Exposition of the Whole Bible

anointed ories, and the fio olive-trees, ‘as they are in Rev. ‘xi. 4. where there is a plain allufion td this paflage. The Targum renders the words, the/e are the two fons of princes, or great men: Some Fewi/h writers interpret them of their two Meffiahs, Meffiah ben Fofeph, and Mefiah ben David»: Some interpreters underftand by them Enoch and Elias; others, Peter and Paul; others better, with Kimchi and Ben Melech, Fofbua and Zerubbabel, the one anointed for the priefthood, and the other for the kingdom; of which two offices Yarchi interprets them; and others the two churches, Fewi/h and Chriftian, That ftand by the Lord of the whole earth, the creator and governor of the univerte: minifters of the word are on his fide, abide by his truths and ordinances, and are faithful to his cau and intereft: or, before the Lord of the whole earth“; they are his minifters, and ferve him; they frand, as it becomes them, which fhows their work is not done; and ‘that it is the Lord’s work they are engaged in; and that they continue and perfevere in it: likewife it fhows, that they are under his eye; notice, difpofe, care, and protection; that they are in his favour, and enjoy his prefence: How this may be applied to the two divine perfons ftanding by or before God the Father, has been before obferved, and to be underftood of them as in their office-capacity.

flying roll, the length whereof is twenty cubits, and the breadth thereof ten cubits; fo that it was a very large one, a volume of a very uncommon fize, efpecially it may fo feem to us; but in other nations they have very long rolls or volumes, even longer than this: the Raffans write their acts, procefles, and other court-matters, on long rolls of paper, fome twenty ells, fome thirty, and fome fixty and more *: and this being the length and breadth of the porch before the temple, 1 Kings vi. 3. hence the Fewi/h writers conclude, that this fying roll came from thence: it may defign either the roll or book in which the fins of men are written; which is very large, and will quickly be brought into judgment, when it will be opened, and men will be judged according to it; which fhows the notice God takes of the fins of men; the exact knowledge he has of them; his {tri remembrance of them, and the certain account men muit give of them another day: or the book of God’s judgments upon finners, fuch as was Ezekiel’s roll, Ezek. ii, 10, 11. which are many and great; are rolled up, and not at prefent to be fearched into; but are flying, coming on, and will be {fpeedily executed: or rather the book of the law, called a roll or volume, Pf xl. 7. Luke iv. 17, 20. and which will be a fwift witnefs again{ft the breakers of it, as more fully appears from the explanation of it in the next verfe. It is a mere fancy and conceit of fome, that the, Zalmud is meant by this roll, the body of the Fewi/d traditions, which make void the cominands of God, take away the bleffing, and leave a curfe in the land, as they did in

¥. 3. Then faid be unto me, this is the curfe, &c.] So the law of Mo/es is called, becaufe it has curfes written

* Efkuche apud Burkigm 8G written in it, Deut. xxvii. 15—-26. and xxviii. 15 —26. and xxix. 19, 20. and xxx. 19. which curfe is not caufelefs, but is according to law and juftice; itis from the Lord, and is no other than the wrath of the Almighty; and wherever it lights, it will remain and continue for ever. Vitringa, on Jf. xxiv. 6. fays, this is the curfe which J aiah there prophefies of, which had its accomplifhment in the times of Antiochus; but there the prophet is fpeaking, not of the land of Judea, but of the antichriftian ftates. That goeth forth over the face of the whole earth; over the whole land of Fudea, and the inhabitants of it, for their breach of the law, contempt of the gofpel, and the rejection of the Meffiah; and which had its accomplifhment when wrath came upon them to the uttermoft, in the deftruétion of their nation, city and temple; and is the curfe God threatened to fmite their land with, Mal. iv. 6. and this curfe alfo reaches to the whole world, and the inhabitants of it, who lie in wickednefs; and to all forts of finners, particularly thofe next mentioned: for every one that flealeth, foall be cut off as on this fide, according to it, as it is written and declared on one fide of the roll: and every one that fweareth, fhall be cut off as on that fide, according to it; as is written and declared on the other fide of the roll; which two fins of theft and falfe fwearing, the one being againft the fecond, and the other the firft table of the law, fhew that the curfe of the law reaches to all forts of fins and finners; to all who do not keep it in every refpect; and indeed, to al] but thofe who are redeemed from it by the blood of Chrift; and that it is proportioned according to a man’s fins: and thofe two are particularly mentioned, becaufe they are fins which prevailed among the Yews at the time Chrift was on earth..Theft did, both in a literal and figurative fenfe, Matt. xxii. 14. Rom. ii, 21. Luke xi. 52. Fobn x. 8,10. and fo did vain fwearing, Matt. v. 33—36. and xxiii. 16— 29, y. 4. I will bring it forth, faith the Lord of bofts, &c.] -The roll was come forth, and was flying abroad, but the curfe and wrath of God, fignified by it, is what God would bring forth out of his treafures, according to his purpofes and declarations, and execute upon finners; which fhows the certainty of it, and that there is no efcaping it: and it fhall enter into the houfe of the thief, and into the houfe of him that fweareth falfly by my name; and it foall remain in the midft of his houfe, and fhall confume it with the timber thereof, and the ftones thereof; when wrath is gone forth from the Lord, there’s no ftopping it; and where it takes place it will remain, there’s no getting rid of it; it makes an utter defolation of goods and eftates, and entirely deftroys both body and foul in hell: there feems to be an allufion to the plague of the leprofy, Lev. xiv. 45. So the fon of Sirach fays, *¢ a man ** that fwears much fhall be full of iniquity, and *< the plague fhall not depart from his houfe:” and again, ‘* if a man fwears in vain, he fhall not ** be innocent or juftified, for his houfe fhall be *<full of calamities*.”” So the oracle in Herodotus 7, which Grotius has obferved, makes an utter deftruction of a man’s houfe and family, to be the punifhment of the fin of perjury. Moreover, by the houfe of the thief and fwearer, may be meant the temple, as in the times of Chrift,. which was become. a den of thieves and perjurers, and for their fins became defolate, Matt. xxi. 13.. and Xxiii. 38. jaree, ¥. 5. Then the angel that talked with me, went forth, &c.] From the place where he was, and had been interpreting the vifion of the flying roll, unto another more convenient for fhewing and s plaining the following one; and.as it fhould feem, took the prophet along with him: and faid unto me, lift up now thine eyes, and fee what is this that goeth forth; either out of the temple, or out of | heaven, into fome open place, where it might be feen. r fy

¥. 6. And I faid, what is it? 8c.) After he had lift up his eyes and feen it, he defires to kn both what it was, and what was the, meaning of it: and he faid, this is an ephab, that goeth forth; which was a meafure much in ufe with the Fews, Exod. xvi. 36. Lev. xix. 36. Ruth ii. 17. it is the fame with the ath, and held above feven wine gallons. The Zargum interprets this of fuch who dealt in falfe meafures, whofe fin is expofed, and their punifhment fet forth; but rather it defiens the meafure of iniquity filling up, either in Fudea, » particularly in the times of Chrift, Matt. xxiii, 32.. or in the whole world, and efpecially in the antichriftian ftates, Rev. xviii. 5, 6: and be faid moreover, this is their refemblance in all the earth; or this is their eye*; what they are looking at, and intent upon, namely, this ephah; that is, to fill up the meafure of their iniquity: or as Kimchi and Ben Melech interpret it, this ephah, which thou feeft, fhows that there is an eye upon them which fees their Works; and this is the eye of the Lord, which fees and takes notice of all the evil actions of men, not as approving them, but as obferving them, and avenging them. Cocceius, by the ephab, underftands an abundance of temporal good things beftowed upon the chriftian church in Conftantine’s time and following, on which the eyes of carnal men were looking. ae aar

