Deuteronomy
Tene 1. Thtae be the words which Moses spake\ The Jtee first verses of ihie ctuipter cont&in the iutroduetion to the rest of the book: they do not appear to be the work of Hoses, but were added probobly either b/ Joahua or Ezra.
On this side Jordan] -ujr3 bt-fber, at Vu jxuaagt qf Joidan, 1. 1. near or opposite to the place where the liraelites pasBed over after the death of Hoses. Though "^ap Sbtr, is used to si^ify both on this side and on the other tide, and the connexion in which it suoda can only determine the meaning; yet here it signifies neidter, but simply the p&ice or Jora where the Israuites jmtsed over Jortun.
A thevlain^ \. e. of Hoab— over o^atnef Gte Red sea — not the Red sea, for they were now brther from it than Ibey had yet been — the word sea, is not in the text, and the wcn-d tpp Suph, which we render red, does not signify tlie Red sea, unless joined with cn Yam, sea; here it must neeessvilr signify a piaee, in or adjoining to the plains of Hoabw Ptolemy mentions a people named Si^Aonite*, that dwelt in ArtMa Pelrea, nnd it is probable that th^ took their name from this place; but see the note from ZAghlJooL Num. xx. at the end.
Paran] This could not have been the Paran which was contiguous to the Red sea, and not far from mount Horeb; for the place here mmtioned lay on the very borders of the Promised Land, at a vast distance from the former.
Dizahab] The word should be separated, as it is in the Hebrew, 3ntn /H ZoAob. Ab Zahab signifiea gold! the Seotuagint have translated it tm xfuna, the gold mines, ana the Vulsat^ ubi aurwn est plurimutn, where there is much golo- It is more likely to be the name of n place.
Verse 2.] There are eleeen days' journey] The Israelites were eleven days in going from Horeb to Ksdesh- Sarnea, where they were near the verge of the Promised Land: after which they were thirty-ei^t years, wandering up and down in the viwii^ m dtia place, not being permitted, beeause of their rebellions, to enter into the promised rest, thou^ they were, the whole of that time, within a few miles of the land of Canaan!
Tarse 3. T^e fortieth year] This was a melancholy year to the Hebrews in difFerent respects; in the first month of this year Hiriam di^^um. xx. on the first day of king of Bashan, whi^ dwelt at Astaroth c in
5 On this side Jordan, in the land of Mx»b, began Moses to declare this law, saying,
o f The Lord our God Bpake unto ns ^ in Horeb, saying, Ye have dwelt long ■ eoough in this mount:
7 Turn you^ and take your journey, and go to the mount of the Amorites, and unto all the places nigh thereunto, in the plain, in the hills, and in the vale, and in the soutn, and by the seaside, to the Ifuid of the Canaanites, and unto Lebanon, unto the great river, the river Eophrates.
8 Behold, I have > set the land before you: go in and possess the land, which the Lord swsre unto your fathers, ■■ Abraham, Isaac, and Jatxb, to give unto them and their seed after tbem.
9 IT And ■> I spake unto you at that time, saying, 1 am not able to bear you myself alone:
10 The Lord your God hath multiplied you, and, behold, «ye are this day, as the stars of heaven for multitude.
the fifth month Aaron died, Num. xxxiii. 38. and about the conclusion of it, Hoses himself died.
Terse 6. Moses be^an to declare this lav] Began V^on kaheel, willingly undertook — to declare -nu tesr, to make bare, dear, i£a.fiiUy to explain this law; see the COOohision of the Pre&ce.
Verse 6. Ye have dwelt long enmigh, Ac] IVy came to Sinai in the third month afler their depertuie from Egypt, Exod. zix. 1, 2. and left it in the twentiNh of tbs second month of the second vear, so it appears ibey bad continued there nearly a whole year.
Land the Canaanites} That is, Phcenicia, the couBtry of Sidon aad the coasts of the Hediterraneao sea, from the country of the Philistines to mount Libanua. Tlte Canaanites and PhanieiaTis are often confounded.
Verse 7. OofeMenrani^aeilmaritol OntbeaouA of the land of Canaan towaraa the Dead sea.
IVte river Elnphrales] Thus Horn fixes the bounds of the land, to which on all qtmrters, the territories of lbs Israelites might be extended, dumld the land of Canasn, property so called, be found insuffident for them, llieir 80PTH border might extend to the mount of the Amoriiea, lieir WBST to the borders of the Hediterraneao sea. Their NORTH to Lebanon; and their xast border to the rmr Euphrates. And to this extent Solomon reigned; see 1 Kings iv. 21. So that, in his time at least, the promise to Abraham was literally Adfilled) see below.
Verse to. yit are lAu day lu &e tian o^ heatmjvr mtiltiiudeX This was the promise Ood made to Abrahan, Oen. XV. 6, 6. and Hoaes considers it now as amply fulfilled. But was it really soT Many sunpoee the exfTMsioa to be hyberbolical i and others, no friends to leveluiOD, think it a vain empty boast, because the stars, in dteii apprehension, amount to innumerable millions. Let us consider this subject. How many in number are the stars which i^pear to the naked eye? for it is by what ojipcaFt to the naked eve, we are bi he governed m thia busine^ for Ood brtmght Abraham forth abroad, i. e. out of doora, and bade him look towards heaven — not wirh a tclescwe, but with his naked eve^ Gen. xv. 6. Now I shall beg Ute obiector to come forth abroad, and look up in the bri^tnt and most CavoursUa night, sod count the stars — be need
11 (f The Lord Qod of jrour flitlien make you a thousand times bo many more as ve are, and UesB you, 'as he hath promised you I)
12 ' How can I myself alone bear your cumberaace, and your burden, and your Btr0e?
13 > Take " you wise men, and understanding', and known among your tribes, and 1 will make them rulers over yon.
14 And ye answered me, and said. The thing' which thou bast spoken is good Jbr u» to do.
16 So I took the chief of your tribes, wiee men, and known, * and * made them heads over rou, captains over thousands, and captains over Bundreds, and CEiptains over fifties, and captains over tens, and officers among your tribes.
16 And 1 charged yoor judges at that time, saying, Hear the causes between your brethren, aud ' judge righteously between every man and ' his brother, and the stranger thai it with him.
17 'Ye shall not ■respect persons in judgment: but ye shall hear the wnall aa well as the
Srreat; ye shall not be afraid of the face of man; or ^ the jud^ent is God's: and the the cause that is too hard for you, " bring it unto me, axul I will hear it
18 And I coHunanded you at that time, all the things which ye should do.
19 ir And wnen we departed from Horeb, ^ we went through all that great and terrible wilder- QMB, which ye saw by the way of the mountain of the Amorites, aa the Loan our God commanded us; and * we came to Kadesh-barnea.
20 And 1 eatd unto you, Ye are come unto the mountain of the Amorites, which the Loan our Qod doth give unto us.
21 Behold, the Loan thy God hath set the land before thee: go up and possess it, as the LoBD CSod of thy fathers hath said unto thee; ' fear not, neither be discouraged.
22 7 And ve came near unto me every one of you, and aala, We will send men before us, and they shall search us out the land, and bring us word again by what way we must go up, ^nd into what cities we shall come.
not be lerrified at their abuodaoce, die more they are, the more be con count; and I shall pledge myKlf to find a uuia l«T>fl}tf, in the rery last ceosua taken of this people, Num. uvi. for every atar he finds in the whole upper hsmisphece of heaven. The truth is. only about 3,010 atars ean be seen by the naked eye in both the northern and •oulhera hemi^herei; and the lunelites, iitdependeDily of women and children, were, at the above time, more than 600,000. And auppooe we even allow, that from the Isle discoveries of Dr. Herechel, anri others, with telescopes, which have magnified between 35 and 36,000 times, ihsre may be 75 mtllious of stars visible by the help of such iaslnimenis, which is the highest calculation ever made; yet Btill the divine word stands literally true; St. Katthew ssyi^ chap. 1. that the generations from Abraham to Christ were 42; now we find, at the second census, that the fighting men among the Hebrews amounted to 603,000; and the Israelites, who ha,ve never ceased to be a distinct people, hare so niultiplied as br to exceed the number of all the fixed stars taken together.
Veise 13u Take you toUt mm] O'oan tihaeamim, such as had gsined knowledse by great labour and study. Undenlanding, onai neoenim, peraooa of diseemment, judicious men. jriioirn,ST^y(iMtfli.perMiwprafiliaMiii (be ^qierationa of nature— capable of performing curious sod important works.
Terse 16. Captain* over Ounuandt, What a curieua and well-regulated ectmomy was that of the Israeliies! see its order oBd arrangement: 1. QOD the Kms and Supreme Judge. 2. Moeea, God's prime minister. 3. The Pncste consulting him by Urim and TTaanmim, 4. Hie Chi^, or princes of the twelve tribes. 6. Chiliarchs, or flSftnimi over ihotisosda. 6. CaUitriona, or captoinii over handreda. 7. "IVibunea, or captains over fifty men. & Decuriont, or captains over ten men; and 9. t^tctrt, parsons who mi^t be employed by the diRercnt chiefs in eaeculing partictilsr eommuds. All duse Iield their
S3 And the sayhig pleased me well: and * I took twelve men of you, one of a tribe:
34 And ^ they turned and went up, into the mountain, and came imto the valley of Kshcol, and searched it out.
25 And they took of the fruit of the land in their hands, and brought it down unto us, and brought us word again, and said, ■ It i» a good land which the Loan our God doth give us.
