Commentaries, Commentary on Judges · Chapter 1 · Verse 16
16 And the children of Keni Moyſes father in lawe, went vp oute of the citye of the Palme trees with the children of Iudah, into the wilderneſſe of Iudah, that lieth in the ſouth of Arad: and went and dwelt among the people.
In the conquering the citie of Hebron and Debir there is mention made alſo of the children of Moyſes father in law: they were Ethniks in dede by kinde,Of the Kenites but they wer ioyned wt the Iſraelites in will and fayth, from whō alſo in ye fyrſt ofſpring of kinred they wer not ſtraungers: for as much as they came of Madian the ſonne of Abraham by his wyfe Keturah. And the ſame Kenites conſtantly abode with the Hebrues tyll theyr captiuitye into Babilon, for as much as the Rechabites came of the Kenites, as it is written in the booke of Paralipomenon. But why they were called Kenites it is vncertaine. But ſome thinke yt it came of this, bycauſe the ſonne of Iethro, namely Hobab, the brother of Moyſes wife, was called Kin by an other name. He therfore in the beginning with his familye dwelled together with the Beniamites in the fieldes of Iericho, when the Iſraelites paſſing ouer Iordane vnderunder Ioſua poſſeſſed the city of Iericho. But after when they ſawe that the tribe of Iudah poſſeſſed the cityes of Hebron & Debir, they went vntounto thē, and dwelt more cōmodiouſly in ye plaine of Harad, although they had no certayne houſes, but liued continually as it were in tentes.
The citie of Palmes.Although ſome ſuſpecte the citie of Palmes to hauehave bene Engaddi, yet moſte part of the expoſitours interprete it to be Iericho, with whom Ioſephus de Antiquit. Hebr. agreeth, and alſo Paraphraſtes Caldaicus, yea and the booke of Deut in the xxxiiii. chap. teſtifyeth the ſame. For as much as that citie had a notable groue of Palmes of a hundred furlongs,Strabo. which thing Strabo alſo teſtifyeth. And yet we may not thinke that ye Kenites reedifyed the citie of Iericho: for it was accurſed by the commaundement of Ioſua, who amongeſt other thinges publiſhed this (as it is to be beleued) in the name of God, namely that he which ſhould attempt to repayre it, ſhould wrappe himſelf vnderunder the curſe which came to paſſe in very deede: For in the time of Ahab the wicked king, one Aiel builte it vp agayne, but to his own great hurt. Fo his two ſonnes Abiram & Segub periſhed whē ye citie was in repayring, as it is written in ye firſt boke of kings .xvi. chap. But the countrey or ground thereof belonged by diuiſion vntounto the tribe of Beniamin. The fielde of Iericho belōged to the tribe of Beniamin.And theſe Kenites as it ſemeth had pitched tentes there, eyther for warfare, or els for keping of ſhepe, in which thei liued for a time eyther about ye cicie or els betwene ye decaied places of ye city. And there was a regard had vntounto thē in diſtributing of ye land, & in aſſigning of fieldes (as Ioſephus alſo teſtifieth) according to ye promiſe made vntounto thē by Moyſes, which is writtē in the x. chap. of Num. And it is thought to be very lykely yt their lot was in the tribe of Iudah which being not yet poſſeſſed by the children of Iſrael, they dwelled (as it is ſaid) in the land with the Beniamites in the field of Iericho. This expoſition ſemeth ful and manifeſt inough.
