A Geographical and Historical Disquisition Touching Asia, Chapter 2
CHAP. II. Of the Lydian Asia, and the seven Metropoliticall Cities thereof.
THat heretofore Lydia was called Meonia, and the Lydians termed Meonians: we read in aforeign. Herodot. lib 7. § 74. foreign. Id. lib. 1. §. 7.Herodotus, bforeign. Diodor. l…b. 4.Diodorus Siculus, cforeign. Dionys. in Pe…egesi.Dionysius Afer, dforeign Strabo. lib. 13 pag. 586.Strabo, eLydia, Mae…nia antè app…llata. Plin. lib. 5. ca…. 29.Pliny, fforeign. Stephan. & vice vertâ, in G…aecolati…o Cyrilli Glossario. foreign, Maeonia.Stephanus Byzantinus, and others. And that gforeign. S…r…bo, lib 13. pag 6…7.Meonia was in the dayes of Homer named Asia, and the inhabitants thereof by Callinus (another Poet, hId lib. 14. …ag. 648.elder then Archilochus) in the Ionian dialect termed for foreign, for foreign or Asians; we find to have beene the opinion of Demetrius Scepsius, iId. lib. 13. pag. 609.who was equall in time unto Crates and Aristarchus the Grammarian. Whereunto we may also adde that of Euripides, in his Bacchae; foreign. together with that which is related by kforeign. Ste…h…n. de V…b…b. in foreign.Stephanus Byzantinus, lforeign. S…d in foreign, & Etymologic. in foreign.Suidas, and the great Etymologist; that upon this Tmolus there was a city of Lydia seated, which had the name of Asia: and by Strabo mforeign (leg. foreign. S…abo, lib. 13. pag. 629. foreign. Id. lib. 14. pag. 650. foreign. Ver. Scholiast. Aristophanis, in Ach…rnen., that betwixt the two Lydian mountaines of Tmolus and Messogis lay the great Caystrian plaine, which Homer calleth the Asian field, in that verse of the second of the Iliads; foreign. to which Virgil also hath relation in that of the first of his Georgicks;
—& quae Asia circum
Dulcibus in stagnis rimantur prata Caystri:
and in the seventh of the Aeneids;
—sonat amnis, & Asia longè
Pulsa palus.
Whereunto the testimony of Eunapius may be referred likewise, who speaking of that admirably learned Gentlewoman Sosipatra, saith that nforeign. Eunap. Sardian. in vitâ Aed…sii,she was of that Asia which is about Ephesus, where the river Cayster running through the countrey, giveth his name to the plain by which it passeth.
It is further also reported by Strabo, that oforeign Strabo, lib. 14. pag. 650. foreign. E…ath. in Iliad. … pag. 254. edit. Roman.in this plaine neere unto the banks of the river Cayster, the inhabitants used to shew the Chappels dedicated to the honour of Caystrius, and of one Asias; whom the Etymologist pforeign Etymologic▪ magr. in foreign.noteth to have been sometime King of Lydia; and to have given the name unto this Asian field. …r, as qforeign. Herodot. lib. 4. §. 45.the Lydians themselves would have it, to the whole land of Asia: alleadging further, that from this Asias, the sonne of Cotys, the sonne of Maneus, they had a tribe in their head-city Sardis, which they called foreign, as is recorded by Herodotus.
Whether rforeign. Steph…n. de Urbib. in foreign.from this Asias the continent of Asia did take his denomination, or from the forementioned city of Lydia, or from Asia the wife of Prometheus, or from some other originall; Stephanus Byzantinus leaveth us to enquire. But beside that the first vowell in Homers Asia is long, and in the greater Asia (which sforeign. Id. ibid.Stephanus acknowledgeth him to have been ignorant of) is of a *Yet it is long in foreign: whereof Stephanus, in foreign. for so the place is to be restored out of Dionysius: whose verse this is, in his Periegesis. as those others also of the river Tanais. foreign. So Ovid likewise lib. 5. Metamorphos. Iam super Europen sublimis & Asida terram. a…d lib. 9. of Miletus — et in Asideterrâ Moenta constituis.short quantitie: no man can doubt, but the derivation of the name of Asia from a Lydian city, or from a Lydian King and Heros, is farre more properly applyable to Lydia it selfe, then to the whole continent either of the greater or the lesser Asia. For that Lydia was tforeign. Scholiast. Apollon. Argonaut. lib. 2.formerly called Asia, is directly affirmed by the ancient Scholiast of Apollonius Rhodius: and that the Asia mentioned in the New Testament was comprehended within the bounds of Lydia (containing in it, according to the above confirmed description, Aeolis and Ionia) will quickly appeare to those that carefully compare the Acts of the Apostles and the booke of the Revelation together.
