rn(•rcifully d<'alt with (Matt.. niii. 23-35). We cannot sufficiently admire the com- bin<'d justice nnd tenderness of these Mosaic precepts. lll. l'nonsrox rs TO DE LEFT FOR THE NEEDY. (Vers. 19-22.) These are beautiful rnlcs. 'l'he Jews were under the Law, but it was a La\\• the fulfilling of which we.s " lo"<'e." The Yariety of ways in "·hich the Law seeks to instil lo1•e into the hearts of I he chosen people would form a study eminently suitable for the pulpit. The pqor wo itnve always with us, and they should be often in our thoughts. (Southey's poem, • The Complaints (•f the Poor.') In the corn-field, among the olives, in the vineyard, they were to be remembered. "rhen the wealthy arc gathering in their abundance then is the time lor remembering the needy. Thus will tho heart be kept warm: covetousness checked, our own happiness best secured, the wants of the poor supplied, tll<'ir blessing obtained, a treasure laid up in heaven. "There is that scattereth, and yl'l increa.scth" (Prov. xi. 24).-J. 0.
vers. 1-6.-The rights of women. The tendency of the true reliaion has been to secure and respect the rights of women. Now, we have here women's riahts brouaht under notice in two cases-in a case of separation, and in a case of war. Moses, "because of the hardness of their hearts," allowed divorce, because it prevailed to a lamentable extent in society in his time. He suffered them to divorce their wives, but insisted on a writtc-n divorce. Among other nations an oral divorce was sufficient, and so a divorce might be from the Oimsiest caprice. Again, Moses forbade any coming together as man and wife again, a custom which prevails arnong the .Arabs when the oral divorce is so lightl_v undertaken. Hence we notice in this law given by Moses- I. 'l'HE DlVORCE OF THE WOMAN MUST BE DELIBERATE AND FINAL. Woman was not to be the toy of man's caprice; she was not to be lightly sent away, and, when sent away by the husband after deliberatdy writing her divorce, she was never to be taken back ag:oin. In this way Moses really consulted the ri~ht8 of women. They had a right to a deliberate statement of the grounds of their divorce; they had also a. right to be 11rotccted from further interference on the part of their former husbands. It was a wise expedient considering the degeneracy of the time. It is an improvement assuredly on the arrangements of llfahomet. Our Lord still further secured the rights of women in ordaining that nothing but infidelity on the part of the wife should dissolve the marriage union (Matt. v. 32). II. WAR MUST NOT ROB A NEWLY MARRIED WIFE OF HER HUSBAND; BBE HAS A RIGHT TO HIS SOCIETY FOR A YEAB WITHOUT MOLESTATION. This was placing the interests of a single woman abo,e the interests of the State. This was exalting the bride to e. throne of highest honour surely. Other systems and the world as well may degrade womnn, but God's Law elevates her and enthrones her. . III. Non IS SHE THROUGH HER HUSBAND'S DIFFICULTIES TO LOSE} EITHER OF HER MILL- STO~'ES FOR THE GBIKDING OF THE CORN. Here ll"as another right of the housewife. No legal distraint could reach the little mill which ground the corn at home and kept the wolf from the door. Thus in her sorrows and in her joys God stood her Friend, and insisted on her rights. A similar shield should be thrown over her still. It is by securing her in her rights at home that woman's cause shall be advanced. She is intended to be a queen in the household. Everything that makes her po~ition there more secure, everything that makes the home sacred e1·en from the intrusion of a national war at certain times, everything that makes her feel the foundatioo firm below her,-is in the interests of public weal. But if she is carelessly thrown into the competition with the stronger sex, she will get deteriorated. '!'be rights of women constitute a much longer subject than even Mr. Mill has made it.1 May the interpreter in due season appear !-R. M. E.
Ver. 7.-Man-stealing a capital crime. We have already noticed the merciful fugitive law which forbade any one to restore a runaway to his master. '!'hat was the cure of existing evil. Here we have the prevention, which is better still. For man-stealing and man-selling are the origin of slavery, and the Lord attaches to this tLe peIJalLy of death. As Cheever said of it, "God be praised for this law I It titrikcs through and through the vitals of this sin.'' 2 1 Cf. his 'Subjection of Women.' • 'God against Slavery,' p. 110, err. xxrv. 1-22.] 'fl:IE BOOK OF DEUTERONOMY. 387
J. LIBERTY lllUBT BE MAINTAINED UNJ)ER THE PENAL SL'iCTION OF DEATH TO IIIM WHO INVADES IT, The ruffian who would steal and sell a brother deserves to die. His treason against the liberty of his fellow is an unpardonable sin against society, nn,! he should get no quarter. No wonder men have fought and died for liberty when God surrounds it with such tremendous sanctions. II. How MU0H GREATER THE CRIME OF BRINGING MEN INTO SPIRITUAL BOllDACa: I And this is done daily. What is the meaning of the power exercised by superstitious priesthoods over their devotees? Is it not "spiritual despotism"? An,\ should nut the crime of man-stealing awake a suspicion in such hearts that their proce,lure is the exact analogue in the spiritual sphere? It should be combated and resisted unto the death, as destroying that heritage of liberty with which the Lord has endowed all men. -R. M.E.
Vers. 10-22.-0onsideration for the poor and needy. After giving a cursory reference to leprosy as a Divine judgment to be divinely removed and ceremonially purged away (vers. 8, 9), Moses enters in these verses into the consideration which should be shown to the poor and needy. The debtor is not to be pressed for bis pled~e, and, if raiment, it must be restored in time for him to sleep with due clothing. The hired servant, engaged for the day, is to get his pay punctually at sundown. The widow, fatherless, and strangers are to have justice dealt to them, and in harvest generous gleanings are to be left for them, The Law inculcates consideration and mercy. I. THE GENEROSITY INCULCATED BY THE LAW MADE IT A MESSAGE OF MERCY TO ALL MEN. For even suppose no sacrificial system preached, typically, the Divine pardon and love, the mercy enjoined upon others argued mercy in the Lawgiver himself. He could not have commanded so much mercy, and manifested none. II. THE POOR WERE SAVED FROM UTTER MENDICANCY BY THE LIBERALITY OF THE LA w. They got their need supplied by working for it. It was better to glean than to have it laid without any cost or trouble to them at their feet. They were free, and had to bestir themselves; thus self-respect was fostered, and real, wholesome work pre- scribed. No wonder that mendicancy was unknown. But nowadays things are made too easy for the "ne'er-do-wells," and a laziness that sacrifices self-respect and liberty on its altar is the blessed result!-R. M. E.