or Divine Revelation, wholly confined to Abraham, or to his Family. In Canaan we meet with Melchizedeck, King, and Prieft of the most High God; who is acquainted with the bleffing promised to Abraham, and confirms it to him; and to whom the Patriarch himself pays Homage. Abimeleck King of Gerar receives an admonition from the Lord, and readily pays a due regard to it; the fame fenfe of Religion and Virtue defcends to his Son; ‡ from whence we learn, that this Country was at that time far from arriving at that great degree of Corruption, which it reached in a few Generations after. In Arabia we find Job, and his three Friends, all of Regal Dignity, as fome fay, entering into the deepest points of Divinity; and agreed about the Unity, Moft probably the Patriarch Shem himself. v. Cumberland de Leg. Pat. p. 428, &c. Bedford Scrip. Chron. p. 318. Lightfoot. Mifc. 1010. The fame opinion is maintain❜d by many other Authors mentioned by Calmet. Di&t. V. 2. pag. 177. + Gen. 20. Gen. 26. 10, 11. V. LXX. in fin. Job. Tobit 2. 16. vulg. Lat. Job infultabant Reges. ev. Cleric. in Job 6. 10.-23. 12.-29.4.-33.15, 23. Gen. 32.8.33.15. c.4. 12, 15, 16. "See Patrick, App. to Par. on Job. p. 59. * See Calmet, Dict. or Coftard's Obfervations, p. 13. Jurieu, Crit. Hift. V. 1. p. 18. Shuckford, B.7.p.136. &c. Selden de Jur. Nat. &c. L.7. c.11. See fome of them in the Five Letters on Infpir. p. 99. and Le Clerc on Job 1.6, 8, 11, 22.-2.9.-6.10.-11.10, 22.-23.12.-26.12.-31.27.-38. 3.-42.7. Id. Sentim. de Theolog. L. 9. p. 177. &c. et Biblioth. Chois. Tom. 24. A.1. Add Chaldeifmi in Indice ad Cler. Comment. Tom. 4. The manifeft mixture of Chaldee in the Compofition, which Le Clerc makes out in many inftances, befide the in pro im [fee Mr. Peters's Crit. Diff. p. 133. t] feems of fome mo ment Omnipotence, and Spirituality of God; the Juftice of his Providence, and other Fundamentals of Religion; as also mentioning a Divine Inspiration or Revelation, as no very uncommon thing, *Eliphaz had his Vifions, and Revelations || as well as Job, though in a lower degree; and the latter expreffes his Faith in much stronger Terms, than are elsewhere to be met with near his time; if according to the addition to the Seventy, he was the fifth from Abraham, or according to others, contemporary either with him, or Ifaac. Though, in truth, it is not very easy to settle either the Date of that Piece, or the Import of feveral expreffions in it. Some bring it down as low as the Captivity: nor are they without their reasons. However, ment towards determining it to be more modern than is ufually imagined, and is I apprehend rather too flightly paffed over both by the ingenious Author of Crit. Diff. and those other eminent writers he produces; though Le Clerc, with his ufual modefty, leaves the Confequence from thence to the Date of the Book wholly undecided; nay, himself affigns à reason why the latter is no neceffary Confequence from the former: Jobus, nimirum, ad Euphratem in Hufitide habitavit, ubi Lingua Chaldaica, aut Chaldaicæ adfinis obtinebat. Id. in C. 15.13. As to the famous paffage in C. 19.25. on which he gives his judgment with more freedom, I muft produce the Conclufion, though fomewhat of the longeft, in his own words. Jam ex ipfis totius hujus loci verbis fatis liquere poteft, Jobum de refurrectione fua non agere; quam nunquam veteres hic quæfiviffent, nifi pravis interpretationibus tranfverfi acti fuiffent; ut conjicere eft ex Judæis, qui verba Hebraica fequuti, dogma, quod alioqui credunt, hinc exfculpi poffe non putarunt. Sed id ipfum, cum ex multis aliis locis, in quibus fatis aperte Jobus oftendit ftatum animorum, poft mortem, tunc ignotum fuiffe, tum ex totius libri argumento facile colligitur. Quæritur in eo, cur, qui non funt deteriores aliis qui boni habentur & revera funt, interdum inufitatis calamita E 2 tibus all feem to agree that, whoever was the Author of it, it is built upon a real Character; and that decorum kept up, as to fuit the Notions in it to the Patriarchal Times. To proceed: In Chaldea we meet with Balaam, a true Prophet; yet one who from his own perfonal merit, had no particular pretenfions to the Word of God; fince he fo notoriously loved, and tibus premantur; quod quomodo confentire queat cum Juftitia Divina, nec Jobus, nec Amici poffunt comminifci; imo nec Deus ipfe, ubi Jobum poftea adloquitur, docet. Nimitum folutio problematis, & una confolatio, qua Jobi animus pacari poterat, peti debuit ex alterius vitæ cognitione ; quam fi noviffent Jobi amici, vetuiffent eum ufque adeo perturbari & lamentari: effe enim dixiffent aliud tempus præ miorum Virtutis, idque expectari ab eo debere, poft hanc vi tam mortalem ; & eo majora præmia relaturum, quo graviores calamitates conftantius tuliffet: quibus præmiis mala hujus vitæ Deus abunde effet penfaturus. Jobus ipfe hoc ad animum revocaffet, nec ufque adeo æftuaffet. Quod fi talia corum mentem non fubiiffent, Deus certe, fi res jam revelata erat, dixiffet, monuiffetque Jobum, fibi vifum fuiffe tot malis ejus virtutem explorare; ut magis in ea ipfe firmaretur, aliique eam imitarentur, quibus fimilia contingerent; nec effe cur fibi duritiem & propemodum injuftitiam exprobraret; fe