towards the end of the Third Year it makes up these Three Years and Six Months Iac. 5. 17. Or 2. From the time of his going to Sarepta which probably was a Year after the Famine begun See on Chap. 17. 7. and so this might be in the middle of the Third Year which also makes up the Three Years and Six Months saying Go shew thy self unto Ahab b To acquaint him with the cause of Judgment ver 18. and to advise him to remove it and upon that condition to promise him Rain and I will send rain upon the earth c According to thy Word and Prayer which thou shalt make for it Thus God takes care to maintain the Honour and Authority of his Prophet and in Judgment remembers Mercy to Israel for the sake of the Holy Seed yet left among them who suffered in this common Calamity 2 And Elijah went to shew himself unto Ahab d Wherein he shews a strong Faith and resolute Obedience and invincible Courage that he durst at God's Command run into the mouth of this raging Lion which was a degree of Martyrdom and there was a sore famine in Samaria 3 And Ahab called ‡ Heb. 〈◊〉 ahu Obadiah which was ‡ Heb. over 〈◊〉 house the governour of his house e Being valued by Ahab for his great prudence and fidelity and therefore indulged as to the worship of the Calves and Baal now Obadiah feared the LORD greatly f Quest. How could he and some other Israelites be said to fear the Lord when they did not go up to Ierusalem to Worship as God had Commanded Ans. Although they seem not to be wholly excusable in this neglect because they should have preferred Gods Service before their Worldly commodity according to the good example of the Priests and Levites and the generality of the Godly People who did so 2 Chron. 11. 13 16. yet because they Worshipped God in Spirit and Truth and performed all Moral Duties to God and their Brethren and abstained from Idolatry and being kept from Ierusalem by violence they thought necessity and the apparent hazard of their Lives would excuse them from Ceremonial Services and God bare with their infirmity herein 4 For it was so when ‡ Heb. Izebel Jezebel cut off the prophets of the LORD that Obadiah took an hundred prophets g Which name is not onely given to such as are endowed with an extraordinary Spirit of Prophecy but to such Ministers as Devoted themselves to the Service of God in Preaching Praying Praising God and the like as 1 Sam. 10. 10 11 12. and in this place compared with v. 22. where Elijah saith I onely remain a prophet of the Lord to wit strictly so called and Matth. 10. 41. 1 Cor. 12. 28 29. and 14. 29. and hid them by fifty in a cave and fed them h With the hazard of his own life and against the Kings command as wisely considering that no command of an Earthly Prince could over-rule the command of the Supreme Lord the King of kings or discharge him from those acts of Piety to God and Charity to Men which Gods Law indispensably required with bread and water i Either properly which was a great kindness in those circumstances or figuratively i. e. with meat and drink 5 And Ahab said unto Obadiah Go into the land unto all fountains of water and unto all brooks k About which Grass was most probably to be found in that great drought peradventure we may find grass to save the horses and mules alive ‡ â—…eb that we cut not off 〈◊〉 selves from the beasts that we lose not all the beasts 6 So they divided the land between them to pass throughout it Ahab went one way by himself l Not daring to trust any other Obadiah excepted lest being bribed by such as had Grass for their own use they should not give him a true account and Obadiah went another way by himself 7 ¶ And as Obadiah was in the way behold Elijah met him and he knew him and fell on his face m By this profound reverence shewing his great Respect and Love to him and said Art thou that my lord Elijah 8 And he answered him I am go tell thy lord n Ahâ—… whom though a very wicked man he owns for Obadiah's lord and King thereby instructing him that he did well in owning him as such and that the wickedness of Kings doth not exempt their Subjects from obedience to their Lawful commands Behold Elijah is here 9 And he said What have I sinned o Wherein have I so offended God and thee that thou shouldest inflict this punishment upon me and expose me to certain ruin by this means that thou wouldest deliver thy servant into the hand of Ahab to slay me 10 As the LORD thy God liveth there is no nation or kingdom p To wit near to his own where he could in reason think that Elijah had hid himself Nothing is more frequent than to understand general expressions with such limitations whither my lord hath not sent to seek thee and when they said He is not there he took an oath of the kingdom and nation that they found thee not q Not that he could force other Kingdoms to take an Oath but that by his persuasions he prevailed with the chief persons in several Kingdoms for his satisfaction to Swear that they did not know of Elijah's being among them Which was not hard for him to obtain For Ahab was a great Prince and had a great interest among the Neighbouring Kings The King of Tyre was his Father-in-law the King of Moab Tributary to him Iehoshaphat his Friend and Relation to whom the King of Edom was Tributary We read also of all the kings of Arabia and of all the Kings of the Hittites and of Syria 1 King 10. 15 29. which as they corresponded with Solomon so how far they might be Allied to or Confederate with Ahab we know not nor what Articles or Agreements were between him and them among which this might be one That they should deliver up to one another all their fugitive or banished Subjects upon demand which might give sufficient ground for his desire or expectation of this Oath Quest. How then could Elijah lye hid in the House of the Widow of Sarepta Ans. That might easily be either because she her self or at least others did not know particularly who he was or because she used all possible care to conceal him her Conscience and Interest both obliging her so to do or because God secured him there 11 And now thou sayest Go tell thy lord Behold Elijah is there 12 And it shall come to pass as soon as I am gone from thee that the Spirit of the LORD r The Holy Ghost to whom the inspiration and conduct of the Prophets is commonly ascribed in Holy Scripture as Isa. 48. 16. and 61. 1. Matth. 4.
of both these Holy places God appeared and put forth such Acts of his Power as might justly terrifie his Enemies the God of Israel is he that giveth strength and power unto his people f The strength which the Kingdom of Israel now hath is not to be ascribed to my Valour or Conduct nor to the Courage or numbers of the People nor to that happy Union now made and Established among all the Tribes but onely to the might and Grace of God blessed be God PSAL. LXIX To the chief musician upon Shoshannim a Psalm of David This Psalm of David Consists of his Complaints and servent Prayers and Comfortable predictions of his Deliverance and of the Ruin of his Enemies But the Condition of this Psalm is like that of divers others wherein although the Matter or Substance of it agree in some sort to David yet there are some singular passages which he delivers with a particular Respect unto Christ of whom he was an Eminent Type and upon whom his Thoughts were much and often fixed and of whom they are more fitly and fully understood and therefore they are justly applied to him in the New Testament as we shall see 1 SAve me O God for * Jon. 2. 5. the waters a i. e. Tribulations which are oft expressed by waters as hath been observed are come in unto my soul b i. e. To my Vital parts so that I am ready to be choaked with them My Soul is exceeding sorrowful even unto Death 2 * Ver. 14. I sink in †Heb. the Mire of death deep mire c Heb. In the Mire of the deep Waters I am not in the Shallows or nigh the Bank but in the middle and deepest Parts and in the very Mire which is at the bottom of the Waters where there is no standing d No firm and sure footing but I sink in deeper and deeper and without thy speedy and Almighty help shall be overwhelmed and destroyed I am come into †Heb. depth of Waters deep waters where * Psal. 18. 4. the floods overflow me 3 I am weary of my crying e I have Prayed and Cryed to God long and servently and yet God seems to neglect and forsake me my throat is dried f With loud and frequent Cryes mine eyes fail g With looking to God for that Assistance which he hath Promised and I Confidently expected but in Vain while I wait for my God 4 They that * Joh. 15. 25. hate me without a cause g are more than the hairs of mine head they that would destroy me being mine enemies wrongfully are mighty then I restored that which I took not away h Without any injury or occasion given them by me i Either because they uniustly and violently forced me to it Or because I was willing to do it to my own wrong for Peace lâ—…ke By this one kind of Wrong he understands all those Injuries and Violences which they Practised against him 5 O God thou knowest my foolishness and my †Heb. 〈◊〉 sins are not hid from thee e. i This is added Either 1. As a Proof of his Innocency which he had now asserted by way of appeal to God do thou O Lord Judge between me and them whether I be Guilty of those Follies and Sins which they lay to my Charge And such Appeals indeed David useth Psal. 7. 