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a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur.

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8 And he said, Hagar, Sarai's maid, whence camest thou? and whither wilt thou go? And she said, I flee from the face of my mistress Sarai.

9 And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands.

10 And the angel of the LORD said unto her, I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall not be numbered for multitude.

n. Ch. 25. 18.-b Exod. 15. 22-c Tit. 2 9. 1 Pet. 2. 18.-d Ch. 17. 20. & 21. 18. & 23. 12.

by Sarai, he restores, to prevent her jealousy and un

easiness.

11 And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael; because the LORD hath heard thy affliction.

12 And he will be a wild man; his hand will be against every man, and every man's hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.

13 And she called the name of the LORD that spake unto her, Thou God seest me: for she said, Have I also here, looked after him i that seeth me?

e Ch. 17. 19. Matt. 1.2. Luke 1. 13, 31.-f That is, God shall hear.-g Ch. 21. 20. h Ch. 25. 18-i Ch 31. 42

tion that can be given of the Ishmaelites, Bedouins, and wandering Arabs, the descendants of Ishmael. "Who Verse 6. She dealt hardly with her] myn teûneah, she hath sent out the wild ass (ND phera) free? or who hath afflicted her the term implying stripes and hard usage, loosed the bands (my ârod,) of the brayer? Whose house to bring down the body and humble the mind. If the I have made the wilderness, and the barren land his dwellslave was to blame in this business, the mistress is not lessings. He scorneth the multitude of the city, neither reliable to censure. She alone had brought her into those gardeth he the crying of the driver. The range of the circumstances, in which it was natural for her to value mountains is his pasture, and he searcheth after every herself beyond her mistress. green thing." Nothing can be more descriptive of the wandering, lawless, freebooting life of the Arabs than this.

Verse 7. The angel of the Lord] That Jesus Christ, in a body suited to the dignity of his nature, frequently appeared to the patriarchs, has been already intimated. That the person mentioned here was greater than any created being, is sufficiently evident from the following particulars:

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1. From his promising to perform what God alone could do, and foretelling what God alone could know. "I will multiply thy seed exceedingly,' &c. ver. 10. "Thou art with child, and shalt bear a son,' ," &c. ver. 11. "He shall be a wild man," &c. ver. 12. All this shows a prescience which is proper to God alone.

2. Hagar considers the person who spoke to her as God; calls him el, and addresses him in the way of worship, which, had he been a created angel, he would have refused; see Rev. xix. 10. xxii. 9.

3. Moses, who relates the transaction, calls this angel expressly JEHOVAH; for, says he, she called or shem yehovah, the NAME of the Lord that spake to her, ver. 13. Now this is a name never given to any created being. 4. This person who is here called maleak yehovah, the Angel of the Lord, is the same who is called hammaleak hagoel, the redeeming Angel, or, the Angel, the Redeemer, Gen. xlviii. 16. DN maleak panair, the Angel of God's presence, Isai. Ixiii. 9. and maleak ha-berith, the Angel of the Covenant, Mal. iii. 1. And is the same person which the Septuagint, Isai. ix. 6. term Meyakus Bouλns Agynes, the Angel of the great Counsel or Design, viz. of redeeming man and filling the earth with righteousness.

5. These things cannot be spoken of any human or created being; for the knowledge, works, &c. attributed to this person, are such as belong to God; and, as in all these cases, there is a most evident personal appearance, Jesus Christ alone can be meant, for of God the Father, it has been ever true, that no man hath at any time seen his shape, nor has he ever limited himself to any definable personal appearance.

In the way to Shur] As this was the road from Hebron to Egypt, it is probable, she was now returning to her own country.

Verse 8. Hagar, Sarai's maid] This mode of address is used to show her that she was known; and to remind her that she was the property of another.

Verse 10. I will multiply thy seed exceedingly] Who says this? The person who is called the Angel of the Lord; and he certainly speaks with all that authority which is proper to God.

Verse 11. And shalt call his name Ishmael] by yishmael, from you shamâ, he heard, and El, God; for, says the angel, THE LORD HATH HEARD thy affliction. Thus the name of the child must ever keep the mother in remembrance of God's merciful interposition in her behalf; and remind the child and the man, that he was an object of God's gracious and providential goodness. Afflictions and distresses have a voice in the ears of God, even when prayer is restrained-but how much more powerfully do they speak when endured in meekness of spirit, with confidence in, and supplication to, the Lord!

