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Sophompaneas ] Is in the Originall Saphenath Paneah: which Onkelos renders, a man unto whom secrets are revealed. Jonathan, a man an Interpreter of secrets; Josephus, a finder out of secrets. But the vulgar Latine differs from all these, which translates it the Saviour of the World: and that it so signified in the Egyptian language, Saint Hierome also saith in his Quæst. Hebraic. He was called also, saith he, the Saviour of the world, because hee delivered the Land from an imminent destruction by Famine. But it is a hard matter to decide this controversie, the old Egyptian tongue being at this day almost quite lost. Voss. de Idol. l. 1. c. 29.

The precious Balme] Judea abounds with fruits like ours; and besides them with the Balme and Palme. The Palme trees are tall and beautifull. The Balme is a little tree. As any bough swels, if you goe about to cut it with iron, the veines shrink back, as if afraid: they are opened with a piece of sharpe stone or shell. The juice is accounted medicinable. Tacit. Hist. l. 5.

Upon which Servius: Balme, or Balsame is the tree it selfe: Opobalsame the juice gathered from the tree, for οπος signifies juice, ξυλον wood: whence Xylobalsame the wood of the tree it selfe. The triall of Opobalsame (as Pliny saith) is thus: if it be held against the Sun, and be not corrupted, it will burn the hand that holds it. Some will, that war was denounced to the Jewes, and Hierusalem destroyed; because they denyed to pay the tribute of balme to the Romans.

See Pliny, l. 12. c. 35.

Dates like mens fingers] And therefore I suppose called Dactyli from the Greek δακτυλος, a finger.

Spices] I follow herein our English Translation, Gen. 43. 1. l. Grotius hath Medicinable herbs. And others expound the Hebrew word, Aromaticall druggs.

Nectar of the Bees] Honey. Ovid calls milke Nectar.

Honey prolongs life, preserves dead bodies from putrefaction; is good against the biting of a mad Dog, the sting of serpents and other poysons: good for the eyes, eares, jawes, squinsie, kernels, cough, lungs, stomach, paine in the eares, foulenesse of the nostrils, ulcers of the mouth, blemishes of the face, clefts of the skin about the nailes of the fingers: to heale wounds, a carbuncle, boile, impostume, leprosie. Voss. de Idol. c. 79. 82. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9.

Would divine] I understand that word in a good sense. Our last English translation of the Bible hath make triall in the Margent. And Junius and Tremellius say we should wrong so good and holy a man as Joseph was, to think he would obscure the gift received from God of knowing secrets, and transfer the glory to himself.

His arme which was so slow] The Divine wrath proceeds to vengeance with a soft pace, and recompenceth the slownesse of the punishment with the heavinesse thereof. Val. Max. And it was a Proverbe among the wiser Heathen, that, The Gods had woollen feet, but iron hands.

Among men great diversity there is of manners] There is no Nation, which wholly useth the same Customes; yea there is often much difference in neighbouring Cities. But Right it selfe is equally expedient for all men, and profitable both to Greeks and Barbarians. Josephus Antiq. Hist. 16.

This Law is every where] Right reason is a law which cannot lie, nor is it a corruptible law of this or that mortall man; or a dead law written in dead bookes, or pillars, but ingraven by an immortall nature in an immortall understanding. Philo.

In the heart God hath it put] When the Gentiles which have not the Law, doe by nature the things contained in the Law: these having not the Law are a Law unto themselves; Which shew the worke of the Law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witnesse, and their thoughts in the meane while accusing or else excusing one another, Rom. 2. 14, 15.

Mercy alone man nigh to God doth make] Antoninus to Faustina: There is nothing can better commend a Roman Emperor to Nations than Clemency. This made Cæsar a God, this consecrated Augustus. And Themist. in orat. Whereas there be three things which make God to bee God; Eternity of life, Almightinesse of power, and uncessantly to do good unto men: in this last onely can a King come to be like God. The most wise City of Athens took mercy not for an affection but a Deity, saith Fab. l. 5. c. 11. Eumenius makes mention of an Altar there built to Mercy. How much also the Romans esteem'd thereof appeares, in that they, and especially the latter writers are wont to honour Clemency with the name of Piety.

