meaning of the word translated in Numb. xxi. 6,"fiery serpents."-On the typical character and import of "the brazen serpent."-On the capture of Heshbon, (Numb. xxi. 26.) once a 1. TITLE. To appreciate rightly those portions 3. PORTION OF SCRIPTURE. NUMBERS xxxiii. 4. PRAYER. That we never be guilty of the 5. NOTES. On the country of Balaam.-On the king of Moab's needless apprehension of being harmed by the children of Israel. On the 3. PORTION OF SCRIPTURE. NUMBERS xxii. 4. PRAYER. That whatever be the curses, the hatred, or the contempt of an unrepentant, apostate, or infidel world, we may ever remain in the communion of the visible Church, and partake of the blessing on God's spiritual Israel. That we never be found among the despisers of God's Religion; but live the life, and die the death, of the righteous. And that we learn from the fulfilment of the prophecies to His ancient Church the certain accomplishment of all God's promises to the soul of the believer, 5. NOTES. On the proper translation of p erroneously rendered in our Version, "He went to an high place."-On the proper meaning of Patriarchism, Judaism, and Chris- tianity, are but as the bud, the flower, and the 3. PORTION OF SCRIPTURE. NUMBERS xxiii. 27, to the end. xxiv. xxxiii. 49. 4. PRAYER. That as the angels of heaven learn Christ be our Star and Sceptre, our Prophet, Priest, and King; the Way in which we should Life which we begin to live now, and hope to 5. NOTES. On Balaam's prediction respecting the "Star" and the "Sceptre," and its double reference to David and to the Messiah.-On the prediction of Balaam, "He shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth."-On the fulfilment of the prophecies 1. TITLE. Idolatry is the dividing the affections of the heart with God. The last encampment of the Israelites, and the last act of idolatry in the wilderness. Zeal for God's glory the source of man's honour and happiness. The praise of Phinehas. All God's threatenings are prophe- cies, and will certainly be accomplished. The generation which came from Egypt perishes in the wilderness, as God had decreed. The first act of the youthful generation, before they pos- sess Canaan, is the destruction of the idolaters of Midian, who had corrupted them. God's gifts are different from God's graces. The pro- phet Balaam is slain as an enemy, among the 2. INTRODUCTION. 3. PORTION OF SCRIPTURE. NUMBERS xxv. 1-13. 16-18. xxvi. 1, 2. 64, 65. xxxi. 1, 2. 7-9. 16. xxxiii. 50, to the end. 4. PRAYER. That we never believe ourselves to be exempted from the possibility of the greatest sins. That we give the whole heart to God. That we be zealous to reprove sin in others, and watchful to restrain it in ourselves. That we ever remember the certainty of the approaching death of the body, and resolutely contend against every inordinate affection that may divide the heart with God. That we never forget the difference between the gifts and the graces of the Holy Spirit; but, putting on the whole armour of God, contend against all our spiritual enemies, till we rest in heaven. SECTION 162.-p. 678. 1. TITLE. All the circumstances of a man's life may be summed up under these five divisions:The knowledge he has acquired; the sins he has committed; the sorrows he has suffered; the mercies he has received; and the last hours he anticipates. Moses reminds the Israelites of all these at the end of their journeyings through the wilderness. Obedience to God's law being imperfect, cannot render the soul of man fit for heaven. Joshua, not Moses, is appointed to lead the people into Canaan. 2. INTRODUCTION. 3. PORTION OF SCRIPTURE. DEUTERONOMY i. 1-8. 19. ii. 1. 8. 14. 16—18. 24, 25. iii. 1, 2. 21, to the end. 4. PRAYER. That we be enabled, both now, and at the hour of death, when we look back on all the way which the Lord our God has led us through the wilderness of life, to remember that our knowledge has been blessed to the benefit of our souls. That we have repented of our sins, have been resigned to our sorrows, have been thankful for the mercies we have received, and are prepared to die. That we have no dependence on our own excellencies as the foundation of our hope of God's favour, but that God's mercy through Christ is the basis of our faith and hope. SECTION 163.—p. 686. 