That The Jews Did Not
Engage More Extensively In Trade Either By Sea Or Land Must Be Attributed
To The Peculiar Nature Of Their Government, Laws, And Religion.
Having thus briefly pointed out the advantages enjoyed by the Phoenicians,
Egyptians, and Jews for commercial intercourse, we shall now proceed to
notice the few particulars with which history supplies us regarding the
navigation and commerce of each, during the earliest periods.
I. There is good reason to believe that most of the maritime adventures and
enterprises which have rendered the Phoenicians so famous in antiquity,
ought to be fixed between the death of Jacob, and the establishment of
monarchy among the Israelites; that is, between the years 1700 and 1095
before Christ; but even before this, there are authentic notices of
Phoenician commerce and navigation. In the days of Abraham they were
considered as a very powerful people: and express mention is made of their
maritime trade in the last words of Jacob to his children. Moses informs us
that Tarshish (wherever it was situated) was visited by the Phoenicians.
When this people were deprived of a great portion of their territory by the
Israelites under Joshua, they still retained the city of Sidon; and from it
their maritime expeditions proceeded. The order of time in which they took
place, as well as their object and result, are very imperfectly known; it
seems certain, however, that they either regularly traded with, or formed
colonies or establishments for the purpose of trade at first in Cyprus and
Rhodes, and subsequently in Greece, Sicily, Sardinia, Gaul, and the
southern part of Spain.
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