countries peopled by the descendants of Cush; whose first plantations
were on the gulf of Persia, in that part which still bears the name of
Chuzestan, and from whence they spread over India and great part of
Arabia; particularly its western part, on the coast of the Red Sea;
invaded Egypt, under the name of Hyc-Sos, or shepherd-kings; and thence
passed, as well probably as by the straits of Babelmandel, into Central
Africa, and first peopled the countries to the south of Egypt, Nubia,
Abyssinia, and parts farther to the south and west. The indiscriminate
use of the term Ethiopia in our Bible, for all the countries peopled by
the posterity of Cush, and the almost exclusive application of the same
term by the Greek and Roman writers to the before mentioned countries of
Africa, have involved some portions of both sacred and profane history
in almost inextricable confusion. The first country which bore this
name, and which was doubtless the original settlement, was that which is
described by Moses as encompassed by the river Gihon, or Gyndes; which
encircles a great part of the province of Chuzestan in Persia. In
process of time, the increasing family spread over the vast territory of
India and Arabia: the whole of which tract, from the Ganges to the
borders of Egypt, then became the land of Cush, or Asiatic Ethiopia, the
_Cusha Dweepa within_, of Hindoo geography. Until dispossessed of this
country, or a great part of it, by the posterity of Abraham, the
Ishmaelites and Midianites, they, by a farther dispersion, passed over
into Africa; which, in its turn, became the land of Cush, or Ethiopia,
the _Cusha Dweepa without_, of the Hindoos: the only country so
understood after the commencement of the Christian æra. Even from this
last refuge, they were compelled, by the influx of fresh settlers from
Arabia, Egypt, and Canaan, to extend their migrations still farther
westward, into the heart of the African continent; where only in the
woolly-headed negro, the genuine Cushite is to be found.
Herodotus relates that Xerxes had, in the army prepared for his Grecian
expedition, both Oriental and African Ethiopians: and adds, that they
resembled each other in every outward circumstance except their hair;
that of the Asiatic Ethiopians being long and straight, while the hair
of those of Africa was curled. This is a very remarkable fact; and leads
to the question, How came this singular distinction between people of
the same stock? Did it arise from change of climate and of habits? or
from some original difference in a particular branch of the great family
of Cush? The former appears by far the more probable. It is not likely
that a people descended from a common parent should naturally be
distinguished by such a peculiar difference; but that it might be
acquired by change of soil and condition, we have every reason to
believe. We have something exactly analogous to it, in the change which
the hair of animals undergoes when removed from their native state. But
a modern writer has furnished us with a fact which will go farther than
either theory or analogy. Dr. Prichard, in his researches into the
Physical History of Man, relates, on the authority of Dr. S. S. Smith,
of the negroes settled in the southern districts of the United States of
America, that the field-slaves, who live on the plantations, and retain
pretty nearly the rude manners of their African progenitors, preserve in
the third generation much of their original structure, though their
features are not so strongly marked as those of imported slaves. But the
domestic servants of the same race, who are treated with lenity, and
whose condition is little different from that of the lower class of
white people, in the third generation have the nose raised, the mouth
and lips of moderate size, the eyes lively and sparkling, and often the
whole composition of the features extremely agreeable. “The hair grows
sensibly longer in each succeeding race, and extends to three, four, and
sometimes to six or eight inches.”
About four hundred years before Christ, Herodotus, in his second book
which treats of Egypt, makes frequent mention of Ethiopia; meaning
exclusively the Ethiopia above Egypt. In the time of our Saviour, (and
indeed from that time forward,) by Ethiopia, was meant, in a general
sense, the countries south of Egypt, then but imperfectly known: of one
of which, that Candace was queen whose eunuch was baptized by Philip.
From a review of the history of this remarkable people, we may see that
those writers must necessarily be wrong who would confine the Ethiopians
to either Arabia or Africa. Many parts of Scripture history cannot
possibly be understood, without supposing them to have settlements in
both; which Herodotus expressly asserts was the case. In fine, we may
conclude, that in the times of the prophets, and during the transactions
recorded in the second books of Kings and Chronicles, the Cushites,
still retaining a part of their ancient territories in Arabia, had
crossed the Red Sea in great numbers, and obtained extensive possessions
in Africa; where, being, in a farther course of time, altogether
expelled from the east by the Ishmaelites, &c, their remains are now
concentrated. It is to be observed, however, that the Cushites probably
at the time of their expulsion from Egypt, migrated, or sent colonies
into several other parts, particularly to Phenicia, Colchis, and Greece;
where, in process of time, they became blended with the other
inhabitants of those countries, the families of Javan, Meshek, and
Tubal, and their distinctive character totally lost.
