‘ liverance out of Egypt was a type of the deliverance by the Messiah,
whose sacrifice and suffering were represented in the paschal lamb,
which gave occasion unto this gloss.
8. Exod. xl. 10. Targum of Jonathan, “Thou shalt sanctify it for the crown of the kingdom of the house of Judah, thyt smwy x21 sry spa Syne nv prpnd,’—“ and the King Messiah, who shall de- liver Israel in the end of the days.” The end of the unction there mentioned in the text is, that the things anointed might be “IP DvP, “ holiness of holinesses,” unto the Lord. Now, it was the Mes- siah alone who truly and really was this “ most holy One,” Dan. ix. 24, DWAR WIP nvind, “To anoint,” or to make Messiah of, “ the Ho- liness of holinesses,” the most holy One; as he is called in the New
Testament 6 dys, “the Holy One,” xar’ eZoyjv, Acts ii. 14,
iv. 830; 1 John ii. 20; Rev. ii. 7, And hence, as it should seem, is this place applied unto him by the Targumist, and an intimation given that in all their holy things, their tabernacle, sanctuary, and altar, he was represented; for as he was the Most Holy, and his body the temple wherein “all the fulness of the Godhead dwelt,” Col. ii. 9, so zoxjywoev év jury, he “tabernacled amongst us,” John i. 14, and is our “ altar,’ Heb. xiii. 10. '
9. Num. xi. 26, “ But there remained two of the men in the camp,
190 PROMISES OF THE [EXERC. IX.
the name of the one was Eldad, and the name of the other was Medad: and the Spirit rested upon them; and they were of them that were written, but went-not out unto the tabernacle: and they prophesied in the camp.” Here seemeth not to be any thing immediately re- lating unto the Messiah, yet two of the Targums have brought him into this place, but attended with such a story as I should not men- tion, were it not to give a signal instance in it how they raise their traditions. Eldad and Medad “ prophesied in the camp,” as the text assures us. What or whereabout they prophesied is not declared. This the Tareumists pretend to acquaint us withal. ldad, they say, prophesied of the death of Moses, the succession of Joshua, and their entrance into Canaan under his conduct. This caused one to run and inform Moses; which gave occasion to those words of his, verse 29, “ Enviest thou for my sake?”—“ For what if he do prophesy that I shall die?” and thereon he would not rebuke them. Medad pro- phesied of the coming of the quails to feed them. But both of them prophesied and said, »12) novrwd ppbo mmbdom ay 313 Nyy AIT pond pos xmw x2d01;—“In the latter days Gog and Magog shall ascend with their host against Jerusalem, and they shall fall by the hand of the Messiah;” whereon in Jonathan there followeth a story of the delicious fare and dainties which they fancy unto themselves in those days! But what is the reason that Hldad and Medad must be thought to prophesy thus concerning Gog? Ezek. xxxviii. 17, we have these words, “Thus saith the Lorp God” (unto Gog); “Art thou he of whom I have spoken in old° time by my servants the prophets of Israel, which prophesied in those days and years that I would bring thee against them?” Not finding any express prophecy in the Scripture, as they suppose, con- cerning Gog, because that name is not elsewhere used, they could not fasten these words anywhere better than on Eldad and Medad, concerning whom it is said that they prophesied, but nothing is re- corded of what was spoken by them; whereon they think they may assign unto them what thev please, although there is not the least reason to suppose that their prophesying consisted in predictions of things to come. Speaking of the things of God, and praising him in an extraordinary manner, is called “ prophesying” in the Scripture. So these words of the children of the prophets, who came down from the high place with psalteries and harps, 5°8320) 127, 1 Sam. x. 5, “And they are prophesying,” is rendered in the Targum, pnawn ps), “ And they are praising,” or singing praises unto God; which both their company and their instruments declare to have been their employ- ment. But such occasions as these do they lay hold of for the raising of their figments, which in process of time grow to be traditions.
10. Num. xxiii. 21, xxiv. 7, 17, 20, 24, All the Targums agree that the Messiah is intended in these prophecies of Balaam, espe-
SECT. 10.] MESSIAH VINDICATED. 191
cially on these words, chap. xxiv. 17, “ There shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre out of Israel.” “A King,” say they jointly, “shall arise out of Jacob, xm'w x20N",’—“ and the Messiah shall be anointed.” And an illustrious prophecy it is, no doubt, concerning his coming and dominion, who is “the root and the offspring of David, the bright and morning Star.” Rashi interprets the place of David, who smote the corners of Moab, as he was in many things a type of Christ. Aben Ezra confesseth that many interpret the words concerning the Messiah; and Maimonides distributes the prophecy between David and the Messiah, assigning some things unto one, some to another: Tractat. de Regib. in oon Sya, also, they grant it to be a prophecy of the Messiah. And there is no doubt of the sense of their ancient masters, from the story of Bar- Cosba, whom, after they had accepted of for their Messiah, from this place they called Bar-Cochba, Akiba applying this prediction of 3332, or the Star, unto him. And Fagius on the Targum in this place observes, that in the name 3313, “ Cochab,’ applied unto the Messiah, the Cabalists observe two things;—first, that the two first letters signify the same number with the letters of mim, the name of God, that is, 26; and the two latter 22, the number of the letters of the law. The observation is sufficiently Talmudical; but the intendment of it, that the Messiah hath in him the name of God, and shall fulfil the whole law, is a blessed truth. This Fagius, and Munster before him, observed out of W¥ 120, “ A Bundle of Myrrh;” a kabalistical comment on the Penta- teuch, by R. Abraham. But they all contend against the application of this prediction unto our Lord Jesus Christ; “ For when,” say they, “did he ‘smite the corners of Moab?’ when did he ‘destroy all the children of Seth?’ and how were these words, verse 18, "YY Palo “3,” (which they interpret, “ And Israel shall gather wealth,” or “substance’’) “fulfilled?” But we have sufficiently proved the Messiah to be a spiritual Redeemer; and therefore, however his kingdom may be expressed in words signifying literally outward and tem- poral things, yet things spiritual and eternal are to be understood as figuratively set out by the other. Neither can these words be absolutely understood according to the letter; for whereas Seth was the son given unto Adam in the room of Abel, and all the posterity of Cain was cut off at the flood, if the Messiah literally “destroy all the children of Seth,” he must not leave any one man alive in the world; which certainly is not the work he was promised for. Besides, the Lord Christ hath partly already destroyed, and in due time will utterly destroy, all the stubborn enemies of his kingdom. Neither can the Jews press the instance of “ Moab” literally, seeing themselves by “ Edom” do constantly understand Rome, or the Roman empire.