//v H- ^ ?<^^3©<^^^5 9 ^ PRINCETON, N. J. ' Part of the X ADDISON ALEXANDER LIBRARY, ♦ which was presented by ^ Mkssus. R. L. and a. Stitart. =^::i-jwf' — r:-^, t.-, >9e abed, servant, it comes from *1S2> abad, to serve, which is applied variously to the serving of worshippers, of tributa- ries, of domestics, of Levites, of sons to a father, of subjects to a ruler, of hirelings, of soldiers, of public officers, &c. With similar latitude, the deriva- tive noun is applied to all persons doing service for others, irrespective of the ground or principle on which that service was rendered. Accordingly it embraces in its range of application, tributaries, worshippers, domestics, subjects of gov- ernment, magistrates, public officers, younger sons, prophets, kings, and the Messiah himself. To interpret it 'slave,' or to argue, from the fact of the word's being used to designate domestic serv- ants, that they were made servants by force, worked without pay, and held as articles of property, would be a gross and gratuitous assumption. The mean- ing of the present passage undoubtedly is, ' If thou dost in any way become 3 If he came in by himself, he shall go out by himself: if he were possessed of a brother Hebrew, so as to have a right to command his services (in consequence of which right alone he becomes a 'servant'), retain him not in a state of servitude more that six years.' IT In the seventh year. In what sense 'the seventh year' is to be understood here is not obvious ; whether as the sabbatical year, in which the land lay fallow, or as the seventh year from the time when the servant was bought. Maimonides was of the latter opinion, and this appears on the whole the most probable ; for Moses uniform- ly calls it ' the seventh year,' without using the term 'sabbatical year,' or ap- parently at all alluding to it. And be- sides, when he describes the sabbatical year in Lev. 25. 1 — 7, he says nothing about the manumission of servants. Yet it is to be presumed that if the jubilee year should occur before the six years' service had expired, his manumission would take place of course in virtue of the general law, Lev. 25. 40, unless he had been sold for a crime. IT He shall go out free for nothing. That is, without being required to pay his master any thing as a consideration for the shortened term of service. Be- ing made free by law he was to pay nothing for his liberty. Nor was he required to pay for any thing else. Al- though he might during the period of his service have labored under sickness, and put his master to cost, yet no com- pensation was to be expected from him at the time of his release ; for a man's servant was during his servitude as his own possession for which he was bound to provide at his o'wn charges. — One cannot but be struck with admiration at perceiving what kind provisions were made for the Hebrew bondman; how carefully he was guarded from vio- lence, injustice, and wrong. The cir- cumstances imder which a native He« B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXI. married, then his wife shall go out with him. 4 If his master have given him a wife, and she have borne him sons brew might become a slave were the following; (1.) When under the pres- sure of extreme poverty he sold his liberty to preserve himself or his fam- ily from suffering ; Lev. 25. 39, 'If thy brother be waxen poor and be sold unto thee,' &c. (2.) When sold for a like reason by a lather ; v. 7, 'If a man sell his daughter to be a maid-servant,' &c. Comp. Neh. 5. 5. (3.) Insolvent debt- ors might, as a punishment, be sold for servants, or, by way of payment, put into the hands of their creditors as slaves ; 2 Kings, 4. 1, 'My husband is dead — and the creditor is come to take unto him my tv/o sons to be bondmen.' (4.) A thief who was unable to make resti- tution for what he had stolen, accord- ing to the proportion required of him by the law, was sold by way of re- quital to him whom he had robbed ; Ex. 22. 3, 4, ' If he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft.' (5.) Slaves were acquired by the issue of the marriages of slaves. The condition of slavery, however, is undoubtedly re- garded in the Scriptures as an evil, yet, as it was an evil that had prevailed in the world long before the establishment of the Jewish polity, infinite wisdom did not see fit at once to root it out, but enacted such meliorating laws in re- spect to it as would tend to divest it of its most aggravated and cruel fea- tures, and render it as tolerable as a state of bondage could well be. In like manner he regulated without extirpat- ing polygamy. 3, 4. If he came in by himself. Heb. 15313 begappo, loith his body. That is, with his body only ; in his single per- son ; having neither wife nor children. Gr. avTOi f-tovos, him,self alone. It is evidently used in contradistinction to the being married in the next clause. or daughters, the wife and her children shall be her master's, and he shall go out by himself. If a free-born Hebrew, who had sold himself for a bondman, had previously had a wife, this relation was not dis- turbed by his servitude, at the expira- tion of which her freedom was to be re- stored along with her husband's. But a different case is supposed in the next verse. There the marriage is one that takes place during the continuance of the servitude, and seems to be of the same nature with the ' contubernium,' cohabitation, of the Romans, which, in- stead of ' conjugium,' wedlock, was the term applied to the marriages of slaves. A master gave his servant a Avife dur- ing the period of his service, but re- tained her and her children after he re- gained his liberty, the connexion being of course dissolved by a divorce. But it is generally maintained by commen- tators, that the wife thus given was to be a heathen or Gentile bond-maid, and not a Hebrewess, which they gathered from Lev. 25. 44, 'Both thy bondmen and thy bondmaids, which thou shalt have, shall be of the heathen that are round about thee ; of them shall ye buy bondmen and bondmaids.' This pas- sage, however, does not of itself make it certain that such was the case, al- though the idea is undoubtedly coun- tenanced by v. 7 — 11, of the chapter be- fore us, which would seem to intimate that if a Jewish woman were given in marriage at all, it must be to her master or his son. Moreover, as it appears from Deut. 15, 12, that Hebrew bond- men and bondmaids came under the same law of manumission at the end of six years, we cannot perceive on what lawful grounds such a wife, if of the Hebrew stock, should be detained in servitude after the close of the allotted time. The Jewish critics adopt the same view. The children produced fron? 10 EXODUS. [B. C. 149V 5 c And if the servant shall plain- ly say, I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free : 6 Then his master shall bring him c Deut. 15. 16, 17. .^,uch a contuhernium were regarded as rteing also slaves, and constituted the class called 'born in the house,' Gen. 14. 14. — 17. 23; 'sons of the house,' Gen. 15. 3; or 'sons of the handmaid,' Ex. 23. 12. Of those Abraham had 318; and as it might naturally be sup- posed that servants thus forming a part of the household, and imbibing attach- ments to their master from their earliest years, would he more deserving of con- fidence than strangers, he puts arms in- to their hands, when his service required it ; a measure, by the way, entirely in- consistent with the genius of American slaveholding, which will not admit of masters' putting swords or fire-arms into the hands of their slaves. 5, 6. And if the servant shall plainly say, &c. Heb. ^?3i^* 1>2i4 amar yo- mar, saying shall say. That is, shall say it again and again, so that his pur- pose shall become a matter of notori- ety. This is intimated in order that there might be evidence of such an in- tention being in the highest degree volun- tary and unconstrained. IT Then his master shall bring him unto the judges. Heb. D^n^Jtri ^5^ el ha-Elohim, to the gods. That is, to the magistrates, who are called 'gods,' Ps. 82, 1, 6. John, 10. 34, 35. Chal. 'Before the judges.' Gr. npog TO KpcT}]piov tov Qeov, to the judgment, or tribunal, of God. The phraseology is remarkable, but the pre- valent sentiments of the Orientals in regard to sovereignty of all sorts tend to illustrate it. The Egyptians, ac- cording to Diodorus Siculus (B. I. c. 90), looked upon their kings in the light of divinities ; and from the travels of Arvieux we learn that among the mod- ern Arabs the usual form of citation. unto the d judges: he shall also bring him to the door, or unto the door-post ; and his master shall e bore his ear through with an awl and he shall serve him for ever. d ch. 12. 12. & 22. 8,28. e Ps. 40. 6. when one is summoned to the place of justice is in these words, 'Thou art in- vited to the tribunal of God.'' It would seem that they regarded a judge or ma- gistrate in the administration of justice as such a lively image of the Deity that they were led to apply to him in that capacity a divine title. — It is easily conceivable that a servant, who had a good master, might wish to remain with him permanently during life, particu- larly if he had lived in contubernio Avith one of his master's female slaves and had children by her, for whom he would naturally cherisli a strong affec- tion, and from whom he must separate if he accepted his freedom. In such a case he was permitted to bind himself forever to the service of the master ; but in order to guard against all abuse of this permission, and especially that it might appear that he was not fraudu- lently or forcibly detained against his will, it Avas ordained that the trans- action should be gone about judicially, and with appropriate formalities. For this purpose, after being brought before the magistrate, and declaration probably made of his intention, he was taken back and his ear bored through with an awl at the door of his master's house, in token of his being, as it were, affixed to it hence- forward the rest of his days. This bor- ing of ears was in the eastern countries, a badge of servitude. Thus Juv. Sat. 1 102, 'Why should I fear or doubt to de- fend the place, though born upon the banks of the Euphrates as the tender perforations in my ear evince?' upon which the ancient scholiast remarks, ' that this was a sign of slavery.' It is supposed that the Psalmist, Ps. 40. 6, speaking in the person of the Mes- B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXI. 11 siah alludes to this custom; 'Mine ear hast thou opened.' Heb. ' dug, pierced through ;' expressive of his entire devo- tion to his father's service. Michaelis remarks, -That this statute of Moses made boring the ears in some degree ignominious to a free man ; because it became the sign whereby a perpetual slave was to be known, and that for this reason he would have been very glad to have procured the abandon- ment of the practice of servants' thus permanently adopting a state of vassal- age.' IT He shall serve him for ever. That is, as long as he or his master lived. Some make it to be till the period of the next ensuing jubilee, but the other sense is probably more cor- rect. Thus, 1 Sam, 1. 22, 'That he may appear before the Lord, and thus abide forever^' i. e. as long as he lives. This will appear still more evident by sup- posing a case that might easily have happened. A slave was sold three years before the beginning of the jubilee. What was to be done with him at the expiration of that time ? If he were then released by the law of the jubilee, how was it possible for him to serve the six years here prescribed in the law? This brings us to so palpable an inconsistency in the law, that we are on the whole forced to the conviction that the regulation before us had no re- spect whatever to the jubilee. Let the grand object of that institution be con- sidered. It was, that every man might ' return to his possession' — which could not be alienated for a longer time — and to his family ; Lev. 25. 10 — 24. But it does not appear that the privilege ex- tended alike to every class of servants. A difference would naturally be made between the case of one made a slave by his crimes, and one who became such by his misfortunes. Consequently the law contained. Lev. 25. 39 — 42, seems to have no reference to cases like that before us ; ' And if thy brother that dwelleth by thee be waxen poor, [ and be sold unto thee ; thou shall not compel him to serve as a bond-servant : But as an hired servant, and as a so- journer he shall be with thee, and shall serve thee unto the year of jubi- lee : and then he shall depart from thee, both he and his cliildren with him, and shall return unto his own family, and unto the possession of his fathers shall he return. For they are my servants which I brought forth out of the land of Egypt ; they shall not be sold as bondmen.' The drift of the enactment here cited is entirely different from that of the one under consideration. The latter speaks of one who was in the fullest sense of the Jewish law a 'bond- servant' or slave ; the former of one who was not to be made a ' bond-serv- ant,' but only a 'hired-servant.' The latter relates to one who was sold for his crimes; the former to one who dis- posed of his services on account of his poverty, which was no crime. The term of servitude appointed by the law before us was invariably six years; the period fixed by the other was till the next jubi' lee, which might be any number of years from one to fifty. The design of the law in Exodus, in ordaining that the thief should be made a slave for six years, was that he might thereby be punished for his crime, and that the money given for him should make some compensation to the person he had injured ; while the object of the law in Leviticus was that the poor man should be received as a menial into an Israelitish family, not to punish him, but that he might find the means of comfortable support in his necessities. The design of the statute giving the slave his option, at the end of six years, either to leave his master or to remain with him ' forever,' could not possibly be that he should 'return to his own family and to the possession of his fa- thers,' for as long as he lived in bond- age he could not do this, and his crime was supposed to Jiave cut him off from 12 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 7 H And if a man ^sell his daugh- ter to be a maid-servant, he shall f Nch. 5. 5. the right to his paternal estate. But the design of the other law in giving the impoverished hired-servant his liberty at the next jubilee, was expressly that he might return to his family and again enjoy his patrimonial inheritance. As then these two ordinances appear to be entirely distinct from and unrelated to each other, there is no necessity for interpreting the phrase ' for ever,' as signifying the same as ' till the next jubilee.' 1. Jf a man sell his daughter, &c. We must still bear in mind what has • been said above respecting the import o^ selling persons under the Mosaic law. It was simply equivalent to selling 07ie's services. It conveyed no ownership. It did not recognise the odious doctrine of modern slavery that a man may be- come a chattel, and be held and treated simply as an article of property. So in the case before us, a father might be re- duced to such an extreme of poverty as to be constrained to have recourse to the measure here mentioned, of dispos- ing of the services of a daughter, when of a young and tender age, for a con- sideration. But it is clear from the con- text that when this was done, it was, usually at least, upon some engagement or expectation that the person who bought her would take her, when of age, as his wife or concubine. Her pur- chase as a servant was her betrothal as a wife. This is confirmed by the com- ment of Maimonides, who says ; 'A He- brew handmaid might not be sold but to one who laid himself under obligations to espouse her to himself or to his son, when she was fit to be betrothed.' Jar- chi also on the same passage says, 'He is bound to espouse her to be his wife, for the money of her purchase is the money of her espousal.^ An example of this selling of daughters by impover- not go out g as the men-servants do. S ver. 2, 3. ished parents is related in the subse- quent history of the Jews, Neh. 5. 1 — 8 IT She shall not go out as the men- serva7its do. That is, shall not go out upon the same conditions, but upon bet- ter. She shall be better provided for at her departure ; inasmuch as a feeble woman is less able to protect herself and secure her own welfare, than a strong and able-bodied man. There is an apparent contradiction between this passage, and Deut, 15. 17, where, in speaking of the male servant's having his ear bored in token of perpetual serv- itude, it is said, 'And also unto thy maid-servant shalt thou do likewise.' Michaelis explains this by supposing that the Hebrew legislator, alter the lapse of forty years, made an alteration in his laws, and added the ordinance contained in Deuteronomy. 'He did not patronize slavery ; at least he endeav- ored to mitigate its evils to native He- brews, and to confine it within certain limits of duration. On their departure from Egypt, he did so with respect to males, and availing himself of an ancient and merciful usage, which terminated servitude after seven years, he intro- duced it by a written statute, as an in- controvertible right. After the people had been accustomed to this piece of clemency, he went a step farther in the law which he gave forty years after, and established the very same ordinance in behalf of females.' But Ave think it more probable that there was originally a difference in the case of a woman sold for theft, or who had sold herself be- cause of her poverty, and of a daughter sold by her father, in expectation of her being espoused by her master or one of his sons. In this last case, which is the one here considered, she would be entitled to peculiar tenderness, and pro- vision is made accordingly. But m the B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXI. 13 8 If she please not her master, ■who hath betrothed her to himself, then shall he let her be redeemed : former, which seems to be contemplated in Deuteronomy, she was to come un- der the same regulations with the man- servant who declined going out free at the end of his prescribed term. As it is perfectly conceivable that a woman might be influenced by the same motives as a man to remain with her master, and as there is no proof that such was not the case, we think this the most natural mode of reconciling the apparent dis- crepancy between the two passages. However this may be, it is certain that in the time of the prophet Jeremiah it was conceived that the statutes which gave freedom to the Hebrew slaves in the seventh year, extended not only to the male, but also to the female sex, Jer. 34. 9 — 16, a passage which may be very profitably read in this connexion. 8. If she please not her master. Heb. rr^njA 'iD'^S'n «12?"1 tlJ^ m raah he-ain'e adoncha, if she be evil in the eyes of her master J a very common Hebraic idiom, importing, however, not moral evil, but rather the want of personal attractions. 'Good,' in like manner, is in repeated instances used in a sense equivalent to 'goodly,' or as an attribute of the outer man. See Note on Gen. 39. 6. If Who hath betrothed her to himself. As if the purchase under these circum- stances was considered as a virtual be- trothal, so that no other formalities were requisite. But it is to be noted that the original presents here a various reading, in which our translation has Mbllowed the margin (1^ lo, to him) in- stead of the text (i^^ lo, not). In the one case the correct rendering is, ' who doth not (^^^) betroth her ;' in the other, 'who hath betrothed her to him- self (1^).' Either mode of reading yields substantially the same sense, only in the latter case 'betrothing' signi- fies the preliminary engagement or affi- Vol.. TI. 2 to sell her unto a strange nation he shall have no power, seeing he hath dealt deceitfully with her. anchig, which the master is supposed to have entered into ; in the former, the actual consummation of the marriage- thai is, he hath not acted according to the mutual understanding of the par- ties ; he hath not fulfilled expectation. In doing one thing he hath not done an- other which was virtually implied in it. It is obvious that according as one or the other of these senses is assumed, the particle employed will be ifi^ lo, not, or 1^ lo, to him. The Scriptures present several other instances of the same textual diversity of reading, on which commentators have labored with great assiduity. Of these an ample ac- count is given in Vitringa's Obs. Sac. L. in. c. 14. § 14 IT Then shall he let her be redeemed. Heb. m^H heph- dah, shall cause her to be redeemed. Implying not merely consent to the act of another, but positive eflforts on his ov^n part to effect the step ; he shall see to her being redeemed; i. e. by her fa- ther, or any of her kindred who has a mind so to do. But if this were not done, he was not allowed to marry her to another person, or to a 'strange na- tion,' a phrase which has usually been understood to mean, a stranger of the Israelitish nation, one of a different tribe or family, because it is supposed no Hebrew slave could be sold to a Gentile. But we see not why the literal rendering may not be adhered to. The Hebrew master must not sell her to one of another nation, who might desire to have her as a concubine, and with whom she might be in danger of forgetting the true religion. It was an ordinance by which the highest welfare of the individual was kindly consulted. IT Seeing he hath dealt deceitfully with her. Heb. ,13 II^DD be-bigdo bah, in his deceitfully treating her, i. e. as a continuation of it. Halving wronged 14 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 9 And if he have betrothed her unto his son, he shall deal with her after the manner of daughters. 10 If he take him another icife; her food, her raiment, hand her duty of marriage shall he not diminish. 11 And if he do not these three unto her, then shall she go out free without money. h 1 Cor. 7, 5. her by frustrating her hope of marriage in his own family, he was not to add one injury to another by disposing of her in a foreign connexion, where her principles and her happiness might be alike endangered. 9, 10. He shall deal with her after the manner of daughters. That is, he shall deal with her as a free woman ; shall give her a dowry, and bestow her in marriage as if she had been his own daughter. But whether he or his son had married her and then afterwards taken another wife, still this was not to operate to her disadvantage. She was to be suitably maintained, and her due matrimonial privileges continued to her, or else she was freely to be set at liberty. IT Her duty of marriage. H-eb. nn35> anothah. Gr. rrjv hniXiav avrrjg, her companying, converse, co- habitation, which Paul, 1 Cor. 7. 3, ex- presses by the phrase of 'due benevo- lence,' equivalent to conjugal converse. IT Shall he not diminish. Heb. 5>'n5^ 5^^ to yigra, shall not keep back, as the term is rendered Num. 9. 7, 'And those men said unto him. We are de- filed by the dead body of a man : where- fore are we kept back (3>'1!ID niggara), that we may not offer an offering of the Lord in his appointed season among the children of Israel?' The Gr. in this place has ovk a-!Toar£pr](Tei, shall not de- fraud, whence the apostle in speaking of the same subject, 1 Cor. 7. 5, says, ^Defraud ye not one another (j.(r] a-rroa- TtpciTc a/\Ar?Xovj) except it be with con- sent, &c.' Gr. 'And he shall not de- 12 ^ iHe that smiteth a man, so that he die, shall be surely put to death. 13 And k if a man lie not in wait, but God 1 deliver /lim into his hand ; then m I will appoint thee a place whither he shall flee. i Gen. 9. 6. Lev. 24. 17. Numb. 35. 30,31. Matt. 26. 52. k Numb. 35. 22. Deut. 19. 4, 5. 1 1 Sam. 24. 4, 10, 18. ni Numb. 35. 11. Deut. 19. 3. Josh. 20. 2. fraud her of necessaries, raiment, and converse.' Chal. 'And her nourishment, raiment, and communion he shall not prohibit.' Sam. 'And her habitation he shall not take away.' Arab. 'And her times he may not diminish.' Syr. 'And conjugal enjoyment he shall not lessen.' 11. If he do not these three. That is, either of the three things mentioned above, v. 10. IT Then shall she go out free without money. Upon coming to marriageable age, if the master nei- ther married her himself nor disposed of her otherwise, he was not only to set her free without remuneration, but also, as appears from Deut. 15. 12 — 17, to furnish her liberally with gifts. Laws respecting Murder and Man- slaughter. 12. He that smiteth a man. That is, mortally, as is evident from what fol- lows, and so amounting to wilful mur- der. See Note on Gen. 9. 6. IT Shall be surely put to death. Heb. tl^l'^ m?a moth yumath, dying shall be made to die. The sentence is here expressed in the most emphatic language, implying that no ransom was to be taken for the life of the wilful murderer. Num. 35. 31, 'Ye shall take no satisfaction for the life of a murderer, which is guilty of death ; but he shall be surely put to death.' 13. If a man lie not in wait. Heb. mifc Js^i ^Vj^ asher la tzadah, whoso hath not laid in wait. That is, whoso hath not done such a deed premedi- tatelyj who hath not waylaid another B. C. 1491.J CHAPTER XXI. 15 14 But if a man come " presump- tuously upon his neighbour, to slay n Numb. 15. 30. timi^ IDS DJ* im kopher yushath alav, if an atone- ment, or ransom, be laid upon him. This evidently supposes that in view of alleviating circumstances, the magis- trates were permitted to change the punishment of death into a pecuniary mulct. The care of the ox, for instance, may have been committed to a careless servant ; or he may have broken through the cords or the inclosure by which he was secured ; or he might have been provoked and enraged by another ; all which were circumstances that should go in mitigation of the sentence. What- ever the fine were in this case, he was to submit to it, and it was to be given to the heirs of him that had been killed. This fine, in the case of a free man or woman, was left discretionary with the judge, but in the case of a male or fe- male servant was fixed to the sum of thirty shekels of silver, or about $22 of our money. This valuation of a slave was precisely the sum for which Judas betrayed Christ ! Mat. 26. 15. Zech. 11. 12, 13.— In v. 31, the Chal. has, 'A son of Israel or a daughter of Israel.' 24 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. shekels of silver, and the c ox shall be stoned. 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 H And if one man's ox hurt another's that he die, then they shall sell the live ox, and divide the e ver. 28. Law respecting the Pit left uncovered. 33. If a man shall open a pit, &c. Not only were the statutes of this di- vine code so framed as to guard against mischief and injury arising from malice, but also against that which might be occasioned by a culpable negligence. The pits or wells from which water was procured in those countries, though usu- ally covered when not in use, yet were very liable to be left open, thus expos- ing to the utmost peril the lives or limbs of the animals that chanced to fall into them. The law contemplates the two cases of opening an old pit and digging a new one. The damage accru- ing in either case was to be made good by the opener or digger, to whom, how- ever, the carcase of the dead animal was to be considered as belonging. Law respecting Injuries done to cattle. 35. If one man's ox hurt another's. Where cattle fought and one killed an- other, the owners were to adjust the matter by selling the live ox and divid- ing the price equally between them, and also by making an equal division of the dead ox. But it is supposed in this case, that there had been no fault on the part of the owner of the slaying ox. On the other hand, if the animal was known to be of vicious propensities and his owner had not kept him in, it 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. CHAPTER XXII. IF a man shall steal an ox, or a sheep, and kill it, or sell it : he shall restore five oxen for an ox, and a four sheep for a sheep. a 2 Sam. 12. 6. Luke 19. 8. See Prov. 6.31. was manifestly just that he should suf- fer for his negligence, and was conse- quently required to give up his live ox and take the dead one. CHAPTER XXII. Law respecting Theft and Burglary. \. If a man shall steal an ox, &c. The protection of person and property from the force of the violent, and from the frauds of the dishonest, is one of the chief objects of all criminal lavv^ ; and this object is compassed, or at least aim- ed at, by means of punishments or pen- alties annexed to crime. Now: certainly the most obvious, appropriate, and effi- cacious punishment for stealing is, that the thief should be compelled to restore many times the value of that which he had stolen; and in this we find the principle of the ensuing statutes con- cerning theft. As the property of the ancient Israelites consisted mainly in cattle, it was very natural that the prin- ciples on which the magistrates were to proceed in determining cases of theft and robbery, should be shown in in- stances taken from this kind of posses- sion. From this chapter it appears that the most gentle punishment of theft was tiL'ofold restitution to the owner, who thus obtained a profit for his risk oi loss. This punishment was applicable to every case in which the article stolen B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXII. 25 2 ^ If a thief be found b break- ing up, and be smitten that he b Matt. 24.43. remained unaltered in the thiePs pos- session ; that is, was neither sold nor slaughtered. If however either of these were the case, and consequently all hope of repentance and voluntarj' resti- tution precluded, the punishment was more severe, being fourfold restitution in the case of a sheep or goat, and probably of other animals except an ox, v;here it was fivefold. This higher degree of penalty was annexed to the theft of oxen on account of their great value in the rural economy of the Is- raelites ; for they used no horses in their husbandry. The ox did every thing on their farms. He plowed, he threshed out the corn, and he drew it when threshed to the barn or garner. If therefore the theft of an ox was more severely punished than that of any thing else, it was on the same principle on which an increase of punishment is in- flicted for the crime of stealing from the larmer his plough, or any part of the apparatus belonging to it. It was, however, afterward enacted. Lev. 6. 4, 5, that if the thief were touched in con- science, and voluntarily confessed his crime and restored the stolen property, he should only be required to add a fifth part to it. Comp. Num. 5. 6, 7. 2. If a thief be found breaking up, &c. Heb. tl^riniOIl bammahtereth, in digging through. Gr. ev toj Stopvy[iari, id. That is, digging or breaking through a house, as the Chal. expressly renders it. In the eastern countries the walls of the houses are made very thick in order to shelter the inhabitants more effectually from the intense heat of the climate, and they are very frequently made of dried mud, laid in between up- right and tranverse pieces of timber. Maundrell, speaking of Damascus, says, 'The streets here are narrow, as is usual in hot countries, and the houses are all Vol. II. 3 die, there shall c no blood be shed for him. c Numb. 35. 27. built on the outside of no better a ma- terial than either sun-burnt brick, or Flemish wall, daubed over in as coarse a manner as can be seen in the vilest cottages. From this dirty way of build- ing, they experience this amongst other inconveniences, that upon any violent rain the whole city becomes, by the washing of the houses, as it were a quagmire.' As an opening therefore was effected through dried clay, and not through wood or stone, we perceive the propriety of the terms employed. The phraseology may be illustrated by the following parallel passages: Job, 24. 16, 'In the dark they dig through houses which they had marked for them- selves in the daytime.' Ezek. 8. 8, ' Then said he unto me, Son of Man, dig now in the wall,' &c. Mat. 24. 43, 'If the good man of the house had known in what watch the thief had come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.' Gr. ' To be digged through.' It is plain also from the sequel that the burglary is supposed to be committed at night. IT No blood for him; as it reads without the italics. Heb. pjj^ 12^5^1 *1^ ain lo damim, no bloods to him. That is, no blood shall be im- puted to him who killed him ; he shall not be held guilty of murder, inasmuch as it could not be known in the dark who the intruder was, or how far his de- signs might have carried him if not pre- vented. Gr. ovK tariv avTO) cpopoSj there shall not be slaughter for him. Chal., Sam., and Vulg. 'The smiter shall not be guilty of blood.' Syr. 'He shall not have an action of life.' Arab, 'His blood shall be unpunished.' The pro- priety of this enactment will appear more obvious if it be considered that in the night season men are less upon their guard, and where the precautions are 26 EXODUS. fB. C. 1491. 3 If the sun be risen upon him there shall he blood shed^orhim'.for he should make full restitution ; if he have nothing, then he shall be d sold for his theft. 4 If the theft be certainly e found in his hand alive, whether it be ox, or ass, or sheep ; he shall ^ restore double. 5 H If a man shall cause a field or dch. 21. 2. ech. 21. 16. fSeever 1.7. Prov. 6. 31. necessarily slight, the rigor of the law should be increased. Besides, a rob- bery committed in the dead of night, when no spectators are by, is attended with great inconvenience for the want of witnesses, by whose testimony only the thief could be condemned. Tlie case was directly the reverse provided the sun had risen, for then the presump- tion was that the thief's sole purpose was to steal and not to kill, and slaying was not the punishment for stealing. In God's code punishment is always duly proportioned to crime ; and it teaches us to be tender of the lives of bad men. 3. If the sun he risen upon him. Chal. 'If the eye of witnesses shall have fallen upon him.' Targ. Jon. 'If it be clear by the sun's light that he did not enter for the purpose of killing.' % He should make full restitution. This clause is designed as a statement of the reason for what goes before. The kill- ing of the man under such circumstances were a mere act of wanton homicide, in- asmuch as he could, if spared, have made complete restitution ; or if too poor for this, he could have been sold as a slave, according to law, and the avails have gone to compensate the theft or the injury. IT Then he shall be sold. An imhappy rendering when strictly considered, for the housebreak- er is supposed to be killed ; and if so, how could he be sold as a slave ? The version ought properly to have run like vineyard to be eaten, and shall put in his beast, and shall feed in ano- ther man's field : of the best of his own field, and of the best of his own vineyard shall he make resti- tution. 6 H If fire break out, and catch in thorns, so that the stacks of corn, or the standing corn, or the field be consumed therexcith ; he that kin- dled the fire shall surely make restitution. the preceding, ' he should or might have been sold.' 4. If the theft be certainly found in his hand alive, &c. This is not to be understood as being at variance with what is said Prov. 6. 31, 'If he be found, he shall restore sevenfold;^ as the 'seven- fold' here is doubtless but another term for abundantly, according to the com- mon usage of the number ' seven.' Comp. Gen. 4. 24. Ps. 12. 6.-79. 12. The pro- vision in this case seems to be based upon a mild construction of motives. The theft being found in his hand would appear to argue more hesitation and less management and decision in ini quitous practices than if he had pro ceeded to kill or sell it. So nice are the discriminations that are made ir» this wonderful code. Law respecting Trespass. 5. If a man shall cause afield or vine yard, &c. This was a case of trespass upon another man's grounds, where the intruder sent in his cattle to feed upon and eat down the grass, vines, or fruit trees of his neighbor. The penalty was that he should make restitution of the best of his own. Law respecting Conflagrations. 6. If q fire break out, and catch in thorns, &c. It is a plain principle run- ning through these enactments, that men should suffer for their carelessness, as well as for their wickedness ; that they B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXII. 27 are to consider themselves accountable not only for the injury they do, but also for that which they occasion through in- advertency. Here it is not necessary to suppose that he who kindled the fire designed the mischief that ensued. As it is a common custom in the East to set the dry herbage on fire before the descent of the autumnal rains, the fire may have been kindled on a man's own ground and by his own hand, and Irom want of proper attention it may have spread, and been productive of the widest ravages over the neighboring possessions. An adequate restitution is all the penalty enjoined in such a case of accidental conflagration ; whereas for wilfully and maliciously kindling a de- structive fire a much severer punish- ment was undoubtedly to be inflicted. The danger to property and loss of life arising from this source is strikingly depicted in the following note on this passage in the Pictorial Bible. 'This (law) doubtless alludes to the common practice in the East of setting fire to the dry herbage, before the commencement of the autumnal rains, under the very correct impression that this operation is favorable to the next crop. The herb- age is so perfectly dry by the long sum- mer droughts, that the fire when kindled often spreads to a great extent and can- not be checked while it finds any ali- ment. The operation is attended with great danger, and requires to be per- formed with a careful reference to the direction in which the wind blows, and to local circumstances, that nothing val- uable may be consumed in the course given to the destructive element. Such a fire kindled accidentally or wilfully is sometimes attended with most calam- itous consequences, destroying trees, shrubs, and standing crops, and placing in considerable danger persons who hap- pen to be abroad on a journey or other- wise. Such accidents sometimes happen through the carelessness of travellers in neglectme:, when they leave their sta- tions, to extinguish the fires they have used during the night. The dry herbage towards the end of summer is so very combustible, that a slight cause is suffi- cient to set it in a blaze. Dr. Chandler relates an anecdote, which sufficiently shows the necessity and propriety of the law which the text brings to our notice. When he was taking a plan of Troas, one day after dinner, a Turk came near and emptied the ashes out of his pipe. A spark fell unobserved upon the grass, and a brisk wind soon kindled a blaze, which withered in an instant the leaves of the trees and bushes in its way, seized the branches and roots, and devoured all before it with prodigious crackling and noise. Chandler and his party were much alarmed, as a general conflagration of the country seemed likely to ensue : but after an hour's ex- ertion they were enabled to extinguish the flames. The writer of this note can himself recollect, that when one chilly night he assisted in kindling a fire, for warmth, on the western bank of the Tigris, so much alarm was exhibited by the Arabs lest the flames should catch the tamarisks and other shrubs and bushes which skirt the river, that the party were induced to forego the enjoyment which the fire afforded. The writer has often witnessed these fires, and the appearance which they present, particularly at night, was always very striking. The height of the flame de- pends upon the thickness and strength of its aliment; and its immediate ac- tivity, upon the force of the wind. When there is little or no wind the fire has no other food than the common herbage of the desert or steppe ; the flame seldom exceeds three feet in height, and ad- vances slowly and steadily like a vast tide of fire backed by the smoke of the smouldering embers, and castmg a strong light lor a considerable height into the air, sometimes also throwing up a taller mass of flame where it meets with clumps of bushes or shrubs which 28 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 7 H If a man shall deliver unto his neighbour money or stuff to keep, and it be stolen out of the man's house; g if the thief be found, let him pay double. 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, iche- ther it be for ox, for ass, for sheep, for raiment, or for any manner of lost thing which another chal- lengeth to be his: the i cause of both parties shall come before the judges; and whom the judges shall s ver. 4. hch.21. 6. & ver. 28. iDeut. 25. 1. 2 Chron. 19. 10. afford more substantial aliment. This taller mass lingers behind to complete its work after the general body of flame has continued its destructive and con- quering march. A high wind throws the flames forward with great fury, while, if the ground happens to be thickly set with clumps of bushes, the tall columns of flame which start up in the advanc- ing fiery tide, give increased intensity to the grand and appalling effect of one of the most remarkable scenes which it falls to the lot of a traveller to witness. In the steppes of southern Russia the writer has passed over tracts of ground, the surface of which had, for fifty miles or more, been swept and blackened by the flames.' Fict. Bible. Law respecting Deposits. 1. If a man shall deliver unto his neighbor money or stuff to keep. Heb. C^^iS 1K t]D!D kcseph o k'iiim, silver or vessels; i. e. furniture, utensils. Per- haps the general word articles comes the nearest to the original. When valu- able articles were left for safe keeping in the hands of any one, and while thus entrusted were in some way missing, if the thief were found he was to restore condemn he shall pay double unto his neighbour. 10 If a man deliver unto his neigh- bour an ass, or an ox, or a sheep, or any beast to keep ; and it die, or be hurt, or driven away, no man seeing it : 11 Then shall an koath 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 tt good. 12 And 1 if it be stolen from him, he shall make restitution unto the owner thereof. 13 If it be torn in pieces; the7i let him bring it for witness, and he kliebr. 6. 16. 1 Gen. 31.39. double. But if the thief were not found, there was at least a suspicion that he who had them in keeping had secreted or abstracted them, and a judicial in- quiry was thereupon to be instituted. The depositary was to be summoned before the magistrates and his oath that he knew nothing of them was to be con- sidered as a full acquittance. The law indeed does not expressly mention the oath, but only says, ' he shall be brought unto the jzidges (DTi^J^ Elohim, gods), to see whether not (i

n nt:> ib iT:??2 r.b-im ve-had. alta maazob lo azob taazob immo, liter- ally signifies — ' thou shalt cease from leaving to him, thou shalt surely leave with him.' The idea we take to be, that the man who should see his ene- my's ass (or other animal) in this con- dition was to cease, — i. e. by no means to allow himself, — to leave the prostrat- ed beast to his owner alone, but he was generously to go to his assistance, and not to desist but with the owner, when he had succeeded in raising him up, or had left him as past relief. This is perhaps the simplest construction, and it is confirmed by the parrallel passage Deut. 22. 4, ' Thou shalt not see thy brother's ass or his ox fall down by the way, and hide thyself from them : thou shalt surely help him to lift them up again.' Gr. 'Thou shalt not pass by the the same, but shalt raise up the same together with him.' Chal. 'Leaving thou shalt leave that which is in thy heart against him, and help up with him.' The scope of the precept is not only to inculcate mercy towards the brute crea- tion, but also to engender kindly feel- ings among brethren. For what would tend more directly to win the heart of an alienated neighbor than such an act of v/ell-timed benevolence ? 6. Thou shalt not urest the judgment of thy poor in his cause. That is, of B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXill. 43 7 '> Keep thee far from a false mat- ter ; i and the innocent and right- eous slay thou not : for k I will not justify the wicked. l«ver. 1. Lev.l9. 11. Luke 3. 14. Eph.4. 25. i Deut. 27. 25. Ps. 94. 21. Piov. 17. 16, 26. Jer. 7. 6. Matt. 27. 4. k ch. 34. 7, Rom. 1. 18. thy poor neighbor (Deut. 27. 19), in whose cause thou shall not pervert, but shall strictly exercise, justice. Though there were cases in which there was danger lest compassion should unduly bias the course of equity in favor of a poor man, yet the instances would be far more numerous in which the magis- trate would be tempted to neglect or pervert his cause, either to oblige a rich opponent, or to save trouble, or because he had not money to pay the requisite expenses. But the expression, Hhy poor,' is supposed to be a counter- active to all such temptations : ' Re- member they are thy poor, bone of thy bone, thy poor neighbors, thy poor brethren, and cast in providence as a special charge upon thy justice and charity.' 7. Keep thee far from a false matter , &c. This law seems intended as a kind of security for the due observance of the preceding. If they would guard against perversions of judgment, they must dread the thoughts of aiding or abetting a bad cause ; they must have nothing to do with it j they must keep themselves at the greatest possible dis- tance from it. And why? Because if they wilfully or incautiously hearkened to false testimony, or decided wrong in a case of life and death, they would be deemed the murderers of the innocent and the righteous. Indeed it may be said that God interprets as slaying the innocent and righteous that conduct which tends to such an issue. If then they would not slay with their own hands those who looked to them for justice, let them ' keep far from a false matter j' for it might terminate in such 8 H And 1 thou shalt take no gift ; for the gift blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words of the right- eous. 1 Deut. 16. 10. 1 Sam. 8. 3. & 12. 3. 2 Chron. 19. 7. Ps.26. 10. I'rov. 15. 27. & 17. 8, 23. & 29. 4. Isai. 1. 23. & 5. 23. & 33. 15. Ezek. 22. 12. Amos 5. 12. Acts 24. 26. an issue as they dreamt not of, and the righteous God will not leave such wick- edness to go unpunished. 'I will not justify the wicked ;' i. e. I will condemn him that unjustly condemns others. 'Cursed be he that perverteth the judg- ment of the stranger, fatherless, and widow. And all the people shall say, Amen.' Deut. 27. 19. Law respecting Bribery. 8. Thou shalt take no gift, &c. The precepts we are now considering still have respect to the duties of those who are appointed guardians of justice. They are instructions to magistrates in the conduct of judicial cases. They were to keep themselves studiously free from every thing that would tend to warp or bias their judgment, or in any way mar the rectitude of their decisions. Gifts from a party to a judge are absolutely prohibited, even though not given on the condition of his pronouncing a favor- able verdict. For as human nature is constituted, gifts tend exceedingly to blind the understanding and to pervert the decisions of those who take them, and who would otherwise be disposed to follow equity in their sentences. The conduct of Sir Matthew Hale, when viewed by the light of this statute, is preeminently praiseworthy. Upon one of his circuits as judge, he refused to try the cause of a gentleman who had sent him the customary present of veni- son, until he had paid for it. He would not run the risqu^ of suffering his feel- ings as a man to influence his decisions as a judge. It is worthy of note in this connexion, that in Deut. 27. 25, we find the connexion between the takinj; of 44 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 9 ^Also in thou shalt not oppress a stranger : for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strang- ers in the land of Egypt. 10 And " six years thou shalt sow ni ch. 22. 21. Dent. 10. 19. & 24. 14, 17. & £7. 19. Ps. 94. 6. Ezek. 22. 7. Mai. 3. 5. n Lev. 25. 3, 4. gifts and the murder of the innocent very distinctly recognized: 'Cursed be he that taketh reward to slay an inno- cent person.' This is an expressive commentary upon the tendency and ef- fects of yielding to solicitations that come in the form of tempting bribes. On the contrary, how rich and emphatic the promises to those who keep them- selves aloof from these abominations, Is. 33. 15, 16, 'He that walketh right- eously, and speaketh uprightly ; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hear- ing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil ; he shall dwell on high ; his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks : bread shall be given liim ; his waters shall be sure.' IT The wise. Heb. Q'^np'D pikhim, the open-eyed, the seeing. The case of Samuel's sons, 1 Sam. 8. 1 — 3, affords an humiliating il- lustration of the effect ascribed to the conduct which is here condemned: 'And it came to pass, when Samuel was old, he made his sons judges over Israel. And his sons walked not in his ways, but turned aside after lucre, and took bribes, and perverted judgment.' In view of all this the wise man says, Prov. 17.23, 'A wicked man taketh a gift out of the bosom to pervert the ways of judg- ment.' IT Perverteth the words of the righteous. That is, the sentence of those who are ordinarily accounted righteous, and who but for the corrupt- ing influence of bribes would be right- eous. 9. Thou shalt not oppress a stranger. This verse is little more than a partic- thy land, and shalt gather in the fruits thereof: 11 But the seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie still ; that the poor of thy people may eat : and what they leave the beasts of the field shall eat. In like manner thou shalt deal with thy vineyard, and with thy oliveyard. ular application of the general precept, ch. 22. 21, introduced in this connexion in order to put the judges on their guard against the influence of prejudice in de- ciding causes in which foreigners were concerned. They Avere to be sure not to oppress them ; for from their own experience of hardships and injustice in Egypt, they knew how strangers felt on such occasions. IT Ye know the heart of a stranger. Heb. TL'D'2 nephesh, the sow/; the sentiments, the feelings. Knowing the griefs and afllictions of strangers, ye can the more easily put your souls into their soul's stead. Our trials and sorrows in this world go but little way towards accomplishing their true object if they do not train us to a deep sympathy with those who are call- ed to drink of the same bitter cup. Laiv respecting the Sabbatical Year. 10, 11. Six years thoxi shalt sow thy land, &c. We have here one of the most remarkable ordinances of the Jew- ish code. As every seventli day was to be a Sabbath, so every seventh year was to be a Sabbatical Year, and hence in the repetition of this law, Lev. 25. 4, it is called ' a Sabbath of Sabbatism to the land, a Sabbath to Jehovah.' During that year the corn-fields were neither sown nor reaped. The vines were un- pruned, and there were no grapes gather- ed. Whatever grew spontaneously be- longed alike to all, instead of being the property of any individual ; and the poor, the bondman, the day-laborer, the stranger, the cattle that ranged the fields, and the very game, then left un- disturbed, could assert an equal right to B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIII. 45 it. In short, during this year, the whole of Palestine continued a perfect com- mon (Lev. 25. 1 — S), and in order to render this law the more sacred, it was not only termed ' the year of the Sab- bath,' its sabbatism or resting being declared holy to the Lord, but even the vines, as if under a vow, were called 'Nazarites' to which a knife must not be applied. Comp. Lev. 25. 5, with Num. 6. 5. As to the reasons of an ordinance so remarkable, although we may perhaps admit that some regard was had to the physical benefits accruing to the soil from a periodical respite from culture for one year in seven, yet we cannot doubt that they were mostly of a moral nature, adapted and designed to promote the general ends of the economy to which the enactment belonged. As the Sabbath of the seventh year had the same reference as that of the seventh day to the creation of the world, it went to cherish all those pious and adoring sentiments which were awak- ened by the stated rGcurrence of the weekly day of rest. This septennial sabbatism reminded the Israelites not only of what they in common with the whole world, owed to the great and glorious Creator of the universe, but of their more especial obligations to him as their covenant God, who had made them the peculiar object of his care ; and who was pleased miraculously to overrule the laws of nature in their be- half. It is scarcely possible to conceive of any more effectual mode of teaching them the duty of a continual simple- hearted reliance upon a kind and boun- tiful providence, than by the command to let the whole land lie fallow for one entire year, and to trust for subsistence to the provisions of that power which made the earth, and which could easily make the produce of the sixth year suffi- cient for the wants of the seventh or even the eighth. Were they ever tempted to cherish the slightest doubt or mis- giving on this score, it was at once confuted by the express assurance of augmented plenty when it became re- quisite. Lev. 25. 20, 21, 'And if ye shall say, What shall we eat the seven- eth year ? behold, we shall not sow nor gather in our increase : Then I will command my blessing upon you in the sixth year, and it shall bring forth fruit for three years.' This was a plain in- timation that a miracle should attend the strict observation of the law m question. Had such an extraordinary increase immediately succeeded the fal- low year, it might have been accounted for according to the course of nature. The land had had a respite, and would naturally bring forth with more vigor. But when after being exhausted by con- stant tillage for five years, it produced more instead of less on the sixth, what was this but the manifest proof of a direct intervention of Omnipotence, showing as with the light of the sua that a particular providence incessantly watched over them ? And not only so ; the ordinance taught them impressive- ly upon what tenure they held their pos- sessions. They would be forced to ac- knowledge God as the lord of the soil, and themselves as liege-subjects of the great Proprietor, upon whose bounty their well-being continually hung. In- timately connected with this was the lesson of humanity which they were hereby taught to the poor, the enslaved, the stranger, and the cattle. The ap- pointment of the Sabbatical Year was a striking demonstration that all classes and conditions of men, and even the beasts of the field, were mercifully cared for by the Universal Father ; and what violence must they do to every kindly sentiment, if they could evince a con- trary spirit ? Once in every seven years they might freely suspend all the labors of agriculture, and yet rest in perfect security of an ample supply for their wants ; and what could more directly tend to work the conviction upon their 46 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 12 o Six days thou shall do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest : that thine ox and thine o ch. 20. 8, 9. Deut. 5. 13. Luke 13. 14. minds that heaven hud appointed them a higher destiny than to be always drudging in earthly toils ; that nothing would be lost by the prescribed inter- mission ; and that if God could, as we may say, afford to be thus munificent to them, they were bound to act on the like noble, liberal, and generous princi- ples to their fellow-creatures ? Another ordinance connected with the Sabbatical Year deserves our attention. On this year, during the feast of taber- nacles, when all Israel came to appear before God the Law was to be ' read in their hearing, that they might learn, and fear the Lord their God, and ob- serve to do all the words of this law ; and that their children which had not known any thing, might hear and learn to fear the Lord their God.' Deur, 31. 10 — 13. Thus once in every seven years the congregated nation had an oppor- tunity to be instructed in the contents of the Law given by Moses ; and to render this ceremony more impressive, it is tra- ditionally held that in after times the king in person was the reader. The season was the most eligible that could have been chosen. During this year the minds of the people were less occupied with Avorldly concerns than usual. They had neither to sow nor to reap. They were therefore peculiarly accessible to all the good influences connected with such an o\ servance, and were prepared to look ujon it as a striking type of heaven where all earthly labors, cares, and interests shall cease for ever. Such was the institution of the Sab- batical Year, and such its effects in creating a sense of dependence in God, charity to man, and humanity to brutes. It was admirably adapted to be a test of the faith and obedience of the chosen people, and yet we are unhappily ass may rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed. obliged to record the fact, that they did not stand the test. Not only is there no express mention of the actual observ- ance of the law in the historical books of the Old Testament, but in 2 Chron. 36. 21 , that neglect of it is spoken of as one of the procuring causes of the seven- ty years captivity to which they were subjected, during which the land was to enjoy the number of Sabbaths of which it had been defrauded by the re- bellion and unbelief of its inhabitants. In other words, the years of their cap- tivity were to correspond with the num- ber of the neglected Sabbatical years ; and as those were seventy, it would carry us back about 500 years to the close of Samuel's administration, when the observance began to go into disuse. Thus blindly and madly does depraved man war against his own interest in neglecting the salutary appointments of Heaven ! Law respecting the Sabbath day. 12. Six days thou shalt do thy work, &c. A repetition of the law of the fourth commandment concerning the weekly sabbath. The reason of its in- sertion in this connexion has divided the opinions of commentators. Some suppose it to be mainly with a view to its civil ends, viz. the rest and relaxa- tion of servants and beasts, whereas in the fourth commandment, it is enjoined chiefly as a branch of worship, as a part of that spiritual service which is rendered directly to God. Others again, and we think with greater probability, suppose the design to be to guard against an erroneous inference, that might be drawn from the preceding or- dinance. As the sabbatical year was a year of cessation from the ordinary la- bors of other years, so they might pos B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIII. 47 13 And in all things that I have I and q make no mention of thename said unto you, p be circumspect : I of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth. P Deut. 4. 9. Josh. 22. 5. Ps. 39. 1. Eph. 5.15. 1 Tim. 4. 16. sibly take up the impression, that the ordinary observances of the Sabbath day were also to be suspended during that year ; that it was, as it were, laid open in common with the other days of the week. But this would be a groundless and pernicious inference, and therefore the law of the Sabbath is expressly re- peated, and the people reminded that the observance of that day was of per- petual and paramount obligation, and not in the slightest degree annulled by the occurrence of the Sabbatical Year. For though they might not during that year be engaged in the ordinary labors of agriculture, and the day might not be so emphatically a day of rest to them as usual, yeX. even during that time there were various minor occupa- tions and cares which were to be regu- larly suspended as every seventh day returned. IT May he refreshed. Heb. 123&3'^ yinnaphesh, may be re-spirited, or ncw-souled, from 1i;5D nephesh, soul; i. e. may have a complete renewal both of bodily and spiritual health. Gr. avaipv^r], the same expression with that occurring Acts 3. 19, 'Repent ye, there- fore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out when the times of refreshing (avaxLv^scos, re-souling) shall come from the presence of the Lord.' The very frequent repetition of the law respecting the sabbath shows conclu- sively that the sanctification of that day was of great consequence in the sight of God, and that he had a special eye therein to its benign bearing physic- ally both upon the welfare of man and beast. With this institution before us, we can no more ask the question, 'Doth God care for oxen V So far from dis- regarding their well being, we find re- peated provisions in his law breathing q Nunib. 32. 38. Deut. 12. 3. Josh. 23. 7. Ps.l6. 4. Hos.2. 17. Zech. 13.2. a most tender and beneficent concern for the brute creation subjected to the uses of man. How different from the^ light in which they are practically re- garded by multitudes of civilized and nominally Christian men ! How many thousands of patient drudging cattle and noble horses, have no sabbath ! They cannot remonstrate when called from their quiet stalls on the sabbath, and put to their exhausting week-day toils, but the barbarous privation of their authorized rest speaks loudly in the ears of their merciful Creator, and their meek endurance reaches one heart in the universe that is not insensible to the appeal. That heart has a hand to execute judgment adequate to the wrong done to a portion of his creatures which have a capacity to suffer, but none to complain. Law enjoining caution against Idolatry. 13. In all things — be circumspect. Heb, Tl!'2'im tish-shameru, keep your- selves. It is a strict injunction of uni- versal heedfulness in respect to every one of the divine precepts, but with more especial reference to those pro- hibiting idolatry in any of its forms ; for to this sin Omniscience foresaw that they would be preeminently dis- posed and tempted. IT Make no men* lion, &c. Heb. Tl^^itD Si^ lo tazkiru, ye shall not cause to be remembered. They were to endeavor to blot out the remembrance of the gods of the hea- then, and for this end their names were not to be heard from their mouths ; or if mentioned at all, it must be only in a way of detestation. The Chal. terms these other gods 'idols of the peoples ;' and God, by the prophet Zech. 13. 2, says, 'la that day I will cut off the 4S EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 14 *1I r Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year. 15 9 Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread : (thou shalt eat 'ch. 34. 23. Lev. 23. 4. Deut. 16. 16. ' ch. 12. 15. & 13. 6. & 34. 16. Lev. 23. 6. Deut. 16.8. names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered.' And again, Hos. 2. 17, 'I will take away the names of Baalim out of her mouth, and they shall no more be remembered by their name.' It was in accordance with the spirit of this precept that the Israelites seem to have made a practice of 'changing the names' of idolatrous places, Num. 32. 3S. And under a sim- ilar prompting David says, Ps. 16. 4, 'Their drink-offerings of blood will I not offer, nor take up their names into my lips.' In the intercourse of society, there is no more emphatical mode of indicating hatred towards a person than not mentioning his name, shrinking from even the remotest allusion to him, and striving, as far as possible, to for- get even his existence. Thus would God have his people do in regard to the gods of the heathen. He says to them in effect of idolatry, as elsewhere, 'Thou shalt utterly detest it, and thou shalt utterly abhor it ; for it is a cursed thing.' The influence of a familiar ac- quaintance with the mythology of the ancient classics would no doubt be far more pernicious than it is, and more abhorrent to the spirit of this precept, were it not for the intrinsic absurdities of the system, and the overwhelming light of evidence which distinguishes Chris- tianity. These are probably such as to counteract any serious injury which might otherwise result from one's being conversant with the names, characters, and alleged exploits of Jupiter, Bac- chus, Apollo, Mars, Venus, and the other deities of Pantheon, of whom it seems to be essential to a liberal education to have some knowledge. The practical unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time ap- pointed of the month A bib ; for in it thou earnest out from Egypt : t and none shall appear before me empty :) t ch. 34. 20. Deut. 16. 16. evils on this score, we imagine, are a this day but sliglit. Low respecting the three great Festi- vals. 14. Three times thou shalt keep a feast, &c. Heb. tS^^^^"! ^LvIU shalosh regalim, three feet; i. e. three foot- journies. Gr. rpeii Kainovg, three times. Chal. id. These three feasts were, (1.) The feast of the Passover. (2.) Of Pentecost. (3.) Of Tabernacles ; each of which continued for a week. As we shall hereafter have occasion to consider these festivals separately in all their details, it will be sufficient at present to remark in general that this thrice-yearly concourse of all the males of Israel at the place of the sanctuary, was well calculated, (1) To counteract all the unsocial tendencies arising from their separation into distinct tribes, and to unite them among themselves as a nation of brethren. Were it not for some provision of this kind, local in- terest and jealousies would have been been very apt to be engendered, which in process of time would probably have ripened into actual hostilities and col- lisions that would have broken their commonwealth to pieces. But by be- ing frequently brought together, the ac- quaintances of tribes and families would be renewed, all feelings of clannish ex- clusiveness repressed, and the social union more effectually consolidated. (2) It was an ordinance well calculated to perpetuate the memory of the great events on which they were severally founded. As the weekly sabbath brought to remembrance the creation of the world, so did the Passover the departure B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIII. 49 from Egypt ; the Pentecost, the deliv- ery of the Law ; and the Feast of Tab- ernacles, the sojourning in the wilder- ness. Whatever of salutary religious influence was exerted by the celebra- tion of these memorable events, it would obviously bear with most weight when it became the joint act of the whole as- sembled nation. Moreover, as the Law was read and instruction imparted on these occasions, the effect would natur- ally be, to render them faithful to their religion, and better disposed to carry out its principles in their lives and con- versation. (3) Another important end which we may suppose to have been designed by these assemblages, was to afford to the people seasons of relaxa- tion and recreation from their necessary t-oils. Although the weekly sabbath brought with it a welcome respite from labor, yet the Maker of our frame saw that something more than this was re- quisite for the highest well-being, cor- poreal and mental, of his creatures, and therefore ordained certain seasons of innocent hilarity in connexion with those religious observances which would tend to keep them within proper limits. It is observable, therefore, that the ex- pression, ' rejoicing before the Lord,' is of frequent occurrence in speaking of those festive conventions which brought the Hebrews together from time to time during the year ; and it is no doubt de- sirable that the precepts of Christianity should be so construed as to lay no chilling interdict upon those harmless amusements which the constitution of our nature seems to render occasionally requisite. It might seem at first view that there was signal impolicy in leaving the land defenceless, while all the adult male population were congregated at a dis- tance from their families and homes. Humanly speaking, it is indeed surpris- ing that the hostile nations on their Dorders did not take advantage of their exposedness. For the matter was no Vol. II. 5 secret ; it was publicly known that at three set times every year they were commanded to be at Jerusalem, and that at three set times every year they actually attended. Why then were not inroads made at these seasons, to slay tlie old men, women, and children, to burn their cities, and carry off the spoil? How shall we account for the enmity of their foes being asleep at these par- ticular times, when the land was de- fenceless ; and perfectly awake at every other season, when they were at home, and ready to oppose them? Unless the Scriptures had given a solution, the matter would have been deemed inex- plicable ; but from this source we learn that the same Being who appointed those feasts guaranteed the security of the land while they were attending them. For thus runs the promise in Exodus 34. 23, 24, 'Thrice in the year shall all your men-children appear be- fore the Lord God, the God of Israel. For I will cast out the nations before thee, and enlarge thy borders : neither shall any man desire thy land, when thou shall go up to appear before the Lord thy God, thrice in the year.' Can any thing afford us a more striking in- stance of a particular providence ? He is a wall of fire about his people as well as the glory in the midst of them. The hearts of all men are in his hands. He maketh the wrath of man to praise him and the remainder of that wrath, which will not praise him, he restraineth. During the Avhole peri-od between Moses and Christ, we never read of an enemy invading the land at the time of the three festivals ; the first that occurs was thirty-three years after they had withdrawn from themselves the divine protection, by embruing their hands in the Savior's blood, when Cestius the Roman general slew fifty of the people of Lydda, while all the rest were gone up to the Feast of Tabernacles, A.D. 66. Again it is asked, how such vast mul- titudes could find provisions and accom- 50 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 16 u And the feast of harvest, the first-fruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field : and * the uch. 34. 22. Lev. 23. 10. ^s Deut. 16. 13. modation in the town where they con- gregated. The best answer will be found by a reference to the existing practice of the Mohammedans who an- nually repair to Mecca. The account is derived from our countryman Pitt, who was there towards the end of the seventeenth century, but the statement in its general features is equally ap- plicable at present. After describing Mecca as a mean and inconsiderable town, he observes that four caravans arrive there every year, with great num- bers of people in each. The Moham- medans say that not fewer than 70^000 persons meet at Mecca on such occa- sions ; and although he did not think the number, when he was there, so large as this, it was still very great. Now the question recurs, how this vast mul- titude could find food and accommoda- tion at so small and poor a place as Mecca? The following, from our au- thor, is a sufficient answer: — 'As for house-room, the inhabitants do straiten themselves very much, in order at this time to make their market. As for such as come last after the town is filled, they pitch their tents without the town, and there abide until they remove towards home. As for provision, they all bring sufficient with them, except it be of flesh, which they may have at Mecca ; but all other provisions, as butter, honey, oil, olives, rice, biscuit, &c., they bring with them as much as •will last through the wilderness, for- ward and backward, as well as the time they stay at Mecca ; and so for their camels they bring store of provender, &c. with them.' Ali Bey confirms this account. He says, indeed, that the pil- grims often bring to Mecca rather more food than they are likely to need, and when there, they compute how much feast of ingathering, which is in the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thv labours out of the field. they shall want during their stay and on their return, and, reserving that, sell the remainder to great advantage. He adds, ' Every hadji (pilgrim) carries his provisions, water, bedding, &c. with him, and usually three or four diet to- gether, and sometimes discharge a poor man's expenses the whole journey for his attendance upon them.' These facts no doubt apply, in a great extent, to the solution of the apparent difficulty as to the management of the Hebrews in their three annual meetings at the Tabernacle or the Temple. It will also be recollected that Jerusalem was a much larger city than Mecca, and situ- ated in an incomparably more fertile district. We have only farther to add, that the three great Festivals were honored with three remarkable events in the Scripture history. The feast of Taber- nacles was the time when the Savior was born, and also the time when, in his thirtieth year, he was baptized. The Passover was the time when he was crucified } and the Pentecost the time when the Holy Ghost descended in a visible manner upon the apostles. 16. The feast of harvest. When they offered two loaves of first-fruits. Lev. 23, 17, called in Ex. 34.22, 'the feast of weeks (or sevens'), because it was seven weeks or forty-nine days from the feast of unleavened bread, and occur- ring on the fiftieth day, was thence call- ed the Pentecost, a Greek word signi- fying fifty. This was properly the harvest festival, in which they were to offer thanksgiving to God for the boun- ties of the harvest, and to present unto him the first fruits thereof in bread baked of the new corn (wheat), Lev. 23. 14—21. Num. 28. 26—31. As the period of this festival coincided with B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIII. 51 17 y Three times in the year all thy males shall appear before the Lord God. ych. 34.23. Deut. 16. 16. that of the giving of the Law from Mount Sinai, which was fifty days after the Passover, it is usually spoken of as commemorative of that event, just as the feast of the Tabernacles is of their dwelling in tents for forty years dur- ing their sojourn in the wilderness. IT The feast of ingathering. Called also the 'Feast of Tabernacle^' Lev. 23. 34. Deut. 16. 13. This was the festival of gratitude for the fruitage and vintage, commencing on the even- ing of the fourteenth day of the seventh month, or October, called here ' the end of the year.' It continued seven whole days until the twenty-first, and then re- ceived the addition of the eighth day, which had probably in ancient times been the wine-press feast of the Israel- ites. During these eight days the Is- raelites dwelt in booths, formed of green branches interwoven together, which in the warm region of Palestine answered extremely well, as in October the weather is usually dry. — It may be remarked in regard to all these festi- vals, that the original term by which the appointment is expressed is 3nn tahag, from 33n hagag, which signifies to go round in a circle, and thence in its religious application to move round in circular dances. As this was no doubt in early ages one of the leading features of their religious festivals, the term came in process of time to signify in a general way the celebration of a religious feast or solemnity. See Note on Ex. 5. 1. The idea, however, is prominent that these were to be seasons of joy and rejoicing ; that a sanctified hilarity was to be regarded as a part of the duty connected with these festive seasons. The fact affords us an abund- ant vindication of ihe Mosaic system from the charge of sullen gloom and 1 8 z Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened z ch. 12. 8. & 34. 25. Lev. 2. 11. Deut. 16.4. cheerless austerity in its rites and ser- vices. 17. Shall appear before the Lord God. Heb. mn^ Xli^n '^iS ):i^ el penH ha- Adon Yehovah, to the face of the Lord Jehovah. This is, before the symbol of the manifested presence of Jehovah, which permanently abode on the ark and in the temple. We are still to give prominence to the idea of a visible ex- hibition which the Israelites were to regard as representing the presence of the Deity, The expression, we have no doubt, has special allusion to the ark of the covenant surmounted by the lu- minous cloud of glory ; and though the common Israelites were not indeed per- mitted to go into the Holy of Holies, yet they were to offer and to worship towards (bss el) the sanctuary where the sacred symbols were fixed. Chal. 'All thy males shall appear before the Lord, the master or ruler of the world.' Sam. 'Before the ark of the Lord.' Arab. 'In the sanctuary of the Lord God.' This version is somewhat remarkable when viewed in connexion with Josh. 3. 11, where, as appears from our Note on that passage, the epithet, ' Lord of the whole earth,' is expressly applied to the Ark of the Covenant. Law regulating the Offerings at the three great Feasts. 18. Thou shalt not offer the blood, &c. That is, the blood of the paschal lamb, called by way of emphasis the ' sa- crifice.' Chal. 'Of my passover.' IF With leavened bread. That is, hav- ing leavened bread upon thy premises or in thy possession. All leaven was to be previously purged out, according to the statute, Ex. 12. 15, et inf. TT Neither shall the fat of any sacrifice remain, &c. Ueh. "^^n haggi,my festi- 52 EXODUS. [B. C. 3491. bread : neither shall the fat of my sacrifice remain until the morning. 19 a The first of the first-fruits of thy land thou shalt bring into the house of the Lord thy God. b Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mo- ther's milk. 20 1[c Behold, I send an Angel be- » ch. 22. 29. & 34. 26. Lev. 23. 10, 17. Numb. 18.12,13. Deut.2d.lU. Neli. 10. 33. b ch. 34.26. Deut. 14. 21. c ch. 14. 19. & 32. 34. & 33. 2, 14. Numb. 20. 16. Josh. 5. 13. & 6.2. r.s.91. 11. Isai. 63. 9. val- a different word from that rendered sacrifice (rct zebah) in the preceding clause. Yet there is no doubt that it refers to the sacrifice of the passover as the parallel passage Ex. 34. 26, has expressly, 'Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leaven, nei- ther shall the sacrifice of the feast of the passover be left until the morning.' Tlie fat was forbidden to remain till morning, because it was liable to cor- rupt and become offensive, wliich was very unseemly for any part of the sa- cred offerings. See Note on Ex. 12. 10. The fat was in all animal offerings ac- counted the choicest and most import- ant part, and that wliich was preemin- ently devoted to God ; and therefore it was required that it should be immedi- ately consumed without any reservation. This was especially true of the fat of the paschal lamb. 19. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother^s milk. The original word for seethe signifies to cook or dress by the fire, whether by boiling, roasting, or baking. The true import of the precept is someA^f'at doubtful. Most commen- tators t-^Ke it as prohibiting some kind of superstitious custom practised by the neighboring heathen, a species of ma- gical incantation, by which they thought to secure a plentiful harvest. But per- haps the most probable interpretation of this statute is, that it forbids the killing and cooking of a kid or lamb while it was on its mother's milk ; i. e. during the period necessary for its own fore thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared. 21 Beware of him, and obey his voice, ^ provoke him not ; for he will enot pardon your transgres- sions : for f my name is in him. d Numb. 14. 11. Ps. 78. 40, 56. Eph. 4. 30. Hebr. 3. 10. 16. e ch. 32. 34. Numb. 14. 35. Deut. 18. 19. .losh. 2t. 19. .Ter. 5. 7. Hebr. 3.11. l.Tohn5. 16. f Isai. 9. 6. Jer. 23. 6. John 10. 30, 38. nutrition and the ease of its dam ; as it is wtrtl known that all females for some time after parturition are gencr- all)'- oppressed with their milk. The mode of cooking alluded to in this passage, is not, it appears, wholly un- known among the Orientals at the pre- sent day. 'We alighted at the tent of the sheikh, or chief, by whom we wei-e well received, and invited to take shel- ter with him for the night. Immediate- ly after our halting a meal was prepared for us ; the principal dish of which was a young kid seethed in milk.' Buck' ingham. Promise of a Tutelary Angel. 20,21. Behold, I send an Angel be- fore thee, &c. Heb. n^^ZJ ^il^i^ HjH 'T'^DC^ "li^^^O hinneh anokisholah malak lepaneka, behold me sending an angel before thee; i. e. about to send. See Note on Gen. 6. 13, 17. The reader is referred to the note on ' the Pillar of Cloud,' p. 164, for an expansion of our views on the import of the word 'Angel' in this connexion. We have there, if we mistake not, adduced satisfactory reasons for believing that the Angel here mentioned was the Shekinah, which was identical with the Pillar of Cloud, that guided the march of the children of Israel through the desert. According to this view, the sensible phenomenon, and not any unseen agent, whether di- vine or angelic, is what is primarily to be understood by the 'Angel.' This sublime and awful object they were re- B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIII. 53 22 But if thou shalt indeed obey his voice, and do all that I speak ; then gl will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries. S Gen. 12. 3. Deut. 30. 7. Jer. 30. 20. quired to consider as the visible repre- sentative of Jehovah himself and to de- mean themselves towards it as obedi- ently and reverentially as if it had been a living, intelligent, personal witness both of their outward actions and their inward thoughts, which we may not improperly say that it was, inasmuch as the Most High was pleased to asso- ciate his attributes of omniscience and omnipotence with it. All the language employed is such as to warrant this view of the subject. They were to be- ware of it, to obey its voice, to provoke it not, and that under the fearful sanc- tion that an opposite conduct could not be evinced with impunity ; that it would be sure to meet with condign punishment. Of this the grand assur- ance was contained in the declaration, 'My name is in him,' or rather accord- ing to the original {'\Z1p'2beki7-bo),my name is in the midst of him, or it. It is well known to the Hebrew scholar that the proper expression for being in a person is IH fto, in him ; but here we find a phraseology strictly appropriate to being within, or in the central parts of any gross, inanimate mass of matter. We cannot but understand it therefore as carrying the implication that the name ; i. e. the attributes — the intelli- gence, the power, the majesty, the glory of the Godhead — were to be considered as being mysteriously united with and abiding in the overshadowing and guid- ing Cloud. Arab. 