8. The Lord now said to Moses and Aaron, "Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them."

They were deprived of this privilege because Moses had not done as God had commanded him. He was told to speak to the rock before all the assembly; instead of which he spoke to them, calling them rebels, and asking, “must we fetch you water out of the rock." And he also smote the rock twice, not being commanded to strike it at all. For this breach of the exact and absolute obedience which Moses had hitherto paid to all God's commands-God having Himself said that he was faithful in all His house-he and Aaron were now told that they should not enter the promised land. And the place where this unhappy event happened, was called Meribah, which signifies, strife or contention.

9. Moses still continued in his command and care of the people; and intending to remove from Kadesh, he sent messengers to the king of Edom, with this message: "Thus saith thy brother Israel; Thou knowest all the travail that hath befallen us: how our fathers went down into Egypt, and we have dwelt

in Egypt a long time; and the Egyptians vexed us and our fathers. And when we cried unto the Lord, He heard our voice, and sent an angel, and brought us forth out of Egypt: and, behold, we are in Kadesh, a city in the uttermost part of thy border. Let us pass, I pray thee, through thy country: we will not pass through the fields, nor through the vineyards; neither will we drink of the water of the wells: we will go by the king's highway; we will not turn to the right hand nor to the left, until we have passed thy borders."

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We will go," replied the messengers, sengers, "by the highway: and if I and my cattle drink of thy water, then I will pay for it: I will only, without doing anything else, go through on my feet."

The king answered, "Thou shalt not go through:" and he brought out a powerful army to oppose the Israelites, if they should attempt to pass through the country.

10. The children of Israel, therefore turned another way, and leaving Kadesh, came to Mount Hor, near the borders of Edom. There the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, "Aaron shall be gathered unto his

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people for he shall not enter into the land which I have given unto the children of Israel, because ye rebelled against my word at the water of Meribah." Then addressing Moses, He continued, "Take Aaron and Eleazar his son, and bring them up unto Mount Hor: and strip Aaron of his garments, and put them upon Eleazar his son: and Aaron shall be gathered unto his people, and shall die there."

They went up, therefore, into the mount, as God had commanded, in the sight of all the congregation; and there Moses stripped Aaron of his garments and put them on Eleazar; after which Aaron died on the top of the mount, and Moses and Eleazar returned to the congregation, who, on learning that Aaron was dead, mourned for him thirty days.

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11. In the beginning of the fifth month of the fortieth year of their travels from Egypt, Arad, one of the kings of Canaan, hearing that the Israelites were on the borders of Canaan, and were coming by the of the spies, went out with his army and fought against them, taking some of them prisoners. This disaster brought them to a sense of their dependence on the Divine aid, and they vowed a vow unto the Lord, saying, "If thou wilt indeed deliver this

people into my hand, then I will utterly destroy their cities."

God graciously accepted their vow, and delivered these Canaanites into their hands and their success was such, that they utterly destroyed both them and their cities; and called the name of the place Hormah, which signifies, utter destruction.

12. Leaving Mount Hor, they took their journey by the way of the Red Sea, going round the land of Edom, through which the king had refused to let them pass, and with whom God had commanded them not to meddle. And because the way was long and wearisome, and the country barren, forgetting their late success, and thinking only upon their present discouragements, they relapsed into their old habit of murmuring, and spoke against God and Moses, saying,

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Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread."

13. To punish them for their forgetfulness of the many and repeated acts of His providence, and their murmuring spirit, God sent fiery serpents amongst them, from the venomous bites of which, great numbers of them died.

This punishment brought the rest

to a sense of their guilt, and they came in haste to Moses, saying, "We have sinned; for we have spoken against the Lord, and against thee: pray unto the Lord that He take away the serpents from us."

14. Moses immediately intreated the Lord on behalf of the people; and He who is ever waiting to be gracious, provided a remedy to prevent their death, and heal their wounds. "Make a fiery serpent;" said He to Moses, "and set it upon a pole and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it shall live."

So Moses made a serpent of brass, and set it up in the wilderness on a high pole; and whoever afterwards was bitten by a serpent, if he looked up to the brazen serpent, was healed. 15. After this event, the children of Israel journeyed to several places in the wilderness, till at length they arrived in the plains of Moab, on the banks of the river Jordan, opposite to Jericho, to the top of Pisgah.

16. The Amorite king, not thinking it safe to permit so large a body of people to pass through his kingdom refused to grant their request; and gathering his people together, marched out to give them battle at Jahaz.

The Lord now said to Moses, "Behold, I have begun to give Sihon and his land before thee: begin to possess, that thou mayest inherit his land.” Accordingly the Israelites went out to meet him; and they smote him, and his sons, and his army; and took all his cities and villages, destroying the men, and women, and little ones, without distinction: and they seized all their cattle and took much spoil. They also took Heshbon and all the surrounding villages, which Sihon had before taken from the Moabites. After this, they dwelt in the cities they had taken in the Amorites' land.

Moses then sent spies to Jazer, another city of the Amorites, which they had not yet taken. This they also conquered, with all the villages belonging to it, and drove out the Amorites that dwelt there.

17. They afterwards turned about, and marched towards Bashan, where Og, another Amorite king reigned. He was the only king that remained of the race of the giants; and his

stature may be guessed by the size of his bedstead, which was made of iron for strength, and was four yards and a half in length, by two yards in breadth. This monstrous prince, as soon as he heard that the Israelites were going towards Bashan, went out with all his army to fight against them.

18, And now the care and watchfulness of God towards His people were again shewn by His speaking to Moses, lest the sight of so formidable an army, with the giant king at their head, should discourage them. "Fear him not," said He: "for I have delivered him into thy hand, and all his people, and all his land: and thou shalt do to him as thou didst unto Sihon, king of the Amorites, who dwelt at Heshbon."

The Israelites being thus encouraged, gave them battle, and slew the king, and his sons, and all his people. They also took all his cities, threescore in number, all fenced with high walls, gates, and bars; besides a great many open towns and villages; and utterly destroyed the inhabitants, keeping the cattle and spoil for themselves, as they had before done in the case of Sihon, the other Amorite king.

CHAPTER IV.

1. The Israelites remove to the plains of Moab. 2. Balak sends to Balaam to come and curse the Israelites. 3. Balaam refuses. 4. Balak sends other messengers. 5. He invites them to stay. 6. He goes with them next day, and is met by an angel. 7. His ass reproves him for smiting her. 8. The angel of the Lord rebukes him. 9. He meets Balak. 10. They offer sacrifices on the high places of Baal. 11. Balaam blesses the children of Israel. 12. Balak is offended. 13. He invites Balaam to curse them from Pisgah. 14. Balaam again blesses them. 15. Balak invites him to the top of mount Peor. Balaam again blesses the children of Israel. 17. He prophesies of the Star of Jacob, and what shall befall the nations. 18. Many of the Israelites commit whoredom and idolatry. 19. Phinehas slays Zimri and Cosbi. 20. God gives him an everlasting priesthood. 21. The Midianites are spoiled and Balaam is slain. 22. Moses is angry with the officers for sparing the women. 23. He directs the division of the spoil. 24. The tribes of Reuben and Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh, have their inheritance assigned.

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