26 ^ Notwithstanding ye would not go up, but rebelled against the commandment ofthe Xoan. your God:
27 And ye murmured in your tents, and said. Because the Loan i hated us, he hath brought us forth out of the land of E^ypt, to deliver us into the hand^if the Amorites, to destroy us.
28 Whither shall we go up? our brethren have " discouraged our neart, sayine, " The people it greater and taller than we^Uie cities are great and wailed up to heaven; adod moreover we have seen the sons of the " Anakims
29 Then I said unto ytm. Dread not, neither be afraid of them.
30 f> The LoBD your God iduch goeth before vou, he shall %ht for you accordi^ to all that he did for you m Egypt before your eyes;
31 And in the wilderness, where thou hast seen how that the Lord thy God ' bare thee, as a man doth bear his son, in all the way that ye went, until ye came unto this place.
32 Yet in this thing, ■ ye did not believe the Lord your God,
33 ' Who went- in the wav before you, "to search you out a place to pitch your tents tn, in fire by night, to show you by what way ye shmild go, and in a cloud by day.
34 D And the Lord heard the voice of your words, and was wroth, * and sware, saying,
85 * Surely there shall not one or these men, of this evit generation, see that good land, which 1 sware to give unto your fathers,
36 » Save Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him wOl I give the land that he
autiiority from God, and yet were subject and aoeountabls to each other; see the notes on Num. iL
s Nub.
Verso 17. Ye shall not Ttspeet persons] Heb. facta. Let not the bold daring countenance of die rich or mighty, induce you to give on unrighteous decision: and let not the abject look of the poor man induce you eimef to favour him in an unri^teous cause, or to give judgment against him at the demand of the oppressor. Be nncorrupt aad incori-uptible, for the judgnunt U tfoif a— ye minister in theploce of Ood— act like him.
Verse 22. We will tend men h^ore us] See on Num. riii.
Verse 23. Cities — walled up to htaven] i. e. with very high walls, which could not be easilgr scaled. High walla around house^ &c. in these parts of Arabia, are still deemed a sufficient defence against the Arabs, who scarcely ever attempt any thing in the vtiy of plunder, but on haraebaek. The monaHlery on mmml Sinai is surrounded with very high waIIb, without any gate; in the upper part of the wall mere is a sort of window or opening, from which a basket is suspended tnr a pulley, by which both persons and ^oods are received into, and sent from the g'ace. It is me some with the convent of St. Anthony, in gypt; and this sort of walling is deemed a sufficient defence against the Arabs, who, as we have already observed, scarcely ever like to ali^t from their horses.
Verse 30. The Lord dialljlght for yori] In the Targum of OnkeloB, it is, The woan of Ike Lord ^alljtght for you. In a great number of places, the Targums or Chafdee paraphrases use (he term >«-i mtro wieyjnra dayeya, or vAovah, the word of the Lord, exsetly m the same way m which St. John ums the term h'yt, i'Ogo; in the first chaptpr of his Gospel. Many insrances of this have already owurred.
Verse 34. The Lord'^a wroA] i. e. His justies was ineensed — end be evidenced his displeasure against you: and he could not have bean a >u( God if be had not done so.
bath trodden upon, and to hia children, hecauee ' he hath ■ wholly followed the Lord.
37 " Also the Lord was an^y with me for your eakes, saying, Thou also enalt not go in thither.
38 " Bjtt Joshua the eon of N un, which * si andeth before thee, he shall go in thither; 'enconra^ bim, for he shall cause Israel to inherit It.,,,.,,
39 • Moreover your little ones, which 'ye said should be a prey, and your children) which in that day ( haa no knowledge between ffood and evil, they shall go in thither, and unto them will 1 mve it, and they shall possess it.
40 ^ But aa Jor you, turn you, and take your journey into the wilderness by the way of the Bed sea.
41 Then ye answered and said onto me, ' We have sinned against the Lord, we will go up and fight, according to all that the Lord our God commanded us. And when ye had girded on every raan his weapons of war, ye were ready to ffo np into the hill.
& And the Lord said unto me. Say unto tiiem, 'Oo not up, neither fight; for 1 am not among you; lest ye be smitten before your enemies.
43 So I spake unto you; and ye would not hear, but rebellel against the commandment of tne Lord, ■ and went preeumptuoualy up into thehiU.,..
44 And the Amoriles, which dwelt in that mountain, came out against you, and chased rou, > aa bees do, and destroyed you in Seir, enen unto Hormah.
45 And ye returned and • wept before the Lord; but the Lonn <* would not hearxen to your voice, nor give ear unto you.
Verw 37. Tlu Jjord too* angry wiA me) See on Numb. xz. 10, &c. where a particular seoount!■ given of the ain of Hoaes.
Verae 44. TIte Amorita — duued j/oul See the note on Numb. xiv. 40. — oa fteea do— by irreaiitible numbers.
Varae 46. According unio me day* thai ye abode there.] Tliey had been a long time at this place, see Numb. xiii. 27. XX. 1, 14, 21. And some think that the words mean, "Ye'dbode aa looc at Kadeah, vhen you came to it theseeond time, aa ye did at the firaU" Or, aecordinR to oihera, " While ve ware in Aat part of the deaart, ya eneamped at
1. As one grand object of the law of Qod was to instruct the people in those things which were calculated to promote their peace, and maure their prosperity i and as they were ^it to lose aigfat of their tpiriiual interasta, without a due attention to which, their teeidar intereata could not he promoted; Mosea, not only in this chapter, but through the whole book, c&lla upon them to recollect their former muerable situation, in whieh they held neither lift nor propcrttf, but at the aiil of a mercile— tyrant; and the great landnesa and power of God manifeeted in their deliveranoe bom a bondan that was as degrading as it was oftprsMtM. Ilteae tomgs properly remembered, would lead them to prize their biessingB, aiMl duly appreciate the mert^of their Maker.
2. But it waa not only tliis general display of God's kindness in the f^nnd act of their deliverance from Egypt, that be wished them to keep constantly in view: but aJso, Am gracious providence, which was manifested in every step Key took — which directed all their movementa, provided (or all their wanta, eontunpaUy diowing uhat they dwuld ddv hmc they dwuld do it, and also the most proper Hmc snd place for every act, whether reJt^^otu or nviL By bringing before them in om point of view, the hislofy of almost ^orfy years, in wnich the stranmst and most Btupmdoua oecurrenceo had taken place, that had ever been extwiited to the world; he took the readiest way to wqiffasa their minds, not only with their deep oUigation to God, batalso to Aaw them that they were people on irimniheir Maker had aet bis heart to do them good i and that if oiey Cnred him, tbey diould lack nothing that waa good. He li^ oat also faafiira them a biatory <tf their
46 'So ye abode in Kadesh maiqr days, according onto the days that ye abode there, CHAPTER 11.
for Ihe itniuuki tt m Anmiiillit, SI. HEN we turned, and took our jour- ^5SSJ?- ney into the wilderness by the way
of the Red sea, ■ as the Lord spake unto me: and we compassed mount Seir many days.
2 And (he Lord spake unto me, saying,
3 Ye have compaseed this mountain * long enough: turn you northward.
4 And command thou the people, saying, ■ Ye are to pass through the coast of yotir brethreti the children of Esau, which dwell in Seir; and they shall be afraid of you: take ye good heed unto yourselves therefore,
5 Meddle not with them; for I will not give Tou of their land, *no, not so much as a Toot breadth; * because 1 have given moont Seir unto Esau /or a possession.
6 Ye shall buy meat of them Ibr Toaaert that ye may eat; and ye shall also buy water tbrau for money, that ye may drink.
7 For the Lord thy God hath blessed thee a' all the works of thy hand: he knoweth thy wafting through this great wilderness: * thtan fattj years the Lord thy God hath been with thee; thou hast lacked nothing,
8 ' And when we passed by from our brethren the children of Esnu, which dwelt in Seir, through
miscarriages end rebellion, and Ihe privationa and cvili they had suffered in conaeqaenoc^ that tbia might aet as a continual wming, and thus beoomi^ in the hands of God, a weventive of crimes.
3. If everycArirtianwere thus to call his paat life into review, he would see eaual prooh of God's gracioos r^ ^lards to hia body and soul — equal proo& of eternal merer in providing for his deliverance from the gallii^yo^aod oppressive tyranny of sin, as the Israelites bad in their do> liverance from ^ypt { and equal displays of a moM gracious providence, tnat had also been his ineesaant companion throu^ all me changes and chances of hia mortal Ufe, guiding him by its counsel, that he mi^t be at laat received into glory. Dreader, remember what God haa done for thee, during Ihy forty, fif^, Ac. years. He haa noariih* ed, fed, clothed, protected, and saved Ihee: how often, and how powerfully, has his Spirit ftrove with thee 1 how often, and how impresaivelr, thou hast heard hia voiee in hia Ooapel and in his providencea I Remember the good reto: lutiooa diou hast made, the ingratitude and diaiAedieaeo that have marked thy life: how hie vows are tttB umq thee, and how his mercy still spara thee I AndwUttnoa live so aa to perish forever 1 God forbid. Hesftawaiiatobe giacioua, atra rejoices over thee to do thee good. Leam from what is before thee, how thou sbooldest fear, hm, believe in, and obey thy God. The Lamb of God Asi toketh away the sin of Oe world, is still before UiethRns: and whosoever cometfa unto God throu{4i him, shall in nowise be cast out. He who believes these thingswitfa an upright heart, will soon be enabled to live a aanctified lift.
