{"collection":"scripture-revelation","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_76552/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_76552","id":"gutenberg_76552","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/76552","summary":null,"tags":["Bible. Numbers -- Commentaries","Category: Religion/Spirituality"],"text":"NOTES\n _on the book of_\n NUMBERS\n\n by\n C. H. MACKINTOSH\n\n _\u201cSo He led them through the depths,\n as through the wilderness.\u201d_\n\n LOIZEAUX BROTHERS\n _New York_\n\n FIRST EDITION 1880\n TWENTY-SIXTH PRINTING 1959\n\n LOIZEAUX BROTHERS, INC., PUBLISHERS\n _A Nonprofit Organization, Devoted to the Lord\u2019s Work\n and to the Spread of His Truth_\n 19 WEST 21ST STREET, NEW YORK 10, N. Y.\n\n PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA\n\n\n\n\nCONTENTS\n\n\n _Page._\n\n CHAPTERS I. & II, 1\n\n \u201d III. & IV, 30\n\n \u201d V, 94\n\n \u201d VI, 115\n\n \u201d VII, 144\n\n \u201d VIII, 150\n\n \u201d IX, 161\n\n \u201d X, 188\n\n \u201d XI, 201\n\n \u201d XII, 225\n\n \u201d XIII, 232\n\n \u201d XIV, 243\n\n \u201d XV, 271\n\n \u201d XVI, 292\n\n \u201d XVII. & XVIII, 316\n\n \u201d XIX, 353\n\n \u201d XX, 390\n\n \u201d XXI, 399\n\n \u201d XXII.-XXIV, 407\n\n \u201d XXV, 424\n\n \u201d XXVI, 426\n\n \u201d XXVII, 430\n\n \u201d XXVIII. & XXIX, 442\n\n \u201d XXX, 448\n\n \u201d XXXI, 451\n\n \u201d XXXII, 455\n\n \u201d XXXIII. & XXXIV, 462\n\n \u201d XXXV, 464\n\n \u201d XXXVI, 471\n\n\n\n\nPREFATORY NOTE TO THE AMERICAN EDITION\n\n\nAs several persons in America have, without any authority whatever from\nme, undertaken to publish my four[1] volumes of \u201cNotes,\u201d I deem it my\nduty to inform the reader that I have given full permission to Messrs.\nLOIZEAUX BROTHERS to publish an edition of those books in such form as\nthey shall consider most suitable.\n\n C. H. MACKINTOSH.\n\n_6 West Park Terrace, Scarborough, May 1st, 1879._\n\n\n\n\nPREFACE\n\n\nHaving read the proof-sheets of the following \u201cNOTES ON NUMBERS,\u201d I am\nprepared, so far, to write a preface. It is with no view of praising the\nbook that I do so, but to show my fellowship with the well-known author\nin all his labors. The book will speak for itself, and the reader must\njudge.\n\nAfter twelve years of joint-editorship in the monthly issue of \u201c_Things\nNew and Old_,\u201d the reader will not be surprised at this mutual love of\nidentification in sending forth another volume of \u201cNotes.\u201d But for this,\nthere is no reason why I should appear.\n\nThe wonderful sale of the three former volumes, and the desire that\nhas been expressed on all hands for the fourth, bespeak for it a large\ncirculation.\n\nWe will now glance for a moment at the _character_ of the book of\nNumbers. Fuller details will be found in the \u201cNotes.\u201d\n\nIt may be regarded as a divine history of the wanderings of the\nIsraelites in the wilderness for about thirty-eight years and ten months,\ncommencing with the first movement of the camp after the tabernacle\nwas reared; and also as a perpetual memorial of Jehovah\u2019s patient,\ntender, and unwearied care of His murmuring and rebellious people. It\nis emphatically a wilderness book, and characterized by journeyings,\nservice, and all the vicissitudes of wilderness life. As such, it is\ndeeply interesting, most instructive, and easily applied to the Christian\nin this present evil world. (Compare Numbers i. and xxxvi. 13 with\nDeuteronomy i. 3.)\n\nThe first thing that attracts our attention in reading the book, is sweet\nand precious to the heart beyond all expression\u2014_God has His people\nnumbered and gathered around Himself_. He dwelt in the camp.\u2014\u201c_In the\nmidst whereof I dwell_.\u201d Could love do more? Impossible! The twelve\ntribes guarded the tabernacle of the Lord. The Levites encamped directly\naround the court; and Moses, Aaron, and the priests guarded the entrance\nwhereby God was approached. The circumference of the camp, thus arranged,\nand all facing the tabernacle, is generally supposed to have been at\nleast twelve miles. But that which gave unity, strength, and glory to the\ncamp in the wilderness, was the presence of God in His tabernacle, as the\ncentre of His chosen people. Blessed shadow of good things to come\u2014of\nChrist as the centre, life, and glory of His Church now!\n\nRather more than a year from the epoch of the Exodus, Jehovah commanded\nMoses to number the people that were able to bear arms, from twenty years\nold and upwards. The tribe of Levi, being exempt from military service,\nwas numbered separately. But the complete number, _twelve_, was made up\nby the division of Joseph into Ephraim and Manasseh. (Chapters, i, ii,\niii.)\n\nEvery thing was now in its right place, and every one knew for certain\nwhat he had to do, both when the cloud moved and when it rested. The\ntabernacle set up, the priests consecrated, the people numbered, they\nwere now to leave Horeb. \u201cThe Lord God spake unto us in Horeb, saying,\n\u2018Ye have dwelt long enough in this mount.\u2019\u201d \u201cAnd it came to pass on the\ntwentieth day of the second month, in the second year, that the cloud was\ntaken up from off the tabernacle of the testimony. And the children of\nIsrael took their journeys out of the wilderness of Sinai; and the cloud\nrested in the wilderness of Paran.\u201d (Deut. i. 6; Numb. x. 11, 12.)\n\nThe pillar of cloud by day, and the pillar of fire by night, guided\nall the movements of the camp. (Numb. ix. 17-23.) The moment the cloud\nascended from off the tabernacle, the silver trumpets sounded the alarm,\nand the whole camp was instantly in motion. Then Moses uttered the\nprayer. \u201cRise up, Lord, and let Thine enemies be scattered, and let them\nthat hate Thee flee before Thee.\u201d When the cloud rested, the whole camp\nrested, and every man knew his place and his work. And then Moses prayed,\n\u201cReturn, O Lord, unto the many thousands of Israel.\u201d (Numb. x. 35, 36.)\n\nHow imposing to the outward eye the sight of this great camp must have\nbeen in the midst of the desert! Well might Balaam say, \u201cHow goodly\nare thy tents, O Jacob, and thy tabernacles, O Israel!\u201d But its true\nloveliness is only seen by the eye of faith. It was the brightest spot\nin the world, though on the sand of the desert, and the richest in\nblessing. Far, far above all its other attractions is the knowledge that\nGod Himself is there, thinking of every one and providing for their every\nneed. Day by day, He spread a table for them in the wilderness, and gave\nthem water from the flinty rock. The foot of the traveler was never\nswollen, and his raiment waxed not old these forty years. (Deut. viii. 4.)\n\nThere were upwards of six hundred thousand men above the age of twenty,\nbesides the Levites and women and children, probably more than two\nmillions altogether. But Jehovah gathered them all around Himself, as a\nfather would gather his children, and covered them with the skirts of\nHis cloud, both by night and by day.\u2014\u201cHe spread a cloud for a covering;\nand fire to give light in the night.\u201d (Ps. cv. 39.) Thus was the Lord\u2019s\nfamily in the place of rest, peace, and blessing. The blood of the\neverlasting covenant had been sprinkled on the mercy-seat within the\nvail, and judgment had been executed on the sin-offering outside the\ncamp. God was now a wall of fire around His people, and the glory in the\nmidst of them. Oh that Israel had known\u2014oh that Israel had understood\nthe loving-kindness of the Lord, and so put all their trust in Him! (See\nDeut. xxxii, xxxiii.)\n\nIn the position and service of the Levites there is always much that is\ninteresting to the Christian. They were typical of the Church (or of\nthe individual Christian) in service, just as the priests were typical\nof the Church in worship. The fact of the Levites being taken for the\nservice of the Lord in place of the first-born, gave them a very special\ncharacter. They were first-fruits unto the Lord. Thus it is that the\nChurch is, as the first-fruits, holy to the Lord\u2014\u201cthe church of the\nfirst-born ones.\u201d (Jas. i.; Heb. xii.)\n\nAs the Levites thus became God\u2019s possession for service, and belonged\nwholly to Him, so it is with the Church. We are redeemed\u2014we are not our\nown\u2014we are bought with a price; therefore we are to glorify God in our\nbodies and in our spirits, which are His. We are to serve the living God,\nin communion with Christ our great High-Priest above. The calling of the\nChurch, however, is a much higher thing than the position of the Levites;\nfor she is one with Christ, and the Holy Ghost gives the capacity and the\ngift for Christian service.\n\nIn conclusion, we may safely affirm that there is no truth in\nChristianity of such importance, or of such practical power, as the\nblessed truth of the Church\u2019s relationship to Christ. \u201cFor in Him\ndwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in\nHim, which is the head of all principality and power.\u201d (Col. ii. 9, 10.)\nWe can only be men of war, worshiping priests, serving Levites, in the\nhighest and truest sense, in the proportion that we live in the power of\nthis great truth. We are joined to the Lord by the one Spirit; our life\nis hid with Christ in God. May we be content to be the Lord\u2019s hidden ones\nas to this world, and only to be seen and known as His servants, until He\ncome, then shall we also appear with Him in glory.\n\nMay the Lord accompany with His own rich blessing, and clothe with His\nown divine power, this volume of \u201cNOTES ON NUMBERS;\u201d and may He accept\nit as service to Himself, and use it for His own glory, and to His name\nalone be undivided praise. Amen.\n\n _A. M._\n\n_London, Dec. 1, 1869_\n\n\n\n\nNOTES ON THE BOOK OF NUMBERS\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTERS I. & II.\n\n\nWe now enter upon the study of the fourth grand division of the\nPentateuch, or five books of Moses; and we shall find the leading\ncharacteristic of this book quite as strongly marked as that of any of\nthe three books which have already engaged our attention. In the book\nof Genesis, after the record of creation, the deluge, and the Babel\ndispersion, we have God\u2019s election of the seed of Abraham; in the book\nof Exodus, we have redemption; Leviticus gives us priestly worship and\ncommunion; in Numbers, we have the walk and warfare of the wilderness.\nSuch are the prominent subjects of these most precious sections of\ninspiration, while, as might be expected, many other points of deepest\ninterest are collaterally introduced. The Lord, in His great mercy,\nhas led us through the study of Genesis, Exodus, and Leviticus; and we\ncan reckon on Him with confidence to conduct us through the book of\nNumbers. May His Spirit lead the thoughts and guide the pen, so that not\na sentence may be committed to writing that is not in strict accordance\nwith His holy mind. May every page and every paragraph bear the stamp of\nHis approval, and be at once conducive to His glory and the permanent\nprofit of the reader.\n\n * * * * *\n\n\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses _in the wilderness_ of Sinai, in the\ntabernacle of the congregation, on the first day of the second month, in\nthe second year after they were come out of the land of Egypt, saying,\n\u2018Take ye the sum of all the congregation of the children of Israel, after\ntheir families, by the house of their fathers, with the number of their\nnames, every male by their polls; from twenty years old and upward, all\nthat are _able to go forth to war_ in Israel; thou and Aaron shall number\nthem by their armies.\u2019\u201d (Chap. i. 1-3.)\n\nHere we find ourselves at once \u201cin the wilderness,\u201d where those only\nare to be taken account of who are \u201cable to go forth to war.\u201d This\nis strongly marked. In the book of Genesis, the seed of Israel were\nin the loins of their father Abraham; in the book of Exodus, they\nwere in the brick-kilns of Egypt; in Leviticus, they were gathered\naround the tabernacle of the congregation; in Numbers, they are seen\nin the wilderness. Then, again, in full keeping with the above, and\nin confirmation thereof, in Genesis, we hearken to the call of God in\nelection; in Exodus, we gaze upon the blood of the lamb in redemption; in\nLeviticus, we are almost entirely occupied with the worship and service\nof the sanctuary; but no sooner have we opened the book of Numbers than\nwe read of men of war, of armies, of standards, of camps, and trumpets\nsounding alarm.\n\nAll this is highly characteristic, and marks off the book on which we are\nnow entering as one of special interest, value, and importance to the\nChristian. Each book of the Bible, each section of the inspired canon,\nhas its own distinct place and object: each has its own niche assigned to\nit by its divine Author. We must not entertain for a moment the thought\nof instituting any comparison in point of intrinsic value, interest, and\nimportance. All is divine, and therefore perfect. The Christian reader\nfully and heartily believes this. He reverently sets his seal to the\ntruth of the plenary inspiration of holy Scripture\u2014of all Scripture, and\nof the Pentateuch amongst the rest; nor is he to be moved one hair\u2019s\nbreadth from this by the bold and impious attacks of infidels, ancient,\nmedi\u00e6val, or modern. Infidels and rationalists may traffic in their\nunhallowed reasonings; they may exhibit their enmity against the book and\nits Author; but the pious Christian rests, notwithstanding all, in the\nsimple and happy belief that \u201call Scripture is given by inspiration of\nGod.\u201d\n\nBut while we must utterly reject the idea of any comparison as to\nauthority and value, we may, with very much profit, compare the contents,\ndesign, and scope of the various books of the Bible. And the more\nprofoundly we meditate upon these, the more forcibly shall we be struck\nwith the exquisite beauty, infinite wisdom, and wonderful precision\nof the volume as a whole, and of each distinct division thereof. The\ninspired writer never swerves from the direct object of the book,\nwhatever that object may be. You will never find aught in any one book\nof the Bible which is not in the most perfect harmony with the main\ndesign of that book. To prove and illustrate this statement would lead\nus through the entire canon of holy Scripture, and hence we shall not\nattempt it. The intelligent Christian does not need the proof, however\nmuch he might be interested in the illustration. He takes his stand upon\nthe great fact that the book as a whole, and in all its parts, is from\nGod; and his heart reposes in the conclusion that in that whole, and in\neach of those parts, there is not a jot or a tittle which is not in every\nway worthy of the divine Author.\n\nHear the following words from the pen of one who expresses himself as\n\u201cdeeply convinced of the divine inspiration of the Scriptures, given\nto us of God, and confirmed in this conviction by daily and growing\ndiscoveries of their fullness, depth, and perfectness, ever more\nsensible, through grace, of the admirable perfection of the parts, and\nthe wonderful connection of the whole:\u201d \u201cThe Scriptures,\u201d says this\nwriter, \u201chave a living source, and living power has pervaded their\ncomposition: hence their infiniteness of bearing, and the impossibility\nof separating any one part from its connection with the whole, because\none God is the living centre from which all flows; one Christ the living\ncentre around which all its truth circles, and to which it refers,\nthough in various glory; and one Spirit the divine sap which carries its\npower from its source in God to the minutest branches of the all-uniting\ntruth, testifying of the glory, the grace, and the truth of Him whom\nGod sets forth as the object and centre and head of all that is in\nconnection with Himself, of Him who is, withal, God over all, blessed\nfor evermore.... The more\u2014beginning from the utmost leaves and branches\nof this revelation of the mind of God, by which we have been reached\nwhen far from Him\u2014we have traced it up towards its centre, and thence\nlooked down again towards its extent and diversity, the more we learn its\ninfiniteness, and our own feebleness of apprehension. We learn, blessed\nbe God, this, that the love which is its source is found in unmingled\nperfectness and fullest display of those manifestations of it which have\nreached us even in our ruined state. The same perfect God of love is in\nit all. But the unfoldings of divine wisdom in the counsels in which God\nhas displayed Himself, remain ever to us a subject of research, in which\nevery new discovery, by increasing our spiritual intelligence, makes the\ninfiniteness of the whole, and the way in which it surpasses all our\nthoughts, only more and more clear to us.\u201d\n\nIt is truly refreshing to transcribe such lines from the pen of one who\nhas been a profound student of Scripture for forty years. They are of\nunspeakable value, at a moment when so many are ready to cast a slight\nupon the sacred volume. Not that we are in any wise dependent upon human\ntestimony in forming our conclusions as to the divine origin of the\nBible, inasmuch as these conclusions rest upon a foundation furnished by\nthe Bible itself. God\u2019s Word, as well as His work, speaks for itself; it\ncarries its own credentials with it; it speaks to the heart; it reaches\ndown to the great moral roots of our being; it penetrates the very\ninnermost chambers of the soul; it shows us what we are; it speaks to\nus as no other book can speak; and as the woman of Sychar argued that\nJesus must be the Christ because He told her all things that ever she\ndid, so may we say, in reference to the Bible, It tells us all that ever\nwe did, is not this the Word of God? No doubt it is only by the Spirit\u2019s\nteaching that we can discern and appreciate the evidence and credentials\nwith which holy Scripture presents itself before us; but still it does\nspeak for itself, and needs not human testimony to make it of value\nto the soul. We should no more think of having our faith in the Bible\nestablished upon man\u2019s testimony in its favor, than we should think of\nhaving it shaken by his testimony against it.\n\nIt is of the very last possible importance, at all times, but more\nespecially at a moment like the present, to have the heart and mind\nestablished in the grand truth of the divine authority of holy\nScripture\u2014its plenary inspiration\u2014its all sufficiency for all purposes,\nfor all people, at all times. There are two hostile influences abroad,\nnamely, infidelity on the one hand, and superstition on the other. The\nformer denies that God has spoken to us in His Word; the latter admits\nthat He has spoken, but it denies that we can understand what He says,\nsave by the interpretation of the church.\n\nNow, while there are very many who recoil with horror from the impiety\nand audacity of infidelity, they do not see that superstition just as\ncompletely deprives them of the Scriptures. For wherein, let us ask,\nlies the difference between denying that God has spoken and denying that\nwe can understand what He says? In either case, are we not deprived of\nthe Word of God? Unquestionably. If God cannot make me understand what\nHe says\u2014if He cannot give me the assurance that it is He Himself who\nspeaks, I am in no wise better off than if He had not spoken at all. If\nGod\u2019s Word is not sufficient without human interpretation, then it cannot\nbe God\u2019s Word at all. That which is insufficient is not God\u2019s Word. We\nmust admit either of two things, namely, that God has not spoken at all,\nor if He has spoken, His Word is perfect. There is no neutral ground in\nreference to this question. Has God given us a revelation? Infidelity\nsays, \u201cNo.\u201d Superstition says, \u201cYes, but you cannot understand it without\nhuman authority.\u201d Thus are we, in the one case as well as in the other,\ndeprived of the priceless treasure of God\u2019s own precious Word; and thus,\ntoo, infidelity and superstition, though apparently so unlike, meet in\nthe one point of depriving us of a divine revelation.\n\nBut, blessed be God, He has given us a revelation\u2014He has spoken, and\nHis Word is able to reach the heart and the understanding also. God is\nable to give the certainty that it is He who speaks, and we do not want\nany human authority to intervene. We do not want a poor rush-light to\nenable us to see that the sun is shining. The beams of that glorious\nluminary are quite enough without any such miserable addition. All we\nwant is to stand in the sunshine, and we shall be convinced that the sun\nshines. If we retire into a vault, or into a tunnel, we shall not feel\nhis influence; and just so is it with regard to Scripture\u2014if we place\nourselves beneath the chilling and darkening influences of superstition\nor infidelity, we shall not experience the genial and enlightening power\nof that divine revelation.\n\nHaving said thus much as to the divine volume as a whole, we shall now\nproceed to consider the contents of the section which lies open before\nus. In chapter i, we have the declaration of the \u201c_pedigree_;\u201d and in\nchapter ii, the recognition of the \u201c_standard_.\u201d \u201cAnd Moses and Aaron\ntook these men which are expressed by their names: and they assembled all\nthe congregation together on the first day of the second month, and _they\ndeclared their pedigrees_ after their families, by the house of their\nfathers; according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and\nupward, by their polls. As the Lord commanded Moses, so he numbered them\nin the wilderness of Sinai.\u201d (Chap. i. 17-19.)\n\nHas this any voice for us? does it convey any great spiritual lesson to\nour understanding? Assuredly it does. In the first place, it suggests\nthis important question to the reader: Can I declare my pedigree? It is\ngreatly to be feared there are hundreds, if not thousands, of professing\nChristians who are wholly incompetent to do so. They cannot say, with\nclearness and decision, \u201c_Now are_ we the sons of God.\u201d (1 John iii.\n2.)\u2014\u201cYe _are_ all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.... And\nif ye are Christ\u2019s, then _are_ ye Abraham\u2019s seed, and heirs according to\nthe promise.\u201d (Gal. iii. 26, 29.)\u2014\u201cFor as many as are led by the Spirit\nof God, they _are_ the sons of God.... The Spirit itself beareth witness\nwith our spirit, that we _are_ the sons of God.\u201d (Rom. viii. 14, 16.)\n\nThis is the Christian\u2019s \u201cpedigree,\u201d and it is his privilege to be able\nto \u201cdeclare\u201d it. He is born from above\u2014born again\u2014born of water and the\nSpirit, _i. e._, by the Word and by the Holy Ghost. (Compare diligently,\nJohn iii. 5; Jas. i. 18; 1 Pet. i. 23; Eph. v. 26.) The believer traces\nhis pedigree directly up to a risen Christ in glory. This is Christian\ngenealogy. So far as our natural pedigree is concerned, if we trace\nit up to its _source_, and then declare it honestly, we must see and\nadmit that we are sprung from a ruined stock. Ours is a fallen family.\nOur fortunes are gone; our very blood attainted; we are irrecoverably\nruined; we can never regain our original position; our former _status_\nand the inheritance which belonged to it are irretrievably lost. A man\nmay be able to trace his genealogical line through a race of nobles,\nof princes, or of kings; but if he is fully to \u201cdeclare his pedigree,\u201d\nhe cannot stop short of a fallen, ruined, outcast head. We must get to\nthe _source_ of a thing to know what it really is. It is thus God looks\nat and judges of things, and we must think with Him if we would think\naright. His judgment of men and things must be dominant forever. Man\u2019s\njudgment is only ephemeral, it lasts but for a day; and hence, according\nto faith\u2019s estimate, the estimate of sound sense, \u201cit is a _small_\nthing to be judged of man\u2019s day.\u201d (1 Cor. iv. 3.) Oh, how small! Would\nthat we felt more deeply how small a thing it is to be judged of man\u2019s\njudgment, or, as the margin reads it, of man\u2019s day! Would that we walked\nhabitually in the real sense of the smallness thereof! It would impart a\ncalm elevation and a holy dignity which would lift us above the influence\nof the scene through which we are passing. What is rank in this life?\nWhat importance can attach to a pedigree which, if honestly traced and\nfaithfully declared, is derived from a ruined stock? A man can only be\nproud of his birth when he stops short of his real origin\u2014\u201cborn in sin\nand shapen in iniquity.\u201d Such is man\u2019s origin\u2014such his birth. Who can\nthink of being proud of such a birth\u2014of such an origin? who but one whose\nmind the god of this world hath blinded?\n\nBut how different with the Christian! His pedigree is heavenly;\nhis genealogical tree strikes its roots into the soil of the new\ncreation. Death can never break the line, inasmuch as it is formed\nin resurrection. We cannot be too simple as to this. It is of the\nutmost importance that the reader should be thoroughly clear on this\nfoundation-point. We can easily see, from this first chapter of Numbers,\nhow essential it was that every member of the congregation of Israel\nshould be able to declare his pedigree. Uncertainty on this point would\nhave proved disastrous; it would have produced hopeless confusion. We\ncan hardly imagine an Israelite, when called to declare his pedigree,\nexpressing himself in the doubtful manner adopted by many Christians\nnowadays. We cannot conceive his saying, Well, I am not quite sure.\nSometimes I cherish the hope that I am of the stock of Israel; but at\nother times, I am full of fear that I do not belong to the congregation\nof the Lord at all. I am all in uncertainty and darkness. Can we conceive\nsuch language? Assuredly not. Much less could we imagine any one\nmaintaining the monstrous notion that no one could possibly be sure as to\nwhether he was a true Israelite or not until the day of judgment.\n\nAll such ideas and reasonings\u2014all such doubts, fears, and questions, we\nmay rest assured, were foreign to the mind of the Israelite. Every member\nof the congregation was called to declare his pedigree ere taking his\nplace in the ranks as a man of war. Each one was able to say, like Saul\nof Tarsus, \u201cCircumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel,\u201d etc. All\nwas settled and clear, and necessarily so if there was to be any real\nentrance upon the walk and warfare of the wilderness.\n\nNow, may we not legitimately ask, If a Jew could be certain as to his\npedigree, why may not a Christian be certain as to his? Reader, weigh\nthis question; and if you are one of that large class of persons who\nare never able to arrive at the blessed certainty of their heavenly\nlineage\u2014their spiritual birth, pause, we beseech you, and let us reason\nwith you on this momentous point. It may be you are disposed to ask, How\ncan I be sure that I am, really and truly, a child of God, a member of\nChrist, born of the Word and Spirit of God? I would give worlds, were\nthey mine, to be certain as to this most weighty question.\n\nWell, then, we would earnestly desire to help you in this matter. Indeed,\none special object before us in penning these \u201cNotes\u201d is, to assist\nanxious souls, by answering, as the Lord may enable us, their questions,\nsolving their difficulties, and removing the stumbling-blocks out of\ntheir way.\n\nAnd first of all, let us point out one special feature which belongs\nto all the children of God without exception. It is a very simple, but\na very blessed feature. If we do not possess it in some degree, it is\nmost certain we are not of the heavenly race; but if we do possess it,\nit is just as certain that we are, and we may, therefore, without any\ndifficulty or reserve, \u201cdeclare our pedigree.\u201d Now what is this feature?\nwhat is this great family characteristic? Our Lord Jesus Christ supplies\nthe answer. He tells us that \u201cWisdom is justified of _all_ her children.\u201d\n(Luke vii. 35; Matt. xi. 19.) All the children of Wisdom, from the days\nof Abel down to the present moment, have been marked by this great family\ntrait. There is not so much as a single exception. All God\u2019s children\u2014all\nthe sons of Wisdom have always exhibited, in some degree, this moral\nfeature\u2014they have justified God.\n\nLet the reader consider this. It may be he finds it hard to understand\nwhat is meant by justifying God; but a passage or two of holy Scripture\nwill, we trust, make it quite plain. We read in Luke vii. that \u201call\nthe people that heard Jesus, and the publicans, _justified God_, being\nbaptized with the baptism of John. But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected\nthe counsel of God against themselves, being not baptized of him.\u201d\n(Ver. 29, 30.) Here we have the two generations brought, as it were,\nface to face. The publicans justified God and condemned themselves: the\nPharisees justified themselves and judged God. The former submitted to\nthe baptism of John\u2014the baptism of repentance: the latter refused that\nbaptism\u2014refused to repent\u2014refused to humble and to judge themselves.\n\nHere we have the two great classes into which the whole human family has\nbeen divided, from the days of Abel and Cain down to the present day;\nand here, too, we have the simplest possible test by which to try our\n\u201cpedigree.\u201d Have we taken the place of self-condemnation? have we bowed\nin true repentance before God? This is to justify God. The two things go\ntogether\u2014yea, they are one and the same. The man who condemns himself\njustifies God; and the man who justifies God condemns himself. On the\nother hand, the man who justifies himself judges God; and the man who\njudges God justifies himself.\n\nThus it stands in every case. And be it observed that the very moment we\ntake the ground of repentance and self-judgment, God takes the ground\nof a Justifier. God always justifies those who condemn themselves. All\nHis children justify Him, and He justifies all His children. The moment\nDavid said, \u201cI have sinned against the Lord,\u201d the answer was, \u201cThe Lord\nhath put away thy sin.\u201d Divine forgiveness follows, with the most intense\nrapidity, human confession.\n\nHence it follows that nothing can be more foolish than for any one to\njustify himself, inasmuch as God must be justified in His sayings, and\novercome when He is judged. (Comp. Ps. li. 4; Rom. iii. 4.) God must\nhave the upper hand in the end, and then all self-justification shall\nbe seen in its true light. The wisest thing, therefore, is to condemn\nourselves. This is what all the children of Wisdom do. Nothing is more\ncharacteristic of the true members of Wisdom\u2019s family than the habit and\nspirit of self-judgment. Whereas, on the other hand, nothing so marks all\nthose who are not of this family as a spirit of self-vindication.\n\nThese things are worthy of our most earnest attention. Nature will blame\nany thing and every thing, any one and every one, but itself; but where\ngrace is at work, there is ever a readiness to judge self, and take the\nlowly place. This is the true secret of blessing and peace. All God\u2019s\nchildren have stood on this blessed ground, exhibited this lovely moral\ntrait, and reached this grand result. We cannot find so much as a single\nexception in the entire history of Wisdom\u2019s happy family; and we may\nsafely say that if the reader has been led, in truth and reality, to own\nhimself lost\u2014to condemn himself\u2014to take the place of true repentance,\nthen is he, in very deed, one of the children of Wisdom, and he may\ntherefore, with boldness and decision, \u201cdeclare his pedigree.\u201d\n\nWe would urge this point at the outset. It is impossible for any one to\nrecognize and rally around the proper \u201cstandard\u201d unless he can declare\nhis \u201cpedigree.\u201d In short, it is impossible to take up a true position\nin the wilderness so long as there is any uncertainty as to this great\nquestion. How could an Israelite of old have taken his place in the\nassembly\u2014how could he have stood in the ranks\u2014how could he expect to make\nany progress through the wilderness, if he could not distinctly declare\nhis pedigree? Impossible. Just so is it with Christians now. Progress in\nwilderness life\u2014success in spiritual warfare, is out of the question if\nthere be any uncertainty as to the spiritual pedigree. We must be able\nto say, \u201cWe _know_ that we have passed from death unto life\u201d\u2014\u201cWe _know_\nthat we are of God\u201d\u2014\u201cWe believe and are sure,\u201d ere there can be any real\nadvance in the life and walk of a Christian.\n\nReader, say, can you declare your pedigree? Is this a thoroughly\nsettled point with you? Are you clear as to this in the very depths of\nyour soul? When you are all alone with God, is it a perfectly settled\nquestion between you and Him? Search and see. Make sure work of it. Do\nnot slur the matter over. Build not upon mere profession. Say not, I am\na member of such a church; I receive the Lord\u2019s supper; I hold such and\nsuch doctrines; I have been religiously brought up; I live a moral life;\nI have done nobody any harm; I read the Bible and say my prayers; I have\nfamily worship in my house; I give largely in the cause of philanthropy\nand religion. All this may be perfectly true of you, and yet you may not\nhave a single pulse of divine life, a single ray of divine light. Not\none of these things, not all of them put together, could be accepted as\na declaration of spiritual pedigree. There must be the witness of the\nSpirit that you are a child of God, and this witness always accompanies\nsimple faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. \u201cHe that believeth in the Son of\nGod hath the witness in himself.\u201d (1 John v. 10.) It is not by any means\na question of looking into your own heart for evidences; it is not a\nbuilding upon frames, feelings, and experiences\u2014nothing of the sort. It\nis a childlike faith in Christ; it is having eternal life in the Son of\nGod; it is the imperishable record of the Holy Ghost; it is taking God\nat His word. \u201cVerily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth My word,\nand believeth on Him that sent Me, _hath_ everlasting life, and shall\nnot come into judgment [\u03ba\u03c1\u03af\u03c3\u03b9\u03bd], but _is passed_ from death unto life.\u201d\n(John v. 24.)\n\nThis is the true way to declare your pedigree; and be assured of it, you\nmust be able to declare it ere you can \u201cgo forth to war.\u201d We do not mean\nto say you cannot be saved without this. God forbid we should say any\nsuch thing. We believe there are hundreds of the true spiritual Israel\nwho are not able to declare their pedigree; but we ask, Are such able\nto go forth to war? are they vigorous military men? Far from it. They\ncannot even know what true conflict is: on the contrary, persons of this\nclass mistake their doubts and fears\u2014their dark and cloudy seasons for\ntrue Christian conflict. This is a most serious mistake, but, alas! a\nvery common one. We continually find a low, dark, legal condition of soul\ndefended on the ground of Christian conflict, whereas, according to the\nNew Testament, true Christian conflict, or warfare, is carried on in a\nregion where doubts and fears are unknown. It is when we stand in the\nclear daylight of God\u2019s full salvation\u2014salvation in a risen Christ\u2014that\nwe really enter upon the warfare proper to us as Christians. Are we to\nsuppose for a moment that our legal struggles, our culpable unbelief,\nour refusal to submit to the righteousness of God, our questionings and\nreasonings, can be viewed as Christian conflict? By no means. All these\nthings must be regarded as conflict with God; whereas Christian conflict\nis carried on with Satan.\u2014\u201cWe wrestle not against flesh and blood,\nbut against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the\ndarkness of this world, against wicked spirits in high place.\u201d (Eph. vi.\n12.)\n\nThis is Christian conflict. But can such conflict be waged by those who\nare continually doubting whether they are Christians or not? We do not\nbelieve it. Could we imagine an Israelite in conflict with Amalek in\nthe wilderness, or with the Canaanites in the land of promise, while\nyet unable to \u201cdeclare his pedigree\u201d or recognize his \u201cstandard\u201d? The\nthing is inconceivable. No, no; every member of the congregation who was\nable to go forth to war was perfectly clear and settled as to those two\npoints. Indeed, he could not go forth if he were not so.\n\nAnd while on the important subject of Christian conflict, it may be well\nto call the reader\u2019s attention to the three portions of New-Testament\nscripture in which we have three distinct characters of conflict\npresented, namely, Romans vii. 7-24; Galatians v. 17; Ephesians vi.\n10-17. If the reader will just turn for a moment to the above scriptures,\nwe shall seek to point out the true character of each.\n\nIn Romans vii. 7-24, we have the struggle of a soul quickened but not\nemancipated\u2014a regenerated soul under the law. The proof that we have\nbefore us here a quickened soul, is found in such utterances as these:\n\u201cThat which I do, I allow not.\u201d\u2014\u201cTo will is present with me.\u201d\u2014\u201c_I delight\nin the law of God after the inward man._\u201d None but a regenerated soul\ncould speak thus. The disallowance of the wrong, the _will_ to do right,\nthe inward delight in the law of God\u2014all these are the distinct marks of\nthe new life\u2014the precious fruits of regeneration. No unconverted person\ncould truthfully use such language.\n\nBut on the other hand, the proofs that we have before us in this\nscripture a soul not fully emancipated, not in the joy of known\ndeliverance, not in the full consciousness of victory, not in the assured\npossession of spiritual power\u2014the plain proofs of all this we have in\nsuch utterances as the following: \u201cI am carnal, sold under sin.\u201d\u2014\u201cWhat I\nwould, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.\u201d\u2014\u201cO wretched man that I\nam! who shall deliver me?\u201d Now, we know that a Christian is not \u201ccarnal,\u201d\nbut spiritual; he is not \u201csold under sin,\u201d but redeemed from its power;\nhe is not a \u201cwretched man,\u201d sighing for deliverance, but a happy man,\nwho knows himself delivered. He is not an impotent slave, unable to do\nthe right thing, and ever compelled to do the wrong; he is a free man,\nendowed with power in the Holy Ghost, and able to say, \u201cI can do _all_\nthings through Christ that strengtheneth me.\u201d (Phil. iv.)\n\nWe cannot here attempt to enter upon a full exposition of this most\nimportant scripture; we merely offer a suggestion or two which may help\nthe reader to seize its scope and import. We are fully aware that many\nChristians differ widely as to the interpretation of this chapter.\nSome deny that it presents the exercises of a quickened soul; others\nmaintain that it sets forth the experiences proper to a Christian. We\ncannot accept either conclusion. We believe it exhibits to our view the\nexercises of a truly regenerated soul, but of a soul not set free by the\nknowledge of its union with a risen Christ, and the power of the Holy\nGhost. Hundreds of Christians are actually in the seventh of Romans; but\ntheir proper place is in the eighth. They are, as to their experience,\nunder the law; they do not know themselves as sealed by the Holy Ghost;\nthey are not in possession of full victory in a risen and glorified\nChrist; they have doubts and fears, and are ever disposed to cry out, \u201cO\nwretched man that I am? who shall deliver me?\u201d But is not a Christian\ndelivered? is he not saved? is he not accepted in the Beloved? is he not\nsealed by that Holy Spirit of promise? is he not united to Christ? ought\nhe not to know, to enjoy, and to confess all this? Unquestionably. Well,\nthen, he is no longer, as to his standing, in the seventh of Romans. It\nis his privilege to sing the song of victory, at heaven\u2019s side of the\nempty tomb of Jesus, and to walk in the holy liberty wherewith Christ\nmakes His people free. The seventh of Romans is not liberty at all, but\nbondage\u2014except, indeed, at the very close, where the soul is able to say,\n\u201cI thank God.\u201d No doubt, it may be a very wholesome exercise to pass\nthrough all that is here detailed for us with such marvelous vividness\nand power; and furthermore, we must declare that we should vastly prefer\nbeing honestly in the seventh of Romans to being falsely in the eighth.\nBut all this leaves wholly untouched the question as to the proper\napplication of this profoundly interesting passage of Scripture.\n\nWe shall now glance for a moment at the conflict in Galatians v. 17.\nWe shall quote the passage. \u201cFor the flesh lusteth against the Spirit,\nand the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the\nother: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.\u201d[2] This passage\nis often quoted to account for continual _defeat_, whereas it really\ncontains the secret of perpetual _victory_. In verse 16, we read, \u201cThis\nI say, then, walk in the Spirit, and _ye shall not fulfill_ the lust of\nthe flesh.\u201d This makes it all so clear. The presence of the Holy Ghost\nsecures power. We are assured that God is stronger than \u201cthe flesh,\u201d\nand therefore where He is in conflict, the triumph is secured. And be\nit carefully noted that Galatians v. 17 does not speak of the conflict\nbetween the two natures\u2014the old and the new, but between the Holy Ghost\nand the flesh. This is the reason why it is added, \u201cIn order that ye may\nnot do the things that ye would.\u201d If the Holy Ghost were not dwelling\nin us, we should be sure to fulfill the lust of the flesh; but inasmuch\nas He is in us to carry on the warfare, we are no longer obliged to do\nwrong, but blessedly enabled to do right.\n\nNow this precisely marks the point of difference between Romans vii.\n14, 15 and Galatians v. 17. In the former, we have the new nature, but\nnot the power of the indwelling Spirit; in the latter, we have not only\nthe new nature, but also the power of the Holy Ghost. We must ever bear\nin mind that the new nature in a believer is dependent. It is dependent\nupon the Spirit for power, and upon the Word for guidance. But clearly,\nwhere God the Holy Ghost is, there must be power. He may be grieved and\nhindered, but Galatians v. 16 distinctly teaches that if we walk in the\nSpirit, we shall have sure and constant victory over the flesh. Hence,\ntherefore, it would be a very serious mistake indeed to quote Galatians\nv. 17 as a reason for a low and carnal walk. Its teaching is designed to\nproduce the direct opposite.\n\nAnd now one word on Ephesians vi. 10-17. Here we have the conflict\nbetween the Christian and wicked spirits in heavenly places. The\nChurch belongs to heaven, and should ever maintain a heavenly walk and\nconversation. It should be our constant aim to make good our heavenly\nstanding\u2014to plant the foot firmly upon our heavenly inheritance, and keep\nit there. This, the devil seeks to hinder in every possible way, and\nhence the conflict; hence, too, \u201cthe whole armor of God,\u201d by which alone\nwe can stand against our powerful spiritual foe.\n\nIt is not our purpose to dwell upon the armor, as we have merely called\nthe reader\u2019s attention to the above three scriptures in order that he may\nhave the subject of conflict, in all its phases, fully before his mind,\nin connection with the opening lines of the book of Numbers. Nothing can\nbe more interesting; nor can we possibly overestimate the importance of\nbeing clear as to the real nature and ground of Christian conflict. If we\ngo forth to war without knowing what the war is about, and in a state of\nuncertainty as to whether our \u201cpedigree\u201d is all right, we shall not make\nmuch headway against the enemy.\n\nBut, as has been already remarked, there was another thing quite as\nnecessary for the man of war as the clear declaration of his pedigree,\nand that was, the distinct recognition of his standard. The two things\nwere essential for the walk and warfare of the wilderness. Moreover,\nthey were inseparable. If a man did not know his pedigree, he could not\nrecognize his standard, and thus all would have been plunged in hopeless\nconfusion. In place of keeping rank, and making steady progress, they\nwould have been in each others way, and treading one upon another. Each\nhad to know his post and keep it\u2014to know his standard and abide by it.\nThus they moved on together; thus progress was made, work done, and\nwarfare carried on. The Benjamite had his post, and the Ephraimite had\nhis, and neither was to interfere with or cross the path of the other.\nThus with all the tribes throughout the camp of the Israel of God.\nEach had his pedigree, and each had his post; and neither the one nor\nthe other was according to their own thoughts: all was of God. He gave\nthe pedigree, and He assigned the standard; nor was there any need of\ncomparing one with another, or any ground of jealousy one of another;\neach had his place to fill and his work to do, and there was work enough\nand room enough for all. There was the greatest possible variety, and yet\nthe most perfect unity. \u201cEvery man of the children of Israel shall pitch\nby his own standard, with the ensign of their father\u2019s house.\u201d \u201cAnd the\nchildren of Israel did according to all that the Lord commanded Moses; so\nthey pitched by their standards, and so they set forward, every one after\ntheir families, according to the house of their fathers.\u201d (Chap. ii. 2,\n34.)\n\nThus, in the camp of old, as well as in the Church now, we learn that\n\u201cGod is not the Author of confusion.\u201d Nothing could be more exquisitely\narranged than the four camps, of three tribes each, forming a perfect\nsquare, each side of the square exhibiting its own specific standard.\n\u201cEvery man of the children of Israel shall pitch by his own standard,\nwith the ensign of their father\u2019s house: over against the tabernacle of\nthe congregation shall they pitch.\u201d The God of the armies of Israel knew\nhow to marshal His hosts. It would be a great mistake to suppose that\nGod\u2019s warriors were not ordered according to the most perfect system of\nmilitary tactics. We may plume ourselves upon our progress in arts and\nsciences, and we may fancy that the host of Israel presented a spectacle\nof rude disorder and wild confusion, compared with what may be seen in\nmodern times; but this would be an empty conceit. We may rest assured\nthat the camp of Israel was ordered and furnished in the most perfect\nmanner, for the simplest and most conclusive of all reasons, namely, that\nit was ordered and furnished by the hand of God. Grant us but this, that\nGod has done any thing, and we argue, with the most perfect confidence,\nthat it has been perfectly done.\n\nThis is a very simple, but a very blessed principle. Of course it would\nnot satisfy an infidel or a skeptic; what would? It is the province and\nprerogative of a skeptic to doubt every thing, to believe nothing. He\nmeasures every thing by his own standard, and rejects whatever he cannot\nreconcile with his own notions. He lays down, with marvelous coolness,\nhis own premises, and then proceeds to draw his own conclusions; but if\nthe premises are false, the conclusions must be false likewise. And there\nis this invariable feature attaching to the premises of all skeptics,\nrationalists, and infidels\u2014_they always leave out God_; and hence all\ntheir conclusions must be fatally false. On the other hand, the humble\nbeliever starts with this great first principle, that God IS; and not\nonly that He is, but that He has to do with His creatures; that He\ninterests Himself in, and occupies Himself about, the affairs of men.\n\nWhat consolation for the Christian! But infidelity will not allow this at\nall. To bring God in is to upset all the reasonings of the skeptic, for\nthey are based upon the thorough exclusion of God.\n\nHowever, we are not now writing in order to meet infidels, but for the\nedification of believers; and yet it is sometimes well to call attention\nto the thorough rottenness of the whole system of infidelity; and\nsurely, in no way can this be more clearly or forcibly shown than by\nthe fact that it rests entirely upon the exclusion of God. Let this\nfact be seized, and the whole system crumbles into dust at our feet. If\nwe believe that God is, then assuredly every thing must be viewed in\nrelation to Him. We must look at all from His point of view. Nor is this\nall. If we believe that God is, then we must see that man cannot judge\nHim. God must be the judge of right or wrong, of what is and what is not\nworthy of Himself. So also in reference to God\u2019s Word. If it be true that\nGod is, and that He has spoken to us\u2014He has given us a revelation, then\nassuredly that revelation is not to be judged by man\u2019s reason. It is\nabove and beyond any such tribunal. Only think of measuring God\u2019s Word by\nthe rules of human arithmetic! And yet this is precisely what has been\ndone, in our own day, with this blessed book of Numbers, with which we\nare now engaged, and with which we shall proceed, leaving infidelity and\nits arithmetic aside.\n\nWe feel it very needful, in our notes and reflections on this book, as\nwell as on every other book, to remember two things, namely, first,\nthe _book_; and secondly, the _soul_,\u2014the book and its contents; the\nsoul and its necessities. There is a danger of becoming so occupied\nwith the former as to forget the latter; and on the other hand, there\nis the danger of becoming so wholly engrossed with the latter as to\nforget the former. Both must be attended to. And we may say that what\nconstitutes an efficient ministry, whether written or oral, is the proper\nadjustment of these two things. There are some ministers who study the\nWord very diligently, and, it may be, very profoundly; they are well\nversed in biblical knowledge; they have drunk deeply at the fountain\nof inspiration. All this is of the utmost importance, and of the very\nhighest value. A ministry without this will be barren indeed. If a man\ndoes not study his Bible diligently and prayerfully, he will have little\nto give to his readers or his hearers\u2014at least, little worth their\nhaving. Those who minister in the Word must dig for themselves, and \u201c_dig\ndeep_.\u201d\n\nBut then the _soul_ must be considered\u2014its condition anticipated, and its\nnecessities met. If this be lost sight of, the ministry will lack point,\npungency, and power. It will be inefficient and unfruitful. In short,\nthe two things must be combined and properly adjusted. A man who merely\nstudies the _book_ will be unpractical; a man who merely studies the\n_soul_ will be unfurnished; a man who duly studies _both_ will be a good\nminister of Jesus Christ.\n\nNow, we desire, in our measure, to be this to the reader; and hence, as\nwe travel, in his company, through the marvelous book which lies open\nbefore us, we would not only seek to point out its moral beauties and\nunfold its holy lessons, but we would also feel it to be our bounden duty\nto put an occasional question to him or her, as to how far those lessons\nare being learnt and those beauties appreciated. We trust the reader\nwill not object to this, and hence, ere we close this our first section,\nwe would ask him a question or two thereon.\n\nAnd first, then, dear friend, Art thou clear and settled as to thy\n\u201cpedigree\u201d? is it a settled thing that thou art on the Lord\u2019s side? Do\nnot, we beseech thee, leave this grand question unsettled. We have asked\nit before, and we ask it again. Dost thou know, canst thou declare, thy\nspiritual pedigree? It is the first thing for God\u2019s warrior. It is of no\nuse to think of entering the militant host so long as you are unsettled\nas to this point. We say not that a man cannot be saved without this. Far\nbe the thought. But he cannot take rank as a man of war. He cannot do\nbattle with the world, the flesh, and the devil so long as he is filled\nwith doubts and fears as to whether he belongs to the true spiritual\nstock. If there is to be any progress, if there is to be that decision so\nessential to a spiritual warrior, we must be able to say, \u201c_We know_ that\nwe have passed from death unto life\u201d\u2014\u201c_We know_ that we are of God.\u201d\n\nThis is the proper language of a man of war. Not one of that mighty host\nthat mustered \u201cover against the tabernacle of the congregation\u201d would\nhave understood such a thing as a single doubt, or shadow of a doubt,\nas to _his own very pedigree_. Doubtless, he would have smiled had\nany one raised a question on the subject. Each one of the six hundred\nthousand knew well whence he had sprung, and therefore where he was to\ntake his stand. And just so with God\u2019s militant host now. Each member\nthereof will need to possess the most unclouded confidence as to his\nrelationship, else he will not be able to stand in the battle.\n\nAnd then as to the \u201cstandard.\u201d What is it? Is it a doctrine? Nay. Is it\na theological system? Nay. Is it an ecclesiastical polity? Nay. Is it a\nsystem of ordinances, rites, or ceremonies? Nothing of the sort. God\u2019s\nwarriors do not fight under any such banner. What is the standard of\nGod\u2019s militant host? Let us hear and remember. It is Christ. This is the\nonly standard of God, and the only standard of that warrior-band which\nmusters in this wilderness-world to wage war with the hosts of evil and\nfight the battles of the Lord. Christ is the standard for every thing. To\nhave any other would only unfit us for that spiritual conflict to which\nwe are called. What have we, _as Christians_, to do with contending for\nany system of theology or church organization? Of what account, in our\nestimation, are ordinances, ceremonies, or ritualistic observances? Are\nwe going to fight under such banners as these? God forbid! Our theology\nis the Bible; our church-organization is the one Body, formed by the\npresence of the Holy Ghost, and united to the living and exalted Head in\nthe heavens. To contend for any thing less than these is entirely below\nthe mark of a true spiritual warrior.\n\nAlas! alas! that so many who profess to belong to the Church of God\nshould so forget their proper standard, and be found fighting under\nanother banner. We may rest assured it superinduces weakness, falsifies\nthe testimony, and hinders progress. If we would stand in the day of\nbattle, we must acknowledge no standard whatsoever but Christ and His\nword\u2014the living Word and the written word. Here lies our security in\nthe face of all spiritual foes. The more closely we adhere to Christ,\nand to Him _alone_, the stronger and the safer we shall be. To have Him\nas a perfect covering for our eyes,\u2014to keep close to Him\u2014fast by His\nside, this is our grand moral safeguard. \u201cThe children of Israel shall\npitch their tents, every man by his own camp, and every man by his own\nstandard, throughout their hosts.\u201d\n\nOh that thus it may be throughout all the host of the Church of God!\nMay all be laid aside for Christ. May He be enough for our hearts. As\nwe trace our \u201cpedigree\u201d up to Him, may His name be inscribed on the\n\u201cstandard\u201d around which we encamp in this wilderness, through which we\nare passing home to our eternal rest above. Reader, see to it, we beseech\nthee, that there be not one jot or tittle inscribed on thy banner save\nJesus Christ\u2014that name which is above every name, and which shall yet be\nexalted forever throughout the wide universe of God.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTERS III. & IV.\n\n\nWhat a marvelous spectacle was the camp of Israel in that waste howling\nwilderness! What a spectacle to angels, to men, and to devils! God\u2019s eye\never rested upon it. His presence was there. He dwelt in the midst of\nHis militant people. It was there He found His habitation. He did not,\nHe could not, find His abode amid the splendors of Egypt, of Assyria, or\nof Babylon. No doubt those nations presented much that was attractive\nto nature\u2019s eye. The arts and sciences were cultivated amongst them.\nCivilization had reached a far loftier point amongst those ancient\nnations than we moderns are disposed to admit. Refinement and luxury were\nprobably carried to as great an extent there as amongst those who put\nforth very lofty pretensions.\n\nBut, be it remembered, Jehovah was not known among those nations; His\nname had never been revealed to them; He did not dwell in their midst.\nTrue, there were the ten thousand testimonies to His creative power; and\nmoreover, His superintending providence was over them,\u2014He gave them rain\nand fruitful seasons, filling their hearts with food and gladness; the\nblessings and benefits of His liberal hand were showered upon them from\nday to day and year to year; His showers fertilized their fields, His\nsunbeams gladdened their hearts: but they knew Him not, and cared not\nfor Him. His dwelling was not there. Not one of those nations could say,\n\u201cJehovah is my strength and song, and He is become my salvation: He is\nmy God, and I will prepare Him a habitation; my father\u2019s God, and I will\nexalt Him.\u201d (Ex. xv. 2.)\n\nJehovah found His abode in the bosom of His redeemed people, and no where\nelse. Redemption was the necessary basis of God\u2019s habitation amongst\nmen. Apart from redemption, the divine presence could only prove the\ndestruction of man; but redemption being known, that presence secures\nman\u2019s highest privilege and brightest glory.\n\nGod dwelt in the midst of His people Israel. He came down from heaven,\nnot only to redeem them out of the land of Egypt, but to be their\ntraveling-companion through the wilderness. What a thought! The Most\nHigh God taking up His abode on the sand of the desert, and in the very\nbosom of His redeemed congregation! Truly, there was nothing like that\nthroughout the wide, wide world. There was that host of six hundred\nthousand men, beside women and children, in a sterile desert, where\nthere was not a blade of grass, not a drop of water\u2014no visible source of\nsubsistence. How were they to be fed? God was there! How were they to be\nkept in order? God was there! How were they to track their way through a\nhowling wilderness, where there was no way? God was there!\n\nIn a word, God\u2019s presence secured every thing. Unbelief might say,\nWhat! are three millions of people to be fed on air? Who has charge of\nthe commissariat? where are the military stores? where is the baggage?\nwho is to attend to the clothing? Faith alone could answer, and its\nanswer is simple, brief, and conclusive,\u2014God was there! And that was\nquite sufficient. All is comprehended in that one sentence. In faith\u2019s\narithmetic, God is the only significant figure; and having Him, you may\nadd as many ciphers as you please. If all your springs are in the living\nGod, it ceases to be a question of your need, and resolves itself into a\nquestion of His sufficiency.\n\nWhat were six hundred thousand footmen to the Almighty God? what the\nvaried necessities of their wives and children? In man\u2019s estimation,\nthese things might seem overwhelming. England has just sent out ten\nthousand troops to Abyssinia; but only think of the enormous expense and\nlabor\u2014think of the number of transports required to convey provisions and\nother necessaries for that small army. But imagine an army sixty times\nthe size, together with the women and children; conceive this enormous\nhost entering upon a march that was to extend over the space of forty\nyears, through \u201ca great and terrible wilderness,\u201d in which there was\nno corn, no grass, no water-spring. How were they to be sustained? No\nsupplies with them, no arrangements entered into with friendly nations\nto forward supplies, no transports dispatched to meet them at various\npoints along their route; in short, not a single visible source of\nsupply\u2014nothing that nature would consider available.\n\nAll this is something worth pondering. But we must ponder it in the\ndivine presence. It is of no possible use for reason to sit down and\ntry to solve this mighty problem by human arithmetic. No, reader; it is\nonly faith that can solve it, and that, moreover, by the Word of the\nliving God. Here lies the precious solution. Bring God in, and you want\nno other factors to work out your answer; leave Him out, and the more\npowerful your reason, and the more profound your arithmetic, the more\nhopeless must be your perplexity.\n\nThus it is that faith settles the question. God was in the midst of His\npeople. He was there in all the fullness of His grace and mercy\u2014there\nin His perfect knowledge of His people\u2019s wants, and of the difficulties\nof their path\u2014there in His almighty power and boundless resources, to\nmeet these difficulties and supply these wants. And so fully did He\nenter into all these things, that He was able, at the close of their\nlong wilderness-wanderings, to appeal to their hearts in the following\ntouching accents: \u201cFor the Lord thy God hath blessed thee in all the\nworks of thy hand; He knoweth thy walking through this great wilderness:\nthese forty years the Lord thy God hath been with thee; _thou hast lacked\nnothing_.\u201d And again, \u201cThy raiment waxed not old upon thee, neither did\nthy foot swell, these forty years.\u201d (Deut. ii. 7; viii. 4.)\n\nNow, in all these things, the camp of Israel was a type\u2014a vivid, striking\ntype. A type of what? A type of the Church of God passing through this\nworld. The testimony of Scripture is so distinct on this point, as to\nleave no room and no demand for the exercise of imagination.\u2014\u201cAll these\nthings happened unto them for ensamples; and they are written for our\nadmonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.\u201d (1 Cor. x. 11.)\n\nHence, therefore, we may draw near and gaze, with intense interest, upon\nthat marvelous spectacle, and seek to gather up the precious lessons\nwhich it is so eminently fitted to teach. And, oh, what lessons! Who\ncan duly estimate them? Look at that mysterious camp in the desert,\ncomposed, as we have said, of warriors, workers, and worshipers. What\nseparation from all the nations of the world! what utter helplessness!\nwhat exposure! what absolute dependence upon God! They had nothing, could\ndo nothing, could know nothing. They had not a morsel of food nor a drop\nof water, but as they received it day by day from the immediate hand of\nGod. When they retired to rest at night, there was not a single atom of\nprovision for the morrow. There was no storehouse, no larder, no visible\nsource of supply\u2014nothing that nature could take any account of.\n\nBut God was there, and that, in the judgment of faith, was quite enough.\n_They were shut up to God._ This is the one grand reality. Faith owns\nnothing real, nothing solid, nothing true, but the one true, living,\neternal God. Nature might cast a longing look at the granaries of Egypt,\nand see something tangible, something substantial there: faith looks up\nto heaven and finds _all_ its springs there.\n\nThus it was with the camp in the desert, and thus it is with the Church\nin the world. There was not a single exigency, not a single contingency,\nnot a single need of any sort whatsoever, for which the Divine Presence\nwas not an all-sufficient answer. The nations of the uncircumcised might\nlook on and marvel; they might, in the bewilderment of blind unbelief,\nraise many a question as to how such a host could ever be fed, clothed,\nand kept in order. Most certainly they had no eyes to _see_ how it\ncould be done. They knew not Jehovah, the Lord God of the Hebrews; and\ntherefore to tell them that He was going to undertake for that vast\nassembly would indeed seem like idle tales.\n\nAnd so it is now, in reference to the assembly of God, in this world,\nwhich may truly be termed a moral wilderness. Looked at from God\u2019s point\nof view, that assembly is not of the world; it is in complete separation.\nIt is as thoroughly apart from the world as the camp of Israel was apart\nfrom Egypt. The waters of the Red Sea rolled between that camp and Egypt;\nand the deeper and darker waters of the death of Christ roll between the\nChurch of God and this present evil world. It is impossible to conceive\nseparation more complete. \u201cThey,\u201d says our Lord Christ, \u201care not of the\nworld, even as I am not of the world.\u201d (John xvii.)\n\nThen, as to entire dependence, what can be more dependent than the\nChurch of God in this world? She has nothing in or of herself. She is\nset down in the midst of a moral desert, a dreary waste, a vast howling\nwilderness, in the which there is literally nothing on which she can\nlive. There is not one drop of water, not a single morsel of suited food,\nfor the Church of God throughout the entire compass of this world.\n\nSo also as to the matter of exposure to all sorts of hostile influences.\nNothing can exceed it. There is not so much as one friendly influence.\nAll is against her. She is in the midst of this world like an exotic\u2014a\nplant belonging to a foreign clime, and set down in a sphere where both\nthe soil and the atmosphere are uncongenial.\n\nSuch is the Church of God in the world\u2014a separated, dependent,\ndefenseless thing, wholly cast upon the living God. It is calculated to\ngive great vividness, force, and clearness to our thoughts about the\nChurch to view it as the antitype of the camp in the desert; and that it\nis in no wise fanciful or far-fetched to view it thus, 1 Corinthians x.\n11 does most clearly show. We are fully warranted in saying that what the\ncamp of Israel was literally, that the Church is morally and spiritually.\nAnd further, that what the wilderness was literally to Israel, that the\nworld is morally and spiritually to the Church of God. The wilderness was\nthe sphere of Israel\u2019s toil and danger, not of their supplies or their\nenjoyment; and the world is the sphere of the Church\u2019s toil and danger,\nnot of its supplies or its enjoyment.\n\nIt is well to seize this fact, in all its moral power. The assembly of\nGod in the world, like \u201cthe congregation in the wilderness,\u201d is wholly\ncast upon the living God. We speak, be it remembered, from the divine\nstand-point\u2014of what the Church is in God\u2019s sight. Looked at from man\u2019s\npoint of view\u2014looked at as she is in her own actual practical state, it\nis, alas! another thing. We are now only occupied with the normal, the\ntrue, the divine idea of God\u2019s assembly in this world.\n\nAnd let it not be forgotten for one moment, that as truly as there\nwas a camp in the desert of old\u2014a congregation in the wilderness, so\ntruly is there the Church of God\u2014the body of Christ\u2014in the world now.\nDoubtless, the nations of the world knew little and cared less about that\ncongregation of old; but that did not weaken or touch the great living\nfact. So now, the men of the world know little and care less about the\nassembly of God\u2014the body of Christ; but that in no wise touches the\ngrand living truth that there is such a thing actually existing in this\nworld, and _has been_ ever since the Holy Ghost descended on the day of\nPentecost. True, the congregation of old had its trials, its conflicts,\nits sorrows, its temptations, its strifes, its controversies, its\ninternal commotions, its numberless and nameless difficulties, calling\nfor the varied resources that were in God\u2014the precious ministrations of\nprophet, priest, and king which God had provided; for, as we know, Moses\nwas there as \u201cking in Jeshurun,\u201d and as the prophet raised up of God; and\nAaron was there to exercise all the priestly functions.\n\nBut in spite of all these things that we have named\u2014in spite of the\nweakness, the failure, the sin, the rebellion, the strife\u2014still there\nwas the striking fact, to be taken cognizance of by men, by devils, and\nby angels, namely, a vast congregation, amounting to something like\nthree millions of people (according to the usual mode of computation)\njourneying through a wilderness, wholly dependent upon an unseen\narm, guided and cared for by the eternal God, whose eye was never for\none moment withdrawn from that mysterious typical host; yea, He dwelt\nin their midst, and never left them, in all their unbelief, their\nforgetfulness, their ingratitude, and rebellion. God was there to sustain\nand guide, to guard and keep them day and night. He fed them with bread\nfrom heaven day by day, and He brought them forth water out of the flinty\nrock.\n\nThis, assuredly, was a stupendous fact\u2014a profound mystery. God had a\ncongregation in the wilderness\u2014apart from the nations around, shut up to\nHimself. It may be the nations of the world knew nothing, cared nothing,\nthought nothing, about this assembly. It is certain the desert yielded\nnothing in the way of sustenance or refreshment. There were serpents\nand scorpions,\u2014there were snares and dangers\u2014drought, barrenness, and\ndesolation; but there was that wonderful assembly maintained in a manner\nthat baffled and confounded human reason.\n\nAnd, reader, remember, this was a type. A type of what? A type of\nsomething that has been in existence for over eighteen centuries; is in\nexistence still; and shall be in existence until the moment that our\nLord Christ rises from His present position and descends into the air.\nIn one word, a type of the Church of God in the world. How important to\nrecognize this fact! How sadly it has been lost sight of! how little\nunderstood, even now! And yet every Christian is solemnly responsible to\nrecognize, and practically to confess it. There is no escaping it. Is it\ntrue that there is something in this world at this very moment answering\nto the camp in the desert? Yes, verily; there is, in very truth, the\nChurch in the wilderness. There is an assembly passing through this\nworld, just as the literal Israel passed through the literal desert. And\nmoreover, the world is morally and spiritually to that Church what the\ndesert was literally and practically to Israel of old. Israel found no\nsprings in the desert; and the Church of God should find no springs in\nthe world. If she does, she proves false to her Lord. Israel was not of\nthe desert, but passing through it; and the Church of God is not of the\nworld, but passing through it.\n\nIf this be thoroughly entered into by the reader, it will show him the\nplace of complete separation which belongs to the Church of God as a\nwhole, and to each individual member thereof. The Church, _in God\u2019s view\nof her_, is as thoroughly marked off from this present world as the camp\nof Israel was marked off from the surrounding desert. There is as little\nin common between the Church and the world as there was between Israel\nand the sand of the desert. The most brilliant attractions and bewitching\nfascinations of the world are to the Church of God what the serpents and\nscorpions and the ten thousand other dangers of the wilderness were to\nIsrael.\n\nSuch is the divine idea of the Church; and it is with this idea that we\nare now occupied. Alas! alas! how different it is with that which calls\nitself the Church! But we want the reader to dwell, for the present,\non the true thing; we want him to place himself, by faith, at God\u2019s\nstand-point, and view the Church from thence. It is only by so doing that\nhe can have any thing like a true idea of what the Church is, or of his\nown personal responsibility with respect to it. God _has_ a Church in the\nworld. There _is_ a body now on the earth, indwelt by God the Spirit, and\nunited to Christ the Head. This Church\u2014this body\u2014is composed of all those\nwho truly believe on the Son of God, and who are united by the grand fact\nof the presence of the Holy Ghost.\n\nAnd be it observed, this is not a matter of opinion\u2014a certain thing\nwhich we may take up or lay down at pleasure. It is a divine fact; it\nis a grand truth, whether we will hear or whether we will forbear. The\nChurch is an existing thing, and we, if believers, are members thereof.\nWe cannot avoid this: we cannot ignore it. We are actually in the\nrelationship\u2014baptized into it by the Holy Ghost. It is as real and as\npositive a thing as the birth of a child into a family. The birth has\ntaken place, the relationship is formed, and we have only to recognize\nit, and walk in the sense of it from day to day. The very moment in which\na soul is born again\u2014born from above, and sealed by the Holy Ghost, he is\nincorporated into the body of Christ. He can no longer view himself as\na solitary individual, an independent person, an isolated atom; he is a\nmember of a body, just as the hand or the foot is a member of the human\nbody. He is a member of _the_ Church of God, and cannot, properly and\ntruly, be a member of any thing else. How could my arm be a member of any\nother body? And on the same principle, we may ask, How could a member of\nthe body of Christ be a member of any other body?\n\nWhat a glorious truth is this respecting the Church of God\u2014the antitype\nof the camp in the desert\u2014\u201cthe congregation in the wilderness!\u201d What a\nfact to be governed by! There _is_ such a thing as the Church of God amid\nall the ruin and the wreck, the strife and the discord, the confusion\nand division, the sects and parties. This, surely, is a most precious\ntruth. But not only is it most precious, it is also most practical and\nformative. We are as bound to recognize, by faith, this Church in the\nworld, as the Israelite was bound to recognize, by sight, the camp in the\ndesert. There _was_ one camp\u2014one congregation, and the true Israelite\nbelonged thereto; there _is_ one Church\u2014one body, and the true Christian\nbelongs to it.\n\nBut how is this body organized? By the Holy Ghost, as it is written, \u201cBy\none Spirit are we all baptized into one body.\u201d (1 Cor. xii. 13.) How is\nit maintained? By its living Head, through the Spirit, and by the Word,\nas it is written, \u201cNo man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth\nand cherisheth it, even as the Lord the Church.\u201d (Eph. v. 29.) Is not\nthis enough? Is not the Lord Christ sufficient? Doth not the Holy Ghost\nsuffice? Do we want any thing more than the varied virtues that are\nlodged in the name of Jesus? Are not the gifts of the Eternal Spirit\nquite sufficient for the growth and maintenance of the Church of God?\nDoth not the fact of the divine presence in the Church, secure _all_\nthat the Church can possibly need? Is it not sufficient for \u201cexigence\nof every hour\u201d? Faith says\u2014and says it with emphasis and decision,\u2014Yes!\nUnbelief\u2014human reason, says, No; we want a great many things as well.\nWhat is our brief reply? Simply this: If God be not sufficient, we know\nnot whither to turn; if the name of Jesus doth not suffice, we know not\nwhat to do; if the Holy Ghost cannot meet all our need, in communion, in\nministry, and in worship, we know not what to say.\n\nIt may, however, be said that \u201cthings are not as they were in apostolic\ntimes. The professing church has failed; pentecostal gifts have ceased;\nthe palmy days of the Church\u2019s first love have passed away; and therefore\nwe must adopt the best means in our power for the organization and\nmaintenance of our churches.\u201d To all this we reply, God has not failed;\nChrist, the Head of the Church, has not failed; the Holy Spirit has not\nfailed; not one jot or tittle of God\u2019s Word has failed. This is the\ntrue ground of faith. \u201cJesus Christ is the same yesterday, to-day, and\nforever.\u201d He has said, \u201cLo, I am with you.\u201d How long? During the days of\nfirst love? during apostolic times? so long as the Church shall continue\nfaithful? No; \u201cI am with you _always_, even unto the end of the age.\u201d\n(Matt. xxviii.) So also, at an earlier moment, when, for the first\ntime in the whole canon of Scripture, the Church, properly so called,\nis named, we have those memorable words, \u201cOn this Rock [the Son of the\nliving God] I will build My Church, and the gates of hell shall not\nprevail against it.\u201d (Matt. xvi.)\n\nNow, the question is, Is that Church on the earth at this moment? Most\nassuredly. It is as true that there is a Church now on this earth as\nthat there was a camp in the desert of old. Yes; and as truly as God was\nin that camp to meet every exigence, so truly is He now in the Church\nto order and guide in every thing, as we read, \u201cYe are builded together\nfor a habitation of God through the Spirit.\u201d (Eph. ii.) This is quite\nsufficient. All we want is to lay hold, by a simple faith, of this grand\nreality. The name of Jesus is as sufficient for all the exigencies of\nthe Church of God as it is for the soul\u2019s salvation. The one is as true\nas the other. \u201cWhere two or three are gathered together in [or, unto]\nMy name, there am I in the midst.\u201d (Matt. xviii.) Has this ceased to be\ntrue? and if not, is not Christ\u2019s presence quite enough for His Church?\nDo we need to set about planning or working for ourselves in church\nmatters? No more than in the matter of the soul\u2019s salvation. What do\nwe say to the sinner? Trust Christ. What do we say to the saint? Trust\nChrist. What do we say to an assembly of saints, few or many? Trust\nChrist. Is there aught that He cannot manage? \u201cIs there a thing too hard\nfor Him?\u201d Has His treasury of gift and grace become exhausted? Is He\nnot able to supply ministerial gifts? Can He not furnish evangelists,\npastors, and teachers? Can He not perfectly meet all the manifold\nnecessities of His Church in the wilderness? If not, where are we? what\nshall we do? whither shall we turn? What had the congregation of old\nto do? To look to Jehovah. For every thing? Yes; for every thing,\u2014for\nfood, for water, for clothing, for guidance, for protection, for all.\nAll their springs were in Him. Must we turn to some one else? Never. Our\nLord Christ is amply sufficient, in spite of all our failure and ruin,\nour sin and unfaithfulness. He has sent down the Holy Ghost, the blessed\nParaclete, to dwell with and in His people\u2014to form them into one body,\nand unite them to their living head in heaven. He is the power of unity,\nof communion, of ministry, and of worship. He has not left us, and He\nnever will. Only let us trust Him; let us use Him; let us give Him room\nto act. Let us carefully guard against every thing that might tend to\nquench, to hinder, or to grieve Him. Let us acknowledge Him, in His own\nproper place in the assembly, and yield ourselves, in all things, to His\nguidance and authority.\n\nHere, we are persuaded, lies the true secret of power and blessing. Do we\ndeny the ruin? How could we? Alas! alas! it stands forth as a fact too\npalpable and glaring to admit of denial. Do we seek to deny our share\nin the ruin\u2014our folly and sin? Would to God we felt it more deeply! But\nshall we add to our sin by denying our Lord\u2019s grace and power to meet\nus in our folly and ruin? Shall we forsake Him, the Fountain of living\nwaters, and hew out for ourselves broken cisterns that can hold no water?\nShall we turn from the Rock of Ages and lean upon the broken reeds of our\nown devising? God forbid! Rather let the language of our hearts be, as we\nthink of the name of Jesus,\u2014\n\n \u201cSalvation in that name is found,\n Cure for my grief and care;\n A healing balm for every wound,\n _All, all I want is there_.\u201d\n\nBut let not the reader suppose that we want to lend the smallest\ncountenance to ecclesiastical pretention. We perfectly abhor any such\nthing. We look upon it as utterly contemptible. We believe we cannot\npossibly take too low a place. A low place and a lowly spirit are\nwhat alone become us in view of our common sin and shame. All we seek\nto maintain is this, the all-sufficiency of the name of Jesus for\nall the exigencies of the Church of God, at all times and under all\ncircumstances. There was all power in that name in apostolic times,\nand why not now? Has any change passed over that glorious name? No,\nblessed be God. Well, then, it is sufficient for us at this moment, and\nall we want is to confide in it fully, and to show that we so confide\nby discarding thoroughly every other ground of confidence, and coming\nout, with bold decision, to that peerless and precious name. He has,\nblessed be His name, come down to the smallest congregation\u2014the smallest\nplurality, inasmuch as He has said, \u201cWhere _two_ or three are gathered\ntogether in My name, there am I.\u201d Does this still hold good? has it lost\nits power? does it no longer apply? Where has it been repealed?\n\nOh, Christian reader, we call upon you, by every argument which ought\nto weigh with your heart, to give your cordial assent and consent to\nthis one eternal truth, namely, _The all-sufficiency of the name of the\nLord Jesus Christ for the assembly of God, in every possible condition\nin which it can be found, throughout its entire history_.[3] We call\nupon you not merely to hold this as a true theory, but to confess it\npractically; and then, assuredly, you will taste the deep blessedness of\nthe presence of Jesus in the outside place\u2014a blessedness which must be\ntasted in order to be known; but when once really tasted, it can never be\nforgotten or surrendered for aught beside.\n\nBut we had no intention of pursuing the foregoing line of thought so far,\nor of penning such a lengthened introduction to the section of our book\nwhich lies open before us, and to which we shall now invite the reader\u2019s\nparticular attention.\n\nOn looking attentively at \u201cthe congregation in the wilderness\u201d (Acts vii.\n38.), we find it composed of three distinct elements, namely, _warriors_,\n_workers_, and _worshipers_. There was a _nation_ of warriors, a _tribe_\nof workers, a _family_ of worshipers, or priests. We have glanced at the\nfirst of these, and seen each one, according to his \u201cpedigree,\u201d taking up\nhis position by his \u201cstandard,\u201d according to the direct appointment of\nJehovah; and we shall now dwell for a few moments on the second, and see\neach one at his work and service, according to the same appointment. We\nhave considered the warriors; let us meditate on the workers.\n\nThe Levites were distinctly marked off from all the other tribes, and\ncalled to a very specific place and service. Thus we read of them, \u201cBut\nthe Levites after the tribe of their fathers were not numbered among\nthem. For the Lord had spoken unto Moses, saying, \u2018Only thou shalt not\nnumber the tribe of Levi, neither take the sum of them among the children\nof Israel. But thou shalt appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of\ntestimony, and over all the vessels thereof, and over all things that\nbelong to it: they shall bear the tabernacle, and all the vessels\nthereof; and they shall minister unto it, and shall encamp round about\nthe tabernacle. And when the tabernacle setteth forward, the Levites\nshall take it down; and when the tabernacle is to be pitched, the Levites\nshall set it up: and the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death.\nAnd the children of Israel shall pitch their tents, every man by his own\ncamp, and every man by his own standard, throughout their hosts. But the\nLevites shall pitch round about the tabernacle of testimony, that there\nbe no wrath upon the congregation of the children of Israel; and the\nLevites shall keep the charge of the tabernacle of testimony.\u2019\u201d (Chap. i.\n47-53.) And again we read, \u201cBut the Levites were not numbered among the\nchildren of Israel, as the Lord commanded Moses.\u201d (Chap. ii. 33.)\n\nBut why the Levites? Why was this tribe specially marked off from all the\nothers, and set apart for so holy and elevated a service? Was there any\nspecial sanctity or goodness about them to account for their being so\ndistinguished? Not by nature, certainly, nor yet by practice, as we may\nsee by the following words: \u201cSimeon and Levi are brethren; instruments\nof cruelty are in their habitations. O my soul, come not thou into their\nsecret; unto their assembly, mine honor, be not thou united; for in\n_their anger they slew a man_, and in their self-will they digged down\na wall. Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce; and their wrath, for\nit was cruel: I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel.\u201d\n(Gen. xlix.)\n\nSuch was Levi by nature and by practice\u2014self-willed, fierce, and cruel.\nHow remarkable that such an one should be singled out and brought into\na place of such high and holy privilege! Surely, we may say, it was\ngrace from first to last. It is the way of grace to take up the very\nworst cases. It stoops to the lowest depths and gathers up its brightest\ntrophies from thence. \u201cThis is a faithful saying, and worthy of all\nacceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of\nwhom I am chief.\u201d (1 Tim. i. 16.) \u201cUnto me, who am less than the least of\nall saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles\nthe unsearchable riches of Christ.\u201d (Eph. iii.)\n\nBut how striking the language, \u201cO my soul, come not thou into their\nsecret; unto their assembly, mine honor, be not thou united.\u201d God is of\npurer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot look on iniquity. God could\nnot come into Levi\u2019s secret, or be united unto his assembly. That was\nimpossible. God could have naught to do with self-will, fierceness,\nand cruelty. But yet He could bring Levi into His secret, and unite\nhim to His assembly. He could take him out of his habitation, wherein\nwere instruments of cruelty, and bring him into the tabernacle, to be\noccupied with the holy instruments and vessels that were there. This\nwas grace\u2014free, sovereign grace; and herein must be sought the basis of\nall Levi\u2019s blessed and elevated service. So far as he was personally\nconcerned, there was an immeasurable distance between him and a holy\nGod\u2014a chasm which no human art or power could bridge. A holy God could\nhave nothing to do with self-will, fierceness, and cruelty; but a God of\ngrace could have to do with Levi. He could visit such an one in sovereign\nmercy, and raise him up from the depths of his moral degradation, and\nbring him into a place of nearness to Himself.\n\nAnd, oh, what a marvelous contrast between Levi\u2019s position by nature and\nhis position by grace! between the instruments of cruelty and the vessels\nof the sanctuary! between Levi in Genesis xxxiv. and Levi in Numbers iii.\nand iv.\n\nBut let us look at the mode of God\u2019s dealing with Levi\u2014the ground on\nwhich he was brought into such a place of blessing. In doing this,\nit will be needful for us to refer to chapter viii. of our book, and\nthere we are let into the secret of the whole matter. We shall see that\nthere was and could be no allowance of aught that belonged to Levi\u2014no\nsanction of any of his ways; and yet there was the most perfect display\nof grace\u2014grace reigning through righteousness. We speak of the type and\nits significance. We do so in view of that statement already referred\nto\u2014\u201cNow, all these things happened unto them for types.\u201d It is not a\nquestion of how far the Levites saw through these things. This is not\nat all the point. We are not to ask, What did the Levites see in God\u2019s\ndealing with them? but, What do we learn?\n\n\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, \u2018Take the Levites from among\nthe children of Israel, and cleanse them. And thus shalt thou do unto\nthem, to cleanse them: Sprinkle water of purifying upon them, and let\nthem shave all their flesh, and let them wash their clothes, and so make\nthemselves clean.\u2019\u201d (Chap. viii. 5-7.)\n\nHere we have, in type, the only divine principle of cleansing. It is the\napplication of death to nature and all its habits: it is the Word of God\nbrought to bear upon the heart and conscience, in a living way. Nothing\ncan be more expressive than the double action presented in the above\npassage. Moses was to sprinkle water of purifying upon them; and then\nthey were to shave off all their hair, and wash their garments. There\nis great beauty and precision here. Moses, as representing the claims\nof God, cleanses the Levites according to those claims; and they, being\ncleansed, are able to bring the sharp razor to bear upon all that was the\nmere growth of nature, and to wash their garments, which expresses, in\ntypic form, the cleansing their habits according to the Word of God. This\nwas God\u2019s way of meeting all that appertained to Levi\u2019s natural state\u2014the\nself-will, the fierceness, and the cruelty. The pure water and the sharp\nrazor were called into action\u2014the washing and shaving had to go on ere\nLevi was fit to approach the vessels of the sanctuary.\n\nThus it is in every case. There is, there can be, no allowance of nature\namong God\u2019s workers. There never was a more fatal mistake than to attempt\nto enlist nature in the service of God. It matters not how you may\nendeavor to improve or regulate it; it is not improvement, but death that\nwill avail. It is of the very last possible importance for the reader to\nlay hold, with clearness and force, of this great practical truth. Man\nhas been weighed in the balance and found wanting: the plummet has been\napplied to him, and he has been found crooked. It is of no possible use\nseeking to reform. Nothing will do save the _water_ and the _razor_.\nGod has closed up man\u2019s history; He has brought it to an end in the\ndeath of Christ. The first grand fact that the Holy Ghost presses upon\nthe human conscience is, that God has delivered His solemn verdict upon\nhuman nature, and that each one must accept that verdict against himself\npersonally. It is not a matter of opinion, or a matter of feeling. A\nperson may say, I do not see, or I do not feel, that I am so bad as you\nseem to make out. We reply, That does not affect the question in the\nleast. God has declared His judgment about us, and it is man\u2019s first duty\nto fall in with and bow to that. Of what use would it have been for Levi\nto say that he did not agree with what God\u2019s Word had said about him?\nWould that, could that, have altered the question as to him? In no wise.\nThe divine record remained the same whether Levi felt it or not; but\nclearly it was the first step in wisdom\u2019s pathway to bow down under the\nweight of that record.\n\nAll this is expressed, in type, in the \u201cwater\u201d and the \u201crazor\u201d\u2014the\n\u201cwashing\u201d and the \u201cshaving.\u201d Nothing could be more significant or\nimpressive. These acts set forth the solemn truth of the sentence of\ndeath upon nature, and the execution of judgment upon all that nature\nproduces.\n\nAnd what, let us ask, is the meaning of the initiatory act of\nChristianity\u2014the act of baptism? Does it not set forth the blessed fact\nthat \u201cour old man\u201d\u2014our fallen nature\u2014is completely set aside, and that\nwe are introduced into an entirely new position? Truly so. And how do\nwe use the razor? By rigid self-judgment, day by day; by the stern\ndisallowance of all that is of nature\u2019s growth. This is the true path for\nall God\u2019s workers in the wilderness. When we look at Levi\u2019s conduct at\nShechem, in Genesis xxxiv, and the record concerning him in Genesis xlix,\nwe may ask, How can such an one ever be allowed to carry the vessels of\nthe sanctuary? The answer is, Grace shines in Levi\u2019s call, and holiness\nshines in Levi\u2019s cleansing. He was called to the work according to the\nriches of divine grace; but he was fitted for the work according to the\nclaims of divine holiness.\n\nThus it must be with all God\u2019s workers. We are most thoroughly convinced\nthat we are fit for God\u2019s work just so far as nature is brought under the\npower of the cross and the sharp razor of self-judgment. Self-will can\nnever be made available in the service of God; nay, it must be set aside,\nif we would know what true service is. There is, alas! a large amount of\nthat which passes for service which, if judged in the light of the divine\npresence, would be seen to be but the fruit of a restless will. This is\nmost solemn, and demands our most earnest attention. We cannot exercise\ntoo severe a censorship over ourselves in this very thing. The heart is\nso deceitful that we may be led to imagine that we are doing the Lord\u2019s\nwork, when in reality we are only pleasing ourselves; but if we would\ntread the path of true service, we must seek to be more and more apart\nfrom nature. The self-willed Levi must pass through the typic process\nof washing and shaving ere he can be employed in that elevated service\nassigned him by the direct appointment of the God of Israel.