1. TITLE. God is unchangeable, and therefore the spirit, the object, though not the letter, of His Law is also unchangeable. One object of that Law is to make nations as well as individuals, and the world as well as its separate nations, religious and united. The summary of the Law of Moses. The observance of the Divine Law is a proof of national wisdom, and a pledge of national greatness. Past mercies are the reasons for the perfect love of God. Universal religious education solemnly commanded. Obedience the token of gratitude. Political influence the consequence of national religious obedience. Great Britain will preserve and extend her political influence, if she employs her power to the honour of God and the good of man. 2. INTRODUCTION. 3. PORTION OF SCRIPTURE. DEUTERONOMY iv. 1-10. 32-36. vi. 4-9. vii. 6. ix. 4, 5. x. 1214. 21, xi. 2225. 4. PRAYER. For the blessing of God upon the empire of Great Britain. That as we possess the Bible, freedom, and the Church, and have experienced many and great political and national mercies, we may prove our gratitude to God by becoming the spiritual leaven of the world in the latter days. That we promote national religious education at home. That we remember our own unworthiness. That we keep God's law; and that our Government and our Church, our nobles and our clergy, our merchants and our people, be all zealous for the glory of God. 5. NOTE. On the extent of the dominions of Israel in the reigns of David and Solomon. SECTION 164.—p. 694. 1. TITLE. Idolatry is the alienation of the heart from God. In addition to the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life, four great temptations entice and influence the heart-false philosophy, pride of reasoning, morbid sentimentality, and inordinate affection. All these were condemned by the laws against idolatry in the altars, pillars, groves, and images of the heathen. God is to be honoured in that way alone which He Himself has commanded; and all sacrifices to Him are to be without known blemish. Obedience and duty are the foundation of acceptable prayer. 2. INTRODUCTION. 3. PORTION OF SCRIPTURE. DEUTERONOMY xii. 1-3. xiii. 1–11. xvi. 21, 22. xvii. 1. xxvi. 12, to the end. 4. PRAYER. That we be guided to God and to heaven by the Revelation of God alone. That we never be perverted from the Faith by the Philosophy which corrupts the simplicity of the Truth, by the objections of pride and false reasoning, by the influence of kindred, or by the pretensions of the corrupt Church of Rome. That we give the heart, without wilful blemish, to God. And that we aspire to the best privileges of the Christian, by fulfilling our humble duties, and offering our humblest prayers. 5. NOTES. On the meaning of the word nie, rendered "their pillars," by our translators. On the meaning of the word m a grove," Deut. xii. 3. translated " SECTION 165.—p. 702. 1. TITLE. The history of the Holy Land and of the family of Abraham is the key to unlock the whole mystery of the Providence which governs the world. Not only are general blessings promised to the obedience of the Jews, and general curses denounced against their disobedience, but the peculiar points of their history are foretold, the miseries of the sieges of Jerusalem by the Chaldæans and the Romans, and their present dispersion. The exile of the Jews from Judea was the consequence of their rejecting a spiritual Messiah. The sight of a Jew is an evidence of the past, the present, and 3. PORTION OF SCRIPTURE. DEUTERONOMY xxviii. 1-6. 15-19. 49, to the end. 4. PRAYER. That, as we know the promises and 5. NOTES. On the prophetic description of the "nation" which Jehovah threatens to bring against the Jews for their disobedience and apostasy. "The Lord shall bring a nation against thee from far," &c.-On the punctual fulfilment of the prediction of unexampled calamities denounced against the rebellious Jews, in Deut. xxviii. 53-57.-On the words, "The Lord shall bring thee into Egypt again with ships."-On the complete and exact accomplishment of all the predictions of Moses, 1. TITLE. The Covenant of accepted repentance added to the Covenant of Sinai. The duty of covenanting with God. The nature of that duty is explained by the union of the word "Lord" with "God." The meaning of the word Covenant in revealed Religion. Three modes of covenanting with God. One only is to be adopted. The last general exhortation of Moses to the People. The future is the secret thing, known to God alone; the present is known to man for his direction and guidance. The promise of the acceptance of repentance is a part of God's covenant. The present dis- persion of the Jews a pledge of their restoration. 