as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the
seashore: and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be
blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice'" (Gen. 22. 15, etc.).

Again, in the 34th Chapter of Exodus it is written,--"Thrice in the
year shall all your men--children appear before the Lord God, the God
of Israel. For I will cast out the nations before thee, and enlarge
thy borders; neither shall any man desire thy land when thou shalt go
up to appear before the Lord thy God thrice in the year." Now, would
obedience to this precept be tempting God? Doubtless not. Yet surely
there is a much greater natural difficulty in the way of protecting
the defenceless wives and families of a whole people during the
absence of all the males at Jerusalem, than there is in providing
subsistence sufficient for those who daily labour; for by this means
the great mass of mankind are, and ever have been provided for.

The institution of the sabbatical year appears to afford another very
apt illustration. Let us therefore for a moment consider the commands
and promises annexed to its observance, as well as the threatenings
pronounced, and the punishments inflicted, in case of disobedience.
"Six years thou shalt sow thy field, and six years thou shalt prune
thy vineyard, and gather in the fruit thereof; but in the seventh
year shall be a sabbath of rest unto the Land, a sabbath for the
Lord; thou shalt neither sow thy held, nor prune thy vineyard. And if
ye shall say,--'What shall we eat the seventh year? behold we shall
not sow, nor gather in our increase':--then I will command my
blessing upon you in the sixth year, and it shall bring forth fruit
for three years. And ye shall sow the eighth year, and eat yet of old
fruit until the ninth year; until her fruits come in, ye shall eat of
the old store. If ye will not for all this hearken unto me, but walk
contrary unto me, I will bring your land into desolation, and I will
scatter you among the heathen: and your lands shall be desolate, and
your cities waste. Then shall the land enjoy her sabbaths, as long as
it lieth desolate, and ye be in your enemies' land: even then shall
the land rest, and enjoy her sabbaths. As long as it lieth desolate
it shall rest: because it did not rest in your sabbaths, when ye
dwelt upon it" (Lev. 25. 3, 4, 20; and C. 26.).

We see afterwards the execution of this threat:--"Them that had
escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylo