THE next controverted point is, whether it was celehrated in the forty-ninth, or fiftieth year. We have already given a lift of the principal authors who are for the former; thofe who declare for the latter (without reckoning Philo, Jofephus, the Targums, and all the fews in general, Karaites as well as Talmüdifts), are ftill more confiderable. Among thefe we may reckon fome of the fathers, and a great number of moderns (R). THIS Ꮓ Y EUSEB. S. JEROM, AUGUST. GREG. Mag. ISIDOR. & al. 2 TOSTAT. BONFRER. FAGIUS, JUNIUS, DRUSIUS, VILLET. HOTTINGER, SCHINDLER, PFEIF, HEIDERKER, LEWSDEN, CALMET, & al. (R) The truth is, that either hypothefis may be defend and 612 before CHRIST. As for the remainder, which he has carried down to the thired from the different expreffions theth, or to the year of the which Mofes makes ufe of in world 4030, they are only the inftitution of it; and, on added in order to make a com- the other hand, there are cerplete calculation of them to the tain difficulties in each of them, thirtieth year of CHRIST, or which cannot be eafily folved. to the beginning of the golpel. We fhall content ourselves with For it is plain, as Maimon ob- a bare hinting at them. In ferves in the place above quoted, one place he exprefly comthat the Jews obferved no ju- mands them to number feven bilee after their return from fabbaths of years, or forty-andthe Babylonish captivity, either nine years; and on this laft to with refpect to the ceflation of proclaim the jubilee by the agriculture, the reftitution of found of the trumpet (2) and lands, manumiffion of flaves, in the very two following or any of thofe ends for which verfes he fays, that the fiftieth it had been inftituted. Nei- year fhall be that of the jubilee. ther, indeed, was it practica- The grand objection against ble; for the feventy years cap- the firft of thefe is, that if tivity having quite obliterated Mofes had meant, that the forthe memory and pretenfion to ty-ninth fhould be the jubilee their forefathers land, every year, there would have been one, at their return, fettled no neceffity for his forbidding himfelf as well as he could, in all kind of agriculture, and the confufion that then reigned, the like, on that year, fince after which their affairs took that was forbid of courfe by a quite new face in Judea; its being likewife the fabbatic whilft a very confiderable num- year; for seven times feven ber of their brethren chofe to make forty-nine. continue in the place of their captivity. On the other hand, it is objected, that if the fiftieth year a THIS year was to be celebrated with the greatest tokens of joy, because it was defigned to put them in mind of their Egyptian fervitude, and to prevent their impofing the like on their brethren. But, whatever joy the mafters and land-holders might outwardly exprefs, we need not doubt but that of the flaves and poor was fincere, at the thoughts of their approaching deliverance. 'Tis true, this was not to take place till the tenth day of the month, otherwise called the day of expiation, which was therefore kept as a folemn faft; but, during the nine preceding days, the faves were wholly exempt from doing any work for their mafters, and fpent that time in eating, drinking, and other diverfions, and wore garlands about their heads, as the Romans did during their faturnalia; and, as foon as the tenth day was come, the fanhedrin caufed the trumpet to found all over the land upon which they were reftored to their liberty at that very inftant, and the reft to their poffeffions. e Vide MAIM. halak fhemita veyobel. was to be the jubiles, it will follow, that the land must have had two fabbaths, or lain fallow two years, which is thought an unreasonable fuppofition, fince, without a miracle, it muft, in all likelihood, have caufed a dearth in the land. This Cuneus infifts very much upon, in favour of the fortyninth year, though he paffes by the great difficulty abovementioned, as of no weight; but we think this objection of the two concurring fabbaths may be more eafily answered, For, in the first place, thofe who are for the fiftieth year, do rightly enough obferve, that there is no neceffity for fuppofing, that the land refted two years, feeing the lawgiver's intention feems fully anfwered by the repofe of one, and that upon the account of its being fabbatical; and that therefore when Mofes fays, that the fiftieth fhall be a year of reft, he uses only that round number to exprefs the uneven one of forty-nine. There is indeed hardly any other way of reconciling the difference of Mofes's expreffions; and one may add, that as the folemnity began on the first month of the civil, which was the feventh of the facred year, it might be called indifferently the farty-ninth, or fiftieth year, without any contradiction or difficulty. What convinces us further, that this is more than bare conjecture, is, that Mofes makes ufe of the fame calculation for the feaft of pentecoft. The analogy which feven weeks of days bear to feven weeks of years, is obvious to every understanding: now, as it is plain, that the pentecoft did not begin on the fortyninth, but on the fiftieth day, fo we fee no reason why the fame may not be allowed with refpect to the jubilee. IT is plain, the defign of this ordinance was to preven the too great oppreffion of the poor, as well as thei being liable to a perpetual flavery. By this means also their lawgiver reftrained the rich from accumulating Jands upon lands, and preferved, as much as poffible, the freedom and order of Ifraelitish families, and a kind of equality with refptect to their poffeffions, than which nothing could more effectually inspire them with a particular fondness for their country and patrimony, whilft they knew, that this last could never be alienated from their pofterity above the space of half a century at the most. Expiation-day, or day of atonement. Expia- THIS HIS is the laft folemn day, that was of divine inftision-day. tution. It differed from all the reft, in that they were days of joy and thanksgiving; but this, a day of fafting, humiliation, and confeffion of fins, and the only one of that kind of divine appointment, if we except that occafional one, which GoD injoined the Ifraelites, after their setting up the golden calfe (S), but which we do • Levit. xxiii. 