ROYAL ARCH.
175
The Scriptures were originally written in the old Hebrew or character, ancl copies of them were also made in that character until the captivity. * During the captivity the Hebrews, to a great extent, lost the use of that language, and hence EZRA. transcribed the law into the Chaldaic character, in order that it might be generally understood by the people. This was the origin of the Cha.ldaic paraphrases as they were called..t EZRA. also introduced synagogues among the J e\vs, and by himself and his scribes multiplied copies of the Scriptures and caused them to be read in the s:rnagogues that he established.+ It is, however, a generally conceded fact that twice in the Jewish histor;y there were no copies of the Scriptures known to be in existence. It is apparent that the Book of the Law was very rare in the reign of JEHOSHAPHAT, because 'we are told that when he sent teachers thro~gh a~l Judah to instruct the people in the law of GOD, they carried with them" The Book of the La"w of the LORD,"§ which, as PRIDEAUX remarks, they would not have done, had there been any copies of the la'w in the cities to which they went. In the succeeding years, dnring the wicked reign of 1IANAssEH and his successor,· it is evident that no copy of the Book of the Law was known to exist; for when HrLKIA.B: found the law in the temple,1I neither he nor King JOSIAH would have been so surprised at it, bad copies of it been common. Their conduct on that occasion sufficiently proves that neither of them had ever seen the book before. This opinion is now held by most commentators, as well as by the early fathers, err who assert that all the copies known to have been in existence ,yere destroyed by the injunctions of MANA.SBEH and A.M:NON, his son and successor. The only copies that escaped destruction were those which were preserved by the conservators of Jewish l\'Iasonry. It is probable that HILKIAB: and JOSIAH took care that this copy of the law, found by them, should be laid up in the ark from whence it had been taken, to preserve it from destruction at the hands of ],!ANASSEH; and there are som.e reasons for supposing that partial copies of it may have been made, which were preserved among the ~aptive8 in Babylon; but the Scriptures are si1~nt upon the subject. S~maritan
Prideau:x" Con., vol. ii., p. 58. Dr. Wm. Smith's Dictionary of the Bible. t Union Bible Dictionary. t Prideaux, Con., vol. 2, p. 13.§ 2 Chronicles, xvii., 9. 112 'Kings, xxii., and 2 Chronicles, xxxiv. ~Dr. Oliver, Rist. Landmarks. vol. jj,., p. 27.\ Dr. Prideaux, Con.• ,~ol. i., p.137. 11'