¥. 7. And behold there was lift up a talent of lead, &c.| By the angel; fince he is afterwards faid to caft it upon the mouth of the ephab. A cicar, or talent of filver, with the ews, was equal to three thoufand fhekels, as may be gathered from Exod. xxxviii. 24, 25, 26. and weighed a hundred and twenty-five pounds *; or, as others, a hun- - dred and twenty’; and according to the more exact account of Dr. 4véuthnot, a hundred and thirteen pounds, ten ounces, one penny-weight, and 10 > grains of our Troy weight. A Babylonifh — talent, according to lianus *, weighed feventytwo Attic pounds; and an A/tic mina or pound, weighed a hundred drachms; fo that it was of the weight of feven thoufand two hundred fuch drachms. _An Alexandrian talent, was equal to — twelve thoufand sic drachms; and thefe the farne with an hundred and twenty-five Roman libra’s or © pounds; which talent is fuppofed to be the fam with that of Mo/es. The Roman talent conti feventy two Italic mina’s, which were the with the Roman libra’s*. But fince the word cicar, fignifies any thing plain, an extended like a cake, as 4rias Montanus o it may here intend a plate of lead, whic! over the mouth of the ephab, as a I ae 4 See Prideaux’s Preface to Connexion, &c.

tho’ indeed it is afterwards called mabiy yaN @ Stone of lead, and {o feems to defign a weight. And this is a woman that fitteth in the midft of the ephab; _ who in ¥. 8. is called wickedne/s; and here reprefented by a woman, becaule, fay fome, the woman was firft in the tranfgreffion; or rather, becaufe fin is flattering and deceitful, and draws into the commifiion of it, and fo to ruin: and this woman wickednefs, intends wicked men; all the wicked among the Yews, and even all the wicked of the - world; who fit in the ephab, very active and bufy in filling up» the meafure of their fins, and where they fit with great pleafure and delight; very openly and vifibly declare their fin, as Sodom, and hide it not; in avery proud and haughty manner, with great boldnefs and impudence, and in great fecurity, without any concern about a future ftate, promifing. themfelves impunity here and hereafter. This woman is a very lively emblem of the whore of Rome, fitting as a queen upon many waters; _Tuling over kings and princes; living delicioufly, and in: great eafe and pleafure filling up the meafure of her fins. Kimchi interprets this woman of the ten. tribes; who wickedly departed from God, and were as one kingdom. ¥. 8. dnd he faid, this is wickednefs, &c.] A reprefentation of wicked men, who are wickednefs itfelf, as their inward part is, P/- v. g. and particularly of the wicked one, the man of fin and fon of perdition, the Roman antichrift and apocalyptic beait;;who tho’ he is called by this title, His Holinefs, his true and proper name is «wickedne/s; o evouG, that wicked lawlefs one, 2 Theff ii. 8. yea, wickednefs itfelt, being extremely wicked, a fink of fin, and of all abominations, Rev. xvii. 5. and xviii. 2. And he caft it into the midft of the ephab; that is, wickedneis; that it might be kept within bounds, and not exceed its meafure to be filled up: this feems to denote fome reftraint on finners, that they may’nt be able to go allthe lengths they would; and fome rebuke upon them, that they might not lift up their heads with impunity; and fome check upon them, and their furious rage towards the people of God; and alfo the putting of an utter end to fin and finners, and particularly the followers of antichrift; fee Pf civ. 35. » And he caft the weight of lead upon the mouth thereof; either. upon the mouth of the woman, or of the ephah; and be it which it will, it was done to keep the woman within the ephah, and prefs her down therey and intends the judgments of God upon finners; and fhows that there is no efcaping divine vengeance, that it falls heavy where it lights, and finks to the loweft hell, and that it will continue, being laid on by the firm, unchangeable, and irrevocable decree of God. Cocceius underftands this of the Saracens and Turks, and the barbarous nations, being caft into the Roman empire, to reftrain the an-: tichriftian tyranny; but it feems better to apply itto the utter deftruction of antichrift, fignified by a milftone caft into the fea, and funk there, never to rife more; fee Rev. xviii. 21. and with it compare Exod. xv. 10. y. 9. Then lift I up mine eyes and looked, &c.]

‘wo women by two provinces; and Kimchi interprets them of the two tribes of fudab and Benjamin, who had been carried captive into Babylon; and others of the two kings, Feboiakim and Zedekiak,, who were the caufe of the captivity; but Jerchi underftands by them the Babylonians and Chaldeans, two nations as one, joined in Nebuchadnexzar’s armies, which carried them captive: others think the two reformers, Ezra and Nehemiah, are meant; who were inftruments of purging the Jews, returned from. captivity, tho’ but weak ones, and therefore are compared to women; yet what. they did, they did fwiftly, and therefore are faid to have wings, and under the influence of the Spirit of God; hence the wind or /pirit ', is faid to be in their wings; and they acted from a tender regard to the glory of God, and the good of their country, and therefore their wings were like the wings of a fork; a bird of paflage, as appears from Fer. vill. 7. and fo a fit emblem to be ued in the tran- {portation of the ephabh; of whom Pliny = fays, from whence they come, and whither they betake themfelves, is yet unknown; and adds, there is no doubt that they come from afar; as it is plain they muft, if that relation be true, which feems to have good authority, that one of thefe creatures, upon its return to Germany, brought a green root of ginger with it; which muft come from the eattern part of the world from radia, or Ethiopia, or the Eaft-Indies, where it grows*: and as it is a bird that takes. fuch long flights, it muft have wings fitted for fuch a purpofe; and which are taken notice of in ob xxxix. 13. to which the wings and feather of the oftrich are compared; for fo Bochart there renders the word, the wing of the oftriches rejoices, truly the wing as of a frork, and the feather; or as others, who gave wings to the fiork and oftrich 2. both: remarkable for their wings: and Vatablus renders the word here an ofrich; which, according to Pliny *, is the largeft of birds, and almoft as big as a beaft. In Ethios pia and Africa, they are taller than a horfe and his rider, and exceed the horfe in fwiftnefs; and their wings feem to be given them to help them in running; but which are not fufficient to lift them much above the earth, and fo can’t be meant here: but rather the ftork, whofe wings are black and white; and when they fly, they ftretch out their necks forwards, and their feet backwards, and with thefe direct their courfe; when a tempelt rifes, ftanding on both feet, they fpread their wings, lay their bill upon their breaft, and turn their face that way the ftorm comes!. The Targum renders it an eagle, which is the fwifteft of birds, and whofe, wings are very {trong to bear any thing upon them, as they do their young, to which the allufion is, Det. xxxii. 11. and fo if meant. here, to lift up and bear away the ephah between the earth and the heaven; but the word is never ufed of that bird. The Harpies or Furies with the heathens, are reprefented as women having wings ™, as thefe women are faid to have; but thefe are very different women from them. Tho’ fome think the Romans, under Vefpafian and Titus, are intended; This is not a new vifion, but a continuation of the former, as appears from the epbab feen in it: and! bebold, there came out two women; out of the fame place the ephab did. ‘The Targum explains thefe! but it may be, that the two perfections of God, his power and juttice, in punifhing men for their fins, are meant, particularly in the laft times, and at the day of judgment, The power of God will be feen in raifing the dead; in bringing all to judgment; in feparating the wicked from the righteous, and in the execution of the fentence denounced on them: and the juftice of God will be very confpicuous in the judgment and deftruétion of them. And the wind was in their wings, they had wings, as denoting fwiftnefs, as angels are faid to have; hence Maimonides, as Kimchi obferves, thought that angels are here meant; but this denotes, that tho’ God is long-fuffering, and may feem to defer judgment, which is fometimes a ftumbling to the righteous, and an hardening to the wicked; yet as this is only for the falvation of his elect, fo when once the time is up, and the commiffion given forth, power and juftice will {peedily execute the fentence: and the wind being in their wings, fhews the greater fwiftnefs and fpeed in the difpatch of bufinefS, and the great ftrength and force with which they performed it: for they had wings like the wings of a ftork; which being a creature kind and tender, fhew that there is no cruelty in the difplays of the power and juftice of God, in punifhing finners: and they lift up the ephab between the earth and the heaven; which denotes the vifibility of the whole meafure of the fins of wicked men; they will ail be made manifeft and brought into judgment: and alfo the vifibility of their punifhment; they’ll go into everlafting punifhment, in the fight of angels and men; and which ‘will be the cafe of the antichriftian beaft, Rev. xvii. 8.