3 4. and elsewhere But then they are delivered in form of a Supposition and not a positive Assertion as this is Or rather 2. As an Exception to what he last said But O Lord although I have been innocent to mine Enemies and have given them no cause to Hate or Persecute me as they do yet I must Confess I am guilty of many Sins and Follies against thee and have given thee just Cause to punish me and to give me up into their Hands and to deny or delay thine Help unto me By Foolishness he means Sin as he explains it which is commonly so called in Scripture Or by his Foolishness he means lesser sins Commited through Ignorance or Inconsiderateness and by sins those of a grosser Nature 6 Let not them that wait on thee f i. e. Thy Godly people who relye upon thy Promises which thou hast made to all thine in General and to me in a special manner wherein they also are concerned O LORD GOD of hosts be ashamed g i. e. Frustrated of their just Hopes which will make them ashamed Either to look up upon God or to look upon their Enemies when they shall Reproach them for their Confidence in God for my sake h Either 1. For the sake of my sins last mentioned let not all Good men suffer for my sins Or 2. Because of my sad Disappointments For if they see me Rejected and forsaken of God whom they have esteemed a great example of Faith and Prayer and all Vertue and Piety they will be exceedingly discouraged by this Example which will tend much to thy Dishonour and disservice let not those that seek thee be confounded for my sake O God of Israel 7 Because for thy sake i For my trust is in thy Promise and Obedience to thy Commands and Zeal for thy Glory and against all Wickedness All which they turn into matter of Derision and Reproach I have born reproach shame hath covered my face k In which mans Majesty and Glory is most Evident which I am in a manner ashamed to shew amongst men 8 I * Psal. 31. 11. am become a stranger unto my brethen and an alien unto my Mothers children l My nearest Kinsmen estranged themselves from me Partly out of Fear left they should be involved in my sufferings and Chiefly out of dislike of his Piety and excessive Zeal in Religion as it here follows 9 * Psal. 119. 139. Ioh. 2. 17. For m This is the Reason of that Alienation of my brethren and others from me because there is a vast difference and contrarity in our Tempers They mind not the concerns of God and of Religion but are wholly intent upon Wealth and Honour and Worldly greatness the zeal of thine house n That servent Passion which I have for thy House and Service and Glory and People hath eaten me up o Exhausted and wasted my natural Moisture and Vital Spirits which is oft effected by Grief and Anger and servent Love and Desire of which Passions Zeal is Composed * Rom. 15. 3. and the reproaches of them that reproached thee p That speak Contemptuously or Wickedly of thy Name or Providence or Truth or Worship and Service are fallen upon me q Either 1. By imputation They reflect upon me because I am engaged in the defence of thy Cause and Glory which wicked men oppose and despise and therefore must needs suffer in it and with it Or 2. By Choice and Affection I have been as deeply
expressed or implyed upon other occasions Or rather Thirdly It may be rendered his matter or thing i. e. the Business concerning the Child that which thou hast Promised or Vowed concerning him that he may grow up and be accepted and employed by God in his Service and that he when he is fully grown may not break thy Vow but confirm it so the woman abode and gave her son suck until she had weaned him 24 ¶ And when she had weaned him she took him up with her with three bullocks g Either First One to be offered at that time the other two presented to the Priest whether for his own use or to be offered afterwards as he saw fit Or Secondly One for a burnt-offering the Second for a sin-offering the Third for a peace-offering of which they might all Feast together for all these sorts seem expedient for this work and time and one ephah of flour h For the meat-offerings belonging to the principal Sacrifices which to each Bullock were three tenth-deals or three tenth parts of an Ephah as appears from Numb 15. 9. and 28. 12 and so nine Homers or nine parts of the Ephah were spent and the tenth part was either a separate meat-offering or given to the Priest and a bottle of wine i For drink-offerings according to the manner and brought him unto the house of the LORD in Shiloh and the child was young 25 And they slew a bullock k Either First One of the three at the present reserving the rest for the future Or Secondly The three bullocks mentioned v. 24. to which the Article here added in the Hebrew seems manifestly to relate there being no one Bullock there singled out to which it can belong And so it is only an Enallage of the Singular Number for the Plural which is frequent and brought the child to Eli. 26 And she said O my lord l A form of Speech to engage favourable attention as thy soul liveth m The usual Form of an Oath as Gen. 42. 15. 1 Sam. 17. 55. and 20. 3. As surely as thou livest Which asseverations seem necessary because this was some Years after it and was quite forgotten by him my lord I am the woman that stood by thee here praying unto the LORD 27 For this child I prayed and the LORD hath given me my petition which I asked of him 28 Therefore also I have ‖ Or 〈◊〉 him whom I have 〈◊〉 by petition 〈◊〉 the LORD lent him to the LORD n Or given him c. i. e. do now give or offer him for she did not lend him for a time with a purpose or right to require him again The words may be rendred thus And I also asked him or made my self to ask him an usual Hebraism for the Lord i. e. I Prayed for this Child not only for my self and to take away my reproach but especially that I might have a Child to Serve and Devote to the Lord. And so the following words as long as he liveth are not to be joyned with this foregoing Clause but with those which come next after them and that whole Clause may be thus rendred as a consequent upon the former And or therefore all the days in which he is or shall be he is or shall be lent or given to the Lord or as one begged for the Lord and for his Service and therefore justly given to him as long as he liveth ‖ Or he 〈◊〉 I have â—…ed by petition shall be returned he shall be lent o Or rendred or used as one given in my Prayer for this was the condition of my Prayer that he should be the Lords to the LORD And he p Not Eli who is not mentioned but v. 25. and then only passively not as speaking or doing any thing nor Elkanah of whom here is no mention but young Samuel who is the subject spoken of in this and the foregoing Verse and who was capable of worshipping God in some sort at least with External Adoration of which see on v. 22. And so the Particle there is Emphatical signifying that hereby he entred himself into the worship and service of God in that place to which he was Devoted by his Parents and now did Devote himself worshipped the LORD there CHAP. II. AND Hannah prayed a i. e. Praise God which is a part of Prayer Col. 4. 2. 1 Tim. 2. 1. so it is a Synecdochical expression and said * See Luk. 1. 46. c. My heart rejoiceth b Or leapeth for joy for the words note not only inward joy but also the outward Demonstrations of it in the LORD c As the Author and the Matter of my joy that he hath heard my Prayer and accepted my Son for his Service mine horn is exalted d My strength and glory which are oft signified by an Horn as Psal. 89. 17 24. and 92. 10. are advanced and manifested to my Vindication and the Confusion of mine Enemies in the LORD my mouth is enlarged e i. e. Opened wide to pour forth abundant Praises to God and to give a full answer to all the reproaches of mine Adversaries whereas before it was shut through Grief and Confusion over mine enemies f i. e. More than theirs or so as to get the Victory over them as she saith afterwards Here she manifests her great Prudence and Piety and Modesty that she doth not name Peninnah but only her Enemies in the general because I rejoyce in thy salvation g Because the matter of my joy is no trivial or Worldly thing but that strange and glorious Salvation or Deliverance which thou hast given me from my own oppressing Care and Grief and from the Insolencies and Reproaches of mine Enemies in giving me a Son and such a Son as this who shall be serviceable to God and to his People in helping them against their Enemies which she Presaged as may be guessed from v. 10. 2 * Deut. 32. 4. Psal. 56. 8. and â—…9 6 8. There is none holy as the LORD h None so perfectly unchangeably and constantly Holy as God hath shewed himself to be in this Act of Grace to me whereby he hath both checked the Proud and Mighty and Pleaded the Cause of his Afflicted Servants that trusted in Him and also Fulfilled his Promise in giving me a Son whom he hath Sanctified by his Grace to his Service all which are the proper Effects of Gods Holiness for there is none beside thee i Not onely none is so holy as thou art but in truth there is none Holy which word is easily understood out of the former clause besides thee to wit intirely or independently but onely by participation from thee Or as none have any holiness like thine so none have any Being besides thee unless by derivation from thee neither is there any rock like our God k Thou onely art a sure
houshold and to do ‡ Heb. the good in his eyes what he thought good and Shimei the son of Gera fell down before the king as he was come over Jordan l Or rather as he was passing or about to pass over Iordan but this was beyond Iordan for as he went over Iordan to the King v. 17. so doubtless he fell down before him at his first coming into his presence theâ—…e 19 And said unto the king Let not my lord impute iniquity unto me neither do thou remember * Chap. 16. 5. that which thy servant did perversly the day that my lord the king went out of jerusalem that the king should take it to his heart m i. e. Be affected with it or excited to Revenge it 20 For thy servant doth know that I have sinned n I do not excuse my Sin but with grief and shame Confess it in which case the Lord thy God is ready to Pardon Offenders and so I trust wilt'st thou be therefore behold I am come the first o The sense of my former Sin now hath and whilest I live will make me the first and most forward in all Acts of Duty and Service to thy Majesty this day of all the house of Joseph p Object He was a Benjamite Chap. 16. 5. How then doth he make himself one of the house of Ioseph Answ. The house of Ioseph is here put either 1. For the Ten Tribes which are oft distinguished from Iudah and then they are called the house of Ioseph as Zech. 10. 6. But this distinction was not made before the division of the People into two Kingdoms and even after that Division Benjamin was constantly reckoned with Iudah and not with Ioseph or Ephraim Or 2. For all the Tribes of Israel who are all called the children of Ioseph Psal. 77. 15. Comp. Psal. 80. 1. and 81. 