4 And her father hear her vow, and her bond wherewith she hath bound her soul, and her father shall hold his peace at her: then all her Vows shall stand, and every bond wherewith she hath bound her soul shall stand.

5 But if her father disallow her in the day that he heareth; not any of her vows, or of her bonds wherewith she hath bound her soul, shall stand: and the LORD shall forgive her, because her father disallowed her.

6 And if she had at all a husband, when * she vowed, or uttered ought out of her lips, wherewith she bound her soul;

7 And her husband heard it, and held his peace at her in the day that he heard it: then her vows shall stand, and her bonds wherewith she bound her soul shall stand.

8 But if her husband disallowed her on the day that he heard it; then he shall make her vow which she vowed, and that which she uttered with her lips, wherewith_she bound her soul, of none effect: and the LORD shall forgive her.

9 But every vow of a widow, and of her

eth all her vows, or all her bonds, which are upon her: he confirmeth them, because he held his peace at her in the day that he heard them. 15 But if he shall any wise make them void after that he hath heard them; then he shall bear her iniquity.

16 These are the statutes, which the LORD commanded Moses, between a man and his wife, between the father and his daughter, being yet in her youth in her father's house.

The command of the Lord to make war on the Midianites, 1, 2 One thousand men
CHAPTER XXXI.

are chosen out of each of the twelve tribes, and sent with Phinehas against the Mi-
dianites, 3-6. They slay all the males, 7; their five kings and Balaam, 8. They
take all the women captives, with the flocks and goods, 9; burn their cities, and
bring away the spoil, 10, 11. They bring the captives, &c. to Moses, who is wroth
with the officers for sparing the women, who had formerly been the cause of their
transgression and punishment, 12-16. He commands all the male children, and
all the grown up females, to be slain, 17, 18. How the soldiers were to purify them-
selves, 19, 20; and the different articles taken in the war, 21-24. They are com-
manded to take the sum of the prey, to divide it into two parts; one for the 12,000
warriors, and the other for the rest of the congregation, 25-27. One of 500, both of
persons and cattle, of the share of the warriors, to be given to the Lord, 28, 29; and
one part of fifty, of the people's share, to be given to the Levites, 30. The sum
of the prey remaining after the above division; sheep 675,000, beeves 72,000, asses
61,000, young women 32,000, ver. 31-35. How the soldiers' part was divided, 36-
How the part belonging to the congregation was divided, 41-47. The officers
report that they had not lost a inan in this war, 45, 19. They bring a voluntary
oblation to God, of gold and ornaments, 50, 51. The amount of which was 16,750
shekels, 52, 53. Moses and Eleazar bring the gold into the tabernacle for a memo-
rial, 54.

40.

that is divorced, wherewith they have bound ANI

their souls, shall stand against her.

10 And if she vowed in her husband's house, or bound her soul by a bond with an oath;

11 And her husband heard it, and held his peace at her, and disallowed her not: then all her vows shall stand, and every bond wherewith she bound her soul shall stand.

12 But if her husband hath utterly made them void on the day he heard them; then whatsoever proceeded out of her lips concerning her vows, or concerning the bond of her soul, shall not stand: her husband hath made them void; and the LORD shall forgive her.

13 Every vow, and every binding oath to afflict the soul, her husband may establish it, or her husband may make it void.

14 But if her husband altogether hold his peace at her from day to day; then he establish

x Heb. her vows were upon her. Psa. 56. 12-y Gen. 3. 16.2 Ch. 25. 17. young man. Young persons of this age were considered to be under the authority of their parents, and had consequently no power to vow away the property of another. A married woman was in the same circumstances, because she was under the authority of her husband. If, however, the parents or the husband heard of the vow, and objected to it in the same day in which they heard of it, ver. 5. then the vow was annulled-or, if having heard of it, they held their peace, this was considered a ratification of the vow.

A rash row was never to be kept-"For," says Philo, and common sense and justice say the same, he who commits an unjust action because of his vow, adds one crime to another: 1. By making an unlawful cow. 2. By doing an unlawful action."