3. PORTION OF SCRIPTURE. DEUTERONOMY xxix. 1. 10-15. 29. xxx. NUMBERS 4. PRAYER. That the Giver of Revelation, the Creator and Preserver of the world, be the Lord we honour, and the God we love. That we make our solemn covenant with God, pray- ing for grace attendant on the means of grace. That we ever plead with God the merits of the great Sacrifice. And that we choose life before 5. NOTE. On the interpretation of "The secret 1. TITLE. The Lord God of the Old Testament 3. PORTION OF SCRIPTURE. NUMBERS xxvii. NUMBERS xxvii. 15, to the end. DEUTER- ONOMY xxxi. 9-13. 24-29. 14, 15. 7, 8. 4. PRAYER. That we become daily more and more prepared to die; and that we find comfort and peace in the prospect of death, by remem- bering the promises of the blessings of the Christian immortality. That we persevere in our resistance to all evil, relying on the Pro- vidence and grace of God. That the Spirit of God rest upon us. That we rise above the controversies of the day, and value the revealed will of God above all worldly treasure. That we worship God with our nation and people, in the Catholic communion of the National 1. TITLE. The remedy of moral evil is more plainly revealed than its origin and cause. The existence of evil is the proof of man's immor- tality, and of his continued progression in that immortality. The future is ever present with God, and the world is governed on one plan. Moses is commanded to write an ode, which should be a history of the past, a warning, a witness, and a prophetic description of the future conduct and condition of the people. The commerce, the influence, the language, and the religion of England, are beginning to leaven the world with the desire and the reso- lution to obtain better governments, and a purer faith, than they have possessed under 3. PORTION OF SCRIPTURE. DEUTERONOMY xxxi. 16-21. 23. 22 and 30. xxxii. 1-14. 4. PRAYER. That when we are called upon to die, we may be able to bear witness to the mercy and providence of God. That we appeal to our friends and kindred to continue faithful to the truth and service of God. That we be comforted by the remembrance of the wonderful the love of its Redeemer, and the sinless per- fection which shall be granted by its Sanctifier. That our souls may be the inheritance of God, and that God may be the portion of our souls 1. TITLE. The subject of prophecy further con- sidered. The interpreters of prophecy may be divided into three classes,-the pastists, present- ists, and futurists; and their several theories of interpretation are partly right, and partly wrong. The certainty of this truth is illustrated by the Song of Moses. The object of prophecy is to predict sin and its punishment, its pardon and removal. The predictions in the Song of Moses have been fulfilled, are being fulfilled, and re- main to be fulfilled. But while they are thus general, there are more especial and peculiar accomplishings, which compel the conviction of their Divine origin. The sins, the punish- 3. PORTION OF SCRIPTURE. DEUTERONOMY 4. PRAYER. That we repent of sins past, remove the sins that so easily beset us at present, and avoid all temptations to sin for the future. That we thank God for the sorrows and punish- ments of sin in the past; that we be resigned to the sorrows and punishments of sins that are present; and that we submit to the sorrows and punishments of sin in the future. That we be no less grateful for the mercies that are past, the mercies of the present, and the promise of mercies for the future. That we rejoice in the fulfilment of the prophecies of the past, in the fulfilment of the prophecies of the present, and Revelation and prophecy anticipated history, philosophy, and experience. The in- fluence of the Divine power acts upon the human mind according to the laws of mind, as explained by ancient and modern metaphy- sicians; and it still continues, that prophecy may be fulfilled. The blessing of Moses on the twelve tribes must be primarily interpreted of their temporal, not of their spiritual, condition. Moses predicts the continuance of REUBEN, and probably the powerlessness of SIMEON; the prosperity of JUDAH; the religious influence of LEVI; the power of BENJAMIN; the wealth of JOSEPH; the commerce of ZEBULUN; the agri- culture of ISSACHAR; the military zeal of GAD; the violence of DAN; the fertility of NAPHTALI; the quietness of ASHER; the sepa- 3. PORTION OF SCRIPTURE. DEUTERONOMY xxxii. 