and having flain four thousand immediately, and fix hundred the next Morning, made a fafe Retreat to Jerufalem,

25Q. What remarkable Inftance of Courage. was given by Eleazar, the Brother of Judas, in this Battle?

4. When he faw one Elephant higher and more adorned than the reft, he fuppofed the King himfelf was on it; therefore he ran furioufly through the Troops, and made his Way to the Beaft, he thruft up his Spear under his Belly, and the Beast, with the Tower that was upon him, falling down, crushed him to Death.

26 Q. Had Antiochus Eupator's Army any Succefs afterward against the Jews?.

A. They marched to Jerufalem under the Command of Lyfias, they befieged the Sanctuary, and when the Jews were near furrendering for Want of Provifion, they were ftrangely relieved by the Providence of God.

27 Q. In what Manner did this Relief come?

A. Lyfias hearing that the City of Antioch was feized by one Philip, a Favourite of the late King, who had taken upon him the Government of Syria, perfuaded the prefent King to grant Peace to the Jews, which he did: Yet, contrary to his own Promife, he pulled down the Fortifications of the Temple, when he came and faw how ftrong. they were.

28 Q. What became of Menelaus, the wicked High Prieft?

A. He attended the King's Army in this Ex--pedition against Jerufalem, in Hopes to recover his Office, and to be made Governor there: But Lyfias, finding this War exceeding troublefome, accufed Menelaus to the King as the Author of ar

thi

this Mischief: Whereupon he was condemned to a miferable Death, being caft headlong into a Tower of Ashes fifty Cubits high.

29 Q. Who was his Succeffor in the Priesthood? A. Onias, the Son of Onias the third, and Nephew to Menelaus, was the more rightful Succeffor, but the King rejected him; and being difappointed of it, he fled into Egypt; while Alcimus, or Jacimus, one of the Family of Aaron, (though not in the right Line of Jofedek, to which the Priesthood belonged) was made High Prieft by Antiochus Eupator the King..

Note, It was Jofhua the Son of Jofedech, or Jozadeks. who was the rightful High Prieft at the Return from Babylon. See Ezra iii. 2. and Hag. i. 1.

30 Q. Was Alcimus admitted to the Exercife of the Office in Jerufalem?

A. He was refufed by the Jews, because he had. complied with the Heathen Superftition in the Time of the Perfecution; but he befought the Aid of Demetrius the new King against Judas and the · People, who refused to receive him.

31 Q. How came this Demetrius to be King? A. He was the Son of Seleucus Philopator, who was the eldest Brother of Antiochus Epiphanes ; and though he could not perfuade the Romans to affift him in feizing the Kingdom of Syria, fince Antiochus Epiphanes was dead, yet he landed in Syria, and perfuaded the People that the Romans had fent him: Whereupon Antiochus Eupator and Lyfias were feized by their own Soldiers, and put to Death by Order of Demetrius.

32 Q. Did Demetrius eftablish Alcimus in the Priesthood, in Oppofition to Judas and his People? A. He endeavoured to do it by fending one Bac

chides.

chides against them, but without Succefs; afterwards making Nicanor, who was Mafter of his Elephants, Governor of Judea, he fent him to flay Judas, and to fubdue the Jews.

33Q. What Succefs had Nicanor in this Attempt? A. Though at first he was unwilling to make War on Judas, yet being urged by the King, he e purfued it with Fury; and having spoken many. blafphemous Words against the Temple, and the God of Ifrael, and threatening to demolish it, and to build a Temple to Bacchus in the room of it, he himself was flain, and his Army was fhamefully routed by Judas.

34 Q. What Encouragement had Judas to hope for Victory in this Battle?

A. Not only from the Blafphemies of Nicanor, but he was animated alfo by a divine Vifion, and thus he encountered his Enemies with Chearful-. nefs, and with earnest Prayer to God, 2 Macc. xiv. and xv.

35 Q. What Rejoicing did Judas and the Jews. make on this Occafion?

A. He cut off Nicanor's Head, and his right Hand which he had ftretched out against the Temple, and hanged them up upon one of the Towers of Jerufalem, and appointed a yearly Day of Thanksgiving in Memory of this Victory, which is called Nicanor's Day.

