ordered the temple which had been built in that city to be shut up;
lest, under pretence of public worship, the Jews of that place should
meet there and plot rebellion.
Domitian died A.D. 96, and was succeeded by Nerva, who immediately
set St. John at liberty: the Apostle at once left Patmos, and went
into Asia Minor, where he wrote the account of the wonderful Vision or
Revelation made to him in that island. Very soon afterwards, St. John
wrote the three Epistles called by his name.
The First of these Epistles is not addressed to any persons in
particular; but was written to warn all Christians not to listen to
the false teachers, who were then leading many into serious error.
Some of these false teachers, pretended that Jesus was not really man;
and that, as He had no real body like ours, He did not really suffer
crucifixion. Others, on the contrary, taught that He was _only_ man.
Both doctrines were equally fatal to the hopes of Christians: if Jesus
Christ did not share our human nature, He could not atone for the sin
of man; if He were only man, however free from sin Himself, He could
not atone for the sins of His fellow mortals. Thus a firm belief in
Jesus Christ as _God and Man_, is absolutely necessary for all who
look for salvation through Him. Another set of false teachers taught,
that those who believed themselves to be justified by faith, and so
freed from the restraints of the Levitical Law, might sin without fear
of punishment. St. John cautions all Christians not to be led away by
these, or any other false doctrines; and he shows them how very
different they are from the truths contained in the Gospel as taught
by Jesus Christ, and fully explained by His Apostles. St. John, in
this Epistle, speaks much of the love of God towards His creatures,
and of the duty of all men to love Him and their fellow creatures for
His sake.
The Second Epistle of St. John was probably written from Ephesus, his
usual abode at this time. This Epistle is addressed to some particular
lady, to warn her and her children not to listen to the dangerous
doctrines of false teachers.
The Third of St. John's Epistles is written to a man named Gaius, who
is supposed to have been converted by the Apostle, who therefore
speaks of him as one of his children: a very usual figure of speech
with teachers, respecting those whom they converted. In this way St.
Paul calls Timothy his "son." In the Acts of the Apostles, and in the
Epistles, we meet with the name of Gaius five times; and four
different persons seem to be meant. Gaius, of Macedonia (Acts xix.);
Gaius, of Derbe (Acts xx.); Gaius, whom St. Paul baptized at Corinth
(1 Cor. i.), and who lodged that Apostle in his own house at Corinth
(Rom. xvi.); and this Gaius, to whom St. John writes his Epistle;
whether he was one of those already mentioned, we cannot know.
The object of this Epistle from St. John, seems to have been to praise
Gaius for his steady faith, and for having shown kindness to some
Christian strangers, who had passed through the place where he lived:
at the same time, St. John cautions him to have nothing to do with a
teacher named Diotrephes, who had denied St. John's authority, and set
himself up as the head of a party, in opposition to the Apostles.
St. John entreats Gaius to do, what may equally apply to each one of
us, for he says, "Follow not that which is evil, but that which is
good." He also recommends to him Demetrius, of whom we know nothing,
except that he was a good man. This letter to Gaius is very short,
because, as St. John writes, he hoped shortly to meet and talk to him.
St. John spent the last years of his long life at Ephesus, and there,
about A.D. 99, he wrote that very valuable and beautiful portion of
Holy Scripture known to us as "The Gospel according to St. John." When
St. John wrote, he was of course well acquainted with the Gospels of
St. Matthew, St. Mark, and St. Luke, and also with the Book of Acts,
for they had all been written many years before this time. He does
not, therefore, repeat much of what they tell us, but gives an account
of many things which they do not mention; and repeats especially much
of what his blessed Lord said at different times to His disciples.
There was a good reason for this.
Even by this time, many errors had crept into the Christian Church, as
has already been said, when speaking of St. John's First Epistle.
St. John, therefore, wrote his Gospel to correct these errors, and to
show all men, that Jesus Christ was truly and indeed the Son of Man
and the Son of God: the Word that was from the beginning with God, and
was God, and was made man, that He might suffer for us.
The Gospel of St. John completed the Canon of Scripture; that is,
those writings which are undoubtedly written by inspiration of God,
and are, therefore, to be the general rule of Christian faith and
practice.
Chapter XXXVII.--THE DEATH OF ST. JOHN.
St. John was nearly 100 years old when he wrote his Gospel: he had
spent a long life in preaching and exhorting, and we are told that,
when his great age prevented his continuing his active labours, he
used to be carried into the public assemblies of the Christians, in
order to repeat his exhortation, "Little children, love one another":
words constantly repeated in some shape or other, in the writings of
this Apostle, who also dwells much upon the love of Christ for man, as
a reason why men should love Him, and love each other for His sake.
Let us try to obey the precept, "Love one another"; remembering that
St. John also says, "Love not in word neither in tongue, but in deed
and in truth"; that is, do not talk about your love, but show it by
your actions. Love to Christ must show itself in obedience; love to
man for His sake, by kindness to every fellow creature, and by doing
all the good we can to them, whether they are kind to us or not.
St. John died quietly at Ephesus, about A.D. 100: his faith and love
were great, therefore his death was peaceful and happy; for he felt
that he was now going home to his beloved Master, Whom he had
faithfully served for many years on earth.
A century, or space of 100 years, had now passed since the birth of
Jesus Christ: at the time of that event, the inhabitants of the world,
with the exception of the Jews, were Heathens or Pagans; who, in their
total ignorance of an Almighty and Holy God, gave themselves up to
follow their own sinful inclinations, and were guilty of every sort of
wickedness and vice. The Jews, though still retaining a nominal
observance of the Law of Moses and the worship of One True God, had
strangely forgotten and forsaken the religion, so long the glory of
their nation. Thinking more of temporal than of spiritual things, they
wilfully misunderstood the writings of the prophets, and looked for a
temporal king in the promised Messiah: those who dared to hold a
different opinion, were treated with contempt.
The two sects of Sadducees and Pharisees, though in other matters
opposed to each other, equally set at naught the holiness of heart and
life commanded by the Law of Moses. The Sadducees, denying the
possibility of a future life, laughed at the idea of denying one's
self any gratification here, from the fear of punishment hereafter.
The Pharisees, passing by the Moral Law, which it did not suit them to
keep, taught, that a strict observance of the Ceremonial Law, and of
the traditions handed down from father to son, would secure the favour
of God.
Thus Sadducees and Pharisees both destroyed all true religion; that
is, all devotion of the heart to God, producing holiness of life.
The consequence of this was, that the knowledge and love of God were
daily growing less amongst the Jewish people, and rapidly ceasing to
have any effect on their motives and actions. So that, both as
regarded Jews and Gentiles, it might truly be said, "The whole world
lieth in wickedness."
The doctrines and precepts of our blessed Lord, were meant to make man
hate and renounce all sin and wickedness; to show him the necessity of
self-denial, and of holiness in thought, word, and deed; and to set
before him that love towards God, which was to be the motive and
principle to govern all his actions.
Thus, wherever the Gospel was received, a great change at once took
place; and the close of the first century, found the world in a very
different condition from that, in which it had been at the beginning.
Mankind must now be considered as divided into three classes: First,
the Heathen, who, in addition to all former wickedness, now added a
spirit of hatred and persecution towards those who rejected their
false religion, for the Truth as is in Jesus. Second, the Jews, who,
in spite of all the miseries they had gone through for their rejection
of Jesus Christ, still clung to the Law of Moses; hating the Heathen,
but above all, hating the followers of Jesus with an increasing
hatred. The third class comprehended all, who, by the mercy of God,
had been brought out of either of the other two classes, to be sincere
and faithful followers of the precepts and examples of the Holy Jesus.
This class, called Christians, already contained a very large number
of persons of all ages and sexes; and their number was increasing
daily, by fresh converts from amongst the Gentiles.
Thus, by the close of the first century, the Church of Christ was so
firmly established upon earth, as to defy all the efforts made to
overthrow it.
Even during the first century the Christians suffered persecution; and
many of them were put to death, because they would not give up their
belief in Jesus, and act contrary to His precepts. This cruel
persecution of the Christians continued during the second and third
centuries; sometimes with greater, sometimes with less severity. But
it has been truly said, that "the blood of the martyrs is the seed of
the Church"; for numbers, seeing their holy lives, and then witnessing
the wonderful manner in which they were supported to bear the most
exquisite tortures rather than give up their religion, felt that there
must be some sure and strong foundation for such faith and
steadfastness, and were thus led to become Christians themselves; and
by their future conduct and martyrdom they again, in their turn,
brought others to join the Church of Christ, which thus extended
itself rapidly on all sides.
Before the close of the second century, Christianity had been
established as the religion of the Britons; but how, or by whom, it
was brought into our island, we do not know: it seems very probable
that, during the long interval in which we know nothing of St. Peter's
movements, he came to Britain, and established the Church which has
ever since existed here.
In reading of the martyrs, we should remember that they, knowing that
the favour of God was the only thing worth having, were willing to
suffer and die in order to obtain it; trusting to the Lord to give
them a happy issue out of all their sufferings. They did not trust in
vain. We must also recollect, that the religion of the martyrs was no
sham; no system of outward forms, but an entire devotion of the whole
heart and life to God; and that the same devotion is required of
Christians now. If we are not now called upon to suffer martyrdom, we
are called upon to give our hearts to God; and show our Faith, by
denying ourselves in everything contrary to His Will, whatever pain or
difficulty we may have in doing so.
Do we do this?
The Jews, who outlived the destruction of their city and temple,
sought refuge in different parts of the world. Many went into Egypt,
where there was a Jewish colony, that had been established in the time
of Alexander the Great. Others fled to Cyrene, another part of Africa.
A large number removed to Babylon, and joined their brethren who had
remained from father to son in that country, instead of returning to
Jerusalem when the decree of Cyrus permitted them to do so. Some took
refuge in Persia and other Eastern countries.
By degrees, these Jews formed a regular system of government for
themselves.
They were divided into Eastern and Western Jews. The Eastern Jews were
those who settled in Babylon, Chaldaea, Assyria, Persia, and the
adjacent countries. Those who remained in Judaea, or took up their
abode in Egypt, Italy, and other parts of the Roman dominions in
Europe, were called Western Jews. In the course of time, these two
parties each chose some distinguished person as their head, or chief.
