,,watson ,,refuted  ,,being ,,an        
,,answer ,,to ,,the ,,apology ,,for     
,,the ,,bible4  ,,in ,a ,,series ,,of   
,,letters ,,to ,,the ,,bishop ,,of      
,,llandaff4  ,by ,samuel ,francis1      
,m4,d4       ,pudet me humani generis1  
cujus mentes et aures talia fern        
potuerunt4       --,div4 ,augustin4     
,,london3  ,,printed and ,,published    
,,by ,r4 ,,carlile1 #ee1 ,,fleet        
,,street     ,,advertisement4  ,i had   
written a considerable part of another  
work1 containing strictures on religion4
 ,the appearance of the ,bishop of      
,llandaff's pamphlet1 and the number of 
editions that have been published for   
the purpose of encouraging its sale     
among the poorer classes1 induced me to 
take up the pen expressly in answer to  
this publication1 that ,i might         
undeceive the multitude1 and show that1 
under the imposing title of a ,bishop1  
,dr4 ,watson has been guilty of the most
 gross misrepresentations1 and1 whether 
intentionally or from ignorance1 has    

deceived his readers1 while1 under the  
pretence of meekness1 he triumphs in the
 detection of a few errors1 committed by
 a man who does not pretend to be a     
,theologian1 or to be possessed of any  
great learning4 ,he has uniformly passed
 over the weighty arguments of the ,age 
of ,reason1 and stopped at a few        
immaterial inaccuracies4 ,i hope1 in the
 following sheets1 to show1 that the    
learned ,professor of ,divinity has     
committed errors in the ,natural        
,sciences and ,history1 which would be  
inexcusable in any author2 but1 when    
coming from a dignified ,clergyman1 who 
wishes to dictate to the nation1 their  
detection cannot fail to show to the    
public1 how necessary it is for men to  
employ their faculty of reason1 and not 
to yield it to those whose profession is
 to teach things they acknowledge to be 
above reason1 and incomprehensible4 ,i  
shall1 as soon as my other avocations   
permit1 give the world a tract upon     
religion in general1 with strictures on 

the ,jewish and ,christian systems4 ,for
 this reason1 ,i shall not1 in the      
present pamphlet1 enter deeply into any 
abstract reasoning1 but confine myself  
chiefly to the detection of the errors  
contained in the ,apology for the       
,bible4  ,s4 ,f4  ,london1 ,aug4 #ae1   
#agij1     ,,watson ,,refuted           
,,letter ,i4  ,,my ,,lord1  ,you have   
thought it not inconsistent with your   
dignity as a ,bishop1 to oppose the ,age
 of ,reason by ,thomas ,paine1 and ,i1  
as a member of the community1 find      
myself called upon to expose your       
reasoning1 and stop the career of error4
 ,you disclaim controversy2 but if your 
candour is any thing more than a vain   
boast1 ,i entertain hopes of seeing the 
defender of ,christianity again step    
forward to answer my arguments1 if he   
deems them of sufficient weight to      
disturb his quiet4 ,i am sincerely glad 
to find a dignified churchman begin a   
dispute with men1 whom formerly the     
pious members of the ,church would have 

deemed fit victims for the fire or the  
gallows2 at the same time1 ,i feel deep 
regret1 that the ,bishop has not yet    
altogether laid aside the clerical      
passion for the extermination of the    
heterodox4 ,i hope1 says ,dr4 ,watson1  
that there is no want of charity in     
wishing1 that ,mr4 ,paine's life had    
been terminated long before his         
publication4 ,this may be consistent    
with ,christian charity1 but nature and 
reason teach us ugly unbelievers another
 doctrine3 and1 however inveterate ,i   
may be against those of the clergy who  
persecute and deceive the multitude1 ,i 
confess1 that the death of a person1    
whom ,i conceive to be acting for what  
he thinks the public good1 would give me
 no pleasure2 and the ,bishop allows the
 purity of ,mr4 ,paine's motives4 ,the  
wish of the philosopher is1 let reason  
guide us1 and all parties have freedom  
of debate4 ,no dogmatical dictates of   
bigotted priests1 no passive obedience  
to the mandates of inquisitors1 nor to  

the persecutions so often fomented by   
churchmen4 ,to the progress of letters1 
during this century1 we owe the mildness
 and condescension of clergymen3 till   
philosophy taught us1 the clergy never  
discovered1 that persecutions for heresy
 and witchcraft1 or inquisitions and    
popery1 were horrid institutions4 ,dares
 ,dr4 ,watson affirm1 that freedom of   
inquiry was ever suffered on religious  
subjects8 that people were allowed to   
examine the grounds of the doctrines    
taught by the ,church8 ,no1 ,sir1 your  
predecessors of all beliefs have ever   
persecuted philosophers and inquirers   
into truth1 both in science and in      
religion4 ,neither ,galileus nor        
,rousseau escaped the malevolence of the
 opposers of science2 and in the ,bible 
they found authorities for their        
inveterate opposition to the progress of
 truth and knowledge4 ,the ,new         
,testament informs us1 that the wisdom  
of ,god is foolishness to man1 that     
human learning produces nothing but     

pride #a1 and that the poor in spirit   
gain the kingdom of heaven4       #a    
,beware lest any man spoil you through  
philosophy and vain      deceit1 after  
the tradition of men1 after the         
rudiments of      the world1 and not    
after ,christ4 ,colos4 ii4 #e1 #h4      
,cum sit nobis divinis literis traditum 
cognitiones      philosophorum stultas  
esse1 ad ipsum re et argumentis         
docendum et2 ne quit bouesto sapieuti   
nomine inductus1 aut      inanis        
eloquenti splendore deceptus1 humanis   
malet quam      divinis credere4        
,lactantius1 ,inst4 lib4 i4 chap4 #b4   
,under these and other similar          
pretences1 have barbarous priests led   
their credulous followers to massacres  
in the name of their ,god2 by means of  
that touchstone word1 ,faith1 they made 
the multitude forget that their leaders 
were but men4 ,now1 ,sir1 we have grown 
bolder3 knowledge being no longer       
confined to clerical seminaries1 priests
 are not kings4 ,the church totters2 and

 a single pamphlet1 you say1 has        
unsettled the faith of thousands4 ,now1 
that you cannot stifle reason1 you      
pretend to liberality of sentiment4     
,the natural historian1 or the          
astronomer1 fears not the publication of
 opinions contrary to his own1 except   
from a scholastic habit1 learned in the 
clerical seminaries1 which still        
disgrace almost every country4 ,the     
chemist eagerly peruses all theories2   
the divine alone refuses to argue with  
his opponents1 and trembles at the very 
name of reason4 ,i differ in my         
philosophical opinions from ,mr4 ,paine2
 my principles extend so much farther   
than his1 that ,i suspect ,i come under 
the class which you are pleased to call 
madmen1 and every clergyman would affect
 to despise1 but dare not argue with1   
before an unprejudiced tribunal4 ,these1
 ,sir1 are the effects of superstition1 
and the cunning policy of the ,church4  
,the ,bible is hardly suffered to be    
read in ,catholic countries4 ,the       

,english reformers could not go so far2 
their revolution sprung from a dawn of  
philosophy4 ,the ,english clergy1       
however1 would confine us to the reading
 of that unintelligible farrago1 and the
 still more insufferable commentaries   
upon it4 ,so did the scholastics with   
,aristotle2 their bigotted partiality to
 this author was nearly of the same     
force with the priestly attachment to   
the ,bible4 ,they retarded science2 but 
the motives of the clergy are stronger4 
,by the ,bible they live2 and it is not 
uncommon to hear the parson deride in   
private what he preaches from the       
pulpit4  ,but to your first letter4     
,after the pious wish for ,thomas       
,paine's death1 you proceed to state how
 miserable the adoption of his doctrines
 would render the unhappy virtuous4     
,fear not such a dire event3 the pious  
are few in number1 and of those1 few    
have the courage to open a book         
controverting their opinions1 and which1
 they are taught to believe1 contains   

nothing but blasphemies ,but1 should    
chance lead them to a detection of their
 errors1 they would only become less    
devout1 and more useful citizens4 ,freed
 from the prospect of hell and heaven1  
they will have leisure to think of this 
world1 in which they live somewhat like 
hermits1 loving only their priests1 and 
ready to sacrifice victims to credulity4
  ,you say1 that guillotine massacres   
were not the effect of the ,popish      
religion1 but of the disbelief of this  
system4 ,this deserves some             
consideration4 ,it is not true1 that the
 majority of the people of ,paris were  
unbelievers4 ,no1 ,sir1 they swore to   
the miracles of ,abbe ,paris1 and were  
as ready to give testimony to the       
wonderful cures and prodigies operated  
by his intercession1 as the ,jews or    
,christians have been to vouch for      
theirs4 ,the fact is this3 the lively   
disposition of the ,french1 the         
unintelligibility of their religion1 and
 the shameful conduct of the priests1   

turned their attention to the more      
serious object of politics2 but this    
event could not immediately change the  
nature of the murderers of the          
,protestants on ,st4 ,bartholomew's day4
 ,does your ,lordship imagine1 that the 
peasants of ,la ,vendee are models of   
morality8 ,if you think so1 ,i must     
undeceive you4 ,nothing but ignorance   
prevails in that district2 like the     
ancient crusaders1 they are led solely  
by their priests1 who1 by means of      
certain words which early habits and    
superstition have made their followers  
respect1 and1 together with want of     
communication with the rest of ,france1 
have inflamed them1 and driven them to  
slaughter3 even miracles have not been  
wanting in that part of the country2 but
 in this1 as in many other instances1   
they have disappeared1 on the arrival of
 incredulous troops1 whose hearts are   
perhaps hardened by ,god1 like the      
,egyptians of old4 ,since ,god          
diminishes men's faith in proportion as 

he gives them human wisdom1 let us not  
endeavour to controvert this heavenly   
will1 by endeavouring to make the       
enlightened people of the eighteenth    
century so credulous as in the former   
days of ignorance4 ,the ,bishop allows1 
that the higher classes of every country
 all lean towards infidelity2 they are  
more guided by reason1 and reason is the
 avowed enemy of faith1 it being the    
criterion of faith1 that it contains    
natural impossibilities4 ,it is         
unfortunate that so many sects pretend  
to faith1 and differ so much among      
themselves2 and that to explain their   
faiths1 they use the weapons of reason  
against one another4 ,this of itself    
proves1 that faith is but a cant word1  
since the faithful argue about what     
comes not under human knowledge4 ,thus  
all religious sectaries1 whether        
,christians1 ,jews1 ,mahometans1        
,boodzoists1 or ,bramins1 as staunchly  
believe contradictory doctrines1 while1 
in the inquiries that depend on their   

reason1 we find that1 wherever men have 
long been civilized1 they have1 in      
astronomy1 in physics1 or ethics1 come  
in general to the same conclusions4 ,the
 language of the philosopher is         
understood in ,pekin as well as in      
,rome2 but the religious fanatics of    
every country differ in their opinions1 
and consider all but themselves as      
dreamers and impostors4 ,the ,bramin    
laughs at the story of ,noah and the    
ark1 the stopping of the sun1 and the   
incarnation of ,god2 while the          
,christian shows the same contempt for  
the incarnation of ,vishnu1 and other   
articles of the ,braminical faith4 ,the 
exercise of reason alone shows us the   
true limits of our intellectual         
faculties4 ,ignorance of this is the    
cause of all reveries in science1 as in 
religion2 it is only superstition that  
incites men to launch beyond their      
conceptions4  ,you accuse of infidelity 
all those who commit crimes against     
society4 ,when we answer1 that the      

,jewish and ,christian religions have   
deluged the world with blood1 you reply1
 that it is not as being ,jews and      
,christians1 but because they were      
wicked4 ,at the same time1 ,i hope you  
allow1 that the ,spartans1 the          
,athenians1 the ,romans1 the ,chinese1  
did not commit half the atrocities which
 disgrace ,jewish history1 the aera of  
the crusades and the ,christian         
persecutions1 of the invasion of        
,america1 the massacres of heretics1 c4 
,the candid observer must therefore     
conclude1 that right and wrong is not   
confined to sects2 that the ,christian  
religion1 whatever its precepts may be1 
has not been able to prevent crimes1    
while nations who knew not so much as   
the name of ,moses or ,christ1 produced 
a ,confucius1 an ,aristides1 a          
,socrates1 an ,epaminondas1 a           
,cincinnatus4 ,among these nations1 who 
knew not the ,lord ,jehovah1 we find    
,archimedes1 ,epicurus1 ,demosthenes1   
,plato1 ,aristotle1 ,cicero1 while the  

chosen people of ,god1 and their        
successors1 the ,christians1 borrowed   
their language1 the very names of their 
gods1 and the little science they knew1 
from these despised infidels4 ,it was   
not the oracle of ,delphos1 the augurs1 
or the sybils1 that enlightened the     
,greeks and ,romans4 ,the rabble        
credited them1 as the ignorant ,jews and
 ,christians did their prophets and     
apostles4 ,in short1 morals cannot be   
invented2 there cannot be two systems of
 morality4 ,the precepts must be        
directed to principles existing in the  
heart of man4 ,ignorance conceals from  
nations the rule of conduct1 in the same
 manner that it prevents them from      
knowing geometry2 the moment they study 
either1 they are put in the road of     
truth4 ,no wonder1 then1 that in the    
times of the greatest oppression1 when  
frightened into certain doctrines by the
 stories of nurses and parents1 many    
learned men should not have been able to
 conquer their first prejudices4 ,you   

certainly know the time when astrology  
and the philosopher's stone were in     
fashion2 the believers in these reveries
 were men of science4 ,van ,helmont1    
,stahl1 ,boyle1 and innumerable others  
were possessed of this madness4 ,you can
 be no stranger to the numerous wretches
 that suffered for witchcraft and       
necromancy1 and1 upon the very brink of 
death1 confessed they were guilty4  ,the
 next reflection the ,doctor makes1 is  
respecting gospel moderation1 for which 
purpose he quotes1 ,who art thou that   
judgest another man's servant8 to his   
own master he standeth or falleth4 ,yet 
has this been done by all ,christian    
rulers2 and the clergy are at this      
moment1 in express defiance of this     
maxim1 about to send missionaries to    
disseminate principles that have ever   
produced internal dissensions1 and      
without which infidels have lived in    
perfect happiness4 ,it is1 perhaps1 an  
excess of piety2 but cool observers     
pretend1 that it is the high priest1 not

 the ,high ,god1 that they are going to 
preach3 to fill their knapsacks is the  
first object of these pilgrims1 and     
their ,god is made subservient4         
,unluckily for the ,bishop1 he could not
 adduce a more detestable maxim1 to show
 his charity1 than that which ,i have   
just quoted3 it is the pivot of         
,oriental despotism2 it teaches passive 
obedience to all classes2 the father is 
the tyrant of his children1 the nabob of
 his subjects1 the emperor of all3 it is
 a maxim whose tendency is to root in   
men's minds1 that we are the property of
 one another1 and may be inherited as   
cattle4 ,to those of my readers who are 
pleased with it1 ,i wish a thorough     
experience of its effects4  ,the        
remainder of your first letter contains 
observations to which ,i perfectly      
accede4 ,your conclusion against ,thomas
 ,paine is perfectly fair4 ,any apparent
 deviation from moral justice in the    
world must prove as much against the    
goodness of ,god1 as a similar          

inconsistency in his immediate actions  
and commands proves against revealed    
religion4 ,my ,lord1 we are in the abyss
 of error2 your question with ,thomas   
,paine is about the comparative         
absurdity of the two ,opinions4 ,the    
deistical notions of your adversary do  
not agree with his reasonable tenets2   
but ,i readily grant1 that1 to a        
religious person1 nothing is incredible2
 and that the greater the               
inconsistencies1 the more sublime the   
system4 ,but let me ask your ,lordship1 
what you conclude against one1 who1 like
 myself1 is not a ,deist8 and repeats1  
with the first philosopher of the age1  
that there are only four possible       
hypotheses upon the causes of the       
universe3 #ast4 ,that they are purely   
good4 #b;dly4 ,that they are malicious4 
#c;dly4 ,that they are a mixture of good
 and evil4 ,and1 lastly1 ,that they     
neither possess benevolence1 nor any    
other passions4 ,the two first          
hypotheses are equally contradicted by  

daily experience1 the mixture of good   
and evil is too apparent3 the third is  
denied1 by the steadiness of the laws of
 nature3 the last1 then1 only is        
admissible4  ,you next proceed to       
justify several actions of the ,jews1   
which you and the ,bible are pleased to 
call ,god's commands4 ,i must decline   
following your reasoning2 for the very  
existence of such crimes as the ,jews   
ascribe to their enemies1 and which1    
they say1 were so repugnant to ,god1    
would of themselves prove against the   
goodness of that ,being4 ,his frequent  
threats1 and the extermination of so    
many miserable nations1 is a poor       
expedient2 like that of a man1 who1     
attempting to make a machine1 and foiled
 in his endeavours1 gloried in breaking 
it in a thousand pieces4 ,how much more 
ridiculous is that sublime ,artificer1  
who employs the same means which        
impotence or malevolence give rise to in
 his wretched children4 ,i am glad you  
have no recourse to the silly causes of 

atheism1 as given by that illustrious   
dreamer1 ,plato4  ,the world has too    
long been imposed upon by ridiculous    
attempts to vilify atheists1 and show   
their nonexistence4 ,that name has been 
a cant word1 like ,jacobin in ,france1  
and ,whig and ,tory in ,england1 which  
every person applies to his neighbour as
 it best suits him4 ,in ,catholic       
countries1 all who dare think are       
heretics2 among ,protestants1 they are  
atheists4 ,being a word of opprobrium1  
it has ever been used as a powerful     
engine in the hands of the clergy4 ,the 
question is upon the truth of systems1  
not upon the character of those who     
profess them4 ,if this were the         
discrimination1 and the palm given to   
that religion that has had the greatest 
number of honest men1 the ,christian    
system would certainly lose the contest4
  ,the ,bishop seems to think1 that     
savages have not so perfect a notion of 
,god as we imagine3 religion1 he        
supposes1 begins as it were in express  

revelation4 ,this is but the fancy of a 
clergyman1 unsupported by any proofs2   
but at least it shows1 that the ,bishop 
involuntarily acknowledges1 that reason 
alone can hardly give us the idea of a  
ruling ,being4 ,the savage1 it is true1 
does not discourse in a metaphysical    
jargon2 he wants expressions3 but ,i    
wish the ,doctor would inform me in what
 our ,catechism definition of ,god is   
clearer than the notions of the rudest  
savage1 who1 trembling at the approach  
of thunder and violent convulsions of   
nature1 or enjoying the genial sun and  
fertilizing inundations1 imagines all   
the world to be animated with his own   
passions4 ,the thunder is a mark of     
wrath1 while the blessings are signs of 
a propitious genius4 ,to conciliate     
these imaginary beings1 to avert their  
wrath1 is the grand object of           
superstition4 ,schoolmen conceal1 under 
their mystical jargon1 the real         
materials which their gods are made of2 
they conceal that the ,supreme          

,artificer is the offspring of fancy1   
the figurative and unphilosophical      
symbol of nature1 to which they give    
human dispositions3 in all religious    
systems men are the type of their gods4 
,your letter concludes with a remark    
sufficiently extraordinary1 that most   
,deists of your acquaintance disbelieve 
the mysterious conversations of ,god1   
his miracles1 and such other stories1   
because they are too wonderful1 and     
against the order of nature4 ,your reply
 is curious3 because we never have seen 
the like of them1 does it follow that   
they are untrue8 ,give me leave to tell 
you1 my ,lord1 that you have forgotten  
the rules of logic3 you know1 that in   
all cases1 but of demonstration1 the    
philosopher does nothing but weigh      
probabilities4 ,any thing that is       
conceivable is possible3 but are we     
therefore to believe in the existence of
 witches or necromancers8 ,are we to    
give credit to the world having sprung  
from an egg8 ,that ,mahomet divided the 

moon8 ,that the sun stood still8 ,that  
astrology is a science8 ,yet what reason
 have we to disbelieve them8 ,the       
respective supporters of these opinions 
may say with the ,doctor1 that nothing  
can be too wonderful1 and that1 because 
these things have not happened in our   
time1 it does not follow they should be 
untrue4 ,i acknowledge1 with the        
,doctor1 that many ,deists admit a      
,being as inconceivable as any religious
 mystery2 therefore it may seem         
ridiculous in them to stop their        
credulity2 since we call ,god just1 when
 nothing but a concatenation of causes  
and effects can be perceived in the     
world2 when we proclaim him benevolent1 
while the world is full of vice1 while  
millions perish in misery1 and continual
 calamities befal mankind2 while1 in    
short1 most men have the gloomy prospect
 of damnation before them4 ,these are   
greater miracles than an universal      
deluge1 making a woman from a rib1 or   
,god's countenancing the atrocious      

murders of ,jews4 ,he that will believe 
one wonder1 has no plea for doubting the
 rest4     ,,letter ,,ii4  ,,my ,,lord1 
,your second letter begins with some    
nice distinctions between authenticity  
and genuineness4 ,the whole reasoning   
seems to amount to this1 that a book may
 be authentic1 although not genuine1 and
 vice versa4 ,to this proposition we    
were no strangers2 but piety makes your 
,lordship forget some other             
considerations4 ,when the proofs of     
authenticity depend in a great measure  
upon the genuineness of a book1 then the
 authenticity falls to the ground the   
moment we prove it spurious4 ,thus the  
,jews strenuously maintained1 that the  
,pentateuch had been written by an      
inspired man at a particular time4 ,but 
if ,moses is shown not to have written  
these books1 ,i trust you will not      
declare them authentic1 without other   
very solid proofs4 ,when a whole nation 
is proved to be mistaken respecting the 
author of a work1 we ought not hastily  

to credit their legends4 ,moreover1     
logic teaches us1 that in proportion as 
events are incredible1 they require a   
stronger testimony to prove that they   
have actually taken place4 ,a battle may
 have been fought1 a city may have been 
destroyed1 but miracles being against   
the order of nature1 no testimony can be
 strong enough to prove them1 we must   
again appeal to faith4 ,it is so much   
easier for men to be deceived or imposed
 upon1 or for persons designedly to     
mislead their credulous followers1 that 
unless it were more miraculous that a   
man should be mistaken1 than that the   
miracle happened1 we ought not to give  
credit to such fables4 ,if we drop this 
rule of logic1 we shall readily believe 
prodigies of all sorts1 whether wrought 
by ,moses1 ,jesus ,christ1 ,mahomet1    
,st4 ,antony of ,padua1 or any modern   
wonder-workers1 witches1 magicians1     
astrologers1 or magnetisers4 ,mr4 ,paine
 no where asserts1 that because a book  
is not genuine1 it must be false2 but   

