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reigned 40 years, or that the jurisdiction of Samuel is to be 

 included in the 40 years assigned to Saul. In fact, the dis- 

 puted text, (S. 13. 1.) on which so much learning has been 

 exhausted, and so much fruitless ingenuity thrown away, can 

 in no other manner be explained consistently with the analogy 

 of language, and the natural sense and meaning of Scripture. 

 Our English translation is pronounced by many learned 

 men inconsistent with the genius of the original ; so that it is 

 at most, but an ingenious supposition to explain a difficult 

 passage. The Vulgate has, " Filius unius anni crat Saul quando 

 regnare csepisset, duobus autem annis regnavit super Israel." 

 AriusMontanus translates it, as he says, word for word, thus: 

 " Filius anni Saul quando regnavit, in regnando ipsum & 

 duobus annis regnavit super Israel," which, I confess, I do 

 not rightlv understand. The investigation of this text would 

 of itself require a long dissertation. 1 shall, therefore, merely 

 refer the reader to the several treatises on this subject, apud 

 Poli, synopsin, Usher, the Vossii, Vignoles, &c. only adding, 

 that after the most enlarged examination of the subject; and 

 consulting as many original authorities, as my opportunities 

 would permit, I think the interpretation most unexcepti- 

 onable is, that " Saul was forty years old when he began to 

 reign, and reigned 22 years over Israel," agreeable to Josc- 

 phus, who grants him but 20 or 22 years. The remaining 

 eighteen are to be attributed to Samuel alone. 



The last article affords a mean of explanation, why the 

 sacred history does not assign any precise period to Samuel, 



only 



