Page:Cyclopaedia, Chambers - Supplement, Volume 2.djvu/308

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plant there have been counted 13824 feeds. Now allbting to a root of this plant eight branches, and to each branch fix heads, which appears to be a very moderate computation, the produce of one feed is 6X13824=82944; and 8X82944, gives 6635 $2 feeds, as the annual produce of one feed, and that fo fmall that 13824 of them are contained in a capfule, whole leno-th is but one ninth of an inch; its diameter but one twentv third of an inch, and its weight but the thirteenth part of a grain. Phil. Tranf. N°. 478. feci. 1-.

PR OPE MPT ICON, npov^HmiMff, in poetry, a poem wherein are expreSfed ardent wifhes and folemn vows for the fafety of a perfon going upon a journey or voyage. Such is that of Ho- race, L. 1. Od. 3. addreffedto Virgil on his fetting out For Athens. It was other wife called apopempticon. Hofm. Lex Univ. in voc. See Apopemptic, Cycl. The word is derived from wpwtftnu, I fend forward, or ac- company on the way.

PROPHECY (Cycl.)— The prophecies in the Old Teftament, particularly thofe relating to the Meffiah, are allowed by all Christians to have been accompliflied in jefus Chrift ; but the difpute is, as to the kn^o or manner wherein they have re ce'ived their accomplifhment.

Oppofite fy Items have been framed on this head ; Grotius, Vitringa, Le Clerc, Whifton, Collins, Chandler, &c. Some hold the prophe.ies to have been accomplished in one fenfe, fome in another, and fome in both. Mr. Wh'ifton's opinion is mentioned in the Cyclopaedia.

A modern learned advocate for Christianity {hews, that it was ' the cuftom of Jewifh writers to fay a thing was accompliflied when they only made allufions to it, more or lefs remote ; that however there are fome formal prophecies which literally relate only to the Meffiah ; other typical prophecies which are alfo to be applied in a literal fenfe to the Meffiah ; and that others are only cited as accompliflied allegorically, by way of argumentum adbomiiwn, to the Jews only who admitted this way of reafoning. Chandler's Defence of Christian, paffim. Bib!. Angl. T. 12. p. 45^ feq.

Grotius's method 13 to look for a literal accomplifhment in the Jewifh affairs about the time when the prophets wrote ; or in the affairs of the neighbouring nations with whom they had wars. This method, difapprovedby Vitringa and many others, is defended by Le Clerc, Maflbn, L'Enfant, &c. who even carry it further, fo as to maintain that there is no pro- phecy in the Old Teftament which has not had a literal ac- complilhment, and that if there be any wherein this is not known, 'tis thro' the defect of hiftory. Vid. Hift. Crit, Rep. Lett. T. 6. Art. 2. p. 43, feq.

Grotius allows that the prophecies applied to the Meffiah in the New Teftament, tho' they had a literal accomplifhment be^ fore, had another more fublime and peculiar accomplifhment in Chrift. This appears from his notes on Matthew and Ifaiah, where he fays expreSiy, that what he interprets literally of Jeremiah, agrees in a more fublime manner, and even more literally to Jefus Chrift. See alfo his notes on Pjfalm XXII. i. and his Treat, de Veritat. Relig. Chrift. I. 5. c. 14.

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This opinion touching the double fenfe of prophecies is not

new. The greateft allcgorifts, even thofe among the Jews who make ufe of this manner of interpreting, have allowed a double fenfe, as is fhewn by Surenhuyfius ; nor does Vi- tringa himfelf rejeft it. In lib. Conciliat.Vid. Biol. Choif.T, 25. p. 411.

The difpute then between Grotius and his adverfaries, is not whether there are two fenfes in the prophecies, but whether Se- veral prophecies of the Old Teftament, which relate to Chrift. had a literal, lefs fublime, and le'fs perfect accomplishment be- fore they were accomplished in Chrift. The affirmative is maintained by him, the negative by them. Vid. Le Clerc. Bibl. Choif.T. 27. p. 391, feq

As to the accomplishment of particular prophecies, we find endlefs disputes among critics and interpreters, concerning thofe of the conception of a virgin, the feed of a woman, the fceptre's departure from Juda, the root of JcSfe, out of E°ypt have I called my fon, he mall be called a Nazarine, Daniel's Seventy weeks, the Babylonifh captivity, the difper- fton and reftoration of the Jews. Matth. xxii. 23. Surenbuf Liber Conciliat. Bibl. Choif. T. 25. p. 414. Jaquelot DiiT. furleMeffie. Ouv. des Scav. Dec. An. 1698. p. 538. Mar- fltal Tabul. Chron. Jour des Scav. T. <;6. p. 325. Saurin. Difl". 41. Obf. Halenf. T. 1 r. Obf. 1 2. §. 7. p. 304. Whit- iy, Comment, ad Joe. "vVbrks of the learned, T. 5. p. 232. Hof c. 11. v. i. Olear. Obf. Sacr. Bibl. Univ. T. 2. p. 342. Mem. de Trcv. An. 1719. p. 1243. Matth. c. 2. v. 23. Olear. ubi fupra, p. 343. WbJ* Melet Leidens. Mem. de Trev. An. 1711. p. 1895. Ayrol. Liber LXX. Hebdom. refign. Giorn. de Letter, d'ltal. T. 19. p. 3C9. V Enfant, Re- flex" fur Difput. du Martianay. Nouv. Rep. Lett. T. 47. p. 492. Umborcb. de Verit. Reiig. Chrift. Bibl. Univ. T. 7. p. 304. Menajf. Ben. Ifrael. Hope of Ifrael, Sect. 29. p. 36. Few modern events of any considerable note, but one inter- preter or other finds to be the accomplishment of fome Scrip- ture prophecy. 'The late war and death of the king of France, and numerous others are pretended to be found in Holy Writ. 2

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The viftons in the Old and New Teftam?nt, have been more 1 tortured for accomplishments than the prefheaes themSelves. Such is the cafe of Ezcchiel's temple, the temporal reign of Chrift on earth, the deftruclion of antichriSt, the lobfening the great dragon, the opening of the Seals, and many others. IJ" Enfant and Beevfibre Verf. du Nouv. Teft. Jour des Scav. T. 65. (Ed. Ami) p. 350. Vintr'tng. Anacrif Apoca- iyps. Jour. Liter. T. ic, P. 2. p. 474. Meyer. Diff Theol. de Prophet Vilion. Ezek. J ur. des Scav. T. 40. p. 3, feq. Nouv. Rep. Lett. T. 42. p. 269. Witf. Exefc. Acad. Ouv. des Scav. An. 169=;. p. 17, fflhifl. Vind. Apoft. Conftit. p. 45". on Revelat Nouv. Rep Lett. T. 39. p. 586. Ouv. des Scav. Marf. 1689. p. 27-. Harmome 6? a omplipcment des fropheiies fur la dura de Fjtnti Chrtfl & les foujfrancei de tEgUjiy p. 5. avec w journal pou- I' accompli ffhfnent'de ces^ropketiispbur let quatre derniers mois de I'annce 1687, & les deux premiers de I'anu.e 1688. i?.°. Amft. An. i68«. Bibl. Univ. T. 9. p. 354, feq. Ujher de Chrift. Ecclef. Contin. Succefs. Bibl. Univ. T. 9. p. 13. Hartntmie & accomplifjhneut, ubi fupra, P- 35^ Seq. L Enfant and Beaufdbre, I c. PROPOLIS, (Cycl.) a name given by authors to a certain fub- ftance more glutinous and tenacious than wax, with which the bees ftop up all the holes or cracks in the fides of their hives. Befide the wax and the honey which the bees gather in their daily travels, they have occafion for this third fub- ftance at times, and that especially when they are placed in a new hive

They very well know that it is nece/Tary to their well being, that they Should be kept perfectly warm in their hives, and ftrongly defended againir the injuries of weather : to keep out wind and rain they ftop every little chink in the fides of their habitations with this matter ; nor is this the only reafon for it, they have other enemies of the infect tribe, which are on different occafions eternally Seeking a way into their habi- tations ; fome of them feed on their honey, others on die wax, and others on their young offspring. To be guarded againft thefe, they as firmly as poffible block up all the ac- cidental holes or cracks in the hive, and guard the principal opening, which ferves as the gate of their city, by numbers which are always placed round about it, fo that no enemy can come in that way. Reaumur's Hift. of Infects, V. 10. p. 76.

Thefe wary animals not only ftop up in this manner all the cracks they can find, but even examine all the weak places of the hive, and will eat away a rotten or too weak part, and make up the deficiency with this propolis. This was elegant- ly feen in the cafe of fome of Mr. Reaumur's glafs hives, which were framed of wood, and had Squares of glafs in the proper places : thefe Squares of glafs were fattened in with flips of pafted paper. The bees finding this a much weaker part of the hive than any other, and capable of beino- eaten thro' by their enemies, foon gnawed to pieces all the paper and pafte, and covered thofe parts with the propolis in the place of that matter.

It might feem that the bees might ufe wax on this occafion ; but this would be no defence againft thofe of their enemies, which devour and feed on wax ; and nature has guarded them againft thefe, by fupplying them with a matter which fpreads more eafily, is of greater tenacity, and fixes itfelf much more ftrongly in the fmall crevices than wax could do It has been known from the earlieft times, that the bees made ufe of this fubftance; Pliny mentions it, and tells us, that the authors of his time diftinguifhed three kinds of it, the firft they called metys, the fecond pijf.cer -on, and the third propolis. The lair of thefe names is only retained among the later writers, and feems to have Stood with the antients for the pure fubftance, the other kinds differing from it only as they were more or lefs mixed with wax.

The propolis itfelf is a fubftance perfectly different from wax; it is found to be Soluble in Spirit of wine, or in oil of tur- pentine; and is Soft when laid on by the bees, but grows hard afterwards ; it may, however, even in its hardeft fhte, be foftened by heat. By all thefe observations it appears very plainly, that the propolis is a true genuine vegetable refin, of the nature of many others which we have in common ufe. The authors who have treated of this fubftance, have de- ferred it very differently ; George Pictorius, who has writ- ten of bees, fays, that it is of a yellow colour and an agree- able fmell, like that of ftorax, and that it would fpread when warmed properly. Pliny and the old authors defcribe it as being of a rank and Strong fmell, and being ufed as a fucce- daneum for galbanum ; and at prefent we ufually find it of an aromatic and agreeable fmell, infomuch that fome rank ic among, the perfumes. The apothecaries, in fome places, keep it as a medicine in their Shops; but it is to be obferved, that it is very various in its nature ; for according to the de- fcriptions of authors, it is Sometimes fweet and Sometimes ftinking. The truth is, that the bees who collect it as a thing to be ufed for a cement, not for food, are not over curious of what plants they gather it from ; and hence in diffe- rent hives it is found of very differentcolours and confiftences. In general, the propolis is of a brownifh red colour on the furface ; the red Sometimes predominating, fometimes the brown ; but when broken it is yellowifh, or approaching to

the