Display of God's power A. M. cir. B. C. cir. 587. ABC 347 BEHOLD, the day of the great valley; and half of the OL. XLVIII. 2. Tarquinii Prisci, R. Roman., cir. annum 30. 2 For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the house's rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. 3 Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. 4 And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very e NOTES ON CHAP. XIV. Verse 1. Behold, the day of the Lord cometh] This This appears to be a prediction of that war in which Jerusalem was finally destroyed, and the Jews scattered all over the face of the earth; and of the effects produced by it. Verse 2. I will gather all nations] The Romans, whose armies were composed of all the nations of the world. In this verse there is a pitiful account given of the horrible outrages which should be committed during the siege of Jerusalem, and at its capture. The residue of the people shall not be cut off] Many were preserved for slaves, and for exhibition in the provincial theatres. Verse 3. Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations] Against the Romans, by means of the northern nations; who shall destroy the whole empire of this once mistress of the world. But this is an obscure place. A. M. cir. 3417. B. C. cir. 587. mountain shall remove toward Ol. XLVIII, 2. the north, and half of it toward R. Roman., the south. cir. annum 30. 5 And ye shall flee to the valley off the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach untò Azal: yea, ye shall flee like as ye fled from before the hearthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and k all the saints with thee.) 6 And it shall come to pass in that day, 1that the light shall not be clear, nor a dark : 7 But it shall be one day which shall be known to the LORD, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, that at evening time it shall be light. m 8 And it shall be in that day, that living I waters shall out from Jerusalem: half of go * Joel iii. 11.- That is, it shall not be clear in some places, and dark in other places of the world. m Heb. precious. n Heb. thickness. Or, the day shall be one.-P Rev. xxii. 5. 4 Matt. xxiv. 36.- Isa. xxx. 26; lx. 19, 20; Rev. xxi. 23. Ezek. xlvii. 1; Joel iii. 18; Rev. xxiì. 1. think that these words refer to the lines of circumvallation, to intrenchments, redoubts, &c., which the Romans made while carrying on the siege of this city; and particularly the lines or trenches which the army made on Mount Olivet itself. Verse 5. Ye shall flee to the valley] Some think this refers to the valley through which Zedekiah and others endeavoured to escape when Nebuchadnezzar pressed the siege of Jerusalem: but it appears to speak only of the Jewish wars of the Romans. Azal] This, as a place, is not known. If a place, it was most probably near to Jerusalem; and had its name from that circumstance. Verse 6. The light shall not be clear, nor dark] Metaphorically, there will be a mixture of justice and mercy in all this; or a bright light and darkness. Mercy shall triumph over judgment. There shall be darkness-distress, &c. ; but there shall be more light -joy and prosperity-than darkness. Verse 7. At evening time it shall be light.] At the close of this awful visitation, there shall be light. The light of the glorious Gospel shall go forth from Jerusalem; and next, from the Roman empire to every part of the earth. Verse 8. Living waters shall go out] There shall be a wide diffusion of Divine knowledge, and of the plan of human salvation, which shall go out by apostles and preachers, first from Jerusalem, then to Syria, Asia Minor, Greece, Italy, the isles of the sea, Britain, &c. Verse 4. And his feet shall stand] He shall appear in full possession of the place, as a mighty conqueror. And the mount of Olives shall cleave] God shall display his miraculous power as fully in the final restoration of the Jews, as he did when he divided the Red Sea that their forefathers might pass through dry-shod. Some refer this to the destruction of the city by the Romans. It was on the mount of Olives that Titus posted his army to batter Jerusalem. Here the tenth legion that came to him from Jericho was placed. JOSEPH. De Bello, lib. vi. c. 3. It was from this mountain that our Lord beheld Jerusalem, and predicted its future destruction, Lukė xix. 41, with Matt. xxiv. 23; and it was from this mountain that he ascended to heaven, (Acts i. 12,) utterly leaving an In summer] In time of drought; or in the counungrateful and condemned city.. tries where there was no knowledge of God, there And half of the mountain shall remove] I really shall these waters flow. The stream shall never The former sea, and—the hinder sea] The Dead Sea and the Mediterranean ; see on Joel ii. 20. These are metaphors. B. C. cir. 587. OI. XLVIII. 2. Tarquinii Prisci, R. Roman., cir. annum 30. B. C. cir. 557. Tarquinii Prisci, R. Roman, cir. annum 30. half of them toward the hinder away in their holes, and their O. XLVIII. 2. sea in summer and in winter tongue shall consume away in shall it be. their mouth. 