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age of twelve, he was sent to the Hague, to Mr. Utengobad's, a celebrated clergyman among the Arminians, and afterwards to the university of Leyden. Here he continued three years with the learned Francis Junius, who superintended his education. He presented Grotius to the celebrated Joseph Scaliger, who was so astonished at his prodigious capacity, that he condescended to direct his studies.Young Grotius soon shewed himself worthy the lessons of so great a master. A year after his arrival at the university, he maintained public theses in mathematics, philosophy, and law, with general applause. Hence we may judge with what assiduity he pursued his studies. His motto, Hora ruit, shews that he had reflected on the swiftness of time, and the necessity of employing it well. Such was his progress in every thing of learning, that his reputation spread every where, and learned men spoke of him in their works as a prodigy.

Having a great desire to visit France, he embraced the oppportunity of the Dutch ambassador's going thither, and accompanied him to Paris. On his arrival, he was sought after by all men of letters, and by several persons of distinction: in particular, Mr. Buzanval, who had been ambassador in Holland, where he had enjoyed an opportunity of a more intimate acquaintance with him, conceived it an honour to introduce him to the king. That great prince received him graciously; and, to give him a more convincing proof of his esteem, presented him with his picture and a gold chain. Grotius was so transported with this present and reception, that he caused a picture of himself to be engraved, adorned with the chain given him by Henry.

During his stay in France, he was created Doctor of Laws; and returned to Holland, well pleased with his journey.

On his return to France, while the study of law and poetry employed one part of his time, he spent the other in publishing the works he had prepared for the press. The first he gave to the public was Martianus Capella-one of those obscure authors, who are commonly disregarded till we have nothing else to learn. The title of his work, is, " Of the Marriage of Mercury and Philology.' author was an African, and his style, like that of most writers of his nation, obscure and barbarous, which makes it almost unintelligible. John Grotius had put a manuscript of Capella in his son's hands, who shewed it to Scaliger; and that learned man engaged him to study it, and publish a new edition. Though Grotius was then but fourteen, the difficulty of the undertaking did not discourage him: he read all the works that had relation to the matters treated of by Capella; and at length acquitted himself of the task enjoined him by Scaliger, with such ability and success, as (to use Mr. Baillet's words) astonished the whole world. The work appeared in 1599.— The same year, Grotius translated into Latin the celebrated treatise on navigation, by Simon Stevin, mathematician to Prince Maurice of

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Nassau; and he published it in 1600: it was received with the highest applause.

Grotius was yet only eighteen years of age, but had acquired as much glory as the most celebrated scholars. He was considered a prodigy of erudition. Perhaps no one would have thought that such a genius, filled with abstract, grave, and profound science, had been susceptible of the charms of style and the graces of poetry. He had made some verses in his infancy, which were much admired; but it was apprehended the deep study of ancient authors, to which he had devoted himself, had destroyed the first fire of his imagination. It surprised all meu of letters, therefore, when he published some pieces in well written verse, particularly the Prosopopeia, in which he makes the city of Ostend speak, after being three years besieged by the Spaniards: it ranks as one of the best pieces since the Augustan age.Public fame gave it at first to Scaliger, as being considered the greatest poet of that time. Three tragedies, which he produced after these, established his fame as a poet. A collection of his poems was published in 1616, by his brother William, without his consent. They had a great run, were printed in England, and several times re-printed in Holland. The United Provinces, about this time, appointed him their historiographer. Several distinguished persons had made interest for the place: among others, Baudius, the famous professor of eloquence in the university of Leyden. The States, however, thought proper to prefer Grotius, and, what is still more singular, Baudius himself found no fault with their choice. The king of France hesitated a long time whether he should not appoint Grotius his librarian, though he had promised the place to Casaubon : the latter, though apprized of what was doing, remained silent; but President de Thou conceiving the king's honour concerned to keep his word, warmly solicited for him, and, accordingly, after the affair had been some weeks in suspense, Casaubon was at length nominated. Grotius had taken no part in the whole proceeding; and Casaubon was so far from being offended, that, writing to Heinsius, in 1603, he assures him, that if the place could have made Grotius's fortune, he wished he had obtained it; for that he loved him, and admired his prodigious genius. Grotius, at this time, thought only of following the bar, and becoming an able advocate: he had pleaded his first cause at Delft, when but seventeen, with that universal applause which he ever maintained whilst he continued in the profession. His ardour, however, for the study of the law, soon abated.He was even upon the point of quitting it, when he was nominated advocate-general of the fisc for Holland and Zealand. He took possession of this important office in 1607, and filled it with so much reputation, that the States augmented his salary, and promised him a place at the court of Holland. In the year 1608, Grotius entered into the marriage state; and, in the year following, was published, his "Freedom of the Ocean, or the Trade of the Dutch to the Indies:" dedicated to all the free nations in Christendom. In the next

