the promoting of the great object of bringing mankind over to the knowledge of the true God. He seems, on the contrary, to have recently adopted the idea, that the happiness of his own people, theirs and his wealth and grandeur, were the ultimate objects proposed by the Deity; and that in the benefits they had now experienced consisted the whole reward for their obedience, overlooking entirely that higher one involved in the promise, that through the seed of their ancestor Abraham should all nations be blessed. Had he kept this in view, surely we should not at this day have had such evidence of his perfect weariness and

COMMENTARY. Nithai the Arbelite said-We have already demonstrated, that those tanaim who together succeeded to the offices of Nassi and Ab-beth-din, pronounce their respective maxims in reference to each other. The two whose sayings we are now about to illustrate, likewise observed that method.

Withdraw thyself from a bad neighbour-This, the first of the sayings of Nithai, refers to the law. He counsels us not to rely on our own wisdom and virtue, but to avoid temptation. Therefore we are not to continue in intercourse with bad neighbours; by which word he does not so much mean to express those whose dwelling approximates to ours, as those with whom we are in the habits of intercourse and connexion, and whose ideas or opinions we feel ourselves led to adopt. And in qualifying the neighbour whom we are to avoid, he uses the word "bad,"-not only of him whose actions are manifestly evil, but likewise of him whose thoughts are corrupt and impure. In this sense we find the word ", "bad," used by

the Prophet: "Whose thoughts of God are bad." (Nahum i. 11.) And though thou mayest think within thyself, "I can resist and overcome his evil insinuations," yet do not expose thyself to the infection. Evil deeds are more easily avoided than evil thoughts; do not, therefore, expose thyself to the contagion, lest the insidious poison of scepticism be imbibed by the mind, and thy better part become a prey to doubts.

Do not associate with the wickedThe word "associate" is here used in the conjugation Hithpael passive, in order to express, that not only is the wicked unfit to be thy associate, but that thou must avoid all dealings and transactions with persons of bad character. Do not lay thyself under obligations to them, lest gratitude induce thee to become subservient to their evil purposes, or to wink at their pernicious practices. And if once thy better feelings are so far lulled into security that thou dost no longer carefully notice the evil deeds of associates in their true light, thou art very near following their sinful example.. Thus we find

in Holy Writ, Jehoshaphat king of Judah was a righteous man; but when he associated with the wicked Ahaziah king of Israel, and they jointly built ships at Ezion-Geber, which they sent out to sea, the Prophet denounced the undertaking, and said to the king of Judah, "Because thou hast associated thyself with Ahaziah, the Lord has rendered futile thy undertakings." (2 Chron. xx. 37.) And though it was an undoubted fact that Jehoshaphat, a righteous man, did not entertain so intimate a friendship for Ahaziah as to approve of or imitate his wickedness; yet the man of God reproved even a partial connexion with the evil-doer, and pronounces the infelicitous issue of the joint enterprise undertaken with him.

Do not anticipate impunity; or, "despair not when under punishment."The word winn, from the root ws, expresses, "to renounce or abandon something, so as not to be found, or not to come to pass." The meaning of our tanai here is two-fold: First, "Do not anticipate impunity;" do not consider the punishment of thy evil deeds as a something which

will not befall thee; but, on the contrary, be assured that every offence meets with its commensurate punishment; which heartfelt penitence alone can mitigate. But, wrong as it is to suppose that no chastisement awaits our transgression, it is equally so to embrace the other extreme; and, when punishment has visited us, to abandon ourselves to despair, to look upon our state as utterly hopeless, and ourselves as irreclaimable. Neither the first nor the second is a fit state of mind for a virtuous man. For whilst the first leads on to that reckless indifference which the Psalmist denounces when he says, "The fool saith in his heart, There is no God;" (Psalm xiv. 1;) the latter, from yielding to the enervating influence of fear, forgets the consoling admonitions of Holy Writ, "Whom the Lord loveth he chastiseth," (Prov. iii. 12,) and "The righteous falleth seven times, yet raises himself again." (Prov. xxiv. 16.) Accordingly our Rabbies said, Even though the tranchant edge of the sword rest on thy neck, do not renounce thy hopes in the divine mercy."

