observes Lib. II. de Jure Belli Pacis cap. 20. sect 9. and see Selden de Jure Nat. Gent. Lib. IV. cap. 4. But this Judgment as they call it seems not to be well grounded upon the Fact of Phineas who was a publick Person and had an extraordinary motion not to be imitated by private Men nor was it followed till the latter times of the state of that Nation Through her belly The Vulgar hath it through her Secret Parts And so the Jews in Pirke Eliezer c. 47. and in other Books such as Pesikta and Siphri where they make many Miracles to have concurred in this Fact particularly they say that the Relations of Zimri going to fall upon Phineas for killing their Prince the Angel of the LORD smote them and cut them off So the Plague was stayed from the Children of Israel It seems a Pestilential Disease as Josephus calls it swept away many of the Offenders who could not so speedily be punished by the Judges But it stopt immediately upon this pious Act of Phineas Verse 9 Ver. 9. And those that died of the Plague were Twenty and four thousand There were but Twenty and three thousand who died of the Plague it self as the Apostle tells us 1 Cor. X. 8. but there were a thousand more taken off in the Plague time or during the Plague as the Hebrew words may be read For in the Twenty and four thousand Moses comprehends all those who were killed by the Sword in the day of the Plague as the Phrase is v. 18. whereas St. Paul reckons those only who died of the Pestilence as many have observed particularly Bochartus Lib. II. Hieroz cap. 34. P. I. It is probable that from hence it was that the Author of the Samaritan Chronicle took up a Conceit that the King of Moab sent Twenty four thousand Damsels to Seduce the Israelites as Hottinger reports his words in his Smegma Orientale cap. 8. p. 448. Verse 10 Ver. 10. And the LORD spake unto Moses saying After the Plague was stayed it is likely Moses went into the Tabernacle to give God thanks for his Mercy to his People and then he spake to him what here follows Verse 11 Ver. 11. Phineas the Son of Eleazar the Son of Aaron the Priest hath turned my Wrath away from the Children of Israel Though they wept and mourned before the Door of the Tabernacle yet that did not prevail so much for Mercy as this Heroick Act of Justice While he was zealous for my sake among them With a fervent and courageous Affection vindicated the Divine Honour by a speedy punishment of those notorious Offenders That I consumed not the Children of Israel in my Jealousie Did not proceed to destroy them by the Pestilence when I was so highly incensed against them For it is observed by Herodotus himself in his Euterpe that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for great Crimes there are as great Punishments sent from God which is necessary for the Publick Good For unless by such means a stop be put to open Impurities to Murders and such like Crimes not only all Civil Society will be overturned but Nations become so wicked that they will be fit for nothing but to be rooted out by the Divine Vengeance as the Canaanites were Thus Cicero discourses Philip. VIII In Corpore si quid ejusmodi est quod reliquo corpori noceat c. In the Body if there be any thing which hurts the rest of the Body it is necessary to cut it off or to burn it that some one Member rather than the whole Body perish And so it is in the Body of the Commonwealth Vt totum salvum sit quicquid est pestiferum amputetur that the whole may be preserved let that which is infectious be lopped off Ver. 12. Wherefore say Unto Phineas or unto Verse 12 all the People Behold I give thee my Covenant of Peace The word Peace in Scripture comprehends all manner of Blessings and therefore this is a solemn Promise and Engagement to make him and his Family prosperous the particular Blessing which he entails upon him following in the next verse But some will have this to signifie that he should be the great Reconciler of God to his People and make Peace between them hereafter as he had done at present Philo seems to think this and the Priesthood to be two distinct things when he saith God crowned his Piety 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 with two Gifts Peace and the Priesthood And the Jews make Peace to consist in a long Life of Prosperity which was fulfilled in Phineas his Person who lived till the latter times of the Judges XXI Judg. 28. Pirke Elieser interprets it he gave him the life of this World and of the next Verse 13 Ver. 13. And he shall have it and his Seed after him It shall continue in his Family Even the Covenant of an everlasting Priesthood This is the particular Happiness which God settled upon him and his Posterity as long as their State lasted Which was with some limitation it appears by this that after some Successions in the Line of Phineas the Priesthood came for a time into the Family of Eli who was descended from Ithamar the youngest Son of Aaron The reason of it is not mentioned in the Scripture but some great Sin it is reasonable to suppose provoked God to set aside the Line of Eleazar for some years till Eli's Sons also became so wicked that the Priesthood was taken from them and restored in the days of Solomon to the Posterity of Phineas