a vain recollection of their former successes, celebrating their dead heroes, and intermingling perhaps the praises of some of their countrymen that were alive, who had done great exploits, according to the practice of modern Arabs. Instead of this, the Prophet says to Gath, Lay aside your songs of pleasing commemoration of past times, and those that are expressive of present consolation, derived from the great qualities of some of your fellow citizens the silence of apprehension better becomes

you. From Gath he turns to Acco, and alluding to its name, he bids that city not to weep, the Hebrew word bacah, signifying he weeps, resembling in sound Acco: a figure of speech formerly much in use, and greatly admired.

This, however, most certainly is to be explained in a manner consistent with what is said to the other cities and districts of that country; for I can by no means suppose, that Acco was to be exempted from having a share in the afflictions that were coming on the other cities of the sea-coast, and the adjoining country. Now if that be supposed to be determined, its not weeping must be understood in a sense consistent with their feeling bitter sorrow.

Accordingly we may observe, that when Ziklag was taken by the Amalekites, David and the people that were with him lift up their voice, and wept until they had no more power to weep. . And David was greatly distressed: for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved (or bitter)

every man for his sons, and for his daughters, 1 Sam. xxx. 4, 6. Here was great anguish of soul without weeping; nay, it was its extreme bitterness that stopped their tears. In like manner, when Ezekiel was a sign to Israel, and was to represent to them, by what he did, the extreme distress they should feel from the Chaldeans, the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, Son of man, behold, I take away from thee the desire of thine eyes with a stroke: yet neither shalt thou mourn nor weep, neither shall thy tears run down; for, says he, the desire of your eyes, and that which your soul pitieth, and your sons and your daughters whom ye have left, shall fall by the sword. And ye shall do as I have done:. ye shall not mourn nor weep, but ye shall pine away for your iniquities, and mourn one towards another, (or secretly.) Ezekiel xxiv. 16, 21, 22, 23. In some such sense, I apprehend, we are to understand the clause concerning Acco. O Gath, lay aside singing the praises of thy heroes! Acco, let excess of grief and terror put a stop to tears! Thou country between Gath and Acco, thou house of dust, roll thyself in the dust through bitterness of heart!

We may go on, I think, and, conformably to the explanation I have been giving of the house of dust, understand the inhabitant, or, according to the margin, the inhabitress of Saphir, now yoshebet shapheer, of the people of the country lying on the more southern part of the sea-coast, as those of the house of uh

VOL. III.

dust mean those to the North of it. For that country is represented by modern travellers as extremely pleasant, and the margin of our translation tells us, the inhabitress of Saphir means, thou that dwellest fairly, or hast a good heritage, according to our version of the 16th Psalm, ver. 6, The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.

Where the house of dust ends, and the more delightful country may be supposed to begin, I shall not attempt to determine with precision; but would transcribe a passage from Signior Lusignan's account of Palestine, at the close of his History of the Revolt of Ali Bey. "About a mile and an half before you come to Joppa,' you cross a small rivulet, which is the only* running water in all this fertile country; you then descend a hill, and get into a road, which is covered on each side with orange and lemontrees."" He describes the road from Joppa to Rama, whose present state, he tells us, is very deplorable, but its situation however very pleasant; I say, he describes that road as very smooth and pleasant; the fields on each side abound with several sorts of flowers, and are planted with olive groves, and in some parts with cassia and senna trees, and other aromatic plants." The road from Joppa or Rama to Azotus, which is called by the Arabs Hasa

m

iHe means from the northward.

66

* No wonder the country before they came to this water, might be denominated the house of dust.

I P. 185.

• Or Ashdod.

m P. 190.

n

" P. 189.

neyun, "is pretty much of the same kind as that from Joppa to Rama and Lidda, except in some part of the country, where there are no large trees." As to Azotus, he says, "the

town is but thinly inhabited, though the situation is very pleasant." From Azotus to Gaza are twelve miles more: "the fields on each side of the road, as in the others, are planted with olive, and some palm-trees." The Baron de Tott travelled very little in the Holy Land, only from Joppa or Jaff, as he calls it, to Rames, by which we are to understand Rama; nevertheless the description he gives of this part of the country shows its pleasantness. 66 The space between the sea and the mountains is a flat country, about six leagues in breadth, extremely fertile. The fig-tree of India supplies it with hedges, and furnishes impenetrable barriers, which secure the fields of the different proprietors. Cotton is here the principal branch of commerce, and the industry of the inhabitants employs itself in spinning. This part of the Holy Land is very remarkable for the remains of the Crusades, with which it is covered.""

To this delightful situation the Prophet Micah opposes the wretchedness of the state of this people, when carried away into captivity : Pass ye away, thou inhabitant of a very plea

P. P. 197.

a P. 199.

r P. 200..

Memoirs, tome 4, p. 93. Lady M. W. Montague con. firms this, telling us this plant grows a great height, very thick, and the spikes or thorus are as long and sharp as bodkins." Vol. 3, p. 73.

sant country, not naked, but clothed with trees, and highly ornamented with flowers; being almost quite uncovered to thy dishonour, yea, having your shame naked, and exposed to the mocking eyes of your enemies.

If the inhabitant of Saphir, or the goodly country, means the people that dwelt near Joppa, and onwards to the Southward on that coast; and pass tsaanan is truly translated in the margin of our version the country of flocks, the accounts of modern travellers will lead us to suppose Gaza and its environs is the country

that is meant.

For Thevenot, in going from Egypt to Jerusalem, tells us, that having spent some days in the desert, on the 5th of April they came to a place, where, says he, "we began to see a very pleasant country, and some corn land: some time after we found a sibil of bitter water, which is close by Cauniones, where we arrived about three in the afternoon they have so many marble pillars there also, that their coffeehouses stand all upon such. There we began to see abundance of trees, and a great deal of good meadow-ground; and, indeed, both the cattle and inhabitants of that place, from the biggest to the least, are extremely fat. There is a very fair castle there, with a large open place in it. The Turks lodge in the castle, where there is a saka of very good water, and

t

Of this very indecent treatment of captives anciently, we read in several places of Scripture. Is. xlvii. 3, ch. xx. 4, &c.