CYPRESS, תרזה, Isa. xliv, 14; and κυπάρισσος, Ecclus. xxiv, 13; l, 10; a
large evergreen tree. The wood is fragrant, very compact, and heavy. It
scarcely ever rots, decays, or is worm-eaten; for which reason the
ancients used to make the statues of their gods with it. The
unperishable chests which contain the Egyptian mummies were of cypress.
The gates of St. Peter’s church at Rome, which had lasted from the time
of Constantine to that of Pope Eugene IV, that is to say eleven hundred
years, were of cypress, and had in that time suffered no decay. But
Celsius thinks that Isaiah speaks of the ilex, a kind of oak; and Bishop
Lowth, that the pine is intended. The cypress, however, was more
frequently used, and more fit for the purpose which the prophet
mentions, than either of these trees.
CYPRUS, a large island in the Mediterranean, situated between Cilicia
and Syria. Its inhabitants were plunged in all manner of luxury and
debauchery. Their principal deity was Venus. The Apostles Paul and
Barnabas landed in the isle of Cyprus, A. D. 44, Acts xiii, 4. While
they continued at Salamis, they preached Jesus Christ in the Jewish
synagogues; from thence they visited all the cities of the island,
preaching the Gospel. At Paphos, they found Bar-Jesus, a false prophet,
with Sergius Paulus, the governor: Paul struck Bar-Jesus with blindness;
and the proconsul embraced Christianity. Some time after, Barnabas went
again into this island with John, surnamed Mark, Acts xv, 39. Barnabas
is considered as the principal Apostle, and first bishop, of Cyprus;
where it is said he was martyred, being stoned to death by the Jews of
Salamis.
CYRENE was a city of Lybia in Africa, which, as it was the principal
city of that province, gave to it the name of Cyrenaica. This city was
once so powerful as to contend with Carthage for preëminence. In profane
writers, it is mentioned as the birthplace of Eratosthenes the
mathematician, and Callimachus the poet; and in holy writ, of Simon,
whom the Jews compelled to bear our Saviour’s cross, Matt. xxvii, 32;
Luke xxiii, 26. At Cyrene resided many Jews, a great part of whom
embraced the Christian religion; but others opposed it with much
obstinacy. Among the most inveterate enemies of Christianity, Luke
reckons those of this province, who had a synagogue at Jerusalem, and
excited the people against St. Stephen, Acts xi, 20.
CYRENIUS, governor of Syria, Luke ii, 1, 2. Great difficulties have been
raised on the history of the taxing under Cyrenius, for the different
solutions of which we must refer to the commentators.
It may be observed on the passage in Luke ii, 1, 2, That the word
οἰκȣμένη, rendered _all the world_, sometimes signifies the whole of a
country, region, or district, as perhaps Acts xi, 28, and certainly Luke
xxi, 26. The expression, “all the country,” is peculiarly proper in this
place, because Galilee, as well as Judea, was included, and perhaps all
other parts in which were Jews. The word ἀπογραφὴ, which is rendered
_taxing_, should have been translated _enrolment_; as a taxation did not
always really follow such enrolment, though such enrolment generally
preceded a taxation. The difficulty of the passage is in the word ϖρώτη,
_first_, because, ten or eleven years after, there was actually a
taxation, which, as a decisive mark of subjection to the Roman power,
was very mortifying to the Jewish nation. To this taxation Gamaliel
alludes, “Judas of Galilee rose up in the days of the taxing,” Acts v,
37, when mobs and riots were frequent, under pretence of liberty.
The narrative of St. Luke may be combined in the following order, which
is probably not far from its true import: “In those days Cæsar
Augustus,” who was displeased with the conduct of Herod, and wished him
to feel his dependence on the Roman empire, “issued a decree that the
whole land” of Judea “should be enrolled,” as well persons as
possessions, that the true state of the inhabitants, their families, and
their property, might be known and recorded. Accordingly, “all were
enrolled,” but the taxation did not immediately follow this enrolment,
because Augustus was reconciled to Herod; and this accounts for the
silence of Josephus on an assessment not carried into effect. “And this
was the first assessment (or enrolment) of Cyrenius, governor of Syria.
And all went to be enrolled, each to his own city;” and, as the
emperor’s order was urgent, and Cyrenius was known to be active in the
despatch of business, even Mary, though far advanced “in her pregnancy,
went with Joseph, and while they waited” for their turn to be enrolled,
“Mary was delivered of Jesus.” It is not, however, improbable, that Mary
had some small landed estate, for which her appearance was necessary.
