THE MARCH TO THE PROMISED LAND
THE PILLAR OF FIRE AND THE CLOUD OF SMOKE.
And on the day that the tabernacle was set up the cloud covered the tabernacle, even the tent of the testimony: and at even it was upon the tabernacle as it were the appearance of fire, until morning. So it was always: the cloud covered it, and the appearance of fire by night. And whenever the cloud was taken up from over the Tent, then after that the children of Israel journeyed: and in the place where the cloud abode, there the children of Israel encamped. At the commandment of the Lord the children of Israel journeyed, and at the commandment of the Lord they encamped: as long as the cloud abode upon the tabernacle they remained encamped. And when the cloud tarried upon the tabernacle many days, then the children of Israel kept the charge of the Lord, and journeyed not. And sometimes the cloud was a few days upon the tabernacle; then according to the commandment of the Lord they remained encamped, and according to the commandment of the Lord they journeyed. And sometimes the cloud was from evening until morning; and when the cloud was taken up in the morning, they journeyed: or if it continued by day and by night, when the cloud was taken up, they journeyed.
Whether it were two days, or a month, or a year, that the cloud tarried upon the tabernacle, abiding thereon, the [{242}] children of Israel remained encamped, and journeyed not: but when it was taken up, they journeyed. At the commandment of the Lord they encamped, and at the commandment of the Lord they journeyed: they kept the charge of the Lord, at the commandment of the Lord by the hand of Moses.
The Long Journey from Sinai Begins.
And it came to pass in the second year, in the second month, on the twentieth day of the month, that the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle of the testimony. And the children of Israel set forward according to their journeys out of the wilderness of Sinai; and the cloud abode in the wilderness of Paran. And they first took their journey according to the commandment of the Lord by the hand of Moses.
And they set forward from the mount of the Lord three days' journey; and the ark of the covenant of the Lord went before them three days' journey, to seek out a resting place for them. And the cloud of the Lord was over them by day, when they set forward from the camp.
And it came to pass, when the ark set forward, that Moses said,--
"Rise up, O Lord, and let thine enemies be scattered;
And let them that hate thee flee before thee."
And when it rested he said,--
"Return, O Lord,
Unto the ten thousands of the thousands of Israel."
THE SENDING OUT OF THE SPIES.
They Report "a Land Flowing with Milk and Honey."
And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, "Send thou men, that they may spy out the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel: of every tribe of their fathers shall ye send a man, everyone a prince among them."
And Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran according to the commandment of the Lord: all of them men who were heads of the children of Israel.
And Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, "Get you up this way by the south, and go up into the mountains: and see the land, what it is; and the people that dwelleth therein, whether they are strong or weak, whether they are few or many; and what the land is that they dwell in, whether it is good or bad; and what cities they are that they dwell in, whether in camps, or in strong holds; and what the land is, whether it be fat or lean, whether there be wood therein, or not. And be ye of good courage, and bring of the fruit of the land."
Now the time was the time of the first ripe grapes. So they went up, and spied out the land from the wilderness of Zin unto Rehob, to the entering in of Hamath. And they went up by the south, and came to Hebron; and the children of Anak were there.
And they came unto the valley of Eshcol, and cut down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes, and they bore it upon a staff between two; they brought also of the pomegranates, and of the figs. That place was called the valley of Eshcol (that is, "cluster"). And they returned [{244}] from spying out the land at the end of forty days. And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, to the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word unto them, and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. And they told him, and said, "We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it. Howbeit the people that dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there. Amalek dwelleth in the land of the south: and the Hittite, and the Jebusite, and the Amorite, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanite dwelleth by the sea, and along by the side of Jordan."
And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, "Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it."
But the men that went up with him said, "We are not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we."
And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had spied out unto the children of Israel, saying, "The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of great stature. And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight."
MOSES SMITING THE ROCK
By Murillo
And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, "Would God, that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness! And wherefore doth the Lord bring us unto this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones shall be a prey: were it not better for us to return into Egypt?"
And they said one to another, "Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt."
Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel. And Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that spied out the land, rent their clothes: and they spoke unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying, "The land, which we passed through to spy it out, is an exceeding good land. If the Lord delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it to us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not against the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defense is removed from over them, and the Lord is with us: fear them not."
WATER FROM THE ROCK.
Passage Through Edom Refused.