'My name is with him.' Chal. 'His word is in my name ;' i. e. he is clothed with my authority. Syr. and Gr. 'My name is upon him.' As we have before endeavored to show that the remarkable symbol of the 23 b For mine Angel shall go be- fore thee, and i bring thee in unto the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites ; and I will cut them off. h ver. 20. ch. 33. 2. i Josh. 24. 8, 1 1 . Cloudy Pillar was a preintimation of Christ's appearing in flesh, we see how naturally the apostle's words, 1 Cor. 10. 9, harmonize with this interpreta- tion ; ' Neither let us tempt Christ as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents.' By tempting the Angel that served to them as the anticipative shadow of Christ, they may be said to have tempted Christ himself, as nothing is more usual in the Scrip- tures than to apply to the type or figure the language which belongs to the sub- stance. It is as proper to recognize Christ in the Angel of the Covenant be- fore his incarnation, as it is to recog- nize him in ' the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.' 22. But if thou shalt indeed obey his voice, &c. — then I will be, &c. Here the divine speaker seems imperceptibly to glide into the person of the promised Angel of whom he speaks. In the next verse the person is again changed, and he speaks as before. It is to be borne in muid that Moses was at this time on the summit of the mount, holding commu- nion with God in the Shekinah ; but we perceive nothing in this fact that mili- tates with the view advanced above. The very appearance that rested upon Mount Sinai and now conversed with Moses, might be modified into the Pillar of Cloud and in that form denominated the emissarj'- Angel that was to conduct the people on their journey to Canaan. 23. For mine Angel shall go before thee — and I will cut them off. Here agam is another interchange of per.sons, simi- lar to that above mentioned, and such as cannot fail to be frequently noticed by the attentive reader of the Scriptures. 54 EXODUS. [B. C. 1493. 24 Thou shalt not k bow down to their gods, nor serve them, i nor do after their works : m but thou shalt utterly overthrow them, and quite break down their images. k ch. 20. 5. 1 Lev. IS. 3. Dent. 12. 30, 31. m ch. 31. 13. Numb. 33. 52. Deut. 7. 5, 25. & 12.3. It does not appear that the Jehovah of the Jews was a different being from him who is here and elsewhere termed 'the Angel.' Indeed the origmal phrase, mrr^ ^V^'^'^ malak Yehovah, may quite as properly be rendered 'Angel Jeho- vah,' as 'Angel of Jehovah,' or 'Angel of the Lord,' which is equivalent. Idolatry to be avoided and abolished. 24. Thou shalt not bow down to their gods. Heb. nifiriffiri 5^^ lo tishtahaveh, properly signifying 'bow down,' though for the most part rendered ' worship,' and used to express, in a general way, all the various external acts and ser- vices of religious adoration. See Note on Gen. IS. 2 — IT Nor serve them. Heb. tDliSTl taobdcm. That is, shall not pray to them, praise them, nor so conduct to- wards them as to declare thyself bound, devoted, or dedicated to them. Gr. j,r} XarpEvaEig avTois, shalt not perform ser- vice to them. But in v. 33, the same term ^n2?ln taabod is rendered ia the Greek by Sov'Xevari;, from which it would appear that the Septuagint versionists used the terms SnAevoi and A«r(U£iiw, in reference to religious worship, sy- nonymously. IF Nor do after their works. It would seem from the con- struction, that the most natural antece- dent to 'their' is 'gods,' in which case the meaning is, that the Israelites were not to do after the works which the service of the heathen gods required, which naturally flowed out of their worship, and were incorporated with it. But Ainsworlh understands ' their' as having reference to tlie idolatrous wor- shippers, and this may be admitted 25 And ye shall n serve the Lord your God, and o he shall bless thy bread, and thy water; and pi will take sickness away from the midst of thee. 1 Deut. 6. 13. & 10. 12, 20. & 11. 13, 14. & 13. 4. Josh. 22. 5. & 24. 14, 15, 21, 24. 1 Sam. 7. 3. & 12. 20, 24. Malt. 4. 10. o Deut. 7. 13. Ac 28. 5. 8. Pch. 15. 20. Deut. 7. 15. without doing any violence to the text, tliough we think the other sense most correct. IT Thou shalt utterly over- throw them. Here the pronoun 'them' refers to the gods, and not to the peo- ple their worshippers ; which confirms the construction given above. The sub- ject seems to be the same throughout the verse, viz. the idol deities of the Canaanites. The idol worshippers were indeed to be destroyed, but that is not the immediate topic treated of in this verse. The divine Speaker is here com- manding the total excision of all the memorials of that vile idolatr}'^, which would be likely to seduce his people from their allegiance to him. It was enjoining upon them the same spirit with that which afterwards prompted the convicted conjurors to ' burn their books,' Acts, 19. 19. Farther Precepts and Promises. 25. And ye shall serve the Lord your God. Nothing can be more reasonable than the conditions which Jehovah im- poses upon his people — that they should serve their own God, who was indeed the only true God, and have nothing to do with the gods of the devoted nations, which were no gods, and which they had no reason to respect. In doing this they would not only be acting the part of sound reason, but would assure them- selves also of the special tokens of the divine blessing. They would be secure of the enjoyment of all desirable tem- poral prosperity. The blessing of God would crown their bread and their wa- ter, and make that simple fare more re- freshing and nutritive than the ricliest B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIII. 55 26 H q There shall nothing cast their young, nor be barren, in thy land: the number of thy days I will r fulfil. 21 I will send » my fear before q Deut. 7. 14. & 28. 4. Job 21. 10. Mai. 3. 10, 11. >• Gen. 25. S. & 35. 29. 1 Chron. 23. 1. Job 5. 26. & 42. 17. Ps. 55. 23. & 90. 10. • Gen. 35. 5. ch. 15. 14, 16. Deut. 2. 25. & 11. 25. Josli. 2. 9, 11. 1 Sam. 14 .15. 2 Chron. 14. 14. dainties without it, while wasting sick- ness, with its fearful train of evils, should be effectually banished from their borders, 26. The number of thy days^ &c. That is, thou shall not be prematurely cut oif before reaching that good old age, which in the ordinary course of things thou mayest expect to attain. This is the blessing of the righteous, as is said of Job, ch. 42. 17, ' So Job died, being old, and full of days,^ where- as 'the wicked live not half their days,' Ps. 55. 23. 27. I will send my fear before thee. Will strike a panic terror into the in- habitants of Canaan before thine arri- val, which shall facilitate the subse- quent conquests. The words of the historian Josh. 2. 9, II, show how pre- cisely this threatening was fulfilled. IT Will destroy all the people to whom thou shalt come. Heb. ^tl^^fl hammothi. But if they were previous- ly destroyed, how could the Israelites come to them? It is evident that our translation has followed the Vulg. which has ' occidam,' I will slay, as if the original were the Hiph. conjug. of ti1J2 muth, to die — to cause to die, to kill. But the pointing on this supposition is not normal, and there is little reason to doubt that the root of the verb is not rn>2 to die, but G?2n to terrify, con- found, discomfit, correctly rendered by the Gr. cKarrjcyoj, I will Strike with dis- may. So also the Arab. 'I will make them astonished.' Chal. ' I will put iu disorder.' In Cranmer's Bible it is thee, and will t destroy all the peo- ple to whom thou shalt come, and I will make all thine enemies turn their backs unto thee. 28 And u I will send hornets be- fore thee, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite from before thee. t Deut, 7. 23. u Deut. 7. 20. Josh. 24. 12. rendered ' I will trouble,' a much bet- ter version than the present, for the context shows that the word cannot here mean to destroy, but to trouble, intimidate, dismay, so as to make them turn their backs to the Israelites. It is intensive of the former clause, denot- ing the consternation into which they should be thrown, and their consequent- ly becoming an easy prey to their ene- mies. U Make all thine enemies turn their backs to thee. Heb. &'^3> oreph, neck. In like manner Ps. 18. 40, 'Thou hast also given me the necks of mine enemies, that I might destroy them that hate me.' 2S. I will send hornets before thee. Heb. n^'l^Zn tl5^ eth hatz-tzirah, the hornet; collect, sing, like 'locusts,' Ex. 10. 4, for 'the locust.' The same thing is equally explicitly said, Deut. 7. 20, 'Moreover, the Lord thy God will send the hornet among them, &c,' As we are not expressly informed elsewhere that this annunciation was literally ful- filled, several interpreters have inferred that it is a mere metaphorical expres- sion for enemies armed with weapons, as hornets are with stings. Bochart, however, and others, maintain that the prediction was literally accomplished, and this interpi'etation is said to be con- firmed by the words of Joshua, ch. 24. 12, '^And I sent the hornet before you, even the two kings of the Amorites ; but not with thy sword nor with thy bow,' and this we consider on the whole as the most correct opinion. Some commentators, however, explain it of 56 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 29 w I will not drive them out from ' before thee in one year ; lest the land become desolate, and the beast of the field multiply against thee. 30 By little and little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be increased, and inherit the land. w Deut. 7. 22. the anxieties, perplexities, and pungent stinging terrors which should seize the minds of the devoted Canaanites upon the approach of Israel. After all, the reader must be thrown upon the re- sources of his own judgment as to its import in this place. See the subject more fully canvassed in the Note on Josh. 24. 1,2. 29. I will not drive them out from before thee in one year. Nor in fact in four hundred years was this expulsion entirely eifected. It was only in the times of David and Solomon that their enemies could be fairly said to have been driven .out. The reason of this delay is stated to be, lest the land, be- ing in a great measure left destitute of its former occupants, should be infested by great numbers of wild beasts. But it is a natural inquiry, what grounds there were to apprehend that the expul- sion of the former inhabitants would leave any part of Canaan vacant, when there were at least two millions of Is- raelites to fill their place ? — a number sufficient, it would seem, to occupy every nook and corner of the land. To this it may be answered, that the words do not respect merely the country of Canaan proper, lying between the Jor- dan and the Mediterranean, but the larger region embraced in the promise to Abraliam, Gen. 15. 18, and the bound- aries of which Moses immediately goes on to give. This was an immense ter- ritory, and it is obvious that its sudden depopulation would be attended by the consequences here stated. It was, there- fore, wisely ordered that the extirpa- 31 And xl -will set thy bounds from the Red sea even unto the sea of the Philistines, and from the de- sert unto the river : for I will y de- liver the inhabitants of the land into your hand: and thou shalt drive them out before thee. xGen. 15. 18. Numb. 34. 3. Deut. 11.24. Josh. 1. 4. 1 Kings 4. 21, 24. Ps. 72. 8. y Josh. 21.44. Juds. 1.4. & 11.21. tion of the Canaanites should be grad' ual, especially when we consider that the continued presence of enemies would keep them on their guard, and prevent them from settling down into that slug- gish supineness to which they would otherwise be prone. Thus too in our spiritual warfare, it is no doubt or- dained for our highest good that our corruptions should be subdued, not all at once, but by little and little ; that our old man should be crucified gradu- ally. We are hereby necessarily kept in an attitude of perpetual vigilance, and reminded of our constant depend- ence upon God, v/ho alone giveth us the victory. 31. I will set thy bounds, &c. On these boundaries of the promised land see Note on Josh. 1.4. This land, in its utmost extent, they were not to pos- sess till the days of David. Not that there was any positive prohibition against it, or any intrinsic necessity that their occupancy should be so long deferred ; but God saw that their own culpable remissness would preclude the speedier accomplishment of the prom- ise, and according to Scripture language he is often said to order or appoint what he does not prevent. H Sea of the Philistines. The Mediterranean, on the coast of which the Philistines dwelt IT From the desert unto the river. From the desert of Arabia to the river Euphrates. See Note on Josh. 1. 4. Thus 1 Kings, 4. 21, 'And Solomon reigned over all kingdoms from the river to the land of the Philistines;' i.e. the river Euphrates. B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIV. 57 32 z Thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor \vith their gods. 33 They shall not dwell in thy land, lest they make thee sin against me : for if thou serve their gods, a it will surely be a snare unto thee. zch. 31. 12, 15. Deut. 7. 2. ach. 31. 12. Deut. 7. 16. & 12. 30. Josh. 23. 13. Judg. 2.3. ISam. 18. 21. Ps. 106. 36. 3.2, 33. Thou shalt make no covenant, &c. The import of this precept evi- dently is, that they should contract no such alliances, nor cherish any such in- timacies with the devoted nations, as would endanger the purity of their re- ligious worship. If they would avoid the peril of being drawn into the fatal snare of becoming worshippers of false gods, they must keep themselves aloof from all familiarity with idolaters. They must not even sufler them to so- journ amongst them, so long as they adhered to their idolatrous practices. Evil communications corrupt good man- ners, and by familiar converse with the votaries of idols, their dread and detes- tation of the sin would imperceptibly wear off, and they would find them- selves, before they were aware, trans- ferring their worship and allegiance from the true God to the vanities of the heathen. The language implies that the serving of false gods is nothing else than making a covenant with them, and that this is a very natural consequence of making a covenant with those who worship them. CHAPTER XXIV. In the present chapter a transition is made from the recital of the several judicial laws embodied in the two chap- ters preceding, to the narrative which relates the ratification of the national covenant, the building of the Taber- nacle, and the institution of the various rites and ceremonies to be observed in the permanent worship of Jehovah. The leading incidents here recorded are the solemn adoption and ratification of CHAPTER XXIV. AND he said unto Moses, Come up unto the Lord, thou, and Aaron, a Nadab, and Abihu, b and seventy of the elders of Israel; and worship ye afar off. a ch. 28. 1. Lev. 10. I, 2. b ch. 1. 5. Numb. 11.16. the foregoing law on the part of the people, the ascent of Moses and the elders to or towards the summit of the mount, and the august vision there vouchsafed them of the Divine Glory, or the Sheliinah, another term for 4he God of Israel,' appearing by his appro- priate symbol. The true nature and objects of this remarkable manifesta- tion will appear more evident as we proceed in our annotations, from which the reader will probably infer, and with great justice, that the whole scene was one of far richer significance than is usually imagined. I. And he said unto Moses, Come up unto the Lord. That is, God said. It would probably have been written ' the Lord said unto Moses,' were it not to prevent a repetition of the word 'Lord' in the same clause. We are still to bear in mind the remark so often made before that the ' Lord' (Jehovah) to whom they were to come up was the visible Jehovah now abiding in the sum- mit of Sinai. Accordingly the Chal. has, 'Come up before the Lord;' and the .A.rab. 'Come up to the Angel of God.' It would seem to be unquestion- able from a comparison of the context with Ex. 19, 24—20. 21, that these words were spoken to Moses wliile yet on the mount and before he had retired from the thick darkness into which he had entered. Consequently as he could not be commanded to ascend the moun- tain when he had already ascended it, and was abiding on its top, we are forced to understand the words as im-' plying that he was to come up after having previously gone down and pro- 58 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491 2 And Moses c alone shall come near the Lord : but they shall not come nigh ; neither shall the peo- ple go up with him. 3 *[i And Moses came and told the ever. 13. 15, 18. pounded to the people the foregoing code, obtained their assent, and per- formed the various covenant trans- actions mentioned, v. 3 — 9. When this was done, he and his specified company were to ascend the mountain to receive the further instructions and revelations which God designed to impart. IT Nadab and Abihu. These were the two sons of Aaron who came to such a fearful end for their presumptuous trans- gression in offering strange fire before the Lord, Lev. 10. 1, 2. When Ave be- hold their names in the list of the hon- ored company selected for this near approach to God, and then cast our thoughts forward to the awful doom which they not long after brought upon themselves, we are led to the most seri- ous reflection. How clearly does the incident show that God's outward gifts and callings are often different from his 'election according to grace !' And how forcibly is the lesson inculcated upon us, that no mere external privileges, prerogatives, professions, forms, or fa- vors will avail us ought to the saving of our souls without an inward renewal to holiness wrought by the life-giving spirit of God! IT Seventy of the eld- ers of Israel. That is, seventy of the aged men of the congregation ; men distinguished, respected, and venerated among the different tribes. The official elders mentioned Num. 11. 16, were not yet appointed. This company was se- lected in order that they might be wit- nesses of the glorious appearance about to be made, and of the communion with God to which Moses was admitted, that their testimony might confirm the peo- ple's faith in their leader and teacher. If Worship ye afar off. Gr. :rpoo-- pcople all the words of the Lord, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, ^AU the words which the Lord hath said will we do. d ver. 7. ch. 19. 8. Deut. 5. 27. Gal. 3. 19. 20. KVvr}Gi)vai ^taKpcoOcv rw Ivvpif'i, they shall worship the Lord at a distance; from which it would appear that they under- stood this direction as having reference exclusively to those who accompanied Moses on this occasion. The letter of the text does not make this distinction, yet from the ensuing verse it appears not improbable. From that it appears, that, while the body of the people stood at the foot of the mountain, Aaron and his two sons, and the seventy elders, went up probably about half way, and Moses, being privileged with nearer ac- cess, went alone quite to the summit, and entered the bright and fiery cloud wliich rested upon it. Thus in a typi- cal manner he sustained the person of Christ, who, as our great High Priest, entered alone into the most holy place. This arrangement, which presents to us the people at the base of the moun- tain, the priests and the elders half the way up its sides, and Moses on its sum- mit, affords us a striking view of the several grades which God has appointed in his church. Only it is to be remem- bered that the office represented in Mo- ses is now merged in that of Christ, and the two grand distinctions o{ people and pastors or elders are all that are known under the Gospel ; the order of deacons being merely a kind of servants to the people, ordained to superhitend the temporalities of the several congre- gations. 3. And Moses came and told the peo- ple, &c. In this and the eight follow- ing verses we have an account of the important transactions in which Moses was engaged in the interval between his descent from the mount and his subsequent ascent thither in obedience B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIV. 59 4 And Moses e wrote all the Avords of the Lord, and rose up early in the mornmg, and builded an altar e Deut. 31.9. to the divine injunction, v. 1, and in company with Aaron and his sons and the elders. His first business was to set before the people the body of laws, moral, civil, and ceremonial, which had been delivered from Mount Sinai, to- gether with the promises of special blessings to be secured to them on con- dition of obedience. This was in fact proposing to them the terms of a na- tional covenant, which was to be rati- fied with very solemn ceremonies, and enforced with solemn sanctions. To this covenant the people, it appears, were prompt to give their unanimous and cheerful consent, saying, 'All the words which the Lord hath said will we do.' They had before, ch. 19. 8, consented in general to come imder God's government ; here they consent in particular to those laws now given. The Most High might, indeed, in virtue of his sovereign authority, have enjoin- ed his laws upon the nation without the formality of any stipulation on their part to obey them, but he condescended to give the whole affair the form of a covenant transaction, as something more calculated to w'm upon the gener- ous sentiments of their hearts, and to draw forth a more affectionate obedi- ence, than a code of precepts enjoined upon them by simple authority and ap- pealing sternly to a bare sense of duty. God loves to endear his requisitions to the hearts of his creatures. But not- withstanding the readiness of the peo- ple thus to assume, without reservation or exception, the responsibilities of the covenant, it was no doubt done with a certain degree of precipitation and rash- ness, without being aware of their innate impotency to live up to the full extent of the obligations which they hereby incurred. On other occasions in the under the hill, and twelve fpillars according to the twelve tribes of Israel. f Geii.2S. 18. &3I.45. history of the chosen race we find in- stances of the same sanguine prompt- itude in making vows and promises, followed, alas, but too speedily by the grossest acts of defection and rebellion ; which led one of the ancient fathers to compare the Israelites to locusts, 'Su- bito saltusdantes, et protinus ad terram cadentes,' suddenly giving an upward spring, and forthwith falling upon the earth again. The figure is but too fair an illustration of the halting obedience of the best of God's children in this world. 4. And Moses wrote, &c. Although it must have occupied a considerable part of the day, and perhaps of the night also, yet hi a transaction of this solemn nature it was evidently proper that the articles of the covenant about to be entered into should be reduced to writing, that there might be no mistake, and that it might be transmitted to posterity, who are equally to come under its obligations. The fact that God himself had previously written the words of the Decalogue on tables of stone does not necessarily militate with the supposition that Moses now made a record of them in writing, to be read in the audience of the people. These ta- bles he had not yet received. It was only when he came down from the mount, after the golden calf was erect- ed in the camp, that he brought with him these divinely written records. U Builded an altar under the hill and twelve pillars; the altar as a representa- tive of God, as the first and principal party to this covenant ; and the twelve pillars as the representatives of the twelve tribes of the people as the other party. Between these two covenanting parties Moses acted as real and typical mediator. Gr. 'He built an altar under the mountain, Kai SuScku Xidovt en ras 60 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 5 And he sent young men of the children of Israel, which offered burnt-offerings, and sacrificed peace-offerings of oxen unto the Lord. 6 And Moses g took half of the blood, and put it in basons; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar. 7 And he h took the book of the eHebr. 9. 18. hHebr. 9. 19. SijJOcKa (pv)^ai Tjv laparjX, and twelve stones for the twelve tribes of Israel; as if each of the pillars consisted of a single stone, which we incline to believe was the fact ; but it is not certain ; they may have consisted of heaps of stones. 5. And he sent young men, Sic. That is, the first-born, who officiated as priests and sacrificers till the Levites were appointed by substitution in their stead, Num. 3. 41. The term, as is re- marked in the Note on Gen. 14. 24, does not imply persons of youthful age, but those who were qualified to act in this ministerial service, which would natur- ally require men of mature years. Chal. 'He sent the first-born of the sons of Is- rael.' The Targ. Jon. adds, 'For to this hour the business of worship was among the first-born, seeing that as yet the tab- ernacle of the covenant was not built, neither had the priesthood been given to Aaron.' It is observable that there was no solemn religious ceremony in any part of the Mosaic dispensation, in which there was not a sacrifice, no ap- proach to God until he was thus pro- pitiated. These of course were typical of that one great offering of the Son of God, afterwards to be presented, which has for ever abrogated all others. By this, peace was made between God and his sincere worshippers, who bring that sacrifice in faith, and lay it on his altar. But until the fulness of time was come, the bodies of oxen and sheep, of goats and calves, prefigured the body of Christ which he offered up, once for all, upon covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, iAll that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient. 8 And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold kihe blood of the covenant, which the Lord hath made with you concerning all these words. i ver. 3. Is; Ilebr. 9. 20. & 13. 20. 1 Pet. 1.2. the cross, expiating then the sins of men ; and the people were thus taught the need of a sacrifice to propitiate as well as of a mediator to stand between them and God, and to intercede for them. ^ Of oxen. From Heb. 9. 19, it appears that other animals were sa- crificed on this occasion ,• 'He took the blood of calves and of goats,' &c. Oxen, or rather bullocks, are mentioned as being principal. 6 — 8. And Moses took half of the blood, &c. The application of the blood of the victim more explicitly demands our attention in considering the circum- stances of this solemn rite. Being di- vided into two equal parts, one half was put into one basin, the other into another. The first was then taken, and the blood sprinkled upon the altar, the representative of God, thereby denoting that he, on his part, engaged to be faithful in the covenant relation which he now condescended to assume, per- forming all the promises and conferring all the blessings which their corres- ponding fidelity would entitle them to expect. As Moses here says the altar was sprinkled, but makes no mention of the book, and as Paul, Heb. 9. 19, speaks of the book's being sprinkled, but says nothing of the altar, the pre- sumption is, that the book was laid upon tlie altar, and thus both the book and the altar partook of the sacred af- fusion. The import of the act was solemn and awful in the extreme, and the form of adjuration is supposed to B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIV. 61 9 ^ Then i went up Moses, and 1 ver. 1. have been substantially the following ; 'As the body of this victim is cloven asunder, as the blood of this animal is poured out, so let my body be divided and my blood shed, if I prove unfaith- ful and perfidious.' Under a stipula- tion of this fearful import, the people consent to the conditions of the com- pact, and again declare their purpose to abide steadfastly by the divine require- ments. Upon this Moses took the other basin of blood, and sprinkled its contents ' on the people ;' i.e. either on the twelve pillars which stood as the representatives of the people, or upon a portion of the elders of the congrega- tion in the name of the whole body. As the sprinklings and purifyings under the law were usually performed with water, scarlet wool, and hyssop. Lev. 14. 6. 7, such also, as we learn from the apostle, Heb. 9. 19, was the case in the present instance. The application of the blood was the seal of the cove- nant, giving to the whole transaction its crowning and binding sanction. It is, accordingly, with the most solemn emphasis that Moses adds, 'Behold the blood of the covenant, which the Lord hath made with you concerning all these words ;' i. e. the blood by the shedding of which the covenant is ratified and confirmed. In like manner our Savior, in instituting that ordinance which was to be a perpetual seal of the new cove- nant of grace, said to his disciples, ' This is my blood of the new testa- ment, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.' And it should not be forgotten, that all those who adjoin themselves to the Lord in this sacred ordinance have the guilt of blood rest- ing upon them if they prove unfaithful, and that the Savior probably alludes to the understood penalty of this kind of covenant-breaking, when he says, Luke, 12. 43 — 46, ' Blessed is that servant, Vol.. II. 6 Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel. whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. Of a truth I say unto you, That he will make him ruler over all that he hath. But and if that serv. ant say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming ; and shall begin to beat the men-servants, and maidens, and to eat and drink, and to be drunken ; the lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in sunder^ and will appoint him his portion with the unbelievers.' This 'cutting asunder' alludes to the virtual imprecation of every one who entered into covenant over the divided members of the victim slaughtered on such oc- casions. Compare with this Heb. 9. 19, 20. TT Took the book of the cove- na7it, and read, &c. In order that the people might be completely aware of what they were about to undertake, though they had been told before, he took the book, and read from it all that he had there written. Ke read it that they might be sure that what was con- tained in it, and what they were go- ing, as it were, to sign, was the same as he had previously spoken to them, and they had promised to observe. He read it that their memories might be refreshed, and their consent given with full knowlege and due deliberation. 9, Then xccnt tip Moses and Aaron, &c. The several preliminary ceremo- nies and services mentioned above hav- ing been completed, Moses and his cho- sen attendants now make their ascent up the mountain, in obedience to the command before given, v. 1. From v. 13, it appears evident that Joshua con- stituted one of the companj'^, though his name is not here mentioned. The omission may perhaps have been owing to the fact that he went not in a repre- sentative character, but simply as a personal attendant or minister to Mo- 62 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 10 And they m saw the God of Is- rael : and thei'e ivas under his feet m See Gen. 32. 30. ch. 3. 6. Judg. 13. 22. Isai. 6. 1, 5. with ch. 33. 20, 23. John I. 18. 1 Tim. 6. 16. lJohn4. 12. ' ses. — In the brief narrative contained in tliis and the two ensuing verses, we enter upon the consideration of one of the most remarlvable events recorded in the whole compass of the sacred story. The sublime and glorious spectacle to which these favored sons of Israel were now admitted is, no doubt, the germ of many of the most magnificent descrip- tions of the symbolical scenery of the prophets, and especially of the theo- phanies, or visible manifestations of the Deity, which we find subsequently re- corded, and capable, if expanded into all its details, of filling a volume. 10. And they saw the God of Israel. Heb. ^i^^ll!^ "n^ iTii^ li^'l^l vayiru eth Eloh'e Yisrael, and they saw the God of Israel. As we are assured upon the authority of inspiration, 1 Tim. 6. 16, that 'no man hath seen or can see' God in his essential being, this language undoubtedly denotes that they were privileged to behold the visible sign, symbol, or demonstration of his pres- ence, or in other Avords, the Shekinah, perhaps under a form of more distinct- ness, or circumstances of greater glory, than it had ever been revealed in before. It was unquestionably a similar appear- ance to that vouchsafed to Ezekiel, chap. 1.26, of which he says, 'Above the firmament that was over their heads, having the appearance of a sapphire- stone, was the likeness of a tlirone, and upon the likeness of the throne was the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it.' The 'firmament' here spoken of as over the heads of the liv- ing creatures was not the celestial fir- mament, but a splendid flooring or sub- stratum on which the visionary throne and its occupant rested, corresponding to the 'paved work of a sapphire stone,' as it ^vere a paved work of a n sap- phire-stone, and as it were the o body of heaven in his clearness. nEzek. 1. 2G. & 10. 1. Rev. 4. 3. o Matt. 17.2. mentioned by Moses. But it will be proper, in a passage of this nature to give the ancient versions, in which the reader will perceive the most distinct recognition of the Shekinah, as we have elsewhere represented it. Gr. 'And they saw the place where the God of Israel had stood, and under his feet as it were the work of a sapphire-brick, and as it were the appearance of the firmament of heaven in the purity thereof. And of the chosen of Israel there perished not one, and they were seen in the place of God, and ate and drank.' Chal. 'And they saw the glory of the God of Israel, and under the throne of his glory as the work of a precious stone, and as the aspect of heaven when it is serene. But to the princes of the sons of Israel no injury accrued ; and they saw the Glo- ry of God, and rejoiced in the sacrifices, which were accepted, as if they had eaten and drank.' Arab. 'And they saw the Angel of the God of Israel, and un- der him something similar to the white- ness of adamant, and like to heaven itself in its serenity. And Eigainst the princes of the sons of Israel he sent not forth his stroke, and they saw the Angel of the Lord, and lived, and ate, and drank.' Syr. 'And they saw the God of Israel, and under his feet as it were the work of a sapphire-brick, and as it were the color of heaven when it is serene. And against the elders of the sons of Israel he did not extend his hand; yea, they saw God, and ate and drank.' Sam. 'And they saw the God of Israel, and under his feet as it were a brick-work of sapphire, and as heaven itself in its purity. Nor yet against the elect ones of the children of Israel did he send forth his hand, but they clave unto God, and ate and drank.' B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIV. 63 It will be observed that both in llie saci'ed text, and in these several ver- sions, there is a studied obscurity as to the form and aspect of the object whose resting or standing place is so gorgeously described. Yet from a com- parison of this passage with the vision of Ezekiel, ch. 1, of which it is unques- tionably the germ, there is some rea- son to think it was an approximation to the human form, as he says, that . above the firmament that was over their heads, having the appearance of a sap- phire stone, there was the likeness of a throne, and ' upon the likeness of the throne the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it.' Even here, however, the description is so worded as to leave the image in the mind of the reader designedly vague and shadowy, lest a foundation should be laid for an idolatrous abuse of the symbolical scenery depicted. While, therefore, the idea of a distinct personal appearance in human form is excluded, yet we may perhaps safely conceive that the lumin- ous and glorious object presented to their view bore a remote semblance of such a form ; nor does it militate with this supposition that Moses says, in describing the phenomena of Sinai, 'ye saw no manner of similitude ;' for this was spoken concerning the people in general, at the time of their receiving the law in an audible voice from the mount ; but the words before us relate to a few individuals, and what they saw on a subsequent occasion. It is said of Moses, Num. 12. 8, ' the similitude of the Lord shall he behold,' and as this vision had a direct reference to Christ, who is 'the image of the invisible God,' and yet ' made in the likeness of cor- ruptible man,' we seem to perceive an intrinsic probability in the idea of his appearing on this occasion, in at least a faint resemblance to that human form in which lie was afterwards to manifest himself in accomplishing the work of redemption. I Still we do not insist on this inter- pretation. It may be sufficient to say this was a most resplendent display of the divine glory in that form in which the Shekinah usually appeared, only perhaps in a milder and more mitigated splendor ; for it seems clear that its usual aspect was that of an exceedingly bright and dazzling effulgence, increas- ing on some occasions to the intensity of a glowing and devouring flame. It is clear that the object seen could not have been God in the unveiled glory of his Godhead, for him no man hath seen nor can see. It must have been that sensible manifestation of the Deity which we have so frequently desig- nated by the term Shekinah, and which we have endeavored to prove to be uni- formly the Old Testament adumbration of Christ. It is unquestionably the same object as that mentioned by Isaiah, ch. 6. 1, 'In the year that KingUzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, &c. ;' for it was only as manifested in the Shekinah that 'the Lord' (i.e. Jehovah) was ever seen un- der the old dispensation. It is the same object also as that described in the vision of Ezekiel, ch. 43. 1,2, 'After- ward he brought me to the gate, even the gate that looketh toward the east ; and, behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east ; and his voice was like the noise of many waters, and the earth shined with his glory.' The personage is evidently the same ; it was the 'God of Israel,' whose theophany is described by both j and as Ezekiel is here prophetically setting forth the scenery of the New Jerusalem, we see no reason to doubt that the spectacle witnessed by Moses was the germ of that portrayed by Eze- kiel, and that that depicted by John was merely a farther expansion of the same symbolical embryo. But leaving us to form our own ideas as to this part of the vision, the historian is more par- ticular in describing the footstool upon 64 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 11 And upon the nobles of the | hand: also q they saw God, and did children of Israel he P laid not his Pch. 19.21. which the visible Divine Majesty rested. • IT Under his feet ds it were a paved work of a sapphire stone. Heb. riC5)2lD "T^SCn riDDp kemadseh libnath hassap- piVf as the work of brick of sapphire. That is, a tesselated pavement, appa- rently constructed of solid blocks of transparent sapphire moulded into the shape and size of bricks. The sapphire is a precious stone of a sky-colored hue, next in value and beauty to the diamond, and there seems to be an allu- sion to this gorgeous substratum of the throne of the divine glory in the proph- et's words, Is. 54. 11, 'I will lay thy stones with iair colors, and lay thy foundations with sapphires.^ In order to make the impression of its appear- ance still more distinct, it is compared to the 'body of heaven in its clearness.' That is to say, it had the aspect of the azure vault of heaven as seen in its pure native splendor, when the atmos- phere is serene and unclouded. The eye then seems to behold the naked body, as it were, or the very substance of the heavenly ether. The whole spec- tacle, viewed merely as a sensible phe- nomenon, must have been beautiful and glorious beyond conception ; but its glory in this respect would no doubt be far eclipsed by that of its symbolical importjcould we but adequately grasp it. n. And upon the nobles, &c. Heb. tD'^^'^llJ^ ctzelim, magnates, opt imates, the chief ■nc7i, the grandees; evidently denoting the select and favored persons above mentioned, who are here prob- ably called ' nobles' from the honor now conferred upon them of being admitted to witness such a spectacle ; as if the splendor of the divine presence enno- bled every thing that came within its sphere. By the ' hand' of Jehovah's ' not being laid upon them' is doubt- r eat and drink. q ver. 10. ch, 33. 20. Gen. 16. 13. &. 32. 30. Deut. 4.33. Judg. 13. 22. r Gen. 31. 54. ch. 18. 12. 1 Cor. 10. 18. less meant, that they received no harm from this amazing manifestation. Con- trary to the usual impression in regard to the effect of such displays of the di- vine glory, which were thought to be fatal to the beholder, they saw God and lived. That this is the genuine sense of the phrase will appear from the fol- lowing passages 5 Gen. 37. 22, ' And Reuben said unto them. Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit which is in the wilderness, and lay no hand upon him;'' i. e. do no violence to him. Ps. 138. 7, 'Though I walk in the midst of trouble, thou wilt revive me ; thou shall stretch forth thine hand against the wrath of mine enemies, and thy right hand shall save me.' Neh. 13.21, 'Then I testified against them and said unto them. Why lodge ye about the wall? if ye do so again, I will lay hands on you.' Ps. 55. 20, 'He hath put forth his hand against such as be at peace with him.' IT Also they saw God, and did eat and drink. Heb. t^^il^Kn Ti^^ ItrT^I va-yehezu cth ha-Elohim, and they saw the Elohim. It is particularly worthy of notice, that the original here adopts a different term for * seeing' from that which occurs in the preceding verse — ' they saw (li^'^'i yiru) the God of Is- rael,' as if that were intended to refer to the mere outward, ocular, and super- ficial view of the object as at first be- held. Here on the other hand, the verb is fltn hazah, a term applied for the most part to prophetic vision, or that kind of inward and spiritual perception which was enjoyed by holy and inspired men when in a state of supernatural trance or extacy. In this state the exercise of the outward senses was usually sus- pended, and the objects seen were pre- sented as pictures to the imagination, the full significancy of which were not B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIV. 65 always made known to the beholder. In the present instance we cannot affirm that the ordinary functions of the eye were, after a time, superseded, but we have no doubt that their minds were gradually raised and sublimated by a special divine influence, so that they were made the subjects of a manifesta- tion or revelation far beyond any thing which their unaided faculties were ca- pable of attaining. They were under an illapse of the Spirit of God, and like Balaam ' saw the vision of the Al- mighty, falling into a trance, but (prob- ably) having their eyes open.' In this entranced and extatic state ' they saw God ;' i. e. they had a prophetic view of the Shekinah, the symbol of the di- vine presence, not only in the form in which it might strike the senses, but in its hidden interior import and signifi- cancy, as pointing to that divine per- sonage who was now involved in it and in future to be developed out of it, first in the substantiated form of human flesh, as the Son of God, humbled, suffering, and dying for the sins of men ; and se- condly and chiefly as risen, glorified, and again manifested on earth in the splendor and magnificence of his second coming and his eternal kingdom. It is, we doubt not, to this future and con- cummated glory of the Redeemer, made again visible and taking up its abode among men, that the symbol of the Shekinah always points. Its manifesta- tion to Israel of old was preintimative of its renewed appearance and estab- lishment in more sublime and glorious state to the subjects of the gospel econ- omy in its ulterior periods, as set forth in the splendid predictions of Isaiah and the Apocalypse. It is only in the realization of all that was shadowed by the Shekinah that we are to look for the fulfilment of the assurance ratified by ' a great voice out of heaven, say- ing. Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, arid he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God 6* himself shall be with them, and be their God.' This, we are aware, is language that the Christian world have somehow come to interpret vaguely of heaven considered as a state removed to an un- known distance both of time and space from the state in which our present lot is cast ; but we have greatly mistaken the drift of the oracles of God, if the conviction does not eventually grow upon the church, that it is in fact a future and an earthly state, a state to be gradually evolved out of the exist- ing order of things, and to the devel- opement of which every Christian is bound unceasingly and strenuously to consecrate his efforts. So far as the heaven of the Scriptures is identical with the New Jerusalem, the celestial city, it is certainly future, for that is future. It is a state which is to be the result of a great system of influences and providences, now in operation, which God has designed shall precede and in- troduce it. It is an economy or polity which is said to ' come down from God out of heaven,' because it is to be de- veloped into being in pursuance of a divine plan, — as the execution of a scheme or program of which God in his revealed word is the Author. In like mamier, it might not improperly be said that the Tabernacle and all its apparatus came down from God out of heaven, because Moses constructed it all according to the pattern shown him in the mount. We suppose that it was with a view to impart a prophetic in- timation of this great futurity, that the present vision was vouchsafed and re- corded ; and that a similar end was contemplated in the similar disclosures made to Isaiah, to Ezekiel, to Daniel, and to John. They all point forward to the blissful period referred to in the an- nunciation, ' the tabernacle of God shall be with men,' that is, his Shekinah, his manifested presence , shall be with men ; not only with men in their raised and 66 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. glorified and angelic bodies, but also with men in their human flesh, liv- ing and sojourning on the earth while this resplendent throne of Jehovah has its seat in the midst of them. And this view, we conceive, aiFords the true clue to the introduction of the remark- able circumstance mentioned in close connexion with that of the vision with which Moses and the elders were favor- ed, viz., that ' they did eat and drink.' Even granting, as is very probably the case, tliat this eating and drinking was upon the peace-offerings and the liba- tions which accompanied the ratifica- tion of the covenant, yet who is not struck by the juxta-position of things apparently so remote from each other in their own nature, as witnessing a vi- sion of God and satisfying the gross appetites of the physical man ? Who does not feel it to be a kind of violent transition from the Spirit to the flesh ? But suppose the incident to be viewed as having, like the rest, a prophetical bearing — suppose it be a typical in- timation of the fact, that eating and drinking, that is, enjoying the con- ditions of our present humanity, are not in themselves inconsistent with the visible indwelling of the Most High on earth which we are taught to expect, and do we not find a sufficient explanation of the mystery ? If the vision here re- corded were truly in its ultimate scope, prophetical, and pointed to an era when the glory displayed to the congregation at Sinai should be far more illustriously displayed over the face of the earth, while the race was yet sojourning upon it, would it not be natural that some Jiint should be afforded of the intrinsic compatibility of such a manifestation with such a mode of subsistence ? In the foregoing remarks we have stated one, and, as we conceive, a prominent one, of the designs of God iu granting to his servants this signal manifestation of his glory. But this, we apprehend, was not all. Admitting that such an ultimate scope as we have now supposed was in fact couched under the vision, it would be natural that a system of rites, types, and shad- ows should be instituted, adapted to represent and keep vividly before the minds of the chosen people, the grand end which infinite wisdom thus pro- posed to itself eventually to accom- plish. To this the Tabernacle with its various furniture and services, was emi- nently adapted. This sacred and sym- bolical structure, with all its appur- tenances, M-as to be erected under the superintendance of Moses, and that in conformity to a model divinely given. We are expressly informed that he was to ' make every thing after the pattern shown him in the mount.' This pattern we suppose to have been shown him on this occasion ; and probably one main reason of admitting Aaron and the elders to a participation of the vision, w^as, that by beholding the pattern they might bear witness to the fidelity of the copy. Otherwise, what evidence could Moses give to the people that he was acting in obedience to a divine command in erect- ing such a structure, of so strange a form and so costly a character ? Would the congregation have parted so readily with their treasures, tlieir gold and sil- ver and jewels, unless upon the strong- est assurance to their ovin minds that in so doing they were fulfilling an ex- press requisition of Jehovah? The presence of the elders would give this assurance, and we therefore deem it reasonable to presume tliat the phe- nomena of the vision included the en- tire typical apparatus of the Taberna- cle, and especially that of the Ark of the Covenant, tlie Mercy-seat, and the Cherubim, which were in fact the very heart and nucleus of tlie entire system, and of the import of which we shall speak more fully in a subsequent Note. In all probability the visible object termed the ' God of Israel' was faith- fully but feebly shadowed out in the B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIV. 67 12 H And the Lord said unto Mo- ses, s Come up to me into the mount, and be there: and I will give thee t tables of stone, and a law, and commandments which I sver. 2. 15, 18. tch. 31. 18. & 32. 15. 16. Deut. 5. 22. cloud of glory and the accompanying Cherubim which surmounted the JMercy- seat, except that the sapphire pavement was exchanged, for uniformity's sake, for one of burnished gold. As to the attendant angelic hosts, which seem to have been conceived of as an unfailing accompaniment ol' the Glory, and which they probably saw, since they could not be materialized in their multitude, the Cherubic device was adopted as a mys- tic embodiment of this order of beings. But ol' this more in the sequel. If our suggestions in regard to the remarkable incident here recorded be well founded, and this were the time when these 'pat- terns of things in the heavens' were shown to Moses, it will follow that the account here given of the vision is ex- tremely incomplete, embracing the men- tion merely of the leading and most memorable object which they were fa- vored to behold. This we infer from the fact that Moses is said to have made every thing according to the pattern shown him in the mount. But as he made many things which he is not ex- pressly said to have seen, w^e may fair- ly conclude that he does not describe all that he did see. 12. Come up to me into the Mount, &c. Thus far it would appear that Moses had remained with his company at some station part way up the mountain, where the vision w^as vouchsafed, but he is now commanded to leave his compan- ions, and advance towards the cloud that rested on the summit, and 'to be there,' i. e. to remain there some con- siderable time. The design of the sum- mons is stated to be, tliat he might re- ceive the engraved tables of the law, have written; that thou mayest teach them. 13 And Moses rose up, and u his minister Joshua : and Moses w went up into the mount of God. u eh. 32. 17. & 33. 11. "' ver. 2. containing that divine code which he was to teach to the people, for it is to the people, and not to the command- ments, that the pronoun ' them' refers. 13. And ?iis minister Joshua. Heb. irnil'^Q mesharetho, his ministering at- tendant. The root rn'iU sharath de- notes a personal attendance and minis- try less servile than that w'hich is indi- cated by the term Ill's abad, to serve. It points rather to that honorarj' at- tendance Avhich is paid by a courtier to his sovereign or prince, than the menial obsequiousness of a slave to his mas- ter. See Note on Num. 11. 28. It was undoubtedly with a view to his future office, that Joshua was called to sus- tain this relation to Moses. He was to be his successor as leader of Israel, and it was fitting that he should begin by degrees to be honored before the con- gregation, that they might be led the more readily and cordially to render to him the deference and respect to which his station would one day entitle him. This could scarcely fail to be the result Avhen they saw him admitted nearer to the manifested presence of God than any other individual except Moses him- self. We must be strangely insensible to the tokens of the divine will not to honor those whom God himself honors. IT Arid Moses went up into the mount of God. Chal. ' Into the moun- tain on which the Glory of the Lord was revealed.' Targ. Jon. ' Into the mountain in which the Glorious Pre- sence of the Lord was manifested.' Moses and Joshua went up to the higher parts of the mountain, where in all probability the lower extremities or fringes of the dark enveloping cloud 68 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 14 And he said unto the elders, Tarry ye here for us, until we come again unto you : and behold, Aaron embosomed them in its sombre folds. The bright interior cloud of the Glory seems to have been still higher up on the very apex of the mount, and to have been only occasionally disclosed to the sight of the congregation. The com- mon spectacle, we suppose, was that of a dark majestic mass of cloud, within which, but invisible, the splendor of the Shekinah abode. Here it would seem that Moses and Joshua remained together for six days, pavilioned within the lower descending outskirts of the cloud, engaged in holy conference and fervent devotion, till on the seventh, perhaps the sabbath day, Moses was ordered to leave Joshua, as they had both left the elders below, and ascend u}) to. the topmost summit of the hal- lowed mount, where the divine pres- ence was more especially enthroned. So in our upward moral progress, be our attainments what they may at pres- ent, we are still to aim at something higher. Our arrival at one eminence still leaves us at the foot of another, which equally claims to be climbed, and until we reach heaven itself we must expect to see, 'Hills peep o'er hills, and Alps on Alps arise.' 14. Tarry ye here, &c. Aware, prob- ably, that his absence from the people was now to be of longer duration than usual, Moses deems it necessary to make special provision for the adminis- tration of justice, and the g^eral man- agement of the civil affairs of the peo- ple in the interval. For this end he commissions Aaron and Hur to act as his deputies in judging causes, and tells them, moreover, to remain where they were, advanced somewhat up the moun- tain, patiently awaiting his and Joshua's return. It is only thus that we can understand the plain language of the and Hur are with you : if any man have any matters to do, let him come unto them. text. Commentators indeed have sup- posed that as the people were to have constant resort to them on matters of business, and as Aaron is spoken of as engaged in the midst of the congrega- tion in making the golden calf, the order was for the elders to remain, not in the exact spot where Moses left them, but in the camp at the base of the moun- tain, in the midst of the people. But this is surely doing manifest violence to the letter of the narrative ; and be- sides, if this were the sense, what need were there of any command at all ; for where else should they tarry but in the camp ? Was there any danger of their going away from it ? The truth is, if we mistake not, they were expressly required to abide in the spot where they had enjoyed the vision till Moses re- turned. To this spot such of the people as 'had matters to do' were permitted and directed to come as often as they had occasion for judicial decisions ; and we think that the first step in Aaron's sin was his deserting his post, and going down, contrary to Moses' di- rection, into the midst of the camp. He was probably infected by the conta- gion of the people's impatience before he yielded his consent to join in their idolatry ; thus affording us a melan- choly example of the ruinous effects of a single step in the way of transgres- sion. No man knows where he may be landed by the slightest aberration from the path of duty. Neither the foot nor the face can be safely turned away from the post assigned us. Aaron slid down the mountain both in a moral and phy^ sical sense at the same time. IT Be- hold, Aaron and Hur are with yoxt. This was spoken to the elders, but to the elders as the representatives of the people, and so in a sense sustaining their persons. The people, therefore, B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIV. 6d 15 And Moses went up into the mount, and ^ a cloud covered the mount. 16 And ythe glory of the Lord abode upon mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days : and the seventh day he called unto Moses out of the midst of the cloud. X ch. 19.9, 16. Matt. 17. 5. y ch. 16. 10. Numb. 14. 10. were to consider themselves as address- ed in the address made to their official heads. This is according to the usual analogy of the Scripture idiom, of which we shall find hundreds of examples. IT If any man have any matters to do. Heb. D"'"lD"I ^y2 ^12 mi baal debarim, whoso is lord or master of words (things, matters). Gr. and Chal. 'Whoso hath a judgment or controversy.' 15. And Moses went up into the mount, &c; That is, Moses and Joshua to- gether, as the whole narrative leads us to infer. For it was not till six days had elapsed that Moses was called to enter into the midst of the cloud resting on the liighest peak of the mountain, and in the mean time we cannot but suppose that he and Joshua remained together. It no more follows that Joshua did not ascend with him, from his name not being mentioned, than it does that he is not to be associated with Moses in the final clause of v. 13, where any one can see that such an in- ference would be entirely erroneous. 16. And the glory of the Lord abode, &c. Heb. ^'DTI^^ yishkan, tabernacled. From the same root ']'D'!12 shakan, comes Shekinah, the etymology clearly indi- cating the relation of the visible glory of Jehovah to some kind of tabernacle as its appropriate dwelling place. In the present instance, we incline to be- lieve that the dark cloud was the taber- nacle in which the Glory was enshrined, and that this is expressly intimated in the ensuing words, ' the cloud covered it six days,' i. e. covered the Glory, and 17 And the sight of the glory of the Loud ivas like ^ 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 a Moses was in the mount forty days and forty nights. z ch. 3. 2. & 19. 18. Deut. 4. 36. Hebr. 12. 18. 29. a ch. 34. 28. Deut. 9. 9. not the mountain ; for thus the original may fairly be interpreted. It is, in- deed true that nearly all the ancient versions render it, 'covered him,' i. e. Moses, but the other sense is agreeable to the original, and were a. personal ob- ject intended, we think it more probable the plural 'them' would have been em- ployed, as there can be no doubt that Moses and Joshua were now together, and both enshrouded within the borders of the cloudy crown which covered the brow of the mountain. On the seventh day the divine summons called Moses up to the utmost heights of the moun- tain, and then we suppose the dark thick cloud was rent and opened in the sight of all Israel, and the inner glory broke forth like devouring fire. In the midst of this opened cloud, Moses was en- abled boldly to enter, although to the multitude below it probably had the ap- pearance of entering into the mouth of a fiery furnace, which threatened in- stantaneous destruction. But Moses was one whom the special favor of hea- ven enabled to ' dwell even with this devouring fire,' without either a hair of his head, or a thread of his garments, feeling the action of the consuming ele- ment. There he continued fasting forty days and forty nights, receiving further instructions, and no doubt enjoying the most transporting discoveries of the di- vine glory. The six days mentioned, v. 16, were probably not a part of the forty ; for during those six days Moses and Joshua were together, and both probably ate of mauna as usual, and 70 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. drank of the brook mentioned Deut. 9. 21 ; but Avhen Moses was called into the midst of the cloud, his forty days fasting commenced, while Joshua, in the mean time, no doubt continued to eat and drink daily w^hile waiting for Moses' return. CHAPTER XXV. THE TABERNACLE. As we enter in the present chapter upon the directions given to Moses for the erection and furnishing of the sacred structure called the Tabernacle, it will be proper to dwell a little in the outset upon the grand design of an edifice so remarkable in itself, and holding so prominent a place in the Mosaic econ- omy. The Tabernacle was, in fact, the central object in the Jewish system of worship, and Avithout a tolerably cor- rect idea of its form, uses, and ends, our view of the genius and scope of the Hebrew ritual will be essentially de- fective. It may perhaps be admitted, that as some of these ends wei'e of typical import, pointing forward to a period of the Christian dispensation which has not yet been fully developed, we may not be able to unfold, in all its fullness, in the present state of our knowledge, the entire reach of meaning which in the divine mind was couched under this significant structure, and its successor the Temple. Yet with the lights reflected upon it from the expo- sitions of the New Testament and the predictions of the Old, we may doubt- less attain to an interesting and edify- ing insight into its leading drift. We are persuaded that it is a study fraught with the most important practical re- sults, and though generally considered, like the other symbolical portions of the Scriptures, as constituting a field of mere curious, fanciful, and speculative research, yet we cannot question that this opinion Avill be ere long entirely reversed by a deeper reverence for every part of revelation subordinating to itself the irrepressible spirit of inquiry which is pervading every department of know- ledge whether scientific or sacred, na- tural or supernatural. The book of revelation, like the book of nature, is designed to be of gradual development, and we know not why it is not as rea- sonable to look for the opening of new mines of scriptural wealth, as of new mineral treasures, tliat have been im- bedded for ages in the bowels of the earth. — But to the point which we have more immediately in hand. The opinion has been widely enter- tained, that in the early ages of the world, under the impression of the grand truth that * God is a spirit, and that they that worship him must wor- ship him in spirit and in truth,' — that this divine spirit filled all things, and was equally present in all parts of his creation — men had no sacred places, but worshipped God wherever and when- ever their hearts were drawn ibrth to- wards him in veneration, gratitude, or love. To the soundness of this opinion thus broadly expressed, we are disposed to object, on the same grounds on which we object to the theory that makes the primitive state of man a savage state. It is not, we conceive, in accordance with the recorded facts of inspired his- tory. We cannot but conclude, from the tenor of the sacred narrative, that from the creation of Adam to the pre- sent time, God has dealt Avith man by way of express revelation. The infancy of the race was cradled in the midst of supernatural disclosures, and the light of the divine manifestations continued to shine with brighter or dimmer beams upon its advancing youth and manhood, up to the riper age Avhich it has now attained. With the record of Genesis before us we cannot question that Je- hovah manifested himself between the Cherubims at the east of the garden of Eden, and that this earliest exhibition of the Shekinah was the appointed B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXV. 71 place of worship for Adam and his fam- ily, the place to which Cain and Abel brought their oblations, and the place from which Cain, after the murder of his brother, retired in miserable exile, when he is said to have fled from the presence of the Lord. True it is, that the major part of the race lapsed, by a very early defection, into the grossest idolatry, and the visible symbols of the divine presence, if enjoyed at all, were confined to a select few ; but we know not that we are warranted in the belief that the knowledge of the true God, or of the right mode of worshipping him, has at any time become entirely extinct on earth. As a matter, however, of historical fact it is unquestionable that most of the early nations of the world, under the promptings of a religious principle, rendered their worship, such as it was, in a vague and informal manner, without temple or ritual, to the invisible Deity in whom they were taught to believe. It was not unnatural that in these circumstances they should have selected the tops of mountains and the shade of groves as the seat of their worship, and there fixed their altars for sacrifice. But in process of time, as men sank deeper and deeper into idol- atry, the practice of worshipping on high places and in groves became asso- ciated with so many vile abominations, that it was utterly forbidden to the Is- raelites, to whom God was pleased to prescribe a localized worship, first within the precincts of a Tabernacle, and afterwards of a Temple. The Tab- ernacle was little else than a portable temple ; as no other kind of structure would have suited the earlier circum- stances of the chosen race. A nomade people would of course have a moveable temple ; and, among a tent-dwelling people, that temple would naturally be a tent or a portable fabric of wood. An immoveable temple could only be ex- pected to be found among a settled race- and when a moving people become set- tled, and exchange their tents for houses, in like manner their moveable taber- nacles become fixed temples. 'See now,' said David, 'I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwelleth between curtains.' He therefore proposed that the house of God should no longer be a tent, but a fabric of stone, in accord- ance with the altered circumstances of the people. But until the Israelites were settled in the land of promise, their sacred edifice, if they had one, must necessarily be such as they could easily take to pieces and transfer from place to place. The object of such a building was not, like that of our churches, as a place of shelter for the assembled worshippers, for the wor- shippers assembled not in the temples, but in the courts before or around them; nor yet as places for offering sacrifices, for the sacrifices were also offered in the courts. Its true design was as a mansion of the Deity, a dwelling-place for the divine presence. This was es- pecially and preeminently the object of the Jewish Tabernacle. It was intend- ed as a habitation of the visible symbol of Jehovah, or the Shekinah, as the God and King of the chosen people, who, as we have seen above, is emphatically designated 'the God of Israel.' In ordering the construction of such a building, we may admit that there was an accommodation to ideas then very universally prevalent, and which from their residence in Egypt had be- come familiar to the minds of the Is- raelites. The Egyptians and other- heathen nations boasted of the presence of their gods among them in their tem- ples and tabernacles ; and as God had been pleased from the earliest periods to reveal himself to the patriarchs by visible manifestation, it was not un- natural that he should at length confer upon his people the permanent tokens of a peculiar local presence in some such striking and glorious symbol as that of the Shekinah. With this view 72 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. he directed the Tabernacle to be erect- ed as a suitable abode for his visible majesty. As such it possessed the two- fold character of a Sanctuary, or holy place, a place of worship ; and of a Royal Palace ; where he would keep the state of a court, as supreme civil magistrate and king of Israel ; from whence he would issue his laws and commandments as from an oracle, and where he was to receive the homage and tribute of his subjects. This idea of the Tabernacle, as in part that of a. palace for a king, will seem perfectly- clear to every one who carefully notes the terms in which this building and also the Temple are spoken of and re- ferred to throughout the Scriptures ; and we doubt not it is a view essential to the right understanding of these structures and the things which belong- ed to them. It is a view also which is held by the Jews themselves, who carry out the analogy and regard the utensils of the Tabernacle as palace furnihire and the priests as its ministers of state and officers. Take, for instance, the following comment of Rab. Shem Tob on Maimonides as cited by Outram on Sacrifices, Diss. I. § 3. ' God, to whom be praise, commanded a house to be built for him resembling a royal palace. In a royal palace are to be found all the things that we have mentioned. There are some persons who guard the palace ; others who execute offices belonging to the royal dignity, who furnish the ban- quets, and do other necessary services for the monarch ; others who daily en- tertain him with music, both vocal and instrumental. In a royal palace there is a place appointed for the preparation of victuals, and another [nearer the Presence] where perfumes are burned. In the palace of a king there is also a table, and an apartment exclusively ap- propriated to himself, which no one ever enters, except him who is next in authority, or those whom he regards with the greatest affection. In like manner it was the will of God to have all these in his house, that he might not in anything give place to the kings of the earth. For he is a great king, not indeed in want of these things : but hence it is easy to see the reason of the daily provisions given to the priests and Levites, being what every monarch is accustomed to allow his servants. And all these things were intended- to instruct the people that the Lord of Hosts was present among us, 'For he is a great king, and to be feared by all the nations.' These analogies will be the more apparent when it is remem- bered that the comparisons are to be re- ferred to an Oriental rather than a Eu- ropean palace. We do not, however, consider it suffi- cient to regard such a view of the Taber- nacle as founded solely upon the usages of royalty as then existing. We are satisfied that its typical design is ne- cessary to account for those features which it possessed in common with the palaces of kings. The Glory that dwelt both in the Tabernacle and the Temple v/as preintimative of the even j'^et future manifested glory of Christ, to which the ' earnest expectation of the creature' has been long looking forward, and of which the incipient daw^nings begin now faintly to appear. The import of the ancient visible Shekinah and its ma- terial habitation has never yet been realized as it is destined to be in the latter day on earth ; nor do we conceive it possible to gain a full and adequate idea of the kingly features of this typ- ical establishment without looking for- ward to the time when the Savior, com- bining sacerdotal sanctity with royal dignity, shall sit ' a priest upon his throne,'' in the earthly Zion, in accord- ance with the entire drift of the Old Testament prophecies. This is the state to which the anticipations of all Chris- tians are really directed— a state which is to be ultimately evolved out of the pres- ent by a stupendous order of changes, B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXV. n moral, political, and physical. The New Jerusalem of the Apocalypse is the grand object of the Christian's hope, and it is in that glorious dispensation, the theatre of which is the earth that we now inhabit, that we are to look for the substantial realities so strikingly figur- ed in the ritual apparatus of the old economy. It is the state constituted by the final developemcnt of the King- dom of Heaven out of the regenerated and transferred dominions and dynas- ties of the earth, over which Jesus Christ is to reign in visible majesty, his redeemed people being made, in some way at present inscrutable to us, to share with him in the beatitudes and glories of his eternal kingship. It is in that dispensation, or perhaps we may say, in that stage of this dispensation, that the things mystically foreshown bj^ the Tabernacle structure and the Taber- nacle furniture will be made real. It will then appear how admirably adapt- ed it was in its twofold character of Sanctuary and Palace to correspond with the twofold functions of Christ as Priest and King. But the farther un- folding of this view of the subject would carry us imperceptibly into the region of prophetic exposition, Avhich our pres- ent plan does not embrace. The detailed and minute account which we propose to give of every part of the Tabernacle may be prefaced with the following general description, for the most part in the words of the Editor of the Pictorial Bible. First there was the area or court in which the Taber- nacle stood. This was of an oblong figure of a hundred cubits (about 150 feet) long, by fifty cubits (about 75 feet) broad ; and the height of the inclosing curtain was five cubits or nearly three yards, being half the height of the Tab- ernacle. The inclosure was formed by a plain hanging of fine twined linen yarn, which seems to have been work- ed in an open or net-work texture, so that the people without might freely Vol. II. 7 see the interior. The door-curtain was however of a different texture from the general hanging, being a great curtain of ' fine twined linen,' embroidered with blue, purple, and scarlet. It is describ- ed in precisely the same terms as the door-curtain of the Tabernacle itself, wliich was not, as commonly stated, of the same fabric with the inner covering of the Tabernacle, and the veil before the holy of holies ; for in the descrip- tion of the two door-curtains there is no mention of the figures of cherubim and the fancy work (' cunning work') which decorated the inner covering and vail. The door-curtain of the court was fur- nished with cords, by which it might be drawn up or aside when the priests had occasion to enter. The curtains of this inclosure were hung upon sixty pillars of brass, standing on bases of the same metal, but with capitals and fillets of silver. (Compare the description in this chapter with that in chap. 38.) The hooks also, to which the curtains were attached, were of silver. The entrance of the court was at the east end, op- posite that to the Tabernacle ; and be- tween them stood the altar of burnt offering, but nearer to the door of the Tabernacle than to that of the court. It is uncertain whether the brazen laver was interposed between the altar and the door of the Tabernacle or not. Chap. 30. 18, certainly conveys that impres- sion ; but the Rabbins, who appear to have felt that nothing could properly interpose between the altar and Taber- nacle, say that the laver was indeed nearer to the Tabernacle than was the altar, but still that it did not stand in the same line with the altar, but stood a little on one side to the south. As to the position of the Tabernacle in the court, nothing is said in the Scriptures on the subject, but it seems less prob- able that it stood in the centre than that it was placed towards the farther or western extremity, so as to allow greater space for the services which 74 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491*^ were to be performed exclusively in front of the Tabernacle. The fabric properly called the Taber- nacle having moveable walls of board, was of a more substantial character than a tent ; but it is right to regard it as a tent, its general appearance and arrangement being the same, and its more substantial fabric being probably on account of the weight of its several envelopes which required stronger sup- ports than are usually necessary. It was of an oblong figure, fifty-five feet in length, by eighteen feet in breadth and height. Its length extended from east to west, the entrance being at the east end. The two sides and west end con- sisted of a framework of boards, of which there were twenty on each side and eight at the west end. The man- ner in which these boards were joined to each other so as to form a wall which might be easily taken down and set up again, may be illustrated in some degree by a reference to the window- shutters of an extensive shop ; but the boards of the Tabernacle did not slide in grooves, but each was furnished at the bottom with two tenons, which were received into sockets in the bases of solid silver; and to give the whole greater security, the boards were fur- nished each with five rings or staples of gold, by means of which they were suc- cessively run up to their proper places on horizontal poles or bars^ which serv- ed as the ribs of the fabric, binding its parts together. The boards as well as the bars were of shittim wood, overlaid with thin plates of gold. The east end, being the entrance, had no boards, but was furnished with five pillars of shit- tim wood overlaid with gold, and each standing on a socket of brass. Four similar pillars within the Tabernacle, towards the west or further end, sup- ported a rich hanging, which divided the interior into two apartments, of which the outer was called ' the holy place/ aod the iaoermost and smallest was ' the most holy place,' or the 'Holy of Holies,' in which the presence of the Lord was more immediately manifest- ed. The separating hanging was called, by way of eminence, 'the vail;' and hence the expression ' within' or ' with- out the vail' is sometimes used to dis- tinguish the most holy from the holy place. The people were never admitted into the interior of the tabernacle. None but the priests might go even into the outer chamber or holy place, and into the inner chamber the high-priest alone was allowed to enter, and that only once in the year, on the great day of atonement. To this, however, there was a necessary exception when the Tabernacle was to be taken down or set up. The outer chamber was only en- tered in the morning to offer incense on the altar Avhich stood there, and to ex- tinguish the lamps, and again in the evening to light them. On the Sabbath also the old shew-bread was taken away and replaced with new. These were all the services for which the attend- ance of the priests was necessary with- inj.he Tabernacle, all the sacrifices be- ing made in the open space in front of the Tabernacle, where stood tlie brazen altar for burnt offerings. It will be use- ful to observe, that the most holy place contained only the ark with its con- tents ; that the outer apartment con- tained the altar of incense, the table of shew-bread, and the great golden candle- stick ; while the open area in front of the Tabernacle contained the brazen laver for the ablutions of the priests, and the brazen altar for burnt offerings. This description will give an idea of the general arrangement and substan- tial structure of the Tabernacle ; and we may proceed to notice the various curtains which were thrown over and formed the outer coverings of the tent. The first or inner covering was of fin linen, splendidly embroidered with fig- ures of cherubim and fancy work in scarlet, purple, and light blue. It is B. C. 1491.J CHAPTER XXV. 75 CHAPTER XXV. A ND the Lord spake unto Mo- -^ ses, saying, 2 Speak unto the children of Is- rael that they bring me an offer- described in the same terms as the vail of the ' holy of holies,' and was doubt- less of the same texture and appear- ance with the vail, which, according to Josephus, was embroidered v.'ith all sorts of flowers, and interwoven with various ornamented figures, excepting the forms of animals. Over this inner covering was another, made of goats' hair, which was spun by the women of the camp. Cloth made of goats' hair forms the customary covering for the tents of the Bedouin Arabs to this day, and it still continues to be spun and woven at home by the women. Over this covering was another of rams' skins dyed red, and over that the fourth and ing : a of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take my offering. •^ ch.35. 5,21. 1 Cliron. 29. 3.5, 9, 14. Ezra 2. 63. & 3. 5. & 7. 16. Nell. 11. 2. 2 Cor. 8. 12. & 9. 7. outermost covering of tahash skins (see the Note on chap. 25.5). These cur- tains, after covering, or rather forming, the roof, hung down by the sides and west end of the Tabernacle, those that were outside being calculated to protect the more costly ones within, while the whole combined to render the Taber- nacle impervious to the rain, and safe from tlie injuries of the weather. The annexed cut will give to the reader somewhat of an adequate idea of the frame ivork of the Tabernacle, while we have reserved to a subsequent Note, ch. 26. 