withstanding the small circle in which their opposing faiths meet, it is said, to their honour, that they live together in mutual forbearance and tranquillity. The private dwellings of the town, to the number of about two hundred and fifty, are built of stone, which is a material always at hand; they are flat-roofed, being in general only of one story, but are sufficiently spacious and commodious for the accommodation of a numerous poor family. The streets are steep, from the inclination of the hill on which they stand; narrow, from custom; and dirty, from the looseness of the soil.

"Of the public buildings, the mosque is the most conspicuous from without, and is indeed a neat edifice; it has six arches on one of its sides, for we could see no more of it, as it is inclosed within a wall of good masonry, and furnished with a plain whitened thin arch, surrounded by a gallery, and surmounted by the crescent; the whole rising from the centre of the town, as if to announce the triumph of its dominion to those approaching it from afar. The Greeks have their church on the south-east edge of the town, at the foot of the hill; the Maronites theirs in front of the Franciscan convent."

This convent belongs to the missionaries of the Terra Santa; its church, called that of the Annunciation, is an ill-proportioned and gaudily-ornamented building; the columns and interior walls are hung round with silk damask, and there are two tolerably good organs. Beneath the high altar is the descent to a subterranean cave, "held sacred," says Mr. Buckingham, "from a belief of its being the scene of the angel's announcing to Mary her favour with God. On entering it, we passed over a white marble pavement, ornamented in the centre with a device in mosaic, and descended by a flight of marble steps into a grotto, beneath the body of the church. In the first compartment of this subterraneous sanctuary, we were told had stood the mass which constitutes the famous chapel of Loretto, in Italy; and the friars assured us, with all possible solemnity, that the angels appointed to the task took out this mass from the rock, and flew with it, first to Dalmatia and afterwards to Loretto, where it now stands; and that in measuring the mass itself, and the place from which it had been taken, they had found them to correspond in every respect, neither the one by the voyage, nor the other by age, having lost or altered any part of its size or shape. Proceeding further in, we were shown a second grotto,

or a continuation of the first, with two red granite pillars, of about two feet in diameter, at its entrance, and were told that one marked the spot where the angel stood when he appeared to Mary. (Luke 1. 28.) The pillar on the right is still perfect, but that on the left has a piece of its shaft broken out, leaving a space of about a foot and a half between the upper and under fragment; the latter of those continuing still to be supported by being fairly imbedded in the rock above, offers to the eyes of believing visitors, according to the expression of the friars, a standing miracle of the care which Christ takes of his Church, as they insist on its being supported by the hand of God alone. The grotto here, though small, and about eight feet in height, remains still in its original roughness, the roof being slightly arched. In the outer compartment, from whence the chapel of Loretto is said to have been taken, the roof, as well as the sides, have been re-shaped and plastered, and ornamented, so that the original dimensions no longer remain. Within, however, all is left in its first rude state, to perpetuate to future ages, the interesting fact which it is thought to record. Passing onward from hence, and ascending through narrow passages, over steps cut out of the rock, and turning a little to the right, we came to a chamber which the friars called La Cucina della Santa Madonna; here they showed us the chimney of the hearth on which Mary warmed the food for Jesus while yet a helpless infant. This was one apartment of the house, as they observed, in which the Son of God lived so many years in subjection to man; as it is believed by all that He was brought up from childhood to manhood in Nazareth. The fact of Joseph and Mary having resided in this house, and used the very room in which we stood, as their kitchen, has nothing at all of improbability in it; and as excavated dwellings in the side of a steep hill like this would be more secure, and even more comfortable, than fabricated ones, it is quite as probable that this might have really been the residence of the holy family as of any other."

Mr. Robinson states, "Just outside the town we came to a copious fountain, shaded by trees, called after the Blessed Virgin.' At that moment a number of young women were passing to and fro, taking in their supply of water for the day's consumption, which they carried in large earthen pitchers on their heads, as of old.

