green, and sometimes yellow. These fragments give to some of the most venerable sites in the world, the appearance of a deserted pottery rather than of a town. The fact is, however, that they occur only upon the sites of towns which were built with crude brick; and this suggests that the heaps of ruin into which these had fallen being disintegrated, and worn at the surface by the action of the weather, bring to view and leave exposed the broken pottery, which is not liable to be thus dissolved and washed away. This explanation was suggested by the actual survey of such ruins; and we know not that a better has yet been offered in any other quarter. It is certainly remarkable that of the more mighty cities of old time, nothing but potsherds now remains visible at the surface of the ground. Towns built with stone, or kiln-burnt bricks, do not exhibit this form of ruin, which is, therefore, not usually met with in Palestine. POTTER. The potter, and the produce of his labours, are often alluded to in the Scriptures. The fragility of his wares, and the ease with which they are destroyed, supply apt emblems of the facility with which human life and power may be broken and destroyed. It is in this figurative use that the potter's vessels are most frequently noticed in Scripture (Ps. ii. 9; Isa. xxx. 14; Jer. xix. 11; Rev. ii. 27). In one place, the 456. [Modern Egyptian Potter.] power of the potter to form with his clay, by the impulse of his will and hand, vessels either for honourable or for mean uses, is employed with great force by the apostle to illustrate the absolute power of God in moulding the destinies of men according to his pleasure (Rom. ix. 21). The first distinct mention of earthenware vessels is in the case of the pitchers in which Gideon's men concealed their lamps, and which they broke in pieces when they withdrew their lamps from them (Judg. vii. 16, 19). Pitchers and bottles are indeed mentioned earlier; but the bottle' which contained Hagar's water (Gen. xxi. 14, 15) was undoubtedly of skin; and although Rebekah's pitcher was possibly of earthenware (Gen. xxiv. 14, 15), we cannot be certain that it was so. The potter's wheel is mentioned only once in the Bible (Jer. xviii. 2); but it must have been in use among the Hebrews long before the time of that allusion; for we now know that it existed in Egypt before the Israelites took refuge in that country (Wilkinson, Anc. Egypt. iii. 165). The processes employed by the Hebrews were probably not in any way dissimilar to those of the Egyptians, from whom the use of the wheel may be supposed to have been adopted. There is the greater probability in this, as the materials, forms, and manufacture of earthenware vessels are still very similar throughout Western Asia-and ar also the same which were anciently in use. This we know from the comparison of ancient paintings and sculptures with modern manufactures, as well as from the vast quantities of broken pottery which are found upon the sites of ancient cities. The ancient potters frequently kneaded the clay with their feet, and after it had been properly worked up, they formed it into a mass of convenient size with the hand, and placed it on the wheel, which, to judge from that represented in the paintings, was of very simple construction, and turned with the hand. The various forms of the vases were made out by the finger during the revolution; the handles, if they had any, were afterwards affixed to them; and the devices and other ornamental parts were traced with a wooden or metal instrument, previously to their being baked. They were then suffered to dry, and for this purpose were placed on planks of wood; they were afterwards arranged with great care on trays, and carried, by means of the usual yoke, borne on men's shoulders, to the oven' (Wilkinson, Anc. Egyptians, iii. 163-167). POTTER'S-FIELD. [ACELDAMA.] PRÆTORIUM (Пpaiтúpiov). This word denotes the general's tent in the field, and also the house or palace of the governor of a province, whether a prætor or not. In the Gospels it is applied to the palace built by Herod the Great, at Jerusalem, and which eventually became the residence of the Roman governors in that city (Matt. xxvii. 27; Mark xv. 16; John xviii. 28, 38; xix. 9). In the two first of these texta it may, however, denote the court in front of the palace, where the procurator's guards were stationed [JERUSALEM] Herod built another palace at Cæsarea, and this also is called the Prætorium in Acts xxiii. 