Exposition of the Whole Bible

for himfelf, and for heaven, and happinefs: and Tfrael mine inheritance; chofen by him to be fo, and given to Chrift as fuch; and who muft be happy, becaufe as they are the Lord’s inheritance, portion, and peculiar treafure, fo he has provided an inheritance for them, incorruptible, undefiled, which fades not away, referved in the heavens. The Zargum interprets all this of J/rae/, thus, ‘* blefied be ** my people, whom I brought out of Egypt; and becaufe they finned before me, I carried them captive into Afyria, and when they are turned, ‘< they are called my people, and mine inheritance, Tfrael.” "\

¥.2. At the fame time fpake the Lord by Latah the fon of Amoz, &c.| Or, by the hand of Ijziah, by his means; and it was to him likewife, as the following words fhew; and fo the Septuagint yetfion renders it, he {poke by him, by the fign he ufed, according to his order, and he fpoke Phin to ule the fign: /aying; fo the Arabic verfion, with him; and with thefe verfions No/dius agrees: go, and loofe the fackcloth from off thy loins; a token of mourning, and which the prophet wore, as Kimchi thinks, becaufe of the captivity of the ten tribes; and it may be alfo on account of the miferies that were coming upon the people of the Fews; tho’ fome think this was his Common garb, and the fame with the royal garment the prophets ufed to wear, Zech. xiii. 4. but that he had put off, and had put on fackcloth in its room, which he is now bid to take off: and put off thy fooe from thy foot, as a fign of diftrefs and mourning alfo, 2 Sam. xv. 30: and he did fo, walking naked and barefoot; Kimchi thinks this was only vifionally, or in the vifion of prophecy, as he calls it, and not in reality; but the latter feems moft probable, and beft to agree with what follows; for he was obedient to the divine command, not regarding the difgrace which might attend it, nor the danger of catching cold, to which he was expofed; and hence he has the character of a fervant of the Lord, in the next words, and a faithful obedient one he was.

¥. 3. And the Lord faid, &c.| Here follows - the explanation of the fign, and the accommodation of it, to the thing fignified by it: ke as my of twenty-nine years before he could be mafter of /ervant [faiah hath walked naked and barefoot; not it'; how long Tartaz lay againft it, before he took it, is not faid; nor is it certain what year he came again{t it; thofe who take Sargon to be Salmanefer, place it in the fourth year of Hezekiah’s reign, who fent Tartan to Afbdod at the fame time that he went againft Samaria, 2 Kings xviii. 9. but others, who think Sennacherib is Sargon, fix it to the fourteenth year of Hezekiah’s reign, as Kimchi; who hearing of Tirhakah king of Ethiopia and Egypt coming again{t him, went forth to meet him, and fubdued him; and at the fame time fent' Tartan againft Afbdod, or rather this was done when he took the fenced cities of Fudah, of which this was” one, having been taken a little before by Hezekiah from wholly naked, for that would have been very indecent, and dangerous indeed; but without his upper garment, as Sau/, 1 Sam. xix. 24. and Da- cloaths, and old fhoes, as * Yarchi interprets it, and which might be only when he appeared abroad; and how long he thus walked, is not certain, whether only one day, as fome, or three days, as others, or three years, which is not faid, tho’ our verfion inclines to it; but the three years next.mentioned are not to be joined to J/aiah’s walking, but to the thing fignified by it; for the accent Athuach is at. the word which is rendered darefoot, and diftinguifhes this claufe from the following. The Sep- the Philiftines; fee 2 Kings xviit. 8, 13. though, if ¢uagint indeed puts the phrafe shree years into |

Efar-knddon is Sargon, this mutt’ be in the times of claufes, but it only belongs to the latter: shree

Manaffeh, perhaps about the twenty-fecond year of years for a fign and wonder upon Egypt, and upon his reign, by whom he was’ taken, and ‘carried captive; but it is moft likely to have been in Hezekiah’s time, tye.

Ethiopia, that is, the prophets walking naked. barefoot was a fign that three years after this Egypr and Ethiopia fhould be fubdued by the difjrians, or, that fo long he fhould be in fubduing them, or their calamities fhould Jaft fuch a term of time. This fign was only feen by the Jews, for whofe fake chiefly this prophecy was, to take off their dependance on the above nations; tho’ probably this might be made knewn to the Egyptians and Ethiopians. ¥.4. So foall the king of Afpria lead away the Egyptians prifoners, and the Ethiopians captives, &c.

‘As beafts are led or driven, being taken prifoners, and carried captive by the king of Affjria, namely Sargon, whoever is intended by him: young and _ old, without any regard to age, fparing none for their tender years, or gray hairs: naked and barefoot; as prifoners of war commonly are, being {tripped by their conquerors of their cloaths, and having only a few rags given them to cover their nakednefs with, and obliged to travel without fhoes on their feet: even with their buttocks uncovered, to the fhame of Egypt; having no cloaths on them to cover thofe parts; or the fkirts of their garments cut off, as David's fervants were by the Ammonites, 2 Sam. x, 4. and this to humble and mortify the pride of the Egyptians. ¥.5. And ibey fhall be afraid and afbamed, &c.| That is, thofe that trufted and depended upon the Egyptians and Ethiopians, particularly the ews after mentioned, fhall be afraid that it will be their turn next, that they alfo fhall be taken and carried captive; and they fhall be a/bamed that they have put their truft and confidence in thofe nations, and not in the Lord: of Ethiopia their expeéiation, from whom they expected affiftance and protection, particularly when Tirbakab king of Ethiopia went out againft the king of Afyria, that he would have been a match for him, and have overcome him, and fo have freed them from fuch a powerful enemy: cud of Egypt their glory; who was their ally, and a very potent one, and in whom they gloried; but now fhould be afhamed, when both thofe people on whom they relied, were caitied captive.;

¥. 6. And the inhabitants of this ifle fhall fay, in that day, &c.| Not of Afbdod, y. 1. or the ifle of Caphtor, Fer. xlvii. 4. but the land of J/rael, as both Farchi and Kimchi interpret it; fo called, becaufe it bordered on the fea, as fuch countries are fometimes called ifles; fee fer.xxv.22. Ezek. xxvii. 3,15. Ben Melech interprets it of Ferufalem, and obferves that the word fignifies a place or country, whether it has a tiver or fea encompaffing it, or not; befides, the land of Canaan had the Mediterranean {ea on one fide of it, and the fea of Galilee and Yiberias on the other, and was moreover feparated from all other countries by the power, providence, and prefence of God: behold, fuch is our expectation, whither we flee for help, to be delivered from the king of Afpria; fignifying that it was vain and foolifi, and they had aéted a very weak, as well as a wicked part, in having recourfe to the Egyptians and Ethiopians to help them againft the Affyrians, as it plainly appeared by both nation$ now being conquered by them: aad how fhall we efcape? feeing they had not, who were more powerful than they were; and how could they think that * they could fave them, who could not fave themfelves? and fo the Targum, ‘* if they have not de- ¢ livered their fouls (themfelves) how fhall we be <¢ delivered?”

HIS chapter contains prophecies againft Babylon, Idumea, and Arabia. ‘The prophecy againft Babylon is called the burden of the defert of the fea, whofe enemies are defcribed by the fierce manner of their coming, and by the land from whence they came, ¥. 1. which vifion being declared to the prophet, is called a grievous one; what made it fo, was treachery among themfelves; and the Medes and Perfians are invited to befiege them, y¥: 2. their terror and diftrefs upon it are reprefented by the pains of a woman in travail, whom the prophet perfonates, ¥. 3, 4. and by the methods they took to defend themfelves, to which they were alarmed, when in the greateft fecurity and jollity, y¥. 5. all which is illuftrated by the vifion of the watchman, who faw the Medes and Perfians on the march, fignified by a chariot and a couple of horfemen, who declares the fall of Babylon, and the deftruction of its Gods, ¥. 6, 7, 8, 9. which would iffe in the good and comfort of the church and people of God, ¥. 10. then follows the prophecy - againft Idumea, which confifts of a queftion put to the watchman, and his anfwer to it; to which an exhortation is added, ¥. 11,12. and the chapter concludes with another prophecy againft radia: the calamities threatened, are lodging in a forett, thirft, famine, and fleeing from the fword, y. 13, 14; 15. and the time is fixed when all this fhould “be, by which their glory would fail, and the number of their archers and mighty men be leffened; for the confirmation of which the divine teftimony fs‘annexed, ¥. 16,17..

y.1. The burden of the defert of the fea, &c.} That this is a prophecy of the deftruétion of Babylon, is clear from the exprefs mention both of the Medes and Perfians, by whom it fhould be, and of Babylon itfelf, and its fall, ¥. 2,9. which, tho’ prophefied of before, is here repeated, partly for the certainty of it, and partly for the comfort of the people of the ews, who would be captives in it, and fo break off and prevent their confidence in a nation that would be ruined; and perhaps this prophecy might be delivered out about the time, or on account of Merodach king of Babylon fending letters, and a prefent to Hezekiah, who fhewed to his meffengers all his treafures. Babylon is here called the defert of the fea, not becaufe it was a defert land, for it was a very fruitful one; or becaufe it would be laid defolate, and become as a wildernefs; but either becaufe there was one between that and the countries of Media and Perfia, as Kimchi, from whence its deftroyers would come; or rather, becaufe it was, as the word may be rendered, a plain, for fo the land of Chaldea was, and the city of Babylon particularly was built in a plain, Gen. xi. 2. and becaufe this country abounded with pools and lakes, which with the Hebrews are called feas; and efpecially fince the city of Babylon was fituated by the river Euphrates, which ran about it, and through it, and which therefore is faid to dwell upon many waters, Fer. li. 13. hence it has this name of the defert of the fea; befides Abydenus ', from Megajfthenes, informs us, that all the places about Babylon were from the beginning, water, and

were called a fea; and it fhould be obferved, that thyftical-Babylon is reprefented by a woman in a defert,: fitting on many waters, which are interpreted-of a multitude of people and nations, Rev. XVii. Ty 35 > 15- and fome here by fea underftand the multitude of its riches, power, and people. The Targum is, ** the burden of the armies, which < come from the wildernefs, as the waters of the « fea;” underftanding it not of Babylon,. but of its enemies and invaders, as follows: as whirlwinds in the fouth pafs through; and nothing can hinder them, fuch is their force and power; they bear all before them, come fuddenly, blow ftrongly, and there’s no refifting them; fee Zech. ix. 14 fo it cometh from the defert; or he, that is, Cyrus 5 or it, the army under him, would come with like irrefiftible force and power, as the fouthern whirlwinds do, which come from a defert country; at leaft that part of it in which their foldiers were trained up, and which in their march to Babylon muft come through the defert,. that lay, as before obferved, between that and their country, and thro’ which Cyrus did pafs™: from a terrible land, a land of ferpents and fcorpions, as Ferchi; or a land afar off, as Kimchi and Ben Melech, whofe power and ufage, or cuftoms, were not known, and fo dreaded, as the Medes and Perfians were by Nitocris queen of Babylon, who took care to preferve her people, and prevent their -falling into their hands. ‘The Targum is, ‘© from a-land in which terrible things are.

