Commentary on the Holy Bible

Verse 18. And all the people suiu t/ie thuiulcriiigs, kc] They had witnessed all these awful thins^s before, see chap. \\x. Iti. but liere they se(!m to have been repeated — probably, at the tnd of each coumiand, there was a peal of thunder, a blast of the trumpet, and a ftleam of lightnini;-, to impress their hearts tile more deeply with a due sense of the divine majesty, of the holiness of the law which was now delivered, and of the fearful consequences of disobedience. This had the desired effect: the peojile «ere impressed with a deej) religions fear, and a I terror of God's judgments; acknowledged themselves pcrfi;ctly i satisfied with the discoveries God had made of himself; and 1 requested that Moses might be constituted the mediator bei tween God and them, as they were not able to bear these tre-;inendous discoveries of the divine majeaty. " Speak thou with KJ, and ive teill hear: hut let not God speak ivith us lest we 'die:" ver. 19. This teaches us the absolute necessity of that ■great mediator between God and man, Christ Jesus; as no man can come unto the Father but hi/ him.

Verse 20. And Moses said — Fear not: for God is come to prose you, and- that his /ear may be before your faces^ The.maxim contained in this verse is, fear not, that ye may fear: do not fear v. itli such a ftar as brings consternation into the.foul, and produces nothing but terror and confusion; but fear with that fear v hich reverence and filial ajeclion inspire, that ye sin not; that through the love and reverence ye feel to yoiu- 'Maker and sovereign, ye may abstain from every ajipearance of evil, lest you should forfeit that love, which is to you better than life. He who fears in \\\e first sense, can neither love nor obey: he \\\\o fears not in the latter sense, is sure to fall under 'the first temptation that may occur. Blessed is the man who Ithus feareth alxuays. \ Verse 22. J have talked with you from heaven.], Though

the people saw it, they removed, and stood

19 And they said unto Moses, " Speak thou widi us, and we will hear: but ' let not God speak with us, lest we die.

20 And Moses said unto the people, ' Fear not: ^ tor God is come to prove you, and " that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not.

21 And the people stood afar off, and Moses

children of Israel, Ye have seen that I have talked with you ^ from heaven.

23 Ye shall not make ' with me, gods of silver, neither shall ye make unto you gods of gold.

24 ^ An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace-offerings, '"thy sheep and thine oxen: in all " places, where I record my name, I will come unto thee, and I will ° bless thee.

25 And ^ if thou wilt make me an altar of

God manifested himself by the fire, the lis;htnrng, the earllt- (juali-e, the thick darkness, &c. yet the ten words or commandments, were i)robably uttered from the higher regions oftltc air, which would be an additional jiroof to the people that there wa no imposture in this case; for though strange appearances and voices might be counterfeited on earth, as wa.s often, no doubt, done by the magicians of Egypt; yet it would be utterly impossible to represent a voice, in a long continued series of instruction, as proceeding from heaven itself, or the higher regions of the atmosphere. This, with the earthquake and repeated thunders, see on ver. 18. would put the realityof this whole procedure beyond all doubt; and this enabled Moses, Deut. v. IG. to make such an appeal to the people on a fact incontro\ertible, and of infinite importance., that God hadindeed talked with them face to face.

Verse 23. Ye shall not make with 7ne. gods of silver] Tile expressions here are very remarkable. Before, it was said, Ye shall have no other gods befoue?ne, ':3 Vi' al panai, ver. 3. Here they are commanded, Yc shalt not make gods of silver or gold, \-iK iti, with me, as emblems or representatives of God. in order, as might be pretended, to keep these displays of his magnificence in memory; on the contrary, he would have only an altar of earth, of plain turf, on which they should ode: those sacrifices, by which they should commemorate thcii own guilt, and the necessity of an atoneftient to reconcile themselves to God. See the note on ver. 4.

Verse 24. Thy burnt-offerings,, and thif peace-oihrings'] The law concerning which, was shortly to lae given, though sacri— fices of this kind were in use from the days of -ibel.

In all places where I record my name] Wherever I am wor-.shipped, wIr tiler in the open v ildeniess, at tlie tabernacle, m the temple, the synagogues, or elsewhere,. / will come untn thee, and hless thee. These words are precisely the.same iu signification with those of our Lord, Jlatt. xviii. 20. Forwjicie two or three arc gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. And as it was JESL'S, who was the angel, that spoke to them in the wiklerness. Acts vii. 38. from tiie yame mouth this promise in tlie law, and that in the gospel ^ proceeded.

stone, thou shalt not " build it of hewn stone; for if thou hft up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it.

26 Neither shalt thou go up by steps, unto mine altar, '' that thy nak^edness be not discovered thereon.

they were now in a wandering state, anrl had as yet, no fixed residence; and therefore no time should be wasted to rear costiy altars, which cmild not be transported with them, and which they must soon leave. Besides, they must not la\'ish skill or expense oi) tlie construction of an altar; the altar, of itself, whether costiy or mean, was nothing in the worship: it was only the place, on which the victim should be laid, and their mind must be attentively fixed on that God, to whom the sacrifice was oflered, and on the sacrifice itself, as that appointed by the Lord to make an atonement for their sins.

Verse 20. Neither shalt thou go tip by steps imto m>/ altarl 'Hie word altar, comes fi oni ultus, high or elevated, though the Hebrew word roin mi'zbeach, from n31.zabach, to slai/, kill, &c. signifies, merely a place for sacrifice; see Gen. xviii. 20. iJut the heathens, ivho imitated the rites of the true God in their idolatrous worship, made their altars very high; whence they derived their name uliaria, altars, i. e. very high or elevated places; wliich they buiit thus, partly through pride and vain glory, and partly that their gods might the better hear them. Hence also the high places or idolatrous altars, so often, and so severely condemned in the Holy Scriptures. The heathens made some of their altars excessively hi^li; and some imagine that the pyramids were altars of this kind, and that the inspired writer refers to those, in tliese prohibitions. God therefore ordered his altars to be made, 1. either of simple turf, that there might be no unnecessary expense, which, in their present circumstances, the people could not well aflbrd; and that they might be no incentives to idolatry from their costly or curious structure: or 2. of unhcicn stone, that no images of animals or of the celestial bodies might be sculptured on them, as was the case among the idolaters, and especially among the Egyptians, as several of their ancient altars which remain to the present day, amply testify; which altars themselves, and the images carved on them, became, in process of time, incentives to idolatry, and even objects of worship. In short, <jod foiTned evtry part of his worship so, that every thing belonging to it, might be as dissimilar as possible, from that of the suiioutiding htathenish nations, and especially the Egyptians, from whose laud they had just now departed. This seems to have been the whole design of those statutes, on which many commentators have written so largely and learnedly, imagining ditilculties, where probably there are none. The attars of the tabernacle, were of a diflerent kind.

In this and the preceding chajitcr, we have met with.some of tlie most awful displays of the Divine majesty: — manifestations of justice and holiness, which have had no parallel, and ctai have none, till that tlay arrive, in which he shall appear in his glory, to judge the quick and the dead. The glory was truly terrible, anct to the ciiiWren of Israel insufferable: and yet how highly privileged, to have God himself speaking to them from the miilst of the fire, giving them statutes and Judgments, so righteous, so pure, so holy, and so truly excellent in their operation and theii end, that they have been the admiration of all the wise and upri>;ht, in all countries and ages if the workl, where their voire hag beew heard. Moboiiuned' ilefied all the poets and literati of Arabia to match the language of the Koran; and for purity, elegance, and dignity, it bore away the palm, and remained unrivalled. This indeed, was the only advantage which the work derived from its author: for its other excellencies, it was indebted to Moses and the Prophets, to Christ and the Apostles; as there is scarcely a i)ure, consistent, theologic notion in it, that has not been borrowed from our Sacred Books. Moses calls the attention of the people not to the language in which these divine laws were given, though that is all that it should be, and every way worthy of its autlior; compressed yet perspicuous; simple yet dignified; in short, such as God should speak if he wished his creatures to comprehend: but he calls their attention to the purity, righteousness, and usefulness of the grand revelation which they had just received. For ivhat nation, says he, is there so great, who hath God so nigh unlo them as Jehovah our God is, in all things that we call tipon him for? And what nation hath statutes and judgjnents so righteous as all this law which I set b»- foreyoit this day? And that which was the sum of all excellency in the present case was this, that the God who gave these laws dwelt among his people; to him they had continual access, and from him received that power, without which, obedience, so extensive and so holy, would have been impossible: and yet not one of these laws exacted more than eternal reason, the nature and fitness of things, the prosperity of the community, and the peace and happiness of the individual required. The LAW is holy, and the commandment is holy, just, and good. To shew still more clearly the excellence and great utility of the ten commandments, and to correct some mistaken notions concerning them, it may be necessary to make a few additional observations. And I. It is worthy of remark, that there is none of these commandments, nor any part of one, which can fairly be considered as merely ceremonial. All are moral, and consequently of everlasting obligation. 2. When considered merely as to the letter, there is aertainly no dilhculty in the moral obedience required to them. Let every reader take them up one by one, and ask his conscience before (iod, which of them he is under a fatal and itncontroulabk necessity to break? 3. Though by the incarnation and death of Christ, all the ceremonial law, which referred to him and his sacrifice, is necessarily abrogated; yet, as none of these ten commandments refers to any thing properly ceremonial, therefore they are not abrogated. 4. Though Christ came into the world to redeem them who believe, IVom the curse of the law, he did not redeem them from tke necessity of walking in that newness of life, which these commandments so strongly inculcate. 5. Though Christ is said to have fulfilled the law for us, yet it is no where j iutmiated in the Scripture, that he has so fulfilled these ten LAWS, as to exempt us from the necessity and privilege of being no idolater.'*, swearers, sabbath-breakers, disobedient and cruel children, murderers, adulterers, thieves, and corrupt witnesses. All these commanduii nts, it is true, he punctually fulfilled' himself; and all these he writes on the heart of every soul redeemed by his blood. 6. Do not those who scruple not to' insinuate, that the jiroper observation of these laws is impossible in thit life, and that every man since the fall does daily break them in tliotis,ht, word, and deed, bear false witness against Gocl ami his truth? and do they not ifreatly err, not IcnotJ^ing the.K-yiptwe, Avhich teaches the necessity of such olirdirnre; nor the pimer of Cod, by which the evil principle of the heart is destroyed, and the law of purity written on the soul? If even the re"ener{Ue man, as souie have unwarily asserted, docs daili/ hrvik these commands, these ten words, in thought, word, and deed, lie may be as b.ul as Satan for aii;j;ht wc know; for Satan hunself cannot transjjress in more forms than these: for sin can be conunitted in no other way, cither by bodied or disembodied spirits, tlian by thought, or ivord, or deed. Such saving as these tend to destroy the distinction between ijuod and evil, and leave the infidel and the believer on a par, as to their moral state. The people of Gwl should be careful how they use liiein. 7. It must lie granted, and indeed has sulTiciently appeared from the prccedin;^ ex|iosition of these commandments, that they are not only to be understood in the letter, but:ilso in the spirit; and that therefore they may be brokm hi the heart, while oiw^'ardlj/ kept iniioiute: ytt this cannot prove.

that R soul influenced by the Rrace and spirit of Christ, cannot most eouscientiou-ly observe them; fertile;^race of the (lospel not only saves a man from outward, but also from inward sin: —for, says the heavenly mcsseno:er, his name shall he called Jf.sus (i.e. SuviouK) because lie shall save (i.e. dki.ivi-r) his people FROM their sins. Therefore the weakness or corruption of human nature forms no arL,rumcnt here, because the blood of Christ cleanses from all unrighteousness; and he saves to the uttermost all who come unto tile Fatlier through him. It is therefore readily granted, no man, una.^siated and uninfluenced by the!;racc of Clirist, can keep these commandments either in the letter or in the spirit; but he who is truly converted to Go<l, and has Christ dwelling in his he^drt by faidi, can in the letter and in the spirit do all thase thm^, bECAiisE Christ sTRENCTUENs /i!>«. Reader, the following is a good prayer, and oftentimes thou hast said it; now learn to pray it: " Lord, have mercy upon us, and incline our hearts to keep these laws! Lord, have mercy upon us, and write all these thy laws in our hearts, we beseech thee '." Communion Sen/ice.