(The people refused to believe the report of the courageous spies, and their wanderings continued.)
And the children of Israel, even the whole multitude, [{248}] came into the wilderness of Zin in the first month: and the people abode in Kadesh; and Miriam died there, and was buried there. And there was no water for the multitude: and they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron.
And the people strove with Moses, and spoke, saying, "Would God that we had died when our brethren died before the Lord! And why have ye brought the people of the Lord into this wilderness, that we should die there, we and our cattle? And wherefore have ye made us to come up out of Egypt, to bring us unto this evil place? it is no place of seed, or of figs, or of vines, or of pomegranates; neither is there any water to drink."
And Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the people to the door of the tent of meeting, and fell upon their faces: and the glory of the Lord appeared to them. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, "Take the rod, and assemble the multitude, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye to the rock before their eyes, that it give forth its water; and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the multitude and their cattle drink."
And Moses took the rod from before the Lord, as he commanded him. And Moses and Aaron gathered the people together before the rock, and he said unto them, "Hear now, ye rebels; shall we bring you forth water out of this rock?"
And Moses lifted up his hand, and smote the rock with his rod twice: and water came forth abundantly, and the [{249}] multitude drank, and their cattle. And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, "Because ye believed not in me, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this people into the land which I have given them." These are the waters of Meribah (that is, strife); because the children of Israel strove with the Lord, and he was sanctified in them.
And Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom, "Thus saith thy brother Israel, 'Thou knowest all the trouble that hath befallen us: how our fathers went down into Egypt, and we dwelt in Egypt a long time: and the Egyptians oppressed us, and our fathers: and when we cried to the Lord, he heard our voice, and sent an angel, and brought us forth out of Egypt: and, behold, we are in Kadesh, a city in the uttermost of thy border: let us pass, I pray thee, through thy land: we will not pass through field or through vineyard, neither will we drink of the water of the wells: we will go along the king's highway, we will not turn aside to the right hand nor to the left, until we have passed thy border.'"
And Edom said unto him, "Thou shalt not pass through my land, lest I come out with the sword against thee."
And the children of Israel said unto him, "We will go up by the highway: and if we drink of thy water, I and my cattle, then will I give the price thereof: let me only, without doing anything else, pass through on my feet."
And he said, "Thou shalt not pass through."
And Edom came out against him with much people, and with a strong hand. Thus Edom refused to give [{250}] Israel passage through his border: wherefore Israel turned away from him.
And they journeyed from Kadesh: and the children of Israel, even the whole multitude, came unto Mount Hor. And the Lord spoke unto Moses and Aaron in Mount Hor, by the border of the land of Edom, saying, "Aaron shall be gathered to his people: for he shall not enter into the land which I have given to the children of Israel, because ye rebelled against my word at the waters of Meribah. Take Aaron and Eleazar his son, and bring them up unto Mount Hor: and strip Aaron of his priestly garments, and put them upon Eleazar his son: and Aaron shall be gathered to his people, and shall die there."
And Moses did as the Lord commanded: and they went up into Mount Hor in the sight of all the multitude. And Moses stripped Aaron of his priestly garments, and put them upon Eleazar his son; and Aaron died there in the top of the mount: and Moses and Eleazar came down from the mount. And when all the multitude saw that Aaron was dead, they wept for Aaron thirty days, even all the house of Israel.
THE BRAZEN SERPENT.
And they journeyed from Mount Hor by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom: and the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the difficulties. And the people spoke against God, and against Moses, "Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no bread, and there is no water; and our soul loatheth this bread of manna."
ROCK TEMPLE IN PETRA, IN THE LAND OF EDOM
From a photograph belonging to the Forbes Library, Northampton, Mass., and used by special permission.
Hidden away in the rocky gorges of Edom, Petra is one of the strangest and most marvelous cities of the world. Even yet it has not been fully explored. Its temples and tombs are carved out of the solid rock
And the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and many people of Israel died. And the people came to Moses, and said, "We have sinned, because we have spoken against the Lord, and against thee; pray unto the Lord, that he take away the serpents from us."
And Moses prayed for the people. And the Lord said unto Moses, "Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a standard: and it shall come to pass, that everyone who is bitten, when he seeth it, shall live."
And Moses made a serpent of brass, and set it upon the standard: and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he looked unto the serpent of brass, he lived.
Battles by the Way.