14, a view of the slructm-e in its completed state with its envelope of curtains. The Frame-Work of the Tabernacle. 2. Speak unto the children of Israel^ that they bring me, &c. Heb. 'i^ inp^l va-yikhu li, that they take for me. The original word for 'take' very frequently has the import of take and bring, take and give, or take and offer. Thus Gen. 15. 9, 'Take me an heifer of three years old ;' i. e. take and offer. So Ps% 6S. 18, ' Thou hast received gifts for men :' bestow them upon men, as expound td by the apostle, Eph. 4. 8, 'gave gifts unto men.' Thus too 1 Kings, 3. 24, 'And the king said. Bring me a sword j' Heb. 'take me a sword.' 1 Kings, 17. 10, 'Fetch me a little Avater ;' Heb, 'take me a little water.' M An offer- ing. Heb. ri?3l^ri terumah, an eleva' lion, a heave-offering, so called from Heb. 'Ihou hast taken i^ i. e. in order to J its being lifted up when it was laid on EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 3 And this is the offering which ye shall take of them ; gold, and silver, and brass, the altar in the act of presentation. Chal. 'Separate a separation before nie ;' that is, such things as they should be disposed to set apart from their effects and consecrate to the Lord. The orig- inal term comes from 1D"1~| rum, to lift up, to be lifted up, and is generally ap- propriated to sacrificial offerings, which were at least lifted up on the altar, if not previously heaved or waved in the air by way of oblation. It is elsewhere employed as a very general term for any thing separated and 7nade a dona- tion to God, and is applied, Ezek. 48. 9 — 20, even to the land which was to be sacredly devoted to God and the priests of the Temple, and which is rendered in our version ' oblation.' In this con- nexion it seems to imply, that the offer- ings thus voluntarily made under the promptings of a noble and liberal spirit, were as acceptable to God, as truly hallowed in his sight, as if they had been real sacrifices. Thus we read of good men offering 'sacrifices of praise.' It is no doubt with a view to intimate the same idea, that the Gr. and Vulg. render it 'first-fruits ;' as if it would be deemed the best and choicest of every thing that they could offer. What is done from upright motives and in a gen- erous spirit for God will always be sure of being rated and denominated as it deserves. IT That giveth it willingly with his heart. Heb. ID^ 13^^ ^^5* asher yiddebennu libbo, whose heart moveth him to willingness, or liberality. The proposed oblation was neither to be exacted by compulsion nor regulated by prescription, but every one was left to give after the promptings of his own heart. Gr. ' Of all to whom it shall seem good in their hearts.' Vulg. *0f every man that offereth of his own ac- cord.' The original ^1'2 nadab is fre- quently used in the sense of a liberal, 4 And blue, and purple, and scar- let, and fine linen, and goats' hair. voluntary, and free-hearted offering, and the correlative derivative rnSlD nedaboth occurs with a parallel meaning Ps. 110. 3, 'Thy people shall be will- ing (nii~3 nedaboth, lit. willingnesses) in the day of the power ;' where the drift of the Psalmist appears to be, to compare the abundance of the free-will offerings made to the Messiah in the latter day for the beautifying his sanc- tuary (tinp "^"linn behadrc kodcsh, with the adornments of the holy) with the profusion of the gifts that were so largely poured forth at the setting up of the Tabernacle. They shall come forth as copiously as the drops of dew from the womb of the morning; in a bountifulness at least equal to that when the dew of its noble munificence was upon the youth of the Israelitish church. A very appropriate comment- ary on the present passage is afforded in the subsequent account of its execu- tion, Ex. 35.21, 22, 'And they came, every one whose heart stirred him up, and every one whom his spirit made willing, and they brought the Lord's offering to the work of the Tabernacle of the congregation, and for all his ser- vice, and for the holy garments. And they came, both men and women, as many as were willing-hearted, and brought bracelets, and ear-rings, and rings, and tablets, all jewels of gold : and every man that offered, offered an offering of gold unto the Lord.' As the Lord loves a cheerful giver, so the spirit of a true servant of Jesus Christ prompts him to ask not only what he must do for his heavenly master, but what he may do. See a farther consideration of the conduct of the people on this occa- sion in the Note on Ex. 35. 29. 3. Gold, and silver, and brass. 'Here and elsewhere we find mentioned to- gether, the metals which were procured B C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXV. 77 the earliest, and first applied to pur- poses of use and ornament. No other metals were employed in the construc- tion of the Tabernacle, nor any others mentioned but in such slight allusions as to show that they were indeed known, but not in common use. The Hebrew has the same word for both copper and b7-ass, but our translation always ren- ders it by brass, even when the context shows that the simple metal (copper) is intended — as in Deut. 8. 9, 'Out of whose hills thou mayest dig brass'' — i. e, copper, brass being a compound factitious preparation. It is not always easy to distinguish where the word in the original denotes bras.s, and where copper. Perhaps we should always un- derstand the latter in the more early passages where it occurs ; and in later times we may assume that brass is in- tended where something refined and or- namental is implied in the text. The three metals, gold, silver, and copper, w ere naturally the first which men ap- propriated to their service ; and the Scripture exhibits them as in use, and even abundant, in Egypt and Palestine a few ages after the flood. We know not precisely when these metals first became known ; but at the time now immediately under our notice, the art of metallurgy had certainly attained considerable perfection ; various per- sonal ornaments, various utensils, and even images, of gold and silver, have already been often mentioned in the sacred text. It seems to our minds that a large mass of evidence in favor of the verity of the Pentateuch remains yet untouched — the evidence resulting from the perfect conformity of all its allusions to the state of the arts and the materials on which the arts operate, as well as the agreement of its state- ments concerning the condition of men, with the natural progress of men and of the arts they cultivate, and with the condition of things at the most early times of which profane history exhibits 7* any knowledge. Even the silence of the Pentateuch, as to particulars which a later writer than Moses could scarce* ly have failed to notice, is not the least valuable of the internal evidences which tlie book bears of its own antiquity and truth.'— Ptc?. Bible. 4. Blue, and purple, and scarlet. These are merely the names of certain colors, while no mention is made of the thing or things colored. But as we find from the apostle, Heb. 9. 19, that scar- let wool was employed in the sprinkling of blood, the probability is that wool of those colors is intended which was af- terward fabricated by the women into the curtains of the Tabernacle ; for however difficult it may be to conceive that they should have had in the wilder- ness tlie implements necessary to such a process, the following passage, Ex. 35. 26, puts it beyond a doubt ; 'And all the women whose spirit stirred them up in wisdom spun goats' hair.' Thus the Heb. doctors ; 'The blue spoken of in any place was wool dyed like the body of heaven ; the scarlet, wool dyed in scarlet, &c.' IT Blue. Heb. fl^^n tek'deth, blue, azure, sky-color. So Maimonides ; ' This color is like the firmament.' Thus too in the Gemara (Menach. 4.) Rab. Meyr says, 'Where- in difiers the ttb'Dt^ tekeleth from the other colors? Answer, because the n^in tekeleth is like the sea, and the sea like the firmament, and the firma- ment like the throne of glory, as it is said, Ex.24. 10, 'Under his feet as it were sapphire bricks such as is the as- pect of the serene heavens." Gr. iaKivBoi, hyacinth. This was a color distinguish- ing llie dress of princes and potentates among the ancients, with whom the art of dyeing was carried to a high degree of perfection. The splendor and mag- nificence of dress seem to have consist- ed very much in the richness of colors, and the blue, which we learn from many passages of the Scriptures to have been in great request, was imported from re- 78 EXODUS. fB. C. 149 J. mote countries as an article of expen- sive and elegant luxury. It is sup- posed by some to have been the pro- duct of the indigo, a plant deriving its origin, as it doubtless does its name, from India, where its beautiful dyes have long given value to the fine linens and cottons of that ancient empire. IT Purple. Heb. 'jl^^li^ argaman, rend- ered purple by all the ancient versions. This is the name of a very precious color extracted from the purpura, or murex, a species of shell-fish, called in English the purple. This color, the same witli the famous Tyrian dye, and the most celebrated of all the ancient dyes, is now lost, and it is doubted by many whether the moderns have any thing which equals it in richness and briHlanc)^ It is known, however, that the coloring juice of the purple was contained in a vessel found in the throat of the murex, and that only one drop of liquid was obtained from each. A sa- cred character was very early attached to the purple, and it was the predomi- nant color in things pertaining to the worship of God among heathen nations. In modern times, although the Tyrian purple has been long lost, yet the pride of the name is still preserved in the sacer- dotal hierarchy. It was also an attri- bute of exalted birth and of dignities. It served as a decoration to the first ma- gistrates of Rome, and finally became a symbol of the inauguration of the emperors. To assume the ' imperial purple' was but another name for suc- ceeding to the throne, and the punish- ment of death was at length decreed against any of inferior grade who should presume to wear the royal color. To this penalty it was undoubted!}'' owing that the art of dyeing purple gradually disappeared from among the nations of Europe. From the epithet 'purple' being applied by Homer and Virgil to blood, it is probable that this color anciently ap- proached much nearer to scarlet than tlie modern purple. Indeed tlie two, in the writings of the ancients, are frequently confounded together. And so also in the New Testament we find them inter changed, as Mark, 15. 17, Hhey clother' liim with purple,^ compared with Mat 27. 28, 'they put on him a scarlet rohe? See also John, 19. 2. 'It is important, says the Editor of the Pictorial Bible 'to understand, that the word ' purpk in ancient writings does not denote on- particular color. Pliny mentions tlw difference between some of the purples; one was faint, approaching to our scar- let, and this was the least esteemed ; another was very deep approacliing to violet ; and a third was of a color com- pared to coagulated bullock's blood. The most esteemed Tyrian purple seems to have been of this last color. We say 'the most esteemed,' because it ap- pears that even the Tyrian purple was not one particular color, but a class oi animal dyes, as distinguished from vegetable, varying in shade from the most faint to the most intense.' The purple has been styled the most sub- lime of all earthly colors, having the gaudiness of the red, of which it retains a shade, softened with thegravity of the blue. IT Scarlet. Heb. 13:15 nS-'^in tolaath shani, icorni of repetition. This tincture or color is expressed by a word which signifies ' worm-color,' as ' Ver- million,' comes from vermiculus, a lit' tie worm, from its being produced from a worm or insect which grew in a coc- cus, or excrescence of a shrub of the oak kind. This shrub is sometimes called the 'kermez-oak,' from 'kermcz,' the Arabic word both for the worm and the color; whence the Latin ' carma- sinus,' the French 'cramoisi,' and the English ' crimson.' The color produced from the coccus was a lively bright red, approaching to the hue of fire. In the original of the passage before us, the Heb. word i",3'^in tolaath, for the uvrm I or coloring matter, is connected with I ' Shoni,' which signifies repeated or ! double, iirijilying that to strike this B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXV. 79 color the wool or cloth was twice dip- ped ; hence . the Vulgate renders the original ' coccum bis tinctum,' scarlet twice dyed. The scarlet also was an honorable color, being that of the Ro- man emperors in time of war, while the purple was the raiment of peace. Ac- cordingly in the book of Revelation the scarlet color, being that of blood, is a symbol of slaughter, and attributed es- pecially to the woman drunk with the blood of the saints, who is represented, Rev. IS. 3, riding upon a beast of the same color, another symbol of a per- secuting and sanguinary power. ' Pro- fessor Ty«;isen, supposing the identi- ty of the Scripture ' scarlet' with the kermen established, properly concludes that the kermes dye was known before the time of Moses ; — that the dye was known to the Egyptians in the time of Moses ; for the Israelites must have carried it along with them from Egypt j — that the Arabs received the name ' kermes,' with the dye, from Armenia and Persia, where it v/as indigenous, and had been long knov/n ; and that name banished the old name in the east, as the name ' scarlet' has in the west. Kermes signifies always 7-ed dye; and when pronounced short it becomes deep red. Beckmann thinks that in later times the Tyrian purples were super- seded by the improvements of this dye ; but we do not feel satisfied with his authorities for this conclusion. The kermes itself has now long been super- seded by the American cochineal, which is far superior to any pigment employ- ed in ancient times for dyeing reds. In- deed we have perhaps little cause to re- gret the loss or disuse of any ancient dye, particulary in bright reds, which owe so much to discoveries of chem- istry, that we have every reason to con- clude them infinitely superior to any which ancient art could produce. Pliny complains that scarlet dyes could not be made sufficiently durable and adhe- B-ive : and the statements in ancient au- thors as to the brilliancy of scarlet may be admitted by recollecting that they had nothing better with which to com pare it.' Pict. Bible. IT Fine linen. Hcb. tl^'U shesh; denoting the fabric made from the plant of that name which grew in Egypt and Palestine, and which is rendered by the Gr. and Chal. 'Byss,' from the Heb. ^"1^ butz. It was either a species of soft, delicate, and downy cotton, or a superior kind of flax, from which garments were made of the most pure and exquisite white. Moses in- deed does not employ the term 'Butz' in speaking of linen, which appears in no author prior to the age of the books of Esther and Chronicles, but the words 'Bad' and 'Shesh,' rendered 'Byssos,' linen, by the Sept. appear to have been the only ones in use in his day. That which is of most importance in respect to the 'Shesh' or 'Byss,' is the fact here mentioned, that it was the material of which the priestly garments were made which we are told were designed for ' glory and for honor' to the wearers. They were in fact the garments of kings and of nobles. In Gen. 41. 42, we see that Joseph in his exaltation was cloth- ed in one of them, rendered by the Gr. ' stole of byss.' So likewise David ap- peared in a similar robe on a day of solemnity, 1 Chron. 15. 27. In short, the byss garments were the most re- splendent and valuable of all the white apparel in use among the Israelites. Our Savior, therefore, in the parable of the rich man describes him as clad ' in purple and^ne linen, Gr. 'byss.' Again, when the marriage of the Lamb is de- sci-ibed in the Apocalypse, ch. 19. 8, it is said of the bride, that ' it was grant- ed to her that she should be arrayed in fine linen (byss) clean and white ; for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.' From what we have already said the symbolical import of this will not be of difficult solution. The byss being the most valuable species of white garments, constitutes a significamt em- EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 5 And fams' skms dyed red, and badgers' skins, and shittim-wood, blem of the highest and most 'perfect holiness. The resurrection is the state of perfect holiness ; the byss, therefore, is the attribute of the saints in a state of resurrection. In like manner we sup- pose the ' man clothed in linen,' so fre- quently mentioned by Ezekiel, ch. 9. and 10, to be a symbolical designation of Christ in his post-resurrection state, in which state we know he is for the most part represented as clothed in white raiment. IT Goafs hair. Heb. 'U'^W izzim. That is, the down or finest part of the hair ; of which much finer cloth was made in those countries than of the wool of the lamb or the sheep. The hair of the eastern goats, particu- larly of the Angola species, is of the most delicate and silky softness, and wrought into the kind of cloth known by the name of camlets. The word ' hair' does not occur in the Hebrew, but the sense evidently requires its in- sertion. 5. Rams^ skins dyed red. Heb. ni5 t'^?2lS^^ Xi^i< oroth ilim meoddamim, skins of red rams. That is, either those which were naturally of this color, for such are found in the Levant, or those which were made so by dyeing, and thus converted to a kind of red moroc- co. IT Badgers^ skins. Heb. n^5> D'^irnn oroth tehashin. It is very un- certain what is intended by the orig- inal word irnn tahash here rendered ' badger.' The ancient versions for the most part evidently consider it as de- signating some kind of color, either purple or violet. But as it appears from Ezek. 16. 10, that it denotes a sub- stance from which shoes were made, it is probably safer to consider it as the appellation of some of the animal tribes whose skins would serve for a rough exterior covering of the Tabernacle to protect the more delicate work of the inner curtains from injury by the weath- er. Yet that it could not have been the animal now called ' badger,' there is the strongest reason to believe. The badger is an inhabitant of cold conn- tries, nor can any evidence be adduced that it ever existed in Palestine, Arabia, or Egypt. Whence then could the Is- raelites have procured its skin to cover the Tabernacle, especially in such quan- tities as would be requisite ? It is by no means a prolific animal, and in the countries in which it breeds, as in Eng- land, it is comparatively rare. More- over, as it is pronounced unclean by the Mosaic law, it would scarcely have been employed for such a sacred pur- pose. But if it were an animal at all, of what species v/as it? Aben Ezra thinks, from the force of the term, that it was some animal which was thick and fat, and 'in this sense the word appears to be the same as the Arabic dasash, fat, oily. The conjecture, then, of those who refer the tahash to the seal, is every way credible ; as in our own island the seal is famous for its fat or oil, which, in default of whale oil, is used for similar purposes. Moreover, seal- skins, on account of their durability, are used to cover trunks and boxes, to de- fend them from the weather; and as the skin of the tahash was used for making shoes, (Ezek. 16. 10.), so the skin of the seal may be, and is, tanned into as good leather as calf-skin itself. It rgmains, then, to be proved that an animal, fit for the purpose, was readily procurable by the Israelites in the wilderness ; for this we quote Thevenot (p. 166.), who, be- ing at Tor, a port on the Red Sea, says, 'But they could not furnish me with any thing of a certain fish, which they call a sea-man. However, I got the hand of one since. This fish is taken in the Red Sea, about little isles, that are close by Tor. It is a great, strong fish, and hath nothing extraordinary but two hands, which are indeed like the hands ! of a man, saving that the fingers arc B. C. 1491.J CHAPTER XXV. 81 6 i» Oil for the light, c spices for anointing- oil, and for ^ sweet in- cense. b ch. 27. 20. c ch. 30. 23. d cli. 30. 31. joined together with a skin like the foot of a goose ; but the skin of the fish is like the skin of a wild goat, or chamois. When they spy that fish, they strike him on the back with harping irons, as they do whales, and so kill him. They use the skin of it for making bucklers, which are musket proofs Whether this be a species of seal must be left undetermin- ed ; as nothing is said of its coming ashore, or being amphibious ; neverthe- less, it may be the tahash of the He- brews. Niebuhr says (p. 157, Fr. edit.), 'A merchant of Abushahr called dahash that fish which the captains of English vessels called porpoise, and the Ger- mans sea-hog, or dolphin. In my voyage from Maskat to Abushahr, I saw a pro- digious quantity together, near Ras Mussendom, who all were going the same way, and seemed to sv/im with great vehemence.' Gesenius adopts the same opinion, on account of the simi- larity of the Arabic name dahash, which means, properly, the dolphin, but is al- so applied to the seal genus. On many of the small islands of the Red Sea, around the peninsula of Sinai, are found seals ; (hence insula phocarum, Strab. 16. p. 766.) likewise, a species of sea- cow, called also sea-man or sea-camel, the skin of which is an inch thick, and is used by the Arabs of the present day for shoe-leather. Burckhardt remarks that he ' saw parts of the skin of a large fish, killed on the coast, which was an inch in thickness, and is employed by the Arabs instead of leather for san- dals.' Robinson^s Calmet. IT Shit- tim-wood. Heb. tl'^ti^: '^2:5' atzii shit- tim, wood of the shittah tree, mentioned Is. 41. 19. It is rendered by the Gr. ^i,.\a acrrjrrra, incorruptible wood. Though not certainly known, it is supposed, with great probability, to be the acacia, or 7 Onyx-stones, and stones to be set in the e ephod, and in the f breast-plate. ech. 23.4,0. fch. 28. 15. species of thorn that still grows in great abundance in the deserts of Arabia ; the wood of which, according to Jerome, is extremely light, solid, strong, and smooth ; qualities rarely found together in any one wood. The tree is of the i size of a large mulberry-tree, large enough, says the father above mention- ed, to furnish very long planks. ' The Acacia-tree,' says Dr. Shaw, ' being by much the largest and most common tree in these deserts (Arabia Petrea), we have some reason to conjecture that the shittim-wood was the acacia.' 6. Oil for the light. For the lamp that was to burn continually in the sanctuary. This it appears, from Ex. 27. 20, was to be 'pure olive oil beaten.' IT Spices. Heb. tD'^?2t:3^ besamim. Gr. Oi'iJiiajtaTa, incenses. The term in- cludes all the odoriferous ingredients which were employed in the compo- sition of the 'anointing oil' or the oint. ment by which the altar of incense and all the vessels of the ark were hallow- ed, and lastly, in the incense which was burnt upon the altar. IT For sweet incense. Heb. G'l^DDn tl^t:pb Hkto- rcth hassammim, for the burning oj sweet odors; i. e. upon the golden altar that stood in the holy place. Comp Ex. 30. 22—28. 7. Onyx stones. Heb. tri'iJ 'i^SS^ abn'e shoham, stones of shoham. See Note on Gen. 2. 12. It is acknowledged that there is great difficulty in ascertaining what stone is meant by the 'shoham.' The Gr. translates the word in different places by no less than six different terms. In the three Chaldee Targums, as also in the Syriac, Arabic, Persic, and Ethiopic versions, it is rendered by 'beryl,' which Ainsworth adopts in his Annotations. As it was one of the jewels in the breastplate, and as two 82 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 8 And let them make me a g sane- { tuary ; that h J may dwell among them. rch. 36. 1, 3,4. Lev. 4. 6. & 10.4. & 21. 12. Hebr. 9. 1, 2. of them were borne on the High Priest's shoulders, each containing the names of six of the twelve tribes of Israel, it must have been a stone of very con- siderable size. On this account it is less likely to have been the onyx which is a very small stone. There were several kinds of ' beryls,' the most ap- proved of which were of a sea-green color, though Pliny describes one as inclining to a hyacinthine or azure color. But of the ' beryl' see Note on Ex. 2S. 9, 20. ^ Stones to he set. Heb. ti^ii^IO ^^'2'i?t,abnimillu'im, stones of fillings; i. e. stones to be set in, or, as artists say, enchased in the cavities of gold of tlie ephod. For a description of the Ephod and Breastplate, see on Ex. 28. 4, and 15. S. Let them make me a sanctuary. Pleb. 1U"p;'3 mikdash, a holy place; from IDIp kadash, to sanctify, to hallaiv. The term denotes a holy habitation ex- pressly consecrated to the residence of the visible divine majesty in the midst of them. H That I may dwell among them. Heb. ^iTJ^IijI veshakanti, and I tvill dwell. Gr. o(ljOriaoi(ai ev vfxiv, I will be seen among you. Chal. 'I will make my Glory to dwell in the midst of them.' Arab. 'That I may make m.y Splendor to inhabit among them.' The import plainly is, that God would dwell among them by the signal manifestations of his glory in the Shekinah, the visible token of his presence. The original word ^n3!D!Z3 shakanti comes from ^"^ shakan, to dwell in a tent or tabernacle, and from the same root comes both n3"'lDtD shekinah, and the Gr. ckyivow, to tabernacle, from which latter is the derivative cktivy}^ a tent or tabernacle. The radical consonants (sh)s, k, n, are the same in both languages, to which the vowels are mere factitious append- 1' ch. 29. 45. 1 Kings 6. 13. 2 Cor. 6. It>. Hebr. 3. 0. Rev. 21. 3. ages. In express allusion therefore to the mode of the divine residence among the Israelites, it is said of Christ, John 1. 14, ' the Word was made flesh and dwelt (eaKrjuuac tabernacled or shekin- ized) among us, and we beheld his glo- ry;' i. e. at the transfiguration, when the cloud or vail of his flesh, by being tem- porarily rent asunder, disclosed the true inner glory of his Godhead, answering to the luminous cloud of the Shekinah, which is in numerous instances called 6i)^a, glory. In like manner, in allu- sion to the sensible mode in which God manifested himself to his peculiar peo- ple. Christ is said to be the 'brightness of the Father's glory,' Heb. 1. 3, lan- guage which goes to identify the person of the Son with the glorious apparition of the Shekinali. The term again oc- curs in evident allusion to these words of Moses, Rev. 21. 3, 'And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Be- hold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell ivith them.' This is the fulfilment of the prediction uttered by Ezekiel 37. 26, 27, 'And I will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore ; my tabernacle also shall be with them ; yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people,' announc- ing a period yet future when this earth shall again be distinguished by some visible manifestation of the divine pres- ence under circumstances of far more glory than those in which he appeared of old to the chosen people, and answer- ing the same purpose in respect to the whole human race which the Shekinah of the Tabernacle did in respect to a single nation. It is the period, as we have elsewhere remarked, of the New Jerusalem, of which the same prophet says, Ezek. 4S. 35, 'The name of the city from that day shall be, The Lord B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXV. 83 9 i According to all liiat I shew [ ernacle, and the pattern of all thee, after the pattern of the tab- the instruments thereof, even so shall ve make it. ver. 40. is there (n'C'J mn" Yehovah sham- mah).^ But 'the Lord' (Jehovah) is the Siiekiuah, and the Shekinah is the. Logos and the Lamb who is to be the Light and Glory of the heaven-descend- ed city, and the intimation is clear that this manifested presence of the Deity is there to form so prominent and con- spicuous an object, that the city itself is to receive from it its characteristic denomination. At the same time it is not to be forgotten that it will be a residence 'among men,' men inhabiting this terraqueous globe ; for there is no greater mistake than to interpret the sublime representations of the latter part of the Apocalypse of an extra- mundane state of glory, having no rela- tion to the present condition of man, or to the original scene of his existence. Time and the Providence of God will doubtless work a great change in the views of believers in reference to the genuine scope of the visions contained in this wonderful book, a portion of revelation which unfortunately has fall- en into a disesteem never enough to be deplored. 9. According to all that I shew. Heb. ']m&^ nK"l?3 "^-t^ ^rj* b--) kekol asher ani mareh otheka, according to all that I make thee to sec. We have before re- marked, Ex. 24. 10, 11, that we suppose the pattern of the Tabernacle and its furniture, but more especially the Ark, the Cherubim and the Glory, to have been shown to Moses in the presence of Aaron and his sons and the seventy el- ders, and the phraseology of the present passage does not militate with this idea. The designation of time by the Hebrew verbs and participles is very indefinite, and in this instance the usus loquendi will admit of the showing be- ing understood of the past as well as the present. The whole time of Mo- ses' sojourn on the mount, after leaving the camp with his companions, seems to be spoken of as one continuous term, not requiring to have its periods accu- rately distinguished. IT After the pattern of the tabernacle. Heb, tT'DjlT! 'I^'l'/O tabnith mishkan. We have in Tp^JiJ^ mishkan another derivative from the root "^'^j shakan, rightly rendered tabernacle. The other term rT^Dntl tab- nith, comes from nDlI banah, to build, and properly signifies in this connexion a model, a prototype, an exemplar, im- plying something sensible, corporeal, or substantial in contradistinction from rill'^l demuth, a likeness, which is ap- plied rather in the general sense o{ rep- resentation, picture, or image, than of^ a framed model of any kind of struc- ture. The distinction is very clearly indicated in 2 Kings, 16. 10, 'And king Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tig- lath-pileser, king of Assyria, and saw an altar that was at Damascus : and king Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest the fashion (t^M21 demuth) of the altar, axidi the pattern (tl^DIin tabnith) of it, according to all the workmanship there- of;' where n*^3ntl undoubtedly signifies a model, and m)3T some other kind of representation, either verbal or picto- rial. In like manner we find a striking parallel, not only to the phrase, but to the general fact here recorded, in the history of the building of the Temple, 1 Chron. 28. 11, 12, ' Then David gave to Solomon his son the pattern (D'^^jtl) of the porch, and of the houses thereof, and of the treasures thereof, and of the upper chambers thereof, and of the in- ner parlors thereof, and of the place of the mercy-seat, and the pattern (rT^DDtl) of all he had by the Spirit, of the courts of the house of the Lord, and of all the chambers round about, of the treasuries of the house of God, and of the treasn- 84 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. nes of the dedicated things.' David, it seems, was furnished by divine in- spiration with a visionary archetype of the Temple which he would liave Solo- mon build to the Lord, and in accord- ance with this vision lie procured a pat- ter?i or model to be executed, which should answer the purpose of guiding his son in the construction of the sacred edifice. In the present instance, we do not indeed imagine that there was any miniature model in wood or stone of the Tabernacle made by Omnipo- tence and shown to Moses ; but we do Suppose that the supernatural spectacle presented to his view was so ordered as to convey to his mind all the impression which would have been produced by an actual objective presentation of the scenery to his outward senses in the form of substantial realities. On this strong, clear, and vivid impression of the objects seen, we suppose the use of the term model or patter 71 was founded. The vision was to him in the place of a pattern. It may not be inapposite in this con- nexion to dwell somewhat upon the fact of the remarkable, and we doubt not designed, inter-relation between the general plan of the Tabernacle in its different parts, and the ideas usually entertained among the ancient Hebrews of the structure of the heavens. How- ever it may be accounted for, we think the position is unquestionable, that the Scriptures, in their peculiar phrase- ology, do recognise a singular corres- pondence between at least the inner sanctuary, the holy of holies, both in the Tabernacle and Temple, and the supernal regions called heaven or the heavens, considered especially as the residence of God, where he sat upon the throne of his glory, surrounded by the angelic hosts. Indeed Gussetius, an eminent Hebrew Lexicographer, con- tends that all the ' pattern' shown to Moses on this occasion was the heavens themaelvet. This is perhaps too vague an explanation to meet the demands of a rigid exegesis, but that there Avas a remarkable symbolical affinity, running occasionally into absolute identity, in the ideas of heaven and the holy of holies, may doubtless be shown beyond dispute. Such a fact, if it can be made to appear, will be of great importance in giving distinctness to our conceptions of the mystic scenery of the Apoca- lypse, wliich may be said to be almost entirely made up of elements furnished by the Tabernacle and Temple ritual. It will also go far to account for the alle- gorising expositions of Josephus and Philo, who evidently confounded the symbolical with the philosophical im- port of these sacred ordinances. Of these writers, the latter says expressly when speaking of the Tabernacle, that ' as for the inside, Moses parted iti* length into three partitions. At the distance of ten cubits from the most secret end, he placed four pillars, each a small matter distant from his fellow. Now the room within these pillars was The Most Holy Place ; but the rest of the room was the Tabernacle, which was open for the priests. However this proportion of the measures of the Tab- ernacle proved to be an imitation of the system of the world; for that third part thereof which was within the four pillars, to which the (common) priests were not admitted, is, as it were, an heaven peculiar to God; but the space of the twenty cubits, is, as it were, sea and land, on which men live, and so this part is peculiar to the priests only.' Again, in accordance with this idea, he says of the Candlestick, that 'it termi- nated in seven heads, in one row, all standing parallel to one another ; and these branches carried seven lamps, one by one, in imitation of the number of the planets.' In another passage, where he feels himself called upon to vindi. cate the wisdom of the Mosaic institu- tions, he remarks, 'Now here one may wonder at the ill-will which men bear B. C. 1401.] CHAPTER XXV. 85 to us, and which they profess to be on account of our despising that deity which they pretend to honor ; for if any one do but consider the fabric of the Tabernacle, and take a view of the gar- ments of the high priest, and of those vessels which we make use of in our sacred ministration, he will find that our legislator was a divine man, and that we are unjustly reproached by others ; for if any one do without preju- dice, and with judgment look upon these things, he will find they were every one made in way of imitation and representation of the universe. When Moses distinguished the Tabernacle into three parts, and allowed two of them to the priests, as a place acces- sible and common, he denoted the land and the sea, they being of general ac- cess to all ; but he set apart the third division for God, because heaven is in- accessible to men.'' In what manner these astronomical ideas became grafted upon the peculiar fabric we are now considering, would no doubt be a difficult problem to solve, were it not for the clue aiforded us in the scriptural diction which we are now about to lay before the reader. From this it will appear that it originated in a perversion or distortion of the dim in- timations which were then enjoyed of the true symbolical import of these sa- cred institutions. And no doubt a large portion of the ancient mythological fic- tions could be traced by a rigid inqui- sition to the same source. They are the distorted relics of an early revela- tion abounding in types and symbols. We have said that our present en- quiry derives importance from its fur- nishing a key to the mystic scenery of the Apocalypse. Let us then take our starting point from this wonderful book, and if we should be led into somewhat of an extended array of the prophetic usus loquendi, we may still hope to find the result richly rewarding the time and toil of the investigation. Vol. II. 8 Probably few readers of the Revela- tion have failed to be struck with the fact, that while the scene of the vision is apparently laid in heaven (rather ^ the heaven' — zv ro ovpavo^), yet the presence of many of the appurtenances of the Tabernacle or Temple is con- stantly recognised. Thus in ch. 4. 1, 2, John says, 'After this I looked, and behold a door was opened in heaven — and immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne.' Now as he goes on to describe a ' sea of glass' an- swerable to the * brazen sea' which stood before the sanctuary; the 'four liv- ing creatures' identical with the ' cheru- bims' that spread their wings over the mercy-seat ; and ' seven lamps of fire burning before the throne,' correspond- ing with the seven lamps of the candle- stick placed before the vail in the holy place ; how can we resist the conclu- sion that the ' heaven' of which he speaks is really nothing else than the holy of holies, and that the throne is the mercy-seat on which the Shekinah, the visible Glory, rested? This is con- firmed by the annexed circumstance of seeing a door, or rather a door-way, an entrance (Ovon), which had been previ- ously opened {avi.('yyiievri), and through which he was enabled to see the throne and its occupant. Now where a door- way is mentioned, the idea of an apart- ment or apartments naturally suggests itself to the mind, and if John saw the throne through the opened entrance, he must have been in one apartment, and the throne in another, as otherwise it is impossible to discover a reason for the mention of the door-way at all in this connexion. All this accords perfectly with the local arrangements of the Tabernacle and Temple, which consist- ed of two apartments, commonly sepa- ated by the vail of partition. In the outer apartment, cr holy place, stood the seven-branched candlestick, and throughout the three first chapters the 86 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. scene of John's vision is confined alto- gether to this first or outer room, where he beholds Christ in his priestly dress j engaged about the lights of the larnj), which in the language of symbols are said to be seven stars that he holds in his right hand. Up to this time John had not seen the mercy-seat ; the vail therefore was then in its place, and the Ocpa or entrance-way Vv'as closed. But now a fresh illapse of tlie Spirit comes upon him, the vail is removed, and his entranced eye looks into the inner hal- lowed shrine of the sanctuary. If then the scene of this vision was the earthly sanctuary^ and not heaven above, as has been generally imagined, why does he call it 'the heaven?' To this we answer, because it is so called in the Old Testament, and because it was intended as a type or adumbration of the true heaven, the place of final happiness and glory of the saints. As this is a fact of some importance and one that goes to correct the interpre- tation of many passages in which the word * heaven' occurs, a strict examina- tion of the Old Testament usage in re- gard to this word will be necessary. And first it is clear that the mercy-seat is called God's seat; and the sanctuary which contained the mercy-seat God's dwelling or sitting-place. Respecting this seat or throne, God says to Moses, Ex. 25. 22, 'There will I meet with thee, and commune {"^ti'^OH dibbarti) with thee from above the mercy-seat, and from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the testi- mony,' &c. The place of the mercy- seat being intended for oral communi- cation, it receives a name answerable to this in 1 Kings, 6 and 8, and in 2 Chron. 5, where it is called 'T^Dl de- hir, word-place, speaking-place, oracle, which term in 1 Kings, S. 6, is plainly put in apposition with tD'^IUnpn IDIp kodesh hakkodoshim, the holy of holies, the name given to the inner apartment of the sanctuary ; 'And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the Lord unto his place, into the oracle {^^'21) of the house, to the most holy place (!2j")p f'lUlpil) even under the wings of the cherubims.' In the dedication of the temple by Solomon the phraseology in different passages is to be especially noticed. Thus in 1 Kings, 8. 13, he says, 'I have surely built tliee a house to dwell in, a settled place ('|l!D?2 me- kon, lit. a prepared j^lace) for thee to abide in for ever.' Here it is to be observed that Solomon calls the house which he had built the ^^'DTZ mekon or prepared place, putting these terms in apposition ; and consequently leaving us to infer that whatever other terms may in the context be found put in apposi- tion with either of these, they are to have a similar application. With this remark premised let the phraseology in the sequel of the chapter be observed. Inv. 30, it is said, 'Hearken thou to the supplication of thy servants, and of thy people Israel, when they shall pray to- ward this place : and hear thou in heaven thy dwelling-place: (C1p/0 ^)k. tD'^^jIL'n b^ "^nniD el mekom shibteka el hash-shamay im , in thy sitting-place, or dwelling-place, even in the heaven): and when thou hearest forgive.' With this compare v. 39, ' Then hear thou in heaven thy dwelling-place (^fQID ^^12 mekon shibteka, the prepared place of thy sitting, or dwelling), and forgive,' &c. Here there is a change of terms in the original which is lost sight of in our version, but which is quite important in making out the point before us. In the one case we have 'irOoJ t]1p)2 mekom. shibteka, the place of thy dwelling; in the other 'llnlQ'lU ']']'DJ2 mekon shibtekaf the prepared place of thy dwelling. But it is clear from the comparison thus made in the Hebrew text, that the terms ' heaven,' ' house,' and ' prepared place' are used as equivalents. But Solomon says, v, 13, that he had btiilt the 'X]'Zil2 mekon or prepared place; consequently he had built the heaven in which God is B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXV. 87 here said to dwell. It is true indeed that in other texts in this chapter ' hea- ven' is clearly employed in the sense of the upper regions of ether, or the ce- lestial firmament, as it is ordinarily un- derstood. Thus V. 23, 'And he said, Lord God of Israel, there is no God like thee in heaven above, or on earth beneath.' So also v. 27, 'But will God indeed dwell on the earth? behold the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain thee ; how much less this house that I have builded ?' But while this is admitted, it is impossible to resist the evidence that prepared place and heaven are synonimous terms in this connexion, and consequently that the heaven was a place which Solomon had built for the residence of the Most High by his appropriate symbol. In think- ing of ' the heaven' of which Solomon here speaks we are to bring before our minds the imagery connected with the holy of holies, viz., the ark of the cove- nant, the mercy-seat or throne, the over- shadowing cherubinis, and the luminous cloud of the Shekinah. Tliis view will be confirmed by the parallel recital in 2 Chron. chps. 6 and 7, particularly 7. 1,2, where a circum- stance of great importance is noticed, which is not stated in the book of Kings ; 'Now when Solomon had made an end of praying, the fire came down from heaven ('D^'?2'II^'n'n m'thash-shama- yim, from the heaven), and consumed the burnt-offering and the sacrifices ; and the glory of the Lord filled the house. And the priests could not en- ter into the house of the Lord, be- cause the glory of the Lord had filled the Lord's house.' The answer thus given to the prayer of Solomon in the presence of all the worshippers, gave evidence that God had accepted the house, the sanctuary, the heaven, the place prepared for his sitting; for the fire here spoken of descended undoubt- edly not from heaven above, but from the cloud which covered the mercy-seat in the holy of holies. It is to be ob- served that the cloud had filled not on- ly the inner apartment in which the priests had placed the mercy-seat, but the holy place or outer apartment, in which the priests usually officiated, so that the priests could no longer con- tinue there (1 Kings, 8. 10). All were in the court without, in that part where the altar stood, before the sanctuarj* ; and when Solomon had ended his pray- er, fire came forth from the sanctuary, from which the priests had been ex- pelled by the luminous cloud, the pre- pared place of God^s sitting, the heaven, and fell upon and consumed the sacri- fice. This is to be presumed from the analogous circumstance mentioned Lev. 9. 23, 24, 'And Moses and Aaron went into the Tabernacle of the congrega- tion, and came out and blessed the peo- ple J and the glory of the Lord appear- ed unto all the people. And there came a fire out from before the Lord, and consumed upon the altar the burnt- offering and the fat : which when all the people saw, they shouted and fell on their faces.' By this is doubtless meant that the fire came out from the presence of the Shekinah, which had now taken its station in the holy of ho- lies, though the glorious eff'ulgence had spread itself on this occasion over all the Tabernacle and appeared in the view of the whole congregation. Consider more- over the coincidence of the circumstan- ces stated respecting this heaven, the place prepared by Solomon for the God of Israel to dwell in, and those stated by John respecting the heaven he describes. In Solomon's heaven there was a seat or throne (the mercy-seat) ; so there is in John's. Solomon's heaven was a speak- ing-place or oracle, and from Solomon's heaven came fire to consume the sacri- fice ; so also from the throne described by John proceeded voices and light' nings, Rev. 4. 5 ; and the seat in each is occupied by One to whom divine honors are paid. 88 EXODTJS. [B. C. 1491. The foregoing are not the only pas- sages which serve to prove that ' the heaven' in which John saw the opened entrance and the throne, was the earth' hj sanctuary. In proportion as the re- lation which subsists between tlie dif- ferent things mentioned in the Apoca- lypse is discovered, our knowledge of the particulars will be extended. At present we will simply advert to a sin- gle passage which will receive a strik- ing light from the exposition given above. In Rev. 13. 1 — 10, we have the description of a symbolical beast iden- tical with the fourth beast of Daniel, which is all but universally admitted to shadow forth the persecuting power of the Roman empire. Among the other disastrous doings of this baneful mon- ster, it is said, v. 6, that 'he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his Taber- nacle, and them that dwell in heaven.'' That is, to blaspheme, reproach, vilify, lord it over, and persecute the true wor- shippers of God, represented by the Che- rubims that were placed over the Ark of the Covenant, in the holy of holies. So that in blaspheming the tabernacle, he blasphemed those that dwelt in it, or in other words, those that dtvelt in heaven.' On the whole, we cannot question but that this idea of the import of the term ' heaven' is important to a right view of that blessed expectancy which, under the same name, sustains and fires the hope of the Christian in his toilsome pilgrimage through this vale of tears. If we conceive the sub- ject aright, the heavenly state is the substance of the mystery of the Most Holy Place of the Tabernacle and Tem- ple. This mystery is explained in the closing chapters of the Apocalypse, which affords us the only adequate clue to the prophetic purport of the Taber- nacle-structure. There indeed the in- ner oracle is expanded into a glorious city, but it is enriched with the posses- sion of the same celestial sanctities, unfolded into their full dimensions, and shining forth in a splendor suited to their divine nature. The link of con- nexion between the type and the anti- type, the shadow and the substance, we doubt not, is clearly disclosed in tlie fol- lowing passages ; 'And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me that great city the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, having the glory of God : and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper-stone, clear as crystal ; and the city liethfour- square, and the length is as large as the breadth : and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length, and the breadth, and the height of it are equal.' Here we re- cognise in the ' Glory of God' the She- kinah of the ancient economy, and in the four-square form of the city the substantiated verity of the holy of holies of the Tabernacle and the Temple, in each of which this apartment was o perfect cube. Again it is said, 'And I saw no temple therein : for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.' By the 'temple' here is to be understood the pronaos, or ante- rior structure, which contained the outer room, as contradistinguished from the sanctum sanctorum, which in this ulterior economy of glory has absorbed within itself the distinguishing features of every previous, imperfect and shad- owy dispensation, and become the all in all. 'And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it ; for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. And there shall be no night there ; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun ; for the Lord God gireth them light : and they shall reign for ever and ever.' This is language evi- dently borrowed from Isaiah in speak- ing, chap. 19. 20, of the same halcyon period ; 'The sun shall be no more thy light by day: neither for brightness B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXV. 89 shall the moon give light unto thee : but the Lord shall be unto thee an ever- lasting light, and thy God thy glory. Thy sun shall no more go down ; nei- ther shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the Lord shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended.' It contains another, and still more emphatic, recognition of that Resplendent Presence which un- der the title of Jehovah, Angel of Je- hovah, Shekinah, Glory of the Lord, &c., pointed forward to Christ in his risen and glorified theanthropy, when he should be revealed, as he is here, as the Luminary of the New Jerusalem, superseding the sun, and throwing all created glory into eclipse. In the idea of this transcendent illumination we may safely include all the moral ele- ments, which in the pious mind natu- rally connect themselves with the mani- fested presence of the God of Truth, and at the same time admit the sense of the visible personal display which seems to be called for by the explicit- ness of the letter. Still we are remind- ed that the scene, however magnificent and beautiful, is sublunary. Whatever physical changes of a renovating nature may take place upon the surface of the globe, or in its relation to the planet- ary system, the locality of this state of * accomplished bliss' will be upon the earth which we now inhabit, at least for the period to vi'hich the Scrip- tures carry forward the heirs of life in their revelations of eternal destiny. What new phases of felicity may come over their lot in the boundless tract of time and space into which their ex- istence is launched, revolving ages can alone determine. But the disclosures of revelation still retain us within the precincts of the inhabited earth. 'And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it ; and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honor into it.' This is strikingly paralleled by the kindred prediction of Isaiah, ch.60.2, 3—11, 'The Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles (nations) shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. Therefore thy gates shall be open con- tinually ; they shall not be sliut day nor night, that men may bring unto thee the forces (wealth) of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought.' All this supposes a scene still earthly. A few more extracts pointing out the identity of the heavenly city with the substance of the most holy place of the Tabernacle, and we bid a reluctant adieu to the inspiring theme. 'And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. And there shall be no more curse ; but the throne of God and the Lamb shall be in it ; and his servants shall serve him : and they shall see his face ; and his name shall be in their foreheads.' These serv- ants are the cherubic legions, whose ap- propriate device in the sanctuary looked from the extremities of the mercy-seat directly upon the bright cloud of the Presence, now developed into myriads of happy human existences, rejoicing before the throne, and making their perpetual oblations of service and praise. In view of this blissful inheritance, who does not feel involuntarily prompt- ed to exclaim with the prophet, 'Glory to the righteous!' And who but must be profoundly impressed with the in- effable misery of those who shall finally come short of this 'exceeding and eter- nal weight of glory?' May then the solemn concluding intimation of the Apocalypse sink into the deepest re- cesses of the souls both of the writer and his readers ; 'Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and 90 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 10 1[ k And they shall make an ark of shittim-wood : two cubits and a half shall be the length there- kch. 37. 1. Deut. 10. 3. Ilebr. 9. 4. maketh a lie. I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning-star. And the Spirit and the bride say come. And let him that hear- eth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of hfe freely.' THE ARK OF THE COVENANT. 10. Tlicy shall make an ark of Shittim- wood. Heb. "^Tli^ aron. From the iden- tity of rendering, it might be thought that the ark of the Tabernacle and that of Noah were expressed by the same term in Hebrew. But such is not the case. The former is called '^I'^i^ aro7}, and the latter \l'2t^ tchah; but the Greek having rendered both terms by Kifiiojroi, this has been followed by our own and many other versions. The object itself was properly a chest or coffer of shittim- wood, overlaid with gold, in which was deposited the tables of the ten command- ments, together with Aaron's rod that budded, and the golden pot of preserved manna. This chest seems to have been of the dimensions of three feet nine inches in length, by two feet three inches in breadth and depth, according to the common cubit of eighteen inches. Around the upper edge was a rim or cornice — called in the text 'a crown' — of pure gold ; and on each side were fixed rings of gold to receive the poles of shittim-wood covered with gold, by which the ark was carried from place to place. The staves alwaj's remained in the rings, even when the ark was at rest. The ark had at top a lid or cover of solid gold ; for such was what the text calls ' the mercy-seat,' and which the Septuagint renders [\anrv;pii>v or the propitiatory J by which name it .s men- of, and a cubit and a half the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half the height thereof. tioned by St. Paul in Heb. 9. 4, and which was probably so called, because, on the great day of atonement, the blood of the expiatory sacrifice was sprinkled on or before it. Upon the two ends of this lid, and of the same matter with it, that is, solid gold, were placed two figures of cherubim which looked to- wards each other, and whose out- stretched wings, meeting over the cen- tre of the ark, overshadowed it com- pletely. It was here that the Shekinah or Divine Presence more immediately rested, and both in the Tabernacle and Temple was indicated by a cloud, from the midst of which responses were de- livered in an audible voice whenever the Lord was consulted in behalf of the people. Hence God is sometimes men- tioned as he that 'dwelleth' or ' sitteth between the cherubim.' In its removals the ark was covered with a vail, Num. 4. 6, and might only be carried on the shoulders of the priests orLevites. The Rabbins think, with some reason, that it was only carried by the priests on extraordinary occasions, being ordina- rily borne by the Levites. Nootherform of conveyance was allowed, nor were any other persons permitted to interfere with it. The Cite of Uzzah, 2 Sam. 6. 3, admonished the Israelites, in a very solemn manner, of the consequences of even a well meant ofRciousness in a matter where the divine will liad been so clearly expressed to the contrary. After the Israelites had passed the Jordan, the ark generally occupied its proper place in the Tabernacle, and was afterwards placed in the Temple built by Solomon. From the direction given by Josiah to the Levites, 2 Chron. 35. 3, to restore the ark to its place, it would seem to have been previously removed, but it is not knov,n whether this was B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXV. 91 done by the priests, to preserve it from profanation, or by the idolatrous kings Manasseh or Amon, to make room for their idols. It seems that the ark, with the other precious things of the Tem- ple, became the spoil of Nebuchadnez- zar, and was taken to Babylon ; and it does not appear that it was restored at the end of the captivity, or that any new one was made. What became of the ark after the captivity cannot be ascertained. Some of the Rabbms think that it was concealed, to preserve it from the Chaldeans, and that it could not again be discovered, nor will be till the Messiah comes and reveals it. Others say that it was indeed taken away by the Chaldeans, but was after- wards restored, and occupied its place in the second Temple : but the Talmud and some of the Jewish writers confess, that the want of the ark was one of the points in which the second Temple was inferior to that of Solomon : to which we may add that neither Ezra, Nehe- miah, the Maccabees, nor Josephus, mention the ark as extant in the second Temple, and the last authority ex- pressly says that there was nothing in the sanctuary when the Temple was taken by Titus. It certainly does not appear in the Arch erected at Rome in honor of that conqueror, and in which the spoils of the Temple are displayed ; although some writers have attempted to identify it with the table of shew- bread which is there represented. It is to be remarked that similar arks or chests, containing the mysteries of their religions, were common among nearly all the ancient heathen nations, the hint of which was probably taken from that of the Jews. The Egyptians, for instance, carried in solemn proces- sions a sacred chest, containing tlieir se- cret things and the mysteries of their re- ligion, of which the following cut, from the hieroglyphic remains of that coun- try, shows a very remarkable conform- ity to the Hobi-ew model. Egyptian Ark Borne by Priests. The Trojans also had their sacred chest ; and the palladium of the Greeks and Romans was something not very un- like. It is remarkable too, that as the Hebrew Tabernacle and Temple had a holy of holies, in which the ark was de- posited, so had the heathen, in the in- most part of their temples, an adytum or penetrale, which none but the priests might enter. Something very similar 92 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 11 And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, within and without shalt thou overlay it ; and shalt make up- on it a crown of gold round about. 12 And thou shalt cast four rings of gold for it, and put them in the four corners thereof; and two rings shall be in the one side of it, and two rings in the other side of it. 13 And thou shalt make staves of shittim-wood, and overlay them with gold. may also be traced among barbarous and savage nations. Thus, Tacitus, speak- ing of the nations of Northern Germa- ny, of whom our Saxon ancestors were a branch, says that they generally wor- shipped Hertham, or the Mother Earth {Terram matrem); believing her to in- terpose in the affairs of men, and to visit nations ; and that to her, within a grove in a certain island, was conse- crated a vehicle covered xcith a vest- ment, and which none but the priests were allowed to touch. The same thing has been frequently noticed in con- nexion Avilh the religious systems of other heathen nations, and among the inhabitants of Mexico and the South Sea Islands, very curious analogies with the Mosaic ark have been discovered, of which the reader will find an account in Parkhurst's Heb. Lex. Art. y^. 11. Make upon it a crown of gold round abozit. Heb. ^"^DD 'ZTM It zer zahab sabib, a golden border round about. Gr. KVjiaTia ■^pvaa arpcTTra, gold- en wreathed waves round about. This 'crown' was an ornamental cornice, moulding, or border, which went round the top, as a kind of enclosure serving to make firm the propitiatory in its place, and called a 'crown' from its en- compassing the whole outer extremities of the upper side of the ark somewhat as a crown encircles the temples of the head. The term is only employed in reference to the rims or crowns of gold made round the ark of the covenant, 14 And thou shalt put the staves into the rings by the sides of the ark, that the ark may be borne with them. 15 1 The staves shall be in the rings of the ark : they shall not be taken from it. 16 And thou shalt put into the ark m the testimony which I shall give thee. 1 1 Kings 8. 8. m ch. 16. 34. & 31. 18. Deut. 10. 2,5. & 31.26. 1 Kings 8. 9. 2 Kings 11. 12. Hebr. 9. 4. the table of shew-bread, and the altar of incense. From the rendering of the Greek it w^ould appear that the work of this cornice was somehow exquisitely wrought in graceful flexures or undula- tions, resembling the waves of the sea. 12. Thou shall cast four rings of gold, &c. Doubtless of solid gold, as they w£re to sustain a very consider- able weight when the staves were in- serted and the ark borne by the priests. Whether these rings w^ere placed length- wise or breadthwise of the ark is not clear. We infer the latter, however, as otherwise, when carried, the front part of the ark with its cherubim would be sideways, which is not likely. Be- sides we are told, 1 Kings, 8. 8, that in the Temple 'the ends of the staves were seen out in the holy place, before the oracle ;' consequently, as the ark front- ed the entrance, the staves must have run along the extremity of its breadth, instead of its length. 16. Thou shalt put — the testimony, &c. That is, the two tables of stone on which the Law of the ten Command- ments was written ; called ' the testi- mony,' because God did in them testify his authority over the Israelites, his re- gard for them, his presence with them, and his displeasure against them in case they transgressed ; while they on the other hand by accepting and deposit- ing this Law in its appointed place, testified their professed subjection and obedience to its requirements. — On the B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXV. 93 17 And n thou shalt makea mercy- seat of pure gold : two cubits and a half shall he the length thereof, n ch. 37. 6. Rom. 3. 25. Hebr. 9. 5. difRcuUy supposed to be created by the comparison of this passage with Heb. 9. 4, see the commentators on that text, particularly the XVIIth Excursus in Prof. Stuart's Commentary on Hebrews. 17, Thou shalt make a mercy-seat of pure gold. Heb.tl^55 kapporeth, from "IS^ kaphar, to cover. The verb is, however, used for the most part in a moral sense, being applied to the cover- ing, that is, the expiation^ of sins. The Gr. version unites the two senses by rendering iXaarrjpiuv cTriQejia, that is, a propitiatory covering, or mercy-seat, a rendering sanctioned by the Holy Spirit, as we find it employed, with the omission of the last word, by the apos- tle, Heb. 9. 5, 'And over it the cheru- bims of glory shadowing the mercy- seat {'iXaarrjoiov).'' The same term in Rom. 3. 25, is applied to Christ, 'whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation {l\aaTr}pinv) through faith in his blood.' So also 1 John, 2. 2, 'He is the propi- tiation (IXaarripiov) for our sins.' From whence the conclusion is probably fair- ly to be drawn, that this mercy-seat was in some sense an adumbration of Christ as the grand medium of expiation for the sins of men. This mercy-seat, which was made of solid gold instead of wood overlaid with gold, like the rest of the ark, was the upper side of the sacred chest made to be removed entirely, or, as Josephus says, raised by binges, when the tables of testimony were to be taken out or put in. THE CHERUBIM. 18. Thou shalt make two cherubims of gold, &c. Heb. fi'^^IlD kerubim. Gr. ■)(^t:povpin Cheroubim. Our English word IS the plural untranslated of the orig- mal '2.1^'D kerub, a term of which the etymology is very much of a contested and a cubit and a half the breadth thereof. 18 And thou shalt make two che- rubims of gold, of beaten work point with critics and lexicographers. According to the regular analogy of the language, it has the form of the past participle of the verb '2'^'D karab. But no such verb exists among the liv- ing roots of the Hebrew. It was there- fore regarded by most of the ancient Christian fathers as a compound word made up perhaps of *nj3 nakar , to know, and D1") rub, multitude, equivalent to multitudo scientice or multitudo cogni- tionis, abundance of knowledge ; or of 'D kc, 1311 rub, and TO'^l binah, quasi multitudo cognitionis, of equivalent im- port. But this mode of derivation is so utterly at variance with the laws which regulate the process of formation in Hebrew words, that it cannot be sus- tained for a moment when tried by the test of sound criticism. Yet it is remark- able that in nearly all the ancient in- terpretations the idea of multitude was prominent, indicating that they regard- ed 1311 multitudo as beyond doubt one of its constituent elements. We have no doubt they were correct in assigning this as one of the meanings of the sym- bol, but they were unquestionably wrong in eliciting this idea from the etymology of the term. At the same time, although the genius of the language will not ad- mit the legitimate developement of the sense o{ knowledge or intelligence from any part of the word, yet it is very possible to account for this sense being deduced from it by the philosophizing fathers of the church ; for with the Platonists wings were deemed an em- blem o( wisdom and knowledge, and the same import was thought to be con- veyed by the Cherubim being ' full of eyes before and behind.' Taking there- fore this apprehended import of the symbol itself, and applying it reflexly to the structure of the term, they gave 94 EXODUS. [B. C. 149 J. as the result the interpretation above- mentioned, which is no unfair specimen of patristic philology. Others again with more regard to intrinsic probabil- ity have proposed, by a transposition of letters, to trace the word to the root —5^ rakab, to ride, as the Cherubim are described in the remarkable vision of Ezekiel, eh. 1, as forming, together with the mystic animated wheels, a kind o[ living chariot on which the sym- bol of the divine glory is exhibited as upborne and transported ; whence the Psalmist, Ps. 18. 10, describes the Most High as ' riding upon the Cherub ;' and the Cherubim in Solomon's temple, 1 Chron. 28. 18, are called ' a chariot.' By others various other etymologies have been suggested, but none entirely satisfactory. After a pretty extensive and elaborate investigation we have on the whole been inclined to give the pre- ference to the root abovementioned, viz. J '21'D karab, now obsolete in He- brew, but existing in Syriac and Arabic in the primitive sense of ploughing or making furrows in the earth ; and thence, secondly, of making incisions in metals, or engraving, and finally by natural transition, of making sculptured figures, or glyphs, of any kind. This is confirmed by Rosenmuller, who re- marks that as one and the same word in Syriac and Arabic is used to denote expressing, sculpturing, and fabricat- ing, so in the verb D'l^ karab and its derivates the same complex idea is in- volved, as is to be inferred from the fact that the Syriac korubo signifies not only a ploughman, but also a former of images. It may also be observed that as 6, V, and / are in all languages per- mutable, being letters of the same or- gan, this etymology presents us with some remarkable affinities. For begin- ning with the Heb. '2^'D karab, to make incisions, we find in the Teutonic family for inciderc, to cut as in engraving. Germ, kerben, Angl. Sax. keorfan, Eng. carve; and then as g and k are inter- changeable, we have the Gr. ypacpco, grapho, Germ, graben, Angl. Sax. gra- fan, Eng. grave, engrave, and Fr. grif- fon (griffin), ^n imaginary animal com- pounded of beast and bird, evidently de- rived from a distortion of the cherubic figure. In all these words the idea of sculpturing or engraving is predomin- ant, and according to the analogy of Hebrew formations ^1^5 kerub would properly signify that which was carved, sculptured, or wrought with a graving tool, thus corresponding very well with what is said of the Cherubim as a kind of statuary or wrought images placed over the mercy-seat. In the annexed cut it may be thought that we have but loosely followed the ex- ample of Moses in 'making every thing after the pattern shown in the mount,' inasmuch as Moses says nothing of the fourfold variety of faces which we have here given to the Cherubic emblem. But our design is taken from the Cherubim of Ezekiel, which are thus described, ch. 1. 4 — 14. 'And I looked, and be- hold, a whirlwind came out of the north, a great cloud, and a fire unfold- ing itself, and a brightness was about it, and out of the midst thereof as the color of amber, out of the midst of the fire. Also out of the midst thereof came the likeness of four living creatures. And this w'as their appearance ; they had the likeness of a man. And every one had four faces, and everyone hal four wings. And their feet were straight feet ; and the sole of their feet w-as like the sole of a calf's foot ; and they sparkled like the color of burnished brass. And they had the hands of a man under their wings on their four sides ; and they four had their faces and their wings. Their wings were joined one to another ; they turned not when they went ; they went every one straight forward. As for the likeness of their faces, they four had the face of a man, and the face of a lion, on the right side : and they four had the face of an ox on B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXV. 95 appearance of lamps: it went up and down among the living creatures ; and the fire was bright, and out of the fire went forth lightning. And the living creatures ran and returned as the ap- pearance of a flash of lightning.' That these visionary beings, though here call- ed ' living creatures,' were in fact sym- they went. As for the likeness o/ the { bolically identical with the 'cherubim,' living creatures, their appearance was (erroneously written ' cherubims' in our like burning coals of fire, and like the I version), will appear in the sequel. the left side ; they four also had the face of an eagle. Thus were their faces : and their wings were stretched upward ; two wings of every one were joined one to another, and two covered their bodies. And they went every one straight for- ward ; whither the spirit was to go, ihey went ; and they turned not when Aaic OF THE Covenant and the Cherubim. The inquiry now arises resjiccling the symbolical design of these very re- markable creations, which, from being mere lifeless sculptured statues in the Mosaic Tabernacle, became animated, intelligent, and active agents in the mystic visions of the prophets. It is certainly one of the lowest aims of in- finite wisdom in any part of its dis- pensations to adopt a system of sym- bols which should merely address them- selves in beautiful or singular forms to the senses, or to the imagination. They approve themselves worthy of the di- vine source in which they originate on- ly as they disclose a rich and instruc- tive significancy under their outward aspect. That such is preeminentlj^ the case with the symbol before us, wo shall hope to make appear in the re- marks that follow, in the outset of which it will be necessary to show the identity of the Cherubim of Moses with the Living Creatures of Ezekiel. In oi'der to this it is to be observed, that Ezekiel w^as in captivity in Babylon when this vision was vouchsafed him. But it appears from Ezek. S. 1 — 3 that 96 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. while there he was transported in spirit to Jerusalem, and set down in the pre- cincts of the Templcj where he beheld, among other objects, the Living Crea- tures and the Throne, previously de- scribed, standing in the inner court. 'Then,' says he, ch. 10. 18—22, 'the glory of the Lord (the Shekinah) de- parted from off the threshold of the house, and stood over the cherubims. And the cherubims lifted up their wings, and mounted up from the earth m my sight : when they went out, the wheels also were beside them, and every one stood at the door of the east gate of the Lord's house ; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above. This is the living creature (i. e. collection of living creatures) that I saw under the God of Israel by the river of Chebar ; and I knew that they were the cherubims. Every one had four faces apiece, and every one four wings ; and the likeness of the hands of a man was under their wings. And the like- ness of their faces was the same faces which 1 saw by the river of Chebar, their appearances and themselves : they went every one straight forward.' The import unquestionably is, that although the fact was not at first made known, or the idea did not occur, to him, yet now upon farther pondering the sub- ject, he became fully convinced and as- sured in his own mind that these Living Creatures were beings of the same sym- bolical purport with the Cherubim that stood on the Mercy-seat of the Ark in the Temple. This is an important step in the progress of our elucidation. It authorises us to set it down as a point fixed and settled beyond all debate, that the Cherubim and the Living Creatures are, in symbolical significancy, one and the same. We are now prepared to consider the very remarkable usage of the sacred writers in regard both to the Hebrew and Greek original of the term rendered living creatures (Heb. iTlT^n hayoth. Gr. ^(oa zoa), in each of which lan- guages the respective roots of the words signify to live. Yet who would have thought a priori that these would have been the terms employed in the follow- ing passages ? Ps. 68. 9, 10, ' Thou, O God, didst send a plentiful rain, where- by thou didst confirm thine inheritance when it was weary. Thy congregation Cirr^n hayatheka, thy living creature. Gr. ra ^wa oov, thy living creatures) hath dwelt therein.' On what grounds, philo- logically, this usage is to be explained, we know not, but it is clear that it in- volves the idea of multitude, if the Eng- lish equivalent, congregation, can be any evidence of the fact. A striking parallel occurs, 2 Sam. 23. 11, 'And the Philis- tines were gathered together irito a troop (rr^n^ lahayah, into a living creature. Gr. eii Otipiov^ into a wild beast), where was a piece of ground full of lentiles : and the people fled from the Philistines.' See also, v. 13, 'And the troop (tl'^Tl hayah, the living creature) of the Phil- istines pitched in the valley of Repha- im.' The Gr. rendering in the latter jjassage does not conform, being rayjxa, a rank, order, and in military phrase a battalion, a body of soldiery. But it is clear from these citations viewed to- gether, that the import of numbers actu- ally enters into the usage of the orig- inal word for living creature, and as the living creatures and the cherubim are symbolically the same, the idea of multitude is equally common to both. This idea, however, it is to be recol- lected, arises wholly from the interpre- tation, and not fiom the etymology ot the terms. As then the four ^wa, the living crea- tures, of Ezekiel are identical with the cherubim, so they are plainly identical also with the four beasts ((wn) which figure so conspicuously in the mystic machinery of the Apocalypse. Passing from the visions of the river of Cliebar to those of the Isle of Patmos, we be- hold the following scene depicted upon B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXV. 97 the prophetic canvass, Rev. 4. 6 — 8, 'And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal : and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beasts, full of eyes before and behind. And the tirst beast was like a lion, and the* second beast was like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle. And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him ; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy. Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.' As the Cherubim in this vision are nearer to the Throne and the incumbent Majesty than in the other, they are represented as having six wings instead of four, to denote the propriet}'- of having their persons more fully vail- ed from the glance of that holy eye to which even the heavens are unclean. But what is the song sung by these em- blematic agents? Ch. 5. 8—10, 'And when he had taken the book, the four beasts, and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odors, which are the prayers of saints. And they sung a new song, saying. Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation ; and hast made us unto our God kings and priests : and we shall reign on the earth.' Can the reader have failed, from these ample quotations, to anticipate the conclusion ©f the whole matter? The Cherubim of the Tabernacle and Temple, the Living Creatures of Eze- kiel, and the hymning beasts of John, arc all one and the same symbol. And what is the truth and mystery of this symbol? What do we recognise in it but human instead of angelic beings, even a multitude of the redeemed from among men ? What else is the burden Vol. IL 9 of that grateful anthem which resounds from their lips ? 'Thou nast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindrtd, and tongue, and people, and nation.' Can this possibly be the lan- guage of angels ? — especially when we hear the apostle saying, Heb. 2. 16, 'For verily he took not on him the na- ture of angels, but he look on him the seed of Abraham,' and when, moreover, we find in this very context the angels e.xpressly distinguished from the ibur beasts. Conceiving this then as a point clear- ly ascertained, that the Cherubim of the Apocalypse adumbrate a human and not an angelic order of beings, let us go back and apply this result to the Cherubim of the Pentateuch. We behold them stationed on the Propitiatory, with the symbol of the Divine Presence resting between them, somewhat like Moses on the mount with Aaron and Hur sup- porting his arms on either side. In this position, as we have seen that they strictly represent men and not angels, what more natural than that their pri- mary and proximate drift as symbols should be to shadow forth the race of Israel and the great fact of God^s pecu- liar residence among them ? In the cherubic emblems of the Tabernacle, therefore, we behold a mystic embodi- ment of the congregation which, in the wilderness, was ordinarily encamped round about the holy fabric without. Accordingly the high priest who enter- ed into the holy of holies and there looked upon the Ark of the Covenant and its cherubic appendages, with the Shekinah enthroned between, beheld in fact but a miniature model of what he saw on a large scale when standing in the midst of the many thousands of Is- rael abiding in their tents. There were tlie Cherubim resolved into their con- stituent multitudes, and over the host rested in calm majesty the Pillar of Cloud, the visible token of the Divinity permanently residing among the chosen 98 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. tribes. But even this was a typical scene, presenting to the eye an image of that state wliich shall be disclosed when the last chapters of Isaiah, Eze- kiel, and John shall be fulfilled, when the Tabernacle of God shall again be with men, and he shall set his sanctu- ary in the midst of them for ever more. Whether Moses or Ezekiel or John were tliemselves aware of the true im- port of these hallowed hieroglyphics, is by no means essential to the validity of our conclusions respecting them. We think it highly probable, on the whole, that they did not understand, at least but partially, their true-meant design. They were doubtless among the things respecting which they * enquired dili- gently,' but were obliged to leave their full significancy to be elicited for the edification of subsequent ages of the church. Yet even in the description quoted from Ezekiel there are occasion- al hints and intimations which might be supposed to lead to a strong suspicion that the Living Creatures were intend- ed to shadow forth men instead of an- gels. Thus for instance, it is said, Ezek. 1. 5, 'And this was their appearance ; they had the likeness of a manj^ that is, their predominating aspect was human, notwithstanding their otherwise singu- lar and" unearthly form. Again, v. 8, 'And they had the hands of a man un- der their wings.' The same circum- stance is afterwards mentioned concern- ing the Cherubim, ch. 10. 