Commentary on the Holy Bible

Verse 13. Divers i:;eighls} px) JON eben va-ahen; a stone and a stone; becau.se the vveigiits were anciently made of stone. In our own country, this was once a common case; smooth, round, or oval stones were generally chosen by the simple country pcopit- for selling their ware», especially such as were sold in pounds and half pounds. And hence the tenn a stone weight, which is still in use, though lead or iron be the matter that is used as a counterpoise, but the name itself shews us, that a stone of a certain weight was the material formerly used as a weight. See the notes on Levit, xix. 35, 36.

Verse 14. Diiers measures] Literally, an ephah, and an ephah: one heavj/, to buy thy neighbour's wares, another light, to sell tby own by. So there were kniaet in all ages.

«t.—!itbttt.,^jj ^y.^^^ rtvrefocblc iK-lniul tlicc, when! which tho Loud tliy God givcth thee "' fliou tt'fl.v/ faint and weary; and he ' ll-ared not./'t an inheritance, to possess it, //w/ thou shall Ood. I ' blot out the remembrance of Amaiek fron) un-

19 Therefore it shall be, '' when tlie Lord thy der heaven; tliou shalt not forget //,

.mil aninii',' all nations. See tiic iiulus on Kxdd. xvi. li). and roni|ilisliiuciit in tlu- dralli of llainun and his trn «on», p'ulli.

w'u. K. Ii is Mi|i])ii..cil, ili.it this coniniand ii;iii iN tlii.il ac-: riod of tliiir liibtory, it niiglii be truly said, 7'A<y/carcrfn<M GW.

rinlfiiiils iintut fie offered to Hod, \,'l. TIte farm of confession lo be mcil on the occasion, 3 — 11. 77/c third i/Cfir's lithe to lie given to the Leiiles and the poor, 12. and the form of confession to be used on this occasion i;j — I.j. The Israelites tire to take.lehoiah fur their dod, and to keep his testimonies, 10', 17. jJnd Jehoiah is to lal;c them for his people, ami make them high almve all the nations of the earth, Is, Ifj.

ND it shall be, when thou art f \ come in unto the land which the Loud tliv God oivcth thee for an inlieritance, and possessest it, and dwellest

'2 ' That thou shalt take of the first of all the

this day unto the Lord thy God, that I am come unto the coimtry which the Lord sware unto our fa- 1 thers, for to give its.

4 And the priest shall take the ba.sket out of thine hand, and.set it down before the altar fruit of the earth, which thou shalt brini>- of of the Lord thy God.

thy land that the Lord thy God giveth thee, I 5 Anil thou shalt speak, and sav before the and shalt put it in a basket, and shalt ^ go unto Lord thy God, ' A Svrian " ready to peri.sh ti^.s lie jilace which the Lord thy God shall choose, i my father, and 'he went down into Kg}pt, and o place his name there. |i sojoiu-ned there with a ' few, and became there

;j Ami thou siialt go unto the priest that shall be in those days, and say unto him, I profess

Verse '2. Tlmii slialt lnl:e of l/w firs! of all llie fruit, kc] This \va* intended to kee[) them in continual remembrance of the kiuihirss ot (joil, m preservini; tiiein tlironi;h so many dillii-iillii'S and iiieialiy fulfilling; the ])ronii.>.es be had made to riitni. Gild lieini; the author of all their biessinus, the first fruits of the land were consecrated to him as tbt author of! every trood and perfect sjitl. I

0 TJETrp M^", " ^ly father abandoned Syria." The Tarman thus, X3X n« NISW*^ NT2 TSOIX ph l(il>en aranmuh I'lia Icoliada uut utnt, '■ l.aban the."Syrian endeavou.-ed to dolroy my father." The Sj/riac, ".My father was led out of.Syria into Kgypt." 'Ihe Arabic, ".Purely, Laban, the.Syrian,' had almost destroyed my father." The Tar^um of Jonathan ben Uzziel: " Our father Jacob, went at first into Syria of Mesopotamia, and l^abaii sought l.j destroy him."

tather Jlouhi:;uiU dissents from all, and renders the orici- tlius, James urgelial patrem tiicum qui in ^injptum de- scciutii, " Famine o|)presstd my father, who went down into

Ksypi." Ibis interpretation lloubigant gives the text, by taking the 'j/oi/ from the word '"TN aranify, which signifies

The confession to he made on offering the Jirstfruits.

13 Then thou shalt say before the Lord thy God, I have brought away the hallowed things out of mine _^

i house, and also have given them unto the Le- 1 vite, and unto the stranger, to the fatherless,

and to the widow, according to all thy comj mandments which thou hast commanded me:! I have not transgressed thy commandments,

" neither have I forgotten them:

14 'I have not eaten thereof in my mourning, neither have I taken away ought thereof for 07)1/ vmclean use, nor given ought thereof for the dead: but I have hearkened to the voice of the Lord my God, and have done according to all that thou hast commanded me.

15 "Look down from thy holy habitation, from heaven, and bless thy people Israel, and the land wliich thou hast given us, as thou swarest unto our fathers, a land tiiat floweth ■with milk and honey.

16 ^ This day the Lord thy God hath commanded thee to do these statutes and judgments: thou shalt therefore keep and do theni

afflicted us, and laid upon us hard

bondage: 7 And ^ when we cried unto the Lord God of our fiithers, the Lord heard our \oice, and looked on our affliction, and our labour, and our oppression.

8 And " the Lord brought us forth out of Egypt, with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and " with great terribleness, and with signs, and with wonders:

9 And he hath brouglit us into this place, and hath given us this land, evoi ""a land that floweth with milk and honey.

10 And now, behold, I have brought the firstfruits of the land, wliich thou, O Lord hast given me. And thou shalt set it before the Lord thy God, and worship before the Lord thy God:

1 1 And ' thou shalt rejoice in every good thing which the Lord thy God hath given unto thee, and unto thine house, thou, and the Levite, and the stranger that is among you.

12 ^ When thou hast made an end of tithing all-the *^ tithes of thine increase the third year, ji with all thine heart, and Avith all thy soul. ivhich is ^the year of tithing, and hast given it 17 Thou hast ' avouched the Lord this day to

unto the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, that they may eat within thy gates, and be filled;

an Aramite or Syrian, and joining it to 13X» yeahud, the future for the perfect, which is common enougli in Hebrew; and which may signify cons^rafnei; and then seeking for the meaning of ^^^? aram, in the Arabic fj' arania, which signifies _^(<wi/?!e, dearth, &ic. he tiiiis makes out Ills version; and this version he defends at large, in his notes. It is pretty evident from the Text, that by a Sj/rian we are to underjiand Jacob, so called, from his long residence in Syria with his father-in-law Laban. And his beini; ready to perish, may signify the hard usage and severe labour he had in Laban's service, by whioh, as his health was much impaired, so his life might have often been in imminent danger.

Verse 11. Thou shalt njoicc] God intends that his followers shall be happy; tliat tluy shall eat their bread with gladness and singleness of heart, praising him. Those who eat their meat grudgingly, under the pretence of their zinu'orthiiu'ss, Sec. profane God's bounties; and shall have no thankb for their voluntary humility.

Thou, and the Lciite, and the stranger^ Tlicy were to take <iare to share God's bounties among all tho8e who were depend-

be thy God, and to walk in his ways, and to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his judgments, and to hearken unto his voice:

ant on them. The Leiile has no inheritance, let him rejoice with thee. The stranger has no home, let him feel thee to be his friend and his father.

Verse 12. The third year, \\h\ch\s the year of tithing^ This is supposed to mean the third year of the seventh or sabbath year, in which the tenths were to be given to the poor. Sec the law, chap. xiv. 28. but from the letter in both these places, it would appear, that the tithe was for the Levites, and that this tithe was drawn only once in three years.

Verse 14. / hare not — given ought thereof for the deadi That is, I have not consecrated any of it lo an Idol, which was generally a dead man, whom superstition and ignorance had deified. From 1 Cor. x. 21, 28. we Itarn that it was customary to od'er that flesh to idols, which was afterwards sold piiblickiy in the shambles; probably the hlood was poured out before the idol in imitation of the sacrifices offered to the true God. Perhaps the text here alludes to a similar custom.

Verse 17. Thou hast avouched the Lord] The people avouch, publicly declare that they have taken Jehovah to be their God.

The people lake Cod for their portion; CHAP.. XXVII.

and JIc takes them for //m people.

18 And 'tlu' Loud liatli avoiiclicd 1!) And to make llu-c '' lii;,^Ii alxive

shouldest keep all his conuiiund- and that tlioii mayest he 'a holy people unto

Verm- IS. And the J,i>rd hath ainiiched] Pii1)li<kly <!<■- dared, liy llic l)l<s.sini(s lie pours down npi'ii tliciii, tliiil lie lia.H tiikfii lliciii to Ix' hi.s pcciilriir prople. I liu.s the Covenant is made and raliliccl between Ged and his l()llii\vcrs.

Verse 19. Make thee hii;;h abufe all nalion.i] It is written, righteousness exaltcili a nation, but sin is a reproaeli to any people, Prov. xiv. 34. While I.srael regarded God's word and ke))t his teslinionies, they were the greatest aii<l most respictahie of:ill nations: hut wlun they forsook God and his Law, tiny l)i(:ain<' the most ront<in|)til>lc. () Hritain! even more highly favoured than atirient Israel, learn wi.sdoni \ix what they have suflcred. It is not thy fleets nor tiiine armies, howsoever excellent and well appointed, that can ultimately exalt, and secure thy permanence among the nations. It is righteousness atone. JJecome irreligious, neglect God's ordinances, profane his sabbath, despise his word, persecute his followers; and thou art. lost. Hut fear, love and.serve him; and liiy enemies slinlt be found liars, thou shall defeat their projects, and trample on their high places.

the Louu tliy Ciod, us he hath spoken.

The form of confession when liringiiig the fimt fruitft, related ver. 4 — 10. rs both allltting and edifying. Hven when brought into a stale of aflluence and re>t, they wire coimnanded to renieinljer, and publicly acknowledge, their former degradation and wretchedne-s, that tlii-y might be ever kept humble and ilependant; and they mii.sl bnng tlieir ollcring as a public acknowledgement to God, that it was by his mercy their state was changed, and by his bounty their comforu were continued. If a man rise from p<jveny to adluence, and forget his loriiur stale, he become* proud, iii.solent, and oppre-sive. If a Christian convert forget his former slate, the rock win iice he was hewn, and llie hole of the ])it whence he was digged; he soon becomes careless, unthankful, and unholy, 'ilic case of the ten lepers that were clean.sed, of whom only one returned to give C»od thanks, ii an awful lesson. How many arc continually living on tlie bounty of God, who (eel no gratitude for his, mercies! Reader, i> this tliy slate.' If so, then expect the just God to curse thy ble»>ings.

If OSes commands the people to write the laio upon stones, uhcit Iheij shall come to the promised land, 1 — 3. yind to set up these stones on mount Ebal, 4. and to l/iiild an altar of uiiheun stones, and to offer on it burnt-ojfferinas and peace-offerings, 5 — 7- The zcords to be written plainli/, and the people to lie exhorted to obedience, 8 — lO. The sir tribes uhich should stand on mount Gcv'iz'im to bless the people, ]\, 12. 'J'hose n ho are to stand upon mount Ebal o curse the transgre!>sois, 13. The different transgressors, against whom the curses are to be denounced, 14 — 26.

AN D Moses witli the ciders of Israel comiiiaiiilcd the people, sayins^. Keep all the coniniantlnients which I commantl you this day.

