Nothing is more frequent in commentaries than the title " Harmonia EvangeUca." Under this title, however, I have felt it necessary to produce something exceedingly different from the generality of compositions which have hitherto appeared with this name. The basis of my Harmony is the recognition of the fact that there were Three Passovers, and Three only, between our Lord's Baptism and His Ascension, — a fact frequently ac knowledged by the ancients, and of late years by Timotheus Philadelphia ; 1 though most writers of recent date lay down a greater number of Passovers. I have combined and arranged the Four Gospels in accordance with the determining standard of the Three Passovers in my Harmony of the Four Evangelists, published first, A.D. 1736, and again with emendations, A.D. 1747 : and the consideration of the separate Gospels in the pre sent work is intimately connected with that treatise. I will, therefore, quietly repeat the points, which are most necessary for my purpose.
1. The Nativity of our Lord cannot be placed later than two months before the death of Herod the Great.
2. The death of Herod the Great cannot be placed sooner or later than the month of February, in the third year before the Dionysian Era.2 This is proved by the eclipse of the moon, mentioned by Josephus, and the events, which he relates, as
1 Author of a work, published in 12mo, at Stuttgard, A.D. 1728, and en titled—
"Grundveste der wahren Kirchen."
Bengel, in the Preface to his Exposition of the Apocalypse, says — " All the systems we have of the Apocalypse may be divided into these six classes ; of each of which I will subjoin one example — 1. Some go in a metaphysical and theosophical way ; for instance, Timotheus Philadelphus." — (I. B.)
2 The Dionysian Era, now in general use, so called from Dionysius Exiguus, a native of Scythia, who published his chronological system about the year 532. He is considered to have placed the birth of Christ four years too late; so that to obtain the exact nnmber of years which have at any time elapsed since that event, we must add four years to the date of the current year. — (I. B.)