on the one hand the function of the prophet or _nabi_ was defined, on
the other the high honour and prerogative of Moses were announced.
The prophet, said the Voice, shall have Jehovah made known to him
"in vision, or in dream,"--in his waking hours, when the mind is on
the alert, receiving impressions from nature and the events of life;
when memory is occupied with the past and hope with the future, the
vision shall be given. Or again, in sleep, when the mind is withdrawn
from external objects and appears entirely passive, a dream shall
open glimpses of the great work of Providence, the purposes of
judgment or of grace. In these ways the prophet shall receive his
knowledge; and of necessity the revelation will be to some extent
shadowed, difficult to interpret. Now the name prophet, _nabi_, is
continually applied throughout the Old Testament, not only to the
seventy and others who like them spoke in ecstatic language, and
those who afterwards used musical instruments to help the rapture
with which the Divine utterance came, but also to men like Amos and
Isaiah. And it has been made a question whether the inspiration of
these prophets is to come under the general law of the oracle we
are considering. The answer in one sense is clear. So far as the
word _nabi_ designates all, they are all of one order. But it is
equally certain, as Kuenen has pointed out, that the later prophets
were not always in a state of ecstasy when they gave their oracles,
nor simply reproducing thoughts of which they first became conscious
in that state. They had an exalting consciousness of the presence
and enlightening Spirit of Jehovah bestowed on them, or the burden
of Jehovah laid on them. The visions were often flashes of thought;
at other times the prophet seemed to look on a new earth and heaven
filled with moving symbols and powers. But the whole development of
national faith and knowledge affected their flashes of thought and
visions, lifting prophetic energy into a higher range.
Now, returning to the oracle, we find that Moses is not a prophet
or _nabi_ in this sense. The words that relate to him carefully
distinguish between his illumination and that of the _nabi_. "My
servant Moses is not so; he is faithful in all Mine house: with him
will I speak mouth to mouth, even manifestly, and not in dark speeches;
and the form of Jehovah shall he behold." Every word here is chosen
to exclude the idea of ecstasy, the idea, of vision or dream, which
leaves some shadow of uncertainty upon the mind, and the idea of
any intermediate influence between the human intelligence and the
disclosure of God's will. And when we try to interpret this in terms of
our own mental operations, and our consciousness of the way in which
truth reaches our minds, we recognise for one thing an impression
made distinctly word by word of the message to be conveyed. There is
given to Moses not only a general idea of the truth or principle to
be embodied in his words, but he receives the very terms. They come
to him in concrete form. He has but to repeat or write what Jehovah
communicates. Along with this there is given to Moses a power of
apprehending the form or similitude of God. His mind is made capable of
singular precision in receiving and transmitting the oracle or statute.
There is complete calmness and what we may call self-possession when he
is in the tent of meeting face to face with the Eternal. And yet he has
this spiritual, transcendent symbol of the Divine Majesty before him.
He is no poet, but he enjoys some revelation higher and more exalting
to mind and soul than poet ever had.
The paradox is not inconceivable. There is a way to this converse
with God "mouth to mouth" along which the patient, earnest soul can
partly travel. Without rhapsody, with full effort of the mind that
has gathered from every source and is ready for the Divine synthesis
of ideas, the Divine illumination, the Divine dictation, if we may so
speak, the humble intelligence may arrive where, for the guidance of
the personal life at least, the very words of God are to be heard.
Beyond, along the same way, lies the chamber of audience which Moses
knew. We think it an amazing thing to be sure of God and of His
will to the very words. Our state is so often that of doubt, or of
self-absorption, or of entanglement with the affairs of others, that
we are generally incapable of receiving the direct message. Yet of
whom should we be sure if not of God? Of what words should we be more
certain than those pure, clear words that come from His mouth? Moses
heard on great themes, national and moral--he heard for the ages, for
the world: there lay his unique dignity. We may hear only for our
own guidance in the next duty that is to be done. But the Spirit of
God directs those who trust Him. It is ours to seek and to receive
the very truth.