Verse 12. He will be a wild man] DNN pheré adam. As the root of this word does not appear in the Hebrew Bible, it is probably found in the Arabic farra, to run away, to run wild, and hence the wild ass, from its fleetness, and its untameable nature. What is said of the wild ass, Job xxxix. 5-8. affords the very best descrip

God himself has sent them out free; he has loosed them from all political restraint. The wilderness is their habitation, and in the parched land, where no other human beings could live, they have their dwellings. They scorn the city, and therefore have no fired habitations; for their multitude, they are not afraid; for when they make depredations on cities and towns, they retire into the desert with so much precipitancy, that all pursuit is eluded: in this respect the crying of the driver is disregarded. They may be said to have no lands; and yet the range of the mountains is their pasture, they pitch their tents and feed their flocks wherever they please; and they search after every green thing, are continually looking after prey, and seize on every kind of property that comes in their

way.

It is farther said, his hand shall be against every man, and every man's hand against him-Many potentates among the Abyssinians, Persians, Egyptians and Turks, have endeavoured to subjugate the wandering or wild Arabs; but though they have had temporary triumphs, they have been ultimately unsuccessful. Sesostris, Cyrus, Pompey, and Trajan, all endeavoured to conquer Arabia, but in vain. From the beginning to the present day they have maintained their independency; and God preserves them as a lasting monument of his providential care, and an incontestible argument of the truth of Divine Revelation. Had the Pentateuch no other argument to evince its divine origin, the account of Ishmael, and the prophecy concerning his descendants, collated with their history and manner of life, during a period of nearly four thou sand years, would be sufficient. Indeed the argument is so absolutely demonstrative, that the man who would attempt its refutation, in the sight of reason and common sense, would stand convicted of the most ridiculous presumption and excessive folly.

The country which these free descendants of Ishmael may be properly said to possess, stretches from Aleppo to the Arabian sea; and from Egypt to the Persian gulf. A tract of land not less than 1800 miles in length, by 900 in breadth; see chap. xvii. 20.

Verse 13. And she called the name of the Lord] She invoked, pm va-tikra, the name of Jehovah who spake unto her, thus, Thou God seest me! She found that the eye of a merciful God had been upon her in all her wanderings and afflictions; and her words seem to intimate that she had been seeking the divine help and protection, for she says, Have I also, or have I not also looked after him that seeth me?

This last clause of the verse is very obscure; and is rendered differently by all the versions. The general

sense taken out of it is this: that Hagar was now convinced that God himself had appeared unto her, and was surprised to find that, notwithstanding this, she was still permitted to live; for it was generally supposed, that if God appeared to any, they must be consumed by his glories. This is frequently alluded to in the Sacred Writings. As the word acharey, which we render simply after, in other places signifies the last days, or aftertimes; see on Exod. xxxiii. 23. it may probably have a similar meaning here, and indeed this makes a consistent sense; Have I here also seen the LATTER PURPOSES OF DESIGNS of him who seeth me? An exclamation which may be at once referred to that discovery which God made, in the preceding verse, of the future state of her descendants.

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CHAP. XVII.

14 Wherefore the well was called Beerlahai-roi; behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered.

15 T And & Hagar bare Abram a son: and Abram called his son's name, which Hagar bare, Ishmael.

16' And Abram was fourscore and six years old, when Hagar bare Ishmael to Abram.

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Verse 14. Wherefore the well was called Beer-lahairoi] It appears from ver. 7. that Hagar had sat down by a fountain or well of water in the wilderness of Shur, at which the angel of the Lord found her; and, to commemorate the wonderful discovery which God had made of himself, she called the name of the well N N Beerla-chay-roce, "A well to the Living One who seeth me." Two things seem implied here, 1. A dedication of the well to Him who had appeared to her; and, 2. Faith in the promise: for he who is the Living One, existing in all generations, must have it ever in his power to accomplish promises which are to be fulfilled through the whole lapse of time. Verse 15. And Hagar bare Abram a son, &c.] It appears, therefore, that Hagar returned at the command of the angel, believing the promise that God had made to her.

Called his son's name Ishmael] Finding by the account of Hagar, that God had designed that he should be so called. "Ishmael," says Ainsworth, "is the first man in the world whose name was given him of God before he was born."

