ASTROLOGY. 
ters of ivifdom and underfunding than all the afrologers in the 
realm , in conlideration of which they were elected members 
of the public fchoolsat Babylon, which were founded for the 
ftudy of this art; and Daniel was made, by the king’s decree, 
mafterovertheChaldean aftrologers. (Dan. i. 4. ii. 13. v. 11.) 
“ In the days of Samuel, it appears to have been a com¬ 
mon cuftom to go to the feers, or men of underftanding in' 
the times, not only to be informed concerning future con¬ 
tingencies, but alio to enquire after loll goods. To this 
effect we find Saul and his fervants difcourfing, when they 
were fent out to find the llrayed afles of Kilh, Saul’s fa¬ 
ther; and, not being able to find them, the fervant pro- 
pofes to go and enquire of the leer, which way the afles' 
were gone, and where they may be found. Saul agrees to 
this, but alks, What have we to give him ? we have no bread 
left, nor have we any fujficient pref.nt. The fervant replies, 
/ have a fourth part of a fukel of fiver ; I’ll give him that. 
Saul anlwers, Well faid\ let us go. ( 1 Sam. ix. 6, 7, &c.) 
This paffage enables ns to diftinguilfi between the gift of 
prophecy, for the purpofe of eltablilhing God’s true reli¬ 
gion, and the art of anfwering horary queltions, and pre¬ 
dicting future events. The one was evidently effected by 
fupernatural means, and promulgated to the people with¬ 
out expence; whillt the other, by being calculated for the 
benefit of refpeCtive individuals, was accompanied with 
money or prefents. In the fame way we find David, when ' 
in Kedah, where he heard that Saul was coming to be- 
fiege him, was delirous of knowing the truth, whether 
Saul was coming or not ; and, if he was, Whether the men of 
Keilah would be true to him , or would betray him. And. being 
informed they would betray him into tire hands of the ene¬ 
my, who were feeking his life, he fled into the wildernefs 
of Zrph, and efcaped the danger that was impending over 
him. (1 Sam. xxiii. 10, 1,1, 12, 13, 14.) And in the New 
Teftament alfo, we have frequent confirmations of the me¬ 
teorological part of the fcience, from our Saviour’s own 
words, in his conversation with the pharifees, who were 
all verfed in aftrology. He addrefles them to this effeft: 
‘ When it is evening, ye fay, It will be fair weather, be- 
caufe the Iky is red ; and in the morning, It will be foul 
weather, becaufe the fky is red and lowering. And, when 
a cloud arifeth out of the weft, ftraightway ye fay, A 
Ihower cometh ; and it is fo. And, when ye fee the fouth- 
wind blow, ye fay, There will be heat; and fo it comes 
to pafs. Ye hypocrites, ye can difcern the face of the fky, 
but the figns of the times ye cannot difcern.’ (See Matth. 
xvi. 2. Lukexii. 24, 55, 56.) And now, if we impartially 
contemplate the origin and antiquity of this fcience, and 
recolledt that the belt and wifeft men in every age of the 
world were profeflbrs of it, we mud admit its pradtice to 
be highly confident with our moral and religious duties. 
That the human underdanding is alfo capable of attain¬ 
ing to a very high degree of knowledge in the hidden works 
of futurity, and in the fecret operations of nature, is like- 
wife to be proved, beyond the power of contradiction. In¬ 
deed the paflages already quoted area fufficient confirmation 
of it to every difpafiionate reader ; but, as there are fome 
very extraordinary indances of this predidtive faculty re¬ 
corded by different hidorians, I will juft mention a few 
of them, by way of corroborating the evidence already 
brought in its fupport. The emperor Domitian required 
the profeffor Largius Proculus to calculate his nativity, 
from the luppofed time of his birth, which was done, and 
delivered into the emperor’s own hands. Afclatarius, a 
famous adrologer of thofe times, procuring a copy of this 
nativity, rectified it, and foretold the hour and manner of 
the emperor’s death ; which when Domitian heard, he 
commanded Afclatarius to be brought before him, when 
lie affirmed his predidlions would prove true. Domitian 
afked him if he could foretel the manner of his own death ? 