Verse 12. Concerning the bond of her soul] Her life is at stake, if she fulfil not the obligation under which she has laid herself.

Verse 16. These are the statutes] It is very probable that this law, like that concerning the succession of daughters, chap. xxvii. rose from the exigency of some particular case that had just then occurred.

Making vows, in almost any case, is a dangerous business; they seldom do any good, and often much evil. He who does not feel himself bound to do what is fit, right, and just, from the standing testimony of God's word, is not likely to do it from any obligation he may lay upon his own conscience. If God's word lack weight with him, his own will prove lighter than vanity. Every man who professes the Christian religion, is under the most solemn obligation to devote body, soul, and spirit to God, not only to the utmost extent of his powers, but also as long as he exists. Being baptized, and receiving the sacrament of the Lord's supper, are additional ratifications of the great, general, Christian vow; but every true follower of Christ should always remember, and frequently renew, his covenant with God.

NOTES ON CHAPTER XXXI. Verse 2. Gathered unto thy people.] When? Not in the grave surely.-Moses was gathered with none of them; his burial place no man ever knew-"But being gathered

40.

ND the LORD spake unto Moses, An. Exod. Iar. saying,

2

2 Avenge the children of Israel of the Midianites; afterward shalt thou be gathered unto thy people.

3 And Moses spake unto the people, saying; Arm some of yourselves unto the war, and let them go against the Midianites, and avenge the LORD of Midian.

4 Of every tribe a thousand, throughout all the tribes of Israel, shall ye send to the war.

5 So there were delivered out of the thousands of Israel, a thousand of every tribe, twelve thousand armed for war.

6 And Moses sent them to the war, a thousand of every tribe, them and Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, to the war, with the holy instruments, and the trumpets to blow in his hand.

a Ch. 27. 13.-b Heb. A thousand of a tribe, a thousand of a tribe.--e Ch. 10. 9.

unto one's people means dying." It does imply dying, but it does not mean this only. The truth is, God considers all those who are dead to men, in a state of conscious existence in another world. Therefore he calls himself the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob; now God is not the God of the dead, but of the living; because all LIVE TO HIM, whether dead to men or not. Moses, therefore, was to be gathered to his people, to enter into that republic of Israel, which having died in the faith, fear, and love of God, were now living in a state of conscious blessedness, beyond the confines of the grave.—See the note on Gen. xxv. 8. and on xlix. 33.

Verse 3. Avenge the Lord of Midian.] It was God's quarrel, not their own, that they were now to take up. These people were idolaters; idolatry is an offence against GOD; the civil power has no authority to meddle with what belongs to Him, without especial directions, certified in the most unequivocal way. Private revenge, extension of territory, love of plunder, were to have no place in this business; the Lord is to be avenged; and through HIM, the children of Israel, ver. 2. because their souls, as well as their bodies, had been well nigh ruined by their idolatry.

Verse 6. A thousand of every tribe] Twelve thousand men in the whole-and Phinehas, the son of Eleazar; some think he was made general in this expedition; but this is not likely. The ark and its contents must proceed to this battle, because the battle was the Lord's, and he dwelt between the cherubim over the ark; and Phinehas, who had before got a grant in the eternal priesthood, was chosen to accompany the ark in place of his father Eleazar, who was, probably, now too far advanced in years to undergo the fatigue. Who then was general? Joshua, without doubt, though not here mentioned; because the battle being the Lord's, he alone is to have the supreme direction, and all the glory. Besides, it was an extraordinary war, and not conducted on the common principle: for we do not find that peace was offered to the Midianites, and that they refused it; see Deut. xx. 10, &c. In such a case only, hostilities could lawfully commence; but they were sinners against GOD; the cup of their iniquity was

d

7 And they warred against the Midianites, as the LORD commanded Moses; and they slew all the males.

8 And they slew the kings of Midian, beside the rest of them that were slain; namely, Evi, and Rekem, and Zur, and Hur, and Reba, five kings of Midian: Balaam also the son of Beor they slew with the sword.

9 And the children of Israel took all the women of Midian captives, and their little ones, and took the spoil of all their cattle, and all their flocks, and all their goods.