NOTES ON CHAPTER H. Verae 3. T\im you norOivard, ] From motnt Smr, in order to gel to Canaan, "niia was not the way they weiH before, vii. by Kadesh-bamea; but they were to pmeed between Edom on the one hand and Hoab and Amttob « the other; ao as to enter into Canaan tfuvugfa the Ind oC the Amorites.
Terse 7. TJu Lord hath blessed Ass, &e.1 God bsd given them much property, and therefore they bad no nead of plunder; Oiey had gold and ailw to bi^ the pRnendor they needed, and therefore God would iwt permit them to lakaangr thing by violenet.
ihe way of the plain from ■KlaUi, and from Ezion-faber, we turned aod pasted by the way of the wttderness of Mo^.
9 And the Lobd aaid unto me, ' Distress not the Moobitea, neither contend with them in battle: for I will not give thee of their land a
' poBeesfiion *> because I have given '> Ar unto * the children of hot/ar a possesBion.
10 ** The Emuns dwdt therein in times past, a people ^reat, and many, and tall, aa * the Anakims;
11 Wliich also were accounted giants, as the Anakims; but the Moabitea call them Emims.
12 ' The Horims also dwelt in Seirbeforetime; but the children of Esau > destroyed them from before them, and dwelt in their ^ stead; as Israel did unto the land of his posaeasMn, whicfa the Lord ffave unto them.
13 Now rise up. nidi, and get yon over ' tbe * brook Zered. And we went over the brook Zered.
14 And the space in which we came ifrom Kadesh-bamea, until we were come over the brook Zered, wo* thirty and eight years j » uiUfl all the generation m the men of war were vrasted out from among the host, " as the Loan aware unto them.
15 For indeed the " hand of the Lobd was against them, to destroy them from among the host, until they were consumed.
16 1 So it came to paaa, when all the men of war were consumed and dead from among the
17 That the Lord spake unto me, saying,
19 And when thou comeat nigh over against the children of Ammon, distreaa them not, nor meddle with them: for I will not give thee of the land of the children of Ammon any poasession: because I have ^ven it unto p the children of Lot Jor a possession.
20 (That also was accounted a land of giants: giants dwelt therein in old time; and the Ammonites call them < Zamzummims;
21 ' A people great, and many, nnd tall aa the ' Anakims; but the Lord destroyed them before them; aiu they succeeded them, and dwelt in their stead:
23 As he did to the children of Esau, ■ which dwelt in Seir, when he destroyed > the Horims from before them; and they succeeded them, and dwelt in their stead even unto this day:
23 And "the Avims which dwelt in Hazerim,
VenelO. TKeEvUvudfueltliurtin] CalroetmppoM* that iheHMopIo were deatrored in the war made against tbeiB fay Cbadorlaomer and bis alliea, Oen. xiv. 6. Lot poSMMd dwir country aA«r the dMtruotion of Sodom and Qomonte. They are generally osteemed aa gianU—profaaUr they were a haniy, fiarce, and tsrrible people, who Uvea like the wandering Araba, on the plunder of othere. HU vaa safficient to gain them the appellatioo of gianta, or mea of prodjgioue stature. See below.
Veraell. IWuehaUovtnaeeotmUd gianU] Tidtianat • fortansta version. Tbe word is not gianU, but a^f^ /SfpjhafuklheMineof&iMopfo. Itappearflthattheffnim, tbs Anakim, and the Jetphaim, ware probably the same psoi^e, eajled by different namea in the di/Temt countries vtier* tbw dwelt— for disy appear, original ly, to have been a kind of wandering freebooters, who lived by plunder. See on die preeediag verse. It must be granted, however, that there wen ssveral men of ihia roee of extraordinary staiore. And banc* all gigaatie men have been called Jtoyfcaisi. See on Oen. Ti. 4. and xiv. 5. BntweweUknow thai /ear sad public report have often added whole eufalta to men's beighL It mts under this infloenee that the spies aet«d when they brougbtdiedirfusrteningr^ortmeniion- «d Numbers xiii. 33.
Terse 12. TV tbrtfiu alao dmtt in Snr\ Tm vhO* flf this verse wss pctAiUy sddad hf Jodns or &ra>
even unto ' Azznh, * the Caphtorima, which came forth out of Caphtor, destroyed them, and dwelt in their Btead.)
24 Tf Rieeye up, take your I'ourney, and 'pass over the river Arnon: behold, I have given intt» thine hand Silionthe Amorite, king ofHeshbon, and his land: ' begin to possesa it, and contend with him in battle.
25 » This day will I begin to put the dread of thee, and the fear of thee, upon the nations that are under the whole heaven, who shall hear report of thee, and shall tremble, and be in anguiA because of thee.
26 And I sent messengers out of the wilderness of Kedemoth, unto Silion.king ofHeshbon, ■ with words of peace, saying,
27 ^ Let me pB.BB through thy land; I will go along by the highway, I will neither turn unto the right-hiuid nor to the left.
88 Thou Shalt sell me meat for money, that 1 may eat; and give me water for money, that I may drink: " only I will paee through on my feet:
20 (■* As the children of Eaau which dwell in S^, and the Moabites which dwell in Ar, did unto me;) nntil I shall pass over Jordan, into the land which the Lord our God giveth us.
30 •But Sihon, king of Heehbon, would not let us pass by him: for ' the Lord thy Qod ' hardened his spirit, and made bis heart obstinate, that he might deliver him into thy hand, as appear^ this day.
31 And the Lord said unto me, Behold, I have begun to ^ give Sihon and his leind before theet begin to possess, that thott mayest inherit his
32 1 Then Sihon came out against us, he and all his people, to fight at Jahaz.
33 And ^ the Lord our Gh>d delivered him before us: and i we smote him, and his sons, and
34 And we took alt hia cities at that time, and •"utterly destroyed "the men, and the women, and the little ones, of every city, we left none to remain;
35 Only the cattle we took for a prey unto ourselves, and the spoil of the cities which we took.
36 ' From Aroer, which t*by the brink of the river of Arnon, and ^rom the city that is by the river, even unto Gilead, there was not one city too strong for us: f the Lord our God delivered all unto us:
37 Only unto the land of the children of Ammon thou camest not, nor unto any_ place of the river *Jabbok, nor untathe cities in the moon-
Ven 20. That aUo mu aeeounted a land of gianU^ That waa accounted ihe land or territory of the Jtt^kaim,
ZamMummim] Supposed to be the mmaattttZuximf Oen. ziv. 6. Of these anejeat peopleweknowverTlittlat they were probably inoonsiderable tribes or elan^ "parsning and puraued, each other's prey," till at last a tirmger totally destroyed or subdued them, and their name became either eninct or absorbed into that of their conqoerora. From the lOdi to the 12tb, and from the 20ih to the 23d ▼erse inelaaiTe, ve have certain historical remarks introduced, which do not aeem tob3.ve been madeby Moees,bat rather bv Joshm or Esra. By the infroduenm of thesa verses, um ihresd Ot the narrattve suffcrs eonsidersUe intermpbon. Dr. Kennicott conaidera both these passages ta be iaterpotationa. That they eouM not harve made s psrt of the speech of Moses, orispnally, needs little nroof.
Verse A» the children of Eeau wMcft (tissd te
Verse 37. Only wta the land of the thildm qf Ammm Aau camett not] Ood gare them their commission — ■ad dioss «^ were u be eut off, the eup of whose iniqtdty was full, nmeughth* Moabitea and Ammonites were thus
2 And the Lord said unto me, Fear him not: for I will deliver him, and all hie people, and his land, into thy hand; and thou ehalt do unto him as thou didst unto " Sihon, kingof the Amorites, which dwelt at Heshbon.
3 So the Lord our God delivered into our hands Og also, the king of Bashan, and all his peo))]e: ' and we smote him until none was left to him remaining.
4 And we tooK allhia cities at that time, there was Dot a city which we took not from them, threcBCore citiee, * all the region of Argob, the kingdom of Og in Bashan.
5 All these cities viere fenced with high walls, gates, and bars; besides unwalled towns agreat nlany.
6 And we utterly destroyed them, as we did onto Sihon, king » of Heshoon, utterly destroying the men, women, and children, of every city.
7 But all the cattle, and the spoil of the cities, we took for a prey to ourselves.
8 And we took at ihat time out of the hand of the two kings of the Amorites, the land that V€t3 on this side Jordan, from the river of Arnon nnto mount Hermon;
9 ( IVUich ' Hermon the Sidonians call Sirion; wd the Amorites call it * Shenir;)
10 • All the cities of the plain, and all Gilead, and '*all Bfishan, unto Salcnah and Edrei, cities of the kingdom of Os in Baehan.
r<ed, dwy rapiited good vith evil, for ihey fbti^t Bgaimt Israsliles. aad east them out of dwir pos-Kssioos, JuHg. xi. 4, K. 2 Chron. xx. 1. Ac and coromitted ihe moat ■bocking erueltiea. Soe Amos i. 13. Honoe tiod enacted a Uw, tnu none of these people should enter into the congragatkm of the Lord, even to their tenth generation. See com. zxiii. 3—6.
