Dr. Prideaux hath afferted the contrary,) as it will, I think fuffici--ently appear from the following Inftances.

First, it must have been fo in the Afiatick Year before-mention'd. For otherwife how could Solon have afferted that there were 25200 Days in SEVENTY Years ?This was no otherwife than as fo many Days made fo many Years of three hundred and fixty Days in the Year in the COLLECTIVE Sum of such a form of Year.

If it be faid that there was now however an Intercalary Year alfo among the Greeks, 'tis what I have above granted. But here it must be likewife granted on the other hand, that there was a known Computation alfo by this other form of Year in the collective Sum thereof both among the Greeks, and Lydians, as the Parties concern'd in the Discourse referr'd to, were of those Countries.

For otherwise how could Crafus have understood Solon in this way of Difcourfe to him, had not this Collective Computation of feventy Years by a Year of three hundred and fixty. Days been equally known, or in practice both in Lydia and in Greece (x)?

'Twere indeed abfur'd to fuppofe that the wife, and grave Solon would have troubled Crafus with fuch a Computation of Seventy Tears, had it not been then in known practice even in the Collective Form thereof. I fee not what could otherwise have juftified Solon's making mention thereof in his Philofophical Discourse with the Lydian King. ------ But

Secondly, and more especially, we have, I think, a clear proof hereof among God's People under their Babylonish Captivity: As that could have been a Seventy Years Captivity by no other than this kind of Year in the Collective Form thereof. For that Captivity, as it may be seen above (y), commenced from the taking of Ferufalem by Nebuchadnezzar the Son in the fourth Year of Jehoiakim in the Year before A. D. 606, in the beginning of November of it (z). And it ended in the first Year of Cyrus, after the Death of Darius, who died at Babylon in the Year before A D. 537, when Cyyus fucceeded in the whole Empire (a). And fo the learned Dr Prideaux hath himself told us under this Year (b), viz. that the fe

venty

(x) Solon is faid to have been the first Inventor of the Intercalary Year among the Greeks, [See Fof. Scal. Em. Temp, p. 23, 24. and Ricciolius p. 35. from Proclus lib. 1. in Tim. Plat.] But that is laid to have been soon dropt. [v. fupra. However it would not pass with the People. They ftill kept up their antient year of 360 Days.- - Even Ariftotle accounted by it as the Year in ordinary Account in his time. [Hift. Anim. VI, 20.] Quedam ex canibus quinta Anni parte parturiunt, nimirum diebus 72: Laconica uterum gerit fexta parte Anni, h. e. diebus 60. And among the Athenians after Ariftotle's death, [for he died in the year before A. D. 322] the year in vulgar Account was still the fame: for they erected for him 360 Statues at Athens, as many as there were days in the year. [Diag. Laertius in Vit. Dem. & Plin. 1. 34. c. 6.------ nondum anno hunc numerum excedente, are Pliny's Words.]. See Prid. Con. Hift. p. 552.--------- See Langins de an. Chrifti p. 158. See allo Ricciolius; and alfo Leo Allatius de menf. temp. c. 10. where there are many more inftances of this nature than I am here willing to trouble the Reader with. () V. the first set of Chron. Tables. (x) (a) Ib. p. 129, 139, (4) Ib. So alfo in our

V. Prid. Con. Hift. p. 63. first fet of Tables.

venty Years which Jeremiah had prophefied, fhould be the continuance of the Captivity, were now just expir'd, viz. in the Year before A. D. 537, in the November of it (c). Wherefore as Dr Prideaux hath thus rightly concluded the Years of the Jewish Captivity at Babylon in the beginning and ending of them, the fame could not poffibly have been of feventy Years continuance by a folar form of Year, (for from the Month of November of the Year before A. D. 606 to the fame Month in the Year before A. D. 537, there are undeniably only 69 Solar, or Julian Years) but it was of fo long continuance, certainly in the collective Sum of the Jewish Farm of Year now before us, as feventy fuch Years are found (d) in fo many Julian Years.

