And Eusebius writes that, while the people of God were held captive in Babylon, the five other sages lived, who must be added to Thales, whom we mentioned above, and Pittacus, in order to make up the seven.These are Solon of Athens, Chilo of Lacedaemon, Periander of Corinth, Cleobulus of Lindus, and Bias of Priene.These flourished after the theological poets, and were called sages, because they excelled other men in a certain laudable line of life, and summed up some moral precepts in epigrammatic sayings.But they left posterity no literary monuments, except that Solon is alleged to have given certain laws to the Athenians, and Thales was a natural philosopher, and left books of his doctrine in short proverbs.In that time of the Jewish captivity, Anaximander, Anaximenes, and Xenophanes, the natural philosophers, flourished.Pythagoras also lived then, and at this time the name philosopher was first used.
CHAP.26.--THAT AT THE TIME WHEN THE CAPTIVITY OF THE JEWS WAS BROUGHTTO AN END, ON
THE COMPLETION OF SEVENTY YEARS, THE ROMANS ALSO WERE FREED FROM KINGLYRULE.
At this time, Cyrus king of Persia, who also ruled the Chaldeans and Assyrians, having somewhat relaxed the captivity of the Jews, made fifty thousand of them return in order to rebuild the temple.
They only began the first foundations and built the altar;but, owing to hostile invasions, they were unable to go on, and the work was put off to the time of Darius.During the same time also those things were done which are written in the book of Judith, which, indeed, the Jews are said not to have received into the canon of the Scriptures.Under Darius king of Persia, then, on the completion of the seventy years predicted by Jeremiah the prophet, the captivity of the Jews was brought to an end, and they were restored to liberty.Tarquin then reigned as the seventh king of the Romans.On his expulsion, they also began to be free from the rule of their kings.Down to this time the people of Israel had prophets; but, although they were numerous, the canonical writings of only a few of them have been preserved among the Jews and among us.In closing the previous book, I promised to set down something in this one about them, and I shall now do so.
CHAP.27.--OF THE TIMES OF THE PROPHETS WHOSE ORACLES ARE CONTAINEDIN BOOKS AND
WHO SANG MANY THINGS ABOUT THE CALL OF THE GENTILES AT THE TIME WHENTHE ROMAN
KINGDOM BEGAN AND THE ASSYRIAN CAME TO AN END.
In order that we may be able to consider these times, let us go back a little to earlier times.At the beginning of the book of the prophet Hosea, who is placed first of twelve, it is written, "The word of the Lord which came to Hoses in the days of Uzziah, Jothan, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah."(1) Amos also writes that he prophesied in the days of Uzziah, and adds the name of Jeroboam king of Israel, who lived at the same time.(2) Isaiah the son of Amos--either the above-named prophet, or, as is rather affirmed, another who was not a prophet, but was called by the same name--also puts at the head of his book these four kings named by Hosea, saying by way of preface that he prophesied in their days.(3) Micah also names the same times as those of his prophecy, after the days of Uzziah;(4) for he names the same three kings as Hosea named,--Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah.We find from their own writings that these men prophesied contemporaneously.To these are added Jonah in the reign of Uzziah, and Joel in that of Jotham, who succeeded Uzziah.
But we can find the date of these two prophets in the chronicles,(5) Dot in their own writings, for they say nothing about it themselves.Now these days extend from Procas king of the Latins.or his predecessor Aventinus, down to Romulus king of the Romans, or even to the beginning of the reign of his successor Numa Pompilius.Hezekiah king of Judah certainly reigned till then.So that thus these fountains of prophecy, as Imay call them, burst forth at once during those times when the Assyrian kingdom failed and the Roman began; so that, just as in the first period of the Assyrian kingdom Abraham arose, to whom the most distinct promises were made that all nations should be blessed in his seed, so at the beginning of the western Babylon, in the time of whose government Christ was to come in whom these promises were to be fulfilled, the oracles of the prophets were given not only in spoken but in written words, for a testimony that so great a thing should come to pass.For although the people of Israel hardly ever lacked prophets from the time when they began to have kings, these were only for their own use, not for that of the nations.But when the more manifestly prophetic Scripture began to be formed, which was to benefit the nations too, it was fitting that it should begin when this city was founded which was to rule the nations.
CHAP.28.--OF THE THINGS PERTAINING TO THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST WHICH HOSEAAND AMOS
PROHESIED.