A Philosophical Dictionary, Volume 09 — Voltaire — John Shaqi
A Philosophical Dictionary, Volume 09
Voltaire · en
The prophet Jurieu was hissed; the prophets of the Cévennes were hanged
or racked; the prophets who went from Languedoc and Dauphiny to London
were put in the pillory; the Anabaptist prophets were condemned to
various modes and degrees of punishment; and the prophet Savonarola was
baked at Florence. If, in connection with these, we may advert to the
case of the genuine Jewish prophets, we shall perceive their destiny to
have been no less unfortunate; the greatest prophet among the Jews, St.
John the Baptist, was beheaded.
Zachariah is stated to have been assassinated; but, happily, this is not
absolutely proved. The prophet Jeddo, or Addo, who was sent to Bethel
under the injunction neither to eat nor drink, having unfortunately
tasted a morsel of bread, was devoured in his turn by a lion; and his
bones were found on the highway between the lion and his ass. Jonah was
swallowed by a fish. He did not, it is true, remain in the fish's
stomach more than three days and three nights; even this, however, was
passing threescore and twelve hours very uncomfortably.
Habakkuk was transported through the air, suspended by the hair of his
head, to Babylon; this was not a fatal or permanent calamity, certainly;
but it must have been an exceedingly uncomfortable method of travelling.
A man could not help suffering a great deal by being suspended by his
hair during a journey of three hundred miles. I certainly should have
preferred a pair of wings, or the mare Borak, or the Hippogriffe.
Micaiah, the son of Imla, saw the Lord seated on His throne, surrounded
by His army of celestial spirits; and the Lord having inquired who could
be found to go and deceive King Ahab, a demon volunteered for that
purpose, and was accordingly charged with the commission; and Micaiah,
on the part of the Lord, gave King Ahab an account of this celestial
adventure. He was rewarded for this communication by a tremendous blow
on his face from the hand of the prophet Zedekiah, and by being shut up
for some days in a dungeon. His punishment might undoubtedly have been
more severe; but still, it is unpleasant and painful enough for a man
who knows and feels himself divinely inspired to be knocked about in so
coarse and vulgar a manner, and confined in a damp and dirty hole of a
prison.
It is believed that King Amaziah had the teeth of the prophet Amos
pulled out to prevent him from speaking; not that a person without teeth
is absolutely incapable of speaking, as we see many toothless old ladies
as loquacious and chattering as ever; but a prophecy should be uttered
with great distinctness; and a toothless prophet is never listened to
with the respect due to his character.
Baruch experienced various persecutions. Ezekiel was stoned by the
companions of his slavery. It is not ascertained whether Jeremiah was
stoned or sawed asunder. Isaiah is considered as having been
incontestably sawed to death by order of Manasseh, king of Judah.