Midianites

MIDIANITES, the Descendants of Midian, the Son of Abraham.

The Lord intending to punish the Midianites, because their Daughters had enticed the Israelites to the Commission of heinous Crimes, and had seduced them to the Worship of Peor, says to Moses; Take a Thousand Numb. xxxi. 1, &c.Men out of each Tribe, and send them under the Command of Phinehas, Son of the High-Priest Eleazar, to execute my Vengeance against the Midianites. Phinehas marched therefore at the Head of twelve Thousand Men, having with him the Ark of the Covenant, according to some Commentators¹, and the Trumpets of the Tabernacle. He gave Battle to the Midianites, defeated them, and put to Death five of their Kings, Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba, who reigned over several Cities of the Countrey of Midian, lying to the East of the Dead-Sea. And God permitted also, that the wicked Prophet Balaam should be involved in their Misfortune, and should there lose his Life. They took the Women, the Children, the Flocks, and whatever belonged to the Midianites; they burnt their Cities, Villages, and Forts, and the Israelites brought into their Camp all the Booty they had got in this Expedition.

Observations upon the intire Defeat of the Midianites by the Israelites. Numb. xxxi.☞ The sacred Author is much shorter in Josh. vi. 1. 1 Sam. iv, v, &c.his Description of this great Battle, than in any other. He says but a Word of it; therefore it will be allowed me to make some Conjectures about it, which I think are very probable: The Lord himself gives Orders for this War against the Midianites. He says to Moses, Avenge the Children of Israel of the Midianites. These Words were a sufficient Assurance of the Victory to the Israelites. When the Lord fights for us, there is Need but of small Force to conquer an Enemy. Of every Tribe a Thousand, throughout all the Tribes of Israel, shall ye send to the War. And Moses sent them to the War, a Thousand of every Tribe, them and Phinehas the Son of Eleazar the Priest, to the War, with the holy Instruments, and the Trumpets to blow in his Hand. These holy Instruments have perplexed not a few Commentators, however they are plainly distinguished from the Trumpets. We cannot therefore imagine, that it was the Trumpets that are here called holy Instruments. Therefore it seems probable, that the Ark was carried by the Levites in this Expedition, as in some others. Observe farther, that Moses ran no Risk by sending the Ark on this Occasion, since God had assured his People, that they should obtain a compleat Revenge of the Midianites.

The chief Office of the Priest was, to sound the Charge in the Battle, and to defend the Ark when it was present. The Scripture gives no Account of the Order of Battle of the two Armies; by all Appearance, they were disposed according to the Method of the ancient People of Asia; therefore I range the Israelites upon one Line formed by twelve Corps, each of a Thousand Men. The Ark of the Covenant was surrounded by the Priests and Levites, having the Trumpets at their Head. The Midianites are also to be ranged in a Phalanx upon one Line; and as the Israelites were doubtless much inferior in Number to their Enemies, they made much larger Intervals between the Corps of a Thousand Men each, in Order to pierce into the Enemies Front in different Places. This Method was the constant Practice of the Jews, when they were fewer than their Enemies, and particularly at the Time of the Maccabees.

No Mention is here made of any Horse; they were very rare in that Age. Was it because they saw more clearly than we do? And did they think like Xenophon, who was used to say, that ten Thousand Horse make but ten Thousand Men, since the Horses themselves don’t fight at all? Without Doubt this was their Opinion in former Ages, but afterwards the Cavalry became very numerous in their Armies. The People of the West, as the Greeks and Romans, when their Discipline began to decay, had great Numbers of Horse in their Armies, and still in greater Number as that Decay grew more and more visible.

But to return to the Israelites. And they warred against the Midianites, as the Lord commanded Moses. And they slew all the Males. And they slew the Kings of Midian, besides the rest of them that were slain. Namely, Evi and Rekem, and Zur, and Hur, and Reba, five Kings of Midian. Balaam also the Son of Beor, they slew with the Sword. This wicked Prophet, who was the first Author of this War, by the pernicious Counsel he gave the Moabites and Numb. xxiv. 14. xxxi. 16.Midianites, was involved in this dreadful Slaughter. The Consequences of this Defeat were very dismal, Ruin and Desolation spread themselves all round the Countrey, and all their Cities, Villages, and Forts were sacked, demolished, pillaged, and burnt. The whole Prey was brought to the Camp, in the Plain of Moab, on the Side of Jordan, over against Jericho, to be distributed among the Israelites. This War was very bloody and terrible, and if God had not commanded it, Moses could not easily be acquitted of the Imputation of Injustice and Plundering.

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