enim non propter fingularia quædam peccata paffum effe eum tantis & tot fubitis malis opprimi, fed ut ejus virtus magis eniteret, exemploque aliis effet; cæterum effecturum fe ne hominem conftantiæ fuæ pœniteret, æternis & eximiis in eum collatis præmiis. Quæ oratio, (fi rem tum patefeciffet Deus) multo ejus fummæ Sapientiæ convenientior erat, quam creatio Crocodili & Hippopotami, aliaque id genus; quæ Jobum quidem terrere potuerunt divinæ potentiæ metu, fed folari vix potuerunt. Hæc qui ad animum revocabunt, facile intelligent, nihil effe cur, veluti per fidiculas, conemur Refurrectionem & vitam æternam hinc extorquere. Plura hac de re non addam, quæ funt apud Theologos quærenda. Scio hic me diffentire a plerifque, fed nunquam putavi, in inquifitione vocum fcripturæ, numeranda effe fuffragia hominum, qui alii alios exfcribunt; fed tantum rationum rationem habendam. Whoever is difpofed to weigh these reafons * followed the Wages of Unrighteoufness; and at length justly perished among the idolatrous Midianites; having taught them to feduce and corrupt those whom he knew to be the chofen People of God. + Confidering, I fay, the Character of this Perfon, he feems to have had no particular Title to the Gift of Prophecy; and therefore we may suppose that in those days it * reafons fairly, may find them more at large in his Notes; and will perhaps fee fmall ground to fuppofe with the learned Author of Crit. Diff. p. 216. that when he wrote them he bad begun to lose his Wits. I muft confefs, I am forry to obferve fo candid a writer as Mr. Peters, betraying the fame Contempt of that great Man [whofe Comments, I freely own, give me the most Inftruction, and to whom, notwithftanding his mistakes, I apprehend the learned world is infinitely obliged] as too many of our Countrymen have done, whenever they mentioned him; and hope I fhall be excufed for taking notice of what feemed, not the most proper method of destroying the Authority of that learned and ingenuous Foreigner [whofe writings are the most effectual guard against this way of judging, and thereby probably have given fo great offence to fome amongst us] but rather an Infult on the memory of one, who would not have returned the like, had he been able to defend himself; and which treatment was by no means neceffary to recommend this Gentleman's performance; for which [notwithstanding some exceptionable paffages, particularly that in the fame Sect. p. 225. of the Gentile Nations being left for ever in the State of Death: a Doctrine, which to me appears more harsh than any that has been advanced by poor Le Clerc] I take the prefent opportu nity of paying him my moft fincere acknowledgments; and heartily rejoice in the profpect we now have of fecing all the Difficulties in this noble Book, and all the Errors in our Verfion of it, at length removed by the united labours of those many able Writers who are now happily engaged therein. a See Patrick, App. to Par. on Job. p.60. * Numb. 31.8. + Numb. 24.9. and 31. 16. Mic. 6.5. Rev. 2.14. b Whatever might have been his behaviour before, it was certainly very bad in the whole of his affair; during which, was not fo uncommon a favour; but might be conferred on many others likewise, in other parts of the world, whofe History is not delivered. down to us : And upon the whole, it seems probable that, as in every Nation, those who feared God and worked Righteoufnefs, were accepted of him, fo he was pleafed alfo to manifeft himself, where ever men were difpofed to make a proper ufe of that Manifeftation; and in fuch time, manner, and degree, as would beft answer the ends of his good Providence, and most effectually pro mote the Intereft of Religion. * Not to infift upon the numberless Traditions of fupernatural appearances, and the common Belief of them, all over the world; which notion can hardly be fuppofed to have arifen at firft he had the fulleft Revelations, and yet was always either directly disobeying, or endeavouring to defeat the intent of them; as may be seen in Bp. Butler's excellent Sermon on that Subject, and Dr. Shuckford's Connection. B. 12. p. 314, &c. As to the particular manner of thefe Revelations, we may I think fuppofe them to have been all made in Vifion, Dream, or Trance [as our Tranflators have interpreted one hereafter mentioned] though from the narration it is as difficult here, as in fome other parts of Scripture, to diftinguish between real Fact in the moft literal Senfe, and visionary, fymbolical Reprefentations, fuch as occur in Job, c. 1. . 6. - 12. & ib. c. 38. 1 Kings, c. 22. *. 19. -23, &c. Jer. 25. 17. 27.3. Ezek. 3.1, 2. 4.6. &c. Zech. 1.2. and perhaps Gen. 32. 2, 24. vid. Theodoret. (though Dr. Clarke gives another interpretation of this paffage, Serm. 19. p. 126. Dubl. Ed.) That of the Angel meeting Balaam in the way, feems to be thus explained by himself, Numb. 24.3, 4. (when rightly rendered) where he alludes to the very Circumftance of his eyes being fhut for fome time c. 22.31. Nor does it feem very probable that he, who was faid to be in the retinue of the Princes of Moab, Numb. 22. 21. fhould at any Time be fo far feparated from them in the way, as to give room for fuch a remarkable Tranf |