y¥. 10. Then faid I to the angel that talked with me, &c.] This the prophet faid after he had feen the ephah come forth; the woman, wickednefs, caft into it, and the talent of lead upon her; and the two women lifting up the ephah between heaven. and earth: whither do thefe bear the ephab? he neither afks what the ephah fignified, nor who were the women that bore it, but only whither they bore it.:

y. 11. And he faid unto me, to build it an houfe in the land of Shinar, &c.] ‘That is, in the province of Babylon, as the Targum paraphrafes it; for Babel, or Babylon, was in the land of Shinar, Gen. x. 10. and xi. 2. whither the Fews were carried captive, Dan. i. 2. Jf, xi. 11. and the bearing of the epbah thither, may denote the caufe of their captivity, the meafure of fins filled up by

FITS chapter contains a vifion of four chariots, and the explanation of it; and an order to make crowns of gold and filver for certain ufes mentioned; and a famous prophecy. concerning the Meffiah as the builder of the temple, the church. The chariots are defcribed by their number, four; by the place, the mountains, from whence they came out; and by the different co- Jour of the horfes in each of them, ¥. 1, 2, 3. upon the prophet’s enquiry what thefe were, an explanation is given of them; and they are faid to ke the four fpirits of the heavens; and are deicribed by their fituation, ftanding before the Lord of the whole earth; by their miffion from him; by the feveral places to which they were fent; and by their fuccefs, or by the good effects produced, at leaft by fome of them, y. 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. then follows the order to make the crowns; and it is declared what they fhould be made of, gold and fil- them: tho’ this fome underftand of the like injuries, oppreffions, and vexations, brought upon the Chaldeans in the land of Shinar, which they before exercifed towards and upon the Fews and others of the rejection of wicked men from among the Jews, by Ezra and Nehemiah, tranfporting them as it were back to Badylon again: others of the difperfion of the ‘Jews by the Romans, who chiefly fettled after that in the eaftern parts of the world; tho” indeed the whole world was a land of Shinar, or foaking out", unto them; they being fhook out of their own land, and fcattered about every where; which difperfion has been long and lafting, notorious and confpicuous; and they are now fettled upon their own bafe, eftablifhed upon their former principles of legality and felf-righteoufnefs, and rejection of the true Meffiah: or rather this may be underftood of the transfer of the ephah, or whole meafure ‘of iniquity, into myftical Babylon. The antichriftian church of Rome is called Babylon; fhe is reprefented as a fink of fin, a myftery of iniquity, Rev, xvii. 5. and a houfe being built for this man of fin, antichrift, denotes the continuance of him; and being eftablifhed on its own bafe, fhews the falfe foundation on which the church of Rome is built, and her carnal fecurity. So Cocceius, by the two women, underftands the two kingdoms or powers of antichrift, the civil and ecclefiaftical powers; which fupport the man of fin, lift him * up, and give him the higheft place in the church, and fix his feat where idolatry and perfecution reign, as formerly did in Babylon, in the land of Shinar. ‘Tho’ the whole may very well be applied to the laft and everlafting punifhment of fin and finners, when the whole meafure is filled up. The end of fin and finners is death, and everlafting deftruction. carried, not upwards to heaven, nor to the new Ferufalem, but to the land of Shinar, the land of fhaking; to hell, where are utter darknefs, weeping, wailing, and gnafhing of teeth; where a houfe is built for them, which denotes their continuance there; and which being eftablifhed on its own bafe, fhews their punifhment fhall for ever remain; their worm never dies; their fire is not quenched; the fmoke of it afcends for ever and ever; their deftruction is an everlafting deftruction.

ver; from whom they were to be had, and who were to be concerned herein; and what was to be done with them; they were to be put upon the head of Yo/oua the high-prieft, ¥. 9, 10, 11. who being an eminent type of Chrift, a prophecy concerning him is ordered to be delivered to him; who is defcribed by his name, the man, the branch; by the place he fhould grow up from; by the work he fhould do, building the temple of the Lord; by the glory he fhould have on account of it; and by the offices of king, prieft, and ‘prophet, he

The ephah, and the woman in it, are — then the crowns were to be laid up in the temple of the Lord for a memorial, by the four men above mentioned, y. 14. and tho’ the Meffiah is the c builder of the temple, the church, yet it is; gefted that others, and even Gentiles, fhould and build in it; and which when done, it be evident that the prophet had his mifiio:

ews of the Lord; and the chapter is clofed with a promife of the accomplifhment of all this, fhould they diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord, ¥. 15, ’

y. 1. And I turned, and lift up mine eyes, and looked, &c.} When he faw another vifion,: as follows: ad bebold, there came four chariots; by which are meant, not the four gofpels; rather the apoftles of Chrift, who had their commiffion from Chrift; were fent into all the world by him, and carried his name and gofpel thither; were the initruments Chrift made ufe of in bringing many fouls to him, and into his church, and for the defence of his gofpel, and of his intereft; and were military chariots, who fought the good fight of faith; and triumphal ones, who were made to triumph in Chrift, being more than ‘conquerors thro” him; tho’ others think angels are here meant, the chariots of the Lord, Pf Ixviii. 17. fince they are called the four fpirits of the heavens; and are faid to go forth from ftanding before the Lord of the earth, and are fent by him into the feveral parts of it, ¥. 5, 7. and are reprefented by horfes of various colours, as in ch. i.-8. thefe may be fignified by chariots, for their glory, ftrength and {wiftnefs, in which Jehovah rides about the world, and executes’ his will; and are made ufe of for the deftruction of the church’s enemies, and for its protection and defence. The Fewzs/h writers, after the Targum, generally interpret them of the four monarchies, the Perfian,.Grecian, and Roman, by whom were feverally done the'will of God in the world; and feem to be greatly the defign of the vifion: thefe came out from between two moyntains, and the mountains were mountains of bra/s; fuch in which this metal is found, as in Chelcis, where it is faid to be firft found °; and from thence it has its name in the Greek tongue; or in the ifland of Cyprus, from whence it may be is the name of copper; and fuch mountains were in Fudea, Idumea, and Arabia formerly;.as Carmel, according to Hefychius P; and Phinon in Idumea; and fome mountains in Arabia, about eleven miles from Horeb, which, Ferom fays %, formerly abounded with veins of gold and brafs: thefe may intend the decrees and purpofes of God, which, like mountains, are very ancient, earlier than the everlafting hills, high and deep, not to be reached and fearched into; are dark, obfcure, and hidden to men, till made known; and are firm, folid, and immoveable, and are lafting and durable; and, like moun- ‘tains of brafs, are never to be broken in pieces, revoked, made null, and void; for they ftand upon the unalterable will of God, upon the bafis of infallible wifdom; are’ fupported by uncontroulable power, and can’t be difannulled by all the men on earth, and devils in hell: and according to thefe fixed and immutable decrees, the faid monarchies in fucceffion have took place in the world; unlefs rather it fhould be thought, that by thefe mountains of brafs, are defigned the power and providence of God, by which the feveral people that firft founded thofe empires were reftrained for a while from going forth to make war upon others,