with whom it continued as long as the Priesthood lasted What Sin this was and when committed we do not know Some of the Hebrew Doctors are so bold as to say it was because Phineas would not absolve Jephthah from his Vow as Mr. Selden observes Lib. I. de Success in Pontif. cap. 2. But as there is no ground for this and such like fancies which others of them have so it is more probable that some of Phineas's Successors offended rather than he himself his Posterity for four Generations holding the Priesthood before it was translated to Eli as Josephus and others mentioned by Selden in the place before-named make account Aegidius Camartus in his Book de Rebus Eliae cap. 3. sect 5. and Corn. Bertram cap. 15. de Republ. Jud. imagine that in those confused times none of the Priests were found fit to administer the Affairs of the Nation but Eli alone and therefore he was appointed by God to it as appears from 1 Sam. II. 30. But L'Empereur in his Annotations upon Bertram well observes That it being the constant course of God's proceedings to continue his Mercies to the Israelites according to his promise while they were obedient but to take them away when they became disobedient it is highly reasonable to conclude there was some great Offence given to God by some of the Race of Phineas which was the cause that they lost this Dignity But
form of Speech to be kept or reserved in the Ark was a Type of Christ as he was the Food of Life or the Bread that came down from Heaven So were these Ashes kept as an Emblem of the everlasting Efficacy of his Sacrifice For there is no bodily Substance under Heaven as Dr. Jackson speaks Book X. chap. 55. which can be so true an Emblem or Model of Incorruption as Ashes are for being the remainder of Bodies perfectly dissolved or corrupted they are not capable of a second Corruption For the Congregation of the Children of Israel This one Heifer being slain and its Blood sprinkled and Body burnt afforded Ashes enough to season as many Vessels of Water as the whole People of Israel should need Wherein it was a notable Representation of Christ's Blood shed for the whole World to cleanse us from all unrighteousness Yea they were sufficient for all the People for many Generations though they had frequent occasion to use them for Legal Purification Wherein still they more lively represented the Vertue of Christ's one Sacrifice which continues for ever For the Jews say this red Heifer was killed but nine times while their State lasted First By Eleazar here in the Wilderness which was not repeated till after the Destruction of Solomon's Temple i. e. not during the space of more than a Thousand Years The second time it was burnt by Ezra after their return from the Captivity of Babylon and but seven times more till the Destruction of the second Temple Since which they have not adventured to make these Ashes but expect it to be done the tenth time by the King Messias Who indeed came to put an end to this and all other Legal Rites not after the Legal manner but by offering himself once for all instead of all other Sacrifices or ways of Purification For a Water of Separation To be put into Spring-water which was always accounted more pure than other by which those Persons were to be cleansed who for their Pollutions were separated from the Congregation and those things also which had been defiled were restored to their common use Ashes all know are of great use in scouring things polluted and the ancient Gentiles used them much in their Lustrations as appears from Virgil Ovid and many other Authors But the Water into which they put them was prepared with Magical Rites and for the most part was drawn out of some pretended Sacred Fountain and sometimes it had a burning Torch taken from the Altar quenched in it and in some places they put Sulphur and Spittle and other cleansing things into it In which I suppose at first they imitated this Rite prescribed by Moses but in process of time added many Superstitions of their own to it It is a purification for sin In the Hebrew the words are It is sin and we add a purification to explain the sence For it was not a proper Sacrifice for Sin as this Phrase for sin sometimes imports IV Lev. 24. but had something of that Nature in it as I observed before and may be properly said to Purifie or Cleanse Men from their Sin i. e. from such Legal Defilements as are mentioned afterwards And it may in a less proper sence have the Name of a Sin-offering inasmuch as the Body of it was burnt without the Camp as the great Sin-offering was on the Day of Atonement and its Blood sprinkled seven times towards the Sanctuary though not shed at the Altar Whereby it became a more compleat Representation of the Sacrifice of Christ Especially if we consider that this Purification here mentioned doth not signifie only one or a few Acts of Purification but a continued Purification the Ashes being to be laid up as a Treasure or Store-house to use Dr. Jackson's words for making as many Purifications or Waters of Sprinkling as the Israelites should have occasion to use For therein consisted the Excellence of this Purification that the Ashes were not to be made by burning a Heifer every time the People had