The prophet reprehends B. C. cir. 710. A. U. C. cir. 44. CHAP. VII. A. M. cir. 3294. lence, and the inhabitants thereof 14 b Thou shalt eat, but not be satisfied; and thy casting down shall be in the midst of thee; and thou shalt take hold, but shalt not deliver; and that which thou deliverest will I give up to the sword. z Jer. ix. 3, 5, 6, 8.- - Lev. xxvi. 16; Psa. cvii. 17, 18. b Lev. xxvi. 26; Hos. iv. 10.- Deut. xxviii. 38, 39, 40; Amos v. 11; Zeph. i. 13; Hag. i. 6.- _d Or, he doth much keep the, &c. The inhabitants thereof have spoken lies] This shows that they did not humble themselves to walk with God. Verse 13. Will I make thee sick in smiting thee] Perhaps better," I also am weary with smiting thee, in making thee desolate for thy sins." They were corrected, but to no purpose; they had stroke upon stroke, but were not amended. Verse 14. Thou shalt eat, but not be satisfied] All thy possessions are cursed, because of thy sins; and thou hast no real good in all thy enjoyments, And thy casting down] For n veyeshchacha, "thy casting down," Newcome, by transposing the and, reads 'i veyechshach, "and it shall be dark;" and this is probably the true reading. The Arabic and Septuagint have read the same. "There shall be calamity in the midst of thee." It shall have its seat and throne among you. this disobedient people. 16 For the statutes of Omri are kept, and all the works of the house of Ahab, and ye walk in their counsels; that I should make thee ha idesolation, and the inhabitants thereof a hissing: therefore ye shall bear the k reproach of my people. e1 Kings xvi. 25, 26.- Hos. v. 11.- - 1 Kings xvi. 30, &c.; xxi. 25, 26; 2 Kings xxi. 3.-1 Kings ix. 8; Jer. xix. 8. Or, astonishment.- Isa. xxv. 8; Jer. li. 51; Lam. v. 1. Verse 15. Thou shalt sow, but thou shalt not reap] Thou shalt labour to amass property, but thou shalt not have God's blessing; and whatever thou collectest, thy enemies shall carry away. And at last carry thyself into captivity. Verse 16. The statutes of Omri are kept] Omri, king of Israel, the father of Ahab, was one of the worst kings the Israelites ever had; and Ahab followed in his wicked father's steps. The statutes of those kings were the very grossest idolatry. Jezebel, wife of the latter, and daughter of Ithobaal, king of Tyre, had no fellow on earth. From her Shakspeare seems to have drawn the character of Lady Macbeth; a woman, like her prototype, mixed up of tigress and fiend, without addition. Omri, Ahab, and Jezebel, were the models followed by the Israelites in the days of this prophet. The inhabitants thereof a hissing] plishrekah, "for a shriek ;" because those who should see them should be both astonished and affrighted at them. There are few chapters in the prophets, or in the Bible, superior to this for genuine worth and importance. The structure is as elegant as it is impressive; and it is every way worthy of the Spirit of God. CHAPTER VII. The prophet begins this chapter with lamenting the decay of piety and the growth of ungodliness, using a 727 The prophet laments the growth A. M. cir. 3294. B. C. cir. 710. WO is me! B. C. cir. 710. WO is me! for I am as earnestly, the prince asketh, A. M. cir. 3294. A. U. C. cir. 44. a when they have gathered and the judge asketh for a reNuma Pompili, the summer fruits, as the grape- ward; and the great man, he gleanings of the vintage: there uttereth i his mischievous desire : my soul desireth the so they wrap it up. R. Roman., cir. annum 6. is no cluster to eat : с first-ripe fruit. 2 The good d • man is perished out of the earth and there is none upright among men they all lie in wait for blood; f they hunt every man his brother with a net. 4 The best of them is as a brier: the most upright is sharper than a thorn hedge: the day of thy watchmen and thy visitation cometh; now shall be their perplexity. 5 1 Trust ye not in a friend, put ye not confidence in a guide: keep the doors of thy mouth 3 That they may do evil with both hands from her that lieth in thy bosom. a Heb. the gatherings of summer. b Isa. xvii. 6; xxiv. 13.. - Isa. xxviii. 4; Hos. ix. 10.- d Psa. xii. 1; xiv. 1, 3; Isa. lvii. 1.- Le e Or, godly, or merciful. NOTES ON CHAP. VII. Verse 1. Wo is me !] This is a continuation of the preceding discourse. And here the prophet points out the small number of the upright to be found in the land. He himself seemed to be the only person who was on God's side; and he considers himself as a solitary grape, which had escaped the general gathering. The word p kayits, which is sometimes used for summer, and summer fruits in general, is here translated late figs; and may here, says Bishop Newcome, be opposed to the early ripe fig of superior quality. See on Hos. ix. 10, and Amos viii. 1, 2. He desired to see the first-ripe fruit-distinguished and eminent piety; but he found nothing but a very imperfect or spurious kind of godliness. f Hab. i. 15.- - Hos. iv. 18. h Isa. i 23; chap. iii. 11. Heb. the mischief of his soul.- k2 Sam. xxiii. 6, 7; Ezek. ii. 6; see Isa. lv. 13.Jer. ix. 4. suarum dicunt bonum; "The evil of their hands they call good." The prince asketh] A bribe, to forward claims in his court. That he may degives most money, This was notori The judge asketh for a reward] cide the cause in favour of him who whether the cause be good or evil. ously the case in our own country before the giving of Magna Charta; and hence that provision, Nulli vendemus justitiam aut rectum: "We will not sell justice to any man." And this was not the only country in which justice and judgment were put to sale. Verse 2. The good man is perished out of the earth] A similar sentiment may be found, Psa. xii. 1; Isa. lvii. 1. As the early fig of excellent flavour cannot be found in the advanced season of summer, or a choice cluster of grapes after vintage, so neither can the good" and upright man be discovered by searching in Israel. This comparison, says Bp. Newcome, is beautifully implied. They hunt every man his brother with a net.] This appears to be an allusion to the ancient mode of duel between the retiarius and secutor. The former had a casting net, which he endeavoured to throw over the head of his antagonist, that he might then despatch him with his short sword. The other parried the cast; and when the retiariùs missed, he was obliged to run about the field to get time to set his net in right order for another throw. While he ran, the other followed, that he might despatch him before he should be able to recover the proper position of his net; and hence the latter was called secutor, the pursuer, as the other was called retiarius, or the net man. I have explained this before on Job, and other places; but because it is rarely noticed by commentators, I explain the allusion here once more. Abp. Newcome, by not attending to this, has translated on 17 ish eth achihu yatsudu cherem, "They hunt every man his brother for his destruction ;" though he puts net in the margin. Verse 3. That they may do evil with both hands] That is, earnestly, greedily, to the uttermost of their power, The Vulgate translates: Malum manuum The great man, he uttereth his mischievous desire} Such consider themselves above law, and they make no secret of their unjust determinations. And so they wrap it up-they all conjoin in doing evil in their several offices, and oppressing the poor; so our translators have interpreted the original nay vayeabtuha, which the versions translate variously. Newcome has, And they do abominably." Verse 4. The best of them is as a brier] They are useless in themselves, and cannot be touched without wounding him that comes in contact with them. alludes to the thick thorn hedges, still frequent in Palestine. He The day of thy watchmen] The day of vengeance, which the prophets have foreseen and proclaimed, is at hand. Now shall be their perplexity; no more wrapping up, all shall be unfolded. In that day every man will wish that he were different from what he is found to be; but he shall be judged for what he is, and for the deeds he has done. Verse 5. Trust ye not in a friend] These times will be so evil, and the people so wicked, that all bonds will be dissolved; and even the most intimate will betray each other, when they can hope to serve themselves by it. On this passage, in the year 1798, I find I have written as follows: "Trust ye not in a friend.-Several of those whom I have delighted to call by that name have deceived me. "Put ye not confidence in a guide. Had I followed some of these I should have gone to perdition. "Keep the door of thy mouth from her that lieth in thy bosom.-My wife alone never deceived me." It is now twenty-seven years since, and I find no cause to alter what I then wrote, Prediction of the A. M. cir. 3294. B. C. cir. 710. A. U. C. cir. 44. u B. C. cir. 710. 6 For the son dishonoureth 10 Then she that is mine A. M. cir. 3294. the father, the daughter riseth up enemy shall see it, and a shame against her mother, the daughter-shall cover her which said unto me, in-law against her mother-in-law; Where is the LORD thy God? a man's enemies are the men of his own house. 7 Thereforé "I will look unto the LORD: I will wait for the God of my salvation my God will hear me. V A. U. C. cir. 44. mine eyes shall behold her: now * shall she be trodden down y as the mire of the streets. 11 In the day that thy walls are to be built, in that day shall the decree be far removed. 8 Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: 12 In that day also a he shall come even to P when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in thee from Assyria, band from the fortified darkness, the LORD shall be a light unto me. cities, and from the fortress even to the river, 9 I will bear the indignation of the LORD, and from sea to sea, and from mountain to because I have sinned against him, until he mountain. 13 plead my cause, and execute judgment for me: she will bring me forth to the light, and I shall behold his righteousness. с Notwithstanding the land shall be desolate because of them that dwell therein. a for the fruit of their doings. Psa. xlii. 3, 10; lxxix. 10; cxv. 2; Joel ii. 17-w Chap. iv. 11. * Heb. she shall be for a treading down. 2 Sam. xxii. 43; Zech. x. 5. z Amos ix. 11, &c.- a Isa. xi. 16; xix. 23, &c.; xxvii. 13; Hos. xi. 11.- b Or, even to.