permitted to be in conformity with ftill more antient ufages, in order to have them the more extensively and univerfally understood. "Thus, when the law had been delivered to the people of Ifrael by Mofes, at Mount Sinai, and had been written by Mofes in a book; we are told, as the translation stands in our copy from the Hebrew,* that Mofes builded an altar under the hill, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Ifrael.' And the tranflation of the feventy expressly calls them twelve ftones. "And when Joshua, with his whole army, and all the people, had paffed over the river Jordan, whose waters had been dried up on that occafion in a miraculous manner, (probably by means of some earthquake, or convulfion, ftopping those from the upper part, while those below ran off, and fell away;) we are told, that in confequence of the exprefs appointment of the Almighty, Joshua commanded twelve men + to take up twelve ftones out of the midst of Jordan; And thofe twelve ftones which they took out of Jordan did Joshua FITCH in Gilgal. And he spake unto the children of Ifrael, faying, when your children fball afk their fathers, in time to come, saying, what mean thefe ftones? Then ye shall let your children know, faying, Ifrael came over this Jordan on dry land. For the Lord your God dried up the waters of Jordan from before you, until ye were paffed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up from before us, until we were gone over: that all the people of the earth might know the hand of the Lord that it is mighty; that ye might fear the Lord your God for ever.' "Now the word pitch, here used in our tranflation, and the Greek word, which we find in the Septuagint, feem plainly to indicate, that thefe ftones were fet up as pillars. Although, indeed, their being carried upon men's fhoulders, fhews, that they must, perhaps, have been but fmall, in comparison of fome other pillars fet up as memorials. It fhews, however, that they were chosen of a shape "See Exodus, Chap. xxiv. Ver. 4, 5, 6, 7, 8.” Mr. King attributes the drying up of Jordan to " some earthquae, or convulfion, ftopping thofe [waters] from the upper part; while thofe below ran off, and fell away." But this is very incautiously faid, as it is very contrary to the infpired narrative," as the feet of the priests that bare the ark," fays that narrative, "were dipped in the brim of the water (for Jordan overfloweth all his banks all the time of harvest,) that the waters which came down from above" were not stopt by an earthquake or a convulfion swallowing them up, but "STOOD and ROSE UP UPON AN HEAP, and thofe that came down toward the fea of the plain, even the salt sea, failed, and were cut off:- and, when the priests were come up out of the midft of Jordán, and the foles of the priests' feet were lifted up unto the dry land, that the waters of Jordan RETURNED UNTO THEIR PLACE, AND FLOWED OVER ALL HIS BANKS, AS THEY DID BEFORE," Rec and and form fit for that purpose. And if they were, indeed, fet up, in a group, as spillars; there is no form in which they can be conceived to have been placed fo likely as that of a circle. This has been remarked by Dr. Borlafe*; who also concluded, that twelve such stone pillars were fo placed, by Mofes, near Mount Sinai, at the time of the giving of the law, and of Mofes's going up into the mountain; becaufe it is faid, that when he rose up early in the morning, he builded an altar under the hill, and twelve pillars. "In the Septuagint, it must be confeffed, the expreffion is such as not neceffarily to imply any thing more than that the altar was built with twelve ftones. And it muft alfo be acknowledged, that in the other inftance mentioned, with regard to Jofhua, we find Jofephus faying, ⚫ that Joshua built an altar of those ftones, which all the heads of the tribes had taken out of the deep; to be afterwards a memorial of the divifion of the ftream of the river.' Which seems, indeed, at firft fight, to imply, that the altar was built with those very twelve ftones; inftead of their being fet up as pillars. Yet, when we confider that, even in the Septuagint verfion of the Scripture, the Greek word used, exprefsly indicates that the ftones were pitched (or fet up) in Gilgal; and not that they were placed to compofe or form an altar: and that twelve other ftones alfo are exprefsly faid to have been fet up, in Jordan itfelf, before the waters rofe again, in its bed, to their usual height; it is much more reasonable to conclude, that these maffes of rock were, in both instances, placed as pillars, according to the ufage of the times, as a memorial of this great event; rather than that they were so laid upon