,separation and ,service  ,,or          
,,thoughts ,,on  ,,numbers ,,vi1 ,,vii4 
,,by ,j4 ,,hudson ,,taylor4   ,london   
,,morgan  ,,scott1 #ab1 ,,paternoster   
,,buildings1 ,e4,c4 ,,china ,,inland    
,,mission1 ,,newington ,,green1 ,n4     
,,printed ,,by ,,woodfall ,,and         
,,kinder1 ,,long ,,acre ,,london        
,,contents4     ,separation and         
,service4                               
,,page   ,introductory                  
#g     ,,part ,i4    ,,separation ,,to  
,,god3 ,numbers vi1 #a-ba4              
,institution of the ,order of ,nazarites
               #aa   ,implicit          
,obedience                              
#ac   ,entire ,consecration             
#af   ,holiness to the ,,lord           
#ai   ,unwitting ,defilement            
#bb   ,the ,heinousness of ,sin         
#bc   ,cleansing only through ,sacrifice
                    #be   ,acceptance   
only in ,,christ                        
#bg   ,the ,presentation of the         
,nazarites                   #cc   ,the 

,law of the ,offerings                  
#ce   ,the ,burnt-,offering             
#ci   ,the ,sin and ,peace-,offerings   
#da     ,,part ,,ii4    ,,the ,,blessing
 ,,of ,,god3 ,numbers vi1 #bb-bg4       
,why ,found ,here8                      
#dd   ,the ,real ,meaning of ,blessing  
#di   ,the ,three-fold ,benediction     
#eb   ,the ,blessing of the ,,father    
#ec   ,the ,second ,person of the       
,trinity                    #fj   ,the  
,blessing of the ,,son and ,,bridegroom 
#fc   ,the ,,lord1 the ,,spirit         
#gj   ,the ,blessing of the ,,holy      
,,spirit                     #gc        
,sealing with the ,name of ,,god        
#hj     ,,part ,,iii4    ,,princely     
,,service3 ,numbers vii4    ,the        
,constraint of ,love                    
#hi   ,,god',s ,delight in ,love-gifts  
#ij   ,free-will ,offerings             
#ic   ,gladsome ,acceptance             
#if   ,according to his ,service        
#aja   ,the ,dedicatory ,offerings      
#ajg   ,the ,display of the ,gifts      

#aji   ,the ,person of the ,offerer     
#aac   ,the ,importance of the ,altar   
#aag     ,separation and ,service4      
,numbers vi1 vii4   ,,introductory4     
,for many years these chapters had no   
special interest to me2 but ,i have     
never ceased to be thankful that ,i was 
early led to read the ,word of ,,god in 
regular course3 it was through this     
habit that these chapters first became  
specially precious to me4 ,i was        
travelling on a missionary tour in the  
province of ,,cheh-,,kiang1 and had to  
pass the night in a very wicked town4   
,all the inns were dreadful places2 and 
the people seemed to have their         
consciences seared1 and their hearts    
sealed against the ,truth4 ,my own heart
 was oppressed1 and could find no       
relief2 and ,i awoke the next morning   
much cast down1 and feeling spiritually 
hungry and thirsty indeed4  ,on opening 
my ,bible at the seventh chapter of     
,numbers1 ,i felt as though ,i could not
 then read that long chapter of         

repetitions2 that ,i must turn to some  
chapter that would feed my soul4 ,and   
yet ,i was not happy in leaving my      
regular portion2 so after a little      
conflict ,i resolved to read it1 praying
 to ,,god to bless me1 even through     
,numb4 vii4 ,i fear there was not much  
faith in the prayer2 but oh6 how        
abundantly it was answered1 and what a  
feast ,,god gave me6 ,he revealed to me 
,his own great heart of love1 and gave  
me the key to understand this and the   
previous chapter as never before4 ,may  
,,god make our meditations upon them as 
helpful to others as they were then and 
have ever since continued to be to      
myself4  ,much is revealed in these     
chapters in germ which is more fully    
brought out in the ,new ,testament4     
,under the ,old ,covenant many blessings
 were enjoyed in measure and for a      
season1 which in this dispensation are  
ours in their fulness and permanence4   
,for instance1 the atoning sacrifices of
 the seventh month had to be repeated   

every year2 but ,,christ1 in offering   
,himself once for all1 perfected for    
ever them that are sanctified4 ,the     
,psalmist needed to pray1 ,take not ,thy
 ,,holy ,,spirit from me2 but ,,christ  
has given us the ,,comforter to abide   
with us for ever4 ,in like manner the   
,israelite might vow the vow of a       
,nazarite and separate himself unto     
,,god for a season2 but it is the       
privilege of the ,christian believer to 
know himself as always separated to     
,,god4 ,many other lessons1 which are   
hidden from careless and superficial    
readers1 are suggested by these         
chapters1 which the ,,holy ,,spirit will
 reveal to prayerful students of ,his   
most precious and most perfect ,book4   
,the portions we have selected consist  
of first a short chapter1 and then a    
very long one1 which at first sight     
appears to have no special connection   
with it4 ,but on more careful reflection
 we shall see that the order of the     
subjects referred to shows that there is

 really a natural and close connection  
between them4 ,we shall find that       
,separation to ,,god is followed by     
,blessing from ,,god2 and that those who
 receive large blessing from ,him1 in   
turn render to ,him acceptable ,service3
 service in which ,,god takes delight1  
and which ,he places in everlasting     
remembrance4     ,,part ,i4  ,separation
 to ,,god4  ,,numb4 ,,vi4 #a-ba4   ,,the
 ,,institution ,,of ,,the ,,order ,,of  
,,nazarites4  ,the first twenty-one     
verses of ,numb4 vi4 give us an account 
of the institution and ordinances of the
 order of ,nazarites4 ,and let us note  
at the outset that this institution1    
like every other good and perfect gift1 
came from above2 that ,,god ,himself    
gave this privilege--unasked--to ,his   
people2 thereby showing ,his desire that
 whosoever will of ,his people may be   
brought into closest relationship to    
,himself4  ,it was very gracious of     
,,god to permit ,his people to become   
,nazarites4 ,israel might have been a   

kingdom of priests2 but through their   
own sin they had nationally forfeited   
this privilege1 and a special family had
 been set apart to the priesthood4      
,,god1 however1 still opened the way for
 individuals who wished to draw near to 
,him to do so1 and for any period which 
their own hearts might dictate4  ,but it
 is important to notice that though the 
vow might only be one of temporary      
consecration1 yet it involved while it  
lasted an    ,,absolute ,,acceptance  of
 the will of ,,god1 even in regard to   
matters which might appear trivial and  
unimportant4 ,so1 in the present day1   
,,god is willing to give to ,his people 
fulness of blessing1 but it must be on  
,his own lines4 ,though we are not our  
own1 it is1 alas6 possible to live as   
though we were2 devotion to ,,god is    
still a voluntary thing2 hence the      
differences of attainment among         
,christians4 ,while salvation is a free 
gift1 the winning ,,christ can only be  
through unreserved consecration and     

unquestioning obedience4 ,nor is this a 
hardship1 but the highest privilege4    
,let us now look into the law of the    
,nazarite4   ,,implicit ,,obedience3    
verses #c1 #d4      ,he shall separate  
himself from wine and strong drink1 and 
shall     drink no vinegar of wine1 or  
vinegar of strong drink1 neither shall  
he drink any liquor of grapes1 nor eat  
moist grapes1 or dried4 ,all     the    
days of his separation shall he eat     
nothing that is made of the     vine    
tree1 from the kernels even to the husk4
  ,the first thing that we note is1 that
 as the obedience of ,adam was tested in
 the ,garden by the prohibition of one  
tree--a tree pleasant to look upon1 and 
good for food--so was the obedience of  
the ,nazarite tested4 ,he was not       
forbidden to eat poison berries1 nor was
 he merely required to abstain from the 
wine and strong drink which might easily
 become a snare2 fresh grapes and dried 
raisins were equally prohibited4 ,it was
 not that the thing was harmful in      

itself1 but that the doing the will of  
,,god1 in a matter of seeming           
indifference1 was essential to his      
acceptance4  ,not less true is this of  
the ,christian ,nazarite4 ,whether he   
eat or drink1 or whatsoever he do1 the  
will of ,,god and not self-indulgence   
must be his one aim4 ,christians often  
get into perplexity about worldly       
allurements by asking1 ,where is the sin
 of this1 or the danger of that8 ,there 
may be danger that the questioner cannot
 see3 ,satan's baits often skilfully    
conceal a sharp hook2 but supposing that
 the thing be harmless1 it does not     
follow that it would be pleasing to     
,,god1 or spiritually helpful4  ,the    
fruit of the vine is a type of          
earth-born pleasures2 those who would   
enjoy ,nazarite nearness to ,,god must  
count ,his love better than wine4 ,to   
win ,,christ1 the ,apostle ,paul gladly 
suffered the loss of all things1 and    
counted them as dross and dung for the  
excellency of the knowledge of ,,christ 

,,jesus his ,,lord4 ,the things he gave 
up were not bad things1 but good--things
 that in themselves were gain to him2   
and ,,christ ,himself for our redemption
 emptied ,himself1 and came to seek not 
,his own1 but the will of ,him that sent
 ,him4  ,the highest service demands the
 greatest sacrifice1 but it secures the 
fullest blessing and the greatest       
fruitfulness4 ,,christ could not remain 
in ,his ,,father',s bosom and redeem the
 world2 missionaries cannot win the     
heathen and enjoy their home            
surroundings2 nor can they be adequately
 sustained without the loving sacrifices
 of many friends and donors4 ,you1 dear 
reader1 know the ,,master',s choice2    
what is ,,yours8 is it to do ,his will  
even if it mean to leave all for ,him1  
to give all to ,him8   ,,entire         
,,consecration3 verse #e4  ,all the days
 of the vow of his separation there     
shall no razor come upon his head3 until
 the days be fulfilled1 in the which he 
separateth himself unto the ,,lord1 he  

shall be holy1 and shall let the locks  
of the hair of his head grow4  ,we have 
already seen that ,,god tested the      
obedience of the ,nazarite in the matter
 of food3 pleasing ,,god was rather to  
be chosen than the most tempting cluster
 of grapes4 ,but in the foregoing words 
we find that his obedience is further   
tested1 and this in a way which to many 
might prove a more severe trial4 ,,god  
claims the right of determining the     
personal appearance of ,his servant1 and
 directs that separated ones should be  
manifestly such4 ,to many minds there is
 the greatest shrinking from appearing  
peculiar2 but ,,god would often have    
,his people unmistakably peculiar4 ,we  
sometimes hear the argument1 all the    
world thinks this1 or does that1 given  
as a reason for our doing likewise2 but 
that is an argument that should have no 
weight with the ,christian1 who is      
commanded not to be conformed to the    
world4 ,while we are not to seek to be  
peculiar for its own sake1 we are not to

 hesitate to be so when duty to ,,god   
renders it necessary1 or when the       
privilege of self-denial for the benefit
 of others calls for it4  ,further1 this
 command again reminded the ,nazarite   
that he was not his own1 but was utterly
 the ,,lord',s2 that ,,god claimed the  
very hair of his head4 ,he was not at   
liberty to cut or trim it as he saw fit1
 nor to wear it as long or as short as  
might be agreeable to himself4 ,so      
absolute was ,,god',s claim upon him1   
that not merely while his vow lasted was
 that hair to be recognised as ,,god',s 
possession1 but when his vow was        
fulfilled the whole of it was to be     
shaved off1 and was to be burnt upon the
 altar4 ,like the burnt-offering1 it was
 to be recognised as for ,,god',s use   
alone1 whether or not any utilitarian   
purpose were accomplished by the        
sacrifice4  ,so now1 in the present     
dispensation1 we are told the very hairs
 of your head are all numbered--so      
minute is ,,god',s care for ,his people1