certainly he might assert this of the   
,bible4 ,you say1 that if the works of  
,titus ,livius had been ascribed to     
another1 they would nevertheless be     
true2 how would you ascertain it8 ,if   
the whole ,roman nation supposed them to
 have been written by a particular      
author at a certain time1 and should we 
be enabled to point out many passages   
evidently written in a posterior age1   
would you1 without any other proofs1    
join in the assent to the authenticity  
of the history1 upon a tradition so     
vague1 and already proved false in so   
material a point8 ,although ,i am no    
,bishop1 ,i would only imagine1 that as 
to probable events contained in such    
spurious books1 there might have been   
some grounds for them2 but ,i would     
receive them with great caution2 and1 at
 any rate1 never would ,i establish a   
system of history1 much less of         
religion1 upon the productions of an    
ignorant people3 in all cases1 events   
related against the order of nature are 

to be considered as the reveries of dark
 ages4 ,to elucidate your principles1   
you mention ,anson's voyage1 written by 
,robins1 under the name of ,walter1 to  
prove that a spurious work may contain a
 true history2 but1 my ,lord1 do you    
forget1 that this was written at a time 
when the whole nation knew that ,lord   
,anson had made such a voyage1 and every
 man in his fleet could testify the     
particulars of it8 ,but if our          
posterity1 four or five centuries hence1
 should discover a book purporting to be
 written by a ,mr4 ,walters1 detailing  
the voyage of ,admiral ,anson1 and if in
 that book they should meet a passage   
speaking of the late revolution in      
,france1 or of the author's death and   
burial1 would not that strike at the    
authenticity of the whole8 ,would any   
part be believed that was not           
corroborated by the evidence of         
respectable contemporary authors8 ,all  
that could be inferred would be from the
 nature of the events related1 such as  

the accurate description of countries1  
and such other particulars as marked    
either the period of the observations1  
or their truth3 in the first case1 they 
might suspect the work to be            
interpolated2 in the second1 they would 
value it only for the accuracy of       
information4 ,it is different with      
scientifical and historical works3 a    
spurious book of science may contain    
truths1 they stand for themselves1 they 
are the same at all times and places4   
,not so in history3 the truth here      
depends on the universal consent of     
nations1 on the testimony of authors of 
credibility confronted with each other1 
and in all cases relating things        
probable4 ,when we read in a ,chinese   
history1 that the goddess ,amida peopled
 the world by bearing male children from
 under one arm1 and females under       
another1 or1 in the ,mahometan writers1 
that the trees spoke to the founder of  
that sect1 would a man credit any       
circumstance1 however probable1 related 

in such histories1 without the strongest
 collateral proofs8 ,and should we      
further discover1 that these histories  
detailed events posterior to their      
author's death1 would not this make the 
whole still more improbable8 ,your      
remark upon this subject is singular3   
you say1 that if ,joshua1 ,samuel1 or   
,moses1 declared themselves the authors 
of the works ascribed to them1 then to  
prove these books spurious would at once
 destroy their genuineness and          
authenticity4 ,i would reason thus3     
,moses does not say1 that he was the    
author of the ,pentateuch2 why then do  
we believe that he wrote it8 ,you would1
 no doubt1 answer1 that the tradition of
 the ,jews proclaims him such4 ,i       
retort1 that if the genuineness of a    
book may be proved by tradition1 we     
ought as much to argue against the      
authenticity of a work1 from having     
proved the general belief of its        
genuineness to be founded on error1 as  
if the author had said1 ,i am the author

 of this book4 ,this we shall1 in the   
sequel1 prove to be the case with the   
books of the ,old ,testament4 ,the      
addition of an express declaration of   
,moses would add no authenticity to the 
,pentateuch1 since it is as easy to     
forge a work where the author speaks in 
the first as in the third person4  ,your
 next remark is concerning miracles4 ,i 
have already observed1 that no testimony
 can give them belief4 ,you maintain1   
that the degree and kind of evidence for
 the prodigies recorded in the ,bible   
exceeds that for any other wonders4 ,how
 this happens ,i am unable to           
comprehend4 ,i know they are contained  
in a book composed by the priests of the
 most credulous and ignorant nation that
 perhaps ever existed2 and the authority
 of these unknown and obscure persons1  
is all the evidence we have for         
crediting their stories4 ,an ,english   
,bishop tells his countrymen1 that the  
miracle of the sun standing still is    
better supported than the prodigies of  

,abbe ,paris1 ,mesmer1 and the late     
,labre at ,rome1 than the numerous      
,indian1 ,chinese1 and ,popish miracles1
 of which a great part are attested by  
magistrates1 divines1 physicians1 and   
the most enlightened classes of society2
 while the wonderful repast of the      
angels with ,abraham1 or the marvellous 
tale of ,jonah's three days' residence  
in the belly of a fish1 depends upon the
 authority of a book which we shall     
prove to be spurious1 to have been lost 
for several ages1 and to be compiled1 if
 not altogether composed1 by some       
,jewish scribes1 who were1 as they      
themselves acknowledge1 the only men    
versed in the scriptures of the nation4 
,i thought you would have known sacred  
history better than at the present day  
to make such unsupported assertions4    
,have you forgotten the wonders of the  
magicians of ,pharaoh8 ,do you not      
recollect the express acknowledgment of 
,moses himself1 that there may be       
miracles and prophecies performed by men

 who adored not the ,lord ,jehovah8     
,does he not say1 in chap4 xiii4 of     
,deuteronomy1 ,if there arise among you 
a prophet1 or a dreamer of dreams1 and  
giveth thee a sign or a wonder1 and the 
sign or the wonder come to pass whereof 
he spake unto thee1 saying1 ,let us go  
after other gods1 c4--that prophet1 or  
that dreamer of dreams1 shall be put to 
death1 because he hath spoken to you to 
turn away from the ,lord your ,god4 ,it 
is not because he is a false prophet1   
but because he is not a prophet of      
,jehovah4 ,does not this at once show   
the grossness of the conceptions of the 
,jews1 and the sophistical mode of      
arguing of their legislator8 ,for ,i    
would ask1 ,how did ,moses prove himself
 the oracle of ,god8 ,or how did ,jesus 
,christ show himself the ,son of ,god1  
but by their pretended miracles8 ,why   
then believe the testimony of a miracle 
in one instance1 and not in another8    
,but the ,jews certainly imagined1 that 
there were several gods1 and that they  

quarrelled with each other1 as kings are
 used to do2 therefore it was natural   
that one set of prophets should try to  
exterminate another1 and be as          
inveterate against them as the ,lord    
,jehovah was against ,baal1 or other    
rival gods4 ,if the reader imagines ,i  
speak at random when ,i say1 the ,jews  
believed in other gods1 ,i refer him to 
,judges1 chap4 xi4 ver4 #bc1 #cd1 where 
it is said1 ,so now the ,lord ,god of   
,israel hath dispossessed the ,amorites 
from before his people ,israel1 and     
shouldst thou not possess it8 ,wilt thou
 not possess that which ,chemosh thy god
 giveth thee to possess8 ,so whomsoever 
the ,lord our ,god shall drive out from 
before us1 them will we possess4 ,there 
cannot be a fairer parallel4  ,i can    
hardly imagine a ,bishop ignorant of the
 augurs1 oracles1 and sybils of the     
,greeks and ,romans1 and of the implicit
 belief these nations had in them2 the  
truth of their prophecies was fully as  
well established as the prophecies of   

the ,jews4 ,neither were miracles       
uncommon among the heathens4 ,you have1 
no doubt1 read ,st4 ,ambrose and        
,origen1 and have found in the works of 
these and other fathers1 that the only  
difference between the miracles of the  
,christians and infidels1 was1 that the 
former were operated by ,god1 and the   
latter by the devil2 and could ,i be    
satisfied that ,satan took up ,jesus    
,christ to the top of that high         
mountain1 7now unknown to geographers7  
from whose pinnacle all the world could 
be seen1 this would surprise me as much 
as to see ,jesus ,christ1 or any other  
wonder-worker1 bringing a dead man to   
life4 ,i am ashamed to have inveighed so
 long against silly prejudices2 but ,i  
could not avoid calling upon your       
,lordship1 to point out the difference  
between gospel-miracles and the         
ridiculous tales believed in all dark   
ages1 and of which we find so copious   
collections in the works of the first   
fathers4 ,the axiom of philosophers1    

that no human testimony can establish   
the credibility1 of miracles1 you have  
left unanswered4 ,you say it has been   
confuted an hundred times3 had you given
 the confutation of it1 we would have   
been able to ascertain the truth of your
 assertion4 ,you are writing for the    
multitude1 and being a dignitary of the 
church1 ought to furnish the people with
 arms to oppose reason4 ,perhaps the    
unsuccessful attempt of ,dr4 ,campbell  
has deterred you from at least          
recapitulating the principal answers to 
this proposition4 ,till you can prove   
that the great mass of mankind are not  
very fallible and easily deceived by any
 impostor1 or that they are disposed and
 capable to examine the truth of reports
 spread about prodigies1 you will never 
be able to persuade men of sense1 that  
events impossible are to be believed    
upon the testimony of those who not only
 are1 but have constantly been1 the     
slaves of credulity in all countries4   
,you then show1 that ,mr4 ,paine's      

objections to the genuineness are not   
new4 ,this is true2 and ,i am surprised 
you have quoted so few supporters of his
 opinions4 ,your attempt to prove the   
genuineness of the ,pentateuch1 by      
direct evidence1 is ridiculous4 ,what6  
,maimonides1 ten centuries after the    
destruction of the ,jews1 a ,jew        
himself1 and writing at a period so     
remote from the supposed date of the    
books of the ,old ,testament1 is1 by    
,dr4 ,watson1 called a direct evidence  
of the genuineness of the ,pentateuch4  
,juvenal1 a poet1 who in more than one  
place ridicules the credulity of the    
,jews1 says1 that they believe in       
,moses--so do the ,europeans allow that 
the ,indians believe in ,brama4--,we    
question not the general traditions of  
the ,jews1 but the credit they deserve2 
and ,i shall next proceed to show1 that 
the books of the ,pentateuch are        
spurious1 and undeserving of credit4    
,the name of ,moses and the ,jews were  
unknown to the famous ,phoenician       

historian ,sanchoniato1 of whom         
,eusebius has preserved us some         
extracts2 he has never mentioned a word 
about this famous legislator3 had he    
done so1 ,eusebius was too strenuous an 
advocate for ,christianity not to have  
recorded it4 ,the books of the ,jews    
were concealed from all the world before
 the famous ,greek translation made at  
the instance of ,ptolemy ,philadelphia4 
,josephus himself acknowledges1 that no 
heathen knew the ,jewish books1 which he
 endeavours to explain1 by some         
miraculous interference of ,god to keep 
them from the impious4 ,it is evident1  
that the insignificance and ignorance of
 the ,jews were sufficient to screen    
them for a long time from the search of 
philosophers4 ,upon the early history of
 the ,jewish nation1 however1 we have   
the testimony of several of the ancient 
writers4 ,manetho1 and ,chaeremon1      
,egyptian historians1 give the most     
unfavourable account of this nation4    
,lisimachus does not favour them any    

more2 and1 although he differs about the
 name of the king who expelled them from
 ,egypt1 yet he agrees in calling them a
 set of men infected with leprosy1 and  
the meanest of the subjects of the king 
of ,egypt4 ,diodorus ,siculus is as hard
 upon these wretched ,jews4 ,in short1  
the opinion of their being the vilest   
and most ignorant of men1 has prevailed 
among all antiquity4 ,all the writers   
about them agree in stating that they   
never produced any work in science2     
indeed1 that they never improved any    
branch of useful knowledge4 ,many of    
these authors mention ,moses as a priest
 of ,heliopolis1 who led them out of    
,egypt1 and gave them a religion4       
,diodorus ,siculus informs us1 that the 
,god of ,moses was ,jau1 or ,jahouh1    
which is the true pronunciation of      
,jehovah2 and ,plutarch 7de ,iside7     
says1 that the ,thebans adored this     
,god1 and had not images in their       
temples1 because ,jau signified the     
general principle of life1 the soul of  

the world4  ,strabo1 in his ,geography1 
book #af1 informs us1 that ,moses1 who  
was an ,egyptian priest1 taught his     
followers to worship the ,god ,jahouh1  
without representing it by emblems4     
,this was the ,god of the ,thebans1 the 
soul of the world4 ,the ,jews have even 
preserved the name of ,tsour1 or giver  
of forms1 and commonly translated by the
 word creator in chap4 xxxii4 of        
,deuteronomy4 ,herodotus affirms1 that  
the ,jews or ,syrians of ,palestine     
borrowed circumcision from the          
,egyptians4 ,diodorus says the same2 and
 even ,philo and ,josephus do not deny  
it4 ,a great many other rites were      
copied by the ,jews from this nation4   
,it is1 therefore1 of great consequence 
to ascertain the age in which the       
,jewish books were written2 for if we   
can prove that all the fundamental      
points of their religion were copied    
from their masters the ,egyptians1 or   
borrowed from the ,babylonians during   
the captivities1 then the reader will   

judge of the truth of the clerical      
opinion1 that a handful of hordes were  
the favourite people of ,god2 that a set
 of ignorant and credulous vagabonds    
taught science to the ,chinese1         
,indians1 and ,egyptians1 and preserved 
nothing among themselves but some       
ridiculous accounts of their origin1 and
 a collection of absurd prodigies4 ,if  
we succeed in pointing out from what    
sources ,jewish mythology is derived1   
there will be but little difficulty in  
unravelling the principal fables        
contained in the ,pentateuch and other  
,jewish books4 ,we are pretty well      
acquainted with the allegories of the   
heathen mythologies4  ,i am ready to    
grant that several of ,mr4 ,paine's     
objections are not valid1 and often     
trifling2 but ,i declare1 once for all1 
that ,i do not think myself bound to    
follow ,mr4 ,paine in every instance4 ,i
 shall direct my remarks1 rather to     
disprove your reasoning1 than to defend 
every objection of your opponent2 at the

 same time1 ,i shall avoid repeating    
what he has advanced1 and you have not  
disproved4 ,the chief proofs against the
 genuineness of the ,pentateuch have    
been overlooked by ,mr4 ,paine4 ,i shall
 state them briefly4  ,first4 ,it was   
believed1 by all the best informed old  
fathers of the church1 that the ,jewish 
books had been absolutely lost during   
the captivity1 and that ,esdras had     
written them from inspiration2 or1 that 
he collected the ,pentateuch1 and all   
other canonical books1 out of whatever  
records he could find1 and put them     
together4 #a ,in either case1 their     
authority is greatly invalidated2 and   
the more so1 as the fourth book of      
,esdras1 adopted by the ,greek church1  
and generally deemed authentic1 says    
expressly1 that ,esdras dictated the    
holy books during forty successive days 
and nights1 to five scribes1 who were   
continually writing4 ,this tale shows   
sufficiently the general belief that he 
was the restorer of the long lost books 

of the law4 ,in our second book of      
,nehemiah1 or1 properly speaking1       
,esdras1 it is said1 that ,ezra1 or     
,esdras the scribe1 who was above all   
the people1 brought the book of the law 
to the people1 and then the people      
rejoiced much in being instructed in the
 law of ,god1 that when they found there
 the commandment of the ,lord ordering  
the ,jews to perform the feast of the   
booths1 there was great gladness1 and   
all the congregation of them that were  
come again out of the captivity made    
booths1 and sat under booths3 for1 since
 the days of ,joshua the son of ,nun1   
unto that day1 had not the children of  
,israel done so44 ,if the ,jews had even
 forgotten a feast1 the memory of which 
every father would transmit to his son1 
is this not an evident proof that they  
had no books in the captivity8 ,again1  
in chap4 vii4 of the #a book of ,esdras1
 it is said1 that ,esdras had very great
 skill1 so that he omitted nothing of   
the law and commandments of the ,lord1  

but taught all ,israel the ordinances   
and judgments4       #a ,porro ,esdram  
sancti patres docent iostanratorem      
suisse      sacrorum librorum1 quod non 
ita intelligendum est1 quasi            
scriptur sacr omnes perierint in        
eversione civitatis1 et      templi     
,nabuchodonosor1 et ab ,esdra divinitas 
inspirato      reparat fuerint1 ut      
fabulatur auctor1 ,l1 ,,iv4 ,esdr ,c4   
,,xiv4      ,sed quod ,scripturas       
,mosis1 et prophetarum in varia volimina
      descriptas1 et in varia loca      
dispenreas1 et tempore      captivitatis
 non diligenter conservatas1 ,esdras    
summa      diligentia collectas         
ordinaverit1 et in unum quasi corpus    
redigerit4 ,bellarmin de ,script4       
,ecclesiast4 page #bb4  ,can any man1   
after this1 doubt that ,esdras is the   
compiler of all the books which the     
,jews had not known for many centuries8 
,and are we1 who laugh at the ,catholic 
councils1 to trust to the word of a     
,jewish scribe8 it is further stated in 

#b ,chronicles1 chap4 xxiv4 ver4 #ae1   
that ,hilkiah the priest found a book of
 the law of ,god given by ,moses1 and   
sent it by ,saphan to king ,josias1 who 
heard it read1 which shows that it must 
have been very short2 and1 by the       
context1 it would appear to have been   
the law strictly speaking2 another proof
 that these records were altogether     
scattered1 and are all without          
authority1 since it was so easy to forge
 them among a people who seemed to      
preserve no more than a traditional law4
 ,again1 although1 in the older ,jewish 
books1 such as ,kings and ,chronicles1  
we find the name of ,moses often        
mentioned1 yet no word answering to the 
five books of ,pentateuch is to be      
found4 ,the ,code of laws of ,moses     
seems to have been forgotten2 for       
,solomon ornamented the temple with     
calves1 in express contempt of that law1
 and this while he was the favourite of 
,god1 and the wisest man in the world4  
,the very confusion that pervades the   

books ascribed to ,moses1 shows them to 
have been compilations4 ,jerome1 who was
 one of the most learned of the fathers1
 confesses that he dares not affirm that
 ,moses is the author of the            
,pentateuch2 he even adds1 that he has  
no objection to allow that ,esdras wrote
 the books in question4 #a       #a     
,sive ,mosen dicere volueris auctorem   
,pentateuchi1 sive      ,esdram ejuadem 
iustauratorem operis1 non recuso4       
,hieronim4      ,op4 ,tom4 ,,iv4 p4     
#acd4 ,apud ,edit4 ,paris #agjf1        
,secondly4 ,we know that no canon of    
books ever existed among the ,jew's till
 the time of the synagogue under the    
,maccabees4 ,before their reign1 there  
had never existed among the ,jews any   
such council2 and1 if the word occurs in
 the ,pentateuch1 it is a fault of the  
transcribers and composers1 who lived   
when there was a synagogue1 and is not  
to be understood in any other           
acceptation than a collection of        
priests4 ,the ,pharisees of the second  

temple chose the books they thought best
 among a multitude of forgeries4 ,the   
,talmud relates1 that this synagogue    
were about to reject the ,book of       
,proverbs1 ,ezekiel's prophecies1 and   
,ecclesiastes1 because they imagined    
these writings contradictory to the law 
of ,god2 but a certain ,rabbin having   
undertaken to reconcile them1 they were 
preserved as canonical4 ,a prodigious   
number of forged ,books of ,daniel1     
,esdras1 and of the ,prophets1 were then
 in circulation2 and to distinguish the 
genuine from the false works became     
absolutely necessary4 ,this doubt and   
uncertainty conspires to render the     
decision of the synagogue very doubtful2
 particularly1 as we shall show in the  
sequel1 that many passages of the       
,prophecies are written evidently about 
the time of this choice of sacred books1
 and inserted in them1 probably by some 
cunning priest1 as the oracles of ,sybil
 were forged to suit ,csar4  ,thirdly4  
,the similarity of the mysteries of the 

,jews to those of the ,babylonians1 is  
too glaring not to let us see the origin
 of ,genesis in particular4 ,the        
creation in six days is a perfect copy  
of the ,gahans1 or ,gahan-bars1 of      
,zoroaster2 the particulars of each     
day's work are literally the same4 ,the 
serpent was famous among the            
,babylonians4 ,the mythological deluge  
of ,ogyges and ,xissuthrus1 are symbols 
of changes arising on earth1 as they    
imagined1 from the revolutions of the   
heavenly bodies4 ,these1 a little       
ornamented by the historical narration  
of ,deucalion's inundation related by   
,berosus1 is the pattern of ,noah's     
flood2 the ark of ,osiris and           
emblematical dove and raven were        
,egyptian hieroglyphics4 ,the man and   
the woman in ,paradise is a mere copy of
 ,zoroaster's first pair4 ,the original 
sin is ,pandora's box4 ,the ,talmud of  
,jerusalem says expressly that the ,jews
 borrowed the names of the angels1 and  
even of their months1 from the          