-and fubdue their kingdoms; until the ‘time was come,. it was the will of God they fhould. The allufion may be to race-horfes in chariots, formerly ufed for fuch exercifes; which were held within the citcus or bars, till the: fign was given when they fhould ftare: in liké manner thefe mations were kept within bounds for a while, juit as the four angels were bound by the providence of God at the river Euphrates, until they were loofed; which’ fignify the Saracens, and their numerous army of horiemen under their four leaders, who were reftrained from over-running the eafern empire of the Romans, until it was the pleafure of God to loofe them, and give them liberty, Rev. ix. 14, 15, 16. Grotius underftands this literally of the ftreights of Cilicia, and the faftnefles of the mountains there, thro’ which the Badylonians and Perfians, Alexander and his generals, ufed to pafs into Syria, Fudea, and Egypt; but rather thefe vifionary chariots feemed to fteer their courfe thro’ a valley, which lay between two mountains, whereby they efcaped the difficulties that lay in their way by the mountains; and may denote the low eftate of thefe monarchies in their original, and the difficulties they grappled with, and got over, before they rofe to the grandeur they did. Some interpret the two mountains of brafs, of the kingdom of Ijrael, after the Babylonifh captivity, and the kingdom of the Mefliah; and the four chariots, of the four kingdoms, in this order; the Perfan, the Grecian, that of the Lagide and Seleucide, and the Roman, which is in courfe laft; but was feen firft by the prophet, becaufe utter deftruction was brought upon J/rae/ by it *: according to this interpretation, the red horfes, are the Romans; and the other, the above-mentioned. So Cocceius is of opinion, that the two mountains are two powerful and. unfhaken, kingdoms, fet up by God; or rather two manifeftations of the fame kingdom; the one the kingdom of the houfe of David; the other the kingdom of Chrift, which is fpiritual, but as to the effect earthly, in’ the fubjection of all.nations to it, Daz. vii, 22,27. the kingdom of the houfe of David, as to the external torm is abolithed, but notwithftanding remains. in the. root, until it appears in another mountain; and between thefe two, or in the middle fpace of time, four kingdoms with their armies would poffefs the promifed land; and he obferves, that in Daz. ii..35, 45. mention is made of two mountains, and that thefe chariots in part agree with the feveral parts of the image there.

(vy. 2. In the firft chariot were red horfes, &c.] If thefe are to be underftood of the apoftles of Chrift, and minifters of the gofpel, they may be compared to or/es, for bearing the name of Chrift, and drawing the chariot of the gofpel; for their ftrength to labour in the word and dottrine; for their courage in the caufe of Chrift; and for their fwiftnefs in doing his work; and to red ones, for their’ flaming. zeal for the honour of the Redeemer, and their bloody fufferings for his fake: and if of angels, they may be compared to orfes, becaufe {trong and fwift to do the will of God, and to red ones, becaufe they are the executioners of his wrath and vengeance on wicked men: but if by the chariots are meant the monarchies, then by thefe red horfes mut be defigned the Babylonians and Chaldeans, fo called becaufe their foldiers were clothed in red, and their chariots were like flaming torches; and they were fanguinary, cruel, and bloody in their tempers, Fews; and were fignified by Nebuchaduexzar’s head of gold in his image; fee Nabum ii. 3, 4. Had. i. 6,75 8: and in the fecond chariot black horfes which, applied to the apoftles and minifters of the gofpel, may denote their mean and abject appearance outwardly; and their knowledge in the myfteries of grace, which are dark and obfcure to others; and, if underftood of angels, is applicable to them, when meflengers of ill tidings, or executioners of judgment: but if the monarchies are meant, which feems beft, the Medes and Perfiaus are intended; and their Z/ack colour is expreflive of the forrowful eftate of the Jews under them, efpecially in the time of Haman, as Farchi and Kimchi obferve: black horfes were reckoned ftrong, well made, and fit for labour; and the Ethiopians and Moors chofe to have their horfes they ufed in war all of this colour, to ftrike the greater horror and terror into their enemies; and to fee black horfes in a dream, was accounted a bad omen’. The Medes and Perfians were a {trong and warlike people, and were very terrible to their enemies under Cyrus, and very troublefome and diftrefling to the Fews under Cambyfes and Abafuerus.

y¥. 3. And in the third chariot white borfes,. &c. }

Which, as referring to gofpel-preachers, may denote the purity of their lives and doétrines, and their conguefts and victories over the fouls of men by the miniftry of the word; and as applicable to angels, may exprefs the purity of their nature and actions, the joyful meflages they bring to the heirs of falvation; and their victories over the evil angels; but, as refpeéting the monarchies, point at the Grecians, and the conquefts of Alexander, and his mildnefs and gentlenefs to the ews: white horfes were ufed in triumphs, in token of victory ‘; fee Rev. vi. 2. and xix. 14. and they have been reckoned the fwifteft in running; and by the Oneirocriticks, to fee them in a dream or vifion is a good omen *; and fo it was accounted with the Fews »; all which fuits very well with Alexander, who was famous for his victories over many nations; and who, with great velocity over-ran them, and as foan conquered them, and was kind and beneficent to the Fewifo nation: and in the fourth chariot grizled and bay borfes, fignifying either the diverfity of gifts in the minifters of the’ gofpel; or the different employment and fervices of angels; or rather the Romans are meant, who ‘were collected out of various nations, and confifted of different people, and had divers forms of government, and emperors of different difpofitions to the Fews; and particularly as two colours are affigned to thefe, it may refpect the divifion of their kingdom into pagan and papal, as is predicted in Daz. il. 41, 42. Kimchi thinks the bay horfes defign the kingdom: of the Lhmaelites, or Turks, a {trong and powerful people; as fome think the word ufed fignifies =; rather the Goths and Vandals, fee ¥.7. ‘The word for grizled, is by the Targum rendered Jpotted or Speckled; and comes from one which fignifies bail; and-fo denotes fuch coloured horfes as are {potted with white fpots, like hail-ftones ¥, upon another colour, as black or red; and is by the Septuagint, and others rendered, various *, of diverfe colours: and the other word for day, is rendered by them are fpiritual fubfiftences, and fpirits and in their actions to the \/terling coloured; the colour of the fterling, which is a black bird, with white fpots; and io were.a fit emblem of the Goths, Hunns, &c. who. were of various nations, and had various laws, cuftoms, — and ufages; tho’ fome think by thefe two are meant the fucceffors of Alexander, the Lagide and the Seleucide, put together, becaufe of their intermarriages with one another, as well as fucceeding Alexander: the former by the grizled, who went and fettled in the fouth country in Egypt, y. 6. whofe. firft king was Ptolemy Lagus, from whence is the name, and who is the king of the fouth in Dan. xi. 5. and the latter by the day or afh coloured, as the Targum; the kings of Syria hiding deep their counfels, as-under afhes, particularly 4utiochus, as Grotius obferves; and fometimes making war on one nation, and fometimes on another; and both of them in their turns falling upon the Fews fuddenly, and with great violence, like hailftones, and making fad devaftations among them, reducing them to afhes; but then this fenfe fhuts out the Romans, the fourth monarchy, from having anyplace in this vifion, which cannot be admitted; fince thefe four chariots anfwer to the four forts of metal in Nebuchadnezzar’s image, and to the four beafts in Daziel’s vifion. So the Fewi/h writers * fay,.the red horfes are the kingdom of Babylon, which fhed much blood in J/rae/; this is the head of gold: the’black horfes, the kingdom of the Perfians and Medes, like to a bear, who made black the faces of J/rael, by the decrees of Haman: the white horfes, the kingdom of Grecia, who made white the faces of J/rael by reproaches: the horfes grizled and bay, the fourth kingdom, which decreed various decrees, different from one another: and thefe four chariots went out from between two mountains, from between the kingdoms of Fudah and J/racl, which dwell between two countries, that beyond Yordan, and the land ~ of I/rael; and they went out between them, and carried them captive; and thefe kingdoms are called mountains of brafs, -becaufe ftrong as brafs, and hearkened not to the words of the prophets.