Voss. Instit. Orat. l. 1. p. 1. 53. See like wise Grot. de jur. bel. l. 2. c. 21.

Such hat bin and such is the custome] But if those Lawes of men are unjust, which kill the children for the parents fault; certainely much more unjust was the Law of the Persians and Macedonians, which put to death their kindred, to the end they who had offended the King might perish more sad, as Curtius speaks, l. 8. Grot. de jur. bel. &c. l. 2. c. 25.

Five Families] I did not at the first fully understand the Authors meaning. But afterwards I found in his Book de jur. bel. &c. a note that gives light to this very place. viz Philo saith, It was the custome for tyrants to destroy with the parties condemned the five next Families to them. Grot. ut supra, in Annotat.

Phænicia ] A Countrey of Asia neer unto Judea, whose chiefe Cities were Tyre and Sidon. Josephus writes, that they first invented the Greek Letters; and Strabo, that they were famous for arts of navigation and war.

That Phænix was the same with Esau or Edom, thus Vossius: The Erythræans are from ερυθρος, red; Erythea, from ερυθος, rednesse. And the Erythræan sea tooke this name from King Erythras, as the Gentiles call him, who in the Scriptures is Esau, or Edom, that is, red. They dister only in language; therefore the Hebrew, Edoms, or Idumean sea, the Greeke ερυθραιον, and the Latine Mare rubrum, or red sea. But if the Tyrians came from the Idumæan sea; the reason is not obscure, why they are called φοινικες. For φοινικες and ερυθραιοι are the same. And φοινιξ the same with ερυθρος, that is, red: And therefore the Latines of φοινικος have made puniceus: as from φοινιξ Pænus, whence Punicus. But that the Tyrians came from the Idumæan sea, Pliny and Solinus say: Herodotus also, and Strabo, and Procopius.

Taauta] Perhaps I should say Taautas. I tooke it for the name of a Towne in Phænicia. But I finde in Vossius: That Taautus invented the art of writing, and was the first who left behind him Commentaries of things done: and was by the Ægyptians called Thoor, or rather Thoud, by the Alexandrians Thoth, by the Grecians Hermes, the same with Mercury.

In twice twelve letters] The common opinion both of our men, and the Hebrews was, that Moses was the Author of the Hebrew letters, which is asserted by Eupolemus, Artapanus, and other prophane writers, who report that Moses was a wise man, and the Inventor of letters, which he delivered to the Jewes, from whom the neighbouring Phænicians receiv'd them, from the Phænicians the Græcians by Cadmus. Moreover, the same Artapanus believes that Moses gave the Ægyptians letters, and is that Mercury, whom wee find among all the Greek and Latine Writers to have taught that Nation letters. But if any aske, in what letters then the wisdome of the Egyptians was contained, wherein wee read that Moses was learned, perhaps hee will find, it was only wont to be delivered and taught by word of mouth, and preserv'd in the memory of the teachers and learners: and that the forms of letters, if there were any then, were images of living Creatures which they call'd Hieroglyphicks. Philo Judæus ascribes the Invention of Letters to Abraham: but they seeme to have been many yeeres before Abraham. For Josephus 1 Antiq. tels us, That by the sonnes of Seth the son of Adam were erected two pillars, one of stone, the other of brick, and that the Arts which they had invented, were written on them, of which that of stone remain'd in Syria even in his time. Viv. in Aug. de Civ. Dei. l. 18. c. 39.

Crocodile] Voss. de. Idol. l. 3. p. 1027. The Crocodile is eighteen foot long. It is bred out of an egge no bigger then a goose egge. Nor is there any other Creature (as Pliny saith) which from a lesser beginning growes to a greater magnitude. Yea, as he adds afterwards, some thinke that this one Creature growes as long as it lives. p. 1034. The Crocodile hath an exceeding great force in the taile, with the stroke whereof it breakes the legges even of a strong foure-footed beast.

Voss. out of Plin. The eye-teeth of a Crocodile drives away agues, if you fill them with frankincense (for they are hollow) so that the sicke party see not him in five daies who shall have bound them unto him. They say that the little stones taken out of her belly are good against the shaking fits of an ague.