\n\nBut ere proceeding to examine particularly the work and service of the\nLevites, we must look for a moment at a scene in Exodus xxxii, in which\nthey act a very prominent and a very remarkable part. We allude, as the\nreader will at once perceive, to the golden calf. During the absence of\nMoses, the people so completely lost sight of God and His claims as to\nset up a molten calf and bow down thereto. This terrible act called for\nsummary judgment. \u201cAnd when Moses saw that the people were naked, (for\nAaron had made them naked to their shame among their enemies,) then Moses\nstood in the gate of the camp, and said, \u2018Who is on the Lord\u2019s side? let\nhim come unto me.\u2019 And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together\nunto him. And he said unto them, \u2018Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Put\nevery man his sword by his side, and go in and out from gate to gate\nthroughout the camp, and slay every man his brother, and every man his\ncompanion, and every man his neighbor.\u2019 And the children of Levi did\naccording to the word of Moses: and there fell of the people that day\nabout three thousand men. For Moses had said, \u2018Consecrate yourselves\nto-day to the Lord, even every man upon his son, and upon his brother;\nthat He may bestow upon you a blessing this day.\u2019\u201d (Ex. xxxii. 25-29.)\n\nThis was a testing moment. It could not be otherwise, when this great\nquestion was pressed home upon the heart and conscience, \u201c_Who is on the\nLord\u2019s side?_\u201d Nothing could be more searching. The question was not, Who\nis willing to work? No; it was a far deeper and more searching question.\nIt was not Who will go here or there\u2014do this or that? There might be a\nvast amount of doing and going, and all the while it might be but the\nimpulse of an unbroken will, which, acting upon religious nature, gave an\nappearance of devotedness and piety eminently calculated to deceive one\u2019s\nself and others.\n\nBut to be \u201con the Lord\u2019s side\u201d implies the surrender of one\u2019s own\nwill\u2014yea, the surrender of one\u2019s self, and this is essential to the true\nservant\u2014the real workman. Saul of Tarsus was on this ground when he\nexclaimed, \u201cLord, what wilt _Thou_ have _me_ to do?\u201d What words, from the\nself-willed, fierce, and cruel persecutor of the Church of God!\n\n\u201cWho is on the Lord\u2019s side?\u201d Reader, art thou? Search and see. Examine\nthyself closely. Remember, the question is not at all What art thou\ndoing? No; it is far deeper. If thou art on the Lord\u2019s side, thou art\nready for any thing and every thing. Thou art ready to stand still, or\nready to go forward; ready to go to the right or to the left; ready to\nbe active, and ready to be quiet; ready to stand on thy feet, and ready\nto lie on thy back. The grand point is this, namely, the surrender of\nthyself to the claims of another, and that other the Lord Christ.\n\nThis is an immense point. Indeed we know of nothing more important at\nthe present moment than this searching question, \u201cWho is on the Lord\u2019s\nside?\u201d We live in days of immense self-will. Man exults in his liberty.\nAnd this comes out very prominently in religious matters. Just as it was\nin the camp of Israel in the days of the thirty-second of Exodus\u2014the\ndays of the golden calf. Moses was out of sight, and the human will was\nat work; the graving-tool was called into operation; and what was the\nresult? The molten calf; and when Moses returned, he found the people\nin idolatry and nakedness. Then came forth the solemn and testing\nquestion, \u201cWho is on the Lord\u2019s side?\u201d This brought things to an issue,\nor rather it put people to the test. Nor is it otherwise now. Man\u2019s will\nis rampant, and that, too, in matters of religion. Man boasts of his\nrights, of the freedom of his will, the freedom of his judgment. There\nis the denial of the lordship of Christ; and therefore it behooves us to\nlook well to it, and see that we really are taking sides with the Lord\nagainst ourselves; that we are in the attitude of simple subjection to\nHis authority. Then we shall not be occupied with the amount or character\nof our service; it will be our one object to do the will of our Lord.\n\nNow, to act thus under the Lord may often give an appearance of\nnarrowness to our sphere of action; but with this we have nothing\nwhatever to do. If a master tells his servant to stand in the hall, and\nnot to stir until he rings the bell, what is the servant\u2019s duty? Clearly\nto stand still; nor should he be moved from this position or attitude,\neven though his fellow-servants should find fault with his apparent\ninactivity and good-for-nothingness; he may rest assured his master will\napprove and vindicate. This is enough for any true-hearted servant, whose\none desire will ever be not so much to do a great deal, as to do the will\nof his Lord.\n\nIn a word, then, the question for the camp of Israel in the day of the\ngolden calf, and the question for the Church in this day of human will,\nis this: \u201cWho is on the Lord\u2019s side?\u201d Momentous question! It is not, Who\nis on the side of religiousness, philanthropy, or moral reform? There\nmay be a large amount of any or all of these things, and yet the will be\nthoroughly unbroken. Let us not forget this; nay, rather we should say,\nlet us continually bear it in mind. We may be very zealous in promoting\nall the various schemes of philanthropy, religiousness, and moral reform,\nand all the while be ministering to self, and feeding self-will. This\nis a most solemn and weighty consideration; and it behooves us to give\nearnest heed to it. We are passing through a moment in the which man\u2019s\nwill is being pampered with unparalleled diligence. We believe, most\nassuredly, that the true remedy for this evil will be found wrapped up in\nthis one weighty question, \u201cWho is on the Lord\u2019s side?\u201d There is immense\npractical power in this question. To be really on _the Lord\u2019s_ side is to\nbe ready for aught to which He may see fit to call us, no matter what. If\nthe soul is brought to say, in real truth, \u201c_Lord_, what wilt Thou have\nme to do?\u201d \u201cSpeak, _Lord_, for _Thy servant heareth_,\u201d then we are ready\nfor every thing. Hence, in the case of the Levites, they were called\nto \u201cslay every man his brother, and every man his companion, and every\nman his neighbor.\u201d This was terrible work for flesh and blood; but the\nmoment demanded it. God\u2019s claims had been openly and grossly dishonored;\nhuman invention had been at work, with the graving-tool, and a calf had\nbeen set up; the glory of God had been changed into the similitude of\nan ox that eateth grass; and therefore all who were on the Lord\u2019s side\nwere called to gird on the sword. Nature might say, No; let us be tender\nand gentle and gracious. We shall accomplish more by kindness than by\nseverity. It can do no good to wound people. There is far more power in\nlove than in harshness. Let us love one another. Thus might nature throw\nout its suggestions\u2014thus it might reason and argue; but the command was\ndistinct and decisive, \u201cPut every man his sword by his side.\u201d The sword\nwas the only thing when the golden calf was there. To talk of love at\nsuch a moment would be to fling overboard the just claims of the God of\nIsrael. It belongs to the true spirit of obedience to render the very\nservice which suits the occasion. A servant has no business to reason; he\nis simply to do as he is bid. To raise a question, or put forth a demur,\nis to abandon our place as a servant. It might seem most dreadful work\nto have to slay a brother, a companion, or a neighbor; but the word of\nthe Lord was imperative. It left no room for evasion; and the Levites,\nthrough grace, yielded a full and ready obedience. \u201cThe children of Levi\ndid according to the word of Moses.\u201d\n\nThis is the only true path for those who will be God\u2019s workers, and\nChrist\u2019s servants, in this world where self-will is dominant. It is\nimmensely important to have the truth of the lordship of Christ deeply\nengraved upon the heart. It is the only regulator of the course and\nconduct. It settles a thousand questions. If the heart be really subject\nto the authority of Christ, it is in readiness for any thing and every\nthing to which He calls us, be it to stand still or to go forward, to\ndo little or much, to be active or passive. To a really obedient heart\nthe question is not at all, What am I doing? or Where am I going? It is\nsimply, Am I doing the will of my Lord?\n\nSuch was the ground occupied by Levi. And mark the divine comment on\nthis, as given in Malachi.\u2014\u201cAnd ye shall know that I have sent this\ncommandment unto you, that My covenant might be with Levi, saith the Lord\nof hosts. My covenant was with him of life and peace; and I gave them\nto him for the fear wherewith he feared Me, and was afraid before My\nname. The law of truth was in his mouth, and iniquity was not found in\nhis lips: he walked with Me in peace and equity, and did turn many away\nfrom iniquity.\u201d (Mal. ii. 4-6.) Mark also the blessing pronounced by the\nlips of Moses, \u201cAnd of Levi he said, \u2018Let thy Thummim and thy Urim be\nwith thy holy one, whom thou didst prove at Massah, and with whom thou\ndidst strive at the waters of Meribah; who said unto his father and to\nhis mother, I have not seen him; neither did he acknowledge his brethren,\nnor knew his own children; for they have observed thy word and kept thy\ncovenant. They shall teach Jacob thy judgments, and Israel thy law; they\nshall put incense before thee, and whole burnt-sacrifice upon thine\naltar. Bless, Lord, his substance, and accept the work of his hands:\nsmite through the loins of them that rise against him, and of them that\nhate him, that they rise not again.\u2019\u201d (Deut. xxxiii. 8-11.)\n\nIt might have appeared unwarrantably harsh and severe in Levi not to have\nseen his parents, or known or acknowledged his brethren. But God\u2019s claims\nare paramount, and our Lord Christ hath declared these solemn words,\n\u201cIf any man come to Me, and hate not his father and mother and wife and\nchildren and brethren and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot\nbe My disciple.\u201d (Luke xiv. 26.)\n\nThese are plain words, and they let us into the secret of what it is\nwhich lies at the bottom of all true service. Let no one imagine that we\nare to be without natural affection. Far be the thought. To be so would\nbe to connect us, morally, with the apostasy of the last days. (See\n2 Tim. iii. 3.) But when the claims of natural affection are allowed\nto stand in the way of whole-hearted service to Christ, and when the\nso-called love of our brethren receives a higher place than faithfulness\nto Christ, then are we unfit for His service and unworthy of the name\nof His servants. Let it be carefully noted that what formed the _moral_\nground of Levi\u2019s title to be employed in the Lord\u2019s service was the fact\nthat he did not _see_ his parents, _acknowledge_ his brethren, or _know_\nhis children. In a word, he was enabled to set the claims of nature\ncompletely aside, and to give the claims of Jehovah the paramount place\nin his heart. This, we repeat, is the only true basis of the servant\u2019s\ncharacter.\n\nThis is a most weighty consideration, and one which demands the most\nserious attention of the Christian reader. There may be a vast amount of\nwhat looks like service\u2014a great deal of activity, of coming and going,\nof doing and saying\u2014and, all the while, there may not be a single atom\nof true Levite service\u2014yea, it may, in God\u2019s estimation, be only the\nrestless activity of the will. What! it may be said, can the will show\nitself in the service of God\u2014in matters of religion? Alas! alas! it\ncan, and does. And very often the apparent energy and fruitfulness in\nwork and service is just in proportion to the energy of the will. This\nis peculiarly solemn. It calls for the most rigid self-judgment, in the\nlight of the divine presence. True service doth not consist in great\nactivity, but in profound subjection to the will of our Lord; and where\nthis exists, there will be a readiness to sink the claims of parents,\nbrethren, and children, in order to carry out the will of Him whom we\nown as Lord. True, we should love our parents, our brethren, and our\nchildren. It is not that we should love these less, but we should love\nChrist more. He and His claims must ever have the paramount place in the\nheart, if we would be true workers for God, true servants for Christ,\ntrue Levites in the wilderness. It was this that marked the actings of\nLevi on the occasion to which we are referring. God\u2019s claims were in\nquestion, and hence the claims of nature were not to be entertained for a\nmoment. Parents, brethren, and children, how dear soever these might be,\nwere not to stand in the way when the glory of the God of Israel had been\nchanged into the similitude of an ox that eateth grass.\n\nHere lies the whole question, in all its weight and magnitude. The\nties of natural relationship, with all the claims, duties, and\nresponsibilities arising out of such ties, will ever get their proper\nplace, their due respect, from those whose hearts and minds and\nconsciences have been brought under the adjusting power of the truth\nof God. Naught, save what is really due to God and His Christ, should\never be suffered to infringe those rights which are founded upon natural\nrelationship. This is a most necessary and wholesome consideration, and\none which we would particularly press upon the young Christian reader.\nWe have ever to be on our guard against a spirit of self-will and\nself-pleasing, which is never so dangerous as when it clothes itself in\nthe garb of religious service and work so called. It behooves us to be\n_very sure indeed_ that we are directly and simply governed by the claims\nof God when we disregard the claims of natural relationship. In Levi\u2019s\ncase, the matter was as clear as a sunbeam, and hence the \u201c_sword_\u201d\nof judgment, not the kiss of affection, befitted the critical moment.\nSo also in our history, there are moments in which it would be open\ndisloyalty to our Lord Christ to hearken for one instant to the voice of\nnatural relationship.\n\nThe above remarks may help the reader to understand the actings of the\nLevites in Exodus xxxii, and the words of our Lord in Luke xiv. 26. May\nGod\u2019s Spirit enable us to realize and exhibit the adjusting power of\ntruth.\n\nWe shall now dwell for a few moments on the consecration of the Levites,\nin Numbers viii, in order that we may have the whole subject before our\nminds. Truly it is a theme full of instruction for all who desire to be\nworkers for God.\n\nAfter the ceremonial acts of \u201cwashing\u201d and \u201cshaving\u201d already referred to,\nwe read, \u201cThen let them [_i. e._, the Levites] take a young bullock with\nhis meat-offering, even fine flour mingled with oil, and another young\nbullock shalt thou take for a sin-offering. And thou shalt bring the\nLevites before the tabernacle of the congregation: and thou shalt gather\nthe whole assembly of the children of Israel together: and thou shalt\nbring the Levites before the Lord: and the children of Israel shall put\ntheir hands upon the Levites: and Aaron shall offer the Levites before\nthe Lord for an offering of the children of Israel, that they may execute\nthe service of the Lord. And the Levites shall lay their hands upon the\nheads of the bullocks; and thou shalt offer the one for a sin-offering,\nand the other for a burnt-offering, unto the Lord, to make an atonement\nfor the Levites.\u201d\n\nHere we have presented to us, in type, the two grand aspects of the\ndeath of Christ. The sin-offering furnishes the one, the burnt-offering\nfurnishes the other. Into the details of those offerings we do not enter\nhere, having sought to do so in the opening chapters of our \u201cNotes on\nLeviticus.\u201d We would merely observe here that in the sin-offering we see\nChrist bearing sin in His own body on the tree, and enduring the wrath\nof God against sin; in the burnt-offering, we see Christ glorifying God\neven in the very matter of making atonement for sin. Atonement is made in\nboth; but in the former, it is atonement according to the depth of the\nsinner\u2019s need; in the latter, it is atonement according to the measure\nof Christ\u2019s devotedness to God. In that, we see the hatefulness of sin;\nin this, the preciousness of Christ. It is, we need hardly say, the same\natoning death of Christ, but presented in two distinct aspects.[4]\n\nNow, the Levites laid their hands on both the sin-offering and the\nburnt-offering; and this act of the imposition of hands expressed the\nsimple fact of identification. But how different the result in each case!\nWhen Levi laid his hands on the head of the sin-offering, it involved\nthe transfer of all his sins, of all his guilt, of all his fierceness,\ncruelty, and self-will to the victim; and on the other hand, when he laid\nhis hands on the head of the burnt-offering, it involved the transfer\nof all the acceptableness of the sacrifice, of all its perfectness, to\nLevi. Of course, we speak of what the type set forth. We do not undertake\nto state aught as to Levi\u2019s intelligent entrance into these things; we\nmerely seek to unfold the meaning of the ceremonial figure; and, most\nassuredly, no figure could be more expressive than the imposition of\nhands, whether we view it in the case of the sin-offering or in the case\nof the burnt-offering. The doctrine of all this is embodied in that most\nweighty passage at the close of 2 Cor. v., \u201cHe hath made Him [Christ] to\nbe sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might become the righteousness of\nGod in Him.\u201d \u201c\u2018And thou shalt set the Levites before Aaron, and before\nhis sons, and offer them for an offering unto the Lord. Thus shalt thou\nseparate the Levites from among the children of Israel; and the Levites\nshall be Mine. And after that shall the Levites go in to do the service\nof the tabernacle of the congregation; and thou shalt cleanse them, and\noffer them for an offering. For they are wholly given unto Me from among\nthe children of Israel; instead of such as open every womb, even instead\nof the first-born of all the children of Israel, have I taken them unto\nMe. For all the first-born of the children of Israel are Mine, both man\nand beast: on the day that I smote every first-born in the land of\nEgypt I sanctified them for Myself. And I have taken the Levites for all\nthe first-born of the children of Israel. And I have given the Levites\nas a gift to Aaron and to his sons from among the children of Israel,\nto do the service of the children of Israel in the tabernacle of the\ncongregation, and to make an atonement for the children of Israel: that\nthere be no plague among the children of Israel, when the children of\nIsrael come nigh unto the sanctuary.\u2019 And Moses and Aaron and all the\ncongregation of the children of Israel did to the Levites according unto\nall that the Lord commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so did the\nchildren of Israel unto them.\u201d (Num. viii. 13-20.)\n\nHow forcibly are we reminded, by the foregoing lines, of the words of our\nLord in John xvii.\u2014\u201cI have manifested Thy name unto the men which Thou\ngavest Me out of the world: Thine they were, and Thou gavest them Me; and\nthey have kept Thy word.... I pray for them: I pray not for the world,\nbut for them which Thou hast given Me; for they are Thine. And all Mine\nare Thine, and Thine are Mine; and I am glorified in them.\u201d (Ver. 6-10.)\n\nThe Levites were a separated people\u2014God\u2019s special possession. They\ntook the place of all the first-born in Israel\u2014of those who were saved\nfrom the sword of the destroyer by the blood of the lamb. They were,\ntypically, a dead and risen people, set apart to God, and by Him\npresented as a gift to Aaron the high-priest, to do the service of the\ntabernacle.\n\nWhat a place for the self-willed, fierce, and cruel Levi! What a triumph\nof grace! What an illustration of the efficacy of the blood of atonement\nand the water of purification! They were, by nature and by practice, far\noff from God; but the \u201cblood\u201d of atonement, and the \u201cwater\u201d of cleansing,\nand the \u201crazor\u201d of self-judgment, had done their blessed work, and hence\nthe Levites were in a condition to be presented as a gift to Aaron and\nto his sons, to be associated with them in the hallowed services of the\ntabernacle of the congregation.\n\nIn all this the Levites were a striking type of God\u2019s people now. These\nlatter have been lifted from the depths of their degradation and ruin\nas sinners. They are washed in the precious blood of Christ, purified\nby the application of the Word, and called to the exercise of habitual\nand rigid self-judgment. Thus are they fitted for that holy service to\nthe which they are called. God has given them to His Son, in order that\nthey may be His workers in this world. \u201cThine they were, and Thou gavest\nthem Me.\u201d Wondrous thought! To think that such as we could be thus spoken\nof! To think of our being God\u2019s property and God\u2019s gift to His Son! Well\nmay we say it surpasses all human thought. It is not merely that we are\nsaved from hell; that is true: it is not merely that we are pardoned,\njustified, and accepted; all this is true: but we are called to the high\nand holy work of bearing through this world the name, the testimony, the\nglory, of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is our work as true Levites. As\nmen of war, we are called to fight; as priests, we are privileged to\nworship; but as Levites, we are responsible to serve, and our service is\nto carry through this dreary desert scene the Antitype of the tabernacle,\nand that tabernacle was the figure of Christ. This is our distinct line\nof service. To this we are called; to this we are set apart.\n\nThe reader will, we doubt not, notice, with interest, the fact that it\nis in this book of Numbers, and here alone, that we are furnished with\nall the precious and deeply instructive details respecting the Levites.\nIn this we have a fresh illustration of the character of our book. It is\nfrom a wilderness stand-point that we get a full and proper view of God\u2019s\nworkers as well as of God\u2019s warriors.\n\nAnd now, let us examine, for a few moments, the service of the Levites,\nas detailed in Numbers iii. and iv.\u2014\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses,\nsaying, \u2018Bring the tribe of Levi near, and present them before Aaron the\npriest, that they may minister unto him. And they shall keep his charge,\nand the charge of the whole congregation before the tabernacle of the\ncongregation, to do the service of the tabernacle. And they shall keep\nall the instruments of the tabernacle of the congregation, and the charge\nof the children of Israel, to do the service of the tabernacle. And thou\nshalt give the Levites unto Aaron and to his sons: they are wholly given\nunto him out of the children of Israel.\u2019\u201d (Chap. iii. 5-9.)\n\nThe Levites represented the whole congregation of Israel, and acted on\ntheir behalf. This appears from the fact that the children of Israel\nlaid their hands on the heads of the Levites, just as the Levites laid\ntheir hands on the heads of the sacrifices. (See chap. viii. 10.) The act\nof imposition expressed identification, so that, according to this, the\nLevites furnish a distinct view of the people of God in the wilderness.\nThey present them to us as a company of earnest workers, and that, too,\nbe it noted, not as mere desultory laborers, running to and fro, and\ndoing each one what seemed right in his own eyes. Nothing of the sort. If\nthe men of war had their pedigree to show, and their standard to adhere\nto, so had the Levites their centre to gather around and their work to\ndo. All was as clear, distinct, and defined as God could make it; and\nmoreover, all was under the immediate authority and direction of the\nhigh-priest.\n\nIt is most needful for all who would be true Levites, proper workmen,\nintelligent servants, to weigh, with all seriousness, this point. Levite\nservice was to be regulated by the appointment of the priest. There was\nno more room for the exercise of self-will in the service of the Levites\nthan there was in the position of the men of war. All was divinely\nsettled; and this was a signal mercy to all whose hearts were in a right\ncondition. To one whose will was unbroken, it might seem a hardship and\na most irksome task to be obliged to occupy the same position, or to be\nengaged in precisely the same line of work. Such an one might sigh for\nsomething fresh\u2014some variety in his work; but, on the contrary, where the\nwill was subdued, and the heart adjusted, each one would say, My path is\nperfectly plain; I have only to obey. This is ever the business of the\ntrue servant. It was pre-eminently so with Him who was the only perfect\nservant that ever trod the earth. He could say, \u201cI came down from heaven,\nnot to do Mine own will, but the will of Him that sent Me.\u201d And again,\n\u201cMy meat is to do the will of Him that sent Me, and to finish His work.\u201d\n\nBut there is another fact which claims our attention, in reference to\nthe Levites, and that is, their service had exclusively to do with the\ntabernacle and its belongings. They had nothing else to do. For a Levite\nto think of putting his hand to aught beside would have been to deny his\ncalling, to abandon his divinely appointed work, and to fly in the face\nof God\u2019s commandments.\n\nJust so is it with Christians now. Their exclusive business\u2014their one\ngrand work\u2014their absorbing service, is Christ and His belongings. They\nhave nothing else to do. For a Christian to think of putting his hand to\naught beside is to deny his calling, to abandon his divinely appointed\nwork, and to fly in the face of the divine commandments. A true Levite of\nold could say, To me to live is the tabernacle; and a true Christian now\ncan say, \u201cTo me to live is Christ.\u201d The grand question, in every matter\nwhich may present itself before the Christian, is this, Can I connect\nChrist with it? If not, I have nothing whatever to do with it.\n\nThis is the true way to look at things. It is not a question as to the\nright or wrong of this or that. No; it is simply a question as to how\nfar it concerns the name and glory of Christ. This simplifies every\nthing amazingly. It answers a thousand questions, solves a thousand\ndifficulties, and makes the path of the true and earnest Christian as\nclear as a sunbeam. A Levite had no difficulty as to his work. It was\nall settled for him with divine precision. The burden that each had to\ncarry, and the work that each had to do, was laid down with a clearness\nwhich left no room for the questionings of the heart. Each man could\nknow his work and do it; and, let us add, the work was done by each one\ndischarging his own specific functions. It was not by running hither and\nthither, and doing this or that, but by each man sedulously adhering to\nhis own particular calling, that the service of the tabernacle was duly\ndischarged.\n\nIt is well to bear this in mind. We, as Christians, are very apt to\njostle one another; indeed, we are sure to do so if we do not each one\npursue his own divinely appointed line of work. We say \u201c_divinely_\nappointed,\u201d and would press the word; we have no right to choose our own\nwork. If the Lord has made one man an evangelist, another a teacher,\nanother a pastor, and another an exhorter, how is the work to go on?\nSurely, it is not by the evangelist trying to teach, and the teacher to\nexhort, or one who is not fitted for either trying to do both. No; it\nis by each one exercising his own divinely imparted gift. No doubt, it\nmay please the Lord to endow one individual with a variety of gifts;\nbut this does not, in the smallest degree, touch the principle on which\nwe are dwelling, which is simply this, every one of us is responsible\nto know his own special line and pursue it. If this be lost sight of,\nwe shall get into hopeless confusion. God has His quarry-men, His\nstone-squarers, and His masons. The work progresses by each man attending\ndiligently to his own work. If all were quarry-men, where were the\nstone-squarers? if all were stone-squarers, where were the masons? The\ngreatest possible damage is done to the cause of Christ, and to God\u2019s\nwork in the world, by one man aiming at another\u2019s line of things, or\nseeking to imitate another\u2019s gift. It is a grievous mistake, against\nwhich we would solemnly warn the reader. Nothing can be more senseless.\nGod never repeats Himself. There are not two faces alike, not two leaves\nin the forest alike, not two blades of grass alike. Why, then, should any\none aim at another\u2019s line of work, or affect to possess another\u2019s gift?\nLet each one be satisfied to be just what his Master has made him. This\nis the secret of real peace and progress.\n\nAll this finds a very vivid illustration in the inspired record\nconcerning the service of the three distinct classes of the Levites,\nwhich we shall now proceed to quote at length for the reader. There is\nnothing, after all, to be compared with the veritable language of holy\nScripture.\n\n\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, saying,\n\u2018Number the children of Levi after the house of their fathers, by their\nfamilies, every male from a month old and upward shalt thou number\nthem.\u2019 And Moses numbered them _according to the word of the Lord, as\nhe was commanded_. And these were the sons of Levi by their names:\nGershon and Kohath and Merari. And these are the names of the sons of\nGershon by their families: Libni and Shimei. And the sons of Kohath by\ntheir families: Amram and Izehar, Hebron and Uzziel. And the sons of\nMerari by their families: Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of\nthe Levites according to the house of their fathers. Of Gershon was the\nfamily of the Libnites, and the family of the Shimites: these are the\nfamilies of the Gershonites. Those that were numbered of them, according\nto the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, even those\nthat were numbered of them were seven thousand and five hundred. The\nfamilies of the Gershonites shall pitch behind the tabernacle westward.\nAnd the chief of the house of the father of the Gershonites shall be\nEliasaph the son of Lael. And the charge of the sons of Gershon in the\ntabernacle of the congregation shall be the tabernacle, and the tent, the\ncovering thereof, and the hanging for the door of the tabernacle of the\ncongregation, and the hangings of the court, and the curtain for the door\nof the court, which is by the tabernacle, and by the altar round about,\nand the cords of it for all the service thereof.\u201d (Chap. iii. 14-26.)\nAnd again, we read, \u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, \u2018Take also\nthe sum of the sons of Gershon, throughout the houses of their fathers,\nby their families; from thirty years old and upward until fifty years\nold shalt thou number them; all that enter in to perform the service, to\ndo the work in the tabernacle of the congregation. This is the service\nof the families of the Gershonites, to serve, and for burdens: and they\nshall bear the curtains of the tabernacle, and the tabernacle of the\ncongregation, his covering, and the covering of the badgers\u2019 skins that\nis above upon it, and the hanging for the door of the tabernacle of the\ncongregation, and the hangings of the court, and the hanging for the door\nof the gate of the court, which is by the tabernacle and by the altar\nround about, and their cords, and all the instruments of their service,\nand all that is made for them: so shall they serve. At the appointment\nof Aaron and his sons shall be all the service of the sons of the\nGershonites, in all their burdens, and in all their service: and ye shall\nappoint unto them in charge all their burdens. This is the service of the\nfamilies of the sons of Gershon in the tabernacle of the congregation:\nand their charge shall be under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the\npriest.\u201d (Chap. iv. 21-28.)\n\nThus much as to Gershon and his work. He, with his brother Merari,\nhad to carry \u201cthe tabernacle;\u201d whereas Kohath was called to bear \u201cthe\nsanctuary,\u201d as we read in chapter x. \u201cAnd the tabernacle was taken down;\nand the sons of Gershon, and the sons of Merari set forward, bearing _the\ntabernacle_.... And the Kohathites set forward, bearing _the sanctuary_;\nand the other [_i. e._ the Gershonites and the Merarites] did set up the\ntabernacle against they came.\u201d (Ver. 17, 21.) There was a strong moral\nlink connecting Gershon and Merari in their service, although their work\nwas perfectly distinct, as we shall see from the following passage:\u2014\n\n\u201cAs for the sons of Merari, thou shalt number them after their families,\nby the house of their fathers; from thirty years old and upward, even\nunto fifty years old, shalt thou number them, every one that entereth\ninto the service, to do the work of the tabernacle of the congregation.\nAnd this is the charge of their burden, according to all their service\nin the tabernacle of the congregation: the boards of the tabernacle, and\nthe bars thereof, and the pillars thereof, and sockets thereof, and the\npillars of the court round about, and their sockets, and their pins, and\ntheir cords, with all their instruments, and with all their service: and\nby name ye shall reckon the instruments of the charge of their burden.\nThis is the service of the families of the sons of Merari, according to\nall their service in the tabernacle of the congregation, under the hand\nof Ithamar, the son of Aaron the priest.\u201d (Chap. iv. 29-33.)\n\nAll this was clear and distinct. Gershon had nothing to do with the\nboards and pins, and Merari had nothing to do with the curtains or the\ncoverings. And yet they were very intimately connected, as they were\nmutually dependent. \u201cThe boards and sockets\u201d would not do without \u201cthe\ncurtains,\u201d and the curtains would not do without the boards and sockets.\nAnd as to \u201cthe _pins_,\u201d though apparently so insignificant, who could\nestimate their importance in keeping things together, and maintaining\nthe visible unity of the whole? Thus all worked together to one common\nend, and that end was gained by each attending to his own special line.\nIf a Gershonite had taken it into his head to abandon \u201cthe curtains\u201d and\naddress himself to \u201cthe pins,\u201d he would have left his own work undone and\ninterfered with the work of the Merarite. This would never do. It would\nhave thrown every thing into hopeless confusion; whereas by adhering to\nthe divine rule, all was maintained in the most exquisite order.\n\nIt must have been perfectly beautiful to mark God\u2019s workers in the\nwilderness. Each one was at his post, and each moved in his divinely\nappointed sphere. Hence, the moment the cloud was lifted up and the order\nissued to strike, every man knew what he had to do, and he addressed\nhimself to that and to nothing else. No man had any right to think for\nhimself: Jehovah thought for all. The Levites had declared themselves\n\u201con the Lord\u2019s side;\u201d they had yielded themselves to His authority;\nand this fact lay at the very base of all their wilderness work and\nservice. Looked at in this light, it would be deemed a matter of total\nindifference whether a man had to carry a pin, a curtain, or a golden\ncandlestick. The grand question for each and for all was simply, Is this\nmy work? is this what the Lord has given me to do?\n\nThis settled every thing. Had it been left to human thinking or human\nchoosing, one man might like this, another might like that, and a third\nmight like something else. How then could the tabernacle ever be borne\nalong through the wilderness, or set up in its place? Impossible! There\ncould be but one supreme authority, namely, Jehovah Himself. He arranged\nfor all, and all had to submit to Him. There was no room at all for the\nexercise of the human will. This was a signal mercy; it prevented a world\nof strife and confusion. There must be subjection\u2014there must be a broken\nwill\u2014there must be a cordial yielding to divine authority, otherwise it\nwill turn out to be like the book of Judges\u2014\u201cevery man doing that which\nis right in his own eyes.\u201d A Merarite might say\u2014or think, if he did\nnot say it,\u2014\u201cWhat! am I to spend the very best portion of my life upon\nearth\u2014the days of my prime and vigor\u2014in looking after a few pins? Was\nthis the end for which I was born? Am I to have nothing higher before me\nas an object in life? Is this to be my occupation from the age of thirty\nto fifty?\u201d\n\nTo such questions there was a twofold reply. In the first place, it\nwas enough for the Merarite to know that Jehovah had assigned him his\nwork. This was sufficient to impart dignity to what nature might esteem\nthe smallest and meanest matter. It does not matter what we are doing,\nprovided always we are doing our divinely appointed work. A man may\npursue what his fellows would deem a most brilliant career; he may spend\nhis energies, his time, his talents, his fortune, in pursuits which the\nmen of this world esteem grand and glorious, and, all the while, his\nlife may prove to be but a splendid bubble. But on the other hand, the\nman that simply does the will of God, whatever that may be\u2014the man who\nexecutes his Lord\u2019s commands, whatever such commands may enjoin\u2014that is\nthe man whose path is illuminated by the beams of divine approbation,\nand whose work shall be remembered when the most splendid schemes of the\nchildren of this world have sunk in eternal oblivion.\n\nBut, besides the moral worth attaching always to the act of doing what\nwe are told to do, there was also a special dignity belonging to the\nwork of a Merarite, even though that work was merely attending to a few\n\u201cpins\u201d or \u201csockets.\u201d Every thing connected with the tabernacle was of\nthe very deepest interest and highest value. There was not, in the whole\nworld, any thing to be compared with that boarded tent with all its\nmystic belongings. It was a holy dignity and privilege to be allowed to\ntouch the smallest pin that formed a part of that wonderful tabernacle in\nthe wilderness. It was more glorious, by far, to be a Merarite looking\nafter the pins of the tabernacle, than to wield the sceptre of Egypt or\nAssyria. True, that Merarite, according to the import of his name, might\nseem a poor \u201csorrowful\u201d laboring man; but oh! his labor stood connected\nwith the dwelling-place of the Most High God, the possessor of heaven and\nearth. His hands handled the things which were the patterns of things in\nthe heavens. Every pin, every socket, every curtain, and every covering\nwas a shadow of good things to come\u2014a foreshadowing of Christ.\n\nWe do not mean to assert that the poor laboring Merarite or Gershonite\nunderstood these things. This is not, by any means, the point. _We_\ncan understand them. It is our privilege to bring all these things\u2014the\ntabernacle and its mystic furniture\u2014under the brilliant light of the New\nTestament, and there read Christ in all.\n\nWhile, therefore, we predicate nothing as to the measure of intelligence\npossessed by the Levites in their respective work, we, at the same time,\nmay say, with confidence, that it was a very precious privilege to be\nallowed to touch and handle, and bear through the wilderness, the earthly\nshadows of heavenly realities. Moreover, it was a special mercy to have\nthe authority of a \u201cThus saith the Lord\u201d for every thing they put their\nhand to. Who can estimate such a mercy\u2014such a privilege? Each member of\nthat marvelous tribe of workers had his own particular line of things\nmarked out by God\u2019s hand and superintended by God\u2019s priest. It was not\neach doing what he liked himself, nor one man running in the wake of\nanother, but all bowing to the authority of God, and doing precisely what\nthey were told to do. This was the secret of order throughout the eight\nthousand five hundred and eighty workers (Chap. iv. 48.); and, we may\nsay, with all possible confidence, it is the only true secret of order\nstill. Why is it that we have so much confusion in the professing church?\nwhy such conflicting thoughts, feelings, and opinions? why such clashing\none with another? why such crossing of each other\u2019s path? Simply from the\nlack of entire and absolute submission to the Word of God. Our _will_ is\nat work. We choose our own ways, instead of allowing God to choose for\nus. We want that attitude and temper of soul in the which _all_ human\nthoughts (our own amongst them) shall be put down at what they are really\nworth, and God\u2019s thoughts shall rise into full unqualified dominion.\n\nThis, we feel persuaded, is the grand desideratum\u2014the crying want of\nthe day in which our lot is cast. Man\u2019s will is every where gaining\nthe ascendant. It is rising like a mighty tide, and bearing away those\nancient barriers which have, in some measure, kept it in check. Many an\nold and time-honored institution is, at this moment, giving way before\nthe rushing torrent; many an edifice, whose foundations, as we supposed,\nwere laid deep down in the fond and reverent affections of the people, is\ngiving way beneath the battering-ram of popular feeling. \u201cLet us break\ntheir bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.\u201d\n\nSuch is, pre-eminently, the spirit of the age. What is the antidote?\n_Subjection!_ Subjection to what? Is it to what is called the authority\nof the church? Is it to the voice of tradition? Is it to the commandments\nand doctrines of men? No, blessed be God; it is not to any of these\nthings, nor to all of them put together. To what, then? To the voice\nof the living God\u2014the voice of holy Scripture. This is the grand remedy\nfor self-will on the one hand, and submission to human authority on the\nother. \u201cWe must _obey_,\u201d\u2014this is the answer to self-will: \u201cWe must obey\n_God_,\u201d\u2014this is the answer to mere bowing down to human authority. We see\nthese two elements all around us. The former\u2014self-will, resolves itself\ninto infidelity; the latter\u2014subjection to man, resolves itself into\nsuperstition. These two will bear sway over the whole civilized world.\nThey will carry away all, save those who are divinely taught to say and\nfeel and act upon that immortal sentence, \u201cWe must obey God rather than\nman.\u201d\n\nIt was this that enabled the Gershonite in the wilderness to look after\nthose rough, unattractive-looking \u201cbadger-skins,\u201d and that enabled the\nMerarite to look after these apparently insignificant \u201cpins.\u201d Yes, and\nit is this which will enable the Christian now to address himself to\nthat special line of service to which his Lord may see fit to call him.\nWhat though, to human eyes, it seems rough and unattractive, mean and\ninsignificant; it is enough for us that our Lord has assigned us our\npost and given us our work, and that our work has direct reference to\nthe Person and glory of Him who is the chiefest among ten thousand and\naltogether lovely. We, too, may have to confine ourselves to the antitype\nof the rough, unsightly badger-skin, or the insignificant pin. But let us\nremember that whatever has reference to Christ\u2014His name, His Person, His\ncause\u2014in the world, is unspeakably precious to God. It may be very small\nin man\u2019s account, but what of that? We must look at things from God\u2019s\npoint of view, we must measure them by His standard, and that is, Christ.\nGod measures every thing by Christ. Whatever has even the very smallest\nreference to Christ is interesting and important in God\u2019s account;\nwhereas the most splendid undertakings, the most gigantic schemes, the\nmost astonishing enterprises, of the men of this world, all pass away\nlike the morning cloud and the early dew. Man makes _self_ his centre,\nhis object, his standard. He values things according to the measure in\nwhich they exalt himself and further his interests. Even religion itself,\nso called, is taken up in the same way, and made a pedestal on which to\ndisplay himself. Every thing, in short, is worked up as capital for self,\nand used as a reflector to throw light upon and call attention to that\none object. Thus there is a mighty gulf between God\u2019s thoughts and man\u2019s\nthoughts, and the shores of that gulf are as far apart as _Christ_ and\n_self_. All that belongs to Christ is of eternal interest and moment: all\nthat belongs to self shall pass away and be forgotten. Hence, therefore,\nthe most fatal mistake into which any man can fall is to make _self_\nhis object. It must issue in everlasting disappointment. But on the\nother hand, the very wisest, safest, best thing that any man can do, is\nto make Christ his one absorbing object. This must infallibly issue in\neverlasting blessedness and glory.\n\nBeloved reader, pause here a moment, and commune with thine own heart\nand conscience. It seems to us, at this point, that we have a sacred\nresponsibility to discharge in reference to thy soul. We are penning\nthese lines in the solitude of our chamber at Bristol, and you may,\nperchance, read them in the solitude of thy chamber in New Zealand,\nAustralia, or some other distant spot. We would therefore remember\nthat our object is not to write a book, nor yet merely to expound\nScripture. We desire to be used of God in the blessed work of dealing\nwith thy very inmost soul. Permit us, therefore, to put this solemn\nand pointed question home to thee: _What is thy object?_ Is it Christ,\nor self? Be honest with thyself before the almighty and all-seeing\nSearcher of hearts. Sit in stern judgment upon thyself, as in the very\nlight of the divine presence. Be not deceived by any gilding or false\ncoloring. God sees below the surface of things, and He would have thee\nto do so likewise. He presents Christ to thee, in contrast with all\nbeside. Hast thou accepted Him? Is He thy wisdom, thy righteousness, thy\nsanctification, and thy redemption? Canst thou say, without hesitation,\n\u201cMy Beloved is mine, and I am His\u201d? Search and see. Is this a thoroughly\nsettled point, deep down in the very depths of thy soul? If so, art thou\nmaking Christ thy exclusive object? art thou measuring every thing by Him?\n\nAh, dear friend, these are searching questions. Be assured we do not put\nthem to thee without feeling their edge and power for ourselves. As God\nis our witness, we do feel, though in a very small degree, their weight\nand seriousness. We are deeply and thoroughly convinced that nothing\nwill stand save that which is connected with Christ; and moreover, that\nthe very smallest matter which refers, however remotely, to Him is of\ncommanding interest in the judgment of heaven. If we may be permitted to\nawaken a sense of this in any heart, or to deepen the sense where it has\nbeen awakened, we shall feel we have not penned this volume in vain.\n\n * * * * *\n\nWe must now, ere closing this lengthened section, glance for a few\nmoments at the Kohathites and their work.\n\n\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, \u2018Take the sum of\nthe sons of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, after their families, by\nthe house of their fathers, from thirty years old and upward even until\nfifty years old, all that enter into the host, to do the work in the\ntabernacle of the congregation. This shall be the service of the sons\nof Kohath in the tabernacle of the congregation, about the most holy\nthings: and when the camp setteth forward, Aaron shall come, and his\nsons, and they shall take down the covering vail, and cover _the ark_ of\ntestimony with it: and shall put thereon the covering of badgers\u2019 skins,\nand shall spread over it a cloth wholly of blue, and shall put in the\nstaves thereof. And upon _the table_ of show-bread they shall spread a\ncloth of blue, and put thereon the dishes, and the spoons, and the bowls,\nand covers to cover withal: and the continual bread shall be thereon:\nand they shall spread upon them a cloth of scarlet, and cover the same\nwith a covering of badgers\u2019 skins, and shall put in the staves thereof.\nAnd they shall take a cloth of blue, and cover the candlestick of the\nlight, and his lamps, and his tongs, and his snuff-dishes, and all the\noil vessels thereof, wherewith they minister unto it; and they shall put\nit and all the vessels thereof within a covering of badgers\u2019 skins, and\nshall put it upon a bar. And upon _the golden altar_ they shall spread\na cloth of blue, and cover it with a covering of badgers\u2019 skins, and\nshall put to the staves thereof: and they shall take all the instruments\nof ministry, wherewith they minister in the sanctuary, and put them in\na cloth of blue, and cover them with a covering of badgers\u2019 skins, and\nshall put them on a bar: and they shall take away the ashes from _the\naltar_, and spread a purple cloth thereon: and they shall put upon it all\nthe vessels thereof, wherewith they minister about it, even the censers,\nthe flesh-hooks, and the shovels, and the basons, all the vessels of the\naltar; and they shall spread upon it a covering of badgers\u2019 skins, and\nput to the staves of it. And when Aaron and his sons have made an end of\ncovering the sanctuary, and all the vessels of the sanctuary, as the camp\nis to set forward; after that, the sons of Kohath shall come to bear it:\nbut they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die. These things are\nthe burden of the sons of Kohath in the tabernacle of the congregation.\u2019\u201d\n(Chap. iv. 1-15.)\n\nHere we see what precious mysteries were committed to the charge of\nthe Kohathites. The ark, the golden table, the golden candlestick, the\ngolden altar, and the altar of burnt-offering\u2014all these were shadows of\ngood things to come\u2014the patterns of things in the heavens\u2014the figures of\nthe true\u2014the types of Christ, in His Person, His work, and His offices,\nas we have sought to show in our \u201cNotes on Exodus.\u201d (Chap. xxiv.-xxx.)\nThey are here presented in the wilderness, and, if we may be allowed the\nexpression, in their traveling-dress. With the exception of the ark of\nthe covenant, all these things presented the one unvarying appearance to\nthe human eye, namely, the rough covering of the badgers\u2019 skins. With the\nark there was this difference, that above the badgers\u2019 skins there was \u201ca\ncloth wholly of blue,\u201d setting forth, doubtless, the entirely heavenly\ncharacter of the Lord Jesus Christ in His own divine Person. That which\nwas essentially heavenly in Him lay upon the very surface of His blessed\nlife here below. He was the entirely heavenly Man\u2014\u201cthe Lord from heaven.\u201d\nUnderneath this covering of blue were the badgers\u2019 skins, which may be\nviewed as the expression of that which protects from evil. The ark was\nthe only thing that was covered in this peculiar manner.\n\nWith regard to \u201cthe table of show-bread,\u201d which was a type of our Lord\nJesus Christ in His connection with the twelve tribes of Israel, there\nwas first \u201ca cloth of _blue_,\u201d and then \u201ca cloth of _scarlet_;\u201d and\nover all, the badgers\u2019 skins. In other words, there was that which is\nessentially heavenly; then that which expresses human splendor; and\nabove all, that which protects from evil. It is the purpose of God that\nIsrael\u2019s twelve tribes shall be pre-eminent in the earth\u2014that in them\nthe very highest type of human splendor shall be exhibited. Hence the\nappropriateness of the \u201cscarlet\u201d covering on the table of show-bread. The\ntwelve loaves evidently point to the twelve tribes; and as to the scarlet\ncolor, the reader has only to look through Scripture in order to see that\nit sets forth that which man considers splendid.\n\nThe coverings of the golden candlestick and of the golden altar were\nidentical, namely, first, the heavenly covering, and then the external\nbadgers\u2019 skin. In the candlestick we see our Lord Christ in connection\nwith the work of the Holy Ghost in light and testimony. The golden altar\nshows us Christ and the preciousness of His intercession\u2014the fragrance\nand value of what He is before God. Both these, when passing along the\nsand of the desert, were wrapped up in that which was heavenly, and\nprotected above by the badgers\u2019 skins.\n\nFinally, in reference to the brazen altar, we observe a marked\ndistinction. It was covered with \u201cpurple\u201d instead of \u201cblue\u201d or \u201cscarlet.\u201d\nWhy was this? Doubtless because the brazen altar prefigured Christ as\nthe One who \u201c_suffered_ for sins,\u201d and who shall therefore wield the\nsceptre of royalty. \u201cPurple\u201d is the royal color. The One who suffered in\nthis world shall reign; the One who wore the crown of thorns shall wear\nthe crown of glory. Hence the moral fitness of the \u201cpurple\u201d covering on\nthe brazen altar\u2014for on that altar the victim was offered. We know there\nis nothing in Scripture without its own divine meaning, and it is our\nprivilege as well as our duty to seek to know the meaning of all that\nour God has graciously written for our learning. This, we believe, can\nonly be reached by humble, patient, prayerful waiting upon Him. The One\nwho has penned the book knows perfectly the scope and object of the book\nas a whole, and of each division of the book in particular. This will\nhave the effect of checking the unhallowed flights of the imagination.\nThe Spirit of God alone can open Scripture to our souls. \u201cGod is His own\ninterpreter\u201d in revelation as well as in providence, and the more we lean\non Him, in true self-emptiness, the deeper insight we shall have both\ninto His Word and ways.\n\nWe would therefore say to the Christian reader, Take the first fifteen\nverses of Numbers iv. and read them in the presence of God. Ask Him to\nexplain to thee the meaning of each clause\u2014the meaning of the ark, and\nwhy it alone was covered with \u201ca cloth wholly of blue.\u201d And so of all\nthe rest. We have ventured, we trust in humility of mind, to suggest the\nmeaning; but we earnestly desire that thou shouldst get it directly from\nGod for thyself, and not accept it merely from man. We confess we are\nterribly afraid of imagination; and we know not that we have ever sat\ndown to write on sacred Scripture with a deeper sense of this, that none\nbut the Holy Ghost can really explain it.\n\nThou wilt say, then, Why sit down to write at all? Well, it is with the\nfond hope of being permitted, in some feeble manner, to help the earnest\nstudent of Scripture to catch sight of the rare and exquisite gems that\nlie scattered along the inspired page, so that he may pick them up for\nhimself. Thousands of readers might read, again and again, the fourth\nof Numbers, and not even perceive the fact that the ark was the only\npart of the mystic furniture of the tabernacle that did not exhibit the\nbadger-skin. And if the simple fact be not laid hold of, how can its\nimport be seen? So also as to the brazen altar, how many have failed to\nnotice that it alone put on the \u201cpurple\u201d!\n\nNow, we may rest assured that both these facts are full of spiritual\nmeaning. The ark was the very highest manifestation of God, and therefore\nwe may understand why it should exhibit, at first sight, that which was\npurely heavenly. The brazen altar was the place where sin was judged\u2014it\ntypified Christ in His work as a Sin-bearer\u2014it set forth that most\ndistant place to which He traveled for us; and yet that brazen altar was\nthe only thing that was wrapped in _royal_ covering. Can aught be more\nexquisite than the teaching here? What infinite wisdom in all these fine\ndistinctions! The ark conducts us to the very highest point in heaven;\nthe brazen altar conducts us to the lowest point on earth. They stood\nat extreme points in the tabernacle. In the former, we see the One who\nmagnified the law; in the latter, we see the One who was made sin. In the\none, that which was heavenly was seen at the first sight; and it was only\nwhen you looked deeper, you saw the badger-skin; and deeper still, that\nmysterious vail, the type of Christ\u2019s flesh: but in the other, the first\nthing you saw was the badger-skin; and deeper down, the royal covering.\nWe see Christ in each, though in a different aspect. In the ark, we have\nChrist maintaining the glory of God; in the brazen altar, we have Christ\nmeeting the sinner\u2019s need. Blessed combination for us!\n\nBut further, has the reader noticed that in the entire of this marvelous\npassage to which we have been calling his particular attention there is\nno mention of a certain piece of furniture which we know, from Exodus\nxxx. and other scriptures, occupied a very important place in the\ntabernacle: We allude to the brazen laver. Why is this omitted in Numbers\niv? It is more than probable that some of our keen-eyed rationalists\nwould find here what they would pronounce an error\u2014a defect\u2014a\ndiscrepancy. But is it so? No, thank God! The devout Christian student\nknows full well that such things are wholly incompatible with the volume\nof God. He knows and confesses this, even though he may not be able to\naccount for the absence of this or the presence of that particular thing\nin any given passage. But just in so far as we are enabled, through the\nmercy of God, to see the spiritual reason of things, do we always find\nthat where the rationalist sees or affects to see flaws, the pious\nstudent sees brilliant gems.\n\nThus it is, we doubt not, in reference to the omission of the brazen\nlaver from the catalogue in Numbers iv. It is only one of the ten\nthousand illustrations of the beauty and perfectness of the inspired\nvolume.\n\nBut, the reader may inquire, why is the laver omitted? The reason may be\nfound in the double fact of what that laver was made from, and what it\nwas made for. This double fact we have noticed in Exodus. The laver was\nmade of the looking-glasses of the women who assembled at the door of the\ntabernacle of the congregation. (Ex. xxxviii. 8.) This was its material.\nAnd as to its object, it was provided as a means of purification for man.\nNow, in all those things which formed the special burden and charge of\nthe Kohathites, we see only the varied manifestations of God in Christ,\nfrom the ark, in the holiest of all, to the brazen altar, in the court of\nthe tabernacle: and inasmuch as the laver was not a manifestation of God,\nbut a purification for man, it is therefore not found in the custody and\ncharge of the Kohathites.\n\nBut we must now leave the reader to meditate alone on this most profound\nsection of our book. (Chap. iii. and iv.) It is really inexhaustible. We\nmight go on expatiating upon it until we had filled volumes instead of\npages, and after all, we should feel as though we had barely penetrated\nthe surface of a mine whose depth never can be sounded\u2014whose treasures\nnever can be exhausted. What human pen can bring out the marvelous\ninstruction contained in the inspired account of the tribe of Levi? Who\ncan attempt to unfold that sovereign grace which shines in the fact\nthat the self-willed Levi should be the very first to respond to that\nsoul-stirring call, \u201cWho is on the Lord\u2019s side?\u201d Who can speak aright\nof that rich, abounding, distinguishing mercy illustrated in the fact\nthat those whose hands had been imbued in blood should be permitted to\nhandle the vessels of the sanctuary; and that those into whose assembly\nGod\u2019s Spirit could not enter should be brought into the very bosom of the\ncongregation of God, there to be occupied with that which was so precious\nto Him?\n\nAnd then those three divisions of workers\u2014Merarites, Gershonites, and\nKohathites; what instruction is here! what a type of the various members\nof the Church of God, in their various service! what depth of mysterious\nwisdom in all this! Is it speaking too strongly\u2014is it too much, to say\nthat nothing, at this moment, so deeply impresses us as the sense of the\nutter feebleness and poverty of all that we have advanced on one of the\nvery richest sections of the inspired volume? Still we have conducted the\nreader to a mine of infinite depth and richness, and we must leave him to\npenetrate thereinto by the gracious aid of Him to whom the mine belongs,\nand who alone is able to evolve its wealth. All that man can write or say\non any portion of God\u2019s Word can, at best, be but suggestive: to speak of\nit as exhaustive would be to cast a slight upon the sacred canon. May we\ntread the holy place with unshod feet, and be as those who inquire in the\ntemple, and whose studies are perfumed by the spirit of worship.[5]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER V.\n\n\n\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, \u2018Command the children of Israel\nthat they put out of the camp every leper, and every one that hath an\nissue, and whosoever is defiled by the dead: both male and female shall\nye put out, without the camp shall ye put them; that they defile not\ntheir camps, _in the midst whereof I dwell_.\u2019 And the children of Israel\ndid so, and put them out without the camp: as the Lord spake unto Moses,\nso did the children of Israel.\u201d (Num. v. 1-4.)\n\nHere we have unfolded to us, in few words, the great foundation-principle\non which the discipline of the assembly is founded\u2014a principle, we may\nsay, of the very last importance, though, alas! so little understood or\nattended to. It was the presence of God in the midst of His people Israel\nthat demanded holiness on their part. \u201cThat they defile not their camps,\nin the midst of which I dwell.\u201d The place where the Holy One dwells must\nbe holy. This is a plain and a necessary truth.\n\nWe have already remarked that _redemption_ was the _basis_ of God\u2019s\ndwelling in the midst of His people; but we must remember that\n_discipline_ was essential to His continuance amongst them. He could not\ndwell where evil was deliberately and avowedly sanctioned. Blessed be\nHis name, He can and does bear with weakness and ignorance; but He is of\npurer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot look on iniquity. Evil cannot\ndwell with Him, nor can He have fellowship with it. It would involve a\ndenial of His very nature; and He cannot deny Himself.\n\nIt may, however, be said, in reply, Does not God the Holy Ghost dwell\nin the individual believer, and yet there is much evil in him? True,\nthe Holy Ghost dwells in the believer, on the ground of accomplished\nredemption. He is there, not as the sanction of what is of nature, but\nas the seal of what is of Christ; and His presence and fellowship are\nenjoyed just in proportion as the evil in us is habitually judged. Will\nany one assert that we can realize and delight in the Spirit\u2019s indwelling\nwhile allowing our indwelling pravity, and indulging the desires of the\nflesh and of the mind? Far away be the impious thought! No; we must judge\nourselves, and put away every thing inconsistent with the holiness of\nthe One who dwells in us. Our \u201cold man\u201d is not recognized at all; it\nhas no existence before God; it has been condemned utterly in the cross\nof Christ. We feel its workings, alas! and have to mourn over them, and\njudge ourselves on account of them; but God sees us in Christ\u2014in the\nSpirit\u2014in the new creation. And, moreover, the Holy Ghost dwells in the\nbody of the believer, on the ground of the blood of Christ; and this\nindwelling demands the judgment of evil in every shape and form.\n\nSo, also, in reference to the assembly. No doubt there is evil there\u2014evil\nin each individual member, and therefore evil in the body corporate. But\nit must be judged; and if judged, it is not allowed to act\u2014it is rendered\nnull. But to say that an assembly is not to judge evil, is nothing more\nor less than corporate antinomianism. What should we say to a professing\nChristian who maintained that he was not solemnly responsible to judge\nevil in himself and in his ways? We should, with great decision,\npronounce him an antinomian. And if it be wrong for a single individual\nto take such ground, must it not be proportionably wrong for an assembly?\nWe cannot see how this can be called in question.\n\nWhat would have been the result had Israel refused to obey the peremptory\n\u201ccommand\u201d given at the opening chapter before us? Supposing they had\nsaid, We are not responsible to judge evil; and we do not feel that\nit becomes poor failing, erring mortals such as we to judge any body.\nThese people with the leprosy, and the issue, and so forth, are as much\nIsraelites as we are, and have as good a right to all the blessings and\nprivileges of the camp as we have; we do not therefore feel it would be\nright for us to put them out.\n\nNow, what, we ask, would have been God\u2019s rejoinder to such a reply? If\nthe reader will just turn for an instant to Joshua vii, he will find as\nsolemn an answer as could well be given. Let him draw near and carefully\ninspect that \u201cgreat heap of stones\u201d in the valley of Achor. Let him read\nthe inscription thereon. What is it? \u201cGod is greatly to be feared in the\nassembly of His saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are\nround about Him.\u201d \u201c_Our_ God is a consuming fire.\u201d What is the meaning of\nall this? Let us hear it and consider it. Lust had conceived in the heart\nof one member of the congregation, and brought forth sin. What then? Did\nthis involve the whole congregation? Yes, verily; this is the solemn\ntruth. \u201c_Israel_ [not merely Achan,] hath sinned, and _they_ have also\ntransgressed My covenant which I commanded them: for _they_ have even\ntaken of the accursed thing, and have also stolen, and dissembled also,\nand _they_ have put it even among their own stuff. Therefore the children\nof Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their backs\nbefore their enemies, because _they_ were accursed: _neither will I be\nwith you any more, except ye destroy the accursed thing from among you_.\u201d\n(Josh. vii. 11, 12.)\n\nThis is peculiarly solemn and searching. It most assuredly utters a\nloud voice in our ears, and conveys a holy lesson to our hearts. There\nwere, so far as the narrative informs us, many hundreds of thousands,\nthroughout the camp of Israel, as ignorant as Joshua himself seems to\nhave been of the fact of Achan\u2019s sin, and yet the word was, \u201c_Israel_\nhath sinned\u2014transgressed\u2014taken the accursed thing\u2014stolen and dissembled.\u201d\nHow was this? The assembly was one. God\u2019s presence in the midst of the\ncongregation constituted it one\u2014so one, that the sin of each was the sin\nof all. \u201cA little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.\u201d Human reason may\ndemur to this, as it is sure to demur to every thing that lies beyond\nits narrow range. But God says it, and this is enough for the believing\nmind. It doth not become us to ask, Why? How? or Wherefore? The testimony\nof God settles every thing, and we have only to believe and obey. It is\nenough for us to know that the fact of God\u2019s presence demands holiness,\npurity, and the judgment of evil. Let us remember this. It is not upon\nthe principle so justly repudiated by every lowly mind, \u201cStand by\nthyself; I am holier than thou.\u201d No, no; it is entirely on the ground of\nwhat God is.\u2014\u201cBe ye holy, for I am holy.\u201d God could not give the sanction\nof His holy presence to unjudged wickedness. What! give a victory at Ai\nwith an Achan in the camp? Impossible! A victory under such circumstances\nwould have been a dishonor to God, and the very worst thing that could\nhave happened to Israel. It could not be. Israel must be chastised; they\nmust be humbled and broken; they must be brought down to the valley of\nAchor\u2014the place of trouble, for there alone can \u201ca door of hope\u201d be\nopened when evil has come in.\n\nLet not the reader misunderstand this great practical principle. It has,\nwe fear, been greatly misunderstood by many of God\u2019s people. Many there\nare who seem to think that it can never be right for those who are saved\nby grace, and who are themselves signal monuments of mercy, to exercise\ndiscipline in any form, or on any ground whatsoever. To such persons,\nMatthew vii. 1 seems to condemn utterly the thought of our undertaking\nto judge. \u201cAre we not,\u201d say they, \u201cexpressly told by our Lord not to\njudge? Are not these His own veritable words\u2014\u2018Judge not, that ye be not\njudged\u2019?\u201d No doubt; but what do these words mean? Do they mean that we\nare not to judge the doctrine and manner of life of such as present\nthemselves for Christian fellowship? Do they lend any support to the idea\nthat no matter what a man holds, or what he teaches, or what he does, we\nare to receive him all the same? Can this be the force and meaning of our\nLord\u2019s words? Who could, for one moment, cede aught so monstrous as this?\nDoes not our Lord, in this very same chapter, tell us to \u201cbeware of false\nprophets\u201d? But how can we beware of any one if we are not to judge? If\njudgment is not to be exercised in any case, why tell us to beware?\n\nChristian reader, the truth is as simple as possible. God\u2019s assembly is\nresponsible to judge the doctrine and morals of all who claim entrance\nat the door. We are not to judge motives, but we are to judge ways. We\nare directly taught, by the inspired apostle, in the fifth chapter of 1\nCorinthians, that we are bound to judge all who take the ground of being\ninside the assembly. \u201cFor what have I to do to judge them also that are\nwithout? Do not ye judge them that are within? But them that are without\nGod judgeth. _Therefore_ put away from among yourselves that wicked\nperson.\u201d (Ver. 12, 13.)\n\nThis is most distinct. We are not to judge those \u201cwithout,\u201d but we are\nto judge those \u201cwithin.\u201d That is, those who take the ground of being\nChristians\u2014of being members of God\u2019s assembly\u2014all such come within the\nrange of judgment. The very moment a man enters the assembly, he takes\nhis place in that sphere where discipline is exercised upon every thing\ncontrary to the holiness of the One who dwells there.\n\nAnd let not the reader suppose for a moment that the unity of the _body_\nis touched when the discipline of the _house_ is maintained. This would\nbe a very serious mistake indeed; and yet, alas! it is a very common one.\nWe frequently hear it said of those who rightly seek to maintain the\ndiscipline of the house of God, that they are rending the body of Christ.\nThere could hardly be a greater mistake. The fact is, the former is our\nbounden duty; the latter, an utter impossibility. The discipline of God\u2019s\nhouse must be carried out; but the unity of Christ\u2019s body can never be\ndissolved.\n\nAgain, we sometimes hear people speak of cutting off the limbs of the\nbody of Christ. This also is a mistake. Not a single limb of the body of\nChrist can ever be disturbed. Each member has been incorporated into its\nplace by the Holy Ghost, in pursuance of the eternal purpose of God,\nand on the ground of the accomplished atonement of Christ; nor can any\npower of men or devils ever sever a single limb from the body. All are\nindissolubly joined together in a perfect unity, and maintained therein\nby divine power. The unity of the Church of God may be compared to a\nchain stretching across a river: you see it at either side, but it dips\nin the middle; and if you were to judge by the sight of your eyes, you\nmight suppose that the chain had given way at the centre. So is it with\nthe Church of God: it was seen to be one at the beginning; it will be\nseen to be one by and by; and it is, in God\u2019s sight, one now, though the\nunity be not visible to mortal eyes.\n\nIt is of the very last moment that the Christian reader should be\nthoroughly clear on this great Church-question. The enemy has sought,\nby every means in his power, to cast dust into the eyes of God\u2019s dear\npeople, in order that they might not see the truth in this matter.\nWe have on the one side, the boasted unity of Roman Catholicism; and\non the other hand, the deplorable divisions of Protestantism. Rome\npoints, with an air of triumph, to the numerous sects of Protestants;\nand Protestants likewise point to the numerous errors, corruptions, and\nabuses of Romanism. Thus the earnest seeker after truth hardly knows\nwhere to turn or what to think; while, on the other hand, the careless,\nthe indifferent, the self-indulgent, and the world-loving are only too\nready to draw a plea, from all that they see around them, for flinging\naside all serious thought and concern about divine things; and even if,\nlike Pilate, they sometimes flippantly ask the question, \u201cWhat is truth?\u201d\nthey, like him, turn on their heel without waiting for an answer.\n\nNow, we are firmly persuaded that the true secret of the whole matter\u2014the\ngrand solution of the difficulty\u2014the real relief for the hearts of God\u2019s\nbeloved saints, will be found in the truth of the indivisible unity of\nthe Church of God, the body of Christ, on the earth. This truth is not\nmerely to be held as a doctrine, but to be confessed, maintained, and\ncarried out, at all cost to ourselves. It is a great formative truth for\nthe soul, and contains in it the only answer to Rome\u2019s boasted unity on\nthe one hand, and to Protestant divisions on the other. It will enable\nus to testify to Protestantism that we have found unity, and to Roman\nCatholicism that we have found the unity of the Spirit.\n\nIt may, however, be argued, in reply, that it is the veriest Utopianism\nto seek to carry out such an idea in the present condition of things.\nEvery thing is in such ruin and confusion that we are just like a number\nof children who have lost their way in a wood, and are trying to make the\nbest of their way home, some in large parties, some in groups of two or\nthree, and some all alone.\n\nNow this may seem very plausible; and we do not doubt in the least but\nthat it would carry immense weight with a large number of the Lord\u2019s\npeople at the present moment; but in the judgment of faith, such a mode\nof putting the matter possesses no weight whatever. And for this simple\nreason, that the one all-important question for faith is this, namely,\nIs the unity of the Church a human theory or a divine reality? A divine\nreality most surely, as it is written, \u201cThere is one body, and one\nSpirit,\u201d (Eph. iv. 4.) If we deny that there is \u201cone body,\u201d we may, with\nequal force, deny that there is \u201cone Lord, one faith, one baptism, one\nGod and Father of all,\u201d inasmuch as all lie side by side on the page of\ninspiration, and if we disturb one, we disturb all.\n\nNor are we confined to one solitary passage of Scripture on this subject;\nthough had we but one, it were amply sufficient. But we have more than\none. Hearken to the following: \u201cThe cup of blessing which we bless, is it\nnot the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it\nnot the communion of the body of Christ? For we being many are one bread,\nand one body; for we are all partakers of that one bread.\u201d (1 Cor. x.\n16, 17.) Read also 1 Corinthians xii. 12-27, where this whole subject is\nunfolded and applied.\n\nIn a word, then, the Word of God doth most clearly and fully establish\nthe truth of the indissoluble unity of the body Christ; and, moreover,\nit establishes, as clearly and as fully, the truth of the discipline of\nGod\u2019s house. But, be it observed, the proper carrying out of the latter\nwill never interfere with the former. The two things are perfectly\ncompatible. Are we to suppose that when the apostle commanded the church\nof Corinth to put away from amongst them \u201cthat wicked person,\u201d the unity\nof the body was touched? Surely not. And yet was not that man a member\nof the body of Christ? Truly so, for we find him restored in the second\nepistle. The discipline of the house of God had done its work with a\nmember of the body of Christ, and the erring one was brought back. Such\nwas the object of the Church\u2019s act.\n\nAll this may help to clear the mind of the reader as to the deeply\ninteresting subject of reception at the Lord\u2019s table and exclusion from\nit. There seems to be a considerable amount of confusion in the minds\nof many Christians as to these things. Some there are who seem to think\nthat provided a person be a Christian, he should on no account be refused\na place at the Lord\u2019s table. The case in 1 Corinthians v. is quite\nsufficient to settle this question. Evidently that man was not put away\non the ground of his not being a Christian. He was, as we know, spite of\nhis failure and sin, a child of God; and yet was the assembly at Corinth\ncommanded to put him away; and had they not done so, they would have\nbrought down the judgment of God upon the whole assembly. God\u2019s presence\nis in the assembly, and therefore evil must be judged.\n\nThus, whether we look at the fifth chapter of Numbers or at the fifth\nchapter of 1 Corinthians, we learn the same solemn truth, namely, that\n\u201choliness becometh God\u2019s house forever.\u201d And further, we learn that it is\nwith God\u2019s own people that discipline must be maintained, and not with\nthose outside. For what do we read in the opening lines of Numbers v?\nWere the children of Israel commanded to put out of the camp every one\nthat was not an Israelite\u2014every one that was not circumcised\u2014every one\nwho could not trace his pedigree, in an unbroken line, up to Abraham?\nwere these the ground of exclusion from the camp? Not at all. Who, then,\nwere to be put out? \u201cEvery leper,\u201d that is, every one in whom sin is\n_allowed_ to work; \u201cevery one that hath an issue,\u201d that is, every one\nfrom whom a defiling influence is emanating; and \u201cwhosoever is defiled\nby the dead.\u201d These were the persons that were to be separated from the\ncamp in the wilderness, and their antitypes are to be separated from the\nassembly now.\n\nAnd why, we may ask, was this separation demanded? Was it to uphold the\nreputation or respectability of the people? Nothing of the sort. What\nthen? \u201cThat they defile not their camps in the midst whereof _I dwell_.\u201d\nAnd so is it now. We do not judge and put away bad doctrine in order to\nmaintain _our_ orthodoxy; neither do we judge and put away moral evil in\norder to maintain _our_ reputation and respectability. The only ground\nof judgment and putting away is this: \u201cHoliness becometh Thine house,\nO Lord, forever.\u201d God dwells in the midst of His people. \u201cWhere two or\nthree are gathered together in My name, there am I.\u201d \u201cKnow ye not that ye\nare the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?\u201d (1\nCor. iii. 16.) And again, \u201cNow therefore ye are no more strangers and\nforeigners, but fellow-citizens with the saints, and of the household of\nGod; and _are_ built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets,\nJesus Christ Himself being the chief corner stone; in whom all the\nbuilding fitly framed together, groweth unto _a holy temple_ in the Lord:\nin whom ye also _are_ builded together for a habitation of God through\nthe Spirit.\u201d (Eph. ii. 19-22.)\n\nBut it may be that the reader feels disposed to put some such questions\nas the following: How is it possible to find a pure, a perfect church?\nIs there not\u2014will there not\u2014must there not be some evil in every\nassembly, in spite of the most intense pastoral vigilance and corporate\nfaithfulness? How, then, can this high standard of purity be maintained?\nNo doubt, there is evil in the assembly, inasmuch as there is indwelling\nsin in each member of the assembly. But it must not be allowed; it must\nnot be sanctioned; it must be judged and kept under. It is not the\npresence of judged evil that defiles, but the allowance and sanction of\nevil. It is with the Church, in its corporate character, as with the\nmembers in their individual character.\u2014\u201cIf we would judge ourselves, we\nshould not be judged.\u201d (1 Cor. xi. 31.) Hence, therefore, no amount of\nevil should lead a man to separate from the Church of God; but if an\nassembly denies its solemn responsibility to judge evil, both in doctrine\nand morals, it is no longer on the ground of the Church of God at all,\nand it becomes your bounden duty to separate from it. So long as an\nassembly is on the ground of the Church of God, however feeble it be,\nand few in number, to separate from it is schism. But if an assembly be\nnot on God\u2019s ground (and most certainly it is not if it denies its duty\nto judge evil), then it is schism to continue in association with it.\n\nBut will not this tend to multiply and perpetuate divisions? Most\nassuredly not. It may tend to break up mere human associations; but this\nis not schism, but the very reverse, inasmuch as all such associations,\nhowever large, powerful, and apparently useful, are positively\nantagonistic to the unity of the body of Christ\u2014the Church of God.\n\nIt cannot fail to strike the thoughtful reader that the Spirit of God\nis awakening attention, on all hands, to the great question of the\nChurch. Men are beginning to see that there is very much more in this\nsubject than the mere notion of an individual mind, or the dogma of\na party. The question, \u201cWhat is the Church?\u201d is forcing itself upon\nmany hearts, and demanding an answer. And what a mercy to have an\nanswer to give! an answer as clear, as distinct, and as authoritative\nas the voice of God\u2014the voice of holy Scripture\u2014can give. Is it not\nan unspeakable privilege, when assailed on all sides by the claims of\nchurches\u2014\u201cHigh-Church,\u201d \u201cLow-Church,\u201d \u201cBroad-Church,\u201d \u201cState-Church,\u201d\n\u201cFree-Church,\u201d\u2014to be able to fall back upon the one true Church of the\nliving God\u2014the body of Christ? We most assuredly esteem it as such; and\nwe are firmly persuaded that here alone is the divine solution of the\ndifficulties of thousands of the people of God.\n\nBut where is this Church to be found? Is it not a hopeless undertaking\nto set out to look for it amid the ruin and confusion which surrounds\nus? No, blessed be God; for albeit we may not _see_ all the members of\nthe Church gathered together, yet it is our privilege and holy duty to\nknow and occupy _the ground_ of the Church of God, and no other. And how\nis this ground to be discerned? We believe that the first step towards\ndiscerning the true ground of the Church of God is, to stand apart from\nevery thing that is contrary thereto. We need not expect to discover what\nis true while our minds are beclouded by what is false. The divine order\nis, \u201cCease to do evil: learn to do well.\u201d God does not give us light for\ntwo steps at a time. Hence, the moment we discover that we are on wrong\nground, it is our duty to abandon it, and wait on God for further light,\nwhich He will most surely give.\n\n * * * * *\n\nBut we must proceed with our chapter.\n\n\u201cThe Lord spake unto Moses, saying, \u2018Speak unto the children of Israel:\nWhen a man or woman shall commit any sin that men commit, to do a\ntrespass against the Lord, and that person be guilty; then they shall\nconfess their sin which they have done; and he shall recompense his\ntrespass with the principal thereof, and add unto it the fifth part\nthereof, and give it unto him against whom he hath trespassed. But if\nthe man have no kinsman to recompense the trespass unto, let the trespass\nbe recompensed unto the Lord, even to the priest; beside the ram of the\natonement, whereby an atonement shall be made for him.\u2019\u201d\n\nThe doctrine of the trespass-offering has been considered in our \u201cNotes\non Leviticus,\u201d chapter v; and to that we must refer our reader, as we\ndo not mean to occupy his time or our own in going into any points\nwhich have been already considered. We shall merely notice here the\nvery important questions of confession and restitution. Not only is it\ntrue that both God and man are gainers by the Great Trespass-Offering\npresented on the cross at Calvary, but we also learn, from the\nforegoing quotation, that God looked for confession and restitution,\nwhen any trespass had been committed. The sincerity of the former\nwould be evidenced by the latter. It was not sufficient for a Jew\nwho had trespassed against his brother to go and say, I am sorry. He\nhad to restore the thing wherein he had trespassed, and add a fifth\nthereto. Now, although we are not under the law, yet may we gather\nmuch instruction from its institutions; although we are not under the\nschoolmaster, we may learn some good lessons from him. If, then, we have\ntrespassed against any one, it is not enough that we confess our sin to\nGod and to our brother, we must make restitution; we are called upon to\ngive practical proof of the fact that we have judged ourselves on account\nof that thing in which we have trespassed.\n\nWe question if this is felt as it ought to be. We fear there is a light,\nflippant, easy-going style in reference to sin and failure, which must\nbe very grievous indeed to the Spirit of God. We rest content with the\nmere lip-confession, without the deep, heartfelt sense of the evil of\nsin in God\u2019s sight. The thing itself is not judged in its moral roots,\nand, as a consequence of this trifling with sin, the heart becomes hard,\nand the conscience loses its tenderness. _This is very serious._ We know\nof few things more precious than a tender conscience. We do not mean a\n_scrupulous_ conscience, which is governed by its own crotchets; or a\n_morbid_ conscience, which is governed by its own fears. Both these are\nmost troublesome guests for any one to entertain. But we mean a _tender_\nconscience, which is governed, in all things, by the Word of God, and\nwhich refers, at all times, to His authority. This sound description\nof conscience we consider an inestimable treasure. It regulates every\nthing, takes cognizance of the very smallest matter connected with our\ndaily walk and habits\u2014our mode of dress, our houses, our furniture, our\ntable, our entire deportment, spirit, and style, our mode of conducting\nour business, or if it be our lot to serve others, the mode in which we\ndischarge the service, whatever it be. In short, every thing falls under\nthe healthful moral influence of a tender conscience. \u201cHerein,\u201d says the\nblessed apostle, \u201cdo I exercise myself, to have _always_ a conscience\nvoid of offense toward God and men.\u201d (Acts xxiv. 16.)\n\nThis is what we may well covet. There is something morally beautiful and\nattractive in this exercise of the greatest and most gifted servant of\nChrist. He, with all his splendid gifts, with all his marvelous powers,\nwith all his profound insight into the ways and counsels of God, with all\nhe had to speak of and glory in, with all the wonderful revelations made\nto him in the third heavens; in a word, he, the most honored of apostles\nand privileged of saints, gave holy diligence to keep always a conscience\nvoid of offense both toward God and man; and if, in an unguarded moment,\nhe uttered a hasty word, as he did to Ananias the high-priest, he was\nready, the very next moment, to confess and make restitution, so that the\nhasty utterance, \u201cGod shall smite thee, thou whited wall,\u201d was withdrawn,\nand God\u2019s Word given instead\u2014\u201cThou shalt not speak evil of the ruler of\nthy people.\u201d\n\nNow, we do not believe that Paul could have retired to rest that night\nwith a conscience void of offense if he had not withdrawn his words.\nThere must be confession when we do or say what is wrong; and if there\nbe not the confession, our communion will assuredly be interrupted.\nCommunion, with unconfessed sin upon the conscience, is a moral\nimpossibility. We may talk of it, but it is all the merest delusion. We\nmust keep a clean conscience if we would walk with God. There is nothing\nmore to be dreaded than moral insensibility, a slovenly conscience,\nan obtuse moral sense that can allow all sorts of things to pass\nunjudged\u2014that can commit sin, pass on, and coolly say, \u201cWhat evil have I\ndone?\u201d\n\nReader, let us, with holy vigilance, watch against all this; let us\nseek to cultivate a tender conscience. It will demand from us what it\ndemanded from Paul, namely, \u201cexercise.\u201d But it is blessed exercise, and\nit will yield most precious fruits. Do not suppose that there is aught\nthat savors of the legal in this exercise; nay, it is most thoroughly\nChristian; indeed we look upon those noble words of Paul as the very\nembodiment, in a condensed form, of the whole of a Christian\u2019s practice.\n\u201cTo have _always_ a conscience void of offense toward God and men\u201d\ncomprehends every thing.\n\nBut, alas! how little do we habitually ponder the claims of God, or\nthe claims of our fellow-man! How little is our conscience up to the\nmark! Claims of all sorts are neglected, yet we feel it not. There is\nno brokenness and contrition before the Lord. We commit trespass in a\nthousand things, yet there is no confession or restitution. Things are\nallowed to pass that ought to be judged, confessed, and put away. There\nis sin in our holy things; there is lightness and indifference of spirit\nin the assembly and at the Lord\u2019s table; we rob God, in various ways; we\nthink our own thoughts, speak our own words, do our own pleasure; and\nwhat is all this but robbing God, seeing that we are not our own, but\nbought with a price?\n\nNow, we cannot but think that all this must sadly hinder our spiritual\ngrowth. It grieves the Spirit of God, and hinders His gracious ministry\nof Christ to our souls whereby alone we grow up into Him. We know,\nfrom various parts of God\u2019s Word, how much He prizes a tender spirit,\na contrite heart.\u2014\u201cTo this man will I look, even to him that is of a\ncontrite spirit and trembles at My word.\u201d With such an one God can dwell;\nbut with hardness and insensibility, coldness and indifference, He can\nhave no fellowship. Oh, then, let us exercise ourselves to have always a\npure and uncondemning conscience, both as to God and as to our fellow-man.\n\nThe third and last section of our chapter, which we need not quote at\nlength, teaches us a deeply solemn lesson, whether we view it from a\ndispensational or a moral point of view. It contains the record of the\ngreat ordinance designed for the trial of jealousy. Its place here is\nremarkable. In the first section, we have the corporate judgment of\nevil; in the second, we have individual self-judgment, confession, and\nrestitution; and in the third, we learn that God cannot endure even the\nmere suspicion of evil.\n\nNow, we fully believe that this very impressive ordinance has a\ndispensational bearing upon the relationship between Jehovah and\nIsrael. The prophets dwell largely upon Israel\u2019s conduct as a wife, and\nupon Jehovah\u2019s jealousy on that score. We do not attempt to quote the\npassages, but the reader will find them throughout the pages of Jeremiah\nand Ezekiel. Israel could not abide the searching trial of the bitter\nwater. Her unfaithfulness has been made manifest; she has broken her\nvows; she has gone aside from her Husband, the Holy One of Israel, whose\nburning jealousy has been poured forth upon the faithless nation. He is a\njealous God, and cannot bear the thought that the heart that He claims as\nHis own should be given to another.