hot against Israel, and he delivered them into the hands of spoilers, that spoiled them, and he sold them into the hands of their enemies round about; so that they could not any longer stand before their enemies. Whithersoever they went out, the hand of the LORD was against them for evil, as the LORD had said, and as the LORD had sworn unto them. The Prophet observes, that nevertheless GOD withdrew his hand ;* and did not proceed entirely to extirpate them; and thus the historian-Nevertheless the LORD raised up judges which delivered them. Many times indeed did he deliver them, but they went on to provoke him with their behaviour; so that he determined, for their transgressing his covenant, and not hearkening unto his voice, that he would not henceforth drive out any from before them, of the nations which Joshua left when he died. Hereby the Israelites became mingled with the heathen," or, as the Prophet expresses it, they were scattered among the heathen, and dispersed through the countries," they had not a contiguous and united possession of the whole land, but among the Canaanites, Hittites, and Amorites, and Periszites, and Hivites, and Jebusites. Thus what preceded the giving the statutes that were not good, brings us down to the days of the Judges; and therefore these statutes were not given earlier than these times. But, Judges ii. 14, 15. * Judges ii. 16. Psalm cvi. 35. Judges iii. 5. · Ezek. xx. 22. 1 ii. 20, 21. "Ezek. xx. 23. 3. Let us examine what these statutes and judgments really were, and when, and how, God gave them to the Israelites; and in order hereto let us observe, 1. That God does in no wise give these statutes and judgments the appellation by which he called the appointments he had made and designed for his people. Of these he says, I gave them my statutes, and shewed them my judgments ;P these were indeed God's laws, intended for the use and observance of his people; but of the statutes not good, and judgments whereby they should not live, he says, I gave them also statutes, not my statutes, and judgments (not my judg ments,) whereby they should not live, so that these statutes and judgments were not God's statutes or GoD's judgments, though they are said to have been given by him. 2, But the 26th verse suggests, that in giving them these statutes and judgments God polluted them in their gifts, in that they caused to pass through the fire all that openeth the womb, that he might make them desolate. What the Prophet here means, is fully suggested by himself in another place. Thou hast slain my children, and delivered them, to cause them to pass through the fire for them." The fact was, they had taken their sons and their daughters, and sacrificed them to be devoured, or as the Psalmist represents it, they shed innocent blood, even the blood of their sons and of their daughters, whom they sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan, and the insti P Ezek. xx. 11. 'xvi. 20. YOL. III. 4 Ver. 25. t Psalm cvi. 38. 'xvi. 21. tutions, which directed such performances, were the statutes not good, were the judgments, whereby they should not live; for these fully answer to the Prophet's account. They polluted those, who used them, in their gifts; by observing them the land was polluted with blood, and the people defiled with their own works; and they intended to make them desolate, by the destruction of their offspring. And God may be said to have given them these statutes, either because he gave them up to their own hearts' lusts, to walk in their own counsels; to learn these practices from their heathen neighbours. Thus Gon is said to have hardened Pharaoh's heart, when Pharaoh really har dened his own heart; and in like manner to have given a lying spirit in the mouth of Ahab's prophets, when in fact they prophesied out of their own hearts; and followed their own spirit, when they had seen nothing; in which sense the Chaldee paraphrast took the passage of Ezekiel. Or more emphatically, GOD may be said to have given them these statutes; because for their punishment he delivered them into the hands Exod. iv. 21. vii. 3. ix. 12. x. 1, 20, 27, xi. 10, &c. • Ver. 3. b Projeci cos, et tradidi eos in manum Inimicorum suo. rum, et post concupiscentiam suam insipientem abierunt. et fecerunt decreta non recta, et leges in quibus mon vivetis. Targ. Jonath. in loc. of their enemies, and empowered those who hated them to rule over them. These their enemies might set up their abominations amongst them, and make Israel to sin, as their own wicked kings did afterwards in divers reigns. They might give them statutes such as those of Omri; and by their power over them, influence and oblige them to the observance of them. And God may in a strong sense be said to have given them these statutes, by his giving their enemies power to impose upon them. I have now fully considered this passage of Ezekiel, and, perhaps, have been too large upon it; but I was willing to clear it as distinctly as I was able, because great stress has been laid upon it. Dr. Spencer imagined that this text alone was sufficient to support his hypothesis; but I think, if what has been offered, be fairly considered, no honest writer can ever cite it again for that purpose. However, that may leave no seeming objection to any part of what I have offered, I would further take notice: I I. Dr. Spencer imagines that the 26th verse of the xxth chapter of Ezekiel, which we render, I polluted them in their own gifts, in that they caused to pass through the fire all that openeth the womb, that I might make them desolate, refers, not to their causing their children to pass through the fire to the idols of Canaan, as I have above taken it; but he supposes it relates to God's rejecting the first-born of the Israelites from the priesthood, and appointing the tribe of Levi to the sacred offices in their stead. He would trans Psalm cvi. 41. late the verse to this purport: I pronounced them polluted in their gifts, i. e. unfit to offer me any oblations, in that I passed by all that openeth the womb, in order to humble them, that they might know that I am the LORD. I answer, this cannot be the meaning of the text. For the Levitical priesthood was instituted, as I have remarked, in the days of the fathers; but the Prophet here speaks of something done in the days not of the fathers, to whom the law was given, but of their children, of a generation that arose after the appointing the Levites to the sacred offices, and therefore cannot be here supposed to speak of that appointment. Further, the expres sion here used, behanabir col peter racham, does not signify to pass by or reject the first-born. The verb nabar in the conjugation here used, does sometimes signify to set apart or choose; but cannot have, I think, the sense the learned doctor would here give it. Maas DND is the Hebrew verb for to reject, and would most probably have been the word here i k Vid. quæ sup. Chorus est eruditorum virorum, qui de præceptis ceremonialibus hæc intelligunt, et remotione Israelitarum ab altari. Ego vero liberè profiteor huic opinioni nunquam me potuisse consentire, ob rationes non leves sanè et futiles, sed solidas prægnantesque ex serie orationis, Pearsus insolentià, verbis aliis textui immixtis, antecedentium, consequentiumq; nexu, et scripturarum ana petitas. Vitringa Observat. Sac. lib. 2. c. 1. i Exodus xiii. 12. * Vid. 1 Sam. viii. 7. x. 19, xvi. 1. 2 Kings xviii. 20. Jer. vi. 30. xiv. 19. et in sexcent. al, loc. |