Oriental customs: or an illustration of the sacred Scriptures, by an explanatory application of the customs and manners of the Eastern nations, and especially the Jews. Therein alluded to, together with observations on many difficult and obscure texts, collected from the most celebrated travellers, and the most eminent critics / by Samuel Burder.

  • Samuel Burder
Date:
1802
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Oriental customs: or an illustration of the sacred Scriptures, by an explanatory application of the customs and manners of the Eastern nations, and especially the Jews. Therein alluded to, together with observations on many difficult and obscure texts, collected from the most celebrated travellers, and the most eminent critics / by Samuel Burder. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    No. 545.—PHILIPPIANS i. 23. In a straight between two. The original is very emphatical, and seems to be an allusion to a ship stationed at a particular place, and riding at anchor, and at the same time likely to be forced to sea by the violence of the winds; which pre- sents us with a lively representation of the apostle’s at- tachment to his situation in the Christian church, and the vehemence of his desire to be unbound, that is, to weigh anchor, and set sail for the heavenly country. Doddridge in be. No. 546.—ii. 15. Among whom ye shine as lights in the world.'] This metaphor has an allusion to the buildings which we call light-houses, the most illustrious of which was raised in the island of Pharos, when Ptolemy Philadelphus built that celebrated tower, on which a bright flame was always kept burning in the night, that mariners might perfectly see their way, and be in no danger of suffering shipwreck. Some of these light-houses were constructed in the form of human figures. The colossus at Rhodes held in one hand a flame which enlightened the whole port. These lights were also sometimes moveable, and were used to direct the marches of the caravans in the night. Pitts thus describes them: “ They are somewhat like iron stoves, into which they put short dry wood, which some of the camels are loaded with. Every cotter hath one of these poles belonging to it, some of which have ten, some twelve of these lights on their tops, and they are like-