\n\nThus we see that this ordinance for the trial of jealousy bears very\ndistinctly upon it the impress of the divine character. In it He most\nfully enters into the thoughts and feelings of an injured husband, or\nof one who even suspected an injury. The bare suspicion is perfectly\nintolerable, and where it takes possession of the heart, the matter must\nbe sifted to the very bottom. The suspected one must undergo a process of\nsuch a searching nature that only the faithful one can endure. If there\nwas a trace of guilt, the bitter water would search down into the very\ndepths of the soul and bring it all out. There was no escape for the\nguilty one; and we may say that the very fact of there being no possible\nescape for the guilty, only made the vindication of the innocent more\ntriumphant. The self-same process that declared the guilt of the guilty,\nmade manifest the innocence of the faithful. To one who is thoroughly\nconscious of integrity, the more searching the investigation the more\nwelcome it is. If there were a possibility of a guilty one escaping,\nthrough any defect in the mode of trial, it would only make against the\ninnocent. But the process was divine, and therefore perfect; and hence,\nwhen the suspected wife had gone through it in safety, her fidelity was\nperfectly manifested, and full confidence restored.\n\nWhat a mercy, then, to have had such a perfect mode of settling all\nsuspected cases! Suspicion is the death-blow to all loving intimacy,\nand God would not have it in the midst of His congregation. He would\nnot only have His people collectively to judge evil, and individually\nto judge themselves; but where there was even the suspicion of evil,\nand no evidence forthcoming, He Himself devised a method of trial which\nperfectly brought the truth to light. The guilty one had to drink death,\nand found it to be judgment:[6] the faithful one drank death, and found\nit victory.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VI.\n\n\n\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, \u2018Speak unto the children of\nIsrael, and say unto them, When either man or woman shall separate\nthemselves to vow a vow of a Nazarite, to separate themselves unto the\nLord; he shall separate himself from wine and strong drink, and shall\ndrink no vinegar of wine, or vinegar of strong drink, neither shall he\ndrink any liquor of grapes, nor eat moist grapes, or dried. All the days\nof his separation shall he eat nothing that is made of the vine-tree,\nfrom the kernels even to the husk. All the days of the vow of his\nseparation there shall no razor come upon his head: until the days be\nfulfilled, in the which he separateth himself unto the Lord, he shall be\nholy, and shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow. All the days\nthat he separateth himself unto the Lord he shall come at no dead body.\nHe shall not make himself unclean for his father, or for his mother, for\nhis brother, or for his sister, when they die; because the consecration\nof his God is upon his head. All the days of his separation he is holy\nunto the Lord.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 1-8.)\n\nThe ordinance of Nazariteship is full of interest and practical\ninstruction. In it we see the case of one setting himself apart, in a\nvery special manner, from things which, though not absolutely sinful in\nthemselves, were nevertheless calculated to interfere with that intense\nconsecration of heart which is set forth in true Nazariteship.\n\nIn the first place, the Nazarite was not to drink wine. The fruit of the\nvine, in every shape and form, was to him a forbidden thing. Now, wine,\nas we know, is the apt symbol of earthly joy\u2014the expression of that\nsocial enjoyment which the human heart is so fully capable of entering\ninto. From this the Nazarite in the wilderness was sedulously to keep\nhimself. With him it was a literal thing. He was not to excite nature by\nthe use of strong drink. All the days of his separation he was called to\nexercise the strictest abstinence from wine.\n\nSuch was the type, and it is written for our learning\u2014written, too, in\nthis marvelous book of Numbers, so rich in its wilderness lessons. This\nis only what we might expect. The impressive institution of the Nazarite\nfinds its appropriate place in the book of Numbers. It is in perfect\nkeeping with the character of the book, which, as has been already\nremarked, contains all that specially belongs to life in the wilderness.\n\nLet us then inquire into the nature of the lesson taught us in the\nNazarite\u2019s abstinence from every thing pertaining to the vine, from the\nkernel even to the husk.\n\nThere has been but one true and perfect Nazarite in this world\u2014but one\nwho maintained, from first to last, the most complete separation from\nall mere earthly joy. From the moment He entered upon His public work,\nHe kept Himself apart from all that was of this world. His heart was\nfixed upon God and His work, with a devotion that nothing could shake.\nNo claims of earth or nature were ever allowed, for a single moment, to\ncome in between His heart and that work which He came to do. \u201cWist ye not\nthat I must be about My Father\u2019s business?\u201d And again, \u201cWoman, what have\nI to do with thee?\u201d With such words did the true Nazarite seek to adjust\nthe claims of nature. He had one thing to do, and to that He separated\nHimself perfectly. His eye was single and His heart undivided. This is\napparent from first to last. He could say to His disciples, \u201cI have\nmeat to eat that ye know not of;\u201d and when they, not knowing the deep\nsignificance of His words, said, \u201cHath any man brought Him aught to eat?\u201d\nHe replied, \u201cMy meat is to do the will of Him that sent Me, and to finish\nHis work.\u201d (John iv.) So also at the close of His course here below, we\nhear Him giving utterance to such words as these, as He took into His\nhand the paschal cup: \u201cTake this, and divide it among yourselves; for I\nsay unto you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom\nof God shall come.\u201d (Luke xxii. 17, 18.)\n\nThus we see how the perfect Nazarite carried Himself throughout. He could\nhave no joy in the earth, no joy in the nation of Israel. The time had\nnot come for that, and therefore He detached Himself from all that which\nmere human affection might find in association with His own, in order to\ndevote Himself to the one grand object which was ever before His mind.\nThe time will come when He, as the Messiah, will rejoice in His people\nand in the earth; but until that blissful moment arrives, He is apart\nas the true Nazarite, and His people are linked with Him. \u201cThey are not\nof the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them through Thy\ntruth: Thy Word is truth. As Thou hast sent Me into the world, even so\nhave I also sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify\nMyself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.\u201d (John\nxvii. 16-19.)\n\nChristian reader, let us deeply ponder this first grand feature of\nthe Nazarite character. It is important we should faithfully examine\nourselves in the light of it. It is a very grave question indeed how far\nwe, as Christians, are really entering into the meaning and power of\nthis intense separation from all the excitement of nature, and from all\nmerely earthly joy. It may perhaps be said, What harm is there in having\na little amusement or recreation? Surely, we are not called to be monks.\nHas not God given us richly all things to enjoy? And while we are in the\nworld, is it not right we should enjoy it?\n\nTo all this we reply, It is not a question of the harm of this, that,\nor the other. There was no harm, as a general rule, in wine; nothing\nabstractedly wrong in the vine-tree: but the point is this, if any one\naimed at being a Nazarite, if he aspired to this holy separation unto the\nLord, then was he to abstain _wholly_ from the use of wine and strong\ndrink. Others might drink wine; but the Nazarite was not to touch it.\n\nNow, the question for us is this: Do we aim at being Nazarites? do we\nsigh after thorough separation and devotement of ourselves, in body,\nsoul, and spirit, unto God? If so, we must be apart from all these things\nin which mere nature finds its enjoyment. It is upon this one hinge\nthat the whole question turns. The question most assuredly is not \u201cAre\nwe to be monks?\u201d but, Do we want to be Nazarites? Is it our heart\u2019s\ndesire to be apart, with our Lord Christ, from all mere earthly joy\u2014to be\nseparated unto God from those things which, though not absolutely sinful\nin themselves, do nevertheless tend to hinder that entire consecration\nof heart which is the true secret of all spiritual Nazariteship? Is\nnot the Christian reader aware that there are, in very deed, many such\nthings? Is he not conscious that there are numberless things which exert\na distracting and weakening influence upon his spirit, and yet were they\nto be tried by the standard of ordinary morality, they might be allowed\nto pass as harmless?\n\nBut we must remember that God\u2019s Nazarites do not measure things by any\nsuch standard. Theirs is not an ordinary morality at all. They look at\nthings from a divine and heavenly stand-point, and hence they cannot\nsuffer aught to pass as harmless which tends in any wise to interfere\nwith that high tone of consecration to God after which their souls are\nfervently breathing.\n\nMay we have grace to weigh these things, and to watch against every\ndefiling influence. Each one must be aware of what it is which, in his\ncase, would prove to be wine and strong drink. It may seem to be a\ntrifle; but we may rest assured that nothing is a trifle which breaks\nthe current of our soul\u2019s communion with God, and robs us of that holy\nintimacy which it is our privilege ever to enjoy.\n\nBut there was another thing which marked the Nazarite. He was not to\nshave his head.\u2014\u201cAll the days of the vow of his separation there shall\nno razor come upon his head: until the days be fulfilled in the which he\nseparateth himself unto the Lord, he shall be holy, and shall let the\nlocks of the hair of his head grow.\u201d\n\nIn 1 Corinthians xi. 14, we learn that it argues a lack of dignity for a\nman to have long hair. \u201cDoth not even nature itself teach you, that if a\nman have long hair, it is a shame unto him?\u201d From this we learn that if\nwe really desire to live a life of separation to God, we must be prepared\nto surrender our dignity in nature. This our Lord Jesus Christ did\nperfectly. He made Himself of no reputation; He surrendered His rights in\nevery thing; He could say, \u201cI am a worm and no man;\u201d He emptied Himself\nthoroughly, and took the very lowest place; He neglected Himself, while\nHe cared for others. In a word, His Nazariteship was perfect in this as\nin all beside.\n\nNow, here is just the very thing which we so little like to do. We\nnaturally stand up for our dignity and seek to maintain our rights. It\nis deemed manly so to do. But the perfect Man never did so; and if we\naim at being Nazarites, we shall not do so either. We must surrender the\ndignities of nature, and forego the joys of earth, if we would tread a\npath of thorough separation to God in this world. By and by both will be\nin place, but not now.\n\nHere again, be it remarked, the question is not as to the right and\nwrong of the case. As a general rule, it was right for a man to shave\nhis locks; but it was not right, nay, it was altogether wrong, for a\nNazarite to do so. This made all the difference. It was quite right for\nan ordinary man to shave and drink wine; but the Nazarite was not an\nordinary man; he was one set apart from all that was ordinary, to tread a\npath peculiar to himself; and to use a razor or taste wine would involve\nthe entire surrender of that peculiar path. Hence, if any inquire, Is it\nnot right to enjoy the pleasures of earth, and maintain the dignities\nof nature? We reply, Quite right, if we are to walk as men; but wholly\nwrong, yea, absolutely fatal, if we want to walk as Nazarites.\n\nThis simplifies the matter amazingly. It answers a thousand questions\nand solves a thousand difficulties. It is of little use to split hairs\nabout the harm of this or that particular thing. The question is, What\nis our real purpose and object? do we merely want to get on as men, or\ndo we long to live as true Nazarites? According to the language of 1\nCorinthians iii. 3, to \u201cwalk as men\u201d and to be \u201ccarnal\u201d are synonymous.\nDoes such language really govern us? do we drink into the spirit and\nbreathe the atmosphere of such a scripture? or are we ruled by the spirit\nand principles of a godless, Christless world? It is useless to spend\nour time arguing points which would never be raised at all if our souls\nwere in the right temper and attitude. No doubt, it is perfectly right,\nperfectly natural, perfectly consistent, for the men of this world to\nenjoy all that it has to offer them, and to maintain their rights and\ntheir dignities to the very utmost of their power. It were childish\nto question this. But on the other hand, what is right and natural\nand consistent for the men of this world, is wrong, unnatural, and\ninconsistent for God\u2019s Nazarites. Thus the matter stands, if we are to\nbe governed by the simple truth of God. We learn from the sixth chapter\nof Numbers that if a Nazarite drank wine or shaved his locks, he defiled\nthe head of his consecration. Has this no voice, no lesson for us?\nAssuredly it has. It teaches us that if our souls desire to pursue a path\nof whole-hearted consecration to God, we must abstain from the joys of\nearth, and surrender the dignities and the rights of nature. It must be\nthus, seeing that God and the world, flesh and spirit, do not and cannot\ncoalesce. The time will come when it will be otherwise; but just now, all\nwho _will_ live to God, and walk in the Spirit, must live apart from the\nworld and mortify the flesh. May God, of His great mercy, enable us so to\ndo.\n\nOne other feature of the Nazarite remains to be noticed. He was not to\ntouch a dead body.\u2014\u201cAll the days that he separateth himself unto the\nLord, he shall come at no dead body. He shall not make himself unclean\nfor his father, or for his mother, for his brother, or for his sister,\nwhen they die; because the consecration of his God is upon his head.\u201d\n\nThus we see that whether it was drinking wine, shaving his locks, or\ntouching a dead body, the effect was the same; any one of the three\ninvolved the defilement of the head of the Nazarite\u2019s consecration.\nWherefore it is plain that it was as defiling to the Nazarite to drink\nwine or to shave his head, as it was to touch a dead body. It is well to\nsee this. We are prone to make distinctions which will not stand for a\nmoment in the light of the divine presence. When once the consecration of\nGod rested upon the head of any one, that great and important fact became\nthe standard and touchstone of all morality. It placed the individual\non entirely new and peculiar ground, and rendered it imperative upon\nhim to look at every thing from a new and peculiar point of view. He\nwas no longer to ask what became him as a man, but what became him as\na Nazarite. Hence, if his dearest friend lay dead by his side, he was\nnot to touch him. He was called to keep himself apart from the defiling\ninfluence of death, and all because \u201cthe consecration of God was upon his\nhead.\u201d\n\nNow, in this entire subject of Nazariteship, it is needful for the reader\nto understand very distinctly that it is not by any means a question\nof the soul\u2019s salvation, of eternal life, or of the believer\u2019s perfect\nsecurity in Christ. If this be not clearly seen, it may lead the mind\ninto perplexity and darkness. There are two grand links in Christianity\nwhich, though very intimately connected, are perfectly distinct, namely,\nthe link of eternal life, and the link of personal communion. The former\ncan never be snapped by any thing; the latter can be snapped in a\nmoment, by the weight of a feather. It is to the second of these that the\ndoctrine of Nazariteship pertains.\n\nWe behold in the person of the Nazarite a type of one who sets out in\nsome special path of devotedness or consecration to Christ. The power\nof continuance in this path consists in secret communion with God; so\nthat if the communion be interrupted, the power is gone. This renders\nthe subject peculiarly solemn. There is the greatest possible danger of\nattempting to pursue the path in the absence of that which constitutes\nthe source of its power. This is most disastrous, and demands the utmost\nvigilance. We have briefly glanced at the various things which tend to\ninterrupt the Nazarite\u2019s communion; but it would be wholly impossible, by\nany words of ours, to set forth the moral effect of any attempt to keep\nup the appearance of Nazariteship when the inward reality is gone. It is\ndangerous in the extreme. It is infinitely better to confess our failure,\nand take our true place, than to keep up a false appearance. God will\nhave reality; and we may rest assured that, sooner or later, our weakness\nand folly will be made manifest to all. It is very deplorable and very\nhumbling when \u201cthe Nazarites, that were purer than snow,\u201d become \u201cblacker\nthan a coal;\u201d but it is far worse when those who have become thus black,\nkeep up the pretense of being white.\n\nLet us look at the solemn case of Samson, as set before us in the\nsixteenth chapter of Judges. He, in an evil hour, betrayed his secret\nand lost his power\u2014lost it though he knew it not. But the enemy soon\nknew it. It was soon made manifest to all that the Nazarite had defiled\nthe head of his consecration. \u201cAnd it came to pass, when Delilah pressed\nhim daily with her words, and urged him, so that his soul was vexed unto\ndeath, that he told her all his heart, and said unto her, \u2018There hath not\ncome a razor upon mine head; for I have been a Nazarite unto God from my\nmother\u2019s womb: if I be shaven, then my strength will go from me, and I\nshall become weak, and be like any other man.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 16, 17.)\n\nHere, alas! was the betrayal of the deep and holy secret of all his\npower. Up to this, his path had been one of strength and victory, simply\nbecause it had been one of holy Nazariteship. But the lap of Delilah\nproved too much for the heart of Samson, and what a thousand Philistines\ncould not do was done by the insnaring influence of a single woman.\nSamson fell from the lofty elevation of the Nazarite down to the level of\nan ordinary man.\n\n\u201cAnd when Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent and\ncalled for the lords of the Philistines, saying, \u2018Come up this once, for\nhe hath showed me all his heart.\u2019 Then the lords of the Philistines came\nup unto her, and brought money in their hand. And she made him sleep\nupon her knees; [alas! alas! a fatal sleep to God\u2019s Nazarite!] and she\ncalled for a man, and she caused him to shave off the seven locks of\nhis head; and she began to afflict him, and his strength went from him.\nAnd she said, \u2018The Philistines be upon thee, Samson.\u2019 And he awoke out\nof his sleep, and said, \u2018I will go out as at other times before, and\nshake myself.\u2019 And he wist not that the Lord was departed from him. But\nthe Philistines took him, and put out his eyes, and brought him down\nto Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass; and he did grind in the\nprison-house.\u201d (Judges xvi. 18-21.)\n\nOh, reader, what a picture! How solemn! how admonitory! What a melancholy\nspectacle was Samson\u2014going out to shake himself, \u201cas at other times\u201d!\nAlas! the \u201c_as_\u201d was out of place. He might shake himself, but it was no\nlonger \u201cas at other times,\u201d for the power was gone; the Lord was departed\nfrom him, and the once-powerful Nazarite became a blind prisoner; and\ninstead of triumphing over the Philistines, he had to grind in their\nprison-house. So much for yielding to mere nature. Samson never regained\nhis liberty. He was permitted, through the mercy of God, to gain one\nmore victory over the uncircumcised; but that victory cost him his life.\nGod\u2019s Nazarites must keep themselves pure or lose their power. In their\ncase, power and purity are inseparable. They cannot get on without inward\nholiness; and hence the urgent need of being ever on the watch against\nthe various things which tend to draw away the heart, distract the mind,\nand lower the tone of spirituality. Let us ever keep before our souls\nthose words of our chapter, \u201cAll the days of his separation he is holy\nunto the Lord.\u201d Holiness is the grand and indispensable characteristic\nof all the days of Nazariteship; so that when once holiness is forfeited,\nNazariteship is at an end.\n\nWhat, then, it may be asked, is to be done? The scripture before us\nsupplies the answer.\u2014\u201cAnd if any man die very suddenly by him, and he\nhath defiled the head of his consecration, then he shall shave his head\nin the day of his cleansing; on the seventh day shall he shave it. And\non the eighth day he shall bring two turtles, or two young pigeons,\nto the priest, to the door of the tabernacle of the congregation; and\nthe priest shall offer the one for a sin-offering, and the other for a\nburnt-offering, and make an atonement for him, for that he sinned by the\ndead, and shall hallow his head that same day. And he shall consecrate\nunto the Lord the days of his separation, and shall bring a lamb of the\nfirst year for a trespass-offering; but the days that were before shall\nbe lost, because his separation was defiled.\u201d (Num. vi. 9-12.)\n\nHere we find atonement, in its two grand aspects, as the only ground on\nwhich the Nazarite could be restored to communion. He had contracted\ndefilement, and that defilement could only be removed by the blood of\nthe sacrifice. We might deem it a very trifling matter to touch a dead\nbody, and particularly under such circumstances. It might be said, How\ncould he help touching it, when the man had suddenly dropped dead by his\nside? To all this the reply is at once simple and solemn. God\u2019s Nazarites\nmust maintain personal purity; and, moreover, the standard by which\ntheir purity is to be regulated is not human, but divine. The mere touch\nof death was sufficient to break the link of communion; and had the\nNazarite presumed to go on as though nothing had happened, he would have\nbeen flying in the face of God\u2019s commandments, and bringing down heavy\njudgment upon himself.\n\nBut, blessed be God, grace had made provision. There was the\nburnt-offering\u2014the type of the death of Christ to Godward; there was\nthe sin-offering\u2014the type of that same death to usward; and there was\nthe trespass-offering\u2014the type of the death of Christ, not only in its\napplication to the root or principle of sin in the nature, but also to\nthe actual sin committed. In a word, it needed the full virtue of the\ndeath of Christ to remove the defilement caused by the simple touch of\na dead body. This is peculiarly solemnizing. Sin is a dreadful thing in\nGod\u2019s sight\u2014most dreadful. A single sinful thought, a sinful look, a\nsinful word, is enough to bring a dark, heavy cloud over the soul, which\nwill hide from our view the light of God\u2019s countenance, and plunge us\ninto deep distress and misery.\n\nLet us, then, beware how we trifle with sin. Let us remember that ere one\nstain of the guilt of sin\u2014even the very smallest\u2014could be removed, the\nblessed Lord Jesus Christ had to pass through all the unutterable horrors\nof Calvary. That intensely bitter cry, \u201cMy God, My God, why hast Thou\nforsaken Me?\u201d is the only thing that can give us any proper idea of what\nsin is; and into the profound depths of that cry no mortal or angel can\never enter. But though we can never fathom the mysterious depths of the\nsufferings of Christ, we should at least seek to meditate more habitually\nupon His cross and passion, and, in this way, reach a much deeper view\nof the awfulness of sin in the sight of God. If, indeed, sin was so\ndreadful, so abhorrent to a holy God, that He was constrained to turn\naway the light of His countenance from that blessed One who had dwelt\nin His bosom from all eternity; if He had to forsake Him because He was\nbearing sin in His own body on the tree, then what must sin be?\n\nOh, reader, let us seriously consider these things. May they ever have\na place deep down in these hearts of ours, that are so easily betrayed\ninto sin. How lightly, at times, do we think of that which cost the Lord\nJesus every thing\u2014not only life, but that which is better and dearer\nthan life, even the light of God\u2019s countenance! May we have a far deeper\nsense of the hatefulness of sin. May we most sedulously watch against the\nbare movement of the eye in a wrong direction; for we may rest assured\nthat the heart will follow the eye, and the feet will follow the heart,\nand thus we get away from the Lord, lose the sense of His presence and\nHis love, and become miserable, or, if not miserable, what is far worse,\ndead, cold, and callous\u2014\u201chardened through the deceitfulness of sin.\u201d\n\nMay God, in His infinite mercy, keep us from falling. May we have grace\nto watch more jealously against every thing, no matter what, that might\ndefile the head of our consecration. It is a serious thing to get out of\ncommunion, and a most perilous thing to attempt to go on in the Lord\u2019s\nservice with a defiled conscience. True it is that grace pardons and\nrestores, but we never regain what we have lost. This latter is set forth\nwith solemn emphasis in the passage of Scripture before us,\u2014\u201cHe shall\nconsecrate unto the Lord the days of his separation, and shall bring a\nlamb of the first year for a trespass-offering; _but the days that were\nbefore shall be lost_ [or, shall fall, as the margin reads it], because\nhis separation was defiled.\u201d\n\nThis is a point, in our subject, full of instruction and admonition for\nour souls. When the Nazarite became defiled by any means, even by the\ntouch of a dead body, he had to begin over again. It was not merely the\ndays of his defilement that were lost, or let fall, but actually all the\ndays of his previous Nazariteship. All went for nothing, and this simply\nby reason of touching a dead body.\n\nWhat does this teach us? It teaches this, at least, that when we diverge,\nthe breadth of a hair, from the narrow path of communion, and get away\nfrom the Lord, we must return to the very point from which we set out,\nand begin _de novo_. We have many examples of this in Scripture, and\nit would be our wisdom to consider them, and also to weigh the great\npractical truth which they illustrate.\n\nTake the case of Abraham, in his descent into Egypt, as recorded in\nGenesis xii. This was very evidently a divergence from his proper path.\nAnd what was the consequence? The days were lost, or let fall, and he\nhad to get back to the point whence he had swerved, and begin over again.\nThus, in Genesis xii. 8, we read, \u201cAnd he removed from thence unto a\nmountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on\nthe west, and Hai on the east; and there he builded an altar unto the\nLord, and called on the name of the Lord.\u201d Then, after his return out of\nthe land of Egypt, we read, \u201cHe went on his journeys from the south even\nto Bethel, unto the place where his tent had been _at the beginning_,\nbetween Bethel and Hai, unto the place of the altar which he had made\nthere _at the first_; and there Abram called on the name of the Lord.\u201d\n(Gen. xiii. 3, 4.) All the time spent in Egypt went for nothing. There\nwas no altar there, no worship, no communion; and Abraham had to get back\nto the self-same point from which he had diverged, and begin on the new.\n\nThus it is in every case; and this will account for the miserably slow\nprogress which some of us make in our practical career. We fail, turn\naside, get away from the Lord, are plunged in spiritual darkness; and\nthen His voice of love reaches us, in restoring power, and brings us\nback to the point from which we had wandered; our souls are restored,\nbut we have lost time and suffered incalculably. This is most serious,\nand it should lead us to walk with holy vigilance and circumspection,\nso that we may not have to double back upon our path, and lose what can\nnever be regained. True it is that our wanderings and our stumblings\nand our failings give us an insight into our own hearts, teach us to\ndistrust ourselves, and illustrate the boundless and unchangeable\ngrace of our God. All this is quite true; but still there is a very\nmuch higher way of learning both ourselves and God, than by wandering,\nstumbling, or failing. _Self_, in all the terrible depths of that word,\nshould be judged in the light of the divine presence; and there, too,\nour souls should grow in the knowledge of God as He unfolds Himself, by\nthe Holy Ghost, in the face of Jesus Christ, and in the precious pages\nof holy Scripture. This surely is the more excellent way of learning\nboth ourselves and God; and this, too, is the power of all true Nazarite\nseparation. The soul that habitually lives in the sanctuary of God, or,\nin other words, that walks in unbroken communion with God, is the one\nwho will have a just sense of what nature is, in all its phases, though\nit be not learnt by sad experience. And not only so, but he will have\na deeper and juster sense of what God is in Himself and to all who put\ntheir trust in Him. It is poor work to be learning self by experience. We\nmay depend upon it, the true way to learn it is in communion; and when we\nlearn it thus, we shall not be characterized by perpetually dwelling upon\nour personal vileness, but rather we shall be occupied with that which is\noutside and above self altogether, even the excellency of the knowledge\nof Christ Jesus our Lord.\n\nWe shall, in closing this section, quote, at length, for the reader, the\nstatements of \u201cthe law of the Nazarite, when the days of his separation\nare fulfilled: he shall be brought unto the door of the tabernacle of\nthe congregation; and he shall offer his offering unto the Lord, one he\nlamb of the first year without blemish for a burnt-offering, and one ewe\nlamb of the first year without blemish, for a sin-offering, and one ram\nwithout blemish for peace-offerings; and a basket of unleavened bread,\ncakes of fine flour mingled with oil, and wafers of unleavened bread\nanointed with oil, and their meat-offering, and their drink-offering.\nAnd the priest shall bring them before the Lord, and shall offer his\nsin-offering and his burnt-offering. And he shall offer the ram for\na sacrifice of peace-offerings unto the Lord, with the basket of\nunleavened bread: the priest shall offer also his meat-offering and his\ndrink-offering. And the Nazarite shall shave the head of his separation\nat the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and shall take the\nhair of the head of his separation, and put it in the fire which is\nunder the sacrifice of the peace-offerings. And the priest shall take\nthe sodden shoulder of the ram, and one unleavened cake out of the\nbasket, and one unleavened wafer, and shall put them upon the hands of\nthe Nazarite, after the hair of his separation is shaven; and the priest\nshall wave them for a wave-offering before the Lord: this is holy for the\npriest, with the wave breast and the heave shoulder: _and after that the\nNazarite may drink wine_. This is the law of the Nazarite who hath vowed,\nand of his offering unto the Lord for his separation, beside that that\nhis hand shall get: according to the vow which he vowed, so he must do\nafter the law of his separation.\u201d (Num. vi. 13-21.)\n\nThis marvelous \u201claw\u201d leads us onward to something future, when the full\nresult of Christ\u2019s perfect work shall appear, and when He, as the Messiah\nof Israel, shall, at the close of His Nazarite separation, taste true joy\nin His beloved people, and in this earth. The time will then have come\nfor the Nazarite to drink wine. From all this He set Himself apart, for\nthe accomplishment of that great work, so fully set forth, in all its\naspects and in all its bearings, in the foregoing \u201claw.\u201d He is apart from\nthe nation, and apart from this world, in the power of true Nazariteship,\nas He said to His disciples on that memorable night, \u201cI will not drink\nhenceforth [\u03b1\u03c0\u2019 \u03b1\u03c1\u03c4\u03b9] of this fruit of the vine until _that day_ when I\ndrink it new with you in My Father\u2019s kingdom.\u201d (Matt. xxvi. 29.)\n\nBut there is a bright day coming, when Jehovah-Messiah shall rejoice in\nJerusalem and joy in His people. The prophets, from Isaiah to Malachi,\nare full of the most glowing and soul-stirring allusions to that bright\nand blissful day. To quote the passages would literally fill a volume.\nBut if the reader will turn to the closing section of Isaiah\u2019s prophecy,\nhe will find a sample of that to which we refer, and he will find many\nsimilar passages throughout the various books of the prophets.\n\nWe must not attempt to quote, but we would warn the reader against the\ndanger of being led astray by the uninspired headings attached to those\nmagnificent passages which refer to Israel\u2019s future, such, for example,\nas \u201cThe blessings of the gospel\u201d\u2014\u201cThe enlargement of the Church.\u201d These\nexpressions are calculated to mislead many pious readers, who are apt\nto take for granted that the headings are as much inspired as the text;\nor, if not inspired, that they at least contain a correct statement of\nwhat the text sets forth. The fact is, there is not a syllable about the\nChurch from beginning to end of the prophets. That the Church can find\nmost precious instruction, light, comfort, and edification from this\ngrand division of the inspired volume is blessedly true; but she will do\nthis just in proportion as she is enabled, by the Spirit\u2019s teaching, to\ndiscern the real scope and object of this portion of the book of God. To\nsuppose for a moment that we can only derive comfort and profit from that\nwhich exclusively or primarily refers to ourselves, would be to take a\nvery narrow, if not an egotistical, view of things. Can we not learn from\nthe book of Leviticus? and yet who would assert that that section refers\nto the Church?\n\nNo, reader; you may rest assured that a calm, unprejudiced, prayerful\nstudy of \u201cthe law and the prophets\u201d will convince you that the great\ntheme of both the one and the other is, God\u2019s government of the world in\nimmediate connection with Israel. True it is that throughout \u201cMoses and\nall the prophets\u201d there are things concerning (the Lord) Himself. This\nis plain, from Luke xxiv. 27; but it is \u201cHimself\u201d in His government of\nthis world and of Israel in particular. If this fact be not distinctly\nseized, we shall study the Old Testament with little intelligence or\nprofit.\n\nIt may seem, to some of our readers, a strong statement to assert that\nthere is nothing about the Church, properly so called, throughout the\nprophets, or indeed in the Old Testament; but a statement or two from\nthe inspired pen of St. Paul will settle the whole question for any one\nwho is really willing to submit to the authority of holy Scripture. Thus\nin Romans xvi. we read, \u201cNow to Him that is of power to stablish you\naccording to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to\nthe revelation of the mystery, _which was kept secret since the world\nbegan_, but _now is made manifest_, and by the scriptures of the prophets\n[evidently of the New Testament], according to the commandment of the\neverlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith.\u201d\n(Ver. 25, 26.)\n\nSo also in Ephesians iii. we read, \u201cFor this cause I Paul, the prisoner\nof Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, if ye have heard of the dispensation of\nthe grace of God, which is given me to you-ward; how that by revelation\nHe made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words,\nwhereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery\nof Christ;) _which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of\nmen, as it is now revealed unto His holy apostles and prophets by the\nSpirit_;[7] that the Gentiles should be fellow-heirs, and of the same\nbody, and partakers of His promise in Christ by the gospel.... And to\nmake all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which _from the\nbeginning of the world hath been HID IN GOD_, who created all things by\nJesus Christ: to the intent that now unto the principalities and powers\nin heavenly places might be known by the Church the manifold wisdom of\nGod.\u201d (Ver. 1-10.)\n\nBut we must not pursue this deeply interesting subject of the Church;\nwe have merely referred to the foregoing plain passages of Scripture,\nin order to settle the reader\u2019s mind as to the fact that the doctrine\nof the Church, as taught by Paul, finds no place in the pages of the\nOld Testament; and therefore, when he reads the prophets and meets the\nwords \u201cIsrael,\u201d \u201cJerusalem,\u201d \u201cZion,\u201d he is not to apply such terms to the\nChurch of God, inasmuch as they belong to the literal people of Israel,\nthe seed of Abraham, the land of Canaan, and the city of Jerusalem.[8]\nGod means what He says, and therefore we must not countenance aught that\nborders upon or looks like a loose and irreverent mode of handling the\nWord of God. When the Spirit speaks of Jerusalem, He means Jerusalem; if\nHe meant the Church, He would say so. We should not attempt to treat a\nrespectable human document as we treat the inspired volume. We take it\nfor granted that a man not only knows what he means to say, but says what\nhe means; and if this be so in regard to a poor fallible mortal, how much\nmore so in regard to the only wise and living God, who cannot lie?\n\nBut we must draw this section to a close, and leave the reader to\nmeditate alone upon the ordinance of the Nazarite, so pregnant with\nsacred teaching for the heart. We wish him to ponder, in a special way,\nthe fact that the Holy Ghost has given us the full statement of the law\nof Nazariteship in the book of Numbers\u2014the wilderness book. And not\nonly so, but let him carefully consider the institution itself. Let him\nsee that he understands why the Nazarite was not to drink wine, why he\nwas not to shave his locks, and why he was not to touch a dead body.\nLet him meditate upon these three things, and seek to gather up the\ninstruction contained therein. Let him ask himself, Do I really long to\nbe a Nazarite\u2014to walk along the narrow path of separation unto God? and\nif so, am I prepared to surrender all those things which tend to defile,\nto distract, and to hinder God\u2019s Nazarites? And finally, let him remember\nthat there is a time coming when \u201cthe Nazarite may drink wine;\u201d or, in\nother words, when there will be no need to watch against the varied forms\nof evil within or around; all will be pure; the affections may flow out\nwithout check; the garments may flow around us without a girdle; there\nwill be no evil to lie separated from, and therefore there will be no\nneed of separation. In a word, there will be \u201ca new heavens and a new\nearth wherein _dwelleth_ righteousness.\u201d May God, in His infinite mercy,\nkeep us until that blessed time, in true consecration of heart unto\nHimself.\n\n * * * * *\n\nThe reader will observe that we here reach the close of a very distinct\nsection of our book. The camp is duly arranged; every warrior is set in\nhis proper place (chap. i, ii.); every workman is set to his proper work\n(chap. iii, iv.); the congregation is purified from defilement (chap.\nv.); provision is made for the highest character of separation to God\n(chap. vi.). All this is very marked. The order is strikingly beautiful.\nWe have before us not only a cleansed and well-ordered camp, but also a\ncharacter of consecration to God beyond which it is impossible to go,\ninasmuch as it is that which is only seen in its integrity in the life\nof our blessed Lord Jesus Christ Himself. Having then reached this lofty\npoint, nothing remains but for Jehovah to pronounce His blessing upon the\nwhole congregation, and accordingly we get that blessing at the close of\nchapter vi; and surely we may say, a right royal blessing it is. Let us\nread and consider.\n\n\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, \u2018Speak unto Aaron and unto\nhis sons, saying, On this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel,\nsaying unto them, The Lord bless thee and keep thee; the Lord make His\nface shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee. The Lord lift up His\ncountenance upon thee, and give thee peace. And they shall put My name\nupon the children of Israel; and I will bless them.\u2019\u201d\n\nThis copious blessing flows through the channel of priesthood. Aaron and\nhis sons are commissioned to pronounce this wonderful benediction. God\u2019s\nassembly is to be blessed and kept of Him continually; it is ever to bask\nin the sunlight of His gracious countenance; its peace is to flow as a\nriver; Jehovah\u2019s name is to be called upon it; He is ever there to bless.\n\nWhat a provision! Oh that Israel had entered into it, and lived in the\npower of it! But they did not. They quickly turned aside, as we shall\nsee. They exchanged the light of God\u2019s countenance for the darkness of\nMount Sinai; they abandoned the ground of grace and placed themselves\nunder law. In place of being satisfied with their portion in the God of\ntheir fathers, they lusted after other things. (Compare Psalm cv. and\ncvi.) In place of the order, the purity, and the separation to God with\nwhich our book opens, we have disorder, defilement, and giving themselves\nto idolatry.\n\nBut, blessed be God, there is a moment approaching in the which the\nmagnificent benediction of Numbers vi. shall have its full application;\nwhen Israel\u2019s twelve tribes shall be ranged around that imperishable\nstandard, \u201cJehovah-shammah\u201d (Ezek. xlviii. 35.); when they shall be\npurified from all their defilements, and consecrated unto God in the\npower of true Nazariteship. These things are set forth in the fullest and\nclearest manner throughout the pages of the prophets. All these inspired\nwitnesses, without so much as one dissentient voice, bear testimony to\nthe glorious future in store for the literal Israel. They all point\nforward to that time when the heavy clouds which have gathered and still\nhang upon the nation\u2019s horizon shall be chased away before the bright\nbeams of \u201cthe Sun of Righteousness;\u201d when Israel shall enjoy a cloudless\nday of bliss and glory, beneath the vines and fig-trees of that very land\nwhich God gave as an everlasting possession unto Abraham, Isaac, and\nJacob.\n\nIf we deny the foregoing, we may as well cut out a large portion of the\nOld Testament, and not a small part of the New, for in both the one\nand the other the Holy Ghost doth most clearly and unequivocally bear\ntestimony to this precious fact, namely, mercy, salvation, and blessing\nto the seed of Jacob. We hesitate not to declare our conviction that no\none can possibly understand the prophets who does not see this. There is\na bright future in store for God\u2019s beloved, though now rejected people.\nLet us beware how we deal with this fact. It is a very grave matter to\nattempt to interfere, in any wise, with the true and proper application\nof the Word of God. If He has pledged Himself to bless the nation of\nIsrael, let us have a care how we seek to force the stream of blessing\nto flow in a different channel. It is a serious thing to tamper with the\ndeclared purpose of God. He has declared it to be His purpose to give\nthe land of Canaan an everlasting possession to the seed of Jacob; and\nif this be called in question, we do not see how we can hold fast the\nintegrity of any one portion of the Word of God. If we allow ourselves to\ntrifle with a large division of the inspired canon\u2014and most assuredly it\nis trifling with it when we seek to divert it from its true object\u2014then\nwhat security have we in reference to the application of Scripture at\nall? If God does not mean what He says when He speaks of Israel and the\nland of Canaan, how do we know that He means what He says when He speaks\nof the Church and her heavenly portion in Christ? If the Jew be robbed of\nhis glorious future, what security has the Christian as to his?\n\nReader, let us remember that \u201c_all_ [not merely some of] the promises\nof God are yea and Amen in Christ Jesus;\u201d and while we rejoice in the\napplication of this precious statement to ourselves, let us not seek to\ndeny its application to others. We most fully believe that the children\nof Israel shall yet enjoy the full tide of blessing presented in the\nclosing paragraph of Numbers vi; and until then, the Church of God is\ncalled to partake of blessings peculiar to herself. She is privileged to\nknow the presence of God with her and in her midst continually\u2014to dwell\nin the light of His countenance\u2014to drink of the river of peace\u2014to be\nblessed and kept, from day to day, by Him who never slumbers nor sleeps.\nBut let us never forget\u2014yea, let us deeply and constantly remember\u2014that\nthe practical sense and experimental enjoyment of these immense blessings\nand privileges will be in exact proportion to the measure in which\nthe Church seeks to maintain the order, the purity, and the Nazarite\nseparation to which she is called as the dwelling-place of God\u2014the body\nof Christ\u2014the habitation of the Holy Ghost.\n\nMay these things sink down into our hearts, and exert their sanctifying\ninfluence upon our whole life and character.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VII.\n\n\nThis is the very longest section in the entire book of Numbers. It\ncontains a detailed statement of the names of the twelve princes of the\ncongregation, and of their respective offerings on the occasion of the\nsetting up of the tabernacle. \u201cIt came to pass on the day that Moses had\nfully set up the tabernacle, and had anointed it, and sanctified it, and\nall the instruments thereof, both the altar and all the vessels thereof,\nand had anointed them, and sanctified them; that the princes of Israel,\nheads of the house of their fathers, who were the princes of the tribes,\nand were over them that were numbered, offered: and they brought their\noffering before the Lord, six covered wagons, and twelve oxen; a wagon\nfor two of the princes, and for each one an ox; and they brought them\nbefore the tabernacle. And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, \u2018Take it\nof them, that they may be to do the service of the tabernacle of the\ncongregation; and thou shalt give them unto the Levites, to every man\naccording to his service.\u2019 And Moses took the wagons and the oxen, and\ngave them unto the Levites. Two wagons and four oxen he gave unto the\nsons of Gershon, according to their service; and four wagons and eight\noxen he gave unto the sons of Merari, according unto their service, under\nthe hand of Ithamar, the son of Aaron the priest. But unto the sons of\nKohath he gave none, because the service of the sanctuary belonging unto\nthem was that they should bear upon their shoulders.\u201d (Ver. 1-9.)\n\nWe noticed, when meditating on chapters iii. and iv., that the sons\nof Kohath were privileged to carry all that was most precious of the\ninstruments and furniture of the sanctuary; hence they did not receive\nany of the princes\u2019 offering. It was their high and holy service to bear\nupon their shoulders, and not to make use of wagons or oxen. The more\nclosely we examine those things which were committed to the custody and\ncharge of the Kohathites, the more we shall see that they set forth,\nin type, the deeper and fuller manifestations of God in Christ. The\nGershonites and Merarites, on the contrary, had to do with those things\nwhich were more external. Their work was rougher and more exposed, and\ntherefore they were furnished with the needed help which the liberality\nof the princes placed at their disposal. The Kohathite did not want the\naid of a wagon or an ox in his elevated service. His own shoulder was to\nbear the precious mystic burden.\n\n\u201cAnd the princes offered for dedicating of the altar in the day that it\nwas anointed, even the princes offered their offering before the altar.\nAnd the Lord said unto Moses, \u2018They shall offer their offering, _each\nprince on his day_, for the dedicating of the altar.\u2019\u201d\n\nAn unspiritual reader, in running his eye over this unusually long\nchapter, might feel disposed to ask why so much space is occupied, in an\ninspired document, with what might be given in the compass of a dozen\nlines. If a man were giving an account of the transaction of those twelve\ndays, he would, in all probability, have very briefly summed up all in\none statement, and told us that the twelve princes offered each such and\nsuch things.\n\nBut that would not have suited the divine mind at all. God\u2019s thoughts\nare not as our thoughts, nor His ways as our ways. Nothing could satisfy\nHim but the fullest and most detailed account of each man\u2019s name, of\nthe tribe which he represented, and of the offering which he made to\nthe sanctuary of God. Hence this long chapter of eighty-nine verses.\nEach name shines out in its own distinctness: each offering is minutely\ndescribed and duly estimated. The names and the offerings are not huddled\npromiscuously together. This would not be like our God; and He can only\nact like Himself in whatever He does, and speak like Himself in whatever\nHe says. Man may pass hastily or carelessly over gifts and offerings; but\nGod never can, never does, and never will. He delights to record every\nlittle act of service, every little loving gift. He never forgets the\nsmallest thing; and not only does He not forget it Himself, but He takes\nspecial pains that untold millions shall read the record. How little did\nthose twelve princes imagine that their names and their offerings were to\nbe handed down, from age to age, to be read by countless generations! Yet\nso it was, for God would have it so. He will enter upon what might seem\nto us tedious detail\u2014yea, if you please, what man might deem tautology,\nrather than omit a single name of any of His servants, or a single item\nof their work.\n\nThus, in the chapter before us, \u201ceach prince\u201d gets his own appointed day\nfor the presenting of his offering, and his own allotted space on the\neternal page of inspiration, in the which the most complete record of his\ngifts is inscribed by God the Holy Ghost.\n\nThis is divine. And may we not say that this seventh chapter of Numbers\nis one of those specimen-pages from the book of eternity, on which the\nfinger of God has engraved the names of His servants, and the record\nof their work? We believe it is; and if the reader will turn to the\ntwenty-third of second Samuel, and the sixteenth of Romans, he will\nfind two similar pages. In the former, we have the names and the deeds\nof David\u2019s worthies; in the latter, the names and the deeds of Paul\u2019s\nfriends at Rome. In both, we have an illustration of what, we feel\npersuaded, is true of all the saints of God and the servants of Christ\nfrom first to last. Each one has his own special place on the roll, and\neach one his place in the Master\u2019s heart, and all will come out by and\nby. Amongst David\u2019s mighty men we have \u201cthe first three,\u201d \u201cthe three,\u201d\nand \u201cthe thirty.\u201d Not one of \u201cthe thirty\u201d ever attained a place among\n\u201cthe three,\u201d nor did one of \u201cthe three\u201d ever reach to \u201cthe first three.\u201d\n\nNor this only. Every act is faithfully set down, and the substance and\nstyle most accurately put before us. We have the name of the man, _what_\nhe did, and _how_ he did it. All is recorded, with sedulous care and\nminuteness, by the unerring and impartial pen of the Holy Ghost.\n\nSo also, when we turn to that remarkable sample-page furnished in Romans\nxvi, we have all about Phebe\u2014what she was and what she did, and what a\nsolid basis she had on which to rest her claim upon the sympathy and\nsuccor of the assembly at Rome. Then we have Priscilla and Aquila\u2014the\nwife put first,\u2014and how they had laid down their own necks for the\nlife of the blessed apostle, and earned his thanks and that of all the\nchurches of the Gentiles. Next we have \u201cthe _well_-beloved Ep\u00e6netus;\u201d\nand \u201cMary, who bestowed,\u201d not merely labor, but \u201c_much_ labor\u201d on the\napostle. It would not have expressed the mind of the Spirit, or the\nheart of Christ, merely to say that Ep\u00e6netus was \u201cbeloved,\u201d or that Mary\nhad bestowed \u201clabor.\u201d No; the little adjuncts, \u201cwell\u201d and \u201cmuch,\u201d were\nnecessary in order to set forth the exact _status_ of each.\n\nBut we must not enlarge, and we shall merely call the reader\u2019s attention\nto verse 12. Why does not the inspired penman place \u201cTryphena, Tryphosa,\u201d\nand \u201cthe beloved Persis\u201d under one head? Why does he not assign them one\nand the same position? The reason is perfectly beautiful\u2014because he could\nonly say of the two former that they had \u201clabored in the Lord,\u201d whereas\nit was due to the latter to add that she had \u201clabored _much_ in the\nLord,\u201d Can aught be more discriminating? It is \u201cthe three,\u201d \u201cthe first\nthree,\u201d and \u201cthe thirty\u201d over again. There is no promiscuous jumbling of\nnames and services together\u2014no haste\u2014no inaccuracy. We are told what each\none was, and what he did. Each one gets his own place, and receives his\nown meed of praise.\n\nAnd this, be it observed, is a specimen-page from the book of eternity.\nHow solemn! and yet how encouraging! There is not a single act of service\nwhich we render to our Lord that will not be set down in His book; and\nnot only the _substance_ of the act, but the _style_ of it also; for\nGod appreciates style as well as we do. He loves a cheerful giver and a\ncheerful worker, because that is precisely what He is Himself. It was\ngrateful to His heart to see the tide of liberality flowing around His\nsanctuary from the representatives of the twelve tribes; it was grateful\nto His heart to mark the actings of David\u2019s worthies, in the day of his\nrejection; it was grateful to His heart to trace the devoted path of the\nPriscillas, the Aquilas, and the Phebes of a later date; and, we may\nadd, it is grateful to His heart, in this day of so much lukewarmness\nand vapid profession, to behold, here and there, a true-hearted lover of\nChrist, and a devoted worker in His vineyard.\n\nMay God\u2019s Spirit stir up our hearts to more thorough devotedness. May the\nlove of Christ constrain us, more and more, to live, not unto ourselves,\nbut unto Him who loved us and washed us from our scarlet sins in His most\nprecious blood, and made us all we are, or ever hope to be.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VIII.\n\n\n\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, \u2018Speak unto Aaron, and say unto\nhim, When thou lightest the lamps, the seven lamps shall give light over\nagainst the candlestick.\u2019 And Aaron did so; he lighted the lamps thereof\nover against the candlestick, as the Lord commanded Moses. And this work\nof the candlestick was of beaten gold, unto the shaft thereof, unto the\nflowers thereof, was beaten work: according unto the pattern which the\nLord had showed Moses, so he made the candlestick.\u201d (Ver. 1-4.)\n\nOn reading the foregoing paragraph, two things claim the reader\u2019s\nattention, namely, first, the position which the type of the golden\ncandlestick occupies; and secondly, the instruction which the type\nconveys.\n\nIt is not a little remarkable that the candlestick is the only part of\nthe furniture of the tabernacle introduced in this place. We have nothing\nabout the golden altar, nothing about the golden table. The candlestick\nalone is before us, and that not in its covering of blue and of badgers\u2019\nskins, as in chapter iv, where it, like all the rest, is seen in its\ntraveling-dress. It is here seen lighted, not covered. It comes in\nbetween the offerings of the princes and the consecration of the Levites,\nand sheds forth its mystic light according to the commandment of the\nLord. Light cannot be dispensed with in the wilderness, and therefore the\ngolden candlestick must be stripped of its covering, and allowed to shine\nin testimony for God, which, be it ever remembered, is the grand object\nof every thing, whether it be the offering of our _substance_, as in the\ncase of the princes; or the dedication of our _persons_, as in the case\nof the Levites. It is only in the light of the sanctuary that the true\nworth of any thing or any one can be seen.\n\nHence, the moral order of the whole of this part of our book is striking\nand beautiful; indeed, it is divinely perfect. Having read, in chapter\nvii, the lengthened statement of the princes\u2019 liberality, _we_, in\nour wisdom, might suppose that the next thing in order would be the\nconsecration of the Levites, thus presenting, in unbroken connection,\n\u201cour persons and offerings.\u201d But no; the Spirit of God causes the light\nof the sanctuary to intervene, in order that we may learn in it the true\nobject of all liberality and service in the wilderness.\n\nIs there not lovely moral appropriateness in this? Can any spiritual\nreader fail to see it? Why have we not the golden altar, with its cloud\nof incense, here? why not the pure table, with its twelve loaves? Because\nneither of these would have the least moral connection with what goes\nbefore or what follows after; but the golden candlestick stands connected\nwith both, inasmuch as it shows us that all liberality and all work\nmust be viewed in the light of the sanctuary, in order to ascertain its\nreal worth. This is a grand wilderness-lesson, and it is taught us here\nas blessedly as type can teach us. In our progress through the book of\nNumbers, we have just read the account of the large-hearted liberality of\nthe great heads of the congregation, on the occasion of the dedication of\nthe altar; and we are about to read the record of the consecration of the\nLevites; but between the one and the other the inspired penman pauses, in\norder to let the light of the sanctuary shine on both.\n\nThis is divine order. It is, we are bold to say, one of the ten thousand\nillustrations which lie scattered over the surface of Scripture, tending\nto demonstrate the divine perfectness of the volume as a whole, and of\neach book, section, and paragraph therein. And we are glad\u2014intensely\nglad to point out these precious illustrations to our reader, as we pass\nalong in his company. We consider we are doing him good service herein;\nand, at the same time, presenting our humble tribute of praise to that\nbook which our Father has graciously penned for us. Well indeed we know\nit does not need our poor testimony, nor that of any mortal pen or\nmortal tongue; but still it is our joy to render the testimony, in the\nface of the enemy\u2019s manifold but futile attacks upon its inspiration.\nThe true source and character of all such attacks will become more and\nmore manifest as we become more deeply, livingly, and experimentally\nacquainted with the infinite depths and divine perfections of the Volume.\nAnd hence it is that the internal evidences of holy Scripture\u2014its\npowerful effect upon _ourselves_, no less than its intrinsic moral\nglories\u2014its ability to judge the very roots of character and conduct,\nno less than its admirable structure, in all its parts\u2014are the most\npowerful arguments in defense of its divinity. A book that exposes me\nto myself\u2014that tells me all that is in my heart\u2014that lays bare the very\ndeepest moral springs of my nature\u2014that judges me thoroughly, and at the\nsame time reveals to me One who meets my every need\u2014such a book carries\nits own credentials with it. It craves not and needs not letters of\ncommendation from man. It stands in no need of his favor, in no dread of\nhis wrath. It has often occurred to us that were we to reason about the\nBible as the woman of Sychar reasoned about our Lord, we should reach\nas sound a conclusion about _it_ as she reached about _Him_. \u201cCome,\u201d\nsaid this simple and happy reasoner, \u201csee a Man which told me all things\nthat ever I did: is not this the Christ?\u201d May we not, with equal force\nof reasoning, say, Come, see a book which told me all things that ever\nI did: is not this the Word of God? Yes, truly; and not only so, but we\nmay argue, _a fortiori_, inasmuch as the book of God not only tell us all\nthat ever we did, but all we think, and all we say, and all we are. (See\nRom. iii. 10-18; Matt. xv. 19.)\n\nBut is it that we despise external evidences? Far from it. We delight in\nthem. We value every argument and every evidence calculated to strengthen\nthe foundations of the heart\u2019s confidence in the divine inspiration of\nholy Scripture; and most assuredly we have abundance of such material.\nThe very history of the book itself, with all its striking facts,\nfurnishes a broad tributary stream to swell the tide of evidence. The\nhistory of its composition, the history of its preservation, the history\nof its translation from tongue to tongue, the history of its circulation\nthroughout earth\u2019s wide domain\u2014in a word, its entire history, \u201csurpassing\nfable, and yet true,\u201d forms a powerful argument in defense of its divine\norigin. Take, for example, that one fact of most commanding interest,\nnamely, its having been kept for over a thousand years, in the custody\nof those who would have gladly consigned it, if they could, to eternal\noblivion. Is not this a telling fact? Yes; and there are many such facts\nin the marvelous history of this peerless, priceless Volume.\n\nBut after allowing as wide a margin as may be desired, in the which\nto insert the value of external evidences, we return, with unshaken\ndecision, to our statement, that the internal evidences\u2014the proofs to be\ngleaned from the book itself\u2014form as powerful a defense as can be erected\nwith which to stem the tide of skeptical and infidel opposition.\n\nWe shall not, however, pursue any further this line of thought into which\nwe have been led, while contemplating the remarkable position assigned\nto the golden candlestick in the book of Numbers. We felt constrained to\nsay thus much in testimony to our most precious Bible, and having said\nit, we shall return to our chapter, and seek to gather up the instruction\ncontained in its opening paragraph.\n\n\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, \u2018Speak unto Aaron, and say unto\nhim, When thou lightest the lamps, the seven lamps shall give light over\nagainst the candlestick.\u2019\u201d Those \u201cseven lamps\u201d express the light of the\nSpirit in testimony. They were connected with the beaten shaft of the\ncandlestick, which typifies Christ, who, in His Person and work, is the\nfoundation of the Spirit\u2019s work in the Church. All depends upon Christ.\nEvery ray of light in the Church, in the individual believer, or in\nIsrael by and by, all flows from Christ.\n\nNor is this all we learn from our type. \u201cThe seven lamps shall give\nlight over against the candlestick.\u201d Were we to clothe this figure in\nNew-Testament language, we should quote our Lord\u2019s words when He says\nto us, \u201cLet your light so shine before men, that they may see your good\nworks, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.\u201d (Matt. v. 16.)\nWherever the true light of the Spirit shines, it will always yield a\nclear testimony to Christ. It will call attention not to itself, but to\nHim; and this is the way to glorify God. \u201cThe seven lamps shall give\nlight over against the candlestick.\u201d\n\nThis is a great practical truth for all Christians. The very finest\nevidence which can be afforded of true spiritual work is, that it tends\ndirectly to exalt Christ. If attention be sought for the work or the\nworkman, the light has become dim, and the Minister of the sanctuary\nmust use the snuffers. It was Aaron\u2019s province to light the lamps, and\nhe it was who trimmed them likewise. In other words, the light which, as\nChristians, we are responsible to yield, is not only founded upon Christ,\nbut maintained by Him, from moment to moment, throughout the entire\nnight. Apart from Him we can do nothing. The golden shaft sustained the\nlamps; the priestly hand supplied the oil and applied the snuffers. It is\nall _in_ Christ, _from_ Christ, and _by_ Christ.\n\nAnd more, it is all _to_ Christ. Wherever the light of the Spirit\u2014the\ntrue light of the sanctuary\u2014has shone in this wilderness world, the\nobject of that light has been to exalt the name of Jesus. Whatever has\nbeen done by the Holy Ghost, whatever has been said, whatever has been\nwritten, has had for its aim the glory of that blessed One; and we may\nsay with confidence, that whatever has not that tendency\u2014that aim, is\nnot of the Holy Ghost, be it what it may. There may be an immense amount\nof work done, a great deal of apparent result reached, a quantity of\nthat which is calculated to attract human attention, and elicit human\napplause, and yet not one ray of light from the golden candlestick. And\nwhy? Because attention is _sought_ for the work, or for those engaged\nin it. _Man_ and his doings and sayings are exalted, instead of Christ.\nThe light has not been produced by the oil which the hand of the great\nHigh-Priest supplies; and, as a consequence, it is false light,\u2014it is a\nlight which shines not over against the candlestick, but over against the\nname or the actings of some poor mortal.\n\nAll this is most solemn, and demands our deepest attention. There is\nalways the utmost danger when a man or his work becomes remarkable. He\nmay be sure Satan is gaining his object, when attention is drawn to aught\nor to any one but the Lord Jesus Himself. A work may be commenced in the\ngreatest possible simplicity, but, through lack of holy watchfulness and\nspirituality on the part of the workman, he himself, or the results of\nhis work, may attract general attention, and he may fall into the snare\nof the devil. Satan\u2019s grand and ceaseless object is to dishonor the Lord\nJesus; and if he can do this by what seems to be Christian service, he\nhas achieved all the greater victory for the time. He has no objection to\nwork, as such, provided he can detach that work from the name of Jesus.\nHe will ever mingle himself, if he can, with the work; he will present\nhimself amongst the servants of Christ, as he once presented himself\namongst the sons of God; but his object is ever one and the same, namely,\nto dishonor the Lord. He permitted the damsel in Acts xvi. to bear\ntestimony to Christ\u2019s servants, and say, \u201cThese men are the servants of\nthe Most High God, which show unto us the way of salvation;\u201d but this was\nsimply with a view to insnare those servants and mar their work. He was\ndefeated, however, because the light that emanated from Paul and Silas\nwas the genuine light of the sanctuary, and it _shone_ only for Christ.\nThey sought not a name for themselves; and inasmuch as it was to them\nand not to their Master that the damsel bore witness, they refused the\nwitness, and chose rather to suffer for their Master\u2019s sake than to be\nexalted at His expense.\n\nThis is a fine example for all the Lord\u2019s workmen; and if we turn, for an\ninstant, to Acts iii, we shall find another very striking illustration.\nThere, the light of the sanctuary shone out in the healing of the lame\nman, and when attention was drawn, _unsought_, to the workmen, we find\nPeter and John, at once, with holy jealousy, retiring behind their\nglorious Master and giving all the praise to Him. \u201cAnd as the lame man\nwhich was healed held Peter and John, all the people ran together unto\nthem in the porch that is called Solomon\u2019s, greatly wondering. And when\nPeter saw it, he answered unto the people, \u2018Ye men of Israel, why marvel\nye at this? or why look ye so earnestly _on us_, as though by _our own_\npower or holiness _we_ had made this man to walk? The God of Abraham, and\nof Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified HIS SON\nJESUS.\u2019\u201d\n\nHere we have, in very deed, \u201cthe seven lamps giving their light over\nagainst the candlestick;\u201d or, in other words, the sevenfold or perfect\ndisplay of the Spirit\u2019s light in distinct testimony to the name of Jesus.\n\u201cWhy,\u201d said these faithful vessels of the Spirit\u2019s light, \u201clook ye so\nearnestly on _us_?\u201d No need of the snuffers here!\u2014the light was undimmed.\nIt was, no doubt, an occasion which the apostles might have turned to\ntheir own account had they been so disposed. It was a moment in the which\nthey might have surrounded their own names with a halo of glory. They\nmight have raised themselves to a pinnacle of fame, and drawn around them\nthe respect and veneration of wondering, if not worshiping, thousands;\nbut had they done so, they would have robbed their Master, falsified the\ntestimony, grieved the Holy Ghost, and brought down upon themselves the\njust judgment of Him who will not give His glory to another.\n\nBut no; the seven lamps were shining brightly in Jerusalem at this\ninteresting moment. The true candlestick was in Solomon\u2019s porch just\nthen, and not in the temple; at least, the seven lamps were there,\nand doing their appointed work most blessedly. Those honored servants\nsought no glory for themselves; yea, they instantly put forth all their\nenergies in order to avert the wondering gaze of the multitude from\nthemselves, and fix it upon the only worthy One, who, though He had\npassed into the heavens, was still working by His Spirit on earth.\n\nMany other illustrations might be drawn from the pages of the Acts of\nthe Apostles, but the above will suffice to impress upon our hearts the\ngreat practical lesson taught in the golden candlestick, with its seven\nlamps. We are deeply sensible of our need of the lesson at this very\nmoment. There is always a danger of the work and the workman being more\nthe object than the Master. Let us be on our guard against this. It is\na sad evil. It grieves the blessed Spirit, who ever labors to exalt the\nname of Jesus. It is offensive to the Father, who would ever be sounding\nin our ears and deep down in our hearts those words heard from an open\nheaven, on the mount of transfiguration, \u201cThis is My beloved Son, in whom\nI am well pleased, hear ye Him.\u201d It is in the most direct and positive\nhostility to the mind of heaven, where every eye is fixed on Jesus,\nevery heart occupied with Jesus, and where the one eternal, universal,\nunanimous cry shall be, \u201c_Thou art worthy_.\u201d\n\nLet us think of all this\u2014think deeply\u2014think habitually, that so we may\nshrink from every thing bordering upon or savoring of the exaltation\nof man\u2014of self\u2014our doings and sayings and thinkings. May we all more\nearnestly seek the quiet, shady, unobtrusive path where the spirit of the\nmeek and lowly Jesus will ever lead us to walk and serve. In a word,\nmay we so abide in Christ, so receive from Him, day by day and moment by\nmoment, the pure oil, that our light may shine, without our thinking of\nit, to His praise, in whom alone we have ALL, and apart from whom we can\ndo absolutely NOTHING.\n\nThe remainder of the eighth chapter of Numbers contains the record of the\nceremonial connected with the consecration of the Levites, to which we\nhave already referred in our notes on chapters iii. and iv.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IX.\n\n\n\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the first\nmonth of the second year after they were come out of the land of Egypt,\nsaying, \u2018Let the children of Israel also keep the passover at his\nappointed season. In the fourteenth day of this month, at even, ye shall\nkeep it in his appointed season: according to all the rites of it, and\naccording to all the ceremonies thereof, shall ye keep it.\u2019 And Moses\nspake unto the children of Israel, that they should keep the passover.\nAnd they kept the passover on the fourteenth day of the first month,\nat even, in the wilderness of Sinai: according to all that the Lord\ncommanded Moses, so did the children of Israel.\u201d (Ver. 1-5.)\n\nThere are three distinct positions in which we find this great\nredemption-feast celebrated, namely, in Egypt (Ex. xii.), in the\nwilderness (Num. ix.), in the land of Canaan (Josh. v.). Redemption\nlies at the foundation of every thing connected with the history of\nGod\u2019s people. Are they to be delivered from the bondage, the death, and\nthe darkness of Egypt? it is by redemption. Are they to be borne along\nthrough all the difficulties and dangers of the desert? it is on the\nground of redemption. Are they to walk across the ruins of the frowning\nwalls of Jericho, and plant their feet upon the necks of the kings of\nCanaan? it is in virtue of redemption.\n\nThus the blood of the paschal lamb met the Israel of God amid the deep\ndegradation of the land of Egypt, and delivered them out of it. It met\nthem in the dreary desert, and carried them through it: it met them on\ntheir entrance into the land of Canaan, and established them in it.\n\nIn a word, then, the blood of the lamb met the people in Egypt, it\naccompanied them through the desert, and planted them in Canaan. It was\nthe blessed basis of all the divine actings in them, with them, and for\nthem. Was it a question of the judgment of God against Egypt? the blood\nof the lamb screened them from it. Was it a question of the numberless\nand nameless wants of the wilderness? the blood of the lamb secured a\nfull provision for them. Was it a question of the dreaded power of the\nseven nations of Canaan? the blood of the lamb was the sure and certain\npledge of complete and glorious victory. The moment we behold Jehovah\ncoming forth to act on behalf of His people, on the ground of the blood\nof the lamb, all is infallibly secured, from first to last. The whole\nof that mysterious and marvelous journey, from the brick-kilns of Egypt\nto the vine-clad hills and honeyed plains of Palestine, served but to\nillustrate and set forth the varied virtues of the blood of the lamb.\n\nHowever, the chapter which now lies open before us presents the passover\nentirely from a wilderness stand-point; and this will account, to the\nreader, for the introduction of the following circumstance: \u201cThere were\ncertain men which were defiled by the dead body of a man, that they could\nnot keep the passover on that day; and they came before Moses and before\nAaron on that day.\u201d\n\nHere was a practical difficulty\u2014something abnormal, as we say\u2014something\nnot anticipated, and therefore the question was submitted to Moses and\nAaron. \u201cThey came before Moses\u201d\u2014the exponent of the claims of God, \u201cand\nbefore Aaron\u201d\u2014the exponent of the provisions of the grace of God. There\nseems something distinct and emphatic in the way in which both these\nfunctionaries are referred to. The two elements of which they are the\nexpression would be deemed essential in the solving of such a difficulty\nas that which here presented itself.\n\n\u201cAnd those men said unto him, \u2018We are defiled by the dead body of a man;\nwherefore are we kept back, that we may not offer an offering of the Lord\nin his appointed season among the children of Israel?\u2019\u201d There was the\nplain confession as to the defilement, and the question raised was this:\nWere they to be derived of the holy privilege of coming before the Lord\nin His appointed way? Was there no resource\u2014no provision for such a case?\n\nA deeply interesting question, surely, but one for which no answer had\nas yet been provided. We have no such case anticipated in the original\ninstitution, in Exodus xii, although we have there a very full statement\nof all the rites and all the ceremonies of the feast. It was reserved for\nthe wilderness to evolve this new point. It was in the actual walk of the\npeople\u2014in the real practical details of desert life, that the difficulty\npresented itself for which a solution had to be provided. Hence it is\nthat the record of this entire affair is appropriately given in Numbers,\nthe book of the wilderness.\n\n\u201cAnd Moses said unto them, \u2018Stand still, and I will hear what the Lord\nwill command concerning you.\u2019\u201d Lovely attitude! Moses had no answer to\ngive; but he knew who had, and he waited on Him. This was the very best\nand wisest thing for Moses to do. He did not pretend to be able to give\nan answer. He was not ashamed to say, \u201c_I do not know._\u201d With all his\nwisdom and knowledge, he did not hesitate to show his ignorance. This\nis true knowledge\u2014true wisdom. It might be humiliating to one in Moses\u2019\nposition to appear before the congregation or any members of it, in the\nlight of one ignorant on any question. He who had led the people out\nof Egypt, he who had conducted them through the Red Sea, he who had\nconversed with Jehovah and received his commission from the great \u201cI am,\u201d\ncould it be possible that he was unable to meet a difficulty arising out\nof such a simple case as that which was now before him? was it indeed\ntrue that such an one as Moses was ignorant as to the right course in\nreference to men defiled by a dead body?\n\nHow few there are who, though not occupying such a lofty position as\nMoses, would not have attempted a reply of some sort to such a query.\nBut Moses was the meekest man in all the earth. He knew better than\nto presume to speak when he had nothing to say. Would that we more\nfaithfully followed his example in this matter! It would save us many\na sad exhibition, from many a blunder, from many a false attempt.\nMoreover, it would tend to make us very much more real, more simple,\nmore unaffected. We are ofttimes so silly as to be ashamed to expose\nour ignorance. We foolishly imagine that our reputation for wisdom and\nintelligence is touched when we give utterance to that fine sentence,\nso expressive of true moral greatness, \u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d It is a total\nmistake. We always attach much more weight and importance to the words\nof a man who never pretends to knowledge which he does not possess; but\na man who is always ready to speak, in flippant self-confidence, we are\nnever ready to hear. Oh, to walk, at all times, in the spirit of these\nlovely words, \u201cStand still, and I will hear what the Lord will command\u201d!\n\n\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, \u2018Speak unto the children of\nIsrael, saying, If any man of you or of your posterity shall be unclean\nby reason of a dead body, or be in a journey afar off, yet he shall keep\nthe passover unto the Lord. The fourteenth day of _the second month_, at\neven, they shall keep it, and eat it with unleavened bread and bitter\nherbs.\u2019\u201d\n\nThere are two grand foundation-truths set forth in the passover,\nnamely, redemption, and the unity of God\u2019s people. These truths are\nunchangeable: nothing can ever do away with them. Failure there may\nbe, and unfaithfulness, in various forms; but those glorious truths of\nthe eternal redemption and perfect unity of God\u2019s people remain in all\ntheir force and value. Hence that impressive ordinance which so vividly\nshadowed forth those truths was of perpetual obligation. Circumstances\nwere not to interfere with it; death or distance was not to interrupt it.\n\u201cIf any man of you or of your posterity shall be unclean by reason of a\ndead body, or be in a journey afar off, yet shall he keep the passover\nunto the Lord.\u201d So imperative, indeed, was it upon every member of the\ncongregation to celebrate this feast, that a special provision is made in\nNumbers ix. for those who were not up to the mark of keeping it according\nto the due order. Such persons were to observe it \u201con the fourteenth day\nof the _second_ month.\u201d This was the provision of grace for all cases of\nunavoidable defilement or distance.\n\nIf the reader will turn to 2 Chronicles xxx, he will see that Hezekiah,\nand the congregation in his day, availed themselves of this gracious\nprovision. \u201cAnd there assembled at Jerusalem much people to keep\nthe feast of unleavened bread in the _second_ month, a very great\ncongregation.... Then they killed the passover on the fourteenth day of\nthe second month.\u201d (Ver. 13, 15.)\n\nThe grace of God can meet us in our greatest possible weakness, if only\nthat weakness be felt and confessed.[9] But let not this most precious\nand comfortable truth lead us to trifle with sin or defilement. Though\ngrace permitted the second month, instead of the first, it did not, on\nthat account, allow any laxity as to the rites and ceremonies of the\nfeast. \u201cThe unleavened bread and bitter herbs\u201d were always to have their\nplace; none of the sacrifice was to remain till the morning, nor was a\nsingle bone of it to be broken. God cannot allow any lowering of the\nstandard of truth or holiness. Man, through weakness, failure, or the\npower of circumstances, might be behind the time; but he must not be\nbelow the mark. Grace permitted the former; holiness forbids the latter:\nand if any one had presumed upon the grace to dispense with the holiness,\nhe would have been cut off from the congregation.\n\nHas this no voice for us? Assuredly it has. We must ever remember, as\nwe pass along through the pages of this marvelous book of Numbers, that\nthe things which happened unto Israel are our types, and that it is at\nonce our duty and our privilege to hang over these types and seek to\nunderstand the holy lessons which they are designed of God to teach.\n\nWhat, then, are we to learn from the regulations with respect to the\npassover in the second month? Why was Israel so specially enjoined not\nto omit a single rite or ceremony on that particular occasion? why is it\nthat in this ninth chapter of Numbers the directions for the second month\nare much more minute than those for the first? It is not, surely, that\nthe ordinance was more important in the one case than in the other, for\nits importance, in God\u2019s judgment, was ever the same; neither is it that\nthere was a shade of difference in the order in either case, for that,\ntoo, was ever the same. Still the fact must strike the reader who ponders\nthe chapter before us that where reference is made to the celebration of\nthe passover in the first month, we simply read the words, \u201caccording to\nall the rites of it, and according to all the ceremonies thereof, shall\nye keep it;\u201d but on the other hand, when reference is made to the second\nmonth, we have a most minute statement of what those rites and ceremonies\nwere,\u2014\u201cThey shall eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. They\nshall leave none of it unto the morning, nor break any bone of it:\naccording to all the ordinances of the passover they shall keep it.\u201d\n(Compare verse 3 with 11, 12.)\n\nWhat, we ask, does this plain fact teach us? We believe it teaches us,\nmost distinctly, that we are never to lower the standard, in the things\nof God, because of failure and weakness on the part of God\u2019s people; but\nrather, on that very account, to take special pains to hold the standard\nup, in all its divine integrity. No doubt, there should be the deep\nsense of failure\u2014the deeper the better; but God\u2019s truth is not to be\nsurrendered. We can always reckon, with confidence, upon the resources of\ndivine grace, while seeking to maintain, with unwavering decision, the\nstandard of divine truth.\n\nLet us seek to keep this ever in the remembrance of the thoughts of our\nhearts. We are in danger, on the one hand, of forgetting the fact that\nfailure has come in\u2014yea, gross failure, unfaithfulness, and sin; and on\nthe other hand, we are in danger of forgetting, in view of that failure,\nthe unfailing faithfulness of God in spite of everything. The professing\nchurch has failed, and become a perfect ruin; and not only so, but we\nourselves have individually failed and helped on the ruin. We should feel\nall this\u2014feel it deeply\u2014feel it constantly. We should ever bear upon our\nspirits before our God the deep and heart-subduing consciousness of how\nsadly and how shamefully we have behaved ourselves in the house of God.\nIt would be adding immensely to our failure were we ever to forget that\nwe have failed. The most profound humility and the deepest brokenness\nof spirit become us in the remembrance of all this; and these inward\nfeelings and exercises will surely express themselves in a lowly walk and\ncarriage in the midst of the scene in which we move.\n\n\u201cNevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, \u2018The\nLord knoweth them that are His.\u2019 And, \u2018Let every one that nameth the name\nof Christ depart from iniquity.\u2019\u201d (2 Tim. ii. 19.) Here is the resource\nof the faithful, in view of the ruins of christendom. God never fails,\nnever changes, and we have simply to depart from iniquity and cling to\nHim. We are to do what is right, and follow it diligently, and leave\nresults to Him.\n\nWe would earnestly beg of the reader to give the foregoing line of\nthought his entire attention. We want him to pause, for a few moments,\nand prayerfully consider the whole subject. We are convinced that a due\nconsideration of it, in its two sides, would greatly help us to pick\nour steps amid the surrounding ruins. The remembrance of the Church\u2019s\ncondition, and of our own personal unfaithfulness, would keep us humble;\nwhile, at the same time, the apprehension of God\u2019s unchanging standard,\nand of His unswerving faithfulness, would detach us from the evil around,\nand keep us steady in the path of separation. Both together would\neffectually preserve us from empty pretension on the one hand, and from\nlaxity and indifference on the other. We have ever to keep before our\nsouls the humbling fact that we have failed, and yet to hold fast that\ngrand truth that God is faithful.\n\nThese are, pre-eminently, lessons for the wilderness\u2014lessons for this\nvery day\u2014lessons for _us_. They are suggested, very forcibly, by the\ninspired record of the passover in the second month\u2014a record peculiar to\nthe book of Numbers\u2014the great wilderness-book. It is in the wilderness\nthat human failure comes so fully out, and in the wilderness the infinite\nresources of divine grace are displayed. But once more, let us reiterate\nthe statement\u2014and may it be engraved, in characters deep and broad, on\nour hearts\u2014the richest provisions of divine grace and mercy afford no\nwarrant whatever for lowering the standard of divine truth. If any had\npleaded defilement or distance as an excuse for not keeping the passover,\nor for keeping it otherwise than as God had enjoined, he would, most\nassuredly, have been cut off from the congregation. And so with us; if\nwe consent to surrender any truth of God because failure has come in\u2014if\nwe, in sheer unbelief of heart, give up God\u2019s standard and abandon God\u2019s\nground\u2014if we draw a plea from the condition of things around us to shake\noff the authority of God\u2019s truth over the conscience, or its formative\ninfluence upon our conduct and character, it is very evident that our\ncommunion is suspended.[10]\n\nWe would gladly pursue this great practical line of truth somewhat\nfurther, but we must forbear, and close this part of our subject by\nquoting for our reader the remainder of this wilderness record concerning\nthe passover.\n\n\u201cBut the man that is clean, and is not in a journey, and forbeareth to\nkeep the passover, even the same soul shall be cut off from among his\npeople; because he brought not the offering of the Lord in his appointed\nseason, that man shall bear his sin. And if a stranger shall sojourn\namong you, and will keep the passover unto the Lord; according to the\nordinance of the passover, and according to the manner thereof, so shall\nhe do: ye shall have one ordinance, both for the stranger and for him\nthat was born in the land.\u201d (Ver. 13, 14.)\n\nThe willful neglect of the passover would argue, on the part of an\nIsraelite, a total want of appreciation of the benefits and blessings\nflowing out of his redemption and deliverance from the land of Egypt. The\nmore deeply any one entered into the divine reality of that which had\nbeen accomplished on that memorable night, in the which the congregation\nof Israel found refuge and repose beneath the shelter of the blood, the\nmore earnestly would he long for the return of \u201cthe fourteenth day of the\nfirst month,\u201d that he might have an opportunity of commemorating that\nglorious occasion; and if there was aught preventing his enjoying the\nordinance in \u201cthe first month,\u201d the more gladly and thankfully would he\navail himself of \u201cthe second.\u201d But the man who could be satisfied to go\non, from year to year, without keeping the passover, only proved that his\nheart was far away from the God of Israel. It were worse than vain for\nany one to speak of loving the God of his fathers, and of enjoying the\nblessings of redemption, while the very ordinance which God had appointed\nto set forth that redemption lay neglected from year to year.\n\nAnd may we not, to a certain extent, apply all this to ourselves, in\nreference to the matter of the Lord\u2019s supper? Doubtless we may, and that\nwith very much profit. There is this connection between the passover and\nthe Lord\u2019s supper, that the former was the type, the latter the memorial,\nof the death of Christ. Thus we read in 1 Corinthians v, \u201cChrist our\npassover is sacrificed for us.\u201d This sentence establishes the connection.\nThe passover was the memorial of Israel\u2019s redemption from the bondage of\nEgypt, and the Lord\u2019s supper is the memorial of the Church\u2019s redemption\nfrom the heavier and darker bondage of sin and Satan. Hence, as every\ntrue and faithful Israelite would surely be found keeping the passover,\nin the appointed season, according to all the rites and ceremonies\nthereof, so will every true and faithful Christian be found celebrating\nthe Lord\u2019s supper, in its appointed season, and according to all the\nprinciples laid down in the New Testament respecting it. If an Israelite\nhad neglected the passover, even on one single occasion, he would have\nbeen cut off from the congregation. Such neglect was not to be tolerated\nin the assembly of old. It was instantly visited with the divine\ndispleasure.\n\nAnd may we not ask, in the face of this solemn fact, Is it nothing now\u2014is\nit a matter of no moment for Christians to neglect, from week to week and\nmonth to month, the supper of their Lord? Are we to suppose that the One\nwho, in Numbers ix, declared that the neglecter of the passover should be\ncut off, takes no account of the neglecter of the Lord\u2019s table? We cannot\nbelieve it for a moment. For albeit it is not a question of being cut off\nfrom the Church of God\u2014the body of Christ, are we, on that account to be\nnegligent? Far be the thought. Yea, rather should it have the blessed\neffect of stirring us up to greater diligence in the celebration of that\nmost precious feast wherein we \u201cdo show the Lord\u2019s death till He come.\u201d\n\nTo a pious Israelite, there was nothing like the passover, because it\nwas the memorial of his redemption; and to a pious Christian, there\nis nothing like the Lord\u2019s supper, because it is the memorial of his\nredemption and of the death of his Lord. Of all the exercises in which\nthe Christian can engage, there is nothing more precious, nothing more\nexpressive, nothing that brings Christ more touchingly or solemnly before\nhis heart, than the Lord\u2019s supper. He may sing about the Lord\u2019s death, he\nmay pray about it, he may read about it, he may hear about it; but it is\nonly in the supper that he \u201c_shows_\u201d it forth. \u201cAnd He took bread, and\ngave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, \u2018This is My body,\nwhich is given for you: this do in remembrance of Me.\u2019 Likewise also the\ncup after supper, saying, \u2018This cup is the new testament in My blood,\nwhich is shed for you.\u2019\u201d (Luke xxii. 19, 20.)\n\nHere we have the feast _instituted_; and when we turn to the Acts of the\nApostles, we read that, \u201cupon the first day of the week, the disciples\ncame together to break bread.\u201d (Acts xx. 7.)\n\nHere we have the feast _celebrated_; and lastly, when we turn to the\nepistles, we read, \u201cThe cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the\ncommunion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the\ncommunion of the body of Christ? For we being many are one loaf, and one\nbody; for we are all partakers of that one loaf.