LIBRARY OF PRINCETON THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY # LECTURES ON THE SACRED POETRY OF THE HEBREWS. TRANSLATED FROM THE LATIN OP THE LATE RIGHT REV. ROBERT "toWTH, D. D. PRELECTOR OF POETRY IN THE UNIVERSITY OP OXFORD AND LORD BISHOP OP LONDON, BY G. GREGORY, F.A. S. Author of Essays Historical and Moral. TO WHICH ARE ADDED, THE PRINCIPAL NOTES OF PROFESSOR MICHAELIS, AND KOTES BY THE TRANSLATOR AND OTHERS. THE SECOND EDITION. IN TWO VOLUMES. VOL. II. LONDON: PRINTED FOR OGLES, DUNCAN, AND COCHRAN, 37, PATERNOSTER ROW, AND 2.95, HOf.BORN ; J. Ogle, Parliament Square, Edinburgh; and M. Ogle, Glasgow 1816. $. Gosnell, Printer, Little Queen Street, London- CONTENTS TO THE SECOND VOLUME, THE THIRD PART. OF THE DIFFERENT SPECIES OF POETRY EX* TANT IN THE WRITINGS OF THE HEBREWS. OF PROPHETIC POETRY. LECTURE XVIir. THE WRITINGS OF THE PROPHETS ARE IN GENERAL POETICAL. 1 he poetry of the Hebrews classed according to its differ- ent characters ; this mode of arrangement results rather from the nature of the subject, than from any authority of the Hebrews themselves — The Prophetic Poetry — The writings of the Prophets in general poetical and metrical — The opinion of the modern Jews and of Je- rome on this point refuted — In the books of the Pro- phets the same evidences are found of a metrical ar- rangement as in the poetical books : in the dialect, the style, and poetical cor formation of the sentences — Ob- vious in respect to the tzco former circumstances ; the latter requires a more minute investigation, and also illuatration by examples — The intimate relation between 4 % Poetry iv CONTENTS TO THE Poetry and Prophecy — The college of Prophets; a part of whose discipline it was to sing Hymns to the different instruments; and this exercise zcas called pro- phecy : the same word, therefore, denotes a prophet, a poet, and a musician — Elisha, when about to pronounce the Oracle of God, orders a minstrel to be brought to him — Poetry excellently adapted to the purpose of pro- phecy — A review of the most ancient predictions extant in the historical books, which are proved to be truly poe- tical *- Page 2 LECTURE XIX. THE PROPHETIC POETRY IS SENTENTIOUS. The psalmody of the Hebrews — The manner of chanting the hymns by alternate choirs : whence the origin of the poetical construction of the sentences, and that peculiar form, in which verses and distichs run parallel or cor- respondent to each other — Three species of parallelism} the synonymous, the antithetie, and the synthetic : ex- amples of each, first from the books generally allozved to be poetical, and afterwards from the writings of the Prophets — The sentiments of R. Azarias considered— The great importance of an accurate attention to this poetical conformation of sentences 24 LECTURE XX. THE GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PROPHETIC POETRY. The whole of the book of Daniel, as zcell as of Jonah, are to be excepted as not poetical, though of the prophetic kind ; also certain historical relations inserted in the books of the Prophets — Some poems occur in the pro- phetic writings, which properly belong to the other classes of poetry — The remainder constitutes what may be. SECOND VOLUME. v ve termed a system or code of prophetic poetry — The character of this species of Poetry deduced from the nature and design of prophecy itself — An example of the true style of prophetic poetry produced from Isaiah, and explained : also another from the prophecies of Ba- laanij translated into English verse - - *• - - Page 60 LECTURE XXI. THE PECULIAR CHARACTER OF EACH OF THE PROPHETS. The particular style and character of the different Pro- phets: what parts of each of them are poetical, and what otherwise — Nothing deserving of notice of this kind in the poetry of Greece — In the Latin poetry the fourth Eclogue of Virgil is remarkable ; that poem much more obscure than is generally accounted, and has not hi- therto been properly explained 84 OF ELEGIAC POETRY. LECTURE XXII. OF THE NATURE AND ORIGIN OF THE HEBREW ELEGY; AND OF THE LAMENTATIONS OF JERE- MIAH. The nature and origin of the Hebrew Elegy traced into the solemn expressions of grief exhibited in their funeral ceremonies — The office and function of professed mourners : the dirges, which were sung by them, were short, metrical, and sententious ; many of the lamenta- tions, which are extant in the Prophets, zoere composed in imitation of them — The whole of the Lamentations of Jeremiah constructed upon the same principle — The general conduct and form of that poem ; the nature of the verse ; the subject and the style- --»-.-- 121 A 3 LECTURE vi CONTENTS TO THE LECTURE XXIII. OF THE REMAINING ELEGIES OF THE HEBREWS. Many poems of this kind still extant in the writings of the Hebrews — One collection of Elegies or Lamentations appeals to be lost — Elegies in Ezekiel — Many passages in Job may be accounted Elegiac — About a seventh part of the book of Psalms consists of Elegies — A perfect specimen of elegiac poetry from the Psalms — The La- mentation of David over Saul arid Jonathan explained: attempted in English verse Page 140 OF DIDACTIC POETRY. LECTURE XXIV. OF THE PROVERBS, OR DIDACTIC POETRY OF THE HEBREWS. The ancient mode of instructing by Parables or Proverbs — The Proverbs of Solomon : that work consists of two parts ; the first, which extends to the ninth chapter inclu- sive, truly poetical, and most elegant in its kind : the remainder of the book consists of detached maxims — The principal characteristics of a Parable or Proverb; bre- vity (which naturally involves in it some degree of ob- scurity) and elegance — Ecclesiastes : the argument, dis- position, and style of that work — All the alphabetical Psalms of this kind, as well as some others — The Wisdom of the Son of Sirach written originally in Hebrew, in imitation of the Proverbs of Solomon — The fidelity of the Greek translator ; and the great elegance of the work in general — The Wisdom of Solomon written originally in Greek, and in imitation of the Proverbs ; the style and economy of that book — A new transla- tion of the xxivth chapter of Ecclesiasticus 162 OF SECOND VOLUME, Tii OF LYRIC POETRY. LECTURE XXV. OF THE HEBREW ODE IN GENERAL j AND FIRST OF THAT CLASS, THE CHARACTERISTICS OF WHICH ARE SWEETNESS AND ELEGANCE. Lyric Poetry originated from the most jocund and pleas- ing affections of the human mind — The most ancient spe- cies of poetry, and almost coeval with human nature it- self—Particularly cultivated by the Hebrews — The manner, introduced by David, of singing their odes highly magnificent — The general character of this spe- cies of poetry : its principal distinctions — The first cha- racter of the Ode, sweUness — What passions and affec- tions it is intended to express : examples from the Psalms — The cxxxiiid Psalm in English verse Page 189 o — — > LECTURE XXVI. THE INTERMEDIATE OR MIXED ST£LE OF THE HEBREW ODE. The Lyric Poetry of the intermediate or mixed style con- sists of an union of sweetness and sublimity — The xc\st and lxxxis£ Psalms explained and critically illustrated * — Of the digressions of the Hebrew poets, also of Pin- dar ; not upon the same principle — A criticism upon the \xxv\\th Psalm — The x'wth Psalm in English verse c 2\ 1 LECTURE XXVII. OF THE SUBLIME STYLE OF THE HEBREW ODE. The third species of the Hebrew Ode, the characteristic of which is sublimity — This sublimity results from three sources VJU CONTENTS TO THE sources — From the general form and arrangement of the poem, exemplified in the \th and xxivth Psalm — From the greatness of the sentiments and the. force of the language — The Ode of Moses on passing the Red Sea explained and illustrated — The brevity of the Hebrew stifle — The xx'ixth Psalm in English terse ------- Page 234 LECTURE XXVIII. THE SUBLIME STYLE OF THE HEBREW ODE. The sublime Ode, in which all the constituents of subli- mit// formerly specified are united — The prophetic Ode of Moses, Deut. xxxii.— The triumphal Ode of Debo- rah; the Prayer of Habakkuk ; the Fate of Tyranny , being a poetical imitation of the xivth chapter of Isaiah 255 OF THE TDYLLIUM OR HYMN. LECTURE XXIX. OF THE IDYLLIUM OF THE HEBREWS. Besides those poems which may be strictly termed Odes i the general appellation, zvhich in the Hebrew is equivalent to Canticle or Song, includes another species called by the Greeks, the Idyllium — The reason of this name, and the definition of the poem to which it is appropri- ated — The historical Psalms in general bejong properly to this class — The intercalary stanza, and the nature of it — The elegant plan and arrangement of the hundred and seventh Psalm explained: also the ixth chapter of Isaiah, ver. S, to chap. x. ver. 4 — This passage a per- fect specimen of the Idyllium : other examples of the Idyllium no less perfect as to style and form — The Hymn of Clcanthes the stoic commended — The cxxxixth Psalm in English verse -------- — 0,69 OF SECOND VOLUME. ix OP DRAMATIC POETRY. LECTURE XXX. THE SONG OF SOLOMON NOT A REGULAR DRAMA, The Platonic division of Poetry into the narrative, dra- matic, and mixed kinds, of little use; but deserves to be noticed on this occasion, as leading to an accurate definition of Dramatic Poetry, and clearing up the ambiguity in which the term has been involved by the moderns — Two species pointed out: the lesser, which possesses only the form of dialogue, without the per- sortal intervention of the Poet ; and the greater, which contains a plot or fable — There are extant some in- stances of the former in the zcritings of the Hebrews ; but none of their productions seem to have the least title to the latter character, two perhaps excepted; the Song of Solomon, and the Book of Job — Inquiry, zcheiher the Song of Solomon contain a complete plot or fable — It is an Epithalamium : the characters which are repre- sented in it : the Poem founded upon the nuptial rites of the Hebrews — The opinion of Bossuet cited and explained; namely, that this Poem is a representation of the seven days of festival zchich succeeded the mar- riage, and consequently consists of seven parts or divi- sions — This opinion the most favourable of all to those who account this Poem a regular Drama : it however does not prove, that it contains a complete plot or fable —Definition of a dramatic fable — Nothing like it in the Song of Solomon: it is therefore not a perfect Drama, but is of the lesser class of Dramatic Poems — The chorus of Virgins bears a great analogy t > the chorus of the Greek Tragedies ; but could not serve as a model for them Page 287 LECTURE x CONTENTS TO THE LECTURE XXXI. OF THE SUBJECT AND STVLE OF SOLOMON 's SONG* The question debated, whether the Song of Solomon is to be taken in a literal or allegorical sense ; the allegorical sense defended upon the grounds of the Parabolic style — Tlbe nature and groundwork of this allegory explain- ed — The fastidiousness of those critics reproved, who pretend to take offence at the freedom of some of those images which are found in the Sacred Writings ; the nature of those images explained — The allegorical in- terpretation confirmed by analogical arguments : not equally demonstrable from the internal structure of the work itself — This allegory of the third or mystical species; the subject literally relating to the nuptials of Solomon — Two cautions to be observed by commentators — 'The style of the Poem pastoral; the characters are represented as pastoral ; hozv agreeable this to the man- ners of the Hebrews — The elegance of the topics, de? scriptions, comparisons of this Poem: illustrated by examples Page 309 LECTURE XXXII. OF THE POEM OF JOB. In order to criticise the book of Job with any degree of satisfaction to his auditors, the critic must explain his own sentiments concerning the work in general — The book of Job a singular composition, and has little or no connexion with the affairs of the Hebrews — The seat of the history is Idumaa ; and the characters are evidently Idumaan of the family of Abraham ; the author ap^ pears to be an Idunucan, who spoke the Hebrew as his vernacula SECOND VOLUME. x i vernacular tongue — Neither Elihu nor Moses, rather Job himself, or some contemporary — This appears to be the oldest book extant : founded upon true history, and Contains no allegory — Although extremely obscure, slid the gene? al subject and design are sufficiently evident — A short and general analysis of I he whole work ; in which the obscurer passages are brought as little as jjos- sible in question — The deductions from this disquisition — 1. The subject of the controversy between Job and his friends — 2. The subject of the whole Poem — 3. Its end or purpose — All questions not necessarily appertaining to this point to be avoided — Page 345 LECTURE XXXIII. THE POEM OF JOB NOT A PERFECT DRAMA. The Poem of Job commonly accounted Dramatic ; and thought by many to be of the same kind zvith the Greek Tragedy ; this opinion examined — A plot or fable es- sential to a regular drama ; its definition and essential qualities according to Aristotle — Demonstrated, that the Poem of Job does not contain any plot : its form and design more fully explained — Compared with the CEdipus Tyrannus of Sophocles ; with the CEdipus Co- loneus ; and shown to differ entirely from both in form and manner — It is nevertheless a most beautiful and perfect performance in its kind: it approaches very near the form of a perfect Drama ; and, for regularity in form and arrangement, justly claims the first place among the poetical compositions of the Hebrews - 386 LECTUKE xii CONTENTS TO THE SECOND VOLUME, LECTURE XXXIV. OF THE MANNERS, SENTIMENTS, AND STYLE OF THE POEM OF JOB. Though the Poem of Job do not contain a plot or fable, it possesses, nevertheless, some things in common with the perfect drama — Manners or character — The man- ners of Job ; to be distinguished from the passions or emotions — The opinion of Aristotle, that the character of extreme virtue is not proper for Tragedy, demon- strated to be neither applicable to Job, nor true with respect to Tragedy in general — The design of the Poem — The manners of the three friends: the gradations of passion more strongly marked in them than the diversity of manners-r-Elihu — The expostulation of God himself —Sentiments ; expressive of things and of maimers: the latter already noticed; the former consist partly of passion, partly of description: two examples of the softer passions : examples of description — The Style of this Poem uncommonly elegant and sublime ; and the poetic conformation of the sentences extremely correct — P-eroration, recommending the study of Hebrew literature Page 406 A brief Confutation of Bishop Hare's System of Hebrew Metre 436 LECTURES ON THE SACEED POETEY OF THE HEBREWS. PART III. OF THE DIFFERENT SPECIES OF POETRY EXTANT IN THE WRITINGS OF THE HEBREWS. OF PROPHETIC POETRY VOL. II. B LECTURE XVIII. THE WRITINGS OF THE PROPHETS ARE IN GENERAL POETICAL. The poetry of the Hebreivs classed according to its differ* ent characters ; this mode of arrangement results ra- flier from the nature of the subject, than from any au- thority of the Hebrews themselves. — The Prophetic Poetry. — The writings of the Prophets in general poetical and metrical. — The opinion of the modern, Jews and of Jerome on this point refuted. — In the hooks of the Prophets the same evidences are found of a metrical arrangement as in the poetical books : in the dialect, the style, and poetical conformation of the sentences.— Obvious in respect to the two former cir* cumstances ; the latter requires a more minute investi- gation, and edso illustration by examples. — The inti- mate relation between Poetry and Prophecy. — The col* lege of Prophets ; a part of whose discipline it was to sing Hymns to the different instruments ; and this ex- ercise was called prophecy : the same word, therefore, denotes a prophet, a poet, and a musician. — Elisha, when about to pronounce the Oracle of God, orders a minstrel to be brought to him. — Poetry excellently adapted to the purpose of prophecy. — A review of the most ancient predictions extant in the historical books,, which are proved to be truly poetical. Of the general nature and properties of the Hebrew poetry I have already treated t diffusely enough, if the extent of the dis- quisitions be considered ; but too briefly, I fear, and too imperfectly, if respect be had Lect. 18. PROPHETIC POETRY. S had to the copiousness and importance of the subject. My original design, however, extended no farther than to notice the most remarkable passages, and such as I conceived to be immediately illustrative of the peculia- rities of the Hebrew style. Even these it was my wish and intention rather to point out and recommend to your own considera- tion, than minutely to investigate and ex- plain, esteeming it my province rather to exhort and stimulate to these studies, than to intrude upon this audience a formal plan of instruction. It would be superfluous, I am persuaded, to remind you, that the im- portance of the subject is not to be estimated by the feebleness of my endeavours ; and, I trust, it would be still more unnecessary to caution you against a hasty acquiescence in any interpretation of those passages which I have quoted, much less in my own : though I will frankly confess, that I have bestowed no small degree of labour and at- tention upon 1 this part of my undertaking. What remains at present is, to distribute into its different classes the whole of the Hebrew poetry, and to mark whatever is worthy of observation in each species. In B 2 forming 4. PROPHETIC POETRY. Lect. 18. forming this arrangement it will hardly be expected that I should uniformly proceed according to the testimony of the Hebrews, or on all occasions confirm the propriety of my classification by their authority ; since it is plain that they were but little versed in these nice and artificial distinctions. It will be sufficient for our purpose, that is, it will be sufficient for the accurate explanation of the different characters of the Hebrew poetry, if I demonstrate that these characters are stamped by the hand of nature, and that they are displayed either in the subject itself, the disposition of its constituent parts, the diversity of style, or in the general form and arrangement of the poem. The first rank I assign to the Prophetic, or that species of poetry which is found to pervade the predictions of the prophets, as well those contained in the books properly called prophetical, as these which occasion- ally occur in other parts of the Scriptures. These, I apprehend, will be generally allowed to be written in a style truly poetical, indeed admirable in its kind; as the many examples which we have already produced, will suffi- ciently demonstrate. I fear, however, it will not Lect. 18. PROPHETIC POETRY. 5 not be so readily granted that their claim is equally well founded with that of the books which are commonly called poetical, to the other characteristic of poetry, I mean verse, or metrical composition. This fact is denied by the Jews ' ; and is denied by Jerome a , who was a diligent scholar of the Rabbinical writers: after these, it is unneces- sary to refer to more recent authors, who partly deny that the Hebrews were possessed of any metre at all, and partly allow it to 1 Abarbanel distinguishes three species of Canticles. The first is the rythmical, or that with similar endings ; in use among the more modern Hebrews (who learned it from the Arabic writers), but which was certainly un- known to the authors of the Holy Scriptures. The se- cond was adapted to music, and sung either alone or ac- companied with instruments : such are the songs of Moses, of Deborah, of David. The third species consists of pa- rables, or proverbs; which species, says he (though by the way absurdly enough, as is not uncommon with the Rab- binical writers), is properly denominated Shir. From this class, however, he cxcl tides the parables of the pro- phets, according to the distinction of Maimonides be- tween prophecy and the Holy Spirit. (Sec More Neboc. ii. 45.) He says they are not Canticles, because they are not the work of the prophet himself, but the mere effect of the prophetic inspiration. Mantissa Dissert, ad Libr* Cositi, p. 413. Author's Note. 3 See Jerome, preface to Isaiah. b 3 those 6 PROPHETIC POETRY. Lect. 18, those compositions only, which are com- monly called poetical, or at most extend the concession to a few canticles scattered through other parts of the Scriptures. A thinking person, however, will not be mis- led bv such authorities as these, before he examines whether they are to be accounted competent judges in this case, and what weight and credit is due to their testimony. The Jews, by their own confession, are no longer, nor have been indeed for many ages, masters of the system of the ancient metre. All remembrance of it has ceased from those times in which the Hebrew be- came a dead language 3 ; and it really seems probable, that the Masorites (of whom so little is known) who afterwards distinguish- ed the sacred volumes by accents and vowel points, as they are now extant, were pos- sessed of so trifling and imperfect a know- ledge of this subject, that they were even in- capable of distinguishing what was written in metre from plain prose. For when, ac- 3 " It cannot be doubted that the Canticles of the se- " cond species were possessed of a certain melody or " metre, which through the length of the captivity is be- " come obsolete." Ababbanel, ib. 410. cording Lect. IS. PROPHETIC POETRY. 7 cording to their manner, they marked cer- tain books as metrical, namely, the Psalms, the Proverbs, and the book of Job ; they accounted others, which are no less evidently metrical, absolutely prosaic, such as the Song of Solomon, and the Lamentations of Jeremiah, and consequently assigned to them the common prose accent only. In this opi- nion the Jews universally remain, and deny that these books are at all metrical, or to be classed with the three former 4 . Now the disciple 4 The Song of Solomon is indeed allowed by the Jews to be a poem ; not, however, from the nature of the com- position, or from its being metrical, but merely because it is of the parabolic kind ; and therefore it is referred by Abarbanel to the third species of Canticle. Whence it happens, that though in some MS. copies the three me- trical books are written in a versified form, the Lamenta- tions and Song of Songs are differently transcribed. This I have observed to be the case with the Vatican MS. which is deservedly accounted one of the most ancient, its date being the year dcccclxxix of our Christian sera. The same is observable in many other MSS. as I have been informed by my learned friend Dr. Kenxicott, whose Hebrew Bible with the various readings is now in the press, and already in great forwardness, In- deed, it is natural to suppose, that when the Jews exhibit certain Canticles, and even whole books, in a poetical or versified order, they followed, or pretended to follow, the B $ true 8 PROPHETIC POETRY. Lect. 18. disciple is hardly to be supposed to have more information than his masters ; and al- though Jerome speaks very fluently about the Tetra- true nature of the Hebrew verse, or the proper distribu^ tiorrof the lines. But the great disagreement between them in this respect is a proof of their ignorance ; for they seldom agree with one another in the termination of the lines, or follow any determinate rule in this matter. The distribution of the verses is different in different copies, as may be immediately observed on comparing them. In the Song of Moses, Deut. xxxii. in which the different editions agree better than in any other (and indeed there was but little room for disagreement, the sense always pointing out of itself^ the order of the sentences) ; in this, notwithstanding, the Rabbies have contrived to differ, some of them dividing it into 67, and some into 70 verses or lines. See Annot. ad Bib. Heb. Edit. Michaelis, Hake 1720. Among the MS. copies of the metrical books the disagreement is equally manifest, as the above excellent critic proved upon a very strict examination, un- dertaken at my request. In a very famous MS. which I saw in the Royal Library at Dresden, I remarked a cir- cumstance that clearly demonstrates the perfect ignorance and absurdity of the Jews in this respect. The Chaldee paraphase was intermingled with the text throughout, in such a maimer, that we first read the Hebrew, and then the Chaldee, verse by verse alternately : in the metrical books, which were divided into lines or verses, the text and version were so confounded, that the writer attending only to the equality of his lines, perpetually blended the Hebrew Lbct. IB* PROPHETIC POETRY. 9 Tetrameters, the Hexameters, the Sapphics, and Iambics of the Hebrews, the very state and circumstances of the case demonstrate how little credit is due to his authority. In- deed his reasoning evidently proceeds from a confused head, when he attempts to trace a sort of remote similarity between the Greek and Hebrew metres; and to explain by some coarse analogies a subject, which he appears to have very imperfectly understood : in treating of which, after all, he is not able to preserve even the appearance of consistency. For instance, after Josephus and Origen, he contends 5 , that the Song of Moses in Deu- teronomy is composed in Hexameter and Pentameter verse ; in another place, how- ever, he affirms that the very same poem consists of Iambic Tetrameters 6 . In proof of Hebrew and Chaldee together in such a manner, that where the one ended the other was resumed, and every line partook of both. This is a very elegant copy, and probably five hundred years old. The punctuation is evidently of a more recent date ; as in that of the Vati- can above mentioned, and in some other copies still older. Authors Note. 5 Preface to Chron. 6 Epist. civ. ad Paulam Urbicam. his 10 PROPHETIC POETPvY. Lect. 18. his opinion he appeals to the testimony of Philo, Josephus, Origen, and Euscbius 7 , who were no less ignorant of the nature of the Hebrew metres than himself. Notwith- standing the opinion therefore of Jerome and the Rabbinical writers, I shall beg leave to offer a few remarks upon the other side of the question ; after which it will not per- haps be thought altogether improbable, that most of the predictions of the prophets, as well as many other of the remains of He- brew literature, were originally published in a metrical form. In order to prove that the predictions of the prophets are metrical, I must in part have recourse to the same arguments by which I formerly endeavoured to evince, that the Hebrew poetry in general consisted of a kind of metre : every one of which argu- ments, I must observe, is strictly applicable to this part of my subject, that alone ex-» cepted which regards the alphabetic poems. That it would be unnatural and absurd to look for instances of that kind in the pro- phetic poetry is evident ; since such an arti- ficial arrangement would be utterly repugn 7 See Jerome, preface to Job. nant Lect. 18. PROPHETIC POETRY. 11 riant to the nature of prophecy ; it is plainly the effect of study and diligence, not of ima- gination and enthusiasm ; a contrivance to assist the memory, not to affect the passions. The other arguments, however, ought to be particularly adverted to upon this subject: the poetic dialect for instance, the diction so totally different from the language of com- mon life, and other similar circumstances 8 , which an attentive reader will easily discover, but which cannot be explained by a few ex- amples ; for, circumstances which, taken se- parately, appear but of small account, are in a united view frequently of the greatest importance. To these we may add the arti- ficial conformation of the sentences; which, as it has always appeared to me a necessary concomitant of metrical composition, the only one indeed which is now apparent, I shall afterwards endeavour to explain more at large, having especial regard to the pro- phetic writers. 1 must now premise a few other arguments, which will probably lead to the establishment of my opinion. The prophets were chosen by God himself, and were certainly excellently prepared for 8 See Lect. III. the 12 PROPHETIC POETRY. Lect. 18. the execution of their office. They were in genera] taken from those who had been edu- cated from childhood in a course of disci- pline adapted to the ministerial function. It is evident from many parts of the Sacred History, that, even from the earliest times of the Hebrew Republic, there existed certain colleges of prophets, in which the candidates for the prophetic office, removed altogether from an intercourse with the world, devoted themselves entirely to the exercises and study of religion : over each of these some prophet of superior authority, and more peculiarly under the divine influence, presided, as the moderator and preceptor of the whole assem- bly. Though the Sacred History affords us but little information, and that in a cursory manner, concerning their institutes and dis- cipline; we nevertheless understand that a principal part of their occupation consisted in celebrating the praises of Almighty God in hymns and poetry, with choral chants ac- companied by stringed instruments and pipes. There is a remarkable passage 9 which occurs to this purpose: Saul being nominated King, and, pursuant to the command of God, con- 9 1 Sam. x. 5—10. secrated Lect. 18. PROPHETIC POETRY. 13 secrated by a solemn unction, a company of the prophets, as Samuel had foretold, de- scending from the Mount of God (that be- ing the place in which the sacred college was situated), met him; and, preceded by a variety of musical instruments, prophesied: upon hearing which, he himself, as if actuated by the same spirit, immediatelyjoined them, and prophesied also. The same thing again oc- curred to him, and the persons sent by him to take David prisoner at Naioth IO ; who, when they saw the prophets prophesying, and Samuel presiding over them, seized with the same divine spirit and enthusiasm, began to prophesy along with them. I find no discordance among authors concerning the nature of this mode of prophesying : all are, I believe, agreed in this point, and all under- stand by it the praises of God celebrated, by the impulse of the Holy Spirit, with music and song. In this they follow the authority of the Chaldee interpreters, or rather the evidence of reason itself: for, exactly in the same manner, Asaph, Heman, Iduthun, who were the chief musicians in the Temple, are said " to have prophesied upon the harp, the 10 1 Sam. xix, 20— 9A. u psaltery, 14 PROPHETIC POETRY. Lect. 18. " psaltery, and the cymbal, when praise and " thanksgiving were offered to Jehovah ".^ From these instances it is sufficiently appa- rent, that the word Nabi was used by the Hebrews in an ambiguous sense, and that it equally denoted a Prophet, a Poet, or a Mu- sician, under the influence of divine inspira- tion. To these we may add the prophetesses, Miriam the sister of Aaron, and Deborah, who were distinguished by that title, not only because they pronounced the oracles of Jehovah, but on account of their excellence in music and poetry ; for these sister arts w r ere united by the Hebrews, as well as by all other nations, during the first stages of society. After these proofs there can scarcely be any occasion to remark, that Solomon, or at least the editor or compiler of his Pro- verbs, twice makes use of the word, which, in its ordinary sense, means prophecy, strict- ly so called, to denote the language of poetry. For he calls the words of Agur and Lemuel 1 * Massa, u 1 Chron. xxv. 1 — 3. lz The late Mr. Hallet of Exeter, in the second volume of his Notes and Discourses, p. 89, &c. hath advanced enough to show tliat the existence of the two personages here Lect. IS. PROPHETIC POETRY. 15 Massa I3 , which Jerome renders vision, the seventy Greek translators an oracle, the Chal- dee prophecy : when in reality those pas- sages have nothing in them which can be pro- perly said to bear any resemblance to pro- phecy ; but are mere rhapsodies of morality, here mentioned is at least problematical. To the reputa- tion of this excellent man (and, perhaps, it was his least praise) it deserves to be mentioned, that there is scarcely «a conjectural emendation of the Hebrew text proposed by him, which was not afterwards found by Dr. Kennicott, in one manuscript or another, to have been an ancient reading. S. H. 13 Massa, which, according to its etymology, means an oracular saying, Xoyiov, is no more peculiar to predictions of future events, than to every species of that eloquence which is supposed to come by inspiration, including that which teaches the salutaiy principles of moral conduct. I do not therefore see much force in this argument of our author : for, whatever Lemuel composed under the in- fluence of the Divine Spirit might properly be called massa, whether in verse or not. The word is derived from nasa, he raised, he produced, he spoke ; not, as some of the old commentators derive it, from nasa, he received. Though a divine oracle might, I confess, take its name with great propriety from receiving, as does the Greek word Xrt^cc (so the Seventy render this very phrase), which means being received from God. But the use of the word in % Kings, ix. 25. militates against this derivation. M. ornamented 3 16 PROPHETIC POETRY, Lect, 18. ornamented indeed with the usual embellish- ments of poetry 14 . The Hebrews certainly did not express by the same word ideas, which they deemed inconsistent, or repug- nant to each other ; and, what is remarkable, the same ambiguity prevails, the same word (and we may well presume for similar rea- sons) denotes both a Prophet and a Poet in the Arabic language, in the Greek, and in the Latin tf. Nor is it reasonable to suppose, that Pro- phecy admitted Poetry and Music to a parti- cipation in the name alone ; on the contrary we find, that she did not disdain to unite herself with Harmony, and to accept of her assistance. The example of Elisha is re- markable 1<5 , who, when about to pronounce the answer of the Most High to the inquiry of the two kings of Israel and Judah, orders a minstrel to be brought to him, and upon 14 Prov. xxx. 1. xxxi. 1. See also 1 Chron. xv. 22. and 27. «^»n iw, LXX. 15 Muttenabbi, np$nm?, Vates. See Joseph Mede's Works, p. 59. Tit. i. 12. Luke, i. 67. and Ham- mond on the passage. Author's Note. 16 2 Kings, in. 15. his Lect. 18. PROPHETIC POETRY. 17 his striking the harp, is immediately agi- tated by the Holy Spirit I7 . Many commen- tators have indeed supposed that the Pro- phet applied to music only to sooth the per- turbation of his mind ; in this they follow an opinion of some of the more modern Rabbies (an opinion, it may be observed, by no means satisfactorily proved), that every emotion of a more vehement kind excluded the Holy Spirit, and consequently was to- tally inconsistent with prophecy l8 ; when, on the contrary, we learn from the testimony of the Prophets themselves, that the act of prophesying was often, if not always, ac- companied with a very violent agitation of the mind I9 . Be this as it may, I am in- clined to believe, both from this last and the other instances, that the Prophet himself ac- companied the minstrel, and uttered some hymn, or rather the prediction itself, to the music of the harp ; and both the style and l i mm t vbv 'nni pjnn j.ud n'm] 18 See Maimon. More Ncboc. ii. 36. and many others quoted by Smith, Dissert, of Prophecy, c. viii. J 9 See Jer. xxiii. 9. Ezek. iii. 14, 15. Dan. vii. 28. x. 8. Habak. iii. 2, and 16. vol. ii. c the 18 PROPHETIC POETRY. Lect. 13. the form of this prophetic reply are very much in favour of this opinion 20 . From all these testimonies it is sufficiently evident, that the prophetic office had a most strict connexion with the poetic art. They had one common name, one common origin, one common author, the Holy Spirit. Those in particular were called to the exercise of the prophetic office, who were previously conver- sant with the sacred poetry. It was equally a part of their duty to compose verses for the service of the church, and to declare the ora- cles of God : it cannot, therefore, be doubted that a great portion of the sacred hymns may properly be termed prophecies, or that many of the prophecies are in reality hymns or poems. Since, as we have already proved, it was from the first a principal end and aim of poetry, to impress upon the minds of men the sayings of the wise, and such pre- cepts as related either to the principles of faith or the laws of morality, as well as to transmit the same to posterity ; it ought not ao Dryden, in the adjustment of his measures, and Handel of his music, to the diversified strains of Timo- theus, seem both to have possessed the same idea. S. H. to Lect. 18. PROPHETIC POETRY. 19 to appear extraordinary, that prophecy, which in this view ranks as a principal, and is of the highest importance, should not dis- dain the assistance of an art so admirably calculated to effect its purposes. Of this we have an illustrious proof in that prophetic ode of Moses z \ which he composed by the especial command of God, to be learned by the Israelites, and committed to memory : " That this song may be/' says God him- self, "for a witness against the people of " Israel, when they shall depart from me ; " this shall be a testimony in their mouths ; " for it shall not be forgotten, nor shall it " depart out of the mouths of their poste- " rity for ever"." But as, on the one hand, this poem of Moses is a clear and remarkable specimen of the prophetic mode of writing; so, on the other, there are many prophecies which are not less conspicuous as poems. It remains, therefore, only to produce a few examples from the prophetic writings. Many of the most ancient of those which arc extant in %l Deut. xxxii. *• See Deut. xxxi. 19, 21. c 2 the 20 PROPHETIC POETRY. Lect. 18. the Mosaic history, I have already quoted 23 , as exhibiting the fairest examples of the He- brew poetry: for instance, the imprecation of Noah, the blessing of Jacob, and the pre- dictions of Balaam : than all which (and particularly those of Balaam) I do not know that the whole extent of the prophetic writ- ings could afford more pertinent instances. Nay, so eminently distinguished are they by all the characteristics of poetry, that those who are inclined to acknowledge any kind of metre in the Hebrew poetry, must, I am convinced, refer to these as metrical compo- sitions, if they be in the least desirous of maintaining their opinion by fact and argu- ment. Among the prophecies of Balaam I will also venture to class that most elegant poem which is rescued from oblivion by the prophet Micah 24 , and which in matter and diction, in the structure, form, and charac- ter of the composition, so admirably agrees with the other monuments of his fame, that it evidently appears to be a citation from the 2 * See Lect. IV. * Mic. vi. 6—8. answer Lect. 18. PROPHETIC POETRY. $1 answer of Balaam to the king of the Moab- ites 25 : " Wherewith shall I come before Jehovah ? 11 Wherewith shall I bow myself unto the High " God ? " Shall I come before him with burnt offerings; " With calves of a year old? " Will Jehovah be pleased with thousands of " rams ? " With ten thousands of rivers of oil ? " Shall I give my first-born for my transgression? u The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? " He hath showed thee, O man, what is good : " And what doth Jehovah require of thee, " But to do justice, and to love mercy, " And to be humble in walking with thy God?" But if we proceed to other parts of the Sacred History, examples will not be want- ing : and among the first of these is that cygnean song of Moses, as it may properly be called ; I do not speak of the prophetic ode, which has frequently been distinguished by that title, but of the last blessing of that divine prophet, in which are predicted the future fortunes of the Israelites : 45 See Mic. vi. 5. and the late Bishop Butler's Ser- mon on the character of Balaam. c 3 " Jehovah 2# PROrHETIC POETRY. Lect. 18. " Jehovah came from Sinai : " And rose np unto them from Seir * 5 :" — The prophecy is evidently of the same na- ture with that of Jacob ; both in the exor- dium and the conclusion it is exquisitely sub- lime ; and throughout the whole affords an admirable specimen of the prophetic poetry. In the same class with these may be ranked the answer of Samuel the prophet to Saul, in which he reproaches him with his disobe- dience and contumacy, and denounces against him the Divine decree of expulsion from his kingdom : it consists of four distichs ele- gantly corresponding to each other. " Hath Jehovah pleasure in burnt-offerings and " sacrifices, " As in listening to the voice of Jehovah ? " Behold! to listen is better than sacrifice, " And to obey than the fat of rams. " Rebellion is as the sin of divination, " And contempt as the crime of idolatry. " Because thou hast rejected the word of Jeho- " VAH, u Ke hath also rejected thee from being king 27 .' 3 26 Deut. xxxiii. 37 1 Sam. xv. 22, 23. All the old translators seem to have read a»»pm for awpnV, and o>ann without i pre* fixed. The Lect. 18. PROPHETIC POETRY. 2* The last words of David 28 afford an evident and illustrious instance to the same purpose, however difficult and obscure the verbal in- terpretation of the prophecy may be. I ap- prehend the examples from Sacred History will appear sufficiently numerous, if I add the prediction of Isaiah concerning Senna- cherib, which is inserted in the Book of Kings : " He hath despised thee, he hath mocked thee, " O virgin daughter of Sic-n ; " He hath shaken his head at thee, O daughter " of Jerusalem V The same passage occurs again among the predictions of the Prophet : and this reminds me that it is now full time to pass from the historians to the books of the prophets themselves, which will afford us abundant instances to demonstrate that the composi- tions of the prophets are truly poetical, and at the same time to illustrate the nature of their poetry. a8 2 Sam. xxiii. 1 — 7. *9 % Kings, xix. 21—34. Isa. xxxvii. 22—35, c 4 LECTURE XIX. THE PROPHETIC POETRY IS SENTENTIOUS. The 'psalmody of the Hebrews. — The manner of chant- ing the hymns by alternate choirs : whence the origin of the poetical construction of the sentences, and that peculiar form, in which verses and distichs run pa- rallel or correspondent to each other. — Three species of parallelism ; the synonymous, the antithetic, and the synthetic : examples of each, first from the books ge- nerally allowed to be poetical, and afterwards from the writings of the Prophets. — The sentiments of R. Aza- rias considered, — The great importance of an accurate attention to this poetical conformation of the sentences. The origin and earliest application of the Hebrew poetry have, I think, been clearly traced into the service of religion. To celebrate in hymns and songs the praises of Almighty God ; to decorate the worship of the Most High with all the charms and graces of harmony ; to give force and energy to the devout affections, was the sub- lime employment of the Sacred Muse. It is more than probable, that the very early use of sacred music in the public worship of the Hebrews, contributed not a little to the peculiar Lect. 19. PROPHETIC POETRY. 25 peculiar character of their poetry, and might impart to it that appropriate form, which, though chiefly adapted to this particular purpose, it nevertheless preserves on every other occasion. But in order to explain this matter more clearly, it will be necessary to premise a few observations concerning the ancient Hebrew mode of chanting their sa- cred hymns. Though we are rather at a loss for inform- ation respecting the usual manner and ceremony of chanting their poems ; and though the subject of their sacred music in general be involved in doubt and obscurity ; thus far at least is evident from many exam- ples, that the sacred hymns were alternately sung by opposite choirs % and that the one choir usually performed the hymn itself, while the other sung a particular distich, which was regularly interposed at stated in- tervals, either of the nature of the proasm or epode of the Greeks. In this manner we learn that Moses with the Israelites chanted the ode at the Red Sea; for " Miriam the " prophetess took a timbrel in her hand, 1 See Nehem. xii. 24, 31, 38, 40. and the title of f sal. Ixxxviii. "and 16 PROPHETIC POETRY. Lect. 19. " and all the women followed her with tim- " brels, and with dances ; and Miriam an- " swered them/' that is, she and the women sung the response to the chorus of men 2 ; " Sing to Jehovah, for he is greatly exalted; " The horse and the rider he hath cast into the " sea." The same is observable in some of the Psalms which are composed in this form. The mu- sical performance was on some occasions dif- ferently conducted : for instance, one of the choirs sung a single verse to the other, while the other constantly added a verse in some respect correspondent to the former. Of this the following distich is an example : " Sing praises to Jehovah, for he is good; " Because his mercy endureth for ever :" which Ezra 3 informs us was sung by the Priests and Levites in alternate choirs at the command of David ; as indeed may be col- lected from the Psalm itself \ in which the * Exod. xv. 20, 21. See Philo «r E pi yswpy/«c, pag. 199. also w =p> & a SwfnTiKti, pag. 902. Edit. Paris, 1640. 3 Ezit. Hi, 11, 4 Ps. cxxxvi. latter Lect. 19. PROPHETIC POETRY. 27 latter verse, sung by the latter choir, forms a perpetual epode. Of the same nature is the song of the women concerning Saul and David 5 , for " the women who played an- *' swered one another ;" that is, they chant- ed in two choirs the alternate song 6 , the one choir singing, " Saul 5 1 Sam. xviii. 7. 6 It is much to be regretted, that the learned author has not investigated this subject more fully, and with his usual precision. Though the performance of their Hymns by two, alternate, choirs, were the more usual, it evidently was not the only mode : for, as the paral- lelism of sentences in the Hebrew poetry is not restricted to distichs, but admits a varied form of iteration, so their psalmody, though usually confined to two alternate chorusses, was sometimes extended to more. An ex- ample of the latter kind will appear in Psalm exxxv. which was obviously performed by three different choirs, the High-priest with the House of Aaron constituting the first ; the Levites serving in the temple, the second ; and the Congregation of Israel, the third ; all having their distinct parts, and all at stated intervals uniting in full chorus. The High-priest, accompanied by the rest of the priest- hood, began with addressing the Levites : Praise ye Jah! The Levites return the exhortation to the Priests : Praise ye the name Jehovah! The 28 PROPHETIC POETRY. Lect. 19. " Saul bath smote his thousands;" The The Priests and Levites then joining, address the Con- gregation : Praise him, O ye servants of Jehovah I The Congregation address the Priests— Ye that stand in the house of Jehovah ! And the Levites — In the courts of the house of our God! This may be considered as the first passus of the w^oao-pa, which the Choir of Priests resumes by a second exhorta- tion to the Levites, and assigning the reason for their praise : Praise ye Jah, for Jehovah is good. The Levites then exhort the Congregation : Sing praises unto his name, for it is pleasant. And the Congregation joining both, the three choirs unite in full chorus : For Jah hath chosen Jacob unto himself: Israel for his peculiar treasure. The «rfoacr/Aa thus concluding, the High-priest, followed by his band, commences in the 5th verse the hymn. The 6th verse belongs to the Levites, and the 7th to the Con- gregation, both of whom having, in them, celebrated Jeho- vah, as the Creator and Governor of the world, the High- priest descends in the 8th verse to the intei positions of Je- hovah in behalf of his chosen people; beginning with the miracle that procured their deliverance from bondage. The Levites having adverted to the other miracles wrought in Egypt, in the former clause of the 9th verse, and the Congregation, in the latter, pointed out Pharaoh 9iu} Lect. 19. PROPHETIC POETRY. ft The other answering, " And David his ten thousands." In and his servants, as diose upon whom they, the judgments of Jehovah, were inflicted, the High-priest, &c. proceed, in the 10th verse, to remark the extension of similar judg- ments to other nations and kings, whose names and kinsr- doms the Levites enumerate, in the 11th verse, whilst the Congregation, in the 12th, commemorate the blessings which had thence resulted to them. At the close of this recitative, in the first clause of the 13th verse, follows a chorus of the Priests : Thy name, O Jehovah! endureth for ever* And in the second, another, of the Levites : Thy memorial, O Jehovah ! throughout all genera- tions. The Congregation then striking in with Priests and Levites, all unite in full chorus, as before : Far Jehovah will judge his people : And will repent him concerning his servants. This chorus may be considered as closing the first part of the Hymn, the concluding clause of which adverting to the frequent backslidings of the Jewish nation, not- withstanding the blessings both ordinary and extraordinary which Jehovah had conferred upon them, and the prospe- rity they enjoyed in the land promised to their forefathers, notwithstanding their turning aside to the idolatry of the nations that had been cut off from before them, the choir of Priests (referring back to the 5th verse), as if assured that Israel could revolt no more, breaks out in a se- cond 30 PROPHETIC POETRY. Lect. 19. In the very same manner Isaiah describes the cond recitative, expressive at once of exultation and con- tempt : The idols of the Heathen, silver and gold, &c. To this the Levites add in the same indignant strain : They have mouths, hut they speak not, &c. The Congregation subjoin : They have ears, but they hear not, &c. And the three choirs again uniting : They that make them are like unto them : Every one that trusteth in them. With this exquisite contrast between the Gods in whom the Heathen confided, and Jehovah the rock of their sal- vation — the former unable to hear or aid their votaries, and the latter loading benefits on his own — the second part of the Hymn is concluded, and the High-priest with his choir, by a graceful transition, renews his exhortation as at first ; but now addressing the Congregation : Bless Jehovah, O house (rf Israel I To which the Congregation reply : Bless Jehovah, O house of Aaron I The Priests, in like manner, exhorting the Levites : Bless Jehovah, O house of Levi ! To whom they in turn rejoin : Ye tliatfear Jehovah, bless Jehovah ! All then uniting : Blessed be Jehovah out qf Sion ! Wlto dwelleth in Jerusalem I 2 The Lect. 19. PROPHETIC POETRY. 81 the Seraphim chanting the praise of Jeho- vah 7 : " they cried alternately, " Holy, holy, holy, Jehovah God of Hosts ! " The whole earth is rilled with his glory." From the Jewish, the custom of singing in alternate chorus was transmitted to the Chris- tian Church, and was continued in the lat- ter from the first ages : it w r as called " alter- " nate or responsive 8 ," when the whole choir, separated into two divisions, sung the Psalm alternately by strophes; and when this w T as done by single verses, or lines, that is, The whole is closed by each choir in full chorus, ex- horting the other two : Praise ye J ah ! From this analysis it is evident, that the Hebrew Hymn is a composition not less regular than the Grecian Ode, and of a much more varied nature than the Professor had led his audience to suppose. S. H. The reader will find the Psalm in an entire state, but divided and apportioned according to the above specimen, in the Appendix. 7 Is. vi. 3. See what Socrates relates of the origin of the ancient hymns, Hist, Eccl. vi. 8. 8 Pun. Lib. x. Epist. 97. — " They repeat alternate " verses to Cluist, as to a God." when • # PROPHETIC POETRY. Lect. 19. when the same division of the choir always sung the latter part of the distich, they were said to sing the choral response 9 . Now, if this were the ancient and primi- tive mode of chanting their hymns, as in- deed appears highly probable, the proximate cause will be easily explained, why poems of this kind are disposed in equal stanzas, indeed in equal distichs, for the most part ; and why these distichs should in some mea- sure consist of versicles or parallelisms IO cor- responding to each other. And this mode of composition being admirably adapted to the musical modulation of that kind of poe- try which was most in use among them from the very beginning, and at the same time being perfectly agreeable to the genius 9 See Bingham's Antiquities of the Christian Church, xiv. 1. 