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sphere and a world. Thus the whole human, as well as the whole terraqueous globe, is a great system, containing other similar systems, which also contain others, diminishing gradually to a point, or individual man, comparatively speaking.

But this individual also, contains all the same things in himself, in miniature; so that every such individual is a little world, or microcosm, in himself, containing proportionately every thing that is contained in the general mass of humanity; only in that particular temperament, and degree of it, which answers to his exact local position in the longitudinal and latitudinal, or religious and moral spheroid of general human nature.

It is this wonderful relative constitution of the natural world, and of human nature, corresponding so closely to each other, which tends to render the Holy Scriptures so universally interesting, applicable, and instructive to every reader; because the history of the whole is the history of the parts, and the history of each individual is, in great measure, the history of the whole species. Thus the spiritual course of every Christian is generally delineated in the history of the Israelites, viz.

typical

ABRAHAM, the father of many nations, is a Scriptural type, both in his heart, and in his conduct or Persons. form, of the principle of divine FAITH, in the

heart of every real Christian. This principle is the great FATHER of the FAITHFUL, and the friend of GOD; it is the foundation, the beginning of the race of the people of GOD in every faithful soul, in every age and clime.* From faith proceeds hope, or the seed of the divine promise, or ISAAC; and from the maturity of these, proceeds love, or JACOB. From faith, hope, and charity proceed the twelve patriarchs, or fathers of the tribes, or various modifications, or combinations of the above three grand Christian roots in the heart or soil of the believer, or son of ABRAHAM. Yet as these literal fathers of the race lived in a strange country, among foreigners and heathens, so the Christian graces in the heart of the fallen natural man, are at first, "but a few men in number, yea, very few, and strangers in it." Psalm cv. They are surrounded by heathen tribes, in their unregenerate hearts, who know not the GOD of faith, hope, and love; viz. pride, vanity, evil concupiscence, unbelief, &c. or "the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life." St. John's Epistle. By these Philistines†

* This happens even before they are openly called and circumcised, as was the case with Abraham. (Romans iv.) Hence the faith of Christians appears to be the natural principle, "grafted into a good olive, and partaking the fatness of the divine root."

It is not meant here to make a loose and transient allu

Exodus.

they are long infested and oppressed; and Christian above all, they are long under a heavy yoke of bondage to carnal wisdom and prudence, or the

sion, by similitude, as is often done in writing and speaking,
on account of some one common quality, or point of resem-
blance between two objects; but I really apprehend that the
Philistines, who so severely and continually assaulted the
Israelites in the early part of their history and career, were
exact and ordained types of "fleshly lusts, which war against
the soul," (1st of Peter,) or, as St. Paul calls them, "youth-
ful lusts," (2nd of Timothy, ch. ii.) In this view I consider
the five Lords of the Philistines to have been types of the
five animal senses. Hence, Delilah was deputed and assisted
by the whole of those Lords (see Judges) to deceive and
overcome (or rather to cajole than to deceive, "for Adam
was not deceived") SAMPSON, the Judge of Israel, (viz.
reason and conscience.) She was prepared to captivate him
by the sight, the hearing, smell, taste, and feeling, by means
of the various allurements of the senses.
In the latter part
of the history of the Israelites, they were no longer infested
by the youthful Philistines, but by enemies more suited to
their own advanced state. Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians,
Grecians, and Romans. That is to say, not so much by
youthful passion and appetite, as by pride, avarice, ambition,
and carnal or worldly wisdom, which are not only Egypt,
but also Rome, or Babylon, or Sodom, "the city where our
LORD was spiritually crucified." (See Revelations.) All
these various, and apparently discordant objects, can only
be brought to coincide, into one point of mental sight, by
the truth of a universal analogy, or proportion. Allow this
great truth, and all apparent inconsistencies vanish at once,
“the crooked is made straight, the rough places become
smooth, and all flesh shall see the salvation of GOD."-
Isaiah.

G

Moses,
Aaron,and
Miriam.

fear and love of this world and its power, which are typified by Egypt, and its king, proud, wise Pharaoh. They dare not break their yoke, although it is so heavy, for fear of losing the flesh pots and onions of their bondage, and through dread of this Pharaoh, the fashion and tyrannic laws of this evil world, which say, "I know not the LORD, neither will I let Israel go.

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In short, the whole history of Israel, from Abraham till Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, (or REASON, IMAGINATION, and SENTIMENT,*) or

* MOSES was slow of speech, and not eloquent, so is reason and its proportions. Moses was very meek and patient, so is reason proverbially. Moses was younger than either Aaron or Miriam, so is reason born and developed after imagination and sentiment. Moses was the owner of the powerful rod, the symbol of the law of truth; so is reason, the owner of the natural and moral law of truth, and when he is sanctified by faith in GOD, he is the depositary of the spiritual law also.

TION.

AARON was eloquent of speech, so is the lively IMAGINAAaron bore the rod of Moses, and imagination displays the power of reason, but receives the law from him. Aaron was as a mouth to Moses, and Moses was as a God to Aaron. (See iv. of Exodus.) So are reuson and imagination to each other comparatively.

MIRIAM led the daughters of Israel in the dance and songs of praise to JEHOVAH with timbrels and harps; so does sentiment, or the feelings of the hearts of true believers, (who are the Israel of GOD,") from that time to this. The LORD has given these THREE as GUIDES to all nations,

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the fulness of these three witnesses for Christ in the ripe individual, and until they enter the land of promise, or THE HOLY LAND of true evangelical religion, as well as afterwards, is

but it is in ISRAEL only that they become the prophets of the LORD. In the heathens they are false prophets like those of Baal.

"And it shall be, when the LORD thy God shall have brought thee into the land which HE sware unto thy fathers, to ABRAHAM, to ISAAC, and to JACOB, to give thee great and goodly cities, which thou buildedst not; and houses full of all good things, which thou filledst not; and wells digged, which thou diggedst not; and vineyards and olive trees, which thou plantedst not; (that is to say, all those good things were given of, or by free grace, not by their own works, which marks the difference between legal and evangelical righteousness; and shows, that the entire description and history is not only historical fact, but also allegorical and spiritual truth, meant for a testimony to us!!!) when thou shalt have eaten, and be full: then beware lest thou forget the LORD, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage." (Viz. legal bondage of the letter of the law.)—Deut. vi.; also viii. and xi. viz. verses 10-12, viz. "For the land whither thou goest to possess it, is not as the land of Egypt, from whence ye came out, where thou sowedst thy seed, and wateredst it with thy foot as a garden of herbs: but the land whither ye go to possess it, is a land of hills and valleys, and drinketh water of the rain of heaven: a land which the LORD thy GOD careth for; the eyes of the LORD thy GOD are always upon it, from the beginning of the year, even unto the end of the year," &c. See Section I. which describes the difference between rain water, and the water from rivers and pools; the first as the emblem of divine knowledge, and teaching; and the latter

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