\u201d (1 Cor. x. 16, 17.) And\nagain, \u201cFor I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto\nyou, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which He was betrayed took\nbread; and when He had given thanks, He brake it, and said, \u2018Take, eat:\nthis is My body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of Me.\u2019\nAfter the same manner also He took the cup, when He had supped, saying,\n\u2018This cup is the new testament in My blood: this do ye, as oft as ye\ndrink it, in remembrance of Me.\u2019 For as often as ye eat this bread, and\ndrink this cup, ye do show the Lord\u2019s death till He come.\u201d (1 Cor. xi.\n23-26.)\n\nHere we have the feast _expounded_. And may we not say that in the\ninstitution, the celebration, and the exposition, we have a threefold\ncord, not easily broken, to bind our souls to this most precious feast?\n\nHow is it, then, that, in the face of all this holy authority, any of\nGod\u2019s people should be found neglecting the Lord\u2019s table? or, looking\nat it in another aspect, how is it that any of Christ\u2019s members can\nbe satisfied to go on for weeks, and months, and some all their days,\nwithout ever remembering their Lord in the way of His own direct and\npositive appointment? We are aware that some professing Christians regard\nthis subject in the light of a return to Jewish ordinances, and as a\ncoming down from the high ground of the Church. They look upon the Lord\u2019s\nsupper and baptism as inward spiritual mysteries, and they consider that\nwe are departing from true spirituality in insisting upon the literal\nobservance of these ordinances.\n\nTo all this we very simply reply that God is wiser than we are. If the\nLord Christ instituted the supper; if God the Holy Ghost led the early\nChurch to celebrate it; and if He has also expounded it unto us, who are\nwe that we should set up our ideas in opposition to God? No doubt, the\nLord\u2019s supper should be an inward spiritual mystery to all who partake of\nit; but it is also an outward, literal, tangible thing. There is literal\nbread, and literal wine\u2014literal eating, and literal drinking. If any deny\nthis, they may, with equal force, deny that there are literal people\ngathered together. We have no right to explain away Scripture after such\na fashion. It is our happy and holy duty to submit to Scripture\u2014to bow\ndown, absolutely and implicitly, to its divine authority.\n\nNor is it merely a question of subjection to the authority of Scripture.\nIt is that, most assuredly, as we have abundantly proved by quotation\nafter quotation from the divine Word; and that alone is amply sufficient\nfor every pious mind. But there is more than this. There is such a thing\nas the response of love in the heart of the Christian, answering to the\nlove of the heart of Christ. Is not this something? Ought we not to seek,\nin some small degree, to meet the love of such a heart? If our blessed\nand adorable Lord has, in very deed, appointed the bread and the wine,\nin the supper, as memorials of His broken body and shed blood; if He\nhas ordained that we should eat of that bread and drink of that cup, in\nremembrance of Him, ought we not, in the power of responsive affection,\nto meet the desire of His loving heart? Surely no earnest Christian will\nquestion this. It ought ever to be the very joy of our hearts to gather\naround the table of our loving Lord, and remember Him in the way of His\nappointment\u2014to show forth His death till He come. It is only marvelous to\nthink that He should seek a place in the remembrance of such hearts as\nours; but so it is; and it would be sad indeed if we, on any ground, and\nfor any reason whatsoever, should neglect that very feast with which He\nhas linked His precious name.\n\nThis, of course, would not be the place to enter upon any thing like\nan elaborate exposition of the ordinance of the Lord\u2019s supper. We have\nsought to do this elsewhere.[11] What we specially desire here is, to\nurge upon the Christian reader the immense importance and deep interest\nof the ordinance as viewed on the double ground of subjection to the\nauthority of Scripture, and responsive love to Christ Himself. And\nfurthermore, we are anxious to impress all who may read these lines\nwith a sense of the seriousness of neglecting to eat the Lord\u2019s supper,\naccording to the Scriptures. We may depend upon it it is dangerous ground\nfor any to attempt to set aside this positive institution of our Lord\nand Master. It argues a wrong condition of soul altogether. It proves\nthat the conscience is not subject to the authority of the Word, and that\nthe heart is not in true sympathy with the affections of Christ. Let us\ntherefore see to it that we are honestly endeavoring to discharge our\nholy responsibilities to the table of the Lord\u2014that we forbear not to\nkeep the feast\u2014that we celebrate it according to the order laid down by\nGod the Holy Ghost.\n\nThus much as to the passover in the wilderness, and the impressive\nlessons which it conveys to our souls.\n\n * * * * *\n\nWe shall now dwell for a few moments on the closing paragraph of our\nchapter, which is as truly characteristic as any portion of the book.\nIn it we are called to contemplate a numerous host of men, women, and\nchildren, traveling through a trackless wilderness, \u201cwhere there was no\nway\u201d\u2014passing over a dreary waste, a vast sandy desert, without compass or\nhuman guide.\n\nWhat a thought! what a spectacle! There were those millions of people\nmoving along without any knowledge of the route by which they were to\ntravel, as wholly dependent upon God for guidance as for food and all\nbeside; a thoroughly helpless pilgrim host. They could form no plans\nfor the morrow. When encamped, they knew not when they were to march,\nand when on the march, they knew not when or where they were to halt.\nTheirs was a life of daily and hourly dependence. They had to look up\nfor guidance. Their movements were controlled by the wheels of Jehovah\u2019s\nchariot.\n\nThis, truly, was a wondrous spectacle. Let us read the record of it, and\ndrink into our souls its heavenly teaching.\n\n\u201cAnd on the day that the tabernacle was reared up, the cloud covered the\ntabernacle, namely, the tent of the testimony: and at even, there was\nupon the tabernacle as it were the appearance of fire, until the morning.\n_So it was alway_: the cloud covered it by day, and the appearance of\nfire by night. And when the cloud was taken up from the tabernacle, then\nafter that the children of Israel journeyed: and in the place where the\ncloud abode, there the children of Israel pitched their tents. At the\ncommandment of the Lord the children of Israel journeyed, and at the\ncommandment of the Lord they pitched: as long as the cloud abode upon\nthe tabernacle, they rested in their tents. And when the cloud tarried\nlong upon the tabernacle many days, then the children of Israel kept the\ncharge of the Lord, and journeyed not. And so it was, when the cloud\nwas a few days upon the tabernacle; according to the commandment of the\nLord they abode in their tents, and according to the commandment of the\nLord they journeyed. And so it was, when the cloud abode from even unto\nthe morning, and that the cloud was taken up in the morning, then they\njourneyed; whether it was by day or by night that the cloud was taken up,\nthey journeyed. Or whether it were two days, or a month, or a year, that\nthe cloud tarried upon the tabernacle, remaining thereon, the children of\nIsrael abode in their tents, and journeyed not; but when it was taken up,\nthey journeyed. At the commandment of the Lord they rested in the tents,\nand at the commandment of the Lord they journeyed: they kept the charge\nof the Lord, at the commandment of the Lord by the hand of Moses.\u201d (Ver.\n15-23.)\n\nA more lovely picture of absolute dependence upon and subjection to\ndivine guidance it were impossible to conceive than that presented in the\nforegoing paragraph. There was not a footprint or a landmark throughout\nthat \u201cgreat and terrible wilderness.\u201d It was therefore useless to look\nfor any guidance from those who had gone before. They were wholly cast\nupon God for every step of the way; they were in a position of constant\nwaiting upon Him. This, to an unsubdued mind\u2014an unbroken will, would be\nintolerable; but to a soul knowing, loving, confiding, and delighting in\nGod, nothing could be more deeply blessed.\n\nHere lies the real gist of the whole matter. Is God known, loved, and\ntrusted? If He be, the heart will delight in the most absolute dependence\nupon Him; if not, such dependence would be perfectly insufferable. The\nunrenewed man loves to think himself independent\u2014loves to fancy himself\nfree\u2014loves to believe that he may do what he likes, go where he likes,\nsay what he likes. Alas! it is the merest delusion. Man is not free: he\nis the slave of Satan. It is now well-nigh six thousand years since he\nsold himself into the hands of that great spiritual slaveholder, who\nhas held him ever since, and who holds him still. Yes, Satan holds the\nnatural man\u2014the unconverted, unrepentant man in terrible bondage. He has\nhim bound hand and foot with chains and fetters which are not seen in\ntheir true character, because of the gilding wherewith he has so artfully\ncovered them. Satan rules man by means of his lusts, his passions, and\nhis pleasures. He forms lusts in the heart, and then gratifies them with\nthe things that are in the world; and man vainly imagines himself free\nbecause he can gratify his desires. But it is a melancholy delusion, and\nsooner or later it will be found to be such. There is no freedom save\nthat with which Christ makes his people free. He it is who says, \u201cYe\nshall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.\u201d And again, \u201cIf\nthe Son shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.\u201d (John viii.)\n\nHere is true liberty. It is the liberty which the new nature finds in\nwalking in the Spirit, and doing those things that are pleasing in the\nsight of God. \u201cThe service of the Lord is perfect freedom.\u201d But this\nservice, in all its departments, involves the most simple dependence upon\nthe living God. Thus it was with the only true and perfect Servant that\never trod this earth. He was ever dependent. Every movement, every act,\nevery word\u2014all He did, and all He left undone\u2014was the fruit of the most\nabsolute dependence upon and subjection to God. He moved when God would\nhave Him move, and stood still when God would have Him stand; He spoke\nwhen God would have Him speak, and was silent when God would have Him\nsilent.\n\nSuch was Jesus when He lived in this world; and we, as partakers of His\nnature\u2014His life, and having His Spirit dwelling in us, are called to walk\nin His steps, and live a life of simple dependence upon God, from day\nto day. Of this life of dependence, in one special phase of it, we have\na graphic and beautiful type at the close of our chapter. The Israel of\nGod\u2014the camp in the desert\u2014that pilgrim host\u2014followed the movement of the\ncloud. They had to _look up_ for guidance. This is man\u2019s proper work. He\nwas made to turn his countenance upward, in contrast with the brute, who\nis formed to look downward.[12] Israel could form no plans. They could\nnever say, \u201cTo-morrow we shall go to such a place.\u201d They were entirely\ndependent upon the movement of the cloud.\n\nThus it was with Israel, and thus it should be with us. We are passing\nthrough a trackless desert\u2014a moral wilderness. There is absolutely no\nway. We should not know how to walk, or where to go, were it not for\nthat one most precious, most deep, most comprehensive sentence which fell\nfrom the lips of our blessed Lord, \u201c_I am the way_.\u201d Here is divine,\ninfallible guidance. We are to follow Him. \u201cI am the light of the world:\nhe that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the\nlight of life.\u201d (John viii.) This is living guidance. It is not acting\naccording to the letter of certain rules and regulations; it is following\na living Christ\u2014walking as He walked, doing as He did, imitating His\nexample in all things. This is Christian movement\u2014Christian action. It is\nkeeping the eye fixed upon Jesus, and having the features, traits, and\nlineaments of His character imprinted on our new nature, and reflected\nback or reproduced in our daily life and ways.\n\nNow this will assuredly involve the surrender of our own will, our own\nplans, our own management, altogether. We must follow the cloud: we must\nwait _ever_, wait _only_, upon God. We cannot say, We shall go here or\nthere, do this or that, to-morrow, or next week. All our movements must\nbe placed under the regulating power of that one commanding sentence\n(often, alas! lightly penned and uttered by us), \u201c_If the Lord will_.\u201d\n\nOh that we better understood all this! Would that we knew more perfectly\nthe meaning of divine guidance! How often do we vainly imagine, and\nconfidently assert, that the cloud is moving in that very direction\nwhich suits the bent of our inclination! We want to do a certain thing,\nor make a certain movement, and we seek to persuade ourselves that our\nwill is the will of God. Thus, instead of being divinely guided, we\nare self-deceived. Our will is unbroken, and hence we cannot be guided\naright; for the real secret of being rightly guided\u2014guided of God\u2014is\nto have our own will thoroughly subdued. \u201cThe meek will He guide in\njudgment; and the meek will He teach _His way_.\u201d And again, \u201cI will guide\nthee with Mine eye.\u201d But let us ponder the admonition, \u201cBe ye not as the\nhorse, or as the mule, which have no understanding; whose mouth must be\nheld in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee.\u201d (Ps. xxxii.)\nIf the countenance be turned upwards, to catch the movement of the divine\n\u201ceye,\u201d we shall not need the \u201cbit and bridle.\u201d But here is precisely the\npoint in which we so sadly fail. We do not live sufficiently near to God\nto discern the movement of His eye. The will is at work. We want to have\nour own way, and hence we are left to reap the bitter fruits thereof.\nThus it was with Jonah. He was told to go to Nineveh, but he wanted to\ngo to Tarshish; and circumstances seemed to favor; providence seemed to\npoint in the direction of his will. But, ah! he had to find his place in\nthe belly of the whale\u2014yea, in \u201cthe belly of hell\u201d itself, where \u201cthe\nweeds were wrapped about his head.\u201d It was there he learnt the bitterness\nof following his own will. He had to be taught in the depths of the ocean\nthe true meaning of the \u201cbit and bridle,\u201d because he would not follow the\ngentler guidance of the eye.\n\nBut our God is so gracious, so tender, so patient? He will teach and He\nwill guide His poor feeble, erring children. He spares no pains with us.\nHe occupies Himself continually about us, in order that we may be kept\nfrom our own ways, which are full of thorns and briars, and walk in His\nways, which are pleasantness and peace.\n\nThere is nothing in all this world more deeply blessed than to lead a\nlife of habitual dependence upon God; to hang upon Him moment by moment,\nto wait on Him and cling to Him for every thing, to have all our springs\nin Him; it is the true secret of peace, and of holy independence of the\ncreature. The soul that can really say, \u201c_All_ my springs are in Thee\u201d\nis lifted above all creature-confidences, human hopes, and earthly\nexpectations. It is not that God does not use the creature, in a thousand\nways, to minister to us; we do not at all mean this. He does use the\ncreature; but if we _lean_ upon the creature, instead of leaning upon\nHim, we shall very speedily get leanness and barrenness into our souls.\nThere is a vast difference between God\u2019s using the creature to bless us,\nand our leaning on the creature to the exclusion of Him. In the one case,\nwe are blessed and He is glorified; in the other, we are disappointed and\nHe is dishonored.\n\nIt is well that the soul should deeply and seriously consider this\ndistinction. We believe it is constantly overlooked. We imagine,\nofttimes, that we are leaning upon and looking to God, when, in reality,\nif we would only look honestly at the roots of things, and judge\nourselves in the immediate presence of God, we should find an appalling\namount of the leaven of creature-confidence. How often do we speak of\nliving by faith, and of trusting only in God, when, at the same time, if\nwe would only look down into the depths of our hearts, we should find\nthere a large measure of dependence upon circumstances, references to\nsecond causes, and the like.\n\nChristian reader, let us look well to this. Let us see to it that our\neye is fixed upon the living God alone, and not upon man whose breath\nis in his nostrils. Let us wait on Him\u2014wait patiently\u2014wait constantly.\nIf we are at a loss for any thing, let our direct and simple reference\nbe to Him. Are we at a loss to know our way, to know whither we should\nturn, what step we should take? let us remember that He has said, \u201cI\nam the way;\u201d let us follow Him. He will make all clear, bright, and\ncertain. There can be no darkness, no perplexity, no uncertainty, if we\nare following Him; for He has said, and we are bound to believe, \u201cHe that\nfolloweth Me shall not walk in darkness.\u201d Hence, therefore, if we are in\ndarkness, it is certain that we are not following Him. No darkness can\never settle down upon that blessed path along which God leads those who,\nwith a single eye, seek to follow Jesus.\n\nBut some one whose eye scans these lines may say, or at least may feel\ndisposed to say, Well, after all, I am in perplexity as to my path. I\nreally do not know which way to turn, or what step to take. If this be\nthe language of the reader, we would simply ask him this one question,\nArt thou following Jesus? If so, thou canst not be in perplexity. Art\nthou following the cloud? If so, thy way is as plain as God can make it.\nHere lies the root of the whole matter. Perplexity and uncertainty is\nvery often the fruit of the working of the _will_. We are bent upon doing\nsomething which God does not want us to do at all\u2014upon going somewhere\nthat God does not want us to go. We pray about it, and get no answer; we\npray again and again, and get no answer. How is this? Why, the simple\nfact is that God wants us to be quiet\u2014to stand still\u2014to remain just where\nwe are. Wherefore, instead of racking our brain and harassing our souls\nabout what we ought to do, let us do nothing, but simply wait on God.\n\nThis is the secret of peace and calm elevation. If an Israelite in the\ndesert had taken it into his head to make some movement independent of\nJehovah; if he took it upon him to move when the cloud was at rest, or\nto halt while the cloud was moving, we can easily see what the result\nwould have been. And so it will ever be with us. If we move when we ought\nto rest, or rest when we ought to move, we shall not have the divine\npresence with us. \u201cAt the commandment of the Lord they rested in the\ntents, and at the commandment of the Lord they journeyed.\u201d They were kept\nin constant waiting upon God\u2014the most blessed position that any one can\noccupy: but it must be occupied ere its blessedness can be tasted. It is\na reality to be known, not a mere theory to be talked of. May it be ours\nto prove it all our journey through.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER X.\n\n\n\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, \u2018Make thee two trumpets of\nsilver; of a whole piece shalt thou make them; that thou mayest use them\nfor the calling of the assembly, and for the journeying of the camp.\nAnd when they shall blow with them, all the assembly shall assemble\nthemselves to thee at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.\nAnd if they blow but with one trumpet, then the princes, which are heads\nof the thousands of Israel, shall gather themselves unto thee. When\nye blow an alarm, then the camps that lie on the east parts shall go\nforward. When ye blow an alarm the second time, then the camps that lie\non the south side shall take their journey: they shall blow an alarm for\ntheir journeys. But when the congregation is to be gathered together,\nye shall blow, but ye shall not sound an alarm. And the sons of Aaron,\nthe priests, shall blow with the trumpets; and they shall be to you for\nan ordinance forever throughout your generations. And if ye go to war\nin your land against the enemy that oppresseth you, then ye shall blow\nan alarm with the trumpets; and ye shall be remembered before the Lord\nyour God, and ye shall be saved from your enemies. Also in the day of\nyour gladness, and in your solemn days, and in the beginnings of your\nmonths, ye shall blow with the trumpets over your burnt-offerings, and\nover the sacrifices of your peace-offerings; that they may be to you for\na memorial before your God. I am the Lord your God.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 1-10.)\n\nWe have quoted the entire of this interesting passage for the reader\nin order that he may have before him, in the veritable language of\ninspiration, the lovely institution of \u201cthe silver trumpets.\u201d It comes\nin, with striking fitness, immediately after the instruction respecting\nthe movement of the cloud, and is bound up, in a very marked way, with\nthe entire history of Israel, not only in the past, but also in the\nfuture. The sound of the trumpet was familiar to every circumcised ear.\nIt was the communication of the mind of God, in a form distinct and\nsimple enough to be understood by every member of the congregation,\nhowever distant he might be from the source whence the testimony\nemanated. God took care that each one in that vast assembly, however far\naway, should hear the silvery tones of the trumpet of testimony.\n\nEach trumpet was to be made of _one_ piece, and they fulfilled a double\npurpose. In other words, the source of the testimony was one, however\nthe object and practical result might vary. Every movement in the camp\nwas to be the result of the sound of the trumpet. Was the congregation\nto be gathered in festive joy and worship? it was by a certain sound\nof the trumpet. Were the tribes to be gathered in hostile array? it\nwas by a blast of the trumpet. In a word, the solemn assembly and the\nwarlike host, the instruments of music and the weapons of war,\u2014all\u2014all\nwas regulated by the silver trumpet. Any movement, whether festive,\nreligious, or hostile, that was not the result of that familiar sound,\ncould be but the fruit of a restless and unsubdued will, which Jehovah\ncould by no means sanction. The pilgrim host in the wilderness was as\ndependent upon the sound of the trumpet as upon the movement of the\ncloud. The testimony of God, communicated in that particular manner, was\nto govern every movement throughout the many thousands of Israel.\n\nMoreover, it pertained to the sons of Aaron, the priests, to blow with\nthe trumpets, for the mind of God can only be known and communicated in\npriestly nearness and communion. It was the high and holy privilege of\nthe priestly family to cluster around the sanctuary of God, there to\ncatch the first movement of the cloud, and communicate the same to the\nmost distant parts of the camp. They were responsible to give a certain\nsound, and every member of the militant host was equally responsible\nto yield a ready and an implicit obedience. It would have been at once\npositive rebellion for any to attempt to move without the word of\ncommand, or to refuse to move when once that word was given. All had to\nwait upon the divine testimony, and walk in the light thereof the very\nmoment it was given. To move without the testimony would be to _move in\nthe dark_; to refuse to move, when the testimony was given, would be _to\nremain in the dark_.\n\nThis is most simple and deeply practical. We can have no difficulty\nin seeing its force and application in the case of the congregation\nin the wilderness. But let us remember that all this was a type; and\nfurther, that it is written for our learning. We are solemnly bound,\ntherefore, to look into it; we are imperatively called upon to seek to\ngather up and treasure up the great practical instruction contained in\nthe singularly beautiful ordinance of the silver trumpet. Nothing could\nbe more seasonable for the present moment. It teaches a lesson to which\nthe Christian reader should give his most profound attention. It sets\nforth, in the most distinct manner possible, that God\u2019s people are to\nbe absolutely dependent upon and wholly subject to divine testimony in\nall their movements. A child may read this in the type before us. The\ncongregation in the wilderness dared not assemble for any festive or\nreligious object until they heard the sound of the trumpet; nor could the\nmen of war buckle on their armor till summoned forth by the signal of\nalarm to meet the uncircumcised foe. They worshiped and they fought, they\njourneyed and they halted, in simple obedience to the trumpet-call. It\nwas not, by any means, a question of their likings or dislikings, their\nthoughts, their opinions, or their judgment. It was simply and entirely a\nquestion of implicit obedience. Their every movement was dependent upon\nthe testimony of God, as given by the priests from the sanctuary. The\nsong of the worshiper and the shout of the warrior were each the simple\nfruit of the testimony of God.\n\nHow beautiful! how striking! how instructive! and, let us add, how\ndeeply practical! Why do we dwell upon it? Because we firmly believe\nit contains a needed lesson for the day in which our lot is cast. If\nthere is one feature more characteristic than another of the present\nhour, it is insubjection to divine authority\u2014positive resistance of\nthe truth when it demands unqualified obedience and self-surrender. It\nis all well enough so long as it is truth setting forth, with divine\nfullness and clearness, _our_ pardon, _our_ acceptance, _our_ life, _our_\nrighteousness, _our_ eternal security in Christ. This will be listened to\nand delighted in; but the very moment it becomes a question of the claims\nand authority of that blessed One who gave His life to save us from the\nflames of hell and introduce us to the everlasting joys of heaven, all\nmanner of difficulties are started; all sorts of reasonings and questions\nare raised; clouds of prejudice gather around the soul, and darken the\nunderstanding. The sharp edge of truth is blunted or turned aside, in a\nthousand ways. There is no _waiting_ for the sound of the trumpet; and\nwhen it sounds, with a blast as clear as God Himself can give, there is\nno response to the summons. We move when we ought to be still, and we\nhalt when we ought to be moving.\n\nReader, what must be the result of this? Either no progress at all, or\nprogress in a wrong direction, which is worse than none. It is utterly\nimpossible that we can advance in the divine life unless we yield\nourselves, without reserve, to the word of the Lord. Saved we may be,\nthrough the rich aboundings of divine mercy, and through the atoning\nvirtues of a Saviour\u2019s blood; but shall we rest satisfied with being\nsaved by Christ, and not seek, in some feeble measure, to walk with Him\nand live for Him? Shall we accept of salvation through the work which He\nhas wrought, and not long after deeper intimacy of communion with Himself\nand more complete subjection to His authority in all things. How would\nit have been with Israel in the wilderness had they refused attention to\nthe sound of the trumpet? We can see it at a glance. If, for example,\nthey had presumed, at any time, to assemble for a festive or religious\nobject, without the divinely appointed summons, what would have been the\nresult? or, further, had they taken it upon themselves to move forward on\ntheir journey, or go forth to war, ere the trumpet had sounded an alarm,\nhow would it have been? or, finally, had they refused to move when called\nby the sound of the trumpet, either to the solemn assembly, the onward\nmarch, or to the battle, how would they have fared?\n\nThe answer is as plain as a sunbeam. Let us ponder it: it has a lesson\nfor us. Let us apply our hearts to it. The silver trumpet settled and\nordered every movement for Israel of old: the testimony of God ought to\nsettle and order every thing for the Church now. That silver trumpet was\nblown by the priests of old: that testimony of God is known in priestly\ncommunion now. A Christian has no right to move or act apart from divine\ntestimony: he must wait upon the word of his Lord. Till he gets that,\nhe must stand still: when he has gotten it, he must _go forward_. God\ncan and does communicate His mind to His militant people now, just as\ndistinctly as He did to His people of old. True, it is not now by the\nsound of a trumpet, or the movement of a cloud, but by His Word and\nSpirit. It is not by aught that strikes the senses that our Father\nguides us; but by that which acts on the heart, the conscience, and the\nunderstanding. It is not by that which is natural, but by that which is\nspiritual, that He communicates His mind.\n\nBut let us be well assured of this, that our God can and does give our\nhearts full certainty both as to what we should do and what we should not\ndo, as to where we should go and where we should not go. It seems strange\nto be obliged to insist upon this\u2014passing strange that any Christian\nshould doubt, much less deny it; and yet so it is. We are often in doubt\nand perplexity; and some there are who are ready to deny that there\ncan be any such thing as certainty as to the details of daily life and\naction. This surely is wrong. Cannot an earthly father communicate his\nmind to his child as to the most minute particulars of his conduct? Who\nwill deny this? And cannot our Father communicate His mind to us, as to\nall our ways, from day to day? Unquestionably He can; and let not the\nChristian reader be robbed of the holy privilege of knowing his Father\u2019s\nmind in reference to every circumstance of his daily life.\n\nAre we to suppose, for a moment, that the Church of God is worse off\nin the matter of guidance than the camp in the desert? Impossible. How\nis it, then, that one often finds Christians at a loss as to their\nmovements? It must be owing to the lack of a circumcised ear to hear the\nsound of the silver trumpet, and of a subject will to yield a response\nto the sound. It may, however, be said that we are not to expect to hear\na voice from heaven telling us to do this or that, or to go hither or\nthither; nor yet to find a literal text of Scripture to guide us in the\nminor matters of our every-day history. How, for example, is one to know\nwhether he ought to visit a certain town, and remain there a certain\ntime? We reply, If the ear is circumcised, you will assuredly hear the\nsilver trumpet. Till that sounds, never stir: when it, sounds, never\ntarry. This will make all so clear, so simple, so safe, so certain. It\nis the grand cure for doubt, hesitancy, and vacillation. It will save us\nfrom the necessity of running for advice to this one and that one, as to\nhow we should act, or where we should go. And furthermore, it will teach\nus that it is none of our business to attempt to control the actions\nor movements of others. Let each one have his ear open, and his heart\nsubject, and then, assuredly, he will possess all the certainty that God\ncan give him, as to his every act and movement, from day to day. Our\never-gracious God can give clearness and decision as to every thing. If\nHe does not give it, no one can: if He does, no one need.\n\nThus much as to the beautiful institution of the silver trumpet, which we\nshall not pursue further now, though, as we have noticed above, it is not\nconfined, in its application, to Israel in the wilderness, but is bound\nup with their entire history right onward to the end. Thus we have the\nfeast of trumpets, the trumpet of the jubilee, the blowing of trumpets\nover their sacrifices, upon which we do not now dwell, as our immediate\nobject is to help the reader to seize the grand idea presented in the\nopening paragraph of our chapter. May the Holy Spirit impress upon our\nhearts the needed lesson of \u201cthe silver trumpets.\u201d\n\n * * * * *\n\nWe have now reached, in our meditations on this precious book, the moment\nin the which the camp is called to move forward. All is duly ordered,\naccording to that grand regulator, \u201cthe commandment of the Lord.\u201d Each\nman according to his pedigree, and each tribe according to the standard\nthereof, is in the divinely appointed place. The Levites are at their\npost, each with his own clearly defined work to do. Full provision is\nmade for the cleansing of the camp from every species of defilement; and\nnot only so, but the lofty standard of personal holiness is unfurled, and\nthe fruits of active benevolence are presented. Then we have the golden\ncandlestick and its seven lamps, giving forth their pure and precious\nlight. We have the pillar of fire and of cloud; and finally, the double\ntestimony of the silver trumpet. In short, nothing is lacking to the\npilgrim host. A vigilant eye, a powerful hand, and a loving heart have\nprovided for every possible contingency, so that the whole congregation\nin the wilderness, and each member in particular, might be \u201cthoroughly\nfurnished.\u201d\n\nThis is only what we might expect. If God undertakes to provide for any\none, or for any people, the provision must, of necessity, be perfect.\nIt is wholly impossible that God could omit any one thing needful. He\nknows all things and can do all things. Nothing can escape His vigilant\neye; nothing is beyond His omnipotent hand. Hence, therefore, all those\nwho can truly say, \u201cThe Lord is my Shepherd,\u201d may add, without hesitancy\nor reserve, \u201cI shall not want.\u201d The soul that is, in truth and reality,\nleaning on the arm of the living God can never\u2014shall never\u2014want any\n_good_ thing. The poor foolish heart may imagine a thousand wants; but\nGod knows what we really want, and He will provide for ALL.\n\nThus, then, the camp is ready to move; but, strange to say, there is a\ndeparture from the order laid down in the opening of the book. The ark of\nthe covenant, instead of reposing in the bosom of the camp, goes in the\nvery front. In other words, Jehovah, instead of remaining in the centre\nof the congregation to be waited upon there, actually condescends, in His\nmarvelous, illimitable grace, to do the work of an _avant-courier_ for\nHis people.\n\nBut let us see what it is that leads to this touching display of grace.\n\u201cAnd Moses said unto Hobab, the son of Raguel the Midianite, Moses\u2019\nfather-in-law, \u2018We are journeying unto the place of which the Lord said,\nI will give it you; come thou with us and we will do thee good; for the\nLord hath spoken good concerning Israel.\u2019 And he said unto him, \u2018I will\nnot go; but I will depart to mine own land, and to my kindred.\u2019 And he\nsaid, \u2018Leave us not, I pray thee, forasmuch as thou knowest how we are to\nencamp in the wilderness, and thou mayest be to us instead of eyes.\u2019\u201d\n\nNow, if we did not know something of our own hearts, and the tendency\nthereof to lean on the creature rather than upon the living God, we might\nwell marvel at the above. We might feel disposed to inquire, What could\nMoses possibly want with Hobab\u2019s eyes? Was not Jehovah sufficient? Did\nnot He know the wilderness? Would He suffer them to go astray? What of\nthe cloud and the silver trumpet? were they not better than Hobab\u2019s eyes?\nWhy, then, did Moses seek for human aid? Alas! alas! we can but too well\nunderstand the reason. We all know, to our sorrow and loss, the tendency\nof the heart to lean upon something that our eyes can see. We do not like\nto occupy the ground of absolute dependence upon God for every step of\nthe journey. We find it hard to lean upon an unseen arm. A Hobab that\nwe can see inspires us with more confidence than the living God whom we\ncannot see. We move on with comfort and satisfaction when we possess the\ncountenance and help of some poor fellow-mortal; but we hesitate, falter,\nand quail when called to move on in naked faith in God.\n\nThese statements may seem strong; but the question is, are they true?\nIs there a Christian who reads these lines that will not freely own\nthat it is even so? We are all prone to lean upon an arm of flesh, and\nthat, too, in the face of a thousand and one examples of the folly\nof so doing. We have proved, times without number, the vanity of all\ncreature-confidences, and yet we _will_ confide in the creature. On the\nother hand, we have, again and again, proved the reality of leaning\nupon the Word and upon the arm of the living God. We have found that\nHe has never failed us, never disappointed us\u2014nay, that He has always\ndone exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think; and yet we are\never ready to distrust Him, ever ready to lean upon any broken reed, and\nbetake ourselves to any broken cistern.\n\nThus it is with us; but, blessed be God, His grace abounds toward us, as\nit did toward Israel on the occasion to which we are now referring. If\nMoses will look to Hobab for guidance, Jehovah will teach His servant\nthat He Himself is all-sufficient as a guide. \u201cAnd they departed from the\nmount of the Lord three days\u2019 journey; and the ark of the covenant of\nthe Lord went before them in the three days\u2019 journey, _to search out a\nresting-place for them_.\u201d\n\nWhat rich, what precious grace! In place of their finding a\nresting-place for Him, He would find a resting-place for them. What a\nthought! The mighty God, the Creator of the ends of the earth, going\nthrough the wilderness to look out for a suitable camping-ground for a\npeople who were ready, at every turn in their path, to murmur and rebel\nagainst Him!\n\nSuch is our God,\u2014ever \u201cpatient, gracious, powerful, holy,\u201d\u2014ever rising,\nin the magnificence of His grace, above all our unbelief and failure,\nand proving Himself superior, in His love, to all the barriers which our\nunfaithfulness would erect. He most assuredly proved to Moses and to\nIsrael that He was far better as a guide than ten thousand Hobabs. We are\nnot told in this place whether Hobab went or not. He certainly refused\nthe first appeal, and perhaps the second likewise. But we are told that\nthe Lord went with them. \u201cThe cloud of the Lord was upon them by day,\nwhen they went out of the camp.\u201d Blessed shelter in the wilderness!\nBlessed, unfailing resource, in every thing! He went before His people\nto search them out a resting-place, and when He had found a spot suited\nto their need, He halted with them, and spread a sheltering wing over\nthem, to protect them from every foe. \u201cHe found him in a desert land,\nand in the waste howling wilderness; He led him about, He instructed\nhim, He kept him as the apple of His eye. As an eagle stirreth up her\nnest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them,\nbeareth them on her wings; so the Lord alone did lead him, and there was\nno strange god with him.\u201d (Deut. xxxii. 10-12.) \u201cHe spread a cloud for a\ncovering, and fire to give light in the night.\u201d (Ps. cv. 39.)\n\nThus, then, all was provided for, according to the wisdom, power, and\ngoodness of God. Nothing was or could be lacking, inasmuch as God Himself\nwas there. \u201cAnd it came to pass, when the ark set forward, that Moses\nsaid, \u2018Rise up, Lord, and let Thine enemies be scattered, and let them\nthat hate Thee flee before Thee.\u2019 And when it rested, he said, \u2018Return, O\nLord, unto the many thousands of Israel.\u2019\u201d\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XI.\n\n\nHitherto we have been occupied, in our study of this book, with God\u2019s\nmode of ordering and providing for His people in the wilderness. We have\ntraveled over the first ten chapters, and seen in them the illustration\nof the wisdom, goodness, and forethought of Jehovah, the God of Israel.\nBut now we reach a point at which dark clouds gather around us. Up to\nthis, God and His actings have been before us; but now we are called to\ncontemplate man and his miserable ways. This is ever sad and humiliating.\nMan is the same every where. In Eden, in the restored earth, in the\nwilderness, in the land of Canaan, in the Church, in the millennium, man\nis proved to be a total failure. The very moment he moves, he breaks\ndown. Thus, in the first two chapters of Genesis God is seen acting as\nCreator; every thing is done and ordered in divine perfection, and man is\nplaced in the scene to enjoy the fruit of divine wisdom, goodness, and\npower. But in chapter iii. all is changed. The moment man acts, it is to\ndisobey and bring in ruin and desolation. So after the deluge, when the\nearth had passed through that deep and dreadful baptism, and when man\nagain takes his place therein, he exposes himself, and proves that, so\nfar from being able to subdue and govern the earth, he cannot even govern\nhimself. (Gen. ix.) Hardly had Israel been brought out of Egypt, when\nthey made the golden calf: no sooner had the priesthood been set up, than\nthe sons of Aaron offered strange fire: directly Saul was made king, he\nproved willful and disobedient.\n\nSo also when we turn to the pages of the New Testament, we find the same\nthing. No sooner is the Church set up and adorned with Pentecostal gifts,\nthan we hear the sad accents of murmuring and discontent. In short, man\u2019s\nhistory, from first to last, here, there, and every where, is marked with\nfailure. There is not so much as a single exception from Eden down to the\nclose of the millennial day.\n\nIt is well to consider this solemn and weighty fact, and to give it a\ndeep place in the heart. It is eminently calculated to correct all false\nnotions as to man\u2019s real character and condition. It is well to bear in\nmind that the awful sentence which struck terror into the heart of the\nvoluptuous king of Babylon has, in point of fact, been passed upon the\nentire human race, and upon each individual son and daughter of fallen\nAdam, namely, \u201c_Thou art weighed in the balance and found wanting_.\u201d\nHas the reader fully accepted this sentence against himself? This is\na serious inquiry. We feel imperatively called to press it home. Say,\nreader, art thou one of Wisdom\u2019s children? Dost thou justify God and\ncondemn thyself? Hast thou taken thy place as a self-destroyed, guilty,\nhell-deserving sinner? If so, Christ is for thee. He died to put away\nsin and to bear your many sins. Only trust Him, and all He is and has\nis thine. He is thy wisdom, thy righteousness, thy sanctification, and\nthy redemption. All who simply and heartily believe in Jesus have passed\nclean off the old ground of guilt and condemnation, and are seen by God\non the new ground of eternal life and divine righteousness. They are\naccepted in the risen and victorious Christ. \u201cAs He is, so are we in this\nworld.\u201d (1 John iv. 17.)\n\nWe would earnestly entreat the reader not to rest until this most\nmomentous question is clearly and thoroughly settled in the light of\nGod\u2019s own Word and presence. We pray that God the Holy Ghost may deeply\nexercise the heart and conscience of the unconverted and undecided\nreader, and lead such to the Saviour\u2019s feet.\n\nWe shall now proceed with our chapter.\n\n\u201cAnd when the people complained, it displeased the Lord: and the Lord\nheard it: and His anger was kindled; and the fire of the Lord burnt among\nthem, and consumed them that were in the uttermost parts of the camp.\nAnd the people cried unto Moses; and when Moses prayed unto the Lord, the\nfire was quenched. And he called the name of the place Taberah: because\nthe fire of the Lord burnt among them. And the mixed multitude that was\namong them fell a lusting: and the children of Israel also wept again,\nand said, \u2018Who shall give us flesh to eat? We remember the fish which\nwe did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers and the melons and the leeks\nand the onions and the garlic. But now our soul is dried away; there is\nnothing at all, beside this manna, before our eyes.\u2019\u201d\n\nHere the poor human heart lets itself thoroughly out. Its tastes and\nits tendencies are made manifest. The people sigh after the land of\nEgypt, and cast back wistful looks after its fruits and its flesh-pots.\nThey do not say aught about the lash of the taskmaster and the toil of\nthe brick-kilns. There is total silence as to these things. Nothing is\nremembered now save those resources by which Egypt had ministered to the\nlusts of nature.\n\nHow often is this the case with us! When once the heart loses its\nfreshness in the divine life\u2014when heavenly things begin to lose their\nsavor\u2014when first love declines\u2014when Christ ceases to be a satisfying and\naltogether precious portion for the soul\u2014when the Word of God and prayer\nlose their charm, and become heavy, dull, and mechanical, then the eye\nwanders back toward the world, the heart follows the eye, and the feet\nfollow the heart. We forget, at such moments, what the world was to\nus when we were in it and of it. We forget what toil and slavery, what\nmisery and degradation, we found in the service of sin and Satan, and\nthink only of the gratification and ease, the freedom from those painful\nexercises, conflicts, and anxieties which attend upon the wilderness path\nof God\u2019s people.\n\nAll this is most sad, and should lead the soul into the most profound\nself-judgment. It is terrible when those who have set out to follow the\nLord begin to grow weary of the way and of God\u2019s provision. How dreadful\nmust those words have sounded in the ear of Jehovah, \u201cBut now our soul is\ndried away: there is nothing at all, beside this manna, before our eyes.\u201d\nAh! Israel, what more didst thou need? Was not that heavenly food enough\nfor thee? Couldst thou not live upon that which the hand of thy God had\nprovided for thee?\n\nDo we count ourselves free to ask such questions? Do we always find\n_our_ heavenly Manna sufficient for us? What means the frequent inquiry\nraised by professing Christians as to the right or wrong of such and\nsuch worldly pursuits and pleasures? Have we not even heard from the\nlips of persons making the very highest profession such words as these:\n\u201cHow are we to fill up the day? We cannot be always thinking about\nChrist and heavenly things: we must have some little recreation.\u201d Is\nnot this somewhat akin to Israel\u2019s language in Numbers xi? Yes, truly;\nand as is the language, so is the acting. We prove, alas! that Christ\nis not enough for the heart, by the palpable fact of our betaking\nourselves to other things. How often, for example, does the Bible lie\nneglected for hours, while the light and worthless literature of the\nworld is greedily devoured. What mean the well-thumbed newspaper and\nthe almost dust-covered Bible? Do not these things tell a tale? Is not\nthis despising the manna, and sighing after\u2014nay, devouring\u2014the leeks and\nonions?\n\nWe specially call the attention of young Christians to that which is\nnow before us. We are deeply impressed with a sense of their danger of\nfalling into the very sin of Israel as recorded in our chapter. No doubt\nwe are all in danger, but the young amongst us are peculiarly so. Those\nof us who are advanced in life are not so likely to be drawn away by the\nfrivolous pursuits of the world\u2014by its concerts, its flower-shows, its\npleasure-parties, its vain songs and light literature. But the young\n_will_ have a dash of the world. They long to taste it for themselves.\nThey do not find Christ an all-sufficient portion for the heart. They\nwant recreation.\n\nAlas! alas! what a thought! How sad to hear a Christian say, \u201cI want some\nrecreation. How can I fill up the day? I cannot be always thinking of\nJesus.\u201d We should like to ask all who speak thus, How will you fill up\neternity? Shall not Christ be sufficient to fill up its countless ages?\nShall you want recreation there? will you sigh for light literature, vain\nsongs, and frivolous pursuits there?\n\nIt will perhaps be said, We shall be different then. In what respect?\nWe have the divine nature; we have the Holy Ghost; we have Christ for\nour portion; we belong to heaven; we are brought to God.\u2014But we have an\nevil nature in us.\u2014Well, are we to cater for that? is it for that we\ncrave recreation? Must we try to help our wretched flesh\u2014our corrupt\nnature\u2014to fill up the day? Nay, we are called to deny it, to mortify it,\nto reckon it dead. This is Christian recreation. This is the mode in\nwhich the saint is called to fill up his day. How is it possible for us\nto grow in the divine life if we are only making provision for the flesh?\nEgypt\u2019s food cannot nourish the new nature; and the great question for\nus is this: Which do we really mean to nourish and cherish? the new, or\nthe old? It must be obvious that the divine nature cannot possibly feed\nupon newspapers, vain songs, and light literature; and hence, if we give\nourselves, in any measure, to these latter, our souls must wither and\ndroop.\n\nMay we have grace to think of these things\u2014to think seriously. May we so\nwalk in the Spirit that Christ may ever be a satisfying portion for our\nhearts. Had Israel in the wilderness walked with God, they never could\nhave said, \u201cOur soul is dried away: there is nothing at all, beside\nthis manna, before our eyes.\u201d That manna would have been quite enough\nfor them. And so with us. If we really walk with God in this wilderness\nworld, our souls shall be satisfied with the portion which He gives, and\nthat portion is, a heavenly Christ. Can He ever fail to satisfy? Does\nHe not satisfy the heart of God? Does He not fill all heaven with His\nglory? Is He not the theme of angels\u2019 song, and the object of their\nadoring homage and wondering worship? Is He not the one grand subject\nof everlasting counsels and purposes? Doth not the history of His ways\noverlap eternity?\n\nWhat answer have we to give to all these queries? What but a hearty,\nunreserved, unhesitating YES? Well, then, is not this blessed One, in\nthe deep mystery of His Person, in the moral glory of His ways, in the\nbrightness and blessedness of His character\u2014is not He enough for our\nhearts? Do we want aught beside? Must we get the newspaper, or some light\nmagazine, to fill up the vacuum in our souls? Must we turn from Christ to\na flower-show or a concert?\n\nAlas! that we should have to write thus. It is most sad; but it is most\nneedful; and we here put this question most pointedly to the reader:\nDost thou really find Christ insufficient to satisfy thy heart? Hast\nthou cravings which He does not fully meet? If so, thou art in a very\nalarming condition of soul, and it behooves thee to look at once, and to\nlook closely, into this solemn matter. Get down on thy face before God,\nin honest self-judgment. Pour out thy heart to him. Tell Him all. Own\nto Him how thou hast fallen and wandered\u2014as surely thou must have done\nwhen God\u2019s Christ is not enough for thee. Have it all out in secret with\nthy God, and take no rest until thou art fully and blessedly restored to\ncommunion with Himself\u2014to heart-fellowship with Him about the Son of His\nlove.\n\nBut we must return to our chapter; and in so doing, we call the reader\u2019s\nattention to an expression full of weighty admonition for us,\u2014\u201cAnd _the\nmixed multitude_ that was among them fell a lusting; and the children\nof Israel also wept again.\u201d There is nothing more damaging to the\ncause of Christ or to the souls of His people than association with\nmen of _mixed_ principles. It is very much more dangerous than having\nto do with open and avowed enemies. Satan knows this well, and hence\nhis constant effort to lead the Lord\u2019s people to link themselves with\nthose who are only half-and-half; or, on the other hand, to introduce\nspurious materials\u2014false professors\u2014into the midst of those who are\nseeking, in any measure, to pursue a path of separation from the world.\nWe have repeated allusions to this special character of evil in the\nNew Testament. We have it both prophetically, in the Gospels, and\nhistorically, in the Acts and in the Epistles. Thus we have the tares and\nthe leaven in Matthew xiii; then, in the Acts, we find persons attaching\nthemselves to the assembly who were like the \u201cmixed multitude\u201d of Numbers\nxi; and finally, we have apostolic reference to spurious materials\nintroduced by the enemy for the purpose of corrupting the testimony and\nsubverting the souls of God\u2019s people. Thus the apostle Paul speaks of\n\u201cfalse brethren unawares brought in.\u201d (Gal. ii. 4.) Jude also speaks of\n\u201ccertain men crept in unawares.\u201d (Ver. 4.)\n\nFrom all this we learn the urgent need of vigilance on the part of God\u2019s\npeople; and not only of vigilance, but also of absolute dependence\nupon the Lord, who alone can preserve them from the entrance in of\nfalse materials, and keep them free from all contact with men of mixed\nprinciples and doubtful character. \u201cThe mixed multitude\u201d is sure to\n\u201cfall a lusting,\u201d and the people of God are in imminent danger of being\ndrawn away from their proper simplicity, and of growing weary of the\nheavenly Manna\u2014their proper food. What is needed is, plain decision for\nChrist; thorough devotedness to Him and to His cause. Where a company of\nbelievers are enabled to go on in whole-heartedness for Christ, and in\nmarked separation from this present world, there is not so much danger\nof persons of equivocal character seeking a place among them; though\ndoubtless Satan will always seek to mar the testimony by the introduction\nof hypocrites. Such persons do obtain an entrance, and then by their\nevil ways bring reproach on the Lord\u2019s name. Satan knew full well what\nhe was doing when he led the mixed multitude to attach themselves to the\ncongregation of Israel. It was not all at once that the effect of this\nadmixture was made manifest. The people had come forth with a high hand;\nthey had passed through the Red Sea, and raised the song of victory on\nits banks. All looked bright and promising; but \u201cthe mixed multitude\u201d\nwere there notwithstanding, and the effect of their presence was very\nspeedily made apparent.\n\nThus it is ever, in the history of God\u2019s people. We may notice, in those\ngreat spiritual movements which have taken place from age to age,\ncertain elements of decay which at the first were hidden from view by the\nflowing tide of grace and _energy_; but when that tide began to ebb, then\nthose elements made their appearance. This is very serious, and calls for\nmuch holy watchfulness. It applies to individuals just as forcibly as\nto the people of God collectively. In our early moments\u2014our young days,\nwhen zeal and freshness characterized us, the spring-tide of grace rose\nso blessedly that many things were allowed to escape unjudged which were,\nin reality, seeds flung into the ground by the enemy\u2019s hand, and which,\nin due season, are sure to germinate and fructify. Hence it follows that\nboth assemblies of Christians and individual Christians should ever be\non the watch-tower\u2014ever keeping jealous guard lest the enemy gain an\nadvantage in this matter. Where the heart is true to Christ, all is sure\nto come right in the end. Our God is so gracious, He takes care of us and\npreserves us from a thousand snares. May we learn to trust Him and to\npraise Him.\n\nBut we have further lessons to draw from the weighty section which lies\nopen before us. Not only have we to contemplate failure on the part of\nthe congregation of Israel, but even Moses himself is seen faltering and\nalmost sinking beneath the weight of his responsibility. \u201cAnd Moses said\nunto the Lord, \u2018Wherefore hast Thou afflicted Thy servant? and wherefore\nhave I not found favor in Thy sight, that Thou layest the burden of all\nthis people upon me? Have I conceived all this people? have I begotten\nthem, that Thou shouldest say unto me, Carry them in thy bosom, as a\nnursing father beareth the sucking child, unto the land which Thou\nswarest unto their fathers? Whence should I have flesh to give unto all\nthis people? for they weep unto me, saying, Give us flesh, that we may\neat. I am not able to bear all this people alone, because it is too heavy\nfor me. And if Thou deal thus with me, kill me, I pray Thee out of hand,\nif I have found favor in Thy sight; and let me not see my wretchedness.\u2019\u201d\n(Ver. 11-15.)\n\nThis is truly wonderful language. It is not that we should think for a\nmoment of dwelling upon the failures and infirmities of so dear and so\ndevoted a servant as Moses. Far be the thought. It would ill become us\nto comment upon the actings or the sayings of one of whom the Holy Ghost\nhas declared that \u201che was faithful in all his house.\u201d (Heb. iii. 2.)\nMoses, like all the Old-Testament saints, has taken his place amongst the\n\u201cspirits of just men made perfect,\u201d and every inspired allusion to him\nthroughout the pages of the New Testament tends only to put honor upon\nhim, and to set him forth as a most precious vessel.\n\nBut still we are bound to ponder the inspired history now before\nus\u2014history penned by Moses himself. True it is\u2014blessedly true\u2014that\nthe defects and failures of God\u2019s people in Old-Testament times are\nnot commented upon in the New Testament, yet are they recorded with\nfaithful accuracy in the Old. And wherefore? is it not for our learning?\nUnquestionably. \u201cWhatsoever things were written aforetime were written\nfor our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures\nmight have hope.\u201d (Rom. xv. 4.)\n\nWhat, then, are we to learn from the remarkable outburst of feeling\nrecorded in Numbers xi. 11-15? We learn this at least, that it is the\nwilderness that really brings out what is in the very best of us. It is\nthere we prove what is in our hearts. And inasmuch as the book of Numbers\nis emphatically the book of the wilderness, it is just there we might\nexpect to find all sorts of failure and infirmity fully unfolded. The\nSpirit of God faithfully chronicles every thing. He gives us men as they\nare; and even though it be a Moses that \u201cspeaks unadvisedly with his\nlips,\u201d that very unadvised speaking is recorded for our admonition and\ninstruction. Moses \u201cwas a man subject to like passions as we are;\u201d and\nit is very evident that in the portion of his history now before us, his\nheart sinks under the tremendous weight of his responsibilities.\n\nIt will perhaps be said, \u201cNo wonder his heart should sink.\u201d No wonder,\nsurely, for his burden was far too heavy for human shoulders. But the\nquestion is, Was it too heavy for divine shoulders? Was it really the\ncase that Moses was called to bear the burden alone? Was not the living\nGod with him? and was not He sufficient? What did it matter whether\nGod were pleased to act by one man or by ten thousand? All the power,\nall the wisdom, all the grace, was in Him. He is the fountain of all\nblessedness, and, in the judgment of faith, it makes not one whit of\ndifference as to the channel, or whether there is one channel or a\nthousand and one.\n\nThis is a fine moral principle for all the servants of Christ. It is most\nneedful for all such to remember that whenever the Lord places a man in a\nposition of responsibility, He will both fit him for it and maintain him\nin it. It is, of course, another thing altogether if a man _will_ rush\nunsent into any field of work, or any post of difficulty or danger. In\nsuch a case, we may assuredly look for a thorough breakdown, sooner or\nlater. But when God calls a man to a certain position, He will endow him\nwith the needed grace to occupy it. He never sends any one a warfare at\nhis own charges, and therefore all we have to do is to draw upon Him for\nall we need. This holds good in every case. We can never fail if we only\ncling to the living God: we can never run dry if we are drawing from the\nfountain. Our tiny springs will soon dry up; but our Lord Jesus Christ\ndeclares that \u201che that believeth in Me, as the Scripture hath said, \u2018out\nof his belly shall flow rivers of living water.\u2019\u201d\n\nThis is a grand lesson for the wilderness. We cannot get on without it.\nHad Moses fully understood it, he never would have given utterance to\nsuch words as these: \u201cWhence should _I_ have flesh to give unto all this\npeople?\u201d He would have fixed his eye _only_ upon God. He would have known\nthat he was but an instrument in the hands of God, whose resources were\nillimitable. Assuredly, Moses could not supply that vast assembly with\nfood even for a single day; but Jehovah could supply the need of every\nliving thing, and supply it forever.\n\nDo we really believe this? Does it not sometimes appear as though we\ndoubted it? Do we not sometimes feel as though _we_ were to supply\ninstead of God? and then is it any marvel if we quail and falter and\nsink? Well indeed might Moses say, \u201cI am not able to bear all this people\nalone, because it is too heavy for me.\u201d There was only one heart that\ncould bear with such a company, namely, the heart of that blessed One\nwho, when they were toiling amid the brick-kilns of Egypt, had come down\nto deliver them, and who, having redeemed them out of the hand of the\nenemy, had taken up His abode in their midst. He was able to bear them,\nand He alone. His loving heart and mighty hand were alone adequate to the\ntask; and if Moses had been in the full power of this great truth, he\nwould not and could not have said, \u201cIf Thou deal thus with me, kill me,\nI pray Thee, out of hand, if I have found favor in Thy sight; and let me\nnot see my wretchedness.\u201d\n\nThis surely was a dark moment in the history of this illustrious servant\nof God. It reminds us somewhat of the prophet Elijah, when he flung\nhimself at the base of the juniper tree and entreated the Lord to take\naway his life. How wonderful to see those two men together on the mount\nof transfiguration! It proves, in a very marked way, that God\u2019s thoughts\nare not as ours, nor His ways as ours. He had something better in store\nfor Moses and Elias than aught that they contemplated. Blessed be His\nname, He rebukes our fears by the riches of His grace, and when our poor\nhearts would anticipate death and wretchedness, He gives life, victory,\nand glory.\n\nHowever, we cannot but see that, in shrinking from a position of weighty\nresponsibility, Moses was really giving up a place of high dignity and\nholy privilege. This seems most evident from the following passage: \u201cAnd\nthe Lord said unto Moses, \u2018Gather unto Me seventy men of the elders of\nIsrael, whom thou knowest to be the elders of the people, and officers\nover them; and bring them unto the tabernacle of the congregation, _that\nthey may stand there with thee_. And I will come down and talk with thee\nthere; and _I will take of the spirit which is upon thee and will put it\nupon them_; and they shall bear the burden of the people with thee, that\nthou bear it not thyself alone.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 16, 17.)\n\nWas there any additional power gained by the introduction of seventy\nmen? Not spiritual power, certainly, inasmuch as it was only the spirit\nthat was upon Moses after all. True, there were seventy men instead of\none, but the multiplication of men was no increase of spiritual power.\nIt saved Moses trouble, but it lost him dignity. He was henceforth to be\na joint-instrument instead of the sole one. It may be said that Moses\n(blessed servant as he was!) did not want dignity for himself, but rather\nsought a shady, retired, humble path. No doubt; but this does not touch\nthe question before us. Moses, as we shall see presently, was the meekest\nman upon the face of the earth; nor do we mean even to hint that any mere\nman would have done better under the circumstances. But then we must seek\nto bear away with us the great practical lesson which our chapter so\nimpressively teaches. The very best of men fail; and it seems exceedingly\nplain that Moses, in the eleventh chapter of Numbers, was not in the calm\nelevation of faith. He appears, for the moment, to have lost that even\nbalance of soul which is the sure result of finding one\u2019s centre in the\nliving God. We gather this, not merely from the fact of his tottering\nbeneath the weight of his responsibility; but let us ponder the following\nparagraph:\u2014\n\n\u201cAnd say thou unto the people, Sanctify yourselves against to-morrow, and\nye shall eat flesh; for ye have wept in the ears of the Lord, saying,\n\u2018Who shall give us flesh to eat? for it was well with us in Egypt:\u2019\ntherefore the Lord will give you flesh, and ye shall eat. Ye shall not\neat one day, nor two days, nor five days, neither ten days, nor twenty\ndays; but even a whole month, until it come out at your nostrils, and it\nbe loathsome unto you: because that ye have despised the Lord which is\namong you, and have wept before Him, saying, \u2018Why came we forth out of\nEgypt?\u2019 And Moses said, \u2018The people, among whom I am, are six hundred\nthousand footmen; and Thou hast said, I will give them flesh, that they\nmay eat a whole month. Shall the flocks and the herds be slain for them\nto suffice them? or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together\nfor them to suffice them?\u2019 And the Lord said unto Moses, \u2018Is the Lord\u2019s\nhand waxed short? thou shalt see now whether My word will come to pass\nunto thee or not.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 18-23.)\n\nIn all this we see the working of that spirit of unbelief which ever\ntends to limit the Holy One of Israel. Could not the almighty God, the\npossessor of heaven and earth, the Creator of the ends of the earth\u2014could\nnot He provide flesh for six hundred thousand footmen? Alas! it is just\nhere we all so sadly fail. We do not enter, as we ought, into the reality\nof having to do with the living God. Faith brings God into the scene,\nand therefore it knows absolutely nothing of difficulties\u2014yea, it laughs\nat impossibilities. In the judgment of faith, God is the grand answer\nto every question\u2014the grand solution of every difficulty. It refers\nall to Him; and hence it matters not in the least to faith whether it\nbe six hundred thousand or six hundred millions; it knows that God is\nall-sufficient. It finds all its resources in Him. Unbelief says, \u201c_How_\ncan such and such things be?\u201d It is full of \u201cHows;\u201d but, faith has one\ngreat answer to ten thousand \u201chows,\u201d and that answer is,\u2014GOD.\n\n\u201cAnd Moses went out, and told the people the words of the Lord, and\ngathered the seventy men of the elders of the people, and set them round\nabout the tabernacle. And the Lord came down in a cloud, and spake unto\nhim, _and took of the spirit that was upon him, and gave it unto the\nseventy elders_; and it came to pass, that when the spirit rested upon\nthem, they prophesied, and did not cease.\u201d\n\nThe true secret of all ministry is spiritual power. It is not man\u2019s\ngenius, or man\u2019s intellect, or man\u2019s energy; but simply the power of the\nSpirit of God. This was true in the days of Moses, and it is true now.\n\u201cNot by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.\u201d\n(Zech. iv. 6.) It is well for all ministers to bear this ever in mind.\nIt will sustain the heart and give constant freshness to their ministry.\nA ministry which flows from abiding dependence upon the Holy Ghost can\nnever become barren. If a man is drawing upon his own resources, he will\nsoon run dry. It matters not what his powers may be, or how extensive his\nreading, or how vast his stores of information; if the Holy Ghost be not\nthe spring and power of his ministry, it must, sooner or later, lose its\nfreshness and its effectiveness.\n\nHow important, therefore, that all who minister, whether in the gospel\nor in the Church of God, should lean continually and exclusively on the\npower of the Holy Ghost! He knows what souls need, and He can supply it.\nBut He must be trusted and used. It will not do to lean partly on self\nand partly on the Spirit of God. If there be aught of self-confidence, it\nwill soon be made apparent. We must really get at the bottom of all that\nbelongs to self if we are to be the vessels of the Holy Ghost.\n\nIt is not\u2014need we say it?\u2014that there should not be holy diligence and\nearnestness in the study of God\u2019s Word, and in the study, too, of the\nexercises, the trials, the conflicts, and the varied difficulties of\nsouls. Quite the reverse. We feel persuaded that the more absolutely we\nlean, in self-emptiness, upon the mighty power of the Holy Ghost, the\nmore diligently and earnestly we shall study both _the Book_ and _the\nsoul_. It would be a fatal mistake for a man to use professed dependence\nupon the Spirit as a plea for neglecting prayerful study and meditation.\n\u201cMeditate upon these things; give thyself _wholly_ to them; that thy\nprofiting may appear to all.\u201d (1 Tim. iv. 15.)\n\nBut after all, let it ever be remembered that the Holy Ghost is the\never-living, never-failing spring of ministry. It is He alone that can\nbring forth, in divine freshness and fullness, the treasures of God\u2019s\nWord, and apply them, in heavenly power, to the soul\u2019s present need. It\nis not a question of bringing forth new truth, but simply of unfolding\nthe Word itself, and bringing it to bear upon the moral and spiritual\ncondition of the people of God. This is true ministry. A man may speak a\nhundred times on the same portion of Scripture, to the same people, and\non each occasion he may minister Christ in spiritual freshness to their\nsouls. And on the other hand, a man may rack his brain to find out new\nsubjects, and new modes of handling old themes, and all the while there\nmay not be one atom of Christ or of spiritual power in his ministry.\n\nAll this holds good in reference to the evangelist, as well as to the\nteacher or pastor. A man may be called to preach the gospel in the same\nplace for years, and he may, at times, feel burdened by the thought of\nhaving to address the same audience, on the same theme, week after week,\nmonth after month, year after year. He may feel at a loss for something\nnew\u2014something fresh\u2014some variety: he may wish to get away into some new\nsphere, where the subjects which are familiar to him will be new to the\npeople. It will greatly help such to remember that the one grand theme\nof the evangelist is Christ; the power to handle that theme is the Holy\nGhost; and the one to whom that theme is to be unfolded is the poor lost\nsinner. Now, Christ is ever new; the power of the Spirit is ever fresh;\nthe soul\u2019s condition and destiny ever intensely interesting. Furthermore,\nit is well for the evangelist to bear in mind, on every fresh occasion of\nrising to preach, that those to whom he preaches are really ignorant of\nthe gospel, and hence he should preach as though it were the very first\ntime his audience had ever heard the message, and the first time he had\never delivered it. For, be it remembered, the preaching of the gospel, in\nthe divine acceptation of the phrase, is not a barren statement of mere\nevangelical doctrine\u2014a certain form of words enunciated over and over\nagain in wearisome routine. Far from it. To preach the gospel is really\nto unfold the heart of God, the Person and work of Christ; and all this\nby the present energy of the Holy Ghost, from the exhaustless treasury\nof holy Scripture.\n\nMay all preachers keep these things before the mind, and then it will not\nmatter whether it be _one_ preacher or _seventy_, one man in the same\nplace for fifty years, or the same man in fifty different places in one\nyear. The question is not at all as to new men or new places, but simply\nand entirely as to the power of the Holy Ghost unfolding Christ to the\nsoul. Thus in the case of Moses, as recorded in our chapter, there was\nno increase of power: it was the spirit that was upon him given to the\nseventy elders. God can act by one man just as well as by seventy; and if\nHe does not act, seventy are no more than one. It is of the very utmost\nimportance to keep God ever before the soul. This is the true secret of\npower and freshness, whether for the evangelist, the teacher, or any one\nelse. When a man can say, \u201cAll my springs are in God,\u201d he need not be\ntroubled as to a sphere of work, or competency to fill it; but when this\nis not so, we can well understand why a man would sigh for a division of\nlabor and responsibility. We may remember, at the opening of the book of\nExodus, how unwilling Moses was to go into Egypt, in simple dependence\nupon God, and how readily he went in company with Aaron. Thus it is ever.\nWe like something tangible\u2014something that the eye can see and the hand\ncan handle. We find it hard to endure as seeing Him who is invisible;\nand yet the very props we lean upon often prove to be broken reeds\nthat pierce the hand. Aaron proved to be a fruitful source of sorrow\nto Moses; and those whom we, in our folly, imagine to be indispensable\ncoadjutors, frequently turn out the very reverse. Oh that we may all\nlearn to lean, with an undivided heart and unshaken confidence, upon the\nliving God!\n\nBut we must draw this section to a close, and ere doing so, we shall\njust glance for a moment at the truly excellent spirit in which Moses\nmeets the new circumstances in which he had placed himself. It is one\nthing to shrink from the weight of responsibility and care, and it is\nquite another thing to carry one\u2019s self with grace and genuine humility\ntoward those who are called to share that weight with us. The two things\nare totally different, and we may often see the difference strikingly\nillustrated. In the scene now before us, Moses manifests that exquisite\nmeekness which so specially characterized him. \u201cBut there remained two\nof the [seventy] men in the camp, the name of the one was Eldad, and the\nname of the other Medad: and the spirit rested upon them; and they were\nof them that were written, but went not out unto the tabernacle: and they\nprophesied in the camp. And there ran a young man, and told Moses, and\nsaid, \u2018Eldad and Medad do prophesy in the camp.\u2019 And Joshua the son of\nNun, the servant of Moses, one of his young men, answered and said, \u2018My\nlord Moses, forbid them.\u2019 And Moses said unto him, \u2018Enviest thou for my\nsake? Would God that all the Lord\u2019s people were prophets, and that the\nLord would put His Spirit upon them!\u2019\u201d\n\nThis is perfectly beautiful. Moses was far removed from that wretched\nspirit of envy which would let no one speak but himself. He was prepared,\nby grace, to rejoice in any and every manifestation of true spiritual\npower, no matter where or through whom. He knew full well that there\ncould be no right prophesying save by the power of the Spirit of God;\nand wherever that power was exhibited, who was he that he should seek to\nquench or hinder?\n\nWould there were more of this excellent spirit! May we each cultivate it.\nMay we have grace to rejoice unfeignedly in the testimony and service\nof all the Lord\u2019s people, even though we may not see eye to eye with\nthem, and though our mode and our measure may vary. Nothing can be more\ncontemptible than that petty spirit of envy and jealousy which will\nnot permit a man to take an interest in any work but his own. We may\nrest assured that where the spirit of Christ is in action in the heart,\nthere will be the ability to go out and embrace the wide field of our\nblessed Master\u2019s work and all His beloved workmen: there will be the\nhearty rejoicing in having the work done, no matter who is the doer of\nit. A man whose heart is full of Christ will be able to say\u2014and to say\nit without affectation, Provided the work is done\u2014provided Christ is\nglorified\u2014provided souls are saved\u2014provided the Lord\u2019s flock is cared for\nand fed, it matters nothing to me who does the work.\n\nThis is the right spirit to cultivate, and it stands out in bright\ncontrast with the narrowness and self-occupation which can only rejoice\nin work in which \u201c_I, myself_,\u201d have a prominent place. May the Lord\ndeliver us from all this, and enable us to cherish that temper of soul\nexpressed by Moses when he said, \u201cEnviest thou for my sake? Would God\nthat all the Lord\u2019s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put His\nSpirit upon them!\u201d\n\nThe closing paragraph of our chapter shows us the people in the miserable\nand fatal enjoyment of that for which their hearts had lusted. \u201cHe gave\nthem their request, but sent leanness into their soul.\u201d They got what\nthey longed for, and found it death. They _would_ have flesh, and with\nthe flesh came the judgment of God. This is most solemn. May we heed\nthe warning. The poor heart is full of vain desires and hateful lusts.\nThe heavenly Manna fails to satisfy. There must be something else. God\nallows us to have it. But what then? Leanness\u2014barrenness\u2014judgment! O\nLord, keep our hearts fixed on Thyself alone and at all times! Be Thou\nthe ever-satisfying portion of our souls, while we tread this desert, and\ntill we see Thy face in glory!\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XII.\n\n\nThe brief section of our book to which we now approach may be viewed\nin two distinct aspects: in the first place, it is typical or\ndispensational; and in the second, moral or practical.\n\nIn the union of Moses with \u201cthe Ethiopian woman,\u201d we have a type of\nthat great and marvelous mystery, the union of the Church with Christ\nher Head. This subject has come before us in our study of the book of\nExodus; but we see it here in a peculiar light\u2014as that which evokes the\nenmity of Aaron and Miriam. The sovereign actings of grace draw forth the\nopposition of those who stand upon the ground of natural relationship\nand fleshly privilege. We know, from the teaching of the New Testament,\nthat the extension of grace to the Gentiles was that which ever elicited\nthe fiercest and most terrible hatred of the Jews. They would not have\nit; they would not believe in it; nay, they would not even hear of it.\nThere is a very remarkable allusion to this in the eleventh chapter of\nRomans, where the apostle, referring to the Gentiles, says, \u201cFor as ye\nin times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through\ntheir unbelief: even so have these [Jews] also now not believed in your\nmercy [or, in mercy to you], that they also may obtain mercy.\u201d (Ver. 30,\n31.\u2014_See Greek._)\n\nThis is precisely what we have typically presented in the history of\nMoses. He, first of all, presented himself to Israel, his brethren\naccording to the flesh; but they, in unbelief, rejected him. They thrust\nhim from them, and would not have him. This became, in the sovereignty of\nGod, the occasion of mercy to the stranger; for it was during the period\nof Moses\u2019 rejection by Israel that he formed the mystic and typical\nunion with a Gentile bride. Against this union Miriam and Aaron speak,\nin the chapter before us, and their opposition brings down the judgment\nof God. Miriam becomes leprous\u2014a poor defiled thing\u2014a proper subject of\nmercy, which flows out to her through the intercession of the very one\nagainst whom she had spoken.\n\nThe type is complete and most striking. The Jews have not believed in the\nglorious truth of mercy to the Gentiles, and therefore wrath has come\nupon them to the uttermost. But they will be brought in by and by, on\nthe ground of simple mercy, just as the Gentiles have come in. This is\nvery humiliating to those who sought to stand on the ground of promise\nand national privilege; but thus it is in the dispensational wisdom of\nGod, the very thought of which draws forth from the inspired apostle\nthat magnificent doxology, \u201cO the depth of the riches both of the wisdom\nand knowledge of God! how unsearchable are His judgments, and His ways\npast finding out! For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath\nbeen His counselor? or who hath first given to Him, and it shall be\nrecompensed unto him again? For of Him, and through Him, and to Him, are\nall things: to whom be glory forever. Amen.\u201d\n\nThus much as to the typical bearing of our chapter. Let us now look at it\nin its moral and practical bearing. \u201cAnd Miriam and Aaron spake against\nMoses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married: for he had\nmarried an Ethiopian woman. And they said, \u2018Hath the Lord indeed spoken\nonly by Moses? hath He not spoken also by us?\u2019 And the Lord heard it.\n(Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the\nface of the earth.) And the Lord spake suddenly unto Moses, and unto\nAaron, and unto Miriam, \u2018Come out, ye three, unto the tabernacle of the\ncongregation.\u2019 And they three came out. And the Lord came down in the\npillar of the cloud, and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called\nAaron and Miriam; and they both came forth. And He said, \u2018Hear now My\nwords: If there be a prophet among you, I the Lord will make Myself known\nunto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream. My servant\nMoses is not so, who is faithful in all Mine house. With him will I\nspeak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the\nsimilitude of the Lord shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid\nto speak against My servant Moses?\u2019 And the anger of the Lord was kindled\nagainst them; and He departed. And the cloud departed from off the\ntabernacle; and, behold, Miriam became leprous, white as snow: and Aaron\nlooked upon Miriam, and, behold, she was leprous.\u201d (Ver. 1-10.)\n\nIt is a most serious thing for any one to speak against the Lord\u2019s\nservant. We may rest assured that God will deal with it, sooner or\nlater. In the case of Miriam, the divine judgment came down suddenly and\nsolemnly. It was a grievous wrong, yea, it was positive rebellion, to\nspeak against the one whom God had so markedly raised up and clothed\nwith a divine commission; and who, moreover, in the very matter of which\nthey complained, had acted in full consonance with the counsels of God,\nand furnished a type of that glorious mystery which was hidden in His\neternal mind, even the union of Christ and the Church.\n\nBut in any case, it is a fatal mistake to speak against the very feeblest\nand humblest of God\u2019s servants. If the servant does wrong\u2014if he is in\nerror, if he has failed in any thing\u2014the Lord Himself will deal with him;\nbut let the fellow-servants beware how they attempt to take the matter\ninto their hands, lest they be found like Miriam, meddling to their own\nhurt.\n\nIt is very awful to hear, at times, the way in which people allow\nthemselves to speak and write about Christ\u2019s servants. True, these latter\nmay give occasion; they may have made mistakes, and manifested a wrong\nspirit and temper; but we must confess we feel it to be a very dreadful\nsin against Christ to speak evil of His dear servants. Surely, we ought\nto feel the weight and solemnity of these words: \u201c_Wherefore then were ye\nnot afraid to speak against My servant?_\u201d\n\nMay God give us grace to watch against this sore evil. Let us see to\nit that we be not found doing that which is so offensive to Him, even\nspeaking against those who are dear to His heart. There is not a single\none of God\u2019s people in whom we cannot find some good thing, provided\nonly we look for it in the right way. Let us be occupied _only_ with\nthe good; let us dwell upon that, and seek to strengthen and develop it\nin every possible way. And on the other hand, if we have not been able\nto discover the good thing in our brother and fellow-servant, if our eye\nhas only detected the crooked thing, if we have not succeeded in finding\nthe vital spark amid the ashes\u2014the precious gem among the surrounding\nrubbish, if we have only seen what was of mere nature, why then let us,\nwith a loving and delicate hand, draw the curtain of silence around our\nbrother, or speak of him only at the throne of grace.\n\nSo also when we happen to be in company with those who indulge in the\nwicked practice of speaking against the Lord\u2019s people, if we cannot\nsucceed in changing the current of the conversation, let us rise and\nleave the place, thus bearing testimony against that which is so hateful\nto Christ. Let us never sit by and listen to a backbiter. We may rest\nassured he is doing the work of the devil, and inflicting positive injury\nupon three distinct parties, namely, himself, his hearer, and the subject\nof his censorious remarks.\n\nThere is something perfectly beautiful in the way in which Moses carries\nhimself in the scene before us. Truly, he proved himself a meek man, not\nonly in the matter of Eldad and Medad, but also in the more trying matter\nof Miriam and Aaron. As to the former, instead of being jealous of those\nwho were called to share his dignity and responsibility, he rejoiced in\ntheir work, and prayed that all the Lord\u2019s people might taste the same\nholy privilege; and as to the latter, instead of cherishing any feeling\nof resentment against his brother and sister, he was ready at once to\ntake the place of intercession.\u2014\u201cAnd Aaron said unto Moses, \u2018Alas! my\nlord, I beseech thee, lay not the sin upon us, wherein we have done\nfoolishly, and wherein we have sinned. Let her not be as one dead, of\nwhom the flesh is half consumed when he cometh out of his mother\u2019s womb.\u2019\nAnd Moses cried unto the Lord, saying, \u2018Heal her now, O God, I beseech\nThee.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 11-13.)\n\nHere Moses breathes the spirit of his Master, and prays for those who had\nspoken so bitterly against him. This was victory\u2014the victory of a meek\nman\u2014the victory of grace. A man who knows his right place in the presence\nof God is able to rise above all evil-speaking. He is not troubled by it,\nsave for those who practice it; he can afford to forgive it; he is not\ntouchy, tenacious, or self-occupied. He knows that no one can put him\nlower than he deserves to be; and hence if any speak against him, he can\nmeekly bow his head and pass on, leaving himself and his cause in the\nhands of Him who judgeth righteously, and who will assuredly reward every\nman according to his works.\n\nThis is true dignity. May we understand it somewhat better, and then we\nshall not be so ready to take fire if any one thinks proper to speak\ndisparagingly of us or of our work\u2014nay, more, we shall be able to lift up\nour hearts in earnest prayer for them, and thus draw down blessing on\nthem and on our own souls.\n\nThe few closing lines of our chapter confirm the typical or\ndispensational view which we have ventured to suggest. \u201cAnd the Lord said\nunto Moses, \u2018If her father had but spit in her face, should she not be\nashamed seven days? let her be shut out from the camp seven days, and\nafter that let her be received in again.\u2019 And Miriam was shut out from\nthe camp seven days: and the people journeyed not till Miriam was brought\nin again. And afterward the people removed from Hazeroth and pitched in\nthe wilderness of Paran.\u201d (Ver. 14-16.) We may regard Miriam, thus shut\nout of the camp, as a figure of the present condition of the nation of\nIsrael, who, in consequence of their implacable opposition to the divine\nthought of mercy to the Gentile, are set aside; but when the \u201cseven\ndays\u201d have run their course, Israel shall be restored, on the ground of\nsovereign mercy exercised toward them through the intercession of Christ.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIII.\n\n\n\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, \u2018Send thou men that they may\nsearch the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel:\nof every tribe of their fathers shall ye send a man, every one a ruler\namong them.\u2019 And Moses by the commandment of the Lord sent them from the\nwilderness of Paran.\u201d (Ver. 1-3.)\n\nIn order fully to understand the foregoing commandment, we must look at\nit in connection with a passage in the book of Deuteronomy, where Moses,\nin going over the facts of Israel\u2019s marvelous history in the wilderness,\nreminds them of the following important and interesting circumstance:\n\u201cAnd when we departed from Horeb, we went through all that great and\nterrible wilderness, which ye saw by the way of the mountain of the\nAmorites, as the Lord our God commanded us; and we came to Kadesh-barnea.\nAnd I said unto you, \u2018Ye are come unto the mountain of the Amorites,\nwhich the Lord our God doth give unto us. Behold, the Lord thy God hath\nset the land before thee; go up and possess it, as the Lord God of thy\nfathers hath said unto thee; fear not, neither be discouraged.\u2019 _And ye\ncame near unto me every one of you_, and said, \u2018_We will send men before\nus_, and they shall search us out the land, and bring us word again by\nwhat way we must go up, and into what cities we shall come.\u2019\u201d (Deut. i.\n19-22.)\n\nNow here we have the moral root of the fact stated in Numbers xiii. 2.\nIt is evident that the Lord gave the commandment concerning the spies\nbecause of the moral condition of the people. Had they been governed\nby simple faith, they would have acted on those soul-stirring words of\nMoses, \u201cBehold, the Lord thy God hath set the land before thee: _go up\nand possess it_, as the Lord God of thy fathers hath said unto thee;\n_fear not, neither be discouraged_.\u201d There is not a single syllable\nabout spies in this splendid passage. What does faith want of spies, when\nit has the word and the presence of the living God? If Jehovah had given\nthem a land, it must be worth having. And had He not? Yes, truly; and not\nonly so, but He had borne testimony to the nature and character of that\nland in the following glowing words: \u201cFor the Lord thy God bringeth thee\ninto a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and depths that\nspring out of valleys and hills; a land of wheat and barley and vines and\nfig-trees and pomegranates; a land of oil olive and honey; a land wherein\nthou shalt eat bread without scarceness, thou shalt not lack any thing in\nit; a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills thou mayest dig\nbrass.\u201d (Deut. viii. 7-9.)\n\nShould not all this have sufficed for Israel? Ought they not to have been\nsatisfied with the testimony of God? Had not He spied out the land for\nthem, and told them all about it? and was not this enough? What need of\nsending men to spy the land? Did not God know all about it? Was there a\nspot \u201cfrom Dan to Beersheba\u201d with which He was not perfectly acquainted?\nHad He not selected this land and allotted it, in His own eternal\ncounsels, for the seed of Abraham His friend? Did He not know all about\nthe difficulties? and was He not able to surmount them? Why, then, did\nthey \u201ccome near _every one of them_, and say, \u2018We will send men before\nus, and they shall search us out the land, and bring us word again\u2019\u201d?\n\nAh, reader, these questions come right home to our hearts. They find us\nout, and make thoroughly manifest where we are. It is not for us to sit\ndown and coolly animadvert upon the ways of Israel in the wilderness,\u2014to\npoint out error here and failure there. We must take all these things\nas types set before us for our admonition. They are beacons, erected\nby a friendly and faithful hand, to warn us off from the dangerous\nshoals, quicksands, and rocks which lie along our course, and threaten\nour safety. This, we may be sure, is the true way to read every page of\nIsrael\u2019s history, if we would reap the profit which our God has designed\nfor us in penning such a record.\n\nBut it may be the reader is disposed to ask a question here. Did not\nthe Lord expressly command Moses to send spies? and if so, how was it\nwrong for Israel to send them? True, the Lord did command Moses to send\nthe spies, in Numbers xiii, but this was in consequence of the moral\ncondition of the people, as set forth in Deuteronomy i. We shall not\nunderstand the former unless we read it in the light of the latter. We\nlearn most distinctly from Deuteronomy i. 22 that the idea of sending\nthe spies had its origin in the heart of Israel. God saw their moral\ncondition, and He issued a command in full keeping therewith.