This

their military chiefs, (who were also their priests-their legal teachers,) and of their small armies, the affairs of their country were restored, then, in point of fact, "many did cleave to them with flatteries"-professed friendship for them-and entered into covenants with them. they did, not with any view to promote the advantage of the Jewish people, but, like true flatterers, to promote their own selfish ends. To refer to a few examples of this when Demetrius and Alexander contended for the Syrian throne, the former wrote the most flattering letters to Jonathan, who succeeded Judas in the command of the Jewish armies, that he might obtain his aid against his competitor. Alexander, on the other side, addressed him in yet more flattering terms, calling him his brother, and the king's friend, and naming him to be high priest of the Jews. Demetrius, observing that Alexander was likely to obtain Jonathan's assistance, wrote to the latter again, offering his nation many important favours and immunities; but," says the historian," when Jonathan and the people heard his words, they gave no credit to them ;""but with Alexander they were well pleased,"—" and were confederate with him always."* Ptolemy, king of Egypt, also "honoured Jonathan, and wrote him among his chief friends, and made him a duke, and partaker of his dominion." The younger Demetrius of Syria, also, when contending against Tryphon, and the young Antiochus, the son of Alexander, addressed Jonathan in the most flattering letters and embassies, and obtained from him

66

* 1st Macc. x.

1st Macc. x. 65.

very important aid.

"Nevertheless he dissembled in all

that ever he spake, and estranged himself from Jonathan, neither rewarded he him according to the benefits which he had received of him, but troubled him very sore.' ""* When Antiochus, the son of Demetrius, afterwards contested the Syrian throne with the usurper Tryphon, he addressed Simon,—who, by that time, had succeeded Jonathan,-in letters still more flattering than any of those to which we have yet referred, giving him authority to coin money, declaring Judea free, and promising Simon high honours. "But he brake all the covenants which he had made with him afore, and became strange unto him.”+ During the same period, also, the more distant Romans and Lacedemonians made and renewed leagues with the Jews, as related at length in the eighth, twelfth, and fourteenth chapters of 1st Maccabees; and we well know, how flattering and treacherous the leagues of the former people, especially, always were.

V. 35th." And some of them that cause to be wise shall fall, to refine by them, and to make clean, and to make white, till the time of the end; for this shall continue to an appointed time."

We have already seen, that Bishop Newton objects to interpreting the 34th verse as referring to the Maccabees, because they prevailed and triumphed over all the power of the enemy, and established the Jewish religion and government upon a firmer basis than before; and so the Jews were far from falling into a state of persecution again, —as he imagines this 35th verse intimates they should do.

* 1st Macc. xi. 53.

1st Macc. xv.

But the terms of this 35th verse do not appear to intimate the renewal of any general persecution, like that foretold in the 33d, and preceding verses, in which, in the terms of the prophet, " many" were to fall. There is a special limitation of the prediction here, to "them that cause to be wise;" by whom, we trust, it will now be allowed, after the preceding observations, we may well understand the teachers of the Jews, who were, according to the Mosaic law, the priests, the descendants of Aaron.— Both the afflictions which were to befal these teachers, and the national improvements which were to flow from them,-intimated, the former, in some of them falling, and the latter, in refining, and making clean, and white, by them, were to continue longer than the general persecution; for the general persecution was to endure only for days, but the others were to continue to the time of the end, and to go on to an appointed, or set, time.

We see, then, that Bishop Newton's conception of the prediction in this 35th verse is erroneous. The verse refers exclusively to the teachers, and only some of them are to fall. It therefore intimates no general persecution.

We acknowledge there is more apparent difficulty in illustrating this verse than any we have yet directed our attention to; yet we trust to be able, by a careful investigation of the conditions implied in its terms, and by following the continuous stream of history of the time, to get at a satisfactory explanation of it. For the history of the time, we must now have recourse to an additional authority; as the history in the Books of Maccabees is that only of a very limited period. For what succeeds, we have an excellent authority in Josephus, the Jewish historian.

is an authority allowed to be every way competent for fidelity and clearness. Bishop Porteus justly says of him, "The fidelity, the veracity, and the probity of the writer, are universally allowed; and Scaliger in particular declares, that not only in the affairs of the Jews, but even of foreign nations, he deserves more credit than all the Greek and Roman writers put together."* We shall afterwards have occasion to make many references to, and quotations from, him; and as it is with broad substantial facts we have here to do, and not with any peculiarities in his style, we shall make our quotations from Whiston's Translation, to avoid all suspicion of suiting a translation to our views.

The difficulty, in the 35th verse, chiefly lies in being able to ascertain what particular era, in the progress of events, is meant by the end. Now, in proceeding to determine this, we observe, that the end is a time after the conclusion of the general persecution, foretold in the preceding verses; for we have noticed, that the prophet makes a very plain distinction between the duration of that persecution, and the duration of the events predicted in this verse. The former is to continue for days-the latter to some specific end; and we are naturally led to infer, that the time, by which the latter extends lower down than the former, is some very noticeable period, since the prophet marks it so carefully. It will be readily allowed, however, that, considering how continuously he has, in the preceding part of this chapter, from the 5th verse downwards, followed the natural order of the history of the Græco-Syrian and Græco-Egyptian kingdoms, without

* Bishop Porteus' Lectures on the Gospel of St. Matthew.-Lec. xx.

passing over any remarkable events in them affecting Daniel's people, we ought to look out here for a like continuity, in the events predicted, in respect of the succession of time. We are, in fact, from the preceding order of the prophecy, led to expect that this, and the following parts of it, will not leave any great void in the history of Daniel's people, but will foretell the more remarkable events in succession, and with a corresponding closeness. We therefore look for the fulfilment of the events predicted in the 35th verse, in the time of Antiochus Epiphanes, and immediately after it, when Daniel's people obtained help. It is to be noticed, that although the arrival of deliverance, by the help of a few, is foreshewn previously to this verse, yet,-as the predictions in it relate specially to the fortune of the teachers, of which we had heard nothing peculiarly proper to them before,—we seem at liberty to look for what particularly befel them, both during the persecution, and immediately after it.

We observe next, that down to the era here called the end, there are to be teachers,-all the time,-placed in some conspicuous station, such as might make their authority and example effective; as is clearly implied in the refining, and making clean, and making white, that are occasioned by them.

Next, that these teachers are, some of them, to fall; which, looking at the sense of the term in the 33d verse, we must interpret of their suffering violent deaths, or being led captive, or spoiled of their property, or rank, down to the time of the end.

Lastly, we observe, that down to that end, the refining, and making clean, and white, are to continue.