And from thence they journeyed to Beer: that is the well whereof the Lord said unto Moses, "Gather the people together, and I will give them water."
Then sang Israel this song:--
| THE SONG OF THE WELL. |
"Spring up, O well; sing ye unto it: The well, which the princes digged, Which the nobles of the people delved, With the scepter, and with their staves." |
And from the wilderness they journeyed past many places, to the top of Pisgah, which looketh down upon the desert.
And Israel sent messengers unto Sihon king of the [{254}] Amorites, saying, "Let me pass through thy land: we will not turn aside into field, or into vineyard; we will not drink of the water of the wells: we will go by the king's highway, until we have passed thy border." And Sihon would not suffer Israel to pass through his border: but Sihon gathered all his people together, and went out against Israel into the wilderness, and came to Jahaz: and he fought against Israel. And Israel smote him with the edge of the sword, and possessed his land from Arnon unto Jabbok, even unto the children of Ammon: for the border of the children of Ammon was strong.
And Israel took all these cities: and Israel dwelt in all the cities of the Amorites, in Heshbon, and in all the towns thereof. For Heshbon was the city of Sihon the king of the Amorites, who had fought against the former king of Moab, and taken all his land out of his hand, even to Arnon. Wherefore they that speak in proverbs say,--
| "Come ye to Heshbon, Let the city of Sihon be built and established: For a fire is gone out of Heshbon, A flame from the city of Sihon. It hath devoured Ar of Moab, The lords of the high places of Arnon. Woe to thee, Moab! Thou art undone, O people of Chemosh: He hath given his sons as fugitives, And his daughters into captivity, Unto Sihon king of the Amorites. [{255}] We have shot at them; Heshbon is perished even unto Dibon, And we have laid waste even unto Nophah, Which reacheth unto Medeba." |
Thus Israel dwelt in the land of the Amorites. And Moses sent to spy out Jazer, and they took the towns thereof, and drove out the Amorites that were there.
And they turned and went up by the way of Bashan: and Og the king of Bashan went out against them, he and all his people, to battle at Edrei. And the Lord said to Moses, "Fear him not: for I have delivered him into thy hand, and all his people, and his land; and thou shalt do to him as thou didst to Sihon king of the Amorites, which dwelt at Heshbon."
So they smote him, and his sons, and all his people, until there was none left him remaining: and they possessed his land.
BALAAM AND BALAK.
The Story of the Prophet Who Was Tempted by a Bribe and of the Ass Which Knew More Than His Master.
And the children of Israel journeyed, and encamped in the plains of Moab beyond the Jordan at Jericho.
And Balak the son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Amorites. And Moab was sore afraid of the people, because they were many: and Moab was distressed because of the children of Israel. And Moab said unto the elders of Midian, "Now shall this multitude lick [{256}] up all that is round about us, as the ox licketh up the grass of the field."
And Balak the son of Zippor was king of Moab at that time. And he sent messengers unto Balaam the son of Beor, to Pethor, which is by the River, to the land of the children of his people, to call him, saying, "Behold, there is a people come out from Egypt: behold, they cover the face of the earth, and they abide over against me: come now therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people; for they are too mighty for me: peradventure I shall prevail, that we may smite them, and that I may drive them out of the land: for I know that he whom thou blessest is blessed, and he whom thou cursest is cursed."
And the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian departed with bribes in their hands; and they came unto Balaam, and spoke unto him the words of Balak.
And he said unto them, "Lodge here this night, and I will bring you word again, as the Lord shall speak unto me."
And the princes of Moab abode with Balaam. And God came unto Balaam, and said, "What men are these with thee?"
And Balaam said unto God, "Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, hath sent unto me, saying, 'Behold, the people that is come out of Egypt, it covereth the face of the earth: now, come curse me them; peradventure I shall be able to fight against them, and shall drive them out.'"
And God said unto Balaam, "Thou shalt not go with them; thou shalt not curse the people: for they are blessed."
VIEW OF THE DEAD SEA
From a photograph taken by Mr. Louis L. Tribus, Consulting Engineer and Commissioner of Public Works of the Borough of Richmond, City of New York.
An interesting fact in connection with this picture of the Dead Sea concerns the boat which is floating upon it. The owner succeeded in securing a concession from the Turkish Government to put a steamboat upon the Dead Sea. When he started to run it he was advised that the concession had not included the operation of the boat and a considerable further sum of money was desired by the officials. This being beyond the power of the man to raise, the boat has not been operated and remains as the picture shows it.
The water of the Dead Sea contains about 25 per cent. of solid substances. There are common salt, chloride of calcium, chloride of magnesium, and other ingredients, and it is not to be wondered at that the human body floats easily on the surface.
The area of the sea is 360 square miles. Its length is 47-1/2 miles; its greatest width, 10 miles. The surface is about 1295 feet below sea level.
Scientific observation justifies the estimate that a daily average of 6,500,000 tons of water is received into the Dead Sea from the Jordan and other sources during the year. During the rainy season the amount is very much greater; during the dry season it is, of course, very much less, but this average will be maintained year after year.
There is no outlet, and the level is kept down by evaporation only, which is very rapid because of the intense heat, the dry atmosphere and the dry winds which are constantly blowing down the gorges between the mountains.
The waters of the Jordan, when they reach the sea, are as brown as the earth through which they flow--a thick solution of mud--but the instant they mingle with the salt water of the lake the particles of soil are precipitated and they become as clear as crystal, with an intensely green tint.
And Balaam rose up in the morning, and said unto the princes of Balak, "Get you into your land: for the Lord refuseth to give me leave to go with you."
And the princes of Moab rose up, and they went unto Balak, and said, "Balaam refuseth to come with us."
And Balak sent yet again princes, more, and more honorable than they. And they came to Balaam, and said to him, "Thus saith Balak the son of Zippor, 'Let nothing, I pray thee, hinder thee from coming unto me: for I will promote thee unto very great honor, and whatsoever thou sayest unto me I will do: come therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people.'"
And Balaam answered and said unto the servants of Balak, "If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the word of the Lord my God, to do less or more. Now therefore, I pray you, tarry ye also here this night, that I may know what the Lord will speak unto me more."
And God came unto Balaam at night, and said unto him, "If the men be come to call thee, rise up, go with them; but only the word which I speak unto thee, that shalt thou do."
And Balaam rose up in the morning, and saddled his ass, and went with the princes of Moab. And God's anger was kindled because he went: and the angel of the Lord placed himself in the way for an adversary against him. Now he was riding upon his ass, and his two servants were with him. And the ass saw the angel of the Lord standing in the way, with his sword drawn in his hand: [{260}] and the ass turned aside out of the way, and went into the field: and Balaam smote the ass, to turn her into the way.
Then the angel of the Lord stood in a hollow place between the vineyards, a fence being on this side, and a fence on that side. And the ass saw the angel of the Lord, and she thrust herself unto the wall, and crushed Balaam's foot against the wall: and he smote her again.
And the angel of the Lord went further, and stood in a narrow place, where was no way to turn either to the right hand or to the left.
And the ass saw the angel of the Lord, and she lay down under Balaam: and Balaam's anger was kindled, and he smote the ass with his staff.
And the Lord opened the mouth of the ass, and she said unto Balaam, "What have I done unto thee, that thou hast smitten me these three times?"
And Balaam said unto the ass, "Because thou hast mocked me: I would there were a sword in mine hand, for now I had killed thee."
And the ass said unto Balaam, "Am not I thine ass, upon which thou hast ridden all thy life long unto this day? was I ever wont to do so unto thee?"
And he said, "No."
Then the Lord opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the way, with his sword drawn in his hand: and he bowed his head, and fell on his face.
And the angel of the Lord said unto him, "Wherefore [{261}] hast thou smitten thine ass these three times? behold, I am come forth for an adversary, because thy way is perverse before me: and the ass saw me, and turned aside before me these three times: unless she had turned aside from me, surely now I had even slain thee, and saved her alive."
And Balaam said unto the angel of the Lord, "I have sinned; for I knew not that thou stoodest in the way against me: now therefore, if it displease thee, I will get me back again."
And the angel of the Lord said unto Balaam, "Go with the men: but only the word that I shall speak unto thee, that thou shalt speak."
So Balaam went with the princes of Balak. And when Balak heard that Balaam was come, he went out to meet him unto the city of Moab, which is on the border of Arnon.
And Balak said unto Balaam, "Did I not earnestly send unto thee to call thee? wherefore earnest thou not unto me? am I not able indeed to promote thee to honor?"