Verse 2. Thou shall set t/iee up i;reat stones] How many, is not specified; possibly iivetve; and possibly only a sutficient number to make a surface large enongli to write the blessings and the curses on.

Plaster them with plaster] Perhaps the original tVW\ •VlIO JDriX lesadta otam beseed, should be translated, thou shall canetu than uith cement, because this was intended to be

2 And it shall be on the day * when ye.shall ])ass over Jordan, unto the land which the Lord thy God gi\ eth thee, that '' thou shalt set thee

a durable monument In similar ca-ses. it was customary t« set up a single stone, or a heap, rudely put together, where no cement or niorter appears to hare been used; and because this was common, it was necessary to give particular directions, when the usual method was not lo be followed. Some suppose, that the writing was to be in relievo, and that the.spaces between the letters were filled up by the niorier or cemenu This is quite a possible case, as the eastern inKriptions are 5 H 2

How the tribes are to he arranged

DEUTERONOMY, in dispensing the blessings and curses^ up great stones, and plaster them

with plaster: 3 And thou shalt write upon them all the words of this law, when thou art passed over, that thou mayest go in unto the landl which the Lord thy God giveth thee, a land j that floweth with milk and honey; as the Lord: God of thy fathers hath promised thee.!

4 Therefore it shall be when ye be gone over Jordan, that ye shall set up these stones, which I command yo;i this day, ^ in moimt Ebal, and thou shalt plaster them with plaster.

5 And there shalt thou build an altar unto the Lord thy God, an altar of stones: "thou shalt not lift up an}/ iron tnol upon them.

6 Thou shalt build the altar of the 'Lord thy God, of whole stones: and thou shalt offer burnt offerings thereon unto the Lord thy God:

7 And thou shalt offer peace offerings, and shalt eat there, and rejoice before the Lord thy

8 And thou shalt write upon the stones all the words of this law very plainly.

spake unto all Israel, saying. Take heed, and hearken, O Israel; "^ this day thou art become the people of the Lord thy God. 10 Thou shalt therefore obey tlie voice

frequently done in tliis way. There now is before me, a laro-e slab of basaltes, two feel lon<T, by sixteen indie,? wide; on which there is an inscription in Persian, Arabic, and Tamool: in the two former, the letters are all raised, the surface of the stone being dii;; out; but the Tamool is indented. A kind of reddish paint had been smeared over the letters, to make them more apparent. Two Arabic marbles in the University of Oxford have the inscriptions in relino, like those on the slab of basalt in my possession. In the opinion of.some, even this case may cast light upon the subject in question.

Vcr.se 3. All the words of litis /ati] After all that has been said by ingenious critics concerning the laxu ordered to be written on these stones, some supposing the whole Mosaic law to be intended; others only the decalo^te; I am fully of opinion that the rrwr\.torah, law or ordinance in question, vimply means the blessings and curses mentioned in this and in the following chapter: and indeed tbe.se contained a very j^nod epitome of the whole Law, in all its promises and ihreatonings, in reference to the whole of its grand moral design. See at the end of this chapter.

Verse 4..SV^ up these stones — in jnount El>al] So the present fclebrewText; but the Samaritan has mount Gerizim. Dr. Kennicott bas largely defended the reading of the Samaritan, in his second dissertation on the present state of the llebreiu 'J'tii; and Dr. Parry has defended the Hebrew against the

the Lord thy God, and do his commandments and his statutes, which I command thee this

11 ^ And Moses charged the people the same day, saying,

12 These shall stand ''upon mount Gerizim to bless the people, when ye are come over Jordan; Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Joseph, and Benjaiuin:

13 And ""tliese shall stand upon mount Ebal ^ to curse; Reuben, Gad, and Asher, and Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali.

14 ^ And ^the Levites shall speak, and say I unto all the men of Israel with a loud voice,

I 15 ^ Cursed be the man that maketh any graven or molten image, an abomination unto

i the Lord, the work of the hands of the crafts-

! man, and putteth it in a secret place. ' And

all the people shall answer and say. Amen.

16 "Cursed be he that setteth light by his

Samaritan, in his Case between Gerizim and Ebal fairly stated. So has J. H. Verschuir, in his Dissert. Critica. Many still think Dr. Kennicott's argunnents unanswerable; and have no doubt that the Jews have here corrupted the Text through their enmity to the.Samaritans. On all hands it is allowed that Gerizim abounds with springs, gardens, and orchards, and that it is covered with a beautiful verdure, while Ebal is as nuked and as barren as a rock. On this very account, the former was highly pi'opcr for the ceremony of hlessing, and the latter for the ceremony of cursing.

Verse 12. These shall stand upon mount Gerizim to bless the people^ Instead of upon mount, &:c. we may translate by, as the particle bv al is sometimes used: for we do not find that the tribes did stand on either mount; for in.los. viii. 33. when this direction was reduced to practice, we find the people did not stand on the mountains, but oitr against them on the plain. See the observations at the end of this chapter.

Verse 1 5. Cursed be the man, &c.] Other laws previously made, had prohibited all these things, and penal.sanctions were nccessardy understood; but here God more openly declares, that he who breaks them is cursed; falls under the wrath and indignation of his Maker and Judge. See the note on Exod. xx. 'i.

Verse 16. Setteth light by his father or his mothcr.l See the note on Exod. xx. 1 2.

The curses to be pronounced t'lIAP. XXVII fiitlicr or liis niotlicr. And all tlio

4o.-ie/.ai. j^. Cursed bc ho that rcmovetli his iioi,<;hh(iiii's landmark. Ami all tlic j)coi)le sliali say, Amen.

18 "Cursed hz ho that maketh the hhiid to winder out of the way. And all the people shall say, Amen.

19 'Cursed bc he that ])orvcrtc*h the jud^- nieut of the stran;;er, latherless, and widow. And all the people shall say. Amen.

20 "Cursed be he that lieth with his (iuher's •wife; beeause he uncoveroth his lather's skirt. And all the jieople shall say. Amen.

21 'Ciu-seil Ae he that lieth with any manner of beast. And all the people shall say, Amen.

Verse M. Removctk his iicii^hboin's lan'hiark.] See bcfurc on Deut. xix. 14. and on Exod. xx. 11. And for all tlie ri'sl of these curses, see tlie notes on Exod. xx. and the observations at tho end of it.

Verse 1 8. The blind to xi-iindcr out of the lioy.] A sin against the sixth cominamhnent..See on Exod. xx. 1.3.

Verse 26. That confirmcth not all the iiordx of thii laiv] The word Sa cot ALL is not found in any printed copy of the Hebrew Text, but the Samaritan preserves it, and so do six MS.S. in the collections of Kennicott and Dc Rissi, besides several copies of the Chaldcc Tari(iim. The Sepiiia^int also, and St. Fmd m his qviotation of this)>lace. Gal. iii. 10. St..lerom says, that the.Kws suppro.scd the word, ihat it niiijlit not appear that they were bound to fulfil ALL the precepts in the law of Moses.

1. Dr. Kennicott, who contends that it w;ls llie Dccaloffic that was written on the stones nicntioncd in this chapter, says,

" If we examine these twelve curses, they will appear to contain a stronp; enforcement of the ten connnunih; and it is highly probable, that the curses were here proclaimed, principally to secure obedience to the commandments, as will be made more clear by the following table.

The first, second, third, and fourth CommandmcnLs. Verse 15. Cursed be the man that maketh any graven or molten image, an abomination to the Lord, S.C.

The fit'ih Commandment. Verse 16. Cursed be he that setteth light by bis father or his mother.

The sixth Commnndmenf. Verse 25. Cursed be he that tiikcth reward to slay an innocent pi rson.

22 'Cursed be he that lieth with |;' ' his sister, the dauf;hter of his fiither. An. i. i, or the daii^rhicr of" his mother. And "*"'"*''""• all the people shall say, AiTicn.

2.'} '^Cursed be he that lieth with his mother in law. And all the people siiall say. Allien.

24 " Cursed be he that smiteth his neighbour secretly. And ail the people shall say, Amen.

2.5 ' Cursed bc he thtit taketli reward to slay an innocent person. And all the people shall say. Amen.

26 " Cursed bc he that confirmeth not all the words of this law to do them. And all the people shall say. Amen.

out of the way.

The seventh ComnnndmenL Verse 20. Cursed be he that hi tli with his father's wife. Verse 21. Cursed be he that lietli with any beast. Verse 22. Curbed be he that lieth with his sister. Verse 23. Cursed be he that lieth with his mother-in-Iaiv.

The eii;hth Commandment. Verse M, Cursed be he that removeth his neighboiu-'s landmark.

The ninth Commandment. Verse 19. Cursed be he that perverteth the judgment of the stranger, fatherless, and widow.

The tenth Commandment. Verse 26. Cursed be he that confirmeth not all the word* of this law to do them."

iNIany will think this arrangement fanciful; and the analogy far from being natural.

2. In pronouncing the.se blessings and curses, the Talmud says, six tribes went up towards the top of mount Genzim, and six towards the top of mount Ebal; and thi priests and the Leviie-, and ihe ark stood l)eneath in the in:dst. The priests encompasseil the ark, and the Levites stood round about the priests; and all Israel on this side and on that; see Josh, viii. 33. Then they turned tiieir faces towards n. cunt Gerizim, and pronounced the blessing; Bleaed he the man, &c. and these on each side answered, /V.M E,\. Tiien ihey turned their faces towards mount Ebal, and pronounced the curse; Cursed be the man, &c. and tiiose on each side aiuwered. Amen! till they had finished the blcssmgs and the curses, and afterwards they brought stones and built an altar. Some suppose tUat the Levites were divided into two grand bodies,.

part standing at, or on mount Gerizi.n, and part on mount Ebal, and that with each division, were some of the priests. The whole Dr. Parri/ sui)poscs to have been arranged in the foUottin? manner.

3. It is worthy of remark, that Moses assigns to the children of Rachel and Leah, the two mothers of the family, the office of blessins; the people, as being the most honourable; and these he places on mount Gerizim.

On the contrary, he assigns the office of cursing the people to the sons of Zilpah and Bilhah, as being the least honourable office: but with these he joins Zabulon, the youngest of Leah's sons, and Reuben, the eldest. As there must be six tribes on each mountain, it was necessary that while six of the sons of Rachel and Leah, the legitimate wives, should be employed in blessing, ^uo tribes descending from the same mothers, should be joined to the other four who proceeded from the hand-maids, in order to make up the number six. The question is, which two of the more honourable tribes should be joined to the four least honourable, in order to complete the number six? Zeb\iliin is chosen, because being the sixth and youngest of all Leah's sons, he was the least lionourable of those who proceeded from the free woman: and Reuben is chosen, who, though the eldest of Jacob's sons, and entitled to the birth-right, had lost it by his transgression. And hence he, in his posterity, was degraded, and was obliged to pronounce the curse: Cursed is he that lieth with his fathers wife; see Gen. xlix. 3, 4. and xxxv. 22. and the notes on both places.