NOTES ON CHAPTER lU. Verw i. AU &» region iff Argob] 3«« >an Col Aebel Argob, all the cools or cord of Argob: this expreeaioiL whico is used in various other porta of Scripture, see in the original, Amos vii. 17. Mic. ii. 5. DeuL xuii. 9. Psal. XV. C. shows that anciently land was measured by linea or cords of a cenain length, in a similar wav to that bv the chain among us, and Uie mhoiniis, or cord, among me Egyptians. Some think that it was the region of Argob that waa afterwards called the fQgioD of Iraehmitu.
Verse 9. Htrtnon Ou SidonSanM call — £%«mr] I suppose this verse (o have been original^ a marginal remark, which afterward ^t incorponted with the lezt| or an addition by Joshua or Ezra.
Verse II. Og, king qf Baahan, remained] Ogwaa the last king of the Amorites; his kingdom upeara to have taken its name from the bill of Bathan — tba country has been vince sailed Batatua.
Hi* bedstead was — <if iron] Iron was probably used, partly for its atreoKtb and durability, and partly to prevent noxious vermin from harbouring in it.
Jaitnotin Itabbatht{f Uudiildrmo/ Ammon?] The bedstead was probably taken in some battle between the AmmonitCB and Amorilea, in which the fteioer had gained the vietory. The bedstead was earned • trophy, aod placed in Rahbaih, iriueh i^ipeara from 2 8am. xiL 36. to tevabeenthsnws'effyof the childm of Ammon.
of the remnant of ' {pants^ behold, his bedstead was a bedstead of iron; i« it not in 'Rabbath of the children of Ammon? nine cubits vias the length thereof, and four cubits the Iveadth of it, aller the cubit of a man.
13 1[ And this land, irhick we possessed at that time, ^ from Aroer. which t# by the river Arnon, and half mount Gilead, and < the cities thereof, gave I unto the Reubenites and to the Gaditea.
13 >> And the rest of Gilead, and all Bashan, bein^ the kingdom of Og, gave I unto the half tribe of Manasseh: all the region of Argob, with all Badmn, which was called the laoa of giants.
14 I Jatr the son of Manasseh took all the country of Argob 'unto the coasts of Geshuri and Maachathi; and > called tiiem after his own name, Bashan-havoth-jahr, unto this day.
15 And I gave Gilead unto Mat^ir.
16 And unto the Reubenites "and unto tfae Gadites I gave from Gilead even unto the rrver Arnon half the valley, and the border even unto the river Jabbdt, • toAicA is.the border of the children of Ammon:
17 The plain also, and Jordan, and the coast thereof, from p Chiimeroth ■> even unto the sea of the plain, even the salt sea, ■ under A^dothpisgah, eastward.
Is Tl And I commanded you at that time, sajr- Ing, The Lord your God hath given you this land to possess it: < ye shall pass over armed before yourbrethrenthe children of Israel, all that are " meet for the war.
19 But your wives, and your little ones, and your cattle, (for I know that ye have much cattle) shall id>iae in your eities which I have given you;
20 Until the Lord have given rest unto your brethren, as well as unto you, and until they also possess the land which the Loan your God hath given them beyond Jordan: and men shaH
Nine rubila was the length— four cubiti the breadth^ Allowin.^ Ihe bedstead 10 have iecn one cubit longer than Og, which is oeriainly sufficient, and ftllowinf ihe culiitto be about eifihietn inclut long, for tliis is, perhopa, the average of the cubit a man, then Og was tiBtne fttt high. Tliis may be deemed extraordiiwry, and perhapa almost incredible; and therofore many conunentalors faav& according to their fiwcy, Unglkaud tk* bed*iemd, nd ■Aortoied the man — making the former one-diird lonnr than the person who lay on it that they might i«doeaUg to Mix cubits: but even ia this way Bey aiake him tas feel six inches hs^A.
On this subject the rabbins have trifled moat sinfully. I shall give one Mwoimen. In tbe Targum of iamAaobeS Uzziel, on Numb. xzi. 36, 36. it is said, " diat Og having observed that the camp of the Iiraeliua extended atz Bil«& he went and tore up a —ff'wm six miles in its boae^ aad put it on his Itead, and carried it towardstbe amtf, nt ha might ihrow it on ihe Israelites and destroy tbem; bat the wrd qf the Zntrd prraared a isomi, which bored a bole in ihe mountain over his head, so lhat it fell down vpm his shouMers; at the same time, his teeth growing ooc ia all directions, stuck into Ihe mountain, so that be coaU not cast it off lus head. Moses fwte was hiaself ins cubiu high,) seeing Og thus eniaaglsd^ lotdc an ax ta* bits long, and having leaped ton ouUli in baigH sKnA Og on uie ankle-bone, so that he fell, and was aUm."
From this account, the dialance from the so/e of O^a foottohisaniUewasmiHyeubiuinlisngthI IgiveilBaasa very slight specimen of rsMnoieal comaient. I could ^piols plaooa from the Talmud, in which Og is slated to bs several miUa high. This relatian about Og I amass W be also a hiatoriesil note added bv a subaequeni haiiia.
Verse 14. Badum^voth-jatr] Bashan of dis tUim
Airing Thine eyea have seen all that the Lord your God hath done unto tbeac tno kinea^ so ehall the Lord do onto all the kiogdoma wbithcr thou pasEcst.
24 O Lord Ood, thou hast begun to show thy servtuit ■ thy ereatoem and thy migticy band: for ■ what God m there in heaven or in earth, that can do According to thy works, and aeeordiDff to thy tniffht 7
25 I pray thee, let me go over, and see ^ the good land that its beyond Jordan, that goodly mountain, and Lebanon.
£9 But the Lord * was wroth with me-foryour sakea, and would not hear me: and the Lord said unto me. Let it suffice thee; i^ak no more unto me of this matter.
27 ' Get thee up into the top of ' Pisgah, and lifl \ip thine eyes westward, and northward, and soutDMrard, aiod eastward, and behold it with thine eyes: for thou shalt not go pter this Jordan.
-SS Bat * cbar^ Joshua, and encourage him, and strengthen him: for he shall go over before this people, and he shall cause them to idierit die fand v^hich tboa shalt see.
29 So, we abode in ' the valley over against Beth-peor.
Venn 24, 25. The pmyer of Moaea leeorded in thne two Tane% sad his own nfleetionB on it, vat 26. sra vAry sffiMsting. He had mfFbred much, both m body ftndrouM, in bringing Ibe people to the border* of the promiaed land; and it woa natunl enough for htm to wisti to see them eeubtMwd Ht it, and to 'cnjoy s portion of that inheriieoce himself which he knew waa a type of tbo heaveoly country. But iKHwiibetsndin; hie very cameat prsjrer, end Ood'e eqweiel favour bnranb hiai, be wee not permitted lo go over Jordan 1 He had i^ved the Spirit of Ood, and he paaaad a aeri fence agautat bim of exeluaion from the promiaed tend. Yet be permitted him to >ee it; end
Kve him the ftUleat aasGrancea that the people, whom be d brougfaC out of ^Tpt, ttmid posseae it Tbua Ood may eboosa to denrire tlioaa of earthly poeMawoaa, lo whom be is neverttwlen detcnainsd to give a heavenly inberitanoe.
Verge iS. LetU niJUa Ottt] ■f> 2^ rak lae, Tlun u an abtauiance to thu. TbounoM had lioiMur enough idreatdr, and in«j well diapenao with going over Jordan. He rarely haa no reaeon to complain, who L> token frem earthly feli«iiy to heavenly gloiy. In thia act Ood abowed to Mo- ■e* both hia goodneaa and aeverity.
Veree 28. But charge Joakua, dtc.] Give hint authority IB (he eight of ^ people t let them aee lhat he baa the same eommttauin which I gave to thee. Encourage JUne— for he will meet with many diffiouJtiea in the work to wliich he ia called. And slrMglHm him — ahow him my onhiling promiaet, and exhort him to put hia tniat in rat) mUnBiJhFk4akaltgooP«rM'ortl/U»pa>pl»,aadAalt eoKsrl/kefM to inlurit Me iana; of ibia letniln veat perfeeily aaaured
Verae 29. BtOirpeor.} ^ia was a eily in the kingdom of Sliofi, kir^ uf tba Amoritea, and oa btih no aigninea a AotMe, the place probably had ita name from a lantplt of tbogedPcor, who waawonhipped there. Poor waa nearly tliO eame among the BCoalnte^ that Pruqnu waa among ibe BoHBna: the obaceoe god of au ofaoeone peq>le. Itiis we have already aeeo.
jodgmenls, which I teach you, for to do Iktm, that ye may live, and go in and possess the land which the LoBo God of your fathers giveth you.
2 I Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish cmght from it, that ye may keep the cummaadments of ihe LoKD your God which I command you.