5. as well they might not onely because of Ioseph's Eminency the most Eminent Persons and Things being oft put for the rest of the kind and because the rights of Primogeniture were in a great part devolved upon him 1 Chron. 5. 1. but also because Ioseph had been as a Father to them and had nourished them all like Children as is expressed in the Hebrew Text Gen. 47. 12. But in this sence this was not true for the House of Iudah came before him ver 15. Or rather 3. For all the Tribes except Iudah which are conveniently called the house of Ioseph for the reasons now mentioned and are fitly distinguished from Iudah because the Rights of the First-born were divided between Iudah and Ioseph 1 Chron. 5. 2. And though Benjamin after the Division of the Kingdoms was fitly joyned with Iudah because then they adhered to that Tribe yet before that time it was more conveniently joyned with Ioseph because they Marched under the Standard of the House of Ioseph or of Ephraim Numb 10. 22 23 24. Whence it is that Ephraim Benjamin and Manasseh are put together Psal. 80. 2. to go down to meet my lord the king 21 But Abishai the son of Zeruiah answered and said Shall not Shimei be put to death for this because he cursed the LORD's anointed q i. e. The King By this Expression he minds David of his former Zeal against those who offered any injury to Saul because he was the Lord's Anointed 1 Sam. 24. 6. and 26. 9. and therefore demands the same Justice against Shimei for his Cursing of the King which was so expresly forbidden Exod. 22. 28. and by the Analogy of that Law Exod. 21. 17. might seem punishable with Death 22 And David said What have I to do with you r I do not ask neither will I take your Advice in this Matter ye sons of Zeruiah s Implying that Ioab's hand was in this Contrivance or that he suspected it that ye should this day be adversaries unto me t i. e. That you put me upon things unfit for me to do and contrary to my present Interest for it was David's Interest at this time to Appease the People and reconcile them to him and not now to give them any new distast by acts of Severity for this would make others jealous that David will not forgive them neither but would watch an opportunity to be Revenged on them You pretend Friendship herein and would have me take it for an effect of your Zeal for my Service but in truth you give me such counsel as my Enemies would wish me to follow that thereby I might awaken the fears and jealousies of my People which are now asleep and cast them into a second Rebellion which either Ioab and Abishai really designed by this Advice that so Ioab might recover his Place again and be made necessary for the King's Service or David suspected that they did so * 1 Sam. 11. 13. Shall there any man be put to death this day in Israel for do not know that â—… am this day king over Israel u Is not my Kingdom which for my Sins was in a manner wholly lost just now restored and assured to me And when God hath been so Merciful to me in forgiving my Sin shall I now shew my self Revengeful to Shimei Shall I fully the Publick Joy and Glory of this Day with an act of such severity Or shall I alienate the Hearts of my People from me now when they are returning to me 23 Therefore * 1 King 2. 37 36. the King said unto Shimei Thou shalt not die x To wit this day as Abishai desireth nor whilest I live nor by my Hands as it is repeated and explained 1 King 2. 8. nor for this Cause alone For though David gave order to Solomon for his Punishment after his Death nor was it fit for the Publick Good that such a Horrid Crime should go Unpunished yet he would not have him Punished for this Fault alone but for some other Capital Crime which 〈◊〉 presumed Shimei's Temper would easily betray him to and Solomon's deep Wisdom would easily find out 1 King 2. 9. and the king sware unto him y That he would not put him to death with the Sword as it is expressed 1 King 2. 8. 24 ¶ And Mephibosheth the son z i. e. The Grandson 2 Sam. 6. 3 6. of Saul came down to meet the king and had neither dressed his feet a By cutting his Nails and by washing his Feet which was usual in hot Climates and very refreshing and therefore now neglected as becoming a Mourner nor trimmed his beard b But suffered it to grow very long and disorderly as was usual with many persons in a forlorn or mournful State nor washed his cloathes c His Linnen Clothes This and the former were signs that he was a true and obstinate Mourner that lay'd aside his usual Refreshments and they are here mentioned as Evidences of the Falshood of Ziba's former Relation concerning him Chap. 16. 3. from
Dreams it is but reasonable to allow something extraordinary For who can doubt but God may so clear up and assist a mans reason in his Dream that he may have a true and strong apprehension of some things which also may make a sutable impression upon the will or affections and consequently such acts of the Soul may be Moral acts and regardable by God and men And this might be a kind of exstatical rapture whereby his Soul might be as it were carried out of his Body as St. Paul's was 2 Cor. 12. 3. for a season in which case both his reason might clearly and distinctly apprehend Gods mind and his Gracious offer and his Will might make a free choice of Wisdom which therefore might be accepted and rewarded by God Thou hast shewed unto thy servant David my father great ‖ Or bounty mercy according as he walked before thee in truth q Either First Sincerely and without dissimulation But that is more fully expressed in the following words in uprightness of heart Or rather Secondly in the true Worship and Service of God in the profession belief practice and defence of the truth or of the true Religion or of Gods Will or Word which is called truth Prov. 23. 23. Ioh. 17. 17. Gal. 3. 1. So truth here contains all his duties to God as righteousness doth his duties to men and uprightness the right manner of performing both sorts of duties and in righteousness and in uprightness of heart with thee r i. e. In thy Judgment to whom alone his heart was known and to whom he oft appealed as the witness of his Integrity and with respect to whom he performed all his duties even to men and thou hast kept s Or reserved that which thou didst not reserve for Saul whose Posterity thou didst cut off from the Kingdom for him this great kindness that thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne as it is this day 7 And now O LORD my God thou hast made thy servant king in stead of David my father and I am but a little child s So he was in Years not as if he were now but twelve Years old as many gather from this name of Child for that name is given to Ishmael when 18 Years old Gen. 21. 14 15 and to Rehoboam when 41 Years old 2 Chron. 13. 7. where the word is the same in the Hebrew and before this time David calls him a wise man chap. 2. 9. but he was now not above 20 Years old and withal which he principally intends he was raw and unexperienced as a Child in State-Affairs and altogether unfit for so hard a task I know not how to go out or come in t i. e. To govern my People and manage Affairs as that Phrase signifies Num. 27. 17. Deut. 31. 2. Ios. 14. 11. 8 And thy servant is in the midst of thy people u i. e. Is set over them to rule and guide them A Metaphor from the Overseer of divers Workmen who usually is in the midst of them that he may the better observe how each of them dischargeth his office which thou hast chosen x Thy peculiar People whom thou takest special care of and therefore wiltst expect a more punctual account of my Government of them a great people that cannot be numbred nor counted for multitude 9 * â—… Chr. 1. 1â—… Give therefore thy servant an ‡ Heb. 〈◊〉 understanding heart y Whereby I may both clearly discern and faithfully perform all the parts of my duty for both these are spoken of in Scripture as the effects of a good understanding and he that lives in the neglect of his duties or the practice of wickedness is called a Fool and one void of understanding to judge z Or govern as that word is used Iudg. 3. 10. and 4. 4. Psal. 7. 8. and 67. 4. Isa. 2. 4. and 16. 5. thy people that I may discern between good and bad a To wit in Causes and Controversies among my People that I may not through mistakes or prejudices or passions give wrong Sentences and call evil good or good evil for who is able b Of himself or without thy Gracious assistance to judg this thy so great a people 10 And the speech pleased the LORD c How such a Dreaming-prayer could please God see in the notes on v. 5 and 6. that Solomon had asked this thing 11 And God said unto him Because thou hast asked this thing and hast not asked for thy self ‡ Heb. 〈◊〉 days long life neither hast asked riches for thy self nor hast asked the life of thine enemies d That God would take away their lives or put them into thy power to destroy them but hast asked for thy self understanding ‡ Heb to 〈◊〉 to discern judgment 12 Behold I have done according to thy word e I have granted and do at this present grant unto thee thy desire And accordingly at this time God did infuse into him a far higher degree and greater measure of Wisdom than he naturally had lo I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart f i. e. Wisdom to govern thy People to know and do thy several duties which was the thing that Solomon desired v. 7 9. and the effects whereof here follow v. 16 c. and withal all Divine and human Wisdom the knowledge of all things of all the Arts and Sciences as may be gathered from 1 King 4. 29 c. and that in a far greater proportion than by his years and the time he could get for his study could possibly produce so that there was none g Either no King or rather no man for he is herein preferred not onely before all Kings but before all men chap. 4. 31. no meer man since the fall equalled him to wit in universal knowledge and especially in the art of well governing his People like thee before thee neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee ‖ Quest. Did not the Apostles excel him Ans. They did not in Natural and Political knowledge but onely in the knowledge of the mysteries of Faith which were more freely and more fully imparted in those times the ignorance whereof was no disparagement to Solomon's Wisdom because they were not discoverable by any Creature without Divine revelation which God saw fit not to afford in Solomon's time I know no inconvenience in affirming that Solomon's Natural capacities were higher than any of the Apostles and Solomon had a more comprehensive knowledge of all things known in that Age than the Apostles had in all the discoveries of their Age. 13 And I have also * Mat. 6. 〈◊〉 given h Either First I have granted and decreed to give for words signifying action are oft put onely for the purpose of the action Or rather Secondly I will give as it is expressed in the Parallel place
