tories, the Holy Bible; otherwise he might, as it seems to me, have fupported his opinion by that unexceptionable authority.

The Supreme Being had been pleased to nourish up a fingle family, by continued acts of his attentive providence, 'till it became a great people: and having refcued them from bondage by many miracles performed by his fervant Mofes, he perfonally delivered to that chosen fervant, in prefence of the whole nation, a conftitution and code of laws for their obfervance; accompanied and fanctioned with promifes of great rewards, and threats of fevere punishments, as the confequence of their obedience or disobedience.

This conftitution, though the Deity himfelf was to be at its head (and it is therefore called by political writers a Theocracy) could not be carried into execution but by the means of his minifters;

Aaron

Aaron and his fons were therefore commiffioned to be, with Mofes, the first eftablished ministry of the new govern

ment.

One would have thought, that the appointment of men who had diftinguished themselves in procuring the liberty of their nation, and had hazarded their lives in openly oppofing the will of a powerful monarch who would have retained that nation in flavery, might have been an appointment acceptable to a grateful people; and that a conftitution, framed for them by the Deity himself, might on that account have been secure of an univerfal welcome reception. Yet there were, in every one of the thirteen tribes, fome difcontented, reftlefs fpirits, who were continually exciting them to reject the propofed new government, and this from various motives.

Many ftill retained an affection for Egypt, the land of their nativity, and

thefe

thefe, whenever they felt any inconveni ence or hardship, though the natural and unavoidable effect of their change of fituation, exclaimed against their leaders as the authors of their trouble; and were not only for returning into Egypt, but for ftoning their deliverers *. Those inclined to idolatry were displeafed that their golden calf was deftroyed. Many of the chiefs thought the new conftitution might be injurious to their particular interefts, that the profitable places would be engroffed by the families and friends of Mofes and Aaron, and others equally well-born excluded †.—In Jofephus, and the Talmud, we learn

*Numbers, chap. xiv.

"And they ga

+Numbers, chap. xvi. ver. 3. "thered themselves together against Mofes and "against Aaron, and faid unto them, ye take too "much upon you, feeing all the congregations are "holy, every one of them,-wherefore then lift ye “up youselves above the congregation."

fome

fome particulars, not fo fully narrated in the fcripture. We are there told, "that Corah was ambitious of the priest ❝hood; and offended that it was confer"red on Aaron; and this, as he said, by "the authority of Mofes only, without the

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confent of the people. He accused Mofes "of having, by various artifices, fraudulently obtained the government, "and deprived the people of their liber"ties; and of confpiring with Aaron to

perpetuate the tyranny in their family. "Thus, though Corah's real motive was "the fupplanting of Aaron, he perfuaded

the people that he meant only the pub"lic good; and they, moved by his in"finuations, began to cry out,- Let "us maintain the common liberty of our

respective tribes; we have freed our"felves from the flavery impofed upon "us by the Egyptians, and fhall we suf"fer ourselves to be made flaves by "Mofes? If we must have a mafter, it

"were

"were better to return to Pharaoh, "who at least fed us with bread and "onions, than to ferve this new tyrant, "who by his operations has brought us "into danger of famine.' Then they "called in question the reality of his "conference with God; and objected to "the privacy of the meetings, and the

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preventing any of the people from being "prefent at the colloquies, or even ap"proaching the place, as grounds of great fufpicion. They accused Mofes also of peculation; as embezzling part of the gol"den fpoons and the filver chargers, that "the princes had offered at the dedication "of the altar, and the offerings of gold

by the common people, as well as "most of the poll tax; and Aaron "they accused of pocketing much of the

*Numbers, chap. vii.

+ Exodus, chapter xxxv. ver. 22.

Numbers, chap. iii. and Exodus, chap. xxx.