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A56632
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A commentary upon the fourth Book of Moses, called Numbers by ... Symon, Lord Bishop of Ely.
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Patrick, Simon, 1626-1707.
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1699
(1699)
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Wing P774; ESTC R2078
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399,193
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690
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the Head of the House of their Fathers should bring these Rods. Their Names we have in the first Chapter of this Book v. 5 6. and VII 2 12 c. Twelve Rods. Besides Aaron's for so many Tribes there were besides that of Levi. And too great a number of every Tribe in all likelyhood had joyned with Korah in their discontended Murmurings at the confinement of the Priesthood unto Aaron's Family alone to which they all fansied they had as much right as he Which is the reason of taking a Rod from every Tribe that they might all be convinced that none of them but he and his Family alone were owned by God for his Priests See XVI 3. Write thou every Man's name upon his Rod. Either by an Incision into the very Wood or with such Ink as they wrote withal in those days V. 22. This he did in the Presence of the Princes that they might not afterward suspect any Fraud when they came to take their Rods again but be satisfied they were the very same which they saw noted with their Names Ver. 3. And thou shalt write Aaron's name upon the Verse 3 Rod of Levi. Because God had made him the Prince of that Tribe by giving him the High-Priesthood And he would have them see that as no other Person in any of the Twelve Tribes so no other Levite ought to pretend unto that high Office which he had invested him withal and him alone For one Rod shall be for the Head of the House of their Fathers One Rod was sufficient because the Head of the Tribe comprehended the whole Tribe Who were all excluded from the Priesthood by the Exclusion of him who represented them Verse 4 Ver. 4. And thou shalt lay them up in the Tabernacle In the most Holy Place Before the Testimony i. e. Before the Ark called in many Places the Ark of the Testimony XL Exod. 3. because therein Moses put the Testimony or two Tables of Stone and the Mercy Seat above it v. 20 21. where the Divine Glory resided Therefore to lay the Rods before the Testimony was to lay them before the Divine Majesty who intended by them finally to determine the present Controversie Where I will meet with you There he promised to meet with Moses XXV Exod. 22. by whom he communicated his Mind unto the People For he neither met with them nor with Aaron there any other way but by Moses And therefore the Vulgar Latin here translates it minding the sence rather than the words Where I will speak to them And so the LXX By which I will be made known to thee there And indeed meeting with them here is nothing but declaring or making known his Mind to them all by what was done there upon Aaron's Rod. So it follows in the next verse And for this reason the Tabernacle of the LORD is called OHEL MOED the Tabernacle of Meeting not of Mens meeting there as is commonly supposed by our translating it The Tabernacle of the Congregation but of God's meeting there with Men. For so the LORD himself gives the reason of the Name both here and in XXIX Exod. 42. XXX 36. where I have noted the same out of Mr. Mede Ver. 5. And it shall come to pass that the Man's Rod whom I shall choose shall blossom The Rods being laid before me I will tell you whom I have chosen to minister to me in the Priesthood by making the Verse 5 Rod upon which his Name is written to blossom when all the rest remain as they were before without any Alteration This was a kind of new choice as the words import whereby God confirmed the choice he had formerly made of Aaron to be High-Priest And I will make to cease from me the Murmurings of the Children of Israel whereby they murmur against you And hereby stop all their Mouths from murmuring any more about this matter unless they will oppose me directly who declare before-hand how I intend to give Judgment in this Case and put an end to this Dispute Ver. 6. And Moses spake unto the Children of Israel Verse 6 Told them what God had said that they might be all consenting to this way of Decision And every one of their Princes gave him a Rod apiece For they could not refuse such a fair Proposal For each Prince one according to their Fathers Houses even twelve Rods. Observing herein the Commands of Moses who wrote no doubt every Man's Name upon his Rod as he was also commanded v. 2. And the Rod of Aaron was among their Rods. Not one of the twelve as the Jews fancy but besides the twelve Rods for the twelve Tribes as was directed v. 2. and obeyed by them as the foregoing words tell us his Rod was put among them with his Name upon it as their Names were upon their Rods. And therefore the Vulgar translates it having regard to the sence only There were twelve Rods besides the Rod of Aaron Which the LXX intended in their Translation 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and the Rod of Aaron in the midst of their Rods. And if it were cut from the very same Tree with theirs the Miracle became the more remarkable Verse 7 Ver. 7. And Moses laid up the Rods before the LORD Who was by them to declare his choice v. 5. In the Tabernacle of Witness In that part of the Tabernacle where the Ark was which had in it the Witness or Testimony which God gave Moses XXV Exod. 21. who alone could go into that place Verse 8 Ver. 8. And it came to pass that on the morrow It is likely God told him he would â—orthwith show whom he had chosen Moses went into the Tabernacle of Witness The most Holy Place where the Rods were laid up by God's order And behold the Rod of Aaron Which had his Name written on it For the House of Levi. Or To the House of Levi i. e. whom God had made Head of the Levites Was budded and brought forth Buds and blossomed Blossoms and yielded Almonds In some places of the Rod I suppose there was an appearance of Buds coming forth in others the Buds were fully thrust out and in others they were opened and shot forth into Blossoms and those Blossoms in other parts knotted and grown into Almonds 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. as Gregory Nyssen speaks in the Life of Moses p. 185. The greatest Miracle even in the judgment of Unbelievers who now acknowledged that which before they opposed v. 12 13. For that in one Night a dry Stick as some suppose them all to have been should produce Buds and Flowers and Fruit when all the rest which perhaps were cut from the same Tree were as dry as they were before could not but be very amazing and unless they would shut their eyes make them see the distinction which the LORD made between Aaron whose Name that Rod bare and all the rest of the Children of Israel whom the other Rods represented The Heathen did
