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326. CONCERNING THE SAMARITANS.

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mal, as the embodied form of the Deity; so that the people were led in this way to worship idols and Jehovah at the same time, 2 K. 17: 26-34. comp. 2 Chron. 30: 1—10.

The Hebrews, after their return from exile, commenced building the Temple. The Samaritans obtruded themselves upon them, as companions in the undertaking. The Jews, who saw, that they merely sought a participation in the benefits conceded by Cyrus, that they would not leave their idols, and cared but little about the true religion, repelled their proposals for an union. This was the source of an implacable hatred in the minds of the Samaritans against the Jews. They impeded, as much as possible, the building of the Temple, and surreptitiously obtained from the false Smerdis a decree, counteracting that of Cyrus.

The Jews, on the other hand, were in turn greatly embittered, and somewhat intimidated, Ezra 4: 4-24. Hence, while they were pursuing their labours in the reign of Darius Hystaspes, they were often exhorted by the prophets Haggai and Zechariah, to be of good courage. While Nehemiah was engaged in restoring the walls of Jerusalem, the Samaritans tried every art to frighten him from his labours, but in vain, Neh. 6: 1–14. These things increased the hatred of the Jews. When Nehemiah, about the year 408 before Christ, took the resolution of removing from the people their foreign wives for fear of their being led astray by them, Manasses, the son of the high priest Joiada, was unwilling to part with his. This woman was the daughter of Sanballat, the ruler of the Samaritans, and, accordingly, Manasses, her husband, went over to them, Neh. 13: 28.

Sanballat obtained leave of Darius Nothus, and built a Temple on Mount Gerezim, and placed the Jew, his son-in-law, over the sacred observances. While he fulfilled the office of high priest among them, the Samaritans appear to have dismissed their idols.

After this, very many of the Jews, when they had transgressed the laws, fled to the Samaritans, that they might escape punishment, and thus the hatred was increased on both sides. In the year 167 before Christ, when Antiochus Epiphanes was king, the Samaritans consecrated their Temple to Jupiter, 1 Macc. 3: 10. Antiq. XII. 5, 5. but they returned afterwards to the religion of Moses.

In the year 129 before Christ, John Hyrcanus destroyed their

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326. CONCERNING THE SAMARITANS.

Temple, Josephus, Antiquities, XIII. 9, 1. On the other hand, the Samaritans, whenever they could, harrassed and injured the Jews, Antiq. XII. 4, 1. XVIII. 2, 2. Whence the hatred, already strong, was mutually increased, and, in the time of Christ, there appears to have been no intercourse between them, Luke 17: 16. John 4: 9. et seq. So that the Jews in going from Galilee to Jerusalem could not with safety pass through Samaria, but crossed the Jordan, and went through Gilead. The Jews, under the influence of the hatred they bore to the Samaritans, changed the name of the city Sichem, into that of Sychar, which means drunken, John 4: 5.

Other grounds of controversy and ill-feeling, between the Samaritans and Jews, were as follows.

I. The Samaritans did not receive, as of divine authority, all the Books of the Old Testament, but only the Pentateuch, which they had received from the Jewish priest, who had been sent to them from Assyria. They, nevertheless, expected the advent of a MESSIAH, John 4: 25. et seq.; grounding their expectations on this point probably on Gen. 12: 3. 18: 18. 22: 18. 26: 4. 28: 14.

II. The Samaritans contended, that the proper place of worship was not Jerusalem, but mount Gerezim, John 4: 20. Josephus, Antiquities, XIII. 3, 4.

For some remarks, respecting the errours, which Josephus has committed in his account of Manasses, mentioned in this section, etc. see the original German edition of this Work, P. II. vol. II. 63. p. 278-280.

CHAPTER II.

OF SACRED PLACES.

$327. OF SACRed Places in general.

In the earliest ages, God was worshipped, without distincany tion, at any time and at any place, whenever and wherever, the promptings of devotion moved in the hearts of his creatures; more especially, however, under the shade of imbowering trees, on hills, and mountains, and in places, where they had experienced some special manifestations of his favour.

The earliest ALTAR, of which we have any account, is that of Noah, Gen. 8: 20.

Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob erected a number of ALTARS in the land of Canaan, particularly in places, where they had been favoured with communications from God, Gen. 12: 7. 13: 4, 18. 26: 25. 33: 20. 35: 1, 3, 7.