And Balaam said unto Balak, "Lo, I am come unto thee: have I now any power at all to speak anything? the word that God putteth in my mouth, that shall I speak."
And Balaam went with Balak, and they came unto Kiriath-huzoth. And Balak sacrificed oxen and sheep, and sent to Balaam, and to the princes that were with him. And it came to pass in the morning, that Balak took Balaam, and brought him up into the high places of [{262}] Baal, and he saw from thence the utmost part of the people.
And Balaam said unto Balak, "Build me here seven altars, and prepare me here seven bullocks and seven rams."
And Balak did as Balaam had spoken; and Balak and Balaam offered on every altar a bullock and a ram.
And Balaam said unto Balak, "Stand by thy burnt offering, and I will go; peradventure the Lord will come to meet me: and whatsoever he showeth me I will tell thee." And he went to a bare summit.
And God met Balaam: and he said unto him, "I have prepared the seven altars, and I have offered up a bullock and a ram on every altar."
And the Lord put a word in Balaam's mouth, and said, "Return unto Balak, and thus thou shalt speak."
And he returned unto him, and, lo, he stood by his burnt offering, he, and all the princes of Moab. And Balaam said,--
| "From Aram hath Balak brought me, The king of Moab from the mountains of the East: 'Come, curse me Jacob, And come, defy Israel.' How shall I curse, whom God hath not cursed? And how shall I defy, whom the Lord hath not defied? For from the top of the rocks I see him, And from the hills I behold him: Lo, it is a people that dwell alone, And shall not be reckoned among the nations. [{263}] Who can count the dust of Jacob, Or number the fourth part of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous, And let my last end be like his!" |
And Balak said unto Balaam, "What hast thou done unto me? I took thee to curse mine enemies, and, behold, thou hast blessed them altogether."
And he answered and said, "Must I not take heed to speak that which the Lord putteth in my mouth?"
And Balak said unto him, "Come, I pray thee, with me unto another place, from whence thou mayest see them; thou shalt see but the utmost part of them, and shalt not see them all: and curse me them from thence."
And he took him into the field of Zophim, to the top of Pisgah, and built seven altars, and offered up a bullock and a ram on every altar.
And he said unto Balak, "Stand here by thy burnt offering, while I meet the Lord yonder."
And the Lord met Balaam, and put a word in his mouth, and said, "Return unto Balak, and thus shalt thou speak."
And he came to him, and, lo, he stood by his burnt offering, and the princes of Moab with him. And Balak said unto him, "What hath the Lord spoken?" And he said,--
| "Rise up, Balak, and hear; Hearken unto me, thou son of Zippor: God is not a man, that he should lie; Neither the son of man, that he should repent: [{264}] Hath he said, and shall he not do it? Or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good? Behold, I have received commandment to bless: And he hath blessed, and I cannot reverse it. He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, Neither hath he seen perverseness in Israel: The Lord his God is with him, And the shout of a king is among them. God bringeth them forth out of Egypt; He hath as it were the strength of the wild ox. Surely there is no enchantment with Jacob, Neither is there any divination with Israel: Now shall it be said of Jacob and of Israel, 'What hath God wrought!' Behold, the people riseth up as a lioness, And as a lion doth he lift himself up: He shall not lie down until he eat of the prey, And drink the blood of the slain." |
And Balak said unto Balaam, "Neither curse them at all, nor bless them at all." But Balaam answered and said unto Balak, "Told not I thee, saying, 'All that the Lord speaketh, that I must do'?"
And Balak said unto Balaam, "Come now, I will take thee unto another place; peradventure it will please God that thou mayest curse me them from thence."
And Balak took Balaam unto the top of Peor, that looketh down upon the desert.
And Balaam said unto Balak, "Build me here seven altars, and prepare me here seven bullocks and seven rams."
And Balak did as Balaam had said, and offered up a bullock and a ram on every altar.
