Moses
having, in the foregoing chapter, reminded them of their own sin, as a
reason why they should not depend upon their own righteousness, in this
chapter he sets before them God's great mercy to them, notwithstanding their
provocations, as a reason why they should be more obedient for the future.
I. He mentions divers tokens of God's favour and reconciliation to them,
never to be forgotten. (1.) The renewing of the tables of the covenant, ver.
1-5. (2.) Giving orders for their progress towards
Canaan
, ver. 6, 7. (3.) Choosing the
tribe of Levi for his own, ver. 8, 9. (4.) And continuing the priesthood
after the death of Aaron, ver. 6. (5.) Owning and accepting the intercession
of Moses for them, ver. 10, 11. II. Hence he infers what obligations they
lay under to fear, and love, and serve God, which he presses upon them with
many motives, ver. 12, &c.
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God's
Great Kindness to
Israel.
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B.
C. 1451.
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1 At that time the LORD
said unto me, Hew thee two tables of stone like unto the first, and come up
unto me into the mount, and make thee an ark of wood. 2 And I
will write on the tables the words that were in the first tables which thou
brakest, and thou shalt put them in the ark. 3 And I made an ark
of shittim wood, and hewed two tables of stone like unto the first,
and went up into the mount, having the two tables in mine hand.
4 And he wrote on the tables, according to the first writing, the ten
commandments, which the LORD
spake unto you in the mount out of the midst of the fire in the day of the
assembly: and the LORD
gave them unto me. 5 And I turned myself and came down from the
mount, and put the tables in the ark which I had made; and there they be, as
the LORD
commanded me. 6 And the children of Israel took their journey
from Beeroth of the children of Jaakan to Mosera: there Aaron died, and
there he was buried; and Eleazar his son ministered in the priest's office
in his stead. 7 From thence they journeyed unto Gudgodah; and
from Gudgodah to Jotbath, a land of rivers of waters. 8 At that
time the LORD
separated the tribe of Levi, to bear the ark of the covenant of the LORD,
to stand before the LORD
to minister unto him, and to bless in his name, unto this day. 9
Wherefore Levi hath no part nor inheritance with his brethren; the LORD
is his inheritance, according as the LORD
thy God promised him. 10 And I stayed in the mount, according to
the first time, forty days and forty nights; and the LORD
hearkened unto me at that time also, and the LORD
would not destroy thee. 11 And the LORD
said unto me, Arise, take thy journey before the people, that they
may go in and possess the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give
unto them.
There were four things in and by which God showed himself reconciled to
Israel and made them truly great and happy, and in which God's goodness took
occasion from their badness to make him the more illustrious:--
I. He gave them his law, gave it to them in writing, as a standing pledge of
his favour. Though the tables that were first written were broken, because
Israel had broken the commandments, and God might justly break the covenant,
yet when his anger was turned away the tables were renewed, v. 1, 2.
Note, God's putting his law in our reconciliation to God and the best
earnest of our happiness in him. Moses is told to hew the tables; for the
law prepares the heart by conviction and humiliation for the grace of God,
but it is only that grace that then writes the law in it. Moses made an
ark of shittim-wood (v. 3), a plain chest, the same, I suppose,
in which the tables were afterwards preserved: but Bezaleel is said to make
it (Exod. xxxvii. 1), because he afterwards finished it up and overlaid it
with gold. Or Moses is said to make it because, when he went up the second
time into the mount, he ordered it to be made by Bezaleel against he came
down. And it is observable that for this reason the ark was the first thing
that God gave orders about, Exod. xxv. 10. And this left an earnest to the
congregation that the tables should not miscarry this second time, as they
had done the first. God will send his law and gospel to those whose hearts
are prepared as arks to receive them. Christ is the ark in which now our
salvation is kept safely, that it may not be lost as it was in the first
Adam, when he had it in his own hand. Observe, 1. What it was that God wrote
on the two tables, the ten commandments (v. 4), or ten words,
intimating in how little a compass they were contained: they were not ten
volumes, but ten words: it was the same with the first writing, and both the
same that he spoke in the mount. The second edition needed no correction nor
amendment, nor did what he wrote differ form what he spoke. The written word
is as truly the word of God as that which he spoke to his servants the
prophets. 2. What care was taken of it. These two tables, thus engraven,
were faithfully laid up in the ark. And there they be, said Moses,
pointing it is probable towards the sanctuary, v. 5. That good thing
which was committed to him he transmitted to them, and left it pure and
entire in their hands; now let them look to it at their peril. Thus we may
say to the rising generation, "God has entrusted us with Bibles,
sabbaths, sacraments, &c., as tokens of his presence and favour, and
there they be; we lodge them with you," 2 Tim. i. 13, 14.