10 And they burnt all their cities wherein they dwelt, and all their goodly castles, with fire. 11 And they took all the spoil, and all the prey, both of men and of beasts.

h

12 And they brought the captives, and the prey, and the spoil, unto Moses, and Eleazar the priest, and unto the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the camp at the plains of Moab, which are by Jordan near Jericho.

13 And Moses, and Eleazar the priest, and all the princes of the congregation, went forth to meet them, without the camp.

14 And Moses was wroth with the officers of the host, with the captains over thousands, and captains over hundreds, which came from the i battle.

15 And Moses said unto them, Have ye saved all the women alive?

16 Behold, these caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass against the LORD in the matter of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of the LORD.

17 Now therefore kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman that hath known man by lying with Phim.

18 But all the women children, that hath not known a man by lying with him, keep alive for yourselves.

19 And do ye abide without the camp seven days: whosoever hath killed any person, and whosoever hath touched any slain, purify both yourselves and your captives on the third day, and on the seventh day.

20 And purify all your raiment, and all that is made of skins, and all work of goats' hair, and all things made of wood.

d Deut. 20. 13. Judg. 21. 11. 1 Sam. 27. 9. 1 Kings 11. 15, 16.-e See Judg. 6. 1, 2, 33- Josh. 13 21.--g Josh. 13. 22-h Deut. 20. 14.-i Heb host of war.-k See Deut. 20. 13. 1 Sam. 15. 3-1 Ch. 25. 2-m Ch. 24. 14 2 Pet. 2. 15. Rev. 2 14. n Ch. 25. 9.

full; and God thought proper to destroy them. Though a leader there certainly was, and Joshua was probably that leader, yet, because God, for the above reason, was considered as Commander in chief, therefore no one else is mentioned; for it is evident that the sole business of Phinehas was to take care of the holy instruments, and to blow with the trumpet.

Verse 8. Balaam-they slew with the sword] This man had, probably, committed what St. John calls the sin unto death; a sin which God punishes with temporal death, while at the same time he extends mercy to the soul.-See the remarks at the end of chap. xxiv.

21 And Eleazar the priest said unto the men of war, which went to the battle, This is the ordinance of the law which the LORD commanded Moses:

22 Only the gold, and the silver, the brass, the iron, the tin, and the lead,

23 Every thing that may abide the fire, ye shall make it go through the fire, and it shall be clean: nevertheless it shall be purified with the water of separation: and all that abideth not the fire ye shall make go through the water. 24 And ye shall wash your clothes on the seventh day, and ye shall be clean, and afterward ye shall come into the camp.

25 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 26 Take the sum of the prey that was taken, both of man and of beast, thou, and Eleazar the priest, and the chief fathers of the congregation: 27 And divide the prey into two parts; between them that took the war upon them, who went out to battle, and between all the congregation:

W

28 And levy a tribute unto the LORD of the men of war which went out to battle: one soul of five hundred, both of the persons, and of the beeves, and of the asses, and of the sheep;

29 Take it of their half, and give it unto Eleazar the priest, for a heave-offering of the LORD. 30 And of the children of Israel's half, thou shalt take one portion of fifty, of the persons, of the beeves, of the asses, and of the flocks, of all manner of beasts, and give them unto the Levites, which keep the charge of the tabernacle of the LORD.

31 And Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the LORD commanded Moses.

32 And the booty, being the rest of the prey which the men of war had caught, was six hundred thousand and seventy thousand and five thousand sheep,

33 And threescore and twelve thousand beeves, 34 And threescore and one thousand asses, 35 And thirty and two thousand persons in all, of women that had not known man by lying with him.

36 And the half, which was the portion of them that went out to war, was in number three hundred thousand and seven and thirty thousand and five hundred sheep:

o Judg. 21. 11.-p Heb. a male-Ch. 5. 2-r Ch. 19. 11, &c. -s Ileh instrument or vessels of skins.-t Ch. 19. 9, 17.- Lev. 11. 25. Heb of the captivity. w Josh. 22. 8. 1 Sam. 30. 4.x See Ver. 30, 47. & Ch. 18 26-y Bee Ver. £247. z Or, goats.-a Ch. 3. 7, 8, 25, 31, 36. & 18. 3, 4.

is abominable. When God chose to have the life of man, he took it in the way of justice, as in the case of the Midianites above; but never in the way of sacrifice.