The chiefs of the Eastern Jews were called "Princes of the Captivity";
and those of the Western Jews, were simply styled "Patriarchs."
Gradually these chiefs obtained more and more influence and authority
amongst their fellow countrymen in all matters. Both parties of Jews
also founded schools, that the children might be fully and carefully
instructed in all the doctrines and practices of their religion. But
these things were done gradually during a long course of years, one
step leading to another; for naturally, on their first dispersion
after the destruction of Jerusalem, their whole attention was turned
to securing a safe asylum, where they might worship God after the
manner of their fathers--as far, at least, as they could do so; but
the destruction of the Temple had rendered it impossible to keep the
feasts and offer the sacrifices, so strictly enjoined by the Law of
Moses.
The impossibility of obeying the precepts of their religion, should
have made the Jews more ready to listen to those, who declared that
the promised Messiah had indeed come; and that therefore, the Old
Dispensation contained in the Law of Moses was at an end.
As Scripture history closes before the destruction of Jerusalem, all
that has been said regarding that and subsequent events, has been
gathered from other histories; and all that has been related
concerning the latter days of some of the Apostles, has been supplied
in a similar way. It will be well now to give a short account of the
labours and deaths of such of the Apostles as have not been already
mentioned; only remembering, that whilst we have every reason to
believe such accounts are true, we cannot feel certain, as we do in
regard to all the facts related in the Holy Scriptures.
Taking, then, "the names of the twelve Apostles" as given by St.
Matthew (x. 2, &c.), we have "first, Simon, who is called Peter." Of
him we have heard much in the course of our Lord's life, and during
the time of which the Book of Acts gives us the history: and we have
also spoken of what he is believed to have done after that period, and
of his martyrdom. Of "Andrew his brother," we only know that he was
also a fisherman, and that he was a disciple of John the Baptist, with
whom he was standing when the Baptist said of Jesus, "Behold the Lamb
of God." Andrew, nothing doubting, at once sought an interview with
Jesus, and then went to find, his own brother Simon, giving him the
joyful news, "We have found the Messias." Andrew became afterwards one
of the constant followers of our Lord, chosen to be Apostles; and his
name is mentioned two or three times in sacred history.
From other sources we learn, that after the Ascension of our Lord,
St. Andrew travelled to Byzantium, now called Constantinople, and
there founded a Church; and that he also preached the Gospel in the
Crimea. But he ended his life in Greece, under the following
circumstances: St. Andrew was preaching at a place in Achaia with
great success, when AEgeas, the pro-consul or Roman governor of the
province, came there, and was greatly enraged to find that multitudes
had already been converted from Heathenism to Christianity: he
therefore told the Apostle, that he should be crucified unless he
would himself offer a sacrifice to the heathen gods. This St. Andrew
of course refused to do, and he was put into prison; but the people
were so angry at this, that they would have rescued him by force, had
he not begged them not to do so; telling them that he was quite ready
to suffer martyrdom, if such was the will of God. It is said, that
amongst other miracles performed in the name of Jesus by St. Andrew,
he had healed the wife and the brother of AEgeas of diseases; and that
both had, in consequence, become Christians. This made the pro-consul
still more furious; and, in his rage, he ordered St. Andrew to be
severely scourged by seven men, before he was put to death. He was
tied to a cross of the shape of the letter X; and it is said that he
hung upon it for two days, during which, in the midst of his agony,
he continued to instruct and exhort the people. After his death, his
body was embalmed and buried with all honour, at the expense of a
noble lady, named Maximilla. We are told that, 300 years later, St.
Andrew's body was taken to Constantinople by the Emperor Constantine,
who had become a Christian, and buried in a church which the Emperor
had built in honour of the Apostles.
In after times, St. Andrew came to be looked upon as the patron Saint
of Scotland.
A cross, the shape of that upon which St. Andrew was crucified, is
always called a St. Andrew's Cross.
Chapter XXXVIII.--THE APOSTLES.
The next on the list of the Apostles, are "James the son of Zebedee,
and John his brother." Both of these have been already mentioned: the
Scripture tells us, that St. James the elder, the brother of St. John,
was killed with the sword by Herod Agrippa.
St. John, as we have heard, survived the destruction of Jerusalem; was
banished for some years to the island of Patmos; and finally died a
natural death at Ephesus.
"Philip and Bartholomew" are the next upon our list; and throughout
their lives they seem to have been intimately connected with each
other. Philip's name is mentioned two or three times in Scripture. He
was no sooner called to be a follower of Jesus, than, as we are told,
"he findeth Nathanael (or Bartholomew), and saith unto him, We have
found Him of whom Moses in the law and the prophets did write, Jesus
of Nazareth, the son of Joseph." Or, in other words, that they had
found out, that Jesus of Nazareth the reputed son of Joseph, was, in
truth, The Messiah, of whom Moses and the prophets had written.
After the Lord's Ascension, Philip is supposed to have preached the
Gospel in some parts of Asia, and then to have suffered martyrdom in
Phrygia. It is said, that coming to a place where the inhabitants were
the grossest idolaters, Philip, greatly distressed at their condition,
prayed constantly for them; at the same time labouring to convince
them of the folly of their present worship, and telling them of the
true God, and of His Son Jesus Christ. The Lord so blessed Philip's
efforts, that many of his hearers turned from idolatry and became
Christians. This success, stirred up the opposition and persecution of
the heathen magistrates, who accordingly seized the Apostle, put him
in prison, caused him to be unmercifully scourged, and afterwards
crucified. It is said, moreover, that whilst hanging on the cross, he
was stoned to death; and that then, such a violent earthquake took
place, as greatly alarmed all the people; and that many, in
consequence, repented of their idolatry and wickedness, and turned to
God.
Bartholomew, or Nathanael, could not at first believe that Jesus of
Nazareth was the promised Messiah, but after acting according to
Philip's advice, of "Come and see," he cordially acknowledged Jesus
Christ to be the "Son of God, the King of Israel." After our Lord's
Ascension, this Apostle is said to have laboured amongst the savage
tribes of Abyssinia, then called Ethiopia; and we are told, that 100
years afterwards, a missionary who went to preach the Gospel in those
parts, found a copy of St. Matthew's Gospel, which was said to have
been left there by Bartholomew. Bartholomew was in Phrygia with
Philip, when the latter was put to death: and it is said that he was
also fastened to a cross, but that the heathens were so alarmed by the
earthquake, that they took him down, and set him at liberty. After
this, he is said to have preached in various parts of Asia Minor,
ending with Armenia, where he was seized by the idolatrous governor,
and treated with the greatest cruelty; he was beaten to the ground
with staves; crucified head downwards; then taken from the cross,
flayed, and finally beheaded.
Thomas, the next on the list of Apostles, is well known to us for his
doubts as to the reality of the Resurrection--doubts mercifully
removed by the Lord Himself. After the Ascension, Thomas is said to
have laboured in Judaea, Parthia, Medea, Persia, and other countries,
until he reached India. Here he was at first afraid of venturing
amongst the dark-coloured and cruel heathens, who inhabited the
country; but being encouraged by a vision, he fearlessly journeyed on
into the country, and was most successful in bringing the people out
of the darkness of Paganism into the light of the Gospel. The Brahmins
or priests, however, were much opposed to him: at a certain town he
began to build a place of worship for the Christians, and Segamo, the
prince of the country, persuaded probably by the Brahmins, forbade him
to go on with it. Thomas, however, by the help of God, performed
several miracles, which so convinced Segamo of the truth of all his
doctrines, that he himself became a Christian, and allowed the
building to be continued. The idolatrous priests now saw that their
religion was in great danger, and therefore, watching for a convenient
opportunity, they came upon Thomas in a quiet spot, to which he had
gone to pray, and shot him with their arrows. Having thus disabled the
Apostle, the Brahmins stoned him, and finally ran a lance through his
body. The dead body of Thomas was carried by his disciples to the
church which he had just completed, and there buried. About 1,500
years afterwards, when the Portuguese first made their way to India,
they found upon the Malabar coast many Christian families, who called
themselves "St. Thomas's Christians"; being descendants of those, who
had been converted from Paganism to Christianity, by this Apostle.
Matthew's name stands next on the list of the Apostles; he has already
been spoken of, as far as the Scriptures make mention of him; and also
as the writer of the first of the four accounts of our Saviour's life
and death. We neither know what this Apostle did after our Lord's
Ascension, nor how he died; but there is a tradition that he was
murdered in Ethiopia, where by his teaching, and the miracles he was
enabled to perform, he had been the means of converting multitudes
from Heathenism to Christianity.
"James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus,"
now come under consideration. They were brothers; two of the sons of
Mary, sister to the Virgin Mary, and of Cleophas one of the disciples
to whom, after His resurrection, the Lord appeared on the way to
Emmaus. This James, distinguished as "the Less," has already been
spoken of as Bishop of Jerusalem, and his death has also been
mentioned (p. 351).
Lebbaeus, also called Judas and Jude, was, as has been said, the writer
of an Epistle. No ancient writer gives any account either of his
labours after the Lord's Ascension, or of the manner of his death.
Of "Simon the Canaanite," whose name stands next on our list,
Scripture tells us nothing, except that he was also called "Simon
Zelotes." "Zelotes" means full of zeal and eagerness; and the name was
probably given to this Apostle, on account of his great zeal and
earnestness in the service of his Master. The term "Canaanite" seems
to be derived from a Hebrew word, which also means zeal. After the
Ascension, Simon is said to have preached the Gospel amongst some of
the barbarous nations in Africa; and then to have gone westward,
finally reaching Britain, where he was crucified, probably by the
Romans.
The last on the list of Apostles is Judas Iscariot, whose surname, it
is thought, is merely derived from the place of his birth. Of him it
is unnecessary to speak now. The mention of Judas Iscariot naturally
reminds us of him who was afterwards chosen to fill the place, "from
which by transgression he fell."
Matthias, chosen after the Ascension to complete the original number
of Apostles, was one of those disciples "which had companied with the
Apostles, all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among
them." Beyond this, Scripture says nothing about him; nor do any
ancient writers tell us how long he laboured in the holy office to
which he was appointed; but it is said, that he was finally put to
death by some amongst whom he was preaching.