 so watchful is ,he over all that       
affects them4 ,it is beautiful to see   
the fond love of a young mother as she  
passes her fingers through the silken   
locks of her darling child--her treasure
 and her delight2 but she never counts  
those hairs4 ,he only1 who is the source
 of mother-love1 does that6 ,and shall  
not we1 who are not our own1 but bought 
with a price1 gladly render to ,him all 
we are and have--every member of our    
body1 every fibre of our being1 every   
faculty of our mind1 all our will-power1
 and all our love8   ,,holiness ,,to    
,,the ,,lord3 verses #f-h4      ,all the
 days that he separateth himself unto   
the ,,lord he shall     come at no dead 
body4 ,he shall not make himself unclean
 for his     father1 or for his mother1 
for his brother1 or for his sister1     
when they die2 because the consecration 
of his ,,god is upon his     head4 ,all 
the days of his separation he is holy   
unto the ,,lord4  ,here we have a most  
solemn and important prohibition--to    

refrain from all uncleanness caused by  
contact with death4 ,death is the wages 
of sin3 the consecrated one was alike to
 keep aloof from sin and from its       
consequences4  ,no requirement of       
,,god',s ,word is more clear than the   
command to honour and obey our earthly  
parents2 but even for his father or     
mother a ,nazarite might not defile     
himself3 he that loveth father or mother
 more than ,,me1 is not worthy of ,,me4 
,but let no young ,christian think      
lightly of the requirements of parents1 
when these do not conflict with ,,god',s
 written ,word4 ,young ,christians are  
sometimes distressed because their      
desire to preach the ,gospel to the     
heathen has been opposed by parents3    
such should be encouraged to thank ,,god
 for the obstacle2 and to seek by prayer
 its removal4 ,when they have learnt to 
move man through ,,god at home1 they    
will be the better prepared to do the   
same thing in the mission-field4 ,where 
there is fitness for the work1 the way  

will probably be made plain after a time
 of patient waiting4  ,these verses     
teach us that mere contact with death is
 defiling3 how vain then is the         
imagination of the unconverted that by  
dead works--the best efforts of those   
who are themselves dead in trespasses   
and sins--they can render themselves    
acceptable to ,,god6 ,the good works of 
the unsaved may indeed benefit their    
fellow-creatures2 but until life in     
,,christ has been received1 they cannot 
please ,,god4   ,,unwitting             
,,defilement3 verses #i-ab4      ,if any
 man die very suddenly by him1 and he   
hath defiled the head     of his        
consecration2 then he shall shave his   
head in the day of his     cleansing1 on
 the seventh day shall he shave it4 ,and
 on the eighth     day he shall bring   
two turtles1 or two young pigeons1 to   
the     priest1 to the door of the      
tabernacle of the congregation3 and the 
priest shall offer the one for a        
sin-offering1 and the other for a       

burnt-offering1 and make an atonement   
for him1 for that he sinned     by the  
dead1 and shall hallow his head that    
same day4 ,and he shall     consecrate  
unto the ,,lord the days of his         
separation1 and shall     bring a lamb  
of the first year for a                 
trespass-offering3 but the     days that
 were before shall be lost1 because his 
separation was     defiled4  ,a most    
important truth is here taught--that    
even unwitting contact with death might 
bring sin upon the ,nazarite4 ,sometimes
 we are tempted to excuse ourselves1 and
 to forget the absolute sinfulness of   
sin1 apart altogether from the question 
of premeditation1 or even of            
consciousness1 at the time1 on our part4
 ,the one who became defiled1 was       
defiled1 whether intentionally or not2  
,,god',s requirement was absolute1 and  
where not fulfilled the vow was broken2 
the sin-offering had to be offered1 and 
the service recommenced4   ,,the        
,,heinousness ,,of ,,sin4  ,the teaching

 here1 and that of offerings for sins of
 ignorance1 is much needed in this day1 
when there is a dangerous tendency in   
some quarters to regard sin as          
misfortune1 and not as guilt4 ,the awful
 character of sin is shown to mankind by
 its consequences4 ,man's heart is so   
darkened by the ,fall1 and by personal  
sinfulness1 that otherwise he would     
regard sin as a very small matter4 ,but 
when we think of all the pain that men  
and women have endured since the        
,creation1 of all the miseries of which 
this world has been witness1 of all the 
sufferings of the animal creation1 and  
of the eternal as well as temporal      
consequences of sin1 we must see that   
that which has brought such a harvest of
 misery into the world is far more awful
 than sin-blinded men have thought it to
 be4  ,the highest evidence1 however1 of
 the terrible character of sin is to be 
found at the ,cross2 that it needed such
 a sacrifice--the sacrifice of the ,,son
 of ,,god--to bring in atonement and    

everlasting salvation1 is surely the    
most convincing proof of its heinous    
character4  ,death was brought into the 
world by sin2 and1 like all the other   
consequences of sin1 it is loathsome and
 defiling4 ,man seeks to adorn death2   
the pageantry of the funeral1 the       
attractiveness of the cemetery1 all show
 this4 ,the ,egyptian sought in vain to 
make the mortal body incorruptible by   
embalming it4 ,but we have to bury our  
dead out of our sight1 and the believer 
is taught to look forward to the        
resurrection4   ,,cleansing ,,only      
,,through ,,sacrifice4  ,let us not lose
 sight of the fact that the accidental  
death of any one near the               
,nazarite--that the thoughtless putting 
forth of the hand even--might violate   
his vow of consecration as truly1 if not
 as guiltily1 as an act of deliberate   
transgression2 in either case all the   
previous time was lost1 and the period  
of consecration had to be recommenced   
after his cleansing4 ,and that cleansing

 could only be brought about through    
sacrifice2 the sin-offering must die2   
the burnt-offering must die2 without    
shedding of blood there could be no     
remission4 ,so serious was the effect of
 transgression--and yet1 thank ,,god1 it
 was not irremediable4  ,the bearing of 
this on the life of consecration to     
,,god in the present day is important4  
,nearness to ,,god calls for tenderness 
of conscience1 thoughtfulness in        
service1 and implicit obedience4 ,if we 
become conscious of the slightest       
failure1 even through inadvertence1 let 
us not excuse it1 but at once humble    
ourselves before ,,god1 and confess it1 
seeking forgiveness and cleansing on the
 ground of the accepted sacrifice of    
,,christ4 ,,god',s ,word is1 ,if we     
confess our sins1 ,he is faithful and   
just to forgive us our sins1 and to     
cleanse us from all unrighteousness4    
,this cleansing must be accepted by     
faith1 and a walk in the light be at    
once resumed4 ,and shall we not         

reverently ask and trust the ,,holy     
,,spirit to guard and keep us from      
inadvertence1 and to bring to our       
remembrance those things which we may be
 in danger of forgetting8   ,,acceptance
 ,,only ,,in ,,christ3 verses #ac-ae4   
,and this is the law of the ,nazarite1  
when the days of his     separation are 
fulfilled3 he shall be brought unto the 
door of the     tabernacle of the       
congregation2 ,and he shall offer his   
offering     unto the ,,lord1 one       
he-lamb of the first year without       
blemish for     a burnt-offering1 and   
one ewe-lamb of the first year without  
blemish for a sin-offering1 and one ram 
without blemish for     peace-offerings1
 and a basket of unleavened bread1 cakes
 of fine     flour mingled with oil1 and
 wafers of unleavened bread anointed    
with oil1 and their meat-offering1 and  
their drink-offerings4  ,having seen the
 character of the vow of the ,nazarite1 
and of the ordinances to be observed    
should the vow be violated1 the case of 

a ,nazarite who has duly fulfilled his  
vow is next dealt with4 ,he has carried 
out all ,,god',s requirements1 and his  
conscience is void of offence3 before   
,,god and man he is blameless4 ,may he  
not now congratulate himself1 and claim 
some measure of merit1 seeing he has    
rendered to ,,god an acceptable service1
 and among men has borne a consistent   
testimony8 ,the offerings to be made on 
the conclusion of his vow give an       
impressive answer to this question1 and 
bring out the important difference      
between being blameless and being       
sinless4 ,having fulfilled the          
ordinances he was blameless2 but the    
necessity alike for sin-offering1 for   
burnt-offering1 and for peace offering1 
remind us of the sin of our holy things2
 and that not our worst1 but our best1  
is only acceptable to ,,god through the 
atonement of our ,,lord ,,jesus         
,,christ4  ,while1 however1 the best    
services of the believer can neither    
give full satisfaction to his own       

enlightened conscience1 nor be          
acceptable to ,,god save through ,,jesus
 ,,christ1 it is very blessed to know   
how fully all his needs are met in      
,,christ1 and how truly he is accepted  
in ,him1 and enabled to give very real  
joy to ,,god our ,,father1 which issues 
in the bestowal of ,his richest         
blessings4 ,very imperfect--sometimes   
worse than useless1 is the attempt of a 
little child to please and serve its    
parent2 but where the parent sees an    
effort to do his will1 and to give him  
pleasure1 is not the service gladly     
accepted1 and the parent's heart greatly
 rejoiced8 ,thus it is our privilege to 
be ,nazarites1 only and always          
,nazarites1 and through ,,christ ,,jesus
 to give joy and satisfaction by our    
imperfect service to our heavenly       
,,father4 ,the following anonymous      
lines1 taken from a leaflet1,a          
beautifully illustrate this thought3--  
,i was sitting alone in the twilight1   
,with spirit troubled and vexed1   ,with

 thoughts that were morbid and gloomy1  
,and faith that was sadly perplexed4    
,some homely work ,i was doing     ,for 
the child of my love and care2   ,some  
stitches half-wearily setting     ,in   
the endless need of repair4    ,but my  
thoughts were about the building1       
,the work some day to be tried2   ,and  
that only the gold and the silver1      
,and the precious stones should abide2  
,and1 remembering my own poor efforts1  
,the wretched work ,i had done1   ,and1 
even when trying most truly1     ,the   
meagre success ,i had won2    ,it is    
nothing but wood1 hay1 and stubble1     
,i said2 it will all be burned--   ,this
 useless fruit of the talents     ,one  
day to be returned2    ,and ,i have so  
longed to serve ,him1     ,and sometimes
 ,i know ,i have tried2   ,but ,i'm     
sure1 when ,he sees such a building1    
,he will never let it abide4    ,just   
then1 as ,i turned the garment     ,that
 no rent should be left behind1   ,my   
eye caught an odd little bungle     ,of 

mending and patchwork combined4    ,my  
heart grew suddenly tender1     ,and    
something blinded my eyes1   ,with one  
of those sweet intuitions     ,that     
sometimes makes us so wise4    ,dear    
child1 she wanted to help me2     ,i    
knew 'twas the best she could do2   ,but
 oh1 what a botch she had made it--     
,the grey mis-matching the blue6    ,and
 yet--can you understand it8     ,with a
 tender smile and a tear1   ,and a      
half-compassionate yearning1     ,i felt
 her grown more dear4    ,then a sweet  
voice broke the silence1     ,and the   
dear ,lord said to me--   ,art thou     
tenderer for the little child     ,than 
,i am tender for thee4    ,then         
straightway ,i knew ,his meaning1       
,so full of compassion and love2   ,and 
my faith came back to its ,refuge1      
,like the glad returning dove4    ,for  
,i thought when the ,master ,builder    
,comes down ,his temple to view1   ,to  
see what rents must be mended1     ,and 
what must be builded anew2    ,perhaps1 

as ,he looks o'er the building1     ,he 
will bring my work to the light1   ,and1
 seeing the marring and bungling1       
,and how far it all is from right1      
,he will feel as ,i felt for my darling1
     ,and will say as ,i said for her-- 
,dear child1 she wanted to help me1     
,and love for me was the spur2    ,and1 
for the real love that was in it1       
,the work shall seem perfect as mine2   
,and because it was willing service1    
,i will crown it with plaudit divine4   
,and there1 in the deepening twilight1  
,i seemed to be clasping a ,hand1   ,and
 to feel a great love constraining me1  
,stronger than any command4    ,then ,i 
knew1 by the thrill of sweetness1       
',twas the hand of the ,blessed ,one1   
,which would tenderly guide and hold me1
     ,till all the labour is done4      
,so my thoughts are never more gloomy1  
,my faith no longer is dim3   ,but my   
heart is strong and restful1     ,and   
mine eyes are unto ,,him4  ,a3          
,published under the title1 ,the ,voice 