10 " The correspondence of one verse, or line, with ** another, I call parallelism. When a proposition is de- " livered, and a second is subjoined to it, or drawn under " it, equivalent, or contrasted with it, in sense ; or si- " milar to it in the form of grammatical construction ; " these I call parallel lines ; and the words or phrases, an- " swering one to another in the corresponding lines, pa- " ralltd terms." Lowth\s Prelim. Disc, to Isaiah, p. 10. and Lect. 19. PROPHETIC POETRY. 33 and cadence of the language, easily extended itself into the other species of poetry, though not designed for the same purpose ; in fact, we find that it pervaded the whole of the poetry of the Hebrews ; insomuch, that what was said of the Heathen Muses may still more strictly be applied to those of the Hebrews,- — " they love alternate song." On this occasion also it may not be improper to remark, that the word gnanali, which pro- perly signifies to answer, is used more gene- rally to denote any song or poem lr ; whence we can only infer, either that the word has passed from particular to general use, or that among the Hebrews almost every poem pos- sesses a sort of responsive form. Such appears to have been the origin and progress of that poetical and artificial con- formation of the sentences, which we ob- serve in the poetry of the Hebrews. That it prevailed no less in the Prophetic Poetry than in the Lyric and Didactic, to which it was, in the nature of things, most adapted, " Exod. xxxii. 18. Numb. xxi. 17. Hos. ii. 15. Ps. cxlvii. 7. " Thus the word which in the Arabic answers " to gnanah, denotes not only to perform alternately^ " but also to sing? H. VOL. II. x> is 3* PROPHETIC POETRY. Lect. 19> is evident from those very ancient specimen* of poetical prophecy already quoted from the historical books; and it only remains to show, that it is no less observable in those which are contained in the volumes of the prophets themselves. In order the more clearly to evince this point, I shall endeavour to illus- trate the Hebrew parallelism according to its different species, first by examples taken from those books commonly allowed to be poet- ical, and afterwards by correspondent ex- amples from the books of the prophets. The poetical conformation of the sentences, which has been so often alluded to as charac- teristic of the Hebrew poetry, consists chiefly in a certain equality, resemblance, or paral- lelism between the members of each period; so that in two lines (or members of the same period), things for the most part shall answer to things, and words to words, as if fitted to each other by a kind of rule or measure. This parallelism has much variety and many gradations; it is sometimes more accurate and manifest, sometimes more vague and ob- scure: it may however, on the whole, be said to consist of three species. The Lect. 19. PROPHETIC POETRY. 35 The first species is the synonymous paral- lelism, when the same sentiment is repeated in different, but equivalent terms. This is the most frequent of all, and is often con- ducted with the utmost accuracy and neat- ness : examples are very numerous, nor will there be any great difficulty in the choice of them : on this account I shall select such as are most remarkable in other respects. " When Israel went out from Egypt; " The house of Jacob from a strange people : " Judah was as his sacred heritage; " Israel his dominion. " The sea saw, and fled ; " Jordan turned back : " The mountains leaped like rams ; " The hills like the sons of the flock. " What ailed thee, O Sea, that thou fleddest; " Jordan, that thou turnedst back ; " Mountains, that ye leaped like rams ; " And hills, like the sons of the flock ? " At the presence of the Lord tremble thou Earth; " At the presence of the God of Jacob ! " Who turned the rock into a lake of waters ; " The flint into a water-spring l \" w Ps. cxiv. D 2 The 36 PROPHETIC POETRY. Lect. 19, The Prophetic Muse is no less elegant and correct : 11 Arise, be thou enlightened ; for thy light h " come; " And the glory of Jehovah is risen upon thee. " For, behold, darkness shall cover the earth ; " And a thick vapour the nations : " But upon thee shall Jehovah arise ; " And his glory upon thee shall be conspicuous. " And the nations shall walk in thy light ; " And kings in the brightness of thy rising **' Observe also that famous prophecy concern- ing the humiliation and expiatory sufferings of the Messiah : " Who hath believed our report ; " And to whom hath the arm of Jehovah been " manifested ? " For he groweth up in their sight like a tender " sucker ; " And like a root from a thirsty soil; " He hath no form, nor any beauty that we " should regard him ; 13 Isai. lx. 1 — 3. " In the brightness of thy rising,* is an expression uncommonly beautiful and simple ; I never could read it without a glow of tranquil pleasure ^responding to the scene which the image exhibits. T. 3 u Nor Lect.19, PROPHETIC POETRY. 37 " Nor is his countenance such, that we should u desire him. " Despised, nor accounted in the number of men ; " A man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; " As one that hideth his face from us : " He was despised, and we esteemed him not. " Surely our infirmities he hath borne : " And our sorrows he I4 hath carried them. — " Yet we thought him judicially stricken; " Smitten of God and afflicted. " But he was wounded for our transgressions ; " Was smitten for our iniquities : " The chastisement by which our peace was ef- " fected was laid upon him ; " And by his bruises we are healed l5 ." Isaiah is indeed excellent, but not unrivalled, in this kind of composition: there are abun- dant examples in the other prophets ; I shall, however, only add one from Hosea, which is exquisitely pathetic : 14 Some copies, manuscript as well as printed, point out in the margin the word Kin (he) to be inserted : (see Bibl. Heb. Edit. Michaelis, Var. Lect. in loc.) The Syr. and Vulg. certainly express it, and indeed the re- petition of the word gives exquisite force and elegance to the line. " This word occurs in the text of twelve MS. i( copies, and in three printed." K. Author's Note. J 5 Isai. liii. 1—5, d 3 " How S8 PROPHETIC POETRY. Lect. 19, " How shall I resign thee, O Ephraim ! " How shall I deliver thee up, O Israel ! " How shall I resign thee as Adinah ! " How shall I make thee as Zeboim ! u My heart is changed within me; " I am warmed also with repentance towards " thee. " I will not do according to the fervour of my " wrath. " I will not return 16 to destroy Ephraim : " For I am God, and not man ; u I7 Holy in the midst of thee, though I inhabit " not thy cities l8 ." There 16 A beautiful Hebraism to express the repetition of any thing ; in this place it has peculiar force and pathos. T. 17 There is hardly any thing in which translators have differed more than in the explanation of this line ; which is the more extraordinary when we consider that the words themselves are so well known, and the structure of the period so plain and evident. Jerome is almost singular in his explanation. Comm. in loc. " I am not one of those " who inhabit cities ; who live according to human laws ; " who think cruelty justice. 1 ' Castalio follows Jerome. There is, in fact, in the latter member of the sentence ")»yn kun n^> a parallelism and synonyme to k?»k vb in the former. The future «n« has a frequentative power (see Ps. xxii. S and 8.) : " I am not accustomed to enter a " city ; I am not an inhabitant of a city." For there is a beautiful opposition of the different parts ; "lam " God Lict.19. PROPHETIC POETRY. 39 There is great variety in the form of the synonymous parallelism, some instances of which are deserving of remark. The paral- lelism is sometimes formed by the iteration of the former member, either in the whole or in part : " Much have they oppressed me from my youth " up, " May Israel now say ; " Much have they oppressed me from my youth, " Yet have they not prevailed against me 19 ." " God of vengeance, Jehovah ; " God of vengeance, show thyself. " How long shall the wicked, O Jehovah, " How long shall the wicked triumph 30 !" " With the jaw-bone of an ass, heaps upon heaps; Ci With the jaw-bone of an ass a thousand men 11 have I smitten 2I ." Thus, • ; God and not man ;" this is amplified in the next line, and the antithesis a little varied. "lam thy God, in- i( habiting with thee, but in a peculiar and extraordinary " manner, not in the manner of men." Nothing I think can be plainer or more elegant than this. Author's Note. 18 Hos. xi. 8, 9. J » Ps. cxxix, 1, 2. i0 Ps. xciv. 1 and 3. 31 Jud. xv. 16. " It will admit of a doubt whether %i these words may not be rendered: With the jaw-bone of D 4* c< an 40 PROPHETIC POETRY. Lect. 19, Thus, Isaiah : u Because in the night Ar is destroyed, Moab is " undone ! " Because in the night Kir is destroyed, Moab is una one . So Nahum also in the exordium of his subv lime prophecy : " Jehovah is a jealous and avenging God : " Jehovah avengeth, and is wrathful : u an ass, in confusing, I have confused them. For this " seems to be the grammatical construction of the words : " and the word Chamar commonly signifies to trouble or a confuse. So it is rendered by the LXX, Ev Hos. vi 1 4 % "At Lect. 19. PROPHETIC POETRY. 43 " At their voice he will not be terrified, " Nor at their tumult will he be humbled 3o ." " Askalon shall see it, and shall fear ; " Gaza shall also see it, and shall be greatly " pained : '* And Ekron shall be pained, because her ex- " pectation is put to shame; " And the king shall perish from Gaza; " And Askalon shall not be inhabited 3 V Those which consist of four lines generally form two regular distichs; but there is some- times a peculiar artifice to be perceived in the distribution of the sentences : " From the Heavens Jehovah looketh down, " He seeth all the children of men ; " From the seat of his rest he conremplateth " All the inhabitants of the earth 32 ." " I will drench my arrows in blood, " And my sword shall devour flesh ; *' In the blood of the slain and the captives; i( From the bushy head of the enemies 33 ." In both the above passages, the latter mem- bers are Jo be alternately referred to the for- 30 Isai. xxxi. 4. 31 Zech. ix. 5. ^ Ps, xxxiii. 13, 14. 33 Deut. xxxii. 42. raer. 44 PROPHETIC POETRY. Lect. 19. mer. Isaiah too uses with great elegance this form of composition : " For thy husband is thy maker; " Jehovah God of Hosts is his name: " And thy Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel; u The God of the whole earth shall he be " called 3 V The sense has an alternate correspondence in these lines. In the following the form of the construction is alternate : " And his land is filled with silver and gold; " And there is no end to his treasures : " And his land is filled with horses, " Neither is there any end to his chariots 35 ." The following is perhaps a singular instance: " Who is like unto Jehovah our God? " Who is exalted to dwell on high, u Who humbleth himself to look down, i; In the heavens, and in the earth 36 ." Here the two members of the latter line are to be referred severally to the two preceding lines ; as if it were : " Who is exalted to 3 4 ISAI. Iiv. 5. 35 I SAI , ii # 7. s 6 Ps. cxiii. 5, e. " dwell Lect. 19. PROPHETIC POETRY. .45 " dwell in the heavens, and who humbleth " himself to inspect the things that are in " the earth." The Antithetic parallelism is the next that I shall specify, when a thing is illustrated by its contrary being opposed to it. This is not confined to any particular form : for senti- ments are opposed to sentiments, words to words, singulars to singulars, plurals to plurals, &c. of which the following are examples : 6( The blows of a friend are faithful ; " But the kisses of an enemy are treacherous 37 . * l The cloyed will trample upon an honey-comb ; *' But to the hungry every bitter thing is sweet* " There is who maketh himself rich, and wanteth " all things ; u Who maketh himself poor, yet hath much " wealth. 37 « To this very day the word "»rw is in use in the M East, and in an Arabic Lexicon, which is accounted * one of the best, it is explained by the word n: (the " same as the Hebrew 3 id) to falsify. Whence it is evi- " dent that there is an antithesis between the two hemi- " stichs, which the LXX have in vain attempted to ex- fi plain; they have ^atna., spontaneous or voluntary. * c They seem to have read it nnruH*" H. "The 46 PROPHETIC POETRY. Lect. 1& Ct The rich man is wise in his own eyes, '• But the poor man that hath discernment to trace " him out will despise him 38 ." There is sometimes a contraposition of parts in the same sentence, such as occurs once in the above ; and as appears in the following : " I am swarthy but comely, O daughters of Je- " rusalem ; " As the tents of Kedar, as the pavilions of " Solomon 39 ." The last line here is also to be divided and separately applied to the preceding : " swar- " thy as the tents of Kedar ; comely as the " pavilions of Solomon." So likewise ill the enigma of Sampson : u Out of the eater came forth meat; " And out of the strong came forth sweetness 40 . 3 " This form of composition, indeed, agrees best with adages and acute sayings : it is 38 Prov. xxvii. 6, 7. xiii. 7. xxviii. 11. 39 Song of Solomon, i. 5. 40 Jud. xiv. 14. The solution of the enigma by the Philistines is jmetrical, as well as the answer of Sampson to them. lb. v. 18. Author's Note. therefore Lect. 19. PROPHETIC POETRY. *7 therefore very prevalent in the Proverbs of Solomon, in some of which the principal force and elegance depend on the exactness of the antithesis. It is not, however, inconsistent with the superior kinds of Hebrew poetry ; for we meet with it in the thanksgiving ode of Hannah, which is imitated in this parti- cular, as w T ell as in the general form of its composition, in that of the Virgin Mary : " The bows of the mighty are broken ; " And thev that stumbled are girded with " strength : " The full have hired themselves for bread; " And the hungry have ceased to 4I hunger : " The barren also hath borne seven ; " And she who had many children is become " fruitless. " Jehovah killeth and maketh alive; " He casteth down to hell, and lifteth up. " Jehovah maketh poor, and maketh rich ; " Depresseth, and also exalteth 42 ." 41 " There is evidently something wanting after (Char u delu) ceased, in order to complete the sentence. What " if we take the word gnad from the beginning of the " next verse, and so understand it as derived from the " verb (gnieved) to spoil or rob f The sense will then M be, the hungry ceased from plundering, that is, on ac* u count of their poverty, as in Job, iii. 17." H. 4 * 1 SAM.'ii. 4—7. compare Luke, i. 52, 53. The 48 PROPHETIC POETRY. Lect. ig. The sublimer poetry seldom indeed adopts this style. Isaiah, however, by means of it, without departing from his usual dignity, adds greatly to the sweetness of his cornpo* sition in the following instances : " In a little anger have I forsaken thee ; " But with great mercies will I receive thee again : " In a short wrath I hid my face for a moment " from thee; " But with everlasting kindness will I have mercy " on thee 43 ." " Behold my servants shall eat, but ye shall be " famished ; " Behold my servants shall drink, but ye shall " be thirsty; u Behold my servants shall rejoice, but ye shall " be confounded ; w Behold my servants shall sing aloud, for glad- " ness of heart ; " But ye shall cry aloud for grief of heart; " And in the anguish of a broken spirit shall ye "howl 4 *." There is a third species of parallelism, in which the sentences answer to each other, not by the iteration of the same image or *3 i SAL liv, 7, 3. «* Isai. lxv. 13, 14. sentiment, Lect. 19. PROPHETIC POETRY. 49 sentiment, or the opposition of their con- traries, but merely by the form of construc- tion. To this* which may be called the Synthetic or Constructive Parallelism, may be referred all such as do not come within the two former classes : I shall however produce a few of the most remarkable instances : " The law of Jehovah is perfect, restoring the " soul; " The testimony of Jehovah is sure, making 11 wise the simple : " The precepts of Jehovah are right, rejoicing " the heart ; " The commandment of Jehovah is clear, en- " lightening the eyes : u The fear of Jehovah is pure, enduring for " ever. " The judgments of Jehovah are truth, they " are just altogether; " More desirable than gold, or than much fine "gold; " And sweeter than honey, or the dropping of u honey-combs 45 ." This kind of parallelism generally consists of verses somewhat longer than usual, of which * Ps. xix. 8—11. vol. n. e there SO PROPHETIC POETRY. Lect. 19, there are not wanting examples in the pro- phets : " How hath the oppressor ceased ! the exactress " of gold ceased ! " Jehovah hath broken the staff of the wicked, " the sceptre of the rulers. " He that smote the people in wrath with a " stroke unremitted; " He that ruled the nations in anger, is perse- " cuted, and none hindereth. " The whole earth is at rest, is quiet; they burst " forth into a joyful shout ; " Even the fir-trees rejoice over thee, the cedars " of Lebanon : " Since thou art fallen, no feller hath come up " against us. " Hades from beneath is moved because of thee, " to meet thee at thy coming : " He rouseth for thee the mighty dead, all the " great chiefs of the earth ; * He maketh to rise up from their thrones all " the kings of the nations 4 This description the prophet afterwards improves, diversifies, and enlarges, by the addition of several import- ant circumstances, all which, however, have a certain analogy or connexion with each other. 10 Ver. 8, 9, 10. H Ver. 11, &c.—Ver. 16. « For mn « three MSS, >' have rnrp *b : two others have it in a corrected hand. * The LXX also read mm." K. Two MSS. Erfurt, /cad i;td. See Bib. Heh. Michaelis on the place. The 76 GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS Lect. 20. The other part of the poem is constructed upon similar principles, and exhibits a beau- tiful contrast to the preceding scene. The imagery possesses every possible advantage of ornament and variety : it is, like the former, altogether of a general kind, and of exten- sive application ; but the meaning is plain and perspicuous. Many of the preceding images are taken from the Sacred History ; the following are almost entirely from the objects of nature : " The desert and the waste shall be glad ; " And the wilderness shall rejoice and flourish: " Like the rose shall it beautifully flourish; ft And the well-watered plain of Jordan shall " also rejoice : " And the glory of Lebanon shall be given " unto it, " The beauty of Carmel and of Sharon ; " These shall behold the glory of Jehovah, " The Majesty of our God 'V I formerly remarked the extensive applica- tion of Lebanon and Carmel in a figurative sense 13 , and that they are sometimes ex- pressive even of the divine glory and Ma- Ia Chap, xxxv, 1, 2. I3 See Lect. VI, jesty. Lect. 20. OF THE PROPHETIC POETRY. 77 jesty I4 . The cultivation and watering of a barren and rocky soil is so frequently, I might say invariably, in the parabolic style, employed to denote the divine grace and spi- ritual endowments, that there is no necessity for any further explanation of this symbol ; nor is the succeeding imagery, which, ac- cording to a similar analogy, seems to illus- trate the same event, less clear and perspi- cuous. To him who attentively reads and consi- . ders the whole poem, the order and arrange- ment of the subject will be more fully ap- parent. The passages which I have noted will, however, I apprehend, be sufficient to demonstrate the species of imagery, the style, and colours most congenial to the prophetic Muse ; they will also, I flatter myself, be sufficient in some measure to explain the manner in which she contrives to display, in the strongest colours, the general nature, magnitude, and importance of events; and at the same time to leave the particular situ- ations, the intermediate gradations, and all the minuter circumstances concealed under H See Lect. VIII, the 78 GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS. Lect. 20. the bold and prominent features of the de- scription, till the accomplishment of the prediction. There are, indeed, one or two passages in this prophecy which would serve to illustrate this position I5 ; in the rest, the circum- 15 See chap. xxxv. 4, 5, 6, 8. which, without a doubt, in their proximate sense relate to the first coming of the" Messiah ; to the miracles which were performed by him 5 to the preaching of the Gospel ; and the effusion of the Holy Spirit. In the 8th, the" absurd mterpunctuation, rendered sacred by the authority of the Masorites, creates a degree of almost impenetrable obscurity. It is, however, a true pentacolon, and ought to be distributed in thi9 manner : 6C And an highway shall be there ; u And it shall be called the way of holiness :■ " No unclean person shall pass through it : " But he himself shall be with them, walking in the way* " And the foolish shall not err therein.'" He, that is, our God, spoken of before in the 4th verse; og KTKrivuxTiv tv t[jam, xa.* uarn'hQt kou ifuXotJ E$ rpag. Thus the' Chal. the Syr. the Vulg. and some of the more modern translators have distinguished them. Yitringa, who is by far the most learned of the commentators, but too much a slave to the authority of the Masorites, has in vain attempted a refutation of them. Houbigant remarks, that the LXX, in the 2d verse, for \yy\ read [TV ; concerning which reading, conceiving it to be of considerable importance, I consulted Dr. Ken- nicott. I^ect. 20. OF THE PROPHETIC POETRY. 79 circumstances and progress of the particular events are not yet unfolded ; for, this pro- phecy nicott. Though the manuscript copies, however, afforded no assistance towards the restoration of this word, he very kindly communicated some critical remarks upon the whole chapter, which I shall endeavour to explain with as much brevity as possible. Ver. 1. " Jesusom (they will rejoice). The old ver-* u sions do not allow of the suffix. Perhaps the q (m) " may have been added from the beginning of the next " word. It was customary in the Hebrew manuscripts, " in order to fill up one line to take the initial letter or u letters of the word that began the next, which, how- H ever, they failed not to copy in its proper place." Ver. 2. It is well observed by Houbigant, that the Se- venty read this differently ; for, instead of Gilat-ve-ranen (with joy and singing), they certainly read other words, which they rendered ™ spr^a m loft*™ (the desert places of Jordan); in the same manner also the Arabic: and this reading seems most perfectly to agree with the design of the prophet. He thinks it ought to be read Galat Jordan (the marshes of Jordan) : I would myself prefer Gldah Jordan (the bank of Jordan). In the present reading there is neither meaning nor construction, for an antece- dent is wanting, to the word r\h (to it). " The word K Gedot occurs in four places, and thiice is joined to Jor- u dan (as in this) : and though the singular Ghfo.li does " not elsewhere occur, it is found in the Chaldee Gi da (a « bank)."" " Six MSS. for f& read •£. If this be admitted, the 4f version will be, « And 80 GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS Lect, 20.- phecy is evidently one of those which are not yet completely fulfilled, and of which the greater part at least is yet deposited in the secret counsels of the Most High. That " And thou also shalt exult, O bank of Jordan : " The glory of Lebanon shall be given unto thee.'" " But perhaps the true reading may be ve-ihagali et (and " thou shalt exult, O bank) : for the final Pe is often so' " written, that it can scarcely be distinguished from the " Tau : as is the case with this same word in two MSS.* Ver. 7. " Rabetzah (a ccuching-place) should, it ap- " pears, be in the plural to agree with thanim (dragons) : " our most ancient MS. has mem for he ; and another lias " rabitzah, retaining the jod, though in a different place, " The meaning, however, of this verse is ; " In the place which was inhabited by dragons, " Shall grass spring up instead of reeds and rushes. 1 * Ver. 8. " Not only the Syr. but also fourteen MS§. " omit the second ve-dcracli. Iloubigant thinks, that for " nh we ought to read \b ; and rightly, for the suffix in the u following verse, which relates to the same, is masculine, Ver. 9- w After ve-halechu (shall walk) the word shorn " (there) seems wanting : it is added by the LXX and the " Ar." K. Vitringa approves of the opinion of the Chaldee pa- raphrast, who, in ver. 8. thus translates: " And those who u pass that way shall not faint." He, however, has not embraced Lect. 20. OF THE PROPHETIC POETRY. 81 That I may not however conclude this Lecture without exhibiting the form of some prophetic poem complete in all parts, I have selected for this purpose one of the prophe- cies of Balaam, which I so lately mentioned, and which in the course of these Lectures have more than once deservedly attracted our attention: for, indeed, I do not know that the whole scope of the Hebrew poetry contains any thing more exquisite or perfect. This, which is at present under our consideration, abounds in gay and splendid imagery copied immediately from the tablet of Nature ; and is chiefly conspicuous for the glowing ele- gance of the style and the form and diver- sity of the figures. Though every attempt to display the beauties of the Hebrew ima- gery in the poetry of another language must fall greatly short of the design, it will yet give a little variety to our studies, to inter- embraced the reading, for it is plain he did not perceive in what manner it had been formed from the Hebrew text. The Chaldean paraphrast, doubtless, instead of mb «inl read inn *Vi. This remark was furnished me, with many others, by a distinguished character, whose great erudi- tion reflects honour upon a very exalted situation. Author's Note. vol. ii. G sperse 82 GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS Lect.20, sperse them occasionally with modern verse. On these occasions, as, indeed, on every other, I must rely upon the candour of this audience to accept in good part the willing tribute of my faint endeavours 1<5 . In proud array thy tents expand, O Israel, o'er the subject land : As the broad vales in prospect rise, As gardens by the water spread, As cedars of majestic size, That shade the sacred fountain's head. Thy torrents shall the earth o'erflow, O erwhelming each obdurate foe. In vain the mind essays to trace The glories of thy countless race, In vain thy king's imperial state Shall haughty Agag emulate. His mighty God's protecting hand Led him from Pharaoh's tyrant land. Strong as the beast that rules the plain, What power his fury shall restrain ? Who dares resist, his force shall feel. The nations see, and trembling fly, Or in th' unequal conflict die; And glut with blood his thirsty steel. * See Num. xxiv. 5—9. With Lsct. 20. OF THE PROPHETIC POETRY. 8$ With aspect keen lie mark'd his prey, — He couch'd — in secret ambush lay. — Who shall the furious lion dare? Who shall unmov'd his terrors see? —Blest, who for thee exalts his prayer ! And curst the wretch who curseth thee ! 2 LECTURE XXL THE PECULIAR CHARACTER OF EACH OF THE PROPHETS. The particular style and character of the different Pro- phets : what parts of each of them are poetical, and •what otherwise. — Nothing deserving of notice of this hind in the poetry of Greece. — In the Latin poetry the fourth Eclogue of Virgil is remarkable; tliat poem much more obscure than it is generally accounted, and has not hitherto been properly explained. ' The Prophets have each their peculiar " character," says Jerome, speaking of the twelve minor prophets \ The same, how- ever, might more properly be affirmed with respect to the three greater : for Isaiah is extremely different from Jeremiah ; nor is it easy to conceive any composition of the same denomination more dissimilar to both of them than the book of Ezekiel. Isaiah, the first of the prophets, both in order and dignity, abounds in such trans- cendent excellencies, that he may be properly said to afford the most perfect model of the * Praef. in xn. Proph* prophetic Lbct. 21. THE PECULIAR CHARACTER, &c. S5 prophetic poetry. He is at once elegant and sublime, forcible and ornamented; he unites energy with copiousness, and dignity with variety. In his sentiments there is uncom- mon elevation and majesty ; in his imagery the utmost propriety, elegance, dignity, and diversity ; in his language uncommon beauty and energy; and, notwithstanding the ob- scurity of his subjects, a surprising degree of clearness and simplicity. To these we may add, there is such sweetness in the poetical composition of his sentences, whether it proceed from art or genius, that if the He- brew poetry at present is possessed of any re- mains of its native grace and harmony, we shall chiefly find them in the writings of Isaiah : so that the saying of Ezekiel may most justly be applied to this prophet : 11 Thou art the confirmed exemplar of measures, 11 Full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty \" Isaiah greatly excels too in all the graces of method, order, connexion, and arrangement: though in asserting this we must not forget the nature of the prophetic impulse, which a Ezek. xxviii. 12. • g 3 bears 86 THE PECULIAR CHARACTER Lect. 21. bears away the mind with irresistible vio- lence, and frequently in rapid transitions from near to remote objects, from human to divine : we must also be careful in remarking the limits of particular predictions, since, as they are now extant, they are often impro- perly connected, without any marks of dis- crimination; which injudicious arrangement, on some occasions, creates almost insuperable difficulties. I lately produced a specimen from this prophet of a complete poem dis- ♦ posed in the most perspicuous order ; and in the former part of his volume many in- stances may be found, where the particular predictions are distinctly marked. The latter part, which I suppose to commence at the fortieth chapter, is perhaps the most elegant specimen remaining of inspired composition, and yet in this respect is attended with consi- derable difficulty. It is, in fact, a body or col- lection of different prophecies, nearly allied to each other as to the subject, which, for that reason, having a sort of connexion, are not to be separated but with the utmost dif- ficulty. The general subject is the restora- tion of the church. Its deliverance from captivity; the destruction of idolatry ; the vindi** Lect. 21. OF THE DIFFERENT PROPHETS. SY vindication of the divine power and truth ; the consolation of the Israelites, the divine invitation which is extended to them, their incredulity, impiety, and rejection ; the call- ing in of the Gentiles; the restoration of the chosen people ; the glory and felicity of the church in its perfect state ; and the ultimate destruction of the wicked, are all set forth with a sufficient respect to order and me- thod. If we read these passages with atten- tion, and duly regard the nature and genius of the mystical allegory, as explained in the eleventh Lecture ; at the same time remem- bering, that all these points have been fre- quently touched upon in other prophecies promulged at different times, we shall neither find any irregularity in the arrangement of the whole, nor any want of order and con- nexion as to matter or sentiment in the dif- ferent parts. I must add, that I esteem the whole book of Isaiah to be poetical, a few passages excepted, which, if brought toge- ther, would not at most exceed the bulk of five or six chapters. Jeremiah, though deficient neither in elegance nor sublimity, must give place in G 4 both 8$ THE PECULIAR CHARACTER Lect. 21. both to Isaiah. Jerome 3 seems to object against him a sort of rusticity of language, no vestige of which, I must however confess, I have been able to discover. His sentiments, it is true, are not always the most elevated, nor are his periods always neat and com- pact ; but these are faults common to those writers, whose principal aim is to excite the gentler affections, and to call forth the tear of sympathy or sorrow. This observation is very strongly exemplified in the Lamenta- 3 Proef. in Jer. He probably adopted this opinion from his masters, the Jews. Of the more modern Rab- bies, Abarbanel (prcef. in Jer.) complains grievously of the grammatical ignorance of the prophet, and his fre-p quent solecisms ; which he says Ezra corrected by the Keri or marginal notes, for he remarks that they occur more frequently in him than elsewhere. Absurd and ridiculous ! to attribute the errors of transcribers, which occur in al« most every part of the Hebrew text, to the sacred writers themselves. The greater part of these errors he would in- deed have found scarcely to exist, if he had consulted the more correct copies, which reroain even at this day : for, among these very marginal readings, there are but few, which, in the more ancient MSS. are not found in the text. Walton has long since given a remarkable ex* ample of this kind (JProlegom. iv. 12.). The collations of Dr, Kennicott will afford many more. Author's Note, tions. Lect. 21. OF THE DIFFERENT PROPHETS. 89 tions, where these are the prevailing passions; it is, however, frequently instanced in the prophecies of this author, and most of all in the beginning of the book 4 , which is chiefly poetical. The middle of it is almost entirely historical. The latter part, again, consisting of the six last chapters, is altoge- ther poetical 5 ; it contains several different predictions, which are distinctly marked, and in these the prophet approaches very near the sublimity of Isaiah. On the whole, how- ever, I can scarcely pronounce above half the book of Jeremiah to be poetical. Ezekiel is much inferior to Jeremiah in elegance ; in sublimity he is not even excel- led by Isaiah : but his sublimity is of a to- tally different kind 6 . He is deep, vehement, tragical ; 4 See the whole of chap. ix. chap. xiv. 17, &c. xx. 14—18. 5 Chap, xlvi — li. to ver. 59. Chap. lii. properly belongs to the Lamentations, to which it serves as an exordium. 6 I must confess that I feel not perfectly satisfied with myself, when, in a matter entirely dependent upon taste, I can by no means bring myself to agree with our author. So far from esteeming Ezekiel equal to Isaiah in sublimity, I am . " I will spend mine arrows upon them. " They shall be eaten up with hunger, a prey unto birds, " And to bitter destruction ! " I will also send the teeth of beasts upon them, " With the poison of the reptiles of the earth." But Habakkuk is more excellent than either of the for- mer, chap. iii. 5. speaking of the victory of Jehovah over his enemies ; *' Before him went the pestilence, '* And his footsteps were traced by tile birds,'" Doubtless, the birds of prey. Isaiah is somewhat more copious, chap, xxxiv, 6, 7. " For Jehovah celebrateth a sacrifice in Botzra, " And a great slaughter in the land of Edom. * £ And the wild goats shall fall down with them ; *' And the bullocks, together with the bulls : " And their own land shall be drunken with their blood, " And their dust shall be enriched with fat." These and other images Ezekiel has adopted, and has stu- diously amplified with singular ingenuity ; and by exhaust- ing ail the imagery applicable to the subject, has in a man- ner M THE PECULIAR CHARACTER Lect. 1 1. sometimes almost to disgust; his language is pompous, solemn, austere, rough, and at times ner made them his own. In the first prediction of the slaughter of Magog, the whole chapter consists of a most magnificent amplification of all the circumstances and ap- paratus of war, so that scarcely any part of the subject is left untouched ; he adds afterwards in a bold and unusual style — " Thus, Son of man, saith Jehovah, speak unto « every feathered fowl, and to every beast of the field : M Assemble yourselves, and come, gadier yourselves on " every side to the banquet which I prepare for you, a " great banquet on the mountains of Israel. Ye shall eat " flesh, and ye shall drink blood : ye shall eat the flesh of * s the mighty, and drink the blood of the princes of the " earth, of rams, of lambs, and of goats, of bullocks, " all of them failings of Bashan. Ye shall eat fat till ye " be satiated, and drink blood till ye be drunken in the * 6 banquet winch I have prepared for you. Ye shall be " filled at my table with horses and chariots, with mighty " men, and with men of valour, saith the Lord Jehovah. 1 * Ezek. xxxviii. 17 — 20. In this I seem to read a poet who is unwilling to omit any thing of the figurative kind which presents itself to his mind, and would think his poem deficient, if he did not adorn it with t-'very probable fiction which could be added : and for this very reason I cannot help placing him rather in the middle than superior class. Observe how the author of the Apocalypse, who is in general an imitator, but endued with a sublimer genius, and in whose prose all the splendour of poetry may be discerned, has conducted these sentiments of Eze- kieh Lbct.21. OF THE DIFFERENT PROPHETS. 93 times unpolished : he employs frequent repe- titions, not for the sake of grace or elegance, but kiel : " I saw an Angel standing in the Sun : and he " cried with a loud voice unto the fowls that fly in the 11 midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together u unto the supper of the great God ; that ye may eat of " the flesh of kings, and of captains, and the flesh of " mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that " sit upon them, and the flesh of all men, both free and M bond, both small and great." Rev. xix. 17, 18. But Ezekiel goes yet further : so delighted is he with tliis image, so intent is he upon the by-paths of the Muses, that he gives even the trees, taking them for em- pires, to the birds, and their shades or ghosts he consigns to the infernal regions. Thus, chap. xxxi. 13 — 15. "Upon " his trunk shall all the fowls of heaven remain, and all si the beasts of the field shall be upon his branches. To " the end that none of all the trees by the waters shall !' exalt themselves for their height, nor shoot up their top ** among the thick boughs ; neither their trees stand up *' in their height, all that drink water: for they are all " delivered unto death to the nether parts of the earth in ^ the midst of the children of men, with them that go fi down to the pit, &c." In this we find novelty and va- riety, great fertility of genius, but no sublimity. I had almost forgotten to mention, that Ezekiel lived at a period when the Hebrew language was visibly on the decline. And when we compare him with the Latin poets who succeeded the Augustan age, we may find some re- semblance in the style, something that indicates the old age of poetry. M. rr to THE PECULIAR CHARACTER Lect. 2l, but from the vehemence of passion and in* dignation. Whatever subject he treats of, that he sedulously pursues, from that he rarely departs, but cleaves as it were to it ; whence the connexion is in general evident and well preserved. In many respects he is perhaps excelled by the other prophets ; but in that species of composition to which he seems by nature adapted, the forcible, the impetuous, the great and solemn, not one of the sacred writers is superior to him. His diction is sufficiently perspicuous, all his ob- scurity consists in the nature of the subject. Visions (as for instance, among others, those of Hosea, Amos, and Jeremiah) are necessa- rily dark and confused. The greater part of Ezekiel, towards the middle of the book es- pecially, is poetical, whether we regard the If I may speak my mind freely of Ezekiel, I must confess I think his fault is neither a want of novelty nor of sublimity, but of grace and uniformity* There is so much inequality in his composition, that scarcely any figure' is kept up without sinking into the bathos ,• and if , he introduce in one line a grand image, he pays no attention to the supporting of it in the next. What the Gottingen Professor remarks concerning the decline of the Hebrew language, evident in the poetry of this author, is very just. T, matter Lect. 21. OF THE DIFFERENT PROPHETS. H matter or the diction. His periods, however, are frequently so rude and incompact, that I am often at a loss how to pronounce con- cerning his performance in this respect. Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel, as far as relates to style, may be said to hold the same rank among the Hebrews, as Homer, Simo- nides, and iEscbylus among the Greeks. Hosea is the first in order of the minor prophets, and is, perhaps, Jonah excepted, the most ancient of them all. His style ex- hibits the appearance of very remote anti- quity ; it is pointed, energetic, and concise. It bears a distinguished mark of poetical composition, in that pristine brevity and condensation, which is observable in the sen- tences, and which later writers have in some measure neglected. This peculiarity has not escaped the observation of Jerome : " He is " altogether," says he, speaking of this pro- phet, " laconic and sententious 7 ." But this very circumstance, which anciently was sup- posed, no doubt, to impart uncommon force and elegance, in the present ruinous state of the Hebrew literature is productive of so much 7 Praef. in xn. Propli. obscurity, m THE PECULIAR CHARACTER Lect. 21. obscurity, that although the general subject of this writer be sufficiently obvious, he is the most difficult and perplexed of all the prophets. There is, however, another rea- son for the obscurity of his style : Hosea prophesied during the reigns of the four kings of Judah, Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah ; the duration of his ministry, therefore, in whatever manner we calculate, must include a very considerable space of time; we have now only a small volume of his remaining, which, it seems, contains his principal prophecies; and these are extant in a continued series, with no marks of distinc- tion as to the times in which they were pub- lished, or the subjects of which they treat. There is therefore no cause to wonder, if, in perusing the prophecies of Hosea, we some- times find ourselves in a similar predicament with those who consulted the scattered leaves of the Sibyl. The style of Joel is essentially different from that of Hosea; but the general cha- racter of his diction, though of a different kind, is not less poetical. He is elegant, perspicuous, copious, and fluent ; he is also sublime, animated, and energetic. In the first Lect. 21. OF THE DIFFERENT PROPHETS. 97 first and second chapters he displays the full force of the Prophetic Poetry, and shows how naturally it inclines to the use of meta- phors, allegories, and comparisons. Nor is the connexion of the matter less clear and evident, than the complexion of the style : this is exemplified in the display of the im- pending evils w T hich gave rise to the pro- phecy ; the exhortation to repentance ; the promises of happiness and success both ter- restrial and eternal to those who become truly penitent ; the restoration of the Israel- ites ; and the vengeance to be taken of their adversaries. But while we allow this just commendation to his perspicuity both in language and arrangement, we must not deny that there is sometimes great obscurity ob- servable in his subject, and particularly in the latter part of the prophecy* Jerome calls Amos " rude in speech, but " not in knowledge 8 ;" applying to him what St. Paul modestly professes of himself 9 . Many have followed the authority of Jerome, in speaking of this prophet, as if he were in- deed quite rude, ineloquent, and destitute of 8 Procem. Comment, in Amos. s> 2 Cor. xi. 6. vol. II. H all 98 THE PECULIAR CHARACTER Lect. 21. all the embellishments of composition. The matter is, however, far otherwise. Let any person who has candour and perspicacity enough to judge, not from the man but from his writings, open the volume of his predictions, and he will* I think, agree with me, that our shepherd " is not a whit be- " hind the very chief of the prophets l0 ." He will agree, that as in sublimity and mag- nificence he is almost equal to the greatest, so in splendour of diction and elegance of expression he is scarcely inferior to any. The same celestial Spirit indeed actuated Isaiah and Daniel in the court, and Amos in the sheep-folds ; constantly selecting such inter- preters of the divine will as were best adapted to the occasion, and sometimes " from the " mouth of babes and sucklings perfecting " praise :" occasionally employing the na- tural eloquence of some, and occasionally making others eloquent. The style of Micah is for the most part close, forcible, pointed, and concise ; some- times approaching the obscurity of Hosea; in many parts animated and sublime, and in general truly poetical. 10 2 Cor. xi. 5. None Lect.21. OF THE DIFFERENT PROPHETS. 99 None of the minor prophets, however, seem to equal Nahum, in boldness, ardour, and sublimity. His prophecy too forms a regular and perfect poem ; the exordium is not merely magnificent, it is truly majestic ; the preparation for the destruction of Nine- veh, and the description of its downfal and desolation, are expressed in the most vivid colours, and are bold and luminous in the highest degree. The style of Habakkuk is also poetical ; especially in his ode, which, indeed, may be accounted among the most perfect specimens of that class ", The like remark will also ap- ply to Zephaniah ; but there is nothing very striking or uncommon either in the arrange- ment of his matter or the complexion of his style. 11 On a very accurate perusal of Habakkuk, I find him a great imitator of former poets, but with some new additions of his own ; not, however, in the manner of Ezekiel, but with much greater brevity, and with no com- mon degree of sublimity. Ezekiel, for the most part, through his extreme copiousness, flags behind those whom he imitates ; Habakkuk either rises superior, or at least keeps on an equality with them. M, H 2 Of 100 THE PECULIAR CHARACTER Lkct.2U Of Obadiah there is little to be said : the only specimen of his genius extant being very short, and the greater part of it in- cluded in one of the prophecies of Jere- miah x \ Jonah and Daniel, I have already considered as mere historical commentaries. Haggai, Zeehariah, and Malachi, are the only remaining prophets. The first of these is altogether prosaic, as well as the greater part of the second ; towards the conclusion of the prophecy there are some poetical pas- sages, and those highly ornamented ; they are also perspicuous, considering that they are the production of the most obscure of all the prophetic writers *« The last of the prophetical books, that of Malachi, is writ- ten in a kind of middle style, which seems to indicate that the Hebrew poetry, from the time of the Babylonish captivity, was in a declining state, and being past its prime and vigour, was then fast verging towards the debility of age. 13 Compare Ob. 1—0. with Jer, xlix. 14, 15, 16, 7, 9, 10. * 3 See chap. ix. x. and the beginning of xith. Thus Lect.2I. OF THE DIFFERENT PROPHETS. 101 Thus far I have thought proper to deliver my sentiments, as distinctly as I was able, concerning the writings of the prophets, and those parts which are to be accounted poeti- cal or otherwise. This I did with a view of clearly explaining my conjecture (for I dare not dignify it with any higher appellation) concerning the Prophetic Poetry :■— a con- jecture, which, though I will confess it is not without its difficulties, and which must, after all, depend in some degree upon opi- nion, yet I flatter myself, you will concur with me in admitting not to be utterly des- titute of foundation, I should now, according to the nature of my plan, proceed to speak of the Prophetic Poetry of the Greeks, if, indeed, any thing had been transmitted to us, even from their most celebrated oracles, deserving, I will not say, to be compared with the sacred prophets, but even to be mentioned at all. The fact is, there is no such poem now extant, nor do I believe there ever was one of that kind among the Greeks : a few verses there are indeed remaining, and those not above me- diocrity ; for the Pythian Apollo, if we may credit the Greeks themselves, was not always h 3 upon 102 THE PECULIAR CHARACTER Lect.21. upon the best terms with the Muses r4 . It appears, therefore, that he did not fail to ex- cite the ridicule of sensible persons, not only for his ambiguous and enigmatical divina- tions, but for ignorance in the art of versifica- tion : nay, even the rude and superstitious, who gave him the amplest credit for the vera- city of his predictions, could not help confess- ing, that he was a very indifferent poet I5 . Among u " I find too that some of the Oracles of Apollo have u not escaped ridicule in this respect, though the obscu- " rity of prophecy renders them in general so difficult to " decipher, that the hearers have no leisure to bestow on c( an examination of the metre. 1 ' — Merc, in Lucian's Dial, entitled Jupiter Tragcedus. " A response from an Oracle in verse having been re- •" cited by one of the company — I have often wondered %i (said Diogenianus) at the meanness and imperfection of *' the verses which conveyed the oracular responses ; espe- €C cially considering that Apollo is the president of the 66 Muses, and one should imagine, would no less interest " himself in the style of his own predictions, than in the " harmony of Odes and other Poetry : besides, that he " certainly must be superior to Homer and Hesiod in " poetic taste and ability. Notwithstanding this, we find cc many of the Oracles, both as to style and metre, defi- " cient in prosody, and in every species of poetical merit." Plutarch, Inquiry why the Pythia now ceases to deliver her Oracles in Verse. 15 Just as the Bishop's observation is, concerning the prophetic Lect. 21. OF THE DIFFERENT PROPHETS. 10S Among the literature of the Romans, how- ever, there is extant a much celebrated, and, indeed, admirable poem of this kind, no less remarkable for* the elegance and perspicuity of the style, than for the obscurity and dark- ness of the subject : I speak of the fourth Ec- logue of Virgil l6 , which it would be inex- cusable to pass unnoticed in this place, since, from the first ages of Christianity, an opinion has prevailed, that this poem bore some re- mote relation to those genuine remains of prophecy which have been the subject of this Lecture, and indeed that the substance of it was originally derived from some sacred fountain. The manner in which this could happen, I must confess, is not very easy to be explained : whether to account for the fact prophetic Oracles of the Greeks, yet whoever will be at, the trouble of considering the predictions of Cassandra, in the Agamemnon of iEschylus, may easily perceive a peculiarity of imagery and style that would throw some light on the subject itself, as well as serve to illustrate the ^prophetic phraseology of the Hebrews. S. H. 1(5 The prophecy of the Sibyl in the vith Mneid might also be referred to as an example ; in it the prophetic ec- stacy is so admirably expressed, that the art and imitative powers of Virgil may contribute not a little to enable us to understand the language and manner of true pro- phecy. M. II 4 WC 104 THE PECULIAR CHARACTER Lect. 21. we have recourse to the ancient Greek trans- lation of the Scriptures, the publication of which was certainly many years anterior to the Roman poet; or whether we suppose that the author might apply to those transla- tions which were made from the sacred writings by some Hellenistic Jews, and which were handed about as the prophecies of the Sibyls I7 . However this may have been, there are so many and so manifest indica- tions of the fact in the poem itself, that no person who reads it attentively can retain a doubt upon this head. The sentiments, the imagery, even the language itself has so di- rect an agreement with the sacred prophets; the subject has so much of intrinsic subli- mity and magnificence; and, on the other hand, it is enlivened with so much boldness and spirit, is indeed so free and elevated, that, considering it as the production of the chastest and most reserved of all the later poets, there is something altogether myste- rious in the fact, unless we suppose that he deduced his materials from some higher source than his own genius. Though the 37 See Bishop Chandler's Vindication of the Chris.« lian Religion, chap. i. and Grotius on Matt. ii. 1. subject Lect. 21. OF THE DIFFERENT PROPHETS. 