fine linen; but I should fuppofe fome paffages of Scripture, which, in our tranflation, fpeak of laying in fackcloth, are rather to be underftood of lying proftrate before God on fackcloth, than taking their repofe on that coarfe and harfh kind of stuff.

The learned and exact Vitringa makes no remark of this kind on that paffage of Ifaiah, "Is it fuch a faft that I have chofen? a day "for a man to afflict his foul? is it to bow "down his head as a bulrush, and to spread

fackcloth and afhes under him?" He only quotes what is faid of Ahab, 1 Kings xxi. 27; and the Jews in Shufhan, Efther iv. 3; as of a fimilar nature, and feems to underftand this piece of humiliation before God of lodging on fackcloth. But, furely! it must be much more natural to understand the folemnity of proftration on fackcloth before God, which follows the mention of hanging down the head, ufed in kneeling, or in ftanding as fuppliants before him, rather than of fleeping in fackcloth, the night before or the night after the day of fafting.

It seems to me, in like manner, to exprefs the humiliation of Ahab with more energy, than as commonly understood: "And it came "to pafs, when Ahab heard thofe words, that

• If. 58. 5.

Solebant enim, qui fe profunde humiliabant, in facen et cinere jacere, nullo alio capitis aut corporis fulcimento fibi fubftrato, ut exemplo Achabi, et aliunde liquet.

"he rent his clothes, and put fackcloth upon " his flesh, and fasted, and proftrated himself "on fackcloth, &c." The like may be faid of the laying of the Jews in Shufhan in fackcloth.

A paffage in Jofephus ftrongly confirms this, in which he defcribes the deep concern of the Jews for the danger of Herod Agrippa, after having been ftricken suddenly with a violent diforder in the theatre of Cæfarea. Upon the news of his danger," immediately "the multitude, with their wives and child

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ren, fitting upon fackcloth, according to "their country rites, prayed for the king: "all places were filled with wailing and "lamentation: while the king, who lay in

an upper room, beholding the people thus "below falling proftrate on the ground, could "not himself refrain from tears." Antiq. lib, xix, cap. 8, §. 2, p. 951. Here we fee the fitting on fackcloth, refting on their hams, in prayer, and falling proftrate at times on the fackcloth, was a Jewish obfervance in times of humiliation and diftrefs.

It is a little unhappy that this paffage flipped the recollection of Vitringa, as it fets feveral places of Scripture in a truer and ftronger point of light, than that in which they are ufually placed.

The reader will eafily imagine, that I do not confider the rendering this clause in a late exquifite and most beautiful tranflation of Ifaiah, as one of the happiest parts of it

"Is it, that he should bow down his head "like a bulrush;

"And fpread fackcloth and ashes for his "couch?"

as I apprehend the fpreading the fackcloth was for fitting in an half-kneeling humble posture, and for proftration before God; rather than for fleeping on.

Whether the Jews ufed carpets in common in their devotions, as the Mohammedans, and the Perfians in particular, now do, I will not take upon me to fay; but Sir John Chardin fuppofes these modern Eastern practices are derived from the Jews, and he tells us that the Perfians that are devout will have a little carpet to perform their devotions on, appropriated for that purpose, though the rooms in which they pray are all over covered with carpets. The reafon alledged by them it seems is, that they may appear before God in a low and mean condition, (whereas it is well known that the carpets of the Eaft are often extremely rich, beautiful, and coftly.) They do not however ufe fackcloth in general, but the poorer fort, mats; others of an higher station, felt; and people of quality, fine camblet.

As they make a fcruple of praying on the bare ground, except in travelling, one would be inclined to think this cuftom rather arofe

Voy. tome 2, p. 392, 393.

2 Ibidem.

from

from a care to avoid dirt as a thing that was defiling, than to exprefs humiliation, for nothing can be more humbling, defilement not confidered, than kneeling on the bare ground; however, at prefent, it fhould feem, they have a different apprehenfion of things, for they fay it is unlawful to pray on the bare earth, or a bare floor, except in journeying, the earth upon which they speak to God being, according to them, boly, it ought to be covered from a principle of doing it honour, and to walk upon it, fo covered, barefooted only.

OBSERVATION XCIV.

The manner in which the modern chrif. tianized Greeks obferve the Sunday, derived, moft probably, from the manner in which their pagan ancestors obferved their facred days, may be confidered as giving a lively explanation of what the Jewish prophet meant, when he faid, "If thou turn away thy foot "from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight; the holy of the Lord, honourable; "and fhalt honour him, not doing thine own

• It was, it is probable, for this reafon that the Jews were wont to choose the fea-fhore for kneeling upon when they prayed, of which we find an inftance in the Acts of the Apoftles, ch. 21. 5.

6

ways,

ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor fpeaking thine own words: then shalt thou delight thyself, &c '.'

"In the evening," fays Dr. Chandler, speaking of his vifiting the island Tenedos, "this being Sunday and a festival, we were "much amused with feeing the Greeks, who

were finging and dancing, in feveral com"panies, to mufic, near the town ; while "their women were fitting in groups on the "roofs of the houses, which are flat, as fpectators, at the fame time enjoying the "foft air and ferene sky'.'

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The ancient Egyptian feftivals were obferved, we are told, with proceffions, with mufic, and other tokens of joy, and we have reason to believe the account is true, from what is faid in the book of Exodus, of the manner in which the Ægyptianizing Jews observed the feftival of the golden calf: it seems they eat and drank, and rofe up to play, Exod. xxxii. 6, which is explained by ver. 18 and 19, which speak of their dancing and finging. As the visible object of their worship was in the Ægyptian tafte; the method of folemnizing the festival was, without doubt, after their manner alfo.

The Sabbaths of Jehovah were to be obferved in a very different form. Fires, I have elsewhere shown3, are often but little wanted

* If. 58. 13, 14.

2 Travels in Afia Minor, p. 18.

3 Obfervations, ch. 3, obf. 24.

for