dinary way; and this made them always interpofing to a change of condition, if unmarried, in expectation of that high honour, as Ruth. Nay, this prompted fome women to unlawful actions with men of the line, who, they fuppofed, had the promife of the feed, as Lot's daughters Tamar-the Midianitish woman-Bathsheba, &c. So that under a moft tender and appofite allufion, the Jews are admonished to feek the Lord their husband, that the evil day might be averted from them.

is tranflated ulula, lament, bowl: But the word in Hebrew, that ftands for this image, is , and is ufed thrice in this very chapter. And, if Mr. H. be right in his pofition, that "every root in Hebrew has but one meaning or idea belonging to it, in which it interferes s with no other, or that no one word has two "meanings, nor any two words the same mean

ing."-Then, here cannot fignify ulula, or, &c. [unless it be an inflexion of, which M. De Calafio makes it] because it will interfere with the meaning of ; or these two words will have the fame meaning; which is contrary to the pofition laid down above.

The laft inftance I fhall produce, is Jud. xvii. 2. the common conftruction of this paffage is highly injurious to the character of Micab and his mother. It is fuppofed, that Micah had committed a robbery upon his mother; and that he, by crying, curfing, and dinning to

Put

his ears, got the money returned. And then fhe, and her hopeful fon, agreed to make two idols of it, which were set up in Micah's houfe, and fo it became an idolatrous temple; to which, at length, he procured, for hire, a time-ferving, preferment-hunting Levite to be priest. Give me leave therefore, in vindication of their characters, to premise the comment of an inge nious author. Micah, who lived in the time

of the judges, certainly feared Jehovah: The "filver belonging to his mother was dedicated "to Jehovah, to make an Ephod and Teraphim, "&c, When he fucceeded in getting a prieft 66 to his mind; he concluded that he was cer+ "tain Jehovah would do bim good: And this "Ephod and Teraphim, evidently were pro

phetick, His fcheme, then, manifeftly was "not to revolt from Jehovah, nor to ferve "idols or other gods: But whilft the confufion " and oppreffion of Ifrael made it impoffible to attend at Shilo, to have an house of God in his own family, with facred fymbols and a "prieft; who, before the faces of Jehovah in

that place could make atonement by facrifice, whilft communication with Shilo was obftructed.

"He therefore made an Ephod and Teraphim in imitation of the approved fymbols; and "having fet them up, had Beth Aleim, an houfe

of God. The tranflators imagining that the Teraphim reprefented falfe gods, have ren

"dred

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dred the words Beth Aleim, a boufe of gods; though, chap. xviii. 31. they render the very fame words, when applied to the tabernacle in Shilo, the boufe of God.

As the fervice, for which this Ephod and Teraphim, this boufe of God, was intended, could not be performed without a priest; "Micah, who it seems, was not himself a first"born, confecrated one of his fons, probably

the eldest, for that office, for want of one "more fit; but meeting, at laft, with a Le

vite, he engaged him to ferve in that ftation, "and confecrated him, in full belief that this "action would be acceptable to Jehovah. And "accordingly we fee, Jehovah was propitious

to this pious tho' irregular defign, ch. xviii."

Let us now fee to what conftruction the text will lead us. Micah going to his mother, faid, "the eleven hundred fhekels of filver "which was taken from thee, n's 'n for "with me thou haft caused an interpofition to be "made unto the change, or on pain of chang

ing thine own condition to change the condition of this filver, by dedicating it (as "expreffed afterwards) to Jehovah."

I render with me, as the word is justly rendered in the following line, -"behold the "filver is with me;" to which, I hope, there can be no reasonable exception made.

It seems then, that Micah and his mother had engaged, and taken a refolution together, tó put

put the filver to the above-mentioned uses; and, that, pursuant thereto, Micah had taken the filver; which his mother miffing, he reminds her of what she had thus interpofed herself to

,ברוך ליהוה do : upon which the calls her fon

Bleffed to Jehovah. An appellation, to which he could have no title, had he been a thief and a robber ;-even, tho' he had confeffed upon being adjured but was a title very well fuiting with his taking the filver to perform his vow, and reminding his mother to fulfil ber's.

The Doctor objects against the fenfe of as fignifying to dedicate [v. 3. HP IPT dedicating (i. e. by vow or dedication) I had dedicated the filver unto Jehovah, because she only gave two hundred out of the eleven hundred, to the image-founder.. To which I anfwer, first, that the word 'n is not reftrained to two hundred, as the forgers of the dual number make it; but fignifies indifferently, bundreds, in the plural. And, fecondly, here is an Ephod and Teraphim, plainly distinguished from the graven image and molten image: Here was a temple alfo to be fitted up. And when the Doctor is pleafed to confider what images the Teraphim were; he will, I am perfuaded, be brought to believe, the charge of the whole would amount to no lefs a fum, than what Micah's mother faid fhe had dedicated to Jehovah. Befides, the Doctor will not think it unreasonable, if I fhould fet apart fome of

the

the money as a stipend of an officiating or refidentiary priest. And if he will examine the facred books with that ingenuity and candor, that temper and fobriety, which he fo much recommends to his opponents; he will certainly find the word wp appropriated to perfons or things dedicated, or fet apart to Jehovah, in peace or

war.

These texts, I humbly conceive, will avail with the candid reader in proof, that to interpofe, &c. is the radical idea of a, nhæ, &c. and not to fwear or adjure. Because he fees evidently, that the fignification of interpofing, &c. will hold in all the paffages where the word occurs, as above; and that the other of adjuring, &c. will not hold good in Joel. i. 8. nor in the first text produced, viz. 1 Sam. xvii. 39and elsewhere: Where the Lexicon-writers, not knowing the primary image, have made, which is a derivative, or inflexion of, a root of itself. When, I fay, that interpofition, &c. is the idea of ; I do not exclude the fenfe of adjuring, denouncing, or pronouncing a curse, or, &c. but include it, because this is an interpofing by oath, and I leave the root and its derivatives to be construed by any variation of the idea, the context may require.

But when it is applied to the perfons of the God-head, it is in its primary sense; of which, the beavens, (which are alfo called Aleim) givě us the image. They declare the glory of N,