Paine makes of the prophecy of Isaiah, in chapters xliv. and xlv. No
man that reads the passage can hesitate for a moment to declare it a
narrative of the deliverance of the Jews by Cyrus, after the seventy
years captivity. Cyrus is mentioned by name, as well as his command to
rebuild Jerusalem, and his victories over the nations, above one hundred
years before the event. Will you then, without any proofs of Isaiah
having written this book, insist upon calling it a prophecy? And have
not sceptics been justified in their disbelief of the genuineness
of such books? Mr. Paine, however, has overlooked a more remarkable
prophecy in this book, which has been tortured into an application to
Christ. This is contained in chapter lxiii. ver. 1. "Who is this that
cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? this that is glorious
in his apparel, travelling in the greatness of his strength? I that
speak in. righteousness, mighty to save." And again, in chap. ii.
(talking of the supposed Christ) Isaiah says, "And he shall judge among
the nations, and shall rebuke many people; and they shall beat their
swords into plough-shares."--"And the idols he shall totally abolish."
Can this possibly allude to Christ? Did he come from Edom in mighty
power, in rich garments? Was his march so terrible? Was he the man who
trampled all in his fury; who with his own arm brought salvation to
himself, and was upheld by his fury; as also mentioned in chap. lxiii.?
Do not these pretended prophecies also apply to Judas Maccabeus, who
delivered the Jews from the tyranny of Antiochus Epi-phanus? And is it
not also a proof of the mutilated state of the works of the prophets
to see details about Cyrus intermingled with others applying to Judas
Maccabeus? I say nothing of Daniel, for his _prophecy_ I shall consider
particularly afterwards, and show its true meaning; at present, it may
be sufficient to say, that the similarity between the book of Ezra and
Daniel proclaim them to be from the same hand; but both have evident
marks of having been considerably mutilated. When philosophers cannot
ascertain the age of pretended predictions, they consider their
clearness as a demonstration of their being histories. Who tells you
that the books which the synagogue, like the Nicene council, chose, were
not either altogether written, or considerably interpolated, to adopt
them to the times? The great question is always, what authority had the
synagogue to decide, and whether their decision ought to influence men
of sense, any more than the determination of the Popish councils.
As a proof of the absurdity of the application of prophecies, I shall
here quote one, which is apparently clearer than any in the whole
Bible, and is adduced by the most famous divines as an unquestionable
prediction of Christ. It is in Micah, chap. v. ver. I. "Now gather
thyself in troops, O daughter of troops: he hath laid siege against us;
they shall smite the Judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek. But thou
Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among thousands of Judah, yet
out of thee shall he come forth unto me, that is to be ruler in Israel;
whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting." Here even
the birth-place of Christ is mentioned, the insults offered to him, his
existence from everlasting, and his coming to save Israel. And Matthew,
chap. ii. ver. 6, and John, chap. vii. ver. 43, both expressly refer to
that passage as a prophecy. Hear now what follows in ver. 5, of the same
chapter of Micah: "And this man shall be the peace, when the Assyrians
shall come into our land: and when he shall tread in our palaces, then
shall we raise against him seven shepherds, and eight principal men."
Can this apply to Jesus Christ? Were the Syrians in the land when he
came? Were not the Romans masters of Judea? Your rules of belief
are admirable: a little faith, wherever you meet contradictions,
absurdities, or wonders, is an invaluable prescription, common to the
Bramin, the Musselman, and the Christian. Do but believe that Mahomet is
a prophet, that he went up to heaven and saw the eternal Father, and
you will go through the other articles of the Mahometan faith without
difficulty. Do but admit the gospel of Barnabas where Mahomet is
predicted, and we have no reason to say that it is less authentic than
our gospel, and the work is done; but, I may say with you, "Proof, proof
is what I require, and not assertion."
We will not relinquish our reason in obedience to the despotic mandates
of the credulous.
You allow that the miracles of the Jews fall to the ground, if the
history of that nation is proved false. I beg you to observe, that if
it is true, it does not follow that the miracles are. If you can believe
that the history of the Jews is well authenticated, and without numerous
contradictions, and if you can exculpate the writers from bad motives,
and a desire to deceive, and if you can rely upon their wisdom, you then
will really prove yourself a Christian, a man of uncommon faith.
