9.

PART I. Moses, who probably seated themselves at first along the upper part of the river of Jordan. Here on the eastern side of the sea of Tiberias or GaliSituation of lee, we meet in our Saviour's time a city called the Girga Gergesa; which seems to preserve some remainders of the name of the Girgashites.

shites.

10.

The Hivite we find was seated in the upper or Situation of northern parts of Canaan, and so adjoining to his the Hivites. brother Sidon. For we read, Judg. iii. 3. that the Hivites dwelt in mount Lebanon, from mount Baal-hermon unto the entering in of Hamath.

11.. The foregoing naprocess of time intermixed.

tions in

12.

The other

descend

ants at first probably seated

And thus we have gone through those families of Canaan, mentioned by Moses, Gen. x. which are afterwards mentioned in the sequel of the sacred history, as continuing within the original borders of the lot of Canaan. What has been before observed concerning them, is to be understood in reference to their first settlements. For in process of time, it is very probable, and no other than what is countenanced by the sacred history, that these families intermixed one with the other. Whence we read of some Hivites, Amorites, and Hittites, in some other places than we have assigned them for their first settlements; and also the Amorites becoming the most potent nation in process of time; hence they are put to denote frequently any one, or more of the other nations of Canaan.

As to the remaining families of Canaan, mentioned by Moses in this tenth chapter of Genesis, viz. the Arkite, Sinite, Arvadite, Zemarite, and Hamathite; it seems most probable to me, that those at first seated themselves within the true themselves borders of Canaan. But in process of time, bewithin the ing dispossessed by the Philistines, at least of a borders of considerable part of what they had been possessed of, from the first plantation after the Flood; they were obliged, either to crowd themselves closer together in some parts of the land of Canaan, or else to seek out abroad for new plantations.

Canaan.

13.

What pro

bably

meant by

These families being thus dispossessed of their original plantations along the sea-coast, and great part, if not the whole, of some of them being thus

VII.

when men

scendants

forced to remove out of the land of Canaan; and CHAP. the remainders of them within the land of Canaan, being forced to seat themselves confusedly together, in what small tract their enemies had left them; the Cahence it might come to pass, that the sacred writers naanites, denote these confused remainders of the said fami- tioned with lies, by the general name of their nation, calling some other them in general Canaanites; because they could of the denot at that time of day tell how to distinguish them of Canaan, by their more peculiar names. Hence, when we read in the fore-cited Num. xiii. 29. that the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan; hereby seems to be denoted thus much, viz. the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains; and the other families of Canaan, which, deing dispossessed and dispersed by the Philistines, are so mixed now together, that we can design them only by the general name of the Canaanites; these dwell either in what is left them by the sea, or else where they have since seated themselves by the coast of Jordan.

ed.

14.

Having shewn by what name the remainders of these families in Canaan are probably denoted in The Arkite the sacred history; I shall now give an account of where seatthe places, where such, as removed out of the original border of Canaan, seated themselves. To go on then with them in the order they are mentioned, Gen. x. 17, 18. The Arkite first occurs; which is probably enough thought to have settled himself about that part of mount Libanus, where is placed by Ptolemy and others a city called Arce.

ed.

15.

Not far from this settlement of the Arkite, did the Sinite likewise settle himself; for in the parts The Sinite adjoining, St. Jerom tells us, was once a city called where seatSin, which though in succeeding ages it was ruined by war, yet the place where it had stood still retained its name. There is mention made, Ezek. xxx. 15. of Sin, a place in Egypt: but that this was so named from Sin, the Canaanite, is not pro

PART I. notes the same as Pelusium in the Greeks, i. e. a

16.

the Arva

dite.

:

dirty place and hence this Sin is thought to be the same as Pelusium, which, therefore, is set down in the margin of our Bible in this place.

As for the Arvadite, the little isle of Aradus, Situation of lying up more north on the coast of Syria, does in its name so much of the name of Arvad, preserve that it may be with great probability conjectured, that it took its name from the Arvadites, who seated themselves here in this isle, as a place of greater security from any new invasions.

17.

In the neighbourhood on the continent did the Situation of Zemarite probably fix; forasmuch as on the coast the Zema- there we find a town called Simyra, not far from

rite.

the Hamathite.

Orthosia. And Eusebius does expressly deduce the origin of the Orthosians from the Samareans. There is also a city called Semaraim mentioned by Josephus, as lying in the tribe of Benjamin; which perhaps might be so called from some of the Zemarites, that settled there within the land of Canaan.

