SECTIONL 499 Exod. xvii. 5, 6, 7, " The Lord said to Moses, Go on be- fore the people, and take with thee the elders of Israel,Behold I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb, and thou shalt smite. the rock, and thereshall comewater out of it.:And he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the chiding of the children. of Israel, and because they tempted the Lord." Here God promises to stand before Moses on the rock, and the Israelites are said to tempt the Lord,- which is applied to Christ ; 3 Cor. x. 4. This rock on which God stood is called Christ, that is, the type of Christ in whom Goddwelt. And verse 9, they are said to tempt Christ, that is, they tempted God, appearing in a visiblemanner as standing on a rock. The other place where they tempted God, is Deut. xxi. 5, 6. for want of bread sod water, and " the Lord sent fiery ser- pents, &o." Both these are joined together; Deut. viii. 15.-- And in both places we may justl' say Christ was tempted, that is, God appearing as the leader of Israel in the wilderness : For if it is expressly asserted, they tempted Christ when the serpents slew them, where there is net any express account of a visible appearance-of God in the history, much more may it be Said they tempted Christ when Moses smote the rock, where there was a visible appearance of God as standing on the rock. Exod. xix. 2, 3. " Israel camped before the mount Sinai, and Moseswent up auto God, and the Lord called unto him out of the mountain. Verse 9. And the Lord said unto Moses,' Be hold I come unto thee in a thick cloud, that thepeople may hear When I speak with thee. Verse 18. And mount Sinai was alto- gether on a smoke because the Lord descended upon it in fire, Verse 19. Moses spake' and God answered him by a voice. Verse 20. And theLord called Moses up to the top of the mount, and Moses went up." Exod. xx. 1. " And God spake all these words; saying, I am the Lord thy God which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me, &c. Verse 19. And the people said to Moses, Let not God speak to us, lest we die. Verse 21. " And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was ; and the Lord said unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, Ye have seen that I have talked with you'from heaven." Thus Godgave his laws to his people from Mount Sinai ; but neither Moses nor the people did at this time see any similitude or figure ; for.so. Moses tells them ; Deut. iv. 12. And the Lord spake unto Nina out ofthemidst of thefire: Ye heard the voice of the words ; but ye sawno similitude, onlyye heard a voice. And indeed it is probable that Moses never saw any form of the, countenance, or face of a man, in all tlte'appearances of God. [i2
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