the beast THUS SEALED is brought to the altar, afterwards the head is cut off, and brought to the market, and sold to the Greeks; but if it be not the market-day, they throw the head into the river with the execration, that if there be any evil hanging over them or over the land of Egypt, it may be poured out upon that head, &c.

The Jews could not be unacquainted with the rites and ceremonies of the Egyptian worship; and it is possible that such precautions as these were in use among themselves; especially as they were so strictly enjoined to have their sacrifices without spot and without blemish. GOD, infinite in holiness and justice, found JESUS CHRIST to be a lamb without spot or imperfection, and therefore SEALED him; pointed out and accepted him as a proper sacrifice for the sins of mankind. Collate this passage with Heb. vii. 26, 27, 28. Eph v. 27. 2 Pet. iii. 14. and especially with Heb. ix. 13, 14. For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean sanctifieth, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit, offered himself without spot to God, purge your consciences from dead works?' pp. cxix,-cxxii.

We do not remember any account of "sealing" as practised among the Jews; and the silence of the Levitical ritual on this point, minute as it generally is on every part of the sacrificial institutions, might be deemed a presumptive evidence against this very plausible interpretation.

The annotations of Dr. Russell in his copy of Harmer, which the editor had the good fortune to obtain, are sometimes, though not uniformly, of considerable value; the following is a fair specimen.-Mr. Harmer had expressed his surprise, (ch. ii. Obs. xxxvi.) at Dr. Shaw's deeniing the Arab tents a delightful spectacle, and supposing that Solomon (Cant. i. 5.) considered them "comely;" as it appears that they are "black" and made generally of hair-cloth.

On this observation Dr. Russell, in a MS. note, makes the following remark: "There is no inconsistence here: in traversing neglected plains, or looking from the declivity of a neighbouring hill, an Arab encampment, notwithstanding the colour of the tents, diversifies the prospect, and is far from being an unpleasing object. Black, indeed, affords a kind of relief to the eye fatigued with the blaze of day, and the hot reflection from the ground."-EDIT.

We are not sure that Shaw interprets the passage rightly; but this observation vindicates his taste in a very natural manner, and also justifies the celebrated exclamation of Balaam, "How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob!"

The following example however is of more value. Mr. Harmer had never seen it mentioned as an Eastern practice to train vines up the sides of the houses; and he therefore apprehended that Dr. Doddridge was mistaken

• in supposing the occasion of our Lord's comparing himself to a vine might be his standing "near a window, or in some court by the side of the house, where the sight of a vine might suggest this beautiful simile;" VOL. IV.

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to which, after referring to Ps. cxxviii. 3, he adds, "that circumstance was, no doubt, common in Judea, which abounded with the finest grapes:" and I am apprehensive that this is an additional proof of the necessity of attending to the customs of the East, when we would explain the Scrip

tures.'

The whole of this critique upon Doddridge is set aside by the following note from Dr. Russell: "It is very common to cover the stairs leading to the upper apartments of the haram with vines. And they have often a lattice work of wood raised against the dead walls, for a vine or other shrub to crawl upon." This note I consider invaluable, as it fully explains the beautiful metaphor in salm cxxviii. with which Mr. Harmer is so unnecessarily hampered. EDIT.'

Dr. Clarke treats his author with very proper respect, but makes no scruple to correct many of his statements, and dispute many of his inferences and illustrations. We are far from thinking he has done this too frequently; a great number of cases might be cited, in which Mr. H. has evinced that he was not free from the general propensity of commentators to illustrate what is plain, to pervert what is right, er to apply what is incongruous. We fully agree with him in preferring Dr. Mead's anatomical explanation of Solomon's description of old age, Eccl. xii. to the figurative one which Mr. H. employs so many tedious pages in attempting to establish. On Obs. xiv. Ch. ii. the Editor gives a good account of the various kinds of windows mentioned in scripture; and adds a correction of the common notion respecting the character of Rahab, which we shall insert, though it is not entirely original.