¥. 4. Then I anfwered, and faid unto the angel that talked with me, &c.| After he had feen the chariots come out, and had obferved the different colours of the horfes in them: what are thefe, my.

lord? that is, what do they fignify? what is the

¥. 5. And the angel anfwered and faid unto me, &c.] In order to grant him his requeft, and explain the vifion of the chariots: thefe are the four Spirits of the heavens; or, the four winds of the heaveas; the apoftles and minifters of the gofpel may — be compared to the winds, becaufe their miniftry is the miniftration of the Spirit, which is like wind that blows invifibly, powerfully, and where it lifteth; and becaufe in, and by it, the Spirit — breathes life and comfort into the fouls of men;

and becaufe of the powerful efficacy, and penetrating nature of the word preached by them, and their {wiftnefs and readinefs to do the will of G angels are called /pirits or winds, Pf. civ. they are created fpirits, and fo differ fi are incorporeal ones, and fo differ from me are immaterial and immortal, and fo die not: of the he.. t Aurel. ViSor. de Viris Tlaftrib.

or heavenly fpirits; heaven being the place of their abode and refidence; and they may be cornpared to winds, for their invifibility, wonderful penetration into places and things, their very great fwiftnefs, and prodigious power and ftrength. The Targum paraphrafes the words thus, “* thefe are ‘* the four kingdoms, which are as the winds of ‘* heaven;” and fo the fame are fignified by the four winds: in Dan. vii. 2. to which they may be compared, for their fwift and.forcible carrying all before them, and for their’ ficklenefs and changeablenefs; and to which the feveral parts of the world, into which they went, agree: which go forth from ftanding before the Lord of all the earth, fo the apoftles of Chrift, and minifters of the go- {fpel, ftood before him in his eternal purpofes and decrees from everlafting; and went forth, having their commiffion from him in time; and were fent by him into the feveral parts of the world he is the.Lord of; and by whom they were filled with gifts, grace and courage, fitting them for their work. Angels alfo ftand before him, miniftring unto him; always behold him; are in his prefence, and enjoy his favour; and go forth from him, being fent forth by him on various accounts into all the parts of the world; which Jehovah is the creator, upholder, and governor of: moreover, this is applicable to the four monarchies; thefe ftood before the Lord in his vaftand infinite mind; in the fecret decrees of it, before the world was; and the fending and going forth of them from him, fhew, that they were powers ordained of God, who has the government of the whole world in his hands.

y. 6. The black borfes which are therein, &c.] Which were in the fecond chariot: no further mention is made of the red horfes in the firft charoit, becaufe the kingdom of the Chaldeans was now extinct: thefe defign the Medes and Perfians: go forth into the north country; into the country of Babylon or Chaldea, which lay north of Fudea; fee Fer.*i. 13, 14, 15. and iii. 12. and vi. 22. and other places; thefe went to Babylon, took that, and feized on the empire, and delivered the Jews, who were captives there: and the white go forth after them; the Grecians under Alexander, who went after the Medes and Perfiams into the fame country, and fought Darius the Perfian, and conquered him: and the grizzled go forth toward the fouth country; the Romans under Julius Cefar, Auguftus, and others before them, who went into Egypt, which lay fouth of Fudea, Dan. xi. 5. and conquered that, and other nations, and fet up the fourth kingdom or monarchy.

y. 7. And the bay went forth, and fought to go, &c.] Without leave: thefe defign either the Romans; ot, fince diftin& from the grizled, the Hunns, Goths, and. Vandals, who fought to go out of their own places into other countries: and were defirous that they might walk to and fro thro’ the earth, without controul; over-running as they did the Roman empire, and fet up ten kingdoms in it; unlefs this is to be underftood of the land of 7zdea only, thro’ which the Romans walked to and fro at pleafure, and fubdued it: and be faid, that is, the Lord of the whole earth, before whom they ftood: get ye hence, walk to and fro thro ihe earth; as being filled with indignation at them, and yet fuffered them to have their will; and fo Kimchi interprets the phrafe, ‘‘ he gave them power «© to go and fubdue lands;” and to the fame purpofe archi, “* he gave them power to rule with was engraved, boline/s to the Lord, Exod. Xxviil.

** great’ authority; and this is the kingdom of ‘¢ Edom or Rome:’” fo they walked to and fro thro’ the earth; either the land of Fudea, as the Romans did, and made it a Roman province; and thele may reprefent Rome papal, fet up and fupported by the above people, even the beaft of Rome, which has reigned over the kings of the earth, to whom the’ ten kings gave their kinedom and power.

¥. 8. Then cried he upon me, and fpake unto me, faying, &c.] That is, the Lord of the ‘whole earth fpoke to the prophet with a loud voice, and uttered the following words: bebold, thefe that go toward the north country, meaning the Medes and Perfians, which went towards Babylon: have quieted my fpirit in the north country; by executing the judgments of God upon the Chaldeans, and by helping, favouring, and delivering the people of the Fews; which were very agreeable to the’ will of God, and well pleafing in his fight, fignified. by the quieting or refrefhing his fpirit.

¥. 9. And the word of the Lord came unto me, Jaying.| Either the word of prophecy from the Lord, as the Targum paraphrafes it; the vifions being ended, the prophetical part of the book begins; and many excellent prophecies concerning the Meffiah, and his kingdom, are contained in this and the following chapters: or an order from the Lord, which is expreffed in the next verfes.

¥. 10. Take of them of the captivity, &c.] That is, fome of them that were returned from the captivity of Babylon, and who are mentioned by name: even of Heldai, of Tobijah, and Fedaiah, which are come from Babylon; either with Zerubbabel and Fojoua, when they came from thence; or who were now juft come from thofe that remained: there: and come thou the fame day, this very day in which they were come from thence: and go into the houfe of Fofiah the fon of Zephaniah, where the above perfons were; or where they were to go along with him: this Fofiah might be either a goldfmith, and therefore the prophet is fent to him to make the crowns after-mentioned’; or elfe he might be a treafurer belonging to the temple, who had gold and filver in his hands, which had been put there for the ufe of it.

y. 11. Then take fiver and gold, &c.] Which; the Fewifh writers fuppofe were brought by the above men from their brethren in Badylon, as a free will-offering towards the building of the tem~ ple; and make crowns; two at leaft, one of filver, and another of gold; the one to be put upon the head of Fo/hua the high-prieft; the other upon the head of Zerubbabel, as Kimchi conjectures, tho” according to the text, they feem to be both, or all of them, be they as many as they will, to be put upon the head of Fo/bia; and may fignify the different ftates of the priefthood in the prefent time, and when in its priftine glory; or that both the crown of the priefthood, and the crown of the kingdom fhould meet in his antitype Chrift, who is faid to have on his head many crowns, Kev. xix. 12. The Zargum renders it, thou fhalt make a great crown; as if only one crown was to be made of gold and filver mixed together; and fo the Arabic verfion renders it; but more are certainly meant, for it follows: and fet them upon the head of Fofoua the fon of Fofeaech the high-prieft; on whofe head a fair mitre was fet; fee ch. iil. 5. and with the mitre was wore by the high-prieft the holy crown, made of pure gold; and which was. no other than the plate or flower of gold, on which