,babylonians4 ,the ,elohim1 or ,gods1   
7not ,god71 are said in ,genesis to have
 created the world4 ,it was not         
,jehovah1 but the genii or gods that are
 in the ,hebrew called makers of the    
world4 ,and these are the very genii1   
who according to ,sanchoniatho1 were by 
,mercury excited against ,saturn4       
,fourthly4 ,we ask1 in what language was
 the ,pentateuch written1 if it really  
was the work of ,moses8 ,it is known    
that ,hebrew is a dialect of the        
,phenician1 and that the ,jews spoke    
,egyptian for a very long time before   
they adopted the language of the people 
among whom they dwelt4 ,in ,psalm lxxxi4
 we learn that the ,jews were surprised 
to hear the language of the people      
beyond the ,bed ,sea4 ,if1 therefore1   
,moses1 or any person of that age1 is   
the author of the ,pentateuch1 it is    
evident that the ,hebrew books are mere 
translations4 ,what degree of credit    
does a nation deserve1 who have been    
able to take for originals books that   

were in the face of them translations8  
,is it right to persecute men1 as       
priests have done while they had power1 
for refusing to give credit to this     
tissue of contradictory and absurd      
fables8  ,fifthly4 ,in the books of the 
,old ,testament1 we find abundant proofs
 that they have been written in an age  
greatly posterior to that of ,moses4 ,in
 ,genesis1 chap4 xii4 ver4 #f1 we find  
these words1 ,and the ,canaanite was    
then in land4 ,this implies another     
period when the ,canaanite was not in   
the land1 which1 we learn from the      
,bible1 did not happen till after       
,david1 and could not therefore be      
written by ,moses4 ,the beginning of    
,deuteronomy is certainly not written by
 him2 for he never passed the ,jordan2  
he died upon ,mount ,nebo1 to the       
eastward of it4 ,the ,english           
translation has in chap4 i4 v4 #e1 of   
this book1 said1 on this side of the    
,jordan1 for on that side1 which is in  
the original4 ,the translator has taken 

similar liberties very often4 ,in chap4 
xxxiii4 we find this expression1 ,there 
never was in ,judea so great a prophet  
as ,moses1 and such could be pointed out
 in many places4 ,here needs no comment 
to show that such passages could only be
 written in a posterior age1 and when   
there had been several prophets after   
,moses4 ,thomas ,paine mentions many    
other passages1 which ,i shall consider 
when ,i come to your next letter4  ,the 
above considerations would be sufficient
 to invalidate the genuineness and      
authenticity of any historical book3 but
 here we find that the credulity of     
bigots requires less proof for the      
authority of a work1 which1 according to
 them1 is the fountain of faith1 than   
for ,ossian's poems1 or any other book  
of no consequence4 ,if a common         
historical work contains fables1        
impossible events1 and anachronisms2 if 
its age is not ascertained2 if we are   
certain that it was unknown for many    
centuries2 if we are even ignorant      

whether it is an original or a          
translation1 who would give the         
slightest credit to such a book8 ,yet   
are enlightened nations led by the      
testimony of the ,jews1 a people        
credulous beyond measure1 extremely     
ignorant1 almost continually in slavery1
 and dispersed4 ,this is the nation that
 pretends to give an account of the     
creation1 and1 with a vanity peculiar to
 an insignificant people1 to assume the 
supremacy among nations1 and arrogate to
 themselves the exclusive protection of 
,jehovah1 and dare make their ,adam the 
common stock of mankind4 ,you allow1 my 
,lord1 that several passages have been  
interpolated in the ,pentateuch4 ,no    
person in the least acquainted with the 
history can deny that it has suffered   
great alterations2 #a and ,i have       
already noticed the opinion of the best 
informed fathers of the church upon the 
non-existence of the ,pentateuch1       
several centuries prior to ,esdras4 ,i  
now beg to be informed1 how we are to   

decide1 if ,hilkiah1 in the reign of    
,josias1 collected from tradition1 or   
some old book he found in a chest1 the  
precepts of the law8 and whether the    
other famous scribe1 ,esdras1 did not   
compile from hearsay1 and some imperfect
 and scattered manuscripts of no        
authority1 together with a great many   
,babylonish traditions1 those venerable 
five books of ,moses8 ,we are informed1 
in one of the books that bears his name1
 that ,esdras was the wisest of his     
cotemporaries1 and therefore a very fit 
and probable person to write books out  
of old legends4       #a ,multa in      
,hebraicis et ,grcis codicibus vitia    
esse      ostendimus4 ,malta mendacia in
 rebus minutis1 eorum pars      uliqua  
non exigua nostra editione vulgata      
extat4---,marian      pr4 edit4 vulg4   
cap4 #ba4  ,if the books of the ,old    
,testament were composed at so late a   
period1 no wonder then that we find all 
the mysterious part of them so much like
 the religion of the ancients1 and      

particularly of the ,babylonians1 and   
the historical part made up of          
heterogeneous matters1 which in our     
days1 unassisted by any profane writer  
of that age1 we can make nothing of4 ,i 
shall mention a few of the most striking
 points of resemblance between the      
,jewish and other mysteries4 ,abraham1  
the most famous of their patriarchs1 has
 ever been celebrated in ,india4 ,this  
they seem to have brought from their    
native country1 ,arabia4 ,we have       
already noticed1 that their account of  
the creation is exactly copied from     
,zoroaster1 who says1 that the world was
 made in six periods of time1 called by 
him the thousands of ,god and of light1 
meaning the six summer months2 in the   
first1 ,god made the heavens2 in the    
second1 the waters2 in the third1 the   
earth2 in the fourth1 trees2 in the     
fifth1 animals2 and in the sixth1 man4  
,the ,etrurians and the ,hindoos have   
very similar traditions of the highest  
antiquity1 which1 though they were      

emblems at first perfectly understood1  
astronomers afterwards converted them   
into periods1 comprehending as many     
years as was required for different     
revolutions of the planetary system4    
,thus1 while the ,hindoos and ,persians 
called the days or ages of the world1   
each of many thousands of years2 the    
,jews1 ignorant of astronomy1 and fond  
of the marvellous1 comprised all within 
six common days4 ,their firmament or    
heaven of crystal1 and its windows1 are 
absurdities not peculiar to them2 the   
feast of the ,pascha1 which signifies   
passage1 is of ,egyptian origin1 and was
 in reverence for the passage of the sun
 at the vernal equinox3 the sacrifices  
of calves or oxen1 the ceremony of the  
scape-goat1 are ,egyptian and ,indian2  
the latter1 in particular1 have a       
ceremony altogether the same with that  
of the scapegoat4 ,it is too long to    
insert here1 but ,i refer my readers to 
,mr4 ,halhed's introduction to the code 
of ,gentoo laws for information on this 

head4 ,the distinction between pure and 
impure animals was first made by the    
,egyptians2 the ladder seen in ,jacob's 
vision1 is exactly a copy of that with  
seven steps in the cave of ,milthra1    
representing the seven spheres of the   
planets1 by means of which souls        
ascended and descended4 ,it is also the 
mythology of the ,hindoos1 whose        
antiquity no man at the present day can 
venture to deny4 ,the seven             
candlesticks1 and the twelve stones are 
,egyptian1 and were emblems of the seven
 planets1 and twelve signs of the       
,zodiac4 ,the serpent is the most famous
 ,egyptian hieroglyphic2 it signifies   
eternity1 or the sum of all things4 ,the
 fasts before feasts are also derived   
from this nation4 ,the ,jewish          
high-priest1 like the ,egyptian1 wore an
 image of sapphire1 being the emblematic
 picture of truth1 upon1 his breast3 in 
short1 the ,egyptians1 their masters1   
gave them the first ideas of mysteries1 
which1 in the course of time1 they      

mingled with the ,chaldaic2 and ,manetho
 informs us1 in the extract given by    
,josephus in his first book against     
,appian1 that1 in authors of great      
authority1 he found the ,jews to have   
been distinguished in ,egypt by the name
 of captive pastors1 which ,josephus    
artfully enough has attempted to convert
 into captive kings4 ,these are the men 
whom sacred historians pretend to have  
taught the ,egyptians all their arts4   
,these wretches1 despised of all        
nations1 were themselves the emphatical 
admirers of the wisdom of the ,east4    
,their legislator was an ,egyptian      
priest1 and learned all that he knew    
from them2 and you would persuade us    
that a set of ,arabian hordes had       
founded the ,egyptian empire1 simply    
because they1 like the ,irish1 are      
pleased to say that they were           
antedeluvians4 ,i pardon the ,jews for  
their credulity2 but ,europeans in the  
#ahth century ought not to think as the 
inhabitants of ,palestine4 ,if we give  

credit to all the reports of the origin 
of nations1 we may give up all          
pretensions to common sense4  ,the      
immortality of the soul is shown1 by the
 learned but superstitious ,warburton1  
never to have been mentioned in the     
,pentateuch2 nor the notion of hell1 or 
of future rewards and punishments4      
,there is nothing more certain1 however1
 than that the ,pharisees1 long before  
,christ1 strenuously maintained the     
immortality of the soul1 and in some    
measure adopted the doctrine of         
transmigration of souls1 which they had 
got from the ,greeks and other nations4 
,the ,sadducees1 founding themselves    
upon the ,bible1 fervently denied a     
future life4 ,the ,essenians1 according 
to ,philostratus1 were ,pythagoreans1   
both in their morals1 belief1 and mode  
of life1 except that a few of the       
,jewish articles of faith1 such as the  
necessity of circumcision1 were mingled 
with their creed4 ,josephus himself     
acknowledges the similarity between the 

,essenians and the ,plisti among the    
,thracians1 to whom ,zamolxis1 the      
disciple of ,pythagoras1 taught his     
doctrines3 ,the ,therapeutes1 the       
pattern and ori--gin of ,christian      
morals1 were reckoned amongst the ,jews 
to be the most holy among the           
,essenians4 ,they sacrificed their      
passions to ,god2 they never swore1 but 
made simple affirmations2 they lived1 as
 it were1 in convents2 they despised    
bodily pain3 when they entered their    
state of perfection1 they abandoned     
their property1 wives1 children1 and all
 earthly concerns2 they lived upon bread
 and water and salt2 and spent the six  
days of the week in interpreting the    
allegorical sense of the ,bible4 ,they  
revered the ,sabbath with a most        
scrupulous exactness2 then they         
assembled in places set apart for       
religion1 the men ranged on one side1   
and the women on the other1 separated by
 a division four feet high1 to prevent  
temptation4 ,then they sung praises to  

,god1 and preached2 they obeyed all the 
laws of their country1 but never would  
execute any order to hurt another       
person4 ,they1 like the ,pythagoreans1  
thought themselves possessed of the gift
 of prophecy2 they1 like the            
,pythagoreans1 believed in the great    
year1 whence arose the famous millennium
 of the ,christians4 ,the three sects of
 ,jews--,pharisees1 ,sadducees1 and     
,essenians1 lived all in perfect        
harmony2 the incredulous ,sadducees not 
being considered as heretics1 but often 
attaining the dignity of high-priests4  
,this suffices to show1 that the ,jews  
borrowed from other nations those very  
mysteries which the ignorance of writers
 has misled mankind to consider as the  
special revelations of ,jesus ,christ4  
,i have insisted so much upon this      
circumstance1 because there is not a    
single article of ,christian morals1 nor
 one religious tenet1 contained in the  
,new ,testament1 that was not known     
before ,jesus ,christ was born4 ,and the

 ,christian religion1 like that of the  
,jews1 is a corruption of the           
mythologies of the nations they brand   
with the name of infidels4  ,i return to
 your book4 ,it is now needless to      
answer your logical inference1 that if  
,esdras is the compiler of the books of 
the ,pentateuch1 they may still be true4
 ,i have already said1 that we are not  
to sacrifice our reason to the          
compilations or works of a ,jewish      
scribe1 who borrowed evidently so much1 
and who pretended to divine inspiration 
and conversations with the angels4 ,when
 ,i began to read your book1 ,i was     
impressed with the idea of your candour2
 sorry am ,i to see the malevolence with
 which you treat ,mr4 ,paine1 and how   
much you misrepresent his just          
aspersions on the conduct of ,moses4    
,your language almost persuades me that 
you do not differ from the gentlemen of 
your profession4 ,could ,moses affirm1  
as you pretend he might1 that he never  
persecuted any man8 ,what6 that monster1

 who1 although married with a           
,midianite1 ordered thousands of his    
credulous followers to be murdered1     
because one of them had slept with a    
,midianite1 whom ,josephus states was   
his wife6 ,what6 when his brother and   
coadjutor makes a golden calf to the    
people1 this impostor1 instead of       
punishing him1 orders #c1jjj men to be  
murdered1 and appoints ,aaron his       
successor6 ,because ,korah1 ,da-than1   
and ,abiram1 could not suffer to see him
 usurping all the power1 he murders     
them1 although ,korab was the descendant
 of ,levi4 ,this is ,moses1 who says1   
like ,bishop ,watson1 that he was a very
 meek man6 ,were these continual murders
 necessary to instruct ignorant         
idolaters who followed the example of   
their priests8 ,have not the founders of
 our faith been the most cruel          
murderers8 ,but all this we are told was
 the immediate orders of the ,lord      
,jehovah1 a merciful ,god4 ,how feeble  
appears the power of this great ,god6   

,he is continually repenting1 and always
 obliged to renew his covenants with a  
set of wretches1 who1 although they     
enjoyed his special protection1 always  
forsook him1 and only fulfilled his     
commands strictly when they were ordered
 to massacre4 ,they might have been the 
favourite people of ,god1 but ,i am sure
 they were the disgrace of men4 ,you    
talk of idolatrous nations sunk in vice4
 ,i know of none so barbarous as the    
,jews1 whose legislator was obliged to  
fly from ,egypt for murder1 a perfect   
assassin4 ,the laws concerning paternal 
power1 which you support1 are horrid4   
,their having been adopted by many      
nations1 is a proof of the general      
prevalence of superstition1 ignorance1  
and despotism4 ,i have nothing to answer
 to your discourses on tythes4 ,the     
,bible is preached up1 because it       
teaches passive obedience1 donations to 
the church1 and such other acts of      
public utility4     ,,letter ,,iii4     
,after what ,i have observed above1 it  

will be useless to say much as to your  
third letter1 in which you examine      
minutely the passages ,thomas ,paine has
 pointed out to prove the ,pentateuch   
not genuine4 ,first1 ,as to the         
objection taken from the name of ,dan1  
,i never thought it specious4 ,this is  
not the case with the very next one1    
which is of very great weight4 ,the     
writer1 after enumerating a number of   
,arabian names1 concludes in these      
words1 ,these are the kings that reigned
 in ,edom1 before there reigned any king
 over the children of ,israel4 ,contrary
 to my expectations1 you acknowledge    
this to have been written after the     
,jews had kings4 ,many of your brethren 
have attempted to deny it by quibbles6  
but you say that this does not          
invalidate the authority of the book3   
wonderful6 if your alma-mater taught    
you1 that an evident lie or             
contradiction in any book1 particularly 
of remote antiquity1 and relating       
histories unsupported by impartial      

authors1 does not create a suspicion1   
which approaches to certainty1 that the 
book is not authentic2 if you think so1 
,i must give up arguing with you4 ,it   
may be an interpolation1 you observe4   
,how did you learn this8 ,you will at   
least leave1 me the right to suppose1   
and you cannot deny that the presumption
 is against you1 an absurdity in a book 
is a reason for distrusting the rest4 ,i
 have probability on my side2 for the   
,jew who forged this passage1 either    
from piety or ignorance1 might have     
forged the whole book1 or so            
interpolated it1 as to destroy its      
credibility4 ,at any rate1 the detection
 of falsehood in a history1 is not a    
motive to suppose it true4 ,it requires 
an excess of piety to break through all 
the rules of logic and common sense4    
,how does it happen1 that the ,lord     
,jahovah does not provide better against
 such mistakes creeping into the book of
 the law of his favourite people8 ,it   
could seem as if he had done it on      

purpose to create incredulity1 and enjoy
 the pleasure of punishing unbelievers1 
as of old1 he hardened ,pharaoh's heart1
 that he might have a pretext to inflict
 calamities on him and his people4  ,my 
,lord1 what credit would we give to a   
history of ,william the ,conqueror that 
had the following sentence1 after naming
 different persons1 ,and these were the 
names of the ,kings of ,england before  
,george the ,third came to the throne2  
for what purpose could any person insert
 such a passage8 ,he must have been     
absolutely mad4 ,it could only get into 
the work from its being compiled during 
the reign of ,george the ,third1 and    
arising from a forgetfulness of the     
writer1 or ignorance of the transcriber3
 in no case could it be inserted in a   
book1 which you say was kept in the     
public records1 and over whose purity   
the whole ,jewish learned men would     
watch2 you must either give up your     
argument from the public records of this
 people1 and no longer deem them great  

authority2 or1 if you persist in it1 ,i 
leave you to reconcile the most palpable
 interpolations and forgeries with the  
scrupulous attention with which you     
suppose the ,jews preserved the word of 
,god4 ,but what is most curious in this 
passage is1 that we find it verbatim in 
#b ,chronicles1 chap4 i4 ver4 #dc1 and  
you seem to glory in discovering this   
similarity of the passages4 ,why might  
not1 you say at the end of your fourth  
letter1 the author of the book of       
,chronicles have taken them1 7meaning   
the names of the kings of ,edom1 c471 as
 he has taken many other genealogies1   
supposing them to have been written in  
the book of ,genesis by ,samuel8        
,another acknowledgment of more         
interpolations in ,genesis4  ,but1 ,sir1
 who gave you the right1 you who exclaim
 so much against the unsupported        
assertions of ,thomas ,paine1 to suppose
 that the author of ,chronicles copied  
an interpolation from ,genesis1 knowing1
 as he must have done1 that it was      

interpolated by ,samuel8  ,would he not 
rather1 to make the book consistent1    
expunge it8 ,could he be so ignorant as 
not to see the contradiction8 ,what is  
more strange1 how came ,samuel to       
introduce such a passage8 ,the tendency 
of it could only be to weaken the       
authority of ,genesis2 but1 allowing all
 your groundless suppositions to be     
true1 do you not see that they only     
prove the ignorance of ,samuel and of   
the ,jewish history writers1 and at once
 destroy the superstructure you have in 
your following letters raised upon the  
supposed accurate records of the ,jews8 
,the supposition of ,samuel being the   
author of the interpolation1 is like an 
historian1 who1 to the history of       
,charles the ,first1 should add some    
accounts1 concluding with observing1    
that all this took place before ,george 
the ,second1 or should even venture     
further1 and instruct us in some        
prominent features of the ,french       
revolution3 yet this is the case with   

the passage in question2 for it is      
unquestionable that the ,jews had never 
a king till the time of ,saul2 that1    
under ,moses and the ,judges1 they held 
kings in detestation4 ,the fact is very 
plain4 ,in ,chronicles1 the passage has 
an obvious and clear sense2 for there an
 account of the kings of ,israel is     
given1 and the sentence now under       
consideration precedes it4 ,indeed1 the 
whole chapter xxxvi4 of ,genesis is     
almost literally the same with chapter  
first of ,chronicles2 and every         
unbiassed man will conclude1 that the   
former is copied from the latter4 ,that 
little concluding expression1 before    
there reigned any king over ,israel1    
certainly marks its date2 and there is  
nothing more probable1 than that when   
,esdras and the scribes compiled these  
books1 they should insert in ,genesis   
the posterity of ,esau1 as far as the   
history of ,genesis went1 and that this 
unlucky passage should by mistake be    
copied too4 ,i acknowledge1 that an     

interpolation1 when we can prove the    
period of its insertion1 does not       
destroy the validity of a book1 if the  
rest of the facts are consistent1 and   
supported by collateral proofs2 but the 
,bible is an unconnected rhapsody1      
written by we know not whom1 without    
order1 arrangement1 or a shadow of      
method4 ,besides1 it is the word of     
,god2 and what1 in a profane writer1    
would be a slight error1 is here a most 
material fault2 if our future happiness 
depends1 as you suppose1 on our         
believing this book1 which certainly can
 never take place while such reasons for
 scepticism remain4 ,in proportion to   
the importance of an event1 so we must  
be careful in examining the grounds upon
 which it stands1 or else we must be    
like those whimsical men1 who will      
require the best evidence for the truth 
of a trifling report1 but find no       
repugnance in crediting the most        
marvellous events upon trust4  ,mr4     
,paine properly concludes1 that ,genesis

 is a book of stories1 fables1          
traditions1 or invented absurdities1 or 
downright lies2 and this ,i not only    
affirm with him1 but will prove to my   
readers1 that it is in no respect       
deserving of more credit than the       
fabulous and early history of all       
nations4 ,next follows your rhapsody    
upon the beauty of the ,bible and the   
truth of it4 ,pardon me if ,i think it  
like a madman's reveries4 ,even the men 
of your profession have long ago given  
up such a ridiculous conceit4 ,whoever  
has read eastern literature1 or the late
 translation from the ,shanscrit1 will  
find that the same style with that of   
the ,bible pervades all eastern         
compositions4 ,in all of them we find   
the frequent use of allegory1 and a     
quaint and formal manner of expression4 
,divest the ,bible of its ,oriental     
garb1 and put it into common language1  
you will find1 except the episode of    
,joseph1 and two or three other         
passages1 it is absolutely illegible4 ,i

 have already shown the ,pentateuch to  
have been a very modern work1 and the   
,jews to have borrowed every thing from 
other nations4 ,no wonder then that the 
,abram should resemble the ,brama of the
 ,hindoos1 or that a few names in the   
supposed genealogies of the ,jews should
 be like those of the ,assyrians1       
,medes1 c4 ,genesis gives a description 
of creation truly beautiful6 ,we did not
 spring from grasshoppers1 nor the world
 from an egg2 but the wise ,moses       
informs us1 that we were made of clay   
and a little breath4 ,this may be       
sublime to you2 but the philosopher is  
never elated by fables so absurd4 ,it is
 not true that ,genesis is the oldest1  
nor a very old book4 ,sanchoniato1 the  
,hindoo books1 those of the ,egyptians  
and ,chinese1 are of much higher        
antiquity than ,moses4 ,in vain has ,mr4
 ,maurice struggled to dazzle our       
understandings with his incoherent      
suppositions1 to prove that the ,hindoos
 borrowed their religion from the ,jews1

 from a set of ,arabian hordes1 from the
 slaves of the ,egyptians1 from a petty 
nation1 who1 as ,julian says1 never     
produced a single work1 and whose       
credulity has ever been proverbial4 ,the
 astronomical records of the ,chinese   
prove1 that there were men and          
astronomers in that country at the time 
when the wretched ,jews would make us   
believe the world was inundated from the
 windows of heaven1 and no creatures    
existing but ,noah1 his family1 and the 
beasts in the ark4 ,further1 ,souciet   
mentions an eclipse of the sun recorded 
in the ,chinese history1 which happened 
#baee years before ,christ1 which is but
 #bcf years after the ,deluge2 a time   
when1 the ,bible informs us1 the earth  
was only inhabited by the sons of ,noah1
 while ,egypt was then so peopled1 that 
#ij1jjj cities could not contain the    
inhabitants1 and ,china was not less so4
 ,the ,hindoo astronomical observations1
 as far as they have been examined by   
the most learned astronomers of the age1

 such as ,baillie1 ,le ,gentil1 and     
others1 carry their antiquity between   
four and five thousands beyond our ra2  
for a proof of which1 ,i refer you to   
,mr4 ,playfair's excellent paper1 in the
 second volume of the ,edinburgh        
,philosophical ,transactions4 ,the      
,hindoo religious books contain1        
besides1 a great many of the ideas      
afterwards adopted by the ,jews4 ,the   
long lives of antedeluvians1 in         
particular1 are the exact copy of the   
,iogues of the ,indians4 ,the ,dwapaar  
,iogue1 the latter part of which answers
 to the period of ,noah1 was when men's 
lives were limited to a thousand years2 
and ,methuselah we know did not live so 
long4 ,they have1 too1 their            
mythological deluge1 or the incarnation 
of ,vishnu into a fish4 ,for an account 
of which ,i refer my readers to ,volney1
 and to ,mr4 ,maurice himself4 ,the     
former gentleman is a good judge of     
ancient literature2 he pretends that he 
can prove1 that most of the chapters of 