and other Prophets when they were in company with others unto the prophet that brought him back d So he makes this Prophet publickly to call himself lyar and to pronounce a terrible Sentence against him to whom he professed so much kindness Indeed the Hebrew words are ambiguous and by others rendred thus to the Prophet whom he had brought back which agrees very well with the Hebrew Phrase and may seem to be the best Translation by comparing v. 23. where the very same Phrase iâ—… so rendred and ver 26. where this message is said to be spoken to him But these Arguments are not cogent not that from v. 23. because it is a common thing for the same Phrase in divers Verses and sometimes in one and the same Verse to be diversly used nor that from v. 27. for that may be rendred concerning him And Therefore our Translation is better as is manifest from v. 21. 21 And he cried e With a loud Voice the effect of his passion both for his own guilt and shame and for the Prophets approaching â—…sery and his unhappy influence both in procuring and iâ—… denouncing of it unto the man of God that came from Judah saying Thus saith the LORD Forasmuch as thou hast disobeyed the mouth f i. e. The word of command coming out of his mouth A Metonymy of the Cause for the Effect of the LORD and hast not kept the commandment which the LORD thy God commanded thee 22 But camest back and hast eaten bread and drunk water in the place of the which the LORD did say to thee Eat no bread and drink no water thy carcase shall not come unto the sepulchre of thy fathers g i. e. Thou shalt not die a natural but a violent death and that in this journey before thou returnest to thy native habitatition and thy Carkass shall not be buried in the proper Sepulchre which was esteemed a kind of Curse and a note of Infamy as the contrary was reckoned an honour and blessing See chap. 14. 13. Isa. 14. 19 20. Ier. 22. 19. and 26. 24. 23 ¶ And it came to pass after he had eaten bread and after he had drunk that he sadled for him the ass That he might sooner come to his home and if possible escape the Judgment threatned But it is observable he doth not accompany him his guilty Conscience making him to expect and fear to be involved in the same Judgment with him to wit for the prophet whom he had brought back 24 And when he was gone a * Chap. 20. 36. lion met him h For there were many Lions in Iudea and this was brought hither by Gods special Providence by the way and slew him i Why doth God punish a good man so severely for so small an offence Ans. First His sin was not small for it was a gross disobedience to a positive command Obj. But he supposed and was told by another Prophet that God had repealed his command and so was deceived Ans. He had no sufficient discharge from the former command for he neither was assured that the old man was a Prophet nor that the message he delivered was from God but had reason to suspect the contrary or at least to enquire the mind of God in this doubtful point which he grosly neglected to do and willingly believed the message because it suited with his own inclination and necessity Add to this that he being a Prophet was obliged to the greater exactness in obedience to all Gods Precepts and therefore this sin was much greater in him than in another because hereby God was dishonoured and the Authority and Success of his message blasted and Ieroboam and the Idolatrous Israelites hardened in their wicked courses for the prevention whereof it was necessary that God should exercise severity towards him Ans. Secondly As his sin was not so small so his punishment was not so great as may be imagined For as to his outward man his Bodily death which was a Debt that he owed to God and Nature in this way was not so painful and terrible as many other kinds of death and as to his Soul God by giving him a Gracious admonition both of his sin and danger ver 21 22. awakened him to true Repentance which doubtless he practised and so was prepared for his death and by this sudden death freed from all the miseries of an evil time and world and speedily let in to Eternal Glory Ans. Thirdly As the world and all men in it were made for Gods Glory and all their Lives and Deaths ought to be laid out in his Service so it cannot seem strange nor harsh if God should bring his deserved Death upon him in this manner for the accomplishment of his own Glorious Designs as to vindicate his own Honour and Justice from the imputation of partiality to assure the Truth of his Predictions and thereby provoke Ieroboam and his Idolatrous followers to Repentance to justify himself in all his Dreadful Judgments which he intended to inflict upon Ieroboam's House and the whole Kingdom of Israel for their Cursed Apostacy and to warn all succeeding sinners not rashly to venture upon small sins and especially to take heed of greater sins for which they might expect far sorer punishments and his carcase was cast in the way k His Life and Soul being gone his Dead Body falls to the ground and lies there and the ass stood by it the lion also stood by the carcase l See on v. 28. 25 And behold men passed by and saw the carcase cast in the way and the lion standing by the carcase and they came and told it in the city where the old prophet dwelt 26 And when the prophet that brought him back from the way heard thereof he said It is the man of God who was disobedient unto the word of the LORD therefore the LORD hath delivered him unto the lion which hath ‡ Heb. broken torn him and slain him according to the word of the LORD which he spake unto him m Or rather concerning him for so the Particle Lamed is oft used as Gen. 20. 13. Psal. 3. 2. and 91. 11. compare with Matth. 4. 6. See the Notes on v. 20. 27 And he spake to his sons saying Saddle me the ass n Being secure as to himself because so many others had been there without any harm and because he perceived the Prophet's Death was a Judgment of God and that for special reasons And they saddled him 28 And he went and found his carcase cast in the way and the ass and the lion standing by the carcase the lion had not eaten the carcase nor ‡ Heb. broken torn the ass o Here was a concurrence of Miracles That the Ass did not run away from the Lion according to his nature and custom but boldly stood still as reserving himself for the carrying of the Prophet to his Burial that
pretended to fear and serve both the Lord and Idols yet in truth they did not and do not fear or worship the Lord but their own Calves or other vain inventions And God will not accept that mongrel and false Worship which they pretend to give to the true God Or this may intimate that the Israelites were worse than their Successors because these feared the Lord and Idols too but they did quite cast off the fear and worship of God in their captivity and wholly degenerated into Heathenish Idolatry neither do they after their statutes d i. e. God's Law delivered to their Fathers and to them as their Inheritance Psal. 119. 111. This is alledged as an Evidence that they did not fear the Lord whatsoever they pretended because they lived in the constant breach of his statutes or after their ordinances or after the law and commandment which the LORD commanded the children of Jacob e i. e. Themselves the Noun put for the Pronoun which is usual among the Hebrews * Gen. 32. 28. and 35. 10. whom he named Israel f A Name signifying his special interest in God and power with him which was given to him not onely for himself but for his Posterity also whom God frequently honours with that Name And by this great favour he aggravates their sin 35 With whom the LORD had made a covenant g Containing many precious promises upon the condition here following see Gen 17. 7. Exod. 19. 5. and 24. 7. and charged them saying * Judg. 6. 10. Ye shall not fear other gods nor bow your selves to them nor serve them nor sacrifice to them 36 But the LORD who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with great power and a stretched-out arm him shall ye fear him shall ye worship and to him shall ye do sacrifice 37 And the statutes and the ordinances and the law and the commandment which he wrote for you ye shall observe to do for evermore and ye shall not fear other gods 38 And the covenant that I have made with you ye shall not forget neither shall ye fear other gods 39 But the Lord your God h i. e. God above as the whole context shews ye shall fear and he shall deliver you out of the hand of all your enemies i And therefore you have no pretence of need to go to other gods for relief 40 Howbeit they did not hearken but they did after their former manner 41 So k i. e. In like manner and after their example these nations l Who came in their stead feared the LORD and served their graven images both their children and their childrens children as did their fathers so do they unto this day CHAP. XVIII NOw it came to pass in the third year a In the third of those nine years mentioned chap. 17. 1. of which see there See below ver 10. of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel that * 2 Chron. 28 2â—… and 29. 1. He is called Ezekias Mat. 1. 9. Hezekiah the son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign 2 Twenty and five years old was he when he began to reign b How is this credible For then Ahaz who lived but Six and Thirty years chap. 16. 