105 subject has engaged the attention of some of the first literary characters in the world, the motive, the scheme, the intention of the poet still remains, and I fear ever will remain, undeveloped. The history and state of the Roman commonwealth at the time point out no circumstance or character which ap- pears to bear a sufficient relation to the sub- ject, or which could afford room for such great and magnificent predictions lS . This I will 38 The learned are generally agreed, that the Eclogue in question cannot relate to Saloninus, a son of Pollio, born after the capture of Salona, who is spoken of by Servius, if any such person ever existed, since it appears from Dion and Appian, that the expedition of Pollio to Illyricum took place in the following year. Some have conjectured, that this poem relates to C. Asinius Gallus, a son of the same person, and indeed with much greater appearance of probability ; since Asconius Pedianus re- ports, that he had heard from Gallus himself, that this poem was composed in honour of him. See Serv. ad Eclog. iv. 11. But Servius himself affirms, that Gallus was born in the preceding year, while Pollio was consul elect : and although such a boast might very well agree with the vanity of a man, who, Augustus himself said, would be desirous of acquiring the sovereignty after his death, though unequal to it (Tacit. An. i. 13.) ; yet it is scarcely probable, that any poet, in common prudence, would predict any thing so magnificent of a son of Pollio. Further, 106 THE PECULIAR CHARACTER Lect. 21. will freely confess, that the more I have con* templated this extraordinary production in this Farther, why has he foretold this divine son to him as a consul only, and not as a father ? which would have re- flected much more honour on Pollio. Many, from these difficulties, have attributed the poet's compliment to Cae- sar Octavius and to some child born in his family, as the certain heir to the empire. Julia, Marcellus, and Dru- sus, have all been mentioned. As to Drusus, neither his age nor person correspond to the prediction ; and though the age of Marcellus might suit it better, yet the personal disagreement is the same. With respect to Julia, the daugh- ter of Octavius, there can be no objection upon either ac- count, if the Eclogue were written during the pregnancy of Scribonia, and that it was written before her delivery is credible from the invocation it contains to Lucina: 61 O chaste Lucina, aid !" — But let it be remembered by those who adopt any of these hypotheses, who, and in what station, Octavius then was ; not emperor and Augustus, the sovereign lord of the whole Roman empire, all which dignities became his only after the battle of Actium, nine years posterior to the date of this Eclogue ; but a triumvir, equal only in authority with Antony at least, not to speak of Lepidus. How then could the poet presume to predict to any son of Octavius, if at that time any son had been born to him, the succession to the empire ? But, if we should even grant what is really true, that no person more worthy or more proper could be found, or to whom these predictions would be better suited, than to some of the descendants of Octavius ; and if even we should suppose that a son of his was at that time in being, still there is one Lkct. 21. OF THE DIFFERENT PROPHETS. 107 this point of view, the less able I have felt myself to comprehend it. There is such a splendour one argument sufficient to overturn the whole, and that is, that the Eclogue is inscribed to Pollio ; ibr at that time, and even for some time after, Pollio was of the party of Antony, and in opposition to Octavius. Let us with this in our minds take a summary view of the actions of Pollio, after the death of Julius Caesar ; and let us pay some attention to the chronology of the times. In the year of Rome 711, C. Asinius Pollio having conducted the war against Sextus Pompeius, on his return from Spain delivered over his army to Antony, after his flight from Mutina, In the year 713, Pollio held Cisalpine Gaul, as Antony's lieutenant ; and along with Ventidius hovered about the rear of Salvidienus, the lieutenant of Octavius, who was attempting to annoy Lucius Anto- nius : Lucius being besieged at Perusia, Pollio in vain at- tempted his relief, and afterwards retired to Ravenna : he h ' I Venetia a long time subject to Antony; and after having performed great actions in that part of the world, joined Antony, bringing over with him, at the same time, Domititis JEnobarbus, and the fleet under his command. About the end of the year 714, the peace of Brundusium took place, the negotiators of Which were Pollio as con- fid, on the part of Antony, and Maecenas on the part of OctaviuS, and Cocceius on the part of both, as their Common friend ; and about this time the ivth Eclogue of Virgil was written. In the year 715, Antony sent Pollio as his lieutenant against the Parthini into Illyricum ; who triumphed over them in the month of October. Tims far Velusius, Aitiax, and Dio. About this time a private 108 THE PECULIAR CHARACTER Lect. 2K splendour of style, such an elegance in the versification, as deceives us at first respecting the private disagreement took place between Pollio and Oc- tavius ; and Octavius wrote some indecent verses against Follio. Maceob. Saturn, ii. 14. From this time to the battle of Actium, which happened in 723, in the be- ginning of September, Pollio kept himself perfectly neu- tral, and took no part in the contest between Antony and Octavius. " I must not omit," says Velleius, ii. 86. *f a remarkable action and saying of Asinius Pollio. After " the peace of Brundusium" (he should have said, after his triumph) " he continued in Italy, nor did he ever see " the queen, or, after the mind of Antony became enfee- " bled by his destructive passion, take any part in his af- in opposition to the manner of Saturn's descent : u — Saturn fled before victorious Jove, " Driven down, and banish'd from the realms above." The aid of Lucina is invoked in favour, nascenti puero t " of the boy when he comes to the birth."" It is not unpro* Lect. 21. OF THE DIFFERENT PROPHETS. 115 it is impossible the poet himself could have comprehended), serves to unravel the difficul- ties, improbable that Virgil was induced to transfer the Sibyl- line prediction from Julius, in whom it had palpably failed, to this expected son of Octavius, from Isaiah's having dwelt so minutely on the infancy of the person foretold.— Quojerrea primum, &c. " With whom the iron age (or " a S e °f war) shall cease, and the golden age shall rise u over the world."" Though Virgil, when Scribonia, instead of a son, was delivered of a daughter, discovered his mistake as to the person predicted, he still continued confident in respect to the events ; and therefore when he resumed the prophecy, from a persuasion that he could not a second time err, he makes the Sibyl herself point out Augustus as the person so often promised : " Hie Caesar, & omnis Iiili * Progenies, magnum cceli ventura sub axem. " Hie vir, hie est, tibi quern promitti saepius audis, " Augustus Caesar, Divi genus aurea condet " Secula qui rursus Latio, regnata per arva " Saturno quondam ; super & Garamantas 8c Indos " Proferet imperium, &c." ^En. vi. line 179. " Turn, turn thine eyes ! see here thy race divine, " Behold thy own imperial Roman line : " Caesars with all the Julian name survey ; 4< See where the glorious ranks ascend to day !— " This — this is he ! the chief so long foretold, } " To bless the land where Saturn rufd of old, > " And give the Latian realms a second age of gold ! } i 2 "The 116 THE PECULIAR CHARACTER Lect. 2K ties, and to enlighten all the obscurities of this extraordinary poem ; when I consider this, u The promis'd prince, Augustus the divine, " Of Caesar's race, and Jove's immortal line I w This mighty chief this empire shall extend " O'er Indian realms, to earth's remotest end." Till, however, a daughter was born, Virgil remained undeceived. The mention of the golden age rising again over the world, is sufficient proof that the Virgin before described as returning was Astraca ; and as in the Georgics he asserts, that her latest footsteps on earth were discern- ible in rural retreats : u last with you " Justitia lingered, ere she quite withdrew ; w so by adding, " Apollo now reigns," he seems to intimate, that the powers of poetry had triumphed over oppression, and procured him the interposition of justice, in the resto.- ration of his pasture and flocks. But though this inter- pretation may agree with the context, the tenth verse will admit of a fuller sense. After invoking aid from Lucina, it is added, " Thy own Apollo now reigns ;" that is, the Sibylline prediction is begun to be fulfilled. As Apollo was the God of prophecy, it was in reference to his reign- ing under this character that Lucina is invoked to assist in the fulfilment of the prediction himself had inspired, by granting to the child a propitious birth. — [It is well known, that Augustus afterwards affected to be patronized by Apollo, to resemble him, to assume his dress, to be thought his son, and to pay him divine honours as his tutelary deity : now, what better account of so extraordinary a conduct Lect. 21. OF THE DIFFERENT PROPHETS. 117 this, I own I am at a loss at what point to stop the licentiousness of conjecture upon this conduct can be given, than that all was clone with the view of arrogating to himself the Sibyl's prediction, which Vir- gil, in the Mneid, has appropriated to him?] — Teque adeo, &c. " And in thy consulship, O Pollio, in thine, " shall the glory of this age begin to commence, and " the great months thence to proceed." — " The glory " of this age (the age predicted) shall begin to com- " mence." It was in the consulship of Pollio that the marriage of Octavius to Seribonia took place ; the great months, therefore, are the months of her pregnancy, which immediately followed her marriage. — Te duce, &c. " Un- u der your management, if any vestiges of our wicked- " ness remain, they shall be effaced, and the world deli- " vered." This plainly refers to the influence of Pollio in negotiating the treaty at Brundusium, and also to the further exertion of his consular power. — Ille Deum vitam accipiat, &c. " He shall receive the life of gods,'" &c. Similar, though still bolder, expressions are applied to Augustus, in the first Georgic, verse the 24th. — Paca- tumque reget pair lis virtutibus o?bem, "And shall govern " the world at peace, with his father's virtues." To whom could this apply, but a son of Octavius, and the son whom, it was believed, the prediction had foretold ? Hence follows the description of the golden age corre- sponding with the imagery of Isaiah, to verse 26. At su mid, &c. " But as soon as thou shalt be able to read the " praises of heroes, and the achievements of thy father, ?' and to understand what the energy of virtue can effect, # the spacious field shall by degrees become yellow with i 3 "the 118 THE PECULIAR CHARACTER Lect.21. this subject : and, indeed, what imagination occasionally suggests, I dare scarcely express. I will " the soft ear." That is, before you be old enough to view those plains which have so lately been the theatre of heroism and horror, the devastations of civil discord shall gradually disappear, and the tranquil occupations of husbandry imperceptibly change their face. Pauca tamen suberunt priscce vestigia fraudis, he. " But there shall re- " main beneath the surface some traces of ancient fraud," &c. This obviously alludes to Pompey, who still retained the command of his fleet ; whilst " the other wars" seem to imply the contests to be looked for in the East, whither Antony was gone, and who, therefore, in compliment to Pollio, is styled " another Achilles." The Poet, after this, resumes the images expressive of the golden age as before. —-Care Deum soboles, magnum Jovis incrementum, &c. " O beloved offspring of the Gods, great increase of " Jove !" &c. is not only consonant to the language of scriptural prediction, but, in the sense of Virgil, suitable to none but a Caesar. See the 6th iEneid and 2d Georgic before referred to. There are several other passages of the Eclogue which, in this attempt at illustration, have been omitted, for the sake of brevity, although they would have reflected addi- tional light on the interpretation which is here offered. Such impges of the Poet as approach the nearest to those of the Prophet are also purposely passed over ; because, both in Virgil and Isaiah, they have no specific destination, but are used as generally symbolical of innocence and hap- piness ; and that this was the more obvious mode of ex- plaining the prophetic Scriptures is certain, for the Jews, from Lect.21. OF THE DIFFERENT PROPHETS. 119 I will only say, the fact has something in it so extraordinary, so miraculous, to my con- from those very images in the Prophet, have constantly inferred, that their promised Messiah would be a tempo- ral Saviour. But there will be no necessity to enlarge on this head ; For, notwithstanding what is advanced in the Lecture, on the incongruity of Virgil's language to his subject, upon any other idea than tliat of a mysterious relation to the Messiah and his kingdom, it is the voluntary concession of his Lordship in the note, " that no person could be " any where found more worthy of this prophetic Ec- " logue, nor whom it would more aptly fit, or with " whom its contents would better quadrate, than a son of u Octavius, provided it could be shown that a son was " born to him, in the year when Pollio was consul." Now, though it be impossible to supply the proof which his Lordship requires, yet, so far as the spirit of the pos- tulate is concerned, a satisfactory answer can be given. For, notwithstanding, upon my hypothesis (which perfectly harmonizes with the history of facts), Octavius had no child till the year after Pollio was consul, and then only a daughter; yet, as Scribonia became pregnant in the consulship of Pollio, and the Eclogue was written in that very year, Virgil (whatever the coincidences of the time with the Sibylline prediction might have led him to expect) certainly could not know, without the gift of prescience, the sex of this unborn child. I am duly sensible that an apology is necessary to the reader for so long a detention from the Lectures that fol- low ; but as (notwithstanding his Lordship's opinion, that I 4 " though 120 THE PECULIAR CHARACTER, &c. Lect. 21. conceptions, that I am sometimes half in- clined to fancy, that what Socrates, in the Io of Plato, says (probably in his usual tone of irony) of poets in general, might have ac- tually come to pass : " Hence," says the phi- losopher, " the God, having, by possessing " their minds, deprived them of their na- " tural reason, makes use of them, as well " as of the prophets and diviners, as his " ministers, to the end, that we who hear " them should understand, that matters of " so great importance are not uttered by " men in their sober senses, but that it is *' the God himself who utters them, and ad- " dresses us by their mouths." " though the subject has engaged the attention of some of " the first literary characters in the world, the motive, " the scheme, the intention of the Poet still remains un- " developed") the subject does not seem to have been hi- therto discussed with the precision it deserved, I was will- ing to submit it to the public in a new point of view, with the hope, that what appeared convincing to myself might be favourably received by others, S. H. Perhaps a still more decisive objection against the hy- pothesis to which Mr. H. alludes, is, that the very pro- phecies, from which Virgil has apparently copied his imagery, do not seem to have any relation to the first coming of the Messiah, but seem wholly to relate to that triumphant second coming, which is yet unaccomplished. T. OF ELEGIAC POETRY; LECTURE XXir, OF THE NATURE AND ORIGIN OF THE HE- BREW ELEGY; A]ND OF THE LAMENTATIONS OF JEREMIAH. The nature and origin of the Hebrew Elegy traced into the solemn expressions of grief exhibited in their fu- neral ceremonies. — The office and function of profess- ed mourners : the dirges, which were sung by them, Were short, metrical, and sententious ; many of the la- mentations which arc extant in the Prophets, were composed in imitation of them. — The whole of the La- mentations of Jeremiah constructed upon the same prin- ciple. — The general conduct and form of that poem ; the nature of the verse; the subject and the style. That Poetry is indebted for its origin to the more vehement affections of the human mind, has been, I apprehend, very clearly evinced. The distribution of it into its dif- ferent species is not, however, exactly regu- lated by the nature and order of the pas- sions ; though I think this is a circumstance which ought not entirely to be disregarded. There are, indeed, some species of poetry which admit of every passion, such as the Lyric; and there are some which scarcely admit 122 ELEGY. Lect. £2. admit of any, such as the Didactic : there are others, however, which are peculiarly adapted to particular passions, Tragedy for instance ; and we have already had occasion to explain the nature of the passions which are congenial to the prophetic Muse. There is a distinct species of poetry, which is ap- propriated solely to one particular passion ; and, what is worth remarking, we have ne- ver known a people, who might be said to have made any proficiency in poetry, who had not a peculiar form of poem, invented purposely for the expression of sorrow, and appropriated wholly to plaintive subjects x . 1 " A 1% his beloved, though disobedient son ; " O u my son, Absalom ! O Absalom, my son, " my son 3 !" There will not, therefore, be bccasion for any laboured disquisition con- cerning that kind of solemn dirge which was used at funerals ; but since the sacred writers afford many examples to this purpose, I shall select one or two. The Prophet of Bethlehem brought the corpse of the man of God, who was slain by the lion, back to the city, that he might mourn over him and bury him. He placed him in his own se- pulchre, and they wept over him, saying, " Alas, my brother 4 !" So in Jeremiah, Je- hovah declares of Joachim, the son of Jo- siah, king of Judah : " They shall not lament him, Ah, my brother, " or ah, sister ! " They shall not lament him, Ah, Lord, or ah, " his glory V These * 2 Sam. xix. 4. 4 1 Kings, xiii. 30, 5 Jer. xxiL 18. " In the text it is written mrr, with " the Arabic suffix, instead of the Hebrew ; of which ** many instances are to be found in the Scriptures. But u perhaps the letter n may be radical, and not the prono- " minal suffix : Ah, Lord! (and not my Lord;) ah, Glory I " Alas ! Lect. 22. ELEGY. 125 These and similar exclamations were suffi- cient for the simple expression of natural and unaffected sorrow. But wayward grief is frequently desirous of a more complete and ostentatious display of its feelings; it studies not only its own alleviation, by publishing its uneasiness, but endeavours to incite and allure others into a society in affliction. Thus, when Abner fell a sacrifice to the treachery of Joab, David not being privy to the action, and in truth extremely afflicted on account of it ; yet, from the difficulty of his situation, and the infant state of his au- thority, not daring to punish the murderer, he fulfils his duty both to himself and to the deceased in the eyes of the people, by at- tending the funeral in the character of chief mourner : " and he lifted up his voice and " wept at the sepulchre, and all the people " wept with him ;" and then, by the united aid of poetry and music, he further stimu- " Alas! the vanity of regal splendour and majesty I Tlie ** LXX and the Vulg. do not acknowledge the suffix, w either here or in the preceding member." H. Three MSS. have i"in, according to the Masoretic Keri : see pib. Heb. Michaelis, in Joe. Codex Orat. 42. In the margin it has vnn. See Bib. Heb. Houbigant. The J^XX. omit the word. Author's Note. late* 12G ELEGY. Lect. 22, lates their affliction : " and the king lament- " ed Abner, and said :" Did Abner fall a mean and guilty slave ? With goary fetters were bis limbs defil'd? Lo, abject treach'ry snar'd th' uncautious brave; And wily fraud bis honest heart beguil'd I 6 »> " and again all the people wept over him Thus, a certain ostentatious zeal, which frequently accompanies real sorrow, is apt to persuade men, that it is impossible to pay too much respect to the memory of departed friends ; that intemperance of passion too, which is always observable in these cases, which is self-indulgent to excess, and is more inclined to irritate than to sooth; in a word, opinion or fashion, which governs and mis- leads the bulk of mankind, easily persuades them that it is an indispensable duty incum- bent upon the living to afflict themselves for the sake of the dead. Each of these causes has contributed to establish that custom which prevailed in Palestine, in Phrygia 7 , and afterwards among the Greeks and Ro- 6 & Sam. iii. 33, 34. 7 See Jos. Scaliger, Conjectanea in Varronem de Ling. Lat. p. 76. edit. R. Steph. mans, 4 Lect. 22. ELEGY. 127 mans, of engaging mercenary mourners to weep at their funerals. This office generally fell to the lot of the women, either because it was supposed more congenial to the gene- ral imbecility of the female mind, or because, from the flexibility and softness of their na- ture, and from their tender and plaintive tone of voice, they were supposed more ca- pable of working upon the affections. After the custom was once established, we find no scarcity of these professional mourners, well accomplished in all the discipline of lament- ation and woe, and with tears always at command for a reasonable stipend. As in all other arts, so in this, perfection con- sisted in the exact imitation of nature. The funereal dirges were therefore composed in general upon the model of those complaints which flow naturally and spontaneously from the afflicted heart: the sentences were abrupt, mournful, pathetic, simple, and unembel- lished ; on one account, indeed, more ela- borate and artificial, because they consisted of verse, and were chanted to music 8 . 3 See Matt. ix. 23. and Lightfoot Exercitat. Hebr. and Talmud, in locum, Many 128 ELEGY. Lect. 22. Many vestiges of this custom are found in the writings of the Prophets : for the pre* dictions of calamity impending over states and empires are often replete with elegance, and generally assume the form of a funereal song. But this remark will be more clearly evidenced by a few examples ; and these ex- amples will serve at the same time to illus- trate what has been alleged concerning this custom. Hear 9 , says the prophet Amos, addressing the Israelites, and denouncing ven- geance and destruction against them, and their government, Hear my voice, O Israel, hear ! Whilst I thy fate deplore : Thy virgin daughter, Sion ! falls — r She falls to rise no more! And a little after 10 ; Through the streets, and through the plains^ The doleful rumour flies ; And skilful mourners raise their voice In sad funereal cries. 9 Amos, v. 1, £, 10 lb. v. 16. The particle !?n in the last clause ough^ probably to be placed at the beginning of that clause. So the Syr. and Vulg. read it. See Capell. Sac* Crit B. iv. C. xiii. i. Author's Note* And Lect. 22. ELEGY. 129 And in Jeremiah, on a similar occasion, Je- hovah of Hosts thus addresses his people 11 : Let those well taught in Sorrow's school Resound the notes of woe ; And mournful music, through the land, In solemn concord flow ; Till tears shall stream from every eye, Till every heart shall fear. — Hark, 't is the mourner's voice that sounds ! 'Tis Sion's dirge I hear! Vanquish 'd, enthrall'd, to plunder given, The haughty city falls ; Shrill shrieks of woe aloud resound, While ruin shakes her walls. — " We go — deserted and forlorn, " To rove from shore to shore ; 11 These long-lov'd seats no more to view, " These pleasant plains no more." Yet hear ! 't is Heaven's most high decree ! The solemn rites prepare! Let Sion's daughters raise the dirge, Replete with wild despair. The regal dome, the sacred fane, Stern Death invades, and wastes the land ; The pride of Israel strews the plain, Like sheaves beneath the reaper's hand. " Jeb, ix. 17— 22. vol. ii. k Many 130 ELEGY. Lect.22. Many instances of the same kind occur throughout the Prophets, in which, as in these, there is a direct allusion to the insti- tution from which they originated. There are also many other passages evidently of the same kind, although the funeral ceremonies be not immediately referred to; and the pe- culiar elegance of these we shall not perceive, unless some regard be paid to the object to which they allude. The examples that I have produced are, I apprehend, sufficient to indicate the nature and origin of this spe- cies of poetry, and to demonstrate, that these artificial complaints were originally formed on the model, and expressed in the language, of real sorrow. Hence also it will be apparent, in what manner, and by what gradations, the Ki?iah 9 or Lamentations of the Hebrews, assumed the form of a regular poem : but for the further elucidation of this subject, it may not be improper to exa- mine the Lamentations of Jeremiah, the most remarkable poem of this kind extant, according to the principles of these funereal compositions ; for, unless we examine it in this manner, and by this criterion, it will be impossible Lect. 22. ELEGY. 1S1 impossible to form a right judgment con- cerning it. I shall endeavour to treat of this extraor- dinary production in the following order : First, of its nature and form in general ; secondly, of the metre or versification ; and lastly, of the subject, the sentiments, and imagery. The Lamentations of Jeremiah (for the title is properly and significantly plural) consist of a number of plaintive effusions, composed upon the plan of the funeral dirges, all upon the same subject, and ut- tered without connexion as they rose in the mind, in a long course of separate stanzas. These have afterwards been put together, and formed into a collection or correspondent W 7 hole. If any reader, how T ever, should ex- pect to find in them an artificial and metho- dical arrangement of the general subject, a regular disposition of the parts, a perfect connexion and orderly succession in the mat- ter, and with all this, an uninterrupted se- ries of elegance and correctness, he wilj. really expect what was foreign to the pro- phet's design. In the character of a mourner, he celebrates in plaintive strains the obse- K 2 quies 132 ELEGY. Lect. 22. quies of his ruined country ; whatever pre- sented itself to his mind in the midst of de- solation and misery, whatever struck him as particularly wretched and calamitous, what- ever the instant sentiment of sorrow dictated, he pours forth in a kind of spontaneous ef- fusion. He frequently pauses, and, as it were, ruminates upon the same object ; fre- quently varies and illustrates the samethought with different imagery, and a different choice of language : so that the whole bears rather the appearance of an accumulation of cor- responding sentiments, than an accurate and connected series of different ideas, arranged in the form of a regular treatise. I would not be understood to insinuate, that the au- thor has paid no regard whatever to order or arrangement ; or that transitions truly ele- gant from one subject, image, or character, to another, are not sometimes to be found; this only I wished to remark, that the na- ture and design of this poem (being in rea- lity a collection of different sentiments or subjects, each of which assumes the form of a funeral dirge) neither require, nor even admit of, a methodical arrangement. The whole poem, however, may be divided into fiv« Lect. 22. ELEGY. 153 five parts : in the first, second, and fourth, the Prophet addresses the people in his own person, or else personifies Jerusalem, and in- troduces that city as a character ; the third part is supposed to be uttered by the chorus of Jews, represented by their leader x % after the manner of the Greek tragedies : and in the fifth, the whole nation of the Jews, on being led into captivity, pour forth their united complaints to Almighty God. This last, as well as the others, is divided into twenty-two periods, according to the num- ber of the letters of the alphabet ; with this difference, that in the four other parts the initial letters of each period exactly corre- spond with the alphabetical order. And from this circumstance we have been enabled to form some little judgment concerning the Hebrew metres, lx Thus, in ver. 14. the *dj> is in the constructive for the absolute form. The Syr. omits tne pronoun. See a Note on Lect. XIII. So also it appears the same word ought to be understood, Ps. cxliv. 2. Compare likewise Ps. xviii. 48. xlvii. 4. See Pocock Not. in Port. Mosis, p. 60. " Lam. iii. 14. two MSS. have o>dit. And " observe, that in MSS. the plural o> is often expressed *'»." K. Author's Note. S 3 The 13± ELEGY. Lect, 22- The acrostic or alphabetical poetry of the Hebrews was certainly intended to assist the memory, and was confined altogether to those compositions which consisted of de- tached maxims or sentiments without any express order or connexion I3 . The same custom is said to have been prevalent, indeed is said still to prevail in some degree, among the Syrians, the Persians, and the Arabs I4 f With how much propriety the Prophet has employed this form of composition, on the present occasion, is evident from what has been said concerning the nature of this poem. The manner and order of this kind of verse is as follows : Each of the five parts, or grand divisions, is subdivided into twenty- two periods, or stanzas ; these periods in the three first parts are all of them triplets, in 13 M. Michaelis very justly remarks, that except the Lamentations of Jeremiah and the xxxviith Psalm, none of the alphabetic poems of the Hebrews rise in any de- gree above mediocrity : — a certain indication, that how- ever useful this kind of discrimination might be on some occasions, in assisting the memory of children and the vulgar, yet such minute arts are in general inconsistent with true genius. T. 14 See Asseman Bibliothec. Oriental. Vol. III. p. 63, 180, 188, 328. other £*ct. 22. ELEGY. lss other words, consist each of three lines, only: in each of the two former part?, there is one period consisting of four lines * 5 , In the four first parts, the initial letter of each period follows the order of the alphabet ; but the third part is so very regular, that every line in the same period begins with the same letter, so as necessarily to ascertain the length of every verse or line in that poem : indeed, even in the others, though the lines are not distinctly marked in this manner, it is no difficult matter to ascertain their limits, by resolving the sentences into their consti- tuent members. By this mode of compu- tation it appears, that in the fourth part all the periods consist of distichs l6 , as also in the fifth, which is not acrostic: but in this last part I must remark another peculiarity, namely, that the lines are extremely short, whereas in all the rest they are long. The length of these metres is worthy of notice : we find in this poem lines or verses, ,5 In Chap. i. \ ; in chap. ii. p. But the period d, as it is now read, can neither be conveniently distributed into two, nor into three verses. Aulliofs Note. K 4 which 156 ELEGY. Lect. 22. which are evidently longer by almost one half, than those which occur usually, and on other occasions. The length of them seems to be, on an average, about twelve syllables ; there are a few which do not quite amount to that number, and there are a few which perhaps exceed it by two or three syl- lables : for, although nothing certain can be determined concerning the number of syl- lables (in truth I pay no attention to the fic- tions of the Masorites), there is room, never- theless, for very probable conjecture. We are not to suppose this peculiar form of ver- sification, utterly without design or import- ance : on the contrary, I am persuaded, that the Prophet adopted this kind of metre as being more diffuse, more copious, more ten>- der, in all respects better adapted to melan- choly subjects. I must add, that in all pro- bability the funeral dirges, which were sung by the mourners, were commonly composed in this kind of verse ; for whenever, in the prophets, any funereal Ian entations occur, or any passages formed upon that plan, the versification is ? if I am not mistaken, of this protracted kind. If this then be the case, we have discovered a true legitimate form Lect. 22. ELEGY. 13Y form of Elegy in the poetry of the Hebrews. It ought, however, to be remarked, that the same kind of metre is sometimes, though rarely, employed upon other occasions by the sacred Poets, as it was indeed by the Greeks and Romans. There are, moreover, some poems manifestly of the elegiac kind, which are composed in the usual metre, and not in unconnected stanzas, according to the form of a funeral dirge. Thus far in general as to the nature and method of the poem, and the form of the versification; it remains to offer a few re- marks concerning the subject and the style. That the subject of the Lamentations is the destruction of the holy city and temple, the overthrow of the state, the extermina- tion of the people, and that these events are described as actually accomplished, and not in the style of prediction merely, must be evident to eveiy reader : though some au- thors of considerable reputation v have ima- gined this poem to have been composed on the death of king Josiah. The prophet, in- deed, has so copiously, so tenderly, and poe- 11 Josephus, Jerome, Usseeius, &c. tically 13S ELEGY. Lect. 22. tically bewailed the misfortunes of his coun- try, that he seems completely to have ful- filled the ofHce and duty of a mourner. In my opinion, there is not extant any poem, which displays such a happy and splendid selection of imagery in so concentrated a state. What can be more elegant and poetical, than the description of that once flourishing city, lately chief among the nations, sitting in the character of a female, solitary, afflicted, in a state of widowhood, deserted by her friends, betrayed by her dearest connexions, imploring relief, and seeking consolation in vain r What a beautiful personification is that of " the ways of Sion mourning be- 4e cause none are come to her solemn feasts!'* How tender and pathetic are the following complaints ! " Is this nothing to all you who pass along the " way? behold and see, " If there be any sorrow, like unto my sorrow, " which is inflicted on me ; ,c Which Jehovah inflicted on me in the day of " the violence of his wrath. " For these things 1 weep, my eyes stream with " water; " Because Iect. fit ELEGY. 13$ 11 Because the comforter is far away, that should " tranquillize my soul : " My children are desolate, because the enemy " was strong 18 ." But to detail its beauties would be to tran- scribe the entire poem. I shall make but one remark relative to certain passages, and to the former part of the second alphabet in particular. If, in this passage, the prophet should be thought by some to affect a style too bold and energetic for the expression of sorrow, let them only advert to the great- ness of the subject, its importance, sanctity, and solemnity ; and let them consider that the nature of the performance absolutely re- quired these to be set forth in a style suitable, in some degree at least, to their inherent dig- nity; let them attentively consider these things, and I have not a doubt, but they will readily excuse the sublimity of the Prophet. 18 Lam. i. 12, and 16. In the last verse the word 'J'tf is not repeated in the old translations. LECTURE XXIIL OF THE REMAINING ELEGIES OF THE HEBREWS. Many poems of this tend still extant in the writings of the Hebrews. — One collection of Elegies or Lament- ations appears to be lost. — Elegies in Ezekiel.— Many passages in Job may be accounted Elegiac— About a seventh part of the book of Psalms consists of Elegies.— A perfect specimen of elegiac poetry Jrom the Psalms. — The Lamentation of David over Saul and Jonathan explained : attempted in English verse* In the last Lecture the nature and origin of the Hebrew Elegy was explained ; the form and commencement of that species of poetry was traced into the solemn dirges which were chanted at umerals by the pro- fessed mourners ; and this was confirmed by instances taken from those short Elegies or Lamentations which occur in the Prophets, and by an accurate ezainkatlon of that re* markable poem, the Lament? tions of Jere- miah. I shall now ^*eat of some other poems, which, although they do not exactly assume the form of a funereal dirge, are ne- vertheless to be comprehended in this class. That Xect. 23. THE ELEGIAC POETRY, &c. HI That the Hebrews were formerly possessed of some collection of Elegies or Lamenta- tions, which has not been transmitted to us, we may understand from that passage of sa- cred history \ in which mention is made of the solemn mourning publicly celebrated at the funeral of Josiah ; where it appears that a poem, composed for the occasion by Jere- miah the prophet, amongst others had a place. Though the book which is on this occasion referred to, and which probably con- tained the most excellent of the Hebrew- Elegies, appears to be lost, there are still ex- tant many specimens of this kind of poetry; whence we may reasonably infer, that no species of composition w r as more in use among the Hebrews than the elegiac, the ode perhaps only excepted. In the first place, beside those short dirges which occur in the writings of almost all the prophets, as was before remarked, there are some in Ezekiel, which are actually distin- guished by the title of Lamentations, and which may with the utmost propriety be re- ferred to the class of Elegies. Among these 1 2 Chron. xxxv. 2,5. arc 142 THE ELEGIAC POETRY Lect.M. are the two Lamentations concerning Tyre, and the king of Tyre a . In these, though the intent of the prophet be to denounce vengeance and punishment against these ob- jects of the divine wrath, rather than to la- ment their misfortunes; and though he suc- ceed in his aim of exciting terror instead of pity, yet the mournful nature of the sub- ject fully corresponds with the title, and both the matter and the sentiments bear some de- gree of resemblance to the funereal songs. According to the custom which prevailed on those solemn occasions, the glory, riches, and power of the deceased are pompously enu- merated ; and thus, by contrasting his former prosperity with the present calamity, the ef- fect is considerably augmented. As for the two prophecies 3 , in which the destruction of Egypt is predicted, they seem to have been entitled Lamentations merely from the mournful nature of the subject; for they contain nothing of the elegiac form or style, scarcely any sentiment expressive of sorrow, and seem altogether composed for the denun- ciation of vengeance, and the exciting of * Ezek. xxvii. and xxviii. 12—19. 3 Ezek. xxxii. terror. Lect.23. OF THE HEBREWS. Hi terror. Two other Lamentation? 4 , the one over the princes of Judah, and the other over Jerusalem, may be explained upon si- milar principles : they are indeed poetical parables, and have been already noticed in their proper place. There are also many passages in that most admirable poem which bears the name of Job 5 , deserving to be accounted legitimate elegies: and indeed I do not know any more perfect specimens of this species of compo- sition ; so completely are the inmost recesses of sorrow displayed, and the remotest foun- tains of pity explored and laid open. But since these are parts of an entire poem, they are not rashly to be detached from the body of the work ; and since the elegant dis- position, and the extraordinary beauties of this inimitable composition, will deserve a fuller examination, it is sufficient in this place to have mentioned these passages as exquisite treasures, which the Muse of Sor- row might legally claim as her own, were she disposed to assert her rigid rights. 4 Ezek. xix. * See Job, chap. iii. vi. vii. x. xiv. xvii. xix. xxix. xxx, I proceed, 14* THE ELEGIAC POETRY Lect. 23. I proceed, therefore, to the book of Psalms, which is a collection, under the general title of hymns to the praise of God, containing poems of different kinds, and elegies among the rest. If indeed the contents of the book were methodically arranged in their proper classes, not less than a sixth or seventh part would appear to be elegiac. Since, however, this is a matter dependent in a great measure upon opinion, and not to be clearly demon- strated upon determinate principles; since the nature of the subject, the complexion of the style, or the general form and disposition of each poem, must decide the question; and since different persons will judge differently upon these points ; it will hardly be expected that I should on this occasion proceed to the regular classification of them. It will in- deed be more to your advantage, and more to our present purpose, to select an example which maybe clearly demonstrated to belong to the elegiac class. Under this appellation then I shall not he- sitate to recommend to your notice the forty- second Psalm, since I cannot help esteeming ' it one of the most beautiful specimens of the Hebrew Elegy. The author of this elegant com- 3 Lect. 23. OF THE HEBREWS. 145 complaint, exiled from the temple, and from the public exercise of his religion, to the ex- treme parts of Judea, persecuted by his nu- merous enemies, and agitated by their re- proaches, pours forth his soul to God in this tender and pathetic composition. The ardent feelings of a devout heart are admir- ably expressed, while the memory of former felicity seems to aggravate his present an- guish. The extreme anxiety of a mind de- pressed by the burden of sorrow, and yet at the same time impatient under it ; over- come by an accumulation of evils, yet in some degree endeavouring to resist them, and admitting, through the dark cloud of afflic- tion, a glimmering ray of hope and conso- lation, is finely depicted. In frequent and almost instantaneous transitions he glows with love, and droops with lamentation ; he complains, he expostulates ; he despairs, and yet hopes ; he is afflicted, and again conso- led. It is not to be expected that any poe- tical version should express these sentiments With the force, the energy, and more particu- larly with the conciseness of the Hebrew, which is indeed not to be imitated in any other language : though it must be confessed, yol. n» l that US THE ELEGIAC POETRY Lect. 23. that this poem is more diffuse than the He- brew poetry in general. The following pa- raphrase however, though infinitely short of the original in sublimity, will perhaps serve to evince the correspondence of the subject and sentiments of this poem, with the ele- giac productions of modern times : As pants the wearied hart for cooling springs, That sinks exhausted in the summer's chase; So pants my soul for thee, Great King of kings! So thirsts to reach thy sacred resting-place. On briny tears 6 my famish'd soul has fed, While taunting foes deride my deep despair; " Say, where is now thy great Deliverer fled? " Thy mighty God — Deserted wanderer, " where?" Oft dwell my thoughts on those thrice happy days, When to thy fane I led the jocund throng; Our mirth was worship, all our pleasure praise, And festal joys still clos'd with sacred song. 6 It seems odd to an English reader to represent tears as meat or Jbod; but we should remember, that the suste- nance of the ancient Hebrews consisted for the most part of liquids, such as broths, pottages, &c. S. H. Why Lect.23. OF THE HEBREWS. 147 Why throb, my heart ? Why sink, my sad'ning soul? Why droop to earth with various woes op- press'd ? My years shall yet in blissful circles roll, And joy be yet an inmate of this breast. By Jordan's banks with devious steps I £tra}>-, O'er Hermon's rugged rocks, and deserts drear : E'en there thy hand shall guide my lonely way ; . There, thy remembrance shall my spirit cheer. In rapid floods the vernal torrents roll, Harsh-sounding cataracts responsive roar; Thine angry billows overwhelm my soul, And dash my shatter'd bark from shore to shore. Yet thy soft mercies, ever in my sight, My heart shall gladden through the tedious day; And 'midst the dark and gloomy shades of night, To thee I '11 fondly tune the grateful lay. Rock of my hope ! Great solace of my heart ! Why, why desert the offspring of thy care, W r hile taunting foes thus point th' invidious dart? " Where's now thy God! abandon'd wanderer, " where?" l 2 Why 148 THE ELEGIAC POETRY Lect. 23. Why faint, my soul? why doubt Jehovah's aid? Thy God, the God of mercy still shall prove! In his bright fane thy thanks shall yet be paid; Unquestioned be his pity and his love y ! Another 7 This poem seems to have been composed by David, when he was expelled his kingdom by his rebellious son, and compelled to fly to the borders of Lebanon, as it is plain he did, from 2 Sam. xvii. 24, 26, 27. Undoubt- edly, whoever composed this Psalm was expelled from the sacred city, and wandered as an exile in the regions of Hermon, and the heights of Lebanon, whence Jordan is fed by the melting of the perpetual snow, ver. 7. Let it be remembered, by the way, that David never betook himself to these places when he fled from Saul, but con- cealed himself in the interior parts of Judea. Here then he pitched his camp, protected by the surrounding moun- tains and woods; and hither the veteran soldiers, attached personally to him, and averse to change, resorted from every part of Palestine. Here also, indulging his melan- choly, the prospect and the objects about him, suggested many of the ideas in this poem. Observing the deer which constantly came from the distant valleys to the foun- tains of Lebanon, and comparing this circumstance with his earnest desire to revisit the temple of God, and per- haps elevating his thoughts to a higher, celestial temple. he commences his poem : " As the hart panteth after the water-brooks, " So panteth my soul after thee, O God. " My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God ; " When shall I enter, and appear before God ?" That Lect. 23. OF THE HEBREWS. 149 Another point, to which I would wish every person who reads this Psalm in the ori- ginal to advert, is the division of the periods, and the resolution of them into their consti- tuent That is, enter into the temple, from which I am now an exile. He adds a bitterer cause of grief than his exile, namely, the reproaches of the multitude, and the cruel taunt, that he is deserted of his God, and that the Deity, of whom he had boasted, fails to appear to his assistance, than which nothing can be more grating to an honest mind, and a mind conscious of its own piety. Compare 2 Sam. xvi. 7, 8. " My tears have been my sustenance, " By day and by night, " While they continually say unto me, " Where is now thy God ?" The repetition of the name of God raises in him fresh uneasiness, and causes all his wounds to bleed again: this forces him to exclaim : " I remember God, and I dissolve " in tears." For so the word n^ ought to be translated, and not according to the Masoretic punctuation, " I re- 14 member tliese tilings ;" since an obscurity arises from this punctuation, and it is difficult to say what things are referred to. 44 I remember God, and pour out myself in tears : ** When I went with the multitude to the temple of God, u With the voice of joy and gladness, with the multitude u leaping for joy." l 3 He 150 THE ELEGIAC POETRY Lect. 23. tuent parts or members; he will find, I be- lieve, that the periods spontaneously divide into verses of nearly equal length and mea- sure, exactly similar to those of the four first chapters of the Lamentations of Jeremiah ; such as I before remarked appeared to con- stitute the established metre of the Hebrew Elegy. The whole of the nineteenth Psalm consists also of the same kind of verse, ex- cept the Epode, which contains two long verses of the same kind, and one shorter, which last is once repeated. The forty-third He now restrains his tears : " Why art thou so cast down, my soul ? THE x * Our author's observations on the nature and origin of Didactic Poetry are most strikingly just : and on in- specting the early Didactic productions of the Greeks, the old sententious form may be easily discovered : indeed, that pointed and antithetic manner seems (probably by the force of habit and imitation) to have pervaded this kind of poetry, both ancient and modern. To our author's ex- cellent remarks on the subject, I will add, that the science of morals appears to be the only branch of discipline which can be successfully treated of in verse. The study of ab- stract science demands a disposition of mind very different from that which enjoys the playfulness of fancy. In such Didactic Poetry, therefore, as professes to treat of any subject but morals, the mind is either too much warmed by the language, imagery, and episodes, to think of the main drift of the author, and then he is not understood* a% Lect. 2*. DIDACTIC POETRY. 181 THE TWENTY-FOURTH CHAPTER OF ECCLESIASTICUS. M Wisdom shall praise her own spirit, " And shall glory in the midst of her people : " In the congregation of the Most Pligh shall " she open her mouth, " And in the presence of his power shall she " glory. " I proceeded out of the mouth of the Most 'High; &' " And as a mist I covered the earth. " I dwelt as, I believe, is generally found to be the case in reading Dr. Akenside's Pleasures of the Imagination; or else the attention is fixed upon the matter, and then the poetical style is an unnecessary and meretricious ornament, which only perplexes the mind, by diverting it from its object The reason why ethics may be safely taught in verse, seems to be, because that science is conversant chiefly with the human passions, and the delineation of them ; and poetry being no other than the language of passion, will, on such a subject, rather illustrate than confuse. I may add too, that ethics is a science with which mankind are most generally acquainted, and therefore can most easily comprehend. I am aware, that on this argument the success and popularity of some Didactic Poems will be alleged against me, and particularly that of the Georgics, Lucretius^ and Horace's Epistle to the Pisos ; but I must }? 3 remark. 182 DIDACTIC POETRY. Lect. 2h '' I dwelt above on high, " And my throne was in the pillar of a cloud. " I compassed the circuit of the heavens alone, " And walked in the depth of the abyss. " In the waves of the sea, and in all the earth, " And in every people, and every nation I ob- " tained a possession : " With all these I sought rest, " And in whose inheritance shall I abide? " Then the Creator of all things commanded me, " And he that created me fixed my tabernacle : " And said ; Let thy dwelling be in Jacob, " And in Israel thine inheritance. u Before the world he created me, from the " beginning ; " And I shall never cease. " In the tabernacle of holiness I served before " him ; " And so was I established in Sion. " Thus in the beloved city he caused me to rest, " And over Jerusalem was my power : remark, that these very poems owe their whole success to the episodes and the moral sentiments with which they abound: and I appeal to any candid reader, whether, after all, he has not been at some times fatigued with the Didactic parts of even these most elegant productions. I do not indeed approve of long Didactic Poems, even upon moral subjects ; for, unless they be enlivened by interest- ing episodes and descriptions, they can scarcely fail to ear tedious and dry. T. " I took Lect. 24. DIDACTIC POETRY. y& u I took root in an honourable people, " In the portion of the inheritance of Jehovah. " As a cedar in Lebanon was I exalted, u And as a cypress on the mountains of Hermon. " As a palm-tree in Gaddi was I exalted, " And as plants of roses in Jericho : " As a fair olive in a pleasant field, " And as a plane-tree I was exalted above the " waters; " As cinnamon, and as a mass of ointment, I " yielded fragrance ; " And as choice myrrh I breathed forth a plea* " sant odour, " As gaibanum, and onyx, and storax, u And as the vapour of frankincense in the ta- " bernacle. " I, as the turpentine-tree, sent out my branches, " And my branches are the branches of glory " and favour. u I, as the vine, blossomed forth a pleasant " smell, " And my flowers are the embryos of honour " and wealth. u Come unto me all ye that desire me, " And with my productions be filled : u For my remembrance is sweeter than honey, " And my possession than the comb of the bees. " They that eat me shall yet be hungry ; u And they that drink me shall yet be thirsty. n 4 " He 184 DIDACTIC POETRY. Lect. 24. " He that obeyeth me shall not be ashamed, " And those that act according to me shall not sin. " All these are in the book of the covenant of " God most high ; " The law which Moses commanded, " An inheritance for the generations of Jacob. " Wisdom filleth like Pishon, " And like Hiddekel in the month Abib. " She maketh the understanding to overflow like 16 Euphrates ; u And as Jordan in the days of harvest. M She sendeth forth instruction as the river 20 , " And ao The grandson of Sirach appears in this place to have fallen into an error, and to have failed of expressing the sentiment of his ancestor ; for, finding the word im- perfectly written in his copy, he read it 1»3, and rashly translated it *s $»; (as the light). Observe also the in- congruity of this word with the context, according to the common reading : Pison, Tigris, Euphrates, Jordan, tlit light, Gihon : in the place of the light, some river must certainly be intended, and therefore we ought to read TW3, »s I iiola^o?, as the river, that is, the Nile, so called for the sake of distinction : and doubtless to a Jew, who resided in its neighbourhood, and who was a spectator of 1 its wonderful inundations, it would appear worthy of be- ing ranked with the most noble rivers, and consequently worthy of this distinction. Moreover, Jablonskius, Pantheon Egypt, lib. iv. cap. i. sect. 2. is of opinion, that the word i*v chiefly refers to the Nile in the sacred writers ; and supposes *1K>, in the Egyptian Jaro, to have been Lect.24. DIDACTIC POETRY. 