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The feast of the passover,

A. M. 2514. B. C. 1490.

LEVITICUS.

pentecost.

A. M. 2514. B. C. 1490.

first-fruits, and work therein it is the Sabbath that ye have brought an offering An. Exod. Isr. 2. of the LORD in all your dwell- unto your God: it shall be a An. Exod. Isr. 2. statute for ever throughout your generations, in all your dwellings.

Abib or Nisan.

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ings.

4 These are the feasts of the LORD, even holy convocations, which ye shall-proclaim in their seasons.

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Abib or Nisan.

15 And "ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the Sabbath, from the day that ye

5 In the fourteenth day of the first month brought the sheaf of the wave-offering; seven at even is the LORD's passover.

6 And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread unto the LORD: seven days ye must eat unleavened bread,

7 In the first day ye shall have a holy convocation ye shall do no servile work therein. 8 But ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD seven days; in the seventh day is a holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein.

9 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 10 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye be come into the land which I give unto you, and shall reap the harvest thereof, then ye shall bring a h sheaf i of the first-fruits of your harvest unto the priest :

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11 And he shall wave the sheaf before the LORD, to be accepted for you on the morrow after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it.

12 And ye shall offer that day, when ye wave the sheaf, a he-lamb without blemish, of the first year, for a burnt-offering unto the LORD. 13 And the meat-offering thereof shall be two tenth deals of fine flour mingled with oil, an offering made by fire unto the LORD for a sweet savour and the drink-offering thereof shall be of wine, the fourth part of a hin. 14 And ye shall eat neither bread, nor parched corn, nor green ears, until the selfsame day

Ver. 2, 37; Exod. xxiii. 14.- e Exod. xii..6, 14, 18;_xiii. 3, 10; xxiii. 15; xxxiv. 18; Num. ix. 2, 3; xxviii. 16, 17; Deut. xvi. 1-8; Josh. v. 10.- Exod. xii. 16; Num. xxviii, 18, 25. Exod. xxiii. 16, 19; xxxiv. 22, 26; Num. xv. 2, 18; xxviii. 26; Deut. xvi. 9; Josh. iii. 15. hOr, handful.- iHeb. omer. * Rom. xi, 16; 1 Cor. xv. 20; James i, 18; Rev, xiv. 4. Verse 5. The Lord's passover.] See this largely explained in the notes on Exod. xii. 21–27.

Verse 11. He shall wave the sheaf] He shall move it to and fro before the people, and thereby call their attention to the work of Divine Providence, and excite their gratitude to God for preserving to them the kindly fruits of the earth. See the notes on Exod. xxix. 27, and chap. vii. at the end,

Sabbaths shall be complete :

16 Even unto the morrow after the seventh Sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat-offering unto the LORD.

17 Ye shall bring out of your habitations two wave loaves of two tenth deals: they shall be of fine flour; they shall be baken with leaven; they are the first-fruits unto the LORD.

18 And ye shall offer with the bread seven lambs without blemish of the first year, and one young bullock, and two rams: they shall be for a burnt-offering unto the LORD, with their meat-offering, and their drink-offerings, even an offering made by fire, of sweet savour unto the LORD.

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19 Then ye shall sacrifice one kid of the goats for a sin-offering, and two lambs of the first year for a sacrifice of peace-offerings. 20 And the priest shall wave them with the bread of the first-fruits, for a wave-offering before the LORD, with the two lambs: they shall be holy to the LORD for the priest. 21 And ye shall proclaim on the selfsame day, that it may be a holy convocation unto you: ye shall do no servile work therein : it shall be a statute for ever in all your dwellings throughout your generations.

