A dissertation on the true age of the world : $b in which is determined the chronology of the period from creation to the Christian eraWallace, R. (Robert)
Religion
A dissertation on the true age of the world : $b in which is determined the chronology of the period from creation to the Christian era
Wallace, R. (Robert)
Bible; Chronology; Chronology, Historical
In regard to the _Extent_ of this age, Josephus is made to say, in the
present text, that Abraham “was born in the 292d year after the
flood;”[75] while the summation of the _Antepaidogonian ages_ gives 993
years, to which adding the age of Abraham at the Call, we have 1068
years! As we can scarcely suppose Josephus to have been guilty of so
extraordinary an absurdity as to commit an arithmetical error of this
magnitude, we cannot only attribute the discrepancy to the evil design
of his transcribers, and say “an enemy hath done this!” Moreover, the
same wicked hand that dared to alter this and other numbers of our
author, has no doubt, also dared to omit here the genealogy of the
_Second Cainan_. Nor can we see what good purpose it could serve to make
him say that “Arphaxad the son of Shem, was born 12 years after the
flood,” instead of 2, as in the Sacred text; and that “Nahor when he was
120 years old begat Terah,”[76] instead of 79, as in the Septuagint. But
since in these details, Josephus has in general adopted the numbers of
the Septuagint, it is plain that he must have followed the same
authority in their sum total, and that the sum of 292 years must have
been inserted instead of the true sum of 1072 years, by some early
advocate or supporter of the Hebrew chronology. Besides, we have shown
in our preceding remarks on the _Extent_ of the _First age_, that
Josephus has prefixed a number to his _first Book_, which in reality
belongs to his _first and second Books_, and which includes the extent
of the _first three ages_, all but 6 years. That number is 3833 years, a
period wholly inexplicable on any other principle than that which Mr.
Cuninghame has laid down. To him, we are therefore justly indebted for
its true and satisfactory explication; and he has clearly shown that
Josephus must have originally inserted in his Antiquities, the true
number of 1072 years, from the Deluge to the birth of Abraham; although
the text is now so vitiated that it cannot be made out from the place in
question.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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