185 " And as Gibon in the days of the vintage. " The first man was not perfect in the knowledge " of her, " Neither shall the last search her out : "*' For her thoughts are more extensive than the " sea, u And her counsels than the vast abyss. " I came forth also as a brook from a river, " And as a stream in Paradise welled from its " fountain. " I said, I will water my garden, " And I will abundantly water my furrow; " And behold, my brook became a river, u And my river became a sea. €i For I w r ili beam forth instruction as the morn- " >«& " I will make it to shine afar off: been the first and only name of the Nile among the Egyptians. This word, however, itself is defectively read 1«3 Amos, vhi. 8. (" it is read "m»3 in four MSS." K.) ; but being repeated immediately, it is more fully expressed *ino, ix. 5. See Cappell Grit. Sac. iv. 2. 11. A learned friend of mine observed to me, that the great Bochabt had long since been of the same opinion, whose authority I am happy to adduce in favour of what I have here asserted : " i« is a river, as well as 1K». So it oc- " curs Amos, viii. 8. where it is spoken of the Nile, and " in the same sense it is used by the Son of Sirach, Ec- " clus. xxiv. 27. where it has been hastily translated the f ( light" Chanaan, lib. i. chap. 23. Author's Note. " Tor !8fr DIDACTIC POETRY. Lect. 2*. " For I will pour out doctrine as prophecy, " And bequeath it to all generations for ever. " Behold, I have not laboured for myself alone, " But for all who inquire after the truth 2r ." 21 The following translation of this admirable chapter into English verse was furnished me by an ingenious friend, and I dare believe will prove acceptable to the reader. T. Ecclesiasticus — Chap. XXIV. Wisdom shall raise her loud exulting voice, And, ""midst her people, glory and rejoice ; Oft the Almighty's awful presence near, Her dulcet sounds angelic choirs shall hear.— Wak'd by the breath of heaven's high King to birth, I seenfd a cloud involving skies and earth ; Aloft on places high, was my retreat, Dark mists encircled my exalted seat ; Round die broad sky I solitary rov'd, Or through the mazy depths of ocean mov'd ; My paths amidst the swelling waves remained, Some power in every changing clime I gaiifd ; With each, with all, I anxious sought repose ; But where, say where, shall Wisdom's wanderings close? Hark! did not He, who framVl the worlds, command? Here shall thy much-lov'd tabernacle stand, Here on the plains of Jacob shalt thou live, Thy goodly heritage shall Israel give.— Me, before time itself he gave to day, Nor shall my spirit faint, or feel decay ; I bow'd before him in his hallow'd shrine, And Sion s pride and Sion's strength was mine. Did X.ect.24. DIDACTIC POETRY. 187 Did I not tall as those fair cedars grow, Which grace our Lebanon's exalted brow ? Did I not lofty as the cypress rise, Which seems from Herman's heights to meet the skies? Fresh as Engaddi's palm that scents the air, Like rose of Jericho, so sweet, so fair ; Green as the verdant olive of the groves, Straight as the plane-tree which the streamlet loves ? Around soft cinnamon its odour spreads, Aspalathus perfumes our balmy meads ; More grateful still does myrrh its fragrance yield, Sweet to the sense, the glory of the field ;— In Salem's temple, at Jehovah's shrine, From frankincense ascends a fume divine ; Yet did my breath more precious balms exhale, And charge with fragrance each auspicious gale. I the rich produce of the seasons bring, And grace and honour 'midst my foliage spring ; Richer than vineyards rise my sacred bowers, Sweeter than roses bloom my vernal flowers : Fair love is mine, and hope, and gentle fear ; Me science hallows, as a parent dear. Come, who aspire beneath my shade to live ; Come, all my fragrance, all my fruits receive ! Sweeter than honey are the strains I sing, Sweeter than honey-comb the dower I bring : Me, taste who will, shall feel increas'd desire, Who drinks shall still my flowing cups require ; He whose firm heart my precepts still obeys, With safety walks through life's perplexing maze ; Who cautious follows where my footsteps lead, No cares shall feel, no nightly terrors dread. Heaven's book records my ever sacred lore, Deriv'd from imi ; whom earth and seas adore ; His ISS DIDACTIC POETRY. Lect 24. His wisdom guides this varying scene below,' (Clear as in spring the streams of Tigris flow,) His spirit fills with hope th 1 expanding soul, Full as the waters of Euphrates roll, Or as, when harvest swells the golden grain, Impetuous Jordan rushes o % er the plain. — From him the ray of holy science shines, Bright as the sun maturing Geon's vines : — Man breatird at first unconscious of the power, Nor knows Heaven's wisdom at his latest hour. Small was my stream, when first I roll'd along, In clear meanders Eden's vales among ; With freshening draughts each tender plant I fed, And bade each flowret raise its blushing head ; But soon my torrent o'er its margin rose, Where late a brook, behold an ocean flows ? For Wisdom's blessings shall o'er earth extend, Blessings that know no bound, that know no end- Each selfish labour Wisdom shall disdain, My fruit, my treasures, all who seek shall gain. OF LYRIC POETRY. LECTURE XXV. OF THE HEBREW ODE IN GENERAL ; AND* FIRST OF THAT CLASS, THE CHARACTER- ISTICS OF WHICH ARE SWEETNESS AND ELEGANCE. Lyric Poetry originated from the most jocund and pleas* ing affections of the human mind. — The most ancient species of poetry -, and almost coeval with human na- ture itself. — Particularly cultivated by the Hebrews. -—The manner, introduced by David, of singing their odes highly magnificent. — The general diameter of this species of poetry : its principal distinctions.— The first character of the Ode, sweetness.— What passions and affections it is intended to express: examples from the Psalms. — The exxxiiid Psalm in English verse. Those compositions which were intended for music, whether vocal alone, or accom- panied with instruments, obtained among the Hebrews the appellation of Shir, among the Greeks that of Od&\ and both these words have exactly the same power and sig- nification. The Hebrew word, as well as the Greek, appears in course of time to have 4 been 190 LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 2fc been appropriated to denote a particular form and species of poetry, with this difference, however, that it is occasionally used with greater latitude. The ode is in its nature sufficiently expres- sive of its origin. It was the offspring of the most vivid and the most agreeable pas- sions of the mind, of love, joy, and admira- tion. If we consider man on his first crea- tion, such as the Sacred Writings represent him ; in perfect possession of reason and speech; neither ignorant of his own nor of the divine nature, but fully conscious of the goodness, majesty, and power of God ; not an unobservant spectator of the beautiful fa- bric of the universe ; is it not probable, that, on the contemplation of these objects, his heart would glow with gratitude and love ? And is it not probable, that the effect of such an emotion would be an effusion of praise to his Great Creator, accompanied with a suitable energy and exaltation of voice ? Such indeed were the sensations ex- perienced by the author of that most beau- tiful Psalm, in which the whole creation is invited to celebrate the glory of the most high God : " Praise Lect.25. LYRIC POETRY. 191 " Praise Jehovah from the heavens; " Praise him in the heights: " Praise him all his angels ; " Praise him all his hosts V This hymn is, therefore, most elegantly imi- tated, and put into the month of Adam, by our countryman Milton % who is justly ac- counted the next in sublimity to those poets who wrote under the influence of divine in- spiration. Indeed, we scarcely seem to con- ceive rightly of that original and perfect state of man, unless we assign him some of the aids of harmony and poetical expression, to enable him to testify in terms becoming the dignity of the subject, his devout affec- tions towards his infinite Creator. Without carrying our researches, how- ever, to objects so remote from human in- formation, if we appeal only to the common testimony of history, we shall find that, among every people not utterly barbarous, the use of music and poetry in the celebra- tion of their religious mysteries, has pre- vailed from the first periods of society. Of all that sacred melody, which Plato informs us was sometimes established by the solemn 1 Ps. cxlviii. * Farad, Lost, lib. v. sanction 192 LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 2& sanction of legal authority 3 , he assigns the first rank to that which assumed the form of addresses to the Deity, and was distinguished by the appellation of Hymns. In all the Latin poetry, there is nothing that can boast equal antiquity with the Salian poems of Numa, composed by that wise and learned monarch on the first institution of his reli- gious rites, and sung by the Salii, whomDio- nysius styles " the chorus of the Gods of <( War V With solemn dancing and other religious ceremonies. There is scarcely any necessity to mention, that the most ancient of all poems extant (those I mean of which the date is ascertained, and which deserve the name of poems) is the thanksgiving Ode of Moses on passing the Red Sea, the most perfect in its kind, and the true and genuine effusion of the joyful affections. Thus the origin of the ode may be traced into that of poetry itself, and appears to be coeval with the commencement of religion, or more pro- perly the creation of man 5 , The 3 Be Legibus, iii. * Jntiq. Rom. ii. TO. 5 This conclusion appears to me neither consonant to reason nor to fact. The first use of poetry was probably to Lect. 25. LYRIC POETRY. 193. The Hebrews cultivated this kind of poe-» try above every other, and therefore may well be supposed to have been peculiarly ex- to preserve the remembrance of events, and not the ex- pressions of passion ; accordingly, the remains of the first poetic compositions appear to have been of the former kind. One instance was given in a preceding Lecture re- lative to the history of Lamech, and another may here be added concerning that of Nimrod — " He was a mighty " hunter (rather warrior) before the Lord ;" wherefore it is said : " As Nimrod the mighty hunter before the Lord." Agreeable to this idea is an observation respecting the Arabians, of the late ingenious but ill-treated Dr. Brown : " The oldest compositions are in rythm or rude verse, and " are often cited as proofs of their subsequent history?"' It is not only evident that Moses applied them in this way, but also that they were long prior to any example of the existence of an ode ; which, however, seems to have been in fact, as well as in nature, the next species of poetic composition. S. H. The rude poetry of barbarous nations (as far as we can judge from the accounts of those who have visited the South-Sea islands and the Indian nations) relates in ge- neral to love and war ; it is employed in cherishing or in exciting the passions. Notwithstanding, therefore, the ingenuity of the above remark (which on that account I would not omit), I am inclined to think there is more foundation for our author's theory than Mr. H. supposes. ?ee Essays Hist, and Mor. Ess. i. p. 31. T. vol \u o cellent 194j LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 25. eel lent in it. It was usual in every period of that nation to celebrate in songs of joy their gratitude to God, their Saviour, for every fortunate event, and particularly for success in war. Hence the triumphal odes of Moses, of Deborah, of David. The schools of the prophets were also, in all pro- bability, coeval with the republic; and were certainly antecedent to the monarchy by many years : there, as we have already seen,, the youth, educated in the prophetic disci- pline, applied themselves, among other stu- dies, particularly to sacred poetry, and cele- brated the praises of Almighty God in Lyric compositions, accompanied with music. Un- der the government of David, however, the arts of music and poetry were in their most flourishing state. By him no less than four thousand singers or musicians were appoint- ed from among the Levites 6 , under two hundred and eighty-eight principal singers* or leaders of the band, and distributed into, twenty-four companies, who officiated week- ly by rotation in the temple, and whose whole business was to perform the sacred 6 1 Chron. xxiii. 5. hymns ; £ect.25, LYRIC POETRY. 193 hymns ; the one part chanting or singings and the other playing upon different instru- ments 7 . The chief of these were Asaph, Heman, and Iduthun, who also, as we may presume from the titles of the Psalms, were composers of hymns 8 . From so very splen* did an establishment, so far surpassing every other appointment of the kind, some rea-* sonable conjectures may be formed concern- ing the original dignity and grandeur of the Hebrew Ode, We must remember too, that we at present possess only some ruins as it were of that magnificent fabric, deprived of every ornament, except that splendour and elegance, which, notwithstanding the ob- scurity that antiquity has cast over them, still shine fc-rth in the sentiments and lan- guage. Hence, in treating of the Hebrew ode, we must be content to omit entirely what relates to the sacred music, and the nature of the instruments which accompa- nied the vocal performance; though there is the utmost probability, that these circum- stances were not without their influence, as 7 1 Chron. xxv. 1 — 7. 8 See also 2 Chron. xxix. SO, o % fay 19$ LYRIC POETRY. Lect.25. far as respects the form and construction of the different species of ode. Our informa- tion upon these subjects is, indeed, so very scanty, that I esteem it safer to be silent al- together concerning them, than to imitate the example of some of the learned, who, after saying much, have, in fact, said no- thing. I shall therefore proceed to a brief inquiry into the general nature and proper- ties of this species of poetry ; and after that, we shall be better qualified to judge of those specimens which have been transmitted to us by the Hebrew writers. Of all the different forms of poetical com- position, there is none more agreeable, har- monious, elegant, diversified, and sublime, than the ode ; and these qualities are dis- played in the order, sentiments, imagery, diction, and versification. The principal beauty of an ode consists in the order and arrangement of the subject ; but this excel- lence, while it is easily felt, is difficult to be described, for there is this peculiarity attend- ing it, that the form of the ode is by no means confined to any certain rule for the exact and accurate distribution of the parts. It is lively and unconstrained: when the subject tECT.25. LYRIC POETRY. 19? subject is sublime, it is impetuous, bold, and sometimes might almost deserve the epithet licentious as to symmetry and method : but even in this case, and uniformly in every other, a certain facility and ease must per- vade the whole, which may afford at least the appearance of unaffected elegance, and seem to prefer nature to art. This appear- ance is best preserved by an exordium plain, simple, and expressive ; by a display and de- tail of incidents and sentiments rising deli- cately and artfully from each other, yet without any appearance of art; and by a conclusion not pointed or epigrammatic, but finishing by a gentle turn of the sentiment in a part where it is least expected, and some- times as it were by chance 9 . Thus, it is not the metre or versification which constitutes this species of composition : for, unless all these circumstances be adverted to, it is plain, that, whatever be the merit of the produc- tion, it cannot with any propriety be termed 9 I do not know any Lyric poems, to which this com- mendation is more applicable than the Arabic : I do not speak of all, but the best of them. I have scarcely ever observed happier conclusions to any poems, than to some of the Arabic odes. M. o 3 an 19S LYfetC POfcTRY. Lect.25: an ode. Many of the odes of Horace are entirely in this form, as well as almost all of those few which our countryman Hannes has left behind him. There are two Lyric Poems in the Sylvae of Papinius Statius I0 , of which the versification is full, sonorous* and flowing; the sentiments elegant; the dic- tion, if not highly polished, yet ardent and glowing ; on the whole, however* the form, the grace, the express manner of the ode is Wanting. The sentiments and imagery must be suit* able to the nature of the subject and the composition, which is varied and unconfined by strict rule or method. On familiar sub- jects they will be sprightly, florid, and agree- able ; on sublime topics* solemn* bold, and vivid ; on every subject, highly elegant, ex* pressive, and diversified. Imagery from natural objects is peculiarly adapted to the ode; historical common-places may also be admitted, as well as descriptions lively but short, and (when it rises to any uncommon strain of sublimity) frequent personifications. The diction must be choice 10 Lib. iv. Syl. 5, & 7. and Lect. 25. LYRIC POETRY. 199 and elegant ; it must be also luminous, clear, and animated ; it must possess some elegan- cies peculiar to itself, and be as distinct from the common language of poetry, as the form and fashion of the production is from the general cast of poetical composition. In this that happiness of expression, for which Horace is so justly celebrated, wholly con- sists. A sweetness and variety in the versi- fication is indispensable, according to the na- ture of the language, or as the infinite di- versity of subjects may require. It is much to be lamented, that, in treat- ing of the Hebrew ode, we must of neces- sity be silent concerning the numbers or versification, which (though we are almost totally ignorant of its nature and principles) we have the utmost reason to suppose w r as accommodated to the music, and agreeable to the genius of the language 11 . In every other respect, as the force and elegance of 11 This may be presumed from a variety of circum- stances, particularly such as might be pointed out in the cxxxvth Psalm, where J ah is sometimes used and some- times Jehovah, where either might, for any other than a metrical consideration, have been indiscriminately used. S. H. o 4 the SW) LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 2*. the language, the beauty and dignity of the sentiments and imagery, the different graces and excellencies of order and arrangement, I shall not hesitate to prefer the Hebrew writers to the Lyric poets of every other nation. But lest we should dubiously wan- der in so extensive a field, it will be proper to prescribe some kind of limit to our course, which may be conveniently done, by distri- buting all the diversities of this species of composition into three general classes. Of the first chss the general characteristic will be sweetness, of the last, sublimity; and be- tween these we may introduce one of a middle nature, as partaking of the properties of both x \ The qualities which may be ac- counted - a It will not be unseasonable in this place, perhaps, tp offer a few remarks on the peculiar character of the Lyric Poetry of David. For, some commentators, by too indis- criminately praising it, have paid no regard to its peculiar characteristics ; and thus, from an intemperate zeal, the poet has even lost a part of that commendation which was justly due to him. For my part, judging rather by my taste and feelings^ than by any rules of art, I think David seems to excel in this first species of ode, the characteristic of which is sweetness. He is unequalled when he describes the ob- jects Lect.25. LYPJC POETRY. 201 counted common to all the three classes, are variety and elegance. Although jects of nature, the fields, the woods, the fountains ; and of his other odes those are most excellent, which he com- posed in his exiles : nor is this any thing extraordinary ; he had then more leisure for the cultivation of poetry, he experienced more vivid sensations than at other times, and he treated of those objects which, being immediately before his eyes, brought back to his mind the recollection of his youth, and inspired his imagination with fresh vigour. It is however remarkable, that those which he composed in his old age, when he fled from Absalom, not only equal the fruits of his early years, but even surpass them in fire and spirit: if, as I am fully persuaded, the xxiiid and xliid Psalms were produced during that «xile. On the other hand, those Psalms interest me less, hi \vh ; .ch the more violent affections prevail, whether of sor- row or indignation, not even excepting such as imprecate curses on his enemies. There is in these much of the terrific ; but in reading them, the heart is not affected, the passions are riot vehemently excited. These odes do not possess that general solemnity and awful sublimity which characterize the book of Job, a composition of a different class, but possessing exquisite force in moving the passions. Neither are loftiness of diction, or boldnes.s in describing objects of terror, to be accounted among the excellencies of David ; for in these respects he not only yields, in my opinion, to Job, but also to Moses. I do not except the xviiith Psalm, in the first verses of which I observe more of 20& LYRIC POETRY, Lect. 25. Although the Lyric Poetry of the He- brews is always occupied upon serious sub- jects, nor ever descends to that levity which is admitted. into that of other nations, the character of sweetness is by no means incon- sistent with it. The sweetness of the He- brew ode consists in the gentle and tender passions which it excites ; in the gay and florid imagery, and in the chaste and un- ostentatious diction which it employs. The passions which it generally affects are those vf love, tenderness, hope, cheerfulness, and pensive sorrow. In the sixty-third Psalm the royal Prophet, supposed to be then an exile in the wilderness, expresses most elegantly the sentiments of tenderness and love. The voice of grief and complaint is tempered with the consolations of hope in the eightieth Psalm: and the ninety-second consists wholly of joy, which is not the less sincere, because it is not excessive. The sweetness of all of art and design, than of real horror and sublimity : in what follows, the warmth of the composition subsides, and it becomes more temperate than might be expected from such an exordium. The Mosaic Psalms I confess please me more in this respect, and therefore I prefer the xxixth to tliat in question. M. these Lsct.25, Lyric poetry. 20s these in composition, sentiment, diction, and -arrangement, has never been equalled by the finest productions of all the Heathen Muses and Graces united. Though none of the above are deficient in imagery, I must con^ fess I have never met with any image so truly pleasing and delightful as the following de- scription of the Deity in the character of a shepherd : *' The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want : " In tender grass he giveth to he down ; " He guideth me to streams that gentlv flow 13 ." How 13 Ps. xxiii. 1. This Psalm is deserving of all the 'commendation which our author has bestowed upon it. If I am not mistaken, it was composed by David, when he was expelled frtfm the holy city and temple : for, in the 6th verse he hopes for a return to the house of God. Since of all the divine mercies he particularly comme- morates this, that m time of necessity he wants for no- thing, and is even received to a banquet in the sight of his enemies, I conceive it to relate to that time, when* flying from the contest with his disobedient son, he pitched his camp beyond Jordan, and was m danger of seeing his little army perish for want of provision in that unculti- vated region, or of being deserted by all his friends. Af- fairs, however, turned out quite different : for, what he could not foresee or hope, the Almighty performed for him. The veteran soldiers flowed in to him from every quarter, 2u4 lAPtIC POETRY Lect. 2.5. How graceful and animated is that rich and flourishing picture of nature, which is exhibited quarter, and his whole carhp was so liberally supported by the good and opulent citizens, that in this very situation he was enabled to collect an army and risk the event of a battle. See 2 Sam. xvii. 26—29. He therefore compares himself to a sheep, and the Al- mighty to a shepherd : a very obvious figure, and which every day occurred to his sight during his stay in those de- sert parts. The sheep, timid, defenceless, exposed to all the beasts of prey, and possessed of little knowledge or power of foreseeing or avoiding danger, are indebted for life, safety, and every thing to the care of the shepherd. We must remember also, that the exiled king had for- merly himself been a shepherd. The recollection, there fore, of his past life breaks in upon his mind. " Je- " IIOVAH," says he, " is my shepherd, I shall want *• nothing.'" It is his province to provide for my exist- ence, and to procure for me those blessings which I am unable to obtain for myself. The tender herb (dosha, which is properly the virgin herb, or that which has not budded into seed or blossom) is more grateful to sheep than that which is seeded (gneseb)* Gen. i. 10, 11. In meadows, therefore, covered with the green and tender grass, he supposes Jehovah to cause him to rest under his care. He was expelled to Lebanon, from the tops of which cataracts of melted snow are constantly falling ; these are dangerous for sheep to approach, nor is the water sufficiently wholesome. He therefore adds, that he is led to waters gently flowing, where the clear stream meanders through the fertile plain. The scene which was Lect.25. LYRIC POETRY. 205 exhibited in the sixty-fifth Psalm ! when the Prophet, with a fertility of expression co rre- was before his eyes consisted of rude hills, and valleys deep, gloomy, dark, and horrid, the haunts only of the fiercest animals. I would here remark, that the word rnDW, which, according to the Masoretic punctuation, is read Tzllmavety and translated the shadows of death, would be better read Tzilamof, and translated simply shades, or the valley of the shades, and I am led to this conclusion by comparing it with the Arabic. There is no safety for the sheep in these valleys but in the care of the shepherd. \ r ou are therefore presented with a great variety of con- trasted imagery in this Psalm : on the one hand, the open pastures, and the flowing rivulets, the recollection of which never fails to delight : and, on the other hand, the cheerless and gloomy valleys, which inspire the reader with fresh horror. Descending from figurative to plain language, he next celebrates the bounty of God in pre- paring him a banquet in the face of his enemies ; and therefore regales himself with the delicious hope, that he shall once more be restored to his sacred temple. M. Mr. Tate (in our common version of the Psalms) has been remarkably fortunate in his paraphrase of the first verses of this Psalm ; so much indeed, that for simplicity, and a close adherence to the spirit of the original, I can- not help preferring it to the celebrated translation of Mr. Addison : " The Lord himself, the mighty Lord, <; Vouchsafes to be my guide ; <: The shepherd, by whose consjaiit ca'$ M My wants are all supplied. "In 206 LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 25. correspondent to the subject, praises the be- neficence of the Deity in watering the earth and making it fruitful. On a sublime sub- ject also, but still one of the gay and agree^ able kind, I mean the inauguration of Solo- mon, which is celebrated in the seventy-se-* cond Psalm, there is such variety and beauty of imagery, such a splendour of diction, such elegance in the composition, that I believe it will be impossible in the whole compass of literature, sacred or profane, to find such an union of sublimity with sweetness and grace. These few select examples of the elegant and beautiful in Lyric composition, I have pointed out for your more attentive consi- deration ; and I am of opinion, that in all the treasures of the Muses you will seek in " In tender grass he makes me feed, " And gently there repose ; " And leads me to cool shades, and where " Refreshing water flows. 11 The fifteenth Psalm is alsq admirably translated by the same hand : the last verse in particular is beautiful and sublime : though the classical reader will see that the translator had his eye on the " Si fractus illabatur orbis^ pf Horace, T, vain Lect.25, LYRIC POETRY. 207 vain for models more perfect. I will add one other specimen, which, if I am not mistaken, is expressive of the true Lyric form and character ; and compresses in a small compass all the merits, and elegance incidental to that species of composition. It is, if I may be allowed to use the expression of a very polite writer, A drop from Helicon, a flower Cuird from the Muse's favourite bower 1 *. The Psalmist, contemplating the harmony which pervaded the solemn assembly of the people, at the celebration of one of their festivals, expresses himself nearly as follows: PSALM CXXXIIL* " How blest the sight, the joy how sweet, u When brothers join'd with brothers meet " In bands of mutual love !. w Less sweet the liquid fragrance, shed *' On Aaron's consecrated head, " Ran trickling from above ; " And 14 Callimach. Hymn, in Apoll. v. 11£. 15 This Psalm is one of the fifteen which are entitled Odes of the Ascensions : that is, which were sung when the people- came up either to worship in Jerusalem at the annual festivals, or perhaps from the Babylonish captivity. The return is certainly called " the ascension, or coming w up from Babylon," Ezr. vii. 9. And the old Syriac translator, 20S LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 2J-, " And reach'd his beard, and reach'd his vest : " Less sweet the dews on Ilermon's breast, "Or translator, who explains the subjects of the Psalms by ap- posite titles, refers to this circumstance almost all the Psalms that bear this inscription ; some of them indeed without sufficient foundation ; but many of them mani- festly have relation to it. Theodoret indiscriminately ex-. plains them all as relating to the Babylonish captivity \ and thus illustrates the title : " Odes of the Ascensions ; " Theodotion, Songs of the Ascensions : but Symma- M chus and Aeulas, on the Returns, It is evident that " the coming up, and the ascent, relate to the return of * ; the people from the Babylonish captivity ." Theod. in Ps. cxx. But we must not omit remarking also, that both in the Old and New Testament there is scarcely a phrase more common than " to go up to Jerusalem, to go " up to the feast," &c. (See John, vii. 8.) And ob- serve above the rest, Ps. cxxii. which can scarcely be ap- plied to any thing but the celebration of some festival. What the Jews say about the steps ascending to the Temple is unworthy the attention of any person of common tense. In the last period of this Psalm, the particle oar (shorn) is necessarily to be referred to the word jw (tzwn); and there is nothing else to which it can be referred. Besides, to what, except to Sion, can the promises Bcra- chah and Chajom relate? (See particularly Ps. cxxxii. "L3. and 15.) These words are indeed ambiguous, so that they may refer either to temporal or eternal happiness, or to both alike. (Compare Deut. xxviii. 2, &c. with Ps. xxiv, $. and Pitov. xxvii. 27. with Dan. xii. 2.) And fa Lect.25. LYRIC POETRY. 209 " Or Sion's hill descend : " That hill has God with blessings crown'd, " There promis'd grace that knows no hound, " And life that knows no end I<5 ." in this place, according to the nature of the mystical alle- gory, they may be interpreted in either sense. If these remarks be true, the critics have taken a great deal of pains about nothing. There is no occasion for emenda- tion. If the ellipsis be only supplied by the word ce-tal (as the dew), or simply by the particle ve or ce (and or as) before the word descending (or, which descends), the construction will be complete. In the same mariner He- zekiah says in Isaiah : " As a swallow, (and as) a crane, so I chattered." Chap, xxxviii. 14. Author s Note, 16 On a former occasion I thought it necessary to trouble the reader with an imitation of Buchanan's version of this beautiful Psalm. I have since endeavoured to com- plete it. If the measure should seem in the eyes of some to bear too near a resemblance to that of their old ac- quaintance Sternhold, I have only to urge, that its sim- plicity seems to be more suitable to the subject, than that which Mr. Merrick has adopted. Notwithstanding our author's ingenious defence of his own (which is also Mr. Merrick's) interpretation of the last verse, I am well convinced that Buchanan's version is right, and that the particle shorn in the last verse relates to the persons, and not to the place: indeed, not only a great part of the ge- neral utility, but even the beauty of this Ode is lost, by interpreting it otherwise. The following I submit with vol. ir. p all 210 LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 25 humility to the judgment of the reader, merely that I may not leave the former stanzas imperfect : psalm exxxm. Sweet is the love, that mutual glows Within each brother's breast ; And binds in gentlest bonds each heart, All blessing, and all blest : Sweet as the odorous balsam pour'd On Aaron's sacred head, Which o'er his beard, and down his vest, A breathing fragrance shed • Like morning dews on Sion's mount, That spread their silver rays ; And deck with gems the verdant pomp Which Hermon's top displays. To such the Lord of life and love His blessing shall extend : On earth a life of joy and peace, And life that ne'er shall end. T LECTURE XXVI. THE INTERMEDIATE OR MIXED STYLE OF THE HEBREW ODE. The Lyric Poetry of the intermediate or mixed style con- sists of an union of sweetness and sublimity. — The xclstf and lxxxi.s£ Psalms explained and critically illus- trated. — Of the digressions of the Hebrew poets, also of Pindar; not upon the same principle. — A criticism upon the lxxviitfA Psalm. — The xixth Psalm in Eng- lish verse. Having dismissed the subject of the more beautiful species of ode, in order to pro- ceed by proper stages to what I deem the summit of excellence and sublimity in the Lyric Poetry of the Hebrews, it will be necessary to rest a w r hile, and to bestow some little attention upon that middle style of composition, to which I adverted as con- stituting one of the grand divisions of this order of poems. This again may be consi- dered as admitting of a subdivision, as in- cluding both those Lyric compositions, in which sweetness and sublimit) are so uni- formly blended, that every part of the poem may be said to partake equally of both ; and p 2 those, 212 LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 26, those, in which these qualities separately occur in such a manner, that the complexion of the poem is altogether changeable and diversified. Of each species I shall endea- vour to produce an example or two. The subject of the ninety-first Psalm is the security, the success, and the rewards of piety. The exordium exhibits the pious man placing all his dependence upon Al- mighty God : " He that dwelleth in the secret place of the "Most High; " Who lodgeth under the shadow of the Omni- " potent; " Who saith to Jehovah, Thou art my hope and " my fortress ! " My God, in whom I trust 1 ;" And 1 This beautiful exordium has been most egrcgiously mistaken by the Masorites, and by many commentators and translators ; whose errors will be most effectually de- monstrated, by removing the difficulties of which they com- plain. Thus the idn is in Benoni as well as hum ; the fu- ture piVn» also has the force of a participle, by the ellipsis of -raw ; of which, to go no further, we have three ex- amples in this very Psalm, ver. 5 and 6 : thus also Sym- machus, who has translated the first verse in this manner : " He dwelling under the canopy of the Most High, " Lodging under the shadow of the Mighty One." Whence Lect.26. LYRIC POETRY. 215 And immediately leaving the sentence unfi- nished, he apostrophizes to the same person, whom he had been describing : " He indeed shall deliver thee " From the snare of the fowler, from the destroy- " ing pestilence." The Whence it is plain, that he did not take the verb 1»K as if it were the first person of the future, as the Masorites have done ; whence principally the error has originated : nor indeed has he compacted into one nugatory proposi- tion the two members of the first verse, which are paral- lel and synonymous. Then in ver. 3. an apostrophe very- easy and distinct is made to the person to whom the pre- ceding expressions relate : where it is also to be remarked, that the particle »a is not causal but affirmative, indeed or in fact , as in Ps. lxxvii. 12. 1 Sam. xiv. 39, and 44. and in many other parts of Scripture. But to demon- strate more clearly this matter by example, the whole form and nature of this exordium is perfectly the same with that of Ps. cxxviii. which has never been considered as involving any obscurity : " Blessed is every man who feareth Jehovah, " And who walketh in his paths : " Thou, indeed, shalt eat the labour of thy hands : " O happy art thou, and well shall it be with thee.'" But if, after all, any reader should not be satisfied with the apostrophe formed from the abrupt sentence, he may lake the verb in« for the third person preterite, as the p 3 Syb, 214 LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 26. The imagery that follows is beautiful and diversified, and at the same time uncom- monly solemn and sublime : " With his feathers will he cover thee ; " And under his wings shalt thou find protec- " tion : " His truth shall be thy shield and thy defence. " Thou shalt not fear from the terror by night; " From the arrow that flieth by day ; " From the pestilence that walketh in darkness'; 11 From the destruction that wasteth at noon. " A thousand shall fall at thy side ; " And ten thousand at thy right-hand : " To thee it shall not approach." How excellent also are thesucceeding images, the guard of angels, the treading under foot the fiercest and most formidable animals : Syr. does. Thus, the first verse will be the subject, and the second the predicate of the proposition. To this ex- plication I am not averse, and it is certainly much better than that which is now generally received. But even in this manner, from the condensing of two verses into one sentence, there will arise a languor in the sentiment, and they will form almost one and the same proposition. Author's Note. 2 See a note on the History of the Caliph Vathek, p. 245, and 319. T. and Lect. 26. LYRIC POETRY. 215 and afterwards, that sudden but easy and elegant change of the persons 3 ! " Because 3 I apprehend there is no change of person till the 14th verse ; for the 9th verse I take to be of quite a different nature : " For thou, Jehovah, art my hope : " Very high hast thou placed thy refuge." There are many interpretations of this period, which are differently approved by different persons. One of these is, that the first member consists of an address from the believer to God, and the second of a reply from the Pro- phet to the believer ; which is extremely harsh and impro- bable, although the plain and obvious construction of the passage favours this opinion. Others, among which are the old translators, suppose, that in the second line there is no change of persons at all, but that Jehovah is still spoken of : u Who hast placed thy dwelling on high : w which is altogether nothing. Others, in fine, to avoid these absurdities, have fallen into still greater ; for they give quite a new turn to the sentence, altering the con- struction in this manner : " For thou, Jehovah, who art my hope, " Hast placed thy refuge very high :" But this I think will scarcely be endured by a good ear, which is ever so little accustomed to the Hebrew idiom. Theodoret formerly made a different attempt upon the passage : p 4 " There 216 LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 26. " Because he hath loved me, therefore will I " deliver him : " I will exalt him, for he hath known my name." " There is wanting to the construction of the sentence, " Thou hast said, Thou Lord art my hope. This is " the usual idiom of the prophetic writings, and espe- " cially of the Psalms.'" I have very little doubt that this is the true sense of the passage. If, however, this ellipsis be unpleasing to the reader (and I confess it is very harsh), Ave must, I be- lieve, at last have recourse to the correction of Bishop Hare, one of the ablest of critics ; who thinks, that for nn« we should read 'mat*. It is indeed rather a bold conjecture, yet not improbable, if we consider the paral- lel places, Psalm xvi. 2. (where 'miss seems to have been the reading followed by all the old translators, except the Chal. " and also occurs in three MSS." K.), Ps. xxxi. 15. cxl. 7. cxlii. 6. But what if we read ^Dnp, with only the change of a single letter ? " For thee (that is, as " to thee), Jehovah is thy hope." This correction was suggested to me by the ingenious Mr. Merrick^ who has lately published a Translation of the Psalms into English Verse ; a work of great erudition, of in- finite taste and elegance, and replete with all the choicest beauties of poetry. Authors Note. For thou, Jehovah, art my hope ; Very high hast thou placed thy habitation. I believe there is no occasion in this instance to practise on the original. The imagery here remotely alluded to, is placed in a fuller point of view by Habakkuk, chap. ii. ver. 9. « Woe Lect.26. LYRIC POETRY. 219 If any reader will carefully weigh and conr sider the nature and dignity of this imagery, having due respect at the same time to the principles of the mystical allegory, I am persuaded he will agree with me, that somer thing of a mystical design is concealed under the literal meaning of this Psalm. Without a question, the pious person 4 , the king, or high-priest perhaps, who in the literal sense is the principal character of the poem, is meant in reality to represent some greater " Woe unto him who coveteth an evil covetousness for " his house ; " That he may set his nest on high ; '• That he may be delivered from the power of evil;" And Obadiah, chap. i. ver. 3. " He that dwelleth in the clifts of the rock, the height of " his habitation, " Hath said in his heart, Who shall bring me down to " the ground ? ." Though thou exalt thyself as the eagle, " And though thou set thy nest among the stars, ." Thence will I bring thee down, saith Jehovah." S. II. 4 The LXX, Chald. Vulg. Syr. Arab. tEthiop. prefix the name of David to this Psalm. The Jews sup- pose it to relate to the Messiah. See also Matt. iv. 6. Luke, iv. 10, 11. Authors Note. and 218 LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 26. and sublimer personage. But leaving this part of the subject to the investigation of the divine, I submit it to any critic of true taste and discernment, whether the third ode of the fourth book of Horace (the beauty of which has been justly celebrated, and which bears a great resemblance to that under our consideration) is not greatly excelled by the sacred poet, as well in grace and elegance, as in force and dignity 5 . The 5 At a very early period of life I amused myself with translating some of the Odes of Horace into English verse. The Ode alluded to in the text was one of those which I attempted. I subjoin my translation on this oc- casion, merely because I think it gives the sense of the original more completely than Francis's version, and the English reader will probably wish to see the Ode which is brought into comparison with that of the Psalmist. TO MELPOMENE. He, on whose early natal hour Thou, queen of verse ! hast sweetly smiTd, BreattYd all thy fascinating power, And mark'd him for thy favourite child : He emulates no victor's place, Nor mixes in the Isthmian games : Nor, in the arduous chariot-race, Th* Achaian trophies anxious claims. He Lect.26. LYRIC POETRY. 219 The eighty-first Psalm will serve as ano- ther example upon this occasion, being per- vaded by an exquisite union of sublimity and sweetness. It is an ode composed for the feast of Trumpets in the first new moon of the civil year 6 . The exordium contains an exhortation to celebrate the praises of the He ne'er, adorn'd with conquering bays, And the proud pomp of baneful war, Shall catch the vagrant voice of praise, While captive kings surround his car : But where the fertile Tiber glides, To secret shades shall oft retire ; And there shall charm the listening tides, And tune the soft iEolian lyre. Thy noblest sons, Imperial Rome ! Assign to me the laureate crown ; And Envy, now abaslVd and dumb, Nor dares to speak, nor dares to frown. O Goddess of the vocal shell ! Whose power can sway both earth and sea, Can the mute fishes teach f excel The dying cygnet's melody : To thee, sweet Muse ! I owe this fame ; That e'er I pleas'd, the gift is thine ; That, as I pass, fond crowds exclaim — " The Roman bard ! the man divine P T. 6 See Reland. Jntiq. Hcb. iv. 7. Almighty 220 LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 26, Almighty with music and song, and (as is frequent in these productions of the He- brews) is replete with animation and joy, even to exultation : " Sing unto God our strength ; " A song of triumph to the God of Jacob." Thedifferentinstruments of music are named, as is common in the Lyric compositions of all other nations : " Take the psaltery, bring hither the timbrel, " The pleasant harp, with the lute." The trumpet is particularly alluded to, be- cause the solemn use of it on their great fes- tivals was prescribed by the Mosaic law. The commemoration of the giving of the law, associated with the sound of the trumpet (which was the signal of liberty 7 ), introduces in a manner spontaneously, the miseries of the Egyptian bondage, the recovery of their freedom, and the communication with God upon mount Sinai (the awfulness of which is expressed in a very few words, " the secret 1 See Lev. xxiii, 24. Num. xxix. 1. and Lev. xxv. 9, 10. <' place Lect. 26. LYRIC POETRY. 221 u place of thunder"), and finally the conten- tion with their Creator at the waters of Me- ribah. The mention of Meribah introduces another idea, namely, the ingratitude and contumacy of the Israelites, who appear to have been ever unmindful of the favours and indulgence of their heavenly Benefactor. The remainder of the ode, therefore, con- tains an affectionate expostulation of God with his people, a confirmation of his for- mer promises, and a tender complaint, that his favourable intentions towards them have been so long prevented by their disobe- dience. Thus, the object and end of this poem appears to be an exhortation to obe- dience from the consideration of the paternal love, the beneficence, and the promises of the Deity; and we have seen with how much art, elegance, variety, and ingenuity, this is accomplished. In order to complete the beauty of this composition, the conclusion is replete with all the graces of sentiment, imagery, and diction. The sudden and fre- quent change of persons is remarkable ; but it is by no means harsh or obscure. Some allowance is however to be made for the He- brew idiom, as well as for the state of the author's 222 LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 26- author's mind : he is not under the influence of art but of nature; through the impetuo- sity of passion, therefore, his transitions are frequent from figure and allusion to plain language, and back again with a kind of desultory inconstancy. In the last Lecture I treated in general of the disposition and arrangement of Lyric composition, and endeavoured, in some de- gree, to define its usual symmetry and out- line. But on abstruse and difficult subjects, example is of more avail than the utmost accuracy of description. To him, therefore, who wishes to form a correct idea of this kind of poem, I will venture to recommend the Psalm which we have just examined ; not doubting, that if he can make himself master of its general character, genius, and arrangement, he will feel perfectly satisfied concerning the nature and form of a perfect ode. In both these specimens, the style and ca- dence of the whole poem flows in one equal and uniform tenour; but there are others* which are more changeable and diversified, more unequal both in style and sentiment. These, although they occasionally incline to the Lect. 26. LYRIC POETRY. 223 the character of sweetness, and occasionally to that of sublimity, may nevertheless (though upon a different principle) be pro- perly classed among the odes of this inter- mediate style. Such are those which, from a mild and gentle exordium, rise gradually to sublimity, both in the subject and senti- ments ; such also are those which commence in a mournful strain, and conclude with ex- ultation and triumph. Such, in fine, are all those in which the style or matter is in any respect diversified and unequal. This ine- quality of style is perfectly consistent with the nature of Lyric composition ; for va- riety is one of the greatest ornaments, if not essentials, of the ode. Since, therefore, for the sake of variety, Lyric writers in parti- cular are indulged in the liberty of frequent digressions ; that boldness in thus diverging from the subject is not only excusable, but on many occasions is really worthy of commendation. Possibly a brief inquiry into the nature of those liberties which the He- brew poets have allowed themselves in this respect, or rather into the general method and principles of their Lyric compositions, will 3 not 22t LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 26i not be thought altogether unseasonable in this place, By tar the greater part of the Lyric Poe- try of the Hebrews is occupied wholly in the celebration of the power and goodness of Almighty God, in extolling his kindness and beneficence to his chosen people, and in inv ploring his assistance and favour in time of adversity : in other words, the usual subjects of these odes are so connected with every part of the Sacred History, as to afford am- ple scope for those digressions which are most pleasing, and most congenial to this species of composition. Thus, whether the theme be gay or mournful ; whether the events which they celebrate be prosperous or ad- verse ; whether they return thanks to God their deliverer for assistance in trouble, or with the humility of suppliants acknowledge the justice of the divine correction ; the me- mory of former times spontaneously occurs, and a variety of incidents and circumstances, of times, of seasons, of countries, of na- tions, all the miracles in Egypt, in the wil- derness, in Judea, are presented to their re- collection : and all these so naturally connect with the subject, that w T hatever of ornament is Lect.26. LYRIC POETRY. 22* is deduced from them, so far from appear- ing foreign to it, seems rather an essential part of the principal matter. It may, there- fore, be with modesty asserted of the He- brew ode, that from the nature of the sub- jects which it usually embraces, it is pos- sessed of so easy an access to some of the most elegant sources of poetical imagery, and has consequently so many opportunities for agreeable digression ; that with un- bounded freedom and uncommon variety, are united the most perfect order and the most pleasing uniformity. The happy boldness of Pindar in his di- gressions is deservedly celebrated ; but as he was very differently situated from those poets who are at present under our consideration, so the nature of his subject, and the prin- ciples of his composition, are altogether dif- ferent from theirs ; and a different reason is to be assigned for the liberties which he as- sumed in his Lyric productions. We are in no want of materials to enable us to form a perfect judgment of the genius of Pindar; there are about forty of his odes remain- ing, and the subject of them all is exactly similar. They are all composed in celebra« vol. u. Q ti the characteristic of which is sublimity. — This sublimity results from three sotirces. — From the general form and arrange- ment of the poem, exemplified in the \th and x\i\th Psalm. — From the greatness of the sentiments and the force of the language, — The Ode of Moses on passing the Red Sea explained and illustrated. — The brevity of the Hebrew style.