known Constantinople sweet-hoof, blatta byzantina of the shops. It consists of the shells of several kinds of muscles, which when burned produce a scent similar to that of the castoreum. See Dioscorides, and the passages of Arabic authors in Bochart. Without this authority of the ancient versions, the Syriac etymology, to run in drops, exude, distil, would lead to the idea of a resinous and odoriferous substance of the vegetable kingdom." The Arabic version gives ladana, suggesting that gum ladanum was the drug referred to. This is the produce of the Cistus ladaniferus, being a secretion from the

Cistus ladaniferus.

leaves, which is swept off by the beards of the browzing goats, from whence it is collected. The shrub is a native of the Levant, the isles of the Mediterranean, and Arabia.

In Ecclesiasticus 24. 15, onycha is mentioned with the other odoriferous ingredients in the holy incense, by the name of onyx.

ONYX, □ shoham. (Gen. 2. 12; Exod. 25.7; 28. 9,20; 1Chron. 29. 2; Job 28. 16; Ezek. 28. 13.) This is some precious stone, but what, is not to be determined with certainty. Many of the old versions take it to be the sardonyx; while the Septuagint render it in different places the beryl, sapphire, emerald, &c. Other translators understand by it the flesh-coloured onyx with whitish lines, named from the Greek ovuğ, the nail, to the colour of which it nearly approaches. This is a semi-pellucid stone, of a fine flinty texture, taking an excellent polish, and is strictly of the flinty or siliceous class.

In Exodus 28. 9,10, a direction is given, that two onyx stones should be fastened on the ephod of the highpriest, on which were to be graven the names of the children of Israel, like the engravings on a signet; six of the names on one stone, and six on the other. Dr. Adam Clarke remarks, "So signets or seals were in use at that time, and engraving on precious stones was then an art; and this art, which was one of the most elegant and ornamental, was carried, in ancient times, to a very high pitch of perfection, particularly among the ancient Greeks; such a pitch of perfection as has never been rivalled, and cannot now be even well imitated. And it is very likely that the Greeks themselves borrowed this art from the ancient Hebrews, as we know it flourished in Egypt and Palestine long before it was known in

Greece."

In 1Chronicles 29. 2, onyx stones are among the things prepared by David for the Temple. The author of Scripture Illustrated observes upon this passage, that

"the word onyx is equivocal, signifying first a precious stone or gem, and secondly a marble called in Greek onychites, which Pliny mentions as a stone of Caramania. Antiquity gave both these stones this name, because of their resemblance to the nail of the fingers. The onyx of the high priest's pectoral was no doubt the gem onyx; the stone prepared by David was the marble onyx, or rather onychus, for one would hardly think that gems of any kind were used externally in such a building, but variegated marble may be readily admitted."

OPHEL, y (2Chron. 27. 3,) was the name of a height on the eastern part of Mount Zion, which was surrounded and fortified with a wall. It is called, in Micah 4. 8, "the stronghold of the daughter of Zion." King Jotham erected several structures on the wall of Ophel. Manasseh built a wall to the west of Jerusalem, and the fountain of Gihon, beyond the city of David, from the first gate as far as Ophel. After the captivity, the Nethinims dwelt at Ophel, that they might be near for the Temple service. Probably it was about the south-east corner of Jerusalem. (2Chron. 33. 14; Nehem. 3. 26; 11. 21.)

Josephus speaks of the single wall which inclosed that part of the city skirted by precipitous valleys, as having began at the tower of Hippicus. On the west it extended (southwards) to a place called Bethso, and the gate of the Essenes; thence it kept along on the south to a point over Siloam; and there on the east was carried along by. Solomon's Pool and Ophla (Ophel), till it terminated at the eastern portico of the Temple. Professor Robinson remarks, "This account is not very definite; and whether any traces of this wall remain, is doubtful. Along the western brow of Zion, outside of the present city, is a narrow and higher ridge, which may not improbably be composed of rubbish and the foundations of the ancient wall. Quite at the southwest corner of Zion also, just below the brow, we found detached ledges of rock, scarped in several places, as if they had once formed part of the foundation of the wall; and these we could trace for some distance eastward. We were told, also, that in digging deeply for the foundation of the new barracks, just south of the castle, many remains of walls and buildings had been discovered; but we were too late to examine this point ourselves, the excavations having been already filled up. From a remark of Benjamin of Tudela, about A.D. 1165, it would seem that traces of some part of the ancient wall of Zion were visible in his day.

