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8.-a swarm of bees-in the carcase of the lion.] The carcase was by this time, probably, reduced to a mere skeleton, the flesh being entirely de voured or worn away, so that no offensive smell remained to deter the bees from sheltering in it. Or perhaps there might be something supernatural in the swarm of bees being found in the carcase. In aliusion to this circumstance Samson takes occasion to propose his riddle, verse 14.

15.-have ye called us to take that we have?] Have you invited us to the feast for the purpose of finding an occasion to deprive us of our possessions?

17,-she lay sore upon him:] Made him uneasy by her importunities.

18.-If ye hud not plowed with my heifer, &c.] A proverbial saying, signifying in this case, that if they had not tampered with his wife, and made use of her assistance, they could never have come to a knowledge of the secret.

19. he went up to his father's house.] Left his wife with her own relations, and went to live at home with his father.

CHAP. XV.

Verse 1.-visited his wife with a kid ;] Carrying a kid with him as a present.

3.-Now shall I be more blameless than the Philistines,] He justifies his conduct towards the Philistines, declaring that the mischief he intended them was not without just cause, and that they would have only to blame themselves for it.

4. caught three hundred foxes,] There is reason to believe that there was nothing new or uncommon in this operation of Samson's. Heathen authors have allusions to mischief done to standing corn, by sending into it different animals, and foxes among others, with fire-brands tied to them.

The animals here called foxes, were probably jackalls, which much resemble them, and are very abundant in Judea, going in large droves, so that a number of them might easily be taken.

8.-hip and thigh] A proverbial phrase to express an utter rout,

19.-clave an hollow place that was in the jaw,] Rather, clave a hollow place in the ground, which bore the name of Lehi, the jaw-bone.

CHAP. XVI.

Verse 1. Then went Samson to Gaza', and saw there an hurlot,] This city was made by Joshua part of the tribe of Judah; but after him, it fell into the hands of the Philistines.

We cannot wonder more at Samson's strength than his weakness. While he appeared among the Philistines as an instrument of special Providence

for giving a check to their oppressive power, he suffered himself to become a slave to the inordinate love of women, and that without any distinction between those which were Israelites, or idolaters.

7.-If they bind me with seven green withs] Ile probably suspected her design, and was too wise to trust her with so important a secret; and therefore either intended to tell her a direct falsehood, or spoke what he now said, in joke.

13.-If thou weavest the seven locks of my head &c.] Samson, being a Nazarite, never cut his hair, but curled it up in locks. He seems to direct Delilah to wrap these locks about a weaver's beam (as some understand it) or to weave them one within another.

19.—his strength went from him.] We are not to suppose that Samson's strength literally resided in his hair. When in compliance with his harlot, he suffered his hair to be cut off, he broke his vow us a Nazarite, the sign of which vow was his hair; and then God withdrew His assistance from him, and no longer afforded him miraculous strength. Upon Samson's repentance in adversity, and the growing of his hair, God was pleased to renew his strength.

21.-he did grind in the prison house.] They set him to grind corn with a hand mill, which was a laborious work assigned to malefactors and slaves. 27. there were upon the roof about three thousand &c.] The roofs of the houses and temples in those countries were flat. A large number of people were assembled on the roof of Dagon's temple for the purpose of viewing the sports and festivities that were going on.

The case of Samson affords an instructive and awful example, that extraordinary gifts of the Spirit are not always accompanied with corresponding graces, or fruits of the Spirit.

CHAP. XVII.

Here begins the second part of this book, which gives an account of several transactions, which, in order of time, took place before others already related in the foregoing chapters.

Verse 2.-about which thou cursedst,] Meaning that she adjured all her family to discover the money, with a curse upon them if they knew where it was, and concealed it.

3.-to make a graven image] To make some resemblance of God for the convenience of Micah and his family, that he might worship at home, without the trouble of going to the tabernacle. As she had dedicated the silver to " the Lord," it appears that she did not intend to forsake the God of Israel, but only to worship Him by an image; a kind of idolatry to which the Israelites were much inclined.

5.-teraphim,] That is, images.

6. In those days there was no king in Israel,] That is, this was before the time of the Judges, who had sovereign power to correct abuses, and especially to suppress idolatry.

13.-Now know I that the Lord will do me good, &c.] It is clear he did not intend to forsake the Lord; but he was so blinded by false notions, that he took one small benefit for a sufficient sign of God's favour, when he was guilty of such great offences; first, in making idols, then in appointing one of his sons a priest, and afterwards in taking upon him to consecrate a Levite to be priest, of which office he was not capable.

CHAP. XVIII.

Verse 1.-the Danites sought them an inheritance] They had an inheritance allotted them like the rest of the tribes; but from their own sloth, or the want of mutual assistance, they could not get possession of a considerable part of it, being forced by the Amorites to inhabit the mountainous part of the country.

6.-before the Lord is your way wherein ye go.] Your journey is under God's care, and He will give you success.

