and the divisions of the empire into different parts, the eastern and western, gradually wasted it, till it was entirely ruined. About A. D. 46, a famine of seven years' continuance terribly distressed the empire, and not long after, a multitude of earthquakes happened. The persecution of the Christians, the butchery of their subjects by Nero and Domitian, and the terrible wars with the Jews, cut off prodigious numbers of the Romans. The Jews were subdued, their city and temple destroyed, and hundreds of thousands of them put to death; but the vengeance of heaven still pursued the Roman persecutors. In the fourth century Christianity was established as the religion of the empire by Constantine, and a gleam of hope seemed to dart across the minds of his subjects; but it was speedily chased away by their internal dissensions and the irruption of the Goths and Vandals, which ended in the subversion of this stupendous power.* St. Paul twice visited Rome; first, in the year 61, in consequence of his appeal to Cæsar; and again probably in 64. At this time there was a great persecution of the Christians, during which, it appears, Paul was imprisoned, and soon after beheaded near the city, A. D. 65. During his first imprisonment, which lasted two years, he wrote his Epistles to the Ephesians, the Philippians, the Colossians, and Philemon; and in his second imprisonment, he most probably wrote his second Epistle to Timothy. The Apostle Peter probably went to Rome about A. D. 63 or 64, after Paul's first imprisonment; and thence wrote his second epistle. It is generally believed that he suffered death here, about the same time with Paul. 4. MACEDONIA.-It has been supposed by somec ritics that this country is denoted in the Old Testament by Chittim, or the descendants of Cheth. Shuckford has supported this opinion with much ability, and it has been adopted by Calmet and his learned editor. The boundaries of this country are not very easily fixed. The ancient limits were probably the Ægean Sea on the east, Thessaly and Epirus on the south, the Adriatic or the Ionian Sea on the west, and the river Strymon and the Scardian mountains on the north.t In the description of Greece, we have intimated that Macedonia was sometimes comprehended in it, with all the southeastern part of Europe south of Illyricum, Mæsia, and Thrace. The Romans divided the whole of Greece into two provinces: * See Brown's Dict. of the Bible, art. "Rome." Macedonia, comprehending Macedonia, Epirus, and Thessaly; and Achaia or Greece, comprehending Greece proper, and the Peloponnesus. When Macedonia is joined with Achaia, in the New Testament, it means the Roman Province; when spoken of alone, the country or Macedonia Proper is intended. Macedonia is celebrated as being the third great empire of the world, and it is said that Alexander subdued one hundred and fifty nations. He certainly made himself master of Greece, of the Persian empire, and of India; but his empire was quickly broken in pieces; and Macedonia, after continuing a kingdom about 646 years, fell into the hands of the Romans, A. M. 3856. The principal cities of Macedonia were Thessalonica, Amphipolis, Philippi, Berea, and Pella. The Apostle Paul was directed by a vision to preach the Gospel in this country, which he did with great success, Acts xvi. xvii. 5. SPAIN-St. Paul mentions an intended journey into Spain, Rom. xv. 24, 28, but it is doubtful whether he ever accomplished it: Eusebius, and after him, some modern wri ters have supposed Spain was referred to in the old Testament under the name of Tarshish; and the late editor of Calmet is of opinion that the city of this name was Cadiz. The Spaniards suppose Jubal the son of Japheth to have come hither about 142 years after the flood, and to have introduced the patriar chal religion. But others suppose it to have been peopled by the Celtic descendants of Gomer, who settled here about 1000 years after the deluge. A christian church was early planted in Spain, but by whom is not known. The chief ISLANDS in Europe demanding notice are 1. Crete, an island in the Mediterranean sea, almost opposite to Egypt, and now called Candia. Calmet supposes that this island was peopled from Egypt, and that thence the Philistines peopled that part of the Holy Land called Philistia; but his editor thinks it more probable that Crete itself was peopled by the Philistines, migrating from the shores of Egypt, or of Judea.* It appears that the character of this people for lying was notorious as early as the time of Homer, who always makes Ulysses, when about to tell a falsehood, assume the character of a Cretan. In common speech the expression " to Cretanise," signified to tell lies. This helps to account for the character which St. Paul has drawn of this people, in saying "the Cretans are always liars" (Tit. i. 12.), which, * See Calmet's Bib. Encyclop. art." Caphtor," "Cherethim," " Crete.” indeed, is quoted from one of their own poets, Epimenides, who adds they are savage beasts, and gor-bellies.' A most 66 disgusting description. The gospel was early preached in Crete, and a church planted there; Titus was appointed to ordain officers in it, and St. Paul touched at it in his way to Rome, Acts xxvii. 9, 21. 2. Clauda was a small island towards the south west of Crete. The vessel in which Paul embarked for Rome, and which was wrecked in the Mediterranean, ran under this island, Acts xxvii. 16. 3. Melita or Malta is a small island in the Mediterranean sea, about 54 miles south of Sicily, and 150 north of Africa. It is about 18 miles long, and 12 broad. It belonged to the Romans, who had taken it from the Carthaginians, when Paul and his companions were shipwrecked in it, about A. D. 63. Acts xxviii. 1-11. 4. Samothrace is an island in the Egean sea, south-east of Thrace. It is about twenty miles in circumference, and has several good harbours. Paul passed by this island on his way from Asia to Macedonia, in his second apostolical journey, and thence sailed to Neapolis, a town on the coast of Macedonia, Acts xvi. 1. 5. Sicily is an island in the Mediterranean Sea, over against Italy, to which it belongs, and to the continent of which it is supposed to have been originally joined. It is 180 miles in length, and 90 in breadth. Its chief city was Syracuse, which was visited by St. Paul in his way to Rome, Acts xxviii. 