4. It is strange how long the disgrace consequent on some flagrant transaction of a jiarent, niay cleave to his posterity! t^ee this exemplified in the pu.-terity of Reuben. Hence, with great propriety, we may pray, " Remember not. Lord, our offences, nor the offences of our forefathers; neither take thou vengeance of our sins." Litany. For the offences of our forefathers may be so remembered against their posterity, that God, in the course of his providence, may still keep up a controversy in secular matters with the descendants, (though even pious), of unholy ancestors: for as all men are seminally included in their parents, they come into the world depraved with their depravity, and in some sort liable to their curses, though not so far, as to affect their eternal interests, without the addition of their own personal offences. Thus God may be said to visit the sins of the fathers upon the children, even unto the third and fourth generation; as he may have a controversy with the land for the evil which has been done in it, and for which no proper atonement has been made. Why is it that at this moment Spain is suffering the most afflictive and cruel desolations } What has she done to merit ail this ' Is she more wicked than all the European nations because she suflers such things? — Here is the mystery: Nations, as such, can only be punished in this world: Look at the torrents of innocent blood shed by their ancestors in South America 300 hundred years ago; and see now and adore the awful hand of retributive justice! December 1811, We often see persons tried and afflicted, for whose distresses we can give no legitimate reason. We find others, who, though they rise early, sit up late, work hard, eat the bread of carefulness, and have a full knowledge of their business, yet never get on in life! Who can account for this! Shall we say that some injustice in their ancestors, has brought down the displeasure of God upon the earthly possessions that descend in that line; so that the goods ill-gotten shall never be permitted to mukiply? I knew an honest man, dead many years since, who by great diligence, punctuality, and integrity in his business, had acquired considerable property. Some time before his death, having by will divided his substance among his sons and his daughters, he expressed himself thus: " Children, you need not fear the curse of God on this property; every penny of it was honestly earned." Many years have since elapsed, and the blessing of God has been in the basket and in the store of all his children. Parents! leave nothing behind you that you cannot say before your God, with a clear conscience, " This has been honestly earned." If all bequests of a contrary description, were to be deducted from last wills and testaments, the quantum of descending inoperty would be, in many cases, small indeed.

The hitssings zchkh Cod pronounces on the obedient, 1—6. Particukr privileges which the faithful shatl receive, 7—13. The ciirMs pronounced against the itngodh/ and idolatrous, 14 — If). J detailed account of the miseries jihich should be inflicted on ihem, should they neglect the commamhnenis of the Lord, CO. Thei/ shall be smitten with the pestilence, 1\. uith consumption, fever, Sfc. G2. drought and barrenness, 23,24. tiny shall be defeated bi/ their enemies, 2.5,26. they shall be afflicted ziith the botch of Egypt, 27. with tnadness and blindness, 28, 2<). thei/ shall be disappointed in all their projects,.'30. deprived (fall their possessions, and afflicted in all their members,.31 — 00. they and their king shall go into captivity, 36. and become a by-word among the nations, 36, 3-7«

The blessings that shall come CHAP. X XVII I. on them that fiar Cod.

Their hind ahull lie iiiifruilfnl, and tha/ x/iall he the lowest (if all people,.'.'58 — 44, ytH theie cursti shall come on ihtm should thci/ be ilisohfdunl, 45 — 48. Chaiacter of the people by whom theij should be subdued 49,50. Purtirulura of their dreadful sufferings, 51—57. ■/! recupilntuliou of ttieir wrelchedneis, 56— (J3. The prediction thai they shall he siallered among all the nations of the earth, 64 — (i8.

AND it shall come to pass, ' if I thou slialt hearken diligently •^•~^"""' ■ unto the voice of the Lord tiiy (iud,, to observe and to do all his coniinandnicnts which I command thee this day, that the Loud thy (lod '' will set thee on high above all nations of the earth:

2 And all these blessings shall come on thee, and " overtake thee, if thou kIuiIL hearken nn-

NOTFS ON CIl.AP. XXVIII. * VfT-se 2. /)// tluse hli'ssings xlialt come on tlicc] God sliall pour out his l)l(;ssiiicr from heaven upon tliec — and overture liter. Upl•i^llt men are represented as!;oiiii; to tlie kiiimlmii of God, and God's blessings i'^ following and o-catakina them m their heavenly journey. Tliere are several things in this verse worthy of the most careful observation.

I. If thou shah hearken unto the voice qf the Lord thy God. The voice of God must be heard — without a Divine Revelation, how can the divine v^ill be kuovMi } And if not known, it carmot be fulfilled.

'2. WHien God speaks, men must hearken to the words of his mouth. — He who does not hearken will not obey.

3. He who hearkens to the words of God, must set out for the kingdom of heaven. The curse must fall on him who stands in the way of sinners, and will overtake them who loilcr in the way of righteousness.

4. 'Jliose who run in the way of God's testimonies shall have an abundance of blessing. Blessings shall come upon them, and blessings shall overtake them — in every part of their inarch through life, they shall continue to receive the fulfilment of the various promises of God which relate to all circumstances, vicissitudes, trials, stages of life, &e. &c. each eztrlakin^ them in the lime and place where most needed.

Ver.^e 3. In die city] In all civil employments; in the field; in all agricultural pursuits.

Verse 4. Fruit of thy body"] All thy children; increase qf thy kiiie, &c. every animal employed in domestic and agricultural purposes shall be under the especial protection of Divine Providence.

Vei-se 5. Thy basket] Thy olive gathering and vintage, as the basket was employed to collect those fruits.

S(ore.] n'\ii'in misharoth, kneading-troughs, or remaimiers; all that is laid u[> (or future use, as well as what is prepared for present consumption. Some think that by basket, all their ]>roperty abroad may be n^cant; and by store, all that they liave at home, i. e. all that is in the fields, and all that is in the houses. The lolloping note of Mr. Harmcr is important.

'•i " Blessed shall ihon he m the city,

and blessed shall thou be " in the field.

4 Blessed.shall he ' the fiiiit of thy body, and the iiuit ol' thy ground, and the fruit oithy cattle, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.

5 Blessed s/uiU be thy basket and thy ^ store.

" Commentators seem to be at a great loss how to explain the basket and the:srorf, mentioned Deut. xxiii. 5, \1. Why Moses, who in the other verses, mentions things in general, should, in this case, be so minute as to mention ba.skeU, beenin strange; and they that interpret either the first or the second of these words of the repositories of their corn, &:c. forget that their barns or.storehouses are spoken of presently after this, in ver. 8. Might I be permitted to give my opinion here, 1 should say, that the basket Njn tana, in this place, means their travelling baskets; and the other word, mNnra, uutsharet, (their store) signifies their leather bags; iu both nhicli they were wont to carry things in travelling. The first of these words occurs no where else in the Scriptures; but in the account that is given us of the conveyance in which they •were to carry their first fruits to Jerusalem. The other no where, but in the description of the hurrying journey of Israel out of I'lgypt, where it means the utensil in which they then carried their dough, which I have shewn elsewhere in these papers, means a piece of leather drawn together by rings, and forming a kind of bag. Agreeably to this, Hasselquist informs us, that the Eastern people use baskets in iravelhno-; for, speakingof that species of the palm-tree which produces dates, and its great usefulness to the people of those countries, he tells us, that of the leaves of this tree they make baskets, or rather a kind of short bags which are used in Turkey on journics, and in their houses: page 261, 262. Hampers and panniers are English terms, derwting travelling baskets, as ttiia, seems to be an Hebrew word, of the same general import, though their forms might very much difler, as it is certain, that of the travelling baskeu, mentioned by Hasselquist, now does.

" In like manner as they now carry meal, figs, and raisins, in a goat's-.skin, in Barbarv, for a viaticum, they mii»ht do the same anciently, and consequently might carry merchandize after the same manner, particularly their honcv, oil, and balm, mentioned Ezek. xvii. 1". They were the proper vessels for such things. So Sir J. Chardin, who was so Ion" in the East, and observed their customs with so much care.

6 * Blessed slialt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be _ when thou goest out.

7 The Lord '' shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways.

8 The Lord shall " command tlie blessing upon thee in thy '' storehouses, and in all that thou " settest thine hand unto; and he shall bless thee in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.

9 ^ The Lord shall establish thee a holy people unto himself, as lie hath sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the Lord thy God, and walk in his ways.

10 And all people of the earth shall see that thou art ^ called by the name of the Lord; and they shall be " afraid of thee.

1 1 And ' the Lord shall make thee plenteous " in goods, in the fruit of tliy ' body, and in the fniit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy ground, in the land which the Lord sware unto thy fathers to give thee.

12 The Lord shall open unto thee his good treasure, the heav^en "" to give the rain unto thy

supposed, in a manuscript note on Gen. xliii. 11. that the balm and the liuniy sent by.Jacob into Egypt for a present, were carried iu a 5)^>at or kid's-skin in whicli all sorts of things, both dry and liquid, are wont to be carried in the East.

" Undei-stood after thi« manner, the passage promises Israel success in liieir commerce,.as the next verse (the 6th) promises them personal safety in their going out, and in their return. Jn this view the ])assage appears with due distinctness, and a noble extent." — Obscrvation.s vol. ii. p. 181.

Verse 6. ff'/ien tluiu comcat ii{] From thy employment, thon shalt find that no evil has luppcned to the famiti/ or (IwHlinn, in thy absence.

When thou unrst out.] Thy way shall be made prosperous before ll>ee, aiid thou shaltJiave the divine blessing in all thy labours.

Verse 1. The J.rrd shall cause thine enemies, &,c.] This is a promise of secunly iiom foreign invasion, or total discomfiture of the invaders, shotikl they enter the land. 'I'hiy Jialt come against thee one way — in the finuest and most united manner. /Ind jJce seven ways — shall be utterly broken, ccnibunded, and finally routed.

land in his season, and " to bless all the work of thine liand: and " thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow.

13 And the Lord shall make thee " the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou hearken unto the commandments of the Lord tliy God, which I command thee this day, to obser\-e and to do them:

14 ""And thou shalt not go aside from any of the words which I command thee this day, /» the right hand, or to the left, to go after other gods to serve thenL.

15 % But it shall come to pass, 'if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I connnand thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and ' overtake thee:

16 Cursed s/ialt thou be 'in the city, and cursed s/ialt tlioti be in tlie field.

17 Cursed shall be thy basket and thy store.

1 8 Cursed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit ol' thy land, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.

Verse S. The Lord shall command the lilessin:^ upon thee^ Every thing that thou hast, shall come by divine appointment— thou shait h:ive nothing ca.sualiy, but everything, bolh.sjiiritual and temporal, shall come by tiie immediate command

Verse 9. The Lord shall c.tfablish thee a holy people unto himself] This is the ymi of ail blessings, to be made holy, and be preserved in holiness.

If tlioushult keep, &C.3 Here is the solemn condition; if they did not keep God's testimonies, taking them for the regulators of their lives, and according to their direction, walking ill his way.s, under tlje iniluence and aid.s of his grace, then the curses, and not the blessings, must be their portion. See ver. 15, &ic.

Verse 12. The Lord shall open unto thxe his good treasure] The clouds, so that a sufBciencj' of fructifying showers should descend at all rwpiisite times, and the vegetative prmc'ple in the earth, should unfold and exert itse'.t, so that their crops should be ahumlanl.

Verse 14. Thou shall not i^o aside — io the 7-i:;ht hand, or to the left] The way (if obidience is a struii;ht Wd^ — it goes rii^ht forward — he who decl lus either to rij^ht or l^'i from this path, goes astray, and miiics heaven.

The curses Oml shall faU on CII A P.

All. I x"<i i-r. comcsL 111, and cursed snail tliou be

20 The Loiii) shall send upon thee ' cuisiii<^, '' vexation, ami '^ rebuke, in all that thou settest lliine hand unto " for to do, nnlil ihon he de-.stro}f(l, and until thou perish (piiikly; because of the wickedness of thy doinj^s, whereby thou hast forsaken me.

21 Tlie Loiu) shall make " the pestilence cleave unto thee, until he have consumed tliee from off the land, wliithcr thou i^oest to possess it.

22 ' The Loud shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflanunatiou, and with an extreme bnrninn-, and ■with tiie '■ sword, and with " blasting-, and with mildew; and they shall pursue thee until' thou ])erish.

