第 25 节
作者:
风雅颂 更新:2021-02-19 00:22 字数:9321
oduced as witnesses thereto many ancient writers; who have made mention of us in their books; while they had said that no such writer had so done。 Moreover; they had said that we were sprung from the Egyptians; while I have proved that we came from another country into Egypt: while they had told lies of us; as if we were expelled thence on account of diseases on our bodies; it has appeared; on the contrary; that we returned to our country by our own choice; and with sound and strong bodies。 Those accusers reproached our legislator as a vile fellow; whereas God in old time bare witness to his virtuous conduct; and since that testimony of God; time itself hath been discovered to have borne witness to the same thing。 42。 As to the laws themselves; more words are unnecessary; for they are visible in their own nature; and appear to teach not impiety; but the truest piety in the world。 They do not make men hate one another; but encourage people to communicate what they have to one another freely; they are enemies to injustice; they take care of righteousness; they banish idleness and expensive living; and instruct men to be content with what they have; and to be laborious in their calling; they forbid men to make war from a desire of getting more; but make men courageous in defending the laws; they are inexorable in punishing malefactors; they admit no sophistry of words; but are always established by actions themselves; which actions we ever propose as surer demonstrations than what is contained in writing only: on which account I am so bold as to say that we are become the teachers of other men; in the greatest number of things; and those of the most excellent nature only; for what is more excellent than inviolable piety? what is more just than submission to laws? and what is more advantageous than mutual love and concord? and this so far that we are to be neither divided by calamities; nor to become injurious and seditious in prosperity; but to contemn death when we are in war; and in peace to apply ourselves to our mechanical occupations; or to our tillage of the ground; while we in all things and all ways are satisfied that God is the inspector and governor of our actions。 If these precepts had either been written at first; or more exactly kept by any others before us; we should have owed them thanks as disciples owe to their masters; but if it be visible that we have made use of them more than any other men; and if we have demonstrated that the original invention of them is our own; let the Apions; and the Molons; with all the rest of those that delight in lies and reproaches; stand confuted; but let this and the foregoing book be dedicated to thee; Epaphroditus; who art so great a lover of truth; and by thy means to those that have been in like manner desirous to be acquainted with the affairs of our nation。
APION BOOK 2 FOOTNOTES
(1) The former part of this second book is written against the calumnies of Apion; and then; more briefly; against the like calumnies of Apollonius Molo。 But after that; Josephus leaves off any more particular reply to those adversaries of the Jews; and gives us a large and excellent description and vindication of that theocracy which was settled for the Jewish nation by Moses; their great legislator。
(2) Called by Tiberius Cymbalum Mundi; The drum of the world。
(3) This seems to have been the first dial that had been made in Egypt; and was a little before the time that Ahaz made his 'first' dial in Judea; and about anno 755; in the first year of the seventh olympiad; as we shall see presently。 See 2 Kings 20:11; Isaiah 38:8。
(4) The burial…place for dead bodies; as I suppose。
(5) Here begins a great defect in the Greek copy; but the old Latin version fully supplies that defect。
(6) What error is here generally believed to have been committed by our Josephus in ascribing a deliverance of the Jews to the reign of Ptolemy Physco; the seventh of those Ptolemus; which has been universally supposed to have happened under Ptolemy Philopater; the fourth of them; is no better than a gross error of the moderns; and not of Josephus; as I have fully proved in the Authentic。 Rec。 Part I。 p。 200…201; whither I refer the inquisitive reader。
(7) Sister's son; and adopted son。
(8) Called more properly Molo; or Apollonius Molo; as hereafter; for Apollonins; the son of Molo; was another person; as Strabo informs us; lib。 xiv。
(9) Furones in the Latin; which what animal it denotes does not now appear。