3 Your eyes Imve seen what the Lord did becanse of > Baal-peor: for all the men that followed Baal-peor, the Lord thy God hath de- Btroyed them from among you.
4 But ye that did cleave unto the Lord your God are alive every one of you this day.
5 Behold 1 have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the Load mv God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither yo go to possess it.
6 Keep therefore aild do them; for this is ■ your wisdom and your understaoding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.
7 For "what nation ie there *o great, who hcUh ■> God so nigh unto them, as the Lord our God IS in all things thai we call upon him Ar?
8 And what nation is fAere so great, thatna'th statutes and judgments so righteous as all thi" law, which I set oefore you thtaday?
0 Only take heed lo thyeeK*, and *keep thy sonl diligently, p lest thou forget the things which thme eyea have seen, aiKi lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy file: tmt <> teach tbem thy sons, and thy bods' sons;
10 Specialiy ' the day that thou stoodeet before the Lord tby God in Horeb, when the Lobo said unto me. Gather mc the people together, and I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me aU the days that they ahall live tipon the earth, and that they may teach their children,
11 And ye eame near and stood under th« mountain: and the 'mountain burned with fire
cenung JliMc»and.AMAtM, was designed to be typioal of tbo procedure of Ida iaatoe and giaee In the aalvaiioo of man. 1. "nie land « Canaan ww a Qrpe of llie kinedom of heaven. 2: The law, which ahowa tbe bolincsa ofuod, and the exceeding einAilnen of aio, could not bring the people to tlie poeaeeaion of that kingdom. 3. Moaea may probably be ooneidered here as the enUem ef tluu law by which ta the knowledge of ain but not redemplioa from it A. Joshua, Ihe aaoM as.Anu^ the- name eignifybig- a £bmomr, ia siqwinied to bring ihe people into the reel wfaiefa Ood haa provided for th»i) tfaua, it ia by Jeaua CkriU alone thai the soul ia aoeed; fined for, and broueltt into the poaaeaaion of the heavenly inheritance, aee John i. 17. Oalat ii. 16. ui. 12, 13, 24. for he ia the eiul ^OuUvt the great wope and design of the law, far rigkteoutnmt for JuitUteaiicn, to tbem that believe, Kom. x. 4. Such a use as thia, every pioas reader may make of the dream— ataneea reeorded nete, wtthout the danger of pibbing analogy or metaphor beyoiid their reasonable limits.
NCrreS ON CHAPTER IV.
Verae 1. Hearken — unte Ou erATurse] EYery thing that ootieenwd the ritea and ceremoniea of religion— Jsno- MSirra, all dial ootMemed mattera td' civil right and wrone.
Verfe2. Yt tkaU riot add\ Aaj book, dutpta-,9tT*t^ vanL whiefa I have not ^xilceni nor sive any cenmenl^ that lias any tendenoy to eonmpi, veakea, or deatray say part of thia revelation.
Y» tluM not-diminlM Ye shall not only not take away any loiger portion of this word, but ye ohall not ikke one jot Of IUU» from the law. It is that word of Ood that Mdtlh/oroMr.
Varae6. Ktep~-Anddothm; fitrlhU 'u yourieUdom} There waa no node of wonhip at thia tinw on the fooe oi the earth that waa not wicked, ofaeeene, puerile, feoliA, or ridiculoua, except that eatabmied by Ood biraaelf among the laraeHtea. And every nart of ibia token in its es»- ntxiffK and re/spane^ Aay be Indy called a wiea asd rea^ aonakU tmvitit.
T%s wartoiis' iftsff My, Surtiy thio gnat nation » • tciM Slid undtraiamMng pcoplt.) Alumt-ill the aatteia
13 " AiiJ the Lord spake unto you out of the midst oi' the fire: "ye heard the voice of the words, but saw no einiilitude; " ooly 'ye heard a voice.
13 " Aod he declared uoto you his covenant, whioh he commanded you to perform, even * ten commandments i and ■ he wrote them upon two tableg of slone.
14 And the Lord commanded m6 at that time to teach you statuteb and judgments, that ye might do Lhcm inthe land wbitSer ye go.over to possess 'L
15 Tl * Take ye therefore good heed unio yourselves: for.ye saw no manner of similitude oa the day that the Lord spake unto you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire:
16 Lest ye * corrupt yourselves, and '' make you a graven image, toe similitude of any Qgure,
17 The likeness of any beast that u on^the earth, the likeoess of aoy winged fowl thotSieth in the air,
18 The Ukeneas of any thing that creepeth on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the waters beneath the earth:
19 And lest thou ''lifl. up thine eyes uoto heaven, and when thou scest the sun, and the moon, and the star^ even < all the host of heaven, shouldeet be driven to ^ worship them,, and serve them which the Load thy God hath
in the earth shoved that they had formed (hu twinion of Um Stnnriif bor rowing from ibem the prineipu put of their ^d cod©. ■ Taka kwiy whu Am ftnd Europe trbelber atuiaU or modem, liave borrowed from the Ma- Mie lawa, and yow leave little liehind that oan be cajled ezcetleat.
Keep Iky aoui diUgenilyl Be miod^il of thy «lem^ iaterests. Wboterverbecomesofthe&odyitBliecareof thecoui.
iMt thoa forgei] Ood does bis works, that ihey may be had in everla^ng remembrance; and he that./ornate them, forgets his own mercies. Besides, if a iam fmsM the ■moik of God on his sou], he loses that work.
Leal they dmH/romlhyluart} It ia notmffiaiaot to kyup divine uiings in ihe msnwry, thn must be laid op iatbsAsorf. Thv word km I huidm m my hMrt, waya David, Ikat I might lut ein awwaM. ihet. The life of God ID lUe soul of man can alone |>reBerve the soul to life everlaMing: and this grace must be retaitied all the day of our l^e. Wfaeo Adam fell, his condition woa not ameliorated by the reflection that he had been once in parad*w— DOi does it avail Satan noi^ that he was ouoe an angel of lidu. Thoae who kt the grace of God dafNUt from their nearta, lose that gmee t and those who lose the grace bll from the ^race; and as soma have Mlea and risn no more, so. roay others; therefore, take h*ad to Ikyeetf, dec. Were it impossible for men finally to fall from the gnce of God, axhortatiom of this kind Mud never been given, because they would have been umeeeanryi and God never does an unneoessary thing.
ButlaaiAlketulkyeota] If amaaknowthoTOAh-ofhls own soul, he will feel die importaoce of the salvatioaof the souls of his fiunily. ThoM who atgltc^famUy religion, neglect pernnat religion: tf more attention were pud to the fermer, even among those called rel^oua people, we riMwld soon have a better state of civil aociety. Oa^mily ratigUm God lays mnch stress; and no head of a family can neguct it without endangering the final salvatioo of bis own soul.— Seethe note at the candtuion of Oen. xviii. aod that at the end of Geo. xix. and the note on chap. vi. 7.
Verse 15. Ye eaa no manner of mmiUiudei How- Boaver God choae to a^iear, or manifest himself, he took ear* never to aeemne ony describable fbrm-^Us would baveiK>j)MgsiiwnA^beeauMhAiB«SpiaiT, and they «4k) wordup bim nwU tsoraUp Aim tn s^'nt wad {ft fmlA. These outward things tend to draw the mind out of tusU; and dilTuae it on sensible, if not sensusl, (Ejects; and thus spiritual worship is prevented, and the Holy OtMit grieved. Pcrwns aeling in thia way <U) nmr kaow much of iba neligion of the heart..
^0 But tlie Lord hath taken you, and "broogbC you forth out of the iron i'urnace, er«t out of Egypt^ " to be unto him a people of inheritance, as ye are this day.
21 Purth^more "the Lord vtos angry with me, for your sokes, and sware that I should not go over Jordan, and that I should not go vi unto that good land, which the Lord thy God givelfa thee for an inheritance:
22 But f I must die in this land, 1 1 most not go over Jordan: but ye shall go over, and possess ' that good land.
33 Take need unto Tourselves, ■ lest ye forget the covenant of the Lord your God, which ne made with you, t and make you a grareainaffe, or the likeness of any lAtng. which the LoEo^y Grod hath forbidden thee.
24 For " the Lord thv God it a eouBuniiiig fire, even " ^ jealous Goo.
25 H'Whea thou shalt beget dtfldren, chSdren's cfaildr^ and ye tdiall have remained long in the land, and ' shall corrupC ytmnelves, and make agraven ima^e, or tlieliKenessof an^ thing, and ■ shall do eviT in the sjght of the Loaa Uiy God, to provoke him to anger:
86 ' I call neaven and earth to witness against you ihie day, Uiat ve shall soon utterly perish from ott the land whereunto ye go over Jordan to possess it; ye shall not prokong yntr days upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed.
Vers^ 16. T^e liJceneai f(f moZe or femaU\ Such as Baal-peor and tlte Roman Priamu; Aehluroih «r Jjt> tarle and the Greek and Komao Fenus i after irium mart naiioDs of the world literally loeni a vhorinm.
