though it did not exclude it." This use of symbols degenerated, as it was copied by other prophets, -as may be seen in the instances already given, (Ezek. iv. and xii.,) — so that it became merely an unmeaning phantasmagoria,' as in Ezek. i., or a sport with enigmatical language, as in Zachariah's vision of a red horse, (i. 7, sqq.,) of the golden candlestick, (iv.,) or the flying roll, (v.,) and in the accounts in Daniel, (ii. and vii.) The power of the prophetic spirit stands in inverse ratio with the use of symbols. This fact is alluded to in Num. xii., “If there be a prophet among you, I Jehovah will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream. But not so my servant Moses. He is intrusted with all my house. Mouth to mouth speak 1 to him, and suffer him to see plainly, and not in images. He looks on the form of Jehovah ;" and in Jer. xxiii. 25, "I have heard what the prophets said, that prophesy lies in my name, saying, I have dreamed, I have dreamed they think to cause the people to forget my name by their dreams." c Since, among the Hebrews, all inspired discourse is accompanied with rhythm, the prophets commonly made с See Knobel, vol. i. p. 169, sqq. Compare the case of Paul the apostle See Carpzov, l. c. p. 14. Marmonides, (More Nevochin.ii. c. 45, p. 316,) in his various degrees of inspiration, has anticipated this conclusion, in some measure. [He maintains there are eleven degrees of the prophetic spirit. The first is the spirit of heroism, as it animated the old judges and warriors to noble deeds, and the last is that state of mind in which a man finds himself speaking with an angel in a vision. This happened to Abraham, when he was about to sacrifice Isaac. But Moses, says he, surpassed even this degree of prophetic inspiration, by many a parasang; for, while all the others heard the word through the mediation of an angel, he spoke face to face with God. See also Knobel, l. c. § 11, 12.] use of a certain symmetrical arrangement of the members of their sentences. But since they are rather orators than poets, their rhythm is usually distinguished from lyric poetry by the use of longer periods. When they relate facts, they make use of prose. The later prophets, whose inspiration had grown cold, suffered their rhythmical periods to flow into the prosaic, or, perhaps, wrote wholly in prose. § 206. THE COMPOSITION OF THE PROPHETIC BOOKS. The oldest prophets seem to have written nothing ; probably because, in their time, the living speech and action were more efficient, and literature was not sufficiently advanced. A prophetic literature first arose more than two hundred years after the establishment of the schools of the prophets." In the written prophecies that have come down to us, it is mentioned, sometimes, that the command of God was given to write down particular words, as in Isa. viii. 1, xxx. 8; or a whole prophecy, as in Hab. ii. 2, 3, Jer. xxx. 2; or a whole collection of prophecies, as in Jer. xxxvi. But sometimes they are written down a See the article in Eichhorn's Allg. Bib. vol. x. p. 1077, sqq. "Why do the written oracles of the Hebrew prophets begin about 800 B. C.?" [It is evident there were prophets from the commencement of the Hebrew state, and fragments of their oracles appear throughout the early course of Jewish history, from Joshua to Joel; e. g. Judg. ii. 1-3, an anonymous prophet appears, and is called an angel of Jehovah. Deborah, also, is a prophetess. An anonymous prophet appears, also, Judg. vi. 8, sqq. See the other instances collected in Eichhorn, l. c.] without mentioning any such express command of God, as in Jer. li. 60. But where no such remarks about the reduction of the prophecies to writing occur, we must assume that the genuine works of the prophets, now extant, were all written down by themselves, or their assistants. Some of them were written down after they had been delivered in public, and even long after their first delivery, (Jer. xxxvi. ;) and others were written without any such previous delivery." The greater part of the extant prophecies, probably all, whereof the occasion is not mentioned, seem to have originated in this latter way. It can scarcely be true that we possess discourses taken down by others, or sketches of discourses afterwards delivered. Some prophets, in writing down their oracles, seem to have designed to produce a complete literary work ; others, at least, wrote down their