Leviticus 26

in this world.” notice some of these promises, of whic linked together in a manner very beautiful. statutes,” &c. “then will I give you rain in due season.” well known that in Jude and the latter rain: the former, about October, lasts but for a few days, though sl harvest immediately follows civil year, which begins in September sequently, the autumnal rains these periodical rains were as important t overflowing of the Nile to Egypt. gular and moderate, the land yielded he (especially the vines) their fruit. This judicious remark remised, we may now } iodical, tl nee a the rains are periodical, the early - Itmust be remembered, that the, 1s here referred to; conare before those of spring; an When these rains were rerincrease, and the trees On the following verse, Dr.

W. Dodd remarks, “This is a nervous and beautiful promise of such entire plenty of corn and wine, that before they could the chain before us is have reaped and threshed out their corn, the vintage should be “Tf ye walk in my ready; and before they could have pressed out their wine, it would be time to sow again.” The prophet Amos ((Leviticus 9:13).) expresses the same blessing in much the same manner: “ The This is followed by farther promises im that soweth seed.”; of peace and plenty, victory and independence, the greatest of all temporal blessings, in order to encourage their obedience. Ver. 14—46. Threatenings against the disobcdient.—On the o Judea, as was the other hand, disobedience, which is well defined as “‘ walking contrary to God,”

is threatened with a host of evils, which form “T will appomt over you an awful reverse of the preceding. (says the Lord) Terror, Consumption, and the burning Ague, that shall consume the eyes, and cause sorrow of heart.” Here seems to be an allusion to the state of Israel in Egypt, when they were placed under taskmasters, instead of whom, they are now to be placed under the dominion of Terror, Consum ption, and the burning Ague; and every person conversant ik the Scriptures must recollect, with how direful punctuality these threatenings were fulfilled, whenever the Jews rebelled against God, and _especiall since they crucified his Son. (See (Matthew 24)) That awful Verse, (ver. 38.) ‘Ye shall perish among the heathen, and the land of your enemies shall eat you up;’ has been supposed to refer to the loss of the ten tribes, of which nothing certain is known, though it is probable there may be some remains of them in Pagan India, and in the adjacent countries; for this destruction was by no means to be final.

“ Yet for all that, when they be in the land of their enemies, I will not cast them away, neither will I abhor them, to destroy them utterly, and to break my covenant with them: for I am the Lord their God.” ((Romans 11:26)–33.)

Notes on the verses

Chap. XXVI. Ver. 1—13. Promises to encourage obedience.—* These promises to Israel, (says Scott,) in case they be understood with a special reference were obedient, should As long as they maintained a nato their national covenant. tional regard to the worship, sabbaths, and sanctuary of God, and did not turn aside to idolatry, he engaged to continue to them their various temporal mercies, an distinguishing religious advantages….- Israel, indeed, was under a peculiar et still God deals with nations as collective bodies: nothing tat regard to religion and righteousand wickedness will end ness can insure national prosperity; in the ruin of any people, especially where the word of God and the light of the gospel are afforded.

Individuals will exist, and be judged and recompensed in a future world; but bodies politic will have no future existence, and are therefore recompensed aermenamer Sik ir i inhrche iearae Ce iW dea Sta ae ae ee es Nee BET possession of all the them to perpetual slavery; and to hinder their obtainin. It was farther intended, that lands by purchase, mortgage, or usurpation, I debts should not be multiplied too much, lest the poor should be entirely and the regular order of families, might, as much ruined; beard 2: should not always continue in servitude; that personal liberty, equality of property, as possible, be preserved; and that the people might thus be strongly attached to their country, lands, and inheritances.

]}—Bagster. Ver. 1. A standing image.—That is, “a pillar,” ag the (Leviticus 26)_ or, any image. Hebrew, ‘* Stone of picture.” All the margin explains it; ood 1. Idols; nothings, a8 usual objects of ory are here distinctly marked. ove, on (Leviticus 19)) a general term, including all rebefore remarked, (see abov 2. A graven image, presentations of Deity, which could not be represented. j carved to represent some created being, as an animal, bird, or fish, as was illar, either square, Egyptians. 3. A standing image, or common among the ) ame. 4,“ A stone or pyramidal, or conical, intended to represent the solar ** figured stone,” containing, perhaps, some idolatrous inseripof picture,” or form were prohibited; though in some Thus idos of every kind and tion.

‘: forn ane cases they migkt have been, like Jacob’s pillars, purely monumental, or in! morial of persons or events: even these when aped merely to preserve the me f pe plied to purposes of idolatry, were criminal. Ver. 10. And ye shall eat old store.—‘ This e re. s prom ple ought not, and would not, be disposed to buill r ise intimated, that the peonew barns, (like the fool in the Gospel,) to hoard their plenty; but that they would bring it forth to make room for the new; andso dispose of it at a low price, or freely, to the poor and ant provision.’’—Scort, needy iaving a liberal heart, as well as an abund er. 26. Ten women, &c.—‘‘ An oven was designed only ye é a sinad of one day. This gle yams eae, to bake for tem no more than the bread of es Ne sage still continues in some places, and give: uli force to these words.”

st teri p i gives peculiar Ye shall eat the flesh of your sons, &c.—This awful threatening Mf res was literally fulfilled in several melancholy instances - See (2 Kings 6:28-29),; (Lamentations 4:10). [This was literally fulfilled at the siege of Jerusale lem. Josephus gives a dreadful detail respecting a woman named M I ary, who, in the extremity of the famine, during the siege, killed her sucking child, roasted, and had eaten part of it when discovered by the soldiers !]—Bagster. Ver. 30. High places.—See (2 Chronicles 34:3).— Carcasses of your idols.— The word here used for idols, diffe ts from that used ver. 1. and is still more it means literally, “* gods of dung;” i. e. filthy, obscene idols, —Parkhurst’s Heb.

Lex. Ver. 34. Then shall the land enjoy her sabbaths.—This Houbigant observes to be an historical truth. “ From Saul to the Babylonish captivity, are numbered about four hundred and ninety years during which period, there were seventy sabbaths of years; for 7 muliiplied by 70, make 490. Now, the Babylonish captivity lasted seventy years, and during that time the land of Is, rael rested. Therefore the land rested just as many years, in the Babylonish observed the law captivity, as it should have rested sabbaths, if the Jews had relative to the sabbaths of the land.” This is a most remarkable fact, and deserves to be particularly noticed, as a most literal fulfilment of the prophetia declaration in this verse.

i “Then shall the land enjoy her sabbaths, as long as it lieth desolate, and ye be in your enemies’ land. Ver, 38. The land of your enemies shall eat you up.—Does this refer to the total loss of the ten tribes? ‘These are-so completely swallowed up in some enemies’ land, that nothing concerning their existence, or place of residence remains, but mere conjecture.—Dr. Clarice.