8, and a se- cond time repeated, v. 21, as 'Something peculiarly note-worthy, that ' there ap- peared in the cherubims the form of a man's hand under their wings.' These remarkable items in the description may be regarded as furnishing at least a slight inuendo as to the true solution of the symbol. But it was reserved for that pen which was to complete the sa- cred canon, and afford a key to the de- velopement of so many preceding mys- teries, to give to the student of revela- tion an inspired exposition of this re- markable symbol, about which we can no longer doubt, when we hear them ascribing their redemption to the blood of the Lamb. It may go, moreover, to remove any lingering hesitancy on this point, to consider more closely their relation to the other parts of the typical apparatus of the Tabernacle. They were an abiding fixture upon the Ark of the Covenant ; they were stationed upon the extremi- ties of the Mercy-seat with the bright cloud of the Presence beaming between them; they were constructed of the same material with the Mercy-seat, and in every thing seemed to have the most indissoluble connexion with the latent import of this system of shadows, of which Buxtorf remarks ; ' It is the opinion of the Jews, that the Ark, with the Mercy-seat and the Cherubim, form the foundation, root, heart, and marrov/ of the whole Tabernacle, and so of the whole Levitical service.' Now we are authorised to ask, whether it be conceiv- able that angels are as much interested in the truth and substance of the typical Mercy-seat or Propitiatory, as ransom- ed sinners, whose happiness, and song, and salvation, ail centre in this grand mystery? We would detract nothing from what is justly due to angels ; but we see not why, in the very heart of a system of symbols shadowing forth our recovery by a Savior, so prominent a place should be given to the hiero- glyphics of a foreign race of beings, however deeply they may be interested in contemplating this work, or service- able in promoting it. Nothing is more plainly taught in the word of God, than that it is in virtue of t'he atoning sacri- fice of Christ that the Most High dwells amidst the children of men. And this great truth we suppose to have been visibly represented by the habitation of the Divine Glory between the Cherubim and over the Expiation cover of the Ark. But nothing of the nature of an atone- ment is necessary to propitiate the pres- B. C. 1491.1 CHAPTER .XXV. 99 ence of God among the sinless angels. Why then should we assign to them, however much we love them, and prize their kind offices, a symbol so pre- eminently appropriate to ourselves ? Until therefore we are convinced on solid grounds of the untenableness of our position, and pointed to some pas- sage of holy writ expressly affirming or clearly implying, that the Mosaic Cherubim were emblems of angels, we shall hold them to be representatives of human beings, and of no others. At the same time we find no diffi- culty in admitting, in perfect consist- ency with this theory, that the Cheru- bim were popularly regarded by the ancient Jews, as they still are by modern Christians, as a current designation of some portion at least of the angelic or- der of beings. Nor do we doubt that Peter, in saying that the things of re- demption were things ' which the an- gels desired to look into,' had direct allusion in his own mind to the position of the Cherubim on the Ark of the Covenant, which stood as if intently poring upon the mj'steries couched un- der both it and the surmounting GlorJ^ Angels usually appeared as icinged messengers ; and wings were a striking appendage of the Clierubim. Angels too were always considered as a race of beings abiding near to the Divine Presence in heaven, and as an accom- paniment of the Shekinah, whenever and wherever it appeared ; the Cheru- bim, also, in their relation to the Cloud of Glory, were regarded as a material- ized representation of this great fact, and the Holy of Holies in which they stood was dimly conceived of as a type of heaven. Under these circumstances it was natural that the idea of angelic beings should attach to the symbol, and that this idea should be tradition- ally perpetuated, at least until a more rigid research into the nature and ge- nius of the symbolical language should bring to light its genuine import. That the Cherubim do actually in their true intent represent human beings instead of angels, is a conclusion to which we seem to be brouglit irresistibly by the chain of scriptural induction in the foregoing remarks ; and if it should still remain problematical in the mind of the reader on what grounds a device so strikingly angelic should have been adopted to represent a human reality, we do not hesitate to suggest that the true clue is to be found in the fact, that the cherubic symbol, in its ultimate scope, pointed forward to that condition of regenerate, redeemed, risen, and glO' rifed men, when they shall have as- sumed an angelic nature. Our Savior declares of the happy sons of the resur. rection that they shall neither marry nor be given in marriage, but shall be as the angels of God in heaven ; and when John fell down before the reveal- ing angel of the Apocalypse, and was about to worship him, he was met by the rebuke, 'See that thou do it not; for I am thy fellow-servant, and of thy brethren the propliets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book.' Such, we doubt not, is the final desti- nation of the children of God in that future economy to which the eye of failh looks forward ; and in the mean time, if the visions of the prophets should portray the scenes of that com-, ing dispensa'ion, where the actors were to be truly men in their post-resurrec- tion natures, how should such actors be symbolically represented but by angels? The Cherubim then may be considered as representatives of angels, so far as angels themselves are representatives of men ; but, in our opinion, no farther. If then our main position in regard to the representative character of the Che- rubim, may be considered as establish- ed, it only remains to make use of this proof by way of explication of the strange, anomalous, and, we had al- most said, monstrous, diversity of forms and faces of which the symbol was 100 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491 composed. Were the Cherubim men — men standing in covenant relation with God — men possessed of renewed spirit- ual life, and thus enjoying the divine favor — then may we not conclude, that this unique combination of forms repre- sents some viarked and definable attri- butes in the character of those ichom the symbol adumbrates ? Whai then are the distinguishing traits in the charac- ter of the people of God, which may be fitly represented by emblems so unique ? How shall the hieroglyphic be read ? The face of the Ox reminds us of the qualities of the ox, and these, it is well known, are patient endurance, unwea- ried service, and meek submission to the yoke. What claims has he to the title of a man of God who is not distin- guished by these ox-like attributes? The Lion is the proper symbol of un- daunted courage, glowing zeal, triumph over enemies, united with innate noble- ness, and magnanimity of spirit. The Man, as a symbol, we may well con- ceive as indicating intelligence, medi- tation, wisdom, sympalh)'^, philanthro- py, and every generous and tender emo- tion. And, finally, in the Eagle we re- cognise the impersonation of an ac- tive, vigilant, fervent, soaring spirit, prompting the readiest and swiftest execution of the divine commands, and elevating the soul to the things that are above. We admit the affixing of these inter- pretations to be in a great measure ar- bitrary, and we hope they may be re- jected or improved upon, according as the evidenf e for or against them may weigh in t) e mind of the reader. They certainly mean something; they have not been adopted without wise reasons ; and we would wish to fix upon such a solution as shall carry with it the highest intrinsic probability. In the nature of the case, much must be left to the private judgment, perhaps we might say fancy, of expositors in tracing anal- ogies and assigning meanings to sym- bols whicli we yet know in the main to be possessed of meaning. In adverting, however, to the sym- bolical import of the straight for ward motion of the Cherubim, we have perhaps a more explicit warrant of the Scriptures for our explication. In speaking of this peculiarity, Ezelciel says, 'They went every one straight forward ; whithersoever the spirit was to go, they went ; they turned not as they went.' Their locomotive progress was directly and undeviatingly /orward. They turned neither their faces, nor their wings, nor their bodies. There was no digression, regression, wandering, or cir- cuitous wheeling in their movements. In the direction in which their eyes or faces were fixed, their progress tended. Is it not then a rational supposition that by this is indicated that steady and undeviating course of obedience, that determined adherence to the right ways of the Lord, from which the faithful are not to be seduced ? Is not rectitude the prevailing tenor oi" a good man's life, and is not his course onward, according to the Apostle's motto, 'forgetting the things which are behind and reaching forth unto those things that are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.' Again, let the following pas- sages be noticed in this connexion. Prov. 4. 25 — 27, 'Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee. Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established. Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.' Ps. 135. 5, 'As for such as turn aside unto their crooked ways, the Lord shall lead them forth with the workers of iniquity.' Heb. 12. 13, 'Make straight paths for your feet lest that which is lame be turned out of the way.' Thus plainly are we taught the teach- ing of the rectilinear course of the Che- rubim, i. e. of the people of God. Upon the various other items of the B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXV. 101 shalt thou make them, in the two ends of the mercy-seat. 19 And make one cherub on the one end, and the other cherub on the other end : even of the mercy- seat shall ye make the cherubims on the two ends thereof. prophet's description of these visionary creations, it will scarcely be necessary in this connexion to enlarge. Sufficient has probably been said to establish our main position, that the Cherubim of the Scriptures are a symbol of holy men, and not, primarily, of holy angels. The importance of this clue to the mystic device will be obvious to every reader, and will no doubt justify the adaptation of our figure to Ezekiel's rather than- to Moses' description. We could not otherwise so well have expanded our remarks in the form of a systematic inquiry into the genuine scope and de- sign of this extraordinary symbol, of v.'hich Josephus says, 'They (the Che- rubim) are flying creatures, but their form is not like to that of any of the creatures which men have seen ; though Moses said he had seen such beings near the throne of God.' The field of in- vestigation, however, in reference to this sacred hieroglyphic is but just en- tered, and the most enriching results still await the future explorer. — We now return to the material construction of these mystic appendages of the Ark. Of beaten icork shalt thou make them. Heb. tTID);D?3 mikshah, hard work shalt thou make it. Gr. ypvaoTnpevra, gold- en-turned-work. This is generally explained as importing, that the Che- rubim were to be beaten out with the hammer from the same solid mass of gold with the Mercy-seat, but no such meaning can be gathered from the gen- uine sense of the original. The term rili;p?2 mikshah, from ^I'l^'p kashah, to be hard, im)>lies simply that the ma- terials of the Propitiatory and the Che- .rubim were to be of solid massive gold 9* 20 And o the cherubims shall stretch forth their wings on high, covering the mercy-seat with their wings, and their faces shall look one to another ; toward the mercy-seat shall the faces of the cherubims be. o 1 Kin»s 8. 7. 1 Chron. 28. 18. Hebr. 9. 5. in contradistinction from being hollow inside, or made of wood overlaid with gold. Besides, it must be evident to the slightest reflection that such a mode of construction is utterly beyond the art or power of man ; it must have been no- thing short of a miracle. The cherubic figures were doubtless either cast in a mould or sculptured by the engraver's tool, as the Greek renders the word, and then permanently attached by soldering to either extremity of the Mercy-seat. 19. Of the mercy-seat shall ye make the cherubims, &c. A marginal read- ing, designed to be explanatory of this, is here given, which rests upon no suffi- cient authority, viz., 'of the matter of the Mercy-seat.' The meaning is sim- ply, that when finished the Cherubim should be seen shooting up from the ends of the Mercy-seat, not that they should be continuously fabricated out of the same mass by a process of beating, which in the nature of the case was absolutely impossible. Of this any man may be convinced who shall take the most plastic and malleable piece of lead, and, with no other instrument than a hammer, endeavor to work it into the shape of a human head or body, or that of a bird or beast, much more into the complex configuration of the cherub. The common interpretation of this pas- sage respecting the formation of the mercy-seat and the Cherubims has been derived from the groundless conceits and puerile glosses of the Rabbinical critics, who wished to multiply as mnch as possible the number of miracles per- taining to their economy. .20. Covering the mercy-scat with their l/'ing-t. Gr. avaKta ^ovTEi (v raiq ■kteov^ip 102 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 21 p And thou shalt put the mercy- seat above upon the ark ; and q in the ark thou shalt put the testi- mony that I shall give thee. 22 And r there I will meet with thee, and I w^ill commune with thee from above the mercy-seat, from s between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the tes- timony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel. 23 ^ t Thou shalt also make a table of shittim-wood : two cubits shall be the length thereof, and a cubit Pch. 26.34. q ver. 16. r ch. 29. 42, 43. & 30. 6.36. Lev. 16. 2. Numb. 17. 4. « Numb. 7. 69. ] Sam. 4.4. 2 Sam. 6. 2. 2 Kings 19. 15. Ps. SO. 1. & 90. 1. I.sai. 37. 16. t ch. 37. 10. 1 Kings 7. 4S. 2 Chron. 4. 8. Ilebr. 9. 2. avTOJv ETTi Tov I'XacrTripiov shadou'ing over the propitiatory tvith their wings. This word 'shadowing,' instead of covering,' is adopted b}'^ the apostle, Heb. 9. 5, 'Over it the cherubims of glory s/mdoii'- ing the mercy-seat ;' where it is to be noted that the plirase 'cherubims of glo- ry' might perhaps be rendered cherubims of f/ie glory;' i.e. the glory of the Sheki- nah, the luminous splendid appearance which was visibly enthroned between them, the mysterj'^or substance of which is disclosed to us in the visions of the Apocalypse, ch. 5, where we learn that the symbol of the divine glory dwelling between the Cherubim was the hiero- glyphic of the So7i of God dwellivg in the midst of his redeemed people, re- ceiving their adorations and bestowing upon them the tokens of his compla- cency. IT Shall look one to another. Heb. T^ns^ t^ 113'^!!^ ish el ahiv, a man to his brother; a common Hebrew idiom for expressing the idea of our version. 23. There I will meet with thee. Heb. C'l: ifi "^m5>1D ncadti leka shorn, I will convene with thee there. Gr. yvi,^a9ri(Ti>- ^lai cot iKEiOev^i I will hc knoirn to thee there. Chal. 'I will appoint my Word to the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half the height thereof. 24 And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, and make thereto a crown of gold round about. 25 And thou shalt make unto it a border of an hand-breadth round about, and thou shalt make a gold- en crown to the border thereof round about. 26 And thou shalt make for it four rings of gold, and put the rings in the four corners that are on the four feet thereof 27 Over against the border shall the rings be for places of the staves to bear the table. 28 And thou shalt make the staves 'o/ shittim-wood, and overlay them thee there.' That is,on the mercy-seat, between the cherubim. Here the vis- ible Glorj'^ of Jehovah was to reside and to give audience, as a sovereign on his throne, having the ark as his footstool, as it seems to be termed, Ps. 99. 5 — 132. 7. From the same root with '^rn^'13 ncadti, viz. TIP'' yliad, to meet by appointment , comes "TSJl/j moad ap- pointed meeting or convention, whence the Tabernacle is called "i'S^'n ^ui^ ohel mead, tabernacle of Convention. See Note on Ex. 33. 7. THE TABLE OF SHEW-BREAD. 23 — ^28. Thou shalt also make a table, &c. This part of the sacred furniture keeps up still farther the analogy with a royal palace, to which we have before adverted as pervading the entire struc- ture of the Tabernacle. Yet a purely spiritual drift is at the same time suffi- ciently discernible in the tj^pical ali- ment witli which it was provided, and which pointed to the nourishment of the soul, and not of the body. As to the table itself, it was constructed of the same material with the Ark, viz. shittim-wood overlaid with gold. It was also furnished with rings or sta- B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXV. 103 with gold, that the table may be borne with them. 29 And thou shalt make "the u ch. 37. 16. Numb. 4. 7. pies, through which were passed the staves by which it was carried, in the same way as the Ark. These staves, however, did not remain in the rings when at rest, like those of the Ark, v. 15, but were, as Josephus informs us, removed, that they might not be in the way of the priests in their weekly min- istrations at the table. The table was inferior to the Ark in breadth by half a cubit ; but it was of the same height, and stood lengthwise, east and west, at the north side of the Holy Place. From the obscurity of the ancient terms there is some difficulty in determining with precision the details of its form ; but v/hat we seem to learn from the text is, that the platform or surface of the table had its edges faced with a perpendicular border, or enclosure, somewhat resem- bling a window-frame before it is in- serted into the wall of a buildincr or the dishes thereof, and spoons thereof, and covers thereof, and bowls there- of, to cover withal : of pure gold shalt thou make them. sashes put in. This border was to be of a hand's breadth and ornamented on its upper and lower edge with a beauti- ful golden cornice or moulding, whick is here also, as in the case of the Ark, called a 'crown.' The upper rim of the border rose of course somewhat above the superficial level of the table, and was well adapted to prevent what was deposited thereon from falling off. The Table, as seen in the Arch of Titus at Rome, on which the spoils of the Tem- ple are represented, shows but very- little of the ornamental work described in the text ; but this, it is supposed, was not the Table of the Tabernacle, It is generally agreed that this was among the spoils carried away by Nebuchad- nezzar, and that when the Jews were restored to their own land, they made a new Table. The view given in the cut is deduced from the text. Taei-e of Shew Breaij. EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 30 And thou shall set upon the ta- 29. Dishes. Heb. mSp ke-aroth, dishes, or chargers, as the word is translated Num. 7. 13. Gr. rpv/SXia, plates or platters., on which it is sup- posed by Sonne, that the loaves of bread were placed. Others, however, assign different uses to these dishes. It is a point which cannot be positively deter- mined. ^ Spoons. Heb. tlS^ kap- path, more properly ciips or censers of concave form like spoons, or like the hollow of the hand, which is the primi- tive meaning of the original tp kaph. They were for holding incense (Num. 7. 14), which it is evident from Lev. 24. 7, was employed in conjunction with the holy bread. It is supposed there were two of them, one placed on each pile of loaves. 1[ Covers. Heb.m^IJp kesoth; probably for covering both the loaves and the incense. The Gr. ren- ders the word wherever it occurs by cTTov^eta, libation-vessels. IT Bowls. Heb. n'^p^)^ menakkiyoth. Gr. KvaOoi, wine-cups. 'For though we do not read that any wine was set upon this table, yet as libations were made to God by pouring out wine before him in the Holy Place, there is nothing improbable in the Jewish tradition, that a bowl of excellent wine was always kept upon the table ; and that once a week, when the bread was changed, the contents were poured out as a libation before the Lord. Josephus confirms this tradition by relating that when Pompey went into the Holy Place, he saw there cups for libation among the sacred vessels.' Pict. Bible. — ^-fT To cover tcitltal. Heb. ins 'ID'^ iTZJii asher yussak bahiin, with which it was poured ont ; with which the drink-offerings were made. This sense agrees better with the mean- ing of the original 'ICS nasak, and with the probable uses of the 'bowls.' There is no sufficient authority for rendering the original by 'cover.' ble w shew-bread before me alway. >' Lev. 24. 5, 6. 30. Show-bread. Heb. tj'^:»: tn^ le- hem panim, bread effaces, or ' bread of presence (presence bread).' This title is usually supposed to be derived from its being continually set before the /ac« or presence of God, as manifested in his visible symbol in the sanctuary, and that too although they were deposited in the Holy, and not in the Most Holy place. But the true grounds of the ap- pellation will be fully considered in the sequel. The Gr. of the Sept. renders it by apTovs tvuntovi, fore-placed loaves, and that of Sym. aprovs rrn irpoOeaEcos^ loaves of proposition, which is the con- stant reading of Jerome in the Latin Vulgate. Twelve cakes or loaves of this bread answering to the twelve tribes, were set upon the table in two separate rows of six each, which were renewed every sabbath ; when the old were taken away and eaten by the priests. This is not particularly men- tioned in the present text, supplement- ary to which is the information more expressly given, Lev. 24. 5 — 9, 'And thou slialt take fine flour, and bake twelve cakes thereof: two tenth-deals shall be in one cake. And thou shall set them in two rows, six on a row, up- on the pure table before the Lord. And thou shall put pure frankincense upon each row, that it may be on the bread for a memorial, even an offering made by fire unto the Lord. Every sabbath he shall set it in order before the Lord continually, being taken from the chil- dren of Israel by an everlasting cove- nant. And it shall be Aaron's and his sons' ; and they shall eat it in the holy place ; for it is most holy unto him of the offerings of the Lord made by fire by a perpetual statute.' Of the spiritual or typical design of this part of the apparatus of the Taber- nacle, we cannot speak with much con- fidence, because we consider the Ail! B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXV. 10/ realization of its import, like most other things pertaining to the Taber- nacle and Temple, to be yet future. They look forward, as we conceive, to that final earthly consummation of the Gospel economy which is announced in the predictions of Scripture under the title of the New Jerusalem. This state, we consider as one in which the terres- trial and the celestial are to be merged together in a manner which we cannot at present adequately understand. It is only, therefore, by studying pro- foundly what is vaguely and mystically intimated of that coming glorious dis- pensation, that we can attach their proper significancy to the various sym- bols of the Mosaic economy. It is a period when Christ's kingdom is to be fully manifested, and he himself says, Luke 22. 30, that he has a table in his kingdom, at which all his saints shall for ever eat and drink with him. He will then sup with them and they with him, and they shall be abundantly satis- fied with the goodness of the Lord's house. As to any more distinct appli- cation of these emblems to the particu- lar features, institutions, or ordinances, of the present Gospel economy, which may seem to afford their counterparts, we are not disposed to object to it, or deny that it may be well founded, but for the full and complete substantiation of the Mosaic shadows we look to the future. But w'e will enter into a little fuller examination of the subject, and in order to give as much precision as possible to our inquiries, it will be necessary to weigh with the utmost practical accu- racy the import of the title t^OSH CHp lehem happanim, the bread of the face or presence. This, as intimated above, is usually understood as equivalent to the bread set before God^sface. But whether this was mainly with the ideal purpose of being seen by God, i.e. the Shekinah, dwelling in the holy of holies, or by men, is not entirely obvious. Accord- ing to the first supposition, it would be viewed either merely as a kind of af- fering presented in token of gratitude for the daily bread by which life is sus tained, and upon which Jehovah might be considered as looking down from his throne on the mercy-seat with special complacency ; or as directly the ap parent food of God himself regarded as theocratic king of Israel, having his abode in a palace richly furnished with all the common necessaries and com- forts of life. According to the second hypothesis, the Shew-bread was some- thing which was to be viewed by the people as a sign of the divine care and providence in their behalf, intended to awaken a thankful recollection of the source from whence flowed the daily bread which went to the sustentation of their natural life. This is the view taken by Lightfoot and Carpzov. But to this whole mode of exposition it is justly objected, that tliere is no suffi- cient authority for ascribing to C^ZSH happanim when standing alone the sense of before or in the sight or presence of any thing, as if it were equivalent to mrr^ ^2 si dnb lehem UphnU Yehovah, bread before the Lord. It will be ob- served that the original in the passage before is, ' and thou shalt set upon the table 'i^Si 'Q^j'D tH^D lehem panim liph- nai, bread of face before me alway.' Here then as that which the interpre- tation we are considering understands by tj'^wSD panim, face or presence, is actually expressed by ^i^iJ^ liphnai, be- fore me, it follows that D'^^iJ panim must necessarily convey some other idea than merelj^ that of proposition or setting before. The same consequence follows also I'rom the denomination of the Table. Num. 4. 7, viz., Q'^jl:!! "p^'O shilhan happanim, table of face or pres- ence. If this article were called the table of the presence, simply from its position, what reason can be assigned why the Candlestick, and more espe- cially the Altar of Incense which stood 106 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. between the Table and the Candlestick and still more directly in front of the throne than either, should not equally be distinguished by the same epithet ? Yet we nowhere find them so denominated, though it is said of the Altar, Lev. 16. IS, nin"> ^;5^ 'T'^"!^ asherliphn'd Yehovah, which is before the Lord; from which it appears how the original expresses it- self, when it would convey the idea so erroneously attributed to C^^Sfl hap- panim. On the same grounds, we are con- strained to reject the idea of the Shew- bread's being intended as an oflering and sign of national thankfulness for na- tional favors. For if it received on this account the predicate fi'i^Sfi, the ques- tion immediately occurs, as before, why this predicate is applied to the Table and not to the Altar of Incense, which no less than the Table stood before the Lord in the holy place ? And as to its serving as a visible remembrancer of the divine providence towards the chosen people, how is this consistent with the circumstance of its being placed in the sacred apartment, entirely hidden from public view, and visible only to the priests in the discharge of their offices ? How could that be a visible sign wliich was not seen ? And why should that bread which, from its symbolic rela- tions, might be readily presumed to point forward to a future spiritual sus- tenance, be understood as emblematic of a present physical aliment daily sup- plied by a bounteous providence ? We are thrown then upon another in- terpretation of the phrase before us, and though the idea which we suppose to be conveyed by it is somewhat complex, yet we flatter ourselves with being able to make it intelligible. It is clear that the expression in the original C^^iD tfl^ lehem panim., bread of the presence, is strikingly analogous with fi'i^S 1^^!^ malak panim, angel of the presence. Is. 63. 9, 'In all their affliction he was af- flicted, and the angel of his presence (l^^iD "]i<^J2) saved them,' &c. So also Ex. 33. 14, 15, 'And he said. My pres- ence (IDS panai) shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest. And he said unto him, if thy presence (T^55 panl'ka) go not with me, carry us not up hence.' Compare with this Dent. 4. 37, 'And be- cause he loved thy fathers, therefore he chose their seed after them, and brought thee out in his sight (T^Dti bepanav, with, by, or through his presence; i. e. the angel of his presence), with his mighty power out of Egypt.' But the Angel of the divine Face or Presence, of whom God says, ' my name is in him,' we have before shown to be no other than the Shekinah or the visible manifestation of Jehovah, as he was anciently pleased to make himself known to his people. His essential be- ing will no doubt for ever reniain in- scrutable to created intelligences. If he reveals himself it must be through some medium which will bring him measurably within the comprehension of his creatures. This medium he de- nominates his face or presence; and as the human face is the principal means of revealing the inward being and cha- racter of a man, so the Shekmah is called the face of God, inasmuch as it is through this medium that the Divinity comes within the sphere of human cog- nition. Now let it be borne in mind that the Shekinah, i. e. the Angel of the Presence, is but the Old Testament designation of Christ, and the phrase u'^2'D Cn^ lehem panim, bread of the preseyice, is brought into immediate identity of import with bread of Christ, who was the true presence indicated by the term. But what is the bread of Christ but that divine spiritual sustenance which maintains the inner, higlier, and eternal life of his believing followers? In order then to gain a full apprehen- sion of the purport of the Table of Shew-bread and its mystic loaves, we must have recourse to such passages ae the following; John, 6. 33—58, 'Then B. C. 1491.J CHAPTER XXV. 107 31 H s And thou shall make a can- X ch. 37. 17. 1 Kings, 7. 49. Zecli. 4 2. Hebr. 9. 2. Rev. 1. 12. & 4. 5. Jesus said unto ihem, Verilj', verily, I say unto j'ou, Moses gave you not tliat bread from heaven ; but my Father giv- elh you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth Hfe unto the world. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath ever- lasting life. I am that bread of life. Your fathers did eat manna in the wil- derness, and are dead. This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, tliat a man may eat thereof, and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever : and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of tlie world. The Jews therefore strove among them- selves, saying. How can this man give us his flesh to eat? Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, veril}', I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life ; and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He that eat- eth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me. This is that bread which came down from heaven : not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead : he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.' Now it is well known that this is the great evangelical truth which is signi- ficantly sliadowed forth in the sacra- mental bread of the Lord's Supper, the lively emblem of that spiritual aliment which he gives to his faithful household. The mystery of the Table of Sheiv-bread is substantially the same with that of the y^b/c spread with the emblems of the dlestick of pure gold : of beaten work shall the candlestick be made: Lord^s body and blood. It was a sensi- ble and lively, tliough still inadequate 'shew' of the nourishment of that holy, hidden, spiritual life which is to be con- summated in that coming world of glo- ry, where the face of God will be re- vealed without a cloud, in joyful fore^ sight of which the Psalmist exclaims Ps. 17. 15, 'As for me, I shall behold thy face in righteousness ; I shall be satisfied, when I awake with thy like- ness,' — a plain allusion to the beatific vision in heaven. Then shall his serv- ants ' see his face,' and because they shall ' see him as he is,' therefore shall they 'be like him.' 'In his presence is fullness of joy, and at his right hand are pleasures for evermore.' This rav- ishing and transforming view of the glorious presence of the Lord shall be an eternal feast to the blessed behold- ers, and it is doubtless from the inti- mate ideal relation between this seeing and eating that the bread of the Taber- nacle is called the bread of the face or presence. The whole points directly to Christ, and is fulfilled only in him when he shall come the second time without sin unto salvation, shedding the light of his countenance in one endless and soul-satisfying blaze upon his redeemed ones. Their vision shall be eternal fruition. Thus we have obtained a view of the subject which shows the in- timate connexion of the ideas of 'Bread' and 'Face' or 'Presence,' and with how much propriety the adjunct Q13& panim is applied to the Tabernacle-table, while it is withheld from any other article of the sacred furniture. THE CAKDLESTICK. 31. Thou shall make a candlestick. Heb. Vil'212 mcnorath, a candelabrum^ a lamp-bearer. As 'candlestick' with us imports but a single upright shaft, the term fails to give us an idea at all 108 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. adequate of the construction of this article of the Tabernacle furniture. It consisted of a base or shaft, with seven branches, three on each side, and one in the middle. These branches were all parallel to one another, and were worked out in bowls, knobs (knops), end flowers, placed alternately, of Avhich we shall shortly give a more particular description. On the extrem- ity of each branch was a golden lamp, whose light was supplied by pure olive oil, prepared in a peculiar way, as will be seen by the Note on Ex. 27. 20. This Candlestick, which is affirmed by Josephus to have been hollow within, was wholly of pure gold, and weighed a talent (about 125 lbs.), although no- thing is said of its height, thickness, or any of its dimensions. Nor is mention made of any kind of foot or pediment on which it rested, though we cannot doubt that it had one. The Jewish writers suppose tliat its height was about double that of tlie Table of Shew-bread and of the Altar of Incense, which would give it a very majestic ap- pearance, and probably require a stool for lighting and trimming it, while at the same time it was not so much raised as to endanger the curtain-roof of the Tabernacle. It was placed on the south or left hand side of the holy place, as one entered, the row of lamps being probably parallel with the wall, though Lightfoot thinks that that described. Rev. 1. 12, 13, was perpendicular to it. It is a point, however, which it is diffi- cult to determine, and about which the Pvabbinical writers are not agreed. The oil for the seven lamps was to be sup- plied in such quantities as to keep them alwaj^s burning. It is indeed imagined by some expositors that they did not perpetually burn, but were lighted every evening and went out one after another in the morning, an opinion which is no doubt favored at first view by several passages in the sacred writers. Thus for instance in 1 Sam. 3. 3, mention is made of the lamp of God going out in the Temple ; and in 2 Chron. 13. II, we read of ' setting in order the candle- stick of gold with the lamps thereof, to bur7i every evening.' So also in Ex. 30. 7, 8, it is mentioned as the duty of the priest to ' dress' the lamps ever)'' morr>' ing, and to ' light' them every evening But then on the other hand in the paralle text. Lev. 24. 2, it is said that the lamps were to burn continually, and though this term is not in itself absolutely de- cisive of tlie fact, as continually is often used in the sense of regularly, statedly, yet when we add the authority of Jose- phus, who was himself a priest, and not likely to be ignorant on this sub- ject, it would seem to put the matter beyond question. He says expressly that tlie lamps continued to burn day and night. And there would seem in fact to have been a necessity for this, unless the priests ministered in the dark ; for as there were no windows in the Tabernacle, light could only be ad- mitted through the curtained entrance at the east or unboarded end ; and un- less that entrance were left open, which we do not learn that it was, the holy place might have been so dark as to render artificial light not less requisite by day than by night. At any rate, it is obvious that the most holy place, where the Ark lay, was entirely de- pendent for light, when it had any, up- on the lamps of the golden Candlestick. This fact explains another allusion in reference to the heavenly city in the Apocalypse, the connexion of which with the holy of holies we have en- deavored to show en a preceding page. In Rev. 22. 5, it is said, 'And there shall be no night there ; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun ; for the Lord God giveth them light.' In this respect the substance differed from the shadow. The typical heaven need- ed the artificial light of the lamps of the Candlestick ; the anti-typical did not. 'The Lamb is the light thereof.' B. C. 1491.J CHAPTER XXV, 109 his shaft, and his branches, his Having thus given a general view of the plan and uses of the golden Candlestick, v.'e enter upon the more minute descrip- tion of its individual parts. Of beaten work. Heb. uiIJpl'Q mik- shah, of hard or solid workj i. e. made of the solid material, having no wood- work about it, though Josephus repre- sents it as being hollow. Our present rendering ' beaten work' is peculiarly- unfortunate, as it leads the reader to suppose that several of the most ex- quisite fabrics of the Tabernacle were wrought out by a process of ' beating' with a hammer, than which nothing, we conceive, can be farther from the fact, as they were undoubtedly cast in moulds. So far as the present term is concerned, which is used several times in the narra- tive, it is designed to acquaint us solely with the character of the material, and not with the process of formation. See the remarks above on the use of the term, v. 18, in reference to the construc- tion of the Cherubim. IT His shaft. Heb. ni^'^ yerekah, her shaft- and so in all the following terms, H^p kanah, her branches, &c., instead of ' his.' The original term "IT^ yerek, properly sig- nifies a thigh, but here is understood by the Rabbins of the base or thick lover part on which the main branch (fljp) rested and from which it rose. We suppose, therefore, the term 'I'T^ yerek to have been applied to that thick and massive portion of the stock which ex- tended upwards from the foot or bot- tom to the point where the lowermost pair of branches separated. ir His branches. Heb. ujp kanah, her branch. The word properly signifies a reed or cane, which each of the branches prob- ably somewhat resembled ; indeed no- thing is more remarkable, as we shall soon see, throughout this description of the Candlestick, than the employment of terms evidently drawn from the dis- Voi,. 11. 10 bowls, his knops, his flowers, shall be of the same. tinguishing parts of plants and trees, indicating a striking affinity in its struc- ture, with the forms of the vegetable world. The reason of this singular fact we shall hope to elucidate in our re- marks on the typical import of the Candlestick. In the present case the original term, though singular in form, has really a plural import, being in- tended to denote all the branches col- lectively, as appears from the next verse, and from the Greek rendering KuXaniaxoi, little reeds or canes. Of these the middle one, constituting the main trunk of it, was of course the most important. And hence in v. 33, 34, and Chron. 3. 20, it is actually called by the name (niD?D menorah) of the whole Candlestick. It is not indeed expressly so distinguished in the present text, and the reason we suppose to be, that all the lower part of the stock or trunk up to the point where the different arms branched off, three on either side, was called ^Cy^ yerek, or thigh. Of the thickness of the central or the side branches we have no intimation, but Jarchi and Abenezra agree with Jose, phus, who denominates them Xi>Troti?, slender. IT His bowls. Heb. 55'>n3 gebia, calyx or cup; so called from its resemblance to that part of the plant from which the flower springs. The Gr. however has vpai-r/prj, bowls, and the Vulg. scyphos, cups, from which the English rendering has .flowed. The appendages here called 'bowls,' 'knops,' and ' flowers,' were mere ornamental devices, intended, it would seem, to give to each of the branches the ap- pearance of a succession of fruits and flowers. As to the form of the * bowls,' it is clear from v. 33, that they had some relation to the "'almond,' but in what respect, it is not easy to deter- mine. The phrase in the original is ^--IpIL';^ t-'^5'*33 gebiim meshukkadim. 110 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491 which is to be literally rendered cvjjs made or figured almond-wise, by which perhaps is to be understood nothing more than that this calyx-shaped orna- ment was to be fashioned in imitation of the calyx of the almond, rather than of any other plant. The expression is less likely to have denoted the fiower of the almond, because the flower- work is denoted by another term, and because the term ' almond-wise' is in some way inseparably connected with the orig- inal for cups or bowls, as if to indicate their form. For this purpose the calyx would be much more suitable than the corolla. But it may be asked whether the bowls were not shaped like the fruit or nut of the almond, the shell of which when divided into its halves presents the appearance of small scolloped vessels like our spoons. To this we can only say, that if such ap- pendages were intended as containing vessels, they would not only be useless in the place which they occupied, — for what were they to hold? — but would be very unsightly and out of keeping as ornaments. If, moreover, they were in- tended to represent the fruit of the al- mond, then besides the intrinsic inap- propriateness of the term, they would trench upon what we suppose to have been the design of the ' knops,' which is soon to be explained. On the whole, therefore, we seem to be shut up to the conclusion stated above, that the ' bowls' were exquisitely wrought orna- ments in the shape of the calyx of the almond flower; and the annexed cut of the blossoms, flowers, and fruit of this plant may essentially aid our concep- tion of this part of the workmanship. The Almond. His knops. Heb. tD'^l^iij^D kaph- torim. Gr. aipaipcomptg, spheres. Vulg. tphcBTulaSj little spheres. The term here employed receives but little light from biblical usage. It is only in Amos, 9. 1, and Zoph.2. 14, that ^r&lD kaph- tor, occurs, in the first of which it is rendered 'door' and in the other *Jin B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXV. ill tel,' and doubtless erroneously in Ijolli. It is probably to be understood in each case of some round moulding^ rows of knobs, or other architectural ornaments of spherical form about the heads of pillars. The Rabbins with somewhat remarkable unanimity interpret it here by * apple,' and Josephus expressly likens it to the ' pomegranate' (granate- apple), of which a cut and a full ac- count is given hereafter ; and we learn from 1 Kings, 7. 18, that the chapiters of the pillars in Solomon's Temple were adorned with pomegranates. Maimon- ides says, 'The kaphtor had the figure of a little globe, yet not exactly round, but somewhat oblong, like an egg.' He does not, however, it will be observed, recognise any allusion to the form of the pomegranate, and as the proper Hebrew for pomegranate is not "iriSi kaphtor, but '^ll'Ql rimmon, we incline to think that the shelled fruit of the almond itself is intended, which the reader will perceive bears a striking re- semblance to the form of an egg, and was well calculated for a decoration of such a fabric as the Candlestick. We understand then by the term in this con- nexion those rounded spherical swells or knobs occurring alternately with the calyxes and flowers, along the length of the several branches, and which were expressly intended to represent some kind of fruit; and that fruit, if we rightly conceive of the mat- ter, was the nut of the afmond. IT His floivers. Heb. IT^n^Si perahe- hah. Gr. Koiva, lillies. Vulg. /iVia; and so also Maimonides and Josephus. But the word in the original is the general word for flowers, or rather for the blos- soms of trees; and we have nothing to guide us, in fixing upon any particular species. Yet as the other connected terms have a dominant reference to the almond tree, we seem to discover an intrinsic probability that the allusion is the same in the case before us ; and this suggestion receives perhaps an in- direct support from what is said Num. 17. 8, of the budding and blossoming of Aaron's rod j 'And it came to pass on the morrow Moses went into the tabernacle of witness ; and, behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi was budded (rT^iS parah), and brought forth buds (rr^iD i^'2'' yotze perah), and bloomed blossoms, and yielded al- monds.' In both passages we find niD perah used in connexion with the al mond, and we shall see in the sequel that the evidence in favor of this inter pretation is much increased by whai will be shown to have been the spiritual or typical uses of the Candlestick. As to the manner in which this three- fold variety of ornament was arranged relatively to each other on the branches, the text is not free from ambiguity. If our conception of the form were govern- ed solely by what is said v. 33, we should perhaps infer that there was but one "knop and one flower to the three bowls on each of the branches, as the two former are expressed by words in the singular, while ' bowls' is in the plural. Yet upon comparing the sub- sequent verses, and making up our idea of the whole, we cannot well resist the conclusion, that the bowls, knops, and flowers formed together one complex ornament which was three times re- peated on each of the six side-branches, and four times on the central one. And thus we have represented them in the annexed original draft of the Candle- stick, in which the reader will recognise the results of the foregoing researches and reasonings. It will be found to dif- fer very considerably from the model given in the Candlestick represented on the Arch of Titus. But it is to be remem- bered that the utensils carried away by Vespasian were not the same with those made by Moses ; and Josephus says the Candlestick was especially altered from its original form. The Mosaic Candle- stick was transferred to the Temple and lost in the Babylonish captivity. A2 EXODUS. [B. e. 149L 32 And SIX branches shall come out of the sides of it ; three branches of the candlestick out of the one side, and three branches of the can- dlestick out of the other side : 33 Three bowls made like unto almonds, with a knop and a flower in one branch; and three bowls made like almonds in the other branch, with a knop and a flower : so in the six branches that come out of the candlestick. The Golden Candlestick. As the Candlestick of the Tabernacle forms a constituent part of a system preeminently symbolical and typical, no good reason can be assigned why it should not, like the other sacred things with which it is connected, possess a vieaning suited to the economy of which it formed a part. Its adaptation to its primary or material uses is evident ; and equally obvious, if we mistake not, will appear its fitness to the spiritual ends which it was intended to answer. In the attempt to ascertain and settle these upon satisfactory grounds, it will be important to draw largely upon vari- ous portions of holy writ, through which the light of the Tabernacle-lamps shines more or less distinctly, and from the concentrated rays of which we are to deduce its ultimate scope. The inquiry naturally divides itself into two dis- tinct heads, the one in reference to the typical purport of the Lights, the other, that of the Candlestick viewed as a whole composed of its shaft and branches. (1.) The Lights. As our grand ob- ject in this part of the investigation is, to obtain the unequivocal sanction of the Scriptures themselves for the so- lution which wie propose to give to the symbol before us, we are naturally re- ferred to those passages where an ex- press mention of the Candlestick oc- curs, or which contain such allusions to its mystical import as will serve to guide us to correct conclusions. Several such places may be cited from which it will appear that Light, in its most genuine usage as a symbol, stands for knoivledge, or rather that kind of sa- cred intelligence or moral illumination B. C. 1491.1 CHAPTER XXV. 113 34 And in the candlestick shall he four bowls made like \into al- which has for its object the things of God, and for its author the Holy Spirit, the great fountain of all spiritual light. The remarks of Pres. Edwards in his 'Notes on the Bible' may be pertinently cited in this connexion. 'In the golden Candlestick that stood before the throne, on the left side was a representation both of the Holy Spirit and of the Church. The pure oil olive that fed the lamps is indisputably a type of the Holy Ghost ; and it is evident, from Rev. 4. 5, compared with chap. 1.4, and V. 6, and Zech. 3. 9, and 4. 2, 6, 10. The burning of the lamp represents that di- vine, infinite, pure energy and ardor wherein the Holy Spirit consists. The light of the lamps filling the Taberna- cle with light which had no windovi-s, and no light but of those lamps, re- presents the divine, blessed communi- cation and influence of the Spirit of God, replenishing the church and filling heaven with the light of divine know- ledge in opposition to the darkness of ignorance and delusion, v/ith the light of holiness in opposition to the dark- ness of sin, and with the light of com- fort and joy in opposition to the dark- ness of sorrow and misery.' As this light however is communi- cated for the most part through the in- tervention of certain agencies set apart for that purpose, it is quite natural that it should be symbolically exhibited in concentrated form, in those artificial luminaries with which all men are fa- miliar. The light of the Tabernacle answers to the light of the church ; and the light of the church is the light of the Spirit of God dispensed through such media as it has pleased infinite wis- dom to adopt. Of these the sacred minis- try is perhaps the chief; and though the ministers of Christ shine with a bor- rowed lustre, merely reflecting, like mirrors, the rays of the great fountain 10« monds, with their knops and their flowers. of light, yet we see a peculiar propriety and I'elicily in their being symbolised by the lamps or lights of the golden Candle- stick. This will appear more striking- ly evident by recurrence to the mystic scenery of the Apocalypse. In the open- ing vision of that book, chap. 1. John, hearing a voice behind him turns and beholds seven golden candlesticks and in the midst of them one like unto the Son of Man clothed with a long priest- ly tunic or robe, and girt about the breast with a golden girdle. This in- dicated that the character in which he now appeared was a priestly character, and that the action which he performed was a priestly action. What this action was and what it was designed to shadow forth, will be easily inferred from the circumstances of the vision. The scene of it is undoubtedly laid in the outer room or holy place of the Tabernacle, where the priests were wont to officiate, and where among other things it was the duty of some one of the number to see to the lighting, trimming, and snuffing the lamps of the golden Candlestick, which was done just as it began to grow dark in the evening. Imagine the apos- tle then, about the hour of twilight, standing without, near the entrance of the holy place, and looking in to the further end of the room, and there be- holding the Great High Priest of the Christian Church occupied about the lights of the seven distinct golden can- dlesticks into which the one large can- delabrum of the Tabernacle is multi- plied under the New Testament econo- my.. These lights thus seen from a dis- tance in a room otherwise dark would have very much the appearance o{ stars, and it would be scarcely a stretch of language to say that the person em- ployed in trimming and dressing the lamps, with his hand passing to and fro from one to the other, held the stars in 114 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. his right hand. Such at any rate we doubt not was the imagery presented to the entranced perception of the seer, and as the action was unquestionably symbolic, our next object is to ascer- tain its meaning. But to this we have a luminous clue in the words of the di- vine hierophant himself v. 19,20, 'Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter ; the mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candle- sticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.' Here then we learn that the seven stars are the seven angels of the seven churches, while the seven Candlesticks are the churches them- selves. But the angels of the churches are, in symbolical diction, the ministers, the elders, the collective pastorship, of the churches ; and as we have shown the stars and the lights or lamps to be equivalent symbols, it follows that the lights set upon the respective Candle- sticks are the spiritual teachers, the moral luminaries, appointed to impart spiritual and moral light to the churches. Viewed in connexion with this, how striking is our Savior's language, Mat. 5. 15, as applied to ministers of the gos- pel, to whom it was no doubt prima?-- i7j/ intended to applj^^ 'Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick ; and it giveth light to all that are in the house.' But the" Apocalyptic visionings referred to re- quire still farther explication. John not only saw the emblematic objects and action described, but he received a command also which discloi^ed the drift of the whole. He was ordered to ad- dress, in the name of Christ, seven epis- tles to the seven Asiatic Churches filled with reproofs, counsels, admonitions, and urgent exhortations, the design of which was to revive the decaying light, or in otl:er words to quicken the lan- guishing graces, both of the pastors and people of those churches, which from being embraced in the number of uni- versality (seven) appear to have stood as representatives of a// Christian churches down through the successive periods oi time to the era of his second coming. This work, therefore, put forth by John in the name of Christ upon the churches by these epistles Avas the very work which was symbolically represented by the action of the Savior in trimming and dressing the lamps of the golden candlesticks. Each epistle was the ap- plication of the symbolical snuffers to each of the churches ; but in a more es- pecial manner to the ministers or teach- ers of the churches. We gather from this explanation the clearest evidence of the truth of our main position, that the material lights of the Candlestick represented the sjiir- itual lights of the church. The same view of this symbolical fabric applies to the object presented under some cir- cumstantial varieties of form and aspect in the vision of Zechariah, ch. 4. 1 — 3, 'And the angel that talked with me came again, and waked me, as a man that is wakened out of his sleep, and said unto me. What seest thou ? And I said, I have looked, and behold a can- dlestick, all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and his seven lamps there on, and seven pipes to the seven lamps, which are upon the top thereof; and two olive-trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof.' The candlestick seen by the prophet differed from that made by Moses by being surmounted by a bowl, out of which, as from a reservoir, the oil was conducted through golden pipes to each of the lamps ; and this bowl was moreover supplied by oil that flowed in a peculiar manner through two branches of two olive-trees stand- ing on either side of ihe Candlestick, V. n — 14. This part of the vision espe- cially attracted the curiosity and in. B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXV. 115 lerest of the prophet. 'Then answered I, and said unto him, What are these two olive-trees upon the right side of the candlestick and upon the leit side thereof? And I answered again, and said unto him, What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of them- selves? And he answered me and said, Knowest thou not what these be ? And I said, No, my lord. Then said he, These are the two anointed ones (Hob. 'sons of oil'), that stand by the Lord of the whole earth.' These variations from the Mosaic model are certainly very remarkable ; still in general sig- nificancy we have no doubt the symbol in each case is the same. The Candle- stick witli its branches and its lighted lamps, represents the church in its mul- ti];lied unity, as a medium for shedding aliroad the beams of revealed truth amidst the darkness of a benighted world. But as the natural light of lamps is sustained by oil, so spiritual light is sustained by truth. Truth is its approjiriate and genuine pabulum ; and in the imagery of tlie vision before us, the obvious design is to represent the manner in which the churches are furnished with the nourishment of truth. Is not this from the Scriptures of truth, and are not tlie Old and New Testaments strikingly and adequately shadowed forth by the two olive-trees out of which the mystic oil was elabor- ated and conveyed to its golden recen- tacles? Here tlien we have the true clue to the ' two witnesses' of the Rev- elation, eh. 11. 3,4. 'And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sack- cloth. These are tlie two olive-trees, and the two candlesticks standing be- fore the God of the earth.' The two witnesses are two kirids of witnesses, one of each, but most intimately re- lated to each other, and their symbolical identity with the two olive-trees and the two candlesticks is here expressly asserted by the Holy Ghost. How vain then must be every attempt to settle the significancy of these mystic agents of the Apocalypse without first determin- ing the genuine import of the Old Testa- ment imagery here depicted ? This we have endeavored to do in the foregoing remarks, and just in proportion to the evidence there adduced of the truth of our explanation is the evidence that by the ' two witnesses' of John is meant the Scriptures and tlie Churches — that is, the true, genuine, duly constituted apostolical churches — which have in fact been in all ages, except when sup- pressed, the main witnesses of God to the eyes and ears of corrupt and apostate Christendom. In the prophecy of the Apocalypse it is clearly announced that the evil predominance of a great Anti- christian power, called the Beast, should avail to cause these witnesses to proph- esy in sackcloth, or in an embarrass- ed condition, for the space of twelve hundred and sixtj^ years, and at last for a short period to suppress them alto- gether ; after which they were again to rise from their extinction and recom- mence in an open, public, and acknow- ledged manner the exercise of their sus- pended functions. This is undoubtedly the great truth which the imagery was intended to shadow forth, and for the verification of this truth we are thrown upon the resources of histor)^ But this process we must necessarily leave to be followed out by others. It constitutes the appropriate province of the expositor of the Apocalypse. To the reader who would desire a more full expansion of the idea here ad- vanced respecting the typical import of the Lights of the golden candlestick, we have great pleasure in recommend- ing ' Stonard's Commentary on the Vi- sion of Zechariah,' Lond. 1S24, an ab- stract of which will be found in Robin- son's edition of Calmet, under the article 'Candlestick,' This work exhibits one 116 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. of the most admirable specimens of the sober and scriptural interpretation of prophetic symbols to be found in" the English or any other language. The German treatise also of Bahr, entitled ' Symbolik desMosaischen Cultus,' will be found an important auxiliary in this field of Biblical exposition. It is ex- ceedingly desirable that both these works should be made accessible to the mass of English readers of the Scrip- tures. Our own conclusions, however, have been arrived at by a process con- ducted for the most pai"t independently of either. (2.) The Candlestick. To the sym- bolical purport of the Candlestick, con- sidered more particularly in reference to its construction with ornamented shaft and branches, Ave have already obtained a clue in the express declara- tion of the Savior to John ; 'The mys- tery of the seven candlesticks is the seven churches.' Since then a candle- stick in general is the scriptural symbol of a church, a candlestick with seven branches must be the symbol of the uni- versal church, spread abroad through all its numerous particular congrega- tions, each one in its allotted station, shining through both its members and ministers, and giving light to the world. For the number seven being used by the sacred writers to denote not mereljr an indefinite multitude, but totality and per- fection, the seven branches are doubt- less to be understood as denoting all the various and dispersed congregations of the great spiritual body ; while their all proceeding from one shaft plainly imjJies, that all those congregations are united in the one body of the univer- sal church. ' In this character,' says Stonard, ' the church began to show it- self, when the children of Israel, grown into a numerous people, were first col- lected and incorporated into a regularly formed body of believers in the true God, obeying, serving, and worshipping him according to his known will ; and yet more conspicuously, when they were planted in the land of Canaan and spread over it, presenting to view many con- gregations of religious persons, spirit- ually united in one general communitj\ The unity thereof was sufficiently guard- ed by the unity of the tabernacle, and afterwards of the temple in ' the place, which God had chosen to put his name there.' At the same time, there were doubtless many synagogues scattered over the whole country, somewhat in the nature of our parish churches, wherein the several congregations met to cele- brate divine worship and receive reli- gious instruction. The Jewish church still more completely answered to this symbol, on the return from the Baby- lonian captivity, when in almost all cities, towns, and populous villages, synagogues were erected and numer- ous congregations assembled, profess- ing the belief, service, and worship of the true God, reading, teaching, preach- ing, and hearing his holy word ; and that not within the narrow bounds of Palestine only, but through almost every part of the civilized world. But doubt- less the real, proper, perfect antitype of the Candlestick is to be found in the Christian church, when the gospel was published and its light ditTused among all the nations of the world, illuminat- ing its dark corners with the knowledge of truth and salvation.' As to the material of this remarkable fabric, it is described to be of pure gold in all its parts and appendages ; and in the vision of Zechariah the oil by which its light was supplied is termed 'golden oil,' from its perfectly pure consistency, which resembled it to liquid gold. Now it is well known that gold is the most beautiful and precious of all metals, and no one needs to be reminded of the happy adaptation of this substance to represent the church, that object which of all others that the earth contains, is beyond comparison the most excellent, precious, and glorious in the sight of B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXV. 117 God, whose judgment is according to truth. It only remains to account for the stock and branches being wrought in such exquisite resemblance to the lead- ing parts of the almond-tree, from which the model of its fruits and flowers ap- pears to have been derived. The men- tion of the almond-tree is not of infre- quent occurrence in the Scriptures, and it would seem, from its peculiar physi- cal properties, to be well adapted lo stand among moral emblems as sym- bolical of that spiritual prosperity, thrift, vigor, and early productiveness, which we naturally associate with our ideas of the operations of divine prin- ciples in the souls of the righteous. Its Hebrew name "plIJ shakt'd comes from "ip'JJ shakad, to make haste, to be in a hurry, and thence especially to avake early, to he vigilant, to watch. The almond-lree therefore is called "ipiZJ shakcd, 'quia prima inter ar- bores evigilat,' because it .awakes be- fore all other trees from its winter's re- pose. In southern climates it flowers often in the month of January^ and by March brings its fruit to maturity. Such a tree, of which it is said Eccl. 1.2. 5, 'the almond-tree shall flourish,' natur- ally forms a very suitable emblem of the vigorous vitality of the people of God, who are like 'a. tree planted by the rivers of waters, which bringeth forth his fruit in his season, and his leaf doth not fade.' We do not indeed find it any where expressly affirmed that such is the designed import of figures and illustrations drawn from this mem- ber of the vegetable kingdom, but we do find it introduced into the sacred things for some reason or other, and this reason we are doubtless left to de- duce from the intrinsic adaptedness of its properties to the end in view. Thus we are told. Num. 17.6 — 8, that 'Moses spake unto the children of Israel, and every one of their princes gave him a rod apiece, for each prince one, accord- ing to their fathers' house, even twelve rods : and the rod of Aaron was among their rods. And Moses laid up the rods before the Lord in the tabernacle of witness. And it came to pass, that on the morrow Moses went into the taber- nacle of witness; and behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi was budded, and brought forth buds, and bloomed blossoms, and yielded almonds.' By this was shadowed forth the fact, that the priestly oflice, in the fruits and flowers of its functions, should bloom and flourish in the family of Aaron ; and we have here only to transfer the essential significancy of the symbol to the body of Christians to see its ap- plicability to the work of the golden Candlestick. But waving all attempts to account with assurance for the em- ployment of the almond-tree rather than any other in this relation, the main fact remains indisputable, that blossoms, flowers, and fruits were wrought into the ornamental work of the branches, and that a symbolical intention govern- ed this part of the workmanship. Now we have se^n that the Candlestick, in its New Testament bearings, represents the Churches of Christ. But the churches are composed of Christians, and Chris- tians are a flower-decked and fruit- bearing people. They are distinguish- ed by the beautifying graces of the Holy Spirit, fitly represented hy flowers, and by the substantial fruits of holy living. 'Every branch in me that bear- eth fruit, he purgeth it, that it maj' bring forth more fruit.' A multitude of passages will at once occur to the reader, in which comparisons drawn from plants are made use of in order to portray more vividly the leading attri- butes of the Christian character. Why then should not a similar device, ad- dressed to the eye, have been inwrought into the structure of a symbol express- ly designed to adumbrate the churches of the saints ? Is it a mere work of fancy to recognise a meaning worthy 118 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 35 And there shall be a knop under two branches of the same, and a knop under two branches of the same, and a knop under two branches of the same, according to the six branches that proceed out of the candlestick. 36 Their knops and their branches of the subject and worthy of its divine Author in the unique decoration of this remarkable portion of the Mosaic ap- paratus? It was, at any rate, a view of the subject which comnnencled itself to the gifted mind of Edwards, who thus comments upon the passage before us ; ' The Candlestick was like a tree of many branches, and bearing flowers and fruit, agreeable to the very frequent re- presentations of the church by a tree, an olive-tree, a vine, a grain of mustard' seed that becomes a tree, the branch of the Lord, a tree whose substance is in it, &c. The continuance and pro- pagation of the church is compared to the propagation of branches from a common stock and root, and of plants from the seed. In this Candlestick, every flower is attended with a knop, apple, or pomegranate, representing a good profession attended with corres- ponding fruit in the true saints. Here were rows of knops and flowers one after another, beautifully representing the saints' progress of religious attain- ments, their going from strength to strength. Such is the nature of true grace and holy fruit, that it bears flow- ers that promise a further degree of IVuit, the flowers having in it the prin- ciples of new fruit, and by this progress in holiness, the saint comes to shine as a light in the world.' Notes on the Bi- ble, p. 265. For a still further con- firmation of the truth of this solution, see Notes on Ex. 2S. 33 — 35, respecting the pomegranates and bells on the robe of the ephod of the high priest. — We now resume the thread of our anno- tations. shall be of the same : all of it shall be one beaten work of pure gold. 37 And thou shalt make the seven lamps thereof : and y they shall light the lamps thereof, that they may ^ give light over against it. y ch. 26, 21. & 30. 8. Lev, 24. 3, 4. 3 Chron. 13.11. z Numb. 8.2. 35. A knop under two branches, &c. From this being thrice repeated it would seem to import that, beginning from the bottom pair of branches, there was to be on the main shaft one knop under each pair, near where it branched out, which would leave one knop with its bowl and flower to ornament the upper part of the shaft, between the upper pair of branches and the middle lamp. 36. Shall be of the same. That is, of the same material ; all pure solid gold. 37. Thou shalt make the seven lamps thereof. Shalt cause to be made. By ' lamps' here is meant the lamp-sconces or receptacles for holding the oil, at- tached to the upper extremity of the shaft and each of the branches. This is rendered in the Gr. by Xv)(voi, lamps. "iT And they shall light, &c. Heb. n^3>n healah, he shall cause to ascend; i. e. he, the priest ; whose duty it was to attend the Candlestick. Yet the phrase is collective implying the suc- cession of priests, and therefore proper- ly enough rendered in the plural in our translation. The rendering ' shall light' is rather a paraphrase than a literal version. The meaning of the original will be plain if we bear in mind that the ' lamps' or sconces were to be de- tached and taken down from their sock- ets in the top of the Candlestick, When they were cleaned, filled with oil, and lighted, they were to be put vp again ill their places, and this is the exact sense of the Heb. rii3''n to make to ascend, i, e. to raise, to elevate. Gr. tTziQr]azii rovg \v)(vovi, thou shalt put on the lamps. So also the Vulg. 'Thou B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXV. 110 38 And ihe tongs thereof, and the snuff-dishes thereof, sA«Z/ be o/pure gold. 39 Of a talent of pure gold shall he make it, with all these vessels. shall set them upon the Candlestick.' As the lamps were thus put up in a lighted state, it is easy to see how the term came to be rendered by the verb to light. When the lamps were all lighted below, and duly raised up to their proper places, the Candlestick might be said to be lighted. IT Give light over against it. Heb. ^!l5 pS? rr^DS al tber pancha, over against the face thereof; i. e. right forward, or straight before it, as the phrase signi- fies Ezek. 1.9, 12. As the Candlestick stood near the wall on the south side of the Holy Place, its light would natur- ally fall in the opposite direction, more especially upon the Table of Shew- bread, which faced it on the north. Comp. Num. 8. 2, 3. 38. The tongs thereof. Heb. n^np!b?3 vialkahcha, literally takers from np^ lakah, to take, to receive j supposed to be a kind of scissars or snuffers for trim- ming the lamps. Chal. 'Forceps.' IT Smiff-dishes thereof. Heb. MTinn!^ mahtotheha, probably a kind of vessels or pans for receiving the snuffings of the lamps after they had been cut off by the ' tongs' above mentioned. Their precise form cannot now be determined. 39. A talent of pure gold, &c. That is, a talent of gold in weight was used in making the Candlestick, and the dif- ferent vessels and instruments belong- ing to it ; and this according to the most approved estimates of the value of Jewish coins amounted to not less than $30,000. 40. Look that thou make them after their pattern, which was shewed thee, &c. Heb. n5^^?3 nni5 'TTH asher attah moreh, which thou wast caused to see. The command here given to Moses, en- joining upon him a scrupulous adher- 40 And a look that thou make them after their pattern, which was shewed thee in the mount. a ch. 26.30. Numb. 8. 4. 1 Chron.28. 11, 19 Acts 7. 44. Hebr.S. 5. ence to the model proposed, undoubt' edly carries with it an intimation that God regards his own appointments in matters of worship as of the utmost im- portance, and at the same time of a tendency in man to vary from his pat- terns and trust to his own inventions. Probably some more latitude is allowed under the Christian dispensation to the dictates of human wisdom in regard to externals, provided certain great funda- mental principles be adhered to, and no onerous impositions be laid upon the conscience ; but the Tabernacle service was throughout a sytem of instituted worship, which derived all its authority from the express appointment of Jeho- vah. On this account it was manifestly proper that every item of the apparatus should be fashioned according to the model set before Moses on the mount. It is to be observed, therefore, that this order was given to him repeatedly, and with very peculiar force and emphasis ; and his strict adherence to it is, in the last chapter in this book, noticed no less than eight times, once after the mention of every separate piece of furniture that was made. In the New Testament also his compliance with the command is repeatedly adverted to, and the very order itself expressly quoted. Acts, 7. 4, Heb. 8. 5. What then was the reason of such minute particular, ity? Why must such and such things on- ly be made, and they too of such pre- cise materials and shape ? Undoubtedly because the whole was intended to be of a typical character, shadowing the leading features of the gospel dispen- sation. Now as none but God could know all the things that were to be pre- figured, so none but he could know how to adjust and designate them in the way 120 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. CHAPTER XXVI. MOREOVER, a thou shalt make the tabernacle with ten cur- a ch. 36. 8. best adapted to their end. Had Moses been left to contrive any thing from his own ingenuity, there might have want- ed a correspondence between the type and the antitype. But when a model of every thing was shown him by God himself, the whole must of necessity accord most perfectly with the mind and purpose of the divine Designer. CHAPTER XXVI. THE CURTAINS OF THE TABERNACLE. 1. Thou shalt make the tabernacle with ten curtains, &c. Heb. '^^ll^I^tl hammishkan, the habitation. It will be observed, that as nothing is said of the frame-work of wood till we arrive at the 15th verse, and yet the term 'taber- nacle' is here employed, the original *]j'Ij?2 mishkan must be understood in somewhat of a restricted sense as denot- ing the inner set of curtains. From this is distinguished the second or goats' hair set, expressly called ^ni< ohel, a tent, and from both, the other two which are called simply by the more general term nDS?3 miksehy covering. There is no doubt that the two first of these terms *]iffi>a mishkan and ^Hi^ ohel elsewhere occur as a designation of the whole tab' ernacle without special reference to its several parts, yet it is always import- ant to notice the minutest shades of peculiarity in the use of Scriptural terms ; and we shall see as we proceed, that the distinction now adverted to is amply supported. See Note on Ex. 40. 19. The ten curtains which the sacred writer goes on to describe did not, as we have remarked above, form the whole envelope of the Tabernacle, but simply one set, of which there were four in all. Of these the inner set, here described, was by far the richest and tains o/fine twined linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet : with cheru- bims of cunning work shalt thou make them. most exquisite. They were made of the finest linen, dyed of the most beautiful colors, blue, purple, and scarlet, and curiously embroidered all over with Cherubim, as if it were intended to in- tirtiate that the beings which they rep- resented were vitally interested in the great truths shadowed forth by the most recondite and central mysteries of the Tabernacle. This is evitiently a rela- tion too intimate to be sustained by angels, and therefore we are to look to men, men redeemed by the blood of the Lamb, for the substance of the symbol But as the symbol points more espe- cially to men in their saved and glori- fied state, there is less impropriety in giving them an angelic emblem, because they will then be raised to an angelic condition. Our Savior's words, Mark, 12. 25, 'They shall be as the angels in heaven,' we have no doubt when rightly understood go rather to identify than to assimilate the sons of the resurrec- tion with the angels of heaven. IT Fine twined linen; by which is meant linen made of threads finely twisted in the process of spinning. Hence in the Hebrew canons it is said, 'Wheresoever fine linen twisted is spoken of in the law, it must be six-double thread.' It is conjectured that this is the reason why this exquisite kind of linen, the Byss, is called 1ZJ1I3 shesh in the orig- inal, which properly signifies ' six.' IT Cherubims of cunning work. Heb. !3T!5n n^3>?2 maaseh hoshib, the work of an exquisite craftsman. Gr. tpyacria vipavTov, with the work of a weaver. Chal. 'With the work of the artificer.' Arab. 'A picture of the most sagacious art.' Vulg. 'Variegated with embroider- ed work.' The meaning is, that figures of the Cherubim were to be embroidered into the tapestry of which the linen B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVI. 121 2 The length of one curtain shall he eight and twenty cubits, and the breadth of one curtain four cubits : and every one of the curtains shall have one measure. 3 The five curtains shall be coup- led together one to another; and curtains were composed. Considering that the inner set of curtains here de- scribed was ornamented throughout with this splendid coloring and embroidery, we are on the whole strongly inclined to adopt the opinion of Bahr (Symbolik des Mosaischen Cultus, p. 64.), that no part of it hung on the outside of the structure, but that it served as an i?i- terior lining to both the outer and in- ner rooms of the Tabernacle. To say nothing of the fact that otherwise it is not easy to conceive why the linen cur- tains were not as much an ^nS!4 or tent as the goats' hair, it follows from the ordinary interpretation, that all that part of the beautiful embroidered work which fell outside of the walls was en- tirely concealed from view ; that is to say, that out of 1120 square cubits of this exquisitely wrought tapestry, only 300, or the portion over-head were vis- ible, leaving 820, or about three-fourths of the whole, entirely excluded from the eye, either within or without, ex- cept when the Tabernacle was taken down or set up ; and then they would be exposed to the general gaze, which was equally abhorrent to the sacredness of their design. It may then be safely ask- ed, whether this is probable? Would infinite wisdom have authorised such a superfluous expense of workmanship, such a prodigal waste of splendid im- agery? Suppose this curtain- work, on the other hand, to be wholly suspended within the rooms, and the whole of the embroidery was or might be visible. And in accordance with this, we find that in the Temple, which was mo- delled after the Tabernacle, the figures of the Cherubim were carved on the in- Vol. II, 11 other five curtains shall be coupled one to another. 4 And thou shalt make loops of blue npon the edge of the one cur- tain from the selvedge in the coup- ling ; and likewise shall thou make in the uttermost edge of another side walls all round about the Holy and Most Holy Place, 1 Kings, 6. 29. It is true indeed that this view of the sub- ject requires us to suppose that these curtains were attached by some kind of fastenings to the upper extremity of the boards, after passing across and form- ing the roof; but as the separating vail, V. 32, was suspended from the pillars by means of hooks and loops, so no- thing is easier than to imagine that a similar expedient was adopted here. The more the matter is considered, the more probable we think will this suggestion appear ; although we have in the figure below represented the in- ner set of curtains as hanging without ; but this is simply with a view to dis- play the difference of their texture from that of the others. 