9 And the LORD shall be "King over all the earth in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one. cease; it shall run in summer as well as winter. These are living waters-perennial, incessant, and waters that shall preserve life. See John vii. 37. Verse 9. And the Lord shall be King] When this universal diffusion of Divine knowledge shall take place. Wherever it goes, the laws of God shall be acknowledged; and, consequently, he shall be King over the whole earth. One Lord, and his name one.] There shall be in those blessed days only one religion, and one form of religion. There shall not be gods many, and lords many. All mankind shall be of one religion, the essence of which is, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, soul, mind, and strength; and thy NEIGHBOUR as thyself." Verse 10. All the land shall be turned as a plain] Or rather," He shall encompass the whole land as a plain." He shall cast his defence all around it; from Geba, in Benjamin, north of Jerusalem, (Josh. xxi. 17,) to Rimmon in Judah, to the south of Jerusalem, Josh. xv. 32. It shall be lifted up] The city shall be exalted. And inhabited in her place] Jerusalem shall be rebuilt in the very place in which it originally stood. From Benjamin's gate, which was probably on the north side of Jerusalem, unto the place of the first gate, supposed to be that called the old gate, Neh. iii. 6, xii. 39, placed by Lightfoot towards the southwest. Unto the corner gate] See 2 Kings xiv. 13. The tower of Hananeel] This tower and the corner gate seem to be placed as two extremities of the city. e 13 And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and f his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour. 14 And Judah also shall fight hat Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the heathen round about shall be gathered together, gold, and silver, and apparel, in great abundance. 15 And so shall be the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, and of the ass, and of all the beasts that shall be in these tents, as this plague. k Unto the king's wine-presses] Near to the king's gardens, southward.-See Newcome. Verse 11. There shall be no more utter destruction] After this final restoration of Jerusalem it shall never more be destroyed; but as this was the first city of the living God upon earth, so shall it be the last; it shall be safely inhabited. It shall see war no more. Verse 12. And this shall be the plague] All her enemies shall be destroyed. Their flesh shall consume away] These are the effects of famine which are described in this verse. Verse 13. A great tumult from the Lord] Among those enemies of his Church, who shall engage and destroy each other. Verse 14. And Judah also shall fight] They shall have little else to do than take the spoil, the wealth of all the heathen round about; gold, silver, and apparel. Verse 15. So shall be the plague of the horse, and the mule] There shall be plagues on the substance of the enemies of the Church, as there were on the cattle and goods of the Egyptians. Verse 16. Shall even go up from year to year] The Jews had three grand original festivals, which characterized different epochs in their history, viz. :— 1. The feast of the passover, in commemoration of their departure from Egypt. 2. The feast of pentecost, in commemoration of the giving of the law upon Mount Sinai. 3. The feast of tabernacles, in commemoration of their wandering forty years in the wilderness. This last feast is very properly brought in here to Conclusion of A. M. cir. 3417. B. C. cir. 587. Ol. XLVIII. 2. Tarquinii Prisci, R. Roman., cir. annum 30. CHAP. XIV. to worship the King, the LORD and the punishment of all nations m of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles. 17 And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain. 18 And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that P have no rain, there shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite the heathen that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles. that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles. this prophecy. A. M. cir. 3417. B. C. cir. 587. 20 In that day shall there be upon the bells of the horses, HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD; and the pots in the LORD's house shall be like the bowls before the altar. 21 Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the LORD of hosts. and all they that sacrifice shall come and take of them, and seethe therein and in that day there shall be no more the Canaanite in 19 This shall be the punishment of Egypt, the house of the LORD of hosts. m Lev. xxii. 34, 43; Deut. xvi. 13, 16; Neh. viii. 14; Hos. xii. 9; John vii. 2. Isa. lx. 12. - Heb. upon whom there is not. point out the final restoration of the Jews, and their establishment in the light and liberty of the Gospel of Christ, after their long wandering in vice and error. Verse 17. Upon them shall be no rain.] Those who do not worship God shall not have his blessing; and those who do not attend Divine ordinances cannot have the graces and blessings which God usually dispenses by them. On such slothful, idle Christians, there shall be no rain! Verse 18. If the family