THE FIFTH BOOK OF MOSES,

Year before the common Year of Christ, 145 L-Julian Period, 3263.-Cycle of the Sun, 10-Dominical Letter, B.-Cycle of the Moon, 10.—Indiction, 15.-Creation from Tisri or September, 2553.

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CALLED

DEUTERONOMY.

Introduction to the book,-1, 2.

Moses addresses the people in the fortieth year after the exodus from Egypt, 3-5; and shows how God had spoken to them in Horeb, and the directions he gave them, 6-8. How, at the commandment of the Lord, he had appointed officers, judges, &c., to share the government with him, 9-18. Of their travels in the terrible wilderness, 19-21. The people's request to have spies sent to search out the land, 22-25. Of their murmuring and rebellion when they heard the report of the spies, 26-28. How Moses encouraged them, 29–33. The displeasure of the Lord against them because of their murmurings, and his purpose to exclude them from the good land, and give it to their children only, 34-40. How they repented, and yet, without the authority of God, went against the Amorites, by whom they were defeated, 41-44. Their return to Kadesh, where they abode many days, 45, 46.

CHAPTER I.

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THESE be the words which 2 (There are eleven days' jour

Moses spake unto all Israel a on this side Jordan in the wilderness, in the plain over against the Red Sea, between. Paran, and Tophel, and Laban, and Hazeroth, and Dizahab.

a Josh. ix. 1, 10; xxii. 4, 7.— _b Or, Zuph.

NOTES ON CHAP. I.

Verse 1. These be the words which Moses spake] The five first verses of this chapter contain the introduction to the rest of the book: they do not appear to be the work of Moses, but were added probably, either by Joshua or Ezra.

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ney from Horeb by the way An Ex. Isr. 40.
of Mount Seir unto Kadesh-
barnea.)

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3 And it came to pass in the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the

On this side Jordan]

beeber, at the passage of Jordan, i. e., near or opposite to the place where the Israelites passed over after the death of Moses. Though eber is used to signify both on this side and on the other side, and the connection in which it stands can only determine the meaning; yet here it signifies neither, but simply the place or ford where the Israelites passed over Jordan.

In the plain] That is, of Moab; over against the Red Sea-not the Red Sea, for they were now farther from it than they had yet been the word sea is not in the text, and the word suph, which we render red, does not signify the Red Sea, unless joined with D yam, sea; here it must necessarily signify a place in or ad joining to the plains of Moab. Ptolemy mentions a people named Sophonites, that dwelt in Arabia Petræa, and it is probable that they took their name from this

Num. xi. 35. xxxiii. 17, 18.- d Num. xiii. 26; ch. ix. 23. Num. xxxiii. 38.

place; but see the note from Lightfoot, Num. xx., at the end.

Paran] This could not have been the Paran which was contiguous to the Red Sea, and not far from Mount Horeb; for the place here mentioned lay on the very borders of the promised land, at a vast distance from the former.

Dizahab.] The word should be separated, as it is in the Hebrew, 2 Di Zahab. As Zahab signifies gold, the Septuagint have translated it ra xpvota, the gold mines; and the Vulgate ubi aurum est plurimum, where there is much gold. It is more likely to be the name of a place.

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Verse 2. There are eleven days' journey] The Israelites were eleven days in going from Horeb to Kadesh-barnea, where they were near the verge of the promised land; after which they were thirty-eight years wandering up and down in the vicinity of this place, not being permitted, because of their rebellions, to enter into the promised rest, though they were the whole of that time within a few miles of the land of Canaan!

Verse 3. The fortieth year] This was a melancholy

Boundaries of the land to be

DEUTERONOMY.

possessed by the Israelites.

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unto all that the LORD had given him in commandment unto them;

month, that Moses spake unto] 8 Behold, I have 1 set the land An. Ex. Isr. 40. the children of Israel, according before you go in and possess the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give unto them and to their seed after them.

4 After he had slain Sihon the king of the Amorites, which dwelt in Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan, which dwelt at Astaroth 8 in Edrei:

5 On this side Jordan, in the land of Moab, began Moses to declare this law, saying,

6 The LORD our God spake unto us in heaven for multitude. Horeb, saying, Ye have dwelt long enough. in this mount:

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7 Turn you, and take your journey, and go to the mount of the Amorites, and unto all the places nigh thereunto, in the plain, in the hills, and in the vale, and in the south, and by the sea-side, to the land of the Canaanites, and unto Lebanon, unto the great river, the river Euphrates.