[Lazes concer?iijig servants: tliei/ gkull serve for only snen years, 1, 2. // a servant brought a Kife to servitude vdlh him, both should go out free on the seventh year, 3. Jf his master had given him a uife, and she bore hint children, he might go out free on the seventh year, hut his wife and children must remain, as the property of the master, 4. Jf, through love to his master, uife, and children, he did not chuse to avail himself of the privilege granted by the laze, of going out free on the seventh year, his ear was to be bored to tice door post zvith an azil, as an emblem of his being attached to the family for ever, 5, 0. Lazes concerning maid-servants, betrothed to their masters, or to the sons of their masters, 7—11- Lazvs concerning battery and murder, 12—15. Concerning jiieii-stealiiig, l6. Concerning him that curses his parents, 17- Of strife betzieen man and man, 18,19; betzieen a master and his servants, CO, '21. O/" injuries done to women in pregnancy, 22. The lex talionis, or /flKi of like for like, 23— 2j. Of iiijurics done to servants, by which they gain the right of freedom, 26, 27. Lavs concenmig the ox which has gored men, 2S— 32. Of the pit left uncovered, into which a man or a beast has fallen, 33, 34. Lazes concerning the ox that kills another, 35, 3G.

A.M.eM.!. 'jVTOW these are the judgments I six years he shall serve: and in the B.c.itoi.;^ which thou shalt " set before seventh, he shall go out free for no-

2 " If tliou buy a Hebrew servant,

N'crsc 1. Now these are the judg>nents'\ Tliere i.'s so much good-sense, feeling, humanity, equity, and iusli<'e in the following laws, that they cannot but Ih' admired by every intelligent reader: and they are so very plain, as to re(|uire very little comment. Tlie laws in thi- chapter are termed political, those in the succeeding chapter judicial laws; and are suppot^ed to have been delivered lo!\Ioscs alone, in cons((|uenee of the request of the people^ chap. xx. 19. that <;od should communicate his will to Jloses^, and that Moses should, as mediator, convey it to them.

Verve 2. if thou buy a Hebrew servant] Calmel enumerates »ij diftrent ways in which a Hebrew might lose his liberty:

3 If he came in ' by himself, he

1. In extreme poverty they might sell their liberty. Lerit. x.W. 39. If thy brother be waxen poor, and he sold unto thee, &c.

2. A father miijht.icll his children. If a man sell his daughter to be a maid-sen ant, see ver. 7. 3. Insohatt debtors became the slaves of theiv creditors. My husband is dead — and the creditor is come to take unto him my two sons to be bondmen. 2 Kings iv. 1. 4. A thief, if he had not money to pay the fine laid on him by tlie law, "was to be sold for his jjrofit whom he had robbed. - Jf lie hate nothing, then he shall be sold for hts theft. Chap. xxii. 3, 4. 5. A flebre:s was liable to be taken prisoner in war, and so sold for a slave. 6. A Hebrew slave, who had been ransomed from a Gcntde by a Hebrew, might be sold by him who ransomed himj to one of hi» own nut/on.-

shall go out by himself: if he were married, then his wife shall go. out with him. 4 If his master have given him a

5 'And if the servant •* shall plainly say, I lo\e my master, my wife, and my childreu; I will not go out fi-ce:

6 Then his master shall bring him unto the 'judges; he shall also bring him to the door, or unto the door post; and his master shall " bore his ear through with an awl j and he shall serve him for ever.

7 If And if a man * sell his daughter to be a maid-servant, she shall not go out ' as the men-servants do.

8 If she ^ please not her master, wliohath betrothed her to himself, then shall he let her be redeemed: to sell her unto a strange nation, he shall ha.\Q no power, seeing he hath dealt deccittlilly with her.

9 And if he have betrothed her unto his soiiy he shall deal with her after the manner of daughters.

10 If he take him anotlier icife, her food, her raiment, " aiidjier duty of marriage sliali he not diminish.

1 1 And if he do not these three unto her,.

Six years Ut shall serve] It was an esceltent provision in these Jaws, that no man could finally injure himself by any rash, foolish, or precipitate act. No uian could make himself a servant or slave ila- more thaa seven years j and if he mortgaged the family inheritance, it must return to the family at the jubilee, which returned every fiftieth year.

It is supposed tliat the term six years, is to be understootl as referring to the sabbatical years;. for let a man come into servitude at whatever part of the interim between two sal)batical yearSj he could not be detained in bondage beyond a sabbatical jear: so thai if he f^ll into bondage the third year after a sabbatical year,, lie had but three years to serve; if th.e fr'th, but one. bee on chap, xxiii. 11, &c. Others suppose that this privilege beloriged only to the year o{ jubilee, lieyoud whicli no man coiild be detailed in bondage,, thougll he liad been, sold only one year before.

Verse 3. If he cnme in by himself] If he and his wife came in together, "Jicy were to go out togetlier: m all respert« as he entered, so should he go out. This consideration seems to have induced St. Jerom to nanslate the passage thus: Cum quali veste intra-erat, cnm tali exeat. " lie shall have the same coat in;foing out, as he had wlien he came in;" i. e. if he came in with a new one, he shall go out with a new one, which was perfectly just, as the former coat must have been worn out in Ins master's ser^^ce, and not his own.

\ erse 4. The wife and her children shall be her master's] It was a law among the Hebrews, that if a Hebrew had children by a Cahaanitisli woman, those children must be considered as C'anaanitish onjy, and might be sold and bought,, and serve for ever. Ilje law here refers to sueh a case only.

Verse 6. Shall bring him uato the jaih^es] cnVftn Vk el ha Elohim, literally, to God; or, as the Scpluagint have it, -r^o; To xfiTupiov <?iim, to the judgment of God; who condescended to dwell among hii> people, who determined all their diiTerenct-s,, till he had given them laws fijr all cases j and who, by his omniscience, brought to light tJie hidden thiags of dishonesty. t!ce chap. xxii. K.

Bore his ear through uith an mil] Tliis was a ceremony sufficiently signilicant, as it implied 1. That he was closely attached tu that house and family. 2. That he was bound to /tear ail his master's orders, and to obey them punctually.

Boring of the ear was an ancient custom in, the East. It is «»• ferred to by Juvenal —

"Fir^t come,, first served, he crics^; ajid I, ii\ spight Of your great lord>hi])s, will maintain my right: Though born a slave, though my torn E.^ns are bor'd, Tis not the birth, 'tis money makes the lord." Dryden.

Calmet c[iu)tes a, saying from Peironiiis as attesting' the same thing;; and one- from Cicero, in which he rallies a Lybian.who pretended he did not hear him: "It is not," said he, "because your ei/i* are not sufftciently bared," Alhuling to his having been a stave.

Verse 7. If a man sell his dcjighler] Tiiis the Jews allowed no man to do but in extreme distress, w hen he had no gooils, eitlier mo'..eal>le or immoveable lett, even to the clothes on his back; and he had this permission only while she was tnmarrifiiraible. It may appear at first view strange, that such a law shoald have been given;■ but iJt it be remembered, that this j servitude could extend at the utmost only to six years; and that it was nearly the same as in some cases of apprenticeshipamong us, where the paivnts /;/W the child for.leven years,. and have from his master, so much per week, during that

Verse 9. Betrothed her to h'is son, he shall deal idth her] He shall give he? the same dowry he would' give to one of his own daughters. From those laws v.'e learn, that if a man's son married his servant, by his father's consent, tl;e father was obliged to treat her in every respect as a daughter: and if the son married another woina<i, as it appears he might do, ver. 10. he v/as obliged to make no. abatement in the \)rivileges of the rfr-i wife, either in ht-r food; raiment, oT duty of marriage: the \\{A\\ nn:i' vnathuh here, is the same with St. Paul's oJiAo~ ui-.vi iuvoia.', the vuirriage deU, and with the cfxiXiKy of the Septuagint, which signifies the cohabitation of man and ivife. Verso 11. These three] 1. UcT food, rriN'a shearah, her

13 And ''if a man lie not in wait, but God 'deliver hivi into iris hand; then '' 1 will appoint thee a place whither he shall flee.

14 But if a man come " presumptuously upon his neighbour, to slay him with guile; "^ thou shall take him from mine altar, that he may die.

15 1[ And he that smiteth his iiither, or his mother, shall be surely jnit to dcatli.

16 ^ And ^ he that stealeth a man, and " selleth him, or if he be ' found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death.

17 ^ And " he that ' curseth his father, or his mother, shall surely be put to death.

16 % And if men strive together, and one smite "'anotlier with a stone, or with his fist, rand he die not, but kcepetli liis bed: i 19 If he rise again, and walk abroad " upon

be quit: onlv he shall pay for "the "■^■"7- loss or his tune, and shall cause him to be thoroughly healed.

20 ^ And if a man smite his servant, or his maid, with a rod, and he die under his hand; he shall be surely '' punished.

21 Notwithstanding, if he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished: for " he is his money.

22 ^ If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit dej)art from her, and yet no mischief Ibllow: he shall be surely punished, according as the woman's husband will lay upon him; and he shall 'pay as the judges detenitine.

23 And if 0711/ mischief follow, then thou shalt;give life for life,

24 ' Eve fi)r eve, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,

25 Burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.

Occasional necessary additions. AikI 3. The marriage debt, a due proportion of the hu^l>and'.s time and company.

Verse 1.3. / will appoint thee a place •■^hither he shall Jiee."] From the earliest times, the nearest akin had a rii;ht to re\enfi;e tlic murder of his relation; and as this right was iiniversalljacknowledned, no law was ever made on the subject; but as tliis mi^iit l)e abusetl, and a person w ho had killed another uccidentaili/, having had no previous malice au;ainst hnii, might be put to death hy the avenger of blood, as the nearest kinsman was termed, tlierefore Goil provided the cities of refuge, to which the accidental man.'.layer might flee, till the afliiir was enquired into, and settled by the ei\il magistrate.

Verse 14. 'nwu shall take him from mine altar'] Before the cities of refuge were assigned, the altar of God was the common asylum.

Verse 15. Tha^ smiteth his father, or his mother'] As such a case argued jieculiar depravity, therefore no mercy was to be diewn to the cul])rit.

Verse 10. He that stealeth a man] By this law, every manstealer, and every receiver of tlie stoU:u person, should lose his life: no matter « hethcr the latter stole the man himself, or gave money to a slave captain, or ifegro-deuler, to steal him for him.