2, 3. The length of one curtain shall be eight and twenty cubits, &c. That is, about fourteen yards in breadth, and two in width. These tea curtains were to be formed into two separate hang- ings, five breadths in each, which were probably sewed together, while the two hangings were coupled by loops and golden clasps. With one of these large and gorgeous pieces of tapestry the Holy Place was covered, with whose dimensions it very exactly correspond- ed, and with the other the Most Holy. This was doubtless the reason of the twofold division. But as the Most Holy Place was only five yards long, there remained a surplus of five yards, which hung down on the west end of that room, being just sufficient to cover it. 4. And thou shalt make loops of blue. That is, of blue tape. These loops did not themselves interlace with each 122 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. curtain, in the coupling of the se- cond. 5 Fifty loops shalt thou make in the one curtain, and fifty loops shalt thou make in the edge of the curtain that is in the coupling of the second; that the loops may take hold one of another. 6 And thou shalt make fifty tach- es of gold, and couple the curtains together with the taches: and it shall be one tabernacle. 7 H And b thou shalt make cur- tains of goats' hair to be a cover- ing upon the tabernacle: eleven curtains shalt thou make. 8 The length of one curtain shall b ch. 36. 14. other, and thus connect the curtains, but they Avere brought near together and then coupled by the ' taches' or clasps. As to the precise manner in which this coupling was effected we are thrown upon our own conjectures. Horsley's account of it is as follows, (Bibl. Crit. vol. 1. p. 103) : 'Since the two sheets were fastened together, whenever the Tabernacle was set up by the loops and the hooks, and there were fifty hooks upon each sheet, but only fifty hooks in all, it is obvious that one hook must have served each pair of loops. And this is remarked by all commentators. But how this was ef- fected, I have nowliere found explained in an intelligible manner. I think it must have been thus. The fifty hooks were all set upon one sheet. Each hook was set immediately behind a loop. Then the loop immediately before the hook was passed through the opposite loop on the other sheet, and being drawn back, was hitched upon the hook behind it. Thus the edge of the sheet on which the hooks were not set, would be made to lap a little over the edge of the other, and a close, firm, neat join- ing would be formed.' The coupling of the two main hangings together in this be thirty cubits, and the breadth of one curtain four cubits: and the eleven curtains shall be all of on© measure. 9 And thou shalt couple five cur- tains by themselves, and six cur- tains by themselves, and shalt double the sixth curtain in the fore- front of the tabernacle. 10 And thou shalt make fifty loops on the edge of the one curtain that is outmost in the coupling, and fifty loops in the edge of the curtain which coupleth the second. 11 And thou shalt make fifty tach- es of brass, and put the taches into the loops, and couple the tent to- gether, that it may be one. manner made it, as it were, ' one taber- nacle' Cp'iL'^Q), i. e. one continuous awn- ing or pavilion. It was such, moreover, or rather is spoken of as such, independ- ent of the wood work, which is subse- quently mentioned. 7—11. Curtains of goats' hair. The nature of this material, as a coarse kind o( camlet, we have already considered, ch. 25. 4. The curtains made of it were designed as a protection to the finer fabric of the inner set, which seems to be more especially alluded to in the term 'tabernacle' — a sense confirmed by the usage of the Heb. 'pVj'>2 before remarked upon. There was one more piece of this camlet covering than of the linen, and it was also two cubits, or a yard, longer. The breadth of each piece was the same as that of the form- er, but as there was one more of the camlet than of the linen, it made the whole covering when coupled together two yards longer and one yard broader than the interior one. For this reason, it hung down near to the bottom of the side-walls, and one yard in front over the entrance, which part of it was or- dinarily doubled back. The coupling of the parts was managed in the same way as that of the other, except that B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVI. 123 12 And the remnant that remain- eth of the curtains of the tent, the half curtain that remaineth, shall hang over the back-side of the tab- ernacle. 13 And a cubit on the one side, and a cubit on the other side of that which remaineth in the length of the curtains of the tent, it shall one division consisted of five pieces and the other six, and in this instance the taches were of brass instead of gold. IT Couple the tent together. Heb. ^Hi^ ohel. This phraseology keeps up the distinction adverted to above between ' tabernacle' and ' tent' in this part of the history. 13. The remnant that remaineth, &c. The disposal of this surplus part of the curtains has been already intimated above. From the additional particu- lars here given, we learn, that it went to furnish the greater length of lianging on the sides, the front, and the west end of the Tabernacle. Still it did not depend quite to the ground, but left the foundation work of silver sockets ex- posed to view. 14. Thou shall make a covering, &c. Of the third and fourth of these in- velopes, which were made of skins, as they were of a still coarser fabric, the account is very brief. Nothing is said of the dimensions of either, but it is to be presumed that each was somewhat larger than the one immediately next it, and to which it served as a ' cover- ing.' It is not expressly stated whether the curtains lay flat or sloping on the top of the Tabernacle ; if flat, there was more need of so many distinct cov- erings to prevent the rain from soaking through and injuring the inner and finer set, or from dropping into the sanctu- ary. It is probable, however, that the successive layers would of themselves sufficiently round the top of the Taber- nacle to carry off the water, of which hut little would be expected to fall in hang over the sides of the taber- nacle on this side and on that side, to cover it. 14 And cthou shalt make a cov- ering for the tent of rams' skins dyed red, and a covering above of badgers' skins. c ch. 36. 19. that arid region. It may also be sup- posed that in good weather, and on more solemn occasions, the exterior and coarser hangings were folded up on the sides so as to let the inner and finer appear in all their beauty ; and as it is certain that neither of the inner hang- ings came lower than to the upper side of the silver ground-sill, that splendid foundation would be thus exposed to view, and the whole together would present to the eye of the beholder a magnificent spectacle. In bad weather, or at night, the skin-coverings were probably let down to their full length, which was sufficient to cover the silver sleepers, and thus protect them from rain or snow. The remark of Scott on the typical design of the several cur- tain-layers is very appropriate ; 'The whole represents the person and doc- trine of Christ, his true church, and all heavenly things ; which are outwardly, and to the carnal eyed, mean, but are inwardly and in the sight of God, ex- ceedingly glorious and precious. The secure protection which he prepares for those who are inwardly precious in his sight, may also be denoted ; and the unity of the whole, formed of so many pieces and of such different materials, into one covering of the sanctuary, re- presents the spiritual temple formed of persons of different nations, disposi- tions, abilities, and attainments, com- pacted together into one church, by the uniting influence of the spirit of love.' The annexed cut is a probable approx- imation to a correct view of the cur- tains. 1S4 EXODUS. [B. C. 149 J. 15 ^ And thou shalt make boards for the tabernacle o/shittim-wood standing up. 16 Ten cubits shall be the length of a board, and a cubit and a half shall be the breadth of one board. 17 Two tenons shall there be in one board, set in order one against another: thus shalt thou make for all the boards of the tabernacle. 18 And thou shalt make the boards for the tabernacle, twenty boards on the south side south- ward. The Curtains cf the Tapernaci e. THE rOARDS. 1.3. Thou shalt 7uake hoii}-ds, kc. Ileb. 'D'l'r'lp kerashirn, board.s or planks. The appropriate root "Clp karash does not occur in Hebrew, but in Chaldee the verb signifies to coagulate, con- geal, condense, as D^p keres likewise does in Arabic, and the S3Tiac uses 5^!23^p kaisha as a noun for contig- nation, or cotipling together. The rad- ical idea of the Heb. 1D*|p karash seems to he to compact, contignate, or fasten together, as in the frame-work of a building. Such a frame-work was ne- cessary to support the curtains, and to give more stability to the sacred tent. Of the ' shittim-wood,' or acacia, we have already spoken ; the remaining particu- lars will be considered as we proceed. 16. Ten cubits shall be the length of a board. As the length of the boards constituted the height of the Taberna- cle, it follows from this, according to the common computation of the cubit, that it was five yards or fifteen feet high. As there were twenty of these on each side, each of which were a cubit and a half, or twenty-seven inches iti breadlh, it made the whole length thirty cubits, or fifteen yards. Nothing, however, is said of the thickness of the boards, which Lightfoot fixes at nine inches, and which we have every reason to believe did not fall short of that estimate, though the Rabbins make it an entire cubit. This inference is con- firmed by the fact that the Sept renders the original b'^'123'lp by cttvXoi pillars, and this they would scarcely have done had they understood it to mean only boards, which would certainly be a very inadequate material for such a structure. 17. Tico tenons. Heb. TiTT^ yadoth, hands; so called probably from their holding fast in the sockets into which they were mortised. These ' tenons' are generally understood to have been affixed to the bottom of each board, and to have been precisely the same with those mentioned below, v. 19. But we are rather of opinion that the two tenons here spoken of projected from the side of each board, and were inserted into corresponding receptacles in the adjoin- ing board, in order to give more com- B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVI. 125 19 And thou shalt make forty sockets of silver under the twenty boards : two sockets under one board for his two tenons, and two sockets under another board for his two tenons. 20 And for the second side of the pactness to the wall. With this sub- stantially agrees the rendering of the Vulg. ' In the sides of the boards shall be made two mortises, whereby one board may be joined to another board.' The original for ' set in order' (tlD^iT^^ meshallaboth) properly signifies ' set ladderwise,' and it is perfectly easy to conceive that where two boards were brought near together, and yet not quite closed up, the connecting tenons would tabernacle on the north side there shall be twenty boards. 21 And their forty sockets of sil- ver ; two sockets under one board, and two sockets under another board. 22 And for the sides of the tab- look like the rounds of a ladder. The tenons at the bottom of each board we suppose to have been additional to these. Still it must be admitted that this interpretation is not quite certam. The matter is left to the judgment of the reader. The annexed cut may be considered as a probable approximation to a correct idea of the position of the boards, tenons, and sockets. The differ- ent parts will be readily distinguished. Boards and Sockets. 19. Forty sockets of silver. Heb. t)D5 *1D1X adne keseph, bases of silver; implying doubtless the supporting sock- ets of the tenons, as-the true import of llii cdcn is a base or supporter. Each of these sockets was composed of a talent of silver, and every two of them joined together equalled in length t!ie width of one of the planks, and so form- ed, when united, one entire foundation, which, in the technical language of the architects, may be termed a silver grounds ill. 20, 21. And for the second side, &c These two verses amount to nothing more than a direction, that the con- struction of the north side of the Taber- nacle should exactly correspond with that of the south. 22. For the sides of the tabernacle westivnrd. Heb. JmS'^'i yarkoth. This term wlien applied to things inanimate usually denotes an end, a term, an €x- tremity, and is doubtless so to be under- stood here, as we find it occasionally rendered in the Gr. cvxara, extreme 126 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. ernacle westward thou shalt make six boards. 23 And two boards shalt thou make for the corners of the taber- nacle in the two sides. 24 And they shall be coupled to- gether beneath, and they shall be coupled together above the head of it unto one ring : thus shall it be for them both; they shall be for the two corners. 25 And they shall be eight boards, and their sockets of silver, sixteen sockets; two sockets under one board, and two sockets under ano- ther board. 26 ^ And thou shalt make bars parts. The idiomatic plural term 'sides' therefore is here equivalent to ' end.' So it is distinctly interpreted both in the Targum of Onkelos and Jonathan. 23, 24. Two boards shalt thou make for the corners. These two verses are involved in an obscurity which we liave endeavored in vain to penetrate. The reader must be thrown upon his own resources to imagine such a construc- tion of the corners as tlie general plan and objects of the building would ad- mit or require. The original word for ' coupled' literally signifies ' twinned' or ' made like twins,' i. e. exactly alike ; but beyond this we are unable to afford him any light. Sliould he obtain it from other commentators, he will be more fortunate than ourselves. Our in- ability, however, to make out satis- factorily this part of the structure de- tracts nothing from the accuracy of the explanations of tlie rest. 25. They shall he eight boards. The two corner boards being added to the six others made up the complement of eight. 26. Thou shalt make bars. The south and north sides, and the west end of the Tabernacle had five gold-covered bars, each of which were carried through rings or staples of gold, but what the of shittim-wood ; five for the boards of the one side of the tab- ernacle, 27 And five bars for the boards of the other side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the boards of the sides of the tabernacle, for the two sides westward. 28 And the middle bar in the midst of the boards shall reach from end to end. 29 And thou shalt overlay the boards with gold, and make their rings of gold for places for the bars, and thou shalt overlay the bars with gold. 30 And thou shalt rear up the tab- length of these bars was, is not said. The middle ones, indeed, on the differ- ent sides and end, were appointed to be of the whole length, or thirty cubits on the north and south sides, and ten cubits at the west end ; wliich was probably sunk into the boards, and ran along a groove from end to end, at five cubits from the ground. The other four bars, which Josephus says were each five cubits long, were perhaps variously dis- posed on the sides and end of the struc- ture in such a way as to conduce at once most effectually to its beauty and strength. Having no certain informa- tion as to the precise manner in which the four were disposed along the sides we have represented them in our cut as arranged uniformly with the middle one. It is ol)viously a matter of little importance. In the phrase, 'for the two sides westward,' the plural is prob- ably put for the singular, as it was the end in wiiich the two sides terminated. 29. Thou shalt overlay the boards with gold. We are thrown upon our own conjectures as to tlie tliickness of the metal by which the boards and bars were overlaid. If it Vv-ere done with gold plates, they must have been ex- tremely thin, as otherwise the weight would have been altogether too great to R C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVI. 127 ernacle d according to the fashion thereof which was shewed thee in the mount. 31 1[ And e thou shalt make a vail of blue, and purple, and scar- let, and fine twined linen of cun- d ch. 25. 9, 40. &. 27. 8. Acts 7. 44. Heb. 8. 5. e ch. 36. 35- Lev. 1»3. 2. 2 Chron. 3. 14. Matt. 27.51. llebr. 9. 3. allow of their having been carried but with the utmost difficulty. We pre- sume, therefore, that they were rather gilded than plated. Such a thin coat- ing would no doubt have been liable to be easily worn off, but it could as easily be repaired. THE PARTITION- VAIL. 31 . Thou shall make a vail, &;c. Heb. JnlDlQ paroketh. Gr. KaraTrcTairna^ CI vail, a spreading. The etymology of the original term is doubtful, though we find in the Chaldee ^^5 perak, to break, rend apart, forcibly separate, and tlS'^5 according to Parkhurst is applied to the inner Vail from its break- ing, interrupting, or dividing between the Holy and Most Holy Place. This Vail was undoubtedly of the same ma- terial with the inner set of curtains, and figured and embroidered in the same manner. And as it constituted, when hanging down, the lining of one side of both the Holy and Most Holy Place, it goes somewhat, perhaps, to confirm our suggestion above relative to the po- sition of the wrought linen curtains of the Tabernacle, as hanging within the edifice instead of without ; for this would make the adorning of the whole interior uniform throughout. The Vail was to be suspended from golden hooks attached to four pillars of shittim-wood resting, like the boards, upon an equal number of silver sockets. And this, by the way, leads us to remark, that the punctuation of our English Bibles con- veys an idea entirely erroneous, viz., that the hooks were to be placed upon the silver sockets. But these .sockets ningwork: with cherubims shall it be made. 32 And thou shalt hang it upon four pillars of shittim-it'oo^ over- laid with gold: their hooks shall he o/gold upon the four sockets of silver. 33 II And thou shalt hang up the were unquestionably at the bottom of the pillars, and the clause, ' their hooks shall be of gold,' ought to be inclosed in a parenthesis, as it is in the old Geneva veision ; 'And thou shalt hang it upon four pillars of shittim-wood covered with gold (whose hooks shall be of gold), standing upon four sockets of silver.' It was the pillars and not the hooks that stood upon the silver sockets. 33. Shalt hang up the vail tinder the taches. That is, under the golden clasps that connected the two larger hangings of the inner curtain, spoken of above, V. 6. These were joined just over the dividing line between the two rooms of the Tabernacle, so that this separat- ing vail hung exactly under the taches or clasps. It does not appear from any express passage of Scripture, in what proportions the interior of the Taber- nacle was divided. But as Solomon's Temple, of sixty cubits in length, was divided into two parts of forty and twenty, so it is highly probable that the thirty cubits in length of the Taber- nacle was divided into similar propor- tions of twenty cubits for the Holy, and ten for the Most Holy Place, making the latter a perfect cube of ten cubits every way. This accounts, as we have before intimated, for the remarkable feature in the description of the heaven- ly city, mentioned Rev. 21. 16, to wit, that it lay four square, the length, breadth, and height of it being equal. This was because it answered to its type the Holy of Holies. In the Holy Place, into which none but the priests were allowed to enter, were stationed 128 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. vail under the taclies, that thou mayest bring in thither within the vail fthe ark of the testimony: and the vail shall divide unto you be- tween g the holy place and the most holy. 34 And h thou shalt put the mer- f ch. 25. 16. & 40. 21. S Lev. 16. 2. Ilebr. 9. 2, 3. h ch. 25. 21. & 40. 20. Hebr. 9. 5. the Candlestick, the Table of Shew- bread, and the Altar of Incense. In the Most Holy, into which none but the High Priest could enter, and he but once a year, was deposited only the Ark of the Covenant or Testimony, with its surmounting Mercy-seat. The special design of this Vail was to debar the people from entering, or even looking, into the Most Holy Place, or place of the Ark, and the reason of this rigid exclusion acquaints us at once with the general mystical import of Vail, as a part of the apparatus of the Tabernacle. On this point we have happily the apostle Paul as the angelus interpres. Heb. 9. 6 — 9, ' Now when these things were thus ordained, the priests went always into the first taber- nacle (the first or outer room), accom- plishing the service of God: but into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people : the Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet standing: which was a figure for the lime then present.' In other words, the Avay into the true heaven, of which the inner sanctuary was a type, was not laid open under the old econo- my, or by means of any of its services, but remained to be opened by Christ, ©f whom it is said, v. 24, that he ' is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true ; but into heaven itself, now to ap- pear in the presence of God for us.' cy-seat upon the ark of the testi- mony in the most holy place. 35 And Uhou shalt set the table without the vail, and k the candle- stick over against the table on the side of the tabernacle toward the south : and thou shalt put the table on the north side. i ch. 40. 22. Hebr. 9. 2. k ch. 40. 24. But this does not yet exhaust the preg- nant import of the Mosaic symbols. Still farther light is thrown upon it, Heb. 10. 19, 20, 'Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holi- est by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, which he hath consecrat- ed for us, through the vail, that is to say, his flesh, let us draw near.' Here it is clear that the Vail is repre- sented as in some way shadowing forth the flesh or body of Christ, although it is perhaps at first view difficult to avoid an impression of incongruity in the imagery. What is Christ's flesh or body but himself? And how can he be described as the person entering, and yet he himself the medium through which the entrance is made ? But a right view of the glorious constitution of Christ's person as God-man Medi- ator, and of the prominent place which he holds as the soul and centre and sub- stance of nearly every part of the typ- ical economy, will afford a clue to the solution of the problem. We have pre- riously shown, if we mistake not, in our remarks upon the Cloudy Pillar, and upon the Shekinah in general, that that splendid symbol pointed directly to Christ as the central mystery which it involved. As the sombre folds of the guiding Cloud in the wilderness en- shrouded the Glory of Jehovah, except when occasional displays of it were made, so the human nature or body of Christ, while he tabernacled on earth, served as a kind of temporary invelope or vail of the divine nature which dwelt within. This mystic cloud or vail of B. C. 1491.] CHAPTEll XXVI. 129 36 And 1 thou shalt make an hang- ing for the door of the tent, of blue, 1 ch. 36. 37. his flesh we suppose to have been tran- siently rent or cloven at his transfigura- tion, and a momentary display made of the indwelling glory of his Godhead. But this was not designed to be perma- nent ; it was only an evanescent gleam vouchsafed to the outward senses, for the greater inward assurance, of his select disciples, in respect to the essential dig- nity and divinity of his character, and to connect his person not only with the truth of the ancient visible Shekinah, but also with that future foretold theophany, which is to constitute the beatific vision in heaven. It was only at his death, when his ' body was broken' for the sins of the world, that this intervening cloud or vail was entirely rent, dis- solved, and done away, and a way thus opened for the free manifestation of his glory and majesty to all believers, whether Jews or Gentiles. Now it is well known that after the Cloudy Pillar was removed from the sight of Israel, subsequent to the rearing of the Taber- nacle, and the indwelling Shekinah had taken up its abode in the Holy of Holies,, the separating Vail served to conceal the supernatural Brightness from the view, just as the dark mass of the Cloud had done prior to that event. Conse- quently as the Vail of the Tabernacle was to the inner abiding Glory what the Savior's flesh was to his indwelling Di- vinity, it was ordered that at the same time that the vail of his flesh was rent upon the cross, the corresponding Vail of the Temple was ' rent in twain from the top to the bottom,' implying that a blessed way of access was now provided into the interior of the heavenly sanc- tuary, of which the grand characteristic is, that it is to have ' the Glory of God,' and from thence to receive its denomin- ation, 'Jehovah-Shammah,' the Lord is there. The truth is, that Christ sus- and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, wrought with needle- work. tains so many offices in the plan of re- demption, and he is presented to us in the ancient symbols in such a manifold variety of aspects, that we are not to be surprised if we should find in the apostolic explanations a blending of im- port that even approximates to some- thing like confusion. Who can doubt that in the priestly service the High Priest himself, the Sacrifice, and the Altar, all found their substance in Christ ? In like manner, may not the Vail and the inner Presence both point also to him? THE ENTRANCE-VAIL. 36. Thou shalt make an hanging for the door. Reh. y::}2 masak,from "CDQ sakak, to overspread, to cover, denoting in general tegumentum, operimentum., a covering, any thing spread over; but here applied to the vail or curtain which hung over the entrance to the Taberna- cle, and formed its outer-door. Oriental usages still furnish something analo- gous to this. vr[ hathah has the import o[ keeping fire alive or glowing, and from this root probably comes the Gr. aido), to burn, and Eng. heat and hot. 4, 5. Thou shall.make for it a grate of net-work of brass, &c. From the phraseology of the text it would ap- pear, that this brazen grating was let into the hollow of the Altar, and sunk so far below the upper surface that its bottom, which was probably convex, reached to midway of the height of the Altar ; ' that the net may be even to the midst of the Altar.' Being thus made of net-work like a sieve, and hung hol- low, the fire would burn the better, and the ashes would sift through into the hollow of the Altar, from whence they were removed through a door construct- ed for the purpose. The four rings at- tached to the corners of this grated par- tition were for the purpose of lifting it out and putting it in. Some of the elder commentators have suggested that these rings were connected by chains with the horns of the Altar, which thus served an important purpose in suspend- ing the grate. However this may be it is altogether probable that the rings fell within the compass of the Altar below the top, and were not seen without. Some writers have been much censured by a fancied difficulty in seeing how the wood-work of the Altar could be kept from being burnt, when exposed 134 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491 compass of the altar beneath, that the net may be even to the midst of the altar. 6 And thou shalt make staves for the altar, staves of shittim-wood, and overlay them with brass. 7 And the staves shall be put into to such a constant heat. But nothing lorbids the supposition, that it was cased both uithin and icithout with plates of metal ; and for further se- curity a lining of stone might easily have been laid within against the sides of the frame, and as the grate was sus- the rings, and the staves shall be upon the two sides of the altar to bear it. 8 Hollow with boards shalt thou make it; c as it was shewed thee in the mount, so shall they make it. cch.25. 40. &26. 30. pended by the rings, and the fire no- where in contact with the frame, be- sides the whole being under the coii' tinual inspection of the priests, the danger of combustion was very slight. The annexed cut will supersede any- more minute description. The Altar of Sacrifice. In pursuance ol our general plan, it will be requisite here to endeavor to ascertain the typical import of the Al- tar of Offering. The a priori presump- tion that it possessed such a character will be seen to be abundantly confirmed by the evidence now to be adduced. This evidence, it is true, is seldom found in the Scriptures in the form of direct assertion, but in the way o[ point- ed allusion and inference it is perhaps equally unequivocal. And this remark holds good in respect to many of the typical objects, persons, and institu- tions of the Mosaic economy. While they are not expressly affirmed to have represented corresponding realities un- der the gospel dispensation, yet we find our Lord and his apostles arguing in such a way as to recognise the truth of this principle of typical or spiritual in- terpretation. That the principle, in its practical application, may be and has been carried to the wildest and most extravagant extent by writers of imag- inative temperament, is but too obvious to admit of question. But we see not why this fact should be allowed to in- validate the soundness of the principle itself. Under the control of a subdued and sober judgment, it is a principle which may be safely and profitably re- B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVII. 135 cognised, and in nothing more so than in reference to those great and para- mount features of the Mosaic ritual which we are now considering. Among these the Altar of Sacrifice holds too prominent a place not to partake in large measure of that typical character which pertained to the sacrifices them- selves, and which no one in that rela- tion thinks of questioning. Let us see then what may be gathered as to the spiritual bearing of this part of the legal shadows. Of the preeminent sanctity which at- tached to the Altar by divine appoint- ment nothing can be a stronger proof than the words of God himself, Ex. 29. 37, ' Seven days thou shalt make an atonement for the altar, and sanctify it; and it shall be an altar most holy: whatsoever toucheth the altar shall be holy;' or rather shall become holy, shall be sanctified. Hence the declaration of our Savior, that ' the altar sanctifieth the gift.' This then is an important item in our consideration of the typical design of this structure ; it pointed to something sustaining a character of paramount holi?iess, and this character is evidently sustained by the subject of it in connexion with some kind of me- diatorial function, which was, with one consent attributed by the ancient Jew- ish writers to the Altar of Burnt-ofFer- ings, as a part of its typical uses. In- deed they expressly denominated it 3>2Z)2?2n njT?3 mizbeah hammetzeah, the mediator altar, and as intercession is one of the principal offices of a me- diator, it was also called tJ'i^p'ni} pera- klit, 7ra,oa/c>)7rof, paraclete, advocate, the same word which Christ applies to the Holy Spirit as the comforting advocate whom he would send to his people to supply the lack of his own presence, and which is explained in the Gemara to mean ' an interpreter, daysman, or kind intercessor in behalf of a person with the king.' This view of the subject does notj it is true, rest upon express scriptural authority, but it is altogether consistent with it, and rises naturally out of the ideas which its local position between the Presence in the Taberna- cle and the people in the Court, and its office as a sacrificatory suggested. Among the ancient Orientals, the usages of royalty forbade the access of subjects of common rank to the person of the king without the offices of a mediator, and more especially to those who had in any way incurred the monarch's dis- pleasure, of Avhich. a striking illustra- tion is to be seen in the case of Absa- lom, 2 Sam. 14. 32, 33. That the Is- raelites habitually ascribed this media' ting or reconciling virtue to the Altar, there can be no doubt, although we may be constrained to admit that, confound- ing the type with the antitype, they blindly ascribed this efficacy to the ma- terial fabric, instead of recognising its ulterior reference to another Mediator ' of higher name,' who was to open the way of access to the Father by the sa- crifice of himself. For that this was in fact the real typical purport of the Altar of sacrifice, cannot for a moment be questioned by any one who considers its intrinsic adaptedness to shadow forth the divine substance in its medi- atory relations to a holy God and of- fending sinners. It is indeed certam that this typical design both of the Al- tar and Sacrifices offered upon it points to a common substance which we recog- nise in the person and offices of Christ, but a discrimination may still be made between what is more immediately ap- plicable to the one and to the other re- spectively. Taking it for granted that the idea of mediatorship is fundamental in the typ- ical institute of the Altar, we are natur- ally led to investigate the points of analogy in this respect between the shadow and the substance. Now it is obvious that one of the leading offices of a mediator is the procurement of peace, or the reconciliation of offended 136 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. and contending parties, and we have the decided evidence of heathen anti- quity in favor of connecting this effect with the symbolical uses of altars. Thus Virgil {Mn. IV. 56.) says, Principio delubra advent, pacemque per aras Exquirunt. 'First they repair to the shrines and through the medium of altars solicit peace? The same office is attributed to the Mosaic Altar and its offerings by Rabbi Menahem ; ' And an altar was made that it might conciliate peace be- tween the Israelites and their Father in heaven through the mysteries of sacri- fice.' This point is made still more evident if we connect with the Altar the act of expiation in which it was mainly instrumental, as we learn from the most express Rabbinical authority. ' This is that Altar,' says the Midrash Rabboth, * which was in the temple and expiated the children of Israel.' An- other also of the Jewish authorities says, that ' when the sprinkled blood touches the Altar, then those are eX' piated who offer the sacrifice.' Close- ly connected with the conciliatory or peace-procuring design of the Altar was that which it subserved as a table or hoard of feasting to the parties which were thus brought to mutual fel- lowship ; as it is well known that, ex- cept in the case of the holcaust, the priests and some times the offerer too feasted upon a portion of the offerings. Accordingly the sacrifices offered up- on the Altar are expressly spoken of, Num. 28. 2, as bread or food laid upon a table, and in Mai. 1. 7, it is said, 'Ye offer polluted bread upon mine altar; and ye say. Wherein have we polluted thee ? In that ye say, The table of the Lord is contemptible.' Eating together at the same table has ever been ac- counted among the Orientals the most unequivocal pledge of amity, union, and common interest, and accordingly the Apostle conveys the idea of the closest possible relation and fellowship when he says, 1 Cor. 10. 18, 'Are not they which eat of the sacrifices par- takers of the altar?' That is, they were bound in most soleirm covenant ties to him whose table the altar was. Consequently they could not eat of the sacrifices of idol altars without virtual- ly eating at the table of idols, and thus entering into fellowship with them. But Christ is the true altar of fellowship for Christians, and its import both as an altar and a table is fulfilled in him. We remark again that affording suc- cor and protection to the weak, the pursued, the endangered, is another idea naturally connected with the me- diatory uses of an altar. And such a purpose we find answered by the Altar of Burnt-offerings in the case of Adoni- jah and Joab, who both flew to it as an asylum when the guilt of treason and blood had put their lives in peril. The same character was ascribed by the heathen to their altars, as we learn from numerous passages in the classics. Flying to and sitting down by an altar was a significant mode of claiming pro. tection from vengeance. How perfect- ly the succoring and saving offices of Christ tOAvards the guilty fulfil these typical uses of the Altar is too obvious to require elucidation. This use of the Altar as a place of re- fuge seems to be intimately connected with the horns by which it was dis- tinguished. The culprit who fled to it seized hold of its horns, and it was from thence that Joab was dragged and slain. Now the horn was one of the most indubitable symbols of power, as we learn from the frequent employ, ment of it in this sense by the sacred writers. In Hab. 3. 4, for instance, it is said, 'He had horns coming out of his hand, and there was the hiding o\ his power.' The ' horn of David' is the power and dominion of David, and Christ is called a ' horn of salvation,' from his being a mighty Savior, invest- B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVII. 137 9 IT Aad «lthou shalt make the court of the tabernacle: for the south side southward there shall be d ch. 38. 9. hangings for the court of fine twm- ed linen of an hundred cubits long for one side: ed with royal dignity, and able to put down with triumph and ease all his ene- mies. It is probably in real, though latent allusion to the horned altar and its pacifying character that God says through the prophet, Is. 27. 5, ' let him take hold of my strength, that he may 7nake peace with me; and he shall make peace with me ;' let him fly to the horns of the mystic Altar, and find security and peace in that reconciled omnipotence of which it was the sign. As the Altar then is primarily an adum- bration of Christ in his mediatorial of- fice, the horns may very suitably denote those attributes of his character which as symbols they are adapted and design- ed to shadow forth. As the strength of all horned animals, that strength by which they defend lliemselves and their young, is concentrated mainly in their horns, so in the ascription of horns to Christ we recognise the symbol of that divine potency by which he is able to sub- due all things to himself, and to afford complete protection to his people. In accordance with this, the visions of the Apocalypse represent him as ' a Lamb having seven horns,' as the mystic in- signia of that irresistible power with which he effects the discomfiture of his adversaries and pushes his spiritual con- quests over the world. This view of the typical import of the Altar and its appendages might doubtless be much enlarged, but sufficient has been said to show, that the same rich signifi- cancy and the same happy adaptation, pervades this as reigns through every other part of the Mosaic ritual. THE COURT OF THE TABERNACLE. 9. Thou shalt make the court of the Tabernacle. This court or open en- closure, in which the Tabernacle stood, 12* was of an oblong figure of a hundred cubits (about fifty-eight yards) in length by half that breadth, and the height of the enclosing fence or curtain was five cubits, or nearly three yards, being half the height of the Tabernacle. The en- closure v/as formed by a plain hanging of fine twined linen yarn, which seems to have been worked in an open or net- work texture, so that the people with- out might freely see the interior. The door-curtain was however of a different texture from the general hanging, being a great curtain of ' fine twined linen,' embroidered with blue, purple, and scarlet. It is described in precisely the same terms as the door-curtain of the Tabernacle itself, and was of the same fabric with the inner covering of the Tabernacle and the vail before the Holy of Holies. It was furnished with cords, by which it might be drawn up or aside when the priests had occasion to enter. The curtains of this enclosure were hung upon sixty pillars of brass, standing on bases of the same metal, but with capitals and fillets of silver. (Compare the description in this chap- ter with that in chap 38.) The hooks also, to which the curtains were attach- ed, were of silver. The entrance of the Court was at the east end opposite that to the Tabernacle, and between them stood the Altar of Burnt-offering, but nearer to the door of the Tabernacle than to that of the Court. It is uncer- tain whether the brazen laver was in- terposed between the Altar and the door of the Tabernacle or not. Chap. 30. 18, certainly conveys that impression ; but the Rabbins, who appear to have felt that nothing could properly interpose between the Altar and Tabernacle, say that the laver was indeed nearer to the Tabernacle than was the Altar, but still 138 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 10 And the twenty pillars thereof and their twenty sockets shall he of brass : the hooks of the pillars and their fillets shall be of silver. 11 And likewise for the north side in length there shall be hang- ings of a hundred cubits long, and that it did not stand in the same line with the Altar, but stood a little on one side to the south. As to the position of the Tabernacle in the Court, nothing is said in the Scriptures on the subject, but it seems less probable that it stood in the centre than that it was placed to- wards the farther or western extremity, so as to allow greater space for the services which were to be performed exclusively in front of the Tabernacle. Within the precincts of this Court any Israelite might enter, but none but the his twenty pillars and their twenty sockets of brass: the hooks of the pillars and their fillets of silver. 12 H And for the breadth of the court on the west side shall be hang- ings of fifty cubits : their pillars ten, and their sockets ten. priests Avere permitted to go into the outer room of the Tabernacle, and into its inner recess admission was forbidden to all but the high priest. A view of the Tabernacle with its curtained en- closure will hereafter be given. 10. The twenty pillars thereof, and their twenty sockets, &c. These pil- lars, which were probably made of shittim-wood, were placed at five cubits distance from each other, in sockets of brass, in the manner represented in the cut. Pillar and Socket, with Cords and Stakes. ir Fillets. Heb. d'^pTLTl hashnkim, from the root plUH hashak which has the sense of connecting, conjoining, whence Rosenmuller and others with much probability understand by the term the connecting rods of silver be- tween the heads of the pillars, on which the curtains were suspended. Other- wise it is rendered as in our version fillets, by which is meant raised orna- mental Ijands or mouldings encircling the tops of the pillars. 12. Breadth, fifty cubits. The breadth of the Court was therefore equal to one half its length ; the whole area being of an oblong square, one hundred cubits in length and fifty in breadth. The form and proportions of the Taberna- cle itself were nearly the same, being thirty cubits in length and twelve in breadth. 14. Fifteen cubits. As twenty out of the fifty cubits which measured the breadth of the Court on the eastern side B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVII. 139 13 And the breadth of the court on the east side eastward shall be fifty cubits. 14 The hangings of one side of the gate shall be fifteen cubits: their pillars three, and their sock- ets three. 15 And on the other side shall be hangings, fifteen cubits : their pil- lars three, and their sockets three. ] 6 ^ And for the gate of the court shall be a hanging of twenty cubits, o/blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, wrought with needle-work : and their pillars shall be four, and their sockets four. 17 All the pillars round about the court shall be filletted with silver: their hooks shall be of silver, and their sockets of brass. 18 ^ The length of the court shall be an hundred cubits, and the breadth fifty every where, and ihe were to be appropriated to the gate or entrance- wajf, this would leave of course fifteen cubits on each side. 19. The pins of the court. The nails or small stakes which were driven into the ground that the hangings, attached to them by cords, might be made fast at the bottom. They are represented in the cut above. In allusion to these and in view of its future glorious enlarge- ment, the prophet thus apostrophizes the church, Is. 54. 1 — 3, 'Sing, barren, thou that didst not bear ; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child : for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the Lord. Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thy habitations ; spare not, lengthen thy cords ^ and strengthen thy stakes; For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left ; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.' See Mr. Barnes's Note on the passage. height five cubits of fme twined linen, and their sockets of brass. 19 AH the vessels of the taber- nacle in all the service thereof, and all the pins thereof, and all the pins of the court, shall be of brass. 20 ^ And ethou shalt command the children of Israel, that they bring thee pure oil olive beaten for the light, to cause the lamp to burn always. 21 In the tabernacle of the con- gregation f without the vail, which is before the testimony, g Aaron and his sons shall order it from evening to morning before the Lord: h// shall be a statute for ever unto their generations on the behalf of the children of Israel. e Lev. 24. 2. f ch. 26. 31, 33. S ch. 30. 8. 1 Sam. 3. 3. 2 Chron. 13. 11. h ch. 23. 43. & 29. 9, 28. Lev. 3. 17 &. 16. 34. & 24. 9. Numb. 18. 23. & 19.21. ISam. 30.25, THE OIL FOR THE CANDLESTICK. 20. Pure oil olive beaten. The Lamp was to be fed with pure oil, prepared from olives which w^ere bruised with a pestle, and so free from the sediment and dregs which were apt to mar that that was obtained from an oil-press or mill. 'By the expression oil olive, this oil is distinguished from other kinds. The addition beaten, indicates that it is that oil obtained from olives pounded in a mortar, and not pressed from olives in the oil-mill. The oil obtained from pounded olives is, according to Colum- ella's observation, much purer and bet- ter tasted, does not emit much smoke, and has no offensive smell.' Burder. IT To cause the lamp to burn al- ways. To light it regularly every night. That is said, according to Scripture usage, to be always done, which never fails to be done at the appointed sea- son. Thus a * continual burnt-offering' is one which is continually offered at the stated time. 31. In the tabernacle of the congre* 140 EXODUS. [B. C. 149 J. CHAPTER XXVIII. I him, from among the children of ND take thou unto thee aAaron Israel, that he may minister unto thy brother, and his sons with gat ion. Heb. "l^^'n ^Mi^ ohel mo'td, tabernacle of appointment , or of stated meeting. The common rendering, 'tab- ernacle of the congregation,' implies that it was so called merely from the fact of the peoples' there congregating to attend upon the worship of God, whereas the genuine force of the orig- inal expression imports not only the meeting of the people with each other, a general assembling of the host, but the meeting of God also with them, ac- cording to his promise, v. 43. ^ And there will I meet with the children of Israel, and the Tabernacle shall be sanctified with my glory.' The He- brew n5>i;o moed, the term in question, strictly signifies a meeting by appoint- ment, a convention at a time and place previously agreed upon by the parties. The Chaldee both of Onkelos and Jona- than render this by 5^2)3T "^^IL'^O mish- kan zimna, tabernacle of appointed time, implying that at stated seasons the children of Israel were to have re- course thither. IT Which is before the testimony. That is, before the Ark of the testimony. See ch. 25. 21, 22. IT Aa7-on and his sons shall order it from evening to morning. Josephus, in speaking of the duty of the priests (Ant. L. III. ch. 8.), says, 'They were also to keep oil already purified for the lamps ; three of which were to give light all day long, upon the sacred Can- dlestick before God, and the rest were to be lighted at the evening.' It is not unreasonable to suppose that this was the case, although the authority of Josephus cannot be considered as de- cisive of any point of Jewish antiquity. Still as he was nearer the source of tra- dition, his testimony is always worthy of being carefully weighed, although the whole ritual had no doubt under- gone great changes before his time. a Numb. 18. 7. Ilebr. 5. 1, 4. The following detailed account of the manner of ' ordering' the lamps is given by Ainsworth from Maimonides. As a Rabbinical relic exhibiting a striking specimen of the scrupulous exactness with which every part of the Taberna- cle service was performed, it is not without its interest. 'Of every lamp that is burnt out, he takes away the wick, and all the oil that remaineih in the lamp, and wipeth it, and putteth in another wick, and other oil by meas- ure, and that is an hall' a log (about a quarter of a pint); and that which he taketh away he casteth into the place of ashes by the altar, and lighteth the lamp which was out, and the lamp which he findeth not out, he dresseth it. The lamp which is middlemost, when it is out, he lights not it but from the altar in the court ; but the rest of the lamps, every one that is out he lighteth from the lamp that is next. He lighteth not all the lamps at one time ; but lighteth five lamps, and stay- eth, and doth the other service; and afterwards cometh and lighteth the two that remain. He whose duty it is to dress the candlestick cometh with a golden vessel in his hand (called Cuz, like to a great pitcher) to take away in it the wicks that are burnt out, and the oil that remaineth in the lamps, and lighteth five of the lamps, and bear- eth the vessel there before the Candle- stick, and goeth out ; afterwards he cometh and lighteth the two lamps, and taketh up the vessel in his hand, and boweth down to worship, and go- eth his way.' Treat, of the Daily Sa- crifice, C. III. Sect. 12—17. CHAPTER XXVIII. THE PRIESTLY GARMENTS. As full and ample directions bad now B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVIIL me in the priest's office, even 141 been given in respect to rearing and furnishing the Tabernacle as a place of worship, we have in the present chapter an intimation of the setting apart an order of men to officiate as ministers of this worship, and a minute description of the vestment by which they were to be distinguished. Previous to this time the patriarchal mode of service had no doubt obtained, every master of a family being a priest to his own household ; but now as a Tabernacle of the congre- gation was about to be erected, as a visible centre of unity to the nation, God saw fit to order the institutions of a public priesthood, and according to previous intimation, Ex. 27. 21, Aaron and his sons are here fixed upon as can- didates for the high distinction. 1. Take thou unto thee. Heb. -^pfl hakrib, cause to come nigh. Gr. npoaa- yayov, bring near. The original root D^p karab is of the most frequent oc- currence in relation to sacrifices, and is the ordinary term applied to the bring- ing near or presenting the various of- ferings which were enjoined under the Mosaic ritual. It is wholly in keeping with this usage to employ it, as here, in reference to persons who by their dedication to the service of the sanc- tuary, were in a sense sacrificiaUy of- fered up and devoted to God. Before en- tering upon the description of the sa- cerdotal dresses, the historian prefaces a few words respecting those who were to wear them, viz., Aaron and his sons ; of whose solemn consecration to office a full account is given in the next chap- ter. God is introduced as especially designating and appointing these in- dividuals to the sacred function of the priesthood ; and this would have the effect at once to show that this was an honor too great to be assumed by men without a call from heaven, according to the Apostle's statement, Heb. 5. 4, Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron's sons. and also to free both Moses and Aaron from the charge of grasping this dis- tinction for the purpose of aggrandizing their own family. IT That he may minister. Heb. i;n^^ lekahano, from the root "pS kahan, of which Kimchi says the primary meaning is the rend- ering of honordbfe and dignified ser- vice, such as that of officers of state to their sovereign. In accordance with this it is used concerning the sons of David, 2 Sam. 8. 18, who could not. strickly speaking, be priests ; and on the same grounds the substantive Q'^whS kohanim is in several places in the margin rendered ' princes.' See Note on Gen. 14. 18. But as princes or courtiers w^ait on the king, and are hon- ored by nearer access to him than others ; so the priests under the law were assumed into this near relation to the King of Israel, and for this reason the term in its ordinary acceptation is applied more especially to the duties of priests in ministering before God at his altar. The remark is no doubt well founded, that wherever the word is con- nected with any of the names of God, it always denotes a priest • but when standing alone it usually means a prince, or some person of eminence. Comp. Ex. 2. 16. Of the duties per- taining to the priestly office we shall have occasion to speak in detail in sub- sequent notes ; but we may here ob- serve briefly, that although as high functionaries in the court of the Great King, many of their duties were of a civil nature, as might be expected under a system in which church and state were united, yet those that more prop- erly belonged to them in their sacer- dotal character were mainly the follow- ing : They were to pronounce the bene- diction upon the people and to conduct the whole service of the holy place. Their's was the business of sacrificing, 142 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 2 And b thou shalt make holy h ch. 29. 5, 29. «fe 31. 10. & 39. 1, 2. Lev. 8. 7, SO. Numb. 20. 26,2 8. in all its rites, in all offerings upon the alter of burnt-offerings. The govern- ment and ordering of the sanctuary and of the house of God lay upon them. They kept the table of show-bread properly supplied ; they attended to the lamps of golden candelabrum every morning: at the same lime they burnt the daily incense, which prevented any offensive scent from the dressing of the lamps from being perceived. It was their duty to keep up the fire upon the brazen altar, that the fire originally kindled from heaven might never be ex- tinguished. It Avas their office to make the holy anointing oil ; and their's to blow the silver trumpets at the solemn feasts, and also before the Ark at its removals. While their numbers were few, there was occupation enough to keep them all employed ; but when they afterwards became numerous, they were divided into twenty-four bands, or courses, each of which undertook week- ly, in rotation, the sacred services. But this regulation belongs to the time of David, and remains to be considered in another place. Although the Most High had before, Ex. 19. 6, said of Israel in general, 'that they should be to him a kingdom of priests,' yet this did not militate with his concentrating the office, in its active duties, in a single family, as he now saw fit to do. It was only in this way that the great ends of the institution could be attained. Of the four sons of Aaron here selected, the two eldest, Nadab and Abihu, un- fortunately showed themselves ere long unworthy of the honor now conferred upon them, and perished miserably in consequence of their presumptuous lev- ity in the discharge of their office. The succession then reverted to the line of Eleazar and Ithamar, in which it was perpetuated down to the latest period of the Jewish polity. garments for Aaron thy brother for glory and for beauty. •2. Holy garments. Heb. 'lr:^p "i"iaD higd't kodesh, garments of holiness. Gr crroX/7 ayia, a holy stole, or perhaps col- lectively a quantity of holy stoles. These garments are called ' holy' be- cause they were designed for holy men. and because they formed part of an establishment whose general character was holy. Indeed, whatever was sepa- rated from common use, and conse- crated to the immediate service of God, acquired thereby a relative holiness; so that we see the amplest ground for tha bestowment of this epithet upon the sa- cred dresses. In ordinary life, when not engaged in their official duties, the priests were attired like other Israel- ites of good condition ; but when em- ployed in their stated ministrations^ they were to be distinguished by a pe- culiar and appropriate dress. Of this dress, which was kept in a wardrobe somehow connected with the Taberna- cle, and which was laid aside when their ministration ceased, and returned to the wardrobe, the Jewish writers have much to say. According to them the priests could not officiate without their robes, neither could they wear them beyond the sacred precincts. Un- der the Temple, where the usages were no doubt substantially the same as in the Tabernacle, when the priests ar- rived to take their turns of duty, they put off their usual dress, washed them- selves in water, and put on the holy garments. While they were in the Tem- ple, attending upon their service, they could not sleep in their sacred habits, but in their own wearing clothes. These they put off in the morning, when they went to their service, and, after bathing, resumed their official dress. — But we shall treat of the de- tails in their order. IT For glory and for beauty. Heb. niJ^tn^l nSS^ le- k'abod u-letiphareth,for glory, or honor, B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVIII. 143 3 And c thou shalt speak unto all that are wise-hearted, dwhom I have filled with the spirit of wis- dom, that they may make Aaron's garments to consecrate him, that he may minister unto me in the priest's office. 4 And these are the garments c ch. 31. 6. & 36. 1. d ch. 31. 3. & 35. 30, 31. and for beauty, ornament, decoration. The expression is very strong, leading us to the inference that a special sig- nificancy and importance attached to these garments. Thej"^ were to be made thus splendid in order to render the office more respected, and to inspire a becoming reverence for the Divine Ma- jesty, whose ministers were attired with so much grandeur. As every thing j^er- taining to the sanctuary was to be made august and magnificent, so were the dresses of those who ministered there. Yet we cannot doubt that a typical de- sign governed the fashion and appear- ance of these gorgeous robes, and that they pointed forward to the '■ glory' and ' beauty' both of the internal character and the outward display of the ' great High Priest' of the church, in his yet future manifestation. We may perhaps recognise also a secondary allusion to the beautiful spiritual investment both of his ministers and people, in that bright period when they shall have laid aside the ' filthy garments' of their cap- tivity and degradation, and shall shine forth as the ' perfection of beauty in the whole earth,' being clothed in that ' clean linen which is the righteousness of saints.' Accordingly it is said, Is, 51. 1, 'Put on thy beautiful garments (Heb. '^n'^S^Sn ^-3n Ugde tipharthik, garments of thy beauty),^ the very word here employed. 3. Speak unto all that are wise- hearted. Heb. :i^ ^JZ'DTI ^S ^i^ el kol hakme leb, to all wise of heart. Gr. iraai tois (JO(poi<; ti] Siavota, to all wise in understanding. That is, skilful, ex- which they shall make ; e a breast- plate, and fan ephod, and g a robe, and ii a broidered coat, a mitre, and a girdle : and they shall make holy garments for AarOn thy bro- ther, and his sons, that he may minister unto me in the priest's office. ever. 15. f ver. 6. Sver.31. h ver. 39. pert, ingenious, as artists. It is clearly intimated, however, by the connected phrase, ' whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom' that the epithet im- plies more than the mere native gifts and endowments which might be pos- sessed by any in this line. Whatever mechanical skill might be evinced by any of the people, yet here was a work to be executed which required some- thing still higher, and therefore God was pleased to impart a special in- spiration to endow them with the re- quisite ability. Compare this with Is. 28. 23 — 29, where even the necessary skill for rightly conducting the occu- pations of husbandry are referred to the same source. To the right-minded it is pleasant as well as proper to ascribe to the Father of lights, from whom Cometh down every good and perfect gift, the glory of whatever talents may give us eminence or success in any of the lawful or honorable callings of life. IT To consecrate him. To render him consecrated ; to be a badge and sign of his consecration. 4, 5. These are the garments, &c. Of the garments here appointed to be made of these rich materials four were common to the high priest and the in- ferior priests; viz., the linen breeches, the linen coat, the linen girdle, and the bonnet or turban ; that which the high priest wore is called a mitre. The re- maining four were peculiar to the high priest, viz., the ephod with its curious girdle, the breast-plate, the long robe with its bells and pomegranates, and the golden plate on his forehead. These 144 EXODUS. [B. 0. 1491. 5 And they shall take gold, and blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine lihen. 6 ^ i And they shall make the ephod of ^old, of blue, and of pur- ple, of scarlet, and fine twined linen, with cunning work. 7 It shall have the two shoulder- ich. 39. 2. last are frequently termed by the Rab- binical writers, by way of distinction, the ;:nt "^13^ Mgde zahab, garments of gold while the others, made of linen, are called ']D^ *i"T3Il bigde laban, garments of white. We shall consider each of them in order. We may here remark, however, that on one day in the year, viz., the great day of atonement, or fast of annual expiation, the High Priest wore none of the golden garments^ but appeared, like the rest of the priests, simply in habiliments of white linen. Even his mitre was then made of linen. The reason of this was, that the day of atonement was a day oi humiliation: and as the High Priest was then to offer sa- crifices for his own sins, as well as those of the people, he was to be so clad as to indicate that he could lay claim to no exemption on the score of frailty and guilt ; that he recognised the fact that in the need of expiation, the highest and the lowest, the priest and the Levite, stood on a level before God, with whom there is no distinction of persons. THE EPHOD. 6. They shall make the ephod, &c. Heb. TlSi^ cphod. Gr. cwcoiiiSa, shoulder- piece. The original comes from "IBJ* aphad, to bind or gird on, and there- fore signifies in general something to be girded on; but as to the precise form of the vestment itself it is difficult to gather from the words of the narrative a very distinct notion ; and even if we succeed in this, we must still depend mainly upon a pictured representation to convey an adequate idea of it to the pieces thereof joined at the two edges thereof; and so it shall be joined together. 8 And the curious girdle of the ephod, which is upon it, shall be of the same, according to the work thereof; even of gold, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen. reader. From an attentive comparison of all that is said of the Ephod in the sacred text, commentators are for the most part agreed in considering it as approaching to the form of a short double apron, having the two parts connected by two wide straps united on the shoulders. These are called, v. 7, the two shoulder-pieces, which were to be joined at the two edges thereof; i. e. on the very apex of the shoulders. This junction was effected in some way under the two onyx-stones and at the precise point where they rested upon the shoulders. These stones are said by Josephus (who calls them 'sardonyx- stones') to have been very splendid, and Bahr thinks that the symbolical significancy of the Ephod was mainly concentrated in these ' shoulder-pieces,' which, like our modern epaulettes, were a badge of dignity, authority, com-' mand — an idea to Avhich we shall ad- vert in the sequel. The two main pieces or lappets of the Ephcd hung down, the one in front, the other be- hind, but to what depth is not stated, although Josephus says it was a cubit, which would bring their lower extrem- ity about to the loins. It seems to us probable on the whole that the posterior portion hung down from the shoulders considerably lower than the anterior. But without some other appendage these dorsal and pectoral coverings would hang loose upon the person, to prevent which a ' curious girdle,' form- ing an integral part of the Ephod itself, and composed probably of two distinct bands issuing from the sides of either B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVIII. 145 the frontal or hinder portion, passed I in the front piece is designed for the round the body just under the arms so insertion of the Breast-plate. The ap- as to encircle it over the region of the | pendant straps when brought around heart. The annexed cut will aid the j the body formed the ' curious girdle of reader's conception. The open space I the Ephod.' In this representation we have main- ly followed Braunius in his celebrated v/ork on the Dresses of the Jewish Priests, as that which we regard as on the whole the most probable ; but Gus- setius, one of the ablest of the Hebrew Lexicographers, contends for a lorm approaching nearer to that of a belt or girdle for the whole Ephodj and there is so much that is plausible in his view, tliat we are induced to give a copy of his encrraving. Such appears to have been the general j which it was made to be fitted close to form of the Ephod, and the manner in the body. As to the material of which Vor, II. 13 146 EXODUS. [B. C. 149L 9 And thou shalt take two onyx- stones, and grave on them the names of the children of Israel : 10 Six of their names on one stone, and the other six names of the rest on the other stone, accord- ing to their birth. 11 With the work of an engraver it was made, this was evidently the same with that of the interior curtains and the separating vail of the Taber- nacle, and wrought like it, except that in this ephod-tapestry the figures of cherub- im were wanting, and instead of them there was a rich interweaving of threads of gold, which together with the beau- tiful colors embroidered, must have given it an air of inexpressible richness. On this point the Jewish writers say, 'The gold that was in the weaving of the ephod and breast-plate was thus wrought: He (the cunning workman) took one thread of pure gold and put it with six threads of blue and twisted these seven threads as one. And so he did one thread of gold with six of purple, and one with six of scarlet, and one with six of linen. Thus these four threads of gold and twenty-eight threads in all.' Maimonides in Ainsworth. This is a very probable account of the mode of texture, though the proportion of gold strikes us as very small. From the allusion in the description of our Savior's dress, Rev. 1. 13, 'Clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle,' it is reasonably to be inferred that it con- tained a pretty copious insertion of gold in its texture, from which fact the curi- ous girdle of the Ephod was usually dis- tinguished by this epithet. Though properly and primarily a vestment of the High Priest, yet it appears that garments of the same name were worn by the inferior priests, but they were plain ones of linen. It does not appear that even these were worn at first by the common priests. But we after- in stone, like the engravings of a signet, shalt thou engrave the two stones with the names of the chil- dren of Israel: thou shalt make them to be set in ouches of gold. 12 And thou shalt put the two stones upon the shoulders of the ephod /or stones of memorial unto wards read of common priests wearing Ephods ; and indeed Samuel, who was only a Levite, wore one ; and David^ who was not even a Levite, did the same when he danced before the ark. On one occasion Saul consulted the Lord by Urim, and consequently used the Ephod of the high priest, 1 Sam. 28. 6; and on another occasion David did the same, 1 Sam. 30. 7. It is thought by some, however that Saul and David did not themselves use the Ephod, but directed the priest to use it. 9 — 12. Thou shalt take two onyx- sto7ies, &c. On each of the connecting pieces that went across the shoulders was set an arch or socket of gold, con- taining an onyx-stone (Chal. ' Beryl- stone') on which the names of the tribes of Israel were engraved, as in a seal, six on each shoulder. Thus Mai- monides ; 'He set on each shoulder a beryl-stone four-square, embossed in gold ; and he graved on the two stones the names of the tribes, six on one stone and six on the other, according to their births. And the stone whereon Reuben was written, was on the right shoulder, and the stone whereon Simeon was written, was on the left.' The Rabbins say, moreover, that the letters were so equally divided in these two inscriptions that Joseph's name was written ' Jehoseph' in order to make just twenty-five letters in each stone. TT According to their birth. Heb. Crn^nS ketholedotham, their births or generations. That is, according to the order of their respective births or ages The arrangement is diversely under- stood by Josephus and most of tht B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVIII. 147 the children of Israel : and l Aaron shall bear their names before the Lord upon his two shoulders m for a memorial. 13 II And thou shalt make ouches of gold; 14 And two chains of pure gold at the endsj of wreathen work 1 ver. 29. ch. 39. 7. ui See Josh. 4. 7. Zech. 6. 14. Rabbinical writers, according to the latter of whom the order was as fol- lows: Left. Riarht. Gad, Reuben, Asher, Simeon, Issachar, Levi, Zebulon, Judah, Joseph, Dan, Benjamin, Naphtali. The former, having a special view to their several mothers, arranges them thus ; Simeon, Reuben, Judah, Levi, Zebulon, Issachar, Dan, Naphtali, Asher, Gad, Benjamin, Joseph. It is a matter of little moment which we consider as the most correct. 12. For stones of memorial unto the children of Israel. That is, as a me- morial for or in behalf of the children of Israel ; a remembrancer to Aaron and to Israel that he appeared before God in the priestly office as a represent- ative of the whole people. The mean- ing is in fact explained in the next clause. THE BREAST-PLATE. 15. Thou shall make the breast- plate of judgment, &c. Heb, yi^Tl 1351ZJ)3 hoshen mishpat. This would perhaps be better rendered in our ver- sion pectoral or breast-piece of judg- shalt thou make them, and fasten the wreathen chains to the ouches. 15 lIAnd "thou shalt make the breast-plate of judgment with cun- ning work ; after the work of the ephod thou shalt make it ; of gold, of blue, and of purple, and of scar- let, and of fine twined linen shalt thou make it. nch. 39.8. ment, as breast-plate conveys the idea of a military accoutrement, which is not implied in the original. Greek \oy€iou Tuv Kpiaeuv, the rationale of judgments, as it is also rendered in the Lat. Vulg. The etymology of the orig- inal term y^Tl hoshen, is entirely un- known. Gesenius indeed refers to the Arabic hashna, to be fair, beautiful, splendid, as perhaps having affinity with its root, with which he compares the Germ, scheinen, to appear, schon, fair, and Eng. shine. But though it is equally a matter of conjecture, we for ourselves prefer the suggestion of Aven- arius (Lex. ad rad. ^-^n) that it comes by transposition of letters from ICPID nahash, to augur, to divine, a sense very nearly akin to that of seeking in- formation by consulting an oracle. Yet we are still unable to establish this or any other as the legitimate forma- tion of the word, and are compelled therefore to content ourselves with such a view of the material, form, and uses of the "ipn hoshen as can be deduced from the text independent of philological or collateral aid. It was called ' breast- plate of judgment' from its being worn by the High Priest when he went into the Most Holy Place to consult God re- specting those matters of judgment which were too hard for the inferior judges, and which had reference to the more important civil or religious concerns of the nation. Comp. Deut. 17. IS, 19. The cloth which for.med the ground of the Breast-plate was of the same rich embroidered stuff or 148 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 16 Four-square it shall be, being doubled ; a span shall be the length thereof, and a span shall be the breadth thereof. 17 o And thou shalt set m it set- tings of stones, even four rows of stones; the first row shall be a sar- och. 39. 10, &c. brocade as the Ephod, of two spans in length and one in breadth. Conse- quently when doubled it was just a span or eighteen inches square. For what reason it was doubled is not ap- parent. Some suppose it was to give it more strength in bearing the precious stones appended to it. But for our- selves we are unable to see how the back fold could have aided in support- ing the weight of the stones in front. Far preferable therefore to us seems the opinion, that it was doubled thus in order that being sewed together on three sides and left open on one it might form a kind of sack, pocket, or bag, as a receptacle of something which was to be put in it. But of this more in the sequel. At each corner of the Breast- plate thus made into a square form was a golden ring. To the two upper ones were attached two golden chains of •wreathen work, i. e. chains made of golden threads or wires braided to- gether, which passed up to the shoul- ders and were there somehow fastened to the shoulder-pieces or to the onyx- stones. By means of these chains it was suspended on the breast. But to render it still more firm in its position, two laces or ribbons of blue were passed through the two rings at the two lower corners of the Breast-plate, and also through two corresponding rings in the Ephod, and then tied together a little above the girdle of the Ephod. This rendered the Breast-plate and Ephod inseparable, so that the latter could not be put on without being accompanied by the former, and the punishment of stripes was decreed against him who dius, a topaz, and a carbuncle : this shall be the first row. 18 And the second row shall be an emerald, a sapphire, and a dia- mond. 19 And the third row a ligure, an agate, and an amethyst. 20 And the fourth row a beryl, should attempt to divide the one from the other. 17. Thou shalt set in it settings of stones. Heb. "^nii til^'^'Kl in r,&4):?3 mill'etha bo milluath eben, thou shalt fill in it fillings of stones. The import undoubtedly is tliat these stones were to be set or enchased in sockets of gold or some other metal, and they are call- ed fillings because the stones when in- serted filled tip the cavities prepared for their reception. The precise manner in which these twelve precious stones, which had the names of the twelve tribes engraved upon them, were at- tached to the Breast-plate is not ex- pressed in the text, though it is usually understood by commentators to have been upon the outside, and that they were fully exposed to view when worn upon the High Priest's bosom. This, however, is not asserted in the. text, and we shall soon suggest several rea- sons for doubting whether it were the fact. It is certain that the stones were in some way appended to the Breast- plate, and that they were arranged in four rows, three in each, but as to the peculiar manner in which they were adjusted to the supporting ground of the tapestry, this is a point which is to be inferred from an attentive consider- ation of all the circumstances relating to the fabric itself, and upon this we shall be more full in a subsequent note. At present we shall devote a page or two to the consideration of the stones themselves, in relation to which we are constrained to remark that after all the research expended by antiquarians upon the subject much uncertainty still rest.s B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVIII. 149 upon it. They cannot be satisfactorily identified. We can only approach a ■probability, more or less strong, that the gems which we now call the topaz, emerald, sapphire, carbuncle, &c., do truly answer to the original terms which they are thus made to represent in Eng- lish. Our explanations must be taken therefore by the reader subject to the necessary abatement on this score. 1. Sardius. Heb. iDlJi odem, from the radical 'mi< adam, to be ruddy or red. Chal. '^pl'DD samkan, and Htlp?2D samkctha, red. Gr. aapSiov, sardine, a name supposed to be taken from Sardis or Sardinia, where it was originally found. It was a stone of the ruby class, and answers to the carnelian of the moderns. The finest specimens now come from Surat, a city near the gulf of Cambay in India. 2. Topaz. Heb. HTJQ pitdah. Ety- mology unknown. Gr. To-rra^iov, topaz- ion, a name which Pliny says is derived from Topazos, an island in the Red Sea. Chal. p**,"! yarkan and i^np^'i yarketha, signifying green. It is sup- posed to be the modern chrysolite, and its color to have been a transparent green-yellow. It comes now from Egypt, where it is found in alluvial strata. 3. Carbuncle. Heh. t^'p^'2bareketh, from p^n bai-ak, to lighten, glitter, or glister; answering to the avdpa^ anth- rax, of the Greeks, so called because when held to the sun it resembles a piece of bright burning charcoal. In- deed its name carbuncle means a little coal, and refers us at once to a lively coal- red. Its modern name is the garnet. The Septuagint, Josephus, and Lat. Vulgate have rendered in this place by aiJiapaySoi smaragdos, emerald. But this is more properly the rendering of the next in order. The carbuncle and the emerald have in fact in some way be- come transposed in the Greek version. 4. Emerald. Heb. HSI] nophek. Gr. avBp'x^. This gem is undoubtedly the 13* same with the ancient smaragdos, or emerald, one of the most beautiful of all the precious stones. It is character- ised by a bright green color, with scarcely any mixture, though differing somewhat in degrees. The true Ori- ental emerald is now very scarce. The best that are at present accessible are from Peru. In the lime of Moses they came from India. 5. Sapphire. Heb. '"I'^SD sappir. Gr. (raK(peipos sapphiros. The word is very nearly the same in all known languages, and as to the sapphire itself it is, after the diamond, the most valuable of the gems, exceeding all others in lustre and hardness. It is of a sky-blue, or fine az- ure color, in all the choicest specimens, though other varieties occur. Indeed among practical jewellers it is a name of wider application perhaps than that of any of the rest of the precious stones. Pliny says that in his time the best sapphires came from Media. At present they are found in greater or less per- fection in nearly every country. 6. Diamond. Heb. t^tTi yahalom, from Q^n halam, to beat, to smite upon, so called from its extraordinary hard- ness, by which like a hammer it will beat to pieces any of the other sorts of stones. Thus the Greeks called the diamond aSaixag, adamas, from Gr. a, not and Sajxao}, damao, to subdue, on account of its supposed invincible hardness. Accordingly Pliny says of diamonds, that ' they are found to resist a stroke on the anvil to such a degree that the iron itself gives way and the anvil is shattered to pieces.' This is no doubt exaggerated and fabulous, but it is suffi- cient to justify the propriety of the He- brew name, that diamonds are mttch harder than other precious stones, and in this all are agreed. This quality of the diamond, together with its incom- parable brilliancy, renders it by far the most valuable of all the gems. The Gr. here has taaTm jaspis, or jasper. 7. Ligure. Heb. CUb leshem. Gr 150 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. and an onyx, and a jasper: ihey shall be set in gold in their enclos- ings. 21 And the stones shall be with the names of the children of Israel, twelve, according to their names, like the engravings of a signet; every one with his name shall they be according to the twelve tribes. 22 HAnd thou shalt make upon the breast-plate chains at the ends q/* wreathen work o/pure gold. 23 And thou shalt make upon the breast-plate two rings of gold, and shalt put the two rings on the two ends of the breast-plate. 24 And thou shalt put the two wreathen chains of gold in the two rings which are on the ends of the breast-plate. \iyvpiov, ligurion. This is one of the most doubtful of the precious stones as to color. It is supposed to be closely related to the hyacinth (jacinth) of the moderns, which is a red strongly tinged with orange-yellow. 8. Agate. Heb. ^^ID shebo. Gr, a^aTTji, achates, agate. This is a stone of a great variety of hues, which is thought by some to be identical with the chrysopras, and if so it is probably that a golden green was the predomin- ant color. 9. Amethyst. Heb. ril^^Hi^ ahla- mah. Gr. a^cdvaroi^ amethystos, from a, not, and ncdvarog, drunken, because wine drank froni an amethyst cup was supposed by the ancients to prevent inebriation. The oriental amethyst is a transparent gem, the color of which seems to be eomposed of a strong blue and a deep red ; and according as either prevails, affording different tinges of purple, and sometimes even fading to a rose color. It comes from Persia, Ara- bia, Armenia, and the East Indies. 10. Beryl. Heb. '^J'^D^n tarshish. Gr. ;;^pDffoXi9o?, chrysolifhos. A pellu- cid gem of a sea or bhrish green. But 25 And the other two ends of the two wreathen chains thou shalt fasten in the two ouches, and put them on the shoulder-pieces of the ephod before it. 26 IT And thou shalt make two rings of gold, and thou shalt put them upon the two ends of the breast-plate in the border thereof, which is in the side of the ephod inward. 27 And two other rings of gold thou shalt make, and shalt put them on the two sides of the ephod underneath, toward the fore-part thereof, over against the other coup- ling thereof, above the curious gir- dle of the ephod. 28 Andthey shall bind the breast- plate by the rings thereof unto the if, as many mineralogists and critics suppose, the beryl is the same as the chrysolite, it is a gem of yellowish green color, and ranks at present among the topazes. 11. Onyx. Heb. ttl'IJ shoham- call- ed onyx from Gr. ow^, onyx, from its resemblance of its ground color to that lunated spot at the base of the human nail, which the Greek word signifies. It is a semi-pellucid stone of a fine flinty texture, of a waterish sky-colored ground, variegated with bands of ivhite and brown, which run parallel to each other. It is here rendered by the Gr. firjpvX'Xiuv, beryllion, beryl, from some apparent confusion in the order of the names. See Note on Gen. 2. }2. 