Love nas, occupation-However great thy mental accomplishments, do not disdain useful occupation; but, on the contrary, seek out and attach thyself to some beneficial pursuit. The words 2

and 12, are synonymous. The latter word, y, is applicable to every species of labour, though it produce no lasting result; and being derived from the root 7, slave, is generally rendered "servile work." But is only applied to such labours as produce a lasting result; in which sense we find it used at the creation, when it is said, "God rested from all in his works.” (Gen. ii. 2.) Accordingly the labour prohibited on the Sabbath is invariably called ; denoting such occupations as are productive of something lasting. Every requires the knowledge of some sci

ence, art, or trade; and our instructer here gives us the important advice, that every man ought to addict himself to some useful profession or trade; which, having once embraced, he ought to love, as it affords him the means of maintaining himself independently of charitable aid. And though a man's circumstances are such that he need not absolutely devote himself to any particular calling for his subsistence, yet he is to "love occupation." He is not to pass his time in entire idleness, nor yet altogether to devote himself to abstruse and philosophical contemplations; for, as man, it is his duty to devote himself to his fellow-men, and to pursue those occupations which tend to promote their welfare.

Hate 27, sway or dignity-This word particularly applies to ecclesiastical sway or dignity. Our in

observes them does not thereby acquire any particular merit, or promote the perfection of his purpose. They are merely negative virtues, which he who dwells alone in a desert will find no opportunity of either practising or violating. The second class or kind of actions also distinguishable by means of natural reason are those which contribute to the perfection of the human soul: Such are, to be humble and submissive before the Creator, and to do those things dictated by reason, in conformity to the general rule that good deeds are acceptable to the Deity; which rule is taught to man by his inward feelings. Thus the prophet, when reproving the Israelites for their ignorance of the ways of God and of his judgments, saith, "I thought they are but the poorer classes, they are ignorant of the ways of the Lord, of the judgments of their God." (Jer. v. 4.) And in another place the same prophet saith, "The stork under the heavens knows its season, the turtle dove, the crane, and the swallow observe the time of their return; but my people know not the judgments of the Lord." (Jer. viii. 7.) What the prophet here says does not allude to the ways of the law and its judgments; (for these are not intuitively known to every man, as the stork knows its season or the migratory birds the time of their return, by instinct ;) but he alludes to that knowledge of the Lord and of his ways, which is implanted in our natural reason; namely, that he supports the world, is merciful, and grants food to all his creatures, and preserves their existence. This is what the prophet calls "the ways of the Lord;" and when he mentions "the judgments" of their God, he means the knowledge of what in justice is due to the Creator from his creatures, who are indebted to him for every thing; they therefore owe him unlimited gratitude, and are with constant humility and submission to consider themselves as servants in the presence of their Lord, to whom extreme veneration is due, and whose dignity must not be attainted in any way. All this is enjoined by man's natural reason

conse

without the aid of doctrinal instruction. This will explain to us why the Lord did not turn to Cain and to his offering; because it was not presented with that becoming motive which natural reason inculcates. For, according to its dictates, it behoves us to harbour and evince gratitude corresponding to the benefits we have received; and, quently, it is wrong to offer our benefactor a present of an inferior kind, when it is in our power to place before him something more valuable. Not that the relative value of a gift can render it more acceptable to that Benefactor to whom we owe every thing; but that it evinces the degree of estimation in which we hold him and his good

ness.

And when Cain offered of the fruits which grew on the earth

instead of the nobler פרי האדמה

fruits which grow upon trees, and which he likewise had it in his power to present, he evinced his evil disposition, and violated the dictates of his natural reason, which taught him that his utmost gratitude was due to his Great Benefactor.