,genesis1 supposed to contain names of  
persons1 are mythological3 the posterity
 of ,noah is1 according to ,volney1 no  
more than a geography of the world as   
known to the ,jews4 ,i have not read    
,mr4 ,volney's memoir which ,i          
understand he has published on this     
subject2 but1 when ,i consider the late 
period when ,genesis and the other books
 were composed1 and how much the ,jews  
borrowed from the ,egyptians and        
,babylonians1 how much the deluge of    
,noah and his ark resemble the emblems  
of ,osiris2 in short1 when ,i reflect on
 the unintelligibility and apparent     
absurdity of ,genesis1 on the           
impossibility of the ,deluge1 and of the
 not less absurdity of the population of
 the world so soon after that calamity1 
,i confess ,i am much inclined to       
despise the whole performance4 ,there   
have been various suppositions upon the 
meaning of the names mentioned in       
,genesis4 ,adam has been said to        
signify1 in many parts of ,asia1 the    

first day of the week2 and ,enoch1 the  
seventh successor of ,adam1 to be the   
same with ,saturn1 or the seventh day4  
,thus ,assur1 ,elam1 ,lud1 ,madai1      
,javan1 and ,tiras1 which are said to be
 the founders of the ,assyrians1 the    
,elamites1 the ,lydians1 the ,medes1 the
 ,ionians1 and the ,thracians1 may very 
probably be nothing else than the       
enunciation of the names of these       
countries2 for1 between ,assur and      
,assyria1 or ,lud and ,lydia1 there is  
not a very great difference4 ,we know   
that ,egypt is by the ,arabs called     
,masr1 which has the same consonants    
with the ,hebrew ,misraim1 whose plural 
termination implies properly the        
inhabitants of ,egypt4 ,in the ,bible1  
,misraim is called the founder of that  
kingdom4 ,we also know1 that ,syria is  
called ,barr-el-sham1 or the country to 
the left4 ,the inhabitants of ,thebaid  
are called the sons of ,cush4 ,again1 we
 find several names of towns very much  
resembling those of the supposed        

founders of these monarchies2 ,sur1 or  
,tyre1 is not unlike ,assur4 ,these are 
conjectures2 ,i pretend to found nothing
 upon them2 but1 at least1 they are     
probable4 ,your ,genesis1 on the        
contrary1 as it is commonly explained1  
contains palpable lies4 ,it supposes a  
deluge1 which neither did nor could take
 place2 it destroys the human race1 when
 we know that nations were then in      
existence4 ,lastly1 it talks of the     
founders of nations1 which existed long 
before that period4 ,but1 even had      
,genesis been written at the time of    
,moses1 it might be worth while to      
inquire into the import of his          
genealogies2 but1 being a very modern   
compilation1 collected by an ignorant   
people1 partly from tradition1 partly   
from scattered and mutilated records1 it
 does not deserve the serious attention 
of the philosopher4  ,you next attempt  
to justify the conduct of ,god towards  
the ,canaanites1 whose great crime was  
to defend their own country1 and to     

adore their own gods instead of the ,god
 of the ,jews4 ,when a man makes an     
apology for such conduct1 we only can   
answer by an appeal to the feelings of  
men1 from which alone we derive notions 
of humanity4 ,it was natural for the    
adorers of a ,phenician ,jehovah to be  
the enemies of the ,babylonish ,baal3   
both these gods sprang from the wild    
fancies of men4 ,the jealous ,god of the
 ,jews1 the all-wise1 omnipotent1 and   
benevolent1 could not convert the       
worshippers of another god1 without     
exterminating whole nations1 even to the
 little children2 but this barbarous    
mandate came from the priests1 who have 
in all countries1 and all systems of    
,religion1 adopted this method of       
conversion4 ,you state1 that ,moses gave
 an order that the boys and women should
 be put to death2 but1 that the young   
maidens should be kept alive for        
themselves2 and1 that you see nothing in
 the proceeding1 but good policy        
combined with mercy4 ,the young men     

might have become dangerous avengers of 
what they would esteem their country's  
wrongs2 the mothers might have again    
allured the ,israelites to the love of  
licentious pleasures1 and the practice  
of idolatry1 and brought another plague 
upon the congregation2 but the young    
maidens1 not being polluted by the      
flagitious habits of their mothers1 not 
likely to create disturbance by         
rebellion1 were kept alive3 and you add1
 that the women children were not       
reserved for the purposes of debauchery1
 but of slavery2 a custom 7you          
acknowledge7 abhorrent from our manners1
 but every where practised in former    
times1 and still preserved in countries 
where the benignity of the ,christian   
religion has not softened the ferocity  
of human nature4 ,is extermination an   
example of the mercy of priests and     
their gods1 whose justice is subservient
 to mercy1 whose punishments originate  
in his abhorrence to sin1--and whose    
commands to massacre1 to butcher1 and to

 exterminate1 are only benevolent       
warnings8--,you dare ,mr4 ,paine to     
prove1 that the young women were kept   
for debauchery2 and you triumphantly    
add1 that if he does1 you will allow    
,moses to be the horrid monster he      
describes him1 and the ,bible a book of 
lies1 wickedness1 and blasphemy4 ,do you
 think1 that consigning to slavery      
thirty-two thousand maids1 is consistent
 with the benignity of ,god8 ,i do not  
hesitate to consider this worse than    
merely making them the partners of      
licentious pleasures4 ,but1 in what     
consisted the wonted wisdom of a ,god1  
whom you describe as ever solicitous to 
lessen the influence of sin8 ,let me ask
 you1 if the young women were not as    
liable to incite the passions of the    
,jews as their mothers1 and whether     
their slavery would not increase the    
opportunities for debauchery8 ,could it 
be consistent with humanity1 much less  
with the mercy of an all powerful ,god1 
to put to death all the boys of a       

nation1 merely because they might in    
time revenge the insolent invaders of   
their country8 ,were all the male       
children already polluted from their    
birth8 ,it would have been easy for them
 to convert them to another religion1   
but to your ,god it was impossible4 ,the
 bloody invaders of ,america pursued not
 another plan1 even after the benignity 
of the ,christian religion softened the 
ferocity of human nature4 ,have these   
,christian invaders any where respected 
the chastity of women when they made    
them slaves8 ,and have the ,jews1 ,god's
 chosen nation1 at any period1 either   
while under his protection1 or since he 
abandoned them1 shown themselves more   
virtuously inclined than other people2  
were they ever prevented by the striking
 manifestations of his mercy1 his power1
 and his justice1 from going away to    
adore other gods1 and falling into all  
sorts of wickedness8 ,in short1 if the  
,bishop rests his defence of ,moses and 
the ,bible upon this passage1 ,i am     

willing to appeal to the judgement of   
all mankind4 ,if any person can believe 
it consistent with the benevolence of   
omnipotence1 to sacrifice whole nations 
to be massacred and plundered by a few  
hordes of bloody ,jews2 if he can think 
this to be part of a grand scheme for   
the good of mankind1 he must give up all
 pretensions to reason1 common sense1   
and humanity4 ,but it is time the world 
should see1 that this holy book the     
,bible1 which1 in weight of authority1  
and extent of utility1 exceeds all the  
libraries of the philosophers1 contains 
pretences for all bad actions1 and      
stifles the laws of humanity and        
morality4 ,upon this book have          
inquisitors1 crusaders1 and religious   
men1 founded pretences for the most     
diabolical persecutions1 avowedly       
undertaken for the express purpose of   
unrooting infidelity1 and for the glory 
of the ,lord4 ,every man who reads the  
word of ,god is warranted to reason     
thus3 ,god has ordered murder and       

robbery2 he has instigated his favourite
 people to exterminate whole nations2   
therefore ,i can do no better than to   
imitate the ,almighty2 and every        
crusader may pretend to have the same   
authority from ,god as ,moses2 and      
miracles are never wanting to prove it4 
,because ,abraham was a pimp1 and his   
wife a prostitute1 so may any person be1
 without losing the patronage of the    
,god of ,abraham4 ,every man1 in short1 
may imitate the meek ,moses1 the humane 
,david1 without fearing to incur the    
displeasure of the ,almighty4 ,thus     
,ravaillac thought he was doing as holy 
a deed1 when he attempted the life of   
,henry2 as ,dominic1 or ,torquemada1    
when butchering the wretched heretics1  
who had the misfortune to fall a prey to
 their bloody zeal4 ,the whole ,old     
,testament is so filled with barbarous  
stories1 that if they did not excite    
laughter by their improbability1 they   
would freeze the blood in1 the veins of 
any man endowed with humanity4 ,what an 

irksome task have those undertaken1 who 
have attempted to reconcile the horrible
 crimes of the ,jews with the mercy and 
wisdom of the ,creator8 ,has ferocity   
forsaken ,christians as you insinuate8  
,have the modern religious fanatics     
yielded in cruelty to the ,jews8 ,those 
two religions have successively         
inundated the earth with the blood of   
innocent victims4 ,have not the         
followers of ,christ constantly preached
 passive obedience to the church1 have  
they not frequently relieved the people 
of their oaths1 and have they not       
fomented most of the civil wars that    
laid waste all ,europe8 ,it is well that
 priests have not been able to persuade 
mankind of late1 that the minister was  
the oracle of ,god4 ,the pride and      
foolishness of science has put this out 
of their power2 they cannot lead nations
 as they did the ,jews2 we are not so   
easily persuaded of the immediate       
manifestations of ,god's commands to the
 priest4 ,we know science too well to   

believe that the pillar of fire that    
went before the ,israelites was ,god    
himself4 ,we might have shown the       
people1 that a pan with red-hot         
substances would have the appearance of 
a fire by night1 and a cloud of smoke by
 day1 a custom practised1 from time     
immemorial1 by the caravans4 ,although1 
my ,lord1 the wisdom of ,god may be     
foolishness to man1 ,i acknowledge ,i am
 neither fond of crediting absurdities1 
nor have ,i so much faith as to take the
 work of priests for supernatural       
mandates of ,providence2 when they speak
 in their usual senseless and           
unintelligible language1 ,i conclude    
that it is either to dazzle the ignorant
 multitude1 or ,i look upon their dreams
 as the consequence of dire             
superstition1 the first effect of which 
is to make us unacquainted with         
ourselves1 under the imposing aspect of 
familiarising us with imaginary beings4 
,at the conclusion of my remarks upon   
the ,old ,testament1 ,i shall give a few

 extracts from those books1 wherein my  
readers may see the character of the    
,jews and their ,god in glaring colours1
 and judge whether any honest man would 
not tremble at the thoughts of having   
done as much injustice1 and committed   
such atrocities as this ,jehovah4       
,,letter ,,iv4  ,you enter again upon   
your favourite topic1 genuineness and   
authenticity4 ,i shall not repeat what  
,i have already said4 ,i confess my     
great surprise at your laying such      
stress upon the most trifling and false 
of your arguments4 ,you now strive to   
prove1 that a book may contain a true   
history1 although it should be          
anonymous4 ,pray1 my ,lord1 do you      
think1 that to prove a book spurious1   
when it is believed to be genuine1 is a 
demonstration of the truth of the       
contents8 ,you thus leave us uncertain  
whether ,joshua be a genuine book4 ,you 
have sadly confused yourself in the maze
 you have created4 ,to put it beyond a  
doubt that the sun stood still1 you     

appeal to the book of ,jasher1 which    
,joshua mentions in the following words1
 ,is not this written in the book of    
,jasher8 ,and in like manner1 you refer 
to other books frequently quoted as     
authorities in the ,bible4 ,does your   
zeal blind you so far as not to let you 
perceive1 that this very argument may   
with redoubled strength be retorted     
against you8 for if an author1 who is   
said to write his own history1 appeals  
to another book for a proof of his      
actions1 that book must be of much      
greater authority than his own3 we      
cannot avoid believing the writer of the
 work alluded to had better information4
 ,in short1 the book appealed to        
contains the only authentic testimony4  
,now1 permit me to ask you1 who could be
 better authority than ,joshua himself1 
writing at a time when we must suppose  
many of his soldiers who had witnessed  
the miracle were alive8 ,what is this   
anterior book which ,joshua respects so 
much8 ,was it written by himself1 then  

it would be idle to quote it2 and1 at   
any rate1 whoever had written it1 it is 
evident that the author of the book of  
,joshua has no proofs of his own1 but   
rests solely upon the book of the ,holy1
 or of ,jasher4 ,this circumstance      
proves clearly1 that the writer of the  
,book of ,joshua composed his book out  
of some more ancient memoirs1 which     
being lost1 we can say no more of their 
authority than for that of any old      
tales4 ,you talk of the public records  
of the ,jews as confidently as a ,member
 of ,parliament speaks of the papers in 
the ,tower4 ,do you know at what period 
the ,jews began to keep written records1
 and do you also know1 whether those    
that were kept existed when the books of
 the ,old ,testament were compiled8 ,had
 you been instructed in these           
particulars1 and had you been not       
altogether divested of candour1 you     
might have informed your readers1 that1 
previous to the time of kings1 we have  
not a shadow of proof of the existence  

of any historical records among the     
,jews4 ,we1 no doubt1 read1 that there  
was a book of the law of ,moses1 in     
which ,joshua wrote something too       
respecting the renewal of a covenant4   
,this seems to be the only written      
record among the ,jews1 and it contained
 nothing but religious precepts1 or the 
law1 strictly speaking4 ,in ,joshua1    
chap4 viii4 ver4 #ca1 we read1 ,as      
,moses the servant of the ,lord         
commanded the children of ,israel1 as it
 is written in the book of the law of   
,moses and ver4 #cb1 ,he wrote there    
upon the stones a copy of the law of    
,moses1 which he wrote in the presence  
of the children of ,israel and ver4 #ce1
 ,he read all the words of the law1 the 
blessings1 and curses1 according to all 
that is written in the book of the law  
of the ,lord1 and there was not a word  
of all that ,moses commanded which      
,joshua read not before the congregation
 of ,israel4 ,we know1 likewise1 that   
this law was written in the             

circumference of an altar composed of   
twelve stones4 ,this is the only book   
either ,moses or ,joshua were ever said 
to have written2 the writers of the     
,pentateuch1 and of the other books1    
certainly never meant to inscribe them  
to ,moses1 ,joshua1 c42 they bore the   
names of books of ,moses1 of ,joshua1   
,judges1 c4 because they treated of     
these personages4 ,what then do you     
infer from the quotation of books by the
 ,bible authors1 except that they all   
wrote in very modern times1 when they   
wanted the corroboration of more ancient
 books1 whose date and authority we are 
equally strangers to8 ,this book of the 
law1 which you so triumphantly mention  
as a book written and existing a few    
years after ,moses1 turns out to be     
nothing more than what is contained in  
,exodus1 chap4 xx4 to chap4 xxiv4 to    
which ,joshua added some detail about   
the third covenant of ,god4  ,i beg the 
reader will observe1 that the writer of 
the ,book of ,joshua does not mention   

the second1 third1 or any other book of 
,moses1 but simply notices the book of  
the law of ,god4 ,now this great book   
was written upon twelve stones1 and in  
,exodus we find the precise commandment 
of ,moses to build the altar1 and to    
read the commandments at the feast of   
tabernacles2 so that it contained not   
one line of history1 and could have no  
authority4 ,it was a law written upon   
stones1 which ,moses1 in ,exod4 chap4   
xxiv4 v4 #g1 is said to have read to the
 people3 ,and he took the book of the   
covenant1 and read it in the audience of
 the people4 ,this covenant1 and        
particularly the repetition of it after 
the disobedience of the ,jews1 is the   
only part of the ,scriptures that ,moses
 ordered to be preserved with a         
religious care4 ,nothing of the most    
important parts of ,genesis or the other
 five books is ever mentioned in the    
commandments of the law of ,god3 the    
writer of the law certainly knew not    
that the ,pentateuch existed4 ,had      

,moses written such a work1 would he    
have failed to recommend to the ,levites
 to keep the precious records of        
mankind1 the sublime account of the     
creation8 ,did not the whole of the     
faith of the ,jews depend on their being
 acquainted with the history of their   
forefathers1 who were under the         
immediate protection of ,god8 ,the ten  
commandments every person knows from the
 light of nature2 no nation has ever    
mistaken them2 but the origin of mankind
 is a subject of great darkness1 and    
which the ,jews ought to have preserved 
most carefully4 ,certain1 however1 it   
is1 that excepting a few rites1 the     
,jews lost not only their books1 but    
even the recollection of their feasts1  
during their captivity4 ,the other books
 referred to in the ,bible prove1 that  
those left are mere collections of      
borrowed stories1 and pretended         
abridgements of books of greater        
authority1 which are unfortunately lost1
 and leave a wide field for scepticism1 

particularly upon improbable or         
contradictory accounts4 ,as to the      
belief that the books of the ,old       
,testament are inspired1 it is a tale1  
which1 after what we have stated1 even a
 child would laugh at4  ,you next       
seriously endeavour to corroborate the  
ridiculous miracle of the sun and moon  
standing still4 ,you are as unsuccessful
 in historical as in scientifical       
arguments4 ,the story in question is so 
stupid1 that the bare mention of it     
marks a man's credulity1 so as to render
 him the object of compassion4 ,that an 
ignorant fanatic should attempt to      
defend such absurdities1 would be a     
matter of no surprise2 but to witness a 
,regius ,professor of ,divinity1 a      
natural philosopher1 bring forward facts
 from profane history to prove the truth
 of so bare-faced a lie1 denotes at     
least your want of prudence4 ,i cannot  
persuade myself that you seriously      
believed what you wrote2 ,i cannot think
 you capable of falling at once into the

 most gross astronomical and historical 
error4 ,i shall state the matter        
briefly4 ,there was a tradition in all  
antiquity1 and particularly among the   
,egyptians1 relating to that motion of  
the earth's axis which has been observed
 by astronomers1 and whose complete     
revolution round the four cardinal      
points takes up no less than #i1afj1jjj 
years4 ,in the course of this           
revolution1 it necessarily happens1 that
 the sun will rise where it sets1 that  
north will be south1 and so on4 ,the    
,egyptian priests pretended that this   
revolution had taken place in their     
country without changing the climate1   
while the ,babylonians maintained1 in   
the time of ,alexander1 that #adj1jjj   
years had elapsed since their first     
astronomical observations4 ,this1 no    
doubt1 was the time that must have      
elapsed since the earth moved north and 
south4 ,the ,egyptian priests1 long     
before ,herodotus1 had lost their       
knowledge of astronomy1 which accounts  

for their mistake4 ,it is evident1 that 
the displacement of the earth's axis    
must be accompanied by the heaviest     
gravitating matter1 and1 therefore1 what
 is now land1 has been and will1 in the 
course of ages1 become sea4 ,now1 my    
,lord1 what has the ,egyptian tradition 
to do with the sun stopped by the robber
 ,joshua8 ,what connection has the      
stoppage of the sun1 or rather the      
earth's motion1 with the sun rising     
where it sets8 ,were the thing possible1
 the sun would nevertheless rise in the 
east4 ,besides1 does ,joshua say the sun
 changed its course8 ,had this been the 
case1 7,i am ashamed even of the        
supposition71 how could the earth change
 its axis in an hour1 without shattering
 the whole globe1 without inundating    
vast tracts of country1 and tearing     
others asunder to reestablish the       
equilibrium of gravity8 ,study and      
consider2 do not attempt to ridicule the
 little learning of ,thomas ,paine1 when
 you fall into such absurdities4 ,read  

,chinese history1 and you will find that
 their careful astronomers did not      
perceive the long day and night4 ,it was
 probably the sun of ,judea only that   
altered its course2 they did not seem to
 be enlightened by the same luminary4   
,those who believed that heaven was made
 of crystal1 could find no difficulty in
 crediting this silly story4 ,i have    
insisted so much upon this1 because you 
ought to know the common principles of  
astronomy1 and somewhat of history4     
,here again you appeal to the book of   
,jasher3 it deserves no more            
consideration4 ,to deem an appeal to a  
lost book evidence of a prodigy1 because
 the author affirms it1 is a degree of  
credulity which may gain the kingdom of 
heaven2 but1 in the republic of letters1
 such believer will pass for a very     
contemptible reasoner4  ,these are the  
miracles1 and the histories1 better     
attested than the ,history of the       
,twelve ,knights ,of ,charles the       
,great1 and such other foolish tales4   

,surely1 none can believe that #ai1jjj  
men fought against the ,midianites1 and 
murdered a prodigious number1 without   
having lost a man1 and disbelieve the   
famous battles of the knights1 in many  
of which six men fought several         
thousands2 the conversation of the devil
 with ,cromwell1 or the miraculous      
appearance of ,god to almost all the    
knights and warriors among the          
,catholics4 ,the sacred phial of        
,rheims1 and the chapel of ,loretto1    
were both conveyed in a manner you know 
well1 and which few men in the two      
countries dare controvert4 ,they too    
appeal to their books of ,jasher4 ,the  
tale of making the sun stand still has  
not even the merit of novelty2 this     
luminary had long before stopt his      
career1 out of respect to ,bacchus4     
,neither is the shower of hail-stones   
new1 for ,jupiter of old sent a shower  
of hail upon the rebellious sons of     
,neptune4  ,as to ,joshua having written
 the book that goes under his name1 we  

have1 besides what has been stated1 the 
strongest evidence against the          
genuineness of this performance4 ,the   
death of ,joshua is recorded in chap4   
xxiv4 and it is related exactly in the  
same style as what precedes it4 ,the    
writer even mentions several events     
posterior to the death of the son of    
,nun4 ,you have passed over the         
arguments of ,thomas ,paine drawn from  
this passage1 ,the ,jebusites dwelt with
 the children of ,judah at ,jerusalem   
unto this day4 ,it was natural for you  
to overlook a passage1 which            
demonstrates that the book of ,joshua   
was not written until after ,david1     
when1 and not before1 the conquest of   
the ,jebusites took place4 ,it is beyond
 a doubt1 that they never dwelt with the
 ,jews in the time of ,joshua1 since1 in
 the first part of the above quoted     
passage1 he says1 ,as for the           
,jebusites1 the inhabitants of          
,jerusalem1 the children of ,judah could
 not drive them out4 ,how then did the  