in the ,twilight1 by ,holness1 #ad1     
,paternoster ,row1 #f;d4 per hundred1   
post free4   ,,the ,,presentation ,,of  
,,the ,,nazarite4  ,let us now look into
 the law of the ,nazarite when the days 
of his separation were fulfilled4 ,the  
first thing that strikes our notice is1 
,he shall be brought1 not1 he shall     
come4 ,why is this8 and why is it that  
the law is so explicit as to every      
detail of ritual and service1 scarcely  
leaving any room for voluntary          
action8--we say scarcely1 because in the
 twenty-first verse there is one little 
clause1 ,beside that that his hand shall
 get1 which does leave room for         
additional tokens of gratitude and love4
  ,the answer seems to be1 that the     
voluntary part of ,nazarite service lay 
first and chiefly in the surrender to   
become a ,nazarite4 ,in that position he
 was not his own1 as we have pointed    
out1 and the ,,master whom he served    
naturally and consistently directed the 
service4  ,again1 does not1 ,he shall be

 brought imply that1 ,nazarite as he    
was1 he still needed priestly           
ministration to present himself1 and his
 finished service1 before the ,,lord8   
,and our ,,high ,,priest1 who is now    
able to keep us from falling to the end 
of our surrendered service1 waits to    
present us with exceeding joy1 faultless
 before the presence of ,his glory--holy
 and unblameable and unreproveable in   
,his sight4   ,,the ,,law ,,of ,,the    
,,offerings4  ,when we come to the      
offerings enumerated in v4 #ad1 we      
notice that they are mentioned in the   
almost invariable order of              
enumeration--first the burnt-offering1  
then the sin-offering1 and lastly the   
peace offering2 but when in v4 #af we   
come to the offering up of the          
sacrifices1 we notice that as always the
 sin-offering is the first to be        
offered4  ,it is somewhat remarkable    
that the actual order of offering1 and  
the order of enumeration should not     
correspond2 and it is likewise          

noteworthy that the sacrifice which was 
always offered first1 when offered at   
all1 was comparatively insignificant in 
point of value1 and much less frequently
 called for in the services of the      
,levitical ritual4 ,for instance1 in    
,numbers xxviii1 xxix1 the daily        
offering was a burnt-offering of a      
he-lamb morning and evening1 with the   
corresponding accompaniments of fine    
flour mingled with oil1 and a           
drink-offering of wine4 ,on the ,sabbath
 ,day an additional burnt-offering of   
two lambs with their meat-offering and  
drink-offering was required4 ,at the    
time of the new moon1 the additional    
offering was of two bullocks1 one ram1  
and seven lambs1 with their meat and    
drink-offerings1 for a burnt-offering1  
while one he-goat sufficed for a        
sin-offering4 ,the same offerings were  
offered at the ,feasts of ,passover and 
,pentecost4 ,on several other occasions 
the offerings were nearly of the same   
proportions2 while during the ,feast of 

,tabernacles the offerings commenced    
with thirteen bullocks1 two rams1 and   
fourteen lambs for a burnt-offering to  
one he-goat for a sin-offering4  ,the   
same disproportion of number and value  
may be noticed on many occasions between
 the sin-offering and the peace         
offering4 ,a striking example of this   
was the sacrifice of peace-offerings    
made by ,solomon on the dedication of   
the temple to the number of #bb1jjj     
oxen1 and #abj1jjj sheep4  ,we cannot   
but see that teaching of the most       
important character is to be gathered   
from these facts2 and is it not clear   
that while the need of forgiveness and  
cleansing is never to be lost sight of1 
it is not intended that a sense of the  
presence and defilement of sin should be
 the prominent feature of the service of
 ,,god8 ,on the great ,day of ,atonement
 ,israel's sin was confessed and put    
away2 and thenceforward the daily and   
the ,sabbath worship was that of whole  
burnt-offering4 ,at the special         

festivals a he-goat was sacrificed for  
sin2 but1 as we have seen1 the          
burnt-offerings1 which speak of         
acceptance by1 and devotion to1 ,,god   
were the principal features4 ,it is the 
purpose of ,,god that in the present    
dispensation ,his people should have and
 enjoy full assurance of salvation      
through the offering of ,,jesus ,,christ
 once for all2 and more than this1      
should know that ,he who died for their 
offences1 and was raised again for their
 justification1 henceforth liveth unto  
,,god2 in order that ,his people may    
likewise reckon themselves to be dead   
indeed unto sin1 but alive unto ,,god1  
in ,,jesus ,,christ our ,,lord4 ,in     
,,jesus ,,christ there is no            
condemnation4 ,in ,,jesus ,,christ1 the 
law of the ,,spirit of life hath set me 
free from the law of sin and of death4  
,by the will of ,,god we are sanctified1
 through the offering of the body of    
,,jesus ,,christ once for all2 and by   
that one offering ,he hath perfected for

 ever them that are sanctified4   ,,the 
,,burnt-,,offering4  ,to return to the  
order of enumeration3 the burnt-offering
 is always mentioned first1 because it  
is the highest in character1 and gave   
most pleasure to ,,god4 ,it was wholly  
the ,,lord',s2 no part of it was eaten  
by the priest who offered it1 nor by the
 offerer who presented it1 it was all   
and only for ,,god',s satisfaction4     
,when ,noah offered his burnt-offering1 
the ,,lord smelled a sweet savour1 and  
blessed him and his posterity4 ,when    
,abraham in purpose offered up his son  
,isaac1 ,,god said1 ,by myself have ,i  
sworn1 saith the ,,lord1 for because    
thou hast done this thing1 444 that in  
blessing ,i will bless thee1 and in     
multiplying ,i will multiply thy seed2  
444 and thy seed shall possess the gate 
of his enemies2 and in thy seed shall   
all the nations of the earth be blessed4
  ,the burnt-offering tells us of the   
perfect and accepted righteousness of   
,,christ1 in virtue of which the        

imperfect believer and his imperfect    
service are accepted by ,,god4 ,but it  
also reminds the believer of his        
privilege to surrender himself as a     
living sacrifice1 holy and acceptable   
unto ,,god1 which is to be the          
reasonable 7intelligent7 service 7that  
is1 ritual or worship7 of each day and  
hour4   ,,the ,,sin-,,offering ,,and    
,,the ,,peace-,,offering4  ,the         
sin-offering1 as its name indicates1    
recognized the offerer as guilty and    
defiled1 but obtaining forgiveness and  
cleansing through the death of the      
victim in his stead4 ,we see ,,christ as
 our sin-offering in ,isa4 liii4 #d-aj4 
,but guilt removed still leaves the     
believer needing the imputed            
righteousness of ,,christ1 and          
acceptance before ,,god1 which are the  
aspects of ,,christ',s death            
foreshadowed1 as we have seen by the    
burnt-offering4  ,lastly1 the           
peace-offering--part of which was       
consumed on the altar1 while part was   

the portion of the priest1 and the      
remainder furnished a feast to the      
offerer and his friends--shows us ,,gods
 and man feasting together on the       
perfect work of ,,christ4 ,he that      
sanctifieth and those who are           
sanctified1 find their full satisfaction
 in ,him1 and in ,him alone4 ,he has    
made peace by the blood of ,his cross4  
,he has given us ,his own peace4 ,we are
 called to let ,his peace rule in our   
hearts4 ,and if we will but bring our   
burdens and cares to ,him1 we are       
promised that the peace of ,,god shall  
guard and garrison our hearts and       
thoughts in ,,christ ,,jesus6     ,,part
 ,,ii4  ,the ,blessing of ,,god4        
,,numb4 ,,vi4 #bb-bg4   ,we have already
 seen the grace of ,,god making         
provision that ,his people1 who had lost
 the privilege of priestly service1     
might draw near to ,him by ,nazarite    
separation and consecration4 ,and not as
 the offence was the free gift3 those   
who had forfeited the privilege of      

priestly service were the males only1   
but women and even children might be    
,nazarites2 whosoever desired was free  
to come1 and thus draw near to ,,god4   
,we now come to the concluding verses of
 ,numb4 vi1 and see in them one of the  
fullest forms of benediction to be found
 in the whole ,word of ,,god4 ,the      
thought naturally arises1   ,,why ,,is  
,,it ,,found ,,here8  ,and the reply is 
twofold4 ,there is the ,divine side4    
,flowing from ,,god',s heart of love    
first came the privilege of ,nazarite   
consecration2 and then1 by the act of   
consecration1 ,his loving heart is so   
gladdened that it further overflows in  
these rich benedictions4  ,looking1 on  
the other hand1 at the human side1 we   
may learn that the soul which is fully  
consecrated always receives the blessing
 of ,,god4 ,where that blessing is not  
enjoyed1 there is always something      
unreal or defective in the consecration4
 ,it may be that we have separated      
ourselves to carry out our own will1 or 

thought1 or plan of service1 instead of 
surrendering ourselves and our will1 to 
learn and to do ,his will4 ,but it is   
real consecration to ,,god that puts us 
into the position in which ,he can pour 
out ,his richest blessings upon us4     
,the prodigal was a son of the father   
all the time2 but when he preferred his 
will to the will of his father1 his way 
to the way of his father1 his management
 of his share in the property to his    
father's management1 it issued but in   
ruin and misery--in hunger and nakedness
 and shame4 ,the fact that he was a son 
was of no avail to him in the far       
country1 in the place of self-will and  
self-management4 ,but as soon as he     
arose1 and with true repentance and     
submission came back to the father's    
house1 willing to serve1 and to do his  
father's will1 he found himself restored
 to his father's heart1 and to all the  
privileges of sonship3 the fatted calf  
was killed1 the best robe was put upon  
him1 once more he had shoes on his feet 

and a ring on his hand1 and joy and     
gladness filled the home4  ,how many    
,christians there are who1 in their     
self-will and attempted self-management1
 find themselves day by day full of     
sorrow1 or full of care4 ,trying to keep
 themselves they are not kept2 trying to
 be happy they are often unhappy2 trying
 to succeed they fail2 and they can but 
confess that their life is very         
different from that ideal life described
 in ,ps4 lxxxix4 #ae-ah3    ,blessed is 
the people that know the joyful sound3  
,they shall walk1 ,o ,,lord1 in the     
light of ,thy countenance4   ,in ,thy   
,name shall they rejoice all the day3   
,and in ,thy righteousness shall they be
 exalted4   ,for ,thou art the glory of 
their strength2   ,and in ,thy favour   
our horn shall be exalted4   ,for the   
,,lord is our defence2   ,and the ,,holy
 ,,one of ,israel is our ,,king4        
,instead of this many practically know  
very little of peace which passeth all  
understanding1 of joy that is literally 

unspeakable2 adjectives far more        
moderate would be found strong enough to
 express all they know of oft-troubled  
peace and intermittent satisfaction and 
happiness4 ,many there are who fail to  
see that there can be but one lord1 and 
that those who do not make ,,god ,lord  
of all do not make ,him ,lord at all4   
,the slightest reservation in our       
consecration shows that we hold         
ourselves as our own1 and consequently  
at liberty to give ,him as much or as   
little as we think fit4 ,if we recognize
 ,him as ,,lord and ,,master1 we have   
nothing to withhold1 and nothing of our 
own1 for we1 and all we have1 are       
already ,his4 ,but then1 in return1 all 
,he has1 and all ,he is1 become ours4   
,oh6 blessed ,,portion6 ,who would not  
wish henceforth to have no private      
property in himself--in his members--in 
his possessions--in his family--in his  
affections2 but1 in fullest             
consecration1 to acknowledge and        
recognize ,,god',s right and to be no   

