Pants in her breast, and swells her rising heart:
Still swelling to the sight, the priestess glowed,
And heaved impatient of the incumbent god.
Pitt.
Neither seek after wizards - ידענים yiddeonim, the wise or knowing ones, from ידע yada, to know or understand; called wizard in Scotland, wise or cunning man in England; and hence also the wise woman, the white witch. Not only all real dealers with familiar spirits, or necromantic or magical superstitions, are here forbidden, but also all pretenders to the knowledge of futurity, fortune-tellers, astrologers, etc., etc. To attempt to know what God has not thought proper to reveal, is a sin against his wisdom, providence, and goodness. In mercy, great mercy, God has hidden the knowledge of futurity from man, and given him hope - the expectation of future good, in its place. See Clarke's note on [Exo 22:18].
Verse 32
Before the hoary head - See Clarke's note on [Gen 48:12].
Verse 33
If a stranger sojourn - This law to protect and comfort the stranger was at once humane and politic. None is so desolate as the stranger, and none needs the offices of benevolence and charity more: and we may add that he who is not affected by the desolate state of the stranger has neither benevolence nor charity. It was politic to encourage strangers, as in consequence many came, not only to sojourn, but to settle among the Jews, and thus their political strength became increased; and many of these settlers became at least proselytes of the gate if not proselytes of the covenant, and thus got their souls saved. Hence humanity, sound policy, and religion said, Vex not the stranger; thou shalt love him as thyself. The apostle makes use of a strong argument to induce men to hospitality towards strangers: Be not forgetful to entertain strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares, [Heb 13:2]. Moses also uses a powerful motive: Ye were strangers in the land of Egypt. The spirit of the precept here laid down, may be well expressed in our Lord's words: Do unto all men as ye would they should do unto you.
Verse 35
Ye shall do no unrighteousness - Ye shall not act contrary to the strictest justice in any case, and especially in the four following, which properly understood, comprise all that can occur between a man and his fellow.
1. Judgment in all cases that come before the civil magistrate; he is to judge and decide according to the law.
2. Mete-Yard, במדה bammiddah, in measures of length and surface, such as the reed, cubit, foot, span, hand's breadth, among the Jews; or ell, yard, foot, and inch, among us.
3. Weight, במשכל bammishkal, in any thing that is weighed, the weights being all according to the standards kept for the purpose of trying the rest in the sanctuary, as appears from [Exo 30:13]; [1Chr 23:29]; these weights were the talent, shekel, barleycorn, etc.
4. Measure, במשורה bammesurah, from which we derive our term. This refers to all measures of capacity, such as the homer, ephah, seah, hin, omer, kab, and log. See all these explained at [Exo 16:16] (note).
Verse 36
Just balances - Scales, steel-yard, etc. Weights, אבנים abanim, stones, as the weights appear to have been originally formed out of stones. Ephah, hin, etc., see before.
Verse 37
Shall ye observe all my statutes - חקתי chukkothi, from חק chak, to describe, mark, or trace out; the righteousness which I have described, and the path of duty which I have traced out. Judgments, משפטי mishpatai, from שפט shaphat, to discern, determine, direct, etc.; that which Divine Wisdom has discerned to be best for man, has determined shall promote his best interest, and has directed him conscientiously to use. See the note on [Lev 26:15].
1. Many difficulties occur in this very important chapter, but they are such only to us; for there can be no doubt of their having been perfectly well known to the Israelites, to whom the precepts contained in this chapter were given. Considerable pains however have been taken to make them plain, and no serious mind can read them without profit.
2. The precepts against injustice, fraud, slander, enmity, etc., etc., are well worth the notice of every Christian; and those against superstitious usages are not less so; and by these last we learn, that having recourse to astrologers, fortune-tellers, etc., to get intelligence of lost or stolen goods, or to know the future events of our own lives, or those of others, is highly criminal in the sight of God. Those who have recourse to such persons renounce their baptism, and in effect renounce the providence as well as the word of God.
3. The precepts of humanity and mercy relative to the poor, the hireling, and the stranger, are worthy of our most serious regard. Nor are those which concern weights and measures, traffic, and the whole system of commutative justice, less necessary to be observed for the benefit and comfort of the individual, and the safety and prosperity of the state.
Introduction
Of giving seed to Molech, and the punishment of this crime, [Lev 20:1-5]. Of consulting wizards, etc., [Lev 20:6-8]. Of disrespect to parents, [Lev 20:9]. Of adultery, [Lev 20:10]. Of incestuous mixtures, [Lev 20:11], [Lev 20:12]. Bestiality, [Lev 20:13-16]. Different cases of incest and uncleanness, [Lev 20:17-21]. Exhortations and promises, [Lev 20:22-24]. The difference between clean and unclean animals to be carefully observed, [Lev 20:25]. The Israelites are separated from other nations, that they may be holy, [Lev 20:26]. A repetition of the law against wizards and them that have familiar spirits, [Lev 20:27].
