are defiled, which I cast out before you." It had appeared by notorious examples, how easily the Hebrews themselves were to be enticed into idolatry, by frequenting the company of idolaters, and by conversing too much and too familiarly with them, while Israel abode in Shittim; "the people began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab, and they called the people to the sacrifice of their gods; and the people did eat, and bowed down to their gods;" so easy was the passage from feast ing with them on their sacrifices, to joining with them in their idolatry. Thus Israel joined himself to Baal-peor." Such an example of prevailing idolatry, is justly given, as a sufficient reason for a careful separation of the Hebrew people from idolatrous neighbours, in order to prevent so very dangerous temptations in future times. Moses therefore thus exhorts Israel. "Your eyes have seen what the Lord did, because of Baal-peor, the Lord thy God hath destroyed them from among you; but ye that did cleave unto the Lord your God, are alive every one of you this day. Behold I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the Lord my God commanded me, that you should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it. Keep therefore and do them, for that is your wisdom and your understanding, in the sight of all the nations which shall hear of all these statutes, and say, surely this great nation is a great and understanding people." by a prohibition of every idolatrous rite. The law itself for prohibiting intermarriages with idolaters expressly gives this reason for it. "Neither shall you make marriages with them, thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son; for they will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods; so will the anger of the Lord be kindled against you and destroy thee suddenly." Many other laws, which at first view seem to be of small importance and concern, for the enacting of which some look for no reason at all, but the alone will of the law-giver, will appear in this view, of concern and importance, sufficient for the wisdom of God to take notice of, when he gave his laws to this nation. The most judicious of the Hebrew doctors, has very well explained several of the Mosaical laws upon this single consideration. He gives this general reason for many laws, that they were made to keep men fiom idolatry, and such false opinions as are akin to idolatry; such as the pretences to incantations, divinations, foretelling things by the stars, or by the possession of some spirit or demon, or consulting with such persons. He farther justly observes, that such things as are supposed to be effected by any magic actions, or are founded on any dispositions or influences of the stars, necessarily induce men to reverence and worship them. He observes many of the magic rites consisted in certain gestures, actions, or the use of certain words, and mentions several examples of such superstitions; among the rest, a remarkable rite to prevent a storm of hail. However trifling some of the Mosaical laws may appear at first view, and unworthy the wisdom of God to enact them as laws; yet the case will appear quite otherwise, when they are considered as necessary provisions against the danger of idolatry, The law, for instance, that appoints, "Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard," will thus appear directions of importance, when it was to prevent a magical custom of the idolatrous priests, who made this sort of cutting off their hair and beards essential to their worship; and used them as things of consequence, in order to procure from their idols the several bless Among the laws here spoken of, there are some, the wisdom of which appear principally, if not solely, as they were chosenings they desired and prayed for. A proand commanded to this end, to separate the Hebrews from their idolatrous neighbours, hibition of such idolatrous and magical ceremonies was not so trivial, or below the caré care of a wise law-giver, who had a design, in the constitution of the Hebrew government, to keep that people from all idolatrous customus. In like manner we may easily perceive a reason why the law should direct, "Neither shall a garment of linen and woollen come upon thee;" when we understand, that such mixed garments of linen and woollen were the proper habits of idolatrous priests; and which, according to the professed doctrines of their idolatrous worship, were supposed to have some powerful magical virtue in them. For the same reason we can easily understand the wisdom of appointing by law, that "the woman shall not wear that which appertaineth unto a man, reither shall a man put on a woman's garment; for all that do so are abomination to the Lord thy God;" when it was an idolatrous constitution of their neighbours, as Maimon found it in a magic book, that men ought to stand before the star of Venus in the flowered garment of women; and women were to put on the armour of men before the star of Mars, as Bishop Patrick on the place truly represents its meaning. The same i dolatrous custom is observed by Macrobius, that men worshipped Venus in women's habits, and women in the habits of men. ap There is no reason then, we see, to imagine that these laws, which were to distinguish the Hebrew people from the idolatrous nations, were made only out of batred to their neighbours, and to all their customs and manners, good or bad, innocent as well as idolatrous. It pears on the contrary to be plainly quite another reason; it was from a wise care of their preservation from