longer a robber of ,,god8      ,and the 
,,lord spake unto ,moses1 saying1 ,speak
 unto ,aaron and unto     his sons1     
saying1 ,on this wise ye shall bless the
 children of ,israel     444 ,and they  
shall put ,my ,name upon the children of
 ,israel2 and ,i     will bless them4   
,here we have the blessing that ,,god   
delights to give to those who have      
dedicated themselves and their all to   
,him4 ,before considering it in detail1 
let us notice1 first1 how spontaneous   
and unsought is this blessing from      
,,god--the ,,lord commanded ,aaron and  
his sons to bless ,israel1 to put ,his  
,name upon them2 and declared ,his own  
unalterable purpose1 ,i will bless them4
 ,and then1 let us ask ourselves the    
question1 what is   ,,the ,,real        
,,meaning ,,of ,,blessing8  ,we         
frequently use the word so vaguely as to
 lose much of its preciousness1 and to  
overlook the primary meaning in some of 
its secondary significations4 ,for      
instance1 we use it frequently as a     

synonym of praise1 and in speaking of   
blessing ,,god1 we think of praising    
,him4 ,but blessing does not merely mean
 praise1 for ,,god blesses us4 ,again1  
sometimes we use it for some gracious   
gift1 as when we speak of the blessing  
of peace or of plenty4 ,but blessing    
does not only signify gift1 for when we 
bless ,,god we do not give to ,him peace
 or plenty4 ,blessing is the moving of  
the heart towards an object of affection
 and complacency4 ,the out-going of the 
heart is naturally accompanied by gift  
or ascription1 as the case may be4 ,when
 our hearts bless the ,,lord1 we sing a 
song of praise to ,him for the great    
love wherewith ,he hath loved us2 but   
the blessing is not the song--it is the 
feeling that prompts it4 ,when the      
,,lord blesses ,his people with peace   
and plenty1 it is ,his open ,heart that 
moves ,his loving ,hand4  ,again1       
blessing is always accompanied with joy2
 it is a joy1 and it gives joy1 both to 
the giver and the receiver4 ,a little   

child playing with his toys may be both 
happy and satisfied4 ,but it hears the  
mother's footsteps1 it sees the mother  
open the door1 and instantly the toys   
are dropped and forgotten2 the little   
arms are stretched out1 and the little  
feet are running to meet the welcome    
mother4 ,nor is this all2 the great1    
motherly arms are as quickly stretched  
forth towards the child1 and with longer
 steps the mother hastens to meet the   
little one1 and clasps it to her bosom1 
the loving little arms entwining        
themselves around her neck4  ,but whose 
heart is the more glad8 ,the little     
one's heart is full2 and the mother's   
heart is also full2 but her capacity is 
greater1 and so her joy is deeper4 ,and 
is not this true of our ,,heavenly      
,,father8 ,when ,his heart blesses ours1
 and ours blesses ,,him1 we are full of 
joy2 but ,his heart is infinitely       
greater than ours1 and ,his joy in ,his 
people as far exceeds all their joy in  
,him1 as the infinite exceeds the       

finite4  ,let us always remember in     
connection with blessing that the deep  
heart-feeling is the primary thought4   
,bless the ,,lord1 ,o my soul2 and all  
that is within me1 bless ,his holy      
,name4 ,the praise of the lip may be    
insincere2 the blessing of the heart    
cannot be4   ,,the ,,three-,,fold       
,,benediction3 verses #bd-bf4      ,the 
,,lord bless thee1 and keep thee3       
,the ,,lord make ,his face shine upon   
thee1 and be gracious unto     thee3    
,the ,,lord lift up ,his countenance    
upon thee1 and give thee     peace4  ,we
 have dwelt upon the meaning of         
blessing--the moving of the heart       
towards an object of affection and      
complacency1 and noticed that this is   
naturally accompanied by gift or        
ascription1 as the case may be4 ,when   
love overflows1 loving words1 loving    
embraces1 or loving gifts instinctively 
follow4  ,in the light of the fuller    
revelation of the ,new ,testament we can
 scarcely fail to see in this three-fold

 benediction the overflow in blessing of
 the ,,father1 of the ,,son1 and of the 
,,spirit2 and we may read it as         
follows3--      ,,jehovah1 ,,the        
,,father1 ,,bless ,,thee1 ,,and ,,keep  
,,thee3      ,,jehovah1 ,,the ,,son1    
,,the ,,bridegroom1 ,,make ,,his ,,face 
,,shine ,,upon ,,thee1     ,,and ,,be   
,,gracious ,,unto ,,thee3               
,,jehovah1 ,,the ,,spirit1 ,,lift ,,up  
,,his ,,countenance ,,upon ,,thee1 ,,and
 ,,give     ,,thee ,,peace4  ,so read1  
we see in these words fuller beauty and 
appropriateness4 ,let us now notice the 
first clause in particular4   ,,the     
,,blessing ,,of ,,the ,,father4         
,considered as a father's blessing could
 anything be more appropriate than ,the 
,,lord bless thee1 and keep thee8 ,is   
not this just what every loving father  
seeks to do--to bless and keep his      
children8 ,he does not find it an       
unwelcome task1 but his greatest        
delight4 ,offer to relieve him of the   
responsibility and to adopt his child1  

and see what his reply will be6 ,nor may
 we confine ourselves to paternal love  
in thinking of this subject2 but rather 
take it as parental love1 embracing also
 the love of the mother1 for ,thus saith
 the ,,lord1 444 ,as one whom his mother
 comforteth1 so will ,i comfort you4 ,we
 all know how the mother-love delights  
to lavish itself on the objects of its  
care4 ,with a patience that never tires1
 and an endurance almost inexhaustible1 
and a care all but unlimited1 how often 
has the mother sacrificed her very life 
for the welfare of her babe4 ,but strong
 as is a mother's love1 it may fail2    
,,god',s love never4 ,can a woman forget
 her suckling child that she should not 
have compassion on the son of her womb8 
yea1 they may forget1 yet will ,i not   
forget thee4  ,it was one of the objects
 of our ,,saviour',s mission to reveal  
to us that1 in ,,christ ,,jesus1 ,,god  
is also our ,,father4 ,how ,he delighted
 in bringing out this precious truth the
 ,sermon on the ,mount bears witness3   

,glorify your ,father4 ,love 444 bless  
444 do good1 that ye may be the children
 of your ,,father4 ,be perfect1 even as 
your ,,father4 ,thy ,,father 444 seeth4 
,your ,,father knoweth1 etc41 etc4 ,and 
well may our hearts rest in the thought 
which so satisfied ,his heart1 that     
,,god is indeed our ,,father4  ,and what
 a glorious ,,father ,he is6 the source 
of all true fatherhood and motherhood4  
,we have often walked in the fields in  
the early morning1 and have noticed how 
the rising sun has turned each dewdrop  
into a glittering gem2 one ray of its   
own bright light makes a little sun of  
each of the million drops that hang from
 the pendent leaflets and sparkle       
everywhere4 ,but it is helpful to       
remember that the glorious orb itself   
contains infinitely more light than all 
the dewdrops ever did or ever will      
reflect4 ,and so of our heavenly        
,,father3 ,himself the great ,source of 
all that is noble and true1 of all that 
ever has been loving and                

trust-worthy--each beautiful trait of   
each beautiful character is but the dim 
reflection of some ray of ,his own great
 perfection4 ,and the sum-total of all  
human goodness1 and tenderness1 and love
 is but as the dewdrops to the sun4 ,how
 blessed then to confide in the infinite
 and changeless love of such a          
,,father--our ,,father in heaven6  ,how 
safe too6 ,there is none like unto the  
,,god of ,jeshurun1 who rideth upon the 
heaven in thy help1 and in ,his         
excellency on the sky4 ,the eternal     
,,god is thy refuge1 and underneath are 
the everlasting arms4 ,ofttimes where   
the love of earthly parents has not     
failed1 yet have they been powerless to 
bless and to keep4 ,the cruel tyrant has
 tortured the parent in torturing the   
child2 while there has been no power to 
deliver4 ,and in the presence of human  
want or suffering how impotent has the  
strongest human love oft proved to be6  
,not so the love of our heavenly        
,,father3 ,his resources and ,his power 

are as inexhaustible as ,his love2 and  
they are blest and kept indeed whom ,he 
deigns to bless and keep4  ,may we not  
add they only8 ,the foolish prodigal    
imagines that he can secure greater     
happiness for himself when no longer    
curbed by his father's presence and     
will2 such always come to want1 and1    
alas6 do not always return quickly to   
the home where reconciliation and       
blessing alone are to be found4 ,he is  
poorly kept who tries to keep himself2  
and though the pleasures of sin may for 
a season gratify1 they can never        
satisfy6,b  ,,jehovah1 the ,,father1    
bless thee1 and keep thee4 ,it is an    
individual blessing3 and it includes    
every form of blessing1 temporal as well
 as spiritual--,my ,,god shall supply   
all your need2 and this according to    
,his riches in glory in ,,christ        
,,jesus1 not according to our           
consciousness of need4 ,he is able to   
bless1 able to make all grace abound--to
 so wonderfully abound towards us1 that 

we always having all sufficiency in all 
things1 may abound to every good work3  
,he is able to keep--to keep us from    
falling1 to keep us from all evil4 ,and 
not only is ,he able1 but ,he has       
already blessed us with all spiritual   
blessings in heavenly things in         
,,christ1 and ,he wants us1 ,his        
children1 to know and to enjoy the love 
that is the source of all blessing3 the 
love that can never by finite words     
express its fulness3 the love that      
eternal ages will never exhaust6        
,best of blessings ,he'll provide us1   
,nought but good shall ere betide us2   
,safe to glory ,he will guide us1       
,oh1 how ,he loves6  ,b3 ,when we speak 
of ,,god as a ,,father we must not      
forget that ,he is only such in its full
 meaning to those who have become ,his  
children by faith in ,,christ ,,jesus2  
and that the sad and solemn words of the
 loving ,saviour to the unconverted     
were1 ,ye are of your father1 the devil4
 ,the prodigal was a backslider3 when   

furthest from home he could yet think   
and speak of the privileges of his      
father's house4   ,,the ,,second        
,,person ,,of ,,the ,,trinity4  ,the    
second clause of the blessing is the    
blessing of the ,,son1 which is not less
 full and appropriate4 ,through eternal 
ages the ,,son of ,,god1 ,he became1 in 
the fulness of time1 the ,,son of ,man4 
,the ,brightness of ,his ,,father',s    
glory1 the ,,sun of ,righteousness1 ,he 
came to manifest1 as well as to speak   
of1 the ,,father',s love4 ,he became the
 ,,light of the world1 as well as the   
,,lamb of ,,god2 but in each aspect     
doing the will1 as well as the work of  
,,god1 ,he thus revealed the wondrous   
love and grace of the ,,father1 and ,his
 own perfect ,sonship4 ,the ,,father',s 
will included ,,christ',s glad reception
 of all who come to ,him1 ,his meeting  
all their need--saving1 sanctifying1    
satisfying1 keeping1 raising up at the  
last day--,his giving ,himself for1 and 
giving ,himself to1 all those given to  

