the mutual excommunication and absolution of one another by consent. The time of its continuance, or the first space of time given to the persons offending to repent, was thirty days; on his neglect of this period, he was allowed till sixty days, and then to ninety, when upon his obstinacy he was obnoxious to the Cherem. As the causes of inflicting this punishment of Nid dui they reckon up in the Jerusalem Talmud, moed Katon, twenty-four crimes, on the guilt whereof any one may be thus dealt with. 1. He that despiseth a wise man, that is, a Rabbi, master, or doctor, even after his death. 2. He that contemneth a minister or messenger of the house of judgment. 3. He that calleth his neighbour, servant or slave. 4. He to whom the judge sends and appoints him a time of appearance, and he doth not appear. 5. He that despiseth the words of the scribes, much more the words of the law of Moses. 6. He that doth not obey, and stand to the sentence denounced against him. 7. He that hath any hurtful thing in his power, as a biting dog, and doth not remove it. 8. He that sells his field to a Christian, or to any heathen. 9. He that gives witness against an Israelite in the courts of the Christians. 10. A priest that killeth cattle, and doth not separate the gifts that belong to another priest. 11. He that profaneth the second holy-day in captivity. 12. He that doth any work in the afternoon before the passover. 13. He that taketh the name of God in vain on any account. 14. He that induceth others to profane the name of God. 15. He that draweth others to eat of holy things without the temple. 16. He that computes the times, or writes kalendars, or almanacks, fixing the months out of the land of Israel. 17. He that causeth a blind man to fall. 18. He that hindereth others from doing the work of the law. 19. He that makes profane the killing of any creature by his own fault. 20. He that killeth and doth not shew his knife beforehand before a wise man, whereby it may appear to be fit. 21. He that is unwilling to, or makes himself difficult in learning. 22. He that putteth away his wife, and afterwards hath commerce with her in buying and selling, which may induce them to cohabitation. 23. A wise man of evil fame and report. 24. He that excommunicateth him who deserveth not that sentence.'

§ 20. An instance of this exclusion, we have expressly in the gospel, John ix. 20. "The Jews had already agreed, that if any man should confess he was Christ, αποσυνάγωγος γηνήται, he should be put out of the synagogue." He should be, Menuddeh; put under the sentence of Niddui. And according -to this sentence they proceeded with the blind man, whose eyes were opened by the Lord Christ, ver 34. Baλor, that is, saith the margin of our Translation, they excommunicated him. But this is not the signification of the word; it denotes only

their causing him to be thrust out of the synagogue by their of ficers, although there is no doubt, but at the same time they pronounced sentence against him.

§ 21. If a man died under this sentence they laid a stone ups on his bier, intimating that he deserved lapidation if he had liv ed. Howbeit they excluded him not from teaching or learning of the law, so that he kept four paces distant from other persons. He came in, and went out of the temple at the contrary door to others, that he might be known. All which, with sundry other things, were of their traditional additions to the just prescriptions of the word.

§ 22. In case this process succeeded not, and upon some greater demerits, the sentence of Cherem was to be proceeded to.

This is a high degree of authoritative separation from the congregation, and is made use of either when the former is des pised, or as was said upon greater provocations. This sentence must not be denounced, but in a congregation of ten at least, and with such an one as is, thus anathematized, it is not lawful so much as to eat.

The third and last sentence in this kind which contains a total and irrecoverable exclusion of a person from the communion of the congregation, is called now, Shammatha. Some of the Talmudical Rabbins in moed katon give the etymology of this word, as if it should be as much as 'v, Sham metha, death is there. But it is generally agreed, that it is from now, to exclude, expel, cast out, that is, from the covenant of promise, and common-wealth of Israel. And this the most take to be total and final, the persons that fall under it being left to the judgment of God without hope of reconciliation to the church. Hence it is called in the Targum, Num. xxi. 25. Deut. vii. 27. The curse, the execration of God; and by the Talmudists, no , the anathema of the God of Israel. But yet it cannot be denied that in many places, they speak of it as the ge neral name for any excommunication, and so as not at all to distinguish it from Niddui, which is taken to be the least degree thereof. The most learned Buxtorf hath given us out of an ancient Hebrew manuscript, a form of this excommunication, which is truly ferale carmen, as sad and dismal an imprecation, as according to their principles could well be invented. It is indeed by him applied to the Cherem, but as L'Empereur hath observed in his Annotations on Bertram, it was doubtless only made use of in the last and greatest exclusion, which is sup posed to be the Shammatha. The form of the curse is as en-;

sues.