KimhiBut Kimhi followeth an other opinion, and thinketh that the children of Iſraell, when they after they had conquered Hebron and Debir in the time of Ioſua, had determined vtterly to deſtroy the citie of Iericho, vnderſtanding that the Kenites dwelte there lyke ſtraungers as I thinke (bycauſe they came of the ſtocke of Madian) before they ouerthrew al the city, they called them away, that they might not periſh with the other Chananites. The ſame curteſie dyd Saule ſhewe vntounto them, when he ſhould make warre agaynſt Amelek, as it is writtē in the fyrſt booke of Samuel xv. chap. For he commaunded the Kenites to depart, leaſt they ſhoulde be deſtroyed with Amelek: and he ſhewed a cauſe, namely bycauſe they were good and gentle vntounto the Iſraelites comming vp out of Egipt. Kimhi addeth moreouer, that Amelek and the Kenites were of a farre contrarye affection toward the Iſraelites. For the Kenites loued thē wonderfull wel. But Amelek hated thē deadly. Wherfore euē as god had bound himſelfe by an othe, ye warre ſhould be continually made agaynſt Amelek: ſo would he hauehave ye Kenites recōpenced alwayes with benifites. This interpretation ſhould be very likely, if this departing of ye Kenites frō Iericho, were not put by our hiſtory after Hebron and Debir were conquered. But Iericho was conquered of Ioſua fyrſt of all after he had paſſed ouer Iordane: and certainely before he had gotten Hebron & Debir Beſides thys oure hiſtorye entreateth eyther of the Kenites whiche remayned in Madian, or ells of thoſe which had ioyned thēſelues in fellowſhip with ye people of Iſrael. It ſemeth yt this can not be ſpoken of the firſt, whē as Iericho is not in Madian, yea it is farre diſtant frō thence, but if we ſhal vnderſtand this to be ſpoken of thoſe which came with Iſraell, how ſhuld it be vnderſtand yt they dwelt in Iericho, before Ioſua toke it? Moreouer it is not found in ye texte of the hiſtory, yt they were called forth as Kimhi writeth: but it is playnly written yt they went frō thence to Iudah. Wherfore I can better agree with Ioſephus, Ioſephus. Why ye Kenites departed from Iericho.who writeth ye they therfore departed frō thence, bicauſe in ye deuiſion of the land, & diſtributing of fieldes (as I hauehave before ſayd) their inheritaunce fell about the tribe of Iudah wherfore they got thē vntounto it when Hebron & Debir were conquered. But why frō the time they came ouer Iordane euen to this time they dwelt rather about Iericho thā in any other place, ſeing the ſcripture ſpeaketh not of it, I am cōtent to lacke the knowledge therof.
But bicauſe this Kenite (as many Hebrues confeſſe) was the father in law of Moyſes, which thing alſo Ierome confyrmeth in his booke of traditiōs or Hebrue queſtions vponupon the firſt boke of Samuel & vponupon Paralip. we muſt therefore call to memory Iethro, of whom is mentiō made more largely in the boke of Exodus. That Iethro was he to whō Moyſes came when he fled out of Egipt, What this word Cohen ſignifyeth.who was alſo either prince or prieſt of Madian. For ye Hebrue word Cohen ſignifieth both, & therfore the holy hiſtoryes writeth of ye ſonnes of Dauid yt they were Cohenim yt is princes, & highly exalted amongeſt magiſtrates:ii. Sam viii. Aben-Eſra for ſo were kynges wont to exalte their children. Although Aben-Eſra affirmeth Moyſes father in law to hauehave bene prieſt of Madian. And ſayth yt he miniſtred not to Idols, but to the true god: for the pure worſhipping of god was not ſo peculiar to the people of Iſraell, but yt there were godly men in other places, which worſhipped god ſincerely. There is no doubt but ye Melchiſedech was ſuch a one, whō the ſcripture calleth the prieſt of the high god. Moyſes defended the daughters of this Iethro frō the ſhepherdes at the wel, by which meanes he was made his ſōne in law. And afterward when he fed his ſhepe not farre frō the mount Sina he was called of god, to deliuer the people of Iſraell frō the Egiptian bondage. Wherefore he aſked leaue of him to depart & went his way to Egipt, & frō thence after wonder full works of god, he led the people into the deſerte, and fought agaynſt Amelek in whoſe land Kenite the Madianite dwelt. And when Moyſes had obtayned the victory, Iethro, who was not with Amelek in the warre, came vntounto Moyſes hys ſonne in law, & reioyced at his happy ſucceſſe in the battaile, he did ſacrifice, and cōmunicated together with his ſonne in lawe, & the reſt of the Iſraelites in geuing thankes to god. He gaue alſo vntounto Moyſes wholeſome coūſell, not to weary himſelf in hearing al cauſes: But rather that he ſhould hauehave men choſen out, which might both heare & alſo determine cōmon and light cauſes, & ſuch as wer harder, to be referred only to him: and he for ye moſt hard matters to aſke coūſel of god, and loke what god had anſwered & commaunded, the ſame to be decreed for the people. Whē Iethro or Kenite had done theſe with Moyſes in the wilderneſſe after the warre of Amelek before the law was geuen, he returned into his own countrey as it is written in the xviii. Chap. of Exodus.