,him of the ,,father4  ,he is indeed a  
wonderful ,saviour6 ,what light the     
incarnate ,,word of ,,god 7,who is      
,light7 has thrown on the written ,word 
of ,,god6 ,the law in its legal         
requirements ,he has fulfilled1 bringing
 in everlasting righteousness1 which is 
imputed to all those who are indeed in  
,him4 ,he has also fulfilled the ,law in
 its manifold typical aspects--,himself 
the ,temple1 the ,priest1 and the       
,sacrifice2 ,himself the ,altar1 the    
,offerer1 and the ,victim2 ,himself the 
,lamp1 and the ,priestly ,trimmer of the
 lamps 7as ,he is also the whole ,vine1 
and yet the ,life of each individual    
branch of the ,vine74 ,time would fail  
us to enumerate the various objects and 
acts of typical service which were all  
fulfilled in ,him4 ,he too is the       
,,bridegroom1 from whose wounded side   
the ,bride is being formed2 and ,he is  
waiting for ,his ,bride1 who will soon  
be caught up to meet ,him in the air4   
,the true ,,solomon is ,he whose glory  

we shall share1 and not only so1 but    
whose presence will be the              
ever-satisfying portion of ,his chosen  
,bride4    ,the ,bride eyes not her     
garment1 but her loved ,bridegroom's    
face2   ,i shall not gaze on glory1 but 
on my ,,king of grace2   ,not on the    
crown ,he giveth1 but on ,his pierced   
hand3   ,the ,,lamb is all the glory of 
,immanuel's land4  ,may the ,,holy      
,,spirit give us more and more to       
realize the practical bearing of all    
that is thus revealed of the glory of   
the ,person1 and the fulness of the work
 of our ,,saviour and ,,king6   ,,the   
,,blessing ,,of ,,the ,,son ,,and       
,,bridegroom4      ,,jehovah1 ,,the     
,,son1 ,,make ,,his ,,face ,,shine      
,,upon ,,thee1 ,,and ,,be ,,gracious    
,,unto ,,thee4  ,the first clause of the
 three-fold blessing told of the going  
out of the heart of the invisible       
,,father2 now1 when we come to the      
blessing of the ,,son1 we read1 ,the    
,,lord make his face shine upon thee1   

or1 in other words1 make visibly        
manifest ,his favour towards thee4 ,the 
,,son of ,,god is the ,,kinsman who has 
the right to redeem1 the ,,friend who   
sticketh closer than a brother1 the     
,,one who has come1 not only to be the  
,,light of the world1 but in an especial
 sense to be the ,,light of ,his own    
redeemed ones4  ,there was no need in   
,israel of a kinsman-redeemer in times  
of prosperity2 but when bereavement and 
poverty afforded opportunity to the     
creditors to seize the possession1 then 
a kind and wealthy kinsman-redeemer was 
a blessing indeed4 ,we are reminded of  
the beautiful history of ,ruth3 how     
sweetly the gracious words of ,boaz fell
 on the ear of the young stranger1 and  
what blessing that kinsman brought into 
her heart and life6 ,the ,,friend that  
sticketh closer than a brother is       
precious at all times1 but never so     
valued as in times of adversity2 and the
 very expression1 ,,the ,,light of the  
world1 tells us of the darkness that sin

 has brought in--a darkness1 alas6 not  
only around1 but also within4 ,the      
shining of the face of ,,jehovah1 the   
,,son1 dispels the darkness and the     
gloom1 manifests the presence of the    
,,friend in need1 and shows us the      
,,redeemer1 who not only delivers1 but  
becomes the ,,bridegroom of the soul4   
,make ,his face shine upon thee4 ,the   
face is perhaps the most wonderful part 
of the wonderful human body4 ,of all the
 faces that ,,god has made no two are   
exactly alike1 even when quiescent2 and 
though we do occasionally meet with     
those that bear a very close            
resemblance1 intimate friends1 who know 
the play of the countenance1 never      
mistake4 ,and why is this8 ,because     
,,god has so ordered it1 that the face  
shall reveal the character and feelings 
of the individual4 ,and it is the       
purpose of ,,god that the heart of      
,,christ shall be revealed to ,his      
people4 ,that heart might have been full
 of love1 and we might never have known 

it2 but it is the will of ,,god that the
 light of the knowledge of the glory of 
,,god should be revealed to us in the   
face of ,,jesus ,,christ4  ,how well we 
know in actual life what the light of   
the countenance means6 ,how the mother's
 smile brings light and gladness into   
the heart of the child6 ,how the        
welcoming look of a friend is at once   
understood6 ,in ,daniel ix4 #af1 #ag1   
the prophet prays1 ,o ,lord 444 ,i      
beseech ,thee1 let ,thine anger and ,thy
 fury be turned away from ,thy city1    
,jerusalem2 444 and cause ,thy face to  
shine upon ,thy sanctuary that is       
desolate4 ,where there is the shining of
 the face we know there is more than    
forgiveness2 there is favour and        
complacence4 ,in the thrice-offered     
prayer of ,psalm lxxx1 ,cause ,thy face 
to shine1 and we shall be saved1 the    
salvation of ,israel is counted upon as 
the result2 and in ,psalm lxvii1 we find
 that the shining of ,,god',s face upon 
,his people is further to issue in ,his 

way being known upon earth1 ,his saving 
health among all nations4  ,it is1      
however1 when we consider ,him in the   
relationship of ,,bridegroom and ,,king 
that the tenderness and preciousness of 
this blessing are most fully seen4 ,a   
truly royal ,,bridegroom3 in ,his favour
 is life1 and to ,him we can approach at
 all times1 without any fear that ,he   
will hide ,his countenance1 or that ,he 
will not hold out to us the golden      
sceptre4 ,queen ,esther might tremble   
for the result of her boldness1 but our 
,,king ever welcomes the approach of    
,his ,bride4  ,when her heart cries out1
 ,let him kiss me with the kisses of    
,his mouth1 ,he is ever ready to bring  
her into ,his chambers2 indeed it is    
often the ,,bridegroom who has to allure
 the ,bride1,c rather than the ,bride   
who has to seek the favour of the       
,,bridegroom4 ,it is only when she has  
treated him with neglect or disobedience
 that she finds herself in darkness4    
,and what is not ,his favour to a loyal 

and true-hearted ,bride6 ,to a subject1 
the favour of the ,,king is as dew upon 
the grass1 but to a bride is it not     
everything8 ,,jehovah1 the ,,bridegroom1
 make ,his face shine upon thee1 and be 
gracious unto thee6  ,what a wonderful  
view of the light of ,his countenance   
the favoured disciples must have had1   
who were witnesses of ,his              
transfiguration3 we are told that ,his  
face did shine as the sun4 ,to the      
proto-martyr ,stephen the heavens were  
opened1 and the face of the ,,lord shone
 upon him3 and when he saw ,him he      
became so like ,him1 that his dying     
utterances corresponded with those of   
his ,,lord on the ,cross4 ,when ,saul1  
likewise1 saw the glory of his risen    
,,saviour1 on the way to ,damascus1 the 
vision at midday was of a light above   
the brightness of the sun shining round 
about him2 and the effect of that       
heavenly vision changed the whole       
current of his life1 making him a       
follower of the ,,christ1 who pleased   

not ,himself1 and making the spirit     
manifested in his first cry1 ,,lord1    
what wilt ,thou have me to do8 the      
spirit of his life ever after4 ,and so  
when the ,,lord makes the light of ,his 
countenance to shine upon any of ,his   
people1 in the measure in which with    
unveiled face they discern the beauty of
 the ,,lord1 there is a moral and       
progressive change into ,his likeness1  
the work of the ,,lord1 the ,,spirit4   
,c3 ,rise up1 my love1 my fair one1 and 
come away4--,cant4 ii4 #aj2 ,come with  
,me from ,lebanon1 ,my spouse4--,cant4  
iv4 #h4   ,,the ,,lord1 ,,the ,,spirit4 
,we have considered the bountiful       
overflow of the ,,father',s love2 and   
our hearts have burned within us as we  
dwelt upon and felt the glow of the love
 of the ,,son4 ,now1 as we think of the 
blessing of the ,,lord1 the ,,spirit1   
may ,he reveal ,himself to us through   
these holy ,words1 which were written by
 ,his inspiration and which can never be
 fully understood and enjoyed save by   

,his own illumination4 ,the ,bible is a 
supernatural book1 a divine revelation3 
the ,,holy ,,spirit is the supernatural1
 the divine ,,guide to its meaning4     
,from the wise and prudent its teachings
 are hidden2--hence the questionings of 
some of the learned only confirm its    
truth2 but to babes--to all those1      
whether learned or unlearned1 in whom   
the ,,holy ,,ghost has wrought the      
child-like spirit1 it is an opened book3
 they love it1 and feast upon it1 and   
grow thereby4  ,it is very important to 
have clear thoughts about the third     
person of the ,trinity4 ,many           
,christians fail in this respect1 and   
lose much in consequence4 ,he has as    
distinct personality as has the ,,son of
 ,,god2 and we must not think or speak  
of ,him vaguely1 as though ,he were an  
influence merely and not a person4 ,our 
,,saviour teaches us that we should know
 ,him1 for ,he abideth with you1 and    
shall be in you4 ,but are there not many
 of the ,,lord',s people to whom ,he is 

not yet a living1 bright ,reality8  ,so 
important are the presence and the work 
of the ,,holy ,,ghost1 that our ,,lord  
assured ,his disciples that it was      
expedient for them that ,he should go   
away1 in order that the ,,comforter     
should come4 ,and we see the mighty     
change that was wrought in the disciples
 when the outpouring of the ,,spirit    
actually took place at ,pentecost4 ,the 
timid became courageous2 the scattered  
and persecuted disciples went everywhere
 preaching the ,word2 the ,,holy        
,,spirit wrought conviction of sin1 and 
revealed the risen ,,saviour as the     
object of faith2 and many were added to 
the ,,lord4 ,the same ,,spirit is still 
present with us2 may we too be filled1  
and largely used as channels of         
blessing4   ,,the ,,blessing ,,of ,,the 
,,holy ,,spirit4      ,,jehovah1 ,,the  
,,spirit1 ,,lift ,,up ,,his             
,,countenance ,,upon ,,thee1 ,,and      
,,give     ,,thee ,,peace4  ,the        
blessing of the ,,spirit is essential to

 the completeness of the benediction4   
,we are struck1 however1 with the       
similarity of this blessing to that     
which precedes it2 nor is the similarity
 surprising4 ,for1 as the ,,son came to 
reveal the ,,father1 so the ,,spirit has
 come to reveal the ,,son4 ,,christ was 
a true ,,comforter2 but ,his personal   
work on earth being finished1 ,he       
ascended on high to minister for ,his   
people as their ,,high ,,priest in the  
presence of ,,god4 ,the ,,holy ,,spirit 
is the other ,,comforter1 sent by the   
,,father in ,,christ',s name1 that ,he  
might abide with the ,church for ever4  
,,christ is the indwelling ,,saviour3   
the ,,holy ,,spirit the indwelling      
,,comforter4 ,on whomsoever ,,christ    
makes ,his face to shine1 the ,,holy    
,,spirit will surely lift up   ,,his    
,,countenance4  ,lift up ,his           
countenance upon thee4 ,we have already 
dwelt on the significance of the face or
 countenance 7the same original word7 as
 revealing the emotions of the heart4   

,we see from these words that it is the 
purpose of ,,god that the presence and  
the love of the ,,spirit should be made 
known to those in whom ,he dwells4 ,when
 ,he lifts up ,his countenance upon us1 
we walk in conscious security and       
freedom2 but if the ,,spirit be grieved1
 the light of ,his countenance is hidden
 from us1 and we walk in darkness4 ,and1
 oh1 how dangerous is this walking in   
darkness1 how surely we shall wander    
from the way1 and fall into some of the 
snares of the devil6 ,there is only one 
safe course1 to confess the sin that has
 grieved ,him1 and take no rest till    
communion is restored3 this may always  
be done most easily by immediate        
confession and turning to ,him1 who is  
our ,advocate with the ,,father1 and    
whose shed blood cleanses from all sin4 
,when sin is put away the ,,spirit again
 lifts up ,his countenance upon us1 and 
peace fills the heart4   ,,the ,,peace  
,,of ,,the ,,spirit4  ,the ,,lord       
,,jesus1 when on earth1 said1 ,peace ,i 

leave with you1 ,my peace ,i give unto  
you3 not as the world giveth1 give ,i   
unto you4 ,let not your heart be        
troubled1 neither let it be afraid4 ,but
 here it is the ,,spirit who is spoken  
of as bestowing peace3 why is this8     
,because the ,,spirit of ,,god makes    
real things real to us1 and enables us  
practically to enjoy the blessings      
procured for us by the death and        
resurrection and priestly ministry of   
the ,,lord ,,jesus4 ,many a believer to 
whom ,,christ has left peace1 knows     
little of it2 but those who are filled  
with the ,,spirit are filled with peace4
 ,they have peace with ,,god2 they have 
also heart-peace in the midst of        
conflict and turmoil2 and the peace of  
,,god1 which passeth all understanding1 
guards their hearts and thoughts4 ,the  
fruit of the ,,spirit is love1 joy1     
peace4  ,are we practically enjoying    
this blessing1 and experiencing this    
peace which passes all understanding8   
,are we finding that when ,he makes     

quietness1 none can make trouble8 ,and  
if not1 what is the hindrance8 ,is there
 any known sin unconfessed1 or not put  
away8 ,has wrong been done1 and         
restitution to the extent of our ability
 not been made8 ,is there any matter in 
which ,,god has a controversy with us8  
,or are we indulging ourselves in       
anything about which we have doubt8 ,are
 we withholding anything from ,,god     
which is ,his due--ourselves1 our       
property1 our children2 or1 it may be1  
our testimony8 ,or1 if none of these    
things are hindering us1 are we failing 
to accept1 by faith1 the filling of the 
,,spirit2 perhaps only asking1 but not  
receiving also8 ,is it that we are      
neglecting the prayerful study of       
,,god',s ,word1 and thus grieving the   
,,spirit by whom it was inspired8 ,paul 
asked ,,god to give the ,ephesian       
,christians the ,,spirit of wisdom and  
revelation in the knowledge of ,,christ1
 that they might know the hope of ,his  
calling and the exceeding greatness of  