II. He led them forward towards Canaan, though they in their hearts turned
back towards Egypt, and he might justly have chosen their delusions, v.
6, 7. He brought them to a land of rivers of waters, out of a dry and
barren wilderness. Sometimes God supplied their wants by the ordinary course
of nature: when that failed, then by miracles; and yet after this, when they
were brought into a little distress, we find them distrusting God and
murmuring, Num. xx. 3, 4.
III. He appointed a standing ministry among them, to deal for them in holy
things. At that time when Moses went up a second time to the mount, or soon
after, he had orders to separate the tribe of Levi to God, and to his
immediate service, they having distinguished themselves by their zeal
against the worshippers of the golden calf, v. 8, 9. The Kohathites
carried the ark; they and the other Levites stood before the Lord, to
minister to him in all the offices of the tabernacle; and the priests, who
were of that tribe, were to bless the people. This was a standing ordinance,
which had now continued almost forty years, even unto this day; and
provision was made for the perpetuating of it by the settled maintenance of
that tribe, which was such as gave them great encouragement in their work,
and no diversion from it. The Lord is his inheritance. Note, A
settled ministry is a great blessing to a people, and a special token of
God's favour. And, since the particular priests could not continue by reason
of death, God showed his care of the people in securing a succession, which
Moses takes notice of here, v. 6. When Aaron died, the
priesthood did not die with him, but Eleazar his son ministered in his
stead, and took care of the ark, in which the tables of stone, those
precious stones, were deposited, that they should suffer no damage; there
they be, and he has the custody of them. Under the law, a succession in the
ministry was kept up, by an entail of the office on a certain tribe and
family. But now, under the gospel, when the effusion of the Spirit is more
plentiful and powerful, the succession is kept up by the Spirit's operation
on men's hearts, qualifying men for, and inclining men to, that work, some
in every age, that the name of Israel may not be blotted out.
IV. He accepted Moses as an advocate or intercessor for them, and therefore
constituted him their prince and leader (v. 10, 11): The Lord
hearkened to me and said, Arise, go before the people. It was a mercy to
them that they had such a friend, so faithful both to him that appointed him
and to those for whom he was appointed. It was fit that he who had saved
them from ruin, by his intercession with heaven, should have the conduct and
command of them. And herein he was a type of Christ, who, as he ever lives
making intercession for us, so he has all power both in heaven and in
earth.
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Exhortation
to Obedience.
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B.
C. 1451.
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12 And now, Israel,
what doth the LORD
thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD
thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD
thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, 13 To keep the
commandments of the LORD,
and his statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good? 14
Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens is the LORD's
thy God, the earth also, with all that therein is.
15 Only the LORD
had a delight in thy fathers to love them, and he chose their seed after
them, even you above all people, as it is this day.
16 Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more
stiffnecked. 17 For the LORD
your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty,
and a terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward:
18 He doth execute the judgment of the fatherless and widow, and loveth the
stranger, in giving him food and raiment. 19 Love ye therefore
the stranger: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt. 20
Thou shalt fear the LORD
thy God; him shalt thou serve, and to him shalt thou cleave, and swear by
his name. 21 He is thy praise, and he is thy God,
that hath done for thee these great and terrible things, which thine eyes
have seen. 22 Thy fathers went down into Egypt with threescore
and ten persons; and now the LORD
thy God hath made thee as the stars of heaven for multitude.
