The prophet exhorts his people A. M. cir. 3219. B. C. cir. 785. Ante U. C. 32. cir. annum 12. the chil shall be as the sand of the sea, 11 ▾ Then shall which cannot be measured nor dren of Judah and the children numbered; and it shall come of Israel be gathered together, to pass, that in the place where and appoint themselves one it was said unto them, Ye are not my people, head, and they shall there it shall be said unto them, Ye are the the land: sons of the living God. t Rom. ix. 25, 26; 1 Pet. ii. 10,- Or, instead of that. ii. 23. u Jezreel. u A. M. cir. 3219. B. C. cir. 785. Ante U. C. 32. come up out of for great shall be the day of Ch. John i. 12; 1 John iii. 1.Isa. xi. 12, 13; Jer. iii. 18; the prophet the one Head may mean Jesus Christ, under whom the true Israel, Jews and Gentiles, shall be finally gathered together; so that there shall be one flock, and one Shepherd over that flock. They shall come up out of the land] Assyria and Chaldea in particular; but also from the various places of their dispersions in general. Great shall be the day of Jezreel.] He alludes to the meaning of the word, the seed of God. God who thinned and scattered them, yet the spirit and design of his promise and covenant shall be fulfilled. An Israel there shall be. In the place of the reprobated people, who were now no longer his people, there shall be found an Israel that shall be the children of the living God. See the above scriptures, and 1 Pet. ii. 10. | This must mean either the Israelites after their conversion to Christianity, or even the Gentiles themselves converted to God, and now become the true Israel. Verse 11. The children of Judah and the children has dispersed sown, them in different lands, shall of Israel] After the return from Babylon, the distinc-gather them together; and that day of God's power tion between Israel and Judah was entirely destroyed; shall be great and glorious. It was a wonderful seed and those of them that did return were all included time in the Divine justice; it shall then be a wonderful under one denomination, Jews; and the one head may harvest in the Divine mercy. He sowed them among refer to Zerubbabel their leader, and afterwards under the nations in his wrath; he shall reap them and gather Ezra and Nehemiah. In the more extensive view of them in his bounty. CHAPTER II. The prophet exhorts his people to speak and to act as became those who obtained mercy of God; and to remonstrate strongly against the conduct of their mother, (Samaria,) whose captivity is threatened on account of her forsaking God, and ascribing her prosperity to idols, 1-5. As an amplification of this threatening, the prophet enumerates a series of afflictions which were to befall her to bring her to a sense of her duty to God; and of her folly in seeking after idols, and falsely ascribing to them the blessings of Providence, 6-13. After these corrections, however, God promises to conduct Israel safely to their own land; perhaps alluding to their restoration from the Babylonish captivity, for this prophecy is supposed to have been delivered about two hundred and fifty years prior to this event, 14, 15. He farther engages to deal with them as a tender husband, and not as a severe master, as were the idols which they served, 16, 17. The rest of the chapter promises the people of God, the true Israel, security from every evil, with the possession of every blessing, under a new covenant; and that in terms full of beauty, energy, and consolation. Heaven and earth, and whatever they contain; all nature, and the God of nature, are represented as uniting to make the people of God happy; so that if they only breathe a wish, one part of nature, animate or inanimate, echoes it to another, and all join in sweet harmony to transmit it to the ear of the Almighty. "I will hear, saith the LORD, I will hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth; and the earth shall hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil; and they shall hear Jezreel.” A. M. cir. 3219. SAY ye unto your brethren, her husband let her there- A. M. cir 3219. a Ammi; and to your sisters, fore put away b Ruhamah. doms out of her 2 Plead with your mother, adulteries from plead for she is not my wife, neither am I breasts; a That is, My people.- That is, Having obtained mercy. NOTES ON CHAP. II. Verse 1. Say ye unto your brethren, Ammi] I prefer the interpretation of these proper names. Say ye unto your brethren, MY PEOPLE; and to your sisters, who have OBTAINED MERCY. her d whore- c Isa. 1. 