N
U M B E R S
CHAP. XXXI.
This
chapter belongs to "the book of the wars of the Lord," in which it
is probable it was inserted. It is the history of a holy war, a war with
Midian. Here is, I. A divine command for the war, ver. 1, 2. II. The
undertaking of the war, ver. 3-6. III. The glorious success of it, ver. 7-12.
IV. Their triumphant return from the war. 1. The respect Moses paid to the
soldiers, ver. 13. 2. The rebuke he gave them for sparing the women, ver.
14-18. 3. The directions he gave them for the purifying of themselves and
their effects, ver. 19-24. 4. The distribution of the spoil they had taken,
one half to the soldiers, the other to the congregation, and a tribute to the
Lord out of each, ver. 25-47. 5. The free-will offering of the officers, ver.
48, &c.
|
The
Slaughter of the Midianites.
|
B.
C. 1452.
|
|
|
1 And the LORD
spake unto Moses, saying, 2 Avenge the children of Israel of the
Midianites: afterward shalt thou be gathered unto thy people. 3
And Moses spake unto the people, saying, Arm some of yourselves unto the war,
and let them go against the Midianites, and avenge the LORD
of Midian. 4 Of every tribe a thousand, throughout all the tribes
of Israel, shall ye send to the war. 5 So there were delivered out
of the thousands of Israel, a thousand of every tribe, twelve thousand
armed for war. 6 And Moses sent them to the war, a thousand of every
tribe, them and Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, to the war, with the
holy instruments, and the trumpets to blow in his hand.
Here, I. The Lord of hosts gives orders to Moses to make war upon the
Midianites, and his commission no doubt justified this war, though it will not
serve to justify the like without such commission. The Midianites were the
posterity of Abraham by Keturah, Gen. xxv. 2. Some of them settled south of
Canaan, among whom Jethro lived, and they retained the worship of the true
God; but these were settled east of Canaan, and had fallen into idolatry,
neighbours to, and in confederacy with, the Moabites. Their land was not
designed to be given to Israel, nor would Israel have meddled with them if
they had not made themselves obnoxious to their resentment by sending their
bad women among them to draw them to whoredom and idolatry. This was the
provocation, this was the quarrel. For this (says God) avenge Israel of the
Midianites, v. 2. 1. God would have the Midianites chastised, an
inroad made upon that part of their country which lay next to the camp of
Israel, and which was probably more concerned in that mischief than the
Moabites, who therefore were let alone. God will have us to reckon those our
worst enemies that draw us to sin, and to avoid them; and since every man
is tempted when he is drawn aside of his own lusts, and these are the
Midianites which ensnare us with their wiles, on them we should avenge
ourselves, not only make no league with them, but make war upon them by living
a life of mortification. God had taken vengeance on his own people for
yielding to the Midianites' temptations; now the Midianites, that gave the
temptation, must be reckoned with, for the deceived and the deceiver are
his (Job xii. 16), both accountable to his tribunal; and, though judgment
begin at the house of God, it shall not end there, 1 Pet. iv. 17. There is
a day coming when vengeance will be taken on those that have introduced errors
and corruptions into the church, and the devil that deceived men will be cast
into the lake of fire. Israel's quarrel with Amalek, that fought against
them, was not avenged till long after: but their quarrel with Midian, that
debauched them, was speedily avenged, for they were looked upon as much more
the dangerous and malicious enemies. 2. God would have it done by Moses, in
his life-time, that he who had so deeply resented that injury might have the
satisfaction of seeing it avenged. "See this execution done upon the
enemies of God and Israel, and afterwards thou shalt be gathered to thy
people." This was the only piece of service of this kind that Moses
must further do, and then he has accomplished, as a hireling, his day, and
shall have his quietus--enter into rest: hitherto his usefulness must
come, and no further; the wars of Canaan must be carried on by another hand.
Note, God sometimes removes useful men when we think they can be ill spared;
but this ought to satisfy us, that they are never removed till they have done
the work which was appointed them.
II. Moses gives orders to the people to prepare for this expedition, v.
3. He would not have the whole body of the camp to stir, but they must arm
some of themselves to the war, such as were either most fit or most
forward, and avenge the Lord of Midian. God said, Avenge Israel;
Moses says, Avenge the Lord; for the interests of God and Israel are
united, and the cause of both is one and the same. And if God, in what he
does, shows himself jealous for the honour of Israel, surely Israel, in what
they do, ought to show themselves jealous for the glory of God. Then only we
can justify the avenging of ourselves when it is the vengeance of the Lord
that we engage in. Nay, for this reason we are forbidden to avenge ourselves,
because God has said, Vengeance is mine, I will repay.