,jews inhabit ,jerusalem in the days of 
,joshua8 ,i refer the reader to the ,age
 of ,reason1 and to an answer to it by  
,mr4 ,david ,wilson1 for further        
information1 on this head4 ,in the      
latter1 he will be amazed at the weak   
subterfuges used by the author to evade 
the strength of the objection by ,mr4   
,paine4 ,but this is not the only event 
related in ,joshua1 which did not take  
place till some time after his death4   
,almost the whole of chap4 xvii4        
contains facts of this nature4 ,where   
the portion of ,manasseh is described1  
it is said1 in ver4 #ab1 ,yet the       
children of ,manasseh could not drive   
out the inhabitants of those cities1 but
 the inhabitants would dwell in that    
land4 ,it is added1 ,and it came to     
pass1 when the children of ,israel waxed
 strong1 that they put the ,canaanites  
to tribute2 but did not utterly drive   
them out4 ,now this certainly did not   
take place during the life of ,joshua1  
for in the very same chapter1 he        

promises those of the tribe of ,manasseh
 success against the ,canaanites4 ,in   
the preceding chapter1 v4 #aj1 there is 
a passage of the same kind1 ,and they   
7the ,ephraimites7 drove not out the    
,canaanites that dwelt in ,gezer2 but   
the ,canaanites dwelt among the         
,ephraimites unto this day1 and some    
under tribute4 ,this needs no comment3  
let any person ask himself when this    
came to pass1 and they will at once find
 out the credit due to books containing 
such shameful anachronisms and          
falsehoods4 ,in chapter first of        
,judges1 purporting to contain the      
history of the ,jews after ,joshua1 the 
reader will find a faithful copy of the 
passages quoted1 not excepting the      
taking of ,jerusalem4 ,let himc ompare  
ver4 #h1 #bg1 #bh1 #bi1 and following1  
with the detail of distribution of lots 
to the tribes1 in chap4 xvi4 and xvii4  
of ,joshua the same events are told in  
the very words1 and apply to two        
different periods4 ,this is a strong    

instance of the disorder that pervades  
the whole of these books1 and how       
undeserving of credit1 even in the most 
probable events1 is what you call sacred
 writ4 ,we are constantly reading over  
accounts of the same events1 sometimes  
said to be written by dead men1 and     
never marking time2 for it came to pass1
 which is the ,bible phrase1 does not   
fix the period when the event took      
place4 ,these books bear all the marks  
of being the productions of some persons
 at a very late period1 and to have     
suffered great interpolations4 ,joshua  
is1 in the face of it1 a continuation of
 ,deuteronomy1 ,judges of ,joshua1 and  
so on through the remainder4  ,you pass 
on to ,judges4 ,it requires neither     
great knowledge nor ingenuity to        
discover1 that this book is an          
unconnected farrago put together by some
 unknown person4 ,you do not attempt to 
say any thing in its favour4 ,sad       
falling off from the paths of faith6    
,formerly it would have been a heresy to

 assert that ,judges was a book of no   
authority3 now1 even a ,bishop has      
nothing to say in its defence4 ,you then
 proceed to ,ruth1 and endeavour to blot
 out the apparent infamy of her conduct1
 with what success1 ,i leave the reader 
to judge1 after he has perused her      
history4 ,next follow your subtle       
distinctions between the inspired and   
non-inspired part of the ,bible1 which  
may be very intelligible to an inspired 
,bishop1 but cannot fail to appear a    
mere dream to a man in his senses4      
,notwithstanding ,austin and your other 
brethren1 this distinction rests upon   
nothing but fancy4 ,your request is very
 moderate4 ,receive the ,bible1 you say1
 as composed by upright and             
well-informed1 though in some points1   
fallible men1 7for ,i exclude all       
fallibility when they profess to deliver
 the word of ,god71 and you must receive
 it as a book revealed to you in many   
parts by the express will of ,god1 and1 
in other parts1 relating to you the     

ordinary history of the times4 ,bravo6  
,a ,catholic is as reasonable in his    
demands4 ,he only asks a little         
credulity to believe the inspired when  
they profess to be so4 ,it is truly a   
childish request1 begging the question  
at every word4 ,to believe the ,bible to
 be inspired is the grand point4 ,the   
reasoning you employ is in perfect      
consonance with the absurdity of your   
wishes4 ,you disbelieve a history if you
 find it inconsistent1 but revere it1   
and swear by the author1 if he wrote by 
inspiration4 ,swedenburgh could not wish
 more faith in his adherents4 ,you say  
receive it1 as the inquisitors said     
imprimatur2 but philosophers weigh the  
ground of their belief2 they detect the 
,bible writers1 prophets1 and inspired  
men1 in palpable contradictions in      
history2 and you will obstinately insist
 on our believing the most improbable of
 all their stories1 because their       
absurdity persuades the faithful that   
they were revealed by their ,god in     

dreams4----,you have acknowledged       
yourself1 in a subsequent letter1 that  
the history and mystery of the ,bible   
are so interwoven1 that if one falls the
 other cannot be maintained4 ,why did   
,god mingle his important and sublime   
precepts with such ridiculous trash1 so 
as to induce mankind to disbelieve them 
both8 ,suppose ,i should meet a peasant 
coming from a fair1 pretending he had   
seen the king with his guards1 and if ,i
 should find this to be untrue1 would ,i
 not deserve to be laughed at1 if ,i    
credited that he had wrestled with a    
spirit1 or that he was carried up to    
heaven8 ,this1 however1 is the case with
 the ,bible4 ,here we are told that the 
sun stood ,still to protract the        
bloodshed of that villain ,joshua1      
while1 in another place1 we read that a 
city was taken #cgj years before that   
event4 ,your vaunted prophets were      
soothsayers1 psalmists1 and orators1 who
 were generally employed in writing the 
public records4 ,it is a word applied in

 the ,bible to holy men4 ,these         
prophets1 like the augurs of the        
heathen1 were often detected in         
falsehoods1 and1 in the time of ,samuel1
 it would appear1 by the ,bible itself1 
that to raise ghosts was a trade as     
common as that of tailors in our days4  
,you now come to ,samuel4 ,you are      
candid enough to acknowledge with       
,hartley1 that he could not have been   
the author of the second book1 nor of   
most of the first that go under his     
name1 yet this has been the opinion of  
the church2 and ,i know of no direct    
proofs that he wrote the remainder3 by  
what logic do you or ,hartley conclude1 
that ,samuel wrote any part of the books
 ascribed to him8 ,an author is proved  
not to have written most part of a work 
ascribed to him1 who then would1 without
 direct proofs1 proclaim him the writer 
of some small passage1 or any particular
 part of the work8 ,who but a clergyman 
would build a system upon a mutilated1  
spurious1 and insignificant collection  

of absurdities and wonders8 ,it is1 ,i  
allow1 probable that ,samuel wrote      
something3 your quotations prove no     
more2 but what this was1 we are1 ,i     
presume1 equally unacquainted with4     
,that the scribes also composed some    
records of the lives of their kings1 ,i 
will not deny4 ,the question is1 what   
degree of credit does the mutilated1    
contradictory1 and fabulous collection1 
said to be made out of these records1   
deserve8  ,in the time of ,charles the  
,great1 some persons probably recorded  
his actions4 ,is this a reason for any  
man to believe the fabulous legends we  
have of him1 written in the dark        
centuries8 ,the legends of the ,egyptian
 and ,greek gods1 and their collection  
of oracles1 were not only credited by   
whole nations1 but proclaimed true by   
councils much wiser than the synagogue4 
,the records of the saints were         
undoubtedly made few years after their  
death1 in ages far more enlightened1    
after the invention of the press1       

written by the then most learned men of 
society1 7the monks71 who certainly were
 not inferior to the ,jewish scribes1   
yet these legends contain often nothing 
but collections of absurdities and      
miracles4 ,read the ,flores ,sanctorum  
of the ,romish church1 and you there    
will find miracles in every page1 and   
the lives of saints a tissue of         
prodigies4 ,i need not add1 that very   
few learned men among the ,papists give 
credit to the absurdities contained in  
these books4 ,it is even the opinion of 
the best informed men1 that the monks   
have written lives of saints who never  
existed4  ,you acknowledge the          
wickedness of the kings of ,israel and  
,judah2 but you take care to observe1   
that this was not owing to their        
religion4 ,impertinent assertion6 ,was  
not ,saul dethroned because he was      
humane enough not to cut ,agag in       
pieces8 ,did not the ,lord ,jehovah love
 the man after his own heart1 who put   
the miserable inhabitants of ,rabah     

under saws1 axes1 and arrows of iron2   
who made them pass through the          
brick-kiln8 ,did not this ,jehovah      
approve the base murder of ,adonias8    
,was it the same ,jehovah who said to   
,jonah1 that he was not so unjust as to 
sacrifice the whole city of ,nineveh for
 their sins1 because there were         
thousands in it who did not know between
 good and evil2 and who yet1 the ,jews  
tell us1 commanded the extermination of 
whole nations1 without even sparing the 
little children8 ,did not the plagues   
which he sent to ,pharaoh and ,david    
fall upon thousands of innocent         
individuals8 ,at least1 do not the      
,jewish books affirm it8 ,such horrors  
could only be respected by the ,jews2   
such absurd miracles could only be      
credited by the most ignorant of men4   
,you pretend1 that the partiality of    
,god to the ,jews proceeded from their  
being the only nation that believed in  
the unity of ,god1 and who have         
preserved their belief on this head     

unshaken till the present day4 ,are you 
in earnest1 can you assert this before  
men of common information8 ,do you take 
,englishmen for idiots to be deceived by
 your assertions8 ,are you ignorant of  
the adoration of the ,ethiopians8 ,do   
you forget that the wise men among the  
heathens said1 ,colitur forma pro ,jove8
 ,did you never peruse any account1 of  
the ,chinese1 or of the ,hindoos8 ,do   
they not admit one supreme agent1 an    
all-wise1 intelligent1 c4 being1 and    
whose inferior agents they represent by 
symbols8 ,the ,hindoos have even all the
 metaphysical refinement of our divines2
 and their definition of ,god is fully  
as perspicuous as that given in our     
,catechism4 ,i have avoided to give long
 extracts in this pamphlet2 but1 that   
the authority of an ,english ,bishop may
 not be a presumption to many that ,i am
 making false assertions1 ,i shall      
transcribe a passage from a commentary  
upon the ,reig ,beid1 a book            
unquestionably of the remotest          

antiquity4  ,glory be to ,goneish6 that 
which is exempt from all desires of the 
senses1 the same is the mighty ,lord4   
,he is simple1 and than him there is    
nothing greater4 ,brehm1 7the spirit of 
,god71 is absorbed in                   
self-contemplation2 the same is the     
mighty ,lord who is present in every    
part of space4 ,brehm is one1 and to him
 there is no second2 such is truly      
,brehm4 ,his omniscience is             
self-inspired1 and its comprehension    
includes all possible species1 c4 ,it is
 true1 we are not here told that ,god is
 a jealous ,god1 that he visiteth the   
iniquities of the father even unto the  
fourth generation4 ,i could adduce fifty
 passages from the ,greeks and others to
 prove my position1 but it is needless4 
,the point is still to know whether     
these notions make men better1 whether  
they are founded on truth1 and1 indeed1 
whether all gods are not the work of the
 fancy of man1 nature allegorised4      
,primus in orbe ,deos fecit timor1 says 

the philosopher2 can you disprove it8 ,i
 suspect not1 and that all the subtle   
reasoning of divines destroy themselves4
 ,the world is the ultimate of human    
reason4 ,we adore the idols either of   
our hands or of the brain1 and mistake  
them for existences4 ,the region of     
chimeras exists beyond the universe2 our
 prattling upon it is but a play of     
words4 ,jehovah himself1 when he said1  
,i am that ,i am1 called himself pretty 
plainly ,pan1 or the great whole4  ,but 
if the unity of ,god be the only        
gracious belief in the eyes of the      
,creator1 ,i do not see that ,christians
 are entitled to his favour1 because    
they make him three4 ,what was the      
belief of the ,jews8 ,had they any very 
refined ideas of their ,god8 ,they      
thought him corporeal1 incessantly      
speaking and moving among men1 jealous1 
revengeful1 powerful1 whose angels ate  
with ,abraham1 who himself strove to    
kill ,moses in a public house2 they     
imagined him repenting of his deeds2    

and1 in all respects1 a poor            
contemptible being1 the offspring of    
,jewish fancy4 ,he is throughout the    
,bible an ,asiatic ,sultan1 who1 like   
the merciful ,god of ,mahomet1 puts to  
the sword1 and smites with plagues      
thousands1 as a tribute to his infinite 
mercy4 ,i refer the reader to the       
collection of extracts from the ,bible1 
in a subsequent letter1 for proofs of my
 assertions4 ,the ,jews admitted1       
besides other gods1 such as ,chemosh1   
several beings subordinate to ,god1 but 
superior to man1 as the serpent which   
tempted the mother of mankind4 ,they had
 exterminating angels and cherubims1 the
 ,elohim or ,genii that made the world1 
c4 ,but why dwell upon such topics1 when
 it is evident that all the ,jewish     
mythology is of ,chaldean origin1 and   
our theology a copy of that of ,plato8  
,you proceed in your attempt to         
reconcile the justice of ,god with his  
goodness1 and1 in the height of your    
reverie1 you imagine that the sufferings

 of the ,jews were parts of a grand     
scheme for the general good of mankind4 
,what1 and when are we to see the good  
effects of their barbarities8 ,we may   
see reason counteracting the evil of    
superstition1 rendering men humane2 but 
,i apprehend1 that1 if your reasoning   
was generally adopted1 every highwayman 
would be much inclined to think himself 
sent by ,providence for good and wise   
purposes1 and if chance should bring    
about a happy event at the end of his   
career1 which he thought the consequence
 of his deeds1 he would triumph in his  
crimes1 and1 like ,moor in the ,robbers1
 exclaim1 ,if for ten ,i have destroyed1
 you make but one man blest1 my soul may
 yet be saved6 ,this has been the       
language of persecutors4 ,they destroy  
mankind to make them happy in the next  
world--tortures1 burning1 and beheading1
 are but purifications4 ,the worst is1  
that the famous divine scheme of general
 good1 has never been one jot more      
advanced than when the ,jews were       

enduring the greatest calamities1 and   
committing atrocities4 ,i count not the 
effects of reason1 for faith is alone   
the godly faculty2 reason destroys it4  
,i close my observations upon this      
subject with repeating the old question 
of ,epicurus1 which your brethren have  
as yet left unanswered2 either ,god can 
prevent evil and does not choose it1 or 
he chooses it and wants power to avert  
calamities from his creatures4 ,in the  
first instance1 he is a malevolent      
despot1 a character we ought to abhor2  
in the second1 we see him an impotent   
and secondary being1 which raises our   
contempt4 ,reconcile this with his      
infinite power1 wisdom1 and goodness1   
and show us that he is not formed after 
the image of man1 or else let           
unbelievers hold their opinions in      
peace4     ,,letter ,v4  ,your fifth    
letter begins with stating the          
importance of the concession of ,thomas 
,paine1 that the books of ,ezra and     
,nehemiah are genuine4 ,you triumph1 and

 think it a silent acknowledgment of the
 reality of the prophecies mentioned in 
those books4 ,stop1 my ,lord1 your      
alma-mater surely has not taught you to 
draw such conclusions4 ,in a genuine    
book there may be contained incredible  
events1 as in ,tacitus1 ,suetonius1 and 
almost all existent histories4 ,it is   
your duty to prove that the prophecies  
there related are not among those       
popular stories which are apt to gain   
general credit1 whether they are or are 
not forgeries written after the events4 
,before we know when ,jeremiah wrote1   
and what is the meaning of the writings 
under his name1 no man is warranted to  
triumph at the testimony of the ,jews   
after the captivity2 since it is a      
point1 in which all parties agree2 that 
their canon and books were compiled at  
that period1 and nobody ever questioned 
the credulity of the ,jews4 ,you proceed
 to state your notions of the history of
 the ,old ,testament2 it is all a matter
 of opinion2 and1 as you do not support 

it by any proofs1 we must still continue
 to regard the contradictions and       
impostures contained in the ,old        
,testament as proofs of its having been 
the work of ignorant fanatics4 ,i pass  
over your effusions3 that metaphysical  
disquisitions teach us the limits of our
 faculties1 ,i strenuously maintain2 and
 if you mean nothing else1 we are       
agreed4 ,that our notions of time and   
place are not the bugbears which the    
scholastics would persuade us1 is to me 
unquestionable2 that both in science and
 religion we affix no ideas to many     
words1 ,i grant2 that certainty in      
philosophical disquisitions is not      
easily found1 ,i also allow2 but1 that a
 man tired with the arduous task of     
reasoning1 of discerning between truth  
and falsehood1 should seek in polemics  
or superstition a consolation for his   
ignorance1 ,i consider as a proof of the
 impaired state of his faculties2 he is 
like the thirsty traveller1 who1 burnt  
by the scorching sun1 seeks to relieve  

his distress by drinking of the first   
water he meets1 without regarding its   
purity4 ,your acknowledgment that it is 
possible even for a ,bishop to err in   
matters of religion1 gives me real      
pleasure4 ,to consider our creed as a   
matter that admits of doubt1 is a great 
step in the road of truth4 ,you say1    
,may ,god forgive him that is in an     
error4 ,your wish is humane2 but1 if    
,god be the ,creator of mankind1 he     
cannot be offended at the conclusions we
 may draw1 after having employed the    
faculties he has given us4 ,i wish too  
that mankind should forgive them that   
are in an error2 but1 ,i hope1 they will
 recollect the long sway of             
superstition1 and its danger to mankind2
 may they decide in favour of that      
system which is conformable to reason1  
and has the greatest tendency to improve
 society6  ,you next proceed to show the
 propriety of the angel ordering ,moses 
to pull off his shoes1 which you say is 
a mark of reverence to ,god4 ,is it then

 by such ridiculous customs that you    
reconcile your omnipotent and all-wise  
,god8 ,too long have men substituted    
rites for morality4 ,o superstition6    
that makes the ,asiatics eat the        
excrements of the lama1 the ,papists    
devour their ,god2 that persuades all   
,christians that water washeth away sin2
 and1 that if a child happens to die    
before his face is sprinkled1 he must   
inevitably suffer everlasting torments3 
led by this1 men despise society1 and   
tremble at ceremonies invented by their 
priests4  ,i shall not go at great      
length into the particular              
contradictions which are found in the   
enumeration of the families that        
returned from ,babylon4 ,there certainly
 are great mistakes in the sums2 and    
where precision was to be expected more 
than in any thing preserved in the      
record of the people of ,god1 we find   
them committing the most gross errors1  
even when they attempt to be peculiarly 
exact4 ,it is curious1 that the         

individual sums are altogether different
 in the different accounts1 and1        
therefore1 that there must have been a  
much greater number of errors than you  
would persuade your readers4  ,you come 
to the book of ,job2 and confine your   
remarks to disprove the objection of    
,mr4 ,paine1 drawn from the name ,satan1
 which1 he says1 is there for the first 
and only time mentioned in the ,bible4  
,your answer1 that it is repeatedly to  
be found elsewhere in the ,old          
,testament1 is just but it certainly    
does not prove ,job to be a ,jewish     
book4 ,we know that ,sathan1 as well as 
the names of all the angels1 are        
,chaldean2 and as ,i have already shown1
 that the ,scriptures are compilations  
written after the captivity1 it is not  
wonderful that this name1 together with 
many others1 should be found in the     
,hebrew ,bible4 ,as you say nothing in  
favour of the book of ,job1 ,i shall    
only observe1 that it is not only the   
opinion of ,abenezra1 but even of       

,jerome1 the author of the ,vulgate1    
that it is not a ,hebrew book1 the idiom
 being in many instances altogether     
different from the style of that        
language1 and very frequently bearing   
marks of its ,arabic and ,syriac origin1
 as the reader may see in his preface to
 ,job in the ,vulgate edition of the    
,bible4 ,the resemblance between ,job's 
,satan and ,momus is so striking1 that  
we cannot help recognising the author to
 have been a ,gentile2 and thus are the 
,jews deprived of a book1 which1 at     
least1 contains no murders1 and shows   
more knowledge than that nation ever    
possessed4 ,your remark as to the       
generality of the belief of a benevolent
 and a malevolent being1 certainly does 
not prove that the ,gentiles borrowed   
this notion from the ,jews2 you ought to
 have known history better1 and that the
 wars of the ,gods and angels formed    
part of the creed of many nations1 not  
only before a book of the ,bible        
existed1 but even before the birth of   

,moses4 ,dionysius and ,osiris had      
already fought against the evil genii3  
the famous ,vishnu has been from the    
highest antiquity the enemy of ,chiven4 
,that the numerous mythological systems 
which have ever existed1 sprang from the
 report of the fathers of the ,jewish   
nation1 may appear probable to a        
clergyman2 it is but a pious whim2 to me
 it is a proof1 that all religious      
systems have sprung from the fancy of   
men4 ,the philosophers among the        
heathens understood by the evil and bad 
genii nothing more than the influence of
 the good or bad seasons1 which1        
personified by ignorant or cunning      
priests1 have by the vulgar been deemed 
real personages4 ,besides1 where do you 
find in the ,pentateuch any accounts of 
the ,devil8 ,i only see the serpent1 an 
emblem ,i have already said1 copied from
 the ,egyptians1 but by the ,jews       
considered a real snake1 which talked   
and walked upright4 ,it was but a poor  
imitation of the ,ahrimanes of          

