AINSWORTH, HENRY, an English divine of the Brownist party. Of the time and place of his birth, and of his early life, nothing is known. He is first mentioned by Bishop Hall as connected with the church of the exiled Brownists at Amster dam in 1392-93. He was for some time pastor of that church, and died abroad in 1622. His attain ments as a Hebraist were eminent, and though he lived in extreme poverty, and his mind was much distracted with controversy on points of ecclesiastical polity, he found leisure to devote himself extensively to biblical studies. The fruit of these appears in his Annotations on the Pentateuch, the Psalms, and Solomon's Song, published at first separately, be tween 1612 and 1623 ; afterwards collectively, in one vol. folio, in 1627 ; again in 1639, and recently in 2 vols. Svo, Glasg. 1843. They are for the most part incorporated by Poole in his Synopsis, who says of them, tanto acumine et judicio, tanta fide et peritia exarata, ut digna ausim pronuntiare guw in exteras linguas transfundantur.' A Dutch translation of them by Sibrandus Vomelius was published at Leeuwarden in 169o. The work has always commanded higher respect on the continent than it found in this country, perhaps from the author's ecclesiastical relations. Vomelius declares that in its own sphere it shines as the moon among the stars ;' and the editors of the Acta Eruditorum Lipsiensiunz (Anno 1691, pp. 340-342) introduce it to their readers in terms of hardly feebler encomium.
It must be confessed that the work does not come up to the expectations which such praises are cal culated to excite. The notes are for the most part judicious, and illustrate the text by copious cita tions of parallel passages and from the writings of the Rabbins ; but they do not exhibit much exe getical ability, and cannot be said to add much to our means of understanding scripture. The trans
lation which accompanies them is often obscurely literal, though occasionally felicitous readings occur.—W. L. A.
AIR (Ljp), the atmosphere, as opposed to the other (aidiip), or higher and purer region of the sky (Acts xxii. 23 ; 1 Thess. iv. 17 ; Rev. ix. 2 ; xvi. 17). The phrase els cigpa XaVip—to speak into the air (i Con xiv. 9), is a proverbial expression to de note speaking in vain, like ventis verba profiendere in Latin (Lucret. iv. 929), and a similar one in our own language; and eis cigpa Sgpetp, to beat into the air (I Cor. ix. 26), denotes acting in vain, and is a proverbial allusion to an abortive stroke into the air in pugilistic contests. The later Jews, in common with the Gentiles, especially the Pytha goreans, believed the air to be peopled with spirits, under the government of a chief, who there held his seat of empire (Philo, [De Confus. Ling p. 346; p. 586, ed. Hoeschel. 1791;] Diog. Laert. viii. 32). These spirits were supposed to be power ful, but malignant, and to incite men to evil. That the Jews held this opinion is plain from the Rabbinical citations of Lightfoot, Wetstein, etc. Thus in Pirke A both 83, 2, they are described as filling the whole air, arranged in troops, in regular subordination. The early Christian fathers enter tained the same belief (Ignat. Ad. Ephes. § 13), which has indeed come down to our own times. It is to this notion that St. Paul is supposed to allude in Eph. ii. 2, where Satan is called apxcal, rcis gEouslas TOO dOOS, prince of the power (i.e., of those who exercise the power) of the air.' Some, however, explain dill) here by darkness, a sense which it bears also in profane writers (See Lightfoot, Whitby, Koppe, Wetstein, Bloomfield, Eadie, Al ford, in loc.)—J. K.