No sketch of our Lord's Apostles would be complete without some notice
of Paul and Barnabas; who, though not called to be Apostles until
after the Ascension, laboured zealously in that sacred ministry. St.
Paul has already been spoken of most fully, and frequent mention has
been made of St. Barnabas, up to the time of his separation from St.
Paul, after which the Book of Acts contains no account of him: but in
one of his Epistles, St. Paul writes of him in such a manner, as shows
that though for the moment "the contention between them was so sharp
as to part them asunder," it had not caused any real coolness or
estrangement. Another proof of this, is found in the fact, that St.
Mark afterwards became a devoted attendant upon St. Paul, by whom he
was highly valued. St. Mark was with the Apostle whilst he was a
prisoner in Rome.
Of the labours of St. Barnabas after his separation from St. Paul, we
have no certain account anywhere: in the end he is said to have been
stoned.
Before closing this chapter, it seems well to take notice of St. Luke
and St. Mark, who, though not Apostles, are, as writers of the Gospel,
entitled to the respect and gratitude of all who value the holy
Scriptures.
There is, however, little to add to what has been already said of
them.
Luke, by birth a Jew, and probably a native of Antioch in Syria, was a
physician, who became a convert to the religion of Jesus. He is said
to have been one of the seventy disciples, sent out on one occasion,
"two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he
himself would come." This is very probable, although, as he is not
once named in any of the Gospels, we cannot be sure.
From St. Luke's own account in the Book of Acts, we find that he went
with St. Paul on his first voyage to Macedon. At Philippi, he seems to
have left the Apostle; why we know not, but perhaps St. Paul sent him
on some mission. It is not unlikely that he remained in that country;
but during St. Paul's second journey, he rejoined him, and sailed with
him from Philippi. For the next five years, St. Luke continued with
St. Paul: this brings us to the release of the Apostle from his
confinement in Rome. Here ends any certain account of St. Luke. It is
said that he then went into Achaia, and afterwards preached the Gospel
in Africa. As no ancient writers mention his having suffered
martyrdom, it is probable that he died a natural death.
If the Evangelist St. Mark was, as there is every reason to believe,
the same "Mark whose surname was John," he was nephew to Barnabas. We
first hear of him in Scripture, as going from Antioch to Jerusalem
with Barnabas and Saul; and then accompanying them on a journey, but
leaving them unaccountably at Perga; in consequence of which, St. Paul
afterwards refused to take him with them on another journey, thus
causing the contention already mentioned. "Barnabas, taking Mark,
sailed to Cyprus." It is said that St. Mark was with St. Barnabas at
the time of the latter's death, and received his dying commands to go
without delay to St. Paul, by whom, as has been already said, he was
well received. What his ultimate fate was, we know not.
It may not be amiss to mention, before we take leave of the immediate
followers of our Lord, that in pictures, the four Evangelists are
distinguished by certain signs or symbols. St. Matthew is simply a man
with a pen in his hand; St. Mark is accompanied by a Lion; St. Luke by
an Ox; and St. John by an Eagle.
PART III.
Chapter I.--THE JEWS TO THE TIME OF THE EMPEROR ADRIAN.
The history of those chosen by the Lord to be His peculiar people, has
now been traced for more than two thousand years, from the Call of
Abraham, B.C. 1921. For the two centuries immediately following that
event, we have the history of Abraham's descendants, Isaac, Jacob or
Israel, and the twelve sons of Israel, or Patriarchs, as they are
called, from being the fathers of all the tribes of Israel. Israel and
his sons and grand-children, to the number of sixty-six persons, went
down, B.C. 1706, into Egypt, where Joseph then was, having been sold
as a slave about twenty years before.
During the next 300 years, the descendants of Israel multiplied so
wonderfully that, in B.C. 1491, 600,000 men, besides women and
children, went out of Egypt under the guidance of Moses.
The giving of the Law, Ceremonial and Political, as well as Moral,
established the chosen people of God, as a Church and Nation.
Forty years of wandering in the wilderness brought the Children of
Israel to the eastern banks of the Jordan, B.C. 1451. The Bible then
relates how, under the command of Joshua, the Jordan was crossed, and
the heathen wonderfully driven out of the land, which the Lord had
promised to give to Abraham and his descendants, for a possession.
For forty-six years, the Children of Israel were ruled by Joshua and
the elders who outlived him. For the next 300 years, they were
governed by Judges, raised up by the Almighty at different times, as
they were needed. In B.C. 1095 the Children of Israel were bent upon
having a king, and Saul was accordingly crowned, and reigned for forty
years. During the next eighty years, the kingdom flourished under
David and his son Solomon; the latter of whom built the glorious
Temple, dedicated to the service of the Lord with much ceremony, B.C.
1004. It had taken eight years to build.
The division of the country into the two kingdoms of Judah and Israel,
under Solomon's son Rehoboam, took place B.C. 975. One king succeeded
another more or less quickly, until the sins of kings and people led
to the destruction of the kingdom of Israel by Shalmaneser, king of
Assyria, B.C. 721; and to the burning of Jerusalem and of the Temple,
B.C. 587, when Nebuchadnezzar carried the inhabitants of the kingdom
of Judah into a long captivity in Babylon. Some years before, in B.C.
606, this same Nebuchadnezzar had carried away many of the children of
Judah; and from _this_ date the Captivity, which lasted seventy years,
is reckoned to have begun. The seventy years expired in B.C. 536; and
Cyrus, king of Medea and Persia, having conquered the Babylonian
Empire, gave the children of Judah leave to go back into their own
land, showing them much kindness upon the occasion. The Jews, as they
were now called, returned in great numbers to Judaea; though many of
them still, by their own choice, remained in the land where they had
been born and bred.
The Jews who did return, had great difficulties to overcome; but at
length they built a Second Temple, which was dedicated B.C. 515. Under
the governance of Ezra and Nehemiah, the Jews served the Lord in the
land of their fathers; but soon they again fell into grievous sin,
though they were never more guilty of idolatry: that crime which
principally caused their captivity. So far the Bible has given us the
history of the people of God.
From other histories we learn, that Alexander the Great, who became
king of Macedonia B.C. 336, conquered Persia and all the countries in
any way dependent upon her: Judaea, of course, amongst the rest. The
remarkable vision which made Alexander treat the Jews with kindness
has been mentioned (iii. 425). After the death of this monarch, B.C.
323, Judaea became in some sort dependent upon Syria; and we have
already seen how severely the Jews suffered during the next 153 years,
from the wars and fightings going on continually between Syria and
Egypt. The cruelty and oppression of the Syrian princes became
intolerable; and, after Antiochus Epiphanes had taken Jerusalem, B.C.
170, the Lord in mercy raised up the family of Maccabaeus, to deliver
the Jews from his tyranny.
Under the Maccabaean princes, the Jews fought successfully against the
enemies of their religion. Judaea gradually recovered from its
desolation and misery, and again became prosperous; whilst the pure
worship of the One True God was once more the established religion of
the nation. But after the death of John Hyrcanus (iii. 481), B.C. 107,
enemies without, and divisions and troubles amongst themselves, again
filled Judaea with confusion.
In B.C. 63, Judaea became, like so many other countries, a province of
Rome; and we have seen how the Romans appointed governors or kings,
and even high priests also. The Government of Rome itself underwent a
great change about this time: the Republic, or Commonwealth, which had
lasted 479 years, from the Expulsion of Tarquinius Superbus, B.C. 509,
now came to an end, and Octavius Augustus Caesar was chosen as the
first Emperor, B.C. 27.
Octavius Augustus had ruled the vast dominions of Rome as Emperor for
twenty-seven years, when that event took place, destined to affect in
the most momentous manner all races and kindreds of men: even the
Birth of Jesus Christ, the long-promised Messiah. When our blessed
Lord was twenty-nine years old, that is, in A.D. 29, He began to teach
publicly amongst the Jews. Octavius Augustus was no longer Emperor of
Rome at this time; he had died when Jesus was fourteen years old, and
had been succeeded by Tiberius.
Although a small number of the Jews owned and received Jesus Christ as
the expected Messiah, He was rejected by the nation in general: and
after His crucifixion, the Jews tried in every way to oppose His
Apostles, and prevent the spreading of Christianity. We have read
their punishment in the destruction of Jerusalem, A.D. 70, and the
dreadful sufferings which came upon the unhappy Jews, and forced them
to scatter themselves through all lands, hoping to find safety--a hope
too often disappointed, and that constantly through their own fault.
The history of the Jews has thus been traced to the close of the first
century after the Birth of Christ, that is, to A.D. 100.
It will now be advisable to give a slight sketch of their history,
from that date until the present time. Unhappily there are many
thousand Jews who profess still to expect the promised Messiah;
refusing to believe that Jesus of Nazareth, in Whom all the prophecies
of their Scriptures have been so literally and exactly fulfilled, was
indeed the Messiah, of Whom Moses and the prophets did write.
May the Lord take away their blindness, and bring them into the one
fold, under the one Shepherd, Jesus Christ.
In spite of all that the Jews had suffered from their opposition to
the Romans, they could not make up their minds to submit quietly to
foreign rulers.
Trajan, who became Emperor quite at the close of the first century,
treated them with great severity, and even forbade them to read the
Law. In consequence, a rebellion broke out, A.D. 115, at Cyrene, in
Africa, where the Jews had been settled for many years: it quickly
spread over Libya into Alexandria: in the struggle, the country was
plundered and ruined, whilst thousands of people were killed on both
sides: but finally, after a great slaughter, the Romans got the better
of the rebellious Jews. The next year, the Jews in Mesopotamia took up
arms, and filled the country with terror. Trajan sent against them a
famous general, who, after killing great numbers of the people, forced
the rest to submit to the Roman power: the successful general was then
made governor of Judaea, that he might keep the Jews still residing
there, in submission. Soon afterwards, there was a still more dreadful
insurrection in the isle of Cyprus, where the Jews massacred an
incredible number of the inhabitants: a Roman general called Adrian,
then went into Cyprus, and defeated the Jews after an obstinate
battle. Trajan now published an order, that all Jews should leave the
isle of Cyprus, and never return to it.