In the preceding chapter we have a very detailed account of the covenant which God made with Abram, which stated that his seed should possess Canaan: and this promise, on the Divine authority, he steadfastly believed; and in simplicity of heart waited for its accomplishment. Sarai was not like-minded; as she had no child herself, and was now getting old, she thought it necessary to secure the inheritance by such means as were in her power; she, therefore, as we have seen, gave her slave to Abram, that she might have children by her. We do not find Abram remonstrating on the subject-and why is he blamed? God had not as yet told him how he was to have an heir: the promise simply stated, he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir, chap. xv. 4. Concubinage, under that dispensation, was perfectly lawful; therefore he could, with equal justice and innocence, when it was lawful in itself, and now urged by the express desire of Sarai, take Hagar to wife. And it is very likely that he might think that his posterity, whether by wife or concubine, as both were lawful, might be that intended by the promise. It is very difficult to believe that a promise, which refers to some natural event, can possibly be fulfilled but through some natural means. And yet, what is nature but an instrument in God's hands? What we call natural effects, are all performed by supernatural agency: for nature, that is, the whole system of inanimate things, is as inert as any of the particles of matter of the | aggregate of which it is composed, and can be a cause to no effect, but as it is excited by sovereign power. This is a doctrine of sound philosophy; and should be carefully considered by all, that men may see that, without an overruling and universally energetic Providence, no effect whatever can be brought about. But, besides these general influences of God in nature, which are all exhibited by what men call general laws, he chooses often to act supernaturally, i. e. independently of, or against, these general laws, that we may see that there is a God, who does not confine himself to one way of working, but with means, without means, and even against natural means, accomplishes the gracious purposes of his mercy in the behalf of man. Where God has promised, let him be

to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Al-
mighty God, walk before me, and be thou
perfect.

2 And I will make my covenant between me
3 And Abram m fell on his face: and God
and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly.
talked with him, saying,

4 As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be "a father of many nations.

5 Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but P thy name shall be Abraham; for, a father of many nations have I made thee.

6 And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.

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7 And I will "establish my covenant between me and thee, and thy seed after thee in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. 8 And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed

& 13. 16. & 22. 17.-m Ver. 17.-n Rom. 4. 11. 12, 16. Gal. 3. 29.-o Heb. multitude of nations-p Neh. 9. 7.-q That is, Father of a great multitude-r Rom. 4. 17. Ch. 35. 11.- Ver. 16. Ch. 35. 11. Matt. 1. 6, &c.-u Gal. 3. 17.- Ch. 26. 24. & 28. 13. Heb. 11. 16.-w Rom. 9. 8-x Ch. 12. 1. & 13. 15. Psa. 105. 9, 11.

explicitly credited, because he cannot lie; and let not hasty nature intermeddle with his work.

The omniscience of God is a subject on which we should often reflect; and we can never do it unfruitfully, while we connect it, as we ever should, with infinite goodness and mercy. Every thing, person, and circumstance, is under its notice; and doth not the eye of God affect his heart? The poor slave, the stranger, the Egyptian, suffering under the severity of her hasty, unbelieving mistress, is seen by the all-wise and merciful God. He permits her to go to the desert, provides the spring to quench her thirst, and sends the Angel of the Covenant to instruct and comfort her. How gracious is God! He permits us to get into distressing circumstances, that he may give us effectual relief, and in such a way too, that the excellence of the power may appear to be of him, and that we may learn to trust in him in all our distresses. God delights to do his creatures good.

In all transactions between God and man, mentioned in the Sacred Writings, we see one uniform agency. The great Mediator in all, and through all; God ever coming to man by him; and man having access to God through him. This was, is, and ever will be, the economy of grace. "The Father hath sent me:-and no man cometh unto the Father but by me." God forbid that he should have cause to complain of us: "YE will not come unto me, that ye might have life."

NOTES ON CHAPTER XVII. Verse 1. The Lord appeared to Abram] See on ch. xv. 1.

I am the Almighty God] Ani El shaday, I am God all-sufficient; from shadah, to shed, to pour out. I am that God who pours out blessings, who gives them richly, abundantly, continually.

Walk before me] ann hith-halek lepanai, set thyself to walk-be firmly purposed, thoroughly determined to obey-before me-for my eye is ever on thee, therefore ever consider that God seeth thee. Who can imagine a stronger incitement to conscientious persevering obedience?

Be thou perfect] Don mm veheyeh tamim, And thou shalt be perfections, i. e. altogether perfect; be just such as the holy God would have thee to be, as the almighty God can make thee, and live as the all-sufficient God shall support thee: for he alone who makes the soul holy, can preserve it in holiness. Our blessed Lord appears to have had these words pointedly in view, Matt. v. 48. S τέλειοι, ωσπερ ο πατήρ υμών ο εν τοις ουρανοίς τελειός εστι, Το SHALL BE perfect, as your Father who is in heaven is perfect. But what does this imply? Why, to be saved from all the power, the guilt, and the contamination of sin. This is only the negative part of salvation; but it has also a positive part-to be made perfect-to be perfect as our Father who is in heaven is perfect-to be filled with the fulness of God-to have Christ dwelling continually in the heart by faith, and to be rooted and grounded in love. This is the state in which man was created; for he was made in the image and likeness of God. This is the state from which man fell: for he broke the command of God. And this is the state into which every human soul must be raised, who would dwell with God in glory; for Christ was 79 incarnated, and died to put away sin by the sacrifice of

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thou art a [ between me and thee, and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised.

after thee, the land wherein stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession: and I will be their God. 9 And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee, in their generations.

