..M1161e i iiau uu,,.. - . ase,; 9',. r // ï l/--r. ... NUMBERS XXII. 1+1. 3 Verfe 3. afraid of the people] or, becaufe of the people. Thus the prophetic was fulfilled, I he migh- tie men of Moab trembling , flsaU takes holdupon them, Exod. 15. 15. Moab was irked] that is,grirved, diflreffd in themfelves, pricked in their hearts with a loathing of this people. The lame is fpo- ken of the /Egyptians, theÿ were irked becaufe of the fons of Ifrael, Exod. t. 1 2. There was no caufe for the Moabites thus to fret : for Ifrael paffed by them in peace, and touched not their border, be- ing forbidden of God, Deut.2..9. They had alto by the (laughter of the Amorites, freed them from evill neighbours, which had before taken a- way a part of their land, and were likely in time to have taken more, Nun1.21.26. And they were allied unto Iliad , for Moab was the pofteritie of Ins, unto whom Abraham the father of Ifrael was Uncle, and-whom Abraham had refcued out of captivitie,Gen.59.36,37. & 14.12,16. But being now degenerate from the faith. of their father Lot, and fallen to idolatry,Num.a 1.29. they fea- red (as doe the wicked) where no feare wat,Pfa1.53 5. and doe loath the people of the God of Abra- ham, and Lot their father. 4 Verfe 4. Elders ofMidian] in Gteeke, the Se- nate ofMediam. Thefe Elders were Senators, fuch as governed the State , called afterward Princes, verle 7, 8, and the Midianites were by nature the children of Abraham, Gen.25.1,2. and fo bre- thren unto Ifrael ; but now confpired againit them; being alto fallen from Abrahams faith to idolatrywith Baal - Pehor, Num.25. 17,18. They were neighbours to the Moabites , and as it fee - meth had beene confederates with them in for- mer wars; as when Hadad King of Edon', [mote Mi- dianin the field of Moab, 1 Chron. 1.46..Thefe were not the people againft whom Ifrael fhould war; neither had they occalon to be offended at the Amorites overthrow, who held them in ftb- jeEtion: for the five Kings of Midi=that combi- ned with Moab, and penned for the fame, Num. 31.8.are called the Dukes of Sibon,Jof, i 3.21. They had caufe therefore to have beetle thankful] unto Ifac!, who freed them from Sihons tyrannous yoke,and to have rejoyced with the joy, and for the profperity of their brethren. this company] or, the Church ; ir. Greeke, this Synagogue or Congre- gation. licke up] that is,devoure,or confume, as the Chaldee explaineth it. So fire that confumeth,is laid colicketwin t King.i8.g8. but here the finii- litude is taken from oxen that licite up the graffe as they feed. And not unfitly doth llloab hereby, as it were, prophetic of their owne deliruftion : for the ftrength and beauty of /Pact may well be likened hereto, as lofephs was by Mofes to hisfirff- borne buflocke , Deut. 33. 17. and thewicked are as graffe, and (hall Toone be cut downe, and wither as the green herhe,Pfal.47.2. And though at this time Ifrael might not meddle with Moab., (for they had other enemies to prey upon,and the oste '; at when hee bath fodder, Job 6. 5.) yet it Prophet foretold of a Star and Step- , tid rife out of Ifrael , and [mite the corners 01.24,17. which was fulfilled in part by David, who fmote Moab, and they became his f einents, 1 Chron, I 8. 2. And God further pro - phefteth their deltruEtion afterward, I have broken 1 Moab, like a vefell wherein is nopleafrere, faith the LOP. D, Jer. 48. 3 8, Verfe 5. Balaam] fo written after the Greeke, and the NewTeftantent, Rev. 2.1 4. in Hebrew, Bilgbnam, Hee was a Diviner, or Sootbfayer, as is Paid in Jot-. 13. 22. Balaam alfo :befenrte f Beor, the Diviner, did the [trims of Ifrael fay with the fword: where the name Diviner, (or Soothfayer) is to be undenfood of the fon Balaam, not of the father Beor; as the like phrafe in Efay 37.2. thew - eth, where It is Paid, Vnto Efaias the fame of Amos the Prophet : which another Scripture explaineth thus, 'Unto Efaias the Prophet, the forme of Amos, 2 King.' 9.2. And that,Balaam was indeed Inch a kinde of man, is after thewed by Motes, in Num. 24.1. The Apoltle calleth bins a Prophet, 2 Pet.a, t 6. and fal fe Prophets are called Diviners, Jer.27, 9. and their prophefying, Divination, E2ek. 13, 6, 7,23. What a Diviner was, is fhewçd osi Deut.18. fame of Bear] fo the Greeke here writeth that which in Hebrew is Beghnor : But the Apoltle Peter writing from Babylon, i Peter 5. I3. calleth him time f$ofor, 2 Pet.z,15. For in the Babylo- nian or Chaldee language, the Hebrew letter uGbnajn, is often pronouncedlike S, whereupon ,e y the Greeke Interpreters, fometime put S in head thereof; as Gnammi d,,,Numb. t. t o. is in Greeke Semioud, and in Jer. 46.17, Soon heghnebir, the In- terpreters (taking it for a proper name) expreffe it in Greeke thus , Sao neesbeie : fo Iehojadaagb, in Jer.29.26. is in Greek, Iodeft; Hofheangh, in Num. 13.8. is Aufes; and Iefhuangh,Ezra 2.2.. is lefut,and many the like. Petiot]in Greeke, Pbathourra; it was a citie in Mefipotamia or Aram, Nuns. 23. 7. Deut. 23. 4. the countrey where Abraham firlt dwelt, A&.7.2. Gen.24.4,1 o. and,there he ferved ftrange gods, Job 24.2. In this countrey all the. Patriarchs (except B.njamin) the heads of the Tribes of Ifrael were borne and brought up,Gen. 35.26. till Iakjb their father lied the land,after he had there ferved for a wife, and for a wife had kept fhcep,Hof 12.12. Gen.3 5.21. lakobs potted- tie hereupon profeffed their father to be an Ara- mite, or Syrian, Dent. 26. 5. and from Aram is Ba- laam now bent for to curie them. And as it was in the Eaft countrey,Nnm.2 3.7.10 the, Ealterne land was infamous for Divination and fuch like arts : Ice Eia.2.6. by the river] to wit, Euphrates, cal- led the river by excellencie, becaufe it was the greatelt,Gen. i 5.18, fo in Jof.24.2,15.2 Sam. 10. 56.1 King. 4.24. Chron.i 9.16. And thus the Chaldee here explaineth it, to Pethorof Aram which is by Euphrates. they cover] Hehr. it cove- retb,bpeaking of the people as of one. The Scrip- ture ufeth the fingular or plurall number indif- ferently , as is noted on Gen. 22. 19. the rye] that ls,the face,or fight (as the Greeke tranflateth) ofthe land (or earth.) See the like phrafe in Exod. 10.5,15. abide] fit, or dwell over again/i mee. There words implied reafons to perfwade Bslaam to corhe; for their comming out of Egypt, inti- mateth
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