The Pulpit Commentary — Deuteronomy — Section 164

iii. 4: Pa. xvii. 3; lxxxi. 7, etc.), as well ns by would imply impntience nncl diBtrnst of benefits (Exod. x,i. 4). Humbled so as to God, who hRs engRgod to suetnin the life sec hi• "wn wealniees, chastised out of all of his scrvnnts, nnd who oon, by the mcro sclf-conrcit by nffiiction, man ie brought to word of his mouth, by his creative will, provide in an extraordinary way for tho RUbmil to God, to hear nnd obey him; and sustcnanco of lifo when the ordinary means nlong with this the experience of God's of life arc wanting." "Josue means to say, goodness tends to drnw meu, in grateful 'I leal"e it with God to care for the sustain• acknowlcdgm<'nt of his mercy and bounty, ing of my lifL,, and I will not nrbitrarily to yield themselves to him and sincerely an<l for scltlsh ends holp myself by I\ mirnclo'" (De Wctte, note on llfott. iv. 4; nnd l",ingly to ser1•c him (cf. Rom. ii. 4). sec also Meyer on the place). Yers. 1, 2.-God's denlings with the Ver. 4.-As the manna furnished by Israelites were disciplinary. Both by the God's creative power saved them from nfilictions nnrl primtione to which they hunger, so by God's providence and oare were enhject.cd, and h_v the provision they their raiment wo.s marvellously kept from receiYecl nncl the prot.eclion afforded to decay, and they had not to go barefoot from them. Goel sought to bring them into and their sando.ls being worn out. Waxed not keep thmn in a right state of mind towards old upon thee; litero.lly, did not fall away, him-a state of humble dependence, sub- UJUJlte away from upon thee. This cannot missi vc obedience, and hope!ul trust. But mean that such was the abundant supply of that this effect should be produced, it wa.s raiment to the Israelites in the Arabian needful that thev should mark and re- desert, that there was no need for them to ruemhcr nil his wavs towards them. wear garments rent and tattered from long Yer. 3.-Go<l h~mbled the Israelites by use, as they had large flocks and herds Jen Ying- them to suffer hunger from tile want whence B sufficient supply of wool and of foocl, an<l then suppl)ing them with leuther could be obtained, and there were food ia n miraculous manner. 'fhey were among them skilled 0,rtificer8, by whom thns taught that their life depended wholly these could be made into articles of clothing on God. who conld, by his own creative (Roseumiiller, J. D. lllicha,elis, etc.). For, power. without any of the ordinary me1ns, as Knobel observes, "This were something 11ro..-icle for the sustaining of their life. too insignificant beside the miraculous And fed thee with manna (cf. Exod. xd. 15). manna; and besides, this does not lie in It is in min to seek to identify this with the expression, which rather intima,tes that any natural product. It was something the clothes upon them were not w0rn out entirely new to the Israelites-a thing nor fell from them in rags, because Gorl which neither the, nor their fathers knew; gave them a marvellous durability." At truly Lread from· hea,cn, and which got the same time, there is no reason to suppose from them the nnmo of manna or man, that the Israelites did not ma,ke use of such because, in their wondering ignorance, they supplies 0,5 were within their reach for knew not "l"I" Lat to call it, and so they said purposes of clothing, any mor/i than tbnt one to auother, Man hoof ci--:1;; ;r;), Trhat is they lived only on manna during the forty ii 1 and thenceforward called it man. years of their wandering. Still less need That he might me.ke thee Jmow, etc. "Ilff•ad," we resort to such fanciful suppositions as which the Jews regarded as "the btaff of that the garments of tho Israelitish children lif~.'' stands here, as in other plnces, for expanded o.8 they grew up, like the shells food irencrally; and the lesson taught the of snails-which is tho notion of some of IsradiLes was that not in one way or by the Jewish rabbins, a,nd adopted by some of one kind of means alone could life be sus- the Christian Fathers (see Dey ling, 'Obss. tained, Lut iu the ausencc of these God Snee.,' II. xvii. p. 247). Neither did thy foot coukl, Ly his own fiat, provide for the swell. The verb here is found in only one sustenance of his children. Every word- other passage (Neh. ix. 21), where this pns• liierally, all, e,erylhing whatcrer-that sage is repeated; and the meaning is doubt• proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord, i.e. ful. The LXX. render hero by fruJ..di811uav, all means which God bas by hie word pro- became callous; but in Noh. the rendering ,.-j,Jed, or Ly his word can provide, for the they give is liLEppd'Y7/1Tav, tvere tom, the object sustenance of life. So our Lord cites this torn being, according to the Cod. Vat., .,,.&au passage in replying to tl,e trrnpter, who had a~-rwv, their feet, according to the Cod. Alex., ~U!!!!ested that if he was !he Sou of God ho .-?,_ inroliriµ.a-ra a6-rwv, their sandals. In eh. mig1,t rdiern himself from tLe paugs of xxix. 5, the shoe 01· sandal is specially men• lrnuger Ly commanding the stones which tioned in the same connection as here. 'l'he lay ar,,urid to become bread. Onr Lord's verb, however, cannot mean tear or tom, l"eply t,, this is virtually," I have this power, neither does it mean swell ; the idea in• aud could nse it, Lut I will not; for this ,·ol ved is rather that of softening, or melt• clt. VIII. 1-20.] 'l'IIE IlOOK OF DEUTEP.ONO:MY. 153