Observations upon the Prophecies of Daniel, and the Apocalypse of St. John | Page 4

Judah. The books of the
Chronicles cite the book of Samuel the Seer, the book of Nathan the
Prophet, and the book of Gad the Seer, for the Acts of _David_; the
book of Nathan the Prophet, the Prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite, and
the visions of Iddo the Seer, for the Acts of _Solomon_; the book of
Shemajah the Prophet, and the book of Iddo the Seer concerning
genealogies, for the Acts of Rehoboam and _Abijah_; the book of the
Kings of
Judah and Israel for the Acts of Asa, Joash, Amaziah, Jotham,
Ahaz, Hezekiah, Manasseh, and _Josiah_; the book of Hanani the Seer,
for the Acts of _Jehosaphat_; and the visions of Isaiah for the Acts of
Uzziah and Hezekiah. These books were therefore collected out of the
historical writings of the antient Seers and Prophets. And because the
books of the Kings and Chronicles quote one another, they were written
at one and the same time. And this time was after the return from the
Babylonian captivity, because they bring down the history of Judah,
and the genealogies of the Kings of Judah, and of the High Priests, to

that captivity. The book of Ezra was originally a part of the book of the
Chronicles, and has been divided from it. For it begins with the two last
verses of the books of Chronicles, and the first book of Esdras begins
with the two last chapters thereof. Ezra was therefore the compiler of
the books of Kings and Chronicles, and brought down the history to his
own time. He was a ready Scribe in the Law of God; and for assisting
him in this work Nehemias founded a library, and _gathered together
the Acts of the Kings and the Prophets, and of David, and the Epistles
of the Kings, concerning the holy gifts_, 2 _Maccab._ ii. 13. By the
Acts of David I understand here the two books of Samuel, or at least the
second book. Out of the Acts of the Kings, written from time to time by
the Prophets, he compos'd the books of the Kings of Judah and Israel,
the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah, and the Chronicles of the Kings
of Israel. And in doing this he joined those Acts together, in due order
of time, copying the very words of the authors, as is manifest from
hence, that the books of the Kings and Chronicles frequently agree with
one another in words for many sentences together. Where they agree in
sense, there they agree in words also.
So the Prophecies of Isaiah, written at several times, he has collected
into one body. And the like he did for those of Jeremiah, and the rest of
the Prophets, down to the days of the second Temple. The book of
Jonah is the history of Jonah written by another hand. The book of
Daniel is a collection of papers written at several times. The six last
chapters contain Prophecies written at several times by Daniel himself:
the six first are a collection of historical papers written by others. The
fourth chapter is a decree of Nebuchadnezzar. The first chapter was
written after _Daniel_'s death: for the author saith, that Daniel
continued to the first year of _Cyrus_; that is, to his first year over the
Persians and Medes, and third year over Babylon. And, for the same
reason, the fifth and sixth chapters were also written after his death. For
they end with these words: _So this Daniel prospered in the reign of
Darius and in the reign of Cyrus the_ Persian. Yet these words might
be added by the collector of the papers, whom I take to be Ezra.
The Psalms composed by Moses, David
, and others, seem to have been
also collected by Ezra into one volume. I reckon him the collector,

because in this collection I meet with Psalms as late as the Babylonian
captivity, but with none later.
After these things Antiochus Epiphanes spoiled the Temple,
commanded the Jews to forsake the Law upon pain of death, and
caused the sacred books to be burnt wherever they could be found: and
in these troubles the book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel was
entirely lost. But upon recovering from this oppression, _Judas
Maccabæus_ gathered together all those writings that were to be met
with, 2 _Maccab._ ii. 14. and in reducing them into order, part of the
Prophecies of Isaiah, or some other Prophet, have been added to the
end of the Prophecies of _Zechariah_; and the book of Ezra has been
separated from the book of Chronicles, and set together in two different
orders; in one order in the book of Ezra, received into the Canon, and
in another order in the first book of Esdras.
After the