another history, or is not yet fulfilled. But supposing another to be of a different opinion, and to conceive himself capable of reconciling the striking contradictions between this prophecy and the history of the Maccabees, he will still admit that his illustration of a text, hitherto so little understood, is mere conjecture, and that he has no right, therefore, positively to assert that the prophecy quoted by John does not relate to Christ. I shall not dwell more upon this subject; an illustration of the most difficult chapter of the most difficult and the least understood of all the prophets is not to be mixed up with an investigation into the history of the burial and resurrection of Jesus. What I have to say upon the subject, I have already said, in my Commentaries upon Zechariah, and to them I refer my young readers.

57. "When the even was come, there came a rich man of Arimathea, named Joseph, who also himself was Jesus's disciple.

58. "He went to Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be delivered.

59. "And when Joseph had taken the body he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth,

60. "And laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock, and he rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre and departed..

61. “And there was Mary Magdalene, and the other Mary, sitting over against the sepulchre."

57." When the even was come."] As this word frequently occurs in the history of the burial and the resurrection, and not always in the same sense, and has, at times, occasioned misunderstanding, I must observe, once for all, that in Greek, and still more in Hebrew, it has a double meaning. The time from three o'clock in the afternoon to sunset, is named evening, and signifies much the same as vespers in certain parts of Germany. The time also from sunset to complete darkness, probably from six to nine or ten o'clock, is called evening. They have, therefore, a first and second evening. According to the popular use of the word in our own country, we may easily understand this; only that as we have longer days in summer, we begin the evening in summer later; but with

respect to its use in the Hebrew language, I intend saying more when I shall publish my collections for the Hebrew Lexicon. In this passage the word " evening" is decidedly taken in the first sense, namely, from about four to six; for Jesus died soon after three, and the Sabbath commenced with, sunset, that is, in the month of April, soon after six o'clock; this is, in fact, the real meaning of the Greek word. Julius Pollux writes, b. i. ch. 69, "when the sun declines (which it does sensibly from three o'clock) it is then the evening of the day," using here the same Greek word ove for "evening," as the Greek translator of Matthew. Our passage here, therefore, is easy, others will follow, that will be more difficult.

66

There came a rich man of Arimathea named Joseph."] That Arimathea is the same city which, in the Old Testament is called Ramathaim, and where Samuel was born, (1 Sam.i. 1.) is tolerably ascertained; but, on the contrary, it is a great mistake, if we confound it with Ramla or Ramula, a much younger city. This Ramathaim lay, according to the first book of Samuel i. 1, in Mount Ephraim; consequently, it has created some surprise that it should be here described as a Jewish city, (although Luke

expressly states it xxiii. 51,) as it rather ought to have belonged to the Samaritans. The case in which great geographers seem to differ is this; when Palestine, after the death of Alexander the Great, fell under the Egyptian yoke, three districts of Samaria, Ephraim, Lydda, and Ramathaim were appropriated to Judæa, and after the victories of the Maccabees, the Syrian kings confirmed it. These three districts were attached always to the Jews. See 1 Maccabees xi. 28, and my observations.

The expression "Joseph of Arimathea," is generally understood that Joseph was one of the high council, and resident at Jerusalem, but that Arimathea was his birth-place. It does not, I confess, strike me in the same light, as all the four evangelists use the word " of Arimathea." They are not in the habit of noting exclusively all the Jews from the place of their birth, therefore I conclude, from the words

Joseph of Arimathea," (and I shall make it more evident from Mark) that he was resident at Arimathea-was a counsellor there-and not invested with the high situation which has been assigned to him of belonging to the Sanhedrim of Jerusalem. I mention this in the outset, because it has a great influence upon the history

of the resurrection of Jesus, and affects notions, which have been generally received. When it is said, " there came," we are not to understand, that he came that evening from Arimathea to Jerusalem. This would have been inconsistent, for as this was the first day of the Passover, he must have been at Jerusalem the evening before, and have eaten the Paschal Lamb in the night. But "there came," frequently occurs in Hebrew narrative, and was probably so placed by Matthew in the original. Mark also, who had this original before him, retains it, but he averts the ambiguity of the Greek translation, and writes, chap. xv. 43, translating literally" Joseph came, he of Arimathea."

"A disciple of Jesus."] One who heard, believed in, and honoured him.

58. My readers will not here expect from me, that I should repeat what others have collected from Roman jurisprudence relative to the permitted or prohibited interment of criminals. It belongs not to this place. Malefactors must have been buried in Palestine, as the reverse would have been too obvious an infraction of the Mosaic law, which the Roman authorities conceded to the Jews. The two