But concerning his returne into his own countrey, there are two opinions,Of the returne of Moyſes father in law into his countrey. both of the Hebrues & our men. Some ſay that he returned to diſpoſe and ſet an order in his domeſticall things, and to make preparation for his familie to iourney with the Iſraelites. Which things being al finiſhed almoſt in one yeares ſpace, he returned to his ſonne in lawe, and went together with him and the Iſraelites to the land of Chanaan. And ſo they ſay, although it be ſayd in the hiſtorye that he departed before, yet it is truely put in the boke of Num. that Moyſes ſpake with him, in the ſecond yeare from the departure out of Egipt, when the tabernacle was then finiſhed, & orders appoynted, wherby the Hebrues ſhoulde go forward. For he deſtred him, not to depart frō him, but to be as it were an eye to the Iſraelits in this their iourney into ſtraunge countryes, for that he knew all the places of ye deſert very well, bycauſe he was borne in the countrey adioyning vntounto it. Not bycauſe the pyllers and cloudes led not the Iſraelites ſafely & ſoundly, but bycauſe this man was very cunning in pitching and camping an hoſte. Moyſes woulde therfore (as they ſay) hauehave him to inſtructe the troupes of Souldiours which ſhoulde goe forth, and to prouide that they going forwarde, ſhoulde abyde ioyned together, and ſhoulde keepe the iuſte manner of warlyke order. Whereunto thys alſo was a helpe, for that by reaſon of hys knowledge of the countreyes he coulde eaſely admonyſhe the Iſraelites of the nature of thoſe places, and howe farre diſtante and nyghe they were together. Howbeit other ſay, that Iethro ſo returned to hys houſe, after he had reioyced with Moyſes that he retourned not vntounto hym agayne: for as it is to be beleued, he was very aged, and therfore he ſpent the reſte of hys age with hys neyghbours and familye in Madian, exerciſyng his office eyther of a prince or ells of a prieſt. Neuertheleſſe they thynke yt he left a ſonne with Moyſes, called Hobab, to the entente he might be throughly enſtructed by Moyſes hys kinneſman, and by Aaron, and other excellent men of the Hebrues, in Godlineſſe and knowledge of worſhipping of God. Therfore they wil hauehave this man to be he, whō Moyſes ſpake vntounto in the .x. of Num. and made ouerſear for pitching of the campes. Beſides yt they ſay yt this mans ſonnes & familye were now at this preſent called Kenites. And I my ſelf, to ſay what I thinke true, do much agree with this latter ſentence.
For Balaam the Prophet in the .24. chap. of Num. prophecied peculiarly of the Kenites, Balaam the Prophet.that they ſhould hauehave their habitations in the moſt fenced places, and yt thei ſhould there abide, til they were led away captiues by the Aſsirians, & he ioyneth them (as it appeareth manifeſtly in that place) with Amelek: for (as I ſayd before) they inhabited al one land with the Amelekites. Wherfore it is gathered that Iethro ſo departed from Moyſes into Madian, to dwell there continually. And ſo it might be that Balaam the Prophet ioyned the Kenites with the Amelekites, of which Kenites neuertheleſſe part were with the Iſraelites, for as much as Iethro (as it is ſayd) left his ſonne with them.
Beſides this in the .x. chap. of Num. Hobab was deſired of Moyſes, to come & go with the Iſraelites, whether they went: who refuſed to goe any farther, bycauſe he was mynded to returne home into his countrey. For he was left there of his father to be better inſtructed in the worſhippyng of God, and he abode with the Iſraelites tyll they were readye to depart thence, And then he thought to hauehave returned into his countrey: but being deſired of Moyſes, he conſented at length to iourney forth with ye Iſraelits. But theſe things could not hauehave bene ſo, if we ſhould thinke ye Hobab had bene Iethro, which after he had deuided & ſet his things in order ſhould hauehave returned againe to Moyſes, with ye minde & purpoſe to hauehave gone forward with ye Iſraelits. For what neded Moyſes to hauehave entreated hym to do that, for which cauſe he came from hys owne houſe to doe? Or why ſhoulde he hauehave chaunged hys purpoſe to retourne into hys owne countreye, whiche he had before vtterly forſaken? Laſtly why ſhoulde he afterwarde hauehave denyed to goe, which he had before decreed with hymſelf to do? I know in deede there be ſome but not many which affyrme, that Iethro was that Hobab with whom Moyſes ſpake in the booke of Num. which thyng let thē affyrme for me, howbeit I thought good to declare what I iudged moſt likely.