Attracted by the name of the spring, we reined up our horses to observe the passing scene, which told so forcibly of the manners of the most remote ages, and the probable occupation of the sacred person that was chosen out of this humble village to be the mother of the Messiah. The convent at Nazareth is situated at the lower part of the village, at its eastern end. It is a substantial stone building, surrounded by high walls. Within the inclosure is a church, cells for the friars, and extensive accommodations for pilgrims and travellers. The church is built on the spot where, according to tradition, the habitation of Joseph and Mary stood previous to its miraculous removal to Loretto. Here, as at Jerusalem, divers localities are pointed out to the pilgrim, as connected with the early life of our Saviour and his parents: namely: where Joseph, the spouse of the Virgin, and the guardian of the infant Jesus, exercised the profession of a carpenter; it stands at no great distance from the convent, and is marked out by a small neat chapel. The synagogue where Christ explained the text of Isaiah concerning himself, by which He gave such offence to his countrymen. Also a chamber, inclosing a large mass of rock, nine feet by six, and four high, called 'Mensa Christi,' where Christ ate his last supper with his disciples previous to their departure with him from Nazareth to Jerusalem. They even attempt to show the place where the people endeavoured to cast Jesus headlong down the precipice, (Luke 4. 29;) but it is too far removed from the presumed site of the ancient town to merit much confidence in its identity. Nevertheless, the spot is highly eligible for such a wicked purpose, the rocks beneath it being heaped upon one another in huge masses, and in chaotic confusion. We felt more grieved than pleased at the exhibition of these places. These unceasing calls upon our credulity, already weakened by a pilgrimage to the Holy City, induced us to retire to an elevated spot without the village, where we could indulge in recollections, if not of a more pleasurable, at least of a more authenticated nature."

Mr. Carne says, "Of far higher interest than traditions and relics, is the scenery around Nazareth; it is of the kind in which one would imagine the Saviour of mankind delighted to wander, and to withdraw himself when meditating on his high mission; deep and secluded dells, covered with a wild verdure; silent and solemn paths, where overhanging rocks shut out all intrusion."

Lord Lindsay says, "The vale of Nazareth has no pretensions to the beauty ascribed to it by travellers; its hills are barren and uncultivated, and the grove of figtrees we passed through descending to the village was very scanty." On the other hand, Dr. Richardson, speaking of the same vale, says, "It seems as if fifteen mountains met to form an inclosure for this delightful spot; they rise around it like the edge of a shell to guard it from intrusion. It is a rich and beautiful field in the midst of barren mountains. It abounds in figtrees, small gardens, and hedges of the prickly pear, and the dense grass affords an abundant pasture."

NAZARITE, “” nazir, (Numb. 6. 13;) Sept. evğaμevos or nɣiaoμevos. The vow of a Nazarite is more fully expressed by nizir Elohim, 'one consecrated unto God." In some instances parents bound their child even before its birth, as was the case with Samson, and Samuel, and John the Baptist. (Judges 13. 2-5; 12. 23; Luke 1. 13,15.) We read in 1 Samuel 1. 11, that Hannah "vowed a vow, and said, O Lord of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thy hand

maid a man child, then I will give him unto the Lord all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head."

Nazaritism, Michaëlis thinks, was not instituted by Moses, but was of more ancient, probably of Egyptian origin; the Hebrew legislator giving certain injunctions for the better regulation and performance of these Vows. The statutes respecting the Nazareate are related in the sixth chapter of the Book of Numbers. Michaëlis says, "A Nazarite during the continuance of his vow durst drink no wine nor strong drink; nor eat of the fruit of the vine, either grapes or raisins; nor come near any dead body; or otherwise wittingly defile himself; he was also obliged to let his hair grow. At the termination of the period of his vow, he had to make certain offerings prescribed by Moses, and what other offerings he had vowed besides; as also to cut off his hair, and burn it on the altar, and there first drink wine again at the offering feast. These ordinances, however, rather belong to the ceremonial law, than to the Mosaical jurisprudence. It is only necessary to attend to this further circumstance, that vows of Nazaritism were not an original institution of Moses. What typical views he may have had in the ceremonies he prescribed forms no part of my present subject, in which I merely consider the Mosaic laws on the principles of jurisprudence. But that before the Mosaic law was given there had been Nazarites among the Israelites is manifest from the following circumstance: the ordinance of Moses concerning the Nazarites, which stands in the sixth chapter of the Book of Numbers, was given in the second year after the departure from Egypt; but in an earlier law concerning the Sabbatical year, which was made in the first year, Moses adopts a figurative expression from Nazaritism, calling the vines which in that year were not to be pruned, Nazarites. (Levit. 25. 5.) The thing itself must therefore have been already in use, and that for a long period; because such figurative expressions, particularly in agriculture, gardening, and rural economy, do not succeed to the proper signification even of the most familiar and best known terms, till after a lapse of many years. The vow of Nazaritism was not necessarily, nor usually, of perpetual endurance; and hence Moses ordained what offerings should be made at its termination or discontinuance. In later times, it is true we have, in the case of Samson, an example of a person devoted by his parents to be a Nazarite for life; but even here Nazaritism was not understood in its whole extent, as prescribed in the Mosaic law; for Samson plainly deviated from it, when he attacked and defeated the Philistines, from whose dead bodies a strict Nazarite must have fled, to avoid defilement. Of such perpetual Nazaritism, however, Moses does not at all treat in his laws; and of course does not say whether, like other vows, it could have been redeemed, had it proved a hardship to a son to abstain from wine all his life. According to the analogy of the other laws of Moses on this subject, it should have been redeemable."