occasion for them but the Ashes of this one Sacrifice as we call it was sufficient for the use of many Generations Accordingly the Apostle saith our LORD Christ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 having made a purification of our sins I Hebr. 3. sat down at God's right hand Which word purification in that place doth not signifie one Act or Operation but implies that by this one act of Sacrificing himself he was consecrated to be a perpetual Fountain of Purification being still the propitiation for our sins Ver. 10. And he that gathereth the Ashes of the Heifer Verse 10 shall wash his Clothes and be unclean until the Even This is one of the strange things which the Jews say Solomon himself did not understand and Maimonides professes he could find no reason of More Nevochim P. III. cap. 47. and the Author of Sepher Cosri also ascribes purely to the Will and pleasure of God of which he could give no account P. III. sect 53. that the same thing should both cleanse and pollute as these Ashes did which polluted him that gathered them and made those that used them clean from the highest Legal Pollutions But this is not strange to those who consider that all those great Sacrifices which were offered for Sin which I mentioned v. 7. though they purified those for whom they were offered were very impure themselves because the Sins of Men were laid upon them as all our Sins were upon Christ who therefore is said to be made sin for us 2 Corinth V. 21. that we might be made the Righteousness of God i. e. freed from all Sin And it shall be unto the Children of Israel and unto the Stranger c. All Proselytes to their Religion were to have the benefit of this Purification as well as the Jews by an unalterable Law By which was figured the Propitiation Christ made for the Sins of the whole World Verse 11 Ver. 11. He that toucheth the Body of any dead Man shall be unclean seven days This long Uncleanness by touching a dead Body was the ground of those strict Injunctions to the Priest about mourning for their dead Relations which is forbidden lest they should be hindred too long in their Ministration See XXI Lev. He that touched the Carcase of any unclean Creature was defiled only till the Even XI Lev. 24. nor was he longer who touched the Bed of him that had an Issue or his Seat c. XV Lev. 5 6 7 8 c. He shall purifie himself with it With the Water of Separation mentioned v. 9. Which seems here to be designed chiefly if not only for the purging of this great Impurity by touching any Man's dead Body On the third day Then he was to begin his Purification by being sprinkled with it Which makes it probable that these Ashes were kept in more places than the Jews mention without the Camp as afterwards near Jerusalem and it is most likely in all the Cities
common Food of the Egyptians Who were noted anciently for the Meanness of their Diet as Casaubon observes in Lib. IX Athenaei Deipnos Cap. XI p. 674. Some fancy these things were the cheaper there because the Egyptians durst not eat either Fish or Leeks or Onions as is said by Juvenal Sat. XV. Pliny Lib. XIX Cap. 6. and Herodotus Lib. II. C. 37. where he saith it was not lawful for the Egyptians to taste of Fish But in my opinion these words of the People demonstrate rather that they were not so superstitious in the days of Moses for they were not the words merely of the Israelites but of the mixt multitude who were the Beginners of this Mutiny and of this sort of undutiful Language Which one would think they put into the Mouths of the Israelites who could not otherwise have had the Impudence to magnifie their Condition in Egypt where they groaned under the sorest Slavery It is a strange fancy of one of the Doctors in the Tulmud in the Title Jona who by Fishes understands Harlots whom these Crew of mixed People lusted after The Onions The Hebrew word Chatzir properly signifies Grass Which being no part of Humane Food the LXX here render the word Onions as agreeable to the other words that accompany it But the learned Ludolphus thinks they had no other reason for it and therefore out of the Arabian Language rather interprets it Lettice or Sellets in general which were most excellent in Egypt Dissert de Locustis P. II. Cap. 14. Ver. 6. But now our Soul is dried away They speak Verse 6 as if they were starved and as we speak had neither Life nor Soul left in them Such is the vile Nature of discontented Ingratitude which makes Men that are advanced from a poor to a plentiful Condition contemn their present Enjoyments and praise their former wretched state There is nothing at all besides this Manna before our Eyes They were angry that they were come to a place where they found nothing but that of which they were now grown weary and therefore speak of it with disdain Verse 7 Ver. 7. And the Manna Upon this occasion he describes more fully what kind of thing it was which they despised That it might appear how justly God was displeased with them for their Ingratitude Was as Coriander-seed Not in Colour for that was like Bdellium as it here follows but in its Shape and Form being round XVI Exod. 14. And the Colour of it as the Colour of Bdellium Of a pure White Colour and bright like Pearl So that