Verse '2 1. The pestilence cleave unto lliee] nx "p HIT p31» 13nn '/(■(/rtiic.t Yeliovuh been et hadduher, the Lord sliall CK.MKNT tlie pestilence, or plac;ue, to thee — Tfoa■*o^^^IO■al Kt/^io; fi; m rov Qavarov, the Lord wilt <j/ut (inseparably attach) tlie death unto thee. S<'ptuag. How dreadful a plague must it be, that ravages without intermission, any person may conceive, who has ever heard of the name.

KXTUEME burning] Tr\T\ CharchuT, burning upon burning; scald upon scald, from in c7(«r, lo he heated, enraged, &c. Tins probably refers not only to excruciating ititlaniniations on the body, but also to tl>e irritations and agony of a mind, utterly abandoned by God, and lost to hope. VV hat an accuuiulation of misery! how formidable! and especially m a land where great heat was prevalent and dreadful.

Sword] li'ur in general, enemies without, and civil broils ii-ithin. This was remarkably the case in the last siege of Jerusalem.

Blasting] ]')tn\ff Shiddaphon, probably either the blighting East wind, that ruined vegetation, or tho>e awful pestilential wmils, wliich suil'ocate both man and beast wherever they come. These often prevail in difllrent parts of the Last, and several examples have already been given. Sec Cicn. xli. 6.

Mll.l)I-.w] ppr Yerakon, an exsudation of the vegetative juice from dillerent parts of the stalk, by which the maturity

2.3 And 'thy heaven that is over ^J',^,

j thy head shall be brass, anil the curtli a.. K...»)'i,r.

that is under thee.shall he iron..^'Z.'''""-

21' The LoKiJ shall make; the rain of thy laud

' powder and dust: irom heaven shall it come down njioii llu'c, until thou be destroyed.

2.5 " The Lord sliall cause thee to be smitten before thine enemies: thou shalt ^o out one way against them, and flee.seven wavs bc/brc them: and 'shalt be ""removed into all the kingdoms of the earth.

'JG And " thy carcase shall be meat unto all fowls of the air, and unto the beasts of the earth, and no man shall fray Ihcm away. * 27 The Loud will smite thee with "the botch of Kgypt, and with ■'the emcrods, and with the I scab, and with the itch, whereof thou canst not be healed.

and perfection of the plant are utterly prevented. It comes from p'V yarak, to throw' out moisture.

Of these seven plagues, the five former were to fall on their bodies, the fu/o latter upon their substance. W'liat a fearful thing it is to fall into the hands of the Living God!

Verse 23. Thy heaven — sliall be brass, and the earth' — iron.] The atmosphere should not be replenished with aqiirotis vapours, in consequence of which, they.should have neither the early nor the latter rain — hence the earth, the ground, m\u\ W wholly intractable, and through its hardness, incapable of cultivation. God shews them by this that he is Lord of nature; and that drought and sterility are ma casualties, but proceed Irom the immediate appointment of the Lojd.

Verse 24. The rain of thy land powder and dusi\ A.s their heavens, atmosphere, clouds, is:c. were to be as brass, yielding no rain; so the surface of the earth must be reduced to powder; and tins l)eing frequently taken up by llie strong winds, wouM fill down in showers instead of rain. ^V'llolc caravuiu have been buned under showers of sand: and TlKvenot, a trench ti-avcller, who had ob.-erved thtse showers of dust, &c. says, " They grievously annoy all they fall on, filling their eyes, ears, no.-trils, &c." TravcLs in the Ka.st, part 1. book ii. chap. 80. The ophthalmia in Egypt appears to be chiefly owing to a very fine sand, the particles of which are likft broken glass, which are carried about by the wind, and entering into the ciliary glands, produce grievous and continual inflammations.

Verse 27. The Lord will smite thee viith the botch"] JTTJ Shechin, a violent inflammatory swelling. In Job ii. one of the lle.va|)la versions renders it EXffavTi, the Etcphantutsis, a di.sease the most horrid that can possitily afflict human nature. In this disorder, the whole body is covered wiiu a most loatii<ome scurf — the joint- are all pretematurally enlarged, and the skin swells uj) and grows into folds like Qiat

28 Tlie Lord shall smite thee with madness, and blindness, and ^ astonishment of heart:

29 And thou shalt '' blind gropeth in darkness, and thou shalt not prosper in thy ways: and thou shalt be only oppressed and spoiled evermore, and no man shall save thee.

30 " Thou shalt betroth a wife, and another man shall lie with her: " thou shalt build a house, and thou shalt not dwell therein: ' thou shalt plant a vineyard, and shalt not ' gather the grapes thereof.

3 1 Thine ox shall he slain before thine eyes, and thou shalt not eat thereof: thine ass shall be violently taken away from before thy face,

DEUTERONOMY. displeasure against the disobedient.

and ^ shall not be restored to thee: thy sheep shall be given unto tliine enemies, and thou shalt have none to rescue them.

32 Thy sons and thy daughters sliall he given unto another people, and thine eyes shall look, and " fail xcilh longitig for them all the day long: and there shall he no mii'ht in thine hand.

i 33 ' The triiit of thy land, and all thy labours, shall a nation which thou knowest not eat up: and thou shalt be only oppressed and crushed

34 So that thou shalt be mad " for the siffht of I thine eyes, which thou shalt see.

35 The Lord shall ' smite thee in the knees, and in the legs, with a sore botch that cannot

of an elephant, whence the disease has its name. The skin, tlirough its rigidity, breaks across at all the joints, and a most abominable iciior flows from all the chinks, &c. See an account of it in Aretaus, whose language is sufficient to chill the blood of a maniac, could he attend to the description, given by this great master, of this most loathsome and abominable of ail the natural productions of death and sin. Tiiis was called the botch of Egypt, as being peculiar to that country, and particularly in the vicinity of the Nile. Hence those words of Liwretius,

Est Elephas morbus, qui circiim jlumina Nili h'ascitttr, jEgypto in media; nee prwterea usquam.

Scab] 31J Gurab does not occur as a verb in the Hebrew bible, but uji ghaib, in Arabic, signifies a distemper in the corner of the eye, Castel. and may amount to the Egyptian ophthalmia, which is so epidemic and distressing in that country: some suppose the scuni/ to be intended.

Itch] Din Chares, a burning itch, probably something of the erisipdatous kind, or what is commonly called St. Anihoni/'s fire.

Whereof thou canst not be healed.] For as they were inflicted by God's justice, they could not of course be cured by human art.

Verse 28. The Lord shall smite thee with madness] JlJ^Ji:? Shiaadon, distraction, so that thou slialt not know what to do.

And blindness] |nij? Ivuron, blindnes.s both physical and mental; the 31i garah, ver. 27. destroying tiieir eyes; and lh<; judgments of God confouniling their understandings.

Astonishment] fincfl Timehnn, stupidity and amazement. Bv the just judgments of (iod they were so completely confounrled, as not to discern the means by which they might prevent or remove llieir calamities; and to adopt those which led directly to their ruin. How true is the ancient saying, Stios Dcus vidt perdcre, prius dementai. "Those whom God is determined to destroy, he first infatuates." But this applies not exclusively to the poor Jev^s: how miserably infatuated have the jiowers of the Continent of Europe been, in all their councils and measures, for several years past.i' And what is the result.? They have fallen! most deplorably fallen!

Verse 29. Thou shalt be onli/ oppressed, &c.] Perhaps no people under the sun have been uiore oppressed and spoiled than the rebellious Jews. Indeed this has been their portion with but little intermission for nearly 1 800 years. And still they grope at noonday, as the blind gropeth in darkness — they do not yet discover, notwithstanding the efflilgence of the light by which they are encompassed, that the rejection of their own Messiah is the cause of all their calamities.

Verse 30. Thou shalt betroth a tvife, &c.] Can any heart imagine any thing more grievous than the evils threatened in this and the following verses.' To be on the brink of all social and domestic happiness, and then to be suddenly deprived of all, and see an enemy possess and enjoy every thing that was dear to them, must excite them to the uttermost pitch of distraction and madness. They have, it is true, grievously sinned: but, O ye Christians, have they not grievously suftered f(jr it! Is not the stroke of God heavy enough u))on them } Do not then by unkind treatment or cruel oppression increase their miseries. They are, above all others, the men who have seen affliction by the stroke of his rod. Lam. iii. 1.

Verse 32. Thy sons and thy daughters shall be given unto another people] In several countries,)iarticularly in Spain and Portugal, the children of the Jews have been taken from them by order of government, and educated in the Popish fiiitii. There have been some instances of Jewish children being taken from their parents, even in Protestant countries.

'^■>-'!'i>«^:}(i 'i'he Loud sluill "brin^' tlioo, and j thy kiiicf whifli tlioii slialt sc;t over t lice, iiulo':inati()n whicli lu-itlicr tlifni nor t!iy iallicrs lia\ e known; and " tla-ro shall ihou serve otiicr gods, vv'ood and stone.

;}7 And thon shalt become "an astonishinent, a proverb, " and a byword, among all nations whither the Loiin shall lead thee.

.'58 ' Thon shak cany mnch seed ont into the field, and shall galher/w/ little in; for '^the locust shall consmne it.

displeasure,rgaiml the dmbedlent.

47 " Hocaiise thon ^enedst not the Loiio thy (Jod "^ith joylidness, and, with gladncJis of heart, ''l(>rtiie abur^. ilance of all lliiii^.s;

'-"':^' ViOm far, from the end of the earth, ' a>i '"'^J'l as the eagle flieth; a nation whose tongue

n!) Thou slialt ])lant vineyards, and dress l/i('n\^.; thou shalt not ' understand;

44) 'i'liou shalt have olive trees 'chronghout all thy ctiasts, but thou shalt not anoint tlu/self with the oil; for thine olive shall cast his J'ndt.

41 Thou shalt beget sons and daughters, but

.50 A nation " of fierce countenance, " which shall not regard the person of' the old, nor shew favour to the young:

f>\ And he shall "eat the fruit of thy cattle, and the fruit of thy land, until thou be destroyed: which aho shall not leave thee cither corn.

^ thou shalt not enjoy them; ibr '' they shall go wine, or oil, or the increase of thy kinc, or flocks into captivity. | of thy sheep, until he have destroyed thee.

42 All thy trees and fruit of thy land shall the locust ' consume.

52 And he shall ^' besiege thee in all thy gates, until thy high and fenced walls come clown,

43 Tlie stranger that i5 within thee shall get i -wherein thou trustedst, throughout all thy land

np above thee very high; and thou shalt come down \ cry low.

44 " He shall lend to thee, and thou shalt not lend to him: ' he shall be the head, and thou shalt be the tail.

45 Moreover "all these curses.shall come upon thee, and shall jiursue thee, and overtake thee, till thou be destroyed; because thou hearkencdst not unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which he commanded thee:

46 And they shall be upon thee " for a sign and for a wonder, and upon thy seed for ever.

Verse 36 — 45. Can any tliin^r be conceived more dreadflil Ihan the calamities threatened in these verses!

Verse 4S. Therefore sluiti thou sa-ve thine cnaniei\ Because they would not serve GOD, therefore they became slaves \o

As the cac,'.e flieth'] The very animal on all the Roman.vlandards. — Tlie Roman eagle is proverbial.

and he shall besiege thee in all thy gates throughout all thy land, which the Louu thy God hath I given thee.