1.d Ezek. xvi. 25. B. C. cir, 785. Ante U. C, 32. Amulii Sylvii, R. Alban., cir. annum 12. Verse 2. Plead with your mother] People of Judah, accuse your mother, (Jerusalem,) who has abandoned my worship, and is become idolatrous; convince her of her folly and wickedness, and let her return to him from whom she has so deeply revolted. Threatenings of punishment A. M. cir. 3219. B. C. cir. 785. Ante U. C. 32. Amulii Sylvii, R. Alban.. cir. annum 12. A. M. cir. 3219. Ante U. U. 32. B. C. eir. 785. Amulii Sylvii, cir. annum 12. W re 3 Lest I strip her naked, and | corn, and wine, and oil, and set her as in the day that she multiplied her silver and gold, was born, and make her as" which they prepared for Baal. a wilderness, and set her like a 9 Therefore will I return, and dry land, and slay her with thirst. take away my corn in the time thereof, and 4 And I will not have mercy upon her chil- my wine in the season thereof, and will dren; for they be the children of whoredoms. cover my wool and my flax given to cover 5 For their mother hath played the harlot: her nakedness. she that conceived them hath done shamefully: for she said, I will go after my lovers, that give me my bread and my water, my wool and my flax, mine oil and my m drink. n 6 Therefore, behold, I will hedge up thy way with thorns, and make a wall, that she shall not find her paths. 7. And she shall follow after her lovers, but she shall not overtake them; and she shall seek them, but shall not find them: then shall she say, I will go and return to my first husband; for then was it better with me than now. 8 For she did not know that r q I gave her • Jer. xiii. 22, 26; Ezekiel xvi. 37, 39.- Ezekiel xvi. 4. 8 Ezek. xix. 13. h Amos viii. 11, 13.- John viii. 41.-- Isa. i. 21; Jer. iii. 1, 6, 8, 9; Ezek. xvi. 15, 16, &c.- Ver. 8, 12; Jer. xliv. 17.- m Heb. drinks. -"Job iii. 23; xix. 8; Lam. iii. 7, 9.- Heb. wall a wall. - Chapter v. 15; Luke XV. 18. Verse 3. Lest I strip her naked] Lest I expose her to infamy, want, and punishment. The punishment of an adulteress among the ancient Germans was this: "They shaved off her hair, stripped her naked in the presence of her relatives, and in this state drove her from the house of her husband." See on Isa. iii. 17; and see also Ezek. xvi. 39; xxiii. 26. However reproachful this might be to such delinquents, it had no tendency to promote their moral reformation. And set her like a dry land] The Israelites, if obedient, were promised a land flowing with milk and honey; but, should they be disobedient, the reverse. And this is what God here threatens against disobedient Israel. Verse 4. They be the children of whoredoms.] They are all idolaters; and have been consecrated to idols, whose marks they bear. Verse 5. That give me my bread] See the note on Jer. xliv. 17, 18, where nearly the same words are found and illustrated. Verse 6. I will hedge up thy way with thorns] I will put it out of your power to escape the judgments I have threatened; and, in spite of all your attachment to your idols, you shall find that they can give you neither bread, nor water, nor wool, nor flax, nor oil, nor drink. And ye shall be brought into such circumstances, that the pursuit of your expensive idolatry shall be impossible. And she shall be led so deep into captivity, as never to find the road back to her own land. And this is the fact; for those who were carried away into Assyria have been lost among the nations, few of 10 And now will I discover her lewdness in the sight of her lovers, and none shall deliver her out of mine hand. 11 z I will also cause all her mirth to cease, her a feast days, her new moons, and her Sabbaths, and all her solemn feasts. them having ever returned to Judea. And, if in being, where they are now is utterly unknown. Verse 8. For she did not know that I gave her corn] How often are the gifts of God's immediate bounty attributed to fortuitous causes-to any cause but the right one! Which they prepared for Baal.] And how often are the gifts of God's bounty perverted into means of dishonouring him! God gives us wisdom, strength, and property; and we use them to sin against him with the greater skill, power, and effect! Were the goods those of the enemy, in whose service they are employed, the crime would be the less. But the crime is deeply engrained, when God's property is made the instrument to dishonour himself. Verse 9. Therefore will I return, and take away] In the course of my providence, I will withhold those benefits which she has prostituted to her idolatrous services. And I will neither give the land rain, nor fruitful seasons. Verse 10. In the sight of her lovers] Her idols, and her faithful or faithless allies. Verse 11. Her feast days] Jerusalem shall be pillaged and destroyed; and therefore all her joyous assemblies, and religious feasts, &c., shall cease. Verse 12. These are my rewards] They attributed all the blessings of Providence as rewards received from the idols which they worshipped. Verse 13. Days