48, to the end. xxxiii. 4. PRAYER. That no false theories of philosophy withdraw us from the conviction of the presence and influence of the Holy Spirit of God upon the understanding, the reason, the will, and the affections of the human mind. That we ever seek our spiritual blessings from the divine and omnipresent power of the Holy Spirit, which Christ promised to His Church and its mem- bers. That we ever possess spiritually the blessings which were granted temporally to the twelve tribes separately; and that we obtain the better blessings which He has pronounced on the Church of Israel generally. That the eter- nal God be our refuge. That we be separated from the follies and sins of the world, and 1. TITLE. As a flower, breaking forth from the bud in the midst of summer, finds itself in the presence of the glorious sun, the blue sky, and the green earth, all of which were there before, so the Christian soul, bursting from the prison of the body, will find itself in the manifested presence of God, of Christ, and of the state of souls departed. The death of Moses, his continued existence, his appearance at the Transfiguration of our Lord, and the subject of his conversation there. The cha- racter of Moses. The gathering of the spirits 4. PRAYER. That we be prepared to meet God in death and in the world of souls, by the faith which produces love, and hope, and obedience. That we delight in the contemplation of the promise of the happiness of the world beyond the grave. That we obey God, not in the spirit of bondage, as the servant and the slave, but in the spirit of adoption, as the children of God, the brethren of Christ, and the joint heirs with Him of the best inheritance of the soul. That God's Holy Spirit give a right judgment to our intellect and reason, and holy comfort to our will and affections in the prospect of death, 5. NOTES. On the structure of the Book of rendered by our translators, "the utmost sea' -On the history of Moses. The remarkable confirmation of the truth of the declaration that he "refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter." The meaning of his being "gathered to his fathers;" his appearance at the Trans- figuration; and his present existence. DEDICATION. ΤΟ THE PRELATES OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH. I. THE CHRISTIAN RELIGION, IN ITS PRIMITIVE FORM, IS THE CHIEF REMEDY FOR ALL POLITICAL AND MORAL EVILS, AND ESPECIALLY FOR THE EVILS OF REVOLUTIONARY MOVEMENTS. II. THE BISHOPS OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH HAVE BEEN THE PRINCIPAL CAUSES OF THE FAILURE OF THE SUCCESS OF CHRISTIANITY. III. THE RESUMPTION OF THE APOSTOLIC OFFICE IS THE CHIEF REMEDY FOR EPISCOPAL NEGLIGENCE; AND AFFORDS THE BEST HOPE OF THE ACCOMPLISHMENT OF THE PROPHECIES, WHICH PREDICT THE TRIUMPH OF JESUS CHRIST, AND THE GREATEST EARTHLY HAPPINESS OF MAN. I. The Sacred Volume which contains the revelation of God's will, and of man's duty and destiny, is received by all professing Christians of every Church as the principal foundation of their common faith and hope. It predicts also the complete and final destruction of evil by means, which, however apparently diversified or fortuitous, constantly and undeviatingly tend to one point,—the transforming of the kingdoms of this world into the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ. II. Our hope of the final and complete triumph of good over evil is founded upon the solid and immovable basis of the written word of God, which testifies that the wickedness, and consequent misery, which degrades and afflicts mankind, can be removed by Christianity alone; the only source of holiness among individuals, morality among societies, and peace among nations. III. Review of the present state of the Catholic Church throughout the world. The high pretensions of the Clergy not borne out by the fruits of their The word CHURCH substituted by them for the word ministrations. CHRIST. IV. Theology a science capable of indefinite enlargement by an assiduous and reverential study of the Word of God, which is its source and foundation. The impiety and arrogance of the papal interdiction of the general perusal, and study, of the whole Volume of Scripture. VOL. II. PART VI. I |