The Christian Synagogue, Book 1 · Chapter 6 · Section 6
SECTION VI.
Of their meere Politicks.
PARAGR. I.
First of their civill times.
THE day at the first, was called a naturall day, beginning Canon.at the sunne-setting, containing 24. houres.
In the which day I smote Egypt. Yet in Exodus it is expresly Confir.said, That they were killed in the night. Exod. 11. 4.Num. 8. 17.
This day was called Gnerebh boker, Vespera mane in Illust.Daniel, the Greekes called it foreign: evening and morning, night and day.
The artificiall day was from the Sunne rising to the Canon.Sunne setting.
Why fit ye here all the day long from morning till night: so Confir.in Iohn, are there not twelue houres in the day, that is, from Exod. 8. 14. Ioh. 11. 9.the Sunne rising to the Sunne setting.
This was called by the Greeks foreign: Illust.morning and evening, day and night.
The day naturall was divided into foure quadrants Canon.Illust.or parts; or misnajoth, watched. The first from the Sunne setting till midnight: the second from midnight, to the Sunne rising: the third from the Sunne rising till the midst of the day: when the Sunne is said to be in his strength: the fourth to the Sunne setting.
The artificiall day was divided into foure parts.Canon.
The first, from the twi-light till the third houre: the Illust.second to the sixt houre: the third to the ninth houre: and the fourth till night.
The Hebrewes divided their night into three watches, Canon.Confir.and every watch had foure houres. The first from the beginning of the night till the fourth houre, this was called caput Vigiliarum, beginning of the watch, Psal. 63.Lam. 2. 19. the second, media Vigilia, the middle watch. Iudges 7. 19. the third, Vigilia matutina, the morning watch. Exod. 14 14.
The Romanes divided the night into foure watches, and every watch had three houres. This division of the Math. 14. 24.day(by the Iewes) lasted vntill the captivity, where they learned the division of the day into houres.
cScaliger de emend temp.Nabopolasar vnderstanding of Ezechias recoverie, and how the Sunne went backe in his Diall so many degrees, began to divide the day into houres.
The patterne of Ahaz Diall, shewing 12 inequall houres every day.
The Hebrewes call these vnequall houres, Shagna gnekalah; and the Greekes foreign, Temporaria: and the Latines Hora Planetaria, Planetarie houres.
OCCIDENS.
Abaz Diall was not distinguished by sixtie Minutes, (which is an houre) as our Dials are, but by halfe houres, called Commata, or degrees, wherrof there was 24. in one day.
The Equinoctiall houres by the Hebrewes, were called Shagna Ieshara, and by the Greekes foreign.
This Diall is in the elevation of the 32. ½ degrees, In solo axis mundi, In the polar ground. For it can hardly be made vponupon one Horizontall, Meridionall, Verticall, or Equinoctial ground.
Meridices.
The Tropicke of Capricorne, in which at Ierusalem the day hath X. equall houres.
The Tropicke of Cancer, in which at Ierusalem the day hath XIIII. equall houres.
Septentrio.
The houres in this Diall, are called vn-equall houres; not in this respect, that some houres in one day are longer or shorter then others are: but comparing one day with another, the houres are longer or shorter, according as the Sunne ascends or descends from the Equinoctiall to the Tropicks.
This in-equalitie of the houres, and lengthning or shortning of the day, was knowne by the signes in the Zodiacke, and the Sunnes remouing from the one Tropicke to the other, having past the Equinoctiall line; this in-equilitie of houres, with vsus here in Scotland would be very great: for our longest day on the South parts hath 18. Equinoctiall houres, and our shortest day but six Equinoctiall houres; so that if the in-equall houres were set on our Dials, there would be great in-equalitie; for, in Summer the in-equall houres, would containe an houre and an halfe of Equinoctiall houres: and in Winter the vnequal houres would be halfe Equinoctiall houres. But in Indea when the day is longest, it hath foureteene equall houres, and when it was shortest, ten houres: Hence it is that there is but small odds in their in-equall houres.
These degrees vponupon Ahaz Diall, were halfe houres.Canon.