35, probably because it had, in like manner, become the residence of the Roman governor, whose head-quarters were at Cæsarea. In Philipp. i. 13, the word denotes the Prætorian camp at Rome, i. e. the camp or quarters of the Prætorian cohort at Rome. PRIEST, HIGH PRIEST, &c. (j, priest; Sept. Iepèus; Vulg. sacerdos). The English word is generally derived from the New Testament term presbyter [elder], the meaning of which, is, however, essentially different from that which was intended by the ancient terms. It would come nearer, if derived from potornu or potoтaual, 'to preside,' &c. It would then correspond to Aristotle's definition of a priest, Tv pòs TOUS BEOUS KUPLOS, 'presiding over things relating to the gods' (Polit. iii. 14), and with the very similar one in Heb. v. 1; 'every high-priest taken from among men, is constituted on the behalf of men, with respect to their concerns with Godὶ τὰ πρὸς τὸν Θεόν), that he may present both gifts and sacrifices for sins.' It would then adequately represent the iepeùs (8 ¡epà ¿éswv) of the Greeks, and the sacerdos (a sacris faciundis) the It will now be attempted to trace the Biblical origin and development of the subject, for which purpose the inquiry will be pursued upon plan of Townsend's Historical and Chronological Arrangement of the Scriptures, London, 1827, notwithstanding the doubts which may be entertained respecting the true chronological order of certain books and passages. We accede to the Jewish opinion, that Adam was the first priest. The divine institution of sacrifices, immediately after the fall, seems connected with the event, that the Lord God made coats of skins to Adam and his wife, and clothed them' (Gen. iii. 21), that is, with the skins of animals which had been offered in sacrifice (for the permission to eat animal food was not given till after the Deluge (comp. Gen. i. 29; ix. 3), expressive of their faith in the promise of the victorious yet suffering seed of the woman (ver. 15): and judging from the known custom of his immediate descendants, we infer that Adam, now also become the head and ruler of the woman (ver. 16), officiated in offering the sacrifice as well on her behalf as his own. Judging from the same analogy, it seems further probable, that Adam acted in the same capacity on behalf of his sons, Cain and Abel (and possibly of their children), who are each said to have brought his respective offering, but not to have personally presented it (iv. 3-5). The place evidently thus indicated, would seem to have been the situation of the cherubim,' at the east of the garden of Eden (iii. 24), called the face' (iv. 14), and the presence of the Lord' (ver. 16; comp. Hebrew of Exod. xxxiv. 24; Lev. ix. 5), and ་ from which Jehovah conferred with Cain (ver. 9): ,עלות they had held, and offered burnt-offerings, 6 them as a burnt-offering, and to pray for them (xlii. 8). The instance of Abram eccurs next in historical order, who, upon his first entrance into Canaan, attended by his family (B.c. 1921), 'built an altar, and called upon the name of the Lord' (Gen. xii. 7, 8). Upon returning victorious from the battle of the kings, he is congratulated by Melchizedek, the Canaanitish king of Salem, and 'priest of the most High God' (xiv. 18). For the ancient union of the royal and sacerdotal offices, in Egypt and other countries, see Wilkinson's Manners and Customs of the Ancient Egyptians, Lond. 1842, i. 245. Abram next appears entering into covenant with God as the head and representative of his seed; on which occasion those creatures only are slain which were appointed for sacrifice under the law (xv. 9-21). Isaac builds an altar (B.c. 1804), evidently as the head of his family (Gen. xxvi. 25); his younger son Jacob offers a sacrifice, na (xxxi. 54), and 'calls his brethren to eat of it' (comp. Lev. vii. 15); builds an altar at Shalem (xxxiii. 20), makes another by divine command, and evidently as the head of his household, at Bethel (xxxv. 1-7), and pours a drink-offering, 7D) (comp. Num. xv. 7, &c.), upon a pillar (ver. 14). Such was the state of the institution we are considering during the patriarchal times. It henceforth becomes connected with Egypt, and materially modified in consequence. The marriage of Joseph (B.c. 1715) incidentally discloses the existence of priests in that country; for it is recorded that Pharaoh gave Joseph to wife a daughter of Potipherah, priest of On (xli. 45). The priests of Egypt had evidently been endowed with lands by the Egyptian kings; for when the reigning Pharaoh, by the advice of Joseph, took all the land of the Egyptians in lieu of corn (xlvii. 20), the priests were not compelled to make the same sacrifice of theirs (ver. 22); nor was the tax of the fifth part of the produce entailed upon it (ver. 26), as on that of the other people (ver. 24). They seem also to have had a public maintenance besides (ver. 22; Herod. ii. 37). It may be serviceable, in the sequel, if we advert at this point to some of the numerous and truly important points of resemblance between the Egyptian and Jewish priests, viz., that the sacerdotal order constituted one of the four prin cipal castes, of the highest rank, next to the king, and from whom were chosen his confidential and responsible advisers (comp. 2 Sam. viii. 18; 1 Chron. xviii. 