Verse 32. The booty] It appears from the enumeration here, that the Israelites, in this war against the Midianites, took 32,000 female prisoners, 61,000 asses, 72,000 beeves, 675,000 sheep, and small cattle; besides the immense number of males who fell in battle, and the women and children who were slain by the divine command, ver. 17. And it does not appear, that in this expedition, a single man of Israel fell! This was naturally to be expected, because the battle was the Lord's, ver. 49.

Verse 17. Kill every male among the little ones] For As the booty was divided into two equal parts, ver. 22. this action I account, simply on the principle that God, one for the soldiers, employed in the expedition, and the who is the Author and Supporter of life, has a right to other for those, who being equally willing to be employed, dispose of it when and how he thinks proper; and the were ordered to stay in the camp: so each of the parties Judge of all the earth can do nothing but what is right. in this booty was to give a certain proportion to the Lord. Of the women killed on this occasion, it may be safely The soldiers, to give to the Lord one out of every five said, their lives were forfeited by their personal transgres-hundred persons, beeves, asses, and sheep, ver. 28. The sions; and yet, even in this case, there can be little doubt people, who by staying at home, risked nothing, and had that God showed mercy to their souls. The little ones no fatigue, were to give one out of fifty of the above, ver. were safely lodged-they were taken to heaven, and saved 30. The booty-its division among the soldiers and peofrom the evil to come. ple-the proportion given by each to the Lord, and to the Levites, will be seen in one view by the following table, which I copy from Houbigant. Total of sheep To the soldiers 337,500 To the Lord from the soldiers 675) sheep. To the people 337,500 To the Levites from the people 6,730 ( To the soldiers 36.000 To the Lord from the soldiers 72) To the people 36.000 To the Levites from the people TV) To the soldiers 30,00 To the Lord from the soldiers 61) To the people 30.500 To the Levites from the people 610 To the soldiers 16,000 To the Lord from the soldiers 32) To the people 16,000 To the Levites from the people 320 In which table the booty is equally divided between the people and the soldiers; a five hundredth part being given to the Lord, and a fiftieth part to the Levites.

Verse 23. The water of separation] The water in which the ashes of the red heifer were mingled, see on chap. viii. 7. xix. 2, &c. Garments, whether of cloth or skins, were to be washed. Gold, silver, brass, iron, tin, and lead, to pass through the fire, probably to be melted down.

Verse 28. And levy a tribute unto the Lord-one soul of five hundred, &c.] The persons to be employed in the Lord's service, under the Levites-the cattle, either for sacrifice, or for the use of the Levites, ver. 30. Some monsters have supposed that one out of every five hundred of the captives was offered in sacrifice to the Lord! but this

675,000. of beeves 72,000.

of asses 61,000. of persons 32,000

persons

A. M. 2553. B. C. 1451.

CHAP. XXXII.

37 And the LORD's tribute of the sheep was six hundred and threescore and fifteen.

38 And the beeves were thirty and six thousand; of which the LORD's tribute was threescore and twelve.

39 And the asses were thirty thousand and five hundred; of which the LORD's tribute was threescore and one.

40 And the persons were sixteen thousand; of which the LORD's tribute was thirty and two persons.

41 And Moses gave the tribute which was the LORD's heave-offering, unto Eleazar the priest, bas the LORD commanded Moses.

42 And of the children of Israel's half, which Moses divided from the men that warred,

43 (Now the half that pertained unto the congregation was three hundred thousand and thirty thousand and seven thousand and five hundred sheep,

44 And thirty and six thousand beeves,
45 And thirty thousand asses and five hundred,
46 And sixteen thousand persons;)

47 Even of the children of Israel's half, Moses took one portion of fifty, both of man and of beast, and gave them unto the Levites, which kept the charge of the tabernacle of the LORD; as the LORD commanded Moses.