Verse 1 9. Shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall cause bim to be thoroughly healed.] 'I'his was a wise and excellent institution, and mo>t courts of justice, still regulate their decisions on such cases, by tins Mosaic precept.

Verse 21. If the slave, who had bieii beaten by his master died under his hand, the ma-ter was jium.-ihed with death; see Cieu. ix. b, t). But if he survived the bcainn,') a duy or t-xo.

the master was not punished; btcause it might be presumed, that the man died through some other cause. And all penal laws should he construed as favourably as possible to the accused.

Verse 22. And hurt a li-omaii ivith child] As a posterity among the Jews, was among the peculiar promises of their covenant, and as every man had some rea.-on to think that the Messiah should spring fioin his family, therefore, any injury done to a woman with ihild, by which the fruit of her womb might be destroyed, was con?idered a very heavy oflence: and as the crime was committed principally against die husband, the degree of punishment was left to /(.■,•>■ discretion. But if mischief followed, that is, if the child had been fully formed, and was killed by this means, or the woman lost her life in consequence, then the punishment wa», as in other cases of murder — the per.son was put to death: ver. 2.5.

Verse 24. Kye for eye] This is the earliest account we have (df the /.(u- Talionis, or law of Wr /or //Af, which afterwards I prevailed among the <i neks and Romans. Among the latter, I it constituted a part of the twelve tables,.so famous in antiquity; I but the punishment wis afterwards changed to dL pecuniary fine, to be levied at the discretion of the praetor. It prevails less or more in most civili/.ed countries; and is fully actecj ujion in the canon, law, in reference to all calumniators: — » (Uilumniator, si in aceusutione defecerit, talionem recipiat. " If the calumniator fail in the proof of his accusation, let him suffer the same punishment, which he wished to have inflicted j upon the man «liom be falsely accused." Nolliing, however,, ol this kind wa-s left to private revenge: the magistrate awarded the puiu-Jimcia, when the fact was proved. OUicrwisc the.T C 2

A.U. 2513. 26 ^ And if a man smite the eye of his servant, or the eye of his maid, that it perish; he shall let him go

27 And if he smite out liis man-servant's tooth, or his maid-servant's tooth free for his tooth's sake.

28 ^ If an ox gore a man or a woman, that they die: then " the ox shall be surely stoned, and his flesh shall not be eaten; but the owner of the ox shall be quit.

29 But if the ox were wont to push with his horn in time past, and it hath been testified to his owner, and he hath not kept him in, but that he hath killed a man or a woman; the ox shall be stoned, and his owner also shall be put to death.

30 If there be laid on him a sum of money, then he shall give for '' the ransom of his life whatsoever is laid upon him.

31 Whether he have gored a son, or have

Lex Talionis would have utterly destroyed the peace of society, and have sown the seeds of hatred, revenge, and all iincharitableness.

Verse 27. If he smite oui his — toothy It was a noble law that obliged the unmerciful sluve-liokler, to set the slave at liberty, whose eye or tooth he had knocked out. If this did not teach them humanity, it taught them caution, as one rash blow, might liave deprived them of all right to the future services of the slave: and thus, self-interest obliged tliem to be cautious and circumspect.

Verse 28. If an ox gore a man'\ It is more likely that a hull is here intended, as the word signifies both, see chap. xxii. 1. and the Septua;5int translate the -\va shor of the original by T-avfo.:, a bull, and some are of opinion, that tliere were no castrated animals among the Jews. Mischief of this kind was provided against by most nations: it appears that the Romans twisted hay about ^//eAorni of their dangerous cattle, that people seeing it, might shun them: hence that saying of Horace, Sat. lib. i. ver. 34. Fcenwn habet in cornu, longe fuge. " He has hay on his horns: fly for life \" The laws of the tvjelve tables ordered, that the oivner of the hcast should pay for luhat damages hecomjnitted, or deliver him to the person injured. See on chap. xxii. 1.

His flesh shall not be eateii] This served to keej) up a due detestation of murder, whether committed by man oi- beast; and at the same time punished the man as far as possible, by the total loss of the bea.st.

Verse 30. If there be laid on him a sum of money — the ransotn of his life'] So it appears, that though by the law he forfeited his life, yet this might be commuted for a pecunian/ mulct; at which, the life of the deceased might be valued by the magistrates.

32 If the ox shall push a man-servant or maid-servant; he shall give _ unto their master " thirty shekels of

33 % And if a man shall open a pit, or if a man shall dig a pit, and not cover it, and an ox or an ass, fall therein;

34 The owner of the pit shall make it good, and give money unto the owner of them; and the dead beast shall be his.

35 ^ And if one man's ox hurt another's, that he die; then they shall sell the live ox, and divide the money of it; and the dead ox also they shall divide.

36 Or if it be known, that the ox hath used to push, in time past, and his owner hath not kept him in; he shall surely pay ox for ox; and the dead shall be his own.

English; see Gen. xx 16. xxiii. 15. So, counting the.shekel;it its utmost value, the life of a slave was valued 'at four pounds ten shillings. And at this price, these same vile people, valued the life of our blessed Lord; see Zech. xi. 13, 13. Malt. xxvl. 1.5. And in return, the justice of God has ordered it so, that they haie been sold for slaves into every country of the universe. And yet, strange to tell, they see not the hand of God in this so visible retribution!

Verse 33. And if a man shall open a pit — or dig a pit] That is, if a man shall open a ivell or cistern tliat had been before cloj^ed up, or dig a new one, for these two cases are plainly Intimated; and if he did this in some public place, where there was danger, that men or cattle might fall into it: for a man might do as he pleased in his oiun grounds, as those were his private right. In the above case, if he had neglected to cover the pit, and his neighbour's ox or ass was killed by falling into it, he was to pay its value in money. The 33d and 34th verses seem to be out of their places. They probably should conclude the chapter, as, where they are, they intenipt the statutes concerning the goring ox, which begin at verse 28.

These dilTerent regulations are as remarkable for their juslice and prudence iis for their humanity. Their gi-eat tenilency is to shew the valuableness of hiunari life, and the necessity of having peace and good understanding in every neighbourhood: and they possess that (uiality which should bt^ the object of all good and wholesome laws, the prevention of crimet. Most criminal codes of jurisprudence seem more intent on the punishment of crimes, than on preveniing the commission of them. The law of God always teaches and warns, that his ( leatures may not fall into condemnation; for judgment is his strange work, i. e. one reluctantly and seldom executed, a» this text is frequently understood.

¥ a man shall steal an ox, or a

sheep, and kill it, or sell it; he

shall restore five oxen for an ox, and

2 If a thief be found ' breaking up, and be

3 If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be blood shed for him; for he should make fiill ^restitution; if he have nothing, then he shall fbe 'sold for his theft.

4 If the theft be certainly ' found in his hand alive, whether it be ox, or ass, or sheep; he shall ' restore double.

5 ^ If a man shall cause a Held or \dneyard to be eaten, and shall put in his beast, and shall feed in another man's field; of the best of his own field, and of the best of his own vineyard, shall he make restitution.

6 If fire break out, and catch in thorns,.so that the stacks of corn, or the standing corn, or

NOTES ON CHAP XXU. I Verse 1. J/ a viait sluill sleat] This chapter consist«i chit fly \ of Judicial laws, as the preo-ding chapter does of p('/i//ca/; I and in it, the 'ume good-sense, and well marked attention to! the welfare of the eomniiinity. and the moral iinpvovenitnt of I each individual, are equally evident.

I In our translation of thi.s liist verse, by rendering diflcrent I Hebrew words liy the same term in English, we have greatly obseurtd tVie sense. I shall produce the verse, with the original woid.s « hieli 1 think inijiroperly translated, because one English term is used tor Itvo Jiebinn words, which, in this ])lace, cer- I tainly do not mean the same thing. If a man shall steal an o. I [y.\s shorl or a slieep, [ntt? selt~\ and kill it, or sell it; he shall restore five oxen [ip2 bakar^ for an ox; [nuy shor"] and four slurp [pv (.sow] fur a sheep [niP sch], I think it must appear) evi<leut that the sacred writer did not intend that these wonls j vhould be underslood as above. A shor certainly is diflerent ' from a bukar, and a sch from a tson. Where the ddlirence in I every case lies, viherever these words occ.ir, it is difficult to i^ay. ' The shor and the hukar are doubtless creatures oC the bene [ kin<l, and are used in diflerent jiarts of the Sacred Writings to j signify the bull, tlie ox, the heifer, the steer, and the calf. The I sell and the tson are used to signify the rum, the ruether, the I rue, the lamb, the he-goat, the.she-goat, and the kid. And the I latter word, pv t\on, seems fiet|uently to signify ihcjlock composed of either of these lesser cattle, or both softs conjoined.

been unmanageable and dangerous, they must have had oxen for the purposes of agriculture. Tson pv is used for a tlock eillier o{.thccp ov goats; and seh nur for an individual of eiUier species. For every sch, four, taken indiflerently frcjm Uie isoa or tlock, must be given: i. e. a sheep stolen might be recompensed with four out of the flock, whether of sheep or goats. So that a goat might be compensated with four sheep; or a sheep, with four goats.

Verse 2. // a thief be found] If a thief was fouml breaking into a hou.se in th<; night season, he might be killed; but not if the sun had risen, for then he miglit be known and taken, and die restitution made which is mentioned in the succeeding verse. So, by the law of I'^ngland, it is a burglary, to break and enter a house by night; and " anciently the day was accounted to begin only from sun-rising, and to end immediately u])on sun-set: but it is now generally agreed, that if there be day-light enough begun or left, either by the light of the sun or tiuilight, whereby the countenance of a person may be reasonably discerned, it is no burglary: but that tliis does not extend" to moon-li'^ht; for then, many midnight burglaries would go unpunished. And besides, the malignity of die offence does not so ])roperly arise, as Wr..lustice Blackstoite observes, from its being done in the dark, as at the dead qf jiight; when all the creation, except beasts of prey, are at' rest; when sleep has disarined the owner, and rendered his castle defenceless." East's Pleas of the Crown, vol. ii. p. 509.

Verse 4. lie shall restore double] In no case of theft, was the life of the ottender taken away: die utmost that the lavr says on this point is, that, if when found breaking into a hottse, he should be smitten so as to die, no blood should be sittd for him, vcr. 2. If he had stolen and sold the property, then he was to restore four or fnc-fold, ver. 1. but if the animal was found ali're in his ]K)ssession, he w as to restore double.

the field, be consumed tJ/erexcifh; he that kindled the fire shall surely make restitution. 7 If If a man shall deliver unto his

8 If the thief be not found, then the master of the house shall be brought unto the ''judges, to see whether he have put his hand unto his neighbour's goods.

9 For all manner of trespass, whether it be for ox, for ass, for sheep, for raiment, or for any manner of lost thing, which another challengeth to be his, the ' cause of both parties shall come before the judges; and ^w\\om the judges shall condemn, he shall pay double unto his neighbour.

or an ox, or a sheep, or any beast,

a common custom in the Ea.st, to set tlie dry herbajre on fire before the autumnal rains; wliich fires, for want of care, often do great damapje: and in countries where oreat drought jirevails, and the herbage is generally parched, great caution was peculiarly necessary; and a law to guard against such evils, and to punish inattention and neglect was liighly expedient. See Harmer's Oliserv. vol. iii. p. 310, &c.