Verse 17. TV Ukeneto f(f any mut, ao.] Such as the Egyptian god Apia, who was worahipfed under the form of a white bitU — the iii* and hatek, ammg lbs FOWLS, had Uao divine hoinmrs paid to them — te^enta and the croeotkte among ksftilzs { bcaides menka/e, dof, cate, the Korabmta, teeke, and oniatu! See this cxpUuned at Woe, Exod. xx. i.
Verse l£i. When thou aeeat the aun, and Ike moan, mad the stars) The worship of the heavenly bodies was ths oldest species of idolatry. Hose who had not the know ledge of the true God, were led. to consider the sua, moon^ plawla aodatan, SB Mttoidy «lf-«uati^but ibeautbora of all the bleasiaga posseased bf mankisd. The know ledge of a rattontu a^tesi of astronomy) sarred lo dcairay ihis Bupentitioni and very litlte of it remadas now in (m world, except among a finr Christian and Mobammedaa mMrologera i ihoae mtsero^ie sinnera who endeavour, as much as possible, to revive the old idolatry, while vainly professing to believe in the true God! Nor ■■ itio w doidited that Ood will proceed with ihesi as hfe baa doaa bfold wilh the worshippers of the beet of beaven. Ssod philtMot^y is next in impoftanee to sound dhinity; aad ii» the study of the work of grace, is that of the operuioBs of God in nature; for these vieible things make known his eternal power and godhead.
Verso 20. Oat the trmfumaat] Vnm this mention of the woai iron furnace, there c(Ui be littk daiAt dial the Israetitea were employed in E^ypt in the most kborious works of metatiurgy.- Dig^ng, smeltinft sad forging of tron, in so hot a chmaie, must have beea expressive works indeed. '
Verse 21. TV Ziord ims angry tnA ne] Andifvi* so as to debar ne from eniwing into the Prsniaad Land; can you think to escape^ if gaO^ of gnater |«o«*> eatiotui
Verse 2*. Thy Ood is a eonauming fire\ TImv and seen him on the mount as an jowonewrting firet whue ai|>- pearing to Hoses, and giving the law— and tbeybsdma nim as a conrnming fire in the case of Korabp Dwha^ Abiram, and their company. They had, therefore, every food to expwt firms hia ajqwstmtiooi sad miy eril todread from bis displeaaure.
Terse 26. / coH Aearen and tarA to witneaa MgmimMi you} A most solemn method of adjuration, ia use < all QOtiona in the worW. So Virgil, An. xii. ITfi; <
9T And the Loud ■ shall leatter ycm among the natione, and re shall be lefi fevr in number among the heatlien, whither the Lord shall tend you;
28 And ■ there ye ehoU serve eods, the work of men*flhand«, wood and stone, "which neither «ee, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell. -
29 'Bat if from thence thou shall Beek the X.oitD thy God. thou shalt find kim, if thou seek him with all thy heart, and with all Ihv sonl..
So When thou art in tribulation, and all these thinfirs are come upon thee, • even in the latter tlftys, if thou 'turn to the Loan thy.God, and shnlt be obedient unto his voice;
31 (For the Lord thy God t'« fa merciful Ood;) he will not forsake thee, neither dei^troy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which he swnre onto them.
32 TT For ask now of the days that are past, whieh were before thfie, since the day that Got! treated man upon the earth, and as^ ' from the
Qod &nd man being called upon to bear tcsdnony to the tnidl of wh&t wOB spoken, thai if there woa any flaw orintineeiity, it might be detected; and if any crime, it might not go unjiuoiBiied. Such appMlB to uod, for such purpoaes, Ao\r at once both the ongtn and uu of oaths. — Sm the Twte on chap. vi. 13.
Yem 27. 7iu Lord ahall ieoUer you ammg Uu natlmu] This was amply verified in their diSn^ copti'vitiM BDd ditperaions.
- VoM 2SL There ye thatt *tna god^-teood and time] 'Bam wJU also tame of the laraslite^ not only is their captiviiiea, but also in their own land. And it mt^ buw be Jilerally the case with the ten tribe* who were carried mway captive)iy the Aasyrione: and of vhon rendenee DO man at prMentkoova any thinj with certainty. That they rtill exist, there can be no tuubt; but they are now tnoet jM-otiably, so completely incorporated with the idolaters^ among whom they dwdl, aa to be no longer diatinpiishable. Yet Ood can gather them,
YcT« 1». Bui if from thence thmi ^lalt seek Oa Lard} Ood is long-MifFenng and of, tender mercy, and waits ever ready to receive a backsliding soul when it returns to him. Is Dot this promoft left on record for the encouragement aad sahratien of lost Israel?
Versa 30. When Hutu art isi tTOuUMtion— in the laUer clqw] jLte not tktse the times nvoimt of? And is there not still hope for Israeli. Could we see ihem become cesdons for tfarir oipr law and nligious observances — could we see them humble themaelvea hefora die God of Jacob — could we see them conduct their public worship.with any tolerable deceram: — could we see them zealous to avoid every moral evil, in^utrin^ the road to Zton, vilh dieir bees thidterward; dwn might we hop» that the redemptioD of Israel was at hand: but, alas I there is DOt Um must diatant evidenoe of any thing of the kind, exeept m a very few solitary instances. — Iley are, perlu^n, in the present day, more lost to every sacred principle of their own ihsiitutiene, than thev have ever been since iheir retura from the Babylooivi oapiivily. By whom ■hall Jacob arise? far in this sense, as is Mtal/«'deeply hJlen, and greatly degraded 1
Verse 33. Did ever people hear the voice ^ God\ It ■eeras lo have been a general belief^ that if God appeared to men, it was for the purpose of destroying them. And indeed moal of die extraordinary maniusutiws of God were in the way of Judgment i mit here it was difiereaL God did.^>pear iD a aoveKign and axuaordioary manneri but it was for the deliverance and support of die people. 1, Ihey heard his voice speaking with them in a distinct articulate manoer. 2. They saw the fire, the symbol of bis preeeoce, the appearances of wfaioh demonstrated it to be supernatural. % Notwilhstandii^ God appeared so terrible, yet no person was daatrtryad, for he came not to destrof, but to save.
one side or hearen imto the other, whether there hath been any such thing as this great
33 * Did ever -people hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as thou tuist heara, and live!
34 Or hath C*od assayed to ^o and take hhn a nation from the midst of another nation, ■ by temptations, " by siffna and by wonders, and by war, and "by a mighty hand, and - by a etretched-out arm, p and By great terrors, according' to ail thai the Lord your God did (br you in Egypt before your eyes?
35 llnto thee it was showed, that thou mightest know that the LoRb he t* God; ' there ii none elee beeide him.
36 Out of heaven he mode thee to hear hu voice, that he mi?ht inatruct thee: and upon earth he showed thee his great fire: and thou heardeet his words ont of the midat of the fire.
Verse 34. From Ae midat ((f another notwrn] Thio waa a most extraordinary thing, that a whole people eonsislins of upward of 600,000 eneetive men; besides women and chiklren, riioald, without striking a blow, be brought out of ihe midst of a very powerAil nation, to the politwid welfare of which their acrvicee were so essairiial— tlwt diey should be brought out in so open and public % manner— that the sea itself should be supematurally dividml to aSbrd ihis.m^ii^ boat a passage; sjid that in a deaert utterly nnfiieraUr to human li£i, diey should be sustained for 40 years, lliese were such instances oif die almigh^ po*er and goodness of God, as never could be forgotten.
In this verse Moses enumerates stten difierent means used br the Almighty, in efltKting Israel's deliverance.
1. Temptatioms, non nuiMom, irom n» n<iMA, to trg or «roe<; the miracles which God wrougft to try dM thiih, and prove the obedience of the children of Israel.
2. SioM a, nrw efoM, from nrw o/oA, to corns nsar, anch signs aa Ood gave thm of his pondnaal presence, aiid especial providence, particularly the pillar of clnx), and pillar of fire, kte^ng near to them night and day i and always directing theu- journeys, shewing die;m whm and tdiere to pitch their tents, &c, &c,
3. WoMOus, cnsiD mopketim, from rso- yaphal, to persuade; persuasive ftwt* and eveiUe, says Parkhurst. vuhsthsr stnotiy miraculoua, and exceedijig the powers o( nature, as Exod. vii. S. zi. 9, 10. or no^ as Isaj. xx. Ezek. xii. 6, 11. It probably means typical represeutationtf in this signification the word is ueed, Zech. iii. 8. Joshua, the high priest, and his d^nipaniona were nmo anekey mophelh, typical men, raised up by God, as types of Christ, and proofs that God would ning his aer^ vant the bbahch. All the dealings of Ood wilh Ihie people, and even the peojde themselves were typw, preaeDt significators of distant (acts, and future oceurrcoeea.
4. Wax, nsnSo milduunah, hostile engagements, such aa (hose widi the Amalekitea, the Amorites, and the Bo-i ehiinitea: in which the Aona Ood, was seen, rather than tite hand of man.
6. A MisHTY KAMD, Tipm T yod sAamuluA, «ie that is *.'reiij>lo deal its bhnrs. irrtaistiblsr 'm ila operations^ and grasps its enemiea hasd, ao that they cannot eaeape; and pnneota its friends eo powerbilly, that they caimot bs iiblUMd. Neither smtageai nor polity was uaed in tUi business, but the openly displayed power of God.