22 And when ye reap the harvest of your

Exod. xxix, 24. m Chap. ii. 14, 15, .16.- Chap. xxv. 8; Exod. xxxiv. 22; Deut. xvi. 9. Lo Acts ii. 1.- -P Num. xxviii. 26.— - Exod. xxili, 16, 19; xxii. 29; xxxiv. 22, 26; Num. xv. 17; xxviii. 26; Deut. xxvi. 1. Ch. iv. 23, 28; Num. xxviii. 30.s Chapter iii. 1. Numbers xviii. 12; Deut. xviii. 4. " Chap. xix. 9.

see the note on Exod. xxii. 29. Parched ears of corn and green ears, fried, still constitute a part, and not a disagreeable one, of the food of the Arabs now resident in the Holy Land. See Hasselquist.

Verse 15. Ye shall count unto you-seven Sabbaths] That is, from the sixteenth of the first month to the sixth of the third month. These seven weeks, called here Sabbaths, were to be complete, i. e., the fortyVerse 14. Ye shall eat neither bread, nor parched nine days must be finished, and the next day, the fifcorn, nor green ears] It is right that God, the dis-tieth, is what, from the Septuagint, we call pentecost. penser of every blessing, should be acknowledged as See the note on Luke vi. 1. such, and the first-fruits of the field, &c., dedicated

Verse 22. Neither shalt thou gather any gleaning]

to him. Concerning the dedication of the first-fruits, See the note on chap. xix. 9,

The great day of atonement.

A. M. 2514. B. C. 1490.

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B. C. 1490.

An. Exod. Isr. 2.

land, thou shalt not make clean | 32 It shall be unto you a Sab-
of thy bath of rest, and ye shall afflict
your souls: in the ninth day of the Abib or Nisan.
month at even, from even unto even, shall ye
celebrate your Sabbath.

An. Exod. Isr. 2. riddance of the corners
Abib or Nisan. field when thou reapest,
neither
shalt thou gather any gleaning of thy harvest:
thou shalt leave them unto the poor, and to
the stranger: I am the LORD your God.

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23 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 24 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a Sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, a holy convocation.

25 Ye shall do no servile work therein: but ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD.

26 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 27 y Also on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be a holy convocation, unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD.

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33 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

34 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the feast of tabernacles, for seven days unto the LORD..

35 On the first day shall be a holy convocation ye shall do no servile work therein.

36 Seven days ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD on the eighth day shall be a holy convocation unto you; and ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD: it is a solemn assembly; 1 and ye shall do no servile work therein.

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37 These are the feasts of the LORD, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, to offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD, a burnt-offering, and a meat-offering, a sacrifice, and drink-offerings, every thing upon his

28 And ye shall do no work in that same day for it is a day of atonement, to make an atonement for you before the LORD your God. day: 29 For whatsoever soul it be that shall not | be afflicted in that same day, he shall be cut off from among his people.

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30 And whatsoever soul it be that doeth any work in that same day, the same soul wil I destroy from among his people.

31 Ye shall do no manner of work it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations, in all your dwellings.

▾ Deut. xxiv. 19. Num. xxix. Ì. Chap. xxv. 9. y Chap. xvi. 30; Num. xxix. 7.—— Gen. xvii. 14. Chap. xx. 3, 5, 6.b Heb. rest.- - Exod, xxiii. 16; Num. xxix. 12; Deut. xvi. 13; Ezra iii. 4; Neh. viii. 14; Zech. xiv. 16; 1 Esd.

Verse 24. A memorial of blowing of trumpets] This is generally called the feast of trumpets; and as it took place on the first day of the seventh month, Tisri, which answers to September, which month was the commencement of what was called the civil year, the feast probably had no other design `than to celebrate the commencement of that year, if indeed such a distinction obtained among the ancient Jews. See the note on Exod. xii. 2. Some think creation began at this time.

Verse 28. A day of atonement] See the note on chapter xvi. 3, &c., where this subject is largely explained.

38 Beside the Sabbaths of the LORD, and beside your gifts, and beside all your vows, and beside all your freewill-offerings, which ye give unto the LORD.