,his power toward them that believe4 ,we
 do well to note the words that believe1
 for unbelief lies at the root of every 
form of hindrance4  ,as the ,,spirit    
reveals ,,christ1 so does ,,christ      
bestow the ,,spirit2 and by faith in    
,,christ and in ,his ,word we           
appropriate the gift4 ,we shall never   
forget the blessing we received through 
the words1 in ,john iv4 #ad1 ,whosoever 
drinketh of the water that ,i shall give
 him    ,,shall ,,never ,,thirst1       
nearly thirty years ago4 ,as we realized
 that ,,christ literally meant what ,he 
said--that shall meant shall1 and never 
meant never1 and thirst meant           
thirst--our heart overflowed with joy as
 we accepted the gift4 ,oh1 the thirst  
with which we had sat down1 but oh1 the 
joy with which we sprang from our seat1 
praising the ,,lord that the thirsting  
days were all past1 and past for ever6  
,for1 as our ,,lord continues1 the water
 that ,i shall give him shall be in him 
a well of water1 springing              

up--overflowing--unto everlasting life4 
,perhaps1 however1 we should draw       
attention to the words of ,,christ1     
whosoever drinketh2 not drank--once for 
all--but drinketh1 that is habitually3  
as in chap4 vii4 #ch1 #ci1 where1 after 
promising that out of him shall flow    
rivers of living water1 it is           
significally added1 this spake ,he of   
the ,,spirit1 which they that           
believe--i4e41 keep believing--should   
receive4  ,is it not sad that so free a 
gift should be so little esteemed1 so   
often neither enjoyed nor sought after8 
,it is intended for each one of us--lift
 up ,his countenance upon thee1 and give
 thee peace4 ,would that each reader    
would accept the gift now1 and evermore 
enjoy it1 to the glory of ,,god4        
,,sealing ,,with ,,the ,,name ,,of      
,,god3 verse #bg4      ,and they shall  
put ,my ,name upon the children of      
,israel2 and ,i will     bless them4    
,with these words this wonderful chapter
 closes1 and the great object of ,,god  

in bestowing ,his blessing upon ,his    
people is revealed3 ,they shall put ,my 
,name upon the children of ,israel1 or1 
in other words1 shall cause them not    
only to become the people of ,,god1 but 
also to become manifestly such4  ,in    
olden time names were not meaningless1  
but were descriptive of character or    
relationship4 ,the various names of     
,,god are all full of significance1 and 
each is always used designedly in the   
,bible3 failing to recognize this1      
learned1 but spiritually-ignorant men   
have imagined the ,old ,testament       
writings to have been mere compilations 
from the works of different authors1 and
 have failed to see the beautiful       
appropriateness of the various names of 
,,god as they are used in different     
connections4  ,in the preceding         
benediction the thrice repeated ,name of
 ,,jehovah has revealed to us the triune
 ,,god in ,his gracious relations with  
,his redeemed people1 and has also      
reminded us that in these relationships 

,he is the unchanging ,one1 the same    
yesterday1 to-day1 and for ever2 for all
 this is contained in the ,name         
,,jehovah4 ,and thus the expression1    
,they shall put ,my ,name upon the      
children of ,israel1 implies the purpose
 of ,,god that in ,his people should be 
manifested1 not only the beauties of    
,his ,divine character1 but also the    
unchanging relationship in which they   
stand to ,him4 ,israel of old was1 and  
still is1 ,,god',s witness in the world4
 ,in all their unfaithfulness1 their    
very existence as a separate people is a
 standing miracle1 witnessing to the    
truth of prophecy4 ,but had they been   
faithful they would have been much more 
than this2 for the beauty of the ,,lord 
their ,,god would have been upon them2  
and receiving ,his blessing themselves1 
they would have become a blessing to the
 world4 ,we who are now the children of 
,,god--,christians upon whom the ,name  
of ,,christ has been called--are        
intended to be witnesses for our        

,,master1 and to show forth the beauties
 of ,him who has called us by ,his own  
glory and virtue4 7#b ,peter i4         
#c4--,r4,v47  ,there is an interesting  
parallelism between the passage we are  
considering and the commission given by 
our ,,lord to ,his people to disciple   
all nations1 baptizing them into the    
,name of the ,,father1 the ,,son1 and   
the ,,holy ,,ghost4 ,true ,christians   
are kept by the power of ,,god 7the     
,,lord bless thee and keep thee71 in the
 grace which is in ,,christ ,,jesus 7the
 ,,lord make ,his face shine upon thee1 
and be gracious unto thee71 and receive 
the illumination of the ,,holy ,,ghost  
7the ,,lord lift up ,his countenance    
upon thee71 in order that they may shine
 as lights in the world1 and become     
living epistles1 known and read of all  
men4  ,it is deeply interesting also to 
connect the sealing of this passage with
 that of ,rev4 vii and xiv4 ,in the     
former passage 7,rev4 vii4 #a-c7 we see 
the powers to whom the plagues are      

committed restrained until the sealing  
of the servants of ,,god is completed4  
,the hundred and forty and four thousand
 are all sealed--a mystical and         
symbolical number of the mystical and   
symbolical ,israel1 not of ,israel      
according to the flesh4 ,for in this    
book of ,revelation the ,,lamb does not 
mean an animal1 but the ,,lamb of ,,god4
 ,the beast does not mean a literal wild
 beast1 but the spiritual wild beast who
 destroys the children of ,,god4 ,so the
 twelve thousand of the tribe of ,judah 
refers to the praising ones of          
,,christ',s fold2 the sealed of ,asher  
to the happy ones1 who bless the ,,lord 
at all times2 those of ,naphtali1 to    
those satisfied with favour1 full with  
the blessing of the ,,lord2 those of    
,reuben1 to the once unstable as water1 
but now fully saved ones2 c41 c4  ,in   
,rev4 xiii we find the great tribulation
 in progress1 and those still left on   
the earth persecuted sorely1 many of    
them to the death1 by the beast4 ,but   

the hundred forty and four thousand of  
,rev4 xiv are not among them2 they were 
caught up before the tribulation        
commenced1 having been accounted worthy 
7,luke xxi4 #cd-cf71 to escape the      
things coming on the earth1 and to stand
 before the ,,son of ,,man4 ,such are   
not only virgins1 undefiled by spiritual
 adultery with the world1 but also wise 
ones1 filled with the ,,spirit3 they are
 not only waiting for the coming of the 
,bridegroom1 but ready for that coming2 
whereas the unwise have to go and buy   
oil1 and so miss their opportunity4 ,in 
,rev4 xiv we see that ,,god',s ,name is 
written on the foreheads of these wise  
virgins1 and that in their mouths is a  
song which no one else can sing4 ,they  
are a first-fruits ,bride united to the 
first-fruit's ,bridegroom1 and were     
redeemed 7not from among the ,jews only1
 but from among men71 unto ,,god and the
 ,,lamb4 ,other believers1 then in the  
tribulation1 shall join them later and  
form the harvest unto ,,god 7,rev4 vii4 

#ad-ag71 and will come with the         
,bridegroom and ,bride when our ,,lord  
is revealed from heaven in flaming fire 
to take vengeance on the ungodly 7#b    
,thess4 i1 #f-aj74 ,the harvest is not  
only separated from the first-fruits in 
,rev4 vii and xiv1 but also in ,rev4 xx4
 ,we may read verses #d-f more clearly  
if we render the second clause of verse 
#d1 ,i saw also the souls of them1 c41  
instead of and ,i saw1 c4 and the last  
clause1 ,they also lived and reigned    
with ,,christ a thousand years4 ,we thus
 see the enthroned ,bridegroom and      
,bride and the harvest1 the ,body of    
,,christ1 forming the first             
resurrection1 and together reigning in  
glory4  ,and ,i will bless them4 ,a word
 of encouragement to ,aaron and his sons
 in pronouncing the blessing1 as well as
 to the people who received it4 ,the    
blessing was preceded by ,,god',s       
command 7,speak unto ,aaron 444 ,on this
 wise ye shall bless71 and followed by  
the promise quoted above2 even as our   

,,saviour in giving ,his last commission
 to disciple all nations1 preceded it   
by1 ,all power is given unto ,me4443 ,go
 ye therefore2 and followed it by the   
assurance and promise1 ,lo1 ,i am with  
you alway4 ,in the word of a ,king there
 is power2 and when ,his servants carry 
out ,his commands1 our ,,king is present
 to authenticate them1 and to ensure the
 result4     ,,part ,,iii4  ,princely   
,service4  ,,numb4 ,,vii4   ,we learned 
from ,numbers vi1 ,,god',s requirements 
of those who desire to take the         
privileged position of separation to    
,himself4 ,we found also in the         
conclusion of the same chapter the      
overflow of ,,god',s love in the rich   
and comprehensive blessing which so     
appropriately follows1 and forms the    
connecting link between ,nazarite       
separation and the princely service set 
forth in ,chap4 vii1--one of the longest
 in the ,bible1 and one full of         
repetition4 ,we now propose to consider 
more fully why this service of giving   

finds such lengthy record4   ,,service  
,,the ,,constraint ,,of ,,love4  ,is it 
not that just as separation to ,,god    
issues in blessing1 so does blessing    
from ,,god constrain to service1 and    
especially to the highest form of       
service1 that which is most ,,god-like1 
that of ,giving8 ,,god so loved the     
world that ,he gave2 ,,christ so loved  
the ,church that ,he gave2 the ,,holy   
,,spirit so loves the ,church that ,he  
gives2 and redeemed ones1 created anew  
in ,,christ ,,jesus unto good works1    
when led by the ,,spirit1 first give    
themselves unto ,,god1 and then delight 
in such other free-will offerings as the
 ,,lord may enable them to present4     
,this we believe is the reason why the  
chapter is found here1 and is the true  
connection between its subject-matter   
and that of the preceding one4  ,but why
 is it so long1 so repetitious1 and so  
tedious8 ,the ,bible is a wonderful     
book2 it not only gives the history of  
the past1 and guidance for the present1 

but in prophecy we have the history of  
ages yet to come--the course of events  
until the grand climax when ,,god shall 
be all in all4 ,why1 in a book so       
marvellous in its comprehensiveness1 is 
so much space given to this record8     
,,god',s ,,delight ,,in ,,love-,,gifts4 
,is it not in order to reveal the heart 
of ,,god8 to show ,his delight in the   
loving offerings of ,his servants8 ,the 
record is not tedious to ,him2 and it   
becomes marvellously interesting to us1 
when we get the key1 and are brought    
into sympathy with the heart of ,him who
 finds infinite satisfaction in each    
gift1 of each one of ,his children1     
which is the outcome of gratitude and   
love4  ,in the days of our ,,lord',s    
life on earth1 when the shadow of the   
cross was already upon ,him1 one only   
amongst all ,his followers--a woman1    
,mary--had understood and really taken  
in ,his repeated declaration of the     
sufferings that awaited ,him2 and when  
she came to anoint ,him beforehand for  

