The court of the Gentiles: or A discourse touching the original of human literature, both philologie and philosophie, from the Scriptures, and Jewish church in order to a demonstration, of 1. The perfection of Gods vvord, and church light. 2: The imperfection of natures light, and mischief of vain pholosophie. 3. The right use of human learning, and especially sound philosophie. / By T.G.

§. 9. * 1.1 But the great expiatorie sacrifice was the Paschal Lamb; which was in a more peculiar manner a Type of the Jewish Messias or Christ, who is stiled the Lamb of God slain from the foundation of the world: the Image whereof we have in Abra∣ham's intentional sacrificing his son Isaac, &c. All which the Devil (who greatly affected to be Jehovahs Ape) assumed to himself as an homage due from his Devoti. So Eusebius, prae∣par. Evang. lib. 1. cap. 9. proves out of Porphyries Book, 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, that the Phenicians (by the Devils Inspiration) took the original Idea of offering their Sons to Moloch or Saturne, from Abrahams intention of offering his Son Isaac. Porphyries words are these,

Saturne, whom the Phenicians call Israel, had by a Nymph called Anobret, an only Son, which for this they called Ieud, who being clothed in a Royal habit, was sacrificed by his Father &c

That by Saturne and Israel must be ment Abraham; by the Nymph Anobret Sarah, from 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 conceiving by grace; by Jeud, Isaac who is stiled Gen. 22.2. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Jehid. We have sufficiently proved out of Bochart in our discourse of Sa∣turne chap. 1. §. 5. But as Abraham's intentional sacrificing of his only Son Isaac, was an Image or Type of Christ, the only Son of God, his being offered on the Crosse as a ransome for sin∣ners; so we need not doubt, but that the Devil in exacting hu∣man bloud as an expiatorie Sacrifice, had a very great reference to, and imitation of that sacrifice, which he knew Christ was to offer on the Crosse. This inhuman mode of offering human bloud to Saturne, began in Phaenicia, where Saturne passed un∣der the name of Moloch. We have the manner of it described by Diodorus, Biblioth. lib. 20.

There was (saies he) amongst them a brazen statue of Saturne, of a vast magnitude, whose hands hanged down on the Earth, so contorted and involved, that

children who were brought to it, fell down into a ditch full of fire.

This cruel custome of Sacrificing children to Moloch or Saturne, the Jews suckt in from the Phenicians; whereof we find often mention in Scripture as Act. 7.4. The place where these sacrifices were offered was Tophet, in the valley of Hinnom, which thence was made an Image of Hell, as Esa. 30.33. whence sprang the Greek 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Gehenna, i.e. the valley of Hinnom, as before C. 7. §. 4. From the Phenicians, the Carthaginians also received the same Rites. So Tertullian, Apol. cap. 9. In Africa they publiquely sacrifice their Sons to Saturne. Thus August. de ci∣vit. lib. 7. cap. 19. Carthaginians. Lud. Vives on this place saies,

that it was a Custome very ancient, in dangers of war, for the Prince to sacrifice the Son, which was most dear unto him, to pacifie the wrath of the revengeful Devil. But the Carthagi∣neans, who sprang from the Phenicians, sacrificed a man to Saturne.

Also in Latium a man was offered to Saturne, &c. And indeed in processe of time, this horrid piece of Idolatrie became Catholick and Ʋniversal: neither was there any part of the Devils worship, wherein the Pagans did more generally con∣spire, than in this of sacrificing human bloud to their enraged Idols. Arnobius tels us, that it was the common fashion, in past times, to worship Jupiter of Latium, with mans bloud. Yea the Historie of the Decii acquaints us, that it was not unusual a∣mongst the Romans, for men alive to devote themselves to the in∣fernal Gods. Herodotus affirmes, that the Egyptians sacrificed living men to their brutish Gods. Amongst the Thebans (who were also a colonie of the Phenicians) the storie of Menaeceus, is famous; who, for the preservation of the Citie, devoted him∣self to the Infernal Gods. Procopius tels us,

that the Inhabitants of the Ile of Thule, observed this custome of sacrificing men, even down to his time.

The same Cicero and Plutarch men∣tion of the Gauls: and of the Britans, Caesar, Comment. lib. 6. gives this reason hereof, 'because the Druides thought, that nothing was a meet expiation for mans life, but the life of man.

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Thus we see how ambitious the Devil was to be worshipped with human sacrifices in imitation of that to be performed by the Son of God; at least in imitation of its Types in the Jew∣ish Church. See Owen Theol. lib. 1. cap. 8. also Grotius de Satifact. cap. 10, where he proves at large, that it was most usual with the Heathens to pacifie the Devil, the God of this world, by human sacrifices, and that in imitation of the Jewish Sacrifice and Christ, the original Idea of all.

Notes

• * 1.1

  The oblation of human sacrifi∣ces to Saturne, an imitation of Isaac's being of∣fered, and of Christs sacri∣fice on the Crosse.