When Trajan died, A.D. 117, Adrian became Emperor; he forbade the Jews
to circumcise their children, and sent strangers to settle in the land
of Judaea, and rebuild the city of Jerusalem, which he meant to
ornament in the Roman style, and call by some Roman name. These
measures so enraged the Jews, that they again broke out into open
rebellion: their leader was Coziba, one of the banditti who infested
the country; and under his command, all kinds of violence were
committed against the subjects of Rome. Coziba pretended that he
himself was the person spoken of by Balaam, when he said, "There shall
come a star out of Jacob, and a sceptre shall rise out of Israel": and
in consequence, he called himself Barchocheba, or "the son of a star."
Even before this time, several impostors had pretended to be either
the promised Messiah, or the Elias who was to prepare his way; but
Coziba was the first whose pretensions led to any important
consequences.
Coziba promised to deliver his countrymen from the power of Adrian,
and to make them once more an independent and glorious nation: such a
Messiah as this exactly suited the false ideas of the Jews, and they
acknowledged Coziba to be the Christ, the Son of God. The Rabbi
Akibha, chosen by the impostor to be his forerunner or messenger,
publicly anointed him as the Messiah, the king of the Jews; placed a
crown upon his head; coined money in his name; and collected for him a
body of 20,000 disciples. By calling upon all the descendants of
Abraham to help "the Hope of Israel," promised to their common
forefather, an immense army was soon assembled at Bither, a town near
Jerusalem, chosen by Coziba to be the capital of his new kingdom.
Adrian, not believing that after all they had gone through, the Jews
could raise an army, thought little of this revolt at first; and when
at length he did send against them a powerful army, it was totally
defeated. The news of this misfortune caused great astonishment and
dismay at Rome: and Julius Severus, one of the greatest generals of
his time, was sent to put an end to this dangerous rebellion,-a
matter which he found it difficult to accomplish; but at length, in an
attack upon Bither, Coziba was killed; a dreadful slaughter of men,
women, and children followed; and Akibha and his sons were put to a
cruel death by the Roman conqueror.
The Jewish historians say, that between battle, famine, sickness,
fire, and other calamities, the number of Jews that perished in this
war was greater than the number of the Children of Israel who
originally came out of Egypt: and they also declare, that their
terrible sufferings under Nebuchadnezzar and Titus, were not so great
as those inflicted upon them in the reign of Adrian. Both these
statements are probably exaggerated; but they show that the misery of
the unhappy Jews at this time, was most extreme.
Chapter II.--STATE OF THE JEWS TO THE END OF THE THIRD CENTURY.
The repeated provocations which, by their rebellions, the Jews gave to
the Romans, could not, of course, tend to make their conquerors deal
mercifully with them: thus did they, time after time, draw upon
themselves those miseries, which were a chastisement for all their
sins against God; and especially of that crowning one, the Crucifixion
of "the Lord of Life and Glory."
After the rebellion under Coziba, numbers of the Jews who outlived it,
were offered for sale at the same price as a horse, at the fair of
Terebinth, held every year on the plain of Mamre. The horror of such a
fate was doubled by the fact, that the plain of Mamre was looked upon
by the Jews as a sacred spot; because here their great forefather
Abraham received the angel, who gave him the promise of a son.
Those of the unhappy captives who were not sold at Terebinth, were
taken to another fair, at Gaza, or sent into Egypt, to be disposed of
there.
When this terrible war was at an end, Adrian caused the building of
his city to be continued. He did all he could to profane, and hold up
to contempt, whatever the Jews looked upon as most sacred: he placed a
marble hog over the gate of the city nearest to Bethlehem; built a
temple to Jupiter Capitolinus, on the spot where the temple of the
Jews, the House of God, had stood; and used the stones which had been
employed for the temple, to build a theatre.
As Adrian hated the Christians as well as the Jews, he set up statues
of heathen deities at Bethlehem, where Jesus Christ was born; on the
spot where He was crucified; and in the garden, from whence He rose
again from the dead.
Adrian also forbade the Jews to enter Jerusalem, or even to go near
enough to look upon its ruins. Before this time, they were constantly
to be seen, clothed in rags, wandering sadly upon the Mount of Olives,
and amongst the ruins of their once glorious temple and city: a Roman
garrison was now charged to see that Adrian's harsh decree was obeyed,
or to put the transgressors to death. But by giving money to the
garrison, the unhappy Jews did get leave to go once a year, on the
anniversary of the destruction of Jerusalem, to weep over the ruins of
their beloved city.
Thus were the Jews forced to pay even for the privilege of shedding
tears, in the places where they had purchased and shed the blood of
Jesus Christ. Truly was "His blood," that is, the punishment for
shedding it, "on them and on their children." When they had madly
cried, "His blood be on us and on our children," they had, in fact,
_asked_ that the curse of God might come upon them; and heavily indeed
had it fallen. The dreadful fate of the Jews should ever be a warning
to each individual Christian. We have owned Jesus Christ to be the
Messiah, the Redeemer of mankind; we are called by His name; His Word
is in our hands: if we do not love and obey Him, shall we not deserve
a greater punishment even than the Jews? whose history is given us as
a warning of the hatefulness of sin, in the sight of the Almighty.
Whilst the Western Jews had been suffering as has been described, the
Eastern Jews were more fortunate. The Emperor Adrian had agreed to let
the Euphrates be the eastern boundary of the Roman Empire, and
therefore the Jews on the eastern side were no longer subject to his
power. Many of them, however, eager for the liberty of their country,
went into Judaea to help their brethren, but they only added to the
number of sufferers.
Little is known of these Eastern Jews: they chose chiefs, called
"Princes of the Captivity," to preside over their synagogues; they
founded schools, and encouraged learned men; so that some of their
rabbis became famous for their learning. One of these rabbis, named
Judah, wrote a book called "The Misna," of which some account must be
given.
After the destruction of Jerusalem, the sect of Pharisees became very
powerful amongst the Jews; the chief thing taught by them in the
schools was, not the written Law of Moses, but all the _traditions_,
or doctrines and precepts, handed down by word of mouth from father to
son. Of course doctrines handed down in such a way, got sadly altered
from what they had been at first; and thus the truth was corrupted. As
time went on, fresh traditions were added, till at last they were so
many, that the doctors, whose duty it was to explain the meaning of
them, found it necessary to write them out, as it was impossible
otherwise even to remember them. The disciples of the doctors again,
took notes of the explanations given of these traditions; and all this
made so much confusion, that the Rabbi Judah undertook to make a new
arrangement of the traditions, or oral Law. The meaning of the word
"oral," is "delivered by the mouth"; and this Law was called "oral,"
because it was originally given by the mouth. Judah, therefore,
collected together all the traditions, with the commentaries or
explanations given by the most famous amongst their teachers or
doctors. This work occupied him for forty years; it contained all the
laws and doctrines, with an account of the institutions and modes of
life, which the Jews supposed themselves bound to observe, _beyond_
those commanded in the Mosaical Law. The Jews held this work in the
greatest possible veneration, and called it "The Misna"--Misna being a
Hebrew word, meaning the Second Law. It was also called "The First
Talmud." The Jews called it "The Misna," or Second Law, because they
considered that it was as necessary to obey it, as it was to keep the
Pentateuch, or First Law. The Misna did not, however, settle all the
doubtful cases and questions often raised by the Jews; and another
rabbi, with the assistance of two of Judah's disciples, wrote a
commentary, or rather an addition to the Misna. This addition was
called the Talmud of Jerusalem, because it was compiled or put
together in the land of Judaea, for the benefit of those Jews who still
remained in their native country.
During the second century the Jews became still further divided into
sects, holding many opinions or doctrines contrary to those held
originally by the Jewish people; but the sect of the Pharisees still
continued to be the largest.
The consequence of these divisions into numerous sects was, that there
were perpetual jealousies and contentions amongst them. One great
subject of dispute was, as to the use of the Septuagint version of the
Scriptures by the Hellenists. The Hellenists were Jews who spoke
Greek, and did not understand Hebrew, so as to read the Scriptures in
their original language; and who were, therefore, very glad to make
use of the Septuagint version, which was written in Greek. The rest of
the Jews used the Hebrew Scriptures; but at last they agreed that the
Hellenists might use the Greek copies. Afterwards, however, finding
that the Christians always used the Septuagint, when endeavouring to
convince the Jews that Jesus Christ was the Messiah, their dislike to
that version of the Holy Scriptures increased to such a degree, that
they came to look upon all persons who used it as Schismatics; that
is, as persons who sinfully separated themselves from their brethren,
who held the true faith as delivered to them by Moses.
Antoninus Pius became Emperor of Rome towards the middle of the
second century, that is, in A.D. 138. The edict forbidding the Jews to
circumcise their children, was so hateful to them, that in spite of
the warnings given them by former sufferings, they again revolted.
Antoninus put down the revolt by force; but afterwards he treated the
Jews very mildly, and gave them the privilege for which they had
fought; only forbidding their attempting to make proselytes. In the
reign of Marcus Aurelius, who became Emperor A.D. 161, the Eastern
Jews, who were subject to the king of Parthia, joined that monarch in
a war against the Romans; and Marcus Aurelius was so angry, that he
unjustly revenged himself upon his Jewish subjects, and once more
ordered Adrian's law against circumcision to be put in force: but in
the distant provinces this law was not observed.
In A.D. 197, Septimius Severus became Emperor: at this time the Jews
had settlements in Galilee, but the law forbidding them to enter
Jerusalem was still in force. Though defeated and humbled so
constantly, this unhappy people attempted to get possession of Samaria
and Judaea by force. When the Romans had again brought them into
subjection, Severus treated the Jews as Antoninus had done before; and
in reward for some service they had done him, he also granted them the
privilege of Roman citizens, and even allowed them to be chosen to
fill offices of trust and honour. So ended the second century.
Early in the third century, Heliogab[=a]lus became Emperor of Rome,
A.D. 218. This Emperor pretended to be in some respects a Jew himself,
and would not, in consequence, eat the flesh of swine; but at the same
time he built a temple in honour of the Sun, and was anxious to make
both Jews and Samaritans mix this worship, with their own religious
observances. The Jews, who never would have consented to such
idolatry, were saved from the misery which a refusal would have
brought upon them, by the death of Heliogab[=a]lus, who was
assassinated by his own soldiers, A.D. 222. Alexander Severus, who
succeeded him, favoured the Jews, and caused himself to be instructed
in their religion. The great object of Alexander Severus was to mix up
the Christian and Jewish doctrines with those of Paganism, and make
one religion of the whole: this shows that he could have had no real
knowledge of the two former. In his own private chapel, Severus placed
statues of Jesus Christ, of Abraham, and of Orpheus, a famous musician
of ancient times, of whom many mythological tales are told.
