by Jean Meslier
Jacob’s deed[422], in dressing in goatskin, to seem hairy like his brother Esau, and to thereby deceive his father Isaac, who had lost his sight, prefigured Jesus Christ, who voluntarily took on human flesh, to bear the sins of others. And in what he then tells his father, that he was his firstborn and his son Esau, he prefigured the people of the Gentiles, who were to enter into the inheritance of the Lord, instead of the Jews[423].
The blessings Isaac gave to Jacob, saying: det tibi Deus de rore coeli et de pinguedine abundantiam frumenti et vini[424]... and the one he then gave to Esau, saying in pinguedine terrae et in rore coeli desuper erit benedictio tua, contained mysteries, say the Holy Fathers. For Jacob prefigured the Christian Church, to which is promised, first, the Kingdom of Heaven and then temporal goods, and Esau represented the Jews, to whom are promised, first the temporal and then the eternal goods. Now that is subtle!
The ladder[425] seen by Jacob in his sleep, on which angels ascended and descended, represented the descent of the son of God to this world, by his incarnation. The various steps on this ladder are the various generations of Jesus Christ, which are given to us by St. Matthew and St. Luke, one providing the descending genealogy, the other the ascendant one, from Jesus Christ to God, who created Adam[426].
The stone which the same Jacob set up in that spot, in memory of what he had seen and heard, and the oil he poured on the stone prefigured Jesus Christ, who was anointed with the anointing preferable above all others[427].
The name that Jacob gave to that place, calling it Bethel, i.e., the House of God, prefigured the true Church of the Faithful, which has always been the place and the portal by which one enters Heaven.
Leah and Rachel, who were Jacob’s two wives, prefigured the synagogue and the Christian Church. Leah, who was ugly and rheumy-eyed, prefigured the synagogue, which was full of imperfection, and Rachel, who was beautiful, prefigured the Christian Church, which is without wrinkle or blemish, and Jacob, who served a long time for these two women, represented Jesus Christ, who served on the Earth, to win for himself both the synagogue and his Church[428].
Joseph, Jacob’s son was, say the Holy Fathers, in nearly all his deeds, a prefiguration of Jesus Christ. He was born, they say, in the old age of his parents, to show that[429] Jesus Christ would be born towards the end of the ages, in the old age of the world. It was better loved than his brothers, to indicate the infinite love of the Eternal Father for his only divine Son. He wore a cloak of many colors to show that the son of God would come dressed in a human nature, decorated with all sorts of perfection and virtues. He goes to his brothers, as a prefiguration of the son of God coming to visit men, who are his brothers according to the flesh. The telling of his dreams drew the hatred of his brothers, just as Jesus Christ drew the hatred of Jews through his criticism of their life and blindness, the dreams he had, which represented that that he would be raised to glory and be adored, represented the resurrection and glorious ascension of Jesus Christ in Heaven, and that he would be adored by the nations. His brothers sought to put him to death, just as the Jews sought ways to kill Jesus Christ. They despoiled him of his cloak and stained it with blood, to make their father believe that a wild beast had devoured him, which prefigures the death of Jesus Christ, who was stripped of his humanity, who was stained with his own blood. They threw him in a well, as a figure of Jesus Christ, who was placed in the tomb and descended to Hell. They sell him for 20 pieces of silver to foreigners, as a figure of Jesus Christ’s sale by Judas for 30 pieces to the Jews. He is led to Egypt by these foreigners, a figure of Jesus Christ, led among foreign nations by the preaching of his words. After many obstacles, and much suffering, he rises to the highest honors in Egypt, a figure of Jesus Christ, elevated to the heights of Heaven, after many misadventures and much suffering in this world[430]. How much idiocy is truly spouted by all these famous men.
