The Mysteries of All Nations | Page 9

various ways to secure their favour. In course of time altars were set up,
temples consecrated, and sometimes victims offered to obtain favour
from spirits and false gods. Some rabbis affirmed that the angel Raziel
was Adam's master, and taught him the Cabbala; and that Shem,
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Elias, etc. had each his guardian
angel, who directed his thoughts and actions. Jewish doctors assign to
magic great antiquity; they assert that it was known to those who lived
before the Flood. There is a tradition that one of the causes of the Flood
was the intercourse men had with demons. Though it has been stated by
ancient historians that Abraham was given to magic, and that he taught
it to his children, Josephus (obviously overlooking what had been
written prior to his time, and forgetting what Moses had seen
performed by the Egyptian priests before Pharaoh) thinks Solomon was
the first who practised this art. The Jewish historian gives credit to the
"wisest man" for inventing and transmitting to posterity certain
incantations for the cure of diseases, and for the expulsion of evil
spirits from the bodies of those possessed with such demons.
According to Josephus, the expulsion was brought about by the use of a
certain root sealed up in a wrapper, and held under the afflicted
person's nose while the name of Solomon and words prescribed by him
were pronounced. The learned historian does not seem to doubt the
wonderful power of Solomon, but rather advances statements
corroborative of what he had heard, for he asserts that he himself was

an eye-witness to a like cure effected, by equally mysterious means, on
a person named Eleazar in presence of the Emperor Vespasian.
Descendants of Abraham believed that their great ancestor wore round
his neck a precious stone, the sight of which cured every kind of
disease.
Suppose we set aside these assertions as fables, we cannot deny that the
Jews were at an early period addicted to magical arts. This propensity,
there can be no doubt, whenever first manifested, was increased
through the Hebrews' intercourse with the inhabitants of Egypt, Syria,
and Chaldea.
Jews, who professed to work wonders by enchantments, gave directions
how to select and combine passages and proper names of Scripture that
would render supernatural beings visible, and bring about many
surprising results. The sacred word Jehovah, they said, when read with
points, multiplied by or added to a given number of letters, and
composed into certain words, produced miraculous effects. By that
sacred name and strange arrangements, their prophets, they thought,
performed miracles. The devil was supposed to have the power of
accusing mortal man at the great day of propitiation, so the Jews
endeavoured to appease him with presents. They believed that on that
day only he had the power to bring a charge against them, and therefore,
to deceive him, they had recourse to a singular stratagem. In reading
the accustomed portion of the law, they left out the beginning and the
end,--an omission which was expected to cause Satan to overlook the
important time. Those versed in magic could tell that the five Hebrew
letters of which the devil's name was composed constituted the number
364, during which number of days he could not accuse them; and in
some way or other unknown to us, in addition to the plan of mutilating
the law, they kept his mouth shut year after year.
We find from the Holy Scriptures, that a witch was not permitted to
live,--that there should not be found among the Hebrews any that used
divination, an enchanter, a charmer, a consulter with familiar spirits,
nor a necromancer, because the abominations of these mischievous
people proved a snare to the nations that were driven out before the

Israelites. Various opinions have been expressed regarding the witch of
Endor. Parties are not agreed as to whether she did or did not bring up
Samuel before Saul; but into their disputes it is unnecessary for us to
enter. All that we mean to draw from the narrative is, that if the King of
Israel had recourse to a witch in his hour of perplexity, superstition
must have been general in the nation.
Religiously disposed Jews wore upon their arms and foreheads two
pieces of parchment containing the ten commandments. These charms,
or emblems of sanctity, or whatever they were called, were not allowed
to be worn by women or by men when they went to a funeral or
approached a dead body.
The Jews confessed their sins to their rabbis, and the penance or
punishment was commensurate with their guilt. It was not uncommon
for Jewish devotees to lash themselves, but the number of stripes did
not at any time exceed thirty-nine. During the flagellation the penitent
lay on the