12. Jasper. Heh.il'DTli'^yashepheh. Gr. owxun', onuchion. The similarity of the Hebrew name has determined most critics to consider the jasper as the gem intended by this designation. This is a stone distinguished by such a vast variety of hues, that it is extreme- ly hazardous to fix upon any one as its distinguishing color. The brown Egyp- tian variety is conjectured to have been the one selected for the Breast-plate. B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVIII. 151 The annexed cut, conformed to the I lish name we consider as unfortunately usual model, will convey a tolerably chosen. Pectoral, i. e. breast-plate is correct idea of the general form and ap- j decidedly preferable. Josephus calls pearance of the Breast-plate. The Eng- I it Essen. The Breast-plate. 21. And the atones shall be with the names. Heb. tl^OlD ^3? al shemoth, upon the names. The more natural and di- rect phraseology would be — ' the names shall be upon the stones,' but the ex- pression is idiomatic, and probably im- plies that the stones should be accom- panied or distinguished by the names ; or we may adopt the construction of Noldius (De Heb. Partic. sub voc. ^5)) and all the ancient versions, and render it — 'the stones shall be according to the names of the children of Israe , which probably involves the complex idea of the stones corresponding with the names in number, and also of having the names actually sculptured upon them. 28. Unto the rings of the ephod. 01 these two rings nothing was said in the account of the construction of the Ephod above ; probably because the use of them would not so fully appear till the Breast-plate and its position came to 152 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. rings of the ephod with a lace of blue, that it may be above the cu- rious girdle of the ephod, and that the breast-plate be not loosed from the ephod. 29 And Aaron shall bear the be described as is done in the present context. 29. Aaron shall bear the names, &c., in the breast-plate of judgment upon his heart. The phrase ' upon his heart' is not properly to be understood in this connexion in a physical sense, as if equivalent to ' upon his breast,' ' upon his bosom.' This is not the usage of the Hebrew in regard to the word 'heart.' After a pretty thorough ex- amination of the many hundreds of cases in which the term occurs in the sacred writers, we have not been able to find a single instance, apart from the present, in which it is unequivocally employed in a physiological sense, to denote that grand organ of the human body which anatomists call ' the lieart.' The pas- sage which comes nearest to such a sense is that in Is. 1. 5, 'The whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint.' Yet even here the metaphorical sense is predominant ; for as the sickness is not corporeal, but moral, so the mem- bers affected are to be considered as equally figurative. According to the prevailing usage of Scripture, the heart is regarded as the seat of intelligence and emotion. The feelings of love, hope, fear, joy, sorrow, &c., are refer- red to the heart; and in the present case we cannot question that although as a matter of fact the Breast-plate was worn over the region of the heart, yet the dominant idea conveyed by the phrase is, that Aaron was to bear these names of the tribes in his kind and affectionate remembrance whenever he went into the holy place. The beauti- ful sculptured gems were to be to him a memorial or memento of the fact that the interests of the whole people were names of the children of Israel in the breast-plate of judgment upon his heart, when he goeth in unto the holy place, v for a memorial be- fore the Lord continually. P ver. 12. committed to him as their represent- ative, and that he should never cease to feel burdened in soul with this grave responsibility, especially whenever he was called to act in his capacity as sa- cer dotal judge of the chosen tribes. In this fact we are no doubt at liberty to read one very interesting feature of the typical intent of the jewelled Breast- plate. The priesthood of Aaron shadow- ed forth the infinitely greater and more glorious priesthood of Christ. In the execution of his office as the great High Priest of the Church, he was ordained to enter into the holy place, there to appear in the presence of God for us. This he has done. He ascended to heaven after his resurrection, that he might there complete the work he had begun on earth. On his heart are en- graven the names of all his people, and not one of them is overlooked or for- gotten. He presents them all before his Father, as the objects of his own kind and solicitous sympathy and care^ and they are dear to the Father, because they are dear to the Son. As he thus bears these his jewels on his heart while they are toiling and travailing here below, so will he finally transfer them from his bosom to his head, mak- ing them to adorn his diadem forever in the kingdom of his glory. But this does not forbid the supposi- tion, that in relation to God the stones of the Breast-plate may have subserved still another purpose. Certain it is that the whole scope of the context leads us to view them as indicating not only the subjects, but also the instruments, of those judicial decisions about which they were employed. They were in some way made use of as a medium of B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVIII. 153 the oracular responses which the High Priest obtained by consultation from Jehovah in behalf of the Jewish peo- ple. But as this presents them in a distinct point of view, as intimately connected, if not absolutely identified, with the Urim and Thummim, we shall defer the sequel of our remarks on the Breast-plate till we come to the con- sideration of that very interesting but abstruse subject. In the mean time, we cannot forbear presenting the reader with the follow- ing translated extract from the work of Bahr before mentioned, in relation to the joint symbolical uses of the Ephod and the Breast-plate. * The Ephod and the Hoshen or Pec- toral, which formed the third general division of the High Priest's vestments, and signified the kingly dignity, do not stand in subordinate relation the one to the other, so that the Hoshen was merely an appendage to the Ephod, but they are both treated in the orig- inal as independent articles, yet at the same time making together one whole. The dignity also which they represent, must be in some way of a two-fold nature, or which exhibits it- self under a double aspect ; and thus in fact was the kingly dignity, both among the Hebrews and all oriental antiquity conceived of, viz., as uniting in itself the two grand prerogatives of lordship and judgment. Thus, 1 Sam. 8. 5, 6, 'And said unto him. Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways : now make us a king to judge us like all the nations. But the thing dis- pleased Samuel, when they said. Give us a king to judge us : and Samuel prayed unto the Lord.' So also 20, 'That we also may be like all the na- tions ; and that oiir king may judge us, and go out before us, and fight our bat- tles.' 2 Sam. 15. 4, 'Absalom said moreover, Oh that I were made judge in the land, that every man which hath any suit or cause might come unto me, and I would do him justice ." 1 Kings, 3. 9, 'Give therefore thy servant an un- derstanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad : for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?' So Artemidorus the Oneirocritic remarks, Kpnxiv to api^eii' eXcyov ol iraAatoi, the Undents said that reigning was judging. Now the reigning dignity is plainly indi- cated by the Ephod, inasmuch as we have already observed, that its dis- tinguishing feature was the shoulder- piece (Gr, eiriojiis) , and the shoulder both in sacred and profane antiquity is con- sidered as the seat of sovereignty. Thus Isaiah says of the Messiah, ch. 9. 5, 'And the government shall be upon his shoulder.' So also according to an In- dian myth, when the different castes came forth from the body of Brahma, kings and warlike heroes issued from the shoulder. That the same idea was familiar among the Romans would ap- pear from the words of Pliny (Panegyr. 10.), 'Cum abunde expertus esset pater, quam bene humeris tuis sedet imperi- um,' since (thy) father hath abundant- ly proved how well dominion sits upon thy shoulders. The symbolical import is the same when upon the shoulder of a statue of the Egyptian king Sesostris the inscription was read ; Eya» r/jv^s '^(x)pr]v MiAoiai roici Cj^ioiai EKTj](jajiT}v, I have acquired this province by my shoulders. In accordance with this, the usual insignia o[ ruling, viz., sword and keys, were suspended from the shoulder. Thus, Is. 22. 22, 'And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut ; and he shall shut, and none shall open.' That the sword himg from the shoulder among the Greeks and Romans, will be seen by reference to Hom. II. 2. 45. Lipsius in Tac. Annal. 1. 35. As to what relates to the judicial prerogative, we need not go beyond the designation given in the original to the Breast-plate, viz., ^^n 154 EXODUy. [B. C. 1491. 30 H And q thou shalt put in the breast-plate of judgment tlie Urim and the Thummim ; and they shall q Lev. 8. 8. Numb, 27. 21. Deut. 33. 8. 1 Sam. 28. 6. Ezra, 2. 63. Neh. 7. 65. t3B^?3 hoshen mishpat, breast-plate of judgment, to show its symbolical bear- ing.' Symbol, des Mos. Cult., vol. II. p. 127 — 9. If this view of the subject be well founded, we think there is strong reason to believe, that the use of epaulettes as a badge of authority and imperatorial command is to be traced back through the line of past centuries to the Shoulder-piece of the ancient Ephod. This article of military ac- coutrement forms at any rale a sub- ject of very curious historical interest, which might well demand a ihorougli investigation. THE URIM AND THUMMIM. SO. Thou shalt put in the breast- plate of judgment the Urim and Thum- mim. Heb. tD'^^^nn rJSI tD'^'^li^ urim ve-eth hattummim, the Lights and the Perfections. Gr. Trjv 6r,\oiaiv kui aXrjO- eiav, the manifestation and the truth. Aq. ' Enlightenings and Certainties.' Sam. 'Elucidations and Perfections.' Syr. ' the Lucid and the Perfect.' Arab. ' Illuminations and Certainties.' Lat. Vulg. ' Doctrine and Verity.' Luth. 'Light and Right.' The Hebrew terms signify primarily fires or lights, and perfections or truth. Perfection and truth are in Scripture style virtually equivalent in import, because what is perfected is truly done, neither false, vain, or unexecuted, but accomplished. The sacred writers, therefore, who often conjoin synonymous terms, have brought these epithets together in sev- eral instances, as Josh. 24. 14, 'Fear the Lord and serve him in perfection and truth (!ri)35u? into the fold or lining of the Breast-plate, and the only question is, how this idea can be recon- ciled with the above position, that the Urim and Thummim and the precious stones were identical. The single so- lution Avhich, as far as we see, can re- concile two positions so apparently in conflict is, that the stones, instead of being outwardly attached to the em- broidered work of the Pectoral, and thus made visible to the beholder, were in fact placed upon its inside, or in other words lodged within the lining of the Breast-plate, and entirely out of sight to any eye but that of Omnis- cience. We do not perceive that there is any thing in the text, however rigidly scanned, which necessarily requires us to understand the attachment of the stones as external to the Breast-plate, nor can we resist the belief that the main use of the Pectoral was that of a bag or pocket in which something was to be deposited. If it served merely as a ground for supporting the precious stones, the greater part of it would ne- cessarily be concealed by them, and what then were the use of such an ex- quisite and costly material? Would not a coarser fabric or a metallic plate have better answered the purpose ? Rabbi Solomon, as quoted by Buxtorf, remarks that ' bolli in the command to place the inscribed stones u])on the shoulder of Aaron, and in the account of its execution, tlie preposition ^5^ al, upon, occurs in order to teach us that they were placed exteriorly to the Ephod, whereas in speaking of the stones of the Pectoral the preposition i 6 or ^ii el, in, is uniformly employ- ed, as Ex. 28. 17, ^n ti)^l2 millitha bo, thou Shalt fill in it. Ex. 39. 10, lii^TSil ID va-yemalleu bo. and they filled in it. As to the subjoined phrase IIQ^ ^5> al libbo, upon his heart, that is used to signify that they were to be hidden.' But it is not by philological consider- ations alone that we deem this view of the subject sustained. We have already adverted to the fact of a very remark- able coincidence between the religious rites and usages of the Egyptians and Israelites. The extent to which these afiinities exist, as shown by the mon- umental sculptures and paintings of Egypt, can be but imperfectly appre- ciated by those who are not somewhat conversant with the works containing the fac-similes of these w^onderful re- mains. Nearly every ar-ticle of the sa- cred costume prescribed by God to Mo- ses has its counterpart in the pictured dresses of the Egyptian priests ; and in regard to the objects now under consid- eration and some other peculiarities of the Mosaic system, we are strongly inclined to the opinion, that so few particulars are given, because it is taken for granted that they were sufficiently known before. Nahmanides observes that whenever the mention of any of the sacred things is introduced by the use of the definite or emphatic article {1 h, the, it implies that it was something previously designated or known. Thus it is ordered in general terms, ' they shall make an ark,' ' thou shalt make a table,' ' thou shalt make a candlestick,' &c., but when we come to the text be- fore us it is said, ' thou shalt put in the breast-plate of judgment the Urim and B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVIII. I5d Thummim,' as something which would of course be adequately understood from other sources. In lilce manner, says he, we are told, in Gen. 2.24, that 'God placed the cherubims (C^jT^SH hak- kerubim) at the east of the garden of Eden,' as something too well known to need a particular description. Now if we could obtain evidence that any similar usage prevailed among the ancient Egyptians, especially in the matter of delivering oracles, it would obviously go far to countenance the idea, that the jewelled appendage to the Pectoral was a matter with which both Moses and the people had already be- come familiar in the land of their bond- age. By a singular fortuity it so hap- pens, that we are possessed of just the evidence that we want in relation to this point. Not only do the Egyptian paintings exhibit the pectoral ornament answering to the Jewish hoshen or breast-plate, but in two of the Greek historians, viz., Diodorus Siculus and ^lian we find the express record which Mr. Wilkinson has embodied in the fol- lowing passage (Man. and Cust. of Anc. Egypt, vol. 2. p. 26.), 'When a case was brought for trial, it was customary for the arch-judge to put a golden chain around his neck, to which was suspend- ed a small figure of Truth or orna- mented with precious stones. This was in fact a representation of the goddess who was worshipped under the double character of t7-uth and justice, and whose name, Thmei, appears to have been the origin of the Hebrew thum- mim, a word according to the Septua- gint translation, implying truth, and bearing a further analogy in its plural termination. And what makes it more remarkabl* is, that the chief priest of the Jews, who, before the election of a king, was also the judge of the nation, was alone entitled to wear this honorary badge ; and the thummim of the He- brews, like the Egyptian figure, was studded with precious stones.' It is moreover affirmed by the traveller Pe- ter du Val that he saw a mummy at Cairo, round the neck of which was a chain having a golden plate suspended from it, which lay on the breast of the person, and on which was engraved the figure of a bird. This person was sup- posed to have been one of the supreme judges ; and in all likelihood the bird was the emblem of truth, justice, or in- nocence. This is certainly a remarkable set of coincidences, and the force of it in the argument is not to be weakened by the intimation, that this official badge was worn by civil magistrates among the Egyptians. The truth is, the religion of that people was so interwoven with their laws and government that their kings were of the sacerdotal order, and the judicial functions were exercised by the priests. As in nearly all the governments of that early period of the world, so among the Egyptians, the people were taught to regard their rulers as clothed with divine authority, as the immediate delegates and viceger- ents of the gods ; and especially in the administration of justice, it was their object to beget the universal belief that their decisions were in fact divine orC'^ cles. As scarcely any thing of moment in private life was undertaken without consulting oracles, so especially was this the case in matters of government It was of the highest impartance that the impression should prevail that it was done with the concurrence of the gods. Now that precious stones were in- strumentally employed in this kind of divination which had respect to the ad- ministration of justice, or the delivery of judicial oracles, is very largely and lucidly proved by Daubuz in his in- valuable ' Commentary on the Apoca- lypse,' ch. 21, when treating of the twelve foundations of precious stones of the heavenly Jerusalem. By a learn- ed array of citations from ancient au- 160 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. thors he shows thai a peculiar mystic virtue was attributed to gems as amu- lets and charms, and as a medium of converse in general with demoi.s and spirits of the invisible world. Thus Pliny says that the jasper was worn every where over the East for amulets j and of the amethyst he remarks, that according to popular belief if the name of the sun and moon be written on this kind of stones, and they be suspended from the neck by tlie feathers of cer- tain birds, they will resist the eflfect of poison, and avert liail, locusts, &c,; and the same virtue he ascribes to emeralds provided they have the figure of an eagle or scarabseus inscribed upon them. We may agree with him in the remark that such things cannot well be written without exciting the contempt and derision of the human race ; but however vain were such notions, it is clear that they influenced the practice of the ancients ; and they enable us bet- ter to understand the reason and origin of their sacred symbolical use. Epiph- anius also, iji speaking of the gems on the High Priest's Breast-plate, takes notice of the virtues assigned to tliem by the magicians. Of the emerald he says it is accounted to possess a prog- nosticating power; of the jasper, that it drives away spectres and delusions v/hich were attributed to demons ; and the same of the ligure and hyacinth. As therefore these magical and mys- tical notions respecting the virtues of gems did beyond question prevail among the ancient pagans, especially the Egyp- tians and the Chaldeans ; as they were undoubtedly employed in ihe'ir judicial and oracular transactions, we cannot but deem it aTtogether probable that there was a certain degree of assimi- lation, or latent inter-relation, between the Hebrew Breast-plate with its Urim and Thummim, and the jewelled collar or pectoral of the Egyptian judge. But although thus related in general as a medium of oracular revelation, yet they would of course dilTer according to the different scope and genius of their re- spective institutions. While with the Egyptians these sacred instruments were subservient to the grossest super- stition, to magic, and idolatry, with the Hebrews they were instituted for a pur- pose directly the reverse. They were designed to call them away from the practice of all unhallowed divinations and auguries, and fix their dependence upon the true God. That people were indeed permitted to avail themselves of an oracle on great emergencies ; but that oracle was divine. It was the true God, Jehovah, omniscient, omnipotent, and infallible. And though he was pleased, in accommodation to their mental condition and capacities to re- tain and incorporate into his ritual cer- tain usages, to which they had been familiar in other connexions, yet they were henceforth hallowed usages, and never to be associated with any idol- atrous sentiments or aims. The use of precious stones by those that minister- ed at heathen temples was nothing but deceit, delusion, and fraud. They v/ere instrumental in uttering oracles which were enigmatical, ambiguous, and false. In God's Avorship they were Urim and Thummim, clearness and certainty, light and perfection, lacking nothing in explicitness of enunciation, nothing in truth of accomplishment. * To show how all this is suitable,' says Daubuz, ' to the principles of the symbolical language, by which alone the true no- tion and full force of the word Urim is to be understood, we need only to re- member that God was the king and ruler of Israel, and that his oracles were the special orders and commands which he gave to that people to govern and guide them. Now all kind of gov- ernment, according to the style of those ages, which were acquainted with sym- bolical notions, was represented by light ; because the lights or luminaries direct and show the way, and by con- B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVIII. 161 sequence govern men, who otherwise should not know what to do or whither to go. The word thummim joined to the urim, and showing this light to be true and perfect, implied that whatsoever God should by the urim foretel, would certainly come to pass. So that when God gave his urim, or lights of direc- tion, to the Israelites, it was in order to bring to perfection all those counsels which he then discovered to them. It was upon this account that Christ is called, John, 8. 12, ' the light of the world,' and also, John, 14. 6, ' the u-ay, the truth, and the life.' For these titles signify his dominion and power to rule all the world ; and he is the Urim and Thummim, the disposer of the oracles of God to guide and rule men, and to bring to perfection all the mystery of God, which is to bring men to eter- nal life. Hence in the New .Jeru- salem, wherein that mystery is per- fected, he is with the Father the Lumin- ary thereof. So that this New Jerusa- lem being founded or begun upon the oracles and light of the apostles of Jesus Christ, shall be completed by hav- ing therein the great Urim and Thum- mim, which gives light to all that are therein.' This New Jerusalem state, therefore, is one in which all the will, counsel, and promises of God from the beginning of the world are to be per- fected. It is in that glorious state that their accomplishment is to result ; but more especially those which have been made from the beginning of the Gospel iispensation by the apostles of the x^amb, who laid the first foundation of an universal church, and have consequently their names written on the symbols of that foundation. We have enlarged thus fully in the preceding train of remark on the origin and primitive notions of the Urim and Thummim, not only on account of its intrinsic importance, but also in order to gain still stronger confirmation of the view advanced above in relation to their 14' identity with the precious stones and their true position in the Breast-plate. From an attentive consideration of the whole, we cannot but deem the infer- ence very fair, that the gems, though perhaps permanently attached to the Pectoral, were yet placed in the inside of its folds when doubled, and thus in a still more emphatic sense borne ' upon the heart' of the High Priest. Yet as we cannot claim an entire certainty for this explanation we have represented the Breast-plate in the preceding cut as having the form and appearance usually ascribed to it. The matter is left to the enlightened judgment of the reader. II. We have now to devote a few sentences to the discussion of the man- ner in which responses were given to the consultations made by the High Priest through the medium of the Urim and Thummim. And here the cloud, in which a remote antiquity has in- veloped the question, is made still denser by the mists of conflicting con- jectures. Among the Rabbinical writers there is a pretty general agreement as to the occasions on which those consult- ations were resorted to, viz., that they were of a public and not of a private nature. As the High Priest appeared before God in such cases with the names of all the twelve tribes on his Breast- plate, so they suppose that the counsel sought must be sought in the name and on the behalf of all the tribes, as hav- ing relation to interests which concern- ed them all ; as for instance matters of peace and war, the election of rulers, the duties of the king on special emer- gencies, &c. But as to the precise mode of the responses, their diversities of opinion show that they were as little furnished with a clue to it as ourselves. The prevalent belief seems to have been, that the letters engraved on the precious stones were eflTected in some extraordinary manner, so that the dim- ness or lustre, depression or elevation, of the successive letters composing the 162 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491 31 If And rthou shalt make the robe of the ephod all of blue. r ch. 39. 22. answer enabled the High Priest to read the response in, or reflected from, his Breast-plate. But this in most cases would have been impossible, as the names of the twelve sons of Jacob do not contain all the letters of the He- brew alphabet, nor can we conceive how the letters should have been raised or illuminated in such order as to con- vey an intelligible answer. A far more probable opinion is, that the Urim and Thummim were merely a requisite cir- cumstance in the consultation ; that they simiply put the High Priest into a con- dition to receive responses, and that these responses when duly sought were given in an audible voice from between the Cherubim. This seems supported by the fact, that this method of obtaining the divine response is described as ' ask- ing at the mouth of the Lord.' ' What- ever was the precise medium through which the response was conveyed, the mode in which the priest acted is sufficiently plain. When any national emergency arose for which the law had made no provision, the High Priest ar- rayed himself in his Breast-plate and pontifical vestments, and went into the holy place, and standing close before the vail, but not entering within it, stated the question or difficulty, and re^ ceived an answer. Several instances will occur of this manner of consulting the Lord. It is an opinion which has at least the tacit sanction of Scripture, that the mode of consulting the Lord by Urim and Thummim only subsisted un- der the theocracy, and while the Taber- nacle still remained. Spencer strongly urges that the Urim and Thummim were essentially connected with the theocratic government of the Hebrews. While the Lord was their immediate governor and king, it was necessary that they should be enabled to consult 32 And there shall be an hole in the top of it, in the midst thereof: it shall have a binding of woven him on important matters, and obtain his directions on occasions of difficulty. This method was also established for the purpose of consulting God in mat- ters that concerned the common interest of the entire nation. On both these grounds the oracle might well cease when the theocracy terminated by the kingdom becoming hereditary in the person and family of Solomon ; and still more, when the division of the na- tion into two kingdoms at his death rendered the interests of the nation no longer common. This is but an hy- pothesis : but it is certain that there are no traces in the sacred books of consulting the Lord by Urim and Thum- mim from the time of the erection to the demolition of Solomon's Temple : and that it did not afterwards exist is on all hands allowed.' Pict. Bible. THE ROBE OF THE EPHOD. 31, 32. Thou shalt make the robe of the ephod, &c. This is a garment dis- tinct from, any that has yet been men- tioned. It is called the ' robe of the ephod,' simply because it was worn im- mediately under it. Its Hebrew name is p'^5'^ me'il, rendered in the Gr. vnnSurriu noSripr]^ an under-garment reaching down to the feet. Vulg. 'Tunic of the Ephod.' Arab. 'A rain-shedding cloak.' Luth. 'A silk robe.' Belg. 'A mantle.' Jun. and Trem. ' Pallium, a cloak.'' The me'il was a distinguishing priestly vestment, and therefore Christ appears, Rev. 1. 13, 'clothed with a garment down to the feet {m^npv),'' to show him- self the Great High Priest of the church. It was a long linen gown of sky blue color, reaching to the middle of the leg. It was all of one piece, and so formed as to be put on, not like other garments which are open in front, but like a sur- plice, over the head, having a hole at B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVIIl. 153 work round aboul the hole of it, as 33 H And beneath, upon the hem it were the hole of an habergeon, of it thou shalt make pomegranates that it be not rent. q/'blue, and o/ purple, and o/scar- the top for the head to pass through, which was strongly hemmed round wilh a binding or welt to prevent it from rending, and wilh openings or arm-holes ni the sides in place of sleeves. Round its lower border were tassels made cf blue, purple, and scarlet, in the form of pomegranates, interspersed with small gold bells, in order to make a noise when the High Priest went into or came out from the holy place, the reason of which is given below. We are not in- formed of the exact number of the pome- granates and bells. The Rabbinical writers are mostly unanimous in say- ing, there were 72 in all, which is doubtless as probable as any other con- jecture on the subject. It will be ob- served, that while the body of the Robe was entirely of blue, this ornamental appendage in the skirts was richly dyed of variegated hues, and must have rendered the whole a vestment of ex- quisite beauty. The Robe of the Ephod. 33. Thou shalt make pomegranates. *^1 rimmon. The term ^pomegranate^ is compounded of poma, apple, and gra- nata, grained, from its resemblance, when opened, to an apple full of grain. It grows wild in Palestine, and in other parts of Syria, as well as in Persia, Arabia, Egypt, and the southern parts of Europe, and in some portions of our own country. The fruit is the size of an orange, flattened at the end like an apple ; and when cultivated is of a beau- tiful color and highly grateful flavor. The rind is at first green ; but in August and September when the fruit is ripe, it assumes a brownish-red color, be- comes thick and hard, yet easily brok- en. The inside of the pomegranate is of a bright pink, with skinny partitions like those of i.he orange, filled with a subacid juice and a great multitude of white and purplish red seeds. The flower, which is of a scarlet color, is peculiarly beautiful, and it is prob- ably to the flower that allusion is had, Cant. 4. 3, where the royal bridegroom compares the cheeks of his bride to a ' piece of pomegranate,' though others 164 EXODUS. [B.C. 1491. understand by this a section of the fruit 1 an idea of the form of the fruit and itself, the cheeks being called in the flower of this plant, both which are Talniudic language, the pome g7-anat es \dimong the most striking objects of the of the face. The annexed cut will give ! vegetable world. The Pomegranate. The Pomegranate abounds more par- ticularly in Syria and the ancient As- syria, where it was held sacred and en- . tered into the symbols of the heathen worship, as is plainly to be inferred from its giving name to an idolatrous temple, 2 Kings, 5. 18, called 'the house of Rimmon,' i. e. the Pomegran- ate. In Persia the heads of sceptres and honorary staves were formed in the shape of a Pomegranate. It was also held sacred in Egypt ; and in all coun- tries where it was not to be found, the poppy, which also abounds in seeds, was chosen in its stead. Both were de- dicated by the pagans to the generative powers, their numerous seeds render- ing them an apt emblem of prolific properties. Hence at marriages the bride was crowned with a chaplet in which were inserted the flowers of pomegranates and poppies as an omen ai fruit fulness. As then the idea of fruitful increase is prominent among the symbolical notions attached to this plant and its fruit, there is perhaps ample ground for the suggestion, that this singular appurtenance to the High Priest's dress, in conjunction with the bells, was designed to intimate that the sound of the gospel should not be in vain ; that wherever the sound of the doctrine of Christ and the apostles should come, then it should bear fruit, or that churches should be gathered bringing forth the fruits of righteous- ness ; the preaching of the gospel should be the means of begetting a spiritual progeny zealous o{ good works. The remarks of Prof. Edwards are too pertinent to this point not to be cited in the present connexion. 'The golden bells on the Ephod, by their precious matter and pleasant sound do well rep- resent the good profession that the saints make ; and the pomegranates the fruit they bring forth. And as in the hem of the (robe of the) Ephod, bells and pomegranates were constantly connected, as is once and again observ- ed, — ' a golden bell and a pomegranate, a golden bell and a pomegranate' — so it is in the true saints. Their good pro- fession, and their good fruit, do con- stantly accompany one another. The fruit they bring in life answers the pleasant sound of their profession.' Treat, on Affect, Part III. p. 395. IT Of blue, purple, scarlet, &c. Al- though the body of this garment was of B. C. 1491.J CHAPTER XXVIII. \6t let, round about the hem thereof; and bells of gold between them round about : 34 A golden bell and a pomegran- ate, a golden bell and a pomegran- ate, upon the hem of the robe round about. 35 And it shall be upon Aaron, to minister: and Jiis sound shall be one uniform color, a beautiful blue, yet the skirts were ornamented with this parti-colored fringe- work, wrought somewhat like the silken balls, or ball- tassels, of modern upholstery, into the shape of the fruit here mentioned. IT Bells of gold. Of the suggesting origin of this part of the dress of the High Priest it is difficult to give any account. That bells were not unknown in the costume of the East is evident from the Tar- gum on Est. 6. 10, where Ahasuerus says to Haman * Go to my wardrobe, and take one of my best purple cloaks, and of the best silk vests, with gems at the four corners of it, and golden bells and pomegranates hanging round about.' Michaelis conjectures that the Oriental kings of that period were accustomed to wear little bells upon some part of their robes in order to give notice that that they ^yere near by, and that the people might retire. Hence perhaps the use of bells as a symbol of the rev- erence due to holy places. This idea is favored by the strong language, v. 35, where the punishment of death is threatened upon the neglect of this cere- mony ; which would seem to imply that as in the etiquette of an Eastern court, no one would rush rudely, or without some kind of annunciation, into the presence of the sovereign, so the High Priest was not to be guilty of the irrev- erence of approaching the Oracle with- out some kiad of signal of his coming. Another use of this appendage of the mantle, as inferred from Ecclus. 45, 7 9, was, that the people collected in I he court around the sanctuary might heard when he goeth in unto the holy place before the Lord, and when he cometh out, that he die not. 36 ^ And t thou shalt make a plate of pure gold, and grave upon it like the engravings of a signet, HOLmESS TO THE LORD. t oil. 39. 30. Zech. 14. 20. be admonished of the High Priest's en- trance into the Holy Place, and so unite their prayers with his incense offering, ^An everlasting covenant he made with him (Aaron), and gave him the priesthood among the people ; he beautified him with comely ornaments, and clothed him with a robe of glory. He put upon him perfect glory; and strengthened him with rich garments, with breeches, with a long robe, and the ephod. And he compassed him with pomegranates, and with many golden bells round about, that as he went there might be a sound, and a noise made that might be heard in the temple, for a memorial to the children of his peo- ple.' If this be well founded, and the sound of the bells had principal refer- ence to the people, to remind them of the proper spirit and deportment to be observed on the occasion, then it may be suggested that the phrase, ' that he die not,' is perhaps to be understood not of Aaron, but to be rendered imper- sonally, ' that one die not,' ' that there be no dying,' i. e. that no one may pre- sumptuously lay aside the becoming reverence and thus expose himself to death. The original will no doubt ad- mit of this construction, but whether it be the true one, we are not prepared to decide. THE GOLDEN PLATE AND MITRE. 36. Thou shalt make a plate of pure gold, &c. Heb. yi^Z tzitz. Gr. wraAo*', petal, leaf. Vulg. * Lamina,' plate, Arab. 'Fillet.' Luth. 'Forehead-plate.' The original word y^^J tzitz, from 166 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. f'yS tzutz, to Jlourish, is generally understood to signify a flower, and the Greek rendering petal would seem to be founded upon this sense, implying either that the plate was itself of the form of a flower, or was curiously wrought with flower-work. Such also was plainly the opinion of Josephus, who gives a minute description of the particular kind of flower or calyx which was figured upon the plate. Rosenmul- ler, however, contends that this render- ing in this place is founded upon a false interpretation of y^2Z, which does not, he says, legitimately signify a flower, nor has it any relation to flowers or flower-work, but properly denotes some- thing glistening, radiant, effulgent, and is here applied to the plate on the Mitre, from the flashing splendors which beam- ed from it. But the ideas of flourish- ing and of emitting splendor are some- what closely related in all languages, as nothing is more common with us for instance than to speak of the brightness or splendid hues of flowers, and from the usus loquendi of the term it cannot at all be questioned that the dominant sense of "^i^Z is that o{ flowers or flow- ering plants. Yet it is very possible that the two ideas of efflorescence and shining may be combined in this pas- sage, especially if we suppose, as we think was undoubtedly the case, that some kind of floral ornament was wrought upon the glistening gold plate of the Mitre. In describing the exe- cution of this order, Ex. 39. 30, it is said, * they made the plate of the holy crown (laipn "ITD y^'S tzitz n'czer hakkodesh) of pure gold,' &c., where ^T2 nizer comes from a verb signify- ing to separate, and hence denoting a crown as a mark of separation or dis- tinction. So also the original word for mitre occurs Job, 29. 14, where it is rendered ' diadem,' leading us to the inference that the sacerdotal mitre is closely allied with the kingly crown. Thus loo Lev. 8. 9, ' and he put the mitre upon his head ; also upon the mitre, even upon his fore-front, did he put the golden plate, the holy crown; as the Lord commanded Moses.' In like manner we find it said Ps. 132, 18, ' upon himself shall his crown flourish (l^TD y^'2'^ yatzitz nizro).' Here it is difficult to account for the idea of a crown's flourishing, except upon the suppostion of some kind of floral ap- pendages being connected with it in the mind of the writer ; and this might have arisen from the fact, that the earliest crown was merely a chaplet, garland, or wreath bound around the head ; or from the beautiful wrought flower-work on the priestly Mitre of Aaron. But whatever uncertainty may otherwise envelope the subject, this is clear beyond question, that the Plate was the principal part of the Mitre, and that the badges of the priestly are closely interwoven with those of the kingly dignity in the appointed vesture of the Jewish pontiff. For this fact a twofold reason may be assigned. In the first place, the entire nation of Is- rael was in a sense concentrated in the person of the High Priest, their head and representative. It was the high prerogative of this favored people to be chosen as a * royal priesthood,' a ' king- dom of priests,' and the unity of the nation, in this exalted character, was made visible in the person of him who was ordained as their supreme dignita- ry. Nothing therefore would be more natural or appropriate than that cor responding symbols or badges of this twofold distinction should appear on the head-dress of the High Priest, as we here learn to have been the fact. Indeed the Jewish tradition amplifies this idea somewhat, and affirms a three' fold dignity of their race, which they say was indicated by a triplet of crowns, viz., the crown of the priesthood, the crown of the kingdom, and the crown of the law. — Secondly, this conjunction of sacerdotal and royal symbols in the B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVIII. 167 37 And thou shalt put it on a blue I tre; upon the fore-front of the mi- lace, that it may be upon the mi- tre it shall be. Mitre was intended to serve as a typ- i was to sit as ' a prtM^ upon his throne,^ ical intimation of the union of these j being made a priest after the order of two ofRces in the person of Christ, wlio i Mclchizedek, king of righteousness. • The Golden Plate of the Mitre. ^ Like the engravings of a signet. It is probable that the Jewish writers are correct in supposing: that the letters were not cut or grooved into the plate, but were rather embossed or made to stand in relief upon it. The precise manner in which this was done, cannot at present be determined, but Maimon- ides says that in working the inscrip- tion, the instruments were applied to the inside and not to the outside of the plates, so as to make the letters stand out. IT Holiness to the Lord. Heb. mn^^ IDlp kodesh la-Yehovah, holiness to Jehovah, or the holiness of Jehovah, according to the Gr. which has aytaffya Kvpiov, the holiness, or sanctifi' cation, of the Lord. This was perhaps the most conspicuous object of the High Priest's dress, and was in fact a signif- icant memento of the character of the entire service in which he sustained so prominent a part. By this inscription the wearer became ' as a city set on a hill, which cannot be hid ;' the bright memorial incessantly, though silently, proclaiming to the eye, to the heart, to the conscience, 'a holy God, a holy ser- rice, a holy minister, a holy people, and a holy covenant.' The children of Is- rael could not look upon it without being reminded of the great principle which Jehovah would have to pervade all his worship, and which is else- where so solemnly announced, 'I will be sanctified in all them that draw nigh unto me.' And to the saints in all ages it should serve as a remem- brancer of the equivalent intimation, that as * he which hath" called us is holy, so are we to be holy in all man- ner of conversation.' 37. And thou shalt put it on a blue lace. An idiomatic expression for ' put upon it.' It was to hang by a ribbon of blue upon the Mitre, as is intimated in the words following, and as rep- resented in the cut. The Talmudists however saj', there were three ribbons, one at each ear, and one in the middle, passing over the head. We have ac- cordingly so represented it on the smaller figure in the cut, as there is no inconsistency in supposing it to have 168 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 38 Aiid it shall be upon Aaron's forehead, that Aaron may "bear u ver. 43. Lev. 10. 17. & 22. 9. Numb. 18. ). Isai. 53. 11. Ezek. 4. 4, 5, 6. John 1. 29. Ilebr. 9. 28. 1 Pet. 2. 24. been the case. IT That it may be upon the mitre. Heb. n5DiZ?2 mitzne- pheth, from C]D2I tzanaph, to wrap, to enwrap, to roll round. The term ap- plies itself at once to the style of head- dress common among the Arabs, Turks, Persians, and other Oriental nations, called the turban, and formed of a num- ber of swathes or foldings of cloth. As nothing is said of the precise form of the High Priest's Mitre, we are doubt- less at liberty to suppose it justly rep- resented in the main by an eastern tur- ban, though perhaps of more than usual amplitude. By the ancient Greeks this kind of covering for the head was called tiara, and cidaris, and sometimes dia- dema; and that it was not unusual to have it made of fine linen, as in the present case, is clear from the fact that Justin relates of Alexander the Great, the iniquity of the holy things, which the children of Israel shall hallow in all their holy gifts; and it shall be always upon his fore- that he took the diadem from his head to bind up the wounds of Lysimachus. From these titles we perceive new evidence that the priestly Mitre car- ried at the same time a kingly import ; and it is even supposed that the in- veterate predilection of the Orientals for the turban arises from the belief of some mystic virtue emblematic of sovereignty still clinging to it. The Mitre of Aaron merely covered the crown and upper part of the head with- out descending low upon the forehead, which was left bare for the golden Plate to lie upon it below the edge of the Mitre. In this respect the Mitre of the High Priest differed from the bonnets of the common priests, which having no plate sunk lower on the forehead. In other points the general resemblance was very striking. The High Priest's Mitre. S8. That Aaron may bear the iniquity, &c. The implication plainly is, that there might be, unconsciously perhaps to the offerers, some defects in the oblations presented, which were gra- ciously pardoned — a frequent sense of borne or carried in the Scriptures— by the intercession of the High Priest ap- pearing before God perfectly attired and crowned in the manner presented. The efficacy, however, of this inter- mediation on the part of Aaron appears to be in some way more especially con- centrated in this resplendent inscribed plate upon his forehead, and this we think can only be understood by refer. B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVIII. 169 head, that they may be w accepted before the Lord. 39 If And thou shalt embroider wLev. 1. 4.&22. 27. &23. ll.Isai. 56. 7. ence to the typical character which the High Priest sustained. Christ, we well know, is represented as ' bearing the sins,' i. e. the punishment due to the sins of men. Aaron in his office was a type of Christ, and accordingly is rep- resented not only as making an atone- ment in general for the sins of the peo- ple, by the sacrifices offered, but also as making an atonement for the imper- fections of the atonement itself. Tiiis was done, it appears, by what we may term the memorial and typical virtue of the shining plate of the Mitre, upon the inscription of which God is sup- posed to look and thereby be reminded of that perfect ' holiness to the Lord' which should so preeminently distin- guish the great Mediator whom Aaron represented. The following passages must be taken in this connexion in order fully to convey the import of the lan- guage, Ps. 84. 9, 'Behold, O God our shield, and look upon the face of thine anointed: Ps. 132. 9, 10, < Let thy priests be clothed with righteousness ; I the coat of fine linen, and thou shalt make the mitre of fine linen, and thou siialt make the girdle of needle-work. and let thy saints shout for joy. For thy servant David's sake, turn not away the face of thine anointed.'' i. e. be propitious by looking upon the face ; regard the significance of the goldea plate. The prayers embracing this ex- pression appear to have a special allu- sion to the imperfections of the holy things of the people of God. THE COAT OR TUNIC. 39. Thou shalt embroider the coat of fine linen, &c. Heb. tl^nS kethoneth. This was the innermost of the sa- cerdotal vestments, being a long robe with sleeves to the wrists, which sat close to the body, and extended down to the feet. This garment was not pe- culiar to the High Priest, but was sim- ilar to that worn by the other priests while officiating. What became of the tunic of the High Priests we do not know ; but that of the common priests was unravelled when old, and made into wicks for the lamps burnt in the feast of tabernacles. Thx Coat, or Tunic. Vol. II 15 170 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491 40 1[ * And for Aaron's sons thou shah make coats, and thou shalt make for them girdles, and bonnets shalt thou make for them, for glory and for beauty. 41 And thou shalt put them upon xver. 4. ch. 39.27, 28,29, 41. Ezek.44. 17. 18. THE GIRDLE. IT Girdle of needle-work. Heb. tj!3i!^ abnet. This was a piece of fine twined linen, embroidered with blue, purple, and scarlet, and which went round the body. Josephus says it was embroider- ed with flowers ; and also stales that it was four fingers broad, and that, after being wound twice around the body, it was fastened in front, and the ends al- lowed to hang down to the feet, on common occasions; but that, when offi- ciating at the altar, the priest threw them over his left shoulder. Maimoni- Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him: and shalt y anoint them, and z consecrate them, and sanctify them, that they may minister un- to me in the priest's office. y ch. 29. 7. & 30. 30. & 40. 15. -^ cU. 29. 9, &c. Lev. ch. 8. Hebr. 7. 28. des says the Girdle was three fingers broad, and thirty-two cubits long ; be- ing, as its length necessarily implies, wound many times round the body. As this Girdle was so narrow, its length, if this statement be correct, will not seem extraordinary to those who are acquainted with the ordinary length of Oriental girdles, and the number of times they are carried around the body. The Girdle was worn over the embroid- ered coat by the common priests, to whom this coat, unlike the attire of the i High Priest, formed the outer garment. The Girdle. THE BONNETS. 40. Bonnets. Heb. m5'^3?2 mig- haoth. Gr. KiSapeii, tiaras. Vulg. 'Tia- ras.' As a difierent term is used to designate the article here mentioned from that which is applied to the Mitre of the High Priest, there was probably some difference in the form ; but what it was precisely it is difficult to say. According to the Jewish writers the Bonnets came down lower upon the forehead than the Mitre, and rose up liigher like an hillock, as the original is derived from 5^3 geba, a hillock, a knoll. In other words they were of a more conical shape than the Mitre. B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXVIII. 171 42 And thou shalt make them a linen breeches to cover their na- kedness : from the loins even unto the thighs they shall reach: 43 Arid they shall be upon Aaron, and upon his sons, when they come in unto the tabernacle of the con- a ch. 39. 28. Lev. 6. 10. & 16. 4. Ezek. 44. 13. This, however, does not convey a very distinct idea, and we must refer the reader to the accompanying cut for a view, which is at best conjectural, of the probable difference between them. IT For glory and for beauty. No- thing is more obvious than that the priestly attire was to be so ordered as to present an air of impressive splendor and gorgeousness, that a becoming rev- erence might be inspired towards the persons of those who wore them. But to us, they present merely a gaudy spectacle, a showy pageant, except so far as we fix our eye upon their typ- gregation, or when they come near b unto the altar to minister in the holy place ; that they c bear not in- iquity and die. ^ It shall be a stat- ute for ever unto him, and his seed after him. b ch. 20. 26. c Lev. 5. 1. 17. & 20. 19, 20. & 22.9. Numb. 9. 13. & 18.22. d di. 27. 21. Lev. 17. 7. ical import. Here, and here only, in the glory of grace and the beauty of holiness, which they shadowed forth, do we behold the true glory and beauty of these sacred robes. It is only as the light of the substance is reflected upon the symbol, that the symbol itself can at all shine in our eyes. But when we discern in these beauteous robes an image of the spiritual attire of the saints, the true royal hierarchy, who are made at once kings and priests unto God, we feel no restraint in letting our j admiration go forth towards the exter- 1 nal adornments. The Bonnets. THE LINEN DRAWERS. 42. Thou shalt make them linen breeches. Heb. ^D *iDDl3?2 m,iknes'e had; more properly linen drawers, which though last mentioned were the first put on. 'The ancient Jews, like the modern Arabs and some other Ori- entals, did not generally wear drawers or trowsers. Maimonides says that the drawers worn by the priests reached from above the navel to the knee, and had no opening before or behind, but were drawn Up around the body by strings, like a purse. This resembles the linen drawers worn by the Turks and Persians at the present day, ex- 172 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. eept that they reach rather below the tight around the body by means of a knee. They are very wide altogether^ , string or girdle, which runs through a and when drawn on are fastened very | hem in the upper border.' Fict. Bible. The Drawers. In concluding this account of the priestly robes, it may be useful to re- peat that the robes common to all were — the Drawers, the Embroidered Coat, the Girdle, and the Turban ; but, besides this, the High Priest wore the Ephod, the Robe of the Ephod with its Bells and Pomegranates, the Breast-plate over the Ephod, the Shoulder-pieces of onyx-stone, and the engraved ornament of pure gold in front of his turban. The Rabbins seem to have the sanction of the Scripture for their opinion, that the robes were so essential a part of the priestly character, that without them a priest had no more right than private persons, or even foreigners, to officiate at the altar. It seems that the old robes of the priests, as already men- tioned in the Note on v. 39, v/ere un- ravelled, to be burnt as wicks for the lamps at the feast of tabernacles. What was done with those of the High Priest is not known ; but analogy would seem to render it probable that they were similarly used for the lamps in the tab- ernacle. We may remark also that as no shoes or sandals are mentioned among the sacred vestments, it is sup- posed the priests always ministered barefoot. This is perhaps confirmed by the fact that Moses, before the symbol of Jehovah at the burning bush, was commanded to put off his shoes. 43. That they bear not iniquity and die. That is, that they do not expose themselves to be cut off by a sudden stroke of vengeance for the profanity of appearing before God without their holy garments. Gr. kui ovk erra^ovTai TTpos iavTOVS a[iapTiav, iva jxri arrodavixiaif and they shall not bring sin upon theni' selves that they die not. This caution, as the Hebrew writers have gathered, was intended to apply not to the linen drawers only, but to all the garments. Their language is as follows : * The High Priest that ministereth with less than these eight garments, or the in- ferior Priest that ministereth with less than these four garments, his service is unlawful, and he is guilty of death by the hand of God, even as a stranger that ministereth. When their garments are upon them, their priesthood is upon them ; if their garments be not upon B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIX. 173 CHAPTER XXIX. AND this is the thing that thou shalt do unto them to hallow them, to minister unto me in the them, their priesthood is not upon them, but, lo, they are as strangers ; and it Is written. Num. 1. 51, 'The stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death.' ' Maimonides in Ainsworth. CHAPTER XXIX. THE CONSECRATION OF THE miESTS. As God had said, v. 41, of the pre- ceding chapter respecting Aaron and his sons, 'Thou shalt anoint them and consecrate them aud sanctify them, that they may minister unto me in the priest's office,' he proceeds in the present chap- ter to prescribe, with great minuteness, the manner in which this solemn cere- mony should be performed. As the office which they were to sustain was in itself one of the utmost importance to themselves and the people, it was proper that the mode of their induction into it should be in the highest degree august and impressive ; and as nothing ot the kind had been done before, and as a permanent form of inauguration was now to be fixed upon, we see abundant reason for the express appointment of the various ceremonies by which the procedure was to be marked. These were of such a nature as was calculated to affect the incumbents with the great- ness and sacredness of the work to which they were called, and also to lead the people to magnify and rever- ence an office in which their interests were so deeply involved. The whole transaction was to be so conducted that there should be ample evidence that Aaron and his sons did not ' glorify themselves to be made priests,' but that they were ' called of God' to exercise the sacerdotal functions. The Most High did, as it were, in this ceremony put his hand upon them, distinguish 15» priest's office: a Take one young bullock, and two rams without blemish, a Lev. 8.2. them from common men, set them apart from common services, and make them the fixed organ of communication be- tween himself and the chosen race. ' The consecration of God was upon their heads.' But while they were thus made to feel that they were invested with an office of the highest sanctity, and one in which they were to expiate the sins of the people by typical sacri- fices, they were not suffered to forget that they also were themselves sinners, and needed an expiation as much as any of those for whom they ministered. Accordingly the very first step in the ceremony of consecration was the pro- viding of a bullock, rams, &c., as a sin- offering for themselves, to keep them perpetually reminded of the fact that the ' law made men priests that had in- firmity, who needed first to offer up sacri- fices for their own sins, and then for the people's,' Heb. 7. 27, 28. The typical reference of the office itself to the Savior Jesus Christ, the Messiah or Anointed One, the great High Priest of the Church, is very obvious, although those parts of the consecrating cere- mony which implied sinful infirmity in its subjects could have no bearing in re- lation to him who was in himself 'holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sin- ners, and made higher than the heavens.' He needed not to be sanctified by the blood of rams and bullocks, or made perfect by the death of others, inas- much as he has by his one offering ol himself upon the cross satisfied for ever all the demands of the law upon him- self and his believing people. 1. And this is the thing that thou shalt do. Heb. lilH haddabar, the tvord. Gr. kui ravra sariv, and these are the things. See Note on Gen. 15. 1. IT To hallow them. Heb. ITJlpb .^4 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 2 And t> unleavened bread, and cakes unleavened tempered with bLev. 2. 4. &6. 20, 21, 22. tnjJ^ lekadd'esh otham, to sanctify them, to set them apart. This is here a term denoting that general consecration to the priestly office which is expanded in fuller detail in the sequel of the chap- ter. The subsequent expression ' con- secrate,' V. 9, 29, has respect rather to one particular part of the ceremonies enjoined on the occasion. IT To minister in the priesVs office. This is expressed in Hebrew by the single term '^HlD^ lekah'en, from 'p'O koh'en, a priest, and signifying literally to act the priest, to discharge the priest- ly functions. See Note on Ex. 28. 1. IT Take one young bullock. Heb. •^pi ^2 ItliH. 'nS par chad ben bakar, one bullock a son (i. e. a youngling) of the herd. The Heb. '^'D par, from which comes the German ' Fane,' a young bull, a bullock, is a generic term equiv- alent to the Lat. ' pullus,' a foal, de- noting the young of cattle, and yet not at the youngest age. It is perhaps most properly rendered, as here, by bullock, as is the fern. H'^ii parah by heifer'. Gr. ^xo(y')(^apiov ek Pomi', n youngling or calf of the oxen. Some of the Hebrew doc- tors suppose that lp'2 ']'2 ben bakar im- plies a bullock of not less than three years old ; but this cannot be made to appear, though it doubtless denotes one that has been sometime weaned. IT Without blemish. Heb. ti^Z^TZlTi te- mimim, perfect; i. e. witliout defect, superfluity, or deformity. The animal and the other articles mentioned in this connexion were to be the first which were to be provided, but they were not to be used till various other prelimin- ary ceremonies, such as washing, rob- ing, &c., had been performed. In fact the consecration itself here ordered did not take place till after the tabernacle was erected. See Lev. 8. 9. 10. 2. Unleavened bread, and cakes, &c. oil, and wafers unleavened annoint- ed with oil : o/wheaten flour shall thou make them. It is important to bear in mind, in re- ference to the Jewish ritual generally, that the ideas of sacrificing and of feasting are very intimately related to each other. We are doubtless much in the habit of regarding the offerings of the Mosaic law as pertaining wholly to one party, and as a purely expiatory act on the part of the offerer, in which nothing of amutual nature was implied. But the truth is, these sacrifices actual- ly partook more or less of the character of a mutual entertainment , for with the exception of the holocaust, or whole' burnt-offering, and of certain parts which were ofiered and consumed upon the altar, the rest were eaten by the offer- ers and the priests, and this fact will ac- count for some of the oblations consist- ing of articles which were and always have been articles of diet. The Most High could not be expected of course to make a party at a literal table, but at the same time such viands as would be set upon a table might be offered to him^ and the fire of his altar as his repre- sentative might consume them. Con- sidering therefore the character and re- lation of the parties, the disposal of the sacrificial offerings came as near perhaps to the semblance of a mutual feast as the nature of the case would allow. If this view of the subject be admitted, it will account for the re- quirement of such offerings on the pres- sent occasion as unleavened cakes and wafers mingled with oil. In our ordin- ary meals fiesh and bread go together ; and so in the present case, although the ram was to be a holocaust, yet the bul- lock was to be part offered and part eaten, constituting with its annexed meat or meal-offering, the matter of an entertainment in which God and they might feast together in token of friend- sliip and fellowship. In this there wa.i B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIX. 175 3 And thou shalt put them into one basket, and bring them in the basket, with the bullock and the two ranis. 4 And Aaron and his sons thou shalt bring unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, c and shalt wash them with water. c ch. 40. 12. Lev. 8. 6. Hebr. 10. 22. a distinct allusion to the prevalent cus- tom in the East of ratifying every im- portant covenant transaction by an en- tertainment of which the covenanting parties partook together. In like man- ner, the Lord's supper is often properly- represented as a feast upon a sacrifice. While it commemorated the sacrifice made by the death of the divine victim it betokened at the same time the pa- cification and covenant fellowship of Christ and his followers. The vegeta- ble offering here prescribed as an ac- companiment to the animal sacrifice constituted a nn3)2 minhah or mincha, as it is usually termed, of the nature of which see Note on Gen. 4. 3. The two first, the bread and the cakes, were mixed with oil (i. e. oil of olives) be- fore baking ; the last, the wafers, were merely smeared with oil after they were baked. The original term for 'wafers' C'^p'^p'l rekikim comes from pp^ ra- kak, to be or to be made thin, and is applied to signify a thin kind of cakes similar to what are known among us by the name of 'pan-cakes.' The Ital. version has ' fritella' fritters. These were all to be put into a basket as con- stituting one nro)3 minhah or bread- offering, and brought along with the bullock and the rams to the door of the tabernacle, and there presented to the Lord. 4. Shalt bring unto the door of the tabernacle. To the open space in the court in front of the tabernacle, and near the entrance. It was here that the altar and the laver stood, and where all the ordinary sacrificial services were 5 d And thou shalt take the gar- ments, and put upon Aaron the coat, and the robe of the ephod, and the ephod, and the breast- plate, and gird him with e the cu- rious girdle of the ephod : 6 f And thou shalt put the mitre d ch. 28. 2. Lev. 8. 7. e ch. 28. 8. t Lev 8.9. performed. Moreover, as God was pleased to dwell by his Shekinah in the tabernacle, and the people attended in the court, it was peculiarly appro- priate that those who were to act as mediators between these two parties should be consecrated in some inter- vening spot between them ; and such a spot was here appointed where the sa- cerdotal daysman might, as it were, ' lay his hand upon both.' IT Shalt wash them with water. That is, with the water of the laver, which was made, anointed, and set in the court of the tabernacle before the priests were con- secrated. It is reasonably supposed, though not expressly asserted, that on this occasion their whole bodies were washed, whereas at other times when engaged in their ministrations they on- ly washed their hands and feet ; and to this our Savior perhaps alludes, John, 13. 10, 'He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit.' The object of this preliminary oblation cannot well be mistaken. It was emblematical of that inward spir- itual cleansing which so obviously be- comes those who minister in holy things. ' Be ye clean that bear the vessels of the Lord,' is the fixed de- cree of heaven. 5. Thou shalt take the garments, &c. The entire person having duly under- gone the prescribed ablution, the next step was the putting on the priestly garments so particularly described in the preceding chapter. By this was im- plied that not only were they to put away the impurities of the flesh, but to 176 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. upon his head, and put the holy crown upon the mitre. 7 Then shalt thou take the an- clothe themselves also with the graces of the Spirit, significantly shadowed forth by the splendid robes in which they were to officiate. The original word for ' gird' is HSi^ aphad, to bind, girdle, enclose, from which 'Ephod' is a derivative. The act of girding seems to denote readiness and preparation for active service. So the ministers of Christ, prompt to do his will, are sym- bolically represented, Rev. 15. 6, by * angels coming out of the temple cloth- ed in pure and white linen, and having their breasts girded with golden girdles J IT The holy crown. That is, the plate of gold with the blue lace above mentioned, Ex. 28. 36, 37. It is here called "^tD nezer, separation, from its being a bad^e of the wearer being sep- arated from his brethren. It is else- where used as a denomination of the diadems of kings, 2 Sam. 1. 19. Ps. 89. 40. The mention of the linen drawers is here omitted, because they were put on privately before they came to the more public vestry at the door of the tabernacle. 7. Thou shalt then take the anoint- ing oil, &c. Heb. nn'I^^n "p'^ she- men hammishshah, oil of unction; the peculiar mode of compounding which for sacred purposes is afterwards de- tailed, Ex. 30. 23—33. This was per- haps the most important, because the most significant, part of the ceremony of the consecration. As the High Priest was a type of Christ, whatever part of the ceremonies represented the most eminent endowments and attributes of the great Antitype were certainly of paramount import to all others. Now the ineffable sanctity of the Savior, the measureless possession of the gifts and graces the Holy Spirit conferred upon him, was one of those divine qualifi- ointing g oil, and pour it upon his head, and anoint him. S ch. 28. 41. & 30. 35. Lev. 8. 12. & 10, 7, & 21. 10. Num. 35. 25. cations which went preeminently to constitute the greatness, the fitness, and glory of his sacerdotal character ; and so far as the communication of this plenary gift of the Spirit could be shadowed forth by any physical act, it was done by the process of anointing. Thus, Is. 61. 1, 'The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord hath anointed me to preach,' &c. Indeed it is from the import of this act that our Lord receives his most familiar desig- nation. The Heb. term for anoint is nm^Q mashah, from which comes n"''I!J^ mashiah or Messiah. Greek XpiaTog, Christ, i. e. the Anointed One, the pre- eminent and distinguishing appellation of the Savior of men. The consecration of the High Priest to his office was a type of that of Christ, and of this the pouring out of the holy oil was a most beautiful emblem. As oil insinuates it- self into and diffuses itself over the body to which it is applied, so the divine nature, the informing Spirit of God, possessed wholly the human person of Jesus, communicating to him all those attributes and perfections which ex- alted the ' name of Jesus above every name,' and qualified him to act as Mediator between God and man. In the consecration of the Aaronic order, the inferior priests were only sprinkled with this oil mixed with the blood of the sacrifice, but in the unction of tb? High Priest the oil was so copiously poured forth as to ' run down upon the beard, and even to the skirts of his gar- ments.' It was like ' the dew of Her- mon,' says the Psalmist, 'descending upon the mountains of Zion.' This was because it pointed to him who received the Spirit ' without measure.' He was ' anointed with the oil of gladness above his fellows ;' i. e. above those who pos- B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIX. 177 8 And h thou shalt bring his sons, i put the bonnets on them; and i the and put coats upon them. ! priest's office shall be theirs for a 9 And thou shalt gird them with \ perpetual statute : and thou shalt girdles (Aaron and his sons) and k consecrate Aaron and his sons. h Lev. 8. 13. sessed with him a. fellowship or similar- ity of office J as types of himself. Aaron was anointed high priest ; Saul was anointed king ; Elisha was anointed prophet ; Melchizedek, king and priest ; Moses, priest and prophet ; David, king and prophet : yet none was ever anoint- ed to the joint possession of all these dignities together save the Christ of God, the antitype of them all. Chris- tians derive the name of Christians from their profession of Christ, and the nature and character oi Christians from their union to Christ. It is their pe- culiar privilege and distinguishing joy, ' to have the unction from the Holy One, and to know all things,' that are necessary for them to know. As the oil which was poured upon Aaron was so copiously effused as to run down to the ' skirts of his clothing,' so the unc- tion of the Holy One was so abundant, that from him as the Head, it ever has and ever will run down to the mean- est and weakest believers. And this * anointing which they receive of him, abideth in them, and teacheth them.' What distinguished honor then, what strong consolation, pertain to them, who are made one with Christ, and who feel the heavenly influences of his Spirit in their souls ! They obtain a life from him with which they were not born ; and which because it is his life can never be destroyed ! 8. And thou shalt bring. Heb. i'^lptl takrib, shalt bring near, shalt cause to approach. But whether the term is to be understood in a general sense of their being set apart or devoted to the service of God, or more strictly of their being brought near to the door of the Taber- nacle, where these consecration-cere- I i Num. 18. Ilebr. 7. 28. kch. 23. 41. Lev. 8.22. &c. monies were to be performed, is not certain. They were to be immediately robed in their sacred garments, as the anointing rite Avas to be confined to Aaron as High Priest. These garments were the drawers or breeches, the coat, the girdle, and the bonnet. The first two were like those of the High Priest. The bonnet was probably the same as the mitre worn by the high priest with the slight difference before mentioned. The girdles of the inferior priests were of the same form as that of the high priest ; but less costly and of less ele- gant texture. These four garments were of linen, such as were worn by the Egyptian priests as emblems of inno- cence. Cicero has observed from Plato, that ' white is a color peculiarly becom- ing the Deity.' 9. Put bonnets on them. Heb. rilU^n on J habashta lahem, shalt bind to them; a phraseology adapted to the act of wrapping a head-dress upon one, where- as our term 'put' is more obviously conformed to the usages with Avhich we are familiar in loosely and lightly covering the head with a cap, hat, or bonnet. IT For a perpetual statute. Heb. t]in3> t^pn^ lehukkath olam, for a statute of eternity; i. e. they shall enjoy that office in uninterrupted suc- cession as long as the Aaronical Priest- hood itself continued. IT Thou shalt consecrate Aaron and his sons. This, as we have before remarked, is not the term for the general act of consecration here described, but for a particular ceremony forming a part of it. The original is *Ti tMHib'n milletha yad, thou shalt fill the hand of Aaron and his sons ; an expression alluding to the fact of sotT)e part of tlie sacrifice being put 178 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 10 And thou shall cause a bullock to be brought before the tabernacle of the congregation; and i Aaron 1 Lev. 1. 4. & 8. 14. into their hands to be waved and then borne to the altar. As sacrificing was a very prominent part of the sacerdotal office, this was a ceremony strikingly significant of the nature of the functions which they were called to discharge ; and as it was the first or initiating action that marked their entrance upon the performance of the priestly services, the idea of consummation or perfection is attached to it, for which reason it is rendered in English by the term conse- crate, as if it were the crowning cere- mony of the whole. So also the Gr. TfXctajceij Aapojv rag ^etpag avrov, kui Tag ^eipag royv 'viwv avrov^ thou shalt consummate, or perfect, the hands of Aaron and the hands of his sons; i.e. thou shalt do to him, through the me- dium of his hands, tliat wliich shall be virtually the perfecting act of investi- ture upon his person. Arab. 'Thou shalt complete, or perfect, the glory of Aaron and the glory of his sons.' According- ly in allusion to this the apostle, Heb. 7. 28, says, 'The law makelh men high priests which have infirmity ; but the word of the oath, which was since the law, maketh the son who is consecrated {rercXEiwuevov perfected) for evermore. The allusion is probably the same in other cases where the term ' perfect' is applied to Christ, implying an official instead of personal perfection, or in other words that fulness of endowment, and that completeness of initiation, which so signally marked the preemin- ence of his mediatorial character. The usage which elsewhere obtains in re- gard to the Hebrew phrase may serve to give a still clearer view of its import in this connexion, 1 Chron. 29. 3, 5, ' I have prepared for the holy house — the gold for things of gold, and the silver and his sons shall put their hands upon the head of the bullock. 11 And thou shalt kill the bullock before the Lord, hy the door of the tabernacle of the conffre^ation. for things of silver, and for all manner of work to be made by the hands of artificers. And who then is willing to consecrate his service (TT^ rii^^DTS^ lemalloth yado, to fill his hands) this day unto the Lord.' This is obviously an exhortation to a liberal giving to a sacred purpose ; and whoever pro- poses to make a donation takes his gift in his hand, and the larger it is, the more is his hand filled with it. Again, Ex. 32. 28, 29, 'And the chil- dren of Levi did according to the word of Moses ; and there fell of the people that day about three thousand men. For Moses had said. Consecrate yourselves (QiT^ 1i\^^ milu yedkem, fill your hands) to day to the Lord, even every man upon his son and upon his brother.' This was a kind of initiating or inau' gurating act on the part of the tribe of Levi — a specimen of such thorough- going obedience to the divine mandate as to amount to an installing of them- selves in the official dignity to which they were destined. It is easy to per- ceive from all this the true force of the expression. 'The filling of the hands,' says Rab. Solomon, ' is nothing else than an initiation when one enters up- on any business that he may be con- firmed in it from that day forward.' In a somewhat like manner it is said to have been formerly customary in the English church, when a minister was ordained, for the Bishop to put into his hand a Bible indicative of the nature of the work upon which he had now en- tered, and of which his hands, as well as his head and his heart, were to he full. The Bullock for a Sin-offering. 10. And thou shalt cause a bullock to be brought, &c. The due completion B. C. U9i.] CHAPTEH XXIX. 179 12 And thou m slialt take of the blood of the bullock, and put it I" Lev. 8. 15. upon >' the horns of the altar with thy finger, and pour all the blood beside the bottom of the altar. of the various ceremonies above de- scribed was followed by the oblation of their sacrifices for Aaron and his sons ; (1.) A sin-offering ; (2.) A burnt-offer- ing; (3.) A peace-offering. Tlie sin- offering, which here consisted of a bul- lock, was a kind of expiation by which they were first of all to be purified. By the ceremony of putting their hands upon the head of the victim was signi- fied, (1.) that the offerer had need of a sacrifice to atone for his sins ; (2.) that he symbolically transferred his sins to the victim; (3.) that he confided in faith and hope that although he deserv- ed himself to die, yet the death of the animal, which he thus devoted to God, would be accepted as an expiation for his sins, so as to avert from him the punishment which they had righteously incurred. The same ceremony of im- position of hands was enjoined upon every one who brought a sacrifice for his sins. Lev. 4. 24, 29, and the manner of it, as practised by the Jews, is thus particularly described by Maimonides in his Treatise on the Sacrificial Offer- ings ; 'There is no imposing of hands but in the court. If he lay on hands without, he must lay them on again within. None may impose hands but a clean person. In the place where hands are imposed, there they kill the beast immediately after the imposition. He that imposeth must do it with all his might, with both his hands upon the beast's head, not upon the neck or sides ; and there may be nothing be- tween his hands and the beast. If the sacrifice be of the most holy things, it standeth on the north side (as Lev. 1. 11.), with the face to the west; the imposer standeth eastward with his face to the west, and layeth his two hands between the two horns, and con- n ch. 27. 2. & 30. 2. fesseth sin over the sin-offering and trespass over the trespass-offering, &c., and saith, < I have sinned ; I have com- mitted iniquity; I have trespassed, and done thus and thus, and do return by repentance before thee, and with this I make atonement,' ' And what could more strikingly represent the fact that, in the economy of redemption, the sins of men are imputed to Christ, * upon whom the Lord hath laid the iniquity of us all,' Is. 53. 6 — 8. With this solemn rite before us, how evangelic and happy the familiar strain of the Christian psalmist ; My faith would lay her hand On that dear head of thine, While like a penitent I stand, And there confess my sin. My soul looks back to see The burden thou didst bear, When hanging on the cursed tree, And hopes her guilt was there. 11. And thou shalt kill the bullock before the Lord. That is before tho Shekinah. ' Thou shalt kill' is doubt- less equivalent to ' thou shalt cause to have killed.' It is not necessary to sup- pose that Moses, who was not strictly a priest, killed the bullock in person. 12. Put it on the horns of the altar. The first sin-offering diflered from those ordinarily presented by the priests, in which the blood was carried into the Tabernacle, and applied to the horns oi the golden altar of incense. Lev. 4. 3, 7, whereas in the present instance the blood was put upon the horns of the braz- en altar of burnt-offering which stood ia the court. But the design of this first oblation was to make atonement for the altar itself, and to sanctify it, that it might afterward be fit to sanctify the 180 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 13 And o thou shalt take all the the two kidneys, and the fat that fat that covereth the inwards, and the caul that is above the liver, and o Lev. 3. 3. offerings of the people laid upon it, as is iutimated v. 36, 37, and siill more plainly taught, Ezek. 43. 25, 26. Be- sides this, the ceremony did not in this respect differ at this time from that ob- served by common persons, inasmuch as Aaron and his sons did not become full priests till the period of their seven days' consecration was ended. — IT And pour all the blood. That is, all the rest of the blood. IT Beside the bottom of the altar. Where there was a trench into which the blood of the sacrifices was poured. 13. The fat that covereth the in- wards. By the fat that covereth the inwards is meant the thin fatty mem- brane extended over the intestines, call- ed in Lev. 9. 19, simply ' that which covereth;' and technically denominated the omenturn — supposed to have been so called from the fact that the heathen diviners derived the good or bad omens from the observation of this part of the animal. Although in many instances the ' fat' is said to denote the best or choicest part of any thing, as is ob- served upon Gen. 4. 4, yet in other cases it is evidently used as equivalent to that which is evil, from the fact that fatness is naturally understood to imply an obtuseness of sensibility. Thus it is said of the wicked, Ps, 119. 70, ' Their heart is as fat as grease.' So Deut. 32. 