senes, on his consenting to embrace the Jewish religion. But she did not remain long with him: For Felix having seen this most beautiful of women, as Josephus calls her, (Ant. xx. 5.), became violently in love with her, and sent his friend Simon, a Jew of Cyprus, who possessed the magic art, to persuade her to leave Azizus and marry him. This commission Simon executed so well, that Drusilla, to avoid the affronts put upon her by her sister Bernice, who envied her beauty, consented to marry Felix, though it was contrary to her religion.

This Drusilla having expressed a desire to hear Paul preach, her husband Felix sent for him, and they heard him concerning the faith in Christ. On that occasion Felix's conscience was awakened to such a degree by Paul's sermon, that he trembled. Nevertheless, he continued his cruel and unjust practices all the time his government lasted, which was about the space of two years: for Nero, in the sixth year of his reign, recalled him. After Felix was recalled, some of the principal Jews followed him to Rome, and accused him to the Emperor, who would have punished him, if it had not been for the prayers and entreaties of his brother Pallas, who then possessed the favour of Nero, as he had formerly done that of Claudius.

No. XXXI. He appealed from Festus to Cæsar.— That causes were by appeal removed from the courts in the provinces to Rome, is evident from Suetonius, who, in his life of Augustus, c. 33. 66 says, Appellationes quotannis urbanorum quidem litigatorum Prætori delegavit urbano, at provincialium, consularibus viris, quos singulos cujusque provincia negotiis præposuisset." And, that Roman citizens, tried for their life in the provinces, had a right to transfer their cause by appeal to Rome, is evident from Pliny, lib. x. epist. 97. Ad Trajanum: “Et alii similis amentiæ, quos quia cives Romani erant, annotavi in urbem remittendos."

No. XXXII. King Agrippa and his sister Bernice. -This is he who by Josephus is called King Agrippa the younger. He was the son of that Herod Agrippa whose death is related Acts xii. 23. and the grandson of Aristobulus, (whom his father put to death), consequently the great-grandson of the first Herod, called Herod the Great, in whose reign our Lord was born.

Herod Agrippa the younger was in great favour with the Emperor Claudius, who gave him the kingdom of his uncle Herod, king of Chalcis. But he afterwards took it from him, and gave him the tetrarchy of Philip, with Batanæa, Trachonitis, and Abilene, which formerly Lysanias possessed, Luke iii. 1. After this Nero gave him a part of Galilee, with the cities Tiberias, Tarrichæa, and Julias, beyond Jordan, with fourteen villages.

Herod the younger was the last king of the Herod family For he lived to see Jerusalem destroyed, and the Jewish nation sold as slaves to any who would purchase them. After that he went to Rome, where, as Dio informs us, he obtained prætorian honours, and lived in the palace with his sister Bernice. This is the lady mentioned in the Acts. She was first married to her uncle Herod, king of Chalcis: but after his death, being talked of as criminally familiar with her brother Agrippa, she married Polemon king of Cilicia, to quash that rumour. But soon after, influenced more by lewd inclination than by a regard to her reputation, she divorced Polemon, and returned to her brother; by which the rumour of their unlawful commerce was again revived.

Agrippa and Bernice were living together when Festus arrived in the province. They came therefore to Cæsarea, to congratulate Festus upon his advancement to the procuratorship. On that occasion, Agrippa having expressed a desire to hear Paul, Festus gratified him by pro

ducing the apostle, in the place of hearing, before him and Bernice, and the Tribunes, and all the principal men of Cæsarea so that the apostle had a new opportunity of speaking in his own defence; which he did to such good effect, that Agrippa declared, in the presence of the whole assembly, that he had done nothing worthy of death; and that he might have been set at liberty, if he had not appealed to Cæsar.

Tacitus has spoken of Bernice's beauty, and of the court which she paid to Vespasian by her magnificent presents, and of the love which his son Titus bare to her, Hist. lib. ii. c. 81. "Nec minore animo Regina Berenice partes juvabat, florens ætate formaque, et seni quoque Vespasiano, magnificentia munerum, grata." And, speaking of Vespasian's son Titus, the same -historian says, Hist. lib. ii. c. 2. Neque abhorrebat a Berenice juvenilis animus." Suetonius adds, that Titus promised to marry her: For, after mentioning Titus's cruelty, he speaks of his lust, c. 7. "Nec minus libido, propter exoletorum et spadonum greges, propterque insignem reginæ Berenices amorem, cui etiam nuptias pollicitus ferebatur." Nevertheless, after he became Emperor, he, for reasons of state, dismissed Bernice, though with great regret : Berenicen ex urbe dimisit, invitus invitam." Titus Vesp. c. 7.

