a See Hebr. xii. 9. b Lev. xiii, 46. Ch. v. 2, 3. c Deut. xxiv. 9. 2 Chron. xxvi. 20, 21.- d Ch. xi, 35. xxxiii. 18. Verse 10. Miriam became leprous] It is likely Miriam was chief in this mutiny; and it is probable that it was on this ground she is mentioned first (see ver. 1), and punished here, while Aaron is spared. | Had he been smitten with the leprosy, his sacred character must have greatly suffered, and perhaps the priesthood itself have fallen into contempt. How many priests and preachers who deserved to be exposed to reproach and infamy, have been spared for the sake of the holy character they bore, that the ministry might not be blamed! But the just God will visit their transgressions in some other way, if they do not deeply deplore them and find mercy through Christ. Nothing tends to discredit the work of God so much as the transgressions and miscarriages of those who minister in holy things. Verse 14. If her father had but spit in her face] This appears to have been done only in cases of great provocation on the part of the child, and strong irritation on the side of the parent. Spitting in the face was a sign of the deepest contempt. See Job xxx. 10, Isai. 1. 6, Mark xiv. 65. In a case where a parent was obliged by the disobedient conduct of his child to treat him in this way, it appears he was banished from the father's presence for seven days. If then this was an allowed and judged case in matters of high provocation on the part of a child, should not the punishment be equally severe where the creature has rebelled against the Creator? Therefore Miriam was shut out of the camp for seven days, and thus debarred from coming into the presence of God her father, who is represented as dwelling among the people. To a soul who knows the value and inexpressible blessedness of communion with God, how intolerable must seven days of spiritual darkness be! But how indescribably wretched must their case be who are cast out into outer darkness, where the light of God no more shines, and where his approbation can no more be felt for ever! Reader, God save thee from so great a curse! Several of the Fathers suppose there is a great mystery hidden in the quarrel of Miriam and Aaron with Moses and Zipporah. Origen (and after him several others) speaks of it in the following manner: "1. Zipporah, a Cushite espoused by Moses, evi dently points out the choice which Jesus Christ has made of the Gentiles for his spouse and church. 2. The jealousy of Aaron and Miriam against Moses and Zipporah signifies the hatred and envy of the Jews against Christ and the apostles, when they saw that the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven had been opened to the Gentiles, of which they had rendered themselves unworthy. 3. The leprosy with which Miriam was smitten shows the gross ignorance of the Jews, and the ruinous, disordered state of their religion, in which there is neither a head, a temple, nor a sacrifice. 4. Of none but Jesus Christ can it be said that he was the most meek and patient of men ; that he saw God face to face; that he had every thing clearly revealed without enigmatical representations; and that he was faithful in all the house of God." This, and much more, Origen states in the sixth and seventh homilies on the book of Numbers, and yet all this he considers as little in comparison of the vas: mysteries that lie hidden in these accounts; for the shortness of the time, and the magnitude of the mysteries, only permit him "to pluck a few flowers from those vast fields--not as many as the exuberance of those fields afford, but only such as by their odour he was led to select from the rest." Licebat tamen er ingentibus campis paucos flosculos legere, et non quantum ager exuberet, sed quantum odoratui sufficiat, carpere. Verse 16. The wilderness of Paran.] This could not be the same Paran with that mentioned Deat i. 1, for that was on the borders of the promised land, see the note on Deut. i. 1, 2; they were long near the borders of Canaan, and might have speedily entered into it, had it not been for their provocations and iniquities. They spent thirty-eight years in a journey which might have been accomplished in a few weeks! How many through their unfaithfulness have been many years in gaining that for which, in the ordinary procedure of divine grace, a few days had been sufficient! How much ground may a man lose in the divine life by one act of unfaithfulness or transgression! Israel wandered in the wilderness because Israel