15, 'But Jeshurun waxed fat and kick- ed ; thou art waxen fat, thou art grown thick, thou art covered with fatness; then he forsook God which made him.' Again, Is. 6. 10, 'Make the heart of this people fat, &c., lest they under- stand,' &c. The ' fat' therefore, as a signal of man's corruption, God ordered to be consumed with fire on the altar, teachmg perhaps the necessity of the mortification of our earthly members is upon them, and burn thern upon the altar. by the work of the Spirit of Christ.— — If The caul that is above the liver. Het I3^n ^3? n^fi"' yothereth al hakkabed the redundance of the liver. Gr. rot \o(Sqv top /JTraro?, the lobe of the liver f I.e. the greater lobe of the liver, which, although a part of the Jiver itself, may very properly be rendered ' the lobe over or by the liver.' As the gall-blad- der is attached to this part of the liver it is probably to be included in the pre- cept of consumption. Parkburst re- marks } 'If the great excellence of this billious juice, and its importance to the well-being of the animal, together with its influence and instrumentality in the passions, both concupiscible and irasci- ble, are duly considered^ we shall see the reasons why the gall-bladder was especially ordered by God to be taken off and consumed on the altar.' Of the moral design of this part of the Jewish ritual the early Jewish commentators say; 'Therefore the kidneys and the fat which is on them, and the caul that covereth the liver, were burnt unto God to make atonement for the sins of men,, which proceedeth out of the thoughts of the reinS; and the lust of the liver, and the fatness of the heart, for they all consent in sin.' IT And burn them upon the altar. Heb. DltJpn hiktarta^ burn. The original here is not the word usually employed to signify con- suming by fire. The Heb, 'I'Dp katar, in its native import, implies the mak- ing a fume by incense, and when ap- plied to sacrifices denotes the rising up of their smoke as the vapor of incense, from their peculiar acceptableness to him to whom they were offered. From the same root comes n^t2p)2 miktoreth, a censer, an instrument for fuming in- cense; and in the participle "ItSpD nik- tar, perfumed, we trace the origin of B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIX. 181 14 But p the flesh of the bullock, and his skin, and his dung shalt thou bum with fire without the camp : it es a sin-ofTering. P Lev, 4. II, 12, 21. Ileb. 13. 11. the classic Nectar, the fabled beverage of the gods, from their inhaling the per- fumed odor of incense as if it were a delightful drink. It was probably to convey a somewhat similar idea that the word is employed in the present connexion, viz., tliat these bloody sa- crifices, rightly and reverently present- ed, were as acceptable as if they had been an offering of incense. 14. But the flesh, &c., shalt thou burn with fire without the camp. Here the word for ' burning' is intirely different from that in the former verse, imply- ing a consumption by a strong fire and excluding the idea of that grateful incense-like odor which was conveyed by the sacrifice of the fat. It appears to have been ordained with a view to inspire a greater detestation of sin in those sustaining the priestly office. The language of the actioi* was, 'Let all iniquity he far from them that bear the vessels of the Lord.' In the case of a sin-offering for the prince or any other person, this usage of burning without the camp was not observ- ed, but as the iniquities of the priests were of a more heinous character, a corresponding brand of reprobation was stamped upon them by this enactment. It was doubtless with a view to indicate that Christ was made a sacrifice under circumstances of the greatest possible ignominy that the apostle, Heb. 13. 12, 13, alludes to this precept of the law; 'Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate. Let us go forth, therefore, unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach.' IT It is a sin-offering. Heb. Jsiin tlit'cn hat- tath hu, it is a sin. This strong lan- guage implied that it must be treated Vor. II. 16 15 H q Thou shalt also take one ram ; and Aaron and his sons shall r put their hands upon the head of the ram. qLev. 8. 18. rLev. 1.4,— 9. with abhorrence and consumed by the fire, as if it were sin itself. Judging from the usage of the Greek it would seem that the phrase is accurately enough translated, but the expression throv.'s a decided light upon the em- I)hatic language of the apostle, 2 Cor. 5. 21 , ' Christ was made sin for us, who knew no sin ; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.' The Ram for a Burnt-offering. 15. Thou shalt also take one ram. That is, one of the two commanded to be taken, v. 1. The remark of Rabbi Levi ben Gerson respecting the design of these several victims may here be appropriately given. 'It is proper to notice the order in which these sacri- fices were offered. For first of all an atonement for sins v;as made by the sin-offering j of which nothing but the fat was offered to God (to whom be praise) ; because the offerers were not yet worthy of God's acceptance of a gift and present from them. But after they had been purified, to indicate their be- ing devoted to the sacred office, they immolated to God (to whom be praise) a holocaust, which was entirely con- sumed upon the alter. And after the holocaust they offered a sacrifice re- sembling a peace-offering, of which part used to be given to God, part to the priests, and part to the offerers, and which was to indicate their being now received into favor with God, so as to use one common table with him.' Outram. To this we may add, that the ram was ivholly burnt to the honor of God, in token of the dedication of them- selves wholly to God and to his service, as living sacrifices, kindled with the fire and ascending in the flame of holy 182 EXODIJS. [B. C. 1491. 16 And thou shalt slay die ram, and thou shalt take his blood, and sprinkle it round about upon the altar. 17 And thou shalt cut the ram in pieces, and AVash the inwards of him, and his legs, and put them un- to his pieces, and unto his head. 18 And thou shalt burn the whole ram upon the altar: it is a burnt- ofiering unto the Lord: it is a 9 sweet savour, an offering made by fire unto the Lord. sGen. 8. 21. love. IT Shall put their hands upon the head, &c. The general import of this action was always the same, viz., to indicate the sinfulness of the offer- ers, and to prefigure the vicarious suf- ferings of Christ, the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. It was done on the present occasion, though the ram offered was a rain of consecration, to convey the same impressive lesson that it ordinarily did to those concerned. Upon the priests' initiation into their office they were to be taught the full significancy of the various sacrifices which they were henceforth to be em- ployed in offering. 16. Shalt take his blood, and sprinkle it, &c. As nothing is said of any other disposition of any part of the blood, we may suppose it was all to be sprinkled about the altar ; or, as others conjec- ture, poured on the altar round about, to be consumed or ' licked up' by the fire along with the flesh. IS. It is a sweet savor. Heb. TT'^ miT^D reha nihovah, a savor of rest; i. e. an appeasing odor, from its sup- posed efficacy in quieting and pacify- ing the divine displeasure, and render- ing the offerer acceptable. Chal. 'That it may be received with favorable ac- ceptation.' Gr. en najxr)v ivwJjaj, for a savor of sweet smell; an expression adopted by the apostle, Eph. 5. 2. See Note ©n Gen. 8.21. 19^ 'And thou shalt take the other ram ; and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands upon the head of the ram. 20 Then shalt thou kill the ram, and lake of his blood, and put it upon the tip of the right ear of Aaron, and upon the tip of the right ear of his sons, and upon the thumb of their right hand, and upon the great toe of their right foot, and sprinkle the blood upon the altar round about. tver, 3. Lev. 8. 22. The Ram for a Peace-offering. 20. Take of the blood, and put it upon the tip, &c. That the ram now to be offered, and called, v. 22, ' the ram of consecration,' was truly a peace-offer- ing will be obvious from what is said in V. 28, 32. It is doubtless called the ram of consecration because there was more in this sacrifice that was peculiar to the present occasion than in either of the others. The ceremonies, therefore, were more numerous and significant. The blood instead of being merely sprinkled on the horns of the altar.or effused round about it, was shared, as it were, between God and them ; part of it being sprinkled, and part put upon them, upon their bodies, and upon their garments. The parts of their persons to which it was applied were no doubt selected with a view to render the rite most replete with instruction relative to the duties of their station. It was intended to imply that they ought to devote diligently their ears, their hands, and their feet, or in other words, all their faculties of mind and body, to the discharge of their ministerial office. By the blood's being applied to the eX' treme parts of the body, they could not but understand that the whole person in all its entireness, from the tip of the ear to the toe of the foot, was to be sanctified and set apart to the service of God. B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIX. 183 21 And thou shalt take of the blood that is upon the altar, and of u the anointing oil, and sprinkle it upon Aaron, and upon his gar- ments, and upon his sons, and upon the garments of his sons with him: and whe shall be hallowed, and « ch. 30. 25, 31. Hebr. 9. 22. Lev. 8. 30. »• ver. 1. 21. Upon the garments. This was merely to carry out in all its complete- ness, and in reference to every thing about them, the significant rite of the sprinkled blood. The apostle tells us, Heb. 9.22, that ' almost all things were by the law purged with blood' ; and as the sacred garments were the badge of that office which enabled them to be in- strumental in sanctifying and purifying others, it was manifestly proper that they should themselves receive fully the sign of the same cleansing and con- secrating influence. 'We reckon,' says Henry, 'that the blood and oil, sprinkled upon garments, spotted and stained them ; yet the holy oil and the blood of the sacrifice, sprinkled upon their garments, must be looked upon as the greatest adorning imaginable to them, for they signified the blood of Christ, and the graces of the Spirit, which con- stitute and complete the beauty of holi- ness, and recommend us to God. We read of robes ' made white with the blood of the Lamb.' ' 22. The fat and the rump. Heb. rr^^i^ alyah, defined by Gesenius and Rosenmuller the thick fatty tail of the Syrian sheep. Russell in his Natural History of Aleppo, p. 51, after observ- •ing that they are in that country much more numerous than those with smaller tails, adds, 'This tail is very broad and large, terminating in a small appendix that turns back upon it. It is of a sub- stance between fat and marrow, and is not eaten separately, but mixed with the lean meat in many of their dishes, and also often used instead of butter. his garments, and his sons, and his sons' garments with him. 22 Also thou shalt take of the ram the fat and the rump, and the fat that covereth the inwards, and the caul above the liver, and the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, and the right shoulder: for it is a ram of consecration : A common sheep of this sort, without the head, feet, skin, and entrails, weighs about twelve or fourteen Aleppo roto- loes (a rotoloe is five pounds), of which the tail is usually three rotoloes or up- wards ; but such as are of the largest breed, and have been fattened, will sometimes weigh above thirty rotoloes, and the tail of these ten. These very large sheep being about Aleppo kept up in yards, are in no danger of injur- ing their tails : but in some other places, where they feed in the fields, the shepherds are obliged to fix a piece of thin board to the under part of their tail, to prevent its being torn by bushes and thistles, as it is not covered under- neath with thick wool like the upper part. Some have small wheels to fa- ciliate the dragging of this board after them.' This contrivance is at least as old as Herodotus, who expressly men- tions it (Lib. in.c. 115.), where, speak- ing of the Arabian shepherds' manage- ment to prevent this kind of sheep from having their tails rubbed and ulcerated, he says, 'They make little cars, and fasten one of these under the tail of each sheep.' The Abbe Mariti in his Travels through Cyprus (vol. L p. 36.) confirms this account of the extraordin- ary size of the tails of some species of eastern sheep ; ' The mutton is juicy and tender. The tails of some of the sheep, which are remarkably fine, weigh upwards of fifty pounds.' IT It is a ram of consecration. Heb. tD'ii%i?3 P"'5? i^in ^l milluim hu, it is a ram of fill' ings. Or. cort yap rfXetuffis ^vrrj, for this a perfection. That is, a conaecrat- 184 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 23 xAnd one loaf of bread, and one cake of oiled bread, and one wafer out of the basket of the un- leavened bread, that is before the Lord. 24 And thou shalt put all in the hands of Aaron, and in the hands of his sons; and shalt y wave them /o?' a wave-offering before the Lord. 25 ^ And thou shalt receive them of their hands, and burn them upon the altar for a burnt-offering, for a sweet savour before the Lord: it is an offering made by fire unto the Lord. X Lev. 8. 26. y Lev. 7. 30. z Lev. 8. 28. ing initiation by which the incumbents were perfected in their official charac- ter. The sense of the term is governed by that which we have already assigned to the root in our remarks above, v. 9. Whether it is implied at the same time that the hands were filled with pieces of the sacrifice, as an intimation of their duties, cannot be ascertained. How- ever this maybe, the explanation given above is sufficient to account for the form of the expression. 23, 24. And one loaf of bread, &c. The Note on v. 2, of this chapter will sufficiently explain the reason of the order respecting the articles here men- tioned. A-S to the * waving' of the whole to and fro, which was ordinarily done by the priests' putting his hand under theirs, and then lifting them first upwards, and then round about in every direction, it was probably intended as a significant mode of dedicating the oifer- ing to Him ' whose is the earth and the fulness thereof;' who is the Possessor of heaven, as well as the earth, and claims a universal homage. If, how- ever, we keep up the idea of a mutual feast in connexion with the peace-offer- ing, this ceremony of waving may per- haps be considered as a virtual act of offering or presenting a dish to an hon- 26 And thou shalt take a the breast of the ram of Aaron's con- secration, and wave it for a wave- offering before the Lord : and b it shall be thy part. 27 And thou shalt sanctify c the breast of the wave-offering, and the shoulder of the heave-ottering, which is waved and which is heaved up, of the ram of the con- secration, eve7i of that which is for Aaron, and of that which is for his sons : 28 And it shall be Aaron's and his sons' ^ by a statute for ever, a Lev. 8.29. b Ps. 99. 6. c Lev. 7. 31. 34. Numb. 18. 11, 18. Deut, 18. 3. al hakkippurim,\i\. for expiations, pro- pitiations, reconciliations; meaning for Aaron and his sons, and the altar. The original term implies both the pa- cification of God's wrath on account of sin, and the merciful covering of trans- with fire: it shall not be eaten, be- cause it is holy. 35 And thus shalt thou do unto Aaron, and to his sons, according to all things which I have com- manded thee: p seven days shalt thou consecrate them. 36 And thou shalt q offer every day a bullock /or a sin-offering for atonement ; and thou shalt cleanse the altar, when thou hast made an atonement for it, r and thou shalt anoint it, to sanctify it. P Exod. 40. 12. Lev. 8. 33, 34, 35. q Hebr. 10.11. rch. 30. 26. 28, 29. & 40. 10. gression, which enter so essentially in- to the idea oi atonement. See Note on Gen. 32. 20. IT Thou shalt cleanse the altar. Heb. tiKtsn hittctha. Le- clerc well remarks that this word in Piel wlien spoken of persoJis signifies to expiate, to atone for, but when ap- plied to things to purge, cleanse, puri- fy, as liere. Gr. KaQapieis^ thou shalt purify. It is not to be supposed that this period of seven days allotted to the consecration of the altar was dis- tinct from the seven days of consecrat- ing the priests, or that the atonements in the one case were different from those in the other. They were in fact one and the same. The atoning virtue of the sacrifices applied itself at the same time both to the persons sanc- tified and to the altar. The phrase ' when thou hast made atonement for it,' should rather be rendered ' when thou hast made an atonement v/)on it,' and the meaning is, that during all the time in which they were engaged from day to day in offering the prescribed sacrifices, they were to be careful to keep the altar duly cleansed, to have the ashes removed, and the unction ap- plied to it, so that at the end of the time it should be an altar duly conse- crated, like those who had been minis- tering at it, so that henceforth it should be so preeminently holy as to confer a B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIX. 187 37 Seven days thou shall make an atonement for the altar, and sanctify it ; » and it shall be an al- tar most holy : t whatsoever touch- eih the altar shall be holy. 38 *[[ Now this ts that which thou shalt offer upon the altar; "two iambs of the first year w day by day continually. 39 The one lamb thou shalt offer ■*in the morning: and the other Iamb thou shalt offer at even: - sell. 40. 10. tch. 30. 29. Matt. 23, 19. 'JNunib. 28. 3. 1 Chron. 16. 40. 2 Cliroii. 2. 4. & 13. 11. &31.3. Ezras. 3. "' See Dan. 9.27. A: 12. 11. X 2 Kings 16. 15. Ezek. 46. 13, 14, 15. relative holiness upon the gifts laid up- on it. 'Whatsoever toucheth it shall | be holy,' upon which our Savior's brief and pithy comment is, 'The altar sanc- tifieth the gift.' Like a magnetized bar of iron or steel, it was first to receive it- self a sanctifying influence from the oblations presented upon it, and then for ever after to impart it. Laiv of the Daily Offering. 38 — 44. This is that ivhich thou shalt offer, &c. Two lambs of the first year were to be offered daily, the one in the morning, the other in the afternoon, for a burnt-offering. These were generally termed the morning and evening daily sacrifice, and were never on any ac- count to be intermitted. Other ad- ditional sacrifices were appointed for Sabbaths and festivals on various occa- sions, but they v.'ere never to be allow- ed to displace, supersede, or interfere with this stated and constant offering, which was binding in its observance in- asmuch as it typified the never-ceasing necessity and efficacy of the atonement made by the 'Lamb of God which tak- eth away the sins of the world.' It conveyed also to the people of God of that age and of every age a significant intimation of the duty of daily morning and evening worship. As regularly as the sun rises and declines in his daily 40 And with the one lamb a tenth- deal of flour mingled with the fourth part of an hin of beaten oil: and the fourth part of an hin of wine /or a drink-oft ering. 41 And the other lamb thou shalt y offer at even, and shalt do thereto according to the meat-offering of the morning, and according to the drink-offering thereof, for a sweet savour, an offering made by fire unto the Lord. 42 This shall be^di continual burnt- y 1 Kings 18. 29, 36. 2 Kings 16. 15. Ezra 9. 4, 5. Ps. 141. 2. Dan. 9. 21. z ver. 38. ch. 30. 8. Numb. 28. 6. Dan. 8. 11, 12, 13. round, the spiritual sacrifices of prayer and praise are to be offered upon the altar of our domestic or private devo- tion ; and not only should no business be suffered to jostle them out of their appropriate seasons, but they should be regarded as a sacred feast to the soul, for v.'hich we should long as earnestly as for the food that sustains our bodies. It was probably with a view to render this idea more familiar to their minds that the several particulars requisite to a feast accompanied the sacrifice. Bread and wine for a meat and drink- offering formed a part of the command- ed oblation, as a continual remembrance of the privilege of fellowship and com- munion with God to which they are ad- mitted. The word rendered tenth-deal ('^I'lrS' issaron) means a tenth of an ephah, or about three quarts wine- measure, being the same as an omer A hin contained a gallon and two pints ; the fourth part of this was consequently about one quart and a quarter of a pint wine-measure. U Where I will meet you (pi.) to speak there unto thee (sing.) As if he spake unto all the congregation w^hen he spake to Moses, their repre- sentative. Yet as if this might appear to indicate something unduly exclusive — a privilege vouchsafed to Moses but denied to them — he gives the assur- ance in the next verse in the most uni 188 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. offering throughout your genera- tions at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation before the Lord: a -where I will meet you to speak there unto thee. 43 And there I will meet with the children of Israel; and the ta- bernacle b shall be sanctified by my glory. a ch. 25. 22. & 30. 6, 36. Numb.17. 4. b ch. 40. 34. 1 Kings 8. 11. 2 Chron. 5. 14. & 7. 1,2,3. Ezek.43.5. Hag. 2. 7, 9. Mai. 3. 1. versal terms — * There I will meet with the children of Israel ;' with all of them ; they shall all have the benefit of this high distinction. Chal. 'And I will appoint my Word unto you, that he may speak with you there.' This promise is still farther amplified in what follows ; 'And the tabernacle shall be sanctified by my glory.' Heb. 'iI31p!3 'iliSD nikdash hikhodi; where the verb has no specific nominative, leaving us to understand the expression in its largest sense, as implying that every thing, people, tabernacle, altar, and priesthood, should be illustriously hal- lowed by the glory of the divine pre- sence, the visible symbol of which was to be seen in the Shekinah enthroned in the Most Holy Place. It will be ob- served that the marginal reading of the English Bible is, ^Israel shall be sanc- tified.' This is very admissible gram- matically, and is no doubt favored by the parallel promise, Ezek. 37. 28, to which the present has clearly an ul- timate or typical reference, 'And the heathen shall know that I the Lord do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.' As the glory of God is in a great meas- ure identified with his tabernacle in which it dwelt, the sanctifying virtue of the one was that of the other, so that the two passages are plainly of kindred im- port. But this interpretation makes no less true or pertinent the remark of Hen- ry, that ' what is sanctified to the glory of God, shall be sanctified by his glory.' 44 And I will sanctify the taber- nacle of the congregation, and the altar: I will c sanctify also both Aaron and his sons, to minister to me in the priest's office. 45 And d I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will be their God. c Lev. 21. 15. & 22. 9, 16. d Exod. 25. 8. Lev. 26. 12. Zech. 2. 10. John 14. 17, 23. 2 Cor. 6. 16. Rev. 21. 3. 45. And I will dwell among the chil- dren of Israel, &c. Heb. 'iDSiffil ve- shakanti, and I icill tabernacle. Chal. ' I will make my majesty C^ri^ilZJ she- kinti, my shekinah) to dwell in the midst of the children of Israel.' The 'Shekinah' here is the same as the Word of V. 42, according to the same version. On the peculiar force of this word and its etymological relations, see Note on Ex. 25. 8, where we have expounded at some length what we conceive to be the genuine import of this promise. Its primary fulfilment was the grand central fact in the his- tory of the Jewish people for century after century, as long as their national polity continued To this peculiar in- dwelling among the chosen race the tabernacle and the temple were entirely subservient. They Avere each in its turn the palace of the Great King. It was not simply a spiritual but a sensi' ble residence of the Deity, which hal- lowed those sacred structures. That this mode of habitation and manifesta- tion was indeed typical of a future in- dwelling of God by his enlightening Spirit in the hearts of men, cannot be questioned. It is a view of the subject expressly recognised by the apostle, 2 Cor. 6. 16, 'For ye are the temple of the living God ; as God hath said, I will dwell in them and walk in them ; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.' But nothing is clearer from the prophecies, than that this form of fulfilment does not exhaust the rich B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIX. 189 46 And they shall know that e I am the Lord their God, that brought e ch. 20. 2. purport of the promise. It is a promise no less made to Israel in their future restoration, than at their original adop- tion; and in that relation is no less literally to be understood, though far more gloriously, than in the present an- nunciation. So far as we are able to see, the literal restoration and return of the Jews are assured to us by no other principles of interpretation, than those which require us to admit the literal return and re-establishment of the mani- fested glory of Jehovah, the true Sheki- nah, in visible communication with the children of men on earth. Let the fol- lowing passages, for instance, be taken as a specimen: Zech. 2. 10 — 12, 'Sing and rejoice, daughter of Zion : for lo, I come and I will dwell in the midst of thee C^niDljlD shakanti), saith the Lord. And many nations shall be join- ed to the Lord in that day, and shall be my people: and I will dwell in the midst of thee (*inD5lZ3 shakanti), and thou shall know that the Lord of hosts hath sent me unto thee. And the Lord shall inherit Judah his portion in the holy land, and shall choose Jerusalem again.' Ezek. 37. 21—28, 'And say un- unto them, Thus saith the Lord God ; Behold, I will take the children of Is- rael from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land : And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel ; and one king shall be king to them all : and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be di- vided into two kingdoms any more at all : Neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions ; but I will save them out of all their dwelling-places, wherein they have sinned, and will them forth out of the land of Egypt, that I may dwell among them: I am the Lord their God. cleanse them : so shall they be my people, and I will be their God. And David my servant shall be king over them ; and they all shall have one shepherd : they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them. And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt, and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children's children for ever: and my servant David shall be their prince for ever. Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them ; it shall be an ever- lasting covenant with them ; and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore. My tabernacle CpTliJZ mishkan) also shall he with them: yea, I will he their God, and they shall he my people. And the heathen shall know that I the Lord do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for ever- more.^ We have given this extract at full length, because there is scarcely in the whole compass of the Scriptures a more direct and unequivocal prediction of the literal return of the Jews to their own land, than is to be found in these words. That it is a return yet future is clear from the fact ; (1.) That the two grand divi- sions of the nation, the houses of Judah and Israel, are both to be restored, which it is well known was not the case at the return from Babylon. No past period can be assigned when this prediction can be fairly said to have been fulfilled. (2.) They are to be gathered imder the head- ship of 'David their king,' which is un- doubtedly the mystical denomination of the Messiah. He is probably here called 'David' more especially because he shall reign over the two united na- tions of Judah and Israel, as did the 190 EXODUS. fB. C. 1451. CHAPTER XXX. AND thou shalt make a an altar b lo burn incense upon : o/shit- tim-wood shalt thou make it. ach. 37. 25. & 40. 5. b See ver. 7. 8, 10. Lev. 4. 7, 18. Rev. 8. 3. literal David before the kingdom was divided. That Christ will ever rule over his people by this title in any other world than the present, we can gather no evidence fronn the Scriptures. Ac- cordingly Newcome remarks upon the passage, that ' it favors the supposition that Christ will hereafter assume royal state on earth among the converted Jews.' (3.) It is said, V. 25, ^They shall dwell therein, even they, and their chil- dren, and their children's children, /or ever} and my servant David shall be their prince for ever.' Even though this language should be taken to mean something short of absolute eternity, yet it is clear that it has never yet been fulfilled. Consequently its fulfilment is still future ; and we are utterly unable to see why it is not quite as certain that the visible glory will be restored to the land of promise as that the chosen peo- ple will. If further evidence of this be necessary we find it in Ezek. 43, 1 — 4, which is a prediction having respect to the destinies of the Jewish race in the latter day, after their re-establishment in the land of their fathers ; < Afterward he brought me to the gate, even the gate that looketh toward the east : And be- hold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east : and his voice was like a noise of many waters: and the earth shined with his glory. And it was according to the appearance of the vision which I saw, even according to the vision that I saw when I came to destroy the city: and the visions were like the visions that I saw by the river Chebar ; and I fell upon my face. And the glory of the Lord came into the house by the way of the gate whose prospect is toward 2 A cubit shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof; four-square shall it be; and two cubits shall ce the height thereof: the horns thereof shall be of the same. the east.' This is no other, as will ap- pear upon strict examination, than the glory of the Shekinah which dwelt be- tween the Cherubim in the Temple, and which on account of the sins of the na- tion had forsaken its ancient dwelling- place, Ezek. 10. 18 — ^20, but which is here announced as again returning to its vacated habitation. This glory, however, will be the glory of the per- son of Christ, in whom the shadow of the Shekinah is turned into substance. It is this which constitutes the criterion of identity between the prophetic Jeru- salem of Ezekiel and that of John in the Apocalypse ; ' And he showed mc that great city the holy Jerusalem, de- scending out of heaven from God, hav' ing the glory of God.' But in regard to this sublime annunciation we must for the present rest contented with the simple fact assured to us. The man- ner of its accomplishment is hidden by a vail which only the developements of time and providence can remove. CHAPTER XXX. THE ALTAR OF INCENSE. 1, 2. Thou shalt make an altar to hurndncense upon. Heb. ^t0p>2 P!2\)2 n^tSp mizbeah miktar ketoreth, an in- cense-altar of incense; or, an altar, a perfumatory of perfume. Gr. dvaiaar- ripiov OvjitajAaTo?, an altar of incense. Chal. 'Thou shalt make an altar to of- fer upon it incense of sweet spices.' The original implies an altar on which odorous substances were to be burnt and resolved into a fragrant and grate- ful fume. In the subsequent account of its construction, Ex. 37. 25, it is called simply an ' altar of incense,' as B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXX. 191 3 And thou shall overlay it with j horns thereof ; and thou shall make pure gold, the top thereof, and the ! unto it a crown of gold round about, sides thereof round about, and the j rendered by the Greek here, and in Num.4. 11, ' tlie golden altar,' as the other covered with brass was called ' the brazen altar.' But as the Hebrew term i'or altar (nDT>2 mizbeah, from 'n'Zl zabah, to slay), legitimately carries with it the idea of slain sacrifices, and as no such service was performed upon this, it is for distinction sake termed 1'i^pJ2 miktar, from TCp katar, to fume, to fumigate, to make to smoke. The practice of burning incense upon altars as a religious rite is to be traced to a very remote antiquity ; but we have nothing more ancient in the way of historic record relative to this cus- tom than what the present chapter con- tains. It seems scarcely probable, how- ever, that the custom originated on this occasion in the order here prescribed. Incense altars appear in the most anci- ent Egyptian paintings, and when it was required to be compounded ' after the art of the apothecary (perfumer),' it would seem to be implied that this was an art which was practised, and which the Israelites had learned, in Egypt. Plutarch moreover assures us, that the Egyptians offered incense to the sun — resin in the morning, myrrh at noon, and about sunset an aromatic compound which they called kypi. But the custom was in ancient times by no means confined to Egypt. It pervaded all the religions of antiquity, and like many other features of the Hebrew wor- ship may have been derived from an antediluvian origin. Nor are we dis- posed to overlook the circumstance in this connexion of incense being burnt among the Orientals by way of honor- ary tribute to kings, princes, and per- sons of distinction. It is one of the usages peculiar to palaces, and the houses of the wealthy and great, and as God in the character of Theocratic Ruler of Israel saw fit to be honored in modes analogous to those which were common in reference to eastern sove- reigns, so he would not have his palace, the Sanctuary, to be lacking in a usage of such striking significancy. But we shall hope to evince in the sequel that this came far short of fulfilling all the symbolical purposes which were an- swered by this remarkable portion of the furniture of the Tabernacle. Of the remark of Maimonides that incense was burnt in the Tabernacle to counter- act the offensive smell of the sacrifices, we can only say, that although this may have been to a very limitted de- gree the effect of the ordinance, it fell altogether short of being its main ob- ject. As to its materials and form this Altar was made like the Ark of shittim-wood overlaid with plates of gold. "When it is said to have been ' four-square,' the meaning is, not that it was, as a whole, of a cubical form, but that upon its upper and under sur- face it showed four equal sides. It was, however, twice as high as it was broad, being twenty-one inches broad, and three feet six inches high. From the four corner posts arose four horns or pinna- cles, doubtless of similar form to those of the altar of sacrifice, which were covered with gold like the rest, and its top was surrounded with an ornamental ledge or border of solid gold, here call- ed ' a crown,' like that which adorned the upper edges of the Ark of the Covenant and of the Table of Shew- bread. Beneath this were placed two golden rings, probably on the opposite corners, for the conveniency of carry- ing it on staves during the marches of Israel in the wilderness, and after- wards when removed to different places in Canaan. 3. The top thereof. Heb. 13!! gaggo, his 192 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491 roof; implying that its top was fashion- ed like the flat roofs of eastern houses. These were furnished with parapets, battlements, or balustrades, to which the border or crown of the altar bore, on a small scale, a striking resem- blance. The rendering of the Gr. t-ff;^(ijjai', hearth, and the Lat. Vulg. 'Craticula' grate, is entirely erroneous, as the orig- inal word is different from that applied to the grate of the brazen altar (^IIlD^D mikbar), and there is not the least mention made of cleansing the Altar from ashes, or of any thing to receive them. The mcense was not burnt upon a grate, but in a golden censer which was placed, filled with coals, upon the Altar, so that no ashes or refuse what- ever fell upon the Altar. IT The sides thereof. Heb. I'^D'Tip kirothauv, ?us walls; in continued analogy with the structure of a house. The Altar of Incense. The mystical design of the Altar of In- cense now demands attention. Its pri- mary use is sufficiently evident from its name, and from what is said in the sub- sequent verses. As the Table was for the Bread, the Candlestick for the Lights, and the brazen Altar for the Sa- crifices, so the golden Altar was for the Incense which was to be burnt upon it. Now that the general import o{ incense as a symbol was that o{ prayer, cannot be questioned by any one who casts his eye over the following passages ; Ps. 141. 2, 'Let my prayer be set forth be- fore thee (as) incense; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacri- fice. Rev. 5. 8, 'And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them lamps and golden vials full of odors, which are the prayers of saints.^ Again, Rev. 8. 3, 4, 'And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer ; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all sairits upon the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel's hand.' Here it is evidently * implied that while the sacerdotal angel was officiating at the golden Altar, the saints were to be at the same time engaged in offering up prayers which might, as it were, mingle with the fra- grant incense, and both come up in a grateful and acceptable cloud before God. In like manner it is said, Luke, 1. 9, 10, that while Zechariah was ' ex- ecuting the priest's office according to B. C. l';91.J CHAPTER XXX. 193 the custom, his lot was *o burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense.'' Here the two servi- ces were- performed together, the one being an emblem of the other. As then the idea of prayer is prominent in the symbolical purport of the act of offer- ing incense, we may safely consider the intercessory office of Christ in heaven as primarily shadowed forth by the golden Altar and its Levitical uses. As the brazen Altar which was placed without the sanctuary typified his sa- crifice, which was made on earth, so the Altar of Incense stationed within the sanctuary represented his interced- ing work above, where he has gone to appear in the presence of God for us, and where his intercession is as sweet- smelling savor. This is to be inferred from the fact that it occupied a place — directly before the mercy seat — which represented the appropriate sphere of the Savior's present mediatorial func- tions. Whatever service was perform- ed by the priests within the precincts of the Tabernacle had a more special and emphatic reference to Christ's work in heaven; whereas their duties in the outer court had more of an earth- ly bearing, representing the oblations which Avere made on the part of sinners, and on behalf of sinners, to the holy ma- jesty of Jehovah. As, however, scarce- ly any of the objects or rites of the ancient economy had an exclusive typ- ical import, but combined many in one, so in the present case, nothing forbids us to consider the prayers and devotions of the saints as also symbolically rep- resented by the incense of the golden Altar. As a matter of fact, they do pray below while Christ intercedes above ; their prayers mingle with his ; and it is doing no violence to the sym- bol to suppose their spiritual desires, kindled by the fire of holy love, to be significantly set forth by the uprising Vol. II. 17 clouds of incense, which every morn- ing and evening filled the holy place of the sanctuary with its grateful per- fume. Still it may be doubted whether the full and complete design of the golden Altar as a symbol can be reached, without assigning to it, as well as to the Candlestick and the Table, a pros- pective reference. Can it be in keep- ing with the rest of the furniture of the Tabernacle, unless it points to the heavenly state as yet to be developed ? There no Altar of sacrifice is found, because the one offering of the Savior was consummated in his oblation of himself upon the cross. But the Altar of Incense is there, and it bears a name (niiT>3 mizbeah), the leading idea of which is that of slain sacrifice. Why is this idea to be carried forward into the upper sanctuary in connexion with a structure intended mainly as a shadow oC prayer, thanksgiving, and praise? Why, but to intimate that there is still, and is ever to be, to the saints a real and indissoluble connexion between the atonement of Christ and the praises and doxologics in which they are engaged in heaven? — between acquittal from guilt and acceptance to favor? Were it not for the virtue of his atoning sacri- fice how could they be in heaven to praise him at all? In the ministra- tions of the earthly sanctuary, the coals on which the incense was burnt on the golden Altar were to be taken from the brazen Altar, This taught the Israelite from whence the efficacy and accept- ableness of their prayers and praises was derived. So in the heavenly sanctu- ary, the instrument of incense is call- ed by the otherwise inappropriate name of altar (sacrificatorj'-) to keep its blessed inhabitants in mmd of the fact, that the blood of atonement and ihefire of sacrifice, must be for ever that which imparts all its grateful fragrance to the songs, ascriptions, and hallelujahs of the ransomed throng m glory. 194 EXODUS, [B. C. 1491. 4 And two golden rings shah thou maW to it under the crown of it, by ti.e tAvo corners thereof, upon the two sides of it shalt thou make it ; and they shall be for places for the siaves to bear it withal. 5 Ajid thou shalt make the staves o/shittim-wood, and overlay them with gold. 6 And thou shalt put it before the vail that is by the ark of the testi- mony, before the c mercy-seat that IS over the testimony, where I will meet with thee. cch. 25.21,22. 6. Thou shalt put it before the vail, &c. That is, before the separating vail suspended between the Holy and Most Holy Place of the Tabernacle. It would of course be ' before the mercy-seat,' though the Vail interposed. It was stationed about midway between the Candlestick and Table of Shew-bread, though considerably nearer to the Vail than either. 7, 8. Aaron shall burn thereon sicect incense every morning. Heb. tTltSp f^/QO ketoreth sammim, incense of spices. Gr. dvjxia[ia avvderov Xetttoi', in- cense delicately campounded. It might seem from the letter, that Aaron or the High Priest alone was entitled to burn incense on this Altar. But the word *Aaron' is often used to designate the whole priestly order. There is no doubt that Aaron did in person perform this service on the present occasion, and the High Priest, whoever he was, did the same on other great occasions ; but it was ordinarily executed by the inferior priests in their courses. Whatever priest was appointed by lot to be in waiting during the week, he every morning and evening filled his censer with fire from the brazen Altar, and in- troducing the sacred incense went into the holy place and set the censer upon the Altar. As the daily sacrifice repre- sented the perpetual efficacy of Christ's 7 And Aaron shall bum thereon d sweet incense every morning : when «= he dresseth the lamps, he shall burn incense upon it. 8 And when Aaron lighteth the lamps at even, he shall burn in- cense upon it; a perpetual incense before the Lord, throughout your generations. 9 Ye shall offer no ^strange in- cense thereon, nor burnt-sacrifice, nor meat-oflering ; neither shall ye pour drink-offering thereon. d v'cr. 34. 1 Sam. 2. 28. 1 Chron. 23. 13. Luke 1. 9. ech. 27. 21. fLev. 10. 1. atonement, so the burning of incense morning and evening typified his con- tinual intercession for us. This offered incense was called a * perpetual incense' because it was regularly offered at the appointed time without cessation. By a like phraseology we are exhorted to 'pray without ceasing,' i.e. to continue in the daily practice of prayer without omitting it. The command to have the incense burnt at the same time that the lamps were dressed gives occasion to Henry to remark in his ordinary spirit- ualizing vein, that it was designed ' to teach us, that the reading of the Scrip- tures, which are our light and lamp, is a part of our daily work, and should accompany our prayers and praises. When we speak to God, we must hear what God says to us, and thus the com- munion is complete.' IT When Aaron lighteth. Heb. tl^S^na be-hadloth , when he causeth to ascend; a phraseology the ground of which is explained in the Note on Ex. 27. 20. IT At even. Heb. tt'^^'15'n ']^'2 bin ha-arbayim, be- tween the two evenings. See Note on Ex. 12. 16. 9. Ye shall offer no strange incense thereon. That is, incense of a different composition from that prescribed, v. 34. Gr. Ovjuniia Irepov, another incense. Chal. 'Incense of strange spices.' The incense was to be that alone which God B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXX. 195 10 And g Aaron shall make an atonement upon the horns of it once in a year, with the blood of the sin-offering of atonements: once in the year shall he make sLev. 16. 18. &23. 27. had appointed ; and special care was to be taken to make no confusion between the offerings belonging to the respec-tive altars, of which the one kind was for atonement, the other for acceptance on- ly. So when drawing nigh to God in prayer, we are not to bring the fervor of mere animal spirits, which may easily be mistaken for true devotion ; but a broken and a contrite heart, which alone sends forth an odor that is well- pleasing to God. Nor are we to imagine that by our prayers, or by any thing else that we can bring to God, we can atone for sin, or contribute in the least degree towards the efficacy of Christ's atonement. These must be kept quite distinct ; and whilst our prayers are offered on the Altar of Incense, our pleas mast be taken solely from the Altar of Burnt-offering. 10. Aaron shall make atonement upon the horns of it once in a year. This was to be upon what was called the great day of Atonement, of which a full account is given Lev. 10. 1 — 28. The ordinance was peculiarly striking, as it intimated that all the services performed at it were imperfect, that the Altar itself had contracted a degree of impurity from the sinfulness of those who min- istered there, and that €ven the very odors of the daily incense needed to be sweetened by a fresh infusion of the savor of the blood of sprinkling. — This mention of atonement made upon the horns of the Altar affords a fair occa- sion for an attempted explication of a passage in the Apocalypse, c. 9. 13, 14, which commentators have for the most part passed ever with a very superficial notice ; 'And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the fqur horns atonement upon it throughout your generations: it is most holy usito the Lord. 11 H And the Lord spake vnto Moses, saying, of the golden Altar which is before (^od, saying to the sixth angel who had i'he trumpet, Loose the four angels winch are bound in the great river Euphratfe,'s.' The question is, What is implied in Ihe fact of this voice being represented as proceeding from the four ' horns of rhe golden Altar?' In answer to this it may be observed, that the cases nv^n- tioned Ex. 21. 24. 1 Kings, 1. 50. 1 Kings, 2. 28, clearly evince that che horns of the Altar were constituted an asylum for those who had been guilty of undesigned transgressions. It is triue indeed that in these instances allusion seems to be had more especially to the Altar of holocausts standing in the court of the Tabernacle, but as the blood ni atonement was sprinkled in like man- ner upon the horns of both the brazen and the golden altar, it is to be infer red, we imagine, by a parity of reason- ing that the horns of the Altar are m general a symbol of divine protection, or of a secure sanctuary for those whose crimes are of a remissible nature. Bat as the sin to be punished by the voice of the sixth trumpet was that of idol- atry, as appears from Rev. 9. 20, £1, which in a whole people is less par- donable in the sight of God than aay other, the voice issuing from the four horns of the golden Altar, is a virtual proclamation that God w^as about lo withdraw his protection from a portt m of idolatrous Christendom, and to sffid upon it a plague of far more desolatl ig character than that of the locusts wht ;h had preceded. For in the case of x'\e locust-wo, commandment was given ti it men should be tormented, but not k 1- ed. But in that of the sixth trumj t, the Euphratean horsemen were appo/ t- 196 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 12 iiWhen thou takest the sum of the children of Israel after their number, then shall they give every man » a ransom for his soul unto the Lord, when thou numberest them: that there be no k plague among them when thou numberest them. 13 'This they shall give, every one that passeth among them that are numbered, half a shekel, after the shekel of the sanctuary: (ma I shekel is twenty gerahs :) "an half shekel shall be the offering of the Lord. hch. 38. 25. Numb. 1. 2, 5. & 26. 2. 2 Sam. 24. 2. i .Tob 33. 24. & 36. 18. Ts. 4i). 7. Matt. 20. 28. Mark 10. 45. 1 Tim. 2. 6. 1 Pet. 1. 18, 19. k2Sam. 24. 15. 1 Matt. 17. 24, mLev. 27. 25. Numb. 3. 47. Ezek. 45. 12. n ch. 38. 26. ed to slay the third part of men. The voice therefore in this vision of the prophet is to be understood as a sign that neither atonement nor protection were any longer to he afforded by the horns of the Altar to those who were the destined victims of the impending judgments. The consequence was that a great part of degenerate Christendom was speedily overrun by myriads of the Turkish cavalry, carrying wasting and destruction in their progress. THE ATONEMENT-MONEY, OR RANSOM- TAX. 12 — 16. When thou takest the sum, &c. That is, when thou makest a census ; which Moses is not indeed here expressly commanded to do, but which it is supposed, from its intrinsic utility and propriety, he would do, as would also his successors in the government of Israel in after ages. It seems to be a general direction as to the mode of raismg the requisite revenues for sup- porting the expenses of the Tabernacle worship. The original building and furnishing the sanctuary was provided for by the voluntary contributions of 14 Every one that passeth among them that are numbered, from twenty years old and above, shall give an offering unto the Lord. 15 The o rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when they give an offering unto the Lord to make an p atonement for your souls. 16 And thou shalt take the atone- ment-money of the children of Is- rael, and q shalt appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of the congregation; that it may be ^a memorial unto the children of Is- rael before the Lord, to make an atonement for your souls. • Job 34. 19. Prov. 22. 2. Ephes. 6. 9. Col. 3. 25. P ver. 12. q ch. 38. 25. r Numb. 16. 40. the people ; but the necessary charges for sustaining the worship now to be established were to be defrayed fr*)m other sources, and the present or"'cr seems to come in as a kind of reply to the question which would be naturally but tacitly asked, 'How are the inevi- table expenses of such a system of wor- ship to be met?' The passage before us contains the desired information. The Most High foreseeing that the cus- tom of taking a census, not annually perhaps, but occasionally, would ob- tain among the chosen people, now orders that an assessment, or poll-tax, of half a shekel each, should be grafted upon this custom, and that tliis should be the ordinary revenue for the support of the ritual. But why is this tax call- ed a ' ransom or atonement (*1&5 Arc- phor) for the soul?' The word 'atone- ment' naturally suggests the idea of expiation for sin; but can silver or gold or any thing short of the blood of the 'Lamb slain from the foundation of the world,' aA^ail to propitiate the jus- tice of God, and serve as a ' ransom for the soul?' The true answer to the question depends upon a correct inter- B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXX. 197 17 HAnd the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, pretation of the language. The term ' soul' in this connexion is equivalent to 'life,' 'person,' 'self,' as explained in the Note on Gen. 14. 21. It was therefore a ransom for their lives, or in other words, a tribute paid to God by way of acknowledgment that they had originally received their lives from him, that they had forfeited their lives to him, and that their continued preservation in being under these circumstances was owing to his more sovereign forbear- ance and patience ; and that conse- quently he might most justly claim from them whatever he might see fit to demand, for the support of insti- tutions of which they themselves at the same time were to reap the great advantage. The payment of the tax of half a shekel, therefore, was an act of homage to their sovereign Lord, by which they would express their de- pendence upon him for their spared lives and continued mercies, and de- precate those plagues and judgments which their sins had deserved. This tax was to be assessed upon those who were twenty years old and upward, women, minors, and probably very old men being exempted ; and by the same sum being fixed for all, rich and poor, it was strongly intimated that all lives, or persons, were in the sight of God of equal value. So in the higher atone- ment which Christ has wrought, the same price had to be paid for the soul of the lowest, weakest, meanest be- liever, as for the greatest philosopher, prince, or potentate that shall taste of his salvation. IT Every one that passeth among them. In allusion per- haps to the customary mode of num- bering and marking flocks of sheep, which were made to pass before the numberer that he might count them one by one. See Note on Lev. 27. 32. Comp- Jer. 33. 13. IT Shekel of the 17* ] 8 s Thou shalt also make a sch. 38. 8. 1 Kings 7. 38. sanctuary. So called, it is supposed, from the fact of the standard of weights and measures being keut in the sanc- tuary. This might have been the case under the Temple, but it seems in the highest degree unlikely that such a cus- tom obtained at this early period. And yet we know of no other reason for the use of this peculiar designation. On the name and value of the ancient He- brew shekel see Note on Gen. 20. 16. A half a shekel was not far from twenty-five cents of our money. ■ ■ ■ ^ That it may be a memorial unto the children of Israel before the Lord. That is, a memorial at once of them and for them; a memorial testifying to their obedience, and reminding them of what they owed to their heavenly Benefactor. We read of different me- morials in the sacred Scriptures. The censers in which Korah and his com- pany offered incense were taken out ol the fire in which the offerers perished, and made into plates to be a covering of the altar ; ' to be a memorial that none but the seed of Aaron come near to offer incense before the Lord.' The jewels and bracelets of which the Is- raelites spoiled the slaughtered Midian- ites were presented to the Lord ' as a memorial unto the children of Israel,' that not one of their army fell, though the whole Midianitish kingdom was ut- terly destroyed. So the half shekels at the numbering of the people would serve as a remembrancer of all the in- teresting facts connected with the oc- casion of their past deliverance, of the fulfilment of the divine promises, and of their future preservation and blessed- ness under the favor of heaven. THE LAVER. 18. Thou shalt make a later ofbi'oss, &c. Heb. ITi^ kiyor, rendered 'cal- dron,' 1 Sam. 2. 14, but usually spoken 198 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. laver of brass, and his foot also of brass, to wash withal: and thou shalt tput it between the taber- t ch. 40. 7, 30. of a large basin or other vessel for washing. In respect to none of the sa- cred articles is the information of the text more brief than in respect to this, as nothing is said of its form or dimen- sions. It is reasonable, however, to infer, that as Solomon modelled the furniture of the Temple after that of the Tabernacle, only on a vastlj' larger scale, and as his Laver viras an im- mense vat or reservoir, called * a sea,' and of a circular form, so the form of the Tabernacle-laver was also circular. De Dieu infers the same from the fact, that the analogous Arabic word is used to denote vessels of that form, and to this inference we have nothing to ob- ject. The original word rendered foot ("p k'tn) has a meaning not easily de- termined. Some interpreters under- stand it of a lid or cover, but as the root has the sense of establishing, fixing, founding any thing, we prefer to con- sider it as importing in this connexion a basis, pediment, or supporter upon which the Laver rested. As the cut which we have given below is sub- stantially the same with that of the Pictorial Bible, and adopted for a like reason, we cite the words of the Editor as conveying on the whole that view of the subject which we consider the most correct. ' Our impression is, that the Laver, whatever were its shape, stood upon another basin, more wide and shallow, as a cup on a saucer ; and that the latter received, from cocks or spouts in the upper basin, the water which was allowed to escape when the priests washed themselves with the water which fell from the upper basin. If by the under basin we understand the 'foot' of the text, the sense is clear. The text does not say that the priests were to wash themselves in the basin, nacle of the congregation and the altar, and thou shalt put Avater therein. but at it. In it they could not well wash their hands and feet if the Laver was of any height. The Rabbins say the Laver had several cocks, or, ' nip- ples,' as they call them, from which the water was let out as wanted. There were several such spouts, but the num- ber is differently stated. How the priests washed their hands and feet at the Laver seems uncertain. That they did not wash in either the Laver or its base seems clear, because then the water in which they washed would have been rendered impure by those who washed before or with them ; and as we know that Orientals do not like to wash in a basin, after our manner, m which the water with which we com- mence washing is clearer than that with which we finish, but at a falling stream, where each successive affusion is of clean water, we incline to think that the priests either washed themselves with the stream as it fell from the spouts into the base, or else received in proper vessels so much water as they needed for the occasion. The Orientals, in their washings, make use of a vessel with a long spout, and wash at the stream which issues from thence, the waste water being received in a basin which is placed underneath. This seems to us to illustrate the idea of the Laver with its base, as well as the ab- lutions of the priests. The Laver had thus its upper basin, from which the stream fell, and the under basin for re- ceiving the waste water; or it is quite compatible with the same idea and practice to suppose that, to prevent too great an expenditure of water, they re- ceived a quantity in separate vessels, using it as described, and the base re- ceiving the water which in washing fell from tlioir hands and feet. This ex- B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXX, 199 19 For Aaron and his sons u shall wash their hands and their feet thereat : 20 When they go into the taber- nacle of the congregation, they shall wash with water, that they die not : or when they come near "ch. 40. 31, 32. Ps. 26. 6, Isai. 52. 11, John 13. 10. Ileb. 10. 22. planatioa, although it seems to us prob- ble, is, necessarily, little more than conjectural. Our cut exhibits another view more in conformity with the usual interpretations. The Jewish commen- tators say that any kind of water might be used for the Laver; but that the water was to be changed every day. They also state that ablution before to the altar to minister, to burn offering made by fire unto the Lord: 21 So they shall wash their hands and their feet, that they die not : and w it shall be a statute for ever to them, even to him and to his seed throughout their generations. w ch. 28. 43. entering the Tabernacle was in no case dispensed with. A man might be per- fectly clean, might be quite free from any ceremonial impurity, and might even have washed his hands and feet before he left home, but still he could by no means enter the Tabernacle without previous ablution at the La- yer.' The Layer. The typical desiga of the Laver flows so naturally out of its primary uses, that but little room is left for a formal discussion of the subject. The external ablution of the body with water, either in whole or in part, was a significant mofle of teaching the necessity of an inward purification of the spirit. Those who were officially engaged in the ser- vices of the Sanctuary were especially to be reminded of the duty of preserving purity in all their ministrations, and of dreading the pollutions of sin. It was only thus that their functions could be available to themselves. Their feet trod the hallowed precincts of the Holy Place, and their hands offered the sacrifices upon the altar, and to these members, therefore, in lieu of their whole bodies, was this washing to be especially applied. The position o{ the Laver was between the Tabernacle and the Altar, as an intermediate some- thing which had an important relation to the entrance within the outer vail. In passing from the Altar of Sacrifice to the interior of the Sanctuary, the priest was, as it were, arrested by the 200 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 22 IF Moreover, the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, 23 Take thou also unto thee ^ principal spices, of pure y myrrh five hundred shekels, and of sweet cinnamon half so much, even two X Cant. 4. 14. Ezek. 27. 22. y Ps. 45. 8. Prov. 7. 17. Laver, at which he was previously to pause and perform the requisite per- sonal cleansings. Thus too there is no entering into heaven, the upper sanc- tuary, without a previous washing in the laver of regeneration. The renewing and purifying influences of the Holy Spirit, not only at the outset, but through the whole course of the Chris- tian life, are most significantly shadow- ed forth by this feature of the ancient economy. Indeed, we may say in brief that as the Altar on which the victims were offered was a symbol o{ justifica- tion, so the Laver, with its cleansing fountain, was a symbol of sanctificationj and among the moral truths so impress- ively taught by the sensible emblems of the Mosaic ritual, none was perhaps more pertinently or palpably set forth than the strict connexion between the atoning blood of Christ and the sancti- fying efficacy of the Holy Spirit in this mutual relation of these articles stand- ing in the outer court. It is a relation which seems to be expressly recognised by David when he says, Ps. 26. 6, ' I will wash mine hands in innocency, so will I compass thine altar, Lord.' The same truth is taught in the New Testament, where we are told that Christ came both by water and by blood — the one to atone and the other to puri- fy — and beyond this it is not needful to seek for the typical mystery of the Laver. THE HOLY ANOINTING OIL. 23, 24. Take thou unto the principal spices, &c. Heb. ffii^*! d'^^lDli besamim roshf head spices; intimating that the hundred and fifty shekels, and of sweet 2 calamus two hundred and fifty shekels. 24 And of a cassia, five hundred shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary, and of oil-olive an b hin : z Cant. 4. 14. Jer. 6. 20. ^Ps. 45. 8. t. ch. 29. 40. several spices which formed the in- gredients of the anointing oil were to be of the very best kinds then known and valued. These we may consider in their order. tT Pure myrrh. Heb. 11^1 1?D mar deror, myrrh of free- dom; i.e. myrrh which flowed freely and spontaneously, instead of being drawn by incision, and was therefore of the purest kind. IT Sweet cinnamon. Hebrew tJUS T^Sp kinnemon besem, aromatic cinnamon, a well-known arti- cle of spicery deriving its name direct- ly from the Hebrew. The word is ordinarily used to denote the second or inner bark of the cinnamon-tree which grows in great abundance in the island of Ceylon. But as the bark of the root has a stronger flavor than that of the trunk, Scheuzer conjectures that that which was employed in the composition of the holy anointing oil was of the former kind. IT Sweet calamus. Heb. flDp D'lIJ^ ken'eh bosem, spiced cane. This term denotes an aromatic reed growing in moist places in Egypt, in Judea near lake Gennesarelh, and in several parts of Syria. It grows to about two feet in height ; bearing from the root a knotted stalk, quite round, containing in its cavity a soft, white pith. The whole is of an agreeable aromatic smell ; and the plant is said to scent the air with fragrance, even while growing. When cut down, dried, and powdered, it makes an ingredient in the richest perfumes. IT Cassia. Heb. Hip kiddah; but as the Shemitic d and z are closely related in sound, the word is otherwise written kitzia, from which comes the Gr. Kaaata, and thence the B. C. 1491.1 CHAPTER XXX. 201 25 And thou shalt make it an oil ol holy ointment, an ointment com- pound after the art of the apothe- cary: it shall be c an holy anoint- ing oil. 26 dAnd thou shalt anoint the tabernacle of the congregation therewith, and the ark of the testi- mony. 27 And the table and all his ves- sels, and the candlestick and his vessels, and the altar of incense. 28 And the altar of burnt-offer- ing Avith all his vessels, and the laver and his foot. 29 And thou shalt sanctify them, that they may be most holy : e whatsoever toucheth them shall be holy. 30 f And thou shalt anoint Aaron c ch. 37. 29. Numb. 35. 25. Ps. 69. 20. & I e ch. 29. 3' 133.2. dch. 40. 9. Lev. 8. 10. Numb. 7. 1. ! 12. 30. fch. 29. 7, &c. Lev. 8. English, cassia. We find in the Scrip- lures no naention of this article except here and Ezek. 27. 19, where it is joined with calamus and enumerated among the precious things which were brought from the mart of Tyre. 25 — 2S. Thou shalt make it an oil of holy ointment. The quantity of oil was sufficient to retain the compound in a liquid state, which was probably much improved by straining off the dreggy parts and leavmg the residuum defecat- ed and pure. With this holy oil was the Tabernacle, with its priesthood and its furniture, to be anointed, as the last and crowning act of consecration. By this sacred unction the whole was sanc- tified and set apart to the uses for which it was designed. And as every thing to which it was applied became thereby most holy, so a peculiar sanc- tity attached to the anointing oil itself, which imparted this, and it was on peril of death that any of the same com- position was made for any other pur- pose. But the tradition of the Jews, founded upon the phraseology of v. 31, ' throughout your generations,' that the very oil now prepared by Moses was preserved till near the captivity, and that none was to be made like it, not even for the same purpose, is undoubtedly erroneous. It is perfectly reasonable to suppose that under the inspection of the High Priest it was made as often as it was wanted ; nor do we see any ob- jection to the idea that not only the priests but also the kings of Judahwere anointed with it, although as that form of government was not especially con- templated at this time, nothing is said on this subject. 29. Whatsoever toucheth them shall be most holy. The two leading attributes of the anointing oil were its precious- ness and its sanctity. The spices of which it was composed were peculiarly rare and odoriferous, and the oil with which they were blended was most pure. This was doubtless intended to shadow forth the excellency of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, whose distinguish- ing emblem under the old economy was oil. And what is to be compared with the preciousness of those divine influ- ences which emanate from this source ? Upon whomsoever they are poured forth, they impart light to the under- standing, pliancy to the will^ purity to the affections, tenderness to the con- science, and holiness to the entire man. There is nothing beside them to be so earnestly coveted or so advantageously possessed. They are the true riches of the soul, and the sealing title to an eternal inheritance. Wherever enjoyed they constitute the subject of them, ' a new creature,' and so far sanctify every offering which he presents, that ' God smells a sweet savor from it,' and is well pleased. And not only so. It is a difiusive blessedness which is thus conferred. As every vessel that was anointed with the holy ointment, im- 202 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. and his sons, and consecrate them, that they may minister unto me in the priest's office. 31 And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, This shall be an holy anointing oil unto me throughout your generations. 32 Upon man's flesh shall it not be poured, neither shall ye make any other like it, after the compo- sition of it : g it is holy, and it shall be holy unto you. s ver. 25. 37. parted a sanctity to every thing with which it came in contact, so every true Christian communicates to others, as far as his influence extends, the same divine principles which he has imbibed. As was said in mystic language of tlie Savior, so may it be said of all his anointed ones, 'Their garments smell of myrrh, aloes, and cassia,' and wlier- ever they go they diffuse around them ' the savor of the knowledge of Christ.' Let us seek then this ' unction from the Holy One,' the ' crown of the anointing oil,' which sanctifies and separates all those upon whom it comes. Let us guard against any thing that would reflect dishonor upon the Holy Spirit. Let us bear in mind the stri- king admonition conveyed in the figur- ative style of Solomon ; ' Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savor ; so doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honor.' There is a sanctity about the Christian character which should be kept inviolate, and he that dishonors his calling puts fire to the oil of his consecration to his own consuming. 32. Upon man's flesh shall it not be poured. That is, upon common men, up- on any who were not priests ; equivalent to which is ' stranger' in the next verse. THE HOLY PERFUME. 34. Take unto thee sweet spices, &c. 33 b Whosoever compoundeth any like it, or whosoever putteth any of it upon a stranger i shall even be cut off from his people. 34 1[ And the Lord said unto Mo- ses, k Take unto thee sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum; these sweet spices with pure frank- incense : of each shall there be a like iceight: h ver. 33. iGen. 17. 14. eh. 12. 15. Lev. 7.20,21. kch25. 6. & 37. 2U. This order has respect to the composi- tion of the Incense which was to be burnt upon the golden Altar. This al- so was prepared of sweet spices, though not of so rare or precious a quality as those of which the anointing oil was compounded. But concerning both pre- parations the same law is given that nothing like them should be made for common use. This would tend to beget among the Israelites a reverence for whatever was of divine institution, and a sedulous care to guard against its pro- fanation or abuse, and as to us, who are privileged to look deeper into the spiritual drift of the Mosaic economy, it may well admonish us to beware ol any 'counterfeit presentment,' or any unhallowed prostitution, of those ordin- ances, gifts, or graces which emanate from the Spirit of God and in which his honor is especially concerned. IT Stacte. Heb. t]t:3 netaph from tp^ nataph, to drop. Gr. araKTrj, from ara^to, to distil. This was a fine kind of gum which was produced from the myrrh- tree, but diflTering from that substance mentioned v. 23, by retaining a waxy or resinous form, instead of flowing out as a liquid. It is supposed to have been the same with what was after- w^ards called ' opobalsam' or ' the balm of Jericho.' IT Onycha. Heb. n^niU sheh'dleth, a word which occurs only in this place, and of which the true sense is consequently very difficult to be de« B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXX. 203 35 And thou shalt make it a per- i fume, a confection J after the art of | the apothecary, tempered together, < pure and holy : j 36 And thou shalt beat some of| it very small, and put of it before | the testimony in the tabernacle of | the congregation, m where I will ! meet with thee: "it shall be unto you most holy. 1 ver. 25. «ch. 29. 42. Lev. 15. 2. " ver. 32. ch. 29. 37. Lev. 2. 3. termiued. In Syriac i^nbri'J shehelta, is a tear, a distillation, and the Hebrew v/ord would seem therefore to mean something that exuded, some vegetable gum of odorous qualities. The Gr. indeed has ovv^a, onycha, from npv^, nail, and several learned critics have supposed it to be the external covering (nail) of the shell-fish purpura or murex, which possessed aromatic properties and was thence called unguis odoriferans, odor- iferous onyx. This, according to Rum- phius, was the basis of the principal perfumes employed in India, just as aloes is the basis of all their pills. But as India was too distant for drugs to be brought from thence to Judea or Arabia, where the Israelites now were, and as the context and the etymology seem to require some vegetable substance, the opinion is far preferable that makes it the gum of some aromatic plant ; and as the Arabic version has 'Ladana,' it is not improbable that gum-ladanum , the produce of the 'Cistus ladaniferus,' was the drug in question. This is a se- cretion from the leaves, which is swept off by the beard of the browzing goats, from whence it was collected. The shrub is a native of the Levant, the isles of the Mediterranean, and Arabia. ——IT Galbanum. Heb. reD^DH helbe- nah, which Michaelis supposes to be a compound of D^H heleb, milk or gum and "pi leben, white, denoting the white milk or gum of some plant, as it is ppmmon with us to call the white 37 And as for the perfume which thou .shalt make, oye shall not make to yourselves according to the composition thereof: it shall be unto thee holy for the Lord. 38 p Whosoever shall make like unto that, to smell thereto, shall even be cut off from his peo- ple. o ver. 32. P ver. 33, juice which exudes from certain plants the ' milk,' and the phraseology is re- tained in medical nomenclature 'gum lac, &c. The ' galbanum' is supposed to have been the gum-resin or thickened sap of the * Bubon Gummiferum,' an umbelliferous plant of Turkey, which yields this gum in softish, pliant, and pale cream-colored masses, whenever a wound is made in any part of it. It is of a strong piercing smell, and of a bitterish taste. IT Frankincense. Heb. nDm^ lebonah, a term of which the root also is '^j^D laben and conveying the idea of whiteness. The English word 'frankincense' is supposed to hare the prefixed epitliet ' frank,' free, from the liberal and ready distribution of its odors. This drug, otherwise called ' olibanum,' is a dry resinous sub- stance of a yellowish white color, a strong fragrant smell, and bitter acrid taste. It is produced from the ' Bos- wellia. serrata,' a native of India, and a fine tree belonging to the family of the turpentine-bearing trees. The ' pure frankincense' is that which is first ob- tained from the tree, and for that rea- son considered the best. When laid upon burning coals, or a hot iron, it sends forth a vapor of most delicious fragrance. 35. Tempered together. Heb. n^^Ta memullah, salted, from T\)if2 melah, salt. The Chal. and Gr., however, hare set the example of rendering by mixed or tempered, as if their idea was that 204 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. CHAPTER XXXI. AND the Lord spake unto Mo- ses, saying, 2 a See, I have called by name Bezaleel the ^ son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah : 3 And I have c filled him with the ach. 35.30. & 36. 1. ^i Cliron. 2. 20. •ch. 35. 31. 1 Kings 7. H. the different ingredients were to be mixed together just as salt is mixed with any substance on which it is sprinkled. Ainsworth contends for the liberal rendering, inasmuch as the law. Lev. 2. 13, expressly says, 'With all thine offerings thou shalt offer salt.' In support of this he quotes Maimoni- des, who affirms that ' there was not any thing offered on the Altar without salt, except the wine of the drink-offer- ings, and the blood, and the wood ;' and of the incense he says still more expressly, that ' they added to it the fourth part of a kab oisalt.' In accord- ance with which, it is supposed, our Savior says. Matt. 9. 49, 'Every sacri- fice shall be salted with salt.' We feel incompetent to decide the question, but confess a leaning towards the view of Ainsworth, who further remarks very appropriately, that ' irour speech is to be always with grace, seasoned with salt, as the apostle teaches, Col. 4. 6, how much more should our incense, our prayers unto God, be therewith sea- soned V CHAPTER XXXI. The Workmen called. 2. 1 have called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri. That is, I have especially designated, appointed, and set apart to the superintendance of this w^ork Be- zaleel the son of Uri. His name signi- fies ' under the shadow of God,' but that it has any particular significancy in this connexion we see no evidence. He was the seventh in descent from spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding-, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workman- ship, 4 To devise cunning works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, Judah, and the reader will find his, genealogy expressly detailed, 1 Chron. 2. 5—20. 3. I have filled him with the Spirit of God, &c. That is, with those intel- lectual gifts and endowments which are immediately specified, and which amounted to something like a divine inspiration, but at the same time not implying any thing of a moral char- acter, the usual result of the operation of the Spirit of God. Both he and his associates in the work were to be the subjects of an influence which should improve their faculties and endow them with an ingenuity and skill far beyond the utmost stretch of their unassisted powers. This extraordinary ability now to be imparted, infinite wisdom doubtless saw to be indispensable on the present occasion. The children of Israel had in Egypt been condemned to a hard bondage in brick and in mortar, and in all kinds of coarse, rough, and degrading labor, and consequently could not be supposed to be qualified for the curious workmanship which was now required. To engrave and to embroid- er, to work gold, to cut diamonds, and to mount jewels, would of course de- mand a degree of tact and dexterity for which, as they had served no previous apprenticeship at it, they must be m- debted to a supernatural teaching. But he who had designed the Avork was abundantly able to qualify the work- men. 4. To devise cunning work. Heb. lniffin)3 irn^ lahashob mahashoboth, to think thoughts, or to ponder devices B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXXI. 205 5 And in cutting of stones to set , them^ and in carving of timber, to work in all manner of workman- j ship. 1 6 And I, behold, I have given with him ^Aholiab the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan; and in the hearts of all that are e wise-hearted I have put wisdom ; that they may make all that I have commanded thee : 7 fThe tabernacle of the congre- gation, and s the ark of the testi- mony, and h the mercy-seat that is thereupon, and all the furniture of the tabernacle, 8 And Uhe table and his furni- ture, and k the pure candlestick with all his furniture, and the altar of incense, 9 And Uhe altar of burnt-offer- d ch. 35. 34. e ch. 28. 3. & 35. 10, 35. & 3(). 1. fch. 36.8. sch. 37.1. h ch. 37. 5. ich. 37. 10. kch.37. 17. Ich. 38. 1. Gr. ap-)(^iTeKTovr] the laver and his foot, 10 And n the clothes of service, and the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons, to minister in the priest's office, 11 oAnd the anointing oil, and p sweet incense for the holy place ; according to all that I have com- manded thee shall they do. 12 % And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, 13 Speak thou also unto the chil- dren of Israel, saying, q Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep : for it is a sign between me and you through- out your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you. mch. 38. 8. nch. 39. 1 41. Numb. 4. 5, 6, &c. och. 30. 25, 31. & 37.29. P ch, 30. 34. & 37. 29. q Lev. 19. 3, 30. & 26. 2. Ezek. 20. 12,20. &44. 24. the names on the gems of the breast- plate. We do not indeed read else- where expressly of there having beea any ' carved work' about the Taberna- cle, which has led Patrick to suppose that the term indicated merely the com- mon work of carpenters and joiners. But we deem it altogether probable that there was some ornamental carved work about the pillars ; and if, as we have hinted above, several of the utensils were made from moulds, there can be little doubt that these were carved out of wood. IT The furniture. Heb. 'i^^ keli, vessels, implements, utensils. See Note on Gen. 24. 53. IT Clothes of service. That is, the various vails and coverings of cloth which were used for wrapping the holy things whenever the people broke up from their encamp- ments, and moved on their journeys. Comp. Numb. 4. 5—12. The Observance of the Sabbath re-enjoined. 13. Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep. 206 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 14 'Ye shall keep the sabbath therefore : for it is holy unto you. Every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death : for « who- soever doeth ani/ work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. 1 t Six days may work be done, rch. 20.8. Deut. 5.12. Ezek. 20. 12. ' di. 35.2. Numb. 15. 35. tch.20. 