"The eastern wall probably ran along the Valley of Jehoshaphat; or else, crossing the point of the narrow ridge north-east of Siloam, swept down into that valley, so as to include the fountain. Then passing by Ophla (Ophel) it ascended and terminated at the eastern portico of the Temple. This circumstance serves to show, that the wall did not run along the brow of the ridge above the valley; for in that case it could have terminated only on the southern side of the Temple, and not upon the eastern. The third wall, too, coming from the north towards the Temple, is said to terminate, not at the Temple itself, but at this ancient wall in the valley of the Kidron. Hence, the place Ophel would appear to have been situated in the south of the Temple, perhaps extending down towards the Fountain of the Virgin. It was inhabited by the Nethinim, who performed the menial offices of the Temple, and therefore dwelt in its vicinity. In 2Chronicles 33. 14, King Manasseh is said to have 'compassed about Ophel, and raised it up to a very great height.' May it not have been the case, that the more ancient wall on this side included only Zion,

OPHEL

while this wall of Manasseh ran, as described by Josephus, from Siloam by Solomon's Pool to the eastern side of the Temple?"

OPHIR, N also the name of a country celebrated for its abundance of gold, whither Solomon sent a fleet aided by the subjects of Hiram, king of Tyre, and from whence they brought back gold, (1Kings 9. 27,28; 2Chron. 8. 17,18,) almug-trees, and precious stones, 1Kings 10. 11; (in 1 Kings 10. 22, where Ophir is not mentioned, it is still to be understood,) also silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks. Hence we find frequently in the Bible mention made of gold from Ophir. (Job 28. 16; Psalm 45.9; Isai. 13. 12.) In Job 22. 24, 7DN alone is used for gold of Ophir. "If it were to be supposed," says Gesenius, "that all these were the real produce of Ophir, then we could only look for it, according to Bochart, Reland, and others, in India; the Septuagint also appear so to have understood it, who translate wpip, Σwpeipa, Σwpipa, which is the Egyptian name for India. However, this district is mentioned among other Arabian provinces, (Gen. 10. 29,) and arguments preponderate in favour of that situation; although, consistently with the first, the possibility remains, that it is mentioned only here as an Arabian colony, situated out of Arabia. Its produce, besides apes, jewels, (and perhaps pheasants,) might then have been carried thither through the medium of commerce, and it is probable that they came from the eastern coast of Africa. The Chaldee explains Ophir by Africa itself. (See also Origen, on Job 22. 24.) The ancients uniformly attribute to the Arabians a rich, and even abundant supply of gold, although it is probable that gold itself has never been found there. The name el Ophir has even been lately traced to a city in Oman, formerly the centre of an extensive commerce in Arabia." M. Gosselin, Drs. Prideaux and Vincent, are of opinion that Ophir was situated on the south-western coast of Arabia. There, however, the articles of trade and commerce mentioned are not to be found; and it is not to be supposed that the Phoenicians, the first navigators of the age, would obtain at second-hand, and an enhanced price, from the Arabians, what they were equally able to obtain from the original markets.

Not fewer than fifteen or sixteen countries have been assigned by various commentators and critics as the site of Ophir; but the most probable conjecture seems to be that of M. Huet, bishop of Avranches, who is of opinion that it was on the eastern coast of Africa, by the Arabians termed Zanguebar; that the name of Ophir was more particularly given to the small country of Sofala, on the same coast; that Solomon's fleet went out from the Red Sea, and doubling Cape Guardafui, coasted along Africa to Sofala, where was found in abundance whatever was brought to the Hebrew monarch by this The opinion of Huet is adopted by Bruce, who has confirmed it by various additional considerations; the precise situation of Ophir, however, must ever remain a matter of mere conjecture.