The history of the Jews, every where confused, containing prodigies,
deserves no more credit than their antedeluvian tale. Even Chinese
history, supported by astronomical observations, is beyond a certain
period rejected by all men, from the fables it contains. If you are
disposed to believe, I advise you to read the fabulous history of China
and of Hindostan, in the holy books of the respective nations, which
are adopted by whole nations, and are, at least, more beautiful than the
Jews.
I have purposely omitted to speak of Ecclesiastes. I find here several
Epicurean notions, a disbelief of a future life, the propriety of
enjoying themselves in this life, and other sensible remarks; which
prove that the writer enjoyed more common sense than most of his
countrymen.
LETTER VI.
You begin your sixth letter by attempting to disprove the arguments of
Thomas Paine upon Jeremiah. You acknowledge the disorder that prevails
in the writings of this prophet; and you modestly assure us, that you
do not know the cause; no more do I: and whatever incidents might have
occasioned it, I am certain that, as it stands, it deserves no degree of
credit. In a former part of your pamphlet you grant, that the history of
the Jews is so connected with the prophetical part, that if the former
was done away the latter could not stand; and now you inform us, "that
prophecy differs from history, in not being subject to an accurate
observance of time and order." This you think a matter of no importance,
but, in my opinion, it is very material to know if a prophecy is written
after the events it alludes to. I shall not follow far, either your
Lordship or Mr. Paine, in proving several of the prophecies of the Bible
false; but if they are not prophecies, why should we trouble ourselves
with disproving them. If they are scraps of history, we know that of
the Jews to be so contradictory, imperfect, so completely without order,
that one historical extract, of prophecy, will often contradict another;
but much more generally these prophecies are strict enough, being copied
from history, and embellished with a little of the figurative style of
prophecy. As to Jeremiah, the works that go under his name, as well
as those of Isaiah, appear on the face of them to be a collection of
extracts from different historians.
While we know so little of the history and genuineness of these
writings, we cannot possibly draw any conclusion concerning them, except
that they are in the utmost disorder, and that when writers intermingle
history with prophecy, we are at a loss to know which is which. I cannot
forbear to mention the ludicrous story of Elisha, the children, the
bears that devoured the children of men, as you are pleased to call
them. Whether Elisha did this as a prophet, I cannot but declare my
abhorrence at your approbation of such abominable cruelty, to murder
individuals because they bestowed the appellation of Baldhead on
another. According to the laudable custom of the church, you appeal to
a miracle, and conclude, that if God wrought a miracle it must have been
just. I suppose this comparatively as when he destroys whole cities for
the sins of a few; but this is the very ground on which every crusader
supported his massacres; and every man may imitate the conduct of Ahod,
the treacherous murderer, patronised by Jehovah, without incurring the
blame of a Bishop. Whether the ridiculous tale which you take for a
sign of God, most probably of his cruelty, converted any person, is not
known; but as the event most undoubtedly never happened, you may suppose
what you please. To murder them is not the way to ingratiate ourselves
with our fellow-citizens. If any person set a few bull-dogs on some
children, and pretended to do so by authority from heaven, he would most
undoubtedly be taken up by our officers of justice. In what respect do
these brutal prophets differ from Mahomet, who decided all disputes by
the sword? Their business was to exterminate and murder by the direct
commands of God.
The writings of Ezekiel are considerably truncated. The very beginning
of his prophecies shows it. The conjunction and texture of the whole
work refers to something that ought to have preceded it. He begins
saying, "That in the 30th year the heavens opened, and he saw visions of
God." And in ver. 5, he adds, "That the Lord had inspired him often
in Chaldea," which refers to some prophecies written in that period.
Besides, Josephus's work, book 10, chap. ix. of the Jewish antiquities,
says, "That Ezekiel had prophecied that Zedekiah should never see
Babylon." This is no where found in Ezekiel, but, on the contrary, in
chap. xi. and xii. he says, "That the king would be carried a prisoner
to Babylon."