17; Isa. xix. 11; Diodorus, i. 73); they associated with the monarch, whom they assisted in the performance of his public duties, to whom they explained from the sacred books those lessons which were laid down for his conduct. Each deity had several priests, and a high-priest (Herod. ii. 37); the latter, of whatever deity, held the first and most honourable station. The minor priests were divided into various grades, having distinct offices, as well as the scribes and priests of the kings. The same office usually descended from father to son, but was sometimes changed. They enjoyed important privileges, which extended to their whole family. They were exempt from taxes. Wine was allowed to them only in the strictest moderation, and entire abstinence from it was required during the fasts, which were frequent (Plut. De Isid. § 6). Each grade of the priests was distinguished by its pecuLiar costume. The high-priests, who, among other official duties, anointed the king, wore a mantle made of an entire leopard-skin; as did the king, when engaged in priestly duties. The underdresses of priests, of all orders, were made of linen, and they were not allowed to wear wool!en in a temple (Herod. ii. 81). The undeniable similarity between the dresses of the Egyptian and Jewish priests will be hereafter illustrated. Besides their religious duties, the priests fulfilled the offices of judges, legislators, and counsellors of the king, and the laws forming part of their sacred books could only be administered by members of that order (Wilkinson, i. 237, 257-282). In returning to the biblical history, we next find Jethro, priest of Midian, the father-in-law of Moses, possibly a priest of the true God (Exod. iii. 1), and probably his father in the same capacity (ii. 16). In Exod. v. 1, 3, the whole nation of the Israelites is represented as wishing to sacrifice and to hold a feast to the Lord. The first step, though very remote, towards the formation of the Mosaic system of priesthood, was the consecration of the first-born, in memory of the destruction of the first-born of Egypt (xiii. 2, 1416); for, instead of these, God afterwards took the Levites to attend upon him (Num. iii. 12). As to the popular idea, both among Jews and Christians, that the right of priesthood was thus transferred from the first-born generally to the tribe of Levi, or rather to one family of that tribe, we consider, with Patrick, that it is utterly groundless (Commentary on Exod. xix. 22; Num. iii. 12; see Campeg. Vitringa, Observ. Sacra, ii. 33; Outram, De Sacrificiis, i. 4). The substance of the objections is, that Aaron and his sons were consecrated before the exchange of the Levites for the first-born, that the Levites were afterwards given to minister unto them, but had nothing to do with the priesthood, and that the peculiar right of God in the first-born originated iu the Exodus. The last altar, before the giving of the law, was built by Moses, probably for a memorial purpose only (xvii. 15; comp. Josh. xxii. 26, 27). At this period, the office of priest was so well understood, and so highly valued, that Jehovah promises as an inducement to the Israelites to keep his covenant, that they should be to him 'a kingdom of priests' (xix. 6), which, among other honourable appellations and distinctions originally belonging to the Jews, is transferred to Christians (1 Pet. ii. 9). The first introduction of the word priests, in this part of the history, is truly remarkable. It occurs just previous to the giving of the law (B.c. 1491), when, as part of the cautions against the too eager curiosity of the people, lest they should break through unto the Lord and gaze' (Exod. xix. 21), it is added, and let the priests which come near unto the Lord sanctify themselves, lest the Lord break through upon them' (ver. 22). Here, then, priests are incontestably spoken of as an already existing order, which was now about to be remodified. Nor is this the last reference to these ante-Sinaitic priests. Selden observes that the phrases 'the priests the Levites' (Deut. xvii. 9), and the priests the sons of Levi' (xxi. 5), and even the phrase, the Levites alone (xviii. 6, comp. 1), are used to include all others who had been priests before God took the sons of Aaron peculiarly to serve him in this office (De Synedr. ii. 8, pp. 2, 3). Aaron is summoned at this junc ་ 552 PRIEST. tare to go up with Moses unto the Lord on Mount and lapping over in front other figures have short loose drawers; while a third variety of this article, fitting closely and extending to the knees, appears in the figures of some idols, as in No. 457 This last sort of drawers seems to have been peculiar in Egypt to the gods, and to the priests, whose attire was often adapted to that of the idols on which they attended. The priests, in common with other persons of the upper classes, wore the drawers under other robes. No mention occurs of the use of drawers by any other class of persons in Israel except the priests, on whom it was eujoined for the sake of decency. 2. The coat of fine linen or cotton, win (Exod. xxxix. 27). tunica byssina. This was worn by men in general (Gen. xxxvii. 