Here is a most pathetic exhortation to obedience, inferred from the
premises, and urged with very powerful arguments and a great deal of
persuasive rhetoric. Moses brings it in like an orator, with an appeal to
his auditors And now, Israel, what doth the Lord thy God require of thee?
v. 12. Ask what he requires; as David (Ps. cxvi. 12), What shall I
render? When we have received mercy from God it becomes us to enquire
what returns we shall make to him. Consider what he requires, and you will
find it is nothing but what is highly just and reasonable in itself and of
unspeakable benefit and advantage to you. Let us see here what he does
require, and what abundant reason there is why we should do what he
requires.
I. We are here most plainly directed in our duty to God, to our neighbour,
and to ourselves.
1. We are here taught our duty to God, both in the dispositions and
affections of our souls and in the actions of our lives, our principles and
our practices. (1.) We must fear the Lord our God, v. 12, and
again v. 20. We must adore his majesty, acknowledge his authority,
stand in awe of his power, and dread his wrath. This is gospel duty, Rev.
xiv. 6, 7. (2.) We must love him, be well pleased that he is, desire that he
may be ours, and delight in the contemplation of him and in communion with
him. Fear him as a great God, and our Lord, love him as a good God, and our
Father and benefactor. (3.) We must walk in his ways, that is, the ways
which he has appointed us to walk in. The whole course of our conversation
must be conformable to his holy will. (4.) We must serve him (v.
20), serve him with all our heart and soul (v. 12), devote
ourselves to his honour, put ourselves under his government, and lay out
ourselves to advance all the interests of his kingdom among men. And we must
be hearty and zealous in his service, engage and employ our inward man in
his work, and what we do for him we must do cheerfully and with a good will.
(5.) We must keep his commandments and his statutes, v. 13.
Having given up ourselves to his service, we must make his revealed will our
rule in every thing, perform all he prescribes, forbear all the forbids,
firmly believing that all the statutes he commands us are for our good.
Besides the reward of obedience, which will be our unspeakable gain, there
are true honour and pleasure in obedience. It is really for our present good
to be meek and humble, chaste and sober, just and charitable, patient and
contented; these make us easy, and safe, and pleasant, and truly great. (6.)
We must give honour to God, in swearing by his name (v. 20);
so give him the honour of his omniscience, his sovereignty, his justice, as
well as of his necessary existence. Swear by his name, and not by the
name of any creature, or false god, whenever an oath for confirmation is
called for. (7.) To him we must cleave, v. 20. Having chosen him for
our God, we must faithfully and constantly abide with him and never forsake
him. Cleave to him as one we love and delight in, trust and confide in, and
from whom we have great expectations.
2. We are here taught our duty to our neighbour (v. 19): Love the
stranger; and, if the stranger, much more our brethren, as ourselves. If
the Israelites that were such a peculiar people, so particularly
distinguished from all people, must be kind to strangers, much more must we,
that are not enclosed in such a pale; we must have a tender concern for all
that share with us in the human nature, and as we have opportunity;
(that is, according to their necessities and our abilities) we must do
good to all men. Two arguments are here urged to enforce this duty:--
(1.) God's common providence, which extends itself to all nations of men,
they being all made of one blood. God loveth the stranger (v.
18), that is, he gives to all life, and breath, and all things, even to
those that are Gentiles, and strangers to the commonwealth of Israel
and to Israel's God. He knows those perfectly whom we know nothing of. He
gives food and raiment even to those to whom he has not shown his
word and statutes. God's common gifts to mankind oblige us to honour all
men. Or the expression denotes the particular care which Providence takes of
strangers in distress, which we ought to praise him for (Ps. cxlvi. 9, The Lord
preserveth the strangers), and to imitate him, to serve him, and concur
with him therein, being forward to make ourselves instruments in his hand of
kindness to strangers. (2.) The afflicted condition which the Israelites
themselves had been in, when they were strangers in Egypt. Those that have
themselves been in distress, and have found mercy with God, should
sympathize most feelingly with those that are in the like distress and be
ready to show kindness to them. The people of the Jews, notwithstanding
these repeated commands given them to be kind to strangers, conceived a
rooted antipathy to the Gentiles, whom they looked upon with the utmost
disdain, which made them envy the grace of God and the gospel of Christ, and
this brought a final ruin upon themselves.