separate speeches in a collection. Only Only a few flying leaves of some other prophets appear to have got into circulation; and these have been badly interpolated, in a course of uncritical treatment, provided with false inscriptions, put in a false connection, or worked over anew. Finally, it has happened that later predictions have been falsely attributed to the old prophets. This has been done, not merely as an idle sport of fancy, but with real prophetic design. [About twenty-three years elapsed between the time he first began to prophesy, (i. 1, sqq.,) and the date of his committing his works to writing. Jeremiah is the only prophet who has given any account of his writings.] See below, § 217–219. CHAPTER I. ISAIAH." § 207. HIS LIFE AND TIMES. We know nothing of the person of Isaiah, except that he was the son of Amos, (or Amotz,) an unknown man, Jerome, Comm. in Proph. maj. in his Opp. iii. Mart. iv. v. Vallars. Cyrilli Alex. Εξήγησις υπομνηματική in Isa. Opp. ii. Is. Abarbanel, Comm. in Isa. Dav. Kimchii Comm. in Isa. Lat. Interpr. Cæs. Malanimeo; Flor. 1774, 4to. Jo. Calvini Comm. in Jes.; ed. 3, Genev. 1570, fol. Victorin. Strigelii Conciones Esaiæ Proph. ad Ebr. Veritatem recogn. et Argumentis atque Scholiis illustrate; Lips. 1565. Wolfg. Musculi in Esaiam Comm.; Bas. 1570, fol. Casp. Sanctii in Comm.; Mogunt. 1616, fol. Andr. Hyperii in Jes. Oracula Annotatt.; Bas. 1547. Seb. Schmidii Comm. super Prophet. Isa.; Hamb. 1702, 4to. Campegi Vitringæ Comm. in Librum Prophet. Isa.; Leov. 1714, 1720, 2 vols. fol. Extracts by Büsching; Halle, 1749, 1750, 2 vols. 4to. Esaias ex Rec. Textus Hebr. Latine vertit et Notas subjecit J. Chr. Döderlein; ed. 3, 1789. H. E. G. Paulus, Philol. Clavis über das A. T. Jesaia; Jen. 1793. Exeget. Handb. des A. T. 6, 7 pt. Der Prophet Jesaia, übers., mit e. vollst. philol. krit. u. hist. Comment. begleitet, von D. Wilh. Gesenius; Lpz. 1820, 1821, 3 vols. Der Proph. Esaias., übers, &c., von Hitzig; 1833. Hendewerk, Des Proph. Jes. Weissagungen, chronolog. giordnet., &c. pt. i. the proto-Esaianic prophecies; 1838; German version, by J. H. Walther, 1774, 4to. G. F. Seiler, 1785, with notes. J. D. Cube, with notes, 1785, 1786, 2 vols. extending to chap. xxxix. Ch. G. Hensler, 1788. G. Krāgelius, 1790, 1791, 2 concerning whom the rabbins have a tradition, which makes him a prophet, and the brother of Amaziah." It is unnecessary, as well as uncertain, to suppose that his standing with Hezekiah depended on any thing except his piety, and vocation as prophet; to say that it depended on his family, and offices at court, is a supposition equally needless and unfounded." According to vi. 1, he appeared as a prophet in the year of King Uzziah's death, 759 B. C.; and according to i. 1, he prophesied in the reigns of the three following kings-Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. This is confirmed by the subject and contents of his prophecies, and [with xix., which is of somewhat uncertain authenticity, and belongs to the time of Manasseh] brings us down to the fourteenth year of Hezekiah, 710 B. C. The legendary story that he was put to death by Manasseh, is very uncertain. There is no incontestable reason for extending the period of his action till the time of Manasseh's reign. vols. [See the English works of White, 1709; Stock, 1804; Harris, 1739; Horsley, 1801; Jones, 1830; Jenour, 1831; Maculloch; Barnes, Phil. 1840, 3 vols. 8vo.; Noyes's New Translation Heb. Proph., Bost. 1833, sqq., 3 vols. 2 8vo, 2d ed. 1843.] See list of writers in Rosenmüller. a Megilla, f. 10, c. 2: "R. Levi said, there is a tradition, received from our fathers, that Amos and Amaziah were brothers." But here is, the father of Isaiah, is confounded with in. See, on the contrary, Jerome's Proœm. to Amos. For the rabbins' opinion that he was a prophet, see Carpzov, (l. c. p. 91, sqq.,) who also gives the more ancient literature relating to Isaiah. See Augusti, § 203. Bertholdt, p. 1348. Paulus, Clavis, p. 62. And on the other side, Gesenius, Com. vol. i. p. 14, sqq. See chap. vii. xiv. 28, xxii. and many other passages. Comp. xxxvi.— xxxviii. According to Gesenius, chap. xix. belongs in Manasseh's time. It is Möller's hypothesis that Isaiah composed the second part of his prophecies during the exile of Manasseh. See De Authent. Oracc. Es. c. 40-66, p. 121, sqq. See below, § 210. Jebamoth, f. 49, c. 2. Sanhedr. f. 103, c. 2. Justin Mart. Dial. p. 349, |