commands of the angel of his prefence, that Jehovah engaged to be an adversary to their adversaries; if they disobeyed him, they were to be punished; Exod. xxiii. 21, 22.

1 Chron. xxi. 12. "Or elfe three days the sword of the Lord, even the peftilence in the land, and the messenger of the Lord deftroying through all the coafts of Ifrael." Sword, peftilence, and angel, here are used fynonymously. Accordingly, in the Latin tranflation of the Syriac, it is gladium Dei only, omitting angel and peftilence. And in ver. 14, “So the Lord fent peftilence upon Ifrael, and there fell of Ifrael feventy thousand men." This points out God as the agent, and the peftilence as his fword, angel, or means of destruction. Ver. 15. “God sent a messenger to Jerufalem to deftroy it: and as he was deftroying, the Lord repented him of the evil, and said to the messenger that destroyed, it is enough. And the messenger of the Lord ftood by the threshing floor of Ornan. Ver. 16. And David faw the messenger of the Lord ftand between the earth and the heaven, having a drawn fword in his hand stretched out over Jerufalem." The description in this verse is fimilar to that in ver. 12 and 15. It might be fome emblem of a destroyer, which however did not effect the destruction; for the peftilence which produced this is, in the 14th verfe, exprefsly mentioned to be inflicted by God himself. Ver. 18. The mesfenger of the Lord commanded Gad to fay to David, &c. Ver. 20. Ornan faw the messenger, Tov Bæcideα,

Sept. and hid himself. See Chap. II. fect. ii. fubd. 3, on 2 Kings vii. 17; and on Ifa. xiv. 32. Ver. 27. The Lord commanded the messenger to put up his fword, &c. Ver. 30. David was afraid because of the fword of the messenger.

A fimilar account of this tranfaction, with a few variations, not material to our prefent purpose, occurs 2 Sam. xxiv. 15, 16, 17. In the Latin translation of the Syriac and Arabic, the angel that destroyed the people, ver. 16, is angelus mortis. It is the fame in the first clauses of the 16th and 17th verses in the Latin tranflation of the Arabic.

When God fmote

all the first-born of the Egyptians, it is called the plague, and the destroyer, in Exod. xii. 13, 23.

2 Kings xix. 35; 2 Chron. xxxii. 21; Ifa. xxxvii. 36. "That night the messenger of the Lord went out, and fmote in the camp of the Affyrians a hundred and eighty-five thoufand." In Ifa. xxxvii. 7, and 2 Kings xix. 7, it is, I will fend a blast upon him; or it may be rendered, a wind against him. Probably, therefore, this army was destroyed by a fuffocating wind, fuch as is not uncommon in several parts of the Eaft. No plague could tion in fo fhort a time.

Conn. vol. i. p. 35, 8vo.

have made fo much deftruc

Jer. li. 1. See Prideaux's

Jer. li. 1.

Job. xx. 15. ayyɛλos, God fhall cast them (riches) out of his belly.

Job, xxxvi. 14. The hypocrites die in youth, and their life is among the unclean. DWP TITGWOKOμEVN υπο αγγελων. Sept.

Job xl. 11. Caft abroad the rage

עברות

(torrents,

or excefs; fee Parkh. Lex.) of thy wrath. Awooho

δε αγγέλες οργη.

19. He that made him, can make his fword

to approach unto him; εγκαλα παίζεσθαι υπο των ayyed wv 1878. Bp. Stock, "hath faftened on his weapon; viz. the tufk of the river horse.

αγγελων

! Pf. xxxv. 5. "Let them (i. e. David's enemies) be as chaff before the wind; and let the messenger of Jehovah chase them. That is, let David's enemies flee before him. A Hebrew parallelifm. Ver. 6. Let their way be very dark and flippery; and let the messenger of Jehovah perfecute them. See on Pf. Ixxviii. 49.

lxxviii. 49. He caft upon them (the Egyptians)

the fierceness of his anger, wrath, and indignation, and trouble, by fending Devil messengers, or meffengers of evils, literally. In ver. 50 and 51, thefe evil angels are explained to be, giving their beafts to the murrain, (fee the margin, and the Hebrew,) and fimiting all the firft-born; both which are related to be the proper acts of Jehovah; Exod. ix. 3, 6; xii. 23, 29. Accordingly the Latin tranf lation of the Arabic version, of Exod. xii. 23, is, "tranfibit enim Angelus Domini, ut percutiat Egyp tios." The evil angel, then, is the evil which Jehovah inflicted upon them.

Acts xii. 23. "And immediately a messenger of the Lord fmote him, because he gave not glory to God; and he was eaten by worms, and expired." The laft

clause explains the meaning of the first. See on Pf. lxxviii. 49.

2 Cor. xii. 7. There hath been given to me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger adverfary, that he might This was an infirmity, which the Apostle attributes to Chrift and God. See on Satan, fect. iv. fubd. I.

buffet me.

CHAP. II.

Other Significations of and Ayy€205.

SECTION I.

ANGELS, meaning Superior Beings.

JOB iv. 18. Behold, he putteth no truft in his servants, and his angels he chargeth with folly. Symmachus renders the first clause, there is inftability in his fervants, which agrees with the Vulgate. The Septuagint renders the second clause, in his angels he noticeth fome failure. Schultens, fomething wrong. Bishop Stock, levity. Ver. 19. How much more them that dwell in houses of clay. The Latin translation of the Chaldee, "quanto magis impii qui habitant,' &c. for the 20th and 21ft verfes fhew that the 19th

relates he wicked. This inftruction is conveyed in a vifion. See ver. 12, 13; and Scott's note. Job xxxviii. 7. When the morning stars fang together, and all the sons of God fhouted for joy. Hebr. Bene Elobim. Sept. ayysλo. μs. The Sept. has oTE εγενέθησαν άστρα, inftead of when the morning fars fang together. And the Latin translation of the Syriac and Arabic is, "creavit omnes ftellas matutini, et omnes filii angelorum lætati funt."

Pfa. viii. 5. Thou haft made him (man) a little lower than angels, D'MIND, #ap' ayyeλous, or, it might be rendered than God; which is not unfuitable to the context, fince man was made in the image of God, Gen. i. 26; and had dominion given him over the earth and its other inhabitants. Socrates fays, is it not clearly manifeft, that men live among other animals, like gods, far excelling them in their nature, both in body and mind? Xenoph. Memor. lib. i. cap. 4. fect. xiv.

Pfa. lxviii. 17. The chariots of God are twenty thousand, even thoufands of angels.

Ainfworth in loc. fays, "the word N, trans lated angels, is not elsewhere found in fcripture. It feems to come from Shanah, to fecond, as being fecond to God. If we refer it to number, we may turn it, redoubled, or manifold. If to the chariots, and derive it from fbanan, to fharpen, it may note a kind of warchariots with sharp hooks. However the word be doubtful, the meaning feems to be of angels, as the

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