In the forty-ninth chapter the writer gives an account of the ultimate fate of the tribes (forgetting the tribe of Manasseh altogether). How could Moses know anything of this? How could he speak of the sceptre of Judah? If it is said that this was prophetic of Jesus, we reply that the sceptre _was not_ in Judah when he (Jesus), was bora. St. Jerome, said to be one of the most learned of the Fathers, confesses he dare not affirm that Moses was the author of the Pentateuch. He even adds that he has no objection to allow that it was written by Esdras. His words are: "Sive Mosem dicere volueris auctorem Pentateuchi sive Esdram ejusdem instauratorem operis, non recuso." ** That Esdras composed these books is further proved in his first book, chap. 8, where it is said that he "had very great skill, and omitted nothing of the law" of the Lord, i.e., the laws of the king, and high priest. Moreover, learned critics have shewn that the Bible names of angels, such as Gabriel, Uriel, Raphael, Michael, Satan, etc., are purely Chaldean or Persian! And this is confirmed by the Talmud of Jerusalem, which says expressly that the Jews borrowed the names of the angels from the Babylonians. Even the name Israel is not a Hebrew but a Chaldee word, as was fully explained by Philo Judæus, when on his embassy to the Emperor Caligula. This corroborates the opinion that, in the portions of the Pentateuch which existed only in tradition, previous to the captivity at Babylon, the angels had no names, and that they were afterwards added when these traditions were written. For instance, when Abraham entertained Jehovah and the two angels with roasted veal,* the party gave themselves no names; and those heavenly messengers whose virginity was so much endangered by the men of Sodom, when they honored Lot with a visit, were anonymous also; as was likewise the one that appeared to Manoah. The legend contained in the book said to be written by Enoch, concerning the war in heaven, fall of the angels, etc., must have travelled from India to Chaldea, where it was picked up by the Jews. It arose from one of the astro-fables in that most ancient of all books, the Shastras of the Brahmins, wherein it is recorded that heavenly beatitude was disturbed by the pride and ambition of Mozazor and Raabon, two princes of the angelic bands, who stirred up sedition, and drew after them myriads of angels in rebellion against the _Eternal_, who sent against them his vicegerent Brahma, with his two lieutenants, Vishnu and Siva, armed with almighty power, who hurled the rebels from heaven down to a place of darkness, called Ondera. This ancient fable of the Brahmins was probably the groundwork also of the Grecian fable of the Titan war.