— The xxizth Psalm in English verse. Sublimity was mentioned as the charac- teristic of a third species of the Hebrew ode. But having already treated very copiously of the sublime in general, both as the effect of sentiment and expression, our present in- vestigation must be confined to that which is peculiar to this species of poetry. Now, the sublimity of Lyric compositions results either from the plan, the order, and arrange- ment of the poem ; or from those common sources which I formerly specified, the sen- timents and the style; or, in some cases, from an union of all, when an aggregate perfection is produced from the beauty of the Lect.2% LYRIC POETRY. 235 the arrangement, the dignity of the senti- ments, and the splendour of the diction. I shall endeavour to exhibit a few examples in each kind ; and indeed this subject is every way deserving our attention, since it relates to what may be esteemed the perfection of the Hebrew poetry, for its chief commenda- tion is sublimity, and its sublimest species is the ode. Let us therefore consider, in the first place* what degree of sublimity the mere form and disposition of a Lyric Poem can impart to a subject not in itself sublime. We have an example of this in the fiftieth Psalm ; the subject of which is of the didactic kind, and belongs to the moral part of theology. It is at first serious and practical, with very little of sublimity or splendour: it sets forth, that the divine favour is not to be conci- liated by sacrifices, or by any of the external rites and services of religion, but rather by sincere piety, and by the devout effusions of a grateful heart : and yet, that even these will not be accepted without the strictest attention to justice, and every practical virtue. It consists therefore of two parts : in the first the devout, but ignorant and super- m LYRIC POETRY. Lect> 27. superstitious worshipper is reproved ; and in the second the hypocritical pretender to vir- tue and religion. Each part of the subject, if we regard the imagery and the diction only, is treated rather with variety and ele- gance, than with sublimity ; but if the ge- neral effect, if the plot and machinery of the whole be considered, scarcely any thing can appear more truly magnificent. The great Author of nature, by a solemn decree, con- vokes the whole human race, to be witness of the judgment which he is about to exe- cute upon his people ; the august tribunal i$ established in Sion : " Jehovah, God of gods, " Hath spoken, and hath summoned the earth, " From the rising to the setting of the sun : " From Sion, from the perfection of beauty, God " hath shined." The majesty of God is depicted by imagery assumed from the descent upon mount Sinai; which, as I formerly observed, is one of the common-places that supply ornaments of this kind : " Our God shall come, and shall not be silent; 11 A fire shall devour before him, " And a mighty whirlwind shall surround him." The Lect.27. LYRIC POETRY. 237 The heavens and the earth are invoked as witnesses, which is a pompous form of ex- pression common with the Hebrew writers r : " He shall call the heavens from on high ; " And the earth to the judgment of his people." At length the Almighty is personally intro- duced pronouncing his sentence, which con- stitutes the remainder of the ode; and the admirable sublimity and splendour of the exordium is continued through the whole. There is in Horace an ode upon a similar subject % and it is not enough to say, that he has treated it in his usual manner, with elegance and variety, for he has done more than could be expected from a person un- enlightened by divine truth — he has treated it with piety and solemnity. But that high degree of sublimity, to which the Psalmist rises upon such occasions, is only to be at- tained by the Hebrew Muse ; for, it is a truth universally acknowledged, that no religion whatever, no poetic history is provided with a store of imagery so striking and so magni-* 1 Compare Deut. xxxii. 1. Isai. i. 2. } See Horax, Lib, iii. Od. xxiii. ficent, 238 LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 27V ficent, so capable of embellishing a scene which may be justly accounted the most sublime that the human imagination is able to comprehend. The next example which I shall produce, will be found in some measure different from the former, inasmuch as the subject itself is possessed of the highest dignity and splen- dour, though still no inconsiderable part of the sublimity is to be attributed to the ge- neral plan and arrangement of the poem. The induction of the ark of God to mount Sion by David, gave occasion to the twenty- fourth Psalm 3 . The removal of the ark was celebrated in a great assembly of the people, and with suitable splendour during every part of the ceremony. The Levites led the procession, accompanied by a great variety of vocal and instrumental music ; and this Ode appears to have been sung to the people when they arrived at the summit of the mountain. The exordium is expres- sive of the supreme and infinite dominion of God, arising from the right of creation : 3 See £ Sam. vj, 1 Chron. xv, * The Lect. 27. LYRIC POETRY. 239 " The earth is Jehovah's, and the fulness thereof; " The world and all that inhabit therein. " For upon the seas hath he founded it, " And upon the floods hath he established it." How astonishing the favour and condescen- sion ! how extraordinary the testimony of his love, when he selected from his infinite dominion a peculiar seat, and a people for himself ! What a copious return of grati- tude, of holiness, of righteousness, and of all human virtues, does such an obligation demand ! " Behold," says Moses, address- ing the Israelites, " The heaven, and the . Attempting to explain the Psalms from the lustorical parts &2 of 24* LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 27. licacy of sentiment, much of the felicity of allusion, and the force of expression, must, by of Scripture, act as if every occurrence were known to them, and as if nothing had happened during the reign of David which was not committed to writing. This, how- ever, considering the extreme brevity of the Sacred His- tory, and the number and magnitude of the facts which it relates, must of course be very far from the truth. The causes and motives of many wars are not at all adverted to, the battles that are related are few, and those the princi- pal. Who can doubt, though ever so unexperienced in military affairs, that many things occurred, which are not mentioned, between the desertion of Jerusalem by David, and that famous battle which extinguished the re- bellion of Absalom ? The camp must have been frequently removed, as circumstances varied, to places of greater safetv ; much trouble must have been had in collecting the veteran soldiers from different posts, and not a few battles and skirmishes must have occurred, before the exiled king could so far presume upon llie strength and increase of his army as to quit the mountains, and try the open field. This last battle being fought on this side Jordan, in the forest of Ephraim, is it not natural to suppose that some- thing must have occurred to compel Absalom, whose camp was beyond Jordan, to return into Palestine, pro- perly so called: possibly the preservation of the royal city? Or, is it possible to compare the history of 2 Sam. viii. IS. with Ps. Ix. and not to perceive, that some unfortunate events must have happened previous to the victories over the Syrians and Idumeans, and that affairs must have been unhappily situated in Palestine itself; simplicity is maintained ; there is nothing artificial, nothing laboured, either in respect to method or invention. Every part of it breathes the spirit of nature and of passion : joy, admiration, and love, united with piety and devotion, burst forth spontaneously in their native colours. A miracle of the most interesting nature to the Israelites is display- ed. The sea divides, and the waters are raised into vast heaps on either side, while they pass over ; but their enemies, in attempting to pursue, are overwhelmed by the reflux of the waves. These circumstances are all expressed in language suitable to the emo- tions which they produced, abrupt, fervid, concise, animated, with a frequent repetition of the same sentiments : i: I will sing to Jehovah, for he is very highly " exalted ; < c The horse and the rider he hath o'erwhelmed " in the sea." This constitutes the proem of the ode, and is also repeated occasionally by the female part of the band in the manner of a modern chorus, being briefly expressive of the ge- neral subject. The same idea, however, oc- curs Lect.27. LYRIC POETRY. 249 curs in several parts of the poem, with considerable variation in the language and figures : " The chariots of Pharaoh and his forces he cast " into the sea; " And his chosen leaders were drowned in the " Red Sea. " The depths have covered them ; u They went down into the abyss as a stone." And again : fi The enemy said, I will pursue, I will over- " take ; " I will divide the spoil, my soul shall be satis- "fied 1 *; (i I will draw the sword, my hand shall destroy " them. " Thou didst blow with thy breath; the seaco- " vered them : u They sunk like lead in the great waters." Nor do even these repetitions satisfy the author : " Who is like unto thee among the gods, O " Jehovah ! 11 Who is like unto thee, glorious in sanctity ! xz " This is explained by one of the Rabbinical writers, " It will be filled from them ; that is, says another, fy 4< taking their wealth or substance? H. " Fearful 250 LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 27, 11 Fearful in praises, performing miracles ! " Thou exteudedst thy right hand, the earth " swallowed them." In these examples is displayed all the genuine force of nature and passion, which the ef* forts of art will emulate in vain. Here we behold the passions struggling for vent, la- bouring with a copiousness of thought and a poverty of expression, and on that very ac- count the more expressly displayed. To take a strict account of the sublimity of this ode, would be to repeat the whole. I will only remark one quality, which is indeed conge- nial to all the poetry of the Hebrews, but in this poem is more than usually predominant, I mean that brevity of diction which is so conducive to sublimity of style. Diffuse and exuberant expression generally detracts from the force of the sentiment ; as in the human body, excessive corpulency is generally in- consistent with health and vigour. TheHe- brews, if we contemplate any of their com- positions as a whole, may be deemed full and copious ; but if we consider only the con- stituent parts of any production, they will be found sparing in words, concise and ener- getic. Lect. 27. LYRIC POETRY. 251 gctic. They amplify by diversifying, by re- peating, and sometimes by adding to the subject ; therefore it happens, that it is fre- quently, on the whole, treated rather dif- fusely ; but still every particular sentence is concise and nervous in itself. Thus it hap- pens in general, that neither copiousness nor vigour is wanting. This brevity of style is in some measure to be attributed to the genius of the language, and in some measure to the nature of the Hebrew verse. The most li- teral versions therefore commonly fail in this respect, and consequently still less is to be expected from any poetical translations or imitations whatever. Most of those qualities and perfections which have been the subject of this disquisi- tion, will be found in a very high degree in the twenty-ninth Psalm. The supreme do- minion of God, and the awfulness of his power, are demonstrated from the tremen- dous noise and the astonishing force of the thunder, wjtjich the Hebrews, by a bold but very apt figure, denominate " the voice of " the Most High." It is enough to say of it, that the sublimity of the matter is per- fectly equalled by the unaffected energy of the stvle. PSALM 252 LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 27. PSALM XXIX. " Sing, ye sons of might, O sing, " Praise to heaven's eternal King; " Power and strength to him assign, " And before his hallow'd shrine " Yield the homage that his name " From a creature's lips may claim. " Hark ! his voice in thunder breaks; " Hush'd to silence, while he speaks, " Ocean's waves from pole to pole " Hear the awful accents roll : " See, as louder yet they rise, M Echoing through the vaulted skies, " Loftiest cedars lie o'erthrown, " Cedars of steep Lebanon. " See, uprooted from its seat, " Trembling at the threat divine, ?' Lebanon itself retreat ; 11 And Sirion haste its flight to join f " See them like the heifer borne, M Like the beast whose pointed horn " Strikes with dread the sylvan train, " Bound impetuous on the plain. " Now the bursting clouds give way, " And the vivid lightnings play ; " And the wilds by man untrod " Hear, dismay'd, th' approaching God. " Cades ! o'er thy lonely waste, " Oft the dreadful sounds have past: "Oft Lect. 27. LYRIC POETRY. 253 " Oft his stroke the wood invades: " Widow'd of their branchy shades, " Mightiest oaks its fury know ' 3 ; " While the pregnant hind her throe " Instant feels, and on the earth " Trembling drops th' unfinish'd birth. 13 The oaks are affected with pain, or tremble: rr?N or rrV'K is an oak: and certainly this word frequently occurs in the plural masculine, with the insertion of \ And in this sense the Syr. has taken it, who renders it Knta PMOT. For the word pit in Syriac, as well as Hebrew, denotes motion or agitation of any kind ; nor is its meaning con- fined to the pains of childbirth. See Isa. li. 9. " This " explanation of the word ?<>in* in the sense of moving or u shaking, is established beyond a doubt upon the autho- " rity of the Arabic verb /in, to move or shake."" H. Though the word «n^>»« does not appear in the Syriac Lexicons to signify an oak, yet it occurs four times in this sense in the Syriac version, exactly answering to the Hebrew word nV«, 9. Sam. xviii. 9, 10, 14. as also in this place. The common translations suppose this pas- sage to relate to the hinds bringing forth young ; which agrees very little with the rest of the imagery either in nature or dignity : nor do I feel myself persuaded, even by the reasonings of the learned Bochart on this subject, Hieroz. part i. lib. iii. chap. 17. Whereas the oak struck with lightning admirably agrees with the context. And Bochart himself explains the word n^»« (which has been absurdly understood by the Masorites and other commen- tators as relating to a stag) as spoken of a tree in a very beautiful explication of an obscure passage in Gen. xlix. 81 Author's Note. " Prostrate 254 LYRIC POETRY. Lect, 27. " Prostrate on the sacred floor cc Israel's sons his name adore : " While his acts to every tongue " Yield its argument of song. u He the swelling surge commands ; " Fix'd his throne for ever stands ; " He his people shall increase, " Arm with strength, and bless with peace." LECTURE XXVIIL THE SUBLIME STYLE OF THE HEBREW ODE. The sublime Ode, in which all the constituents of subli- mity formerly specified are united. — The prophetic Ode of Moses, Dkut. xxxli. — The triumphal Ode of De~ borah ; the Prayer of Habakkuk ; the Fate of Ty- ranny, being a poetical imitation of the xWth chapter of Isaiah. Before we conclude this disquisition con- cerning the Lyric Poetry of the Hebrews, it will be proper to produce a few specimens of that kind of ode which derives sublimity from several united causes, from the diction, the sentiments, the form and conduct of the poem; and which accumulates, or in a man- ner condenses and combines all the beauties and elegancies of this style of composition. The poems to which I shall refer on this oc- casion, are too well known to require a mi- nute explanation, and indeed almost too noble and perspicuous in themselves to ad- mit of any illustration from criticism ; it will therefore be sufficient to notice them in ge- neral terms, or, at most, briefly to recom- 3 mend 256 LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 2S. mend a few passages, which are perhaps so eminently beautiful as to deserve particular attention. The first instance I shall mention is that prophetic ode of Moses r , which contains a justification on the part of God against the Israelites, and an explanation of the nature and design of the divine judgments. The exordium is singularly magnificent : the plan and conduct of the poem is just, natural, and well accommodated to the subject, for it is almost in the order of an historical nar- ration. It embraces a variety of the sublimest subjects and sentiments, it displays the truth and justice of God, his paternal love, and his unfailing tenderness to his chosen people ; and on the other hand, their ungrateful and contumacious spirit. The ardour of the di- vine indignation, and the heavv denuncia- tions of vengeance, are afterwards expressed in a remarkable personification, which is scarcely to be paralleled from all the choicest treasures of the Muses. The fervour of wrath is however tempered with the milder beams of lenity and mercy, and ends at last 1 Deut. xxxii, in Lect. 23. LYRIC POETRY. 257 in promises and consolation. When I for- merly treated of elevation of sentiment, of the impulse of the passions, of the force of imagery and diction, I could scarcely have avoided touching upon this poem, and draw* ing some of my examples from it\ Not to repeat these, or accumulate unnecessary matter, I will only add one remark, namely, that the subject and style of this poem bear so exact a resemblance to the prophetic as well as the Lyric compositions of the He- brews, that it unites all the force, energy, and boldness of the latter, with the exqui- site variety and grandeur of imagery so pe* culiar to the former 3 . Another specimen of the perfectly sublime Ode will be found in the triumphal Ode of Deborah 4 . This poem consists of three parts : first, the exordium ; next, a recital of the circumstances which preceded, and of those which accompanied the victory; lastly, a fuller description of the concluding event, the death of Sisera, and the disappointed hopes of his mother, which is embellished a See Lect. XV. 3 See Lect. XIII. * J up. V. vox-, ii. s with 258 LYRIC POETRY. Lect. 28 , with all the choicest flowers of poetry. Of this latter part, I endeavoured to explain at large the principal beauties in a former Lec- ture. About the middle of the poem, it must be confessed, some obscurities occur, and those not of a trivial nature, which impair the beauty of the composition ; and what is worse, I fear they will scarcely admit of elu- cidation, unless we were possessed of some further historical lights. The exordium de- serves a particular examination, as well for its native magnificence and sublimity, as be- cause it will serve more completely to illus- trate my remarks concerning the digressions of the Hebrew Ode. I observed, that the principal passages in the Sacred History, which in general constitute the materials of these digressions, are so connected with every subject of Sacred Poetry, that even in the most eccentric excursions of the imagina- tion, there is little danger of wandering from the main scope and design. The sub- ject of this ode is the triumph of the Israel- ites over their enemies through the divine assistance, and the establishment of their liberty. At the very opening of the poem this is proposed as the groundwork of it: and Lbct. 28. LYRIC POETRY. 259 and after inviting the kings and princes of the neighbouring nations to attend to this miracle of the divine goodness, the author proceeds to celebrate the praise of God, not commencing with the benefit so recently re- ceived, but with the prodigies formerly ex- hibited in Egypt : " O Jehovah, when thou wen test forth out of " Scir, " When thou proceededst from the plains of " Edom ; " The earth was moved, the heavens dropped, " The clouds also dropped water ; " The mountains melted from before the face of " Jehovah, " Sinai itself from before Jehovah^- the God of " Israel." The sudden introduction of such important incidents breathes the free and fervid spirit of the Lyric Muse. There is, however, no defect in the connexion, nor does any de- gree of obscurity attend the comparison which is implied between that stupendous deliver- ance and the benefit so lately received. On the same principle the prayer of Ha- bakkuk is constructed 5 ; and is a remarkable 5 Habak. iii. s 2 instance 260 LYRIC POETRY. Lect.28. instance of that sublimity peculiar to the ode, and which is often the result of a bold but natural digression. The Prophet fore- seeing the judgment of God, and the im- pending calamities, which were to be inflict- ed upon his nation by the hands of the Chal- deans, as well as the punishments which the latter were themselves to undergo ; partly struck with terror, partly cheered with hope, he beseeches Almighty God to hasten the redemption of his people : " O Jehovah, I have heard thy speech, " I have feared, O Jehovah, thy work. " As the years 6 approach, thou hast shown it : " And in thy wrath hast remembered mercy.'* In this passage, the resemblance between the Babylonish and Egyptian captivities natu- rally presents itself to the mind, as well as the possibility of a similar deliverance through the power and assistance of God. With how much propriety, therefore, might the Pro- phet have continued his supplications to that 6 See the Vulg. and Theodotion, e» ^e<™ stwv* Aquila. and the LXXj sy tw tyyifyiv t» et»* SyMMACIIUS, svto$ rut sywuTwy. All of them almost in the same sense, that \s % " within a fixed time, 1 ' all- Lect.28. LYRIC POETRY. 261 all-powerful and all-merciful God ; that, as he had formerly wrought so many miracles in favour of his people, he would afford them relief and consolation on the present occasion ; and how efficacious a method would it have been, to confirm the fortitude of every pious person, to remind them, that he who had formerly manifested his infinite power in delivering the Israelites from their great afflictions, might, in proper time, em- ploy the same means to rescue them from their present state of suffering ? He however totally disregards the formality of this me- thod, probably because he supposed all the above ideas would spontaneously occur to the reader ; nor does he labour for access by slow and regular approaches to the sacred depository of the most splendid materials, but bursts into it at once, and by a sort of unexpected impulse : u God came from Teman, " And the Holy One from mount Paran : " His glory covered the heavens ; f* And the earth was full of his praise." The Prophet, indeed, illustrates this subject throughout with equal magnificence ; select- s 3 ing 262 LYRIC POETRY. Lect.28. ing from such an assemblage of miraculous incidents, the most noble and important, displaying them in the most splendid colours, and embellishing them with the sublimest imagery, figures, and diction, the dignity of which is so heightened and recommended by the superior elegance of the conclusion, that were it not for a few shades, which the hand of time has apparently cast over it in two or three passages, no composition of the kind would, I believe, appear more elegant or more perfect than this poem. I will add one remarkable example more of the perfectly sublime ode, which indeed it would be utterly unpardonable to overlook ; I mean, the triumphal song of the Israelites on the destruction of Babylon. It is almost unnecessary to add, that it is in no respect tjnworthy of Isaiah, whom I cannot help esteeming the first of poets, as well for ele^ gance as sublimity. Having formerly taken up a considerable portion of your time and attention in a minute investigation of its beauties, it is now presented in the modern form of a Lyric composition. OS? Lect. 28. LYRIC POETRY. fl& ON THE FATE OF TYRANNY, ISAIAH, XIV. " Oppression dies ; the Tyrant falls : " The golden city bows her walls ! " Jehovah breaks th' Avenger's rod. " The Son of Wrath, whose ruthless hand " HuiTd desolation o'er the land, " Has run his raging race, has clos'd the scene " of blood. " Chiefs arm'd around behold their vanquish'd " Lord ; 1 Nor spread the guardian shield, nor lift the " loyal sword. " He falls ; and Earth again is free. " Hark! at the call of Liberty, 11 All Nature lifts the choral song. 4i The Fir-trees, on the mountain's bead, " Rejoice through all their pomp of shade; u The lordly Cedars nod on sacred Lebanon : " Tyrant ! they cry, since thy fell force is " broke, " Our proud heads pierce the skies, nor fear the -' woodman's stroke. *' Hell, from her gulf profound, <£ Rouses at thine approach ; and, all around, " Her dreadful notes of preparation sound. " See, at the awful call, " Her shadowy Heroes all, s 4 " Ev'n 264 LYRIC POETRY. Lect.28. " Ev'n mighty Kings, the heirs of empire wide, " Rising with solemn state, and slow, " From their sabie thrones below, " Meet, and insult thy pride. " What, dost thou join our ghostly train, " A flitting shadow, light and vain ? " Where is thy pomp, thy festive throng, " Thy revel dance, and wanton song ? " Proud King! Corruption fastens on thy breast; " And calls her crawling brood, and bids them " share the feast. " O Lucifer! thou radiant star; " Son of the Morn ; whose rosy car " Flam'd foremost in the van of day : " How art thou fall'n, thou King of Light ! " How fall'n from thy meridian height! " Who said'st, The distant poles shall hear me, " and obey. a High o'er the stars my sapphire throne " shall glow, " And, as Jehovah's self, my voice the heavens " shall bow. " He spake, he died. Distain'd with gore, " Beside yon yawning cavern hoar, " See, where his livid corse is laid. " The aged Pilgrim passing by, " Surveys him long with dubious eye; ** And muses on his fate, and shakes his reve* guished by the general appellation Shirim, there are some which differ in their nature from Lyric poetry, strictly so called. It will, therefore, be more regular to class them with those compositions anciently termed Idylliums, the name and nature of which I shall endeavour to explain. Whether / 270 THE IDYLLIUM. Lect. 29, Whether we are to attribute the invention of the name to the poets themselves, or to the grammarians who revised their works, is difficult to say ; but we find some of the Greek poems distinguished by the title Eide, which denotes a poem without any certain limitation as to form or subject. Even the Odes of Pindar retain that appellation. But if there were any upon lighter subjects, or in a more humble strain, indeed in any re- spect of an inferior kind, and such as could not be classed under any of the common di- visions, they were entitled Eidyttia. Thus the small poems of Theocritus, which con- sist chiefly of Bucolicks, intermingled with others of different kinds, are called Xdylliums. In the same manner the Latins preferred the name of Eclogues, or poems selected from a number of others ; and for a contrary and more modest reason, that of Sylvce (or ivoods) was given to such verses as were hastily com- posed, and promiscuously thrown together, such as might afford matter for a more ac- curate revision or for a similar selection. But although the term Idyilium be a vague and general term, which denotes nothing certain relating to the nature of the poem, it still appears 3 Lect. 29. THE IDYLLIUM. tfl appears by use and custom to have obtained a certain and appropriated destination ; and perhaps it may not be improperly defined, a poem of moderate length ; of a uniform, middle style, chiefly distinguished for ele- gance and sweetness ; regular and clear as to plot, conduct, and arrangement. There are many perfect examples of this kind of poem extant in the writings of the Hebrews ; some of which, I presume, it will not be unpieas- ing singly to point out and explain. The first of these poems which attract our notice are the historical Psalms, in celebra- tion of the power and the other attributes of the Deity, as instanced in the miracles which he performed in favour of his people. One of the principal of these, bearing the name of Asaph x , pursues the history of the Israelites from the time of their departure from Egypt to the reign of David, particu- larizing and illustrating all the leading events. The style is simple and uniform, but the structure is poetical, and the sentiments oc- casionally splendid. The historical, or ra- ther chronological order, cannot be said to 1 Ps. lxxviii. be 272 THE IDYLLIUM. Lect. 29, be exactly preserved throughout; for the minute detail of so protracted a series of events could scarcely fail to tire in a work of imagination. The Egyptian miracles are introduced in a very happy and elegant digression, and may be considered as form- ing a kind of episode. The same subject af- fords materials for two other Psalms, the hundred-and-fifth, and the hundred-and- sixth : the one including the history of Israel, from the call of Abraham to the Ex- odus ; the other, from that period to the later ages of the commonwealth : both of them bear a strong resemblance to the seventy- eighth, as well in the subject as in the style (except perhaps that the diction is rather of a more simple cast) ; the mixture of ease and grace, displayed in the exordium, is the same in all. These Psalms, both in plot and conduct, have a surprising analogy to the Hymns of the Greeks. Indeed the Greek translators might very properly have given the title of Hymns to the book of Psalms, as that word agrees much more exactly with the Hebrew title lehillim, than that which they have adopted. This species of poetry was very Lect. 29. THE IDYLLIUM. 278 very early in use among the Greeks, and was almost entirely appropriated to the celebra-^ tion of their religious rites. The subjects in general were the origin of the Gods, the places of their birth, their achievements, and the other circumstances of their history. Such are all the poems of this kind now ex- tant in the Greek ; such are the elegant hymns of Callimachus, as well as those which are attributed to Homer. The poem of Theocritus, entitled the DiosKoimor, or the Praise of Castor and Pollux, is also a ge- nuine hymn, and very elegant in its kind : nor is it improperly classed among the Idyl- liums, which may be said to include all of this species, But the true form and charac- ter of the Hymn is excellently expressed by the two choirs of Salii (or priests of war) in Virgil : " One choir of old, another of the young; " To dance, and bear the burden of the song; " The lay records the labours and the praise, " And all th' immortal acts, of Hercules V Those ancient hymns, which are falsely at- tributed to Orpheus, are more properly ini- * Dryd. Virg. yENEiD, viii. 3 ,9. vol. ii. t tiatory 274 THE IDYLLIUM. Lect. 29.. tiatory Songs ; for they contain " little more " than invocations of the Gods, which were u made use of by those who were initiated u in the sacred mysteries of any of the " Gods 3 ." Ovid, who was both an ele- gant and a learned poet, united the excel- lencies of both these species of Hymns : for the exordium of the Hymn to Bacchus con- tains the invocations of that God, or, in other words, announces solemnly his name and titles ; the remainder celebrates his per- fections and achievements 4 . There is yet another Psalm, which may be enumerated among those of the historical kind, namely, the hundred and thirty-sixth. It celebrates the praises of the Almighty, and proclaims his infinite power and good- ness ; beginning with the work of creation, and proceeding to the miracles of the Exo- dus, the principal of which are related al- most in the historical order. The exordium commences with this well-known distich : " Glorify Jehovah, for be is good; " For his mercy endureth for ever :" » Jos. Scaliger. Annot. in Hym. Orph, 4 Metamoeph. iv. 11. which, Lect. 29. THE IDYLLIUM. 275 which, according to Ezra 5 , was commonly sung by alternate choirs. There is, how- ever, one circumstance remarkable attending it, which is, that the latter line of the dis- tich, being added by the second choir, and also subjoined to every verse (which is a sin- gular case), forms a perpetual Epode. Hence the whole nature and form of the interca- lary verse (or burden of the Song) may be collected : it expresses in a clear, concise, and simple manner, some particular senti- ment, which seems to include virtually the general subject or design of the poem ; and it is thrown in at proper intervals, accord- ing to the nature and arrangement of it, for the sake of impressing the subject more firmly upon the mind. That the intercalary verse is perfectly congenial to the Idyllium, is evident from the authority of Theocritus, Bion, Moschus, and even of Yirgil. I shall add one or two examples from the Sacred Poetry, which will not lose in a comparison with the most perfect specimens in this de- partment of poetry which those excellent writers have bequeathed to posterity : and * Ezr. iii. 10, 11. t 2 in 276 THE IDYLLIUM. Lect. 29. in order to illustrate as well the elegance of the poem in general, as the peculiar force and beauty of the intercalary verse, the or- der and conduct of the subject must be par- ticularly explained. The hundred-and-seventh Psalm may un- doubtedly be enumerated among the most elegant monuments of antiquity ; and it is chiefly indebted for its elegance to the ge- neral plan and conduct of the poem. It celebrates the goodness and mercy of God towards mankind, as demonstrated in the immediate assistance and comfort which he affords, in the greatest calamities, to those who devoutly implore his aid : in the first place, to those who wander in the desert, and who encounter the horrors of famine; next, to those who are in bondage ; to those who are afflicted with disease; and, finally, to those who are tossed about upon the ocean. The prolixity of the argument is occasionally re- lieved by narration ; and examples are super- added of the divine severity in punishing the wicked, as well as of his benignity to the devout and virtuous; and both the narrative and preceptive parts are recommended to the earnest contemplation of considerate minds. Thus Lect. 29. THE IDYLLIUM. 27? Thus the whole poem actually divides into five parts nearly equal ; the four first of which conclude with an intercalary verse, expressive of the subject or design of the hymn : " Glorify Jehovah for his mercy, " And for his wonders to the children of men." This distich also is occasionally diversified, and another sometimes annexed illustrative of the sentiment ; " For he satisfieth the famished soul, 11 And filleth the hungry with good." " For he hath broken the brazen gates, 11 And the bolts of iron he hath cut in sunder." The sentiment of the Epode 'itself is some- times repeated, only varied by different imagery : " Glorify Jehovah for his mercy, " And for his wonders to the children of men : " Let them also offer sacrifices of praise, " And let them declare his works with melody." " Let them exalt him in the assembly of the 11 people, 11 And in the counsel of the elders let them cele- " brate him." t 3 In 278 THE IDYLLIUM. Lect. 29. In all these passages, the transition from the contemplation of their calamities, to that of their deliverance, which is made by the per- petual repetition of the same distich, is truly elegant : " Let them also cry unto Jehovah in their trou- " bles ; " And from their afflictions he will deliver them." This, however, does not appear in the least to partake of the nature of the intercalary verse. The latter part of the Psalm, which comprehends a vast variety of matter, con- cludes with two distichs expressive of a sen- timent grave, solemn, and practical, and in no respect unworthy the rest of the poem. There are many other examples to be found in the Psalms ; but it must be con- fessed, few of them are equal, and none of them superior to this. I shall select another specimen from Isaiah; and the more wil- lingly, because, in it, as in other passages of the same author, the common division into chapters has greatly obscured that most ele- gant writer, by absurdly breaking the unity of a very interesting poem, and connecting each part with matter which is totally fo- reign Lect. 29. THE IDYLLIUM. fit reign to the subject. If we unite the con- clusion of the ninth chapter with the begin- ning of the tenth, we shall find a complete and connected prophecy against the king- dom of Israel or Samaria 6 . It is replete with terror and solemnity, and possesses a degree of force and sublimity to which the Idyllium seldom rises ; though it preserves the form of the Idyllium so perfect and ex- press, that it cannot with propriety be re- ferred to any other class. The poem con- sists of four parts, each of which contains a denunciation of vengeance against the crimes of this rebellious people, vehemently ac- cusing them of some atrocious offence, and distinctly making out the particular punish- ment. In the first, the pride and ostenta- tion of the Israelites is reproved ; in the se- cond, the obduracy of their spirit, and the general depravation of their morals ; in the third, their audacious impiety, which rages like a flame, destroying and laying waste the nation ; and lastly, their iniquity is set forth 6 Isai. ix. 8. — x. 4. " In one MS. a vacant space is •' left after Isai. x. 4. but no space of the same kind at •* the end of chap. ix. In another MS. after chap. x. 4. * a space of one line is interposed/' K. t 4 as 2fi0 THE IDYLLIUM. Lect. 29. as demonstrated in their partial administra- tion of justice, and their oppression of the poor. To each of these a specific punish- ment is annexed ; and a clause declaratory of a further reserve of the divine vengeance is added, which forms the Epode, and is adr mirably calculated to exaggerate the horror of the prediction : " For all this his anger is not turned away ; " But his hand is still stretched out." The examples which I have hitherto pro- duced will, at first view, explain their own nature and kind ; there are, however, others, and probably not a few (in the book of Psalms particularly), which may equally be accounted of the Idyllium species. I have principally in contemplation those, in which some particular subject is treated in a more copious and regular manner than is usual in compositions strictly lyric. Such is the hundred-and-fourth Psalm, which demon- strates the glory of the infinite Creator, from the wisdom, beauty, and variety pf his works. The poet embellishes this noble subject with the clearest and most splendid colouring of language ; and with imagery the most mag- nificent, Lect.29. THE 1DYLLIUM. 281 nificent, lively, diversified, and pleasing, at the same time select, and happily adapted to the subject. There is nothing of the kind extant, indeed nothing can be conceived, more perfect than this Hymn, whether it be considered with respect to its intrinsic beauties, or as a model of that species of composition. Miraculous exertions of the divine power have something in them which at first strikes the inattentive mind with a strong sentiment of sublimity and awe : but the true subject of praise, the most worthy of God, and the best adapted to impress upon the heart of man a fervent and per- manent sense of piety, is drawn from the contemplation of his powder in the creation of this infinite All, his wisdom in arrang- ing and adorning it, his providence in sus- taining, and his mercy in the regulation of its minutest parts, and in ordering and di- recting the affairs of men. The Greek Hymns consisted chiefly of fables, and these fables regarded persons and events, which were neither laudable in themselves, nor greatly to be admired ; indeed I do not re- collect any that are extant of this sublime nature, except that of the famous stoic Clean thes, 582 THE IDYLLIUM. Lect. 29. Cleanthes, which is inscribed to Jove, that is, to God the creator, or, as he expresses himself, " to the Eternal Mind, the Creator •'' and Governor of Nature V It is doubt- less a most noble monument of ancient wis- dom, and replete with truths not less solid than magnificent. For, the sentiments of the philosopher concerning the divine power, concerning the harmony of nature, and the supreme laws, concerning the folly and un- happiness of wicked men, who are unceas- ingly subject to the pain and perturbation of a troubled spirit ; and, above all, the ar- dent supplication for the divine assistance, in order to enable him to celebrate the praises of the omnipotent Deity in a suitable man- ner, and in a perpetual strain of praise and adoration ; all of these breathe so true and unaffected a spirit of piety, that they seem in some measure to approach the excellence of the Sacred Poetry. The Hymn of David, which I have just mentioned, deservedly occupies the first place in this class of poems ; that which comes 7 See Cudworth, Intellect. System, pag. 432. or H. Sxephan. Poesim Philosoph. nearest Lect.29. THE IDYLLIUM. 283 nearest to it, as well in the conduct of the poem as in the beauty of the style, is ano- ther of the same author. It celebrates the omniscience of the Deity, and the incom- parable art and design displayed in the form- ation of the human body : if it be ex- celled (as perhaps it is) by the former in the plan, disposition, and arrangement of the matter, it is, however, not in the least inferior in the dignity and elegance of the figures and imagery. PSALM CXXXIX. " Thou, Lord, hast search'd me out; thine eyes " Mark when I sit, and when I rise; " By thee my future thoughts are read ; " Thou, round my path, and round my bed, " Attendest vigilant; each word, " Ere yet I speak, by thee is heard. " Life's maze, before my view outspread, " Within thy presence rapt I tread, " And, touch'd with conscious horror, stand " Beneath the shadow of thy hand. " How deep thy knowledge, Lord, how wide ! " Long to the fruitless task applied, " That mighty sea my thoughts explore, ?' Nor reach its depth, nor find its shore. " Where 28* THE IDYLLIUM. Lect. 29. 44 Where shall I shun thy wakeful eye, " Or whither from thy spirit fly ? 44 Aloft to heaven my course I bear ; 44 In vain; for thou, my God, art there : " If prone to hell my feet descend, 44 Thou still my footsteps shalt attend: 44 If now, on swiftest wings upborne, 44 I seek the regions of the morn, " Or haste me to the western steep, " Where Eve sits brooding o'er the deep; " Thy hand the fugitive shall stay, " And dictate to my steps their way. 44 Perchance within its thickest veil 44 The darkness shall my head conceal : 44 But, instant, thou hast chas'd away 44 The gloom, and round me pour'd the day. " Darkness, great God ! to thee there 's none ; 4< Darkness and light to thee are one; " Nor brighter shines, to thee display 'd, 44 The noon, than night's obscurest shade. " My reins, my fabric's ev'ry part, u The wonders of thy plastic art 14 Proclaim, and prompt my willing tongue " To meditate the grateful song : 44 With deepest awe my thoughts their frame 44 Surveys — 4 I tremble that I am/ 44 While yet a stranger to the day 44 Within the burden'd womb I lay, 44 My bones, familiar to thy view, 44 By just degrees to firmness grew ; 44 Day Lect.29. THE IDYLLIUM. 2S5 " Day to succeeding day consign'd " Th' unfinished birth; thy mighty mind " Each limb, each nerve, ere yet they were, " Contemplated, distinct and clear : " Those nerves thy curious ringer spun, " Those limbs it fashion'd one by one ; " And, as thy pen in fair design " Trac'd on thy book each shadowy line, " Thy handmaid Nature read them there, " And made the growing work her care ; " Conformed it to th' unerring plan, " And gradual wrought me into man. w With what delight, great God, I trace " The acts of thy stupendous grace ! " To count them were to count the sand " That lies upon the sea-beat strand. M When from my temples sleep retires, " To thee my thankful heart aspires, " And, with thy sacred presence blest, " Joys to receive the awful guest. " Shall impious men thy will withstand, " Nor feel the vengeance of thy hand ? " Hence, murcPrers, hence, nor near me stay ; " Ye sons of Violence, away ! 11 When lawless crowds, with insult vain, " Thy works revile, thy name profane, " Can I unmov'd those insults see, " Nor hate the wretch that hateth thee ? 11 Indignant, in thy cause I join, " And all thy foes, my God, are mine. " Searcher 286 THE IDYLLIUMT. Lect.29. " Searcher of hearts, my thoughts review; " With kind severity pursue " Through each disguise thy servant's mind, " Nor leave one stain of guilt behind. " Guide through th' eternal path my feet, " And bring me to thy blissful seat." OF DRAMATIC POETRY. LECTURE XXX. THE SONG OF SOLOMON NOT A REGULAR DRAMA. The Platonic division of Poetry into the narrative, dra- matic, and mixed kinds, of' little use ; but deserves to be noticed on this occasion, as leading to an accurate definition of Dramatic Poetry, and clearing up the ambiguity in which the term has been involved by the moderns. — Two species pointed out : the lesser, which possesses only the form of dialogue, without the personal intervention of the Poet ; and the greater, which con- tains a plot or fable. — There are extant some instances of the former in the writings of the Hebrews ; but none of their productions seem to have the least title to the latter character, two perhaps excepted; the Song of Solomon, and the Booh of Job. — Inquiry whether the Song of Solomon contain a complete plot or fable. — It is an Epithalamium : the characters which are repre- sented in it ; the Poem founded upon the nuptial rites of the Hebrews. — The opinion ofBossuet cited and ex- plained: namely, that this Poem is a representation of the seven days of festival which succeeded the mar' riage, and consequently consists of seven parts or divisions. — This opinion the most favourable of all, to those who account this poem a regular Drama : it however does not prove, that it contains a complete plot or fable. — Definition of the Dramatic Fable. — Nothing like it in the Song of Salomon : it is there- fore not a perfect Drama, but is of the lesser c 7 ass of 3 Dramatic 288 DRAMATIC POETRY. Lect. S», Dramatic Poems. — The chorus of Virgins bears a great analogy to the chorus of the Greek Tragedies ; but could not serve as a model for them. The ancient critics, following the authority of Plato \ have distributed all poetical compositions, according to their form or subject, into three classes, the narrative, the imitative or dramatic, and the mixed. This arrangement is, however, not of much use on the whole ; it neither draws a perfect line of distinction between the different species of poems, nor serves to define or explain the nature and form of any. There is scarcely any species of poem perfectly simple in its nature, scarcely any which does not occasionally unite these different modes of expression. The Epic indeed may be said to exhibit almost invariably a narra- tion of the mixed kind ; and the Dramatic necessarily assumes the imitative form. But as other poems may adopt freely the mixed narration ; so I do not see any just reason why they should be absolutely prohibited from assuming the Dramatic form. Custom, .however, we find has so far prevailed, that 1 See Plat. De Rep. lib. iii. although Lect.SO. DRAMATIC POETRY. 289 although the style and manner does not seem necessarily appropriated to any particular subject whatever, the name at least of Dra- matic has been generally received as distin- guishing a particular species of poetry. The present object of inquiry is, therefore, what specimens of this species of composition are extant in the writings of the Hebrews : and in the very first stage of our investiga- tion, some degree of caution will be required, lest the ambiguity of the term, as it has been used by the moderns, should mislead or per- plex us. The term Dramatic Poetry, as I before observed, is now restricted to two particular species of composition, Tragedy and Co- medy. It was originally, however, of much more extensive signification ; it regarded sim- ply the external form ; it was properly ap- plied to every poem composed in dialogue, provided that, throughout the whole, the conversation was carried on by the characters themselves, without the intervention of the Poet*. This mode of composition is ex- empli hed % The nature of this appropriation of a general term will perhaps be better explained, by briefly adverting to the vol. ii. u history 290 DRAMATIC POETRY. Lect.SCX emplified in several of the Bucolics of Theo- critus and Virgil, in some of the Satires of Horace, and in two of his Odes. In order, therefore, to examine the subject more ac- curately, it will be proper to distinguish two species of Dramatic Poems ; the lesser, in which, by means of dialogue or characters, history of the Theatre. In fact, there is scarcely any circumstance in which the gradual progress of human in- vention is more exemplified, than in the origin and im- provement of the Greek Drama. It was originally no- thing more than a rude Song, exhibited by one or more Clownish minstrels or ballad-singers, who disfigured them- selves to excite attention. Tliespis collected a company of them together, and transported them from village to vil- lage in a kind of wagon ; and something like this state of the Drama we see in the rude exhibitions of Mummers and Morricc-dancers in the inland parts of this kingdom. Tliespis added to the singers an interlocutor, who served to explain the matter of the songs ; and in this state the Drama continued, till an accident brought it to greater perfection. In the representation of a Tragedy, in which the Furies were exhibited, the barbarous dresses of the chorus (which consisted of fifty persons) frighted the pregnant women into fits. Hence iEschylus was induced to retrench the number of the chorus, and, to make up for the deficiency, added to the actors or interlocutors. He erected a stage, and ornamented it with machinery ; and equipped the actors with the robe, the buskin, and the mask. See more upon this subject in Essays Historical and Moral, by the Translator of these Lectures, Es. i. T. the Lect. SG. DRAMATIC POETRY. 291 the manners, passions, and actions of men, are imitated or delineated; and the greater, which contains, moreover, a plot or fable, that is, the representation of some incident or transaction of life, regular or complete, in which events succeed each other in a con- nected series, and which after various and interesting vicissitudes is wrought tip to a perfect conclusion. This latter species in- cludes both Tragedy and Comedy; and as the plot or fable distinguishes them from the inferior species of Dramatic Poetry, so the perfect form of dialogue serves to draw the line between them and the Epic. There are abundant examples of the for- mer species of Dramatic Poetry manifestly extant in the writings of the Hebrews ; and perhaps there are many others, which we have not discovered to be of this kind 3 . The sudden 3 Our author has treated with his usual modesty a very difficult subject: on which, those who have been more adventurous have been led into great errors. It is cer- tain that many of the Psalms are dramatic, which some commentators observing, delighted with their own disco- veries, whenever they met with a passage more difficult than usual, or were able to catch any new and visionary explanation, more agreeable to their theological notions, u 2 they 292 DRAMATIC POETRY. Lect, 30, sudden change of persons, when by the ve- hemence of passion the author is led, as it were they have eagerly resorted to the change of the persons or characters, though no such change existed. Such are those commentators who have fancied, in accommodation to the quotation of St. Paul, Hei*. i. 10. the spirit and purpose of which they did not understand, that the for- mer part of the did Psalm to the 24th verse, " Take " me not away in the midst of my age," consisted en- tirely of a speech of Christ ; and that the remainder, " as K for thy years, they endure throughout all generations," &c. was the reply of God the Father. Whoever indulges himself in this mode of explication, may easily find out any thing he pleases in the Psalms, and with little or no philological knowledge, without the smallest assistance from criticism, can give a meaning even to the most diffi- cult or corrupted texts of Scripture : any meaning indeed but the right one. Our author very justly suspects, that not a few passages of the dramatic kind are at present unknown: yet we are not allowed to suppose an ode of the dramatic kind, unless it appear so by some decisive proof: nor ought we to fly to this discovery as a refuge for our ignorance. For, as many passages may probably be of the dramatic kind which we do not know to be such, so, many may be ac- counted dramatic, which a little more philological know- ledge, or the true reading, which antiquity may have ob- scured, would point out to be simple and regular composi- tions. In order to demonstrate how cautious commen- tators ought to be in these respects, I shall have recourse to one example, whence we shall be able to judge how uncertain Lhct.SO. DRAMATIC POETRY. 