,zoroaster4  ,concerning the utility of 
prayers1 and the tendency of those of   
the ,jews1 ,i shall say nothing4 ,it is 
a certain fact1 that ,solomon1 the      
wisest of men1 and who made excellent   
prayers1 killed his brother2 while many 
of those heathen tribes1 abhorred by the
 ,jews1 had no other crime than to adore
 images2 and1 if superstition among them
 sometimes produced the abominable      
practice of human sacrifices1 they never
 carried their piety so far as to       
exterminate whole nations4 ,besides1 the
 ,jews had not even a pretence to       
despise their neighbours for offering   
human sacrifices4 ,the case of ,jephtha 
shows plainly that this barbarity was   
common among ,god's people4 ,i am       
utterly surprised at your misplaced     
exclamations upon the morality of the   
heathens4 ,far be it from me to stand   
forward as the patron of heathenish     
superstition2 it is the mother of ours1 
and ,i abhor the common stock2 but1 my  
,lord1 you ought not to confound the    

rites of the ,greeks with their morals4 
,the ,athenians possessed virtues which 
we in vain look for among the despicable
 ,jews4 ,they possessed knowledge1 and  
their philosophers had more sense than  
to believe the tales of the priests4    
,epicurus taught peaceably1 and was     
revered by all1 while the vulgar of his 
country firmly believed their mythology4
 ,such an instance never happened among 
the ,jews4 ,jehovah would quickly have  
sent a plague among ,epicurus and his   
followers1 or ordered his priests to    
kill every one his neighbour and his    
friend1 and hang them up before the sun4
 ,your holy brethren would think nothing
 of a burning match on the occasion2 if 
it were in your power1 atheists would   
not exist long4 ,but you talk so        
confidently of the adoration of images  
among the ,gentiles1 that we would      
imagine the ,jews were all philosophers4
 ,do you forget their reverence to the  
holy of holies1 which none could        
approach2 the ark of the covenant1 and  

the calves8 ,or has the story of the    
five golden mice1 for looking at which  
fifty thousand and three score and ten  
,israelites were smote by the ,lord1    
escaped you8  ,your rhapsody upon the   
sublimity of ,bible composition1 and its
 superiority to all profane writers1 is 
a proof of the strength of early imbibed
 prejudice4 ,i lament to see a man of   
your learning think so much like an old 
woman4 ,the proverbs1 to be sure1 are   
wonderful compositions1 and prove the   
great gift of wisdom bestowed by ,god   
upon ,solomon6 ,what indeed can be more 
sublime than the following1 which ,i beg
 leave to add to the specimens given by 
your ,lordship6 ,the horse leech hath   
two daughters1 crying1 ,give1 give4     
,there are three things that are never  
satisfied1 yea four things say not it is
 enough2 the grave1 and the barren womb1
 the earth that is not filled with      
water1 and the fire that saith not it is
 enough4--,there be three things which  
are too wonderful for me1 yea four which

 ,i know not2 the way of an eagle in the
 air1 the way of a serpent upon the     
rock1 the way of a ship in the midst of 
the sea1 and the way of a man with a    
maid4--,there be three things which go  
well1 a greyhound1 an he-goat also1 and 
a king4--,it is the glory of ,god to    
conceal a thing1 but the honour of kings
 is to search out a matter4--,when thou 
sittest to eat with a ruler1 consider   
diligently what is before thee1 and put 
a knife to thy throat if thou be a man  
given to appetite4--,buy the truth1 and 
sell it not4--,a whore is a deep ditch1 
and a strange woman is a narrow         
pit4--,excellent ,solomon6 ,hear also   
this wise king in ,song of ,songs4 ,how 
beautiful are thy feet with shoes1 ,o   
prince's daughter6 ,the joints of thy   
thighs are like jewels1 the work of the 
hands of a cunning workman2 thy-navel is
 like a round goblet which wanteth not  
liquor2 thy belly is like a heap of     
wheat set about with lilies2 thy two    
breasts are like two young roes that are

 twins2 thy neck is as a tower of ivory2
 thine eyes like the fish pools in      
,heshbon1 by the gate of ,bath-rabbim2  
thy nose is as the tower of ,lebanon1   
which looketh towards ,damascus4        
,whether this alludes to one of         
,solomon's concubines1 or our mother1   
the church of ,jesus ,christ1 the       
expressions are equally applicable1     
beautiful1 and simple2 they are worthy  
of a man wiser than ,ethan the          
,ezrehite1 and ,heman1 and ,chalcol1 and
 ,darda1 the sons of ,mehol1 who1 ,i    
dare say1 were wise men4 ,upon the      
whole1 ,i agree with you1 that ,solomon1
 the illustrious offspring of the man   
after ,god's own heart and the virtuous 
,bathsheba1 was not a witty jester4 ,as 
to what you call his sins and           
debaucheries1 these holy books were     
certainly not written with a view to    
make us avoid them4 ,solomon is set     
before us as a pattern of wisdom and    
goodness2 and the number of his wives   
and concubines is exultingly recorded as

 a proof of his greatness1 as much as   
his treasures1 which exceed all         
conception1 and the number of his       
horses1 which exceed all belief4  ,your 
pious belief in the inspired prophecies 
of ,isaiah1 is natural to a             
superstitious and credulous mind4 ,the  
philosopher who doubts before he gazes1 
sees in what you call prophecies nothing
 else but scraps of history or legend4  
,he receives with diffidence all        
predictions4 ,he is aware of the great  
ease with which forgeries may be passed 
among the vulgar for prophecies4 ,when  
pretended predictions are made1 they are
 altogether overlooked2 even the        
ignorant think not of them till they are
 said to be accomplished2 the learned   
despise them in both instances2 and it  
is not till after their authenticity has
 gained a sort of general belief1 that  
the philosopher thinks of enquiring when
 and how they were made4 ,at this period
 he can find no evidence of their       
history1 but from the credulous who have

 been imposed upon by them4 ,besides1 no
 prophecy is ever direct1 it always has 
an equivocal meaning1 and is explained  
to suit the events which have happened4 
,religious enthusiasts write in such a  
mystic language upon the sins of        
mankind1 and the judgements that are to 
come upon them1 and in so general and   
ambiguous terms1 that it is easy for a  
subtle interpreter1 or a visionary      
fanatic1 to explain them according to   
his own system4 ,have not the bears of  
the ,apocalypse been made to signify by 
turns1 the ,pope and the ,devil8 ,has   
not the ,new ,jerusalem been sometimes  
taken for a real flying town1 seen in   
the air by the first fathers of the     
church1 as ,tertullean informs us8 ,do  
not other divines tell us that it means 
the kingdom of heaven8 ,have not        
scripture divines1 even in the first    
ages of the church1 pretended that the  
verses of ,virgil1 ,jam redit et ,virgo1
 redeunt ,sa-tumia regna1 jam nova      
progenies ccelo demittitur alto2--natte 

mets vires1 mea magna potentia solus1   
and talia perstabat memorans1 fixusque  
manebat1 were clear prophecies of the   
,virgin ,mary1 and ,jesus ,christ8 ,it  
might be worth enquiring at this time1  
whether the ,roman ,bard was inspired by
 the ,holy ,ghost8 ,lastly1 ,i may ask1 
does your ,lordship believe in the many 
prophecies that have of late appeared of
 the ,french revolution8  ,but we have  
more reasons to declare the pretended   
clear prophecies of the ,bible to be    
fables4 ,in many instances they are so  
accurate1 and so unlike these passages  
which we know to have been written      
previous to the events to which they are
 applied1 or those which are not yet    
fulfilled1 that no philosopher can      
pronounce them to have been written     
historically4 ,thus1 we find ,jacob     
announce to his twelve sons1 the heads  
of the twelve tribes of ,israel1 the    
fate of their posterity2 the situation  
of the district to be occupied by the   
,israelites in the land of ,canaan1 two 

hundred years before ,joshua parcelled  
out this land in lots to the            
,israelites2 the kind of life the       
different tribes would lead2 the small  
number of the posterity of ,reuben1     
,simeon1 and ,levi1 as well as the power
 of ,judah2 all which are related as    
exactly as if the patriarch had seen the
 throne of ,david and ,solomon with his 
own eyes4 ,some of the supposed         
predictions of ,isaiah and ,daniel1 are 
even more minutely correct4 ,you have   
treated the question of the genuineness 
and date of works very lightly2 you     
think it is of no great consequence to  
ascertain the genuineness of the        
different books of the ,bible4 ,let us  
for a moment suppose1 that by some      
accident1 the age of ,virgil had been   
forgotten1 or the sixth book of his neid
 been ascribed to a writer of the age of
 neas2 would not the ,romans be entitled
 to regard1 as a most wonderful         
prophecy1 the lively representation     
given by ,anchises of the future heroes 

of the republic1 the two ,csars1 and the
 young ,marcellus8  ,to resume our      
subject3 ,i remind you of the passage   
already quoted from ,bellarminus1 that  
it was the opinion of the fathers of the
 church1 that the ,prophets1 among other
 books1 had been collected and arranged 
by ,esdras4 ,i have also stated the     
selection of genuine works by the       
synagogue1 during the reign of the      
,maccabees1 when the ,talmud says that  
the forgeries of ,daniel1 ,esdras1 c4   
were prodigious4 ,the destruction by    
,antiochus ,epiphanus of the already    
broken ,jewish books1 written by        
,esdras1 may be collected from what is  
said in ,maccabees1 chap4 i4 ver4 #ef   
and #eg4 ,and when they had rent in     
pieces the books of the law which they  
found1 they burnt them with fire1 and   
whosoever was found with any of the     
books of the ,testament1 or if any      
consented to the law1 the king's        
commandment was1 that they should put   
him to death4  ,it is without reason    

that you triumph at the application     
which ,thomas ,paine makes of the       
prophecy of ,isaiah1 in chapters xliv4  
and xlv4 ,no man that reads the passage 
can hesitate for a moment to declare it 
a narrative of the deliverance of the   
,jews by ,cyrus1 after the seventy years
 captivity4 ,cyrus is mentioned by name1
 as well as his command to rebuild      
,jerusalem1 and his victories over the  
nations1 above one hundred years before 
the event4 ,will you then1 without any  
proofs of ,isaiah having written this   
book1 insist upon calling it a prophecy8
 ,and have not sceptics been justified  
in their disbelief of the genuineness of
 such books8 ,mr4 ,paine1 however1 has  
overlooked a more remarkable prophecy in
 this book1 which has been tortured into
 an application to ,christ4 ,this is    
contained in chapter lxiii4 ver4 #a4    
,who is this that cometh from ,edom1    
with dyed garments from ,bozrah8 this   
that is glorious in his apparel1        
travelling in the greatness of his      

strength8 ,i that speak in4             
righteousness1 mighty to save4 ,and     
again1 in chap4 ii4 7talking of the     
supposed ,christ7 ,isaiah says1 ,and he 
shall judge among the nations1 and shall
 rebuke many people2 and they shall beat
 their swords into plough-shares4--,and 
the idols he shall totally abolish4 ,can
 this possibly allude to ,christ8 ,did  
he come from ,edom in mighty power1 in  
rich garments8 ,was his march so        
terrible8 ,was he the man who trampled  
all in his fury2 who with his own arm   
brought salvation to himself1 and was   
upheld by his fury2 as also mentioned in
 chap4 lxiii48 ,do not these pretended  
prophecies also apply to ,judas         
,maccabeus1 who delivered the ,jews from
 the tyranny of ,antiochus ,epi-phanus8 
,and is it not also a proof of the      
mutilated state of the works of the     
prophets to see details about ,cyrus    
intermingled with others applying to    
,judas ,maccabeus8 ,i say nothing of    
,daniel1 for his prophecy ,i shall      

consider particularly afterwards1 and   
show its true meaning2 at present1 it   
may be sufficient to say1 that the      
similarity between the book of ,ezra and
 ,daniel proclaim them to be from the   
same hand2 but both have evident marks  
of having been considerably mutilated4  
,when philosophers cannot ascertain the 
age of pretended predictions1 they      
consider their clearness as a           
demonstration of their being histories4 
,who tells you that the books which the 
synagogue1 like the ,nicene council1    
chose1 were not either altogether       
written1 or considerably interpolated1  
to adopt them to the times8 ,the great  
question is always1 what authority had  
the synagogue to decide1 and whether    
their decision ought to influence men of
 sense1 any more than the determination 
of the ,popish councils4  ,as a proof of
 the absurdity of the application of    
prophecies1 ,i shall here quote one1    
which is apparently clearer than any in 
the whole ,bible1 and is adduced by the 

most famous divines as an unquestionable
 prediction of ,christ4 ,it is in       
,micah1 chap4 v4 ver4 ,i4 ,now gather   
thyself in troops1 ,o daughter of       
troops3 he hath laid siege against us2  
they shall smite the ,judge of ,israel  
with a rod upon the cheek4 ,but thou    
,bethlehem ,ephratah1 though thou be    
little among thousands of ,judah1 yet   
out of thee shall he come forth unto me1
 that is to be ruler in ,israel2 whose  
goings forth have been from of old1 from
 everlasting4 ,here even the birth-place
 of ,christ is mentioned1 the insults   
offered to him1 his existence from      
everlasting1 and his coming to save     
,israel4 ,and ,matthew1 chap4 ii4 ver4  
#f1 and ,john1 chap4 vii4 ver4 #dc1 both
 expressly refer to that passage as a   
prophecy4 ,hear now what follows in ver4
 #e1 of the same chapter of ,micah3 ,and
 this man shall be the peace1 when the  
,assyrians shall come into our land3 and
 when he shall tread in our palaces1    
then shall we raise against him seven   

shepherds1 and eight principal men4 ,can
 this apply to ,jesus ,christ8 ,were the
 ,syrians in the land when he came8     
,were not the ,romans masters of ,judea8
 ,your rules of belief are admirable3 a 
little faith1 wherever you meet         
contradictions1 absurdities1 or wonders1
 is an invaluable prescription1 common  
to the ,bramin1 the ,musselman1 and the 
,christian4 ,do but believe that        
,mahomet is a prophet1 that he went up  
to heaven and saw the eternal ,father1  
and you will go through the other       
articles of the ,mahometan faith without
 difficulty4 ,do but admit the gospel of
 ,barnabas where ,mahomet is predicted1 
and we have no reason to say that it is 
less authentic than our gospel1 and the 
work is done2 but1 ,i may say with you1 
,proof1 proof is what ,i require1 and   
not assertion4  ,we will not relinquish 
our reason in obedience to the despotic 
mandates of the credulous4  ,you allow  
that the miracles of the ,jews fall to  
the ground1 if the history of that      

nation is proved false4 ,i beg you to   
observe1 that if it is true1 it does not
 follow that the miracles are4 ,if you  
can believe that the history of the     
,jews is well authenticated1 and without
 numerous contradictions1 and if you can
 exculpate the writers from bad motives1
 and a desire to deceive1 and if you can
 rely upon their wisdom1 you then will  
really prove yourself a ,christian1 a   
man of uncommon faith4 ,the history of  
the ,jews1 every where confused1        
containing prodigies1 deserves no more  
credit than their antedeluvian tale4    
,even ,chinese history1 supported by    
astronomical observations1 is beyond a  
certain period rejected by all men1 from
 the fables it contains4 ,if you are    
disposed to believe1 ,i advise you to   
read the fabulous history of ,china and 
of ,hindostan1 in the holy books of the 
respective nations1 which are adopted by
 whole nations1 and are1 at least1 more 
beautiful than the ,jews4  ,i have      
purposely omitted to speak of           

,ecclesiastes4 ,i find here several     
,epicurean notions1 a disbelief of a    
future life1 the propriety of enjoying  
themselves in this life1 and other      
sensible remarks2 which prove that the  
writer enjoyed more common sense than   
most of his countrymen4     ,,letter    
,,vi4  ,you begin your sixth letter by  
attempting to disprove the arguments of 
,thomas ,paine upon ,jeremiah4 ,you     
acknowledge the disorder that prevails  
in the writings of this prophet2 and you
 modestly assure us1 that you do not    
know the cause2 no more do ,i3 and      
whatever incidents might have occasioned
 it1 ,i am certain that1 as it stands1  
it deserves no degree of credit4 ,in a  
former part of your pamphlet you grant1 
that the history of the ,jews is so     
connected with the prophetical part1    
that if the former was done away the    
latter could not stand2 and now you     
inform us1 that prophecy differs from   
history1 in not being subject to an     
accurate observance of time and order4  

,this you think a matter of no          
importance1 but1 in my opinion1 it is   
very material to know if a prophecy is  
written after the events it alludes to4 
,i shall not follow far1 either your    
,lordship or ,mr4 ,paine1 in proving    
several of the prophecies of the ,bible 
false2 but if they are not prophecies1  
why should we trouble ourselves with    
disproving them4 ,if they are scraps of 
history1 we know that of the ,jews to be
 so contradictory1 imperfect1 so        
completely without order1 that one      
historical extract1 of prophecy1 will   
often contradict another2 but much more 
generally these prophecies are strict   
enough1 being copied from history1 and  
embellished with a little of the        
figurative style of prophecy4 ,as to    
,jeremiah1 the works that go under his  
name1 as well as those of ,isaiah1      
appear on the face of them to be a      
collection of extracts from different   
historians4  ,while we know so little of
 the history and genuineness of these   

writings1 we cannot possibly draw any   
conclusion concerning them1 except that 
they are in the utmost disorder1 and    
that when writers intermingle history   
with prophecy1 we are at a loss to know 
which is which4 ,i cannot forbear to    
mention the ludicrous story of ,elisha1 
the children1 the bears that devoured   
the children of men1 as you are pleased 
to call them4 ,whether ,elisha did this 
as a prophet1 ,i cannot but declare my  
abhorrence at your approbation of such  
abominable cruelty1 to murder           
individuals because they bestowed the   
appellation of ,baldhead on another4    
,according to the laudable custom of the
 church1 you appeal to a miracle1 and   
conclude1 that if ,god wrought a miracle
 it must have been just4 ,i suppose this
 comparatively as when he destroys whole
 cities for the sins of a few2 but this 
is the very ground on which every       
crusader supported his massacres2 and   
every man may imitate the conduct of    
,ahod1 the treacherous murderer1        

patronised by ,jehovah1 without         
incurring the blame of a ,bishop4       
,whether the ridiculous tale which you  
take for a sign of ,god1 most probably  
of his cruelty1 converted any person1 is
 not known2 but as the event most       
undoubtedly never happened1 you may     
suppose what you please4 ,to murder them
 is not the way to ingratiate ourselves 
with our fellow-citizens4 ,if any person
 set a few bull-dogs on some children1  
and pretended to do so by authority from
 heaven1 he would most undoubtedly be   
taken up by our officers of justice4 ,in
 what respect do these brutal prophets  
differ from ,mahomet1 who decided all   
disputes by the sword8 ,their business  
was to exterminate and murder by the    
direct commands of ,god4  ,the writings 
of ,ezekiel are considerably truncated4 
,the very beginning of his prophecies   
shows it4 ,the conjunction and texture  
of the whole work refers to something   
that ought to have preceded it4 ,he     
begins saying1 ,that in the #cjth year  

the heavens opened1 and he saw visions  
of ,god4 ,and in ver4 #e1 he adds1 ,that
 the ,lord had inspired him often in    
,chaldea1 which refers to some          
prophecies written in that period4      
,besides1 ,josephus's work1 book #aj1   
chap4 ix4 of the ,jewish antiquities1   
says1 ,that ,ezekiel had prophecied that
 ,zedekiah should never see ,babylon4   
,this is no where found in ,ezekiel1    
but1 on the contrary1 in chap4 xi4 and  
xii4 he says1 ,that the king would be   
carried a prisoner to ,babylon4  ,as to 
,daniel1 ,i have already noticed the    
great similarity between the first book 
of ,esdras and his1 and the probability 
that they came from the same author4    
,the seven first chapters1 except the   
first1 were written in ,chaldean1 and   
are by the most learned thought to be   
taken from ,chaldean chronologists4 ,it 
is also thought by men of great         
learning1 that the books of ,esdras1    
,daniel1 and ,esther1 were altered a    
long time after ,judas ,maccabeus1      

because it appears evident that ,esdras 
could not have written the whole of     
them1 since ,nehemiah carries the       
genealogy of ,jesuhga1 the sovereign    
,pontiff till ,jaddua1 the sixteenth in 
number1 who after the defeat of ,darius 
went to meet ,alexander4 ,and ,nehemiah1
 ver4 #bb1 ,the ,levites1 in the days of
 ,eliashib1 ,joiadah1 and ,johanan1 and 
,jaddua1 were recorded chief of the     
fathers2 also the priests1 to the reign 
of ,darius the ,persian4 ,we have no    
reason to believe that ,esdras or       
,nehemiah could survive fourteen kings  
of ,persia1 ,cyrus having been the first
 who gave the ,jews permission to       
rebuild the temple1 from whom to ,darius
 there are #bcj years4  ,i now come to  
the famous prophecy of the seventy weeks
 of ,daniel1 which you exultingly       
mention as the most wonderful1 and1 at  
the same time1 the most incontrovertible
 prediction in existence1 one which     
never can fail to confound the most     
perverse unbeliever4 ,if ,i prove1 that 

so far from being the surprising        
prophecy you pretend1 it has altogether 
a different meaning1 and can nowise     
apply to the coming of ,christ1 ,i shall
 think myself fully excused1 if ,i do   
not go through every individual         
prediction in the ,bible4 ,the passage  
alluded to is in ,daniel1 chap4 ix4 ver4
 #bd1 to #bg1 as follows3 ,seventy weeks
 are determined upon thy people1 and    
upon thy holy city1 to finish the       
transgression1 and to make an end of    
sins1 and to make reconciliation for    
iniquity1 and to bring in everlasting   
righteousness1 and to seal up the       
vision1 and prophecy1 and to anoint the 
most holy4 ,know1 therefore1 and        
understand1 that from the going forth of
 the commandment to restore and build   
,jerusalem1 unto the ,messiah1 the      
prince1 there shall be seven weeks2 and 
threescore and two weeks the streets    
shall be built again1 and the wall1 even
 in troublous times4 ,and after         
threescore and two weeks shall ,messiah 

be cut off1 but not for himself2 and the
 people of the prince that shall come1  
shall destroy the city1 and the         
sanctuary1 and the end thereof shall be 
with a flood1 and unto the end of the   
war desolations are determined4 ,and he 
shall confirm the covenant with many1   
for one week2 and1 in the midst of the  
week1 he shall cause the sacrifice and  
oblation to cease2 and for the          
overspreading of abominations1 he shall 
make it desolate1 even until the        
consummation1 and that determined shall 
be poured upon the desolate4  ,this     
passage is generally applied to the     
coming of ,christ4 ,the seventy weeks   
are supposed to mean weeks of years1 or 
seven years each4 ,now it is evident1   
that it cannot apply to ,jesus ,christ2 
for if from going forth of the          
commandment in the time of ,artaxerxes  
,longimanus1 until the coming of the    
,messiah1 there were to be seven weeks  
or forty-nine years1 how does this agree
 with what follows8 ,after threescore   

and two weeks 7or three hundred and     
seventy-four years7 shall ,messiah be   
cut off4 ,and again1 ,he shall confirm  
the covenant with many for a week4 ,did 
then ,jesus ,christ live four hundred   
and twenty-three years1 or are there two
 ,messiahs predicted8 ,dr4 ,frideaux    
acknowledges that some parts of this    
prophecy are so injudiciously printed in
 the ,english translation of the ,bible1
 that they are quite unintelligible2 his
 alteration is in the punctuation1 and  
according to it we read1 that1 from the 
going forth of the commandment to       
restore and build ,jerusalem1 to the    
,messiah1 the ,prince1 shall be seven   
weeks1 and threescore and two weeks2 and
 in verse #bg1 he puts the half of the  
week1 instead of the midst4 ,the        
explanation of the prophecy as thus     
altered1 he gives as follows4 ,from the 
commandment given to ,ezra by           
,ar-taxerxes ,longimanus1 to the        
accomplishment of it by ,nebemiah       
forty-nine years1 or the first seven    

weeks2 from this accomplishment to the  
time of ,christ's messenger ,john the   
,baptist sixty-two weeks1 or four       
hundred and thirty-four years2 from     
thence to the beginning of ,christ's    
public ministry1 half a week1 or three  
years and a half2 and from thence to the
 death of ,christ1 half a week1 or three
 years and a half2 in which half week he
 preached and confirmed the gospel with 
many2 in all1 from the going forth of   
the commandment1 till the death of      
,christ1 seventy weeks1 or four hundred 
and ninety years4  ,in the first place1 
we confidently assert that ,dr4         
,prideaux followed his fancy1 not the   
original ,hebrew1 when he altered the   
punctuation4 ,he is1 however1 justified 
in the alteration of half of a week2    
but1 granting all1 let us see how it    
applies4 ,did the ,messiah come after   
seven weeks from the commandment of     
,ar-taxerxes ,longimanus8 ,the          
explanation only says1 that ,nehemiah   
finished the work which ,ezra began4    

