also the feet and the tail. But the tusks of this animal are larger than in the tame breed; they bend upwards circularly, and are exceeding sharp at the points.

"The wild boar roots up the ground in a different manner from the common hog; for as this turns up the earth in little spots here and there, so the wild boar ploughs it up like a furrow and does irreparable damage in the cultivated lands of the farmer, destroying the roots of the vine and other plants. Hence we see the propriety with which the Psalmist represents the subversion of the Jewish commonwealth, under the allegory of a vine destroyed by one of these beasts: Thou hast brought a vine out of Egypt; thou hast cast out the heathen, and planted it. Thou preparedst room before it, and didst cause it to take deep root, and it filled the land. She sent out her boughs into the sea, and her branches into the river. Why hast thou then broken down her hedges, so that all they which pass by the way do pluck her? the boar out of the wood doth waste it, and the wild beast of the field doth devour it.' Ps. lxxx. 8—13. If the Psalm was written as is supposed, during the Babylonian captivity, the great propriety of the allegory becomes more apparent. Not satisfied with devouring the plants and fruit which have been carefully raised by the skill and attention of the husbandman, the ferocious boar lacerates and breaks with his powerful tusks, the roots and branches of the surrounding vines, and tramples them beneath his feet. The reader will easily apply this to the conduct pursued by the Chaldeans towards the Jewish state, whose desolation is thus pathetically bewailed by the prophet: The Lord hath trodden under foot all my mighty men in the midst of me : he hath called an assembly against me to crush my young men; the Lord hath trodden the virgin, the daughter of Judah, as in a wine press.' Lam. i. 15.

"The wild boar (as remarked by Goldsmith) can be called neither a gregarious nor a solitary animal. The first

three years the whole litter follows the sow, and the family lives in a herd together. They are then called 'beasts of company,' and unite their common forces against the invasions of the wolf, or the more formidable beasts of prey. When come to a state of maturity, however, and conscious of his own superior strength, the wild boar walks the forest alone, and fearless. He dreads no single creature, nor does he turn out the way, even for man himself.

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"This animal is extremely fond of marshes, fens, and reedy places, so may be seen in Le Bruyn; and is probably referred to in Ps. lxviii. 30. Rebuke the company of the spearmen,' literally, the beast of the reeds or canes." P. 145. [From the Baptist Magazine.

RABBINICAL BIOGRAPHY

No. 1.-Rabbi Abraham Aben-Ezra.

RABBI ABRAHAM ABEN-EZRA was an elegant writer, and held in high estimation both by Jews and Christians. He was a native of Spain, born at Toledo, in the year 1099. He was a man of most extensive learning, being well skilled in grammar, plilosophy, astronomy, and medicine. He was intimately acquainted with Hebrew, Chaldee, and Arabic; and published many works in these learned languages. His style has been much admired for its elegance, conciseness, and perspicuity. By his countrymen he was called "The Wise," and Maimonides, who was contemporary with AbenEzra, held him in such high estimation, that, in a letter of instruction addressed to his son, he commands him to study the writings of Aben-Ezra continually, and to study no others, he regarding them as the most excellent, useful, elegant, learned, and abounding with sound judgment. His style has been said to approach nearly that of the Holy Scriptures,

and his commentaries upon the several books of the Old Testament are remarkable for the learning they display, and the strict manner in which the literal sense has been adhered to. Besides his commentaries, and other theological works, he composed many on grammatical and astronomical subjects, some of which are in print. He is reputed to be the inventor of the division of the celestial sphere by the equator. He travelled in most parts of Europe, and associated with the most learned of his time. His works are dated at various places, from which we may partly learn the course of his travels. He was at Mantua in 1145, at Rhodes in 1156, in England in 1159, and at Rome in 1167. He is supposed to have lived seventy-five years, but the precise period of his death is unknown. De Rossi gives a list of twenty-nine works written by Aben-Ezra.*

No. 2.-Rabbi Levi Ben Gershon; or, Gersonides Levi.

This celebrated rabbi was a native of Bagnolo, a town in Provence, and born in 1288. He died at Perpignan in 1370. He was a physician, and very learned in the sciences. He wrote commentaries on the works of Aristotle, and composed several astronomical treatises; one in particular on the motions of the celestial bodies. His exposition of the Scriptures is full of knowledge, and the style is very elegant. His commentary on the Pentateuch has been several times printed.

No. 3.-Rabbi David Kimchi.

Rabbi David Kimchi, the son of Joseph, the celebrated Rabbin, flourished in the 12th and 13th centuries. He is frequently called Radak by the Jews, that name being formed by the initials of his name. David Kimchi, who was born at

Rossi Dizionario Storico degli Autori Ebrei.

Narbonne, (at that time annexed to the Crown of Castile,) was perhaps the most celebrated Spanish rabbi of the time in which he lived, and his works are very numerous. The Kimchi family was composed of learned men, deeply versed in Hebrew and biblical literature. As a grammarian and Hebrew interpreter, Kimchi has been universally esteemed and followed, both by Jews and Christians. He is said to have been a warm admirer of the Moreh Nevochim of Moses Maimonides; and he was appointed, in 1232, arbiter of the disputes between the Spanish and French Synagogues, on the works of that author. His commentary, printed for the first time in 1485, has been printed in all the Rabbinical Bibles, and several times without the text. De Rossi,* well versed in Hebrew literature, has enumerated the chief of the works of Kimchi. He lived to a very advanced age, but neither the exact date of his birth nor of his decease is known.

Sanctus Pagninus is said to have borrowed the chief part of his Hebrew Lexicon and Grammar from the writings of Kimchi.

* Rossi Dizionario Storico degli Autori Ebrei, p. 185.

[From the Jewish Expositor.