The Eastern Jews established academies in the beginning of the third
century; and in Persia their rabbis were for some time treated with
great respect: but at last the Persians became jealous of the power
and influence of the Jews, and persuaded Sapor, king of the country,
to allow a violent persecution to be carried on against these unhappy
people: those who could escape sought refuge in other lands. Under
Zenobia, Queen of Palmyra, (the Tadmor built by Solomon,) the Jews
flourished exceedingly: they built handsome synagogues in every part
of her dominions, and filled the highest offices in the state. In A.D.
273, the Emperor Aurelian defeated Zenobia, and took possession of her
dominions: some of the Jews then returned into Persia; but under
Aurelian, and the Pagan emperors who succeeded him during the
remainder of the third century, the Jews enjoyed peace and
tranquillity in the dominions of the Romans. In this respect they were
more fortunate than the Christians, who were persecuted by various
Emperors, and especially by Diocletian, who began to reign A.D. 284.
Whilst the Christians were treated with the most barbarous cruelty,
because they would not give up their religion, the Jews were allowed
to celebrate all the forms of their worship in the most public manner.
Thus ended the third century; but early in the next, an event took
place, which made a great change in the condition of Jews and
Christians.
Chapter III.--JEWS IN THE FOURTH CENTURY.
Early in the fourth century, as has been said, a great change took
place in religious matters. Constantine, surnamed the Great, who began
to reign as sole Emperor of Rome A.D. 324, became a Christian. It is
said, that when going to fight against a rival who claimed the
Imperial power, Constantine saw, or dreamed that he saw in the sky, a
bright cross, and upon it the words, "In hoc vince" (in this conquer).
He gained the victory; and ascribing it to the God worshipped by the
Christians, (whose emblem was a cross,) he became a convert to their
religion, and adopted the cross as his standard. The example of
Constantine was followed by the greater part of his subjects, so that
Christianity was established as the religion of the Roman Empire,
though many of the inhabitants still remained Pagans.
The city of Jerusalem, which Adrian had called Elia, took again its
own name; and many beautiful churches were built in it by Constantine.
But the establishment of the Christian religion was by no means a
favourable circumstance for the Jews, who were looked upon as its
worst enemies: against them, Constantine, in the beginning of his
reign, made some very severe laws. The Jews in Persia had grown
insolent in consequence of the prosperity they had enjoyed: they
insulted and abused all Christians, and were even supposed to have put
to death some of their brethren who had embraced Christianity.
Constantine, indignant at such conduct, visited it upon the Jews in
his own dominions, and treated them with the greatest severity, even
forbidding Christians to eat with them. In short, the unhappy
Israelites were now subjected to every sort of insult and suffering.
The Persian Jews were very angry at such treatment of their brethren;
and as they had great influence over the King of Persia, they now
tried to avenge the Jews in the west, by raising a bloody persecution
against Christians in the east: numbers of Christ's followers were
accordingly killed; their churches destroyed; and their sacred book
burnt. This persecution was carried on, until every trace of
Christianity was almost rooted out of the country.
But the cruelty of the Persian Jews did not go unpunished, although
the Roman Empire was now greatly disturbed by internal strife, as well
as by the attacks of foreign enemies.
Constantine the Great died in A.D. 337; and after his death the Roman
Empire rapidly declined, both in extent and power; but of this we need
say nothing here, as our business is with the Jews. Constantius, who
succeeded Constantine as Emperor, hated the Jews, and by his cruel
treatment, drove them to raise an insurrection in Palestine. This only
enraged the Emperor still more, and led him to add new and more severe
laws to those already made against these unhappy creatures, by former
Emperors. Any Jew who dared to marry a Christian, was to be put to
death; and the same punishment was inflicted upon one who tried to
make a proselyte of his own slave; or who kept in slavery any man who
had become a Christian.
On the death of Constantius, A.D. 361, the Jews experienced some
relief from his successor the Emperor Julian, surnamed the Apostate;
because, after having been brought up as a Christian, he renounced
that true religion, and lived as a Pagan.
When Constantine the Great died, he left Constantius and two other
sons, who were to divide his dominions amongst them: and he left two
brothers, who had sons also. Gallus and Julian were the sons of one of
these brothers, and were consequently cousins to Constantius. The
generals and ministers of Constantine, persuaded the people after his
death, that there would be constant struggles for power between the
brothers and sons of the late Emperor. The soldiers, who were very
fond of Constantine, declared that no one but a son of their beloved
Emperor should reign over his dominions, or rule in the city of
Constantinople, which he had built to be the capital of his dominions,
and the royal residence. The soldiers stirred up the people, and
formed a plot to destroy the brothers and nephews of Constantine.
Constantius, when he first came to Constantinople after his father's
death, had solemnly promised to protect his uncles and cousins from
all their enemies; but in spite of this, he was easily persuaded to
join in the plot for their destruction; and a pretext was soon found
for carrying out the scheme. A paper was produced, which was pretended
to have been written by Constantine just before his death. In this
paper, the Emperor was made to declare his belief, that he had been
poisoned by his brothers; and he desired his sons to revenge his
death, and secure their own safety, by the destruction of their uncles
and cousins. Such a pretext was quite sufficient; and the soldiers,
without waiting for any inquiry or trial, murdered the suspected
princes and all their sons, excepting the two young boys Gallus and
Julian, who were hidden by their attendants from the fury of the
soldiers; and thus escaped the fate of the two brothers and seven
nephews of Constantine, who were now murdered.
Gallus and Julian, who alone escaped the slaughter, were of the
respective ages of twelve and six years. Constantius justly felt, that
to put these children to death in cold blood, would be looked upon by
all mankind as an act of wanton and needless cruelty: perhaps, too, he
felt some sorrow for the crime already committed. At any rate, the two
boys were allowed to live, and were sent to some city in Bithynia, or
Ionia, where persons were appointed by the Emperor to educate them. As
Gallus and Julian grew up, Constantius feared that they might plot
against him; and he therefore chose for their residence a strong
castle, standing in a pleasant situation, with extensive grounds
belonging to it: having been an ancient palace, it contained very
good rooms. Here, attended, or rather _guarded_, by a numerous
household, the young princes lived for six years: they were carefully
instructed by the best teachers, in all branches of learning, as well
as in active exercises; but in spite of every attention and comfort,
they felt themselves to be prisoners, shut out from all society except
that of persons devoted to Constantius, and ready to obey him in every
matter. A very strict observance of all the outward forms of
Christianity, had been forced upon them; but upon the heart of Julian,
at least, the blessed truths and precepts of the Gospel had taken no
hold. He had rather learnt to connect Constantius and his religion,
with cruelty and tyranny; and the violent disputes carried on by the
bishops, who professed to be the followers of Jesus Christ, still
further increased his dislike to a religion, associated in his mind
with his own sufferings.
When Gallus was twenty-five years old, disturbances in his dominions
induced Constantius to release him, and even to place him as governor
over part of the country. The cousins, therefore, met, and took a
solemn oath, never to do anything to injure each other; and then
Gallus was settled at Antioch, to rule over the neighbouring
provinces. Gallus was not unmindful of his brother, but also obtained
liberty for him. Julian, now nineteen years of age, having been so
long restricted in his choice of society, eagerly sought that of
learned men, the greater part of whom were unfortunately Pagans; to
whose ideas of religion he willingly listened, until he became
convinced that Paganism was a better religion than Christianity, which
he accordingly renounced; and from that time, became a devout and
sincere worshipper of the gods of Rome and Athens. On the death of
Constantius, A.D. 361, Julian became Emperor of Rome, and he proved a
just and wise ruler. As it was his great wish entirely to destroy the
Christian religion, Julian gave great encouragement to its enemies the
Jews; allowing them the free exercise of their religion, and treating
them with the greatest kindness. This emboldened the Jews to destroy
the churches of the Christians, and commit other acts of violence
against them--an example followed by their brethren in Egypt, who
destroyed the finest churches in Alexandria. Julian issued a law
establishing Paganism as the religion of his empire; but he did not
put to death those who held contrary opinions.
He hated the Christians, and would not allow them to have any power in
the State; he forbade them to teach any sort of science in the public
schools; he fined and banished their clergy; and also fined all who
refused to offer sacrifices to the Pagan deities. But nothing he could
do had any effect upon the Christians, who held firm to the true
faith.
The Emperor then determined to rebuild the temple, and settle a
powerful colony of Jews in Judaea; where they would be always ready to
join in any measure against the Christians. The destruction and
desolation of the temple having been foretold by Jesus Christ, Julian
thought, that by rebuilding it, and re-establishing in it the ancient
worship, he should shake the faith of mankind as to the truth of
Christianity.
Great preparations were made for the work; but when the workmen began
to clear out the foundations, they were hindered by balls of fire
which broke out, scorching and burning the unfortunate people. Some
writers doubt the truth of this account; but though we cannot be quite
sure, there is great reason to believe that it really did happen. We
may well believe that the Almighty worked this miracle, to prove the
truth of prophecy; and to show that the Christians were now his chosen
people, instead of the Jews, who had filled up the measure of their
iniquities by crucifying the Saviour of mankind. At any rate, Julian
gave up the attempt to rebuild the temple. Julian was killed in battle
A.D. 363, and was succeeded by Christian Emperors. Christianity was
then re-established as the national religion, although both Pagans and
Jews were allowed to practise their own forms of worship in peace,
until the close of the fourth century, when the Emperor Theodosius put
an end to Paganism in the Roman Empire: sacrifices to the heathen
deities were absolutely forbidden; and all the heathen temples were
destroyed, or shut up.
Chapter IV.--FIFTH AND SIXTH CENTURIES.
By the close of the fourth century, the Roman Empire was very
considerably weakened and diminished, by the attacks of barbarian
tribes on all sides.
