grieved them exceedingly that there was come a man to feek the welfare of the children of Ifrael. And again: But it came to pass that when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Afbdodites heard that the walls of Jerufalem were made up, and that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very wroth, and confpired all of them together, to come and to fight against Jerufalem and to binder it. When force would not do, they af fayed fraud: Now it came to pass, when SANBALLAT, and TOBIAH, and GESHEM the Arabian, and the reft of our enemies heard that I had builded the wall, and that there was no breach left therein, then Sanballat and Gefhem fent unto me, faying, Come, let us meet together in fome one of the villages in the plain of Ono: but they thought to do me mischief. The Writer of the book of Tobit seems to have had this idea of the three friends, where he fays: Nam ficut beato Fob infultabant Reges, ita ifti parentes & cognati ejus irridebant vitam ejus". But we are to obferve this is now only to be found in the Latin tranflation, which St. Jerom tells us, he made from the Chaldee. But, what is ftill of more moment, is a paragraph at the end of the Septuagint tranflation of the book of Job, which makes of these three friends, two Kings and a Tyrant. ་ The marks of resemblance between the allegerical and real perfons, are many and strong. Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar are delivered as the allies and friends of Job: So Sanballat the Horonite had given his daughter to one of the fons of Joiada the fon of Eliashib the high priest': And NEHEM. ii. 9, 10. vi. ver. 1, 2. f Chap. iv. ver. 7, 8. Chap. G 3 Tobiah had made two alliances with the Jews: his fon Johanan had married the daughter of Mefhullam the fon of Berechiah, and he himself had taken to wife the daughter of Shechaniah the fon of Arah. Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zopbar came in a friendly manner with offers of fervice and affiftance: So did these enemies of the Jews, as we are informed both by Ezra and Nehemiah: "Now when the ADVERSARIES of Judah and Benjamin heard "that the children of the captivity builded the "temple unto the Lord God of Ifrael: Then "they came to Zerubbabel, and to the chief of "the fathers, and faid unto them, LET US BUILD WITH YOU. But Zerubbabel and Jeshua and "the reft of the chief of the fathers of Ifrael, faid "unto them, You have nothing to do with us "to build a houfe unto our God, but we ourselves "will build unto the Lord God of Ifrael, as king "Cyrus the king of Perfia hath commanded us!." And Nehemiah's answer to Sanballat, Tobiah, and Gefbem, fhews, they had made this requeft: -" then anfwered I them, and faid unto them, The "God of heaven he will profper us; therefore we "his fervants will arife and build, but you have no "portion, nor right, nor memorial in Jerufalem"." And of Tobiab in particular, he fays; Moreover in thefe days the nobles of Judah fent many letters unto Tobiah: and the letters of Tobiah came unto them. Also they reported his good deeds before me, and uttered my words to him. And Tobiah fent letters to put me in fear": K NEH. vi. 18. 20. ! EZRA iv. 1, 2, 3. A NEH. vi. 17, 19. TM NEн. i. The The three Friends of JOB were worshipers of the true God; and fo were thefe Adverfaries of the JEWS: For when, in the place quoted above, they afked to build with the Jews, they give this reafon of their requeft: FOR WE SEEK YOUR GOD as ye do, and we do facrifice unto him fince the days of Eferhaddon king of Alfur, which brought us up bitbero. The three Friends were perpetually deriding and upbraiding him for his fms: And of this Job frequently complains in the courfe of the difputation". So Nehemiah tells us, that when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the fervant, the Ammonite, and Gefhem the Arabian beard that they were fet upon building the walls of Jerufalem, they laughed them to fcorn, and defpifed them, and faid, What is this thing that ye do? Will ye rebel against the king? And again: But it came to pass that when Sanballat heard that we builded the wall, he was wrath, and took great indignation, and mocked the Jews. Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and be faid, Even that which they build, if a fox go up, he shall even. break down their ftone wall. GOD, by the Prophet Malachi, tells them, Judah bath profaned the holiness of the Lord which he loved, and hath married the daughter of a strange God'. And it is remarkable that they with whom the Jews had committed this crime, as Sanballat, Tobiah, and the Cutbeans, were made the inftruments of their punishment.-Eliphaz the Temanite charges and upbraids Job with the most flagitious crimes: Is not thy wickedness great, • EZRA iv. 2. Chap. xiii. ver. 4. Chap. xix. ver. 2. 9 NEн, ii. 19. P Chap. iv. 27. G 4 Chap. xii. ver. 4. 1 and thine iniquities infinite? And thus the Cutheans reprefented the Jews, to Artaxerxes: "Be "it known unto the king, that the Jews, which "came up from thee to us, are come unto Jeru"falem, building the rebellious and the bad city, "and have set up the walls thereof. Therefore "have we certified the king that fearch may be "made in the book of the records of thy fathers, "fo fhalt thou find in the book of the records, " and know, that this city is a rebellious city, and "hurtful unto kings and provinces; and that "they have moved fedition within the fame of old "time; for which caufe was this city destroyed ". If their Adverfaries could accuse them thus unjuftly, we are not to think they would fpare them where there was more ground for condemnation. When Nehemiah came to the administration of affairs, the Rich had opprefled the Poor by a rigorous exaction of their debts: And there was a great cry of the people and of their wives, against their brethren the Jews. For there were that faid, We, our fons, and our daughters are many: therefore we take up corn for them, that we may eat and live. Some also there were that faid, We bave mortgaged our lands, vineyards, and houses, that we may buy corn because of the dearth. There were also that faid, We have barrowed money for the king's tribute, and that upon our lands and vineyards. Yet now our flesh is as the flesh of our brethren, our children as their children: and lo we bring into bondage our fons and our daughters to be fervants, and fome of our daughters are brought into bondage already, neither is it in our power to redeem them; for other men bave our lands and vineyards*. This abufe Nehemiah reformed: and in reproving the oppref Chap. xxii. ver. 5. NEн. v. 1, & feq. EZRA iv, 12, 14, 15. fors, fors, he faid: It is not good that ye do: Ought ye, not to walk in the fear of our Lord, because of the RE PROACH OF THE HEATHEN OUR ENEMIES? which reproach was intended to be represented in these words of Eliphaz: For thou haft taken a pledge from thy brother for nought, and stripped the naked of their cloathing". b But the three Friends are at length condemned by God himself: The Lord faid to Eliphaz the Temanite: My wrath is kindled against thee, and against thy two friends: For be bave not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my fervant Fob bath. And in the fame manner he fpeaks, by the Prophet, concerning these Adverfaries of the Jews: And I am very fore difpleafed with the Heathen that are AT EASE: For I was but a LITTLE DISPLEASED, and they HELPED FORWARD THE AFFLICTION His fentence against the three Friends goes on in thefe words: Therefore take now unto you feven bullocks and feven rams, and go to my fervant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt-offering, and my fervant Job fhall pray for you, for him will I accept: Left I deal with you after your folly, in that ye have not Spoken of me the thing which is right, like my fervant Job. This, I fuppofe, is defigned to reprefent the defeat of their Adverfaries, in the decree which the Jews, by the good providence of GOD, procured from Darius, commanding the Cutbeans (who had hitherto fo much hindered) now to affift the Jews to the utmost of their power in rebuilding the Temple: "Then Darius the king made a de"cree-Now therefore Tatnai, Governor beyond "the river Shetharboznai, and your companions y Ver. 9. ver. 7. z Chap. xxii. ver, 6. D ZECH. i, 15. a Chap. xlii, Chap. xlii. ver. 8, "the |