3. We are here taught our duty to ourselves (v. 16): Circumcise
the foreskin of your hearts. that is, "Cast away from you all
corrupt affections and inclinations, which hinder you from fearing and
loving God. Mortify the flesh with the lusts of it. Away with all
filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, which obstruct the free course of
the word of God to your hearts. Rest not in the circumcision of the body,
which was only the sign, but be circumcised in heart, which is the thing
signified." See Rom. ii. 29. The command of Christ goes further than
this, and obliges us not only to cut off the foreskin of the heart, which
may easily be spared, but to cut off the right hand and to pluck out the
right eye that is an offence to us; the more spiritual the dispensation is
the more spiritual we are obliged to be, and to go the closer in mortifying
sin. And be no more stiff-necked, as they had been hitherto, ch.
ix. 24. "Be not any longer obstinate against divine commands and
corrections, but ready to comply with the will of God in both." The
circumcision of the heart makes it ready to yield to God, and draw in his
yoke.
II. We are here most pathetically persuaded to our duty. Let but reason rule
us, and religion will.
1. Consider the greatness and glory of God, and therefore fear him, and from
that principle serve and obey him. What is it that is thought to make a man
great, but great honour, power, and possessions? Think then how great the
Lord our God is, and greatly to be feared. (1.) He has great honour, a name
above every name. He is God of gods, and Lord of lords, v.
17. Angels are called gods, so are magistrates, and the Gentiles had gods
many, and lords many, the creatures of their own fancy; but God is
infinitely above all these nominal deities. What an absurdity would it be
for them to worship other gods when the God to whom they had sworn
allegiance was the God of gods! (2.) He has great power. He is a mighty
God and terrible (v. 17), who regardeth not persons. He
has the power of a conqueror, and so he is terrible to those that resist him
and rebel against him. He has the power of a judge, and so he is just to all
those that appeal to him or appear before him. And it is as much the
greatness and honour of a judge to be impartial in his justice, without
respect to persons or bribes, as it is to a general to be terrible to the
enemy. Our God is both. (3.) He has great possessions. Heaven and earth are
his (v. 14), and all the hosts and stars of both. Therefore he is
able to bear us out in his service, and to make up the losses we sustain in
discharging our duty to him. And yet therefore he has no need of us, nor any
thing we have or can do; we are undone without him, but he is happy without
us, which makes the condescensions of his grace, in accepting us and our
services, truly admirable. Heaven and earth are his possession, and yet the
Lord's portion is his people.
2. Consider the goodness and grace of God, and therefore love him, and from
that principle serve and obey him. His goodness is his glory as much as his
greatness. (1.) He is good to all. Whomsoever he finds miserable, to them he
will be found merciful: He executes the judgment of the fatherless and
widow, v. 18. It is his honour to help the helpless, and to
succour those that most need relief and that men are apt to do injury to, or
at least to put a light upon. See Ps. lxviii. 4, 5; cxlvi. 7, 9. (2.) But truly
God is good to Israel in a special obligations to him: "He is
they praise, and he is thy God, v. 21. Therefore love him
and serve him, because of the relation wherein he stands to thee. He is thy
God, a God in covenant with thee, and as such he is thy praise," that
is [1.] "He puts honour upon thee; he is the God in whom, all the day
long, thou mayest boast that thou knowest him, and art known of him. If he
is thy God, he is thy glory." [2.] "He expects honour from thee. He
is thy praise," that is "he is the God whom thou art bound to
praise; if he has not praise from thee, whence may he expect it?" He inhabits
the praises of Israel. Consider, First, The gracious choice he
made of Israel, v. 15. "He had a delight in thy fathers, and
therefore chose their seed." Not that there was any thing in them to
merit his favour, or to recommend them to it, but so it seemed good in his
eyes. He would be kind to them, though he had no need of them. Secondly,
The great things he had done for Israel, v. 21, 22. He reminds them
not only of what they had heard with their ears, and which their fathers had
told them of, but of what they had seen with their eyes, and which they must
tell their children of, particularly that within a few generations seventy
souls (for they were no more when Jacob went down into Egypt) increased to a
great nation, as the stars of heaven for multitude. And the more they
were in number the more praise and service God expected from them; yet it
proved, as in the old world, that when they began to multiply they corrupted
themselves.