and

• Mr. Harmer here takes it for granted (as do many others) that Rahab was really a public prostitute: but for the honour of the Israelites, the spies, and the good woman herself, let it be known, that it has been often proved, may be demonstrated that the word na zonah Judg. xi. 1. and πogun, Heb.xi 31.means a hostess, publican,or inn-keeper, and so it was properly understood by the Chaldee Paraphrast, who renders the term 'n Ronr ittetha pundekeetha, a woman, an inn keeper, the Chaldee term p pundak, being an evident corruption of the Greek doxov, an inn, as Buxtorf has very properly remarked. As to the awn on npn tikkevath chut hashshanee of the sacred text, which we translate line of scarlet thread, I believe it means simply a piece of cloth made of scarlet thread, which the woman hung out by way of flag, which might have been the sign agreed on between her and the spies EDIT.'

There is generally, if not invariably, so much good sense and sound criticism in Dr. Clarke's notes, that though we consider them all as gratuitous in the republication of an old book, we could wish they had been much more abundant. In a performance, the shape and pretensions of which intitled us to expect it to be complete, we should regret the absence of many appropriate illustrations, that might be supplied even by such a

limited knowledge of the subject as scholars in general may possess, and much more by such an extensive acquaintance with Oriental Literature and Biblical Criticism, as Dr. Clarke is well known to have attained; but on any defects of this kind, it would be not only ungenerous but absurd to expatiate, as we could not wish to exclude the additions which the Editor has actually made, nor could it be expected or desired that the publication should extend beyond its present size, though, there are materials to be found, and topics left nearly untouched. by Mr.H.,from which several additional volumes might be filled.. We shall finish our remarks by particularizing a few more of the numerous articles of original information which are peculiar to this edition.

One of the most curious additions, is that which illustrates the Jewish manner of bewailing the dead, by an account of the ceremonies still observed by the Irish on similar occasions, and of their caoinan, or ancient funeral-cry. This is to be numbered with very many proofs of a congeniality of origin between the earliest inhabitants of the west of Europe, improperly termed Celts, and those of south-western Asia. We have not room for the whole of this "Observation," which is chiefly taken from Lhwyd, and the Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy: we shall insert, however, the extract from a translation of the caoinan, with the Editor's concluding remarks,, The following is a translation of the addresses to the dead body of the, son of Connal, which are found in this ancient piece:

"O son of Connal, why didst thou die? Royal, noble, learned youth! Valiant, active, warlike, eloquent! Why didst thou die, alas, awail-aday!

"Alas, Alas! he who sprung from nobles of the race of Heber, warlike chief! O son of Connal, noble youth! Why didst thou die? Alas, O! Alas!

"Alas! O! Alas! he who was in possession of flowery meads, verdant hills, lowing herds, rivers and grazing flocks, rich, gallant, lord of the golden vale! Why did he die? alas, awail-a-day.

"Alas! Alas! why didst thou die, O son of Connal, before the spoils of victory by thy warlike arm were brought to the hall of the nobles, and thy shield with the ancient? Alas! Alas!"

The music of the above, though rude and simple, is nevertheless bold, highly impassioned, and deeply affecting. I have often witnessed itamong the descendants of the aboriginal Irish on funeral occasions. The ullaloo of the Irish is precisely the same both in sense and sound with the alg oolooleh, of the Arabians, which is a strong and dreadfully. mournful cry, set up by the female relatives of a deceased person, the instant of his death, and continued, just like the Irish caoinan, at intervals during the night. Dr. Russell says, History of Aleppo, vol. i. p. 306, that it is so shrill as to be heard at a prodigious distance." From this word it is likely the 5 yalal of the Hebrews, the onoλuw of the Greeks, and the

ululo of the Romans, all proceed; as they have been used in their respective countries, to express the deepest grief, and especially on funeral occasions. EDIT.' pp. 42, 43.

The next "Observation" is also original, and is intitled "the Lamentations of the Family of Houssain." The annual mourning for Houssain, the son of Ali, whom the Persians consider as having been the rightful Khalif, but who was assassinated in the plain of Kerbela by his rival Yezid*, had been mentioned by Mr. Harmer, from the report of Sir J.. Chardin Dr. C. has translated a passage of some length from the Tanzea, describing the anguish of Houssait's family, when his horse," the faithful Zu al Jinnah, pierced with wounds and covered with blood," came up to their tent and gave them the first intimation of what is at this day termed his martyrdom. The metrical addresses of the family to this horse, are in the most passionate and hyperbolical language of grief, and cannot be read without emotion.

