Consequently, the view that all the symbolical actions mentioned in the Book of Ezekiel were literally performed, fails again to find any support from Klostermann’s hypothesis about the con- dition of the prophet’s health. On the contrary, in 374-26 24%-27 and 448 he is only represented as the subject of a symbolical action in the same way as in 5" ete. It is also intelligible how he should be introduced as afflicted with dumbness. For God meant to symbolize the extreme of His dis- pleasure against Israel by breaking off His reve- lations (377), Again, Ezekiel is described in 448 as lying, because Israel’s captive condition might suitably be regarded also as a lying, just as it is elsewhere (Hos 3**) compared to a sitting in isola- tion.
A subdivision of symbolical actions may be formed of those which depict some feature of the future consummation of the Kingdom of God. They may be called wpopyretar 6.’ €pywy (Adrianos, Hloaywyn els ras Oelas ypapds, ed. Goessling, § 130) or ‘types.’ But it is questionable whether the OT speaks of any actions which were meant to be performed with the intention of pointing before- hand to some incident in the life of Christ. This is doubtful even in the case of the passage in which Adrianos (/.c.) appears with a measure of certainty to have discovered a mpogyrela d¢ épywv. We refer to Gn 22? ‘Take now thy son Isaac, thine only son, whom thou lovest,’ ete. This story is rather intended to express the notion that the God who has revealed Himself to Israel, holds human sacri- fices in abhorrence. It could all the less have been meant to point to the time of Christ, seeing that God did not spare Himself the sorrow of offering His only Son as a sacrifice for the sin of mankind. Nor was the Flood sent to serve as an allusion to baptism, although it might afterwards be viewed as an analogue to the latter (1 P 3%). This has been noted also by J. D. Michaelis in his interesting work, Entwurf der typischen Gottes- gelartheit, 1763, p. 37.
The most familiar symbolical actions of the NT (Jn 134, Ac 6° éré@nxav aidrois tas xelpas, ete.) have been already referred to in speaking of symbolical washing and the imposition of hands (which see). To these may be added the cursing of the fig-tree (Mt 21", Mk 11+), the texts relating to which are not meant to be a mere ‘ symbolical narrative,’ as has been recently maintained in the Theol. Zischr. aus der Schweiz, 1899, pp. 228-238. Further, the casting of lots (Ac 16) is merely an external parallel to the previously (v.24) mentioned prayer ; and, finally, the breaking of bread (k\dous Tod dprov, Mt 26°, Lk 24%, Ac 2%) and baptism (Mt 28%) have a fundamentally symbolical char- acter. See BAPTISM in vol. i. and LorD’s SUPPER in vol. iii. ;
LitERATURE.—This has been indicated in the body of the article. Ep. Konia.
RELIGION OF EGYPT.—
Introduction. i, Cosmogony, (A) Creation of the world.
(1) Supposed reciprocal relation between deities and men.
(2) Creation myths attributing the formative effect to acts: (@) separation of heaven and earth, (b) origin of the sun, (¢) origin of gods and men, animals and plants, (d) methods of creation.—(«) a series of births, (¢) artificial construction, (y) procreation.
(3) Creation myths attributing the formative effect to words. Supposed connexion between an object anditsname. Oreation by inarticulate sounds a late conception.
(B) Destruction of the world. (1) Supposed allusions. (2) A deluge checked by the Deity. a (3) Ra’s partial destruction of the human race. il. THE GODs. (A) Historical development of the power of particular gods.
Official religion and popular faith.
RELIGION OF EGYPT RELIGION OF EGYPT
(1) Want of unity in the Egyptian reli ion.
(2) The nome gods. oP .
(3) Attempted reformation by Amenophis rv.
(4) Changing fortunes of the principal gods.
(5) Doppelgungers amongst the gods.
(6) Uncertainties due to our lack of complete information.
(B) List of gods. Ss a ative Egyptian deities. oreign deities : (#) Libyan, (b) African. (c) Asiatic.
(8) Deified men. Reuyets (0) ey
(4) The popular gods. Partition of the great gods. (a) heaven and earth, and the heavenly bodies, (b) stone worship, (c) worship of high places, (@) cult of springs and streams, (e) aiial worship, (7) worship of plants and trees, (g) city divinities, (A) veneration of buildings,
- (5) Deified abstract notions. iii. Tue Cunrus. The daily temple ritual. iv. CONCEPTIONS OF A FUTURE LIFE.
@) Notions connected with the sun and his 24-hours’ course,
(2) Dwelling-place of the gods.
(3) Realm of the dead variously placed: (a) above the earth, in heaven, (b) under the earth, in Duat, (c) on the earth, in the Plain of Aalu,
(4) The Osirian doctrine of immortality : (a) the Osiris myth, (0) later influences of sun-god myths, (ec) judgment in the world beyond, (d) the Book of the Dead, etc., (¢) principal features of the Osirian faith. Part-souls.
Literature.
177
acquired information or received stimulus from Egypt, must have derived these from the middle classes or the lower orders, and not from study of the doctrines in the temples which were so difficult of access to a non-Hgyptian, or of the inscriptions which must have been almost always unintelligible to a foreigner.
Under these circumstances, it will be necessary in the present article to lay more emphasis on these popular notions than if has been usual, in view of the above described meagreness of the sources, to do in descriptions of the Egyptian religion. But, on the other hand, owing to the want of materials and the constant interpenetra- tion of the two forms of conception, it becomes impossible to treat the two apart; the difference between their points of view can only be indicated from time to time in the course of our exposition.