48 T And the officers which were over thousands of the host, the captains of thousands, and captains of hundreds, came near unto Moses; 49 And they said unto Moses, Thy servants have taken the sum of the men of war which are under our a charge, and there lacketh not one man of us.

50 We have therefore brought an oblation for the LORD, what every man hath gotten, of jewels of gold, chains, and bracelets, rings, earrings, and tablets, to make an atonement for our souls before the LORD. 10

51 And Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold of them, even all wrought jewels.

52 And all the gold of the offering that they offered up to the LORD, of the captains of thousands, and of the captains of hundreds, was sixteen thousand seven hundred and fifty shekels. 53 (For the men of war had taken spoil, every man for himself.)

54 And Moses and Eleazar the priest, took the gold of the captains of thousands and of hundreds, and brought it into the tabernacle of the congregation, for a memorial for the children of Israel before the LORD.

great multitude of cattle: and when they saw the land of Jazer, and the land of Gilead, that, behold, the place was a place for cattle;

2 The children of Gad and the children of Reuben came and spake unto Moses, and to Eleazar the priest, and unto the princes of the congregation, saying,

3 Ataroth, and Dibon, and Jazer, and 1 Nimrah, and Heshbon, and Elealeh, and a Shebam, and Nebo, and "Beon,

4 Even the country which the LORD smote before the congregation of Israel, is a land for cattle, and thy servants have cattle:

5 Wherefore, said they, if we have found grace in thy sight, let this land be given unto thy servants for a possession, and bring us not over Jordan.

6 T And Moses said unto the children of Gad. and to the children of Reuben, Shall your brethren go to war, and shall ye sit here?

7 And wherefore discourage ye the heart of the children of Israel, from going over into the land which the LORD hath given them?

8 Thus did your fathers, 9 when I sent them from Kadesh-barnea to see the land.

9 For when they went up unto the valley of Eshcol, and saw the land, they discouraged the heart of the children of Israel that they should not go into the land which the LORD had given them.

10 And the LORD's anger was kindled the same time, and he sware, saying,

11 Surely none of the men that came up out of Egypt," from twenty years old and upward, shall see the land which I sware unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob; because they have not wholly followed me:

12 Save Caleb, the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite, and Joshua the son of Nun: for they have wholly followed the LORD.

13 And the LORD's anger was kindled against Israel, and he made them wander in the wilderness forty years, until all the generation, that had done evil in the sight of the LORD, was consumed.

14 And, behold, ye are risen up in your fathers' stead, an increase of sinful men, to augment yet the fierce anger of the LORD toward Israel.

15 For if ye turn away from after him, he will yet again leave them in the wilderness; and ye shall destroy all this people.

16 And they came near unto him, and said, We will build sheepfolds here for our cattle, and cities for our little ones:

17 But we ourselves will go ready armed before the children of Israel, until we have brought them unto their place: and our little ones shall dwell in the fenced cities because of the inhabitants of the land.

18 We will not return unto our houses, until the children of Israel have inherited every man his inheritance.

19 For we will not inherit with them on yonder side Jordan, or forward; because our inherit

Now ofd had a very ance is fallen to us on this side Jordan eastward.

b See Ch. 18. 8, 19- Ver. 30.-d Heb. hand-e Heb. found-f Exod. 30. 12, 16.-g Heb. heave-offering-h Deut. 20. 14.-i Exod. 30. 16.-k Ch. 21. 32. Josh. 13 25. 2 Sam. 24. 5-1 Ver. 36. Beth-nimrah-m Ver. 38. Shibmah-n Ver. 38. Baal-meon. Ch. 21. 24, 34-p Heb. break.-q Ch. 13. 3, 26.-r Deut. 1.22-8 Ch. 13. 24, 31. Deut. 1. 24, 28.

