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SIR,

Proceed now to endeavour to discharge myself of that Promife which I had entered into.

in my former Letter: And, as there ought to be an Umpire in every Difpute, to whofe determination the Differences in queftion are to be referred; I fhall fet out with acknowledging those Books of the Holy Bible, which you allow to be Canonical, to be the proper Judges of this Controverfy. And therefore as I fhall frequently have occasion for appealing to them; and as I do not write Hebrew with any readiness, I choose to begin with fetting down their Names both

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in English and Hebrew, that when I quo the English Name, or the Hebrew Word in Roman Characters, you may, by confulting this part of my Treatife, find out what Book it is in the Hebrew Bible to which I refer.

The Names and Order in which you place your Canonical Books, are these.

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Which being the Penteteuch, or five Books of Mofes, go under the general Denomination of the Law. Then come the Books of the Prophets

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Which four are called the Books of the firft Prophets. Then come the four Books of those which are called the latter Prophets, viz.

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IN which Nehemiah is also included. All which, taking the twelve minor Prophets for one Book, make in all twenty four Books of Canonical Scriptures.

IN the Interpretation of which Scriptures or the application of them to the Argument before us, I fhall not appeal to any Chriftian Commentators, of what Eminency foever, but to the Commentators of the Jewish nation, who have either written Targums upon the Scriptures, or Midrajcots, i e. allegorical Comments; or elfe, whofe Sayings are recorded in the Jewish Talmud, against whose Testimony, therefore, the Jews can have no Objection.

AND, Sir, as this Letter is not intended barely for your own Ufe, I fhall beg leave, through you, to address myself to the whole Nation of the Jews. And because I know it is the Custom with feveral of the Jewish Rabbins, when any of the unlearned raise Difficulties, and de

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fire Information, with regard to any of the Prophecies in the Bible, relating to the Meffiab, to fay to them Sathum hu, i, e. it is a hidden or fecret Thing; I shall lay before them the Authority upon which the Validity of these Targums, the Midrafcots and the Talmud is founded; that the unlearned as well as the learned, may be able to judge of the Force of this Evidence.

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The Word Targum fignifies an Interpretation, thefe Works are therefore fo called, because they are a Collection of those Interpretations, which were given to the Scriptures of the Hebrew Bible by the most learned Doctors, or Rabbins, of the Jewish Nation. For the Jews, at leaft many of the lower, and younger fort, during their long Continuance under the Babylonifo Captivity, being sepa¬ ted from one another, and forced to converfe with the Chaldeans, thereby learned the Chaldee Language; and forgot the Hebrew, which was their ancient native Tongue. Infomuch that * Ezra, when he read the Law to the People, upon their

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Nehem. vi. 4, 8.

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