Although the two general classes of actions which we have above enumerated, are distinguishable by means of man's natural reason, nevertheless as that reason is insufficient to determine the minute actions of which each class is composed, or to decide what particular deeds are acceptable to the Deity, it is needful that Divine inspiration should be afforded, in order by its aid to acquire a perfect knowledge of the true faith, and of those respective actions which are pleasing in the sight of God; as it is not probable that the power of providence should be less active in imparting to man what is needful for the acquisition of that perfection which is exclusively peculiar to him, than it has evinced itself to all other animate beings, as we have already fully demonstrated in the sixth chapter of our first division.

CHAPTER VIII.

THE Divine inspiration, which, as we have already demonstrated, is indispensably necessary to teach man that which is acceptable before

the Deity, cannot be obtained by man according to his own will and inclination, as it forms no necessary part of his nature; but it depends entirely on the will of the Most High. For that which is an emanation from the purest intelligence can only rest on corporeal matter, according to the will of that Most High Source from which it emanates, but cannot in any way be subject to the will or influence of corporeal matter. Therefore, the Heathens of the olden time held it to be impossible that the Spirit of the Deity should rest on any man, or that such man should prophesy by virtue of a power directly derived from God; but they thought that by erecting statues to certain constellations, and offering them incense under peculiar ceremonies, the spirit of such constellations might be evoked, and called down, to enable the worshipper to predict future events. This is called DP, "sorcery: And as a desire to pry into futurity, and to be acquainted with the events which are to befal them, is common to all men, the ancients attached themselves to sorcerers and astrologers. Some of them applied themselves to witchcraft, and the service of various impure spirits; others worshipped the spirit of fire, and made their sons and daughters traverse the flames; while not a few paid their adoration to the spirit of the air. But the sole purpose of their various systems of worship was, to evoke the influence of some one or other of these spirits, in order thereby to arrive at the knowledge of future events. The same end was pursued by those who passed their nights in burial-grounds, or in funeral vaults, offering incense to the dead. One of their ceremonies was, that a man and a woman stood on a tomb; the man at the head of the corpse, the woman at the feet; between them there is a small bell. They both commence to exorcise the corpse, ringing the bell at intervals. The apparition is generally visible to the woman only: She tells the man what she sees; and he puts questions and receives replies, which make known to him such events as are on the eve of occurring. The

formulas of invocation and exorcism which they use, and the ceremonies they perform, are minutely and circumstantially described in their books on demonology. But all such systems of divination, and attempts to pry into futurity, are strictly prohibited in the law, where it says, "There shall not be found amongst thee any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer." (Deut. xviii. 10, 11.) And the reason is added, (verse 12,) "For whosoever doeth this is detestable unto the Lord thy God." He (blessed be HE!) is holy and pure. His servants are sanctified, and free from impurity: Whereas the rites which

we

have enumerated, and which Holy Writ condemns, are addressed to impure and unholy beings. The Sacred Scriptures proceed to tell us,

to

"These nations whom thou art to conquer listen to observers of times, and unto diviners; " (verse 14 ;) for, according to their opinion and belief, there is no Divine inspiration, and that it is only by means of unholy rites that future events can be made known to man: "But thou," says Holy Writ, addressing the Israelites, "thou art not so apportioned by the Lord thy God; thee it is given to know that the Divine inspiration is afforded to man; and, accordingly, "a prophet, from amongst thee, from thy bre thren, like unto me, will the Lord thy God raise unto thee; to him shall ye hearken." (Verses 14, 15.) Not, as these nations imagine, an impure spirit evoked by constraint will make known to thee what is to happen; but a prophet, inspired by the Most High, will acquaint thee with what it behoves thee to know; and "to him shalt thou hearken." Thus thou wilt be pure and perfect before the Lord thy God, uncontaminated by the abomination of witchcraft; and not only wilt thou learn those events which are to betide thee, but likewise what actions are acceptable to thy God: And this last is the great purpose for