he would thenceforth offer neither burnt-offering nor facrifice to other gods, but only to Jehovah, which was a good preparation for the pardon of his preceding idolatry: Why then would he crave licence to worship Rimmon, when he had juft protefted that he looked on him as no God, and promised he would never prefent to him any victim or oblation, which was faying in effect he would never worship him at all? Sure it is very unreasonable, to make him contradict himself in this grofs manner, fo fpeedily; nor could he, one would think, have any temptation to adore him, against the dictates of his confcience, that he was no God; for as there is no ground to fuppofe his prince, to whom he was moft dear, would be difpleased at him for his preference of Jehovah, who had freed him from fo malignant and inveterate a diftemper, or would moleft him for it, neither does any fufpicion of it feem to have entered into his breaft, fince before his retinue, he requested two mules burden of the earth of the land of Ifrael, becaufe he would from that time make no offering to other Gods but Jehovah, and after avowing his intention in their prefence, carried it home publicly into his own country, to be used for his fervice. He then only begged, he might be indulged without incurring the difpleafure of the God of Ifrael, to accompany his royal mafter into the temple of Rimmon, according to the duty of his civil ftation, and in fulfilment of it to bow* down when he bowed, as The verb tranflated to bow down,' is often used to denote the posture of civil homage, as well as of religious worship, Gen. xxiii, 7. xxxiii. 3. xliii. 6, it behoved him to lean upon him in ftooping and rifing up. -- Which confirms this interpretation, every word Naaman ufes, appears upon it proper and pertitinent, and no term is fuperfluous; for hereby, we see why he mentions the circumftance of his maf ter's entrance into the temple of Rimmon; because namely, for the future the execution of his office about him would be the fole end of his appearance there: why he speaks only of bowing the knee; because thereafter he was to take no part in the worfhip of that imaginary divinity, by offering facrifice, but merely to practise genuflexion, which was needful to affift the king more conveniently.-And finally, why he is filent about every other temple than Rimmon's; because his fovereign did not frequent any befides this, it being, if I may use the expreffion, as it were the cathedral of Damafcus, where Rimmon the great deity of Syria was ferved, with the most magnificent and showy forms. † A like auxiliary or assistant officer in walking, feems to be mentioned in the court of Joram king of Ifrael, 2 Kings, vii. 2. There is only mention of the name and temple of this idol here. Some have explained the word to fignify high, the more that Stepha nus quotes Philo faying, Ραμαν γαρ το ύψος, in vocab. Λαοδίκεια; and have fuppofed the fun was fo denominated, from his elevated station in heaven, and extenfive empire. Compare Calmet on the place, and Selden, De Dis Syris Syntagma, 2. cap. 10. I shall however lay before the reader a conjecture, many years ago communicated to me by a learned foreigner, and which I fee hath been fince that time proposed, by the authors of the Acta Eruditorum Lipfiae, 1742, p. 536. It is this, that it was the fame with the Jupiter Caffius of the Greeks. For as in He brew fignifies, a pomegranate, Exod. xxviii. 34. Num. xx. 5. Hag. i. 19. &c. So Jupiter Caffius's ftatue in the temples on mount Cafk Such therefore was the matter, about which he was folicitous, and with respect to it, Elisha granted him his † freedom, or agreed that it fhould not be t imputed to him as a fin: in which I pray, what was us, and in Pelufium, that were confecrated to him, had a pomegranate in its hand for fome mystical reafon. So Achilles Tatius lib. 2. Ipoβέβληται δε την χειρα, και έχει ροιαν επ' αυτή της δε ροιάς ὁ λόγος μusinos. In like manner, had Juno's statue near the ruins of Mycenae, as Paufanias Corinth. cap. 17. tells us, though he declines telling the import of the pomegranate, as what was to be buried in filence. That Elisha's reply Go in peace,' fignifies his acquiescence in his petition, or his confent unto it, cannot be doubted I think, whatever fome have faid. if we compare the use of the phrase, Exod. iv. 18. Judg. xviii. 6. 1 Sam. i. 17. 2 Sam. xv. 9. Mark, v. 34. Luke, vii. 50.