The works of the Reverend and learned John Lightfoot D. D., late Master of Katherine Hall in Cambridge such as were, and such as never before were printed : in two volumes : with the authors life and large and useful tables to each volume : also three maps : one of the temple drawn by the author himself, the others of Jervsalem and the Holy Land drawn according to the author's chorography, with a description collected out of his writings.

SECT. I. How the unclean were kept from the Temple.

UPON the observation of what persons were prohibited access to the Temple, lest they should defile it, two things methodically do come to hand to be considered thereupon, as referring to it; and those are, 1. What course was taken for the prohibi∣ting of the unclean from coming there. And, 2. What was the penalty of those that were in their uncleanness, yet would dare to come.

The former inquiry is not of so easie resolution as is the latter, and the reason is, be∣cause thousands of persons might come, that were not in a fit case to have come thither; and yet it was impossible, without immodesty and uncivility, unless it were by oath, to discover in what case they were. There were indeed Porters and Guards at the gates, but thousands of unclean persons might pass them, and they never the wiser, unless they should have put the passengers to an oath, which I believe was never yet dreamed of by any writer that hath handled the Jews customs. Men in issues of blood or seed, and wo∣men in their ordinary or extraordinary fluxes, could neither be discerned by their face in what case they were, nor do we find that they were ever at all examined, much less sworn or searched. They might repel and keep back, indeed, what or whosoever carried with them visible defiling, as one that appeared to be a Leper, one that came with things about him that might not be brought into the Temple: or they might keep back those that would go beyond their bounds: or they might have an eye to any that came suspiciously either to steal or to disturb the Service: or they might check those that shewed any light∣ness at their coming in, or being entred: or they might direct those that were not well acquainted with the place what to do and how to behave themselves there: or they might admonish all that came, to take heed of coming there if they were unclean: But as for keeping out all that were in any uncleanness, and such as whereby the place might receive defilement, it was a thing so far impossible, that it is far from being imaginable. A man might have touched a dead Corps, or might have touched a Woman in her sepa∣ration, or suffered Gonorrhoea in the night, or twenty such like cases as these, and he cometh to enter into the Temple, and no one in the world knew how the case was with him but himself, how should this man be possibly discovered or restrained, unless it were by the spirit of Prophesie, or by giving him an oath, which power we never read the Por∣ters to have had, nor is there any ground or colour to suppose such a thing.

The security of the place therefore from such pollutions lay more in the severity of the penalties that were sentenced against and inflicted upon those that were deprehended offenders in this kind, than it did in any possible care, or practical prevention they could use that they should not come there: And as the rigour and strictness of Laws, and exe∣cution upon offenders in other cases, is the surest prevention of such offences, the like was the way of caution and prevention here.