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Exod. 26.

36. & 35.

4. & 140.

8, &c.

the 19th and 20th verfes of the 13th chapter of Exodus, where the placeing of the Cloud behind the Camp, became a covering, that is, a protection to it. The original word has no less general a fenfe, than covering has in English, as we fay to cover an army or a town. This is felf-evident from thofe many places in the Old Teftament, where it does not always fignify to cover or spread over the whole furface of any thing; but stands for hangings, protection, and the like. Nor do 17.Pfal.91 the words over or under always imply, what 7. Ifa. 22. they are made to do on this occation: fince in the fame fenfe that the Cloud was faid to be over the Camp, by being elevated on the Tabernacle in their stations, or on a Pole in their marches; we fay, and all men fay, that fuch a body of men are under their colors, tho not one fingle perfon is thereby cover'd. No more is any fo, by the officers being faid to be over them, Some lay great ftrefs with refpect to this total covering, on a place in the firft Epistle to the Corinthians, where PAUL allegorizing on the principal paffages of the Jewish deliverance from the Egyp1 Cor. 10. tian flavery, fays, moreover, Brethren, I wou'd not that ye fhou'd be ignorant, how that all our Fathers were under the Cloud, and all paffed thro the fea; and were all baptized unto Mos ES in the Cloud, and in the fea. I leave the Divines to battle it, about the meaning of Baptizing in this place; for as none of the Ifraelites cou'd be faid, in favor of dipping, to have been under water in their paffage over the fea: fo I am afraid as little can be inferr'd, on the behalf of Sprinkling, from the Cloud; that gentle dew, which fome have fancy'd, being a pure diftillation of their own brains. It wou'd be a rare proof for Infant-baptism, cou'd it be handfomly made out. But, as farr as concerns my present fubject, this paffage is a palpable allu

I, 2.

fion

fion to the places, where the Cloud is mention'd in the Pentateuch; particularly to the 13th chapter of Exodus, juft before the paffing of the Ifraelites over the red fea.

XXIII. THE falfe interpretation forc'd upon the 39th verfe of the 105th Pfalm, by men who are not fatisfy'd with the obvious fenfe of Scripture, or by others who do not find the Scripture countenancing their vain Traditions, has produc'd more extravagant imaginations, than any of the ftrange Gloffes occafion'd by the Cloud. Some affert it did fo cover the Ifraelites, as not onely to keep off unwholfom dews or blafts, and the fcorching heat of the fun; but that they never faw, nor indeed needed to fee, the fun, moon, or ftarrs, during the forty years they wander'd in the wilderness. The Rabbins add, that the Cloud, like woolfacks or bags of earth in our mo dern trenches, deadn'd the arrows and artillery of the Egyptians, who ply'd the. Ifraelites hard all the night. But not content with one Cloud, they talk of no fewer than feven Clouds of glory, incompaffing the camp: four towards the four winds, left any fhou'd injure them with an evil eye; one above them, left the fun (as we faid) fhou'd hurt them; one under them, that fhou'd bear them up as a mother does her child; and the seventh marching three days journey before them, depreffing the hills and exalting the valleys into a level, deftroying all manner of ferpents, fcorpions, or other noxious creatures, and marking the feveral places of pitching their camp. To be thus a Marechal de Camp, was nothing to other fervices. The Cloud fupply'd each fingle centinel inftead of a laundrefs, a fcourer, a nurse (and what not?) purifying and whitning their cloaths, keeping their bodies clean from sweat

or

or vermin, and fanning them in their march with refreshing breezes. Mighty difputes have been rais'd about the matter of the Cloud, that I may here once for all rid my hands of fuch vifions: as, whether it was not one of the things made before the creation of the world, but laid up till the proper time of ufing it? whether it was not created out of nothing, and reduc'd to nothing again? or if created out of fomthing, whether it was out of elementary fire, and the ordinary matter of other clouds? Several maintain, that one fide of it was obfcure, and t'other bright, that it was a symbol of the Trinity, and that the fecond person therof dwelt in it. This Pillar has prov'd a fruitful field of Allegories to the Fathers and other Divines, who, without any difficulty in the world, find in it the divine and humane nature of CHRIST, with other things no less admirable and fublime. When I mention'd the Rabbinical dreams about the creation of this Pillar or Cloud, I forgot to relate that feveral of 'em held it to have been created on the evening of the first Sabbath, tho GOD is faid to have refted that day from all his works. But this Evening was no part of the Sabbath, according to the way of dividing time by the modern Jews. To be fure the facred Pillars of the Heathens had their original from the guiding Pillar of the Ifraelites, as not a few good Chriftians have affirm'd. 28 HUETIUS, in what he calls his Demonftratie