26, & feqq. (S) And yet we do not find one word of fafting on that folemn occafion of humiliation, nor even on this day of expiation, unless we fuppofe it to be implied in the words, affilling your fouls. However, it would be abfurd to deny, that fafting had been in ufe long before Mofes's time, because he has not taken notice of its being practifed by any of the old patriarchs; or, that it was not intended as part of folemn humiliation, because it is not expreffed in fo many words, The contrary feems rather to follow from his filence, not only because the early cuftom of fafting among the heathens upon all particular occafione, 33 in the cafe of the Minevites (59) Jonab ¡¡j. 5y & e Exod. xxxiii. 4, & feqq. (59), and many others, fhews it to have been discovered by the light of reafon; but because the very courfe of nature feems to give it a fanction; for when men are vifited with any fenfible affliction, or threatened with any immediate danger, it never fails of palling the appetite, and inclining them to faft. And what evinces that this practice was well known among the Ifraelites, is, the many inftances which we meet with from Mofes's time. Thus, after their unexpected defeat before Hai, Joshua and all the elders of Ifrael continued proftrate before the ark from morning till night without eating or drinking (60); the fame was practifed by the eleven do not find to have been made annual by Mofes, or obferved by the people till after the captivity, when they became fo religious, that they appointed as many fafts for the miscarriages and misfortunes that had happened to their nation before it, as filled near the fourth part of their calendar; but this is not the proper place to speak of them. Those who conjecture, that this expiation-day was ordained in memory of the golden calf, limit the defign of it too much, feeing it appears rather inftituted to expiate the fins of the whole nation, both public and private, but more particularly thofe of the foregoing year. This is to be plainly inferred from the name which Mofes gives it (T), as well as from the confeffion of fins, and other remarkable ceremonies, which he injoined to be ufed on that day, of which we are now going to fpeak. f Vide Mishn. megillath tahanith, per tot. LAMY, CALMET, & al. tribes upon another occafion the day of expiations or atonements; because on that day there was atonement made for the fins of the whole foregoing year, and of the whole people. For which reason the Talmud calls it, by way of excellence ND, yama, the day; and perhaps, likewife, from a tradition they had, that it was on that day that Adam began to repent of his tranfgreffion, and GoD was reconciled to him (65). For the world, and confequently our first parents, according to them, were created on the first day of this month, as we have feen before; their tranfgreffion and punishment followed immediately after, and fo, confequently, their repentance; for which reafon fome of them think, that this day was appointed in memory of the fall (66). ,Yom bakibburim,יום הכפורים We fhall fay nothing of the typical relation it be to the grand expiation wrought under the gofpel; t being out of our province. IT was to begin on the evening of the ninth day the feventh month, and to laft till the evening of tenth, during which time they were obliged to abfta from all labour and pleasure, and to continue in the wo of mortification, under the penalty of being cut off fro among their people. They were likewife to hold a f lemn convocation, to confefs their fins, and to offer peculiar facrifice for them by fire 8. 4 THE high-prieft's office on this day was ftill more f Temn and awful. It was the only time in the whole ye on which he was permitted to enter into the most ho place, under pain of fudden death from the LORD h; an therefore he was obliged to prepare himself for this gran ceremony in that extraordinary manner which was pr fcribed by GoD himself, as follows: he was firft of a to wash himself, not his hands and feet only, as at othe times, but his whole body. The Talmud adds, that h was to abftain, during feven whole days, from all ma trimonial commerce, and from every thing that migh cause an accidental pollution, and thereby render hin unfit for this duty; fecondly, his mitre, breaft-plate and other prieftly ornaments, were to be fet afide on tha day, and he only to appear cloathed in linen; this garb confifted only in a linen mitre or cap, a coat, breeches, and a girdle. He was in the third place to offer, as foon as he came to the holy place, a young bullock for a finoffering, and a ram for a burnt-offering, for himself and his whole houfe, confeffing his and their fins over them. After this, he received from fome of the heads of the affembly a couple of kids for a fin-offering, and a ram for a burnt-offering, for the whole congregation. Then were two goats fet before the tabernacle, and the highprieft caft lots for them, which of the two fhould be facrificed on that day, and which fhould be fent away: and this latter was called Hazazel (U), or fcape-goat. Levit. xxiii. 27, & feqq. ́ præc. affirm. 209. (U) We have here followed our verfion, and the generality of commentators, who derive the word NY, Ghazazel, b. Ibid, xvi. 2. He i Vide from TV, a goat, and to go, or to escape; in which they have followed the Septuagint, who have rendered it |