Jesus, therefore, was enrolled with Mary and Joseph, as Julian the
Apostate expressly says.
An officer being sent from Rome to enrol and assess the subjects of a
king, implied that such king was dependent on the Roman emperor, and
demonstrates that the sceptre was departed from Judah. This occurrence,
added to the alarm of Herod on the inquiry of the Magi respecting the
birthplace of the Messiah, might sufficiently exasperate Herod, not
merely to slay the infants of Bethlehem, but to every act of cruelty.
Hence, after such an occurrence, all Jerusalem might well be alarmed
with Herod, Matt. ii, 3; and the priests, &c, study caution in their
answers to him. This occurrence would quicken the attention of all who
expected temporal redemption in Israel, as it would extremely mortify
every Jewish national feeling.
The overruling providence of God appointed, that, at the time of
Christ’s birth, there should be a public, authentic, and general
production of titles, pedigrees, &c, which should prove that Jesus was
descended from the house and direct family line of David; and that this
should be proved judicially on such a scrutinizing occasion. This
occurrence brought about the birth of the Messiah, at the very place
appointed by prophecy long before, though the usual residence of Joseph
and Mary was at Nazareth.
CYRUS, son of Cambyses the Persian, and of Mandane, daughter of
Astyages, king of the Medes. At the age of thirty, Cyrus was made
general of the Persian troops, and sent, at the head of thirty thousand
men, to assist his uncle, Cyaxares, whom the Babylonians were preparing
to attack. Cyaxares and Cyrus gave them battle, and dispersed them.
After this, Cyrus carried the war into the countries beyond the river
Halys; subdued Cappadocia; marched against Crœsus, king of Lydia,
defeated him, and took Sardis, his capital. Having reduced almost all
Asia, Cyrus repassed the Euphrates, and turned his arms against the
Assyrians: having defeated them, he laid siege to Babylon, which he took
on a festival day, after having diverted the course of the river which
ran through it. On his return to Persia, he married his cousin, the
daughter and heiress of Cyaxares; after which he engaged in several
wars, and subdued all the nations between Syria and the Red Sea. He died
at the age of seventy, after a reign of thirty years. Authors differ
much concerning the manner of his death.
2. We learn few particulars respecting Cyrus from Scripture; but they
are more certain than those derived from other sources. Daniel, in the
remarkable vision in which God showed him the ruin of several great
empires which preceded the birth of the Messiah, represents Cyrus as “a
ram which had two horns, both high, but one rose higher than the other,
and the higher came up last. This ram pushed westward, and northward,
and southward, so that no beasts might stand before him, neither was
there any that could deliver out of his hand; but he did according to
his will, and became great,” Daniel viii, 3, 4, 20. The two horns
signify the two empires which Cyrus united in his person, that of the
Medes and that of the Persians. In another place, Daniel compares Cyrus
to a bear, with three ribs in its mouth, to which it was said, “Arise,
devour much flesh.” Cyrus succeeded Cambyses in the kingdom of Persia,
and Darius the Mede (by Xenophon called Cyaxares, and Astyages in the
Greek of Dan. xiii, 65,) also in the kingdom of the Medes, and the
empire of Babylon. He was monarch, as he speaks “of all the earth,” Ezra
i, 1, 2; 2 Chron. xxxvi, 22, 23, when he permitted the Jews to return
into their own country, A. M. 3466, B. C. 538. He had always a
particular regard for Daniel, and continued him in his great
employments.
3. The prophets foretold the exploits of Cyrus. Isaiah, xliv, 28,
particularly declares his name, above a century before he was born.