Verse 7. Deliver unto Ids rieighboiii'\ This is called pledging in the Law of Baibiienls: it is a dejiosit of goods by a deI)tor to his creditor, to be kept till the debt he discharged. Whatever goods were thus left in the hands of another person, that person, according to the Mosaic law, beeame resjjonsible for them: if they were stolen, and the thief was found, he was to pay double: if he could not be fo\ind, the oath of the person who had them in keeping, made before the magistrates, that he knew nothing of them, was considered a full acquittance. Among the Romans, if goods were lost which a man had entrusted to his neighlioih-, the depositary was obliged to j)ay their full value. But if a man had been driven by necessity, as in case of fu-c, to lodge his goods with one of his neighbours, and the goods were lost, the depositary was obliged to pay double their value, because of his unfaithfulness in a case tjf such distress, where his dishonesty, conncited with the destruction by tiie /;r, had cumpleted the ruin of the sullerer. To this case the following law is af>plical>le: Cum qiiis Jidein xtegit, nee depositum redditur, cnntentus esse delict simplo: cum fero cxiniite necessitate dcponat, crcscit pciftdia: crimen, &c. Digest. lib. xvi. tit.;>. 1. J.

Verse 9. Challengeth to be /h'.s] It was necessary tliat such a matter should come bt fore the judges, because the jicr.son in whose possession the goods were found, might have lia<l them by a fair and honest puirhase; and by siftiuig tlvc business, the thief might be found out, aud if ibund, be oblijjcd to pay duuhlc to his Jieighbouf.

and it die, or be hurt, or driven away, no man seeing it.-

1 1 IVien shall an " oath of the Lord be between them both, that he hath not put his hand unto his neighbour's goods; and the owner of it shall accept thereof, and he shall not make it good.

1 2 And ' if it be stolen from liim, he shall make restitution unto the owner thereof.

13 If it be torn in pieces, then let him bring it Jbr witness, a7id he shall not make good that which was torn.

14 ^ And if a man borrow ought of his neighbour, and it be hurt, or xlie, the owner thereof beiiig not with it, he shall surely make it good.

15 But if the owner thereof ^e with it, he shall not make it good: if it be an hired ihifig; it came for his hire.

16 % And '^if a man entice a maid that is not

Verse 11. An oath of the Lord be between them] So solemn and awful were all a])pcals to God, considered in those ancient times, that it was taken for granted that the man was innocent, 1 «ho could by an oath appeal to the omniscient God, that he | had not ])ut his hand to his neighbour's goods. Since oaths have Ijecome multiplied, and since they havu been administered on the most trifling occasions, their solemnity is gone, and their iunwrtance litlle regarded. Should the oath ever re-acquire its weight and import;uice, it iimst be when administered 1 only in cases of peculiar delicacy and difficulty; and as sparingly, as in the days of Moses. j

Verse 1.5. If it be torn in pieces- — let him bring it iot ivitness] | Rather, Let him bring, niDltan n;? ed hu-terephuh, a testimony i or evidence of the torn thing, such as the horns, hoofs, &c. This is still a law in some countries among graziers: if a horse, cow, sheep, or goat entrusted to them be lost, and the keeper i asserts, it was devoured by dogs, &c. the law obliges him to produce the horns ami hoofs, because, on the.se the owner's mark is g-enerally found. If these can be produced, the keeper is acquitted by the law. Tile car is often the jilace marked, but this is not ab.solut< ly required, because a ravenous beast may eat -the ear as well as any other part; but he cannot eat the horns or the hoofs. It seems, however, that in after times, /tro of the legs and the car, were required as evidences to ac- ([uit the.shepherd of all guilt. See Amos iii. 12.

Ver.se IG. If a man entice a maid] This was an exceedingly | wise and humane kiw, and must have operated powerfully against seduction antl fornication; because the person, who might feel inclined lo take the advantage of a young woman, knew that he nuist marry licr, and give her a dowry, if her i parents consented; and if they did not consent that their daughter should wed her si'dueer, in this ease he was obliged to give her the full dowry wliich could have been demanded, hadjihe been still a virgin. According to the Targumist here, aiid'to Deut. xxii. 29. the dowry was Jifti/ Jiekels of silver, j

A.M.'-'=-i!. betrotlicd, and lie with her, lie shall surely endow her to be his wile. 1. 17 If her father utterly refuse to

18 ^ " Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.

19 ^ " Whosoever heth with a beast, shall siuely be put to death.

20 ^ " lie that sacrificcth unto any god, save unto the Louu only, he shall be utterly destroyed.

■ This one consideration « as a poweriul curb on disorderly.'passions, and nn:sl tend trreatly to render niiuriagc respectable, iaiul prevent all crimes of this nature.

■ hidden or secret thiiigs, by spells, ciiarms, incantations, i^c. is evident to eveiy unprejudiced rciuler of the Bible. t>f i\Ianasseh it is said, lie caused his chitdreu. to pas.'i through the fire in the rallcj/ of the Son of Hinnoin: uLo he observed times [pii'l veonan, he used diriniitioii by clouds'^ and icscd cnchantwents, and u.ted u-itchcruft, [^aZi'\ 'ce cisheph'] and dealt Ziith a familiar.■••pirit, [3it« n'i:'i'l leasah ob, jierformed a variety ot' operations by means '>f what was al'terwartls called the Trnvixce n/Oivo,-, ttie.spirit of Pj/thon] and ii'ith nizards, ['Jiyi' t/ideoni, the wise or knowing ones] and he livonght much evil in the sight of the Lord, 2 Chron. xxxiii. 6. It is very likely that the Hebrew ']\33 casaph, and tlw Arabic «_i:ii cashafa, had originally the same meaning, to tincoi-er, to remove a teil, to manifest, reveal, make bare ov naked: and >jliu;UC.« VKca.iliefnl, is used to signify commerce with God, see U'ilmef, and (•iggcui. Tiie mceashepliah, or ivitch, therefore, was prol>ably a pcrst)vi wha jn-ofessed to reveal hidden vij^slet;ies, by commerce ivilh (lod, or the invLsihle vjorld.

From the sevirily of this law ag-aiii^t witehe.s, &c. we may fee in what light these were viewed by J)ivine.lustice. They were seducers of tlie people from their allegiance to God, on whose jurlgment alone, they should <lej)eiul; and liy impiously Jurying into futurity, assumed an uUnbute of (Jod, ihc fori:- •

1 21 if "^ Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress hint: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.

[ 22 " Ye shall not aiilict any widow, or fatherless child. 23 If thou afflict them in any wise, and they

I 24 And my "^ wrath shall wax hot, and I willkill you with the sword; and ' your wives shall

I be widows, and your children fatherless. 25 ^ "" If thou lend money to ajij/ of my pco-

' telling of future events, which implied in itself, tlic grossest; blMsplieiiiy, and tended to corrupt the niiiuls of the people. I by leading them away from (Jod, and the revcbtioii he had I made of himself. Many of the l.^raelites had, no doubt, I learnt these curious arts from tlieir long residence among the! Kgyptiaiis; and so much were the Israelites attached to them, that we find such arts in repute among them: and viu-ious I practices of this kind prevailed through the whole of the j Jewish history, notuithstaiiding- the oflence was capitalj and in all cases punished with death.

Verse 19. Lieth with a btcLsi] If tliis most aljoniinable crima had not Ixeen common, it never would have been mentioned in a sacred code of laws. It is very likely, that it was aii Egyptian practice; and it is certain, from an account in Sonnmi's Travels, that it is practised in Egypt to the present <iay.

Verse 20. Utterly destroyed.] The word ann cXerem denotes a tiling utterly and finally sep;uated from Cod, and devoted to destruction, without the po.s.~iliility of re(lem|i'jon.

Verse 21. Thou shalt neither ve.v a ■^•trunger,. nor oppre.'is him] This was not t>iily a very humaiteldw, but it was also the oltprin"' of a sound policy. Do not le.t a stranger: remember, ye were strangers. Do not oppress a stranger: remember, ye were oppre.'ised. Therefore do unto- all ineu as ye wouM tin y should do to you. It Via.- the produce of a sound policy — Let Grangers be: well treated among you,.and many will come to taloe refuge among you, and thus the strengtli of your country will be increased. If refugees of thiri kind be treated well, they will become proselytes to yotu- rtligi.m, and thus their.souls may be saved. In e\ < ry point of view, therefore,jastice, huuianity, sound policy, aad religion, say — Scither vex nor oppress a.itranger.

Verse 32. Ye shall not affiict any widow, orfiitherless child.} It is ivmark.ible, that o(U nets against this law,;u-e not letl to. the discretion of the juilgcs to be punished: (Jod reserves the punishment to liimself; and by this,, he strongly.shews iiis abhorreuce of the crime. It is no eomnioii crin'ie, and sliall not be punished in a common way: the lerath of God shall wax hoi against bun who in any wise aliliets or wrongs a ividow', or n fatherless child i and we may rest assured, that he wlio helps either,, does a service highly acceptable in the Mght of (iod.

Verse 25. Neitlur sluih thou. Iny upon him usury.] -[Uine.ihec^ from nu.fhac, to bite. Cut, or pierce with the' teeth — hitinc^ usury, tio Uie Latins tall it usura vorax — devouring ttsury..

pie that is poor by thee, thou shalt not be to Jiim as an usurer, neither siialt thou lay upon him usury. 26 ^ " If tiiou at all take thy neighbour's raiment to pledge, thou shalt deliver it unto him, by, that the sun goeth down: |

27 For that is his co\ering oi>ly, it is his!

*' The increase of usury is called yji neshec, because it re-."(cmbles the biting of a serpent; for as this is so small as scaix'ely to be perceptible at fii'st, but the venom soon spreads and diiHiscs itself, till it reaches the vitals, so the increuie cf usvri/, which at first is not jierceived nor felt, at length grows so nnicl), as by degrees to devour another's substance." — Lei^li.

It is evident, that what is here said must be understood of accumulated usury, or what we call compound interest only; and accordingly l^'J neshec is mentioned with, and di.stinjjuished from, nO"in tcrehiili, and n'DItt 7nerebuh, intere'st, or simple interest, Lev. xxv. 36, 37. Prov. xxviii. 8. Ezek. xviii. 8, 13, 17. aiidxxii. h2.—Parkhur.^.

Perhaps usnn^ may be more properly defined unhneful interest; receiving more for the loan of money than it is really %vorth, and more than the law allows. It is a wise regulation in the laws of England, that if a man be convicted of usury, of taking unlawful interest, the bond or sccyrii.i/ is rendered void, and he forfeits treble the sum borrowed. Against such an oppressive practice, the wisdom of God sjiw it essentially necessarj' to make a law, to prevent a people, who were naturally what our Lord calls the I'harisees, ifuXa^yvpoi, lovers of money, (Luke xvi. 14.) li'oin oppressing each other; and who, notwithstanding the law iv tlie text, practise usury in all places cf their dispersion, to the present day.

