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 same 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, supposing whatever is said of Kadesh in the journeys of the Israelites, to be understood of one and the same Kadesh. But the other opinion seems to be much more agreeable to truth, or the sacred 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 first

nion here

That these two were distinct places one from the other argument may, I think, be easily inferred from the description given for the opi- of the south coast of the Israelites in the land of Canaan, mentioned. Num. xxxiv. 3, 4. and Josh. xv. 1, 3. In the former place it is said of the south coast of the Israelites in general, Your south quarter shall be from the wilderness of Zin, along by the coast of Edom :-and your border shall turn from the south to the ascent of Akrabbim, and pass on to Zin; and the going forth thereof shall be from the south 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 southern part of the land of Israel) was even to the border of Edom; the wilderness of Zin southward was the uttermost part of the south coast. And their south border went out to the south side to the ascent of Akrabbim, and passed along to Zin, and ascended up on the south side unto Kadesh-barnea. In both which places, as we have the situation of the wilderness of Zin plainly enough set forth, so we have mention made of Zin (from which the wilderness of Zin doubtless took its name) and of Kadesh-barnea, as two distinct places; forasmuch as it is said in both places, that the south border passed on to Zin, and ascended up unto

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 same 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 said, Num. xxxiii. 36. to be the same which is Kadesh, namely, that Kadesh which is mentioned in Scripture as lying in the wilderness of Zin.

3.

argument.

At Kadesh-barnea, or Kadesh near the wilderness of Paran, it was that the spies returned from searching the land The second of Canaan to Moses, and where they, by reason of their infidelity, brought upon themselves the judgment of wandering in the deserts of Arabia, till they should have filled up the space of forty years from their coming out of Egypt. But the Israelites came not to Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin, till the last year of the said 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 observed Num. xx. I. 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 so named before, and lying near Rephidim, and not far from Horeb, Exod. xvii. 1, &c.) this is usually distinguished by the name of Meribah-kadesh, or the like, as Deut. xxxii. 51. Num. xxvii. 14.

4.

Observations on

xxxiii.

It will be proper here to consider chap. xxxiii. of the book of Numbers; where Moses professedly (as is evident from ver. 1, 2.) gives us an account of the journeys of the Numbers Israelites, from their setting forth from Rameses in Egypt, to their coming to Abel-shittim 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

PART II. Mosaic history, and in the foregoing sections of this chapter, and so 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 said encampments are thus mentioned by Moses, in short, ver. 16, &c. And they removed from the desert of Sinai, and pitched at Kibroth-hattaavah, then at Hazeroth, then in Rithmah, then at Rimmon-parez, then in Libnah, then at Rissah, 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 Moseroth, then in Bene-jaakan, then at Hor-hagiùgad, then in Jotbathah, then at Ebronah, then at Ezion-gaber, then in the wilderness of Zin, which is Kadesh. Num. xxxiii. 16—36.

5.

The en

campment

barnea not

Num. xxxiii.

In this account we find, that Moses does no where expressly 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 positively determined, by what other name, among those here mentioned, the said encampment is denoted. However, since 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 some one or more of the encampments, that are mentioned in the three or four next verses after the encampment at Hazeroth, that is, by some one or more of the encampments mentioned Num. xxxiii. 18-22. I say, by some one or more of these encampments, because it not only plainly enough appears from Num. xiii. but is expressly asserted Deut. i. 46. that the Israelites abode in Kadesh many days; (which must be understood of this Kadesh, as is before observed;) 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 Moses did not expressly mention their stay there, under the single and general name of Kadesh, but denoted

SECT. V.

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

Remarks

-33. par

as to the

names of

there men

As for the encampments, mentioned from Num. xxxiii. 6. 22. or thereabout, to ver. 36. they were probably such as as to Num. were between the Israelites decamping from Kadesh-bar- xxxiii. 31 nea, and their encamping at Kadesh in the wilderness of ticularly Zin. None of these encampments to ver. 34. are mentioned any where else in sacred writ, except those con- the places tained ver. 31-33. which are again mentioned Deut. x. 6, tioned. 7. There is indeed some variation as to the very names of the encampments; which yet is not so great, but that it plainly enough appears, that the same places are denoted respectively by their respective names, though somewhat different. Thus it is not to be doubted but Moseroth (Num. xxxiii. 31.) is the same with Mosera, (Deut. x. 6.) and Jotbathah (Num. xxxiii. 33.) the same with Jotbath, (Deut. x. 7.) And such as have but little acquaintance with the Hebrew tongue, know that Bene-jaakan in the former place is the same with the children of Jaakan in the latter. And therefore, whereas it is said in this latter place, that the children of Israel 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 Israelites encamped. The word is indeed rendered in all the old versions, as well as ours, as a proper name; but it may be taken appellatively to denote wells; and so imports, that the Israelites pitched by the wells belonging to the children of Jaakan: and this is the more probable, if we consider of what value wells or water was in those desert places. As for what is rendered in our Bible (Num. xxxiii. 32, 33.) Hor-hagidgad, the same is rendered in the Septuagint Version, Chaldee Paraphrase, and other Versions, 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 same in both places of the Hebrew-Samaritan, or old Hebrew text; which plainly decides the matter, that by the said names are denoted the same encampments.

Further re

ent order

of the en

campments.

7. But there still remains a greater difficulty to be solved, marks as to which arises from two of the said 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 said, that the Israelites departed from Moseroth, and pitched in Bene-jaakan: but in Deuteronomy we read, (according to the present Hebrew text and our translation,) that the children of Israel took their journey from Beeroth of the children of Jaakan to Moserah. Several critics and commentators have taken great pains to reconcile these texts; but they have but lost their labour. Others have passed the difficulty over, as too great for them. Others have rightly guessed, that the difference arose from some mistakes of transcribers; but then they have produced nothing to confirm their guess. I say these guessed so 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 Israel went from Moserah, and pitched in Bene-jaakan: which exactly agrees to the account of the encampments, as set down Num. xxxiii. 31. It is true, that the reading of the common Hebrew text is followed by all the ancient versions; but this only shews, that the mistake made in this place of Deuteronomy by transcribers happened early. I shall have occasion to speak more of it under the next section.

8.

Of Ezion

Elath.

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

9.

The wilder-.

I have already observed, that the wilderness of Zin lay ness of Zin in the south-east of the land of Israel, along the coast of was proba