I 5.3 And "thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own I '■''body, the flcshof thy sons and of thy daughters, ■ which the Lord thy God hath given thee, in ' the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thin« ^ enemies shall distress thee: [ 54 So that the man that is tender among you, '. and very delicate, " his eye shall be evil toward ' his brother, and toward ""the wife of his bosom, and toward the remnant of his cliildren which; he shall leave:

JtTiose tons^ue thou shalt not understand] Tlie Latin language, than which none was more foreign to the siructure and idiom of the Hebrew.

and Titus next — shall besiege thee in all thy gates] Beset thee round on cvfry side, and cast a trench around thee, viz.

lines of circumvallation, as our Lord predicted, see Matt.

A.iM.'3:.3. 55 So that he will not give to any An:EJcUsr. of them of the flesh of his children 40— &6«t. ^yhoni he shall eat: because he hath nothing left hi.ni in the siege, and in the straitiiess wherewith tibine enemies shall distress thee in all thy gates.

5G The tender and delicate woman among you, which would not adventure to set the sole of her foot upon the ground fox" dehcateness and tenderness, Mier eye shall be ev'il toward the husband of her bosom, and toward hCf son, and toward her daughter,

51 And toward her "young one that conieth out 'from between her feet, and toward her children which she shall bear: for she shall eat them for want of all tilings secretly in the siege and straitness, wherewith thine enemy shall distress thee in thy gates.

58 If thou wilt not observe to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, that thou mayest fear ^ this glorious and fearful name, THE LORD THY GOD:

59 Then the Lord will make thy plagues •wonderful, and the plagues of thy seed, even great plagues, and of long continuance, and sore sicknesses, and of long continuance.

60 Moreover he will bring upon thee all ^ the

DEUTERONOMY. displeasure against the dis&hedient. diseases of Egypt, which thou wast afraid of; and they shall cleave unto

61 Also every sickness, and every plague,

which is not written in the book of this law,; them will the Lord ^ bring upon thee, until

j 62 And ye "shall be left few in number, jwliereas ye were 'as the stars of heaven for

multitude; because thou wouldest not obey the voice of the Lord thy God.

63 And it shall come to pass, that as the Lord " rejoiced over you to do you good, and

■ to multiply you; so the Lord' ' will rejoice over you to destroy you, and to bring you to nought; and ye shall be plucked from off the land whither thou goest to possess it.

64 And the Lord "".shall scatter thee among all people, tiom the one end of the earth even unto the other; and ° there thou shalt serve other gods, wliich neither thou nor thy fatliers have known, even wood and stone.

65 And "among these nations shalt thou find no ease, neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest: ''but the Lord shall give thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and "^ sorrow of mind:

all thy land; that is, all thy /raced cities, which points out, that their subjugation sliould be complete, as both Jerusalem, and all their forlified places should be taken. This was done literally by Nebuchadnezzar and the Romans.

Verse 56. Tlie tender and delicate ivoman'] This was literally fulfilled when Jerusalem was besieged by the Romans; a woman named Mary, of a noble famil}', driven to distraction by famine, boiled and ate her own child! — See on Levit. xxvi. 29. see a similar case 2 Kings vi. 29.

Verse 51. Toward her young one — and toward her children tvhich she shall bear] Tliere seems to be a species of tautology in the twgclausesof this verse, which may be prevented by translating the last word, nn^Siy shihyutha, literally, her secondines, which is the meaning of tlie Arabic 5k«( sala, not badly understood by the Scpiuagint, xof.ov aurtj;, the chorion or exterior membrane, which invests tlie fcetiis in the womb; and still better •translated by L!^//,6r, DlC aftCC ffCbUttf), the c{fler birth— wbicli saying of Moses strongly niarlis tlie deepest distress, when the mother is represented as feeling the most poignant regret, that lier child was brought forth into such a state of suftering and death: and 2dly, that it was likely from the faTourqJsle circumlitances after the birth, that she liersclf shou\d survive her inlying. Kowordscan more forcibly depictthe miseries of thotc dreadful times. On this ground I see no absolute need for Kennicott's criticism, who, instead of nn'Siyai uiesheteyatah, against her secondines, reads TUify ubeshelah, and she shall boil, and translates the 56th and 57th verses as follows: " The tender and delicate woman among you, who would not adventure to set the sole of her foot upon the ground, for dehcateness and tenderness, her eye shall be evil towards the husband of lier bosom, and towards her son, and towards her daughter. 57. And she shall boil that which cometh out from between her fret, even her children, which she shall bear, tor she shall eat them, for want of all things, secretly." I'hese words, says he, being prophetical, are fulfilled in 2 Kings vi. 29. for we read there that two women of Samaria having agreed to eat tiieir own children, one was actually boiled, where the very same word Vlfa bashal, is used. — See Kennicott's Dissertations on 1 Chron. xi. &c. p. 421.

Verse 64. The Lord shall scatter thee among all people"] How literally has this been fulfilled! the people of the Jews are scattered over every nation under heaven.

Verse 65. No ease — a trembling heart, and failing of eyes] The trembling of heart may refer to their state of continual insecurity, being under every kind of government, proscribed, and under the most mild, even uneerlain of toleration and displeasure against the disobedient.

Aii.Kxmi.i^r. bcfoio tlicc J iiud tlioii sliull li'ai" (liiy w.seb.it..^,j J night, and shall liavc none assurance of thy li'c:

(J7 " In the morning thou slialt say, Would (Jod it. were even! and at even thou shall say, Woidd Cod it were morning! for the Icar of' tiiine heart wherewith thou shall iear, and "lor

])rolection: — and the failing of eyes, to their vain and ever tlisappoiiitfil c'xpcct;ilioii of (lie M( ssiah.

Verse 08. jind the Lord shall hnw^ thee into Kqj/pi again] That is, into another stale of slavery and bondage, siniilar to that of Kgy|)t, out of which they had been lately brought. And there ye shall be sold, lliat is, be exposed to sale, or expose yoursehes to sale, as tlie «ord □maon.l hithmacartem, may 1)0 rendered — they were va{,'rants, and wiiiied to become slaves that tluy nii|,'lit be provided with tlic necessaries of life — and no man.shall buy you: even tlic Iloinans thought it a reproach to have a Jew for a slare, they had becomi' so despicable to all mankind. When Jerusalem was taken by Titus, many of the captives, which were abuve seventeen years of age, were sent into ilie works in Egypt. — See Jose- the sight of thine eyes which thou am, -.si. shall see.

68 And the Lord * shall brin;^ thcc into Kf^ypl again with ships, by the way whereof 1 spake uiilo thee, *Tliou.shall see it no more again: and there ye shall be sold unto your enemies for boiulnien and bondwomen, and no man shall buy ^ou.

The first verse of tlie next chapter, in tome of the mort correct Hebrew bibles, makes the 6yih of this, and very properly, as the second verse of the following cliapter begin* a new subject.

This IS an astonishing' chapter: in it are prophecies delivered more than 3,000 years ago, and now fulfilling!

O God! how immense is this wisdom! and how profound thy coiin.sels! To thee alone, are known all thy works from the beginning to the end. ^V'hat an irrefragable proof does this chapter, compared with the past and pre>ent state of tlie Jewish people, afford, of the truth and Divine origin of the Pentateuch!

jl recapitulation of GoiVs gracious dealings nil/t Israel, 1 — 3. ^n exhortation to obedience, and to enter into covenant rvith their God, that they and their posterity may be established iit the good land, 9 — 15. They areto remember the abominations of Egypt, and to avoid them, 16, 17- dde trho hardens his heart, when lie liears these curses, shall be utterly consumed, 18 — 21. Their posterity shall be astonished at the desolations that shall fall upon them, C'2j 2:3. Shall enquire the reason, and s.'iall be informed that the Lord has done thus to litem, because of their disobedience and idolatry, 2-1 — 2S. A caution against prying too curiously into the secrets of the Divine Providence, and to be contented zcUh zchat God has revealed, 29.

nHESE are the words of the covenant, which the Loud commanded Moses to make with the children of Israel, in the land of IMoab, beside " the covenant which he made with them in Horeb.

NOTES ON CHAP. XXIX. Verse 1. These are the leords of the coienant] This verse seems properly to belong to the preceding chapter, as a widely different subject is taken up at verse 2 of this; and it is distinguished as the 69th verse in some of the most correct copies of the Hebrew Bible.

I 2 ^ And Moses called unto all Israel, and said unto them, '' Ye have

! seen all that the Lord did before your eyes in the land of Egypt, unto Pharaoh,

, and unto all his servants, and unto all his land;

Commanded Hloses to make] lyxh licarolh, to cut, alluding to the covenant sacrifice which was oflered on the occasion, and divided, as is explained Gen. xv. 1 3.

Beside the covenant tuhieh he made — in Horeb.] ^\'hat i» mentioned here, is an additional institution to the ten tcords,

I given on Horebj and the curses denounced liere, are different

3 * The great temptations which thine eyes have seen, the signs, and those great miracles:

4 Yet '' the Lord hath not given you a heart to perceive, and eyes to see, and ears to hear, unto this day.

5 " And I have led you forty years in the wilderness: " your clothes are not waxen old upon you, and thy shoe is not waxen old upon thy foot.

6 ' Ye have not eaten bread, neither have ye drunk wine or strong drink: that ye might know that I am the Lord your God.

7 And when ye came unto this place, ^ Sihon the king of Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan, came out against us unto battle, and we smote them:

8 And we took their land, and ^ gave it for an inheritance unto the Reubenites, and to the Gadites, and to the half tribe of Manasseh.

from those denounced against the tCansgressors of tlie decalogue.

Verse 4. The Lord hath not given you a heart, &c.] Some critics read this verse interrogatively. — And hath not God given you a heart, &c..? Because they suppose that God could not reprehend them for the non-performance of a duty, of which he neither gave tliem a mind to conceive the obligation, nor.strength to fulfill it, had the obligation been known. Though this is strictly just, yet there is no need for the interrogation, as the words only imply that they had not such a heart, &c. not because God had not given them all the means of knowledge, and helps of his grace and spirit, which ■were necessary; but they had not made a faithful use of their advantages, and therefore they had not that wise, loving, and obedient heart, which they otherwise might have had. If they had had such a heart, it would have been God's gift, for he is the author of all good; and that they had not such a heart was a proof that they had grieved his spirit, and abused the grace which he had afibrded them to produce that gracious change, the want of which is here deplored. Hence God himself is represented as grieved, because they were unchanged and disobedient: O that there were such a heart in them, that they would fear me and keep all my commandments always, that it might be well with them and with their children for ever! — See chap. v. 29. and the note there.

Ver.se 6. Ye haze not eaten bread, &c.] That is, ye have not been supported in an ordinary providential way: I have been continually working miracles for you — that ye might know

9 " Keep therefore the words of this covenant, and do them, that ye may ' prosper in all that ye do.

10 ^ Ye stand this day all of you before t<ie Lord your God; your captains of yom- tcibes, your elders, and your officers, "with all tbe men of Israel,

11 Your little ones, your wives,, and tliy stranger that is in thy camp, from "the hewer of thy wood unto the drawer of thy water:

12 That thou shouldest ' enter into covenant with the Lord thy God, and "into his oath, which the Lord thy God maketh with thee this day:

13 That he may "establi.sh thee to day for a people unto himself, and that he may be unto thee a God, " as he hatli said unto thee, and '' as he hath sworn unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.

that I am the Lord. — Thus we find, that God had furnished them with all the means of this knowledge; and that the means were ineffectual, not because they were not properly calculated to answer God's gracious purpose, but because the people were not workers with God: consequently they received the grace of God in vain. — See 2 Cor. vi. 1.

Verse 1 0. Ye stand — all of you before the Lord} They were about to enter into a covenant with God; and as a covenant implies txjco parties contracting, God is represented as being present; and they and all their families, old and young, come before him.

