III.

CHA P. number. And thus much for the firft plantations aft Flood in general. I proceed now to speak diftinctly plantations of the three diftinct branches of Noah's pof by his three fons, Shem, Ham, and Japhet; which ac ingly are distinguished into three diftinct Sections.

I.

Of the three fons of No

was the elder, and Ham the younger.

SECTION II.

Of the firft Plantations of the Defcendants of Japhet, eldeft of Noah; and alfo of fome of the Colonies thereof in after-a particularly of the Ancient Britons.

THOU

HOUGH it be faid, Gen. v. 32. Noah begat Sh Ham, and Japhet; and the fame order is elsewhere u ah, Japhet in reckoning up the three fons of Noah; yet it is plain fr Gen. ix. 22. 24. that Ham was the younger fon of Noa As to the Hebrew text, Gen. x. 21. the words are different understood by interpreters and commentators; fome renderin the text after this fenfe, that Shem was the elder brother Japhet; others rendering it in this fenfe, that Shem was th brother of Japhet the elder. This last interpretation is fol lowed in the Septuagint and our English Verfion; and seems to be put out of dispute by an argument drawn from Gen. v. 32. & xi. 10. compared together. In the former text it is faid, Noah was five hundred years old, and begat Shem, Ham, and Japhet: whereby must be reasonably understood, that he began then to beget children, and in that year of his age begat his eldest fon. But in the latter text it is faid, that Shem was an hundred years old, and begat Arphaxad two years after the Flood. Now, had Shem been his eldeft fon of all, he must have been a hundred and two years old, the fecond year after the Flood for Noah begat his eldest son in his five hundredth year, as we learn Gen. v. 32. and from thence to the Flood were an hundred years: for we are told Gen. vii. 11.

that

II.

that in the fix hundredth year of Noah's life the Flood began. SECT. So that two years after the Flood, Shem must have been an hundred and two years old at least (even by two years after the Flood, understanding two years after the beginning of the Flood), had he been Noah's eldest son, or begotten in the five hundredth year of Noah. Since then the Scripture tells us, Gen. xi. 10. that Shem was but an hundred years, two years after the Flood; it evidently follows, that Japhet must be the fon which Noah begat in his five hundredth year, and confequently must be elder than Shen. For as to Ham, the Scripture is exprefs, as hath been obferved, that he was the younger fon, Gen. ix. 24.

2.

The method

ob

of the fons

Now Mofes begins his account of the defcendants of Noah, with the fons of Japhet. Why he does fo, is uncertain; fince here b it seems certain, that he had not regard herein to seniority of ferved, in fpeaking of birth for then in all likelihood he would have had the fame the firft regard in respect to his reckoning up the more early defcen- plantations dants of Shem and Ham: whereas he obferves not the order of Noah. of birth therein, but gives us the line of Ham before that of Shem. In fpeaking to the firft plantations of the three branches of Noah's pofterity, I shall indeed take the three branches according to the order of birth afore-mentioned; but not for that reafon, but because this order falls in very well with a geographical order. I fhall therefore first treat of the plantations of the branch of Japhet; and I shall dwell the longer on these, because by Japhet's pofterity were chiefly planted or peopled the feveral countries of Europe; which are best known to us at prefent of any in the whole world, and is of nearest concern to us for to be known as to its first planters or most ancient inhabitants. I fhall in the fecond place proceed to the first plantations of the branch of Shem; and in the laft place, to those of Ham.

3.

What is

meant by

In order then to find out in what tract of the earth the defcendants of Japhet at first fettled themselves, we must, according to the first rule above laid down, have regard, in the the Isles of first place, to what the Scripture fays concerning the same and that is this: that by the defcendants of Japhet were the were divided ifles of the Gentiles divided, Gen. x. 5. The great difficulty the fons of

E 4

;

the Gentiles, which

or planted by

then Japhet.

III.

CHAP. then is, to know what is here meant by the ifles of the Gentiles. And it is certain from feveral paffages of Scripture, that by the word, which we tranflate ifles, the Hebrews understood, not only fuch countries as we call ifles, that is, such as are, on all fides, furrounded by fea; but also fuch countries as were fo divided by fea from them, or the Egyptians (among whom they lived a long time, and fo called things by the fame names), as that they could not be well come unto, or at least used not to be gone unto, but by fea. In brief, they called islands all beyond-fea countries, and all people islanders, which came to them and to the Egyptians by fea. Now, fuch are the countries of the Leffer Afia, and the countries of Europe; and that these are denoted in Scripture by the name of the ifles of the Gentiles, may be fhewn from many places of the Bible: we fhall quote but the most pregnant.

going expo

Gentiles.

The Prophet Ifaiah, ch. xi. ver. 5. 10, 11. fpeaking of the Proofs from calling of the Gentiles and restoration of the Jews (or, as Scripture, for the fore- Mr. Mede fays, of the calling of the Gentiles by an allufion fition of the to the reftoring of the Jews), hath these words; The Lord In:s of the shall recover the remnant of his people from Affyria, Egypt, Pathros, Cufh, Elam, Shinar, Hamath, and from the islands of the fea. Here it is evident, that by the ifles of the fea (which is the fame with the ifles of the Gentiles) must be understood countries diftinct from the other countries there expressly named, viz. Affyria, Egypt, &c. And therefore they may be in reason esteemed the countries of Leffer Afia and Europe, or at least these principally. Befides, the Prophet here speaking of the calling of the Gentiles, would not likely omit those places where St. Paul, who was peculiarly styled the Apostle of the Gentiles, chiefly laboured; and which were from the beginning, and are at this day the principal feat of Christian churches. So that at this day there is no part of the world called by the name of Christendom, but that which is in our fense divided from Judea by sea, even the ifles of the Gentiles. And this was heretofore intimated by the Prophets, in that they never speak of the calling of the Gentiles, but they harped upon the ifles of the Gentiles. The fame Prophet Isaiah, (ch. xl. ver. 15.) to fhew God's omnipotency, fpeaks after this

manner;