22.) "Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees' excellency, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch his tent there, neither shall the shepherds make their folds there; but wild beasts of the desert shall live there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and owls shall dwell there, and satyrs shall dance there. And the wild beasts of the islands shall cry in their desolate houses, and dragons in their pleasant palaces; and her time is near to come, and her days shall not be prolonged."

171. Whenever we read of Babylon, as inhabited, after the time of her desolation mentioned above, we must understand Seleucia; for that city is often called by the name of Babylon. At first it was called Babylonia Seleucia, then Babylonia, and finally, Babylon.

172. Simon the Just, high priest of the Jews, died in the year 292 B. C., leaving only an infant son, named Onias. Eleazar, the brother of Simon, therefore succeeded to that high office.

173. Simon, of whom mention has already been made, was certainly a very extraordinary person, as may be gathered from the fiftieth chapter of Ecclesiasticus, where his pious and beneficent acts are set forth. But his chief work was the completion of the canon of the Old Testament. It is evident that the canon could not have been completed by Ezra, for the books of Nehemiah and Malachi were pretty certainly written after his time: and Chronicles, Ezra, and Esther, were probably written by himself. All these, it is probable, were added to the canon, by Simon the Just, who, on account of his attention to this business is mentioned

as the last of the men of the Great Synagogue, concerning which the Jewish writers have so much to say..

174. The main reason, however, for ascribing this work to Simon, is, that the genealogies contained in Nehemiah and Chronicles, seem to reach down near to his time, but none of them go farther. Thus in Neh. xii. we have mention of Jaddua, who was high priest when Alexander visited Jerusalem; and in 1 Chron. iii., we have so many generations of the descendants of Zerubbabel mentioned, that they must in all probability reach to the time of Simon.

CHAPTER VII.

RETROSPECT OF THE SUCCESSION OF KINGS AND HIGH PRIESTS WHO HAD AUTHORITY OVER JUDEA, UNTIL THE DEATH OF SIMON THE JUSTSIMON SUCCEEDED BY ELEAZAR IN THE PRIESTHOOD-BY ANTIGONUS AS PRESIDENT OF THE

SANHEDRIM-MISHNICAL DOCTORS--SANHEDRIM -HOW CONDUCTED

WORSHIP.

CHANGES IN THE JEWISH

175. HAVING brought the history down to the close of the canon of the Old Testament, it may not be amiss to take a brief retrespect of the several kings and high priests, who were in authority, during this period.

As our history commences with Cyrus, he will of course stand first on the list.

B. C. 536-Cyrus.

529-Cambyses.

522-Smerdis.

521-Darius Hystaspis.
465-Xerxes I.

464-Artaxerxes Longimanus.

424-Xerxes II.

424 Sogdianus.

423-Darius Nothus.

404-Artaxerxes Mnemon.

358-Darius Ochus.

337-Arses.

335-Darius Codomanus.

This last was the Darius, who was conquered by Alexander the Great.

176. The nominal kings, after the death of Alexander, were Aridæus, his half brother, and Alexander Egus his son by Roxana; the first of whom was put to death about 313 B. C. The latter lived to be only fourteen years of age, and was put to death by Cassander, about 310 B. C.

177. After the death of Alexander, numerous competitors arose from among his officers, who laid claim to whatever countries they were able to seize. Hence arose a confusion of historical facts, which it is almost impossible to reduce to any order.

178. But after a series of revolutions and incessant wars, about the year 313 B. C., the whole empire was divided between four principal successors of the conqueror.

Cassander had Macedon and Greece.
Lysimachus, Thrace, Bithynia, &c.
Ptolemy, Egypt, Lybia, Arabia.

Seleucus, the other Asiatic provinces.

This division of the empire, however, did not continue long.

179. The Jewish nation though they changed masters several times, remained for the most part in con.. nexion with Egypt, and under the government of Ptolemy, by whom, as well as by Alexander before, multitudes of them were transported to Egypt, especially to Alexandria, and also to Lybia, in the region of Cyrene.

180. The high priests, who, in succession, filled that high and sacred office, from the return of the Jews from captivity, on the accession of Cyrus, until the time of Simon the Just, were as follows; though some have

doubted, whether there might not have been others between those here named, of whom we have no

account.

B. C. 536-Joshua, who continued in office 49 years.

181. Simon the Just was succeded by his brother Eleazar, his own son being too young to be invested with the office. Eleazer, the brother of Simon, executed this high office, for fifteen years.

182. Simon the Just was also president of the Sanhedrim, or grand council of the Jews, in which office he was not succeeded by Eleazar, but by Antigonus of Socho, who was advanced to it, on account of his great learning; for he was an eminent scribe in the law of God, and a great teacher of righteousness, among the people.

183. The death of Simon and accession of Eleazar are placed in the year 241, B. C., and in the fourteenth of Ptomley Soter.

184. At this time commences the succession of those called Doctors of the Mishna. The first was Antigonus above mentioned, and the last Judah Hakkadosh, who committed the Mishna to writing, in the middle of the second century. They were sometimes called scribes, sometimes lawyers, or such as sat in Moses' seat. All these titles mean the same thing, viz.: that they who were honored with them had been brought up in the knowledge of the law of God, and