of Egypt] This may allude to those Jews who, flying from the persecution of Antiochus Epiphanes, settled in Egypt, and built a temple at Heliopolis, under the direction of Onias, son of the high priest. Joseph. Antiq. lib. xiii., c. 6, and WAR, lib. vii., c. 36. If these do not rejoin their brethren, they shall have no rain, no interest in the favour of God. Verse 19. This shall be the punishment of all nations that come not up] God will have his public worship established everywhere, and those who do not worship him shall lie under his curse. Verse 20. Upon the bells of the horses] They appear, formerly, to have had bells on horses, camels, &c., as we have now, to amuse the animals, and encourage them in their work. In some very fine Asiatic paintings now before me, I see bells both on horses, mules, and camels; little bells tied to their legs, and larger ones about their necks, particularly in the representation of a caravan passing through the valley of ser pents, in the island of Serendib, now Ceylon. The margin reads bridles. HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD] As the Gospel is a holy system, preaching holiness and producing holiness in those who believe, so all without, as well as within, shall bear this impress; and even a man's labour shall be begun and continued, and ended in the Lord; yea, and the animals he uses, and the instruments he works with, shall be all consecrated to God through Christ. The pots] "The meanest utensil in the house of God, Neh. x. 29, shall be as the vessels of silver, and gold used in solemn sacrifice; they shall be like the bowls before the altar.”—See Newcome. "The This is Verse 21. Yea, every pot in Jerusalém] utensils of the Jews shall be treated as holy, and the worshippers shall use them reverently. The idea of preparing food in them (they that-see the therein) is taken from the custom of feasting after sacrifice. And no trafficker (see Ezek. xviii. 4) shall pollute the house of God, as was the custom when our blessed Lord cleansed the temple."-See Newcome. what is called the Canaanite in the house of God. The Canaanite is the merchant; and where such are tolerated in a place dedicated to Divine worship, that is not the house of the Lord of hosts. In churches and chapels, collections may be made for the simple purpose of supporting and extending the worship of Jehovah; but for no other purpose, especially on the Lord's day. Amen. 799 THE BOOK OF THE PROPHET MALACHI. Chronological Notes relative to this Book. Year from the Creation, according to Archbishop Usher, 3607.-Year from the vocation of Abram, 1524.→ Year since the destruction of Troy, 787.-Year since the commencement of the kingdom of Israel by the Divine appointment of Saul to the regal dignity, 698.-Year from the division of Solomon's monarchy into the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, 578.-Fourth year of the ninety-fifth Olympiad.-Year from the building of Rome, according to the Varronian computation, 356.-Year before the vulgar era of Christ's nativity, 397.-Cycle of the Sun, 5.-Cycle of the Moon, 4. CHAPTER I. This chapter begins with showing the great and free favour which God had manifested to the Israelites, above what he had done to the Edomites, who are threatened with farther marks of the Divine displeasure ; alluding, perhaps, to the calamities which they suffered from Judas Maccabeus and John Hyrcanus, (see 1 Macc. v. 65, and Joseph. Antiq. xiii. 9,) 1–5., God then reproaches his people, and especially their priests, for their ungrateful returns to his distinguished goodness, 6. They are particularly charged with sacrificing the refuse of beasts, 7-9, for which God threatens to reject them, 10, and choose other nations who will show more reverence to his name and worship, 11-14. c Rom. ix. 13. NOTES ON CHAP. I. Verse 1. The burden of the word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi.] This prophet is undoubtedly the last of the Jewish prophets. He lived after Zechariah and Haggai; for we find that the temple, which was begun in their time, was standing complete in his. See chap. iii. 10. Some have thought that he was contemporary with Nehemiah; indeed, several have supposed that Malachi is no other than Ezra under the feigned name of angel of the Lord, or my angel. John the Baptist was the link that connected Malachi with Christ. According to Abp. Usher he flourished B. C. 416; but the authorized version, which we have followed in the margin, states this event to have happened nineteen years later. Both the Hebrew language and poetry had declined in his days. Israel. Here means the Jewish people in general. I not shown a greater partiality to the Israelites than I have to the Edomites? I loved Jacob] My love to Jacob has been proved by giving him greater privileges and a better inheritance than what I have given to Esau. Verse 3. And I hated Esau] I have shown him less love; Gen. xxix. 30, 31. I comparatively hated him by giving him an inferior lot. And now, I have not only laid waste the dwelling-place of the Edomites, by the incursions of their enemies; but (ver. 4) they shall remain the perpetual monuments of my vengeance. On the subject of loving Jacob and hating Esau, see the notes on Gen. xxvii., and Rom. ix. 13. Let it be remembered, 1. That there is not a word spoken here concerning the eternal state of either Jacob or Esau. 2. That what is spoken concerns merely their earthly possessions. And, 3. That it does not concern the two brothers at all, but the pos Verse 2. Was not Esau Jacob's brother?] Have | terity of each. The people are reproved A. M. cir. 3607. B. C. cir. 397. Urbis Conditæ cir. annum CHAP. 1. hosts. for hypocrisy. 