- Or, After that it hath been. Jer. xxi 14; chap. iii. 12. total ruin. It became as mire; its walls, formed of brick kneaded with straw and baked in the sun, becoming exposed to the wet, dissolved, so that a vestige of the m Ezek. xxii. 7; Matt. x. 21, 35, 36; Luke xii. 53; xxi. 16; 2 Tim. iii. 2, 3.- a Isa. viii. 17.- O o Prov. xxiv. 17; Lam. iv. 21.- -P Psa. xxxvii. 24; Prov. xxiv. 16.- -9 Psa. xxvii. 1. Lam. iii. 39.- Psa. xxxvii. 6. -t Or, And thou wilt see her that is mine enemy, and cover her with shame.- u Psa. xxxv. 26. Verse 6. For the son dishonoureth the father] See the use our Lord has made of these words, where he quotes them, Matt. x. 21, 25, 36, and the notes there. Verse 7. Therefore I will look unto the Lord] Be-city remains not, except a few bricks digged from uncause things are so, I will trust in the Lord more firmly, wait for him more patiently, and more confidently expect to be supported, defended, and saved. Verse 8. Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy] The captive Israelites are introduced as speaking here and in the preceding verse. The enemy are the Assyrians and Chaldeans; the fall is their idolatry and consequent captivity; the darkness, the calamities they suffered in that captivity; their rise and light, their restoration and consequent blessedness. To rejoice over the fall or miseries of any man, betrays a malignant spirit. I have known several instances where people professing to hold a very pure and Christian creed, having become unfaithful and fallen into sin, their opponents, who held a very impure and unchristian creed, have exulted with "Ha, ha! so would we have it!" and have shown their malignity more fully, by giving all possible publicity and circulation to such accounts. Perhaps in the sight of God this was worse than the poor wretch's fall, in which they exulted as having taken place in one who held a creed different from their own. But these arose again from their fall, while those jesters at holiness continued in the gall of bitterness and bonds of inward corruption. Verse 9. I will bear the indignation of the Lord]. The words of the penitent captives, acknowledging their sins and praying for mercy. der the rubbish, several pieces of which now lie before me, and show the perishing materials of which the head of this proud empire was composed. "This Verse 11. In the day that thy walls are to be built] This refers to Jerusalem; the decree, to the purpose of God to deliver the people into captivity. shall be far removed." God having purposed their return, I cannot think, with some commentators, that this verse contains threatenings against Jerusalem, and not promises. See the first chapter of Haggai, where the subject is similar; and the restoration of Jerusalem is certainly what the prophet describes. Verse 12. In that day also he shall come] Bp. "And in that day they shall come unto thee "They shall come to thee from Assyria even unto Egypt; This, says he, gives an easy sense; whereas we cannot tell where to find those fortified cities spoken of by other translators. The Israelites were to return from their captivity, and re-occupy their ancient country from Assyria to Egypt; that is, from the river Euphrates to the river Nile; and from the Mediterranean Sea to the Ocean; and from Mount Liba Until he plead my cause] And wo to the slanderers, when God undertakes to plead for the fallen who have returned to him with deep compunction of heart, seek-nus to the mountains of Arabia Petræa, or Mount ing redemption in the blood of the cross. Verse 10. Then she that is mine enemy] This may refer particularly to the city of Babylon. Shall she be trodden down] Literally fulfilled in the sackage of that city by the Persians, and its consequent Seir. See Amos viii. 12. This prediction was literally fulfilled under the Asmoneans. The Jewish nation was greatly extended and very powerful under Herod, at the time that our Lord was born. See Calmet. Verse 13. Notwithstanding the land shall be desa The grand characteristics A. M. cir. 3294. A. U. C. cir. 44. cir. annum 6. A. M. cir. 3294 B. C. cir. 710 Numa Pompilii, R. Roman., cir. annum f 14 Feed thy people with the LORD our God, thy rod, the flock of thine herit- fear because of thee. age, which dwell solitarily in 18 Who is a God like unto f the wood, in the midst of Car- thee, that P pardoneth iniquity, mel let them feed in Bashan and Gilead, as and passeth by the transgression of a the in the days of old. remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy. 15 € According to the days of thy coming out of the land of Egypt will I show unto him marvellous things. 16 The nations h shall see and be confounded at all their might: they shall lay their hand upon their mouth, their ears shall be deaf. late] This should be translated in the preter tense, "Though the land HAD been desolate ;" that is, the land of Israel had been desolate during the captivity, which captivity was the "fruit of the evil doings of them that had dwelt therein." Verse 14. Feed thy people with thy rod] 10 beshibtecha, "with thy crook." The shepherd's crook is most certainly designed, as the word flock immediately following shows. No rod of correction or affliction is here intended; nor does the word mean such. Solitarily] They have been long without a shepherd or spiritual governor. In the midst of Carmel] Very fruitful in vines. Bashan and Gilead] Proverbially fruitful in pasturages. 