10 This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, Heb. of thy sojournings.b Ch. 23. 4. & 23. 4.-c Exod. 6. 7. Lev. 26. 12. Deut. 4. 37. & 14. 2 & 26. 18. & 29. 13.

himself. What a glorious privilege! And who can doubt the possibility of its attainment, who believes in the omnipotent love of God, the infinite merit of the blood of atonement, and the all-pervading and all-purifying energy of the Holy Ghost? How many miserable souls employ that time to dispute and cavil against the possibility of being saved from their sins, which they should devote to praying and believing that they might be saved out of the hands of their enemies! But some may say, "You overstrain the meaning of the term; it signifies only, be sincere; for as perfect obedience is impossible, God accepts of sincere obedience." If by sincerity the objection means good desires, and generally good purposes, with an impure heart and spotted life, then I assert, that no such thing is implied in the text, nor in the original word: but if the word sincerity be taken in its proper and literal sense, I have no objection to it. Sincere is compounded of sine-cerâ, "without wax;" and, applied to moral subjects, is a metaphor taken from clarified honey, from which every atom of the comb or wax is separated. Then let it be proclaimed from heaven-Walk before me, and be SINCERE! purge out the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump unto God, and thus ye shall be perfect, as your Father who is in heaven is perfect. This is sincerity!-Reader, remember that the blood of Christ cleanseth from all sin. Ten thousand quibbles on insulated texts, can never lessen, much less destroy, the merit and efficacy of the Great Atonement.

Verse 3. And Abram fell on his face] The eastern method of prostration was thus; the person first went down on his knees, and then lowered his head to his knees, and touched the earth with his forehead. A very painful posture, but significative of great humiliation and rever

ence.

Verse 5. Thy name shall be called Abraham] Ab-ram DN literally means a high or exalted father. Ab-ra-ham Das differs from the preceding only in one letter: it has hé before the last radical. Though this may appear very simple and easy, yet the true etymology and meaning of the word are very difficult to be assigned. The reason given by God for the change made in the patriarch's name is this, for a father of many nations have I made theeAb-hamon-goyim, "a father of a multitude of nations." This has led some to suppose, that Abraham is a contraction for on an 2 Ab-rab-hamon, "the father of a great multitude."

Aben Esra says, the name is derived from pon a Abir-hamon, 66 a powerful multitude."

Rabbi Solomon Jarchi defines the name cabalistically, and says that its numeral letters amount to two hundred and forty-eight; which, says he, is the exact number of the bones in the human body! but before then he was added, which stands for five, it was five short of this perfection! Rabbi Lipman says, the he being added as the fourth letter, signifies that the Messiah should come in the fourth millenary of the world!

Clarius and others think, that the he, which is one of the letters of the Tetragrammaton, (or word of four letters Yеноνан) was added for the sake of dignity, God associating the patriarch more nearly to himself, by thus imparting to him a portion of his own name.

Having enumerated so many opinions, that of William Alabaster, in his Apparatus to the Revelation, should not be passed by. He most wisely says, that Ab-ram, or rom, signifies father of the Romans, and consequently the pope; therefore Abraham was pope the first! This is just as likely as some of the preceding etymologies.

From all these learned, as well as puerile conjectures, we may see the extreme difficulty of ascertaining the true meaning of the word, though the concordance-makers, and proper name explainers, find no difficulty at all in the case; and pronounce on it as readily and authoritatively as if they had been in the Divine council when it was first imposed.

Hottinger, in his Smegma Orientale, supposes the word to be derived from the Arabic root rahama, which signifies to be very numerous. Hence ab raham would signify a copious father, or father of a multitude. This makes a very good sense, and agrees

11 And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you.

12 And he that is eight days old & shall be

d Acts 7. 8-e Acts 7. 8. Rom. 4. 11.- Heb. a son of right days.-g Lev. 12. 3. Luke 2. 21. John 7. 22. Phil à 5.

well with the context. Either this etymology, or that which supposes the inserted ʼn hé to be an abbreviation of the word on hamon multitude, is the most likely to be the true one. But this last would require the word to be written, when full, pono¬n Ab-ram-hamon.