With regard to the _similitude_ of Jehovah which Moses saw, we notice
that there is no suggestion of human form; rather would this seem
to be carefully avoided. The statement does not take us back to the
appearance of the angel Jehovah to Abraham, nor does it point to any
manifestation like that of which we read in the history of Joshua or
of Gideon. Nothing is here said of an angel. We are led to think of
an exaltation of the spiritual perception of Moses, so that he knew
the reality of the Divine life, and was made sure of an originative
wisdom, a transcendent source of ideas and moral energy. He with
whom Moses holds communion is One whose might and holiness and glory
are seen with the spiritual eye, whose will is made known by a voice
entering into the soul. And the distinction intended between Moses
and all other prophets corresponds to a fact which the history of
Israel's religion brings to light. The account of the way in which
Jehovah communicated with Moses remains subject to the condition
that the expressions used, such as "mouth to mouth," are still only
symbols of the truth. They mean that in the very highest sense
possible to man Moses entered into the purposes of God regarding
His people. Now Isaiah certainly approached this intimate knowledge
of the Divine counsel when long afterwards he said in Jehovah's
name: "Behold My Servant, whom I uphold; Mine Elect, in whom My soul
delighteth; I have put My Spirit upon Him: He shall bring forth
judgment unto the Gentiles. He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause
His voice to be heard in the street." Yet between Moses and Isaiah
there is a difference. For Moses is the means of giving to Israel
pure morality and true religion. By the inspiration of God he brings
into existence that which is not. Isaiah foresees; Moses, in a sense,
creates. And the one parallel with Moses, according to Scripture, is
to be found in Christ, who is the creator of the new humanity.
When the oracle had spoken, there was a movement of the cloud from the
door of the tent of meeting, and apparently from the tabernacle--a
sign of the displeasure of God. Following the idea that the cloud was
connected with the altar, this withdrawal has been interpreted by
Lange as a rebuke to Aaron. "He was inwardly crushed; the fire on his
altar went out; the pillar of smoke no longer mounted up as a token of
grace; the cultus was for a moment at a standstill, and it was as if
an interdict of Jehovah lay on the cultus of the sanctuary." But the
cloud-pillar is not, as this interpretation would imply, associated
with Aaron personally; it is always the symbol of the Divine will "by
the hand of Moses." We must suppose therefore that the movement of the
cloud conveyed in some new and unexpected way a sense of the Divine
support which Moses enjoyed. He was justified in all he had done:
condemnation was brought home to his accusers.
And Miriam, who had offended most, was punished with more than a
rebuke. Suddenly she was found to be covered with leprosy. Aaron,
looking upon her, saw that morbid pallor which was regarded as the
invariable sign of the disease. It was seen as a proof of her sin
and of the anger of Jehovah. Himself trembling as one who had barely
escaped, Aaron could not but confess his share in the transgression.
Addressing Moses with the deepest reverence, he said, "Oh my lord,
lay not, I pray thee, sin upon us, for that we have done foolishly,
and for that we have sinned." The leprosy is the mark of sin. Let it
not be stamped on her indelibly, nor on me. Let not the disease run
its course to the horrible end. With no small presumption the two had
ventured to challenge their brother's conduct and position. They knew
indeed, yet from their intimacy with him did not rightly apprehend,
the "divinity that hedged" him. Now for the first time its terror
is disclosed to themselves; and they shrink before the man of God,
pleading with him as if he were omnipotent.
Moses needs no second appeal to his compassion. He is a truly
inspired man, and can forgive. He has seen the great God merciful
and gracious, longsuffering, slow to anger, and he has caught
something of the Divine magnanimity. This temper was not always
shown throughout Israel's history by those who had the position
of prophets. And we find that men who claim to be religious, even
to be interpreters of the Divine will, are not invariably above
retaliation. They are seen to hate those who criticise them, who
throw doubt upon their arguments. A man's claim to fellowship with
God, his professed knowledge of the Divine truth and religion, may be
tested by his conduct when he is under challenge. If he cannot plead
with God on behalf of those who have assailed him, he has not the
Spirit; he is as "sounding brass, or a clanging cymbal."