y¥. 2. A grievous vifion is declared unto me, &c.] The prophet; meaning the vifion of Badylon’s deftruétion, which was 4ard, as the word fignifies, and might feem harfh and cruel; not to him, nor to the Fews, but to the Chaldeans: the treacherous dealer dealeth treacheroufly, and the fpoiler fpoileth;' that is, according to Farchi, one treacherous dealer deals treacheroufly -with another, and one {poiler fpoils another; the Medes and Perfians deal treacheroufly with and fpoil the Babylonians, who had dealt treacheroufly with and fpoiled other nations: and to this fenfe fome read the words, the treacherous dealer hath found a treacherous dealer, and the fpoiler one that fpoileth": {ome take it to be a compellation of the Medes and Perfians, calling upon them under thefe characters, to go up and befiege Babylon, as, O treacherous dealer, O fpoiler°; tho’ the words may be underftood of the perfidy and treachery of the Babylonicus, of which they had been frequently guilty, and which is given as a reafon of their fall and ruin; or rather they fuggeft the treacherous means by which they fhould be ruined, even by fome from among themfelves; particularly, hiftory? informs us,:that.Gobrias and Gadates, two noblemen of the king of Babylon, being ufed ill by him, revolted from him, and joined with Cyrus; and when the river Euphrates was drained, went at the head of his army in two parties, and guided them into the city, and took it; or rather Belfhazzar king of Babylon himfelf is-meant, who aéted, and continued to act, moft impioufly and wickedly: and therefore, go up, O Elam; or Elamites, as the Targum and Septuagint; fee Adis ii. g. thefe were Perjians, {fo called from Elam, a province in Perfia,; who are here called upon by the

Lord of afmies, thro’ the mouth of the prophet, | to go up to war againft Babylon s. and thefe are? mentioned firft, becaufe Cyrus, who commanded.

the whole army, was a Perfian: or if Elam is taken.

for a province, which was indeed fubjeé& to Babylon, of which Sbufban was the capital city, Dan. —

‘viii. 2. the governor of it, bradates, revolted from the Babylonians, and joined Cyrus, and fought ‘with him: defiege, O Media, or, O ye Medes, join with the Perfians in the fiege of Babylon; as they did: all the fighing thereof have I made to ceafe;. seither of the army of the Medes and Perfians, whoby reafon of long and. tedious marches, frequent battles, and hard fieges, groaned and fighed; but now it would be over with them, when Babylon

“was taken; or of the Babylonians themfelves, who. rwould have no mercy fhewn them, nor have any time for fighing, being cut off fuddenly, and in a ‘moment; or rather of other people opprefied by them, and particularly the Lord’s people the Jews, ‘who had-been in captivity for the fpace of feventy ~,years, during which they had fighed and groaned,. becaufe of the hardfhips they endured; but now fighing would be at an end, and they fhould have deliverance, as they had, by Cyrus the Perfan. The fighing is not that with which they fighed,. but which they caufed in others.

¥. 3. Therefore are my loins filled with pain, 8ec.). As a woman at the time of child-birth, as the following words fhew. thefe.words are fpoken by the prophet, not with refpect to himfelf, as if he was.

‘pained at heart, at the prophecy and vifion he had of the ruin of Babylon, fince that was a mortal enemy of his people; and befides, their fighing being made to ceafe, could never be a reafon of diftrefs.in him, but of joy: thefe words are fpoken

‘by him in the perfon of the Babylonians, and par- - ticularly of Bel/bazzar their king:; pangs have takem ‘hold upon me, as the pangs of a woman that travaileth;, which come fuddenly and at once; are very harp:

‘and ftrong, and inevitable, which cannot be efcaped; fo the fudden deftruétion of the vista

}and particularly of antichrift at the laft day, an -the terror that fhall attend it, are expreffed by the fame metaphor, 2 The//.v. 2,3: Iwas bowed down at the hearing of it; diftorted and convulfed; not the prophet at the hearing of the prophecy, but Belfhazzar whom, he.perfonated, at hearing that Cyrus had entered the city, and was at the gates of his palace: J was di/mayed at the feeing of it; the hand-writing upon the wall, at which his countenance changed, his thoughts were troubled, his loins loofed, and his knees fmote one againft another, Daa. v. 6.. ' ¥.4. My heart panted, &c.] Fluttered about, and could hardly keep its place: or, my mind wandered *; like a perfon in diftraction and confufion, that knew not what to think, fay, or do: fearfulnels affrighted me, the terror of Cyrus's army feized him, of its irruption into the city, and of his being deftroyed by it; the writing on the wall threw him into a pannic, and the news of the Medes and Perfians being entered the city increafed it: the night of my pleafure bath he turned into fear unto me; in which he promifed himfelf fo much pleafure, at a feaft he had made for his princes, wives, and concubines; either in honour of his god, as fome think *, being an annual one; or, as Jo/ephus. i + yg ll ati TTY TNL) “INI NIM, prevaricator prevaricatorem &

So fome in Vatablus; alfo Gataker. BOD

Ch. xxi. ¥.s—-9 SA ben Gorion* fays, on account of the victory he had obtained over the Medes and Perfians; and fo was quite fecure, and never in the leaft thought of deftruction being at hand; but in the midft of all his revelling, mirth, and jollity, the city was furprized and taken, and he flain, Dan. v. 1, 30. So myftical Babylon, in the midit of her profperity, whilft the is faying that the fits a queen, and knows no forrow, her judgment and plagues fhall come upon her, Rev. xviii. 7, 8.

¥. 5. Prepare the table, &cc.] Set it, fpread it, furnifh it with all kind of provifions, as at a feaft; and fuch an one Bel/hazzar made, the night the city was taken: thefe words are directed to him by his courtiers or queen, as perfonated by the prophet, in order to remove his fears; fee Dan. v. 10: watch in the watch-tower; this is faid to his -fervants, his foldiers or centinels, that were placed on watch-towers to obferve the motions of the enemy, who were ordered on duty, and to be on guard, _ that he and his nobles might feaft the more fe- -curely; and all this being done, a table furnithed, and a guard fet, he, his nobles, and all his guefts, are encouraged to eat and drink liberally and chearfully, without any fear of the Medes and Perfians, who were now befieging the city; when, at the fame time, by the Lord it would be faid, arife, ye princes; not ye nobles of Babylon, from your table, quit it, and’ your feafting and mirth: «nd anoint the foield, prepare your arms, fee that they are in good order, get them in readinefs, and defend your king, yourfelves, and your city, as fome; but the princes of the Medes and Perfians, Cyrus and his generals, are bid to take their arms, and enter the city whilft indulging themfelves at their feaft: it was ufually to anoint fhields; and other pieces of armour, partly that they might be fmooth and flip- “pery, as Farchi, that fo the darts of the enemy might eafily flide off; and partly for the polifhing and brightening of them, being of metal, efpecially of brafs; fo the Targum, ‘* polifh and make «© the arms bright;” fee 2 Sam.i. 21. Aben Ezra underftands the words as an exhortation to the princes, to arife and anoint Darius king, in the room of Bel/bazzar flain; the word fhield fometimes fignifying a king, for which he mentions Pf. Ixxxiv. 9. fo Ben Melech, but they area call of the prophet, or of the Lord, to the princes of the Medes and Perfians, to take the opportunity, whilft the Babylonians were feafting, to fall upon them; and the words may be rendered thus", ‘ in or «¢ whilft preparing the table, watching in the ** watch-tower, eating and drinking, arife, ye ‘¢ princes, and anoint the fhield;” which was done by their fervants, though they are called upon.

i 6. For thus hath the Lord faid unto me, &c.] This is a confirmation of the above prophecy from the Lord himfelf, he fhewing to the prophet, in a vifionary way, the ruin of Babylon, and the means and.inftruments of it: go fet @ watchman, not Habakkuk, as ‘farchi,; nor Urias, as the Septuagint, nor Jeremiah, as others; but himfelf, who in a way of vifion perfonated a watchman on the walls of Babylon; and which was no way unfuitable to his chara¢ter and office as a prophet: Jet him declare what he feeth; what he fees coming at a di-

10g ftance, or at hand, let him faithfully and publickly make it known: thefe are not the words of the king of Badylon to one of his watchmen; but ‘of the Lord of hofts to his prophet.

¥. 7. And he faw a chariot with a couple of horfemen, &c.| The drivers of it, or the riders in it; perhaps meaning Cyrus and Darius: a chariot of affes, and a chariot of camels, by the former may be meant the Per/ans, who very much ufed mules or affes; and the Medes by the latter, who abounded in camels: the words are in the fingular number, and may be rendered, a rider of an afs, and a rider of a camel”; and fo may defcribe the couple of riders along with the chariot, which may fignify the whole army of the Medes and Perfians, chariots being much ufed in war; and the rider of the afs or mule may defign Cyrus, who was called a mule, becaufe of his mixed defcent, being a Perfian by his father, and a Mede by his mother’s fide; fo the oracle of Apollo told the Babylonians, that their city fhould ftand, until a mule was king of the Medes; and the rider of the camel may point at Darius: and he hearkened diligently with much heed; the watchman that was fet to watch, ufed the utmoft attention to what he faw, and liftened diligently to the noife of this chariot and horfemen, as they came nearer,

¥. 8. And he cried, a lion, &c.] That is, the watchman cried a lion, or that he faw a lion; not Uriah the prieft, as the Septuagint; nor Habakkuk, as fome Fewi/b writers; but Cyrus, at the head of the Perfian and Median armies, compared to a lion for his fiercenefs, courage, and ftrength; fee 2 Tim. iv. 17. a type of Chrift, the lion of the tribe of Fudab, by whom antichrift or myttical Babylon will be deftroyed, Rev. v. 5: The Targum is, “ the “* prophet faid, the voice of armies, coming with “* coats of mail, asa lion.” den Ezra interprets it, the watchman cried as a lion, with a great voice; upon fight of the chariots and horfemen; he lift up his voice, and roared like a lion, to exprefs the terror he was in, and the greatnefs of the calamity that was coming upon the city. J ftand continually upon the watch-tower in the day-time; fo that nothing could efcape his notice: and I fet in my ward whole nights, which exprefies his diligence, vigilance, and conftancy, in the difcharge of his duty; and therefore what he faid he faw, might be depended on.:.