Verse 26. If thou — take lliij yici^hbour's raiment to pledge] It seems strange that any pledge should be taken, which must be so speedily restored: but it is very likely, that the pledge was restored by night only; antl that he who pledged it, brought it back to his creditor next morning. The opinion of the Rabbins is, that whatever a man needed for the support of life, he had the use of it when absolutely necessary, though it was pledged. Thu.s, he had the u.se of his working tools by daj', but he brought them to his creditor in the evening. IIis hyke, which serves an Arab as ^ jiluid dues a Highlander, (see it described ch. xii. 34.) was probably the rairnent here refcncii to: it is a sort of coarse blanket, about-six yards long, and five or six feet broad, uliich an Arab always carries with him, and on which be slee])s at night; it being his only substitute for a lied. As the fashions in the East scarcely ever change, it is very likely that the raiment of the Israelites was precisely the same with that of the modern Arabs, who live in the very same de.sart in which the Hebrews were when this law w;ls given. 'How necessary then to restore the hykc 1o a poor man before tlie going down of the sun, that he might have something to repose on, will appear evident from the above considerations. At the same time, the returning it daily to the creditor, was a continual acknowledgement of the debt, and served instead of a written acknowledgeineiit or bond, as we may rest assured that writing, if practised at all before the giving of the law, was not common.

raiment for his skin: wherein shall he sleep? and it shall come to pass, when he '' crieth unto me, that I will hear; for I am " gracious.

29 f Thou shalt not delay to offer 'the^ first

Verse 28. Tfwu shah not revile the gods] Most commentators believe, that the word gods here, means magistrates. The original is dti'tn Etohini, and should be understood of the true God onlv — Thou shalt not blaspheme, or make light of God — b^pn tekalcl, the fountain of justice and power — nor curse the ruler of thy people, \(ho derives his authority from God. We shall ever find, that he who despises a good civil government, and is disailected to that under which he lives, is one who has little fear of God before his eyes. The spirit of disaflection and sedition, is ever opposed to the religion of the Bible. When those who have been pious get under this spirit of misrule, they infallibly get shorn of their spiritual strength, and become like salt that has lost its savour. He who can indulge himself in speaking evil of the civil ruler, will soon learn to blaspheme God. The highest authority says, Fear God: honour the king.

Verse ^9. The first of thy ripe fruits] This ofiering was a public acknowledgement of the bounty and goodness of (iod, who had given them their proper seed-time, the first and the latter rain, and the appointed weeks of harvest.

From the jiractice of the people of God, the heathens borrowed a similar one, founded on the same reason. The following passage from Censorinus De Die I^atali is beautiful, and worthy of the deepest attention:

Ilti enim [majores nostri) qui alimenta, patriam, lucem, »e denique ipsos deonim dono habebant; ex omnibus aliguid diis sacrubant, magis adeo, ut se gratos approbarent, quam quod deos urbitrarenlur hoc indigere. Ilaque cunt perceperant fniges, antequam vescerentur, Diis libare instituerunt: if ciiin agroi atque urbes, deorurn munera possiderent, partem quandayn templis sacellisqtie, tibi eos colerent dicavcre.

" Our ancestors, who held their food, their country, the i light, and all that they possessed, from the bounty of the gods, consecrated to them a part of all their projjerty; rather! as a token of their gratitude, than from a conviction that the gods needed any thing. Therefore, as soon as the harvest was got in, before they had tasted of the fruits, the-y appointed libations to be made to the gods. And as they held their fields and cities as gifts from their gods, they consecrateil a certain part, in the temples and shrines, where they worshipped."

Pliny is express on the same point, who attests, that the Romans never tasted either their new corn or wine, till the priests had offered the FiRST-rnuiTS to the gods. Ac ne degustabunt quidem novas fruges aut vina, antequam sacerdolct PKiMiTiAs LiBAssENT. — Hist. IS'at. lib. xviii. c. 2.

Horace bears the same testimony, and shews, that his countrymen oflered not only their first-fruits, but the choicest of all their fruits, to the Lares, or household gotls; and he shews also, the wickedness of those who sent these as presents ' to the WcA, before the gods had been thus honoured:

of thy ripe fruits, aiul of tliy " liquors: " the firstborn of thy sons with thine oxen, and v.itli thy sheep: ** seven davs it sliall be with liis dam; on

Diilcia pnma, Ehqvosaimqtie ferel cultiis tibi fundus hrmorcs, Ante Larem gustet, venerabilior Larc dives.

" \^'llat your garden yield.';. Tile choicest honours of your cultur'd fields To him be sacrific'd, and let him tas-te, Before your gods, the vei^ttable feast." Dlnkin.

And to the same purpose beautiful of his Elearies:

Tibullus, in one of. the most

Et quodamque mihi pomvm novus educat annus,

Libatum agricolcv ponittir ante dco. Plata Ceres, tibi sit nostra de riire corona

Spicea, qua: teinpli pendeut ante fores.

Before the rural itod shall daily wait. From Ceres' gifts I'll cull each browner car,

And hang a ivheaieii wreath before her gate." Grainger.

Tlie same sulycct he touches again in the fifth Elegy of the same book, where he specifies the diflerent oflerings made for the produce of the fields, of the Jlocks, and of the five, ver. 27.

Ilia dco scicl agricolcc pro Titibu.') warn. Pro segele."picas, pro gregeferre dapcm.

With pious care, will load each rural shrine,' For ripen d crops, a golden Cates for Vi\\ fold,)-ich clut

The rejoicings at our hanest-home, are distorted remains of th;it giatitude which ouv ancestors, with all the jn'imitive inhabitants of the earth, expressed to Cod, witii appropriate signs and ceremonies. Is it not possilije to restore, in some podiy form, a custom.=0 pure, so edifying, and so becoming.' 'JIric is a laudable custom, observed by some pious people, of

31 if And ye shall be 'holy men luilo iTie: ' neither shall ye eat ant/ flesh tJiat is torn of beasts in the field; ye shall cast it to the dogs.

deilicuting a new house to God, by prayer, &c. which cannot be too higidy commended.

Verse 30. Seven daj/s it shall be with his dam] For the 7nother's health, it was necessary that the young one should suck so long; and prior to tliis time, the process of nutrition in a young animal, can scarcely be considered as completely tbrmwl. Among the Romans, lambs were not considered as pure or clean, before the eighth day; nor ^calves before the thirtieth: — Pecoris/ir/us, die octavo purus est; bovis, trigesimo. Plin. Hist. Nat. lib. viii.

Verse 31. Neither shall ye eat — flesh — torn of beasts in the field] T\\\i has been supposed to be an ordinance against eating tiesh cut off the animal while alive, and so the Syriac seems to have understood it. If we can credit Mr. 15ruce, this is a frc(|uent custom in Abyssinia — but human nature revolts from it. Tlie reason of the prohibition against eating the flesh of animals that had been torn, or, as we term it, xeorricd in the field, appears to have been simph' this: that tiie people might not eat the blood, which in this case must be coagulated in tlie flesh; and the blood being the life of the beast, and emblematical of the blood of the Covenant, was ever to be held sacred, and was prohibited from the days of Noah. — See on Gen. ix. 4.

In the conclusion of this chapter, we see the grand reason of all the ordinances and laws which it contains. No command was issued merely from the sovereignly of God. He gave them to the people as restraints on disorderly passions, and incentives to holiness: and hence he says, Ye shall be holy men unto me. iNIere outward services could neither jylcase him, nor profit them; for, from the very beginning of the world, the end of the commandment was love out oft ()ure heart, ami good conscience, and faith unfeigned, 1 Tim. i. 5. And Avithout these accompaniments, no set of religious duties, however punctually performed, could be pleasing in the sight of that Cod who seeks truth in the in- VI ard parts, and in whose eyes tlie faith, that worketh by love, is alone valuable. A holy heart, and a hoh/ iiieful life, Goil invariably reciuires in all his worshippers. — Reader, how standest thou in his sijiiit?

malei to appear before God thrice in the year, I7. Different ordinances: — no blood to be offered zcifh leavened bread — no fat to be left till the next day — the first-fruits to he brought to the lioiise of God— and a fcid not to be seethed in its mot/ier's milk, IS, 19- Description of the angel of God, nlio teas to lead the people into the promised land, and drive out t/te Ainorites, £)r. -20 — 2;). Idolatry to be avoided, and tlie images of idols destroyed, 24 Different promises to.oheAience, 23 — 27. Hornets shall be sent to drive out tite Canaanites, SjX. 28. Tlie ancient inhabitants to be driven out. by little and little, and the reason mhy, 29, 30. The boundaries of the j)romised land, y 1. A^o league or covenant to be made zoith the ancient inliahitants, zslio are all to be utterly expelled, 32, 33.

r]pHOU 'shalt not " raise a -false ^ report: put not thine hand wth the wicked, to be an " unrighteous witness.

2 " Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil; ' neither shalt thou ' speak in a cause to decline after many to wrest judgment:

3 Neither shalt thou countenance a poor man in his cause.

4 *1[ ^If tliou meet thine enemy's ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again.

Verse 1. Thou shalt not raise a false repori'\ Acting contravy to this precept, is a sin ag.iinst liie -ninth commandment. And th'e inventor and receiver of false and slanderous reports, are almost criually criminal. The word seems to refer to either, and ctur translators have very jjroperly retained both senses, putting raise in the text, and receive in the margin. The original K"? S'li'n to tissa has been translated, thou shalt not publish. Were there no publisliers of slander and calumny, there would be no receivei-s; and were there none to receive them, there would be none to raise them: and were there no raisers, receivers nor' propagators of calumny, lies, &c. society would be in peace.

Verse 2. Thou shalt not folloiu a multitude to do evil] Be singxdar. Singularity, if in the ri^ht, can never be criminal. So completely disgraceful is the way of sin, that if there were not a multitude walking in that way, who help to keep each other in counti nance, every solitary sinner would be obliged to hide his head. But C3'3T rahbim, which we translate 7nultitude, sometimes signifies the great, chiefs, or mighty ones; and is so undcr.'^tood by some eiuinent critics in this place: — Thou shalt not follow the example of the great or rich, who may so far disgrace their own character, as to live without God in the world; and trample under foot his laws. It is supposed that these directions, refer principally to matters which come under the eye of the civil magistrate; as if he had said, Do not join with great men in condemning an innocent or righteous person, against whom they have conceived a prejudice on the accoimt of his religion, &c.

5 "If thou see the ass of him that Aai-2-^i3. hateth thee, lying under his burden, ^'^'^fl'

7 ' Keep thee far from a false matter; " and i the innocent and righteous slay thou not: fori " I will not justify the wicked.

8 % And " thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blindeth ^the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous.

to help him? or, niid wouldest erase to leave thy busine.ss for him; thou shalt.• surety leave'it to join with hini. ^ ver. 2. DeuC. 27.19. Job 31.13,21.-!

cause.l The word ^71 dal which we translate poor man, is [irobalily put here in opposition to Q'DT rahbim the great, or noblemen, in the preceding verse: if so, the meaning is, thou shalt neither be influenced by the great, to make an unrighteous decision, nor by the poverty or distress of the poor, to give thy voice against the dictates of justice and truth. Hence the ancient maxim, fi.\t justiti.x, ru.'vt ccelum. Let justice be done, though tlie heavens should be dissolved.

Verse 4. If t/iou meet thine enenu/s ox— going astray] From the humane and heavenly maxim in this and the following verse, our blessed Lord has formed the following i)recept: " Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them th.at hate you, and pray for them which despitcfully use you and persecute you.'" Matt. 5. 44. A ])recept so plain, wise, benevolent and useful, can receive no other comment than that which its influence on the heart of a kind and merciful man, produces in his life.