Josephus says that in his day, there were many, particularly those who had been oppressed by sickness or by adverse fortunes, who vowed to abstain from wine, to go with the head shaven, and to spend the time in prayer for thirty days previous to their offering sacrifices. (Comp. Acts 18. 18.) The Nazarite, on the contrary, vowed to let the hair grow, to abstain not only from wine, and all inebriating drink, but from vinegar likewise, to eat no clusters, and to beware of any contamination from corpses, bones, and sepulchres. If the Nazarite was unexpectedly contaminated, he was to be purified according to the ceremonial prescribed, but was likewise required to shave off his hair, to offer,

As Nebuchadnezzar, in this expedition, had enriched himself with the spoils of his enemies, on his return he employed his wealth in the ornamenting of the temples, and otherwise adding to the splendour of the city of Babylon, in which he resided. He built the splendid temple of Belus, a new royal castle, a city on the other side of the Euphrates, and surrounded the whole with very high and thick walls. He caused the Nahar Malcha to be dug from the Euphrates to the Tigris, the Pallacopas to be turned into a very large lake formed by the labour of men, and various canals to be constructed to draw off the water, so that the city might not be overflowed by the inundations of the Euphrates. The artificial lake into which the Pallacopas flowed is said to have been twelve hundred and eighty stadia, or about one hundred and twenty-eight English miles, in circumference. These works were afterwards attributed to the fabled Semiramis; and it has also been said that they were completed by Nitocris, the mother of Belshazzar, the last of the Chaldee monarchs.

The remarkable dreams, and the punishment of the pride of Nebuchadnezzar, form very important parts of the Book of Daniel, in which they are related.

Seventeen years after the destruction of Jerusalem, and the second year after the devastation of Egypt, when all enemies were subdued, and when his rule extended over many nations, Nebuchadnezzar had a dream, which left a profound impression upon his mind. He accordingly sent for all the magi and astrologers, requiring that they should not only interpret, but recover the dream he had lost. This they avowed themselves unable to do; whereupon the disappointed king commanded them to be executed. Daniel and his friends were included in this doom; but Daniel repaired to the royal presence, and promised that if further time were allowed, he would undertake that the dream, and an interpretation also, should be found. To this the king agreed, and the pious youths had recourse to fasting and prayer in the hope that God would enable them to satisfy the king's demand. The matter was made known to Daniel in a vision, and he was then enabled to remind the king that he had seen in his dream a compound image, and to inform him that this image represented "the things that should come to pass thereafter." In this compound image, the head of pure gold denoted Nebuchadnezzar himself, and the succeeding kings of the Babylonian dynasty; the breast and arms of silver indicated the succeeding but inferior empire of the Medes and Persians; the belly and thighs of brass the next following empire of the Macedonians and the Greeks, whose arms were brass; the legs of iron, and the toes partly iron and partly clay, refer to the Roman empire, which should be strong as iron, but the kingdoms into which it would ultimately subdivide composed of heterogeneous materials, which should be partly strong and partly weak; and, lastly, the stone smiting the image and filling the whole earth, denoted the kingdom of Christ, which was to be set up upon the ruins of these temporal kingdoms and empires. "Thou art this head of gold," said the prophet to the king; but he did not indicate the names and sources of the succeeding and then non-existent empires with equal distinctness. But we now know them, not only from the order in which they succeed, but from the subsequent visions of Daniel himself, in which these empires are distinctly named. Nebuchadnezzar was not slow in rewarding the distinguished qualities which the prophet exhibited. He appointed him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and, at the same time, chief governor over all the wise men of Babylon. (Dan. 2. 48.) At his request, also, his three friends were appointed to conduct under him

the affairs of his provincial government, while he himself took a high place, if not the first place, in the civil councils of the king.

