declared in Holy Writ; "And he spoke of trees, from the cedar which grows on Lebanon, unto the hyssop which buds on the wall. And he also spoke of beasts, of birds, of reptiles, and of fishes." (1 Kings iv. 33.) This universal acquaintance with the works of nature was a proof, that the Divine Spirit rested on him; and, therefore, individuals came from amidst all nations to hear his wisdom. As to ourselves, we know that every sublunary creature exists for the purpose of being useful to man. Of the different kinds of beasts some serve for his nourish ment, as sheep, oxen, and the like; some for labour, others to carry burthens, and to aid him in his travels. Some of them, however, man has not yet known how to tame and render useful, though doubtless they too are intended to be subservient to his wants in some respect. The vegetable kingdom, likewise, furnishes nourishment, medicines, dyes, &c; and if many plants are as yet not rendered useful to man, the fault is not theirs, but that of man alone, who has not discovered their utility. For there is no object in nature, from the largest to the smallest, which is without its useful purpose; but all can be made available to the wants of man: And this fact is proved by the circumstance, that no generation passes away without some salutary and useful objects being discovered, the beneficial qualities of which were unknown to preceding generations. And from what we already know we may, without fear of being mistaken, conclude and assert, that every object in nature has its own peculiar utility. Shouldst thou be tempted to dispute this assertion, and ground thy argument on the fact, that many of the products of nature are poisonous, and consequently pernicious, instead of useful to man; I answer thee, that even these have their utility: For though, when administered inwardly, they kill, yet, when applied externally, they heal many diseases. Even the most venomous snakes and serpents have a useful purpose.

Their researches having thus led our Sages to the just conclusion, that the purpose of the whole sub

lunary creation is to be useful and subservient to man, the next subject of their inquiries was naturally, "Why is man created? and what is the purpose of his existence?" The investigation which they undertook in order to solve, this question taught them, that, whilst other creatures can only operate in one way, or, at most, in two ways, man is capable of manifold operations. We see that the operation of trees is to bear fruit; that of the silkworm is to spin; that of the spider, to weave cobwebs; of the lion, to prey upon other animals, &c. But man performs manifold and various actions and operations. The Sages made it their object to discover what is the result and purpose of all those operations which, in consequence of the different faculties with which he is endowed, he is capable of performing; and they found that all his faculties, and whatever effects they produce, have but one tendency, namely, his preservation; which again promotes his knowledge; this enables him to attain truth; as reason, properly exercised, will arrive at the just conclusion, that man cannot be, and, therefore, is not created, solely that he may eat, drink, indulge in sensual enjoyments, build large houses, or govern his fellowmen as their King. For all these are accidental occurrences, which do not add to the internal powers of man. Moreover, these accidents are common to him with other animals; and it is wisdom only which raises him above them, by developing the germ of his powers, and exalting the animal man into an intellectual being; for without this developement, he is not actually distinguished from the brute creation, though capable of becoming so. Truth, then, is the object of knowledge, attained by preservation, which is the aim of the various operations performed by man. The most important truth and valuable knowledge is the unity of God and his attributes, with whatever thereunto appertaineth; all other knowledge is but secondary, and serves only to prepare and practise the mind, so that it may become capable of receiving this great truth. Fur

thermore, it is needful that man should avoid sensuality: For reason dictates, that corporeal indulgence, carried to excess, injures the soul, in the same manner as mental contemplation, carried to excess, becomes aberration, and injures the mortal frame. For if man indulges his passions, and renders his reason subservient to their gratification, he reduces himself to a level with the brutes, which know not otherwise than to gratify all appetites. Every trace of that Divine faculty, wisdom, is lost in him; and he stands as an isolated being, hurled into the unfathomable depths of purposeless chaos.

