would greatly vary the numbers from those of our translation: "And an angel of the Lord went forth, and slew in the camp of the Assyrians, literally, one hundred AND eighty AND five thousand, i.e. 5,180,] or at most 85,100;] which is usually understood 185,000. In 2 Kings, xix. 35. the numbers stand, one hundred eighty AND five thousand; which, if we allow the proper force of the 1 and, makes 5,180, [or 85,100.] Now, this number is much nearer to probability, to the supposable force of Assyrians encamped before any one town, to the course of a samiel wind, and to the remark when THEY AROSE IN THE MORNING they were ALL dead corpses; i.e. these 5,180 were entirely dead, besides a greater number injured for if they were all dead corpses, how could they rise in the morning? Vide FRAGMENT, No. 4. [If we might rely on the fact recorded by Herodotus, that the ancient mode of calculation was by the Chinese abacus, or arithmetical addition table, possibly it might discover the source of these errors: the following may give an idea of such a statement: Units, Tens, We may read this, Eighty, AND one hundred, and five thousand; or, One hundred, AND eighty-five thousand. As writing, and numeration also, has certainly undergone variations in the manner of being read; having been sometimes read from left to right, at other times from right to left, it is evident that a small degree of inattention in copying, to adjust passages where numbers are recorded, would have the effect of producing cyphers, where they were not originally intended. The reader will readily perceive, if he has an opportunity of inspecting the figure of an abacus, or numeration tablet, the influence this Imight have. I shall only further refer at present to the article Abacus in Chambers's Dictionary, where we read, -The abacus, for facilitating the operation of arithnetic, is an instrument almost as ancient and extensive as the art itself: if it be later than the methods of computing by the fingers, and by lapilli, or stones, which obtained among the Egyptians, it is, at least, uch prior to the use of numeral letters, or figures, wrought with a pen," Herod. lib. i. We find it in use among the Greeks, Romans, Chinese, &c.] I would also hint at a mode of enumeration, Ezek. xlv. 12. which appears to us very strange: "And the shekel twenty gerah: twenty shekels; five and twenties shekels; ten and five shekel, the mina shall be to you." This is usually understood to mean "sixty shekels shall make a mina :" i.e. the addition of 20, 25, 15, makes 60. What a round about way of counting 60 is this? I doubt whether we understand it in Europe; it seems to be an Oriental mode of calculation, not yet explained to us. Mr. Harmer has an observation on it, p. 512. vol. ii. but still it appears obscure. What I mean to infer is, that we are not to blame the sacred books for our own non-understandings: if we cannot reckon their numbers properly, what follows? not that they are erroneous, but that we are ignorant: and if we be ignorant, the thought should not only stimulate us into further researches, but should render us grateful to any, who, by communication of their remarks, may help to lead us to more correct principles. It is very true, that these numbers are not articles of faith, nor can they justly pretend to equal importance; but they are of some importance: they have given occasion to enemies to blaspheme; they have furnished arguments to freethinkers and infidels, of which it is desirable honestly and fairly to deprive them; they have embarrassed the humble but hearty friends to revelation: and is it not then to be wished that they were entirely corrected? not by fancied errors in the sacred books, but by superior information and knowledge, derived from those very countries where the Scriptures were originally written; and which to this day retain some of those peculiarities which we, in our western situation, find perplexing. We have in the writings of Moses three enumerations of the Jewish people; the first at the Exodus: Exod. chap. xxii. 37. One year afterward, At entering of Canaan, 600,000 603,550 601,730 To which is added the number of the Levites, 22,000. Simeon, Levi Judah, Issachar, 46,500 59,300 22,300 74,600 54,400 "The army of Israel was divided into three principal distinctions: the first was the centre, in which stood the tabernacle; the second, composed of priests and Levites, surrounded the first; the third, containing the rest of the people of Israel, was at least a quarter of a league distant from the tabernacle; for it appears by Josh. iii. 4. that the nearest approach to the ark permitted to the people was 2,000 cubits. The respect due