¥. 9. And behold, bere cometh a chariot of men; &c.] Or of a man*; a chariot with a man in it, Cyrus or Darius: with a couple of horfemen, the army of the Medes and Perfians, with their two. leaders or generals, as before; only now feen nearer the city, juft entering into it; for fo the word may be rendered, goeth, or is gone in a chariot, 8c: » and he anfwered, and faid, either the watchman, upon feeing the chariot and horfemen go into the city; or one of the horfemen that went in, fo the Syriac and Arabic verfions; or rather the prophet, and the Lord by him: Babylon ts fallen, 1s fallen; which is repeated to fhew the certainty of it. The fame words are ufed of the fall of myftical Babylon; Rev. xiv. 8. and xviii.2. The Targum is, “ itis <¢ fallen, and alfo it fhall be, that Babylon thall fall;” that is, a fecond time, and hereafter; and fo Yarchi and Kimchi interpret it of two falls, one by the

.. eS Ra Tas ty ome I1o Kee SBAS, FE A *. H. Ch, xxi. ¥; Opt is ms Medes and Perfians, and thé other by the hand of heaven, or God himfelf: literal Babylon fell by the former; myttical Babylon will fall by the latter, even by the breath of Chrift’s mouth, and the brightnefs of his coming: and all the graven images of her: gods he bath broken unto the ground; either Qyrus or Darius, who might do this, not from any deteftation of them, but for the fake of the gold, and filver, and riches, that were about them; or rather the Lord by them, and fo put an end to idolatry; as will be, when myftical Babylon is deftroyed.

y¥. 10. O my threfhing, and the corn of my floor, &c.] Which may be underftood either of the Babylonians, now threfhed or punifhed by the Lord, and whom he had made ufe of as inftruments for the punifhment of others; or rather of the people of the Zews, whom the prophet calls 47s; as being his countrymen, to whom he was affected, and with whom he fympathized; and befides, he fpeaks: in the name of the Lord; or it is the Lord- that fpeaks by him, calling the church of the Fews his floor, and the people his corn, which were dear and valuable to him, as choice grain, wheat, and other things; and therefore tho’ he threfhed or afflicted them, it was for their good, to purge and cleanfe them, and feparate the chaff from them; and indeed it was on their account, and for their good, that all this was to be done to Babylon, before predicted; where they were as corn under the ~ threfhing inftrument, greatly oppreffed and afflicted, but now fhould be delivered; tor the confirmation of which ’tis added: shat which I have heard of the Lord of bojis, the God of Ifrael, have I declared unto you; the preceding prophecy was not a dream of his, but a vifion from the Lord of hofts; it was not devifed by him, but told him by the Lord, and that for the good and comfort of the people of Jfrael, whofe covenant-God he was; and the prophet acted a faithful part, in. delivering it juft as he received it, which might be depended on.

y. 11. The burden of Dumak, &c.| Whether this prophecy concerns the Edomites or Idumeans, or whether the Arabians, particularly the Dumean Arabians, is a queftion, fince Dumah was a fon of J/bmacl, Gen. xxv. 14. and there was a place in Arabia called Dumatha’; and Aben Ezra and Kimchi habited by the Edomites, the pofterity of E/au, fo called from Seir the Horite, Gen. xxxvi. 8, 9, 20. The Zargum underftands this of God calling from heaven to the prophet to prophefy; and archi of an angel, or a prophet out of Seir, calling to God, who he fuppofes is meant by the watchman; but it feems beft to interpret it of an Edomite, or an inhabitant of mount Ser, calling to the watchman, and faying, as follows: watchman, what of the: night? watchman, what of the night? what time of night is it? what o’clock is it? how much of the night is gone, and what remains to come? it is the bufinefs of watchmen to give or tell the time of night: or, what from the night*? what has happened fince it was night? haft thou obferved nothing? is not the enemy nigh, or danger at hand? or, what fayeft thou concerning the night?

the night of darknefs, affliction, and diftrefs, in which we are, when will it be over? the queftion ~ is repeated, as is ufual with perfons in a pannic, and: fearing the watchman: fhould not hear them ‘ the’ firft time; or it may denote one coming after another in a fright, afking the fame queftion,

Some by the watchman underftand God himfelf, as Farchi and Abarbinel, whois Jfrael’s keeper, __ Pf. cxxi. 4, 5. where the fame word is ufed as here; and well agrees with God, who isthe keeper = and preferver of ail men, in a way of prota 7 and of his own people, in a way of grace; and =f who, as he watches over the evil of fin, to bring — the evil of affliction or punifhment for it; fo he © watches over his, to do good unto them; and as the times and feafons are in his power only, and are known by him, it is moft proper to apply unto ~ him. Others think Chrift is meant, as Cocceius;

and fo the Jews fay >, this is Metatron the keeper “ of J/rael, which with them is one of the names of — the Meffiah; and to whom this character of a #j watchman agrees, as he is the fhepherd of his flock, and the keeper of his people; and who, as the omnifcient God, knows all things that are, and fhall be, and which will quickly come to pafs: tho’ it may be beft of all to underftand it of a prophet or 4 prophets, who were called watchmen under the | Old Teftament, ¥. 6, 8. Ezek. ili. 17. as minifters of the word are under the New, in allufion to fhepherds and watchmen of cities; and whofe bu- interpret it here of Dumab the fon of [/bmael, but inafmuch as mention is made of Seir, a mountain, which belonged to the Edomites, Gen. xxxvi. 8, 9. and a diftinét prophecy afterwards follows concerning Arabia, it is more generally thought that Dzmab fignifies Edom or Idumea, the Septuagint verfion renders it, the vifion of Idumea, and the Aradic verlion calls it, a prophecy concerning Edom and Ser; and Farchi by Dumah underftands Edom; and Kimchi himfelf obferves, that in a book of R. Meir’s, it was found written, ‘* the burden of Duma, the “* burden of Edom.” Ferom fays, Duma is not the whole province of Jdumea, but a certain country in it, that lay to the fouth, twenty miles diftant from a city of Paletine, in his days called Eleutheropolis; and further obferves, that fome of the Hebrews read Roma for Duma, and fuppofe that the Komen empire is defigned; and certain it is, that nothing is more common with them, than to call the Roman empire, and Rome itfelf, by the name of Edom, and the Romans or chriftians, Edomates”: he calleth to me out of Seir; a mountain infinefs it is, as to fhew finners the danger of their ¢ ways, and to aroufe fleepy faints, fo to give the time of night, that the churches of Chrift may 4 know whereabout they are. Now let it be obferved, that this prophecy may refer to the times when Dumab, Edom or Idumea, was pofiefled by the Fews, according to the prophecy in Numb. xxiv. 18, 19. as it was before the coming of Chrift; Herod, an Idumean, was upon the throne of Fudea when he came, at which time the Jews and Jdy- - means were mixt together; and the latter, at leaft many of them, embraced the Fewi/h religion *, and fo had knowledge of the Meffiah and his coming, after which they may be thought to be enquiri here. The Mofaic difpenfation was a night-feafon, — there was much obfcurity in it, the fhadows of darknefs were ftretched out on it; and tho’ there was the moon of the ceremonial law, and there were the ftars the prophets, -yet the fun of righteoufnefs was not rifen; and it was a time of grofs darknefs with the Gentile world: now one or more — of thefe profelyted Jdumeans, or of the Fews among — them, may be fuppofed to be enquiring of the prophet or prophets of the Lord in their time, how ‘much of this night was gone, when it would be over, or the Meffiah would appear, and bring in the morning, and make the bright day of the ' golpel-difpenfation. And.again, as Edom and Seir were typical of Rome papal, or the Romi/h antichrift; the perfon calling out to the watchman, may defign fuch of the people of God in the midft of them, for which fee Rev. xviii. 4. who, fenfible of the night of darknefs they are in, are looking for, and enquiring after latter day-light and glory. The Yargum of the whole verfe is, ‘* the burden ** of the cup of curfe, to give Dumab to drink: ** to me he calls out of heaven, prophet, declare “* unto them the prophecy; prophet, declare unto ‘© them what fhall hereafter come to pafs.” ¥. 12. The watchman faid, the morning cometh, and alfo the night, &c.] Not only a morning, but a night; and as fure as the morning comes, fo fhall the night;. there will be a conftant fucceffion of morning and night; as a morning of profperity, fo a night of adverfity: the morning of the gofpeldifpentation was coming on, or of Chrift’s coming in the flefh, which was attended with joy and chearfulnefs; like the morning it difperfed, the fhadows of the law, introduced light, which gradually and irrefiftibly fpread itfelf over the Gentile world; but then followed a night of darknefs to the Jews, blindnefs happened to them, which {till continues; and to the Arabians, Saracens, and Turks, when the bottomlefs pit was opened by Mahomet, which Jet out fmoke and locufts in the eaftern part of the world; and to the weftern part, when the Romi/h antichrift eftablifhed himfelf as univerfal bifhop: a _ Morning catne on again at the reformation, and a night will follow, which is now begun; it is already a time of darknefs, coldnefs, fleepinefs, and of error and herefy, which will iffue in an even-tide, in a dark night: if it be afked what time it is with tus, or how far we aré gone toward the night? the anfwer is, we are in and toward the clofe of the - Sardian church-ftate; we ate in the twilight, or in that part of time which is neither day nor night, Zech: xiv. 6,7. the flaying of the witneffes is yet to come, which, with the general fpread of popery all over Chriftendom, will make it entire night; after which will come on the morning of the fpiritual reign of Clitift, when the light of the gofpel will be fpread every where, and joy and gladnefs will attend the faints in all places; and it will be a time of great profperity, both fpiritual and temporal; which will be fucceeded by another night of coldnefs, deadnefs, and carnal fecurity, and will laft till the fecond and perfonal coming of Chrift; which will bring on the morning of a glorious refurrection to the faints, after which there will be no more night to them, tho’ there will be an eternal one to the wicked. The Targum is, ‘* the prophet “< faid, there is a rewatd for the righteous, and “¢ punifhment for the wicked;” and fo the Fews elfewhere “ interpret it of the morning of redemption to the righteous, and of the night of darknefs to the wicked; or, as they fometimes exprefs it *, the morning is for the righteous, and the night for the wicked; the morning for J/rae/, and the night for the nations of the world. Dumab they fome- ~ times make to be the angel appointed over fpirits, who they fuppofe gather together, and fay to him, watchman, 8c. if ye will inquire, inquire ye; {e- rioufly and in good earneft, diligently and conftantly, with all humility and reverence, by prayer to God, and by fearching the fcriptures, and by application to the watchmen, the minifters of the wotd, who make it their bufinefs to ftudy it, and have the mind of Chrift: return, come; return by repentance, and come to God, who receives backfliders, heals their backflidings, and loves them freely; or, come again, to the watchman, and to the Lord, and renew your enquiries till you get fatisfaction, ¥.13. The burden upon Arabia, &c.] Which lay heavy upon it, as a burden upon a beaft; or concerning it, or againft it, as Kimchi notes; which Arabia, or what part theteof, is méant, may be gathered from the names after mentioned: The Targum is, ** the burden of the cup of curfing to “* give the Arabians to drink.” Ben Melech fays, thefe are the Arabians that dwell in the wildernefs: in the foreft in Arabia fhall ye lodge; not in their tents and huts, which they had ufed to carry with them, and fet up where they pleafed; fince now in their fright and flight they would leave them behind them, and fo be obliged to take up their lodging in woods and forefts; perhaps the defart of Arabia Petrea is meant: O ye travelling companies of Dedanim; or Dedanites; thefe were Arabians that defcended from Fok/han, a for of Abrabam by Keturab, Gen. xxv. 3. who were either fhepherds, who went in companies together with their flocks, and moved from place to place for the fake of pafture; or rather were merchants, who went in caravans and troops with their merchandife from one country to another; fee Ezek. xxvii. 15, 20. and who, becaufe of the ravages of the enemy, would be glad of a lodging in the woods for fecurity. ae ae, y¥.14. The inhabitants of the land of Tema, &c.J This country had its name from Tema, one of the fons of J/bmael, Gen. xxv.15. The Targum calls it the land of the fouth, as if it was Zeman. Thefe people wete Arabians, and are here faid to affift their countrymen, the Dedanites, in diftrefs: Drought water to him that was thirfty, as travellers are wont to be, efpecially in a defart land, and when fleeing from an enemy; in which circumftances the travelling companies of Dedanim now were: they prevented with their bread him that fled, gave it to him, being hungry and neceffitous, without afking for it. Now all this feems to fhew what calamities fhould come upon the inhabitants of fome parts of Arabia, that they fhould lodge in a -foreft, be hungry and thirfty, and flee before their enemy, as follows. ey.: y¥.15. For they fled from the fwords, &c.] Of their enerny, whom they could not withftand; perhaps the Affrian army: from the drawn fword; juft teady to be fheathed in them: and from the bent bow; jutt going to let the arrow fly at them: and. from the grievoufne/s of war; too heavy for them to bear. Fale ge y¥.16. For thus hath the Lord faid unto me, &c.] The prophet; whitch confirms what is before faid, as well as affures the accomplifhment of what follows: within a year, according to the years of an hireling, that is, exaétly and precifely, as foon as ever the year is come to an end; for the hireling, wheri his year is up, inftantly demands difmiffion from his fervice, or his wages, or both. The time is to be reckoned from the delivery of this pro-