The birth of the two children of Tamar[431] is also mysterious; the first, who was called Zara, who showed his hand before he was born, to which the midwife attached a scarlet ribbon, after which he withdrew his hand, and the other child who came first into the world and was called Phares. This Zara, say the Holy Fathers, represented the faithful people, who hold a scarlet ribbon, i.e., faith in the merits of the passion of Jesus Christ. It has, as it were, shown its hand before it was born, because it appeared just before the proclamation of the faith. Then Phares was born, who represents the Jewish people, who was among those who preceded the law of Moses and those who preceded the law of Moses and those who are under the law of Jesus Christ. And finally, Zara was born, who represents all those who are in the true Church and who believe in Jesus Christ[432].
Joseph’s conduct with the lady[433], who urged him to sin, is also a representation of the innocence of Jesus Christ. The Egyptian woman who urged him to sin is a symbol of the Jewish synagogue, which, considering the Messiah as a temporal lord, was only expecting carnal and temporal goods. Joseph, who left his coat with this shameless woman while running away from her, represented Jesus Christ, who gave the Jews the letter and ceremonies of the law, which covered them like a mantle and go towards the Gentiles to give light to them[434].
When the same Joseph[435] was in prison with two others, one of whom was saved, and the other hanged, is a symbol of Jesus Christ on the cross between two thieves, one of whom Jesus Christ saves, while the other dies alone. Joseph, when released from prison, is Jesus Christ, who departed gloriously from Hell. His elevation to great honor prefigured the same Jesus Christ being honored by the Gentiles. When he heaps up food for times of famine, this represents Jesus Christ heaping up grace and spiritual blessings. The blessing that Jacob[436] gave to his son Judah is also figuratively applied to Jesus Christ, for he is called the lion of the tribe of Judah, whereas the one he gave to his son Dan is figuratively conformable to Antichrist, and therefore they believe he will be born of his race[437].
Moses was also a representation of Jesus Christ: he was exposed, at birth, to the waves of the sea to avoid the cruelty of the edict of Pharaoh, who ordered the death of all the male children of Jews, he represented Jesus Christ[438], who was exposed, in his infancy, to the cruelty of Herod, who put all the infants to death in and near Bethlehem. The daughter of Pharaoh drew Moses from the waters, which is a figure of Jesus Christ, who returned from Egypt where he had been saved. Moses went to the woman who gave birth to him, representing Jesus Christ, who, after his return from Egypt, went to the synagogue that had given birth to him. Moses lived a long time in the desert, pasturing sheep, as a prefiguration of Jesus Christ, who lived a long time in solitude. Moses performed great wonders before Pharaoh, to obtain the liberty of God’s people, representing those which Jesus Christ performed for the Jews, to overcome their blindness. Finally, Moses freed the people of God from the captivity of Egypt, as a representation of Jesus Christ delivering men from the captivity to sin and the demons[439].
When God appeared to Moses[440] in a burning bush without consuming it, this, says St. Bernard, prefigured God appearing and incarnating in a virgin, without harm to her virginity. Serm. 2 super missus est and Greg. lib, 23 mor. capt. 2, explains it differently, saying that it represented the idea that Divinity would dress in our flesh and would feel its pains, such as thorns, but this, however, without consuming human nature. The 10 plagues of Egypt[441] are figuratively and mystically applied to the 10 commandments of the Decalogue by Aug. in frag. Serm. 10, and according to the same Aug., the frogs represented the great speakers, especially the heretics, who make, with the noise of their contentions and specious disputes, croaking similar to that of frogs in the marshes.