Nebuchadnezzar, however, proceeded to erect a great image, of which not the head only, but the whole figure was of gold, to denote the continuance of his empire in opposition to his dream; and it was dedicated to the tutelary god Bel, or Belus, whose power he now considered superior to that of the God of the Hebrews; whereby in the boldest manner he revoked his former concession. All men were commanded to worship this image on pain of death; in consequence of which the three friends of Daniel were seized and cast into an intensely heated furnace. By a special and manifest interposition they were delivered without a hair of their heads being injured, by which the king was constrained to acknowledge that the God of the Hebrews, who could after this sort deliver his people, was unquestionably superior to all others. (Dan. 3. 28-30.)

Nebuchadnezzar, in another dream, was forewarned of the consequences of his excessive pride; this dream also Daniel unflinchingly interpreted. Twelve months after, while contemplating his extensive dominion and the splendour to which he had raised the great city of Babylon, the king's heart swelled with pride, and he exclaimed, "Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom, by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty?" While these words were in his mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying, "O King Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken, The kingdom is departed from thee. And they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field; they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times (years) shall pass over thee, until thou know that the Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever He will." The thing was accomplished that very hour; and in this state he remained until "his hairs were grown like eagles' feathers, and his nails like birds' claws;" the meaning of which seems to be that his proud mind was in that instant shattered, and fell into a kind of monomania. See DISEASES.

On his recovery, he issued the following edict:-" At the end of days, I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the Most High, and I praised and honoured Him that liveth for ever and ever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and His kingdom from generation to generation: and all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; and He doeth according to His will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay His hand or say unto Him, What doest thou? At the same time my reason returned unto me; and for the glory of my kingdom, mine honour and brightness returned unto me; and my counsellors and my lords sought unto me, and I was established in my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added unto me. Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment; and those that walk in pride He is able to abase." (Dan. 4. 34-37.)

The disease of Nebuchadnezzar must have been something remarkable, or it would hardly have been so particularly noticed in profane history as we find it to be. Eusebius relates, from Abydenus, a tradition of the Chaldæans, that Nebuchadnezzar, after the enlarging and beautifying of Babylon, pronounced on the roof of his palace a prophecy respecting the conquest of the city by the Medes and Persians, and then disappeared. This tradition is evidently a story made up from his prophetic dreams, and his insanity during which he

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Nebuchadnezzar is supposed not to have long survived his restoration to society, but to have died, after a reign of forty-three years, 563 B.C. This is the statement of Berosus, as quoted by Josephus.

NECHO, Sept. Nexaw, (Herodotus, Nexws,) (2Chron. 35. 20,22,) a king of Egypt, the son of Psammeticus, and the sixth king of the twenty-sixth dynasty, that of the Saïtes, was the contemporary of Josiah, king of Judah. In the Targum or Chaldee paraphrase, and the Syriac and Arabic versions, Necho is called "the lame Pharaoh." Necho, fearing lest the growing power of the Babylonians should endanger the territories acquired by the victorious arms of his predecessors, determined to check their progress, and to attack the enemy on his own frontier. With this view he collected a powerful army, and entering Palestine, followed the route along the sea-coast of Judæa, previously taken by the Egyptians under various kings, who had penetrated into Asia, intending to besiege the town of Carchemish on the Euphrates. (2Chron. 35. 20.) But Josiah, king of Judah, offended at the passage of the Egyptian army through his territories, resolved to impede, if he was unable to prevent, their march. Necho, learning the approach of Josiah, and apprised of his intentions, sent messengers, assuring him he had no hostile intentions against Judæa, but against an enemy with whom he was at war, and warning him lest his imprudence should be fatal to him. This conciliatory message, however, proved of no avail, and Josiah having posted himself in the plain of Megiddo, prepared to oppose the Egyptians. Megiddo was a city in the tribe of Manasseh, between forty and fifty miles to the north of Jerusalem, and within three hours of the coast, and is called by Herodotus, Magdolus. In this valley the feeble forces of the Jewish king attacked the Egyptians; but they were routed with great slaughter, and Josiah being wounded in the neck with an arrow, ordered his attendants to take him from the field. Escaping from the heavy showers of arrows with which their broken ranks were overwhelmed, they removed him from the chariot in which he had been wounded, and placing him in a second one that he had, they conveyed him to Jerusalem, where he died. Intent upon his original project, Necho did not stop to revenge himself upon the Jews for the affront they had offered him, but continued his march to the Euphrates. Three months had scarcely elapsed when, returning victorious from the capture of Carchemish, and the defeat of the Babylonians, he learned that though Josiah had left an elder son, Jehoahaz had caused himself to be proclaimed king on the death of his father, without intimating his intențion, or soliciting him to sanction his election; and considering this neglect as a token of hostile feeling, he was highly incensed, and having ordered Jehoahaz to meet him at Riblah, in the land of Hamath, (2Kings 23. 33,) where he deposed him, and condemned the land to pay a tribute of a hundred talents of silver, and a talent of gold, he carried him a prisoner to Jerusalem. On arriving there, Necho made Eliakim, the eldest son of Josiah, king, in the room of his father, and changed his name to Jehoiakim; and taking the silver and gold which had been levied on the Jewish people, returned to Egypt, with the captive Jehoahaz, who there terminated his short and unfortunate career. Necho himself survived several years, and was then succeeded by his son Psammethis. Necho is celebrated in profane history for his project of digging a canal to join the Nile to the