As to Daniel, I have already noticed the great similarity between the
first book of Esdras and his, and the probability that they came from
the same author. The seven first chapters, except the first, were
written in Chaldean, and are by the most learned thought to be taken
from Chaldean chronologists. It is also thought by men of great
learning, that the books of Esdras, Daniel, and Esther, were altered a
long time after Judas Maccabeus, because it appears evident that Esdras
could not have written the whole of them, since Nehemiah carries the
genealogy of Jesuhga, the sovereign Pontiff till Jaddua, the sixteenth
in number, who after the defeat of Darius went to meet Alexander. And
Nehemiah, ver. 22, "The Levites, in the days of Eliashib, Joiadah,
and Johanan, and Jaddua, were recorded chief of the fathers; also the
priests, to the reign of Darius the Persian." We have no reason to
believe that Esdras or Nehemiah could survive fourteen kings of Persia,
Cyrus having been the first who gave the Jews permission to rebuild the
temple, from whom to Darius there are 230 years.
I now come to the famous prophecy of the seventy weeks of Daniel, which
you exultingly mention as the most wonderful, and, at the same time, the
most incontrovertible prediction in existence, one which never can fail
to confound the most perverse unbeliever. If I prove, that so far from
being the surprising prophecy you pretend, it has altogether a different
meaning, and can nowise apply to the coming of Christ, I shall think
myself fully excused, if I do not go through every individual prediction
in the Bible. The passage alluded to is in Daniel, chap. ix. ver. 24, to
27, as follows: "Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people, and upon
thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins,
and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting
righteousness, and to seal up the vision, and prophecy, and to anoint
the most holy. Know, therefore, and understand, that from the going
forth of the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem, unto the
Messiah, the prince, there shall be seven weeks; and threescore and two
weeks the streets shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous
times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but
not for himself; and the people of the prince that shall come, shall
destroy the city, and the sanctuary, and the end thereof shall be with
a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. And he
shall confirm the covenant with many, for one week; and, in the midst
of the week, he shall cause the sacrifice and oblation to cease; and for
the overspreading of abominations, he shall make it desolate, even
until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the
desolate."
This passage is generally applied to the coming of Christ. The seventy
weeks are supposed to mean weeks of years, or seven years each. Now
it is evident, that it cannot apply to Jesus Christ; for if from going
forth of the commandment in the time of Artaxerxes Longimanus, until the
coming of the Messiah, there were to be seven weeks or forty-nine years,
how does this agree with what follows? "After threescore and two weeks
(or three hundred and seventy-four years) shall Messiah be cut off."
And again, "He shall confirm the covenant with many for a week." Did
then Jesus Christ live four hundred and twenty-three years, or are there
two Messiahs predicted? Dr. Frideaux acknowledges that some parts of
this prophecy are so injudiciously printed in the English translation of
the Bible, that they are quite unintelligible; his alteration is in the
punctuation, and according to it we read, that, _from the going forth
of the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem, to the Messiah, the
Prince, shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks_; and in verse
27, he puts the half of the week, instead of the midst. The explanation
of the prophecy as thus altered, he gives as follows. From the
commandment given to Ezra by Ar-taxerxes Longimanus, to the
accomplishment of it by Nebemiah forty-nine years, or the first seven
weeks; from this accomplishment to the time of Christ's messenger John
the Baptist sixty-two weeks, or four hundred and thirty-four years; from
thence to the beginning of Christ's public ministry, half a week, or
three years and a half; and from thence to the death of Christ, half
a week, or three years and a half; in which half week he preached and
confirmed the gospel with many; in all, from the going forth of the
commandment, till the death of Christ, seventy weeks, or four hundred
and ninety years.
In the first place, we confidently assert that Dr. Prideaux followed his
fancy, not the original Hebrew, when he altered the punctuation. He is,
however, justified in the alteration of half of a week; but, granting
all, let us see how it applies. Did the Messiah come after seven weeks
from the commandment of Ar-taxerxes Longimanus? The explanation only
says, that Nehemiah finished the work which Ezra began. What has this
to do with the Messiah coming at the end of the first seven weeks? The
prophet says, that after threescore and two weeks, the street and the
wall shall be built. Again, and previously, that after the commandment
for the city to be built, the Messiah shall come in seven weeks. The
learned divine, on the contrary, makes Daniel say, that John the Baptist
began to preach the kingdom of the Messiah sixty-nine weeks after
the commandment, and in the first seven weeks he talks of nothing but
building the temple. Again, how does the oblation cease in half a week?