And when Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord to bless Israel, he set his face toward the wilderness. And Balaam lifted up his eyes, and he saw Israel dwelling according to their tribes; and the spirit of God came upon him. And he said,--
| "Balaam the son of Beor saith, And the man whose eye was closed saith: He saith, who heareth the words of God, Who seeth the vision of the Almighty, Falling down, and having his eyes open: How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, Thy tabernacles, O Israel! As valleys are they spread forth, As gardens by the river side, As aloes which the Lord hath planted, As cedar trees beside the waters. Water shall flow from his buckets, And his family shall be in many waters, And his king shall be higher than Agag, And his kingdom shall be exalted. God bringeth him forth out of Egypt; He hath as it were the strength of the wild ox: He shall eat up the nations his adversaries, And shall break their bones in pieces, And smite them through with his arrows. He couched, he lay down as a lion, And as a lioness; who shall rouse him up? Blessed be everyone that blesseth thee, And cursed be everyone that curseth thee." |
And Balak's anger was kindled against Balaam, and he smote his hands together: and Balak said unto Balaam, "I called thee to curse mine enemies, and, behold, thou hast altogether blessed them these three times. Therefore now flee thou to thy place: I thought to promote thee unto great honor; but, lo, the Lord hath kept thee back from honor."
And Balaam said unto Balak, "Spoke I not also to thy messengers which thou sentest unto me, saying, 'If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the word of the Lord, to do either good or bad of mine own mind; what the Lord speaketh, that will I speak'?
"And now, behold, I go unto my people: come, and I will announce to thee what this people shall do to thy people in the latter days." And he said,--
| "Balaam the son of Beor saith, And the man whose eye was closed saith: He saith, who heareth the words of God, And knoweth the knowledge of the Most High, Who seeth the vision of the Almighty, Falling down, and having his eyes open: I see him, but not now: I behold him, but not nigh: There shall come forth a star out of Jacob, And a scepter shall rise out of Israel, And shall smite through the corners of Moab, And break down all the sons of tumult. And Edom shall be a possession, Seir also shall be a possession, which were his enemies; [{267}] While Israel doeth valiantly. And out of Jacob shall one have dominion, And shall destroy the remnant from the city." |
And he looked on Amalek, and said,--
"Amalek was the first of the nations;
But his latter end shall come to destruction."
And he looked on the Kenite, and said,--
"Strong is thy dwelling place,
And thy nest is set in the rock.
Nevertheless Kain shall be wasted,
Until Asshur shall carry thee away captive."
And he said,--
"Alas, who shall live when God doeth this?
But ships shall come from the coast of Kittim,
And they shall afflict Asshur, and shall afflict Eber,
And he also shall come to destruction."
And Balaam rose up, and went and returned to his place: and Balak also went his way.
THE DEATH OF MOSES.
He Sees but Cannot Enter the Promised Land.
(After the Israelites had wandered for many years in the desert, they approached at last the river Jordan, on the borders of the promised land. Moses, their great hero and leader, was not permitted to cross the river, but, after giving the people his last words of advice, climbed the rugged slopes of Mount Nebo, and was never again seen by the eye of man.)
And Moses went and spoke these words unto all Israel. And he said to them, "I am an hundred and twenty years old this day; I can no more go out and come in: and the Lord hath said to me, 'Thou shalt not go over this Jordan.' The Lord thy God, he will go over before thee; he will destroy these nations from before thee, and thou shalt possess them: and Joshua, he shall go over before thee, as the Lord hath spoken. And the Lord shall do unto them as he did to Sihon and to Og, the kings of the Amorites, and unto their land; whom he destroyed. And the Lord shall deliver them up before you, and ye shall do to them according unto all the commandment which I have commanded you. Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be affrighted at them: for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee."
And Moses called to Joshua, and said to him in the sight of all Israel, "Be strong and of a good courage: for thou shalt go with this people into the land which the Lord hath sworn unto their fathers to give them; and thou shalt cause them to inherit it. And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.
MOSES ON MOUNT NEBO
Thomas Nast
This picture by the famous cartoonist Nast, represents Moses from the summit of Nebo gazing into the land which he was never to enter
"For this commandment which I command thee this day, it is not too hard for thee, neither is it far off. It is not in heaven, that thou shouldest say, 'Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring it unto us, and make us to hear it, that we may do it?' Neither is it beyond the sea, that thou shouldest say, 'Who shall go over the sea for us, and bring it unto us, and make us to hear it, that we may do it?' But the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it.
"See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil; in that I command thee this day to love the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgments, that thou mayest live and multiply, and that the Lord thy God may bless thee in the land whither thou goest in to possess it. But if thine heart turn away, and thou wilt not hear, but shalt be drawn away, and worship other gods, and serve them; I announce to you this day, that ye shall surely perish; ye shall not prolong your days upon the land, whither thou passest over Jordan to go in to possess it. I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that I have set before thee life and death, the blessing and the curse: therefore choose life, that thou mayest live, thou and thy families: to love the Lord thy God, to obey his voice, and to cleave unto him: for he is thy life, and the length of thy days: that thou mayest [{272}] dwell in the land which the Lord swore unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them."