6. A BTMTcnD'OtrT AMM, mss v^ii zenUt netewA, a atrita Jitmi^hh/ operation*, followii^ each ouier in Quick and astonishing succession. Let it be noted dutt in the Scriptnrea 1. the jtRfsr of God denotes a*y mani- /estali4M ^ the divine, power, where etfects are produoed beyond the power of art or nature. Z. Itie hand of God signifies the aame power, but put forth in a more signal msooer. 3. The arm ot God, die divirte ommnotenee manifuled in the taoet sn^aadous miracle*. 4. The arm of God s<re/cked aul, this sane omnipotence exerted in • emtinuation Of Stupsndous miracles, both in die way of judglnent and mercy. In this latter sense it appears to be taken in the text: the judgments were poiired out on die BgyptisM) the mercies wtonght in favour of the Israelites.
7. Obbat Tsaxoaa, o'^'u awmo tsoratm ge such temir, djsinay, and eeoAernalMm aa wen
C#fted by VjO'
fbre he chose tlieireeedaficr thein.ftitil tbrmi^ht thee out in his sight, with his mighty power, out
38 " To drive out nntions from bcfOTe thee creator and mightier than thou art, to brin;^ thee in, to ^ive mee their land for an inheritance, eta it IS this day.
39 Know therefore this day, ana consider U in thine heart, that * the Lobo he tr God in heaven ^ve, aod upon the earth beneath: ihere is none else.
40 * Thou shalt keep therefore fau statutes, and his commandments, which I command thee this day, ■ that it may go weU with thee, and with thy childrai aller thee, and that thou mayest prolong Oiy days upon the earth, wliich the LoHD thy God jgiveih thee, for ever.
41 1i Then Hoses r severed three eitiee on this side Jordan, toward the sunrisinff;
42 ■ That the slayer might flee thither, which should kill his neighbour oaawares, and hated liim not in times past; and that fleeing unto one of these cities he rai^ht live:
43 Namely, • Bezer in the wilderness, in the plain country, of the Reubenites; and Ramoth m Oilead, of the Gadiies; and Golan in Baa ban, of the ManaBsites.
44 1[ And this is the law which Moses set before the children of Israel:
45 These are the testimonies, and the statotes, and the jodnneots, which Moses >pake onto the ehildren oflsrael, after they came forth out of Egypt,
46 On this side Jordan. * m the valley; over tigaiDBt Beth-peor, in the land of Sihon kin£ of ^e AmoritOB,' who dwelt at Heshbon, whom Moses and the children of Israel ■ smote, alter Uicy were come forth out of Egypt:
47 And they possessed his land, and the land 'of Og king of Baedian. two kings of tlie Amoritee, which were on this side Jordan, toward the sunrising;
43 • From Aroer, which m by the bank of the river Arnon, even unto moant Sion, which is 'Hermon.,,
49 And all the uain mi this side Jordan, eastward, even unto the sea of the plain, under the f aprii^ of Pisgah.
fay the ten plaguee, to which probably tho inapind penmoD hensllnclDit or u the Septoagmt Hm it, »*fa^>*^tya.
wUh grtai or jmierUoiu tighia: Bitch as thst when Ood looked out of the cloud upon the Egypuum, And their chsriot-wfaeeU were taken oli; Exod. xiv. 24, 2S. Hon swfiil disfrii^ sf God's judgments, powsr, and mMtt, wsrs never witoeBMd by man.
Vsns 41. Tltm JIftew nsond Omt eitUa] See the law relatnre to the oitiee of refuge, explained Numb. XXXV. 9^ dee.
y«ne 43. Ba«-in tht wildermm] Am the cttiea of refbge are generally ondentood to bo tTf>^ of the otlratKHi provided l>y Chnet ibr ■noert; so tneir names have been dkoujit to sxpTMB some sMribaleef ibe Sedeemsr of naohWT 8eetbem«xpkioadiodisneMsoBJodn»jac.7,8.
I svFMsB tbe last nias vsrsss of Ibii dsqiter to bm hssB adsd Iweitber Joalma or E*ra.
T«TM 1. And DSoamoaUed ail Itra^mdt^d— Bear, fte.] 1. Ood spedn to die people. 2. The people are Sidled to A«<jr what God »p«aii. 3. To lasm wbat ihn bawd, thai they nay be iborooghly instiuelsd in tbe will of Ood. 4. TVtN^Ged'atestiaoiiieseverhinind.aod l» Irsasiss them up in a beKsviog sad iqinght bem. ft.
the BtntuleR and jiid:oiientB whiclil tpMkinymir (nu-H this day, that ye may learn them, wll
2 i The Lord our God made a covenant with us in Horeb.
3 The Loan 'made notihiseovcHUrtwithoor fathers, but with us, even us, who ore aU of us
4 I The LoBD talked with yon faf» to feee, in the mount, out of the midst of the fire.
5 (*" I stood between the Loiio and yeu at that time, to show you the word of the Lord: fin- " ye were aiVaid by reason of the fire, and went not up into tbe moimt:) saying,
6 H °I aa» the Lokd thy God, which brought thee out of the land of £lgypt, from the house of P bondage.
7 4 Thou shalt have none other gods befara me.
8 ' Thou shalt not make thee amy graven mage, or any likeness t^f any thing that «t is heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, Of that w in the waters beneath tbe earth:
9 Thoushaltnotbowdownthyaelfnntothen, nor serve them: for I the Loan thy Ood oma jealous God. ■ visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the child ren un to the third'and fonrth gauration of them that bale me,
10 t And showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
U ° Thou diait not take the name of the LoBc thy God in vain: for the Loan will not hcdd Mm guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
12 * Keep the sabbath-dny to sanctify it, as the Lord thy God hath commanded thee.
14 But the seventh day is the ■ sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy eon, nor thy datighter, nor thy man-servant, nor thy maid-servant, nor thine ok, nor thine ass, nor any of thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is witlnn thy gaies; that thy manservant aod thy maid-senrant may rest u wen as thou.
15 ' And remember that thou was a servant
in the Ifund of Egypt, and thai the Lord thy God brotight thee out thence ■ through a mighty hand, and oV a stretched-out arm: therefore the Lord thy God commanded thee to keep the sabbath-
16 IT * Honour fhv fether and thy mother, as the Lord thy God hath commanded thee; *> thai tin days may be prolonged, that it may go well with thee, in the land which the Loan thy Godgtvcth
That they mi^l do Amu, obey tbe whole will of Ood, takins bu word for the invariable rule of their conhKt Should not at] these pmnta be kept in view by evory Chn^ tian aaKmbly?
Veree 3. Tfu Lord made not this eovauaH «M Mrr /aihere (onlv) but wUh t» (siso.)
VerseS. J am Ike iMdmg aod\ Gee Amm eonuaandments eiplajned is the DMaa on Exodni xx.
Vene IB. And remea^er that thou vcutmwertmt} In this, and the latter clsuse of the prceeding -w^we. Hoses adds another reason why one day in ^MbemBOtMed; vh. that^atnante mi^rett; and diiiitur:sed upon then on tbe conauleraUon of their havls; km ser^ wuits in dke land of E^ypc We sea iheiefiiR dat Ood bsdtbiesgnodttsdsinvlmbrawoiatingaad^ L To eommemorau tbe creation. £ to rive a doe proper^ tion of rest to man and beset When in Egypt they bad na rest: their cruel taok-maeters eansed tfaesn to lahtnr wMkoot intenninion; now God had given rest, sad as he bad Aawtd them mercy, he (eaches them to ihow mercv to Adr servants; remember thou waei a gervanL 3. To ftWird peculiar •piriuml advantages to dte soul, thst it nriglit be kept in remunfaraneeof tbe rsifwliieh reniaba allhs ri^ktband of Ooa. ^— ».
18 ^ Neither shall thou commit adultwy.
19 * Neither ahalt thou steal. 80 r Neither shalt thou bear falae witness
21 ■ Neither shalt thou desire thy neighbour's wife, neither shalt thou covet thy neighbonr'a house, his field, or his man^orrant, or rus maid- ■eryant, his ox, or his ass, or any thing that is thy neighbour's.
at3 K These words the Lobd spake unto all your assembly in the mount out of the midst of tlie fire, of tlw cloud, and of the thick darkness with agreatToioc: aadfaeaddednoBuire. Am ^ he wrote them in two tables of stme, and delivered them unto me.
S3 > And it came to pass when ye heard the voice out of the midst of the darkness (for the mountain did burn with firej that ye came near onto me. even all the heau of your tribes, and your elders;
24 And ye said, Behold, the Lord our Ood hath showed us his glory, and his greatness, and ^ we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire: we have seen this day that God doth talk with man, and he > liveth.
25 Now tlierefore, why should we die? for this great fire will consume ua; ■■if we "hear the voice of the Lum our God any more, then we shall die.
26 • For who ts there of all flesh, that hath heard the voice of the living God speaking out of ^e midst of the fire, as we have, and lived?
27 Go thou near, and hear all that the Lord our God shall say: and ' speak thou unto us all that the Lobd oar God shall speak unto thee, and we will bear it, and do it.