despised the pleasant land, and did not give credence to the word of the Lord. They would have a golden calf, and they had nothing but tribulation and woe in return. CHAPTER XIII. Twelve men, one out of every tribe, are sent to examine the nature and state of the land of The names of CHAP. XIII. the twelve spies. They proceed on their journey, 21, 22. Come to Eshcol, and cut down a branch with a cluster of grapes, which they bear between two of them upon a staff, 23, 24. After forty days they return to Paran, from searching the land, and show to Moses and the people the fruit they had brought with them, 25, 26. Their report-they acknowledge that the land is good, but that the inhabitants are such as the Israelites cannot hope to conquer, 27-29. Caleb endeavours to do away the bad impression made, by the report of his fellows, upon the minds of the people, 30. But the others persist in their former statement, 31; and greatly amplify the difficulties of conquest, 32, 33. 2 a Send thou men, that they may search the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel: of every tribe of their fathers shall ye send a man, every one a ruler among them. 3 And Moses by the commandment of the LORD sent them from the wilderness of Paran all those men were heads of the children of Israel. of the tribe 4 And these were their names of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur. 5 of the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori. d 11 Of the tribe of Joseph, namely, of the tribe of Manasseh, Gaddi the son of Susi. 12 Of the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli. 13 of the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael. 14 of the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi. 15 of the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi. 16 These are the names of the men which Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses 6 Of the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of called 'Oshea the son of Nun, Jehoshua. Jephunneh. 17 And Moses sent them to spy out the 7 Of the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of land of Canaan, Joseph. e you up this way and said unto them, Get southward, and go up into 8 of the tribe of Ephraim, Oshea the son the mountain: of Nun. 18 And see the land, what it is; and the 9 of the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of people that dwelleth therein, whether they be Raphu. strong or weak, few or many; a Ch. xxxii. 8. Deut. i. 22.- b Ch. xii. 16. xxxii. 8. Dent, i. 19. ix. 23.—c Ch. xxxiv. 19. 1 Chron. iv. 15. d Ver. 30. Ch. xiv. 6, 30. Josh. xiv. 6, 7, 13, 14. Judg. i. NOTES ON CHAP. XIII. Verse 2. Send thou men, that they may search] It appears from Deut. i. 19-24 that this was done in consequence of the request of the people, after the following address of Moses: "And when we departed from Horeb, we went through all that great and terrible wilderness-and we came unto Kadesh Barnea; and I said unto you, Ye are come unto the mountain of the Amorites, which the Lord our God doth give unto us. Behold, the Lord thy God hath set the land before thee: go up and possess it, as the Lord God of thy fathers hath said unto thee; fear not, neither be discouraged. 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. And the saying pleased me well, and I took twelve men of you, one of a tribe," &c., &c. Nearly the whole of these verses is added here by the Samaritan. Every one a ruler] Not any of the princes of the people (see chap. i.), for these names are different from ,Sethur סתור Verse 13. Sethur the son of Michael.] It would have been strange had the numerous searchers after the explanation of the mystical number 666, Rev. xiii. 18, xvii. 5, met with nothing to their purpose in the name of this son of Michael. from no sathar, to hide or conceal, signifies hidden or mysterious, and includes in it the numerical letters of the No. 666: 60, + ₪ 400, +16, + 200, = 666. But of what utility can such expositions be to any subject of history or theology? Verse 16. And Moses called Oshea-Jehoshua.] Oshea, Heb. yw, should be written Hoshea: the Word signifies saved, or a saviour, or salvation; but yw, he shall save, or the salvation of God; a letter, says Calmet, of the incommunicable name of God, being added to his former name. This was not the first time in which he had the name Joshua; see Exod. xvii. 9, and the note there. Some suppose he had this change of name in consequence of his victory over Amalek; see Exod. xvii. 13, 14. e a Neh. ix. 25, 35. Ezek. xxxiv. 