III. A detachment is drawn out accordingly for this service, 1000 out of
every tribe, 12,000 in all, a small number in comparison with what they
could have sent, and it is probable small in comparison with the number of the
enemies they were sent against. But God would teach them that it is all one to
him to save by many or by few, 1 Sam. xiv. 6.
IV. Phinehas the son of Eleazar is sent along with them. It is strange that no
mention is made of Joshua in this great action. If he was general of these
forces, who do we not find him leading them out? If he tarried at home, why do
we not find him meeting them with Moses at their return? It is probable, each
tribe having a captain of its own thousand, there was no general, but they
proceeded in the order of their march through the wilderness, Judah first, and
the rest in their posts, under the command of their respective captains,
spoken of v. 48. But, the war being a holy war, Phinehas was their
common head, not to supply the place of a general, but, by the oracle of God,
to determine the resolves of their counsels of war, in which the captains of
thousands would all acquiesce, and according to which they would act in
conjunction. He therefore took with him the holy instruments or vessels,
probably the breast-plate of judgment, by which God might he consulted in any
emergency. Though he was not yet the high priest, yet he might be delegated pro
hac vice--for this particular occasion, to bear the urim and thummim, as 1
Sam. xxiii. 6. And there was a particular reason for sending Phinehas to
preside in this expedition; he has already signalized himself for his zeal
against the Midianites and their cursed arts to ensnare Israel when he slew
Cozbi, a daughter of a chief house in Midian, for her impudence in the matter
of Peor, ch. xxv. 15. He that had so well used the sword of justice
against a particular criminal was best qualified to guide the sword of war
against the whole nation. Thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will
make thee ruler over many things.
7 And they warred against
the Midianites, as the LORD
commanded Moses; and they slew all the males. 8 And they slew the
kings of Midian, beside the rest of them that were slain; namely, Evi,
and Rekem, and Zur, and Hur, and Reba, five kings of Midian: Balaam also the
son of Beor they slew with the sword. 9 And the children of Israel
took all the women of Midian captives, and their little ones, and took
the spoil of all their cattle, and all their flocks, and all their
goods. 10 And they burnt all their cities wherein they dwelt, and
all their goodly castles, with fire. 11 And they took all the
spoil, and all the prey, both of men and of beasts. 12 And
they brought the captives, and the prey, and the spoil, unto Moses, and
Eleazar the priest, and unto the congregation of the children of Israel, unto
the camp at the plains of Moab, which are by Jordan near
Jericho.
Here is, 1. The descent which this little army of Israelites made, under the
divine commission, conduct, and command, upon the country of Midian. They warred
against the Midianites. It is very probable that they first published
their manifesto, showing the reasons of the war, and requiring them to give up
the ringleaders of the mischief to justice; for such afterwards was the law
(Deut. xx. 10), and such the practice, Judg. xx. 12, 13. But the
Midianites justifying what they had done, and standing by those that had done
it, the Israelites attacked them with fire and sword, and all the pious fury
with which their zeal for God and their people inspired them. 2. The execution
(the military execution) they did in this descent. (1.) They slew all the
males (v. 7), that is, all they met with as far as they went; they
put them all to the sword, and gave no quarter. But that they did not slay all
the males of the nation is certain, for we find the Midianites a powerful and
formidable enemy to Israel in the days of Gideon; and they were the Midianites
of this country, for they are reckoned with the children of the east,
Judg. vi. 3. (2.) They slew the kings of Midian the same that are
called elders of Midian (ch. xxii. 4), and the dukes of Sihon,
Josh. xiii. 21. Five of these princes are here named, one of whom is Zur,
probably the same Zur whose daughter Cosbi was, ch. xxv. 15. (3.) They
slew Balaam. Many conjectures there are as to what brought Balaam among the
Midianites at this time; it is probable that the Midianites, having
intelligence of the march of this army of Israelites against them, hired
Balaam to come and assist them with his enchantments, that if he could not
prevail to act offensively in their favour, by cursing the armies of Israel,
yet he might act defensively, by blessing the country of Midian. Whatever was
the occasion of his being there, God's overruling providence brought him
thither, and there his just vengeance found him. Had he himself believed what
he said of the happy state of Israel, he would not have herded thus with the
enemies of Israel; but justly does he die the death of the wicked (though he
pretended to desire that of the righteous), and go down slain to the pit
with the uncircumcised, who rebelled thus against the convictions of his
own conscience. The Midianites' wiles were Balaam's projects, it was therefore
just that he should perish with them, Hos. iv. 5. Now was his folly
made manifest to all men, who foretold the fate of others, but foresaw not his
own. (4.) They took all the women and children captives, v. 9.
(5.) They burnt their cities and goodly castles (v. 10), not
designing to inhabit them themselves (that country was out of their line), but
they thus prevented those who had made their escape from sheltering themselves
in their own country and settling there again. Some understand it of their
idol-temples; it was fit that they should share in this vengeance. (6.) They
plundered the country, and carried off all the cattle and valuable goods, and
so returned to the camp of Israel laden with a very rich booty, v. 9,
11, 12. Thus (as when they came out of Egypt) they were enriched with the
spoils of their enemies, and furnished with stock for the good land into which
God was bringing them.
13 And Moses, and Eleazar
the priest, and all the princes of the congregation, went forth to meet them
without the camp. 14 And Moses was wroth with the officers of the
host, with the captains over thousands, and captains over hundreds,
which came from the battle. 15 And Moses said unto them, Have ye
saved all the women alive? 16 Behold, these caused the children of
Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass against the LORD
in the matter of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of the LORD.
17 Now therefore kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman
that hath known man by lying with him. 18 But all the women
children, that have not known a man by lying with him, keep alive for
yourselves. 19 And do ye abide without the camp seven days:
whosoever hath killed any person, and whosoever hath touched any slain, purify
both yourselves and your captives on the third day, and on the seventh
day. 20 And purify all your raiment, and all that is made
of skins, and all work of goats' hair, and all things made of
wood. 21 And Eleazar the priest said unto the men of war which
went to the battle, This is the ordinance of the law which the LORD
commanded Moses; 22 Only the gold, and the silver, the brass, the
iron, the tin, and the lead, 23 Every thing that may abide the
fire, ye shall make it go through the fire, and it shall be clean:
nevertheless it shall be purified with the water of separation: and all that
abideth not the fire ye shall make go through the water. 24 And ye
shall wash your clothes on the seventh day, and ye shall be clean, and
afterward ye shall come into the camp.
We have here the triumphant return of the army of Israel from the war with
Midian, and here,
I. They were met with great respect, v. 13. Moses himself,
notwithstanding his age and gravity, walked out of the camp to congratulate
them on their victory, and to grace the solemnity of their triumphs. Public
successes should be publicly acknowledged, to the glory of God, and the
encouragement of those that have jeoparded their lives in their country's
cause.
II. They were severely reproved for saving the women alive. It is very
probable that Moses had commanded them to kill the women, at least this was
implied in the general order to avenge Israel of the Midianites; the execution
having reference to that crime, their drawing them in to the worship of Peor,
it was easy to conclude that the women, who were the principal criminals, must
not be spared. What! says Moses, have you saved the women alive? v.
15. He was moved with a holy indignation at the sight of them. These were
those that caused the children of Israel to commit this trespass; and
therefore, 1. It is just that they should die. The law in case of whoredom
was, The adulterer and adulteress should surely be put to death. God
had put to death the adulterers of Israel by the plague, and now it was fit
that the adulteresses of Midian, especially since they had been the tempters,
should be put to death by the sword. 2. "It is dangerous to let them
live; they will be still tempting the Israelites to uncleanness, and so your
captives will be your conquerors and a second time your destroyers."
Severe orders are therefore given that all the grown women should be slain in
cold blood, and only the female children spared.
III. They were obliged to purify themselves, according to the ceremony of the
law, and to abide without the camp seven days, till their purification was
accomplished. For, 1. They had imbrued their hands in blood, by which though
they had not contracted any moral guilt, the war being just and lawful, yet
they were brought under a ceremonial uncleanness, which rendered them unfit to
come near the tabernacle till they were purified. Thus God would preserve in
their minds a dread and detestation of murder. David must not build the temple
because he had been a man of war, and had shed blood, 1 Chron. xxviii.
3. 2. They could not but have touched dead bodies, by which they were
polluted, and that required they should be purified with the water of
separation, v. 19, 20, 24.
IV. They must likewise purify the spoil they had taken, the captives (v.
19) and all the goods, v. 21-23. What would bear the fire must pass
through the fire, and what would not must be washed with water. These things
had been use by Midianites, and, having now come into the possession of
Israelites, it was fit that they should be sanctified to the service of that
holy nation and the honour of their holy God. To us now every thing is
sanctified by the word and prayer, if we are sanctified by the Spirit, who is
compared both to fire and water. To the pure all things are pure.
|
Distribution
of the Spoil.
|
B.
