46 The Plan of the Ages.
of their organization : with them, as with other nations, the priests ruled the people, imposing upon their credulity and exciting their fears for their own honor and profit. ' ' But hold, friend ; let us not too hastily assume anything. Where there is such good opportunity for testing this matter by the fats, it would not be reasonable to jump to conclusions without the fadls. The unanswerable evidences are con- trary to such suppositions. The rights and the privileges of the priests were limited ; they were given no civil power whatever, and wholly lacked opportunity for using their office to impose upon the rights or consciences of the peo- ple ; and this arrangement was made by Moses, a member of the priestly line.
As God's representative in bringing Israel out of Egyp- tian bondage, the force of circumstances had centrali/ed the government in his hand, and made the meek Moses an autocrat in power and authority, though from the meekness of his disposition he was in fa<5l the overworked servant of the people, whose very life was being exhausted by the on- erous cares of his position. At this juncture a civil govern- ment was established, which was virtually a democracy. Let us not be misunderstood : Regarded as unbelievers would esteem it, Israel's government was a democracy, but re- garded in the light of its own claims, it was a theocracy, /. *,, a divine government; for the laws given by God, through Moses, permitted of no amendments : they must neither add to nor take from their code of laws. Thus seen, Israel's government was different from any other civil gov- ernment, either before or since, u The Lord said unto Moses, gather unto me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom thou knowest to be elders of the people and officer* over them ; and bring them unto the Tabernacle of the con- gregation, that they may stand there with thee. And 1 will come down and talk with thee there, and I will take of the
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