the empire was a scene of confusion, desolation, and mifery. Nero indeed destroyed feveral Christians at Rome, but it was for a fuppofed crime of which all the world knew them to be innocent; fo that this cruel treatment raised compaffion, and rather did fervice than harm to the Chriftian caufe, and the perfecution was foon over. If Claudius and the Senate in his time had known the nature of the Gofpel in this point, that it was directly oppofite to the national religion, and that, if it profpered, Paganism must decline and come to nothing, and that every Christian thought himself bound to fpread his opinions by all arts and means which were not immoral, they would have endeavoured to fupprefs it effectually; but it lay fcreened then under Judaism, and the Jews had leave to worship God in their own way. The Chriftians who fuffered under Nero are called malefici by Suetonius, c. 16. that is, forcerers, magicians. Probably the Pagans had heard of their miracles, and afcribed them to magic arts, which yet was a kind of indirect acknowledgment of them. Juvenal iii. 41. Quid Roma faciam? mentiri nefcio-motus Aftrorum ignoro: funus promittere patris, &c. where the old Scholiaft fays: motus aftrorum: Maleficus non fum. But here I doubt it should be, Mathematicus non fum, which is a more literal interpretation. Nemo Nemo mathematicus genium indemnatus babebit. Confulit icterica lento de funere matris, With the Reader's leave, I will step out of my I need not obferve how flat and unmeaning and unpoetical is the expreffion, Gurgitibus miris, and how ill it comes in after miranti. The Poet intended to speak of a prodigy, of a river running bloody, which together with fhowers of blood has been often mentioned amongst prodigies. See Cicero De Divin. 1. 43. The word which he ufed was fomewhat uncommon, and therefore loft, and ill fupplied. He wrote, I believe, Gurgitibus miniis, et lactis vortice torrens. miniis, 1 miniis, that is, fanguineis, rubris inftar minii. The abjective minius or mineus, from minium, red lead, vermilion, is twice ufed by Apuleius, Fulgentium rofarum minius color, and, Cervicula pfittaci circulo mineo. Faber's Thefaurus. If there were no example extant of the adjective minius, that would not be a fufficient reafon to reject the emendation, fince the Greek and Latin poets frequently turn fubftantives into adjectives. So Juvenal himself x1. 94, according to the beft copies; Qualis in Oceano fluctu teftudo nataret. Litore ab Oceano Gallis venientibus—113. Catullus, LXIII. according to Scaliger's emendation, Nimirum Oceano fe oftendit Noctifer imbre. And hence Milton, 1. bugeft that frim th' Ocean ftream. Minium in Greek is ír, and the Sibylline Oracles fpeak thus of a bloody fhower; Καὶ ψεκάδες πίπλωσιν ἀπ' ἐρανᾶ, οἷά τε μίλια. The old Scholiaft fays, Gurgitibus miris] Aut lateis, aut fanguineis. But you have nothing in Juvenal that anfwers to fanguineis, unless you change miris into miniis, which is alfo a very flight alteration. The Poet might have fo contrived it as to have used fanguis or cruor, or their adjectives, but Gurgitibus miniis pleafed him better, as it had a more ludicrous caft, and he chofe rather to ftain his river with red oker than with blood. It threw a contempt upon portents and prodigies, things which he was not much difpofed to believe. Lucian, or who foever he be who wrote the treatife De Dea Syria, fays that the river Adonis was stained with blood every year, ὁ ἢ ποταμὸς ἑκάτε ἔτεσ αἱμάσσεται, καὶ τὴν χροιὴν ὀλέσας, ἐπίπζει ἐς τὴν θά λασσαν, και φοινείσσει τὸ πολλὸν τὸ πελάγεθ. Illud flumen fingulis annis cruentatur, fuoque amiffo colore in mare effunditur, et magnam maris partem inficit. 8. He adds that an inhabitant of Byblus explained the phænomenon thus: Αδωνις ὁ ποταμὶς, ὦ ξείνε, καὶ τὸ Λιβάνι ἔρχε). ὁ δὲ Λίβανο κάρια ξανθογεώς εςι άνεμοι ὢν τρηχέες ἐκείνῃσι τῇσι ἡμέρῃσι ἱςάμθμοι τὴν γῆν τῷ πο]αμῷ ἐλπιΦέρεσι, ἐᾶσαν ἐς τὰ μάλιςα ΜΙΛΤΩΔΕΑ· ἡ ἢ γῆ μ aiμúdeα Tilno.. Adonis flumen, o hofpes, venit per Libanum. At Libanus multum rubicunda terræ habet. Venti ergo vehementes, qui ftatos illis diebus flatus habent, terram flumini inferunt minio valde fimilem. Hæc illud terra reddit fanguineum. ས This account has been fince confirmed by Maundrel in his Voyages. Sanguinem pluiffe, fays Cicero, fenatui nuntia tum eft, Atratum etiam fluvium fluxiffe fanguine.Sed et decoloratio quædam ex aliqua contagione terrena poteft fanguini fimilis effe. De Div. ii. 27. Some may think that we ought to read Gurgitibus miniis, aut lactis vortice torrens, inftead of et. But, unless the best Manufcripts deceive us, et is often used in a disjunctive fenfe, and implies much the fame as aut; and likewife que, where ve might feem more proper. Of this I gave fome examples in the Mifcell. Obferv. Vol. ii. p. 255. AMONGST AMONGST the miracles recorded in the Acts of the Apostles is the cafting out of evil Spirits. In the New Teftament, where any circumstances are added concerning the Dæmoniacs, they are generally fuch as fhew that there was fomething præternatural in the distemper; for thefe difordered perfons agreed in one ftory, and paid homage to Chrift and to his Apoftles, which is not to be expected from madmen, of whom fome would have worshipped, and others would have reviled Chrift, according to the various humour and behaviour obfervable in fuch perfons. One reafon for which the divine Providence should fuffer evil Spirits to exert their malignant powers fo much at that time, might be to give a check to Sadduceifm amongst the Jews, and to Epicurean atheism amongst the Gentiles, and to remove in fome measure these two great impediments to the reception of the Gospel. THE firft miracle after the afcenfion of Christ, namely the gift of tongues, was of fingular and extraordinary service to Christianity. It increased the number of believers at Jerufalem, and engaged the admiration and favour of the people fo much, that the enemies of Christ could not accomplish their defigns against the difciples, and it served to convey the Gospel to diftant regions. It has been faid that the gift of tongues continued for a confiderable time to be abfolutely neceffary for the fpreading of Christianity but it is to be observed that the Scriptures never fay fo. |