P F A F F. 
about the fame time entered on his licentiate. In 
1682, he received the degree of doftor; and in 1690, he 
was ele£ted vicar-general, or vifitor of the reformed 
boufes belonging to his order in the Ifle of France. In 
1697, Louis XIV. by way of rewarding his literary merit, 
bellowed on him the abbey de la Charmoye, which he re¬ 
tained till the year 1703; when he religned that dignity, 
without referving any claim upon if, that he might give 
himfelf up wholly to the devotional duties of his profef- 
lion, and the profecution of his ftudies. By the intenfe- 
nefs of his application, however, he irrecoverably ruined 
his health ; and he died in 1706, in the 67th year of his 
age. The firll work by which he ellablilhed his claim to 
profound erudition united with great ingenuity, though 
fometimes employed in eftablifhing lingular if not fanci¬ 
ful hypothefes, is entitled, “The Antiquity of Time, 
reltored and defended againft the Jews and the New Chro- 
nologilts,” 1687, 4to. In this performance the author 
endeavours to maintain the chronology of the Septuagint 
in preference to that of the Hebrew text of the Bible, 
which he fuppofes to have been corrupted by the Jews 
fince the dellrudlion of Jerufalem ; and he alfo claims for 
the world a much higher antiquity than is allowed by 
any other modern chronologer. Such a publication 
would naturally attrafl confiderable attention: it was 
attacked by Martianay a Benedidline, and La Qnien a 
Dominican ; by the former with a degree of warmth and 
virulence which rendered no fervice to his caufe, but by 
the latter with greater moderation and j udgment. Againft 
their animadverlions the author defended himfelf, with 
ability and modelty, in a piece entitled, “A Defence of 
the Antiquity of Time, in which the Tradition of the 
Fathers and Churches is fupported againft that of the 
Talmud, and the Corruption of the Hebrew by the Jews 
is demonllrated,” 1691, 4to. To this work Le Quien 
wrote a reply ; but Martianay chofe rather to denounce 
the author’s treatifes, and the fentiments contained in 
them, before M. Harlay, archbilhop of Paris. The au¬ 
thor, however, found no difficulty in fatisfying that pre¬ 
late, that, if he were miltaken, he had only erred in com¬ 
mon with all the fathers before the time of St. Jerome. 
Father Pezron was alfo the author of, 3. An Attempt at 
a Literal and Hillorical Commentary on the Prophets, 
1693, i2tno. which is faid to throw much light on the 
hillory of the kings of Judah and Ifrael. 4. The Evange¬ 
lical Hillory confirmed by thofe of the Jew's and Romans, 
1696, 2 vols. i2mo. 5. A Treatife concerning the Anti¬ 
quity of the Nation and of the Language of the Celts, 
otherwife called Gauls, 1703, 8vo. which abounds in 
learned and curious enquiries, and appears to have been 
part of an intended large work on the origin of nations, 
which the author did not live to execute. 6. Two 
learned Dilfertations in the Memoires de Trevoux for 
the years 1703 and 1705: one “Concerning the ancient 
Station of the Canaanites,” and the other “ On the an¬ 
cient and true Boundaries of thePromifed Land.” Mo- 
reri. Gtn. Biug. 
PFAFF, a mountain of Aultria, bordering on Stiria. 
PFAFF (John-Chriltopher), a learned German Lu¬ 
theran divine and profellor, was born at Pfullingen in the 
duchy of Wirtemberg, in the year 1651. Having been 
educated to the miniltry, he was appointed deacon in 
1683, and two years afterwards pallor of the church at 
Stutgard. In 1697 he was called to fill the chair of mo¬ 
ral philofophy at Tubingen ; and, in 1699, was made pro- 
felfor extraordinary of divinity ; afterwards he received 
the appointment of profelfor in ordinary in the fame 
faculty ; and, in 1705, he was chofen pallor of the church 
of Tubingen. His lad promotion was to the deanery of 
that church, in 1707. He died in 1720, in the 69th year 
of his age. He publilhed, 1. A Collection of Controver- 
fies, in Latin, and fome fmaller pieces, which are faid to 
be held in efteem by the Lutherans. His moll valuable 
production, which poflelfes confiderable merit, and claims 
for him this brief notice, is entitled, Differtatio de 
Vol.XX. No. 1348. 
