The blessed Jew of Marocco: or, A Blackmoor made white. being a demonstration of the true Messias out of the law and prophets / by Rabbi Samuel, a Iew turned Christian ; written first in the Arabick, after translated into Latin, and now Englished ; to which are annexed a diatriba of the Jews sins and their miserie all over the world, annotations to the book ... with other things for profit in knowledge and undertanding, by Tho. Calvert ...

CHAP. III. All the Iews observance of the Law is unaccep∣table to God for the sinne in which they are.

WEE have found, O Master, what the Lord speaks by the mouth of his Pro∣phet Zacharie, concerning that first short cap∣tivitie:* 1.1 These things saith the Lord God to the Priests and people of the Land, when you fasted and mourned in the sixt and seventh moneth, the whole time of your seventy yeers, you understood that you fasted and mourned to me, but I would not have any such fast from you.* 1.2 [Our Transla∣tion hath it otherwise, but I purpose to set out in writing the authorities which Rabbi Samuel brings, as they are in the Arabick, not as we finde them in our Bibles] In the fore∣mentioned words, O Master, the Lord inti∣mates, that while we Jews were in that seven∣ty years Captivitie, we were without his Law, because in the Law we neither had nor have any Fast, as we have other observances; yea, in like manner we were without Cir∣cumcision, and Sabbath, and doubtlesse all these things are nothing worth, whiles Gods wrath abides upon his people.* 1.3 That first wrath of God was short, extending to 70 years onely; but this, in which we now are, is a thousand

years long, and upward, and none of the Pro∣phets let us see and end of it. This causes my fear, O Master, that as the Lord cast our Fa∣thers into that short Bondage and Captivity without any Legall Observances, their Fast∣ings and all other Rites being abhorred of the Lord, till the set time of their punish∣ment was expired; so in this our last Cap∣tivity, we may be devout in observing all our Legalities, and yet the Lord will not accept any of our Works. Greater therefore for cer∣tain is our sinne, than that which carryed our Fathers into Babylon: and thence it is, that the wrath of God is greater which is upon us, and consequently our works are lesse accepta∣ble, and we in the eyes of the Lord more abhominable. The slaughter of Prophets, the worship of Idols procured them their seventy years captivity and no more, but we are cap∣tives for a great sinne, yea, surely ours is the greatest sin, which is thus punished with a chili∣ad of years and makes us miserable millenaries and more. Without doubt, O Master, the Pro∣phet Daniel speaking from the Lord, means of our Captivity, when he calls it the Desola∣tion, He shall make it desolate, even till the Consummation,* 1.4 and that determined shall bee powred upon the desolate. The first Captivity is called but a transmigration, because after a

short time they were brought back with ho∣nour to Ierusalem; but this is called a perpe∣••uall Desolation, in which for certain God will ••ot have mercy on us, as he had on our Fa∣thers in Babylon. And this is two wayes evi∣dent. [ I] 1. The Prophets ceased not to comfort ••hem, and give them promises of deliverance. [ II] 2. Though they were in captivitie, yet were ••hey all together. (and company alleviates an ••vill.) Now for the first, we finde not a syl∣••able of any Propheticall promise for us. And for the second, our case is aggravated, to make ••s higher graduates in misery, we are not ••ondslaves in company of one another, but ••e are a dispersion thorow all the Kingdoms of the World. Notwithstanding we are in ••ll events the Lords.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Zach. 7. 5.
• * 1.2

  The words of the first Transla∣tour, Al∣phonsus the Spanyard.
• * 1.3

  Isa. 54. 7, 8.
• * 1.4

  Dan. 9. 27.