Verse 1 2. That thou shouldest emer} t^V? ledber, to pass through, that is, between the separated parts of the covenant sacrifice. — See Gen. xv. 18.

And into his oaih] Thus we find, that in a covenant were these seven particulars. 1. The parties about to contract, were considered as being hitherto separated. 2. They now agree to enter into a state of close and permanent amity. 3. They meet together in a solemn manner for this purpose. 4. A sacrifice is offered to God on the occasion, for the whole is a religious act. 5. The victim is separated exactly into t-.-.v etptal parts, the separation being in the direction of the spine, and these parts are laid opposite to each other, suificient room being allowed for the contracting parlies to pass between them. 6. The contracting parties meet in the liciim, and tlie conditions of the covenant by which they are to be mutually bound, arc recited.. 7. An ouih is taken by these parties, that they shall punctually and faithfully perfurni their respective conditions, and thus the covenant is made and ratified. — See.ler. xxxiv. 18, \'J. and see the notes on Gen. vi. 18. XV. 18. Exod. xxix. 45. Lev. xxvi.

14 Nc'itlicr with you only 'do I make this covenant and this oath;

15 But with him tliiit staiulcth here with IIS tliis (hiv hcfbrc the; Loud our (iod,

'I'l So that the gcnerafioi) fo come of your ciiildrcn ihut.siiali rise up An i:» dj.r. aftiT you, and the slraiiffcr that sliall *'~-^'l'"_ come ficjiu a far land, f-iiall say, when they see

'' and also witii him tiiat is not here witii us tliis the plagues ol' that hind, and the.sickneshcs (lay:! ' wiiich the Lord liath laiti upon it;

Hj (For ye know how we have dwelt in the 'i".//?''////«/ the whole land tlieicof"/.5 brimstone land of Ei;vpt; and how we came through tiie^ 'and.salt, and burning, that it is not sown, nor nations wiiicii ye passed by; I beareth, nor any grass {^roweth therein, "like

17 And ye have seen their abonilnalions, and '' the o\erthrow of Sodom, and (iomorrah, Admah, their "idols, wood and stone, silver and gold, and Zeboim, which the Louu overthresv in his which icere among them:) ||:.'.i;;2;c'r, and in his wrath:

18 Lest there should be among vou man, or woman, or fiimily, or tribe, ''whose heart turn-

I '24f Even all n:;tions shall say, ' Wherefore hath ' the Loifi) done thus unto this land? what mean- elh away this day fi'om the Lord our (Jod, to eth the heat oi'this great anger f go and serve the gods of these nations; "lest

there should be among you a root that bearetl

25 Then men shall say. Because they have

1 forsaken the covenant of the Lonu (iod of their gall" and worm wood; i fiithers, which he made with them when he

19 And it come to pass, wlien he hearefh the j brought them forth out of the land of Egypt: Avords of this curse, that he bless himself in his 20 For they went and served other "oiis, and heart, saying, 1 shall have peace, though I walk i worshipped them, gods whom they knew not, ''in the 'imagination of mine heart, '"to add i and '^ «7/07rt he had not * given unto them:

' drunkenness to thirst: j 27 And the anger of the Loud was kindled

20 '"The Loud will not spare him, but then i against this land, "to bring upon it all the "the anger of the Loud and ° his jealousy shall J curses that are written in this book:

smoke against that man, and all tlie curses that; 28 And the Lord '"'rooted them out of their are written in this book shall lie upon him, and land in anger, and in wrath, and in great iiuligthe Lord ■'shall blot out his name from under,! nation, and cast them into another land, as it is hea\'en. ij this day.

21 And the Loud ''shall separate him unto i V vil out of all the tribes of Israel, according to all the curses of the covenant that 'are written in this book oi'the law.

Verse 15. Him that standeth here] The present generation. Him that is not here, all future generations of this

Verse 18. A root that beareth ^all and wormwood] Tliat is, as the A])ostle expresses it, Heb. iii. 12. An nil heart of unbelief departing from the lii'ing God; for to this place he evidently refers. It may aho signify false doctrines, or idolatrous persons among themselves.

Verse 19. To add drunkenrie^s to thirst] A proverbial expression, denoting the utmost indulgence in all sensual gratificatiiins.

Verse 2ti. Gods — whom he had not given unto them] This is an unhapiw translation. U»uhi"unt renders the oriffinal i words cn? p,n 171 -do chelck luhem, et (juibuscian nulla eis |

29 The secret things belong unto the Lord out God: but those things tvhich are revealed belong unto us, and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law.

societas: " And with whom they had no society," and falls unmercifully on Le Clerc, because he had translated it, from lihom they had received no baicfis. I must dilTcr from both these great men, because I think they difler from the text. phn chekk, signifies a portion, lot, inheritance, and God is frequently represented in Scripture as the portion or inheritanci of his people. Here, therefore, I think the original should be rendered. And there was no portion to them; that is, the gods they served, could neither supply their vants nor save their souls: thei/ were no portion.

Verse 29. The secret things belong unto the Lord, &c.] Tl»is verse has been variously translated. Houbigant renders it thus: lUiifE npiid Dominum nostrum abfcoiulita sunt, nobis ea Jiliisque nostiis palam facia tunt ad niultas ataies — " The things which were hidden with the Lord our God, are made manifest to us and our children for many generations." I am not satisfied with this interpretation; and find that the passage was not so understood hj' any of tlie ancient versions. Tlie simple general meaning seems to be this — " What God lias thought proper to reveal, he has revealed; what he has revealed, is essential to the well-being of man; and this revelation is intended not for the present time merely, nor for one people, but for all succeeding generations. The things which he has not revealed, concern not man, but God alone; and are, therefore, not to be enquired after." Thus, then, the thinqt that are hidden, belong unto the Lord; those that are revealed, belong unto us and our children. But possibly the words here refer to the subjects of these chapters, as if he had said, " Apostasy from God and his truth is possible. When a national apostasy among us may take place, is known only to God: but he has revealed himself to us and our children, that we may do alt the words of this law, and so prevent the dreadful evils that shall fall on the disobedient."

The.Fews have always considered these verses as containing subjects of the highest importance to them, and have affixed marks to the original, IJ'jaVl uS lanu ukbaneymi, " to US and to our CHILDREN," in order to fix the attention of the Reader on truths which aflVct them, individually, and not them only, but the whole of their posterity.

Gracious promises are given to the penitent, 1 — G. The Lord tcilt circumcise their heart, and put all these curses on their enemies if they hearken to his voice and keep his testimonies, 7 — 10. The word is near to them, and east/ to he nnderstood, 1 1 — 14. Life and death, a blessing and a curse, are set before them, and they are exhort&l to loie the Lord, obey his voice and cleave unto him, that they may inherit the landpromised to Abraham, 15 — 20.

N D * it shall come to pass, hen '' all these things are come npon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and " thou shalt call thera to mind among all the nations, Avliither the Lord thy God hath driven thee,

2 And shalt " return imto the Lord thy God, and shalt obey his voice, according to all that I connnand thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soid;

3 ^ That then the Lord thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and •will return and ^ gather thee from all the nations, whither the Lord thy God hath scattered thee.

4 ^ If any of thine be driven out unto the outmost parts of heaven, from thence will the Lord thy God gather thee, and from thence will he fetch thee:

\'^erse 1. When all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse'] So fully did God foresee the bad use these people would make of their free-agency, in resisting the Holy Ghost, that he speaks of their.sin and punisimient as certain: yet, at the same time, shews how they might turn to himself and live, even while he was pouring out his indignation upon them because of their transgressions.

Verse?t. Gather thee from all the nati')ns] This must refer to a more extensive captivity than that which they suftered in Babylon.

5 And the Lord thy God will bring thee into the land which thy fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess it; and he will do thee good, and multiply thee above thy fathers.

6 And " the Lord thy God \vill circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.

7 And tlie Lord thy God will put all these curses upon thine enemie.s, and on them that hate thee, which persecuted thee.

8 And thou shalt return and obey the voice of the Lord, and do all his commandments which I command thee this day.

9 ' And the Lord thy God will make thee plenteous in every work of thine hand, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle.

Verse 5. Will bring thee into the land"] As this promise refers to a return from a captivity in which they had been scattered among all nations, consequently it is not the Babylonish captivity which is intended; and the repossession of tlicir land nnist be diflerent from that which was consequent on their return from Clialdea.

Verse 6. God will circumcise thine heart] This promise remains yet to be fulfilled. Their heart, as a people, has never yet been circumcised; nor have the varioius promi.ses in tliis chapter been ever yet fulfilled. There nTOu;«<</i, therefore, a rest for this people of God. Now, as the Laa, properly

The nattirc nftlie conwmndmnil ami ill llic fruit oCtliv hind, for good: | l()r tlic LoKi) will:ii;:iin ' njoico over thci- lijr t^ood, us in.- rejoiced over liiy fathers: i'

10 If llioii slialt lioarkeii umo tlio voice of llic' Lo)[i) tiiy (jod, to kcfi> his coiiuiiaiiihiieiits and his statutes, which are written in tiiis liook oltlic law, f/y/r/ if thou turn unto ihe Lohd lliv (jod with:rll thine heart, and witii all thy soul. '

1 I ^] For this conimandnient which I command tliee lliis day, ''it is not hidden from thee, neither is it lar oH".

12 'It ii not in licaVcn, that thou shouldest say. Who shall j;-o u|) i'or us to heaven, and brinj^ it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it?

i:i Neither /.sit beyond the sea, that thou shouldest sav, Who shall <i;o over the sea lor us, and bring it unto us, tjiat we may hear if, and do it?

14 lint the word is very nigh unto thee, in Ihy mouth, and in thy heart, that tiiou mayest do it.

.speaking, made no provision for tbe circumcision of tlic licart, wiiich implies ihc remission itf sina, and purification of the soul from all imri^ditfioiisnc^s; and as circiiincision it~tU', was only a siijn of spiritual 2:"od, conscriiif-nlly llir proiiii.ip here refers to the days of llie Mcs>iidi; nnfl lo this all the prophets, and all the apostles i;;ve witness: for eireuuicision is lli.it of the licart, by the spirit, and not in the Utter, Uoin. ii. 'i;>. and the genuine followers of (iod are circumoistd with \\\r cireumci«ion made •j.'iltiout huiiiis — by the circumcision of Christ, t 'olops. ii. II, l~. Hence He see, these pn'miscs cannot be fuHillcd to the.Iew>, but in their embiaciii},' the gospel o( C hrist. To look, iherelore, for their re>Ioration, is i<llc anil niijatory, while iheir obstinacy and unbelief remain.

Verse 1 1. This commandment — is vnt liiddiii^ Not too ■j.nndt:)fitl or difliciilt for lliec to comfH'dictid or prrtbrm, as the wy*f[ nxSiJ niphklli, iiuphes, — ncillur i.: it afiir o(f'; the t;ii;-</ or doctrine of salvation shall be pro( laimed in your o«n l.ind: for UK is lo be born in Bctiilehcm (>/' Jtululi, uho is lo feed and save Isnul — and the 1'ku1'H1-.1, who is lo ttach them, is to be raised up trom nmotr^ thtir bn i/ircii.

N'crse I 'J. It is not in hcuicn] Shall not be communicated in thai way in which the pi-ophets received the living oracles; but the WOKO shall be made jiesh, nnd d.irll umon; ynti.

Verse 1.1. Sdlher is it (xyond I lie seal Ye shall not be obligM to travel tor it to distant nations, because sab-alion is t^' the Ji WS.