3); also by women (2 Sam. xiii. 18; Cant. v. 3), next to the skin. It was to be of woven work. Josephus states that it reached down to the feet, and sat close to the body; and had sleeves, which were tied fast to the arms; and was girded to the breast a little above the elbows by a girdle. It had a narrow aperture about the neck, and was tied with certain strings hanging down from the edge over the breast and back, and was fastened above each shoulder The designation and call of Aaron and his sons (Antiq. iii. 7. 2). But this garment, in the case to the priesthood are commanded in Exod. xxviii. of the priests and high-priest, was to be broidered 1; and holy garments to be made for Aaron, for (xxviii. 4), pawn in, a broidered coat,' glory and for beauty' (ver. 2), and for his sons (ver. by which Gesenius understands a coat of cloth 40), by persons originally skilful, and now also in- worked in checkers or cells. Braunius compares spired for the purpose (ver. 3), the chief of whom it to the reticulum in the stomach of rumiAs nant animals (De Vestitu, i. 17). The Sept. were Bezaleel and Aholiab (xxxi. 2-6). there were some garments common both to the gives xíτwv Koσvμßwrós, which seems to refer to priests and the high-priest, we shall begin with the tassels or strings; Vulg. linea stricta, which seems to refer to its close fitting. 3. The girdle, those of the former, taking them in the order in which they would be put on. 1. The first was (xxviii. 40); Sept. (n; Vulg. balteus. 73^D, ‘linen-breeches,' or drawers (xxviii. This was also worn by magistrates (Isa. xxii. 21). 42; Sept. жEρLOKEλ Awâ; Vulg. feminalia linea). The girdle for the priests was to be made of fine These were to be of fine twined linen, and to twined linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet, reach from the loins to the middle of the thighs. of needlework (xxxix. 29). Josephus describes According to Josephus, whose testimony, however, it as often going round, four fingers broad, but so of course, relates only to his own time, they reached loosely woven that it might be taken for the skin only to the middle of the thigh, where they were of a serpent; and that it was embroidered with tied fast (Antiq. iii. 7. 1). Such drawers were flowers of scarlet, and purple, and blue, but that worn universally in Egypt. In the sculptures and the warp was nothing but linen. The beginning of its circumvolution was at the breast; and when it had gone often round, it was there tied, and hung loosely down to the ancles while the priest was not engaged in any laborious service, for in that position it appeared in the most agreeable manner to the spectators; but when he was obliged to assist at the offering of sacrifices, and to do the appointed service, in order that he might not be hindered in his operations by its motion, he threw it to the left hand, and bore it on his right shoulder (Antiq. iii. 7. 2). The mode of its hanging down is illustrated by the cut No. 460, while where the girdle is also richly embroidered; the imbricated appearance of the girdle, Dp ny, may be seen very plainly in No. 457. The next cut, No. 458, of a priestly scribe of ancient Egypt, offers an interesting specimen of both tonic and girdle. Other Egyptian girdles may be seen under ABNET. 4. The bonnet, cap, or turkan, my (xxviii. 40); Sept. Kiddpis; Vulg. tiara. The bonnet was to be of fine linen (xxxix. 28). In the time of Josephus it was circular, covering about half the head, something like a crown. made of thick linen swathes doubled round many times, and sewed together, surrounded by a linen cover to hide the seams of the swathes, and sat so 457. [Drawers and girdle.] paintings of that country, the figures of workmen and servants have no other dress than a short kilt or apron, sometimes simply bound about the loins close that it would not fall off when the body was high-priest shaking his garment at the time of 6 459. [Egyptian tunic.] that there was a bell and a pomegranate alternately all round (xxviii. 31-35). The use of these bells may have partly been, that by the 460. [Ephod and girdle.] worn by Samuel while a youth ministering before the Lord (1 Sam. ii. 18); by David, while engaged in religious service (2 Sam. vi. 14); and by inferior priests (1 Sam. xxii. 18). But in all these instances it is distinguished as a linen ephod, and was not a sacred but honorary vestment, as the Sept. understands it in 2 Sam. vi. 14, σTON anov; but the ephod of the high-priest was to be made of gold, of blue, of purple, of scarlet, and fine twined linen, with cunning work, Though it probably consisted of one piece, woven throughout, it had a back part and a front part, united by shoulder-pieces. It had also a girdle; or rather strings went out from each side and tied it to the body. On the top of each shoulder was to be an onyx stone, set in sockets of gold, each having engraven upon it six of the names of the children of Israel, according to the precedence of n. |