Of JUDAISM; or the RELIGION and STATE of the JEWS.

T

HE People of whom we are now Hebrews, about to fpeak, were originally whence fo called Hebrews: Abraham was first called. called by this Name by the Ca

naanites, Gen. xiv. ver. 13. and from him it continued with all his Pofterity. See Gen. xxxix. 14 and 17. Now Abraham was called an Hebrew, either from his being of the Family of Heber, Gen. xi. 14. who was in the feventh Generation before him, or elfe from a Word of the fame Sound nearly, which fignifies beyond, or to pass over; because he lived beyond the River Euphrates in Mefopotamia, and from thence he pass'd over the faid River to come into the Land of Canaan.

AFTERWARDS, when Jacob the Grandson of Ifraelites, Abraham receiv'd the Appellation of Ifrael, whence. Gen. xxxv. ver. 10. the Jews, being the Defcendants from him, were called Ifraelites; and the Land of Canaan, which they afterwards inhabited, was also called the Land of Ifrael.

Land of Ifrael.

FROM Judah (which, in the Original, is Febu- Jews, whence. dab) the fourth Son of the Patriarch Jacob, and the Head of the principal of the twelve Tribes, the Ifraelites came to be call'd Jews; and the

Land of Ifrael, the Land of Judah; and fimply Land of Judea. Judea, in all fucceeding Ages.

E 2

THE

The Original of the Jewish

State and Religion.

Jewish Lars threefold.

Oral Law.

Written Law, what.

Oral Law, what.

THE Story of the Servitude of the Hebrews under the Egyptians, their miraculous Deliverance from thence by Mofes and Aaron, and their receiving the Model of their Civil, Moral, and Religious State in their Return from thence to the Land of Canaan, are Particulars at large related in the Pentateuch of Mofes's own Hand-writing. The latter Article of which, concerning the Religious and Civil State of the Jews, after they were fettled in their own Land, is what we fhall here take a general Survey of

THE Laws of the Jews were threefold, viz. (1.) Moral; (2.) Ceremonial or Ecclefiaftical; and (3.) Civil or Political. And all these were fantioned either by Divine or Human Authority. Written and And lastly, they were divided into the Written Law, and the Oral Law. The Written Law was that which God deliver'd to Mofes from Mount Sinai; and which he immediately committed to Writing, for the Ufe of the Jewish Church, as it is contained in the Books of Exodus and Leviticus. The Oral Law is that which was (as the Jews pretend) deliver'd to Mofes at the fame Time from Mount Sinai, which they fay was the Explication of the Written Law; and which Mofes deliver'd by Word of Mouth to Joshua, and he in the fame manner to the feventy Elders, they to the Prophets, thefe to the great Synagogue, and from thence it was delivered fucceffively to the wifet Rabbi's; till at laft it was collected together, and thrown into Writing, left it fhould be loft in the extreme Difperfion of the Jews, and The Talmud which they call the Talmud. The Jews prefer preferred by the Oral Law, or the Talmud, to the Written the Jews to the Law of Moses. They give thefe Reasons: (1.) Law of Mo- The Oral Law is the Foundation of the Mofaical fes, and why. Law; this being deliver'd in one Day, that required thirty-nine. (2.) It is a large Commen

tary

tary on the Mofaical Law, and explains (fay they) its dark and doubtful Paffages. (3.) They fay the Law of Mofes is very feanty and defective, to which the Talmud is a very ample Supplement; and fuch other Stuff. Wherefore, fay they, nothing is fuperior to the most boly Talmud. In this respect then, you fee how much the Papifts and they are alike.

THE whole Body therefore of the Jewish Laws are contain'd in the Books of the Old Testament, and the Talmud, in both which we confider two Parts, viz. The Text, and the Explanation. The The Torah, Text of the Old Teftament, by the Jews in their what. own Tongue, is called the Torah, especially Mofes's Law. And the Explanation thereof, by way of Paraphrafe, is called the Targum; which The Targum, fignifies, in Chaldee, the fame Thing as Para-what. pbrafe; they being wrote in the Chaldean Tongue long after their Captivity.

Of thefe Targums

there are two of principal Notice, viz. The Targum of Onkelos, on the Pentateuch; and the Targum of Jonathan, on all the Prophets. There are other Targums, but of lefs Note and Worth. 'Tis uncertain who the famous Targumist Onkelos was, and when he lived; but for the other Targumist Jonathan, 'tis certain he was the Son of one Uziel, and the chiefeft Scholar of the celebrated Jewish Doctor Hillel, before our Saviour's Birth.

Parts, viz.

CONCERNING the other Part of the Jewish The Talmud Pandects, or Body of Laws, the Talmud; it con- confifts of two fifteth of two Parts alfo; viz. The Text, which the Mifchnah, they call the Mifcbnab, (i. e. the fecondary Law) which contains all the Oral Traditions of the Fathers and Rabbi's, from Mofes to the Time of Rabbi Judah the Holy, who collected and compacted them all into this Part of the Talmud, about 150 Years after Chrift. The other Part

And Gemara. of the Talmud is call'd Gemara, (i. e. the Supplement) which contains Variety of Commentaries on the Mifchnah, or firft Part, with the Difcuffion and Decifion of various Opinions. This was added about A. C. 500.

The fix great
Parts of the
Talmud, viz.
Zeraim.
Moed.
Nashim.

Nazikin.

Kodafhim.

Tahoroth.

ment.

THE whole Talmud is divided into fix general Parts, as follows: (1.) Zeraim, Seeds. This treats of the various Kinds of Seeds, Herbs, Trees, Fruits, &c. of the Earth. (2.) Moed, which treats of divers Feafts and Solemnities. (3.) Nafhim, of Women. This treats of Women, of mar rying and divorcing Wives, and all other Incidents proper to them. (4.) Nazikin, of Damages. This treats concerning Damages, Nuisances, &c. with their Penalties, and Compenfation. (5.) Kodafhim, of Holineffes; this treats of various Kinds of Sacrifices, and other facred Things. (6.) Taboroth, of Purifications; which treats of all kinds of Purity, and Uncleanness and Pollutions of Veffels, and other Things.

The Perufchim BESIDES the Targums, or Chaldee Paraphrases or Jewish Comon the Books of the Old Testament, there are vamentaries on the Old Teftarious Commentaries wrote by the Rabbins, the chief of which are these three, viz. (1.) The Commentaries of Rabbi Salomon Jarchi, which are fhort and difficult. (2.) Those of Rabbi Aben Ezra, which are generally larger and easier. (3.) Laftly, The Commentaries of Rabbi David Kimchi; thefe are very large, and very easy to be read and understood. Thefe Perufchim, or Rabbinical Commentaries, are very useful and neceffary to be understood by Christian Divines.

The moral
HAVING taken a View of the Books con-
Law of the
ten Command, taining the Jewish Laws, we shall next take no-
ments, call'd tice of the Laws themselves. The First Sort of
the Decalogue which is the Moral Law, which they receiv'd a

Summary of from God himself, in Ten general
Precepts, and wrote with God's own Hand on

two