295 were insensibly, from the narration of an event to the imitation or acting of it, is frequent in the Hebrew poetry ; but some- times the genuine Dramatic, or Dialogue form, is quite apparent, and the passage will admit of no other explanation. The twenty- fourth Psalm is evidently of this kind, re- lating, as I formerly endeavoured to prove, to the transferrins; of the ark to Mount Uncertain many others are, however they may bear a face of probability. The second Psalm has been accounted one of t)\e prin- cipal of the dramatic kind, and scarcely any person has doubted of its being altogether dramatic. If you ajttend to some commentators, the holy Prophet speaks in the 1st and 2d verses ; in the 3d the rebellious princes ; in the 4th and 5th the Prophet again ; in the 6th God ; in the 7th and 8th the anointed King; in the 10th, 11th, and 12th, the holy Prophet. It is very extraordinary that they should not see, that it is not the rebellious princes who spesk in the 3d verse, but that their words are only referred to by the Prophet, and that, according to the manner of the Orientals, without directly identifying the speaker. Nothing is more common in the Arabic poetry, than to relate the actions and sentiments of particular per- sons, and to annex their very words without any preface, of saying, or lie said, &c. It does not even appear that God is introduced as a dramatic character ; for, if so, what is the use of the words—" He shall speak unto them in u his wrath," &c. ? M. u 3 Sion ; 294. DRAMATIC POETRY. Lkct. 30. Sion ; and the whole of the transaction is exhibited in a theatrical manner, though the dialogue is not fully obvious till towards the conclusion of the poem. That remarkable passage of Isaiah also, deserves notice on this occasion, in which the Messiah coming to vengeance, is introduced conversing with a chorus as on a theatre : Cho. " Who is this, that cometh from Edom? " With garments deeply dyed fromBotsra? " This, that is magnificent in his apparel; " Marching on in the greatness of his " strength ? Mes. " I, who publish righteousness, and am " mighty to save. Cho. " Wherefore is thine apparel red ? " And thy garments, as of one that tread- " eth the wine- vat ? Mes. " I have trodden the vat alone ; " And of the peoples there was not a man " with me. " And I trod them in mine anger ; " And I trampled them in mine indigna- " tion ; " And their life-blood was sprinkled upon " my garments ; " And I have stained all mine apparel. " For the day of vengeance was in my " heart ; " And the year of my redeemed was come. " And Lect.SO. DRAMATIC POETRY. 29$ " And I looked, and there was no one to " help ; " And I was astonished, that there was no " one to uphold : Chap. ii. 6. viii. 3, Will 304 DRAMATIC POETRY. Lect. 30. will carefully attend to them, he cannot, I think, but perceive, that the whole of the work consists of seven parts or divisions, each of which occupies the space of a day 2l . The same critic adds, that he can discover the last day to be clearly distinguished as the sabbath ; for the bridegroom does not then, as usual, go forth to his rural employments, but proceeds from the marriage- chamber into public with his bride 22 . Such are the senti- ments of this learned person ; to which I am inclined to accede, not as absolute de- monstration, but as a very ingenious and probable conjecture upon an extremely ob- scure subject : I follow them, therefore, as a glimmering of light, which beams forth in the midst of darkness, where it would be al- 31 The following is the distribution of the work ac- cording to Bossuet : 1st Day Chap. i. " ii. 6. 2d — . Chap. ii. 7, 17. 3d — Chap. iii. — v. 1. 4th — Chap. t. 2, vi. 9. 5th — Chap. vi. 10, vii. 11. 6th — Chap. vii. 12, — viii. 3. 7th — Chap. viii. 4, — — 14. ** Chap. viii. 5. most Lect. 30. DRAMATIC POETRY. 305 most unreasonable to hope for any clearer illumination. This opinion is the most favourable of all to those who account the Song of Solomon a regular Drama; for this arrangement seems to display, in some measure, the order and method of a theatrical representation. But if they make use of the term Dramatic ac- cording to the common acceptation of the word, this poem must be supposed to con- tain a fable, or entire and perfect plot or action, of a moderate extent, in which the incidents are all connected, and proceed re- gularly from one another, and which, after several vicissitudes, is brought to a perfect conclusion. But certainly the bare repre- sentation of a nuptial festival cannot in any respect answer to this definition. We are, it is true, very imperfectly instructed in the particular rites and ceremonies of the He- brew marriages ; but we have no reason to suppose, that, in their common and usual form, they were possessed of such variety and vicissitude of fortunes and events, as to af- ford materials for a regular plot or fable. The whole was one even tenour of joy and festivity. An unexpected incident might in- vol. ii. x deed 306 DRAMATIC POETRY. Lect. 30. deed sometimes occur to interrupt the usual order, and to produce such a change of for- tune, as might afford a basis for a Dramatic story ; and if any such incident is to be found in the poem at present under our con- sideration, it will establish its claim to that appellation. But the truth is, the keenest inspection of criticism can, throughout the whole, discover no such incident or circum- stance ; the state of affairs is uniformly the same from the beginning to the end ; a few light fluctuations of passion excepted, such as the anxiety of absence, and the amenity and happiness which the lovers enjoy in each other's presence. The bride laments the ab- sence of her beloved 23 ; she seeks, she finds him, she brings him home ; again he is lost, she seeks him again, but with different sue* cess; she complains, languishes, indites mes- sages to be delivered to him ; she indulges her passion in a full and animated description of his person. All this, however, bears no re- semblance to a regular plot, nor affords the piece any fairer title to the appellation of a perfect Drama than the Dramatic Eclogues of Theocritus and Virgil, in which the loves, a3 Chap. iii. and v. the Lect. 30. DRAMATIC POETRY. 307 the amusements, and the emulations of shep- herds are depicted, and which no critic has ever classed with the regular fables of Euri- pides and Terence. Thus far, therefore, we may safely admit, that the Song of Solomon possesses indeed the Dramatic form, and therefore belongs properly to that inferior species which was mentioned in the former part of this Lecture ; but that it cannot, upon any fair grounds of reason, be account- ed a regular Drama. There is, however, one circumstance in which this poem bears a very near affinity to the Greek Drama: the chorus of Virgins seems in every respect congenial to the tragic chorus of the Greeks. They are constantly present, and prepared to fulfil all the duties of advice and consolation : thev converse fre- quently with the principal characters ; they are questioned by them, and they return an- swers to their inquiries ; they take part in the whole business of the poem, and I do not find that upon any occasion they quit the scene. Some of the learned have conjec- tured, that Theocritus, who was contem- porary with the seventy Greek translators of the Scriptures, and lived with them in the x 2 court 305 DRAMATIC POETRY. Lect. 30u court of Ptolemy Philadelphia, was not unacquainted with the beauties of this poem, and that he has almost literally introduced some passages from it into his elegant Idyl- liums* 4 . It might also be suspected, that the Greek tragedians were indebted for their chorus to this poem of Solomon, were not the probabilities on the other side much greater, that the Greeks were made ac- quainted with it at too late a period : and were it not evident, that the chorus of the Greeks had a very different origin, were it not evident indeed that the chorus was not added to the fable, but the fable to the cho- rus a5 . 34 Compare Cant. i. 9. vL 10. with Theoc. xviii. 30, 26. Cant. iv. 11. with Theoc. xx. 26. Cant. viii. 6, 7. with Theoc. xxiii. 23—26. zs See Note (2) on this Lecture. The uses that certain apologists for the Greek Drama have found for the chorus, namely, that it heightens the probability, and corrects the ill effects of vicious sentiments in the mouths of the actors, I do not allow. How far the musical part of the chorus might serve to increase the pleasure, or to excite or en- liven the passions, is a different question, T* LECTURE XXXI. OF THE SUBJECT AND STYLE OF SOLOMONS SONG. The question debated, whether t?ie So?ig of Solomon is to be taken hi a literal or allegorical sense : the alle- gorical sense defended upon the grounds of the Para- bolic style. — The nature and groundwork of this alle- gory explained. — The fastidiousness of those critics reproved, who pretend to take offence at the freedom of some of tlwse images which are found in the Sacred Writings ; the nature of those images explained.^- The allegorical interpretation confirmed by analogical arguments : not equally demonstrable from the inter- nal structure of the work itself — This allegory of the third or mystical species ; the subject literally relating to the nuptials of Solomon. — Two cautions to be ob- served by commentators. — The style of the Poem pas- toral ; the characters are represented as pastoral; how agreeable this to the manners of the Hebrews.— Tlie elegance of the topics, descriptions, comparisons of this Poem : illustrated by examples f Having, in my last Lecture, briefly ex- plained what appeared to me most probable, among the great variety of opinions which have prevailed concerning the conduct and economy of the Song of Solomon, a ques- tion next presents itself for our investiga- tion, not less involved in doubt and obscu- x 3 rity, 310 OF THE SONG Lect. 31. rity, I mean the real nature and subject of the poem. Some are of opinion, that it is to be taken altogether in a literal sense, and others esteem it wholly allegorical. There is no less disagreement also among those who consider it as allegorical ; some conceive it to be no more than a simple allegory, while others place it in that class which I have de- nominated mystical, that, namely, which is founded upon the basis of history. I would gladly, from the first, have considered this question as foreign to my undertaking, and would have avoided it as involved in the deepest obscurity, had I not, in the former part of these Lectures, been under the ne- cessity of remarking the connexion between the different kinds of allegory and the prin- ciples of the Sacred Poetry ; had I not also found it necessary to advert to all the pecu- liarities of the parabolic style, the most ob- vious property of which is to express by cer- tain images, chiefly adopted from natural ob- jects, the analogy and application of which is regularly preserved, those ideas and doctrines which are more remote from common appre- hension. This I cannot help considering as a matter of the utmost importance, in en- abling Lect. SI. OF SOLOMON. 311 abling us to understand properly the poetry of the Hebrews ; and upon this point much of the present argument will be found to depend. I shall on this, as well as upon the last occasion, proceed with that cautious reserve which I think prudent and necessary on so obscure a subject ; and since certainty is not to be obtained, I shall content myself with proposing to your consideration what ap- pears least improbable. In the first place then I confess, that by several reasons, by the general authority and consent of both the Jewish and Christian churches; and still more, by the nature and analogy of the pa- rabolic style, I feel irresistibly inclined to that side of the question which considers this poem as an entire allegory. Those, indeed, who have considered it in a different light, and who have objected against the incon- sistency and meanness of the imagery, seem to be but little acquainted with the genius of the parabolic diction ; for the removal, therefore, of these difficulties, which I find have been the cause of offence to many per- sons, I shall beg leave to trespass upon your attention, while I explain somewhat more x 4 accurately 912 OF THE SONG Lbct. 31. accurately the nature of this allegory, and its analogy with pther productions of the Hebrew poets. The narrowness and imbecility of the hu- man mind being such, as scarcely to com- prehend or attain a clear idea of any part of the Divine nature by its utmost exertions ; God has condescended, in q. manner, to con- tract the infinity of his glory, and to exr hibit it to our understandings under such imagery as our feeble optics are capable of contemplating. Thus the Almighty may be said to descend, as it were, in the Holy Scriptures, from the height of his majesty, to appear on earth in a human shape, with hu-r man senses and affections, in all respects re- sembling a mortal — " with human voice and " human form." This kind of allegory is called anthropopathy, and occupies a consi- derable portion of theology, properly so called, that is, as delivered in the Holy Scriptures. The principal part of this ima- gery is derived from the passions : nor indeed is there any one affection or emotion of the human soul which is not, with all its cir- cumstances, ascribed in direct terms, with- out any qualification whatever, to the su- preme Lect.31. OF SOLOMON. SIS preme God ; not excepting those in which human frailty and imperfection is most evi- dently displayed, anger and" grief, hatred and revenge. That love also, and that of the ten- derest kind, should bear a part in this Drama, is highly natural and perfectly consistent. Thus, not only the fondness of paternal af- fection is attributed to God, but also the force, the ardour, and the solicitude of con- jugal attachment, with all the concomitant emotions, the anxiety, the tenderness, the jealousy incidental to this passion. After all, this figure is not in the least productive of obscurity ; the nature of it is better understood than that of most others ; and although it be exhibited in a variety of lights, it constantly preserves its native per- spicuity. A peculiar people, of the poste- rity of Abraham, was selected by God from among the nations, and he ratified his choice by a solemn covenant. This covenant was founded upon reciprocal conditions ; on the one part love, protection, and §upport; on the other faith, obedience, and worship pure and devout. This is that conjugal union between God and his church ; that solemn compact £o frequently celebrated by almost all the sacred 314 OF TliE SONG Lect. 31. sacred writers under this image. It is, in- deed, a remarkable instance of that species of metaphor which Aristotle calls analo- gical x ; that is, when in a proposition con- sisting of four ideas, the first bears the same relation to the second as the third does to the fourth, and the corresponding words may occasionally change their places without any injury to the sense. Thus, in this form of expression God is supposed to bear exactly the same relation to the church as a husband to a wife ; God is represented as the spouse of the church, and the church as the be- trothed of God. Thus also, when the same figure is maintained with a different mode of expression, and connected with different cir- cumstances, the relation is still the same : thus, the piety of the people, their impiety, their idolatry, and rejection, stand in the same relation with respect to the sacred cove- nant, as chastity, modesty, immodesty, adul- tery, divorce, with respect to the marriage- contract. And this notion is so very fami- liar and well understood in Scripture, that the word adultery (or whoredom) is com- 1 Poet. chap. xxii. and Rhet. iii. 3. monly Lect.31. OF SOLOMON. 315 monly used to denote idolatrous worship; and so appropriated does it appear to this meta- phorical purpose, that it very seldom occurs in its proper and literal sense. Let us only observe how freely the sacred poets employ this image, how they dwell upon it, in how many different forms they introduce it, and how little they seem to fear exhibiting it with all its circumstances. Concerning the reconciliation of the church to Almighty God, and its restoration to the divine favour, amongst many images of a similar nature, the elegant Isaiah introduces the following : " For thy husband is thy maker; " Jehovah, God of Hosts, is his name : " And thy Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel ; " The God of the whole earth shall he be " called \" And in another passage in the form of a com- parison : " For as a young man weddeth a virgin, " So shall thy Restorer wed thee 3 : "And » Isai. liv. 5. 3 The ambiguity of the word which I translate " thy " restorer," lias created inextricable difficulties to all the translators 316 OF THE SONG Lect. 31* 11 And as the bridegroom rejoiceth in his bride, "So translators and commentators, both ancient and modern. The LXX have mistaken it, and the Masorites have mis- pointed it. Their authority has consecrated the error, and almost established it. Nothing however appears clearer to me, than that this word yjn is not the plural of the noun p (ben, a son), but of the participle bcnoni of the verb rm (benah, to build), and is parallel and synony- mous to thy God in the alternate member. Compare the above-quoted passage of Isaiah, where also mark that husbands and creators occur in the plural, with the same relation to the same word. By this explanation, every offensive and indelicate idea is taken away from the pas- sage, which I do not wonder proved an impediment in the way of the commentators. There is another passage of Isaiah, in which the same word is egregiously misunder- stood by the Masorites : w They that destroyed thee, shall soon become thy " builders ; " And they that laid thee waste, shall become thine off* " spring." Isa. xlix, 17. Thus, in spite of the Masorites, the sentence ought to be distributed ; thus it ought to be explained conformably to the LXX, who have translated not only this ambigu- ous word (as also the Chal. and Vulg.), but the whole period also with the greatest accuracy, elegance, taste, and erudition : The Lect, SK OF SOLOMON. 317 " So shall thy God rejoice in thee 4 ." The same image a little diversified, and with greater freedom of expression, as better adapted to the display of indignation, is in- troduced by Jeremiah 5 , when he declaims against the defection of the Jews from the worship of the true God. Upon the same principle the former part of the prophecy of Hosea ought also to be explained : and whe- ther that part of the prophecy be taken in the literal and historical sense, or whether it be esteemed altogether allegorical, still the na- ture and principles of this figure, which seems consecrated in some measure to this subject, The Arab, as in general, copies them. See a similar idiom in Ps. cvi. 13. Exod. ii. 18. and the same sense of the verb jotza, Jer. xxx. 21. Nahum, i. 11. In this verse also, for Vyn' »a the LXX, Syr 8 and Chal. read bv^D o. " Before -pVjra* one MS. adds p, « so the LXX, Syr. Chal. For »woi one MS. has " BnttfMi, and another wwd?" K. Author's Note. 4 Isa. lxii. 5. See John, iii. 29, &c. and Note (11) in answer to Michaelis, on the allegorical sense of Solomon's Song. S. H. " Sir John Chardin, in his note on this place, tells 4t us, that it is the custom in the East for youths, that " were never married, always to marry virgins ; and " widowers, however young, to marry widows. 141 Harmer* Observ. ii. p. 482. T. f Jer, iii. 1, &c. will 318 OF THE SONG Lect. 31. will evidently appear. None of the Pro- phets, however, have applied the image with so much boldness and freedom as Ezekiel, an author of a most fervid imagination, who is little studious of elegance, or cautious of of- fending ; insomuch, that I am under some apprehension of his incurring no inconsider- able share of censure from those over-delicate critics who have been emitted from the Gallic schools 6 . His great freedom in the use 6 Nothing can be more disgusting to any person of com- mon sense, than the arrogant pretences of our neighbours on the continent to superior refinement and civilization : and I confess, on a fair investigation, I am utterly at a loss to find in what this boasted superiority consists. Is it seen in their enlarged and liberal notions of civil govern- ment, in their toleration and general information on poli- tics and religion, in the mildness of their punishments and the equity of their laws ? Is it marked by their progress in the great and useful sciences, by their Bacons and their Boyles, their Newtons and their Lockes ? Does it appear in the sublimity, the grandeur, the elegance of their poets ? Or is it demonstrated by still more certain marks of civilization, by the general cleanliness, decency, and industry of the common people ? Is it seen in the con- venience and grandeur of their public roads, and the ac- commodations afforded to travellers in every part of the kingdom ? Does it appear in the face of the country, the high state of cultivation, and the success and improve- ment Lect. SI. OF SOLOMON. 319 use of this image is particularly displayed h% two ment of agriculture ? Or lastly, is it demonstrable from the morals of the people at large, from the independence, the dignity, the probity, particularly of the trading classes of society ? I know no other marks of civilization than these; and if the admirers of Gallic frippery cannot answer these questions to my satisfaction, I shall continue to give but little credit to their pretensions to extraordinary refinement and politeness. T. That diversity of manners, that delicacy of conver- sation, which is observed by some nations, and the coarse- ness of others, results chiefly from the degree of inter- course which subsists between the sexes. In countries where the intercourse is free and familiar, where the sexes meet commonly in mixed companies, they accustom themselves to a greater modesty and delicacy in their conversation, which modesty is easily transferred to their composition. Such a people, therefore, with whom en- tertainments would seem languid and dull without the company of young women, though perhaps not free from licentiousness in their manners, will yet be chaste and de- licate in their expressions. Hence arises, in a great de* gree, that extreme delicacy in the people of modern Eu- rope, which can scarcely bear some of the passages in Virgil, and the chastest of the ancient poets. The case is quite different with the people of the East: for the men having scarcely any society with the unmarried wo- men, or with the wives of others, converse together without being restrained by the blushes of females, or with their own wives, whom they regard in a very in- ferior light, and consequently treat with all the insolence of 320 OF THE SONG Lect. 31. two parables 7 , in which he describes the in- gratitude of the Jews and Israelites to their great Protector, and their defection from the true worship, under imagery assumed from the character of an adulterous wife, and the meretricious loves of two unchaste women. If these parables (which are put into the mouth of God himself with a direct allego- rical application, and in which it must be confessed, that delicacy does not appear to be particularly studied) be well considered, I am persuaded, that the Song of Solomon (which is in every part chaste and elegant) will not appear unw r orthy of the divine sense in which it is usually taken, either in matter or style, or in any degree inferior either in gravity or purity to the other remains of the Sacred Poets. To these instances I may add the forty-fifth Psalm, which is a sacred Epitha- lamium, of the allegorical application of of familiarity : the women also converse chiefly with each other ; and as they are similarly situated, are probably not less licentious. It is not extraordinary, therefore, if greater freedom of speech should prevail in those coun- tries, and if this, when transferred into their poetry,, should be found to offend our ears, which are accustomed to so much greater delicacy in conversation. M. 7 Ezkk. xvi, and xxiii. which, Lect. 31. OF SOLOMON. 321 which, to the union between God and the church, I do not find that any doubt has hi- therto been entertained; though many sus- pect it, and not without good reason, to have been produced upon the same occasion, and with the same relation to a real fact 8 , as the Song of Solomon. Neither ought we to omit, that the writers of the New Testa- ment 9 have freely admitted the same image in the same allegorical sense w T ith their pre- decessors, and have finally consecrated it by their authority I0 . 8 Perhaps the completion and consecration of the temple. See Note (11). S. H. 9 See Matt. ix. 15. John, iii. 29. 2 Cor. xi. 2. Eph. v. 23, &c. Rev. xix. 7. xxi. 2. xxii. 17. 10 What Chardin relates of the Persian poetry, may, perhaps, not be unworthy of the reader's notice in this place. " Debauchery and licentiousness," says he, " are " the common topics of these compositions ; but I must " not omit remarking, that the most serious of their " poets treat of the suLlimest mysteries of theology, un- " der the most licentious language, in the way of alle- " g° rv > as Afez in his Kasel" Voyage de Chardin, 4to. torn. ii. cap. xiv. But respecting this matter see the arguments on both sides elegantly stated by the learned Sir William Jones, Poes. Asiaticce Comment, cap. ix. Author's Note. vol. ii, y These 322 OF THE SONG Lect. 31. These reasons appear to me sufficient to remove those objections founded on the meanness of the imagery, which render many critics averse to the allegorical expla- nation of this poem. I shall not attempt to confirm this opinion by any internal evidence from the poem itself, as I do not scruple to confess myself deterred by the great diffi- culty of the undertaking. For, though in- duced by the most ancient authority, and still more by the analogy of this with other si- milar allegories contained in the Hebrew- writings, I am fully persuaded of the truth of what I have advanced ; yet I am still ap- prehensive that it would be extremely diffi- cult to establish the hypothesis by direct ar- guments from the internal structure of the work itself". But 11 Our author has treated this very difficult subject with more modesty and more address than any of the commen- tators ; and, indeed, has said all that could be said, ex- clusive of the theological arguments in favour of the al- legorical sense. I question, however, whether he will be able to remove all doubt from the mind of a cool and at- tentive reader ; the reasons of my scepticism on this mat- ter, I will, as a person earnestly desirous of the truth, en- deavour briefly to explain ; and I shall hold myself greatly indebted Lect. 31. OF SOLOMON. 323 But if, after all, it be allowed that this work is of the allegorical kind, another ques- tion indebted to that man who shall, upon rational principles, undertake to remove my scruples. With regard to the authority of the ancient Christian church, in a question merely depending upon the exposi- tion of a passage in Scripture, I hold it of very little importance, not only because the exposition of Scripture does not depend upon human authority, but because the Fathers, as well on account of their ignorance of the Tie- brew language, as of the principles of polite literature in general, were very inadequate to the subject, eager!) pur- suing certain mystical meanings, even with respect to the clearest passages, in the explanation of which, the most enlightened of the modern commentators have refuted them. The time of the Fathers was so very distant from the period when this poem was composed, that it is im- possible they should have been possessed of any certain traditio i concerning its purport and meaning. I should entertain very different sentiments, if I could find any mention of the Song of Songs in the New Testament ; but, on the most diligent examination, I have not been able to discern the slightest allusion to that poem. The authority of the Synagogue is of still less import- ance in my eyes, since, in other respects, we have found it so little deserving of confidence in its attempts at ex- pounding the Scriptures. Such of the Jewish writers as have treated of the Canticles lived so many ages after the time of Solomon, after the total destruction of the com- monwealth and literature of the Hebrews, that they knew no naore oi the matter than ourselves. Y 2 With 324 OF THE SONG Lect. Si. lion remains, namely, to which of the three classes of allegory already specified it properly belongs. With regard to the analogy of other poems, all that can be said is, that it was indeed possible enough for So- lomon to celebrate the Divine love in terms analogous to those descriptive of the human affections: but it is impos- sible to determine by that analogy, what kind of love he intended to be the subject of this poem. Shall we pretend to say, that his attention was wholly employed upon Sa- cred Poetry, and that he never celebrated in verse any of the human affections ? Or, because some of the Hebrew poems celebrate the Divine goodness in terms expressive of the human passions, does it follow, that on no occasion those terms are to be taken in their literal sense ? Our author has prudently declined examining the argu- ments which are usually taken from the poem itself, and from its internal structure, for the purpose of establishing the allegory. It is indeed very improbable, that, in so long a poem, if it were really allegorical, no vestiges, no intimation should be found to direct us to apply it to the Divine love ; nothing, which does not most clearly relate to the human passion : and that too, considering it as the production of one of the Hebrew writers, who are accus- tomed to mix the literal sense with the allegorical in al- most all their compositions of this kind. In so long an allegory one should also expect a deeper moral than usual, and one not generally obvious to be indicated : but no sober commentator has ever been able to deduce from the Canticles any other than this trite sentiment, that God loves his church, and is beloved by it. That this simple sentiment should be treated so prolixly, and nothing more distinctly J Lect. 31. OF SOLOMON. 323 belongs. The first of these, you will re- collect, was the continued metaphor; the second distinctly revealed concerning it, who can credit, but upon the soundest basis of argument or proof ? But in support of it we have only the bare position, that the He- brew writers sometimes make use of allegorical expressions to denote the Divine love. I am aware of the objections which are started by those who rest the matter upon theological arguments (though I cannot find that these are of great weight or utility in the present debate : for they seem rather calculated to si- lence than convince). They assert, that though the book has never been quoted by Christ or his Apostles, it was yet received into the Sacred Canon, and is therefore to be accounted of Divine original ; and that there does not ap- pear any thing in it divine, or worthy of sacred inspira- tion, unless it be supposed to contain the mystery of the Divine love. Lest, however, they should seem to have proved too much, and lest they should dismiss the reader prepossessed with some doubts concerning the Divine au- thority of the book, I will venture to remind these pro- found reasoners, that the chaste and corijugal affections so carefully implanted by the Deity in the human heart, and upon which so great a portion of human happiness de- pends, are not unworthy of a muse fraught even with Divine inspiration. Only let us suppose, contrary to the general opinion concerning the Canticles, that the affec- tion which is described in this poem, is not that of lovers previous to their nuptials, but the attachment of two de- licate persons, Avho have been long united in the sacred bond, can we suppose such happiness unworthy of being y 3 recom* 326 OF THE SONG Lect. 31. second the parable, strictly so called ; and the third, the mystical allegory, which, un- der recommended as a pattern to mankind, and of being cele- brated as a subject of gratitude to the great Author of happiness ? This is indeed a branch of morals which may be treated in a more artificial and philosophical manner ; and such a manner will perhaps be more convincing to the understanding, but will never affect the heart with such tender sentiments as the Song of Solomon ; in which there exists all the fervour of passion, with the utmost chastity of expression, and with that delicacy and reserve, which is ever necessary to the life and preservation of conjugal love. Let us remember, moreover, that Solomon, in his Proverbs, has not disdained very minutely to describe the felicities and infelicities of the conjugal state. M. Notwithstanding all that this learned writer has so ably advanced against the allegorical import of this exquisite Idyllium, I cannot be prevailsd upon entirely to relinquish the idea. That compositions of a similar kind are still extant amongst the Asiatics, is certain. The Loves of Megnoun and Leileh have been celebrated in the Arabic, Persic, and Turkish languages, with all the charms of poetic rapture, whilst the impassioned lovers themselves are regarded in the same allegorical light as the bride^ groom and bride in the Song of Songs. Exclusive, how- ever, of this consideration, there appear to stand forth, in the composition itself, indisputable traits of an allegorical sense. For, though (from our imperfect knowledge of the extraneous manners, arts, local peculiarities, and litera- ture, of so singular a people at so distant a period) we be now unable to apply the thing signified to its proper sign, Lf.ct. 31. OF SOLOMON. 527 dv-r the veil of some historical fact, conceals a meaning more sacred and sublime. I must confess, sign, vet a variety of images obtrude themselves upon us that evidently contain a symbolical meaning. — Jehovah having chosen the Jewish nation as his peculiar people, and being frequently, by the Prophets after Solomon, re- presented as their husband, and they personified as his wife ; might not the consecration (2 Chron. vii.) of the Temple, as an habitation for the Lord to dwell in, and there receive them to himself, have suggested to Solomon the idea of a conjugal union, and induced him to adapt an allegory to it ? — As to the allegation, that this poem is not cited in the New Testament; it will, upon this ground, be of the less weight ; for our Saviour, in the parables of the Ten Virgins and the Marriage Supper, has adopted (if not from it) the same allegory, as well as in other passages [Mark, ix. 15, &c], and is himself not only pointed out to the Jews expressly in the character of a bridegroom, by John Baptist [John, hi.], but referred to, under it, by St. Paul [Eph. v. &c.], and more parti- cularly in the Apocalypse. How far this conjecture may be supported, I will not venture at present to pronounce, but thus much it may be proper to observe, that such images as the tents of Kedar compared to the complexion of a young female; the tower of David to her neck; Tirza to her beauty, and Jerusalem to her comeliness ; the fish-pools of Heshbon by the gates of Bethrabbin, to her eyes; the tower of Lebanon looking towards Damas- cus, to her nose; the mount cfCarmel, to her head; with ( thers of a similar kind, would, I think, have never been Y 4 selected, 528 OF THE SONG Lect. 31. confess, that I am clearly of the same opinion with those who assign this production to the latter class of allegories; the reason of which will he evident, if it be admitted that there is any thing in the poem at all allegorical ; since there can scarcely be any doubt that it relates in a literal sense to the nuptials of Solomon. Those also who are conversant with the writings of the Hebrew poets will easily perceive how agreeable the conduct of this poem is to the practice of those writers, who are fond of annexing a secret and so- lemn sense to the obvious meaning of their compositions, and of looking through the medium of human affairs to those which are celestial and divine. The subject of the Canticles appears to be the marriage-feast of Solomon (who was, both in name and in reality, the Prince of Peace); his bride is also selected, to exemplify the beauties of a bride, in any composition that was not allegorical. The idea above suggested will, perhaps, receive no little countenance from the chapter cited as above (2 Chron. vii.). Bossuefs division of the poem into seven days, is perfectly conformable to the fact mentioned in the 8th and 9th verses — where we learn, that the dedication of the altar was celebrated by a festival that continued for the same space of time. S. H. called Lect, 31. OF SOLOMON. 329 called Solomitis T % the same name with a fe- minine termination; though the latter Jews have strange!}? disguised and obscured it by a vicious pronunciation : for, Solomon and Solomitis have evidently the same relation to each other, as the Latin names Caius and Caia. This circumstance of the names was not to be disregarded, since they seem to have a very strict connexion, and to afford a very distinct intimation of the latent meaning: for, to what purpose innovate the usual prac- tice of the Hebrews, by assigning to the wife of Solomon the same name, unless from a regard to the force and meaning of the word ? unless it was meant to indicate, that the name of Solomon himself was not with- out importance, not without some further aim than merely the distinction of the per- son ? Who this wife of Solomon was, is not clearly ascertained : but some of the learned have conjectured, with an appearance of pro- bability, that she was the daughter of Pha- raoh, to whom Solomon was known to be particularly attached. May we not, there- 12 rvoVw Ttt&v ; which may be expressed in Greek ZoXojjluv, iwAo/xiTi?. Cant. viii. 1. fore, 330 OF THE SONG Lect. 31. fore, with some shadow of reason, suspect, that, under the allegory of Solomon choos- ing a wife from the Egyptians, might be darkly typified that other Prince of Peace, who was to espouse a church chosen from among the Gentiles ' 3 ? Concerning the explanation of this alle- gory, I will only add, that, in the first place, we ought to be cautious of carrying the figurative application too far, and of en- tering into a precise explication of every particular : as these minute investigations 13 This very nice and remote allusion to Christ is to- tally destroyed by an unlucky observation of Dr. Hodg- son, who very properly remarks, that the Bride, who is the subject of this poem, could not be the daughter of Pharaoh, for, in the third chapter, ver. 4. she expressly says : " I would not let him go, * c Till I had led him into the house of ray mother." • If, therefore, 1 ' says the Doctor, " she had been the " daughter of Pharaoh, her mothers house would have M been in Egypt ; whereas the scene of this poem evi, w dently lies at Jerusalem." See Dr. Hodgson's Version of this Poem, Notes on chap. iii. The quotations from the Canticles in this and the last Lecture are chiefly taken from the above elegant publica- tion. T. are Lect. 31. OF SOLOMON. 831 are seldom conducted with sufficient pru- dence not to offend the serious part of man- kind, learned as wcl! as unlearned. Again, I would advise, that this production be treated according to the established rules of this kind of allegory, fully and expressly delivered in the Sacred Writings, and that the author be permitted to be his own interpreter. In this respect the errors of critics and divines u have been as numerous as they have been perni- cious. Not to mention other absurdities, they have taken the allegory not as denoting the universal state of the church, but the spiri- tual state of individuals ; than which, no- thing can be more inconsistent with the very nature and groundwork of the allegory it- self, as well as with the general practice of the Hebrew poets on these occasions. It remains to offer a few remarks upon the style of this poem. I formerly inti- mated that it was of the pastoral kind ; since the two principal personages are represented in the character of shepherds I5 . This cir- cumstance is by no means incongruous to 14 Bernard, Durham, Sanctius, Bossue^ &c. J 5 See chap. i. 7, 8. the 232 OF THE SONG Lect.SI. the manners of the Hebrews, whose prin- cipal occupation consisted in the care of cattle l6 ; nor did they consider this employ- ment as beneath the dignity of the highest characters. Least of all, could it be sup- posed inconsistent with the character of So- lomon x7 , whose father was raised from the sheep-fold to the throne of Israel. The pastoral life is not only most delight- ful in itself, but, from the particular cir- cumstances and manners of the Hebrews, is possessed of a kind of dignity. In this poem it is adorned with all the choicest co- louring of language, with all the elegance and variety of the most select imagery. " Every part of the Canticles," says a mo- dern writer, " abounds in poetical beauties ; " the objects which present themselves on 4< every side, are the choicest plants, the " most beautiful flowers, the most delicious " fruits, the bloom and vigour of spring, fe the sweet verdure of the fields, flourish- 16 See Gen. xlvi f 32—34. 17 Though not inconsistent with Solomon, yet exceed- ingly so in respect to his supposed Egyptian bride, as shep-» herds were held in abomination by the Egyptians. This confirms Dr. Hodgson's idea in the last note, §. H. 3 « ing Lect. 31. OF SOLOMON. 333 ' ing and well-watered gardens, pleasant f streams, and perennial fountains. The ' other senses are represented as regaled 1 with the most precious odours, natural ' and artificial ; with the sweet singing of 1 birds, and the soft voice of the turtle ; ' with milk and honey, and the choicest of ' wine. To these enchantments are added ' all that is beautiful and graceful in the hu- ' man form, the endearments, the caresses, ' the delicacy of love ; if any object be in- f troduced which seems not to harmonize ' with this delightful scene, such as the aw- '■ ful prospect of tremendous precipices, the 1 wildness of the mountains, or the haunts ? of the lions ; its effect is only to heighten ' by the contrast the beauty of the other ' objects, and to add the charms of variety ' to those of grace and elegance * V In the following passage the force and splendour of description is united with all the softness and tenderness and passion ; " Get thee up, my companion, " My lovely one, come away : " For, lo ! the winter is past, ;e Bossuet, Pref. to the Cant, " The 33* OF THE SONG Lect. 31. " The rain is over, is gone. " The flowers are seen on the earth ; " The season of the song is come, " And the voice of the turtle is heard in our " land : " The fig-tree puts forth its green figs, " And the vine's tender grapes yield a fragrance: " Arise, my companion, my fair one, and " come X V The following comparisons abound in sweet- ness and delicacy : " How sweet is thy love, O my sister, O spouse; u How much better than wine is thy love, " And the odour of thy perfumes than all spices! " Thy lips, O spouse, distil honey from the " comb, " Honey and milk are under tby tongue, " And the scent of thy garments is like the fra- " grance of Lebanon *°." There are some others which demand a more accurate investigation. " Thy hair is like a flock of goats " That browse upon Mount Gilead *\" The *9 Chap. ii. 10—13. 20 Chap. iv. 10, 11. ai Chap. iv. 1 — 5. " It is by no means an easy mat- < { ter to produce any other explanation of this and the " following Lect. 31. OF SOLOMON*. 535 The hair of the goats was soft, smooth, of *' following words, than that which had long since been " received by the old translators. The word which is u here rendered browse denotes in the Arabic to ascend, or u to pass from a lower to a higher situation ; and I M scarcely see how this sense can be admitted in this place. " The LXX have it awejcaXv^QuTav, and in chap. vi. 4. u anQcwnvoty (they appear). But the word to shine will " perhaps agree better both in this passage and wherever " this word occurs. But if the verb mbz be taken in this " passage in the sense of ascending, we must take the " whole as it is above expressed ; namely, as descriptive " of a flock of goats covering the side of the mountain from " the bottom to the top.'' H, Galash does not mean to browze or to appear, but to ascend, whether we follow the Septtjagint, the Syriac, the Vulgate, or the Arabic copy. The use of the latter word in this place is not indeed very easy to conceive, as " to ascend from Mount Gilead*" appears an odd phrase. Possibly the passage ought to be construed — " Thy locks u are as a flock of goats ascending, which are seen from u Mount Gilead." M. Thy hah* is like a herd of goats That go down from Mount Gilead [in the morning to the watering.] Deriving xnh* from an Arabic word, which Schultens ex- plains to go to be watered in the morning. That browse, is a sense obtained from the Syriac and Chaldee. Those who render the word shine, are indebt- ed to a transposition of letters in &w snozv, for this signi- fication. S. H. a yellow 336* OF THE SONG Lect. 31. a yellow cast, like that of the bride * a ; her beautiful tresses are compared with the nu- merous flocks of goats which covered this flourishing mountain from the top to the bottom. " Thy teeth are like the shorn flock a3 " Which have come up from the washing-place, " All of which have twins 24 , " And none among them is bereaved." The 23 See chap. vii. 5. and compare 1 Sam. xix. 13, 16. with xvi. 12. Consult Bochart, Ilieroz. part i. lib. ii. 51. a3 « rphe verb Kaizab means to cut off or cut down ; " the interpretation, therefore, of the verb hetzubot " (shorn), which many have adopted, and which is confirm- " ed by all the old translations, appears to me the most " probable. From the same verb, I think, may be de- " duced the signification precisely equal, intimating that " the sheep were all exactly shorn to one standard as it u were. (See Bochart, Ilieroz. part i. lib. ii. 45.) " Will not this sense better suit the connexion? Is not the " whiteness and purity of sheep (and so of teeth) express- " ed in these two lines, rather than their evenness, which " seems to be included in those that follow ?" H. a+ " The Arabic verb ond denotes not only to bring "forth twins, but also to have a companion: whence " omn joined} or connected in a series ; and n»DNir>, says " Golius, is a pearl, from the link, or order of the " pearls. Lect. SI. OF SOLOMON. 337 The evenness, whiteness, and unbroken or- der of the teeth, is admirably expressed. " Like the twice-dyed thread of crimson are " thy lips, " And thy language is sweet." That is, thin and ruby-coloured, such as add peculiar graces to the sweetness of the voice. " Like the slice of a pomegranate " Are thy cheeks amidst thy tresses 35 ." d Partly C( pearls. Nothing can be more expressive than this image *< of the beautiful regularity and equality of the teeth. " The learned Michaelis prefers twins, referring per* *f haps to the counterpart in the next member." H. 35 " Behind thy veil, says Michaelis, from the Ara- • c bic anv to fasten together ; and the well-known dn-) 1 ?** ** riDDYD, Giggeius, to have a stipated head ; placed with- *< in a small integument." H. ** As the opening blossom of the pomegranate are thj " cheeks, w From within thy locks." Simon accurately interprets nVa by the bursting forth of a flower, and Guarini by balaustium, a word which Pliny will enable us to explain. He observes, that the embryo of t e pomegranate, which has its origin in the flower, vol. ii. a 15 338 OF THE SONG Lect. 31. Partly obscured, as it were, by her hair, and exhibiting a gentle blush of red from beneath the delicate shade, as the seeds of the pome- granate (the colour of which is white tinged with red) surrounded by the rind. " Thy neck is like the tower of David " Built for an armoury a as just rising above the growth of lilies : they being compared to " paps that u never gave swck? These circumstances are noticed to justify this transla- tion; for the fawns of a roe, neither in colour nor height, at ail correspond to the objects compared. S. H. z 2 with 340 OF THE SONG Lect. SI. with which they are compared is an animal of exquisite beauty, and from that circum- stance it derives its name in the Hebrew. Nothing can, I think, be imagined more truly elegant and poetical than all these pas- sages, nothing more apt or expressive than these comparisons. The discovery of these excellencies, however, only serves to increase our regret for the many beauties which we have lost, the perhaps superior graces, which extreme antiquity seems to have overcast with an impenetrable shade 28 . 38 It is much to be Lamented, that no commentator has arisen sufficiently qualified to explain this beautiful poem. Those who have attempted it have been scholastic divines, rather indeed mystics, and have entirely overlooked the obvious and more elegant meaning. Indeed the task is by no means easy : besides a very accurate and idiomatical knowledge of the Oriental languages, an intimate ac- quaintance with the manners of antiquity, and no small information concerning ri.tural history, will be requisite : to these must be added a sood deal of reading in the © © Arabic poetry, particularly in their compositions of the amorous kind, and last of all a true taste for poetry. Very few of these qualities have existed separately, and never all of them conjunctly in those who have undertaken to illustrate this poem. In order to exemplify how much might be effected to- wards clearing up the obscurities of this most elegant composition, by a knowledge of natural history alone, I will ! Lect. 31. OF SOLOMON. 841 will endeavour to explain my opinion of some difficult pas- sages (chap. v. 11, 14. vii. 6, 14.). In ch. v. ver. 6, 11. most people are ignorant, and at a loss to conjecture, what may he the meaning of Q'Vp^n : the Seventy and the Vulgate render it tXar»i (elatas), or the downy sub- stance in which the dates are involved : nor is this trans- lation very different from the Arabic, which renders it the branch of the palm-tree from which the dates depend. But what relation can this bear to the human hair ? I an- swer, the resemblance is obvious to any person who has seen the object of the comparison, or has remarked the plate of it annexed to the notes on Thcophrastns's His- tory of Plants by Jo. Budeus. — But how is Solomon consistent, in the same verse speaking of raven locks, and a golden head ? " His head is of pure gold, " The locks of which resemble the branches of the palm* " tree, " And black as the raven." To reconcile this difficulty, it is necessary to know, that although the Orientals may possibly admire raven locks in their natural state, yet they are accustomed to dye them with henna (so they call the oil of privet), in order to give them a yellow or golden cast: this is an ancient custom, though the existence of it among the Hebrews may be disputed ; but probably for this same purpose they might make use of gold dust, as the Latins are known to have done. With the same henna they stain the countenance, as well as the hands and arms, which first changes them to an azure blue, and they grow yellow by degrees; and this they esteem a great object of beauty, though it would z % be 342 OF THE SONG Lect. SI. be accounted deformity with us. — This observation will enable us to understand better some phrases in the 14th and 15th verses of the same chapter ; " His hands are as gold rings w Inlaid with chrysolite : " His belly as plates of ivory, " Inclosed in sapphire : cc His legs are as columns of marble " Upon a base of gold." The fingers being stained with henna, appeared as if they had gold rings on, set with chrysolite ; which gem was formerly of a yellow colour. I say formerly, because the same stone which we call the topaz was the ancient chry* solite. (See Hill's Hist, of Fossils.) But if by the word tarshish we understand the ancient hyacinth or ame- thyst, an azure colour will then be alluded to, which the same henna produces on the skin. The whiteness of the body, covered with a delicate purple vest, is finely com- pared to ivory overlaid with sapphire. Shesh is without doubt figured marble : to which the legs and thighs are compared, from the blue and serpentine veins which run along them, and which are more pellucid in proportion to the fineness of the skin. The bases are golden slippers. The 5th verse of the viith chapter is among the most difficult. The head of the king's daughter is compared to the pyramidal top of Carmel, covered with thick trees; by which simile is, I apprehend, intimated the quantity and beauty of her hair. The word dallat also occurs for hair, in the explanation of which commentators have been greatly perplexed ; some, led away by a whimsical etymology, have supposed it to mean thin hair, as if this could Lect. 31. OF SOLOMON. US could possibly be a subject of flattery to a young lady. In my opinion, the word is derived from the Arabic as well as the Chaldaic word h*b"\ (the fringe of a garment or tent), and means any thing pendant, or hanging loose. The hair is compared to purple, not however, I think, on ac- count of the colour : for the henna, with which they stained their hair, makes it yellow, not purple : I suspect some allusion is rather intended to the animal which pro- duces purple. That animal is of a pyramidal form, rising beautifully in a spiral cone, whence it is called aregman y from its likeness to the stone monuments. There follows tzi'arm "ddk -pn, which, with some degree of hesitation, I venture to translate, " as a king encircled with a dia- " dem :" the Septuagint has it, fa ™o$v$ righteousness, and to preserve on all occasions an unwavering and unsullied faith, and to submit with becoming reverence to his de- crees. I would wish it, however, to be carefully observed, that the subject of the dispute be- tween Job and his friends differs from the subject of the poem in general : that the end of the poetical part is different from the design of the narrative at large. For, al- though the design and subject of the poem be exactly as I have defined them, it may nevertheless be granted, that the whole his- tory. 384. OF THE POEM OF JOB, Lect. 32. tory, taken together, contains an example of patience, together with its reward. This point not having been treated with sufficient distinctness by the learned, I cannot help esteeming it the principal cause of the per- plexity in which the subject has been in- volved. I am not ignorant, that to those who enter upon this inquiry, some questions will occur, which appear to require a separate examina- tion ; since many of them, however, are chiefly connected with those passages which are acknowledged to be obscure, which have not yet been clearly explained, and which, whatever they may hereafter be found to import, are not likely to affect the truth of our conclusion, I have thought proper to omit them. Nor will I allow, that because many things yet remain ambiguous and per- plexed, we are therefore to doubt of those which are more open and evident. In re- gard to certain more important doctrines, which some persons of distinguished learning have thought to be established by this extra- ordinary monument of ancient wisdom, as they either depend in a great degree on the obscure passages above mentioned, or do not seem Lect. 32. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 383 seem to contribute in the least to the main design of the poem, nor to be consistent with the object of it, which I just now pointed out, I thought it still more unneces- sary to introduce them in this disquisition. What I have advanced, I conceived fully adequate to the purpose of this undertaking, and a sufficient introduction to a critical ex- amination of the composition and beauties of the poem. VOL. II. C C LECTURE XXXIII. THE POEM OF JOB NOT A PERFECT DRAMA, The Poem of Job commonly accounted Dramatic ; and thought by many to be of the same hind with the Greek Tragedy: this opinion examined. — A plot or fable es- sential to a regular drama ; its definition and essen- tial qualities according to Aristotle.* -Demonstrated, that the Poem of Job does not contain any plot : its form and design more fully explained.— Compared with the CEdipus Tyrannus of Sophocles ; with the (Edi- pics Coloneus; and shown to differ entirely from both inform and manner*— It is nevertheless a most beau- tiful and perfect performance in its Mnd: it approaches very near the form of a perfect Drama ; and, for re~ gularity in form and arrangement, justly claims the first place among the poetical compositions of the He* brews. When I undertook the present investiga- tion, my principal object was to enable us to form some definite opinion concerning the Poem of Job, and to assign it its proper place among the compositions of the He- brew Poets. This will possibly appear to- some a superfluous and idle undertaking, as the point seems long since to have been finally determined, the majority of the cri- tics Lect. 33. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 387 tics having decidedly adjudged it to belong to the dramatic class. Since, however, the term dramatic, as I formerly had reason to remark, is in itself extremely ambiguous, the present disquisition will not be confined within the limits of a single question ; for the first object of inquiry will necessarily be, what idea is affixed to the appellation by those critics who term the book of Job a Dramatic Poem : and after we have deter- mined this point (if it be possible to deter- mine it, for they do not seem willing to be explicit), we may then with safety proceed to inquire whether, pursuant to that idea, the piece be justly entitled to this appellation. A poem is called dramatic, either in con- sequence of its form, the form I mean of a perfect dialogue, which is sustained entirely by the characters or personages without the intervention of the Poet ; and this was the definition adopted by the ancient critics : or else, according to the more modern accepta- tion of the word, in consequence of a plot or fable being represented in it. If those who account the book of Job dramatic ad- here to the former definition, I have little inclination to litigate the point ; and indeed c c 2 the S88 OF THE POEM OF JOB. Lect. 33* the object of the controversy would scarcely be worth the labour. Though a critic, if disposed to be scrupulously exact, might in- sist that the work, upon the whole, is by no means a perfect dialogue, but consists of a mixture of the narrative and colloquial style : for the historical part, which is all composed in the person of the writer himself, is cer- tainly to be accounted a part of the work itself, considered as a whole. Since, how- ever, on the other hand, the historical or narrative part is all evidently written in prose, and seems to me to be substituted merely in the place of an argument or comment, for the purpose of explaining the rest, and cer- tainly does not constitute any part of the poem ; since, moreover, those short sen- tences, which serve to introduce the different speeches, contain very little more than the names, lam willing to allow, that the struc- ture or form of this poem is on the whole dramatic. But this concession will, I fear, scarcely satisfy the critics in question ; for they speak of the regular order and conduct of the piece, and of the dramatic catastrophe; they assert, that the interposition of the Deity is a necessary part of the machinery of 4 the Lect. 33. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 389 the fable ; they even enumerate the acts and scenes, and use the very same language in all respects, as if they spoke of a Greek Tragedy ; insomuch, that when they term the Poem of Job dramatic ', they seem to speak of that species of drama which was cultivated and improved in the theatre of Athens. It appears therefore a fair object of inquiry, whether the Poem of Job be possessed of the peculiar properties of the Greek drama, and may with reason and jus- tice be classed w T ith the theatrical productions of that people. We have already agreed, that the greater and more perfect Drama is peculiarly distin- guished from the lesser and more common species, inasmuch as it retains not only the dramatic form, or the perfect dialogue, but also exhibits some entire action, fable, ,or plot. And this is perfectly agreeable to the definition of Aristotle ; for, although he points out many parts or constituents in the composition of a Tragedy, he assigns the first * See Calmet, Preface sur Job. Hare, Not. ad Ps. cvii. 40. Caepzovii Introduct. in Libras Biblicos, pars ii. p. 76. c c 3 place 390 OF THE POEM OF JOB. Lect. 35. place to the piot or fable \ This he says is the beginning, this the end, this is the most important part, the very soul of a Tragedy, without which it is utterly undeserving of the name, and indeed cannot properly be said to exist. A plot or fable is the repre- sentation of an action or event, or of a series of events or incidents tending all to one point, which are detailed with a view to a particular object or conclusion. A Tragedy, says the same author, is not a representation of men, but of actions, a picture of life, of prosperity and adversity : in other words, the business of the poem is not merely to exhibit manners only, nor does the most perfect re- presentation of manners constitute a Tra- gedy; for, in reality, a Tragedy may exist with little or no display of manners or character ; its business is to exhibit life and action, or some regular train of actions and events, on which depends the felicity or infelicity of the persons concerned. For, human happi- ness or prosperity consists in action ; and ac- tion is not a quality, but is the end of man. According to our manners we are denomi- * Arist. Poet. cap. vi. nated Lect. 33. OF THE POEM OF JOB. $91 nated good or bad, but we are happy or un- happy, prosperous or unsuccessful, accord- ing to actions or events. Poets therefore do not form a plot or action merely for the sake of imitating manners or character ; but manners and character are added to the plot, and for the sake of it are chiefly attended to. Thus far he has accurately drawn the line between the representation of action and that of manners. He adds, moreover, that unity is essential to a regular plot or action, and that it must be complete in itself, and of a proper length 3 . But to comprehend more perfectly the nature of a plot or fable, it 3 Arist. Poet ch. vii. It is evident that the human mind can dwell on one object only at a time, and when- ever it takes more into its view, it is by combination, as forming one object out of many, or as many objects con- tributing to one action. Painters observe this rule so mi- nutely, that they will not suffer attention to be divided by two equal groups, by two principal figures, two equal lights or colours, or even two equal folds of drapery. I flatter myself in the above translation I have not obscured the meaning of Aristotle, so as to bring upon him the charge of inconsistency. When he speaks of unity being essential to a dramatic fable or action, he means it, I ap- prehend, as speaking of a whole. When, therefore, he speaks afterwards of plots or fables as simple or complex, by the latter term he must mean one plot or story, which c c 4 consists 892 OF THE POEM OF JOB. Lect. 33. it must be observed, that there are two prin- cipal species : for they are either complex or simple 4 ; the former contains some unex- pected vicissitude of fortune, such as the re- cognition of a person at first unknown, the recovery of a lost child, or a sudden change in the situation of the parties, or perhaps both ; the latter contains nothing of the kind, but proceeds in one uniform and equal tenour. In every plot or fable, however, be it ever so simple, and though it contain nothing of the wonderful or unexpected, there is always a perplexity or embarrass- ment, as also a regular solution or cata- strophe 5 ; the latter must proceed from the former, and indeed must depend upon it; which cannot be the case, unless there be a certain order or connexion in the incidents and events which inclines them towards the same end, and combines them all in one termination. On fairly considering these circumstances, I have no hesitation in affirming, that the consists of several incidents or vicissitudes ; and by the former, a plot founded upon one simple and uninterrupted action ; and so our author indeed explains him. T. 4 AmsT, Poet. chap, x, 5 Ibid, chap, xviii. Poem Lect. 33. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 393 Poem of Job contains no plot or action whatever, not even of the most simple kind ; it uniformly exhibits one constant state of things, not the smallest change of fortune taking place from the beginning to the end ; and it contains merely a representation of those manners, passions, and sentiments, which might actually be expected in such a situation. Job is represented as reduced from the summit of human prosperity, to a con- dition the most miserable and afflicted : and the sentiments of both Job and his friends are exactly such as the occasion dictates. For, here a new temptation falls upon him, by which the constancy of Job is put to the severest trial ; and this circumstance it is that constitutes the principal subject of the Poem. Job had, we find, endured the most grievous calamities, the loss of his wealth, the deprivation of his children, and the mi- serable union of poverty and disease, with so much fortitude and with so just a confidence in his own integrity, that nothing could be extorted from him in the least inconsistent with the strictest reverence for the Divine Being ; he is now put to the proof, whether, after enduring all this with firmness and re- signation, 394 OF THE POEM OF JOB. Lect. 33. signation, he can with equal patience endure to have his innocence and virtue (in which perhaps he had placed too much confidence) indirectly questioned, and even in plain terms arraigned. Job now sinking under the weight of his misery, laments his con- dition with more vehemence than before. His friends reprove his impatience, and drop some dark insinuations to the apparent disparagement of his virtue and integrity, by entering into very copious declamations con- cerning the justice of God in proportioning his visitations to the crimes of men. Job is still more violently agitated; and his friends accuse him with less reserve. He appeals to God, and expostulates with some degree of freedom. They urge and press him in the very heat of his passion ; and, by still more malignant accusations, excite his indignation and his confidence, which were already too vehement. Elihu interposes as an arbiter of the controversy ; he reproves the severe spirit of the friends, as well as the presump- tion of Job, who trusted too much in his own righteousness. Job receives his admo- nitions with mildness and temper, and, being rendered more sedate by his expostulation, makes Xect. S3. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 395 makes no reply, though the other appears frequently to expect it. When the Almighty, however, condescends to set before him his rashness, frailty, and ignorance, he submits in perfect humility, and with sincere repent- ance. Here the temptation of Job con- cludes, in the course of which there was great reason to apprehend he would be to- tally vanquished : at the same time the Poem necessarily terminates, the state of things still remaining without any change or vicissitude whatever. The Poem indeed contains a great variety of sentiment, excellent representations of manners and character, remarkable ef- forts of passion, much important contro- versy ; but no change of fortune, no novelty of incident, no plot, no action. If indeed we rightly consider, we shall, I dare believe, find that the very nature of the subject excludes even the possibility of a plot or action. From that state of settled and unvarying misery in w r hich Job is involved, arise the doubt of his integrity, and those insinuations and criminations w hich serve to exasperate him, and by which he is stimu- lated to expostulate with God, and to glory in his own righteousness. It was proper therefore, 396 OF THE POEM OF JOB. Lect. 33. therefore, that, by a continuance of the same state and condition, he should be recalled to an humble spirit, and to a proper reverence for the Almighty Providence. For it would have been altogether contrary to what is call- ed poetical justice, if he had been restored to prosperity previous to his submission and pe- nitence. The repentance of Job, however, we find concludes the Poem. Nor was it at all necessary, that the question concerning the divine justice should be resolved in the body of the work, either by the fortunate issue of the affairs of Job, or even by the ex- plication of the divine intentions : this, in fact, was not the primary object, nor does it at all constitute the subject of the Poem : but is subservient, or in a manner an appen- dage to it. The disputation which takes place upon this topic, is no more than an instrument of temptation, and is introduced in order to explain the inmost sentiments of Job, and to lay open the latent pride that existed in his soul. The Almighty, there- fore, when he addresses Job, pays little re- gard to this point ; nor indeed was it neces- sary, for neither the nature nor the object of the Poem required a defence of the Divine Providence, Lect. 33. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 397 Providence, but merely a reprehension of the over-confidence of Job. If, indeed, we suppose any change to have taken place in the state of affairs, the nature and subject of the Poem will also be changed. If we connect with the poetical part either the former or the latter part of the history, or both, the subject will then be the display of a perfect example of patience in enduring the severest outward calamities, and at length receiving an ample reward at the hands of the Almighty : from this, however, the uni- versal tenour of the Poem will be found greatly to differ. It will be found to exhibit rather the impatience of Job in bearing the reproaches and abuse of his pretended friends : and this appears to lead to the true object of the Poem ; for Job is irritated, he indulges his passion, he speaks too confi- dently of his own righteousness, and in too irreverend a style concerning the justice of God ; in the end, he is converted by the ad- monitions of Elihu, and the reproofs of his omnipotent Creator. The true object of the Poem appears therefore to be, to de- monstrate the necessity of humility, of trust in God, and of the profoundest reverence for the 398 OF THE POEM OF JOB. Lect. 33, the divine decrees, even in the holiest and most exalted characters. Should it be objected, that I have con- tended with a scrupulous perverseness con- cerning the meaning of a word ; and should it, after all, be affirmed, that this very tempt- ation of Job, this dispute itself possesses in some degree the form or appearance of an action ; I am content to submit the trial to another issue, and to be judged by a fair in- vestigation of the practice of the Greek poets upon similar occasions. There is no neces- sity to remind this assembly, with how much art and design the fable or plot of the (Edi- pus Tyrannus of Sophocles appears to have been constructed; with what powers of ima- gination and judgment the process of the drama is conducted; and in what manner, by a regular succession of events, arising na- turally from each other, the horrid secret is developed, which as soon as disclosed preci- pitates the hero of the Tragedy from the summit of human happiness into the lowest depths of misery and ruin. Let us only suppose Sophocles to have treated the same subject in a different manner, and to have formed a poem on that part of the story alone Lect. S3. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 399 alone which is comprised in the last act. Here GEdipus would be indeed exhibited as an object of the most tender compassion ; here would be a spacious field for the display of the most interesting and tragical affec- tions : the fatal catastrophe would be de- plored ; the blindness, disgrace, exile of the hero, would enhance the distress of the scene ; and to the bitterness of present cala- mity w r ould be added the still more bitter re- membrance of the past. The poet might copiously display the sorrow and commisera- tion of his daughters, his detestation of him- self, and of all that belong to him, and more copiously, of those who had preserved him when exposed, who had supported and educated him : all these topics the poet has slightly touched upon in these lines, O curst Cithaeron ! why didst thou receive me ? Or, when thou didst, how couldst thou not de- stroy me? The succeeding passages are also extremely pathetic. These w r ould easily admit of am- plification, and, when the ardour of grief was a little abated, he might have added his vindication of himself, his asseverations of his iOO OF THE POEM OF JOB. Lecs. 3& his innocence, his plea of ignorance, and fatal necessity, and his impassioned exclama- tions against Fortune and the Gods. From all this might be constructed a poem, great, splendid, copious, diversified ; and the sub- ject would also furnish a topic of disputation not unlike that of Job. It might also as- sume in some measure the dramatic form ; the same characters that appear in the Tra- gedy might be introduced ; it might possess the exact proportions and all the requisites of a drama, fable alone excepted, which in- deed constitutes the very essence of a Dra- matic Poem, and without which all other qualities are of no avail : for the Greeks would have called such a production a Mo- jiody, or Elegiac Dialogue, or any thing bu£ a Tragedy. This opinion receives still further confirm- ation from the example and authority of Sophocles himself in another instance. For, when he again introduces the same OEdipus upon the stage in another Tragedy, though the groundwork of the piece be nearly that which we have been describing, the conduct of it is totally different. This piece is called CEdipus Coioneus ; the plot or fable is quite simple, Lect. 33. OF SHE POEM OF JOB. 401 simple, on which account it is a fairer ob- ject of comparison with the Poem of Job than any the plot of which is more com- plex. (Edipus is introduced blind, exiled, and oppressed with misery : none of those circumstances above-mentioned have escaped the Poet ; such as the lamentation of his misery, the passionate exclamations against Fate and the Gods, and the vindication of his innocence. These, however, do not form the basis of the Poem ; they are introduced merely as circumstances, which afford mat- ter of amplification, and which seem to flow from that elegant plot or action he has in* vented. (Edipus, led by his daughter, ar- rives at Colonus, there to die and be inter- red according to the admonition of the Ora- cle; for, upon these circumstances the victory of the Athenians over the Thebans was made to depend. The place being accounted sa- cred, the Athenians are unwilling to receive him ; but Theseus affords him refuge and protection. Another of his daughters is in- troduced, who informs him of the discord between her brothers, also that Creon is coming, with an intention of bringing him back to his own country in pursuance of a vol. ii. d d decree 402 OF THE POEM OF JOB, Lect, 33, decree of the Thebans. After this, Creon arrives ; he endeavours to persuade (Edipus to return to Thebes; and, on his refusal, at- tempts to make use of violence. Theseus protects CEdipus: and in the mean time Polynices arrives, with a view of bringing over his father to his party in the war against the Thebans : this being the only condition on which he was to hope for victory. (Edi- pus refuses, and execrates his son in the se- verest terms : in conclusion, the answer of the Oracle being communicated to Theseus, (Edipus dies, and is secretly buried there. In this manner is constructed a regular, perfect, and important action or plot ; all the parts of which are connected together in one design, and tend exactly to the same conclu- sion, and in which are involved the fates of both Thebes and Athens. The manners, passions, characters, and sentiments, serve to adorn, but not to support the fable. Without any striking representation of these, the plot or action would still remain, and would of itself sustain the Tragedy ; but if the action be removed, though all the rest remain, it is evident that the Tragedy is to- tally annihilated. From Lect. S3. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 403 From these observations it will, I think, be evident, that the Poem of Job cannot properly be brought into comparison with either (Ed i pus of Sophocles, or with any- other of the Greek Tragedies. It will be evident, I think, that this Poem ought not to be accounted of the same kind ; nor can possibly be classed with them, unless the whole nature and form of either the Greek or the Hebrew Poem be changed ; or unless the plot or action be taken from the one, or added to the other: for, without this great es- sential no poem can indeed be accounted a perfect drama. But though I have urged thus much against its claim to that title, let it not be understood that I w r ish to derogate from its merit. That censure will rather apply to those who, by criticising it according to foreign and improper rules, would make that composition appear lame and imper- fect, w r hich, on the contrary, is in its kind most beautiful and perfect. If, indeed, the extreme antiquity of this Poem, the obscurity and the difficulty that necessarily ensue from that circumstance, be considered ; and if al- lowance be made for the total want of plot p d 2 and 404 OF THE POEM OF JOB. Lect. 35. and action, we shall have cause to wonder at the elegance and interest which we find in its form, conduct, and economy. The arrangement is perfectly regular, and every part is admirably adapted to its end and de- sign. The antiquary or the critic, who has been at the pains to trace the history of the Grecian drama from its first weak and im- perfect efforts, and has carefully observed its tardy progress to perfection 6 , will scarce- ly, I think, without astonishment contem- plate a Poem produced so many ages before, so elegant in its design, so regular in its structure, so animated, so affecting, so near to the true dramatic model : while, on the contrary, the united wisdom of Greece, after ages of study, was not able to produce any thing approaching to perfection in this walk of poetry before the time of jEschylus. But however this be — whatever rank may be as- signed to Job, in a comparison with the Poets of Greece, to whom we must at least allow the merit of art and method ; amongst the Hebrews, it must certainly be allowed, in this respect, to be unrivalled. It is of 6 See Note (2) on Lect. XXX. little £ect. S3. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 405 little consequence whether it be esteemed a didactic or an ethic, a pathetic or dramatic Poem ; only let it be assigned a distinct and conspicuous station in the highest rank of the Hebrew Poetry, DPI LECTURE XXXIV. OF THE MANNERS, SENTIMENTS, AND STYLE OF THE POEM OF JOB. Though the Poem of Job do not contain a plot or fable, it possesses, nevertheless, some things in common with the perfect drama. — Manners or character. — The manners of Job ; to be distinguished from the passions or emotions. — The opinion of Aristotle, that the cha- racter of extreme virtue is not proper for Tragedy, demonstrated to be neither applicable to Job, nor true with respect to Tragedy in general. — The design of the Poem. — The manners qf the three friends ; the grada- tions of passion more strongly marked in them than the diversity of manners. — Elihu. — The expostulation qf God himself. — Sentiments; expressive qf things and qf manners ; the latter already noticed: the former consist partly qf passion, partly qf description : tzvo examples qf the softer passions : examples qf descrip- tion. — The Style qf this Poem uncommonly elegant and sublime, and the poetic conformation qf the sen- fences extremely correct.— Peroration, recommending the study qf Hebrew literature. When I contended that the Poem of Job ought not to be accounted a true and regular drama, such as are the Tragedies of the Greeks, I was far from insinuating, that it did not possess the dramatic form. I not only allowed, that in its general con- 4 duct Lect. 34. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 407 duct and economy it exhibited a simili- tude, an anticipation, as it were, of genuine Tragedy; but that it contained also all the principal requisites cf a dramatic Poem, table alone excepted : of these the first and most important is, the imitation of manners or character. The manners are what serve to mark or discriminate the different persons who take a part in the action of the Poem, to declare and express each character's peculiar mode of speaking, thinking, and acting; and com- pose, as it were, the intellectual image of the man. The principal personage in this Poem is Job, and in his character is meant to be exhibited (as far as is consistent with hu- man infirmity) an example of perfect virtue. This is intimated in the argument or intro- duction, but is still more eminently displayed by his own actions and sentiments. He is holy, devout, and most piously and reve* rently impressed with the sacred awe of his divine Creator ; he is also upright, and con- scious of his own integrity ; he is patient of evil, and yet very remote from that insensi- bility, or rather stupidity, to which the Stoic school pretended. Oppressed therefore with p d 4 unpa- 408 OF THE POEM OF JOB. Lect. 34. unparalleled misfortunes, he laments his misery, and even wishes a release by death ; in other words, he obeys, and gives place to, the dictates of nature; irritated, how- ever, by the unjust insinuations, and the se- vere reproaches of his pretended friends, he is more vehemently exasperated, and the too great confidence in his own righteousness leads him to expostulate with God in terms scarcely consistent with piety and strict de- corum. It must be observed, that the first speech of Job, though it burst forth with all the vehemence of passion, consists wholly of complaint, " the words and sentiments of a " despairing person, empty as the wind » ;" which is indeed the apology that he imme- diately makes for his conduct ; intimating, that he is far from presuming to plead with God, far from daring to call in question the divine decrees, or even to mention his own innocence in the presence of his all-just Creator : nor do I see any good reason for the censure which has been passed by some commentators upon this passage. The Poet I Job, vi. 26, seems. Lect. 34?. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 409 seems, with great judgment and ingenuity, to have performed in this what the nature of his work required. He has depicted the af- fliction and anguish of Job, as flowing from his wounded heart, in a manner so agreeable to human nature (and certainly so far venial), that it may be truly said, " in all this Job " sinned not with his lips/* It is, never- theless, embellished by such affecting ima- gery, and inspired with such a warmth and force of sentiment, that we find it afforded ample scope for calumny ; nor did the un- kind witnesses of his sufferings permit so fair an opportunity to escape. The occasion is eagerly embraced by Eliphaz, to rebuke the impatience of Job ; and, not satisfied with this, he proceeds to accuse him in direct terms of wanting fortitude, and obliquely to insinuate something of a deeper dye. Though deeply hurt with the coarse reproaches of Eliphaz, still, however, when Job afterwards complains of the severity of God, he cau- tiously refrains from violent expostulations with his Creator, and, contented w T ith the simple expression of affliction, he humbly confesses himself a sinner 2 . Hence, I think, 3 See chap. vii. 20. it 410 OF THE POEM OF JOB. Lect. 34. it is evident, that those vehement and per- verse attestations of his innocence, those murmurs against the divine Providence, which his tottering virtue afterwards per- mits, are to be considered merely as the con- sequences of momentary passion, and not as the ordinary effects of his settled character or manners. They prove him at the very worst not an irreligious man, but a man possessed of integrity, and too confident of it ; a man oppressed with almost every ima- ginable evil, both corporal and mental, and hurried beyond the limits of virtue by the strong influence of pain and affliction. When, on the contrary, his importunate visitors abandon by silence the cause which they had so wantonly and so maliciously maintained ; and cease unjustly to load him with unmerited criminations ; though he de- fends his argument with scarcely less obsti- nacy ; yet the vehemence of his grief ap- pears gradually to subside, he returns to himself, and explains his sentiments with more candour and sedateness : and however we may blame him for assuming rather too much of arrogance in his appeals to the Al- mighty, certainly his defence against the ac- cusations Lect. 34. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 411 cusations of Eliphaz, is no more than the occasion will strictly justify. Observe, in the first place, how admirably the confidence and perseverance of Job is displayed in re- plying to the slander of his false friends : " As God liveth, who hath removed my judg- " ment ; " Nay, as the Almighty liveth, who hath em- " bi tiered my soul ; " Verily as long as I have life in me, " And the breath of God is in my nostrils; " My lips shall not speak perversity, " Neither shall my tongue whisper prevarication. " God forbid that I should declare you righteous! " Till I expire I will not remove my integrity " from me. " I have fortified myself in my righteousness, " And I will not give up my station ; " My heart shall not upbraid me as long as I live. " May mine enemy be as the impious man, " And he that riseth up against me as the " wicked 3 ." But how magnificent, how noble, how in- viting and beautiful is that image of virtue, in which he delineates his past life ! What dignity and authority does he seem to pos- sess ! s Chap, xxvii. 2—7. "If 412 OF THE POEM OE JOB. Lect.54. " If I came out of the gate, nigh the place of " public resort, " If I took up my seat in the street; " The young men saw me, and they hid them- " selves ; " Nay, the very old men rose up and stood 4 . " The princes refrained talking, " Nay, they laid their hands on their mouths. " The nobles held their peace, t: And their tongue cleaved to the roof of their " mouth 5 ." What liberality ! what a promptitude in be- nificence ! " Because the ear heard, therefore it blessed me. " The eye also saw, therefore it bare testimony " for me, " That I delivered the poor who cried, " The orphan also, and him who had no helper. 4 " This is a most elegant description, and exhibits " most correctly that great reverence and respect which u was paid even by the old and decrepit to the holy man ** in passing along the streets, or when he sat in public. " They not only rose, which in men so old and so infirm " was a great mark of distinction, but they stood : they " continued to do it, though even the attempt was so « difficult." H. * Chap. xxix. 7—10. " The Lect. 34. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 415 " The blessing of him who was ready to perish " came upon me, " And I caused the heart of the widow to sing "for joy 6 ." What sanctity, what integrity in a judicial capacity ! " I put on righteousness, and it clothed me like " a robe ; " My justice also was a diadem. " I was a father to the poor, " And the controversy which I knew not, I " searched it out. " Then brake I the grinders of the oppressor, " And I plucked the prey out of his teeth V But what can be more engaging than the purity of his devotion, and his reverence for the Supreme Being, founded upon the best and most philosophical principles ? Besides that through the whole there runs a strain of the most amiable tenderness and huma- nity : " For what is the portion which God distributed) " from above, u And the inheritance of the Almighty from on "high? J Chap. xxix. 11—13. f Chap. xxix. 14, 16, 17. "Is 411* OF THE POEM OF JOB. Lrxr. S4- " Is it not destruction to the wicked, " And banishment 8 from their country to the " doers of iniquity ? " Doth he not see my ways? " And numbereth he not all my steps? " If I should despise the cause of my servant,. " Or my maid, when they had a controversy " with me, " What then should I do when God ariseth, " And when he visiteth, what answer could I " make him ? " Did not he who formed me in the belly form " him, " And did not one fashion us in the womb 9 V* Aristotle has remarked, that the example of a singularly good man falling from pro- sperous circumstances into misfortune, is by no means a proper subject for a Tragedy IO ; 8 u Aballenation : or reprobation, repudiation : so the " word signifies in the Arabic dialect. Abalienation " agrees with the Sept. version, and perfectly expresses *< the force of the Hebrew word." H. This passage appears to have a manifest relation to the history of Nimrod and his adherents, and may be added to the others which have been already mentioned, in proof of their story having been one of the commonplace topics of the Hebrew Poets. S. H. 9 Chap. xxxi. 2—4. 13—15. 10 De Poet. cap. xiii. since Lect. 34. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 415 since it is offensive and indecent, rather than piteous or terrible 11 . This remark, though consistent enough with the Greek drama, and with the sentiments and manners of the Heathens, is scarcely applicable to our Tra- gedy, and still less to the Poem of Job, u Pity," says the same author on another occasion, " is excited when adversity falls " upon those who are undeserving of it." Great virtue, therefore, plunged into great misfortunes, so far from being an unsuitable subject, ought to be the most direct and pro- per means of moving compassion. " Terror " is excited by a representation of the misery " of such persons as bear the nearest resem- " blance to ourselves :" the misfortunes therefore of those who are vicious in an ex- treme, are not much calculated to excite ter- ror ; but this is by no means the case with regard to the misery of such as are eminently good; for, if we fear for ourselves when we see moderate virtue in affliction, much more, 11 The opinion of Aristotle appears to be, that such a representation is calculated to excite our indignation (pos- sibly against the Gods) : and consequently that this pas- sion is likely to counteract the sentiments of pity and terror, T. surely, 416 OF THE POEM OF JOB. Lect. S4> surely, v hen a superior degree of it is in that state 1 *. It appears to me, therefore, that Aristotle was not of opinion, that the exam- ple of a very good man in extreme affliction is ill calculated to excite either pity or terror ; but rather it is a spectacle likely to prove injurious to the cause of virtue, and there- fore disgusting and detestable, and conse- quently unfit to be produced upon the stage. This opinion of the philosopher seems to re- sult from an unjust and visionary estimation of human virtue, to repress which appears to have been the very design and object of the book of Job. The character of Job indeed, though approaching so near to the perfection of virtue, seems, notwithstanding, to have a considerable alloy of human infirmity, so as neither to want probability, nor to lose its 13 " Men also pity their equals in age, manners, rant, " situation, and birth ; this indeed brings the evil nearer " to themselves ; and the obvious reflection is, that they " are equally exposed to it : for, it is an established maxim, " that men pity others on the same accounts, and in the " same proportion, as they fear for themselves — especially " if the sufferers be esteemed good men ; for, the misery is " brought immediately before our eyes, and is conse- " quently rendered more glaring and apparent." Arist. Rhet. ii. 8. effect Lect. 34. OP THE POEM OF JOB, 417 effect in exciting terror. For, if it be extreme wickedness in the most upright of men, when oppressed with the severest misery, to murmur at all against the divinejtistice, who then shall stand before God? Who shall ex- pect to pass through the pilgrimage of life without his portion of evil and of sin ? The end of the Poem is moreover by no means ill calculated to excite terror ; since this mo- ral is particularly inculcated in it, " Be not " high-minded, but fear :" and Job himself sets before us, what impression the example o£ his misfortunes ought to make upon our minds in this respect : " The upright will be astonished at this, u Then the innocent will surely rise up against " the profligate ; " The righteous man will also hold on his way, " And he that hath clean hands will gather " strength ,3 ." The three friends are exactly such charac- ters as the nature of the Poem required. They are severe, irritable, malignant censors, readily and with apparent satisfaction deviat- ing from the purpose of consolation into re- l 3 Chap, xviii. 8, 9. VOL. II. E E proof 418 OF THE POEM OF JOB. Lect. 3*. proof and contumely. Even from the very first they manifest this evil propensity, and indicate what is to be expected from them. The first of them, indeed, in the opening of his harangue, assumes an air of candour : " Wouldst thou take it unkindly that one should " essay to speak to thee ,4 ?" Indignation is, however, instantly predomi- nant : " But a few words who can forbear ?" The second flames forth at once : " How long wilt thou trifle in this manner? " How long shall the words of thy mouth be as " a mighty wind * s ?" But remark the third : " Shall not the master of words be answered? " Or shall a man be acquitted for his fine " speeches ? " Shall thy prevarications make men silent; (i Shalt thou even scoff, and there be no one to " make thee ashamed ,6 ?" 14 Chap. iv. 2. l J Chap. viii. 2. 16 Chap. 3d. % 6. They Lect. 34. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 419 They are represented as illiberal, conten- tious ; inclined to torture every thing to the worst of purposes : " Doth God pervert judgment? 11 Doth the Almighty pervert justice ,7 ?" Where observe, Job has not as yet uttered an intemperate expression in disparagement of the divine justice. 11 Nay, thou castest off fear, " And thou restrainest prayer before God 18 :" Such is the invective of the other of them. They are also proud, contemptuous, and ar- rogate too much to their own wisdom : " Why are we accounted as beasts; " Why are we vile in your eyes? 11 Let him tear himself in his fury ; " What, shall the earth be forsaken for thee 1 *? " Or " Chap. viii. 3. l8 Chap. xv. 4. *9 " So the LXX. What ! if thou diest, shall the " whole earth be desolate ? Which version, or rather " paraphrase, is most elegant, and in my opinion finely " accommodated to the purpose of the sacred writer. " When the Orientals would reprove the pride or arro- " gance of any person, it is common for them to desire " him to call to mind how little and contemptible he and ki every mortal is, in these or similar apothegms : e e 2 « What 420 OF THE POEM OF JOB. Lect. 34. u Or shall the rock be outrooted from its place? " Rather let the light of the wicked be extin- " guished 3 °." Nor is Zophar, who takes up the subject after Bildad, more modest :, " Verily the impulse of my thoughts incites me " to reply, " Even because there is some resentment within :i I hear the ignominious reproof that is aimed "at me, fi And the spirit within me compels me to " answer 31 . The conduct of all these malicious censors is much the same through the whole piece. n What though Mahammed were dead ? *< His Irnauns (or ministers) conducted the affairs of the " nation. ? s The universe shall not fall for his sake. M The world does not subsist for one man alone. *< Nay, this very phrase is still in use among the Arabic « writers, pt* ^ raw, " the earth is desolate.'" Gol. col. 1570. H. *° Chap, xviii. 3—5. « x Chap. xx. 2, 3, Eliphaz Lect. 34. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 421 Eliphaz indeed, who begins in the mildest terms, descends afterwards to the severest re- proaches ; and he directly charges Job with the most atrocious offences : from which in- temperance of language, it must be confessed, the others refrain. Bildad, not to be silent, repeats in a brief and florid manner the sub- ject which had already been twice treated of by the others, namely, the majesty and holi- ness of God ; and Zophar, withdrawing from the contest, deserts entirely the cause of his companion, and leaves the field to Job. The business of defamation indeed seems, with great propriety, committed to three per- sons. It would have been too confined and trivial in the hands of one ; and, amongst a crowd of accusers, too confused and clamor- ous. There appears, how r ever, but little dif- ference in the manners of the three friends ; for in them the poet has rather studied to display the progress of the passions, than any diversity of character. But though the nice and fastidious criticism of the moderns de- mand variety in this respect, the simplicity of infant Poetry will be excused by every per- son of real judgment ; and I think this defi- ciency (if such it may be called) is amply e e 3 com- 422 OF THE POEM OF JOB. Lect. 54, compensated by the gravity and importance of the subject and sentiments. The lenity and moderation of Elihu serves as a beautiful contrast to the intemperance and asperity of the other three. He is pious, mild, and equitable ; equally free from adu- lation and severity ; and endued with singular wisdom, which he attributes entirely to the inspiration of God : and his modesty, mode- ration, and wisdom, are the more entitled to commendation when we consider his unripe youth. As the characters of his detractors were in all respects calculated to inflame the mind of Job ; that of this arbitrator is ad- mirably adapted to sooth and compose it : to this point the whole drift of the argument tends, and on this the very purport of it seems to depend. The interposition of the Deity, and its connexion with the general design of the Poem, I have formerly noticed. I will only add, that although some critics have really thought the whole address inconsistent, and foreign to the subject, no man has ever ac- counted it in any respect unworthy of that supreme Majesty to which it is ascribed. Another Lect. 34. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 425 Another circumstance deserving particular attention in a Poem of this kind, is the sen- timent ; which must be agreeable to the sub- ject, and embellished with proper expression. It is by Aristotle enumerated among the es- sentials of a Dramatic Poem ; not indeed as peculiar to that species of Poetry alone, but as common, and of the greatest importance to all. Manners or characters are essential only to that poetry in which living persons are in- troduced ; and all such Poems must afford an exact representation of human manners : but sentiment is essential to every Poem, indeed to every composition whatever. It respects both persons and things ; as far as it regards persons, it is particularly concerned in the delineation of the manners and passions : and those instances to which I have just been ad- verting, are sentiments expressive of manners. Those which relate to the delineation of the passions, and to the description of other ob- jects, yet remain unnoticed in this Lecture. As I formerly, however, treated of these sub- jects in general, I could scarcely avoid pro- ducing some examples from this Poem ; for, in demonstrating the power of the poetic diction in exciting the passions, I could not e e 4 possibly 424 OF THE POEM OF JOB, Lect. 34. possibly deduce my instances from a better source". On the present occasion, there- fore, I shall study brevity, and avoid as much as possible the tediousness of repetition. The Poem of Job abounds chiefly in the more vehement passions, grief and anger, indignation and violent contention. It is adapted in every respect to the incitement of terror; and, as the specimens already quoted will sufficiently prove, is universally animated with the true spirit of sublimity. It is how- ever not wanting in the gentler affections ; the following complaints, for instance, are replete with an affecting spirit of melan- choly : " Man, the offspring of a woman, " Is of few days, and full of inquietude ; " He springeth up, and is cut off like a flower ; " He fleeteth like a shadow, and doth not abide: " Upon such a creature dost thou open thine " eyes ? " And wilt thou bring even me into judgment " with Thee? " Turn thy look from him, that he may have " some respite, " See Lect. XIV. XVI. XVII. " Till Lect. 34. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 425 " Till he shall, like a hireling, have completed* 3 " his clay V The whole passage abounds with the most beautiful imagery, and is a most perfect spe- cimen of the Elegiac. His grief afterwards becomes more fervent ; but is at the same time soft and querimonious. " How long will ye vex my soul, " And tire me with vain harangues? " These ten times have ye loaded me with re- " proaches, " Are ye not ashamed that ye are so obstinate " against me 35 ? " Pity *3 " Or until he shall acquiesce : or, shall make satis* "faction (the original will bear either interpretation) ; for " the word in the Arabic dialect sometimes signifies, He " did or afforded to another, what he held to be agreeable " to himself? H. ** Chap. xiv. 1, %, 3, 6. *s " I think the word nsnn occurs but this once in the " Scriptures; and (as is my usual practice when I meet with " any such words or phrases) I consulted the Arabic Lexi- " cographers. They explain it by two other words ; the " one is a:w to admire, the other is n«n to wonder, to be " astonished. Whence *ttn to wonder in amazement (to " be overcome with astonishment, as Giggeius explains " it) ; and the sense of the passage will be, Are you not " ashamed 426 OF THE POEM OF JOB. Lect. 34. ec Pity me, O pity me, ye are my friends, 11 For the hand of God hath smitten me. " Why will you be my persecutors as well as " God, " And therefore will ye not be satisfied with my "flesh 26 ?" That self-indulgence which is so natural to the passion of Hope; its ingenuity in draw- ing pictures of future felicity ; its credulity in cherishing these ideas, and the gaiety and elevation of mind with which it describes them, are finely expressed by Job in the pas- sage immediately following the relation of his past life : " Therefore I said, I shall die in my nest ; " I shall multiply my days like the sand : " My root was spread abroad nigh the waters, " And the dew lay all night on my branches : " ashamed to gaze at me? Kimchi says, his father affirm- u ed, that the word 13 n signifies in Arabic impudence or "forwardness ; I do not however find this interpretation ¥ confirmed by the Lexicons which I have consulted. ". B\n still if t,e suppose, that the word narm is derived * from "13 J, the explication of Kimchi may be accepted ; * but the form of the verb will be anomalous. It is, how- " ever, safest perhaps to adhere to the common transla- tion." H. » 6 Chap, xix, 2, 3, 21, 22. " My Lect. 34. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 42T " My glory was fresh within me, " And my bow gained strength in my hand. 11 They hearkened to me, nay they waited for " me ; " They were silent also, they approved my " counsel. " After I had spoken they replied not ; " For my words dropped upon them : " They waited also for me as the rain ; " And their mouths were open as for the latter " rain 37 ." To this part of the subject, which relates to the delineation of the passions, may be referred those delicate touches which animate almost every description, and which are drawn from the most intimate knowledge of the genuine emotions of the human soul. I shall content myself with one example out of the many which the compass of the work affords. It is exactly copied from Nature ; for, when events take place according to our ardent wishes, but quite contrary to our ex- pectation, we have the utmost difficulty to believe them real. Job thus expresses him- self respecting God : " Chap. xxix. 11—25. "If 428 OF THE POEM OF JOB. Lect. 34. " If I called upon him, and he should answer me, " Yet could I scarcely believe that he had heard " my voice a V This is admirably expressive both of the ma- jesty of God, and of the severity which he exercised towards Job ; it is also no less de- scriptive of the humiliation and despair of the sufferer. " If I were merry with them they would not be- " lieveitV says Job of his dependants ; in which is ex- pressed his own dignity and gravity united with urbanity, and at the same time their unviolated attachment to him. Thus too, by the same circumstance is depicted both the ardour and alacrity of the war-horse,, and his eagerness for the battle : " For eagerness and fury he devoureth the very " ground, " He believeth it not when he heareth the trum- " pet. 11 When the trumpet soundeth, he saith, Ahah! " Yea he scenteth the battle from afar, " The thunder of the chieftains, and their " shouts 30 ." * 8 Chap. ix. 16. *> Chap. xxix. 24. 3° Chap, xxxix. 