\n\nIf the reader will turn to the opening pages of the first book of Samuel,\nhe will find something similar in the matter of the appointment of a\nking. The Lord commanded Samuel to hearken to the voice of the people,\nand make them a king. (1 Sam. viii. 22.) Was it that He approved of the\nplan? Most surely not; on the contrary, He declares plainly that it was a\npositive rejection of Himself. Why then command Samuel to appoint a king?\nThe command was given in consequence of Israel\u2019s condition. They were\ngrowing weary of the position of entire dependence upon an unseen arm,\nand they longed for an arm of flesh; they desired to be like the nations\naround them, and to have a king who should go out before them, and fight\ntheir battles for them. Well, God gave them their request, and they were\nvery speedily called to prove the worthlessness of their plan. Their king\nproved a most complete failure, and they had to learn that it was an evil\nand a bitter thing to forsake the living God and lean on a broken reed of\ntheir own selection.\n\nNow, we see the same thing in the matter of the spies. There can be no\nquestion, in the mind of any spiritual person who studies the entire\nsubject, as to the fact that the scheme of sending the spies was the\nfruit of unbelief. A simple heart that trusted God would never have\nthought of such a thing. What! are we to send poor mortals to spy out a\nland which God has graciously given to us, and which He has so fully and\nfaithfully described? Far be the thought. Nay, rather let us say, It is\nenough: the land is the gift of God, and as such it must be good. His\nword is enough for our hearts: we want no spies; we seek for no mortal\ntestimony to confirm the word of the living God. He has given; He has\nspoken; this is enough.\n\nBut, alas! Israel was not in a condition to adopt such language. They\n_would_ send spies. They wanted them; their hearts craved them; the\ndesire for them lay in the very depths of the soul. Jehovah knew this,\nand hence He issued a commandment in direct reference to the moral state\nof the people.\n\nThe reader would do well to ponder this subject, in the light of\nScripture. He will need to compare Deuteronomy i. with Numbers xiii. It\nis possible he may find difficulty in judging of the true nature and\nmoral roots of the act of sending the spies, from the fact that the thing\nwas ultimately done in pursuance of \u201cthe commandment of the Lord.\u201d But we\nmust ever remember that the fact of the Lord\u2019s commanding the thing to be\ndone does not, by any means, prove that the people were right in seeking\nit. The giving of the law at Mount Sinai, the sending of the spies, and\nthe appointment of a king are all proofs of this. No doubt God overruled\nall these things for His own glory and for man\u2019s ultimate blessing, but\nstill the law could not be viewed as the expression of the heart of God.\nThe setting up of a king was a positive rejection of Himself; and we\nmay say that the sending of men to spy out the land of promise proved,\nvery distinctly, that the heart of Israel was not fully satisfied with\nJehovah. The whole affair was the fruit of their weakness and unbelief,\nthough acquiesced in by God because of their condition, and overruled by\nHim, in His infinite goodness and unerring wisdom, for the unfolding of\nHis ways and the display of His glory. All this comes fully out as we\npursue the history.\n\n\u201cAnd Moses sent them [the spies] to spy out the land of Canaan, and said\nunto them, \u2018Get you up this way southward, and go up into the mountain:\nand see the land what it is; and the people that dwell therein, whether\nthey be strong or weak, few or many; and what the land is that they dwell\nin, whether it be good or bad; and what cities they be that they dwell\nin, whether in tents or in strongholds; and what the land is, whether it\nbe fat or lean, whether there be wood therein or not. And be ye of good\ncourage, and bring of the fruit of the land.\u2019 Now the time was the time\nof the first-ripe grapes. So they went up, and searched the land from\nthe wilderness of Zin unto Rehob, as men come to Hamath.... And they\ncame unto the brook of Eshcol, and cut down from thence a branch with\none cluster of grapes, and they bare it between two upon a staff; and\nthey brought of the pomegranates, and of the figs. The place was called\nthe brook Eshcol, because of the cluster of grapes which the children\nof Israel cut down from thence. And they returned from searching of the\nland after forty days. And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and\nto all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness\nof Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the\ncongregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. And they told him,\nand said, \u2018We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it\nfloweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it.\u2019\u201d (Chap. xiii.\n17-27.)\n\nHere, then, was the fullest confirmation of all that the Lord had said\nconcerning the land\u2014the testimony of twelve men as to the fact that the\nland flowed with milk and honey\u2014the testimony of their own senses as\nto the character of the fruit of the land. Furthermore, there was the\ntelling fact that twelve men had actually been in the land, had spent\nforty days in traveling up and down therein, had drunk of its springs and\neaten of its fruits. And what, according to the judgment of faith, would\nhave been the plain inference to be drawn from such a fact? Why, simply,\nthat the same hand which had conducted twelve men into the land could\nconduct the whole congregation.\n\nBut, alas! the people were not governed by faith, but by dark and\ndepressing unbelief; and even the spies themselves\u2014the very men\nwho had been sent for the purpose of assuring and confirming the\ncongregation\u2014even they, with two brilliant exceptions, were under the\npower of the same God-dishonoring spirit. In short, the whole scheme\nproved a failure. The issue only made manifest the true condition of the\nhearts of the people. Unbelief was dominant. The testimony was plain\nenough\u2014\u201cWe came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it\nfloweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it.\u201d There was\nnothing whatever lacking on God\u2019s side of the question. The land was\nall that He had said, the spies themselves being witnesses; but let us\nhearken to what follows. \u201cNevertheless the people be strong that dwell\nin the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we\nsaw the children of Anak there.\u201d (Ver. 28.)\n\nThere is always sure to be a \u201cnevertheless\u201d where man is concerned,\nand when unbelief is at work. The unbelieving spies _saw_ the\ndifficulties\u2014great cities, high walls, tall giants. All these things they\nsaw, but they did not see Jehovah at all. They looked at the things that\nwere seen, rather than at the things that were unseen. Their eye was not\nfixed upon Him who is invisible. Doubtless, the cities were great, but\nGod was greater; the walls were high, but God was higher; the giants were\nstrong, but God was stronger.\n\nThus it is that faith ever reasons. Faith reasons from God to the\ndifficulties,\u2014it begins with Him: unbelief, on the contrary, reasons\nfrom the difficulties to God,\u2014it begins with them. This makes all the\ndifference. It is not that we are to be insensible to the difficulties;\nneither are we to be reckless. Neither insensibility nor yet recklessness\nis faith. There are some easy-going people who seem to get along through\nlife on the principle of taking things by the smooth handle. This is\nnot faith. Faith looks the difficulties straight in the face; it is\nfully alive to the roughness of the handle. It is not ignorant, not\nindifferent, not reckless; but\u2014\u2014what? IT BRINGS IN THE LIVING GOD. It\nlooks to Him; it leans on Him; it draws from Him. Here lies the grand\nsecret of its power. It cherishes the calm and deep conviction that\nthere never was a wall too high for the almighty God\u2014never a city too\ngreat\u2014never a giant too strong. In short, faith is the only thing that\ngives God His proper place; and, as a consequence, is the only thing\nthat lifts the soul completely above the influences of surrounding\ncircumstances, be they what they may. Of this precious faith, Caleb was\nthe exponent, when he said, \u201cLet us go up at once, and possess it; for we\nare well able to overcome it.\u201d These are the pure accents of that lively\nfaith that glorifies God and makes nothing of circumstances.\n\nBut, alas! the great majority of the spies were no more governed by this\nlively faith than the men who sent them; and hence, the one believer was\ntalked down by the ten infidels. \u201cThe men that went up with him said, \u2018We\nbe not able to go up against the people.\u2019\u201d The language of infidelity\nwas flatly opposed to the language of faith. The latter, looking at God,\nsaid, \u201cWe are _well_ able;\u201d the former, looking at the difficulties,\nsaid, \u201cWe are _not_ able.\u201d Thus it was and thus it is. The eyes of faith\nare ever covered by the living God, and therefore difficulties are not\nseen: the eyes of unbelief are covered with the circumstances, and\ntherefore God is not seen. Faith brings in God, and therefore all is\nbright and easy: unbelief always shuts God out, and therefore all is dark\nand difficult.\n\n\u201cAnd they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched\nunto the children of Israel, saying, \u2018The land, through which we have\ngone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and\nall the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature. And there we\nsaw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants; and we were\nin our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.\u2019\u201d Not a\nword about God. He is entirely shut out. Had they thought of Him\u2014had they\nbrought the giants into comparison with Him, then it would have made not\none whit of difference as to whether they themselves were grasshoppers,\nor whether they were men; but in point of fact, they, by their shameful\nunbelief, reduced the God of Israel to the level of a grasshopper.\n\nIt is very remarkable that wherever infidelity is at work it will\nalways be found characterized by this one fact, namely, it shuts out\nGod. This will be found true in all ages, in all places, and under\nall circumstances. There is no exception. Infidelity can take account\nof human affairs, it can reason upon them, and draw conclusions from\nthem; but all its reasonings and all its conclusions are based upon the\nexclusion of God. The force of its arguments depends upon shutting Him\nout, and keeping Him out. Only introduce God, and all the reasonings of\ninfidelity crumble into dust beneath your feet. Thus, in the scene before\nus, what is faith\u2019s reply to all the objections advanced by those ten\nunbelievers? Its one, simple, all-satisfying reply, to which there can be\nno rejoinder, is, GOD!\n\nReader, do you know aught of the force and value of this most blessed\nanswer? Do you know God? Does He fill the entire range of your soul\u2019s\nvision? Is He the answer to your every question? the solution of your\nevery difficulty? Do you know the reality of walking, day by day, with\nthe living God? Do you know the tranquilizing power of leaning upon Him,\n\u201cthrough all the changes and chances of this mortal life\u201d? If not, let\nme entreat of you not to go on for one hour in your present state. The\nway is open. God has revealed Himself in the face of Jesus Christ, as the\nrelief, the resource, and the refuge of every needy soul. Look to Him\nnow, even now, \u201cwhile He may be found; call upon Him while He is near.\u201d\n\u201cWhosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved,\u201d and \u201che\nthat believeth shall never be confounded.\u201d\n\nBut if, on the other hand, you do, through grace, know God as your\nSaviour\u2014your Father, then seek to glorify Him in all your ways, by a\nchildlike, unquestioning confidence in all things. Let Him be a perfect\ncovering for your eyes, under all circumstances; and thus, in spite of\nall difficulties, your soul shall be kept in perfect peace.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIV.\n\n\n\u201cAnd all the congregation lifted up their voice and cried; and the\npeople wept that night.\u201d Need we wonder? What else could be expected\nfrom a people who had nothing before their eyes but mighty giants, lofty\nwalls, and great cities? What but tears and sighs could emanate from\na congregation who saw themselves as grasshoppers in the presence of\nsuch insuperable difficulties, and having no sense of the divine power\nthat could carry them victoriously through all? The whole assembly was\nabandoned to the absolute dominion of infidelity. They were surrounded\nby the dark and chilling clouds of unbelief. God was shut out. There was\nnot so much as a single ray of light to illumine the darkness with which\nthey had surrounded themselves. They were occupied with themselves and\ntheir difficulties, instead of with God and His resources. What else,\ntherefore, could they do but lift up the voice of weeping and lamentation?\n\nWhat a contrast between this and the opening of Exodus xv.! In this\nlatter, their eyes were only upon Jehovah, and therefore they could sing\nthe song of victory. \u201cThou in Thy mercy hast led forth the people which\nThou hast redeemed; Thou hast guided them in Thy strength unto Thy holy\nhabitation. _The people shall hear and be afraid: sorrow shall take hold\non the inhabitants of Palestina._\u201d Instead of this, it was Israel that\nwas afraid, and sorrow took hold upon them. \u201cThen the dukes of Edom shall\nbe amazed; the mighty men of Moab, _trembling shall take hold upon them_:\nall the inhabitants of Canaan shall melt away. _Fear and dread shall fall\nupon them._\u201d In short, it is the most complete reversing of the picture.\nThe sorrow, the trembling, and the fear take hold upon Israel instead of\ntheir enemies. And why? Because the One who filled their vision in Exodus\nxv. is completely shut out in Numbers xiv. This makes all the difference.\nIn the one case, faith is in the ascendant; in the other, infidelity.\n\u201cBy the greatness of _Thine arm_ they shall be as still as a stone; till\nThy people pass over, O Lord, till the people pass over which Thou hast\npurchased. Thou shalt bring them in, and plant them in the mountain of\nThine inheritance, in the place, O Lord, which Thou hast made for Thee to\ndwell in; in the sanctuary, O Lord, which Thy hands have established. The\nLord shall reign forever and ever.\u201d\n\nOh, how do these triumphal accents contrast with the infidel cries\nand lamentations of Numbers xiv.! Not a syllable about sons of Anak,\nlofty walls, and grasshoppers in Exodus xv. No, no; it is all Jehovah.\nIt is His right hand, His mighty arm, His power, His inheritance, His\nhabitation, His actings on behalf of His ransomed people. And then if\nthe inhabitants of Canaan are referred to, they are only thought of as\nsorrowing, terror-stricken, trembling, and melting away.\n\nBut on the other hand, when we come to Numbers xiv. all is most sadly\nreversed. The sons of Anak rise into prominence; the towering walls,\nthe giant cities with frowning bulwarks, fill the vision of the people,\nand we hear not a word about the almighty Deliverer. There are the\ndifficulties on the one side and grasshoppers on the other, and one is\nconstrained to cry out, Can it be possible that the triumphal singers by\nthe Red Sea have become the infidel weepers at Kadesh?\n\nAlas! it is so; and here we learn a deep and holy lesson. We must\ncontinually recur, as we pass along through these wilderness scenes, to\nthose words which tell us that \u201call these things happened unto Israel for\nensamples; and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends\nof the ages are met.\u201d (1 Cor. x. 11.\u2014_See Greek._) Are not we, too, like\nIsrael, prone to look at the difficulties which surround us, rather than\nat that blessed One who has undertaken to carry us right through them all\nand bring us safely into His own everlasting kingdom? Why is it we are\nsometimes cast down? Why go we mourning? Wherefore are the accents of\ndiscontent and impatience heard in our midst, rather than the songs of\npraise and thanksgiving? Simply because we allow circumstances to shut\nout God, instead of having God as a perfect covering for our eyes and a\nperfect object for our hearts.\n\nAnd further, let us inquire, wherefore is it that we so sadly fail to\nmake good our position as heavenly men?\u2014to take possession of that which\nbelongs to us as Christians?\u2014to plant the foot upon that spiritual and\nheavenly inheritance which Christ has purchased for us, and on which\nHe has entered as our forerunner? What answer must be given to these\ninquiries? Just one word,\u2014_Unbelief_!\n\nIt is declared, concerning Israel, by the voice of inspiration, that\n\u201cthey could not enter in [to Canaan] because of unbelief.\u201d (Heb. iii.)\nSo is it with us. We fail to enter upon our heavenly inheritance\u2014fail\nto take possession, practically, of our true and proper portion\u2014fail to\nwalk, day by day, as a heavenly people, having no place, no name, no\nportion in the earth\u2014having nothing to do with this world save to pass\nthrough it as pilgrims and strangers, treading in the footsteps of Him\nwho has gone before and taken His place in the heavens. And why do we\nfail? Because of unbelief. Faith is not in energy, and therefore the\nthings which are seen have more power over our hearts than the things\nwhich are unseen. Oh, may the Holy Spirit strengthen our faith, and\nenergize our souls, and lead us upward and onward, so that we may not\nmerely be found _talking_ of heavenly life, but _living_ it, to the\npraise of Him who has, in His infinite grace, called us thereto.\n\n\u201cAnd all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron:\nand the whole congregation said unto them, \u2018Would God that we had died\nin the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness! And\nwherefore hath the Lord brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword,\nthat our wives and our children should be a prey? Were it not better for\nus to return into Egypt?\u2019 And they said one to another, \u2018Let us make a\ncaptain, and let us return into Egypt.\u2019\u201d\n\nThere are two melancholy phases of unbelief exhibited in Israel\u2019s history\nin the wilderness: the one at Horeb, the other at Kadesh. At Horeb, they\nmade _a calf_, and said, \u201cThese be thy gods, O Israel, that brought\nthee up out of the land of Egypt.\u201d At Kadesh, they proposed to make\n_a captain_ to lead them back into Egypt. The former of these is the\n_superstition_ of unbelief; the latter, the willful _independence_ of\nunbelief; and most surely we need not marvel if those who thought that\na calf had brought them out of Egypt should seek a captain to lead them\nback. The poor human mind is tossed like a ball from one to the other of\nthose sore evils. There is no resource save that which faith finds in the\nliving God. In Israel\u2019s case, God was lost sight of. It was either a calf\nor a captain; either death in the wilderness or return into Egypt. Caleb\nstands in bright contrast with all this. To him it was neither death in\nthe wilderness nor return into Egypt, but an abundant entrance into the\npromised land behind the impenetrable shield of Jehovah.\n\n\u201cAnd Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of\nthem that searched the land, rent their clothes; and they spake unto all\nthe company of the children of Israel, saying, \u2018The land, which we passed\nthrough to search it, is an exceeding good land. If the Lord delight in\nus, then He will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which\nfloweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither\nfear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defense\nis departed from them, and the Lord is with us: fear them not.\u2019 But all\nthe congregation bade stone them with stones.\u201d\n\nAnd for what were they to be stoned? Was it for telling lies? was it for\nblasphemy or evil-doing? No; it was for their bold and earnest testimony\nto the truth. They had been sent to spy the land, and to furnish a true\nreport concerning it. This they did; and for this, \u201call the congregation\nbade stone them with stones.\u201d The people did not like the truth then any\nmore than now. Truth is never popular. There is no place for it in this\nworld or in the human heart. Lies will be received, and error in every\nshape, but truth never. Joshua and Caleb had to encounter, in their\nday, what all true witnesses in every age have experienced and all must\nexpect, namely, the opposition and hatred of the mass of their fellows.\nThere were six hundred thousand voices raised against two men who simply\ntold the truth and trusted in God. Thus it has been, thus it is, and thus\nit will be until that glorious moment when \u201cthe earth shall be full of\nthe knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.\u201d\n\nBut, oh, how important it is to be enabled, like Joshua and Caleb, to\nbear a full, clear, and uncompromising testimony to the truth of God! How\nimportant to maintain the truth as to the proper portion and inheritance\nof the saints! There is such a tendency to corrupt the truth\u2014to fritter\nit away\u2014to surrender it\u2014to lower the standard. Hence the urgent need\nof having the truth in divine power in the soul, of being able, in our\nlittle measure, to say, \u201cWe speak that we do know, and testify that we\nhave seen.\u201d Caleb and Joshua had not only been in the land, but they had\nbeen with God about the land. They had looked at it all from faith\u2019s\npoint of view. They knew the land was theirs, in the purpose of God; that\nit was worth having, as the gift of God; and that they should yet possess\nit, by the power of God. They were men full of faith, full of courage,\nfull of power.\n\nBlessed men! They were living in the light of the divine presence, while\nthe whole congregation were wrapped in the dark shades of their own\nunbelief. What a contrast! This it is which ever marks the difference\nbetween even the people of God. You may constantly find persons of\nwhom you can have no doubt as to their being children of God, but yet\nthey never seem to rise to the height of divine revelation as to their\nstanding and portion as saints of God. They are always full of doubts and\nfears, always overcast with clouds, always at the dark side of things;\nthey are looking at themselves, or at their circumstances, or at their\ndifficulties; they are never bright and happy,\u2014never able to exhibit that\njoyful confidence and courage which become a Christian, and which bring\nglory to God.\n\nNow all this is truly lamentable; it ought not to be; and we may rest\nassured there is some grave defect\u2014something radically wrong. The\nChristian should always be peaceful and happy, always able to praise\nGod, come what may. His joys do not flow from himself or from the scene\nthrough which he is passing; they flow from the living God, and they\nare beyond the reach of every earthly influence. He can say, \u201cMy God,\nthe spring of all my joys.\u201d This is the sweet privilege of the very\nfeeblest child of God. But here is just where we so sadly fail and come\nshort. We take our eyes off God, and fix them on ourselves, or on our\ncircumstances, our grievances, or our difficulties; hence all is darkness\nand discontent, murmuring and complaining. This is not Christianity at\nall. It is unbelief\u2014dark, deadly, God-dishonoring, heart-depressing\nunbelief. \u201cGod hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of\nlove and of a sound mind.\u201d\n\nSuch is the language of a true spiritual Caleb\u2014language addressed to one\nwhose heart was feeling the pressure of the difficulties and dangers\nwhich surrounded him. The spirit of God fills the soul of the true\nbeliever with holy boldness. He gives moral elevation above the chilling\nand murky atmosphere around, and lifts the soul into the bright sunshine\nof that region \u201cwhere storms and tempests never rise.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd the glory of the Lord appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation\nbefore all the children of Israel. And the Lord said unto Moses, \u2018How\nlong will this people provoke Me? and how long will it be ere they\nbelieve Me, for all the signs which I have showed among them? I will\nsmite them with the pestilence and disinherit them, and will make of thee\na greater nation, and mightier than they.\u2019\u201d\n\nWhat a moment was this in the history of Moses! Here was what nature\nmight well regard as a golden opportunity for him. Never before and never\nsince have we any occasion in the which a mere man had such a door open\nbefore him. The enemy and his own heart might say, Now\u2019s your time. You\nhave here an offer of becoming the head and founder of a great and mighty\nnation\u2014an offer made to you by Jehovah Himself. You have not sought it.\nIt is put before you by the living God, and it would be the very height\nof folly on your part to reject it.\n\nBut, reader, Moses was not a self-seeker. He had drunk too deeply into\nthe spirit of Christ to seek to be any thing. He had no unholy ambition,\nno selfish aspirations. He desired only God\u2019s glory and His people\u2019s\ngood; and in order to reach those ends, he was ready, through grace, to\nlay himself and his interests on the altar.\n\nHear his marvelous reply. Instead of jumping at the offer contained\nin the words, \u201cI will make of thee a greater nation and mightier than\nthey\u201d\u2014instead of eagerly grasping at the golden opportunity of laying the\nfoundation of his personal fame and fortune, he sets himself completely\naside, and replies in accents of the most noble disinterestedness. \u201cAnd\nMoses said unto the Lord, \u2018Then the Egyptians shall hear it, (for Thou\nbroughtest up this people in Thy might from among them;) and they will\ntell it to the inhabitants of this land: for they have heard that Thou,\nLord, art among this people; that Thou, Lord, art seen face to face; and\nthat Thy cloud standeth over them; and that Thou goest before them, by\nday-time in a pillar of a cloud, and in a pillar of fire by night. Now if\nThou shalt kill all this people as one man, then the nations which have\nheard the fame of Thee will speak, saying, Because the Lord was not able\nto bring this people into the land which He sware unto them, therefore He\nhath slain them in the wilderness.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 13-16.)\n\nHere Moses takes the very highest ground. He is wholly occupied about the\nLord\u2019s glory. He cannot endure the thought that the lustre of that glory\nshould be tarnished in the view of the nations of the uncircumcised. What\nthough he should become a head and a founder? What though future millions\nshould look back to him as their illustrious progenitor? If all this\npersonal glory and greatness was only to be purchased by the sacrifice of\na single ray of divine glory,\u2014what then? Away with it all. Let the name\nof Moses be blotted out forever. He had said as much in the days of the\n_calf_, and he was ready to repeat it in the days of the _captain_. In\nthe face of the superstition and independence of an unbelieving nation,\nthe heart of Moses throbbed _only_ for the glory of God. That must be\nguarded at all cost. Come what may\u2014cost what it may, the glory of the\nLord must be maintained. Moses felt it was impossible for any thing to be\nright if the basis were not laid firmly down in the strict maintenance of\nthe glory of the God of Israel. To think of himself made great at God\u2019s\nexpense was perfectly insufferable to the heart of this blessed man of\nGod. He could not endure that the name which he loved so well should be\nblasphemed among the nations, or that it should ever be said by any one,\n\u201cThe Lord was not able.\u201d\n\nBut there was another thing which lay near the disinterested heart of\nMoses. He thought of the people; he loved and cared for them. Jehovah\u2019s\nglory, no doubt, stood uppermost; but Israel\u2019s blessing stood next.\n\u201cAnd now,\u201d he adds, \u201cI beseech Thee, let the power of my Lord be great,\naccording as Thou hast spoken, saying, \u2018The Lord is long-suffering, and\nof great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means\nclearing the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the\nchildren unto the third and fourth generation.\u2019 Pardon, I beseech Thee,\nthe iniquity of this people, according unto the greatness of Thy mercy,\nand as Thou hast forgiven this people from Egypt even until now.\u201d (Ver.\n17-19.)\n\nThis is uncommonly fine. The order, the tone, and the spirit of this\nentire appeal are most exquisite. There is, first and chiefest of all,\na jealous care for the Lord\u2019s glory. This must be fenced round about on\nevery side. But then it is on this very ground, namely, the maintenance\nof the divine glory, that pardon is sought for the people. The two things\nare linked together in the most blessed way in this intercession. \u201cLet\nthe _power_ of my Lord be great.\u201d To what end? Judgment and destruction?\nNay; \u201cThe Lord is _long-suffering_.\u201d What a thought! The power of God\nin long-suffering and pardon! How unspeakably precious! How intimate\nwas Moses with the very heart and mind of God when he could speak in\nsuch a strain! and how does he stand in contrast with Elijah, on Mount\nHoreb, when he made intercession _against_ Israel! We can have little\nquestion as to which of these two honored men was most in harmony with\nthe mind and spirit of Christ. \u201cPardon, I beseech Thee, the iniquity of\nthis people, according unto the greatness of Thy mercy.\u201d These words\nwere grateful to the ear of Jehovah, who delights in dispensing pardon.\n\u201cAnd the Lord said, \u2018I have pardoned, according to thy word.\u2019\u201d And then\nHe adds, \u201cBut as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the\nglory of the Lord.\u201d\n\nLet the reader carefully note these two statements; they are absolute\nand unqualified.\u2014\u201cI have pardoned,\u201d and, \u201cAll the earth shall be filled\nwith the glory of the Lord.\u201d Nothing could, by any possibility, touch\nthese grand facts. The _pardon_ is secured, and the _glory_ shall yet\nshine forth over all the earth. No power of earth or hell, men or devils,\ncan ever interfere with the divine integrity of these two precious\nstatements. Israel shall rejoice in the plenary pardon of their God, and\nall the earth shall yet bask in the bright sunshine of His glory.\n\nBut then there is such a thing as government, as well as grace. This must\nnever be forgotten, nor must these things ever be confounded. The whole\nbook of God illustrates the distinction between grace and government; and\nno part of it, perhaps, more forcibly than the section which now lies\nopen before us. Grace will pardon, and grace will fill the earth with\nthe blessed beams of divine glory; but mark the appalling movement of\nthe wheels of government as set forth in the following burning words:\n\u201cBecause all those men which have seen My glory, and My miracles, which I\ndid in Egypt and in the wilderness, have tempted Me now these ten times,\nand have not hearkened to My voice; surely they shall not see the land\nwhich I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked\nMe see it: but My servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him,\nand hath followed Me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto\nhe went; and his seed shall possess it. (Now the Amalekites and the\nCanaanites dwelt in the valley.) To-morrow turn you, and get you into the\nwilderness by the way of the Red Sea.\u201d (Ver. 22-25.)\n\nThis is most solemn. Instead of confiding in God, and going boldly on\ninto the land of promise, in simple dependence upon His omnipotent arm,\nthey provoked Him by their unbelief, despised the pleasant land, and were\ncompelled to turn back again into that great and terrible wilderness.\n\u201cThe Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, \u2018How long shall I\nbear with this evil congregation, which murmur against Me? I have heard\nthe murmurings of the children of Israel, which they murmur against Me.\nSay unto them, As truly as I live, saith the Lord, as ye have spoken\nin Mine ears, so will I do to you: your carcasses shall fall in this\nwilderness; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole\nnumber, from twenty years old and upward, which have murmured against\nMe, doubtless ye shall not come into the land concerning which I sware to\nmake you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the\nson of Nun. But your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, them\nwill I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised.\nBut as for you, your carcasses, they shall fall in this wilderness. And\nyour children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your\nwhoredoms, until your carcasses be wasted in the wilderness. After the\nnumber of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each\nday for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years; and ye\nshall know My breach of promise. I the Lord have said, I will surely do\nit unto all this evil congregation that are gathered together against Me;\nin this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die.\u2019\u201d\n(Ver. 26-35.)\n\nSuch, then, was the fruit of unbelief, and such the governmental dealings\nof God with a people that had provoked Him by their murmurings and\nhardness of heart.\n\nIt is of the utmost importance to note here that it was unbelief that\nkept Israel out of Canaan on the occasion now before us. The inspired\ncommentary in Hebrews iii. places this beyond all question. \u201cSo we see\nthat they could not enter in because of unbelief.\u201d It might perhaps be\nsaid that the time was not come for Israel\u2019s entrance upon the land Of\nCanaan. The iniquity of the Amorites had not yet reached its culminating\npoint. But this is not the reason why Israel refused to enter the land.\nThey knew nothing and thought nothing about the iniquity of the Amorites.\nScripture is as plain as possible: \u201cThey could not enter in,\u201d not because\nof the iniquity of the Amorites\u2014not because the time was not come, but\nsimply \u201cbecause of unbelief.\u201d They ought to have entered. They were\nresponsible to do so, and they were judged for not doing so. The way was\nopen. The judgment of faith, as uttered by faithful Caleb, was clear and\nunhesitating\u2014\u201cLet us go up _at once_, and possess it; for we are well\nable to overcome it.\u201d They were as well able at that moment as they could\never be at any moment, inasmuch as the One who had given them the land\nwas the spring of their ability to enter upon it and possess it.\n\nIt is well to see this, and to ponder it deeply. There is a certain\nstyle of speaking of the counsels, purposes, and decrees of God\u2014of\nthe enactments of His moral government, and of the times and seasons\nwhich He has put in His own power\u2014which goes far to sweep away the very\nfoundations of human responsibility. This must be carefully guarded\nagainst. We must ever bear in mind that man\u2019s responsibility rests on\nwhat is _revealed_, not on what is _secret_. Israel was responsible to go\nup at once and take possession of the land, and they were judged for not\ndoing so. Their carcasses fell in the wilderness, because they had not\nfaith to enter the land.\n\nAnd does not this convey a solemn lesson to us? Most surely. How is it\nthat we, as Christians, so fail in making good, practically, our heavenly\nposition? We are delivered from judgment by the _blood_ of the Lamb; we\nare delivered from this present world by the _death_ of Christ; but we do\nnot, in spirit and by faith, cross the Jordan, and take possession of our\nheavenly inheritance. It is generally believed that Jordan is a type of\ndeath, as the end of our natural life in this world. This, in one sense,\nis true; but how was it that when Israel did at length cross the Jordan\nthey had to begin to fight? Assuredly we shall not have any fighting when\nwe actually get to heaven. The spirits of those who have departed in the\nfaith of Christ are not fighting in heaven. They are not in conflict in\nany shape or form. They are at rest. They are waiting for the morning of\nthe resurrection; but they wait in rest, not in conflict.\n\nHence, therefore, there is something more typified in Jordan than the end\nof an individual\u2019s life in this world. We must view it as the figure of\nthe death of Christ, in one grand aspect; just as the Red Sea is a figure\nof it in another, and the blood of the paschal lamb in another. The blood\nof the lamb sheltered Israel from the judgment of God upon Egypt; the\nwaters of the Red Sea delivered Israel from Egypt itself and all its\npower; but they had to cross the Jordan,\u2014they had to plant the sole of\ntheir foot upon the land of promise, and make good their place there in\nspite of every foe. They had to fight for every inch of Canaan.\n\nAnd what is the meaning of this latter? Have we to fight for heaven?\nWhen a Christian falls asleep, and his spirit goes to be with Christ in\nparadise, is there any question of fighting? Clearly not. What, then, are\nwe to learn from the crossing of Jordan and the wars of Canaan? Simply\nthis: Jesus has died. He has passed away out of this world. He has not\nonly died for our sins, but He has broken every link which connected us\nwith this world; so that we are dead to the world as well as dead to\nsin and dead to the law. We have, in God\u2019s sight, and in the judgment\nof faith, as little to do with this world as a man lying dead on the\nfloor. We are called to reckon ourselves dead to it all, and alive to\nGod through Jesus Christ our Lord. We live in the power of the new life\nwhich we possess in union with Christ risen. We belong to heaven; and\nit is in making good our position as heavenly men that we have to fight\nwith wicked spirits in the heavenlies\u2014in the very sphere which belongs to\nus, and from which they have not yet been expelled. If we are satisfied\nto \u201cwalk as men\u201d\u2014to live as those who belong to this world\u2014to stop short\nof Jordan, if we are satisfied to live as \u201cdwellers upon the earth,\u201d if\nwe do not aim at our proper heavenly portion and position, then we shall\nnot know aught of the conflict of Ephesians vi. 12. It is seeking to live\nas heavenly men now, on the earth, that we shall enter into the meaning\nof that conflict which is the antitype of Israel\u2019s wars in Canaan. We\nshall not have to fight when we get to heaven; but if we want to live\na heavenly life on the earth, if we seek to carry ourselves as those\nwho are dead to the world and alive in Him who went down into Jordan\u2019s\ncold flood for us, then, assuredly, we must fight. Satan will leave no\nstone unturned to hinder our living in the power of our heavenly life;\nand hence the conflict. He will seek to make us walk as those who have\nan earthly standing, to be citizens of this world, to contend for our\nrights, to maintain our rank and dignity, to give the lie, practically,\nto that great foundation Christian truth that we are dead and risen with\nand in Christ.\n\nIf the reader will turn for a moment to Ephesians vi, he will see how\nthis interesting subject is presented by the inspired writer. \u201cFinally,\nmy brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might. Put on\nthe whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against _the wiles_\nof the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood [as Israel had\nto do in Canaan]; but against principalities, against powers, against the\nrulers of the darkness of this world, against wicked spirits in heavenly\nplaces. Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be\nable to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.\u201d (Ver.\n10-13.)\n\nHere we have proper Christian conflict. It is not here a question of the\nlusts of the flesh, or the fascinations of the world\u2014though surely we\nhave to watch against these,\u2014but the \u201cwiles of the devil.\u201d Not his power,\nwhich is forever broken, but those subtle devices and snares by which\nhe seeks to keep Christians from realizing their heavenly position and\ninheritance.\n\nNow, it is in carrying on this conflict that we so signally fail. We do\nnot aim at apprehending that for which we have been apprehended. Many of\nus are satisfied with knowing that we are sheltered from judgment by the\nblood of the Lamb. We do not enter into the deep significance of the Red\nSea and the river Jordan; we do not practically seize their spiritual\nimport. We walk as men, the very thing for which the apostle blamed the\nCorinthians. We live and act as if we belonged to this world, whereas\nScripture teaches, and our baptism expresses, that we are dead to the\nworld, even as Jesus is dead to it; and that we are risen in Him, through\nthe faith of the operation of God, who hath raised Him from the dead.\n(Col. ii. 12.)\n\nMay the Holy Spirit lead our souls into the reality of these things. May\nHe so present to us the precious fruits of that heavenly land which is\nours in Christ, and so strengthen us with His own might in the inner man,\nthat we may boldly cross the Jordan and plant the foot upon the spiritual\nCanaan. We live far below our privileges as Christians. We allow the\nthings that are seen to rob us of the enjoyment of those things that are\nunseen. Oh, for a stronger faith, to take possession of all that God has\nfreely given to us in Christ!\n\n * * * * *\n\nWe must now proceed with our history.\n\n\u201cAnd the men, which Moses sent to search the land, who returned, and\nmade all the congregation to murmur against him, by bringing up a slander\nupon the land, even those men that did bring up the evil report upon the\nland, died by the plague before the Lord. But Joshua the son of Nun, and\nCaleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of the men that went to search the\nland, lived still.\u201d (Ver. 36-38.)\n\nIt is wonderful to think that out of that vast assembly of six hundred\nthousand men, besides women and children, there were only two that had\nfaith in the living God. We do not, of course, speak of Moses, but\nmerely of the congregation. The whole assembly, with two very brilliant\nexceptions indeed, was governed by a spirit of unbelief. They could not\ntrust God to bring them into the land; nay, they thought He had brought\nthem into the wilderness to die there; and surely, we may say, they\nreaped according to their dark unbelief. The ten false witnesses died by\nthe plague; and the many thousands who received their false witness were\ncompelled to turn back into the wilderness, there to wander up and down\nfor forty years, and then die and be buried.\n\nBut Joshua and Caleb stood on the blessed ground of faith in the living\nGod\u2014that faith which fills the soul with the most joyful confidence and\ncourage. And of them we may say, they reaped according to their faith.\nGod must always honor the faith which He has implanted in the soul. It\nis His own gift, and He cannot, we may say with reverence, but own it\nwherever it exists. Joshua and Caleb were enabled, in the simple power\nof faith, to withstand a tremendous tide of infidelity. They held fast\ntheir confidence in God in the face of every difficulty; and He signally\nhonored their faith in the end, for while the carcasses of their brethren\nwere mouldering in the dust of the wilderness, their feet were treading\nthe vine-clad hills and fertile valleys of the land of Canaan. The former\ndeclared that God had brought them forth to die in the wilderness, and\nthey were taken at their word; the latter declared that God was able to\nbring them into the land, and they were taken at their word.\n\nThis is a most weighty principle: \u201cAccording to your faith, so be it\nunto you.\u201d Let us remember this. God delights in faith. He loves to be\ntrusted; and He will ever put honor upon those who trust Him. On the\ncontrary, unbelief is grievous to Him. It provokes and dishonors Him, and\nbrings darkness and death over the soul. It is a most terrible sin to\ndoubt the living God, who cannot lie, and to harbor questions when He has\nspoken. The devil is the author of all doubtful questions. He delights in\nshaking the confidence of the soul; but he has no power whatever against\na soul that simply confides in God. His fiery darts can never reach one\nwho is hidden behind the shield of faith. And, oh, how precious it is to\nlive a life of childlike trust in God! It makes the heart so happy, and\nfills the mouth with praise and thanksgiving; it chases away every cloud\nand mist, and brightens our path with the blessed beams of our Father\u2019s\ncountenance. On the other hand, unbelief fills the heart with all manner\nof questions, throws us in upon ourselves, darkens our path, and makes us\ntruly miserable. Caleb\u2019s heart was full of joyful confidence, while the\nhearts of his brethren were filled with bitter murmurings and complaints.\nThus it must ever be. If we want to be happy, we must be occupied with\nGod and His surroundings: if we want to be miserable, we have only to be\noccupied with self and its surroundings. Look, for a moment, at the first\nchapter of Luke. What was it that shut up Zacharias in dumb silence? It\nwas unbelief. What was it that filled the heart and opened the lips of\nMary and Elizabeth? Faith. Here lay the difference. Zacharias might have\njoined those pious women in their songs of praise were it not that dark\nunbelief had sealed his lips in melancholy silence. What a picture! What\na lesson! Oh that we may learn to trust God more simply! May the doubtful\nmind be far from us. May it be ours, in the midst of an infidel scene, to\nbe strong in faith, giving glory to God.\n\nThe closing paragraph of our chapter teaches us another holy lesson\u2014let\nus apply our hearts to it with all diligence. \u201cAnd Moses told these\nsayings unto all the children of Israel: and the people mourned greatly.\nAnd they rose up early in the morning, and gat them up into the top of\nthe mountain, saying, \u2018Lo, we be here, and will go up unto the place\nwhich the Lord hath promised: for we have sinned.\u2019 And Moses said,\n\u2018Wherefore now do ye transgress the commandment of the Lord? but it shall\nnot prosper. Go not up, for the Lord is not among you; that ye be not\nsmitten before your enemies. For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are\nthere before you, and ye shall fall by the sword: because ye are turned\naway from the Lord, therefore the Lord will not be with you.\u2019 But they\npresumed to go up unto the hill-top: nevertheless the ark of the covenant\nof the Lord, and Moses, departed not out of the camp. Then the Amalekites\ncame down, and the Canaanites which dwelt in that hill, and smote them,\nand discomfited them, even unto Hormah.\u201d\n\nWhat a mass of contradictions is the human heart! When exhorted to go\nup at once, in the energy of faith, and possess the land, they shrank\nback and refused to go. They fell down and wept when they ought to have\ngone up and conquered. In vain did the faithful Caleb assure them that\nthe Lord would bring them in and plant them in the mountain of His\ninheritance\u2014that He was able to do it. They would not go up, because they\ncould not trust God. But now, instead of bowing their heads and accepting\nthe governmental dealings of God, they _would_ go up, presumptuously,\ntrusting in themselves.\n\nBut, ah! how vain to move without the living God in their midst! Without\nHim they could do nothing. And yet, when they might have had Him, they\nwere afraid of the Amalekites; but now, they presume to face those very\npeople without Him. \u201cLo, we be here, and _will_ go up unto the place\nwhich the Lord hath promised.\u201d This was more easily said than done. An\nIsraelite without God was no match for an Amalekite; and it is very\nremarkable that when Israel refused to act in the energy of faith\u2014when\nthey fell under the power of a God-dishonoring unbelief, Moses points out\nto them the very difficulties to which they themselves had referred. He\ntells them \u201c_the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you_.\u201d\n\nThis is full of instruction. They, by their unbelief, had shut out\nGod; and therefore it was obviously a question between Israel and the\nCanaanites. Faith would have made it a question between God and the\nCanaanites. This was precisely the way in which Joshua and Caleb viewed\nthe matter when they said, \u201cIf the Lord delight in us, then He will bring\nus into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and\nhoney. Only rebel not ye against the Lord, _neither fear ye the people\nof the land_; for they are bread for us: their defense is departed from\nthem, and _the Lord is with us: fear them not_.\u201d\n\nHere lay the grand secret. The Lord\u2019s presence with His people secures\nvictory over every foe; but if He be not with them, they are as water\npoured upon the ground. The ten unbelieving spies had declared themselves\nto be as grasshoppers in the presence of the giants, and Moses, taking\nthem at their word, tells them, as it were, that grasshoppers are no\nmatch for giants. If, on the one hand, it be true that \u201caccording to your\nfaith, so be it unto you,\u201d it is also true, on the other hand, that\naccording to your unbelief, so be it unto you.\n\nBut the people presumed. They affected to be something when they were\nnothing. And oh, how miserable to presume to move in our own strength!\nWhat defeat and confusion! what exposure and contempt! what humbling\nand smashing to pieces! It must be so. They abandoned God in their\nunbelief, and He abandoned them in their vain presumption. They would not\ngo with Him in faith, and He would not go with them in their unbelief.\n\u201cNevertheless the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and Moses, departed\nnot out of the camp.\u201d They went without God, and hence they fled before\ntheir enemies.\n\nThus it must ever be. It is of no possible use to affect strength, to\nput forth lofty pretensions, to presume to be any thing. Assumption and\naffectation are worse than worthless. If God be not with us, we are as\nthe vapor of the morning. But this must be learnt practically. We must be\nbrought down to the very bottom of all that is in self, so as to prove\nits utter worthlessness. And truly it is the wilderness, with all its\nvaried scenes, and its thousand and one exercises, that leads to this\npractical result. There we learn what flesh is. There nature comes fully\nout, in all its phases; sometimes full of cowardly unbelief; at other\ntimes, full of false confidence. At Kadesh, refusing to go up when told\nto go; at Hormah, persisting in going when told not. Thus it is that\nextremes meet in that evil nature which the writer and the reader bear\nabout from day to day.\n\nBut there is one special lesson, beloved Christian reader, which we\nshould seek to learn thoroughly ere we take our departure from Hormah,\nand it is this: There is immense difficulty in walking humbly and\npatiently in the path which our own failure has rendered necessary for\nus. Israel\u2019s unbelief, in refusing to go up into the land, rendered it\nneedful, in the governmental dealings of God, that they should turn about\nand wander in the wilderness for forty years. To this they were unwilling\nto submit. They kicked against it. They could not bow their necks to the\nnecessary yoke.\n\nHow often is this the case with us! We fail; we take some false step;\nwe get into trying circumstances in consequence; and then, instead of\nmeekly bowing down under the hand of God, and seeking to walk with Him in\nhumbleness and brokenness of spirit, we grow restive and rebellious; we\nquarrel with the circumstances instead of judging ourselves; and we seek,\nin self-will, to escape from the circumstances, instead of accepting them\nas the just and necessary consequence of our conduct.\n\nAgain, it may happen that through weakness or failure of one kind or\nanother, we refuse to enter a position or path of spiritual privilege,\nand thereby we are thrown back in our course, and put upon a lower\nform in the school. Then, instead of carrying ourselves humbly, and\nsubmitting, in meekness and contrition, to the hand of God, we presume to\nforce ourselves into the position, and affect to enjoy the privilege,\nand put forth pretensions to power, and it all issues in the most\nhumiliating defeat and confusion.\n\nThese things demand our most profound consideration. It is a great thing\nto cultivate a lowly spirit\u2014a heart content with a place of weakness and\ncontempt. God resisteth the proud, but He giveth grace to the lowly. A\npretentious spirit must sooner or later be brought down, and all hollow\nassumption of power must be exposed. If there be not faith to take\npossession of the promised land, there is nothing for it but to tread the\nwilderness in meekness and lowliness.\n\nAnd, blessed be God, we shall have Him with us in that wilderness\njourney, though we shall not and cannot have Him with us in our\nself-chosen path of pride and assumption. Jehovah refused to accompany\nIsrael into the mountain of the Amorites; but He was ready to turn\nabout, in patient grace, and accompany them through all their desert\nwanderings. If Israel would not enter Canaan with Jehovah, He would go\nback into the wilderness with Israel. Nothing can exceed the grace that\nshines in this. Had they been dealt with according to their deserts,\nthey might, at least, have been left to wander alone through the desert.\nBut, blessed forever be His great name, He does not deal with us after\nour sins, or reward us according to our iniquities. His thoughts are\nnot as our thoughts, nor His ways as our ways. Notwithstanding all the\nunbelief, the ingratitude, and the provocation exhibited by the people;\nnotwithstanding that their return back into the desert was the fruit of\ntheir own conduct, yet did Jehovah, in condescending grace and patient\nlove, turn back with them to be their traveling-companion for forty long\nand dreary years in the wilderness.\n\nThus, if the wilderness proves what man is, it also proves what God is;\nand further, it proves what faith is; for Joshua and Caleb had to return\nwith the whole congregation of their unbelieving brethren, and remain for\nforty years out of their inheritance, though they themselves were quite\nprepared, through grace, to go up into the land. This might seem a great\nhardship. Nature might judge it unreasonable that two men of faith should\nhave to suffer on account of the unbelief of other people. But faith\ncan afford to wait patiently. And besides, how could Joshua and Caleb\ncomplain of the protracted march when they saw Jehovah about to share\nit with them? Impossible. They were prepared to wait for God\u2019s time,\nfor faith is never in a hurry. The faith of the servants might well be\nsustained by the grace of the Master.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XV.\n\n\nTHE words with which our chapter opens are peculiarly striking, when\ntaken in connection with the contents of chapter xiv. There, all seemed\ndark and hopeless. Moses had to say to the people, \u201c_Go not up_, for the\nLord is not among you; that ye be not smitten before your enemies.\u201d And\nagain, the Lord had said to them, \u201cAs truly as I live, as ye have spoken\nin Mine ears, so will I do to you. Your carcasses shall fall in this\nwilderness.... Doubtless _ye shall not come into the land_ concerning\nwhich I sware to make you dwell therein.... As for you, your carcasses,\nthey shall fall in this wilderness.\u201d\n\nThus much as to chapter xiv. But no sooner do we open the section now\nbefore us, than, just as though nothing had happened, and though all\nwere as calm, as bright, and as certain as God could make it, we read\nsuch words as these: \u201cThe Lord spake unto Moses, saying, \u2018Speak unto the\nchildren of Israel, and say unto them, _When ye be come into the land of\nyour habitations, which I give unto you_,\u2019\u201d etc. This is one of the most\nremarkable passages in the entire of this most wonderful book. Indeed\nthere is not, in the whole compass of the book, a passage more thoroughly\ncharacteristic, not only of Numbers, but of the entire volume of God.\nWhen we read the solemn sentence, \u201cYe shall not come into the land,\u201d what\nis the plain lesson which it reads out to us? The lesson, which we are so\nslow to learn, of man\u2019s utter worthlessness.\u2014\u201cAll flesh is grass.\u201d\n\nAnd, on the other hand, when we read such words as these: \u201cWhen ye be\ncome into the land of your habitations, which I give unto you,\u201d what is\nthe precious lesson which they read out to us? This, assuredly, that\nsalvation is of the Lord. In the one, we learn man\u2019s failure; in the\nother, God\u2019s faithfulness. If we look at man\u2019s side of the question, the\nsentence is, \u201cDoubtless _ye shall not_ come into the land;\u201d but if we\nlook at God\u2019s side of the question, we can reverse the matter, and say,\n\u201cDoubtless _ye shall_.\u201d\n\nThus it stands in the scene now before us, and thus it stands in the\nwhole volume of inspiration\u2014from beginning to end. Man fails, but God is\nfaithful: man forfeits every thing, but God makes good all. \u201cThe things\nwhich are impossible with man are possible with God.\u201d Need we travel\nthrough the inspired canon in order to illustrate and prove this? Need\nwe refer the reader to the history of Adam in paradise? or the history\nof Noah after the flood? or the history of Israel in the wilderness,\nIsrael in the land, Israel under the law, Israel under the Levitical\nceremonial? Shall we dwell upon the record of man\u2019s failure in the\nprophetic, priestly, and kingly office? Shall we point out the failure of\nthe professing church as a responsible vessel on the earth? Has not man\nfailed always and in every thing? Alas! it is so.\n\nThis is one side of the picture\u2014the dark and humbling side. But, blessed\nbe God, there is the bright and encouraging side also. If there is the\n\u201cDoubtless ye shall not,\u201d there is also the \u201cDoubtless ye shall.\u201d And\nwhy? Because Christ has entered the scene, and in Him all is infallibly\nsecured for the glory of God and the eternal blessing of man. It is\nGod\u2019s eternal purpose to \u201chead up all things in Christ.\u201d There is not a\nsingle thing in which the first man has failed that the second Man will\nnot make good. All is set up on a new footing in Christ. He is the Head\nof the new creation; Heir of all the promises made to Abraham, Isaac,\nand Jacob touching the land; Heir of all the promises made to David\nconcerning the throne. The government shall be upon His shoulders. He\nshall bear the glory. He is the Prophet, Priest, and King. In a word,\nChrist makes good all that Adam lost, and brings in much more beside than\nAdam ever had. Hence, when we look at the first Adam and his doings,\nwhenever and however viewed, the sentence is, \u201cDoubtless _ye shall not_.\u201d\nYe shall not remain in paradise\u2014ye shall not retain the government\u2014ye\nshall not inherit the promises\u2014ye shall not enter the land\u2014ye shall not\noccupy the throne\u2014ye shall not enter the kingdom.\n\nBut, on the other hand, when we look at the last Adam and His doings,\nwherever and however viewed, the entire category must be gloriously\nreversed; the \u201cnot\u201d must be forever elided from the sentence, for in\nChrist Jesus \u201call the promises of God are yea and Amen, to the glory of\nGod by us.\u201d There is no \u201cnay\u201d in the matter when Christ is concerned.\nAll is \u201cyea\u201d\u2014all is divinely settled and established; and because it\nis so, God has set His seal to it, even the seal of His Spirit, which\nall believers now possess. \u201cFor the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was\npreached among you by us, even by me and Silvanus and Timotheus, was\nnot yea and nay, but in Him was yea. For all the promises of God in Him\nare yea, and in Him Amen, unto the glory of God by us. Now He which\nstablisheth us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God; who hath\nalso sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.\u201d (2\nCor. i. 19-22.)\n\nThus, then, the opening lines of Numbers xv. must be read in the light of\nthe whole volume of God. It falls in with the entire history of the ways\nof God with man, in this world. Israel had forfeited all title to the\nland. They deserved nothing better than that their carcasses should fall\nin the wilderness. And yet such is the large and precious grace of God,\nthat He could speak to them of their coming into the land, and instruct\nthem as to their ways and works therein.\n\nNothing can be more blessed or more establishing than all this. God\nrises above all human failure and sin. It is utterly impossible that\na single promise of God can fail of its accomplishment. Could it be\nthat the conduct of Abraham\u2019s seed in the wilderness should frustrate\nGod\u2019s eternal purpose, or hinder the fulfillment of the absolute and\nunconditional promise made to the fathers? Impossible. And therefore,\nif the generation which came out of Egypt refused to go into Canaan,\nJehovah would, of the very stones, raise up a seed to whom His promise\nshould be made good. This will help to explain the opening sentence of\nour chapter, which comes in with such remarkable force and beauty after\nthe humiliating scenes of chapter xiv. In this latter, Israel\u2019s sun seems\nto go down amid dark and angry clouds; but in the former, it rises with\nserene brightness, revealing and establishing that great truth that \u201cthe\ngifts and calling of God are without repentance.\u201d God never repents of\nHis call or His gift; and hence, though an unbelieving generation should\nmurmur and rebel ten thousand times over, He will make good all that He\nhas promised.\n\nHere is the divine resting-place of faith at all times\u2014the sure and safe\nhaven for the soul amid the wreck of all human schemes and undertakings.\nEvery thing goes to pieces in man\u2019s hands, but God in Christ remains.\nLet man be set up in business again and again, under the most favorable\ncircumstances, and he is sure to become a bankrupt; but God has set up\nChrist in resurrection, and all who believe in Him are placed on a new\nfooting altogether\u2014they are taken into partnership with the risen and\nglorified Head, and there they stand forever. That wondrous partnership\ncan never be dissolved. All is secured on a basis that no power of earth\nor hell can ever touch.\n\nReader, say, dost thou understand the application of all this to thyself?\nHast thou discovered, in the light of God\u2019s presence, that thou art, in\nvery deed, a bankrupt? that thou hast made shipwreck of every thing?\nthat thou hast not a single plea to urge? Hast thou been led to make\na personal application of those two sentences upon which we have been\ndwelling, namely, \u201cDoubtless thou shalt not,\u201d and \u201cDoubtless thou\nshalt\u201d? Hast thou learnt the force of these words, \u201cThou hast destroyed\nthyself; but in Me is thy help\u201d? In one word, hast thou come to Jesus as\na lost, guilty, self-destroyed sinner, and found redemption, pardon, and\npeace in Him?\n\nDo pause, dear friend, and seriously consider these things. We can never\nlose sight of the weighty fact that we have something more to do than to\nwrite \u201cNotes on the book of Numbers:\u201d we have to consider the soul of the\nreader. We have a most solemn responsibility to discharge to him or to\nher; and therefore it is that, from time to time, we feel constrained to\nturn, for a moment, from the page on which we are meditating, in order\nto make an appeal to the heart and conscience of the reader, and entreat\nhim, most earnestly, that if he be as yet unconverted, undecided, he\nwould lay aside this volume, and apply his heart seriously to the great\nquestion of his present condition and eternal destiny. In comparison with\nthis, all other questions dwindle into utter insignificance. What are all\nthe schemes and undertakings which begin, continue, and end in time, when\ncompared with eternity and the salvation of your never-dying soul? They\nare as the small dust of the balance. \u201cWhat shall it profit a man if he\nshall gain the whole world and lose his own soul?\u201d If you had the wealth\nof a Rothschild\u2014the money-king, if you stood on the loftiest pinnacle\nof literary fame or political ambition, if your name were adorned with\nall the honors which the universities of this world could bestow, if\nyour brow were wreathed with the laurels and your breast covered with the\nmedals of a hundred victories, what would it profit you? You must leave\nall\u2014you must pass through the narrow arch of time into the boundless\nocean of eternity. Men of princely wealth, men of literary fame, men who\nhave ruled by their intellectual power the House of Lords and Commons,\nmen who have held thousands hanging entranced upon their lips, men who\nhave reached the very highest point of naval, military, and forensic\ndistinction, have passed away into eternity; and the awful question as to\nsuch is, \u201cWhere is the soul?\u201d\n\nBeloved reader, we beseech thee, by the most weighty arguments that\ncan possibly be urged upon the soul of man, not to turn away from this\nsubject until thou hast come to a right conclusion. By God\u2019s great love,\nby the cross and passion of Christ, by the powerful testimony of God the\nHoly Ghost, by the awful solemnity of a never-ending eternity, by the\nunspeakable value of thy immortal soul, by all the joys of heaven, by\nall the horrors of hell\u2014by these seven weighty arguments, we urge thee,\nthis moment, to come to Jesus. Delay not! argue not! reason not! but come\nnow, just as you are\u2014with all your sins, with all your misery, with your\nmisspent life, with your dreadful record of mercies slighted, advantages\nabused, opportunities neglected\u2014come to Jesus, who stands, with open arms\nand loving heart, ready to receive you, and points to those wounds which\nattest the reality of His atoning death upon the cross, and tells you to\nput your trust in Him, and assures you you will never be confounded. May\nGod\u2019s Spirit carry home this appeal to thy heart, this moment, and give\nthee no rest until thou art savingly converted to Christ, reconciled to\nGod, and sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise.\n\n * * * * *\n\nWe shall now return, for a moment, to our chapter.\n\nNothing can be more lovely than the picture here presented. We have\nvows, and free-will offerings, sacrifices of righteousness, and the wine\nof the kingdom, all based upon the sovereign grace which shines in the\nvery first verse. It is a fair sample, a beauteous foreshadowing of the\nfuture condition of Israel. It reminds us of the marvelous visions which\nclose the book of the prophet Ezekiel. The unbelief, the murmuring, the\nrebellion, are all over and all forgotten. God retires into His own\neternal counsels, and from thence looks forward to the time when His\npeople shall offer an offering in righteousness and pay their vows to\nHim, and the joy of His kingdom shall fill their hearts forever. (Ver.\n3-13.)\n\nBut there is a very striking feature in this chapter, and that is, the\nplace which \u201cthe stranger\u201d gets. It is most thoroughly characteristic.\n\u201cAnd if a stranger sojourn with you, or whosoever be among you in your\ngenerations, and will offer an offering made by fire, of a sweet savor\nunto the Lord; as ye do, so he shall do. One ordinance shall be both for\nyou of the congregation, and also for the stranger that sojourneth with\nyou, _an ordinance forever_ in your generations: _as ye are, so shall the\nstranger be before the Lord_. One law and one manner shall be for you,\nand for the stranger that sojourneth with you.\u201d\n\nWhat a place for the stranger! What a lesson for Israel! What a standing\ntestimony on the page of their favorite and boasted Moses! The stranger\nis placed on the very same platform with Israel! \u201c_As_ ye are, _so_ shall\nthe stranger be;\u201d and this, too, \u201cbefore the Lord.\u201d In Exodus xii. 48,\nwe read, \u201cAnd when a stranger shall sojourn with thee, and will keep\nthe passover to the Lord, let all his males be circumcised, and then\nlet him come near and keep it.\u201d But in Numbers xv. there is no allusion\nto circumcision at all. And why? Is it that such a point could ever be\nwaived? No; but we believe the omission here is full of meaning. Israel\nhad forfeited every thing. The rebellious generation was to be set aside\nand cut off; but God\u2019s eternal purpose of grace must stand, and all His\npromises be fulfilled. All Israel shall be saved; they shall possess the\nland; they shall offer pure offerings, pay their vows, and taste the joy\nof the kingdom. On what ground? On the ground of sovereign mercy. Well,\nit is on the self-same ground that \u201cthe stranger\u201d shall be brought in;\nand not only brought in, but \u201c_as_ ye are, _so_ shall the stranger be\nbefore the Lord.\u201d\n\nWill the Jew quarrel with this? Let him go and study Numbers xiii. and\nxiv. And when he has drunk into his inmost soul the wholesome lesson,\nthen let him meditate on chapter xv, and we feel assured he will not seek\nto push \u201cthe stranger\u201d off the platform, for he will be ready to confess\nhimself a debtor to mercy alone, and to acknowledge that the same mercy\nwhich has reached him can reach the stranger, and he will rejoice to go\nin company with that stranger to drink of the wells of salvation thrown\nopen by the sovereign grace of the God of Jacob.\n\nAre we not forcibly reminded, by the teaching of this part of our book,\nof that profound section of dispensational truth presented in Romans\nix.-xi, particularly of its magnificent close? \u201cThe gifts and calling\nof God are without repentance. For as ye [strangers] in times past have\nnot believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief:\neven so have these also now not believed in your mercy [_i. e._, mercy\nshown to the Gentiles\u2014_see Greek_], that they also may obtain mercy [_i.\ne._, come in on the ground of mercy like the stranger]. For God hath\nconcluded them all in unbelief, that He might have mercy upon all [Jews\nand Gentiles\u2014Israel and the stranger]. O the depth of the riches both of\nthe wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are His judgments, and\nhis ways past finding out! For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or\nwho hath been His counselor? Or who hath first given to Him, and it shall\nbe recompensed unto him again? For of Him, and through Him, and to Him,\nare all things; to whom be glory forever. Amen.\u201d (Rom. xi. 29-36.)\n\nFrom verse 22-31 of our chapter, we have instructions as to sins of\nignorance and presumptuous sins\u2014a very grave and important distinction.\nFor the former, ample provision is made, in the goodness and mercy\nof God. The _death_ of Christ is presented, in this portion of the\nchapter, in its two grand aspects, namely, the burnt-offering and the\nsin-offering; that is, its aspect to Godward and its aspect to usward;\nand we have also all the preciousness, fragrance, and joy of His\nperfect _life_ and service as a man in this world, as typified by the\nmeat-offering and drink-offering. In the burnt-offering, we see atonement\nwrought according to the measure of Christ\u2019s devotedness to God, and\nof God\u2019s delight in Him: in the sin-offering, we see atonement wrought\naccording to the measure of the sinner\u2019s necessities and the hatefulness\nof sin in God\u2019s sight. The two offerings, taken together, present the\natoning death of Christ in all its fullness. Then, in the meat-offering,\nwe have Christ\u2019s perfect life and the reality of His human nature, as\nmanifested in all the details of His path and service in this world;\nwhile the drink-offering, typifies His complete surrender of Himself to\nGod.\n\nInto the rich and marvelous instruction conveyed in the different classes\nof sacrifices presented in this passage, we do not attempt to enter now.\nThe reader who desires to study the subject more fully is referred to a\nlittle volume entitled \u201cNotes on the book of Leviticus.\u201d (Pages 1-140.)\nWe merely state here, in the very briefest manner, what we judge to be\nthe main import of each offering; to go into details would only be to\nrepeat what we have already written.\n\nWe would merely add that the claims of God demand that sins of ignorance\nshould be taken cognizance of. We might feel disposed to say, or at least\nto think, that such sins ought to be passed over; but God does not think\nso. His holiness must not be reduced to the standard of our intelligence.\n_Grace_ has made provision for sins of ignorance, but _holiness_ demands\nthat such sins should be judged and confessed. Every true heart will\nbless God for this. For what would become of us if the provisions of\ndivine grace were not adequate to meet the claims of divine holiness? and\nadequate they most surely could not be if they traveled not beyond the\nrange of our intelligence.\n\nAnd yet, while all this will, generally speaking, be fully admitted, it\nis often very sorrowful to hear professing Christians making excuses\nfor ignorance, and justifying unfaithfulness and error on the ground of\nignorance. But very often, in such cases, the question may very cogently\nbe urged, why are we ignorant, in reference to any point of conduct,\nor the claims of Christ upon us? Suppose a question comes before us\ndemanding a positive judgment, and calling for a certain line of action;\nwe plead ignorance. Is this right? will it avail? will it dispose of\nour responsibility? will God allow us to shirk the question after such\na fashion? Nay, reader; we may rest assured it will not do. Why are\nwe ignorant? Have we put forth all our energies, have we adopted every\navailable means, have we made every possible effort, to get at the root\nof the matter and reach a just conclusion? Let us bear in mind that\nthe claims of truth and holiness demand all this of us; nor should we\nbe satisfied with any thing less. We cannot but admit that were it a\nquestion involving, in any measure, _our own_ interests\u2014_our_ name, _our_\nreputation, _our_ property, we should leave no stone unturned in order to\nmake ourselves fully acquainted with all the facts of the case. We should\nnot long plead ignorance in such matters. If information were to be had,\nwe should have it. We should do our very utmost to know all the ins and\nouts, the _pros_ and _cons_, of the question, so that we might form a\nsound judgment in the matter.\n\nIs this not so, reader? Well, then, why should we plead ignorance when\nthe claims of Christ are in question? Does it not prove that while we are\nquick, earnest, energetic, all alive, when _self_ is concerned, we are\nindifferent, sluggish, slow-paced, when Christ is concerned? Alas! alas!\nthis is the plain, humbling truth. May we be humbled under a sense of\nit. May the Spirit of God make us more thoroughly in earnest in things\nwhich concern our Lord Jesus Christ. May self and its interests sink,\nand may Christ and His interests rise in our estimation, every day; and\nmay we at least cordially own our holy responsibility to go diligently\ninto every question in the which the glory of our Lord and Saviour\nJesus Christ may, even in the most remote degree, be involved, however\nwe may fail practically in our research. Let us not dare to say or think\nor act as though we thought that aught that concerns Him is a matter of\nindifference to us. God, in His mercy, forbid! Let us esteem all that\nmerely concerns ourselves to be comparatively non-essential, but the\nclaims of Christ to be of paramount authority.\n\nWe have said thus much on the subject of ignorance, in the sense of our\nresponsibility to the truth of God and to the soul of the reader. We\nfeel its immense practical importance. We believe we very often plead\n_ignorance_, when _indifference_ would be the truer term to use. This is\nvery sad. Surely, if our God, in His infinite goodness, has made ample\nprovision even for sins of ignorance, that is no reason why we should\ncoolly shelter ourselves behind the plea of ignorance, when there is the\nmost abundant information within our reach had we only the energy to make\nuse of it.\n\nWe might not, perhaps, have dwelt at such length upon this point were it\nnot for the conviction, which becomes each day more strengthened in the\nsoul, that we have reached a serious moment in our history as Christians.\nWe are not given to croaking: we have no sympathy whatever with it. We\nbelieve it is our privilege to be filled with the most joyful confidence,\nand to have our hearts and minds ever garrisoned by the peace of God that\npasseth all understanding. \u201cGod hath not given us the spirit of fear;\nbut of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.\u201d (2 Tim. i. 7.)\n\nBut it is impossible to close our eyes to the startling fact that the\nclaims of Christ, the value of truth, the authority of holy Scripture,\nare being more and more set aside each day, each week, each year. We\nbelieve we are approaching a moment in the which there will be toleration\nfor any thing and every thing save the truth of God. It behooves us,\ntherefore, to look well to it that God\u2019s Word has its own proper place in\nthe heart, and that the conscience is governed in all things by its holy\nauthority. A tender conscience is a most precious treasure to carry about\nwith us from day to day\u2014a conscience that ever yields a true response to\nthe action of the Word of God\u2014that bows down without a question to its\nplain statements. When the conscience is in this fine condition, there is\nalways a regulating power wherewith to act upon one\u2019s practical course\nand character. Conscience may be compared to the regulator of a watch.\nIt may happen that the hands of the watch get astray; but so long as\nthe regulator has power over the spring, there is always the means of\ncorrecting the hands. If that power be gone, the entire watch must be\ntaken to pieces. So with the conscience. So long as it continues true to\nthe touch of Scripture, as applied by the Holy Ghost, there is always a\nsafe and sure regulating power; but if it becomes sluggish, hardened,\nor perverted\u2014if it refuses to yield a true response to \u201cThus saith the\nLord,\u201d there is little, if any, hope. It then becomes a case similar\nto that referred to in our chapter,\u2014\u201cBut the soul that doeth aught\n_presumptuously_, whether he be born in the land, or a stranger, _the\nsame reproacheth the Lord_; and that soul shall be cut off from among his\npeople. _Because he hath despised the word of the Lord_, and hath broken\nHis commandment, that soul shall utterly be cut off; his iniquity shall\nbe upon him.\u201d (Ver. 30, 31.)\n\nThis is no sin of ignorance, but a presumptuous, willful sin, for which\nnothing remained but the unmitigated judgment of God. \u201cRebellion is as\nthe sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.\u201d\n(1 Sam. xv. 23.) These are weighty words for a moment like the present,\nwhen man\u2019s will is developing itself with such extraordinary force.\nIt is deemed manly to assert our will, but Scripture teaches the\ndirect opposite. The two grand elements of human perfection\u2014of perfect\nmanhood\u2014are these, namely, _dependence_ and _obedience_. In proportion\nas any one departs from these, he departs from the true spirit and\nattitude of a man. Hence, when we turn our eyes to Him who was _the_\nperfect Man\u2014the Man Christ Jesus, we see these two grand features\nperfectly adjusted and perfectly developed from first to last. That\nblessed One was never, for a single moment, out of the attitude of\nperfect dependence and absolute obedience. To prove and illustrate this\nfact would take us through the entire gospel narrative. But take the\nscene of the temptation, and there you will find a sample of the whole\nof that blessed life. His one unvarying reply to the tempter was, \u201c_It\nis written_.\u201d No reasonings, no arguments, no questions. He lived by the\nWord of God. He conquered Satan by holding fast the _only_ true position\nof a man\u2014dependence and obedience. He _could_ depend upon God, and He\n_would_ obey Him. What could Satan do in such a case? Absolutely nothing.\n\nWell, then, this is our example. We, as having the life of Christ, are\ncalled to live in habitual dependence and obedience. This is walking\nin the Spirit: this is the safe and happy path of the Christian.\nIndependence and disobedience go together: they are utterly unchristian\nand unmanly. We find these two things in the first man, as we find the\ntwo opposites in the second. Adam in the garden sought to be independent.\nHe was not content with being a man, and abiding in the only true place\nand spirit of a man, and he became disobedient. Here lies the secret of\nfallen humanity\u2014these are the two elements which make up fallen manhood.\nTrace it where you will\u2014before the flood, after the flood, without law,\nunder the law, heathen, pagan, Jew, Turk, or nominal Christian,\u2014analyze\nit as closely as you please, and you will see that it resolves itself\ninto these two component parts\u2014independence and disobedience. And when\nyou reach the close of man\u2019s history in this world\u2014when you view him in\nthat last sad sphere in which he is to figure, how do you see him?\u2014in\nwhat character does he appear? As \u201cthe willful king,\u201d and the \u201clawless\nman.\u201d\n\nMay we have grace to ponder these things aright. Let us cultivate a\nlowly and an obedient spirit. God has said, \u201cTo this man will I look,\neven to him who is of a contrite spirit and trembleth at My word.\u201d May\nthese words sink down into our ears and into our hearts; and let the\nconstant breathing of our souls be, \u201cKeep back Thy servant, O Lord, from\npresumptuous sins, and let them not have dominion over him.\u201d[13]\n\nIt only remains for us, ere closing this section, to notice the case of\nthe Sabbath-breaker and the institution of \u201cthe ribband of blue.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found\na man that gathered sticks upon the Sabbath day. And they that found\nhim gathering sticks brought him to Moses and Aaron, and to all the\ncongregation. And they put him in ward, because it was not declared what\nshould be done to him. And the Lord said unto Moses, \u2018The man shall be\nsurely put to death: all the congregation shall stone him with stones\nwithout the camp.\u2019 And all the congregation brought him without the camp,\nand stoned him with stones, and he died; as the Lord commanded Moses.\u201d\n(Ver. 32-36.)\n\nThis surely was a presumptuous sin\u2014it was flying in the face of a most\nplain and positive commandment of God. It is this that specially marks a\npresumptuous sin, and leaves it utterly inexcusable. Ignorance cannot be\npleaded in the face of a divine command.\n\nBut why, it may be asked, had they to put the man in ward? Because,\nalthough the commandment was explicit, yet the breach of it had not\nbeen anticipated, nor had any penalty been enacted. To speak after the\nmanner of men, Jehovah had not contemplated such folly on man\u2019s part as\nthe interruption of His rest, and therefore He had not formally provided\nfor such an occurrence. We need not say that God knows the end from the\nbeginning; but in the matter now before us, He purposely left the case\nunnoticed until occasion required. But, alas! occasion did require,\nfor man is capable of any thing. He has no heart for God\u2019s rest. To\nkindle a fire on the Sabbath day was not only a positive breach of the\nlaw, but it evidenced the most complete alienation from the mind of the\nLaw-giver, inasmuch as it introduced into the day of rest that which is\nthe apt symbol of _judgment_. Fire is emblematical of judgment, and as\nsuch it was wholly out of keeping with the repose of the Sabbath; nothing\ntherefore remained but to visit the Sabbath-breaker with judgment, for\n\u201cwhatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, \u2018Speak unto the children of\nIsrael, and bid them that they make them fringes in the borders of their\ngarments, throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe\nof the borders a ribband of blue. And it shall be unto you for a fringe,\nthat ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the Lord,\nand do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart, and your own\neyes, ... that ye may remember, and do all My commandments, and be holy\nunto your God. I am the Lord your God, which brought you out of the land\nof Egypt, to be your God: I am the Lord your God.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 37-41.)\n\nThe God of Israel would keep His people in continual remembrance of His\nholy commandments. Hence the beautiful institution of \u201cthe ribband of\n_blue_,\u201d which was designed to be a _heavenly_ memorial attached to the\nvery borders of their garments, so that the word of God might ever be\nheld fast in the remembrance of the thoughts of their hearts. Whenever\nan Israelite cast his eyes upon the blue ribband, he was to think of\nJehovah, and yield a hearty obedience to all His statutes.\n\nSuch was the great practical intention of \u201cthe ribband of blue.\u201d But when\nwe turn to Matthew xxiii. 5, we learn the sad use which man had made\nof the divine institution.\u2014\u201cBut all their works they do for to be seen\nof men: they make broad their phylacteries, and _enlarge the borders\nof their garments_.\u201d Thus the very thing which had been instituted\nfor the purpose of leading them to remember Jehovah, and to yield a\nlowly obedience to His precious word, was turned into an occasion of\nself-exaltation and religious pride. Instead of thinking of God and His\nword, they thought of themselves, and of the place which they held in the\nestimation of their fellows. \u201c_All_ their works they do to be _seen of\nmen_.\u201d Not a thought of God. The spirit of the original institution was\ncompletely lost, while the outward form was kept up for selfish ends. Can\nwe not see something like this around us and among us? Let us think of\nit\u2014think deeply and seriously. Let us see to it that we do not turn the\nheavenly memorial into an earthly badge, and that which ought to lead to\nlowly obedience into an occasion of self-exaltation.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVI.\n\n\nThe chapter on which we have just been dwelling is what may be called a\ndigression from the history of Israel\u2019s wilderness life, except indeed\nthe short paragraph respecting the Sabbath-breaker. It looks forward into\nthe future, when, spite of all their sin and folly, their murmuring and\nrebellion, Israel shall possess the land of Canaan, and offer sacrifices\nof righteousness and songs of praise to the God of their salvation. In it\nwe have seen Jehovah rising far above all the unbelief and disobedience,\nthe pride and willfulness, exhibited in chapters xiii. and xiv, and\nlooking on to the full and final accomplishment of His own eternal\npurpose, and the fulfillment of His promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.\n\nBut in chapter xvi. the wilderness story is resumed\u2014that sad and humbling\nstory, so far as man is concerned, but a bright and blessed story of the\nexhaustless patience and boundless grace of God. These are the two grand\nlessons of the wilderness. We learn what man is and we learn what God is.\nThe two things lie side by side on the pages of the book of Numbers. Thus\nin chapter xiv. we have man and his ways; in chapter xv. we have God and\nHis ways; and now, in the chapter which opens before us, we come back to\nman and his ways again. May we reap much deep and solid instruction from\nthe double lesson.\n\n\u201cNow Korah, the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, and\nDathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On, the son of Peleth, sons\nof Reuben, took men; and they rose up before Moses, with certain of the\nchildren of Israel, two hundred and fifty princes of the assembly, famous\nin the congregation, men of renown: and they gathered themselves together\nagainst Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them, \u2018Ye take too much\nupon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and\nthe Lord is among them: wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the\ncongregation of the Lord?\u2019\u201d (Ver. 1-3.)\n\nHere, then, we enter upon the solemn history of what the Holy Ghost,\nby the apostle Jude, terms, \u201cThe gainsaying of Core.\u201d The rebellion is\nattributed to Korah, inasmuch as he was the religious leader in it. He\nseems to have possessed sufficient influence to gather around him a large\nnumber of influential men\u2014\u201cprinces, famous men, and men of renown.\u201d In\nshort, it was a very formidable and serious rebellion; and we shall do\nwell to look closely at its source and moral features.\n\nIt is always a most critical moment in the history of an assembly when\na spirit of disaffection displays itself, for if it be not met in the\nright way, the most disastrous consequences are sure to follow. There\nare materials in every assembly capable of being acted upon, and it\nonly needs some restless master-spirit to arise, in order to work on\nsuch materials, and fan into a devouring flame the fire that has been\nsmouldering in secret. There are hundreds and thousands ready to flock\naround the standard of revolt, when once it has been raised, who have\nneither the vigor nor the courage to raise it themselves. It is not every\none that Satan will take up as an instrument in such work. It needs\na shrewd, clever, energetic man\u2014a man of moral power\u2014one possessing\ninfluence over the minds of his fellows, and an iron will to carry\nforward his schemes. No doubt Satan infuses much of all these into the\nmen whom he uses in his diabolical undertakings. At all events, we\nknow, as a fact, that the great leaders in all rebellious movements are\ngenerally men of master-minds, capable of swaying, according to their\nown will, the fickle multitude, which, like the ocean, is acted upon by\nevery stormy wind that blows. Such men know how, in the first place, to\nstir the passions of the people; and, in the second place, how to wield\nthem when stirred. Their most potent agency\u2014the lever with which they can\nmost effectually raise the masses\u2014is some question as to their liberty\nand their rights. If they can only succeed in persuading people that\ntheir liberty is curtailed, and their _rights_ infringed, they are sure\nto gather a number of restless spirits around them, and do a vast deal of\nserious mischief.\n\nThus it was in the matter of Korah and his coadjutors. They sought to\nmake it appear that Moses and Aaron were lording it over their brethren\nand interfering with their rights and privileges as members of a holy\ncongregation, in which, according to their judgment, all were on a dead\nlevel, and one had as much right to be active as another.\n\n\u201cYe take too much upon you.\u201d Such was their charge against \u201cthe meekest\nman in all the earth.\u201d But what had Moses taken upon him? Surely, the\nmost cursory glance back at the history of that dear and honored servant\nwould have been sufficient to convince any impartial person that, so far\nfrom taking dignity and responsibility upon him, he had shown himself\nonly too ready to shrink from them when presented, and sink under them\nwhen imposed. Hence, therefore, any one who could think of accusing Moses\nof taking upon him, only proved himself totally ignorant of the man\u2019s\nreal spirit and character. Assuredly, the one who could say to Joshua,\n\u201cEnviest thou for my sake? Would God that all the Lord\u2019s people were\nprophets, and that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them!\u201d was not very\nlikely to take much upon him.\n\nBut on the other hand, if God calls out a man into prominence, if He\nqualifies him for work, if He fills and fits the vessel for special\nservice, if He assigns a man his position, then of what possible use can\nit be for any one to quarrel with divine gift and divine appointment? In\ntruth, nothing can be more absurd. \u201cA man can receive nothing except it\nbe given him from heaven.