of Baalim] To visit signifies to inflict punishment; the days are taken for the acts of idolatrous worship committed on them; and Baalim God promises the A. M. cir. 3219. B. C. cir. 785, Ante U. C. 32. Amulii Sylvii, R. Alban., cir. annum 12. CHAP. 11. and she decked herself with her earrings and her jewels, and she went after her lovers, and forgat me, saith the LORD. 14 Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her. k 15 And I will give her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope: and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and 'as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt. 16 And it shall be at that day, saith the LORD, that thou shalt call me m Ishi; and shalt call me no more " Baali. 17 For I will take away the names of Baalim out of her mouth, and they shall no • Ezek. xxiii. 40, 42.- f Ezek. xx. 35.- Or, friendly. h Heb. to her heart. -i Josh. vii. 26; Isa. Ixv. 10. Jer. ii. 2; Ezek. xvi. 8, 22, 60.- Exod. xv. 1.- m That is, My husband. That is, My lord. means the multitude of false gods worshipped by them. Baal was a general name for a male idol, as Astarte was for a female. Baalim includes all the male idols, as Ashtaroth all those that were female. But the species of idol was often designated by some adjunct; as Baal-Zebub, Baal-Peor, Baal-Zephon, Baal-Berith, &c. Her earrings] nizmah, signifies rather a nose jewel. These are worn by females in the East to the present day, in great abundance. And her jewels] 'bm vechelyatah, rings, armlets, bracelets, ankle-rings, and ornaments of this kind... Verse 14. I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her.] After inflicting many judgments upon her, I will restore her again. I will deal with her as a very affectionate husband would do to an unfaithful wife. Instead of making her a public example, he takes her in private, talks to and reasons with her; puts her on her good behaviour; promises to pass by all, and forgive all, if she will now amend her ways. In the meantime he provides what is necessary for her wants and comfortable support; and thus, opening a door of hope for her, she may be fully reconciled; rejoice as at the beginning, when he first took her by the hand, and she became his bride. This is most probably the simple meaning of the above metaphorical expressions. The valley of Achor was very fruitful; it lay to the north of Jericho, not far from Gilgal. See Isa. lxv. 10. Verse 15. She shall sing there] There she shall sing the responsive song, as on high festival occasions, and in marriage ceremonies. The Book of Canticles is of this sort. Verse 16. Thou shalt call me Ishi] That is, my man, or my husband; a title of love and affection; and nol BAALI, my master, a title exciting fear and appre- | hension; which, howsoever good in itself, was now rendered improper to be applied to Jehovah, having been prostituted to false gods. This intimated that restoration of Israel. more be remembered by their A. M. cir. 3219. name. B. C. cir. 785. Ante U. C. 32. Amulii Sylvii, R. Alban., cir. annum 12. 18 And in that day will I make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven, and with the creeping things of the ground and I will break the bow and the sword, and the battle out of the earth, and will make them to lie down safely. 19 And I will betroth thee unto me for ever; yea, I will betroth thee unto me in righteousness, and in judgment, and in lovingkindness, and in mercies. 20 I will even betroth thee unto me in faithfulness; and thou shalt know the LORD. 21 And it shall come to pass in that day, 'I will hear, saith the LORD, I will hear the hea • Exod. xxiii. 13; Josh. xxiii. 7; Psa. xvi. 4; Zech. xiii. 2. P Job v. 23; Isa. xi. 6-9; Ezek. xxxiv., 25.- 4 Psa. xlvi. 9; Isa. ii. 4; Ezek. xxxix. 9, 10; Zech. ix. 10.Jer. xxiii. 6. Jer. xxxi. 33, 34; John xvii. 3. Lev. xxvi. 5 Zech. viii. 12. they should scrupulously avoid idolatry; and they had such a full proof of the inefficacy of their idolatrous worship that, after their captivity, they never more served idols. Verse 18. Will I make a covenant for them] I will make an agreement between them and the birds, beasts, and reptiles, so that they shall not be injured by those; their flocks shall not be destroyed, nor their crops spoiled. I will also prevent every species of war, that they may no more have the calamities that arise from that source. They shall also be safe from robbers and nightly alarms; for I will make them to lie down in safety. Verse 19. I will betroth thee unto me] The people are always considered under the emblem of a wife unfaithful to her husband. In righteousness] According to law, reason, and equity. In judgment] According to what is fit and becoming. In lovingkindness] Having the utmost affection