PART II. back into the wilderness; and that their coming, here mentioned, Num. xx. 1. unto Kadesh, is to be understood, either of their second coming to the fame Kadesh they had been at before, or else of their coming to another Kadesh, distinct from the former. The generality of writers seem to be of the former opinion, fuppofing whatever is said of Kadesh in the journeys of the Ifraelites, to be understood of one and the fame Kadesh. But the other opinion feems to be much more agreeable to truth, or the facred history. For herein are plainly distinguished two different places, both called by the name of Kadesh; namely, one lying in or adjoining to the wilderness of Paran, which is mentioned Num. xiii. 26. and the other lying in the wilderness of Zin, and mentioned Num. xx. 1. and xxxiii. 36.

2.

The firft

nion here

mentioned.

That these two were diftinct places one from the other argument may, I think, be eafily inferred from the description given for the opi- of the fouth coaft of the Ifraelites in the land of Canaan, Num. xxxiv. 3, 4. and Josh. xv. 1, 3. In the former place it is faid of the fouth coaft of the Ifraelites in general, Your fouth quarter shall be from the wilderness of Zin, along by the coast of Edom :—and your border shall turn from the fouth to the afcent of Akrabbim, and pass on to Zin; and the going forth thereof shall be from the fouth to Kadesh-barnea. And, agreeably to the directions here given by God, we are told in the other place above cited, that the lot of the tribe of Judah (to which fell the most fouthern part of the land of Ifrael) was even to the border of Edom; the wilderness of Zin fouthward was the uttermost part of the fouth coast. And their fouth border went out to the fouth fide to the afcent of Akrabbim, and passed along to Zin, and afcended up on the fouth fide unto Kadefh-barnea. In both which places, as we have the fituation of the wilderness of Zin plainly enough fet forth, so we have mention made of Zin (from which the wilderness of Zin doubtlefs took its name) and of Kadefh-barnea, as two distinct places; forafmuch as it is faid in both places, that the fouth border passed on to Zin, and afcended up unto

Kadesh

SECT. V.

Kadesh-barnea; whereby is plainly intimated, that Zin CHAP. II. and Kadesh-barnea lay at some distance one from the other, and so were distinct places. But now Kadesh-barnea is the fame with Kadesh, lying in or near the wilderness of Paran; as is plain from comparing Num. xiii. 26, &c. with Deut. i. 19, &c. And Zin, which lay in the wilderness of Zin, and from which the said wilderness took its name, is expressly faid, Num. xxxiii. 36. to be the fame which is Kadesh, namely, that Kadesh which is mentioned in Scripture as lying in the wilderness of Zin.

At Kadesh-barnea, or Kadesh near the wilderness of Paran, it was that the fpies returned from fearching the land of Canaan to Mofes, and where they, by reason of their infidelity, brought upon themselves the judgment of wandering in the deferts of Arabia, till they should have filled up the space of forty years from their coming out of Egypt. But the Ifraelites came not to Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin, till the last year of the faid forty, as may be inferred from the death of Aaron, mentioned Num. xxxiii. 38. And as it is probable, that Miriam died but a few months before Aaron, so it is certain that she died at Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin, it being expressly obferved Num. xx. 1. And in the following verses of this chapter we have an account of the people's murmuring again for water; whence the place was called Meribah, ver. 13. and (to distinguish it from the place fo named before, and lying near Rephidim, and not far from Horeb, Exod. xvii. 1, &c.) this is ufually diftinguished by the name of Meribah-kadesh, or the like, as Deut. xxxii. 51. Num. xxvii. 14.

3.

The fecond

argument.

4. Obfervations on

It will be proper here to confider chap. xxxiii. of the book of Numbers; where Mofes professedly (as is evident from ver. 1, 2.) gives us an account of the journeys of the Numbers Ifraelites, from their fetting forth from Ramefes in Egypt, xxxiii. to their coming to Abel-fhittim near the river Jordan. As to the encampments, reckoned up in this chapter, between Rameses and mount Sinai, they agree well enough with them that are mentioned in the former part of the Mofaic

T 2

PART II. Mosaic history, and in the foregoing sections of this chapter, and fo there is no difficulty in them. But as to the encampments reckoned up Num. xxxiii. 16—36. namely, between that at mount Sinai and that in the wilderness of Zin, there are several difficulties. The faid encampments are thus mentioned by Mofes, in short, ver. 16, &c. And they removed from the defert of Sinai, and pitched at Kibroth-hattaavah, then at Hazeroth, then in Rithmah, then at Rimmon-parez, then in Libnah, then at Riffah, then in Kehelathah, then in mount Shapher, then in Haradah, then in Makheloth, then at Tahath, then at Tarah, then in Mithkah, then in Hashmonah, then at Moferoth, then in Bene-jaakan, then at Hor-hagidgad, then in Jotbathah, then at Ebronah, then at Ezion-gaber, then in the wildernefs of Zin, which is Kadesh. Num. xxxiii. 16—36.

5.

