CYRENUrS
632
CYMA
tbetical character of th« clause is probably tiie cause of this somewhat blended antithesis in its phraseology. We continoe from Winer, s. v. Quirinus.
6. Many take rfy^fjuau in the wider signification of high executive officer in general, including, for instance, the procurators. (So Casanbon, Etercit. AnHbaron, p. 126 sq. ; Grotnis, B. Gh. Richard, in Iken, Nov. Thesaur, ii, 428 sq. ; Magnani, ProbL de Nath. Chri$H, p. 260 sq. ; Q. Wemsdorf, De cmtu quern Cos, OeL Jtc- gutt. fecit, Yiteb. 1698, 1720 ; Deyling, Obeervat, i, 288 sq. ; WeUmadittproffr, v. HdmOadt, 1787 ; K. Nahm^ macher, ut, tup. ; Yolbortfa, De centu Quinrmi, Getting. 1785; Birch, De centu Quhiniy Havn. 1790; Sancle- mente, De Vulg. ^ra Emend, p. 418 sq. ; MOnter, Stem d. Weiten, p. 88 sq. ; Neander, LAen Jem, p. 25, and others.) These suppose that Quirinos held this cen- sus as an extraordinary magistrate, at the especial command of Augustus. (Comp. Usher, AwmL p. 580 sq. ; Wedel, De centu A uffittt. Jena, 1703.) MQnter, p. 99 sq., has shown, after others, that extraordinary le- gates, besides the chiefs of the proTinces, were some- times sent for such special duties, though perhaps not all the instances adduced by him are valid. If we are fully to believe Justin Martyr, Apol. i, 44, Quhrinus must have held the census when he first became iiri- rpoirog, at procurator in Judaa. See Credner, Bei- trag. a. Einleit. mt N. T. i, 280 sq. But there were no procurators in Judna in Herod's time. We must then suppose, with Credner, that Quirinus was then sent to Palestine as procurator of Syria simply to take the census of the people, whose number Augustus wished to know. But this is simply multiplying hypotheses. Comp. also Huschke, p. 78 sq. This view appears the more probable, since Quirinus, who was a favorite with the emperor, was then in the East on his commis- sion (Tacit. Ann. iii, 48 ; ii, 42). There is also an in- scription (Muratori, Thetaur. Intcript. i, p. 670) which states that Q. ^mU. Palicanus Secundus, by order of Quirinus, held a census in Apamea (in Syria), and, likewise by his order, conquered the Ituraaans in Leb- anon. But, though the word rfyifuiw is not limited to a permanent governor of a province, yet Luke could luurdly use such a phrase as this (riyfiiovtvovToc r^ Ivpiag) of an extraordinary officer. In common lan- guage this could only mean ** being governor ofSgria" (see besides, Huschke, p. 65 sq.). Just as little does Bengel hit the mark (Ordo Temp. p. 203) when he makes Quirinus to have filled, as governor, an interim between Satuminus and Varus.
7. Assuming, on the authority of Luke, that an en- rolment actually did take place at the time of our Lord's birth, a modification of the last foregoing hy- pothesis proceeds to make out a probability that Cyre- nius was then joint governor of Syria along with Sat- uminus. It is known that a few years previous to this date Yolumnius had been joined with Satuminus as the procurator of that province, and the two, Sat- uminus and Yolumnius, are repeatedly spoken of to- gether by Josephus, who styles them equally govern- ors of Syria {Ant. xvi, 9, 1 ; 9, 8). Josephus does not mention the recall of Yolumnius ; but there is cer- tainly a possibility that this had taken place before the birth of Christ, And that Cyrenius, who had already distinguished himsifif, had been sent in his place. He would then have been under Satuminus, a riyeftwVf ** governor," of Syria, just as Yolumnius had been be- fore, and as Pilate was afterwards, of Judsea. That he should here be mentioned as such by Luke rather than Satuminus is very naturally accounted for by the fact that he retumed, ten yean afterwards, as procurator or chief governor, and then held a second and more important census for the purpose of registra- tion and taxation, when Archelaus was deposed, and Judtea annexed to the Roman province of Syria. The only real objection to this solution is the silence of all other history. But, although profane history does not
"nn the &ct of Cyrenius having formerly been proc-
urator of Syria, yet H does not in an j w»f di^ 't and we may therefore safely rmat upon the aadHii^! of the sacred writer for the tratli of this fact, jratal we do for the tad of the existence of tite fint en' ment itself.— Kitto, s. v. See Syria.