29 
Allegatis Veteris Tellamenti in Novo, 1702, 4to. Le 
Long's Bibliotheca Sacra, vol. ii. 
PFAFF (Chrillopher- Matthew), fon of the preceding, 
and a very learned Lutheran divine and profelfor, was 
born at Stutgard in the year 1686. He was admitted a 
Undent of the univerfity at Tubingen at a very early age ; 
and made fo rapid a progrefs in academical learning, par¬ 
ticularly in oriental literature, that in 1702, before he 
was fixteen years old, he delivered a difcourfe in the 
Samaritan tongue in the prefence of the infpeftors of the 
Stipendium of divinity, and ably maintained a thefis 
which had been given him. In the fame year he pro¬ 
ceeded M. A. on which occafion he obtained the firll 
place in point of rank, though the youngell candidate for 
that degree. Afterwards he applied with ardour to the 
lludy of divinity, both under his father and other divines 
of reputation, and acquired great applaufe by his public 
thefes in the fchools. 
Having thus advantageoully difplayed his abilities and 
improvement, the duke of Wirtemberg fent young Pfaff 
to travel at his expenfe, that he might profit by the in- 
llruCtions of the ablell foreign profelfors, particularly in 
his acquaintance with the oriental languages and ecclefi- 
allical hillory. He continued fome time at Hamburg, 
where he received leffons on the Hebrew language and 
the Talmud, and alfo attended the hillorical leisures of 
the learned John Albert Fabricius. Afterwards he vifi- 
ted the principal univerlities of Germany, diligently 
availing himfelf of the peculiar advantages for improve¬ 
ment by which any of them were dillinguilhed. He then 
went to Holland, and from that country palled over to 
England. Here he chiefly fpent his time at Oxford, 
where he was introduced to the moll eminent men for 
learning in the univerfity, and had accefs to its very va¬ 
luable libraries. On his return to Germany, he made 
fome flay at Gieffen, and received lectures on the Ethiopic 
tongue from the celebrated Burcklin. While he was 
occupied with the lludy of this language, he was fum- 
moned to the ducal court, where he had the honour 
of being felefred to attend the hereditary prince of Wir¬ 
temberg on his travels, in the capacity of chaplain ; and 
was immediately admitted to the miniltry. He conti¬ 
nued with the prince for three years at Turin, during 
which period he carefully vifited the royal libraries, and 
difcovered many important manufcripts that were for¬ 
gotten or entirely unnoticed, fome of which he tran- 
fcribed, and he profited by them in his fubfequent commu¬ 
nications to the public. He alfo explained and illultrated 
feveral diplomas relating to the rights of the court of 
Turin, which, it is faid, no perfon had before been able 
to decipher. He found fome fragments of Irenteus, 
which had been configned to oblivion for ages, and he 
defended their genuinenefs againll the objections of M. 
Scipio Maffei. In the year 1712, he returned with the 
prince to Wirtemberg; and, in 1713, he attended him to 
Holland, where they continued two years. Afterwards 
they travelled through the Low-Countries, and proceeded 
on to Paris. In this city M. Pfaff feduloufly cultivated 
an acquaintance with the mofteininent literary characters, 
and embraced every opportunity of examining the trea- 
fures in the public libraries. 
At length, in the year 1716, the prince and his attend¬ 
ants returned to Wirtemberg, where the duke had kept 
vacant the chair of a profelfor of divinity at Tubingen, 
fince the year 1714, with the defign of bellowing it on 
our author. Accordingly, M. Pfaff entered upon the 
duties of his profefforlhip in 1717, having been previously 
created doftor of divinity by his father, of whom he now 
became the colleague. After his father’s death in the 
year 1720, he received the appointments of ephorus , or 
infpeCtor, and dean of the church of Tubingen. After¬ 
wards he became chancellor, and firll profelfor of divinity 
in the univerfity. So highly was he refpeCted for his 
learning, abilities, and virtues, that the emperor made 
him a count-palatine, and gave him the extraordinary 
J powes^ 