Verse 50. We have-brought an oblation for the Lord] So it appears there was a great deal of booty taken, which did not come into the general account: and of this, the soldiers, of their own will, made a very extensive offering to God, because he had preserved them from falling in battle. That not one man should have been slain, is a most extraordinary circumstance, and powerfully marks the peculiar superintendance of God's especial providence. The Midianites must certainly have made some resistance: but that was ineffectual; because it was against the Lord. When any nation undertakes a crusade against those whom they are pleased to call the Lord's enemies, let them bring from the contest this proof of their divine mission, viz. that not one man of them is either lost or missing; and then, and not till then, shall we believe that God hath sent them.

1 Ch. 14. 11, 21. Deut. 1. 34-a Ch. 14. 28, 29. Deut. 1. 35.- Ch. 14. 24, 30. w Heb. fulfilled after me.-x Ch. 14. 24. Deut. 1. 36. Josh. 14. 8, 9.-y Ch. 14. 33, 31, 35-2 Ch. 26. 61, 65-a Deut. 1. 31-b Deut. 30. 17. Josh. 22. 16, 18. 2 Chron. 7. 19. & 15. 2-c Josh. 4. 12. 13-d Josh. 22 4.-e Ver. 33. Josh. 12. 1. & 13.8.

To make an atonement for our souls] That is, to make an acknowledgment to God for the preservation of their lives. The gold offered on this occasion amounted to note on Exod. xxv. 39. where the true value of the shekel 16,750 shekels, equal to £37,869 16s. 5d. sterling. See the is given, and a rule laid down to reduce it to English money.

NOTES ON CHAPTER XXXII.

Verse 3. Ataroth, and Dibon, &c.] The places mentioned here, belonged to Sihon, king of the Amorites, and Og, king of Bashan; which, being conquered by the Israelites, constituted ever after a part of their territories; ver. 33.

Verse 5. Let this land be given unto thy servants] Because it was good for pasturage, and they had many. flocks, ver. 1. 441

27 But thy servants will pass over, every man armed for war, before the LORD to battle, as my lord saith.

28 So concerning them, Moses commanded Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun, and the chief fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel:

29 And Moses said unto them, If the children of Gad and the children of Reuben will pass with you over Jordan, every man armed to battle, before the LORD, and the land shall be subdued before you; then ye shall give them the land of Gilead for a possession:

30 But if they will not pass over with you armed, they shall have possessions among you in the land of Canaan.

31 And the children of Gad and the children of Reuben answered, saying, As the LORD hath said unto thy servants, so will we do.

22 We will pass over armed before the LORD
the land of Canaan, that the possession of
'nheritance on this side Jordan may be ours.

3. 18. Josh. 1. 11. & 4. 12, 13-g Dent. 3. 20. Josh. 11. 23. & 18. 1-h Josh.
eut. 3. 12, 15, 16, 18. Josh. 1. 15. & 13. 8, 32. & 22. 4, 9.-k Gen. 4. 7. & 44.
12-1 Ver. 16, 34, &c-m Josh. 1. 14.-n Josh. 4. 12-o Josh. 1. 13.
2-17 & 29. 8. Josh. 12. 6. & 13. 8. & 22. 4.-q Ch. 21. 21, 33, 35.-r Ch.
-s Deut. 2. 36.-t Ver. 1, 3. Jaser-u Ver. 3. Nimrah.

12. Caleb the son of Jephunnch the Kenezite] It was Jephunneh that was the Kenezite, and not Caleb. Kenaz was probably the father of Jephunneh.

Verse 16. We will build-cities for our little ones] It was impossible for these, numerous as they might be, to build cities, and fortify them for the defence of their families, in their absence. Calmet supposes they meant no more than repairing the cities of the Amorites, which they had lately taken; which work might have been very easily accomplished in the time which they spent on this side of Jordan, before they went over with their brethren, to put them in possession of the land.

