Numb. x. 35, 36. And it came to pass, when the ark set for- ivard, that Moses said, Rise up, 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 many thousands of Israel.
PATRIOTISM, according to the general accep- tation of the term, consists in such a partial regard for our native land, as would advance the interests of one's own country at the expense of all others, and trample upon the most sacred rights of justice for the attainment of its ends. In this view, it is no better than a specious cloak for cruelty and oppres- sion : but, when freed from selfishness and injustice, it is a good principle, and nearly allied to religion itself. Such was the patriotism of Moses : he wished well to his own country, and sought to promote its best interests. That he sought to occupy the territory of others, is true : but his right to their land was founded on the grant of Jehovah himself, the great Proprietor of heaven and earth : and his desire to possess it originated, not in a thirst for dominion, but in a persuasion that the possession of it was combined with spiritual blessings, and would tend as much to the advancement of God's honour as of Israel's good. He wished ill to none, any further than as they were enemies of Almighty God : it was their opposition to him which he prayed to be rendered ineffectual. All his desire was, that Israel might be happy in their God, and in the ultimate possession of those pri- vileges which God, in his sovereign mercy, had des- tined them to enjoy. This was the one object for which he prayed, whenever the ark removed, and whenever it became stationary. And from this prayer of his we may learn, what we also should do, I. In times of trial —
It is not to be expected that we should pass through this wilderness without meeting with manifold trials in our way. The Church of old had much to con-