stones round the head-dress and descending over their cheeks: gold chains also upon their necks and bosoms. This agrees very exactly to the

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dissatisfied with this comparison, because, though it might be adopted by Theocritus, as a writer of rustic poetry,' yet he conceives it too inelegant for a royal Jewish bridegroom :' -he proposes therefore to render the text, To a company ' of horses among the riders of Pharaoh;' but then, by an unwarrantable figure, he converts these horses into men, and reads, to an officer commanding a company of Pharaoh's cavalry' i. e. to an officer of dragoons on horseback:— noble as his horses, and graceful as his riders.' This, beside appearing to me extremely forced and laboured, only changes the chariot-horse of Pharaoh into the war-horse of a dragoon, which I should hardly suppose more delicate; while the addition of the rider to his horse confuses and degrades the imagery. Besides, the Hebrews distinguished between Pharaoh's horses, chariots, and horsemen. Exod, xiv. 23.--See Calmet, Frag. No. CLVII, p. 147.

ornaments here mentioned, and which have a double reference to the dress of the ladies and of horses.

When the virgins promise to make new ornaments for the spouse, it is commonly understood as the promise of a new dress; but I suspect they have a farther meaning,—namely, to celebrate her praise in verses to her honour, which, in the language of the Arabian poets, are compared to pearls strung in rows'. Nor is this foreign to the stile of the Hebrew, since several of the psalms are called jewels of gold2; and Solomon compares words fitly spoken, by which I understand a well-formed parable or verse, to citrons of gold in basket-work of

1 The antient Arabian poems were of two sorts; [vid. Sale's Prelim. Disc. to the Koran] the one they compared to loose pearls, and the other to pearls strung. In the former the sentences or verses were without connection; and their beauty arose from the elegance of the expression, and the acuteness of the sentiment. The moral doctrines of the Persians are generally comprehended in such independent proverbial apophthegms, formed into verse. In this respect they bear a considerable resemblance to the proverbs of Solomon; a great part of which book consists of unconnected poetry, like the poetry of the Arabians. Blair's Lectures, vol. III. Lect. XXXVIII.-It may be remarked that Hafiz seems to point out a third species of poetic composition when he compares his lyric compositions to "6 pearls strung at random," on account of the freedom of his measures. See Hindley's Persian Lyrics, p. 10. So the author of Bahur Danush says, Though every single hair of mine were a tongue, I could not string the pearls of thy merited thanksgiving.' Mr. Scott, the translator, considers this as an allusion to the beads (or rosaries) of the Mahometans, but query.

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See the titles of Psalms xvi, lvi, &c. in the margin.

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silver'. So Solomon himself compares the maxims of wisdom to an ornament of grace,' (or graceful ornament) for the head, and chains about the neck! which images perfectly correspond with those before us.

When the church is compared to a horse, a mare, or a company of horses3, we may remark,

1. That we are often sent, in the scriptures, to learn wisdom and virtue from the brute creation. Go to the ant, thou sluggard is the pointed reproof of SOLOMON. ISAIAH reproves Israel in comparing them to the ox and to the ass :

The ox knoweth his owner,
And the ass his master's crib:
But my people doth not know,
Israel doth not consider.'

2. The virtues, or admirable qualities of the horse are activity, strength, and courage. From

1 Prov. xxv. 11. This differs materially from our version: the Hebrew is a word spoken upon its wheels, which is, I suppose, an allusion to the pottery, and means that a good parable (the Hebrew expression for poetry and metaphor) is artificially framed and moulded like the potter's vessel on the wheel. On the word citrons, see note on chap. ii. 3. of this book: and the word by our translators rendered pictures, is admitted to mean net or basket-work.

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Prov. i. 9.

3 The word (DD) is commonly considered as a collec tive noun, like horse, or cavalry in English: but several of the antient versions and critics take it for a noun feminine singular, with the pronominal affix, and therefore render it my mare,' i. e. some admired and favourite mare; but the difference seems not important.

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the former this creature is supposed, in Hebrew to receive its name'; and the latter are finely celebrated in the book of JOB:

Hast thou given to the horse strength?

Hast thou clothed his neck with thunder 2?

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There is no doubt but activity, vigour, fortitude, and courage, are moral and Christian virtues; but I forbear enlarging, that I may not run into the common error. We have observed that the comparison is here made chiefly with respect to the corpulency of the horse when well-fed; and it is remarkable that this circumstance is chiefly alluded to when the animal is metaphorically introduced in scripture. So JEREMIAH compares Israel to well 'fed horses',' because they were fed to the 'full' with the blessings of divine providence, and the means of grace, which David calls the fatness of God's house: analogous to which is the state of the Christian church in times of outward prosperity, when the means of grace abound, and the profession of christianity is unawed and uninterrupted by oppression or persecution. Jeshurun waxed fat and 'kicked.'

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But the most striking text to our purpose in the prophet ZECHARIAH, where the LORD

Sus [] probably from Shesh [ww] to be active, sprightly, &c. for which reason the Persians, and some other nations, used to sacrifice horses to the sun. See Parkhurst in DD.

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