Numbers xxi. 24, 33. Num. xxi. 33; Joshua xiii. 12. hExod. iii. 1. See Exod. xix. 1 ;- Num. x. 11. Heb. all his neighbours.- Heb. given.Gen. xii. 7; xv. 18; xvii. 7,8; xxvi. 4; xxviii. 13.

year to the Hebrews in different respects; in the first month of this year Miriam died, Num. xx.; on the first day of the fifth month Aaron died, Num. xxxiii. 38; and about the conclusion of if, Moses himself died.

Verse 5. Began Moses to declare this law] Began, hoil, willingly undertook; to declare, beer, to make bare, clear, &c., fully to explain, this law. See the conclusion of the preface.

Verse 6. Ye have dwell long enough, &c.] They came to Sinai in the third month after their departure from Egypt, Exod. xix. 1, 2; and left it the twentieth of the second month of the second year, so it appears they had continued there nearly a whole year.

Verse 7. Go to the mount of the Amorites] On the south of the land of Canaan, towards the Dead Sea. Land of the Canaanites] That is, Phoenicia, the country of Sidon, and the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea from the country of the Philistines to Mount Libanus. The Canaanites and Phenicians are often confounded. The river Euphrates.] Thus Moses fixes the bounds of the land, to which on all quarters the territories of the Israelites might be extended, should the land of Canaan, properly so called, be found insufficient for them. Their SOUTH border might extend to the mount of the Amorites; their WEST to the borders of the Mediterranean Sea; their NORTH to Lebanon; and their EAST border to the river Euphrates and to this extent Solomon reigned; see 1 Kings iv. 21. So that in his time, at least, the promise to Abraham was literally fulfilled; see below.

Vese 10. Ye are this day as the stars of heaven for multitude.] This was the promise God made to Abraham, Gen. xv. 5, 6; and Moses considers it now as amply fulfilled. But was if really so? Many suppose the expression to be hyperbolical; and others, no friends

9 And I spake unto you at that time, say ing, I am not able to bear you myself alone, 10 The LORD 10 The LORD your God hath multiplied you,

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and, behold, ye are this day as the stars of

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11 (P The LORD God of your fathers make you a thousand times so many more as ye are, and bless you, as he hath promised you!) 12 How can I myself alone bear your cumbrance, and your burden, and your strife!

13 Take you wise men, and understanding, and known among your tribés, and I will make them rulers over you..

14 And ye answered me, and said, The thing

Exod. xviii, 18; Num. xi. 14. Gen. xv. 5; chap. x. 2; xxviii. 62.- -P 2 Sam. xxiv. 3. Gen. xv. 5; xxii. 17; xxvi. 4; Exod. xxxii. 13.- 1 Kings ii. 8, 9. See Exod. xviii. 21, Num. xi. 16, 17. Heb. give.

to revelation, think it a 'vain empty boast, because the stars, in their apprehension, amount to innumerable millions. Let us consider this subject. How many ín number are the stars which appear to the naked eye? for it is by what appears to the naked eye we are to be governed in this business, for God brought Abraham forth abroad, i. e., out of doors, and bade him look to, wards heaven, not with a telescope, but with his naked eyes, Gen. xv. 5. Now I shall beg the objector to come forth abroad, and look up in the brightest and most favourable night, and count the stars-he need not be terrified' at their abundance; the more they are, the more he can count; and I shall pledge myself to find a male Israelite in the very last census taken of this people, Num. xxvf, for every star he finds in the whole upper hemisphere of heaven. The truth is, only about 3,010 stars can be seen by the naked eye in both the northern and southern hemispheres; and the Israelites, independently of women and children, were at the above time more than 600,000. And suppose we even allow that, from the late discoveries of Dr. Herschel and others with telescopes which have magnified between 35 and 36,000 times, there may be 75 millions of stars visible by the help of such instruments, which is the highest calculation ever made, yet still the Divine word stands literally true: St. Matthew says, chap. i., that the generations from Abraham to Christ were 42; now we find at the second census that the fighting men among the Hebrews amounted to 603,000; and the Israelites, who have never ceased to be a distinct people, have so multiplied as far to exceed the number of all the fixed' stars taken together.

Verse 13. Take you wise men] `n chachamim, such as had gained knowledge by great labour and study. Understanding D) nebonim, persons of dis

The civil constitution of the

CHAP. I.

Israelites in the wilderness.

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which thou hast spoken is good | LORD God of thy fathers hath An. Ex. Isr. 40. for us to do. said unto thee; fear not, neither An. Ex. Isr. 40.

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15 So I took the chief of your be discouraged. tribes, wise men, and known, " and made them heads over you, captains over thousands, and captains over hundreds, and captains over fifties, and captains over tens, and officers among your tribes.

16 And I charged your judges at that time, saying, Hear the causes between your brethren, and judge righteously between every man and his brother, and the stranger that is with him.

