mediately the angel of the Lord fmote him, because he gave not God the glory, and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghoft."

" He

Jof. Ant. lib. xix. c. 8, fec. 2. went to the city Cefarea. Here he celebrated fhows in honour of Cefar. On the fecond day of the shows, early in the morning, he came into the theatre, dreffed in a robe of filver of most curious workmanship. The rays of the rifing fun, reflected from fuch a fplendid garb, gave him a majestic and awful appearance. They called him a god, and entreated him to be propitious to them, faying, Hitherto we have respected you as a man, but now we acknowledge you to be more than mortal. The king neither reproved thefe perfons, nor rejected the impious flattery.-Immediately after this he was feized with pains in his bowels, extremely violent at the very firft.-He was carried therefore with all hafte to his palace. Thefe pains continually tormenting him, he expired in five days time."

The

The reader will perceive the accordancy of these accounts in various particulars. The place (Cefarea), the fet day, the gorgeous dress, the acclamations of the affembly, the peculiar turn of the flattery, the reception of it, the fudden and critical incurfion of the disease, are circumftances noticed in both narratives. The worms mentioned by St. Luke are not remarked by Josephus, but the appearance of thefe is a symptom, not unufually, I believe, attending the disease which Jofephus defcribes, viz. violent affections of the bowels.

VI. (p. 41.) Acts xxiv. 24. "And after certain days, when Felix came with his wife Drufilla, which was a Jewefs, he sent for Paul."

Jof. Ant. lib. xx. c. 6, fec. 1, 2.“ Agrippa gave his fifter Drufilla in marriage to Azizus, king of the Emefenes, when he had confented to be circumcifed-But this marriage of Drufilla with Azizus was diffolved in a fhort time after, in this manner :-When Felix was procurator of Judea, having had a fight

of

of her, he was mightily taken with her-She was induced to tranfgrefs the laws of her country, and marry Felix."

Here the public ftation of Felix, the name of his wife, and the fingular circumstance of her religion, all apppear in perfect conformity with the evangelift.

ઠંડ

VII. (p. 46.) "And after certain days, King Agrippa and Bernice came to Cefarea to falute Feftus." By this paffage we are in effect told, that Agrippa was a king, but not of Judea; for he came to falute Feftus, who at this time administered the government of that country at Cefarea.

Now how does the hiftory of the age correfpond with this account? The Agrippa here fpoken of, was the fon of Herod Agrippa mentioned in the laft article ; but that he did not fucceed to his father's kingdom, nor ever recovered Judea, which had been a part of it, we learn by the information of Jofephus, who relates of him, that, when VOL. II. L

his

his father was dead, Claudius intended, at first, to have put him immediately in poffeffion of his father's dominions; but that, Agrippa being then but feventeen years of age, the emperor was perfuaded to alter his mind, and appointed Cuspius Fadus prefect of Judea and the whole kingdom*; which Fadus was fucceeded by Tiberius Alexander, Cumanus, Felix, Feftus t. But that, though disappointed of his father's kingdom, in which was included Judea, he was nevertheless rightly ftyled King Agrippa; and that he was in poffeffion of confiderable territories bordering upon Judea, we gather from the fame authority; for, after feveral fucceffive donations of country, "Claudius, at the fame time that he fent Felix to be procurator of Judea, promoted Agrippa from Chalcis to a greater kingdom, giving to him the tetrarchie which had been Philip's; and he added moreover the kingdom of Lyfanias, and the province that had belonged to Varus

* Ant. xix. c. 9, ad fin.

+ Ib. xx. De Bell. lib. ii.

De Bell. lib. ii. c. 12, ad fin. i

St.

St. Paul addreffes this perfon as a Jew: "King Agrippa, believeft thou the prophets? I know that thou believeft." As the fon of Herod Agrippa, who is described by Jofephus to have been a zealous Jew, it is reasonable to fuppofe that he maintained the fame profeffion. But what is more material to remark, because it is more close and cir cumftantial, is, that St. Luke, speaking of the father, (xii. 1. 3.) calls him Herod the king, and gives an example of the exercife of his authority at Jerufalem: speaking of the fon, (xxv. 13.) he calls him king, but not of Judea; which distinction agrees correctly with the history.

they had

"And when

VIII. (p. 51.) Acts xiii. 7. gone through the ifle (Cyprus) to Paphos, they found a certain forcerer, a falfe prophet, a Jew, whofe name was Barjefus, which was with the deputy of the country, Sergius Paulus, a prudent man."

The word, which is here tranflated deputy, fignifies Proconful, and L 2

upon this word

our