When Moses came down and found the congregation holding a feast to
their idol, he was filled with grief and indignation; and took
measures immediately to punish their sin and bring them to repentance.
He first destroyed their idol and then about three thousands of the
idolaters, by the sword of Levi, who at his call, ranged themselves on
the Lord's side. The next day, fearing that God would exterminate the
nation, agreeably to his threatening, Moses gathered the tribes, set
their sin before them, and told them that he would return to the
divine presence and plead for them, though he knew not that God would
hear him. "Ye have sinned a great sin; and now I will go up unto the
Lord; _peradventure_ I shall make an atonement for your sin. _And
Moses returned unto the Lord and said, Oh! this people have sinned a
great sin, and have made them gods of gold. Yet, now, if thou wilt,
forgive their sin; and if not blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book
which thou hast written_."

Moses meaning, while praying for Israel, is obvious; but the petition
offered up for himself is not equally so--_blot me, I pray thee, out
of thy book_.

Four different constructions have been put on the is prayer--Some
consider Moses as imprecating damnation on himself, for the good of
his people--Some as praying for annihilation, that they might find
mercy--Some as asking God that he might die with them, if they should
die in the wilderness--Others, that his name might be blotted out of
the page of history, and his memory perish, should Israel be destroyed
and not reach the promised land.

"Blot me" (saith Mr. Cruden) "out of thy book of life--out of the