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twenty-fourth of February, called by the Romans the fixth of the Calends of March; as it was thus reckoned twice, the year in which it was introduced was called Biffertile, or what we call Leap Year.

This Calendar was still more reformed by order of Pope Gregory XIII. in 1532, from whence arofe the New Style, which is now obferved in every European country, except Ruffia. The Julian year was too long by nearly eleven minutes, which excess amounts to about three days in 400 years: the Pope therefore, with the advice of able aftronomers, ordained that a day in every three centuries out of four fhould be omitted; fo that every century, which would otherwife be a biffextile year, is made to be only a common year, excepting only fuch centuries as are exactly divifible by four, which happens once in four centuries. This reformation of the Calendar commenced in the countries under the papal influence on the 4th of October, 1582, when ten days were omitted at once, which had been overrun fince the Council of Nice in 325, by the overplus of eleven minutes each year. In England this New Style commenced only in 1752, when eleven days were omitted at once, the 3d of September being reckoned the 14th in that year; as the furplus minutes had then amounted to eleven days. The Calendar thus reformed, which, by an Act of Parliament in the 24th of George II. was ordered to be obferved, comes very nearly to the accuracy of nature,

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nature, for it is ordered by that Act, that Eafter Sunday, on which the reft of the Feafts depend, is always the first Sunday after the full moon, which happens upon, or next after the 21ft of March; and if the full moon happens on a Sunday, Eafterday is the Sunday after.

This account is taken from Hutton's Mathematical Dice tionary.

CHAPTER

CHAPTER IV.

The Hiftory of the Jews.

THE Ifraelites, or ancient Jews, were thofe diftinguished people, who were favoured by the immediate care of the Almighty, and conducted by his efpecial guidance to Judea, a place of refidence promifed to their remote ancestors. In confequence of their obftinacy, idolatry, and wickedness, and more particularly for the rejection of their Meffiah, they were fubdued by the Romans, after fuftaining a fiege in their metropolis, unparalleled in the annals of history for its diftreffes, calamities, and flaughter. Jerufalem was reduced to ruins, the Jewish government was totally fubverted, and the furviving people were difperfed over moft parts of the world. Their defcendants ftill remain unmixed with the reft of mankind, and are marked by their original features of national peculiarity: they adhere with the moft zealous attachment to the religion of their forefathers, and cherish the hopes of reftoration to their former profperity by means of a glorious and triumphant Deliverer.

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Many of the materials for this chapter were furnished by the works of Jofephus, Stillingfleet's Origines facræ, Bryant's Mythology, Gray's Key to the Old Teftament, Maurice's Indian Antiquities, &c.

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They preferve with the moft watchful care the facred Books of their ancient writers. And aftonishing, very aftonishing it is to obferve, that in the prophetical parts of thefe facred Books are contained all the events before mentioned of their extraordinary hiftory. Their particular conduct, and the viciffitudes of their national affairs, were predicted by their prophets, and more especially by Mofes, their great lawgiver, in the infancy of the world, at the vaft diftance of thirty-three centuries from the prefent times. The accomplishment of thefe predictions bears the fullest and most striking evidence to the truth and infpiration of their Prophets, and illuftrates the difpenfations of Providence to his chofen people.

Thefe facred Books contain likewife prophecies the most exact of the character, office, and actions of the Meffiah of the Jews, the great lawgiver of the Chriftians, the appointed Saviour of the world.

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Such interefting circumftances as thefe, in addition to the peculiar nature of the Jewish polity, confidered as a divine inftitution, the curious manners and cuftoms, and the memorable actions of the defcendants of Abraham, viz. of the most ancient people of whom we have any authentic accounts, combine to place thefe Books first in order of importance, as in order of time.

If we confider, I. The great antiquity of these Books; II: The proofs which fupport their authenticity; III. Their fubjects, the characters of the writers, and the place they occupy in the order of general hiftory, particularly as they ftand connected with the Chriftian Revelation, they will be found to deferve our very earnest attention.

I. The Antiquity of the Scriptures.

No writings of any other nation can be brought into competition in this respect, with those of the Jews. In proof of this affertion, it may be remarked, that Mofes lived more than a thoufand

years before the age of Herodotus, who is reputed the father of Grecian hiftory; and rather earlier than he flourished, Ezra and Nehemiah clofed the records of the Jews. As another proof of the priority of the Jews to the Greeks, it appears by

the confeffion of the Greek writers themselves that they received the letters of their alphabet from the Phenicians; and there are very fufficient grounds for believing, that the Phenicians derived the art of writing from the Jews. The learned and acute Porphyry, who was an equal enemy both to Jews and Chriftians, and much attached to the learn ing of Greece, candidly confeffed, that Mofes, and

• Mofes

Herodotus

B.C. 1571 years.

445

The former therefore preceded the latter 1126.
Nehemiah lived

B.C. 456

the

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