Voyage.

-ORACLE.

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ORACLE, 7 dibir. (1Kings 6. 5,19,22,23; 2Chron. 3. 16.) This word refers to the most holy place in the Temple of Solomon, elsewhere termed DTD WID kodesh kodashim, which occupied the third part of the inclosure of the Temple towards the west. Jerome renders it oraculum oraculi sedes, from 17 diber, "to speak," because the Deity thence gave his decisions (oracles); but the root may probably be derived from the Arabic deber, "to be behind;" hence the hinder part, the western part of the Temple. The Holy of Holies was ten cubits square. None but the highpriest was permitted to enter it, and that but once a year, on the great day of atonement. (Exod. 30. 10; Levit. 16. 2,15,34; Heb. 9. 2-7.) The interior of the Tabernacle was divided into two rooms by a curtain or veil, which hung down from four pillars overlaid with gold, This veil was made of the richest stuff, both for matter and workmanship, and was adorned with figures of che rubim and other ornaments elaborately embroidered upon it. This was called the inner veil. The first room, or ante-chamber, was twenty cubits long by ten broad; and the other was but ten cubits square. The first was called the Holy or the Sanctuary; and the small inner chamber, the Holy of Holies, or the Most Holy, and sometimes the Inner Tabernacle.

In both the Tabernacle and the Egyptian temples, which present some analogies, the area was an oblong square, the front portion of which was occupied by a court or courts, where the worshippers attended, and where sacrifice was offered. The sacred apartments in both were at the remoter extremity, the Most Holy being the smallest and the innermost. Into these sacred chambers, both among the Hebrews and Egyptians, none but priests were admitted. The writer of The Antiquities of Egypt, illustrative of the Scriptures, says that

a small edifice was erected by the side of every temple, the entrance to which was through the adytum, or sanctuary; so that it was, in the estimation of the people, the holy of holies, the perfection, or crowning mystery of the entire worship. This is termed in the hieroglyphic inscriptions, Ma-enunisi, 'the birth-place.' Like every other part of the temple, it is covered with reliefs and paintings, in which are detailed the particulars of the birth of the third person of the triad, to which the temple is dedicated. The mother is attended by all the principal female divinities, and the infant god is afterwards presented to the superior forms of Amoun.

"In the Egyptian temples,' says Clemens Alexandrinus, 'the porticos, vestibules, and groves, are constructed with great splendour, the halls are adorned with numerous columns, the walls are perfectly splendid with rare stones, and brilliancy of colour; the sanctuary* shines with gold, silver, and amber, and with a variety of glittering stones from India or Ethiopia, and the adytum is hung with curtains of gold tissue. If you enter the circuit of the holy place, and, hastening to behold what is most worthy of your search, you seek the statue of the deity; one of the priests who performs the rites there steps forward to introduce you to the object of his worship, looking upwards with a grave and reverent face, as he chants the Pæan hymn in his native tongue. But no sooner does he draw aside a portion of the veil, as if to show a god, than you find ample reason for smiling at the mysterious deity. For the god you sought is not there; but a cat, or a crocodile, or a native serpent, or some such animal, which is more suited to a cave than a temple; and you behold an Egyptian god in a beast, lying before you on a purple carpet.''

* “The body of the temple, or ædes, whither the profane did not penetrate, the adytum being the most holy part of the ædes."

Sir John Gardner Wilkinson informs us that "in the inner or minor sanctuary of the great Temple of Karnak, is the statue of a colossal hawk on a pedestal, though the Temple was dedicated to Amun, and not to Ré."

