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that the above-mentioned Abimelech fhewed great favour to Ifaac, who came into the country of Gerar. It is not impoffible, fays M. Bayle, this might have been the fame Abimelech ; but it is highly probable he was the fucceffor of him who carried off Sarah (b); for a famine happening to. prevail, Isaac withdrew into Gerar, where a king of this name then reigned. Here Rebecca's beauty obliged her husband to have recourse to the fame artifice which Abraham had before practifed; for Ifaac, fearing he should be killed if he was known to be the husband of the beautiful Rebecca, gave her out to be his fifter. Abimelech having from his window observed certain familiarities pafs betwixt them, fufpected they had a nearer relation to each other than that of brother and fifter; he fent for Ifaac, and thus spoke to him: "Behold of a furety fhe is thy wife; and how faidst thou, Gen. xxvi, "She is my fifter? what is this thou haft done unto us? one "of the people might lightly have lien with thy wife (c), and "thou fhouldeft have brought guiltiness upon us. ." At the fame time he forbid all his fubjects, upon pain of death, to offer the least violence to Ifaac or Rebecca. Ifaac's profperity deprived him of the king's friendship, and having acquired vaft wealth, he was defired, without the least ceremony, to go from amongst them, which he accordingly did. He ftill continued to profper, notwithstanding the efforts of the Philistines to moleft him in several places, on account of the wells his people were digging: Abimelech again defired to enter into a covenant with Ifaac, who complied with the Gen. ib. request.

negligente et prophano scriptore habebemus. That is, I declare this " once for all, which you cannot prove to be falfe, that if Jofephus ' is true in many places, then Mofes, and all the facred writers have re'lated a number of falfities. But 'let us rather look upon them as the 'true interpreters of God himself, and Jofephus as a prieft very ignorant in religious affairs, and an ignorant and profane writer.? Refp. ad Balduinum oper. tom. II. p. 220.

(b) The reason which induces M. Bayle to think that Abimelech who

carried off Sarah, is not the fame
with him who made the covenant
with Ifaac, is this: the latter Abi-
melech was credulous enough to be-
lieve, on Ifaac's affirmation, that
Rebecca was his fifter; and after he
knew otherwife, he only gave him
a gentle reprimand. Now it is not
likely, had he been deceived by Abra-
ham, that he would bave been fo
eafily impofed upon by Ifaac.

(c) The Philistines had a great ve-
neration for marriage; but as for
the unmarried women, they thought
them the property of any one who
fhould addrefs them.

9, 10.

ABLE,

Wood's Fafti

de Martyr.

ABLE, or ABEL (Thomas) was admitted batchelor of Oxon. vol.I. arts at Oxford, July 4, 1513, and took his degree of mafter P. 19. Ib. p. 24. of arts June 26, 1516. He was afterwards appointed chap, lain to queen Catherine, wife to king Henry VIII. Mr. Hift. Ecclef. Bouchier thus fpeaks of him: Vir longe doctiffimus, qui reginæ aliquando in muficarum tactu & linguis operam fuam navaret. "A man of great learning, who ufed fometimes "to teach the queen mufic and the languages." He greatly diftinguished himself by oppofing the divorce of the queen (a), and was a violent enemy to the king in all his unlawful proceedings. He wrote a treatise, De non diffolvendo Henrici et Catherinæ matrimonio. In the year 1534 he was attainted of mifprifion, for taking part and being active in the affair of Elizabeth Barton, the holy maid of Kent (b). He was afterwards fentenced to die for denying the king's fupremacy, and was accordingly executed July 30, 1540. It is thought that he wrote several pieces: but they have been loft. When in prifon he was confined very clefely, and the keeper of Newgate was once fent to the Marshalfea for allowing him and Dr. Powel to go out upon bail.

(a) The lawfulness of this divorce has been maintained by feveral eminent perfons, whofe opinións have been fully refuted in bishop Burnet's hiftory of the reformation, and in feveral other books.