Verse 17. Because of the inhabitants of the land] These were the Ammonites, Moabites, Idumeans, and the remains of the Midianites and Amorites. But could the women and children even keep the defenced cities, when placed in them? This certainly cannot be supposed possible. Many of the men of war must of course stay behind. In the last census, chap. xxvi. the tribe of Reuben consisted of 43,730 men: the tribe of Gad, 40,500: the tribe of Manasseh, 52,700: the half of which is 26,350. Add this to the sum of the other two tribes, and the amount is 110,590. Now, from Joshua iv. 13. we learn, that of the tribes of Reuben and Gad, and the half of the tribe of Manasseh, only 40,000 armed men passed over Jordan to assist their brethren in the reduction of the land: consequently the number of 70,580 men were left behind for the defence of the women, the children, and the flocks. This was more than sufficient to defend them against a people already panic-struck by their late discomfitures and re

The journeyings of the Israelites written out by Moses, according to the commandment of the Lord, 1, 2. They depart from Rameses on the fifteenth day of the first month, on the day after the passover, the first-born of the Egyptians having been slain, 3, 4. Their forty-two stations enumeratel, 5-49. They are authorized to expel all the former inhabitants, and destroy all remnants of idolatry, 50-53 The land is to be divided by lot, 54. Should they not drive out the former inhabitanta, they shall be to them as pricks in their eyes and thorns in their sides, 55 And if nes obedient, God will deal with them as he has purposed to do with the Canaanites, 56.

THES

40.

HESE are the journeys of the An Exod Is. children of Israel, which went forth out of the land of Egypt with their armies, under the hand of Moses and Aaron.

2 And Moses wrote their goings out according to their journeys, by the commandment of the LORD: and these are their journeys according to their goings out.

v Ver. 21-w Ch. 21. 27.-x Isni. 46. 1.-y Ch. 22. 41-2 See Ver. 3 Exod. 2 13. Josh. 23. 7-a Heh. they called by names the names of the cities -b Gen. 50. 23-0 Deut. 3. 12, 13, 15. Joab. 13. 31. & 17. 1.-d Deut. 3. 14. Josh. 13. 30. 1 Chron. 2. 21, 22, 23-e Judg. 10. 4. 1 Kings 4. 13-f Exod. 12 38, 51. & 13. 18. g Josh. 24. 5.-b Ch. 9. 17-23. & 10, 6, 13. Deut. 1. 2, 10, 11.

the tribe of Manasseh, by the Assyrians, 2 Kings xv. 29, after which the Moabites appear to have repossessed it, as they seem to have occupied it in the days of Jeremiah, chap. xlviii. 15-20.

Verse 39. And Nebo-their names being changed] That is, those who conquered the cities called them after their own names. Thus the city Kenath, being conquered by Nobah, was called after his name, ver. 42.

Verse 41. Haroth-jair] That is, the villages or habitations of Jair. And thus they should have been translated. As these two tribes and a half were the first, says Ainsworth, who had their inheritance assigned to them in the promised land; so they were the first of all Israel that were carried captive out of their own land, because of their sins. "For they transgressed against the God of their fathers, and went a whoring after other gods. And God delivered them into the hands of Pul and Tiglath Pilneser, kings of Assyria, and they brought them to Halah, Habor, Hara, and Gozan, unto this day." See 1 Chron. v. 25, 26.

NOTES ON CHAPTER XXXIII. Verse 2. And Moses wrote their goings out according to their journeys] We may consider the whole book of Numbers as a diary, and indeed the first book of travels ever published. Dr. Shaw, Dr. Pocock, and several others, have endeavoured to mark out the route of the Israelitesthrough this great, dreary, and trackless desert; and have ascertained many of the stages here described. Indeed, there are sufficient evidences of this important journey still remaining; for the descriptions of many are so particular, that the places are readily ascertained by them; but this Verse 34. The children of Gad built-Aroer] This was is not the case with all. Israel was the church of God in situated on the river Arnon, Deut. ii. 36. 2 Kings x. 33. It the wilderness, and its unsettled, wandering state, under was formerly inhabited by the Emim, a warlike, and per- Moses, may point out the unsettled state of religion under haps gigantic people. They were expelled by the Moab- the law. Their being brought, after the death of Moses, ites; the Mobites by the Amorites; and the Amorites by into the promised rest, by Joshua, may point out the estab the Israelites. The Gadites then possessed it till the cap-lishment, fixedness, and certainty of that salvation provided tivity of their tribe, with that of Reuben and the half of by Jesus Christ, of whom Joshua, in name and conduct,

verses.