the burial1 and broke the precious      
alabaster box she had reserved for this 
very purpose1 the thief who kept the bag
 had only angry words of criticism and  
reproach4 ,how sweet to her wounded     
spirit was her ,,master',s commendation1
 ,she hath done what she could6 ,and ,he
 added1 ,wheresoever this ,gospel shall 
be preached throughout the whole world1 
this also that she hath done shall be   
spoken of for a memorial of her4  ,on an
 earlier occasion1 likewise1 as ,he sat 
over against the treasury1 many that    
were rich cast in large sums of silver  
and of gold1 but ,he turned from them   
and their gifts to draw attention to a  
certain poor widow who brought two mites
 and cast them in4 ,she had gladdened   
the heart of ,him who was the ,creator  
of all wealth1 and the real ,owner of it
 all4 ,she1 said ,he1 had given more    
than they all3 for she of her want had  
given all that she had6 ,and of her1 as 
of ,mary1 it is true that in whatsoever 
language the ,word of ,,god is          

translated1 in whatsoever clime it is   
read1 the ,,master',s commendation is   
made known4  ,there is a day coming1 in 
which before assembled worlds ,he will  
make manifest the loving gifts and the  
secret service of ,his redeemed ones4   
,then we shall not weary as they are    
recounted and rewarded2 and as we see   
,his joy in them all1 we shall better   
understand the length of ,numbers vii4  
,,free-,,will ,,offerings3 verses #a1   
#b4      ,and it came to pass on the day
 that ,moses had fully set up the       
tabernacle1 and had anointed it1 and    
sanctified it 444 and all the           
vessels thereof1 444 that the princes of
 ,israel1 heads of the house     of     
their fathers1 444 offered4  ,when the  
,,lord gave the plan of the tabernacle  
and of the vessels1 ,he likewise gave to
 the people willing hearts to offer1 and
 skill to execute4 ,there was no need to
 press them2 the workers and            
contributors were those whose heart     
stirred them up1 and whose spirit was   

made willing4 ,the people brought more  
than enough for the service of the work1
 and ,moses had to make proclamation    
throughout the camp to restrain them    
from bringing more4  ,is there not a    
lesson to be learnt here8 ,let the work 
only be one of ,,god',s planning1 and   
executed according to ,his mind1 and the
 hearts that are in sympathy with ,him  
will gladly respond with suitable and   
abundant offerings4 ,for is not the     
willingness to give as much a part of   
,his working as the skill to use that   
which is given8 ,then1 in the givers and
 in their gifts1 in the workers and in  
their work1 the ,divine heart finds     
infinite complacency4 ,for of ,him1 as  
the great ,designer1 and through ,him1  
as the effectual ,power for the carrying
 out of ,his purposes1 and to ,him1 as  
the real ,object of all service1 are all
 things3 to whom be the glory for ever4 
,amen4  ,but divine service requires not
 only initiating1 but also maintaining  
worthily of ,,god4 ,it was not          

sufficient that the tabernacle and the  
vessels of ministry were according to   
the divine pattern1 both as to material 
and workmanship1 and that they were made
 by divinely qualified workmen2 but when
 all was completed and fully set up1    
both the tabernacle and the vessels     
needed anointing and sanctifying2 and   
when that was done the offerings needed 
to carry on the service could not but be
 freely poured in4 ,in like manner in   
all life and work1 individual or        
organised1 only let ,,god have ,his     
right place1 and let there be the       
anointing of the ,,holy ,,ghost1        
received by faith1 as well as           
consecration to ,him1 and everything    
will follow1 as needful1 for the        
carrying out of ,,god',s plan in the    
life or work4   ,,gladsome ,,acceptance3
 verses #c-e4      ,and they brought    
their offering before the ,,lord1 six   
covered     wagons1 and twelve oxen2 444
 and the ,,lord spake unto ,moses1      
saying1     ,take it of them1 that they 

may be to do the service of the         
tabernacle of the congregation2 and thou
 shall give them unto the     ,levites1 
to every man according to his service4  
,it is interesting to note that the     
first offerings recorded were for the   
purpose of assisting in the moving of   
the tabernacle2 it was not ,,god',s     
purpose that it should be stationary4   
,nor is ,,god',s work ever intended to  
be stationary1 but always advancing4    
,the offerings themselves were          
remarkable3 rude bullock-wagons1        
probably rough both in material and     
workmanship1 much like those we now are 
familiar with in the unchanging ,east2  
they must have presented a striking     
contrast to the beauty of the skilfully 
prepared vessels of ministry4 ,we may   
well imagine the thought to have passed 
through the mind of ,moses1 ,can such   
rude offerings be acceptable to the     
glorious ,,god8 ,but ,,god ,himself     
dispels all doubt1 by saying1 ,take it  
of them4  ,,god is not hard to please1  

nor is true human love1 for it is a dim 
reflection of ,his own4 ,we do not      
estimate our love-gifts by their        
intrinsic value1 but rather by the love 
they express4 ,well do we remember a    
little incident which occurred some     
twenty-four years ago1 and which        
illustrates this truth4  ,my little     
daughter1 then about five years old1    
came to me on the morning of my birthday
 with a curious little birthday gift in 
her hand1--,papa1 ,i haven't bought you 
a birthday present1 said she2 ,i thought
 you would rather have something ,i made
 myself4 ,how my heart went out to the  
little darling1 and how glad ,i was that
 she should think that something she    
could make would be more precious to me 
than any purchased gift6 ,but what the  
curious little gift could be intended   
for ,i was quite at a loss to divine1   
and ,i engaged her in conversation1     
hoping she might let some clue slip that
 would help me to find out for what she 
meant it1 for ,i feared she would be    

disappointed if ,i did not recognize it4
 ,the little pet had found a small piece
 of wood1 and had bored a hole in it    
with her scissors1 in which she had     
inserted a peg1 and on the top had hung 
half a cockle-shell--certainly an       
uncommon birthday present6  ,at last1   
unable to guess what it was supposed to 
be1 ,i took my dear child on my knee1   
and1 kissing her1 said1 ,papa is so     
pleased to have a birthday present of   
your own making2 what is it my darling  
has made for me8 ,why1 don't you know1  
papa8 ,i thought you would like best a  
ship to take you to ,china6  ,the dear  
child was right2 probably no gift ,i    
ever received gave more pleasure1 or was
 as carefully treasured1 and as often   
thought of4 ,when that dear child had   
become old enough to engage in          
missionary work in ,china herself1 and  
was able to introduce me to the first   
two ,chinese women whom she had brought 
to ,,christ1 ,i remembered the little   
ship2 and when the women were gone      

reminded her about it1 and told her that
 the joy of finding her now used of     
,,god in the blessed work itself was a  
greater joy than her gift had been4 ,she
 was surprised that ,i should remember  
it2 but it had never passed from my     
memory1 and the recollection of it is a 
pleasure still4 ,it is not hard to      
please those who love us4,d  ,,god wants
 our love2 ,my son1 give ,me thine      
heart4 ,he wants our sympathy2 ,he wants
 the gifts and offerings that are       
prompted by love4 ,shall ,he look to us 
in vain8 ,our ,david still thirsts1 not 
for the waters of the well of           
,bethlehem1 but for the souls for which 
,he died4 ,shall ,he not have them8 ,he 
specially needs willing1 skilful young  
men1 ready to break through the enemy's 
camp to deliver the captives of the     
mighty one4 ,who that can will go8 ,who 
that cannot go at present will help     
others to go8  ,d3 ,while preparing     
these sheets for the press we learn from
 a telegram that ,he whom my dear       

daughter had served in ,china since     
#ahhe1 has called her 7and her baby of  
sixteen months7 from her husband1 the   
,rev4 ,j4 ,j4 ,coulthard1 and three     
surviving children1 to the eternal home 
above4   ,,according ,,to ,,his         
,,service3 verses #e-i4      ,thou shall
 give them unto the ,levites1 to every  
man according to     his service4 ,and  
,moses took the wagons and the oxen1 and
 gave them     unto the ,levites4 ,two  
wagons and four oxen he gave unto the   
sons of     ,gershon1 according to their
 service1 and four wagons and eight oxen
     he gave unto the sons of ,merari1  
according unto their service1 under     
the hand of ,ithamar the son of ,aaron  
the priest4 ,but unto the sons     of   
,kohath he gave none2 because the       
service of the sanctuary     belonging  
unto them was that they should bear upon
 their     shoulders4  ,the princes     
brought their offering to the ,,lord1   
and the ,,lord accepted it4 ,having     
accepted it ,himself it was ,his to give

 to whom ,he would2 and ,he chose to    
give it to the ,levites1 for they in a  
special manner were ,his1 and devoted to
 ,his service4  ,the tribe of ,levi was 
in one sense the poorest in ,israel4 ,in
 dividing the land among the tribes1 no 
territory was allotted to them4 ,they   
will have territory by-and-by1 when the 
,,lord comes 7see ,ezek4 xlviii4        
#ab-ad71 but never have they had any    
yet4 ,cities to dwell in1 and suburbs1  
were given them here and there1 in all  
the tribes of ,israel1 but of earthly   
portion that was all4  ,and yet they    
were the richest tribe in ,israel1 for  
the ,,lord ,himself was their           
inheritance4 ,when one of the other     
tribes was taken into captivity1 he had 
to leave his inheritance behind2 but the
 godly ,levite was as rich in ,babylon  
as in ,palestine3 death itself could not
 rob him of his portion4 ,happy indeed  
are they who share the ,levite's lot6   
,when the ,,lord ,,jesus comes again1   
those1 surely1 who have stored most in  

heaven1 and have least to leave behind  
on earth1 will render their account with
 the greatest joy4  ,to every man       
according to his service4 ,the ,,lord   
did not say1 divide it equally among the
 families of ,levi4 ,there were six     
wagons1 and three families of ,levites2 
but four wagons were given to ,merari1  
two to ,gershon1 but unto the sons of   
,kohath he gave none4 ,at first sight   
this division appears unfair2 but it was
 and still is the ,,lord',s plan to give
 to every man according to his service4 
,it fell to the lot of ,merari to carry 
the heaviest materials of the           
tabernacle2 the boards1 the bars1 and   
the pillars with their heavy sockets of 
solid silver1,e and all the instruments2
 the pillars of the court1 likewise1    
with their brazen sockets and pins1 and 
their cords1--these formed ,merari's    
weighty burden4  ,e3 ,weighing more than
 one cwt4 each3 the hundred sockets     
therefore alone weighing over five tons 
of pure silver4  ,the duty of ,gershon  

was to convey the curtains1 hangings1   
coverings and cords of the tabernacle1  
and the hangings of the court2 for this 
service1 two wagons were as sufficient  
help as the four were for ,merari4  ,but
 what of ,kohath8 ,his burdens were not 
light3 the ark1 with its covering the   
mercy-seat1 and the cherubim of gold    
overshadowing it1 the table and the     
candlestick1 the altars and the vessels 
of the sanctuary1 and all their         
coverings1 these were entrusted to his  
sons4 ,heavy they were indeed1 but no   
help had they1 because the service of   
the sanctuary belonging unto them was   
that they should bear upon their        
shoulders4  ,sometimes the children of  
,,god are tempted to murmur when their  
service seems heavy and but little help 
is forthcoming3 they may perhaps compare
 their lot with that of others for whom 
larger provision has been made4 ,but    
,,god makes no mistakes2 according to   
their service ,he divides the help1 and 
those who are called to the holiest     

service are those who can have least    
assistance4 ,such are privileged to     
carry upon their own shoulders sacred   
burdens that may not be shared with less
 privileged ones4 ,there was ,,one ,who 
trod the winepress alone1 and of the    
people there was none with ,him2 and one
 who was very like to his ,,master tells
 us1 ,at my first answer no man stood   
with me1 but all men forsook me4444     
,notwithstanding the ,,lord stood with  
me1 and strengthened me2 that by me the 
preaching might be fully known1 and that
 all the ,gentiles might hear4 ,those   
who would be near the ,,master in the   
glory must here drink the cup of sorrow 
with ,him and be baptized with ,his     
baptism4  ,the burden-bearing of the    
,levites was not to last for ever3 once 
in the ,promised ,land that service     
ceased4 ,nor will our opportunity of    
burden-bearing be for long2 the glorious
 appearing of our great ,,god and       
,,saviour will soon summons the watchful
 and waiting ones to meet ,him in the   

air4 ,a million a month in ,china are   
dying without ,,god2 now we may seek to 
win them2 now we may suffer to win them4
 ,may none of us lose the opportunity of
 self-denial and service while it lasts6
    ',a little while'--,he'll come      
again6     ,let us the precious hours   
redeem2   ,our greatest grief to give   
,him pain1     ,our joy to serve and    
follow ,him4   ,watching and ready may  
we be1   ,as those who long their ,,lord
 to see4    ',a little while'--'twill   
soon be past6     ,why should we shun   
the shame and cross8   ,oh6 let us in   
,his footsteps haste1     ,counting for 
,him all else but loss4   ,oh6 how will 
recompense ,his smile   ,the sufferings 
of this 'little while4'   ,,the         
,,dedicatory ,,offerings3 verses #aj1   
#aa4      ,and the princes offered for  
dedicating of the altar in the day      
that it was anointed4444 ,and the ,,lord
 said unto ,moses1 ,they shall     offer
 their offering1 each prince on his day1
 for the dedicating of     the altar4   