to the Divine Majesty, the numerous army of the Israelites, composed of 600,000 soldiers, with their families, which makes 3,000,000 of persons, necessarily required a great extent of space. "Four divisions faced the cardinal points, with their ensigns, making the main body of the army. Judah was placed east, and with him Issachar and Zebulon; Reuben was to the south, and with him Simeon and Gad; Ephraim was west, and with him Manasseh and Benjamin; Dan was north, and with him Asher and Naphtali." The Talmudists pretend that each tribe had its banner, on which was delineated the sign of the tribe: that they had banners indeed is evident; but for these delineations we have merely Talmudical authority; and shall therefore only report them. Total, 603,550 verse 9. 16. 24. 31. 32. CHAPTER II. OF THE SPACE OCCUPIED BY THE CAMP OF ISRAEL. those of our greatest armies, which now-a-days conIf we examine and compare the camp of Israel with sist of 100,000, or 150,000 men, we must needs allow it a great extent. The Jews say a circuit of 12 miles ; which is 3 miles in length to each front. The idea of three camps, an interior, a middle, and an exterior, is used to explain certain orders respecting degrees of uncleanness; as chap. v. 2, 3. "Command the children of Israel that they put out of the camp, [i.e. from all the three camps,] every leper; and [from the two interior camps] every one who hath an issue; and [from the interior camp] whosoever is defiled by the dead: that they defile not their camps [plural] in the midst whereof I dwell." The camp also had gates; as appears from Exod. xxxii. 27. «Put every man his sword by his side, and go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp." Were these gates fortified, or guarded in any manner? Was the whole camp surrounded in any manner, by intrenchments, or a stoccado? It is likely that each gate had a guard. The very space requisite for so many men to stand in is considerable, even in close order; and allowing for instance, the tribe of Judah, in close order, would each man only one cubit square, which is too little : require, A depth of 300 cubits. A breadth of 250 Besides the tents of Moses, Aaron, &c. and the space allotted for general assemblies of the people on public occasions. Between the camp of Israel and the Levites, suppose an interval of 2000 cubits; and then allow the necessary depth for each tribe; the result will be, that the camp of Israel contained 12 square miles, and something over, at the lowest computation, [which is much too low.] The above calculations are extracted from Scheuzer, who supposed the camp of Israel to have been square; but it is not unlikely that it might be cir cular, since such is the form adopted among the Arabs. This would enable the general to direct the streets of the camp at his pleasure; and he migh easily enable every one to have a view of the taber nacle, and the signals made there; which, if the camp were square, and the streets crossed each other, wa impossible. There are several instances in which the peopl seem to have beheld the centre of the camp from every part of it; and the various manifestations the cloud of the Lord, &c. seem best adapted to camp whose streets tended all to the same central poin CHAPTER V. VERSE 17, &c. THE WATER OF JEALOUSY. The water of jealousy drank by an Israelitish woma suspected of infidelity to her husband but denyi that crime, has been a subject of great difficulty; more especially as we do not read of this rite ever having been put in practice in any succeeding age. Was this rite now first instituted? Was it now first instituted in reference to jealousy? What was its import? I presume it contained the essence of an oath, varied for the purpose of peculiar solemnity; so that a woman would naturally hesitate to take such an oath, understood to be an appeal to heaven of the most solemn kind; understood, also, to be accompanied, in case of perjury, by most painful and fatal effects. The Jews say, that the woman was led in a disgraceful manner to the place appointed for judgment, and was otherwise perplexed, shamed, and fatigued; but of this Scripture says nothing: neither indeed is it credible, as the hardship of the case seems enough, without addition, on a woman who might be perfectly innocent. As something of the same nature still obtains in Africa, I shall give an instance or two from Mr. Park. "At Baniserile, one of our Slatees, slave merchants, returning to his native town, as soon as he had seated himself on a matt, by the threshold of his door, a young woman, his intended bride, brought a little water in a calabash, and kneeling down before him, desired him to wash his