On the death of the Emperor Theodosius, A.D. 395, all that remained of
the once Roman Empire was finally divided between his two young sons:
Arcadius becoming Emperor of the East, with Constantinople for his
capital; Honorius Emperor of the West, with the ancient capital of
Rome.
The Jews of the Eastern Empire, emboldened by the mild treatment they
had experienced, now insulted the Christians. Whilst celebrating the
Feast of Purim, in remembrance of their deliverance from the wicked
plots of Haman, instead of hanging a figure of Haman on a gibbet, and
burning it, according to custom; the Jews, in mockery of the
Christians, nailed the figure to a cross, and burnt that. This, of
course, greatly displeased and shocked the Christians; and the
magistrates caused the houses, as well as the synagogues of the Jews,
to be burnt. Laws were now made, forbidding the Jews to insult the
established religion; and also forbidding the Christians to destroy
the synagogues of the Jews: but these unhappy people were still
subject to great cruelty and injustice from the zeal of the
Christians, and the Emperor was obliged to make fresh laws, for their
protection from those, who would have done well to copy the _example_
of Him, Whose followers they professed to be.
During the early part of the fifth century, the Jews in the West,
enjoyed the free exercise of their religion under the Emperor
Honorius: the office of Patriarch was, however, abolished by law; and
this was a great grief to the Jews, who from this time were under the
direction of chiefs of the synagogues, whom they called Primates. The
fifth century was remarkable for the still further curtailment of the
Roman dominions, especially in the West. Britain was lost. Rome itself
was plundered, and a Visigothic Empire established in Spain. The Jews
of the Eastern Empire were much worse off during the fifth century
than their brethren in the Western. A great number of Jews had settled
at Alexandria, in the north of Egypt: they were very clever in their
various trades, and therefore prospered and grew powerful; but they
were not at all disposed to obey any rulers or magistrates. As early
as A.D. 415, they had become much less strict in their observance of
the forms and ceremonies enjoined by their religion; and instead of
attending the services of the synagogue on Saturday, their Sabbath,
they fell into a habit of going to witness the public amusements which
took place on that day. On these occasions, there were frequent
quarrels between the Jews and the Christians, and blood was often
shed. Cyril, Bishop of Alexandria, who had an extreme hatred of the
Jews, threatened them with the severest punishments; but as the
governor of the city was their friend, they paid no attention to the
bishop, and even laid a plot, and attacked the Christians during the
night, killing many of them. Cyril, without waiting for a legal
sentence against these murderers, encouraged the Christians to attack
and destroy the synagogues. After doing this, the people entered the
houses of all Jews, whether innocent or guilty, and robbed them of
their goods, which were given up for the use of the Christian Church.
The Jews were thus forced to quit the city, and Alexandria lost a
useful and rich colony. The governor Orestes was much displeased at
the Jews having been driven out of the city; and fresh disturbances
arose in consequence, between him and Cyril.
Towards the middle of the fifth century, a man appeared in the island
of Candia, pretending that he was a second Moses. There were a great
many rich Jews in the island, and this impostor persuaded them that he
was sent by the Almighty to deliver His people from worse than
Egyptian bondage; and that the sea would be divided before them, to
give them a safe passage to their own land. This man passed through
every town and village in Candia, and persuaded the Jews to meet him
at a particular spot on the sea-shore, on a certain day which he
named. Multitudes did so, taking with them as much of their wealth as
they could carry. The impostor then led the assembled multitude to the
top of a rock, and ordered them to throw themselves into the sea. Men,
women, and children, with a faith worthy of a better cause, at once
jumped into the sea, where most of them were, of course, drowned: some
were rescued from their fate by Christian fishermen. The survivors,
convinced too late of the falsehood of their pretended deliverer, now
attempted to seize him, but he managed to escape. Many of the Jews,
ashamed of having believed in such an impostor, are said to have
become Christians. What the object of this man was it is hard to see:
it certainly does not seem that he was any friend to the Jews, whom he
misled to their destruction.
During the fifth century, the Jewish work, called "The Talmud of
Babylon," was probably compiled: like "The Talmud of Jerusalem," it
contained the Misna of Judah, with other remarks and explanations. It
is supposed that another work, called "The Masora," was also written
at this time. The Masora fixed the true reading of the Hebrew words,
and numbered the chapters and verses, and even the words and letters,
of the Old Testament Scriptures. The object was, to prevent the Hebrew
Scriptures from being in any way altered, and so corrupted; and
therefore the Jews called the Masora "the hedge of the Law."
Towards the close of the fifth century, a tribe of Goths, called
Heruli, led by their king Odoacer, put an end to the Western Empire,
A.D. 476. Romulus Augustulus, the Emperor, was deposed; but his life
was spared, and a pension was granted him by Odoacer, who established
a kingdom of his own in Italy. He protected the Jews, who had
establishments for trade and commerce at Rome, Naples, Milan, and
Genoa: laws were made to defend them from the attacks of the
Christians; but, nevertheless, they were often robbed and ill-used by
the populace.
A few years later, A.D. 493, the kingdom of the Heruli was overthrown
by the Ostrogoths; but this change in the masters of the country does
not appear to have made any difference in the treatment of the Jews.
During the sixth century, the Jews in Persia were cruelly persecuted
by the kings, who wanted to force them to follow the idolatrous
religion of the country. Nor were the Jews on the western side of the
Euphrates better off, for the Emperor Justinian, who began to reign at
Constantinople A.D. 527, oppressed them most severely; and by degrees
deprived them of all the privileges they had enjoyed. He took upon
himself to settle all matters connected with religion: he would not
allow the Jews to keep the Passover at the time they wished; nor to
educate their children in their own faith; and he forbade the
magistrates to receive evidence against a Christian from any Jew.
Justinian also forbade the Jews of Carthage to worship God in their
own way; and commanded that their synagogues should be turned into
places of worship for the Christians. All these harsh measures
inclined the Jews to revolt, and a man called Julian, taking advantage
of this disposition, pretended to be the Messiah, whose coming the
Jews still expected. Many of these unhappy people joined Julian in
Palestine, confidently hoping for deliverance from their bondage: he
immediately led them to attack the Christians, who, not being
prepared, were defeated with great slaughter.
But the triumph of the Jews was of short duration, for Justinian sent
troops, which routed the rebels entirely; Julian was taken prisoner,
and immediately put to death.
Some years afterwards, the Jews of Caesarea rebelled against the
government of Justinian, and notwithstanding the hatred which existed
between them and the Samaritans, the two people joined together to
fight against the Christians: the governor of Caesarea, and great
numbers of the Christians, were massacred; and many of their churches
were destroyed.
This rebellion was quickly put down by the troops of Justinian; many,
who had taken part in it, were beheaded, and the rich were deprived of
all their property.
When Belisarius, the famous general of Justinian, besieged the city of
Naples, the Jews defended it most obstinately; and the length of the
siege caused the death of very many of the assailants. Belisarius at
length took the city: he tried to protect the Jews from the fury of
his own soldiers, but his efforts were unsuccessful, and men, women,
and children were murdered. The Jews were now so terrified, that they
kept quiet for the remainder of the sixth century.
The seventh century was a time of great suffering for the Jews in
general. Those of Antioch brought their first miseries upon
themselves, by attacking the Christians A.D. 602: the Christians
defended themselves bravely, but were overpowered: many were burnt in
their houses; others, with their bishop, were treated with every
insult, and then put to death. This rebellion was at last crushed, and
the Jews were most severely punished for their cruelty.
Cyprus gives us a pleasanter picture: in spite of Adrian's edict
of banishment, the Jews had again become numerous and powerful in
that island; and Leontius, the Christian bishop, fearing such an
insurrection as had taken place at Antioch, treated the Jews kindly,
and tried by gentle means to convert them. We are told that, under his
wise management, numbers really did become Christians.
In Rome, too, the bishops or pontiffs, who, under the title of Pope,
began to have great power and authority over all Christians, would not
allow the Jews to be persecuted.
But Heraclius, the Greek Emperor, hated the Hebrew race; and, not
satisfied with persecuting them himself, stirred up other sovereigns
to do the same. The Greek Empire, of which Heraclius was now Emperor,
was that division of the Roman Empire which has been called hitherto
the Eastern Empire, having Constantinople for its capital. There was
now no _Roman_ Empire; many of the countries that had formerly been
parts of it had become separate kingdoms, under monarchs of their own.
The two principal kingdoms were Spain, and Gaul, which we call
France. Neither Spain nor Gaul was, however, one kingdom, but each was
divided amongst several kings or rulers.
Chapter V.--RISE OF MAHOMETANISM.
The Jews settled in Spain had become rich by trading, and were very
flourishing, until Heraclius, who had been at war with that country,
made peace, on condition that all the Jews who would not consent to be
baptized, should be destroyed or driven out of Spain. Many to save
their lives and property submitted to the outward rite of baptism;
others, more conscientious, stood firm, and were cruelly tortured.
Some escaped into Gaul, but met with cruel treatment there: and during
the remainder of the seventh century, the unhappy Jews, both in Spain
and Gaul, were oppressed and ill-used by Christian kings, priests, and
people.
The most remarkable event in the seventh century was, the rise of
the Mahometan religion; so called from its founder, a man named
Mahomet--an Arabian, the son of a prince of one of the chief wandering
tribes who inhabited the country. The religion of these Arabians was a
mixture of the superstitious belief of neighbouring people; they also
believed themselves to be descended from the patriarch Abraham, and
observed circumcision, with other rites and ceremonies belonging to
the Jewish religion. They believed in one Supreme Being; and also in
three goddesses of equal power and wisdom, to be worshipped as well:
they likewise worshipped idols.
At Mecca, the capital of Arabia, there was a small temple, called the
C[=a][=a]bba, in which there was a stone, said to have fallen _white_
from heaven, in the time when man was innocent, and to have gradually
lost its pure colour as man became sinful; it was now quite black.
This stone was held in such veneration, that people from all parts of
Arabia came to the C[=a][=a]bba, to worship, bringing gifts; and thus
Mecca grew to be a rich and flourishing city.
Mahomet was left an orphan when he was quite young, and in order to
provide for him, his relations placed him in the service of a woman,
who was in the habit of going backwards and forwards to Syria,
trading; that is, selling the spices and other things which grew in
Arabia, to the Syrians; and bringing back such things as she could
sell to her countrymen. Mahomet now accompanied her on her journeys;
looking after the camels, and doing any other services required.