Several curious notes are supplied from the Editor's personal knowledge; to the Observation concerning "beards," (xxiv, Ch, vi.) he subjoins the following:

The Mohammedans have a very great respect for their beards, and think it criminal to shave: conversing one day with a Turk who was playing with his beard, I asked him, Why do you not cut off your beard as we (Europeans) do?" To which he replied, with great emotion, "Cut off my beard!-Why should I?-God forbid !" p. 360.

The note on the subject of charms, describes a custom now prevalent in Africa more particularly than any other authority we have seen.

There is now before me the coronet of a Mohammedan chief from the interior of Africa. It is surrounded with a number of small cushions, each about three inches long, two broad, and one thick curiosity led me to examine their contents, and I found them to contain a number of spells and charms for the protection of the wearer. They are slips of paper filled with diagrams, and select portions of the Koran, in the African niskh character. p. 459.

In some sensible concluding remarks, Dr. C. strongly urges the importance of prosecuting researches into the antiquities, and present state, of every part of the East: we are sorry to find that the laudable designs of an institution, existing in this country for the express purpose, have been hitherto in a great measure frustrated by the continuance of hostilities.

We have purposely abstained from discussing any of the numerous points of biblical criticism referred to in these voJumes. Our critique will answer its principal purpose, if it has the effect of encouraging the disposition of the public to study oriental customs with reference to the illustration of Scripture, and if it promotes the circulation of a work which is

*See Ecl. Rev. Vol. I. p. 263.

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remarkably adapted to gratify the curiosity of general readers, while it furnishes the theological student with very interesting and valuable information. It has scarcely ever fallen to our lot to examine a performance, which in its original state so well deserved to be republished, or which had in every respect derived so much improvement from the abilities of its editor. We had forgot to mention that the third edition, on nearly the same plan as the present, was unfortunately destroyed by a fire at the printer's, in 1807.

Beside the table of contents and general index, there is an index of the Hebrew and Chaldee words, another of the Arabic and Persian, another of the Greek words, and a fourth of the texts of scripture, illustrated in the course of this work. It is handsomely printed, though not with unimpeachable corThere are a few trivial instances of inadvertency, as in the various spellings of the word Samiel. The insertion of the same story twice, about Jezid's mistress being choaked with a grape, (iii. 297, and iv. 9) is, we believe, to be ascribed to Mr. Harmer.

rectness.

Art. X. Christianity in India. An Essay on the Duty, Means, and Consequences, of introducing the Christian Religion among the Native Inhabitants of the British Dominions in the East. By J. W. Cunningham, A. M. late Fellow of Jesus College, Cambridge. 8vo. pp. 210. Price 5s. 6d. Hatchard, Black and Co. 1808.

NO state of society in which a man can be educated is sufficiently pure and enlightened, to prepare him for beholding, with a correct impression, the condition of the various tribes of mankind with respect to religion. He may first be carefully taught, and may afterwards deeply study, the nature and tendency of religion, as exhibited in the Scriptures and the works of the Christian writers; and in such a course of instructions and study he must no doubt have formed to himself an elevated idea of the effect, which would be produced on the human mind and character, and on the general state of society, by the complete and unmodified operation of Christianity; but still his idea of this effect will be greatly below the right standard, if during this course he is in a situation for seeing much of the character of mankind. While the mind is attempting to model a finished character, and to give the full prominence in this ideal picture to the fair virtues of devotion, faith, humility, sanctity, and charity, and while it is attempting to imagine a world full of beings, of such an amiable and celestial kind,-it is impossible that the crippled, diminutive, and deformed shapes, which for the most part these virtues are doomed to wear in the Christian world, continually intruding on his sight, should not materially pervert the operation by which the mind is endeavouring to form to itself the idea of a complete