hands; when he had done this, the girl, with a tear of joy sparkling in her eyes, drank the water: this being considered as the greatest proof she could possibly give him of her fidelity and attachment," M. Park, p. 347. I understand the action of the woman to be a kind tured with the curse, whose acrimony it received; so that now it was metaphorically bitter, containing the curse in it. The drinking of this curse, though conditionally effective or non-effective, could not but have a great effect on the woman's mind; and an answerable effect on the husband's jealousy; which it was designed to cure and to dissipate. Query, As the girl drank the water from her husband just returned home after a long absence, was this the case with the Israelitish husband, who had, if he pleased, this mode of swearing his wife of her fidelity during his absence? N.B. If a husband loved his wife too well to part with her, on suspicion; if a woman loved her husband so well as to risk this exposure to satisfy him, then this rite might take place; but if either did not choose to hazard this experiment, the way of divorce was open, was much easier, much less hazardous, more private, more honourable, and perhaps more satisfactory. This may account why we have no instance of the use of the water of jealousy. That ordeals of other kinds were practised among the Gentiles is well known; they were used to detect perjury. Vide Vit. Apollon. lib. i. cap. 6; lib. iii. cap. 15. Pausanias mentions others, lib. vii, and the custom is still maintained among the Hindoos. CHAPTER XI. VERSES 1, 2, 3. FIRE OF THE LORD. The question on this passage is, whether this fire was lightning, or the samiel, a fiery wind? The expression, "it consumed in the uttermost part of the camp,' of oath ; q.d. "May this water prove poison to me if "At Koolkorro, my landlord brought out his writing board, or walha, that I might write him a saphie, to protect him from wicked men. I wrote the board full, from top to bottom, on both sides; and my landlord, to be certain of having the whole force of the charm, washed the writing from the board into a calabash, with a little water, and having said a few prayers over it, drank this powerful draught; after which, lest a single word should escape, he licked the board until it was quite dry," M. Park, p. 236. Here we find the sentiments expressed in writing are supposed to be communicated to water; and that water, being drank, is supposed to communicate the effect of those sentiments to him who drank it. This drinking then is a symbolical action; in like manner, I suppose, when the priest of Israel wrote the curses in a sepher [letter,] and washed those curses into the water that was to be drank, the water was understood to be impregnated, as it were, to be tinc capable of two senses; it consumed the whole of one extreme of the camp; or, it consumed in different places, but they were all at the extremity of the camp. If one part of the camp was the scene of this fire, then, no doubt, it was a burning wind, which passed over that edge of the camp, but did not enter wholly into, or cross over, the centre of it, or where the people were thickest. Otherwise, it might be lightning. Scheuzer prefers the former sense; observing, that ished in one night by one of these burning winds. Thevenot mentions the death of 20,000 men, who per VERSE 5. We remember the fish which we did eat in Egypt, gratis; the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, the garlic. Interpreters are pretty well agreed on the import of the Hebrew word rendered cucumbers; and that the following denotes melons. It is most probable that these names include all of their kinds. These vegetables are still esteemed delicacies in Egypt, and still form a great part of the food of the lower class of people, especially during the hot months. In fact, the people are so fond of them as to bring various disorders on themselves, by eating them too plentifully. Among the plants of Egypt which the Israelites regretted, is one which they call hatsin; whether this was the leek may be doubted. Some think it was the lotus, which is a water plant, a kind of water lily; which, says Homer, Il. xxii. is "the first of plants which grow for the pleasure of the gods." Alpinus, Plant. Egypt. p. 103. says, this is the white nenuphar, the nymphea: "The Egyptians during the heats of summer eat the whole stalk raw, with the upper parts; that they are watery, proper to moisten and refresh, and that they are called rasel nil. The onion, and garlic: These two plants were certainly highly esteemed in Egypt, and not without reason, this country being admirably well adapted to their