,what has this to do with the ,messiah  
coming at the end of the first seven    
weeks8 ,the prophet says1 that after    
threescore and two weeks1 the street and
 the wall shall be built4 ,again1 and   
previously1 that after the commandment  
for the city to be built1 the ,messiah  
shall come in seven weeks4 ,the learned 
divine1 on the contrary1 makes ,daniel  
say1 that ,john the ,baptist began to   
preach the kingdom of the ,messiah      
sixty-nine weeks after the commandment1 
and in the first seven weeks he talks of
 nothing but building the temple4       
,again1 how does the oblation cease in  
half a week8 ,in fact1 the same         
objection occurs here1 as to the passage
 as it is written in our ,bibles4       
,daniel speaks quite clear1 when he     
says1 that from the going forth of the  
commandment to restore and build        
,jerusalem1 unto the ,messiah1 the      
,prince1 shall be seven weeks4 ,if we   
find1 in whatever explanation of the    
prophecy1 that ,christ did not come     

forty-nine years after this commandment1
 and that he did not live four hundred  
and thirty-four years afterwards1 the   
whole must be an untruth4 ,and1 if the  
first period of seven weeks is united   
with that of threescore and two1 that   
is1 if the period of rebuilding the     
city1 and of the coming of the ,messiah 
be the same1 then let divines inform us 
whether this really came to pass1 and   
reconcile it with what follows1 in ver4 
#bf1 that the city is to be destroyed at
 the same time4 ,did ,christ confirm any
 covenant with many for seven years8    
,let us attempt to unriddle this enigma4
 ,the passage evidently talks of two    
,messiahs1 or makes one live upwards of 
four hundred years2 and is altogether   
unintelligible as it stands4 ,for the   
better understanding of it1 ,i shall    
quote some previous part of the same    
chapter1 ver4 #a4 ,in the first year of 
,darius1 the son of ,ahasuerus1 of the  
seed of the ,medes1 which was made king 
over the realm of the ,chaldeans4 #b4   

,in the first year of his reign1 ,i1    
,daniel1 understood by books1 the number
 of the years whereof the word of the   
,lord came to ,jeremiah the prophet1    
that he would accomplish seventy years  
in the desolations of ,jerusalem4 #c4   
,and ,i set my face unto the ,lord ,god1
 to seek by prayers and supplications1  
with fasting1 and sackcloth1 and ashes4 
#d4 ,and ,i prayed unto the ,lord my    
,god1 and made my confession1 and said4 
,after this follows his prayer1 until   
the #bjth verse2 and1 in the #bast the  
angel began to unfold a prophecy to     
,daniel1 which begins in verse #bd1 and 
he promises to explain the mystery that 
had so much grieved ,daniel1 that is1   
the prophecy of ,jeremiah2 then follows 
the passage ,i have quoted3 the         
alterations ,i conceive ought be made in
 the reading of which1 ,i now proceed to
 mention4 ,in verse #be1 the sentence   
stops after the seven weeks1 as it is in
 the ,english ,bible1 because in the    
original we find here the stop ,atnach4 

,in verse #bf1 instead of1 shall        
,messiah be cut off8 we ought to read1  
the oblation shall cease4 ,this is the  
real meaning of the expression in the   
original1 according to ,tertullian1     
,eusebius1 and ,theodoretus4 ,eusebius  
says1 ,unctum 7vel ,christum7 nihil     
aliud esse quam successionem            
,pontificum1 quos unctos nominare ,s4   
,literae consueverunt4 ,the ,hebrew     
properly signifies perdetur unctio4     
,theodoretus understands by this word1  
the same as sacerdotes uncti4 ,excidetur
 unctus1 signifies the same as the      
oblation shall be abolished2 for the    
verb excido does not always signify to  
kill1 but is applied to whatever falls  
into disuse that was once in practice1  
or any thing that perishes4 ,it is in   
this sense used in many parts of ,kings 
and ,chronicles4 ,samuel says1 excidi de
 altare4 ,in ,jeremiah1 chapter xxxvii4 
ver4 #ah1 the verb is used in the same  
sense1 non de sacerdotibus ,levitis     
excidet ur homo coram me1 which is given

 in ,english1 neither shall the priests1
 the ,levites1 want a man 7or cease to  
have a man7 before me4 ,in verse #bg1   
and he shall confirm the covenant with  
many for one week1 means no more than   
the exemption of calamities1 and is     
tantamount to1 he shall let many remain 
in peace1 as in ,genesis1 chap4 vi4 ver4
 #ah1 it is used in this sense4  ,to    
understand the real meaning of this     
pretended prophecy1 the reader will     
remember1 that ,daniel mourned for the  
#gj weeks of captivity prophesied by    
,jeremiah2 the vision of ,daniel took   
place in the first year of ,darius1     
,king of ,chaldea1 that is1 in the year 
#afb of ,nebuchadnezzar2 but1 in chap4  
x4 of ,daniel we learn1 that he ate no  
pleasant bread1 neither came flesh and  
wine into his mouth1 till three whole   
weeks were fulfilled4 ,now1 the term    
weeks is used in the ,bible             
indiscriminately for weeks of years1 or 
of days2 here it appears clear it       
signifies the former1 particularly as   

the whole relates to the #gj years of   
,jeremiah2 and the angel1 in chap4 x4   
ver4 #ad1 tells ,daniel1 in the same    
figurative style1 ,now ,i am come to    
make thee understand what shall befall  
thy people in the latter days1 for yet  
the vision is for many days4 ,if then   
,daniel wept three weeks of years1 or   
#ba years1 from the destruction of the  
temple1 in the year #ada to the time of 
the vision in #afb1 7the angel1 chap4 x4
 ver4 #ac1 says1 that the prince of     
,persia withstood him #ba days1 or      
years71 it is easy to see what ,daniel  
means4 ,jeremiah had prophesied a       
captivity of #gj years1 of these1 three 
weeks or #ba years were past2 therefore 
,daniel1 after entreating ,god to tell  
him how many more years were wanting1   
received for an answer what follows1 ,at
 the beginning of thy supplications1 the
 commandment came forth1 and ,i am come 
to show thee4--,seventy weeks are       
determined upon thy people to seal up   
the vision and prophecy1 that is to     

complete the prophecy of ,jeremiah2 and 
we find1-therefore1 that from the       
issuing the commandment to restore the  
,jews1 and to build ,jerusalem1 or more 
properly from the revelation of the     
angel1 7exitu ,verbi71 promising that   
,jerusalem should be rebuilt1 ver4 #bc1 
to the coming of the ,messiah1 the      
prince1 or ,cyrus1 who freed the ,jews  
from the captivity1 there were to be    
seven weeks1 or #di years1 which1 added 
to the three weeks already past1 made   
the #gj years of ,jeremiah4 ,cyrus is by
 ,isaiah called the ,lord's anointed3   
,thus saith the ,lord to his anointed1  
to ,cyrus1 whose right hand ,i have     
holden1 to subdue nations before him for
 ,jacob my servant's sake4 ,cyrus gave1 
at that time1 liberty to the ,jews1 as  
the reader may see in ,ezra4 ,it is     
evident1 that the word commandment      
cannot mean any express order to build  
,jerusalem1 for the angel says1 just    
before he reveals the prophecy1 at the  
beginning of thy supplications the      

commandment came forth we know that     
,daniel began to address prayers unto   
heaven1 at a time when there was no     
order to build the temple1 on the       
contrary1 the ,jews were in captivity4  
,this is the most difficult part of the 
pretended prophecy1 the remainder is    
plain4 ,there shall be #fb weeks till   
the rebuilding of the wall4 ,the writer 
alludes here to the building of the     
first temple under ,zerubbabel and      
,jeshua1 and then to the rebuilding of  
the wall1 and restoration of the temple 
by ,judas ,maccabeus1 after its         
profanation by ,antiochus ,epiphanes4   
,the period of this last event is by the
 prophecy made to extend to #fc #a_/b   
weeks1 or #ddd years4 ,let us see if    
chronology confirms this supposition4   
,the temple was destroyed in the #adast 
year of ,nabuch1 or #dajg of the ,julian
 period2 add to this #ddd years1 or #fc 
weeks and a half1 and we have the year  
#deea1 or the second year of ,judas     
,maccabeus1 according to ,josephus2 who 

also informs us1 that having conquered  
his enemies1 he then built a wall about 
,sion1 which is clearly meant in the    
words1 the street shall be built again1 
and the wall1 even in troublous times1  
#a ,maccab4 chap4 iv4 ver4 #fj4 ,at that
 time also they builded up the mount    
,sion with high walls1 c4 ,troublous the
 times certainly were2 the ,jews were   
fighting against the cruelty of         
,antiochtis ,epiphanes4 ,it is certain  
then1 that after #cdc years1 or #fi     
weeks1 the wall should be built1 and    
although it was not really completed    
till about ten years after1 it is       
presumable that the loose historian1 or 
prophet1 did not choose to alter the    
beautiful idea of #gj ,weeks4 ,we know  
how superstitiously the ,jews respected 
not only the number #g1 but all its     
different affections4 ,we are besides   
informed1 in the first book of          
,maccabees1 that after the first        
depredation of ,antiochus1 the people   
rebuilt the city of ,david1 and made    

walls and forts2 this happened some     
years before the building of the wall by
 ,judas1 and brings the prediction      
nearer to historical accuracy4  ,the    
next part of the prophecy is1 ,and after
 threescore and two weeks shall         
sacrifices cease2 this means in the     
course of the week that succeeds the    
#fb4 ,and1 no doubt1 ,antiochus         
,epiphanes abolished them in the seventh
 year of his reign1 as we read in ,i    
,maccab4 chap4 i4 ,and the people of the
 prince that shall come1 shall destroy  
the city and the sanctuary4 ,this       
,antiochus most certainly did1 and went 
up 7,antiochus7 against ,israel and     
,jerusalem with a great multitude1 and  
entered proudly into the sanctuary1 and 
took away the golden altars1 also he    
took the hidden treasures1 and there was
 great mourning in ,israel1 #a ,maccab4 
,j4 ,and the end thereof shall be with a
 flood1 and unto the end of the war     
desolations are determined4 ,the coming 
of ,antiochus into ,jerusalem is        

pompously detailed in the first book of 
,maccabees3 the ,jews compared a great  
calamity1 or an invading and            
irresistible army1 to a flood4 ,let us  
proceed with the remainder3 ,and he     
shall confirm the covenant with many for
 a week1 this alludes to the first seven
 years of the reign of ,antiochus1      
during which he did not interfere with  
the worship of the ,jews1 although he   
gave liberty to those who chose to be   
heathens to follow their respective     
worship3 it was in the end of the sixth1
 and in the beginning of his seventh    
year that he attacked the ,jews1        
destroyed the temple1 plundered it of   
its riches1 and made himself the tyrant 
of ,judea4  ,the last part of the       
passage is as follows3 ,and in the half 
of a week he shall cause the oblation   
and sacrifice to cease1 and1 ,i have    
only to observe1 that1 from the taking  
of the city by ,antiochus1 to the       
absolute forbidding ,jewish worship1    
there elapsed about three years and a   

half1 or half a week1 for he came to    
,jerusalem in the #adc;d year of the    
kingdom of the ,greeks1 and the erecting
 of idols was in the year #ade2 after   
which1 he continued to persecute the    
,jews1 and promote idolatry1 until the  
year #adh4 ,now ,antiothus attacked     
,jerusalem at the end of his sixth year1
 to which1 if we add two years and three
 months1 we have pretty exactly the     
period of half a week1 or three years   
and a half4 ,the expression1 the        
spreading of abominations1 evidently    
alludes to what is said in ,maccabees1  
chap4 i4 ver4 #cd4 ,now the fifteenth   
day of the month ,casleu1 in the #adeth 
year1 they 7the followers of ,antiochus7
 set up the abomination of desolation   
upon the altar1 and builded idol altars 
throughout the cities of ,judah1 on     
every side4 ,daniel says1 chap4 xii4    
ver4 #aa1 speaking of his vision1 and   
from the time that the daily sacrifice  
shall be taken away1 and the abomination
 that3 maketh desolate set up1 there    

shall be 7that is between the first     
interdict of ,antiochus1 and the setting
 up of idols7 #abij days2 which is a    
little more than three years and a half4
 ,the wonderful prophecy is then        
unriddled1 it becomes a contemptible    
piece of history in an affected style4  
,i trust the explanation which ,i have  
given1 after ,marsham1 will appear      
satisfactory4 ,i challenge ,bishop      
,watson to produce a plausible          
explanation of the passage according to 
the sense of the church4 ,it may not be 
improper to observe1 that ,clemens      
,alexandrinus1 many of the fathers1     
,calmet1 and other persons of great     
knowledge1 have flatly denied the       
application of the weeks of ,daniel to  
,jesus4 ,those who espouse your cause   
lose sight of the context of ,daniel1   
they forget chronology1 and evince to   
what a pitch of delusion their minds    
have arrived4  ,this is the famous      
prophecy that silenced the ,jewish      
rabbins of ,venice2 it is of a pattern  

with ,daniel's four beasts2 the fourth  
is also a story of ,antiochus ,epiphanes
 and ,judas who slays the beast4 ,judas 
is the son of man coming in clouds2 he  
is the person of whom the prophets      
speak1 and who has most ridiculously    
been distorted to ,jesus ,christ4 ,this 
farrago of prophecies seems to have been
 the production of ,esdras or some very 
late writer2 and ,i am not sure1 but the
 doctrine of the ,pythagorean millennium
 gave rise to some of the expressions in
 both writers1 about the beasts3 they   
seem to have sprung from the same origin
 with those of the ,apocalypse2 and with
 the four ,indian horses1 they crept    
among the ,jews1 together with many     
other ,chaldean mythological ideas3 the 
,ancient of ,ancients appears in his    
fiery car as ,osiris triumphant1 or     
,chreeshna conquering ,chiven2 the books
 are opened before him1 as his kingdom  
is everlasting1 like that of ,vishnu    
with the ,vedams4 ,but visions so       
ridiculous as that of ,daniel deserve   

not our consideration2 whatever be their
 source they are but reveries1 and may  
serve to amuse idle people in their     
ridiculous speculations about the       
world's end4 ,like ,swedenburgh1 men may
 dream1 and interpret their own dreams1 
and like him have the mortification to  
be laughed at for the non-accomplishment
 of their predictions4 ,we have had of  
late another ,daniel in ,mr4 ,brothers2 
he too saw beasts1 and1 what is more1 he
 understood their meaning2 but          
unfortunately we are not ,jews1 and he  
is cruelly imprisoned in a madhouse4  ,i
 have now followed your animadversions  
on the objections of ,thomas ,paine upon
 the ,old ,testament2 and ,i trust ,i   
have shown that you have in no degree   
been a more successful labourer in the  
cause of ,judaism than your             
predecessors2 even your wonderful       
prophecy of ,daniel is converted into a 
mere historical tale1 and the           
application ,jesus ,christ makes of it  
to himself is accordingly proved to be  

ridiculous1 the more so1 as it comes    
from the ,son of ,god4 ,i have a few    
more observations to make1 before ,i    
leave this book4 ,i cannot pass in      
silence the gross blunder you have      
committed1 when you refer ,mr4 ,paine to
 ,ferguson for an astronomical proof of 
the miracle of the total darkness at the
 crucifixion of ,jesus4 ,an odd conceit1
 upon my word6 ,you might know that the 
event is omitted by all the authors of  
eminence who wrote at that time2 that   
even ,pliny passes it unnoticed4 ,lest  
you should mislead the reader with your 
groundless assertions1 ,i shall state   
the matter as it stands in reality4 ,you
 avoid learned disquisitions to be      
intelligible1 but you ought not to have 
been so deficient of authority1 where it
 is most needed4 ,besides the gospels1  
the darkness is not mentioned in any    
author2 but divines have attempted to   
prove the event from a supposed passage 
of ,phlegon1 related by ,eusebius2 it is
 in the following words3 ,in the fourth 

year of the two hundred and second      
,olympiad1 there was the greatest       
eclipse ever seen2 it was night at six1 
and even the stars could be seen4 ,this 
passage has long been disregarded by men
 of knowledge2 it alludes to an eclipse1
 not to a miraculous darkness4 ,both    
,mr4 ,ferguson and you have blundered in
 chronology and astronomy4 ,it is       
certain1 in the year of ,christ's       
crucifixion1 according to the common    
chronology1 there could have been no    
eclipse of the sun visible at that time 
at ,jerusalem2 ,ferguson1 therefore1    
concludes it a miracle4 ,but you ought  
to have known1 that the fourth year of  
the two hundred and second ,olympiad1 is
 not the year of the crucifixion in any 
system of chronology2 that there was an 
eclipse of the sun1 in the year         
mentioned by ,phlegon1 in the month of  
,november1 which1 however1 was not      
central2 and you know that ,jesus is    
said to have died at the time of the    
full moon in ,march1 or in the beginning

 of ,april4 ,besides1 had even such a   
darkness taken place1 are you ignorant  
of the existence of comets1 and would   
not one passing between the earth and   
the sun eclipse that luminary8 ,have not
 such miracles taken place if we credit 
historians8 ,the death of ,caesar was   
preceded by wonderful prodigies1 and a  
comet made its appearance immediately   
after4 ,the supposed miraculous         
influence of comets1 and their being    
prophetic signs1 was once an article of 
faith throughout all ,europe1 and the   
ancient history of every country records
 many events which the authors maintain 
arose from comets4  ,your reflections on
 prophets ,i cannot pass unnoticed4 ,you
 pretend to make a distinction between  
dreamers1 and impostors1 and true       
prophets4 ,you acknowledge the number of
 soothsayers and fortunetellers among   
the ,jews2 but you maintain that they   
were altogether distinct from the true  
prophets1 and appeal to ,jeremiah1 who  
puts the ,jews on their guard against   

false prophets4 ,does not every quack1  
every impostor1 do the same1 and caution
 the world to beware of counterfeits8   
,you might have saved a great deal of   
trouble1 had you condescended to produce
 your proofs of the genuineness of the  
writings of the prophets2 and then we   
might enquire concerning the works of   
these augurs4 ,you pretend that a sure  
mark of the reality of a prophet is his 
predicting bad things1 for a            
fortune-teller always prophecies good4  
,pardon me if ,i suppose you a follower 
of ,mr4 ,brothers4 ,for surely the      
destruction of ,london was not a most   
desirable event4 ,it is in vain you     
attempt to turn ,mr4 ,paine into        
ridicule for his definition of a        
prophet4 ,he most justly calls them     
strolling-poets1 fortune-tellers2 being 
in ,judea what the gipsies1 the augurs1 
and the astrologers have been in other  
nations4 ,the ,hebrew word ,navi        
signifies nothing but an orator1 a      
public speaker1 and is by the ,jews     

applied1 in a forced way1 to soothsayers
 and diviners4 ,it is incontrovertible  
that they existed among the ,jews in    
colleges1 and were brought up to the    
business4 ,their chief employment was to
 write the chronicles of the times4 ,the
 name prophet is given in the ,bible    
indiscriminately with that of holy man4 
,among the ,hebrews1 the first book of  
,kings was called the prophecy of       
,samuel4 ,abel is called repeatedly in  
the ,new ,testament a prophet1 7see     
,matth4 chap4 xxiii4 ver4 #ca and #ce1  
and ,luke chap4 xi4 ver4 #ej and #ea71  
although we have no account of his      
having predicted any4 ,among the ,jews  
there certainly were fortune-tellers1   
necromancers1 and witches1 all of which 
you rank among the impostors4 ,but had  
not the witch of ,endor a real power of 
incantation8 ,did she not most          
wonderfully raise up the spirit of      
,samuel8 ,or are we to look upon the    
story of the witch of ,endor in the same
 light as those of modern witches8 ,that

 the prophets of the ,jews were         
repeatedly deceived1 we cannot have the 
smallest doubt when #djj of these       
gentlemen told a downright lie to ,ahaz4
 ,but you have a very easy expedient in 
all these cases4 ,when a prophet tells a
 lie1 you may1 as was done in this      
particular case1 attribute it to a      
design of ,god to cheat the person who  
consults his oracles1 just as ,jupiter  
did of old to ,agamemnon when he sent   
him the false dream4  ,you reproach     
,thomas ,paine for want of candour4 ,he 
has not1 you say1 examined the general  
design of the ,old ,testament ,there he 
would find the benevolence of the ,god  
of the ,jews1 and his infinite goodness 
in selecting them from among the        
nations1 in preserving them from        
idolatry4 ,if he chose this people he   
has certainly exposed them to continual 
sufferings1 and all for no other purpose
 than to teach mankind that idolatry is 
the greatest of crimes2 that to avoid   
it1 murder1 plunder1 the crusades1 the  