19 He will turn again, he will have com passion upon us; he will subdue our iniqui ties; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea. 20 Thou wilt perform the truth to Jacob, and the mercy to Abraham, which thou hast sworn unto our fathers from the days of old. m Or, creeping things.- Jer. xxxiii. 9.- o Exod. xv. 11. P Exod. xxxiv. 6, 7; Jer. 1. 20.9 Ch. iv. 7; v. 3, 7, 8.- Psa. ciii. 9; Isa. lvii. 10; Jer. iii. 5.- Luke i. 72, 73.- Psa. cv. 9, 10. justly displeased because of sin, he pours out his judgments upon the wicked; yet when they return to him, he shows "that he retaineth not his anger for ever," but is indescribably ready to save them. 4. He delighteth in mercy. Judgment is his strange work: he is ever more ready to save than to destroy. Nothing can please him better than having the opportunity, from the return and repentance of the sinner, to show him that mercy without which he must perish everlastingly. 5. Because he is such a God-1. "He will turn again." His face has been long turned from us, because of our sins. 2. "He will have compassion upon us," pity our state, and feel for our sorrows. 3. "He will subdue our iniquities." Though they have been mighty, he will bring them down, and bruise Verse 15. According to the days] This is the them under our feet. 4. "He will cast all their sins answer to the prophet's prayer; and God says he into the depths of the sea." Will fully pardon them, will protect, save, defend, and work miracles for and never more remember them against us. Instead them in their restoration, such as he wrought for their of Dnson chattotham, THEIR sins, five MSS. of Kenfathers in their return from Egypt to the promised nicott's and De Rossi's, with the Septuagint, Syriac, land. Vulgate, and Arabic, read 11'on chattotheynu, OUR sins. He will plunge them into eternal oblivion, never more to come into sight or remembrance; like a stone dropped into the "depths of the sea." Verse 16. The nations shall see and be confounded] Whether the words in these verses (15, 16, and 17) be applied to the return from the Babylonish captivity, or to the prosperity of the Jews under the Maccabees, they may be understood as ultimately applicable to the final restoration of this people, and their lasting prosperity under the Gospel. Verse 18. Who is a God like unto thee, &c.] Here is a challenge to all idol worshippers, and to all those who take false views of the true God, to show his like. See his characters; they are immediately subjoined. 1. He pardoneth iniquity. This is the prerogative of God alone; of that Being who alone has power to save or to destroy. Verse 20. Thou wilt perform the truth to Jacob] The promises which he has made to Jacob and his posterity. Not one of them can ever fall to the ground. "And the mercy to Abraham, which thou hast sworn;" viz., that "in his Seed all the families of the earth should be blessed;" that the Messiah should come from ABRAHAM, through his son ISAAC, by JACOB and DAVID; be a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of his people Israel. And this promise, and this oath, God has most signally fulfilled by the incarnation of Christ, who was sent to bless us by turning away every one of us from his iniquities; and for this 2. He passeth by transgression. He can heal back-purpose he was delivered for our offences, and rose sliding, and restore them that are fallen. again for our justification; and repentance and remis 3. He retaineth not his anger for ever. Though, sion of sins are preached in his name to all nations. Concluding notes CHAP. VII. on this prophet. The proclamation was first made at Jerusalem; and | And thou wilt do us that good, which, from the most that the prophet refers to this, is evident from the use ancient days, thou hast promised to our fathers by an made of these words by Zacharias, the father of John oath." Between the divisions, refers to the covenant the Baptist, when, under the full afflatus of the Spirit made between God and Abraham, Gen. xv. 9, 10, 11, of God, he quoted this prophecy of Micah, as fulfilled 17, 18. Well might the prophet exult in his chalin the incarnation of Christ, Luke i. 72, 73. The lenge to earth and hell. WHO IS A GOD LIKE UNTO Chaldee paraphrases this last verse with spirit and Hell is speechless, earth is dumb. Infidels propriety : "Thou wilt give the truth to Jacob his dare not open their mouths!!! Hallelujah! 'D son, as thou hast promised by oath to him in Beth-el.7 mi El camocha! JESUS is the mighty God and And the mercy to Abraham and to his seed after him, as thou didst swear to him amidst the divisions. Thou. wilt be mindful of us on account of the binding of Isaac, who was bound upon the altar before thee. THEE! Saviour, pardoning iniquity, transgression, and sin, and saving to the uttermost all that come unto God through him. Blessed be God! Reader, lay this to heart. 731 |