39 'Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when ye have gathered in the fruit of the land, ye shall keep a feast unto the LORD seven days on the first day shall be a Sabbath, and on the eighth day shall be a Sabbath.

v. 51; John vii. 2.—d Num. xxix. 35; Neh. viii. 18; John vii. 37.- e Heb. day of restraint. f Deut. xvi. 8; 2 Chron. vii. 9; Neh. viii. 18; Joel i. 14; ii. 15. Ver. 2, 4.- Num. xxix. 39.- Exod. xxiii. 16; Deut. xvi. 13. memoration of their forty years' sojourning and dwelling in tents in the wilderness while destitute of any fixed habitations.. In imitation of this feast among the people of God, the Gentiles had their feasts of tents.. Plutarch speaks particularly of feasts of this kind in honour of Bacchus, and thinks from the custom of the Jews in celebrating the feast of tabernacles, that they worshipped the god Bacchus, "because he had a feast exactly of the same kind called the feast of tabernacles, Eknvn, which they celebrated in the time of vintage, bringing tables out into the open air furnished with all kinds of fruit, and sitting under tents made of vine branches and ivy.”—PLUT. Symp., lib. iv., Q. 6. According to Ovid the feast of Anna Perenna was celebrated much in the same way. Some remained in the open air, others formed to themselves tents and booths made of branches of trees, over which they spread garments, and kept the festival with great re

Verse 34. The feast of tabernacles] In this solemnity the people left their houses, and dwelt in booths or tents made of the branches of goodly trees and thick trees, (of what kind the text does not specify,) together with palm-trees and willows of the brook, ver. 40. And in these they dwelt seven days, in com-joicings.

Directions concerning the

A. M. 2514.
B. C. 1490.

LEVITICUS..

40 And ye shall take you on
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lamps and the shew-bread

42 Ye shall dwell in booths

A. M. 2514.
B. C. 1490.

An. Exod. Isr. 2. the first day the boughs of seven days; all that are Is- An. Exod. Isr. 2. Abib or Nisan. goodly trees, branches of palm-raelites born shall dwell in Abib or Nisan. trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and wil- booths: lows of the brook; m and ye shall rejoice before the LORD your God seven days.

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"Sub Jove pars durat; pauci tentoria ponunt ;
Sunt, quibus e ramis frondea facta casa est.
Pars sibi pro rigidis calamos statuere columnis;
Desuper extentas imposuere togas."
Ovid, Fast., lib. iii.
Concerning this feast of tabernacles, see the note on
John vii. 37, 38; and for the various feasts among the
Jews, see the note on Exod. xxiii. 14.

Verse 40. Boughs of goodly trees] The Jews and many critics imagine the citron-tree to be intended, and by boughs of thick trees the myrtle.

Verse 43. That your generations may know, &c.] By the institution of this feast God had two great objects in view: 1. To perpetuate the wonderful display of his providence and grace in bringing them out

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43 That your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.

44 And Moses a declared unto the children of Israel the feasts of the LORD.

"Neh. viii, 14, 15, 16.—P Deut. xxxi. 13;` Psa. lxxviii. 5, 6. q Ver. 2.

of Egypt, and in preserving them in the wilderness. 2. To excite and maintain in them a spirit of gratitude and obedience, by leading them to consider deeply the greatness of the favours which they had received from his most merciful hands.

SIGNAL displays of the mercy, kindness, and providential care of God should be particularly remembered. When we recollect that we deserve nothing at his hands, and that the debt of gratitude is all the debt we can pay, in it we should be cheerful, fervent, and frequent. An ungrateful heart is an unfeeling, unloving, unbelieving, and disobedient heart. Reader, pray to God that he may deliver thee from its influence and its curse.

CHAPTER XXIV.