inquisition1 persecution1 may all be    
laudable means for the preservation of  
the faith of nations4 ,thus1 the        
cherished people1 who were most intimate
 with their ,god1 committed the most    
enormous crimes1 under the pretence of  
preserving pure their adoration of the  
implacable ,god ,jehovah4 ,did not all  
the endeavours of ,jehovah to rescue    
nations from idolatry prove fruitless8  
,this despicable creature man has been  
able to effect what mighty ,jehovah     
never accomplished4 ,science is the only
 antidote against all kinds of          
superstition4 ,did ,cicero adore stocks 
or stones8 ,or did ever any learned man 
among the heathens humble himself before
 idols8 ,has not the principal branch of
 the church of ,christ been notorious   
idolaters8 ,but what avails all this8   
,have you proved that the ,heathens     
emulated in the transcendent            
flagitiousness of their lives1 the      
impure morals of their gods8 ,you assert
 it2 but unluckily it is one of the many

 unsupported and assumed propositions in
 your pamphlet4 ,did nations necessarily
 imitate the conduct of their gods1 ,i  
would tremble at being among the        
followers of the bloody ,jehovah4 ,the  
heathens were certainly dreamers in     
their adoration of the planets2 we are  
taught by science1 that these bodies    
resemble our earth in the general laws  
that govern them4 ,it was natural for   
rude men to gaze at the sublimity of the
 stupendous fabric1 the refulgency of   
the sun2 the blessings derived from his 
genial influence could not be           
contemplated without admiration by the  
amazed and fearful savage4 ,idolatry is 
ridiculous3 but have you proved that    
,jehovah deserves more to be revered    
than the ,great ,whole of nature1       
whether called ,pan1 or otherwise       
disguised in emblems1 than the harmony  
of the planets designed by symbols1 the 
generative powers by ,venus1 or the     
vivifying light emanating from the      
bright orb of ,apollo8 ,confess at      

least1 that the allegorical adoration of
 nature could only deceive the multitude
 who were kept in ignorance by their    
priests4 ,if you are candid1 you must   
acknowledge1 that the ,polytheists were 
tolerant1 that the ,atheists or ,deists 
lectured close1 to the temple4 ,they did
 not exterminate nations1 establish     
inquisitions1 murder unbelievers as the 
,jews1 and the ,christians2 although1 as
 you observe1 they received the gift of 
,god through ,jesus ,christ1 and were   
made alive by the covenant of grace4    
,in what consists the superiority of the
 ,jewish or ,christian notions of ,god8 
,jehovah is a being incomprehensible2 he
 is a jealous and a revengeful ,god1 he 
hardens men's hearts1 and sacrifices    
whole nations to a particular people1   
who1 in their turn1 are sacrificed for  
the boasted scheme of general good1     
which is never the nearer being         
accomplished4 ,he must be adored and    
revered1 and yet he does not make       
himself known to man4 ,he does not even 

show himself face to face to any but    
,moses4 ,you pay no great compliment to 
his omnipotence1 when you observe1 that 
probably he could not give to such a    
being as man a full manifestation of the
 end for which he designs him1 nor of   
the means requisite for that end2--and1 
that it may not be possible for the     
,father of the universe to explain to   
us1 infants in apprehension1 the        
goodness and the wisdom of his dealings 
with the sons of man4 ,jehovah1 in      
short1 equally the offspring of fancy   
with the ,heathen ,jupiter1 is as cruel 
as ,moloch1 and1 like other productions 
of the brain1 an invisible phantom1 to  
which priests give the passions of a    
tyrant2 and1 in their desire that he    
should reign alone1 that men should not 
worship other deities1 his ministers    
have preached up this ,god1 and the     
multitude1 eager to admire what they    
cannot comprehend1 have followed the    
mandates of the pretended interpreters  
of his will4 ,still1 however1 the       

greatest number of ignorant men are1 and
 will ever be1 idolaters2 in vain their 
spiritual guides preach up              
incomprehensible and ideal beings in an 
unintelligible jargon2 man will always  
seek to satisfy his senses4 ,even the   
immediate presence of ,jehovah1 and his 
horrid massacres1 could not prevent the 
favourite nation from following other   
gods4 ,even the inspired1 the wise1 the 
royal ,solomon forsook the ,god of      
,israel1 holy1 just1 and good1 for the  
impure rabble of heathen ,baalim4       
,according to your nations1 according to
 the doctrines of the ,jewish and the   
,christian churches1 the sole aim of    
,god has been to be exclusively adored1 
and jealousy is his prominent feature4  
,it is not in the pursuit of knowledge1 
or in the practice of morality that he  
delights4 ,the precepts of social virtue
 occasionally scattered through the     
,old1 as well as the ,new ,testament1   
can make little impression when         
contrasted with the vindictive cruelty  

of the ,deity4 ,the ,jewish ,jehovah    
requires nothing of his followers but   
their compliance in executing his bloody
 commands against nations whom he calls 
impious1 because he has not revealed    
himself to them4 ,the man after his own 
heart1 is the murderer of thousands of  
innocent people4 ,christ orders his     
followers to despise the reason he has  
given them1 to avoid pleasure1 to hate  
the world1 and to love pain1 to pray1   
and to spend their lives in continual   
mortification1 and in gazing over       
unintelligible mysteries to acquire his 
kingdom4 ,if they fail to believe in    
him1 whether from ignorance or from     
conviction1 he punishes them with       
eternal damnation1 or as ,saint         
,athanasius emphatically expresses it in
 his celebrated creed1 ,whosoever       
believeth in these things shall be      
saved2 and whosoever believeth not shall
 be damned4     ,,letter ,,vii4  ,i now 
bring under review a few passages from  
,holy ,writ1 which ,i leave to your     

,lordship to explain1 and which scoffers
 pretend to say are undeniable proofs of
 the stupidity of the ,jews1 and gross  
ideas they had of ,god4 ,i shall follow 
the order of the books without          
attempting an arrangement4  ,genesis1   
chap4 iii4 ver4 #a4 ,now the serpent was
 more subtle than any beast of the field
 which the ,lord had made2 and he said  
unto the woman1 yea hath ,god said1 c4  
,this ,mr4 ,serpent would make a fine   
figure in sop's fables4 ,they say it    
means the ,devil1 but how does that     
appear8  ,in ver4 #bb4 and #bc4 ,and    
behold the ,lord said1 the man is become
 one of us1 7i4 e4 one of us ,gods71 to 
know good and evil1 ,and now lest he put
 forth his hand1 and take also of the   
tree of life1 and eat1 and live for     
ever2 therefore1 the ,lord ,god sent him
 forth from the garden of ,eden1 to till
 the ground from whence he was taken4   
,this shows strongly that boasted       
attribute of ,god1 ,jealousy4 ,is it    
consistent with a ,deity to punish this 

pair1 and all their progeny1 for their  
attempt to know good from evil8 ,we here
 find that the priests have made ,god   
expressly after their own image4 ,god's 
selfishness prevented men from eating of
 the other tree1 which would make him   
live for ever4 ,queritur1 then1 at what 
period of the world did the soul of man 
become immortal8 ,was it not till ,jesus
 ,christ came8 ,and was this tree a type
 of him1 as the bread and wine are at   
this day8 ,it appears also1 that it was 
not one1 but two trees1 that were       
prohibited6  ,ib4 chap4 xxxii4 ver4 #bd4
 ,and ,jacob was left alone1 and there  
wrestled a man with him1 until the      
breaking of the day2 7this shows the    
antiquity and high authority of         
sparring72 and when he saw that he      
prevailed not against him1 he touched   
the hollow of his thigh 7,mendoza like73
 and the hollow of ,jacob's thigh was   
out of joint1 as he wrestled with him4  
,and he said1 let me go1 for the day    
breaketh4 ,and he said1 ,i will not let 

thee go1 unless thou bless me4 ,and he  
said unto him1 what is thy name8 ,and he
 said1 ,jacob4 ,and he said1 thy name   
shall be called no more ,jacob1 but     
,israel2 7which1 in ,chaldee signifies  
seeing ,god72 for as a prince hast thou 
power with ,god and with men1 and hast  
prevailed4 7,or1 as the ,vulgate more   
correctly translates1 for if thou hast  
been to oppose the ,lord1 how much more 
shall thou prevail against men74 ,and   
,jacob called the name of the place     
,penial3 for ,i have seen ,god face to  
face4 ,this passage requires no comment4
  ,exodus1 chap4 iii4 ver4 #d4 ,and when
 the ,lord saw that he 7,moses7 turned  
aside to see1 ,god called unto him out  
of the bush1 and said1 ,moses1 ,moses4  
,and he said1 here am ,i4 ,this is a    
pretty play at bo-peep4  ,ib4 ver4 #ad4 
,and ,god said unto ,moses1 ,i am that  
,i am2 and he said1 thus shalt thou say 
unto the children of ,israel1 ,i am hath
 sent me unto you4  ,divines hold this  
passage to be a great instance of       

sublimity666  ,ib4 ver4 #ba4 ,and ,i    
will give this people favour in the     
sight of the ,egyptians1 and it shall   
come to pass1 that when ye go away1 ye  
shall not go empty1 but every woman     
shall borrow of her neighbour1 jewels of
 silver1 and jewels of gold1 and        
raiment3 and ye shall put them upon your
 sons1 and your daughters1 and ye shall 
spoil the ,egyptians4  ,here the ,jews  
made ,god after their own image2 and the
 dealings of that nation in silver1     
gold1 and clothes1 at this day1 show    
that they have not forgotten their ,god4
 ,it is not easy for divines to         
reconcile this with ,god's other precept
 in the eighth commandment4  ,ib4 chap4 
iv4 ver4 #bd4 ,and it came to pass by   
the way in the inn1 7by the way1 were   
there inns then in ,egypt87 that the    
,lord met him 7,moses7 and sought to    
kill him666 ,then ,zepporah took a sharp
 stone1 and cut off the foreskin of her 
son1 and cast it at his feet4  ,this    
business of the circumcision is brought 

in rather by the head and the shoulders1
 and the cause of it is not quite clear2
 but it is very evident that the ,lord  
could not kill ,moses4  ,ib4 chap4      
xxxii4 ver4 #bg4 ,and he 7,moses        
learning that the ,jews had made a      
golden calf71 said unto them1 7the sons 
of ,levi1 i4e4 the priests17 thus saith 
the ,lord ,god of ,israel1 put every man
 his sword by his side1 and go in and   
out from gate to gate throughout the    
camp1 and slay every man his brother1   
and every man his companion1 and every  
man his neighbour2 and the children of  
,levi did according to the word of      
,moses1 and there fell of the people    
that day about three thousand4  ,ib4    
chap4 xxxiii4 ver4 #i4 ,and it came to  
pass1 as ,moses entered into the        
tabernacle1 the pillar descended1 and   
stood at the door of the tabernacle1 and
 the ,lord 7who was in the pillar7      
talked with ,moses4  ,in this manner    
modern goddesses stop their carriages at
 shop-keepers' doors at this day4  ,ib4 

ver4 #ij4 ,and he 7,god7 said1 thou     
canst not see my face1 for there shall  
no man see me and live4 ,god must here  
have forgotten his dialogue with ,adam  
and ,eve1 his wrestling with ,jacob1 and
 conversations with ,moses4 ,in         
,numbers1 chap4 xii4 ver4 #f and #h1 he 
says1 ,hear now my words3 ,if there be a
 prophet among you1 ,i1 the ,lord1 will 
make myself known to him in a vision1   
and will speak to him in a dream1 but1  
with thee 7,moses7 will ,i speak mouth  
to mouth1 even apparently1 and not in   
dark speeches1 and the similitude of the
 ,lord shall you behold4  ,ib4 chap4    
xxi4 ver44#e4 ,and the people spoke     
against ,god1 and against ,moses1       
wherefore have ye brought us up out of  
,egypt to die in the wilderness1 for    
there is no bread1 neither is there any 
water1 and our soul loatheth this light 
bread4 ,no wonder the ,jews tired of    
living upon manna without water1 but the
 ,lord taught them not to grumble4 ,and 
the ,lord sent fiery serpents among the 

people1 and they bit the people1 and    
much people of ,israel died4 ,when ,god 
was tired of making his serpents bite   
the poor devils1 he said unto ,moses1   
,make thee1 a fiery serpent1 and set it 
upon a pole1 and it shall come to pass1 
that every one that is bitten when he   
looketh upon it shall live4 ,this is    
below all the tricks of necromancers4   
,ib4 chap4 xxv4 ,and the people began to
 commit whoredom with the daughters of  
,moab4 ,and ,israel joined himself unto 
,baal-peor3 and the anger of the ,lord  
was kindled against ,israel4 ,and the   
,lord said unto ,moses1 take all the    
heads of the people1 and hang them up   
before the ,lord against the sun1 that  
the fierce anger of the ,lord may be    
turned away from ,israel4 ,and ,moses   
said unto the judges1 slay every one of 
these men who were joined unto          
,baal-peor4 ,and behold one of the      
children of ,israel came1 and brought   
unto his brethren a ,midianitish woman1 
in the sight of ,moses1 c4 ,and when    

,phinehas1 the son of ,eleazar1 the son 
of ,aaron the priest1 saw it1 he rose   
from among the congregation1 and took a 
javelin in his hand2 and he went after  
the man of ,israel into the tent1 and   
thrust both of them through1 the man of 
,israel1 and the woman through her      
belly1 so the plague was stopped from   
the children of ,israel1 and these that 
died in the plague were #bd1jjj4 ,as a  
reward for this1 the ,lord gave         
,phinehas the everlasting priesthood1   
because he was zealous for his ,god1 and
 made an atonement for the children of  
,israel4  ,ib4 chap4 xxvi4 ,dathan1     
,korah1 and ,abirim strove against      
,moses and ,aaron1 and the earth        
swallowed them up1 and the fire devoured
 #bej men4  lb4 chap4 xxxi4 ver4 #af1   
there was a plague among the            
congregation of the ,lord1 on account of
 the tres pass against the ,lord1 when  
he ordered thus1 ,now1 therefore1 kill  
every male among the little ones1 and   
kill every woman that hath known man by 

lying with him2 but all the women       
children that hath not known man by     
lying with him1 keep for yourselves4    
,for the observation on this passage1 ,i
 refer my reader to ,bishop ,watson1 and
 the former part of this work4  ,the    
following ought to be the fate of all   
idolatrous people1 and has been happily 
practised in the discoveries made by    
most ,european nations4 ,deuteronomy    
chap4 xiii4 ver4 #ac4 ,thou shalt surely
 smite the inhabitants of that city with
 the edge of the sword1 destroying it   
utterly1 and all that is therein1 and   
the cattle thereof1 with the edge of the
 sword4  ,joshua1 chap4 vi4 v4 #ba4 ,and
 they utterly de-1 stroyed all that was 
in the city1 7,jericho71 both man and   
woman1 young and old1 and ox1 and sheep1
 and ass1 with the edge of the sword4   
,and they burnt the city with fire1 and 
all that was therein3 only the silver1  
and the gold1 and the vessels of brass1 
and of iron1 they put it into the       
treasury of the house of the ,lord4     

,chap4 x4 ,joshua being attacked by five
 kings1 and they having taken shelter in
 a cave1 he caused great stones to be   
rolled to the mouth of the cave1 till he
 followed and destroyed the people1 then
 he ordered the five kings to be brought
 out from the cave1 ,and it came to     
pass1 that when they brought out those  
five kings unto ,joshua1 that ,joshua   
called for all the men in ,israel1 and  
said unto the men of war1 come near1 put
 your feet upon the necks of these      
kings1 and they came near1 and put their
 feet upon the necks of them4 ,and      
afterwards ,joshua smote them1 and slew 
them1 ,joshua took ,makdekah1 and smote 
it with the edge of the sword1 and the  
king thereof he utterly destroyed1 them1
 and all the souls that were therein2 he
 let none remain4 ,and so he did in all 
to #ca kings1 as related in this and the
 following chapters1 and all this by the
 express command of ,god1 who made the  
sun and the moon both stand still to    
witness these unprovoked atrocities4    

,but this was just2 ,god having given   
that country to his chosen people the   
,jews1 as in latter times his vicegerent
 the ,pope gave ,america to the         
,portuguese and ,spaniards1 who1        
,joshua-like1 exterminated the kings and
 people1 because they were not          
,christians4 ,this1 as you say1 serves  
the general scheme of ,god's benevolence
 towards mankind4  ,judges1 chap4i4 ver4
 #d4 ,and the ,lord having delivered the
 ,canaanites and the ,perizzites into   
the hands of ,judah1 ,they slew of them 
in ,bezek #ajjj men4 ,but ,adonibezek   
fled1 and they pursued after him1 and   
caught him1 and cut off his thumbs1 and 
his great toes4 lb4 ver4 #ai- ,and the  
,lord was with ,judah1 and he drove out 
the inhabitants of the mountain1 but    
could not drive out the inhabitants of  
the valley6 ,why8 ,because they had     
chariots of iron4 ,chap4 iv4 recounts   
the manner in which ,deborah and ,barak 
delivered ,israel from ,jabin and       
,si-aera4 ,ver4 #ba4 ,then ,jael1       

,hebber's wife1 7to whose tent ,sisera  
had fled71 took a nail of the tent1 and 
a hammer in her hand1 and went softly   
unto him1 and smote the nail into his   
temples1 and fastened it into the       
ground1 7a goodly nail71 for he was fast
 asleep and weary1 so he died4 ,chap4   
#e1 contains the beautiful song of      
,deborah and ,barak1 which ,i           
particularly request my reader to       
peruse1 as a finished piece of scripture
 praise of good words4 ,chap4 xxi4      
relates1 that the ,israelites having    
sworn not to give their daughters to the
 ,benjamites1 and the inhabitants of    
,jabesh-gilead not having come up to    
,minzeh1 the congregation sent #ai1jjj  
men of the valiantest1 and commanded    
them1 saying1 go and smite the          
inhabitants of ,jabesh-gilead with the  
edge of the sword1 with the women and   
the children3 utterly destroy every     
male1 and every woman that hath lain by 
man2 but1 having found #djj young       
virgins that had known no man by lying  

with any male1 they gave them to the    
sons of ,benjamin1 and yet so they      
sufficed them not4 ,so as they had sworn
 not to give them wives of their own    
daughters1 therefore1 they commanded the
 children of ,benjamin1 saying1 go and  
lie in wait in the vineyards1 and see1  
and behold1 if the daughters of ,shiloch
 come out to dance in dances1 then come 
ye out of the vineyards1 and catch you  
every man his wife4  ,first ,samuel1    
chap4 vi4 ,the ark of the ,lord having  
been among the ,philistines seven       
months1 they1 unwilling to send it back 
empty1 asked the priests and diviners1  
what they should send in it as a        
trespass offering8 they answered1 five  
golden emerods1 and five golden         
mice1---and ye shall give glory unto the
 ,god of ,israel1--and make a new cart1 
and take two milch kine1 and take the   
ark of the ,lord and lay it on the cart2
 and they did so1 and they of           
,beth-shemesh lifted up their eyes1 and 
saw the ark1 and rejoiced to see        

it1--and the men of ,beth-shemesh       
offered burnt-offerings1 and sacrificed 
sacrifices the same day unto the        
,lord1--and he smote the men of         
,beth-shemesh1 because they had looked  
into the ark of the ,lord1 even he smote
 of the people fifty thousand and       
threescore and ten men4 ,gracious ,god6 
,blessed ,jews6  ,second ,samuel1 chap4 
xxiv4 ver4 #a4 ,and the anger of the    
,lord was kindled against ,israel1 and  
he moved ,david against them to say1 go 
number ,israel and ,judah4 7,in first   
,chronicles1 chap4 xxi4 ver4 #a1 it     
stated1 and ,satan stood up against     
,israel1 and provoked ,david to number  
,israel47 ,and having thus instigated   
,david to do what is good policy in a   
king1 ,god1 of his infinite mercy1 said 
unto ,david by his prophet ,grad1       
,david's seer1 7an officer of the       
household in those days71 ,i offer thee 
three things3 shall seven years of      
famine come unto thee in thy land1 or   
wilt thou flee three months before thine

 enemies1 or that there be three days   
pestilence in thy land8 ,and ,david     
having chosen the latter1 the ,lord sent
 a pestilence upon ,israel1 and there   
died of the people #gj1jjj men but the  
,lord is ever merciful1 for1 when the   
angel stretched out his hand upon       
,jerusalem to destroy it1 the ,lord     
repented him of the evil1 and said to   
the angel that destroyed the people1 it 
is enough1 stay thou thine hand1        
,delirant reges1 plectuntur ,achivi4  #a
 ,kings1 chap4 ii4 ,david being upon his
 death-bed1 having made peace with ,god1
 and purified his heart1 called ,solomon
 to him and gave him his last charge4   
,as to ,joab1 the son of ,zeruiah1 he   
said1 do according to thy wisdom1 and   
let not his hoar head go down to the    
grave in peace1--and behold thou hast   
with thee ,shimei the son of ,gera1     
which cursed me1 but he came down to    
meet me at ,jordan1 and ,i sware to him 
by the ,lord1 saying1 ,i will not put   
thee to death by the sword2 now1        

therefore1 7proceeds the man after      
,god's own heart71 hold him not         
guiltless2 for thou art a wise man1 and 
knowest what thou oughtest to do unto   
him1 but his hoar head bring thou down  
to the grave with blood4 ,solomon having
 succeeded his father1 the first act of 
his reign was to put to death his       
brother ,adonijah4  #a ,kings1 chap4 xi4
 ver4 #d1 ,solomon's heart was not      
perfect with the ,lord his ,god1 as was 
the heart of ,david his father1 for it  
came to pass1 that1 when he was old1 his
 wives turned his heart after other     
gods4 ,but why go through such barbarous
 details8 ,all along we find            
imprecations against those who despise  
the prophets1 and praises lavished upon 
murderers1 traitors1 and assassins4     
,this is the people selected by the     
wisdom of ,god1 that they might witness 
to the whole world in successive ages   
his existence and attributes1 that they 
might be an instrument of subverting    
idolatry1 of declaring the name of the  

,god of ,israel throughout the whole    
earth a people1 who are to us witnesses 
of the existence1 and of the moral      
government of ,god4--,this is the ,old  
,testament1 which you presume to say    
afforded matter for the laws of ,solon1 
and a foundation for the philosophy of  
,plato1--which has been admired and     
venerated for its piety1 its sublimity1 
its veracity1 by all who are able to    
read and understand it666 ,this is the  
,god who maketh the sun to rise on the  
evil and on the good1 who is all        
perfection1 all wise1 and all powerful1 
and whose mercy is above all his other  
attributes4  ,,the ,,end4