In the 16. chapter of the Acts, the journey of S. Paul and his company is by S. Luke thus described. When they had gone throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia, and were forbidden of the holy Ghost to preach the word in ASIA; after they were come to Mysia, they assayed to goe into Bithynia: but the Spirit suffered them not. And they passing by Mysia, came downe to Troas. Where it may be observed, that the greater Phrygia, (through which they passed into Galatia) and Mysia Olympena (which was next adjoyning unto Bithynia) and Hellespont wherein Troas was situated, being all of them parcells of the Asia by the Romans properly so called; are yet expresly distinguished from Asia, in this more strict sense so denominated as Caria likewise, wherein Miletus stood, appeareth to be by what we read in Acts 20.16, 17.
And as these are thus exempted by S. Luke; so the rest that remaine of the proper Asia, together with the seven Churches of Asia mentioned in the Revelation of S. Iohn, a…e all of them comprehended within the limits of that Lydian Asia, whereof we have spoken. For, that Pergamus was a city of Lydia, is plainly affirmed by uforeign. Xenoph. de exped. Cyri. lib. 7.Xenophon: to whom Aristotle also may be added, in his booke foreign, where he speaketh of a warre sometime raised foreign. That Smyrna at first was poss…ssed by xforeign. Aristot. lib. 3. de Poëtica: apud Pluta…ch. in lib. de vitâ & poësi Homeri.the Lydians, is testifyed also by Aristotle, treating of the birth and education of Homer: who seemeth to have had the surname of Maeonius, either from Maeon the king, or Maeonia the countrey it selfe of Lydia; among the cities whereof, Smyrna (the most likely place of that famous Poëts nativitie) is by Scylax Caryandensis reckoned. as Ephesus likewise is, both by him and yHerodot. histor. lib. 1.Herodotus; Sardis, Philadelphia and Thyatyra by Ptolemy: and zforeign. St…phan. de Vrbib. in foreign.Laodicea by Stephanus Byzantinus.
Yet is Laodicea by Ptolemy referred unto Caria, and by others unto Phrygia. The reason of which difference we may lea…ne from Strabo, aforeign. Strabo, lib. 13. pag. 628.who sheweth that the confines of Phrygia, Lydia and Caria were so coincident, that they were hardly to be discern…d the one from the other. which is the cause, that though bId. lib▪ 12. pag▪ 576. & lib. 14. pag. 663.he doth reckon Laodicea among the cities of Phrygia; yet Hierapolis, which was cforeign. I…. lib. 13. pag. …29.opposit to it (toward the East) is by Stephanus dforeign. Steph…n. de Vrbib.said to be seated betwixt Phrygia and Lydia: it by that meanes being placed in, and Laodicea without the borders of Phrygia.
This also doth Strabo assigne for another reason, eforeign. Strab. lib. 13. pag. 629.why the bounds of the Provinces hereabout were confounded: because that the Romans did not divide these places by the nations; but ordered them after another manner, according to the circuits wherein they kept their Courts, and exercised judicature. Five of these tribunals were seated in the cities of fPlin. lib. 5. cap 29. & 30.Laodicea, Sardis, Smyrna, Ephesus, and Pergamus: Philadelphia was within the Sardian, and Thyatira within the Pergamen circuit- although that gforeign. Ptolem. l. 5. c. 2Thyatira was a Metropolis also of it selfe, as Ptolemy declareth in his Geography; and in all likelyhood Philadelphia also, the only city remaining of those seven famous ones singled out, as the seats of the most eminent Churches of all Asia, in the book of the Revelation.
For that Philadelphia was herein no whit inferiour unto Thyatira; may easily be gathered by the respect which it still retained, after that Lydia (as we shall heare) was separated from the Proconsular Asia, and each Province ordinarily permitted to have but one Metropolis. For Sardis being then the prime city of Lydia, the next in account after it was Philadelphia, another also being placed betwixt it and Thyatira: as appeareth by the order of them constantly observed aswell in the hHieroclis. Notit. Orientalis Imperii; in Appendice Geographiae sacrae Caroli à Sancto Paulo ed…t. Paris. an. 1641. pag. 29.Civill as in the iOrdo M…tropolitar. ibid. pag. 13, & 45. & in to…o 1. Juri… Graeco· Roman…. pag. 90.Ecclesiasticall Catalogues of the cities belonging to that Province. Whereupon in the Acts of the Constantinopolitan Councell held under Mena…, we see that Eustathius subscribeth himselfe, in expresse termes, kforeign. Concil. Constantinop. sub Menâ, Act. 5.Bishop of the METROPOLIS of the Philadelphians, of the Province of the Lydians.