And that the familye of the Kenites dwelled long among the Amelekites or very nyghe adioynyng vntounto them, the fyrſte booke of Samuel teſtifyeth, where it is written that Saule called forth the Kenites, leaſt he ſhould hauehave deſtroyed them together with the Amelekites. Wherefore it ſemeth that parte of the Kenites dwelled with the Amelekites, & part with the Iſraelits, of whiche both of thē were alwaies moſt frendly to ye Hebrues. And god declareth yt he had excellētly adorned thē in their publique wealth, & that wt three principal giftes. For they excelled in the ſtudy & knowledge of the law.Three thinges God ſeemeth to hauehave geuen to the Kenites. They were alſo notable in obtaining of a great victorye. Laſtlye they liued vertuouſly and godlye. And concerning the ſtudy of the law, wherein they flooriſhed, the firſt booke of Paralipomenon and ſeconde chapter towarde the ende, is a wytneſſe vntounto them. For there is mencion made of them with the family of Iambes, that is, of Othoniel, and they ar ſaid to hauehave bene Scribes: wherby it appeareth that the tradition of the Hebrues is not to bee deſpiſed, that in the doctrine of the lawe, they were the diſciples of Othoniel: for they ar reckoned in his family. And it is a very common thing, to count diſciples in the place of children.Ierome. Ierome alſo in hys queſtions vponupon Paral. alloweth this opinion, which (as it is ſaid) ſeemeth to agree with the ſcriptures. Neither do I thynke that for anye other cauſe there is mencion made of them in this place among the actes of Othoniel, Why mencion is made here of the Kenites.but onelye bycauſe they lyued together alwaies with his family moſt louingly. They ar alſo counted with the tribe of Iudah, although they were not of the ſtocke of the Iſraelites. Wherfore they amongſt other wer a fygure of the callyng of the Gentiles. The other notable ornament of theirs in that publique wealthe was that noble victory, which is declared in the .4. chap. of this booke. For Iahel, the wife of Aber the Kenite ſlew Siſara the captayne of warre of Iabin king of Chanaan, and God would by the hand of a woman of this familye graunt great health to the Iſraelites. Laſtly that they wer wel manered, and obſeruers of their fathers commaundementes, the family of Ionadab the ſonne of Rechab hath declared. They dronke no wyne, which at that tyme was the maner of the Nazarites, Prayſe of the Rechabites.and notably deſpiſing earthly thinges they dwelled not in houſes, but lyued in tentes, and exerciſed the arte of a ſhepherd which is moſt ſimple. For which thing they are very much commended of Ieremy the Prophet, and adourned wyth a moſt ample promiſſe aboue the Iewes, bycauſe they had geuen more ſeruice & obedience vntounto him namelye Rechab their parent, than the Hebrues had done vntounto God himſelfe, which neuertheles dyd continually boaſt in that father and holy progenitours. Wherefore we knowe that to be moſt true which Paul hath taught to the Romanes, that they in dede had Abraham to their father, whiche followed the ſteppes of hys fayth, they were not Iewes by nature, but by wyl and faith were made Proſelites, and in godlynes and holynes farre paſſed very many of thoſe which were by nature Iewes.