Afclatarius replied, That he knew he (fiould fhortly be 
torn in pieces by dogs ; but, to confute the adrologer, the 
emperor ordered him to be burnt alive. The cruel fen- 
tence was accordingly put in execution; his body was 
bound and laid upon the pile, and the fire kindled ; but 
3 2 3 
at that indant there arofe a dreadful dorm of wind and 
rain, which drove the fpcdlators away, and exlinguiffied 
the fire; and Afclatarius was afterwards torn in pieces by 
dogs, as he had foretold. When Latinus informed the 
emperor of this event, he was greatly mortified, and very 
melancholy ; and, on the day his affiiffination had been 
predicted, he feigned himfelf indifpofed, and locked him- 
felf up in his chamber. Stephanos, the captain of his 
guards, went to his door, pretending he had received fome 
important difpatehes, which he wanted to deliver to him ; 
but, Domitian declining to admit him till a certain hour 
was part, Stephanos perfuaded him it was then much later 
than the time fpecified. The emperor, in confequence, 
concluding the danger to have paired by with the hour, or 
looking upon the prediction as a mere fable, feeing no con- 
fpiracy or danger about him, opened the door, upon which 
Stephanos Itepped up to him with a drawn dagger, and 
(tabbed him to the heart, in the very hour that had been 
predicted by the adrologer, on the 18th day of Septem¬ 
ber, the month he had ordered to be called Germanicus. 
(Vid. Sueton. in Domitian.) The fame writers add, that 
Apollonius Tyaneus was at that indant of time at Ephefus, 
(landing in the prefence of the magiftrates, and in a kind 
of ecliacy cried out, O Stephanos, flrike the tyrant ; and 
after a paufe added, ’Tis well, thou halt killed him. This 
‘art of rectifying nativities, was a difcovery which brought 
the fcience to very high perfection, and has enabled its 
profeflbrs to be aflonifliingly exact in predictions of confe- 
quence. Thus Lucius Firmianus, by the aCts of Romulus’s 
life, and the time of his death, found that he fvas born in 
the firfl year of the fecond Olympiad, the twenty-third 
day ol the month, about fun-riling. And hence he difco- 
vered that the building of Rome was begun when the 
Moon was in Libra, the Sun with Mercury, and Venus 
in Taurus, Jupiter in Pifces, and Saturn with Mars in 
Scorpio. (Vid. Peucerde Divinat. feet, de Adrolog.) The 
archbilhop of Pifa confulted feveral different profeflbrs of 
aftrology concerning his deftiny, and they all calculated his 
nativity at different times, and without any communication 
with one another ; but they all foretold that he would be 
hanged. It feemed highly incredible at the time, becaufe 
he was in fo much honour and power ; but the event juf- 
tified the predictions; for in the {edition of Pope Sextius IV. 
in the fudden rage and uproar of the people, he was feized 
and hanged. (Vid. Annal. Florentin.) Petrus Leontius, a 
celebrated phyfician and aftrologer of Spoletanum, call his 
own nativity, and foretold that his death would be occa- 
fioned by water, and many years afterwards he was found 
drowned in a pond, into which he had fallen the preceding 
night, by miftaking his way. (Jovius, Elog. 35.) Jofephus 
tells us he calf the nativities of Vefpafian and his fon Titus, 
and predicted that they would both be emperors ; and fo 
it turned out. R. Cervinus calculated the nativity of his 
fon Marcellos, and foretold that he ihould come to great 
preferment and dignity in the church ; and, his mother 
afterwards entreating him to marry one Caflandra Benna, 
he very refolutely declined it, faying, He would not with 
the bands of matrimony bind himfelf from that better for¬ 
tune which the liars had promifed him if he continued to 
live (ingle and unmarried. And he was afterwards really 
made pope. (Vid. Tinian. 1 . 15.) Picus Mirandula was a 
fevere writer againft. aftrology, inlomuch that he was termed 
Flagellum Aftrologorum ; and, to Hop the malignity of 
his pen, Lucius Bellantius, and two other aftrologers of 
eminence, procured the time of his birth, and calculated 
his nativity, which they afterwards fent him, with this 
prediction inclofed, ‘ That he would die in the thirty- 
third year of his age.’ This exafperated him fo much, 
that he began to write a new traCl, with inconceivable af- 
perity, againft the poor aftrologers, attempting to prove 
their calculations a mere bubble, and themfelves a fet of 
impoftors. But, when the fatal appointed hour arrived, 
he law the folly of his own conceits ; recanted his opinion, 
and fealed by his death a Handing memorial of the inerra- 
bility and truth of this fcience. Many other extraordinary 
circumftances 