The word "oracles," in the plural form in the New Testament, denotes the revelations contained in the sacred writings of which the nation of Israel were the depositaries. Thus Moses is said by Stephen to have received the "lively oracles." (Acts 7. 38.) These oracles contained the law, both moral and ceremonial, with all the types and promises relating to the Messiah which are to be found in the writings of Moses. They also contained all the intimations of the Divine mind which he was pleased to communicate by means of the succeeding prophets, who prophesied before-hand of the coming and the sufferings of the Messiah, with the glory that should follow. The Jews were a highly privileged people in many respects, but the Apostle Paul mentions it as their chief advantage that "unto them were comImitted the oracles of God." (Rom. 3. 2.) "What nation," says Moses, "is there that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law which I set before you this day?" (Deut. 4. 8.) The 119th Psalm abounds with praises of the lively oracles, the word of the living God; it abounds with the warmest expressions of love to it, of delight in it, and the most fervent petitions for Divine illumination in the knowledge of it. Such was the esteem and veneration which the faithful entertained for the lively oracles under the former dispensation, when they had only Moses and the prophets; how, then, ought they to be prized by Christians, who have also Christ and his Apostles.

The sense, however, in which the term "oracle" is most generally used, is in reference to the juggles of the heathen priests, who pretended to declare the will of the gods when consulted according to certain forms. Some infidel writers have professed to find a parallel between the heathen oracles and the prophecies of Scripture; and though nothing can be more unfair or groundless than this, it may be well to point out a few of the leading points of difference.

Among the heathen, the term oracle was usually taken to signify an answer, generally conveyed in very dark and ambiguous terms, supposed to be given by demons of old, either by the mouths of their idols or by those of their priests, to the people who consulted them. Oracle is also used for the demon who gave the answer, and the place where it was given. Seneca defines oracles to be communications by the mouths of men of the will of the gods; and Cicero simply calls them deorum oratio, the language of the gods. Among the pagans they were held in high estimation; and they were consulted on a variety of occasions pertaining to national enterprises and private life. When they made peace or war, enacted laws, reformed states, or changed the constitution, they had in all these cases recourse to the oracle by public authority. Also, in private life, if a man wished to marry, if he proposed to take a journey, or to engage in any business of importance, he repaired to the oracle for counsel. Mankind have always had a propensity to explore futurity; and conceiving that future events were known to their gods, who possessed the gift of prophecy, they sought information and advice from the oracles, which in their opinion were supernatural and divine communications. Accordingly, every nation in which idolatry has subsisted, has also had its oracles by means of which imposture practised on superstition and credulity.

The principal oracles of antiquity are, that of Abæ, mentioned by Herodotus; that of Amphiaraus, at Oropus, in Macedonia; that of the Branchida, at Didymeum; that of the camps at Lacedæmon; that of Dodona; that

of Jupiter Ammon; that of Nabarca, in the country of the Anariaci, near the Caspian Sea; that of Trophonius, mentioned by Herodotus; that of Chrysopolis; that of Claros, in Ionia; that of Amphilochus, at Mallos; that of Petarea; that of Pella, in Macedonia; that of Phaselides, in Cilicia; that of Sinope, in Paphlagonia; that of Orpheus' head at Lesbos, mentioned by Philostratus. But of all the oracles, the oracle of Apollo Pythius, at oracles were delivered in a variety of ways: at Delphi, they interpreted and put into verse what the priestess pronounced in the time of her furor. At Dodona, the response was issued from the hollow of an oak; at the cave of Trophonius, the oracle was inferred from what the suppliant said before he recovered his senses. The suppliants who consulted the oracles were not allowed to enter the sanctuaries where they were given; and great care was taken that neither the Epicureans nor Christians should come near them. In several places, the oracles were given by letters sealed up, as in that of Mopsus and at Mallus, in Cilicia. Oracles were frequently given by lot, the mode of doing which was thus: the lots were a kind of dice, on which were engraven certain characters or words, whose explanations they were to seek on tables made for the purpose. The way of using these dice for knowing futurity was different according to the places where they were used. In some temples the person threw them himself; in others, they were dropped from a box; whence came the proverbial expression, "The lot is fallen." This playing with dice was always preceded by sacrifices, and other customary ceremonies. The ambiguity of the oracles in their responses, and their double meaning, contributed much to their support.