C. 1452.
|
|
|
25 And the LORD
spake unto Moses, saying, 26 Take the sum of the prey that was
taken, both of man and of beast, thou, and Eleazar the priest, and the
chief fathers of the congregation: 27 And divide the prey into two
parts; between them that took the war upon them, who went out to battle, and
between all the congregation: 28 And levy a tribute unto the LORD
of the men of war which went out to battle: one soul of five hundred, both
of the persons, and of the beeves, and of the asses, and of the sheep:
29 Take it of their half, and give it unto Eleazar the priest, for
an heave offering of the LORD.
30 And of the children of Israel's half, thou shalt take one portion of fifty,
of the persons, of the beeves, of the asses, and of the flocks, of all manner
of beasts, and give them unto the Levites, which keep the charge of the
tabernacle of the LORD.
31 And Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the LORD
commanded Moses. 32 And the booty, being the rest of the
prey which the men of war had caught, was six hundred thousand and seventy
thousand and five thousand sheep, 33 And threescore and twelve
thousand beeves, 34 And threescore and one thousand asses,
35 And thirty and two thousand persons in all, of women that had not known man
by lying with him. 36 And the half, which was the portion
of them that went out to war, was in number three hundred thousand and seven
and thirty thousand and five hundred sheep: 37 And the LORD's
tribute of the sheep was six hundred and threescore and fifteen.
38 And the beeves were thirty and six thousand; of which the LORD's
tribute was threescore and twelve. 39 And the asses were
thirty thousand and five hundred; of which the LORD's
tribute was threescore and one. 40 And the persons were
sixteen thousand; of which the LORD's
tribute was thirty and two persons. 41 And Moses gave the
tribute, which was the LORD's
heave offering, unto Eleazar the priest, as the LORD
commanded Moses. 42 And of the children of Israel's half, which
Moses divided from the men that warred, 43 (Now the half that
pertained unto the congregation was three hundred thousand and thirty
thousand and seven thousand and five hundred sheep, 44 And
thirty and six thousand beeves, 45 And thirty thousand asses and
five hundred, 46 And sixteen thousand persons;) 47
Even of the children of Israel's half, Moses took one portion of fifty, both
of man and of beast, and gave them unto the Levites, which kept the charge of
the tabernacle of the LORD;
as the LORD
commanded Moses.
We have here the distribution of the spoil which was taken in this expedition
against Midian. God himself directed how it should be distributed, and Moses
and Eleazar did according to the directions, and thus unhappy contests among
themselves were prevented and the victory was made to turn to the common
benefit. It was fit that he who gave them the prey should order the disposal
of it. All we have is from God, and therefore must be subject to his will.
I. The prey is ordered to be divided into two parts, one for the 12,000 men
that undertook the war, and the other for the congregation. The prey that was
divided seems to have been only the captives and the cattle; as for the plate,
and jewels, and other goods, every man kept what he took, as is intimated, v.
50-53. That only was distributed which would be of use for the stocking of
that good land into which they were going. Now observe, 1. That the one half
of the prey was given to the whole congregation, Moses allotting to each tribe
its share, and then leaving it to the heads of the tribes to divide their
respective shares among themselves, according to their families. The war was
undertaken on the behalf of the whole congregation; they would all have been
ready to go to the help of the Lord against the mighty, if they had
been so ordered, and they did help, it is likely, by their prayers; and
therefore God appoints that those that tarried at home should divide the
spoil, Ps. lxviii. 12. David, in his time, made it a statute and an
ordinance for Israel, that, as his part is that goes down to the
battle, so shall his part be that tarrieth by the stuff, 1 Sam. xxx. 24,
25. Those that are employed in public trusts must not think to benefit
themselves only by their toils and hazards, but must aim at the advantage of
the community. 2. That yet the 12,000 that went to the battle had as much for
their share as the whole congregation (which were fifty times as many) had for
theirs; so that the particular persons of the soldiery had a much better share
than any of their brethren that tarried at home: and good reason they should.
The greater pains we take, and the greater hazards we run, in the service of
God and our generation, the greater will our recompence be at last; for God
is not unrighteous to forget the work and labour of love.
