B I B 



B I B 



After Athias, three Hebraizing proteftants engaged in 

 revifing and publifhing the Hebrew Bible ; viz. Clodiu?, 

 Jablonflci, and Opitius. — Clodius's edition ivas publiftied 

 at Frankfort in 1677, ■" 4-^°- ^' '^* bottom of the page 

 it has the various readings of the former editions ; but the 

 author does not appear fufficiently verfed in the accenting, 

 efpecially in the poetical books ; befides, as it was not pub- 

 lidied under his eye, many faults have crept in. That of 

 Daniel Erneft Jablonfl<i in 1699, '" 4'°- ^t Berlin, is very 

 beautiful as to letter and print : but, though the editor 

 pretends he made ufe of the editions of Athias and Clodius, 

 fome critics find it fcarcely in any thing different from the 

 4.to. edition of Bomberg. For this man of eminent learning 

 it was referved to lay the foundation for a reformation of 

 the printed Hebrew text. This he has done in the preface, 

 by making feveral excellent obfervations on the nature of 

 the prefcnt Hebrew MSS. ; with the proper marks of their 



;„Livj^;:7, ::d the ^reat ^lv::.::j:; tc b: d.;v..d from them. 



He has fatisfaclorily (liewn, that the Jewifh tranfcribers have 

 committed many millakes ; that the Keris are various reau- 

 ings arifing from the miftakes of tranfcribers ; that the 

 older MSS. have them in the text, but the later in the mar- 

 gin ; and confequently, that the Mafora, which confiders 

 the Keii as in the margin, mud be founded on the later 

 copies ; that one of the Hebrew MSS. at Berlin contains 

 fome thoufands of various readings, and that the other old 

 Hebrew MSS. have numerous differences from the printed 

 text ; and that thefe old MSS. have fuffercd many altera- 

 tions from the late correfting Maforets. He alfo ftates the 

 poflibility of procuring, by due zeal and exertion, very an- 

 cient MSS. from fuch of the Jews as have been fettled for 

 many ages in China, Ethiopia, Conilantinople, TiieiTalonica, 

 and other diftant parts of the world. Jablon(l<i is the fiift 

 author, who, after announcing the aftual exiftence of many 

 various readings in the Hebrew MSS., has recommended 

 both an accurate examination of thofe MSS, new known, 

 and a diligent fearch after others, at prefent unknown, 

 through the feveral quarters of the world. To him, there- 

 fore, belongs the honour of having planned the noble fcheme 

 for corre&ing the many corruptions of the printed Hebrew 

 text of the Old Tedament ; and yet not daring to praftife 

 v.-hat he recommends, he republilhed the Hebrew text al- 

 moft the fame as it was adjulled maforetically in Leufden's 

 edition of 1667. His corrections have been confined almoft 

 entirely to the vowel-points and accents. The edition of 

 Opitius was publidied in 410. at Kcil, in 1709 ; the charac- 

 ter is large and good, but the paper bad : it is done with 

 a great deal of care ; but the editor made ufe of no manu- 

 fcripts but thofe of the German libraries ; neglefting the 

 French ones, which is an omiffion common to all three, 

 Opitius copied irom Leufdr:n's Athia.s, though, he fuys, he 

 collated feveral MSS. in Berlin, and other places ; but he 

 idolized the Mafora, and held all readings incoufiftent with 

 it, however recommended by any MSS., in fovereign con- 

 temnt. Hence it follows, that if this edition was conform- 

 able to the late MSS, as regulated by the Mafora, the fame 

 Maforctic influence mufl have regulated the very early copy, 

 printed at Brefcia, in 1494 ; becaufe that edition is'recom- 

 mended by Opitius, Wolf. Beb. Heb. ii. p. 365. The 

 three lall mentioned editions have this advantage, however, 

 that befides the divifions uled by the Jews, b!)th general 

 and particular, into parajlcs and pefuhim, they have alfo 

 thofe of the Chriftians, or of the Latin Bibles, into chapters 

 and verfes ; the kcrt k^'tib, or various readings, Latin fumma- 

 ries, &c. which made them of confiderable ufe with refpecl 

 to the Latia editions, and the concordances. See Chap- 

 ters. 