14.-consider what ye have to do.] Whether it may not be expedient to carry those sacred things along with them, which they fancied would be an assurance of the Divine Presence with them.

30.-until the day of the captivity of the land.] Until the ark was taken by the Philistines and carried into the temple of Dagon. i. Sam. iv.

CHAP. XIX.

Verse 1.-a concubine] A concubine wife; one who was really his wife, but was taken without a dowry, and had nothing to do with the government of his family.

12.-the city of a stranger,] Jebus or Jerusalem was at this time occupied by its old inhabitants, and the Israelites had little or no power there.

25.-so the man took his concubine, and brought her forth unto them;] This was done as being the least of the two evils between which they had to choose:

26.-fell down at the door of the man's housetill it was light.] She fell down dead from the abuse she had met with, and lay at the door till it was light, before she was discovered.

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29.-divided her,-into twelve pieces, and sent her into all the coast of Israel.] A portion of her body was sent to each of the twelve tribes of Israel, for the purpose of exciting them to punish so horrid a wickedness, and to see that justice was done the man for the injury he had received.

CHAP. XX.

Verse 1.-from Dan even to Beer-sheba.] The city of Dan was the utmost of all Israel to the north, or north-east, as Beer-sheba was to the south or south-west: hence this expression is used to denote the whole length of the land of Israel.

10.-that they may do,-according to all the folly &c] One man in every ten was selected to provide forage for the army, in order that the rest might be wholly intent on punishing the inhabitants of Gibeah according to their deserts.

16.-lefthanded;] Who could use the left hand as well as the right, in any exercise.

21-destroyed down to the ground-twenty and two thousand men.] In just punishment for the general vices and idolatrous practices of the whole nation, God suffered the Benjamites (though themselves great sinners, and now in arms for the defence of a bad cause) to gain two great victories over them.

27.-enquired of the Lord,] They had enquired of the Lord before, but not as they ought to have done; trusting in the justice of their cause and their vast forces, they seem to have made but slight and hasty addresses to God before they undertook the war.

48. And the men of Israel turned again &c.] Notwithstanding the laws against idolatry were so very severe, Deut. xiii. 8, yet in the case of Micah and the tribe of Dan, the rulers of Israel neglected to put them in force, and connived at the wickedness. Therefore God took occasion from this quarrel between the other tribes and the tribe of Benjamin, to use the latter as scourges to punish the base connivance of the former. And, after He had twice employed them for this purpose, He inverted the fate of war, and in so doing made the confederate army of Israel the instruments of His vengeance on the Benjamites.

Such is

the wonderful wisdom of God's providence, to employ the passions of men to His purposes, and to make one wicked set of people the instruments for punishing another.

CHAP. XXI.

Verse 3.-why is this come to pass &c.] This is a usual way of expressing grief: they now bewail the melancholy prospect of the loss of a whole tribe, as there were no women remaining with whom the few remaining. Benjamites might marry; and they had bound themselves by an oath not to give them to any of their own daughters.

6.-repented them for Benjamin their brother,] Lamented their too great severity towards the Benjamites.

11.-Ye shall utterly destroy every male,] The massacre of the people of Jabesh-gilead was a

cruel expedient to extricate the Israelites from a difficulty, in which their superstitious observance of an unlawful oath had involved them; and is a sad instance of the iniquity and barbarity of the times. This act of cruelty and the rape of the virgins at Shiloh, must be condemned on those principles, which the Scriptures have elsewhere furnished, though, in the brevity of the Sacred History, they are here recorded without disapprobation.

22.-for ye did not give unto them that ye should be guilty.] They tell them, they might safely agree to the plan proposed without incurring the guilt of breaking their oath, as they did

not willingly give the wives, but yielded them by force.

The book of Judges, on the whole, furnishes a lively description of an unsettled nation; a striking picture of the disorders and dangers which prevailed in a republick without magistracy, when "the highways were unoccupied," Chap. v. 6. when few prophets were appointed to control the people, and " every man did that which was right in his own eyes." It exhibits the contest of true religion with superstition, displays the beneficial effects which flow from the former, and represents the miseries and evil consequences of impiety.

NOTES

ON THE

Book of Ruth.

THE Book of Ruth is so called from the name of the person, a native of Moab, whose history it contains. It may be considered as a supplement to the Book of Judges, being a detached story belonging to the same period. The history, though the subject of it is of a private nature, is yet very important, as it serves to settle the genealogy of David, who was descended from Ruth by Boaz, and consequently that of our Saviour Jesus Christ. It was probably for this reason that the history was committed to writing. It is also highly instructive, as it sets before us the merciful providence of God towards the afflicted, the widows and the fatherless; the reward of constancy and obedience; and the blessing of Heaven upon those who fear God and trust in Him. It is not certainly known who was the author of this Book, but most probably it was the Prophet Samuel.

CHAP. I.

Verse 6.-the Lord had visited his people in giving them bread.] He put an end to the famine (verse 1.) and restored plenty.