Josephus says, that the Jews of Babylon showed this passage to Cyrus;
and that, in the edict which he granted for their return, he
acknowledged that he received the empire of the world from the God of
Israel. The peculiar designation by name, which Cyrus received, must be
regarded as one of the most remarkable circumstances in the prophetic
writings. He was the heir of a monarch who ruled over one of the poorest
and most inconsiderable kingdoms of Asia, but whose hardy inhabitants
were at that time the bravest of the brave; and the providential
circumstances in which he was placed precluded him from all knowledge of
this oracular declaration in his favour. He did not become acquainted
with the sacred books in which it was contained, nor with the singular
people in whose possession it was found, till he had accomplished all
the purposes for which he had been raised up, except that of saying to
Jerusalem, as the “anointed” vicegerent of Heaven, “Thou shalt be
inhabited;” and to the cities of Judah, “Ye shall be built, and I will
raise up their ruins.” The national pride of the Jews during the days of
their unhallowed prosperity, would hinder them from divulging among
other nations such prophecies as this, which contained the most severe
yet deserved reflections upon their wicked practices and ungrateful
conduct; and it was only when they were captives in Babylon that they
submitted to the humiliating expedient of exhibiting, to the mighty
monarch whose bondmen they had become, the prophetic record of their own
apostasy and punishment, and of his still higher destination, as the
rebuilder of Jerusalem. No temptation therefore could be laid before the
conqueror in early life to excite his latent ambition to accomplish this
very full and explicit prophecy; and the facts of his life, as recorded
by historians of very opposite sentiments and feelings, all concur in
developing a series of consecutive events, in which he acted no
insignificant part; which, though astonishing in their results, differ
greatly from those rapid strides perceptible in the hurried career of
other mighty men of war in the east; and which, from the unbroken
connection in which they are presented to us, appear like the common
occurrences of life naturally following each other, and mutually
dependent. Yet this consideration does not preclude the presence of a
mighty Spirit working within him; which, according to Isaiah, said to
him, “I will gird thee, though thou hast not known me.” Concerning the
genius, or guardian angel, of Socrates many learned controversies have
arisen; but, though a few of the disputants have endeavoured to explain
it away, the majority of them have left the Greek philosopher in
possession of a greater portion of inspiration than, with marvellous
inconsistency, some of them are willing to accord to the Jewish
prophets. In this view it is highly interesting to recollect that the
elegant historian who first informed his refined countrymen of this
moral prodigy, is he who subsequently introduced them to an acquaintance
with the noble and heroic Cyrus. The didactic discourses and the
comparatively elevated morality which Xenophon embodied in his “Memoirs
of Socrates,” are generally admitted to have been purposely illustrated
in his subsequent admirable production, the _Cyropædia_, or “Education
of Cyrus;” the basis of which is true history adorned and refined by
philosophy, and exhibiting for universal imitation the life and actions
of a prince who was cradled in the ancient Persian school of the
Pischdadians, the parent of the Socratic. Isaiah describes, in fine
poetic imagery, the Almighty going before Cyrus to remove every
obstruction out of his way:--
“I will go before thee, and level mountains,
I will burst asunder the folding-doors of brass,
And split in twain the bars of iron.
Even I will give thee the dark treasures,
And the hidden wealth of secret places:
That thou mayest know, that I THE LORD,
Who call thee by thy name, am THE GOD OF ISRAEL.”
According to Herodotus, Babylon was famous for its brazen gates and
doors; a hundred were in the city walls, beside those which led to the
river, and others which belonged to the temple of Belus. When Sardis and
Babylon were taken by Cyrus, they were the wealthiest cities in the
world. Crœsus gave an exact inventory of his immense treasures to
Cyrus, and they were removed from Sardis in waggons. Pliny gives the
following account of the wealth which Cyrus obtained by his conquests in
Asia: “He found thirty-four thousand pounds’ weight of gold, beside
vessels of gold, and gold wrought into the leaves of a platanus and of a
vine; five hundred thousand talents of silver, and the cup of Semiramis,
which weighed fifteen talents. The Egyptian talent, according to Varro,
was equal to eighty pounds.” Mr. Brerewood estimates the value of the
gold and silver in this enumeration at 126,224,000_l._ sterling. Other
particulars relating to him, and the accomplishment of prophecy in his
conquest of that large city, will be found under the article _Babylon_.
It is the God of Israel who, in these sublime prophecies, confounds the
omens and prognostics of the Babylonian soothsayers or diviners, after
they had predicted the stability of that empire; and who announces the
restoration of Israel, and the rebuilding of the city and temple of
Jerusalem, through Cyrus his “shepherd” and his “anointed” messenger.
Chosen thus by God to execute his high behests, he subdued and reigned
over many nations,--the Cilicians, Syrians, Paphlagonians, Cappadocians,
Phrygians, Lydians, Carians, Phenicians, Arabians, Egyptians,
Babylonians, Assyrians, Bactrians, &c.
“I am He who frustrateth the tokens of the impostors,
And maketh the diviners mad; &c.
Who saith to the abyss, [Babylon,]
‘Be desolate, and I will dry up thy rivers:’
Who saith to Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd,
And shall perform all my pleasure.’
Thus saith the Lord to his anointed,
To Cyrus whom I hold by the right hand,
To subdue before him nations,
And ungird the loins of kings,
To open before him [palace] folding-doors;
Even [river] gates shall not be shut:
For Jacob my servant’s sake, and Israel my chosen,
I have surnamed thee;” &c.