36. and xxix. 6. and xxxix. 30. and this, according to the Yewi/h writers *, was a plate of gold two fingers broad, and reached from ear to ear; tho” Fofephus « feems to give a different account of it, he fays, “* the golden crown furrounds (either “‘ the mitre, or perhaps rather the forehead or ** temples); and on it were three rows of cups or «© flowers, like thofe of the herb we call Saccha- “¢ vus; and the Grecian botanifts, Hyofciamus,” or benbane;, and after defcribing the herb, and the figure of the buds, cups or flowers of it, he adds, *€ like to thefe is made a crown reaching from the ‘¢ hinder part of the head unto both temples; ‘< for the owers do not encompafs the forehead; ‘¢ but there is a golden plate, which has the name ‘* of God engraved in facred letters;” which feems to difagree with the accounts of other Fewi/h writers; unlefs, as Braunius * obferves, they may be thus reconciled, that the crown was nothing elfe but the plate that was two fingers broad, and was in length from ear to ear; fo that about the temples it was ornamented with three rows of henbane flowers on each fide: and thefe three rows may give occafion for the ufe of the word in the plural umber; and fome have called it, a triple crown °; and Popifh writers fail not to improve it in favour of the crown their pontiff wears; and Lyra ' peaks of little crowns or coronets, even in the mitres of the common priefts; which (he fays) were circles in the lower part of them fo called; wherefore the rows of flowers in the high-prieft’s crown, from whence it might be called ¥*¥ a flower, might with more propriety bear that name. Pbilo the Few *, {peaking of the golden plate, fays it was like a crown engraven with four letters of the name (Jehovah); and farther obferves, that *¢ the mitre under it kept the plate from touching “* the head, on which the cidaris or diadem was “¢ put; for it was like the cidaris which the eaft- <‘ ern kings ufed for a diadem:” and indeed this crown, and the three rows of flowers in it, were an hieroglyphic or emblem of the threefold office of Chrift, whom the high-prieft reprefented, kingly, prieftly, and prophetic; and fo may be fitly fignified here by crowns in the plural number; and it is ufual with the Yewi/h writers to fpeak of three crowns, the crown of the law, the crown of the kingdom, and the crown of the priefthood *; and very probably from the high-prieft among the Jews wearing crowns, it was that the priefts among the heathens had the fame ornaments on their, heads; and to be crowned was with them the fame as to exercife the office of priefthood*; and who ‘was an eminent type of the Meffiah, and in this of having crowns put upon his head, as the following words fhew.

¥. 12. And {peak unto bim, faying, &c.] That is, to Fofoua the high-prieft, having the crowns on his head: thus fpeaketh the Lord of bofts, faying, bebold the man whofe name is the BRANCH; which is not to be underftood of Zerubbadel, as tome Fewifh writers interpret it; for he was not ihe branch, by way of eminency, much lefs that righteous branch of David, called the Lord our righteoufnefs, Fer. xxiii. 5, 6. the fame that is here meant; befides, he was already grown up out of his place; nor did he build a temple, from which he had great glory; nor was he either king or prieft, only governor of ‘fudabh; and however, not both, as this perfon is reprefented to bes; and who is no other than the Meffiah; and fo the Zargum paraphrafes: the words, ‘* behold the man “¢ Meffiah is his: name;” and archi owns, that fore of their Rabdins interpret the: words of the king Meffiah. The dranch is.a name, by which the Meffiah goes in the Talmud *, and in other Fewifh writings. It is-afked', what is the name of the king Mefiiah; it is anfwered among others, his name is the dranch; as vit is faid, behold the man, whofe name is the branch, he fhail grow up out of his place: elfewhere ™ they {peak of five letters doubled, which are the foundation of deliverance to certain perfons, or point thereat. The firft four, they obferve, were accomplifhed in the deliverance of Abraham from Ur of the Chaldees, of Ifaac from the Philifines, of Facob from EBfau, and of the J/raelites from Egypt; and the fifth, which is the letter ¥, the firft letter of Tzemach the branch, by it they fay the holy bleffed God will redeem Jrael at the end of the four monarchies; as it is faid, behold the man whofe name is the branch, 8c. Philo the Few *, interprets this paflage of a divine perfon, the Son of God, by whom no other than the Meffiah is meant, ‘‘ we have heard (fays he), ‘© one of the friends of Mo/es, i. e. Zechariah, faying thus, behold the man, whofe mame is the eaft, or rifing fun; (fo the Greek verfion’ renders the words) a new appellation, if you can think it faid of one confifting of foul and body; but — if of that incorporeal one, bearing the divine image, you will own that the name is fitly given him, the ancient fun, the Father of beings will caufe to arife; whom otherwife he names the firft begotten, and who being begotten, imitates the ways of his Father; and lookin at his archetypal exemplars, forms the fame.” Abendana °, a modern Few, obferves, that “ it is ‘* right that the Targum interprets it of the Mef- ‘« fiah, for of him it is fpoken; therefore it is “* written, and he shall grow up out of his place; for he fhall go forth from him, and fhall be of “< the feed.of Zerubbabel,—and the king Meffiah ‘* fhall bear the glory of the kingdom, and he’ ‘* fhall rule upon the throne of his kingdom;” and when he is called a man, the meaning is not that he is a mere man, nor was he really man before his incarnation; but as he was to be man, and his incarnation was drawing near, he is fo called: of his name the branch, fee If. iv. 2. and xi. 1. Yer, xxiii. 5. and Zech. iii. 8. and Fofbua, he is directed to look upon himfelf, with the crowns on his head, as a type of him; and fo were the prophet, and thofe that were with him; and he is to be beheld,’ as before in type, fo now in truth, » by faith, with love and affection, with diligent attention, and great admiration: and he foall grow up out of bis place; or, from under him”; which may regard his natural defcent as man, and the perfons or perfon from whom he fprung; as from Abraham, Jacob, Fudah, Feffe, and particular from David, from the royal feed, as Farchi prets it: or elfe the place from whence this branc bs: J? ee

-arofe, the land of Yudea, the tribe of Fudeh, the city of Bethlehem, where he was born; or Galilee, and particularly Nazareth, where he was brought up, and grew, and increafed in the ftature of his body, and in the wifdom of his mind: or, it may be rendered, from bis inferior place 2; his fuperior place, as the Son of God, is heaven; his inferior place, as the fon of man, is the earth; from whence he may be faid to be, being born of a woman; and fo this branch is called, the fruit of the earth, and faid to {pring out of it, J iv. 2. Pf Ixxxv. 11.

_ or itis the fame as vox trom himfelf, as Aben zra obferves; and fo Calvin; for this branch did not grow up thro’ any fowing and planting of man, but without any hand or concern of his in it; Chrift was born of a virgin, thro’ the power. of the higheft, and thro’ his own power, as God: and be fhall build the temple of the Lord; not a material temple, but the fpiritual temple, the church. called fo in allufion to the temple of Feru/alem, built by Solomon; which was typical of the church, in the builder of it, Solomon, the church being built by Chrift the antitypical Solomon, the true peace, and peace-maker; in the fituation of it on a mount, which denotes the fafety, vifibility, and exalted ftate of the church; in the matter of it, being made of choice ftones, and excellent timber, to which believers in Chrift, who as lively ftones are built up a fpirieual houfe, are fitly compared; in the magnificence and ftatelinefs of it, efpecially as the church will be in the latter day, when the glorious things fpoken of it will be fulfilled; and in its ftrength and firmnefs, as. well as in its holinefs: and it is called the temple of the Lord, becaufe it is of his building, where he dwells, and where he is worfhipped; and in the building of it Chrift has a great concern; he is not only the foundation and corner-ftone of it, but he is the chief, the matterbuilder of it; he builds it on himfelf, and builds it up by his Spirit, his minifters, his word and ordinances, making thereby continually an increafe of it, and additions to it; fee Matt. xvi. 18.

