JERUSALEM. 779 
rufalem was poffeffed by Abfalom, tbe Ton of David; but few hufbandmen and vine-dreflers excepted) were carried 
the lame year it again fell into the hands of David. Af- away into flavery. This event took place in the year of 
ter David’s death, in the year 3021, Solomon furrounded the world, 3347, an epoch memorable in the hiftory of 
Jerulalem with much ftronger and better walls. He Jerufalem. 
erefted, alfo, various new edifices in the neighbourhood Cyrus, king of Perfia, who had conquered the king- 
of Mount Bezeta and Mount Moriah, fo that a third city, doms of Aifyria and Babylon, in the year of the world 
as it were, was feen to arife ; but, as they were inclofed 35x6, and the fir ft of his reign, fet the Hebrews at liberty, 
by one wall, they were therefore called by one name, after they had been feventy years captive in Babylon; re^ 
Each of thefe cities being, however, furrounded by its own ftored to them the Ikcred veffels carried away by'Nebu- 
particular wall, we may fay that Jerufalem .was fortified chadnez.zar, and gave them leave at the fame time to re- 
by three walls. In the year of the world 3023, the fourth build the temple. The Hebrews employed twenty years' 
of the reign of Solomon, and the twenty-eighth of his in conftrudling this new edifice; for they were continu- 
age, the Temple was begun; and in the fpace of feven ally interrupted in the work by their enemies, the Sama- 
years, that noble fabric, admired by all nations for its gran- ritans. Nehemiah) one bf the Hebrew captives, who af- 
deur, magnificence, and riches, was completely finifhed. terwards became fovereign of that people, being cup-bearer 
During the whole reign of this prince, which was forty to Artaxerxes Longimanus, king of Perfia, and in great 
years, the city continued to increafe in fplendour, and to favour with the court, obtained leave to go to Jerufalem, 
be in.a very flourifhing ftate; but foon after his death its and rebuild the walls of that city, which, though entirely 
misfortunes began. " deftroyed, he reftored, with much labour, in the fpace of 
In the fourth year of the reign of Rehoboam, the fon twelve years and four months. This happened in the 
of Solomon, that is to fay, in the year of the world 3046, year of the world 3600, and in the eighty-fecond after the 
the city of Jerufalem was befieged and taken by Shifhak, Hebrew people had been fet at liberty by Cyrus, 
or perhaps Sefoftris, king of Egypt, who afterwards con- After Nehemiah, the city of Jerufalem enjoyed peace till 
eluded a peace with Rehoboam, but carried away the the year 3722. In this year, Alexander the Great, being 
treafures of the temple, as well*as thofe of the royal pa- engaged in the fiege of Tyre, demanded afliftance from 
lace. Joalh, king of Ifrael, advanced to Jerufalem, entered 
the city, deftroyed part of its walls, plundered the temple 
and the royal palace, and returned to Samaria. About 
the year 3425, Pharaoh Necho II. king of Egypt, entered 
Jerufalem, and captured Jehoahaz, king of Judah, who 
bad been raifed to the throne by the Hebrew people, in the 
room of his father Jofiah, who was killed the fame year 
in a battle fought with the king of Egypt. Jehoahaz was 
carried away captive to that country, and the fovereignty 
conferred upon Jehoiakim, who was obliged to pay a cer¬ 
tain tribute impofed on the Hebrew nation ; fo that Je¬ 
rufalem became then tributary to the king of Egypt. In 
the fourth year after Pharaoh Necho had given the crown 
of Judah to Jehoiakim, Nebuchadnezzar II. king of Ba¬ 
bylon, befieged Jerufalem, which now fell.under the do¬ 
minion of the Chaldeans. Nebuchadnezzar reftored it, 
however, to Jehoiakim, on condition of paying a certain 
tribute, as he had done to the king of Egypt, in order to 
fhow the dependent ftate of the city and the Hebrew peo¬ 
ple. Jehdiakim, not being able to endure this fervitude, 
attempted, three years after, to free liimfelf from the yoke; 
but the king of Chaldea fent a powerful army againft 
him, which laid wafte the country of Judea. Jehoiakim 
himfelf, being taken, was put to d.eath in the year 3436, 
and a great number of prifoners were conducted, as ftaves, 
to Babylon. The lame year, Jehoiakim was fucceededby 
his fon, Jehoiachin, who reigned in Jerufalem only three 
months. Nebuchadnezzar, being apprehenfive that he 
■would revenge his father’s death, laid fiege to Jerufalem, 
compelled Jehoiachin to furrender, and carried him away 
captive to Babylon, together with his mother, his wife, 
his children, and a great many people, leaving only a very 
fmall number of inhabitants in the land, which was now 
reduced to 1 a very deplorable lituation. Upon this occa- 
iion, Nebuchadnezzar feized upon all the riches of the 
templfe and royal palace, and cut in pieces thofe golden 
velfels which Solomon had caufed to be made for the fer- 
vice of the Lord. In the room of Jehoiachin, Nebuchad¬ 
nezzar eltablilhed Mattaniah king of Jerufalem, and gave 
him the name of Zedekiah. This prince, however, in 
imitation of, his predeceffors, rebelled againft the king of 
Chaldea, who lent an army againft the city of Jerufalem, 
and having made himfelf mailer of it, in the eleventh year 
of the reign of Zedekiah, took the king prifoner, and af¬ 
ter putting out his eyes, carried him away as a captive. 