14. b Deut. xxxi. 6, 7, 23.- e Ch. xxxiv. 3. Josh. xv. 1. d Josh. xix. 28. Josh. xi. 21, 22. xv. 13, 14. Judg. i. 10.- - Ver. 33. * Josh. xxi. 11.- h Ps. lxxviii. 12. Isai. xix. 11. xxx. 4. Verse 18. See the land, what it is] What sort of a COUNTRY it is; how situated; its natural advantages or disadvantages. i according to their orders. A. M. 2514. B. C. 1490. An. Ex. Isr. 2. 23 And they came unto the brook of Eshcol, and cut down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes, and they bare it between two upon a staff; and they brought of the pomegranates, and of the figs. m 24 The place was called the 'brook Eshcol, because of the cluster of grapes which the children of Israel cut down from thence. 25 And they returned from searching of the land after forty days. 26 And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruit of the land. 27 And they told him, and said, We came humble the pride of the Egyptians, who boasted the highest antiquity, that this note concerning the higher antiquity of Hebron was introduced by Moses. Some have supposed that it is more likely to have been And the people—whether they be strong or weak]| Healthy, robust, hardy men; or little, weak, and originally a marginal note, which in process of time pusillanimous. Verse 20. The land-whether it be fat or lean] Whether the soIL be rich or poor; which might be known by its being well wooded, and by the fruits it produced; and therefore they were desired to examine it as to the trees, &c., and to bring some of the fruits with them. Verse 21. From the wilderness of Zin] The place called TM Tsin, here, is different from that called to Sin or Seen, Exod. xvi. 1; the latter was nigh to Egypt, but the former was near Kadesh Barnea, not far from the borders of the promised land. "The spies having left Kadesh Barnea, which was in the desert of Paran, see ver. 26, they proceeded to the desert of Tsin, all along the land of Canaan, nearly following the course of the river Jordan, till they came to Rehob, a city situated near Mount Libanus, at the northern extremity of the Holy Land, towards the road that leads to Hamath. Thence they returned through the midst of the same land by the borders of the Sidonians and Philistines, and passing by Mount Hebron, rendered famous by the residence of Abraham formerly, and by the gigantic descendants of Anak at that time, they passed through the valley of the brook of Eshcol, where they cut down the bunch of grapes mentioned ver. 23, and returned to the Israelitish camp after an absence of forty days," ver. 25. See Calmet on this place. crept into the text; but all the Versions, and all the MSS. that have as yet been collated, acknowledge it. Verse 23. They bare it between two upon a staff] It would be very easy to produce a great number of witnesses to prove that grapes in the promised land, and indeed in various other hot countries, grow to a prodigious size. By Calmet, Scheuchzer, and Harmer, this subject has been exhausted, and to these I may refer the reader. Pliny mentions bunches of grapes in Africa each of which was larger than an infant. Radzvil saw at Rhodes bunches of grapes three quarters of an ell in length, each grape as large as a plum. Dandini saw grapes of this size at Mount Libanus; and Paul Lucas mentions some bunches which he saw at Damascus that weighed above fortyfive pounds. From the most authentic accounts the Egyptian grape is very small, and this being the only one with which the Israelites were acquainted, the size of the grapes of Hebron would great still appear more extraordinary. I myself once cut down a bunch of grapes nearly twenty pounds in weight. Those who live in cold climates can scarcely have any conception to what perfection both grapes and other fruits grow in climates that are warm, and where the soil is suitable to them. From what is mentioned ver. 20, Now the time was the time of the first-ripe grapes, it is very probable that the spies received their orders about the beginVerse 22. Hebron was built seven years before Zoanning of August, and returned about the middle of in Egypt.] The Zoan of the scriptures is allowed to | September, as in those countries grapes, pomegranates, be the Tanis of the heathen historians, which was and figs, are ripe about this time; see Harmer, vol. i., the capital of lower Egypt. Some think it was to p. 108-110. At Sheeraz, in Persia, I find from a Exod. iii. 8. xxxiii, 3.1,2.- d Ver. 33.