\u201d And therefore it must prove worse than useless\nfor any one to assume to be or have aught, for all such assumption must\nprove hollow in the end. Men will, sooner or later, find their level; and\nnothing will stand but what is of God.\n\nKorah and his company, therefore, were quarreling with God, and not with\nMoses and Aaron. These latter had been called of God to occupy a certain\nposition and to do a certain work, and woe be to them if they refused. It\nwas not they who had aimed at the position or assumed the work; they were\nordained of God. This ought to have settled the question; and it would\nhave settled it for all save restless, self-occupied rebels, who sought\nto undermine the true servants of God in order to exalt themselves. This\nis always the way with the promoters of sedition or disaffection. Their\nreal object is to make themselves somebody. They talk loudly and very\nplausibly about the common rights and privileges of God\u2019s people; but in\nreality, they themselves are aiming at a position for which they are in\nno way qualified, and at privileges to which they have no right.\n\nIn point of fact, the matter is as simple as possible. Has God given\na man his place to fill\u2014his work to do? Who will question this? Well,\nthen, let each one know his place and fill it\u2014know his work and do\nit. It is the most senseless thing in the world for one to attempt to\noccupy another\u2019s post or do another\u2019s work. We were led to see this very\ndistinctly when meditating on chapters iii. and iv. of this book. It must\never hold good. Korah had his work; Moses had his. Why should one envy\nanother? It would be quite as reasonable to charge the sun, moon, and\nstars with taking too much upon them when they shine in their appointed\nspheres, as to charge any gifted servant of Christ therewith when he\nseeks to discharge the responsibility which his gift most surely imposes\nupon him. These luminaries serve in the place assigned them by the hand\nof the almighty Creator, and so long as Christ\u2019s servants do the same, it\nis charging them falsely to say that they take too much upon them.\n\nNow this principle is of immense importance in every assembly, large\nor small, under all circumstances where Christians are called to work\ntogether. It is a mistake to suppose that all the members of the body of\nChrist are called to places of prominence, or that any member can select\nhis place in the body. It is wholly and absolutely a matter of divine\nappointment.\n\nThis is the clear teaching of 1 Corinthians xii. \u201cThe body is not one\nmember, but many. If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am\nnot of the body; is it therefore not of the body? And if the ear shall\nsay, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not\nof the body? If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If\nthe whole were hearing, where were the smelling? But now _hath God set\nthe members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased Him_.\u201d\n(Ver. 14-18.)\n\nHere lies the true, the _only_ true source of ministry in the Church\nof God\u2014the body of Christ. \u201cGod hath set the members.\u201d It is not one\nman appointing another; still less is it a man appointing himself. It\nis divine appointment or nothing, yea, worse than nothing\u2014a daring\nusurpation of divine rights.\n\nNow, looking at the subject in the light of that marvelous illustration\nof 1 Corinthians xii, what sense would there be in the feet charging the\nhands, or the ears charging the eyes, with taking too much upon them?\nWould not the notion be preposterous in the extreme? True, those members\noccupy a prominent place in the body; but why do they? Because \u201cGod\nhas set them there as it pleased Him.\u201d And what are they doing in that\nprominent place? They are doing the work which God has given them to\ndo. And to what end? The good of the whole body. There is not a single\nmember, however obscure, that does not derive positive benefit from the\nduly discharged functions of the prominent member. And, on the other\nhand, the prominent member is a debtor to the duly discharged functions\nof the obscure one. Let the eyes lose their power of vision, and every\nmember will feel it; let there be functional derangement in the most\ntrivial member, and the most honorable member will suffer.\n\nHence, therefore, it is not a question of taking upon us much or little,\nbut of doing our appointed work, and filling our appointed place. It is\nby the effectual working of all the members, according to the measure\nof every part, that the edification of the whole body is promoted. If\nthis great truth be not seized and carried out, edification, so far\nfrom being promoted, is most positively hindered; the Holy Ghost is\nquenched and grieved; the sovereign rights of Christ are denied; and\nGod is dishonored. Every Christian is responsible to act on this divine\nprinciple, and to testify against every thing that practically denies\nit. The fact of the ruin of the professing church is no reason whatever\nfor abandoning the truth of God, or sanctioning any denial of it. The\nChristian is always solemnly bound to submit himself to the revealed\nmind of God. To plead circumstances as an excuse for doing wrong, or for\nneglecting any truth of God, is simply flying in the face of divine\nauthority, and making God the author of our disobedience.\n\nBut we cannot pursue this subject further. We have merely referred to it\nhere in connection with our chapter, with which we must now proceed. It\nis undoubtedly a most solemn page of Israel\u2019s wilderness story.\n\nKorah and his company were very speedily taught the folly and sin of\ntheir rebellious movement. They were awfully wrong in daring to set\nthemselves up against the true servants of the living God. As to Moses,\nthe man against whom they were gathered together, when he heard their\nseditious words, \u201che fell upon his face.\u201d This was a very good way to\nmeet rebels. We have seen this beloved servant of God on his face when\nhe ought to have been on his feet (Ex. xiv.), but here it was about the\nbest and safest thing he could do. There is never much use in contending\nwith restless and disaffected people; better far leave them in the\nLord\u2019s hands; for with Him, in reality, is their controversy. If God\nsets a man in a certain position, and gives him a certain work to do,\nand his fellows think proper to quarrel with him, simply on the score of\nhis doing that work, and filling that position, then is their quarrel\nreally with God, who knows how to settle it, and will do it in His own\nway. The assurance of this gives holy calmness and moral elevation to\nthe Lord\u2019s servant in moments when envious and turbulent spirits rise\nup against him. It is hardly possible for any one to occupy a prominent\nplace of service, or to be pre-eminently used of God, without, at some\ntime or another, having to encounter the attacks of certain radical\nand discontented men, who cannot bear to see any one more honored than\nthemselves. But the true way to meet such is to take the place of utter\nprostration and nothingness, and allow the tide of disaffection to roll\nover one.\n\n\u201cAnd when Moses heard it, he fell upon his face: and he spake unto Korah\nand all his company, saying, \u2018Even to-morrow _the Lord will show_ [not\nMoses will show] who are His, and who is holy; and will cause him to come\nnear unto Him: even him whom _He hath chosen_ will He cause to come near\nunto Him. This do: Take you censers, Korah, and all his company; and put\nfire therein, and put incense in them _before the Lord_ to-morrow: and it\nshall be that the man whom _the Lord doth choose_, he shall be holy: ye\ntake too much upon you, ye sons of Levi.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 4-7.)\n\nThis was placing the matter in the proper hands. Moses gives great\nprominence to the sovereign rights of Jehovah.\u2014\u201cThe Lord will show,\u201d\nand, \u201cThe Lord will choose.\u201d There is not a syllable about himself or\nAaron. The whole question hinges upon the Lord\u2019s choice and the Lord\u2019s\nappointment. The two hundred and fifty rebels are brought face to face\nwith the living God. They are summoned into His presence, with their\ncensers in their hands, in order that the whole matter may be thoroughly\ngone into and definitely settled before that grand tribunal from which\nthere can be no appeal. It would, obviously, have been of no possible\nuse for Moses and Aaron to attempt to give judgment, inasmuch as they\nwere defendants in the cause; but Moses was blessedly willing to have all\nparties summoned into the divine presence, there to have their matters\njudged and determined.\n\nThis was true humility and true wisdom. It is always well, when people\nare seeking a place, to let them have it, to their heart\u2019s content; for,\nmost assuredly, the very place after which they have foolishly aspired\nwill be the scene of their signal defeat and deplorable confusion. You\nmay sometimes see men envying others in a certain sphere of service,\nand longing to occupy that sphere themselves. Let them try it; and they\nare sure, in the end, to break down and retire covered with shame and\nconfusion of face. The Lord will surely confound all such. There is no\nuse in man trying to do it; and hence it is always best for such as may\nhappen to be the objects of envious attack just to fall on their faces\nbefore God, and let Him settle the question with the malcontents. It is\nmost sad when such scenes occur in the history of God\u2019s people; but they\nhave occurred, they do occur, and they may occur again and again; and\nwe feel assured that the very best plan is, to let men of a restless,\nambitious, disaffected spirit run to the full length of their tether, and\nthen they are sure to be pulled up. It is, in point of fact, to leave\nthem in the hands of God, who will most surely deal with them in His own\nperfect way.\n\n\u201cAnd Moses said unto _Korah_, \u2018Hear, I pray you, ye sons of Levi: Seemeth\nit but a small thing unto you that the God of Israel hath separated\nyou from the congregation of Israel, to bring you near to Himself to\ndo the service of the tabernacle of the Lord, and to stand before the\ncongregation to minister unto them? And He hath brought _thee_ near\nunto Him, and all thy brethren the sons of Levi with thee; and _seek ye\nthe priesthood_ also? For which cause both thou and all thy company are\ngathered together against the Lord: and what is Aaron, that ye murmur\nagainst him?\u2019\u201d (Ver. 8-11.)\n\nHere we are conducted to the very root of this terrible conspiracy.\nWe see the man who originated it, and the object at which he aimed.\nMoses addresses Korah, and charges him with aiming at the priesthood.\nLet the reader carefully note this. It is important that he should\nhave this point clearly before his mind, according to the teaching of\nScripture. He must see what Korah was, what his work was, and what the\nobject of his restless ambition was,\u2014he must see all these things if he\nwould understand the true force and meaning of Jude\u2019s expression\u2014\u201cThe\ngainsaying of Core.\u201d\n\nWhat, then, was Korah? He was a Levite, and as such, he was entitled\nto minister and to teach.\u2014\u201cThey shall teach Jacob Thy judgments, and\nIsrael Thy law.\u201d\u2014\u201cThe God of Israel hath brought you near to Himself, to\ndo the service of the tabernacle of the Lord, and to stand before the\ncongregation to minister unto them.\u201d Such was Korah, and such his sphere\nof work. At what did he aim? _At the priesthood._\u2014\u201cSeek ye the priesthood\nalso?\u201d\n\nNow, to a cursory observer it might not have appeared that Korah was\nseeking any thing for himself. He seemed to be contending for the rights\nof the whole assembly. But Moses, by the Spirit of God, unmasks the man,\nand shows that, under the plausible pretext of standing up for the common\nrights of the congregation, he was audaciously seeking the priesthood for\nhimself. It is well to note this. It will most generally be found that\nloud talkers about the liberties, rights, and privileges of God\u2019s people\nare, in reality, seeking their own exaltation and advantage. Not content\nwith doing their proper work, they are seeking an improper place. This\nis not always apparent; but God is sure to make it manifest, sooner or\nlater, for \u201cby Him actions are weighed.\u201d Nothing can be more worthless\nthan seeking a place for one\u2019s self. It is sure to end in disappointment\nand confusion. The grand thing for each one is, to be found filling his\nappointed place, and doing his appointed work; and the more humbly,\nquietly, and unpretendingly, the better.\n\nBut Korah had not learnt this simple, but wholesome, principle. He was\nnot content with his divinely appointed place and service, but aimed at\nsomething which did not belong to him at all,\u2014he aimed at being a priest.\nHis sin was the sin of rebellion against God\u2019s high-priest. This was \u201cthe\ngainsaying of Core.\u201d\n\nIt is important to seize this fact in Korah\u2019s history. It is not\ngenerally understood; and hence it is that his sin is charged, nowadays,\nupon those who seek to exercise any gift which may have been bestowed\nupon them by the Head of the Church. But a moment\u2019s calm reflection upon\nthe subject in the light of Scripture would be quite sufficient to show\nhow utterly baseless is such a charge. Take, for example, a man to whom\nChrist has manifestly given the gift of an evangelist. Are we to suppose\nhim guilty of the sin of Korah because, in pursuance of the divine gift\nand the divine commission, he goes forth to preach the gospel? Should\nhe preach? or should he not preach? Is the divine gift\u2014the divine\ncall\u2014sufficient? Is he acting as a rebel when he preaches the gospel?\n\nSo also as regards a pastor or teacher. Is he guilty of the sin of\nKorah because he exercises the special gift imparted to him by the Head\nof the Church? Does not Christ\u2019s gift make a man a minister? is any\nthing further necessary? Is it not plain, to any unprejudiced mind\u2014to\nany one willing to be taught by Scripture, that the possession of a\ndivinely imparted gift makes a man a minister, without any thing further\nwhatsoever? And is it not equally plain that though a man had every thing\nelse that could be had, and yet had no gift from the Head of the Church,\nhe is no minister? We confess we do not see how these plain propositions\ncan be called in question.\n\nWe are speaking, be it remembered, of special gifts of ministry in the\nChurch. No doubt, every member in the body of Christ has some ministry\nto fulfill, some work to do. This is understood by every well-instructed\nChristian; and, moreover, it is clear that the edification of the body\nis carried on, not merely by some special prominent gifts, but by the\neffectual working of all the members in their respective places, as we\nread in the epistle to the Ephesians\u2014\u201cBut speaking the truth in love, may\ngrow up into Him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: from whom\nthe whole body fitly joined together, and compacted by that which _every\njoint supplieth_, according to _the effectual working in the measure of\nevery part_, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in\nlove.\u201d (Chap. iv. 15,16.)\n\nAll this is as plain as Scripture can make it. But as to any special\ngifts, such as that of evangelist, pastor, prophet, or teacher, it must\nbe received from Christ alone; and the possession of it makes a man a\nminister, without any thing further. And, on the other hand, all the\neducation and all the human authority under the sun could not make a man\nan evangelist, a pastor, or teacher, unless he has a _bona-fide_ gift\nfrom the Head of the Church.\n\nThus much as to ministry in the Church of God. We trust enough has been\nsaid to prove to the reader that it is a very grave mistake indeed to\ncharge men with the awful sin of Korah because they exercise those gifts\nwhich have been imparted to them by the great Head of the Church. In\npoint of fact, it would be a sin not to exercise them.\n\nBut there is a very material difference between ministry and priesthood.\nKorah did not aim at being a minister, for that he was. He aimed at\nbeing a priest, which he could not be. The priesthood was vested in\nAaron and his family; and it was a daring usurpation for any one else,\nno matter who, to attempt to offer sacrifice, or discharge any other\npriestly function. Now, Aaron was a type of our great High-Priest, who\nis passed into the heavens\u2014Jesus, the Son of God. Heaven is the sphere\nof His ministry. \u201cIf He were on earth, He should not be a priest.\u201d (Heb.\nviii. 4.) \u201cOur Lord sprang out of Juda; of which tribe Moses spake\nnothing concerning priesthood.\u201d There is no such thing as a priest on\nearth now, save in the sense in which all believers are priests. Thus\nwe read in Peter, \u201cBut ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood.\u201d\n(Chap. ii. 9.) Every Christian is a priest in this sense of the term.\nThe very feeblest saint in the Church of God is as much a priest as\nPaul was. It is not a question of capacity, or spiritual power, but\nsimply of position. All believers are priests, and they are called to\noffer spiritual sacrifices, according to Hebrews xiii. 15, 16.\u2014\u201cBy Him\ntherefore let us offer the _sacrifice of praise_ to God continually, that\nis, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name. But to do good\nand to communicate forget not; for with _such sacrifices_ God is well\npleased.\u201d\n\nThis is the Christian priesthood. And let the reader note it carefully,\nthat to aim at any other form of priesthood than this\u2014to assume any\nother priestly function\u2014to set up a certain priestly class\u2014a sacerdotal\n_caste_\u2014a number of men to act on behalf of their fellows, or discharge\npriestly service for them before God,\u2014this is, in principle, the sin of\nKorah. We only speak of the principles, not of persons. The germ of the\nsin is as distinct as possible. By and by there will be the full-blown\nfruit.\n\nThe reader cannot possibly be too simple in apprehending this entire\nsubject. It is, we may truly say, of capital importance at this moment.\nLet him examine it only in the light of holy Scripture. Tradition will\nnot do; ecclesiastical history will not do: it must be God\u2019s Word alone.\nIn the light of that Word, let the question be asked and answered, Who\nare justly chargeable with the sin of Korah? Is it those who seek to\nexercise whatever gifts the Head of the Church has bestowed, or those who\nassume a priestly office and work which only belong to Christ Himself?\nThis is a very weighty and solemn question. May it be calmly pondered, in\nthe divine presence; and may we seek grace to be faithful to Him who is\nnot only our gracious Saviour, but our sovereign Lord.\n\nThe remainder of our chapter presents a most solemn picture of divine\njudgment executed upon Korah and his company. The Lord very speedily\nsettled the question raised by those rebellious men. The very record of\nit is appalling beyond expression. What must the fact have been? The\nearth opened her mouth and swallowed up the three principal movers in\nthe rebellion, and the fire of the Lord went forth and consumed the two\nhundred and fifty men who undertook to offer incense.\n\n\u201cAnd Moses said, \u2018Hereby ye shall know that the Lord hath sent me to do\nall these works; for _I have not done them of mine own mind_. If these\nmen die the common death of all men, or if they be visited after the\nvisitation of all men; then the Lord hath not sent me. But if the Lord\nmake a new thing, and the earth open her mouth, and swallow them up, with\nall that appertain unto them, and they go down quick into the pit; then\nye shall understand that these men have provoked the Lord.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 28-30.)\n\nMoses, in these words, makes it a question simply between Jehovah and the\nrebels. He can appeal to God, and leave all in His hands. This is the\ntrue secret of moral power. A man who has nothing of his own to seek\u2014no\naim or object but the divine glory\u2014can confidently wait the issue of\nthings. But in order to this, the eye must be single, the heart upright,\nthe purpose pure. It will not do to assume or affect any thing. If God\nis going to judge, He most assuredly will expose all assumption and\naffectation. These things can have no place when the earth is opening her\nmouth, and the fire of the Lord is devouring all around. It is all very\nwell to swagger and boast, and speak great swelling words when all is at\nrest; but when God enters the scene, in terrible judgment, the aspect of\nthings is speedily changed.\n\n\u201cAnd it came to pass, as he had made an end of speaking all these words,\nthat the ground clave asunder that was under them; and the earth opened\nher mouth, and swallowed them up, and their houses, and all the men\nthat appertained unto Korah, and all their goods. They, and all that\nappertained to them, went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed\nupon them; and they perished from among the congregation. And all Israel\nthat were round about them fled at the cry of them: for they said, \u2018Lest\nthe earth swallow us up also.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 31-34.)\n\nTruly, \u201cit is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.\u201d\n\u201cGod is greatly to be feared in the assembly of His saints, and to be\nhad in reverence of all them that are round about Him.\u201d \u201cOur God is a\nconsuming fire.\u201d How much better it would have been for Korah had he\nrested content with his Levite service, which was of the very highest\norder. His work, as a Kohathite, was to carry some of the most precious\nvessels of the sanctuary; but he aimed at the priesthood, and fell into\nthe pit.\n\nNor was this all. Hardly had the ground closed over the rebels when\n\u201cthere came out a fire from the Lord, and consumed the two hundred\nand fifty men that offered incense.\u201d It was a most terrific scene\naltogether\u2014a signal and soul-subduing exhibition of divine judgment upon\nhuman pride and pretension. It is vain for a man to exalt himself against\nGod, for He resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble. What\nconsummate folly for worms of the dust to lift themselves up against the\nalmighty God! Poor man! he is more silly, by far, than the moth that\nrushes against the blaze that consumes it.\n\nOh to walk humbly with our God! to be content with His will! to be\nsatisfied to fill a very humble niche, and to do the most unpretending\nwork! This is true dignity and true happiness. If God gives us a crossing\nto sweep, let us sweep it, as under His eye and to His praise. The grand\nand all-essential point is, to be found doing the very work which He\ngives us to do, and occupying the very post to which He appoints us. Had\nKorah and his company learnt this, their piercing wail would never have\nterrified the hearts of their brethren. But no; they would be something,\nwhen they were nothing, and hence they went down into the pit. Pride\nand destruction are inseparably linked together in the moral government\nof God. This principle always holds good, however the measure may vary.\nLet us remember it. Let us seek to rise from the study of Numbers xvi.\nwith a deepened sense of the value of a humble and contrite spirit. We\nlive at a moment in the which man is pushing himself upward and onward.\n\u201c_Excelsior_\u201d is a very popular motto just now. Let us look well to our\nmode of interpreting and applying it. \u201cHe that exalteth himself shall be\nabased.\u201d If we are to be governed by the rule of God\u2019s kingdom, we shall\nfind that the only way to get up is to go down. The One who now occupies\nthe very highest place in heaven is the One who voluntarily took the very\nlowest place on earth. (See Phil. ii. 5-11.)\n\nHere is our example, as Christians; and here, too, the divine antidote\nagainst the pride and restless ambition of the men of this world. Nothing\nis more sad than to witness a pushing, bustling, forward, self-confident,\nspirit and style in those who profess to be followers of Him who was meek\nand lowly in heart. It is such a flagrant contradiction of the spirit\nand precepts of Christianity, and is a sure accompaniment of an unbroken\ncondition of soul. It is utterly impossible for any one to indulge in\na boastful, pretentious, self-confident spirit if ever he has really\nmeasured himself in the presence of God. To be much alone with God is the\nsovereign remedy for pride and self-complacency. May we know the reality\nof this in the secret of our own souls. May the good Lord keep us truly\nhumble, in all our ways, simply leaning on Himself, and very, very little\nin our own eyes.\n\nThe closing paragraph of our chapter illustrates, in a most striking\nmanner, the incorrigible evil of the natural heart. One might fondly\nhope that after the impressive scenes enacted in the presence of the\ncongregation, deep and permanent lessons would be learnt. Having seen the\nearth open her mouth, having heard the heart-rending cry of the rebels\nas they descended into the pit, having seen the fire of the Lord coming\nforth and consuming, as in a moment, two hundred and fifty princes of the\ncongregation\u2014having witnessed such tokens of the divine judgment\u2014such a\ndisplay of divine power and majesty, one might suppose that the people\nwould henceforth walk softly and humbly, and that the accents of\ndiscontent and rebellion would no more be heard in their tents.\n\nAlas! alas! man is not to be so taught. The flesh is utterly incurable.\nThis truth is taught in every section and on every page of the volume\nof God. It is illustrated in the closing lines of Numbers xvi.\u2014\u201cBut on\nthe morrow.\u201d Think of that! It was not in a year, or a month, or even\na week after the appalling scenes on which we have been dwelling, \u201cbut\non the morrow, _all the congregation_ [no longer a few daring spirits\nmerely] murmured against Moses and against Aaron, saying, \u2018Ye have killed\nthe people of the Lord.\u2019 And it came to pass, when the congregation was\ngathered against Moses and against Aaron, that they looked toward the\ntabernacle of the congregation; and, behold, the cloud covered it, and\nthe glory of the Lord appeared. And Moses and Aaron came before the\ntabernacle of the congregation. And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,\n\u2018Get you up from among this congregation, that I may consume them as in a\nmoment.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 41-45.)\n\nHere is another opportunity for Moses. The whole congregation is again\nthreatened with immediate destruction. All seems hopeless. The divine\nlong-suffering seems at an end, and the sword of judgment is about\nto fall on the whole assembly. And now it appears that in that very\npriesthood which the rebels had despised lies the only hope for the\npeople; and that the very men whom they had charged with killing the\nLord\u2019s people, were God\u2019s instruments in saving their lives.\u2014\u201cAnd Moses\nand Anion fell upon their faces. And Moses said unto Aaron, \u2018Take a\ncenser, and put fire therein from off the altar, and put on incense, and\ngo quickly unto the congregation, and make an atonement for them: for\nthere is wrath gone out from the Lord; the plague is begun.\u2019 And Aaron\ntook as Moses commanded, and ran into the midst of the congregation; and,\nbehold, the plague was begun among the people: and he put on incense, and\nmade an atonement for the people. And he stood between the dead and the\nliving; and the plague was stayed.\u201d (Ver. 46-48.)\n\nIt is here made very apparent that nothing but priesthood\u2014even that\nvery priesthood which had been so despised\u2014could avail for a rebellious\nand stiff-necked people. There is something unspeakably blessed in this\nclosing paragraph. There stands Aaron, God\u2019s high-priest, between the\ndead and the living, and from his censer a cloud of incense goes up\nbefore God. Impressive type of One greater than Aaron, who, having made a\nfull and perfect atonement for the sins of His people, is ever before God\nin all the fragrance of His Person and work! Priesthood alone could bring\nthe people through the wilderness. It was the rich and suited provision\nof divine grace. The people were indebted to intercession for their\npreservation from the just consequences of their rebellious murmurings.\nHad they been dealt with merely on the ground of justice, all that could\nbe said was, \u201cLet Me alone, that I may consume them in a moment.\u201d\n\nThis is the language of pure and inflexible justice. Immediate\ndestruction is the work of justice: full and final preservation is the\nglorious and characteristic work of divine grace\u2014grace reigning through\nrighteousness. Had God dealt in mere justice with the people, His name\nwould not have been declared, inasmuch as there is far more in His name\nthan justice. There is love, mercy, goodness, kindness, long-suffering,\ndeep and unfailing compassion. But none of these things could be seen\nhad the people been consumed in a moment, and hence the name of Jehovah\nwould not have been declared or glorified. \u201cFor My name\u2019s sake will I\ndefer Mine anger, and for My praise will I refrain from thee, that I cut\nthee not off.... For Mine own sake, even for Mine own sake, will I do it;\nfor how should My name be polluted? and I will not give My glory unto\nanother.\u201d (Is. xlviii. 9, 11.)\n\nHow well it is for us that God acts towards us and for us and in us for\nthe glory of His own name! How wonderful, too, that His glory should\nmost fully shine\u2014yea, could only be seen in that vast plan which His own\nheart has devised, in which He is revealed as \u201ca just God and a Saviour.\u201d\nPrecious title for a poor lost sinner! In it is wrapped up all that such\nan one can possibly need for time and eternity. It meets him in the depth\nof his need, as a guilty, hell-deserving one; bears him along through\nall the varied exigencies, trials, and sorrows of the wilderness; and,\nfinally, conducts him to that bright and blessed world above, where sin\nand sorrow can never enter.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTERS XVII. & XVIII.\n\n\nThese two chapters form a distinct section, in which we have presented to\nus the source, the responsibilities, and the privileges of priesthood.\nPriesthood is a divine institution. \u201cNo man taketh this honor unto\nhimself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron.\u201d This is made\nmanifest in a most striking manner in chapter xvii.\u2014\u201cThe Lord spake unto\nMoses, saying, \u2018Speak unto the children of Israel, and take of every\none of them a rod according to the house of their fathers, of all their\nprinces according to the house of their fathers twelve rods: write thou\nevery man\u2019s name upon his rod. And thou shalt write Aaron\u2019s name upon\nthe rod of Levi; for one rod shall be for the head of the house of their\nfathers. And thou shalt lay them up in the tabernacle of the congregation\nbefore the testimony, where I will meet with you. And it shall come to\npass that the man\u2019s rod whom I shall choose shall blossom; and I will\nmake to cease from Me the murmurings of the children of Israel, whereby\nthey murmur against you.\u2019 And Moses spake unto the children of Israel,\nand every one of their princes gave him a rod apiece, for each prince\none, according to their father\u2019s houses, even twelve rods; and the rod\nof Aaron was among their rods.\u201d (Ver. 1-6.)\n\nWhat matchless wisdom shines in this arrangement! How completely is the\nmatter taken out of man\u2019s hands and placed where alone it ought to be,\nnamely, in the hands of the living God! It was not to be a man appointing\nhimself, or a man appointing his fellow; but God appointing the man of\nHis own selection. In a word, the question was to be definitively settled\nby God Himself, so that all murmurings might be silenced forever, and no\none be able again to charge God\u2019s high-priest with taking too much upon\nhim. The human will had nothing whatever to do with this solemn matter.\nThe twelve rods, all in a like condition, were laid up before the Lord:\nman retired, and left God to act. There was no room, no opportunity,\nbecause there was no occasion, for human management. In the profound\nretirement of the sanctuary, far away from all man\u2019s thinkings, was the\ngrand question of priesthood settled by divine decision; and being thus\nsettled, it could never again be raised.\n\n\u201cAnd Moses laid up the rods before the Lord in the tabernacle of witness.\nAnd it came to pass that on the morrow, Moses went into the tabernacle of\nwitness; and, behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi was budded,\nand brought forth buds, and bloomed blossoms, and yielded almonds.\u201d\nStriking and beautiful figure of Him who was \u201cdeclared to be the Son of\nGod with power by resurrection from the dead\u201d! The twelve rods were all\nalike lifeless; but God\u2014the living God\u2014entered the scene, and by that\npower peculiar to Himself, infused life into Aaron\u2019s rod, and brought it\nforth to view, bearing upon it the fragrant fruits of resurrection.\n\nWho could gainsay this? The rationalist may sneer at it, and raise a\nthousand questions. Faith gazes on that fruit-bearing rod, and sees in it\na lovely figure of the new creation, in the which all things are of God.\nInfidelity may argue on the ground of the apparent impossibility of a dry\nstick budding, blossoming, and bearing fruit in the course of one night.\nBut to whom does it appear impossible? To the infidel\u2014the rationalist\u2014the\nskeptic. And why? Because he always shuts out God. Let us remember this.\n_Infidelity invariably shuts out God._ Its reasonings are carried on and\nits conclusions reached in midnight darkness. There is not so much as a\nsingle ray of true light in the whole of that sphere in which infidelity\noperates. It excludes the only source of light, and leaves the soul\nwrapped in the shades and deep gloom of a darkness that may be felt.\n\nIt is well for the young reader to pause here, and deeply ponder this\nsolemn fact. Let him calmly and seriously reflect on this special feature\nof infidelity\u2014rationalism\u2014or skepticism. It begins, continues, and ends\nwith shutting out God. It would approach the mystery of Aaron\u2019s budding,\nblossoming, fruit-bearing rod with a godless, audacious \u201c_How?_\u201d This\nis the infidel\u2019s great argument? He can raise ten thousand questions,\nbut never settle one. He will teach you how to doubt, but never how to\nbelieve. He will lead you to doubt every thing, but gives you nothing to\nbelieve.\n\nSuch, beloved reader, is infidelity. It is of Satan, who ever has been,\nis, and will be the great question-raiser. Wherever you trace Satan, you\nwill always find him raising questions. He fills the heart with all sorts\nof \u201cifs\u201d and \u201chows,\u201d and thus plunges the soul in thick darkness. If he\ncan only succeed in raising a question, he has gained his point; but he\nis perfectly powerless with a simple soul that just believes that God\nis, and God has spoken. Here is faith\u2019s noble answer to the infidel\u2019s\nquestions\u2014its divine solution of all the infidel\u2019s difficulties. Faith\nalways brings in the very One that infidelity always shuts out. It thinks\nwith God; infidelity thinks without Him.\n\nHence, then, we would say to the Christian reader, and specially to\nthe young Christian, never admit questions when God has spoken. If you\ndo, Satan will have you under his foot in a moment. Your only security\nagainst him is found in that one impregnable, immortal sentence, \u201cIt is\nwritten.\u201d It will never do to argue with him on the ground of experience,\nof feeling, or of observation; it must be absolutely and exclusively on\nthe ground of this, that God is, and that God has spoken. Satan can make\nno hand of this weighty argument at all. It is invincible. Every thing\nelse he can shiver to pieces, but this confounds him and puts him to\nflight at once.\n\nWe see this very strikingly illustrated in the temptation of our Lord.\nThe enemy, according to his usual way, approached the blessed One with\n_a question_,\u2014\u201cIf Thou be the Son of God.\u201d How did the Lord answer him?\nDid He say, I know I am the Son of God\u2014I have had a testimony from the\nopened heavens, and from the descending and anointing Spirit\u2014I feel and\nbelieve and realize that I am the Son of God? No; such was not His mode\nof answering the tempter. How then? \u201c_It is written._\u201d Such was the\nthrice-repeated answer of the obedient and dependent Man, and such must\nbe the answer of every one who will overcome the tempter.\n\nThus, in reference to Aaron\u2019s budding rod, if any inquire, How can such\na thing be? It is contrary to the laws of nature; and how could God\ntraverse the established principles of natural philosophy? Faith\u2019s reply\nis sublimely simple. God can do as He pleases. The One who called worlds\ninto existence could make a rod to bud, blossom, and bear fruit in a\nmoment. Bring God in, and all is simple and plain as possible: leave God\nout, and all is plunged in hopeless confusion. The attempt to tie up\n(we speak with reverence) the almighty Creator of the vast universe by\ncertain laws of nature, or certain principles of natural philosophy, is\nnothing short of impious blasphemy. It is almost worse than denying His\nexistence altogether. It is hard to say which is the worse\u2014the atheist,\nwho says there is no God, or the rationalist, who maintains that He\ncannot do as He pleases. We feel the immense importance of being able\nto see the real roots of all the plausible theories which are afloat at\nthe present moment. The mind of man is busy forming systems, drawing\nconclusions, and reasoning in such a manner as virtually to exclude the\ntestimony of holy Scripture altogether, and to shut out God from His own\ncreation. Our young people must be solemnly warned as to this. They must\nbe taught the immense difference between the facts of science and the\nconclusions of scientific men. A fact is a fact wherever you meet it,\nwhether in geology, astronomy, or any other department of science; but\nmen\u2019s reasonings, conclusions, and systems are another thing altogether.\nNow, Scripture will never touch the facts of science; but the reasonings\nof scientific men are constantly found in collision with Scripture.\nAlas! alas! for such men! And when such is the case, we must, with plain\ndecision, denounce such reasonings altogether, and exclaim, with the\napostle, \u201cLet God be true, and every man a liar.\u201d\n\nGladly would we dwell upon this point, though it be a digression, for we\ndeeply feel its seriousness; but we must, for the present, be content\nwith solemnly urging upon the reader the necessity of giving to holy\nScripture the supreme place in his heart and mind. We must bow down,\nwith absolute submission, to the authority of, not \u201cThus saith the\nChurch\u201d\u2014\u201cThus say the fathers\u201d\u2014\u201cThus say the doctors,\u201d but \u201c_Thus saith\nthe Lord_\u201d\u2014\u201c_It is written._\u201d This is our _only_ security against the\nrising tide of infidelity, which threatens to sweep away the foundations\nof religious thought and feeling throughout the length and breadth of\nchristendom. None will escape save those who are taught and governed by\nthe Word of the Lord. May God increase the number of such.\n\n * * * * *\n\nWe shall now proceed with our chapter.\n\n\u201cAnd Moses brought out all the rods from before the Lord unto all the\nchildren of Israel; and they looked, and took every man his rod. And the\nLord said unto Moses, \u2018Bring Aaron\u2019s rod again before the testimony, to\nbe kept for a token against the rebels; and thou shalt quite take away\ntheir murmurings from Me, that they die not.\u2019 And Moses did so; as the\nLord commanded him, so did he.\u201d (Ver. 9-11.)\n\nThus the question was divinely settled. Priesthood is founded upon that\nprecious grace of God which brings life out of death. This is the source\nof priesthood. It could be of no possible use for man to take any one of\nthe eleven dead rods and make it the badge of priestly office. All the\nhuman authority under the sun could not infuse life into a dead stick,\nor make that stick the channel of blessing to souls. And so of all the\neleven rods put together; there was not so much as a single bud or\nblossom throughout the whole. But where there were precious evidences of\nquickening power\u2014refreshing traces of divine life and blessing\u2014fragrant\nfruits of efficacious grace\u2014there, and there alone, was to be found the\nsource of that priestly ministry which could carry, not only a needy, but\na murmuring and rebellious people through the wilderness.\n\nAnd here we may naturally inquire, What about Moses\u2019 rod? why was it\nnot amongst the twelve? The reason is blessedly simple. Moses\u2019 rod\nwas the expression of power and authority: Aaron\u2019s rod was the lovely\nexpression of that grace that quickens the dead, and calls those things\nthat be not as though they were. Now, mere power or authority could\nnot conduct the congregation through the wilderness. Power could crush\nthe rebel,\u2014authority might strike the sinner; but only mercy and grace\ncould avail for an assembly of needy, helpless, sinful men, women, and\nchildren. The grace that could bring almonds out of a dead stick could\nbring Israel through the wilderness. It was only in connection with\nAaron\u2019s budding rod that Jehovah could say, \u201cThou shalt _quite_ take away\nthe murmurings of the children of Israel from Me, that they die not.\u201d\nThe rod of _authority_ could take away the _murmurers_, but the rod of\n_grace_ could take away the _murmurs_.\n\nThe reader may refer, with interest and profit, to a passage in the\nopening of Hebrews ix. in connection with the subject of Aaron\u2019s rod. The\napostle, in speaking of the ark of the covenant, says, \u201cWherein was the\ngolden pot that had manna, and Aaron\u2019s rod that budded, and the tables\nof the covenant.\u201d This was in the wilderness. The rod and the manna were\nthe provisions of divine grace for Israel\u2019s desert wanderings and desert\nneed. But when we turn to 1 Kings viii. 9, we read, \u201cThere was nothing\nin the ark save the two tables of stone, which Moses put there at Horeb,\nwhen the Lord made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came\nout of the land of Egypt.\u201d The wilderness wanderings were over, the glory\nof Solomon\u2019s day was sending forth its beams over the land, and hence the\nbudding rod and the pot of manna are omitted, and nothing remains save\nthat law of God which was the foundation of His righteous government in\nthe midst of His people.\n\nNow, in this we have an illustration, not only of the divine accuracy of\nScripture as a whole, but also of the special character and object of\nthe book of Numbers. Aaron\u2019s rod was in the ark during its wilderness\nwanderings. Precious fact! Let the reader seek to lay hold of its deep\nand blessed significance. Let him ponder the difference between the\nrod of Moses and the rod of Aaron. We have seen the former doing its\ncharacteristic work in other days and amid other scenes; we have seen the\nland of Egypt trembling beneath the heavy strokes of that rod; plague\nafter plague fell upon that devoted scene in answer to that outstretched\nrod; we have seen the waters of the sea divided in answer to that rod.\nIn short, the rod of Moses was a rod of power\u2014a rod of authority. But it\ncould not avail to hush the murmurings of the children of Israel, nor yet\nto bring the people through the desert. Grace alone could do that; and we\nhave the expression of pure grace\u2014free, sovereign grace\u2014in the budding\nof Aaron\u2019s rod.\n\nNothing can be more forcible, nothing more lovely. That dry, dead stick\nwas the apt figure of Israel\u2019s condition, and indeed of the condition of\nevery one of us by nature. There was no sap, no life, no power. One might\nwell say, \u201cWhat good can ever come of it?\u201d None whatever, had not grace\ncome in and displayed its quickening power. So was it with Israel in the\nwilderness, and so is it with us now. How were they to be led along from\nday to day? how were they to be sustained in all their weakness and need?\nhow were they to be borne with in all their sin and folly? The answer is\nfound in Aaron\u2019s budding rod. If the dry, dead stick was the expression\nof nature\u2019s barren and worthless condition, the buds, blossoms, and fruit\nset forth that living and life-giving grace and power of God on which\nwas based the priestly ministry that alone could bear the congregation\nthrough the wilderness. Grace alone could answer the ten thousand\nnecessities of the militant host. Power could not suffice,\u2014authority\ncould not avail: priesthood alone could supply what was needed, and this\npriesthood was instituted on the foundation of that efficacious grace\nwhich could bring fruit out of a dry rod.\n\nThus it was as to priesthood of old, and thus it is as to ministry now.\nAll ministry in the Church of God is the fruit of divine grace\u2014the gift\nof Christ, the Church\u2019s Head. There is no other source of ministry\nwhatsoever. From apostles down to the very lowest gifts\u2014all proceed\nfrom Christ. The grand root-principle of all ministry is embodied in\nthose words of Paul to the Galatians in which he speaks of himself as \u201can\napostle, not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the\nFather, who raised Him from the dead.\u201d (Gal. i. 1.)\n\nHere, be it noted, is the sublime source from whence all ministry\nemanates. It is not of man, or by man, in any shape or form. Man may\ntake up dry sticks and shape and fashion them according to his own will,\nand he may ordain and appoint, and call them by certain high-sounding,\nofficial titles; but of what use is it? they are only dry, dead sticks.\nWe may justly say, \u201cWhere is there a single cluster of fruit? where is\nthere a single blossom? nay, where is there one solitary bud?\u201d Even one\nbud will suffice to prove that there is something divine; but in the\nabsence of this, there can be no living ministry in the Church of God.\nIt is the gift of Christ, and that alone, that makes a man a minister.\nWithout this, it is an empty assumption for any one to set himself up, or\nbe set up by others, to be a minister.\n\nDoes the reader thoroughly own this great principle? is it as clear as\na sunbeam to his soul? Has he any difficulty respecting it? If so, we\nentreat him to seek to divest his mind of all preconceived thoughts,\nfrom what source soever derived; let him rise above the hazy mists of\ntraditional religion; let him take the New Testament, and study, as in\nthe immediate presence of God, the twelfth and fourteenth chapters of 1\nCorinthians, and also Ephesians iv. 7-12. In these passages he will find\nthe whole subject of ministry unfolded, and from them he will learn that\nall true ministry, whether it be apostles, prophets, teachers, pastors,\nor evangelists,\u2014all is of God\u2014all flows down from Christ, the exalted\nHead of the Church. If a man be not possessed of a _bona-fide_ gift from\nChrist, he is not a minister. Every member of the body has a work to do.\nThe edification of the body is promoted by the proper action of all the\nmembers, whether prominent or obscure, \u201ccomely\u201d or \u201cuncomely.\u201d In short,\nall ministry is from God, and not from man; it is by God, and not by man.\nThere is no such thing in Scripture as a humanly ordained ministry. All\nis of God.\n\nWe must not confound ministerial gifts with office or local charge. We\nfind the apostles, or their delegates, ordaining elders and appointing\ndeacons; but this was quite a distinct thing from ministerial gifts.\nThose elders and deacons might possess and exercise some specific gift in\nthe body; the apostle did not ordain them to exercise such gift, but only\nto fulfill the local charge. The spiritual gift was from the Head of the\nChurch, and was independent of the local charge altogether.\n\nIt is most necessary to be clear as to the distinction between gift and\nlocal charge. There is the utmost confusion of the two things throughout\nthe entire professing church, and the consequence is that ministry is\nnot understood. The members of the body of Christ do not understand\ntheir place or their functions. Human election, or human authority in\nsome shape or another, is deemed essential to the exercise of ministry\nin the Church. But there is really no such thing in Scripture. If there\nbe, nothing is easier than to produce it. We ask the reader to find a\nsingle line, from cover to cover of the New Testament, in which a human\ncall, human appointment, or human authority has any thing whatsoever to\ndo with the exercise of ministry in its very fullest range. We boldly\nassert there is no such thing.[14] Ah! no; blessed be God, ministry in\nHis Church is \u201cnot of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God\nthe Father, who raised Him from the dead.\u201d \u201c_God hath set_ the members\n_every one of them_ in the body, _as it hath pleased Him_.\u201d (1 Cor. xii.\n18.) \u201cBut unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of\nthe gift of Christ. Wherefore He saith, \u2018When He ascended up on high, He\nled captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.\u2019 ... And He gave some,\napostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors\nand teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the\nministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: till we all come in\nthe unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a\nperfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.\u201d\n(Eph. iv. 7-13.)\n\nHere, all the grades of ministerial gift are placed on one and the same\nground, from apostles down to evangelists and teachers. They are all\ngiven by the Head of the Church; and when bestowed, they render the\npossessors responsible at once to the Head in heaven and to the members\non earth. The idea of any possessor of a positive gift from God waiting\nfor human authority is as great an insult to the Divine Majesty as if\nAaron had gone, with his blooming rod in his hand, to be ordained to\nthe priesthood by some of his fellows. Aaron knew better. He was called\nof God, and that was quite enough for him. And so now, all who possess\na divine gift are called of God to the ministry, and they need nothing\nmore, save to wait on their ministry and cultivate their gift.\n\nNeed we add that it is vain for men to set up to be ministers unless they\nreally do possess the gift? A man may fancy he has a gift, and it may be\nonly a vain conceit of his own mind. It is quite as bad, if not worse,\nfor one man to go to work on the strength of his own foolish imagination,\nas for another to go on the strength of the unwarrantable authority of\nhis fellows. What we contend for is this: Ministry is of God, as to its\nsource, power, and responsibility. We do not think that this statement\nwill be called in question by any who are disposed to be taught\nexclusively by Scripture. Every minister, whatever be his gift, should\nbe able, in his measure, to say, \u201cGod has put me into the ministry.\u201d But\nfor a man to use this language without possessing any gift, is, to say\nthe least of it, worse than worthless. The people of God can easily tell\nwhere there is real spiritual gift. Power is sure to be felt. But if men\npretend to gift or power without the reality, their folly shall speedily\nbe manifest to all. All pretenders are sure to find their true level,\nsooner or later.\n\nThus much as to ministry and priesthood. The source of each is divine.\nThe true foundation of each lies in the budding rod. Let this be ever\nborne in mind. Aaron could say, \u201cGod put me into the priesthood;\u201d and if\nchallenged for his proof, he could point to the fruit-bearing rod. Paul\ncould say, \u201cGod put me into the ministry;\u201d and when challenged for his\nproof, could point to the thousands of living seals to his work. Thus it\nmust ever be in principle, whatever be the measure. Ministry must not be\nmerely in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth. God will not know\nthe speech, but the power.\n\nBut ere we turn from this subject, we deem it most necessary to impress\nupon the reader the importance of distinguishing between ministry and\npriesthood. The sin of Korah consisted in this: that, not content with\nbeing a minister, he aimed at being a priest; and the sin of christendom\nis of the same character. Instead of allowing ministry to rest upon its\nown proper New-Testament basis, to exhibit its proper characteristics\nand discharge its proper functions, it is exalted into a priesthood,\na sacerdotal caste, the members of which are distinguished from their\nbrethren by their style of dress and certain titles. There is no\nfoundation whatsoever for these things in the New Testament. According\nto the plain teaching of that blessed book, all believers are priests.\nThus, in Peter, we read, \u201cBut _ye_ [not merely the apostles, but all\nbelievers] are a chosen generation, _a royal priesthood_.\u201d (1 Pet. ii.\n9.) So also in Revelation\u2014\u201cUnto Him that loved us, and washed us from our\nsins in His own blood, and hath made us kings and _priests_ unto God and\nHis Father.\u201d (Chap. i. 5, 6.) And, in pursuance of the truth set forth\nin the foregoing passages, we find the apostle Paul, by the Holy Ghost,\nexhorting the Hebrew believers to \u201cdraw nigh, and enter with boldness\ninto the very holiest of all.\u201d (Chap. x. 19-22.) And further on he says,\n\u201cBy Him therefore [_i. e._, Jesus] let us _offer the sacrifice_ of praise\nto God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to\nHis name. But to do good and to communicate forget not; for with _such\nsacrifices_ God is well pleased.\u201d (Heb. xiii. 15-16.)\n\nHow marvelous it must have appeared to Jewish saints\u2014to those trained\namid the institutions of the Mosaic economy, to be exhorted to enter\ninto a place to which the very highest functionary in Israel could\nonly approach once a year, and that but for a moment! and then to be\ntold that they were to offer sacrifice\u2014that they were to discharge the\npeculiar functions of the priesthood! All this was wonderful. But thus\nit is, if we are to be taught by Scripture, and not by the commandments,\nthe doctrines, and the traditions of men. All Christians are priests.\nThey are not all apostles, prophets, teachers, pastors, or evangelists;\nbut they are all priests. The very feeblest member of the Church was as\nmuch a priest as Peter, Paul, James, or John. We speak not of capacity\nor spiritual power, but of the position which all occupy in virtue of\nthe blood of Christ. There is no such thing in the New Testament as a\ncertain class of men, a certain privileged caste, brought into a higher\nor nearer position than their brethren. All this is flatly opposed to\nChristianity\u2014a bold traversing of all the precepts of the Word of God,\nand the special teachings of our blessed Lord and Master.\n\nLet no one suppose that these things are unimportant. Far from it. They\naffect the very foundations of Christianity. We have only to open our\neyes and look around us in order to see the practical results of this\nconfounding of ministry and priesthood. And we may rest assured that the\nmoment is rapidly approaching when these results shall assume a far more\nawful character, and bring down the very heaviest judgments from the\nliving God. We have not yet seen the full antitype of \u201cthe gainsaying of\nCore,\u201d but it will soon be manifested; and we solemnly warn the Christian\nreader to take heed how he lends his sanction to the serious error of\nmixing up two things so entirely distinct as ministry and priesthood. We\nwould exhort him to take this whole subject up in the light of Scripture.\nWe want him to submit to the authority of God\u2019s Word, and to abandon\nevery thing that is not founded thereon. It matters not what it is,\u2014it\nmay be a time-honored institution, an expedient arrangement, a decent\nceremony supported by tradition and countenanced by thousands of the\nvery best of men. It matters not. If the thing has no foundation in\nholy Scripture, it is an error and an evil and a snare of the devil, to\nentrap our souls and lead us away from the simplicity that is in Christ.\nFor example, if we are taught that there is, in the Church of God, a\nsacerdotal caste\u2014a class of men more holy, more elevated, nearer to God,\nthan their brethren\u2014than ordinary Christians, what is this but Judaism\nrevived and tacked on to Christian forms? and what must be the effect of\nthis, but to rob the children of God of their proper privileges as such,\nand to put them at a distance from Him, and place them under bondage?\n\nWe shall not pursue this subject any further just now. Enough, we trust,\nhas been suggested to lead the reflecting reader to follow it up for\nhimself. We only add, and that with special emphasis, let him follow it\nup _only_ in the light of Scripture. Let him resolve, by the grace of\nGod, to lay aside every thing which rests not upon the solid and sacred\nbasis of the written Word. Thus, and thus alone, can he be preserved\nfrom every form of error, and led to a sound conclusion on this most\nimportant and interesting question.\n\nThe closing lines of chapter xvii. furnish a remarkable illustration\nof how quickly the human mind passes from one extreme to another.\u2014\u201cThe\nchildren of Israel spake unto Moses, saying, \u2018Behold, we die, we perish,\nwe all perish. Whosoever cometh any thing near unto the tabernacle of\nthe Lord shall die: shall we be consumed with dying?\u2019\u201d In the preceding\nchapter, we see bold presumption in the very presence of the majesty of\nJehovah, where there should have been profound humility. Here, in the\npresence of divine grace and its provisions, we observe legal fear and\ndistrust. Thus it is ever. Mere nature neither understands holiness nor\ngrace. At one moment we hearken to such accents as these: \u201c_All_ the\ncongregation are holy;\u201d and the next moment, the word is, \u201cBehold, we\ndie, we perish, we all perish.\u201d The carnal mind presumes where it ought\nto retire; it distrusts where it ought to confide.\n\nHowever, all this becomes the occasion, through the goodness of God,\nof unfolding to us, in a very full and blessed manner, the holy\nresponsibilities, as well as the precious privileges, of the priesthood.\nHow gracious it is\u2014how like our God, to turn His people\u2019s mistakes into\nan occasion of furnishing deeper instruction as to His ways! It is His\nprerogative, blessed be His name, to bring good out of evil\u2014to make the\neater yield meat, and the strong, sweetness. Thus \u201cthe gainsaying of\nCore\u201d gives occasion for the copious volume of instruction furnished\nby Aaron\u2019s rod, and the closing lines of chapter xvii. call forth an\nelaborate statement of the functions of Aaron\u2019s priesthood. To this\nlatter we shall now proceed to direct the reader\u2019s attention.\n\n * * * * *\n\n\u201cAnd the Lord said unto Aaron, \u2018Thou and thy sons and thy father\u2019s\nhouse with thee, shall bear the iniquity of the sanctuary; and thou\nand thy sons with thee shall bear the iniquity of your priesthood.\nAnd thy brethren also of the tribe of Levi, the tribe of thy father,\nbring thou with thee, that they may be joined unto thee, and minister\nunto thee: but thou and thy sons with thee shall minister before the\ntabernacle of witness. And they shall keep thy charge, and the charge\nof all the tabernacle: only they shall not come nigh the vessels of\nthe sanctuary and the altar, that neither they nor ye also die. And\nthey shall be joined unto thee, and keep the charge of the tabernacle\nof the congregation, for all the service of the tabernacle: and a\nstranger shall not come nigh unto you. And ye shall keep the charge of\nthe sanctuary, and the charge of the altar: _that there be no wrath any\nmore upon the children of Israel_. And I, behold, I have taken your\nbrethren the Levites from among the children of Israel: to you they are\ngiven as a gift for the Lord, to do the service of the tabernacle of\nthe congregation. Therefore thou and thy sons with thee shall keep your\npriest\u2019s office for every thing of the altar, and within the vail; and\nye shall serve: I have given your priest\u2019s office unto you as a service\nof gift: and the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death.\u2019\u201d\n(Chap. xviii. 1-7.)\n\nHere we have a divine answer to the question raised by the children of\nIsrael\u2014\u201cShall we be consumed with dying?\u201d \u201cNo,\u201d says the God of all grace\nand mercy. And why not? Because \u201cAaron and his sons with him shall keep\nthe charge of the sanctuary, and the charge of the altar; that there be\n_no wrath any more_ upon the children of Israel.\u201d Thus the people are\ntaught that in that very priesthood which had been so despised and spoken\nagainst, they were to find their security.\n\nBut we have to notice particularly that Aaron\u2019s sons, and his father\u2019s\nhouse, are associated with him in his high and holy privileges and\nresponsibilities. The Levites were given as a gift to Aaron, to do the\nservice of the tabernacle of the congregation. They were to serve under\nAaron, the head of the priestly house. This teaches us a fine lesson, and\none much needed by Christians at the present moment. We all want to bear\nin mind that service, to be intelligent and acceptable, must be rendered\nin subjection to priestly authority and guidance. \u201cAnd thy brethren also\nof the tribe of Levi, the tribe of thy father, bring thou with thee,\nthat they may be _joined unto thee_, and _minister unto thee_.\u201d This\nstamped its distinct character upon the entire range of Levite service.\nThe whole tribe of workers were associated with and subject to the great\nhigh-priest. All was under his immediate control and guidance. So must\nit be now, in reference to all God\u2019s workers. All Christian service\nmust be rendered in fellowship with our great High-Priest, and in holy\nsubjection to His authority. It is of no value otherwise. There may be a\ngreat deal of work done, there may be a great deal of activity; but if\nChrist be not the immediate object before the heart, if His guidance and\nauthority be not fully owned, the work must go for nothing.\n\nBut, on the other hand, the smallest act of service, the meanest work\ndone under the eye of Christ\u2014done with direct reference to Him, has its\nvalue in God\u2019s estimation, and shall most assuredly receive its due\nreward. This is truly encouraging, and consolatory to the heart of every\nearnest worker. The Levites had to work under Aaron: Christians have to\nwork under Christ,\u2014we are responsible to Him. It is very well and very\nbeautiful to walk in fellowship with our dear fellow-workmen, and to\nbe subject one to another, in the fear of the Lord. Nothing is further\nfrom our thoughts than to foster or countenance a spirit of haughty\nindependence, or that temper of soul which would hinder our genial and\nhearty co-operation with our brethren in every good work. All the Levites\nwere \u201cjoined unto Aaron\u201d in their work, and therefore they were joined\none to another; hence they had to work together. If a Levite had turned\nhis back upon his brethren, he would have turned his back upon Aaron. We\nmay imagine a Levite taking offense at something or other in the conduct\nof his fellows, and saying to himself, I cannot get on with my brethren.\nI must walk alone. I can serve God, and work under Aaron; but I must\nkeep aloof from my brethren, inasmuch as I find it impossible to agree\nwith them as to the mode of working. But we can easily see through the\nfallacy of all this. For a Levite to adopt such a line of action would\nhave produced nothing but confusion. All were called to work together,\nhow varied soever their work might be.\n\nStill, be it ever borne in mind, their work did vary; and, moreover,\neach was called to work under Aaron. There was individual responsibility\nwith the most harmonious corporate action. We certainly desire, in every\npossible way, to promote unity in action; but this must never be suffered\nto trench upon the domain of personal service, or to interfere with the\ndirect reference of the individual workman to his Lord. The Church of God\naffords a very extensive platform to the Lord\u2019s workers. There is ample\nspace thereon for all sorts of laborers. We must not attempt to reduce\nall to a dead level, or cramp the varied energies of Christ\u2019s servants\nby confining them to certain old ruts of our own formation. This will\nnever do. We must, all of us, diligently seek to combine the most cordial\nunanimity with the greatest possible variety in action. Both will be\nhealthfully promoted by each and all remembering that we are called to\nserve together under Christ.\n\nHere lies the grand secret. _Together, under Christ!_ May we bear this\nin mind. It will help us to recognize and appreciate another\u2019s line of\nwork though it may differ from our own; and, on the other hand, it will\npreserve us from an overweening sense of our own department of service,\ninasmuch as we shall see that we are, one and all, but co-workers in\nthe one wide field, and that the great object before the Master\u2019s heart\ncan only be attained by each worker pursuing his own special line, and\npursuing it in happy fellowship with all.\n\nThere is a pernicious tendency in some minds to depreciate every line\nof work save their own. This must be carefully guarded against. If all\nwere to pursue the same line, where were that lovely variety which\ncharacterizes the Lord\u2019s work and workmen in the world? Nor is it merely\na question of the line of work, but actually of the peculiar style of\neach workman. You may find two evangelists, each marked by an intense\ndesire for the salvation of souls, each preaching substantially the same\ntruth, and yet there may be the greatest possible variety in the mode in\nwhich each one seeks to gain the self-same object. We should be prepared\nfor this; indeed we should fully expect it. And the same holds good in\nreference to every other branch of Christian service. We should strongly\nsuspect the ground occupied by a Christian assembly if there were not\nample space allowed for every branch and style of Christian service\u2014for\nevery line of work capable of being taken up in individual responsibility\nto the great Head of the priestly house. We ought to do nothing which\nwe cannot do under Christ, and in fellowship with Him; and all that can\nbe done in fellowship with Christ can surely be done in fellowship with\nthose who are walking with Him.\n\nThus much as to the special manner in which the Levites are introduced\nin our chapter, in connection with Aaron and his sons. To these latter\nwe shall now turn for a few moments, and meditate on the rich provision\nmade for them, in the goodness of God, as well as the solemn functions\ndevolving upon them in their priestly place.\n\n\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Aaron, \u2018Behold, I also have given thee the\ncharge of My heave-offerings of all the hallowed things of the children\nof Israel; unto thee have I given them, _by reason of the anointing_, and\nto thy sons, by an ordinance forever. This shall be thine of the most\nholy things, reserved from the fire: every oblation of theirs, every\nmeat-offering of theirs, and every sin-offering of theirs, and every\ntrespass-offering of theirs, which they shall render unto Me, shall be\nmost holy for thee and for thy sons. In the most holy place shalt thou\neat it; _every male_ shall eat it: it shall be holy unto thee.\u2019\u201d (Ver.\n8-10.)\n\nHere we have a type of the people of God looked at in another aspect.\nThey are here presented, not as workers, but as worshipers,\u2014not as\nLevites, but as priests. All believers\u2014all Christians\u2014all the children\nof God\u2014are priests. There is, according to the teaching of the New\nTestament, no such thing as a priest upon earth, save in the sense in\nwhich all believers are priests. A special priestly _caste_\u2014a certain\nclass of men set apart as priests\u2014is a thing not only unknown in\nChristianity, but most positively hostile to the spirit and principles\nthereof. We have already referred to this subject, and quoted the various\npassages of Scripture bearing upon it. We have a great High-Priest who\nhas passed into the heavens, for if He were on earth, He should not be\na priest. (Compare Heb. iv. 14 and viii. 4.) \u201cOur Lord sprang out of\nJuda; of which tribe Moses spake nothing concerning priesthood.\u201d Hence,\ntherefore, a sacrificing priest on the earth is a direct denial of the\ntruth of Scripture, and a complete setting aside of the glorious fact on\nwhich Christianity is based, namely, accomplished redemption. If there\nis any need of a priest now, to offer sacrifice for sins, then, most\nassuredly, redemption is not an accomplished fact. But Scripture, in\nhundreds of places, declares that it is, and therefore we need no more\noffering for sin. \u201cBut Christ being come a High-Priest of good things to\ncome, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, _not made with hands_,\nthat is to say, not of this building; neither by the blood of goats and\ncalves, but by His own blood, He entered in once into the holy place,\n_having obtained eternal redemption_.\u201d (Heb. ix. 11, 12.) So also, in\nchapter x. we read, \u201cBy one offering He hath perfected forever them that\nare sanctified.\u201d And again, \u201cTheir sins and iniquities will I remember\nno more. Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for\nsin.\u201d\n\nThis settles the great question as to priesthood and sacrifice for sin.\nChristians cannot be too clear or decided in reference to it. It lies\nat the very foundation of true Christianity, and demands the deep and\nserious attention of all who desire to walk in the clear light of a full\nsalvation, and to occupy the true Christian position. There is a strong\ntendency towards Judaism\u2014a vigorous effort to ingraft Christian forms\nupon the old Jewish stem. This is nothing new; but just now the enemy\nseems peculiarly busy. We can perceive a great leaning towards Romanism\nthroughout the length and breadth of christendom; and in nothing is this\nleaning more strikingly apparent than in the institutions of a special\npriestly order in the Church of God. We believe it to be a thoroughly\nantichristian institution. It is the denial of the common priesthood of\nall believers. If a certain set of men are ordained to occupy a place\nof peculiar nearness and sanctity, then where are the great mass of\nChristians to stand?\n\nThis is the question. It is precisely here that the great importance\nand gravity of this whole subject are made apparent. Let not the reader\nsuppose that we are contending for some peculiar theory of any particular\nclass or sect of Christians. Nothing is further from our thoughts. It\nis because we are convinced that the very foundations of the Christian\nfaith are involved in this question of priesthood that we urge its\nconsideration upon all with whom we have to do. We believe it will\ninvariably be found that in proportion as Christians become clear and\nsettled on the divine ground of accomplished redemption, they get further\nand further away from the Romanism and Judaism of an order of priests in\nthe Church of God. And, on the other hand, where souls are not clear,\nnot settled, not spiritual,\u2014where there is legality, carnality, and\nworldliness, there you will find a hankering after a humanly appointed\npriesthood. Nor is it difficult to see the reason of this. If a man is\nnot himself in a fit state to draw nigh to God, it will be a relief to\nhim to employ another to draw nigh for him. And most certainly, no man\nis in a fit state to draw nigh to a holy God who does not know that his\nsins are forgiven\u2014has not got a perfectly purged conscience\u2014is in a\ndark, doubting, legal state of soul. In order to come boldly into the\nholiest of all, we must know what the blood of Christ has done for us;\nwe must know that we ourselves are made priests to God; and that, in\nvirtue of the atoning death of Christ, we are brought so near to God that\nit is impossible for any order of men to come between. \u201cHe hath loved\nus, and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and made us priests\nunto God and His Father.\u201d (Rev. i.) \u201cBut ye are a chosen generation, _a\nroyal priesthood_, a holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show\nforth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His\nmarvelous light.\u201d And again, \u201cYe also, as lively stones, are built up a\nspiritual house, _a holy priesthood_, to offer up _spiritual sacrifices_,\nacceptable to God by Jesus Christ.\u201d (1 Pet. ii. 5, 9.) \u201cBy Him therefore\nlet us offer the _sacrifice of praise_ to God continually, that is,\nthe fruit of our lips giving thanks to His name. But to do good and to\ncommunicate forget not, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.\u201d\n(Heb. xiii. 15, 16.)\n\nHere we have the two great branches of spiritual sacrifice which, as\npriests, we are privileged to offer, namely, praise to God, doing good\nto men. The very youngest, the most inexperienced, the most unlettered\nChristian is capable of understanding these things. Who is there in\nall the family of God\u2014in all the priestly household of our divine\nHigh-Priest, who cannot, with his _heart_, say, \u201cThe Lord be praised\u201d?\nand who cannot, with his _hand_, do good to his fellow? And this is\npriestly worship and priestly service\u2014the common worship and service of\nall true Christians. True, the measure of spiritual power may vary; but\nall the children of God are constituted priests, one as much as another.\n\nNow, in the eighteenth chapter of Numbers we are presented with a very\nfull statement of the provision made for Aaron and his house, and in that\nprovision, a type of the spiritual portion of the Christian priesthood.\nAnd surely we cannot read the record without seeing what a royal portion\nis ours. \u201cEvery oblation of theirs, every meat-offering of theirs, and\nevery sin-offering of theirs, and every trespass-offering of theirs,\nwhich they shall render unto Me, shall be most holy for thee and for\n_thy sons. In the most holy place_ shalt thou eat it; _every male_ shall\neat it: it shall be holy unto thee.\u201d\n\nIt demands a very large measure of spiritual capacity to enter into the\ndepth and meaning of this marvelous passage. To eat the sin-offering or\nthe trespass-offering is, in figure, to make another\u2019s sin or trespass\none\u2019s own. This is very holy work. It is not every one who can, in\nspirit, identify himself with the sin of his brother. To do so in fact,\nin the way of atonement, is, we need hardly say, wholly out of question.\nThere was but one who could do this, and He\u2014adored forever be His\nname!\u2014has done it perfectly.\n\nBut there is such a thing as making my brother\u2019s sin my own, and bearing\nit in spirit before God, as though it were my own. This is shadowed forth\nby Aaron\u2019s sons eating the sin-offering in the most holy place. It was\nonly the _sons_ who did so.\u2014\u201cEvery _male_ shall eat it.\u201d[15] It was the\nvery highest order of priestly service. \u201cIn the most holy place shalt\nthou eat it.\u201d We need to be very near to Christ in order to enter into\nthe spiritual meaning and application of all this. It is a wonderfully\nblessed and holy exercise, and it can only be known in the immediate\npresence of God. How little we really know of this the heart can testify.\nOur tendency is, when a brother has sinned, to sit in judgment upon\nhim\u2014to take the place of a severe censor\u2014to look upon his sin as a\nsomething with which we have nothing whatever to do. This is to fail\nsadly in our priestly functions\u2014it is refusing to eat the sin-offering in\nthe most holy place. It is a most precious fruit of grace to be able so\nto identify one\u2019s self with an erring brother as to make his sin one\u2019s\nown\u2014to bear it, in spirit, before God.\n\nThis, truly, is a very high order of priestly service, and demands a\nlarge measure of the spirit and mind of Christ. It is only the spiritual\nwho really enter into this; and, alas! how few of us are truly spiritual!\n\u201cBrethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, _ye which are spiritual_,\nrestore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest\nthou also be tempted. Bear ye one another\u2019s burdens, and so fulfill the\nlaw of Christ.\u201d (Gal. vi. 1, 2.) May the Lord give us grace to fulfill\nthis blessed \u201claw.\u201d How unlike it is to every thing in us! How it rebukes\nour harshness and selfishness! Oh to be more like Christ in this as in\nall beside!\n\nBut there was another order of priestly privilege, not so high as that\nwhich we have been considering. \u201cAnd this is thine: the heave-offering\nof their _gift_, with all the wave-offerings of the children of Israel:\nI have given them unto thee, and to thy sons and to thy _daughters_ with\nthee, by a statute forever: _every one that is clean_ in thy house shall\neat of it.\u201d (Ver. 11.)\n\nThe daughters of Aaron were not to eat of the sin-offerings or the\ntrespass-offerings. They were provided for according to the utmost limit\nof their capacity; but there were certain functions which they could\nnot discharge\u2014certain privileges which lay beyond their range\u2014certain\nresponsibilities too weighty for them to sustain. It is far easier to\nhave fellowship with another in the presentation of a thank-offering than\nit is to make his sin our own. This latter demands a measure of priestly\nenergy which finds its type in Aaron\u2019s \u201csons,\u201d not in his \u201cdaughters.\u201d\nWe must be prepared for those varied measures amongst the members of the\npriestly household. We are all, blessed be God, on the same ground; we\nall stand in the same title; we are all in the same relationship, but our\ncapacities vary; and while we should all aim at the very highest standard\nof priestly service, and the very highest measure of priestly capacity,\nit is of no possible use to pretend to what we do not possess.\n\nOne thing, however, is clearly taught in verse 11, and that is, we must\nbe \u201c_clean_\u201d in order to enjoy any priestly privilege or eat of any\npriestly food\u2014clean, through the precious blood of Christ applied to our\nconscience\u2014clean, through the application of the Word, by the Spirit,\nto our habits, associations, and ways. When thus clean, whatever be our\ncapacity, we have the richest provision made for our souls, through\nthe precious grace of God. Hearken to the following words: \u201c_All the\nbest_ of the oil, and _all the best_ of the wine, and of the wheat, the\nfirst-fruits of them which they shall offer unto the Lord, them have I\ngiven thee. And whatsoever is _first ripe_ in the land, which they shall\nbring unto the Lord, shall be thine; _every one that is clean_ in thy\nhouse shall eat of it.\u201d (Ver. 12, 13.)[16]\n\nHere, assuredly, we have a princely portion provided for those who are\nmade priests unto God. They were to have the very best and the very first\nof every thing which the Lord\u2019s land produced. There was \u201cthe wine which\nmaketh glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and\nbread which strengtheneth man\u2019s heart.\u201d (Ps. civ. 15.)\n\nWhat a figure have we in all this of our portion in Christ! The olive,\nthe grape, and the finest of the wheat were pressed and bruised, in order\nto feed and gladden the priests of God; and the blessed Antitype of all\nthese has, in infinite grace, been bruised and crushed in death, in order\nthat, by His flesh and blood, He might minister life, strength, and\ngladness to His household. He, the precious Corn of wheat, fell into the\nground and died, that we might live; and the juices of the living Vine\nwere pressed to fill that cup of salvation of which we drink now, and\nshall drink forever, in the presence of our God.\n\nWhat, therefore, remains? What do we want, save an enlarged capacity to\nenjoy the fullness and blessedness of our portion in a crucified, risen,\nand glorified Saviour? We may well say, \u201cWe have all and abound.\u201d God\nhas given us all that even He could give\u2014the very best He had; He has\ngiven us His own portion; He has called us to sit down with Himself, in\nholy, happy fellowship, and feast upon the fatted calf; He has caused our\nears to hear, and our hearts, in some small degree, to enter into these\nmost marvelous words, \u201cLet _us_ eat and be merry.\u201d\n\nHow wonderful to think that nothing could satisfy the heart and mind of\nGod but to gather His people around Himself and feed them with that in\nwhich He Himself delights! \u201cTruly our fellowship is with the Father, and\nwith His Son Jesus Christ.\u201d (1 John i.) What more could even the love\nof God do for us than this? And for whom has He done it? For those who\nwere dead in trespasses and sins\u2014for aliens, enemies, guilty rebels\u2014for\ndogs of the Gentiles\u2014for those who were far from Him, having no hope, and\nwithout God in the world\u2014for those who, had we our deserts, should be\nnow burning in the eternal flames of hell. Oh, what wondrous grace! what\nprofound depths of sovereign mercy! and, we must add, what a divinely\nprecious atoning sacrifice, to bring poor, self-destroyed, guilty,\nhell-deserving sinners into such ineffable blessedness!\u2014to pluck us as\nbrands from everlasting burnings, and make us priests to God!\u2014to take\naway all our \u201cfilthy garments\u201d from us, and cleanse, clothe, and crown\nus, in His own presence, and to His own praise! May we praise Him. May\nour hearts and lives praise Him. May we know how to enjoy our priestly\nplace and portion, and to wear our mitre well. We can do nothing better\nthan praise God\u2014nothing higher than to present to Him, by Jesus Christ,\nthe fruit of our lips giving thanks to His name. This shall be our\neverlasting employment in that bright and blessed world to which we are\nhastening, and where we shall soon be, to dwell forever with Him who has\nloved us and given Himself for us\u2014our own blessed Saviour-God\u2014to go no\nmore out for evermore.\n\nIn verses 14-19 of our chapter we have instruction as to \u201cthe first-born\nof man and beast.\u201d We may remark that man is placed on a level with the\nunclean beast: both had to be redeemed. The unclean beast was unfit for\nGod, and so was man, unless redeemed by blood. The clean animal was not\nto be redeemed; it was fit for God\u2019s use, and was given to be the food of\nthe entire priestly household\u2014sons and daughters alike. In this we have\na type of Christ, in whom God can find His perfect delight\u2014the full joy\nof His heart\u2014the only object, throughout the wide universe, in which He\ncould find perfect rest and satisfaction. And\u2014wondrous thought!\u2014He has\ngiven Him to us, His priestly household, to be our food, our light, our\njoy, our all in all, forever.[17]\n\n \u201cJesus, of Thee we ne\u2019er would tire:\n The new and living food\n Can satisfy our heart\u2019s desire,\n And life is in Thy blood.\u201d\n\nThe reader will notice, in this chapter as elsewhere, that every fresh\nsubject is introduced by the words, \u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses,\u201d or\n\u201cunto Aaron.\u201d Thus, from verses 20-32 we are taught that the priests and\nLevites\u2014God\u2019s worshipers and workers\u2014were to have no inheritance among\nthe children of Israel, but were to be absolutely shut up to God Himself\nfor the supply of all their need. Most blessed position! Nothing can\nbe more lovely than the picture here presented. The children of Israel\nwere to bring their offerings and lay them down at the feet of Jehovah,\nand He, in His infinite grace, commanded His workers to pick up these\nprecious offerings\u2014the fruit of His people\u2019s devotedness\u2014and feed upon\nthem, in His own blessed presence, with thankful hearts. Thus the circle\nof blessing went round. God ministered to all the wants of His people,\nHis people were privileged to share the rich fruits of His bounty with\nthe priests and Levites, and these latter were permitted to taste the\nrare and exquisite pleasure of giving back to God of that which had flown\nfrom Him to them.\n\nAll this is divine. It is a striking figure of that which we should look\nfor in the Church of God now. As we have already remarked, God\u2019s people\nare presented, in this book, under three distinct phases, namely, as\nwarriors, workers, and worshipers; and in all three they are viewed as\nin the attitude of the most absolute dependence upon the living God. In\nour warfare, in our work, and in our worship we are _shut up to God_.\nPrecious fact! \u201cAll our springs are in Him.\u201d What more do we want? Shall\nwe turn to man or to this world for relief or resource? God forbid! Nay,\nrather let it be our one grand object to prove, in our entire history, in\nevery phase of our character, and in every department of our work, that\nGod is enough for our hearts.\n\nIt is truly deplorable to find God\u2019s people and Christ\u2019s servants looking\nto the world for support, and trembling at the thought of that support\nbeing withheld. Only let us try to imagine the Church of God in the days\nof Paul relying upon the Roman government for the support of its bishops,\nteachers, and evangelists. Ah, no, dear reader; the Church looked to its\ndivine Head in the heavens, and to the divine Spirit upon earth, for all\nits need. Why should it be otherwise now? The world is the world still;\nand the Church is not of the world, and should not look for the world\u2019s\ngold and silver. God will take care of His people and of His servants,\nif they will only trust Him. We may depend upon it, the _divinum donum_\n(God\u2019s gift) is far better for the Church than the _regium donum_ (the\ngovernment gift)\u2014no comparison in the estimation of a spiritual mind.\n\nMay all the saints of God, and all the servants of Christ, in every\nplace, apply their hearts earnestly to the consideration of these things;\nand may we have grace to confess practically, in the face of a godless,\nChristless, infidel world, that the living God is amply sufficient for\nour every need, not only while passing through the narrow archway of\ntime, but also for the boundless ocean of eternity. God grant it for\nChrist\u2019s sake.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIX.\n\n\nOne of the most important sections of the book of Numbers now lies open\nbefore us, presenting for our consideration the deeply interesting and\ninstructive ordinance of \u201cThe Red Heifer.\u201d A thoughtful student of\nScripture would naturally feel disposed to inquire why it is that we get\nthis type in Numbers and not in Leviticus. In the first seven chapters\nof the latter book we have a very elaborate statement of the doctrine of\nsacrifice, and yet we have no allusion whatever to the red heifer. Why is\nthis? What are we to learn from the fact that this beautiful ordinance\nis presented in the book of Numbers and no where else. We believe it\nfurnishes another striking illustration of the distinctive character of\nour book. The red heifer is pre-eminently a wilderness-type. It was God\u2019s\nprovision for defilements by the way, and it prefigures the death of\nChrist as a purification for sin, to meet our need in passing through a\ndefiling world home to our eternal rest above. It is a most instructive\nfigure, and unfolds most precious and needed truth. May the Holy Ghost,\nwho has penned the record, be graciously pleased to expound and apply it\nto our souls.\n\n\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, \u2018This is the\nordinance of the law which the Lord hath commanded, saying, Speak unto\nthe children of Israel that they bring thee a red heifer without spot,\nwherein is no blemish, and upon which never came yoke.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 1, 2.)\n\nWhen, with the eye of faith, we gaze upon the Lord Jesus, we not only see\nHim to be the spotless One in His own holy Person, but also One who never\nbore the yoke of sin. The Holy Ghost is ever the jealous Guardian of the\nPerson of Christ, and He delights to present Him to the soul in all His\nexcellency and preciousness. Hence it is that every type and every shadow\ndesigned to set Him forth exhibits the same careful guardianship. Thus,\nin the red heifer we are taught that not only was our blessed Saviour\nas to His human nature intrinsically and inherently pure and spotless,\nbut that as to His birth and relationships He stood perfectly clear from\nevery mark and trace of sin. No yoke of sin ever came upon His sacred\nneck. When He speaks of \u201cMy yoke\u201d (Matt. xi. 29.), it was the yoke of\nimplicit subjection to the Father\u2019s will in all things. This was the only\nyoke He ever wore; and this yoke was never off for one moment during the\nentire of His spotless and perfect career\u2014from the manger, where He lay a\nhelpless babe, to the cross, where He expired as a victim.\n\nBut He wore no yoke of sin. Let this be distinctly understood. He went\nto the cross to expiate our sins, to lay the ground-work of our perfect\npurification from all sin; but He did this as One who had never, at any\ntime during His blessed life, worn the yoke of sin. He was \u201cwithout sin,\u201d\nand as such, was perfectly fitted to do the great and glorious work of\nexpiation. To think of Him as bearing the yoke of sin in His life, would\nbe to think of Him as unfit to atone for it in His death. \u201c_Wherein_\nis no blemish, and _whereon_ never came yoke.\u201d It is quite as needful\nto remember and weigh the force of the word \u201cwhereon\u201d as of the word\n\u201cwherein.\u201d Both expressions are designed by the Holy Ghost to set forth\nthe perfection of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, who was not only\ninternally spotless, but also externally free from every trace of sin.\nNeither in His Person nor yet in His relationships was He in any wise\nobnoxious to the claims of sin or death. He\u2014adored forever be His blessed\nname!\u2014entered into all the reality of our circumstances and condition;\nbut _in_ Him was no sin, and _on_ Him no yoke of sin.\n\n \u201cTouched with a sympathy within,\n He knows our feeble frame;\n He knows what sore temptations mean,\n For He has felt the same.\n\n \u201cBut spotless, undefiled, and pure,\n The great Redeemer stood,\n While Satan\u2019s fiery darts He bore,\n And did resist to blood.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd ye shall give her unto Eleazar the priest, that he may bring her\nforth without the camp, and one shall slay her before his face.\u201d (Ver. 3.)\n\nThe thoughtful reader of Scripture will not pass over any expression,\nhow trivial soever it may seem to be. Such an one will ever bear in mind\nthat the book which lies open before him is from God, and therefore\nperfect\u2014perfect as a whole\u2014perfect in all its parts. Every little word\nis pregnant with meaning; each little point, feature, and circumstance\ncontains some spiritual teaching for the soul. No doubt, infidels and\nrationalists altogether fail in seizing this weighty fact, and, as a\nconsequence, when they approach the divine volume, they make the saddest\nhavoc. They see flaws where the spiritual student sees only gems; they\nsee incongruities and contradictions where the devout, self-distrusting,\nSpirit-taught disciple beholds divine harmonies and moral glories.\n\nThis is only what we might expect, and it is well to remember it\nnowadays. \u201cGod is His own interpreter\u201d in Scripture as well as in\nprovidence; and if we wait on Him, He will assuredly make it plain. But\nas in providence \u201cblind unbelief is sure to err, and scan His ways in\nvain,\u201d so in Scripture it is sure to err, and scan His lines in vain.