8.-return each to her mother's house :] Naomi advises her daughters in law, instead of accompanying her into the land of Judah, to return to their own country.

-as ye have dealt with the dead,] As ye formerly dealt kindly towards your husbands, who are now dead.

9.-find rest, each of you in the house of her husband.] May be happily settled with husbands of your own, enjoying peace and quietness.

11.-are there yet any more sons &c.] She says this, because under the Jewish law, when a person died leaving no issue, his brothers were under an obligation of marrying his widow. Deut. xxv. 5.

13.-that the hand of the Lord is gone out against me.] The meaning is," that God has reduced me to such mean circumstances, that I can do nothing for you."

14.-Orpah kissed her mother in law;] That is, took leave of her and departed.

17.-the Lord do so to me, and more also, &c.] This is a form of imprecation, in which Ruth begged that God would punish her in the severest manner, if she kept not her promise.

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20.-Call me not Naomi, call me Mara:] Call me no longer" Naomi," that name signifying one of a pleasant aspect, and therefore not suitable to me; but call me " Mara," which signifies bitter, and is a more proper name for me now.

CHAP. II.

Verse 12.-under whose wings thou art come to trust.] To whose protecting care thou art come to commit thyself. The phrase of trusting under the wings of the Divine Majesty is often used by the Psalmist, and is taken from the protection afforded to young birds under the wings of their mother.

14.-parched corn,] Parched corn was not an uncommon kind of food in the East, where the use of it is still retained.

17.-an ephah] About a bushel of our measure. 20.-who hath not left off his kindness to the living and to the dead.] Hath continued to be kind to the relicts of Elimelech and his son, as he had been to them when they were alive.

CHAP. III.

Verse 1.-shall I not seek rest for thee,] Shall I not procure for thee a settlement in a house of thine own, with a good husband?

4.-uncover his feet, and lay thee down;] She is directed to lie down at his feet, in the posture of a humble supplicant. Ruth in following this direction of her mother in law did nothing inconsistent with prudence and decency. By the Jewish law she had a right to pretend to marriage with Boaz; and she adopted this way of making him acquainted with her desire to take advantage of this right. However strange the conduct of Ruth may appear to us of the present day, if we consider the simple manners of those times, the end, the motives, and the circumstances of this action, we shall not pass on it an unfavourable judgment.

9.-spread-thy skirt over thine handmaid;] That is, take me under thy protection as thy wife. 10.-thou hast shewed more kindness in the latter end than at the beginning,] This last kindness of

yours surpasses that which you shewed at first. Your attachment to your husband when alive, and to your mother in law, are most praiseworthy; but the desire which you have shewn of reviving the name and memory of your husband, by marrying one of his relations, displays more manifestly your steady attachment, since you have preferred this to a youthful attachment, more suitable to your age.

Nothing can be more honourable than the testimony which Boaz here gives to the character of Ruth, which must entirely remove all suspicions from her reputation.

14.-before one could know another.] That is, before it was light.

-Let it not be known that a woman came into the floor.] This he said, not meaning that there had been any thing improper between them, but merely out of a proper caution for his own character and for hers.

CHAP. IV.

Verse 4.-there is none to redeem it beside thee; and I am after thee.] There is no other kinsman of the family to redeem it but you and I; and you have the first claim as being the nearest relative.

7. Now this was the manner &c.] The cere mony of conveying over a title and estate amongst the ancient Israelites, was this: the person who sold his estate pulled off one of his shoes, and in open court delivered it to the purchaser, thereby signifying that he had full right to enter into, or tread upon the land as his own possession.

11. The Lord make the woman- -like Rachel and like Leah,] The Elders pray that God would make her "like Rachel and like Leab, which two did build the house of Israel;" that is, fruitful as they, who were blessed with a numerous offspring.

17.-he is the father of Jesse, the father of David.] The sacred historian points out to us in these words what appears to have been the principal design of this book: namely, to inform us of the origin of the family of David, and consequently of that of the Messiah according to the flesh, on which account the following genealogy is annexed.

NOTES

ON THE

First Book of Samuel, otherwise called, The First Book of the Kings.

THE two books of Samuel are styled in the old Latin translation, the first and second books of Kings; as being two of those four books which contain the history of the kings of Israel and Judah.

In the first book of Samuel we have the history of the people of Israel under the government of Eli; under that of Samuel, who was the last of the Judges; and under the reign of Saul the first king of Israel. The book takes its title from the prophet Samuel, who was the Author of the twenty-four first chapters. The remainder of the first book, and the whole of the second are supposed to have been added by the prophets Gad and Nathan. This opinion is founded on these words in the first book of Chronicles, Chap. xxix. 29. "Now the acts of David the king, first and last, behold, they are written in the book of Samuel the seer, and in the book of Nathan the prophet, and in the book of Gad the seer." The first book of Samuel is referred to by our Saviour in vindication of His disciples, Matt. xii. 3, 4.

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