; calamity prediéted was brought | anceftor [ Pied he fie Arians poe under in archers it feems cherib, when he invaded the cities of Yudab, and might take radia in his way; lefs time is allowed than was the Moabites, who fuffered by the fame hand; fee chap. xvi. 14: and ail the glory of Kedar foall fail; thefe were another fort of Arabians, the Zargum calls them; they defcended from Kedar, a fon of Jhmael, Gen.xxv. 13. their glory were their multitude, their riches and fubftance, and which chiefly lay in their flocks; for the fake of which they moved from place to place for pafture, and dwelled in tents, which they carried with them, and pitched where it was moft convenient for them; hence they were called Scenites; fee Pf. exx. 5. bmael, Gen. xxi. 20. the number of thefe — had been great, but would be lef fened by the calamity threatened; and thofe that would efcape that, and be preferved from it, fhould _ be lefiened ftill, as follows: the mighty men of the 4 children of Kedar foall be diminifbed, their military — raat asimen, the moft expert at the ule of the bow, and the moft valiant and courageous; the few of 1 that were left, and did not fall by the fword of the Afprians, fhould gradually diminifh, and be fewer and fewer: for the Lord God of Irael hath {poken i#; who cannot lie, nor will repent, and. whofe 5 word never fails, what he has faid he will do, nor; will he alter the thing that is gone out of his lipss: and he is fpoken of as the God of J/racl, becaufe =

Cant. i. 5. it was to the Wraelites that this was faid, and i y.17. And the refidue of the number of archers, their fakes; either becaufe thefe Zradians fome way; |

&c.] Or of bow *, for dows; that is, of men that or other were injurious to them, or they had put — ufe the bow, or are expert at it, as the Kedarenes fome confidence in them. The Yergum is, “ be- i 4vere, both for taking wild beafts, and fighting | ‘* caufe by the word of the Lord God of J/rael; it with men, in which they followed their original j ‘‘ is fo decreed,”. yt

CH AP. XXIl. a of Sion, to wit, the fields which are about ‘Yerufalem.” The Targum is, ‘* the burden of the prophecy concerning the city which dwells in —

HIS chapter contains two prophecies, one | ‘ concerning the invafion of Fudabh and Feru- | “ falem, not by the Medes and Perfiens, but by the Afyrien army, under which they ferved; and the other of the removal of Shebna, an officer in Hezekiah’s court, and of the placing of Eliakim in his ftead. After the title of the former of thefe prophecies, the diftrefs of the people, thro’ the invafion, is defcribed; by their getting up to the “ ( ‘‘ the valley, of which the prophets prophefied;” by all which it appears, that not the whole land of Fudea is thought to be meant, only the city of Fe- ~ rufalem, fo called, not from its low eftate into which it would fall, thro’ the wickednefs of the people, and fo rather to be called a valley than a mountain, — houfe-tops, ¥. 1. by the ftillnefs of the city, having left both trade and mirth; by the flain in it; not by the fword, but thro’ fear or famine, ¥. 2. by the flight of the rulers, and by the Jamentation of as Kimchi; but from its fituation, it being, as 4 Fe/epbus * fays, fortified with three walls, except on that fide, at which it was incireled with inae- F. ceffible vallies; and hence it may be, that one of =

‘the prophet, y. 3, 4, 5. the inftruments of which diftrefs were the’ Perfians and Medes ferving under Sennacherib, who are defcribed by their quivers and fhields, their chariots and horfemen, y. 6, 7. the methods the Fews took to defend themfelves, and their vain confidence are expofed; for which, with their difrefpeét to the Lord, and his admonitions, their carnal fecurity and luxury, they are threatened with death, ¥. 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14. then follows the prophecy of the depofition of Shelua, who is defcribed by'his name and office, ¥. 15. whofe pride is expofed as the caufe of his fall, ¥. 16. and he is threatened not only to be driven from his f tation, but to be carried captive iiito another country, fuddenly and violently, and with great fkhame and difgrace, ¥. 17, 18, 19. and another put in his place, who is mentioned by name, ¥. 20, and who fhould be invefted with his office and power, and have all the enfigns of it, ¥. 21, 22. and fhould continue long in it, to great honour and ufefulnefs to his family, y.23, 24. yet not always, ¥.25..

¥.1. The burden of the valley of vifion, 8cc.] A prophecy concerning Ferufalem, fo called, becaufe it lay in a valley, encompaffed about with mountains, and which was the habitation of the prophets or-feers, and the feat of vifion and prophecy; and perhaps there is an allufion to its name, which genities the vifion of peace, or they fhall fee peace.

he Septuagint verfion calls. it, the word of the valley of Sion; and the Arabic verfion, “ a pro- | *¢ phecy concerning the inhabitants of the valley ° its gates is called the valley-gate, Ned. ii. 13. and iii. 13. and befides, there was a valley in it, be~ tween the mountains of Zion and Acra, which die vided the upper and lower city, as he alfo elfee where fays'.. The durden of it is a heavy pro- 4 phecy of calamities that fhould come upon. it, or at Jeaft of a fright, it fhould be put into, not in» the times of Nebuchadnezzar, when it was taken, * and deftroyed, as Farchi and Kimchi, and another Few, Ferom makes mention of; nor in the times. of Titus Vefpafian, according to Eufebius, as the faid Ferom relates; but in the times of Hezekiah, s when Judea was invaded, and Ferufalem befieged by Sennacherib: what aileth thee now? or, whatte thee now? what’s come to thee? whatis the mat<« ter with thee now? how comes this ftrange and; fudden change? that thou art wholly gone up to the 5 houfe-tops? not to burn incenfe to the queen of. a heaven, which was fometimes done, and is the fenfe of fome mentioned by Aven Ezra; but either for f fafety, to fecure themfelves from their enemies; or to take a view of them, and obferve their motions, _ and caft from thence their arrows and darts atthems ~ or to look out for help, or to mourn over their diftreffes, and implore help of the Lord; fee ch

2, 3. and this was the cafe, not only of fome. of them all; fo that there was fcarce a mi rae be feen in the ftreets, or in the lower parts of their houfes, but were all gone up to the t which were built with flat-roofs an about them, Deut. xxii. 8. a

¥.2. Thou art full of firs, &c.] Or, waft full of firs; ro’ the multitude of people walking about in it, and the vaft hurry of bufinefs done in it; but now all huh and quiet, the ftreets clear of people, and the fhops fhut up, and all got up to the houfe-tops for fhelter; or, fud/ of noifes', as a populous trading city is. The word fignifies fhoutings and acclamations, and is ufed for joyful ones, Zech. iv. 7. and may be fo taken here, and may defign fuch as were exprefied at their feftivals, and on other occafions; unlefs it is to be underftood of doleful ones, on account of the invafion and fiege: @ tumultuous city; thro’ the throng of people, and the noife of them: @ joyous city; tome on bufinefs, others on pleafure; fome hurrying from place to place about their trade and commerce, and others amufing themfelves with paftime, mirth, and jollity; which is commonly the cafe of populous cities in profperity. This had been Feru/alem’s cafe, but now it was otherwife: zhy flain men are not flain with the fword, nor dead in battel; for Sennacherid never entered into it, nor put any of its inhabitants to the fword; nor was there any battel fought between them, nor was he fuffered fo much as to fhoot an arrow into it, Jf xxxvii. 33. wherefore thofe that died in it, died either thro’ the fright and confternation they were put into; or thro’ the famine his army had caufed, in laying the country round about them defolate.

y¥. 3. All thy rulers are fled together, &c. Either the rulers of ‘ferufalem, civil and ecclefiaftical, that fhould have been at the head of the people; and have encouraged them, fled together to the houfetops, of to the temple and ftrong holds; or the generals and officers of their militia, one and all of them fled, as if they had done it by joint confultation and confent; or the rulers of the féveral cities of Judea, which, whem invaded by. Senunacherib, ftayed not to defend them, but left them and fled: they are bound by the archers; or, from the bow™; from ufing it; were in fuch a confternation, and under fuch a pannic, that they had no ftrength nor heart to draw the bow, but were as if they were bound, and held from it; or for fear of the bow, or the archers in the Afyrian army, and therefore fled from them, as the Tigurine verfion renders it, joining it to the preceding claufe, they fied from the bow, they are bound; or as Ben Melech, for fear of the bow, they delivered themfelves up, and were bound; fo Aben Ezra: all that are found in thee are bound together, that is, from the bow, as before; not only the princes, but the common people. Thefe claufes have led many interpreters to conclude, that this muft be underftood of the taking of the city by Nebuchadnezzar, when Zedekiah was bound in chains, and carried to Babylon,

Fer. li. 11: which have fled from far, from: the fartheft part of the land of Judea, to Ferufalem for fhelter and fafety.

y. 4. Therefore faid I, 8cc:] Not God to the miniftring angels; as Farchi,; but the prophet to thofe that were about him, his relations, friends, and acquaintance: look away from me; turn away from me, look another ways ceafe from me, let me alone; leave me to myfelf, that I may weep in fecret, take my fill of forrow, and give full vent to it: I will weep bitterly, or, 1 will be bitter, or, bitter myfelf in weeping"; it denotes the vehemence

LA CH. 113 of his grief, the greatnefs of his forrow; and the {trength of his paflion: /abour not to comfort me; make ufe of no arguments to perfuade me to lay afide my mourning; don’t be urgent and importunate with me to receive confolation, for my foul refufes to.be comforted: because of the Jpoiling of the daughter of my people; his country-men, which were as dear to him as a daughter to a tender parent, now {poiled, plundered, and made defolate by the ravages of the enemy, in many cities of ‘fudea.