Syria was at this time a Roman province. Mahomet, being a clever,
intelligent lad, of an observing turn of mind, soon saw how much
difference there was between the laws, manners, and customs of the
polished Syrians, and those of his own uncivilized countrymen; and he
greatly regretted not being able to read or write. The mixture of Jews
and Christians which he found in Syria, turned his thoughts towards
religious matters, and made him think that it would be a good thing to
work a reformation in the corrupt and idolatrous religion of his own
country. His ambition made him wish to distinguish himself as the
founder of a new religion; but his poverty and dependent position
seemed to render this impossible.
In the course of time, however, Mahomet made himself so useful to his
mistress Cadigha, and gained such favour with her, that she married
him, and thus gave him the riches and consideration necessary for
carrying out his schemes. His first step was to remedy the defects of
his education; the next to gain favour with the people: he gave much
in charity; led a solitary life; and occasionally retired into the
desert, where he pretended to receive instructions from the angel
Gabriel. His wife assisted him by every means in her power; and in a
short time the whole city of Mecca talked of nothing but Mahomet, who
then began to lecture publicly. He taught that mankind should
acknowledge one God (without division of persons, as in Christianity);
he declared that the love of this Being was equal to His power, and
that all His laws tended to make His creatures happy. Mahomet also
taught, that as mankind sinned, God had from time to time sent
prophets upon earth to reprove them, and bring them back to His
service; and that the chief of these prophets were, Abraham, Moses,
Jesus Christ, and Mahomet; the last being the greatest of all "There
is one God, and Mahomet is His Prophet," was their confession of
faith. Prayers were to be offered to God seven times a day; and the
pilgrimages to Mecca, as well as circumcision and ablutions, were
recommended as outward signs of belief, in the doctrines of what
Mahomet declared to be a new Revelation, delivered to him by the angel
Gabriel. The book, in which all the doctrines and precepts taught by
Mahomet were recorded, is called "The Koran." The Koran contains many
precepts worthy of Christianity; and many doctrines in which there is
much truth, mixed, however, with a great deal of falsehood and error,
whilst the indulgence of man's evil passions is allowed. Such a
religion accorded well with the disposition of the Arabians; the
disciples of Mahomet increased greatly, and amongst them were the
richest and most respectable citizens of Mecca.
Very shortly, Mahomet began to spread his religion by conquest; and in
a few years he had subdued to his empire and religion, all Arabia;
thus establishing the "Saracen Empire," which afterwards extended
itself over much of Asia, Africa, and even Europe.
The Arabian followers of Mahomet took the name of "Saracens," to
induce a belief that they were descended from Abraham and his wife
Sara; whereas they were the descendants of Ishmael, the son of Abraham
and the bond-maid Hagar.
After the destruction of Jerusalem, many of the Jews settled in
Arabia; and by the beginning of the seventh century, they possessed
several towns and fortifications, and had armies commanded by
princes of their own. Their number and influence made Mahomet wish
for their help in his undertaking, and he treated them at first with
great attention: he had adopted many of their opinions and customs,
and he ordered his followers to turn towards Jerusalem when they
prayed. He thus succeeded in gaining favour with the Children of
Israel, who seeing what wonderful victories he gained, and misled by
their own obstinate ideas as to the character of the promised
Messiah, began actually to think that in this conqueror, they beheld
the long-expected Messiah. Many of the Jews, therefore, embraced the
Mahometan religion, which all, who were conquered by Mahomet, were
forced to adopt. The Jews were soon afterwards offended by his
eating the flesh of camels, a meat forbidden by the Mosaical Law;
and they had speedily other reasons for changing their opinions
concerning the pretended prophet; they then became his determined
enemies. Mahomet returned their hatred; and in the Koran, to which
he was continually adding chapters, as supposed to be delivered to
him from time to time by the angel Gabriel, he reproaches the Jews
with betraying and murdering the prophets sent by God, amongst whom
he numbers Jesus Christ. He also declares, that for these things,
and for breaking the laws of God and neglecting the Sabbaths, and
above all for having refused to acknowledge his authority to
establish a new Revelation, the Jews were justly accursed of God.
Not contented with such declarations, the impostor cruelly
persecuted the unhappy Jews; their property was taken from them,
many were driven into exile, and thousands were slaughtered. But in
spite of all sufferings, the Jews remained faithful to their
religion.
After the death of Mahomet, A.D. 632, the miserable remnant of the
once flourishing people of Israel was forced to remove into Syria; as
the impostor's dying command was, that none but followers of what he
called "the true religion," should be allowed to dwell in his native
land of Arabia.
One of the Caliphs, or princes, who succeeded to the power of
Mahomet, carried on war to force all nations to become Mahometans
or Mussulmans: he subdued Mesopotamia, Persia, and Syria: the
Jews rejoiced in the downfall of Persia, where they had met with
persecution. At the head of an army of Saracens, this Caliph
(Abubeker) attacked Jerusalem: the Christians gallantly defended it
for four months, and were then obliged to surrender the city to the
Saracens; who built a mosque, or Mussulman place of worship, on the
very spot where the magnificent temple of Solomon had formerly
stood.
The first Caliphs allowed the Jews the free exercise of their own
religion, and even permitted the Princes of the Captivity to exercise
considerable authority. During the eighth and ninth centuries the Jews
had their share in the troubles and calamities caused by civil wars
among the Caliphs. Besides this, their treatment varied much under the
rule of the different Saracen princes, who succeeded each other more
or less quickly: by some they were allowed to live in peace, and
worship God in their own way; by others they were persecuted. One of
the Caliphs forbade their riding on horses, and only permitted them to
have mules, and make use of iron stirrups: the Jews were also deprived
of every office or employment in the State, and they were obliged to
wear a cord round the waist, to point them out to the ridicule and
abuse of the people.
In Christian countries, during the seventh and eighth centuries, we
find the Jews exposed to equal, and even greater persecutions. The
members of the Christian Church were at this time divided into two
great parties, one of which objected to having any images of saints
in the churches: the Jews, being accused of encouraging these
disputes, were commanded by the Greek Emperor to give up their
religion, on pain of the severest punishment. To save their lives,
many of the Hebrews were baptized, but without any intention of
really becoming Christians. This being suspected, afforded an
excuse for still further persecutions of these unhappy people; but
subsequent Emperors showed them favour, and allowed them to practise
all the rites and ceremonies of their religion.
Chapter VI.--TENTH AND ELEVENTH CENTURIES.
The Jews in Spain brought trouble upon themselves by listening to
one of their own countrymen, who declared himself to be the expected
Messiah, and persuaded the multitude to follow him to Palestine,
where he promised to establish his kingdom. Many perished on this
expedition; and those who did return to Spain had cause to repent
bitterly of their foolish credulity, for during their absence the
Government had seized upon all their lands and property.
When Gaul was taken from the Romans by the barbarians, various tribes
of Germans, calling themselves Franks, established their empire in the
country. Charles the Great, or "Charlemagne," as he is always called,
became sovereign of the Empire of the Franks (or France, as we may now
term it), A.D. 772. The Saracens at this time were very troublesome in
making frequent attacks upon the country; and the Jews were suspected
of encouraging and aiding the Infidels, out of hatred to the
Christians. Charlemagne, after defeating the Saracens at Toulouse, in
the south of France, determined utterly to destroy the Jews, who were
accused of causing all this bloodshed. He was, however, persuaded only
to put to death some of those supposed to be the most guilty. The
others were condemned to pay an annual fine; and were, moreover,
obliged to assemble three times a year, at the gate of some Christian
church appointed by the bishop, to receive a box on the ear! which we
may well believe to have been no slight blow.
At other times, the Jews were treated with gentleness and moderation.
Louis le Debonnaire became king on the death of his father,
Charlemagne, early in the ninth century, A.D. 814. His favourite
physician was a Jew; and for his sake Louis granted great privileges
to the Jews. These marks of favour made them haughty and insolent;
but when the bishops complained of their behaviour, the king would
not listen to any proposition for their punishment. The favour and
protection thus granted by the monarch, produced a great effect among
his subjects; and those about the Court declared openly, that the
descendants of Abraham ought to be treated with the greatest respect.
Some even went so far as to observe the Jewish Sabbaths, and to
attend the synagogues; preferring to hear the discourses of the
learned rabbis, rather than the sermons of the Christian priests and
monks, who were at this time extremely ignorant. During the reign of
the next king, Charles the Bold, the Jews met with little favour; and
in some places they were constantly insulted with impunity by the
populace. In one part of Languedoc, it was the custom to pelt the
Jews with stones, from Palm Sunday--that is, the Sunday before Good
Friday--until the Tuesday after Easter Day.
During the tenth century, when there was much ignorance in all
Christian countries, the Saracens were great promoters of learning;
and under their protection the Jews were also able to apply themselves
to study, and many famous men appeared amongst them at this time; but,
unhappily, disputes between themselves soon brought them into fresh
difficulties.
We now come to the eleventh century, during which, if not before,
colonies of Jews settled in England; for when William, Duke of
Normandy, conquered the country, A.D. 1066, a considerable number of
them were already established in the kingdom. William also brought
with him, from Rouen, another colony of Jews, and gave them places to
live in, from whence they could carry on trade with other nations. In
return, they were to pay the king certain sums of money.
The Jews also appear to have been in favour with William Rufus, who
encouraged disputes between the learned rabbis and the Christian
bishops, declaring that he himself was quite ready to follow the
religion of whichever party had the best of the argument or dispute.
The Jews, always an industrious and money-making people, are said to
have become so rich and powerful in England during William the
Second's reign, that they not only held public meetings for the
purpose of converting the upper and more learned classes, but also
endeavoured by bribes to induce the poor and ignorant to renounce
Christianity, and enrol themselves amongst the Jews.
What has been said of the condition of the Jews in England, applies
also to all other European countries, where the Jews were richer, more
fond of learning, and more polished--that is, more civil and gentle in
their manners--than any other people. They were the only bankers; all
trade with foreign nations was carried on by them alone; and even the
gold and silver ornaments and vessels used in Christian churches, were
mostly made by these determined enemies of Christianity.