-Father Houbigant reafons largely in his notes upon the place, against them who interpret Naaman's demand to have a retrospect to his paft idolatry; because, fays he, pardon of this should have been asked of Jehovah, whom he now knew, not of Elisha his fervant, though he might with propriety inquire at him, whether the use of fuch a pofture in the connection he declared, would be innocent or criminal. Then he adds, which feems a reflexion better founded, because if he had meant to folicit pardon of falfe offences, he would have made exprefs mention of that which was most culpable in his behaviour, his sacrificing to Rimmon, or fhewing the like mark of religious refpect to the idol, not merely his fupporting the king in the temple, and his bowing there when he bowed, which none can confider as the chief inftance of his iniquity. And he alfo gives the fame interpretation of Naaman's request as above, with which view he renders 377 leddaber hazzeh, in the beginning of ver. 18. For this cause, or this thing, Jehovah pardon, &c.' That is, according to him, Forafmuch as I declare, I will not facrifice but unto Jehovah, let not my bowing down in attendance on my duty to my prince, subjec me to any punishment.' And in this manner, I obferve our translators themselves have turned a like expreffion, Jofhua, ix. 9. • From " a very far country are thy fervants come, because of the name of the Lord thy God, Le Shem Jehovah, as they might there amifs or contrary to the law of Mofes? This was not to encourage hypocrify in him, or his making a fhew of veneration and respect for the idol amidst inward contempt thereof, to deceive the world, For how could bowing in the temple, fo restrained in its time and occasion, ever be understood by the Syrians as a token and mark of his honour for Rimmon, amidst his uniform forbearance to offer facrifice to him, and after a public profeffion that he never would prefent fuch oblation, there being no God in all the earth but in Ifracl? public I call it, because all the Syrians heard it who accompanied him, and who in all likelihood were not few, confidering Naaman's rank and dignity, together with the vanity and affectation of pomp in eaftern grandees; nor can it be thought they would be wanting to make it have done alfo instead of for, Levit. xix. 28. Num. vi. 7. Job, xxx 25. and from, Ezra, iii. 13. Monfieur Rocques alfo, paftor at Bafil in Switzerland, to omit Werenfels and others, in his Difcours Hiftoriques, Critiques, Theologiques, &c. on the most memorable events of the Old Testament, being a continuation of Monfieur Saurin's work, hath largely written upon the fame fide, to whom I have been obliged upon this article.Nor can it be improper to observe, as it is at once an argument both of the strength of his arguments, and of the candour of the authors of a foreign Literary Journal, that after they had attacked his hypothefis, upon a less perfect and full explication of his reasons for it, (being in the fame fentiments with Bochart) they upon his addressing a letter to them, with a more copious defence and vindication of it, even adopted it in oppofition to their former opinion, and were not ashamed to own, that they thought Bochart himself would have done fo, upon fuch fuperior evidence.- -Whoever would become acquainted with his reasonings in fupport of it, and his anfwers to objections, may look into Bi blioth. Raifonée, Tom. xv. p. 439. and xvii. 105. known being under no prohibition, more than to declare the miracle which gave rife to it. As little was it to promote the feduction of others to idolatry; for how could Naaman's bowing there, qualified as it was, be a fnare to any of the Syrians to worship Rimmon, when he had acquainted them by his own mouth with his real unbelief in him, having renounced aloud all veneration for any Gods but Jehovah, the God of Ifrael, upon an occafion whence the news of this change would foon fpread abroad, and when his notorious omiffion of bringing any facrifices to another god, while he offered them to Jehovah upon a new altar, publicly erected with materials from the land of Ifrael, would from time to time proclaim it to his countrymen.— Voltaire then had no juft caufe to fay, the prophet allowed Naaman to go into the temple of Rimmon, to worship there, nor to draw fuch inferences from the history, as he does, of God's tolerating idolatry among the Jews. SECTION V. Of his representing the Jews to relate, that they had the express order of God to flay feven or eight fmall nations, fparing none but the little girls, in the thirty-fixth chapter of his Philofophy of Hiftory, as alfo in his Treatife on Toleration. I NOW pafs over to the thirty-fixth chapter of his Philofophy of History. Here he makes the Jews re* late in their holy books, that they had the express Page 171. |