duce lice, than to turn rods into serpents, water into blood, and to create frogs. It has indeed been very often said, that the devil was now laid under a restraint: but hitherto no proof of this assertion has been produced. The Scripture is silent, both as to the devil's being now restrained from interposing any farther in favour of the magicians, and as to his having afforded them his assistance on the former occasions. But, if we agree with Moses in ascribing to the magicians nothing more than the artifice and dexterity which belonged to their profession, we shall find that their want of success in their last attempt was owing to the different nature and circumstances of their enterprise. In all the former instances, the magicians knew beforehand what they were to undertake, and had time for preparation. They were not sent for by Pharaoh, till after Moses had turned his rod into a serpent: and previous notice had been publicly given of the two first plagues *. But the orders in relation to the third were no sooner issued than executed, without being previously imparted to Pharaoht. So that, in this last case, they had no time for contriving any expedient for imitating or impeaching the act of Moses. And had they been allowed time, how was it possible for them to make it appear that they produced those animals, by which they themselves and all the country were already covered and surrounded? Or, what artifice could * Exod. vii. 15, 17. ch. viii. 1—4. + Ch. viii. 16. Ver. 18. There being lice upon man, and upon beast, seems to be assigned as a reason of the magicians being unable to counterfeit this miracle. escape escape detection, in relation to insects, whose minuteness hinders them from being perceived till they are brought so near as to be subject to the closest inspection? Now therefore the magicians chose to say, This (last work of Moses) is the finger of God*. It has been generally thought, that the magicians. here acknowledge "that the God of Israel was stronger than the gods of Egypt, who had hitherto assisted t them, but were now restrained from doing it by his superior power." But the text makes no mention of their allowing the God of Israel to be superior to the gods of Egypt; much less of their admitting the former to be Jehovah, and the only true God. Nor do they refer to any supernatural restraint upon the Egyptian deities, but to the last miracle of Moses, when they say, This is the finger of God; or of a god, for the original word § admits this sense, and very probably was used in no other by the magicians, who believed in a plurality of gods. Being unable to turn the dust of the earth into lice, (and even to * Ver. 19. Had the magicians in the former trials been assisted by the gods of Egypt, (or any evil spirits who supported their cause,) they might have imputed their miscarriage in the trial under consideration, to the omission of some ceremony or incantation judged necessary to engage their assistance. The disappointments of the Pagan diviners were frequently accounted for in this manner, and their credit hereby saved. Nor was it difficult for idolaters to account for a disparity of power between different gods; each god having his peculiar province, as was shewn above, p. 211. The Targum of Onkelos renders the words, This plague comes from God. And the Arabic version expresses the same sense, A sign of this nature is of God. § Elohim. seem scem to do it,) they allow that this surpassed the science they professed, and argued the special miraculous interposition of some deity. There is no sort of evidence, that this language of the magicians proceeded from a desire of doing justice to the character and claims of the God of Israel, or that it was not merely designed as the best apology they were able to make for their own failure of success, and to prevent Pharaoh from reproaching them with the want of skill in their profession. Certain it is, that this declaration of the magicians had no good effect upon Pharaoh, but seems rather to be mentioned as an occasion of his continued hardness. Nay, the history plainly intimates, that the magicians themselves afterwards confronted Moses, till, in punishment of their obstinacy, they were smitten with ulcers t. I add, that the sense here assigned to their language is perfectly agreeable to the account before given of the state of the controversy between them and Moses: for it implies, that the magicians had not so much as * Ver. 19. After relating what the magicians said to Pharaoh, the historian adds, And Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he bearkened not unto them, that is, to Moses and Aaron, (as clearly appears from the use of the same form of speech, Exod. vii. 13, 22.) as the Lord bad said. Its having been taken for granted, that Pharaoh is here reproved for not hearkening to his magicians, (who never persuaded their monarch to release the Israelites,) seems to have prevented critics from understanding the true meaning of the passage in question, This is the finger of God. The magicians could not boil was upon the magicians. stand before Moses, because of the boil: for the Exod. ix. 11. Does not this imply, that till this time the magicians had, in some method or other, opposed or disparaged Moses ? pretended pretended to any miraculous interposition of the gods in their favour, but relied entirely upon the established rules of their art; and consequently that Pharaoh's view in sending for them was to enable himself to determine, whether the works of Moses lay within the compass of it. I cannot conclude this subject without observing, that the strenuous but unsuccessful opposition of the magicians to Moses added strength to his cause; as it served to manifest the divinity of his miracles, by clearing him from all suspicion of magic. This art was thought equal to the most wonderful phænomena. In Egypt it was held in the highest esteem, and carried to its utmost perfection. Pharaoh, without doubt, on the present most important and interesting occasion, engaged the assistance of the most able professors of it, who, from a regard to their own reputation and interest, would try every possible method to invalidate the miracles of Moses. Nevertheless, their utmost efforts were baffled; and the vanity and futility of the claims of magic were detected and exposed: agreeably to the censure passed upon them by St. Paul. For, speaking of certain persons whose opposition to genuine Christianity was the sole effect of their corrupt minds, without the least colour of reason; he compares them to Jannes and Jambres who withstood Moses; and did it, he must * Jannes and Jambres, mentioned by St. Paul, 2 Tim. iii. 8, from the Chaldee paraphrase on Exod. vii. 11, are supposed to have been the two chiefs of Pharaoh's magicians. Numenius, the Pythagorean philosopher, must mean, with as little pretence; or there would be no justice in the comparison. He adds, Their folly was manifest unto all men *; and thus he taxes the conduct of the magicians with the most glaring absurdity. He cannot therefore be supposed to admit that they imitated and equalled for a time the miracles of Moses, and then desisted as soon as they found themselves unable to continue the contest to advantage, (which would have been a point of prudence ;) but to assert, that they wickedly and absurdly attempted to place the feats of art on a level with the undeniable operations of a divine power; and so shamefully miscarrying in their undertaking, they exposed themselves to the contempt of those who had once held them in high veneration. We proceed to consider, SECTION II, The Case of Samuel's Appearance to Saul at Endor, 1 Sam. xxviii. I. AMONGST other detestable methods of divination practised by the antient Pagans, one was their pretension of calling up and consulting the dead t. The soul philosopher, (apud Euseb. Præp. Ev. 1. ix. c. 8.) says, they were inferior to none in magic skill; and for that reason chosen by common consent to ppose Musaus, (for so the Heathens called Moses.) See Le Clerc on Exod. vii. 12. and Pliny's Hist. 1. xxx. c. 1. 2 Tim. iii. 9. + This custom is referred to Is. viii. 19. ch, xxix. 4. ch. lxv. 3. A full account of it may be found in Lucan. 1. vi, ver, 591, &c. Virgil. En. |