2. must beget Hezekiah at the Eleventh year of his Age. Ans. 1. There are some like instances mentioned by credible Authors which these very men will not deny who are so ready to quarrel with the holy Scriptures for such matters 2. This being the confessed custom of sacred and other Writers in the numbring of years sometimes to omit and sometimes to add those which are imperfect or unfinished And so Ahaz might be near One and twenty years old when he began to reign and near Seventeen years older when he died And on the other side Hezekiah when he began to reign might be onely Four and Twenty years old compleat and but entred into his Five and Twentieth year And thus Ahaz might be between Thirteen and Fourteen years old when he got Hezechiah which is not at all strange especially in that Nation to which God had promised a singular degree of Fruitfulness and in that House of David to which God had made so many and such great Promises 3. It is not certain that Ahaz lived onely Thirty six years for those Sixteen Years which he Reigned Chap. 16. 2. may be computed not from the first beginning of his Reign when he Reigned with his Father of which see the notes on Chap. 15. 30. which was at the Twentieth Year of his Age but from the beginning of his Reign alone 4. Some affirm That Hezekiah was not the Natural but onely the Legal Son and Successor of Ahaz for the name of Son is given in Scripture to such Persons as 1 Chron. 3. 16. comp with 2 King 24. 17. Matt. 1. 12. compared with Ier. 22. 30. and to Adopted Sons Act. 7. 21. Heb. 11. 24. And to Sons in Law 1 Sam. 24. 16. and 26. 17. Luk. 3. 23. Any of these Solutions are far more credible to any man of common prudence than that these Sacred Books whose Divine Original hath been so fully Evidenced both by God and Men are but the Fictions and Contrivances of a base Impostor And if none of these Solutions were sufficient it is absurd to conclude That a true Resolution 〈◊〉 be found because it is not yet found because it is 〈◊〉 That many difficulties both in Scripture and in 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 were formerly judged Insoluble have been 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and therefore we may justly expect 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Difficulties which may be thought 〈◊〉 Explained and he reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem his mothers name also was Abi the daughter of Zachariah c Or Abiah 2 Chron. 29. 1. 3 And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD according to all that which David his father did 4 * 2 Chro. 31. â—… ¶ He removed the high places d i. e. The most of them or such as the people most frequented for all were not taken away Chap. 23. 13 14. And this he attempted to do notwithstanding the peoples great and constant Affection to them partly because he had more Zeal and Courage than his Predecessors and partly because the Dreadful Judgments of God upon the Kingdom of Israel for their Superstition and Idolatry had made the People of Iudah more pliable to the Commands of God and of their good King and brake the †images and cut down the groves and brake ‡ Heb. Staâ—…es in pieces the * Numb 21. 9. brazen serpent that Moses had made e By God's Command to be an Ordinance or mean for the conveyance of God's Blessing to the People which therefore had been hitherto kept as a Memorial of God's Mercy but being now commonly abused to Superstition was destroyed for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it f Not
be my peculiar People and thou didst avouch me to be thy God Deut. 26. 17 18. 8. I will not reprove thee * Hos. 6. 6. for thy sacrifices or thy burnt-offerings u I do not Charge thee or at least this is not the principal matter of my Charge that thou hast neglected Sacrifices which thou shouldest have offered for although thou hast many times omitted thy Duty in that kind yet I have greater things than these to Charge thee with to have been x Or they have been I Confess thou hast being frequent in that Work and hast laid too great a stress upon it and satisfied thy Conscience with it as if thereby thou hadst made me amends for the Errors of thy Life continually before me 9. * 〈◊〉 6 6. Act. 17. 25. I will take no bullock out of thy house nor he-goats out of thy folds y But be not so vain and foolish as to imagine that thou dost lay any Obligations upon me by thy Sacrifices Or that I required them because I had need of them or took any Pleasure in them for themselves or for my own satisfaction by them 10. For every beast of the forrest is mine z I could Command or dispose them at my Pleasure without thy leave or Assistance and the cattle upon a thousand hills a Which feed upon innumerable Hills or in Vallyes and Fields 11. I know b Where they are and whence I can easily fetch them when I think good all the fowls of the mountains c Not onely tame and domestick Fowls but even such as are Wild and fly up and down upon Mountains which though out of mans reach are at Gods Command and the wild beasts of the field are †Heb. with 〈◊〉 mine 12. If I were hungry d If I wanted or desired any thing as I do not being the Al-sufficient God I would not tell thee e That thou mightest supply my Wants * Exod. 19. 5. Deut. 10. 14. Job 41. 11. Psal. 241. 1 Cor. 10. 26. 28. for the world is mine and the fulness thereof f i. e. All those Creatures wherewith it is replenished 13. Will I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats g If I did want any thing hast thou such Carnal and gross Conceptions of me that I need or delight in the Blood of Brute-Creatures 14. * Hos. 14. 2. Heb. 13. 15. Offer unto God thanksgiving h If thou wouldest know what Sacrifices I most prize and indespensably require in the first place it is that of Thankfulness and Praise proportionable to my great and Glorious and numberless Favours which doth not Consist barely in Verbal acknowledgments but proceeds from an Heart truly and deeply affected with Gods mercies and is accompanied with such a Course of Life as is grateful or Well-pleasing to God all which is plainly comprehended in Thanksgiving as that Duty is explained in other Scripture and pay thy vows i Either 1. Ceremonial vows the Sacrifices which thou hast vowed to God Or rather 2. Moral Vows for the things here mentioned are directly opposed unto Sacrifices and preferred before them for having disparaged and in some sort rejected their Sacrifices and Burnt-Offerings v. 8. it is not likely that he should have a better Opinion of or value for their vowed Sacrifices which were of an inferiour sort He seems therefore to understand those substantial Vows and Promises and Covenants which were the very Soul of their Sacrifices and to which their Sacrifices were but Appurtenances and Seals as was noted above on v. 5. whereby they did avouch the Lord to be their God and to walk in his ways c. as it is expressed Deut. 26. 17. and engaged themselves to Love and serve and obey the Lord according to that solemn Vow and Covenant which they entred into at Sinai Exod. 24. 3. 7 8. which they oft renewed and indeed did implicitly repeat in all their Sacrifices which were appointed for this very end to Confirm this Covenant unto the most High 15. And * Job 22. 27. call upon me k And make Conscience of that great Duty of Constant and servent Prayer to me which is an acknowledgment of thy Subjection to me and of thy Trust and dependence upon me and therefore is pleasing to me in the day of trouble l When trouble comes do not avoid it by sinful shifts nor trust to Creatures for Relief as Hypocrites generally do but give Glory to me by relying upon my Promises and expect Help from me by Hearty and unâ—…eigned Prayer I will deliver thee and thou shalt glorifie me m This is mentioned Either 1. As a Priviledge thou shalt have occasion to Praise and Glorifie me for thy Deliverance Or 2. As a further Duty thou shalt give me the Glory of thy Deliverance by praising me for it and improving it to my Service and Glory 16. But unto the wicked n i. e. The same ungodly and Hypocritical Professors whom he calleth Saints v. 5. in Regard of their Profession and here wicked in respect of their Practise and the truth of the thing God saith o He told them what he would not reprove them for v. 8. and why v. 9. 10. c. now he tells them for what he did reprove and Condemn them even for a vain and false Profession of Religion What hast thou to do to declare my statutes or that thou shouldest take my covenant in thy mouth p With what Confidence darest thou make mention of or boast of Gods Grace and Favour vouchsafed unto thee in giving thee such a Covenant and Statuâ—…es pretending to embrace them and to give up thy self to the Observation of them This not onely the Teachers of whom some understand these Words but all the Israelites in general Of whom he rather seems to speak 17. * 〈…〉 Seeing thou hatest instruction q Seeing thy Practise Contradicts thy Profession and makes thee a Notorious and impudent Lyar. Though with thy Mouth 〈◊〉 shewest much Love as is said of them Ezek. 33. 31. to my Statutes and Counsels yet in Truth thou hatest them as they are Curbs to thy beloved Lusts and Instruments of thy just Condemnation and a manifest reproach to thy Conversation Or Seeing thou hatest Reproof as this Word is oft rendred And this above all other parts of Gods word is most hateful to ungodly Men Prov. 9. 8. and 12. 1. and 15. 10. 12. Aâ—…os 5. 10. And therefore this is fitly alledged as an Evidence of their Wickedness and castest my words behind thee r As men do things which they abhor or despise 18. When thou sawest s Or didst observe or Consider When he came into thy Presence and Company and thou didst understand and Consider his ways and his Success and impunity and he invited thee to a Participation of his Prophets a thief then thou