24, 25. This tECT. 34. OF THE POEM OF JOB. 429 This passage, which has indeed always at- tracted general admiration, will also serve to exemplify the excellence of the descriptive parts of this Poem : and from the same cir- cumstance we may fairly conjecture, that the pictures which are exhibited in other parts of the work, would appear no less striking resemblances of the realities, were we equally well acquainted with the originals. To judge rightly of a description, we ought to have as clear and distinct ideas of the thing itself as the author. The idea of thunder is familiar to all mankind ; observe, therefore, how it is depicted by Elihu : " At this my heart trembleth, " And is ready to bound from its place. " Hearken attentively, and tremble at his voice; 11 Even at the sound thatgoeth out of his mouth. " Its flash is beneath the whole heavens, " And its blaze to the ends of the earth, " After it a voice roareth : " He thundereth with the voice of his majesty: " He deceiveth them not when his voice is " heard 3 \" It il That is, " they cannot mistake his voice for any ? thing beside." Heath, Job, chap, xxxvii. 1—4. In 430 OF THE POEM OF JOB. Lect. 34. It would be superfluous to insist any longer on a minute detail, since the most splendid examples of every beauty and elegance of sentiment, of imagery, and of diction, meet the eye of the attentive reader in every part of the Poem. Let it suffice to say, that the dignity of the style is answerable to that of In the last line it seems as if we should read apy» (lie will not deceive), with the Vulg. and Symmachus. For this correction I am indebted to the learned Richard Grey, who has paid a very critical attention to this Poem. " The true sense is, perhaps, he does it not at intervals, ** or by Jits, i. e. thunders, &c. but continually : which, *« among others, is the sense of the word in the Arabic " dialect. And the exposition of R. L. B. Gershom, • he does not defer, or delay, agrees very well with this " opinion ; as well as our common English translation, " which is thus far preferable to that of the Vulgate " and Symmachus, namely, that it requires no change " of the text. This also, in all probability, is the mean- " ing of the Septuagint version, Ov* ewIoXXafei ama$\ " though this seems to relate to the hearers, when in " reality it should relate to the things heard ." H. Author's Note. u See whether the verb (shemang) be ever construed " with beth) except in the sense obeying, which does not " agree with the context in this place. It seems better, " therefore, to construe the verb with kolu, and to render M the sentence in this manner — Hear his voice atten- n tively, and with trembling" H. 3 the Lect. $4. PERORATION. 451 the subject ; its force and energy to the great- ness of those passions which it describes: and as this production excels all the other remains of the Hebrew Poetry in economy and arrangement, so it yields to none in sublimity of style, and in every grace and excellence of composition. Among the prin- cipal of these may be accounted the accu- rate and perfectly poetical conformation of the sentences, which is, indeed, generally most observable in the most ancient of the poetical compositions of the Hebrews. Here, however, as is natural and proper in a poem of so great length and sublimity, the writer's skill is displayed in the proper adjustment of the period, and in the accurate distribution of the members, rather than in the antithesis of words, or in any laboured adaptation of the parallelisms. Having now gone through the several topics, of which I purposed to treat in re- investigation of the nature of the Hebrew Poetry, it is time that my present under- taking should draw towards a conclusion. If in the prosecution of my design, I have by 432 PERORATION. Lect. 34« by my industry been able to accomplish any thing that may be deemed satisfactory, it is but common justice to attribute the greatest part of my success to you, Gentlemen, who have condescended to look with a propitious eye upon my endeavours, and to invigorate- my application by your attention and par- tiality. When, indeed, I first meditated this system of instruction, I foresaw, as well from the native sublimity and obscurity of the subject, as from the extreme antiquity of the Hebrew writings, much subtile investigation r much difficult explication, much doubtful assertion, and dangerous error. I foresaw too, and daily experience confirmed my ap- prehensions, that in this maze of science, the vestiges and the documents of the learn- ed would be frequently found but imperfect guides. That my courage did not utterly forsake me in the course of my undertaking, is to be attributed entirely to the favour and encouragement which I received from you. I had the satisfaction to find my plan meet with the approbation of some of the great- est and most eminent characters in the learn- ed world, as being neither inconsistent with the design of this institution, the dignity of this Lect. 34. PERORATION. 433 this University, nor the profit and utility of the students. I had often the singular plea- sure of seeing among my auditors, many persons, to whom it would better become me to apply for instruction in this and in every other branch of literature ; and the young men, for whose benefit this institution was established, I have found ever diligent and constant in their attendance : all which testimonies of your favour, unless I account- ed as obligations, I should think either too arrogantly of myself, or too disrespectfully of you. To all of you, therefore, I feel, and shall for ever feel myself obliged : the remembrance of your kindness will, in every vicissitude of my condition, be pleasing to me ; nor is there any danger of my suffering that to escape my memory, which I must ever esteem the great ornament of my life. But to return to a point which is of more importance, and which has indeed been the principal object of all my endeavours. I should now think myself called upon, in the last place, to exhort this assembly of accom- plished youths to an assiduous application to these studies ; but that I confess 1 think you rather demand commendation than advice. vol. ii, f f For 4$* PERORATION. I.ect. S* For the Hebrew language, which was for a series of years in a manner obsolete and neg- lected, has been lately cultivated by you with such attention and application, and has obtained so respectable a place among the other branches of erudition, that it seems, through your means, to have recovered, after a tedious exile, all its former dignity and importance. Proceed, therefore, in the same career with the same ardour and success, and consider it as a work worthy of your utmost exertions to illustrate and cultivate this de- partment of literature. You will find it no less elegant and agreeable, than useful and instructive; abounding in information no less curious for its extent and variety, than for its great importance and venerable sanctity ; deserving the attention of every liberal mind ; essential to all who would be proficients in theology ; a branch of literature, in a word, which will confer credit upon yourselves, will be an honour to the University, and an ad- vantage to the Church. I congratulate you, Gentlemen, on having an Instructor 3 *, who from his authority, example, assiduity, and 3i Dr. Thomas Hunt, King's Professor of Hebrew^ and Laudian Professor of the Arabic language. information* Lect. S4. PERORATION. 435 information, will be found in no respect wanting to your profit and accommodation : a Gentleman no less eminent for his abilities and profound erudition, than for the can- dour, urbanity, and gentleness of his man- ners. He will unfold to you the inexhaustible treasures of Oriental literature, he will open to your view an unbounded field of science and of fame. It is sufficient for me to have discovered to you a few of the more delight- ful retreats of this Paradise : and could I flatter myself that my endeavours have been so fortunate as to allure or excite any to these studies, or even to stimulate and keep alive your attention to this department of literature, I should think that I had received the most honourable, the most grateful re- ward of my labours. PF 2 A BRIEF CONFUTATION Off BISHOP HARE'S SYSTEM OF HEBREW METRE. It is welt known, that an hypothesis was invented by the late Bishop Hare con- cerning the Hebrew metres ; and the argu- ments which he had advanced in its favour, appeared so conclusive to some persons of great erudition, as to persuade them, that the learned Prelate had fortunately revived the knowledge of the true Hebrew versifica- tion, after an oblivion of more than two thou- sand years ; and that he had established his opinion by such irresistible proofs, as to place it beyond the utmost efforts of controversy. Whoever, indeed, encounters it in such a manner as only to call in question some particular part, to intimate only an occasional scruple, or to attack but one or two of his arguments, ; CONFUTATION, &c. 137 arguments, will, doubtless, " attempt in " vain * to root out of their minds an opi- " nion which has been so deeply implanted a and established by the authority of so " great a man : much less will any person " obtain credit who shall affirm, that he has " discovered what was not discovered by the " learned Prelate, unless by the strongest " arguments he not only overthrows the 4< hypothesis which he rejects, but confirms " his own. Avoiding therefore every sub- " terfuge, I shall come immediately to the u point, and demonstrate by the clearest and A most decisive instances, which is the only " method of extorting assent from the incre- " dulous, that I have actually discovered the " nature and principles of this poetry," and those directly contrary to the system which he has adopted. I shall, on this occasion, make use of the same example that Bishop Hare himself has chosen ; which, when pro- perly considered, will, I think, sufficiently explain and prove my opinion ; and at the same time effectually overturn his hypo- thesis. 1 See Hare's Preface to the Psalms, at the beginning. F F 3 PSALxM 43* CONFUTATION OF PSALM CXI. 1. od6h javoh becol lebab, i. 2. besod jesarim veyedah. 5. gexlolim mayasejavoh, ii. 4. derusim lecol cbepsehem. 5. h6d vehadar poyalo, Hi. 6\ vesidkatho yomedeth lajted. 7. zecer yasab lenipblothav; iv. 8. chanun veracbtim javob. 9. tercpb natban lireav, v. 10. jizcor leyolam berftho. 11. coach m?.yasav bigid leyamo, vi. 12. latheth lab£m naehalath goim. 13. mayise* jadav emeth umispat; vii, 14. neemanim col pikduav : \5. semucim lajted ltyolam, viii. 16. yasufm beemeth vejasar. 17- peduth salacb leyamo, ix. 18. zivdh ltyolam beritho. 19- kados v£nora semo ; x. £0. resith chocmab jirath javob. 21. secel tob lecol yosdhem, xi* ■S2. tebillatho yomedeth k'iyad> From BISHOP HARE'S HEBREW METRE. A39 From this alphabetic Psalm, which is di- vided into its proper verses according to the initial letters, and restored to its proper numbers without any violation of the text, without even any change of the Masoretic vowels (except that, with Bishop Hare, I readjavoh), the canons of the Ilebre metre are to be collected and established. I. ■ In the first place, then, in the Hebrew Poetry the feet are not all dissyllables : for, in verse 3, 11, 10, lim maya — coach a The following are the principal rules or canons of Bishop Hare : 1. In Hebrew Poetry all the feet are two syllables. 2. No regard is paid to the quantity of the syllables. S. When the number of the syllables is even, the verse is Trochaic, placing the accent on the first syllable. 4. If the number of syllables be odd, they are to be accounted Iambics, and the accent is to be placed on the second syllable, in order to preserve the rythm. 5. The periods mostly consist of two verses, often three or four, and sometimes more. 6. The verses of the same period, with few exceptions, are of the same kind. 7. The Trochaic verses mostly agree in the number of feet : there are however a few exceptions. 8. In the Iambic verses the feet are mostly unequal, though in some instances they are equal. {). Each verse does not contain a distinct sense. See Hare s Pref. p. 27. f f 4 mava 440 CONFUTATION OF maya — im be — are Dactyls ; in verse 13, 14, mayase, neema — are Anapaests : contrary to the first canon of Bishop Hare. II. Attention must always be paid to the quantity of the syllables; for the same word, as often as it occurs, is always of the same quantity ; for instance, javoh, lecol, are con- stantly Iambics, layad is always a Trochaic, mayase an Anapaest; leyolam is uniformly an Amphimaser: beritho, yomedeth, is an Amphibrachis: contrary to the second canon of Bishop Hare. III. The verses are either Trochaic, which admit a Dactyl ; or Iambic, which admit an Anapaest : but it by no means follows, that a verse is either the one or the other, from its consisting of an even or odd number of syl- lables. Those indeed which consist of an even number of syllables, are, for the most part, Iambic, as verse 1, 2, 7, 13, 14, 15, 20; but they are also sometimes Trochaic, as verse 3, 4, 10, 18, 21 ; and those which consist of an odd number of syllables are mostly Trochaic, as verse 5, 8, 9, 11, 10, 19; they are however sometimes Iambic, as verse 0, 12, 17, 22: contrary to the third and fourth canon. IV, BISHOP HARE'S HEBREW METRE. 441 IV. The verses of the same period are of different kinds, period iii. iv. vi. viii. ix. x. xi. a few only excepted, as period i. ii. v. vii.: and those which are of the same kind seldom agree in the number of syllables and feet : for instance, in period ii. and v. the first verse is a Trochaic Dimeter Catalectic, the second a Trochaic Dimeter Acatalectic ; in period vii. the first is an Iambic Dimeter Hyperca- talectic, the second an Iambic Dimeter Cata- lectic : the only instance of verses agreeing in kind, agreeing also in syllables and feet, is in period i. and those are Iambics : and this is contrary to the sixth, seventh, and eighth canons. V. All the periods consist of only two verses ; for, properly, koph and resh constitute the penultimate, and shin and tau the ulti- mate period ; as also appeared to the learned Cappell 3 : this is contrary to the fifth canon. VI. Each verse has one particular sense : contrary to the ninth canon. *' That what I have advanced as true and " indisputable, is most true, appears from " the examples which I have adduced : and 3 See Cappell. Crit. Sac. lib. i. cap. xii. 11. " whoever U2 CONFUTATION OF " whoever reads attentively the book of " Psalms, will find similar instances in al- u most every page 4 ." Since 4 See Hare's Preface, p. 31. The reader has douhtless observed, that, to establish our two last canons, and per- haps the others, a general proposition is deduced from a particular instance : viz. so it is in this Psalm, and so, therefore, it must be in all Hebrew Poems whatever : in this, however, I only copy Bishop Hare ; for, to say the truth, upon this mode of reasoning, and begging the ques- tion at the same time, depends his whole hypothesis. I find these observations have greatly displeased Dr. Thomas Edwards, a strenuous advocate for Bishop Hare's Metres. Towards the conclusion of his Disserta- tion lately published he asserts, that I did not understand what I presumed to censure : and to this accusation I in- deed plead guilty. For I will freely confess, that I nei- ther did understand, nor do I yet understand, what metre can exist without any distinction of long and short syl- lables, or what can be meant by Trochaic, Iambic, and Anacreontic feet and verses, where no regard is paid to the quantity of the syllables. Nor do I understand any better, what purpose the confutation of my hypothesis can answer, since I gave it myself as futile and false, and since the futility of it was one of the strongest arguments against the hypothesis of Hare. This argument can only be done away by proving that my hypothesis is not found- ed upon the same, or upon principles equally clear and certain with Bishop Hare^ : this unfortunately his de~ fender has not done, nor indeed can he do. Wi4k BISHOP HARE'S HEBREW METRE, 443 Since this is the case; since I have deduced happily the abstruse principles of the He- brew With regard to his accusation, that I have acted dog- matically, and that I have upon my own authority, and without any regard to reason, affirmed, that the hypothesis of Bishop Hare depends altogether upon his taking for granted the very point to be proved ; in order to exone- rate myself from so invidious an imputation, and in order to confirm what I before had advanced, I must request the reader's attention to the following particulars. The cxith Psalm is proposed as an example, and is di- vided into verses, whence the laws of Hebrew versifica- tion are to be deduced. We grant that in this Psalm the verses are rightly distinguished, since it is alphabetical, and the members of each period are nearly equal. But what is this to the establishment of a certain rule for the division of others, which are neither alphabetical, nor seem capable of a regular and equal distribution of the sentences and members? Indeed, such is the difficulty of Bishop Hare's hypothesis in this respect, that, according to it, a number of the Psalms are divided, not only arbitra- rily and oddly, but inelegantly, injudiciously, contrary to the genius of the Hebrew Poetry, and contrary to every appearance of truth. We will take for an example the first Psalm, on which the author prides himself not a little. But when divided into verses, by what rule is it accented? Why in this rather than any other manner ? How is it proved, that, when the number of syllables is even, the yerse is Trochaic, when odd, Iambic ? From the nature and principles of Trochaic and Iambic verse ? By no means — (for, in the Greek and Latin Trochaics and Iam- jbics, the case is directly contrary) ; but merely from the pleasure 41* CONFUTATION OF brew metre from this Psalm, or rather ex- plained clearly such as readily presented them- selves, pleasure and will of the author. Why then may not I, or any other person, affix different accents to this cxith or any other Psalm, and so turn the Trochaics of Bishop Hare into Iambics, and his Iambics into Trochaics? By what rule too are the syllables numbered ? According to the Masoretic punctuation ? By no means ; for the Masoretic number of syllables is altered, and that, as by a previous rule, or according to an established system of metre, which existed before the punctuation ; as from this Psalm, so ordered and illustrated, the rules of metre are after- wards to be collected. " But I do not desert the Maso- u retic punctuation, unless an erroneous punctuation in- " terferes with the metre. 1 ' This would be a sound ar- gument, if it were previously determined what these rules of metre were. But for what good reason are all trisyl- labic metres excluded from the Hebrew Poetry ? " Be^ u cause truly, if the trisyllabic feet were admitted, a dis- " tinction of long and short syllables would have place " necessarily in the Hebrew Poetry ." And why should it not? " In Hebrew Poetry there is no respect at all to " the quantity of the syllables." A most extraordinary assertion, and scarcely credible ! But that so it might be, learn from the testimony of your eyes and ears. " For, " from this Psalm it is evident, that no regard is paid to " quantity in the Hebrew Poetry ; since in the 4th and " 5th verses, not to mention other instances, the le and " ve are long. On the other hand, in the fifteenth and " twenty-second, mu in semucion, and Ml in tehillatko, " are short." That is, according to Hare, the shortest syllable may be made use of instead of the longest (such indeed BISHOP HARE'S HEBREW METRE. 44* selves, and have reduced them to an art easy, perfect, and consistent ; depending upon prin- ciples certain and self-evident ; but not tak- ing those liberties in which Bishop Hare has prolixly indulged himself, so as to make the same word sometimes Trochaic, sometimes Iambic, sometimes a Dissyllable, and some- times a Trisyllable; I may reasonably indulge myself in the hope, that the candid reader will prefer my hypothesis to that of Bishop Hare. This at least I trust I may expect, indeed he acknowledges diem to be) in his Trochaic and Iambic measures ; and on the other hand, the longest may be introduced instead of the shortest : of which this Psalm affords the precedent : and on the authority of this pre- cedent, a law is framed to serve in all other cases : and when we ask, upon other evidence, the reason of the fact, he refers us to his own authority and his own example. For, indeed, says he, this is the plain state of the case ; " that this, and all that I have urged upon this subject, " is undoubtedly fact, is plain from the examples which " I have produced ; and must strike every reasonable pcr- * son who only looks into a single page of the book of " Psalms/ 1 I confess it, indeed, most learned Prelate, if we look into your Psalms : but I fear we shall then be very little nearer the truth ; since it is by no means a de- cided point, that your Psalms are rightly and judiciously divided into verses, feet, and syllables. See " A larger Confutation of Bishop Hare\s Hebrew " Metres, in a Letter to Dr. Edwards, Loud. 1764." Author s Note. that 4*6 CONFUTATION, &i. that he will treat them upon equal terms, and allow to each the same authority, that is NONE AT ALL. In the same manner every hypothesis, which pretends to define the laws of Hebrew metre, and to prescribe the numbers, the feet, the scanning of the lines, may, I think, be easily overset : for, to that hypothesis ano- ther directly contrary, yet confirmed by ar- guments equally forcible, may, I am per- suaded, be successfully opposed. With regard to the opinion of those who suppose the whole art of Hebrew metre to consist in a similarity of termination to each verse; though it has acquired some popula- rity and authority in the learned world, I think it by far the most ill-founded of all ; and I think its absurdity so obvious, that with the utmost ease it may be detected. Since the endings of the verses are defined in some of the alphabetical Poems, and since it is manifest, that in these the verses do not end alike, that no art or attention has been bestowed upon that point, it follows of course that the art of Hebrew versification does not consist in making verses with si- milar endings. 3 APPENDIX, Referred to from Page 31. PSALM CXXXV. IIPOAZMA, or Prelude. Part i. High Priest and Priests, to the Levites: Praise ye Jah ! Levites to the Priests : Praise ye the name Jehovah! Priests and Levites to the Congregation : Praise him, ye servants of Jehovah ! The Congregation, to the Priests: Ye that stand in the house of Jehovah i The Congregation, to the Levites: In the courts of the house of our God! nrOASMA. 2. Priests, to the Levites : Praise ye Jah, for Jehovah is good. Levites, to the Congregation : Sing praises unto his name, for it is pleasant. Congregation, joining both Priests and Levites i For Jah hath chosen Jacob unto hints elf t Israel for his peculiar treasure. HYMN. High Priest, followed by the Priests : For I know that Jehovah is great, Even our Lord above all gods. Levites : Whatsoever Jehovah pleased, He did in heaven, and in earth, In the seas, and in deep places. Congregation 448 APPENDIX. Congregation : He causetb the 'vapours to rise from the ends of the earth) He maketh lightnings for the rain : He bringeth the wind out of his treasuries. High Priest, accompanied by the Priests: Who smote the first-born of Egypt, Both of man and of beast. Levites : Sent tokens and wonders into the midst of thee, Egypt f Congregation : Upon Pharaoh , and upon all his servants. High Priest and Priests : Who smote great nations, and slew mighty kings : Levites : Sihon, king of the Amorites, And 0g f king of Basan, And all the kingdoms of Canaan. Congregation : And he gave their land an heritage, An heritage with Israel his people. Priests : Thy name, Jehovah, endurethfor ever. Levites : Thy memorial, Jehovah, throughout all generations. Priests, Levites, and Congregation in full chorus : For Jehovah will judge his people ; And will repent him concerning his servants, II. High Priest, accompanied by the Priests : The idols of the Heathen — silver and gold! The work of mortal hands. Levites : They have mouths, but they speak not $ Eyes have they, but they see not* Congregation APPENDIX, 449 Congregation : They have ears, but they hear not : Neither is there any truth in their mouths. Priests, Levites, and Congregation, in full chorus : They that make them are like unto them ; Every one that trusteth in them. ANTI*nNHII£. High Priest and Priests, to the Congregation : Bless Jehovah, O house of Israeli Congregation, to the High Priest and Priests ; Bless Jehovah, O house of Aaron I High Priest and Priests, to the Levites : Bless Jehovah, house of Levi I Levites, to High Priest and Priests : Te that fear Jehovah, bless Jehovah ! Priests, Levites, and Congregation, in full chorus : Blessed be Jehovah out of Sion, Who dwelleth in Jerusalem I Full chorus, continuing each division to both the rest : Praise ye Jah ! The praising the name Jehovah, so often mentioned in Scrip- ture, arises from the answer to the question of Mosc9, Exo». iii. i 3 . S. H. you ih f * AN INDEX TO THE PASSAGES OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, Which are cited, explained, or referred to, in the LECTURES. The Letter n. prefixed to the Page, refers to a Note. GENESIS. Page k 3 I. 350 5 II. 302 24, n. 61 iii. 24 I. n. 91 iv. 23, 24 89 ix. 25 — 27 94 II. 20 27 I. n. 334 jciv. 6* II. n. 347 xvi. 13 I. n. 89 xxi. 6,7 n. 97 xxiii 159 xxiv. 2 n. 77 60 n. 97 xxv. 2, 3 II. n. 349 6 n. 348 15 and 18 n. 350 23 I. n. 97 xxvii. 27—29 94 39, 40 94 xxviii. 16, 17 n. 97 xxix. 27 II. n. 301 xxxi. 39 I.n. 61 scorn. 10, 11 II. n. 349 20 and 28 n. 347 xlvi. 32—34 332 xlix. 2—27 I. n. 24 11.20 8, 16, and 19 I.n. 334 9 216 11 n. 60 21 II. n. 253 EXODUS. a. 15 II. n. 350 18 ,..., u.316 Pag* in. 1 II. n. 350 viii. 14 ii. 40 ix. 8 I.n. 194 xv. 1—21 381 II. 194 240 I. n. 61 1 II. n. 153 5 I. n. 51 6 II. 55 9, 10 I. 381 11, 12 378 20, 21 II. 26 xix. 16 and 18 I. n. 197 xx. 7 II. n. 240 xxiii. 5 I. n. 85 17 II. n. 241 31 I.n. 61 xxvi. 7, &c n. 179 36 176 xxvii. 16 176 xxviii. 2 1 74 39 176 xxxii. 6 and 19 n. 138 18 11.33 xxxv. 30 —35 I. 177 xl. 34 — 38 n. 178 LEVITICUS. xvi. 2 I. n. 178 xix. 32 n. 219 xxiii. 24 II. 220 xxv. 9, 10 220 13 — 16 I. n. 146 23,24 O. 146 « «. a INDEX TO THE PASSAGES. NUMBERS. Page ▼i. 7 La. 92 ix. 16, 16 • n. 178 x. 3* II. n. 246' xii. 6—8 Ln, 97 xiii. 29 II. n. 348 xxi. 14, 15 I. 95 17 II. 33 27 I. 77 27—30 95 xxii. 32 and 34 n. 383 xxiii. xxiv n. 77 97 II. 20 69 81 xxiii. 1, &c II. a. 356 7 — 10 I. 365 19 358 Xxiv. 3 n. 59 6—9 II. 82 6 I. n. 191 26" 1 17 n. 126 Xxix. 1 II. 220 xxxiv. 3 n. 348 n. 348 DEUTERONOMY. ii. 12 II. n. 347 iv. 11, 12 I. n. 197 Yin. 7 132 X. 14—16 II. 239 Xi. 10, 11 I. 132 xxiv. 15 II. n. 240 xxviii. — xxxi I. 324 xxviii. 2, &c II. n. 208 xxx. 1 1, 12, 19 I. n. 209 1—6 II. n. 364 xxxi. 19— 21 19 I. 324 378 II. n. 7 9 19 256" 1 I. 288 II. n. 237 * I. n. 270 276 II. 56 S . . I. 332 5, 6 327 6, 7, 9 II. n. 364 19 ....«.,..., I. 838 Pagt xxxii. 11 I. 278 342 15 324 23, 24 II. n. 91 40 — 42 I. 380 42 II. 43 xxxiii 22 9, 3 I. n. 63 21 U. 6* JOSHUA. iii. 15 I. 131 x. 12, 13 II. n. 152 27 I. 159. xv. 1 and 21 II. n. 348 21 and 41 n. 350 JUDGES. ii. 1 I. n. 344 iii. 31 n. 146 V 378 II. 246 257 1 n. 153 28—30 1. 281, &c. 29 342 vi. 3 II. n. 348 11 I. n. 146 xi. 7 — 15 229 xiv. 11 II. 298 12 301 14 46 18 n. 46 xv. 16" 39 xxi. 25 I. n. 344 RUTH. ii. 4 I. n. 274 iii. 3, 4 n. 61 iv. 5 n. 61 I. SAMUEL. ii. 4 — 7 II. 47 ix. 3 I. n. 146 x. 5— 10 II. 12 xi. 5 I. n. 146 xiv. 39 and 44 II. n. 213 xr. 7 n. 350 22, 23. . . 22 xvi. 12 n. 336 xvii. 44 91 xviii. 7 26 xix. 13 and 16 n. 336 20 — 24 13 xxiv. 14 I. n. 77 20 n. as INDEX TO THE PASSAGES. Page xxiv. 20 II. 173 xxvii. 8 and 10 n. 348 9 and 11 I. n. 144 II. SAMUEL. 1. 17—47 II. 152, &c. 18 I. n. 297 19—27 II. 160 22 n. 153 Hi. 33, 34 126 vi n. 238 vii. 8 I. n. 146 viii. 13 II. n. 244 xii. 1 — 4 I. 229 3 341 31 n. 144 xvi. 7, 8 II. n. 149 xvii. 11, 12 I. n. 219 26, 27 II. n. 148 n. 204 xviii. 9, 10, and 14 n. 253 xix. 4 124 xxi. 1 n. 241 xxii. 13, 14 I. 198 xxiii. 1—7 II. 23 I. KINGS. iv. 30 II. n. 348 31 I. n. 81 viii. 10, 11 n. 178 xiii. 30 , II. 124 xix. 19, 20 I. n. 146 xxi. 3 n. 146 6 n. 144 Xxii. 19—22 II. 357 . 48 I. n. 92 II. KINGS. iii. 15 II. 16 iv. 23 I. n. 61 xiii. 21 159 xviii. 34 n. 93 Xix. 21— 34 II- 23 XXi. 13 I. 153 xxiii. 11 n. 205 I. CHRONICLES. i. 38 and 42 II. n. 348 ji. 6 I. n. 81 xi. 8 n. 144 xii. 15 131 XV II. n. 238 22 and 27 15 XVi. 31 1-289 Peg* xxiii. 5 11.194 xxv. 1 — 3 13 1-7 19* xxviii. 18 I. 181 II. CHRONICLES. iii.l M50 vii. 1, 2 n - 17 8 II. n. 327 3 } 9 n. 328 14 n. 241 xvi. 14 I- 159 xxix. 80 H. 195 xxxv. 25 141 EZRA. iii. 10, 11 II. 275 11 26 vii. 9 2 °7 NEHEMIAH. ix. 11 Ln.6l xii. 24, 31, 38, and 40 II. 26 JOB. See. I. n. II. Analysis of the Book, i. and ii II. i. 6, &c. 22 ii. 1 , &c. 10 iii 1.313 II. 3 4—7... 7 10 14 17 20—24. iv. 2 ... II. n. I. n. II. v. 19 2, 8, 4, 8, and 9 I. 15—20 205 6 143 297 345 371 312 357 357 371 357 372 &c. 143 408 314 317 319 319 164 47 319 64 418 52 143 384 134 273 a o 3 INDEX TO THE PASSAGES. vi 15 20 Page I. 279 19 26 II. n. 350 409 143 20 409 viii. 2 419 3 419 ix. 16 428 25, 26 I. 210 x II. 143 Xi. 2, 3 418 7—9 I. 355 16—18 : 210 %iv II. 143 1—3, and 6 425 XV. 4 418 xvi. 9 — 14 I. 382 xvii II. 143 8, 9 409 16 I. 164 Kviii. 3—5 419 13 Six 2, 3... 21, 22. XX. 2, 3 II. 288 143 426 427 456 10 n. 364 23 I. n. 61 jcxi , II. n. 375 19 n. 356 xxii. 2 I- n. 61 11 II. n. 133 xxiii n. 201 xxiv n. 375 18—21 , • • • I. n. 210 22 n. 64 xxvi. 12 n. 196 yxvii. 1 n- 77 2—7..., 4*1 20 • 133 23 "• 61 xxviii. 22 • 284 xxix • II. >43 1 I. n. 77 7—10 . 412 11—13 . ? 413 14, 16 and 17 413 18—23 426 22, 23 n. 270 24 427 XXX H. 143 ,\xxi. 2—4 414 10 I. n. 64 13—15 414 93 II. n. 354 Tage xxxii. 1 379 2 379 n. 216 3 II. 379 6 — xxxvii 379, &c. 421 15, 16 352 xxxiii. 18 I. 164 xxxv. 2. n. 218 II. 379 4 381 xxxvii. 1 — 4 429 xxxviii.— xli 389 400 421 xxxviii. 4 — 1 1 I. 352 17 164 35 289 xxxix. 24, 25 428 xl. xli 428 xl. 8 II. 379 I. n. 218 10 — 14 359 xli. 2, 3 399 19 288 xlii. 7—17 357 8 II. 356 PSALMS. See. . . I. 99 II. 6 144 159 175 «72 280 0. 293 1. 242 s, 6 iv. 8. ix. 14 xi. 6. 7- xvi. 2 xvii. 7 Xviii, 1 4, 5 n. 60 II. 53 ... L n. 218 . .. 164 . .. 193 n. 61 . II. n. 216 n. 53 } n. 153 7 — 14 I. n. 201 n. 206 . . . 198 13, 14 . . . 193 16 . . . 200 48 ...., . II. U. 133 INDEX TO THE PASSAGES. Page xix II. S3! 8 — 11 50 xxii. 3 and S n. 38 5S IS I. 135 17 — 19 246 -xxiii n. 210 II. 203 xxiv 238 293 5 n. 208 4, 6 and 9 n. 240 xxv I. 57 1 II. n. 2 10 18 n. 58 xxvii. 8 n. 241 xxviii. 1 I. 164 xxix II. n. 202, 251, &c. 3, 4 I. 378 9 II. n. 253 xxxi. 15 n. 216' xxxii. 3 n. 53 xxxiii. 9 I. 351 13, 14 II. 43 14 n. 53 xxxiv I. n. 57 xxxvi. 6, 7 354 xxxvii n. 57 II. n. 134 xxxviii I. 173 II. n. 245 xxxix. 9 I. n. 205 xli II, n. 245 xliii '. . .. 144 n. 151 n. 201 8 I. 133 xliii II. 150 xlv 320 1 298 15 299 xhi. 2, 6 I. n. 143 6 and 10 II. 51 xlvii. 4 n. 133 xlix. 5 , , I. n. 77 1 II. 235 10 I. n. 59 lx II. n. 244 lxii. 12 52 Ixiii 202 Ixv I. n. 206 II. 205 7 I. 175 Ixvii. 1 n. 69 ixviii II. 246 I Page Ixviii. 31 I. 135 lxix. 16 164 22 846 Ixxii 245 II. 206 lxxvii 2 27 12 n. 213 17 I. 289 18, 19 II. 51 Ixxviii 271 2 I. n. 77 17 n. 206 38 and 40 340 4S II. n. 91 59 I. 362 6! II. li. 241 65 I. 362 69 n. 182 72, 73 n. 146 lxxix. 2 n. 59 lxxx II. 202 9, 12 and 14 I. 342 9 — 18 231 18 232 lxxxi II. 219 lxxxiii. 14 and 16 I. 148 9 II. n. 245 13 — 15 I. 276 lxxxv. 11 284 lxxxvi. 4 II. n. 240 lxxxviii. 1 25 7 I. 164 lxxxix. 3 n. 60 xc. 8 n. 208 1, 2, 3, 5 and 6. 9 212 212 215 202 133 2*1 xciii. 1 177 3, 4 II. 42 xciv. 1 and 3 39 9 172 xcvi. 10 — 13 I. 289 379 xc. ii. J II. xcviii. 7, 8 I. 7—9 xcix. 1 ci. 5 n. cii. 8 II. n. 3 n. ciii. 3 — 5 I. n. «4 41 289 379 206 377 60 53 292 64 INDEX TO THE PASSAGES. Page cir I. 340 II. 280, &c. 1—5 I. n. 60 11 n. 59 14 B. 292 20 n. 5.9 CV II. 272 4 n. 241 20 41 cvi 272 13 n. 316 cvii . 276, &c. cix. 13 I. n. 305 CX. 3 217 cxi n. 57 cxii n. 57 cxiii. 5, 6 II. 44 cxiv 242 3, 4. . . I. ». 207 * 8 n. 59 Cxvi. 1, 9, 12, 14, 15, 18. II. n. 53 7 and 19 1, n. 64 12. n. 64 cxix , n. 57 cxx. — exxxiv II. n. 208 exxi 296 exxviii. 1,2 n. 213 exxix. 1, 2 y 39 6—8 , I. 274 exxx. 20 II. 58 n. 240 exxxii. 8 D. 24 1 13 and 15 n. 208 exxxiii f 207 2, 3 I. 261 S. n. 274 txxxv II. n. 199 n. 27 CXKXVl 26 274 exxxvii. 2 . . . n. 53 3 I. n. 64 7 II. n. 73 9 n. 59 exxxix I. n. 211 7—10 355 15 176 17 n. 92 cxl. 7 II. n. 216 exli. 7 I. 164 cxiii. 6 II. n. 216 cxliii. 8. . . . . n. 240 cxHv. 2. II. n. 133 exlv I. n. 57 cxlvii. 7 ,.. II. 33 Page cxlviii 191 5 I. 351 PROVERBS. See In. 77 II. 6 47 164 i.— ix , 164 i. 6 ., I. 97 vi. 3 n. 138 vii. S7 164 viii. 27—31 283 x.-xxxi II. 164 x. 12 173 xiii. 7 46 xx. 12 172 15 170 xxv. 11 165 14 170 16 171 xxvii. 6, 7 46 19 171 27 208 xxviii. 11 46 16 I. n. 60 xxix. 8 n. 194 xxx. 1.... II. 1* 4 I. n. 93 xxxi. 1 II. IS 3 I. n. 64 10—31 n. 5T ECCLESIASTES. See II. 17* n. 17S xi. 1 I. n. 222 xii. 2 — 6 219 11 .II. 167 The SONG of SOLOMON. See . I. 122 227 II. S 279 i. 5 461 7, 8 331 9 308 ij. 6 303 7 . . . * . 303 10—13 334 iii. 1 303 3 n. 330 5 .. .303 6 306 7—10 28* INDEX TO THE PASSAGES. Page iv. 1—5 I. 272 II. 3;i4 11 308 10, 11 334 V 396 1 298 2 303 11—14 341 15 342 I. 134 Ti. 4 II. n. 335 10 303 308 vii. I 329 2 and 4 I. 272 5 134 II. n. 886 viii. 3 303 4 503 5 303 304 6,7 308 13 298 ISAIAH. See II. 60 61 64 69 84 95 i. 2 I. 288 II. 237 5,6 and 16 I. 172 20 n. 59 ii. 7 II. 44 13 I. 135 iv. 5 n. 178 v. 1—7 225 233 7 n. 334 14 1 64 284 24 n. 277 vi. 3 II. 31 vii. 2 I. 270 15 n. 247 ix. 8.— x. 4 II. 279 X. 10 n. 218 14 254 18 135 23—32 334 84 135 ■L 14 II. n. 348 Pat;* xiii. 6 I. n. 884 6 — 13 386 xiv. 4—27 166 294, &c. II. 263, &c. 4 I. d. 64 77 4—9 II. 50 9 and 18 I. 1 68 15 164 19 164 26, 27 358 xv. 1 II. 40 xvii. 12, 13 I. 262 13 149 xxi. 2 n. 92 10 148 xxii. 16 159 xxiv. 1 and 18 — 20 191 17 n. 334 23 138 xxv. 6, 7 p. 141 17 n. 141 xxvii. 7 n. 334 xxviii. 17 221 23—29 228 28 n. 124 xxix. 16 n. 93 xxx. 26 129 xxxi. 4 II. 43 I. n. 388 xxxiii. 1 n. 334 9 13S 18—20 n. 142 xxxiv n. 1 99 II. 70 3 and 4 I. n. 142 4 189 6, 7 II. n. 91 8 — 10 I. 195 11 188 14 n. 190 16 II. n. 75 xxxv 70 n. 78 2 1. 135 xxxvii. 22 — 35 II. Q3 24 I. 185 xxxviii. 10 1 64 14 II. 209 xl. — xlvi 86 xl. 12 and 26 I. 35* 22 n. 191 xli. 15, 16 149 INDEX TO THE PASSAGES. Page alii. 5 Lb. 191 xliii. 2 II. 51 16— 19 I. 196 xliv. 15 n. 6* 1 24 n. 191 xlv. 12 n. 191 8 n. 271 xlrii. l,&c 2S8 xlviii. 21 n. 19S xlix. 7 II. 41 17 n. 316 14, 15 I. 255 24 n. 219 II. 3 D. 191 9 II. n. 253 9, 10 I.n. 196 15, 16 190 liii. 1— 5 II. 37 4 n. 37 8 n. 61 n. 63 11 n. 92 liv. 5 II. 44 315 7, 8 48 Jv. 10, 11 I. 272 lri. 9 n. 59 Ivii. 2 165 6 n. 334 lx. 1 II. 41 1—3 36 2 and 19 I.n. 178 C II. a. 350 19, 20 I. 130 Ixi. 3 3S4 II. n. 333 10 « i. 174 Ixii. 5 ... .II. 317 lxiii. 1 a. 74 1—3 T. 152 1 — 6 ii. 294, ike. 4 — 6 I. 380 Ixiv. 6 167 Ixv. 11, 12 n. 334 13, 14 II. 48 JEREMIAH. See I. 316 II. 84 87 95 lit. 1 , &c 317 "it. 7 I.n. 136 Page iv. 19, &c II. 129 23—26 I. 188 26 135 vi. 29 n. 194 ix II. 89 17 — 22 I. n. 297 xi. 1 5 n. 64 xiii. 21 n. 60 xiv. 17, &c . .• II. 89 xviii. 15 240 xx. 14, 15 I. 316 14 — 18 II. 89 xxii. 6 and 23 I. 1 35 n. 297 18 II. 124 23 I.n. 60 27 II. 240 xxiii. 9 17 xxv. 20 n. 348 23 n. 350 15—26 73 30 I. 363 xxx. 21 II. n. 316 xxxi. 21 I.n. 60 35 n. 190 xlvi.— 1 II. n. 348 xlvi.— li. — 59 89 xlvii. 6, 7 I. 290 xlviii. 2 n. 334 45, 46 n. 96 xlix. 7 II. 35* n. 349 7, 9 and 10 100 7 and 20 n. 349 8 n. 349 14 — 16 10O 16 I. n. 60 19 n. 136 2* II. n. 349 ■' •■> I. n. 60 MB 148 i~ * n. 9t lii II. nu 89 LAMENTATIONS. Sea I. 57 II. S 131 — 139 i. 1, 2, and 17 I. 288. 7 II. 13S 8, 9, and 17 I. 172 12 and 16 II. )39 21 154 ii. 2 .,. ...I, ,17f 4 ...* a*i INDEX TO THE PASSAGES. Page ii. 19. . II. 135 iii. 13 I. 288 14 II. n. 133 14 and 66 I.n. 293 53 159 iv. 3 n. 64 15 II. n. 135 21 ii. 347 EZEKIEL. See II. 61 64 8 89 95 Hi. 14, 15 17 vii. 6 I.n; 334 xiv. 14 and 20 II. n. 365 xv I. 225 xvi n. 60 227 II. 320 10, 13, and 18 I.n. 176 xix II. 143 1—9 I. 226 10 — 14 225 xxi. 31 n. 1.04 n. 270 xxii. 21 n. 294 xxiii 227 II. 320 xxiv. 3 — 13 I. 228 25 II. 240 XXV. 13 n. 349 12 n. 73 xxvi. 1 2 and 18 I.n. 64 20 164 XXvii II. 142 3 I.n. 60 xxviii. 12 II. 85 12—19 142 xxix. 19 I. n. 64 xxxi 135 226 234 10 U. 226 11 and 14 — 17 234 13—15 II. n. 93 14 I. 164 xxxii II. 142 2 I.n. 137 7, b 131 IS 164 18— Z-l 166 Page xxxii. 19, &c 1 6,V 23 164 xxxiv. 18, 19 n. 137 xxxv. 15 II. n. 73 xxxvi. 17 I. 172 xxxviii. 12, 13 n. 64 17, 21 II. n. 92 xxxix. 18 I. 133 DANIEL. See II. 61 100 vii. 19 I.n. 137 28 II. 17 x. 8 17 xi. 4 I. 30S xii. 2 II. n. 208 HOSEA. See II. 9S ii. 1 5 33 vi. 1, 2 42 ix. 15 I. n. 334 xi. 8, 9 II. 39 xiii. 7, 8 I. 363 xiv. 6—8 261 6, 7 II. 51 JOEL. See II. 96 i 97 6, 7, and JO I. 335 ii 335 II. 97 iii. 14 1. 148 15, 16 189 18 n. 143 iv. 19 n. 92 AMOS. See II. 97 i. 1 I.n. 146 3, &c II. 52 11 n. 73 11, 12 n. 349 ii. 9 I. 261 iv. 1 135 2 n. 38 v. 1, 2 II. 128 I.n. 297 5 n. 334 16 II. 128 vii. 14, 15 I.n. 1-46 viii. 8 II. n. 185 INDEX TO THE PASSAGES. Page OBADIAH. See II. 100 1—9 100 3 n. 216 8 n. 349 352 t, 9 n. 349 JONAH. See II. 61 100 MICAH. See II. 98 i. 3, 4 I. 196 10 — 15 n. 334 ii. 4 n. 77 6 1.n. 270 iii. 12 n. 64 n. 277 iv. 13 148 v. 7 219 Vi. 1 288 6 — 8 , ... II. 20 16 I.n. 293 vii. 14 135 NAHUM. See II. 99 i. 2 41 11 n. 316 iii. 12 1. 154 HABAKKUK. See II. 64 99 ii. 9 II. 216 iii 259 2 17 n. 259 I. 284 5 II. n. 91 8 I. n. 207 10 -289 12 148 16 II. 17 Page. ZEPHANIAH. See II. 99 ii. 4 I. n. 334 14 n. 59 HAGGAI. See II. 100 ZECHARIAH. See II. 100 ii. 5 I. n. 178 ix. 5 II. 43 xi. 1 I. 135 3 n. 136 MALACHI. See II. 100 i. 3, 4 n. 73 ii. 14 n. 93 ECCLESIASTICUS. See II. 176* i. 25 I. 97 vi. 35 . . 97 xviii. 29 97 xxiv II. 178 181 26 I. 131 27 II. 185 xxxiii. 15 I. 101 xxxix. 1 — 3 II. n. 97 xliv. 4 I. n. 81 xlix. 8 n. 181 1. 5—13 n. 174 WISDOM. See II. 176 viii. 8 I. n. 97 BARUCH. iii. 22 ? 23 .II. 35* I. MACCABEES. xiii. 29 r. ..I. n. 16* INDEX OF REMARKABLE CIRCUMSTANCES NOTICED IN THE LECTURES AND NOTES. A. ACROSTIC, or Alphabetical Poe- try, still prevails amongst the Sy- riaus, Persians, and Arabs, vol. ii. p. 134. This art too minute to be generally consistent with true ge- nius, vol. ii. p. 134. n. JEschylus aPythagorean, vol. i. p. 14. A (at us, a spirited asserter of liberty both by his sword and his lyre, vol. i. p. 22. Allegorical, one of the first modes of composition adopted by nations emerging from barbarity, vol. i. p. 21 5/n. Allusion, Comparison, and Simile, distinctions observed by critics in the use of these words, vol. i. p. 251. n. Amafanius, works of, vol. i. p. 9. Amos, his excellence as a prophet, vol. ii. p. 98. Anomalies, instances of, in the He- brew language, vol. i. p. 59- n. Apollo, Pythian, a very indifferent poet, vol. ii. p. 102. Apothegms used by the Orientals when they would reprove pride and arrogance, vol. ii. p. 420. n. Argillu:, subterraneous caverns in- habited by the Cimmerians, vol. i. p. 161. n. Aristotle 's definition of Poetry com- pared with History, vol. i. p. 17. Ascensions, Odes of the, vol. ii. p. 207- n. When sung, ib. Azarias, a Jewish Rabbi, his opinion of the conformation of the Hebrew sentences, vol. ii .p. 54. BALAAM, character of his pro- phecies, vol. i. p. 69. Bildad, the friend of Job, who, vol, ii. p. 349. n. Brevity and Obscurity of the ancient proverbs, to what cause they may be ascribed, vol. ii. p. 16'9. n. Buz, country of, where situated, vol. ii. p. 350. CAAB, an Arabic poet, curious si- mile of, vol. i. p. 143. Callistratus, his ode, and its great celebrity, vol. i. p. 23, 24, 25. Carmel, Mount, a common image of fertility, wealth, and beauty, in the Hebrew poetry, vol. i. p. 135. Catius, Cato, Columella, w ritings of, vol. L p. 9- Cicero, a very indifferent poet, vol. i, P- 3. Cimmerian Caves of Campania gave rise to the opinions of Homer and Virgil concerning the infernal re- gions, vol. i. p. 161. n. Commentators, errors into which the* have been betrayed by tluir igno- rance of the Hebrew, vol. ii. p. 243. n. Comparison, the first and most natuiat of all rhetorical figures, vol. i. p s 106'. u. Comparison, Simile, and Allusion, dis- tinctions observed by critics in the use of these words, vol. i. p. 251. n. Compariion, two capital ^perfections INDEX OF to which this figure is liable, vol. i. p. 268. Cretans, laws of the, accompanied with music, vol. i. p. 84. Critic, duty of, vol. i. p. 139, 155. D. DESCRIPTIONS, not easy in some to decide whether they are to be as- signed to the Sublime or Beautiful. Instances of this, vol. i. p. 303. n. Destriptimi, to judge rightly of, it is necessary to have as distinct and clear ideas of the thing itself as the author, vol. ii. p. 429. Divine Spirit never takes such entire possession of the mind of the pro- phet as to subdue or extinguish the character and genius of the man, vol. i. p. 347. Dramatic exhibitions, their com- mencement and progress, vol. ii. p. 287. n. E. EDOM, why particularly marked as an object of divine vengeance, vol. ii. p. 75. n. Elegance not inconsistent with bre- vity and obscurity, vol. ii. p. 172. Elegy, the ancient, vol. i. p. 26. Not only the Lamentations of Jeremiah, but parts of the prophecy of Eze- kiel, of the book of Job, and of the Psalms, are elegiac, vol. ii. p. 141, 143, 144. Elihu, his character, vol. ii. p. 422. EUphaz, who he was, and where he dwelt, vol. ii. p. 349. n. Enallage of the tenses ought never to be introduced but. when the mind is sufficiently heated not to perceive the illusion, vol. L p. 338. n. Enthusiasm, poetical, vol. i. p. 79. Epic Poetry, its character and effects, vol. i. p. 19, 20. Euripides known amongst his friends by the appellation of the Dramatic Philosopher, vol. i. p. 14. Ezc/iiel mi'tn'ior in elegance to Isaiah, vol. ii. p. 89. His character as a prophet, ibid. Not excelled by Isaiah in sublimity, ibid. F. congenial, of Meta- FIGURES, phor, Allegory, aud Comparison, used by the Hebrew poets in a pe- culiar manner, vol. i. p. 216*. Firmicus Julius, an astronomical writer, vol. i. p. 10. GEORGICS of Virgil a delightful and perfect work, vol. i. p. 9. Glosses in the Hebrew language, vol. i. p. 63. n. Greeks indebted to the Egyptians for their notions of a future state, vol. i. p. 207. n. Arguments in sup- port of theHebrews deriving theirs from the same source, visionary, vol. i. p. 212. n. H. HABAKKVK, character of his style, vol. ii. p. 99. Haggai, the Prophet, his style alto- gether prosaic, vol. ii. p. 100. Happiness, human, consists in action, vol. ii. p. 390. Hebrews, opinion of M. Michaelis, that they as well as the Greeks and Romans borrowed their poetical imagery from the Egyptians, vol. i. p. 204. n. This hypothesis ingenious but fanciful, vol. i. p. 211. n. Hebrew Metre, a considerable part of it probably consisted in the pa- rallelism of the sentences, vol. ii. p. 53. Hebrew Poets, their peculiar com- mendation, vol. i. p. 154. Hebrew Poetry possesses excellencies peculiar to itself, vol. i. p. 53. It* opposition to the Greek and Latin poetry, vol. i. p. 70. Its dialect distinctly poetical, vol. i. p. 60. Greatly superior to the Grecian, vol. i. p. 37. Hebrew versification, little know- ledge of it now to be attained, vol. i. p. 52, 65, H6, 67. Hebrew word expressive of the poetic style admits of three significations, vol. i. p. 73. The same used to deno'e a Prophet, a Poet, and a Musician, vol. ii. p. 13. Heroic Poetry, its character, vol. i. p. 11. History inferior to Poetry as a means of instruction, vol. i. p. 16- Homer % tusexcelleuge, vol, i. p. 1 1,1 2. Hosea 3 REMARKABLE CIRCUMSTANCES. Jlosca, characteristics of his stylo, vol. ii. p. 95. Hoi-nee., tlif 3d ode of the 4th boot commended, vol. ii. p. 813. Hyperbole requires passion to give it force or propriety, vol. i. p. lOi). n. IDVMjEANS eminent for wisdom, vol. ii. p. 852. Jermti i't probably the author of the 139th Psalm, vol. ii. p. 64. Jew*, futility of their opinions re- specting Daniel, vol. ii. p. 61. Linages, sensible, reason why amongst such as arc applied to the Deity, those principally which seem most remote from the object, and most unworthy of the Divine Majesty, are, when used metaphorically, tbe most sublime, vol. i. p. 861. Images of Light and Darkness, com- monly used in all languages to de- note Prosperity and Adversity, vol. i. p. 127. Jjnagina/ion and Judgment, their dif- ferent constituent principles, vol. i. p. 263. Isai/ih, consideration of the 3 1th and 35th Chapters, vol. ii. p. 70. Cha- racter of Isaiah as a Prophet, vol. ii. p. -S4. Superior in elegance and sublimity to Jeremiah, vol. ii. p. 87- Job, the booh of, manifestly written in Arabia, vol. i. p. 33. Style of it materially different from the poetical style of Moses, vol. ii. p. 353. More ancient than any of the sacred books, vol. ii. p. 354. No vestige of an allegorical mean- ing throughout the poem, vol. ii. p. 357. Divine authority of this hook not affected by the doubt of its being founded in fact, vol. ii. p. 358. n. Some arguments in fa- vour of this Poem's being written by Moses, vol. ii. p. 366. n. In- vestigation of, and objection! to, this opinion, vol. ii. p. 867. n. Wonderful regularity in the struc- ture of this Poem, vol. ii. p. 404. Joel, characteristics of his style, vol. ii. p. 96. Judgment strengthened by researches after objects of taste, vol, i. p. i. L. LANGUAGE of the Passions, and Language of Reason, remarkable difference between them, vol. i. p. 308. Lamentation of David for Saul and Jonathan, a beautiful poem of tl»e elegiac kind, vol. ii. p. 152. Para- phrased, ibid. Lamentations, Book of, superior to any Other poem in splendid, and at the same time concentrated ima- gery, vol. ii. p. 138. Lazes origiually written in verse, vol. i. p. 83, 86. n. Those of some nations accompanied «itk music, vol. i. p. 84. Lcbauoti, Mount, an usual image in Hebrew poetry for whatever is conspicuous, august, and sublime, vol. i. p. 135. Lions very commonly roaketheir den* among the reeds upon tlte banks of the rivers, vol. i. p. 135. n. LoMginus the most accomplished au- thor on sublimity, vol. i. p. 307- Lyric Poetry, its effects, vol. i. p. 20, 21, 22. M. MAT.ACHI, book of, written in a kind of middle style, vol. ii. p. 100. Mandrake, opinion of the Orientals relating to it, vol. ii. p. 344. n. Manilius a writer of the Augustan, age, vol. i. p. 10. An indifferent poet, ib. Metaphor, its principal advantage over the Simile or Comparison, vol. i. p. 107. u. Metaphors not unnatural in extremes of passion, though Comparisons are, why, vol. i. p. 108. n. Metonymy, what, vol. i. p. 109. n. Micah, characteristics of his style, vol. ii. p. 98. Mind, human, can dwell only on one object at a time, vol. ii. p. 391 - n. Morality tbe only branch of discipline which can be successfully treated ot in verse, why, vol. ii. p. 160. u. Mystical Allegory, its origin, vol. i. p. 236. | NAHUM, INDEX OF N. NAHVM, characteristics of his style, vol. ii. p. .95). Natural objects supply the principal ornaments of all poetry, vol. i. p. 189. Numa, his Salian poems of higher antiquity than any other Latin po- etry, vol. ii. p. 192. O. OB AD I AH, greatest part of his prophecy contained in one of the. prophecies of Jeremiah, vol. ii. p. 100. Ode, characteristics of, vol. i. p. 19. vol. ii. p. 1.96". Its effects, vol. i. p. 20. Odes of the Ascensions, vol. h. 207- n. QLdipus Tyrannus Of Sophocles, vol. ii. p. 393. Might have been so constructed as to form a poem simi- lar to that of Joh, vol. ii. p. 399. CL'dipus Coloneus of Sophocles, story of, vol. ii. p. 401. Cannot pro- parly be brought into comparison with the book of Job, vol. ii. p. 403. Oratory of more recent origin than Poetry, vol. i. p. 229. n. Orientals stain the hair arid com- plexion with henna, in order to give it a yellow or golden cast, vol. ii p. 341. n. Ossian, foundation of the poems at tributed to him, voi. i. p. So", n. PARABLE, necessary that the li- teral should never be confounded with the figurative sense, vol. i. p. 230. Parallelism, use and definition of, vol. ii. p. 57. n. Periphrasis, a species of Metonymy, vol. i. p. 109. n. Persit/s, the satirist, the. difficulty of understanding him arises princi- pally from his use of metaphors, which are obscure, and but slightly related, vol. i. p. 123. JPherecydes, contemporary with Cy- rus, the £rst Greek who published a prose oration, vol. i. p. 83. PMlogepfty necessary to poetical emi- nence, vol. i. p. 14. Philosopher and Poet setm principally to differ in pursuing the same ends by different means, vol. i. p. 7. What these are, vol. i. p. 7, 8. Pindar, his excellence, vol. ii. p. 225. Poetry, its origin, vol. i. p. 366'. Use- ful principally from its being agree- able, and of more utility than Phi- losophy, from this circumstance, vol. i. p. 8. Proofs of this posi- tion, vol. i. p. 8, 9, 12. Its effects, vol. i. p. 35, 36. Propriety of as- signing it a place amongst the other liberal arts, vol. i. p. 4. By whom the professorship at Oxford was instituted, vol. i. p. 5. n. Poetry, lighter kinds of, their utility, vol. i. p. 31. Poetry, sacred, its superior excellence, vol. i. p. 36. Its character, vol. i. p. 37. From it we are to learn- both the origin of the art, and how to estimate its excellence, vol. i. p. S8. Its connexion with Pro- phecy, vol. ii. p. 18. P$etr$, prophetic, its character, vol. ii. p. 68. Poets, perusal and imitation of them exercises and improves the under- standing, and gives a grace to the manner of expression, vol. i. p. 32. Opinion of the Greeks respecting them, vol. i. p. 49. Prophecies, scriptural, many of them conspicuous as poems, vol. ii. p. 19. Instances, vol. i. p. 90. vol. ii. p. 2©, 21, 22, 23. Prophecy, its end, and the means em- ployed for producing this end, vol. ii. p. 65. Its connexion with Poe- try, vol. ii. p. 18. Prophesying accompanied with music, vol. ii. p. 12. Prophets, their office, vol. ii. p. 11. Prosopopoeia, vol.i. p. 109. n. Nearly allied to the Metaphor, and still nearer to the Metonymy, vol. i. p. 281. n. Psalmody, Hebrew, though usually restricted to two alternate chorus- ses, sometimes extended to more, vol. ii. p. 27- Psalm 23d, when probably composed, vol. ii. p. 203. n. Paraphrase of the 42d. On what occasion this Psalm was composed, vol. ii. p. 243. Paraphrase of the 133d, vol. i. p. 261. RABBIN- REMARKABLE CIRCUMSTANCES. R. RABBINICAL notions concerning inspiration, vol. ii. fe'2. b. Religion, the source of poetry, vol. i. p. 37, 3S. The soil in which she flourishes most, vol. i. p. 39. S. SACRED WritvigSy why it is not possible for any translation to do perfect justice to them, vol. i. p. 182. Sepulchres, Hebrew, described, vol. i. p. 159. Some very magnificent ones, supposed to have belonged to their kings* still remaining in Judea, vol. i. p. 16'0. Socrates applied to music in conse- quence of a dream, vol. i. p. 41. Solomon, his wife alluded to in the Canticles, could not be the daugh- ter of Pharaoh, vol. ii. p. 330. n. Solon had recourse to poetry when any difficulty occurred in the ad- ministration of public affairs, vol. i. p. 27. The astonishing effect produced by his verses, vol. i. p. 28. Song of Solomon, an allegorical poem, vol. ii. p. 311. This opinion con- troverted, vol. ii. p. 322. n. Again supported, vol. ii. p. 326". n. One circumstance in it which bears a near affinity to the Greek drama, Vol. ii.p. 307. What qualities are necessary in a critic who attempts an explanation of this poem, vol. ii. p. 340. n. Stesichorus, a writer of considerable eminence, vol. i. p. 22. Style in the historical and metrical parts of the book of Job remark- ably dissimilar, vol. i. p. 312. Sublime connected with the pathetic, means of exciting it, vol. i. p. 371. n. Sublimity, there is none where no passion is excited, vol. i. p. 374. T. TENSE, speaking of the present in the future, not peculiar to the Hebrews, but still common in our own country, vol. i. p. 342. n. Tkcoeritus supposed to have been acquainted with the .Song of Solo- mon, vol. ii. j). 307. Threshing, four different methods of performing it described, vol. i. p. 223. n. Nature and method of this operation in Palestine, vol. i. p. 14!). Tragedy, vol. i. p. 13. Its excellen- eies, vol. i. p. 12. Tragic Muse preferred by Aristotle to the heroic, vol. i. p. 13. Translations, their difficulty, why that of the Bible continues to be read with satisfaction and delight, vol. i. p. 1S2. n. TyrttT/es, the Greek tragic poet, vol. i. p. 18; V. VARRO, learned, vol. i. p. 9. Virgil, opinion concerning his 4th Eclogue, vol. ii. p. 105. n. In- quiry into the validity of this opi- nion, vol. ii. p. 108. .Child re- ferred to not the Messiah, but the expected offspring of Octavius, from 108 to 120. n. U. UZ, or Gnutz, land of, evidently Idumaea, vol. ii. p. 347- n. Where situated, vol. ii. p. 348. n, W. WATER, frequently used as a me~ taphor by the Hebrew poets, why, vol. i. p. 131. IVomen, amongst the ancients ge- nerally employed as mourners at funerals, vol. ii. p. 127. Z. ZECHARIAH, his style chiefly pro- saic, vol. ii. p. 100. Zcphaniah, his style poetical, vol. ii. p- 99. Zophar, where ha probably lived, vol. ii. p. 350. n. THE END. VOL. II. HH Fruited by S. Gosneli, little Queen Street, London. I DATE DUE 1B9B1YB 406rJ 29-04-03 32180 MS I? BS1405.8.L922v.2 Lectures on the sacred poetry of the Princeton Theological Seminary-Speer Library 1 1012 00033 8840 DATE DUE J UN 1 n t w# * {J 2{ m 1 GAYLORD #3523PI Printed in USA