9. This command is here repeated from the divine foresight of its necessity un- der the circumstances. It is as if he had said, 'You are indeed about to be employed in an important and sacred work, one requiring great assiduity and despatch ; nevertheless let it not be thought that this circumstance affords sufficient ground for encroaching upon holy time with the work in which you are engaged. Let the most urgent business come to a pause during the hallowed hours of the Sabbath.' fi The Lord that doth sanctify you. That is, by an external consecration of the race of Israel to himself, as a sign and token of which the Sabbath was ordained as a day of worship and of rest from secular labor. The institu- tion of the weekly Sabbath as a sanc- tified season, was an expressive indica- tion of the character of the covenant relation which was to subsist between God and Israel. They were continually reminded by it that they were to be a sanctified people, chosen, separated, and distinguished from the rest of the world, with whom all traces of the primitive Sabbath had become nearly extinct. Consequently this institution would not be a sign to the Israelites only, but to the surrounding nations. They would be taught the same truth by the same medium. As the religious rites and ceremonies of all people are an index of the character of the deities whom they serve, so the stated observ- ance of the Sabbath in a holy manner but in the "seventh is the sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord: whoso- ever doeth any work in the sab- bath-day he shall surely be put to death. 16 Wherefore the children of Is- rael shall keep the sabbath, to ob- serve the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual cove- nant. u Gen. 2. 2. cli. 16. 23. & 20. 10. would testify to all the world the holy attributes of that God whom they wor- shipped and with whom they were in covenant. 14. It is holy unto you. Heb. TISIp tilDP 5b laUsoth eth hash-shab- bath, lit, to door make the sabbath. The expression in the original is peculiar, and conveying an idea not easily trans- ferable into English. Our phrases ' keep p. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXIX. 207 17 It is ^ a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for y in six days the Lord made hea- ven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed. 18 *i[ And he gave unto Zvloscs, Jt ver, 13. Ezek. 20. 12, 20. y Gen. 1. 31. &2.2. the Sabbath' and * observe the Sabbath' are hardly to be distinguished in im- port from each other, carrying with them mainly the idea o[ cessation from secular work. But the Hebrew formulary ' to do the Sabbath' has the additional in- volved sense of the active doing or performing of certain acts and exer- cises essential to the due sanctification of a day which was yet emphatically a day of rest. The same phrase occurs Deut. 5. 15, 'And remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt, and that the Lord thy God brought thee out thence through a mighty hand and by a stretched-out arm : therefore the Lord thy God commanded thee to keep ] the sabbath-day. (rQlZJ tDl'^ tli^ m:U3>ii, i to do the day of rest).'' So also, Deut. I 16. 1, 'Observe the month of Abib, and j keep the passover (HOS rr^ffiS^ asitha j pesah, do the passover) unto the Lord thy God.' Comp. Mat. 26. IS, 'The Master saith. My time is at hand ; I will keep the passover (tjiw to Traaya I will do or make the passover) at thy house with my disciples.' Again Deut. 16. 13, 'Thou shalt observe the feast of tabernacles {TV^'$t\ nSDil 311 hag has- sukkoth tadseh, the feast of tabernacles thou shalt do or make) seven days,' &c. 17. ^ sign between me and the chil' dren of Israel for ever. Chal. 'Between my Word and the sons of Israel.' IT Was refreshed. Heb. ffiSD"^ yinna- phesh, fetched breath. Of course to be understood as spoken of God after the manner of men, on the principle of an- thropomorphism, of which a very ex- panded detail is given in Rev. .7. P. when he had made an end of com- muning with him upon mount Sinai, ^ tv/o tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with the finger of God. z ch. 24. 12. & 32. 15, 16. & 34. 28, 29 Deut. 4. 13. & 5. 22. al, which latter has more the sense of con- tra, against, and the idea intended to be conveyed is probably that they beset him in a violent and tumultuous man- ner, clamorously demanding of him that he should yield to their wishes. It is perhaps but justice to Aaron to suppose that he at first earnestly opposed the measure, but that he was at length overcome by the importunity and men- aces of the people. Still nothing can excuse his ultimate compliance. IT Up, make us gods, &c. Heb. rT£33> S'^n^S^ IDJ) asch lanu elohim, make for us Elohim. The term itself leaves it somewhat doubtful whether a unity or pluralty of idea is intended by it, as it 210 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. admits of either. From Neh. 9. 18, it j would seem that the former was the meaning; 'Yea, when they had made them a molten calf, and said. This is thy God that brought thee out of Egypt.' The same is doubtless also to be inferred from the fact that Aaron made only one calf, Stephen indeed, Acts, 7. 40, uses tlie plural number, but this is probably merely in imitation of the Hebrew form, which very often has a singular import. Comp. Gen. 25. 13. 35. 7. We are not to suppose that a people who only six weeks before had witnessed such amazing demonstrations of the existence and glory of the true God had suddenly sunk to such a pitch of mad infatuation and brutish stupidity, as to imagine that human fabrication could ' make a god that should go be- fore them.' Their meaning was that an image, a visible sign or symbol of Jehovah, should be made, something which should answer to them in place of the Shekinah which had hitherto conducted them in the pillar of cloud. This visible symbol, which they had hitherto enjoyed, and which had now become apparently immoveable on the summit of the mount, is frequently de- nominated ' glory,' or ' glory of the Lord,' and as they proposed to form to themselves so vile a substitute for this as a brute animal, therefore it is that the Psalmist calls it a ' changing of their glory into the likeness of an ox that eateth grass.' That the measure was prompted at bottom by a disrelish of a purely spiritual worship, and a desire to be furnished with some sensi- hle sign of a divine presence in the midst of them, is, we think, quite mani- fest ; and that the forms of Egyptian idolatry, to which they had been previ- ously familiarised, had tended to in- fuse this leaven into their minds, is, in our view, equally unquestionable. We are inclined, therefore, to give no little weight to the following extracts from the Rabbinical writers cited by Bishop Patrick. In the Pirke Elieser (c. 55.) we are told that ' they said unto Aaron, The Egyptians extol their gods ; they sing and chant before them ; for they behold them with their eyes. Make us such gods as theirs are, that we may see them before us.' So also R. Jehu- dah (Cosri, P. 1. § 97.) 'They desired a sensible object of divine worship to be set before them ; not with an intention to deny God, who brought them out ol Egypt, but that something in the place of God might stand before them, when they declared his wonderful works.' IT We ivot not what is become of him. They evidently had no sufficient reason to warrant them in supposing that he was lost, or that he delayed his return longer than was necessary. They knew that he had made arrangements for a somewhat protracted stay. They had seen him ascend the mount and enter the cloud ; they knew his errand, for they had themselves, when shrink- ing under a sense of guilt and terror from converse with the Most High, de- legated him to be their representative. Had they not then every reason to be persuaded of his safetj^? Yet they affect to consider him as lost to them, as no more to come among them ; nor any more to guide them towards the promised land ! Yet even if they were sincere in this, how little respect do they show to his memory ! How lightly do they speak of the apparent loss of their faithful leader, of their kind bene- factor ! 'We wot not what is become of him." — evidently implying that they cared as little as they pretended to know. Alas ! how true is it, as evinced by this transaction, that the highest services, the greatest merits, the rich- est benefactions, cannot secure their subjects from the vilest indignities, aspersions, and ingratitude of their ob- jects I 2. Aaron said unto them, break off the golden ear-rings, &c. The very jewels, without doubt, of which they B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXXII. 211 2 And Aaron said nnto them, Break off the d golden ear-rings whicli are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them unto me. 3 And all the people brake off the golden ear-rings which loerc in their ears, and brought them un- to Aaron. d Judg. 8. 24, 25, 26, 27. had despoiled their oppressors at their departure from Egypt, and at the Red Sea. But what shall be said of the conduct of Aaron on this emergency? We have no intimation in the text that he remonstrated at all against the mon- strous suggestion, or endeavored in the least \o convince the people of their sin and folly in the measure they proposed ; and yet we would fain, if possible, find some extenuation of the course pur- sued by so good a man on this occasion. There is perhaps a shadow of ground, on which to erect a charitable apology for Aaron in this part of the transac- tion. The proposal that they should break off and give up their ear-rings may have been made in the secret hope, that they would be unwilling to devote their choicest treasures to this object, and that while they were wavering in reference to the project, Moses might return and by his presence crush the growing evil in the bud. But the result showed that it is not safe to try experi- ments upon the readiness of sinners to make sacrifices for their lusts, and that his true course was at once to have stood up and boldly resisted their in- solent and impious demands, even at the hazard of his life. His not taking this resolute stand, and in humble trust in God braving all consequences, but pusillanimously yielding to their im- portunities, gave a kind of public and official sanction to the whole proceed- ing, in consequence of which the peo- ple would naturally rush on with ten- 4 e And he received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they said. These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. e ch. 20. 23. Deut. 9. 16. Judg. 17. 3, 4. 1 Kings 12. '28. Neh. 9. 18. Ps. 106. 19. Isai. 46. 6. Acts 7.41. Rom. 1. 23. fold violence in their chosen way. How fearful the example of a great and good man succumbing to the urgency of a lawless mob ! How deplorable the is- sues when the appointed barriers to iniquity become, by their yielding, its abettors] 3, All the people brake off, &c. The sequel shows that the phrase ' all the people' is not to be taken in its most literal sense, for there were some that still refused to give in to the general act of rebellion ; but the majority were unanimous, and promptly resigned their ornaments ; thus teaching us that the impulse of a mad and foolish super- stition is sometimes sufficiently power- ful to overrule the principles of pride and avarice, and that the charges of idolatry are more cheerfully met than the expenses of the true religion. Alas ! how is the niggardliness of the people of God in maintaining the services of his worship rebuked by the liberality and self-sacrifices of the votaries of idols ! 4. Fashioned it with a graving-tool, after, &c. But if it were run or cast in a mould, as is implied by the v/ord ' molten,' how could it properly be said to have heen fashioned afterward? The literal rendering of the original is, ' He fashioned it with a graving-tool, and made it a calf of molten-work ;' by which we may imderstand either, that he first formed a model of wood, with the instrument here mentioned, by means of which a mould was construct- 212 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 5 And when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it; and Aaron ed, and in the mould the calf was cast, or that the carved image was itself made into the idol by having the melt- ed metal poured over it. It is a point difficult to be determined, and one that has given rise to much diversity of in- terpretation among commentators. This we forbear to recite, as it is needless to swell the accumulation of uncertainties. IT Made it a molten calf. The motive for giving this form to a rep- resentation of the Deity, is doubtless to be proximately traced to their famil- iarity with the idol worship of Egypt. That people were in the habit of pay- ing divine honors to Apis in the form of an ox or bull, and this probably ol- fered the hint to the Israelites on the present occasion. Whether Apis was in himself an original and independent God, or merely a living and visible rep- resentation of another, is still question- able. The most general and probable oj)inion is, that he was regarded as a symbol of their chief god Osiris, or the Sun ; and if so, we can see more reason for the remark made above, that the object of the Israelites in this proceed- ing was to make a symbol or sign of the Most High, or something to rep- resent to the senses his real presence among them. But although the allu- sion to the Egyptian mythology now re- cognised might, without going any far- ther, be deemed a sufficient explana- tion of the fact, we are still induced to express the opinion that there was, moreover, at the same time a latent and ultimate reference to the cherubic symbol, of which the ox was one of the leading elements. We know no reason to doubt that from the earliest ages the Cherubim, as an accompaniment of the Shekinah, had been revealed under the fourfold variety of aspect which is as- made f proclamation, and said, To morrow is a feast to the Lord. fLev. 23. 2, 4, 21, 37. 2 Kings 10. 20. , Chron. 30. 5. signed to them in Ezekiel ; and as this device Avas consequently closely con- nected in the Israelitish mind with the visible manifestation of the Deity, it would not be unnatural that, having come recently from Egypt, they should have chosen it as the most appropriate medium of representing Jehovah. IT These be thy gods, O Israel, &c That is, this is thy god, O Israel ; in ac cordance with what we have alread) said above of the import of the phrast The tenor of the observations just madvw must be our clue to the right constructiovi of this language. Aaron did not intend to say that this molten image was the real and veritable God who had brought them out of Egypt, but simply that it was his visible symbol ; and not im- probably his secret hope was, that on this account they would make the due mental discrimination, and not be so sottish as to worship it. But the act was in direct contravention of the sec- ond commandment, and that it was re- garded by the Spirit of God as an in stance of downright, unequivocal idol atry, we are assured upon the testimony of the apostle, 1 Cor. 10. 7, 'Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them.' So also Ps. 106. 19, 'They made a calf in Horeb and worshipped the molten image.' 'How oft, alas ! have we abus- ed God's mercy ; taking his jewels, and making a golden calf of them ." Trapp. 5. When Aaron saw it, &c. Heb. ']'1n!!^ 5<'T"1 va-yar Aaron, and Aaron saw; i. e. saw the result ; saw how the aifair was regarded by the people ; saw and considered the issue of his own conduct. The word 'it,' supplied by our translators, does not refer to the calf, but in a wider sense to what oc- curred upon its formation.— -—IT And B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXXII. 213 6 And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt-offer- higs, and brought peace-offerings: and the g people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play. 7 H And the Lord said unto Mo- g:l Cor. 10.7. Aaron made a proclamation, and said, To-morrow is a feast to the Lord. Heb. mn*^)} 3n haglaihovah,afeastto,for, or of Jehovah. By Aaron's building an altar and proclainaing this feast to the true God, it would seem that he still proposed within liimself to lead the thoughts of the people through the out- ward medium and tix them upon Je- hovah himself, the only proper object of adoration. But such a mixture of divine and idolatrous worship never fails to mislead the mass of men, and though the priests of a corrupt religion, in imitation of Aaron, may plead that the use of paintings, images, and sacri- fices, is intended merely as a help, by sensible media, to spiritual worship, yet there can be no doubt that its prac- tical effects are always just the same with those here recorded, and that it comes under the same condemnation. Whatever were Aaron's private views or wishes, the transaction is thus again characterised by the Holy Ghost, Acts, 7. 41, 'And they made a calf in those days, and offered sacrifices unto the idol, and rejoiced in the work of their hands.' So Jehu, led away by the same delusion, could boast of his zeal for the Lord of hosts, while yet he was a wor- shipper of the golden calves of Jerobo- am, 2 Kings, 10. 16, 29. 6. And they rose up early, &c. Eagerly intent upon their idolatrous service, and apparently uneasy at its being delayed so long as until the mor- row, they lost no time on the ensuing morning in bringing their burnt-ofTer- ings and peace-offerings, although of sin-offerings, which they most needed, w^ find no mention. They thought- ses, ^ Go, get thee down : for thy people, which thou broughtest out of the land of Egypt, ihave cor- rupted themselves : h Deut. 9. 12, ver. 1. ch. 33. 1. Dan. 9. 24. ■Gen. 6. 11, 12. Deut. 4. 16. & 32. 5. Judg. 2. 19. Hos. 9. 9. lessly exulted in the celebration of a festival which was soon to prove so fatal to them. IT Sat down to eat and to drink. That is, upon the re- mainder of the oblation of peace-otfer- ings, to a share of which the offerers were entitled. The burnt-offerings were wholly consumed as holocausts. By thus partaking of these offerings they were brought into forbidden fellowship with the idol, as is clear from the rea- sonings of Paul, 1 Cor. 10. 17—21. The sad consequences of this apostacy they were soon made to experience. God's jealousy burns very fiercely about his altar. IT Rose up to play. Heb. pn^^i Ictzahek. A word of ominous import, implying not only such sports as singing, dancing, and merry-making in general, but in some cases also a species of conduct which the epithet wanton as correctly defines as any term which we deem it proper to employ. Compare the use of the same original word, rendered ' mock,' Gen. 39. 14. Compare also Num. 25. 1,2. In like manner it appears that the ancient sa- crificial feasts among the Gentiles were so frequently turned into scenes of vo- luptuous revelling and drunkenness, that Athenoeus informs us, that by the early Greeks, the word fteOveiv, to be drunk, was supposed to be derived from fxera TO Qvciv, after the sacrifices, when they gave themselves up to large drinking. 7. And the Lord said unto Moses, Go, get thee down, &c. As if the ur- gency of the occasion would naturally give the utmost intensity to the lan- guage, the Greek here adds the word ' quickly,' as does Moses indeed him- self in speaking of the incident, Deut. 214 EXODUS. {B. C. 1491. 8 They have turned aside quick- iy out of the way which k I com- nnanded them: they have made them a molten calf, and have wor- shipped it, and have sacrificed thereunto, and said, i These be thy k ch. 20. 3, 4, 23. Deut. 9. 16. 1 1 Kings 12. 28. ?. 12, 'Arise, get thee down quickly.' rhe people, abandoning themselves to anhallowed revelry, thought neither of 3od, before whom they had so recently ;rembled, nor of Moses, their venerable eader and friend, nor of the ten com- nandments to which they had a few iveekis since so solemnly sworn obedi- ence, and one of which in the most ex- press terms forbade the very crime of which they were now guilty. Giving themselves up to licentious mirth, they thought only of the present moment. But here we learn how the matter v/as I'iewed on the mount. This ought in fact to have been their chief concern — not how they regarded it, but how it was looked upon from above. But this was neglected, and the same neglect is continually evinced by heedless transgressors intent upon sensual pleas- ures. Ah, did they but reflect that there is an unsleeping eye ever watchful over their career, and a true estimate in- cessantly making up of their conduct, which will finally come to them in the form of a fearful indictment, what a salutary damper would it throw upon their profane hilarities ! How needful is it for us often while sporting on the plain, to think of the judgment formed of our conduct on the mount ! IT Thy people. A tone of indignation breathes through this language, as if the oifend- mg people had forfeited all right to be longer considered God''s people, and he had utterly cast them off; ' for thy peo- ple have corrupted themselves.' The effect of sin is to write 'Lo-ammi,' not my people, upon the most chosen ser- vants of Jehovah. ' But in this mode of gods, O Israel, which have brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. 9 And the Lord said unto Mo- ses, m I have seen this people, and behold, it is a stiff-necked people : mch. 33. 3, 5. & 34. 9. Deut. 9. 6. 13. & 31. 27. 2 Chron. 30. 8. Isai. 48. 4. Acts 7.51. speech something gracious was con- cealed. A hint was, as it were, given him to gainsay the Lord, and to put him upon the thine and the thou. Of this he immediately availed himself and said, 'Why doth thy wrath wax hot against thy people, which thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt, with great power, and with a mighty hand V Krummacher. The original term for ' corrupted' implies both their idol- atry and the consequent judgments which they had brought upon them- selves, according to the twofold sense of the same word, Gen. 6. 11 — 13, on which see Note. 8. They have turned aside quickly, Sac. This language might properly be used considering the very short time that had passed since they heard the law from mount Sinai, and promised obedience, and were afterwards warned not to ' make to them gods of silver or of gold.' They quickly forgot his works ; but the punishment which their sudden defection incurred admonishes us, that nothing is more provoking in the eyes of heaven than a speedy back- sliding after solemnly renewing our covenant with God, or receiving special mercies at his hand. 9. I have seen this people, &c. Targ Jon. 'The pride of this people is re- vealed before me.' The meaning is, I have long noted, observed, and studied, as it were, their disposition. I know their genius, and the character which I am constrained to give of them is, that they are a stiff-necked people. This is a metaphor taken from stubborn and intractable bullocks whose necks are B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXXII. 215 10 Now therefore » let me alone, that omy wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may con- sume them : and pi will make of thee a great nation. 11 qAnd Moses besought the Lord his God, and said, Lord, why doth thy wrath wax hot against thy people, which thou hast brought forth out of the land nDeut. 9. 14, 19. o ch. 22. 24. P Numb. 14.12. q Deut. 9. 18, 26, 27, 28, 29. f s. 74. 1,2. & 106. 23. brought with the greatest difficulty to submit to the yoke. Compare the equivalent allusion, Is. 48. 4, ' Thy neck is an iron sinew,' which would not bend. Jer. 5. 5, 'But these (the great men) have altogether broken the yoke and burst the bonds.' 10. Now therefore let me alone, &c. Chal. 'Leave off thy prayer before me.' Do not interpose by prayers and de- precations in their behalf. Moses had not yet opened his mouth, but God fore- saw the holy violence with which his importunity would besiege his throne, and apparently desires him not to in- tercede for them. What greater or more significant proof could be given of the divine condescension to the pe- titions of a mortal? 'God is fain to be- speak his own freedom ; as if Moses' de- votion were stronger than God's indig- nation. Great is the power of prayer; able, after a sort, to transfuse a dead palsy into the hand of Omnipotence.' Trapp. The words, however, which seemed to forbid, were really intended to encourage Moses in his suit. They are not indeed a positive command to him to pray in behalf of Israel, but they indicated what it was that would stay the divine hand from punishing ; and were equivalent to saying, ' If you in- tercede for them, my hands are tied, and I cannot execute the deserved ven- geance.' Of this hint Moses would not be slow lo avail himself. IT And I will make of thee a great nation. As of Egypt, with great power, and with a mighty hand? 12 r Wherefore should the Egyp- tians speak and say, For mischief did he bring them out, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth ? Turn from thy fierce wrath, and s repent of this evil against thy people. i-Numb. 14. 13. Deut. 9.28. & 32.27 s ver. 14. if the Most High would bribe the for- bearance of his servant. The words evidently disclose a secret purpose to try the spirit of Moses, as if to see whether the prospect of becoming great and distinguished himself, would out- weigh his regard for the interests of his people. He assaults him in a point where most men are most vulnerable, but the noble disinterestedness of Mo- ses was proof against the power of this appeal to the selfish principles of his nature, and the apparent dissuasives from intercession only urged him on with more vehemence in his suit. 11. Why doth thy wrath wax hot against thy people, &c. This is not probably to be understood as an ex- postulation, as if there were not suffi- cient cause for God to be angry ; but rather as an earnest entreaty that he would not in wrath consume them. The same usage of speech is common both in the prophets and the Psalms. Thus Ps. 44. 23, 24, 'Awake, why sleepest thou, Lord ? arise, cast us not off for ever. Wherefore hidest thou thy face, and forgettest our affliction and our op- pression?' See also the interrogative and optative modes of expression in- terchanged, Mat. 5, 39, and Luke. 8. 52. Mat. 8. 29, and Luke, 8. 28. 12. Wherefore should the Egyptian* speak and say, &c. The prayer of Mo- ses on this occasion contains a three- fold plea ; (1.) That God would not re- flect upon his own wisdom by so sooa }16 EXODUS. [B. C. M91. 13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, md Israel, thy servants, to whom hou t swarest by thine own self, ind saidst unto them, "I will mal- iply your seed as the stars of hea- tGen. 22. 16. Hebr. 6, 13. "Gen. 12. 7. 'i 13. 15. & 15. 7. 18. &, 26. 4. & 28. 13. & 35, lestroying what he had employed so nuch power to preserve. (2.) That he vould not give advantage to the Egyp- ians to glory over the ruin of a race vhom they so much hated. (3.) That he v^ould remember his covenant promises o Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The econd of these arguments he pros- cutes in the passage before us, and in [oing so shows that he had the glory )f God quite as much at heart as the velfare of Israel. Aware that the eyes md the tongues of Egypt and the sur- ounding nations were intent on finding natter of malicious triumph over a )eople so signally delivered from bond- ige, so miraculously sustained, so won- Irously conducted, he would at all haz- irds preclude every ground and occa- lion upon which the divine glory could )e blemished in the estimate of his ene- nies. Should the chosen people now ifter such illustrious displays of divine )ower in their behalf perish under the itroke of deserved wrath, what would )e more natural than that fickleness or mpotence should be imputed to their covenant God, and thus his holy name )e blasphemed on every side ? All that lad been thus far done would go for no^ hing, and to human appearance the VIost High would * disgrace the throne )f his glory.' But this was a con- sequence which the pious heart of Mo- ses could not endure to contemplate, md therefore is he so emphatic in urging he question, '"What will the Egyptians say?' Whatever petitions we oflTer to 3od, the glorifying his great name should ever be the grand prompting ■notive and the ultimate scope. r For mischief. Heb. HS^'lS beraah, ven, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give unto yom seed, and they shall inherit it for ever. 14 And the Lord w repented oi wDeut. 32. 26. 2 Sam. 24. 16. 1 Chron. 21.15. Ps. 106.45. Jer. 18. 8. & 26. 13, 19 Joel 2. 13. Jonah 3. 10. & 4. 2. in evil, in malice; i. e. maliciously. Gr. ^tra TTovrjoia;, with maliciousness IT Repent of this evil against thy people. Heb. ^2'$^ n^^tl ^^ al haraah le-ammeka, over the evil to thy people. Gr. sTTi TTf KaKia Tov \aov en', upon the evil of the people. The original doubt- less implies both the evil of crime committed by the people, and the evil of punishment suffered, or about to be suffered, by them. The latter idea of the two was so prominent in the mind of the Chaldean translator that he has rendered it, 'Repent of the evil which thou purposedst to do u^to thy people.' This of course is spoken after the man- ner of men on the principles explained in the Note on Gen. 6. 6. The simple meaning is, 'Relent from inflicting this threatened evil.' 13. Remember Abraham, Isaac, &c. This was doubtless the great argument of all, the promise made to the fathers. To the fulfilment of this promise the veracity of God would have been pledg- ed, had it been given simply in the form of a plain declaration ; but there was more than this ; it was a promise con- firmed by an oath, and an oath sworn by himself, than whom he could swear by no greater. Consequently nothing could be conceived more binding by which the honor of divine truth could be engaged to the performance of its stipulations. It is as if he had said, 'Lord, if thy people be now destroyed, shall not thy promise fail for ever- more ? And shall their unbelief be al- lowed to make thy truth of none eflfect? God forbid.' 14. And the Lord repented, &c. Heb nin'^ fin^'^l va-ylnnahem Yehovah. Gr. B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXXII. 217 the evil which he thought to do unto his people. 15 U And * Moses turned, and went down from the mount, and the two tables of the testimony were in his hand : the tables were written on both their sides; on the one side and on the other were they written. X Deut. 9. 15. iXaaOrj Kvptos^ the Lord was propitiated; the same term which occurs in the pray- er of the publican, Luke, 18. 13, *God, be merciful (iXacrdriri, be propitiated) to me a sinner j' i. e. by the interven- tion of a mediator. The publican there- fore does not rely upon the absolute mercy of God irrespective of an atone- ment. — The suit of Moses prevails with Jehovah. He so redoubles and multiplies the obstacles which he would fain throw in the way of the execution of ven- geance, that God virtually acknowledges himself overcome, and accordingly the Psalmist says, Ps. 106. 23, 'He would have destroyed them had not Moses his chosen stood before him in the breach.' 15. The two tables of testimony were in his hand. The reason of this de- nomination has been previously ex- plained. See Note on Ex.25. 16. These tables, as we are elsewhere informed, were of stone ; by which we are per- haps to understand a substance similar to that of the precious stones ; beau- tiful and splendid in a high degree, as well as durable, that it might corres- pond with the remaining articles of the tabernacle-furniture. Thus the Jewish writers; 'The first tables were hewn out of the sapphire of the throne of God's glory.' The two tables were probably designed to close together like the lids of a book, and by their being written on both sides is meant that their right and left hand leaf or side were each of them to be occupied with letters. Vol. II. 19 16 And the y tables were the work of God and the writing was the writing of God, graven upon the tables. 17 And when Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shout- ed, he said unto Moses, There is a noise of war in the camp. ych. 31. 18. 16. The tables were the work of God, &c. That is, the preparation of the materials, the stony tablets, by which they were brought into a state suitable for receiving the purposed inscription, was as purely the work of Jehovah him- self, as the engraving of the characters which appeared upon them. 17. And when Joshua heard, &c. The ignorance of Joshua respecting the real nature of the uproar in the camp evinces that he had not, after ascend- ing the mount with Moses, ch. 24. 13, as yet returned thither again ; so that the inference is obvious that Joshua, as well as Moses, was forty days in the mount, though not in the same part of it. How he was sustained or employed we are not informed. He was now probably waiting for Moses at some distance from the top of the mountain, at the point whither Moses * went down,' V. 15, and upon his re-appear- ance addressed him in the words that follow. His calm and quiet waiting during all the time of Moses' absence stands in very strong and, to him, cred- itable contrast with the rash, impa- tient, and unbelieving temper of the people during the same period. ^ As they shouted. Targ. Jon., 'When they shouted with the noise of jubilee be- fore the calf.' IT A noise of war in the camp. Heb. ri?2n^?2 ^Ip kol mil- harnah; a phrase rendered in Jer. 50. 22, ' the sound of battle.' The sounds that struck his ear were so different from those with which the camp had thus far been familiar, that he seems at once 218 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 18 And he said, It is not the voice of them that siiout for mastery, neither is it the voice of them that cry for being overcome: but the noise of them that sing do I hear. 19 T[ And it came to pass as soon to have concluded that an attack had been made upon the host by some of the wandering tribes of the desert, and that what he heard was the cry or shout of onset, such as was usually made by an eager soldiery rushing into combat. But this erroneous report of his senses was soon corrected. 18. It is not the voice, &c. Heb. ' It is no voice of the crying of strength (prowess), and it is no voice of the crying of weakness.' Chal. ' It is not the voice of strong men which overcome in the war, neither is it the voice of weak men which are discomfited' — a correct paraphrase, IT But the noise of them that sing do I hear. That sing in alternate or responsive strains, one Q\ioix answering (msy annoth) another, as the original properly implies. Gr. 'The voice of them that sing for wine ;' in allusion to their revelling and riot. As Moses had been instructed of God as to what the people were now doing, he could easily correct the mistaken ap- prehensions of Joshua. 19. And it came to pass, &c. The first effects of this fearful apostacy are here related. They show themselves in the conduct of their returning leader. It is recorded as a high character of Moses that he was pre-eminent in meek- ness. Yet in his, as in every other case of true meekness, this spirit wrought itt harmonious cooperation with a live- ly and glowing zeal for the Lord of hosts. With all his gentleness and pa- tience he could tolerate nothing that reflected or cast a stain upon the divine glory. His own insults and injuries, the ingratitude and disrespect shown to himself during his absence, he could as he came nigh unto the camp, that zhe saw the calf, and the dancing: and Moses' anger waxed hot, and he cast the tables out of his hands, and break them beneath the mount. z Deut. 9. 16, 17. easily pass by. But not so the offence committed against God. This was too gross, daring, and high-handed an in- sult to the majesty of heaven not to draw from him the tokens of a holy in- dignation. Accordingly as he approach- ed the camp and beheld the congrega- tion giving themselves up to bacchan- alian revelries and dancing around the idol which they had formed, he cast the precious tables out of his hand and brake them to pieces at his feet. This was not done in a paroxysm of intem- perate wrath, but as a significant em- blem representing the crime which they had now committed. He Avas undoubt- edly inwardly moved to it by a prompt- ing from above. God had condescend- ed to enter into a covenant with them to be their God, and they had covenant- ed to be his people. These tables of stone contained, as it were, the terms of agreement ; and were a pledge, that God would fulfil to them all that he had spoken. This covenant they had en- tirely annulled, and consequently all their expectations from God were utter- ly destroyed. Such a mode therefore of representing the transaction, on the part of Moses, was perfectly lawful and right. Indeed, so far was his con- duct on this occasion from being a sud- den transport or sally even of pious wrath in view of the enormity of Is- rael's sin, that there is every reason to regard it as the result of a deliberate purpose executed indeed by a roused and energetic spirit. It is to be recol- lected that he did not first come to th« knowledge of the people's crime, when he first came within sight of the camp. God had previously iufbrmed him of it, B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXXII. 219 20 a And he took the calf which they had made, and burnt it m the fire, and ground it to powder, and aDeut. 9.21. and it was no doubt under divine dictation that he resolved as he descended upon the manner in which he should most significantly express his own and Jeho- vah's sense of the fearful consequences of their guilt. This was to be done by some action performed in the sight of the host. Accordingly instead of be- ing ordered to leave the tables behind him on the mount, he was directed to take them along with him, that when they were broken before their eyes they might be more deeply affected, and filled with confusion to think what blessings they had lost. They had broken the covenant itself, and Moses as a sensible sign of the awful fact breaks the monumental tables in which it was inscribed. Nothing could more solemj^y indicate that their covenant standing was wrecked, and that they now lay exposed to the severest ven- geance of an angry God. It is doubtless in this view of the transaction that we find no censure passed upon Moses, nor does he afterward, Deut. 9. 17, speak of it with any regret. 20. And he took the calf, &c. The zeal with which he was inspired ena- bled him to face the congregation with majestic authority, and to seize and reduce to powder the vile fabri- cation of their hands. They appear to have been too much overawed by his presence to attempt any resistance, and he proceeded at once in a very striking manner both to convince them of their sin, and to punish them for it. He gives them a demonstration of the vanity of the idol which they had so stupidly worshipped by virtually annihilating it, except as a portion of it remained as an instrument of correction. IT Ground I it to powder. Heb. '^nt3"^ yithan. The original denotes any mode of com- ! Strewed it upon the water, and made the children of Israel drink of It. minuting or reducing to small particles a hard substance, whether by filing, grinding, or any ether process of abra- sion. As to the precise manner in which the effect was produced in the present instance, we are not informed. We must be left to our own conjectures, aided only by the dim light of the parallel passage, Deut. 9. 21, 'And I took your sin, the calf which ye had made, and burnt it with fire, and stamp- ed it, and ground it very small, even until it was as small as dust : and I cast-^ the dust thereof into the brook that de- scended out of the mount.' By its be- ing ' stamped' we are probably to infer that it was heat or hammered out into thin plates, and from that form re- duced to the condition of a fine dust, which might easily be strewed upon the water. The process would no doubt require considerable time and labor ; but he would have numbers to assist him, and no hypothetical difficulties in the way of the result are to be allowed to countervail the express testimony of revelation that such was the fact. IT Made the children of Israel to drink of it. Not perhaps that he constrained them to this ; but having no other water for their daily use than that of the brook which descended out of the mount, Ex. 17. 6. Deut. 9. 21, they could not avoid, when they drank at all, drinking this mixture. How suitable the punish- ment to the sin ! What greater in- dignity could be offered to the worth- less idol? What more humiliating pun- ishment could be inflicted upon the peo- ple, than to be thus compelled to swal- low their god, and to ' cast him out in- to the draught' with their common food. But this, like the breaking the tables, was an emblematical action. It not only showed them how utterly con- 220 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 21 And Moses said unto Aaron, b What did this people unto thee, that thou hast brought so great a sin upon them ? b Gen. 20. 9. & 26. 10. tomptible was the idol, which could thus be reduced so near to nothing, but taught them also in a most impressive man- ner, that ' the backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways.' The powder mixed with their drink ' signi- fied to them that the curse they had thereby brought upon themselves, would mingle itself with all their enjoyments, and embitter them ; that it would enter into their bowels like water, and like oil into their bones.' Henry. 21. And Moses said unto Aaron, &c. Another painful duty still remained to be performed by Moses. His own brother had been ' chief in the trans- gression,' and he is now to be called to account and interrogated with a holy sternness. The language in which Mo- ses addressed him might seem at first view to involve a latent vein of irony or satire, as if he had inquired what offence they had committed against him, that he should think of avenging himself by leading them into so great wickedness. This would imply that so enormous in his eyes was the guilt of the transaction, that it must have re- quired some violent motive on the part of Aaron to prompt him to engage in it. On the common principles by which a servant of God might be supposed to be actuated, it seemed to him impossi- ble to account for his conduct, and he therefore asks if there were not some personal consideration which moved him to the deed. This is the view taken of the passage by Scott and other commentators, who understand Moses as insinuating that the spirit of retalia- tion or revenge was at the bottom of his conduct. But we prefer on the whole a simpler construction of the 22 And Aaron said, Let not the anger of my lord wax hot : c thou knowest the people, that they ai-e set on mischief. c ch. 14. 11. & 15. 24. & 16. 2, 20, 28. & 17. 2. 4. speaker's meaning. We believe the scope of the question is simply to in- quire, what were the influences and in- ducements brought to bear upon liim by the people, which could prevail to gain his consent to such an abominable measure. If it were possible for him to advance any thing which should stand him instead of an excuse, he was will- ing and anxious to hear it. 'Did they importune, or cajole, or threaten thee ? Make a free confession, and solve the problem of thy conduct.' Yet it is not to be supposed that Moses anticipated any answer from Aaron that could really excuse him, or explain away the fact that c great sin had been actually committed. Whatever were his rij^otives, he had led the people into sin, not per- haps by being the first mover of it, but by consenting to it, aiding and abetting it, when, as a magistrate, he should have resisted and put it down. He might justly be said, therefore, to have ' brought it upon them' by giving them his countenance in it. Such is the ten- fold power of evil, which attaches itself to the example of those who stand high in authority and repute ! In the esti- mate of Scripture Aaron's conduct was a virtual hatred of his people which was not to have been expected except from an enemy. Lev. 19. 17, ' Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart ; thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbor, and shalt not suffer sin upon him.' This text is an humbling com- mentary upon the proceedings of Aaron in this sad affair. 22, And Aaron said, Let not, &c. The reasons assigned by Aaron for his conduct are honest, but frivolous. He makes a candid statement of the facts, B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXXII. 221 23 For they said unto me, ^ Make us gods which shall go before us: for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we Avot not what is become of him. 24 And I said unto them, whoso- ever hath any gold, let them break d ver. 1. but leaves himself wholly unjustified in the premises, as may easily be inferred from the circumstance , that Moses does not seem to regard it as deserving of a reply. He passes by the lame apology without a single word of comment. IT Thou knowest the people, that they are set on mischief. Heb. J^ltl 5''^D hera hu, that they are in evil; an em- phatic mode of expression indicating that they are, as it were, settled, sunk, immersed in evil or in sin. So, 1 John, 5, 19, *The whole world lieth in wick- edness (in evil) ;' a phrase equivalent to being very evil, as when it is said, Ps. S3. 4, (Heb.) 'his words are in truth,' the meaning is, that his words are pre-eminently true and faithful. Gr. 'Thou knowest the violent force of this people.' Yet how obvious even to a child, that the perverseness of the people was no apology for the pusillan- imity of their leader. Were they given to evil ? — So much the more needful was it for him to stem the torrent, and by inflexible firmness withstand the workings of their corruptions. Our in- stinctive sentiments at once respond to the justice of the divine judgment re- specting this affair as recorded, Deut. 9. 20, 'And the Lord was very angry with Aaron to have destroyed him: and I prayed for Aaron also the same time.' 24. And there came out this calf. It might perhaps appear from the letter that Aaron intended to insinuate, that the calf was produced by accident, or by some invisible or magical operation, and that he was as much surprised at 19* it off. So they gave it me : then I cast it into the fire, and there e came out this calf. 25 H And when Moses saw that the people were f naked, (for Aaron ghad made them naked unto their shame among their enemies,) e ver. 4. f oh. 33. 4, 5. e2 Chron. 28. 19. the result as any one else could be. The Targ. Jon. takes the same view of it ; 'And I said unto them, whoso- ever hath gold let him break it oiF and give it to me ; and I cast it into the fire, and Satan entered into it, and it came out in the form of this calf.' But it is scarcely possible to conceive that a man like Aaron should have resorted to such a silly and ridiculous subter- fuge. We therefore take it as a brief and rather garbled account of the pro- cess of formation, upon the details of which he did not like to dwell, though he would not deny his agency in the affair. He confesses that he took the gold and melted it, and that the calf was the result ; but he excuses himself from reciting all the particulars of the process. 25. And when Moses saw that the people were naked. Heb. 3/*iQ parua, from ^'^'D para, to free, to set loose, to let break away, and thence to fall into disorder, confusion, and exposedness, a state in which one is naked of defence. This is probably the leading idea ; not so much that they were denuded of their garments or ornaments, as that they were deprived by their impi- ous act of the favorable presence and protection of heaven, which was their glory and their strength, so that they now stood as naked unarmed men lia- ble to be surprised and put to flight by the weakest enemy. It was doubtless a conduct strikingly exemplifying the truth of the apothegm nf one of the Lat- in fathers ; ' Non est nudus nisi quem cul|)a nudaverit,' ht only is naked whom 222 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 26 Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Who is on the Lord's side ? let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him. 27 And he said unto them, Thus saith the Lokd God of Israel, Put crimt huth made so. As the import, however, of the original word is not settled with absolute precison, it may be that it more properly denotes a dis- sipated, dissolute, disorderly state, in which the people had thrown off dis- cipline and restraint, and given them- selves up to every excess of revelling and riot. Thus the Gr. ' were dissipat- ed, for Aaron had dissipated them.' Parkhurst renders it to break loose, or stai't aside, as from the true religion and worship ; parallel to which he says is the usage of the term, Prov. 29. IS. 'Where there is no vision the people perish (^^tj^ yippard) j* rather, * the people break away or apostatize,' or as the Vulg. renders, will be dissipated. So 2 Chron. 27. 19, 'For the Lord brought Judah low because of Ahaz king of Israel ; for he made Judah naked.' Gr. 'Because lie utterly apos- tatized from the Lord.' IT Unto their shame, Heb. ri22?3rDp leshimtza, to infamy; i.e. when the report of their foul revolt should spread abroad. Chal. 'To blot them with an evil name in their generations. Gr. 'For Aaron had dissipated them for a rejoicing to their adversaries ;' i. e. so as to give their ene- mies cause of exultation and triumph over them. 26. Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, &c. Some place probably about the otitskirts of the camp, answer- ing in a rude way to the gate of a city, where courts of judgment were wont to sit, hear causes, and give sentence. IT Who is on the Lord's side ? let hi/n come to me. Heb. ^^i^ m(l"ilD *?2 mi Inihovah tli, whosoever (is) for the every man his sword by his side, and go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp, and I'slay every man his brother, and every man his companion, and every man his neighbor. hNumb. 25, 5. Deut. 33. 9. Lord — to me ! — where the words ' let him come' are omitted through the im passioned earnestness of the speaker. IT All the sons of Levi gathered them- selves together unto him. This can hardly be understood literally, as it is clearly implied, Deut. 33. 9, that some of the Levites were slain, and con- sequently that some of them were in- volved in the guilt of this transaction. By ' all ' therefore we are to under- stand, perhaps, that all who did as- semble were sons of Levi, and that of them there was a very large number, 27. Put every man his sword by his side, &c. Judgment was here to be ex- ecuted by commission, and not by the immediate hand of God himself, as in some other instances of aggravated transgression. It was indeed a trying test to which the fidelity of the faithful was nov/ to be submitted in becoming the executioners of their own brethren, and without distinction of sex, age, or relation, to imbrue their hands in the blood of those that were most dear to them. But the offence was one of the most aggravated character ; one by which the honor of God's great name had been sadly tarnished ; and in order to a more effectual vindication of it, judgment was to be executed with ter- rible severity. IT Go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp. This is no doubt to be understood as a com- mission to slay every one whom they should meet in the open places of the camp, let him be relation, friend, or neiglibor, while they v.'ere not required to enter into any of the tents, inasmuch as those who were sensible of the divine B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXXIL 223 28 And the children of Levi did according to the word of Moses : and there fell of the people that day about three thousand men. 29 'For Moses had said, Con- secrate yourselves to-day to the Lord, even every man upon his son, and upon his brother ; that he iNumb. 25. 11, 12,13. Deut. 13. 6,-11. tfe 33. 9, 10. 1 Sam. 15. 18, 22. Prov. 21, 3. Zech. 13. 3. Malt. 10. 37. displeasure might be presumed to be there employed ia secret in bemoanmg their own or the iniquity of their breth- ren. None were executed but those who openly and boldly stood forth.- 5r Slay every man his bi'other, &c. That is, let those who are on the Lord's side slay all the rest who have apos- tatized, even their nearest relations. 28. The children of Levi did accord- ing to the word of Moses, Their num- bers were incomparably less than those of the rest of the people, yet acting un- der and animated by a divine commis- sion, they hesitated not to encounter them sword in hand. Their victims, on the other hand, were probably so dis- heartened by conscious guilt, and so confounded and intimidated by the au- thority of Moses, that they made no re- sistance. 29. For Moses had said, he. This discloses the reason of the zeal and alacrity of the Levites in this trying service. They had been informed by Moses that the inflicting of vengeance on their guilty brethren would be a service so acceptable to God, that they would by performing it secure his ' blessing ' by being confirmed in the sacerdotal office, and should by this act, as it were, 'consecrate' and initiate themselves unto God as by an offering of sacrifice. Accordingly it is said to the same purpose, Deut. 33. 8 — 10, 'And of Levi he said, Let thy Thum- mim and thy Urim be with thy holy one, &c., who said unto his father and may bestow upon you a blessing this day. 30 H And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses said unto the people, kYe have sinned a great sin : and now I will go up unto the Lord ; i peradventure I shall mmake an atonement for your sin. k 1 Sam. 12. 20, 23. Luke 15. 18. i2Sam. 16. 12. Amos 5. 15. m Numb. 25. 13. to his mother, I have not seen him ; neither did he acknowledge his breth« ren, nor know his own children ; for they have observed thy word and kept thy covenant. They shall teach Jacob thy judgments, and Israel thy law ; they shall put incense before thee, and whole burnt sacrifice upon thine altars.' This act of obedience was a kind of inaugur- ation, though a fearful one, of the tribe into their holy office. They thus wiped away as it were the stain which adhered to the escutcheon of their tribe from the conduct of their father Levi, v/ho had wielded his sword unto sin in the affair of the Shechemites, Gen. 34. 25, in consequence of which he lost the blessing which would otherwise have been conferred upon him, and which the faithful and devoted conduct of his sons may be said to have regained. IT Consecrate. Heb. fi^DT^ l&^^l^D milu yedkem, fill your hands. On the ap- propriate significancy of this term, see Note on Ex. 29. 9. IT That he may bestow upon you a blessing. The bless- ing of preferment to the rank of God's special ministers in the service of his house. 30. Ye have sinned a great sin. From this it appears that all the guilty were not cut off by the sword of the execu- tioners. But those who were destroy- ed were probably the individuals who headed the rebellion, and of whom it was fit to make a signal example in order to inspire the rest with a salutary dread. The fact of their exemption 224 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 31 And Moses » returned unto the Lord, and said, Oh, this peo- ple have sinned a great sin, and have omade them gods of gold. 32 Yet now, if thou wilt forgive n Deut. 9. 18. o ch. 20. 23. from the fatal stroke might possibly beget, in their minds, the persuasion that their guilt was not of a very deep dye J but Moses here acquaints them to the contrary. He assures them that they — even they — had ' sinned a great sin ;' and not only so, he even expresses himself as if he deemed it somewhat questionable whether it would be con« sistent with the honor of God to grant them forgiveness. ' I will go up unto the Lord ; peradventure I shall make an atonement for your sin.' He thought he might perhaps be made an instru- ment of reconciliotion; for in no other sense could atonement be properly pre- dicated of Aaron's agency on this oc- casion. He was not without hope, nor yet was he destitute of fear ; accord- ingly his words were calculated to preserve the people in a due medium between desponding dread and pre- sumptuous confidence. Such is the usu- al style of the Scriptures in their ad- dresses to flagrant sinners. Amos, 5. 15, ' It may be that the Lord God of hosts will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph.' Jonah, 1. 6, 'What mean- est thou, O sleeper? arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us, that we perish not.' Acts, 8. 22, 'Repent therefore of this thy wick- edness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.' 31. And Moses returned. From a comparison of this with the subsequent parts of the narrative we infer that this withdrawment from the people was not the same with that of forty days' dura- tion of which Moses thus speaks, Deut. 9. 18, 'And I fell down before the Lord, as at the first, forty days and forty their sin : and if not, p blot me, I pray thee, q out of thy book which thou hast written. P Ps. 69. 28. Rom. 9. 3. q Ps. 56. 8. & 139.16. Dan. 12. 1. Phil. 4. 3. Rev. 3. 5. & 13. 8. & 17. 8. ! jt -lA 11 rf r>«,,t " oo T.,ci, «; ch. 3. 8. f ver. 15. 17. gch. 32. 9. &34 c ch 32. 34. & 34. 11. d Deut. /. 22. .Tosh, g ^^^^ g ^^ ^3^ ^ ^j^ ^3 ^^ ^ ^^ j^ ^^- ^^ Numb. 1«. 21.45. Stales in a summary way the fact ol his earnest prayer and the concession nnade to it ; in the present, he goes back and relates minutely the train of circum- stances which preceded and led to the declaration above mentioned. In doing this he virtually makes known to us one main ground of the urgency of his sup- phcations. He was afraid that God would withdraw the tokens of his vis- ible presence. As a punishment for the mad attempt of the people to supply themselves with a false symbol of his presence, he was apprehensive he might be provoked to take from them the ti'ue, and hence his impassioned entreaty that God would not visit them with so sore a judgment. But the particu- lars will disclose themselves as we proceed. 1. And the Lord said. Heb. ^inT^I mrr^ va-yedabber Yehovah, and Jehovah had said; as the like phrase is often elsewhere to be translated. It is only the context in such cases that deter- mines the true mode of rendering. IT Depart and go up hence, &c. These words, and what immediately follows, appear to have been spoken by God to Moses during his first sojourn upon the summit of the mount, and vpon the oc- casion of the making of the golden calf. In sovereign displeasure he turns the people over, as it were, upon Moses, whom he represents as having brought them out of Egypt, rather than him- self; and though he promises to make good his covenant with Abraham, and give them the land of Canaan, yet he intimates that they shall go forward without the extraordinary tokens of his presence which they had hitherto en- joyed, and which would have been con- tinued to them but for their sin. Such language imports, however, a reserved prerogative of change in the dispen- sation announced if adequate reasons for it should occur. 2. And I will send an angel be/ore thee. This clause is not to be under- stood as spoken to Moses, but is to be read in connexion with the preceding, V. I, as a part of the promise to the fathers and their seed, which God is here reciting. The promise of the emis- sary angel was not, indeed, expressly made to either of the patriarchs here mentioned, but it was expressly made to the Israelites, Ex. 23. 20, and the whole is here brought together as one integral promise. 3. For I will not go up in the midst of thee, Sac. Chal. ^I will not make my Shekinah (iriDSD shekinti) to go up in the midst of thee.' Arab. 'I will not make my Light (or Splendor) to go up among you.' Having recited the prom- ise formerly made of conducting them into Canaan by the medium of the Angel of his presence, or the Shekinah, the Lord here ostensibly retracts his prom- ise and announces a contrary intention. So perverse, stiff-necked, and rebel- lious had they proved, that they were to consider themselves as having for- feited the favor of such a presence, and as being righteously exposed to be left in utter destitution of the symbol of their glory. Yet the well-grounded re mark of Scott is ever to be borne in mind, that ' such declarations rather express what God justly might do, what 228 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 4 % And when the people heard i these evil tidings, i they mourned : k and no man did put on him his ornaments. 5 For the Lord had said unto Moses, Say unto the children of i Numb. 14. 1, 39. k Lev. 10. 6. 2 Sam. 19.24. 1 Kings 21. 27. 2 Kings 19. ]. Esther 4. 1, 4. Ezra 9. 3. Job 1. 20. & 2. 12. Isai. 32.11. Ezek. 24. 17, 23. & 26. 16. it would become him to do, and what he would do, were it not for some in- tervening consideration, than his irre- versible purpose ; and always imply a reserved exception, in case the party offending were truly penitent.' IT Lest I consume thee in the way. Lest I should be constrained,, by a just regard to my own glory, to come out in consuming wrath against your ini- quities. 4, 5. When the people heard these evil tidings, they mourned. The an- nouncement was probably made to the people when Moses first came down from the mount, and after breaking the tables of stone. Their humiliation, therefore, took place in the interval be- tween the first and second period of forty days, during which Moses with- drew himself from the congregation for the purpose of prayer and fasting. The effect produced showed that they were deeply sensible of the value of the blessing which they were likely to lose. They were at once filled with grief, which expressed itself by the usual external badges of ' mourning,' viz., divesting themselves of their or- naments, although it appears from v. 5, that this was at the same time in obedience to an express command of Jehovah. This was not only in order that they might evince the appropriate tokens of sorrow and humiliation, but also that they could make sacrifices to God as well as to a golden calf While thus disrobed of their festive garments and precious jewels, and clad in the habit of penitents, God represents him- Israel, i Ye are a stiff-necked peo- ple: I will come up minto the midst of thee in a moment, and consume thee : therefore now put off thy ornaments from thee, that I may " know what to do unto thee. 1 ver. 3. m See Numb. 16. 45, 46. n Deut. 8. 2. Vs. 139. 23. self as deliberating how to act towards them. But when God speaks of him- self in this language, as if perplexed and wavering in his mind, it is not to be un- derstood as intimating that such things actually exist ; for ' known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world j' nor can any occasion pos- sibly arise in which he can be at a loss how to act. But he is pleased to speak in this way of himself in order to ac- commodate himself to our feeble appre- hensions. Compare Hos. 6. 4. and Jer. 3. 19, where also the Most High .speaks as if perplexed in his mind about the line of conduct he should pursue, and as wishing to show mercy, but not know- ing how to do it consistently with his own honor. All this is plainly capable of a sense entirely consistent with the reverence due to the Supreme Being. But while it is intimated that so long as impenitence continues he knows not how to exercise mercy to the sinner, it is at the same time implied, that when once humbled for their iniquities he is at no loss how to act towards them ; he can then give free scope to the merciful and compassionate dis- position of his own heart. So it is clear that the language in the present case implied a design of mercy, provid- ed they showed signs of repentance, and as they did demean themselves as those who were conscious of their de- linquencies and sincerely mourned, we may suppose that this fact added its weight to the fervency of Moses' pray- ers to give them prevalence with GiA in their behalf. B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXXIII. 229 6 And the children of Israel stripped themselves of their orna- ments by the mount Horeb. 7 And Moses took the taberna- cle, and pitched it without the camp afar off from the camp, « and o ch. 29. 42, 43. a. By the mount Horcb. Heb. ^n^ Din inehar Horeb, from mount Horeb. That is, at a considerable distance from it, as not worthy to stand in immediate proximity to it. The form of the ex- pression, however, in that sense is so singular, that we are strongly inclined to regard the preposition ' from' as a particle of time rather than of place, implying that from the time of the oc- currence of this transaction at Horeb, they divested themselves of their orna- ments, and continued to dispense with them during the remainder of their so- journing. Thus it is said. Num. 14. 19, 'As thou hast forgiven this people /rom Egypt even until now;' i. e. from the time of their being in Egypt. Why may not the phrase * from Horeb' in the one in- stance be equivalent to ' from Egypt' in the other? See this usage of speech more fully illustrated in the Note on Gen. 2. 10. 7. And Moses took the tabernacle, &c. Heb. insert ha-ohel, the tent. It is evident that the tabernacle or tent here mentioned could not be that concerning which Moses had before received direc- tions, for that was not yet built ; nor is it at all probable that the private tent of Moses is to be understood, for it ap- pears V. 8, that Moses himself went back and forth to and from this taber- nacle as well as the rest of the congre- gation, from which it is to be inferred that he, as well as they, ordinarily re- sided within the camp. The probability therefore is that the Israelites, previous to the erection of the prescribed taber- nacle, had some kind of sacred tent or portable temple for the public perform- ance of religious rites, which Moses, Vol. II. 20 called it the Tabernacle of the Congregation. And it came to pass, that every one which p sought the Lord, went out unto the taber- nacle of the congregation, which ivas without the camp. PDeut.4. 29. 2 Sam. 21. 1. as an argument of God's displeasure against Israel, on this occasion, ordered to be removed from a camp so grossly profaned by idol-worship. It is in- deed objected to this, that this taber- nacle now first began to be honored with a new designation, and called ^Hit "i5>T?2 ohel moed, the tabernacle of con- vention, which is inconsistent with the idea of its having previously been em- ployed for such a purpose. But to this it may be replied, that nothing forbids the rendering the clause in the pluper- fect, and considering it as introduced parenthetically — ' And took the taber- nacle and pitched it without the camp afar off from the camp (for he had called it the Tabernacle of Conven- tion) ; and it came to pass,' &c. It was so called because such was its ob- ject and use. It had hitherto served this purpose in the midst of the camp; but now as a sign of the divine aliena- tion and displeasure, and in order to quicken and deepen their penitence, it was to be removed from its former po- sition, and stationed at a distance from a locality which had forfeited its longer continuance upon it. The withdraw- ment was an intimation to their senses of the fact announced by Moses of their purposed dereliction by Jehovah's pre- sence. He had before promised, ch. 25. 8, to dwell among them, in the midst of them, and as the oracular presence of the Deity was supposed to be especially connected with a tent or tabernacle, it may be supposed that this temporary erection had been pre- pared with that view, until the larger and more magnificent one designed by God himself should be built. But so 230 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. P Jiiid it came to pass when Mo- ses went out into the tabernacle, that all the people rose up, and «tood every man q at his tent-door, and looked after Moses, until he was gone into the tabernacle. q Numb. 16. 27. aggravated and enormous had been the offence recently committed, that the Most High proceeds now to indicate in a visible manner the retraction of his gracious promise, and instead of fix- ing the symbols of his presence in the camp, to cause them to be removed and planted far away from the places which liad contracted such foul defilement. IT Every one which sought the Lord. Chal. 'Every one which sought ioctrine (or information) from before the face of the Lord — went forth to the tabernacle of the house of doctrine cvhich was without the camp.' The removal of the tabernacle took away 3f course the facilities which the peo- ple had formerly enjoyed for consult- ng the divine oracle. This they could 10 more do in the camp, but were obliged for the purpose to go abroad :o the place where God was henceforth pleased to manifest his presence. It IS evident, therefore, that it was not a 'ofaZ withdrawment of the tokens of the livine favor. The Most High s.till pro- claimed himself willing to be sought anto. Intimations of mercy were thus ningled with the signs of displeasure, lest the spirit should faint before him md the souls which he had made.' It may still, however, be regarded as probable that the people here spoken 3f did not actually enter into the taber- lacle — a privilege apparently reserved for Moses alone — but only approached 'otcards it themselves, while Moses atcted as their advocate in the business which had brought them out. 8. It came to pass when Moses went jut, &c. The particulars here men- tioned are not. as we suppose, to be un- 9 And it came to pass, as Bloses entered into the tabernacle, the cloudy pillar descended and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and the LORD r talked with Moses. rch. 25.22. & 31. 18. Ps. 99. 7. derstood as having occurred on one spe- cial occasion only, but as being the ordinary accompaniments, for several days together, of Moses' ingress into the sacred tent whenever he entered it. His ordinary residence was doubt- less in the camp with his family, but in his office of intercessor, mediator, and judge, he had repeated occasions to go forth to this tent to hold inter- views with Jehovah ; and whenever this was the case, as he was acting on the behalf of the people, it was natural that they should watch with intense solicitude the visible indications of the issue of the affair. Thus the disciples * looked after' our Lord Jesus, when he ascended on high to enter into the holy place not made with hands, till * a cloud received him out of their sight, as Moses here,' Henry. The station of the tabernacle, we think it prob- able, was somewhere on the side of the mountain, far indeed below the summit, and yet in some conspicuous locality, that might be seen by most of the mul- titude below. The topographical fea- tures of the region are such that if the tent were without the camp it must ne- cessarily be upon some elevated ground, as all the valleys or wadys would of course be occupied by the tents of the congregation. 9. The cloudy pillar descended and stood at the door of the tabernacle, &c. It descended from the summit to the less elevated part of the mountain where the Tabernacle stood. As the sublime object had probably remained entirely stationary for at least forty days, we can easily imagine that it must have produced a deep sensation B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXXIIL 231 10 And all the people saw the cloudy pillar stand at the taber- nacle-door: and all the people rose among the people to see it now again majestically moving from its place, and transferring itself down the mountain to the spot where the tent was fixed, and where Moses had now repaired. This would indeed verify the claim of the sacred structure to the title of * Tabernacle of Meeting,' when Jeho- vah by his symbol was thus pleased to meet with his servant in this open and honorary manner, in the sight of the awe-struck host. The effect would natu- rally be to inspire additional reverence for the person and authority of Moses, as one whom God saw fit to distinguish by the indubitable seal of his own selec- tion, and to endow with the highest pre- rogatives of a human mediator. The descent of the cloudy pillar at the door of the tent would also tend to assure them that the rupture between God and his people was not utterly past heal- ing. Though withdrawn, in the with- drawing of the Tabernacle, from the midst of them, he was still accessible. With due reverence and patience and prostration of spirit they might still approach him, notwithstanding his of- fended majesty maintained a lofty and awful reserve which could not but en- gender some measure of trembling sus- pense. Nor is such an attitude un- wonted to the Holy One of Israel. He often hides his face from sinners that he may the more effectually incite them to seek him with broken hearts. Un- der his fatherly chastisement, therefore, we are not to give way so far to the promptings of terror or conscious guilt as to forbear to seek him, but even though from afar to make our earnest suit towards him. So long as the tokens of his presence are not entirely remov- ed, we are not permitted to nourish our despair. IT And the Lord talked with Moses. The words ' the Lord' are evi- up and s worshipped, every man in his tent-door. sch. 4. 31. dently supplied, as if there were in the original an ellipsis of the proper sub- ject of the verb. But we have no doubt that the correct rendering is yielded by the omission of this phrase. The writer intended to say that the cloudy pillar talked with Moses ; nor is any thing farther necessary to justify the expres- sion than a reference to the view, so often repeated in the preceding Notes, of the Shekinah of the Old Testament economy. The aerial column, as the enclosing receptacle of the inner 'Glory' was the symbol of the Lord's presence to his people, and was the visible organ of the communication of his will. In this character it bore the name, dis- played the attributes, and claimed the honors, of Jehovah himself. Nothing can be more pertinent to this point than the language of the Psalmist, Ps. 99. 7, 'He spake to them in the cloudy pillar.' It would be easy to enlarge upon this explanation, and to show its immense importance as a clue to the solution of a multitude of passages which speak of the divine manifestations, but the ex- tended Note at the close of chapter 14, to which the reader is referred, will preclude the necessity of any fuller dis- cussion of the text before us. 10. All the people rose up and wor- shipped, every man in his tent door. This is sometimes erroneously inter- preted of the more civil respect and homage paid by the people to Moses as he passed by the doors of their tents on his way to the Tabernacle of the Con- gregation. It was unquestionably a worship rendered to God in token of their devout and grateful acknowlege- ment of his goodness in restoring to them, even though at a distance, the symbol of his gracious presence. It was a virtual profession that, whatever had been their past obliquities, they 232 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 11 And 'the Lord spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. And he t Gen. 32. 30. Numb. 12. 8. Deut. 34. 10. now considered him as the only proper object of adoration, and would hence- forth pay their homage to him alone. It was an act of humble reverence very naturally prompted by the circum- stances in which they were placed. How must their hearts have beat with tremulous anxiety as they stood at their tent-doors and ' looked after Moses un- til he had gone into the Tabernacle !' Their encampment they had so sadly defiled by their sin that they could not but have deep misgivings whether Je- hovah would any more return to them or accept their sacrifices, or listen to their prayers and praises. They could not but ask themselves, whether he would indeed meet Moses and them that sought him at the Tabernacle with- out the camp. What a relief then to such doubts as these to see the cloudy pillar descend ! How gladdening to their souls to behold even this partial intimation of the reconcileableness of their oflfended sovereign ! In the honor thus put upon their leader and advocate they could not but read a token of good to themselves. They had put off their ornaments in obedience to the divine injunction, and now doubtless stood with tears of repentance awaiting the indications of mercy or wrath. To the joy of their hearts they behold the sig- nal of favor and forgiveness, and see themselves spared in that they feared ! How then could they fail to give vent to the admiring and adoring sentiments of their bosoms by falling down, as prostrate worshippers, and acknowledg- ing the clemency of the Most High ! 11. And the Lord spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. That is, familiarly and plain- ly, not in visions, dreams, or dark ora- turned again into the camp; but uhis servant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, departed not out of the tabernacle. uch. 24. 13. cles — a privilege peculiar to Moses; Num. 12. 6—8, ' If there be a prophet among you, 1 the Lord will make my- self known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream. My servant Moses is not so, who is faith- ful in all my house. With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently and not in dark speeches ; and the sim- ilitude of the Lord shall he behold.' It is clear however, that this must be understood in such a way as not to con- flict with what is said, v. 20, 'Thou canst not see my face ; for there shall no man see me and live.' There is a sense in which God never has been nor can be seen. Comp. John 1. 8. Col. 1. 15. 1 Tim. 6. 16. Indeed we have no reason to suppose that a purely spirit- ual being can in the nature of things be made visible to mortal eyes. We do not even see each other's spirits. We only see the outward material forms through which, as a medium, the in- ward spirit manifests itself. So in the present case. What Moses saw and held communion with was ndt God in his intimate essence, but God in his sensible symbol of the Shekinah, and this as we have before remarked is re- peatedly called his 'Face' or 'Presence.' See Note on Ex. 25. 30. Understood in this sense all difficulty vanishes at once, and leaves the two passages in entire harmony with each other. — Chal. ' And God spake unto Moses word to word.' Gr. evuttiov evoiTriM, presence to presence. IT His servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, departed not out of the tabernacle. As it is difficult to conceive for what purpose Joshua could have been required to remain in the Tabernacle after Moses had left it, there seems to be good ground for B. C. 1491.] CHAPTER XXXIII. 233 12 ^ And Moses said unto the Lord, See, ^ thou sayest unto me, Bring up this people : and thou hast not let me know whom thou xch. 32. 34. adopting the rendering of Junius and Tremellius, approved by Pool, Patrick, Rivet, Scott, and others, which runs thus ; — 'He turned again into the camp, (he) and his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young manj but he (i.e. the Lord, as appearing in the cloud) de- parted not out of the Tabernacle.' The original will not only admit of this ver- sion, but the disposition of the accents seems rather to require it. Add to this, that the phrase ' out of the tabernacle,' is in the Hebrew ' out of the midst of the tabernacle,' which is more cor- rectly applicable to the symbol of the Presence, for we have no intimation that any other person than Moses went into the Tabernacle, who seems to have been alone admitted to the honor of conversing with the divine Majesty. We have little hesitation therefore, on the whole, in adopting this as the true sense. — As to the epithet ' young man' applied to Joshua, it cannot be predi- cated of his age, for he was now about fifty-three years old ; but he was a young man compared with Moses, and the original term ^5>D naar is often ap- plied to one on the ground of his acting in a ministerial or servile capacity, as is clearly shown in the Note on Gen. 14. 24. 12. And Moses said unto the Lord, &c. There are few portions of the en- tire Pentateuch where it is so difficult to settle with precision the order of events as in the narrative before us. As to the present interview, there can be but little doubt that it took place before Moses went to pass the second forty days in the mount, but whether it is to be referred to the time when he interceded with God before coming 20* wilt send with me. Yet thou hast said, y I know thee by name, and thou hast also foimd grace in my sight. y ver. 17. Gen. 18. 19. Ps. 1. 6. Jer. 1. 5. John 10. 14, 15. 2 Tim. 2. 19. down with the tables, or to some sub- sequent date in the interval betweea the two forty-days' sojourns, is ques- tioned by commentators. For our- selves, as before remarked, we incline to the cpioion which supposes a trans- position of events, and that this prayer of Moses was really offered at the time when he returned unto the Lord, ch. 32. 31, and obtained the promise of an emissary angel, ch. 32. 34. But 'Angel,' is a term of large and somewhat indef- inite import, implying any kind of providential agency by means of which Omnipotence might see fit to execute its plans. Moses therefore was desir- ous of more particular information. He wished to have the accompanying presence not merely of an Angel, but of the Angel, i. e. the Angel of the divine Face ; the same Angel irhich had hitherto conducted their march in the Cloudy Pillar. In urging his plea for the bestowment of this blessing, he avails himself of the interest which he himself had with God as a special object of his favor, as one whom he ' knew by name,' i. e. as a particular friend and con- fidant, rendered in the Gr. 'I know thee above all ;' and in the Arab. 'I have ennobled thy name.' God had offered to destroy the whole nation of Israel, and raise up another from Moses' loins, and this token of good-will he lays hold of as a ground of hope that the object of his entreaty would not be de- nied him. It is not indeed to be sup- posed that in using this language Mo- ses claimed a degree of personal merit sufficient to be the foundation of such a request, but he knew that one favor on the part of God was a pledge and precursor of others, and probably the 234 EXODUS. [B. C. 1491. 13 Now therefore, I pray thee, zif I have found grace in thy sight, a shew me now thy way, that I may know thee, that I may find zch. 34.9. *Ps.25. 4. &27. 11. & 66. 11. & 119. 33. very fact that he, notwithstanding his unworthiness, had been so graciously dealt with, was the moving cause of his earnest petition for still farther manifestations of his kindness and care. As God had been good to him in de- spite of his deserts, why might he not sue for augmented acts of clemency? 13. Shew me now thy way. That is, show me the way in which thou wouldst have thy people conducted to their in- heritance. Show me thy views and purposes, thine intended ways of acting and thy requirements of me in refer- ence to this great object. Gr. c