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the owner of the sacrifice, as the form of his presenting them to God. These portions of the peace offerings were allotted towards the maintenance of the priests, during the weeks of their attendance at the sanctuary; for they were not permitted to carry them home with them, unto their own houses in the country; but they and their families were to "eat them in the place which the Lord should choose;" that is, the place of his public most solemn worship by sacrifice, Deut. xii, 18.

Along with these peace offerings, at least with those of thanksgiving, there was also offered bread of fine flour, and oil, both leavened and unleavened, made into cakes and wafers, which were likewise the priest's due, Lev. vii, 12, 13. The rest of the flesh of the peace offerings belonged to the owner of the sacrifice, with which it was usual to make a feast, and entertain his friends, either on the day of the sacrifice, or the next day at furthest; for if any of the flesh remained till the third day, it was to be burnt, ver. 17. Thus the lewd woman in the Proverbs is represented as inviting an unwary youth to a feast upon her votive peace offerings," Prov. vii, 14. These feasts were often kept in the courts of the temple, or in some of the buildings adjoining, where there were cook rooms, and conveniences for dressing the flesh of the sacrifices, as appears very probable from the account of the solemn passover which Josiah kept at the temple, that the Levites "roasted the passover with fire," according to the ordinance but the other holy offerings sod they in pots, and in caldrons, and in pans, and divided them speedily among all the people. And afterwards they made ready for themselves and for the priests," 2 Chron. xxxv, 13, 14. In like manner they did at Shiloh, before the temple was built; where the sons of Eli, instead of contenting themselves with the breast and shoulder, which the law assigned them for their due, brought up a custom of sticking a three-pronged fork or hook into the caldron where the peace offering was boiling, and taking whatever it brought up, 1 Sam. ii, 13, 14.

The Gentiles, likewise, who borrowed many of their sacrifical rites from the Jews, used sometimes to hold the feasts of their peace offerings in the temples of their gods. Hence St. Paul, in the first epistle to the Corinthians, speaks of their

"sitting at meat in the idol's temple," 1 Cor. viii, 10. But they did not always feast upon this flesh with their friends; they sometimes sold it in the common market, as is plainly intimated in the following passage of the same epistle, "Whatever is sold in the shambles, that eat, asking no question for conscience sake," 1 Cor. x, 25, that is, as the context leads us to understand it, not inquiring whether it had been offered in sacrifice to an idol.

Thus much for the different sorts of sacrifices, in respect to their signification and use.

2dly, Sacrifices may be divided, in respect to the persons that offered them, into public and private.

1st, The public sacrifices were offered for the whole people of Israel; as two lambs for burnt offerings every day, one in the morning, the other in the evening; which are called the continual burnt offering, Exod. xxix, 42; two lambs more, that is, four, on every Sabbath-day, Numb. xxviii, 9, 10; two young bullocks, one ram, and seven lambs, for a burnt offering; and a kid of the goats for a sin offering, every new moon, ver. 11, 15; and the same sacrifices every day of the feast of unleavened bread, and of the first fruits, ver. 17, et seq. On the day of the feast of trumpets, on the great day of expiation, and at the feast of tabernacles, there were also extraordinary public sacrifices appointed, Numb. xxix. Beside these, and some other stated public sacrifices, there were occasional public sacrifices sometimes offered; as the sin offering of the congregation, when they had sinned through ignorance, Lev. iv, 13, 14. And on occasion of the war with the Benjamites, "all the children of Israel offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the Lord, Judg. xx, 26.

2dly, Private sacrifices, offered for particular persons, were either stated or occasional. Of the former sort was the paschal lamb, sacrificed annually for each family; and the high priest's sin offering for himself, on the day of expiation, Lev. xvi, 6. To this there is a reference in the following passage of the apostle, "Into the second" tabernacle, or holy of holies, "went the high priest alone every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people," Heb. ix, 7.

Occasional private sacrifices were offered on account of any

trespass committed against the law, or any legal pollution contracted, any vow made, any blessing received, &c.

3dly, Sacrifices are again to be distinguished, in respect to the subject matter of them, into bloody or unbloody, or into animal and vegetable.