W. 5. For it is a day of trouble, &c.] To Hezekiah, and alfo Ferufalem, and all the inhabitants of the land: and of treading down, the people of it by Sennacherib’s army, like mire in the ftreets, when their cities were taken by him: and of perplexity, by the Lord of Hofts in the valley of vifion; in Ferufalem, befieged, and threatened with defolation;. which threw the king and his nobles, and all the inhabitants, into the utmoft perplexity, confufion; and diftrefs; and all this was not merely from men, nor was it by chance, but by the permiffion and appointment of God, to humble his people for their fins, and bring them to a fenfe and acknowledgment of them: breaking down the wails, of the fenced cities, with their battering rams, at the time they befieged and took them, 2 Kings xviii. 13: and of crying to the mountains, looking and running to them for help and fuccour, for fhelter and protection; and crying fo loud, by reafon of their diftrefs, as that it reached the diftant mountains, and made them eccho with it.

¥.6. And Elam bare the quiver with chariots of men, and horfemen, &c.| Or the Elamites, as the Targum and Septuagint, that is, the Pexfians, who were at this time fubject to the Afjrians, and ferved in Sennacheril’s army, which confifted of many nations; fee chap. xxix. 7. thefe bore the quiver, a cafe for arrows, being expert in the ufe of the bow, which was the chief of their might, Yer. xlix. 35. and fo Strabo © reports, that the E/amites had many archers dmong them; and along with them went chariots of men, full of men, of military men; thefé were chariots for war, and brought men to fight againtt Ferufalem; and horfemen alfo, thefe were the cavalry; as thofe that carried bows and arrows feem to be the foot-foldiers: The Targum is, ‘ and the ‘¢ Elamites bore arms in the chariot of a man, and ‘¢ with it.a couple of horfemen;” as in the vifion or prophecy concerning Babylon, chap. xxi. 7, 9: Kir uncovered the fhield, this was a city in Media, and fignifies the Medes, who were in fubjection te the Afyrians, and fought under them; fee 2 Kings xvi. g. tho’ Ben Melech fays, it was a city belonging to the king of Afyria, thefe prepared for battel, uncafed their fhields, which before were covered to keep them clean, and preferve them from ruft and dirt; or they polifhed them, made them bright, as the word in the Ethiopic language fignifies; as De Dieu has obferved; fee ch. xxi. 5. thefe might be moft expert in the ufe of the fhield and fword, as the others-were at the bow and arrow. Some render. Kir a wall; fo the Targum, ‘* and to the «¢ wall the fhields ftuck;” and the Vulgate Latin. verfion, the fhield made bare the wall; but it is bett to underftand it as the proper name of a place.

y¥.7. And it foall come to pafs, that thy choiceft valleys, 8c.| The valleys that were near Ferufalem, that ufed to be covered with the choiceft i¥4 corn or vines, or with grafs and flocks of fheep, and ufed to be exceeding delightful and pleafant: foall be full of chariots, where they can be more eafily driven than on mountains; thefe were chariots not for pleafure, but for war; chariots full of foldiers, to fight againft and befiege Ferufalem: and the borfemen fhall fet themfelves in array at the gate; to take them that come out of the city, and to force their way into it; as well as to protect and defend the foot, whilft they made the affault, and fcaled the walls, and to be ready when the gates were opened to them. ‘ y¥. 8. And he difcovered the covering of Fudah, &c.] Either God himfelf, who uncloaked them of their hypocrify, as Dr. Lightfoot, or took away his power and prefence from them, and his protection of them, and difcovered their weaknefs; or rather the enemy Sennacherid: and then, by the covering is meant, not Ferufalem, nor the temple, as Farchi and Kimchi, for neither of them came into his hands; but the fenced cities of Fudah, which wete the ftrength and protection of the country; thefe he took and difmantled, 2 Kings xviii. 13. and when this was done, it was high time for the Fews at Ferufalem to look about them, and provide for their defence and fafety: and thou didjt look in that day to the armour of the houfe of the foreft, to fee what ftore’of armour they had, in what condition it was, and to take from hence, and furnifh themfelves and foldiers with it, to annoy the enemy, and defend themfelves. This houfe of the foreft, is the fame with the houfe of the foreft of Lebanon; fo called, not becaufe built in it, for it was in erufalem, but becaufe it was built of the wood of Lebanon; or becaufe it was furrounded with ‘trees, and had walks and groves belonging to it, refembling that foreft. ‘This was an armoury; here Sofomon put his two hundred targets, and three hundred ‘fhields of beaten gold, 1 Kings vii. 2. and x. 16, 17. ‘fee alfo Cant. iv. 4.

¥. 9. Ye have feen alfo the: breaches of the city of David, that they are many, &c.| Not Ferufalem in general, but that part of it which ‘was called the {trong hold of Zion, and in “particular had the name of the city of David, 2-Sam. v: 7. the fortifications of which, \in times of peace, had gone to decay; and which ‘they had {een before, but took no notice of, being in fafety; but ‘now’ befieged,.and in great danger, they looked upon them in good earneft, in order to\repair them, and fecure themfelves from thevirruption of the enemy; for this is not to be underftood of breaches now made by the Afprian army,‘ but of old ones,.which had lain neglected; fee '2° Chron. xxxii. 5: and ye gathered together the waters of ‘the lower pool; not to make morter with, to be ufed in repairing the breaches, as Kimchi; -but either that they might be as a wall round about: the\place, as Aben Ezra, or rather to deprive.the enemy of them, and cut off aj] communications from ‘him, and‘ to- fupply the inhabitants of the city with them;*fee 2 Chron. Xxx.’ 3, 4. The Septuagint verfion is, and be turned the water of the old pool into the city; but the old pool was another pool hereafter mentioned, and-was without the city, the fame’ with the upper pool; whereas this was the lower, and was in the city. The Targum is, **and ye gathered the peo- “* ple to the waters of the: lower pool.”

¥. 10. And ye have numbered the houfes of Feru—

Salem, &c.| To know what number of men were in them, and how many could be fpared todo duty, either as watchmen or foldiers; or to know how to levy the tax, and what money they would be able to raife, to defray the charge of the de-~ fence of the city; or to fee what provifions they had, and fo make a computation how long they could hold out the fiege; or elfe to obferve what” houfes might be annoyed by the enemy, and what ftood in the way of the repair of the walls, or were proper to pull down, that with the ftones and timber of them they might make up the breaches of the wall,» and that the ftronger, as follows: and the boufes have ye broken down to for~ tify the wall either fuch as were without the wall, which had they let them ftand, would either have been deftroyed by the enemy, or have been an harbour for them; or thofe upon it, and near it within, which ftood in the way of the repair, and were eafily beat down by the enemy; or might be a means of communication between them, and fuch as were inclined to be treacherous; with the ftones and timber of which houfes, when broken down, they ftrengthened the wall, and fo ferved a better purpofe than if they had ftood.. -y. 11. Ye made alfcia ditch between the two walls, &c.] The outward and the inward; for Hezekiah not only repaired the broken wall, but he built another without, 2 Chron, xxxii. 5. and between thefe two he made a:ditch, or receptacle for water; for rain-water, as Kimchi fays; that the inhabitants might not want water during the fiege; but the end for which it was made follows: jor the water of the old pool, which being without the city, was by this means drained into this ditch or — receptacle; and fo the Ajyrians were deprived of | it, and ‘the inhabitants of Feru/alem more abundantly fupplied: this was wifely contrived to diftrefs the enemy, and to enable themfelves to hold out the/fiege the longer; and for this and other methods they took, they are not blamed, but for ‘what follows: but ye have not looked unto the maker thereof; either of the diftrefs and calamity which came upon them for their fins, with the will, and by the decree of God; or of the water of the pool, which is.a creature of his; for:who can give rain or water ‘but himfelf?.or rather of -the city of Ferufalem, to build which he ftirred up perions, and affifted them in it, and which he chofe for the:feat of his habitation and worfhip: neither had refpe unto him that fafbioned it long ago, not in his own mind from eternity, which is the Glofs of the Fewi/h Rabbins’; Ferufalem being one of the feven things, which, before the world was, came. into ‘the mind of God to create; but in time, many years ago, in:the times of David, who

‘built: fome part of it; and before, it being the ancient city of Salem. Now this was their fault, that'they trufted in their warlike preparations, and prudential care and caution for the ies of themfelves, and looked not unto, nor trufted in the

‘Lord their God; for though Hezekiah did, yet many of his people did not; and very probably his principal courtiers and officers about him, concerned in the above methods, and particularly Shebua hereafter mentioned. L, cepa

y. 12. And in that day did the Lord God of bofts,

fieged by the Affyrian army; and-when the people A were fo much concerned, and fo careful for their — deferice and prefervation; then did the Lord, calf;