such idolatrous customs, as there was very great reason to fear, wou'd prove a dangerous temptation to lead them into idolatry, and which were hardly to be used without it. All reflections, with how much confidence soever, on the Hebrew laws, as if they were established upon no better motives than the hatred of their neighbours, will appear in this view groundless, and without all foundation, when the true reason shall appear so wise, so plain, and so natural. These two views then, to preserve in the Hebrew nation the knowledge and worship of the one true God, and to preserve it from the spreading evils of idolatry, by separating it from the society of idola◄ ters, by forbidding all use of idolatrous rites and customs, may be looked upon as considerable intentions in the constitu- . tion: according to which we are to examine and to judge of the equity and wisdom of the constitution itself. Neither of which can be so well judged of, without taking these intentions into consideration. If we regard the Hebrew constitution only as an institution of religion and religious worship, or only as a civil polity and a form of civil government, we shall widely mistake the true nature of it. It is evident beyond question, the Mosaical account of it represents it a theocracy, in which Jehovah is God, and King; and in which the true worship of the only true God was to be preserved against idolatry, and the nation, in obedience to the laws of this institution, should enjoy liberty, peace, prosperity and happiness, in the protection of a wise and powerful government. It may be proper to observe here, that these designs appear in themselves worthy the wisdom and the goodness of God; that he should take care in some proper way to put a stop to so prevailing a course of idolatry. If the design shall appear in itself manifestly wise and good, the proper means to effect it will appear to be equitable, wise, and good also. Some scem not to perceive, at least are not willing to own this. The more fully then to make us sensible of it, let us briefly ob serve some of the many great evils of idolatry, which this Hebrew constitution was intended and formed to prevent. One of the chief and most influencing principles of idolatry, was a false persuasion that the temporal blessings of life, health, length of days, fruitful seasons, victory in wars, and such advantages, were to be expected and sought for as the gifts of some inferior and subordinate beings, as guardians of mortal men; or from secret influence of the stars and heavenly bodies, supposed inhabited, and animated by some powerful beings, or gods, whose protection and favour were to be obtained by the use of some magical ceremonies, gestures, and words, or by some senseless or some barbarous rites of worship. Thus men came not only to lose the true knowledge of the only one God, and of his immediate providence, and that all these blessings could therefore come from him alone, who was best pleased and Q2 best best worshipped by virtue, goodness, righ teousness and true holiness; but they became necessarily vicious and corrupt in practice, as well as principle. They came to think they were not to expect the bless ings of life from the favour of the one true God, a being himself of infinite purity, righteousness, and goodness, by reverencing and by imitating him; but from the favour of a Jupiter, who with all his fine titles is represented in his history, to have been as intemperate, as lustful, and as wicked, as any the worst of men; or from a Mercury, a patron of thieves and robbers; or from a Bacchus, the god of intemperance and drunkenness; or from a Venus, the patroness of all manner of uncleanness and debauchery. among the Greeks, the Gauls and the German nations. Among the Canaanites it was a known custom to offer their children to Moloch, likely the same idol with Adrameleck and Anaineleck. Some learned men have indeed been willing to believe, that passing through the fire to Moloch, might mean a sort of purification, rather than actual burning them in the fire; but besides the testimony of historians in general to the practice of other uations, the Scriptures plainly mean consuming them to death by fire. So it is described by the prophet Ezekiel; " And have caused their sons whom they bare unto me, to pass through the fire to devour them." Did they.cause them to pass through the fire, only to purify them, and to preserve The known principles and the most sa- them alive? No, certainly; but to decred ceremonies and mysteries in the ido- your or consume them. The same prolatrous worship of such deities, actually phet elsewhere determines this meaning. shewed what encouragement was given to "Thou hast slain my children and deall manner of vice. They extinguished livered them to cause them to pass all religious principles of moral virtue and through the fire." It is charged as an act goodness, and gave additional strength to of idolatry in Ahaz, that he caused his men's natural inclinations, to intempe- son to pass through the fire, according to rance, lust, fraud, violence, and every kind the abomination of the Heathen. This of unrighteousness and debauchery. The is explained in another place, that "he Phalli, and the Mylli, known religious burned his children in the fire after the rites in the worship of Bacchus, Osiris, and abomination of the Heathen." And it is Ceres, were such obscene ceremonies, that expressly said of Adrameleck, and Anamodesty forbids to explain them. It may meleck, the idols of Sepharvaim, that be sufficient to mention the known custom" they burned