We gather moreouer hereby,It is very profitable for men to ioyne them ſelues to good & godly perſōs. that it muche auayleth vsus to ioyne our ſelues with good men, and with the fellowſhyp of the godly. The Kenites which wer the poſterity of Hobab, if they would hauehave reſted (as the moſt part of men do) in their own countrye, and in the place where they were borne, they had fallen at length into the ignoraunce of God and of his lawes, wherby they ſhould eaſely hauehave bene lyke vntounto their neighbour Amalek. But bycauſe they deſpiſing theyr owne thinges, and kyndled with the faith of the promiſſe of God, ioyned themſelues vntounto the Iſraelites,What are the moſte honeſt cauſes of peregrination. therfore God gaue them ſuche good ſucceſſe in theyr thinges. We ought to remember with our ſelues the moſte honeſt cauſe of the peregrination of theſe men. For al good men trauayle not into ſtraunge countries for one purpoſe. There be very many, which do therfore often tymes leaue their countrey, bycauſe they may not worſhip God there after the ſincere & lawful maner of worſhipping, yea they are grieuouſly troubled there, if they endeuour them ſelues therunto. So Abraham was called out of his lande and from hys kynred, leaſt he ſhould ſtyl hauehave gone forwarde with his elders to contaminate him ſelfe with idolatry. So Chriſt alſo ſaid, if they ſhal perſecute vsus in one city, let vsus flye vntounto an other. But ther be other, which though they be not letted at home from the true godlynes, yet for al that they wil go ſee thoſe places, wher they thinke they may yet get more profyt,Plato his pergrination is prayſed. and be more certainlye enſtructed in thinges deuine and neceſſary for ſaluacion. For which cauſe Plato is commended, bycauſe he came to the Egiptians, & went to a part of Italy, that is great Greace: he went alſo vntounto diuers nations, as though he ſhould follow wiſdome flieng from him. So in like wiſe Saba the quene is commended in the holy ſcriptures, which trauailed from ſo farre countries to heare Salomon: after this maner the Kenites (of whom we entreate) folowed the people of Iſrael: for although at home they knew & worſhipped one God, whoſe Prieſt their father alſo was, yet neuertheles they deſired to be ſtyl more inſtructed, and more abſolutelye to receaue the lawes, inſtitutions and worſhipping of God.
They are alſo very much worthy of praiſe, which do for this cauſe only trauaile into other countries to profyt others, and to helpe and deliuer them from the miſeries wherewyth they be oppreſſed. After which ſorte the Poetes hauehave ſayd that Hercules wandred through the world,Hercules. by his might to deſtroy wicked and hurtful men, which miſerably afflicted mankinde. Neither did the Apoſtels trauaile throughout the whole worlde for any other cauſe, than to deliuer men out of the mouth of the deuyl, and by the preaching of the Goſpel to looſe them from their chaines of errours. Chriſt alſo for this ſelfe ſame cauſe would trauail and iourney among men, that by his doctrine and death he might delyuer mankind frō eternal deſtruction. Wherfore the Kenites may be numbred with theſe: for they alſo adioyned them ſelues companions with the Iſraelites, to helpe thē through the deſerte. For (as it is ſaid) they hauing good knowledge of thoſe places, might ſtand the Iewes in great ſteede. Theſe counſels are plainlye iudged good and honeſt, for whoſe cauſes peregrinations which are taken wythout cō pulſion, are honeſt and prayſe worthy.
There maye be other reaſons alſo of peregrination, which as they be not alwaies to be refuſed, yet are they nothing to be compared wyth theſe, eyther in praiſe, or els in worthynes. Wherfore let godly men take hede when they iourney into farre coūtries, that they apply them ſelues as much as is poſſible vntounto theſe cauſes & reaſons now mētioned. And as God hath not defrauded theſe Kenites of the fruit which they looked for, but made them partakers and that plentifully of thoſe good thinges which he had prepared for his people, ſo ſeyng alſo he is now the ſame God which he was then, we muſt beleue, that he wil not ſuffer him ſelfe to depart from his accuſtomed maner and perpetuall goodnes, ſo that we obſerue the good and iuſt cauſes and reaſons of peregrination.