The same difficulty occurs verse 15. on the word Sarai, which signifies my prince, or princess; and Sarah, where the whole change is made by the substitution of hé for a yod. This latter might be translated princess in general; and while the former seems to point out her government in her own family alone, the latter appears to indicate her government over the nations of which her husband is termed the father or lord; and hence the promise states, that she shall be a mother of nations, and that kings of people should spring from her.-See ver. 15, 16.

Now, as the only change on each name is made by the insertion of a single letter, and that letter the same in both names, I cannot help concluding, that some mystery was designed by its insertion; and therefore the opinion of Clarius and some others, is not to be disregarded, which supposes that God shows he had conferred a peculiar dignity on both, by adding to their names one of the letters of his own; a name by which his eternal power and godhead are peculiarly pointed out.

From the difficulty of settling the etymology of these two names, on which so much stress seems to be laid in the text, the reader will see with what caution he should receive the lists of explanations of the proper names in the Old and New Testaments, which he so frequently meets with, and which, from close examination, I can pronounce to be, in general, false or absurd.

Verse 7. An everlasting covenant] by na berith ôlam. See on ch. xiii. 15. Here the word ôlam is taken in its own proper meaning, as the words immediately following prove to be a God unto thee, and thy seed after thee; for as the soul is to endure for ever, so it shall eternally stand in need of the supporting power and energy of God; and as the reign of the Gospel dispensation shall be as long as sun and moon endure, and its consequences eternal, so must the covenant be on which these are founded.

Verse 8. Everlasting possession] Here by ôlam appears to be used in its accommodated meaning, and signifies the completion of the divine counsel in reference to a particular period or dispensation. And it is literally true, that the Israelites possessed the land of Canaan, till the Mosaic dispensation was terminated in the complete introduction of that of the Gospel. But as the spiritual and temporal covenants are both blended together, and the former was pointed out and typified by the latter, hence the word, even here, may be taken in its own proper meaning, that of ever-during, or eternal; because the spiritual blessings pointed out by the temporal covenant shall have no end. And hence it is immediately added, I will be their God, not for a time certainly, but for ever and ever.-See the notes on chap. xxi. 33.

Verse 10. Every male child-shall be circumcised] Those who wish to invalidate the evidence of the divine origin of the Mosaic law, roundly assert, that the Israelites received the rite of circumcision from the Egyptians. Their apostle in this business is Herodotus, who, lib. ii. p. 116. edit. Steph. 1592, says, "The Colchians, Egyptians, and Ethiopians, are the only nations in the world who have used circumcision a zs, from the remotest period: and the Phoenicians and Syrians who inhabit Palestine, acknowledge they received this from the Egyptians." Herodotus cannot mean Jews by Phoenicians and Syrians; if he does, he convicts himself of falsity; for no Jew ever did, or ever could, acknowledge this, with the history of Abraham in his hand. If Herodotus had written before the days of Abraham, or at least before the sojourning of the children of Israel in Egypt, and informed us that circumcision had been practised among them a px, from the beginning, there would then exist a possibility that the Israelites, while sojourning among them, had learned and adopted this rite. But when we know that Herodotus flourished only four hundred and eighty-four years before the Christian era, and that Jacob and his family sojourned

circumcised among you, every man child in your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any stranger, which is not of thy seed.

13 He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant.

14 And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant.

15 And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall her name be.

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16 And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations: kings of people shall be of her.

a Exod. 4. 21-b That is, Princess.- Ch. 18. 10.

Heb, she shall become nations.-e Ch. 35. 11. Gal. 4. 31. 1 Pet. 3. 6.

in Egypt more than eighteen hundred years before Christ, and that all the descendants of Abraham most conscientiously observed circumcision, and do to this day; then the presumption is, that the Egyptians received it from the Israelites, but that it was impossible the latter could have received it from the former, as they had practised it so long before their ancestors had sojourned in Egypt. Verse 11. And it shall be a token] leoth, for a sign of spiritual things: for the circumcision made in the flesh was designed to signify the purification of the heart from all unrighteousness, as God particularly showed in the law itself. See Deut. x. 16. See also Rom. ii. 25-29. Coloss. ii. 11. And it was a seal of that righteousness, or justification, that comes by faith, Rom. iv. 11. That some of the Jews had a just notion of its spiritual intention, is plain from many passages in the Chaldee paraphrases, and in the Jewish writers. I borrow one passage from the book Zohar, quoted by Ainsworth; "At what time a man is sealed with this holy seal (of circumcision) thenceforth he seeth the holy blessed God properly, and the holy soul is united to him. If he be not worthy, and keepeth not this sign, what is written? By the breath of God they perish, (Job iv. 9.) because this seal of the holy blessed God was not kept. But if he be worthy, and keep it, the Holy Ghost is not separated from Him."