their children in the fire to of virgins before marriage, sacrificing their them." chastity to the honour of Venus, as a lascivious goddess, as the historian expresses it, lest she alone should appear lascivious. A custom, according to the historian, which was especially used in Cyprus, which was in the neighbourhood of Canaan. Idolatry had introduced another most cruel custom of human sacrifices. This prevailed among the Phenicians, the Tyrians, and the Carthaginians, a Tyrian colony; on which inhuman custom the forementioned historian makes this remark, that they used a bloody and wicked rite of religion as a remedy. They offered men for sacrifices, and brought young children to the altars, at an age that usually moves the compassion of an enemy; and endeavoured to obtain the favour of the gods by the blood of those, for whose lives prayers were more gene rally used to be made to the gods. This cruel custom, how inhuman soever, such were the evil effects of idolatry, soon became almost universal; and spread itself If we consider the many other abominable immoralities of the Canaanites, by which they defiled themselves, as they are enumerated in the prohibition of them to the Hebrew nation, we may easily perceive, that a nation which had defiled themselves in so many and so great abominations, did well deserve an exemplary punishment from the righteous Judge of the earth; that it was wise, as well as just, to shew in their punishment, that their idols were not, as they imagined and falsely believed, the givers of long life, peace, and worldly prosperity; but that the one true God was alone the supreme disposer of all the blessings of Providence; and that none of the idol gods, in whom they trusted, could save them out of his hand, or deliver them, when God should visit their iniquities. May we not also perceive a kind design, in giving some remarkable instances of Providence, for the punishment of so gross immoralities, the effects of idolatrous principles and practice, and for the encouragement of such acknowledgment and worship of the true God, as was the best preservative against these abominations, by some observable instances of particular protection and favour; to let such worshippers of the true God know, that by keeping themselves from those abominations, the natural and usual effects of idolatry, they were to hope for the continuance of such particular protection and favour in all after-times? trous worship; the use of that obscene ceremony the Phalli, owed its original to the memory of the sin against nature, and to the history of a god hallowing it by his own act. Can any man reasonably call such a restraint of vice persecution, when not to endeavour by all means to restrain it, would argue a great neglect, weakness, and folly, in any administration of government whatsoever? If then the punishment for so heinous crimes and immoralities will be just and wise in itself, which way can any man find out, to make it unjust or unwise in the Supreme Governor of the world? How can it be unjust in him, to appoint such persons as he shall think most fit, to execute such righteous judgment by his commission? The common rights of nations, and any personal claim of the Hebrews, are altogether out of this question; the history plainly shews, they made no personal or national claim at all to the land of Canaan; but that God cast out the people before them, for all their abominations; that it was not their own power, but the hand of God, which brought them out of the land of Egypt, and into the promised land. So that the whole is considered as the immediate act of God himself, for the proof of which the history gives a long series of miracles, in Egypt, at the Red-Sea, for many years in the wilderness, at the taking of Jericho, and settling the Hebrew nation in the possession of the promised land. Hence it may appear, the severity with which the Hebrew history acquaints us, the Canaanites were punished, and the title whereby the Hebrews held their land, whom God cast out before them, were no ways inconsistent with the justice, or wisdom, or goodness of God, as some have insinuated. The question is really brought to this one point, Whether such abominable immoralities, as followed naturally and universally from their idolatrous principles, and forms of worship, were not highly criminal; so criminal as to deserve a punishment? that it became the justice and wisdom of the Governor of the world to put some stop to them, to prevent them in some measure, by forming and establishing a constitution in which the knowledge and worship of the one true God should be preserved in opposition to idolatry, a perpetual source of innumerable vices and inimoralities. Idolatry, you see then, appears in the natural fruits of it, not only an error of the understanding, And here let us justly observe, that not at all a matter of harmless specula- this very way of punishing the Canaanites tion, but a fountain of very dangerous for their many great abominations by the immoralities, which led men naturally, Hebrew nation, to whom God gave the and even with the encouragements of re- possession of their land, has some peligion, into intemperance, uncleanness, culiar marks of wisdom, which may murders, and many vices, inconsistent shew it fit to be preferred to many other with the prosperity and peace of society, ways; such as pestilential distempers, as well as with the happiness of private fire from heaven, or a flood, ways in persons. When God shall punish such which God hath punished the wickediniquities, he punishes men for their