(10) It is great pity that these six pagan authors; here mentioned to have described the famous profanation of the Jewish temple by Antiochus Epiphanes; should be all lost; I mean so far of their writings as contained that description; though it is plain Josephus perused them all as extant in his time。
(11) It is remarkable that Josephus here; and; I think; no where else; reckons up four distinct courts of the temple; that of the Gentiles; that of the women of Israel; that of the men of Israel; and that of the priests; as also that the court of the women admitted of the men; (I suppose only of the husbands of those wives that were therein;) while the court of the men did not admit any women into it at all。
(12) Judea; in the Greek; by a gross mistake of the transcribers。
(13) Seven in the Greek; by a like gross mistake of the transcribers。 See of the War; B。 V。 ch。 5。 sect。 4。
(14) Two hundred in the Greek; contrary to the twenty in the War; B。 VII。 ch; 5。 sect。 3。
(15) This notorious disgrace belonging peculiarly to the people of Egypt; ever since the times of the old prophets of the Jews; noted both sect。 4 already; and here; may be confirmed by the testimony of Isidorus; an Egyptian of Pelusium; Epist。 lib。 i。 Ep。 489。 And this is a remarkable completion of the ancient prediction of God by Ezekiel 29:14; 15; that the Egyptians should be a base kingdom; the basest of the kingdoms;〃 and that 〃it should not exalt itself any more above the nations。〃
(16) The truth of which still further appears by the present observation of Josephus; that these Egyptians had never; in all the past ages since Sesostris; had one day of liberty; no; not so much as to have been free from despotic power under any of the monarchies to that day。 And all this bas been found equally true in the latter ages; under the Romans; Saracens; Mamelukes; and Turks; from the days of Josephus till the present ago also。
(17) This language; that Moses; 〃persuaded himself〃 that what he did was according to God's will; can mean no more; by Josephus's own constant notions elsewhere; than that he was 〃firmly persuaded;〃 that he had 〃fully satisfied himself〃 that so it was; viz。 by the many revelations he had received from God; and the numerous miracles God had enabled him to work; as he both in these very two books against Apion; and in his Antiquities; most clearly and frequently assures us。 This is further evident from several passages lower; where he affirms that Moses was no impostor nor deceiver; and where he assures that Moses's constitution of government was no other than a theocracy; and where he says they are to hope for deliverance out of their distresses by prayer to God; and that withal it was owing in part to this prophetic spirit of Moses that the Jews expected a resurrection from the dead。 See almost as strange a use of the like words; 〃to persuade God;〃 Antiq。 B。 VI。 ch。 5。 sect。 6。
(18) That is; Moses really was; what the heathen legislators pretended to be; under a Divine direction; nor does it yet appear that these pretensions to a supernatural conduct; either in these legislators or oracles; were mere delusions of men without any demoniacal impressions; nor that Josephus took them so to be; as the ancientest and contemporary authors did still believe them to be supernatural。
(19) This whole very large passage is corrected by Dr。 Hudson from Eusebius's citation of it; Prep。 Evangel。 viii。 8; which is here not a little different from the present MSS。 of Josephus。
(20) This expression itself; that 〃Moses ordained the Jewish government to be a theocracy;〃 may be illustrated by that parallel expression in the Antiquities; B。 III。 ch。 8。 sect。 9; that 〃Moses left it to God to be present at his sacrifices when he pleased; and when he pleased; to be absent。〃 Both ways of speaking sound harsh in the ears of Jews and Christians; as do several others which Josephus uses to the heathens; but still they were not very improper in him; when he all along thought fit to accommodate himself; both in his Antiquities; and in these his books against Apion; all written for the use of the Greeks and Romans; to their notions and language; and this as far as ever truth would give him leave。 Though it be very observable withal; that he never uses such expressions in his books of the War; written originally for the Jews beyond Euphrates; and in their language; in all these cases。 However; Josephus directly supposes the Jewish settlement; under Moses; to be a Divine settlement; and indeed no other than a real theocracy。
(21) These excellent accounts of the Divine attributes; and that God is not to be at all known in