Verse 12. He that is eight days old] Because, previous to this, they were considered unclean, and might not be offered to God, Lev. xii. 2, 3. and circumcision was ever understood as a consecration of the person to God. Neither calf, lamb, nor kid, was offered to God till it was eight days old, for the same reason, Lev. xxii. 27.

Verse 13. He that is born in thy house] The son of a servant-he that is bought with money a slave, on his coming into the family. According to the Jewish writers, the father was to circumcise his son, and the master the servant born in his house, or the slave bought with money. If the father or master neglected to do this, then the magistrates were obliged to see it performed: if the neglect of this ordinance was unknown to the magistrates, then the person himself, when he came of age to discern the command of God, was obliged to do it.

Verse 14. The uncircumcised-shall be cut off from his people] By being cut off, some have imagined that a sudden temporal death was implied; but the simple meaning seems to be, that such should have no right to, nor share in, the blessings of the covenant, which we have already seen were both of a temporal and spiritual kind; and if so, then cternal death was implied; for it was impossible for a person who had not received the spiritual purification, to enter into eternal glory. The spirit of this law extends to all ages, dispensations, and people-he whose heart is not purified from sin, cannot enter into the kingdom of God. Reader, on what is thy hope of heaven founded?

Verse 15. Thou shalt not call her name Sarai but Sarah] See on verse 5.

Verse 16. I will bless her, &c.] Sarah certainly stands at the head of all the women of the Old Testament, on account of her extraordinary privileges. I am quite of Calmet's opinion, though I cannot push the parallel so far as he does, that Sarah was a type of the blessed Virgin. St. Paul considers her a type of the New Testament, and heavenly Jerusalem; and as all true believers are considered as the children of Abraham, so all faithful, holy women, are considered the daughters of Sarah, Cal. iv. 22, 24, 26. See also 1 Pet. in. 6.

17 Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear? 18 And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee!

19 And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.

20 And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly ; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation.

21 But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year.

f Ch. 18. 12 & 21. 6-g Ch. 18. 10. & 21. 2. Gal. 4. 8-h Ch. 16. 10.-i Ch. 25. 12, 16.-k Ch. 21. 18.-1 Ch. 21. 2

Verse 17. Then Abraham-laughed] I am astonished to find learned and pious men considering this as a token of Abraham's weakness of faith, or unbelief, when they have the most positive assurance from the Spirit of God himself, that Abraham was not weak, but strong, in the faith-that he staggered not at the promise through unbelief, but gave glory to God, Rom. iv. 19, 20. It is true, the same word is used ch. xviii. 12. concerning Sarahı, in whom it was certainly a sign of doubtfulness, though mixed with pleasure at the thought of the possibility of her becoming a mother; but we know how possible it is to express both faith and unbelief in the same way; and even pleasure and disdain have been expressed by a smile or laugh. By laughing, Abraham undoubtedly expressed his joy at the prospect of the fulfilment of so glorious a promise: and from this very circumstance Isaac had his name. pay Yitschak, which we change into Isaac, sig. nifies laughter; and it is the same word which is used in the verse before us-Abraham fell on his face-pry va yitschak, and he laughed and to the joy which he felt on this occasion, our Lord evidently alludes, John viii. 56. Your father Abraham REJOICED to see my day; and he saw it, and was GLAD. And to commemorate this joy, which he felt when God gave him the promise, he called his son's name Isaac.-See the note on chap. xxi. 6.

Verse 18. Othat Ishmael might live before thee !] Abraham finding that the covenant was to be established in another branch of his family, he felt solicitous for his son Ishmael, whom he considered as necessarily excluded; on which God delivers that most remarkable prophecy, which follows in the 20th verse, and which contains an answer to the prayer and wish of Abraham-And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee; so that the object of Abraham's prayer was, that his son Ishmael might be the head of a prosperous and potent people.