Nebuchadnezzar beipg then at Riblah, a city of Syria, 
fent his general, Nabuzaradan, to deftroy the city of Je¬ 
rufalem entirely. The walls of it were, therefore, razed, 
the royal palace and the temple demolilhed, their riches 
and ornaments tranlported to Babylon, and the people (a 
the Jews; but the chief prieft refufed his requelt, inform¬ 
ing him at the fame time, that he had fworn to Darius not 
to take any part with his enemies. Alexander, offended 
at this anfwer, repaired to Jerufalem, after he had con¬ 
quered Tyre and the city of Gaza, fully refolved to be 
revenged both on it and its inhabitants; but being met by 
a multitude of people, all dreifed in white, the priefts ar¬ 
rayed in their robes, and the high-prieft with a garment 
of purple and gold, having on his head a tiara, with a 
plate of gold above it, upon which was inferibed the name 
of the Lord, his paflion immediately Tubfided ; and, ap¬ 
proaching the high-prieft, he offered his adorations to God ; 
after which he fliowed every mark of refpeft to Jaddus, a* 
noted under Jaddua, p. 670. Ptolemy Soter, the fon of 
Ptolemy Lagus, who was one of Alexander’s fucceffors, 
and who, in the divifion of the empire, had got Egypt for 
his fhare, wiffiing to extend his conqueft in Syria and 
Phoenicia, turned his thoughts towards Jerulalem. In 
the year 3733, therefore, he iurprifed the city, on the fab- 
bath-day, having entered it under a pretence of offering 
up facrifice; and, taking a great number of prifoners in 
Judea, carried them along with him to Egypt. Antio- 
chus Epiphanes, in the year 3882, befieged "the city, plun¬ 
dered it of all its gold and valuable effects, put to death 
eighty thoufand of the inhabitants of Judea, made forty 
thoufand of them Haves, and fold forty thoufand more. 
In the year 3885, the facrifices were interrupted ; abomi¬ 
nation entered into the houfe of the Lord ; and the altar 
was profaned by the ftatue of Jupiter Oiympius being 
ereeled over it. This calamity happened four hundred 
and thirty-eight years after Jerufalem had fuffered under 
Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. 
After the deltruftion of the city of Jerufalem under 
Antiochus Epiphanes, it found a powerful defender in 
Judas Maccabeus, - who, in the year of the world 3888 
having fucceeded his father Mattathias as high-prieft of 
the Hebrews, overcame in various battles the celebrated 
generals of Antiochus EpipbanCs, king of Syria-; and af¬ 
ter re-eftablifhing the city, and purifying tlag temple, in the 
year 3889, made la dedication of the new altar. In the year 
3890, Antiochus Eupator, king of Syria, Ion and fuccef- 
for to Antiochus Epiphanes, laid fiege to Jerulalem. A 
peace being afterwards concluded, he was admitted into 
the city by Judas Maccabeus.; but this faith left prince, 
breaking his oath, caufed the wall between the temple and 
the citadel, which defended the former from the attacks 
of the Syrians, to be entirely demolilhed. In the year 
3911, Simon Maccabeus fortified Jerufalem, by ereftimr 
ftrong and high towers on the walls. The fort at this 
time was in the hands of the Syro-Macedonians; but Si- 
mo* 