- e 1 Sam. xiv. 48. xv. 3, &c. f b Deut. i. 25. -c Deut. i. 28, ix. Exod. xvii. 8. Ch. xiv. 43. Judg. vi. 3. See ch. xiv. 6, 24. Josh. xiv.7. MS. journal that the small white grape, askerie, came into season August 6; and pomegranates, September 6; and the large red grape, sahibi, Sept. 10. The spies' carrying the bunch of grapes on a staff between two mon was probably not rendered necessary by the size of the bunch or cluster; but to preserve it from being bruised, that the Israelites might have a fair specimen of the fruit. As Joshua and Caleb were the only persons who gave a favourable account of the land, it is most likely that they were the persons who had gathered these fruits, and who brought them to the Israelitish camp. And it is likely they were gathered as short a time as possible before their return, that they might not be injured by the length of the time they had been separated from their respective trees. Verse 27. We came unto the land, &c.] It is astonishing that men so dastardly as these should have had courage enough to risk their persons in searching the land. But probably though destitute of valour they had a sufficiency of cunning, and this carried them through. The report they brought was exceedingly discouraging, and naturally tended to produce the effect mentioned in the next chapter. The conduct of Joshua and Caleb was alone magnanimous, and worthy of the cause in which they were embarked. Verse 32. Men of a great stature] wax anshey middoth, men of measures-two men's height; i. e. exceedingly tall men. Verse 33. There we saw the giants] □ nephilim. It is evident that they had seen a robust, sturdy, warlike race of men, and of great stature; for the asserted fact is not denied by Joshua or Caleb. Tales of gigantic men are frequent in all countries, but they are generally of such as have lived in times very remote from those in which such tales are told. That there have been giants at different times, in various parts of the earth, there can be no doubt; but that there ever was a nation of men twelve and fourteen feet high, we cannot, should not believe. an evil report of the land. 31 But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we. h A. M. 2514. B. C. 1490. An. Ex. Isr. 2. 32 And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land through which we have gone to search it is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof: and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature. k 33 And there we saw the giants, 'the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as so we were " in their sight. n m grasshoppers, and Ch. xxxii. 9. Deut. i. 28. Josh. xiv. 8.- h Ch. xiv. 36, 37.- Amos ii. 9. k Heb. men of statures. J Deut. i. 28. ii. 10. ix. 2.- m Isai. xl. 22.- n1 Sam. xvii. 42. Goliath appears to have been at least nine feet high: this was very extraordinary. I knew three young men in my own neighbourhood, two of them brothers, each of whom was upwards of seven feet, the third was eight feet six inches, and these men were very well proportioned. Others I have seen of extraordinary stature, but they were generally disproportioned, especially in their limbs. These instances serve to prove the possibility of cases of this nature. The Anakim might appear to the Israelites as a very tall, robust nation; and in comparison of the latter it is very probable that they were so, as it is very likely that the growth of the Israelites had been greatly cramped with their long and severe servitude in Egypt. And this may in some measure account for their alarm. On this subject the reader is desired to turn back to the note on Gen. vi. 4. Canaan was a type of the kingdom of God; the wilderness through which the Israelites passed, of the difficulties and trials to be met with in the present world. The promise of the kingdom of God is given to every believer; but how many are discouraged by the difficulties in the way! A slothful heart sees dangers, lions, and giants, every where; and therefore refuses to proceed in the heavenly path. Many of the spies contribute to this by the bad reports they bring of the heavenly country. Certain preachers allow" that the land is good, that it flows with milk and honey," and go so far as to show some of its fruits; but they discourage the people by stating the impossibility of overcoming their enemies. "Sin," say they, "cannot be destroyed in this life-it will always dwell in you-the Anakim cannot be conquered—we are but as grasshoppers against the Anakim," &c., &c. Here and there a