Verse 6. Thoji shalt not ivrest the judgment of thy poor] Thou shalt neither countenance him in his crimes, nor condemn him in his righteousness. See ver. 5. and ver. 7.

Verse 8. Thou shalt take no gift] A strong ordinance against selling ]Uit\cc, which has been the disgrace and ruin of every state where it has been practired. In the excellent charter of British liberties, called Magna Charta, there is one article expressly on this head: A«//i vendemus, nutii negabiiniis aut differcmus rectum aut justiciam. Art. xxxiii. " To none will we sell, to none will we deny or defer right or justice." This Vias the more necessary, in those early anil corrupt times, as he who had most money, and gave the largest presents, (called then ohlata)

9 ^ Also, * thou shalt not oppress a'' stranger: for ye know the ^ lieart of'j' a stranger, seeing ye were strangers I in the land of" Egy])t.

10 If And 'six years thou shalt sow thy land, and shalt gather in the fruits thereof:

1 1 But the seventh i/ear, thou shalt let it rest and lie still; that the poor of" thy people may eat: and what they leave, the beasts of the

to the kinp; or qncon, was sure -to gaiii his cause in the king's court, wliether he liail ri^^ht and j^l^ti(■c on hi.s siiK- or not.

Verse 9. Ye kuoiu tin: heart of a straiigfr'] Having been ftrangers yourselves, under severe, long continued, and cruel opjiression, ye know the fears, cares, anxit-ties, and dismal forclwdiiigs whieii tiic heart of a stranger feels. What a forcible apjyeal to humamly and compas-sion! I Verse 1 1. The seventh year thou shalt let it rest"} As every seventh day was a sabbath day, so every seventh year was to be a sabbath year. The reasons for this ordinance Calmet gives thus:

"1. To maintain as far as possible an equality of condition among the people, in setting the slaves at liberty, and in peruiilting all as children of one family, to have the free and indiscriminate use of whatever the earth produced.

" 3. To inspire the people with sentiments of humanitj-, by making it their duty to give rest, proper and sufficient nour- 1 ishment to th.e poor, the slave, and tlie stranger, and even to the cattle. j

" 3. To acciistom the people to siibmit to, and depend on, the divine providence, and expect their support from that in, tile seventh year, by an extraordinary provision on the sixth. \ " 4. To detach their aflections iVom earthly and perishable I things, and to make them disinterested and heavenly minded, i; " 5. To shew them Cod's dominion over the country, and I that HE, not they, was lord of the soil: and that they held it merely from his bounty." See this ordinance at length. Lev.

I That (;od intended to teach them the doctrine o{ providence ' I by this ordmance, there can be no doubt; and this is marked! very distinctly. Lev. xxv. 30, 21. " And if ye shall say, IVhatl \ihuU ive eat t/ic seventh year? behold, we shall not sow nor ga- \ ther in our increase: Then I tvilt contnmnd my blessing upon you, in the sixth year, and it shall bring forth fntit for three ■years." That is, there shall be, not three crops in one year, jbut one crop, equal in its al)undance to three, because it must | iupply the wants of three years. I. For the sixth year, sup- ' iplying fruit for its own consvimption. 3. For the scfenth year, ' an which they were neither to sow nor reap. Ami 3. For the ieighth year, for though they ploughed, sowed, &c. that year, ' lyet a whole course of its seasons was requisite, to bring all Ithcse fruits to perfection, so that they could not liave the fruits jof the eighth year till the ninth, see ver. 23. till which time, j jUod promised that they should eat of the old store. What an I jastonishing proof <hd this give of the being, power, providence, mercy, and goodness of lio<i! (Jould there be an infidel in ] uch i land, or a sinner against God and his own soul, with

i'2 f '.Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on tlte seventh day thou shalt rest; that thine ox and thine ass may rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refi-eshed.

13 ^ And in all ihiiigs that I have said unto

j such proofs before his eye-s of God and his attributes, as onr. sabbatical year aHorded >

I It is \ ery remarkable, that the observance of this ordinance is no where ex])ressly mentioned in the Sacred Writings; I though some suppose, but without sufficient reason, that there is a reference to it in.ler. xxxiv. 8, 9. Perhaps the major I part of the jjeople could not trust God, and tlierefore contirmed to sow and reap on the seventh year, as on the preceding. This greatly displeased the Lord, and therefore he sent them into captivity; so that the land enjoyed those sabbaths through lack of inhabitants, of which tlieir ungodliness had deprived if. See Lev. xviii. 24, 25, 2a xxvi. 34, 35, 43. 2 Chron. xxxvi. 20, 21. Commentators have been much puzzled to ascertain the time in which the sabbatic.il year began; because, if it began in Abib, or March, they must have lost two harvests: for they could neither reap nor j>lant that year, and of course they could have no crop the year following; but if it began with what was called the civil year, or in Tisri or Marheslivan, which answers to the beginHinoof our autumn, they would then have had that year's produce reaped and gathered in.

V'erse 13. Six days shalt thou do thy work] Though they were thus bound to keep the sabbatical year, yet they must not neglect the seventh day's rest, or weekly sabbath; for that was of perpetual obligation, and was paramount to all others. That the.sanctification of the sabbath was of great consequence in the sight of God, we may learn from the \arious repetitions of this law: and we may observe, that it has still for its object, not only the benefit of the soul, but the health and comfort of the body also. Doih God care for oven? Yes, and he mentions them with tenderness — that thine ox and thine ass may rest. How criminal to employ the labouring cattle on the sabbath, as well as upon the other days of the week! Jloro cattle are destroyed in England, than in any other part of the world, in jjroportion, by excessive and continued labour. Th'> noble horse, in general, has no sabbath! Does Goil look on this with an indiderent eye } Surely he does not. " England," said a Ibreignier, " is tlie paradise of women, the purgatory of servants, and the hell of horses."

The son of thine handmaid, and the stranger — be refreshed ] tuiJJ' yinnapkcsh, may be rc-spiritcd, or new-sotded; have a complete renewal both of bodily and spiritual strength, llie expression used by Moses here, is very like that used i)y St. Paul, Acts iii. 39. " Repent ye, therefore, and bo converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the tunes of refreshing (xKipci a^a^}/l/?li; the times of re-souling) shall conui

you ^ be circumspect: and '' make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth.

14 ^ " Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year.

15 " Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread: (thou shalt cat unleavened bread seven days, as I comm.anded thee, in the time appointed of the month Abib; for in it thou earnest oat from Egypt: " and none shall appear before me empty:)

1 6 ' And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in

thy field: and ^ the feast of ingathering, xclikh is in the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thy labours out of the field. _

17 ''Three times in the year, all thy males shall appear before the Lord God.

18 ^ ' Thou shalt not offer the blood of my ■sacrifice with leavened bread; neither shall the tat of my " sacrifice remain until the morn-

times of refreshing and rest for body and soul, originally instituted under the Law.

Verse 14. Three times ihou shalt keep a feast unto me in the 1/eai:] The three feasts here referred to, were, 1. The feast of the Pass-ovek; 2. the feast of Pentecost; 3. the feast

1. The feast of the Pass-over, was celebrated to keej) in remembrance the wonderful deliverance of the llebrews from Egypt. 2. The feast of Pentecost, called also the/tv(s/ of harvest, and the feast of weeks, chap. xxiv. 22. was celebrated fifty days after t: e Pass-over, to commemorate the giving of the law on Moimt Sinai; which took place fifty days after, and hence called by the Greeks, Pentecost. 3. The feast of Tabernacles, called also the feast of the ingathering, was celebrated about the 15th of the montli Tisri, to commemorate the Israelites dwelling in tents for forty years, during their stay in the wilderness. — See on Levit. x.xiii.

" God, out of his great wisdom," says Calmet, " appointed several festivals among the Jews for many reasons: 1. to perpetuate the memory of those great events, and the wondersr he had wrought for the people; for example, the sabbath brought to rememlnance the crealioti of the world; the Pass-over, the fleparture out of Egypt; tlic Pentecost, the giving of the law; the feast cif Tabcniacks, the sojournmg of their "fathers in the wilderness, &c. 2. To keep them faithful to their religion, by appropriate ceremonies, and the splendoiir of the divine service. 3. To procure them lawful pleasures, and necessary rest. 4. To give them instruction, for in their religious assemblies, the law of God was always read and explained. 3. To consolidate their social union, by renewing the acquaintance of their tribes and families; for, on these occasions, they come together, from diderent parts of the land, to the holy city."

3. The feast of Trumpets, which was celebrated on the first day of what was called their civil year, which was niliered in by the blowing of ji Inimptt, Lev. xsiii. 23^ &c.

The first of the first-fruits of thy land thou bring into the house of the ■ Lord thy '" Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his momilk.

4. The feast of the New Moon, which was celebrated on'', the first day the moon appeared after her change. i*

5 The feast of Expiation, which was celebrated annually^ on the tenth day of Tisri, or September, on which, a general" atonement was made for all the sins, negligences, and ignorances, throughout the year.

6. The feast of Lots, or Purim, to commemorate the preservation of the Jews from the general massacre projected ■ Ijy llaman.. — See the Book of Esther.

7. The feast of the Dedication, or rather the Restoration of the temple, which had been profaned by Antiochus Epiphanes. This was also called tVie/ea.si o/'L(g-/(/.f.

Besides tlie^e, the Jews have had several other feasts, such as the feait of Branches, to commemorate the taking of Jericho.

The fe-ist of Collections, on the lOth of September, on which they make contributions for the service of the temple and synagogue.

The feast for the death of Nicanor, 1 Mac. vii. 4S, &c.

The feast of the carrying of wood to the temple, called Xylophoria, mentioned by Josephus. — War, b. ii. c. 17.

Verse 17. All tiiy males'] Old men, sick men, male idiots,. and male children, under thirteen years of age, excepted; for so the Jewish doctors understand this comniimd.

Verse 18. The blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread'] The sacrifice here mentioned, is undoubtedly llie Pas.t-over: see chap., xxxi\. 25. this is called, by way of eminence, my sacrifice, Ijecause ' God had instituted it for that especial purpose, the redemption of Israel from the Egyptian bondage, and because it typified Tin; Lamb of God, who takcth auay the sin of the world. We have already seen how strict the prohibition against leaven was, during this festival, and «hat was signified by it. — See on ch. xii.

Verse 19. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother's milk.); This passage has greatly jierplexed counnentutors; but Dr. Cudworth is supposed to have given it its true meaniiig by quoting a MS. couinient of a Karaite Jew, which he met with, on this passage. It was a custom of the ancient heatliciWf a.m.sm;(. 20 ^ "Behold, I sond an Angel j before thee, to kec[) tlioc in the way,, I. and to bring thee into the place I

21 Beware of him, and obey his voice, ''provoke him not; for he vnW ' not pardon your transgressions: for '' my name is in him,

22 But if thou shalt indeed obey his voice, and do all that I speak; then " I will be an enemy inito thine enemies, and ' an adversary unto thine adversaries.

23 ^ For mine Angel shall go before thee, and '' bring thee in unto the Amoritcs, and the Hittites, and tlie Perizzites, and the Canaanites,

wlien tliey had slathered in all their fruits, to take a kid, and boil it in the milk of its dam; iiud then, in a ina" ical way, to sjo about and besprinkle with it •all their trees and fields, gardens and orchards; thinkiotf, by these means, to make thein fruitful, that they might bring forth more aliimdantly in the following year.- — ( 'udiiorlh on the Lord's Supper, 4to.