\nAnd the devout poet might have gone farther; for, most surely, unbelief\nwill not only scan God\u2019s ways and God\u2019s Word in vain, but turn both the\none and the other into an occasion of making a blasphemous attack upon\nGod Himself\u2014upon His nature, and upon His character, as well as upon the\nrevelation which He has been pleased to give us. The infidel would rudely\nsmash the lamp of inspiration, quench its heavenly light, and involve us\nall in that deep gloom and moral darkness which inwrap his misguided\nmind.\n\nWe have been led into the foregoing train of thought while meditating\nupon the third verse of our chapter. We are exceedingly desirous to\ncultivate the habit of profound and careful study of holy Scripture.\nIt is of immense importance. To say or to think that there is so much\nas a single clause, or a single expression, from cover to cover of the\ninspired volume, unworthy of our prayerful meditation, is to imply that\nGod the Holy Ghost has thought it worth His while to write what we do not\nthink it worth our while to study. \u201cAll Scripture is given by inspiration\nof God.\u201d (2 Tim. iii. 16.) This commands our reverence. \u201cWhatsoever\nthings were written aforetime were written for our learning.\u201d (Rom. xv.\n4.) This awakens our personal interest. The former of these quotations\nproves that Scripture comes _from God_; the latter proves that it comes\n_to us_. That and this, taken together, bind us to God by the divine link\nof holy Scripture\u2014a link which the devil, in this our day, is doing his\nvery utmost to snap; and that, too, by means of agents of acknowledged\nmoral worth and intellectual power. The devil does not select an ignorant\nor immoral man to make his grand and special attacks upon the Bible, for\nhe knows full well that the former could not speak, and the latter would\nnot get a hearing; but he craftily takes up some amiable, benevolent,\nand popular person\u2014some one of blameless morals\u2014a laborious student, a\nprofound scholar, a deep and original thinker. Thus he throws dust in\nthe eyes of the simple, the unlearned, and the unwary.\n\nChristian reader, we pray you to remember this. If we can deepen in\nyour soul the sense of the unspeakable value of your Bible, if we can\nwarn you off from the dangerous rocks and quicksands of rationalism and\ninfidelity, if we are made the means of stablishing and strengthening\nyou in the assurance that when you are hanging over the sacred page of\nScripture you are drinking at a fountain every drop of which has flowed\ninto it from the very bosom of God Himself,\u2014if we can reach all or any of\nthese results, we shall not regret the digression from our chapter, to\nwhich we now return.\n\n\u201cAnd ye shall give her unto Eleazar the priest, that he may bring her\nforth without the camp, and one shall slay her before his face.\u201d We have,\nin the priest and the victim, a joint type of the Person of Christ. He\nwas at once the Victim and the Priest. But He did not enter upon His\npriestly functions until His work as a victim was accomplished. This\nwill explain the expression in the last clause of the third verse\u2014\u201c_one\nshall slay her before his face_.\u201d The death of Christ was accomplished\non earth, and could not, therefore, be represented as the act of\npriesthood. Heaven, not earth, is the sphere of His priestly service. The\napostle, in the epistle to the Hebrews, expressly declares, as the sum\nof a most elaborate and amazing piece of argument, that \u201cwe have such a\nHigh-Priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty\nin the heavens; a Minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle,\nwhich the Lord pitched, and not man. For every high-priest is ordained\nto offer gifts and sacrifices: wherefore it is of necessity that this\nMan have somewhat also to offer. _For if He were on earth, He should not\nbe a priest_, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according\nto the law.\u201d (Heb. viii. 1-4.) \u201cBut Christ being come a High-Priest of\ngood things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made\nwith hands, that is to say, not of this building; neither by the blood of\ngoats and calves, but by His own blood He entered in once into the holy\nplace, having obtained eternal redemption.\u201d \u201cFor Christ is not entered\ninto the holy places made with hands, the figures of the true, but _into\nheaven itself_, now to appear in the presence of God for us.\u201d (Chap. ix.\n11, 12, 24.) \u201cBut this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins,\nforever _sat down on the right hand of God_.\u201d (Chap. x. 12.)\n\nFrom all these passages, taken in connection with Numbers xix. 3, we\nlearn two things, namely, that the death of Christ is not presented\nas the proper, ordinary act of priesthood; and further, that heaven,\nnot earth, is the sphere of His priestly ministry. There is nothing\nnew in these statements\u2014others have advanced them repeatedly, but it\nis important to notice every thing tending to illustrate the divine\nperfection and precision of holy Scripture. It is deeply interesting to\nfind a truth which shines brightly in the pages of the New Testament\nwrapped up in some ordinance or ceremony of Old-Testament times. Such\ndiscoveries are ever welcome to the intelligent reader of the Word. The\ntruth, no doubt, is the same wherever it is found; but when it bursts\nupon us, with meridian brightness, in the New-Testament scriptures,\nand is divinely shadowed forth in the Old, we not only have the truth\nestablished, but the unity of the volume illustrated and enforced.\n\nBut we must not pass over unnoticed the place where the death of the\nvictim was accomplished. \u201cThat he may bring her forth without the camp.\u201d\nAs has already been remarked, the priest and the victim are identified,\nand form a joint type of Christ; but it is added, \u201cone shall slay her\nbefore his face,\u201d simply because the death of Christ could not be\nrepresented as the act of priesthood. What marvelous accuracy! And yet it\nis not marvelous, for what else should we look for in a book every line\nof which is from God Himself? Had it been said, He shall slay her, then\nNumbers xix. would be at variance with the epistle to the Hebrews. But\nno; the harmonies of the volume shine forth among its brightest glories.\nMay we have grace to discern and appreciate them.\n\nJesus, then, suffered without the gate.\u2014\u201cWherefore Jesus also, that He\nmight sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered without the gate.\u201d\n(Heb. xiii. 12.) He took the outside place, and His voice falls on the\near from thence. Do we listen to it? do we understand it? Should we\nnot consider more seriously the place where Jesus died? Are we to rest\nsatisfied with reaping the benefits of Christ\u2019s death, without seeking\nfellowship with Him in His rejection? God forbid! \u201cLet us _go forth_,\ntherefore, unto Him without the camp, bearing His reproach.\u201d[18] There\nis immense power in these words. They should rouse our whole moral being\nto seek more complete identification with a rejected Saviour. Shall we\nsee Him die outside, while we reap the benefits of His death and remain\nwithin? Shall we seek a home and a place and a name and a portion in\nthat world from which our Lord and Master is an outcast? Shall we aim\nat getting on in a world which could not tolerate that blessed One to\nwhom we owe our present and everlasting felicity? Shall we aspire after\nhonor, position, and wealth where our Master found only a manger, a\ncross, a borrowed grave? May the language of our _hearts_ be, \u201cFar be the\n_thought_!\u201d and may the language of our _lives_ be, \u201cFar be the _thing_!\u201d\nMay we, by the grace of God, yield a more hearty response to the Spirit\u2019s\ncall to \u201c_go forth_.\u201d\n\nChristian reader, let us never forget that when we look at the death of\nChrist, we see two things, namely, the death of a victim and the death of\na martyr\u2014a victim for sin, a martyr for righteousness\u2014a victim under the\nhand of God, a martyr under the hand of man. He suffered for sin that\nwe might never suffer. Blessed be His name for evermore! But then, His\nmartyr-sufferings\u2014His sufferings for righteousness under the hand of man,\nthese we may know; \u201cfor unto you _it is given_, in the behalf of Christ,\nnot only to believe on Him, but also to _suffer_ for His sake.\u201d (Phil. i.\n29.) It is a positive _gift_ to be allowed to suffer with Christ. Do we\nso esteem it?\n\nIn contemplating the death of Christ, as typified by the ordinance of the\nred heifer, we see not only the complete putting away of sin, but also\nthe judgment of this present evil world. \u201cHe gave Himself for our sins\nthat He might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the\nwill of God and our Father.\u201d (Gal. i. 4.) Here the two things are put\ntogether by God; and, most surely, they should never be separated by us.\nWe have the judgment of sin, root and branch, and the judgment of this\nworld. The former should give perfect repose to the exercised conscience,\nwhile the latter should deliver the heart from the insnaring influence of\nthe world, in all its multiplied forms. That purges the conscience from\nall sense of guilt; this snaps the link which binds the heart and the\nworld together.\n\nNow, it is most needful for the reader to understand and enter\nexperimentally into the connection existing between these two things.\nIt is quite possible to miss this grand link, even while holding and\ncontending for a vast amount of evangelical truth; and it may be\nconfidently affirmed that where this link is missing, there must be a\nvery serious defect in the Christian character. We frequently meet with\nearnest souls who have been brought under the convicting and awakening\npower of the Holy Spirit, but who have not yet known, for the ease of\ntheir troubled consciences, the full value of the atoning death of\nChrist, as putting away forever all their sins, and bringing them nigh\nto God, without a stain upon the soul or a sting in the conscience. If\nthis be the present actual condition of the reader, he would need to\nconsider the first clause of the verse just quoted\u2014\u201cHe gave Himself for\nour sins.\u201d This is a most blessed statement for a troubled soul. It\nsettles the whole question of sin. If it be true that Christ gave Himself\nfor my sins, what remains for me but to rejoice in the precious fact that\nmy sins are all gone? The One who took my place, who stood charged with\nmy sins, who suffered in my room and stead, is now at the right hand of\nGod, crowned with glory and honor. This is enough. My sins are all gone\nforever. If they were not, _He_ could not be where he now is. The crown\nof glory which wreathes His blessed brow is the proof that my sins are\nperfectly atoned for, and therefore perfect peace is my portion\u2014a peace\nas perfect as the work of Christ can make it.\n\nBut then let us never forget that the very same work that has forever\nput away our sins has delivered us from this present evil world. The\ntwo things go together. Christ has not only delivered me from the\nconsequences of my sins, but also from the present power of sin, and\nfrom the claims and influences of that thing which Scripture calls \u201cthe\nworld.\u201d All this, however, will come more fully out as we proceed with\nour chapter.\n\n\u201cAnd Eleazar the priest shall take of her blood with his finger,\nand sprinkle of her blood directly before the tabernacle of the\ncongregation seven times.\u201d Here we have the solid ground-work of all\nreal purification. We know that in the type before us it is only, as the\ninspired apostle tells us, a question of \u201csanctifying to the purifying\nof the flesh.\u201d (Heb. ix. 13.) But we have to look beyond the type to\nthe Antitype\u2014beyond the shadow to the substance. In the sevenfold\nsprinkling of the blood of the red heifer before the tabernacle of the\ncongregation, we have a figure of the perfect presentation of the blood\nof Christ to God, as the only ground of the meeting-place between God\nand the conscience. The number \u201cseven,\u201d as has frequently been observed,\nis expressive of perfection; and in the figure before us, we see the\nperfection attaching to the death of Christ as an atonement for sin,\npresented to and accepted by God. All rests upon this divine ground. The\nblood has been shed and presented to a holy God as a perfect atonement\nfor sin. This, when simply received by faith, must relieve the conscience\nfrom all sense of guilt, and all fear of condemnation. There is nothing\nbefore God save the perfection of the atoning work of Christ. Sin has\nbeen judged, and our sins put away; they have been completely obliterated\nby the precious blood of Christ. To believe this, is to enter into\nperfect repose of conscience.\n\nAnd here let the reader carefully note that there is no further allusion\nto the sprinkling of blood throughout the entire of this singularly\ninteresting chapter. This is precisely in keeping with the doctrine of\nHebrews ix, x. It is but another illustration of the divine harmony\nof the volume. The sacrifice of Christ, being divinely perfect, needs\nnot to be repeated. Its efficacy is divine and eternal. \u201cBut Christ\nbeing come a High-Priest of good things to come, by a greater and more\nperfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this\nbuilding; neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by His own\nblood, He entered in once into the holy place, having obtained _eternal_\nredemption. For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and _the ashes of\na heifer_ sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the\nflesh; how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal\nSpirit offered Himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from\ndead works to serve the living God?\u201d (Heb. ix. 11-14.) Observe the force\nof these two words, \u201c_once_\u201d and \u201c_eternal_.\u201d See how they set forth the\ncompleteness and divine efficacy of the sacrifice of Christ. The blood\nwas shed once and forever. To think of a repetition of that great work\nwould be to deny its everlasting and all-sufficient value, and reduce it\nto the level of the blood of bulls and goats.\n\nBut further\u2014\u201cIt was therefore necessary that the patterns of things\nin the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things\nthemselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ is not entered\ninto the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true;\nbut into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us: nor\nyet _that He should offer Himself often_, as the high-priest entereth\ninto the holy place every year with blood of others; for then _must He\noften have suffered_ since the foundation of the world; but now _once_ in\nthe end of the world hath. He appeared _to put away sin_ by the sacrifice\nof Himself.\u201d Sin, therefore, has been put away. It cannot be put away\nand at the same time be on the believer\u2019s conscience. This is plain. It\nmust either be admitted that the believer\u2019s sins are blotted out, and his\nconscience perfectly purged, or that Christ must die over again. But this\nlatter is not only needless, but wholly out of the question; for, as the\napostle goes on to say, \u201cas it is appointed unto men _once_ to die, but\nafter this the judgment; so Christ was once offered to bear the sins of\nmany; and unto them that look for Him shall He appear the second time,\nwithout sin, unto salvation.\u201d\n\nThere is something most marvelous in the patient elaborateness with which\nthe Holy Ghost argues out this entire subject. He expounds, illustrates,\nand enforces the great doctrine of the completeness of the sacrifice in\nsuch a way as to carry conviction to the soul, and relieve the conscience\nof its heavy burden. Such is the exceeding grace of God, that He has not\nonly accomplished the work of eternal redemption for us, but, in the most\npatient and painstaking manner, has argued and reasoned, and proved the\nwhole point in question, so as not to leave one hair\u2019s breadth of ground\non which to base an objection. Let us hearken to His further powerful\nreasonings, and may the Spirit apply them in power to the heart of the\nanxious reader.\n\n\u201cFor the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very\nimage of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered\nyear by year continually make the comers thereunto _perfect_. For then\nwould they not have _ceased to be offered_? because that the worshipers\n_once purged_ should have had _no more conscience of sins_. But in those\nsacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. For it\nis not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away\nsins.\u201d But that which the blood of bulls could never do, the blood of\nJesus has forever done. This makes all the difference. All the blood that\never flowed around Israel\u2019s altars\u2014the millions of sacrifices offered\naccording to the requirements of the Mosaic ritual\u2014could not blot out\none stain from the conscience, or justify a sin-hating God in receiving\na sinner to Himself. \u201cIt is not possible that the blood of bulls and of\ngoats should take away sins.\u201d \u201cWherefore when He cometh into the world\nHe saith, \u2018Sacrifice and offering Thou wouldest not, but a body hast\nThou prepared Me: in burnt-offerings and sacrifices for sin Thou hast\nhad no pleasure. Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it\nis written of Me,) to do Thy will, O God.\u2019 ... By the which will we are\nsanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ _once_.\u201d Mark\nthe contrast. God had no pleasure in the endless round of sacrifices\nunder the law,\u2014they did not please Him. They left wholly unaccomplished\nthat which He had in His loving heart to do for His people, namely, to\nrid them completely of sin\u2019s heavy load, and bring them unto Himself,\nin perfect peace of conscience and liberty of heart. This, Jesus, by\nthe one offering of His blessed body, did. He did the will of God; and,\nblessed forever be His name, He has not to do His work over again. We may\nrefuse to believe that the work is done, refuse to commit our souls to\nits efficacy\u2014to enter into the rest which it is calculated to impart\u2014to\nenjoy the holy liberty of spirit which it is fitted to yield; but there\nstands the work in its own imperishable virtue; and there, too, stand\nthe Spirit\u2019s arguments respecting that work, in their own unanswerable\nforce and clearness; and neither Satan\u2019s dark suggestions nor our own\nunbelieving reasonings can ever touch either the one or the other. They\nmay, and, alas! they do, most sadly interfere with our soul\u2019s enjoyment\nof the truth; but the truth itself remains ever the same.\n\n\u201cAnd every priest _standeth daily_ ministering and _offering oftentimes\nthe same sacrifices, which can never take away sins_: but this Man, after\nHe had offered _one sacrifice_ for sins, _forever sat down_ on the right\nhand of God; from henceforth expecting till His enemies be made His\nfootstool. For _by one offering_ He hath perfected forever them that\nare sanctified.\u201d It is due to the blood of Christ that it should impart\neternal perfection; and, we may surely add, it is due to it likewise that\nour souls should taste that perfection. No one need ever imagine that\nhe is doing honor to the work of Christ, or to the Spirit\u2019s testimony\nrespecting that work, when he refuses to accept that perfect remission of\nsins which is proclaimed to him through the blood of the cross. It is no\nsign of true piety, or of pure religion, to deny what the grace of God\nhas done for us in Christ, and what the record of the Eternal Spirit has\npresented to our souls on the page of inspiration.\n\nChristian reader, anxious inquirer, does it not seem strange that when\nthe Word of God presents to our view Christ seated at the right hand of\nGod, in virtue of accomplished redemption, we should be virtually in no\nwise better off than those who had merely a human priest standing daily\nministering, and offering the same round of sacrifices? We have a divine\nPriest, who has sat down forever. They had a merely human priest, who\ncould never, in his official capacity, sit down at all; and yet are we,\nin the state of the mind, in the apprehension of the soul, in the actual\ncondition of the conscience, in no respect better off than they? Can it\nbe possible that, with a perfect work to rest upon, our souls should\nnever know perfect rest? The Holy Ghost, as we have seen in these various\nquotations taken from the epistle to the Hebrews, has left nothing unsaid\nto satisfy our souls as to the question of the complete putting away\nof sin by the precious blood of Christ. Why, then, should you not this\nmoment enjoy full, settled peace of conscience? Has the blood of Jesus\ndone nothing more for you than the blood of a bullock did for a Jewish\nworshiper?\n\nIt may be, however, that the reader is ready to say, in reply to all that\nwe have been seeking to urge upon him, \u201cI do not, in the least, doubt\nthe efficacy of the blood of Jesus. I believe it cleanseth from all sin.\nI believe, most thoroughly, that all who simply put their trust in that\nblood are perfectly safe, and will be eternally happy. My difficulty does\nnot lie here at all. What troubles me is not the efficacy of the blood,\nin which I fully believe, but _my own personal interest in that blood_,\nof which I have no satisfactory evidence. This is the secret of all my\ntrouble. The doctrine of the blood is as clear as a sunbeam, but the\nquestion of _my_ interest therein is involved in hopeless obscurity.\u201d\n\nNow, if this be at all the embodiment of the reader\u2019s feelings on this\nmomentous subject, it only proves the necessity of his deeply pondering\nthe fourth verse of the nineteenth of Numbers. There he will see that\nthe true basis of all purification is found in this, that the blood of\natonement has been presented to God, and accepted by Him. This is a\nmost precious truth, but one little understood. It is of all importance\nthat the really anxious soul should have a clear view of the subject of\natonement. It is so natural to us all to be occupied with our thoughts\nand feelings about the blood of Christ, rather than with the blood\nitself, and with God\u2019s thoughts respecting it. If the blood has been\nperfectly presented to God, if He has accepted it, if He has glorified\nHimself in the putting away of sin, then what remains for the divinely\nexercised conscience but to find perfect repose in that which has met all\nthe claims of God, harmonized His attributes, and laid the foundations of\nthat marvelous platform whereon a sin-hating God and a poor sin-destroyed\nsinner can meet? Why introduce the question of my interest in the blood\nof Christ, as though that work were not complete without aught of mine,\ncall it what you will,\u2014my interest, my feelings, my experience, my\nappreciation, my appropriation, my any thing? Why not rest in Christ\nalone? This would be really having an interest in Him. But the very\nmoment the heart gets occupied with the question of its own interest, the\nmoment the eye is withdrawn from that divine object which the Word of God\nand the Holy Ghost present, then spiritual darkness and perplexity must\nensue, and the soul, instead of rejoicing in the perfection of the work\nof Christ, is tormented by looking at its own poor, imperfect feelings.\n\n \u201cTh\u2019 atoning work is done,\n The Victim\u2019s blood is shed,\n And Jesus now is gone\n _His_ people\u2019s cause to plead.\n He stands in heav\u2019n their great High-Priest,\n And bears their names upon His breast.\u201d\n\nHere, blessed be God, we have the stable ground-work of \u201cpurification\nfor sin,\u201d and of perfect peace for the conscience. \u201cThe atoning work is\ndone.\u201d All is finished. The great Antitype of the red heifer has been\nslain. He gave Himself up to death, under the wrath and judgment of a\nrighteous God, that all who simply put their trust in Him might know,\nin the deep secret of their own souls, divine purification and perfect\npeace. We are purified, as to the conscience, not by our thoughts about\nthe blood, but by the blood itself. We must insist upon this. God Himself\nhas made out our title for us, and that title is found in the blood\n_alone_. Oh, that most precious blood of Jesus, that speaks profound\npeace to every troubled soul that will simply lean upon its eternal\nefficacy! Why, we may ask, is it that the blessed doctrine of the blood\nis so little understood and appreciated? Why will people persist in\nlooking to aught else, or in mingling aught else with it? May the Holy\nGhost lead the anxious reader, as he reads these lines, to stay his heart\nand conscience upon the atoning sacrifice of the Lamb of God.\n\nHaving thus endeavored to present to the reader the precious truth\nunfolded to us in the _death_ of the red heifer, we shall now ask him\nto meditate for a few moments upon the _burning_ of the heifer. We have\nlooked at the _blood_, let us now gaze upon the _ashes_. In the former,\nwe have the sacrificial death of Christ as the only purification for\nsin; in the latter, we have the remembrance of that death applied to the\nheart by the Spirit, through the Word, in order to remove any defilement\ncontracted in our walk from day to day. This gives great completeness\nand beauty to this most interesting type. God has not only made provision\nfor past sins, but also for present defilement, so that we may be ever\nbefore Him in all the value and credit of the perfect work of Christ. He\nwould have us treading the courts of His sanctuary, the holy precincts\nof His presence, \u201cclean every whit.\u201d And not only does He Himself see\nus thus, but, blessed forever be His name, He would have us thus in\nour own inward self-consciousness. He would give us, by His Spirit,\nthrough the Word, the deep inward sense of cleanness in His sight, so\nthat the current of our communion with Him may flow on without a ripple\nand without a curve. \u201cIf we walk in the light, as He is in the light,\nwe have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His\nSon cleanseth us from all sin.\u201d (1 John i.) But if we fail to walk in\nthe light\u2014if we forget, and, in our forgetfulness, touch the unclean\nthing, how is our communion to be restored? Only by the removal of the\ndefilement. And how is this to be effected? By the application to our\nhearts and consciences of the precious truth of the death of Christ. The\nHoly Ghost produces self-judgment, and brings to our remembrance the\nprecious truth that Christ suffered death for that defilement which we\nso lightly and indifferently contract. It is not a fresh sprinkling of\nthe blood of Christ\u2014a thing unknown in Scripture,\u2014but the remembrance of\nHis death brought home, in fresh power, to the contrite heart, by the\nministry of the Holy Ghost.\n\n\u201cAnd one shall burn the heifer in his sight.... And the priest shall take\ncedar-wood and hyssop and scarlet, and cast it into the midst of the\nburning of the heifer.... And a man that is clean shall gather up the\nashes of the heifer, and lay them up without the camp in a clean place,\nand it shall be kept for the congregation of the children of Israel for a\nwater of separation: it is a purification for sin.\u201d\n\nIt is the purpose of God that His children should be purified from all\niniquity, and that they should walk in separation from this present evil\nworld, where all is death and defilement. This separation is effected\nby the action of the Word on the heart, by the power of the Holy Ghost.\n\u201cGrace to you and peace from God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ,\nwho gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from this present\nevil world, according to the will of God and our Father.\u201d (Gal. i. 4.)\nAnd again, \u201cLooking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing\nof the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; who gave Himself for us,\nthat He might _redeem_ us from all iniquity, and _purify_ unto Himself a\npeculiar people, zealous of good works.\u201d (Titus ii. 13, 14.)\n\nIt is remarkable how constantly the Spirit of God presents, in intimate\nconnection, the full relief of the conscience from all sense of guilt,\nand the deliverance of the heart from the moral influence of this present\nevil world. Now, it should be our care, beloved Christian reader, to\nmaintain the integrity of this connection. Of course, it is only by\nthe gracious energy of the Holy Ghost that we can do so; but we ought\nto seek earnestly to understand and practically carry out the blessed\nlink of connection between the death of Christ as an atonement for sin\nand as the moral power of separation from this world. Many of the people\nof God never get beyond the former, if they even get that length. Many\nseem to be quite satisfied with the knowledge of the forgiveness of sins\nthrough the atoning work of Christ, while, at the same time, they fail to\nrealize deadness to the world in virtue of the death of Christ and their\nidentification with Him therein.\n\nNow, when we stand and gaze upon the burning of the red heifer in\nNumbers xix.\u2014when we examine that mystic heap of ashes, what do we\nfind? It may be said, in reply, We find our sins there. True, thanks\nbe to God and to the Son of His love, we do indeed find our sins, our\niniquities, our trespasses, our deep crimson guilt, all reduced to ashes;\nbut is there nothing more? can we not, by a careful analysis, discover\nmore? Unquestionably. We find nature there, in every stage of its\nexistence\u2014from the highest to the lowest point in its history. Moreover,\nwe find all the glory of this world there. The cedar and the hyssop\nrepresent nature in its widest extremes; and in giving its extremes,\nthey take in all that lies between. \u201cSolomon spake of trees, from the\ncedar-tree that is in Lebanon even unto the hyssop that springeth out of\nthe wall.\u201d\n\n\u201cScarlet\u201d is viewed, by those who have carefully examined Scripture on\nthe point, as the type or expression of human splendor, worldly grandeur,\nthe glory of this world, the glory of man. Hence, therefore, we see in\nthe burning of the heifer, the end of all worldly greatness, human glory,\nand the complete setting aside of the flesh with all its belongings.\nThis renders the burning of the heifer deeply significant. It shadows\nforth a truth too little known, and when known, too readily forgotten\u2014a\ntruth embodied in these memorable words of the apostle, \u201cGod forbid that\nI should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, whereby the\nworld is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.\u201d\n\nWe are all far too prone to accept the cross as the ground of escape from\nall the consequences of our sins, and of full acceptance with God, and,\nat the same time, refuse it as the ground of our complete separation from\nthe world. True it is, thanks and praise be to our God, the solid ground\nof our deliverance from guilt and consequent condemnation; but it is\nmore than this. It has severed us forever from all that pertains to this\nworld, through which we are passing. Are my sins put away? Yes, blessed\nbe the God of all grace. According to what? According to the perfection\nof Christ\u2019s atoning sacrifice as estimated by God Himself. Well, then,\nsuch precisely is the measure of our deliverance from this present evil\nworld\u2014from its fashions, its maxims, its habits, its principles. The\nbeliever has absolutely nothing in common with this world, in so far\nas he enters into the spirit and power of the cross of the Lord Jesus\nChrist. That cross has dislodged him from every thing here below, and\nmade him a pilgrim and a stranger in this world. The truly devoted heart\nsees the dark shadow of the cross looming over all the glitter and glare,\nthe pomp and fashion of this world. Paul saw this, and the sight of it\ncaused him to esteem the world, in its very highest aspect, in its most\nattractive forms, in its brightest glories, as dross.\n\nSuch was the estimate formed of this world by one who had been brought up\nat the feet of Gamaliel. \u201cThe world is crucified unto me,\u201d said he, \u201cand\nI unto the world.\u201d Such was Paul, and such should every Christian be\u2014a\nstranger on earth, a citizen of heaven, and this not merely in sentiment\nand theory, but in downright fact and reality; for as surely as our\ndeliverance from hell is more than a mere sentiment or theory, so surely\nis our separation from this present evil age. The one is as positive and\nas real as the other.\n\nBut here let us ask, Why is not this great practical truth more pressed\nhome upon the hearts of evangelical Christians at the present moment? why\nare we so slow to urge upon one another the separating power of the cross\nof Christ? If my heart loves Jesus, I shall not seek a place, a portion,\nor a name where He only found a malefactor\u2019s cross. This, dear reader,\nis the simple way to look at the matter. Do you really love Christ? has\nyour heart been touched and attracted by His wondrous love to you? If so,\nremember that He was cast out by this world. Yes, Jesus was and still is\nan outcast from this world. There is no change. The world is the world\nstill; and be it remembered that one of Satan\u2019s special devices is to\nlead people to accept salvation from Christ, while at the same time they\nrefuse to be identified with Him in His rejection\u2014to avail themselves of\nthe atoning work of the cross, while abiding comfortably in the world\nthat is stained with the guilt of nailing Christ thereto. In other words,\nhe leads people to think and to say that the offense of the cross has\nceased; that the world of the nineteenth century is totally different\nfrom the world of the first; that if the Lord Jesus were on earth now,\nHe would meet with very different treatment from that which He received\nthen; that it is not now a pagan world, but a Christian one, and this\nmakes a material and a fundamental difference; that now it is quite right\nfor a Christian to accept of citizenship in this world\u2014to have a name, a\nplace, and a portion here, seeing it is not the same world at all as that\nwhich nailed the Son of God to Calvary\u2019s cursed tree.\n\nNow, we feel it incumbent on us to press upon all who read these lines\nthat this is, in very deed, a lie of the arch-enemy of souls. The world\nis not changed. It may have changed its dress, but it has not changed\nits nature, its spirit, its principles. It hates Jesus as cordially as\nwhen the cry went forth, \u201cAway with Him! Crucify Him!\u201d There is really no\nchange. If only we try the world by the same grand test, we shall find\nit to be the same evil, God-hating, Christ-rejecting world as ever. And\nwhat is that test? Christ crucified. May this solemn truth be engraved\non our hearts. May we realize and manifest its formative power. May it\ndetach us more completely from all that belongs to the world. May we be\nenabled to understand more fully the truth presented in the ashes of the\nred heifer. Then shall our separation from the world, and our dedication\nto Christ, be more intense and real. The Lord, in His exceeding goodness,\ngrant that thus it may be, with all His people, in this day of hollow,\nworldly, half-and-half profession.\n\nLet us now consider for a moment how the ashes were to be applied.\n\n\u201cHe that toucheth the dead body of any man shall be unclean seven days.\nHe shall purify himself with it on the third day, and on the seventh day\nhe shall be clean; but if he purify not himself the third day, then the\nseventh day he shall not be clean. Whosoever toucheth the dead body of\nany man that is dead, and purifieth not himself, defileth the tabernacle\nof the Lord; and that soul shall be cut off from Israel; because the\nwater of separation was not sprinkled upon him, he shall be unclean; his\nuncleanness is yet upon him.\u201d\n\nIt is a solemn thing to have to do with God\u2014to walk with Him, from day\nto day, in the midst of a defiled and defiling scene. He cannot tolerate\nany uncleanness upon those with whom He deigns to walk, and in whom He\ndwells. He can pardon and blot out: He can heal, cleanse, and restore;\nbut He cannot sanction unjudged evil, or suffer it upon His people.\nIt would be a denial of His very name and nature where He to do so.\nThis, while deeply solemn, is truly blessed. It is our joy to have to\ndo with One whose presence demands and secures holiness. We are passing\nthrough a world in which we are surrounded with defiling influences.\nTrue, defilement is not now contracted by touching \u201ca dead body, or a\nbone of a man, or a grave.\u201d These things were, as we know, types of\nthings moral and spiritual, with which we are in danger of coming in\ncontact every day and every hour. We doubt not but those who have much\nto do with the things of this world are most painfully sensible of the\nimmense difficulty of escaping with unsoiled hands. Hence the need of\nholy diligence in all our habits and associations, lest we contract\ndefilement, and interrupt our communion with God. He must have us in a\ncondition worthy of Himself. \u201cBe ye holy, for I am holy.\u201d\n\nBut the anxious reader, whose whole soul breathes after holiness, may\neagerly inquire, What, then, are we to do, if it be true that we are thus\nsurrounded, on all hands, with defiling influences, and if we are so\nprone to contract that defilement? Furthermore, if it is impossible to\nhave fellowship with God with unclean hands and a condemning conscience,\nwhat are we to do? First of all, then, we should say, be watchful; wait\nmuch and earnestly on God. He is faithful and gracious\u2014a prayer-hearing\nand a prayer-answering God\u2014a liberal and an unupbraiding Giver. \u201cHe\ngiveth _more_ grace.\u201d This is positively a blank check, which faith\ncan fill up to any amount. Is it the real purpose of your soul to get\non\u2014to advance in the divine life\u2014to grow in personal holiness? Then\nbeware how you continue, for a single hour, in contact with what soils\nyour hands and wounds your conscience, grieves the Holy Ghost and mars\nyour communion. Be decided: be whole-hearted. Give up at once the\nunclean thing, whatever it be,\u2014habit, or association, or any thing else.\nCost what it may, give it up; entail what loss it may, abandon it. No\nworldly gain, no earthly advantage, could compensate for the loss of a\npure conscience, an uncondemning heart, and the light of your Father\u2019s\ncountenance. Are you not convinced of this? If so, seek grace to carry\nout your conviction.\n\nBut it may be further asked, What is to be done when defilement is\nactually contracted? How is the defilement to be removed? Hear the reply\nin the figurative language of Number xix.\u2014\u201cAnd for an unclean person,\nthey shall take of the _ashes_ of the burnt heifer of purification for\nsin, and running water shall be put thereto in a vessel: and a clean\nperson shall take hyssop, and dip it in the water, and sprinkle it upon\nthe tent, and upon all the vessels, and upon the persons that were there,\nand upon him that touched a bone, or one slain, or one dead, or a grave:\nand the clean person shall sprinkle upon the unclean on the third day and\non the seventh day; and on the seventh day he shall purify himself, and\nwash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and shall be clean at even.\u201d\n\nThe reader will remark that in the twelfth and eighteenth verses there\nis a double action set forth. There is the action of the third day and\nthe action of the seventh day. Both were essentially necessary to remove\nthe ceremonial defilement caused by contact with the varied forms of\ndeath above specified. Now, what did this double action typify? what is\nit that, in our spiritual history, answers thereto? We believe it to\nbe this: When we, through lack of watchfulness and spiritual energy,\ntouch the unclean thing and get defiled, we may be ignorant of it, but\nGod knows all about it. He cares for us, and is looking after us; not,\nblessed be His name, as an angry judge, or stern censor, but as a loving\nFather, who will never impute any thing to us, because it was all, long\nago, imputed to the One who died in our stead. But though He will never\nimpute it to us, He will make us feel it deeply and keenly. He will be\na faithful reprover of the unclean thing; and He can reprove all the\nmore powerfully simply because He will never reckon it against us. The\nHoly Spirit brings our sin to remembrance, and this causes unutterable\nanguish of heart. This anguish may continue for some time; it may be\nmoments, days, months, or years. We once met with a young Christian who\nwas rendered miserable for three years by having gone with some worldly\nfriends on an excursion. This convicting operation of the Holy Ghost we\nbelieve to be shadowed forth by the action of the third day. He first\nbrings our sin to remembrance; and then He graciously brings to our\nremembrance, and applies to our souls, through the written Word, the\nvalue of the death of Christ as that which has already met the defilement\nwhich we so easily contract. This answers to the action of the seventh\nday\u2014removes the defilement and restores our communion.\n\nAnd be it carefully remembered that we can never get rid of defilement\nin any other way. We may seek to forget, to slur over, to heal the wound\nslightly, to make little of the matter, to let time obliterate it from\nthe tablet of memory. It will never do; nay, it is most dangerous work.\nThere are few things more disastrous than trifling with conscience or\nthe claims of holiness. And it is as foolish as it is dangerous; for God\nhas, in His grace, made full provision for the removal of the uncleanness\nwhich His holiness detects and condemns. But the uncleanness must be\nremoved, else communion is impossible. \u201cIf I wash thee not, thou hast\nno part _with_ Me.\u201d The suspension of a believers\u2019s communion is what\nanswers to the cutting off of a member from the congregation of Israel.\nThe Christian can never be cut off from Christ; but his communion can be\ninterrupted by a single sinful thought, and that sinful thought must be\njudged and confessed, and the soil of it removed, ere the communion can\nbe restored. It is well to remember this. It is a serious thing to trifle\nwith sin. We may rest assured we cannot possibly have fellowship with\nGod and walk in defilement. To think so, is to blaspheme the very name,\nthe very nature, the very throne and majesty of God. No, dear reader; we\nmust keep a clean conscience, and maintain the holiness of God, else we\nshall very soon make shipwreck of faith, and break down altogether. May\nthe Lord keep us walking softly and tenderly, watchfully and prayerfully,\nuntil we have laid aside our bodies of sin and death, and entered upon\nthat bright and blessed world above, where sin, death, and defilement are\nunknown.\n\nIn studying the ordinances and ceremonies of the Levitical economy,\nnothing is more striking than the jealous care with which the God of\nIsrael watched over His people, in order that they might be preserved\nfrom every defiling influence. By day and by night, awake and asleep, at\nhome and abroad, in the bosom of the family and in the solitary walk, His\neyes were upon them. He looked after their food, their raiment, their\ndomestic habits and arrangements. He carefully instructed them as to\nwhat they might and what they might not eat, what they might and what\nthey might not wear. He even set forth distinctly His mind as to the\nvery touching and handling of things. In short, He surrounded them with\nbarriers amply sufficient, had they only attended to them, to resist the\nwhole tide of defilement to which they were exposed on every side.\n\nIn all this, we read, in unmistakable characters, the holiness of God;\nbut we read also, as distinctly, the grace of God. If divine holiness\ncould not suffer defilement upon the people, divine grace made ample\nprovision for the removal thereof. This provision is set forth in our\nchapter under two forms, namely, the blood of atonement and the water\nof separation. Precious provision! a provision illustrating at once the\nholiness and the grace of God. Did we not know the ample provisions of\ndivine grace, the lofty claims of divine holiness would be perfectly\noverwhelming; but being assured of the former, we can heartily rejoice\nin the latter. Could we desire to see the standard of divine holiness\nlowered a single hair\u2019s breadth? Far be the thought! How could we? or\nwhy should we? seeing that divine grace has fully provided what divine\nholiness demands. An Israelite of old might shudder as he hearkened to\nsuch words as these: \u201cHe that toucheth the dead body of any man shall be\nunclean seven days;\u201d and again, \u201cWhosoever toucheth the dead body of any\nman that is dead, and purifieth not himself, defileth the tabernacle of\nthe Lord; and that soul shall be cut off from Israel.\u201d Such words might\nindeed terrify his heart. He might feel led to exclaim, What am I to do?\nHow can I ever get on? It seems perfectly impossible for me to escape\ndefilement. But then, what of the ashes of the burnt heifer? what of the\nwater of separation?\u2014what could these mean? They set forth the memorial\nof the sacrificial death of Christ applied to the heart by the power of\nthe Spirit of God. \u201cHe shall purify himself with it the third day, and\non the seventh day he shall be clean; but if he purify not himself the\nthird day, then the seventh day he shall not be clean.\u201d If we contract\ndefilement, even though it be through negligence, that defilement must\nbe removed ere our communion can be restored. But we cannot get rid of\nthe soil by any effort of our own; it can only be by the use of God\u2019s\ngracious provision, even the water of purification. An Israelite could no\nmore remove, by his own efforts, the defilement caused by the touch of a\ndead body, than he could have broken Pharaoh\u2019s yoke, or delivered himself\nfrom the lash of Pharaoh\u2019s taskmasters.\n\nAnd let the reader observe that it was not a question of offering a fresh\nsacrifice, nor yet of a fresh application of the blood. It is of special\nimportance that this should be distinctly seen and understood. The death\nof Christ cannot be repeated. \u201cChrist being raised from the dead dieth\nno more; death hath no more dominion over Him. For in that He died,\nHe died unto sin once; but in that He liveth, He liveth unto God.\u201d We\nstand, by the grace of God, in the full credit and value of the death of\nChrist; but, inasmuch as we are surrounded on all sides by temptations\nand snares, and as we have within us such capabilities and tendencies,\nand further, seeing we have a powerful adversary who is ever on the watch\nto insnare us, and lead us off the path of truth and purity, we could\nnot get on for a single moment were it not for the gracious way in which\nour God has provided for all our exigencies in the precious death and\nall-prevailing advocacy of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is not merely that\nthe blood of Jesus Christ has washed away all our sins, and reconciled us\nto a holy God, but \u201cwe have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the\nrighteous.\u201d \u201cHe ever liveth to make intercession for us,\u201d and \u201cHe is able\nto save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him.\u201d He is ever in\nthe presence of God for us. He represents us there, and maintains us in\nthe divine integrity of the place and relationship in which His atoning\ndeath has set us. Our ease can never, by any possibility, fall through\nin the hands of such an advocate. He must cease to live ere the very\nfeeblest of His saints can perish. We are identified with Him and He with\nus.\n\nNow, then, Christian reader, what should be the practical effect of all\nthis grace upon our hearts and lives? When we think of the death and\nof the burning\u2014of the blood and of the ashes\u2014of the atoning sacrifice,\nand the interceding Priest and Advocate, what influence should it exert\nupon our souls? how should it act upon our consciences? Should it lead\nus to think little of sin? should it cause us to walk carelessly and\nindifferently? should it have the effect of making us light and frivolous\nin our ways? Alas! for the heart that can think so. We may rest assured\nof this, that the man who can draw a plea from the rich provisions of\ndivine grace for lightness of conduct or levity of spirit, knows very\nlittle, if indeed he knows any thing at all, of the true nature or\nproper influence of grace and its provisions. Could we imagine for a\nmoment that the ashes of the heifer or the water of separation would have\nhad the effect of making an Israelite careless as to his walk? Assuredly\nnot. On the contrary, the very fact of such careful provision being made,\nby the goodness of God, against defilement, would make him feel what a\nserious thing it was to contract it. Such, at least, would be the proper\neffect of the provisions of divine grace. The heap of ashes, laid up in a\nclean place, gave forth a double testimony; it testified of the goodness\nof God, and it testified of the hatefulness of sin. It declared that God\ncould not suffer uncleanness upon His people; but it declared also that\nHe had provided the means of removing it. It is utterly impossible that\nthe blessed doctrine of the sprinkled blood, of the ashes, and of the\nwater of separation can be understood and enjoyed without its producing a\nholy horror of sin in all its defiling forms. And we may further assert\nthat no one who has ever felt the anguish of a defiled conscience could\nlightly contract defilement. A pure conscience is far too precious a\ntreasure to be lightly parted with, and a defiled conscience is far too\nheavy a burden to be lightly taken up. But, blessed be the God of all\ngrace, He has met all our need, in His own perfect way, and He has met\nit, too, not to make us careless, but to make us watchful. \u201cMy little\nchildren, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not.\u201d But then He\nadds, \u201cIf any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ\nthe righteous. And He is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours\nonly, but for the whole world.\u201d (1 John.)\n\nBut we must draw this section to a close, and shall merely add a word on\nthe closing verses of our chapter. \u201cAnd it shall be a perpetual statute\nunto them, that he that sprinkleth the water of separation shall wash his\nclothes, and he that toucheth the water of separation shall be unclean\nuntil even. And whatsoever the unclean person toucheth shall be unclean,\nand the soul that toucheth it shall be unclean until even.\u201d (Chap.\nxix. 21, 22.) In verse 18 we are taught that it needed a clean person\nto sprinkle the unclean, and in verse 21 we are taught that the act of\nsprinkling another defiled one\u2019s self.\n\nPutting both these together, we learn, as another has said, \u201cthat any\none who has to do with the sin of another, though it be in the way of\nduty, to cleanse it, is defiled; not as the guilty person, it is true,\nbut we cannot touch sin without being defiled.\u201d And we learn also that\nin order to lead another into the enjoyment of the cleansing virtue of\nChrist\u2019s work, I must be in the enjoyment of that cleansing work myself.\nIt is well to remember this. Those who applied the water of separation\nto others had to use that water for themselves. May our souls enter\ninto this. May we ever abide in the sense of the perfect cleanness into\nwhich the death of Christ introduces us, and in which His priestly work\nmaintains us; and, oh, let us never forget that _contact with evil\ndefiles_! It was so under the Mosaic economy, and it is so now.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XX.\n\n\n\u201cThen came the children of Israel, even the whole congregation, into the\ndesert of Zin, in the first month: and the people abode in Kadesh; and\nMiriam died there, and was buried there.\u201d (Ver. 1.)\n\nThe chapter which now opens before us furnishes a very remarkable record\nof wilderness life and experience. In it we see Moses, the servant of\nGod, passing through some of the most trying scenes of his eventful\nlife. First of all, Miriam dies. The one whose voice was heard, amid the\nbrilliant scenes of Exodus xv, chanting a hymn of victory passes away,\nand her ashes are deposited in the wilderness of Kadesh. The timbrel is\nlaid aside. The voice of song is hushed in the silence of death. She can\nno longer lead in the dance. She had sung sweetly in her day; she had\nvery blessedly seized the key-note of that magnificent song of praise\nsung on the resurrection side of the Red Sea. Her chorus embodied the\ngreat central truth of redemption.\u2014\u201cSing ye to the Lord, for He hath\ntriumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath He thrown into the\nsea.\u201d This was truly a lofty strain; it was the suited utterance for the\njoyous occasion.\n\nBut now the prophetess passes off the scene, and the voice of melody\nis exchanged for the voice of murmuring. Wilderness life is becoming\nirksome. The trials of the desert put nature to the test; they bring out\nwhat is in the heart. Forty years\u2019 toil and travail make a great change\nin people. It is very rare indeed to find a case in which the verdure and\nfreshness of spiritual life are kept up, much less augmented, throughout\nall the stages of Christian life and warfare. It ought not to be such a\nrarity; it ought to be the very reverse, inasmuch as it is in the actual\ndetails, the stern realities of our path through this world, that we\nprove what God is. He, blessed be His name, takes occasion from the very\ntrials of the way to make Himself known to us in all the sweetness and\ntenderness of love that knows no change. His loving-kindness and tender\nmercy never fail. Nothing can exhaust those springs which are in the\nliving God. He will be what He is spite of all our naughtiness: God will\nbe God, let man prove himself ever so faithless and faulty.\n\nThis is our comfort, our joy, and the source of our strength. We have\nto do with the living God. What a reality! Come what may, He will prove\nHimself equal to every emergency\u2014amply sufficient \u201cfor exigence of\nevery hour.\u201d His patient grace can bear with our manifold infirmities,\nfailures, and shortcomings, and His strength is made perfect in our utter\nweakness. His faithfulness never fails; His mercy is from everlasting\nto everlasting. Friends fail or pass away; links of fond friendship are\nsnapped in this cold, heartless world; fellow-laborers part company;\nMiriams and Aarons die; but God remaineth. Here lies the deep secret of\nall true and solid blessedness. If we have the hand and heart of the\nliving God with us, we need not fear. If we can say, \u201cThe Lord is my\nShepherd,\u201d we can assuredly add, \u201cWe shall not want.\u201d\n\nStill there are the scenes of sorrow and trial in the desert, and we have\nto go through them. Thus it was with Israel in the chapter before us.\nThey were called to meet the keen blasts of the wilderness, and they met\nthem with accents of impatience and discontent. \u201cAnd there was no water\nfor the congregation: and they gathered themselves together against Moses\nand against Aaron. And the people chode with Moses, and spake, saying,\n\u2018Would God that we had died when our brethren died before the Lord! And\nwhy have ye brought up the congregation of the Lord into this wilderness,\nthat we and our cattle should die there? And wherefore have ye made us to\ncome up out of Egypt, to bring us unto this evil place? It is no place of\nseed, or of figs, or of vines, or of pomegranates; neither is there any\nwater to drink.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 2-5.)\n\nThis was a deeply trying moment to the spirit of Moses. We can form no\nconception of what it must have been to encounter six hundred thousand\nmurmurers, and to be obliged to listen to their bitter invectives, and to\nhear himself charged with all the misfortunes which their own unbelief\nhad conjured up before them. All this was no ordinary trial of patience;\nand most assuredly _we_ need not marvel if that dear and honored servant\nfound the occasion too much for him. \u201cAnd Moses and Aaron went from\nthe presence of the assembly unto the door of the tabernacle of the\ncongregation, and they fell upon their faces: and the glory of the Lord\nappeared unto them.\u201d (Ver. 6.)\n\nIt is deeply touching to find Moses, again and again, on his face before\nGod. It was a sweet relief to make his escape from a tumultuous host\nand betake himself to the only One whose resources were adequate to\nmeet such an occasion. \u201cThey fell upon their faces; and the glory of\nthe Lord appeared unto them.\u201d They do not appear, on this occasion, to\nhave attempted any reply to the people; \u201cthey went from the presence\nof the assembly\u201d and cast themselves upon the living God. They could\nnot possibly have done better. Who but the God of all grace could meet\nthe ten thousand necessities of wilderness life? Well had Moses said,\nat the very beginning, \u201cIf Thy presence go not with us, carry us not\nup hence.\u201d Assuredly, he was right and wise in so expressing himself.\nThe divine presence was the _only_ answer to the demand of such a\ncongregation; but that presence _was_ an all-sufficient answer. God\u2019s\ntreasury is absolutely inexhaustible. He can never fail a trusting heart.\nLet us remember this. God delights to be used; He never grows weary of\nministering to the need of His people. If this were ever kept in the\nremembrance of the thoughts of our hearts, we should hear less of the\naccents of impatience and discontent, and more of the sweet language of\nthankfulness and praise; but, as we have had frequent occasion to remark,\ndesert life tests every one. It proves what is in us, and, thanks be to\nGod, it brings out what is in _Him_ for us.\n\n\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, \u2018Take _the_ rod, and gather thou\nthe assembly together, thou and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto\nthe rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou\nshalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the\ncongregation and their beasts drink.\u2019 And Moses took _the_ rod from\nbefore the Lord as He commanded him. And Moses and Aaron gathered the\ncongregation together before the rock, and he said unto them, \u2018Hear, now,\nye rebels; must we fetch you water out of this rock?\u2019 And Moses lifted up\nhis hand, and with _his_ rod he smote the rock twice: and the water came\nout abundantly; and the congregation drank, and their beasts also.\u201d (Ver.\n7-11.)\n\nTwo objects in the foregoing quotation demand the reader\u2019s attention,\nnamely, \u201cThe rock\u201d and \u201cthe rod.\u201d They both present Christ most blessedly\nto the soul, but in two distinct aspects. In 1 Corinthians x. 4, we read,\n\u201cThey drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was\nChrist.\u201d This is plain and positive. It leaves no room whatever for the\nexercise of imagination. \u201cThat Rock was Christ\u201d\u2014Christ smitten for us.\n\nThen as regards \u201cthe rod,\u201d we must remember that it was not the rod of\nMoses\u2014the rod of authority\u2014the rod of power. This would not suit the\noccasion before us. It had done its work; it had smitten the rock once,\nand that was enough. This we learn from Exodus xvii, where we read, \u201cThe\nLord said unto Moses, \u2018Go on before the people, and take with thee of the\nelders of Israel; and _thy_ rod, _wherewith thou smotest the river_ (see\nExodus vii. 20.), take in thy hand and go. Behold, I will stand before\nthee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and\nthere shall come water out of it, that the people may drink.\u2019 And Moses\ndid so in the sight of the elders of Israel.\u201d\n\nHere we have a type of Christ smitten for us, by the hand of God, in\njudgment. The reader will note the expression, \u201cThy rod wherewith thou\nsmotest the river.\u201d Why the river? why should this particular stroke\nof the rod be referred to? Exodus vii. 20 furnishes the reply.\u2014\u201cAnd he\n[Moses] lifted up the rod, and smote the waters that were in the river,\nin the sight of Pharaoh, and in the sight of his servants; and all the\nwaters that were in the river were _turned to blood_.\u201d It was the rod\nwhich turned the water into blood that was to smite \u201cthat Rock which was\nChrist,\u201d in order that streams of life and refreshment might flow for us.\n\nNow, this smiting could only take place once; it is never to be repeated.\n\u201cKnowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath\nno more dominion over Him. For in that He died, He died unto sin _once_;\nbut in that He liveth, He liveth unto God.\u201d (Rom. vi. 9, 10.) \u201cBut now\n_once_ in the end of the world hath He appeared to put away sin by the\nsacrifice of Himself; ... so Christ was _once_ offered to bear the sins\nof many.\u201d (Heb. ix. 26, 28.) \u201cFor Christ also hath _once_ suffered for\nsins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God.\u201d (1 Pet.\niii. 18.)\n\nThere can be no repetition of the death of Christ, and hence Moses was\nwrong in smiting the rock twice with _his_ rod\u2014wrong in smiting it at\nall. He was commanded to take \u201c_the rod_\u201d\u2014Aaron\u2019s rod\u2014the priestly rod,\nand speak to the rock. The atoning work is done, and now our great\nHigh-Priest has passed into the heavens, there to appear in the presence\nof God for us, and the streams of spiritual refreshment flow to us on\nthe ground of accomplished redemption and in connection with Christ\u2019s\npriestly ministry, of which Aaron\u2019s budding rod is the exquisite figure.\n\nHence, then, it was a grave mistake for Moses to smite the rock a second\ntime\u2014a mistake to use his rod in the matter at all. To have smitten\nwith Aaron\u2019s rod would, as we can easily understand, have spoiled its\nlovely blossom. A word would have sufficed in connection with the rod of\npriesthood\u2014the rod of grace. Moses failed to see this\u2014failed to glorify\nGod. He spoke unadvisedly with his lips, and as a consequence, he was\nprohibited going over Jordan. His rod could not take the people over\u2014for\nwhat could mere authority do with a murmuring host\u2014and he was not\nsuffered to go over himself, because he failed to sanctify Jehovah in\nthe eyes of the congregation.\n\nBut Jehovah took care of His own glory. He sanctified Himself before the\npeople, and notwithstanding their rebellious murmurings, and Moses\u2019 sad\nmistake and failure, the congregation of the Lord received a gushing\nstream from the smitten rock.\n\nNor was this all. It was not merely that grace triumphed in furnishing\nIsrael\u2019s murmuring hosts with drink, but even in reference to Moses\nhimself it shines out most brilliantly, as we may see in Deuteronomy\nxxxiv. It was grace that brought Moses to the top of Pisgah and showed\nhim the land of Canaan from thence. It was grace that led Jehovah to\nprovide a grave for His servant and bury him therein. It was better to\nsee the land of Canaan in company with God than to enter it in company\nwith Israel. And yet we must not forget that Moses was prevented entering\nthe land because of the unadvised speaking. God in government kept\nMoses out of Canaan: God in grace brought Moses up to Pisgah. These two\nfacts in the history of Moses illustrate very forcibly the distinction\nbetween grace and government\u2014a subject of the deepest interest, and of\ngreat practical value. Grace pardons and blesses, but government takes\nits course. Let us ever remember this. \u201cWhatsoever a man soweth, that\nshall he also reap.\u201d This principle runs through all the ways of God in\ngovernment, and nothing can be more solemn; nevertheless, \u201cgrace reigns\nthrough righteousness, unto eternal life, by Jesus Christ our Lord.\u201d All\npraise to Him who is at once the fountain and the channel of this grace!\n\nFrom verses 14-20 of our chapter, we have the correspondence between\nMoses and the king of Edom. It is instructive and interesting to notice\nthe style of each, and to compare it with the history given in Genesis\nxxxii, xxxiii. Esau had a serious grudge against Jacob; and albeit,\nthrough the direct interposition of God, he was not suffered to touch\na hair of his brother\u2019s head, still, on the other hand, Israel must\nnot meddle with Esau\u2019s possessions. Jacob had supplanted Esau, and\nIsrael must not molest Edom. \u201cCommand thou the people, saying, Ye are\nto pass through the coast of your brethren the children of Esau, which\ndwell in Seir; and they shall be afraid of you: take ye good heed unto\nyourselves therefore. Meddle not with them; for I will not give you of\ntheir land\u2014no, not so much as a foot-breadth, because I have given Mount\nSeir unto Esau for a possession. Ye shall buy meat of them for money,\nthat ye may eat; and ye shall also buy water of them for money, that ye\nmay drink.\u201d (Deut. ii. 4-6.) Thus we see that the same God who would not\nsuffer Esau to touch Jacob, in Genesis xxxiii, now will not suffer Israel\nto touch Edom, in Numbers xx.\n\nThe closing paragraph of Numbers xx. is deeply touching. We shall not\nquote it, but the reader should refer to it, and compare it carefully\nwith the scene in Exodus iv. 1-17. Moses had deemed Aaron\u2019s companionship\nindispensable; but he afterwards found him to be a sore thorn in his\nside, and here he is compelled to strip him of his robes and see him\ngathered to his fathers. All this is very admonitory, in whatever way we\nview it, whether as regards Moses or Aaron. We have already referred to\nthis instructive piece of history, and therefore we shall not dwell upon\nit here; but may the good Lord engrave its solemn lesson deeply upon the\ntablets of our hearts.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXI.\n\n\nThis chapter brings prominently before us the familiar and beautiful\nordinance of the brazen serpent\u2014that great evangelical type. \u201cAnd they\njourneyed from Mount Hor by the way of the Red Sea, to compass the land\nof Edom: and the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the\nway. And the people spake against God, and against Moses, \u2018Wherefore have\nye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is\nno bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light\nbread.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 4, 5.)\n\nAlas! alas! it is the same sad story over and over again\u2014\u201cThe murmurs of\nthe wilderness.\u201d It was all well enough to escape out of Egypt when the\nterrific judgments of God were falling upon it in rapid succession. At\nsuch a moment, there was but little attraction in the flesh-pots, the\nleeks, the onions, and the garlic, when they stood connected with the\nheavy plagues sent forth from the hand of an offended God. But now, the\nplagues are forgotten, and the flesh-pots alone remembered. \u201cWould to God\nwe had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by\nthe flesh-pots, and when we did eat bread to the full.\u201d\n\nWhat language! Man would rather sit by the flesh-pots, in a land of death\nand darkness, than walk with God through the wilderness and eat bread\nfrom heaven. The Lord Himself had brought His glory down into connection\nwith the very sand of the desert, because His redeemed were there. He had\ncome down to bear with all their provocation\u2014to \u201csuffer their manners in\nthe wilderness.\u201d All this grace and exceeding condescension might well\nhave called forth in them a spirit of grateful and humble subjection. But\nno; the very earliest appearance of trial was sufficient to elicit from\nthem the cry, \u201cWould to God we had died in the land of Egypt!\u201d\n\nHowever, they were very speedily made to taste the bitter fruits of\ntheir murmuring spirit. \u201cThe Lord sent fiery serpents among the people,\nand they bit the people; and much people of Israel died.\u201d (Ver. 6.)\nThe serpent was the _source_ of their discontent; and their condition,\nwhen bitten of the serpents, was well calculated to reveal to them the\ntrue _character_ of their discontent. If the Lord\u2019s people will not\nwalk happily and contentedly with Him, they must taste the power of the\nserpent\u2014alas! a terrible power, in whatever way it may be experienced.\n\nThe serpents\u2019 bite brought Israel to a sense of their sin. \u201cTherefore\nthe people came to Moses, and said, \u2018We have sinned, for we have spoken\nagainst the Lord, and against thee: pray unto the Lord, that He take away\nthe serpents from us.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 7.)\n\nHere, then, was the moment for divine grace to display itself. Man\u2019s need\nhas ever been the occasion for the display of God\u2019s grace and mercy.\nThe moment Israel could say, \u201cWe have sinned,\u201d there was no further\nhindrance. God could act, and this was enough. When Israel murmured, the\nserpents\u2019 bite was the answer: when Israel confessed, God\u2019s grace was\nthe answer. In the one case, the serpent was the instrument of their\nwretchedness; in the other, it was the instrument of their restoration\nand blessing. \u201cAnd the Lord said unto Moses, \u2018Make thee a fiery serpent,\nand set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is\nbitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 8.) The very image\nof that which had done the mischief was set up to be the channel through\nwhich divine grace might flow down, in rich abundance, to poor wounded\nsinners. Striking and beautiful type of Christ on the cross!\n\nIt is a very common error to view the Lord Jesus rather as the averter\nof God\u2019s wrath, than as the channel of His love. That He endured the\nwrath of God against sin is most preciously true; but there is more than\nthis. He has come down into this wretched world to die upon the cursed\ntree, in order that, by dying, He might open up the everlasting springs\nof the love of God to the heart of poor rebellious man. This makes a\nvast difference in the presentation of God\u2019s nature and character to the\nsinner, which is of the very last importance. Nothing can ever bring\na sinner back to a state of true happiness and holiness but his being\nfully established in the faith and enjoyment of the love of God. The very\nfirst effort of the serpent, when, in the garden of Eden, he assailed\nthe creature, was, to shake his confidence in the kindness and love of\nGod, and thus produce discontent with the place in which God had set him.\nMan\u2019s fall was the result\u2014the immediate result of his doubting the love\nof God: man\u2019s recovery must flow from his belief of that love; and it is\nthe Son of God Himself who says, \u201cGod so loved the world, that He gave\nHis only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish,\nbut have everlasting life.\u201d (John iii. 16.)\n\nNow, it is in close connection with the foregoing statement that our\nLord expressly teaches that He was the antitype of the brazen serpent.\nAs the Son of God sent forth from the Father, He was, most assuredly,\nthe gift and expression of God\u2019s love to a perishing world. But He was\nalso to be lifted up upon the cross in atonement for sin, for _only_ thus\ncould divine love meet the necessities of the dying sinner. \u201cAs Moses\nlifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so _must_ the Son of Man\nbe lifted up; that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but\nhave eternal life.\u201d The whole human family have felt the serpent\u2019s deadly\nsting; but the God of all grace has found a remedy in the One who was\nlifted up on the cursed tree; and now, by the Holy Ghost sent down from\nheaven, He calls on all those who feel themselves bitten, to look to\nJesus for life and peace. Christ is God\u2019s great ordinance, and through\nHim a full, free, present, and eternal salvation is proclaimed to the\nsinner\u2014a salvation so complete, so well based, so consistent with all the\nattributes of the divine character and all the claims of the throne of\nGod, that Satan cannot raise a single question about it. Resurrection is\nthe divine vindication of the work of the cross, and the glory of Him who\ndied thereon, so that the believer may enjoy the most profound repose in\nreference to sin. God is well pleased in Jesus; and inasmuch as He views\nall believers in Him, He is well pleased in them also.\n\nAnd be it noted, faith is the instrument whereby the sinner lays hold\nof Christ\u2019s salvation. The wounded Israelite had simply to _look and\nlive_\u2014look, not at himself, not at his wounds, not at others around\nhim, but, directly and exclusively, to God\u2019s remedy. If he refused or\nneglected to look to that, there was nothing for him but death. He was\ncalled to fix his earnest gaze upon God\u2019s remedy, which was so placed\nthat all might see it. There was no possible use in looking any where\nelse, for the word was, \u201c_Every one_ that is bitten, _when_ he looketh\nupon _it_, shall live.\u201d The bitten Israelite was shut up to the brazen\nserpent; for the brazen serpent was God\u2019s exclusive remedy for the bitten\nIsraelite. To look any where else, was to get nothing: to look at God\u2019s\nprovision, was to get life.\n\nThus it is now. The sinner is called simply to look to Jesus. He is not\ntold to look to ordinances\u2014to look to churches\u2014to look to men or angels.\nThere is no help in any of these, and therefore he is not called to look\nto them, but exclusively to Jesus, whose death and resurrection form the\neternal foundation of the believer\u2019s peace and hope. God assures him that\n\u201cwhosoever believeth in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life.\u201d\nThis should fully satisfy the heart and conscience. God is satisfied,\nand so ought we to be. To raise doubt, is to deny the record of God. If\nan Israelite had said, How do I know that looking to that serpent of\nbrass will restore me? or if he had begun to dwell upon the greatness\nand hopeless nature of his malady, and to reason upon the apparent\nuselessness of looking up to God\u2019s ordinance; in short, if any thing, no\nmatter what, had prevented his looking to the brazen serpent, it would\nhave involved a positive rejection of God, and death would have been the\ninevitable result.\n\nThus in the case of the sinner, the moment he is enabled to cast a look\nof faith to Jesus, his sins vanish. The blood of Jesus, like a mighty\ncleansing stream, flows over his conscience, washes away every stain, and\nleaves him without spot or wrinkle, or any such thing; and all this, too,\nin the very light of the holiness of God, where not one speck of sin can\nbe tolerated.\n\nBut ere closing our meditation on the brazen serpent, it may be well just\nto observe what we may call the intense individuality which marked the\nbitten Israelite\u2019s look at the serpent. Each one had to look for himself.\nNo one could look for another. It was a personal question. No one could\nbe saved by proxy. There was life in a look, but the look must be given.\nThere needed to be a personal link\u2014direct individual contact with God\u2019s\nremedy.\n\nThus it was then, and thus it is now. We must have to do with Jesus for\nourselves. The Church cannot save us\u2014no order of priests or ministers\ncan save us. There must be the personal link with the Saviour, else\nthere is no life. \u201cIt came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten _any\nman_, when _he_ beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.\u201d This was God\u2019s\norder then, and this is His order now; for \u201c_as_ Moses lifted up the\nserpent in the wilderness, even _so_ must the Son of Man be lifted up.\u201d\nLet us remember the two little words \u201c_as_\u201d and \u201c_so_,\u201d for they apply\nto every particular in the type and the Antitype. Faith is an individual\nthing; repentance is an individual thing; salvation is an individual\nthing. Let us never forget this. True, there is, in Christianity, union\nand communion; but we must have to do with Christ for ourselves, and\nwe must walk with God for ourselves. We can neither get life nor live\nby the faith of another. There is, we repeat with emphasis, an intense\nindividuality in every stage of the Christian\u2019s life and practical\ncareer.\n\nWe shall not dwell further upon the familiar type of \u201cthe serpent of\nbrass,\u201d but we pray God to enable the reader to meditate upon it for\nhimself, and to make a direct personal application of the precious truth\nunfolded in one of the most striking figures of Old-Testament times. May\nhe be led to gaze, with a more profound and soul-subduing faith, upon\nthe cross, and to drink into his inmost soul the precious mystery there\npresented. May he not be satisfied with merely getting life by a look at\nthat cross, but seek to enter, more and more, into its deep and marvelous\nmeaning, and thus be more devotedly knit to Him who, when there was no\nother way of escape possible, did voluntarily surrender Himself to be\nbruised on that cursed tree for us and for our salvation.\n\nWe shall close our remarks on Numbers xxi. by calling the reader\u2019s\nattention to verses 16-18. \u201cAnd from thence they went to Beer: that is\nthe well whereof the Lord spake unto Moses, \u2018Gather the people together,\nand I will give them water.\u2019 Then Israel sang this song, \u2018Spring up, O\nwell; sing ye unto it. The princes digged the well, the nobles of the\npeople digged it, by the direction of the law-giver, with their staves.\u2019\u201d\n\nThis is a remarkable passage coming in at such a moment and in such a\nconnection. The murmurings are hushed, the people are nearing the borders\nof the promised land, the effects of the serpents\u2019 bite have passed away,\nand now, without any rod, without any smiting, the people are supplied\nwith refreshment. What though the Amorites, Moabites, and Ammonites are\nabout them? what though the power of Sihon stands in the way? God can\nopen a well for His people and give them a song in spite of all. Oh, what\na God is our God! How blessed it is to trace His actings and ways with\nHis people in all these wilderness scenes! May we learn to trust Him more\nimplicitly, and to walk with Him, from day to day, in holy and happy\nsubjection. This is the true path of peace and blessing.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTERS XXII.-XXIV.\n\n\nThese three chapters form a distinct section of our book\u2014a truly\nmarvelous section, abounding in rich and varied instruction. In it we\nhave presented to us, first, the covetous prophet, and secondly, his\nsublime prophecies. There is something peculiarly awful in the case of\nBalaam. He evidently loved money\u2014no uncommon love, alas! in our own day.\nBalak\u2019s gold and silver proved a very tempting bait to the wretched man\u2014a\nbait too tempting to be resisted. Satan knew his man, and the price at\nwhich he could be purchased.\n\nIf Balaam\u2019s heart had been right with God, he would have made very short\nwork with Balak\u2019s message; indeed it would not have cost him a moment\u2019s\nconsideration to send a reply. But Balaam\u2019s heart was all wrong, and we\nsee him in chapter xxii. in the melancholy condition of one acted upon\nby conflicting feelings. His heart was bent upon going, because it was\nbent upon the silver and gold; but at the same time, there was a sort of\nreference to God\u2014an appearance of religiousness, put on as a cloak to\ncover his covetous practices. He longed for the money, but he would fain\nlay hold of it after a religious fashion. Miserable man!\u2014most miserable!\nHis name stands on the page of inspiration as the expression of one very\ndark and awful stage of man\u2019s downward history. \u201cWoe unto them!\u201d says\nJude; \u201cfor they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after _the\nerror of Balaam for reward_, and perished in the gainsaying of Core.\u201d\nPeter, too, presents Balaam as a prominent figure in one of the very\ndarkest pictures of fallen humanity\u2014a model on which some of the vilest\ncharacters are formed. He speaks of those \u201chaving eyes full of adultery,\nand that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls; a heart they\nhave exercised with covetous practices; cursed children: which have\nforsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam\nthe son of Bosor, _who loved the wages of unrighteousness_; but was\nrebuked for his iniquity: the dumb ass speaking with man\u2019s voice forbad\nthe madness of the prophet.\u201d (2 Peter ii. 14-16.)\n\nThese passages are solemnly conclusive as to the true character and\nspirit of Balaam. His heart was set upon money\u2014\u201che loved the wages\nof unrighteousness,\u201d and his history has been written by the pen of\nthe Holy Ghost as an awful warning to all professors to beware of\ncovetousness, which is idolatry. We shall not dwell further upon the sad\nstory. The reader may pause for a few moments, and gaze upon the picture\npresented in Numbers xxii. He may study the two prominent figures\u2014the\ncrafty king and the covetous, self-willed prophet; and we doubt not\nhe will rise up from the study with a deepened sense of the evil of\ncovetousness, the great moral danger of setting the heart\u2019s affections\nupon this world\u2019s riches, and the deep blessedness of having the fear of\nGod before our eyes.\n\nWe shall now proceed to examine those marvelous prophecies delivered by\nBalaam in the audience of Balak, king of the Moabites.\n\nIt is profoundly interesting to witness the scene enacted on the high\nplaces of Baal, to mark the grand question at stake, to listen to the\nspeakers, to be admitted behind the scenes on such a momentous occasion.\nHow little did Israel know or imagine what was going on between Jehovah\nand the enemy. It may be they were murmuring in their tents at the very\nmoment in the which God was setting forth their perfection by the tongue\nof the covetous prophet. Balak would fain have Israel cursed, but,\nblessed be God, He will not suffer any one to curse His people. He may\nhave to deal with them Himself, in secret, about many things; but He will\nnot suffer another to move his tongue against them. He may have to expose\nthem to themselves, but He will not allow a stranger to expose them.\n\nThis is a point of deepest interest. The great question is not so\nmuch what the enemy may think of God\u2019s people, or what they may think\nabout themselves, or what they may think of one another. The real\u2014the\nall-important question is, What does God think about them? He knows\nexactly all that concerns them, all that they are, all that they have\ndone, all that is in them. Every thing stands clearly revealed to His\nall-penetrating eye. The deepest secrets of the heart, of the nature, and\nof the life are all known to Him. Neither angels, men, nor devils know us\nas God knows us. God knows us perfectly, and it is with Him we have to\ndo; and we can say, in the triumphant language of the apostle, \u201cIf God\nbe for us, who can be against us?\u201d (Rom. viii.) God sees us, thinks of\nus, speaks about us, acts towards us, according to what He Himself has\nmade us and wrought for us, according to the perfection of His own work.\n\u201cBeholders many faults may find;\u201d but, as regards our standing, our God\nsees us only in the comeliness of Christ: we are perfect in Him. When God\nlooks at His people, He beholds in them His own workmanship; and it is to\nthe glory of His holy name, and to the praise of His salvation, that not\na blemish should be seen on those who are His\u2014those whom He, in sovereign\ngrace, has made His own. His character, His name, His glory, and the\nperfection of His work are all involved in the standing of those with\nwhom He has linked Himself.\n\nHence, therefore, the moment any enemy or accuser enters the scene,\nJehovah places Himself in front to receive and answer the accusation; and\nHis answer is always founded, not upon what His people are in themselves,\nbut upon what He has made them through the perfection of His own work.\nHis glory is linked with them, and in vindicating them, He maintains His\nown glory. He places Himself between them and every accusing tongue.\nHis glory demands that they should be presented in all the comeliness\nwhich He has put upon them. If the enemy comes to curse and accuse,\nJehovah answers him by pouring forth the rich current of His everlasting\ncomplacency in those whom He has chosen for Himself, and whom He has made\nfit to be in His presence forever.\n\nAll this is strikingly illustrated in the third chapter of the prophet\nZechariah. There, too, the enemy presents himself to resist the\nrepresentative of the people of God. How does God answer him? Simply by\ncleansing, clothing, and crowning the one whom Satan would fain curse and\naccuse, so that Satan has not a word to say. He is silenced forever. The\nfilthy garments are gone, and he that was a brand is become a _mitred_\npriest\u2014he who was only fit for the flames of hell is now fitted to walk\nup and down in the courts of the Lord.\n\nSo also when we turn to the book of Canticles, we see the same thing.\nThere, the bridegroom, in contemplating the bride, declares to her, \u201cThou\nart _all fair_, my love; there is _no spot_ in thee.\u201d (Chap. iv. 7.) She,\nin speaking of herself, can only exclaim, \u201c_I am black_.\u201d (Chap. i.\n5, 6.) So also in John xiii. the Lord Jesus looks at His disciples and\npronounces them \u201cclean every whit,\u201d although, in a few hours afterwards,\none of them was to curse and swear that he did not know Him. So vast\nis the difference between what we are in ourselves and what we are in\nChrist\u2014between our positive standing and our possible state.\n\nShould this glorious truth as to the perfection of our standing make us\ncareless as to our practical state? Far away be the monstrous thought!\nNay, the knowledge of our absolutely settled and perfect position in\nChrist is the very thing which the Holy Ghost makes use of in order to\nraise the standard of practice. Hearken to those powerful words from\nthe pen of the inspired apostle\u2014\u201cIf ye then be risen with Christ, seek\nthose things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of\nGod. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For\nye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ our\nlife shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory. Mortify\n_therefore_ your members,\u201d etc. (Col. iii. 1-5.) We must never measure\nthe standing by the state, but always judge the state by the standing. To\nlower the standing because of the state, is to give the death-blow to all\nprogress in practical Christianity.\n\nThe foregoing line of truth is most forcibly illustrated in Balaam\u2019s four\nparables. To speak after the manner of men, we never should have had such\na glorious view of Israel as seen in \u201cthe vision of the Almighty\u201d\u2014\u201cfrom\nthe top of the rocks\u201d\u2014by one \u201chaving his eyes open,\u201d had not Balak sought\nto curse them. Jehovah, blessed be His name, can very speedily open a\nman\u2019s eyes to the true state of the case, in reference to the standing of\nHis people and His judgment respecting them. He claims the privilege of\nsetting forth _His_ thoughts about them. Balak and Balaam, with \u201call the\nprinces of Moab,\u201d may assemble to hear Israel cursed and defied; they may\n\u201cbuild seven altars,\u201d and \u201coffer a bullock and a lamb on every altar;\u201d\nBalak\u2019s silver and gold may glitter under the covetous gaze of the\nfalse prophet; but not all the powers of earth and hell\u2014men and devils\ncombined, in their dark and terrible array, can evoke a single breath of\ncurse or accusation against the Israel of God. As well might the enemy\nhave sought to point out a flaw in that fair creation which God had\npronounced \u201cvery good,\u201d as to fasten an accusation upon the redeemed of\nthe Lord. Oh, no; they shine in all the comeliness which He has put upon\nthem, and all that is needed in order to see them thus, is to mount to\n\u201cthe top of the rocks\u201d\u2014to have \u201cthe eyes open\u201d to look at them from His\npoint of view, so that we may see them in \u201cthe vision of the Almighty.\u201d\n\nHaving thus taken a general survey of the contents of these remarkable\nchapters, we shall briefly glance at each of the four parables in\nparticular. We shall find a distinct point in each\u2014a distinct feature in\nthe character and condition of the people as seen in \u201cthe vision of the\nAlmighty.\u201d\n\nIn the first of Balaam\u2019s wonderful parables, we have the marked\nseparation of God\u2019s people from all the nations most distinctly set\nforth. \u201cHow shall I curse whom God hath not cursed? or how shall I defy\nwhom the Lord hath not defied? for from the top of the rocks I see him,\nand from the hills I behold him: lo, the people shall dwell alone, and\nshall not be reckoned among the nations. Who can count the dust of Jacob,\nand the number of the fourth part of Israel? Let me die the death of the\nrighteous, and let my last end be like his.\u201d[19]\n\nHere we have Israel singled out, and partitioned off to be a separated\nand peculiar people\u2014a people who, according to the divine thought\nconcerning them, were never, at any time, on any ground, or for any\nobject whatsoever, to be mingled with or reckoned amongst the nations.\n\u201cThe people shall dwell _alone_.\u201d This is distinct and emphatic. It is\ntrue of the literal seed of Abraham, and true of all believers now.\nImmense practical results flow out of this great principle. God\u2019s people\nare to be separated unto Him, not on the ground of being better than\nothers, but simply on the ground of what God is, and what He would ever\nhave His people to be. We shall not pursue this point further just now;\nbut the reader would do well to examine it thoroughly in the light of the\ndivine Word. \u201c_The people shall dwell alone, and shall not be reckoned\namong the nations._\u201d (Chap. xxiii. 8, 9.)\n\nBut if Jehovah, in His sovereign grace, is pleased to link Himself with\na people; if He calls them out to be a separate people in the world\u2014to\n\u201cdwell alone,\u201d and shine for Him in the midst of those who are still\n\u201csitting in darkness and the shadow of death,\u201d He can only have them in\nsuch a condition as suits Himself. He must make them such as He would\nhave them to be\u2014such as shall be to the praise of His great and glorious\nname. Hence, in the second parable, the prophet is made to tell out, not\nmerely the negative, but the positive condition of the people. \u201cAnd he\ntook up his parable and said, \u2018Rise up, Balak, and hear; hearken unto me,\nthou son of Zippor: God is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son\nof man, that He should repent: hath He said, and shall He not do it? or\nhath He spoken, and shall He not make it good? Behold, I have received\ncommandment to bless; and _He hath blessed;_ and I _cannot_ reverse it.\nHe hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath He seen perverseness\nin Israel: the Lord his God is with him, and the shout of a King is among\nthem. God brought them out of Egypt; he hath as it were the strength of a\nunicorn. Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob, neither is there\nany divination against Israel: according to this time it shall be said\nof Jacob and of Israel, What hath _God wrought_! [not, What hath Israel\nwrought!] Behold, the people shall rise up as a great lion, and lift up\nhimself as a young lion: he shall not lie down until he eat of the prey,\nand drink the blood of the slain.\u2019\u201d (Chap. xxiii. 18-24.)\n\nHere we find ourselves on truly elevated ground, and on ground as solid\nas it is elevated. This is, in truth, \u201cthe top of the rocks\u201d\u2014the pure\nair and wide range of \u201cthe hills,\u201d where the people of God are seen only\nin \u201cthe vision of the Almighty\u201d\u2014seen as He sees them, without spot or\nwrinkle or any such thing\u2014all their deformities hidden from view\u2014all His\ncomeliness seen upon them.\n\nIn this very sublime parable, Israel\u2019s blessedness and security are\nmade to depend, not on themselves, but upon the truth and faithfulness\nof Jehovah. \u201cGod is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son of\nman, that He should repent.\u201d This places Israel upon safe ground. God\nmust be true to Himself. Is there any power that can possibly prevent\nHim from fulfilling His word and oath? Surely not. \u201c_He hath blessed_;\nand I cannot reverse it.