Pure olive oil must be provided for the lamps, 1, 2. Aaron is to take care that the lamps be lighted from evening to morning continually, 3, 4. How the shew-bread is to be made and ordered, 5-8. Aaron and his sons shall eat this bread in the holy place, 9. Of the son of Shelomith, an Israelitish woman, who blasphemed the name, 10, 11. He is imprisoned till the mind of the Lord should be known, 12. He is commanded to be stoned to death, 13, 14. The ordinance concerning cursing and blaspheming the Lord, 15, 16. The law against murder, 17., The lex talionis, or law of like for like, repeated, 18-21. This law to be equally binding both on themselves and on strangers, 22. The blasphemer is stoned, 23. 4 He shall order the lamps upon

A. M. 2514.

B. C. 1490.

An. Exod. Isr. 2.
Abib or Nisan.

AND the LORD spake unto
Moses, saying,

2 Command the children of Israel, that they bring unto thee pure oil olive beaten for the light, to cause the lamps to burn continually.

3 Without the veil of the testimony, in the tabernacle of the congregation, shall Aaron order it from the evening unto the morning, before the LORD continually it shall be a statute for ever in your generations.

a Exod. xxvii. 20, 21,- b Heb. to cause to ascend. xxxi. 8; xxxix. 37.

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the pure candlestick, before the An. Exod. Isr. 2. LORD continually.

d

Abib or Nisan.

5 And thou shalt take fine flour, and bake twelve cakes thereof: two tenth deals shall be in one cake.

6 And thou shalt set them in two rows, six on a row, upon the pure table before the LORD.

7 And thou shalt put pure frankincense upon each row, that it may be on the bread for a Exod.dExod. xxv, 30,- 1 Kings vii. 48; 2 Chron. iv. 19; xiii. 11; Heb. ix, 2,

NOTES ON CHAP. XXIV.
Verse 2. Pure oil olive] See every thing relative
to this ordinance explained on Exod. xxvii. 20, 21.
Verse 5. Bake twelve cakes] See the whole account

of the shew-bread in the notes on Exod. xxv. 30; and relative to the table on which they stood, the golden candlestick and silver trumpets carried in triumph to Rome, see the note on Exod. xxv. 31.

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brought him unto Moses: (and his mother's name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan :)

12 And they m put him in ward," that the mind of the LORD might be showed them. 13 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

9 And it shall be Aaron's and his sons'; hand they shall eat it in the holy place: for it is most holy unto him, of the offerings of the LORD made by fire by a perpetual statute. 10 And the son of an Israelitish woman, 14 Bring forth him that hath cursed without whose father was an Egyptian, went out among the camp; and let all that heard him lay the children of Israel: and this son of the their hands upon his head, and let all the conIsraelitish woman and a man of Israel strove gregation stone him. together in the camp;

Num. iv. 7; 1 Chron. ix. 32; 2 Chron. ii. 4.- - 1 Samuel xxi. 6; Matt. xii. 4; Mark ii. 26; Luke vi. 4.-h Exod. xxix. 33; chap. viii. 3; xxi. 22.-i Ver. 16.- - Job i. 5, 11, 22; ii. 5, 9, 10; Isa. viii. 21.

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Verse 10. The son of an Israelitish woman, whose father was an Egyptian, &e.] This is a very obscure account, and is encumbered with many difficulties. 1. It seems strange that a person proceeding from such an illegal mixture should have been incorporated with the Israelites. 2. What the cause of the strife between this mongrel person and the Israelitish man was is not even hinted at. The rabbins, it is true, supply in their way this deficiency; they say he was the son of the Egyptian whom Moses slew, and that attempting to pitch his tent among those of the tribe of Dan, to which he belonged by his mother's side, ver. 11, he was prevented by a person of that tribe as having no right to a station among them who were true Israelites both by father and mother, In consequence of this they say he blasphemed the name of the Lord. But, 3. The sacred text does not tell us what name he blasphemed; it is simply said n 2p Dun vaiyikkob eth hashshem, he pierced through, distinguished, explained, or expressed the name: (See below, article 10.) As the Jews hold it impious to pronounce the name 'Yehovah, they always put either Adonai, Lord, or D hashshëm, THE NAME, in the place of it; but in this sense hashshem was never used prior to the days of rabbinical superstition, and therefore it cannot be put here for the word Jehovah. 4. Blaspheming the name of the Lord is mentioned in ver. 16, and there the proper Hebrew term is used