During the eleventh century, of which we have been speaking, the Jews
in Egypt were for a short time persecuted by a Saracen prince, who
wished to establish a new religion in the place of Mahometanism, or
Islamism, as the religion established by Mahomet was called. As
neither Jews nor Christians would assist him, he persecuted both;
obliging the former to wear some outward mark to distinguish them, and
point them out as objects for hatred and insult. He commanded their
synagogues to be closed, and tried to force them to follow the new
religion, of which he wanted to be the head. After a time, however, he
allowed them to return to the practice of their own rites and
ceremonies. Towards the middle of the eleventh century, an Eastern
Caliph determined to get rid of the Jews altogether. He shut up their
academies or schools; banished the teachers; and killed the Prince of
the Captivity, with all his family. This cruel persecution drove many
of the Jews into the deserts of Arabia; but most of them took refuge
in the western countries; and by the end of the eleventh century, they
had become numerous and powerful in different towns of Germany. Some
of the Jews, driven out of the East, passed through Africa into Spain,
and there joined their brethren, who, having helped the Saracens to
conquer Spain, were now greatly favoured by the Caliphs, and were a
wealthy and flourishing people. Hatred of the Christians was a bond of
union between the Jews and the Mahometans; but when one of the rabbis
tried to convert the Saracens of Grenada to the Jewish religion, the
king was so enraged, that he caused the rabbi to be seized and put to
death at once. This was followed by a terrible persecution of the
Hebrew race.
The Jews, however, suffered still greater miseries in those parts of
Spain which were under the rule of Christian princes. One of these,
called Ferdinand, having declared war against the Saracens, resolved,
in the first place, to destroy all the Jews in his dominions,
expecting by such an act of cruelty to obtain the favour and blessing
of God! but the clergy of his kingdom objected to the execution of
such a scheme; and the Pope himself wrote, and blamed Ferdinand for
such unchristianlike zeal, so that the design was given up.
Alphonso, the successor of Ferdinand, found himself in such
difficulties, owing to the increasing power of the Saracens, that he
showed favour to the Jews, in order to get them to help him with men
and money in his wars against the Infidels. He even allowed them to
act as judges over Christians; but the Pope did not at all approve of
this, and reproached the king for having, as he expressed it, "put the
synagogue of Satan above the Church of Christ." Alphonso, however, did
not take away the indulgences, which he had granted only to further
his own interest.
The close of this eleventh century was remarkable for the first of the
Crusades, or wars undertaken by Christian nations, in order to take
Palestine, or the Holy Land, out of the hands of the Saracens. In many
parts of Spain, great numbers of Jews were massacred by those about to
join the Crusade, under the mistaken idea that they should bring the
blessing of God upon their intended expedition, by destroying the
descendants of those who had crucified the Saviour of mankind. In
Germany, the Crusaders, who marched through the country, murdered all
the Jews who refused to become Christians. An immense number thus
perished, many of whom were burnt in their houses; for the unhappy
Jews barricaded their dwellings, and then threw their families, their
property, and themselves into the flames, thus disappointing the
avarice of their enemies, who coveted their riches. Even mothers, on
the approach of the merciless Crusaders, killed their children with
their own hands, telling them it was far better for them to go at once
into Abraham's bosom, than to fall into the hands of the Christians.
Some of the Jews, less brave and conscientious than their brethren,
saved their lives by pretending to adopt the Christian religion, which
they must naturally have hated more than ever, since those who
professed to be guided by its precepts, had acted with a degree of
cruelty and inhumanity, worthy only of the most ignorant savages. The
same dreadful scenes took place in Palestine, for when the Crusaders
arrived in that country, they, actuated by very mistaken notions of
the spirit of Christianity, inhumanly murdered all the Jews they could
lay hands upon; and men, women, and children alike perished by
hundreds.
During this dreadful time, it is pleasant to know that some of the
Christian bishops and clergy did try to protect the Jews; and they
received into their houses such fugitives as could manage to escape
from the fury of their enemies.
Thus ended the eleventh century.
Chapter VII.--TWELFTH CENTURY.
Our history has now brought us to the twelfth century; that is, to the
space of 100 years, from A.D. 1100 to A.D. 1200. The twelfth century
began as the eleventh had ended; for the Crusaders continued to
persecute the Jews in Germany and other countries, as well as in
Palestine.
The cry of the Christians was, "Let us destroy the descendants of
those who crucified Jesus Christ, so that the name of Israel be no
more remembered"--a cry as much at variance with prophecy, as with the
spirit of Christianity; for the Holy Scriptures had plainly declared,
that the once chosen people of God, though scattered throughout all
lands, and severely punished for their unbelief, should _never be
destroyed_.
Among the Christian bishops who interfered in favour of the Jews, was
one called St. Bernard, who thought that it was the duty of Christians
to _convert_ rather than destroy them; and that kindness was more
likely to do this than persecution. St. Bernard brought Innocent the
Second, who was then Pope, to agree with him, and to befriend the
Hebrew race.
On one occasion, when this Pope entered with much pomp and show into
Paris, the Jews, approaching him with great respect, gave him a
volume, or roll, containing the Law. The Pope received it, and said,
"I reverence the Law given by God to Moses, but I condemn your
explanation of it, because you still expect the Coming of the promised
Messiah, instead of believing, as the Catholic Church does, that Jesus
Christ was indeed the Messiah our Saviour; and that He now liveth and
reigneth in Heaven, with God the Father, and God the Holy Ghost."
The next Pope was also favourable to the Jews, and forbade the people
to insult them on any occasion whatever. Under such circumstances, the
Jews became a rich and flourishing people in Rome, and in all the
other cities of Italy.
Towards the close of the twelfth century, a Jewish rabbi, named
Joseph, was prime minister to a Christian king of Spain, and had a
coach of state, and guards to attend upon him; but having cause to be
displeased with the wicked conduct of one of his countrymen, this man,
whose name was Gonzales, contrived by his falsehoods to set the king
against Joseph, who was in consequence turned out of his office in
disgrace. Gonzales, who, though a Jew himself, was no friend to his
brethren, now, under pretence of enriching the king, persuaded him to
allow him to do as he pleased with eight of the principal Jews. The
king consented; Gonzales caused these eight men to be put to death,
and seized all their property. He then asked the king to give up to
him twenty more; but the monarch refused, thinking it more honourable
to demand some of their riches for his own use, than to deprive them
of life as well as property: the unhappy Jews gladly consented to give
the king large sums of money, in order to preserve their lives.
Shortly afterwards, Gonzales, having displeased the king, was shut up
in prison, and then the Jews again enjoyed that peace and quiet so
favourable to the pursuit of learning, of which they were very fond.
Among the learned men who distinguished themselves at this time, the
chief was Moses Maimonides, or the son of Maimon. This man claimed to
be descended from king David: his knowledge and learning were so
wonderfully great, and so far superior to that of any other rabbi,
that his countrymen called him "The Eagle of Doctors," (the eagle
being the king of his kind,) and declared, that no one before had ever
come so near in wisdom to their great founder and lawgiver, whose name
he bore.
But the very wisdom and learning for which they praised him, soon
raised the jealousy of the Jews against Maimonides; and this feeling
was increased by his showing very little respect for the Talmud, and
by his teaching some extraordinary doctrines, learnt from a Mahometan
of Arabia, under whom he had studied. Thus Maimonides offended a great
part of the Jewish people; and at Montpelier, a town in the South of
France, the chief of the synagogue persuaded certain learned men to
preach against Maimonides, and defend the Talmud: he also caused the
works of Maimonides to be burnt, and excommunicated all who should
dare to read them.
The learned men amongst the Jews were now divided into two parties:
one _for_ and one _against_ Maimonides; and disputes were in
consequence carried on for many years. At this time, learning was not
entirely confined to _men_ amongst the Hebrew race; for several
learned Jewish _women_ made themselves remarkable in the twelfth
century. One of these women was so skilful in explaining the Law and
the Talmud, that many went to hear her lectures upon these subjects:
she spake to the people from behind a latticed window, so that, whilst
her voice was heard, she herself could not be seen by those outside.
From Jewish historians we learn, that during this twelfth century many
of their nation were raised, at different times, to high offices in
the courts of princes; and that others became celebrated as generals.
Several learned Jews also renounced their religion and became
Christians, and then wrote books in favour of Christianity. One of
these Jews turned Mahometan, and wrote a book, accusing his Jewish
brethren of having altered the Law given to Moses by God. This greatly
pleased the followers of Mahomet, who forbade any person to quote or
translate any part of the Pentateuch, as used by either Jews or
Christians.
In France, towards the end of this century, the Jews suffered greatly
under Philip Augustus, or Philip the Second, who began to reign A.D.
1180. Some Jews were accused of having murdered a Christian youth;
king Philip eagerly seized upon such an excuse, and, under pretence of
piety and zeal for the glory of God, banished all the Hebrew race from
his dominions; allowing them only to keep the money for which they
could sell their furniture, the king taking for his own use all the
rest of their property. It is even said that these poor creatures were
robbed of what money they had been allowed to keep, and reduced to
such a state of want and misery, that many died in consequence. The
industry and skill of the Jews, however, made their loss felt in every
country from which they were expelled; and no doubt that was the case
now, for shortly afterwards Philip recalled them, excusing himself to
such of his subjects as disapproved of the measure, by saying, that he
allowed the Jews to return in order to get from them money to pay the
expenses of the Crusades.
So wickedly were the Jews treated at this time, that if one became a
Christian, all his property was taken from him--a measure not likely
to encourage conversions.
Something must now be said of the treatment of the Jews in England
during the twelfth century. Henry the Second, who began to reign A.D.
1154, has been blamed by monkish writers for allowing them to live in
peace; but the scene was soon changed.
The great wealth of the Jews caused them often to be applied to by
those who wished to borrow money; but they were hated by all
Christians, and grievously oppressed and ill-treated in most Christian
countries. When Richard the First succeeded his father, A.D. 1189, the
Jews hoped, by giving him large sums of money, to secure his favour
and protection; and great numbers of them came up to London from the
most distant parts of England, just before the king's coronation. The
common people in those days were very ignorant and superstitious, and
fancied that the Jews were magicians or conjurors, who could bewitch
the king, and so do him harm; and Richard, therefore, forbade any Jew
to be present in Westminster Abbey at his coronation.