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him as such, but upon the matter to adore him. The "Italian Jews gave him credit, and so did many of the Jews of Germany also, whither he came out of

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Italy. We are told that he was mightily caressed "in Italy, and received for the Messias; though the

Jews of that place, after they saw their error, did "not care to own him. A certain Jew, that by or"der of the Jews called him into Italy, tells us, "that, upon conversing with him, he found him to

be an inchanter, and very silly; that he thereupon "warned the Jews not to believe him; upon which "the credulous Jews were so enraged that they "treated their monitor very maliciously, and dis"missed him from the place of his abode. They "withal threatened him very severely, if he durst "speak evil any more of their Messias: that this

Jew continuing to disparage this impostor, the Ita"lian Jews were so enraged, that they endeavoured "to cast him out of the place where he was settled, and declared that whosoever should do him mischief,

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or bear false witness against this person, who "defamed their Messias, should be esteemed guiltless." Kidder.

Joannes a Lent wrote a Schediasma de Judæorum Pseudo-Messis. Bishop Kidder treated the same subject in his Demonstration of the Messias, and made use of this Schediasma: and I have borrowed from them. both. Kidder's book contains much useful erudition delivered in a slovenly and plebeian style, as may be seen in this specimen. De La Croix, in his Relation of the Othoman Empire, hath also given us an ample account, and many curious and entertaining particularities of Sabatai Sevi, who when he had apostatized, preached at Constantinople, and drew over many

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Jew's

Jews to profess Mohammedism. At last he was com mitted to prison for the rest of his days, and died A. D. 1679. La Croix saw him, and heard him preach.

With Rabbi Mordecai endeth the history of the false Messiahs, and the Jews (I think) have had none since. It may seem strange that they should have rejected Christ, who gave them so many proofs of his mission, and yet should follow every impostor, who pretended to be the Messias without offering any sufficient or even plausible evidence of it. The reason is plain: Our Saviour, by not setting up a temporal kingdom, dashed all their worldly views at once; but the other claimers of the title of Messiah began with promises of delivering them from their enemies, and restoring to them their country and their lost liberties.

Let us now go back to the destruction of Jerusalem by Vespasian and Titus, The Jews, who escaped this slaughter, remained in a poor condition, in various parts of the Roman empire *.

Iis autem, qui in Juda remanserant, Titus imperavit ut-nullus sabbatum deinceps servuret; nullus a menstruata muliere se conțineret, quemadmodum ex tractatu Talmudico Megilla clarum est. J. a Lent,

Was ever any thing so absurd? and who, but a Talmudist, or a Cabbalist, could take it into his silly head to conceive that Titus would have published such a decree, to plague the poor Jews?

-atque

Concerning the state of the Jews from the destruction of Jerusalem to the end of the fifth century, their ecclesiastical government, their colleges, their talmud, or deuteroses, their rabbins, doctors, patriarchs, and apostles, there are some curious remarks in Pezron, Defense de l'Antiquité des Tems,

―atque equidem,

Tum etiam, si nolit, cogam ut cum illa una cubet.
Terent. Adelph. v. 3.

This good-natured emperor was so far from persecuting, that he pitied and protected them; and when he was at Antioch, and the people there earnestly importuned him to banish the Jews from that city, he checked them, and said, Where would you have these unhappy men go? they have now no country and city of their own to receive them. Josephus B.

J. vii. 5.

Domitian succeeded Titus, and was a cruel and worthless prince, who oppressed all his subjects, but particularly the Jews. He imposed heavy tributes upon them which they were ill able to pay, and exacted them with great rigour and insolence.

After this, in the time of Trajan, the Jews grew weary of their dependency and of the Roman yoke, and raised a rebellion in Libya, Egypt, Cyprus, and Mesopotamia; they exercised all sorts of iniquities and cruelties, and slew an innumerable multitude of people. If they had not been infatuated, they would never have chosen such a time to rebel, when the Romans had one of the greatest, bravest, and wisest emperors that ever reigned, who understood war perfectly, and who loved it too much, for with many accomplishments he had that defect. This revolt brought on a war between the Jews and Romans: battles were fought, and the Jews were beaten, and severely punished.

After Trajan, Adrian was emperor, who also was a great and powerful prince, and who took care to maintain numerous and disciplined forces. Under him the Jews rebelled again in Palæstine, headed by

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one Barcochab, an impostor and a false prophet, who was a robber and a murderer, and ravaged the country, and did incredible mischief.

Encouraged by this villain, the Jews drew together, and attempted to settle at Jerusalem, whereby they provoked Adrian to send an army against them, which took Jerusalem and destroyed it down to the ground a second time, and slew all the Jews that were to be found, not sparing even the infants. If we may believe the Jewish writers, their nation at that time suffered calamities not less severe nor less extensive than those under Vespasian. It is said that there died by sword, famine, sickness, and fire, five hundred and eighty thousand persons. The surviving Jews were sold in the markets, like beasts, to any who would purchase them, for a small price.

When this war was thus ended, Adrian forbad all the Jews on pain of death to set foot in Jerusalem, It is said by some ancient writers, that once a year they purchased leave to approach their old city, and there to fast and weep over its ruins.

Adrian then rebuilt a city near the place where Jerusalem stood, gave it a new name, peopled it with Pagans, and made it a Roman colony,

It appears from some passages in history that not long after this, under Antoninus Pius, the Jews rose and rebelled again, and were repressed. It is astonishing how after so many calamities they should have had the resolution and the strength to appear in

arms.

Under his successor Marcus Aurelius, one of the best emperors that ever lived, they were so foolish and infatuated as to join themselves to a base worthless rebel, who rose up against so good a master: but the

emperor

emperor forgave them, and shewed them more mercy than they deserved.

Under Severus they were troublesome, and did something that provoked him to make war against them, in which he had the advantage. This emperor, who was of a cruel disposition, published a rigid edict against them, and threatened to punish any of his subjects who should embrace their religion.

The conversion of Constantine produced a great revolution, by which Christianity became the established religion. And now the Jews were subject to Christian, as they had been before to Pagan emperors; but this revolution brought with it no advantage to them: it was rather a detriment.

"The Jews were not much happier under Chris"tian emperors than they had been under the reign "of idolaters. Their condition varied according to

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the temper of their rulers. Christians had suffered "so much from persecution, that they could not instantly change their maxims and their notions about "it. Constantine contented himself with making "some laws which laid some restraint on the liberty "of the Jews, though they were the objects of his "hatred but the Christians insensibly followed the

bent of corrupted nature, which inclines us to tor"ment and punish those who contradict us in mat"ters of religion. Even the councils, which ought

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to have been more equitable, gave into this spirit, " and became the incendiaries which inflamed the princes against the poor remains of this unhappy "nation. We often make our boasts of the prevailing influence of humanity, and imagine that the "dictates of nature suffice to teach us compassion for our fellow-creatures. But pride is another princi

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