y 
and on his return, taught, under the 
obfcure fymbol of numbers, the emana- 
tion of all intelligences from one Divinity, 
as numbers are derived from monad, or 
unity. In the other great ftock of 
Grecian’ philofophy, the lonic fchool, 
(founded a century before the Italic, by 
Thales) Plato, who vifited both the 
Egyptian and Pythagorean fchoois, 
though he followed Anaxagoras in fepa- 
rating the a€tive principle in nature from 
the material mafs, and heid them to have 
been eternally diftinét from each other, 
neverthelefs has been commonly uncer- 
ftood to admit the netion of emanation, 
and, confequently, that of plurality, in 
his doétrine concerning the divine 
nature. From comparing various parts 
of his obfcure writings on this fubject, 
it has been inferred to have been his 
dottrine, that there are, in the unity of 
the divine effence, three perfonal {ub- 
fifiences: the firft, ro oy, or ra aye toy, the 
being, or the good, the caufe of all 
things; the fecond, Asgyes, reaion’; the 
third, Juyn, the foul of the world; the 
two latter derived or produced by 
emanation from the former, and, tcge- 
ther, forming a trinity of fwbnftences in 
the divine eflence. This explanation of 
his doétrine has, it is true, been contro- 
yerted; and it has been .ingenioufly 
maintained*, that no intimations of plu- 
rality in the divine nature are to be 
found in his writings. Whatever was 
Plato’s real doétrine, which it may ftill be 
difficult to afcertain, it is certain, how- 
ever, that this notion was fuppoted to be 
taught in his works, and was received as 
a theological dogma by his fcl.owers, 
both Pagan and Chriftian, in the Alex- 
andrian fchool. 
Through the pericd of the Grecian 
te€is, philofophy {till continued to, be 
taught in India, Perfia, Chaldea, and 
other Eaftern countries+. When, about 
a hundred years before the Chriftian 
zra, philofophy took ker principal ftation 
at Alexandria, philofophers from the eaft, 
as weil as from the weft, flocked thither, 
and brought with them their peculiar 
fyftems. The ancient doéirine, taught 
by Zoroafer and other Oriental philo- 
fophers, which explained the origin of 
things by the, principle of emanation 
Pas an eternai fource, met with a wel- 
“gorne reception, and: graduaily fpread 

* See Dr. Morgan’s Invefligation ef the 
Trinity of Plato. 
+ Clem; Alex. Strom. 1. r. 

j | Sept 
through the Pagan, Jewihh, and Chrif- 
tian {chools. 
Phe Pagan followers of Plato gradu. 
ally departed from his fyftem; and ia 
the third century, Plotinus, and others, 
adopting the emanative doétrine, not 
only taught, that within the divine effence 
are included three principles : the primary 
effential good; mind, or intelle&t; and 
foul, or the aétive principle of life; burt 
that the human foul, and even matter, 
were remoter emanations from the firft 
fountain. i 
The Oriental doétrine was incorporated 
fomewhat earlier into the jJewifh fyftem. 
A numerous colony of Jews had, froma 
the time of Alexander, been fettled ‘in 
Alexandria. Another body, who had, 
probably, during the Babylonidh cap- 
tivity, fled into Egypt fei refuge, had 
formed themfelves into an afcetic fed, 
called Effenes, one branch of whom, 
under the name of Therapeute, had 
formed a large fociety near the city. 
Among thefe Jews, efpecially the latter 
elafs, the doétrines of Pagan philofophy, 
Oriental and Grecian, found a ready 
reception, and were admitted into their 
my fteries, in the form of allegorical mter- 
pretations of the law. The doétrine or 
a plurality of perfonal fubfiftences, pro-- 
duced by emanation, in the divine 
nature, was particularly fuited to the. 
genius of thefe myftics: and among 
them was probably tramed, or, at leaft, 
begun, that wonderful mafs of meta- 
phy ‘ical fiétions, the Jewifh~Cabbala, in 
which the notron of plurality in unity 
appears in alk its fplendour. In this 
faneiful tyftem, the firft emanation from 
the eternal fountain is, itfelf, the fource 
of ten other emanations, which are fub- 
ftantial powers, and, in their turn, fend 
forth other fubordinate natures down te 
matter, the moft diftant produétion of 
divine energy: all exifting forms are 
only expanfions of deity by various de- 
grees of emanation, and plurality in the 
divine effence becomes indefinite. This 
fyftem exifted in embryo among the 
Jews, in Egypt, long before the birth of 
chritt; and its leading tenet was; pro- 
bably, conveyed to Paleftine at the time 
when the Pharifees, who had been driven 
into EKeypt under Hyrcanus, returned, 
with many other Jews, into their own 
country. Philo, an illuftrious and learn- 
ed Jew of Alexandria, born a few yeats 
befere Chrift, was a great admirer of the 
‘writings of Plato, and adopted his lan- 
‘guage and fentimen:s, but act without a 
fir ong 