In fact, the same objection occurs here, as to the passage as it is
written in our Bibles. Daniel speaks quite clear, when he says, that
"from the going forth of the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem,
unto the Messiah, the Prince, shall be seven weeks." If we find,
in whatever explanation of the prophecy, that Christ did not come
forty-nine years after this commandment, and that he did not live four
hundred and thirty-four years afterwards, the whole must be an
untruth. And, if the first period of seven weeks is united with that of
threescore and two, that is, if the period of rebuilding the city, and
of the coming of the Messiah be the same, then let divines inform us
whether this really came to pass, and reconcile it with what follows, in
ver. 26, that the city is to be destroyed at the same time. Did Christ
confirm any covenant with many for seven years?
Let us attempt to unriddle this enigma. The passage evidently talks of
two Messiahs, or makes one live upwards of four hundred years; and is
altogether unintelligible as it stands. For the better understanding of
it, I shall quote some previous part of the same chapter, ver. 1. "In
the first year of Darius, the son of Ahasuerus, of the seed of the
Medes, which was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans. 2. In the
first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood by books, the number of
the years whereof the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet,
that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.
3. And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayers and
supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes. 4. And I prayed
unto the Lord my God, and made my confession, and said." After this
follows his prayer, until the 20th verse; and, in the 21st the angel
began to unfold a prophecy to Daniel, which begins in verse 24, and he
promises to explain the mystery that had so much grieved Daniel, that
is, the prophecy of Jeremiah; then follows the passage I have quoted:
the alterations I conceive ought be made in the reading of which, I
now proceed to mention. In verse 25, the sentence stops after the seven
weeks, as it is in the English Bible, because in the original we find
here the stop Atnach. In verse 26, instead of, _shall Messiah be cut
off?_ we ought to read, _the oblation shall cease_. This is the real
meaning of the expression in the original, according to Tertullian,
Eusebius, and Theodoretus. Eusebius says, _Unctum (vel Christum) nihil
aliud esse quam successionem Pontificum, quos unctos nominare S.
Literae consueverunt._ The Hebrew properly signifies _perdetur unctio_.
Theodoretus understands by this word, the same as _sacerdotes uncti.
Excidetur unctus,_ signifies the same as the _oblation shall be
abolished_; for the verb _excido_ does not always signify to kill, but
is applied to whatever falls into disuse that was once in practice, or
any thing that perishes. It is in this sense used in many parts of Kings
and Chronicles. Samuel says, _excidi de altare_. In Jeremiah,
chapter xxxvii. ver. 18, the verb is used in the same sense, _non
de sacerdotibus Levitis excidet ur homo coram me_, which is given in
English, "neither shall the priests, the Levites, _want a man_ (or
cease to have a man) before me." In verse 27, "and he shall confirm the
covenant with many for one week," means no more than the exemption of
calamities, and is tantamount to, _he shall let many remain in peace_,
as in Genesis, chap. vi. ver. 18, it is used in this sense.
To understand the real meaning of this pretended prophecy, the reader
will remember, that Daniel mourned for the 70 weeks of captivity
prophesied by Jeremiah; the vision of Daniel took place in the
first year of Darius, King of Chaldea, that is, in the year 162 of
Nebuchadnezzar; but, in chap. x. of Daniel we learn, that he ate no
pleasant bread, neither came flesh and wine into his mouth, till three
whole weeks were fulfilled. Now, the term weeks is used in the Bible
indiscriminately for weeks of years, or of days; here it appears clear
it signifies the former, particularly as the whole relates to the 70
years of Jeremiah; and the angel, in chap. x. ver. 14, tells Daniel, in
the same figurative style, "Now I am come to make thee understand what
shall befall thy people in the latter days, for yet the vision is for
many days." If then Daniel wept three weeks of years, or 21 years, from
the destruction of the temple, in the year 141 to the time of the vision
in 162, (the angel, chap. x. ver. 13, says, that the prince of Persia
withstood him 21 days, or years), it is easy to see what Daniel means.