II. God was to have a tribute out of it, as an acknowledgment of his
sovereignty over them in general, and that he was their king to whom tribute
was due, and particularly of his interest in this war and the gains of it,
he having given them their success; and that the priests, the Lord's
receivers, might have something added to the provision made for their
maintenance. Note, Whatever we have, God must have his dues out of it. And
here (as before) the soldiers are favoured above the rest of the congregation,
for out of the people's share God required one in fifty, but out of the
soldier's share only one in 500, because the people got theirs easily, without
any peril or fatigue. The less opportunity we have of honouring God with our
personal services the more it is expected we should honour him with our
substance. The tribute out of the soldiers' half was given to the priests (v.
29), that out of the people's half was given to the Levites, v. 30. For
the priests were taken from among the Levites, as these soldiers from among
the people, for special and hazardous service, and their pay was proportioned
accordingly.
48 And the officers which
were over thousands of the host, the captains of thousands, and
captains of hundreds, came near unto Moses: 49 And they said unto
Moses, Thy servants have taken the sum of the men of war which are
under our charge, and there lacketh not one man of us. 50 We have
therefore brought an oblation for the LORD,
what every man hath gotten, of jewels of gold, chains, and bracelets, rings,
earrings, and tablets, to make an atonement for our souls before the LORD.
51 And Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold of them, even all
wrought jewels. 52 And all the gold of the offering that they
offered up to the LORD,
of the captains of thousands, and of the captains of hundreds, was sixteen
thousand seven hundred and fifty shekels. 53 (For the men
of war had taken spoil, every man for himself.) 54 And Moses and
Eleazar the priest took the gold of the captains of thousands and of hundreds,
and brought it into the tabernacle of the congregation, for a memorial
for the children of Israel before the LORD.
Here is a great example of piety and devotion in the officers of the army, the
colonels, that are called captains of thousands, and the inferior
officers that were captains of hundreds; they came to Moses as their
general and commander-in-chief, and, though he was now going off the stage
they very humbly and respectfully addressed themselves to him, calling
themselves his servants; the honours they had won did not puff them up,
so as to make them forget their duty to him. Observe in their address to them,
1. The pious notice they take of God's wonderful goodness to them in this late
expedition, in preserving not only their own lives, but the lives of all the
men of war that they had under their charge; so that, upon the review of their
muster-roll, it appeared there was not one missing, v. 49. This was
very extraordinary, and perhaps cannot be paralleled in any history. So many
thousands of lives jeoparded in the high places of the field, and not one
lost, either by the sword of the enemy or by any disease or disaster. This was
the Lord's doing, and cannot but be marvellous in the eyes of those
that consider how the lives of all men, especially soldiers, are continually
in their hands. It is an evidence of the tender feeling which these commanders
had for their soldiers, and that their lives were very precious to them, that
they looked upon it as a mercy to themselves that none of those under their
charge miscarried. Of all that were given them they had lost none; so
precious also is the blood of Christ's subjects and soldiers to him, Ps. lxxii.
14. 2. The pious acknowledgment they make for this favour: Therefore we
have brought an oblation to the Lord, v. 50. The oblation they
brought was out of that which every man had gotten, and it was gotten
honestly by a divine warrant. Thus every man should lay by according as God
has prospered him, 1 Cor. xvi. 2. For where God sows plentifully in the
gifts of his bounty he expects to reap accordingly in the fruits of our piety
and charity. The tabernacle first, and the temple afterwards, were beautified
and enriched with the spoils taken from the enemies of Israel; as by David (2
Sam. viii. 11, 12), and his captains, 1 Chron. xxvi. 26, 27. We should never
take any thing to ourselves, in war or trade, which we cannot in faith
consecrate a part of to God, who hates robbery for burnt-offerings;
but, when God has remarkably preserved and prospered us, he expects that we
should make some particular return of gratitude to him. As to this oblation,
(1.) The captains offered it to make an atonement for their souls, v.
50. Instead of coming to Moses to demand a recompence for the good service
they had done in avenging the Lord of Midian, or to set up trophies of
their victory for the immortalizing of their own names, they bring an oblation
to make atonement for their souls, being conscious to themselves, as
the best men must be even in their best services, that they had been defective
in their duty, not only in that instance for which they were reproved (v.
14), but in many others; for there is not a just man upon the earth that
doeth good and sinneth not. (2.) Moses accepted it, and laid it up in the
tabernacle as a memorial for the children of Israel (v. 54),
that is, a monument of God's goodness to them, that they might be encouraged
to trust in him in their further wars, and a monument of their gratitude to
God (sacrifices are said to be memorials), that he, being well pleased with
this thankful acknowledgment of favours bestowed, might continue and repeat
his mercies to them.
Contents
|
Next
Section