¥. 13. Even he shall build the temple of the Lord, &c.] Which is repeated, as Kimcbi obferves, for confirmation-fake: and he fhall bear the glory, that is, of building the temple; and the phrafe denotes, that the glory of it fhall be upon him, fhall be hung upon him, as in J/ xxii. 24. and fo fhall be vifible; that it would be weighty and heavy, he having many crowns on his head, put there’

by all the faints, who every one of them afcribe glory to him; that it would continue, and not pafs away, like the glory of this world; and that he, and he alone, fhould bear it; not Fo/bua, nor Zerubbabel, nor the minifters of the word, nor members of churches, nor any other, but himfelf; he, and he alone, fhail be exalted: and shall fit and rule upon his throne; in heaven, having done his work on earth, where he is at eafe and reft, and exercifes power and authority; he rules over

- the whole world, and the kings of it in general, and in particular over his faints, by his Spirit, word and ordinances, feeding, protecting and defending them: and he hall be a prince. upon his throne; he is both prieft and king, and exercifes both offices at one and the fame time, and even now in heaven; having offered himfelf as a facrifice on earth, by which he has put away fin for ever, and perfected his people; he is fet down upon his throne, as a king crowned with glory and honour; and ever lives as a prieft on the throne, to make interceffion for them; by appearing ‘in the prefence ‘of God for them; by prefenting his blood, facrifice and righteoufnefs to his divine Pather; -by offering up the prayers and praifes of his people; by declaring it as his will, that fuch and fuch bleffings be beftowed wpon them; and by applying the benefits of his death unto them: and the counfel of peace fhall be between them both, not between Fofhua and Zerubbabel, who fhould agree together, as they did, in the adminiftration of government belonging to their diftinét offices; rather between the prieftly and kingly offices of Chrift; nor the council of peace between the Father and the Son, concerning the falvation of the eleét; for that was pait in eternity; but better the gofpel of peace, called the whole counfel of God, which in confequence of Chrift being a prieft on his throne, was preached to both Jews and Geutiles; which brought the glad tidings of peace and falvation by Chrift to both, and was the means of making peace between them both. ¥. 14. And the crowns foall be to Helem, 8cc.] The fame with Heldai, y. 10: and to Tobijah, and to Fedaiah, and to Hen the fon of Zephaniah; the fame with Fofah, ¥.10: for @ memorial ia the temple of the Lord; the crowns, after they had been put upon the head of Fo/bua, were taken off, and laid up in fome part of the temple, of which the Jews make mention in their Mifna *; and fay, there were golden chains fixed to the beams of the porch (of the temple), by which the young priefts went up, and faw the crowns; as it is faid, Zech. vi. 14. and the crowns fhall be to Helem, &c. thefe were laid up for a memorial of the liberality and generofity of thofe men, as Farchi interprets it, who had fo freely and largely offered towards the building of the temple; or rather, as Ahech *, another Fewifo commentator, obferves, they were for a memorial of fomething future, even of the Meffiah, who was typified by o/oua, when he had thofe crowns upon him; for thofe crowns refpected the glory of Chrift’s government.in future times; and being made both of filver and gold, and put upon the head of the high-prieft o/sua, denoted the union of the kingly and prieftly offices in the Meffiah. ¥. 15. And they that are afar off, fall come, &c.] Into the temple, not the material temple; nor is this a prophecy which was fulfilled in Herod, a ftranger, repairing that, as Kimchi fugeefts; but into the fpiritual temple, the church; and is a prophecy of the calling of the Gentiles, who are faid to be afar off, Epb. ii. 12, 13. from God; from having his image on them; from fubjection to his law; from the knowledge and fear of him; and from communion with him: from Chrift; from the knowledge of his perfon, righteoufnefs, and falvation by him; from love to him, faith in him, and fellowfhip with him; from the Spirit of God, and from the people of God, and from any folid hope of eternal life: now thefe being called by grace, and brought to Chrift under the drawings of the Father’s love, fhall come to his church, and join themfelves to his people: and build in the temple of the Lord; wpon the foundation Chrift; and be ufeful in building up others, either by private conyerfation, or by public preaching ing the word; it is not faid, they fhall duild the temple of the Lord; that is Chrift?s work; but build in it: and ye fhall know that the Lord of bofts hath fent me unto you; that is, the prophet Zechariah, who was fent to the Yews to declare thefe things to them; or, as the Targum adds, to prophely unto you; which they would fully know, and be affured of, when thefe things fhould have their accomplifhment: and this fhall come to pajs, tf ye r ae chapter treats concerning the nature | and. ufe of certain feafts kept by the ews, | On account of the deftruction of the temple, and other things; and concerning the meffage of the former prophets to them, and the effects of it. The occafion of the former, was an embafly fent by the ews to the priefts and prophets, to know whether they fhould continue the faft of the fifth month; upon which the prophet was fent by the Lord unto them. The time of the prophecy is noted, ¥. x. An account of the embafly is given, of the perfons that were fent, and to whom, and upon what account, ¥. 2, 3. The anfwer of the Lord to it by the prophet, fhewing the ufefulnefs of faftsto him; and putting them upon hearkening to his voice by the former prophets, when Yerufalem was in great profperity, ¥. 4, 5, 6, 7. and then they are exhorted by him, in the miniftry of the prefent prophet, to acts of righteoufnefs, feveral fpecies of which are mentioned; and which were the fame they had been exhorted to by the former prophets, but had neglected, and hardened their hearts againft all exhortations and inftructions, y. 8, 9, 10, 11, 12. and’ were the reafon of their captivity and defolation, ¥. 13, 14.

¥. 1. And it came to pafs, in the fourth year of king Darius, &c.]_ Near two years after the foundation of the temple was laid, Hagg. ii. 10, 18. and near two years before it was finifhed, Ezra vi. 15. when the work was going forward, and there was a great deal of reafon to believe it would be completed: that the word of the Lord came unto Zechariah, in the fourth day of the ninth month, even in Chifleu; which anfwers to part of our Of7ober, and part of November.

y. 2. When they had fent unto the houfe of God, &c.] It is in the Hebrew text, when he sent Bethel; which fome, as Kimchi obferves, take to be the name of a man that was fent along with thofe after-mentioned; but the Targum, and the Septuagint render it, when, or after be bad fent unto Bethel; not the place fo called in Facob’s time; but Ferufalem, where the temple or houfe of God was now building; and it may be obferved, that the words are expreffed in the fingular number, when be bad fent*; and not as we render them, when they bad fent; and agreeably in y¥. 3. it is faid, foould I weep, 8c. as if thefe meffengers were fent by-a fingle perfon, and yet a.body of people is meant; and not the captives that remained in Babylon, as mot interpreters underftand it; but the ews that were returned ‘from thence, and were in Judea, as “Junius and Tremellius oblerve; for to them the anfwer is returned, and to them does the will diligently obey the voice of the Lord ‘your God; not that the fulfilment of the above predictions depended upon their obedience; but when they fhould in the latter day obey the gofpel of Chrift, or, the word of the Lord their God, as the Targum paraphrafes it; then this would come to pafs, that they fhould know that the prophet had:his miffion from the Lord.

Lord by the prophet dire&t his {peech throughout the whole chapter. ‘The perfons fent were Sherezer, and Regem-melech, and their men; who thele perfons were, is not known; they were no doubt principal men of the people, by whom they were fent, and the chief of the embaffy, and had others with them inferior to them: part of their bufinefs at Bethel, or the houfe of God was, to pray before the Lord that they might be directed aright, and have a proper anfwer returned to the queftion they came with. The temple at Ferujalem was the place where men ufed to go up to pray; fee Luke xyiii. TO.

¥. 3: And to fpeak unto the priefts whith were in the houfe of the Lord of bofts, &c.) _ That miniftred in the fanctuary, as the Targum explains it, who offered facrifices, €?c. and who were to be.

confulted in matters of religion, Mal. li. 7: and to the prophets; who were then in being, as Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi: faying, foould I weep in the fifth month; which is the month 4, and anfwers to ‘Fuly: now on the feventh day of this month, according to 2 Kings xxv. 8, 9. the temple was burnt by the Chaldeans; and according to fer. hii. 12, 13. it was on the tenth of this month, which day was kept by the Jews as a day of fafting and humiliation, in commemoration of it; and by the Mifnic doctors “ afterwards was removed, and kept on the ninth day of the faid month; but feeing the temple was in great forwardnefs’ of being rebuilt, the queftion with thofe ews was, whether they fhould continue any longer mourning and fafting on that account: /eparating my elf;

that is, from eating and drinking, and not taking the lawful pleafures and recreations of life: as J have done thefe fo many years? for the {pace of feventy years, as in ¥. 5.

x. 4. Then came the word of the Lord of bafs unto me, faying.} Upon the fending of this embaffy, and upon putting this queftion.

y. 5. Speak unto all the people of the land, 8c.} Of Judea, who had fent thefe men on this errand, and whom they perfonated, and in whofe name they fpake: and to the priefs; who were confulted on this occafion: /aying, when ye fafled and mourned in the fifth; on the feventh or tenth day of the fifth month 4, on account of the temple being burnt by Nebuchadnezzar: and feventh month; the month Z#/r7, which anfwers to September; on the third day of this month a faft was kept on account of the murder of Gedaliab, Fer.

xli. 1. tho” Kimchi fays, he was flain on the firft — day of the month; but becaufé that was a feaftday, keeping a day for a faft on this occafion was

‘fixed on the day following: even thofe feventy years; of of their captivity, during which they kept the above fafts. The ‘ews fay *, there was no faft of the congregation, or public fait kept in Babylon, but on the ninth of 4, or the fifth month only; and if fo, other fafts here, and in ch. viii. ig. mutt be private ones. ‘Thefe feventy years are to be reckoned from the nineteenth of Nebuchadnezzar, when the city was deftroyed, to the fecond or fourth of Darius: did ye at all faft unto me, even unto me? the faft they kept was not according to the command of God, but an appointment of theirs nor was it directed to his glory; nor was it any profit or advantage to him; and therefore it was nothing to him whether they fafted or not; fee If. Iviii. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7.