Verse 1 4. Bxil ihr x'ort/ is rcry n/;j/i unto thre^ Tlie doctrine of salvation pn-aebcd by the apostles— ^i thy inonl/i — the proniisis of ledeniption made by the prophets, lorminga part «f every Jew's creed, — inth/heurt — the power lo believe with the heart unto righteousness, that the tongue may make con-

1.5 f Sec, M have set before ihec tc\M\ Ibis d;iv life and good, and death and Ap.i..!•• evil;

IG In that I command thee this day to love the Loud ihy (iod, to walk in his ways, and to keep his coinmandinciits and his statutes and his jiidgment5, that thou inayest live and mulfi-))ly: and the l.oiin thy God shall bless thee in the land whither thou gocst to po.sscss it.

17 But if tJiinc heart turn away, so that thou wilt not hear, but slialt be drawn away, and worship other god'<, and.serve them;

18 '1 denounce unto you this day, th.it yc shall siirelv jieri.sh, and that ye shall not jirolong yottr days ujion the land, whither thou passest over.Jordan to go to jiossess it.

19 ' I call heaven aiul earth to record this day against yon, thttt ' 1 have set before you life and death, blessing ami cursing: theretbrc choose life, that both thou and tliy seed may live:

^'er^e 15. Lifd and good] Present and future blts»- ingj.

Deaih and nil] Present and future miseries, termed ver. 19. Life and deulh, blcssim; mui cursing. And why were these set before them f I. That they might comprdiend their inif>ort. 2. Thai Ihry miirht/i-fMheir im(xirtance. 3. That they might choose life, and the path of believing, loving obedience that led to it. 4. That they and their posterity thus choosing life, and i>.ttising evil, might be ihe /aiourilci nf Ond in time and eternity.

A\'ere there no such thing as frce-iiill in man, who could reconcile these sayings either with sincerity or common sen-e! God has made the human will free, and there is no power or influence either in heaven, earth, or hell, on tins tide the power of God, that can d«pnvc it of Us free volitions; of its power lo ~ill and nill, to choose and rrfuse, to act or Tiot act — or force it to sin against God. Hence man is acronntable for his actions, because they are his — were he ncces,.iuted by fate, or soven igii constraint, they could not be his. Hence lie is rewardable — hence he is punishable. God in his creation, ■j.illed that the human creature should be free, and he formed his.soul accordingly: and the Law and Gospel, the promis*- and precept, the denunciation of W'je, and ihf doctrine of eternal life, are all constructed on this ground: thai is, thfv all necessarily suppose Ihe freedom of the kutnaii •.■•ill: nor could it lie:;/// if it were no\. free: because the (irinciplc of freedom or liberty is neces«irily implied in liie idea of volition. — Sec on chap. v. 29.

20 Tliat thou mayest love the Loud thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy ^ life, and the length

Verse 20. Tliat thou mayest love the Lord] Without love there can be no oheditnee.

Ohiy his voice] Without obedience, love is fruitless and dead.

And — cleave unto him] Without close attachment and perseverance, temporary lo\e, however sincere and fervent, tt-mporary obedience, liowcver disinterested, energetic, and pure while it lasts, will be ultimately ineffectual. — He alone, v.lio endures to the end, shall be saved. Reader, how do

of ""thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the Lord sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.

matters stand between God and thy soul? He cannot persevere in the grace of God whose soul is not yet made a partaker of that orace. Many talk strenuously on the impossibility of falling from grace, who have not yet tasted that the Lord is gracious. How absurd to talk and dispute about the infallibility of arriving safely at the end of a way, in which a man has never yet taken one hearty step! It is never among those that have the grace of God, but among those that have it not, that we find an overweening confidence.

Mcisa being one hundred and tuOify i/ears old and about to die, calls the people together and exhort': them to courage and obedience, 1 — G. Delivers a charge to Joshua, 7, S. Delivers the laz<} which he had written to the priests, with a solemn charge that they should read it every seventh year, publicly to all the people, 9 — 1.'5. The Lord calls Moses and Joshua to the tabernacle, 14. He appears to them, informs Moses of his approaching death, and delivers to him a prophetical and historical song or poem uhich he is to leave with Israel, for their instruction and reproof, 15 — 21. Moses writes the song the same day, and teaches it to the Israelites, 21; gives Joshua a charge, 23; finishes writing the book of the law, 24. Commands the Levites to lay it up in the side of the ark, 0.5, 26. Predicts their rebellions, 27. Orders the elders to be gathered together, and shews them what evil would befal the people in the latter days, 28, 29, and repeats the song to them, 30.

N D Moses went and spake these words unto all Israel.

2 And he said unto them, I ^am an hundred and twenty years old this day; I can no more '' go out and come in: also the Lord hath said unto me, " Thou shalt not go over this Jordan.

3 The Lord thy God, '' he will go over before thee, and he will destroy these nations from before thee, and thou shalt possess them: and

NOTES ON CHAP. XXXI. Verse 2. 7 am an hundred and twenty years old] The life of Moses, the great prophet of God, anil lawgiver of the Jewx, was exactly the same in length, as the lime Noah em- [►loyed in preaching righteousne.sg to the antediluvian world. These one tmndied and twenty years were divided into three remarkable periods. Forty years he lived in Egypt, in Pharaoh's court j acquirinjj all the learning and wisdom of

Joshua, he shall go over before thee, ' as the Lord hath said.

4 ^And the Lord shall do unto them ^as he did to Sihon and to Og, kings of the Amorites; and unto the land of them, whom he destroyed.

5 And " the Lord shaU give them up before your face, that ye may do unto them according unto all the commandments which I have commanded you.

Ihe Egyptians, see Acts vii. 20, 23. Forty years he sojourned ill the land of Midian in a state of preparation for his great and important mission. Acts vii. 29, 30. at\<\ forty years he guided, led, and governed the Israelites under the express direction and authority of God. In aU, one hundred and twenty years.

Joshua is encouraged. The latv lo doth go witli thee; ^ he will not fail thee, nor forsaken flicc. j

7 ^1 And Moses called unto Joshua, and said unto him in the sight of all Israel. * Be strong and of a good counige: for lliou nnist go with tiiis))Coj)lc unto tile lantl whicii tlie Lord hath sworn unto their fiithcrs to give them; and thou slialt cause (lu'in to inherit it.

H And the Loud, ' he it /A' that doth go before thee J '•'he. will be with thee, he will not fiiil thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be disniayeil.

9 % And Moses wrote this law, "■ and delivered it unto the priests the sons of Levi, 'which bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and unto all the elders of Israel.

10 And Moses commanded them, saying, At tlie end of everj/ seven years, in the solemnity

Verse 6. Be strong] ipjn chizeku, the same word that is wsed Exod. iv. 21. ix. 1.5. hr hardening Phar.ioh's heart. See the notes there. The Septuagint, in this and the following verse, have avJpifow xai luxvt, play tlie man, and be strong; and from this St. Paul seems to liave l)orrowed his idtas, 1 Cor. xvi. 13. r>iX£T£ cv m Triref avOfi^EirflE, K^artomrS;. Stand firm in tlie faith; play the mati, act like heroes; be yigorous.

Verse 8. The Ijord — doth go b(^ore thee'] To prepare Ihj* way. and to direct thee.

He will be uiihthce] Accompany thee in all thy journeys; and assist thee in all thy enferprizes.

He Will not fail thee] Thy expectation, however strong; and extensive, shall never be disappointed — thou canst not ♦xpect too much from him.

J^either forsake thee] lie knows that without him thou canst do nothing, and therefore he will continue with tlice, and in such a manner too, that the excelleiiie of the power sliati appear to be of him, and not of man.

Ver.^e 9. HL.scs liroie this /<.-.»] Not the whole Pentateuch, but either the discourses and precepts nicmioiiril in ilie pre- • cdirg chapters; or the book of DevierOHomi/, which is most likely.

Some of the Rabbins have pretended that Moses wrote thirteen co\i\Kf. ofthewliole Ptiilateiich; that he gave one to each of the twelve tribe.-*, and the tliirleenlh was laid up by the ark. "^riiis opinion deserves little credit. S>)nie think that he wrote two copies; one of wh;cli he gave (o ilie priests and Levites for general UbC, according to what is said in tbit he read publicly civry seventh year.

of the " year of release, 'in the feast f,.?;!fj^7' of tabcniacU'S, An Ki.^i!,».

11 Vvhcu ail Israel is come to ■" aj)- ■"'■-"«*"• j)car before the Loitn thy CJod in the phicc wliicli Ik' sliul! choose, "thou shalt read thi.'j law i)eli)re all Israel in their healing.

12 "Gather the people together, men, and women and children,.'tnd thy stranger that is witliin thy gates, that they may hear, and that they may learn, and fear the Loito your God, and observe to do all the words of this law:

13 And //<fl/ their children, ^ which have not known any /hing, '' may hear, and learn to fear the Louo your (iod, as long as ye live in the land whither ye go over Jordan to possess it.

14 ^ And the Loud said unto Moses, 'Behold, thy days approach that thou must die: call Joshua, and present yourselves in the tabernacle of the congregation, that ' 1 may give

verse; the other to l>e laid up beside the ark, as a standard copy for reference; and to be a witness against the people, should they break it, or l)ecome idolatrous. This second copy is supposed to he intended ver. 26. As the law was properly a covenant or contract between God and the people, it is natural to su])pose there were two copies of it, thai each of the contractins^ parties might have one; tiicrefore one was laid up beside the ark; this was the Lord's copy: another wa» given to the priests and Levites; tliis was the jjcoplc's copy.

Ver.-ie 1 0 and l\. At the end of every seten yean — thou shall read this law] Kxery setenth year was a year of release, Deut, XV. I. at which time the people's minds l>eing under a peculiar degree of solemnity, were better disposed to hear and profit by the words of God. I suppo.^e on this groimd also, that the whole book of Deuteronomy is meant, as it alone conlaini an Kpitonie of the whole Pentateuch. And in this way some of the ciiief.Jewish Rahbins understand tliis place.

It is strange that tins coinmandinent, relative to a puilie reading of the law every.seven years, slioiild have been rarely attended to. It does not appear that from the time, mentioned Joshua viii. 30. at whicli tune this public reading first io«k place; till the reign of Jehoshaphnt, 2 Cbron. xrii. 7. there was any public se-.enth year reading, a penod of j30 years. The next.>*venth year reading, was not till the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah, 2 Chron. xxiv. 30. a space of nto hundred and eii^htyiwo year*. Nor do we find any other publicly mentioned from this time, till the return ij from the Babyloniish captivity, Neh. viii. '2. Nor is there

A.M.ii55;j. him a charj:^^. Ami Moses and Joshua | 20 For when I shall have brought A.M,2J.vi

A't.Kxwi. isr. went, and presented themselves in ^40.-&6..t. ^]^g tabernacle oftlie congregation.

15 And ■■ tlic Loud appeared in the tabernacle in a pillar ol'a cloud: and tlie pillar of the cloud stood over the door of the tabernacle.

16 % And the Lord said unto Moses, Behold, thou shalt ^ sleep with thy fathers; and this people will 'rise up, and ''go a whoring after the gods of the strangers of the land, whither they go to he among them; and will ' ibrsake me, and ^ break my covenant which I have made with them.

17 Then my anger shall be kindled against them in that day, and ^I will forsake them, and I will "hide" my face from them, and they shall be devoured, and many evils and troubles shall 'betal them; so that they will say in that day, ''Are not these evils come upon us, because our God is ' not among us?

18 And "T will surely hide my face in that day for all the evils which they shall have wrought, in that they are turned unto other gods.

19 Now therefore write ye this song for you, and teach it the children of Israel: put it in their moudis, that this song may be ° a witness for me against the children of Israel.

