ABURY

Messiah. All this shows that the patriarchs had a knowledge of the true nature of God, and that the Christian or mediatorial religion is both the first and the last. And when men had completely strayed from the first, the Mosaic dispensation original: "Mosaic dispensation"; the religious system and laws given to the Israelites through Moses. was only a temporary veil original: "vail" placed over the brilliance and spirituality of true religion for a time, to lead them back to it upon the actual coming of the Messiah.

3. These altars, as they are called here, were the patriarchal temples like those of our Druids William Stukeley, the author, believed that the ancient Druids of Britain were descendants of biblical people and practiced a "patriarchal" religion that prefigured Christianity.—the places of public worship. "Invoking in the name of Jehovah" The Hebrew name for God, often translated as "The LORD." is a figure of speech meaning public worship on Sabbath days; it is equivalent to our modern expression "to go to church on Sundays." For this reason, Servius original: "Servius on the Æneid III. v. 85"; Maurus Servius Honoratus was a 4th-century Roman grammarian who wrote a famous commentary on Virgil’s Aeneid. writes that in the most ancient form of worship, people only prayed directly to the deity without offering animal sacrifice.

Thus, I believe we are to understand Herodotus A 5th-century BC Greek historian. (Book 2), where he says the Athenians learned "invoking" from the Pelasgians, who were Phoenicians; they probably learned it from Abraham, who entered the land of Canaan as a religious reformer. Invoking was the standard method of devotion on Sabbath days, while sacrificing was for extraordinary occasions.

It was Abraham's custom to build one of these temples wherever he lived, as he later did in the plain of Mamre, near Hebron (Genesis 13:18). At Beersheba, we are told he planted a grove and there invoked the name of Jehovah, the everlasting God (Genesis 21:33). It cannot be doubted that there was an altar and a structure of stones original: "work of ſtories"; corrected here based on context. at that same place. This was the practice of all his successors, the patriarchs, ever after, as is obvious in scripture right up to the time of Moses.

Isaac built an altar in Beersheba and invoked the name of Jehovah, who appeared to him personally (Genesis 26:25). Jacob set up the anointed pillar at Bethel (Genesis 33:18) and the temple there (Genesis 35). At Shechem, he built another (Genesis 33:20). At Bethel, he set up a pillar where Jehovah personally appeared to him and blessed him; he anointed it and poured a drink offering, or libation, upon it (Genesis 35:14).

In Exodus 24:4, we read that Moses rose early in the morning and built an altar at the foot of the hill along with twelve pillars, which we have no reason to doubt were set in a circle. The same was done after they were settled in the land of Canaan until the Temple of Solomon was built. For example, when Samuel lived at Ramah, he built an altar to Jehovah there to celebrate the public duties of religion (1 Samuel 7:17).

From this, we can further gather these three things:

1. They planted groves in patriarchal times to serve as temples for public worship. It appears this was done in those hot countries for comfort during the summer season, and perhaps for the sake of magnificence. We are told that Abraham lived for a long time at Beersheba, where he planted the grove. These groves were like our cathedrals; they were planted around the circular stone structures original: "circular parts of ſtories"; modernized to "stones" based on the architectural context. to serve as porticos A porch or walkway with a roof supported by columns, used here to describe the space for a congregation. for receiving the congregation. Consequently, "groves" and "temples" became synonymous terms in both sacred and pagan writings.

2. These temples, which they called altars, were circles of stones surrounding a central stone that was more specifically named the altar. These circles were larger or smaller, made of more or fewer stones, as the will or convenience of the founder prompted. Moses's temple was a circle of twelve stones, and we have similar circles in England.

3. They were commonly built on open plains and rising ground, making them visible and convenient for large crowds from the entire neighborhood to assemble. This is a logical result of their purpose, as a place of public use must be in the most public and visible location.

4. The patriarchal religion and the Christian religion are one and the same. Hence, in Isaiah 19:19, the prophet—speaking of the restoration of the...