to weeping and to mourning; to confels and: mourn. (F300 J

(ol Se ae een) ene Oey ae GY aa 2 A over their fins, the caufe of thefe calamities } to Jament their unhappy cafe; to humble themfelves under the mighty hand of God, and by prayer and fupplication with tears, to implore ‘his help and * affitance, and grant them deliverance; this the Lord called them unto by the voice of his providence, by the afflictive difpenfations of it, and alfo by his prophets, whom he fent unto them, particularly the prophet J/eiah; fo the Targum, “ and the pro- “< phet of the Lord God of hofts called in that day, “© &c: and to baldnefs, and to girding with fackcloth; which were external fiens and tokens of inward forrow and repentance; the former of which was done by fhaving the head, or plucking off the hair, and was forbidden on private occafions, yet might be allowed in a publick cafe; fee Mic. i. 16. Fer. xvi. 6. - ¥. 13. Bebold joy and gladnefs, &c.] As if it was a time of rejoicing, rather than of weeping and mourning; and as if they were at a feftival, and in the greateft profperity and liberty, and not befieged by a powerful army: flaying oxen, and killing jbeep; not for facrifice, to make atonement for fin, as typical of the great facrifice; but to eat, and that not as at ordinary meals, or merely for the fupport of life, but as at feafts, where, as there was great plenty, fo luxury and intemperance were indulged; juft as Belhazzar did, at the fame time that Babylon was befet by the army of the Medes and Perfians, Dan. v. 1,30. fo the ews here, having taken the armour out of the treafury, and furnifhed the foldiers with them, and took care of provifions of bread and water, and having repaired and fortified the walls of the city; thought themfelves fecure, and gave up themfelves to feafting, mirth, and pleafure; faying, vet us eat and drink, for tomorrow we fhall die; which they faid, not as believirig their cafe to be defperate; that the next day, ‘or in a few days, their city;would be taken by the Affjrians, and they fhould be put to the fword,. and therefore fince they had but a ‘fhort life to, live, they would live a merry-one; but rather, as| not believing ‘it, but feoffing at the prophet, and at the word of the’ Lord by him; as if they fhould! fay, the prophet fays, we fhall die to-morrow, or, we are in great danger of being fuddenly deftroy-| ed; but let us not, be difmayed at fuch words, and to fhew that we don’t. believe them, or if this is our. cafe, let us take our fill of pleafure, whilft we may have it. This is the language of Epzcures, and of fuch that difbelieve the refurrection of the, dead, and a future ftate, to'whom the apoftle ap-| plies the words in 1 Cor, xv. 32. ‘ ee y. 14. And it was revealed in my ears by the; Lord of hofts, &c.| Both what they faid in the; preceding verfe, their prophane, impious, and fcoffing language;- which perhaps, was not exprefied by, words, but {aid in their hearts, and which God the, ‘fearcher of hearts knew, and revealed it to the pro-; phet; and alfo what/he determined to-do upon’ ‘this, which is afterwards faid, «which: being’ a pur- ‘pate within himfelf, could not ‘be known withou ‘a divine revelation; fo the Targum, ** the prophet * faid, with mine ears'I was hearing, when, this “*wwas decreed from’ before the Lord of hofts 5” ‘namely, that their iniquity fhould not be. forgiven:. the Vulgate Latin verfion is, the voice of the Lord of hofts is revealed in mine ears; faying what, is, ex- iI 5 preffed in the hext claufe: but the Sepiwagint, Syriac, and Arabic verfions,’ underftand it of the ears of the Lord of hofts himfelf: and Aden Ezra thinks the word ani or J is wanting, and fo Kimchi; and that the words fhould be rendered thus, #¢ was revealed in mine ears, 1am the Lord of bofts: and fo it is by fome others, it was revealed in the ears of me, the Lord of bofts4, or, of the Lord of hofts; the wickednefs, prophanenefs, and luxury of the peo-_ ple; the cry of their fins came up into the eats of the Lord of hofts, and therefore he determined to do what he next declares: furely this iniquity hall not be purged from you till ye dies it being of fuch a heinous nature, {o daring, infolent, and affronting, fuch a contempt of God and his word; and difcovering fuch impenitence and hardnefs of heart; it fhould not be expiated by any facrifice whatever; not by the day of atonement, nor death itfelf, as the Fews from hence fancy; in fhort, it fhould not be forgiven, neither in this world, nor in that to come; for if not till they died, then not after; where there is no repentance, nor remiffion; fee Matt. xii. 32. the words are in the form of an oath; if this iniquity be purged, or expiated, (Sc *. the Lord {wears to it, that it never fhould be pardoned, but they fhould die in it; as a corporal, fo an eternal death. The Yargum interprets it of the fecond, death; that is, as Kimchi explains it, the death of the foul in the world to come; fee Rev. xxi. 8:

faith the Lord God of bofts; and therefore this would certainly be the cafe; for his word and oath are his two immutable things, in which it is impoffible for him to lie.

¥. 15. Thus faith the Lord God of hofts, go, 8&c.} Thefe words are fpoken to the prophet, ‘bidding him go to Shebna’s houfe; fo the Arabic verfion, go to the houfe; or however, by fome means or other let him know, that he fhould be difplaced; and turned out of his office, and another put in his room: get thee unto this treafurer; ot governor, as the Targum; treafurer in’ the houfe of king Hezekiah, as Kimchi: the word has the fignification of profit; and Yarchi, from the Talmud *; calls him mafter of the profits; that is; of the profits and revenues belonging to the king; though, perhaps, he fought more his own profit and advantage than the king’s.: it has alfo the fignification of danger, and fo may be rendered; this dangerous man to the king and ftate, The Fews fay ', he entered into con{piracy with fome others in Ferufalem, to deliver up the city and king into the hands of. Sennacherib. It is alfo ufed for a cherifher or nourifher, 1 Kings i. 2. and may be underftood of him, as a cherifher and encourager of the fcoffers before-mentioned, and a fomenter_of fecret confpitacies againft the king and the city. Some render it; this Socbenite; fo called from the. place of his birth, or from whence he came; and: the ews"

fay, he came from Sochen, a place in Egypt; and “he feems by what follows to have Leen a foreigner, and not an inhabitant of Feru/alem; nor is it likely t| that ‘he fhould be twice defcribed’ by his office: “even unto Shebna, which is over the houfe, that iss over the king’s houfe, fo Kimchi; the fteward, that

‘had thé ordering of all affairs civil and domeftic in ity which was a very high poft; he -had the keys of the.money, ftores, and provifions in it fee.¥. 22, The Vulgate Latin verfion. calls pm

Se sgt pep agy, et revelabitur in auribus meis Domini exercituum, -Montanus;.et revelatum in auribus Domini, &c?

the governor of the temple; fo Farchi underftands it, that he was over the houfe of the fanctuary, the temple; fome Fewi/h writers fay, he was an high-prieft; and others, that he was an Amarcal™, which was a name of office in the temple, a governor there, that had the keys of the ftores in it: and fay, this is not in the text, but is fupplied; the meffage to him follows.

y¥. 16. What haft thou bere? &c.] In the king’s houfe, or in Ferufalem, what bufinefs haft thou here? thou art unworthy of fuch an office, nor fhalt thou long continue in it; what inheritance haft thou here? thou art an alien from the commonwealth of J/rae/, and haft no eftate or poffeffion in the land: and whom hajt thou here? of thy family and kindred; what anceftors haft thou? where did they live or die, and were buried? what children haft thou to fucceed thee in honour and eftate? or what relations to be interred, when deceafed, in thy grave, that thou haft made fuch a provifion, as follows? and it may be obferved, that wherever he is fpoken of, the name of his father is never mentioned. ben Ezra’s glofs is, who haft thou here of thy family that can help thee? his fall and ruin being at hand: shat thou haft hewed thee out a fepulchre here, in the city of Ferufalem, or near it; the Jews fay *, among the fepulchres of the kings of the houfe of David; as if he thought to live and die here, and fo had provided a fepulchre for himfelf and family, to lie in great pomp and fplendor, like the kings and princes of the earth: as he that heweth bim out a Sepulchre on high, and that graveth an habitation for himfelf in a rock; where fepulchres, as well as palaces, ufed to be built; fee Matt. xxvii. 60. and great men, efpecially the Egyptians, ufed to build fepulchres like to palaces; tho’ it may be obferved, that the word as, is not in the text; and the words may be underftood of Shebna’s hewing out a fepulchre in fome high place near Ferufalem, and building a fine houfe upon a rock there; and which may defign either one and. the fame thing, a grave or fepulchre being called a houfe, Fob xxx. 23, 24. or two different things, a fepulchre to be buried in when dead, and a palace to dwell in while living; and fo the words may be rendered thus ¥, O he that heweth himfelf, &c. O be that graveth an babitation, &c. fo the Syriac verfion, O thou that heweft thy fepulchre on high, &c.

¥. 17. Bebold, the Lord will carry thee away with a mighty captivity, &c.] Or with the captivity of a man; fo the,Zargum, of a mighty man, Sennachevib king of Affyria; who, as the Fews fay *, when he went from Yerufalem, upon the rumour of Jirhakah king of Ethiopia coming againft him, carried away Shebua and his company, as with an inundation: or as a man is carried captive, whofe Captivity is harder, and more fevere and cruel than a woman’s, as the Raddins + obferve; a woman finding more mercy in captivity ufually than a man does. Some of the Yewé/h writers render the word Geber a cock, as they do elfewhere; and glofs it, as 4 cock is carried away, and goes -from place to place >; and fo the Vulgate Latin verfion, ‘‘. be- “* hold, the Lord fhall caufe thee to be carried

“< away, as a cock is carried away;” but it feems beft with Aben Ezra and Kimchi, to read the word man in the vocative cafe; the Lord will carry thee as thou art in office, in power, in riches, God fhall carry thee away with the greateft eafe imaginable: and will furely cover thee; or, in covering cover thee; with confufion, as the Targum. archi fays, the word has the fignification of flying; and fo interprets it, he fhall caufe thee to fly like a bird:into captivity; that is, very fpeedily and fwiftly. The Rabbins gather from hence, that Shebna was flruck with leprofy, becaufe the leper was obliged to put a covering upon his upper lip; and this fenfe is embraced by Grotius; but the allufion feems to be to perfons in difgrace, or condemned to die, whofe faces ufed to be covered, E/th. vii. 8. Fob ix. 24. ¥. 18. He will furely violently turn and tofs thee,

&c.] Or, wrapping, be will wrap thee with a wrapping; as any thing is wrapped up clofe and round, either to be more commodioufly carried, or more eafily toffed: or, rolling he will roll thee with a rolling“; that is, roll thee over and over again, till brought to a place appointed: like a dail into a large country; where there is nothing to ftop it; and being caft with a ftrong hand, runs a great way, and with prodigious iwiftnefs; and fignifies, that Shebua’s captivity was inevitable, which he could not efcape; that he was no more in the hands of the Lord, than a ball in the hands of a ftrong man; and could as eafily, and would be, hurled out of his place, into a diftant country, as a ball well wrapt, could be thrown at a great diftance by a ftrong arm; and that this his captivity would _ be fwift and fudden; and ‘that he fhould be ecarried into a large country, and at a diftance. Farchi fays Cafiphia*, a place mentioned in Ezra viii, 17. Aben Ezra interprets it of Babylon, which feems likely. here fhalt thou die; in that large and diftant country; and not at Ferufalem, where he had built a magnificent fepulchre for himfelf and family: and there the chariots of thy glory; thall ceafe and be no more; he fhould not have them along with him to ride in pomp and ftate, and to fhew his glory and grandeur, as he had done in Ferufalem. Ne connect this with the following claufe, and fupply it thus, fhall be the fhame of thy Lord’s houfe; as if the chariots and coaches of ftate he had rode in, were to the reproach of the king his mafter; who had made fuch an ill choice of a fteward of his houfe, or prime minifter of ftate, and had advanced fuch a worthlefs creature to fuch a dignity; but it may be better fupplied thus, without being fo ftriétly connected with the other claufe, and which is more agreeable to the accents, O thou, the fhame of thy Lord’s houfe’; a difgrace and difhonour to 4haz, who perhaps put him in his office; and to Hezekiah, that continued him in it. The Hews fay, he was brought to a very fhameful end; they fay *, that when he went out of the city of Ferufalem, in order to deliver Hezekiah’s forces into the hands of the enemy, Gabriel fhut the gate before his army; to whom the enemy faid, where’s thy army? he replied, they are turned back; fay they, thou haft mocked us: Tae tery 3 2a

2 P™IDIS Wy *\\JN,_cidarizando cidarizabit te cidari, Forerius; as the priefts linen mitre, Lev. xvis 4. which was ped about his head, fo Ben Melech; or any turbant, fuch as were ufed in the eaftern countries; fi rolled ap like this, or any fuch-like round thing, and carried away.: O. 3. Ratt ma np, tu, O dedecus domus domini tui, Tigurine verfion; O ignominia, &c. Junius & Tremaliae Pifcator.

they bored his heels, and faftened him to the tails of horfes, and drew him upon thorns and briers. So fays Kimchi, inftead of chariots of glory, he thought they would give him, they put him to fhame, binding him to the tails of horfes.