one ano ther as to form an altar." || We think they were formed into an altar, as they remained visible in Jordan even down to the days of Ezra ¶; and could be visible only from lying one upon another: they thus appear to have compofed an altar, juft as Jofephus fays the others composed one. "The common idea," notes Mr. King, in a more important paffage, which the prejudices of education, and of vulgar apprehenfion, have taught us to form, with regard to what are called high places, in the writings of Mofes, and the Prophets, is, that they were the fummits of hills but though our Stone Henge is, indeed, on the fummit of a wide extended hill country; and the Moabitish altars, erected by Balak, were on very elevated fpots; and fo probably were many others; yet it manifeftly appears, from many paffages in Scripture, that the word, which we tranflate high places, rather referred [re. * "Antiquities of Cornwall, P. 195." +"Exodus, Chap. xxiv. Ver. 4." "Antiquities of the Jews, Book v. Chap. 1." "Joshua, Chap. iv. Ver, 9." "Pr. 133-135." 1 Jofhua iv. 9. "and they are there unto this day." So Genefis 14. as it is faid to this day." Rev. xxii. 65 ferred rather] to the height, and elevation, and defign, of the structure itself, than to the height of its fituation: and was generally made ufe of merely to denote, with peculiar emphafis, its being a Bauos, or altar of oblation*: whilft on account of each kind of high place being, in reality, applied to fuch a horrible fuperftitious ufe, in the worship of falfe gods, both the name and thing itself became, in every inftance, where it is mentioned in Scripture, fo juftly an object of facred abhorrence. "That this name does not imply neceffarily a place, or structure, on the top of an hill, is manifeft from the cautious diftinction preferved, in the enumeration of the idolatrous compliances of Ahaz, King of Judah; † where it is faid, we facrificed and burnt incense in the high places, and on the hills, and under every green tree. "And alfo, that in every feveral city of Judah he made HIGH PLACES to burn incenfe unto other gods, and provoked to anger the Lord God of his fathers. "And from the manner in which the prophet Ezekiel § reproaches the Jews for building high places in ftreets; and threatens that the enemy shall break them down; it is not only obvious that such high places were not properly hills, or ftructures on the fummits of hills; but also that they were composed of rude ftone, or artificial materials, which might be broken in pieces by violence. This alfo appears from several other paffages of Scripture, even where any of them are spoken of as being in reality fituated on hills, or eminences. "Thus the fame Prophet fays, Ye mountains of Ifrael, hear the word of the Lord God-thus faith the LORD GOD TO THE MOUNTAINS and to the HILLS, to the RIVERS and to the VALLEYS, bebold, I, even I, will bring a fword upon you, and I will deftroy your HIGH PLACES. Where we may observe high places are mentioned, as being on the fides of rivers, and in valleys, as well as on mountains, and hills. "Again, it is very remarkable, that in the law, where the high places, according to our tranflation, are threatened to be destroyed; the version of the Septuagint uses the word has to defcribe them; as threatening the deftruction of their pillars. "The command alfo, in the book of Numbers,** fhews that high *There is a paffage in Scripture, fo peculiarly corroborative of the opinion here, that we wonder Mr. King has not enlifted it into his fervice. "Then I faid unto them, what is the high place whereunto ye go? And the name thereof is called Bama unto this day." Ezekiel xx. 29. The margin reads thus, I told them what the high place was, or, Bamah. The Greek Bapos thus appears to be merely the Hebrew Bamah. REV. +"2 Kings, Chap. xvi. Ver. 4. S" Ezekiel, "Ezekiel, Chap. vi. Ver. 3.” "Numbers, "2 Chronicles, Chap. xxviii. Ver. 25." Chap. xvi. Ver. 31, 39." Leviticus, Chap. xxvi. Ver. 30.” Chap. xxxiii. Ver. 52." places places were artificial fabrics, that might be pulled down, or overturned. Ye fhall quite pluck down all their high places. In reciting which command, the verfion of the Septuagint again uses the word Einas, pillars; thereby implying, that rude stone pillars were, at least, a very confiderable appendage to, and an important part of, the affemblage of objects in thefe places of fuperftition. "And it is very remarkable, that, in the account given of the abominations of Jeroboam, we even read, that he made an houfe of high places. Indicating, perhaps, that a number of them were capable of being contained within one vaft inclofure; (as in the inftance of Abury, in this