year, he printed a treatise on the Antiquity of the Republic of Holland, which obtained for him the approbation and friendship of many of the most distinguished persons in the Republic, and the important office of advocate-general. In 1613, he settled at Rotterdam, and became Syndic of that city. At this time, Holland was greatly agitated with the disputes of the Remonstrants and Contra-remonstrants. Barneveldt, the intimate friend and patron of Grotius, declared in favour of the former; and Grotius supported the party of his benefactor. This business ended in the ruin of Barneveldt, who lost his head; and Grotius, involved in his ruin, was condemned to perpetual imprisonment, and shut up in the castle of Louvestein. His wife, observing that the chest in which his linen, &c. passed and repassed from the prison, had ceased to be inspected by the guards, advised him to shut himself up in it, and endeavour to make his escape. Holes were bored in the chest to let in the air, and Grotius was locked up in it, and carried out unobserved. He was carried in safety to a friend's house at Gorcum, where, dressing himself like a mason, and taking a rule and trowel in his hand, he passed unnoticed through the market-place, took boat, arrived safely at Valvet, in Brabant, where he took carriage, and got thence to Antwerp. Grotius, after this, retired to France; where the king gave him a pension of one thousand crowns per annum; but of this he was deprived by the influence of Cardinal Richelieu, in 1631. In 1634, he was made counsellor to Christina, queen of Sweden, who sent him ambassador to France. In this employment he remained at the court of France for eleven years; and when he returned to Sweden, to give an account of his mission, he solicited, and with great difficulty obtained, his dismissal. Being warmly invited to return to his owncountry, he set out on his journey; but being taken ill on the road, he stopped at Rostoch, April 28, 1645, where he died, in the 62d year of his age. The writings of Grotius have immortalized his name, especially his work on the truth of the Christian religion. His annotations on the Old and New Testaments, abound with displays of elegant learning and acute criticism. The stores of classical erudition, which were at his command, are liberally poured forth to enrich his expositions of the Sacred text. He is a rigid adherent to the literal sense throughout-objects to the double design of prophecy-is rather hostile to the application of Old Testament revelation to the Messiah, and attaches too little importance (to speak moderately, says Mr. Orme,) to the peculiar doctrines of Christianity. Grotius, says Michaëlis, was too much the man of learning, and too little the man of reflection. Professor Gaussen used to remark to his students, that no commentators deserved to be preferred to Erasmus and Grotius: but he also added, "Whoever makes use of their writings, let him know, incidere super ignes suppositos sinere doloso;" that he treads on fires overspread with faithless ashes.

The annotations on the Old Testament first appeared at Paris in 1644, in 3 vols. folio; and those on the New Testament, at the same

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place, in 1641, 1646, and 1650, in 3 more. They are all included in his works, published at Amsterdam, in 1679 and 1698, folio; and at Basil, in 1722. An abridgment of them was published by Samuel Moody, London, 1727, 2 vols. 4to. They are also contained in the Critici Sacri; and Poole has given the Annotations on the New Testament, verbatim in his Synopsis. The Notes on the New Testament were begun when Grotius was a prisoner-finished when he lived in private and published when he was an ambassador. 1

Biblical Translations.

THE SONG OF MOSES.

DEUT. XXXII.

LISTEN, ye heavens! while I speak :

And let the earth hear the words of my mouth.
May my doctrine drop as the rain,

My speech distil as the dew!

Like showers upon the tender herb.

Like a copious dew on the grass!

For in the name of the LORD I address you.

Acknowledge the greatness of our God!
The Creator, whose works are perfect,
Whose ways are all rectitude;

A God of truth without iniquity!

Just and righteous is He!

Yet corrupted are his own degenerate children:
A generation perverse and prevaricating:
People foolish and infatuated!

Is it thus ye requite the LORD?—

Is not he your father, who owneth you?

Is it not He, who made you, and careth for you?

Call to mind the days of old;

Review the years of each generation :

Your fathers, and they will inform you:

Your elders, and they will tell you

When the Most High assigned to nations their inheritances;

When he dispersed the children of Adam;

He fixed the boundaries of peoples,

Exclusively of the children of Israel ;—

For the Lord's own portion is his people Jacob

The lot of his own inheritance is Israel.

1 Mosheim's Eccles. Hist. v. p. 76, &c.; Bibliograph. Dict.; Orme's Bibliotheca Biblica, &c.

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