wick-ness of the world in former times. For edness, not for their errors. He punishes men for such wickedness, as deserves to be punished, whatever pretended principles or real dictates of conscience it may proceed from. No man sure, can reasonably account it injustice in a government to punish sodomy, beastiality, or the frequent murder of innocent children, what pretences soever men should make to conscience or religion, in vindication of them. The most unnatural sins were countenanced by the mysteries of idola this was a very fit means for the cure, as well as the punishment of idolatry, to destroy the root of these great evils, as well as to execute righteous judgment on those who had committed them. This was a design every way worthy the wisdom and goodness of God. Sure then, no ways inconsistent with his justice. The protection of the Hebrew nation, and the favour of God to them as a peculiar people, was a visible and standing confutation of idolatry; it shewed, Q 3 that that Jehovah, the one true God, the King of Israel, bad himself an immediate hand in the administration of particular providence; that he had not given it out of his own hands into the hands of any inferior beings whatsoever, which error was the great foundation of idolatry. It fur ther shewed the power of Jehovah the true God, manifested in the protection of his people, superior to the power of all the idols of the Heathen; and that none of the false gods they worshipped could be compared to Jehovah. This is a question then not to be argued from the common rights of men, and nations; for no such rights, either of invasion or conquest, are so much as pretended to in the most distant manner. We see the only point in question, is, what are the rights of God's supreme authority? What is consistent with the wisdom of his government, how far he may punish the greatest immoralities with temporal evils? Ask the Sacred History, it will tell you, the Hebrews set up no title to the land of Canaan, either civil or religious, in their own right; it only makes the rights of the Sovereign of the world as extensive as the rights of the chief magistrates in every government are allowed by the laws of nature and nations to be over their own subjects. The Scriptures on this question only assert, that God gave a commission to execute his sentence, which was either a forfeiture of lands or life, for a long commission of crimes, that deservedly incurred the forfeiture of both. Whether the Hebrew nation had really such a commission from God, or no; whether they were truly directed by divine oracle; whether such wonders were really wrought before their eyes, and such unquestionable instances of divine favour and protection in a long series for many years, as the Hebrew history relates: these are all questions of fact. But in all such questions general and abstract reasonings can have no place, where the facts themselves are naturally and morally possible, as every one may perceive they are in this case. If the Supreme Governor of the world has a right to give such commission, if it is not unjust to use the hands of men, instead of a plague or fire from heaven, to punish the wickedness of men, the only question that can remain in such a case is this, whether in fact the Hebrew nation did really receive such a commission from Jehovah, or no: Thus far then the whole will rest upon the evidence of the Mosaic revelation; and there I shall leave it, it not being the design of this dissertation to enter into an argument, in which many, as I apprehend, have already given so full satisfaction. Rev. Moses Lowman. $175. The fulfilment of the Mosaical Prophecies concerning the Jews an unansweralle argument for the truth of the Bible. It is observable that the prophecies of Moses abound most in the latter part of his writings. As he drew nearer his end, it pleased God to open to him larger pros pects of things. As he was about to take leave of the people, he was enabled to disclose unto them more particulars of their future state and condition. The design of this work will permit us to take notice of such only as have son e reference to these later ages; and we will confine ourselves principally to the 28th chapter of Deuteronomy, the greater part whereof we may see accomplished in the world at this present time. This great prophet and law-giver is here proposing at large to the people, the blessings for obedience, and the curses for disobedience and indeed he had foretold at several times and upon several occasions, that they should be happy or miserable in the world, as they were obedient or disobedient to the law that he had given them. And could there be any stronger evidence of the divine original of the Mosaical law? and hath not the interposition of Providence been wonderfully remarkable in their good or bad fortune? and is not the truth of the prediction fully attested by the whole series of their Eistory, from their first settlement in Canaan to this very day? But he is larger and more particular in recounting the curses than the blessings, as if he had a prescience of the people's disobedience, and foresaw that a larger portion and longer continuation of the evil would fall to their share, than of the good. I know that some critics make a division of these prophecies, and imagine that one part relates to the former captivity of the Jews, and to the calamities which they suffered under the Chaldæans; and that the other part relates to the latter captivity of the Jews, and to the calamities which they suffered under the Romans: but there is no need of |