28 And the Lord heard the voice of your words, when ye spake unto me; and the Lord said unto me, I have heard the voice of the words
TflrM29- OAattk«rti§er*Mukakaartinlh»m] Or, mther r« oaaV nvn |tt> id ir4 yitten v^iaifah kbab^mrxA^ Who will give weh s heart to tbem, lint ihey may fear, Ao. llMy refuse u> reoeire such a heart from me i who then eao wpply iti If thay bad not been auch perfecdy free amoti a> could either uae or abtue their liberty, could God ban made the eonplatiu, or agprotid the eameet desire we find in thja vstsal He mads Ihs human will yrec^ and in ant* of all ths '"^"tm* of ski and Satan, ha preaerves ite hbtrty. Had man no free will, he could nei' iber be^MttiMharfnor rMBorded, because a men madUne; and ooneequeDtly do more aooouoliMe for hia actiooa than ttM fire for lU eonauioing quality, or the atone for it> gron- Jjy J ths one baviiw buroea the bouse of die ri^taou^ the ocbM- having crumed tba ianooent to death. See the note tmdmp. jjox. 4.
Vena 32. 7« «ftaU o&strm Is do] He who marin not <fae word «f Chd, is never likely tofiilfil the viU of Ood.
Ytahmllnat turn matde to tlu right-hand or to the I^] mia way of truth and rij^teoosneaa ta a rtgfti Una; a man aaaat walk ibvigfat fbnrard who wiahet to go to glory: no eiocktd or devious path ever led to God or nammeaa.
Vena 33. Ye ehaU walk in all the nay, &c] Ood new gave a eomisaDdmait to man, which he did not design that he should obey. He who aelecbi from ibe divine •eatiiaonies suoh precepts as ha feels but little iDolination to tnaagreM, and lives in the breach of othere, sinaagainM Ae gfaad lagwlativs auhori^ of Ood, and diall be treated ■sarebd.
TTtat ye «uy Km] pw ticiuiun, that ye nay enjoy l^e (far ne paragOR^ i nam, at the end of the word deep- «■> As senee,) that it may iie veil with you, os^ mat •elob Joesm, sad good shall be to you — Ood vrill proapcr yea in all tniim eaewitial to tba welfare of your bodies, and ths hItsooq of your souls.
IW M ma*f prolong your dayi in ths land] IJmt ye wmy armc at a Mod old sg«, and grow more and mora ■Mat fir the kih^Mwa awog ib« ifuau ia light.
of thi« people, wlikh they have spoken unto thee: i they have well s^ all that they twve spoken.
29 ' O tliat there were such a heart in them, that they would fear me, and * keep all mv commandments alwars, ■ that it might be weil with them, and witli their children for ever!
30 Go say to them, Get you into your tent*
31 But as for thee, stand thou here by mc, and I will speak unto thee all the commandments, and the statutes, and the judgments, which thou shalt teach them, that they may do them in the land which I give them to possess it
32 Ye shall observe to do therefore ^ the Lord your God hath commanded you: 'ye shall not turn aside to the right-hand or to the left.
33.Ye shall walk in * all the ways which the Lord /our God hath commanded yon, that ye may live, ' and thai it may be well with vou. and that ye may prolong your days in the land which ye shall possess.
enu dcrffn «(Ood, ta lliiiw Ml hw, thai ihc p»pV >nr fau iilic* Usr, Out IhfT mH oDallDua In pruHiinJ Pnintrrtlr. michiJlT Intnud, 1—8.
NOW these are ' the commandments, the statutes, and the judg
ments, which the Lord your God commanded to teach yon, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go to possess it.
2 That thou mightest the Lord thy God, to keep all his statutes and his commandments, which I command thee, thou, and thy son, and thy son's eon, all the days of thy life; <* and that thy days may be prolonged.
3 Hear therefore, O leraei, and observe to do
On tbia vmt important verae we may remark, a long life ia a great Dleaaing, if a man live to God— because It is in life, and in life alone, that a preparation for eternal glory may be acquired, lliose who wian to die «oor, have never yet teamed to live, and know not the value of life or time. Hany have a vain hope that they riiall get either in death, or in the other world, a pieparation for glory. Thia ia a fatal error. Here alone we may acquaint oureelvea with Ood, and receive that holineas without which none can aee him. Reader, be thankM to him that thou art atill in a atate of ptoliation: and pisy that thou may est live for
Do ihemj That ia, live in the continual practice of diem | for by dita they were to be diatinguiihed from all the natkma of the world; and all these were to be in force till die Son of Ood ahould come.— Whither w go Et»*\3j; 6berim, whither ye paee oeer, referring to the river Jordan, acrosa which they muatpaaa toget into Canaan.
Verae 2. TTuu thou migkUelJiear the Lord.] Rcapeet hia sovereign authority as a lawgiver, and ever feel thyaelf bound to obey him. No man can walk either cooacientiously or aafely who has not ihe^'e'if' ^ God continually before hia eyes. When this ia gone, mmv Uian a guardian angel ia fled.
Tlum, atid thy Mit, and Ay son's aonj Through all thy succeaaive generationa. Whoever feora Ood, will endmvour to bring up hia children in the way of ri^teouaneaa, that they abm may fear Ood. and that the pure and undefiled religion may be pvsservea in his family through all its generationa, not ob^ in wmd but in practice also.
Verae 3. ffear therefore, O lerael, and obaerve to do it] Literally, Te shall hear, O Israel, and thou ahalt keep to do them. 1. God it to be hmrd—Do obligation without law to found it oni and no law in religioih but from Ood. 2. The commandment must be uRd«r»toad^ in order to be obeyed. 3. Itmuat be abeervtd, attentivdy conaideRd io Older to bsmdsrslood. And 4. It raustbepe^onM<£ that Ibe Slid fur whidiit was given may ba McQii^ilidied^y.
itj that it may be well \v\lh thee, and tliat re mav increase mi<^htily, * as the Losd Uod oftnyfathers hatU prutni^ed ihce, in ^the land that floweth with milk and honey.
5 And " thou shalt love the Lord thy God I with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.
6 And k these ^-rords, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:
7 And ■ thou ehalt " teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou eittest Jn thine house, and Mien thou walkeet by the way, nnd when thou liest down, and when thou riseet up.
that God may be elor\p.cd nnd lliat it may he well with the people. What ia here spoken, applies powerfiilly to every part of the moral law — GJod has given it bb a rule of life, therefore obedience to it is indiapensably necessary; not to the. purchoM qf aatvation, for no human merit can ever extend to ihat—ljiH it is the irajr by which both the juMice and mercy of Ood choose to conduct men to lieaven. But let it be fully understood, that no man can walk in the way of obedience, but by and under the induence of ih« grace of Clod.
Verse 4. Hear, O laraet] nvr iT«r6K mrr* Vo9 "^riM ekemaA ' Yiaraelt.Ydmah EMunu, YeHmih aataB, These words may be TaruNuly rendered into Ei^iBh I but aUnoM all poflsible verbai varieties in dw transialion (and tliere can be nono other) amount to the same sense. "Israel heart Jehovah, our God, is one Jehovah."— Or, "Jeliovah iq our God, Johovah is one," — Or, "Jehovah iaour God, Jehovah alone." — Or, "Jehovah is our God, Jehovah who ia one." — Or, "Jehovah who is our God, is the one Being." — On this vcrae the Jews lay great stress. It is one of the four paasagcs which they write on their phylacteries; and ihey write the last letter in the first ano laat words very large, for tjie purpose of exciting atlenlion to tlie weighty iruifi it contains. It ia perhaps in reference to this custom of the Jews (hat our Uesaed Lord alludes, Matt. xxii. 38. Mark x\\. 29, 30. where, he says, This ia the Jlrat and great commandmtnt; and this is nearly the comment that Maimonidea gives on tliis place, "Hear, O Israel— because in these words the property, the love, and the doctrine of God are contained.'
Manj think that Moses teaches in these words the doctrine 01 the Irinity in unity. It may be so — but if so, it is not more clearly donfe than in the first verse of Genesis, to which the reader is referred. When this passage occurs ip the sabbath readings in the synagogue, the wnole congregation repeat the last worti ^nK aehad, for several minutes together, with the loudest vociferations; this, I suppose, iliev do to vent a little of tlieir spleen i^^inst the Christians; for they suppose the latter hold three eods^ becauae of their doctrine oif the Trinity — but all their skill Eud etuinine can never pnlfe that thm tM not a j^ratUy expressed in the word vivfM Elokinu; and were the Christians, when reading this Verse, to vociferate Elahinu for several minutes, as we Jews do achad. it would apply more forcibly in (he way of conviction to the Jews, ol the jriuroii/y ofpersons in the godhead, than the word adiad, ooe, agaiiut any pretend^ folae tenet of Christianity: as avary Christinn receives the doctrine- of the Unity of God, in the moat conscientious manner. It is because of their rejection of this doctrine that the wrath of God continues to rest on thnm. Pot the doctrine of the atonement cannot be receivpil, unless the doctrine of the godhead Chri»t is received too. Some Christiana have joined toe 3tm Dgwntf this dootrine, and some have even outdone them; and have put themsetTea to extroordinaiy pains to prove, that CTpK Elohim is a noun of the etngnlar number I This has not yet been proved. It would be as easy to prove that there is no plural in language.