Reflexions upon the books of the Holy Scriptures to establish the truth of the Christian religion. Volume I in two volumes.

CHAP. III.

That the truth of the Miracles related by Moses, cannot reasonably be doubted of.

WHoever will examine with attention, the four last Books of Moses, shall find in them several Passages recorded, which deserve a parti∣cular Consideration.

As First of all, the Miraculous Birth, the ex∣traordinary Education, the Heroical Courage, and the Divine Call and Commission of Moses, and the several Miracles which he wrought in Egypt, to bring the Israelites out of it, and lead them to the Borders of Canaan.

Then Secondly, All the Moral, Ceremonial, and Political Laws which Moses gave to that Peo∣ple, from God.

And Lastly, Moses his Prophecies concerning their future Condition, their Victories, their Captivities, their Transportations, concerning the Destruction of Jerusalem, the coming of the Messiah, and the dispersion of their whole Na∣tion.

All which Passages have as evident and authen∣tick proofs of their certainty, as things of that nature are capable of.

Let us first begin with the Narration of the Mi∣racles recorded in the beginning of Exodus.

Wherein we see, that after Moses had repre∣sented the Death of Joseph, and of all the gene∣ration,

that came down with Jacob into Egypt, he writes his own History, and represents himself as another Noah, saved out of the Waters, to save and deliver that Holy Family.

The whole Relation which he makes of all those particulars, is very strange, and extraordi∣nary; but yet his Circumcision, and the instruction of his Mother, to whom he was given, by the Daughter of Pharaoh to be nurst up, and the Con∣versation of that Princess who had adopted him, and made her self a Proselyte as the Jews endea∣vour to prove, from 1 Chron. IV. 18. And his E∣ducation in the Court of Egypt, and his acquain∣tance with all the Grandees of that Court, did concur together to acquaint him with that re∣markable preservation of his person, and perswade him of the certainty of it.

For how could either Moses impose, or be impos∣ed upon in that matter? Was not that Barbarous cru∣elty of the Egyptians by which they compell'd the Jews about the time of Moses's Birth, to throw their Children into the River Nilus, notoriously known of all Men? Were not the Publick Buildings, and strong Cities, viz. Pythom, and Rameses, so call'd from the Name of King Rameses Miamum, stand∣ing in the sight of all Men? And was it not pub∣lickly known by all the World, that the poor Isra∣elites were the Slaves and Drudges who were made use of to erect those Buildings.

Neither could the manner of his Education be unknown to him, nor yet to any of the Hebrews, for we do not join here to Moses's Narration, what Josephus relates of his Person, of his Feats in Me∣roe, and of his Marrying an Aethiopian Princess, &c.

As Moses's Miracles were done in the presence of the Egyptians and Jews, so they testifie, that he had really received his Calling, and Commission from God in the Desert, and that just in the man∣ner as he describes it himself.

Now, no Man can dispute the truth of those Miracles, if he but minds the following Conside∣rations.

First, It cannot be denied, that the People of Israel was brought out of Egypt by Moses. Their Law, which the present Jews do still observe, speaks every where of that famous Action of his; there was never any Man disputed the certainty of that Atchievement. All ancient Authors make mention of it, Manethon gives an account of the time, of the manner, and of many other princi∣pal Circumstances of that Exploit.

Trogus Pompeius, Justinus, and Tacitus, do also speak of it, only Tacitus does groundlesly, I sup∣pose, of his own head, relate, that the Jews were expell'd out of Egypt, because of their Le∣prosie: I say groundlesly, for it is known, that on the contrary, Leprosie was a common Distemper amongst the Egyptians, and that they infected the Israelites with it, so that there is no likelihood they should be expelled by the Egyptians for a Distem∣per that they got from them.

We know besides, that the Law of Moses which calls the Leprosie the Distemper of Egypt, did ba∣nish the Lepers out of the Congregation of the People; and then the nature of David's Curses a∣gainst Joab, because of his murdering Abner, shews sufficiently, that the Leprosie was lookt upon by the Jews, as a Distemper most commonly sent

immediately from God. Nay, Trogus Pompeius himself, observes that the Magicians caused Mo∣ses with the People of Israel to be expell'd, because they themselves were struck with a kind of Scab and Itch; and that they were afraid, least the con∣tagion of it should infect the whole Kingdom of Egypt.

And here I must not forget the mentioning the Testimony of Numenius a Pythagorean Philosopher, who relates, that both Jannes and Jambres were chosen by the Egyptians, to oppose Moses, and hinder the effects of his Miracles and Prayers, which had brought down many grievous Plagues upon Egypt, just about the time of the Jews Ba∣nishment out of that Country.

But Secondly, If the Leprosie, which the Isra∣elites brought from Egypt, be a indisputable proof of their sojourning there; it is as certain, that the going out of that mixed multitude of Egyptians, who so far espous'd the Israelites Interest, as to leave and forsake Egypt their own Countrey to accompa∣ny them, could have no other cause or pretence than the Miracles of Moses, whereof they had been Eye-witnesses; so that the Posterity of those Egyptians that were thus incorporated into the Bo∣dy of the People of Israel, were in after Ages, as so many Witnesses of the truth of those Miracles, which formerly perswaded their Fathers to joyn with Moses, and so to share Fortune with the He∣brews.

Thirdly, It is certain, that the Jews could not so much as mention any of the Miracles, which they pretended were done formerly for the delive∣rance of their Fathers, without exposing them∣selves

to the scorn of all the World, if all those Miracles, and their Deliverance, had not been certainly and generally known to the Egyptians, and to all the Neighbouring Nations, by whom they were often subdued and brought into subje∣ction after the Decease of Moses, and Joshuah.

To all these Reflexions we may add, that the Commemoration of the Israelites going out of Egypt, with all the Miracles wrought by Moses, was renew'd yearly, not only by the solemnizing the Feast of the Passover, which the Israelites did constantly keep to the time of their dispersion, and which they do still keep in all parts of the World, but also by two other very sensible ways.

The first whereof, was the Separation which God made of the Tribe of Levi, in order to Con∣secrate it to his Service, instead of the first-born of the People of Israel, whom he had spared, and preserved in Egypt, with great Solemnity, in re∣gard both of Men and Beasts, as we read, Numb. III. so that every Levite was as a living Memorial of that great Miracle, wrought at the Israelites going forth out of Egypt.

And the Second was the Law concerning the Redemption of every First-born, both of Men, and Unclean Beasts; which is observed to this hour amongst the Jews: It is clear, and evident, that there is in all those Laws, a deep impression of those several great Miracles which compell'd Pha∣raoh to let the Israelites go.

Lastly, It is very observable here, that the Me∣mory of the deliverance of Israel out of Egypt, wrought, as by many Miracles, so especially by the death of all the First-born of Egypt, which

was the occasion of the Institution of the Passover continued amongst the Egyptians till after Jesus Christ: For till then they used to mark with red their Sheep, their Trees, their Houses, and Lands, the day before the Passover, as one may see in Epiphanius; which Custom could proceed from no other cause, than from the Egyptians fear of the like Plague and Mortality, that was once inflicted upon their Forefathers; and from their hope of preventing it by such a kind of Talisman, whereby they thought Moses had formerly saved the Israelites harmless from that great Plague, on∣ly by sprinkling the Blood of the Lamb of the Passover, on the upper Door post of their Hou∣ses.

Notes

• Jalk. in h. l. ex Va∣iikra Rab.
• Joseph. con∣tra App. l. 1.
• Justin. l. 36.
• Euseb. praep. Evang. l. 9. c. 8.
• Numb. XVIII: 16.