St. Augustine, Of the citie of God vvith the learned comments of Io. Lod. Viues. Englished by I.H.

L VIVES.

AT (a) this time.] Diodorus. lib, 1. reciteth many names of Osyris as Dionysius, Serapis, •…•…e Ammon, Pan, & Pluto. Tacitus arguing Serapis his original, saith that some thought him to * 1.1 be Aesculapius, the Phisitian-god: and others, tooke him for Osyris, Egypts ancient est deity. lib. 20. Macrobius taketh him for the sunne, and Isis for the earth. Te Serapim Nilus (〈◊〉〈◊〉 Marlianus to the sunne) Memphis veneratur Osyrim: Nilus adoreth thee as serapis, a•…•… Mem∣phis, as Osiris. Some held Serapis the genius of Egypt, making it fertile and abundant, His statues (saith Suidas) Theophilus Archbishop of Alexandria tooke downe, in the time of •…•…∣odosius the great. This god some called Ioue, some Nilus, (because of the measure that he had in his hand, and the cubite, designing the measures of the water,) and some, Ioseph. Some •…•…y there was one Apis, a rich King of Memphis, who in a great famine releeued all Alexandria at his proper cost and charges, where-vpon they erected a Temple to him when hee was dead, and kept an Oxe therein, (for a type of his husbandry) hauing certaine spots on his backe, and this Oxe was called by his name, Apis. His tombe wherein he was bu•…•…ed, was remoued to Alexandria, and so him-selfe of 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, and Apis, was called Sorapis, and afterwards, •…•…∣pis. Alexander built him a goodly temple. Thus much out of Suidas and the like is in 〈◊〉〈◊〉, Eccles. Hist. lib. 11. The Argiues King (saith Eusebius Prep. lib. 10 out of Aristippus his •…•…ry of Arcadia lib. 2.) called Apis, built Memphis in Egypt: whome Aristeus the Argiue calleth Sarapis: and this man (we know) is worshipped in Egypt as a god. But Nimphodorus, Am∣phipolitanus de legib. Asiatic. lib. 3. saith that the Oxe called Apis, dying, was put into a •…•…ffin (called 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 in Greeke) and so called first Sorapis, and then Serapis. The man Apis, •…•…s the third King after Inachus. Thus farre Eusebius. (b) 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉.] That is, the deu•…•… of flesh. Therefore Pausanias, Porphyry, Suidas, and other Greekes, call him not Sorapis, but Sa∣rapis, 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 is a chest, an Arke, or a coffin. (c) Temples of.] Isis and Osyris were buried at N•…•…a as some thinke (sayth Diodorus lib. 1) A citty in Arabia, where two pillers were erected for monuments one for her and another for him, and epitaphs vpon them contayned their acts, and inuentions. But that which was in the Priests hands might neuer come to light for feare of reuealing the truth: and dearely must hee pay for it that published it. This God that laid his finger on his lips in signe of silence, hight Harpocrates, varro de ling lat. lib. 3. where he affir∣meth that Isis and Serapis were the two great Gods, Earth and heauen. This Harpocrates * 1.2 Ausonius calleth Sigalion, of 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, to be silent. Pliny, and Catullus mencion him often when they note a silent fellow, and his name is prouerbiall. Plutarch. (lib. de •…•…s. & Osyr) saith hee was their sonne gotten by Osyris vpon Isis after his death: and because the child died as soone as it was borne, therefore they picture it with the finger on the mouth, because it neuer spake. I like not this interpretation, it is too harsh and idle. The statue signified that some-what was to bee kept secret, as the goddesse Angerona (in the like shape) did at Rome. Macro•…•… * 1.3 Ouid. Metam. 9.

Sanctaque Bubastis, variisque coloribus Apis. Quique premit vocem, digitoque silentia suadet.

Saint Isis and that party colour'd Oxe, And he whose lips his hand in silence lockes.

To this it may be Persius alluded saying, digito compesce labellū, lay your finger on your mouth.

(d) The Oxe] Apis the Oxe. No man I thinke Greeke or Latine, euer wrote of the Egyptian affaires, but he had vp this Oxe: but especially Herodo. Diodo. Stra. Plutar. Euseb. Suidas, Varro, * 1.4 Mela, Pliny, Solinus, and Marcellinus. Hee was all black, but for a square spotte of white in his fore-head, (saith Herodotus) on his right side (saith Pliny): his hornes bowed like a Cres∣cent: for he was sacred vnto the Moone. Marcellinus. Hee had the shape of an Eagle vpon his back, and a lumpe vpon his tongue, like a black-beetle, and his taile was all growne with forked haires. When hee was dead, they sought another with great sorrow, neuer ceasing vn∣till they had found a new Apis like him in all respects. Him did Egipt adore as the chiefe god, and (as Macrobius saith) with astonished veneration, nor might hee liue longer then a set time, if hee did, the priests drowned him (e) Nourished] At Memphis (saith Strabo) was a temple dedicated vnto Apis, and thereby a goodly parke or enclosure, before which was an Hall, and this enclosure was the dams of Apis, whereinto hee was now and then letten in, to sport him-selfe, and for strangers to see him. His place where hee laie, was called the mysticall bed, and when he went abroade, a multitude of vshers were euer about him: all adored this Oxe-god, the boyes followed him in a shole, and hee himselfe now and then bellowed forth his prophecies. No man that was a stranger might come into this temple at Memphis, but onely at burials. (f) They did not worship] Some did draw this worship of the Oxe from the institution of Isis and Osyris, for the vse that they found of this beast in tillage. Some againe say Osyris himselfe was an Oxe, & Isis a Cow, either because of Io•…•… or vpon some other ground. Some say besides (as Diodorus telleth vs) that Osyris his soule went into an Oxe, and remai∣neth continually in the Oxe Apis, and at the drowning of this, goeth into the next. Some af∣firme that Isis hauing found Osyris his members, dispersed by Typhon, put them into a wodden Oxe couered with an Oxes hide: so that the people seeing this, beleeued that Osyris was be∣come an Oxe, and so began to adore that, as if it had beene him-selfe. This was therefore the lining Osyris, but the body that lyeth coffined in the temple, is called Serapis, and worship∣ped as the dead Osyris. (h) Iacobs Eewes] Gen. 30. Of this I discoursed else-where. The LXX. doe translate this place confusedly. Hierome vpon Genesis explaineth it.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Osyris.
• * 1.2

  Harpocrates
• * 1.3

  Angerona.
• * 1.4

  Apis.