50 The 3\(jtturalland Moral! 



Of the Prophetic of Abdias, which fome doc inter fret te 

 be the Indies: CHAP. 15. 



\A Any fay and affirme , that in the holy Scripture 

 -A-Vl.it was foretold long before, that this new worldc 

 fliouldbe converted to lefus Chrift by the Spanifli na 

 tion, and to this purpofe they expound the text of the 

 Prophecie of Abdi&s, which fay th thus: At the travfmi- 

 gration of this OJi, the children of ifraelfall pojjejje all the 

 the dwellings of the Cananites vnto Sarepte,W thetranf- 

 wigraiion of lemfalcm, which is at Bofphorus , fallpof- 

 fcjje the Cittics of the South, and they that fall five , fall 

 come vp to the hill of Sion to iudge the mount ofEm,and 

 the kingdwne fall bte the Lordcs. This hath beene fet 

 downeacording to theletter,but the Hebrew Authors 

 reade it thus : And the transmigration of this Osi of the 

 children, which be the Cananitcs, <vnto Zarfhat ( which is 

 Trance ) and the transmigration of lerufalem ,which is in 

 Safharad (vnderftood for Spaiue) fall poffejft for inhe 

 ritance the Cities of the South, and thofe which procure fal- 

 vation , jhafl mount *vp to the hill of Sion , to iudge the 

 mount ofE&u r andthckixgdome fail be the Lords. Yet 

 fome of them doe not produce any fufficient teftifao- 

 ny of the Ancients, nor pertinent reafons to proove 

 that Sapharad( which S.Ierome doth interpret theBef 

 phw or Straight , and the 70. Interpreters Euphrates,) 

 fliould fignifie Spatne,but their onely opinion. Others 

 alleage the Caldean Paraphrafe, which is of this -opini 

 on, and theancient Rabbins , which expound it on this 

 fort j as alfo that Zarfhat is France , ( which the vulgar 

 atid the 70- Interpreters call Sarepte.*) But leaving this 

 difpute, which belongs to men of more leifure; what 



neceflitie 