country): though here it must be confeffed, the Septuagint differs from our tranflation, by saying only, that he made dwellings at the high places.' "Further, we read, concerning the high places, that they were not removed, or taken away, by Afa,+ or by Jehoshaphat, or by Jehovab §; for the people OFFERED, and BURNT INCENSE yet in [or on] the high places. Which both implies that they were, in reality, removeable; and fhews that they were ufed as altars of oblation. And we find that, by the good King Hezekiah, they were, at last, actually removed and taken away. "Further, we read that, by Manaffeh, I the high places, which Hezekiah, his father, had destroyed, were again built up. "And again we read, that by that faithful prince, Jofiah, (who had even been foretold by name, by the word of divine prophecy) the high places, where the priests had burnt incenfe, were defiled **; and that he brake down the high places; and took away, (or removed) the houses of the high places. And the words, in another mention of high places, in the conclufion of the hiftory of the ten tribes, are ftill more explicit for there it is exprefsly faid, that the chil dren of Ifrael BUILT them HIGH PLACES IN ALL THEIR CITIES.++ And there they burnt incenfe, in all the high places, as did the Heathen, whom the Lord carried away before them.' And in words to the fame purport, the Septuagint has the tranflation, as well as our verfion. “And, indeed, that their being structures of this fort is the true *" Kings, Chap. xii. Ver. 31, 32.” Ver. 14." +Ibid. Chap. xv. Ibid. Chap. xxii. Ver. 43. § “2 Kings, Chap. xii. Ver. 3." "This is confirmed by 2 Kings, Chap. xiv. Ver. 4; Chap. xv. Ver. 4, 35; and by Chap. xviii. Ver. 4, 22; and by 2 Chronicles, Chap. xi. Ver: 15; Chap. xiv. Ver. 3; Chap. xv. Ver. 17; Chap. xvii. Ver. 6; Chap. xx. Ver. 33; Chap. xxi. Ver. 11; Chap. xxviii. Ver. 4, 25; Chap. xxxi. Ver, 1; Chap, xxxiv. Ver.. 3." 2 Kings, Chap. xxi. Ver. 3." ** Ibid. Chap. xxiii. Ver. 8, 19." ++Ibid. Chap. xvii. Ver. 9, 11." idea of bigh places, appears not only from this concluding part of the hiftory of the Ifraelites, fo far as relates to the ten tribes, but also from what is faid in the very beginning of the hiftory of the kings of Judah, before the building of the temple. * "For there we read, that the people facrificed in HIGH PLACES, because there was no house built unto the name of the Lord, until those days. "And Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the ftatutes of David, bis father: only he facrificed, and burnt incenfe in high places. "And the King went to Gibeon to facrifice there; for that was the GREAT HIGH PLACE; a thousand burnt offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar. "And we cannot but obferve, that although, indeed, in the Sep, tuagint, only the words vxnaas, uxnaolain, and Quaıgoingtov, are used; yet that the altar of facrifice, at Gibeon, must have been a prodigious large one, to admit of the offering up fuch a number of burnt offer ings, according to any of the obfervances appointed by the law, "When Solomon afterwards offered up his magnificent burntofferings, on the dedication of the Temple, we find it exprefsly faid, that the altar there was not fufficiently large on that occafion. The King did hallow the middle of the Court that was before the houfe of the Lord: for there he offered burnt offerings, and meat offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings: because the brazen altar that was before the Lord was too little to receive the burnt offerings, and meat offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings."‡ Mr. King has thus, with fome variation of idea, in firft calling the High Place of Scripture an Altar, in then reprefenting it as a pillar, and, in finally arguing it to be an altar again, at last refuted the erroneous opinion which has been fo generally prevalent among Biblical scholars, which was particularly entertained by the very writer of this article, and proved the high places to have been actually high altars, Having done this, he proceeds to find the fame among the claffic authors of heathen antiquity. "We read, in Homer's Ody ffey," he tells us, "that when Teles machus approached the coaft of Pyle, he found old Neftor, and his Pylians, performing facred rites on the fea fhore; and that there were nine ga, which word may furely much better be tranflated nine bafes, or feats, or tables of honour; or, in other words, nine high altars; than by any other expreffion we can make use of. Pope's tranflation, in this inftance, as in fo many other places, is merely a fort of paraphrafe, conveying but very imperfectly any thing like the real meaning. |