The Pulpit Commentary — Joshua — Section 382

dnnger. The nltitr was built chiefly for the sake of the children of the futme. 'fhe Church c,m on!~- be m1tint,1tined by bringing the chihlren into the places of the Plders as these pass away. Children do not become Clnistittus instinctiYely, or by the influence of the mere atmosphere of religion about them; they must bo taught ancl t.-a.ined; therefore the education of the young should be a primnry object of Christian work. 111. THE MEANS EMPLOYED. Au altttr of witness was erected. This was not for rncrifice and worship, to ifral that of the tabernacle, like the altars attached to the cah·es at Bethel and Dau (l Kings xii. 28, 29). (l) It was simply a visible synibol. (a) It was a symbol-trnth is often suggested most clearly by parables and illustra- tions. (b) It was vi.sible. Truth should be made clear and striking. (c) It was .substantial. Truth should be established by solid evidence, not melted down into vapid _sentiments. (d) It was end1tri.n_q. We should not be satisfied with super- ficial impressions, but aim at establishing au enduring faith. (2) The Christia;n lia., alla,·s of witness, e.g., (a) the Bible preserved to us through the do.rk ages, (b) the institutions of the Church, baptism, the Lord's supper, and public worship; (c) inwardly to the Christian, the indwelling Christ who is first our altar of so.crifice and then our altar of witness, bearing testimony to the fact that we are His, and one with his true Church by the Spirit He gives to us, and the fruits of this Spirit in our lives (Rom. viii. 9).-W. F. A. Yers. 26, 27.-.A misunderstanding removed. Having completed their engage- ment, the auxilio.ries of Reuben, Gad, and half Manasseh were dismissed by Joshua in peace a.nd honour to their homes, now at length to settle down to the enjoyment of their possessions on the east of the Jordan. Joshua had strictly charged them "to love the Lord," and "to walk in all his ways," and to share with their brethren the spoils acquired in war. One of their first acts on arriving in Gilead was to erect an altar, conspicuous by size and position, and framed after the pattern of the altar before the tabernacle. I. THE INTENTION of the eastern tribes. (l) To have a nieniorial of their 1tnity i.n religious faith with their brethren across the river. Religious ceremonies were inseparably interwoven with the national life, so that to be refused a right to par- ticipate in the former would imply a denial e,f their claim to kinship. The Jordan might hereafter be regarded as a natural barrier of exclusion from the privileges of dwellers in the land of promise. When the Reubenites, &c., had proffered their request to be permitted to dwell on the east of the river, they had not perceived this possible difficulty so clearly, but now, after having trodden t~e pron:iised Ian~, and viewed the habitations of their brethren, they were seized with anxiety lest lil after years they might be regarded as "aliens from the co=onwealth of Israel." Their conduct exhibits a respect for God. Their chief care was not for horses or trophies of war, but for the preservation of a co=on interest in the wor8hip of the true God, and all the advantages thereby secured. They feared the selfishness of the hmnan heart. Men so often like to reserve to themselves peculiar honours and pri\'ileges, to be esteemed the only true people of the covenant. Br~therly love and sympathy are forgotten in the attempt to surronnd ourselves with walls of exclusiveness. A.nd aaainst this narrowing of the national bonnds the altar was to be a continual guard, ~ silent yet eloquent and forcible " witness " to the. brother- hood of all the tribes. And amongst Christians of to-day some such voice is nJt nnneeded to remind us of our co=on interest in the " altar" (Heh. xiii. 10), the cross of Christ, whereby we are made "one body." (2) To preven~ a laps~ into idolatry on the part of their d,escendants. The altar would be astandrng remllld~r of the commandment of God, which forbade the rearing of strange altars for sacn-. flee. These easterns showed a right sense of the importance of preserving the religion of their fathers, and of handing it down nncorrupted to ren:iotest ages. If the knowledge of the true God vanished, then farewell to -all prosperity I What a hint to parents! Men toil to gather wealth for their heirs, to found an esta~e, to perpetuate the family name; it is more important to perpetuate piety, to tram up the children in the nurLure and admonition of the Lord. "The fear of the Lord" oa. xxu. 1-84.) THE BOOK OF .JOSHUA.