walk, and the work that they must do. Moreover thou shalt provide, out of all the people, able men, such as fear God; men of truth, bating covetousness; and let them judge the people at all feafons. And, it Shall be, that every great matter they shall bring unto thee; but every small_matter they fhall judge. So fhall it be easier for thy felf, and they shall bear the burden with thee.

And we are told further, that Mofes hearken'd to the voice of his father-in-law, and did all that he had faid; and chofe able men out of all Ifrael, and made them heads over the people; rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens, And they judged the "people at all feafons. The hard caufes they brought unto Moses; but every small matter they judged themselves.

This Jurifdiction Mofes, at his Death, bequeath'd to Joshua; and, by Virtue thereof Joshua conducted and fettled the People, in the Land of Canaan. After Joshua's Time, they were govern'd by that Form which God himself had prescrib'd to them; according to the Command and Appoint

xii. 1. 8,

9.

Appointment of Mofes. Who, when he was making a Rehearsal of the feveral Statutes and Judgments of the LORD, fays of them, Which ye shall obferve to do, Deut. in the land which the LORD God of thy fathers giveth thee to poffefs it. Ye shall not do after all the things that we do here this day, every man whatsoever is right in his own eyes; for ye are not, as yet, come to the reft, and to the inheritance, which the LORD your God giveth you.

Now the Form of Government, here spoken of, being, as we have already obferv'd, threefold; One Part relating to the whole People, in general; another, to every particular Tribe; and a third, to the several Cities in every Tribe: And those who prefied in the First, being originally Judges; and afterward Kings; thofe, in the Second, Heads of Tribes, and Heads of Families; and those in the Third, Chiefs or Princes of the Cities and States to which they belong'd; it will be beft, for Method's Sake, to enquire after the Nature of each of them, feparately, and in their feveral Orders.

SECT.

SECT. XI.

The JUDGES of ISRAEL.

Thofe who had the Administration of the Affairs of the People of Ifrael, after their Government, as appointed by God, came to take Place, though they were in the double Capacity, both of Judges, to fee that Justice was dealt among them impartially according to Law, and of Captains, to lead them forth to Battle against their Enemies, yet they were called and known, only by the firft Name; as that which denoted the Province or Business of the greatest Importance and highest Dignity. And their principal Bufinefs being to judge; that is, either to acquit or to condemn; they had the Power of Life and Death in themselves; and could make ufe of it, at fuch Times as they thought expedient, without the Concurrence of any of the inferior Judges. And this Power they exercis'd, not only in the Places where they liv'd, (Jerufalem, the Place which God intended to choose, not being, at that Time, the Seat

of

of their Government) but went in Circuit, throughout all the Tribes; and, in certain Cities, held Courts of Judicature, where they exercis'd their Power and Jurifdiction.

4.

At least, all the People repair'd to them at their Dwelling, wherever it was, to have Justice done them. Thus, it is faid; Deborah a Prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, he judged Ifrael, at that time. And Judg. iv. foe dwelt under the palm tree of Deborah; between Ramah and Bethel in mount Ephraim: And the children of Israel came up to her for judgment. Of Samuel, it is faid; And Samuel judged Ifrael all the days of his life. And he went, from year to year, in 1 Sam. circuit to Bethel, and Gilgal, and Mizpeh, and judged Ifrael in all those places. And his Return was to Ramah; for there was his house; and there be judged Ifrael, and there he built an altar unto the LORD.

It does not appear that these Judges had, or pretended to, any Share of arbitrary Power; but only to fee that the Laws were faithfully executed. That they were at the Head of the Army, in Times of War, is plain, from this In

stance,

vii. 15.

Judg. xii. ftance, of Jephthah; who is faid to have b. xi. 5, judged Ifrael fix years. We read We read that,

7.

6. II.

when the children of Ammon made war against Ifrael, the Elders of Gilead went to fetch Jephthah, out of the land of Tob. And they faid unto Jephthah, Come, and be our captain, that we may fight with the children of Ammon. Then Jephthah went with the Elders of Gilead; and the people made him head and captain over them.

That they had likewise the Power of convening a Congregation of the whole People, and holding a Senate of the Elders, though the Inftances of their doing fo, are very rare, is, I think, unqueftionable; because we find Mofes and Joshua had that Power, before them, and the Kings us'd it, after them. In truth, the Hiftory and Account of the Judges, is very obfcure and imperfect. And though we need not doubt but God raised up proper Persons to record the memorable Tranfactions of his People, during the whole Time of the Judges; yet, fuch is the Imperfection of our human State, and so many the various Revolutions to which it is liable; that the Lofs of fome Mo

numents