The little Bible of R, Stephens, in iCto. is very much 

 prized for the beauty of the charafter. It was printed in 

 7 vols, at Paris, in 1544 — 1546. Care, however, muft be 

 taken ; there being another edition of Geneva, exceedingly 

 like it excepting that the print is worfe, and the text lefs 

 correfl. To thefe may be added fome other Hebrew Bibles 

 without points, in 8vo. and 24to, which are much coveted 

 by the Jews ; not that they are more exaft, but more port- 

 able than the reft ; and are ufed in their fynagogues and 

 fchools : of thefe there are two beautiful editions, the one 

 of Plantin, in 8vo. with two columns, and the other in 2410. 

 reprinted by Raphalengius at Leyden, in 1610. There is 

 alfo an edition of them by Laurens at Amfterdam, in 163 i, 

 in a larger charafter ; and another in i2mo. at Frankfort, 

 in 1 694, full of faults, with a preface of M. Leufden at the 

 head of it. 



In 1720, an Hebrew Bible was publifhed at Hall, by the 

 learned profeflbr John Henry Michaelii ; being the firft edi- 

 tion, which contained any variouj readings, coUefted from 

 Hebrew MSS, by a Chriftian editor. The text is taken 

 from Jabionfivi's edition, with fome few emendations. There 

 were collated for this Bible moft of the beft printed edi- 

 tions, and alfo five Hebrew MSS. belonging to the library 

 at Erfurth. The propriety of felefting various readings 

 from Hebrew MSS. and ancient vcrfions, is fet forth in the 

 preface ; and the editor has inferted here and there fome 

 variations of words and letters ; but the variations, chiefly 

 noted, relate to the minutis of criticitm, conlliling only in 

 points and aecents. 



Charles Francis Houbigant, oiie of ilic fainers cf tnc 

 oratory at Paris, publifhed an elegant edition of the Hebrew 

 Bible at Paris, in 1753, contained in four volumes, folio. 

 The text is that of Vander Hooght, without points, to 

 which he has added marginal notes, correcting that text by the 

 Samaritan pentateuch, Hebrew MSS. and ancient verfions ; 

 and alfo a new Latin verfion, made by himfelf, exprefTive 

 of fuch a text as his critical emendations appeared to iuftify 

 and recommend. This celebrated edition, (fays Dr. Ivenni- 

 cott, than whom there could not be a more competent judge) 

 feems to proceed upon fo juft a plan, as to its main princi- 

 ples, and to be executed (in the general) with fo much (kill 

 and judgment, as to claim for its worthy author the applaufe 

 of all the friends of rehgion and learning. He exprefTes, how- 

 ever, a wifh, that the author had fpared fome ofhisboldercriti- 

 cifnio, when they are unfupported by MSS., parallel places, 

 or ancient verfions ; efpecially, where the propofed emenda- 

 tions are notclearly and ftrongly recomraendedby the context. 

 Some learned men have vvilhed, that, inftead of infertirg 

 only a few feleft various readings from the Hebrew MSS., 

 all the various readings had been noted by the author after 

 each chapter. But the labour of fuch a work would have 

 been immenfe ; and we have great reafon to be fatisfitd with 

 what the learned and induftrious editor has attually done. 

 It has, indeed, been objeded by Dr. Hodges, in his preface 

 to the work entitled " The Chriilian Plan," that Houbi- 

 gant intended to alter the Hebrew text, to make it conform- 

 able to the Vulgate ; whereas, it was the editor's profefTed 

 intention to fet afide the Vulgate, as being faulty, and not 

 anfwering his purpofe, and to publilh a new Latin verfion 

 of his own. F. Houbigant obtained from the pope two 

 gold medals, in teflimony of his approbation of this edition. 

 Dr. Kennicott, after almoft twenty years' laborious collation 

 of 694 copies, manufcript and printed, of which about 

 630 are MSS. either of the whole, or of particular parts of the 

 Bible, and nine years more fpent in examining the H.:l.icw 

 MSS., and recommending a collation of thtm, publiihid, 

 in 1776, the firft volume of hi» Hebrew Bible, in folio ; 



R r 2 entitled 