Verse 2
That giveth any of his seed unto Molech - To what has been said in the note on [Lev 18:21] (note), we may add, that the rabbins describe this idol, who was probably a representative or emblematical personification of the solar influence, as made of brass, in the form of a man, with the head of an ox; that a fire was kindled in the inside, and the child to be sacrificed to him was put in his arms, and roasted to death. Others say that the idol, which was hollow, was divided into seven compartments within; in one of which they put flour, in the second turtle-doves, in the third a ewe, in the fourth a ram, in the fifth a calf, in the sixth an ox, and in the seventh a child, which, by heating the statue on the outside, were all burnt alive together. I question the whole truth of these statements, whether from Jewish or Christian rabbins. There is no evidence of all this in the sacred writings. And there is but presumptive proof, and that not very strong, that human sacrifices were at all offered to Molech by the Jews. The passing through the fire, so frequently spoken of, might mean no more than a simple rite of consecration to the service of this idol. Probably a kind of ordeal was meant, the persons passing suddenly through the flame of a large fire, by which, though they might be burnt or scorched, yet they were neither killed nor consumed. Or they might have passed between two large fires, as a sort of purification. See the notes on [Lev 20:14]; See the notes on [Lev 18:21]. Caesar, in his history of the Gallic war, lib. vi., c. 16, mentions a custom of the Druids similar to this. They made an image of wickerwork, enclosed those in it whom they had adjudged to death, and, setting the whole on fire, all were consumed together.
Verse 6
Familiar spirits - See the notes on [Lev 19:31]; and [Exo 22:18] (note).
Verse 9
Curseth his father or his mother - See the notes on [Gen 48:12], and [Exo 20:12] (note). He who conscientiously keeps the fifth commandment can be in no danger of this judgment. The term יקלל yekallel signifies, not only to curse, but to speak of a person contemptuously and disrespectfully, to make light of; so that all speeches which have a tendency to lessen our parents in the eyes of others, or to render their judgment, piety, etc., suspected and contemptible, may be here included; though the act of cursing, or of treating the parent with injurious and opprobrious language, is that which is particularly intended.
Verse 10
Committeth adultery - To what has been said in the note on See [Exo 20:14] (note), we may add, that the word adultery comes from the Latin adulterium, which is compounded of ad, to or with, and alter, another, or, according to Minshieu, of ad alterius forum, he that approaches to another man's bed.
Verse 12
They have wrought confusion - See Leviticus 18, and especially the note on [Lev 18:6] (note).
Verse 14
They shall be burnt with fire - As there are worse crimes mentioned here, (see [Lev 20:11] and [Lev 20:17]), where the delinquent is ordered simply to be put to death, or to be cut off, it is very likely that the crime mentioned in this verse was not punished by burning alive, but by some kind of branding, by which they were ever after rendered infamous. I need not add that the original, באש ישרפו baesh yishrephu, may, without violence to its grammatical meaning, be understood as above, though in other places it is certainly used to signify a consuming by fire. But the case in question requires some explanation; it is this: a man marries a wife, and afterward takes his mother-in-law or wife's mother to wife also: now for this offense the text says all three shall be burnt with fire, and this is understood as signifying that they shall be burnt alive. Now the first wife, we may safely presume, was completely innocent, and was legally married: for a man may take to wife the daughter if single, or the mother if a widow, and in neither of these cases can any blame attach to the man or the party he marries; the crime therefore lies in taking both. Either, therefore, they were all branded as infamous persons, and this certainly was severe enough in the case of the first wife; or the man and the woman taken last were burnt: but the text says, both he and they; therefore, we should seek for another interpretation of they shall be burnt with fire, than that which is commonly given. Branding with a hot iron would certainly accomplish every desirable end both for punishment and prevention of the crime; and because the Mosaic laws are so generally distinguished by humanity, it seems to be necessary to limit the meaning of the words as above.
Verse 16
If a woman approach unto any beast - We have the authority of one of the most eminent historians in the world, Herodotus, to say that this was a crime not unknown in Egypt; yea, that a case of this nature actually took place while he was there. Εγενετο δ' εν τῳ νο μῳ τουτῳ επ' εμευ τουτο το τερας, Γυναικι Τραγος εμισγετο αναφανδον. Τουτο ες επιδειξιν ανθρωπων απικετο. - Herod. in Euterp., p. 108. Edit. Gale, Lond. 1679. "In this district, within my own recollection, this portentous business took place: a goat coupled so publicly with a woman that every person knew it," etc. After this, need we wonder that God should have made laws of this nature, when it appears these abominations were not only practiced among the Egyptians, but were parts of a superstitious religious system? This one observation will account for many of those strange prohibitions which we find in the Mosaic law; others, the reasons of which are not so plain, we should see the propriety of equally, had we ampler historic records of the customs that existed in that country.
Verse 22
The land, whither I bring you to dwell therein, spue you not out - See this energetic prosopopoeia explained in the note on [Lev 18:25] (note). From this we learn that the cup of the iniquities of the Canaanitish nations was full; and that, consistently with Divine justice, they could be no longer spared.
Verse 24
A land that floweth with milk and honey - See this explained [Exo 3:8] (note).
Verse 25
Between clean beasts and unclean - See the notes on Leviticus 11 (note).