it was very grateful to the Eye as well as pleasant to the Taste See XVI Exod. 31. Verse 8 Ver. 8. And the People went about Round their Camp XVI Exod. 13. And gathered it Fresh every Morning which made it still more acceptable XVI Exod. 18 19. And ground it in Mills Into Flour with an Hand-mill Or beat it in a Mortar Bruised it with a Pestle in a wooden or stone Mortar And baked it in Pans Or else boiled it as R. Bechai expounds it in a Pot. And made Cakes of it Or made Cakes of it in an Oven or in a Pan. That is saith the same R. Bechai it was of such an excellent Composition that it might be dressed divers ways or eaten as it fell For if they would they might use it saith he for Food immediately as they gathered it or they might grind it or bruise it and then either boil it or bake it and it was agreeable in what way soever it was prepared Which Moses mentions to show how ungrateful they were to God who by one thing entertained them with great variety And the taste of it was as the taste of fresh Oil. When it was newly faln it tasted like Honey but when it was prepared by Boiling or Baking it tasted like fresh Oil See XVI Exod. 31. Or to some it had the taste of Honey to others of fresh Oil. The Jews indeed say it had all sorts of Tastes according to every Man's desire So the Author of the Book of Wisdom speaks XVI 20 21. from the ancient Tradition of the Hebrews Whereby I suppose they meant no more but that it pleased every Man's Palate and had in it all that could be desired in any Meat being grateful to the taste of young and old and refreshed the Spirits and kept up the Flesh of their Bodies in good plight For it is not unreasonably observed by the aforesaid R. Bechai that it is compared by Moses to fresh Oil which is fat as well as sweet to show how unjust their Complaint was that they had no Moisture left in them but were dried away v. 6. Ver. 9. And when the dew fell upon the Camp in the Verse 9 Night There was a great Providence of God in this saith the same Bechai which sent it in the Night while they slept quietly in their Beds that when they rose in the Morning they might find their Food ready for them And thus saith he it was when they came to Canaan the Rains were wont to fall in the Night-season and not in the Day-time that they might not be hindred from their work in the Fields and in their Plantations The Manna fell upon it That is upon the Dew for it did not fall upon the Camp but round about it See XVI Exod. 14. This is a further Aggravation of their Ingratitude that they despised this rare Food which came not out of the Earth or the Waters but from above out of the Air And therefore was more pure and spiritous than Cucumbers and Leeks c. Which crude and gross sort of Food their depraved Minds preferred before this Celestial Nourishment Which by Falling on the Dew was kept clean and pure for their use Huetius observes that several Authors both ancient and modern mention Manna as a thing which sometimes falls in those Countries particularly in Arabia and upon Libanus which they call aerial Honey or dewy Honey and Syrian Dew which was fit for Food But it never fell in such quantity nor so constantly every day for the space of XL years and so delicious and hearty All this was miraculous as was also its melting when the Sun shone upon it and that it putrified before the next day except on the Sabbath and yet kept in an Urn many years See Alnetanae Quaest L. II. Cap. XII N. XVII Verse 10 Ver. 10. And Moses heard the People weep throughout their Families Or for their Families or about the State and Condition of their Families as some of the Jews understand it though to a foolish sense See Selden L. II. de Synedr Cap. IV. p. 203. who they pretended could not live any longer upon Manna Every Man in the door of his Tent. It may be understood of Moses his Tent about which the heads of the several Families were gathered as mutinous Souldiers are wont to be about the Door of their Chief Commander And the Anger of the LORD was
Tribes as it here follows therefore have I said unto them among the Children of Israel shall they have no Inheritance For he had given them the Tythes to inherit But R. Solomon Jarchi observes also that the Levites themselves had no right to them till they had taken out the tenth part from their Tenth and given it to the Priests as is here immediately directed Verse 25 Ver. 25. And the LORD spake unto Moses saying In all the foregoing part of the Chapter v. 1 8 20. the LORD spake unto Aaron though by Moses but here his Order is particularly directed to Moses because that which follows would better come from him than from Aaron Who was employed in acquainting the Levites with the Donation God had made of the Tythes to them v. 21. but it would not have been so proper for him to tell them what was to be given out of the Tythes to himself and to the Priests Verse 26 Ver. 26. Thus speak unto the Levites and say unto them When ye take of the Children of Israel the Tythes which I have given you from them for your Inheritance In these words Moses confirms the report which Aaron had made to them that the Tythes of the Land should be theirs and their Brethren the Children of Israel have no right to them Then