§ 23. By the sentence of the Lord of lords, let such a one, the son of such a one, (b) be in anathema, or be ac-**

cursed in each house of Judgment, that above, and that below, (that is by God and his church) in the curse of the holy ones on high in the curse of the Seraphims and Ophannim, (the Wheels or Cherubims in Ezekiel's vision), in the curse of the whole church from the greatest to the least: Let there be upon him strokes great and abiding; diseases great and horrible: Let his house be an habitation of dragons (D) or serpents. Let his star, or planet, be dark in the clouds: Let him be exposed to indignation, anger and wrath; and let his dead body be cast to wild beasts and serpents: Let his enemies and adversaries rejoice over him; and let his silver and gold be given to others; and let all his children be cast at the doors of his adversaries; and let posterity be astonished at his day: Let him be accursed out of the mouth of Addiriron, and Athariel; from the mouth of Sandalphon, and Hadraniel; from the mouth of Ansisiel, and Pathiel; from the mouth of Seraphiel, and Sagansael; from the mouth of Michael, and Gabriel; from the mouth of Raphiel, and Mesharethiel: Let him be accursed from the mouth of Zazabib, and from the mouth of Havabib, who is the great God; and from the mouth of the seventy names of the great King; and from the mouth of Tzorlak the great Chancellor, (these names partly significant, and party insignificant, coined to strike terror into the minds of weak and distempered persons, they invent and apply at their pleasure to angels, good and bad; not unlike the monstrous names which the Gnosticks gave to the Eons, who borrowed many things from the tradition of the Jews, and returned them again unto them with an improvement, but they proceed): Let him be swallowed up as Corah and his Company; and let his soul depart with fear and terror: Let the rebuke of the Lord slay him, and let him be strangled like Ahitophel: Let his leprosy be as the leprosy of Gehazi, neither let there be any restoration of his ruin: Let not his burial be in the burials of Israel: Let his wife be given to strangers, and let others humble her in his death. Under this curse, let such a one, the son of such a one, be, with his whole inheritance. But unto me, and all Israel, let God extend his peace and blessing. Amen.'

§ 24. Now, because it is certain, that this is a form of the greatest and last anathema, of a final and total excommunication, and yet he who is devoted, is every where said to be o Muchram, and under the Cherem, it is almost evident, that these three degrees are not distinguished as is commonly supposed, namely, that the Shammatha should exceed the Che rem, and that this last should exceed only the Niddui, for we find the highest and extreme sentence in this solemn form, is often called the Cherem. Shammatha therefore is only a general name for the expulsion of a person, sometimes with the Niddui,

and sometimes with the Cherem, which yet I do not suppose was always thus horrid and fierce.

§ 25. To add to the terror of this sentence, they used to accompany the pronouncing of it with the sound of trumpets and horns, as the Targum says that Barak did in his cursing of Meroz, Judges v. 23. He shammatized him with four hundred trumpets. And herein have they been imitated by the Church of Rome, in their shaking of candles, and ringing of bells on the like occasion.

I have not reported these things, as though for matter and manner, they wholly belonged to the law as penalties of divine institution. Many things in the manner of their performance, as they are now expressed by the Rabbins, were certainly of their own arbitrary invention. When the use of these first began amongst them is unknown; though it be not improbable, that sundry things of this nature were practised by them before the destruction of the second temple; for then they had mixed many of their own superstitions with the worship of God, as is evident from the gospel.