The animal sacrifices were of one species of the herd; namely, the bullock, or cow, including the calf; two of the flock; namely, sheep and goats; and two of the fowls; namely, doves and pigeons.

The unbloody, or vegetable sacrifices, of which we are to speak at present, were the no minchoth, and □□ nesachim, meat offerings and drink offerings. As for the tythes and first fruits, we shall have occasion to speak of them hereafter.

The meat offerings were either attended with drink offerings, or they were offered alone.

1st, The meat offerings, attended with drink offerings, called minchoth nesachim, were fine flour, salt, and oil, made either into thick cakes, or thin wafers, and baked either in a pan or oven. The drink offering was of wine, which was poured out at the base of the altar. These meat and drink offerings were a sort of appendages to the sacrifices; they were offered along with all the burnt offerings, except of birds; and with the peace offerings, Numb. xv, 3, &c.; but not with the sin offerings, except that which was offered at the cleansing a leper, Lev. xiv, 10.

2dly, The meat offerings alone, which were not offered along with animal sacrifices, were either public or private. The public were the wave sheaf, Lev. xxiii, 10, 11, and the twelve cakes of shew bread, Lev. xxiv, 5.

The private were either enjoined by the law, as that of the priest at his consecration, Lev. vi, 20, and that which the jealous husband was to offer, Numb. v, 15; or they were allowed in case of poverty, when the persons could not afford a more costly sacrifice, Lev. v, 11.

The meat offerings were all of white flour, except that of the jealous husband, which was of barley meal, without any mixture; and the wave sheaf, which was not ground into flour; all the rest were fine wheat flour, seasoned with salt, Lev. ii, 13. Some were mixt with oil, or frankincense, or both, ver. 15. Some were offered unbaked, others baked.

Some were eat by the priests, without bringing them to the altar at all; as the leavened cakes and the shew bread.

Some were wholly consumed on the altar, as every meat offering for a priest, Lev. vi, 23.

But as to the most of them, a memorial or small part was consumed on the altar; the rest belonged to the priest, Lev. ii, 2, 3.

Thus I have given you a brief account of the Jewish sacrifices. I shall only further observe, that if a person, obliged by the law to offer any of these sacrifices, refused to do it, he was punished even with "cuting off." But the Jews were generally so zealously attached to their law, that there was very rarely any occasion for inflicting punishment upon this account. If a man, who lived at a great distance from Jerusalem, had fallen under an offence, which required him to make a sin, or a trespass offering, the rabbies say, he might defer it till the next solemn festival, when all were obliged to appear before the Lord at the national altar*.

* See on this subject Maimonides de Sacrificiis, Abarbanel's Exordium Comment. in Levit. and Outram de Sacrificiis.

CHAP. VI.

OF THE PROPHETS.

CONCERNING the prophets, we shall first consider the name, and then the duty and business of the prophetic office.

As to the name, there are three different words, by which prophets are denominated in scripture; namely, roeh, chozeh, nabhi, which are all found in one passage, where we read of Samuel haroeh, Nathan hannabhi, and Gad n hachozeh, 1 Chron. xxix, 29. The word nabhi, is by some derived from bo, venit, intimating that God came to the prophet by the divine afflatus. Thus Ezekiel saith, mam vattabo bi ruach, which we render," and the spirit entered into me," Ezek. ii, 2. Some light, perhaps, may be hereby given to that remarkable promise of Christ, "If any man love me, he will keep my words, and I and my Father will love him, and we will come and make our abode with him," John xiv, 23; namely, by the continual influence of the Spirit on his heart.

But others derive nabhi from nubh, provenire, from whence comes nibh, germen, fructus, a word metaphorically applied to speech, which is called the fruit, → nibh, of the lips, Isa. lvii, 19; and it is said the mouth of the just bringeth forth janubh, wisdom, Prov. x, 31. Prophecy, therefore, being the fruit of the lips in consequence of divine inspiration, the prophet is called nabhi. In the first place wherein this word occurs, it is applied to Abraham: "Restore the man his wife, for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live; but if thou restore her not, thou shalt die," Gen. xx, 7. Where a nabhi is supposed to be a friend of God, whom he would not suffer to be wronged, and whose prayers were very prevalent with him. Accordingly by the Psalmist God is represented as saying,

Touch not mine

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