No. XXXIII. He called on all the Jews present to bear witness.-Bishop Lowth, in his note on Isa. liii. 8. tells us, "It is said in the Mishna, that before any one was punished for a capital crime, proclamation was made before the prisoner by the public crier, in these words: Quicunque noverit aliquid de ejus innocentiâ, veniat et doceat de eo. On which passage the Gemara of Babylon adds, "That before the death of Jesus this proclamation was made for forty days, but no defence could be found.' On which words Lardner observes, 'It is truly surprising to see such falsehoods contrary to well-known facts,' Testimonies, vol. i. p. 198. The report is certainly false; but this false report is found on the supposition that there was such a custom, and so far confirms the account above given from the Mishna. The Mishna was composed in the middle of the second century Lardner ascribes it to the year of Christ 180.

"Now it is plain, from the history of the Four Evangelists, that in the trial and condemnation of Jesus no such rule was observed; (though, according to the account of the Mishna, it must have been in practice at that time); no proclamation was made for any person to bear witness to the innocence and character of Jesus ; nor did any one voluntarily step forth to give his attestation to it. And our Saviour seems to refer to such a custom, and to claim the beneft of it, by his answer to the high-priest, when he asked him of his disciples and of his doctrine: I spake openly to the world; I ever taught in the synagogue, and in the temple, whither the Jews always resort; and in secret have I said nothing. Why askest thou me? Ask them which heard me, what I have said unto them: Behold they know what I said;' John xviii. 20, 21. This therefore was one remarkable instance of hardship and injustice, among others predicted by the prophet, which our Saviour underwent in his trial and sufferings.

"St. Paul likewise, in similar circumstances, standing before the judgment-seat of Festus, seems to complain of the same unjust treatment-that no one was called, or would appear, to vindicate his character: My manner of life from my youth, which was at the first among my own nation at Jerusalem, know all the Jews, which knew me from the beginning, if they would testify, that after the strictest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee;' Acts xxvi. 4, 5."-Thus far Lowth.

To comprehend the force and propriety of the above appeal to the Jews who were present at the apostle's defence before Agrippa, the full extent of his expression, My manner of life, must be attended to and understood. For the apostle did not mean only, that all the Jews knew his education was at the first among his own nation at Jerusalem, but likewise that they knew the other particulars which he mentioned in the subsequent parts of his defence; namely, that after the strictest sect of their religion he lived a Pharisee,' ver. 5.- That he thought with himself that he ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth,' ver. 9.- That he did these things in Jerusalem: That many of the saints he shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests so to do. And that when they were put to death, he gave his voice against them,' ver. 10. alluding to his behaviour at the stoning of Stephen. That he punished them oft in every synagogue, and compelled them to blaspheme Jesus; and that being exceedingly mad against them, he persecuted them even to foreign cities,' ver. 11.-In particular, that he went to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests,' ver. 12. that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem,' Acts ix. 2. namely, to be punished.-All these things the Jews, who were present at his defence before Agrippa in Cæsarea, well knew. He therefore called on them in this public manner to attest the truth of them, because they were clear proofs of his bitter enmity to the Christians; and demonstrated, that his forsaking the party of the chief priests, and going over to the Christians, whereby he subjected himself to the hatred of the Jews, could be owing to nothing but to the appearing of Jesus to him on the road to Damascus; of which he gave Agrippa an account in the remaining part of his speech, ver. 12-15. At the same time he told

him, that Jesus said to him, 'I have appeared to thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness, both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in which I will appear unto thee afterwards. 19. Whereupon, O king Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision; 20. But shewed first to them of Damascus, &c. that they should repent, and do works meet for repentance.' He added, ver. 22. That in his discourses to the Jews and Gentiles, he said no other things than those which the prophets and Moses did say should come; 23. That the Christ should suffer, and should be the first who should rise from the dead, and should shew light to the people, and to the Gentiles.'The apostle having given this account of his conversion to Christianity, and of the doctrine which he taught after he became a Christian, the one appeared so rational, and the other so consonant to the writings of Moses and the prophets, that Agrippa entertained a favourable opinion of Paul, and declared that he had done nothing worthy of death, or of bonds.

No. XXXIV. The island was called Melite.-Bryant, Observat. on Ancient History, contends, that this island was not Malta, because Malta is not in the Adriatic Sea, notwithstanding Bochart endeavours to prove it to be so; but it was an island belonging to Dalmatia, called anciently Melitè, but is now called Mileet by the Sclavonians, and is subject to Ragusa. In support of his opinion Bryant cites ancient authors, who, in enumerating the Adriatic islands, mention Melitè very particularly, and say that it was twenty stadia distant from Corcyra Melena; and among the rest Pliny, Nat. Hist. lib. iii. c. 26. who reckons it among the Adriatic islands, and adds, "Unde Catulos Melitæos appellari Callimachus autor est."

1