against his Enemies Or 2. the Angels yea God himself from Heaven who gave manifest testimony to the righteousness of the Messias declare his righteousness and all the people see his glory l Both Jews and Gentiles shall see and feel the glorious effects of his coming 7 * Exod. 20. â—… Lev. 26. 1. Deut. 5. 8. Confounded be m Let them be ashamed of their former folly herein and be thereby brought to detest and forsake them and those who will obstinately persist in their impiety and Idolatry let them be brought to confusion Or They shall be confounded for this may be a prediction and not an imprecation all they that serve graven images that boast themselves of idols * Heb. 1. 6. worship him all ye gods n All you whom the Gentiles have made the objects of their worship and who are capable of giving him worship which two qualifications agree principally if not solely to the Angels of God whom the Heathens manifestly worshipped in their Images as an inferiour sort of gods of whom therefore this Text is expounded Heb. 1. 6. 8 Zion o Thy people dwelling in Zion or Ierusalem and Iudah to whom Christ came and among whom the Gospel was first preached Or thy Church and People who both in the Prophetical writings are oft called Zion heard p The fame of thy judgments as the following words declare the ruine of Idolatry and the setting up the Kingdom of the Messias in the World and was glad and the daughters of Judah q Particular Churches or rather persons members of Zion rejoyced because of thy judgments r Not that they took pleasure in the ruine of others but because that made way for the advancement of Gods glory and Christs Kingdom in the World O LORD 9 For thou LORD art high above all the earth thou art exalted far above all gods s As thou always wert so in in truth so thou hast now proved and declared thy self to be such in the Eyes of the whole World by subduing them under thy feet 10 Ye that love the LORD t O all you who love and worship the true God and his anointed and rejoice in the establishment of his Kingdom * Psal. 34. 14. Amos 5. 15. Rom. 12. 9. hate evil u Shew your love to him by your abhorrency of all Idolatry which is sometimes called evil or sin by way of eminency and of all other wickedness he preserveth the souls of his saints he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked x And although you that love the Lord Christ and his Kingdom will meet with many troubles and persecutions yet be not discouraged for he will preserve you in troubles and in his time deliver you out of them all 11 * Psal. 112. 4. Light y i. e. Joy and felicity as this word is used Esth. 8. 16. Psal. 112. 4. and oft elsewhere is sown z Is prepared or laid up for them and shall in due time be reaped by them possibly in this life but undoubtedly in the next And therefore bear your afflictions for Christ with patience and chearfulness for the righteous and gladness for the upright in heart 12 Rejoyce in the LORD ye righteous and give thanks ‖ Or to be â—…morial at the remembrance of his holiness a In consideration of his holy and righteous nature and government or of his faithfulness in making good that great promise of sending the Messias into the World for holiness is sometimes taken for faithfulness which is one part or branch of it PSAL. XCVIII A Psalm The matter and scope of this Psalm is the same with the former and is an evident prediction of the coming of the Messias and of the blessed effects thereof 1 O * 〈◊〉 33. 3. 〈◊〉 1. Sing unto the LORD a new song for he hath done marvellous things his right hand and his holy arm * 1 Sam. 25. 〈◊〉 Heb. hath gotten him the victory a God by his own onely power hath overcome all difficulties and Enemies and hath in spight of all set Christ upon his Throne and propagated his Kingdom in the World 2 * 〈◊〉 52. 10. The LORD hath made known his salvation b The redemption or salvation of the World by the Messias which was hitherto reserved as a secret among the Jews yea was not thoroughly known and believed by the most of the Jews themselves his righteousness c Either his faithfulness in accomplishing this great promise of sending the Messias or his goodness and mercy oft called by this Hebrew word or the righteousness of God or of Christ revealed in the Gospel hath he ‖ Or 〈◊〉 openly shewed in the sight of the heathen 3 He hath remembred his mercy and his truth c He hath now actually given that mercy which he had promised to the Israelites toward the house of Israel all the ends of the earth d All the Inhabitants of the Earth from one end to another have seen e i. e. Enjoyed it as this word is oft used as hath been proved again and again the salvation of our God 4 Make a joyful noise unto the LORD all the earth f Because you all do now partake of the same priviledges with the Jews join with them in worshipping and praising of God make a loud noise and rejoice and sing praise 5 Sing unto the LORD with the harp with the harp and the voice of a psalm g The worship of the New Testament is here described in phrases taken from the rites of the old as Psal. 92. 3. and oft elsewhere 6 With trumpets and sound of cornet make a joyful noise before the LORD the king 7 Let the sea roar and the fulness thereof h All those Creatures wherewith it is replenished which by a poetical strain are invited to praise God See of this and the next Verses the notes on Psal. 96. 11 12 13. the world and they that dwell therein 8 Let the flouds clap their hands let the hills be joyful together 9 Before the LORD * 〈◊〉 96. 13. for he cometh to judge the earth with righteousness shall he judge the world and the people with equity PSAL. XCIX This Psalm is supposed to be Davids and the matter of it seems to suit to his time and the state of affairs which then was although as David was a type of Christ so this Psalm may look beyond David unto the Messias But it doth not speak so fully nor clearly of the Messias as the foregoing Psalms do 1 * 〈◊〉 93. 1. THE LORD reigneth let the people a To wit such as are Enemies to God and to his people tremble * 〈◊〉 80. 1. he sitteth between the cheruhims b Upon the Ark. See 1 Sam. 4. 4. He is present with his people to protect them and to punish their Enemies let the
answers or speaks considerately and conscientiously and therefore profitably or to the use and Edification of the Hearers but the mouth b Not the Heart for he is without Heart in Scripture account and he rashly speaks what comes into his mouth without the direction of his Heart or Conscience of the wicked poureth out evil things c Foolish and unprofitable and hurtful Speeches 29 * Psal. 34. 1â—… The LORD is far from the wicked d To wit when they pray to him as the next clause explains and therefore doth not hear nor regard them as he is said to be nigh to the righteous Psal. 34. 18. 145. 18. But this farness or nearness respecteth not Gods Essence which is every where but his gracious and helpful presence but * Psal. 145. 18 19. he heareth the prayer of the righteous 30 The light of the Eyes rejoiceth the heart e The light which we see with our Eyes and by the help of which we see many other pleasant Objects is a great comfort and refreshment Compare Eccles. 11. 7. Truly the light is sweet and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the Sun which is a good Comment upon this place and ‖ Or goodness as Ch. 25. 25. a good report f Either 1. Glad tidings Or rather 2. A Good-Name which is a more lasting thing and makes deeper impression maketh the bones fat g Not only cheareth a man for the present but gives him such solid and stable comfort as doth both revive his soul and give Health and Vigour to his body So he compares two Senses together Seeing and Hearing with respect to their several Objects and prefers the latter before the former 31 The ear that heareth h The man that hearkeneth to it and delights in it the reproof of life i That Reproof and good Counsel which leads to Life abideth * Ver. 5. Chap. 12. 1. among the wise k Heb. shall or will abide c. Either 1. He will thereby be made wise and be esteemed one of that number Or rather 2. He seeketh and delighteth in the Company and Conversation of the Wise by whom he may be admonished as on the contrary Fools who hate Reproof do avoid and abhor the Society of Wise men and Reprovers Amos 5. 10. 32 He that refuseth ‖ Or correction instruction despiseth his own soul l Which hereby he exposeth to the danger of utter destruction whereby he shews his Folly but he that ‖ Or obeyeth heareth reproof †Heb. possesset an heart getteth understanding m Whereby he saveth his Soul Heb. possesseth an heart which the Hebrews make the seat of Wisdom 33 The fear of the LORD is the instruction of wisdom n Doth instruct men in or lead them to true Wisdom whence it is said to be the beginning of Wisdom Prov. 1. 7. â—… 10. and * Chap. 18. 12 before honour is o i. e. It is the ready way to Honour both from God and from Men. humility p Whereby men submit to God and yield to Men which gains them Love and Respect whereas Pride procures them Hatred and Contempt from God and Men. CHAP. XVI 1 THe * Ver. 9. Ch. 19. 2â—… 20. 24. Jer. 10. 23. ‖ Or disâ—… preparations of the heart in man and the answer of the tongue is from the LORD a Men can neither think nor speak wisely and well of themselves or without divine assistance Or as many others both ancient and modern Interpreters render the verse The preparations or dispositions or orderings of the heart are in or from a man i. e. a man may consider and contrive in his own thoughts what he wills or designs to speak Which is spoken by way of concession yet not excluding mans dependance upon God therein which is evident both from many plain Texts of Scripture and from undeniable Reason but the answer or speech as this word is oft used of the tongue is from the Lord. Men cannot express their own thoughts without Gods leave and help and their tongues are oft over-ruled by God to speak what was besides and above their own thoughts as he did Balaam Numb 23. and Cajaphas Ioh. 11. 49 50 51. 2 * Chap. â—…1 All the ways of man are clean in his own eyes b Many Men can easily flatter and deceive themselves into a good opinion of themselves and of their own actions though they be sinful See below v. 25. and compare 1 Cor. 4. 4. but the LORD weigheth c i. e. Exactly knoweth as men do the things which they weigh and examine the spirits d The hearts of men from which both mens actions and the goodness and badness of them in a great measure proceeds their ends and intentions their dispositions and affections which are hid not onely from others but oft times from a mans self whereby he is unfit to judge in his own cause and easily mistaken if he do not use great diligence and fidelity In this last clause he intimates the reason why men deceive themselves in judging of their state and Actions because they do not search their own hearts 3 * Psal. 37. 5. â—… 55. 22. Mat. 6. 25. Luke 12. 22 〈◊〉 5. 7. †Heb. roll Commit thy works unto the LORD e Heb. roll c. as a man rolls a burden to another which is too heavy for himself imploring his help Refer all thy actions and concerns to God and to his Glory as the end of them and in the discharge of thy own duty depend upon Gods Providence for assistance and success and thy thoughts shall be established f Thy honest desires and designs shall be brought to an happy issue one way or other 4 The LORD hath made g Or hath wrought or doth work for the Hebrews express the present as well as the past time by this tense he ordereth or disposeth for this may be understood either of the works of Creation or of Providence all things h And especially all men for himself i For his own service and glory for the discovery and illustration of his own Wisdom Power Goodness Truth Justice and his other most glorious Perfections * â—…ob 21. 20. 〈◊〉 9. 22. yea even the wicked k Wilful and impenitent Sinners for the day of evil l For the time of punishment as this Phrase is used Psal. 49. 5. Ier. 17. 18. and elsewhere of which the Scripture frequently speaks both to warn sinners of their danger and to satisfie the minds of them which are amazed and disquieted with the consideration of the present impunity and felicity of wicked men Men make themselves wicked and God therefore makes them miserable 5 * 〈◊〉 6. 17. 〈◊〉 13. Every one that is proud in heart m Though he dissemble it in his outward carriage