Jeremiah had prophesied a captivity of 70 years, of these, three weeks
or 21 years were past; therefore Daniel, after entreating God to tell
him "how many more years were wanting," received for an answer what
follows, "At the beginning of thy supplications, the commandment came
forth, and I am come to show thee."--"Seventy weeks are determined
upon thy people to seal up the vision and prophecy," that is to complete
the prophecy of Jeremiah; and we find,-therefore, that from the issuing
the commandment to restore the Jews, and to build Jerusalem, or more
properly from the revelation of the angel, (exitu Verbi), promising that
Jerusalem should be rebuilt, ver. 23, to the coming of the Messiah, the
prince, or Cyrus, who freed the Jews from the captivity, there were to
be seven weeks, or 49 years, which, added to the three weeks already
past, made the 70 years of Jeremiah. Cyrus is by Isaiah called the
Lord's anointed: "Thus saith the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose
right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before him for Jacob my
servant's sake." Cyrus gave, at that time, liberty to the Jews, as the
reader may see in Ezra. It is evident, that the word commandment cannot
mean any express order to build Jerusalem, for the angel says, just
before he reveals the prophecy, "at the beginning of thy supplications
the commandment came forth we know that Daniel began to address prayers
unto heaven, at a time when there was no order to build the temple, on
the contrary, the Jews were in captivity.
This is the most difficult part of the pretended prophecy, the remainder
is plain. There shall be 62 weeks till the rebuilding of the wall. The
writer alludes here to the building of the first temple under Zerubbabel
and Jeshua, and then to the rebuilding of the wall, and restoration
of the temple by Judas Maccabeus, after its profanation by Antiochus
Epiphanes. The period of this last event is by the prophecy made to
extend to 63 1/2 weeks, or 444 years. Let us see if chronology confirms
this supposition. The temple was destroyed in the 141st year of Nabuch,
or 4107 of the Julian period; add to this 444 years, or 63 weeks and a
half, and we have the year 4551, or the second year of Judas Maccabeus,
according to Josephus; who also informs us, that having conquered his
enemies, he then built a wall about Sion, which is clearly meant in the
words, "the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous
times," 1 Maccab. chap. iv. ver. 60. At that time also "they builded up
the mount Sion with high walls," &c. Troublous the times certainly were;
the Jews were fighting against the cruelty of Antiochtis Epiphanes. It
is certain then, that after 343 years, or 69 weeks, the wall should be
built, and although it was not really completed till about ten years
after, it is presumable that the loose historian, or prophet, did
not choose to alter the beautiful idea of 70 Weeks. We know how
superstitiously the Jews respected not only the number 7, but all its
different affections. We are besides informed, in the first book of
Maccabees, that after the first depredation of Antiochus, the people
rebuilt the city of David, and made walls and forts; this happened
some years before the building of the wall by Judas, and brings the
prediction nearer to historical accuracy.
The next part of the prophecy is, "And after threescore and two weeks
shall sacrifices cease;" this means in the course of the week that
succeeds the 62. And, no doubt, Antiochus Epiphanes abolished them in
the seventh year of his reign, as we read in I Maccab. chap. i. "And
the people of the prince that shall come, shall destroy the city and the
sanctuary." This Antiochus most certainly did, "and went up (Antiochus)
against Israel and Jerusalem with a great multitude, and entered
proudly into the sanctuary, and took away the golden altars, also he
took the hidden treasures, and there was great mourning in Israel," 1
Maccab. J. "And the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end
of the war desolations are determined." The coming of Antiochus into
Jerusalem is pompously detailed in the first book of Maccabees: the Jews
compared a great calamity, or an invading and irresistible army, to
a flood. Let us proceed with the remainder: "And he shall confirm the
covenant with many for a week," this alludes to the first seven years
of the reign of Antiochus, during which he did not interfere with the
worship of the Jews, although he gave liberty to those who chose to be
heathens to follow their respective worship: it was in the end of the
sixth, and in the beginning of his seventh year that he attacked the
Jews, destroyed the temple, plundered it of its riches, and made himself
the tyrant of Judea.