15 And thou shalt speak unto the children

Exod. xviii. 22, 26.- m Num. xv. 34. n Heb. to expound unto them according to the mouth of the LORD.- o Exodus xviii. 15, 16; Numbers xxvii. 5; xxxvi. 5, 6.—P Deut. xiii. 9;

xvii. 7.

and certainly expose to the punishment mentioned in
ver: 14. 8. Probably the word own hashshem was
the proper name of some Egyptian deity. 9. The
fifteenth verse seems to countenance the supposition
that the god whose name was produced on this occa-
sion was not the true God, for it is there said, whoso-
ever curseth his god, yns elohaiv, shall bear his sin—
shall have the punishment due to him as an idolater;
but he that blasphemeth the name of the LORD, DV
shem Yehovah, shall surely be put to death-when he
blasphemeth the name ( shem) he shall die, ver. 16.
10. The verb pi nakab, which we translate blaspheme,
signifies to pierce, bore, make hollow; also to EXPRESS
or DISTINGUISH by NAME; see Isa. Ixii. 2; Num. i.
17; 1 Chron. xii. 31; xvi. 41; xxviii. 15; or, as the
Persian translator has it, pl
sherah kerd, mir`an nam, he expounded or interpreted
the name. Hence all that we term blasphemy here may
only signify the particularizing some false god, i. e.,
naming him by his name, or imploring his aid as a
helper, and when spoken of the true God it may sig-
nify using that sacred name as the idolaters did the
names of their idols. On blaspheming God, and the
nature of blasphemy, see the notes on Matt. ix. 3.

شرح کرد

In whatever point of view we consider the relation which has been the subject of this long note, one thing is sufficiently plain, that he who speaks irreverently of God, of his works, his perfections, his providence, shem Yehovah, and not the rabbinical D hash- &c., is destitute of every moral feeling and of every shem, as in ver. 11. 5. Of all the manuscripts collated religious principle, and consequently so dangerous to both by Kennicott and De Rossi, not one, either of the society that it would be criminal to suffer him to be at Hebrew or Samaritan, has the word Jehovah in this large, though the longsuffering of God may lead him place. 6. Not one of the ancient VERSIONS, Targum to repentance, and therefore it may be consistent with of Onkelos, Hebræo-Samaritan, Samaritan version, mercy to preserve his life. Syriac, Arabic, Septuagint, or Vulgate Latin, has even Verse 14. Lay their hands upon his head] It was attempted to supply the sacred name. 7. Houbi-by this ceremony that the people who heard him curse gant supposes that the Egypto-Israelitish man did not use the name of the true God at all, but had been swearing by one of his country gods; and if this was the case the mention of the name of a strange god in the camp of Israel would constitute a very high crime,

bore their public testimony in order to his being fully convicted, for without this his punishment would not have been lawful. By this ceremony also they in effect said to the man, Thy blood be upon thy own head. Verse 15. Whosoever curseth his God] 18 4hp'

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20 Breach for breach, eye for eye, tooth for tooth: as he hath An. Exod. Isr. 2. caused a blemish in a man, so Abib or Nisan. shall it be done to him again.

21 And he that killeth a beast, he shall restore. it: and he that killeth a man, he shall be put to death.

22 Ye shall have one manner of law, as well for the stranger as for one of your

17 And he that killeth any man shall own country: for I am the LORD your surely be put to death.

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18 And he that killeth a beast shall make it good; beast for beast.