Seneca What is chiefly to bee obſerued in peregrination.But in that thing we hauehave nede of great wareneſſe and diligēce, namely that chiefly (as Seneca hath wel admoniſhed in his .105. epiſtle to Lucillas) we depart from our ſelues, that is that we laye awaye our wicked affections, bycauſe the chaunging of places do lytle profit, if we cary about together with vsus the ſame affectiōs, which we had before. Yea and ye chiefly helpeth to the renuing of godlynes, that we bee made other from our ſelues. For what had the good lawes, honeſt maners, and chaſte religion which the Iewes profeſſed, profited the Kenites, if they would hauehave brought their own thinges with them, and continued in the ſame wherin they wer conuerſaunt before? Wherfore they which do trauaile into other countries for ſtudye and godlynes ſake, ought not to hauehave thys purpoſe before them, to behold the Cities, buildinges, riuers, fieldes, vineyards woods, playes and qualities of men: For all theſe thynges although they ſomewhat delite the beholders, as chyldren which with pleaſure do maruayl at eueryevery new and ſtraunge thing, yet they do nothing, or very lytle helpe. The chiefe cauſe ought to be, yt they onelyonly ſtudy aboue al other thinges to be made better, as touching godlines & doctrine. For if they ſhal deſpiſe this, they ſhal be ſayd to wander, rather thā iuſtly to iourney. Let them not therfore retaine with them any longer thoſe euyls which are to be auoided, yet let them aboue all thinges iourney from the ignoraunce of God, from the vnſkilfulnes of the holye Scriptures, from corrupt affectiōs, and from wicked and pernitious examples. This is the iuſt cauſe of peregrinatiō, which the Kenites by their dede do declare vntounto vsus. If the Lacedemonians had had a regard to thys, they would not by theyr lawes hauehave prohibited peregrinations: But I ſuppoſe that they regarded thys,The Lacedemonians prohibeted peregrinations. which they marked ſo to come to paſſe for the moſt part, that the citizens in trauailing into ſtraunge countries, learned of the ſtraungers whom they went to ſee, not their vertues and wiſdom, but rather their vices and errours, and afterward being infected with many euyls, they returned into their country, where they deſtroied their Citizens by a certayne peſtiferous contagiouſnes. Whych thing ſurely no man doubteth but that it is a grieuous euyll and diſcommodity to a publique wealth.Why peregrinations do profyt. And yet we may not therfore decree that al peregrinatiōs are hurtful. For there can be found no City, no people, nor no publique wealth in the world, which hath not many things vnperfect in maners & lawes, which may be amended and corrected by the ſight and knowledge of others.Licurgu…. Lycurgus certainly which made that law, profited much in trauailing into ſtraunge coū tries. Yea and the Decemuiri of the Romanes went them ſelues into Graecia, Decemuiri of the Romanes.to the end they would know the lawes of that people, and by that meanes they wonderfully prouided for their publique wealth. And thus muche for peregrination.
And now let vsus finiſh this hiſtory, iudging that the children of Kenite were of that ſtocke which wer begotten of Hobab in ye wildernes among the chyldren of Iſrael: And that Hobab was the ſonne of Moyſes father in lawe, & hys wiues brother germaine. Neither ought this to moue vsus bycauſe it is ſaide in the .x.Aben-Eſra. of Num. Chothen bycauſe as Aben-Eſra there teſtifieth, that woorde ſignifieth not onelyonly a father in law, but alſo the brother of the wife, and ſome hauehave tranſlated the ſame woorde there not for a father in lawe, but a kynſman. But theſe Kenites departed out of the fielde of Iericho, that they might obtayne poſſeſſion with the tribe of Iudah. And therfore they ar ſayd to hauehave dwelled with the people. For firſt they followed them in iourneyeng with them, & nowe by the ſame right they are ſayd to hauehave dwelled with them. And they aſcended,The ſituation Iericho. bycauſe Iericho was ſituate in a valley, and betwene it an Ieruſalem was a deſerte longing to Iudah, which as it is very lykely had in it wooddy places, and mete for paſture. And that it was ſo, it is eaſelye gathered out of the Goſpell of Luke, where Chriſt put foorth a parable, namely that a man deſcended from Ieruſalem to Iericho, and fel into the handes of theeues. And certainly if he deſcended, it is manifeſt yt theſe aſcended, when they followed the tribe of Iudah going toward Ieruſalem. And bycauſe the place was ful of wooddes, it was an eaſy matter (eſpecially in the time of Chriſt when the common wealth of the Hebrues was very much out of frame) for it to be ful of theeues. There certainly (as farre as can be perceaued) the Kenites receaued their lot. And I think I hauehave ſpoken inough as touching this hyſtory.