and from the Nature of the Thing for this really was the last Time and State of the Church in the World the Jewish Pedagogy was to be abolished but Christs Institutions were to continue to the end of the World that the mountain of the LORDS house d The Temple of the Lord which is upon Mount Moriah which yet is not to be understood literally of that Material Temple but mystically of the Church of God as appears from the next following Words which will not admit of a literal Interpretation and from the flowing of all Nations to it which was not to that Temple nor indeed was fulfilled till that Temple was destroyed and from the frequent use of this Metaphor the Temple or the House of the Lord concerning the Christian Church both in the Old and the New Testament shall be ‖ Or prepared established in the top of the mountains and shall be exalted above the hills e Shall be placed and setled in a most conspicuous and glorious manner being advanced above all other Churches and Kingdoms in the World and all nations f Those Gentiles whom you now despise and judge to be abhorred and quite forsaken by God shall flow g Shall come in great abundance and with great eagerness like a River as the Word signifies unto it 3 And many people shall go h Shall not onely have some weak desires of going but shall be ready to take pains and shall actually go and say i Such shall be their Zeal that they shall not onely go themselves but shall perswade and press others to go with them * Jer. 31. 6. 50. 5. Zech. 8. 21. Come ye and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD to the house of the God of Jacob and he will teach us of his ways and we will walk in his paths k They shew the truth of their Conversion by their hearty desire to be instructed in the way or method of worshipping and serving God acceptably and by their firm purpose of practising the Instructions given to them for l This last Clause contains the Reason why the People should be so forward to go and to invite others to go with them and they may be the Words either of the People continuing their Speech or of the Prophet now returning to speak in his own name out of Zion shall go forth the law m The New Law the Doctrine of the Gospel which is frequently called a Law because it hath the Nature and Power of a Law obliging us no less to the Belief and Practice of it than the Old Law did and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem n For the Accomplishment of this Promise see Luk. 24. 47. Act. 1. 8. Rom. 10. 18. 4 And he shall judge among the nations o Christ shall set up and use his Authority among and over all Nations not onely giving Laws to them as other Rulers do but doing that which no other Powers can do convincing their minds and Consciences conquering and changing their Hearts and ordering their Lives and shall rebuke p Either verbally by his Word and Spirit reproving or convincing the World of Sin or really by his Judgments upon his implacable Enemies which obstruct the Propagation of the Gospel many people and * Psal. 46. 9. Hos. 2. 18. Zech. 9. 10. they shall beat their swords into plow-shares and their spears into ‖ Or Sithes pruning-hooks nation shall not lift up sword against nation neither shall they learn war any more q He shall root out those great Animosities and Hostilities which were between the Jews and Gentiles Eph. 2. 13 c. and between several Nations subduing Mens Pride and Passions and Lusts which are the Causes of all Wars and Contentions and working Humility and Meekness and Self-denial and true and fervent Love to all Men from whence Peace necessarily follows This was the Design of the Gospel in all and the Effect of it in those that rightly received it And that War and Dissension which was occasioned by the Preaching of the Gospel as was foretold Mat. 10. 21 22. it was wholly accidental by reason of Mens corrupt Interests and Lusts which the Gospel opposed and it was not amongst those who received the Gospel in the love of it but between them and those who were either open Enemies or false Friends to them and to the Gospel But if this Place â—…e understood of an external and general Peace which was to be in the World in the Days of the Messias this also may in due time be verified when all Israel shall be saved and the fulness of the Gentiles shall be brought in and both Jews and Gentiles shall be united together into one Fold under Christ their great Shepherd all which is prophecied and promised Ioh. 10. 16. Rom. 11. and elsewhere For it is not necessary that all the Prophecies concerning the Kingdom of the Messias should be accomplished in an instant or at the beginning of it but it is sufficient if they be fulfilled before the end of it And some of them do manifestly belong to the last days of that Kingdom And therefore there is no truth nor weight in that Argument which the Jews bring from this Place against our Messias because of those Wars that have hitherto been and still are amongst Christians for this doth not prove that these Wars shall never cease or that there shall not be such a Peace in the World as they understand before the end of Christs Kingdom 5 O house of Jacob come ye r Seeing the Gentiles are thus ready and resolved to go to the Lords House let this oblige and provoke you O ye Israelites to go with them or before them Whereby he secretly intimates their backwardness and that when the Gentiles did come into the Church they would apostatize from it and let us walk * Chap. 10. 17. in the light of the LORD s Take heed that you do not reject that Light which is so clear that even the blind Gentiles will discern it 6 Therefore t For the following Reasons Or But as this Particle is oft used But why do I perswade the Israelites to receive the Light of the Gospel My labour is in vain I foresee they will refuse it and God for their many and great Sins will give them up to Apostacy and Infidelity thou hast forsaken u Wilt certainly forsake and reject thy people the house of Jacob x The Body of that Nation because they be replenished ‖ Or more than the east from the east y Their Land is full of the impious and superstitious and idolatrous Manners of the Eastern Nations the Syrians and Chaldaeans and * Deut. 18. 14. are soothsayers z These undertook to discover secret things and to foretel future contingent things by the superstitious Observation of the Stars or Clouds or
patient and merciful to thee that he gives thee liberty to demand of him any Signal or miraculous Work whereby thou mayst be assured of the Truth and Certainty of this Promise thy God u Both by right of Dominion and by vertue of his gracious Covenant made with all Israel of whom thou art a Member and King and by thy own Profession for he still worshipped God together with his Idols and by the continuance of his Care and Kindness to thee and to thy People notwithstanding all your Wickedness whereof this Promise and Offer is a clear Demonstration ‖ Or make thy pâ—…on deep ask it either in the depth or in the heighth above x Demand some Prodigie to be wrought either in Earth or in Heaven at thy pleasure 12 But Ahaz said I will not ask y This Refusal proceeded not from the strength of his Faith but from his contempt of God and total distrust and disregard of his Word and inward Resolution to take another Course as is manifest both from the following words and from the History of Ahaz 2 Chron. 28. neither will I tempt the LORD z Either 1. by asking a Sign as if he questioned the Truth of his Word So this was deep Hypocrisie Or 2. by neglecting any means necessary for my preservation which were indeed a tempting of God And therefore I shall not sit still and relie upon God till I be destroyed which will be the effect of thy Counsel but I shall do as becometh a wife King seek for Succour from Potent Allieâ—… such as the Assyrian is So this is flat Rebellion against God 13 And he said Hear ye now O house of David a Of which see above v. 2. He reproveth them all because they were the Kings Counsellors and promoted the Design of sending for the Assyrian Succours Is it a small thing for you b Is not that Wickedness more than enough Must you add more to it to weary men c To vex God's Prophets and People and the generality of your Subjects with your Oppressions and horrid Impieties but will ye weary my God also d By your cursed Ingratitude and Unbelief and Disobedience to his Commands He saith my God i. e. the God whose Servant and Prophet or Messenger I am to intimate that this heinous Offence was not committed against a weak and foolish Man such as they might think the Prophet to be but against God himself who sent the Message Compare Exod. 16. 8. 