he redeems the captivity of his people, he will appear in his power, in order to cast all the impious into Gehenna.' It is prepared, of old, for the nations that have oppressed Israel: the King eternal hath prepared it deep and wide; a flaming pile is kindled therein, as of much wood; and the word of the Lord as a torrent of sulphur sets it on fire! The dissemblers, in their terror, exclaim, 'who among us shall dwell in Jerusalem, where the impious are to be judged and sent into Gehenna with eternal burning.' 6 The blessed shall see them descending into the land of Gehenna;' such as say, 'stand by thyself, come not near unto me, for I am holier than thou,-shall have their punishment in Gehenna, where the fire burns continually; and their bodies shall be delivered to the second death! When all people shall come from month to month, and from sabbath to sabbath, to worship before the Lord, they shall go forth and behold the carcasses of the sinners who have despised the word of the Lord; their souls die not, and their fire is not quenched; and they shall be judged in Gehenna, until the righteous shall say of them, we have seen enough,' etc. Such is the language in which this author speaks of Gehenna. And we may repeat, that it is not only in a different style, but under a different name, that he mentions the valley of Hinnom. At the date of this Targum, therefore, we may conclude that the term had become appropriated by the Jews to a place of future torment. Nothing remains, but to point out the age of the work."

3d, we shall now examine at what time the Jewish Targums were written. Jahn in his introduction to the Old Testament, pp. 64-68, thus writes, "The Chaldee paraphrases are known by the name of Targums. (Which means a version or an interpretation.) The most celebrated among them is that of the Pentateuch, ascribed to Onkelos, whom the Babylonian Talmud makes contemporary with Gamaliel, adding

many incoherent tales respecting him: It is evident however, that he lived several centuries before the Talmudical writers, since they know so little of him, although he wrote in Babylonia. Onkelos, therefore, would seem to have written not in the fourth or fifth century of the Christian era, but in the third or rather in the second, and this is confirmed by his paraphrase itself," etc.

Jahn says, concerning the Targum of Jonathan Ben Uzziel on the prophets "the work is a collection of interpretations of several learned men, made towards the close of the third century, and containing some of a much older date for that some parts of it existed as early as in the second century, appears from the additions," etc.

Respecting the Targum of the Pseudo Jonathan on the Pentateuch, Jahn says, that it was not written before the seventh or eighth century. It seems however to have been compiled from older interpretations.'

As to the Jerusalem Targum on the Pentateuch, Jahn observes" this work is more modern than that of the Pseudo-Jonathan, or certainly not more ancient. It seems to have been compiled, however, from more ancient works, and hence contains many sentences which are found in the New Testament," etc. Jahn adds" the other chaldee paraphrases are neither older nor better, than the preceding, but abound with digressions and fictions."

We have quoted Jahn's authority, respecting the age of the Jewish Targums, because he stands very high as a writer among orthodox people. The following from the Universalist Expositor, generally comfirm his statements. In p. 368, speaking of the Targum of Jonathan Ben Uzziel, it is said "This is uncertain. Prideaux, together with several of the old critics, and even Gesenius among the living, place it not far from the christian era, on the authority chiefly of Jewish tradi

tions. Prideaux, however, has well observed, that 'in historical matters, it is not to be regarded what the Jews write or what they omit." Most of the emi

nent writers now agree, that it could not have been completed till some time between two and four hundred years after Christ. Dr. Jahn thinks it, a collection of the interpretations of several learned men, made towards the end of the third century, and containing some of a much older date." Eickhorn says that " Jonathan certainly lived later than the birth of Christ;" and judging from his style, his fables, his perversion of the prophecies concerning the Messiah, and from the profound silence of the early Jews and Christian fathers, he concludes that his compilation cannot have been made before the fourth century. The same circumstances that Eickhorn adduces, are thought by Bertholdt to indicate the second or third century; and he is confident that the collection cannot have attained its complete form, before the end of the second century." With these general conclusions, it is said that Bauer likewise agrees; and some critics, have referred the work to as late a period as the seventh or eighth century.

Such is the account, which the various critics give, of the dates of the Jewish Targums. We shall now submit a few brief remarks for the consideration of our readers.

1st, Those who refer us to the Targums for proof, that Gehenna in the days of our Lord, was used among the Jews to designate hell, the world of woe, seldom quote what they say, on this subject, fully and fairly to their readers. Mr. Stuart makes no quotations at all, in proof of his assertions, nor does he even name the books, or pages where such proof may be found. We suspect, he was somewhat ashamed to do this, for what man, tender of his own reputation, would quote the silly remarks, which Dr. Allen quoted from the Jewish Targums, given

above. No madman, ever said more silly and ridiculous things, than are to be found in the Jewish Talmud and Targums. The Targums, most commonly referred to, in proof of such a sense given to Gehenna by the Jews, are those, into which the writers introduced their own -"glosses and silly stories, fables, prolix explications, and other additions.”

2d, Let the reader observe, the texts on which the Targums are written, afford no foundation for such a sense being given to the term Gehenna. This term, is not used in the texts in any sense whatever; nor is the writer in any of the texts, speaking either of future punishment, or a future world. None of the texts, afford the shadow of a ground for saying Gehenna means hell, the world of woe. There is no connection, between the text and the comment given on it by the Targumists. They might have given the same comment, in any other text in the bible, with equal propriety. If the texts then, afforded no foundation for such.comments, why were they made, and why should christians regard them?

wve.

3d, But what decides the question at issue is-The Targums were not written in the days of our Lord, consequently cannot be quoted as proof, that in his day, Gehenna among the Jews designated hell, the world of It was impossible in the nature of the case, that our Lord derived this sense of Gehenna from the Jewish Targums, as the dates of them show. They were not in existence, until several hundred years after our Lord was on earth, as the best critics have testified above. Why then, are they appealed to at all, in proof of this? And on what ground did Mr. Stuart assert, that the later Jewish writers, gave such a sense to Gehenna, prior to the writing of the New Testament? It appears from the following quotation, the facts are very differ

ent.

"From the time of Josephus, onwards, there is an

tions. Prideaux, however, has well observed, that in historical matters, it is not to be regarded what the Jews write or what they omit." Most of the emi

nent writers now agree, that it could not have been completed till some time between two and four hundred years after Christ. Dr. Jahn thinks it, a collection of the interpretations of several learned men, made towards the end of the third century, and containing some of a much older date." Eickhorn says that " Jonathan certainly lived later than the birth of Christ;" and judging from his style, his fables, his perversion of the prophecies concerning the Messiah, and from the profound silence of the early Jews and Christian fathers, he concludes that his compilation cannot have been made before the fourth century. The same circumstances that Eickhorn adduces, are thought by Bertholdt to indicate the second or third century; and he is confident that the collection 'cannot have attained its complete form, before the end of the second century. With these general conclusions, it is said that Bauer likewise agrees; and some critics, have referred the work to as late a period as the seventh or eighth century.

Such is the account, which the various critics give, of the dates of the Jewish Targums. We shall now submit a few brief remarks for the consideration of our readers.

1st, Those who refer us to the Targums for proof, that Gehenna in the days of our Lord, was used among the Jews to designate hell, the world of woe, seldom quote what they say, on this subject, fully and fairly to their readers. Mr. Stuart makes no quotations at all, in proof of his assertions, nor does he even name the books, or pages where such proof may be found. We suspect, he was somewhat ashamed to do this, for what man, tender of his own reputation, would quote the silly remarks, which Dr. Allen quoted from the Jewish Targums, given