18. The only remaining family is the Hamathite, or Situation of the inhabitants of the land of Hamath, often mentioned in sacred writ, and whose chief city was called Hamath. This some understand of Antioch, a famous city in these parts, others of Epiphania. And St. Jerom expressly affirms, that there were two cities of this name, one called Hamath the Great, whereby may be denoted Antioch; the Lesser Hamath being Epiphania, known by that name to the very time of Josephus the historian, and also of St. Jerom, as they both affirm. And thus we have gone through all the eleven families of the nation of Canaan.

ed.

19.

I proceed now to speak of the countries adjoinThe Avims ing to Canaan, and possessed by such as were not where seat- descended of Canaan. To begin from the southwest quarter. We find mention made of a people, called the Avims, formerly inhabiting these parts` from Hazerim unto Azzah, Deut. ii, 23. where as by Azzah is understood, according to the consent of, I think, all interpreters, Gaza; so by Hazerim is probably to be understood the same place, that

VII.

is called Hazaroth, Num. xi. 35. near to which the CHAP. children of Israel had one of their stations, as they travelled through the deserts of Arabia.

20.

These people were, as is likely, descendants of Cush; and in process of time were dispossessed of The Philistines posthis tract by the Philistines, descendants of Miz- sess themraim; who made themselves masters, not only of the selves of the country of the Avims, but also of the adjacent parts country of of the land of Canaan, lying on the sea side. This the Avims, part of Canaan was distinguished into five lord- and the adjacent tract ships, denominated from their chief towns, viz. of Canaan, Gaza, Ashdod, Eshkalon, Gath, and Ekron, Josh. on the west xiii. 3. of which more hereafter. It suffices to have or southobserved here, that the Philistines were thus possessed of a considerable tract in the west of Canaan, and also of the country of the Avims, on the south-west thereof, at the time when Abraham came to sojourn in the land of Canaan.

west.

21.

mims, Zu

the coun

tries on the

On the south of Canaan, the Horites inhabited Mount Seir, and the adjacent parts so far as the The Howilderness of Paran. Further on eastwards, and rites, Esouth-east of Canaan, dwelt a gigantic or very zims, and robust people, called the Emims. And full east of Rephaims, Canaan dwelt another gigantic people, called Zu- inhabited zims or Zamzummims. Lastly, on the north-east dwelt the Rephaims, who were also of the same south, gigantic race. These were the names of the several south-east, people, that inhabited the countries adjoining to and east of Canaan, on the south-west, south, south-east, east, Canaan. and north-east; when Abraham came into the land of Canaan. Whence these were respectively descended, is not so easy to tell. As to the country adjoining northward to the land of Canaan, it was, as we have shewn, possessed by some of the families of Canaan.

22.

the Amale

It is indeed said, Gen. xiv. 5-7, that when Chedorlaomer king of Elam, with his confederates, Country of smote the Rephaims, Zuzims, Emims, and Horites, kites, Gen. they smote also the country of the Amalekites; but xiv. 7. how this must be understood proleptically, i. e. that to be unthey smote the country, which was afterwards derstood. known by the name of the country of the Amale

PART 1. kites.

For the Amalekites were probably descended of Amalek, a grandson of Esau; and so there were no such people in the days of Abraham and Chedorlaomer. And having thus prepared the way for the clearer understanding the history of the sojournings of the Patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, in the promised Land; I now proceed to follow the thread of the Mosaic history, and to give an account of the (geographical part of the) sojournings of the three Patriarchs aforesaid, which takes up the greatest part of what remains of the book, called Genesis.

1. Abraham

CHAPTER VIII.

Of the Sojourning of Abraham.

IT has been before observed, that Terah, with his son Abraham, and grandson Lot, and some others, comes into left Ur of the Chaldees, and removed to Haran or Canaan. Charran, in the western part of Mesopotamia. Now as the proto-martyr St. Stephen assures us, that this first removal was made upon God's appearing to Abraham, and giving him orders thus to do; so he acquaints us, that by God's appointment, when his father Terah was dead, Abraham removed from Charran into the land of Canaan, Acts vii. 3, 4. Gen. xii. 1—5. And Moses informs us, that Abraham passed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh, Gen. xii. 6.

2.

comes to

The place here called Sichem, is the same with Abraham Sychem, Acts vii. 16. and with Sychar, John iv. 5. and with Shalem, a city of Shechem, Gen. xxxiii. Shalem, a 18. or (as it is plainly called, Gen. xxxv. 4, and in city of Shemany other places) Shechem. chem. The thing in short is this: the proper and original name of the city seems to have been Shalem; which in process time grew into disuse, at least among the Israelites,

5

of

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