I give this comment as I find it; and add, that Spencer has shewn, that the Zabii used this kind of magical milk to sprinkle their trees and fields, in order to make them fruitful. Others understand it of eating flesh and milk together — others, of a l.imb or kid, ti7«;7t' it is suclcing its motlier; anil that the pa.-ch;'.l lamb is here intended, which it was not law ful to oflei', while sucking.

After all the learned labour which critics have bestowed on this passage, and by which the obscurity in some cases, is become more intense, the simple object of the precept seems to be this — " Thou shalt do nothing that may have any tendency to blunt thy moral feelings, or teach thee hardness of heart." Even Inanun nature, shudders at the thought, of causing the motlier to lend her milk, to seethe the flesh of her young one! Wc need go no farther for the delicate, lender, humane, and irnjiresslve meaning of this precept.

Verse 20. hcliold, 1 send an Aiii^el before thee'] Some have thought that this was Moses, others Joshua, because the word ■]Nb?2 mulac, signifies an angel or messenger; but as it is said, ver. 21. yiy name is in lam, i3-ip3 hekirbo, intimately, essentially in him, it is more likely that the great Angel of the Covenant, the Lord Je.ius (Jlirist, is meant, in whom dvcclt all tlie fulness of the Goilhcad bodily. Wc have had already much reason to behevf, that this glorious Personage often appeared in a human form, to the Patriarchs, &c. and of him Joshua was a very expressive type, the names Joshua and Jesus, in Hebrew, and Greek, being of exactly the.same signification, because radically the same, from i'li" ynsho, he saved, delivered, preserved, or kept safe. Nor does it appear, that the description given of the Angel in the text can belong to any other person.

Calinet has rt ferrcil to a very wonderful comment on these Word.s, given by Pliilo Juda'us De Agricuttiira, which I shall ^nxlucc here at full length, as it stands in Mange/ s edition.

24 Thou shalt not ' bow down to i. ' "'

tlieir gods, nor serve them, " nor do ^ '^'"''L.-. after their works: ' but thou shalt utterly overthrow them, and quite break down their images.

2,5 And ye shall " ser\'e the Lord your God, and " he sliall bless thy bread, and thy water; and ° I will take sickness away from the midst of

26 " There shall nothing cast their young, nor be barren, in thv land: the number of thy days 1 will " iUlfil.

Shepherd and King, conducts all tilings according to law and righteousness, having established over them his rig-Af.Word, his ONLY BEGOTTEN SoN, who as the Viceroy of the GreSt King, takes care of, and iriiiiisteraf to, this sacred flock. For it is somewhere said, (Exod. x.vhi. 20.) Behold, 1 A^I, and I ■aill send mi/ Angel before thi/ face, to keep thee in tlte way."

This is a testimony, liable to no suspicion, connng from a person who cannot be supposed to be e\ en friendly to Christianity, nor at iiU acquainted with that particular doctrine, to which his words seem so pointedly to refer.

Verse 21. }Ie will not pardon your tra7tsgressio}ts'\ He is not like a man, with whom ye may think, that ye may trifle: were he either man or angel, in the common acceptation of the term, it need not be said, He will not pardon your tiansgressions; for neither man nor angel could do it.

lUy name is in liiin] The Jehovah dwells in him— in him dwelt all the fulness o'f the Godhead bodily; and because of this he could either pardon or piuiish. — All power is givai unto me in heaven and eai'th. Matt, xxviii. 18.

vVerse 23. Unio the Amoriies] There are only six of the seven nations mentioned here; but the Septuagint, S.ainaritai>, Coptic, and one Hebrew MS. add Girgashite, thus making; the seven nations.

Verse 25. Shall bless thy bread and thy water] That is, all thy provisions, no matter of \vlmt st«'t: the meanest fare shall be sufliciently nutritive, when tlod's blessing is in it.

Verse 26. Nothing shall cast their young, or be barren] Hence there must be a very great increase both of men and

The number of thy days I will fulfil.} Ye shall all. live to a

27 I will send "" my fear before tliee, and will ^ destroy all the people to whom thou shalt come, and I will make all thine enemies turn their " backs unto thee.

28 And *" I will send hornets before thee, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before thee.

29 " 1 will not drive them out from before thee in one year; lest the land become desolate, and the beast of the field multiply against

30 By little and little, I will drive them out

good old age, and none die before his time. This is the blessing^ of the lijrlittous; for wicked men liie not out half their dey.t, Psal. Iv. 23.

Verse 28. I u-ill fend hornets before thee] nj?'nyn ha t.^ireah. Tlie root is not found in Htbrew, but it may be the same with the probably so called from the destruciion occasioned by the violence of its stinjj. The hornet, in natural history, belongs lo the species Crahro, of the n^enus Vespa or Wasp: it is a most voracious insect, and is exceedingly strong for its size, which is generally an incli in length, though I have seen some an inch and a half long, and so strong, that having caught one in a small pair of forceps, it repeatedly escaped by using violent contortions, so that at last I was obligetl to aliandon all hopes of securing it alive, which I wished to have done. How distressing and destructive a multitude of the.-e might be, any person may conjecture: even tlie bees of one hive would be sufficient to sting a thousand men to madness; but liow much worse, must wasps and boinets be! No armour, no weapons, could avail against these. A few thousands of them, would be (juite sufficient, to throw the best disciplineil army into confu>ion and rout. From.Tosh. xxiv. 12. we find that two kings of the Arnorites were actually driven out of the land by these hornets, so that the Israelites were not obliged to use either sword or bow in the conquest.

Verse 31. I will set ilii/ hounds from the Red Sea — on the South-east — even unto the sea of the riiilistines — the Mediterranean on the North-west — and from the desart of Arabia, or the wilderness of Shur, on the West — to the river] — the Euphrates, on the North-east. Or, in general terms, from the Euphrates, on the East, to the IVIediterranean Sea, on the West; and fiorti mount Libanus, on the North, to the Red Sea and tlie Nile, on the South. This promise was not completely fulfilled till the days of David and Solomon. The general disobedience of the people before this time, prevented a more."peedy accomplishment; and their disobedience afterwards, caused them to lose the po.';se.ssion. So, though all the promises of God are Yf..\ and Amkn, yet tliey are fulfilled but

from before thee, until thou be increased, and inherit the land.

31 And "^ I will set thy bounds from the Red sea, even unto the sea of the Philistines, and from the desart unto the river for I will ^ dehver the inhabitants " of the land into your hand; and thou shalt drive them out before thee.

32 ^ Thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor with their gods.

33 They shall not dwell in thy land, lest they make thee sin against me: for if thou serve their gods, ' it will surely be a snare unto thee.

to a few; because men are slow of heart to believe:.and;' the blessings of jjrovidence and grace are taken away from; several, because of their unfaithfulness. ]

Verse 32. Thou shalt make no covenant xvilh them,] They, were incurable idolaters, and the cup of their iniquity was^ full. And had the Israelites contracted any alliance with; them, either sacred or -civil, they would have enticed them into their idolatries, to which the Jews were at all times most unhappily prone; and as God intended that they should be the preservers of the true religion till the coming of the Messiah, hence he strictly forbade them to tolerate idolatry.

Verse 33. They shall not dwell in thy land] They must be utterly expelled. The land was the Lord's, and he had given it to the progenitors of this people, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The latter being obliged- to leave it because of a famine, God is now conducting' back his j)osterity, who alone had a divine and natural right to it; and, therefore, their seeking to possess the inheritance of their fathers, can be only criminal in the sight of those, who are systematically opposed to the thing, because it is a part of Divine Revelation.

What a pity, that the Mosaic Law should be so little studied! What a number of just and equal laws, pious and humane institutions, useful and instructive ordinances, does it contain! Every where we see the purity and benevolence of God, always working to prevent crimes, and make the people happy! But what else can be expected from that Cod who is love, whose tender mercies are over all his works, and who hateth nothing that he has made t — Reader, thou art not straitened in him; be not straitened in thy own bowels. Learn from him to be just, huuiane, kind, and merciful. Love thy enemy, and do good to him that iiates thee. Jesus is with thee — hear and obey his voice; provoke him not, and he will be an enemy to thy enemies, and an adversary to thine adversaries. Believe, love, obey, antl the road to the kingdom of (jod is plain before thee. Thou shalt inherit the good land, and be established in it for ever and ever.

Moses a:id Aaron, Nadab and Abiliu, and the seventy etdeis, are commanded to go to the mount to meet the Lord, 1. Moses alone to come near to the divine presence, <1. lie informs the people, and tliey promise obedience, 3. He ti rites the zvords of the Lord, erects an allar at the foot of the hill, and sets up tzvelve pillars for the tzcelve tribes, 4. The i/oung priests offer burnt-offerings and peace-offerings, 5. Bloses reads the book of the Covenant, sprinhles the people zcith the blood, and theif promise obedience, 6 — 8. Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel, go up to the mount, and get a striking display of the majesty of God, 9 — 11. Moses alone is called up into the mount, in order to receive the tables of stone, zvritten by the ha/id of. Cod, 12. Moses and his servant Joshua go up, and Aaron and Jlur are left regents if the people during his absence, 13, 14. The glory of the Lord rests on the mount, and a cloud covers it for six days, and on the

/Seventh God speaks to Moses out of the cloud, 15, Ifi. The terrible appearance of God's glory on the mount, i". 3I0SCS continues zcith God on the mount forty days, 18.

AND he said unto Moses, Come up unto the Loud, thou, and Aaron, ^ Nadab, and Abihu, " and seventy of the elders of Israel; and [^worship ye afiir off.

^ 2 And Moses " alone shall come near the;:LoRD: but they shall not come nigh; neither.]shall the people go up with him. I 3 ^ And Mo,ses came and told the people all (the words of the Lord, and all the judgments:

, NOTES ON CHAP. XXIV. Verse 1. Come up unto the Lord] I\Io.se.> and Aaron were laJreacly on the mount, or at least some way up, cli. xix. 24. jwhere they had heai-d the voice of the Lord distinctly speakiing to tliem; and the people also saw and heard, but in a iless distinct manner, probably like the hoarse grumblinj)- i sound of distant thunder, see chap. xx. 18. Calinet, who icomplains of the apparent want of order in the facts laid jdown here, thinks the whole should be understood thus: — " After God had laid before Moses and Aaron all the laws, mentioned from the beginnin": of the 20th chapter to the end lOf the S-'Jd, before they went down from the mountain to lay jthem before the people, he told them, that when they had proposed the conditions of the covenant to the Israelites, and ithey had ratified them, they were to come up a(;ain unto the |mountain, accompanied with Isadab and Abihu, the sons of jAaron, and.seventy of the principal elders of Israel. Mo.^es accordingly went down, spoke to the people, ratified the jcovenant, and then, ac(^ording to the conauand of <.'od, mentioned here, he and the others veascended the moimtain. — Tout cela est raconle ici avcc assez pcu d'ordre."

Verse 2. Moxes cdom sltalt come near] The people stood at the foot of the mountain. Aaron and his two sons, and the seventy eWers, went up, probably about half way, and Moses alone went to the sunmiit.

Verse 3. Moses — told the people nil the ivords of ihr Lord] That is, tlic ten commandments, and the various taxes and ordi-

and all the people answered with one voice, and said, '' All the words which the Lord hath said will we do.