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17 y Ye shall not respect persons in judg-25 And they took of the fruit of the land in ment; but ye shall hear the small as well as the great; ye shall not be afraid of the face of man; for the judgment is God's and the cause that is too hard for you, bring it unto me, and I will hear it.

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22. And ye came near unto me every one of you, and said, We will send men before us, and they shall search us out the land, and bring us word again by what. way we must go up, and into what cities we shall come. 23 And the saying pleased me well: and I took twelve men of you, one of a tribe: 24 And they turned and went up into the mountain, and came unto the valley of Eshcol, and searched it out.

- Exod. xviii. 25. Heb. gave.w Chap. xvi. 18; John. vii. 24. * Lev. xxiv. 22.—y Lev. xix. 15; chap. xvi. 19; 1 Sam. xvi. 7; Prov. xxiv. 23; James ii. L - Heb. acknowledge faces.2 Chron. xix. 6.- Exod. xviii. 22, 26. Num. x. 12; chap. viii. 15; Jer. ii. 6. cernment, judicious men. Known, yyeduim, persons practised in the operations of nature, capable of performing curious and important works.

Verse 15. Captains over thousands, &c.] What a curious and well-regulated economy was that of the Israelites! See its order and arrangement: 1. GOD, the KING and Supreme Judge; 2. Moses, God's prime minister; 3. The priests, consulting him by Urim and Thummim; 4. The chiefs or princes of the twelve tribes; 5. Chiliarchs, or captains over thousands; 6. Centurions, or captains over hundreds; 7. Tribunes, or captains over fifty men; 8. Decurions, or captains over ten men; and, 9. Officers, persons who might be employed by the different chiefs in executing particular commands. All these held their authority from God, and yet were subject and accountable to each other. See the notes on Num. ii.

18 And I commanded you at that time, all LORD your God: the things which ye should do.

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27 And ye murmured in your tents, and said, 19 And when we departed from Horeb, we Because the LORD hated us, he hath brought went through all that great and terrible wilder- us forth out of the land of Egypt, to deliver ness, which ye saw by the way of the mountain us into the hand of the Amorites, to deof the. Amorites, as the LORD our God com-stroy us.

manded us; and we came to Kadesh-barnea, 28 Whither shall we go up? our brethren 20 And I said unto you, Ye are come unto have discouraged our heart, saying, " The the mountain of the Amorites, which the LORD people is greater and taller than we; the cities our God doth give unto us. are great and walled up to heaven; and moreover we have seen the sons of the " Anakims there.

21 Behold, the LORD thy God hath set the land before thée: go up and possess it, as the

Verse 17. Ye shall not respect persons] Heb.faces. Let not the bold, daring countenance of the rich or mighty induce you to give an unrighteous decision; and let not the abject look of the poor man induce you VOL. I. ( 48 )

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their hands, and brought it down unto us, and brought us word again, and said, " It is a good land which the LORD our God doth give us.

26 Notwithstanding ye would not go up, but rebelled against the commandment of the

either. to favour him in an unrighteous cause, or to give judgment against him at the demand of the oppressor. Be uncorrupt and incorruptible, for the judgment is God's; ye minister in the place of God, act like HIM.

Verse 22. We will send men before us] See on Num. xiii.

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Verse 28. Cities-walled up to heaven] That is,. with very high walls which could not be easily scaled. High walls around houses, &c., in these parts of Arabia are still deemed a sufficient defence against the Arabs, who scarcely ever attempt any thing in the way of plunder but on horseback. The monastery on Mount Sinai is surrounded with very high walls without any gate`; in the upper part of the wall there is a sort of window, or opening, from which a basket is suspended by a pulley, by which both persons and goods are received into and sent from the place. It is the same with the convent of St. Anthony, in Egypt; and this sort of wall is deemed a sufficient defence against the Arabs, who, as we have already observed, scarcely ever like to alight from their horses.· ́

737

DEUTERONOMY. bad report brought by the spies. little ones,

your

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which ye said should be a prey, An. Ex. Isr. 40.
and your children, which in that
day had no knowledge between good and
evil, they shall go in thither, and unto them
will I give it, and they shall possess it.

40 But as for you, turn you, and take your journey into the wilderness by the way of the Red Sea.

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29 Then I said unto you, 39 Morcover

Verse 30. The Lord-shall fight for you] In the Targum of Onkelos, it is, the WORD of the Lord shall fight for you. In a great number of places the Targums or Chaldee paraphrases use the term "there.] meimera dayeya or Yehovah, the Word of the Lord, exactly in the same way in which St. John uses the term Aoyoc Logos in the first chapter of his Gospel. Many instances of this have already occurred.