Delphi, was the most celebrated. The responses of

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'Oracles," says Sir John Gardner Wilkinson, "were of very remote date among the Egyptians; and the Greeks, as well as some other people, were indebted to them for their institution. The ancient oracle of Dodona was allowed even by the priestesses themselves to have been of Egyptian origin, as well as that of the Libyan Ammon; and the oracles of Diospolis, or Egyptian Thebes, bore a strong resemblance to the former of those two. The principal oracles in Egypt were of the Theban Jupiter, of Hercules, Apollo, Minerva, Diana, Mars, and above all of Latona, in the city of Buto, which the Egyptians held in the highest veneration; but the mode of divining differing in all of them, and the power of giving oracular answers was confined to certain deities. There was also an oracle of Besa, according to Ammianus, in Abydus, a city of the Thebaid, where that deity was worshipped with long-established honours; though others assign a different position to his celebrated temple, in the vicinity of Antinoë, which place is supposed to have usurped the site of the old town of Besa. The mode of obtaining answers was here, as at Heliopolis, through the medium of persons deputed for the purpose, who carried the questions in writing, according to a proper formula, and deposited them sealed in the Temple, the answers being returned in the same secret and ceremonious manner. Zosimus relates, that in the time of Constantius, some of the sealed answers, which, as usual, had been left in the temple, were sent to the Emperor, and the discovery of their contents subjected many persons to imprisonment and exile; apparently in consequence of the oracle having been applied to respecting the fate of the empire, or the success of some design against his life.

"Different forms were required in consulting different oracles. At Aphaca, a town between Heliopolis and Byblus, where Venus had a temple, was a lake into which those who went to consult the oracle of that

goddess threw presents, of whatever kind they chose, and derived omens from their sinking or swimming on the surface. If agreeable to the goddess, they sank; if not, they floated; and Zosimus relates, that in the year preceding their ruin, the offerings of the Palmyrenes sank, and the following year a contrary result predicted the calamity which befell them.

"On consulting the god at the Oasis of Ammon, it was customary,' says Quintus Curtius, 'for the priests to carry a gilded boat, ornamented with numerous silver pateræ hanging from both its sides, behind which followed a train of matrons and virgins, singing a certain uncouth hymn, in the manner of their country, with a view to propitiate the deity and induce him to return a satisfactory answer.' The oracle of Ammon enjoyed for ages the highest celebrity, and was looked upon by foreigners, as well as Egyptians, with the most profound respect, missions from all countries being sent to consult it, and learn its infallible answers; but in Strabo's time it began to lose its former renown; the sybils of Rome, and the soothsayers of Etruria, having substituted omens drawn from the flight of birds, and the inspection of victims, and warnings from heaven, for the longer process of oracular consultation; though, according to Juvenal, the answers of Ammon continued in his time to be esteemed in the solution of difficult questions, after the cessation of the oracle at Delphi.'

"Oracles were resorted to on all occasions of importance; and sometimes messages were sent from them spontaneously to those whom they intended to advise, in the form of warnings against an approaching calamity, or as an indication of the Divine will. Mycerinus was censured for not having accomplished the intentions of the gods, and received intimation of his approaching death; Sabaco retired from the kingdom in consequence of the predictions and promises of an oracle; and Neco was warned not to continue the canal from the Nile to the Red Sea, lest he should expose his country to foreign invasion. Oracles were also consulted, like the magicians of the present day, in cases of theft; and Amasis is reported to have bestowed presents on those which he found capable of returning true answers, and remarkable for discrimination."