sels, manned by Phoenician sailors, made round Africa. Herodotus tells us, "Now Necos was the son of Psammeticus, and reigned over Egypt; it was he who began the canals, &c., and he employed himself in warlike pursuits, building galleys, both on the Mediterranean and on the Red Sea, the traces of his dockyards still existing; and these he used when he had occasion for them. And Necos joined battle with the Syrians in Magdolus, and conquered them, and after the battle he took Cadytis, a large city of Syria. And having reigned in the whole sixteen years, he died, and left the throne to his son Psammis." The historian, who was better acquainted with Egypt than with Judæa, has here put Magdolus, a city of Lower Egypt, for Megiddo, a city of Judæa, and has further confounded the Hebrews with the Syrians. Cadytis is again mentioned by Herodotus as "belonging to the Syrians of Palestine," and "as a city not less than Sardes;" so that there is no doubt that he intended Jerusalem.

Belzoni thus describes his researches in the tomb of Psammethis or Psammis, the son of Pharaoh Necho. "In one of the numerous apartments of this venerable monument of ancient art, there is a sculptured group, describing the march of a military and triumphal procession, with three different sets of prisoners, who are evidently Jews, Ethiopians, and Persians. The procession begins with four red men with white kirtles, followed by a hawk-headed divinity; these are Egyptians apparently released from captivity, and returning home under the protection of the national deity. Then follow four white men, in striped and fringed kirtles, with black beards, and with a simple white fillet round their black hair; these are obviously Jews, and might be taken for the portraits of those who, at this day, walk the streets of London. After them come three white men with smaller beards and curled whiskers, with double spreading plumes on their heads, tattooed, and wearing robes or mantles spotted like the skins of wild beasts; these are Persians or Chaldæans. Lastly come four negroes with large circular earrings, and white petticoats supported by a belt over the shoulder; these are Ethio- Hieroglyphic name of Necho. pians." Among the hieroglyphics contained in Belzoni's drawings, the late Dr. Young succeeded in discovering the names of Psammis and of Nichao, the Necho of the Scriptures.

NECK, oreph. (Levit. 5. 8.) In 2Samuel 22. 41, we read, "Thou hast also given me the necks of mine enemies, that I might destroy them that hate me.” In the numerous battle-scenes depicted on the monuments of Egypt, we see the Egyptian monarchs frequently represented treading on the necks of their ene mies; and a similar practice obtained among the Hebrews. (Josh. 10. 24.)

Roberts says, that in India, “The neck is often used for the whole body, and in threatenings, it is the part mentioned. A proprietor of slaves is said to have their necks. To a person going among wicked or cruel people it is said, 'Go not there, your neck will be given to them.' 'Depend upon it, government will have it out of the necks of those smugglers.' 'Have you paid Chirmar the money?' 'No, nor will I pay him.' 'Why?'-'Because he has had it out of my neck.' When two men have been fighting, the conqueror may be seen to seize the vanquished by the neck, and thrust him to the ground.

"Putting the feet on the neck in the East, is a favourite way of triumphing over a fallen foe. In the