Moses relates how they

CHAP. II.

compassed Mount Seir.

to recollect their former miserable situation, in which they held neither life nor property but at the will of a merciless tyrant, and the great kindness and power of God manifested in their deliverance from a bondage that was as degrading as it was oppressive. These things properly remembered would lead them to prize their blessings, and duly appreciate the mercy of their Maker.

3. If every Christian were thus to call his past life into review, he would see equal proofs of God's gracious regards to his body and soul; equal proofs of eternal mercy in providing for his deliverance from the galling yoke and oppressive tyranny of sin, as the Israelites had in their deliverance from Egypt; and equal displays of a most gracious providence, that had also 2. But it was not only this general display of God's been his incessant companion through all the changes kindness, in the grand act of their deliverance from and chances of this mortal life, guiding him by its Egypt, that he wished them to keep constantly in view, counsel, that he might be at last received into glory. but also that gracious providence which was manifested O reader, remember what God has done for thee during in every step they took which-directed all their move- thy forty, fifty, &c., years! He has nourished, fed, ments, provided for all their wants, continually show-clothed, protected, and saved thee. How often and ing what they should do, how they should do it, and how powerfully has his Spirit striven with thee! How also the most proper time and place for every act, often and how impressively thou hast heard his voice whether religious or civil. By bringing before them in his Gospel and in his providences! Remember the in one point of view the history of almost forty years, good resolutions thou hast made, the ingratitude and in which the strangest and most stupendous occurrences disobedience that have marked thy life; how his vows had taken place that had ever been exhibited to the are still upon thee, and how his mercy still spares world, he took the readiest way to impress their minds, thee! And wilt thou live so as to perish for ever? not only with their deep obligation to God, but also to God forbid! He still waits to be gracious, and reshow them that they were a people on whom their Ma-joices over thee to do thee good. Learn from what is ker had set his heart to do them good, and that if they before thee how thou shouldst fear, love, believe in, feared him they should lack nothing that was good. and obey thy God. The. Lamb of God, that taketh He lays out also before them a history of their mis- away the sin of the world, is still before the throne; earriages and rebellion, and the privations and evils and whosoever cometh unto God through him shall in they had suffered in consequence, that this might act nowise be cast out. He who believes these things as a continual warning, and thus become, in the hands with an upright heart will soon be enabled to live a of God, a preventive of crimes. I sanctified life.

CHAPTER II..

Moses continues to relate how they compassed Mount Seir, 1. And the commands they received not to med dle with the descendants of Esau, 2-8; nor to distress the Moabites, 9. Of the Emims, 10, 11; the Horuns, 12. Their passage of the brook Zered, 13. The time they spent between Kadesh-barnea and Zered, 14; during which all the men of war that came out of Egypt were consumed, 15, 16. The command not to distress the Ammonites, 17-19. Of the Zamzummims, 20, the Anakims, 21, the Horims, 22, the Avims and Caphtorims, all destroyed by the Ammonites, 23. They are commanded to cross the river Arnon, and are promised the land of Sihon, king of the Amorites, 24, 25. Of the message sent to Sihon, to request a passage through his territories, 26-29. 'His refusal, 30. The consequent war, 31, His total overthrow, 33; and extermination of his people, 34. The spoils that were taken, 35. And his land possessed from Aroer to Arnon by the Israelites, 36; who took care, according to the command of God, not to invade any part of the territories of the Ammonites, 37.

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THEN we turned, and took Ye are to pass through the coast
our journey into the wil- of your brethren the children of An. Ex. Isr. 40.
derness by the way of the Red Esau, which dwell in Seir; and
they shall be afraid of you take ye good
heed unto yourselves therefore :

5 Meddle not with them; for I will not give you of their land, no,,not so much as a foot breadth; because I have given Mount Seir

a

Sea, as the LORD spake unto me and we compassed Mount Seir many days.

2 And the LORD spake unto me, saying, 3 Ye have compassed this mountain enough turn you northward.

long

4 And command thou the people, saying, unto Esau for a possession.

a Num. xiv. 25; chap. i. 40.- bSee ver. 7, 14.- Num. Hebrew, even to the treading of the sole of the foot. e Gen. xxxvi. 8; Josh. xxiv. 4,

xx. 14.

NOTES ON CHAP. II.

Verse 3. Turn you northward.] From Mount Seir, in order to get to Canaan. This was not the way they went before, viz., by Kadesh-barnea,

-Verse 5.

but they were to proceed between Edom on the Edomites.

one hand, and Moab and Ammon on the other, so as to enter into Canaan through the land of the Amorites. :

Meddle not with them] That is, the See on Num. xx. 14-21.