Joshua and a Caleb, trusting alone in the power of God, armed with faith in the infinite efficacy of that blood which cleanses from all unrighteousness, boldly stand forth and say: "Their defence is departed from them, and the Lord The people murmur, and NUMBERS. is with us; let us go up at once and possess the land, for we are well able to overcome." We can do all things through Christ strengthening us: he will purify us unto himself, and give us that rest from sin here which his death has procured and his word has promised. Reader, canst thou not take God | propose to return to Egypt. at his word? He has never yet failed thee. Surely then thou hast no reason to doubt. Thou hast never yet tried him to the uttermost. Thou knowest not how far and how fully he can save. Do not be dispirited: the sons of Anak shall fall before thee, if thou meet them in the name of the LORD of HOSTS. CHAPTER XIV. The whole congregation weep at the account brought by the spies, 1. They murmur, 2, 3; and purpose to make themselves a captain, and go back to Egypt, 4. Moses and Aaron are greatly affected, 5. Joshua and Caleb endeavour to appease and encourage the people, 6-9. The congregation are about to stone them, 10. The glory of the Lord appears, and he is about to smite the rebels with the pestilence, 11, 12. Moses makes a long and pathetic intercession in their behalf, 13-19. The Lord hears and forbears to punish, 20; but purposes that not one of that generation shall enter into the promised land, sare Joshua and Caleb, 21-24. Moses is commanded to turn and get into the wilderness by way of the Red Sea, 25. The Lord repeats his purpose that none of that generation shall enter into the promised land that their carcases shall fall in the wilderness, and that their children alone, with Joshua and Caleb, shall possess the land of the Canaanites, &c., 26-32. As many days as they have searched the land shall they wander years in the desert, until they shall be utterly consumed, 33-35. All the spies, save Joshua and Caleb, die by a plague, 36-38. Moses declares God's purpose to the people, at which they are greatly affected, 39. They acknowledge their sin, and purpose to go up at once and possess the land, 40. Moses cautions them against resisting the purpose of God, 41-43. They, notwithstanding, presume to go, but Moses and the ark abide in the camp, 44. The Amalekites and Canaanites come down from the mountains, and defeat them, 45. ND all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and "the people wept A. M. 2514. B. C. 1490. An. Exod. Isr. 2. that night. b AN 2 And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness! 3 And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt? 4 And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt. a Ch. xi. 4. b Exod. xvi. 2. cvi. 25. - See ver. 28, 29.Deut. xvii. 16. Acts vii. 39. 24, 30, 38. Ch. xiii. 6, 8. xvii. 3. Ch. xvi. 41. Ps. d Neh. ix. 17. ―e See .f Ch. xvi. 4, 22.- - Ver. h Ch. xiii. 27. Deut. i. 25. NOTES ON CHAP. XIV. Verse 1. Cried; and—wept that night.] In almost every case this people gave deplorable evidence of the degraded state of their minds. With scarcely any mental firmness, and with almost no religion, they could bear no reverses, and were ever at their wit's end. They were headstrong, presumptuous, pusillanimous, indecisive, and fickle. And because they were such, therefore the power and wisdom of God appeared the more conspicuously in the whole of their history. Verse 4. Let us make a captain] Here was a 5 Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel. A. M. 2514. B. C. 1490. An. Ex. Isr. 2. 6 And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that searched the land, rent their clothes: 7 And they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, "The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land. 8 If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. 9 Only 'rebel not ye against the LORD, formal renunciation of the authority of Moses, and flat rebellion against God. And it seems from Neh. ix. 17 that they had actually appointed another leader, under whose direction they were about to return to Egypt. How astonishing is this! Their lives were made bitter, because of the rigour with which they were made to serve in the land of Egypt; and yet they are willing, yea eager, to get back into the same circumstances again! Great evils, when once some time past, affect the mind less than present ills, though much inferior. They had partly forgot their EgyP |