(b) Lord Herbert of Cherbury gives the following account of that impoftor: Elizabeth Barton had

almost stirred up more than one tragedy; for being fuborned by the monks to use fome ftrange gefticulations, and to exhibit divers feigned miracles, accompanied with fome wizardly unfoothfayings, the drew much credit and ⚫ concourfe to her, infomuch that no mean perfons, and amongst others, Warham late archbishop of

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‹ Canterbury, and Fisher bishop of Rochester, and Sir Thomas More, gave fome belief to her: so that notwithstanding the danger that was to give ear to a prediction of hers, that Henry VIII. fhould not live one month after his marriagewith Mrs. Bolen, fhe was cried up with many voices; Silvefter, Antonio, Pollicari, and Darius, the Pope's agents, giving credit and countenance thereunto. But the plot being at laft difcovered, 'fhe was attainted of treafon; and executed, with her chief accomplices; at which time the confeffed their names who had inftigated 'her to these practices.' Life and® reign of Henry VIII.

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ABRABANEL (Ifaac) a famous rabbi, born at Lisbon in the year 1437, of a family who boafted their defcent from king David. He raifed himfelf confiderably at the court of Alphonfo V. king of Portugal, and was honoured with very high offices, which he enjoyed till this prince's death; but upon his deceafe, he felt a ftrange reverse of fortune under the new king. Abrabanel was in his forty-fifth year, when John II. fucceeded his father Alphonfo. All

thofe

those who had any fhare in the administration in the preceding reign were discarded, and if we give credit to our rabbi, their death was fecretly refolved, under the pretext of their having formed a defign to give up the crown of Portugal to the king of Spain. Abrabanel, however, fufpecting nothing, in obedience to the order he received to attend his majefty, fet out for Lisbon with all expedition; but having, in his journey, heard of what was plotting against his life, he fled immediately to his Caftilian majesty's dominions. A party of foldiers were dispatched after him, with orders to bring him dead or alive: however he made his escape, but all his poffeffions were confifcated. On this occafion he loft all his books, and alfo the beginning of his Commentary upon the book of Deuteronomy, which he much regretted. Some writers (a) affirm that the caufe of his difgrace at this time. was wholly owing to his bad behaviour; and they are of the fame opinion in regard to the other perfecutions which he afterwards fuffered (4). But however this may be, upon his fettling in Caftile, be began to teach and write. In 1484, he wrote his Commentary upon the books of Joshua, Judges, and Samuel. Being afterwards fent for to the court of Ferdinand and Isabel, he was advanced to preferment, which he enjoyed till the year 1492, when the Jews were driven out of the Spanish dominions. He used his utmost endeavours (c) to turn off this dreadful ftorm; but all proved ineffectual, fo that he and all his family were obliged to quit the kingdom, with the rest of the Jews. He retired to Naples, and in the year 1493, wrote his Commentary on the books of the Kings. Having been bred a courtier, he did not neglect to

(a) They affirm that Abrabanel justly deserved the ufage he met with, and that he would have been treated with greater feverity, had not king John, out of his wonted clemency, contented himself with banishing him. They add farther, that he left Portugal from a confcioufnefs of guilt, A&t. Lipf. Nov, 1686. p. 529. (b) They alfo fay, that by negotiating bills of exchange (which was the bufinefs he followed in Caftile) he got introduced at the court of Ferdinand and label; that he amaffed prodigious wealth, by practifing the feveral arts and frauds of the Jewish people; that be oppreffed the poor, and by his ufury made a prey of every shing that he had the vanity to

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afpire at the moft illuftrious titles,, fuch as the nobleft houses in Spain could hardly attain; and that being a fworn enemy to the Chriftian religion, he was the principal cause of that ftorm which fell upon him and the rest of his nation. Ib. p. 530.

(c) He himself mentions, in one of his performances, what he did on this occafion; Solomon Ben Virga relates it alfo in his hiftory of the Jews, where he gives a defcription of the dreadful calamities which befel the three hundred thousand Jews, who were all obliged in one day to leave the dominions of his Catholic majefty, Comment, in litros regum apud Nicol. Anton, Bibl, Hift. tom. I. p. 627.