28. Atque haec pensanti mihi probabile fit, columnas illas celebres HERCULIS ex columna ignea, Ebraeorum exercitui praeeunte, originem habuiffe Et nos jam obfervavimus ex CL EMENTE Alexandrino, BACCHUM et APOLLINEM, qui MOSIS icones funt, Columnae fymbolo, propter eandem Columnam, Ifraelitarum ducem, fuiffe expreffos- -Tot commentitias Colummas peperit una haec Columna, in qua delitefcens dominus, ducem fe itineris Ebraeis praebuit-&e, &c. Propof. IV. Sect. de libro JoSAE, num. 13:

Evange

Evangelica, finds it in the Temple of APOLLO, nay in the Myfteries of BACCHUS; and gravely fays, that it gave rife to the Pillars of HERCU LES, and to the other memorial Pillars of the antients. Tis pity he has not found their Architecture and Orders in it, which he might have done as cafily as the reft. In effect, there have been fuch as difputed, whether it was an upright or an inverted column, because smoke fpreads larger as it mounts: and if fuch fancies be indulg'd, it may be prov'd to have been a wreath'd column, fince the afcending of fmoke appears fpiral, and yet neither wreath'd nor inverted, but ftraight and pyramidal, which is the proper motion of flame. Finally the Jews expect, that, upon the future return of the twelve Tribes, at the coming of the MESSIAH, from all the countries where they are difpers'd; this Cloud will again precede them to the holy land, whither I wish them a good journey: tho, during the time of their waiting, I am farr from being weary of their company here; where they are most useful fubjects, and many of 'em my very good friends.

XXIV. IN the works of a fam'd Commentator, no lefs a fine Gentleman than a finish'd Schollar, find there was fome body (where or when we are not told) who maintain'd that the Fire and Smoke, preceding the Ifraelites in the wilderness, was the Sacred inextinguishable Fire carry'd on the Altar for burnt-offrings and other facrifices. The falfity of this opinion appears at first fight. There is no mention of fuch a facred inextinguishable fire among the first Egyptians, or the Hebrews their inmates and flaves, nor yet among the antediluvian or poftdiluvian Patriarchs: every thing, that can be offer'd to this purpose, being palpably groundlefs and precarious. As for the ordinary fire, whe

ther

Exod. 20.

Ibid. 24.

ther for dreffing of meat or other neceffary ufes, it cou'd not be wanting in an Army of more than fix hundred thousand men; and instances without number we cou'd produce they had it, fhou'd any require, what all men (without fuch proofs) will fuppofe. A portable Altar the Ifraelites had none, on their coming out of Egypt. The first mention of any Altar among them, is a direction to raife one of earth or of unhewn ftones, neither 24, 25, 26. fort portable moft certainly, and onely to be us'd on tranfient occafions. The firft Altar we read erected by MOSES himself, was of unhewn ftones; which had been a needless labor, were there a portable one then, as afterwards, in the camp. Neither did AARON, who was not yet a Priest, nor any other Priests, bring facred Fire from Egypt: for they were fome of the First-born that offer'd facrifice on this firft Altar of MOSES, he himself officiating with them, and not the least mention of facred or extraordinary fire. Hear Ver. 5, 6. the very words. And he fent young mer of the children of Ifrael, which offer'd burnt-offrings, and facrific'd peace-offrings of oxen unto the LORD: and MOSES took half the blood, and put it in bafons, and half of the blood he Sprinkl'd on the Altar, &c. When the Tabernacle with its furniture was order'd to be built, two portable Altars were likewife directed to be made; befides which they never us❜d any other, till they came into the land of Canaan. To begin with the laft, the one was Ibid. 30. the Altar of incenfe, cover'd with gold, and plac'd

I, &c.

Ibid. 27.

1---6.

before the Ark in the Sanctuary. But this is not that in question. The other was the Altar of burnt-offring, five cubits fquare, and cover'd with brafs, with its rings and ftaves on each fide to Levit. 6. carry it. On this there was to be a perpetual Fire, 8--13. which was first kindl'd a little after A A RON had Ibid. 9.24. been conftituted High-prieft. Now, that the

fire

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