They are wont, as Herodotus in Euterpe hath it, to take Crocodiles in this manner. They put a hooke into a chine of Pork which the hunter casts into a River: Then standing on the banke, he beats a live Pig, whose cry the Crocodile hearing comes on apace, and lighting upon the chine of Pork devoures it with the hook; and is forthwith drawn upon the bank; and because so also he will bee troublesome enough, they fill his eyes with mud, that hee may not see what the hunter does. Voss. p 1134.

Some say, that Crocodiles weep, because their teares are become a proverbe. But this is meant of feigned teares not true: nor is it cleare enough what truth there is under that fable of the feigned tears of a Crocodile.

The Crocodile also is made to have speech by the Stoicks in their Sophisme which they call Crocodilites. But this is to bee put among Æsops Fables. For as Pliuy saith, This one terrestriall creature wants the use of a tongue. Idem. p 978.

To death a new way showes] There is a Booke of Dicæarchus, concerning the destruction of men, who having collected all other causes, as deluge, pestilence, desolation, also sudden multiplying of wild beasts, by whose incursion he shews, that some people have been consumed, compares then, how many more men have been destroyed by the invasion of men, that is, by wars, or seditions, then by any other calamity. Cic. de offic l. 2.

Purple by Kings to be worne] The purple colour at this day is not from the liquor of the shell-fish call'd a Purple, but from herbs. In times past the water and fishes had this honour. Whence Saint Ambrose Hexam. l. 5. c. 2. What should I speake also of the Purples which furnish the tables and die the garments of Kings? What is adored in Kings, is from the water. Voss. l. 4. p. 1463.

The Emerald] Emeralds of all precious stones are most pleasing to the sight in regard nothing is greener which you can compare with them. They onely of all gemmes take up the eye and not satisfie it. Moreover, the sight wearied with being intentive upon other things is recreated by an Emerald. And therefore they who cut jewels refresh their wearinesse with this most delightful greenness. Perot. upon Martial. p. 248.

To a thin plank hath Our precious lives taught to commit] It was said by one, that there was but an inch board between Seamen and death. And Cato repented him, that ever he went by water, when he might have gone by Land.

O happy the first Age] How well what the Poets have fabled of the golden Age, agrees with the state of man in Paradise! as I doubt not, but they had these things from tradition. Surely the first age of man in the Poets is the same with the first in the Scriptures: And Saturne the same with Adam. Voss.

But what Poets write of the golden Age is not unknowne. Hear what an Orator saith of it and them. —That happy and as we call it golden Age was barren of Orators and crimes, but abounded with Poets and Prophets. Quintil. Dialog. de Orat.

A simple life, chast enough though naked] That the first life of man was with simplicity and nakednesse, the Egyptians also taught; whence the Poets golden Age, celebrated even by the Indians, as Strabo hath it, Grot. de ver. Rel. l. 1.

After that the woman deceiv'd by the Serpent, had drawne her husband to partake of her sinne, their eyes indeed were open'd, but so as that they saw themselves to be destitute of a covering, not only of a coat, but also of virtue. Voss. de Idol. l. 1. p. 2.

With such a noise as Nile downe flowes] Where Nilus fals downe headlong from those most high Mountaines at those places which are call'd the Cataracts; the people that inhabit thereabouts, by reason of the greatnesse of the noise want the sense of hearing. Cic. in Sowin. Scip.

The son laugh'd at his Fathers shame] The ancient Bacchus is no other then Noah. For hee first planted a Vineyard, and taught how to make wine, Gen. 9. 20. Nor are there wanting learned men, who suppose, that the very name of Bacchus makes for this opinion. For they will have from Noach Noachus, hence Nachus, thence Bachus, then Bacchus. But though I think Bacchus to be worshipped in Noah, Yet I like not so forc'd an Etymology, especially whereas the Greeks seem not to have said Noah but Noe Voss de Idol. l. 1. c. 19. Of Noah supplanted by wine, thus Du Bartas.

Lot's Daughters; of whom likewise D. Bartas.