The en

In this account we find, that Mofes does no where excampment prefsly mention the encampment at Kadesh-barnea, whiat Kadesh- ther the spies returned from searching the land of Canaan. specified in And therefore it cannot be pofitively determined, by what

barnea not

Num. xxxiii.

other name, among those here mentioned, the said encampment is denoted. However, fince we are told Num. xii. 16. that the people removed from Hazeroth, and pitched in the wilderness of Paran; hence it is very probable, that the said encampment at Kadesh in the wilderness of Paran, or Kadesh-barnea, is here denoted by fome one or more of the encampments, that are mentioned in the three or four next verses after the encampment at Hazeroth, that is, by fome one or more of the encampments mentioned Num. xxxiii. 18-22. I fay, by fome one or more of these encampments, because it not only plainly enough appears from Num. xiii. but is exprefsly afferted Deut. i. 46. that the Ifraelites abode in Kadesh many days; (which must be understood of this Kadesh, as is before obferved;) and therefore it is likely, that they made several movements, or new encampments, during their stay in the neighbourhood of this Kadesh; which may be the reason that Mofes did not exprefsly mention their stay there, under the single and general name of Kadesh, but denoted

SECT. V.

it by the feveral particular names, whereby their several CHAP. II. particular encampments were distinguished one from the other.

6.

Remarks

as to Num.

names of

there men

tioned.

As for the encampments, mentioned from Num. xxxiii. 22. or thereabout, to ver. 36. they were probably such as were between the Ifraelites decamping from Kadesh-bar- xxxiii. 31 nea, and their encamping at Kadesh in the wilderness of 33. parZin. None of these encampments to ver. 34. are men- as to the tioned any where else in facred writ, except those con- the places tained ver. 31-33. which are again mentioned Deut. x. 6, 7. There is indeed fome variation as to the very names of the encampments; which yet is not so great, but that it plainly enough appears, that the fame places are denoted respectively by their respective names, though fomewhat different. Thus it is not to be doubted but Moferoth (Num. xxxiii. 31.) is the fame with Mofera, (Deut. x. 6.) and Jotbathah (Num. xxxiii. 33.) the fame with Jotbath, (Deut. x. 7.) And fuch as have but little acquaintance with the Hebrew tongue, know that Bene-jaakan in the former place is the fame with the children of Jaakan in the latter. And therefore, whereas it is faid in this latter place, that the children of Ifrael took their journey from Beeroth of the children of Jaakan, the word Beeroth (mentioned in Deuteronomy, but not in Numbers) denotes the particular place among the children of Jaakan, where the Ifraelites encamped. The word is indeed rendered in all the old verfions, as well as ours, as a proper name; but it may be taken appellatively to denote wells; and fo imports, that the Ifraelites pitched by the wells belonging to the children of Jaakan: and this is the more probable, if we confider of what value wells or water was in those defert places. As for what is rendered in our Bible (Num. xxxiii. 32, 33.) Hor-hagidgad, the fame is rendered in the Septuagint Verfion, Chaldee Paraphrafe, and other Verfions, the mount Gadgad. And hereto agrees the old Hebrew text, wherein it is read the mount Gadgadah; between which name and Gudgodah, Deut. x. 7. there is no difference, but that of the vowels, which is of no weight.

PART II. In short, the names are all of them exactly the fame in

7.

marks as to

ent order

of the en

campments.

both places of the Hebrew-Samaritan, or old Hebrew text; which plainly decides the matter, that by the said names are denoted the fame encampments.

But there ftill remains a greater difficulty to be folved, Further re- which arifes from two of the faid encampments being the differ- mentioned in a quite contrary order (Deut. x.) to that wherein they are mentioned Num. xxxiii. In this chapter it is faid, that the Ifraelites departed from Moferoth, and pitched in Bene-jaakan: but in Deuteronomy we read, (according to the prefent Hebrew text and our translation,) that the children of Ifrael took their journey from Beeroth of the children of Jaakan to Moferah. Several critics and commentators have taken great pains to reconcile these texts; but they have but loft their labour. Others have paffed the difficulty over, as too great for them. Others have rightly gueffed, that the difference arose from fome mistakes of tranfcribers; but then they have produced nothing to confirm their guess. I say these guessed fo rightly, because the matter may, I think, be put beyond conjecture, by the authority of the old Hebrew text; according to which, this place in Deuteronomy is to be rendered thus, And the children of Ifrael went from Moferah, and pitched in Bene-jaakan: which exactly agrees to the account of the encampments, as fet down Num. xxxiii. 31. It is true, that the reading of the common Hebrew text is followed by all the ancient verfions; but this only fhews, that the mistake made in this place of Deuteronomy by transcribers happened early. I fhall have occafion to speak more of it under the next section.

8.

gaber and Elath.

As for Ezion-gaber, mentioned Num. xxxiii. 35, 36. it Of Ezion- frequently occurs in the facred history, and I shall speak more fully of it elsewhere. I fhall only obferve here, that it, and Elath mentioned with it, Deut. ii. 8. both lay on the Red fea, adjoining to the fouth or fouth-east part of mount Seir, or the land of Edom.

9.

The wilder-.

I have already obferved, that the wilderness of Zin lay nefs of Zin in the fouth-east of the land of Ifrael, along the coast of was proba

Edom,