; them into the laud which I sware unto their fathers, that floweth with milk and honey; and they shall have eaten and filled themselves, °and waxen Ikt; " then will they turn unto other gods, and serve them, and provoke me, and break my coA'enant.

21 And it shall come to pass, ''when many evils and troubles are bctallcn them, that this song siiall testily 'against them as a witness; for it shall not be forgotten out of the mouths of their- seed: for 'I know their imagination 'which "they go about, even nov.-, before I have brought them into the land which I sware.

22 Moses therefore wrota this song the same day, and taught it the children of Israel.

23 ^ "And he gave Joshua, the.son of Nun, a charge, and said, ^Be strong and of a good courage; for thou shalt bring the children of Israel into the land which I sware unto them; and I will be with thee.

24 % And it came to pass, when IMoses had made an end of '' wTitiug the words of this law in a book, until they were finished,

2,5 That Moses connnanded the Levites, which bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord

anv otlier on record from that time to the destruction of Jerusalem. — See Dodd.

Verse 1 6. Behold, thou shalt sleep with thy fathers] 33C shocth, thou shalt lie down, it signifies to rest, take rest in sleep, and metaphorically to die. Much stress cannot be.safely laid on ihi.s expression, to prove tiic immortality of the soul, or that the people, in the time of Moses, had a distinct notion of iti separate e.xistence. It was, however, understood in this sense by Jonathan ben U2Ziel, nho in his Taryiim paraphrases the word thus: "Thou shalt lie down in the <lu>l with thy fathers; and thy soul {yyciTi nishmutac) shall Ik; laid up in the treasury, of the life to come, with thy lathers."

Verse 18. 1 will surely hide my face'] Withdraw my approbation and my protection. This is a general meaning of the word ill Scri|)iMre.

Verse 19. Write ye this sonu;] The sonij which follows in the next chapter. Things which were of great importance and of coiiiinon concern were, among the ancitnls, put into verse, as* this was found the best method of k(.ti>ii)g ihcm in rc- membrance; especially in those times, when ur/tiii;; was littfe practised. Kien prose was sometimes sit>i!(. llie history of Herodotus was divided into TKN books, and each inscribed with the name of one of the TEN viuses, because these books were anciently sung. Homer is reported to have sung his poems tliroti;;li difttrcnt Greek cities. Aristotle observes that, anciently, the people sung their liiv^s. And Cicero observes that it was a custom among the ancient Itoiiians to sing the praises of their heroes at the pnbhc festivals. This was the ca;e among the northern inhabitants of Kurope, particularly in Ireland and Scotland; hence the Gaelic poetry of Ossi.in and others — See Dodd; and see the note on Exod. xv. I. where the subject is largely treated.

Verse 21. This son'^ shall testify against /h<m] Because in it, their gtucral detection is pnilicled, but in such a waj', as to shew them how to avoid the evil — and if they did not avoid llie evil, and the threatened puiii.shuieiU should come upon them, llicn the song should testify against them, by shewing that ihey had been sufficiently warned, and iiiigiit have lived to God, and so escaped those disasters.

A.iM.i.'.w. 2f> 'iakc this book of the law,

An. i:«o(i.i>r, 'and put it in the side of" the ark i 4o.-i;i«<. yj.' jii^, covenant of the Loiiu your j Cod, that it may be tiicre '' fijr a witness against thee. I

'' stiff neck: ix-hold, whih; I am yet ahve willi you this day, ye iiave been rebellions aj^ainst the Loiiu j and how much more alter my death?

28 Gather nnto me all the elders of your tribes, and your oHicers, thai I may speak these words |

in their ears, 'and call heaven and u^t:^ earlli to record a^anist them. An.hiod, Ik.

'J9 For 1 know that after my death.1?-":^**'-_ yc will utterly ' corrupt yo^^rit/ttfs, and turn aside from the way which I have commaudetJ you; and "evil will beliil you "in the latter ilays; because ye will do evil in the si;:ht ai the Loud, to provoke him to a;i:^er tlnough the work of your hands.

30 And Moses spake in the ears of ail the contrrcgation of Israel the words of this song', until they were ended.

Verse 'ICi. Tide this book of the laiv'] The standard copy to wliieli all transcripts luusl ultimately refei': another copy was put into the iiands of the pricsli*. — See ilie note on ver. y.

\'erse 2". U'liilc I am i/cl alive — i/e Itavc been rebellious] Such was the disposition of this people to act contrary to niDral i^oodniss, that Moses fi-lt hiniM'll jiisuricil in inrerriiijj wiut would lake place, lioni what had already happened.

I. Never was a people more fidly and failhrully warned; and Croni this very circuuistance we may see, that they were under no Jatal constraininif neccssily to conunit sin aiJain^t God — they «//;'/;< have avoided il, hut they leould not. God was present to help ihem, till hy then' repeated provucaliuiis they toreeil iiiin to depart: wratli therelore eainc upon them to the uttermost, because they sinned when they uiij^ht have lived to the fjlory of God. 'l"lio«e who abuse God's grace, siiuil not only have tiiat grace taken away from them, bvit shall be puni.-hcd lor the (tbuse of it, as well as for the Irunsgiession. Ev( ry sin is double, anil ulu^t have a tuoj'old punishment: — 1. Grace is resisted; and 2. transgression committed: and God wdl visit for hoili

2. llow astoMishinff it is, that with such examples of God's justice before their eyes, the Jtiis should be so lillle allected; and that liie CJentiles, who have received the gospel of God, shoulil act as if God would no more punish transgression; or that lie must be so partial to tlieiii, as to pass by iniquities, for which the hind of his justice still continues heavy upon the de- sccndants of.Jacob I Let llxtm take heed, for if God spared not the natural liranclies, he will not spare them, h they sin after the manner of the Jews, tlity may expect to be partakers with them ill their puiii»hment.s. W h.it God does lr> nmioiis, lie will do to individuals, who reject his mercy, or trample nndi r foot his (;race; lite soul that iirmclA, and returns not to God by repentance and faith, shall die. This is a decree of God that sliall never be reverstcd; and every day bears witness, how strictly he keeps it in view.

3. The Ode composed by Moses for this occasior>, was, probably, set to some lively and aflecting air, and sung by the peo|)le. Il would be uiuch easier to keep such a song in reineiiibrance, than an equal quantity of prox. The whole would liave the additional circumstances of cadence ^nd tune to cause it to be often repeated; and iluis easurc iu Ijeing kept in memory. I'oetiy, though often, nay generally abused, is nevertheless a gift from God, and m.iy be employed with the best elVect in his service. A very considerai)le part of the Old Testament is written in poetry; particularly tiie whole book of Psaliiis, great part of tlie prophet Isaiah, the Liuteatations, and much oi' the minor prophets. Those who speak against poetic com|)0.4itions in ilic service of God, speak agaii>st what they do not understand. All that a luait hath should be consecrated to his Maker, and employed in his service; not only the energy of his heart and mind, the physical furce of liis bodij, but also t\\e musical tones and modulations of /lis voice.

The prophetical and historical song of Muxes, shea ing first the witure of God's doctrine, 1 — 3. The character e/ Ciud, 4. The corruplion of the people, o, ti. Thci/ are called to remember God's kiiidncf.'s, 7. and his dealings zcith them during their Iraiels in the nilderness, 8 — 14. Their ingratitude ami iniqaitu, 15 — IS, Thei/ are threatened ailh 111.1 judgments, 19 — 28. jd pathetic lamentation over them because of' their sins, '2Q — 33. Giacious purposes iu their uehalf, mi.ied Kith reproaches fur tlicir manifold idolatries, and thrcatenings agaiiut his enemies, 3(y — 42. J promise of salvation to the Gentiles, 4.'3. Moies having fiiiifhed the."^ong, ziarmhf exhorts the people to obedience, 4j — 47- God attls him up to the mount, that he mai/ sec the good land and tlici tlie, 48—.>2.

The sojig taitght by Moses DEUTERONOMY. to the children of Israel.

^ IVE 'ear, O ve heavens, and rain upon the tender herb, and as the 5**-S?^-

showers upon the ijrass. Aii.Exod im.

3 Because I will pubUsh the name of ^'•~^'"- the Loud: "ascribe ye greatness unto our God.

C^ IVE ' ear, O ye heavens, and J I will speak; and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. 2 " My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distil as the dew, ""as the small

VeKC 1. On the inimitable excellence of this ode, much has been wriuen by commentators, critics, and poets: and it is allowed by the best judges to contain a specimen of almost even- species of excellence in composition. It is so thoroughly poetic, that even the dull Jews themselves found they could not w rite it in the prose form; and hence it is distinguished as poetry in every Hebrew Bible, by bemg written in its own hemistichs or short half lines, which is the general form of the Hebrew poetry; and were it translated m the same way, it would be more easily understood. The sonj itself has suftered both by transcribers and translators — the former having mistaken some letters in different places, and made wrong combinations of them in others. As to the translators, most of them hare followed their own fancv from good Mr. Ainsworth, who ruined il by the most inanimate rhyming version, to cenain later poeLs who have cast it unhallowedly into an European mould. See the observations at the end of the chapter.

G'ze ear, 0 ye lieavens] Let Angels and men hear; and let this testimony of God be registered both in heaven and earth. Heaven and earth are appealed to aspeimanent witnesses.

^'e^se 2. My doctrine] •»np^> Likecki, from nrh lakach, to take, carry a'j.-ay — lo attract, or gain over the l,eart by eloquence or persiiastve speech. Hence the Septuagint tra'n>late the word a5rc35£-/,ua, an apophthegm, a sententious and weighty saying, for the regulation of the moral conduct. Such prt>- perly, are the sayings in this inimitable ode.

Shall drop us the rain] It shall come drop by drop as the shower, beginning slowly and distinctly, but increasing more and more, till the plenitude of righteousness is poured'down, and the whole canon of Divine Revelation completed.

My speech shall distil as the de-j;] \TncX Imrati, my fomiliar, friendly, and affectionate speeches, shall descend" gently and softly on the ear and the heart, as the dew, moistening and refreshing all around. In h..t regions, dew is often a substitute for rain — without it, there could be no fertility in those places especially where rain seldom falls. And in s'uch places only, can the metaphor here used, be felt in its perfecuon. Homer uses a similar fignre, when tpeakiiio-of the eloquence of Ulysses, he says, II. F. ver. 221. "

Kai fTTia vtCaicaa-f/ ibixctu yjiutiirtTi-,

But when he vpeaks what elocution flows! Scjt as tht fleeces of descending snov.s. —

Ob the maaner in which devi i« produced, philosophers are •lot yet apeed. It was fcng supposed lo descend, and to differ only from ratn, as Uss from more; but the experiments of a F rench chemist seemed to prove, that ^ew ascended m li-ht tiun vapours, »od that meeting with a colder region of Ihe air, it became condensed, and fell down upon the earth.

Other recent experiments, thou,h they have not entirely invalidated the former, have rendered the doctrine of the a><ent of dew doubtful. Though we know nothing certain as to the manner of its production, yet we know that the thing exists; and that it is essentially useful. So much we know of the sayings of our God, and the blessed effects produced by them: God halh spoken, and the entering in of his words gives light and life — See the note on Gen. li. ver. 6.

As the small rain] CTyC'S ke^eirim, from TTi? soar, to be rough or tanpesluoiis. Sweeping showers, accompanied with a strong gale of wind.

And as the showers] CTa'Sl Rebibim, from ror\ rabah, to nmitiply, to increase greatly — shower after siiower; or rather a continual rain, whose drops are multiplied beyond calculation, upon the earth. Alluding perhaps to the rainy leasont in the East; or lo those early and latter rains, so essentially necessary for the vegetation and perfection of the grain.