Thus it must neceffarily have been, if Dr. Prideaux's own Calculation be just here; as undoubtedly it is: As Babylon was taken by Cyrus in the 17th Year of Belshazzar toward the end of the Year before A. D. 539; And as Darius's two Years Reign expir'd, confequently in the Year before A. D, 537 to the giving fome part of the end of that (e) Year to Cyrus, as his reign muft truly have begun then immediately upon the death of Darius.

And fo allowing with Dr. Prideaux (f) Cyrus his Decree to have gone forth presently after the death of Darius, and as Dr. Prideaux hath put it, in the middle of November alfo, and then with him allowing, after the going forth of the faid Decree a Month's time for the Jews preparing for their Journey, and alfo four Months for their march from Babylon, (which was the time (g) in which Ezra performed the like march,) the beginning of the faid March muft thus have fall'n out about the middle of the December of the faid Year 537 before A. D. where Dr. Prideaux hath placed it accordingly. And fo of course the coming of the Jews into their own Land was in the April following, viz. of the Year before A. D. 536; and of the Scripture first Year of the Reign of King Cyrus.

But thus there could not now poffibly have elapfed feventy Fulian Years, as it was just now obferv'd. We may add here, feventy fuch Years from fuch profeffed beginning, as above, could not poffibly have been expir'd till the November of the Year before A. D. 536. But the returning Jews are here fuppofed, and indeed in the truth hereof, to have been releafed from their Captivity twelve Months before, and to have been upon their March eleven Months before, and actually to have been in their own Country feven Months before the faid November, or the November of the Year

(c) Ib. & Prid. p. 130. (d) The Difference is only 2 d. 6 h. as in 69 Julian Years there are 25202 Days 6 hours, in 70 Years, of the other kind of Year there are only 25200 Days. (e) Truly foin Dr. Prideaux's own Tables at the end of Vol. 1. Con. Hift. Truly fo upon the authority of the Phanician Annals, as the fourteenth Year of the Reign of King Hirom, in which according to them Cyrus was made Emperour of Perfia, is corresponding with the faid Year; As it may be seen in our first fet of Tables. (f) Con. Hift. p. 129, 139, (g) As Dr, Prid. hath

bferv'd from Ezra VII. 9.

Year before A. D. 536. Therefore 'tis beyond all contradiction that the feventy Years Captivity of the Jews was expir'd as above; to the giving us thus confeffedly no more than fixty nine (b) Fulian Years between fuch profeffed beginning, and fuch profeffed ending of this Captivity as above; and to the evidently furnishing us therein with this moft remarkable Inftance of the form of Year of 360 Days, used in this collective Sum of feventy Years, in God's own determined (i) duration of his People's Vaffalage to the King of Babylon. But

Thirdly, We have yet a proof behind, which to us Chriftians (k) is as great as can be given in this matter, to the confirming this form of Year to be the fure Year of reckoning in the collective Sum of feventy Weeks, or the four hundred and ninety Years of this Prophecy. It is this: Namely, that whereas the Angel who deliver'd this Prophecy to Daniel, Ipeaks elsewhere to him of a number of Years in his prophetical way, that number of Years is refumed, and explained in the Revelations of St. John, by being turned into fo many times three hundred and fixty Days.

The Angel Gabriel who deliver'd this Prophecy of the Weeks to Daniel was the fame whom he had feen in the Vifion at the beginning (), i. e. whom he had feen in his first Vision (m), and who then gave him a Prophecy of a time, and times, and half a time (n). A TIME in Daniel's Senfe is a Year. So the feven times (o) that paffed over Nebuchadnezzar in his beftial State are by Jofephus (p) called feven YEARS (q).

But that there might be no room for doubt here, Daniel thus explains himself elsewhere, viz. in Ch. XI. v. 13, where it is faid in our Tranflation, that the King of the North fhall come after certain Years. There it is in the Original, he fhall come at the end of times (r), even of Years.

And thus we are to understand those words of the Angel, where in the first Vision he faith (s) of the fourth Beast, He ball wear out the Saints of the most High and they shall be giv'n into his band, until a time, and times, and the dividing of a time. This Chaldee Phrase, the dividing of a time is rendred in Hebrew, Half a time (t).