Even in response to the prayer of Moses, Miriam could not be cured at
once. She must go aside bearing her reproach. Shame for her offence,
apart from the taint of leprosy, would make it fitting that she should
withdraw seven days from camp and sanctuary. A personal indignity,
not affecting her character in the least, would have been felt to
that extent. Her transgression is to be realised and brooded over for
her spiritual good. The law is one that needs to be kept in mind. To
escape detection and leave adverse judgment behind is all that some
offenders against moral law seem to desire. They dread the shame and
nothing besides. Let that be avoided, or, after continuing for a time,
let the sense of it pass, and they feel themselves free. But true shame
is towards God; and from the mind sincerely penitent that does not
quickly pass away. Those only who are ignorant of the nature of sin can
soon overcome the consciousness of God's displeasure. As for men, no
doubt they should forgive; but their forgiveness is often too lightly
granted, too complacently assumed, and we see the easy self-recovery
of one who should be sitting in sackcloth and ashes. God forgives
with infinite depth of tenderness and grace of pardon. But His very
generosity will affect the truly contrite with poignant sorrow when His
name has by their act been brought into dishonour.
The offence of Miriam was only jealousy and presumption. She may
scarcely seem so great a sinner that an attack of leprosy should
have been her punishment, though it lasted for no more than seven
days. We make so much of bodily maladies, so little of diseases of
the soul, that we would think it strange if any one for his pride
should be struck with paralysis, or for envy should be laid down with
fever. Yet beside the spiritual disorder that of the body is of small
moment. Why do we think so little of the moral taint, the falsehood,
malice, impurity, and so much of the ills our flesh is heir to? The
bad heart is the great disease.
Miriam's exclusion from the camp becomes a lesson to all the people.
They do not journey while she is separated as unclean. There may have
been other lepers in the outlying tents; but her sin has been of such
a kind that the public conscience is especially directed to it. And
the lesson had particular point with reference to those who had the
prophetic gift.
Modern society, making much of sanitation and all kinds of
improvements and precautions intended to prevent the spread of
epidemics and mitigate their effects, has also some thought of moral
disease. Persons guilty of certain crimes are confined in prisons
or "cut off from the people." But of the greater number of moral
maladies no account is taken. And there is no widespread gloom over
the nation, no arrest of affairs, when some hideous case of social
immorality or business depravity has come to light. It is but a few
who pray for those who have the evil heart, and wait sympathetically
for their cleansing. Ought not the reorganisation of society to be
on a moral rather than an economic basis? We should be nearer the
general well-being if it were reckoned a disaster when any employer
oppressed those under him, or workmen were found indifferent to their
brothers, or a grave crime disclosed a low state of morality in some
class or circle. It is the defeat of armies and navies, the overthrow
of measures and governments, that occupy our attention as a people,
and seem often to obscure every moral and religious thought. Or if
injustice is the topic, we find the point of it in this: that one
class is rich while another is poor; that money, not character, is
lost in shameful contention.
XI
_THE SPIES AND THEIR REPORT_
NUMBERS xiii.; xiv. 1-10
Two narratives at least appear to be united in the thirteenth and
fourteenth chapters. From xiii. 17, 22, 23, we learn that the spies
were despatched by way of the south, and that they went to Hebron and
a little beyond, as far as the valley of Eshcol. But ver. 21 states
that they spied out the land from the wilderness of Zin, south of the
Dead Sea, to the entering in of Hamath. The latter statement implies
that they traversed what were afterwards called Judæa, Samaria, and
Galilee, and penetrated as far as the valley of the Leontes, between
the southern ranges of Libanus and Antilibanus. The one account taken
by itself would make the journey of the spies northward about a
hundred miles; the other, three times as long.
A further difference is this: According to one of the narratives
Caleb alone encourages the people (xiii. 30; xiv. 24). But according
to the other (xiii. 8, 16; xiv. 6, 7), Joshua, as well as Caleb, is
among the twelve, and reports favourably as to the possibility of
conquering and possessing Canaan.
Without deciding on the critical points involved, we may find a way
of harmonising the apparent differences. It is quite possible, for
instance, that while some of the twelve were instructed to keep in
the south of Canaan, others were sent to the middle district and a
third company to the north. Caleb might be among those who explored
the south; while Joshua, having gone to the far north, might return
somewhat later and join his testimony to that which Caleb had given.
There is no inconsistency between the portions ascribed to the one
narrative and those referred to the other; and the account, as we
have it, may give what was the gist of several co-ordinate documents.