and love for thee. In mercies.] Forgiving and blotting out all past miscarriages. Or there may be an allusion here to the dowry given by the husband to his wife: “I will give righteousness," &c., as a dowry. Verse 20. In faithfulness] Thou shalt no more prostitute thyself to idols, but be faithful to him who calls himself thy husband. Thou shalt know the Lord.] There shall be no more infidelity on thy part nor divorce on mine; and thou shalt experience me to be the sole, present, and eternal good of thy. immortal spirit: and when this conviction is fully rooted, then there can be no more idolatry, for it shall be seen that an idol is nothing in the world. Verse 21. I will hear, saith the Lord] The sentence is repeated, to show how fully the thing was God's provision for A. M. cir. 3219. Ante U. C. 32. cir. annum. 12. earth; 4. M. eir. 3219. Ante U. C. 32. Amulii Sylvii, B. C. cir. 785. R. Alban., cir. annum 12. vens, and they shall hear the and I will have mercy upon her 22 And the earth shall hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil; " and they shall hear Jezreel. V 23 And I will sow her unto me in the earth, Chap. i. 4.- - Jer. xxxi. 27; Zech. x. 9. Chap. i. 6. determined by the Almighty, and how implicitly they might depend on the Divine promise. I will hear the heavens] The visible heavens, the atmosphere, where vapours are collected. The clouds, when they wish to deposit their fertilizing showers upon the earth. They shall hear the earth] plicate for rain. When it seems to sup Verse 22. Shall hear the corn, and the wine] When they seem to express a desire to supply the wants of man. Chap. i. 10; Zech. xiii. 9; Rom. ix. 26; 1 Pet. ii. 10. them with his winds, or strike them with his thunder, so as to cause them to fall down in drops to fertilize the earth with their showers. Thus then 1. God works upon the heavens. 3. The clouds drop their moisture upon the earth. 4. The earth exerts its vegetative influence upon the germs which it contains. 5. They expand, increase, and become matured, under the genial influences of the heavens, sun, air, And they shall hear Jezreel.] The destitute people water, from the clouds, &c. who are in want of the necessaries of life. This most elegant gradation in the exertion of the influences of nature, for the supply of the wants of man, may be considered thus : : 1. There is a concord, harmony, and mutual influence, which God has established in the parts of created nature, in reference to the support and preservation of the human race. 6. Man receives and applies those bounties of Providence, and variously prepares them for the support and comfort of life. Take all this in still fewer words : As Jezreel or the Israelites are here considered as perishing for want of food, all inanimate nature is represented as invoking God in their behalf. 1. The heavens have prayed that they be stored with clouds, that they may drop down fatness upon the 2. God alone is the author of all this; and unless he give his command, communicate his energetic influ- | earth. ence to the different parts of nature, these effects will not, cannot be produced. 3. Jezreel, the people who have been dispersed for their iniquities, and now about to be sown or planted in their own land, will require the most fostering care. See on ver. 23. 4. They are heard in desiring oil, wine, and corn. These are necessary to the support and comfort of life; and to those the desire of animal life naturally aspires. 5. These products are looked for from the EARTH. On it, and by it, grass grows for the cattle, and corn for the service of man. 6. The seeds or germs, whence proceed corn, wine, and oil, live and grow in the earth; but cannot come to perfection, unless the earth be impregnated with the dews and rains from the clouds. They are therefore represented as imploring the heavens to collect their clouds, to pour down their fructifying moisture upon it. 7. The clouds, or materials of which they are composed, not being able to arrange themselves, nor aggregate themselves so as to meet those demands, prevent drought, and maintain an effective vegetation, are represented as calling upon the heavens to form, arrange, and supply them with the requisite quantity of moisture. 8. God, who is the author of all being and all bounty, dependent on nothing, comes forward and says, I'will hear the heavens, the clouds which are gathered in the atmosphere; he will arrange the particles, saturate those that are light, till they become sufficiently impregnated with the necessary fluid; and then direct them in his providence where to deposit their contents. And, 9. When brought to the proper place, he will shake 2. The Lord answers the heavens, and clouds are formed. 3. The earth invokes the clouds, that they may drop down their fatness into its bosom. 4. The bottles of heaven are, consequently, unstopped for this purpose. 5. Then the corn, vine, and olive, implore the earth to put forth its vegetative energy. 6. The earth answers; and corn, wine, and oil are produced. 7. Jezreel cries for the necessaries of life, and the abundance of the above supplies all his wants. All these are dependent on each other, as the links are which constitute a chain; and God has the government of the whole; and he manages all for the benefit of man. How wondrous is this providence! How gracious is this GOD! Here is a series of prosopopæias together. Corn, wine, oil, the earth, the clouds and their contents, the heavens, sun, moon, &c., are all represented as intelligent beings, speaking to and influencing each other. God is at one end of the chain, and man at the other; and by means of the intermediate links the latter is kept in a state of continued dependence upon the former for life, breath, and all things. Verse 23. I will sow her] Alluding to the import of the name Jezreel, the seed of God. Then shall it appear that God has shown mercy to them that had not obtained mercy. Then the covenant of God will be renewed; for he will call them his people who were not his people; and they shall call Jehovah their God, who before had him not for the object of their worship. It does not appear that these promises have had their By the prophet's taking back his wife, for whom he (her friend or husband) still retained his affection, though she had proved unfaithful; by his entering into a new contract with her; and by his giving her hopes of reconciliation, after she should for some time prove, as in a state of widowhood, the sincerity of her repentance; is represented the gracious manner in which God will restore the Jews from the Babylonish captivity, 1-4. It is also very strongly intimated that the whole house of Israel will be added to the Church of Christ in the latter days, 5. 2 So I bought her to me for fifteen pieces 4 For the children of Israel shall abide many a Chap. i. 2. Jer. iii. 20. Heb. of grapes. NOTES ON CHAP. III. d Heb. lethech.- - Deut. xxi. 13. Verse 2. Fifteen pieces of silver] If they were A homer of barley] As the homer was about eight bushels, or something more, the homer and half was about twelve or thirteen bushels. Verse 3. Thou shalt abide for me many days] He did not take her home, but made a contract with her that, if she would abstain from her evil ways, he would take her to himself after a sufficient trial. In the meantime he gave her the money and the barley to subsist upon, that she might not be under the temptation of becoming again unfaithful. Verse 1. Go yet, love a woman] This is a different shekels, the price of this woman was about two pounds command from that mentioned in the first chapter.five shillings. That denoted the infidelity of the kingdom of Israel, and God's divorce of them. He gave them up to their enemies, and caused them to be carried into captivity. The woman mentioned here represents one who was a lawful wife joining herself to a paramour; then divorced by her husband; afterwards repenting, and desirous to be joined to her spouse; ceasing from her adulterous commerce, but not yet reconciled to him. This was the state and disposition of the Jews under the Babylonish captivity. Though separated from their own idols, they continued separated from their God. He is still represented as having affectionate feelings towards them; awaiting their full repentance and contrition, in order to renew the marriage coveThese things are pointed out by the symbolical actions of the prophet. nant. So will I also be for thee.] That is, if thou, Israel, wilt keep thyself separate from thy idolatry, and give me proof, by thy total abstinence from idols, that thou wilt be my faithful worshipper, I will receive thee again, and in the meantime support thee with the necessaries of life while thou art in the land of thy captivity. This is farther illustrated in the following verses. Verse 4. Many days without a king] Hitherto this prophecy has been literally fulfilled. Since the destruction of the temple by the Romans they have neither had king nor prince, nor any civil government of their own, but have lived in different nations of the earth as mere exiles. They have neither priests nor sacrifices, nor urim nor thummim; no prophet, no oracle, no communication of any kind from God. Without an image-ephod-teraphim] The Septuagint read, Ουδε ουσης θυσίας, ουδε οντος θυσιαστηρίου, ovde iepateias, ovde dnλwv : "Without a sacrifice, without an altar, without a priesthood, and without oracles;" that is, the urim and thummim. The Vulgate, Arabic, and Syriac read nearly the same. Instead of max |