A. W. Znmpt, of Berlin, in his Commmtcrtin it Sfk Bomanorvm provittcia a Oattare AmffMsto ad T. Topi oiitcm, has recently shown it to be probable that Q» rinus was twice governor of Syrin. This he taf^am by the following considerations : In B.C. 9 So^ Satnrafaius succeeded M.Titiu8iii the provineeef^r- ia, and governed it three years. Be vras aaeeeiM by T. Quintains Yarns (Joseph. ^lU. xirii, &, 3X ^ as it appears, remained governor np to ttw eaA of E C. 4. Thenceforward we lose sigiit of him txD hei appdnted to the command m Gennany, m wkid k lost his Ufe in A.D. 7. We also lose sight of tiie gri- emors of Syria till the appohitment of P. Soip^B Quirinus in A.D. 6. Now, from the maxim actei ce by Augustus (Dion. Cass. Iii, 28), thsKt none AoM hold an imperial province for less than three or bur than five years, Yams cannot have been goTcns «f Syria di)ring the twelve yean from B.C. € to A.D.& Who, then , were the missing govemoEs ? One ef tka has been found— L. Yolusios Satomiiina, -whose warn occun as " legatus Syriis*' on a coin of Antio^ A3. 4 or 6. But his proconsulate will not fiU the vhtk time, and one or two governors most be supplied be> tween Yams, ending B.C. 4, and Yoluaina, A.D. iak Just in that interval fklls the census c^ Lnke 6, 1 Could Quirinus have been governor at any soch tine? From January to August, B.C. 12, he was caosd. Soon after that he triumf^ed over the Homonadeais (Tacit, ilfm. iii, 48). Now Zumpt applies the exhsoA- ive process to the provinces which c«nild by any pon- bili^ have been under Quirinus at this time, and ^b- inates from the inquiry Asia — ^Pontns and BidiyiW' and Qalatia. Cilicia only remains. Bot at tills tsm. as he shows, that province had been redoced bj sso- cessive diminutions, had been separated (Dion. Ca& liv, 4) fh>m Cyprus, and — as is shown by tiie hktosj of the misconduct of Piso soon afterwards, who wtt charged with having, as ex-govemor of Sjria, attenpt- ed a forcible repossession of the province (Tacit J«. iii, 12), because he had attacked Celenderia, a fcrt ii Cflicia (ib. ii, 78-80), attached to the proTince of Sjm- This Zumpt also confirms by the accoants in Tuatm (Afm. vi, 41 ; xii, 55) of the Clitsa, a seditions tribe d Cilicia Aspera, who on two occasions were ro|gmed lif troops sent by the governors of Syria. Qoiiinus tki appears to have been govemor of Syria at aooie tine during this interval. But at tifhat timet W« fiad him in the East (Tacit. Ann. iii, 48) in conneeticn wA Cesar's campaign against the Armenians ; and tia cannot have been during his well-known gvweraaatif of Syria, which began in A.D. 6 ; for Cains C«esar Sti in A. D. 4. Zumpt, by arguments too long to be rqv^* duced here, but very striking and satisfi&ctory, tot the time of his first governorship at from Bjd 4 tt B.C. 1, when he was succeeded by M. Lcdlios. — Snutb, s. V. This, however, still leaves a discrepancy of ose or two yean between his first appointment and Chxiit*f birth, which cannot be brought down so late as B.C 4. (See Lntheroth, Recentement de Qmritiimt eaa Mk^ Par. 1865.) See Census.