The Prophet giues him his choice, whether He will Confir.hauehave the Sunne to goe ten degrees backeward, or ten degrees 2 Kin 20. 9.forward. This cannot be meant of full houres, for the Ion: in Esaiam.Sunne doth not shine twenty full houres vponupon no Diall, vnlesse the Diall were vnderunder the Poll. When the miracle was wrought, the Sunne was at the fift full houre. The Sunne is brought backe ten degrees, that is, fiue whole houres, then it comes forward againe ten degrees, fiue full houres; then it goes forward two degrees to the sixt houre, that makes sixteene houres, then sixe houres to the Sunne set: so that this day was twentie two houres prolonged.
This miracle seemes to be wrought in the declination of the Sunne, when it comes towards Capricorne, because when it is past the Equinoxe towards Cancer, it shewes not twentie-foure full degrees vponupon that Tropicke; for it giues no shaddow on it till the third houre, and none after the ninth; therefore the King could not chuse to hauehave it goe backe or forward tenne degrees vponupon it.
An houre is either a simple houre, or compound.Canon.
A compound, is the fourth part of a naturall day, Illust.which hath foure quadrants; every one of these quadrants hath three simple houres, and it takes the denomination from the last of the three houres.
The first quadrant is from the Sunne rising to the third houre, and it is called the sixt houre.
The third quadrant, from the sixt to the ninth, and it is called the ninth houre.
The last quadrant, from the ninth to the Sunne-set, and it is called the last houre.
So Marke and Luke are to be reconciled: Mark. 15. 28. And it was about the third houre when he was crucified. Luke. 23. 44. And it was about the sixt houre when he was crucified: that is, when the third houre was ended, and the sixt houre beginning and not finished. The distinction of the great houres from the lesse, may be seene here.
| Houres | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| Great. | Orientall. | 1. 2. 3. | 4. 5. 6. | 7. 8. 9. | 10. 11. 12 |
| Small. | Occident. | 7. 8. 9. | 10. 11. 12. | 1. 2. 3. | 4. 5. 6. |
PARAGRAPHE II.
Of their Moneths.
THeir moneths consisted of full thirtie dayes foreign.Canon.
Gen. 8. 4. 5. 13. 14. See Scaliger in his Emendation of Confir.time, for proofe of this.
To expresse that the monethmonth had thirtie dayes, Cleobolus Illust.propounded this riddle, of a father that had twelue sonnes, and every sonne had thirtie children.
f1. Theodorus Gaza.foreign,
foreign:
foreign,
foreign.
That is;
One Father hath twelue sonnes; and eueryevery brother
His thirtie children hath, not one like t'other.
They partly blacke, and partly white, are they:
Still deathlesse and yet dying eueryevery day.
PARAGRAPHE III.
Of their Yeare.
THey reckoned their eyare by the Sunne in their civill Canon.affaires.
gSealiger emend. temp.This yeare was divide in foure tekuphaes or quarters. First, Nisan. 2. Elul. 3. Tizri. 4. Sehebat.
hBunt. de Synag Iud.None of these properly was called tekupha except tizri, therefore it aws called exitus anni, vel revolutio anni, the endor returning of the yeare. As Exod. 21. Ye shall keepe the feast of Tabernacles in the end of the yeare. Nisan was called conversio anni. 1. King. 20. 26. When Kings goe forth to battell in the beginning of the yeare.
First, from Nisan, they reckoned their feasts, and the raigne of their Kings: for if the King had beene Crowned but a day before March, the monethmonth of Nisan or March, was said to be the second yeare of his raigne: So his first yeare was ot alwaies a compleate yeare. They reckoned from this time their civill contracts, bonds and obligations.
Secondly, from Elul (answering to our August) they reckoned the age of their young beasts, out of which they were to pay ththe to the Lord, none of their beasts were tythed before Elul.
Thirdly, from tizri (answering to our September) they reckoned the seaventh yeare of the resting of the land, and their Iubilies; and from this time they reckoned how long their trees were circumcised or vncircumcised; if a tree had beene planted in the monethmonth of Iune, or in the end of August, it was reckoned for a full yeare: and Tizri began the second yeare of it; so that the tree was reckoned circumcised, if it had growne two full yeares: if it had but one monethmonth more, it was three yeares, if it was not planted in September.
From Scevat (answering ot our Ianuarie) they reckoned all their trees which payed fruit: the trees which began to flourish then, of these onelyonly they payed thtye, but those which were ripe before that monethmonth, they payed no ththe of them; as of the Citron and Date; but these which began to blossome then, or was soone after ripe, they payed tythe of them.