19 And if a man cause a blemish in his neighbour as he hath done, so shall it be done to him;

a Chap. v. 1; xx. 17; Num. ix. 13.-1 Kings xxi. 10, 13; Psa. ixxiv. 10, 18; Matt. xii. 31; Mark iii. 28; James ii. 7. Exod. xxi. 12; Num. xxxv. 31; Deut. xix. 11, 12. Heb. smiteth the life of a man.

yekallel Elohaiv, he who makes light of him, who does not treat him and sacred things with due reverence, shall bear his sin-shall have the guilt of this transgression imputed to him, and may expect the punishment.

Verse 16. Blasphemeth the name of the Lord] p

D venokeb shem Yehovah, he who pierces, transfixes, or, as some translate it, expounds, the name of Jehovah; see the note on the tenth verse. This being the name by which especially the Divine Essence was pointed out, it should be held peculiarly sacred. We have already seen that the Jews never pronounce this name, and so long has it been disused among them that the true pronunciation is now totally lost; see on the word JEHOVAH, Exod. vi. 3.

Verse 17. He that killeth any man] Blasphemy against God, i. e., speaking injuriously of his name, his attributes, his government, and his revelation, together with murder, is to be punished with death: he that blasphemes God is a curse in society, and he who takes away, wilfully and by malicious intent, the life of any man, should certainly be put to death. In this respect God has absolutely required that life shall go for life.

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Verse 20: Breach for breach] This is a repetition of the lex talionis, which see explained Exod. xxi. 24. Verse 22. Ye shall have one manner of law, as well for the stranger as for one of your own country] Equal laws, where each individual receives the same protection and the same privileges, are the boast only of a sound political constitution. He who respects and obeys the laws has a right to protection and support, and his person and property are as sacred in the sight of justice as the person and property of the prince. He who does not obey the laws of his country forfeits all right and title to protection and privilege; his own actions condemn him, and justice takes him up on the evidence of his own transgressions. He who does what is right need not fear the power of the civil magistrate, for he holds the sword only to punish transgressors. Universal obedience to the laws is the duty of every

God.

a

23 And Moses spake to the children of Israel, that, they should bring forth him that had cursed out of the camp, and stone him with stones. And the children of Israel did as the LORD commanded Moses.

u Ver. 21. - Heb. life for life. Exod. xxi. 24; Deut. xix. .21; Matt., v. 38; vii. 2.- Exod. xxi. 33; ver. 18. y Ver. 17.- Exod. xii. 49; chap. xix. 34; Num. xv. 16. a Ver. 14.

citizen; none can do more, none should do less: therefore each individual in a well regulated state must have equal rights and privileges in every thing that relates to the safety of his person, and the security of his property. Reader, such was the Mosaic code; such IS the BRITISH CONSTITUTION.

Verse 23. And stone him with stones.] We are not to suppose that the culprit was exposed to the unbridled fury of the thousands of Israel; this would be brutality, not justice, for the very worst of tempers and passions might be produced and fostered by such a procedure. The Jews themselves tell us that their manner of stoning was this: they brought the condemned person without the camp, because his crime had rendered him unclean, and whatever was unclean must be put without the camp. When they came within four cubits of the place of execution, they stripped the criminal, if a man, leaving him nothing but a cloth about the waist: The place on which he was to be executed was elevated, and the witnesses went up with him to it, and laid their hands upon him, for the purposes mentioned ver. 14. Then one of the witnesses struck him with a stone upon the loins; if he was not killed with that blow, then the witnesses took up a great stone, as much as two men could lift, and threw it upon his breast. This was the coup de grace, and finished the. tragedy. When a man was stoned by the mob, then brutal rage armed every man, justice was set aside, and the will and fury of the people were law, judge, jury, and executioner. Such disgraceful stonings as these were, no doubt, frequent among the Jews. See Calmet's Dict., article STONING, and Ainsworth on this place.

WHAT the crime of Shelomith's son was, we cannot distinctly say; doubtless it was some species of blasphemy: however, we find it was a new and unprecedented case; and as there was no law by which the quantum of guilt could be ascertained, nor consequently the degree of punishment, it was necessary to consult

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