avail

*

avail himself of the knowledge he had acquired at the courts of Portugal and Arragon, fo that he foon ingratiated himself into the favour of Ferdinand king of Naples, and afterwards into that of Alphonfo. He followed the fortune of the latter, accompanying him into Sicily, when Charles VIII. the French king, drove him from Naples. Upon the death of Alphonso, he retired to the island of Corfou, where he began his Commentary on Isaiah in 1495; and about this time he had the good fortune to find what he had written on the book of Deuteronomy. The following year he returned to Italy, and went to Monopoli in Apulia, where he wrote several books. In 1496 he finished his Commentary on Deuteronomy, and also compofed his Sevach Pefach, and his Nachalath Avoth. In the fucceeding year he wrote his Majene Hajefchua, and in 1498 his Mafchania Jefchua, and his Commentary on Ifaiah. Some time after he went to Venice, to fettle the difputes betwixt the Venetians and Portuguese relating to the spice trade, and on this occafion he displayed fo much prudence and capacity, that he acquired the favour and efteem of both those powers. In 1504 he wrote his Commentary on Jeremiah, and, according to fome authors, his Commentary alfo on Ezekiel, and the twelve minor prophets. In 1506 he composed his Comentary on Exodus, and died at Venice in the year 1508, in the feventy-firft year of his age. Several of the Venetian nobles, and all the principal Jews attended his funeral with great pomp. His corpfe was interred at Padua, in a burial-place without the city. Abrabanel wrote several other pieces, befides what we have mentioned, the dates of which are not fettled, and fome have not been printed (d). He was a man of fo great a genius, that most perfons have equalled him, and fome even

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8.Miphaloth Elohim, works of God. 9. Sepher Schamaim Chadaschim. 10. Labakath Nebhiim.

His Commentary on Haggai was tranflated into Latin by Adam Sherzerus, and inferted in the Trifolium Orientale, published at Leipfic in 1663, where his Commentary on Joshua,

3. Sepher Jefchuoth Mofchici, a treatife on the traditions relating to the Meffiah. 4. Zedek Olammim, upon future Judges, and Samuel was also printed in rewards and punishments.

folio in 1686. In this fame year his An

5. Sephor Jemoth Olam, a history notations on Hofea, with a preface from the time of Adam.

6. Maamar Machafe Schaddai, a treatife on prophecy and the vifion of Ezekiel, against rabbi Maimonides.

7. Sepher Atereth Sekenim.`·

on the twelve minor prophets, were. tranflated into French by Francis ab Hufen, and published at Leyden. In 1683 Mr. de Veil, a converted Jew, published at London Abrabanel's preface to Leviticus.

preferred

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preferred him to the celebrated Maimonides. The Jews fet a high value upon what he has written to refute the arguments and objections of the Chriftians; and the latter, though they hold in contempt what he has advanced upon this head, yet allow great merit in his other performances, wherein he gives many proofs of his great genius, learning, and penetration. He does not blindly follow the opinions of his fuperiors, but cenfures their mistakes with great freedom. The perfecutions of the Jews, under which he had been a confiderable fufferer, affected him to a very great degree; fo that the remembrance thereof worked up his indignation against the Christians, and made him inveigh against them in the strongest terms: there is hardly one of his books where he has omitted to fhew his resentment and defire of revenge; and whatever the subject may be, he never fails, fome how or other, to bring in the diftreffed condition of the Jews. He was a most affiduous man in his ftudies, in which he would fpend whole nights, and would faft for a confiderable time. He had a great facility in writing; and though he discovered an implacable hatred to the Christians in his compofitions, (e) yet, when in company with them, he behaved with great politeness, and would be very chearful in converfation.

(g) His commentaries on the Scriptures, especially thofe on the prophets, are filled with fo much rancour against our Saviour; the church, the pope, the cardinal, the whole clergy, and all Christians in general, but in a particular manner against the Roman Catholics, that father

Bartolocci was defirous the Jews
fhould be forbid the perusal of them.
And he tells us that they were ac-
cordingly not allowed to read or to
keep in their houses Abrabanel's com-
mentaries on the latter prophets.
Biblioth. Rabbi, tom. III. p. 876,
879.

Genefis xi.

ABRAHAM, the father and ftock whence the faithful fprung, was the son of Terah. He was defcended from Noah by Shem, from whom he was nine degrees removed. Some fix his birth in the hundred and thirtieth year of Terah's age, but others place it in his father's feventieth year. 'Tis highly probable he was born in the city of Ur, in Chaldea, which he and his father left when they went to Canaan, where they remained till the death of Terah; after which Abraham re- 31. fumed his first design of going to Palestine. The Scriptures mention the several places he ftopped at in Canaan; his journey into Egypt, where his wife was carried off from him; his going into Gerar, where Sarah was again taken from him, and restored to him as before; the victory he obtained over the four kings who had plundered Sodom; his compliance

the

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