The paschal lamb, which the Jews sacrificed every year in memory of what was done at the time of their deliverance from captivity in Egypt, as well as all the circumstances related to this event, were an excellent prefiguration of Jesus Christ, who was sacrificed for the salvation of men. This lamb or goat was to be male and spotless, represents the candor and innocence of Jesus Christ. It was to be ro
asted on a spit, which represented the ordeal of the cross. The posts and tops of the doors of the houses were to be sprinkled with its blood, as a representation of how we will be sprinkled, washed, and cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ. It was to be sacrificed and eaten in the evening, showing that Jesus Christ would be sacrificed at the end of time. Only Jews ate this sacrificial lamb, to represent how the true lamb, which is Jesus Christ, should only be eaten by Christians. It was to be eaten with unleavened bread[442], to represent the sincerity and purity of conscience with which the true lamb of God should be received. It was supposed to be eaten with bitter lettuce, to represent that one should have a bitter pain in one’s heart for all one’s sins. Its head was supposed to be eaten with the feet, as a representation of the humanity and the divinity of Jesus Christ, which are received in the divine sacrament of the Eucharist. None of its bones were supposed to be broken, to prefigure that Jesus Christ would remain intact on the cross, without any bone being broken. Finally, the Jewish people was supposed to celebrate the Passover every year and sacrifice the lamb, in memory of the passing of the angel and their own passing through the Red Sea, to prefigure that the Christian peoples would celebrate their Passover spiritually every year, with the divine Lamb Jesus Christ, in memory of their passage from darkness to light, from sin to grace, and the state of damnation to the state of salvation, when the divine son of God reconciled them to the Father by his death. This is what St. Paul[443] said: “since Jesus Christ was sacrificed as our paschal lamb, you must reject all leaven. Let us celebrate, our Passover, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.”
The pillar of fire[444], which guided the Israelites through the desert, represented the son of God, and the cloud, which led them during the day, represented the Holy Ghost, said Orig. hom. 27, and just as fire illuminates with its light, even so the son of God illuminates the mind with his eternal truths; and as the cloud provides cover, even so the Holy Ghost covers souls with His grace. Hence, it is said of the Virgin Mary, that the Holy Ghost covered her with its shadow. Mary, the sister of Aaron and Moses, was also a symbol of the Virgin Mary.
The wood that Moses threw[445] in the waters of the desert, to make it sweet instead of bitter, was a symbol of the glorious wood of the cross, which makes the bitterest suffering and affliction sweet. And the waters he made fresh, represented the waters of Baptism, which spread in all souls the freshness of the savior’s grace[446].
The manna the Israelites ate in the desert represented this manna from heaven, which Jesus Christ left us in the sacrament of the Eucharist, by giving us his body for our food and his blood as a drink for our souls. This manna fell from heaven and was like a bread from heaven, but the body of Jesus Christ truly is a heavenly bread. This manna was so called, with a name coming from amazement, to prefigure that the sacrament of the Eucharist would be full of miracles, worthy of amazement. This manna only fell during the darkness of the night, which represented that this Eucharistic manna would only be seen and known through the obscurity of faith. This manna was the food of those who came out of the captivity of Egypt, to symbolize that that of the Eucharist would be the food of those who came out of captivity to the Demon and sin. This manna[447] was the food of those who aspire to the celestial country. This manna offered all sorts of sweetness, symbolizing that the Eucharist would give to pure souls all sorts of spiritual delights. This manna was white, to symbolize the way that of the Eucharist only required purity. This manna had to be crushed and ground to be eaten, symbolizing that the hardness of heart must be crushed and ground to worthily eat that of the Eucharist. Those who gathered a lot of this manna had no more than those who gathered less, to symbolize that none of those who receive the Holy Eucharist get more than others, since Jesus Christ is no less complete in a small volume than a greater one.
The way Moses stretched out his hands while the Israelites fought the Amalekites represented Jesus Christ attached to the cross, with his hands extended. Moses held his hands outstretched until sunset, to symbolize the way Jesus Christ remained attached to the cross until vespers. While his hands were high, the Israelites were victorious, when he let them down, even a little[448], the Amalekites began to win, and that was so, said Justin, not so much because of the prayer he made, as because of his posture, which represented the Savior’s cross; for if it hadn’t been that, he adds, it wouldn’t have been necessary for others to hold his arms up when he grew tired, it would have been enough for him to continue his prayer[449]. The Israelite warriors represented the good Christians, who are the true Israelites, fighting sin, the evil inclinations of the flesh, and the enemies of salvation, which are represented by the Amalekites. They defeat these enemies when they apply themselves to prayer, and rely on grace, but they are defeated when they neglect prayer.