¥. 19. And I will drive thee from thy flation, &c.] Or thou fhalt be driven from it, according to my word; this is faid by the prophet, and expreffes his being degraded from his office by the king, according to the will of God: and from thy flate foall he pull thee down, either the king his matter, or the Lord, who, by his providence, would fo order it, that it fhould be: the phrafes exprefs indignation and force, and an entire removal of him from ail offices in the king’s houfe or government; for it does not at all feem likely, what is commonly. fugeefted, that he was removed frotn his office of treafurer, or fteward of the king’s houfe, and put into a lower office, and made a {cribe, as he is called, ch. xxxvii. 2. befides, the words preceding fhew, that he fhould be. carried captive into another land..

¥. 20. And it fhall come to pafs in that day, &c.] At the fame time that Shebua was depofed from his high ftation: shat I will call my fervant Eliakim, the fon of Hilkiah; whom Kimchi thinks was the fame with Azarizh the fon of Ailkiah, who might have two names, and was a ruler over the houfe of God in the times of Hezekiah, 1 Chron. vi. 13. 2 Chron. xxxi. 13.. this man, by the charaéter given him, was a good man, a faithful, diligent, and conftant fervant of the Lord, and therefore he delighted to raife him to great honour and dignity: he did not feek great things for himfelf, nor did he thruft himfelf into the office, but the Lord called him to it in his providence, and put him into it; he did, as Kimchi obferves, put it into the heart. of Hezekiah to appoint him governor in the room of Shebna. This man was a type of Chrift; his name agrees with him, which fignifies, my God will raife up; that is, the dead by him, 1 Cor. vi. 14. and fo does-the chara¢ter of a fervant, frequently given to Chrift’

y. 21. And I will clothe him with thy robe, &c.] The fame he wore, or rather one like unto it, which was a badge and token of his office. If he was a prieft, as the Fews fay, this was his prieftly robe, by which the high-prieft was diftinguifhed from others; but he rather feems to be a civil officer, who wore a garment. fuitable to it, and djftinétive of it; in which he was a type of Chrift, inveited with the prieftly, or rather with the kingly office, crowned with glory and honour; and who is feen among his.churches, clothed with a garment down to the feet, Rev. i. 13: and firengthen him with thy girdle, which was a fymbol, both of power and of ftrength; both priefts and princes had their girdles. Chrift’s girdle,-in the admini- {tration of his office, is faithfulnefs and righteoufnefs, J xi. 5: and I will commit thy government into bis band, the government of the king’s houfe, typical of the government of the church, put into the hands of Chrift by his Father, J/. ix.. 6, 7. ‘obn v. 22, 23: and be fhall be a father to the in- sbitants of Ferufalem, and to the houfe of ‘fudab, have a fatherly care over them, and affection for them; and fuch an one is Chrift, who ftands in the relation of the everlafting Father to his church and se and of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named; he provides for them, takes care of them, is tenderly affeCted towards them, Pities and fympathizes with them, and affords them all fupply and fupport. Kimchi interprets it of a faithful counfellor, and a good ledder: So Ben Melech.

¥. 22. And the key of the houfé of David will I lay upon bis fboulder, &c.] In allufion either to magiftrates carrying a key on their fhoulder, hanging down from thence, having a hook at one end of it fit for that purpofeé; or having one embroidered on that part of their garment; or one carried before them by their fervants. It regards either the keys of the temple; or rather the key ~ of the king’s houfe, which it was proper fhould be delivered to him as treafurer and fteward of it; the Targum takes in both, “ and I will give the “* key of the houfe of the fanctuary, and the go- ** vernment of the houfe of David, into his hand.” In the myftical fenfe, Chrift is faid to have this key, Rev. iii. 7. where the following words are applied to him: fo be fhall open, and none foall fout; and be foall fut, and none Jhall open; all which is expreflive of the government of the church being on his fhouldérs, and of his abfolute and uncontroulable power over it; who opens the treafures of his word, of his grace, and of wifdom and Knowledge, and communicates them unto, and fhuts or hides them from, whom he pleafes; who opens and fhuts the doors of his church, his houfe, and lets in, and keeps out, whom he thinks fit; and who alfo opens and fhuts the door of the kingdom of heaven, and introduces into it his own people, and excludes others.

¥. 23. And Iwill fafien him as a nail in a fure place, &c.] In a ftrong part of the wall or timber, where it fhall not fail, or be removed, or cut down, and fo let drop what is hung upon it: it denotes the ftability and continuance of his government, and of the ftrength and fupport he fhould be. of unto others; and well agrees with Chrift his antitype; fee Zech. x. 4. and is expreffive of the ftrength of Chrift, as the mighty God; and as the man of God’s right hand, made ftrong for himfelf; and as the able Saviour, and mighty Redeemer; and of the ftability of his perfon, he. is unchangeable, the fame to-day, yefterday, and for ever; and of his office, as mediator, head, and furety of the covenant; whofe priefthood pafiés not from one to another, and whofe kingdom is an everlafting one, and his truths and ordinances unfhaken, and immoveable: the fure place in which he is fixed, is both his church, where he is the everlafting head, hufband, and Saviour of it; and heaven, where he is, and will be retained, until the time of the reftitution of all things: and he frail be for a glorious throne to his father’s houfe; or make the throne of his father’s houfe glorious, Eliakim being, as fome have thought, of the blood royal; or he fhould be an honour and credit, to his father’s houfe, by his wife and faithful adminiftration of the government committed to him. Chrift is the brightnefs of his Father’s glory; and to them that believe, he is an honour; he is on a glorious throne himfelf, and he’ll bring all his Father’s family to fit with him on the fame throne, 1 Sam, ii. 8. Rev. iii. 21.

y. 24. And they fhall hang upon him all the glory of his father’s boufe, &c.] Which fhows the reafon of his being compared to a nail; not to one that faftens pieces of timber together, or to a nail or {take drove in the ground, to which the cords of tents are fa(tened, but to 2 nail in a wall, on which things are hung: and the meaning is, that all of his father’s family would be dependent upon ‘him, be fupported by him, ‘and receive honour and glory from him: and which alfo is true of Chrift the antitype; the glory of building his father’s houfe, the church, and of faving it, and of making of it glorious, belongs to him, and is given to him; it is put upon him, and it is vifible on him, and it is weighty, and will continue: the offspring and the iffite; all the defcendents of his father’s family, fons and daughters, children and grandchildren; fo the Targum, “ and all the glorious or noble ‘¢ ones of his father’s houfe fhall lean upon him, “6 children, and children’s children:” fo all the children of God, and who are alfo Chrift’s {piritual feed and offspring, thefe depend upon him for grace, and all the fupplies of it; they boaft in him for righteoufnefs and ftrength, and rely upon him for life and falvation: all veffels of fmall quantity’; from the vefféls of cups, even to all the veffels of flagons; meaning thofe of his family, that were fome of leffer, others of greater capacities, for whom he provided places and pofts under him, fuitable thereunto; none were forgotten or neglected by him: this fimile, of veffels of various forts and fizes, is made ufe of, in perfect agreement with Eliakim’s being compared to a nail, on which veffels in a houfe are hung by their handles. The Targum is, ‘* from young men to little ones; “* from the priefts clothed with the epbod, to the “¢ Levites that held the pfalteries.” In the typical fenfe, it is to be underftood of the veffels of mercy; fome of which are larger, and others leffer; fome capable of receiving more grace and larger gifts, and others lefs; to whom Chrift communicates, and whom he fills, according to their capacities; all whofe wants he fupplies, and whofe perfons he fupports; he fills them with his grace, and he fits bis chapter gives an account, both of the defolation and reftoration of Tyre, an ancient city in Phenicia, Its defolation is defcribed as fo compleat, that a houfe was not left in it, y. 1. and by the fewnefs and. ftilnefs of the inhabitants of it, with which it had been replenifhed, it having been a mart of nations, ¥. 2, 3. and by the fhame and- pain, Zidon, a neighbouring city, was put into, on account of it, ¥. 4, 5. and by the removal of its inhabitants to other places, y. 6, 7, 12. all which is attributed to the counfel, purpofe, and commandment of God, to deftroy it; whofe view was to ftain their pride, and bring them into contempt, ¥. 8, 9, 10, 11. the means and inftruments made ufe of to this purpofe, were the 4/prians or Chaldeans, ¥. 13. and its defolation is further aggravated, by the lofs of its trade; hence the merchants of other countries are called to mourning, ¥. 1, 14. the date and duration of this defolation were 70 years, y. 45. after which it fhould be reftored, and its merchandize and commerce;~with all the nations of the earth, be revived again, ¥. 15, 16, 17, 18.

¥. 1. The burden of Tyre, 8&c.] Ora prophecy concerning the deftruction of it. The Targum is, *« the burden of the cup of curfing, to give Tyre ye foips of Tarfoifh; not of Carthage, as the’ Se gint verfion; but of Tarteffus in Spain, which with Tyre, and from whence the Phanicians are interpret it Tarfus, a fea-port in Cilicia, which Tay nearer to Tyre, the fame place the apoftle Pani was

‘the fea, as it fometimes is, and as the Targum ai

21.: | y¥. 25. In that day, faith the Lord of bofts, &ev} That Shebna is depofed, and Eliakim put in’ his

| place: jhall the nail that is faftened in the fure place,

be removed, and be cut down, and fall, meaning;

not Eliakim before fpoken of, who really was’a — nail faftened in a fure place, and not to be ‘ré= moved; but Shebua, who thought himfelf to be as a nail in a fure place, being put into it by ‘the king, and fupported by his authority, and courted by his friends and flatterers; for to him the whole preceding prophecy is directed, which is carried down to this verfe; for all that is faid of the glory and ufefulnefs of his fucceflor Eliakim, was to b told to him, which would make it ftill the more grievous to him, to be degraded and difgraced as he would be, fignified by his being removed, caft down, and falling: and the burden that was upon it foall be cut off, thofe that were dependent upon him, his family, his flatterers, and friends, fuch whom he had raifed by his influence and authority to. confiderable places, and whom he fupported in them; thefe would fall with him, as is ufual when a royal favourite, or prime minifter of ftateé falls into difgrace, and is removed; an inftance of this may be feen in Haman, whofe family and friends were involved in the fame ruin with him, Efth, ix, 12, 13, 14. and it may be obferved, that many dependents, which a minifter of ftate always’ has, are a burden to him. The Yargum interprets’ this of the burden of prophecy; and Yarchi fays, that fome explain it thus, “* the prophecy, ‘which