4 ^ And Moses ' wrote all the words of the Lord, and rose up early in the morning, and budded an altar under the hill, and twelve ^ pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel.

5 And he sent young men of the children of Israel, which offered burnt offerings, and*

nances mentioned from the beginning of the 2(ftli to the end of the 2-3d chapter.

Verse 4. Moses wrote all the ivords of the Lord] After the people had promised obedience, (ver. 3.) and so entered into the bonds of the covenant, it was necessary, says Calme't, to draw up an act, by which the memory of these transactions mifrht be preser\'ed, and confirm the covenant, by authentic and solemn ceremonies. And this Moses does: 1. As lei^islaior, he raliices to writing all the articles and conditions of the agreement, with the people's act of consent. 2. As their mediator and the deputy of the Lord, he accepts on liis part, the resolution of the people; and Jehovah, on his part, engages himself to Israel, to be tiicir God, their King, and Protector, and to fulfil to them all the promises he had made to their fathers. 3. To make this the more solemn and aflecting, and to ratify the covenant, which could not be done without sacrifice, shedding and sprinkling of blood, Moses builds a.** attar, probably of turf, as was commanded chap. xx. 24. and erects twelve pillars, no doubt of unhewn stone, and probal>ly set round about the altar. The allar itself represented the throne of (iod; the tivelne stones, the twelv: tribes of Israel. These were the tivo parties, who were to contract, or enter into covenant, on this occasion.

Verse 5. He sent young men] Stout, able, reputable young^ men, chosen out of the ditlerent tribes, for the purpose of killing.;, flaying, and otlering the oxen mentioned llere.

7 And he '' took tlie book of the covenant, and read in tlic audience of the people: and

9 % Then ' went" up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel:

10 And they there "was under

8 And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said. Behold '' the blood of the covenant, wliich the Lord hath made

they said, " Ail tliat tlie Lord hath said will we I work, of a ° sapphire stone, and as it wxre, the

^•oats, Leviticus i. 10. These- were Avholly consumed by fire.

Peace-offerings'] Bullocks or gosts, see Heb. ix. 19. The blood of these was poured out before the Lord, and then the priests and people might feast on the flesh.

Verse 7. The book of tlie covenant'] The writing, containing fhe laws, mentioned in the three preceding chapters. As this writing conf;iincd the agreement, made between God and them, it was called the book of tlie covenant; but as no covenant was considered to be ratified, and binding, till a sacrifice had been offered on the occasion, hence the necessity of the sacrifices mentioned here.

Ifa{f of the blood being sprinkled on the altar, and half cf it -fjirinkled on the people, shewed, that both Geo and THEY were nuitually bound l)y this covenant. God was Ijound to the PEOPLE, to svipport, defend, and save them: the i-EOPLE W(:re bound to Gon, to fear, love, and serve him. On the ancient method of making covenants, see on Gen. vi. 18. XV. 18. Thus the blood of the New Covenant was necessary to propitiate the Throne cf Justice on the one hand, and to rcioueile men to God on the other. On the nature and various kinds of the Jewish ollerings, see the note on Levit. vii. I, &c.

Versa 10. They saw the God of Israel] The seventy elders, v^ho were representatives of the whole congregation. Were chosen to witness the manifestation of God, tliat they might be satisfied of the truth of the revelation which he had made of himself and of his will: and on tins occasion it was necessary that the people also should be favoured with a sight of the glory of God, see chap. xx. 18. Thus the certainty of the rc^■elatl«>n was established by many witnesses; and by those, especially, of the most competent kind.

A paved icork of a sapphire stone] Or, sapphire hrick-ivork. I suppose, that something of the Musive or Mosaic pavement is here intended, floors most curiously inlaid, with variously coloured stones, or small square tiles, disposed in a great variety of ornamental forms. Many of these remain in ditlerfnt countries to the present day. The Romans were particularly fond of them, and left monuuients of their taste and ingfcuuity in pavements of this kind, in most countries where they estubli-hcd their dominion. Some very fine specimens,3ire i'ound in dillerent parts of Britain.

11 And upon the nobles of the children of' Israel he ' laid not his hand: also " they saw God, and did ' eat and drink.

hardness to the diamond. The I'lthy is considered, by most mineralogists, of the same genus; so'is al.<o the topaz: hence we cannot say, that the sapphire is only of a blue colour; it is blue, red, or yello-a:, as it may be called sapphire, ruby, or topaz; and some of them are blue or green, according to the light in which they are held. The ancient oriental sapphire is supposed to have been the same with the lapis lazuli.,i Supposing that these difierent kinds of sapphires are here intended, how glorious must a pavement be, con.stituted of polished stones of this sort, perfectly transparent, witli an efiulgcnce of heavenly splendour poured out upon them! — The red, the blue, the green and the yeltoivt arranged by the wisdom of Gcd, into the most beautiful emblematic representations, and the whole body of heaven in its clearness, shining' upon them, must have made a most glorious appearance! As the divine glory appeared above the mount, it is reasonable to sujipose that the Israelites saw the sapphire pavement over their heads, as it might have occupietl a space in the atmosphere equal in extent to the base of the mountain'; and being transparent, the intense brightness shining upon it, must have greatly heightened the eftect.

It is necessary farther to observe, that all this must have been only an appearance, unconnected with any personal similitude; for this, Jloses expressly asserts, Deul. iv. 15. And though the feet are here mentioned, this can only be understood of the sapi)hirine basis, or pavement, on which this celestial and indescribable glory of the Lord appeared. There is a similar description of the glory of the Lord in tiie book of Revelations, chap. iv. -3. — " And he wlio sat (upon the throne) was to look upon, like a ja.-pcr ijnd a sardine stone; and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald." In neither of these appearances, was there any similitude or likeness of any thing in heaven, earth, or sea. Thus, God took care to preserve them from all incentives to idolatry, while he gave them the fullest proofs of his being. In Scheuchzer's Physica.Sacra, among his numerous fiiie engravings, tliere is one of this glorious manifestation, which cannot be too severely repretiended. Tlie Supreme Being is represented as an old man, sitting on a throne, encompassed with glory, having a crown on his head, and a sceptre in his hand; the people prostrate in adoration at the foot of the piece. A print of this kind should be considered as utterly imjiroper, if not blasphemous.

A.M.ssi:?. 12 % And the Lord said unto Mo- B.C. 1491. j,pj.^ "Come up to me into the mount,

•commandments which I have written; that thou mayest tcacli them.

13 And TMoses rose up, and "his minister Joshua: and Moses " went up into the mount

14 And he said unto tlie elders. Tarry ye here for us, until we come again unto you: and, behold, Aaron and Hur are with you: if anv man have any matters to do, let him, come unto thcni.

fi II God a.s it were face to face, and yet live. — See Gen. xvi.

15 ^ And Moses went up into the mount, and 'a cloud covered the mount.

16 And ""the glory of the Lord abode upon mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days: and the seventh day he called unt6 Moses, out of the. midst of the cloud.

17 And the sight of the glory of the Lord tfas hke ^devouring fire, on the top of the mount, in the eyes of the children of Israel.

18 And Moses went into the midst of the cloud, and gat him up into the mount: and

j " Moses was in the mount forty days and forty nights.

Aaron and Hur are with you] Not knowing how long he might be detained on tl\f mount, and knowing that many ca.ses might occur, which would require the interfennce of ' the chief magistrate, Moses constituted them regents of tlie i people during- the time he should be absent. j Verse 16. ' And the seventh day he called] It is very likely I that Moses went up into the mount on the first day of the I week; and having, with Joshua, remained in the region of! the cloud during six days, on the seventh, which was the sabbath, God spake to him, and delivered, successively to him, j during forty days and forty nights, the diflerent statutes and j ordinances which are afterwards mentioned. I Verse 17. The glory of the Lord wof like devouring fire]. This upfiearance was well calculated to inspire the people I with the deepest reverence and godly fear; and this is the use the Apostle makes of it, Heb. xii. 28, 29. where he evidently refers to this place, saying, Let us have grace, thereby ue may serve God acceptably, with reverence and godly fear; for our God is a coNsiiMi.NG FiKF. Scciug the glory of the Lord upon the mount, like a devouring fire, Moses having tarried long, the Israelites probably supposed that he had been devoured or consumed by it; and, therefore, the more easily fell into idolatry. But how could they do this, with this tremendouii sight of God's glory before their eyes!

Verse 18. Forty' days and forty nights.] During the whole of this time, he neither ate bread, nor drank water; see chap, xxxiv. 28. Deut. ix. 9. Both his body and soul, were so sustained by the invigorating presence of God, th-at he needed no earthly support, and this may be the simple reason why he tdok none. Elijah fasted forty days and forty nights, sustained by the same influence, 1 Kings xix. b. as did likewise our blessed Lord, when he was about to commence the public ministry of his own gospel, Matt. iv. 2.

1. jNIoses who was the mediator of the Old Covenant, is alone permitted to draw nigh to God; none of the people are s\iflered to come up to the divine glory, not even Aaron, nor his sons, nor the nobles of Israel. Mases was a type of Christ, who is the mediator of the A'tu) Coienaiit; and he alone, has access to (Jod, in behalf of the human race, as Mosw had, in bdialf of Israel.

connected with its sacrifices; and those sacrifices are nothino;, but as they refer to Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, who alone, by the sacrifice of himself, bears away the sin of the Wurld.

S. Tlie blood of the victims was sprinkled both on the altar, and on the people, to shew that the death of Christ ji^ave to divine justice, wliat it demanded; and to men, what tliey needed. 1 he people were sanctified by it unto God, and God was propitiated by it unto the people. By this sacrifice, the law was magnified, and made honourable, so divine justice received its due; and those who believe, are justified from all guilt, and sanctified from all sin; so they receive all that they need. Thus God is well pleased, and believers eternally saved. This is a glorious a?Qonomy; highly wordiy of God, its author.

The Lord addresses Moses out of the divine glori/, and commands him to speak unto the Lraelites, that thci/ viay give him free-will offerings, I, 2. The different kinds of offerings, gold, silver, and brass, 3. Purple, scarlet, fine linen, and goats' hair, 4. rams' skins, badgers' skins, (rather violet coloured skins,) a«rfshittiin-wood,5. Oil and spices, 0. Onyx stones, and stones for the cphod and breastplate, 7. A sanctuary is to he made after the pattern of the tabernacle, 8, Q. Tlic ark, and its dimensions, 10. Its crown of gold, 11. Its rings, 1'2. /<4 staves, and their use, 13 — lo. The testimony /o 6e laid up in the ark, l6. The mercy-seat, and its dimensions, 17. 'The cherubim, hozc made, and placed, 18 — CO. The mcrci/ seat to be placed on the ark; and the testimony to be put within it, 21. The Lord promises to commune zcith the people, from the mercy-seat, 22. The table of shevv-bread, and its dimensions, 23. Its crown and border of gold, 24, 25. Its rings, C(), 27-. Staves, 28. Dishes^ spoons, and bowls, 29. Its use, 30. The golden candlestick; its branches, bozcls, knaps, and flowers, 31 — 30. Its seven lamps, 37. Tongs and snuffers, 38. The iceight of the candlestick and its utensils, one talent of gold, 39. All to be made according to a pattern, shciced to Moses on the moiint, 40.