LESSON XIX.

THE ALTAR OF WITNESS.

B.C. 1444.—JOSHUA xxii. 11–31.

And the children of Israel heard say, Behold, the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh have built an altar over against the land of Canaan, in the borders of Jordan, at the passage of the children of Israel.

And when the children of Israel heard of it, the whole congregation of the children of Israel gathered themselves together at Shiloh, to go up to war against them.

And the children of Israel sent unto the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the half tribe of Manasseh, into the land of Gilead, Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest,

And with him ten princes, of each chief house a prince throughout all the tribes of Israel; and each one was an head of the house of their fathers among the thousands of Israel.

And they came unto the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the half tribe of Manasseh, unto the land of Gilead, and they spake with them, saying,

Thus saith the whole congregation of the LORD, What trespass is this that ye have committed against the God of Israel, to turn away this day from following the LORD, in that ye have builded you an altar, that ye might rebel this day against the LORD?

Is the iniquity of Peor too little for us, from which we are not cleansed until this day, although there was a plague in the congregation of the LORD, But that ye must turn away this day from following the LORD? and it will be, seeing ye rebel to day against the LORD, that to morrow he will be wroth with the whole congregation of Israel.

Notwithstanding, if the land of your possession be unclean, then pass ye over unto the land of the possession of the LORD, wherein the LORD'S tabernacle dwelleth, and take possession among us: but rebel not against the LORD, nor rebel against us, in building you an altar beside the altar of the LORD our God.

Did not Achan the son of Zerah commit a trespass in the accursed thing, and wrath fell on all the congregation of Israel? and that man perished not alone in his iniquity.

Then the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh answered, and said unto the heads of the thousands of Israel, The LORD God of gods, the LORD God of gods, he knoweth, and Israel he shall know; if it be in rebellion, or if in transgression against the LORD, (save us not this day,)

That we have built us an altar to turn from following the LORD, or if to offer thereon burnt offering or meat offering, or if to offer peace offerings thereon, let the LORD himself require* it;

And if we have not rather done it for fear of this thing, saying, In time to come your children might speak unto our children, saying, What have ye to do with the LORD God of Israel?

For the LORD hath made Jordan a border between us and you, ye children of Reuben and children of Gad; ye have no part in the LORD: so shall your children make our children cease from fearing the LORD.

Therefore we said, Let us now prepare to build us an altar, not for burnt offering, nor for sacrifice:

But that it may be a witness between us, and you, and our generations after us, that we might do the service of the LORD before him with our burnt offerings, and with our sacrifices, and with our peace offerings; that your children may not say to our children in time to come, Ye have no part in the LORD.

Therefore said we, that it shall be, when they should so say to us or to our generations in time to come, that we may say again, Behold the pattern of the altar of the LORD, which our fathers made, not for burnt offerings, nor for sacrifices; but it is a witness between us and you.

God forbid that we should rebel against the LORD, and turn this day from following the LORD, to build an altar for burnt offerings, for meat offerings, or for sacrifices, beside the altar of the LORD our God that is before his tabernacle.

And when Phinehas the priest, and the princes of the congregation and heads of the thousands of Israel which were with him, heard the words that the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the children of Manasseh spake, it pleased them.

And Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest said unto the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the children of Manasseh, This day we perceive that the LORD is among us, because ye have not committed this trespass against the LORD: now ye have delivered the children of Israel out of the hand of the LORD.

COMMENT. The first thing the three tribes and a half did after they had crossed the Jordan on their way home was to join together and build up a great altar, after the pattern of that which had been built of unhewn stone at the holy place at Shiloh. Now, no law had been more often impressed on Israel than this: "Take heed to thyself that thou offer not thy burnt offerings in every place that thou seest but in the place which the Lord shall choose in one of thy tribes, there thou shalt offer thy burnt offerings, and there thou shalt do all that I command thee." (Deut. xii. 13, 14.) And on the report of this altar beyond Jordan it was naturally supposed that

* May He punish us.

Reuben, Gad, and Gilead meant to set up a separate worship of their own, instead of coming up to Shiloh with their sacrifices to keep the three feasts of the year.

Therefore the other tribes prepared to go to war, to bring these tribes to a sense of their duty; but first they sent a deputation to examine into the matter and reason with them. There was a man from each tribe, led by the zealous Phinehas, who had so often shown his stern courage in upholding the cause of God; and their message reminded the tribes of the evil that had always befallen whosoever fell away from God, or presumed to follow his own will rather than the command of the Lord.

