17. Nevertheless mine eye spared them from destroying them, neither did I make an end of them in the wilderness.

17. Et pepercit oculus meus super ipsos [269] ne perderem ipsos, et ne facerem ipsos [270] consumptionem in deserto.

This is added, because God often afflicted the people with heavy punishments, but he restrained himself, that he should not utterly destroy both their persons and their name. He says, then, that he spared them through respect for his own name, as he formerly said, that he should not execute consumption on them; that is, that he should not utterly blot out the memory of them. He did not spare them entirely to foster their depravity by his indulgence, but as we shall afterwards see, he withdrew his hand that he should not consume them, as he might most justly have done. It now follows --

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Footnotes:

[269] "My eye took no notice of them." -- Calvin.

[270] "And I did not execute on them." -- Calvin.