Jeroboam, who had lived long in Egypt, feduced the ten Tribes to worship and facrifice to this Object. One Specics of their Service is mention'd Hof. xiii. 2, Let the Men that facrifice, kifs the Calves. About this Crime there are many Expoftulations, as Hof. viii. 5, &c. Pf. cvi. 19, They made a Calf in Horeb, and worshipp'd the molten Image: Thus they changed their Glory into the Similitude of an Ox that eateth Grafs. As the chief End of the Sacrifices were commemorative of the great Attonement; if the Jews had kept clear of this Crime, 'tis likely there would have been no Occafion to have made them fo numerous and fo burthenfome: But as thefe Crimes made it neceffary to reclaim the Services paid to the Names, that alfo introduced Times and various Forms and Circumftances; of which many appear plainly to be also to that End. When a Covenant was made, it appears from Gen. xv. and Jer. xxxiv. that inter al this Creature, by this Name, was divided in Two, and the Parties pafs'd between the Parts of them. This Creature was appointed by another Name for Sacrifice, before this Crime was committed; and by thefe Names afterwards. Levit. ix. 2, & al' Jeroboam's Family

3

Family was deftroy'd, 1 Kings xv. 29, Because of the Sins which he finned, and which he made Ifrael fin; by his Provocation, wherewith he provoked Jehovah Aleim of Ifrael to Anger. The Jews fay true, that they fuffer for this Crime to this Day; but 'tis because they perfift in fomething like it to this Day, with the Aggravation of having clear Evidence fince to convince them. Their Fathers could not learn in Egypt to reject the Light: Bethfemes, the Temple of the Light, was one of the most famous in the World. They, perhaps, invoked each of the Names apart, but ftill in Conjunction by the Word Aleim, as they did each diftinct Attribute. Those at firft made One of the Three Representations their Object, and 'tis likely intended to comprehend the other Two by Irradiation upon that Head, because they call'd it Aleim: But these reject the Aleim, and the Benefits of the Covenant offer'd by the fecond and third Perfons, and make but one Perfon in the Effence. If they intended only to reprefent by this, the FIRE, the Place of one Agent in the Revolution, this is its Place. If any think they intended by Hair, Horns, or &c. to include the Circulation

of

of the whole, fuch may place it under that Class.

בית עשתרות

Explain'd in the fecond Part of M. P.

P. 499. 507, & al', as others have conftrued it, as compound of vy or mwy and the bright Leader, as Venus: As the LXX have made it a Flock, and apply'd it to Sheep; and the Rabbies made the Emblem an Ewe. This was the Aleim of the Zidonians, and of the Philistines, and often of the Ifraelites, and even of Solomon. There was a Temple to this Power, and one or more Cities call'd by this Name; one Gen. xiv. 5, Du? nnwy Afteret the horned. Indeed I think the Tranflators impose upon us in this Word, and the Rabbies have told a Number of fenfelefs Lies to fupport it, and hide what they were not willing to let us know; for it must be compound: And if y or y in Hebrew be Bright, n cannot be an Ewe, because it has no Relation to any Word for Sheep, but must be a Cow. They did not intend to let the Egyptians know, that the Red Heifer which the Jews burn'd, was the Emblem of Ashteret,

which they worshipp'd; as appears Gyraldus of the Gods of the Gentiles, p.193. Ælian "writes that they kept an Heifer facred to Venus Urania in Hermopolis, at a Place called Scuffa, as is elsewhere related. ib. P. 374. The Egyptians also worshipped Venus Urania, according to Elian, who treating of Oxen, fays, that at a Town in Egypt, called Scuffa, not the great Scuffa, but yet a neat Town, and which was in Hermopolis, Venus whom they called Urania, was moft devoutly and religiously worshipped. And they also paid Veneration to an Heifer, because this Animal was thought to bear fome Affinity and Agreement, with the Goddess herself, &c. Voss. of the Origin and Progrefs of Idolatry, p. 214, Herodotus in Euterpe- It is not lawful to facrifice Cows. For the Image of Ifis is in a Female Shape, having Cows Horns, in the manner the Greeks defcribe Io." Whether which preceeds this Word, where us'd together in the Hebrew, be the Male, and this be the Female; or this be another Species, or denominated from their Colour, among the Heathens, or, &c. 'tis feminine; and as wy, is Hebrew for that which fhines, and wy or wwy was us'd by the Heathens for the Lamp of the Sun, or Fire; and B. C. p. 1677, for Ca

put

put Tauri, which is the Fire at the Sun, they meant that Lamp the Explorator, Leader, or, &c. And as B. C. p. 2578,

with another Word for Red, was used for the Red Heifer, and Red was their Colour for Fire; certainly the Red Heifer was the Emblem for, and bore the Name of, Afhteret, the Female of Fire; and therefore was order'd to be burnt: And, 'tis likely, Jeroboam's two golden Calves were the Male and the Female, as they had in Egypt; of which there is Abundance. writ. That this was the Emblem of that which is fo frequently found with Baal, appears Tobit i. 5, The Heifer Baal.

את אשר.

את אשרה

Explain'd in the fecond Part of M. P.

p. 505. If this be a compound Word of N and 'tis the Ruler Fire: If a fingle Word, 'tis to proceed and fucceed, or proceed fuccessfully, the Blcfs'd; as a Godor or Goddess, the Bleffer, the Begetter or Producer of the Light, the Bleffer. 'Tis found frequently; fometimes masculine, fometimes feminine; fometimes fingular, fometimes plural: 'Tis found join'd with Baal, &c. and feemingly in the Place of

Afhteret