Verse 20. Twelve princes shall he beget, &c.] See the names of these twelve princes, chap. xxv. 12-16. From Ishmael proceeded the various tribes of the Arabs, called also Saracens, by Christian writers. They were anciently, and still continue to be, a very numerous and powerful people. "It was somewhat wonderful, and not to be foreseen by human sagacity," says Bishop Newton, "that a man's whole posterity should so nearly resemble him, and retain the same inclinations, the same habits, and the same customs, throughout all ages! These are the only people, besides the Jews, who have subsisted as a distinct people from the beginning; and in some respects they very much resemble each other. 1. The Arabs, as well as the Jews, are descended from Abraham, and both boast of their descent from the father of the faithful. 2. The Arabs, as well as the Jews, are circumcised, and both profess to have derived this ceremony from Abraham. 3. The Arabs, as well as the Jews, had originally twelve patriarchs, who were their princes or governors. 4. The Arabs, as well as the Jews, marry among themselves, and in their own tribes. 5. The Arabs, as well as the Jews, are singular in several of their customs, and are standing monuments to all ages, of the exactness of the divine predictions, and of the veracity of Scripture history. We may, with more confidence, believe the particulars related of Abraham and Ishmael, when we see them verified in their posterity at this day. This is having, as it were, ocular demonstration for our faith."-See Bp. Newton's Second Dissertation on the Prophecies, and see the notes on ch. xvi. 12.

Verse 21. My covenant will I establish with Isaac] All temporal good things are promised to Ishmael and his pos

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22 And he left off talking with him, and God went up from Abraham.

23 And Abraham took Ishmael his son, and all that were born in his house, and all that were bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham's house; and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin in the self-same day, as God had said unto him.

24 And Abraham was ninety years old and nine, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.

25 And Ishmael his son was thirteen years old, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.

CHAPTER XVIII.

The Lord appears unto Abraham in Mamre, 1. Three angels in human appearance come towards his tent, 2: he invites them in to wash and refresh themselves, 3-5: prepares a calf, bread, butter, and milk, for their entertainment, and himself serves then, 6-8: they promise that within a year Sarah shall have a son, 9, 10. Sarah, knowing herself and husband to be superannuated, smiles at the promise, 11, 12: one of the three, who is called the Lord, or Jehovah, chides her, and asserts the sufficiency of the Divine Power to accomplish the promise, 13, 14. Sarah, through fear, denies that she had laughed or showed signs of unbelief, 15. Abraham accompanies these divine persons on their way to Sodom, 16: and that one who is called Jehovah, informs him of his purpose to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, because of their great wickedness, 17-21. The two former proceed towards Sodom, while the latter (Jehovah) remains with Abraham, 22 Abraham intercedes for the inhabi tants of those cities, entreating the Lord to spare them provided fifty righteous persons should be found in them, 23-25. The Lord grants this request, 36: be pleads for the same mercy should only forty fire be found there; which is also granted, 27, 28: he pleads the same for forty, which is also granted, 29; for thirty, with the same success, 30: for twenty, and receives the same gracions answer, 31; for ten, and the Lord assures him that should ten righteous persons be found there, he will not destroy the place, 32 Jehovah then departs, and Abraham returns to his tent, 33.

26 In the selfsame day was Abraham circum-AN

cised, and Ishmael his son.

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27 And all the men of his house, born in the house, and bought with money of the stranger, were circumcised with him.

a Ch. 18. 33. & 35. 13.-b Ch. 34. 24. Josh. 5. 2-9. Acts 16. 3. Rom. 2. 25-29. & 4. 9-12 Gal. 5. 6. & 6. 15.

terity, but the establishment of the Lord's covenant is to be with Isaac. Hence it is fully evident, that this covenant referred chiefly to spiritual things-to the Messiah and the salvation which should be brought to both Jews and tiles by his incarnation, death, and glorification.

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ND the LORD appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre: and he sat in the tentdoor in the heat of the day:

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2 And he lift up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him: and when he saw

c See Ver. 1 & 17. Rom. 4. 19.-d Ch. 18. 19. Ch. 13. 18. & 14. 13—f Heb. 13, 2 g Ch. 19. 1. 1 Pet. 4. 9.

this was to be a permanent sign of that covenant which was to endure for ever, Though the sign is now changed from circumcision to baptism, each of them equally sigGen-nificat, yet the covenant is not changed in any part of its essential meaning. Faith in God, through the great Sacrifice, remission of sins, and sanctification of the heart, are required by the new covenant as well as by the old. 3. The rite of circumcision was painful and humiliating, to denote that repentance, self-denial, &c. are absolutely necessary to all who wish for redemption in the blood of the covenant-and the putting away this filth of the flesh, showed the necessity of a pure heart and a holy life.

