LECTURE VII.

HISTORICAL FIGURES OF THE SCRIPTURES

CONTINUED.

LECT.

VII.

IN

N the preceding Lecture, we have seen how the dangers of the Christian warfare are fet before us, in the history of the Militant State of the Jewish Church in its translation from Egypt to Canaan. St. Paul hath expressly taught us, to confider that history as prophetical of our own fituation as Chriftians; and hath fhewed how it is to be applied as an admonition or warning to us, that we may not fall after the fame example of unbelief. We have feen how the people who had been baptized under Mofes, and had paffed through the Red Sea, afterwards preferred the flavery of Egypt to the service of God in the wilderness; becoming weary of his ways, and defpifing the better for love of the worse.

But

But we followed them only on a part of their journey. Other circumftances are yet behind, from which the like inftruction is to be gathered: and in treating of them, I shall obferve the fame order as the Apostle hath done in the 10th chapter of his first Ep. to the Cor. where he warns us not to be idolaters, as were Jome of them; as it is written, the people fat down to eat and to drink, and rofe up to play. This refers us to the occafion of their making a golden calf, and worshipping it with the riotous mirth of idolaters; which fhewed that they had forfaken the true object of their worship, and had forgotten the design of their redemption from the bondage of Egypt.

While Mofes was in conference with God upon the mount, their folly had taken up an opinion, that he would not return to them; and confequently, that they might fall into licentiousness, without the fear of being called to an account: So they danced before a golden calf, and gave themselves up to eating and drinking and playing, as if they had totally forgotten the design of

LEC T.

VII.

VII.

LECT. their journey through the wilderness. Are these the people whom God, with fo mighty a hand, had lately rescued from the tyranny of Pharaoh? Are these the people who had feen the waters of the fea divided, to fave them and deftroy their enemies? who had followed a cloud, which led them by day, and gave light to them by night? and had they fo foon forgotten all these wonders, and fallen into the fenfeless mirth of idolatry? Strange it is! but fuch was the fact. And now let us obferve the confequence. Mofes, whom they had forgetten, defcends from the mount when they little expected him; he furprises them in the midst of their fin, and fends the Levites, armed, as his minifters, to execute vengeance; who smote with the sword from one fide of the camp to the other, and there fell fome thousands of the people. Our Saviour, in one of his discourses, hath applied this history as an admonition to thofe carelefs finners, who live in pleasure, and are unmindful of Him who will shortly return to be their Judge: But if that evil fervant_shall

VII.

Jay in his heart, my Lord delayeth his coming, LECT. and fhall begin to fmite his fellow Servants, and to eat and drink with the drunken; the Lord of that fervant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, and will cut him in funder, and appoint him his portion with the unbelievers*. This brings the history home to ourselves. As Mofes for a time left the people in the wilderness, fo hath our Leader left us, and he is now up with God in the holy mount. In this interval, there are Chriftians (fo called) who wot not what is become of him, and make a profane use of his absence; setting up this world, in some form or other, as their idol, and devoting themselves to the worship of it. Whatever the object may be, which any man has substituted in the place of God, that object is to him what the calf was to the Hebrews. How many are there who spend their lives in the dance of pleasure, as if they had been sent hither for no other purpose! others devote themselves to honours and preferments; and, to accomplish their designs,

* Luke xii. 44.

affect

LECT. affect popularity, and worship the beafts

VII.

of the people.

Wealth is the object of others; and theirs is a calf of gold. The covetous ferve mammon the God of riches; and the fin of covetousness is expressly called by the name of Idolatry*. Are these the people of God? Are these they, who were baptifed into the name of Jefus Christ as dead unto fin and alive unto righteousness? Are these the children of Abraham ; followers of them who through faith and patience obtained the promises? Merciful God, what a transformation is this! Are they not rather of thofe unprofitable fervants, whom the Lord at his return from the mount shall surprise and judge as hypocrites and unbelievers?

We have another example of our danger from the cafe of the Ifraelites, who fell into fin from evil communications and bad company. There was a mixt multitude of

* The learned Mr. Parkhurft, in his Greek Lexicon of the New Testament, gives very good reafons why we ought rather here to understand the fin of unlawful lafts, as in that other expreflion, whofe God is their belly. See under the word πλεονεξία.

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