And Moses made an end of speaking all these words to all Israel: and he said to them, "Set your heart to all the words which I testify to you this day; which ye shall command your children, to observe to do all the words of this law. For it is no vain thing for you; because it is your life, and through this thing ye shall prolong your days upon the land, whither ye go over Jordan to possess it."
And the Lord spoke to Moses that selfsame day, saying, "Get thee up into this mountain of Abarim, unto Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, that is over against Jericho; and behold the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel for a possession: and die in the mount whither thou goest up; as Aaron thy brother died in Mount Hor: because ye trespassed against me in the midst of the children of Israel at the waters of Meribah of Kadesh, in the wilderness of Zin; because ye sanctified me not in the midst of the children of Israel. For thou shalt see the land before thee; but thou shalt not go thither into the land which I give the children of Israel."
And Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, that is over against Jericho. And the Lord showed him all the land of Gilead, as far as Dan; and all Naphtali, and the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, and all the land of Judah, to the western sea; and the South, and the Plain of the valley of Jericho the city of palm trees, as far as Zoar. And the Lord said to [{273}] him, "This is the land which I swore unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, saying, 'I will give it unto thy family': I have caused thee to see it with thine eyes, but thou shalt not go over thither."
So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord. And He buried him in the valley in the land of Moab over against Beth-pear: but no man knoweth of his sepulcher unto this day.
And Moses was an hundred and twenty years old when he died: his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated. And the children of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days: so the days of weeping in the mourning for Moses were ended.
And there hath not arisen a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face; in all the signs and the wonders, which the Lord sent him to do in the land of Egypt, to Pharaoh, and to all his servants, and to all his land; and in all the mighty hand, and in all the great terror, which Moses wrought in the sight of all Israel.
| THE BURIAL OF MOSES |
By Nebo's lonely mountain, On this side Jordan's wave, In a vale in the land of Moab, There lies a lonely grave. And no man knows that sepulcher, And no man saw it e'er, For the angels of God upturned the sod, And laid the dead man there. That was the grandest funeral That ever passed on earth; But no man heard the trampling, Or saw the train go forth: Noiselessly as the daylight Comes back when night is done, And the crimson streak on ocean's cheek Grows into the great sun; Noiselessly as the spring-time Her crown of verdure weaves, And all the trees on all the hills Open their thousand leaves; So without sound of music Or voice of them that wept, Silently down from the mountain's crown The great procession swept. Perchance that bald old eagle On gray Beth-Peor's height, Out of his lonely eyrie Looked on the wondrous sight: [{275}] Perchance the lion, stalking, Stills shuns that hallowed spot, For beast and bird have seen and heard That which man knoweth not. But when the warrior dieth, His comrades in the war, With arms reversed and muffled drum, Follow his funeral car; They show the banners taken, They tell his battles won, And after him lead his masterless steed, While peals the minute-gun. Amid the noblest of the land We lay the sage to rest, And give the bard an honored place. With costly marble drest, In the great minster transept Where lights like glories fall, And the organ rings and the sweet choir sings Along the emblazoned wall. This was the truest warrior That ever buckled sword, This the most gifted poet That ever breathed a word; And never earth's philosopher Traced with his golden pen, On the deathless page, truths half so sage As he wrote down for men. And had he not 'nigh honor,-- The hillside for a pall, To lie in state while angels wait, With stars for tapers tall, [{276}] And the dark rock-pines like tossing plumes Over his bier to wave, And God's own hand, in that lonely land, To lay him in the grave? In that strange grave without a name, Whence his uncoffined clay Shall break again, O wondrous thought! Before the judgment day, And stand with glory wrapt around On the hills he never trod, And speak of the strife that won our life With the Incarnate Son of God. O, lonely grave in Moab's land! O, dark Beth-Peor's hill! Speak to these curious hearts of ours, And teach them to be still. God hath his mysteries of grace, Ways that we cannot tell; He hides them deep, like the hidden sleep Of him he loved so well. |
| --Cecil Frances Alexander. |