Verse 22. God went up from Abraham] Ascended evidently before him, so that he had the fullest proof that it was no human being, no earthly angel, or messenger, that talked with him: and the promise of a son in the course of a single year, at this set time in the next year, ver. 21. which had every human probability against it, was to be the sure token of the truth of all that had hitherto taken place; and the proof that all that was farther promised should be fulfilled in its due time. Was it not in nearly the same way that the Lord went up from Abraham, that Jesus Christ ascended to heaven in the presence of his disciples? Luke xxiv. 51.

Verse 23. And Abraham took Ishmael, &c.] Had not Abraham, his son, who was of age to judge for himself, and all the family, been fully convinced that this thing was of God, they could not have submitted to it. A rite so painful, so repugnant to every feeling of delicacy, and every way revolting to nature, could never have sprung up in the imagination of man. To this day, the Jews practise it as a divine ordinance: and all the Arabians do the same. As a distinction between them and other people, it never could have been designed, because it was a sign that was never to appear. The individual alone, knew that he bore in his flesh this sign of the covenant; and he bore it by the order of God; and he knew it was a sign and seal of spiritual blessings, and not the blessings themselves, though a proof that these blessings were promised, and that he had a right to them. Those who did not consider it in this spiritual reference, are by the apostle denominated the concision. Phil. iii. 2. i. e. persons whose flesh was cut, but whose hearts were not purified.

THE Contents of this chapter may be summed up in a few propositions:

1. God, in renewing his covenant with Abram, makes an important change in his and Sarai's name; a change which should ever act as a help to their faith, that the promises by which God had bound himself should be punctually fulfilled. However difficult it may be for us to ascertain the precise import of the change then made, we may rest assured that it was perfectly understood by both; and that, as they had received this name from God, they considered it as placing them in a new relation both to their Maker and to their posterity. From what we have already seen, the change made in Abram's name is inscrutable to us: there is something like this Rev. ii. 17. To him that overcometh will I give a white stone, and a NEW NAMEwhich no man knoweth, saving he that receiveth it. The full import of the change made in a soul that enters into covenant with God through Christ, is only known to itself: a stranger intermeddleth not with its joy. Hence, even men of learning, and the world at large, have considered experimental religion as enthusiasm, merely because they have not understood its nature, and have permitted themselves to be carried away by prejudices, which they have imbibed first through the means of ignorant or hypocritical pretenders to deep piety: but while they have the Sacred Writings before them, their prejudices and opposition to that, without which they cannot be saved, are as unprincipled as they are absurd."

2. God gives Abraliam a precept, which should be observed not only by himself, but by all his posterity; for

4. As eternal life is the free gift of God, he has a right to give it in what way he pleases, and on what terms. He says to Abram and his seed-Ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin, and he that doth not so shall be cut off from his people. He says also to sinners in general-Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts-Repent, and believe the Gospel and Except ye repent, ye shall perish. These are the terms on which he chooses to bestow the blessings of the old and new covenants. And let it be remembered, that stretching out the hand to receive an alms can never be considered as meriting the bounty received; neither can repentance or faith merit salvation, although they are the conditions on which it is bestowed.

5. The precepts given under both covenants were accompanied with a promise of the Messiah. God well knows, that no religious rite can be properly observed, and no precept obeyed, unless he impart strength from on high: and he teaches us, that that strength must ever come through the promised Seed. Hence, with the utmost propriety, we ask every blessing through him, in whom God is well pleased.

6. The precept, the promise, and the rite, were prefaced with-I am God all-sufficient, walk before me, and be thou perfect. God, who is the sole object of religious worship, has the sole authority to prescribe that worship, and the rites and ceremonies which shall be used in it; hence he prescribed circumcision and sacrifices under the old law, and baptism and the eucharist under the Gospel; and to render both effectual to the end of their institution, faith in God was indispensably necessary.

7. Those who profess to believe in him, must not live as they list, but as he pleases. Though redeemed from the curse of the law, and from the rites and ceremonies of the Jewish church, they are under the law to Christ, and must walk before him-be in all things obedient to that moral law, which is an emanation from the righteousness of God, and of eternal obligation; and let it ever be remembered, that Christ is the author of eternal salvation to all that obey him. Without faith and obedience there can be no holiness; and without holiness, none can see the Lord. Be all that God would have thee to be, and God will be to thee all that thou canst possibly require. He never gives a precept, but he offers sufficient grace to enable thee to perform it. Believe as he would have thee, and act as he shall strengthen thee; and thou wilt then believe all things savingly, and do all things well.

NOTES ON CHAPTER XVIII. Verse 1. And the Lord appeared] See on ch. xv. i. Sat in the tent-door] For the purpose of enjoying the refreshing air; in the heat of the day, when the sun had most power.

Verse 2. Three men stood by him] hy as Nitsa

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