*H Valiant in war was Jesus the son of Nave, who was successor of Moses among the prophets, who was great according to his name,
Ver. 1. Jesus, the son of Nave. So Josue is named in the Greek Bibles. For Josue and Jesus signify the same thing, viz. a Saviour; (Ch.) and Nave is the Greek pronunciation of Nun; (H.) or this is an old fault of transcribers. C. — Among. Gr. "in the prophecies." H. — He was endued with the prophetic spirit, and was raised up by God as a noble figure of the great prophet. Deut. xviii. 15. C. — He succeeded Moses in the temporal power; the spiritual belonged to the sons of Aaron. Num. xxvii. W.
*H Very great for the saving the elect of God, to overthrow the enemies that rose up against them, that he might get the inheritance for Israel.
Ver. 2. Israel. He led the people into Chanaan, and divided it among them.
*H How great glory did he gain when he lifted up his hands, and stretched out swords against the cities?
Ver. 3. Hands. To pray, (Vat.) or fight, (Boss.) or to give a signal. Jos. viii. 26. A. Lap. — Stretched. Lit. threw (H.) darts, romphas.
*H Who before him hath so resisted? for the Lord himself brought the enemies.
Ver. 4. The. Gr. "he conducted the wars of the Lord." C. — Other edit. agree with us.
*H Was not the sun stopped in his anger, and one day made as two?
Ver. 5. In. Gr. "by his hand," (H.) and order, so that the day-light continued 24 hours.
* Footnote * Josue 10 : 14
There was not before, nor after, so long a day, the Lord obeying the voice of a man, and fighting for Israel.*H He made a violent assault against the nation of his enemies, and in the descent he destroyed the adversaries.
Ver. 7. Adversaries. The hail destroyed more than the sword. Jos. x. 11.
*H That the nations might know his power, that it is not easy to fight against God. And he followed the mighty one:
Ver. 8. Power. Gr. "complete armour for his warfare was before the Lord, since he," &c. They found it was impossible to resist such weapons. H. — One. "Follow God," was a maxim of the ancient sages, which they even attributed to Apollo. Josue and Caleb did so in opposition to the rebels. Num. xiv. 24. C. — The rest all perished, (W.) if we except those who were not 20 years old, or who did not join in the murmurs of the seditious. H.
*H And in the days of Moses he did a work of mercy, he and Caleb the son of Jephone, in standing against the enemy, and withholding the people from sins, and appeasing the wicked murmuring.
Ver. 9. Mercy, and piety, (C.) endeavouring to prevent the murmurs of the people, which would draw upon them destruction, as the event shewed. H.
* Footnote * Numbers 14 : 6
But Josue the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephone, who themselves also had viewed the land, rent their garments,*H And the Lord gave strength also to Caleb, and his strength continued even to his old age, so that he went up to the high places of the land, and his seed obtained it for an inheritance:
Ver. 11. Land. Hebron, when he was 85 years old. Jos. xiv. 6. H.
*H Then all the judges, every one by name, whose heart was not corrupted: who turned not away from the Lord,
Ver. 13. Lord. Abimelec must be excepted, (C.) as he was only an usurper. H. — The Judges were all saved, though some have been great sinners. W.
*H That their memory might be blessed, and their bones spring up out of their place,
Ver. 14. Place. At the resurrection, which the Jews firmly believed. Ezec. xxxvii. 3.
*H Samuel the prophet of the Lord, the beloved of the Lord his God, established a new government, and anointed princes over his people.
Ver. 16. People. Though he disapproved of their resolution. 1 K. viii. 6. Os. xiii. 11.
*H By the law of the Lord he judged the congregation, and the God of Jacob beheld, and by his fidelity he was proved a prophet.
Ver. 17. And the. Sixt. V. &c. read, "and he beheld the God." 1 K. iii. 7. C. — Vulg. may signify also, "God beheld Jacob," (Gr.) with a favourable eye, and enabled Samuel to restore their fallen state, and to recover the ark. H.
*H And he was known to be faithful in his words, because he saw the God of light:
Ver. 18. Because. Gr. has not faithful, or what follows. C. — Yet Grabe's copy retains πιστος ορασεως, "faithful in seeing" into futurity; so that his predictions were always verified, and he acquired the confidence of all. 1 K. iii. 20. Prophets were formerly styled seers: yet they could not behold God, as he inhabits light inaccessible. 1 Tim. vi. 16. H. — Light. S. James (i. 17.) seems to allude to this passage. M.
*H And called upon the name of the Lord Almighty, in fighting against the enemies who beset him on every side, when he offered a lamb without blemish.
Ver. 19. Without. Gr. "fed with milk." 1 K. vii. 6. The Philistines were discomfited, and continued peaceable during the rest of Samuel's government.
* Footnote * 1_Kings 7 : 1
And the men of Cariathiarim came, and fetched up the ark of the Lord, and carried it into the house of Abinadab, in Gabaa: and they sanctified Eleazar, his son, to keep the ark of the Lord.*H And he crushed the princes of the Tyrians, and all the lords of the Philistines:
Ver. 21. Tyrians, who were auxiliaries, or in league with the Philistines. C.
*H And before the time of the end of his life in the world, he protested before the Lord, and his anointed: money, or any thing else, even to a shoe, he had not taken of any man, and no man did accuse him.
Ver. 22. Shoe. So Abraham declared he would not receive the latchet of a shoe from the king of Sodom. Gen. xiv. 23. — Him. All confessed his integrity, before he delivered up the sovereign power to Saul. 1 K. xii.
* Footnote * 1_Kings 12 : 1
And Samuel said to all Israel: Behold I have hearkened to your voice in all that you said to me, and have made a king over you.* Footnote ** Genesis 14 : 23
That from the very woof thread unto the shoe latchet, I will not take of any things that are thine, lest thou say: I have enriched Abram.*H And after this he slept, and he made known to the king, and shewed him the end of his life, and he lifted up his voice from the earth in prophecy to blot out the wickedness of the nation.
Ver. 23. Nation. Foretelling that Israel should be defeated. Some doubt whether the soul of Samuel appeared; but it seems clear from this passage, (1 K. xxviii. 18. C. Diss.) as he could not otherwise be praised for it. W.