idianitish women, who was the daughter of Sur, a man of authority
in that country; and being desired by his wife to disregard the laws of
Moses, and to follow those she was used to, he complied with her, and
this both by sacrificing after a manner different from his own, and by
taking a stranger to wife. When things were thus, Moses was afraid that
matters should grow worse, and called the people to a congregation, but
then accused nobody by name, as unwilling to drive those into despair
who, by lying concealed, might come to repentance; but he said that they
did not do what was either worthy of themselves, or of their fathers,
by preferring pleasure to God, and to the living according to his will;
that it was fit they should change their courses while their affairs
were still in a good state, and think that to be true fortitude which
offers not violence to their laws, but that which resists their lusts.
And besides that, he said it was not a reasonable thing, when they had
lived soberly in the wilderness, to act madly now when they were in
prosperity; and that they ought not to lose, now they have abundance,
what they had gained when they had little:--and so did he endeavor, by
saying this, to correct the young inert, and to bring them to repentance
for what they had done.

11. But Zimri arose up after him, and said, "Yes, indeed, Moses, thou
art at liberty to make use of such laws as thou art so fond of, and
hast, by accustoming thyself to them, made them firm; otherwise, if
things had not been thus, thou hadst often been punished before now, and
hadst known that the Hebrews are not easily put upon; but thou shalt not
have me one of thy followers in thy tyrannical commands, for thou dost
nothing else hitherto, but, under pretense of laws, and of God, wickedly
impose on us slavery, and gain dominion to thyself, while thou deprivest
us of the sweetness of life, which consists in acting according to our
own wills, and is the right of free-men, and of those that have no lord
over them. Nay, indeed, this man is harder upon the Hebrews then were
the Egyptians themselves, as pretending to punish, according to his
laws, every one's acting what is most agreeable to himself; but thou
thyself better deservest to suffer punishment, who presumest to abolish
what every one acknowledges to be what is good for him, and aimest to
make thy single opinion to have more force than that of all the rest;
and what I now do, and think to be ri