chronological determination of the time when he says he
brought the leprous people, the blind, and the lame out of
Egypt, see how well this most accurate grammarian of ours
agrees with those that have written before him! Manetho says
that the Jews departed out of Egypt, in the reign of
Tethmosis, three hundred ninety-three years before Danaus
fled to Argos; Lysimaehus says it was under king Bocchoris,
that is, one thousand seven hundred years ago; Molo and
some others determined it as every one pleased: but this
Apion of ours, as deserving to be believed before them, hath
determined it exactly to have been in the seventh olympiad,
and the first year of that olympiad; the very same year in
which he says that Carthage was built by the Phoenicians.
The reason why he added this building of Carthage was, to
be sure, in order, as he thought, to strengthen his assertion
by so evident a character of chronology. But he was not
aware that this character confutes his assertion; for if we may
give credit to the Phoenician records as to the time of the
first coming of their colony to Carthage, they relate that
Hirom their king was above a hundred and fifty years earlier
than the building of Carthage; concerning whom I have
formerly produced testimonials out of those Phoenician
records, as also that this Hirom was a friend of Solomon
when he was building the temple of Jerusalem, and gave him
great assistance in his building that temple; while still
Solomon himself built that temple six hundred and twelve
years after the Jews came out of Egypt. As for the number of
those that were expelled out of Egypt, he hath contrived to
have the very same number with Lysimaehus, and says they
were a hundred and ten thousand. He then assigns a certain