But, in answer, the chiefs of Reuben, Gad, and Gilead declared that nothing could be further from their minds than desertion of the sanctuary of their God. All they had intended was to raise a witness, to stand before their eyes and that of their children, reminding them of the true altar at Shiloh, and of the duty of repairing thither so as to keep up their fellowship with the other tribes, as well as to pay their due homage to God in the place in which he had chosen to set His name. This altar was not intended for any sort of sacrifice; it was nothing but a memorial. If it were placed there with any other intention, they called on God to punish them.

This answer was well-pleasing to Phinehas, the other deputies, and all the congregation, and the Altar of Witness remained on the bank of Jordan. Nothing was more distinctly taught God's people of old, than that religion is not to be a thing according to a man's fancy, but according to God's will, and that though prayer and praise may be offered to Him everywhere and at any time, yet for the more solemn acts of worship, which He has deigned to appoint as the means of approaching Him, He sets apart times and places, and binds us by rules, which we can only transgress at our peril.

LESSON XX.

JOSHUA'S WARNING.

B.C. 1427.-JOSHUA xxiii.

And it came to pass a long time after that the LORD had given rest unto Israel from all their enemies round about, that Joshua waxed old and stricken in age.

And Joshua called for all Israel, and for their elders, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers, and said unto them, I am old and stricken in age:

And ye have seen all that the LORD your God hath done unto all these nations because of you; for the LORD your God is he that hath fought for you.

Behold, I have divided unto you by lot these nations that remain, to be an inheritance for your tribes, from Jordan, with all the nations that I have cut off, even unto the great sea westward.

And the LORD your God, he shall expel* them from before you, and drive them from out of your sight; and ye shall possess their land, as the LORD your God hath promised unto you.

Be ye therefore very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in the book of the law of Moses, that ye turn not aside therefrom to the right hand or to the left;

That ye come not among these nations, these that remain among you; neither make mention of the name of their gods, nor cause to swear by them, neither serve them, nor bow yourselves unto them:

But cleave unto the LORD your God, as ye have done unto this day. For the Lord hath driven out from before you great nations and strong: but as for you, no man hath been able to stand before you unto this day.

One man of you shall chase a thousand for the LORD your God, he it is that fighteth for you, as he hath promised you.

Take good heed therefore unto yourselves, that ye love the LORD your God.

Else if ye do in any wise go back, and cleave unto the remnant of these nations, even these that remain among you, and shall make marriages with them:

Know for a certainty that the LORD your God will no more drive out any of these nations from before you; but they shall be snares and traps unto you, and scourges § in your sides, and thorns in your eyes, until ye perish from off this good land which the LORD your God hath given you.

And, behold, this day I am going the way of all the earth: and ye know in all your hearts and in all your souls, that not one thing hath failed of all

*Force out.

+ Hold to.

What is left.

§ Whips.

the good things which the LORD your God spake concerning you; all are come to pass unto you, and not one thing hath failed thereof.

Therefore it shall come to pass, that as all good things are come upon you, which the LORD your God promised you; so shall the LORD bring upon you all evil things, until he have destroyed you from off this good land which the LORD your God hath given you.

When ye have transgressed the covenant of the LORD your God, which he commanded you, and have gone and served other gods, and bowed yourselves to them; then shall the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and ye shall perish quickly from off the good land which he hath given unto you.

COMMENT.-The first years after the conquest of the Promised Land had been full of peace and rest. It was granted to the brave men who had been constant through all the trials of the wilderness to enjoy the rest that was a type of the great Rest above and beyond. Each tribe was living in its inheritance, governed by the heads of families, with the elders-as appointed by Moses-set over them, and judges in every city, who sat in the deep gateways to hear causes, with officers to execute their decrees; and on great questions, such as affected the whole nation, the High Priest at Shiloh asked counsel of God through the Urim and Thummim. Yet still, in each tribe, many a walled city on a hill-top, many a valley shut in by rugged mountains, many a sea-coast town, was in the power of the old inhabitants; and when the great and holy Joshua called on all the various men in office to assemble round him, apparently at his own house at Timnath-serah, it was to repeat his own great watchword, "Be strong, and be courageous," and to enforce on them what they had heard before from Moses, that friendship with these nations would be enmity to God. There was to be no intercourse. The very name of their gods was to be avoided; no oaths were to be taken in those idol names; above all, no marriages were to be made with heathens, but the Israelite must keep heedfully apart. So long as he did this, he was invincible. One man should chase a thousand-as verily befel more than one holy hero-and none should stand before their might. But once make friends with them, when Joshua should have “gone the way of all the earth," and they would become snares and trapsor nooses-first tempting and then punishing, until Israel should perish away off the good land that God had given them. As surely