culture. Pliny reports, lib. xix. cap. 6. "that onions and garlic were reckoned among the deities of Egypt, and that they even swore by them." And Juvenal, Sat. xv. says they were gods that grew in every garden : Quis nescit, Volusi Bithynice, qualis demens Porrum et Cæpe nefas violare et frangere morsu. It should appear, however, that both Juneval and Pliny have erred by supposing that the people were prohibited from using these plants: they were certainly forbidden as food to the priests; but it is probable that the very idea of sanctity connected with them, arose from their having been originally a source of supply furnished by the hand of nature, without cultivation, to the inhabitants of this country, then covered with marshes and other collections of water. From the nature of these recollections, we perceive that the people longed for moistening, cooling diet; for vegetables calculated to correct the heats of the atmosphere; these are greater indulgencies beneath a sultry sky than inhabitants of Britain can suppose. VERSES 69. ΜΑΝΝΑ. For descriptions of Eastern manna, vide on Exod. xvi. 4, &c. As to the various modes of treating this manna, the making it into cakes, &c. nothing need be said. It should seem that it was treated pretty much as flour of wheat might be. QUAILS. For thoughts on the quails, vide on Exod. xvi. CHAPTER XII. VERSE 10. THE LEPROSY OF MIRIAM. This appears to have been of the malignant kind. For some thoughts on the subject, vide on Levit. CHAPTER XIII. VERSE 24. THE GRAPES OF ESCHOL. Scripture says, that the spies sent to inspect the land of Canaan, found a bunch of grapes so large that they brought it, as it were in triumph, hanging on a a pole, between two bearers. It is certain, that we must not judge of the Eastern vines by our own; and that the grapes of Judea are at this day of great size: but the language of Scripture and of nature does not satisfy Jewish Rabbins; they insist, that this bunch of grapes was so large, and so heavy, that it required eight men to carry it; of which each sustained the weight of 360lbs. Wagenseil cites also the Talmudists as saying, "Then, whoever could procure one of the grapes, was obliged to carry it away in a cart, or in a boat; and after having placed it in a corner of his house, he might tap it, and draw out wine for family consumption, as out of a cask; the wood which the stalk furnished he might use to dress his victuals. There was not a single grape but yielded xxx hogsheads of wine." What can these exaggerations mean? O commentators on Scripture, is this illustration, mysticism; or is it degrading and disgusting falsehood? It is worth while to note such extravaganzas, because, we may securely infer, that where such perversions are patronized, the true sense and import of Scripture is not likely to be maintained, even in other passages. CHAPTER XVI. VERSES 31, &c. THE PUNISHMENT OF KORAH BY AN EARTHQUAKE. When The history of the punishment of Korah is among the most striking instances of the Divine power, exerted to vindicate his appointments, and to destroy profligate offenders. Let the earth swallow men and their dwellings, when it opens its abysses: there is nothing in that beyond the powers of nature. the earth trembles, those countries which are the seat of this disturbance must crumble into dust by the shock. Sicily and Italy furnish innumerable instances in proof of these assertions; yet, even in these instances, though not miraculous, it is God who produces such commotions. All the works of nature are works of God. But here, while the earth is composed and tranquil, the man of God foretells the time, the place, the persons concerned, and the manner in which this prodigy should happen; and this, not in Sicily, not in Italy, not in a country undermined by subterranean fires; but in the sandy desert of Arabia, where rocks probably form the general under strata, and sand the upper; where earthquakes are little known, except by report; and where little expectation of this threat's fulfilment could arise in the minds of the hearers. from general appearances, or from supposable natural causes Yet here, at the time appointed, earth opens her mouth, and swallows down into her profound abysses the whole company of rebels; leaving no trace of them remaining, but by the void where they had been. As to those who were slain by fire from the Lord, the probability is, that it was lightning; but nothing forbids its being an exhalation of a different kind; perhaps from the earth itself. "It is good to remark here, in passing, that the greater part of the miracles wrought to establish the Jewish religion were of a terrific nature, and often involved