You will not cook a kid in its mother's milk[450]. This precept, said St. Augustine, was given to show that Jesus Christ was not to be killed by Herod, or by the Jews, in his infancy or his childhood[451].
Moses, having offered calves in sacrifice, then sprinkled their blood on the people of Israel, saying: “This is the blood of the Covenant which the Lord made with you, which was, say the Church Fathers, a prefiguration of the New Testament, which was to happen by the shedding of the blood of Jesus Christ; for the Old Testament, as they say, is only a prefiguration of the new one.
The seventy elders, who saw God with Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu[452], represented those who are predestined to see God forever in Heaven. The sapphire which appeared under the feet of God represents the holy life and the innocent souls of the predestined ones, in whom God rests, as if on a throne[453].
The Tabernacle[454] that God commanded Moses to make is a symbol of the dwelling that we should prepare for God in ourselves and in our souls. When He commanded him to use their most precious materials, such as, gold, silver etc. for this Tabernacle, the gold represented wisdom and the understanding of the mysteries by faith; silver, the word of God, which is noted in the Scriptures, the brass represents the preaching of the faith, the hyacinth represented the hope for heavenly things, the purple represented the love of the cross and the passion, the scarlet, twice-dyed, represented the double precept of charity that should be in the heart towards God and towards one’s neighbor. The linen represented purity of body and the affections of heart. The goat hair represented the rigors of penance. The sheepskin, dyed red, represented the good examples of the Pastors to be followed, the skins represented the immortality of the celestial bodies, the oil of the lamps represented the sweet fruits of works of charity and mercy, the shittim wood, which don’t get rotten, represented the incorruptible purity, which should be retained in the body and in the heart. The aromatic balms represented the pleasant odor of the good life and the good example, the precious stones represented all kinds virtuous Christian deeds[455].
The Ark of the Covenant represented the humanity of Jesus Christ[456]. The ark in the sanctuary represented the saints who are in heaven, and who have Jesus Christ above them, who serves as a mercy seat for them, as it is written, ipse est propitiatio pro peccatis[457], and they are surrounded angels, like the Ark, which was between two cherubs[458].
The candlestick in the Tabernacle represented Jesus Christ. It was made of pure gold, because Jesus Christ was without sin; it was molten, to indicate that Jesus Christ would melt under the blows he received during his passion. The stem of the candlestick represented the Christian Church and its branches represented the preachers[459], or also, the candlestick represented the Church, the stem represented Jesus Christ, while the branches represented the preachers, and the seven lamps represented the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, or the seven Sacraments of the Church[460].
The Tabernacle, built and portable as it was, represented the Church Militant, like the temple of Solomon, which was stable, representing the Church Triumphant, which is at rest, and is stable in God. The ten curtains of different colo
rs represented all the Elect, decorated with different kinds of virtues. The covering of this tabernacle represented the Pastors under whose leadership the people are sheltered[461]. The skins of the red sheep represented the martyrs who have dyed their flesh with their own blood, in defense of the faith. The skins represented other saints, adorned with various virtues, and especially those who have excelled in chastity. The silver vases represented the books of the Law and the Prophets. The tables represented the work of the Apostles and the apostolic men. The levers and the rings, which were made of gold, represented the heavenly promises, which keep the faithful attached to the service of God. I’ll never get tired of describing such beautiful things. So, let us continue: the Holy of Holies represented the Heaven itself, where the blessed ones reside, the ark signified the Saints, who are in Heaven. The mercy seat, which was on the ark, represented Jesus Christ, who is above the Saints. The tables represented the spiritual resurrection of the faithful in the sacraments, especially in the Eucharist. The candlestick with its lamps represented the light of faith and that which comes from the Christian doctrine, along with the seven gifts of the Holy Ghost. The altar of incense represented and the prayers of the faithful, whose scent rises up to Heaven[462].