,the offerings recorded in the early    
verses of this chapter were given in    
connection with the setting up of the   
,tabernacle1 and had reference to its   
transportation4 ,but the offerings now  
to be considered had reference to the   
altar1 and the sacrifices to be offered 
thereon4 ,their number1 their character1
 and their value are full of            
significance2 and the space accorded to 
their record by ,,god shows the ,divine 
estimation of the altar1 and of those   
gifts which pertain to sacrifice to     
,him4  ,the altar points us to our      
incarnate ,,saviour1 the ,,christ of    
,,god1 and reminds us that without      
shedding of blood there is no remission 
of sin4 ,the altar sanctified the gift2 
the fire on the altar first came down   
from heaven2 all fire that did not come 
from the altar was strange fire1 and    
could only bring death to the offerer   
when used in worship1 as in the case of 
,nadab and ,abihu4  ,do we not need to  
remember this in the present day1 when  

false teachers deny the atoning         
character of the death of ,,christ1 and 
vainly imagine that ,,god can be served 
with the unhallowed fires of fleshly    
activity8   ,,the ,,display ,,of ,,the  
,,gifts4  ,the twelve princes1 the      
representatives of the ,israel of ,,god1
 brought their offerings before the     
altar1 and would have left them there3  
they were all exactly alike1 and the    
gifts might have been speedily accepted1
 and briefly recorded1 if recorded at   
all4 ,but the ,,lord said unto ,moses1  
,they shall offer their offering1 each  
prince on his day1--or1 literally1 one  
prince a day1 a sentence which is       
expressed twice in the ,original1       
showing ,,god',s regard for order and   
method in all things which concern ,his 
service1 and that ,he graciously        
receives and remembers the offerings of 
each of ,his faithful4 ,accordingly all 
the offerings of each of the princes are
 here registered by the ,,holy ,,spirit 
in ,,god',s ,book1 as an encouragement  

to ,christian liberality in all ages    
7,wordsworth74  ,does it not seem as    
though the ,divine delight in the       
offering of ,his servants was so great  
that ,he would have ,his people also to 
dwell upon them for twelve consecutive  
days8 ,and not only does ,he spread them
 over twelve days1 but ,he spreads them 
over seventy-seven long verses in this  
long chapter2 first in minute detail1   
according as much space to the gifts of 
the last offerer as to those of the     
first1 and then totalling up the        
aggregate amount1 as though ,he would   
say1 ,behold the love-gifts of my       
people6 ,how many and how precious the  
offerings of each1 and how great the    
value of the whole6 ,note1 too1 the     
persons of the offerers1 and that all   
their gifts were for the dedication of  
the altar1 and show their appreciation  
of the need for1 and the blessed        
privilege of sacrifice6  ,as we         
mentioned in our introductory chapter1  
it was through this account1 read in a  

time of great spiritual need1 that our  
mind was opened as never before to see  
,,god',s great heart of love4 ,we seemed
 to be reminded of the delight often    
taken by bride and bridegroom in        
spreading out for inspection the        
love-gifts of their friends1 that as    
many as possible may share their        
gratification in them4 ,several may have
 sent similar gifts2 but each is set out
 to the best possible advantage1 with   
the name of the giver attached4 ,and    
while the intrinsic value of each is not
 lost sight of1 it is the loving thought
 of which it is the expression that is  
most prized4  ,again1 we were reminded  
of the way in which1 in our frequent    
absence from home and children1 wifely  
letters have cheered and interested us1 
depicting with motherly tenderness the  
gifts the children had brought her on   
her birthday1 or other occasion1 with a 
fulness of detail that showed alike the 
pleasure of the writer and her          
consciousness of the enjoyment with     

which the account would be read4 ,does  
not the full detail of this chapter     
reveal1 in like manner1 the love and    
tenderness of ,him whose ,book it is1   
toward each offerer2 and bring out what 
we may reverently call the mother-side  
of ,,god',s character1 ,who has         
condescended to say1 ,as one whom his   
mother comforteth1 so will ,i comfort   
you8   ,,the ,,person ,,of ,,the        
,,offerer4 verses #ab-ag4      ,and he  
that offered his offering the first day 
was ,nahshon the son     of ,amminadab1 
of the tribe of ,judah3 etc4  ,as we    
read of the offerings of the twelve     
princes1 we note that1 valuable as they 
manifestly are1 the offerer whose love  
prompted the gifts1 is made more        
prominent in the inspired ,record4 ,the 
person of each offerer is brought before
 us1 both as an individual1 and in his  
relationship to the tribe of which he is
 the representative1 before any         
enumeration is made of his gifts2 and   
when the enumeration has been fully     

given1 we are again reminded of the     
offerer himself4 ,could the ,divine love
 and satisfaction be more expressively  
brought out8  ,with this thought in     
view1 let us read between the lines of  
the ,record3--  ,and he that offered his
 offering--for a glad free-will offering
 it was--on the first day was ,nahshon1 
,nahshon the son of ,amminadab1 ,nahshon
 the prince of the tribe of ,judah2 and 
his offering was one charger--a silver  
charger1 and a weighty one2 the weight  
thereof was a hundred and thirty        
shekels3 one bowl1 also of silver1 of   
seventy shekels weight2 not the light   
shekels of commerce1 but the weighty    
shekels of the ,sanctuary4 ,nor were    
these vessels empty3 both of them were  
full--full of flour1 fine flour1 and    
mingled with oil1 destined for a        
meat-offering4  ,one spoon was the next 
gift1 yet more precious1 a spoon of     
solid gold1 of no less than ten shekels 
weight4 ,it1 too1 was full--full of     
incense4  ,next were brought one young  

bullock1 one ram1 and one lamb of the   
first year--all for a burnt-offering4   
,any one of these might have been       
offered2 ,nahshon1 however1 brought them
 all1 and all to be wholly consumed on  
the altar1 for the enjoyment and        
satisfaction of ,,god alone4  ,but      
,nahshon was a sinner1 and the tribe he 
represented were sinful men2 a          
sin-offering therefore was not          
neglected2 and in the order of          
enumeration this is next mentioned1     
though1 as we have said before1 it was  
offered first--one kid of the goats for 
a sin-offering4  ,and1 lastly1 a        
princely offering for a sacrifice of    
peace-offerings2 two oxen1 five rams1   
five he-goats1 five lambs of the first  
year--sacrifices on which ,,god feasted1
 as it were1 together with ,his people1 
and in which the sacrificing priest1 the
 offerer and all his friends had their  
full share4  ,and this1 all this1 was   
the offering of ,nahshon1 ,nahshon the  
son of ,amminadab4  ,twelve times is all

 this detail repeated--a most emphatic  
evidence that ,,god never wearies in    
noting the service of each one of ,his  
people4 ,but even this is not all4 ,in  
the #hdth and following verses of this  
long chapter we read3--  ,this was the  
dedication of the altar1 in the day when
 it was anointed1 by the princes of     
,israel3 twelve chargers of silver1     
twelve silver bowls1 twelve spoons of   
gold4 ,each charger of silver weighing a
 hundred and thirty shekels1 each bowl  
seventy3 all the silver vessels weighed 
two thousand and four hundred shekels1  
after the shekel of the ,sanctuary4 ,the
 golden spoons were twelve1 full of     
incense1 weighing twelve shekels apiece1
 after the shekel of the ,sanctuary2 all
 the gold of the spoons was a hundred   
and twenty shekels4  ,all the oxen for  
the burnt-offering were twelve bullocks1
 the rams twelve1 the lambs of the first
 year twelve1 with their meat-offering2 
and the kids of the goats for           
sin-offering twelve4 ,and all the oxen  

for the sacrifice of the peace-offerings
 were twenty and four bullocks1 the rams
 sixty1 the he-goats sixty1 the lambs of
 the first year sixty4  ,this--all      
this--was the dedication of the altar1  
after that it was anointed4   ,,the     
,,importance ,,of ,,the ,,altar4  ,in   
this glad summing up of the great       
aggregate value of the offerings1 we not
 only get a further view of the ,divine 
complacency in the love-gifts of ,his   
people1 and in the persons of the       
offerers1 but the object of the         
offerings is also brought into special  
prominence4 ,as the list of each        
prince's offerings was preceded and     
followed by reference to the person of  
the offerer1 so the list of totals is   
preceded and followed by the thought1   
,this was the dedication of the altar in
 the day when it was anointed4  ,the    
importance of the brazen altar can      
scarcely be exaggerated4 ,the           
,tabernacle contained many precious     
things1 each typifying most important   

truths concerning our ,,lord and ,his   
ministry2 the ark on which rested the   
,shekinah1 which enshrined the tables of
 the law1 and was covered by the        
mercy-seat1 the table of shew-bread1 the
 candlestick of gold1 and the golden    
altar were all most precious2 but1 apart
 from the brazen altar1 there was no    
access to them for guilty man2 without  
shedding of blood there is no remission 
of sin4 ,hence the recognition by the   
princes of the importance of the altar2 
and hence the ,divine emphasis placed   
upon those gifts--an emphasis wholly    
without parallel in the sacred ,records4
 ,to the godly ,israelite the brazen    
altar typified that which was fulfilled 
at the ,cross1 and well may we exclaim3 
,,god forbid that ,i should glory1 save 
in the ,cross of our ,,lord ,,jesus     
,,christ 7,gal4 vi4 #ad74         99    
99       99       99       99  ,looking 
back over the two chapters on which we  
have been dwelling we see in them a     
marvellous revelation of ,divine        

love--even in ,mosaic times4 ,first1 an 
unrestricted invitation to draw near to 
,,god2 woman or man1 of any             
tribe--whosoever will--may come and be  
wholly separated unto the ,,lord--but   
only in ,,god',s way4 ,we learn1 too1   
that in such consecration there is no   
merit on which man may rest1 or in which
 he may boast2 we are at best           
unprofitable servants1 accepted only in 
the ,,beloved1 complete only in ,him4   
,yet such consecration gives joy to     
,,god1 and opens the way to wonderful   
revelations of blessing2 blessing which 
when enjoyed constrains to service1 to  
gift1 to recognition of the preciousness
 of the ,altar1 of the ,cross--a service
 in which ,,god ,himself finds delight1 
and on which ,he never wearies to dwell4
  ,may ,,god make our meditations very  
practical2 and may we thus judge1 that  
if ,,one died for all1 then were all    
dead2 and that ,he died for all1 that   
they which live should not henceforth   
live unto themselves1 but unto ,him     

which died for them and rose again1--or1
 as we may better read it1 unto ,him    
which died and rose again for them4     
,are we really thus living8 ,,god knows3
 eternity will show3 what answer does   
conscience give now8 ,what conclusions  
do our brothers1 sisters1 children1     
friends draw from our lives8 ,our true  
self-denial1 self-emptying1 and giving  
for ,,christ',s cause practically show  
our real estimate of the value of the   
,cross of ,,christ1 our real love for   
the ,,christ who was crucified for us4  
,,the ,,end4                            
----------------------------------------
--------     ,transcriber's ,note3      
,mismatched and inconsistent punctuation
 has been     retained as it appears in 
the original book4                      
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--------