Online Bible 1995 March/ROM-1025.iso/olb/gill/3_100_t.lzh/3_110.TXT

Text File | 1994-08-18 | 7KB | 132 lines

building.] By threatening them, or by dissuading the
workmen from going on, by endeavouring to hinder
their having materials from the Tyrians and Zidonians,
or money out of the king's revenues to bear the ex-
penses as ordered; see ch. vi. 4.
Ver. 5. And hired counsellots against them, to frus-
trate their purpose, &c.] Either to advise and persuade
the king of Persia's officers in those parts not to supply
them with money, or to influence the great men at his
court to get the edict revoked: and this they did all
the days of Cyrus king of Persia; who, though the
hearty friend and patron of the Jews, yet being engaged
in wars abroad with the Lydians and Scythians, and
leaving his son as viceroy in his absence, who was no
friend unto them, the work went on b. ut slowly, at-
tended with interruptions and discouragements: even
until the reign of Darius king of Persia; who was
Darius Hystaspis, between whom and Cyrus were
Cambyses the son of Cyrus, and Smerdis the impostor,
who pretended to be Smerdis, the brother of Cam-
byses; a space of about 15 years.
Vet. 6. And in the reign of Ahasuerus, in the begin-
ning of his reign, &c.] According to Jarchi, this was
Ahasuerus the husband of Esther; but, as most think {d},
was Cambyses, the son and successor of Cyrus; so
Josephus{e}; who was an enemy to the Egyptians; and,
fearing the Jews might take part with them, was no
friend to them; their enemies therefore took the ad-
vantage of the death of Cyrus, and the first opportunity
after Cambyses reigned in his own right: and wrote
they unto him an accusation against the inhabitants of
dudah and Jerusalem; full of hatred and enmity, spite
and malice, charging them as a turbulent, disobedient,
and rebellious people.
Ver. 7. And in the days of Artaxerxes, &c.] The
same with Ahasuerus, in the preceding verse; and
who also is Cambyses, which is his name in Heathen
authors, Artaxerxes being a common name to the
kings of Persia; though some f think this was Smerdis,
the magician and impostor, who was between Cam-
byses and Darius; but as he reigned but seven months,
it is not very likely that he should be wrote unto, and
an answer received from him ; besides he sent to every
nation he ruled over g, and so to the Jews, and pro-
claimed to them freedom from tribute and the militia
for three years, to ingratiate himself to them: wrote
Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of their com-
panions.; or his company; for Jarchi thinks ohly one
person is meant; that Mithredath Tabeel is the name
of one of the adversaries of Judah; and that Bishlam
is an appellative, and signifies that he wrote in peace,
or in a way of salutation and greeting; but they seem
to be the names cf governors in the cities of Samaria
under the king of Persia: these wrote to Artsxerxes
king of Persia; instigated by the Samaritans: and the
writing of the letter was written in the Syrian tongue, and
interpreted in the Syrian tongue; or Chaldee, of which
Ezra gives a copy in the Chaldee language; the mean
lug either is, that it was written both in Syriac letters.
and in the Syriac language; for sometimes words are
written in one language and in the character of an-
other, as the Syriac is sometimes written in, Hebrew
characters, and the Hebrew in Roman; or else there
was a postscript added to this letter, explaining some
things in it, which also was written in the same lan-
guage: some take {h} the word nishtevan, rendered writ-
ten, to be the name of a province on the borders of the
country beyond Euphrates, whose figure and charac-
ters were in high esteem, and fit to write in to kings;
but the words and language were Syrian, and needed
interpretation.
Vet. 8. Rehum- the chancellor, and Shimshal the
scribe, wrote a letter against Jerusalem to Artaxerxes
the king in this sort..] This means the same letter as
before; which, according to Jarchi, was sent in the
name of Mithredath Tabeel and his company, was en-
dited by Rehum, master of words or sense, and written
by Shimshal the scribe, whom he makes to be a son
of Haman{i}; but it was written rather in all their
names.
Ver. 9. Then wrote Rehum the chancellor, and Shimshai
the scribe, and the rest of their companions, &c.
signed the letter; namely, the governors of the follow-
ing nations; the Dinaires, the Apharsathchites, the
Tarpelites, the Apharsites, the Archevites, the Babylo-
ninns, the Susanchites, the Dehavites, and the Elamites ;
which were colonies from several parts of Chaldea,
Media, and Persia, and were settled in the several
cities of Samaria, as several of their names plainly
shew, as from Persia, Arech, Babylon, Shushan, and
Elimais; some account for them all, but with uncer-
tainty; according to R. Jose {k} these were the Samari-
tans who first were sent out of five nations, to whom
the king of Assyria added four more, which together
make the nine here mentioned, see 2 Kings xvii.
Ver. 10. And the rest of the nations whom the great
and noble Asnapper brought over, &c.] The river
Euphrates: and set in the cities of Samaria; placed
there in the room of the Israelites carried captive;
this Asnapper was, according to Jarchi and others
Sennacherib; but, with Grotius, Salmaneser; rather
he was Esarhaddon, the son of the former, and grand-
son of the latter; so Dr. Prideaux {m}; though he might
be only some commander of the Assyrian monarch,
who carried them over by his orders: and the rest that
are on this side the river; the river Euphrates: and at'
such a time; which may respect the date of the letter,,
which, no doubt, was expressed, though not here.
given; or this, as some think, was the same with our
&c. something following, unto King Artaxerxes greet-
ing, or something like that; though David de Pomis
takes it to be the general name of the people beyond,
the river.
Ver. 11. This is the copy of the letter they sent unto


{d} Spanhem. Introduct. Chron. ad Hist. Eccl. p. 54. & Universal His-
tory, Vol. 5. p. 203. Prideaux, p. 175.
{e} Ut supra, sect. 4, 6. Vid. R. David Ganz. Tzemach David, par. 2.
fol. 8. 2. So Dr. Lightfoot, Works, vol. 1. p. 139.
{f} Prideaux's Connect. par. 1. p. 175. Authors of the Universal
History, vol. 5. p. 199, 203. So Vitringa, Hypotypos. Hist. Sacr.
p. 108.
{g} Herodot. Thalia, sive, l. 3. c. 67. Justin. l. 1. c. 9.
{h} Praefat. Arugas Habbosem apud Buxtorf. de liter. Heb. add.
{i} So Midrash Esther, fol. 85. 3.
{k} Pirke Eliezer, c. 38.
{l} Kimchi Sepher Shorash. fol. 166. 2. & Vajikra Rabba in ib. T. Bab.
Sanhedrin, fol. 94. 1.
{m} Connexion, &c. vol. 1. p. 30.
{n} Tzemach David, fol. 63. 3.