4. Herodotus has painted the portrait of Cyrus in dark colours, and has
been followed in many particulars by Ctesias, Diodorus Siculus,
Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Plato, Strabo, Justin, and others; in
opposition to the contrary accounts of Æschylus, Xenophon, Josephus, the
Persian historians, and, apparently, the Holy Scriptures. The motive for
this conduct of Herodotus is probably to be found in his aversion to
Cyrus, for having been the enslaver of his country. The Greek historian
was a man of free and independent spirit, and could never brook the
mention of the surrender of his native city, Halicarnassus, to the
troops of Cyrus. But, allowing that heartlessness and cruelty are too
often the accompaniments of mighty conquerors, and that very few escape
their direful contagion; yet, when the worst is told about Cyrus,
abundance of authentic facts remain to attest his worth, and to elevate
his character above the standard of ordinary mortals. Xenophon informs
us, that the seven last years of his full sovereignty this prince spent
in peace and tranquillity at home, revered and beloved by all classes of
his subjects. In his dying moments he was surrounded by his family,
friends, and children; and delivered to them the noblest exhortations to
the practice of piety, virtue, and concord. This testimony is in
substance confirmed by the Persian historians, who relate, that, after a
long and bloody war, Khosru, or Cyrus, subdued the empire of Turan, and
made the city of Balk, in Chorasan, a royal residence, to keep in order
his new subjects; that he repaid every family in Persia proper the
amount of their war-taxes, out of the immense spoils which he had
acquired by his conquests; that he endeavoured to promote peace and
harmony between the Turanians and Iranians; that he regulated the pay of
his soldiery, reformed civil and religious abuses throughout the
provinces, and, at length, after a long and glorious reign, resigned the
crown to his son Lohorasp, and retired to solitude, confessing that he
had lived long enough for his own glory, and that it was then time for
him to devote the remainder of his days to God. Saadi, in his Gulistan,
copies the wise inscription which Cyrus ordered to be inscribed on his
crown: “What avails a long life spent in the enjoyment of worldly
grandeur, since others, mortal like ourselves, will one day trample
under foot our pride! This crown, handed down to me from my
predecessors, must soon pass in succession upon the head of many
others.” In the last book of the “Cyropædia” we find the following
devout thanksgivings to the gods: “I am abundantly thankful for being
truly sensible of your care, and for never being elated by prosperity
above my condition. I beseech you to prosper my children, wife, friends,
and country. And for myself, I ask, that such as is the life ye have
vouchsafed to me, such may be my end.” The reflections of Dr. Hales on
this passage are very judicious: “Here, Xenophon, a polytheist himself,
represents Cyrus praying to the gods in the plural number; but that he
really prayed to one only, the patriarchal God, worshipped by his
venerable ancestors, the Pischdadians, may appear from the watchword, or
signal, which he gave to his soldiers before the great battle, in which
Evil Merodach was slain:
ΖΕΥΣ ΣΩΤΗΡ ΚΑΙ ἩΓΕΜΩΝ.
“JOVE, OUR SAVIOUR AND LEADER.”
Who this god was, we learn from the preamble of his famous proclamation,
permitting the Jews to return from the Babylonian captivity: ‘The Lord,
the God of heaven, hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he
hath charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem,’ &c, Ezra i, 1, 2.
But where did the Lord, (Iahoh, or Jove) so charge him?--In that signal
prophecy of Isaiah, predicting his name and his actions, about B. C.
712, above a century before his birth; a prophecy which was undoubtedly
communicated to him by the venerable Prophet Daniel, the Archimagus, who
saw the beginning of the Babylonish captivity, and also its end, here
foretold to be effected by the instrumentality of Cyrus.”
5. Pliny notices the tomb of Cyrus at Passagardæ in Persia. Arrian and
Strabo describe it; and they agree with Curtius, that Alexander the
Great offered funeral honours to his shade there; that he opened the
tomb, and found, not the treasures he expected, but a rotten shield, two
Scythian bows, and a Persian scymetar. And Plutarch records the
following inscription upon it, in his life of Alexander:--“O man,
whoever thou art, and whenever thou comest, (for come, I know, thou
wilt,) I am Cyrus, the founder of the Persian empire. Envy me not the
little earth that covers my body.” Alexander was much affected at this
inscription, which set before him, in so striking a light, the
uncertainty and vicissitude of worldly things. And he placed the crown
of gold which he wore, upon the tomb in which the body lay, wondering
that a prince so renowned, and possessed of such immense treasures, had
not been buried more sumptuously than if he had been a private person.
Cyrus, indeed, in his last instructions to his children, desired that
“his body, when he died, might not be deposited in gold or silver, nor
in any other sumptuous monument, but committed, as soon as possible, to
the ground.”