so many Wonders it was not seemly it should lye in his own Tent as a common Staff but in the House of God as a Sacred Wand This indeed is no where mentioned no more than many other things which notwithstanding are plainly intimated Ver. 10. And Moses and Aaron gathered the Congregation before the Rock As God had commanded v. 8. Verse 10 And he said unto them Moses who was the chief Actor said unto them Hear ye now ye Rebels The Talmudists fancy that this is the great Sin for which Moses and Aaron were denied to go into Canaan because he called God's People Rebels From whence they have framed this Maxim He that treats the Church contemptuously which ought to be honoured is as if he blasphemed the Name of God But they subvert the Truth who build it upon no better Foundations For Moses the great Minister of God only uses God's own Language to their Fathers XVII 10. where he bids him lay up Aaron's Rod as a Token against the Rebels And if this were a Sin Moses committed it again not long after this and in an higher strain which no Body can think he would have done if it had cost him so dear when he saith IX Deut. 24. Ye have been rebellious against the LORD ever since I knew you Must we fetch you Water out of this Rock In these words also some of the Jews particularly Nachman think they find the Sin of Moses and Aaron who here they fancy ascribe to themselves that which they ought to have acknowledged the Work of God alone But this is without any ground for the plain meaning of the words is quite contrary Is it in our power to bring Water out of a Rock So the Vulgar Latine translates it it being a Speech of those that wonder like that 1 Kings XXI 19. Hast thou killed and also taken possession As if Moses had said Strange that you should think it possible for us to bring you Water out of a Rock which is the work only of an Omnipotent Power Ver. 11. And Moses lift up his hand and with his Rod he smote the Rock twice It seems the Water did not gush out at the first stroke which made him repeat it Verse 11 And the Water came out abundantly and the Congregation drank and their Beasts also So that their present Necessity was supplyed and they also filled their Vessels when they left this place to serve them till they met with the convenience of Water as they did I showed upon v. 2. Ver. 12. And the LORD spake unto Moses and Verse 12 Aaron because ye believed me not Here Interpreters have been much troubled to find what it was for which God was offended at Moses and Aaron for though the Text tells us expresly it was for their Unbelief whereby they gave great Scandal and did not sanctifie him as they did formerly before the Israelites yet it doth not clearly appear wherein this Unbelief declared it self Abarbinel hath collected several Opinions of the Jewish Doctors about this matter which are no less than ten after which he delivers his own which seems to me as unsatisfactory as the rest were to him for it is far fetcht with too much nicety and subtilty and relies also upon Uncertainties The plainest account of it I think is this which none of them take notice of That the Water now ceasing at the same time that Miriam died Moses was very sad both for her Death and perhaps for the Ceasing of the Water And being unexpectedly assaulted by the People who ought to have had a greater Reverence for him in a time of Mourning especially it was the occasion of a greater Commotion of Anger and Indignation than was usually in him Which gave him such a Disturbance in his Mind and so disordered his Thoughts that when God bad him take his Rod and go and speak to the Rock he fell into some doubt whether God would grant them the Favour he had done before either because they were so wretched a People that it was not fit God should do any thing for them or because he thought perhaps Water might be otherways procured for them And because of this doubting I suppose it might be that upon the first striking of the Rock no Water came forth God also perhaps so ordering it that he might try him and hereupon his Diffidence increased into Unbelief and a settled Perswasion they should have no Water His Anger also at such a rebellious Generation it is likely made him the more distrustful that God would do nothing for them For both these are mentioned by the Divine Writers that touch upon this History that he did not believe and that his Spirit was so provoked that he spake unadvisedly with his lips CVI Psalm 32 33. which was when he spake those words v. 10. Must we fetch you Water out of this Rock i. e. is that a likely matter They being words of the same sort with those of Sarah XVIII Gen. 13. Shall I of a surety have a Child who am old that is I cannot believe it And when he saw the Water did not come out at the first stroke he might be so rash as to say Now it is plain God will give you none but let you perish or words to that effect I know nothing more probable than this unless the Reader likes the Opinion of Joseph Albo better which is the ninth Opinion mentioned by Abarbinel That Moses and Aaron having had such long Experience of God's goodness to this People and of his readiness to help them ought not to have gone and made their Complaints to God about the want of Water v. 6. but immediately of themselves gone to the Rock being confident of God's Power and Mercy which had never failed them and called for Water to come out of it For now the Tabernacle was built and they had God dwelling among them which they had not when he smote the Rock at first which ought to have bred in them the highest Assurance that God would supply them Dr. Lightfoot hath another Conjecture which I shall propound that the Reader may judge which is most likely That Moses and Aaron began to distrust God's Promise of entring into the promised Land at the end of forty Years imagining that if they brought Water again out of the Rock it must follow them as long as the other had done For this he makes the sence of their words What ye Rebels must we bring Water out of a Rock as we did at Horeb Are all our Hopes and Expectations of getting out of the Wilderness come to this We never fetcht you Water out of a Rock but once and that was because ye were to stay a long time in the Wilderness c. Now that is gone must we fetch Water out of another Rock O ye Rebels have ye brought it to this pass by your Murmurings that we must have a new stay in the Wilderness Are we to begin our abode