the ruin of a multitude of transgressors: witness this destruction of Korah and his accomplices. On the contrary, the miracles wrought in establishing the truth of the Gospel were salutary and benevolent, as well to the enemies as to the friends of religion. The cursing of the barren fig-tree we have elsewhere proved to be no just exception; and the loss of the swine, who were drowned in the sea, is rather a proof of the power of demons, when unrestained, than of the tendency of the behaviour or conduct of Jesus." CHAPTER XVIII. VERSES 7, 8. It has been the custom in all ages for elderly men, and for those in authority, to carry, as a mark of dignity, a rod or walking staff; which at length became the sceptre peculiar to princes. Minos, king of Crete, is represented in Hesiod, as "bearing the sceptre of Jupiter;" and Homer, Il. i. v. 14. says, the priest, Chryses, "had a sceptre of gold." The priests, among the Greeks and Romans, had their recurved rods; and bishops, in later ages, have their croizers: all which are ensigns of dignity and office. The rod of Aaron should seem to have been of the almond-tree: the fathers thought it was of some other kind of wood; but there is no need to add to a miracle which is sufficient in itself. It is probable that the ordinary rods of Aaron, and of the other chiefs, were employed on this occasion. No doubt but this rod had been, during some years, dry and sapless; the circumstance, therefore, of its restoration to renewed vigour and life is certainly wonderful; which wonder is not diminished by reflecting on the short space of time in which it was restored to verdure and fertility. The Jews, to commemorate this miracle, have struck the blossoming rod on several of their coins. CHAPTER XIX. VERSE 24. THE RED HEIFER. This heifer was to be not only reddish, but com pletely red; and Maimonides says, "that if two "that if two white hairs were found too close together, the creature was considered as unfit for the service." Plutarch, in Iside, speaking of the precision of the Egyptians on a like subject, says, "They sacrifice red bullocks, and they select them with such scrupulous exactitude, that if the animal has a single hair black, or white, it is rejected as profane." The Israelites and Egyptians, then, were equally exact as to the colour of the animal; but they differed as to sex, one choosing a male, the other a female. CHAPTER XXI. THE SERPENT OF BRASS. Nehashim seraphim, "fiery serpents;" so named, either from their colours, flaming and resplendent, resmbling red copper and fire; or, rather from the effect of their bites, which produced in the persons bitten a sensation of fiery heat and anguish. The serpent named dipsas has usually been selected, as answering to the nature of these fiery serpents. This creature possesses an active, penetrating venom. As to the mode of cure of those bitten by these serpents, it is plainly superior to what nature could have produced; and therefore, while we quit it as naturalists, we refer to the adoption of it as a type, by our Lord, John iii. 14. ours. Dr. Shaw remarks, p. 388. "As we were obliged imals, besides other curiosities, must undoubtedly to travel in the night, several fossils, plants, and anhave escaped my notice. Yet I should not omit observing, that we were now and then offended with several little swarms of locusts and hornets: both of them of an unusual sise, though of the ordinary colVIPERS, ESPECIALLY IN THE WILDERNESS OF SIN, were very dangerous and troublesome: not only our camels, but the Arabs who attended them, running every moment the risk of being bitten." The Dr. having given these reptiles only the general name of viper, we cannot, from his account, identify the species. He again alludes to this desert as "affording a great plenty of the serpentine kinds." P. 429. CHAPTER XXII. VERSES 28, &c. BALAAM'S ASS. We have already observed that there are in the East more kinds of asses than one, and we find those of the most costly, the most favourite race, are called atunoth, and are set by themselves, as of high estimation: this word being feminine, it has been usual to consider these atunoth as she asses; but that they were a breed, not a sex, I think evident. That Balaam was a man of consequence appears among other things, from his riding on one of these atunoth; and I apprehend this is the kind still valued in the East. Dr. Russell speaks thus of them, p. 173: "The common breed of asses is larger than that usually seen in Britain; and another, still larger, is preserved for the saddle; for the ordinary people, and many of the middle class, commonly ride asses. Asses are often preferred to horses by the shieks |