As to any variance in the reports of the spies, we can easily
understand how those who looked for smiling valleys and fruitful
fields would find them, while others saw only the difficulties and
dangers that would have to be faced.
The questions occur, why and at whose instance the survey was
undertaken. From Deuteronomy we learn that a demand for it arose
among the people. Moses says (i. 22): "Ye came near unto me every one
of you, and said, Let us send men before us, that they may search
the land for us, and bring us word again of the way by which we must
go up, and the cities unto which we shall come." In Numbers the
expedition is undertaken at the order of Jehovah conveyed through
Moses. The opposition here is only on the surface. The people might
desire, but decision did not lie with them. It was quite natural when
the tribes had at length approached the frontier of Canaan that they
should seek information as to the state of the country. And the wish
was one which could be sanctioned, which had even been anticipated.
The land of Canaan was already known to the children of Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob, and the praise of it as a land flowing with milk
and honey mingled with their traditions. In one sense there was no
need to send spies, either to report on the fertility of the land
or on the peoples dwelling in it. Yet Divine Providence, on which
men are to rely, does not supersede their prudence and the duty that
rests with them of considering the way they go. The destiny of a life
or of a nation is to be wrought out in faith; still we are to use
all available means in order to ensure success. So personality grows
through providence, and God raises men for Himself.
To the band of pioneers each tribe contributes a man, and all the
twelve are headmen, whose intelligence and good faith may presumably be
trusted. They know the strength of Israel; they should also be able to
count upon the great source of courage and power--the unseen Friend of
the nation. Remembering what Egypt is, they know also the ways of the
desert; and they have seen war. If they possess enthusiasm and hope,
they will not be dismayed by the sight of a few walled towns or even of
some Anakim. They will say, "The Lord of hosts is with us, the God of
Jacob is our refuge." Yet there is danger that old doubts and new fears
may colour their report. God appoints men to duty; but their personal
character and tendencies remain. And the very best men Israel can
choose for a task like this will need all their faithfulness and more
than all their faith to do it well.
The spies were to climb the heights visible in the north, and look
forth towards the Great Sea and away to Moriah and Carmel. They were
also to make their way cautiously into the land itself and examine
it. Moses anticipates that all he has said in praise of Canaan will
be made good by the report, and the people will be encouraged to
enter at once on the final struggle. When the desert was around them,
unfruitful, seemingly interminable, the Israelites might have been
disposed to fear that journeying from Egypt they were leaving the
fertility of the world farther and farther behind. Some may have
thought that the Divine promise had misled and deceived them, and
that Canaan was a dream. Even although they had now overpassed that
dreary region covered with coarse gravel, black flints, and drifting
sand, "the great and terrible wilderness," what hope was there that
northward they should reach a land of olives, vineyards, and flowing
streams? The report of the spies would answer this question.
Now in like manner the future state of existence may seem dim and
unreal, scarcely credible, to many. Our life is like a series
of marches hither and thither through the desert. Neither as
individuals nor as communities do we seem to approach any state
of blessedness and rest. Rather, as years go by, does the region
become more inhospitable. Hopes once cherished are one after another
disappointed. The stern mountains that overhung the track by which
our forefathers went still frown upon us. It seems impossible to get
beyond their shadow. And in a kind of despair some may be ready to
say: There is no promised land. This waste, with its sere grass, its
burning sand, its rugged hills, makes the whole of life. We shall
die here in the wilderness like those who have been before us; and
when our graves are dug and our bodies laid in them, our existence
will have an end. But it is a thoughtless habit to doubt that of
which we have no full experience. Here we have but begun to learn the
possibilities of life and find a clue to its Divine mysteries. And
even as to the Israelites in the wilderness there were not wanting
signs that pointed to the fruitful and pleasant country beyond, so
for us, even now, there are previsions of the higher world. Some
shrubs and straggling vines grew in sheltered hollows among the
hills. Here and there a scanty crop of maize was reared, and in the
rainy season streams flowed down the wastes. From what was known the
Israelites might reason hopefully to that which as yet was beyond
their sight. And are there not fore-signs for the soul, springs
opened to the seekers after God in the desert, some verdure of
righteousness, some strength and peace in believing?