¥.6. And when ye did eat, and when ye did drink, &c.] Either at common meals, or at their teftivals: did not ye eat for yourfelves, and drink for yourfelves? merely and only for their own refrefhment and pleafure, and not for the glory of God; tho’ that ought to be the principal end in eating and drinking, 1 Cor. x. 31.

¥. 7. Should ye not hear the words which the Lord hath cried by the former prophets, &c.| As Hojfea, Yaiah, Feremiah, and others; fuggefting, that it would have been much better for them to have regarded the exhortations and inftructions, which the Lord fent them by his fervants, which would have prevented their captivity; and fo would have had no occafion of fafting and mourning: for thofe prophecies were delivered out when Ferufalem was inhabited, and in profperity, and the cities thereof round about her, when ‘ferufalem, and thé cities about it, were full of people, and enjoyed all the, bleffings of life in great plenty; and which would have continued, had they attended to the exhortations, cautions, and warnings given them: when men inhabited the fouth of the plain? the land of Fudea, as the Mifnic * doctors fay, was divided into three parts; the mountainous part, the plain, and the valley. Yerufalem was in the mountainous part, and thefe are the other two; and not only thofe parts of the land which were hilly, and thofe cities that were encompafied with mountains, were in fafety and profperity; but thofe alfo that were in the champaign country, and in the low valleys. The fouth was that part of the land of Canaan, formerly inhabited by the. Amalekites, and which they invaded when David was at Ziklag, Numb, xiii. 29. 1 Sam. xxx. 1. Sometimes it was called ‘Negeb, as here; and fometimes Daroma, as frequently in the ewi/h writings 5 in which Fudea is often called the fouth, with refpect to Galilee; for they diftinguifh between the inhabitants of Galilee, and the inhabitants of the fouth country; and fay, a difciple might intercalate the year for Galilee, but not for the fouth, 7. e. Judea. It reached from Eleutheropolis to the fouth of the land, 18 or 20 miles: it was diftinguifhed by the ews ’, into upper and nether Daroma, or fouth country: the upper confifted of the hilly part of it; the nether of the plain; and by Yerom * mention is made of interior Davoma, by which there fhould be an exterior one. The plain, or Sepbela, was all the champaign country, near to Eleutheropelis, to the north and weft; and fo the above writer * fays, it was called in his times: now each of thefe were

: 679 well inhabited; Daroma, or the fouthern part; hente it is frequent in Yewi/h writings *, to read of fuch a Rabbi of Daroma, or the fouth, as R. Facob, R. Simlai, and others; and of the elders. of the fouth *; and fo Ferom fpeaks of Eremmon, and Duma, large villages in his days, in Daroma or the fouth; the one fixteen, the other feventeen miles from Eleutheropolis; and of Ether, Fether, and Fethan, one of which was eighteen, and another twenty miles from it#; and in 1 Maccab. xi. 38. mention is made of Adida in Sephela, fortified by Simon; and in which alfo were various other places well ftored with inhabitants, This exprefles the happy and fafe {tate the Hews were in before their captivity, and in which they would have remained, had they hearkened to the words of the Lord.

¥. 8. And the word of the Lord came. unto Zechariah, faying.| Giving him orders to repeat what the former prophets had faid, and to urge the fame things on the people which they had before rejected; the rejection of which had iffued: in their ruin...

¥. 9. Thus fpeaketh ithe Lord of hofts; faying, &c.] The fame things as he had before; for the things following are ever in force, and always to be attended to, and to be regarded, and preferred before any thing, merely ritual and ceremonial; and efpecially before the traditions and commandments of men, of which nature the above fafts were: execute true judgment; or, judge judgment * of truth; this is addreffed to the judges of the people, that when any caufe came before them, between man and man, that they would judge righteoufly, according to the law of God; and, without refpect of perfons, pafs fentence as the truth of the cafe required: and fhew mercy and compaffion every man to bis brother; whether in want of food, raiment, or in whatfoever diftrefs, whether of body or mind; which is much mote acceptable. to God, than any legal facrifices; or outward abftinences and humiliations, Hof: vi. 6. 1 obn iii. 17.

‘¥. 10. And opprefs not the widow; nor the fatherlefs, the firanger, nor the poor, &cc.] Such as have no hufband to provide for them, nor father and mother to care for them, and are in‘a ftrange land, where they have no friends or acquaintance, and are poor, and can’t help themfelves. Laws of this kind were frequently inculcated among the Jews; fee Deut. xxiv. 14, 17: and let none of you imagine evil againft his brother in your beart; thoughts of evil are finful, and forbidden by the law of God, as well as actions; which agrees with our Lord’s fenfe of the law, Matt. v. 22, 28. fee Lev. xix. eo, | y. 11. But they refufed to hearken, &c.] That is, the Fews before the captivity refufed to give heed to the above exhortations, and obey the voice of God in them: and pulled away the fhoulder; from ferving the Lord, and fupporting his intereft: or, they gave, or prefented a rebellious fhoulder $; a refractory one, that flides back, like a backfliding or refractory heifer, that will not admit of the yoke, Ho/. iv. 16. fo thefe could not bear the yoke of the law, nor the burden of duty; nor fuffer the words of exhortation, or receive thé admo- Y T. Hierof. Maafer Sheni, ‘a Ibid. fol. 94. M.

admonitions given them: and ffopped their ears, that they fhould not bear; Vike the deaf adder, P/- Iviii. 4, 5. they would not hear, and pretended they could not; which was an inftance of contempt to the fpeakers.

¥. 12. Yea, they made their hearts as an adasnant-ftone, &c.] The word here ufed, is tranflated a diamond, in Fer. xvii. 1, and itis faid to be harder than a flint, Ezek. ili. 9. The Ferd writers fay *, it is a worm like a barley-corn, fo {trong as to cut the hardeft ftones in pieces; Mo es

(they fay) ufed it in hewing the {tones for the two tables of the law, and in fitting the precious ftones in the Ephod; and Solomoz in cutting the ftones for the building of the temple; and_is fo hard, that it cannot be broken by iron: and as hard is naturally the heart of man, and which becomes more fo by finning, and obftinate perfifting in it, that nothing can remove the hardnefs of it, but the powerful and efficaciqus grace of God: as hard as the adamant is, it is to be foftened by the blood of a goat, as naturalifts fay h. fo the blood of Chrift fprinkled on the heart, and a fenfe of forgivenefs of fin by it, will foften the hardeft heart: Jeff they fhould hear the law, and the words which the Lord of hofts hath fent in bis oat by the former prophets; the words of reproof, admonition, caution, and exhortation, which feremiah, and others, were fent to deliver to them, under the influence of the Spirit of God: therefore came a great wrath from the Lord of hots; which brought the Chaldeans upon them, who carried them captive into Babylon. " ¥. 13. Therefore it is come to pafs, that as be