shall ye offer up an Heave-offering for the LORD As the Israelites made their grateful Acknowledgments to God by offering their Tythes to him for the use of his Servants the Levites v. 24. so it was but fit that the Levites should be so grateful as to offer to him the Tythe of their Tythes as it here follows for such uses as he should appoint Even a tenth part of the Tythe For the tenth part which God reserved to himself out of the Land which he gave the Children of Israel was a kind of Rent paid to him their Supreme LORD And he assigning this Rent over to the Levites for their Maintenance thought good notwithstanding to reserve a Tythe of this tenth part to himself that thereby he might as it were hold his Possession and keep Seisin as the Lawyers speak of his own Inheritance Ver. 27. And this your Heave-offering shall be reckoned Verse 27 unto you Be accepted by God as the Offerings heaved up to him in the Sanctuary are v. 24. though it be but the hundredth part of the whole Fruit of the Land As though it were the Corn of the Threshing-floor and as the fulness of the Wine-press As if you paid such a Tythe as the Israelites do to you out of all their own Fields and Vineyards That is they were to believe their Offering of this small part to be as acceptable to God as that of all the Tribes of Israel and that they should have the same right to what remained when they had done this as the People had to all the rest of the Fruits of the Earth when they had paid the tenth part to the Levites Ver. 28. Thus you also shall offer an Heave-offering Verse 28 unto the LORD of all your Tythes which ye receive of the Children of Israel He would have them know that he ordered this because he would not have the Levites alone offer nothing to him from whom they received so much but they also should make him a grateful Acknowledgment as well as others And ye shall give thereof the LORD 's Heave-offering It is called so often the LORD 's Heave-offering that they might the more willingly pay it out of a thankful sense of what they owed to him the Donor of all To Aaron the Priest This Tythe is thought by some to have been designed for the High-Priest alone Two great Men in their time were of this Opinion viz. Nicolaus Lyra and the famous Alphonsus Tostatus And another very learned Person of our own Bishop R. Montagu thinks it not altogether improbable that such a Provision as this might be made for the High-Priest and his Family State and Dignity he being a Man of great Power and Might only less than the Kings of Israel and the inferiour Priests having a noble Maintenance without this from the First-fruits and Offerings of the People But there is nothing to support this but the mere Letter of the Text for Josephus expresly says the contrary Lib. VI. Archaeolog cap. 4. and so do the generality of the Jewish Writers and St. Hierom also that all the Priests had their share in this Tenth paid by the Levites Which till it was paid the Levites might not spend to their own use any part of their Tythe And to secure this the Priest was to be with the Levites when they took Tythes as we read X Nehem 37 38 to take care that they set out a tenth part of them for the Priests Whereby the Priest the Son of Aaron I cannot think is meant the High-Priest himself for that had been below his Dignity but some Priest I suppose appointed by him who took care of the Concerns of the whole Order of Priesthood and particularly of the High-Priest's interest who it is probable had a principal share among the rest in this Revenue perhaps a tenth part out of their Tenth But for this I have no Authority though I take it for certain that when he saith this Tenth should be given to Aaron the Priest the meaning is that as it was not for himself alone but all his Sons had a share in it so he himself was not excluded from an honourable portion of it It may seem strange perhaps that there is no particular portion set out for the High-Priest by himself if this be not it But it is to be considered that all the forenamed Provision From v. 8. to v. 20. was made for him in the first place and for the Priests together with him For so the words runs Vnto thee have I given them and to thy Sons v. 8 9 c. And he had this priviledge also that he did not Minister by Lot as the other Priests did in their several Courses but when he pleased and might take to himself what Sacrifices he thought good to offer V. 9 10. as Maimonides tells us in Cele Mikdasch cap. 5. where he speaks concerning the High-Priest's Prerogatives Ver. 29. Out of all your Gifts Not only out of Verse 29 their Tythes but out of all their other Possessions which God gave them their Fields for instance which were in the Suburbs of their Cities Ye shall offer Make a Present to the Priests Every Heave-offering Some portion of every thing God gives you to possess Of the LORD As a thankful acknowledgment of the Divine Bounty to you upon whom he hath bestowed so many good things See v. 28. Of all the best thereof And that not of the refuse but of the best of the Tythe and other things that were given them By which is not to be understood that they were bound to pick out the very best Wheat suppose and separate it from the worse which