From all that has hitherto been said it is apparent, that the whole sublunary creation has no other real purpose than to administer to the wants of wise and virtuous men ; or, in other words, to men who acknowledge the truth, which they attain as far as it is possible for human faculties to do, and who regulate their conduct and actions according to its dictates. This fact is established not only by the Prophets who, divinely inspired, taught our people, but likewise by the Sages of other nations, who, though the light of prophecy shone not forth to them, yet knew and felt, that man can only become perfect when he combines true knowledge with virtuous actions: As the celebrated and sage Philosopher of old said, "What God desires of men is, that they be wise and pious." The Prophet denounces those who boast of their wisdom, and yet indulge in their passions, transgressing the Divine command: "How can ye say, We are wise? Behold, they despise the commands of the Lord: What can their wisdom be?" (Jeremiah viii. 8, 9.) He who abstains from indulging his passions, who is virtuous and just, but who is ignorant of true knowledge, is, certainly, preferable to him who is wise and wicked. Nevertheless, he is far from being perfect; nor can his actions all result from the only just motive. And therefore our Rabbies say, in Pirke Aboth, (second chapter,) The ignorant eschews not sin, and the worldly man cannot be pious."

This their saying is dictated by reason, and approved by experience; accordingly the law enjoins to "learn and to perform." The first direction is to learn wisdom, by which man will know how to perform his duties; agreeably to the maxim of our Rabbies, "Most important is the study of wisdom, because it leads to acting virtuously." (Talmud, treatise Kedushin, fol. 8.)

The question which presents itself to our mind is, "As the whole sublunary creation has no other real purpose than to administer to the wise and virtuous man, for what purpose is the great mass of mankind called into existence ? For we are certain, that, for one man who is truly wise and virtuous, there are thousands who are not, but who, immersed in ignorance and sensuality, have no idea whatsoever of truth." The answer is, There are two reasons why this great mass exists: 1. That they too may be useful to the wise and pious; for if the whole human race, despising all worldly occupations, were to devote itself to philosophy and contemplation, social order must soon cease. Man's wants are manifold; his necessary occupations are numerous ; he must sow, plough, reap, thrash, winnow, grind, and bake, before he can eat bread: He must shear the sheep, wash the wool, spin, weave, cut out, and sew, before he can have a garment. How many are the arts he must acquire and practise, before he can produce the vessel in which he cooks his food, or the knife with which he carves it! Methuselah's years would not suffice, were it indispensable that all men should learn how to exercise every art that is needful to their preservation and comfort: Therefore, men unite in a social state, where every one contributes his active share; in which the wise and pious man exercises his wisdom and piety. How just is the observation of him who said, "If there are no fools, society cannot exist in its present state!" Need we greater proofs of folly than are evinced in the usual doings of man? He whose frame is so feeble, and whose constitution is so weak, undertakes journeys from the commencement of the second clime to the end of the sixth. He

traverses the ocean in perilous voyages, exposed to wind and cold; he crosses the desert in its naked sterility, exposed to sand and heat. The venomous reptile and the ferocious beast endanger his life. He braves it all, because he may gain gold. When he has succeeded, and gathered heaps of coin, what is his next undertaking? He seeks skilful artisans, in every land; he lays foundations dug deep into the bowels of the earth, on which he raises his stately mansion, large, lofty, solid, and built for centuries to come. Yet he (poor feeble mortal!) knows not if the span of his days will be lengthened until the proud structure is completed. Can there be greater folly or madness than this? Such are all the undertakings of man,vanity and folly when you investigate them; yet they are necessary to uphold the social state. All those whose occupations are instrumental to these necessary follies are by our Rabbies called, "people of the earth," their callings being altogether earthly.

Should the objection be started, that we behold many an ignorant fool who lives tranquilly and at peace, without encountering risk or danger, waited upon by many who serve him and obey his bidding; and that among these his attendants are many wiser and better than himself; and that thus wisdom and piety are subservient to ignorance and folly ;-we answer: This conclusion is errone

ous.

For although yonder fool in his tranquillity apparently serves no man, nevertheless, without his own will or intention, he administers to the wants of the wise and good. For though himself inactive, yet he causes a splendid palace to be built, vineyards and costly plantations to be reared, and other royal and princely undertakings to be commenced and completed. And though these magnificent structures may not afford any immediate use to the wise and pious man, yet one of its lofty porticoes may shield him against the rain, the vineyard may afford one

goblet of wine, and his plantations a single apple, to refresh the weary sage, to quench the thirst of a pious man: As Job saith, "If he heaps up silver like dust, and prepares his garments like the mould; he prepares, but the righteous wears them." (Job xxvii. 16, 17.)

