the same duration. The people came out of Egypt, and entered into the wilder- ness in the first month of the year. At the end of the fortieth year from their coming out of Egypt, the eleventh month of it, is issued the history of three of the books of Moses,—Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers. In the last month of that year Moses reviewed and repeated the whole law, the dealings of God, and sins of the people, as recorded in the book of Deuteronomy. About the end of that month, as is probable, he died, and was lamented thirty days, or all the first month of the forty-first year. After which, about three or four days, the people prepared to pass over Jordan, under the- conduct of Joshua, chap. i. 11. This was the space of time mentioned, containing as wonderful issues and successes of things as ever befell the church of God in the like space of time. Every year in the whole forty was full of instances of the people’s sins, provocations, temptations, and unbelief; and every year also was filled with tokens of God’s displeasure and indignation, until the close of the whole dispensation came, wherein that generation that came out of Egypt under Moses was consumed, and the indignation of God rested in their consumption. And it is not unlikely but that the apostle minds the Hebrews of this space of time granted unto their forefathers in the wilderness after their coming up out of Egypt, with their abuse of it, because an alike space of time was now, in the patience of God, allotted unto the whole church and people of the Jews, between the preaching of Christ and that wasting destruc- tion that was to come upon them. And according to this type it fell out with them; for, as after their forefathers, who came up under Moses out of Egypt were consumed in forty years in the wilderness,a new church, a new generation, under the conduct of Joshua, entered into the rest of God; so within forty years after the preaching of spiritual deliverance unto them, which was rejected by them, that whole generation was cut off in the wrath of God, and a new church of Jews aud Gentiles, under the conduct of the true Joshua, enters into the rest of God. Ave x%p000%616%,— Wherefore I was grieved.” The apostle here alters the tenor of the discourse in the psalmist, by interposing a reference unto the cause of God’s being grieved with the people, in the word 0:¢, “ wherefore;” that is, because of their manifold temptations and provocations, not cured, not healed, although for so long a season they beheld his works. They continued in the same kind of sins on the account whereof God was first provoked, and sware against their entering into the land. For, as we have before observed, the oath of God passed against them at the beginning of the forty years; but they abiding obstinately in the same sins, the execution of that oath had respect unto all their provocations during the whole forty years. Ilpooaysow, I was grieved.” This word is supposed peculiar unto the Hellenistical Jews, nor doth it occur in any other author, but only in the Greek version of the Old Testament. Nor isit used by the LXX. in any place to express v'p, the word here used in the origi- nal, but they render it by xzuyw, éxrqxo, and xoréa. Inthe New Testament it is only in this place, and thence transferred into the psalm. It is generally thought to be derived from 646 or 660s, “ the bank of a river, a rising hill or ridge by the water’s side.” Thence is da, “ to be offended,” to bear a thing difficultly, with tediousness and vexation, so as to rise up with indignation against it, like the ground that riseth against the waters. IIpocoxé/fw is the same, with an addition of sense, “to be greatly grieved.” And this word, “to be grieved,” is ambiguous even in our language: for it either is as much as “ dolore affici,” to be affected with sorrow and grief, or a being wearied, accompanied with indignation; as we say, such or sucha thing is grievous,—that is, “ grave,” “ molestum,” or “ trouble- some.” And so is the word here used, “ grieved,” that is burdened, and provoked, offended. So Jerome: “ Displicuit mihi generatio ista,” “displeased me.” “Pertuli eam, sed non sine tedio,”—* I bare them, but not without wearisomeness.” Sym- machus and Aquila render the original word by dvacpecrtoueas, “ to be displeased.”
VER. 7-11.] EPISTLE TO THE HEBREWS. 18
DIPS LP is a word often used, and of an ambiguous signification,—* to cut off,” “to contend,” “ to abominate,” (hence by the Arabic it is rendered “ cursed them,”) to be “ divided with trouble, offence, weariness, and grief.” It is com- monly in the feminine gender, and joined with "23, “my soul,” or *7, “ my life.” This is the intendment of it: The appointed time ‘of God’s patience Was worn out with their continued provocations, so that he was wearied with them, and weary of them,—he could bear them no longer.
The Vulgar Latin in some copies reads, “ Proximus fui huic generationi,’—* I was near to this generation.” And so are the words still in some of the Roman offices. Some think that countenance is given hereto by the sense of the word mpoctrx hice, which may signify “ accedere” or “ proximare ad ripam animo hos- tili,’— to draw near to a shore, a bank, with a hostile mind.”