4 Whereas Edom saith, Wet by your means: will he regard Ol. cir. XCV. 4. are impoverished, but we will your persons? saith the LORD of return and build the desolate places; thus saith the LORD of hosts, They shall build, but I will throw down; and they shall call them, The border of wickedness, and, The people against whom the LORD hath indignation for ever. 5 And your eyes shall see, and ye shall say, The LORD will be magnified from the border of Israel. f 6 A son h honoureth his father, and a servant his master if then I be a father, where is mine honour? and if I be a master, where is my fear? saith the LORD of hosts unto you, O priests, that despise my name. k And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name? 7 Ye offer polluted bread upon mine altar; and ye say, Wherein have we polluted thee? In that ye say, The table of the LORD is contemptible. 8 And if ye offer the blind P for sacrifice, is it not evil? and if ye offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? offer it now unto thy governor ; will he be pleased with thee, or 4 accept thy person? saith the LORD of hosts. 9 And now, I pray you, beseech God that he will be gracious unto us: s this hath been n e Psa. xxxv. 27. Or, upon.- Heb. from upon. h Exod. xx. 12. Luke vi. 46. Chap. ii. 14, 17; iii. 7, 8, 13. 1 Or, Bring unto, &c.- - Deut. xv. 21.- Ezek. xli. 22; ver. 12.———o Lev. xxii. 22; Deut. xv. 21; ver. 14. P Heb. to sacrifice. - Job xlii. 8. Heb. the face of God. Hos. Xili. 9. Heb. from your hand. Verse 4. They shall build, but I will throw down] We have already seen enough of the wickedness of the Edomites to justify the utmost severity of Divine justice against them. The pulling down predicted here was by Judas Maccabeus; see 1 Mac. v. 65; and by John Hyrcanus; see Joseph. Antiq., lib. xiii. c. 9. s. 1. They shall call them, The border of wickedness] A wicked land. Among this people scarcely any trace of good could ever be noted. A. M. cir. 3607, O1. cir. XCV. 4. B. C. cir. 397. Urbis Conditæ cir. annum 356. 10 Who is there even among you that would shut the doors for naught? " neither do ye kindle fire on mine altar for naught. I have no pleasure in you, saith the LORD of hosts, neither will I accept an offering at your hand. 11 For from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same my name shall be great among the Gentiles; and in every place incense shall be offered unto my name, and a pure offering; a for my name shall be great among the heathen, saith the LORD of hosts.. b X 12 But ye have profaned it, in that ye say, The table of the LORD is polluted; and the fruit thereof, even his meat, is contemptible. 13 Ye said also, Behold, what a weariness is it! and ye have snuffed at it, saith the LORD of hosts; and ye brought that which was torn, and the lame, and the sick; thus ye brought an offering: should I accept this of your hand? saith the LORD. 14 But cursed be the deceiver, f which hath in his flock a male, and voweth, and sacrificeth unto the LORD a corrupt thing: for I am a great King, saith the LORD of hosts, and my name is dreadful among the heathen. "1 Cor. ix. 13.— Isa. i. 11; Jer. vi. 20; Amos v. 21. Psa. cxiii. 3; Isa. lix. 19.—— Isa. lx. 3, 5.— John iv. 21, 23; 1 Tim. ii. 8.2 Rev. viii. 3.- Isaiah lxvi. 19, 20. b Ver. 7. Or, whereas ye might have blown it away. d Lev. xxii. 20, &c.e Ver. 8.- f Or, in whose flock is.- - Psa. xlvi. 2; 1 Tim. vi. 15. the refuse beasts, &c., and offered them to God; and thus the sacrificial ordinances were rendered contemptible. Verse 8. Offer it now unto thy governor] nn pechath, a word signifying a lieutenant, or viceroy, among the Chaldeans, Syrians, and Persians; for neither at this time, nor ever after, was there a king in Israel. Verse 9. Beseech God] There were evident marks of God's displeasure in the land, and it was occasionVerse 5. Your eyes] Ye Israelites shall see, in ed by these pollutions through the priests. And now your succeeding generations, that— he exhorts them to pray to God that they may be par The Lord will be magnified] By his kindness in doned: for, if this practice be persisted in, God will Israel, and his judgments beyond. not accept any offering made by them. Verse 10. Who is among you] From this we learn that there was not one sincere or honest priest among them. They were selfish and worldly; and If I be a master, where is my fear?] The respect so basely so, that not one of them would even kindle due to me. a fire on the hearth of the altar unless he were paid Verse 7. Ye offer polluted bread] The priests, pro- for it. bably to ingratiate themselves with the people, took |