2. The Divine wisdom has ordained, that the number of the perfect shall be greatly exceeded by those who seek not to attain perfection; but who exist in order to uphold the social state. But the why can as little be called in question by man, as any other law of nature laid down by the Creator. Nevertheless, it is true, that the great mass serves to uphold the institutions of society, and to preserve that state of cultivation which prevents the earth from degenerating into a wilderness. This dispensation of providence we find confirmed in Holy Writ, where the Deity tells the Israelites that the inhabitants of the country they are about to conquer shall not be at once destroyed, in order that the land may not become desert, being uninhabited: "I will not drive them out before thee in one year, lest the land should become uncultivated, and the wild beasts increase against thee." (Exodus xxiii. 29.)

All that we have hitherto adduced serves to establish the fact, that whatever exists in this transitory state is created to assist in the production and preservation of the wise and pious. But as our wisdom, as well as our piety, is founded on, and derived from, that inexhaustible store of all wisdom, knowledge, virtue, and piety, THE Law, which a beneficent God was pleased to reveal unto us, and by which these are symbolized, our Rabbies, condensing in few words the meaning of the dissertation into which we have just entered, express this comprehensive truth in one brief sentence: "The Holy One (blessed be HE!) reserves nothing to himself on the whole terrestrial globe but the spot where the halachah is stu

died.'

classical point of view, the critical study of that language of truth, no now, is highly requisite

between the verbs and, and many others. Even in the middle ages, the learned Kimchi, Abenezra,

"to understand a proverb and the interpretation, the words of the wise, and their dark sayings." (Prov. i. 6.) But it is much more so in a religious view, as many of our

, "laws," are founded upon words which appear synonymous, and particularly where one word is used in preference to another. Our Rabbins, bon, have displayed in the much ingenuity in defining the nice distinctions between the

נדבה between נשך and תרבית nouns and ;תמורה and חליפה ;נדר. and

the necessity of the study of synonymes. Therefore, in applying ourselves to trace the Hebrew words to their primitive roots, whereby we shall be able to discover the different shades by which some words deviate from the principal idea, we may humbly hope to enter into the true spirit of the word of God, and to the observance of his holy laws.

I shall now proceed to notice some synonymous Hebrew verbs, critically defined by some of our valuable modern authors.

no

AMIDST the dense piles of new publications under which the press groans, every one of which professes to instruct, improve, and amuse mankind, by the brilliancy and novelty of its ideas,-it is as new as it is unexpected to meet with a writer, who seeks not to pass off his own thoughts, but who ascends to the Fountain-head of all wisdom, selects and arranges for our immediate use, those salutary maxims which, though we know where to find them, we seldom seek; and who, content with being really useful, advances pretensions to novelty, and tries not to startle us with glittering grandiloquence. Such is the character of the little work before us: We, therefore, feel pleasure in claiming from our readers attention to its merits. And when it is recollected how few elementary works are in the hands of the Jewish youth of this country, we feel that the best thanks of our community are due to Mr. Mocatta, for his judicious selection and excellent arrangement, which, condensing within a few pages those unerring rules of conduct which the wisest of men penned for our instruction,

gives to the youthful mind a guide which, in the hour of adversity and temptation, as in that of prosperity and exultation, will prove a tree of life to all who hold fast thereon."

Mr. M. has, under fourteen different heads, arranged a selection of those apophthegms from the Books of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, which are most appropriate to the class under which he ranges them. When we say, that some of these heads are, Filial Duty, Humanity, Integrity and Truth, Prudence and Righteousness;-that all are of equal importance; and that each contains the most forcible and just maxims, carefully selected from a collection every maxim of which is forcible and just; we think we are warranted in asserting, that this little book is one of the best of its kind with which we are acquainted. It is preceded by a preface evincing a a very considerable acquaintance with Biblical literature and criticism, coupled with sentiments truly philanthropic and religious. We heartily recommend it to every father of a family, be he Jew or Gentile.