Critici Sacri

Critici Sacri a very useful work in Biblical literature, undertaken and published by Cornelius Bee, bookseller (London, 1660, 9 vols. fol.), as an appendage to Walton's Polyglot, under the direction of bishop Pearson, John Pearson, Anthony Scattergood, and Francis Gouldman. It was reprinted at Frankfort, under the care of Gurtler, in 1695, in 7 vols. In 1698 it reappeared at Amsterdam in 9 vols.; and a supplement of 2 vols. more was published in 1700 and 1701; and a second supplement appeared in 2 vols. fol., Amst. 1732. This collection contains all, or most of the books of the O.T., the entire annotations of Münster, Vatablus, Castalio, Clarius, Drusius, and Grotius; brief annotations of Fagius on the Chaldaic paraphrase of the Pentateuch, and his larger exposition of the first four chapters of Genesis; the commentaries of Masius on Joshua; the annotations of Codurcus on Job; of Pricaeus on the Psalms, and of Bayne on the Proverbs; the commentary of Forerius on Isaiah, that of Lively on Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, and Jonah; of Badwell on the Apocrypha, and Hoeschel on Ecclesiastes, etc. On the N.T. it contains the collations of Valla, with the animadversions of Revins; the annotations of Erasmus, Vatablus, Castalio, Clarius, Zegerus, and Grotius; on particular places and subjects of the N.T., Münster, Drusius, Scaliger, Casaubon, Cameron, Lud. Capellus, Gualtperius, Schultetus, and Pricemus. There are also a number of philological tracts and dissertations, such as John Gregory's Notes and Observations; Fagius's Comparison of the principal Translations of the O.T.; Cartwright's Mellificium Ebraicum; Drusius on the Mandrakes; Jos. Scaliger and Amama on Tythes; Lud. Capellus on the Vow of Jephtha and Corban; Pithaeus De Latinis Bibliorum Interpretationibus; Urstius De fabrica Arcae Noe; Rittershusius De Jure Asylorum; Allatius De Engastrymutho; Montanus on Jewish Antiquities; Bertram and Cunaeus on the Hebrew Republic; Waser on the Ancient Coins and Measures of the Hebrews, Chaldaeans, and Syrians; and many others of a similar description (Orme, Biblioth. Bibl. p. 128). The Amsterdam edition (1698- 1732,13 vols. fol.) is the best, being well printed, with additions, and including four volumes of Thesaurus not contained in the original edition. Poole's Synopsis forms an excellent abridgment of this great work. SEE COMMENTARY.