“« firmed;” as follows: for the Lord hath fpoken it; and therefore it fhall come to pafs; ** for,” as” the Targum, “ fo it is decreed by the word of the” “Lord.”, ti

“ to drink.” This was a famous city in Phoenicia, which exceeded in renown and grandeur all the cities of Syria and Phenicia*, and was much known for its trade and navigation, for which it was well fituated by the fea; and indeed new Tyre ftood in it, about four furlongs diftant from the fhore, be-’ fore it was joined to the continent by Alexander the Great: but this feems to be old Tyre, and was” upon the continent, which was built by the Phenicians before the Trojan war', and 240 years before the temple of Solomon *. It had its name 99¥ Tzur, in the Hebrew language, from whence it is_ called Tyre, from the rock on which it was built, that word fo fignifying. It is written here without _ a vau; and it is a rule with the ews ', that whenever this word is written full, with all its 1 = it is to be underftood of the city of Tyre; but if wanting, it defigns Rome; and Cocceius inte the whole prophecy of the antichriftian city. 1 a ac}! d to have large quantities of gold and filver, of, Afs xxii. 3. though by Tarfbifh may be me:

Jerchi here interpret it, and fo defigns fhips in, general; or, as the Targum, thofe that go down in the fhips of the fea; or all forts of perfons, from every quarter, that failed in fhips to Tyre, and traded with it; thefe are now called to mourning and lamentation, becaufe their commerce with it was now over: for it is laid wafte; not Larfhifh, but Tyre;

and this was done, not by Salmanefer king of Ajjyria, who. indeed befieged it for the fpace of five years, but took it not; the Zyrians with twelve fail icattered his fleet, and took five hundred of his imen, this was when Eluleus was king of Zyre™; nor..by Alexander the Great; for tho’ it was befieged and taken by him, yet before his time it had been befieged by Nebuchadnezzar thirteen years, and at laft was taken by him, when Jthodalus was king of it": and this feems rather intended here, fince feventy years after this it was to be reftored again, which beft accords with thofe times, as will be feen hereatter: fo that there is no boufe, no entering in; no port or haven open to go in at, no fhops to vend their goods in, no warehoufes to lay them up in, nor inns to lodge at, as well as no private houfes for the inhabitants to dwell in, all being deftroyed by the enemy: from the land of Chittim it is revealed to them; Chittim was one of the fons of Favan, as was alfo Tarfhifh, by whom the ifles of the Gentiles were divided, Gen. x. 4, 5. from whom the Joniqns or Grecians defcended; fo that Chittim feems to defign fome part of Greece, or ifles belonging to it. The Macedonians are called by this name; and Alewander the Macedonian is faid to come out of the land of Chittim, 1 Maccab. i. 1. and viii. 5. hence fome think he is defigned here, and the deftruction of Zyre by him; and the words may be rendered, from the land of Chittim he is revealed, or appears unto thems that is, as Farchi gloffes it, the deftroyer to the’ men of Tyre, tho’ he by Chittim underftands the Cuthites. Fofephus fays °, Chittim the fon of Javan poffefled the ifland Chethima, now called Cyprus, and from hence all iflands, and moft maritime places, are called Chittim by the Hebrews, and obferves, that one of the cities of Cyprus is called Citium. And in the lamentation for Tyre, Ezek. xxvii. 6. we read of the ifles of Chittim; by which are meant perhaps the ifles in the A#gean and Jonian feas, who traded with Tyre, and from thefe firft came the tidings of Tyre’s deftruction to the fhips or merchants of Tar/bifh; which agrees with a Hebrew expofition mentioned by Farchi, “ from the land of Chittim is revealed “* to the men of Tarfhifh the deftruction of Tyre; “¢ for the inhabitants of Tyre fled to Chittim, and “* from thence the rumour was heard.” The fenfe which R. Fofeph Kimchi gives of the paflage, as his fon David relates, is this, ** Chittim were merchants “¢ that went to Babylon, and told them that they “¢ might go to Tyre, and would be able to take “¢ jt, and they would *help them, and carry them ‘¢ there by fea.’? But it feemis more likely, that thofe trading people, by goirig from one’ country to another, got knowledge of the defign of the Babylonians againit Tyre, and acquainted that city with it. Some join the words, from the land of Chittim, to the preceding, thus, o entering in from the land of Chittim, it is revealed, or made known; that is, it is fome way or other made known to the merchants of. Chittim ’, that there is no entrance into Tyre, the city being laid. wafte, and its port ruined, fo that it is in vain for them to fend their

A, £71. Lig fhips; to which the Septuagint in fome meafure agrees, ‘* becaufe it perifhes, aud there are none “ come from the land of Ghittim,. it is carried “< captive.” The Targum iss ‘* they fhall come “* from the land of Chittim againft them 3”? which feems to favour the firft fenfe.

W. 2. Be fiill ye inbabitants of the ifle, 8&c. Eiz

‘ther the ifles of Céitzim, or other iflands that traded with Tyre, the fingular being put for the plural, called upon to grieve and mourn, becaufe the city of their merchandife was deftroyed; as Kimchi; of of Tyre ittelf; which being fituated at fome diftance from the fhore, was an ifland itfelf, until it was joined to the continent by Alexander 2; and even old Yyre might be fo called; it being ufual. ia {cripture to call places by the fea-fhore; ifles; and befides, old Zyre included in it new Tyre, the ifland; as Pliny ' fuggefts; who are inftruéted to be filent as mourners, and to ceaie from the hurries of bufinefs, which they would be obliged to; and not boaft of their power and wealth; as they had formerly done, or attempt. to defend. themfelves, which would be in vain: thou whom the merchanis of Zidon, that pafs over the fea, have. replenifhed; Zidon was a very ancient city of Phenicia, more ancient than Zyre; for Lyre was a colony of the Zidonians, and built by them, and fo might be faid to be replenifhed by them with men from the firft, as it alfo was with mariners, Ezek. xxvii. 8; and likewife with merchants and wares, they being a trading and fea-faring people; wherefore they are fpoken of as merchants, and as paffing over the fea: or this may be underftood of the ifles replenifhed with goods by the merchants of Tyre and Zidon, but now no more, and therefore called to mourning. wes

¥. 3. And by great waters the feed of Sibors 8c.) Sibor is the river Nile in Egypt, it had its namie from the black colour of its waters, as in Fer. ik 18. hence called by the Greeks Melas, and by the Latines Melo: the feed of it intends what was fowft and: grew upon the banks of it, or was nourifhed by the overflow of this river throughout. the land, and. includes corn, flax, paper, &e.: with whielr Egypt abounded; and when this is faid to be dy great waters, the meaning either is, that it gréw

| by great waters, the waters of the Ni/e; and thro”

the influence of them; or that it cafhe by great waters to Tyre; that is, by the waters, of the fea, the Mediterranean fea: _ the harveft. of the river is ber revenue; this claufe is the fame with the former, and ferves to explain it; the river is the river Nile, the harveft is the feed that was fown and grew by it, and which at the proper feafon, when ripe, was gathered from it, and carried in thips to Tyre, with which that city was fupplied and enriched, as if it had been its own produce: and joeis a mart of nations;. Tyre was a: city to which all nations traded, it was a mart for them all, and where they brought their wares to fell, and always found a market for them, here they had vent. The 27th chapter of Ezekiel is a proper commentary on this claufe. atte y. 4. Be thou afbamed, O Zidon, &c.| A city near to Zyre, about two hundred furlongs, diftant from it; Farchi fays it was within a day’s walk of it; thefe two cities, as they were near to each other, fo they were clofely allied together, and traded much with one another, fo that the fall of Tyre muft be diftrefling and confounding to Zidon; and Wf. §.:22:- and befides, Tyre was 4 colony of the Zidonians, and therefore, y’. 12. is called the daughter of Zidon, and could not but be affected with its ruin, and the more, as it might fear the fame would foon be its cafe: for the fea hath [poken which wafhed the city of Zyre; or thofe that failed in its or rather Tyre itfelf, fo called, becaufe its fituation was by the fea, the ifland was encompafled with it: even the firength of the fea, which was enriched by what was brought by fea to it, and was ftrengthened by it, being furrounded with the waters of it as with a wall, and had the fovereignty over it: Saying, I travail not, nor bring forth children, neither do I nourifh up young men, nor bring up virgins, either the fea itfelf, which now no more brought great numbers of young people to Zyre, children to be educated, young men to be inflructed in trade and bufinefs, and virgins to be given in marriage, the city being deftroyed;, or Tyre, which aid was very populous, full of children, young men and maidens, but now defolate; and which formerly fent out colonies abroad, and was a mother-city to many, as Pliny fays*; it was famous for the birth of many cities, as Lepti, Utica, Carthage, and Gades or Cales; but now it was all over with her. Some render it as a wifh, O that I bad never travailed, &c. and fo the Targum.

¥. 5. As at the report concerning Egypt, 8c.] Its future deftruction prophefied of, ch. xix. or what had in times paft befallen it, when the ten plagues were inflicted on it, and Pharaoh and his hoft were drowned in the red-fea; the report of which filled the neighbouring nations with fear and trembling, and put them into a pannic; fo the Targum, ** as they heard the plague with which “* the Egyptians were {mitten:” fo jhall they be forely pained at the report of Tyre, of the deftruction of that; this fhould have the like effect upon the nations round about them, efpecially fuch as traded with them, as the judgments on Egypt had upon their neighbours; for as for what was to come, the deftruction of Tyre was before the deftruétion of Egypt by Nebuchadnezzar: though fome read.the words, and they will bear to be read thus, when the report was made, or came fo the Egyptians, they will be in pain at, or according to the report of Tyre*, *¢ when it was heard in Egypt, pain fhall take them “< for Tyre;” as foon as the Egyptians heard of the taking and ruin of Tyre, they were in pain, asa woman in travail, partly fearing. their own. turn would be next, Zyre lying in the way of the Chaldeans unto them; and partly becaufe of the lofs of trade they fuftained, thro’ the deftruction of that city. In like pain will be the kings or merchants of the earth, at the deftruction of Rome, Rev. xviii. 9, 10, 15, 16, 17. and according to an expofition mentioned by Yarchi, Tyre here is Edom; that is, Rome, for that-with the ews is commonly meant by Edom. Tati & 2, 2h

¥. 6. Pafs ye over to,Larfoifh, &c.| Either to Tartefus in Spain, or to Larfus in Cilicia, which lay over-againft them, and to which they might:tranfport themfelves, families, and fubftance, with greater. eafe; or 40 4 province of the. fea, as. the Targum, any other fea-port; the Septuagint fays.to Carthage, which was a colony of the Tyrians; and hither the Affprian » hiftorians fay they. did tranfport themfelves; tho’ Kimchi thinks this is fpoken, not to. the Tyrians, but to. the merchants that traded brought unto ber inhabitants from afar, to fojou pat ARO wis 5) » See Sir Walter Raleigh’s hiftory of the world, 1. 2. ch. 7.