The ancient oracles, whether directed by evil men or evil spirits, spoke as they were paid or intimidated; and the long-continued history of ancient times has completely informed us of the practices by which the priests of the false gods endeavoured to gain credit for their idols, and profit for themselves, by foretelling things to come. "But how did they conduct this difficult traffic?" inquires Dr. Nares; "did they make it hazardous as well as difficult, by pledging their lives on the truth of their predictions? Far otherwise: they had very different arts and plans, much more compatible with the consciousness of being extremely liable to error. In the first place, unless a direct appeal to their inspiration was made by direct inquiry, they usually observed a prudent silence. They uttered no spontaneous prophecies. In saying nothing they exposed themselves to no detection; and when they were obliged to speak, it was always with sufficient precaution. Obstacles were first thrown in the way of inquiry. By magnificent and repeated sacrifices, it was rendered extremely expensive. This preliminary had a double advantage; it lessened the number of inquirers, and at the same time, secured abundant advantage to the priests. These sacrifices were preceded, attended, and followed by many prescribed ceremonies; the omission or mismanagement of any one of which was sufficient to vitiate the whole proceeding. The gods were not at all times in a humour to be consulted. Omens were to

969

be taken, and auguries examined, which, if unfavourable in any particular, either precluded the inquiry for the present, or required further lustrations, ceremonies, and sacrifices to purify the person who consulted, and rendered him fit to receive an answer from the gods, or to bring their wayward deities to a temper suitable to the inquiry." When, indeed, answers were given, the heathen oracles had no determinate scheme, and related to detached, unconnected events; while the prophecies of Scripture respect one great scheme, and point to one Person, whose family, country, character, and circumstances they announced long before He was born. The heathen oracles spoke what rulers dictated, or what tended to advance the interests of the priests; precepts of morality, and rules of just conduct were seldom, if ever, delivered from the cave, or from the consecrated tripos. The purest sentiments prevalent among the pagans were either delivered by the philosopher (who had no means of enforcing them), or adorned the pages of the poet; while the Hebrew prophets, on the contrary, boldly reproved kings, enforced the purest morality by the most solemn sanctions, and suffered rather than gained by the predictions which they uttered. They did not prophecy in compliance with the wishes or natural propensities of their countrymen; but opposed their prejudices by predicting the impending calamities, the humble state of the Messiah, the rejection of the Jews, and the call of the Gentiles. Their prophecies tended to one end; and the total cessation of them, when that end was answered, proves that they did not owe their accomplishment to chance or to imposture.

When no means of evasion remained, the answers given by the heathen oracles were usually delusive, and capable of quite contrary interpretations; and the most celebrated of them concealed their meaning in such ambiguous terms, that they required another oracle to explain them. Of this ambiguity several authentic instances are recorded. Thus, when Croesus consulted the oracle of Delphi relative to his intended war against the Persians, he was told that he would destroy a great empire. This he naturally interpreted of his overcoming the Persians, though the oracle was so framed as to admit of an opposite meaning. Croesus made war against the Persians, and was ruined; and the oracle continued to maintain its credit. The answer given to Pyrrhus, king of Epirus, many ages after, was of yet more doubtful interpretation, being conceived in terms so ambiguous that it might either be interpreted thus: "I say that thou, son of Eacus, canst conquer the Romans. Thou shalt go, thou shalt return, never shalt thou perish in war;" or thus, "I say that the Romans can conquer thee, son of Eacus. Thou shalt go, thou shalt never return, thou shalt perish in war." Pyrrhus understood the oracle in the former sense; he waged an unsuccessful war with the Romans, and was overcome; yet still the juggling oracle saved its credit.

These instances of deception need not surprise us, for at a much earlier date we see similar ambiguity in the reply of the pretended prophets in Kings 22. 5,6. 1 Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, and Ahab, king of Israel, having united their forces against the Syrians, in order to recover Ramoth Gilead, the latter monarch" gathered the false prophets together, about four hundred men, and said unto them, Shall I go against Ramoth Gilead to battle, or shall I forbear? And they said, Go up, for the Lord shall deliver [it] into the hands of the king." It is to be observed that the word "it" is not in the ori

ginal, and that the reply of the false prophets is so artfully constructed that it might be interpreted either for or against the expedition; as thus, "The Lord will deliver [it-Ramoth Gilead] into the king's [Ahab's] hand;"