14 Therefore e Because you despise me and the Sign which I now offer to you God of his own free Grace will send you a more honourable Messenger and give you a nobler Sign to try whether that will cure you of your Infidelity Or Nevertheless as this Particle seems to be understood Isa. 30. 18. Ier. 16. 14. 30. 16. Although you deserve no Sign nor Favour yet for the comfort of those few Believers which are among you and to leave you without excuse I shall mind you of another and a greater Sign which God hath promised and will in his due time perform which also â—…s a Pledge of the certain Accomplishment of all God's Promises Or Surely as this Particle is sometimes used as Gen. 4. 15. Ier. 2. 33. 5. 2. Zech. 11. 7. the Lord himself shall give you a sign f To wit of your Deliverance Qu. How was this Birth of a Virgin which was not to come till many Ages after a Sign of their Deliverance from the present Danger Answ. 1. Because this was a clear Demonstration of God's infinite Power and Goodness and Faithfulness and consequently of the certain Truth of all God's Promises from time to time which can never fail so long as those Attributes of God stand And mens Faith is either strong or weak as they believe them or doubt of them Of which see Psal. 77. 8. 78. 19 20. Rom. 4. 20 21. And so this was a proper Remedy for Ahaz his Disease which was a secret Suspicion that God either could not or would not deliver them 2. Because that Promise I say not onely the actual Giving which was long after but even the Promise of the Messiah which had been made long since and oft renewed and was universally believed by all the People was the Foundation of all God's Mercies and Promises unto them 2 Cor. 1. 20. and a Pledge of the Accomplishment of them 3. Because this promised Birth did suppose and require the Preservation of that City and Nation and Tribe in and of which the Messiah was to be born and therefore there was no cause to fear that utter Ruine which their Enemies now threatned to bring upon them 4. This is one but not the onely Sign here given as we shall see at v. 16. * Maâ—… 1. 2â—… Luk. 1. â—…1 Behold g You who will not believe that God alone is able to deliver you from the united Force of Syria and Israel take nocice for your full satisfaction that God is not onely able to do this Work but to do far greater and harder things which he hath promised and therefore both can and will accomplish a virgin h Strictly and properly so called The Iews that they may obscure this plain Text and weaken this Proof of the Truth of Christian Religion pretend that this Hebrew Word signifies a young woman and not a virgin But this corrupt Translation is easily confuted 1. Because this Word constantly signifies a virgin in all other places of Scripture where it is used which are Gen. 24. 43. compared with v. 15. Exod. 2. 8. Psal. 68. 25. Cant. 1. 3. 6. 8. To which may be added Prov. 30. 19. the way of a man with a maid or a virgin For though it be supposed that he did design and desire to corrupt her and afterwards did so yet she may well be called a virgin partly because he found her a Virgin and partly because she seemed and pretended to others to be such which made her more careful to use all possible Arts to preserve her Reputation and so made the discovery of her impure Conversation with the Man more difficult whereas the filthy Practices of Common Harlots are easily and vulgarly known 2. From the scope of this Place which is to confirm their Faith by a strange and prodigious Sign which surely could not be that a young Woman should conceive a Child but that a Virgin should conceive c. shall conceive and bear i Or rather bring fâ—…rth as it is rendred Mat. 1. 23. and as this Hebrew Word is used Gen. 16. 11. 1â—… â—…9 Iudg. 13. 5. a son and ‖ Or thou O virgin 〈◊〉 alâ—… call shall call k The Virgin last mentioned shall call Which is added as a further Evidence of her Virginity and that this Son had no Humane Father because the Right of Naming the Child which being a Sign of Dominion is primarily in
3. 17. path in the mighty waters t Who as he formerly made a path-way for his people through the Red Sea so he will in no less wonderful manner remove all impediments or difficulties out of the way of his people when they return from Babylon 17 Which bringeth forth the chariot and horse the army and the power u Or rather Who brought forth the Chariots c. i. e. Pharoah and his Chariots and Horses and Army as may be gathered from the next verse where the things here mentioned are called former things and things of old they shall lie down together they shall not rise x Or they did lie down together to wit in the bottom of the Sea they did not rise they sank like lead as it is said Exod. 15. 10. and they never rose again to molest the Israelites as God promised Exod. 14. 13. These two Hebrew Verbs are of the future tense but that seems to be put for the preter tense because the two following Verbs which treat of the same thing and are added to explain these are of the pretertense they are extinct they are quenched as tow y As the wieke of a Candle when it is put into the Water is wholly extinguished and not the least spark of fire left so were they utterly destroyed and not one of them remained 18 * Chap. 46. 9. Remember ye not the former things neither consider the things of old z But although your former deliverance out of Egypt was in it self a most glorious work which you ought alwayes to remember and consider yet this other work of your deliverance out of Babylon by Cyrus and those blessings which shall follow upon it and particularly that inestimable mercy of sending the Messiah shall be so transcendent a favour that in comparison thereof all your former deliverances are scarce worthy of your remembrance and consideration Which exposition is confirmed by two parallel texts Ier. 16. 14 15. 23. 7 8. From all which texts layd together it appears that this later deliverance compared with that out of Egypt is not to be confined to their freedom from the Babylonish Captivity but to be extended to the consequences of it and especially to the Redemption by Christ because otherwise that Egyptian deliverance was more glorious and wonderful in many respects than the Babylonian 19 Behold I will do a * 2 Cor. 5. 17. Rev. 21. 5. new thing a Such a work as was never yet done in the World even the Redemption of the World by the Messiah now b Shortly although it was not to be done till after some hundreds of years For so the Scripture oft speaketh of things at a great distance of time as if they were now at hand as Hagg. 2. 6. Iam. 5. 9. Rev. 22. 20. and elsewhere which it doth to â—…orrect our impatience and to make us willing to wait till Gods time come and to assure us that the mercy shall come as soon as ever it is fit for us and we for it and to make us sensible of the inconsiderableness of time and all temporal things in comparison of God and of the eternal things upon which account it is said that a thousand years are in Gods sight but as one day Psal. 90. 4. it shall spring forth shall ye not know it c Certainly you Iews shall know it by experience and shall find that I do not deceive you with vain hopes I will even make * Chap. 42. 16 Jer. 31. 9. a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert d I will give you direction and provision in the Wilderness where there is commonly no path and where all necessaries are wanting Which as it literally speaks of Gods conducting them in the way from Babylon to Ierusalem which lay through a great desert so it is mystically meant of those spiritual blessings which God in and through Christ will confer upon all his people not the Iews onely but also the Gentiles who in Prophetical Language are oft compared to the Wilderness as Isa. 35. 1. and elsewhere 20. The beast of the field shall honour me e Shall have cause if they had abilities to honour and praise me for their share in this mercy Possibly the beast of the field may mystically signify the Gentiles whom the Iews reputed as Beasts and who were as destitute of all saving knowledge as the Beasts which perish yet should become the Lords People as they seem to be called ver 21. the dragons f Which live in dry and barren deserts and are very thirsty and therefore more sensible of this mercy and the ‖ Or ostrickes †Heb. daughters of the owl owls because I give waters in the wilderness and rivers in the desert to give drink to my people g To whom these waters were principally designed but the beasts fared better for their sakes Thus Christ was primarily sent to the lost Sheep of Israel Mat. 15. 24. yet the Gentiles there compared to Doggs fared better for the Children picking up some crumbs of their bread and the Iews generally rejecting Christ the Gentiles came in their stead my chosen 21. * Luk. 1. 74. 75. This people h My People as he now called them ver 20. consisting in part of the Iews but especially of the Gentiles have I formed for my self * 1 Pet. 2. 9. they shall shew forth my praise i I have created as it were out of nothing I have called them into my Church that I might have glory and praise from them for so stupendious a mercy 22. But k Or For as this conjunction is oft used So this may be added as a reason why God called the Gentiles to be his people because the Iews forsook him thou hast not called upon me l Thou hast grosly neglected or very slightly performed the duties of my worship O Iacob but thou hast been weary of me m Thou hast not esteemed my service to be a priviledge as in truth it is but as a burden and bondage Compare Mal. 1. 13. O Israel 23. Thou hast not brought me the †Heb. lambs or kids small cattel of thy burnt offerings n Either 1. Because thou didst not offer thy Sacrifices to me but to Idols Or rather 2. because what thou didst offer was not done to me not for my sake not from a principle of love and obedience to me not to please and honour me with it but meerly for thine own ends Which interpretation seems to be favoured by the following clause and by comparing this with Zech. 7. 5 6. Did ye fast unto me even to me And when ye did eat did ye not eat for your selves neither hast thou honoured me with thy sacrifices o Because thou didst either neglect this work of Sacrificing to me or didst perform it meerly out of custome or ill design and not with a