VERS. LI.
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Unto the blood of Zacharias.
IF our Saviour had not in the Evangelist St. Matthew added, the Son of Barachias, no one could have doubted that it refer'd to any other than Zacharias the Son of Jeho∣jadah, whose slaughter is recorded, II Chron. XXIV. It is certain, the Jews own no other Zacharias slain in the Temple but himself: and what they say of his slaughter I have al∣ready taken notice upon that place in St. Matthew out of both the Talmuds, we meet with the same things in Midras Echah l 1.1, and Midras Coheleth m 1.2; out of which last, give me leave briefly to transcribe these passages.
The blood of Zachary boil'd up CCLII years from the days of I••ash to the days of Zedekiah. What did they do? they swept into it all the dust (of the Court) and made an heap, yet it ceased not, but still boil'd and bubled up. The Holy Blessed God said to the blood 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 behold the time is come that thou exact thy 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, (that was, let the Lord behold and require it at your hands) when Nebuzaradan came and enquir'd what this matter was? they answer'd that it was the blood of heifers and rams, and lambs which they had sacrific'd.—Afterward when he came to understand what the matter was, he slew eighty thou∣sand Priests, and yet the blood would not stanch, but broke out and flow'd as far as the Tomb of Zachary: he brought together therefore the Sanhedrin, both the great and less, and slew them over that blood, and yet it did not cease, &c.
I hardly indeed think that those that relate this matter did really believe it to have been actually so, but only would by such flowers of Rhetorick and strained Hyperboles paint out the horrible guilt of the murder of Zacharias, which by how much the more horrible it was, by so much the more did it agree with the guilt of the murder of our Blessed Lord.
And however a great part of it in these relations of theirs may be meer flourish, yet by the whole framing of the thing it must needs be observed that the slaughter of this Zacharias was so famous and rooted in the minds of that people generally, that when our Saviour speaks of one Zacharias slain between the Temple and the Altar, it cannot be imagin'd that they could understand him pointing at any other than this very man. As for his father being here call'd Barachias, and not Jehojadah, we have spoken to that matter elswhere n 1.3.
If any one hesitate about the changing of the name, let him say by what name he finds Jehojadah recited in that Catalogue of Priests set down in 1 Chron. VI. It must be either some other name, or else we must suppose him wholly lest out of that number. If by an∣other name, you will say (supposing he be also call'd Barachias) he was then a man of three names. This indeed is no unusual thing with that Nation for some to have more names than one; nay, if you will believe the Jewish Doctors, even Moses himself had no less than ten o 1.4.