Darius Hystaspes 24 Jubilee....... Darius Hystaspes 12 years after the Jubilee. Jubilees. Years. 69 3450 1 50 Xerxes reigned 21 Darius Artxerxs. Mnemon 39 years after the Jubilee. 10 years after the Jubilee. 2 2 He reigned in all about six years, and it was about his second year that Alexander the Great began to reign; and I have proved in a preceding part of this letter that it was at the beginning of his reign that the Syrian era commenced; therefore, the next Jubilean year would be in the 11 Jubilee.......... 1 50 In the Syrian year 150, or the second year of Antiochus Eupator, there was a Sabbatic year, as mentioned in I. Mac. vi. 17, 49, 53. In the Syrian year 178, there was a Sabbatic year, Brought forward ..... as may be seen in Josephus, Book 13, chapters 6, 7, 8, who says that in the Assyrian era, 170, Jonathan the High Priest died, and that Simon, who succeeded him, was killed eight years after, and that at his death there was a Sabbatic year, O. L. 162. In the Syrian era 186, Jubilee In the Syrian era 236, Jubilee About 5 years after the Syrian era 236, Pompey put an end to the Grecian power. From this period there were to the death of Pompey, 1812. In Plutarch's life of Pompey, he states Pompey's age, when he conquered the East, including Judea, to be forty, and his age at his death to be fifty-nine years, which proves that the time that did elapse between his taking the city Jerusalem and the Temple to his death, was about 18 years. To the death of Julius 15 years from the death of Julius Cæsar to the time Herod took Jerusalem, being a Sabbatic year, according to Josephus; from thence to the next Jubilee 7 In the 31st year of Messiah, a Jubilee, according to Luke, iv. 18, 19. 1 50 80 4000 And from the thirty-first year of the Messiah there are forty-two and a half years till the destruction of Jerusalem, which shows there was a Sabbatic year before the destruction of Jerusalem; and this agrees with Josephus, who states there was a Sabbatic year at that time. The prophetical numbers of Daniel, as I have calculated, give the exact time of Christ's birth, and the time of his death is known by that notable eclipse, mentioned by Matthew and Luke; which is likewise confirmed by the dialogue that took place betwixt Dionysius and Apollophanes, concerning this eclipse, "Either God himself suffers, or else is extremely concerned about him that suffers." From this expression of Dionysius, it is evident that he did not attribute the darkness to any natural cause, but considered it extraordinary; the moon being about the full at the passover, when Christ suffered death there could not be an eclipse by the moon. That an eclipse did happen at that time, is also confirmed by the testimony of Phlegon Trallianus, who, speaking of this eclipse, says "In the fourth year of the 202 Olympiad, there happened the greatest eclipse that ever was known before. Previous to making the calculation concerning the eclipse that happened in the fourth year of the 202 Olympiad, I shall examine what authority there is for saying that an eclipse happened at the death of Julius Cæsar. Plutarch, in his life of Julius Cæsar, says, “The most signal phenomenon in the heavens was that of a great comet, which shone very bright for seven nights after Cæsar's death." Now, if there had been any says, such extraordinary eclipse, at the death of Julius Cæsar, the appearance of the comet could not be the most signal phenomenon; but Plutarch goes on and "To which we may add the fading of the sun's lustre, for his orb looked pale all that year, he rose not with a sparkling radiance, nor had the heat he afforded its usual strength; the air of course was dark and heavy, for want of that vigorous heat which clears and rarifies it, and the fruits were so crude and unconcocted, that they pined away and decayed, through the chillness of the atmosphere." Josephus in Antiq. 14th Book, xii. Chap. 3rd. Sec. mentions a decree of Anthony, and he refers in his decree to the same thing as Plutarch does, viz., the withdrawing of the sun's light, and like Plutarch attributes it to the displeasure of the Gods, for the assassination of Julius Cæsar; if there had been an eclipse, Plutarch would not have omitted to mention it, along with the other phenomena. Plutarch says, "the fading of the sun's lustre, for his orb looked pale all that year, &c.; the air was dark and heavy." This circumstance, it appears, the corrupters took advantage of, and converted it into a great eclipse, at the death of Julius Cæsar. If any such eclipse had happened at the death of Julius Cæsar, Phlegon would not have stated that the one that happened in the fourth year of the 202 Olympiad, was the greatest eclipse that ever was known before, without mentioning the eclipse said to have happened at the death of Julius Cæsar, such a short time before. The following is the Latin and English version of Virgil, concerning the languid appearance of the sun, about the time of Julius Cæsar's death. "Ille etiam extincto miseratus Cæsare Romam Impiaque æternam timuerunt sæcula noctem." "He (the sun) also pitied Rome at the murder of Cæsar, seeing he covered his bright head with a dusky redness, and impious mortals were afraid the darkness would be eternal." The following remarks are by Martin of Cambridge, on the foregoing extract from Virgil. "Severus, who wrote a commentary on Virgil's works, between the third and fourth century, supposes these prodigies, which Virgil here relates, predicted the death of Julius Cæsar, and mentions the darkness of the sun that happened, was on the 14th day of March, the day before Cæsar was murdered," he adds that this darkness continued many hours, his words are the following" It appears that the day before Cæsar was killed in the senate, that is on the 14th of March, there was an eclipse of the sun, from the sixth hour even until night; so long was it protracted that men dreaded an eternal darkness." The substantive ferrugo, made use of by Virgil, is thought by Martin to have given rise to this opinion that it was an eclipse; Martin, however, shows that this cannot be, as the word in its primitive sense signifies a deep redness; he cannot see therefore how Severus should have so far misunderstood its meaning as to annex to it the idea of darkness, or an eclipse. Again, Pliny uses the word defectus, which Severus says, means an eclipse, but certainly Pliny cannot be understood as affixing any such meaning to it, for he affirms that it continued for a whole year. Tibullus also says (when faithfully translated) "The |