And fo the words are refumed in the Book of Revelations (u), A time, and times, and half a time. This is plainly Daniel's Language: and according to the Expofition now giv'n, it fignifieth in common Speech nothing else but à Year, and Years, and Half a Year.

(b) Indeed 2 d. and 6 h. fhort of fo many Julian years. See laft Note. d. (i) By his Prophet Jeremiah xxv. 11, 12. xxix. IO. ally to Dr. Prideaux, as it will appear hereafter. {) Ch. vii. 16.

(P) Ant. x. ii. bis. understand it.

ppofition.

How

(k) It must be fo elpeci(4) Dan. ix, 21.

(1) V. 25. (0) Ch. iv. 25 32. (9) So Bellarmine [de Rom. Pont. iii. 8.] faith, All Men, (7) The Wordy here is not placed in regimine, but in (s) Ch, vii. 15.

(†) Ch, xii. 7.

(~) Cb,

How many Years are meant by the word times in Daniel's Prophecy, we had not certainly known, if it had not been for that place in the Revelations (w) last mention'd. There (x) it is first laid proleptically of the Woman perfecuted by the Dragon, that after her Child-birth, he fled into the Wilderness, where he hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there 1260 Days,-------- Again this is faid in its proper place (v. 14.) that to the Woman there was giv'n the Wings of a great Eagle, that he might flee into the Wildernefs, where he is, nourished for a time, and times, and half a time from the face of the Serpent.

In both these Texts the Perfon that is fpoken of being the fame Perfon, and the thing that is faid of her being the fame thing, the time of its continuance alfo must be the fame time alfo in both thefe Verses. And therefore 1260 Days in verse the fixth must be the fame with a time, times, and half a time in verse the fourteenth. This being clear, there is no difficulty in finding out the Form, or Measure of thefe Times, or Years. For the number of Days 1260 being to be reduced into a year, years, and half a year, that is, into three years and a half, it cannot be reduced into Years of any other form than that now before us of three hundred and fixty Days. This number 360 is found in the collective Sum of 1260 Days, one time, and two times, and half a time. And fo that number of Days is alio divided into one year, and two years, and half a year. But fo many Days making fo many Years, and one half of a Year in, or by fuch form of Year, it doth fo no otherwise than as being here evidently used in the collective Form thereof.------I need only to add

Finally, that All this is Confeffedly fo in the learned Dr. Prideaux's own account hereof, as he hath told us (y), that Daniel's time, and times, and half a time [ch. xii. 7.] are THREE YEARS and a HALF, a time in that place fignifying one Year, and times two Years, and an half of a time an half Year, as ALL AGREE.

And again (2), THREE YEARS and an HALF, reckoning them by MONTHS of THIRTY Days length make JUST 1260 DAYS. Thefe Days therefore literally understood make the three years, and an half, during which the Prophanation, and Perfecution of Antiochus Epiphanes remained in the Church of the Jews, &c.

But how after all could this be, otherwise than, as I have been here fhewing, as a Form of Year of three hundred and fixty Days was ordinarily known among the Jews, and used in the Collective Form thereof, and as it appears in this remarkable instance of it, evidently and confeffedly fo late as in the Days of Antiochus Epiphanes (a) in the accomplishment of the Prophecies of Daniel relating to him Wherefore then should not the fame Form of Year

(x)) Ch. xii. 14.

P. 209.

(x) V. 6.

have

(y) Con. Hift. Vol. ii. p. 208. (a) His Prophanation of the Temple, and Perfecution by Apol lonius, began in 168 before A. D. He died in the year before A. D. 164.

have been intended in the Prophecy of the feventy Weeks giv❜n by the Angel to the fame Prophet Daniel? What is confeffedly the Form of Year in the Collective Form thereof in a Prophecy of three Years and a half, why not equally fo in a Prophecy of the fame Prophet of four hundred and ninety Years?

And fo leaving this, and the foregoing Proofs with the Reader, I may now put an end to this Chapter, and therewith to the fecond Part of this Treatife; as I have now done with the feven Weeks, and fixty two Weeks of this Prophecy. There remain yet to be fpoken to, the One Week, and the more diftinguished One Half thereof: and they will make up the third Part, in that which is now to follow concerning them.

PART