with him in it (b): But then he remarks, that it was a mere Fiction of Manetho's, contrary to what he himself had exprefly owned (i) in other Parts of his Works, and that Charemon erred in agreeing with him in it (k); fo that the very Authorities upon which the learned Bishop would argue Amenophis his fuppofed Father of Sefoftris, to have been the Egyptian King, who reigned at the Jewish Exit, have been long ago refuted by Jofephus, the very Author from whom the Bishop had them, and in the very Place where he found them. But 2. If Amenophis was indeed the King who reigned at the Jewish Exit; if he was also the Father of Rameffes, or Egyptus the Brother of Danaus; yet as it appears from what I above offered, that Egyptus the Brother of Danaus and Sefoftris were in no wife the fame Perfon, nothing can be concluded from the learned Bishop's Argument to prove Sefoftris to have lived in thefe Times. Here therefore I will leave this Subject, tho' it might be more largely refuted in every Particular belonging to it; but fo nice a Difcuffion of it muft furely be fuperfluous: One thing I confefs I am furprized at: I much wonder fuch learned and judicious Writers, as the great Authors I have mentioned, could ever entertain a Thought of it. If Sefoftris had lived in thefe Times, and commanded fuch victorious Armies, as he was faid to be Master of, would not the Camp of the Ifraelites have fallen in his Way? or fhould we not have had

(b) Id. c. 32. (1) Jofeph. ubi. fup.

(k) Id. ibid.

mention

mention made of him amongst the Hints we have in Scripture of the Canaanitish Nations? He must have carried his Forces thro' these Countries; but they appear to have enjoyed an uninterrupted Peace, until Joshua attacked them. But had the great Sefoftris lived in thefe Times, whence, or how fhould he have raised his Armies? When Pharaoh pursued the Ifraelites to the Red-Sea, he took his People with him, all his Horses and Chariots, and all the Chariots of Egypt and his Horsemen and his Army (/): He and all these perished in the Sea (m): The Kingdom had been juft before spoiled of its Treasure (n), and every Family weakned by the Lofs of the Firft-born (o); and can it appear probable, that in fuch a deplorable Crifis of Affairs, a King of this Country should attempt and purfue a Variety of Conquefts of foreign Nations? Egypt must at this time have been reduced fo low, as that it might have been an eafy Prey to any Invafion. The Ifraelites many times thought fo, and were therefore frequently tempted to an Inclination to return thither, when they met with difcouraging Difficulties in their Expectations of Canaan: When the Spies, that had been employed to fearch the Land, had intimidated the Congregation, by magnifying the Strength and Stature of the Inhabitants, the Ifraelites were for making a Captain to lead them back to Egypt (p): They knew the Fruitfulness of this Country, were fenfible that it

(4) Exod. xiv. 6, 7. 9. (0) Ver. 29, 30.

(m) Ver. 28. (p) Numb. xiv. 3, 4.

N4

(z) xii. 36.

muft

must be under a feeble Government; and tho' they imagined themselves not able to conquer the Canaanites, who were in their full Strength, yet they were not afraid of an exhaufted Nation: And this indeed was a natural way of thinking: But that Sefoftris fhould be the Son of Pharaoh, who was drowned in the Red-Sea, and that in the State, which his Father's Miffortunes must have reduced Egypt to, he should immediately find Strength fufficient to fubdue Kingdom after Kingdom, and to erect himself a large Empire over many great and flourishing Nations; this must be thought by any one that duly confiders things, to feem at first fight a moft romantic Fiction.

It may perhaps be expected that I should not only fay, who was not, but who really was the Pharaoh that was drowned in the Red-Sea: But perhaps this is a Point, which I may not be able to determine, fo as to have no Doubts remaining about it: However, as the Egyptian Antiquities have been the Study of many learned Writers in divers Ages, and great pains have been taken to fettle and deduce a reasonable and confiftent Account of them, it may not be unacceptable to fuch as have not opportunity of informing themselves better, if I here once for all, fet before the Reader fome Account of the Works or Remains, which are moft commonly cited for thefe Antiquities, after which he may judge for himself, how far we can fix the particular Time of any Reign or Tranfaction, which belongs to the History of this People. And the Authorities most

gene

rally

4.

rally appealed to upon this Subject are, 1. The old Chronographeon. 2. The Tomes of Manetho. 3. The Catalogue of Eratofthenes. Some Extracts from Manetho in Jofephus. 5, The Chronography of Africanus. 6. The Chronicon of Eufebius. 7. The Chronographia of Syncellus. And 8. The Canon Chronicus of our learned Countryman Sir John Marsham.

I. We are told of an old Egyptian Chronographeon, and Syncellus has preferved us fome Remains, or rather an imperfect Account of it: But I may offer the whole of what he gives us of it, in the following Translation of his Words. According to him it was thus (9) worded:

"Time we do not affign to Vulcan, for he " is ever: Sol the Son of Vulcan reigned 30000 "Years Then Saturn, and the other Gods being 12 reigned 3984 Years: Then the eight Demi-Gods, who were Kings, reigned 217 Years: And after these were fet down 15 Generations of the Cynic Cycle, taking up "the fpace of 443 Years: Then came the xvi Dynafty of Tanite Kings, containing eight [Generations or] Reigns of 190 Years: Next to these XVII Dynafty of Memphites 4 Reigns, 103 Years. After them XVIII Dynasty of Memphites, 14 Reigns, 348 Years. Then XIX Dynafty of Diofpolitans, 5 Reigns, 194 "Years. Then xx Dynafty of Diofpolitans, 8 Reigns, 228 Years. Next xxi Dynasty of

(2) Ουτω πῶς ἐπὶ λέξεως ἔχων· Ἡραίς χρόνος ἐκ ἔςιν Syncell. p. 51.

"Tanites,

(

cc

XXV

"Tanites, 6 Reigns, 121 Years. Then xxII Dynafty of Tanites, 3 Reigns, 48 Years. XXIII Dynasty of Diofpolitans, 2 Reigns, 19 "Years. XXIV Dynafty of Saitans, 3 Reigns, << 44 Years. xxv Dynafty of Ethiopians, 3 Reigns, 44 Years. XXVI Dynafty of Memphites, 7 Reigns, 177 Years. XXVII Dynafty "of Perfians, 5 Reigns, 124 Years. - - - - - - (r). XXIX Dynafty of Tanites ----Reigns, (s) 39 "Years.xxx Dynafty completes the whole, confifting of Tanite King, his Reign 18 "Years."

This is the Account we have of the ancient Chronographeon, and I would remark concerning it, 1. That excepting the three or four firft Lines, it cannot be thought to be given us in the very Words of the Chronographeon; rather, it is an Abstract of what was supposed to be the Contents of it. The Chronographeon it felf, as it particularized the Reign of Sol, and then of Saturn; fo unquestionably it exhibited diftinctly the Reigns of the other Gods, and diftributed fuch a Part of the 3984 Years faid to be the Sum of all their Reigns, as belonged refpectively to, and was made up from the Course of each of them. In like manner, I imagine, it recounted the 8 Demi-Gods, and the 15 Cynic Heroes, more diftinctly and in a larger Narration, than we here find them; for in this Account, I take it, we have only the

(r) Thro' fome defect of the Copy, we have here an Omiffion of xxviii Dynafty. (s) We have here a like Omiffion of the Number of the Reigns in xxix.

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