\u201d God _will_ not, and Satan _cannot_ reverse the\nblessing.\n\nThus all is settled. \u201cIt is ordered in all things and sure.\u201d In the\nprevious parable, it was, \u201cGod hath _not cursed_;\u201d here, it is, \u201cHe\n_hath blessed_.\u201d There is very manifest advance. As Balak conducts the\nmoney-loving prophet from place to place, Jehovah takes occasion to bring\nout fresh features of beauty in His people, and fresh points of security\nin their position. Thus it is not merely that they are a separated\npeople dwelling alone; but they are a justified people, having the Lord\ntheir God _with_ them, and the shout of a King _among_ them. \u201cHe hath not\nbeheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath He seen perverseness in Israel.\u201d\nThe enemy may say, There is iniquity and perverseness there all the\nwhile. Yes, but who can make Jehovah behold it, when He Himself has been\npleased to blot it all out as a thick cloud for His name\u2019s sake? If He\nhas cast it behind His back, who can bring it before His face? \u201cIt is\nGod that justifieth; who is he that condemneth?\u201d God sees His people so\nthoroughly delivered from all that could be against them, that He can\ntake up His abode in their midst, and cause His voice to be heard amongst\nthem.\n\nWell, therefore, may we exclaim, \u201c\u2018What hath God wrought!\u2019\u2014it is not,\nWhat hath Israel wrought!\u201d Balak and Balaam would have found plenty to\ndo in the way of cursing had Israel\u2019s work been in question. The Lord be\npraised, it is on what He hath wrought that His people stand, and their\nfoundation is as stable as the throne of God. \u201cIf God be for us, who can\nbe against us?\u201d If God stands right between us and every foe, what have\nwe to _fear?_ If He undertakes, on our behalf, to answer every accuser,\nthen assuredly perfect peace is our portion.\n\nHowever, the king of Moab still fondly hoped and sedulously sought to\ngain his end. And doubtless Balaam did the same, for they were leagued\ntogether against the Israel of God, thus reminding us forcibly of the\nbeast and the false prophet, who are yet to arise and play an awfully\nsolemn part in connection with Israel\u2019s future, as presented on the\napocalyptic page.\n\n\u201cAnd when Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord to bless Israel, he went\nnot, as at other times, to seek for enchantments, [what a dreadful\ndisclosure is here!] but he set his face toward the wilderness. And\nBalaam lifted up his eyes, and he saw Israel abiding in his tents,\naccording to their tribes; and the Spirit of God came upon him. And he\ntook up his parable, and said, \u2018Balaam the son of Beor hath said, he\nhath said, which heard _the words of God_, which saw _the vision of the\nAlmighty_, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open: How goodly\nare thy tents, O Jacob, and thy tabernacles, O Israel! As the valleys\nare they spread forth, as the gardens by the river\u2019s side, as the trees\nof lign aloes which the Lord hath planted, and as cedar-trees beside the\nwaters. He shall pour the water out of his buckets, and his seed shall be\nin many waters, and his King shall be higher than Agag, and his kingdom\nshall be exalted. God brought him forth out of Egypt; he hath as it were\nthe strength of a unicorn: he shall _eat up the nations_ his enemies,\n[terrible announcement for Balak!] and shall break their bones, and\npierce them through with his arrows. He couched, he lay down as a lion,\nand as a great lion: who shall stir him up? Blessed is he that blesseth\nthee, and cursed is he that curseth thee.\u2019\u201d (Chap. xxiv. 1-9.)\n\n\u201cHigher and higher yet\u201d is surely the motto here. We may well shout,\n\u201cExcelsior!\u201d as we mount up to the top of the rocks, and hearken to those\nbrilliant utterances which the false prophet was forced to give out. It\nwas better and better for Israel, worse and worse for Balak. He had to\nstand by and not only hear Israel \u201cblessed,\u201d but hear himself \u201ccursed\u201d\nfor seeking to curse them.\n\nBut let us particularly notice the rich grace that shines in this third\nparable.\u2014\u201cHow goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, and thy tabernacles, O\nIsrael!\u201d If one had gone down to examine those tents and tabernacles\nin \u201cthe vision\u201d of man, they might have appeared \u201cblack as the tents\nof Kedar;\u201d but looked at in \u201cthe vision of the Almighty,\u201d they were\n\u201cgoodly,\u201d and whoever did not see them thus needed to have \u201c_his eyes\nopened_.\u201d If I am looking at the people of God \u201cfrom the top of the\nrocks,\u201d I shall see them as God sees them, and that is, as clothed with\nall the comeliness of Christ\u2014complete in Him\u2014accepted in the Beloved.\nThis is what will enable me to get on with them, to walk with them, to\nhave fellowship with them, to rise above their points and angles, blots\nand blemishes, failures and infirmities.[20] If I do not contemplate them\nfrom this lofty\u2014this divine ground, I shall be sure to fix my eye on\nsome little flaw or other, which will completely mar my communion, and\nalienate my affections.\n\nIn Israel\u2019s case, we shall see, in the very next chapter, what terrible\nevil they fell into. Did this alter Jehovah\u2019s judgment? Surely not. \u201cHe\nis not the son of man, that He should repent.\u201d He judged and chastened\nthem for their evil, because He is holy, and can never sanction, in His\npeople, aught that is contrary to His nature. But He could never reverse\nHis judgment respecting them. He knew all about them,\u2014He knew what they\nwere and what they would do; but yet He said, \u201cI have not beheld iniquity\nin Jacob, neither have I seen perverseness in Israel.\u201d\u2014\u201cHow goodly are\nthy tents, O Jacob, and thy tabernacles, O Israel!\u201d Was this making light\nof their evil? The thought were blasphemy. He could chasten them for\ntheir sins; but the moment an enemy comes forth to curse or accuse, He\nstands in front of His people and says, \u201cI see no iniquity.\u201d\u2014\u201cHow goodly\nare thy tents!\u201d\n\nReader, dost thou think that such views of divine grace will minister to\na spirit of Antinomianism? Far be the thought! We may rest assured we are\nnever farther away from the region of that terrible evil than when we are\nbreathing the pure and holy atmosphere of \u201cthe top of the rocks\u201d\u2014that\nhigh ground from whence God\u2019s people are viewed, not as they are in\nthemselves, but as they are in Christ\u2014not according to the thoughts of\nman, but according to the thoughts of God. And furthermore, we may say\nthat the only true and effectual mode of raising the standard of moral\nconduct is to abide in the faith of this most precious and tranquilizing\ntruth, that God sees us perfect in Christ.\n\nBut we must take one more glance at our third parable. Not only are\nIsrael\u2019s tents seen to be goodly in the eyes of Jehovah, but the people\nthemselves are presented to us as abiding fast by those ancient sources\nof grace and living ministry which are found in God. \u201cAs the valleys are\nthey spread forth, as gardens by the river\u2019s side, as the trees of lign\naloes which the Lord hath planted, and as cedar-trees beside the waters.\u201d\nHow exquisite! how perfectly beautiful! And only to think that we are\nindebted to the godless confederacy between Balak and Balaam for those\nsublime utterances!\n\nBut there is more than this. Not only is Israel seen drinking at those\neverlasting well-springs of grace and salvation, but, as must ever be\nthe case, as a channel of blessing to others. \u201cHe shall pour the water\nout of his buckets.\u201d It is the fixed purpose of God that Israel\u2019s twelve\ntribes shall yet be a medium of rich blessing to all the ends of the\nearth. This we learn from such scriptures as Ezekiel xlvii. and Zechariah\nxiv, on which we do not now attempt to dwell; we merely refer to them as\nshowing the marvelous fullness and beauty of these glorious parables. The\nreader may meditate with much spiritual profit upon these and kindred\nscriptures, but let him carefully guard against the fatal system falsely\ncalled spiritualizing, which, in fact, consists mainly in applying to\nthe professing church all the special blessings of the house of Israel,\nwhile to the latter are left only the curses of a broken law. We may\nrest assured that God will not sanction any such system as this. Israel\nis beloved for the fathers\u2019 sakes, and \u201cthe gifts and calling of God are\nwithout repentance.\u201d (Rom. xi.)\n\nWe shall close this section by a brief reference to Balaam\u2019s last\nparable. Balak, having heard such a glowing testimony to Israel\u2019s future,\nand the overthrow of all their enemies, was not only sorely disappointed,\nbut greatly enraged.\u2014\u201cAnd Balak\u2019s anger was kindled against Balaam, and\nhe smote his hands together: and Balak said unto Balaam, \u2018I called thee\nto curse mine enemies, and, behold, thou hast altogether blessed them\nthese three times. Therefore now flee thou to thy place: I thought to\npromote thee unto _great honor_; [?] but, lo, the Lord hath kept thee\nback from honor.\u2019 And Balaam said unto Balak, \u2018Spake I not also to thy\nmessengers which thou sentest unto me, saying, If Balak would give me\nhis house full of silver and gold [the very thing his poor heart craved\nintensely], I _cannot_ go beyond the commandment of the Lord, to do\neither good or bad of mine own mind; but what the Lord saith, that will I\nspeak. And now, behold, I go unto my people: come, therefore, and I will\nadvertise thee what _this people_ shall do to _thy people_ in the latter\ndays.\u2019 [This was coming to close quarters.] And he took up his parable,\nand said, \u2018Balaam the son of Beor hath said, and the man whose eyes are\nopen hath said: he hath said, which heard the words of God, and knew\nthe knowledge of the Most High, which saw the vision of the Almighty,\nfalling into a trance, but having his eyes open: I shall see Him, but\nnot now: I shall behold Him, but not nigh: [tremendous fact for Balaam!]\nthere shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of\nIsrael, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children\nof Sheth.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 10-17.)\n\nThis gives great completeness to the subject of these parables. The\ntop-stone is here laid on the magnificent superstructure. It is, in\ngood truth, grace and glory. In the first parable, we see the absolute\nseparation of the people; in the second, their perfect justification;\nin the third, their moral beauty and fruitfulness; and now, in the\nfourth, we stand on the very summit of the hills\u2014on the loftiest crag\nof the rocks, and survey the wide plains of glory in all their length\nand breadth, stretching away into a boundless future. We see the Lion of\nthe tribe of Judah crouching; we hear His roar; we see Him seizing upon\nall His enemies, and crushing them to atoms. The Star of Jacob rises to\nset no more. The true David ascends the throne of His Father, Israel is\npre-eminent in the earth, and all his enemies are covered with shame and\neverlasting contempt.\n\nIt is impossible to conceive any thing more magnificent than these\nparables, and they are all the more remarkable as coming at the very\nclose of Israel\u2019s desert wanderings, during which they had given such\nample proof of what they were\u2014of what materials they were made, and\nwhat their capabilities and tendencies were. But God was above all, and\nnothing changeth His affection. Whom He loves, and as He loves, He loves\nto the end; and hence the league between the typical \u201cbeast and false\nprophet\u201d proved abortive. Israel was blessed of God and not to be cursed\nof any. \u201cAnd Balaam rose up, and went and returned to his place; and\nBalak also went his way.\u201d\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXV.\n\n\nHere a new scene opens upon our view. We have been on the top of\nPisgah, hearkening to God\u2019s testimony respecting Israel, and there, all\nwas bright and fair\u2014without a cloud, without a spot; but now we find\nourselves in the plains of Moab, and all is changed. There, we had to do\nwith God and His thoughts; here, we have to do with the people and their\nways. What a contrast! It reminds us of the opening and the close of 2\nCorinthians xii. In the former, we have the _positive standing_ of the\nChristian; in the latter, the _possible state_ into which he may fall if\nnot watchful. That shows us \u201ca man in Christ\u201d capable of being caught\nup into paradise at any moment; this shows us saints of God capable of\nplunging into all manner of sin and folly.\n\nThus it is with Israel as seen from \u201cthe top of the rocks\u201d in \u201cthe vision\nof the Almighty,\u201d and Israel as seen in the plains of Moab. In the one\ncase, we have their perfect standing; in the other, their imperfect\nstate. Balaam\u2019s parables give us God\u2019s estimate of the former; the\njavelin of Phinehas, His judgment upon the latter. God will never reverse\nHis decision as to what His people are as to standing, but He must\njudge and chasten them when their ways comport not with that standing.\nIt is His gracious will that their state should correspond with their\nstanding. But here is, alas! where failure comes in. Nature is allowed\nto act in various ways, and our God is constrained to take down the rod\nof discipline, in order that the evil thing which we have suffered to\nmanifest itself may be crushed and subdued.\n\nThus it is in Numbers xxv. Balaam, having failed in his attempt to curse\nIsrael, succeeds in seducing them, by his wiles, to commit sin, hoping\nthereby to gain his end. \u201cAnd Israel joined himself unto Baal-peor: and\nthe anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel. And the Lord said unto\nMoses, \u2018Take all the heads of the people, and hang them up before the\nLord against the sun, that the fierce anger of the Lord may be turned\naway from Israel.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 3, 4.) Then we have the striking record of\nthe zeal and faithfulness of Phinehas.\u2014\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses,\nsaying, \u2018Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, hath\nturned My wrath away from the children of Israel, while he was zealous\nfor My sake among them, that I consumed not the children of Israel in My\njealousy. Wherefore say, Behold, I give unto him My covenant of peace:\nand he shall have it, and his seed after him, even the covenant of an\neverlasting priesthood; because he was zealous for his God, and made an\natonement for the children of Israel.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 10-13.)\n\nGod\u2019s glory and Israel\u2019s good were the objects that ruled the conduct\nof the faithful Phinehas on this occasion. It was a critical moment. He\nfelt there was a demand for the most stern action. It was no time for\nfalse tenderness. There are moments in the history of God\u2019s people in the\nwhich tenderness to man becomes unfaithfulness to God; and it is of the\nutmost importance to be able to discern such moments. The prompt acting\nof Phinehas saved the whole congregation, glorified Jehovah in the midst\nof His people, and completely frustrated the enemy\u2019s design. Balaam fell\namong the judged Midianites, but Phinehas became the possessor of an\neverlasting priesthood.\n\nThus much as to the solemn instruction contained in this brief section of\nour book. May we profit by it. May God\u2019s Spirit give us such an abiding\nsense of the perfection of our standing in Christ that our practical ways\nmay be more in accordance with it.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXVI.\n\n\nThis, though one of the longest chapters in our book, does not call for\nmuch in the way of remark or exposition. In it we have the record of the\nsecond numbering of the people, as they were about to enter upon the\npromised land. How sad to think that out of the six hundred thousand men\nof war which were numbered at first, only two remain\u2014Joshua and Caleb!\nAll the rest lay mouldering in the dust, buried beneath the sand of the\ndesert, all passed away. The two men of simple faith remained to have\ntheir faith rewarded. As for the men of unbelief, the inspired apostle\ntells us, \u201cTheir carcasses fell in the wilderness.\u201d\n\nHow solemn! How full of instruction and admonition for us! Unbelief kept\nthe first generation from entering the land of Canaan, and caused them to\ndie in the wilderness. This is the fact on which the Holy Ghost grounds\none of the most searching warnings and exhortations any where to be\nfound in the compass of the inspired volume. Let us hear it. \u201cWherefore\n... take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of\nunbelief, in departing from the living God. But exhort one another daily,\nwhile it is called, \u2018To-day;\u2019 lest any of you be hardened through the\ndeceitfulness of sin. For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the\nbeginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end; while it is said,\n\u2018To-day, if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts, as in the\nprovocation.\u2019 For some, when they had heard, did provoke: howbeit not\nall that came out of Egypt by Moses. But with whom was He grieved forty\nyears? was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcasses fell in the\nwilderness? And to whom sware He that they should not enter into His\nrest, but to them that believed not? So we see that they could not enter\nin because of unbelief. Let us therefore fear, lest a promise being left\nus of entering into His rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.\nFor unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them; but the Word\npreached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that\nheard.\u201d (Heb. iii. 7-iv. 1, 2.)\n\nHere lies the great practical secret. The Word of God mixed with faith.\nPrecious mixture! The only thing that can really profit any one. We may\nhear a great deal, we may talk a great deal, we may profess a great deal,\nbut we may rest assured that the measure of real spiritual power\u2014power to\nsurmount difficulties\u2014power to overcome the world\u2014power to get on\u2014power\nto possess ourselves of all that God has bestowed upon us,\u2014the measure\nof this power is simply the measure in which God\u2019s Word is mixed with\nfaith. That Word is settled forever in heaven; and if it is fixed in our\nhearts, by faith, there is a divine link connecting us with heaven and\nall that belongs to it; and in proportion as our hearts are thus livingly\nlinked with heaven and the Christ who is there, shall we be practically\nseparated from this present world, and lifted above its influence. Faith\ntakes possession of all that God has given. It enters into that within\nthe vail; it endures as seeing Him who is invisible; it occupies itself\nwith the unseen and eternal, not with the seen and the temporal. Men\nthink possession sure; faith knows nothing sure but God and His Word.\nFaith takes God\u2019s Word and locks it up in the very innermost chamber\nof the heart, and there it remains as hid treasure\u2014the only thing that\ndeserves to be called treasure. The happy possessor of this treasure is\nrendered thoroughly independent of the world. He may be poor as regards\nthe riches of this perishing scene; but if only he is rich in faith, he\nis the possessor of untold wealth\u2014\u201cdurable riches and righteousness\u201d\u2014\u201cthe\nunsearchable riches of Christ.\u201d\n\nReader, these are not the pencilings of fancy\u2014the mere visions of the\nimagination. No; they are substantial verities\u2014divine realities, which\nyou may now enjoy in all their preciousness. If you will only take God\nat His word\u2014only believe what He says because He says it\u2014for this is\nfaith\u2014then verily you have this treasure, which renders its possessor\nentirely independent of this scene where men live only by the sight of\ntheir eyes. The men of this world speak of \u201c_the positive_\u201d and \u201c_the\nreal_,\u201d meaning thereby what they can see and experience; in other words,\nthe things of time and sense\u2014the tangible\u2014the palpable. Faith knows\nnothing positive, nothing real, but the word of the living God.\n\nNow, it was the lack of this blessed faith that kept Israel out of\nCanaan, and caused six hundred thousand carcasses to fall in the\nwilderness; and it is the lack of this faith that keeps thousands of\nGod\u2019s people in bondage and darkness, when they ought to be walking in\nliberty and light\u2014that keeps them in depression and gloom, when they\nought to be walking in the joy and strength of God\u2019s full salvation\u2014that\nkeeps them in fear of judgment, when they ought to be walking in the hope\nof glory\u2014that keeps them in doubt as to whether they shall escape the\nsword of the destroyer in Egypt, when they ought to be feasting on the\nold corn of the land of Canaan.\n\nOh that God\u2019s people would consider these things in the secret of His\npresence and in the light of His Word! Then, indeed, they would better\nknow and more fully appreciate the fair inheritance which faith finds\nin the eternal Word of God\u2014they would more clearly apprehend the things\nwhich are freely given to us of God in the Son of His love. May the Lord\nsend out His light and His truth, and lead His people into the fullness\nof their portion in Christ, so that they may take their true place, and\nyield a true testimony for Him, while waiting for His glorious advent.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXVII.\n\n\nThe conduct of the daughters of Zelophehad, as recorded in the opening\nsection of this chapter, presents a striking and beautiful contrast to\nthe unbelief on which we have just been commenting. They most assuredly\nbelonged not to the generation of those who are ever ready to abandon\ndivine ground, lower the divine standard, and forego the privileges\nconferred by divine grace. No; those five noble women had no sympathy\nwith such. They were determined, through grace, to plant the foot of\nfaith on the very highest ground, and, with holy yet bold decision, to\nmake their own of that which God had given. Let us read the refreshing\nrecord.\n\n\u201cThen came the daughters of Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of\nGilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, of the families of\nManasseh the son of Joseph: and these are the names of his daughters;\nMahlah, Noah, and Hoglah, and Milcah, and Tirzah. And they stood before\nMoses, and before Eleazar the priest, and before the princes and all the\ncongregation, by the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, saying,\n\u2018Our father died in the wilderness, and he was not in the company of them\nthat gathered themselves together against the Lord in the company of\nKorah; but died in his own sin, and had no sons. Why should the name of\nour father be done away from among his family because he hath no sons?\nGive unto us, therefore, a possession among the brethren of our father.\u2019\u201d\n(Ver. 1-4.)\n\nThis is uncommonly fine. It does the heart good to read such words as\nthese at a time like the present, when so little is made of the proper\nstanding and portion of God\u2019s people, and when so many are content to go\non from day to day and year to year without caring even to inquire into\nthe things which are freely given to them of God. Nothing is more sad\nthan to see the carelessness, the utter indifference, with which many\nprofessing Christians treat such great and all-important questions as\nthe standing, walk, and hope of the believer and the Church of God. It\nis not, by any means, our purpose to go into these questions here. We\nhave done so repeatedly in the other volumes of the series of \u201cNotes.\u201d\nWe merely desire to call the reader\u2019s attention to the fact that it is\nat once sinning against our own rich mercies, and dishonoring the Lord,\nwhen we evince a spirit of indifferentism in reference to any one point\nof divine revelation as to the position and portion of the Church or of\nthe individual believer. If God, in the aboundings of His grace, has\nbeen pleased to bestow upon us precious privileges, as Christians, ought\nwe not to seek earnestly to know what these privileges are? ought we\nnot to seek to make them our own, in the artless simplicity of faith?\nIs it treating our God and His revelation worthily to be indifferent\nas to whether we are servants or sons\u2014as to whether we have the Holy\nGhost dwelling in us or not\u2014as to whether we are under law or under\ngrace\u2014whether ours is a heavenly or an earthly calling?\n\nSurely not. If there be one thing plainer than another in Scripture,\nit is this, that God delights in those who appreciate and enjoy the\nprovision of His love\u2014those who find their joy in Himself. The inspired\nvolume teems with evidence on this point. Look at the case now before\nus in our chapter. Here were those daughters of Joseph\u2014for such we must\ncall them\u2014bereaved of their father\u2014helpless and desolate, as viewed from\nnature\u2019s stand-point. Death had snapped the apparent link which connected\nthem with the proper inheritance of God\u2019s people. What then? Were they\ncontent to give up?\u2014to fold their arms in cold indifference? Was it\nnothing to them whether or not they were to have a place and a portion\nwith the Israel of God? Ah! no, reader; these illustrious women exhibit\nsomething totally different from all this\u2014something which we may well\nstudy and seek to imitate\u2014something which, we are bold to say, refreshed\nthe heart of God. They felt sure there was a portion for them in the land\nof promise, of which neither death nor any thing that happened in the\nwilderness could ever deprive them. \u201cWhy should the name of our father\nbe done away from among his people because he hath no son?\u201d Could death,\ncould failure of male issue, could any thing, frustrate the goodness\nof God? Impossible. \u201cGive unto us, therefore, a possession among the\nbrethren of our father.\u201d\n\nNoble words!\u2014words that went right up to the throne and to the heart of\nthe God of Israel. It was a most powerful testimony delivered in the ears\nof the whole congregation. Moses was taken aback. Here was something\nbeyond the range of the law-giver. Moses was a servant, and a blessed and\nhonored servant too; but again and again, in the course of this marvelous\nbook of Numbers\u2014this wilderness volume, questions arise with which he is\nunable to deal, as for example, the defiled men in chapter ix, and the\ndaughters of Zelophehad in the section before us.\n\n\u201cAnd Moses brought their cause before the Lord. And the Lord spake unto\nMoses, saying, \u2018_The daughters of Zelophehad speak right: thou shalt\nsurely give them a possession of an inheritance among their father\u2019s\nbrethren; and thou shalt cause the inheritance of their father to pass\nunto them_.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 5-7.)\n\nHere was a glorious triumph, in the presence of the whole assembly. A\nbold and simple faith is always sure to be rewarded. It glorifies God,\nand God honors it. Need we travel from section to section and from page\nto page of the holy volume to prove this? Need we turn to the Abrahams,\nthe Hannahs, the Deborahs, the Rahabs, the Ruths, of Old-Testament times?\nor to the Marys, the Elizabeths, the centurions, and the Syrophenicians\nof the New-Testament times? Wherever we turn, we learn the same great\npractical truth, that God delights in a bold and simple faith\u2014a faith\nthat artlessly seizes and tenaciously holds all that He has given\u2014that\npositively refuses, even in the very face of nature\u2019s weakness and death,\nto surrender a single hair\u2019s breadth of the divinely given inheritance.\nWhat though Zelophehad\u2019s bones lay mouldering in the dust of the\nwilderness? what though no male issue appeared to sustain his name? faith\ncould rise above all these things, and count on God\u2019s faithfulness to\nmake good all that His Word had promised.\n\n\u201cThe daughters of Zelophehad speak right.\u201d They always do so. Their\nwords are words of faith, and as such, are always right in the judgment\nof God. It is a terrible thing to limit \u201cthe Holy One of Israel.\u201d He\ndelights to be trusted and used. It is utterly impossible for faith\nto overdraw its account in God\u2019s bank. God could no more disappoint\nfaith than He could deny Himself. He can never say to faith, You have\nmiscalculated; you take too lofty\u2014to bold a stand; go lower down, and\nlessen your expectations. Ah! no; the only thing in all this world that\ntruly delights and refreshes the heart of God is the faith that can\nsimply trust Him; and we may rest assured of this, that the faith that\ncan trust Him is also the faith that can love Him and serve Him and\npraise Him.\n\nHence, then, we are deeply indebted to the daughters of Zelophehad. They\nteach us a lesson of inestimable value. And more than this\u2014their acting\ngave occasion to the unfolding of a fresh truth, which was to form the\nbasis of a divine rule for all future generations. The Lord commanded\nMoses, saying, \u201cIf a man die, and have no son, then ye shall cause His\ninheritance to pass unto his daughter.\u201d\n\nHere we have a great principle laid down, in reference to the question of\ninheritance, of which, humanly speaking, we should have heard nothing had\nit not been for the faith and faithful conduct of these remarkable women.\nIf they had listened to the voice of timidity and unbelief\u2014if they had\nrefused to come forward, before the whole congregation, in the assertions\nof the claims of faith; then, not only would they have lost their own\ninheritance and blessing, but all future daughters of Israel in a like\nposition would have been deprived of their portion likewise. Whereas, on\nthe contrary, by acting in the precious energy of faith, they preserved\ntheir inheritance; they got the blessing; they received testimony from\nGod; their names shine on the page of inspiration; and their conduct\nfurnished, by divine authority, a precedent for all future generations.\n\nThus much as to the marvelous results of faith. But then we must\nremember that there is moral danger arising out of the very dignity and\nelevation which faith confers on those who, through grace, are enabled\nto exercise it; and this danger must be carefully guarded against. This\nis strikingly illustrated in the further history of the daughters of\nZelophehad, as recorded in the last chapter of our book. \u201cAnd the chief\nfathers of the families of the children of Gilead, the son of Machir,\nthe son of Manasseh, of the families of the sons of Joseph, came near,\nand spake before Moses, and before the princes, the chief fathers of\nthe children of Israel: and they said, \u2018The Lord commanded My lord to\ngive the land for an inheritance by lot to the children of Israel; and\nmy lord was commanded by the Lord to give the inheritance of Zelophehad\nour brother unto his daughters. And if they be married to any of the\nsons of the other tribes of the children of Israel, then shall their\ninheritance be taken from the inheritance of our fathers, and shall be\nput to the inheritance of the tribe whereunto they are received: so\nshall it be taken from the lot of our inheritance. And when the jubilee\nof the children of Israel shall be, then shall their inheritance be put\nunto the inheritance of the tribe whereunto they are received: so shall\ntheir inheritance be taken away from the inheritance of the tribe of our\nfathers.\u2019 And Moses commanded the children of Israel according to the\nword of the Lord, saying, \u2018The tribe of the sons of Joseph hath said\nwell.\u2019\u201d (Num. xxxvi. 1-5.)\n\nThe \u201cfathers\u201d of the house of Joseph must be heard as well as the\n\u201cdaughters.\u201d The faith of the latter was most lovely; but there was just\na danger lest, in the elevation to which that faith had raised them, they\nmight forget the claims of others, and remove the landmarks which guarded\nthe inheritance of their fathers. This had to be thought of and provided\nfor. It was natural to suppose that the daughters of Zelophehad would\nmarry; and moreover, it was possible they might form an alliance outside\nthe boundaries of their tribe; and thus in the year of jubilee\u2014that grand\nadjusting institution\u2014instead of adjustment, there would be confusion,\nand a permanent breach in the inheritance of Manasseh. This would never\ndo; and therefore the wisdom of those ancient fathers is very apparent.\nWe need to be guarded on every side, in order that the integrity of faith\nand the testimony may be duly maintained. We are not to carry things with\na high hand and a strong will though we have ever such strong faith,\nbut be ever ready to yield ourselves to the adjusting power of the whole\ntruth of God.\n\n\u201cThis is the thing which the Lord doth command concerning the daughters\nof Zelophehad, saying, \u2018Let them marry to whom they think best, only\nto the family of the tribe of their father shall they marry; so shall\nnot the inheritance of the children of Israel remove from tribe to\ntribe; for every one of the children of Israel shall keep himself to the\ninheritance of the tribe of his fathers.... Even as the Lord commanded\nMoses, so did the daughters of Zelophehad; for they [the five daughters]\nwere married unto their father\u2019s brothers\u2019 sons. And they were married\ninto the families of the sons of Manasseh, the son of Joseph; and their\ninheritance remained in the tribe of the family of their father.\u201d (Num.\nxxxvi. 6-12.)\n\nThus all is settled. The activities of faith are governed by the truth\nof God, and individual claims are adjusted in harmony with the true\ninterests of all; while at the same time the glory of God is so fully\nmaintained that at the time of the jubilee, instead of any confusion in\nthe landmarks of Israel, the integrity of the inheritance is secured\naccording to the divine grant.\n\nNothing can be more instructive than this entire history of the daughters\nof Zelophehad. May we really profit by it.\n\nThe closing paragraph of our chapter is full of deep solemnity. The\ngovernmental dealings of God are displayed before our eyes in a manner\neminently calculated to impress the heart. \u201cThe Lord said unto Moses,\n\u2018Get thee up into this mount Abarim, and see the land which I have given\nunto the children of Israel. And when thou hast seen it, thou also shalt\nbe gathered unto thy people, as Aaron thy brother was gathered. For ye\nrebelled against My commandment in the desert of Zin, in the strife of\nthe congregation, to sanctify Me at the water before their eyes: that is\nthe water of Meribah in Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 12-14.)\n\nMoses must not go over Jordan. It is not only that he cannot officially\nbring the people over, but he cannot even go himself. Such was the\nenactment of the government of God. But on the other hand, we see grace\nshining out, with uncommon lustre, in the fact that Moses is conducted\nby God\u2019s own hand to the top of Pisgah, and from thence he sees the land\nof promise, in all its magnificence, not merely as Israel afterwards\npossessed it, but as God had originally given it.\n\nNow this was the fruit of grace, and it comes out more fully in the close\nof Deuteronomy, where we are also told that God buried His dear servant.\nThis is wonderful. Indeed there is nothing like it in the history of\nthe saints of God. We do not dwell upon this subject here, having done\nso elsewhere;[21] but it is full of the deepest interest. Moses spake\nunadvisedly with his lips, and for that he was forbidden to cross the\nJordan. This was God in _government_. But Moses was taken up to Pisgah,\nthere, in company with Jehovah, to get a full view of the inheritance;\nand then Jehovah made a grave for His servant and buried him therein.\nThis was God in _grace_\u2014marvelous, matchless grace!\u2014grace that has ever\nmade the eater yield meat and the strong sweetness. How precious to be\nthe subjects of such grace! May our souls rejoice in it more and more, in\nthe eternal fountain whence it emanates, and in the channel through which\nit flows.\n\nWe shall close this section by a brief reference to the lovely\nunselfishness of Moses in the matter of appointing a successor. That\nblessed man of God was ever characterized by a most exquisite spirit of\nself-surrender\u2014that rare and admirable grace. We never find him seeking\nhis own things; on the contrary, again and again, when opportunity was\nafforded him of building up his own fame and fortune, he proved very\ndistinctly that the glory of God and the good of His people so occupied\nand filled his heart that there was no room for a single selfish\nconsideration.\n\nThus it is in the closing scene of our chapter. When Moses hears that\nhe is not to go over Jordan, instead of being occupied in regrets as to\nhimself, he only thinks of the interests of the congregation. \u201cAnd Moses\nspake unto the Lord, saying, \u2018Let the Lord, the God of the spirits of all\nflesh, set a man over the congregation, which may go out before them, and\nwhich may go in before them, and which may lead them out, and which may\nbring them in; that the congregation of the Lord be not as sheep which\nhave no shepherd.\u2019\u201d\n\nWhat unselfish breathings are here! How grateful they must have proved\nto the heart of that One who so loved and cared for His people! Provided\nthat Israel\u2019s need were met, Moses was content. If only the work was\ndone, he cared not who did it. As to himself\u2014his interests and his\ndestinies, he could calmly leave all in the hand of God. He would take\ncare of him, but, oh! his loving heart yearns over the beloved people of\nGod; and the very moment he sees Joshua ordained as their leader, he is\nready to depart and be at rest forever. Blessed servant! happy man! Would\nthere were even a few amongst us characterized, in some small degree,\nby his excellent spirit of self-abnegation, and jealous care for God\u2019s\nglory and His people\u2019s good. But alas! alas! we have to repeat, with\ndeepening emphasis, the _words_ of the apostle\u2014\u201cAll seek their own, not\nthe things that are Jesus Christ\u2019s.\u201d O Lord, stir up all our hearts to\ndesire a more earnest consecration of ourselves, in spirit, soul, and\nbody, to Thy blessed service. May we, in good truth, learn to live, not\nunto ourselves, but unto Him who died for us\u2014who came from heaven to\nearth about our sins, and is gone back from earth to heaven about our\ninfirmities, and who is coming again for our eternal salvation and glory.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTERS XXVIII. & XXIX.\n\n\nThese two chapters must be read together; they form a distinct section\nof our book\u2014a section pregnant with interest and instruction. The second\nverse of chapter xxviii. gives us a condensed statement of the contents\nof the entire section. \u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, \u2018Command\nthe children of Israel, and say unto them, My offering, and My bread for\nMy sacrifices made by fire, for a sweet savor unto Me, shall ye observe\nto offer unto Me in their due season.\u2019\u201d\n\nIn these words the reader is furnished with a key with which to unlock\nthe whole of this portion of the book of Numbers. It is as distinct and\nsimple as possible. \u201c_My_ offering,\u201d \u201c_My_ bread,\u201d \u201c_My_ sacrifices,\u201d \u201c_A\nsweet savor unto Me._\u201d All this is strongly marked. We may learn here,\nwithout an effort, that the grand leading thought is, Christ to Godward.\nIt is not so much Christ as meeting our need\u2014though surely He does most\nblessedly meet that\u2014as Christ feeding and delighting the heart of God.\nIt is God\u2019s bread\u2014a truly wonderful expression, and one little thought\nof or understood. We are all sadly prone to look at Christ merely as the\nprocuring cause of our salvation, the One through whom we are forgiven\nand saved from hell, the channel through which all blessing flows to us.\nHe is all this, blessed forever be His name. He is the Author of eternal\nsalvation to all them that obey Him; He bore our sins in His own body\non the tree; He died, the just for the unjust, to bring us to God; He\nsaves us from our sins, from their present power, and from their future\nconsequences.\n\nAll this is true; and consequently, throughout the whole of the two\nchapters which lie open before us, and in each distinct paragraph, we\nhave the sin-offering introduced. (See chap. xxviii. 15, 22, 30; xxix. 5,\n11, 16, 19, 22, 25, 28, 31, 34, 38.) Thirteen times over is mention made\nof the sin-offering of atonement, and yet for all that it remains true\nand obvious that sin or atonement for sin is not by any means the great\nprominent subject. There is no mention of it in the verse which we have\nquoted for the reader, although that verse plainly gives a summary of the\ncontents of the two chapters; nor is there any allusion to it until we\nreach the fifteenth verse.\n\nNeed we say that the sin-offering is essential, inasmuch as man is in\nquestion, and man is a sinner? It would be impossible to treat of the\nsubject of man\u2019s approach to God, his worship, or his communion without\nintroducing the atoning death of Christ as the necessary foundation. This\nthe whole heart confesses with supreme delight. The mystery of Christ\u2019s\nprecious sacrifice shall be the well-spring of our souls throughout the\neverlasting ages.\n\nBut shall we be deemed Socinian in our thoughts if we assert that there\nis something in Christ and in His precious death beyond the bearing of\nour sins and the meeting of our necessities? We trust not. Can any one\nread Numbers xxviii. and xxix. and not see this? Look at one simple\nfact, which might strike the mind of a child. There are seventy-one\nverses in the entire section, and out of these, thirteen allude to the\nsin-offering, and the remaining fifty-eight are occupied with sweet-savor\nofferings.\n\nIn a word, then, the special theme here is, God\u2019s delight in Christ.\nMorning and evening, day by day, week after week, from one new moon\nto another, from the opening to the close of the year, it is Christ\nin His fragrance and preciousness to Godward. True it is\u2014thanks be to\nGod, and to Jesus Christ His Son\u2014our sin is atoned for, judged, and\nput away forever\u2014our trespasses forgiven and guilt canceled; but above\nand beyond this, the heart of God is fed, refreshed, and delighted by\nChrist. What was the morning and evening lamb? was it a sin-offering,\nor a burnt-offering? Hear the reply in God\u2019s own words,\u2014\u201cAnd thou shalt\nsay unto them, \u2018This is the offering made by fire which ye shall offer\nunto the Lord; two lambs of the first year without spot day by day, for a\n_continual burnt-offering_. The one lamb shalt thou offer in the morning,\nand the other lamb shalt thou offer at even; and a tenth part of an ephah\nof flour for a meat-offering, mingled with the fourth part of a hin of\nbeaten oil. It is a continual burnt-offering, which was ordained in Mount\nSinai, for a sweet savor, a sacrifice made by fire unto the Lord.\u2019\u201d\n\nAgain, what were the two lambs for the Sabbath? a sin-offering, or a\nburnt-offering? \u201cThis is _the burnt-offering_ of every Sabbath.\u201d It\nwas to be double, because the Sabbath was a type of the rest that\nremaineth for God\u2019s people, when there will be a twofold appreciation of\nChrist. But the character of the offering is as plain as possible,\u2014it\nwas Christ to Godward. This is the special point in the burnt-offering.\nThe sin-offering is Christ to usward. In this, it is a question of the\nhatefulness of sin; in that, it is a question of the preciousness and\nexcellency of Christ.\n\nSo also at the beginnings of their months (ver. 11), in the feast of the\npassover and unleavened bread (ver. 16-25), in the feast of first-fruits\n(ver. 26-31), in the feast of trumpets (chap. xxix. 1-6), in the feast\nof tabernacles (ver. 7-38). In a word, throughout the entire range of\nfeasts, the leading idea is, Christ as a sweet savor. The sin-offering is\nnever lacking; but the sweet-savor offerings get _the_ prominent place,\nas is evident to the most cursory reader. We do not think it possible\nfor any one to read this remarkable portion of Scripture and not observe\nthe contrast between the place of the sin-offering and that of the\nburnt-offering. The former is only spoken of as \u201c_one_ kid of the goats,\u201d\nwhereas the latter comes before us in the form of \u201cfourteen lambs,\u201d\n\u201cthirteen bullocks,\u201d and such like. Such is the large place which the\nsweet-savor offerings get in this scripture.\n\nBut why dwell upon this? why insist upon it? Simply to show to the\nChristian reader the true character of the worship God looks for, and in\nwhich He delights. God delights in Christ, and it should be our constant\naim to present to God that in which He delights. Christ should ever be\nthe material of our worship; and He will be, in proportion as we are led\nby the Spirit of God. How often, alas! it is otherwise with us, the heart\ncan tell. Both in the assembly and in the closet, how often is the tone\nlow, and the spirit dull and heavy. We are occupied with self instead\nof with Christ; and the Holy Ghost, instead of being able to do His own\nproper work, which is, to take of the things of Christ and show them unto\nus, is obliged to occupy us with ourselves, in self-judgment, because our\nways have not been right.\n\nAll this is to be deeply deplored. It demands our serious attention,\nboth as assemblies and as individuals\u2014in our public reunions and in our\nprivate devotions. Why is the tone of our public meetings frequently so\nlow? Why such feebleness, such barrenness, such wandering? Why are the\nhymns and prayers so wide of the mark? Why is there so little that really\ndeserves the name of worship? Why is there such restlessness and aimless\nactivity? Why is there so little in our midst to refresh the heart of\nGod?\u2014so little that He can really speak of as \u201c_His_ bread, for _His_\nsacrifices made by fire, for a sweet savor unto Him\u201d? We are occupied\nwith self and its surroundings\u2014our wants, our weakness, our trials and\ndifficulties; and we leave God without the bread of His sacrifice. We\nactually rob Him of His due, and of that which His loving heart desires.\n\nIs it that we can ignore our trials, our difficulties, and our wants? No;\nbut we can commit them to Him. He tells us to cast _all_ our care upon\nHim, in the sweet and tranquilizing assurance that He careth for us. He\ninvites us to cast our burdens upon Him, in the assurance that He will\nsustain us. He is mindful of us. Is not this enough? Ought we not to be\nsufficiently at leisure from ourselves, when we assemble in His presence,\nto be able to present to Him something besides our own things? He has\nprovided for us; He has made all right for us; our sins and our sorrows\nhave all been divinely met; and most surely we cannot suppose that such\nthings are the food of God\u2019s sacrifice. He has made them His care,\nblessed be His name; but they cannot be said to be His food.\n\nChristian reader, ought we not to think of these things?\u2014think of them in\nreference both to the assembly and the closet? for the same remarks apply\nboth to the one and the other. Ought we not to cultivate such a condition\nof soul as would enable us to present to God that which He is pleased\nto call \u201cHis bread\u201d? The truth is, we want more entire and habitual\noccupation of heart with Christ as a sweet savor to God. It is not that\nwe should value the Sin-offering less (far be the thought!); but let us\nremember that there is something more in our precious Lord Jesus Christ\nthan the pardon of our sins and the salvation of our souls. What do the\nburnt-offering, the meat-offering, and the drink-offering set forth?\nChrist as a sweet savor, Christ the food of God\u2019s offering, the joy of\nHis heart. Need we say it is one and the same Christ? Need we insist upon\nit that it is the same One who was made a curse for us that is a sweet\nsavor to God? Surely, surely, every Christian owns this. But are we not\nprone to confine our thoughts of Christ to what _He did for us_, to the\nvirtual exclusion of what _He is to God_? It is this we have to mourn\nover and judge\u2014this we must seek to have corrected; and we cannot but\nthink that a careful study of Numbers xxviii, xxix. would prove a very\nexcellent corrective. May God, by His Spirit, use it to this end.\n\nHaving, in our \u201cNotes on Leviticus,\u201d offered to the reader what God has\ngiven to us in the way of light on the sacrifices and feasts, we do not\nfeel led to dwell upon them here. That little volume can be had of the\npublishers, and the reader will find in chapters i.-viii. and chapter\nxxxiii. what may interest and help him in reference to the subjects\ntreated of in the two chapters on which we have been dwelling.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXX.\n\n\nThis brief section has what we may term a dispensational bearing. It\napplies specially to Israel, and treats of the question of vows and\nbonds. The man and the woman stand in marked contrast in relation to this\nsubject. \u201cIf a man vow a vow unto the Lord, or swear an oath to bind his\nsoul with a bond; he shall not break his word, he shall do according to\nall that proceedeth out of his mouth.\u201d (Ver. 2.)\n\nIn reference to the woman, the case was different. \u201cIf a woman also vow\na vow unto the Lord, and bind herself by a bond, being in her father\u2019s\nhouse in her youth; and her father hear her vow, and her bond wherewith\nshe hath bound her soul, and her father shall hold his peace at her:\nthen all her vows shall stand, and every bond wherewith she hath bound\nher soul shall stand. But if her father disallow her in the day that he\nheareth; not any of her vows, or of her bonds wherewith she hath bound\nher soul, shall stand: and the Lord shall forgive her, because her father\ndisallowed her.\u201d (Ver. 3-5.) The same thing applied in the case of a\nwife. Her husband could either confirm or annul all her vows and bonds.\n\nSuch was the law with regard to vows. There was no relief for the man.\nHe was bound to go right through with whatever had proceeded out of his\nmouth. Whatever he undertook to do, he was solemnly and irreversibly held\nto it. There was no back door, as we say\u2014no way of getting out of it.\n\nNow, we know who, in perfect grace, took this position, and voluntarily\nbound Himself to accomplish the will of God, whatever that will might be.\nWe know who it is that says, \u201cI will pay My vows unto the Lord now in the\npresence of all His people.\u201d \u201cThe Man Christ Jesus,\u201d who, having taken\nthe vows upon Him, discharged them perfectly to the glory of God and the\neternal blessing of His people. There was no escape for Him. We hear Him\nexclaiming, in the deep anguish of His soul, in the garden of Gethsemane,\n\u201cIf it be possible, let this cup pass from Me.\u201d But it was not possible.\nHe had undertaken the work of man\u2019s salvation, and He had to go through\nthe deep and dark waters of death, judgment, and wrath, and perfectly\nmeet all the consequences of man\u2019s condition. He had a baptism to be\nbaptized with, and was straitened until it was accomplished. In other\nwords, He had to die, in order that, by death, He might open the pent-up\nfloodgates, and allow the mighty tide of divine and everlasting love to\nflow down to His people. All praise and adoration be to His peerless name\nforever!\n\nThus much as to the man and his vows and bonds. In the case of the woman,\nwhether as the daughter or the wife, we have the nation of Israel, and\nthat in two ways, namely, under government and under grace. Looked at\nfrom a governmental point of view, Jehovah, who is at once the Father and\nthe Husband, has held His peace at her, so that her vows and bonds are\nallowed to stand; and she is, to this day, suffering the consequences,\nand made to feel the force of those words, \u201cBetter that thou shouldest\nnot vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay.\u201d\n\nBut on the other hand, as viewed from the blessed stand-point of grace,\nthe Father and the Husband has taken all upon Himself, so that she shall\nbe forgiven and brought into the fullness of blessing by and by, not on\nthe ground of accomplished vows and ratified bonds, but on the ground of\nsovereign grace and mercy, through the blood of the everlasting covenant.\nHow precious to find Christ every where! He is the centre and foundation,\nthe beginning and the end, of all the ways of God. May our hearts be\never filled with Him; may our lips and lives speak His praise; may we,\nconstrained by His love, live to His glory all our days upon earth, and\nthen go home to be with Himself forever, to go no more out.\n\nWe have here given what we believe to be the primary thought of this\nchapter. That it may be applied, in a secondary way, to individuals, we\ndo not by any means question; and further, that, like all Scripture, it\nhas been written for our learning, we most thankfully own. It must ever\nbe the delight of the devout Christian to study all the ways of God,\nwhether in grace or government\u2014His ways with Israel, His ways with the\nChurch, His ways with all, His ways with each. Oh to pursue this study\nwith an enlarged heart and an enlightened understanding!\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXXI.\n\n\nWe have here the closing scene of Moses\u2019 _official_ life, as in\nDeuteronomy xxxiv. we have the closing scene of his _personal_ history.\n\u201cAnd the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, \u2018Avenge the children of Israel\nof the Midianites; afterward shalt thou be gathered unto thy people.\u2019\nAnd Moses spake unto the people, saying, \u2018Arm some of yourselves unto\nthe war, and let them go against the Midianites, and avenge the Lord of\nMidian. Of every tribe a thousand, throughout all the tribes of Israel,\nshall ye send to the war.\u2019 So there were delivered out of the thousands\nof Israel, a thousand of every tribe, twelve thousand armed for war. And\nMoses sent them to the war, a thousand of every tribe, them and _Phinehas\nthe son of Eleazar the priest_, to the war, _with the holy instruments_,\nand the trumpets to blow in his hand. And they warred against the\nMidianites, as the Lord commanded Moses; _and they slew all the males_.\u201d\n(Ver. 3-7.)\n\nThis is a very remarkable passage. The Lord says to Moses, \u201c_Avenge\nthe children of Israel_ of the Midianites,\u201d and Moses says to Israel,\n\u201c_Avenge the Lord_ of Midian.\u201d The people had been insnared by the wiles\nof the daughters of Midian, through the evil influence of Balaam the\nson Beor; and they are now called upon to clear themselves thoroughly\nfrom all the defilement which, through want of watchfulness, they had\ncontracted. The sword is to be brought upon the Midianites, and all\nthe spoil is to be made to pass either through the fire of judgment or\nthrough the water of purification. Not one jot or tittle of the evil\nthing is to be suffered to pass unjudged.\n\nNow, this war was what we may call abnormal. By right, the people\nought not to have had any occasion to encounter it at all. It was not\none of the wars of Canaan; it was simply the result of their own\nunfaithfulness\u2014the fruit of their own unhallowed commerce with the\nuncircumcised. Hence, although Joshua, the son of Nun, had been duly\nappointed to succeed Moses as leader of the congregation, we find no\nmention whatever of him in connection with this war. On the contrary, it\nis to Phinehas, the son of Eleazar the priest, that the conduct of this\nexpedition is committed; and he enters upon it \u201cwith the holy instruments\nand the trumpets.\u201d\n\nAll this is strongly marked. _The priest_ is the prominent person, and\n_the holy instruments_ the prominent instrumentality. It is a question of\nwiping away the stain caused by their unholy association with the enemy;\nand therefore, instead of a general officer with sword and spear, it is\na priest with holy instruments that appears in the foreground. True, the\nsword is here, but it is not the prominent thing. It is the priest with\nthe vessels of the sanctuary, and that priest the self-same man who first\nexecuted judgment upon that very evil which has here to be avenged.\n\nThe moral of all this is at once plain and practical. The Midianites\nfurnish a type of that peculiar kind of influence which the world exerts\nover the hearts of the people of God\u2014the fascinating and insnaring\npower of the world used by Satan to hinder our entrance upon our proper\nheavenly portion. Israel should have had nothing to do with these\nMidianites; but having, in an evil hour\u2014an unguarded moment, been\nbetrayed into association with them, nothing remains but war and utter\nextermination.\n\nSo with us as Christians. Our proper business is, to pass through the\nworld as pilgrims and strangers; having nothing to do with it, save\nto be the patient witnesses of the grace of Christ, and thus shine as\nlights in the midst of the surrounding moral gloom. But, alas! we fail to\nmaintain this rigid separation; we suffer ourselves to be betrayed into\nalliance with the world, and in consequence, we get involved in trouble\nand conflict which does not properly belong to us at all. War with Midian\nformed no part of Israel\u2019s proper work. They had to thank themselves for\nit. But God is gracious; and hence, through a special application of\npriestly ministry, they were enabled, not only to conquer the Midianites,\nbut to carry away much spoil. God, in His infinite goodness, brings\ngood out of evil. He will cause the eater to yield meat, and the strong\nsweetness. His grace shines out, with exceeding brightness, in the scene\nbefore us, inasmuch as He actually deigns to accept a portion of the\nspoils taken from the Midianites. But the evil had to be thoroughly\njudged. \u201cEvery male\u201d had to be put to death\u2014all in whom there was the\nenergy of the evil had to be completely exterminated; and finally, the\nfire of judgment and the water of purification had to do their work on\nthe spoil ere God or His people could touch an atom of it.\n\nWhat holy lessons are here! May we apply our hearts to them. May we be\nenabled to pursue a path of more intense separation, and to press on our\nheavenly road as those whose portion and whose home is on high. God in\nHis mercy grant it.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXXII.\n\n\nThe fact recorded in this chapter has given rise to considerable\ndiscussion. Various have been the opinions advanced in reference to the\nconduct of the two tribes and a half. Were they right, or were they wrong\nin choosing their inheritance on the wilderness side of Jordan? This is\nthe question. Was their acting in this matter the expression of power, or\nof weakness? How are we to form a sound judgment in this case?\n\nIn the first place, where was Israel\u2019s proper portion\u2014their divinely\ndestined inheritance? Most surely on the other side of Jordan, in the\nland of Canaan. Well, then, ought not this fact to have sufficed? Would\nor could a really true heart\u2014a heart that thought and felt and judged\nwith God\u2014have entertained the idea of selecting a portion other than that\nwhich God had allotted and bestowed? Impossible. Hence, then, we need\nnot to go further in order to have a divine judgment on this subject. It\nwas a mistake, a failure, a stopping short of the divine mark, on the\npart of Reuben and Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh, to choose any\nboundary-line short of the river Jordan. They were governed, in their\nconduct, by worldly and selfish considerations\u2014by the sight of their\neyes\u2014by carnal motives. They surveyed \u201cthe land of Jazer and the land of\nGilead,\u201d and they estimated it entirely according to their own interests,\nand without any reference to the judgment and will of God. Had they been\nsimply looking to God, the question of settling down short of the river\nJordan would never have been raised at all.\n\nBut when people are not simple, not true-hearted, they get into\ncircumstances which give rise to all sorts of questions. It is a great\nmatter to be enabled, by divine grace, to pursue a line of action, and to\ntread a path so unequivocal, as that no question can be raised. It is our\nholy and happy privilege so to carry ourselves as that no complication\nmay ever arise. The secret of so doing is to walk with God, and thus to\nhave our conduct wholly governed by His Word.\n\nBut that Reuben and Gad were not thus governed is manifest from the\nentire history. They were half-and-half men; men of mixed principles;\nmere borderers; men that sought their own things, and not the things of\nGod. Had these latter engrossed their hearts, nothing would have induced\nthem to take up their position short of the true boundary-line.\n\nIt is very evident that Moses had no sympathy with their proposal. It\nwas a judgment upon his conduct that he was not allowed to go over. His\nheart was in the promised land, and he longed to go thither in person.\nHow could he, then, approve of the conduct of men who were not only\nprepared, but actually desirous, to take up their abode somewhere else?\nFaith can never be satisfied with any thing short of the true position\nand portion of God\u2019s people. A single eye can only see, a faithful heart\nonly desire, the inheritance given of God.\n\nHence, therefore, Moses at once condemned the proposition of Reuben and\nGad. True, he afterwards relaxed his judgment and gave his consent. Their\npromise to cross the Jordan, ready-armed, before their brethren, drew\nfrom Moses a kind of assent. It seemed an extraordinary manifestation of\nunselfishness and energy to leave all their loved ones behind, and cross\nthe Jordan, only to fight for their brethren. But where had they left\nthose loved ones? They had left them short of the divine mark. They had\ndeprived them of a place and portion in the true land of promise\u2014that\ninheritance of which God had spoken to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And for\nwhat? Just to get good pasture for their cattle. For an object like this\ndid the two tribes and a half abandon their place within the true limits\nof the Israel of God.\n\nAnd now let us look at the consequences of this line of action. Let the\nreader turn to Joshua xxii. Here we have the first sorrowful effect\nof the equivocal conduct of Reuben and Gad. They must needs build an\naltar\u2014\u201ca great altar to see to,\u201d lest in time to come their brethren\nmight disown them. What does all this prove? It proves that they were all\nwrong in taking up their position on this side of Jordan. And only mark\nthe effect upon the whole assembly\u2014the disturbing, alarming effect of\nthis altar. At the first blush, it wore the aspect of actual rebellion.\n\u201cAnd when the children of Israel heard it, _the whole congregation of\nthe children of Israel_ gathered themselves together at Shiloh, to go\nup to war against them. And _the children of Israel_ sent unto _the\nchildren of Reuben_, and to the children of Gad, and to the half tribe of\nManasseh,[22] into the land of Gilead, Phinehas the son of Eleazar the\npriest, and with him ten princes, of each chief house a prince throughout\nall the tribes of Israel; and each one was a head of the house of their\nfathers among the thousands of Israel. And they came unto the children of\nReuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the half tribe of Manasseh,\nunto the land of Gilead, and they spake with them, saying, \u2018Thus saith\n_the whole congregation of the Lord_, [Did not the two and a half belong\nto it?] What trespass is this that ye have committed against the God of\nIsrael, to turn away this day from following the Lord, in that ye have\nbuilded you an altar, that ye might rebel this day against the Lord? Is\nthe iniquity of Peor too little for us, from which we are not cleansed\nuntil this day, although there was a plague in the congregation of the\nLord, but that ye must turn away this day from following the Lord? and it\nwill be, seeing ye rebel to-day against the Lord, that to-morrow He will\nbe wroth with the whole congregation of Israel. Notwithstanding, if the\nland of _your possession_ be unclean, then pass ye over unto _the land\nof the possession of the Lord_, wherein the Lord\u2019s tabernacle dwelleth,\n[what burning words!] and take possession among us; but rebel not against\nthe Lord, nor rebel against us, in building you an altar beside the altar\nof the Lord our God.\u2019\u201d (Joshua xxii. 12-19.)\n\nNow all this serious misunderstanding, all this trouble and alarm, was\nthe result of failure on the part of Reuben and Gad. True, they were able\nto explain themselves and satisfy their brethren in reference to the\naltar; but then there would have been no need of the altar, no demand\nfor explanation, no cause of alarm, had they not taken up an equivocal\nposition.\n\nHere was the source of all the mischief; and it is important for the\nChristian reader to seize this point with clearness, and to deduce from\nit the great practical lesson which it is designed to teach. It can\nhardly be questioned by any thoughtful, spiritually minded person who\nfully weighs all the evidence in the case, that the two tribes and a half\nwere wrong in stopping short of the Jordan, in taking up their position.\nThis seems to us unquestionable, even on the ground of what has already\ncome before us; and if further proof were needed, it is furnished by the\nfact that they were the very first to fall into the enemy\u2019s hands. (See 1\nKings xxii. 3.)\n\nBut it may be that the reader is disposed to ask, What has all this to\nsay to us? has this piece of history any voice\u2014any instruction for us?\nUnquestionably. It sounds in our ears, with accents of deep solemnity,\nBeware of falling short of your proper position\u2014your proper portion\u2014of\nbeing content with the things which belong to this world\u2014of taking any\nstand short of death and resurrection\u2014the true, the spiritual Jordan.[23]\n\nSuch, we conceive, is the teaching of this portion of our book. It is\na grand point to be whole-hearted, decided, and unequivocal in taking\nour stand for Christ. Serious damage is done to the cause of God and\nthe testimony of Christ by those who profess to be Christians denying\ntheir heavenly calling and character, and acting as though they were\ncitizens of this world. This is a powerful engine in the hands of Satan.\nAn undecided, half-and-half Christian is more inconsistent than an\nopen, out-and-out worldling or infidel. The unreality of professors is\nmore injurious by far to the cause of God than all the forms of moral\npravity put together. This may seem a strong statement, but it is too\ntrue. Christian professors who are only mere borderers\u2014men of mixed\nprinciples\u2014persons of doubtful deportment\u2014these are the men who most\nseriously damage the blessed cause, and promote the designs of the\nenemy of Christ. What we want, just now, is a band of whole-hearted,\nthoroughgoing, unmistakable witnesses for Jesus Christ\u2014men who shall\ndeclare plainly that they seek a country\u2014earnest, unworldly men.\n\nThese are the men for the present crisis. What can be more deplorable,\nmore saddening and discouraging, than to find those who make a lofty\nprofession, who talk loudly of death and resurrection, who boast of their\nhigh doctrines and heavenly privileges, but whose walk and ways give the\nlie to their words? They love the world and the things of the world; they\nlove money, and are eager to grasp and hoard as much as possible.\n\nBeloved Christian reader, let us see to these things; let us honestly\njudge ourselves as in the very presence of God, and put away from us\nevery thing, no matter what, that tends to hinder the complete devotion\nof ourselves, in spirit and soul and body, to Him who loved us and gave\nHimself for us. May we, to use the language of Joshua xxii, so carry\nourselves as not to need any altar to see to, nor any thing to declare\nwhere we belong to, where we worship, whose we are, and whom we serve.\nThus shall every thing about us be transparent and unquestionable, our\ntestimony shall be distinct, and the sound of our trumpet certain; our\npeace, too, shall flow like an even river, and the entire bent of our\ncourse and character shall be to the praise of Him whose name is called\nupon us. May the good Lord stir up the hearts of His people, in this day\nof hateful indifferentism, lukewarmness, and easy-going profession, to\nmore genuine self-surrender, true consecration to the cause of Christ,\nand unshaken faith in the living God. Will the reader join us in pleading\nfor all this?\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTERS XXXIII. & XXXIV.\n\n\nThe first of these sections gives us a wonderfully minute description of\nthe desert wanderings of the people of God. It is impossible to read it\nwithout being deeply moved by the tender love and care of God so signally\ndisplayed throughout the whole. To think of His deigning to keep such\na record of the journeyings of His poor people, from the moment they\nmarched out of Egypt until they crossed the Jordan\u2014from the land of death\nand darkness to the land flowing with milk and honey. \u201cHe knoweth thy\nwalking through this great wilderness: these forty years the Lord thy God\nhath been with thee; thou hast lacked nothing.\u201d He went before them every\nstep of the way; He traveled over every stage of the wilderness; in all\ntheir afflictions He was afflicted. He took care of them like a tender\nnurse. He suffered not their garments to wax old, or their feet to swell,\nfor these forty years; and here He retraces the entire way by which His\nhand had led them, carefully noting down each successive stage of that\nmarvelous pilgrimage, and every spot in the desert at which they had\nhalted. What a journey! What a Traveling-Companion!\n\nIt is very consolatory to the heart of the poor weary pilgrim to be\nassured that every stage of his wilderness journey is marked out by the\ninfinite love and unerring wisdom of God. He is leading His people by a\nright way, home to Himself; and there is not a single circumstance in\ntheir lot, or a single ingredient in their cup, which is not carefully\nordered by Himself, with direct reference to their present profit and\ntheir everlasting felicity. Let it only be our care to walk with Him, day\nby day, in simple confidence, casting all our care upon Him, and leaving\nourselves and all our belongings absolutely in His hands. This is the\ntrue source of peace and blessedness all the journey through; and then,\nwhen our desert wanderings are over\u2014when the last stage of the wilderness\nhas been trodden, He will take us home to be with Himself forever.\n\n \u201cThere with what joy reviewing\n Past conflicts, dangers, fears\u2014\n Thy hand our foes subduing,\n And drying all our tears\u2014\n Our hearts with rapture burning,\n The path we shall retrace,\n Where now our souls are learning\n The riches of Thy grace.\u201d\n\nChapter xxxiv. gives the boundaries of the inheritance, as drawn by the\nhand of Jehovah. The self-same hand which had guided their wanderings,\nhere fixes the bounds of their habitation. Alas! they never took\npossession of the land as given of God. He gave them the whole land, and\ngave it forever: they took but a part, and that for a time. But blessed\nbe God, the moment is approaching when the seed of Abraham shall enter\nupon the full and everlasting possession of that fair inheritance,\nfrom which they are for the present excluded. Jehovah will assuredly\naccomplish all His promises, and lead His people into all the blessings\nsecured to them in the everlasting covenant\u2014that covenant which has been\nratified by the blood of the Lamb. Not one jot or tittle shall fail of\nall that He has spoken. His promises are all yea and Amen in Christ\nJesus, who is the same yesterday, to-day, and forever. All praise to the\nFather, and unto the Son, and to the Holy Spirit!\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXXV.\n\n\nThe opening lines of this most interesting chapter set before us the\ngracious provision which Jehovah made for His servants the Levites. Each\nof the tribes of Israel was privileged\u2014that we say not bound\u2014to furnish\nthe Levites with a certain number of cities with their suburbs, according\nto their ability. \u201cAll the cities which ye shall give to the Levites\nshall be forty and eight cities: them shall ye give with their suburbs.\nAnd the cities which ye shall give shall be of the possession of the\nchildren of Israel: from them that have many ye shall give many, but from\nthem that have few ye shall give few: every one shall give of his cities\nunto the Levites, according to his inheritance which he inherited.\u201d (Ver.\n7, 8.)\n\nThe Lord\u2019s servants were wholly cast upon Him for their portion. They\nhad no inheritance or possession save in Himself. Blessed inheritance!\nPrecious portion! None like it, in the judgment of faith. Blessed are all\nthose who can truly say to the Lord, \u201cThou art the portion of my cup,\nand the lot of my inheritance.\u201d God took care of His dependent servants,\nand permitted the whole congregation of Israel to taste the hallowed\nprivilege\u2014for such it most assuredly was\u2014of being co-workers with Him in\nproviding for those who had willingly devoted themselves to His work,\nabandoning all besides.\n\nThus, then, we learn that, out of the twelve tribes of Israel, forty\nand eight cities, with their suburbs, were to be given over to the\nLevites; and out of these, again, the Levites had the privilege of\nfurnishing six cities to be a refuge for the poor man-slayer. Most lovely\nprovision!\u2014lovely in its origin! lovely in its object!\n\nThe cities of refuge were situated three on the eastern and three on\nthe western side of Jordan. Whether Reuben and Gad were right or wrong\nin settling east of that significant boundary, God in His mercy would\nnot leave the slayer without a refuge from the avenger of blood. On\nthe contrary, like Himself, He ordained that those cities which were\ndesigned as a merciful provision for the slayer should be so situated\nthat wherever there was need of a shelter that shelter might be near at\nhand. There was always a city within reach of any who might be exposed\nto the sword of the avenger. This was worthy of our God. If any slayer\nhappened to fall into the hands of the avenger of blood, it was not for\nwant of a refuge near at hand, but because he had failed to avail himself\nof it. All necessary provision was made; the cities were named, and well\ndefined, and publicly known. Every thing was made as plain, as simple,\nand as easy as possible. Such was God\u2019s gracious way.\n\nNo doubt, the slayer was responsible to put forth all his energy to reach\nthe sacred precincts; and no doubt he would. It is not at all likely\nthat any one would be so blind or so infatuated as to fold his arms, in\ncool indifference, and say, If I am fated to escape, I shall escape; my\nefforts are not needed: if I am not fated to escape, I cannot escape;\nmy efforts are of no use. We cannot fancy a man-slayer using such silly\nlanguage, or being guilty of such blind fatuity as this. He knew too well\nthat if the avenger could but lay his hand upon him, all such notions\nwould be of small account. There was but the one thing to be done, and\nthat was, to escape for his life\u2014to flee from impending judgment\u2014to find\nhis safe abode within the gates of the city of refuge. Once there, he\ncould breathe freely. No evil could overtake him there. The moment he\ncrossed the threshold of the gate, he was as safe as God\u2019s provision\ncould make him. If a hair of his head could be touched within the bounds\nof the city, it could but be a dishonor and a reproach upon the ordinance\nof God. True, he had to keep close; he dared not venture outside the\ngate. Within, he was perfectly safe; without, he was thoroughly exposed.\nHe could not even visit his friends; he was an exile from his father\u2019s\nhouse; he was a prisoner of hope. Absent from the home of his heart\u2019s\naffections, he waited for the death of the high-priest, which was to set\nhim perfectly free and restore him, once more, to his inheritance and to\nhis people.\n\nNow, we believe that this beautiful ordinance had special reference to\nIsrael. They have killed the Prince of Life; but the question is, As\nwhich are they viewed by God? as the murderer, or as the slayer? If the\nformer, there is no refuge\u2014no hope. No murderer could be sheltered within\nthe city of refuge. Here is the law of the case, as stated in Joshua\nxx: \u201cThe Lord also spake unto Joshua, saying, \u2018Speak to the children of\nIsrael, saying, Appoint out for you cities of refuge, whereof I spake\nunto you by the hand of Moses: that the slayer that killeth any person\nunawares and unwittingly may flee thither; and they shall be your refuge\nfrom the avenger of blood. And when he that doth flee unto one of those\ncities shall stand at the entering of the gate of the city, and shall\ndeclare his cause in the ears of the elders of that city, they shall take\nhim into the city unto them, and give him a place, that he may dwell\namong them. And if the avenger of blood pursue after him, then they shall\nnot deliver the slayer up into his hand, _because he smote his neighbor\nunwittingly_, and hated him not aforetime. And he shall dwell in that\ncity until he stand before the congregation for judgment, and until the\ndeath of the high-priest that shall be in those days; then shall the\nslayer return, and come unto his own city, and unto his own house, unto\nthe city from whence he fled.\u2019\u201d (Ver. 1-6.)\n\nBut with respect to the murderer, the law was rigid and unbending\u2014\u201cThe\nmurderer shall surely be put to death. The revenger of blood himself\nshall slay the murderer, when he meeteth him.\u201d (Num. xxxv.)\n\nIsrael, then, through the marvelous grace of God, will be treated as a\nslayer and not as a murderer. \u201cFather, forgive them, for they know not\nwhat they do.\u201d These potent words ascended to the ear and to the heart of\nthe God of Israel. They were heard and answered; nor are we to suppose\nthat the answer was exhausted in its application on the day of Pentecost.\nNo; it stills holds good, and its efficacy will be illustrated in the\nfuture history of the house of Israel. That people are now under God\u2019s\nkeeping. They are exiles from the land and the home of their fathers; but\nthe time is coming when they shall be restored to their own land, not by\nthe death of the High-Priest\u2014blessed be His deathless name! He can never\ndie,\u2014but He will leave His present position, and come forth, in a new\ncharacter, as the Royal Priest, to sit upon His throne. Then shall the\nexile return to his long-lost home and his forfeited inheritance. But\nnot till then, else it would be ignoring the fact that they killed the\nPrince of Life, which were impossible. The man-slayer must remain out\nof his possession until the appointed time; but he is not to be treated\nas a murderer, because he did it unwittingly. \u201cI obtained mercy,\u201d says\nthe apostle Paul, speaking as a pattern to Israel, \u201cbecause I did it\nignorantly in unbelief.\u201d \u201cAnd now, brethren,\u201d says Peter, \u201cI wot that\nthrough ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers.\u201d\n\nThese passages, together with the precious intercession of the slain\nOne, do, in the most distinct manner, place Israel on the ground of the\nman-slayer, and not on the ground of the murderer. God has provided a\nrefuge and a shelter for His much-loved people, and in due time they\nshall return to their long-lost dwellings, in that land which Jehovah\ngave as a gift to Abraham His friend forever.\n\nSuch we believe to be the true interpretation of the ordinance of the\ncity of refuge. Were we to view it as bearing upon the case of a sinner\ntaking refuge in Christ, it could only be in a very exceptional way,\ninasmuch as we should find ourselves surrounded, on all hands, by points\nof contrast, rather than by points of similarity. For in the first place,\nthe man-slayer in the city of refuge was not exempt from judgment, as we\nlearn from Joshua xx. 6; but for the believer in Jesus there is and can\nbe no judgment, for the simplest of all reasons, that Christ has borne\nthe judgment instead.\n\nAgain, there was a possibility of the slayer\u2019s falling into the hands of\nthe avenger if he ventured outside the gates of the city. The believer in\nJesus can never perish; he is as safe as the Saviour Himself.\n\nFinally, as regards the slayer, it was a question of temporal safety and\nlife in this world: as regards the believer in Jesus, it is a question of\neternal salvation and life everlasting in the world to come. In fact, in\nalmost every particular, it is striking contrast rather than similarity.\n\nOne grand point there is common to both, and that is, the point of\nexposure to imminent danger, and the urgent need of fleeing for refuge.\nIf it would have been wild folly on the part of the slayer to linger\nor hesitate for a moment, until he found himself safely lodged in the\ncity of refuge, it is surely still wilder folly, yea, the very height\nof madness, on the part of the sinner, to linger or hesitate in coming\nto Christ. The avenger might perhaps fail to lay hold on the slayer\neven though he were not in the city, but judgment _must_ overtake the\nsinner out of Christ. There is no possibility of escape, if there is the\nthickness of a gold leaf between the soul and Christ. Solemn thought! May\nit have its due weight in the heart of the reader who is yet in his sins.\nMay he find no rest\u2014not one moment\u2019s rest\u2014until he has fled for refuge to\nlay hold on the hope set before him in the gospel. Judgment impends\u2014sure,\ncertain, solemn judgment. It is not only that the avenger may come, but\njudgment must come upon all who are out of Christ.\n\nO unconverted, thoughtless, careless reader\u2014should this volume fall into\nthe hands of such\u2014hear the warning voice! Flee for thy life! Tarry not,\nwe entreat thee! Delay is madness. Every moment is precious. You know\nnot the hour in the which you may be cut down, and consigned to that\nplace in the which a single ray of hope, not even the faintest glimmer,\ncan ever visit you\u2014the place of eternal night, eternal woe, eternal\ntorment\u2014the place of a deathless worm and an unquenchable flame. Beloved\nfriend, do let us entreat thee, in these few closing lines of our volume,\nto come now, just as thou art, to Jesus, who stands with open arms and\nloving heart, ready to receive thee, to shelter, to save, and to bless,\naccording to all the love of His heart and the perfect efficacy of His\nname and His sacrifice. May God the Holy Spirit, by His own resistless\nenergy, lead thee, just now, to come. \u201cCome unto Me,\u201d says the loving\nLord and Saviour, \u201call ye that labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give\nyou rest.\u201d Precious words! May they fall, with divine power, upon many a\nweary heart!\n\nHere we close our meditations upon this marvelous section of the volume\nof God;[24] and in doing so, we are impressed with a profound sense of\nthe depth and richness of the mine to which we have sought to conduct\nthe reader, and also of the excessive feebleness and poverty of the\nsuggestions which we have been enabled to offer. However, our confidence\nis in the living God, that He will, by His Holy Spirit, lead the heart\nand mind of the Christian reader into the enjoyment of His own precious\ntruth, and thus fit him, more and more, for His service in these last\nevil days, that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be magnified, and\nHis truth maintained in living power. May God, in His abounding mercy,\ngrant this, for Jesus Christ\u2019s sake.\n\n _C. H. M._\n\n[Illustration]\n\n\n\n\nFOOTNOTES\n\n\n[1] Now six.\n\n[2] We ought perhaps to inform the reader that many able scholars render\nthe last clause of Galatians v. 17 thus: \u201cIn order that ye may not do\nthe things that ye would.\u201d We assuredly believe this rendering to be in\nfull keeping with the spirit of the context; though we are each day more\nconvinced of the unrivaled excellence of our precious English Bible.\n\n[3] In using the expression, \u201cThe all-sufficiency of the name of the Lord\nJesus Christ,\u201d we understand by it all that is secured to His people in\nthat name\u2014life, righteousness, acceptance, the presence of the Holy Ghost\nwith all His varied gifts, a divine centre or gathering-point. In a word,\nwe believe that every thing that the Church can possibly need, for time\nor eternity, is comprehended in that one glorious name\u2014The Lord Jesus\nChrist.\n\n[4] For further instruction on the doctrine of the sin-offering and the\nburnt-offering, the reader is referred to \u201cNotes on Leviticus,\u201d chapters\ni. and iv. This little volume can be had of the publishers, Loizeaux\nBrothers.\n\n[5] For further suggestions on the subjects touched upon in the\nforegoing section, the reader is referred to \u201cNotes on Exodus,\u201d chapters\nxxiv.-xxx.; also to a small pamphlet entitled, \u201cThe History of the Tribe\nof Levi Considered.\u201d\n\n[6] The \u201c_dust_\u201d lifted from the floor of the tabernacle may be viewed\nas the figure of death.\u2014\u201cThou hast brought me into the dust of death.\u201d\nThe \u201c_water_\u201d prefigures the Word, which, being brought to bear upon the\nconscience, by the power of the Holy Ghost, makes every thing manifest.\nIf there has been any unfaithfulness to Christ, the true Husband of His\npeople, it must be thoroughly judged. This holds good with regard to the\nnation of Israel, to the Church of God, and to the individual believer.\nIf the heart be not true to Christ, it will not be able to stand the\nsearching power of the Word; but if there be truth in the inward parts,\nthe more one is searched and tried, the better. How blessed it is when we\ncan truly say, \u201cSearch me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my\nthoughts; and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the\nway everlasting.\u201d (Ps. cxxxix. 23, 24.)\n\n[7] The \u201cprophets,\u201d in the above quotations, are those of the New\nTestament, as is evident from the form of expression. Had the apostle\nmeant Old-Testament prophets, he would have said, His holy prophets and\napostles. But the point he is insisting upon is, that the mystery had\nnever been revealed until his time\u2014that it had not been made known to\nthe sons of men in other ages\u2014that it was hid in God; not hid in the\nScriptures, but in the infinite mind of God.\n\n[8] The statement in the text refers, of course, to the Old-Testament\nprophecies. There are passages in the epistles to the Romans and\nGalatians in which all believers are viewed as the seed of Abraham (See\nRom. iv. 9-17; Gal. iii. 7, 9, 21; vi. 16.), but this is obviously a\ndifferent thing altogether. We have no revelation of \u201cthe Church,\u201d\nproperly so called, in the Old-Testament scriptures.\n\n[9] The reader will note, with interest and profit, the contrast between\nthe acting of Hezekiah in 2 Chronicles xxx, and the acting of Jeroboam\nin 1 Kings xii. 32. The former availed himself of the provisions of\ndivine grace; the latter followed his own device. The second month was\npermitted of God; the eighth month was invented by man. Divine provisions\nmeeting man\u2019s need, and human inventions opposing God\u2019s Word, are totally\ndifferent things.\n\n[10] Let it be noted here once for all, that the cutting off of any one\nfrom the congregation of Israel answers to the suspension of a believer\u2019s\ncommunion because of unjudged sin.\n\n[11] \u201cThoughts on the Lord\u2019s Supper,\u201d etc.\n\n[12] The Greek word for man (\u03b1\u03bd\u03b8\u03c1\u03c9\u03c0\u03bf\u03c2) signifies to turn the face upwards.\n\n[13] We would remind the young Christian reader especially, that the\ntrue safeguard against sins of ignorance is, the study of the Word;\nand the true safeguard against presumptuous sins is, subjection to the\nWord. We all need to bear these things in mind, but our younger brethren\nparticularly. There is a strong tendency amongst young Christians to\nget into the current of this present age, and to drink in its spirit.\nHence the independence, the strong will, the impatience of control,\nthe disobedience to parents, the headiness, high-mindedness, and\nself-confidence, the pretentious style, the assumption, the setting up\nto be wiser than elders\u2014all these things so hateful in the sight of God,\nand so entirely opposed to the spirit of Christianity. We would most\nearnestly and lovingly entreat all our young friends to guard against\nthese things, and to cultivate a lowly mind. Let them remember that \u201cGod\nresisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the lowly.\u201d\n\n[14] Even in the matter of appointing deacons, in Acts vi. we see it\nwas an apostolic act. \u201cWherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven\nmen of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom _we may\nappoint_ over this business.\u201d The brethren were allowed to _select_\nthe men, inasmuch as it was their money that was in question; but the\n_appointment_ was divine; and this, be it remembered, had reference\nmerely to the business of deacons who were to manage the Church\u2019s\ntemporal affairs. But as regards the work of evangelists, pastors, and\nteachers, it is wholly independent of human choice and human authority,\nand rests simply upon the gift of Christ. (Eph. iv. 11.)\n\n[15] As a general principle, the \u201cson\u201d presents the divine idea; the\n\u201cdaughter,\u201d the human apprehension thereof: the \u201cmale\u201d sets forth the\nthing as God gives it; the \u201cfemale,\u201d as we realize and exhibit it.\n\n[16] Let the reader consider what the moral effect must be of taking\nthe above passage literally and applying it to a certain priestly class\nin the Church of God. Take it typically and spiritually, and you have a\nstriking and beautiful figure of the spiritual food provided for all the\nmembers of the priestly family, which is, in one word, Christ in all His\npreciousness and fullness.\n\n[17] For further remarks on the subject presented in Numbers xviii.\n14-19, the reader is referred to \u201cNotes on Exodus,\u201d chapter xiii. We are\nanxious to avoid, as much as possible, any repetition of what has been\ngone into in previous volumes.\n\n[18] \u201cThe camp,\u201d in the above passage, refers primarily to Judaism; but\nit has a very pointed moral application to every system of religion set\nup by man, and governed by the spirit and principles of this present evil\nworld.\n\n[19] Poor, wretched Balaam! Miserable man! He would fain die the death\nof the righteous. Many there are who would say the same; but they\nforget that the way \u201cto die the death of the righteous\u201d is to possess\nand exhibit the _life_ of the righteous. Many\u2014alas! how many\u2014would like\nto die the death who do not live the life. Many would like to possess\nBalak\u2019s silver and gold and yet be enrolled amongst the Israel of God.\nVain thought! Fatal delusion! We cannot serve God and mammon.\n\n[20] The statement in the text does not, by any means, touch the question\nof discipline in the house of God. We are bound to judge moral evil and\ndoctrinal error. (1 Cor. v. 12, 13.)\n\n[21] See an article entitled \u201cGrace and Government,\u201d in \u201cThings New and\nOld,\u201d Vol. iv, p. 121. Loizeaux Brothers.\n\n[22] As though the two tribes and a half were actually detached from the\nnation of Israel.\n\n[23] No doubt there are many sincere Christians who do not see the\nheavenly calling and position of the Church\u2014who do not enter into the\nspecial character of truth taught in the epistle to the Ephesians\u2014who\nare, nevertheless, according to their light, earnest, devoted, and\ntrue-hearted; but we feel persuaded that such persons lose incalculable\nblessing to their own souls, and fall very short of the true Christian\ntestimony.\n\n[24] Chapter xxxvi. has been referred to in our meditation on chapter\nxxvii.","title":"Notes on the book of Numbers","tradition":"scripture-revelation","translated_text":null,"word_count":131102}