12. III. AFRICA. The countries which we have to notice here are Egypt, Ethiopia, and Libya. 1. EGYPT.-This celebrated country was peopled by the descendants of Mizraim, the son of Ham. Hence it is frequently called in Scripture the land of Ham, and also the land of Mizraim. It is situated between 48° and 53° of east longitude, and 24° and 33° of north latitude; its length being about 600 miles and its breadth near 300. It is bounded on the south by Ethiopia and the Cataracts of the Nile; on the north by the Mediterranean Sea; on the east by the Arabian Gulf or Red Sea, and the Isthmus of Suez; and on the west by Libya. Ancient Egypt is divided by some into two parts, the Upper and the Lower Egypt; by others into three-the Upper Egypt, or Thebais; the Middle Egypt, or Heptanomis ; and the Lower Egypt, the best part of which was the Delta. The Thebais, which is the most southerly part of Egypt, is in Scripture called Pathros. Its principal city was Thebes, which is not mentioned in Scripture, unless it be under the name of No-Ammon, which is probable. Middle Egypt, or Heptanomis, so called from the seven names or districts it contained, comprehended all the country on each side of the Nile, from Thebais to the point of the Delta, where that river divides itself into those branches by which it enters the sea. In this part of Egypt were many large and noble cities, among which were Memphis, for many ages the metropolis of the whole kingdom, Acanthus, Heracleopolis, Nilopolis, Hermopolis, &c. The Lower Egypt, reaching from Heptanomis to the Mediterranean sea, contained not only that part which is encompassed by the Nile, and, from its triangular figure, named Delta, but also Mareotis and Alexandria, with its dependencies, to the west; and Casiotis, and Augustamnica, with some other territories towards Arabia, to the east. In this division were the cities of Pelusium, Alexandria, Sais, Tanis, Nicopolis, &c. Near Alexandria was the island of Pharos, which in the time of the Kings was joined to the city by a bridge, so as to be reckoned part of it. It was in the country of Tanis that the Israelites are supposed to have dwelt. The fertility of Egypt, and the excellence of its productions, are greatly celebrated by ancient writers, and by Moses himself (Gen. xiii. 10), who must have been well acquainted with the country. It is well known that this fertility depends upon the annual inundation of the Nile, which, taking its rise in Ethiopia, runs through the country, and falls into the Mediterranean sea, and by the mud or slime it brings down with it fattens the earth, and makes it exceedingly fruitful, without any other manure.* "Mizraim, or Menes, the son of Ham, with his posterity, the Pathrusim, Casluhim, and Caphtorim, peopled Egypt after the flood; he was its first king, and was succeeded by a vast number of Pharaohs, some say to the number of sixty. One of them, A. M. 2084, took Abraham's wife into his palace, intending to make her his bride; but plagues, that marked the cause, obliged him to restore her. Two hundred years after, there happened seven succeeding crops surprisingly plentiful, which were followed by seven years of famine, in which the Egyptians had mostly perished, had they not been saved by the wise management of Joseph. About this time the Hebrews came down into Egypt. After they had been there See Ancient Universal History, vol. i. p. 390, et seq. above a hundred years, the Egyptian king took every method to oppress them, and cut off their males. In A. M. 2513, God required the Egyptian king to allow the Hebrews to depart from his land. He refusing, tenfold plagues, of turning the waters into blood, of frogs, of flies, of lice, of murrain of cattle, of fiery boils on man and beast, of thunder and hail, of locusts, of darkness, and of the death of the first-born, obliged him to it at last. They had scarce retired, when he pursued them, and with his whole army was drowned in the Red Sea. About this time the Egyptian historians place an invasion of their country by swarms of Phoenician shepherds; but who these shepherds were, whether Amalekites who fled from Chedorlaomer, or Canaanites who fled from Joshua, or Arabs, we cannot possibly determine, Gen. xli.-xlvii.; Exod. i.-xiv. About A. M. 2989, Solomon espoused an Egyptian princess; and Pharaoh, her father, having taken Gezer from the Canaanites, gave it for her dowry. Shishak, who might be her brother or nephew, was a mighty conqueror. After he had united Egypt into one kingdom, and extended his empire almost to the straits of Gibraltar, he marched a huge army into Asia, and conquered the western part of it. In his absence, his brother Danus rebelled, and after his death the empire fell to pieces; and even Egypt itself fell under the yoke of the Ethiopians. After some ages, they recovered their liberty; but it seems the kingdom was divided into three. Sabaco or So, the Ethiopian, reduced them all, and seized on the whole country. After him reigned Sethon, the priest of Vulcan, perhaps no more than the viceroy of Tirhakah. After his death, Egypt being terribly ravaged by the Assyrians, had twelve lords set over the whole; but whether by the Assyrian conqueror we cannot say. After about fifteen years of civil war, Psammetichus subdued the other eleven, and seized on the whole kingdom. In his time the Greeks first settled in Egypt; and 200,000 of his soldiers, offended in a point of honour, retired to Ethiopia. Under him, and his son, Pharaoh-necho, the Egyptians thought to have erected their grandeur on the ruins of Assyria. The taking of Ashdod cost the father twenty-nine years' siege; and the son, after reducing the kingdom of Judah, received terrible defeat near the Euphrates. About thirty years after, A. M. 2430, Egypt was in a miserable condition, by means of the civil wars between PharaohHophra and Amasis the rebel, who gained the throne; and by the ravages of the Chaldeans. About forty years the country was almost a wilderness, and Amasis was tributary to the Chaldeans. Towards the fall of the Chaldean empire, the |