Science and business and the cares of life absorb many and bewilder
them. Immersed in the work of their world, men are apt to forget
that deeper draughts of life may be drunk than they obtain in
the laboratory or the counting-house. But he who knows what love
and worship are, who finds in all things the food of religious
thought and devotion, makes no such mistake. To him a future in the
spiritual world is far more within the range of hopeful anticipation
than Canaan was to one who remembered Egypt and had bathed in the
waters of the Nile. Is the heavenly future real? It is: as thought
and faith and love are real, as the fellowship of souls and the
joy of communion with God are realities. Those who are in doubt
as to immortality may find the cause of that doubt in their own
earthliness. Let them be less occupied with the material, care more
for the spiritual possessions, truth, righteousness, religion, and
they will begin to feel an end of doubt. Heaven is no fable. Even now
we have our foretaste of its refreshing waters and the fruits that
are for the healing of the nations.
The spies were to climb the hills which commanded a view of the
promised land. And there are heights which must be scaled if we are
to have previsions of the heavenly life. Men undertake to forecast
the future of the human race who have never sought those heights.
They may have gone out from camp a few miles or even some days'
journey, but they have kept in the plain. One is devoted to science,
and he sees as the land of promise a region in which science shall
achieve triumphs hitherto only dreamt of, when the ultimate atoms
shall disclose their secrets and the subtle principle of life shall
be no longer a mystery. The social reformer sees his own schemes in
operation, some new adjustment of human relations, some new economy
or system of government, the establishment of an order that shall
make the affairs of the world run smoothly, and banish want and care
and possibly disease from the earth. But these and similar previsions
are not from the heights. We have to climb quite above the earthly
and temporal, above economics and scientific theories. Where the way
of faith rises, where the love of men becomes perfect in the love of
God, not in theory but in the practical endeavour of earnest life,
there we ascend, we advance. We shall see the coming kingdom of God
only if we are heartily with God in the ardour of the redeemed soul,
if we follow in the footsteps of Christ to the summits of Sacrifice.
The spies went forth from among tribes which had so far made a good
journey under the Divine guidance. So well had the expedition sped that
a few days' march would have brought the travellers into Canaan. But
Israel was not a hopeful people nor a united people. The thoughts of
many turned back; all were not faithful to God nor loyal to Moses. And
as the people were, so were the spies. Some may have professed to be
enthusiastic who had their doubts regarding Canaan and the possibility
of conquering it. Others may have even wished to find difficulties
that would furnish an excuse for returning even to Egypt. Most were
ready to be disenchanted at least and to find cause for alarm. In the
south of Canaan a pastoral district, rocky and uninviting towards the
shore of the Dead Sea, was found to be sparsely occupied by wandering
companies of Amalekites, Bedawin of the time, probably with a look
of poverty and hardship that gave little promise for any who should
attempt to settle where they roamed. Towards Hebron the aspect of
the country improved; but the ancient city, or at all events its
stronghold, was in the hands of a class of bandits whose names inspired
terror throughout the district--Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, sons of
Anak. The great stature of these men, exaggerated by common report,
together with stories of their ferocity, seem to have impressed the
timid Hebrews beyond measure. And round Hebron the Amorites, a hardy
highland race, were found in occupation. The report agreed on was that
the people were men of great stature; that the land was one which ate
up its inhabitants--that is to say, yielded but a precarious existence.
Just beyond Hebron vineyards and olive-groves were found; and from the
valley of Eshcol one fine cluster of grapes was brought, hung upon a
rod to preserve the fruit from injury, an evidence of capabilities that
might be developed. Still the report was an evil one on the whole.
Those who went farther north had to tell of strong peoples--the
Jebusites and Amorites of the central region, the Hittites of the
north, the Canaanites of the seaboard, where afterwards Sisera had
his headquarters. The cities, too, were great and walled. These
spies had nothing to say of the fruitful plains of Esdraelon and
Jezreel, nothing to tell of the flowery meadows, the "murmuring of
innumerable bees," the terraced vineyards, the herds of cattle and
flocks of sheep and goats. They had seen the strong, resolute holders
of the soil, the fortresses, the difficulties; and of these they
brought back an account which caused abundant alarm. Joshua and Caleb
alone had the confidence of faith, and were assured that Jehovah, if
He delighted in His people, would give them Canaan as an inheritance.