Moses, and the author of the Book of Joshua both speak of idols, altars, and groves, but are silent respecting Temples. The first Temple of which we have any account, was the one at Shechem, which was dedicated to the god, Baal-berith, but, as it was furnished with a tower, &c. there had probably been others before it, Judg. 9: 4.

Moses, although he had been acquainted with temples in Egypt, was not in a condition to erect one, while marching through Arabia, and, constructed in its stead the Tabernacle, which could easily be transferred from place to place. This, as we may infer from Amos 5: 26, was not the first of its kind, and it is furthermore, worthy of notice, that the Carthaginians are said to have borne with them likewise, at least in their warlike expeditions, a sacred tent.

With respect to the Temple, which was subsequently erected

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$328. OF THE tabernacle.

in Palestine, it may be observed, that Moses gave no command on the subject. The plan appears to have originated with David; although it was left to be executed by his successor.

328. OF THE TABERNACLE.

THE PLACE, where public worship was held from the time of Moses till Solomon, viz. the Tabernacle, is mentioned in the Old Testament by various names, to wit, b a tent, ♫ a habitation,

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and

the

place of Jehovah's glory, Jehovah's tent,

the tent of the congregation, and sometimes palace. It was divided into three parts.

The first part was the AREA or court of the Tabernacle, an hundred cubits, [about an hundred and fifty feet,] long, and fifty cubits, [about seventy five feet,] broad.

It was surrounded on all sides, to the height of five cubits, with curtains made of linen. They were suspended from rods of silver, which reached from one column to another, and rested on them. The columns, D2, on the East and West, were ten, on the North and South, twenty in number, and were, without doubt, made of the ACACIA, (shittim wood.) The columns, in order to prevent their being injured by the moisture of the earth, were supported on bases of brass □ Near the top of the columns, were silver hooks, 1, in which the rods that sustained the curtains, were inserted.

That part of the court of the Tabernacle, which formed the entrance, was twenty cubits in extent, and was on the East side of it. The entrance was closed by letting fall a sort of tapestry, which hung from rods or poles, resting on four columns, and which was adorned with figures in blue, purple, and scarlet. When the entrance was opened, the tapestry was drawn up. The curtains of the entrance were called [in distinction from the curtains, that were suspended around other parts of the court of the Tabernacle,] Exod. 27: 9—19. 39: 9—20.

The TABERNACLE, (strictly so called, was situated in the middle of the western side of the court. It was covered on every part, and, in point of form, was an oblong square, being thirty cubits long from West to East, and ten broad from North to South.

$329. THE ALTar and brazen LAVER.

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The walls were composed of forty eight boards or planks, viz. twenty on the North side, twenty on the South side, and six on the West. The two at the angles were doubled, making the forty eight, Exod. 26: 15-30. The Eastern side was not boarded. The boards, p, were of acacia or shittim wood, ten cubits long, one and a half broad, and overlaid with plates of gold. They rested on bases of silver, and were united together by bars or poles also of gold.

The Tabernacle, thus constructed, was shielded by four coverings. The first, or rather interiour or lower covering, called 79, was made of "fine twined linen," extended down within a cubit of the earth, and displayed pictures of Cherubim, wrought into it with various colours, viz. blue, purple, and scarlet. The second, properly called, was a fabric, woven of goats' hair, and extended very nearly to the ground, Exod. 26: 7—13. The third was of rams' skins dyed red, the fourth, of the skins of the vn, a difficult word, meaning, according to some, a sky-blue colour, according to others, a sea-animal; both of the last were called

מכסה

The eastern side or ENTRANCE was closed by means of a curtain made of cotton, which was suspended from silver rods, that were sustained by five columns, covered with gold.

The interiour of the Tabernacle was divided into two parts; the first, twenty cubits long, and ten broad and high, was separated from the second, or inner apartment, by a curtain or veil, which hung down from four columns overlaid with gold, and was denominated Sɛúrɛqov xaraniraoμa, or the inner veil, Exod. 26: 36, 37. The first apartment was called p, or the Holy, and in Hebrews 9: 2. oxŋvý яyweŋ; the inner apartment was called, VIP VIP, ἅγια ἁγίων or the most Holy, and sometimes σκηνὴ δευτέρα, or the

inner Tabernacle.

$329. THE ALtar and brazen Laver.

Nearly in the centre of the outer court was the altar, na, It was a kind of coffer, three cubits high, five long and broad, made of shittim wood. The lower part rested on four short columns or feet, the sides of which were grates of brass, through which the blood of the victim flowed out.

.29 :40 .Exod מִזְבַּח הָעוֹלָה

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