§ 26. But this also is certain, that God in sundry cases had appointed that some transgressors should be separated from the congregation, devoted to destruction, and cut off. An instance of the execution of which institution we have, Ezra x. 7, 8. "They made a proclamation throughout Judah and Jerusalem unto all the children of the captivity, that they should gather themselves together unto Jerusalem, and that whosoever would not come within three days, according to the counsel of the princes, and the elders, all his substance should be divided, and himself separated from the congregation of those that had been carried away." A double penalty is here threatened to disobe dient persons; the one concerned the person of such a one,

He shall be separated from the * הוא יבדר מקהל הגולה

congregation of the captivity", that is of Israel then returned out of captivity. And this was the Niddui or expulsion from sacred communion which we have before described: He should be esteemed as a heathen man. Secondly, as to his substance who pin," All his substance, his goods and possessions, should be anathematized," devoted, put under Cherem, taken away for sacred uses. Hence some have made this distinction between the three degrees of excommunication.

First, The Niddui concerned only the person, and his sepa ration from sacred offices. Cherem had also confiscation of goods attending it, the substance of the transgressor being devoted. And Shammatha was accompanied with the death of the devoted person. Now these carnal penalties being removed, under the New Testament dispensation, that great and sore revenge which disobedient sinners are to expect

from the hand of God at the last day, is substituted by our a postle in the room of them all, Heb. x. 28, 29.

§ 27. Civil punishments next succeed, and they were of three sorts. First, corporeal: Secondly, such as respect the outward estate and condition of the offender: Thirdly, capital.

First, corporeal. The only corporeal punishment was that of stripes, not exceeding the number of forty, Deut. xxv. 23. An account of the opinions of the Jews, and of the manner of their inflicting this punishment, is given us by many; in particular, it is given very exactly by Buxtorf in his preface to his Bibliotheca Rabbinica, to which I refer the reader. They call

,מלקות ארבעים or beating by strokes, and sometimes מלקות it

the beating of forty, or with forty. And he that was liable unto it was, filius plagarum. Many crimes doubtless rendered persons obnoxious to this penalty; but they are not directly expressed in the law. The Jews now reckon up seven instances of unlawful copulation with women free and unmar ried, (for adultery, as is known, was capital by the express sentence of the law.) As, 1. With a sister. 2. A father's sister. 3. A mother's sister. 4. A wife's sister. 5. A brother's widow. 6. An uncle's widow. 7. A woman separated. Under this head they also reckon up many other crimes with reference to ceremonial institutions, as eating of fat, and blood, and leaven on the passover, making an oil like the holy oil; indeed they here include all such transgressions as are threatened with punishment, but have no express kind of punishment annexed to them.

§ 28. Secondly, Punishments respecting state and condition, were of two sorts. First, pecuniary in a quadruple restitution in case of theft. Secondly, personal in banishment, or confinement to the city of refuge for him that had slain a man at unawares, Num. Xxxv. 25.

§ 29. Thirdly, Capital punishments they inflicted four ways. First, by strangulation, which was inflicted on six sorts of transgressors. 1. Adulterers. 2. Strikers of parents. 3. Men-stealers. 4. Old men exemplarily rebellious against the law. 5. False prophets. 6. Prognosticators by the names of idols. Secondly, burning, Lev. xx. 14. And this the Jews say was inflicted by pouring molten lead into their mouths; and the crimes for which this punishment was inflicted, were, 1st, the adultery of the priest's daughter. 2d, Incest, 1. With a daughter. 2. With a son's daughter. 3. A wife's daughter. 4. A wife's daughter's daughter. 5. A wife's son's daughter. 6. A wife's mother. 7. The mother of her father. 8. The mother of her father-inlaw. Thirdly, death was inflicted by the sword, Deut. xx. 21. 1. On the voluntary man-slayer. 2. On the inhabitants of any eity that fall to idolatry. Fourthly, By stoning: which was in