36 Q. What was the next Act of Judas for the Good of his Country?

A. Hearing of the growing Greatness of the Romans, he fent to make a League for mutual Defence with them; to which the Romans consented, and established it, acknowledging the Jews. as their Friends and Allies, and ordered Deme-. trius to vex. them no more.

37 Q. Did Demetrius obey thefe Orders?

A. Before thefe Orders came to his Hand, he had fent Bacchides the fecond Time to revenge Nicanor's Death, and to establish Alcimus in the Priefthood..

38 Q. What Succefs had this fecond Expedition of Bacchides against the Jews?

A. A very unhappy one indeed for the Jews; for he fo much overpowered Judas with the Number of his Forces, who had then but three thoufand Men with him, that even the greatest Part of these three thousand fed from him for Fear: And Judas being afhamed to fly for his Life, he was flain through an Excels of Courage.

39 What Mifchiefs enfued on the Death of Judas?

A. The Jews were greatly disheartened; Bacchides prevailed every where, tock Jerufalem, fubdued the greatest Part of the Country, and put to Death the Friends of Judas, where he could find: them; many apoftate Jews fided with him. Alcimus exercifed the High Priesthood in a very wicked Manner, and imitated the Heathen Superftition in the Worship of God. He gave Orders to pull down the Wall of the Inner Court of the Sanctuary, and is fuppofed alfo to break down the Wall which divided the more holy Part of the Mountain of the Temple from the lefs holy, and gave the Gentiles equal Liberty with the Jews to enter there.

Note firft, It is faid in 1 Macc. ix. 54. that he actually pulled down the Work of the Prophets, whatever that was: But it is thought he only gave Order for pulling down the Wall of the inner Court, which may be supposed to be the Court of the Priefs.

Note fecond, It is hard to determine how far the Wall. which feparated the Gentiles from that outer Court of the Temple which was made for the Jews, was of God's Appointment, or how early it was built...

We do not read of it in Scripture, neither in the Building of the Temple of Solomon, where there. was only the Court of the Priests, and the great Court; nor in the Rebuilding it by Zerubbabel, does Scripture tell us of fuch a Separation. Indeed, in Jehofhaphat's Time, we read of a new Court, 2Chron.xx.5. What it was no Man knows certainly; perhaps it was only one Court renewed. For in Manaffeh's Days, which was about 200 Years after, there were but two Courts, 2 Chron. xxxiii. 5. Dr Prideaux indeed fuppofes, that the latter Prophets, Haggai and Zechariah,ordered a low Wall,or rather Inclosure, to be built,called Chel, in the fecondTemple, within which no uncircumcifed Perfon fhould enter: And one Reason of that Opinion is, because Macc. ix. 54. it is faid, that Alcimus pulled down alfo the Work of the Prophets. That there was fuch a separating Wall in the Days of the Maccabees, or before, is

rally fuppofed; that this Court of the Gentiles was alfo in Herod's Temple, is agreed; and there feems, to be a Reference to it in Ephef. ii. 14. having broken → down the middle Wall of Partition. See Lowth on Ezek. xl, 17. But whether any of the Arguments. are effectual to prove it was of divine Appointment, the learned Reader must judge. See Prideaux's Connection of the Old and New Teftament, Part II.. Book iv. Page 261. in 8vo. and Lightfoot of the Temple, chap. xvii.

If it be, as fome have maintained, that the Jews in rebuilding that Temple under Zerubbabel, took Pattern, in a great Measure, from the prophetical: Temple in Ezekiel's Vision; then there feems to have been a Court large enough for the Court of i the Gentiles For Chap. xl. 5. and xlii. 20. There was a Wall on the outfide of the House round about, of five hundred Reeds fquare, to make a Separation between the Sanctuary and the profane Place. See Lowth on.

thefe Texts. Perhaps in these Times this was cal led the Mount of the Temple.

40 Q. What became of Alcimus. when he tifed thefe Things with Infolence?

prac